210 items in this section. Displaying page 14 of 21
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 Dry Clouds?
It is that time of the year when all of us look to the sky, waiting for the first drops of rain to fall on our faces. We wish the monsoon would come soon. But for people who live in polluted cities like Delhi or Tokyo, there’s some bad news. Israeli scientists have discovered that air pollution may actually stop rain from falling. To know how pollution may prevent rain from falling, it is necessary to know how and when rain falls....
Why are Moths Attracted to Light?
Have you seen moths zoom into a flame and die? It looks as if they are pulled by some unseen force. It is an unseen force that attracts the moth — the ultraviolent light in the flame, which is invisible to humans. The moth finds it irresistible. It is driven to the light by its mating instinct. Why are Moths attracted to light? Ultraviolet vision helps moths get together in the dark....
How do they Make an Igloo?
To many of us, building a house of ice doesn’t sound too good. One might wake up from a good night’s sleep to see it melted. All these things don’t matter to Eskimos, who live in north Canada, Greenland and Alaska. They build igloos or houses of ice knowing that they will not melt. At least, not till winter passes by. The reason is that the walls are made in a special way so that they become rock hard....
Who Invented Traffic Lights?
Long before roads needed traffic lights, railways were using a system of signals to control train traffic. In the early railways, a single track was used for both up-going and down-going trains, and safety depended on spacing the arrival and departure of trains according to time intervals. These signals consisted of a ball and something that looked like a kite. When the kite was raised on top it indicated danger while if the ball was raised, it indicated the all clear....
What is Cloud Seeding?
There was a time when a farmer would sit out in his field, watching a lonesome cloud float away, taking with it the last hope of a much-needed burst of rain. As humans take control over more and more natural processes – not necessarily for the betterment of civilisation – rain too seems to have finally been leashed in. Just like a farmer throws seeds on ploughed land to harvest plants, clouds can also be seeded with chemicals to induce rain!...
Why do Flies have Compound Eyes?
Just like a man woos the woman he loves, takes her to nice restaurants, buys her presents, and courts her to impress her before marriage, animals too choose their mates through courtship. Since animals cannot do all these, they do it differently. Some animals put up a colourful display, while others give little gifts to their beloved – a choice worm, a designer nest and so on. A few species display their love through a series of grunts and others, like the Saurus crane or the stickleback fish, perform an intricate courtship dance....
How do Human Cannonballs Fly?
Even been to a circus where they featured a human cannonball? A person enters a huge cannon and when the fuse is lit, he comes shooting out with a bang, flying in the air before landing on a net! My god! I thought that was the most horrifying thing I had ever seen. What a crazy thing to do. How does he do it without being blown to pieces, I would wonder. How do Human Cannonballs Fly?...
Why do Aircrafts Have a Black Box?
Often, after an air disaster, we hear about the black box in the news. The black box does not play any part in making an aircraft fly but it serves an important function. It is basically an electronic device used by investigators to discover the cause of a crash and may be, prevent others. Why do Aircrafts Have a Black Box? [Illustration by Shiju George] The black box can be inserted or removed from an aircraft....
What Kind of Creatures are Sharks?
Sharks can be found in every ocean of the world. To many people, there’s only one kind of shark: the man-eating white shark of the movie Jaws. They think sharks are ruthless predators that attack anything they come across. Sharks are sometimes thought of as primitive creatures as they have been in existence for million of years. In fact, sharks are very intelligent. They have a fantastic sense of smell and hearing as well as good vision in low light conditions....