How tenacious are you? Have you got stamina? Find out more about what’s in a gym.
If you were to go to the gym, you would find different kinds of equipment. Each and every piece there serves a purpose. It could be to build your stamina or work on your muscles.
Now, if you were a piece of gym equipment, what would you be? Take this for-fun-only personality quiz to find out.
Celebrate 100 Years of Disney with this Mickey Mouse colouring sheet. Bring this iconic character alive!
Check your GK quotient with these six quick questions. What are you waiting for? Get started!
Six quiz questions to get you thinking. Start guessing now.
Time to sharpen your observation skills by finding the five differences between the two images.
These images look the same, don’t they? Well, they’re not. Can you find the differences between the two?
Santiniketan, in West Bengal, has been a centre for arts and education for many years. Read on to know more about the 41st UNESCO World Heritage Site in India.
Santiniketan means ‘Abode of peace’. Today, it is a university town that was recently recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site; the 41st in India. But its origins lie back in 1862 when Debendranath Tagore built a house in this area of Bolpur, a town that is around 150km north of Kolkata, West Bengal.
In 1901, his son, the poet-philosopher Rabindranath Tagore, established a school in a portion of the land owned by his father. Envisioned on the lines of a gurukul, the vision was to rise above religious and cultural boundaries and propound a universal humanity. In 1921, Visva Bharati University was established. It was recognised as a Central University in 1951.
The school followed an open-air model with teachers sitting on raised stone platforms and the students sitting in a semi-circle around their respective gurus. When Rabindranath Tagore received the Nobel Prize, he used the prize money to expand the school. Today the campus is spread over 1000 acres.
Cultural mix
Within Santiniketan, there are independent schools and centres of learning. Kala Bhavan is the visual and fine arts centre that offers courses on art, painting, design, sculpture and graphics. Sangeet Bhavan specialises in Hindustani Classical Music and Rabindrasangeet but also teaches folk music and dance and drama. Arabic, Persian, Bengali, Chinese, Hindi, Japanese, Odia, Santali, and Sanskrit are taught at Bhasa Bhavan. Santiniketan also offers courses in agriculture and rural development apart from certificate courses in leathercraft, book binding, hand-made packaging, batik and making hand-made paper.
Santiniketan also hosts a variety of festivals. Over three days in December is the Poush Mela, which marks the harvest season. Holi is known as Basanta Utsava to welcome spring. The monsoon’s arrival is marked by the Barsha Mangal. Just before Durga Puja are Ananda Bazar, a fair to showcase students’ handicrafts, and Sharad Utsav. The birth anniversary of artist Nandalal Bose is marked with the Nandan Mela.
Several structures in Santiniketan have been restored by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The UNESCO chose it as World Heritage Site because its “ensemble of historic buildings, landscapes and gardens, pavilions, artworks, and continuing educational and cultural traditions that together express Outstanding Universal Value”.
DID YOU KNOW?
Rabindra Bhavan
Once Tagore’s home and now a museum, it offers a glimpse into Rabindranath Tagore’s life. It contains the poet’s personal belongings and showcases his books, letters, manuscripts, paintings, drawings, and photographs. His Nobel Prize medal is also displayed. It is part of what is called the Uttarayan Complex, which comprises the five houses the poet lived in.
Now that you are done learning all about Santiniketan, here’s a fun game called Word Flower to try. From the given letters, find as many words as possible that are five or more letters long. The central letter must be included in each word. Enter letters by clicking on them, or by typing them in. You can use each of the given letters only once. The word is EDUCATION.
October 5, 2023, was the 210th birth anniversary of Radhanath Sikdar, a mathematical genius. Why is he important? Read on to find out…
While most of us know about Mt. Everest, very few know that it was an Indian mathematician who actually calculated its height and declared it to be the tallest mountain in the world. Read on to know about Radhanath Sikdar, whose 210th birth anniversary was celebrated on October 5, 2023.
With the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup going on, it’s only natural that we take a look at how the cricket ball has evolved over the years.
The bat may be the heart of cricket, but the ball is its soul. Cricket began as a game played by bored shepherds and so the ball is at least as old as the game.
But the modern ball’s journey began in 1775 when Duke and Sons received a royal patent from King George VI and was first used in a series in 1780. These balls were made by highly skilled craftsmen in Kent in southeast England. The core was made of cork tightly wound about with string to provide weight and bounce. This was then wrapped in leather with stitched seam to give the bowlers grip and allow the charms of swing, spin, flight and speed and, of course, to take wickets.
