Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Fun facts about body

Do you think you know about your body well? If not you will relish learning these fun facts about your body for sure..

Just when you went through the first line of this article, 50,000 cells in your body had died and were replaced too.

The amount of work done by your heart in the last hour is sufficient to produce energy that may lift 1 ton weight, off the ground.

Your liver executes five hundred jobs that are known to man. There are still numerous which medical scientists don't even know about yet.

The same hands structure of whale, dog, men and birds are same as we may have a common ancestor.

You blink your eyes just about twenty-five times in sixty seconds.

Your stomach keeps on producing mucus every fortnight or else your stomach will digest itself.

Your rightsided lung is always larger than leftsided lung. It is because your leftsided lung provides space to your heart.

You require seventeen muscles in order to demonstrate a sweet smile on your face.

Your tongue print is second to none. So the way your ears are too. They are second to none, just like your finger prints.

Just for one minute kissing, you will need 26 calories.

It is interesting to know that sneeze comes out of your mouth at 100 miles per hour.

Regardless of your age, your ears and nose all of the time keep growing.

Each part of your body except your tooth can fix itself.

Our body has nearly all the chemical within us. You are able to produce even any drug inside your body.

Our body is great and amazing as it keeps renovating itself in a constant manner, every second, every hour. For instance, we continue changing our skip.

These were a few astonishing infos regarding our body.

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Kids Fun Facts

Triple F-K (Fun Facts For Kids)


Just like in TVs and movies, due to insistent public demand, I’m bringing you another fraction of our fun stuff. This is as based on my initial article where we played paper, scissors and stones on facts of our everyday lives. Again, seriousness and a high level of severe intensity are strictly prohibited for our main quest here is to inform and have fun at the same time.

As a student, I was privileged, as part of our Journalism subject, to cover various kinds of real human emotions. I was also made to research on some of them. Those that depict angst, romance and drama are some of the human feelings that I worked on. But like everyone else who has this “kid” in me, I never let life’s seriousness take over by shooting and adding some of the “kid” spice once in a while in every serious thing I do.

To start our Fun Facts for Kids, let me take you our nearest Courthouses and Courtrooms where seriousness can be sometimes painted out with a smile or a chuckle perhaps. And by the way, these courtroom drama (or funny acts?) excerpts happened in real life. The letter “Q” means the question. It originates from a lawyer, a judge or from somebody in authority. The “A” is the response given by the person being asked. (the witness, the suspect or the one under oath)


Q. What is your name?

A. Ernestine McDowell.

Q. And what is your marital status?

A. Fair.

(how about Friendster’s “Its complicted”?)


***


Q. Mrs. Jones, is your appearance this morning pursuant to a deposition notice which I sent to your attorney?

A. No. This is how I dress when I go to work.


***

Q. And lastly, Gary, all your responses must be oral. O.K.?

What school do you go to?

A. Oral.

Q. How old are you?

A. Oral.


***


Q. You say that the stairs went down to the basement?

A. Yes.

Q. And these stairs, did they go up also?


***

Q: Did you see the defendant bite off the victim's nose?

A: No

Q: Then how do you know he bit off the victim's nose?

A: I saw him spit it out.

***

Q: What is your date of birth?

A: July fifteenth.

Q: What year?

A: Every year.

***

And here’s one of my favorites….


Q: Do you know if your daughter has ever been involved in the voodoo or occult?

A: We both do.

Q: Voodoo?

A: We do.

Q: You do?

A: Yes, voodoo.


And you think lawyers and Court Judges are way too smart? Well, I guess this is a better time to re-assesses your conceptions. They too have their share of “smart lapses”.


Q: The youngest son, the twenty-year old, how old is he?

***

Q: Were you present when your picture was taken?

***

Q: Was it you or your younger brother who was killed in the war?

***

Q: Did he kill you?

***

Q: How far apart were the vehicles at the time of the collision?

***

Q: You were there until the time you left, is that true?

***

Q: How many times have you committed suicide?

***

Q: She had three children, right?

A: Yes.

Q: How many were boys?

A: None.

Q: Were there any girls?

***

Q: Doctor, how many autopsies have you performed on dead people?

A: All my autopsies are performed on dead people.

***

Q: What is your relationship with the plaintiff?

A: She is my daughter.

Q: Was she your daughter on February 13, 1979?


***

Q: Was that the same nose you broke as a child?

(lect.law.com, skrause.org and tnsf.ca)

Convinced enough? There are actually piles of court transcripts evidencing these fun facts and it’s really nice and entertaining to oftentimes, “kid” around on it. We’ll deal with those on our next episode.

I also happen to find some fun facts about kids in the much serious world of religion. Christianteens.about.com tells that the Roman Catholic Bible has its own version of fun facts:

  • Number of Bibles being daily distributed in the U.S. alone: 170,000;

  • (You’ll love this one kids….) Number of promises in the Bible: 1,260;

  • Number of commands in the Bible: 6,468;

  • Number of questions in the Bible: 3,294;

  • Words in the Bible: 773,692;

  • Words in the Old Testament: 592,439;

  • Words in the New Testament: 181,253;

  • Number of times the word "God" is mentioned: 3,358;

  • Number of times "Lord" is mentioned: 7,736; and,

  • Longest Word in the Bible: "Mahershalalhashbaz" in Isaiah 8:1.

