Parasitic Worms

Most annelid worms live freely in the soil or water, but some worm-like groups live inside other animals, even man. One of these is the group called Nematoda, or roundworms, containg some 10,000 species. They are pale in colour, without segments, and have pointed ends. They move about in a curious figure – of-eight fashion. Some of these nematodes, can be up to fifteen centimeters long, but many kinds are microscopic. All told there are vast numbers of these nematodes living in all sorts of animals, also plants, and a great number n the soil. Each animal victim of a parasite is called a host. The human is host to another kind of worm, called a tapeworm. This belongs to the group of 6,000 species called Platyhelminthes or flatworms. In this case here are two hosts, the human and another animals which he may eat as meat, such as pork or beef. The pig or bull may pick up a tapeworm egg and swallow it. This hatches into a larva and bores into the flesh. Another type of flatworm, called a fluke, has the shape of a small leaf. One example is the liver-flike which attacks sheep.

Arthropods

This is one of the most widespread divisions of the animal kingdom, certainly the largest. Arthropod means jointed legs but whereas vertebrates have only four legs, some of these invertebrates have many more. The main classes of arthropods are insects, arachnids(spiders, scorpions and mites), millipedes and centipedes, and crustaceans(crabs, lobsters and shrimps)

Reptiles

Reptiles are air-breathing vertebrates which have limbs (except snakes and some lizards), are cold-blooded and have horny covering of scales or horny plates. There are about 3,000 species. The four orders of modern reptiles are the crocodiles and alligators, tortoises and turtles, snakes and lizards and the Tuatara. The last-named order means break headed, and the Tuatara, which is a Maori name, is the only survivor of it. Looking rather like a lizard with a beaked face it lives on some of the lonely islands off the coast of New Zealand. It is truly a precious living fossil, since this reptile order goes back to the time of the dinosaurs. The Tuatara seems to be slow in everything it does, even to its movements. It lives in underground burrows, often in company with a sea-bird, a species of petrel. The reptile sleeps there by night and the bird by day. The eggs have a long incubation period and it is sometimes as much as eighteen months before the young hatch out.

Hydrophytes

These are plants which grow in or near water and are adapted according to whether they live on the surface, or are submerged, or grow in the mud at the edge of the water.Some are a combination of all these and have several different types of leaves. Some hydrophytes (for example water lily) are anchored to the bottom by roots, and send up leaves on long stems until they reach the surface, when they unfold and spread out. The giant water lily(Victoria regia) is an extreme example of this. The flowers too come up on a long stem and open out above the water. Some water plants are not rooted to the bottom and merely float on the surface (for example duckweed)or under the surface (for example bladderwort).Such water plants can only live in still waters but some submerged plants are anchored to the bottom by roots and produce long growth with small leaves and these are better adapted to life in running water. The leaves of most water plants have large air cavities in them to act as 'water wings', and some produce large bladder-like swellings for the same purpose(for example water hyacinth). The water crowfoot is amphibious, that is it can live both in water or at the edge in the damp mud. It has surface leaves which are flat and large compared to the submerged leaves which, when living in water, are finely divided with narrow lobes. These smaller leaves disappear if the water level drops and the plant is left at the edge.

Parasites and Saprophytes

These are plants which depend entirely or partly on other organisms. We have already dealt with the fungi, which are the largest group of parasites and saprophytes in the plant kingdom. But there are other plants which exist on living material (parasites) or make use of dead organic substances (saprophytes) Parasites may be total or partial that is they either get the whole of their food materials from the host plant on which they live, and have no green parts, or they have chlorophyll of their own and can manufacture a certain amount of their own food, but also need some from the host. Dodder, in the Convolvulus family is a total parasite and can be seen on the stems of plants such as gorse and heather. This is a stem parasite but other plants such as broomrape are root parasites and penetrate and live on the roots of a host plant. Mistletoe is another good example of a parasite which occurs on the stems and trunks of trees, while several members of the foxglove family live on the roots of grasses in meadows. Saprophytes make use of decaying matter and usually occur in woodlands where there is plenty of rotting vegetation. The bird's nest orchid can be seen growing in woods and is a brownish plant which only appears above ground when it sends up a flowering stem. The roots actually live in association with a fungus which breaks down the rooting materials it lives on into soluble substances. The fungus also penetrates the roots of the orchid and gains some of its materials from the cells there, while the orchid gets its supplies of food materials through the fungus. Thus the two plants are living together and depending on each other for their existence, this being called symbiosis.

