Oh My God — Amazing Facts: The Universe is an amazing place and there’s a lot of things that we will never know. Here is a collection such facts to improve children's knowledge base. 182-member Family 123 -year old Malan Devi died in her village, Wazidiwal, six kilometers from Phagwara in Rajasthan (North-western India). She is survived by a 182-member family, which comprises sons, daughters, grandsons, etc. 21-inch tongue A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue! 4 Noses Slugs have 4 noses. A blue Russian Cat “I can see clearly now!” “Spooky.” A blue Russian Cat, and “George.” A Boston terrier, were the first animals in America to be fitted with prescription contact lenses! A bright red, 12-inch long squid that lives 3,300 feet underwater A bright red, squid is covered with tiny lights and spines was named “Vampyroteuteuthis infernails” or “Vampire squid from hell” by the scientists who discovered it! A fairy Ring Sometimes the toadstools grow in a ring. This is because the plant has used up all the nutrients under the centre of the circle and puts up fruiting bodies at the edge in a ring. Rings yellowed and burnt looking grass have led some people to believe that a flying saucer has landed and taken off again, burning the grass with its exhaust. Actually it is caused by fungi. A Fantastic Leap The common flea, a tiny wingless insect, can jump 20 centimetres into the air. This means it jumps more than 130 times its own height. Fleas jump on to animals to feed on their blood. A Hot Spot Most birds sit on their eggs to incubate them, but not this common scrub hen. Instead, it uses the heat from volcanoes to keep its eggs warm. It buries its eggs in the side of a volcano on the pacific island where it lives. A light in the dark It is very dark in the depths of the oceans. Deep-water anglerfish have a special way to find their prey in the dark. A long spine with a kind of light at the end lures fish into their open mouth. A million people - How many is that? In 1916 in the First World War one million men were killed in one battle, the battle of Somme. In Britain in 1992 over three million people were unemployed. Suppose a million people decide to march in rows for four, 1.5m (5ft) apart, from Trafalgar Square in London, north to M1, where do you think the front of the column would be when the last people left? They would have marched 375km (234miles) before the millionth person left Trafalgar Square. They would have passed through Leeds and be within 6km (4miles) of Richmond in North Yorkshire. A prickly mouthful Pufferfish can fill themselves up with water so that they are too big to swallow. The porcupine fish has spines which stick out when it blows itself up. Its warning color shows up more clearly then, too. A sticky trap A spider’s web is not its home but a food trap. Orb webs, like this one, have sticky threads that trap the spider’s insect prey. Some spider in tropical forests build huge orb webs nearly 6 metres across. A sweet tooth all round Ants carry the caterpillars of the large blue butterfly into their nest. There, the ants feed on the sweet honeydew produced by the caterpillars, which in return feed on the tiny ant larvae. A tasty dish The crested porcupine, which lives in Africa and parts of Europe, has often been hunted for its tasty meat. Now it is becoming rare. When the Porcupine meets an enemy it turns its back towards its foe and rattles its long black and white spines. A tree-climbing crab Coconuts are plentiful on the pacific islands where the giant robber crabs live. The crabs feed on dead animals, but they also like eating coconut up a plam tree and then drop it to crack it open. They scoop out the flesh with a claw. Active Volcanoes on Earth The earth has more than 600 active volcanoes. Many of them are to be found on what is called the ‘Ring of Fire’ around the Pacific Ocean. The largest active volcano on the Earth today is the Mauna Lau, which is about 4168 metres (13,677 feet) high. It is situated in the Hawaiian islands. One volcanic explosion in Mauna Lau lasted for more than a year. Indonesia has more than 600 and Iceland has 200 volcanoes. Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian, and had only ONE testicle. African Black Rhinoceros The African black rhinoceros excretes its own weight in dung every 48 hours. Air speed record Swifts fly faster and spend more time in the air than any other bird. They are easily recognized by their long cu rved wings. The fastest of all is the spine-tailed swift, which lives Asia and can fly at 170 km/hr. Like other swifts it spends at least 9 months of the year on the wing, feeding, resting and even mating in the air. It only lands in the breeding season, when it builds a nest of moss and hairs in the tree holes. Albatross’s glide Did you know that an albatross can glide for up to six days in mid-air without beating it’s wings, and that it can take a nap while doing so? All under one roof Social weaver birds live in Africa. In the breeding season, many pairs come together to build their nests. They build one huge domed roof of grass and straw. Then each pair builds its own nest under the roof, each with its own entrance. Amazing Survival This water-holding frog lives in the desert. When it rains, the frog absorbs water through its skin. Then it burrows into the sand, where it can stay for over two years until the next rainfall. Amount of Water If you could weigh all the water that falls on a single acre of land during one inch of rainfall, it would weigh 113 tons -- that is 226,000 pounds. The amount of water on earth has remained the same since the planet was created some 4,500 million years ago. An Island from Nowhere In 1963 the sea to the south west of Iceland began to boil and bubble. Slowly the island of Surtsey rose through the water. It was made of molten lava from a volcano. The lava cooled and plant seeds blown across the sea soon began to grow there. Islands made of Shells: Coral reefs are made up of the skeletons of millions of tiny animals. Sometimes the reef forms a circle, or atoll, with sea water in the middle. Angel Falls in Venezuela Angel Falls in Venezuela is the highest waterfall in the world. It drops 979m (3,212 ft), two and a half times the height of the Empire State Building (381m/1,250 ft) and more than four times the height of Canary Wharf (228m/748ft). Animal Giants The animal giant of all time, the blue whale, is about 30 times heavier than the largest land animal. It is not by chance that this record breaker should live in the sea. No land animal could ever reach that size because its weight would crush its bones. The water supports the whale’s massive bulk. Ants on march A column of army ants may consist of 150,000 insects and take several hours to march past one spot. They prey on almost any animal that cannot escape from them. Australian Eucalyptus The tallest tree in the world is the Australian eucalyptus tree which grows up to 114 m (374 ft) high, higher than St. Paul’s cathedral. If it were possible, you could lean over the balcony on the 38th floor of a rise block and touch the top leaves of the tree. Average efficiency of Vehicles The global average efficiency of vehicles is 5 km to a litre. Japan and Western Europe manage an average of up to 11 km. Average height of a person Try the one out: the average height of a person should equal the stretch of their arms from fingertip to fingertip. Average Height of People Over the last 150 years the average height of people in industrialised nations has increased 10 cm (about 4 inches). In the 19th century, American men were the tallest in the world, averaging 1,71m (5'6"). Today, the average height for American men is 1,75m (5'7"), compared to 1,77 (5'8") for Swedes, and 1,78 (5'8.5") for the Dutch. The tallest nation in the world is the Watusis of Burundi. Average Person Laughs The average person laughs 10 times a day! Baby Sea Turtles Only one out of a thousand baby sea turtles survives after hatching. Bacteria that glow The ocean floor is completely dark. Very few fish can live there. The black angler fish is one that does. It carries its own lantern to lure Prey into its huge mouth. Bacteria that glow in the dark make the light. Balloon Gas Helium Balloon Gas makes balloons float. Helium is lighter than air and just as the heaviest things will tend to fall to the bottom, the lightest things will rise to the top. Bamboo Bamboo grows faster than any other plant. It can grow nearly a metre (39.4 in) in one day - about the same as you grew in the ten years after you were born. Bank Teller The term "bank teller" originated in the wake of the 1929 stock market crash, when banks began hiring low-paid workers to "tell" throngs of frantic depositors that their money was gone. Baobab trees Desert Plant become fatter or thinner depending on the weather. When it rains the roots drink in the water and the tree stores it in the trunk. During the long dry season the tree becomes thinner and thinner as it uses up its store of water. Bathers beware This snake and jellyfish live off the coast of Australia. The sea snake is the most poisonous snake in the world. Box jellies, sometimes called sea wasps, are the most poisonous jellyfish. Their sting can kill a person in less than 3 minutes. Bee Humming Bird The smallest bird is the bee Humming bird. It lives in Cuba and measures less than 5cm (2in) from the tip of its long beak to the end of its tail. It weighs only 2g (0.07 oz), about as heavy as half a teaspoon of water. I would take fourteen bee hummingbirds to balance a hen’s egg. Beetles Beetles taste like apples, wasps like pine nuts, and worms like fried bacon. Before pillarboxes and stamps It’s strange to think that before pillarboxes and stamps existed, postmen, called letters from people and charging a halfpenny for the service of delivering them! Biggest continent in the world The biggest continent in the world is Asia. It is nearly five times larger than Australia, the smallest continent. Africa and Asia together account for just over half of all the land in the world. Biggest Land Animal The hippo is the third biggest land animal. It is slightly smaller, but heavier than a white rhino. The biggest land animal is the elephant. Biggest sand dunes The biggest sand dunes are in Algeria in the Sahara Desert. They are up to 430m (1,411 ft) high, nearly three times the height of the