Here are some fun facts about the Islam / Muslim religion, according to azharazian.blogspot.com:

  • Majority of the Muslims are not based in the Middle East but a great number of them (approximately 184 million) can be found in Indonesia; and,

  • The Koran (Catholic’s version of the Bible) and some of its verses speaks that man is equal to woman. How equal? The word “man” appears in the Koran 24 times, and the word “woman” on the other hand, has the same share on the number of appearances-24 also.

Our Buddhist believers also have their own rendition of funny facts about Buddhism. Religionfacts.com lists some of them:

  • They believe in reincarnation or the “after-life” (DOTA and Mario Bros.’ makers might be practitioners of Buddhism); and,

  • They don’t believe in the existence of the soul. (Have not been to any of the Ghostbusters movies, absolutely!)

More interestingly are the funny facts for kids that I gathered from all over the world. Although some may be that trivial in nature, finding the funny ones are quite easy and of course, fun. Below are some:

  • US figures says that an average American uses and consumes about eight batteries a year. (Does that include cars’?)

  • Fashion gurus as they are, did you know that there are about 80% of women in the world who wear bra in the wrong size?

  • Talk about “backstabbing”. Statistics tells that over 50% of all attacks begin from the rear side.

  • With the wave of technology, there are now radars specifically designed to detect motorcycles.

  • Popeye’s spinach has more iron content per calorie compared to meat. (That’s why he loved it so much!)

  • There’s more iron in Camel's milk than cows (Camel milk please…).

  • Swiss people munch more chocolate than any one in the world. (Swiss’ sweets?)

  • Iraq’s international airport now has Burger King, it’s first.

  • Science says that a lightning has an unnatural way of traveling sideways.

  • Engineers argued that the diesel engine was originally designed to run on peanut oil. Then, it should be called “Peanut Engine”.

  • Apart from Google’s Maps, Earth, there is also a Moon?

  • The Italian airforces uniform were originally done by the famous designer, Armani. (Now, that’s really a fashion statement!)

  • Wine contains 0% cholesterol and has no fat. (Cheers!)

  • That there are more than 20000 brands of beer in the world. (Another ‘round please!) At any given time frame, there are about 0.7% of the world's population that is believed to be already boozed. (Again…cheers!)

  • Aviation experts say that the ever-reliable parachute was initially invented before the plane. (Chicken or Egg?)

  • Originally, DC Comics’ Superman doesn’t fly. (Maybe Batman does.)

  • Analysts state that more amount of money is spent on mom’s garden compared to any form of hobby (You can ask your mom if you want).

  • In faraway places like the South Pole, the sun does not shine for 182 days in a year.

  • An island in Thailand is actually named after James Bond. (Wish there was Johnny English…)

  • The actor and heartthrob, John Wayne actually made more than 200 movies all his career.

  • Food connoisseurs say that there are about 8,500 Indian food chains and restaurants in the UK. (What? Where?)

  • (This one’s for my friend…) Chess’ longest recorded game consisted of 192 moves and there are, according to chess experts, actually 318,979,564,000 doable ways of commencing your first four moves.

  • There are approximately 1.3 million vehicles in Metro Manila. (I should know…..)

  • MS Word has accepts the word “Wal-Mart” (Now, that’s a marketing strategy!)

  • As the weather is always fine in Hawaii, there is no Hawaiian word equivalent or synonymous to the word “weather”.

  • Sleep experts say that people can't sneeze while sleeping.

  • Our favorite means of transportation, the taxi. The word “Taxi” is spelled the same manner in the English, German, French, Swedish, Dutch and Portuguese languages.

  • Islanders have their own myths and beliefs about Santa Clauses parents (how ‘bout friends in the block?).

  • When you press “F” in your phone, don’t be surprised if you’ll hear a tone similar to the dial tone of a normal telephone. (Try it!)

  • Historians tell us cheerleaders were originally all men. (Were they made to carry pom-pons?)

  • “Abstemious” is a word that actually contains all the vowels in the correct order (self-explanatory).

  • The Chinese people at funeral wake burn paper-money so that the dead person will be rich in the after-life.

  • Another “chess piece” of information…The word Checkmate is actually Persian phrase which literally means "the King is dead".

  • Music lovers, take a load of this…Paul McCartney's Birth Certificate was auctioned in March 1997. The Beatle certificate was sold for US $84146.

  • Party-goers, you’ll love the next info…Every day is a holiday somewhere in the world.

  • French Fries did not come from France. They are originally from Belgium.

  • The country Cyprus has a map on its flag. (So, you won’t get lost, I guess.)

  • Donald Duck's middle name is Fauntleroy (I never knew ‘till I knew).

  • And here’s one that I liked: there is a place in Norway called Hell. Their postcards for tourist reads: "Welcome to Hell". The Norwegians also calls the road that leads to Hell as "highway to hell". I’d rather go back….

