Did You Know ?

1. Your  are the first thing people subconsciously notice about you. Wear nice shoes.

2. If you sit for more than 11 hours a day, there's a 50% chance you'll die within the next 3 years

3. There are at least 6 people in the world who look exactly like you. There's a 9% chance that you'll meet one of them in your lifetime.

4. Sleeping without a pillow reduces back pain and keeps your spine stronger.

 5. A person’s height is determined by their father, and their weight is determined by their mother.

6. If a part of your body "falls asleep",

you can almost always "wake it up" by shaking your head.

7. There are three things the human brain cannot resist noticing - Food, attractive people and danger

8. Right-handed people tend to chew food on their right side

9. Putting dry tea bags in gym bags or smelly shoes will absorb the unpleasant odour.

10. According to Albert Einstein, if honey bees were to disappear from earth, humans would be dead within 4 years.

11. There are so many kind of apples, that if you ate a new one everyday, it would take over 20 years to try them all.

12. You can survive without eating for weeks, but you will only live 11 days without sleeping.

13. People who laugh a lot are healthier than those who don’t.

14. Laziness and inactivity kills just as many people as smoking.

15. A human brain has a capacity to store 5 times as much information as Wikipedia

16. Our brain uses same amount power as 10-watt light bulb!!

17. Our body gives enough heat in 30 mins to boil 1.5 litres of water!!

18. The Ovum egg is the largest cell and the sperm is the smallest cell !!

19. Stomach acid (conc. HCl) is strong enough to dissolve razor blades!!

20. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. & while you walk, SMILE. It is the ultimate antidepressant.

21. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.

22. When you wake up in the morning, Pray to ask God's guidance for your purpose, today.

23. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

24. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, broccoli, and almonds.

25. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

26. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

27. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.

28. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

29. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Forgive them for everything !

30. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

31. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

32. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

33. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

34. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

35. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'

36. Help the needy,Be generous ! Be a 'Giver' not a 'Taker'

37. What other people think of you is none of your business.

38. Time heals everything.

39. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

40. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. Each night before you go to bed ,Pray to God and Be thankful for what you'll accomplish, today !

43. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

Optical Illusion

Can anyone knows what is Optical Illusion, Optical illusions demonstrate human faculties are unsteady, that what you see does not dependably relate to actuality. Individuals have a tendency to consider optical illusions as traps in books, yet they really impact about all aspects of advanced life as the eye's ability to be controlled is the thing that makes all print and visual media conceivable. Studying a few truths about optical illusions is to study key data for comprehension the data age.

See an Prime Example of these

Follow the 3 Steps Below:


1. Look after the movement of the pivoting pink spot with your eyes. You will see stand out color - Pink.

2. Now Stare at the dark "+" in the middle, and the moving dot turns to green.

3. Now keep Looking at the "+", and after Some time, all the pink dots will Disappear, and all you see is a Rotating Green Dot

Some Interesting Facts on Wastage of Food

1) Roughly one third of the nourishment prepared on the planet for human utilization each year — give or take 1.3 billion tonnes — gets lost or squandered.

2) Every year, purchasers in rich nations squander just about as much nourishment (222 million tonnes) as the whole net sustenance preparation of sub-Saharan Africa (230 million tonnes).

3) The measure of nourishment lost or squandered each year is identical to more than 50% of the planet's yearly cereals crop (2.3 billion tonnes in 2009/2010).

4) Food misfortune and waste additionally sum to a significant misusing of assets, incorporating water, arrive, vigor, labour and capital and unnecessarily prepare nursery gas outflows, helping an unnatural weather change and environmental change.

5) In advancing nations nourishment squander and misfortunes happen for the most part at promptly phases of the sustenance esteem chain and could be followed once again to fiscal, managerial and specialized requirements in reaping strategies and in addition space –and cooling offices. Hence, a reinforcing of the inventory network through the backing agriculturists and ventures in foundation, transportation, and additionally in an extension of the nourishment –and bundling industry could help to lessen the measure of sustenance misfortune and waste.

 6) In medium- and high-pay nations sustenance is squandered and lost mostly at later arranges in the production network. Contrasting from the circumstances in improving nations, the conduct of shoppers has colossal influence in industrialized nations. Additionally, the study recognized a needing coordination between performing artists in the production network as a helping component. Rancher purchaser understandings might be accommodating to expand the level of coordination. Furthermore, bringing issues to light around commercial ventures, retailers and purchasers and in addition finding useful use for recovery sustenance that is right away discarded are suitable measures to reduction the measure of misfortunes and waste.

7) In the United States 30% of all sustenance, worth Us$48.3 billion (€32.5 billion), is discarded every year. It is assessed that about 50% of the water used to handle this nourishment additionally heads off to waste, since horticulture is the biggest human utilization of water. (Jones, 2004 refered to in Lundqvist et al., 2008)

8) United Kingdom families waste an expected 6.7 million tonnes of sustenance each year, around one third of the 21.7 million tonnes acquired. This implies that roughly 32% of all nourishment acquired for every year is not consumed. The vast majority of this (5.9 million tonnes or 88%) is right now gathered by neighborhood powers. A large portion of the nourishment squander (4.1 million tonnes or 61%) is avoidable and could have been consumed had it been improved overseen (Wrap, 2008; Knight and Davis, 2007).

9)  In the USA, natural waste is the second most noteworthy segment of landfills, which are the biggest wellspring of.

Most Expensive 10 Foods in the World

It doesn't take much to make a man cheerful. Just give him a bagel for breakfast, perhaps pizza for lunch, then, an overwhelming steak supper with a few mushrooms, cantaloupes and watermelon apples and oranges as an afterthought. In the event that you have cash, nonetheless, you can have the genuine exorbitant forms of all these nourishment. Here now is a rundown of the top 10 most costly Foods on the planet.


1) Italian White Alfa Truffle ( $ 160,000 ) Approximately

Truffles are unmanageable things, yet none as dear as the Italian white alba rendition. These things have ended up troublesome to grow, hence clarifying the excessive cost. A tremendous white alba truffle that came in at around 1.51 kilograms was once sold for over $160,000. A retail mogul from Hong Kong and his wife carried home the truffle.

2) Almas Cavier ( $25,000 )

 The Almas caviar is a to a great degree uncommon nourishment thing from Iran. Caviars are now unreasonable regardless, however the irregularity of this thing makes it significantly more costly. Point of fact, actually uncovering a store that offers it is like searching for a needle in the bundle. The main store known to convey this thing is the Caviar House & Prunier placed in Picadilly in London. The store bundles the caviar on a for every kilo support and puts it in a tin made of 24 karat gold. Offering cost is $25,000. Provided that you need only a taste of it, then a littler tin is sold for $1,250.