Greatest Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt or nearly or twice as high as Canary Wharf. Birds never sing Have you ever noticed that birds never sing on the ground-only when they are safely perched above it? Birds of Prey Birds of prey have very good eyesight. As they hover many metres above the ground they can detect the slightest movement of a mouse in the grass below. It is thought that a peregrine falcon can see a pigeon up to 8 km (5 miles) away. When owl, eagle or other bird of prey has spotted its target, it swoops down and grasps its prey in its claws. Eagles can even carry off young lambs and other animals weighing as much as 9kg (20lb). Birds have no teeth so they swallow their food whole. Owls cannot digest the bones and furof their prey, so they regurgitate them in the form of a pellet with other undigested bits of food. Hens swallo grit and small stones. The stones help to grind up the food in their stomachs. Blood accounts in Human Body Blood normally accounts for one thirteenth of a person’s total body weight. Blood Vessels There are 60,000 miles of blood vessels in a human body. Born under-water Did you know that baby hippos are born under-water! Brain of Albert Einstein After the death of Albert Einstein his brain was removed by a pathologist and put in a jar for future study. Breathe and swallow at the same time There are two things we cannot do-breathe and swallow at the same time, and sneeze with our eyes open. Bright Bait Clownfish are safe as long as they swim among the stinging tentacles of the giant sea anemone. Any fish that tries to catch them may end up as a meal for the sea anemone instead. The clownfish are covered with a sticky mucus that stops them being stung by the sea anemone. Bristle-cone Pine The oldest tree in the world is a bristle-cone pine. One in Arizona, United states is 4,600 years old. It was just a sapling when the pyramids were being built, a tall tree when the ancient Greeks and Persians were battling in the Mediterranean, and was already old when Jesus was born. Britons saves no water Every year, the average Briton uses 10,000 gallons of water, 500 per cent more than the average Indian. A fraction of 1 per cent of drinkable tap water is actually drunk. The biggest domestic water consumer is the toilet - 2.2 gallons for every flush. Around 32 per cent of our drinking water is flushed down the toilet. It takes half a gallon of water to cook a pot of rice, and a gallon to wash the pot. You need 100 drops of water to fill a teaspoon. Bumble bees flying high Bumble bees live high up in the mountains in Europe, where they feed on the pollen and nectar of the flowers that grow there. Some insects even fly over the snowy peaks of the Himalayas as they migrate. Butterfly trees Some monarch butterflies fly from Canada to Mexico, where they mass together on trees to hibernate for the winter. Buy glasses from peddlers Not everyone likes wearing glasses, but in the Middle Ages, you could buy them from peddlers in the street and use them as ornaments! Cactus Cactus grow in hot, dry palces. They have no leaves at all. They have spikes on them to stop animals eating them and have thick stems which store water. Call this a prison? Adarsh Karagar located on the outskirts of Lucknow is a unique prison. The convicts in this jail are permitted to move about freely. They also earn their living. Some have laundries, other run barber shops while some have formed a musical band which is in great demand at functions. They queue up each morning before leaving for their chosen work but have to return by sundown. But of course Adarsh Karagar is not for all and sundry. It is only meant for ‘star prisoners’ with exemplary records who are between 21 and 40 years, physically fit and have strong family ties. The Karagar also has an open village with 50 acres of land for cooperative farming. The main aim of this jail is to reform the convicts by providing financial and emotional security. Camel can go for several days without food or water Camel can go for several days without food or water. They carry a supply of fat in their humps. A camel with a sagging hump is a hungry camel! They lose no water from their bodies. They do not sweat and their urine is solid crystal. People in the desert do not wash-up with water, they use sand to clean their dirty dishes. Camel can go for several days without food or water. Camel can go for several days without food or water. They carry a supply of fat in their humps. A camel with a sagging hump is a hungry camel! They lose no water from their bodies. They do not sweat and their urine is solid crystal. People in the desert do not wash-up with water, they use sand to clean their dirty dishes. Can you imagine how long it would take to count a million pounds? If the money was in one pounds notes a bank clerk could count a break it would take at least eight days for him to work through a million. Cat’s Tail When subjected to an electric current of at least 50 volts, a cat’s tail always points toward the north. Chameleon Snatches - Sharpshooter The chameleon snatches up its insect prey in a fraction of a second. It waits for an insect to land within range, then it shoots out its long tongue. The insect is caught on the sticky tip of the tongue. Change your eye color Ingesting small doses of ink over an extended period of time will change your eye color slightly. Clean Shave your knowledge Shaving was even done by men in distant past caves in Stone Age. Razors have been found in the digging of graves from the times of Stone Age and the ancient Egyptians in North Africa. Safety razors are a later invention. The shaving became popular only in 1901, when Gillette began producing razors in large quantities. Cleaning Crocodile The Egyptian Plovers, pick off tiny animals that live on the crocodile’s body. They can even climb into its mouth without being harmed. Clocks that make Patit Paban Dutta It is clocks that make Patit Paban Dutta of Calcutta tick-literally! He has been tending the clock towers of Calcutta for more that half-a-century. Starting as an apprentice under his father at the age of 16, Dutta is still able to climb up a flight of 108 stairs to check the clock a top St. Paul’s Cathdral every week and wind it with the help of 5-kg iron crank. It was one of his forefathers who had set up the famous clock towers of Calcutta way back in 19th century. Assisted by son Subir, Dutta also looks after other clock towers in the city and in suburbs like Bandel and Hooghly. In fact it was Subir who had repaired the clock at the Golden Temple at Amritsar. Closest living relative of Tyrannosaurus Rex Down in those jungle swamps a survivor from the Stone Age lurks. Experts say that crocodile is probably the closest living relative of Tyrannosaurus Rex, which makes it nearly 195,000,000 years old! Closing Sea The Mediterranean Sea is closing up, but very slowly. Every year North America moves a centimetre or two closer to Italy, Greece and France. Cockle shells come in various sizes, but have you ever wondered how they grow? As it gets older the cockle just adds another layer to its outer shell. To work out their age you can count the rings on them just like a tree. Coldest Continent Antarctica is COLDEST continent, averaging minus 76 degrees in the winter. Colorful tale Here’s colorful tale: the South American Tinamou known as the Easter Egg Bird-lays multi-colored eggs in blue, green, pink, yellow and purple. Comet Hale-Bopp Comet Hale-Bopp was the most watched comet of the 20th century. It had its closest approach to the Earth on March 22, 1997. Researchers predict that the comet will come near the Earth not before the year 4397. Common names of Mountain Lions Mountain lions are known by more than 100 names, including panther, catamount, cougar, painter and puma. It’s scientific name is Felis concolor, which means "cat of one color." At one time, mountain lions were very common! Country with greatest number of Telephones The country with the greatest number of telephones is the United States of America, with an estimated 168 million instruments, in some 96 out of every 100 household. Second largest number is in Japan, with the United Kingdom third. Crocodile - strong Digestive juices A crocodile’s tongue is attached to the roof of its mouth? It cannot move. It cannot chew but its Digestive juices are so strong that it can digest a steel nail, Glass pieces, etc. Cuckoo clever enough Cuckoo pass on the difficult business of hatching eggs and feeding the young to other birds. The female looks for a nest full of eggs and pushes one of them out. She then lay her eggs in its place. When the baby cuckoo is born, it too pushes out its rivals. Eventually the baby cuckoo is the only one in the nest and the foster parent continue to work hard to feed it, even though it may grow to be many times bigger than themselves. Dandruff by flaking skin Fish have "dandruff" caused by flaking skin, and it is impossible to filter all traces of it from drinking water. Danger in the desert The North American harvester ants can give people a nasty sting. They live in deserts, where they build volcano-shaped nests in the sand. the ants feed on grass seeds. Darting flight Dragonflies are also fast-flying insects, especially the darter dragonflies which are named after the way they dart about. Dead or Alive? Some snakes, like grass snake, escape capture by pretending to be dead already. Most meat-eating animals only feed on freshly-killed prey, and avoid animals that may have been dead for some time. Death in disquise The well-camouflaged stone fish lives in warm seas, where it lies hidden on coral reefs. If its spines are touched they give out a poison which can kill a person in a few minutes. Deserts have many poisonous snakes Deserts have many poisonous snakes or scorpions, but few people are killed by them. More people die from mosquito bites than from all the other bites and stings put together. Designed for speed Pronghorn antelopes live on the open plains of the western United States. Their lungs and heart are large which enables them to run at a fast, steady speed for long distance. they can keep going at 56 kmph for 6 kilometres. Did you know that goose-berries have nothing to do with geese at all? The world comes from the Old English word gorst meaning rough or prickly, because the fruit grows on a bush with prickly spines and