So, no matter how old you are or how complicated your life is, there’s always a funny fact or two that brings out the child in you.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

5 Surefire Ways to Get an A+

1.Listen to the Lectures.
2.Don’t be distracted.
3.Summarize the Lessons.
4.Eat a Filling Breakfast.
5.Read the Questions Carefully.

Class is starting. Your palms are sweating. This test is the difference between an A and a B. You need the grade, but you are not overconfident in your amount of preparation. So how did you study? Did you take a measured view of how you could achieve the grade you wanted and then execute the plan. Well if the test is still several days off, and you have time to prepare, here are some reasoned ways to assure yourself that you WILL ace that test.

In almost every teacher is some measured conceit. They believe that the information that they are going to impart is of great import and will greatly affect the success of your life. It is that teacher’s subject and so of course they want to give you the essence that they think you should understand. Therefore, the first tip. Pay attention to the lectures. Even if you are to cool to take notes (and you should take good notes) just actively listening to what the educator says will be somewhat retained. Of you are sitting there and playing footsies with your best bud, you won’t benefit from the tells that are given to you. Some teachers are obvious when they are telling you something important, but all teachers give away what they think you should know. They all get a little excited about essential information. So watch for the excitement when the lecture is given. Listen for the lift in the voice, watch for the smile. Take good notes on what the teacher shows you is important and you will never fail a test. Another good idea is to star those things that the teacher emphasized.

So, how do you study. You took good notes, but you haven’t read over them since you took them. Your favorite show is on tonight, or a great band is on your ipod. Put away all distractions. Don’t listen to the radio, or watch TV or sit in the front room with everyone else. Any distraction lessens the effect of what you are trying to study. Your retention will decrease proportionally with the amount of distraction you are experiencing.

So the distractions are minimized. How do you study. Your brain learns best through repetition. If you take the time to rewrite the notes, or write note cards from them, it helps to engage the long term memory. Something has to be repeated several times for it to be important enough for your long term memory to record it. If there are a lot of notes and not enough time then you can just reread them several times and write down the salient points, and then reread theses several times. But remember the surest way to commit something to memory is to do it over time. The time to study for a big test is not the day before, but the day you took the notes. Read them over every night.

Two final thoughts. Eat a filling breakfast. You don’t want to be too full as this can make you drowsy – a distraction while taking the test. You also don’t wan the distraction of hunger. And finally, read all of the questions carefully. Don’t rush through the test. If you know the material you will have enough time to finish and probably early. But sometimes the professor will try to trick you with ambiguities to see of you really understand the material. Just read each question through once. Then read again before you answer, and finally read it again after you have answered it. Your chances of getting that ace will be greater if you are well prepared and follow this sage advice.

Fun stuff about Ants

Most people think of ants as a disturbance but in reality they are quite fascinating insects. They're known to be extremely hard workers and they've expanded colonies under ground. Each ant is assigned with a particular job and they execute it pretty well. These fun facts about ants will sure change your view about them.

According to research it is shown that ants build different types of bases. A lot of ants build primary small mounds out of dirt or sand. Like most insects, ants too have their body divided into 3 parts, head, thorax, and abdomen. Ants accumulate nectar and usually can carry more than they require for themselves and this excess amount is shared with other members of the colony once they go back to the nest. This sharing is executed in an interesting way. While one ant passes a drop of liquid from its crop into its mouth and a 2d ant gathers it in its mouth. This is known as 'trophallaxis' and appears to us as though two ants kissing, though it is as significant to the ants as kissing is to humans, if not more so.

More than 12,000 different species of ants are found in different places all across the Earth. Some of them tend not to be harmful at all. Other species of ants including the fire ants are larger and they do sting. This sting may cause the skin to burn and to become reddish and inflamed.

The ants feed upon a sugary aphid elimination called honeydew and, accordingly, protect it from predators. Ants are well-known social insects that live in well-organized colonies. Just about all of the ants in a colony are the wingless sterile females, called workers, generally viewed on or around an ant hill. Ants conduct complicated social structures, constructing projects, and communications. It is a common behaviour of several animals to depend on leaders. In case of ants, they drop pheromones as they hunt for nutritive foods to take back to the colony. Other ants follow these trails and converge on those where pheromones are the strongest.

Ants are best earthmovers--they move more earth than any other creatures including the earthworms (who are no slumps in the dirt-moving business, as a lot of us may know!). Generally ants mature only in a few days and live a very active, but brief life. The ants experience 4 discrete growing stages, the egg, larva, pupa and the adult. Life scientists classify ants as a special group of wasps.

Ants are little-noticed but important part of the tallgrass prairie fauna. There are 100 species of ants that may be detected in prairie tracts over the entire area, of which around 60 are usually found in prairies. Ants also have a bottleneck between the thorax and abdomen that gives them a "pinched-waist" appearance. The constricted portion of the abdomen is called the pedicel, and the fat, main part of the abdomen is called the gaster. Ants maybe of different color from red to black, and they can also range in size. From one-quarter inch for a worker carpenter ant to three-quarters of an inch for a queen carpenter ant.

