India Gate Facts

The national capital of India boasts of several historical monuments. Delhi is a beautiful city with a rich history of thousand years. One of the most renowned landmarks of the city is India Gate. One must have seen it during a travel visit to Delhi or in several movies. Situated in the heart of the city, it is located on Rajpath. The history of India Gate goes back to 20^th century. There is a story behind establishment of this important landmark. It was made to commemorate the soldiers of the erstwhile British Indian Army, who had lost their lives while fighting in World War I and the Afghan Wars. The original name of the landmark was the All India War Memorial. The monument has Amar Jawan Jyoti that is always in flame.

India Gate was designed by Edwin Lutyens who was also the chief architect of New Delhi. On 10^th February 1921, the Duke of Connaught laid the foundation of the monument. The construction work came to an end in 1931 after 10 years of work. If you see properly, you will find names of Indian soldiers inscribed on the walls of India Gate. These soldiers had sacrificed their lives in World War I and the Afghan Wars.

India Gate has a total height of 42 meters. It houses Amar Jawan Jyoti that was unveiled on January 26, 1972. The flame of jyoti burns all the time in respect of soldiers who sacrficied their lives during Indo-Pakistan War of December 1971. The Gate also serves as venue of Republic Parade every year.

Countries In Africa

Africa is the second largest continent in the world after Asia. No less than 6 percent of the Earth’s total surface area is covered by Africa. The continent has total 53 countries and houses most number of people after Asia. There are numerous island groups in the continent. Africa is known for great many cultures and numerous tribes. It is also rich with wide variety of wildlife. One of the most primitive continents, Africa has a special place in the history of mankind.

• Mozambique (Republic of Mozambique)
• Namibia (Republic of Namibia)
• Benin (Republic of Benin)
• Botswana (Republic of Botswana)
• Western Sahara (Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic)
• Zambia (Republic of Zambia)
• Cameroon (Republic of Cameroon)
• Cape Verde (Republic of Cape Verde)
• Comoros (Union of the Comoros)
• Côte d'Ivoire (Republic of Côte d'Ivoire)
• Djibouti (Republic of Djibouti)
• Egypt (Arab Republic of Egypt)
• Algeria (People's Democratic Republic of Algeria)
• Angola (Republic of Angola)
• Ethiopia (Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia)
• Gabon (Gabonese Republic)
• Gambia (Republic of The Gambia)
• Ghana (Republic of Ghana)
• Guinea (Republic of Guinea)
• Guinea-Bissau (Republic of Guinea-Bissau)
• Liberia (Republic of Liberia)
• Libya (Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya)
• Madagascar (Republic of Madagascar)
• Malawi (Republic of Malawi)
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi (Republic of Burundi)
• Mali (Republic of Mali)
• Mauritania (Islamic Republic of Mauritania)
• Mauritius (Republic of Mauritius)
• Morocco (Kingdom of Morocco)
• Niger (Republic of Niger)
• Tanzania (United Republic of Tanzania)
• Togo (Togolese Republic)
• Nigeria (Federal Republic of Nigeria)
• Republic of the Congo (Republic of the Congo)
• Rwanda (Republic of Rwanda)
• Sao Tome and Principe
• Senegal (Republic of Senegal)
• Seychelles (Republic of Seychelles)
• Sierra Leone (Republic of Sierra Leone)
• Somalia (Somali Republic)
• South Africa (Republic of South Africa)
• Sudan (Republic of Sudan)
• Central African Republic (Central African Republic)
• Chad (Republic of Chad)
• Swaziland (Kingdom of Swaziland)
• Tunisia (Tunisian Republic)
• Uganda (Republic of Uganda)
• Zimbabwe (Republic of Zimbabwe)
• Kenya (Republic of Kenya)
• Lesotho (Kingdom of Lesotho)
• Equatorial Guinea (Republic of Equatorial Guinea)
• Eritrea (State of Eritrea)