3) Yubari King Melons ( $ 23,000) Approximately

No, these are not the conventional rock melons that you can find in the grocery store. The orange-fleshed Yubari King melons are desired in view of its extent and sweetness. These things are so sought after that barterings are really directed for its buy. In 2008, over 100 melon tree grown foods from Yubari were on the square. The absolute best of all was the first thing put marked down. A businessperson who claims a gift shop and seafood lunch restaurant made an offer of about $23,000 for the honor and benefit of taking home that specific tree grown foods.



4) Densuke Black Watermelon ( $6,000 ) Approximately

Dark watermelons are extraordinary things, particularly the Densuke mixed bag that is just developed in the island of Hokkaido in Japan. A harvest will regularly yield just a couple of dozen tree grown foods. What makes it extraordinary, aside from its irregularity? Its hardness and freshness are only impeccable, besides, the level of sweetness is just unique. A foods grown from the ground that weighed 17 pounds once strove for $6,100.


5)  Domenico Crolla’s Pizza Royale 007 ( $4,000 ) approximately

Domenico Crolla is a Scottish culinary expert known for placing representations into his pizza manifestations. He chose to make the Pizza Royale 007, however the makers of the James Bond movies did not requisition it. It was a 12-inch pie, loaded with lobsters marinated in cognac, caviar let in champagne, tomato sauce, Scottish smoked salmon, prosciutto, venison emblems, and vintage balsamic vinegar. To top everything, there are 24-carat gold chips. They are not to be taken home, on the other hand, as they are consumable.

Top 5 Tourist Places to Visit in USA

As one of the biggest and most various nations on the planet, The United States brag a stunning measure of traveler goals going from the high rises of New York and Chicago, the common ponders of Yellowstone and Alaska to the sunny beaches of California, Florida and Hawaii. With such a variety of vacation destinations its enticing to record whole urban communities or even states, yet in this top 5 I have attempted to keep tabs on particular fascination

1) WHITE HOUSE

The White House in Washington DC is the official habitation and office of the President of the United States. It was manufactured between 1792 and 1800 and initially utilized by President John Adams. After the 9/11 strike it has come to be more troublesome to visit the White House and today tours are accessible just for gatherings of 10 or more and must be asked for up to six months ahead of time through your part of Congress or your nation's Us Ambassador

2) DENALI NATIONAL PARK

The Denali National Park and Preserve is found in Interior Alaska and holds Mount McKinley, the most noteworthy mountain in North America. The expression "Denali" implies "the high one" in the local Athabaskan dialect and alludes to Mount McKinley. Also, the recreation center ensures a mind boggling wild range that holds wild bears, caribou, moose, wolves, and various other creatures

3) NIAGARA FALLS

It is Situated between the state of New York and the territory of Ontario, Niagara Falls is a standout amongst the most marvelous characteristic ponders on the North American mainland. Niagara Falls is really three separate falls, the American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and Horseshoe Falls. Horseshoe Falls is spotted on the Canadian side while the other are found in New York. With more than 14 million guests every year it is a standout amongst the most went by vacation destination on the planet.

4) GRAND CANYON

The Grand Canyon is found in northern Arizona and is one of the incredible vacation destinations in the United States. Cut in excess of numerous million years by the Colorado River, the gorch achieves a profundity of over 1.6 km (1 mile) and 446 km (277 miles) in length. The Grand Canyon is not the deepest or the longest ravine on the planet however the mind-blowing size and its mind boggling and brilliant scene offers guest staggering vistas that are unmatched all around the globe.

5) YELLOW STONE NATIONAL PARK

Yellowstone National Park was the planet's first national park, set aside in 1872 to protect the immense number of fountains, hot springs, and other warm zones, and in addition to ensure the unfathomable untamed life and tough magnificence of the territory. Yellowstone lies on top of an immense hotspot where light, hot, liquid mantle rock climbs towards the surface. Hence, the recreation center holds 50% of all the planet's known geothermal characteristics, with more than 10,000 samples of fountains and hot springs. Likewise, dark bears, wild bears, deer, elk, buffalo and wolves can all be discovered inside the recreation center bord

DID YOU KNOW Top 5 Countries with Most Facebook users

The Facebook users are spreading day by day in huge numbers, even they rolled out Graphic search in order to clean up the Fake and Spam accounts, yet they have huge users.I provided the list of Top 5 Facebook using countries recently updated as of  March 2013

The Top 5 Countries that stands in the Most facebook users listing

1) United States

• It is not a Surprise, because the country was well developed technologically and economically would definitely have the potential to rule the Social media.
• Around 165 Million people are there in facebook, which is beside by Brazil by a lot
• They lost so many Accounts in the Starting of Year
• With these stats we can confirm , In every two of Americans One is on Facebook

2) Brazil

• Brazil has 65 million facebook accounts that made it to stand on the Second Place after the United States
• Alike of United States, Brazil has gained around 2 million accounts in the Starting of this Year
• By comparing with the Population, it can be stated that out of every three Braziliians one is on Facebook

3) India

• India has almost equal user accounts registered similar to  Brazil, More than 60 Million facebook users are in India
• The growth declined when compared to Previous year, the new accounts was 4 millions short of the Previous year
• When we Speak about Population, India stood two in the World where as the Density to the facebook was poor, out of Every Twelve indians one is on Facebook

4) Indonesia 

• Indonesia is just behind India, more than 45 Million registered accounts are there
• The Growth certainly stopped, there is a decrease of 2 miilion users for the current year in Indonesia
• When we compare with the Population, out of 5 Indonesians one has a facebook account

5) Mexico

• Mexico has almost 40 million facebook users, which stands last in our list
• They too experiencing Loss in the users, around 50,000 people went out in Facebook at the End of 2012
• The Facebook users density to Population is around 35%

List of Top 5 Richest Countries in the World

The Richest country tag is important as it reflects the Position of their country in the international economic rankings, they cannot come in a single night, it needs consistency and hardwork. The Countries i listed had carefully adjusted their economic plans such that they can withstand the future demand of their people, they also have good federal reserves, all in together they had Good political and Economic System

The Countries i listed are Based on the GDP ( Gross Domestic Product ) which was taken from several references and clear certified Statisitcs, I am not going to give the Exact GDP value, i am going to roundoff to the nearest figure as the stats will change time to time


