My Monthly Planner: April 2023
April is an exciting month, as you get ready for your summer holidays. Use this planner to figure want to do this month.
Archives: Articles
Be a sport
A crossword all about sports. Get, set, go.
Which is Bhutan’s national game? Who is the Haryana Hurricane? To know this and more, solve this fun crossword on sports.
Cook o’clock
Cooker or strainer? Blender or peeler? Strainer or masher? Do you know your way around the kitchen?
Do you help your parents or grandparents in the kitchen? How handy are you with kitchen equipment? Up your game by learning some of their names.
Quizzically yours
What’s happening in our forests? How do the sparrows manage in the summer months? Is water a diminishing asset? Now try your hand at answering these questions.
Did you know we celebrated all these days this month?
* March 20 World Sparrow Day and World Frog Day
* March 21 International Day of Forests
* March 22 World Water Day
Here are some simple quiz questions for you to answer. Try it.
Tiny trotters
Chirp! Chirp! Say hello to your friendly neighbourhood avian!
Jungle adventures
With International Day of the Forests just past, here are 10 important forests in India that you should know about…
India has rich and diverse flora and fauna, and much of it can be found in and around some of the country’s most fascinating forests. Click on the hotspots to learn about some important forests found across India.
Based on what you have read, see how many of the words you can spot in the grid.
Ultimate runs
You must have heard of people running marathons. But did you know there are different kinds? Read on to know more…
Marathons are long-distance running events, which require a significant amount of training and endurance. Participating in marathons can provide numerous health benefits such as improved cardiovascular health, increased endurance, and reduced risk of chronic diseases.
If you’re new to marathons, it’s important to start slowly and gradually increase your training. Starting with a 5km or 10km race will be ideal for those who are looking to take up distance training.
From there on, one can graduate to a Half Marathon (21.1kms) or a Marathon (42.2 km).
Let’s take a look at some other types of marathons:
Awesome amphibians
March 20 is World Frog Day. Get all the facts about these intriguing creatures!
When is World Frog Day?
March 20, every year.
Why is it observed?
It is a day to increase awareness about the importance of frogs and the need to protect and conserve species that are threatened.
So, how many types of frogs are there?
There are more than 5,000 species of frogs in the world. From swamps to the tundra, from rainforests to deserts, they thrive in diverse environments around the globe.
What makes them so fascinating?
Frogs are amphibians because they live on land as well as in water. However, unlike other amphibians, adult frogs do not have tails. They also have much longer back legs that are made for jumping. Did you know that frogs survived the mass extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs?
Agreed, they’re really unique. But why are they important?
Frogs are both predators and prey. This makes them a vital part of the food chain. Their highly permeable skin makes them an indicator of the health of the environment. They keep insects — including mosquitoes that we find so pesky — at bay. The disappearance of frogs can trigger cascading effects in the ecosystem.
Why are they in danger?
Habitat loss, human encroachment, climate change, water pollution, and diseases (especially chytridiomycosis, caused by the chytrid fungus) are some of the factors that threaten frogs worldwide. It is estimated that around 200 species of frogs have gone extinct since the 1970s. Around one-third of the world’s frog species are threatened.
Yikes! There must be something I can do.
This day is all about spreading awareness about frogs. Use this opportunity to educate yourself about the dangers facing these critters and talk to your friends and family about the need to protect them. Every little effort counts.
Hall of fame
India’s super frogs
The Indian bullfrog is the largest frog in the country. It can also be found in nearby countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
Another species of bullfrog that is widely distributed here is the Jerdon’s bullfrog, also known as the South Indian bullfrog.
With shiny purple skin and a pig-like nose, the purple frog was discovered in 2003 in the Western Ghats. It lives underground for most of the year and surfaces only for two weeks. Its discovery sent waves of excitement in the scientific community.
Bathrooms, water tanks and even glass windows…the Indian tree frog is often found near human dwellings. They are great climbers.
Which mathematical genius are you?
Pythagoras was one of the earliest known mathematicians. His motto was “All is number”. Try this personality quiz to find out which mathematical genius you take after.
Mathematics is the science and study of quality, structure, space, and change. Though some of us may not like the subject, we have to understand that it is crucial to everything we do in life. From shopping to eating to running and driving everything involves calculations.
Let us look at some of the great mathematicians.
Pythagoras was a famous Greek mathematician and philosopher. He is best known best for the proof of the important Pythagorean theorem, which is about right angle triangles.
Hypatia of Alexandria created history by being the first woman to make a substantial contribution to the development of mathematics. She was taught by her father Theon, a mathematician and philosopher.
Srinivasa Ramanujam had almost no formal training in pure mathematics, he made substantial contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, including solutions to mathematical problems then considered unsolvable.
Maryam Mirzakhani was born in Iran and she made exceptional contributions to the study of the dynamics and geometry of mathematical objects called Riemann surfaces. She was a professor at Stanford University and held a PhD from Harvard University. In 2014, she was the first woman, and first Iranian, to be awarded a Fields Medal (also known as the International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics).
Shakuntala Devi was also known as “the human computer” for her ability to perform lengthy calculations in her head, swiftly.
Ian Stewart is an emeritus professor in the math department at Warwick University and an emeritus professor at Gresham College, London. He has done great work in promoting math to non-mathematicians. He also writes science fiction.
Now try this for-fun-only personality quiz to see which kind of mathematician you are.
Locales that inspire
Did you know that you can visit the places that form the setting for some really iconic paintings?
Inspiration for art can be found all around us, if only we look hard enough. For the artists who created the below famous paintings, the places they visited and possibly lived in provided the creative spark.
Move the slider from right to left to unravel the real-life locations that have been depicted in these works of art.
This oil painting features Montagne Sainte-Victoire, a mountain overlooking Aix-en-Provence in southern France. French artist Paul Cézanne lived here for most of his life and depicted this mountain in about 30 of his paintings.
Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh stayed in Auvers-sur-Oise, a village in the outskirts of Paris, around 1890. During this time he painted at a rapid pace, finishing almost one painting a day. One of these works of art is this one that features the village’s church.
Italian painter Giovanni Paolo Panini is known for his vistas of Rome. In this 18th century painting, he depicts one of the most famous fountains in the world, the Fountain of Trevi in Rome.
This work of art was completed by American artist Grant Wood in 1930. Since then, it has become iconic. The house that forms the backdrop for the painting stands in the town of Eldon in southern Iowa, the U.S.
This is possibly the most famous work of French artist Georges Seurat. It shows people relaxing in a park on La Grande Jatte, an island in the Seine River near Paris.
The Alhambra is a palace located in Granada, Spain. It is known to be one of the most famous examples of Muslim architecture. It forms the setting for this painting by Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida.
Yet another van Gogh masterpiece, this painting shows a relaxing view of a café against a star-filled night sky. The original cafe still stands at Place du Forum in the city of Arles in France. Van Gogh fans often descend upon this location, which now goes by the name Café Van Gogh.