Insect eating plants

Although green plants are self-supporting as far as their food requirements go, some plants do rely to a certain extent on other living creatures. One group of these, known as insectivorous plants (plants which live on insects), gain part of their nourishment by trapping insects in various ways. The plants digest the insect's bodies and take the dissolved proteins into their systems. Several of these interesting plants occur in Europe, and there are many others in tropical countries, often large and with weird methods of trapping insects. Insectivores are usually plants of marshes and bogs where the soil is poor in the nitrogen compounds so necessary for their continued healthy existence. Although they are mostly green plants, producing some of their own food, they do need the proteins of the insects to make up the lack of nitrogenous food. Some plants produce hollow leaves containing liquid in which the insects drown, the Sarracenia being an example of this. The leaves are rather funnel-like with a lid to the opening at the top. The rim of the funnel has nectar to attract insects, and the whole plant is often brightly colored. Inside the funnel is a slippery area, and downward pointing hairs, which prevent any insects crawling out again. Nepenthes, the pitcher plant, produces curious pitcher-shaped extensions to the leaves which act in the same way as Sarracenia. They are usually climbing plants rather than bog plants, and are widely grown in greenhouses in hanging baskets. In both of these plants, the insects bodies are decomposed in the watery fluid at the base of the pitcher, which contains many bacteria, the plant then using the dissolved substances.

Xerophytes

These are the plants of the deserts or other dry places. For this reason they must have some method of withstanding long periods of drought, very bright light, strong winds and, perhaps, very high temperatures – although not all deserts are hot. There are various ways in which plants can overcome these conditions. With annual plants, the seeds often have a long life and will only germinate after rainfall. They then grow very rapidly and complete their life cycle before the drought occurs. On the other hand perennial plants have to exist through bad spells and usually have some method of storing up moisture to tide them over. Cacti are a good example of this with their swollen fleshy growth. Large thin flat leaves would be of no use in the desert as they would evaporate too much moisture from their surfaces, so leaves are often very small or narrow, and usually have very thick outer layer (cuticle), preventing water loss. They might even be reduced in size to hard spines as in many cacti and succulents. The Yucca has leaves which are narrow and with a very tough cuticle to withstand the desert conditions in America. Roots may be adapted to store water, becoming thick and fleshy, and it is noticeable that in drier parts of the world, such as the Middle East, there are many plants which produce underground bulbs, corms or tubers. Leaves can also be thick and fleshy for water storage, or develop only during the rainy season, to drop off again when the dry summer comes. Some grasses can roll their leaves inwards from the edges in dry spells, thus leaving a smaller surface exposed to the sun, while acacias in Australia can turn their leaves sideways on to the sun so that it does not scorch down on to the flat surfaces. Leaves sometimes have dense coverings of hairs to protect them from sun and drying winds. Plants which grow in places where the soil is very salty, such as by the sea, in river mouths or salt lakes inland, and have adapted themselves to overcome the peculiar conditions, are called halophytes. Most normal land plants are killed by salt in the soil but these plants are so successful that they can be important to man when trying to reclaim new land from the sea.

Epiphytes

Some plants which may be mistaken for stem parasites are the Epiphytes which grow in trees usually in tropical areas, and many of the mosses come into this group. The difference is that epiphytes are normal green plants which have taken to a life of growing on the bark of tress but do not gain any of their nourishment from them. They live entirely on what food materials happen to be lodged in the crevices of the bark and a lot of orchids which live in this way send out thick white roots capable of extracting water from the damp tropical atmosphere.