1) Qatar

• The Qatar is way ahead of other countries which are competing to occupy the first place
• The GDP of Qatar was around $106,000.00 ( Approximately ) 
• It is honored as number one Richest Country in the World

2) Luxembourg

• It Occupied Second Place in the World, and First place in the Europe
• The GDP of Luxembourg was around $80,000.00 ( Approximately )
• It  is racing towards the Super Economic Power of World leaving behind some major countries

3) Singapore

• The Southeast asian country Singapore is emerging as a Powerful Economic Country
• The GDP of Singapore was around $60,000.00 ( Approximately )
• It secures the third place in the world top 10 richest countries in the World

4) Norway

• It is second european country listed in this top 10 richest countries
• The GDP of Norway was around $55,000.00 ( approximately )
• The Effective Economic policies of their government makes it an Super power in Europe

5) Hongkong

• The Hongkong is an Super Power of Asia
• The GDP of Hongkong was around $50,000.00 ( approximately )
• The Good Political Conditions had lead their country to an Massive Economic power in Asia

Top 5 Amazing Airports in the World

The travel is always a fun, the most common mode of transportation to go from one country to othe country is by Aeroplane. Even the Richest Countries would love to have an Amazing Airport for them as it reflects their Architectural Skills of them


The List of top 5 Amazing airports in the World

1) John F.Kennedy Airport Newyork

• The Airport code is JFK and the 6th Busiest Airport in the United States of America
• It is built in 1948 and renamed for the American President Kennedy in 1963
• It is Situated in Borough of Queens which is 15 miles from Manhattan
• It has 8 Operating terminals with 125 gates serving over 70 airlines 
• Terminal 4 has an Internal Airtrain station to take passengers to city subway which makes your journey more smoother as there on you can go to your travel destination esaily

2) Madrid Barajas Airport

• The Airport code is MAD and it is an Bridge that connects Europe, Central and South America
• Madrid has 4 Operating terminals, where as 1,2,3 are Serving Spanish Carriers 
• The Terminal 4 for international carriers, it is located 15 kms from the city centre
• Madrid is a mixture of ancient and Modern Architecture

3) Beijing International Airport

• It is the first busiest airport in Asia, the Second Busiest in Whole world
• The Airport code is PEK, it has 3 Operating terminals
• The terminal 1 is for Domestic carriers, 2 is for international carriers and third was construced for the sake of Olympic game visitors
• Over 70 Airlines are flying to 200 cities from the Beijing International Airport
• It is Located 20 Kms away from the North Central Beijing, so  as people can easily catch airport

4) Singapore Changi Airport

• The Airport Code is SIN, the 17th Busiest airport in the world
• Recently it won the title of Best Airport in the World on 2013  World Airport Awards held at Geneva
• It has only one terminal at the time of construction, no two terminals are added
• It serves a Low-Cost Carriers in Asia, more than 19 Million passengers will come to the airport every year

5) Hong Kong International Airport

• The Airport code is HKG, it is world 10th Busiest Airport in the World
• Around 50 Million passengers yearly, more than 95 Airlines are travelling to 160 cities from this Airport
• It is located 32 kms away from the Central Businees District and Have only 2 Operating Terminals
• It is Voted as Best Airport in the World on the Year 2011 by an famous Traveller Magazine

Excellent Tips by Warren Buffet

Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves.

He is one of the most recognizable cartoon characters in the world and is the mascot of The Walt Disney Company, the world’s largest media conglomerate in terms of annual revenue.

Mickey debuted in November 1928 in the animated cartoon Steamboat Willie after initially appearing in a test screening earlier that year.

He went on to appear in over 130 films including The Band Concert (1935), Brave Little Tailor (1938), and Fantasia (1940). Mickey appeared primarily in short films, but also in a few feature-length films.

Nine of Mickey’s cartoons were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film, one of which, Lend a Paw, won the award in 1942. In 1978, Mickey became the first cartoon character to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Beginning 1930, Mickey has also been featured extensively as a comic strip character. His self-titled newspaper strip, drawn primarily by Floyd Gottfredson, ran for 45 years.

Mickey has also appeared in comic books and in television series such as The Mickey Mouse Club (1955–1996) and others.

He also appears in other media such as video games as well as merchandising, and is a meetable character at the Disney parks.

Mickey typically appears alongside his girlfriend Minnie Mouse, his pet dog Pluto, his friends Horace Horsecollar, Donald Duck, and Goofy, and his nemesis Pete among others (see Mickey Mouse universe).

Originally characterized as a mischievous antihero, Mickey’s increasing popularity led to his being rebranded as an everyman, usually seen as an ever cheerful, yet shy role model.

In 2009, Disney announced that they will begin to rebrand the character again by putting less emphasis on his pleasant, cheerful side and reintroducing the more mischievous and adventurous sides of his personality most evident in his earlier films of the 1920s and 1930s; the repositioning of Mickey started with the video game Epic Mickey.

Designer of Your Future

Fracas
Definition: (noun)
Noisy quarrel.
Synonyms: affray, altercation.

Who Is Credited With The Discovery Of Artificial Cell ?
Craig Venter

Viagra Chemical Name: Sildenafil Citrate

1 Bbarrel=159Litre

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based satellite navigation system that provides location and time information in all weather.

BY TARUN PATEL (WWW.APPS4ALLMOBI.COM)
If you Translate Every Mistake of Your Life into a 'Positive' One,
YOU will Never be a 'Prisoner of Your Past'
but a 'Designer of Your Future'

Large-minded
Definition: (adjective)
Marked by breadth or tolerance of views; broad-minded.
Synonyms: liberal, tolerant.

London Bridge

Carries: 5 lanes of A3

Crosses: River Thames

Locale: Inner London

Maintained by: Bridge House Estates, City of London Corporation

Design: prestressed concrete box girder bridge

Total length: 269 m (882.5 ft)

Width: 32 m (105.0 ft)

Opened: 17 March 1973

London Bridge is a bridge over the River Thames, connecting the City of London and Southwark, in central London.

Situated between Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge, it forms the western end of the Pool of London.

On the south side of the bridge are Southwark Cathedral and London Bridge station; on the north side are the Monument to the Great Fire of London and Monument tube station.

It was the only bridge over the Thames downstream from Kingston until Putney Bridge opened in 1729. The current bridge opened on 17 March 1973 and is the latest in a succession of bridges to occupy the spot and claim the name.

The bridge carries part of the A3 road, which is maintained by the Greater London Authority; the bridge itself is owned and maintained by the Bridge House Estates, an independent charity overseen by the City of London Corporation.