The beginning
Cricket became popular in British colonies and, in the 1890s, an Australian company called Kookaburra began manufacturing cricket balls. In India, brothers Kedarnath and Dwarkanath founded Sanspareils Greenlands (SG) in Sialkot (today in Pakistan) in 1931 to manufacture cricket balls. The company moved to Meerut after the Partition of India. Even today, the Dukes and SG balls continue to be hand-made.
Thus far, the traditional cricket ball was red. In 1977, Australian businessman Kerry Packer launched World Series Cricket, with games played under floodlights. With the game being played at night, the red ball was almost impossible to see. So the white ball made its appearance and became a fixture for the day-night limited overs game. The red one, with its capacity to withstand 80 overs, remained the ball for the Test match. The pink version debuted in 2015 for day-night Tests.
Specifications
The cricket ball has the British Standard BS 5993 to itself. There are specific measurements of weight and circumference for the men’s, women’s and the junior (U-13) matches. The cricket ball is now the exclusive product of the subcontinent. Dukes was taken over by Dilip Jajodia, an Indian-origin businessman in 1987. With increasing labour costs and growing demand, the factories in Kent were forced to look to the sub-continent. Kookaburra too has a factory in the sub-continent. Sialkot, Jalandhar and Meerut today produce approximately 98% of the balls used in club cricket.
In 2021, another innovation appeared: a smart cricket ball was tried in the Caribbean Premier Leage. A Kookaburra ball with an electronic chip embedded in its innermost layer transmitted information such as speed, revolutions from the moment it was bowled till it landed in the hands of a wicketkeeper, fielder or reached the boundary line. With its own rechargeable battery, it is currently marketed as ‘Best Tool for Bowlers’. A set of two costs $150, whereas the price of a regular ball ranges from a few hundred rupees to a few thousand. However, sadly, the hands that craft the ball barely earn Rs. 20-30 for the effort they put in.
Based on what you have read, try your hand at this true or false quiz.
Are you interested in cooking? Then try this crossword to see how many words associated with the kitchen you can fill in.
Simmering, stewing, broiling, ingredients, flavour, preservative… there are innumerable terms associated with the art of cooking. This crossword is about some of them. How many can you find out by using the text and visual clues?
Every festival has a legend or myth surrounding it. Navaratri/Dussehra is no exception. The underlying theme of every story is that good overpowers evil.
Mythology abounds in tales of courage and valour where good triumphs over evil. How did the Navaratri celebration come about? Watch this video story to discover the legend behind the festival.
Mahishasura vanquished
Blue lotus
Here’s a Navaratri legend that is closely associated with the Ramayana. We know the story of how Lord Rama battled with the demon king Ravana in Lanka. It is said that before starting for the battle, Lord Rama wished to get the blessings of Goddess Durga. The puja required 108 blue lotuses, but Lord Rama could gather only 107. He decided to offer one of his eyes, which resembled a blue lotus. Just when he was about to do this, Goddess Durga appeared and granted him her blessings. Lord Rama emerged victorious in the battle, killing Ravana on Vijaya Dashami.
Worship of weapons
As the story in the Mahabharata goes, when the Pandavas lost the game of dice to the Kauravas, they were forced to live in exile in a forest for 12 years, after which they had to spend one year in disguise. If they were seen and recognised in the last year, they would have to go into exile once again. The Pandavas decided to go in disguise to the kingdom of Matsya. Before going there, they wrapped their divine weapons in a cloth and kept it on a branch of a shami tree. Their last year in exile was over, and they were able to retrieve their weapons on Vijaya Dashami, after worshipping them. This corresponds to the present-day tradition of worshipping the implements that are a part of our lives on the ninth day of Navaratri.
Illustrations: Sreejith R. Kumar
As Disney marks its 100th year, it is time to take a look at some of its lesser known characters.
This year, The Walt Disney Company celebrates its 100th anniversary. This celebration is called Disney 100 Years of Wonder. We are all familiar with Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald and Daisy Duck, Goofy, Stitch and others. But have you heard of Dave the Barbarian, Maggie Pesky or Kim Possible? Get to know more about these characters by trying your hand at this shuffle puzzle.
Brandy and Mr. Whiskers
This is a television series about a pampered pooch and a hyperactive rabbit that gets stuck in the Amazon Rainforest. Together they built a tree house with the debris of a plane’s cargo compartment. Brandy tries every way she can to get back to her home in Palm Beach, Florida. But until that time she and Mr. Whiskers are forced to work together. An unlikely friendship develops, despite the many differences. They learn to adapt to the environment, exploring the forest and making friends with the denizens of their new home.