ALL ABOUT HUMAN LIVER

The liver is the largest organ inside our body weighing  nearly 1.4kg. fifteen per cent of the total blood in the human body would be circulating at anytime in the liver alone. It is so substantial that even at rest, 2.5 pints of blood passes  through the liver. It has a wonderful regeneration power. Even if 75 per cent of the cells inside get damaged, it regenerates them within  a week . The liver's capacity to remove toxins from our blood stream is tremendous. Any man made machine of the same size cannot accomplish the task of toxin removal at the same rate as liver.

Great Wall of China

The 'Great wall of China' was built 2000 years ago.  The construction is said to have begun from the 5th century B.C.  The construction of the wall spread over many dynasties and  across many years.  The Great Wall is the only longest human made structure. The wall spans to a distance of about 6,400 kms.    

The construction of the wall was begun by  Qin Shi Huangdi, the first emperor of China during the Qin (Ch'in) Dynasty . In Chinese the wall is called "Wan-Li Qang-Qeng".  The wall was built as a primary defense  against the nomadic tribes.  The king positioned armies near the wall to give warning signals about any attack.   The wall was initially constructed with earth and gravel.  As it was difficult to transport resources to build the wall local resources which were available were used.  Rocks were used near mountain ranges and earth and gravel in plains.  The wall got eroded in due course and was repaired and rebuilt several times by the ruling dynasties.

The present form of the Great Wall was done during the Ming dynasty.  The Ming were defeated by the Mongols in the northern border.  Hence to protect themselves the Ming adopted the strategy of building walls in the northern side.  The Ming construction was of higher quality as they used bricks and stones instead of earth.  The Ming also allocated ample resources to maintain the walls to withstand the frequent attacks. 

The wall was well equipped with watch towers at regular intervals.  The watch towers often housed weapons, food and army.  The steps that form the Great Wall of China are very steep and tall in some areas.  It is said that the Great Wall is visible from the earth's orbit.

Camel - Ship of the Desert

Camel is called the 'Ship of the desert'. Camels are friendly animals and the best suited to live in the desert.  They can travel very long distances. They can live without food and water for about 3-4 days time.  Their strength and endurance have made them valuable to the desert. 

There are two varities of camels the 'Arabian Camel which has a single hump and the Bacterian camel with the double hump.  Camel's milk is a wholesome food. The people in the desert consider camels's milk as a boon to them.  Camel meat is also a delicacy and is also known for its nutritive properties.

Camels are very tall animals.  They stand up to a height of more than 7 feet. Their height protects them from the heat reflection of the hot sand.  They have tear glands and long eyelashes to protect themselves from sand stroms.  Their feet are well padded and insulated to travel in the desert sands.  Their webbed toes prevent them from sinking into the sand. They are herbivorous.  They have a leathery mouth which is suitable to thorny food. Their capacity to recycle water from their bladder helps them to survive without drinking water for longer periods.  Energy producing fats are stored in the camel's hump.

What are Mummies?

The Egyptians believed life after death.  Hence they adopted a method of embalming the dead bodies and preserving them in tombs along with the possessions of the dead like clothes food etc, this process of embalming is called mummification. The Egyptians believed that the mummified body was the home for this soul or spirit.  Mummification in ancient Egypt was a very long and expensive process. The embalmed bodies are called mummies. They drained the dead body completely of moisture and retained the dried form so theat it would not decay.  The procedure of embalming is a very long procedure.  This practice was followed in Egypt for  more than 2000 years.  The procedure adopted to embalm varied from century to century.  Usually this was done only for the royal family members.

 

The process of mummification almost took 70 days and this was carried out by special priests who had detailed knowledge of human body and were experts.  The first step which they did was to remove the vital organs like the brain, liver, lungs, stomach and put them into special jars called 'Canopic Jars'.  The brain was removed by a very critical operation else the face could get disfigured.  The other organs were removed by through a cut that was made in the left side of the abdomen.  The heart was left in place as it was considered the persons center of intelligence. 