thorns. Did you know that there is a sort of crab, which can climb trees? It is called the coconut crab, because it eats coconuts, which it finds by climbing the palm trees where the nuts grow. Do you enjoy crosswords? In the 1920s they were so popular that trains in America were supplied with puzzles and dictionaries in each compartment. Do you have foxgloves in your garden? The flowers look just like little hats, don’t they? And it used to be believed that fairies wore the bell-shaped flowers as hats - they are just the right size. Do you hear a rattle? It can be rattlesnake. Do you know what makes rattle snake’s tail rattle? The vibration of shell-like rings on the end of its tail makes the rattling sound. The rattle is made up of dry, hard pieces of unshed skin. As the snake grows, the number of rings increases. So the louder the rattle, bigger the snake. The snake will shake its rattle to fright away the intruder. Do you know the difference between the Dolphin and a Porpoise? First, these two are not fish they are mammals. They have to breathe above the water, both are related to whales, but are smaller. Dolphins can grow to 12 feet in length and have a beak. Porpoise are beakless and are usually between three and six feet long. Do you know the reason why do Zebras and Tigers have stripes? This is camouflage. This helps them to hide. If Zebra or a tiger were in your backyard, you would know it. However, if you were in their neighbourhood, you might miss them. Striped coats are hard to see in the light and dark shadows of forests and grasslands. This helps to keep them safe from predators and help tiger to get its prey easily. Dolphins Dolphins sleep with one eye open! Dragonfly’s Eye Dragonfly’s Eye contains 30,000 lenses. Driest desert The driest desert is the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, South America. Until 1971 it had had no rain at all for 400 years. Dudley Do-Right In 1960, a then-unknown Dan Rather auditioned for the voice of cartoon character Dudley Do-Right but was turned down by animator / director Jay Ward. Earth Weight Earth weighs 5,972,000,000, 000,000,000, 000 tons Earth’s surface One-tenth of the Earth’s surface is always under the cover of ice. And almost 90 per cent of that ice is to be found in the continent of Antarctica. The remaining 10 per cent is found on the mountains in the form of glaciers. The ice sheet that covers Antarctica is almost one-and-a-half times the size of America. The only creatures that live on Antarctica throughout the year are insects. Eggs in the sand Green turtles lives in the sea but they travel up to 3,000 kilometres to their island breeding grounds. The females crawl up the beach n lay their eggs in a pit in the sand. Elaphant’s teeth weight Did you know that elaphant’s teeth can weight as much as nine pounds each? Amazing! Enormous Insects The Goliath beetle is the heaviest insect, while the tropical stick insect is the longest. The Queen Alexandra birdwing is the largest butterfly. Excellent Swimmers Bison are excellent swimmers? Their head, hump and tail never go below the surface of the water. Eyes of Chameleon The eyes of the chameleon can move independently & can see in two different directions at the same time. Fairground roundabouts have been revolving since 1660 Fairground roundabouts have been revolving since 1660 in Europe and the Middle East. They first appeared in Britain in 1730, worked by small boys who pushed them round and round. Farmers William Anderson and Bill Brock of Gendale, California, received a US patent Farmers William Anderson and Bill Brock of Gendale, California, received a US patent for an organic method of keeping a yard free of mosquitoes by using a spray of Garlic Juice! Fastest reptile Turtles move very slowly on land, but in the water the Pacific leatherback turtle is the fastest reptile of all. It is more streamlined than other turtles and can swim at 35 km/hr. Fatal Sting Scorpions use their poison for attack and defence. Some kinds of scorpion have a sting that is so powerful it can kill people. Father in charge The stickleback is one of the few fishes that builds a nest. The male, in his red breeding colors, makes a nest of weeds where the female lays her eggs. Then the male stays by the nest to guard the eggs until they hatch. Fearless to the Teeth Gilberto Shedden, 50, with his crocodile during a show in Siquirres town, near Costa Rica’s Atlantic Coast. Shedden’s best friend is a 4.5-metre-long crocodile named ‘pocho'. Every Sunday, the spectacle attracts large crowds, including tourists from around the world and his exploits have earned Sheddon the nickname ‘Tarzan Tico'. Fifteen IGUANAS Fifteen IGUANAS that were swept out to sea on a raft of water-logged trees traveled over 200 miles from Guadeloupe to Anquilla in the Caribbean!(1995) Fingernails Fingernails grow nearly 4 times faster than toenails! First ballet tu-tu The first ballet tu-tu was worn by Maria Taglioni in 1832 on a Paris stage. The outfit was white with tiny blue gauze wings. First case of the common cold The first case of the common cold was diagnosed in 1611 in Stratford, England. The patient? John Common, who coincidentally gave his cold to William Shakespeare who said the new malady exacerbated his lovesickness, thereby inspiring several of his most fondly remembered sonnets. First Parachute Jump The first parachute jump was made long before aeroplanes were invented. How? By a brave Frenchman, Andre Garnerin, who leapt from a balloom in 1797 and lived. The first jump from an aircraft was made more than 200 years later by Captain Albert Berry at St. Louis, USA, on March 1st 1912. First person to invent sign language for deaf and dumb Did you know that the first person to invent sign language for the deaf and dumb was a French monk who opened a special school to teach ‘hand language’ in the 18th century? First person to swim The first person to swim the 34 km (21 miles) across the English Channel from Dover to Calais was Matthew Webb. He swam for 21 hours 45 minutes and reached France at 10.41 on the 25th August 1875. First person to swim across the English Channel The first person to swim the 34 km (21 miles) across the English Channel from Dover to Calais was Matthew Webb. He swam for 21 hours 45 minutes and reached France at 10.41 on the 25th August 1875. Fishy disquise The Sargassum fish looks very like the seaweed that grows in the Sargasso Sea, where it lives. These long, slim pipefish are cousins of the sea-horses. Their dull color and reed-like shape disguise them among clumps of eels-grass. Flight of a chicken The longest recorded flight of a chicken is 13 seconds. Flying for its Life When the four-winged flying fish is being chased, it shoots out of the water and glides over the top of the waves. It can stay airborne for 1,000 metres, beating the water with its tail whenever it drops down low. Food that does not spoil Honey is the only food that does not spoil. Honey found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs has been tasted by archaeologists and found edible. Friday 13th Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a "Friday the 13th." Frog’s longest jump A frog named Santjie, who was in a frog derby in South Africa jumped 13 feet 5.5 inches. Frogs without tongue There are 6 to 14 frogs species in the world that have no tongues. One of these is the African dwarf frog. Game of marbles The game of marbles was first introduced into Britain by the Romans. The world championship is held every year in Sussex. Game of snakes & ladders The game of snakes & ladders was created by the 13th century poet saint Gyandev. It was originally called ‘Mokshapat.’ The ladders in the game represented virtues and the snakes indicated vices. Giraffe - All Necks and Legs All Necks and Legs: The giraffe, the tallest animal in the world, lives on the African plains. It can reach high into the trees, especially acacias, to feed, and can run at nearly 50 kmph. Giraffe’s tongue Try sticking your tongue out as far as it will go. Do you think you have long tongue? Well, compare your tongue with a giraffe's. A giraffe’s tongue can sometimes be over a foot and half long! GOING BANANAS In Altadena, California, There is banana club and museum dedicated to Bananas with over 17,000 Banana-related artifacts! Great Glider The wandering albatross has the largest wing span of any bird, about as wide as two adult’s outstretched arms. Its long thin wings allow it to glide for hours over the sea. Green Coca-Cola Coca-Cola would be green if colouring weren’t added to it. Growing Traffic There are about 400 million cars and light trucks in the world today. In 1950, there were 50 million. Guardian Angle Though Ashis was born in an affluent family in Calcutta, the slums just across the street made him aware from an early age of appalling lack of access to medical care. People in these slums ‘dropped dead like flies.’ That decided his life’s mission. While in his teens Ashis started a door-to-door collection drive, picking up medicines from neighbours and distributing them amongst those who couldn’t afford them. His ‘Medical Bank’ began with 100 homes in 1980. Today his health service picks up medicine samples from over 500 doctors in the city and runs a free outdoor service with 25 doctors treating a hundred patients each day. The bank has 50 donors on its rolls, each of which bears the cost of treatment of one patient. It has also signed up 1,000 locals, each of whom buys a pair of spectacles for patients who need them. Ashis also organizes monthly health camps for slum and street children. Ashis’ example shows that if you are concerned, you can show it! Hajabba sells oranges to set up village school Citizen hero Hajabba is a 47-year-old illiterate fruit seller but he has set up a school in his village in Mangalore, Karnataka. His source of capital was the money he earned selling oranges and the meagre amount doled out by the gram panchayat. Over several years, he managed to collect enough funds to set up the much-needed school, in addition to taking care of a family of five. Hatching of Eggs Most birds build a nest in which female lays her eggs then sits on them until they hatch. A finch has to wait only 12 days for her eggs to hatch, but a royal albatross has to sit for a staaggering 79 days. Have you ever wondered how postmen deal with angry dogs? In America, animals experts once gave them a tip: if they took off their hats and put them over their faces, dogs would confused long enough to allow them to escape. If, of course, they could see where they were going! Have you heard about the strange craze in 1890? More than 18,000 mummified cats were sold in Liverpool, England. Everyone wanted to own one. There were so many that the auctioneer used one instead of a hammer. Twenty tones of them were shipped from Egypt where they were discovered in a 2000 year old tomb. Heart Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day! Hedgehog’s Heart On average a hedgehog’s heart beats 300 times a minute. Helena’s hummingbird Helena’s hummingbird, which lives in Cuba, is the smallest bird in the world. Its wings make a bee like hum as they beat at 100 times in a second. Hummingbird eats twice its weight in food every day. Hummingbird can even fly backward. It lays the smallest eggs (They are large compared with the size of the bird). Hello Kitty "Hello Kitty" began as part of a covert propaganda campaign originally proposed by Prime Minister Tojo during World War II. Helping with the Reading Habit Jeanette Golden works with her labrador at Chevy Chase Elementry School. Jeanette and Dune combine their talents helping 3rd grader Arturo Gomez, 9, with his reading problems. As part of the READ programme, dogs from the National Capital Thearpy Dogs help ease the tension some children have with reading. Highest cliffs in the world The highest cliffs in the world are in Hawaii. They rise just over 1,000m (3,281ft) from the sea that is nearly four times as high as Canary Wharf. If you threw a huge stone off the top, it would take about 15 seconds before you heard the splash. Highest high tides There are two high tides every day. The highest high tides are in the Bay of Fundy between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick on the east coast of Canada. Here the water level at high tide can be 14.5m (47ft) above that at low tide - that is nearly as high as a five storey house. Highest Mountain of Land Mount Everest is the highest mountain of land. It is 8,848m (29,030 ft) high. That is 20 times as high as the Sears Tower in Chicago. Highest mountains in the world The top 109 highest mountains in the world are all in Asia and 96 of them are in the Himalayas. Highest tides in Britain The highest tides in Britain are on the Severn Estuary, just where the M4 crosses the river. Here, the high tide mark can be nearly 12.5m (41ft) above the low tide nearly deep enough to cover three double decker buses, one on the top of the other. Hippopotamus run faster A hippopotamus can run faster than a man. Homeless Japanese crested ibis The Japanese crested ibis is almost extinct, although large numbers used to live in Russia, China and Japan. They nest and feed in wet, wooded areas. As more and more land has been drained and forests cleared, the bird’s natural habitat has disappeared. Today only a handful of crested ibises are left. They live on a tiny japanese island. House flies House flies are a nuisance, are not they? But they weigh very little indeed. In fact, a thousand house flies weigh less than one ounce. How big are the heaviest hailstones? As big as golf ball? No, much bigger. In April 1986, huge balls of ice fell from sky and crashed to ground in Gopalganj in Bangladesh. They weighed nearly 1kg(2.2lbs) and must have been about the size of small honeydew melons. They killed 92 people. How fast do humming birds wing beat? Humming birds are the smallest feathered creatures on the planet, are also the fastest wing-beaters. The beating is so speedy it looks like a blur. With a slow motion camera, it can almost be counted-50 to 75 beats per second! Hummingbirds can even fly backwards, something no other bird can do. How much time take an oyster to make a pearls? An oyster take seven years to make one pearl. Huge but Harmless The rare blue whale which can live for up to 100 years, is the largest and heaviest animal in the world. A fully-grown blue whale may be 30 metres long, much bigger and heavier than any dinosaur that ever lived. Even a newborn blue whale is bigger than an adult elephant. Yet this monster mammal only eats tiny shrimp-like animals, called krill. Humming Bird Egg Vs. Ostirch Egg The bee hummingbird’s eggs are only about 1cm (1/2 in) long. An ostrich egg on the other hand, is usually about 18cm (7in) long. It would take over 4,000 hummingbirds eggs to equal the weight of one ostrich egg. Hungry swarm Locusts fly in huge swarms to find food. They may travel 5,000 kilometres, eating thousands of tonnes of green plants on the way. Desert locusts in Africa destroys vast areas of crops every year. Icy waters Emperor penguins spend much of their time in the waters of the Antarctic, but they move on to the ice to breed. They cannot fly so they have to jump up out of the water. Imagine a bee’s eye Imagine over six thousand microscopes, each with a lens. Now imagine a bee’s eye. The eye has 6300 lenses too! Intelligent Animal Pigs are the fourth most intelligent animal in the world. Irish Channel between Scotland and Northern Ireland The Irish Channel between Scotland and Northern Ireland is much the same distance, 37km (23 miles), but has stronger currents, very cold water, and is much harder to swim. The first person to do so was Tom Blower who took 15 hours 26 minutes in 1947. Irish drink more tea The Irish drink more tea per head than nay nation in the world. Is your surname Smith? If it is, you're not alone. There are enough Smiths in England and Wales alone to fill the Wembley Stadium eight times over. Jelly Belly The brand name "Jelly Belly" was created in 1982 after Nancy Reagan made a much-publicized quip about her husband’s 20-pound weight gain. Jumping Giant Frogs have strong back legs for jumping. The biggest frog in the world, the Goliath frog, is also the best high-jumper. It can leap 3 metres into the air. In America, competitions are held to find the best long-jumping frogs. Killer Crocodile Crocodiles are the largest reptiles, and the estuarine crocodile, at over 8 metres, is the largest of them all. It is also one of the most dangerous, since it often adds people to its diet of fish and animals. King George I of England was German Did you know that king George I of England was German and could not speak English, and that Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, was Greek? King of Prussia gave treat to soldiers Here’s a cake that takes some licking. Frederick William, King of Prussia, gave the 30,000 soldiers in his army a treat in 1730. He ordered a 24 foot square cake, which needed eight horses to deliver it. The recipe included a ton of butter, 5000 eggs and 200 gallons of milk. Lake Baikal in central Siberia Lake Baikal in central Siberia is the deepest lake in the worlds. It is 1940 meter deep, more than twice as deep as the North Sea. It has more water in it than any other Lake - 23,000 cubic km of it. Lake with a monster Is there a monster in Loch Ness? Several people say they have seen it, but whenever scientists investigate, Nessie hides. There is no scientific evidence that Nessie exists, but hundreds of tourists go every year to see for themselves. Languages Spoken in Africa More than 1,000 different languages are spoken on the continent of Africa. Large elm tree On a sunny day a large elm tree gives off vapour equal to 1,500 gallons of water. Largest animal on Earth The blue whale is the largest animal on earth. The heart of a blue whale is as big as a car, and its tongue is as long as an elephant. Largest bird egg The largest bird egg in the world today is that of the ostrich. Ostrich eggs are from 6 to 8 inches long. Because of their size and the thickness of their shells, they take 40 minutes to hard-boil. The average adult male ostrich, the world’s largest living bird, weighs up to 345 pounds. Largest cave in the world The largest cave in the world is the Sarawak Chamber in Sarawak, Malaysia. Its floor area is 210,000sq. m (2,260,440sq. ft), about the same size as three soccer pitches put together. Its roof is at least 70m (230ft) high, about as high as a 23 storey building. The longest system of caves is in Kentucky in the United States. You can walk under the ground here along passages and through caves for over 530km (329 miles), that is the same dstance as walking from Southampton to Carlisle - the whole length of England. Largest freshwater lake The largest freshwater lake in the world is Lake Superior in Canada. It is just over 80,000-sq. km (30,888 sq. miles). Largest on Land The massive size and strength of the African elephant, the largest land animal, has not saved it from the hunter’s gun. Elephants are now protected in the African game parks. Lead Pencil The average lead pencil will draw a line 35 miles long or write approximately 50,000 English words. Leaping the rapids Salmon spend part of their lives in fresh water and pat in the sea. Adultsalmon leave the sea and move up-river, often leapingrapids on the way, to lay their eggs. Left-handed Polar Bears Animals are either right- or left-handed? Polar bears are always left-handed, and so is Kermit the Frog. Lichens Arizona’s Bristle cone pine is younger if compared with some lichens. It is estimated that some lichens in the Antarctic may be 10,000 years old. If it is right then these lichens started growing during the Ice Age. Life span of a frog The longest life span of a frog was 40 years. Like a torpedo The sailfish is probably the fastest fish. To reach its top speed of 110 km/hr it folds its fins, even the big one, into grooves on its body so that it is more streamlined. Like a twig Many caterpillars use camouflage to hide them from their enemies. The geometer moth caterpillar look just like twigs, and can hold themselves at an angle from plant stems as if they were growing. They even have bump that look like bud. Living together The tuatara is just like a reptile that lived millions of years ago, even before the dinosaurs. Today it only lives in New zealand, where it often shares a petrel’s burrow. In the day, the tuatara may even be left with a baby chick while the mother hunts for food. Long-distance runner The African ostrich makes up for not being able to fly by running faster than anyother bird. Its strong thighs and long legs enable it to run at 50 km/hr for as long as half an hour, and it can reach 70 km/hr