Brandy tries to make the jungle residents become a civilised society by introducing fashion, hygiene and shiny rocks as currency. Mr. Whiskers however likes to mix things up by inventing and imagining things. This, however, invariably causes havoc in the jungle and his popularity takes a beating.
Slowly Brandy and Mr. Whiskers get more settled in the jungle. They redecorate the tree house making the interior more homey, with flowerly wallpaper, tasteful décor and even an indoor bathroom. The native animals too change, becoming more anthropomorphic.
Dave the Barbarian
This is an American animated television series with 21 episodes. It centres on a barbarian named Dave and his friends and family who go on surreal medieval-themed adventures.
Dave lives in the kingdom of Udrogoth and is set in the Middle Ages. Dave is a powerful, yet cowardly barbarian who lives with his fashionable, but self-centred sister Candy and feisty younger sister Fang. His parents, Throktar and Glimia, are the king and queen of the land. However, they are away fighting evil and Candy, as the eldest is in charge of the kingdom. The king and queen often communicate with their offspring through a magic crystal ball or cauldron. Dave is in charge of defending the kingdom, as he is the biggest. The three siblings also have a gluttonous, incompetent wizard uncle called Oswidge to help them run and protect the kingdom from Dark Lord Chuckles the Silly Piggy.
Jake Long
American Dragon: Jake Long is set in the New York borough of Manhattan. It tells the story of a Chinese-American boy named Jake Long who has to find a balance between his adolescence and his ability to transform into a dragon. When he finally unlocks his full potential, he turns into the American dragon. Now, he has to overcome obstacles to protect the magical creatures living in the city. But as Jake Long, he has issues with a girl named Rose, who has a secret dark, magical secret of her own. She is a natural dragon-slayer and is also known as the Huntsgirl, and is a member of the Huntsclan, a cult of ninjas that slay mythical creatures. Jake has been waging a long war with the Huntsclan. The leader of the Huntsclan is the Huntsman who raised Rose.
Jake and his friends Trixie Carter and Arthur P. Spudinski (Spud) navigate the city. Jake lives with an extended family – his sister, parents and maternal grandfather.
Kim Possible
The series is set in the town of Middleton, USA. Kim Possible is a teenage girl tasked with fighting crime daily alongside coping with the everyday issues of an adolescent. Kim is helped by her clumsy best friend, Ron Stoppable and his pet naked mole rat, Rufus, and a 10-year-old computer genius named Wade. They call themselves the Team Possible. Their primary aim is to stop the evil plans of the mad scientist supervillain duo Dr. Drakken and his assistant Shego.
Most of the time, Ron’s fears insecurities and clumsiness jeopardise the success of their missions. Wade helps them out remotely, as he hardly ever leaves his bedroom. He communicates with them with a device he has invented Kimmunicator. Most of Kim’s missions involve her travelling to different places around the world to rescue people and fight villains, invariably Dr Drakken and Shego, who are planning world domination.
Kim’s biggest drawback is that she is too young to drive herself and is often caught in situations where she has to ask various people to help her.
Maggie Pesky
Margaret Pesky also known as Mary Pesky is a fly and is the second oldest of the Pesky siblings. She is a student at Buzzdale Academy in Stickyfeet. Her class teacher is Mrs. Wingston, who is also her math and science teacher. Her history and drama teacher is Mr. Bugspit.
Maggie aspires to be a rockstar and she is always on her pink double neck guitar. She makes no bones of bending the rules to make her dream come true. But, her principal Peststrip is waiting for her to do just this so that he can nail her. She gets caught in sticky situations very often. Ambitious to the core, she becomes a member of all Buzzdale Academy’s clubs just so that she can miss a math test. Maggie’s arch rival is Dawn Swatworthy who is also Buzzdale’s snob. Dawn tries to sabotage Maggie’s plans and sometimes does succeed.
Phineas and Ferb
The show is set in the fictional city of Danville and follows stepbrothers Phineas Flynn and Ferb Fletcher during their summer vacation. Every day the boys undertake the construction of a grand project or set off on a spectacular adventure. This annoys their older sister Candace who is extremely controlling and tries to expose their schemes to their mother.
The subplot always features the boys' pet platypus Perry, who works as a secret agent. He is identified as Agent P. He works for an all-animal government organisation named O.W.C.A. (Organisation Without a Cool Acronym). His objective is to defeat Dr Heinz Doofenshmirtz, a mad scientist, who is driven largely by a need to assert his evilness but is often defeated by his ineptitude.
The two plots intersect in the end, erasing all traces of Phineas and Ferb’s project just before Candace can show it to their mother.