 

The embalmers used 'Natron' which is a type of salt that has drying properties.  The bodies were immersed in Natron until all the mositure is removed. Packets of Natron are place in the insides of the body to ensure the insides are completely dry. They then did some filling to bring the body back to shape. The body was then wrapped with lots of linen, it is in this stage were the relatives and friends of the dead can donate linen for wrapping.  This procedure requires 100s of yards of linen and it took atleast fifteen days to complete wrapping.  Warm resin coating was used at stages of wrapping and wrapping was continued. 

 

The tomb preparation, decoration and collection of items for the dead are all done well in advance.  Once the wrapping is complete the priests perform some rituals at the tomb entrance and then put the mummy in a coffin and the tomb is sealed.

 

Facts About the Moon

The Moon is the only natural satellite of Earth.  The Moon, has been known since time immemorial. It is the second brightest object in the sky after the Sun. As the Moon orbits around the Earth. I takes approximately one month to complete one rotation. The Moon is the only celestial body that humans have travelled to and landed on and have brought samples.  The Soviet spacecraft Luna 2 was the first one to land on the moon on the July 20, 1959.  Neil Armstrong became the first man to step onto the surface of the Moon On July 20, 1969.

By simply viewing through the naked eye one can see two major types of terrain: relatively bright highlands and darker plains. The Moon has no atmosphere. The lunar sky is always dark as the diffraction of light requires an atmosphere. Various samples obtained reveal that there are three types of Terrain on the moon, the Regolith, the maria, and the Terrae. 'Regolith is the outermost part, the relatively bright, heavily cratered highlands are called "Terrae" and the dark, lightly cratered  is called "Maria".

Meteorite impacts on the moon brought a variety of "exotic" rocks to the Moon.  The samples obtained produced many different rock types for study. The underlying crust was also thinned and cracked due to the impacts. Due to the lack atmosphere nor any water, the components in the soils do not weather chemically as they would on Earth. Rocks more than 4 billion years old still exist there, yielding information about the early history of the solar system that is unavailable on Earth.

The gravitational forces between the Earth and the Moon cause some interesting effects. The most obvious is the tides. The Moon's gravitational attraction is stronger on the side of the Earth nearest to the Moon and weaker on the opposite side. Since the Earth, and particularly the oceans, is not perfectly rigid it is stretched out along the line toward the Moon. From our perspective on the Earth's surface we see two small bulges, one in the direction of the Moon and one directly opposite. The effect is much stronger in the ocean water than in the solid crust so the water bulges are higher.

The Moon has no global magnetic field. But some of its surface rocks exhibit magnetism which indicates there could have been a global magnetic field early in the Moon's history. The Moon's surface is completely exposed to the solar wind and many ions form the solar wind have become embedded in the moon's Regolith.

Newton's Laws of Motion

Newton's laws of motion are three physical laws. These laws provide relationships between the forces acting on a body and the motion of the body.Newton's laws were first published together in his work Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica (1687). The laws form the basis for classical mechanics. Newton used them to explain many results concerning the motion of physical objects.

Newton's First Law of Motion:
Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it.

Newton's Second Law of Motion:
The relationship between an object's mass m, its acceleration a, and the applied force F is F = ma. Acceleration and force are vectors (as indicated by their symbols being displayed in slant bold font); in this law the direction of the force vector is the same as the direction of the acceleration vector.

Newton's Third Law of Motion:
For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

The first law is termed as the "Law of Inertia".  The second law aid in quantitative calculations of dynamics.  This law explains the velocity chnages that happen when a force is applied.  The third law exemplifies by what happens when we bounce a rubber ball on the ground it pushes back itself witht he same force in the opposite direction.

