Archives September 2013

"Seek wood already touched by fire. It is not then so very hard to set alight." African proverb Fire is an essential tool, control of which helped to start the human race on its path to civilization. The original source of fire was probably lightning, and for generation blazes ignited in this manner remained the only source of fire. Initially Peking Man, who lived around 500,000 B.C.E., was believed to be the earliest user of fire, but evidence uncovered in Kenya in 1981, and in South Africa in 1988, suggests that the earliest controlled use of fire by hominids dates from about 1,420,000 years ago. Fires were kept alive permanently because of the difficulty of reigniting them, being allowed to burn by day and damped down at night. Flint struck against pyrites or friction methods were the most widespread methods of producing fire among primitive people. The first human beings more...

India is a home of beggars. In no other country you will find so many beggars. The reason is that begging is a profession in India. Many of the beggars are beggars by birth. They do not like to change,their profession. They make their living with ease. All beggars are an object of pity. They wear rags. Some are seen in a loin-cloth. They go about from place to place on the daily rounds. They are very persistent. Some wear lose clothes. They cover their bodies with ashes. They have long matted hair. Some of them are really disabled. Some are crippled and blind. They deserve our help and sympathy. Some beggars wear oiled rags around their legs. They pretend to be crippled. The beggar is usually quite clever and even cunning. He has many ways and means of begging. He may go about as a pretended sadhu. He keeps more...

The history of sewing is closely allied to the history of tools. The earliest needles ever discovered date from the Paleolithic era (the early Stone Age), around 25,000 B.C.E. Key finds from that period include needles in southwest France and near Moscow in Russia. These were made of ivory or bone, with an eyelet gouged out. Some have been found alongside the remains of foxes and hares that were used for their fur. Sewing gave our early ancestors the opportunity to make clothing more closely tailored to the human body, improving its insulation and comfort, as well as inviting decoration. Early scraps of cloth found in France and Switzerland have included decorative seeds or animal teeth sewn on by thread, applied perhaps with the aid of fishbones or thorns. Native Americans sewed with the tips of agave leaves. Metal needles were developed in the8rbh'zeAge (2000-800 B.C.E.) and initially were made more...

"[The] question is how to be ready for a new world of reporting and commentary by Internet rules." Christopher Lydon The first decade of the twenty-first century has seen a proliferation in new communications technology. It is now possible to watch a favorite television show on a laptop, read a newspaper on a cell phone, or listen to a radio broadcast on an MP3 player. The evolution of the podcast is one more important development. A podcast is a digital audio or video file, distributed automatically to a subscribed user. That user can then listen to or view the file on a mobile device such as a personal computer, MP3 player, or cell phone. The podcaster first creates a "show"—usually a video or MP3 audio file—and then an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed file that points to where the podcast can be found. The receiver uses "aggregator" software to subscribe; more...

India is a land which has been gifted with a variety of seasons. These seasons have their own importance and significance. Winter season provides the rich with an opportunity to show their wealth by wearing costly woolen clothes and to spend winter in the most comfortable manner.  Then, we have the rainy season. Every season has its own pleasures and thrills. But the joys, which summer season brings, are really unparalleled. It is the spring season that brings blooming and blossoming flowers. The gardens, the pastures, the meadows and the valleys are clothed in green velvet. Everything in nature seems to be at its full youth and maturity. The nature presents itself in the most delightful mood. Everything seems to be happy and cheerful. The birds chirp amidst green leaves and cool shade. On the whole, one finds nature in fall bloom during the spring season. The summer season is more...

"Conditional co-operation is like adulterated cement which does not bind…” Mahatma Gandhi  Joseph Aspdin (1778-1855) invented the first Portland cement, named after the gray Portland stone it resembled, in 1824. However, his cement set too quickly and had poor early strength. Joseph's son William then noticed that when the constituent clay and limestone are burned together to combine the minerals, increased burning temperatures (exceeding 2,282°F/1,250°C) and greater proportions of limestone resulted in much stronger cements suitable for concrete, and hence construction. The difference in strength was largely due to the calcium silicates present. The strength of Joseph's cement was derived from its belite (dicalcium silicate) content, which could take weeks to develop. For early strength, cement has to contain alite (tricalcium silicate), which is precisely what William had produced by using higher burning temperatures. Despite having a different composition than his father's invention, William neither patented his idea nor changed more...

"Much water goeth by the mill that the miller knoweth not of." Proverb In a tidal mill, incoming water enters and fills the millpond through sluices and is then channeled out at low tide to turn the mill wheel, thus powering the millstones, and crushing the grain to flour. The first known tidal mill, dating around 787, was built on Strangford Lough in northern Ireland, and was used by monks to grind corn for the nearby monastery. Tidal mills were used along Europe's Atlantic coast in the Middle Ages, where the high tidal ranges ensured generous payback for the millers. The number of suitable sites was limited, and the mills could only operate for a certain period after each high tide, but their output was predictable compared to weather- dependent windmills and traditional watermills. The popularity of tidal mills waned with the arrival of the steam engine, until in 1966 more...

The forerunner of the modern bristle toothbrush is generally believed to have originated in fifteenth- century China. A Chinese encyclopedia dating to 1498 describes the short, coarse bristles from the neck of a Siberian wild boar being embedded in a handle made from animal bone, which was then used to clean the teeth. In the seventeenth century, Chinese traders took the brush to Europe, where its popularity flourished despite boar hairs being considered too rough for sensitive European gums. Softer horsehair bristles were seen as an alternative, although boar bristles remained the most common fiber. The toothbrush was not humankind's first attempt at dental hygiene. "Toothsticks" dating back to 3000 B.C.E. have been uncovered during excavations of Pharaonic tombs in Egypt. These are lengths of frayed twigs or fibrous wood from shrubs, used to-clean between the teeth and freshen the breath. "Chewing sticks" made from aromatic shrubs for oral hygiene more...

Life is an art A mountain of troubles In your trouble don't cry You should only try and try Struggle hard And conquer the sky with your skill and power of will. The above lines depict the reality of life. Life is beautiful if we know the art of living but it is ugly in case we don't know that art. It is full of ups and downs, it has less joys and more sorrows but we are not here to blame for it. It is a set up fixed by Almightily and we have to adjust ourselves in this set up. We have to pave our way to go far away. But this we can't do unless we have strong will power and firm determination. The two qualities-strong will power and firm determination- play a key role in an individual's life. One who possesses these qualities is sure to more...

To think of life without electricity is almost impossible today. Electricity provides all the comforts of life. We find ourselves completely helpless and feel its importance whenever power fails or when the supply is irregular. We curse the government for its failure to supply uninterrupted electric supply. In case of no electricity our life would be totally different. We will have to use earthen lamps, lantern or candle-light instead of electric bulbs and tubes as it is now. If there would have been no electricity coolers, air conditioners, refrigerators, room heaters and other electric appliances would have not been there. The kitchens would have not been so equipped. The modern electric appliances would have not been invented. There would have not been so many inventions in the field of health and treatment of diseases. There would have not been x-- ray, heart surgery and electric treatment. The patients will have more...