for a short burst. Longest river in the United Kingdom The longest river in the United Kingdom is the River Severn. At only 354 km (220 miles) long it is a mere stream compared with the world’s greatest rivers. Look at the setting sun When it goes dark tonight have a look at the setting sun and rising moon. You may notice that they look bigger than when they are high in the sky. The reason is an optical illusion caused by the atmosphere. Looking behind without turning its head The only 2 animals that can see behind itself without turning its head are the rabbit and the parrot. Lumberjacks at work Beavers build their home, or lodge, with wood and mud in lakes and rivers. They cut down trees by gnawing thr truncks with their teeth. First the beavers cut the trees into pieces. Then they drag or roll them into the water and build a dam to make a deep pool. They build their lodge in the pool, using sticks and mud. It has entrance underwater, and twigs and bark are stored nearby for food. Male Mountain Lion A full-grown male mountain lion may be 9 feet long, including his tail! Mammal that can’t jump The elephant is the only mammal that can’t jump! Mars - The Red Planet Mars is nicknamed the "Red Planet," because it looks reddish in the night sky. Mars has 2 moons. Maruti Traffic Jam The Maruti is one of India’s best selling cars. Over 5 million have been sold since first one was produced back in 1982. Suppose one million Marutis set off from Edinburg south to London and on across the channel towards Germany. Each Maruti is 3m (10ft) long. Suppose they travelled bumper to bumper with no space between them , then the first car would have reached Moscow 3,000km (1,875 miles) away. Mathematical Mystery Take any four figures-e.g. 7694-reverse their order and subtract them: 7694 - 4967 = 2727 Now add all the digits together and the answer will always come to 9. 2+7+2+7=18 1+8=9 Microsoft In the late ‘90s, Microsoft secretly developed its own version of Linux, but shelved it after quality control researchers deemed it "too stable." Million Coins of $1 A million is someone who owns $1 million. If a millionaire changed all their money into $1 coins and pilled them up on the top of one another, do you know how high do they reach - Oops! The millionaire’s pile would be 3,000m (9,843ft) high. That’s more than twice as high as England’s tallest mountain (Ben Nevis) and nealy a third as high as Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world. Million Earthquakes Almost a million earthquakes occur in one year. Of these, a large earthquake occurs every two weeks under the sea. Million Pages Book Do you know how thick a boock will be - if it contains Million pages in it? It would be 70m thick - as high as a 23 - storey skyscraper! Million Stars This block has 50 stars in it. 1,000 stars take up the whole page. To show 1,000,000 stars you would need to cover the floor, the walls and the ceiling of the average sitting room (4m by 3m by 2.5m high / 13ft by 10ft by 8ft high). Monkey tricks In Japan, where macaque monkey live, the winters are very cold. The Japanese macaques have shaggy coats to keep them warm and some keep out the cold by sitting in the hot water from volcanic springs. Monsterin the Mountains Huge footprints have been found in the snow of the Himalayas and some people claim to have seen a monster, half person, half monkey, but no-one has ever captured such creature. The most likely explanation is that the prints were made by the huge Moon bear. More dogs than people Paris, France has more dogs than people. Most post offices India has the most post offices in the world. Moth Caterpillar - red in the face When the puss moth caterpillar is distrubed, it lifts up its red face, and two long red ‘whips’ flick out of its tail. It also produces a smelly fluid, which it can even spray at its attacker. Mount Kenya is on the Equator Mount Kenya is on the Equator, but its peak, 5,199m (17,058ft) above sea level, is always covered in snow. Mountain giant The giant panda lives only in bamboo forest in a remote, mountainous corner of China. It spends most of the day on the ground, feeding on bamboo, but it can climb trees. In winter it shelters from the snow in caves and hollow trees. Mt. Erebus - Volcano in Antarctica Antarctica also has one active volcano. It is called Mt. Erebus and it emits steam and gives out ash even though it is in a snowy region. Muddiest river in the world The muddiest river in the world is the Hwang Ho in China. It carries so much silt you could build a vast wall 40m (131ft) high and 6 m (20ft) wide all round the world. Muscles in the Human Body Did you know that there are 639 muscles in the human body? They contain six thousand million muscle fibers and each fiber consists of 1000 separate minute threads called fibrils. Mushrooms Mushrooms are friut - it carries spores that blow away in the wind to grow into new plants. The rest of the plant is underground. Mushrooms are fungi and they have no flowers. It feeds on nutrients of rotting plants and animals. Mysterious decline The rusty numbat is rare Australian mammal. Its other mname is banded anteater, although its favourite food is termites. At night, it shelters in a hollow log. It is not clear why these animals are dying out. Perhaps they are eaten by foxes, or perhaps they die in bush fires. Name India The name ‘India’ is derived from the River Indus Namib Desert in Namibia The foggiest desert is the Namib Desert in Namibia, South-West Africa. Most of the moisture it receives drifts in as fog from the Atlantic Ocean. No Pepper - Only Salt The saltiest seas are in the Middle East where the hot sun beats down evaporating the water and making it saltier and saltier. The Red Sea is so salty you cannot sink- the salt keeps you floating! No Teeth Turtles have no teeth. Non-Vegetarian Dinosaurs Dinosaurs didn’t eat grass? There was no grass in the days of the dinosaurs. Ocean Trenches In places the floor plunges even deeper, into cracks and trenches. The deepest trench is the Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean. The bottom is 11,000m (36,091ft) below the surface, deep enough to sink Mount Everest, the world’s highest Mountain and still have nearly 2,200m (7,218ft) of water to spare. Octopus can change its color in seconds The octopus can change its color in seconds as it moves across different backgrounds. Most can turn red, yellow and black or mixture of these colors. Some can even make their smooth skin bumpy. Oily Water Just one part oil per million parts water will make drinking water smell and taste funny. One gallon of petrol can contaminate 750,000 gallons of water. Oldest living thing on earth The oldest living thing on earth is 12,000 years old. It is the flowering shrubs called creosote bushes in the Mojave Desert. Oldest piece of chewing gum The worlds oldest piece of chewing gum is 9000 years old! Oldest rocks in the world The oldest rocks in the world are in Western Australia. They date from 4,300 million years ago, only 300 million years after the earth was formed. On the edge of extinction The Sumatran rhinoceros is smaller than other rhino and has two horns. Only about 150 remain, but even these are in serious danger from hunters. On the hop Kangaroos hop across the grassy plains of Australia at high speed. They cruise at 40 kph and reach 60kph for short bursts, using their long tail to help them balance. One red kangaroo made a record breaking long-jump of almost 13 metres. On your next seaside holiday why not watch the sea gulls? They are remarkable long distance flying machines, capable of covering 700 miles in a day at speeds of up to 50 miles an hour. One Million Days / Weeks / Years! How many? One million days means 744BC. Christ had not been born and Roman Empire had scarcely begun. A million weeks means 17000 BC. Britain and Northern Europe were covered with ice. Elsewhere people lived in caves and hunted for food. A million years means there were people only in Africa. Prehistoric animals such as Sabre-toothed tiger roamed, but no dinosaurs. They had already died out 64 million years before. One Million Seconds / Minutes / Hours! Calculate them? One million seconds is equal to 11 days, 20 hours, 4 minutes and 4 seconds. One million-minute is equal to 1 year, 345 days, 4 hours, 4 minutes precisely. One million-hours is equal to 114 years, 28 days and 16 hours i.e. Victorian age. There were steam trains and car was just about to be invented, but there was no television, no computers and no schools. One per cent of Developing World In the developing world, only one per cent of the population owns a car, compared to 40 per cent in the industrialised countries. Orchestra with the largest number of Musicians Can you believe that the orchestra with the largest number of musicians came from Norway, with a total of 20,000 members? Ostrichesare the biggest birds Ostrichesare the biggest birds. They grow up to 2.5m (8ft) tall. They can’t fly, but they can run fast-up to 50 kph (31 mph). Overland by Night Eels live in rivers but they migrate to Sargaso Sea off the east coast of the USA to breed. Then they die. On their way downstream baby eels take 3 years to drift back across the Atlantic from the Sargasso Sea. The young eels swim up rivers, where they live for 20 years. Eels sometimes leave the water and travel across the river bank. Owl alert When danger threatens, it makes itself look as large and firece as possible, by fluffing out its feathers, spreading its wings and opening its eyes wide. Owl see color blue Owls are the only birds who can see the colour blue. Pairs of Hearts Earthworms have five pairs of hearts, close to the front of their bodies. Pebbles on the beach Plovers lay their eggs on sand or shingle. They do not build a nest because this would attract attention to the eggs. Very often, each egg has different marking to blend with the pebbles. When the chicks hatch, they too are well camouflaged on the seashore. Pen with special nibs for left-handed people Did you know that left-handed people can by pens with special nibs, which are cut a certain way to make writing easier? Penguins Do it Differently When an emperor penguin lays an egg she immediately and carefully passes it to her mate who tucks it under a fold of skin between his belly and his feet. The female then goes off to find food, leaving the male with the eggs for 63 days. Emperor penguins