Akshaya Trithiya

'Atchayam' - Growing without becaoming empty.The third day of the lunar fortnight, which is called 'thritiya'. Thus the properous day ' Akshya trithiya '. Like any other thidhi we celebrate the trithiya of the growing phase of the moon. Many Indian women worship the Godess Lakshmi on this sacred day. Many of our puranas reveal prosperous instances that took place on this day.
The siddhas are said to move about the universe and bless the people. Its said that its good to perform charity on this day. There are certain rituals that have to be followed on this day. One should take oil bath and worship God and do some charity. Performing libations to our departed ancestors is considred to be fruitful on this day. It is believed that wealth will increase if one keeps money in the pooja and worships on this day.
Puranas say that it was on this day that Lord Krishna bestowed kuchela with boudless wealth when he came to meet him. Astronomers say that this is the day on which the sun and the moon are the brightest. This is also an auspicious day to start new ventures and purchases. Its also believed that if a person buys small amount of gold and keeps it in the pooja and wears it on this day, it will accumulate all throught the year. Its good to gift clothes and fruits on this day.

What is Heart Failure?

Heart failure is a condition due to the inability of the heart to pump oxygenated blood and essential substances to the body parts caused due to the weekness in its muscles. This is a serious medical illness, and requires critical care admission.

Surgical correction is required if the heart failure is due to vavular diseases. Some symptoms are Fatigue, breathlessness on exertion or swollen veins in the neck area, enlargement of the liver etc., Patients with advanced heart failure and severe pumping defect of left ventricle have to be treated with ventricular repair procedures or ventricular assist devices.
Some patients may develop a condition called stent thrombosis after agioplasty with stenting. This is due to improper dialation of stent or an uncovered dissected area where stenting was carried out. Some symptoms are chest pain and breathlessness. These patients may require hospitalisation and repeat agioplasty if necessary.

There are various types of stents available in the market. The cost of the stents depends on the brand, special features and stent designs.The cost also depends upon the older generation and newer generation manufactury.

Longest River in the world -Nile

Nile- The longest river in the worl, flowing about 6677 km. The Nile gets its name from the Greek word "Nelios", meaning River Valley. Nile Valley is called the cradle of civilization. Nile is the main water resource for Egypt. The two main tributaries of the Nile River are the White Nile and the Blue Nile. Lake Victoria is the source of the White Nile and the Blue Nile begins in the Ethiopian Highlands. The two tributaries converge in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan where they form the Nile River. The Nile flows from the mountains in the south to the Mediterranean in the north. Egypt is called the gift of Nile.

Before the construction of the Aswan High Dam; the Nile rolled through a series of six rapids, called cataracts, between northern Sudan and southern Egypt. The construction of the dam has caused major changes in the flow of Nile. Lake Nasser is a man-made lake created by the construction of the Aswan High Dam, opened in 1971. The dam was built to regulate the flow of the Nile River.

The major cities that are located on the edge of the Nile and White Nile are: Cairo, Gondokoro, Khartoum, Aswan, Thebes/Luxor, Karnak, and the town of Alexandria lies near the Rozeta branch.The major dams on the Nile are Roseires Dam, Sennar Dam, Aswan High Dam, and Owen Falls Dam. Fishing is a main source of income and wealth for many who live on the banks if Nile. Each year thousands of tonnes of fish are caught. Many modern travelers to Egypt today take a Nile cruise as part of their package.

What is Metabolism?

The body gets the energy it needs from food through a process called metabolism. Metabolism means transformation. Metabolism is a collection of chemical reactions that takes place to transform the food we eat into the energy needed by the body to perform actions. Metabolism is a constant process that begins when we're conceived and ends when we die. It is a necessary function that allows our bodies to use food and other resources to maintain the working parts, repair damage, heal injury and rid the body of toxins. Apart from aiding in digestion Metabolism aids absorption of nutrients. The metabolic activity is mostly influenced by the nutrition intake, adequate hydration and physical activity. When any one of these is lacking, the metabolic rate decreases.
After we consume food, the molecules in the digestive system called enzymes break proteins down into amino acids, fats into fatty acids, and carbohydrates into simple sugars. These compounds are absorbed into the blood, which transports them to the cells. After they enter the cells, other enzymes act to speed up or regulate the chemical reactions involved with "metabolizing" these compounds. During these processes, the energy from these compounds can be released for use by the body or stored in body tissues, especially the liver, muscles, and body fat. In this way, the process of metabolism is really a balancing act involving two kinds of activities that go on at the same time - the building up of body tissues and energy stores and the breaking down of body tissues and energy stores to generate more fuel for body functions.

