Jimmie Kauffman, age 7i, of Lancaster, Penna., for his question:

How did the Atlantic Ocean get its name?

The ancient Greeks had the idea that the world was held up on the shoulders of a giant named Atlas. One day, so the story goes, this weary giant was impolite to the hero Perseus.  Perseus right away turned Atlas into a mountain, Mount Atlas of Lybia.

From that time, places near the mountain were said to be in the Atlantic neighborhood. The sea which lapped against the western shores of Europe and Africa was named the Atlantic Ocean, The word atlantic was also used to mean anything which reminded people of the mighty giant who was thought to hold up the world.

For that reason the word atlantic could mean anything big sand strong. Any sailor will tell you that a word meaning both big and strong is a good name for the Atlantic Ocean.