Famous Books and Authors

Double helix - J.D Watson

Das Kapital - Karl Marx

Gathering storm - Winston Churchill

Hamlet - Shakespeare

Harsha Chritha - Vana Bhatt

Time machine - H.G Wells

Shakuntalam - Kalidas

The vendor of sweets - R.K Narayan

The Tempest - Shakespeare

A bend in the river - V.S Naipaul

A farewell to arms - Ernest Hemingway

Arthasastra - Kautilya

Apple cart - G.B Shaw

A suitable boy - Vikram Seth

Animal farm - George Orwell

Anand math - Bankim Chandra

Alice in wonderland - Lewis Carol

Caesar and Cleopatra - G.B Shaw

Coolie mulk - Raj Anand

Odakkuzhal - G.Shankara Kuruppu

Old man and the sea - Ernest Hemingway

Origin of species - Charles Darwin

Othello - Shakespeare

Gullivers Travels - Jonathan Swift

Macbeth - Shakespeare

My experiment with truth - Mahatma Gandhi

The discovery of India - Jawaharlal Nehru

Glimpses 0f world history - Jawaharlal Nehru

Robinson crusoe daniel - Defoe

The interpretation of dreams - Sigmund Freud

Invisible man - H.G Wells

Kama Sutra - Vatsyayan

Mahabharata - Vyasa

Jungle book - Rudyard Kipling

King Lear - Shakespeare

India wins freedom - Abul Kalam Azad

Panchtantra - Vishnu Sharma

Wealth of nations - Adam Smith

A passage to England - Nirad.C.Chaudari

A passage to India - E.M Foster

A tale of two cities - Charles dickens

Anna Karenina - Tolstoy

By Gods Decree - Kapil Dev

Eternal India - Indira Gandhi

Man eaters of kumaon - Jim Corbett

Meghdoot - Kalidas

Mein kampf - Adolf Hitler

My Truth - Indira Gandhi

Freedom at midnight - Collins and Lapierre

Interesting Facts That One Should Know

General knowledge is a fascinating concept. We get to know so many different things about the capital. Right from capitals, cultures, music, movies to politics and astronomy, even sky is not the limit. Garnering knowledge is one way to feel good about self. It also gives you more weightage in social gatherings. When you are aware of things happening around you, you get better perspective and make rational opinion. So, let’s join hands in knowing some of the interesting facts about the world.

What is South America's highest mountain range? - The Andes

In which continent is the Sahara desert? - Africa

Of which country is Khartoum the capital? - Sudan.

Name the two longest rivers in the world:- Amazon and Nile

Which ocean is to the east of Africa? - Indian Ocean

Which is bigger, a lake or an ocean? - An ocean

What is the capital city of Norway? - Oslo

What is the capital city of New Zealand? - Wellington

What is the biggest state in the U.S.A.? - Alaska

Which country has the biggest land area? - Russia

What natural phenomena are measured by the 'Richter scale'? - Earthquakes

Which two oceans does the Panama Canal link? - Atlantic and Pacific

What is the line of latitude 23.5 degrees north of the equator called? - Tropic of Cancer

Who named the Pacific Ocean? - Ferdinad Magellan

Which country is called "Land Of White Elephants'? - Thailand

In which part of the world is the River Snake? - USA

Which is the tallest race in the world? - Tutsis, average height 185 cm

Where are the Ajanta caves? - Maharashtra in India

In which country is Mount Everest? - Nepal

Which continent has the biggest population? - Asia

What is the capital of Fiji? - Suva

In which country is the world's highest waterfall? - Venezuela

Which country has the most people? - China

What is the capital city of Kenya? - Nairobi

Which are the lowest and highest points in United States? - Death Valley in southern California is the lowest point in the United States at 282 feet below sea level. The highest point in the contiguous 48 states is also in California: Mount Whitney, which is 14,491 feet above sea level.

Which town in the world is situated at a highest altitude? - Wenchan in Tibet at an altitude of 5100 M.

Musical Facts

Music is a universal theme. Go to any part of the world and you will find the ubiquitous presence of music. Music speaks just one language. The words are different but message and feel is same. So why not try gathering some interesting facts about music? This article will be giving you fascinating knowledge about some musical facts. So gear up for a musical ride.

When is World Music Day? - 21st June

How many strings does a bass guitar usually have? - Four

Which instrument has keys, pedals and strings? – Piano

Which instrument is a cross between violin and the cello? - Viola

The song, Ain't Misbehavin' was written by which famous jazz musician? - Fats Waller

How many instruments are there in a string quintet? - Five

Where did Ghazal originate? - Persia

What instrument did the jazz musician Miles Davis play? - Trumpet

How many strings does a violin have? - Four

Which classical composer became deaf near the end of his life? - Beethoven

Which western instrument most commonly used for Indian classical compositions? - Violin

In what country did reggae music originate? - Jamaica

Which British rock group does Liam and Noel Gallagher belongs to? - Oasis

In which country is a 'gamelan orchestra' most commonly found? - Indonesia

Who wrote the song entitled 'Yesterday'? - Paul McCartney

Name of the boy at the centre of the Michael Jackson abuse trial? - Gavin Arvizo

Who wrote The Sound of Music? - RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN

What is the small town in which called in which Clark Kent grew up? - Small Ville

Michael Jackson is known as the King of Pop. Who is the queen of Pop? - Madonna

What is unusual about “trance” music that mesmerizes the audience? - It is played at 130- 160 beats per minute

Which famous Indian musician collaborated on a Beatles album? - Pundit Ravi Shankar.

Crystals

Crystals are wonderful and essential elements of many aspects of our like Feng Shui, Reiki and home décor. The crystals are supposed to produce energy and that in conjunction with our own energy creates balance of energy in the environment where we stay. It could be a place like home or office or vehicle. Crystals remove hurdles from our life and allow us to proper in life. The crystals like gems, minerals lead crystals and stones are known to have miraculous effects. They get rid of obstacles that are never used in any positive way by us or environment.

Use of crystals is an ancient phenomenon that was brought into existence by the Tibetans and Chinese. They have been using it since 5000 years. Crystals bring energy of the nature in the lives of humans if used as per the instructions. Crystals are also used in the healing process and bring harmony. One can use crystals as pendulum. Crystals are normally put in windows or areas that have presence of light. 

To disperse negative energy, crystals are placed or hanged in the room. By placing, crystals also create positive energy. If crystal is placed in the living room or in the north-east window of the house, which is considered as beneficial for the entire family in terms of knowledge and education. If you place in the west of children’s room then that helps in overall development and early education on of the child. All in all, if crystals are used in consultation with specialist then that proves to be hugely beneficial for the household.