The area between London Bridge and Tower Bridge on the south side of the Thames is a business improvement district (BID) and is managed by Team London Bridge.

Avocado

Avocados are a fruit, not a vegetable.
There are more than 500 avocado varieties.
Avocados are native to Central and South America, where they have been cultivated for over 10,000 years.
Another name for the avocado is the “alligator pear,” so-called because of its alligator skin texture and pear shape.
Spanish explorers could not pronounce ahuacatl, so they called the avocado aguacate. This is the origin of the word guacamole.
The origin of guacamole is the Aztec avocado sauce called ahuaca-hulli.
The Hass is the most common avocado in the United States and is the only avocado grown year round.
The average avocado contains 300 calories and 30 grams of healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat.
Avocados have the highest protein content of any fruit.
Avocados contain more potassium than bananas.
One avocado contains 81 mcg of lutein, an important nutrient for healthy eyes.
Once an avocado is picked, it takes between 7 and 10 days to ripen. Keeping it in the refrigerator will slow down the ripening process, while putting it in a paper bag with a ripe apple will speed up the process.

Whistle

A whistle or call is a simple aerophone, an instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a large multi-piped church organ.

History  

The whistle has its roots dating back to ancient China, where night watchmen would blow into the tops of acorns to alert the towns to invading Mongolians.

In ancient Egypt two blades of the papyrus plant along the Nile river were held together in between the palms. By blowing into the palms the papyrus leaves would make a loud vibrant sound.

 

Types of whistle

Many types exist, small mouth blown whistles for various functions from toys to hunting using bird and fowl calls type whistles, to professional whistles as police, boatswain’s pipe, military, sports whistles (also called pea whistles), to much larger steam or air preasure operated ones as train whistles, which are steam whistles specifically designed for use on locomotives and ships.

Although almost all whistles have some musical character, common whistles are not usually considered musical instruments, since they cannot play a melody, unless used as a – very shrill and loud – noise and rhythm instrument.

However, musical whistles exist, including various 2-octave musical instruments known as tin whistles (sometimes called pennywhistles or low whistles), as well as the calliope (an array of separately actuable steam whistles), organ pipes and the recorder.

Pea whistles are used in jazz and Latin music for rhythm, much as a percussion instrument is; children often use them as a toy music instrument.

There is also a more diverse type of whistle used for giving commands to sheepdogs at work, which can emit almost any tone the shepherd wishes, in order to signal different commands. This whistle is known as a shepherd’s whistle.

SCREW

A screw, or bolt, is a type of fastener characterized by a helical ridge, known as an external thread or just thread, wrapped around a cylinder.

Some screw threads are designed to mate with a complementary thread, known as an internal thread, often in the form of a nut or an object that has the internal thread formed into it.

Other screw threads are designed to cut a helical groove in a softer material as the screw is inserted. The most common uses of screws are to hold objects together and to position objects.

Often screws have a head, which is a specially formed section on one end of the screw that allows it to be turned, or driven. Common tools for driving screws include screwdrivers and wrenches.

The head is usually larger than the body of the screw, which keeps the screw from being driven deeper than the length of the screw and to provide a bearing surface.

There are exceptions; for instance, carriage bolts have a domed head that is not designed to be driven; set screws have a head smaller than the outer diameter of the screw; J-bolts have a J-shaped head which is not designed to be driven, but rather is usually sunk into concrete allowing it to be used as an anchor bolt.

The cylindrical portion of the screw from the underside of the head to the tip is known as the shank; it may be fully threaded or partially threaded. The distance between each thread is called the “pitch”.

The majority of screws are tightened by clockwise rotation, which is termed a right-hand thread; a common mnemonic device for remembering this when working with screws or bolts is “lefty-loosy, righty-tighty.”

Screws with left-hand threads are used in exceptional cases. For example, when the screw will be subject to counterclockwise torque (which would work to undo a right-hand thread), a left-hand-threaded screw would be an appropriate choice.

The left side pedal of a bicycle has a left-hand thread.   More generally, screw may mean any helical device, such as a clamp, a micrometer, a ship’s propeller or an Archimedes’ screw water pump.

Basketball

In the very beginning the color of the basketball was brown, but later it was changed into a brighter color; that is orange.

The first basketball game took place in 1982, where the court was half the size of today’s courts, and only one point was scored during the match.

The NBA (National Basketball Association) was founded in 1949, after the combination of the NBL (National Basketball League) and the BAA (Basketball Associate of America).

Basketball was first played by a soccer ball untill it was changed in 1929.

Michael Jordan is considered one of the best basketball players around the world. The record score of 5,987 made him a legend in the world of basketball.

The reason why a backboard was added is because the audience in the balcony used to interfere in the game by handling the ball.

In 1967, slam dunks were considered illegal; nine years later it was legalized again.

The first hoop was like a peach with a bottom and every time a team scores, the referee would climb a ladder to get the ball.

Women’s basketball began in 1892, and some rules were modified to fit women.

The game was made an official Olympic game in berlin Germany, 1936.

Fish

Fish have been on the earth for more than 450 million years.

Fish were well established long before dinosaurs roamed the earth.

There are over 25,000 identified species of fish on the earth.

It is estimated that there may still be over 15,000 fish species that have not yet been identified.

There are more species of fish than all the species of amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals combined.

40% of all fish species inhabit fresh water, yet less than .01% of the earth’s water is fresh water.

The spotted climbing perch is able to absorb oxygen from the air and will crawl overland using its strong pectoral fins.

Some fish like sharks don’t posses an air bladder to help keep them afloat and must either swim continually or rest on the bottom.

Some fish make sounds by grating their teeth and others like some catfish make sounds from their air filled swim bladder.

Some species of fish can fly (glide) others can skip along the surface and others can even climb rock.

Fish have a specialized sense organ called the lateral line which works much like radar and helps them navigate in dark or murky water.

The largest fish is the great whale shark which can reach fifty feet in length.

The smallest fish is the Philippine goby that is less than 1/3 of an inch when fully grown.

Some species of fish have skeletons made only of cartilage.

Fish have excellent senses of sight, touch, taste and many possess a good sense of smell and ‘hearing’.

Fish feel pain and suffer stress just like mammals and birds.

Beauty Parlour

A beauty salon or beauty parlor (International spelling: beauty parlour) (or sometimes beauty shop) is an establishment dealing with cosmetic treatments for men and women. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons and spas.

There is a distinction between a beauty salon and a hair salon and although many small businesses do offer both sets of treatments; beauty salons provide more generalized services related to skin health, facial aesthetic, foot care, aromatherapy, — even meditation, oxygen therapy, mud baths, and innumerable other services.