Fun stuff about Dandruff

Dandruff is a type scalp ailment that can affect any age group but is more common at the early 20s. It is believed that dandruff is a major reason of hair loss although it hasn't been proven so far. The primary reason for the development of dandruff is a fungal infection which makes the scalp shed skin at a very high rate.

It is natural for the dead skin cells to shed the scalp at a normal rate but the fungal infection speeds up the shedding which causes embarrassing flakes of the skin to shed. There are other symptoms also which includes itchy, dryness and scaly growth on the skin.

Dandruff is responsible for lowering self confidence and may also cause embarrassment to folks who suffer from it.

The main cause of dandruff is the fungus, Malassezia FurFur which multiplies extensively on scalp. Dandruff is not a disease but simply unrestrained shedding of dead skin that gathers in no time.

The scaly increment becomes chronic and it takes a long time to get rid of it. Another reason which is also known to cause dandruff is hormonal imbalance as it begins after puberty in both boys and girls.

Occasionally, allergies to haircare products or hair dyestuffs stimulate itchy scaly growth related to dandruff. An intense condition that impacts the scalp is also called Psoriasis.

During the early stage no one notice it as there is no dropping of dead skin cells. Nevertheless, dandruff can be minimized or prevented by right hygiene and attention. It is better to apply herbal and organic cures rather than employing richly chemical content shampoos, cream, soaps and hair products.

Remember if you're suffering from dandruff, avoid bleaching, chemical treatments and apply of hair styling instruments. Rubbing or picking of scalp with hand nails can surely circulate infection and it is certainly ill advised. Avoid hair coloring and gels that irritate the skin on the scalp as that may increase your probabilities of acquiring dandruff.

According to medical science people can use anti dandruff shampoo as it contains salicylic acid.

Changing your food habit can also help to a certain extent with intake of 50% to 60 % fresh veggies and fruits. Increasing your consumption of water also assists to reduce shedding of dead skin cells as higher moisture leads to lower dry skin flakes. Using henna, Indian gooseberry or Amla paste can assist in eliminating Dandruff while oiling your hair prior to washing can also be helpful in reducing dandruff.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Zeno’s Paradoxes reviewed




His (Xeno or Zeno for that matter) name actually came out over a short exchange of ideas between me and my friend over the internet regarding somebody or something that made the world, to some extent, ponder for a while. I was then moved and intrigued, that maybe I can also ponder a while on this not-so-ordinary person including his ideas especially on the things he was known for – his paradoxes.

Who actually is Xeno? The ever-reliable wikipedia.org further tells us that it is “Zeno” and not “Xeno”, although both are interchangeable because some guys would prefer the “X” for the “Z”. For purposes of discussion and to avoid confusion, let’s use what the wiki guys did – Zeno. As history has produced a handful of Zeno’s (from a bishop to a navigator), it is the Greek philosopher Zeno of Elea whom we are talking about. Zeno of Elea was born about 490 B.C. and continued his fruitful life until 430 B.C. As a philosopher, he was then, a bona fide member of the Eleatic School – school founded by another Greek pre-Socratic philosopher, Parmenides. A physical account of Zeno can be found through Plato’s work (Parmenides 127) describing our main man as “tall and fair to look upon.” Although there are details that were quite reliable, Greek biographers such Diogenes LaĆ«rtius, in his work (Lives of Eminent Philosophers) tells that Zeno was the adopted son of Parmenides and was likewise “skilled to argue both sides of any query presented.”

Ancient historians and philosopher believed that Zeno’s works were made, only to support that of Parmenides’. The Greek Neoplantonist philosopher Proclus described Zeno’s work contained arguments in which everything revealed nothing but contradictions. And since it was his predecessor Parmenides who started this way of reasoning, it was Zeno who developed the logical method called as “reductio ad absurdum”. Sounds absurd? Well, it really is because this logical argument means coming up with an absurd or an outcome which is completely ridiculous, for the sake of argument. It further goes on concluding that the premises on the argument are all wrong because of its absurd outcome. It is like proving something by contradicting it, in simpler terms. Looks and sounds funny, is it? Was Zeno behaving normal? Apparently, Zeno’s works and paradoxes have challenged, inspired, influenced and even enraged physicists, mathematicians and philosophers for over two millennia already.

But what’s in our Zeno that makes him known for his paradoxes? Let us first define what a paradox is. Dictionary.com defines paradox as a proposition or statement which is self-contradictory in nature, but expresses the truth in reality. (It really sounds, absurd eh?) A simple example of a paradox is the sentence “I am lying.” Assuming that my statement is true, and then it must be false. The statement is then false if it is agreed to be true. Got that one? And before we disagree with one another here, let’s sail on to Zeno’s world and explore it as far as our simple and uncontradicted minds can.

