Hey there, I'm Farmer Joe. 

Welcome to my farm! I'm going to go check on my chickens. Come join me!

Looks like Georgia is brooding! 

That means Georgia wants to keep her eggs warm, so she’s going to sit on top, but very gently.

Let's learn more about her eggs!

The eggshell must be strong enough to protect the little chicks until they are fully grown and ready to come out.

But what makes it strong in the first place? Let's take a closer look at its nanostructure!

If we zoom in, there’s a tiny pattern that gets bigger. See? Here’s some calcium, which makes our bones strong!

Near it, we have a protein called osteopontin.

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When calcium and osteopontin work together, they can make the thin eggshell very strong!

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Also, do you notice anything special about the shape of the egg?

That's right! It has a dome shape. This round cover is like a helmet for the egg.

When Georgia sits on the egg, this dome shape spreads her weight across the egg so she doesn’t break it. 

Some of you might be wondering. But Farmer Joe, how does the baby chick hatch if the egg is so strong?