Beauty treatments

Massage for the body is a popular beauty treatment, with various techniques offering benefits to the skin (including the application of beauty products) and for increasing mental well-being and relaxation.

Facials refers to a treatment for the face.

Manicure refers to a treatment for the hands, incorporating the fingernails and cuticles and often involving the application of nail polish.

Pedicure refers to a treatment for the feet, incorporating the toenails and the softening or removal of calluses.   Manicures and pedicures take place at nail salons.

Beauty salons offer treatments such as waxing and threading for hair removal.

Jainism

Jainism, is an Indian religion that prescribes a path of non-violence towards all living beings. Its philosophy and practice emphasize the necessity of self-effort to move the soul towards divine consciousness and liberation.

Any soul that has conquered its own inner enemies and achieved the state of supreme being is called a jina (“conqueror” or “victor”).

The ultimate status of these perfect souls is called siddha. Ancient texts also refer to Jainism as shramana dharma (self-reliant) or the “path of the niganthas” (those without attachments or aversions).

Jain doctrine teaches that Jainism has always existed and will always exist, although historians date the foundation of the organized or present form of Jainism to sometime between the 9th and the 6th century BC.

Like most ancient Indian religions, Jainism may have its roots in the Indus Valley Civilization, reflecting native spirituality prior to the Indo-Aryan migration into India.

Other scholars suggested the shramana traditions were separate and contemporaneous with Indo-Aryan religious practices of the historical Vedic religion.

Contemporary Jainism is a small but influential religious minority with as many as 4.2 million followers in India, and successful growing immigrant communities in North America, Western Europe, the Far East, Australia and elsewhere.

Jains have significantly influenced and contributed to ethical, political and economic spheres in India. Jains have an ancient tradition of scholarship and have the highest degree of literacy for a religious community in India. Jain libraries are the oldest in the country.

Conquests of Alexander in India

In 327 BCE Alexander the Great began his foray into Punjab. King Ambhi, ruler of Taxila, surrendered the city to Alexander. Many people had fled to a high fortress/rock called Aornos.

Aornos was taken by Alexander by storm after a successful siege. Alexander fought an epic battle against the Indian monarch Porus in the Battle of Hydaspes (326). After victory, Alexander made an alliance with Porus and appointed him as satrap of his own kingdom. Alexander continued on to conquer all the headwaters of the Indus River.

East of Porus’ kingdom, near the Ganges River, was the powerful kingdom of Magadha, under the Nanda Dynasty.

According to Plutarch, at the time of Alexander’s Battle of the Hydaspes River, the size of the Magadha’s army further east numbered 200,000 infantry, 80,000 cavalry, 8,000 chariots, and 6,000 war elephants, which was discouraging for Alexander’s men and stayed their further progress into India:

“ As for the Macedonians, however, their struggle with Porus blunted their courage and stayed their further advance into India. For having had all they could do to repulse an enemy who mustered only twenty thousand infantry and two thousand horse, they violently opposed Alexander when he insisted on crossing the river Ganges also, the width of which, as they learned, was •thirty-two furlongs, its depth •a hundred fathoms, while its banks on the further side were covered with multitudes of men-at‑arms and horsemen and elephants. For they were told that the kings of the Ganderites and Praesii were awaiting them with eighty thousand horsemen, two hundred thousand footmen, eight thousand chariots, and six thousand fighting elephants. And there was no boasting in these reports. For Androcottus, who reigned there not long afterwards, made a present to Seleucus of five hundred elephants, and with an army of six hundred thousand men overran and subdued all India. ”

–Plutarch, Parallel Lives, “Life of Alexander”

Exhausted and frightened by the prospect of facing another giant Indian army at the Ganges River, his army mutinied at the Hyphasis (modern Beas), refusing to march further East. Alexander, after the meeting with his officer Coenus, was convinced that it was better to return.

Alexander was forced to turn south, conquering his way down the Indus to the Indian Ocean. He sent much of his army to Carmania (modern southern Iran) with his general Craterus, and commissioned a fleet to explore the Persian Gulf shore under his admiral Nearchus, while he led the rest of his forces back to Persia by the southern route through the Gedrosia (modern Makran in southern Pakistan).

Alexander left behind Greek forces which established themselves in the city of Taxila, now in Pakistan. Several generals, such as Eudemus and Peithon governed the newly established province until around 316 BCE. One of them, Sophytes (305–294 BCE), was an independent Greek prince in the Punjab.

TEAM WORK

Trigonometry

Trigonometry (from Greek trigōnon “triangle” + metron “measure”) is a branch of mathematics that studies triangles and the relationships between their sides and the angles between these sides.

Trigonometry defines the trigonometric functions, which describe those relationships and have applicability to cyclical phenomena, such as waves.

The field evolved during the third century BC as a branch of geometry used extensively for astronomical studies. It is also the foundation of the practical art of surveying.   Trigonometry basics are often taught in school either as a separate course or as part of a precalculus course.

The trigonometric functions are pervasive in parts of pure mathematics and applied mathematics such as Fourier analysis and the wave equation, which are in turn essential to many branches of science and technology.

Spherical trigonometry studies triangles on spheres, surfaces of constant positive curvature, in elliptic geometry. It is fundamental to astronomy and navigation. Trigonometry on surfaces of negative curvature is part of Hyperbolic geometry.

History

Sumerian astronomers introduced angle measure, using a division of circles into 360 degrees. They and their successors the Babylonians studied the ratios of the sides of similar triangles and discovered some properties of these ratios, but did not turn that into a systematic method for finding sides and angles of triangles.

The ancient Nubians used a similar methodology. The ancient Greeks transformed trigonometry into an ordered science.   Classical Greek mathematicians (such as Euclid and Archimedes) studied the properties of chords and inscribed angles in circles, and proved theorems that are equivalent to modern trigonometric formulae, although they presented them geometrically rather than algebraically. Claudius Ptolemy expanded upon Hipparchus’ Chords in a Circle in his Almagest.

The modern sine function was first defined in the Surya Siddhanta, and its properties were further documented by the 5th century Indian mathematician and astronomer Aryabhata.

These Greek and Indian works were translated and expanded by medieval Islamic mathematicians. By the 10th century, Islamic mathematicians were using all six trigonometric functions, had tabulated their values, and were applying them to problems in spherical geometry.

At about the same time, Chinese mathematicians developed trigonometry independently, although it was not a major field of study for them. Knowledge of trigonometric functions and methods reached Europe via Latin translations of the works of Persian and Arabic astronomers such as Al Battani and Nasir al-Din al-Tusi.