Acupuncture Therapy

Acupuncture is also termed as Traditional Oriental Medicine because of its amazing benefits and usefulness. We need to understand the concept of acupuncture. Basically, in every part of living world, a physical energy force known as Qi exists. This Qi flows in channels of humans and that is ably reflected by acupuncture. There are Qi meridians in body that work in sync with blood and nerve system. These channels of energy in the body have own names based on human organs.

It is a very popular mode of treatment in many parts of the world. It demands understanding of human organs and flow of energy. Acupuncture is a combined tool of acupuncture, herbology and several other healing arts. Normally, people associate acupuncture with crystals, herbs, needles and magnets. These things are not necessarily used all the times by the practitioner. These modalities are complete units in themselves.

The most common modality of acupuncture is needles. In case of problems, the stainless needles are placed in appropriate points around the body. According to treatment, the size and length of needle varies from 1/5 of an inch to 3 inches. This is slightly painful but much lesser than hypodermic syringes that we all are scared of. However, the pain subsides within few seconds. You might feel a slight heat sensation. The usual parts of the body that are used for needles insertion are, heard, abdomen, arms, ears or legs. The vibrations produced by the needles go a long way in improving the patient’s condition.

Western Astrology

Our previous article talked about Indian Astrology and explained how it works. Now, we will focus on Western astrology that is widely prevalent in western countries. Its origin is traced to great ancient culture of Mesopotamia. It is said to be originated there and later on spread to other parts of the world. Egypt played a great role in development of western astrology. From Egypt, it moved to the historical land of Greece and there is witnessed the incorporation of new concepts.

Ptolemy was a Greek astrologer and astronomer and he is credited with introducing western astrological tradition. He wrote a book named ‘Tetrabiblos’ which contained foundations of the western astrological tradition. His theory took time of birth of a person in consideration and derived horoscope. Western astrology works on a different pattern than our own Indian astrology. According to them, different times witness different position of the cosmic bodies and that affects how our lives pan out.

Later on, western astrology moved to Middle-East and Arab and Persian scholars helped in reviving and refining western astrology and sent it to Europe. Astrology played a major role in European society. In medieval Europe, no function or policy announcement was performed without consulting astrologers. Western astrology is made up of twelve signs and further subdivided into four basic elements, Fire, Earth, Air and Water. The twelve zodiac signs represent twelve basic personality types.

Indian Astrology

Astrology is a very interesting subject. People from all over the world take help of astrology to figure out things in their lives. Astrology is a very ancient system. It has evolved and flourished over the years. If we talk about Indian astrology, it is also known as Jyotish or Jyotish astrology, Vedic astrology and Hindu astrology. The essence of astrology is to analyze the movements of the celestial bodies along with the divisions of time dependent. The Hindu Vedic religion had provision of several disciplines. One of the disciplines ‘Vedanga’ includes Indian Jyotish astrology as one of its six branches. Indian astrology is quite different from western astrology in terms of principles.

Unlike western astrology, jyotish does not rely heavily on tropical zodiac. However, it does use a bit of it for predicting the course of nature. Present since ancient times, Indian astrology has originated from spiritual customs of India. Jyotish shastra uses elements of karma and planet movements. It empowers with reality and knowledge. It uses subjects like mathematics, architecture, medical and military applications. According to Hindu scriptures, planets are also known as grahas. These grahas are known to affect a person’s life in a major way. The jyotish helps in understanding how movements of planets affect a person’s life. It also teaches ways to get rid of those hardships. Indian astrology uses 12 signs. These signs are also known as rashi. Once the reasons of problems are found out, religious ceremonies are performed to alleviate the problems.

Benefits of Tulsi Tea

Let’s talk about India’s ancient richness Herbs and Ayurveda. This form of science has given us several miracles. Known to be one of the oldest forms of medicine, Ayurveda is full of benefits and wonder methods. One of the plant and leaves often recommended by Ayurveda masters is tulsi herb. It is also known as holy basil. Found in almost all the households of India, tulsi has not only religious but health significance also. Western world has also started to acknowledge its benefits and one can see tulsi tea or tulsi supplements available in western stores.

Tulsi tea is made of tulsi herbs and it is very tasty. It can be enjoyed in both hot and cold form. It is recommended that tulsi tea should be a part of our day to day lives. Tulsi tea does not contain any caffeine and provides us amazing health benefits. One can also enjoy it in summer with ice and a squirt of lemon. The ideal to prepare it is in normal black tea mould with infusion of tulsi in gently boiled water and leaving it for two minutes. It helps our body from diseases by giving us effective antioxidants. It also helps in improved memory, healthy heart and vision. Tulsi tea is known to contribute significantly in strengthening of immune system. Other benefits include lessening arthritis pain and inflammation.

We live in a stressful environment and tulsi tea is known to provide calming effect. Its anti-stress properties are nothing less than blessings in the times of stress and consistent tension. Also known as queen of herbs, its healing properties have always been acknowledged in India. Tulsi has been regularly used in formation of Ayurveda medicines.

Facts about Papaya

The importance of health and nutrition can not be emphasized any further. We keep coming across world of information pertaining to different aspects of health and fitness. One of the most nutritious fruit is papaya. It is also a commonly seen fruit and available in almost every part of the country. Papaya plant is surprisingly not a tree but rather an overgrown herb. This herb is scientifically known as herbaceous perennial. It is found in almost all the tropical destinations. Central America especially Mexico is said to be the birthplace of this delicious fruit.