As was stated and discussed earlier, Zeno’s work mainly dealt on supporting his lover’s (Parmenides) ideas. (Just a side note – it was believed that it was during their time and age that affections and burst of feelings for the same sex emerged, thus giving birth to homosexuality. Example: the “Platonic Love”. And since there no concrete and profound documentations yet to be found, I’d rather deviate from it) Parmenides’ idea or philosophy states that reality is one and cannot be changed. At a glance, this is quite untrue since we can obviously see that change happen all around us every single time. Zeno further supported these notions by arguing that the concept of space and time cannot be continuous. In simpler terms, he argued that there was no such thing as movement. He furthered this argument by formulating the most famous paradox of his, the Tortoise and Achilles. A we all know, Achilles is that seemingly invulnerable hero of the Greek mythology.

Zeno goes on by stating that if Achilles were to challenge a tortoise to a race and the latter was given a head start, Achilles, with all his hero abilities (I hope you Warcraft fans are listening), cannot in any way overtake or outrun the good old tortoise. This is given on no matter how fast and how long he runs. Sounds absurd? Read on….

Although the above proposition may look and sound nonsense in reality; and that its for sure that our hero Achilles will eventually catch up with and overtake the tortoise, the impossibility or the paradox here lies in Zeno’s mathematical inspection of the race itself. Helium.com, helped us to translate in a more simple and understandable terms on Zeno’s brainchild. It further explained that in order for Achilles to travel to a certain distance (point A to point B), he has to move and cover the amount of distance between A and B. But in doing so, he must first cover at least half of its distance (point C, in this manner). And again, he is faced with the task of covering half of the distance to point C (point D, perhaps). But then again and again, his task gets so multiplied on trying to cover almost infinite number of points simply to get to point B! Without much thinking because you may already be dizzy by this time, it is evident that our poor Achilles can not move. Remember that the tortoise was given head start so the shelled mammal has already covered infinite number of points to which Achilles has to cover first (at least half of it!), but is hampered since his task is of covering half the distance is not over for he must cover at least “half of the half of the half of the half of the half…..” (The same idea is also Zenos’ basis in his second paradox which is the dichotomy paradox- by walking at a distance from a wall).

With the above paradox, the philosophical, scientific, mathematical and even the paranormal world launched an all out war to solve Zeno’s ideas. Many have or up to know, are trying to measure the distance between the two points. Some argue that, with the proper mathematical equations and computations, the tortoise cannot move as far as 2 meters! (ToeQuest.com). Quantum physicists would further tell that it was Zeno’s premise that was incorrect and expounded that it was not always necessary that in order to cover the distance of point A to point B, one first must travel at least half of its length, and so on and so forth. With that manner, Zeno was able to stop time and space for there were no movements or change that was evident.

Modern experts were not in anyway bothered by these ideas and in turn, tried to solve this ancient riddle. They offered the idea that these infinite numbers of points do have length, and are obviously measurable. Modern physicists argued that there are tiny groups of quantum mush and foams. These quantum specks are measurable once the movement of time and space are stopped from moving. So molecularly small as it can be that it somewhat challenged Max Planck to develop the Planck length (about 0.000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 001 6 meters, in figures) in order to measure these small intervals.

The last of the three famous paradoxes of Zeno is the Arrow paradox. It is oftentimes called the Fletcher’s paradox. Zeno contradicts this event by premising that objects must change or must be able to move from its position in order to have motion. Philosophers would simply explain the paradox as that the arrow retains its own size and at rest whether or not it is in flight or at rest. It is like taking pictures of an arrow in flight. From a single frame, it can be gleamed that the arrow is not moving. It also is true on the other frames as well that the arrow is really at a state of rest. Therefore, there is no movement present. Helium.com further explains said paradox by adding that the arrow has, at any point during its flight, an exact location and therefore cannot move or cannot be in motion. This event makes sense when is viewed in the present and not in the past or in the future. And since the former explanation is given; it would be clear that, as Zeno puts it that the idea of Time consists of a series of present frames whereby each frame represents no movement or manifests a state of being stationary, thus the impossibility of movement is emphasized.

The arguments and discussions above about Zeno’s paradoxes influenced the way man perceived space and time. To Zeno, space, time and motion are impossible to exist. But with the modern studies and modern minds plunging into Zeno’s paradoxical pool, clear and factual possibilities emerges which enables the common modern man to have a grasp of his ideas and concepts.

For a simple reader or for a common man, all these may look ridiculous and may sound funny but worth learning and comprehending when closely scrutinized and examined upon. All it takes, as some would put it, is an open mind. It need not be absurd.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Fun Facts about Carbon

Carbon Fun Facts

Carbon is the fourth most abundant element in the universe and the basis for life on earth. Carbon is found in all living organisms. Carbon is not metallic and has the ability to bond with many other chemicals to form almost ten million different compounds. These compounds are as different as diamonds, one of the hardest materials on earth, and graphite, one of the softest. Scientists don’t think that carbon was made in the Big Bang but it is made in the interior of stars. Carbon is one of the oldest elements known to man. Carbon is used in a wide range of products and industries including fossil fuels, smoke detectors and radiocarbon dating. The word “carbon” comes from the Latin word for “coal”. Carbon is essential to life because of its ability to bind strongly to itself as well as to form thousands of compounds. This enables it to form long chains of atoms which can become the basis for various compounds in living cells, including DNA. One of the most interesting facts about carbon is that although it is the basis of life, in some of its forms and compounds it can be extremely deadly and harmful to life.