One of the earliest works on trigonometry by a European mathematician is De Triangulis by the 15th century German mathematician Regiomontanus. Trigonometry was still so little known in 16th century Europe that Nicolaus Copernicus devoted two chapters of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium to explaining its basic concepts.

Ripon Building

Ripon Building is the seat of the Chennai Corporation (Madras Corporation) in Chennai (Madras), Tamil Nadu. This is a fine example of Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, a combination of three types of architectural styles – Gothic, Ionic and Corinthian.

The Ripon Building is white in colour and is located near the Central station in Chennai. Commissioned in 1913, it was built by Loganatha Mudaliar.

It took 4 years to build at a cost of 750,000. Ripon building was named after Lord Ripon, Governor-General of British India and the Father of local self-government.

Earl of Minto, the then Viceroy and Governor General of India laid the foundation on 12 December 1909.   The Municipal Corporation of Madras, after functioning from several other places, settled at Ripon building in 1913, with P.L. Moore as the President of the Municipal Corporation at the time of the inauguration.

Building Information

The building is rectangular and is 85 meters long and 32 metres wide.

The first of its three floors offers about 2,800 square metres of space.

Its central tower is 43 metres tall and has a clock 2.5 metres in diameter.

The walls were constructed with stock bricks, set and plastered with lime mortar.

The roofs are supported with teak wood joists. The original flooring of the ground floor was Cuddapah Slate. This has now been replaced with marble.

One of the main attractions Yof the building is the Westminster Quarter chiming clock. This was installed by Oakes and Co. in 1913. The clock has a mechanical key system, which is wound every day. There are a total of 4 bells, which were cast by Gillet and Johnston in 1913.

WHAT IS Email ?

Computer engineer, Ray Tomlinson invented internet based email in late 1971. Under ARPAnet several major innovations occurred: email (or electronic mail), the ability to send simple messages to another person across the network (1971).

Ray Tomlinson worked as a computer engineer for Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN), the company hired by the United States Defense Department to build the first Internet in 1968.

Ray Tomlinson was experimenting with a popular program he wrote called SNDMSG that the ARPANET programmers and researchers were using on the network computers (Digital PDP-10s) to leave messages for each other.

SNDMSG was a “local” electronic message program. You could only leave messages on the computer that you were using for other persons using that computer to read.

Tomlinson used a file transfer protocol that he was working on called CYPNET to adapt the SNDMSG program so it could send electronic messages to any computer on the ARPANET network.

 

The @ Symbol

Ray Tomlinson chose the @ symbol to tell which user was “at” what computer. The @ goes in between the user’s login name and the name of his/her host computer.

 

First Email

The first email was sent between two computers that were actually sitting besides each other. However, the ARPANET network was used as the connection between the two. The first email message was “QWERTYUIOP”.

Ray Tomlinson is quoted as saying he invented email,”Mostly because it seemed like a neat idea.” No one was asking for email.

Intel

In 1968, Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore were two unhappy engineers working for the Fairchild Semiconductor Company who decided to quit and create their own company at a time when many Fairchild employees were leaving to create start-ups. People like Noyce and Moore were nicknamed the “Fairchildren“.

Robert Noyce typed himself a one page idea of what he wanted to do with his new company, and that was enough to convince San Francisco venture capitalist Art Rock to back Noyce’s and Moore’s new venture.

Rock raised $2.5 million dollars in less than 2 days by selling convertible debentures. Art Rock became the first chairmen of Intel.

Intel Trademark  

The name “Moore Noyce” was already trademarked by a hotel chain, so the two founders decided upon the name “Intel” for their new company, a shortened version of “Integrated Electronics“. However, the rights to the name had to bought from a company called Intelco first.

Intel Products

In 1969, Intel released the world’s first metal oxide semi-conductor (MOS) static ram, the 1101. Also in 1969, Intel’s first money making product was the 3101 Schottky bipolar 64-bit static random access memory (SRAM) chip. A year later in 1970, Intel introduced the 1103, DRAM memory chip.

In 1971, Intel introduced the now-famous world’s first single chip microprocessor (computer on a chip), the Intel 4004, invented by Intel engineers Federico Faggin, Ted Hoff, and Stanley Mazor.

In 1972, Intel introduced the first 8-bit microprocessor the 8008. In 1974, the Intel 8080 microprocessor was introduced with ten times the power of the 8008.

In 1975, the 8080 microprocessor was used in one of the first consumer home computer – the Altair 8800 that was sold in kit form.

In 1976, Intel introduced the first micro-controllers, the 8748 and 8048, a computer-on-a-chip optimized to control electronic devices.

Though produced by theUSA’s Intel Corporation, the 1993 Pentium was basically the outcome of a research conducted by an Indian engineer. Popularly known as the Father of the Pentium chip, the inventor of the computer chip is Vinod Dham.

Teddy Bear

Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States, is the person responsible for giving the teddy bear his name. On November 14, 1902, Roosevelt was helping settle a border dispute between Mississippi and Louisiana.

During his spare time he attended a bear hunt in Mississippi. During the hunt, Roosevelt came upon a wounded young bear and ordered the mercy killing of the animal.

The Washington Post ran a editorial cartoon created by the political cartoonist Clifford K. Berryman that illustrated the event.

The cartoon was called “Drawing the Line in Mississippi” and depicted both state line dispute and the bear hunt.   At first Berryman drew the bear as a fierce animal, the bear had just killed a hunting dog.

Later, Berryman redrew the bear to make it a cuddly cub. The cartoon and the story it told became popular and within a year, the cartoon bear became a toy for children called the teddy bear.

Who made the first toy bear called teddy bear?  

Well there are several stories, below is the most popular one:   Morris Michtom made the first official toy bear called the teddy bear.

Michtom owned a small novelty and candy store in Brooklyn, New York. His wife Rose was making toy bears for sale in their store.

Michtom sent Roosevelt a bear and asked permission to use the teddy bear name. Roosevelt said yes. Michtom and a company called Butler Brothers, began to mass-produce the teddy bear. Within a year Michtom started his own company called the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company.

Ice Skates

The oldest pair of skates known date back to about 3000 B.C., found at the bottom of a lake inSwitzerland. The skates were made from the leg bones of large animals, holes were bored at each end of the bone and leather straps were used to tie the skates on. An old Dutch word for skate is “schenkel” which means “leg bone”.

Around the 14th Century, the Dutch started using wooden platform skates with flat iron bottom runners. The skates were attached to the skater’s shoes with leather straps.

