108 items in this section. Displaying page 9 of 11
Talkie Star from the Silent Era
Talkie Star from the Silent Era [] August 19: At times the story of an actor’s life is no less adventurous than the exciting roles he plays on the film screen. P Jairaj was such an actor, who chose to leave the comfort of an aristocratic life for the ups and downs of a career in the magical art of cinema, which was a big novelty then. The acting bug that bit him during his wide-eyed viewings of the films of India’s first filmmaker, Dadasaheb Phalke, never left him....
Who was the US President for a Day?
Quick all you quizzards and prospective Who Wants to be a Millionaire candidates: Who was the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth Presidents of the United States? James Polk, Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore . .? Yeah, but what about David Atchison? Wasn’t he sworn in after Polk? So shouldn’t Atchison be the 12th president and not Zachary Taylor? Yes. It’s true. There was a gap of a day between Polk stepping down and Taylor taking over. And Atchison stepped in as President – just for one day!...
Why do we Celebrate April Fool's Day?
Breaking news: Linus Torvalds, (a competitor of Microsoft) has decided to join hands with Microsoft! Alien spacecraft lands at Siberia. Scientists are rushing from across the world to investigate it! What is your reaction on reading these statements? Disbelief? Taken aback? Yes, this is exactly what people may want you to do on this day — take you for a ride! It is April First or Fool’s Day! Most people are fooled when they hear some such unsuspecting news!...
Why Do Knuckles Pop?
Have you ever laced your fingers together and bent your fingers back? If you pressed hard on any bent finger, you would have heard a popping sound? Finger joints produce that loud c-r-a-c-king sound. The sound comes when bubbles in the fluid around the joint burst! Our entire body is made of a skeleton of 206 bones. Bones help in giving shape and support to the body and help us move about. Our bones are not too long otherwise we would not be able to bend or grasp things....
Do Some Animals Farm?
We all live the way we do in villages and cities because a long, long time ago, the early humans gave up hunting for farming. They domesticated plant species by cultivation, ploughed the land and harvested the grain. That was the beginning of civilisation as we understand it. But, do you know that certain ant species were actually farming fungus years before humans learnt how to farm? For many millions of years, ants belonging to the attines group were farming and cultivating fungi in their anthill nests....
When was the First Circumnavigation by Air?
Ever since Colombus set sail to see if the world was flat or round, intrepid explorers have vied with each other to go around the earth. The world has been circumnavigated by sea by Marco Polo and people have walked across continents from end to end. But until 1924 no one had tried to circumnavigate the world by air except over a continent by a balloon in a Jules Verne novel. Eight Americans decided to circumnavigate the world by plane....
What are Q-Tips?
Everbody has used this product at some time or other in some form or other. Sometimes it is used to clean the wax from your ears, and sometimes to clean dust from delicate instruments. Many kick themselves for not patenting it when they knew about it. So what are Q-Tips? It is such a simple silly thingummy – a piece of thick plastic or cardboard with cotton wrapped at each end! Q-Tips are today, a registered trademark of Chesebrough-Ponds, Inc, USA....
What is Asthma?
Asthma is one of the most common diseases affecting the lungs. A serious disease, it affects all races and both sexes equally. This disease affects millions. Many of us recognize asthma symptoms like wheezing, chest tightness and gasping for breath. However, few of us know what is going on inside the body of a person with asthma. When we breathe, we inhale oxygen through the nose and mouth. The air passes down the trachea or windpipe through the two bronchi that branch off into the millions of tiny airways that make up the lungs....
The 24-hour Film!
Guess how long it takes to make a feature film, say like Star Wars or The Sixth Sense? Nothing less than three to four months! And that’s rushing it through. And if it’s a musical or action film, it will take longer as you add in rehearsal time. Hollywood makes something like 250 films a year and that’s counting foreign language films too. However, the largest film producing country in the world is India with over 700 feature films a year and in 16 Indian languages....
Hopscotch
Ever played hopscotch as a kid? Hopped from square to square on one leg? Haven’t heard of it? Impossible! Hopscotch’s great fun. It’s a traditional game played by kids all over the world with many variations. I used to play it with other kids near my home. Okay, I’ll let you in on this game if you will tell me about some you played as kids. All hopscotch requires is a rectangular area, a piece of chalk and a flat stone chip....