When in Rome…

Ancient Rome was a powerful civilization that ruled much of Europe for 1000 years. Get to know more as you try solving this shuffle puzzle.

The Roman Empire was among the most powerful economic, cultural, political and military forces in the world of its time. It was one of the largest empires in world history. It’s influence was so great, that even today its precepts continue to be followed in Europe.

Here are some jumbled images of monuments in Rome. Can you unravel them? Pick a difficulty level under ‘Shuffle’, choose the size of the ‘Grid’, and get going!

The Roman Empire

In 45 BC Julius Caesar took over the Roman Republic and made himself the supreme dictator. This was the end of the Republic. Then, in 27 BC, Caesar Augustus became the first Roman Emperor establishing the Roman Empire. The Roman Forum is a rectangular forum surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome.

The Colosseum

It is a giant amphitheater in the center of Rome, Italy. The construction on the Colosseum was started in 72 AD by Emperor Vespasian. It was completed eight years later. It could seat 50,000 people and covers around six acres, is 620 feet long, 512 feet wide, and 158 feet tall. It took more than 1.1 million tons of concrete, stone, and bricks to complete the structure.

Roman Baths

Every Roman city had a public bath where people came to bathe and socialise. The public bath was something like a community center where people worked out, relaxed, and met friends. The main purpose of the baths was a way for the Romans to clean themselves. Most Romans living in the city tried to get to the baths at least once a day.
The baths were also a place for socialising. Sometimes men would hold business meetings or discuss politics.

Down the rabbit hole

Lewis Caroll’s wonderful and nonsensical world captures your imagination from the word go. Find out how it was created…

“Begin at the beginning…and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” — the King, in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

This is what you will end up doing when you pick up a copy of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. With characters
as wild and outlandish as the White Rabbit in a waistcoat, the Mad Hatter, the smoking Caterpillar, and the Card Soldiers who are the loyal servants of the Queen of Hearts, the book will keep you hooked from page one as it did the kids who read it almost a century-and-half ago.

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Summertime story

In the summer of 1862, the author Lewis Carroll was out on a boating trip up the river Thames, in London, with 10-year-old Alice Liddell and her sisters. Alice was the youngest daughter of Henry Liddell, the dean of Christ Church College at Oxford, where Carroll taught math. When the sisters demanded a story, Carroll made one up about a girl named Alice and her adventures. In the story, Alice falls into a rabbit hole and stumbles upon Wonderland. There, she meets unusual characters and situations so bizarre that at one point, she tells the Caterpillar, “I—I hardly know, Sir, just at present—at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.”

With each narration, new characters, plots and twists were added. Alice loved the story so much that she asked Carroll to write it down for her. He obliged, and even illustrated the manuscript, and presented it to her in November 1864. He called the story Alice’s Adventures Under Ground. He included a dedication to her:
“A Christmas Gift to a Dear Child in Memory of a Summer’s Day”.

Encouraged by the response from Alice and his friend’s children to his story, Carroll set out to get the story
published commercially. Before sending it out for publication, he added more episodes about the Cheshire Cat and the Mad Tea-Party, expanding the story from 15,500 to 27,500 words.

The book was finally published as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland on November 26, 1865, and was illustrated by John Tenniel. At a time when children’s books obsessively focussed on preaching morals, Carroll’s book — with its nonsensical plot, focussed solely on entertaining — came as a breath of fresh air. Since then, the book has never been out of print!

Answer these:

Dose of good health

If you have been eating nutrition-rich foods, then this memory puzzle should be a piece of cake for you. Test yourself.

To maintain your health, feel good and have energy, you need to eat a variety of foods that give you the nutrients which include protein, carbohydrates, fat, water, vitamins, and minerals.

A wholesome meal means eating a varied, well-balanced diet means eating a variety of foods from each of the five food groups daily, in the recommended amounts. The five food groups are: vegetables and legumes/beans; fruit; lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds, legumes/beans; grain (cereal) foods, mostly wholegrain and/or high cereal fibre varieties and milk, yoghurt, cheese and/or alternatives, mostly reduced fat.

Test your memory with this puzzle, and learn about the different vitamins and their food sources.

A Wreck of a contest

Wreck-It-Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet is in theatres now! Participate in this contest and stand a chance to win exciting prizes.

Chef express

How adept are you in the kitchen? Can you follow the directions in a recipe without a problem? Then you must try your hand at this crossword.

So you like food! And you like to cook it too. Do cooking terms throw you off kilter or are you comfortable with them? Try this crossword, for every word is connected to food and the kitchen.