Papaya offers many nutritional values and foremost among them is in digestion. Papaya contains papain that helps in breaking down the protein and consequently that proves tremendously useful in digestion. Papaya is also considered wonderful for the people who want to lose weight. So all those people struggling with weight issues, start nibbling on this nutritional masterpiece. Apart from that papayas are known for having huge amount of folate, vitamin C and potassium. Other crucial things contained within papaya are, lycopene, vitamin A, carotenoids lutein (very important for eyes), vitamin E and zeaxanthin.

Papaya scores heavily in terms of its nutritional values. Compared to other fruits, it is definitely a nutritional masterpiece. It is recommended to eat 2 cups of papaya on a daily basis. One can use them in salad or blend them into sauces or salad dressings or even salsa.

Market Cap and Free Float Method

Most of you must have come across data pertaining to top companies. Many institutions and prestigious magazines publish such data every now and then. While deciding about a company’s position and size, few parameters are used. One of them and the most common one is market capitalization. Other parameters could be sales figure, net profit, or gross profit. Talking about market capitalization, it basically refers to multiplication of number of shares of a company and market value of each share. For example, if company X has total 1 million shares and per share value is Rs 50 then market capitalization of company X will be 50 multiplied by 1 million and that comes to Rs 50 million.

If we talk about market capitalization in terms of index then all the stocks listed in the index has a certain weight attached to it. This weight depends upon the market capitalization of the particular company. More the weightage of a company, higher the chances of it impacting the index. Also known as full market capitalization methodology. One more term that will help us knowing this concept even better is free float weightage. It refers to the fact that not the entire lots of shares are taken into consideration while giving weightage to the company in the index.

That’s because not all the shares are for trading. A good percentage of the shares are unavailable for trading because they are held by promoters or FII or government. In such case, the number of shares available for trade is multiplied by share prices and that’s how weightage of the stock is decided. India stock exchange; BSE use free-float method whereas NIFTY uses market cap method.

Stock Exchange- Advance Information

Previous article covered basics of stock exchange. To continue with our learning, let’s talk about few other interesting facts. Stock market is an indicator of price movement of the equity market. Whenever you hear that Sensex is rising it means prices of the stocks are going up. Now you must be wondering why the prices rise or fall? There could be few valid reasons for that. There will be news from macro-perspective. These news could be of terrorist attack, nuclear attack, war declaration, interim budget, news about monsoon, change in government etc. known as index news, these developments can make movements of index very volatile. All the above mentioned news can affect prices of all the stocks listed in the stock exchange. In popular terms, this is known as sentiments of the market or market sentiments. For example, when terrorists attacked Taj hotel in Mumbai, stock prices fell.

Stock specific news is different from index news. The former one refers to particular news about a company, its financial results, product launch, and news of collaboration or tax exemptions by government etc. such news have great power to affect the price movement of a particular stock. To maintain balance in price movements, the authorities make sure to pick stocks from diverse sectors.

That ensures even if particular news pertaining to one sector is causing heavy price movements in stocks of that sector, other stocks are not getting affected by it. That way balance is maintained and Sensex saves itself from forced manipulation.

Sensex – Basic Knowledge

Stock market has become an important part of several people. A robust stock market is indicative of a country’s rising wealth. Sky-rocketing stock exchange symbolizes power and growth of an economy. From India’s point of view Bombay Stock Exchange is the barometer of our financial health and performance indicator of hundreds of companies listed over there. Also known as Sensex, it has witnessed a topsy-turvy ride in last one year after 4-5 years of uninterrupted rise.

There are few not so known facts about Sensex. Let’s take a look at few of those interesting facts. However, to begin with Sensex is nothing but an abbreviated version of The Bombay Stock Exchange Sensitive Index. Sensex along with Nifty is most renowned terms in popular stock market. Nifty denotes National Stock Exchange whereas Sensex is the standard benchmark index of Indian stock market. Nifty is also known as S&P CNX Nifty in official terms. Nifty comprises of top 50 stocks whereas Sensex is comprised of 30 stocks.

Stocks represented in Sensex and Nifty belongs to diverse sectors and all of them are shining lights of their respective industries. Index committee also known as stock selection committee chooses these stocks based on market capitalization and industry standing. However there are few basic conditions to be fulfilled before getting picked in the index. One of them is chosen company must be among the top 150 companies in terms of trade number. Trade number signifies both number of shares sold and purchased apart from average value of trade. This data is considered over a period of one year.

Planting Trees- Benefits

Last post talked about environmental issues and significance of trees. Planting trees has numerous benefits. Do you know trees help in reducing your electricity bills by as much as half? Now you will be curious to know how. Modern day cities often fall victim to storm and hurricane. The name like ‘Rita’ and ‘Katrina’ will definitely ring a bell in your mind. These were the names of hurricanes that devastated entire city in USA. Trees of tremendous help in cutting the flow of storm water runoff. That way, city will also be saved from need of more storm sewer and ultimate beneficiaries will be city’s taxpayers.

Point to be noted here is trees are an excellent source of shades. So many buildings in urban cities are provided shades by trees. More shades, less heat and low air-conditioning usage and ultimately less electricity bill. It is also a known fact that massive tree cutting campaign in cities have caused heat waves so it’s better to plant some trees. Trees are known to protect soil by holding it with the root systems. Trees deflect continuous rain and that saves soil from getting displaced. By shedding its leaves trees provide nutrients to soil.