Metabolism is a complicated chemical process. A calorie is a unit that measures how much energy a particular food provides to the body. The body stores the energy initially in form of fat. If a person consumes too many calories and his physical activity is not enough to utilise the consumed amount the excess remains as fat in the body thus resulting in increase of weight. The basal metabolic rate, or BMR, is a measure of the rate at which a person's body "burns" energy, in the form of calories, while at rest. Low calorie dieting slows your metabolism, making it progressively more difficult to lose weight and keep it off.

Anabolism or constructive metabolism, supports the growth of new cells, the maintenance of body tissues, and the storage of energy for use in the future. During anabolism, small molecules are changed into larger, more complex molecules of carbohydrate, protein, and fat.

Catabolism or destructive metabolism, is the process that produces the energy required for all activity in the cells. In this process, cells break down large molecules to release energy. This energy release provides fuel for anabolism, heats the body, and enables the muscles to contract and the body to move. As complex chemical units are broken down into more simple substances, the waste products released in the process of catabolism are removed from the body through the skin, kidneys, lungs, and intestines.

Several of the hormones of the endocrine system are involved in controlling the rate and direction of metabolism. Thyroxine , a hormone produced and released by the thyroid gland, plays a key role in determining how fast or slow the chemical reactions of metabolism proceed in a person's body.

The pancreas secretes hormones that help determine whether the body's main metabolic activity at a particular time will be anabolic or catabolic. For example, after eating a meal, usually more anabolic activity occurs because eating increases the level of glucose - the body's most important fuel - in the blood. The pancreas senses this increased level of glucose and releases the hormone insulin , which signals cells to increase their anabolic activities.

Metabolic disorder is caused by an abnormal chemical reaction in the body's cells. Some metabolic diseases are inherited. These conditions are called inborn errors of metabolism.

All About Nobel Prize

Nobel Prize is name after the swedish chemist Alfred Nobel who invented the Dynamite. He was first awarded the prize five years after his death.

The Nobel Prize was initially awarded for subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature and Peace. Later on Economics was also added.

These prizes are awarded to individuals only except the Peace Prize and each award is awarded to minimum three people in a year.

The first Nobel prizes were awarded to

Chemistry : Jacobus H' van't Hoff
Physics : Wilhelin C Rotgen
Medicine : Emil A Von Behring
Literature : Rene F A Sully Prudhomme
Peace : Jean H Dunant Frederic Passy.

Story of Paper - Papyrus To Paper

The story of paper tracks down to 5000 years behind. Paper originated in Egypt. Egyptians wrote on materials made from Papyrus Reed. These were grown in the Nile Delta. The writing material was made by laying strips of the stem side by side and sticking them together.

Although Papyrus was prevalent in Egypt it did not reach Europe. The Europeans used the animal skins. This material was called parchment. This had many advantages over papyrus. The parchment was very flexible and did not crack. It could be folded and both sides of it could be cused for writing.

The Chinese official name Ts' Ai Lun made paper using a strange assortment of mulberry and bamboo fibers. This is the material we use today. The chinese guarded the secret of making paper for more than 1000 years. Unfortunately the Moors learnt this and spread it to Spain and Sicily. From there it spread throughout Europe and by the 1200 the paper mills had mushroomed in Italy.

The Paper gained its importance once Johannes Gutenberg invented the first mechanical printing press in 1455. From then on books were printed using the paper and demad for paper grew. Presently United States is the world's leading paper producer.