Carbon has become a very hot topic lately in terms of the environment. There is an essentially fixed amount of carbon in the universe. However, we are releasing more and more carbon in the form of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere which is a huge cause of global warming. Much of the carbon dioxide that is being released into the atmosphere comes from burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas. People are becoming concerned about their “carbon footprint” or the amount of carbon dioxide their way of life produces. As awareness of climate change and human impact on the environment grows, a new industry has sprung off that allows consumers to purchase carbon offsets to help reduce greenhouse emissions and neutralize their carbon footprint. One of the best and least expensive ways to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the air is to plant more trees. Just one tree can absorb as much as forty-eight pounds of carbon dioxide from the air in one year. Aside from the negative effects of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, carbon dioxide is present and useful in our everyday lives. Dry ice is carbon dioxide in solid form. Carbon dioxide provides the carbonation for soft drinks and is also found in fire extinguishers.

Carbon monoxide is another form of carbon that can be harmful. Carbon monoxide is extremely toxic and acts on the red blood cells in your body. It prevents them from carrying oxygen, essentially causing asphyxiation. Anytime fuel, be it gas, oil, wood or charcoal, burns it releases both carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. It is critical that there be proper ventilation wherever fuel will be burned to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Methane, another carbon-based compound, is also a greenhouse gas. Its levels are increasing the atmosphere due in large part to the livestock sector and solid waste landfills.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Friday, January 16, 2009

What is the Origin of the Word Squegee?



I’m sure that at some point in your life, you experienced having to sit in a restaurant next to the window and observe someone cleaning the windows using a brilliant device called the squegee.  Sure, you know what a squegee is and what it’s for, but only a few people know the origin of the word squegee. 

Although many people would dismiss this question as trivial and frivolous, there are those who enjoy knowing the answers to odd and quirky questions.  As petty as it seems, there’s still a sense of joy and accomplishment in discovering the “why’s” and “how’s” of everyday things.   

Sure, it’s amazing to be able to explain scientific phenomena and complicated mathematical expressions, but remember, it’s always the simplest questions that are the hardest to answer.  Something that could seem as insignificant as the squegee could have interesting and fascinating origins too. 

The word squegee first appeared in the year 1844, and can be used either as a noun or a transitive verb.  There are variations of the word squegee, including squeegee and squilgee.   

The device is made of a blade of rubber or leather set on a handle and is used for wiping, pushing, or spreading liquid off, across, or on a flat surface, such as a window.  It is usually used for cleaning and printing. 
 
Originally, the squilgee was used by fishermen to scrape scales and fish blood from the boat deck, and to push the water off board after the deck is washed.  This squilgee was long-handled, and had a wooden blade instead of the rubber blade commonly seen today.

Today, the squegee or squilgee is used for a variety of purposes, with window cleaning perhaps the most common and well-known use.  It is used together with a soapy solution to remove the dirt from a glass surface. 

Other squegees come with sponges to soak up and apply soapy water to a dirty window.  Similar long-handled versions are also used to clean floors, shower doors, bathroom tile, and many more.
   
Other uses of the squegee include photography and printing.  In photography, the squegee is used to dry and remove excess water from the photographic paper after washing, which helps in preventing the appearance of water spots and wrinkles.
   
It is also used in screen-printing, where its purpose is to spread the ink evenly across the silkscreen or stencil to make a precise and exact image on the surface.  Usually, squegees used for this purpose have less flexible and thicker blades compared to the window cleaning versions.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

How long is a "moment" or "jiffy"?

Here is an interesting fun fact to know.

The phrase, “I’ll be there in a jiffy” is commonly heard. Generally, the recipients of such message assume that it means people will hurry. But where did the term “jiffy” actually come from? Looking back at the origin of the word can be interesting and enlightening. It will give you an idea about the history of language and the history of time telling.

Basically, a jiffy implies an unspecified amount of time that is assumed to be as brief or as short as possible. There are other interpretations when you look at it from a technical perspective. For example, in science applications, it can refer to several very specific time frames. Probably the most common belief is that it is 0.01 seconds.

There are other interpretations of “jiffy” in other fields. Take the example of computer engineering. If it was 0.01 in science applications, it is referred to as the time frame between successive clock cycles of the microprocessor. If the computer has a 2-gigahertz microprocessor then the “jiffy” is 0.5 nanoseconds. However, if the computer is 3-gigahertz, then the time frame in this case is 0.333. In essence, the interval associated as “jiffy” becomes shorted when the clock speeds up.

But the interpretation of “jiffy” doesn’t stop there because in certain industries, it is used to refer to the time frame required in one altering-current or AC in power utility. In this instance, the cycle is also known as jiffy. In most parts of the North American continent, the jiffy in AC power utility is 1/60 seconds while in most countries; it is 1/50 seconds.