Trees are known to act as natural flood controller. Did not we read in school that forests are natural reservoirs and it is also a source of clean water? Other benefits include, most of the endangered species get their shelters in forests and they pay carbon debt as well. So many benefits and it just becomes quite natural for us to take planting trees in a more serious way. Trees are definitely an enriching part of our lives. So plant tree and contribute in saving earth mission.

Importance of Trees in saving Environment

One of the most important issues facing human kind is global environment. Every now and then, we keep coming across the news of global warming, depleting ozone layer, harmful effects of carbon and such related topics. Nations across the world are holding several environmental meets to tackle this grave issue. Right from shutting down polluting factories to go green campaign steps are being taken to handle the situation. But before anything we can take one basic step that can do wonders to mission save earth. Planting trees is an amazing idea from so many aspects. Let’s talk about few interesting aspects of plating trees.

One of the major benefits of trees is that they help in cleaning air and water. Trees are excellent in absorbing harmful pollutants including fertilizers and pesticides runoffs. Trees contribute a lot in saving money and energy. Wonder how? It has been said that, one needs to plant just three trees around his house in a strategic way and voila! One will manage to save his air-conditioning bill by no less than half. Trees are very crucial in restoring the environment by heavily contributing in sustainable economy of the community. That way, they also help community life. Tress can change many things that we never imagine. More often than not they act as glue. One just needs to look closely and will find what magic this thing can do to us and our earth. Trees provide several benefits and are of great source of help. We will look deeply in those aspects in the next post.

Busting Drink Myths

Previous article talked about few misconceptions about drinks. I came across few additions to those assumptions that I found essential to share with all of you. Tell me how many of you think Diet Pop is healthier than Regular Pop? I am not surprised if many people across the regions think that way. But truth is far from that. Diet pop can has less than 10 kilocalories whereas a can of regular pop contains approximately 135 kilocalories. That’s a huge difference. Infact many diet pop has zilch kilocalories. However, as far health aspect is concerned there is not much to write about because of presence of flavored water and artificial color.

Also make sure to have plain water instead of flavored water because the later one contains sugar and fat. It is also recommended to substitute juice or flavor water with plain water. It pays to check the label and nutrient details while purchasing the bottle. All these general awareness facts will go a long way in reducing your waist line and wallet as well.

Facts About Drinks

There are quite a good number of misconceptions about food and drinks. Few of them have existed since several years. This article will try to clear few facts about drink and food habits. These myths have been debunked by qualified dietitians.

Many people believe that milk is more fattening than juice. People who prefer milk instead of juice tend to gain more weight. But let me clear one thing. A glass that contains one percent milk contains far less calories than a glass of juice. It might come as a surprise to many of us but a glass of fruit juice has almost 120 kilocalories whereas two percent milk in a glass will give you just 10 kilocalories. Also the fact that milk has more nutrients like potassium, protein, vitamin D and calcium signifies what should be our priority. Juice has mostly some vitamins and sugar.

Many people believe that coffee is the main source of caffeine. Infact quite a large number of people have quit drinking coffee because of caffeine and heart connection. But how many of us know that even a can of pop, tea and canned drinks contains caffeine. Drinks like Red Bull and Jolt possess as much caffeine as coffee. Also take note of the fact that having coffee in small to moderate amount is not at all harmful for health. Though on exception is for pregnant women and people having high blood pressure as they need to reduce their coffee intake.

Interesting Google Facts

PageRank is the basis of Google’s search technology and it is named after Google co-founder Larry Page. Google’s web service is called Gmail that is hugely popular. But not many of you know that Gmail was in trial mode for two years before the official launch. This free web service has been designed by accommodating six types of email users. Recently the name of Gmail has been changed to Google Mail for new UK users. This event took place after some trademark issues. How many of you know about Google Doodle? It is basically logos that appear on Google homepage in the calendar option. Google has gone one step further and has created online museum where all the logos used in the history of the company have been displayed. The attractive doodles owe their designs to a Korean national named Dennis Hwang.

An astonishing number of 20 million search queries are registered by Google every day. People from all over the world including Vatican and Antarctica access the site. One can use no less than 116 languages while setting the Google homepage. Among all the websites, Google has the largest number of translators. It is being said that if one tries to search all the 3 billion pages of Google, it will take him 5,707 years whereas 0.5 second is what Google software takes for the same function. More than 845 million Usenet messages combine together to form Google Groups. Google also has a site named Google Moon that gives all the relevant information and maps of Moon.

Origin of Google

Tell me one website that you have used most frequently? Many of you will answer, Google. Yes, Google is the most visited site in the world with million of hits every day. Let’s explore few interesting facts about Google. The first thing is this particular word is a spelling error. Larry page and Sergey Brin are the founders of the site. The actual name they thought was ‘BackRub’ because of the search process of web’s back links. But that did not work so they thought of ‘Googol’ that is basically a mathematical term for 1 followed by 100 zeros. Milton Sirotta a mathematician had coined this term. But finally it turned out to be Google.

