108 items in this section. Displaying page 3 of 11
What is Daylight Saving Time?
People in some parts of the world gain an extra hour in winters and are able to sleep and snore that much longer thanks to a suggestion by Benjamin Franklin about daylight saving time. But when the suggestion was first made, it raised such a furore not only from those kept awake by the extra snoring but also from others and they wasted a lot of time fighting over this extra hour. Actually the confusion began when the postal service and the railways began to connect far-flung cities....
Where does the Pigeon Post Operate?
Among birds, pigeons have a natural and unerring instinct of returning to their nests or homes after long flights. In the early days besides domesticating animals like the horse, dog and cow, people also bred pigeons to carry messages back and forth. These pigeons are called homing pigeons. Racing pigeons have a life span of 15-20 years. A healthy bird can fly stretches upto 1,000 km. Normally the message is tied around the feet of the pigeon in a plastic capsule to protect the paper....
Nikola Tesla – Unsung Prophet of Electrical Age
If you ask anyone or check up in the encyclopaedia, who invented the radio or X-rays, chances are you will never come across the name of Nikola Tesla there. Look up fluorescent bulb, neon lights, car ignition system, electron microscope, microwave oven and many others – you can search page after page but your search will turn up zilch on Tesla in any normal reference book. In fact very few have heard of Nikola Tesla, a brilliant scientist who lived at the turn of the century....
Why do People Kiss Under the Mistletoe?
In millions of homes in Europe and America, a sprig of mistletoe with berries is hung outside the doorway at Christmastime. According to custom, a man is allowed to kiss a girl if she is standing under the mistletoe. Why do People Kiss Under the Mistletoe? Legend has it that when Balder, the son of the Norse goddess Frigga was killed by an arrow made of mistletoe by Loki, an evil spirit, Frigga wept tears of white berries which brought him back to life....
Where did the Yo-Yo Originate?
Yo! Man! Know where the yo-yo comes from? No, I am not asking you to name the local toy store. Sorry, let me rephrase it. Gimme its history, guys. You thought the yo-yo was created by Donald Duncan, huh? Forget it! The yo-yo is nearly a millennium old! So, it wasn’t called the yo-yo then. But for want of a better name let’s stick to calling it the yo-yo, okay? Kids all over the world have played with a similar toy....
What are Canal Locks?
In some rivers or canals the water is not too deep for large ocean-going ships. In such places large watertight compartments are built that help ships and boats go up or down different levels on rivers or canals. These are called canal locks. In certain areas, man-made canals are constructed to connect two water bodies. These canals are built to help cut down the distance a large ship would otherwise have to take to reach its destination....
How did Sign Language Originate?
Have you ever seen people deep in conversation with each other without a single sound coming from their lips? Their hands and fingers move animatedly as they silently ‘speak’ sentences that sometimes you can also guess at. These people are actually conversing using sign language because they are hearing or speech impaired. Across the world, people have developed sign language to communicate with each other and with the rest of the world. Signs and gestures have always been in use....
How Did Pencils Originate?
Not many people know that the pencil they use everyday can trace its history back 2000 years! Early writers, or scribes as they were called, of ancient Egypt, Rome and Greece wrote on forms of paper called papyrus. They used a stylus which was a metal rod made of lead. That is why we still call the black core of the pencil as “lead” even though it is made from graphite! Graphite was discovered sometime in the 16th century in England....
Where Do Penguins Live?
Short, fat and looking as if they were attending a formal dinner dressed in a tuxedo, penguins could easily be mistaken for people from a distance! Penguins are flightless birds found in the southern hemisphere. No, they are NOT found near the North Pole. Scientists feel that these birds became flightless as food was available in plenty. But their food was located underwater so they adapted to the sea with short flipper-like wings. Where Do Penguins Live?...
Why do Beavers Build Dams?
Picture a giant rat with a flat tail and webbed feet. That’s what the beaver looks like. There are two kinds of beavers: the American and the European. The European beaver, found in Norway, Poland, Germany and France, lives in burrows. But the American beaver builds a dam across a stream or lake to construct his home or lodge. The lodges are made of huge logs of trees. Why do Beavers Build Dams? [Illustration by Sudheer Nath] The American beaver constructs solid dams and lodges because it has the mind of an expert engineer among all the creatures in the animal kingdom....