On the other hand, even publications have different interpretations about this word. The term jiffy can be referred as 0.001 seconds or 1nanosecond. As you can see, it is very difficult to provide a clear statement about how long “jiffy” actually is because there are varying interpretations of the word. The accuracy of the definition depends on which industry you’re in and the practices of that particular field. What is important is for you to remember who you’re talking to when you use the word. If you’re using it with your friends though, saying “in a jiffy” is safe enough.

There are various studies that have looked into its actual origin, the exact root of the word remains unknown. There is a theory that it was first mentioned in England to refer to a brief but unspecified time frame in the 1700s.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

ROFLMAO

Pandemia

A pandemic is an epidemic which reaches global proportions. When we think about Earth-wide infections there are only a few that come readily to mind. Today we will discuss some of the more egregious of these.

The most famous (though not the largest) of these is the “Black Death” of the European middle ages. The bubonic plague is a disease that was introduced to various populations when rats infested with fleas which carries the bacterium spread through the cities. The fleas that carried the bacterium would bite an unsuspecting victim and transmit the infection to the host. The disease is thought to have originated in central Asia and spread via the trade routes as industrious rats, always searching for food, followed the grain to various locales. There have been various outbreaks of this disease starting from the Plague of Justinian in about 541 AD and ending with the London Plague in 1656-57.

Cholera has lead to many deaths over the years, even though is has been largely eradicated in more modern times. There have been seven major, world-wide outbreaks since 1816. Most of there started (or were rumored to start) on either the Indian subcontinent or in Russia. These populations seemed to be specifically desirous to this strain of bacteria. Always the pandemic will begin in regions (or at least be at its worst) where the population is overcrowded and a lack of hygiene is evident.

In 1918, probably the virulent, and one of the least well known, pandemics seems to have begun on a military base in Kansas. This flu, which swept the world in a period of 18 months, killed an estimated 50 to 100 million people. No other epidemic has killed so many in so short a time. The flu had people wearing surgical masks everywhere and avoiding contact with anyone. It is believed that on the WWI battlefields this influenza killed many more soldiers than actual wounds received in battle. There have been other outbreaks of the flu that have been considered pandemic. The four main ones, Asiatic (1889-1890), Spanish (1918-19), Asian (1957-58), and the Hong Kong (1968-69) flu’s have killed an estimated 200 million people throughout the world.

Other pandemics have occurred with typhus, HIV, and smallpox. The agent is not always the same, but the results are. We have increased our resistance to these killers due to research and vaccination, but there is always the possibility of another killer on the horizon.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

April Fun Facts




April, the fourth month of the Gregorian calendar, was once the second month of the Roman calendar. April is one of four months that is thirty days long. April is also a popular female name. The birthstone for the month of April is the diamond. The daisy and the sweet pea are the flowers that represent April. Many famous people throughout history have been born in April including William Shakespeare on April 23, Leonardo da Vinci on April 15 and Adolf Hitler on April 20. Some other noteworthy events in history that occurred in April were the re-introduction of the modern Olympic Games, after not being held for 1500 years, on April 6, 1896, the start of the American Revolutionary War on April 19, 1775 and the end of the Vietnam war on April 30, 1975. The first public television broadcast, from the Empire State Building, occurred on April 30, 1939. The explosion and meltdown at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant occurred on April 26, 1986, having widespread and lasting effects. The state of Israel was established on April 30, 1948.

There are also many holidays around the world celebrated in April. Probably the best known and most widespread is April Fools' Day, also known as All Fools' Day, which is celebrated on April 1. It is not certain where this traditional day of practical jokes began but some people think it started in France when the Gregorian calendar was first adopted. The Internet search engine, Google, traditionally plays an April Fools' hoax on its users. There are countless well-known April Fools' pranks but one of the most famous of all time was carried out by a BBC television news show in 1957. They claimed that farmers in Switzerland had an outstanding crop of spaghetti and they showed clips of people pulling spaghetti from trees. Numerous viewers called into the station to find out how to grow a spaghetti tree of their own. There are some more serious April holidays. Buddha's birthday is traditionally celebrated on April 8. The Christian holiday of Easter as well as the Jewish holiday of Passover usually fall sometime in April. ANZAC day in Australia and New Zealand is celebrated on April 25. The purpose of this holiday is to honor veterans of World War I who battled in Turkey. South Africa's Freedom Day is celebrated on April 27 to commemorate the date when the first elections after the abolition of apartheid were held. Earth Day, a day of conservation and awareness, is observed annually on April 22.

There are also many historic quotations and sayings about the month of April. Poet T.S. Eliot wrote in his poem “The Wasteland” the verse “April is the cruelest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire”. Perhaps the most well-known saying about April is, “April showers bring May flowers.” In the Northern Hemisphere, April is typically a wet month with moderate temperatures, when plants and animals really start to reemerge from the cold of winter.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Fun Facts about Aluminum


Aluminum, also known as aluminium, is more abundant in the Earth’s crust than any other metal and it is the third most abundant of all elements. Humans even have small amounts of aluminum in their bodies. Aluminum was not produced until the 1820s. In ancient times, Greeks and Romans used aluminum for cleaning, medicine, and dyeing. Aluminum used to be more valuable than silver or gold due to past difficulty in extracting the metal from its ores. Aluminum was displayed with the French crown jewels in 1855 and Napoleon III is alleged to have had a set of aluminum dinner plates that were reserved for special guests.