Larry page and Sergey Brin started a research project in their early 20s. This project aimed of organizing all the information available on World Wide Web and makes it accessible to millions of users. This project was named as ‘Google’ and the first office was in a garage in California. Many people wonder why the main page of Google is so blank. The reason is quite surprising. Because the founder of Google did not use any HTML tags and rather opted for quick interface. This blank interface caused a weird problem initially. Many users thought page is opening up slowly seeing the blank page and waited for rest of the page to open up completely. But that problem was also sorted out by inserting the Google Copyright message at the end of the page.

Top 10 Languages Spoken In the World

Approximately 277 million people in many parts of the world use Russian as their primary language. It is one of the six languages in the United Nations and spoken in major parts of erstwhile USSR like Belarus, Kazakhstan but also in few parts of USA. A very high population of 392 million people speaks Spanish language. National language of Spain, it is also spoken in Cuba and USA. Most parts of Central America and South America use Spanish as their main language. Many English words have been borrowed from this language like bonanza, enchilada, tornado, taco grande, patio and quesadilla etc to name a few.

Hindustani as a language is spoken by no less than 497 million people. It is the primary language of India. Hindustani has several dialects of which Hindi is the most commonly spoken language. Hindi could have been the most widely spoken language in the world considering the population explosion in India but English has a strong presence in this ancient country. Total 508 millions people speak English as their main language. Official language of numerous countries it is spoken in almost every part of the world. It is official language of more number of countries than any other. Places as far and diverse as England, USA, Hong Kong, Australia, Caribbean, Canada, South Africa etc use this language. Finally the number language in the world is what else but Mandarin. National language of china, Mandarin beats English by astonishing 2 is to 1 ratio. More than 1 billion people speak this language.

List wise top 10 languages in the world are;
Mandarin
English
Hindustani
Spanish
Russian
Arabic
Bengali
Portuguese
Malay
French

Top languages

There are hundreds of languages in the world. Each country and subsequent regions have different languages. If we talk in Indian context then it’s really hard to count the number of languages spoken by regions, tribes and natives. However, let’s have a look at languages spoken worldwide. That way we will also find out the most spoken languages in the world.

French is often termed as the most romantic language in the world. It is spoken by no less than 129 million people across the countries like Belgium, Haiti, Rwanda, Canada, Cameroon and most importantly France. Malay is another widely spoken language. The total number of speakers is 159 million in countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. One interesting thing about Malay is it has many dialects based on same roots. Portuguese is spoken by 191 million people in diverse countries and regions like Portugal, Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Macau and Venezuela. Finding the name of Bengali language is quite surprising but the number is as high as 211 million in Bangladesh and few parts of India. In Bangladesh everyone speaks the same language.

There are several Muslim countries in the world, especially in Middle East Asia. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Kuwait, Egypt, Syria, Jordan etc primarily use Arabic language. Arabic is also one of the oldest languages in the world. Also the fact that the religious book of Islam, Koran is written in Arabic, makes it a widely spoken language. In 1974, United Nations made Arabic the sixth official language.

Interesting History Facts

The year 1848 is also known as the year of revolution in European history.
George VI was the King of England before Queen Elizabeth II. The period was 1936 to 52.
Mrs. Sirimavo Bandara Naike was the first woman prime minister of a country. The country in question was Sri Lanka.
Ever wondered what’s the designation provided to the President of India? – its The Supreme Executive and Forcers Commander of Nation.
History books often mention famous peacock throne that was used by a king. The king was originally Shah Jahan of Mughal Era but later on Na dir Shah got hold of this throne.
Korea is also known by the name ‘the Land of Morning Calm’.
One of the greatest kings of history Alexander the Great died in BC 323 at the young age of just 33. The all conquering king died while returning back from India.
Duke William of Normandy is the name that finished the hundred years of the Anglo Saxon rule in England in 1066
Indian National Congress was the name of the organization founded by Mahatma Gandhi in South Africa to agitate for the rights of the Indians there.
Diet House of Representative holds all the aces when it comes to having complete legislative authority in Japan
One of the most famous historical lines “Government of the people, by the people and for the people” was give by- renowned USA president Abraham Lincoln
Hague is the place where International Court of Justice is located.
Ferdinand Magellan was the first explorer to circumnavigate the world. However many people confuse this fact with the name of Vasco Degama.
May 24th is also known as common wealth day.
Nepal is one of those care countries that do not have a rectangular national flag.
France gifted USA the statue of Liberty in New York. The name of the sculptor was Frederick Augusta Bartholdi.

Science Facts

The sun is the nearest star.
Between the two, Gold and Silver, gold is the heavier one.
H20 also refers to water
A butterfly has six legs.
The planet Neptune has a moon named Triton.
Photosynthesis is the name of the process for which plants need CO2, water and sunlight.
Stephen Hawking is credited to have written the famous book, ‘A Brief History of Time’
The symbol Zn symbolizes chemical element Zinc.
The brain contains the elemnt cerebrum.
Ornithology refers to study of birds.
Sir J J Thomson discovered electron.
Thigh bone is the longest bone in the human body.
At – 40 c temperature both the Centigrade and Fahrenheit show the same reading, i.e., (-) 40c equals (-) 40 F
Benjamin Franklin invented the bifocal lens.
Ever wondered why we never feel pain while cutting our nails? Because nails are not connected with blood vessels.
Swiss bio- chemist Friedrich Miescher discovered DNA in 1868.
Llama is found in only one continent, Antarctica.
Quasar is the name of the brightest object discovered in the universe.
Tungsten is the name of the element that is used in electric lamp filaments.
Adrenaline is the name of hormone that contains blood pressure in the human body.
A nucleus of carbon contains six number of protons and neutrons each.
Pluto revolves most slowly around the sun.
Argon gas is filled in electric bulbs.
The fear of death is called Bath phobia.
Max Plaock gave us Quantum theory.
Dimitri Mendeleeva formulated periodic table of elements.
Charles Robert Darwin is considered as the father of modern Biology.

