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Flight club
How much do you know about our feathered friends? Find out in this crossword that’s all about birds.
This crossword is all about birds. Can you fill up the grid?
Fairies of our waterbodies
There’s more to dragonflies than lacy wings and brilliant colours. Find out more about the superpowers of these graceful insects.
The monsoon is here, promising an explosion of insect life! If you visit any stream or lake nearby, watch out for one extraordinary aquatic insect! A flash of brilliant colour zooms by, flashing intricately patterned wings. It is the little fairy of the stream or the Scarlet Skimmer Dragonfly.
Other dragonflies tap reeds with their slender bodies, performing the supreme act of life: egg-laying. The dragonfly’s incredible story starts from these tiny eggs. A peculiar creature emerges; like something out of a horror movie with huge eyes, a segmented body, and powerful jaws. Meet the dragonfly larva! This odd-looking baby is radically different from the graceful adult.
Right after birth, the larva dives into the water, where it feels at home. It eventually finds shelter at the stream bottom. This ferocious predator eats anything it can catch in its large, tweezer-like jaws. It hides among stones, waiting to swiftly attack hapless fish, tadpoles, and insects. This is not a fussy eater. Though today’s tadpole hunter might be tomorrow’s frog lunch. Nature comes full circle.
Did you know these scary-looking larvae are nature’s heroes? They munch on mosquito larvae, acting as Nature’s pest control. Imagine how many mosquito bites they save us from daily, restricting disease spread!
As the monsoon advances, the larva begins a thrilling new journey. After feeding well and growing longer, it clings to a streamside reed on an August or September night. Overnight, its outer cover hardens and the warm glow of the sun welcomes a new ready-to-emerge form. A magical transformation has taken place!
The larva, transformed into an adult, finally breaks free from its hardened shell. It has flag-like projections that unfurl to reveal four gorgeous wings! The sunlight peeks through the wings, hardening them to reveal a beautiful glassy texture; Nature’s exquisite stained-glass art! The underwater baby warrior has turned into an aerial adult acrobat!
Dragonflies have two amazing superpowers, making them the perfect flying predator! Their four phenomenal wings move independently, allowing them to zip through the air like tiny Supermen and making them one of the fastest insects. They can catch their insect prey in flight with their spiny legs. But that’s not all; their huge eyes — made of hundreds of tiny window-like eyelets — cover most of their heads, allowing them to see in all directions! This incredible vision helps them hunt with perfect precision!
Dragonflies are remarkable insects that act as guardians of our wetlands and rivers. Just like a thermometer indicating our health, the presence of dragonflies indicates a thriving aquatic habitat! Declining dragonfly numbers are a red alert; a signal that the waterbody is threatened. Let’s pledge to protect our water bodies and allow these fascinating insects to thrive!
Save the day
Today is World First Aid Day. We use this occasion to raise awareness of the importance of first aid in saving lives.
World First Aid Day is observed on the second Saturday of September every year. This year, the date falls on September 14. Use this occasion to learn some basic facts about this important, life-saving concept. Scroll through the slides below.
Statescan: September 13, 2024
Take a tour around the country with this interactive map and find out what’s making the news.
So, what’s been happening around the country? Here’s a quick peek into some of the more interesting stories that made news.
The mark of early man
Have you heard the story of how the Lascaux Caves were discovered? Read on…
The Lascaux Cave is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. Found in France, it holds some of the oldest paintings of earliest man. Where is it and how was it discovered?
Click on ‘turn’ to flip the card, and the arrow to move to the next card.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons
Not the same!
Don’t be fooled by two pictures that look the same. Spot the differences between them.
Two similar looking pictures are set apart by 12 differences. Do you have a sharp eye to spot them all? Click on all the differences in the image on the right.
Artwork by K.G. Rangarajan
Scoops of joy
Chill out with this yummy chocolate ice cream that you can whip up at home! Read on to find out how.
International Chocolate Day falls on September 13 and commemorates the birth anniversary of Milton S. Hershey, founder of the Hershey Company. You can celebrate by whipping up this delicious treat for yourself.
Follow this recipe to find out how to make homemade chocolate ice cream. Remember to take the help of an adult to use kitchen equipment.
Golden glory
A look at all the gold medal winners in this year’s Paris Paralympics.
In the Paris Paralympics 2024, India made it big with a record 29 medals, including seven gold, nine silver, and 13 bronze. In the overall medal rankings, India landed itself the 18th position.