live in the Antarctic so the poor male has to withstand freezing cold blizzards, standing in one spot. People start to shrink Did you know that people start to shrink after the age of about thirty? They don’t shrink very much though, so your parents are not likely to vanish! Percentage of pollution by Cars Eighteen per cent of all global carbon dioxide emissions are from cars. Person without water A person can live without food for about a month, but only about a week without water. If the amount of water in your body is reduced by just 1%, you'll feel thirsty. If it’s reduced by 10%, you'll die. Pig’s Tongue Pig’s Tongue contains 15,000 taste buds. For comparison, the human tongue has 9,000 taste buds. Placement of a donkey’s eyes The placement of a donkey’s eyes in its’ heads enables it to see all four feet at all times! Playing Card Manufacturers To commemorate ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, U.S. playing card manufacturers replaced "staffs" with "hearts" as the fourth suit in the deck. The world soon followed. Poisoned arrows Some South American frogs have poison in their skin, although the poison is not always deadly. They are known as arrow-poison frogs because Indian hunters use the poison to tip their arrows. Poisonous Bite The Gila monster is one of the two poisonous lizards in the world. When it bites its prey, such as mice and rabbits, it squirts poison down through grooves in its teeth. Poisonous Spider The most poisonous spider of all is probably the American black widow. The female is more dangerous than the male. Its bite is extremely painful and sometimes causes death. Polar Bears Weight Male polar bears weight 1400 pounds and females only weight 550 pounds, on average. Pouncing Puma Pumas are very agile. They bound from rock to rock, pounce on their prey and spring up into trees. They can cover 18 metres in a single leap. Most Pumas now live in the western part of America. Prehistoric Turtles Prehistoric turtles may have weighed as much as 5,000 pounds. Producers and Owners of Cars Sixteen per cent of the world’s population in the United States of America, Europe, Japan and Australia produces 88 per cent and owns 81 per cent of all cars. Pufferfish - A prickly mouthful Pufferfish can fill themselves up with water so that they are too big to swallow. The porcupine fish has spines which stick out when it blows itself up. Its warning color shows up more clearly then, too. Puffin - fish as well as a bird Long ago, it was believed that a Puffin was a fish as well as a bird. People thought it was born from rotting piece of wood floating in the sea, instead of hatching out from an egg as we know it does today. Pure Gold Twenty-Four Karat Gold is not pure gold since there is a small amount of copper in it. Absolutely pure gold is so soft that it can be molded with the hands. Pure water on Earth Ninety-six per cent of salt water is pure water. There is 3 per cent common salt in it. The remaining one per cent is made up of more than 80 elements, including sulphate, magnesium, bromide, calcium, potassium, strontium, boron, fluoride and gold. Some seas have more salt than others. Pygmy Marmoset The pygmy marmoset, whose body is only 10 centimetres long, lives in the forests along the Amazon river, in Soth America. It is the smallest monkey in the world. Unlike other monkeys, marmosets have claws for gripping on to the bark as they climb trees. They curl their long tail round branches to help them balance. They eat insects and nuts. Queen Elizabeth I Queen Elizabeth I regarded herself as a paragon of cleanliness. She declared that she bathed once every three months, whether she needed it or not Radio Station At the radio station, the announcer speaks into a microphone. The microphone changes the sound of his voice into an electrical signal. This signal is weak and can’t travel very far, so it’s sent to a transmitter. The transmitter mixes the signal with some strong radio signals called carrier waves. These waves are then sent out through a special antenna at the speed of light! They reach the antenna of your radio. Your antenna "catches" the signal, and the radio’s amplifier strengthens the signal and sends it to the speakers. The speakers vibrate, and your ears pick up the vibrations and your brain translates them into the voice of the radio announcer back at the station. When you consider all the places the announcer’s voice travels. Rafflesia The world’s biggest flower is Rafflesia flower, which grows up to a metre across. But it is not at all pretty. It smells like rotting meat. The foul smell attracts flies which pollinate the palnt. Rare Species A new bird species has been found in India the first time such a discovery has been made here in more than 50 years. The multicolored bird, Bugun Liocichla, was spotted in May in the remote Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary in India’s northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh near the border with China. Ramana Athreya who discovered the bird named it after the Bugun tribe, which lives in the area. The Bugun Liocichla is a small babbler (22 cm) with olive-grey plumage and a black cap. The face is marked with prominent orange-yellow lores, and the wings have yellow, red and white patches. The tail is black with a flame colored underside and red tips. The feet are pink and the bill is black at the face fading to pale white. A second duller individual was mist netted, which was probably the female. The voice is described as fluty and distinctive. All sightings of the species are on disturbed hillsides with shrubs and small trees over 2,000 meters, with the exception of one sighting on the edge of primary forest. Birdlife International, a global alliance of conservation organizations, described it on its Web site as "the most sensational ornithological discovery in India for more than half a century." Athreya caught two of the species, but released them after making detailed notes and taking photographs and keeping feathers that had worked loose in his net. "We thought the bird was just too rare for one to be killed," Athreya said. "With today’s modern technology, we could gather all the information we needed to confirm it as a new species. We took feathers and photographs and recorded the bird’s songs," he said. Rarest Diamond A green diamond is the rarest diamond. Ribs Your ribs move about 5 million times a year, everytime you breathe! Right handed people Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people. Roadside Hospitality If you have been walking forever in Mumbai and sit down to rest your tired feet, you may well be sitting on one of the three-seater mosaic benches installed by the Ghanshyamdas Saraf Trust. The benches, 6,385 that had been in public places like parks, playgrounds, gardens, sport complexes, beaches and sea faces, offices, schools, colleges, training centers, hospitals, cemeteries, temples, ashrams and other places. The Saraf Trust meets all expenses of the benches and believes that it is their way of serving the public. Rock Python - Open wide This is a rock python. Pythons and boas are large snakes that feed on animals as big as goats and deer. The snake holds its prey in its mouth, then coils itself tightly round the animal so that it cannot breathe. The snake may take several hours to swallow its meal. Safe among the flowers The flower mantis may be pink or white, and has petal shapes on its body. With this disquise it can rest among flowers without being spotted by the birds that feed on it. The mantis eats bees, butterfles and other insects, which may be attracted by its flower shape. Sailors always steer clear Sailors always steer clear of the dangerous Race Rocks off Vancouver Island, Canada, where there is a loud fog horn to warn ships. Because of strange sound properties in the rocks the blast cannot be heard a mile away, but is deafening at three times that distance. Saltless Ice Water Ice made of salt water does not contain any salt. That is the biggest relief for people like the Eskimos, who live in icy regions and are surrounded by ice all year long. All they have to do is melt the ice - and their fresh drinking water is ready. Salty water on Earth Ninety seven per cent of all the water on Earth is salty. Only 3 per cent is fresh water. Of that 3 per cent, over 2 per cent is frozen in ice sheets and glaciers. And that means that less than 1 per cent of that 3 per cent fresh water is found in lakes, rivers and underground. Sand gets very hot During the day the sand gets very hot, up to 90ºC (195ºF). That is almost hot enough to boil water and too hot for alcohol. It changes into a vapour around 80ºC (176ºF). Saving Life PENICILLIUM [Fungus] These are found on decaying organic matter, including foods. It’s the source for one of our most important antibiotics, penicillan. The molds belonging to the genus of fungi called Penicillium are spoil food, but save lives. Penicillin is made from various molds that grow on food. Penicillin kills a number of harmful bacteria, including those that cause staph infections and pneumonia. Penicillium fungi reproduce by releasing spores. Sea turtles Sea turtles absorb a lot of salt from the sea water in which they live. They excrete excess salt from their eyes, so it often looks as though they're crying. Seashells in hig rocks Seashell can be found in rocks high up on some mountains, such as the Apennines in Italy. The rocks were once at the bottom of the sea. They were pushed upwards over millions of years, as the crust of the Earth crumpled. Sense of Smell A dog’s sense of smell is 1,000 times more sensitive than a human's. Sensible Bats Bats can detect warmth of an animal from about 16 cm away using its "nose-leaf". Sensible Elephant An elephant can smell water three miles away. Seven million lamp posts in Britain There are over seven million lamp posts in Britain. Amazing - Right! Share your Birthday Did you know that you share your birthday with about nine million other people around the world? Sharing a Bee’s nest The greater honeyguide leads the ratel or honey badger, to a bee’s nest by calling out and flying in front of it. The ratel eats the honey, then the bird eats the honeycomb wax. Sheep In New Zealand New Zealand is home to 70 million sheep and only 40 million people. Shy Forest Dwellers The royal antelopes live in thick forests of West Africa. They are