A lot has been happening in India over the last few weeks. We bring you a few items that you may have missed.
With the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 taking centrestage and global news holding everyone’s attention, let’s take look at what is going on in India. Read on for some interesting titbits.
What exactly goes on in your body after your swallow your food? Where does the food go and what happens to it?
Halloween, on October 31, is all about chills and thrills. Let’s celebrate by checking out some of the scary creatures found on Earth.
Halloween, on October 31, is the day for ghosts, witches, ghouls, black cats and all things eerie and supernatural. But did you know that there are certain life forms in Nature that are scary enough to send chills down our spines? Take a look at five of them and unravel their photos as you go along.
Deep down in the dark realms of the Atlantic Ocean, where sunlight can barely penetrate, lives a strange fish that has appendages that look like fishing rods with luminous tassels at the end hanging from its head. This is the female Angler Fish, which has several pointed teeth set in a huge mouth. It uses its enlarged fins like legs and prefers to walk rather than swim. The fishing rods are actually modified dorsal spines that attract prey. Strangely, the male fish are very tiny and latch on to their female partners.
Back on land, if you walk past a cave or a rocky crevice late in the evening, you will see scores of bats fly out, looking like little witches in the night sky. Perfect Halloween setting, isn’t it? Bats forage for food — mostly insects — in the darkness of the night. During the day, they will be hanging upside down on the cave walls, with the little ones clinging to their mothers.
Keep walking and you might spot two golden lights shining from a tall bush. You may also hear a blood-curdling deep sound. And, suddenly, an apparition spreads it wings and flies off. Don’t worry, it’s just a harmless Great Horned Owl that probably sensed a prey with its super-sharp ears. This majestic bird is actually very useful to farmers as it keeps fields clear of rats.
Now you’re tired of walking and decide to sit down for a rest. As you settle down, your friend yells, “Watch out!” Next to you is a scorpion glowing a fluorescent blue. It appears like something out of a horror movie but it’s not. All scorpions take on a glow in the dark and scientists are yet to figure out why.
A friend once took on a challenge to visit a graveyard late at night. While he was there, he almost fainted with shock when a black form with a white band emerged from the ground. Later he realised that this ghostly creature was only a Honey Badger emerging from its burrow. This nocturnal prowler comes out of its underground home to forage for bee larvae and honey. In the absence of bee hives, it looks for its next favourite food: carrion, since it is also a scavenger.
Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockPhotos
With the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup going on, we have a special activity for you: a cricket-based jigsaw. Can you solve it?
Cricket is a captivating bat-and-ball game played between two teams. One team takes to the field to bowl and field while the other bats. The batting side aims to score runs by hitting the ball and running between wickets. The fielding team’s goal is to take the batsmen’s wickets, either by getting them out with catches, run-outs, or leg before wicket (LBW) decisions.
The game features various formats, such as Test matches, One Day Internationals (ODIs), and Twenty20 (T20) matches, each with specific rules and strategies. Cricket combines skill, strategy, and teamwork, making it a sport enjoyed by millions worldwide.
As India and the rest of the world is gripped in cricket fever, here’s a game just for you.
Episode 47: Before King Dasaratha tells the story of how he defeated the asura Shambara, he offers an explanation of the different kinds of aircrafts.
In the kingdom of Kosala, King Nemi (also known as Dasaratha) is in the practice arena with his wife Kaikeyi. He is practising some stunts in a special chariot. Manthara, Kaikeyi’s maid, is watching them.
Illustration: Sahil Upalekar
Kaikeyi: You are one of the best warriors in the world, but you still practise so hard.
Dasaratha: The more you practise the better you become. Many people become over-confident and stop practising.
Kaikeyi: I have heard the story of how you got the name Dasaratha so many times but I still want to hear it again, this time with Manthara.
Dasaratha: This was a long time ago. One day Lord Brahma called me and said that an asura named Shambara had defeated and imprisoned Indra. The Devas needed someone with unique skills to defeat him.
Manthara: What unique skill do you have that even Indra did not?
Dasaratha: I can fly more than 30 varieties of aircrafts and land crafts. I have a special vehicle that can travel in 10 directions at lightning speed. Shambara was known for attacking opponents from 10 directions.
Kaikeyi: I have seen the land crafts but what are the varieties of crafts that you can fly?
Dasaratha: So, you know that our Earth is surrounded mostly by Oxygen and Nitrogen. Anything with less molecular weight in gaseous state — like Hydrogen and Helium — are lighter than air.
Kaikeyi: Yes, I know about hydrogen-powered airships.
Dasaratha: Right. So, you have aerodyne aircraft that fly with the help of extreme dynamic movement of air molecules. Then, there are aerostat aircraft that fly by using gas that’s lighter than air to lift them.
Kaikeyi: All right. So, a sailplane, kite balloon, VTOL, ornithopter, gyrocopter, seaplane are all examples of aerodyne aircraft.
Dasaratha: Yes, a sailplane is exactly like an aeroplane but without an engine. It has a high gliding capacity. The Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) crafts, as the name suggests, can take off and land vertically. Like rockets, helicopters, drones, among others. Surface effect crafts are like hovercrafts and use the aircushion effect to move around. An ornithopter is one that flaps its wings to generate lift. Gyrocopter is a combination of a helicopter and aeroplane. It has two sets of propellers; one that helps lift it and the other that makes it move forward.
Manthara looks dazed at this explosion of information.
Kaikeyi: Can we make a model to understand this?
Dasaratha: Sure, let’s make an ornithopter using paper.
After they are done…
Kaikeyi: But you haven’t told us how you defeated Shambara?
Manthara: Wait, let me go and bring you something to eat.
Manthara hurries away towards the palace, as Dasaratha and Kaikeyi continue to practise in the arena.
The author is the founder and CEO of Vaayusastra Aerospace, an IIT-Madras incubated ed-tech startup that offers Air Science workshops for children between five and 14 years.
Now that you have read this story, why not try to make the bionic paper plane that Dasaratha demonstrated? Here’s how you go about it. Follow the steps in the images below:
What are your plans for November? Use this planner to figure out what to do in the next month.
Tall and short, old and new, big and small. Sure, you know these opposites, but what about slightly bigger words?
This crossword is all about words and their opposites. Can you solve the grid?
The festive season is here. Help your parents decorate the house by making this toran.
Nothing says “festive season” more than decorative torans that hang across the door frame, welcoming friends and family. With Dussehra and Deepavali upon us, learn how to make one.
Be it Navaratri, Dussehra or Durga Puja, it’s the time of the year when celebrations around the country are on in full swing. Take a tour.
The festive season is upon us yet again. How do people celebrate Dussehra, Navaratri and Durga Puja around the country? Embark on a colorful journey across India as we dive into the vibrant celebrations of the season.
Click on the hotspots to learn more about each region.
Photos: S.Krishnamoorthy, Nagara Gopal, Shanker Chakravarty, Shiv Kumar Pushpakar | Map not drawn to scale
This quiz goes beyond capitals, currencies and flags! Identify the country by looking at its shape in the map. Get exploring!
There you are, budding explorer! If identifying capitals, flags and currencies of countries in the world are a walk in the park for you, why not try this quiz based on recognising the country by its outline?