Aluminum is not found in nature in its free form. It must be produced from other ores. The primary source for aluminum is bauxite ore, which is abundant in tropical and subtropical areas around the world. Aluminum and its alloys are used extensively in everything from aircraft and rockets, aluminum foil, aluminum cans and electrical transmission lines to name just a few. Aluminum is actually the one of the most used metals, second only to steel. More and more, aluminum is being used in car parts because it is lightweight and can help to reduce the vehicle’s overall fuel consumption.


Aluminum is actually quite strong for its light weight. If you put four six-packs of aluminum cans together it can actually support the weight of a 4,000 pound automobile. Approximately 350,000 aluminum cans are made each minute. Aluminum cans today are lighter than they were about twenty years ago. The amount of aluminum that used to go into producing twenty-two cans now yields thirty-four cans. In fact, the side of an aluminum can is about the same thickness as a human hair! When aluminum is polished it is the most reflective material on earth, even more reflective than a mirror. Aluminum is used widely in antiperspirants and this use has been indicated in a heightened risk of breast cancer. Aluminum is also thought to play a role in Alzheimer’s disease. Aluminum provides no known benefit to living cells.

Some of the most interesting facts about aluminum surround its recyclability, particularly in the form of beverage cans. It takes about four hundred years for an aluminum can to decompose in a landfill. Aluminum can be recycled countless times and recycling just one can saves enough energy to run a TV set for about three hours. One estimate indicates that about 18.7 million tons of aluminum has been recycled since 1972. It requires ninety-five percent more energy to produce aluminum from ore as it does to make it from an aluminum can. Unfortunately only about twenty-five percent of the twenty-nine million tons of aluminum produced globally on an annual basis are made from recycled material. The actual process of recycling aluminum is quite rapid. In only about six weeks’ time, a can may be made, filled, sold, recycled and remanufactured into a new can. Aluminum is the only recycled material that actually pays for its own cost to recycle and actually helps to pay for the cost of recycling plastics and glass.

Fun Facts about 1958

The first day of 1958 was a Wednesday. In 1958 the world’s population was 2.945 billion. In the Chinese Zodiac it was the year of the dog. The first Pizza Hut fast food restaurant opened in Wichita, Kansas. The Jim Henson Company was founded. Nabokov’s novel, Lolita was published for the first time in the United States. Many celebrities of our time were born in 1958. Among them are singers Kate Bush, Madonna and Michael Jackson, director Tim Burton and actors Alex Baldwin and Michelle Pfeiffer. In terms of the arts, the musical “My Fair Lady” opened in London, starring Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison. The first ever Grammy Awards were held. In sports, the New York Yankees won the World Series of Baseball. Brazil edged out Sweden in the World Cup. Montreal defeated Boston to win the Stanley Cup in hockey. Bobby Fischer, at age fourteen, wins the United States Chess Championship. Pete Schoening and Andrew Kauffman are the first people to summit the eleventh highest mountain on earth, Gasherbrum I. Elvis’ song Jailhouse Rock was a hit single.

The year 1958 saw many new inventions and products hit the market. The rolodex was invented. The Hula Hoop and the skateboard were first introduced in 1958. The Sweet n’ Low artificial sweetener and Rice-a-Roni were also both introduced. Cocoa Krispies and Cocoa Puffs breakfast cereals are introduced by the Kellogg Company and General Mills respectively. Both cereals contained over forty percent sugar! The Microchip was first developed by Intel in 1958.

There were several major air disasters in 1958. Ninety fifty-eight was the year of the Munich air disaster. A passenger jet crashed after takeoff from Munich Airport, killing twenty-three people, including eight Manchester United soccer team players. Also in 1958, a KLM aircraft crashed into the ocean and killed all ninety-nine people who were aboard, including six members of the Egyptian fencing team. It was the worst commercial airliner crash to date.

In 1958 many new frontiers were explored. In that year, Sir Edmund Hillary reached the South Pole. The first trans-Atlantic commercial airline service began on British Comet Jet, offering flights between New York and London. This was also the year that the United States began using passenger jets domestically, beginning with service between New York and Miami. Also, in 1958 NASA was created and the United States launched its first successful satellite, Explorer 1, into orbit, while the Russian satellite Sputnik 1 fell from its orbit.

Nineteen fifty-eight was also an important year politically. Iraq, after a military coup, became a republic. The Great Chinese Famine, which would eventually lead to the deaths of 30 million people, began in 1958. Charles de Gaulle became Prime Minister of France after leaving retirement. The Hope Diamond was donated to the Smithsonian Institute. The first women were admitted to the British House of Lords. Alaska achieved statehood, becoming the 49th state in the United States. Nikita Khrushchev became Premier of the Soviet Union. Pope John XXII succeeded Pope Pius XII as the 261st pope. Egypt and Syria joined and formed the United Arab Republic and Guinea declared its independence from France in 1958.