Poles were used to propel the skater. Around 1500, the Dutch added a narrow metal double edged blade, making the poles a thing of the past, as the skater could now push and glide with his feet (called the “Dutch Roll”).

In 1848, E. V. Bushnell ofPhiladelphia, PA invented the first all steel clamp for skates.

In 1865, Jackson Haines, a famous American skater, developed the two plate all metal blade. The blade was attached directly to Haines’ boots.

The skater became famous for his new dance moves, jumps and spins. Haines added the first toe pick to skates in the 1870′s, making toe pick jumps possible.

The first artificial ice rink (mechanically-refrigerated) was built in 1876, atChelsea, London,England and was named the Glaciarium. It was built near the King’s Road inLondon by John Gamgee.

In 1914, John E. Strauss, a blade maker fromSt. Paul, Minnesota, invented the first closed toe blade made from one piece of steel, making skates lighter and stronger.

The largest outdoor ice rink is the Fujikyu Highland Promenade Rink inJapan, built in 1967 and boasts an ice area of 165,750 square feet– equal to 3.8 acres.

Facts About Rain

1. The umbrella was originally invented to protect people from the hot sun.

2. Rain drops can fall at speeds of about 22 miles an hour.

3. Rain starts off as ice or snow crystals at cloud level.

4. Light rain is classified as being no more then 0.10 inchese of rain an hour.

5. Heavy rain is classified as being more then 0.30 inches of rain an hour.

6. Louisiana is the wettest state in the U.S, which receoved an annual rainfall of 56 inches.

7. Rain drops range in size from 0.02 inches to about .031 inches.

8. Rain drops do not fall in a tear drop shape, they originally fall in the shave of a flat oval.

9. Rain that freezes before it hits the ground is known as frozen rain.

10. Rain is recycled water that evaporated from our worlds lakes, rivers, oceans, seas etc.

Mango

The mango is known as the ‘king of fruit’ throughout the world.
The Mango is a member of the cashew family of flowering plants; other species include the pistachio tree and poison ivy.
The name ‘mango’ is derived from the Tamil word ‘mangkay’ or ‘man-gay’. When the Portuguese traders settled in Western India they adopted the name as ‘manga’.
Mangos originated in East India, Burma and the Andaman Islands bordering the Bay of Bengal. Persian traders took the mango into the middle east and Africa, from there the Portuguese brought it to Brazil and the West Indies. Mango cultivars arrived in Florida in the 1830′s and in California in the 1880′s.
The Mango tree is a symbol of love.
Mango leaves are used at weddings to ensure the couple bear plenty of children (though it is only the birth of the male child that is celebrated – again by hanging mango leaves outside the house).
Many Southeast Asian kings and nobles had their own mango groves; with private cultivars being sources of great pride and social standing, hence began the custom of sending gifts of the choicest mangoes.
Burning of mango wood, leaves and debris is not advised – toxic fumes can cause serious irritation to eyes and lungs.
Mango leaves are considered toxic and can kill cattle or other grazing livestock.
Mangos are bursting with protective nutrients. The vitamin content depends upon the variety and maturity of the fruit, when the mango is green the amount of vitamin C is higher, as it ripens the amount of beta carotene (vitamin A) increases.
There are over 20 million metric tons of mangos grown throughout the tropical and sub-tropical world. The leading mango producer is India, with very little export as most are consumed within the country. Mexico and China compete for second place, followed by Pakistan and Indonesia. Thailand, Nigeria, Brazil, Philippines and Haiti follow in order.
The fruit of the mango is called a Drupe – consisting of the mesocarp (edible fleshy part) and endocarp (large woody, flattened pit).
The mango is a member of the Anachardiaceae family. Other distant relatives include the cashew, pistachio, Jamaica plum, poison ivy and poison oak.
The over 1,000 known mango cultivars are derived from two strains of mango seed – monoembryonic (single embryo) and polyembryonic (multiple embryo). Monoembryonic hails from the Indian (original) strain of mango, polyembryonic from the Indochinese.
Dermatitis can result from contact with the resinous latex sap that drips from the stem end when mangos are harvested. The mango fruit skin is not considered edible.
Mangiferin – rich in splenocytes, found in the stem bark of the mango tree has purported potent immunomodulatory characteristics – believed to inhibit tumor growth in early and late stages.
Mangoes contain as much vitamin C as an orange.
To choose a Mango gently squeeze the ‘nose’ of the fruit. If there is slight give then the mango is ripe. Color is not the best indicator of ripeness.
A Mango stored at 55 degrees will last for up to two weeks. Do not refrigerate.
Mangoes are some of the best sources of beta carotene; they contain 20 percent more than cantaloupe and 50 percent more than apricots.

Footwear

 

 

Sandals originated in warm climates where the soles of the feet needed protection but the top of the foot needed to be cool.

4,000 years ago the first shoes were made of a single piece of rawhide that enveloped the foot for both warmth and protection.
In Europe pointed toes on shoes were fashionable from the eleventh to the fifteenth centuries.
In the Middle East heels were added to shoes to lift the foot from the burning sand.
In Europe in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries heels on shoes were always colored red.
Shoes all over the world were identical until the nineteenth century, when left- and right-footed shoes were first made in Philadelphia.
In Europe it wasn’t until the eighteenth century that women’s shoes were different from men’s.
Six-inch-high heels were worn by the upper classes in seventeenth-century Europe. Two servants, one on either side, were needed to hold up the person wearing the high heels.
Sneakers were first made in America in 1916. They were originally called keds.
Boots were first worn in cold, mountainous regions and hot, sandy deserts where horse-riding communities lived. Heels on boots kept feet secure in the stirrups.
The first lady’s boot was designed for Queen Victoria in 1840.