The silver medalists were: Manish Narwal in Men’s 10m air pistol SH1 (Shooting); Nishad Kumar in Men’s high jump T47 (Athletics); Yogesh Kathuniya in Men’s discus throw F56 (Athletics); Thulasimathi Murugesan in Women’s singles SU5 (Badminton); Suhas Yathiraj in Men’s singles SL4 (Badminton); Sharad Kumar in Men’s high jump T63 (Athletics); Ajeet Singh in Men’s javelin throw F46 (Athletics); Sachin Khilari in Men’s shot put F46 (Athletics), and Pranav Soorma in Men’s club throw 51 (Athletics).
The bronze medalists included: Mona Agarwal in Shooting (Women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1); Preethi Pal in Women’s 100m T35 (Athletics); Rubina Francis in Women’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 (Shooting); Preethi Pal in Women’s 200m T35 (Athletics); Manisha Ramadass in Women’s singles SU5 (Badminton); Rakesh Kumar / Sheetal Devi in Mixed team compound open (Archery); Nithya Sre Sivan in Women’s singles SH6 (Badminton); Deepthi Jeevanji in Women’s 400m T20 (Athletics); Mariyappan Thangavelu in Men’s high jump T63 (Athletics); Sundar Singh Gurjar in Men’s javelin throw F46 (Athletics); Kapil Parmar in Men’s -60kg J1 (Judo); Hokato Hotozhe Sema in Men’s shot put F57 (Athletics), and Simran in Women’s 200m T12 (Athletics).
Now, a look at all the gold medal winners and the sports they shone in, through this fun game.
Rocks of the ages
Think about the work involved in hollowing, chiselling and carving into rocks to create spectacular architectural marvels.
Have you ever heard of the Barabar Caves in Bihar? Located in the Jehanabad district Bihar, they have a bare exterior composed of solid rock, with small, sometimes ornamental, entrance ways. What makes these simple structures special? These are the oldest surviving rock-cut temples in India, estimated to be as old as 300 BC.
Let’s look at what rock-cut architecture means. Today, buildings are constructed by bringing material such as bricks and concrete to the site and then placing the pieces one above the other. This is called the structural method. In rock-cut architecture, the material didn’t come to the building site, but the building went to the site; i.e. to large naturally occurring rocks and hills. The rocks were chipped, carved, chiselled and hollowed until bare rock transformed into a piece of architecture.
The simplest form of rock-cut architecture were human-made caves. More elaborate forms include the Abu Simbel temples in Egypt and Petra in Jordan. India has an abundance or rock-cut structures, with the most famous possibly being the temples at Ajanta and Ellora in Aurangabad.
The Barabar caves, around 50 km from Bodh Gaya, may not be popular but are the oldest surviving rock-cut shrine dating to the Mauryan period (c322 BC to c180 BC). This makes them almost 1,700 years older than the Taj Mahal, or 1,000 years older than Thanjavur’s Brihadeeswara or the Big Temple.
The caves comprise seven shrines, of which the most important is the Lomasa Rishi Cave. A pointed arch at the entrance with a carved panel is its only ornamentation. Inside, it has two chambers; one of which had a vaulted roof and finely polished walls. Called chaitya, this room is an important part of Buddhist architecture for group worship.
The Lomasa Rishi cave, however, was neither Buddhist, Hindu or Jain; it was used by a religious sect called the Ajivika, which developed in the Mauryan period along with Buddhism and Jainism. The inscriptions on the caves indicate that the emperor Ashoka dedicated these caves to the Ajivikas. But this faith eventually faded away, and the cave remains possibly its only physical remnant.
Rock-cut architecture gradually started becoming more elaborate. The Ajanta and Ellora rock-cut temples from the Gupta period are considered one of the most spectacular structures in the world. Other renowned rock-cut structures are the Elephanta Caves near Mumbai, Mamallapuram near Chennai, and the Badami cave temples in Karnataka.
Over time, kings started building ‘structural’ stone temples, where the rocks were excavated, transported to a different site and built with features like tall vimanas and mandapams. These temples dot all of India. But one thing that they share with rock-cut cave temples is the innermost sanctum which, in most temples, still resembles a cave.
Now that you have read all about India’s rock-cut temples, try your hand at this game. Fit the words on the right into the grid on the left.