103

106

107

108

109

110

117

120

124

131

136

137

138

139

140

142

145

148

150

152

155

156

157

158

159

160

162

164

170

173

176

177

178

179

180

184

186

187

188

189

190

192

Across

1-9 :Another name for candy
34-38 :Combining two or more ingredients into a smooth uniform texture
43-48 :Keeping hot liquids just below boiling point.
66-70 :To cook quickly in a skillet with a small amount of oil.
73-78 :Scalding green vegetables in boiling hot water.
106-110 :Cut food into neat, even pieces.
136-140 :To take a small quantity of spices between thumb and forefinger.
155-160 :A small amount of soft food formed into a roundish shape.
176-180 :To work dough into a soft, malleable mixture.
186-190 :Gently breaking off small pieces of food.

Down

1-71 :To add pepper or salt to food.
34-90 :A high-concentration solution of salt in water.
38-80 :Lightly coat food with a powdery ingredient.
54-152 :Cut carrots into a shape resembling matchsticks, say.
56-98 :The outer coloured part of the peel of citrus fruit, used as flavouring.
64-120 :Beat or stir with a light, rapid movement.
103-187 :Boil food slightly.
136-192 :Processing vegetables in a blender till smooth.
142-184 :Mix ingredients without mashing or crushing them.
148-190 :To cook with dry heat.

Bully for you

Hockey terminology can be confusing. With words like Striker, Undercutting and Marking you can find yourself in a tough spot.

With the Men’s World Hockey Championship coming up, it’s time to brush up your hockey lingo.

Did you know that bully does not refer to the big kid in school who is always beating you or taking away your things, but the act of restarting play when it is not clear who had possession of the ball when play was stopped!

Or that Clearing refers to hitting the ball away from the goal, usually as a pass up the field and not that clear patch in the woods. Scoop does not refer to ice cream but to the method of passing the ball by leveraging the stick underneath the ball to pick it up and fling it.

Now take a look at these pictures, read the clues and try to guess the answers.

Saving a city’s lungs

Trees and open spaces are critical, especially in crowded cities. Protect these inexpensive hangouts.

“How many mulberries will you take home today?” asked my friend. We had successfully climbed the tree in front of his house and were parked there for a good hour. This had become a daily routine. We would rush back from school, dump our bags and be ready for the climb. Come Sunday, the place of action was the front porch of our house, up the guava tree.

A good 30 years later, only one of these trees still stands. Several others in the bustling urban lane I live in, have been taken over by house expansions and car parks. This includes the gulmohar tree, near our school bus stop. This tree would brighten our sleepy eyes in the early hours of the morning.

But why am I getting nostalgic today? Watching how trees have become central to the development narrative in several cities has, in fact, triggered all these thoughts. Residents of Mumbai have come together to Save Aarey Forests and its entire wild fauna. In Delhi, a hashtag called delhitreessos is driven to save one of the greenest parts of Delhi, where over 14,000 trees are to be cut. This is unimaginable considering the city is in the grips of the worst air pollution its residents have ever witnessed. Movements to save Cubbon Park or stop the construction of a Steel Flyover have brought together several Bengaluru residents. And these are only a handful of instances where we urban citizens, young and old are determined to save our homes.

Trees in our cities are also not just about birds, flowers, fruits or squirrels. They are also an important part of our social interaction. Ever seen auto rickshaws parked during the afternoon for a quick power nap? Don’t miss watching office goers or workers reach the neighbourhood parks to sit under the shade of a tree during lunch time. Many of us have had memorable conversations at tea shops that are integral to neighbourhood or college life.

More than ever before, trees and open green spaces are critical for any urban centre. Ecologists and researchers have pointed out how trees can reduce heat and curtail air pollution. You don’t need expensive technology if you can protect the natural lungs of the city. They are inexpensive hangout spots that are open to any age group, gender, or class. They are an urban heritage we need to protect for a healthy today and a secure tomorrow.

Conservation and Nature is a series brought to you by Kalpavriksh Environmental Action

Here are some clues along with the picture to help you identify these common trees.

Riddle Me This – 4

If you think vegetables are bland and boring, then you must try these riddles. They’ll change your perception!

Vegetables can be funny too! Don’t believe us? Try these riddles and have a laugh!

Out of this world

If you are a space buff, chances are you have heard of NASA. Did you know that the space agency turned 60 recently?

Much of our efforts to understand and explore space has been spearheaded by NASA — the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, an agency that is a part of the U.S. government. The folks at NASA are in-charge of many fascinating things, mainly science and technology related to air and space. They make satellites, send probes into space, study the solar system and beyond, and even send humans on missions to space. They make satellites, send probes into space, study the solar system and beyond, and even send humans on missions to space.

Headquartered in Washington D.C., the U.S., NASA has thousands of people working for it — not just astronauts, but also engineers, scientists, and even writers, lawyers, and teachers.

NASA was started in 1958, and in its 60-year journey it has crossed several incredible milestones. Take a glimpse.