CHINA

China is the most populous nation on earth. With more than 1.2 billion people, it contains one-fifth of the world’s population.
Approximately 93 percent of the people are Han Chinese; the remainder is made up of 350 minority groups — 55 of them are commonly recognized — which have their own language, culture, and religion.
China has the third largest landmass of any nation. Only Russia and Canada are larger. China is slightly larger than the United States.
There are 31 provinces, autonomous regions and special municipalities. Hong Kong, which reverted to China in 1997, is referred to as a special administrative region.
The four largest cities, Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing, and Tianjin are administered directly by the central government.
Approximately half the land is occupied by minority people groups such as Mongols, Tibetans, Yugur, and Bai. Only about 15 percent of China’s land is farmable, so there is a great strain on the land to feed so many people.
Mandarin Chinese (also known as Putonghua) is the primary language, and is spoken by more than 70 percent of the population. Cantonese prevails in Hong Kong and in parts of the Guangdong Province. Many other dialects abound.
With its first recorded history dating back to 1500 BC, China claims the world’s oldest existing civilization.
During most of its history, China was ruled by a series of dynasties. The last dynasty ended in 1911 with the establishment of a republic by Dr. Sun Yat-sen.
From 1911 until 1949 there was great turmoil in China as various factions fought for supremacy, ending with the establishment of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949.
Since 1949, the country has been under communist rule. China’s governments claims that during that time there has been an eradication of opium, an increased life expectancy, and a reduction of the infant mortality rate.
But, there have also been periods of great turmoil, the worst of which was the Cultural Revolution, officially lasting from 1966-1970, though many historians extend its effects until the death of Mao Ze-dong in 1976.
The Cultural Revolution was a period of unprecedented turmoil in which society was virtually turned upside down.
Students, in the form of Red Guard, went on a rampage. Schools and universities were closed, intellectuals and artists of all kinds were dismissed, persecuted, sent to labor in the countryside, or killed.
Temples, monuments, and works of art were defaced and destroyed. All religious institutions were closed and religious workers were sent to prison or to work in factories or in the countryside. This was a time of suffering for all the Chinese people. Its effects are still felt in society.
Except for a few minority groups and some rural dwellers, families are strongly discouraged from having more than one child.
Those who ignore the admonitions can be severely penalized. The government takes pride in this intrusive manner of population control.
China’s economy has been improving rapidly since 1979 when China opened the doors to foreign investment and opened the economy to more private initiative.
This has resulted in a vast increase of consumer activity, so that upper middle class families have many symbols of middle class affluence: refrigerators, telephones, color televisions, video CD players, and more.
Commercialism and materialism are increasingly popular in China. However, there is still terrible poverty as well.
Even though the Communist government encourages atheism, there are five recognized religions in China today: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, and Protestant Christianity.
Ancestor worship is a daily practice for many. Confucianism is not officially a religion, though through the centuries, there have periodically been temples devoted to the worship of Confucius.
In any case, Confucianism remains a major element of the Chinese value system. The government cracked down on a very popular Falunggung religious practice in 1999, terming it a dangerous cult.
Robert Morrison was the first Protestant to introduce Christianity in China. He arrived in Canton in 1807.
From that time until 1949, hundreds of sending agencies sent thousands of missionaries to serve in China. China was a difficult mission field; converts came slowly. In 1949 there were no more than 750,000 Protestant Christians in China.
After all the foreign missionaries left China in the early 1950s and all religious institutions were closed from about 1966 because of the Cultural Revolution, it was feared that Christianity might have died out once again.
But, when the churches began to open up in 1979 it was discovered, even to the Chinese Christians’ amazement, that there were at least 6 million Christians.
No longer foreign, all Chinese churches are just that: indigenous Chinese churches, and thousands of Chinese, young and old, are turning to Christ every day.
Nobody really knows how many Christians there are in China. Accurate statistics are hard to come by because there is no systematic or standard reporting system and the numbers change rapidly.
Estimates for members of registered (government sanctioned) congregations range up to 15-20 million, with more than 37,000 congregations meeting in church buildings referred to as churches and 25,000 meeting in other locations, referred to as meeting points.
But there are also many millions of believers, perhaps 45-80 million of them, who meet in house churches that are not government approved.
Even by placing the estimate at the high end of 100 million total Christians, one is reminded that there are still more than one billion Chinese who don’t know Christ!

Watch

 

The use of quartz in watches makes use of a long-known type of electricity known as piezoelectricity. Piezoelectricity is the current which flows from or through a piece of quartz when the quartz is put under electrical and/or mechanical pressure (piezo is from the Greek verb meaning “to press”).

The oldest means of determining time is by observing the location of the sun in the sky. When the sun is directly overhead, the time is roughly 12:00 noon.
A slightly later development, and one less subject to an individual’s judgment, is the use of a sundial. During the daylight hours, sunlight falls on a vertical pole placed at the center of a calibrated dial, thus casting a shadow on the dial and providing the reader with a relatively accurate time reading.
The invention of the mechanical clock in the fourteenth century was a major advancement—it provided a more concise and consistent method of measuring time.
The mechanical clock includes a complicated series of wheels, gears, and levers powered by a falling weights and with a pendulum (or later a wound-up spring). These pieces together moved the hand or hands on a dial to show the time.
The addition of chimes or gongs on the hour, half hour, and quarter hour followed soon afterward. By the eighteenth century, smaller clocks for the home were available, and, unlike their predecessors, were closed and sealed in a case.
Developments in metal technology and in miniaturization, the lubrication of small parts, and the use of first, natural sapphires (and then artificial sapphires) at the spots that received the most stress (the jeweled movement) all became integral components of horological science.
Small pocket watches, perhaps two to three inches (five to seven centimeters) in diameter, were available by the end of the nineteenth century. Mechanical wristwatches were an everyday item in the United States by the 1960s. And yet, the central problem faced by watch and clockmakers remained the same: mechanical parts wear down, become inaccurate, and break.
In the years immediately following World War II, interest in atomic physics led to the development of the atomic clock. Radioactive materials emit particles (decayed) at a known, steady rate.
The parts of a mechanical clock that ratcheted to keep the time could be replaced by a device that stimulated the watch movement each time a particle was emitted by the radioactive element. Atomic clocks, incidentally, are still made and sold, and they are found to be consistently accurate.
With the development of the microchip in the 1970s and 1980s, a new type of watch was invented. Wristwatches that mixed microchip technology with quartz crystals became the standard; there are few non-quartz wristwatches made today.
The microchip is utilized to send signals to the dial of the watch on a continual basis. Because it is not a mechanical device with moving parts, it does not wear out.
A quartz watch uses the electricity from a piece of quartz subjected to the electricity from a battery to send a regular, countable series of signals (oscillations) to one or more microchips. (Electrical wall clocks, in contrast, use the regularity of wall current to keep track of time.)
The most accurate quartz watches are those in which the time appears in an electronically controlled digital display, produced via a light-emitting diode (LED) or a liquid crystal display (LCD).
It is possible, of course, to have the microprocessor send its signals to mechanical devices that make hands move on the watch face, creating an analog display.
But because the hands are mechanically operated through a portion of the watch known as a gear train, analogue watches usually are not as accurate as digitals and are subject to wear.
Both types of watches achieve tremendous accuracy, with digital watches commonly being accurate to within three seconds per month.