The Silver Ghost and First Bank Notes

The name Rolls Royce symbolizes class and elegance. One of the best known cars in the world with fanatic fan following, it was created by Charles rolls and Henry Royce. First time made in 1906, for long Rolls Royce was known as the best car in the world. The superior quality of the craftsmanship gave the car phenomenal fame. The car is renowned as ‘Silver Ghost’ because of its glittery aluminum body and quietness resembling to ghosts. The mascot of the car is quite famous as ‘Spirit of Ecstasy’. Silver ghost was the first car to have hand brake and folding windscreen especially designed for rear seat passengers.

The story behind invention of bank notes is quite interesting. The story goes back to 10th century when coins used for trade and business used to be very heavy. So people instead of carrying these heavy coins, preferred to take handwritten receipts from the merchants in exchange of coins. To solve the problem, Chinese government started printing notes that had fixed values. That is said to be the origin of bank notes. In 17th century, European nations also got hold of the idea and world’s first printed notes took place in Sweden in 1961. Since then, it has been a memorable journey for printed notes. Later on many governments kept introducing new things in printed notes.

First Females-

Sirivamo Bandaranaike became world’s first female prime minister in 1960. She was elected in tiny island nation of Sri Lanka. Isabel Peron has the honor of being the first woman president when she was selected for the post in 1974 in the Latin American country Argentina. Saudi Arabia and Monaco has the dubious distinction of not having any female members in the sub-ministerial positions of national government whereas Scandinavian country Sweden was the first ever country of having more female ministers than men in 1999. The number was of 11 female ministers to the 9 men ministers.

Talking about females, Marie Curie was the first female to receive Nobel Prize in 1903. She got it for her amazing contribution on subject of radiation phenomenon in Physics. She also won Nobel award in chemistry in the year 1911. She got the award for her great work in discovery of polonium and radium elements. She managed to achieve the distinction after much effort and hard work. In a way, she initiated the trend of women getting the world’s most prestigious award. Since then, quite a good number of females have won the prestigious award. The concept of Nobel Prize was founded by Alfred Nobel. One interesting fact is, Nobel Prize for peace was started much later but the idea of it was given by a female named Bertha Von Suttner. Women have won awards in all the categories except economics. But that exception won’t remain for long.

Origin of Tennis

Lawn tennis is one of the most popular as well as glamorous sports in world. It is also renowned as a rich sport because of astronomical prize sums. The origin of tennis is still not ascertained because of conflicting theories. There are different versions about its origin. Some say, it came from ancient ball games played in Egypt. Some other find it originating from Greeks and Romans. Harpastum was an ncient roman game which was later adopted in the basque country and renamed as ‘jeu do paume’. The new name took place because of the nature of the game in which ball was being used to hit by hands on a wall. Then in France it was named as ‘paume’ but the rules and format had changed. The racket was invented by Italians in fourteenth century. Soon, introduction of rubber ball took place and game again changed and played as it is being played today.

Like lawn tennis, the origin of table tennis is also not sure. However, one thing is sure and that is its young age compared to its illustrious peer. The first trace of table tennis can be found in early 1880s when British officers in India and other parts of the Asia used to play this game differently. The game was called indoor tennis and lids from cigar boxes and rounded corks from wine bottles were used as paddles and balls. In Britain, the same game was initially called as gossima and whiff whaff during 1890s. Parker brothers were the first to manufacture complete indoor tennis kit that included portable net, paddles and balls. James Gibb introduced new balls in the game and named it ping pong.

Origin of Badminton

Games are a very crucial part of our lives. Hardly any person can be found with no interest in any sports. However the choice of game differs from person to person and also from region to region. Indian people are mostly into cricket whereas in USA, golf, baseball is more popular. Similarly in Eastern Europe, gymnastics and athleticism is more popular whereas in south East Asian nations, badminton rules the roost. Games are wonderful medium to have fun and use as recreation. For many it is their profession and source of livelihood. The coming articles will focus on evolution of few of these sports and how they got transformed in their current day form with addition of rules and point system.

Badminton is a very popular sport in many parts of the world especially, Asia and Europe. India is also an upcoming nation in the arena and credited to provide champion players like Prakash Padukone, P.Gopichand and currently Saina Nehwal. The origin of this game is credited to medieval Britain. There was a popular kid’s game known as shuttlecocks or battledores and badminton is considered as a descendant of that sport. India also had a major role to play in development of current day badminton. As the story goes, British army officers in Pune, Maharashtra, forever changed the way badminton is played by adding a net in 19th century. They also started to play it competitively. Interestingly, this game was initially known as Poona because of obvious reasons. Later on some of those officers returned back to England and introduced the same format there. Since then, the game has never looked back. The organized stricture of this game in India took place in 1920s.