the smallest of the antelopes, only 25 or 30 centimetres high at the shoulder. They are agile, alert animals and will dart into the undergrowth at the slightest sound or smell of danger. Silkworm makes its cocoon When a silkworm makes its cocoon it spins more than 800 yards of silk in one unbroken length. Size of Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is three times bigger than Asia, the biggest continent on Earth. It covers nearly one-third of the Earth’s surface. Its widest part is about 1,770 km or 11,000 miles. That distance would take you halfway around the world. Sleep Standing Horses often go to sleep standing up as well as lying down. Smiling uses only 17 muscles Did you know that smiling uses only 17 muscles while it takes 43 muscles to frown? So be happy-why waste energy? Smoke Screen A frightened squid squirts a kind of ink into the water. The ink spread out like a black cloud and hides the squid. Then the squid can escape. Some deep-sea squids make a luminous cloud to dazzle the enemy. Snake in London Zoo There was once a snake in London Zoo, which was fitted with a glass eye. Snowbound Many caribou live in Arctic Canada. In winter the ground is covered in ice so the caribou move south in search of moss and lichen to feed on. They return to the north in the spring. Soft Sand The soft sand that we sink into on the beach, is actually rock. Sand is what a rock becomes after years of being worn down by rivers. Years of sea waves crashing against huge rocks and cliffs makes rocks break into small particles. And ultimately, they end up as sand. The colours of sand - yellow, red, grey, black - depend on the kind of rock it comes from. Sometimes, desert sand is carried by winds across great distances, to seasides, increasing the amount of sand in the sea. Soldier first used hand grenades Did you know that soldier first used hand grenades in the 15th century? They had nasty habit of going off when they should not and the idea was forgotten for another 200 years. Space Facts about Pluto Pluto, now a dwarf planet, was discovered by Clyde Tombaugh in 1930. An interesting story goes behind its discovery and naming. In 1930, Tombaugh discovered a possible moving object on photographic plates. Another photo taken on January 20 helped him confirm the movement. Soon, Pluto was confirmed to be the ninth planet from the sun. The name Pluto was suggested by Venetia Phair, an eleven-year-old girl from Oxford, England. Venetia was interested in Classical mythology as well as astronomy. Recently, ISRO declared Pluto to be a dwarf planet according to the new definition. As the world bids bye to Pluto, the dwarf planet has been given a new name – 134340. Special Funeral Service by Japanese General Nagoaka Did you know that when Japanese General Nagoaka shaved of his 19 inch moustache in 1933, it was given a special funeral service? Speedy insect The day-flying hummingbird hawkmoth relies on speed to avoid capture. Hawkmoths are among the swiftest flying insects, reaching 50kph. Spring of water in the desert An oasis is a spring of water in the desert. Sometimes desert travellers think they see a pool of water where there is none. This is called mirage, but they have not imagined it. It is caused by a trick of light in which part of the blue sky appears to be surrounded by land. Starfish attacks When a starfish attacks a clam it holds its prey with its arms and slides its own stomach into the clam to digest it whole! Stork flies back home The European stork flies to Africa for the winter, and returns to Europe in the spring to breed. Pairs of storks can find their way back to the same rooftop nests every year. Strange laws in America There are some very strange laws in America. For example, in Milwaukee, it is against the law to take your pet elephant for a walk unless your elephant is on a lead; and in Illinois, bees are forbidden to fly over the town, though it is doubtful whether anyone has managed to stop them breaking the law! Streamlined Swimmer Heaviside’s dolphin is little more than a metre long and probably the smallest mammal in the sea. A dolphin’s streamlined shape helps it to reach speeds of up to 40 kph as it chases after fish and squid. It can jump right out of the water. Stripes for stalking A tiger’s stripes help to break up the outline of its body and make it hard to see. They also look like shadows as the tiger stalks through long grass in the moonlight. Tigers live in Asia. Those that live in hot countries often sit in shallow water to keep cool. Tigers in very cold countries have thick shaggy coats to keep them warm. Strongest Magnet in the Universe A neutron star is the strongest magnet in the Universe. Surface of Planet Jupiter Planet Jupiter has no solid surface. It is made up of hydrogen and helium and has only layers of gaseous clouds. Surprise Tactics The fire-bellied toad turns on its back when it is alarmed to display its bright belly. This sudden show of color is often enough to startle its enemy. It is also a warning that the toad’s skin is poisonous. Swift - fastest birds Swifts are the fastest birds and they can travel faster across ground than any other animal. They fly up to 160 kmp (100 mph) and could overtake all the traffic on the motorway. Swift can stay in the air for two to three years at a time. They feed, drink, mate and even sleep while airborne. Swordfish - Deadly weapon Swordfish use their long pointed snout to kill their prey. They rush at a shoal of smaller fish at high speed, swiping the fish with their sword to stun them. if they feel threatened by another fish, they use their sword to ram it. Tallest cacti The tallest cacti are the giant Saguaros. They grow up to 18m (59 ft) tall, about the height of a six-storey building. Temperature at the centre of the Earth The temperature at the centre of the Earth is estimated to be 5,500 degrees Celsius. Temperature control by Clouds Without clouds and other constituents of the earth’s atmosphere, the surface of our planet would reach a temperature of 176 degree centigrade at the equator by day and 220 degree centigrade by night! Termite tower In Australia, termites build towers 6 metres high and 30 metres wide. Ten tonnes of mud are collected bit by bit by millions of insects. Soilder termite guard the mud castle, where the queen lays her eggs and is fed by worker termites. The Continental Shelf The sea around most continents is only about 180m (590ft) deep- that is deep enough to cover all the skyscrapers in the City of London except the Natwest Tower and Canary Wharf. The fastest flashes moves at 140,000km per second 87,000 miles per second - fast enough to go three times round the Equator in one second, but of course lightning does not travel that far. The longest flashes of lightning are about 30km(19 miles) from the ground. The final verdict Though the 800-year-old Patitpaban temple looks no different from the thousand-odd temples on and around Bhubaneswar, it is in fact very special. Come Sunday evening the temple takes on the mantle of a Jana Adalat or people’s court where people gather to seek justice. The judge is 65-year-old Harihar Sahoo, a respected senior citizen of the locality. Though Sahoo has no legal qualification, he has settled over 400 disputes in the last five years. Most of these are civil disputes over property and land. All without a murmur or protest usually accepts his judgement. The adalat is extremely popular firstly because one can get speedy justice and also because anyone can lodge complaints by paying a processing fee of Rs 20 only. In fact, it may soon become a bi-weekly affair. The largest desert in the world The Sahara Desert is the largest desert in the world. It is bigger than the four next largest deserts put together. It is as vast as the whole of the United States of America including most of Alaska and nearly as big as the whole of Europe. The lowest dry land in the world It is the shore of the Dead Sea between Israel and Jordan. It is 400m (1,312ft) below the sea level. If there was a flight of stairs to take you back up to the sea level you would have to climb 2000 steps. The Ocean Floor Don’t fall off the continental Shelf! It ends abruptly some distance from the coast. The ground then drops down the continental slope to the ocean floor about 3,600m (11,812 ft) below. You could sink two Ben Nevis’s on the ocean floor and still have 1,000m (3,281ft) of clear water above them. The Panamanian butterfly has ultrasonic ears The Panamanian butterfly (Malacosoma Heliconiaria) has ultrasonic ears on its wings that allow it to hear and avoid bats! The tallest cacti are the giant Saguaros They grow up to 18m (59 ft) tall, about the height of a six-storey building The world softest, lightest wood is balsa which weighs only half as much as cork. The balsa tree, from South America, grows quickly, reaching a height of 70 feet in only seven years. Balsa wood was used for building rafts for centuries. Thigh Bone Human thigh bones are stronger than concrete. Threatening display The Australian frilled lizard can frighten off an intruder by suddenly spreading out its huge neck frill. It opens its mouth wide, too, to look more fierce. Three Eyelids Camels have three eyelids to protect themselves from blowing sand. Tiny Bloodsuckers Tick [Arachnid] are usually found on dogs, deer, and other animals. Ticks are bloodsuckers, feeding off animals and sometimes humans. Ticks are tiny parasites that feed off larger animals, but can go without food for up to three years while waiting for a proper “host,” such as a dog or deer. These tiny insects also transmit several diseases - such as Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and Lyme Disease - by carrying bacteria from their animal hosts to humans. Tiny island of Sark The tiny island of Sark in the Channel Islands is one of the most peaceful places in Britain-the police force is just one officer. Tip from Japanese people If you don’t like wearing clothes, take tip from the Japanese people used to cover themselves with tattoos rather than wear clothes! Tokyo, world’s biggest and most overcrowded cities Tokyo, capital of Japan, is one of the world’s biggest and most overcrowded cities. Men known as ‘pushers’ are employed to pack people onto the city’s trains. Tongue Print Like fingerprints, everyone’s tongue print is different! Top Sprinter The cheetah races across the grassy plains of Africa at 100 km/hr, maybe more, arching and stretching its body to run faster. It is the fastest runner in the world, but it can only stay at top speed for a few hundred metres. Transfusion of Blood The first known transfusion of blood was performed as early as 1667, when Jean-Baptiste, transfused two pints of blood from a sheep to a young man Tristan da Cunha are over 2,000km The people who live on Tristan da Cunha are over 2,000km (about 1,300 miles) from their nearest neighbours on the island of St. Helena. That’s nearly as far as Moscow is from London. Tristan da Cunha is in the South Atlantic Ocean nearly 3,000km (1864 miles) from the Southern tip of Africa. Twice in the Blue Moon! Remember the saying ‘Once in a blue moon?’ A ‘blue moon’ is the name given to the second full moon within the same month. A full moon normally appears twice a month every two-and-a-half year but only in 19 years does it occur in two months of the same calendar year. R. Subramaniam, Director of the Madhya Pradesh Birla Planetarium, announced that the moon had lit up the last night of Jan.1999 after appearing on the first night of the same month marking a once-in-a-19-year happening. The same phenomenon took place once again on March 1 and 31, 1999, marking a rare celestial event of two blue moons in a calendar year after a gap of 19 years. Two little girls in Yorkshire In 1917 two little girls in Yorkshire, England, took picture of what they said were fairies. This aroused such interest that famous scientists and public figures went up to Yorkshire to see if they could prove that the photographs were fakes. Much to everybody’s amazement, nobody could prove anything at all! In fact, it is still a mystery as to whether the pictures were genuine pictures of real fairies-and if they are fakes, how on earth did two young girls manage to do it and baffle all those experts? Unable to Fly Moths are unable to fly during an earthquake. Underground Town The prairie dog makes burrows which is called Town. The town may contain 1,000 animals, and it can stretch under the ground for miles. Undersea Post Office There was once an undersea post office in the Bahamas. Unique Glider A few animals, like the flying squirrel, have a flap of skin between their front and back legs which helps them glide from tree to tree. The colugo has a bigger cloak of skin, and it can glide twice as far- up to 100 metres. US owns 35% of World’s cars The US produces 25 per cent and owns 35 per cent of the world’s cars. Fifty per cent of vehicle trips in the US involve only the driver. Valuable fur Today only a few hundread snow leopards are left because human hunters have killed them all for their beautiful fur. Snow leopards live in the Himalayas, where they are now a protected species. Venus - Jewel of the Sky Venus is nicknamed the "Jewel of the Sky." Because of the greenhouse effect, it is hotter than Mercury, even though it’s not as close to the sun. Venus does not have a moon but it does have clouds of sulfuric acid! If you're gonna visit Venus, pack your gas mask! Victorian Water Lily The leaves of Victorian water lily can be more than 2m (7ft) across, about the same area as a table tennis table. They are strong enough for a child to sit upon it without sinking. Waitomo Caves of New Zealand The Waitomo Caves of New Zealand are lit by thousands of luminous fly larvae. They are so sensitive to sound that they immediately ‘switch off’ their lights on hearing a human voice. Walter Poenisch swam from Cuba In July 1978 Walter Poenisch swam from Cuba - an island in the Caribbean Sea to Florida in the United States. The waters are so dangerous he swam inside a shark cage and took just over 34 hours to complete the 207km (129mile) journey. Wandering albatross A wandering albatross measures 3.6m (11 ft 9ins) from wing tip to wing tip. It is wider than the smallest areoplane whose wingspan is only 2.18m (7ft 2ins). Water Drier Than Sand Molecularly speaking, water is actually much drier than sand. Water in the Atmosphere There is enough water in the atmosphere, that if it all fell as rain at the same time, it would cover the entire surface of the Earth with 2.5 cm (1 in) of water. Waves are caused by the wind blowing Waves are caused by the wind blowing on the sea. Waves can travel thousands of kilometres, provided there is no land in the way to stop them. Waves which begin in the Indian Ocean may travel 19,000km (11,807 miles) all the way to Alaska. Weigh of Skin If you were to remove your skin, it would weigh as much as 5 pounds. Wettest days in the English Week Did you know that the wettest days in the English week are Saturday, Sunday and Monday? Just when we all want to go out and have fun! What do you think ‘knur and spell’ is? It’s a game that has been played for the last 300 years in the Pennine area of Northern England! A ‘knur’ is a small baked clay ball and a ‘spell’ is a wooden structure from which the knur hangs. The players must hit the knur with a sycamore cane, and the player whose knur travels the farthest wins! What is glass made of? Glass in initial stage is soft and syrupy. It is a mixture of sand, soda and lime melted together at high temperatures. In this state it can be shaped into the glass objects we see around us. Various minerals can be added to make different colored glass. Then, the "syrup" is cooled, heated and cooled again in a process that makes it hard. What is the difference between an insect and a spider? See the legs, first - spiders have eight, insects have six. Insects have antennae and spiders do not. Let us now consider the number of body parts - insects have three and spiders have two. In addition, if the animal is hanging by a thread, it is a spider. Spiders make silk insects do not. What is your favorite Christmas dish? In the middle ages Great Pie was popular with royal families-so long as the table was strong enough. Beneath the inch thick pastry was a whole turkey, stuffed with a chicken, stuffed with a partridge, stuffed with a pigeon. Anyone for seconds? Where Chess invented? Chess was invented in India. Who invented matchsticks? Matchsticks were invented accidentally by John Walker, a chemist in 1827. He was trying to produce a burnable material for shotguns. His first match was a stick he was using to stir a mixture of chemicals. It burnt into flames when he scraped it against a stone floor to clean off the head. Who invented money? The first piece of metal to be considered a coin was invented in Lydia, Turkey, in 670 B.C. However, the idea of money took place long time ago. People traded a basket of berries with six ears of corn, a cow in exchange of ten chickens. However, what if the person with berries wanted wheat instead of corn? Eventually, it made sense to have something that always had the same value and was easy to carry. In addition, this gave result to what we use now - money. Who invented roller skates? Joseph Merlin of Huy, Belgium invented the roller skates. To introduce his invention he entered the ballroom-playing violin in 1759. Unfortunately he did not know how to stop and crashed into a full-length mirror, breaking his violin. Who needs sight when you have vision? Kishor Bhattacharya of Guwahatti, a postgraduate in History, set up an NGO called Dristidan for the welfare of the blind to bridge the gulf between visually challenged and those with sight. As a first step he has opened an extensive Braille library to provide easy access to books and journals. “My simple aim is to give the blind the confidence to survive in this world,” says Kishor, who is visually handicapped himself. Next step? A shelter for homeless blind in the North-east. Why is infrared radiation used as signals during war? Ordinary visible light is scattered by haze but infrared (IR) radiation can penetrate through the haze without being scattered. Therefore, these can be used as signals on distant objects obscured by atmospheric haze. Also, IR radiation enables sharpshooters to see their targets in total darkness. These devices essentially consist of an IR lamp which sends a beam of IR radiation (called black light) and a telescope receiver which picks up returned radiation from the object and converts it to a visible image. Winter coat Several animals that live in the far north, like stoat, become white in the winter to blend in with the snow. They moult and grow a thicker coat. Some Arctic birds change color, too, and grow white feathers. Women using makeup should be punished Lots of women wear make-up today. But in 1770 a bill was put forward to the British Parliament, which proposed that women using makeup should be punished for witchcraft! Word "queue" The word "queue" is the only word in the English language that is still pronounced the same way when the last four letters are removed. world’s first four-wheeler roller skates The world’s first four-wheeler roller skates were invented by James Plimpton, of New York, in 1866. The following year he opened the first public roller skating rink at Newport, Rhode Island. World’s first Railway System The world’s first railway system was built in the 16th century. Tracks wooden rails were used in mines. Trucks were kept on the line by a large pin, which ran in a groove between the tracks. World’s largest island Greenland is the world’s largest island. (Australia is a continent and so it doesn’t count). Greenland is just over 2,000,000 sq. km (1,242,800 sq.miles), nearly ten times as large as Great Britain. It is covered with ice and snow. World’s largest river The world’s largest river is Nile. It flows from central Africa 6,670km (4,415 miles) north to the Mediterranean Sea. If all the bends were straightened out it would reach about one third of the distance from the North Pole to South Pole. World’s most Durable Car The world’s most durable car is a diesel engine, a 1957 Mercedes 180D, which travelled 1.90 million km in 21 years. That is the equivalent of five times the distance to the moon. World’s most popular name What do you think the world’s most popular name is? John, Susan, Peter? The answer is Muhammad. Although it is sometimes spelled differently, it is the most common first name on earth. World’s Tallest Man The world’s known tallest man is Robert Pershing Wadlow. The giraffe is 5.49 m (18 ft.), the man is 2.55m (8ft. 11.1 in.). World’s Tallest Woman The world’s tallest woman is Sandy Allen. She is 2.35m (7 ft. 7 in.).