Patty Sheperd, age 14, of Watertown, N.Y., for her question:

WHO WERE THE TITANS?

The Titans were the first gods in Greek mythology. Most of them represented, in human form, such natural phenomena as the earth, sky and the sun. Previously, the universe had existed in a state of emptiness called Chaos.

The youngest and most important offspring of Gaea and Uranus was Cronus, who married Rhea, his sister. Cronus became the king of the gods.

The youngest son of Rhea and Cronus was Zeus, who eventually banished Cronus and the Titans to Tartarus, an underground region. The defeat established Zeus as the supreme ruler of the universe and thus played an important role in the religion of the ancient Greeks.