Interesting Facts

Bahrain is one of the rarest countries whose National Anthem has only music but no words
Fox theatre,Detroit, (USA) is the largest cinema in the world.
Saudi Arabia does not have any Cinema theatres
Sears Tower,Chicago is the world's tallest office building
Persepolis was the capital of ancient Persian Empire
Paraguay got its independence from Spain in 1811.
Arthur Wynney invented the cross word puzzle
WHO is also known as World Health Organisation
Geneva is the headquarter of WHO
FAO refers to Food and Agriculture Organisation
FAO is located at Rome and London
Montreal in Canada houses International Civil Aviation Organisation
The Angel Falls is located in Venezuela (Latin America)
Thirteen is often regarded as unlucky number but in Italy it is considered as the lucky number
Alurophobia refers to fear of cats and one of the most famous historical personalities suffering from this phobia was Napoleon
Italians(14 Oct.1911) were the first country to use aeroplanes in war. Since then, it has acquired the status of most useful and deadly weapon.
Abraham Lincoln is credited to abolish the curse of slavery in America
Manchester is also known as textile capital of the world.
USA has more than 10,000 golf courses.
Louvre museum,Paris is the proud museum where historical painting `Mona Lisa' is displayed
Tomato was also known as Love apple
King Khalid Int.Airport, Saudi Arabia is the largest airport in the world.
Field Marshal Erwin Rommel was bestowed with the title of Desert Fox.
Bascilica of St.Peter,Vatican City,Rome is the largest church in the world

Seven Wonders of the World

Seven Wonders of the World was decided by millions of people across the globe. Internet was the medium through which people voted the list of their top seven preferences as wonders of the world. The list is actually the New Seven Wonders of The World. The earlier list was totally modified in the new list. An astonishing number of more than 100 million people voted in this poll. This is also considered as the first ever global poll.

7 July 2007 was the date when list of final wonders was announced. The announcement took place in Lisbon (Portugal). Interestingly, the original seven wonders were continued in their respective positions for more than 2000 years ago. Many people also why the number is limited to seven? The answer is because an average person can remember at most seven things at one time.

From Indian point of view, finding The Taj Mahal in the top seven lists was a great matter of joy and pride. Taj Mahal was always considered as international wonder because of its looks and design. It symbolizes love and richness of Indian culture. Finding Taj in the list is indeed, a matter of great happiness and pride for all the Indians.

The final list reads as:-
The Great Wall, China
Petra, Jordan
Christ Redeemer, Brazil
Machu Picchu, Peru
Chichén Itzá, Mexico
The Roman Colosseum, Italy
The Taj Mahal, India

General Knowledge Facts

Jim Daly Irishman coined the word ‘quiz’
Kent is the place known as the Garden of England
C.N.Tower,Toronto (Canada) is the tallest tower in the world
Manhattan in USA is one famous island located at the mouth of the Hudson River
Leo Hendrik Bakeland founded the hugely important plastic industry
Israel is the only country that has made military service compulsory for women.
Japan is very famous for its fish catch
Farmosa is also known as modern day Taiwan
Montreal is situated on the bank of river Ottawa
Brutus killed the famous king Julius Caesar
Germany is one of the largest beers producing country.
Revival refers to Renaissance
Hudson Bay,Canada is the largest bay in the world.
Arabia is the largest peninsula in the world.
UNIDO is United Nations Industrial Development Organisation
UNIDO is situated at Vienna in Austria
WMO is World Meteorological Organisation
Geneva is the headquarter of WMO
Gulf of Mexico is the largest gulf in the world.
Motherland,Volgagra d Russia is the tallest statue in the world
Oshimzu Tunnel,Japan is the largest railway tunnel in the world
Tristan da cunda is the world's loneliest island.
Rhodesia is the place where famous Victoria Falls is located
Gerald Tisyum was the name of the person who discovered Ice Cream
Trick was the original meaning of `Quiz'
Oxford Street is the busiest shopping centre of London.
Buckingham Palace is also known as the residence of the Queen in London.
Austria was the country where notorious Adolf Hitler was born.

Facts about Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is one of the world’s top wonders as declared on the basis of world-wide poll. People from all over the voted for this renowned site located in the country of Peru (Latin America). Situated on a mountain ridge above the Urubamba Valley, Machu Picchu is a pre-Columbian Inca site. It is also one of the most popular tourist sites in world. Machu Picchu has been granted status of one of the most endangered sites in the world by World Monuments Fund. It is said that original residents of this place died within 100 years of its establishment because of spread of small pox.

• Machu Picchu is located at a very high altitude of 2,400 meters (7,875 ft) above sea level. The erstwhile Inca Empire used this historical place as its proud symbol. That explains why this is also called as "The Lost City of the Incas".
• Built around 1460, but later on abandoned.
• Situated on a mountain ridge, Machu Picchu looks through Urubamba River.
• It was discovered by an American Historian named Hiram Bingham in 1911.
• 1981 saw declaration of Machu Picchu as a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary.
• UNESCO gave it the status of World Heritage Site in 1983.
• Machu Picchu is built of approximately 140 structures.
• The Temple of the Sun, Intihuatana and Room of the Three Windows constitute the primary buildings of the structure.
• Polished dry stone walls in the traditional Inca style have bene used to create the structure.
• National Geographic Society is credited to make this place popular by publishing one complete issue dedicating Machu Picchu in 1913.
• Machu Picchu is one of the most popular toiurist destinations in the world.
• Intihuatana stone is said to be built as a calendar or astronomical clock.