My Science School

Most people don't realize that ruby and sapphire are both gems of the mineral corundum. Both of these gemstones have the same chemical composition and the same mineral structure. Trace amounts of impurities determine if gem corundum will be a brilliant red ruby or a beautiful blue sapphire. 

Ruby and sapphire both serve as modern birthstones. Ruby is the birthstone for the month of July. Sapphire is the birthstone for the month of September. Synthetic gems are often used in birthstone jewelry to save on costs.

Rubies are gem corundums with a dominant red color. The color can range from orangy red to purplish red or brownish red. The most desirable color range is a pure vibrant red to a slightly purplish red.

Trace amounts of iron and titanium can produce a blue color in corundum. Blue corundums are known as "sapphires." The name "sapphire" is used for corundums that range from a very light blue to a very dark blue color. The blue can range from a greenish blue to violetish blue. Gems with a rich blue to violetish blue color are the most desirable.

 

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Chandigarh is the shared capital city of both Punjab and Haryana, two farming states in northern India, many of the state government offices are located there. To replace Lahore, which became part of Pakistan during British Partition in 1947, the Indian Punjab required a new capital city. So Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of independent India, commissioned a new ‘planned’ city, designed by French architect and urban planner Le Corbusier in the 1950s. When India’s Punjab was separated in 1966, the city of Chandigarh — on the border of Punjab and Haryana — became a union territory to serve as capital of both states.

The Union Territory Chandigarh has limited area under Agriculture. The agricultural land is being gradually acquired for the expansion of Chandigarh City, and cultivated area has shrunk from 5,441 hectares in 1966 to 1,400 hectares in 2002-03. The main sources of irrigation are deep-bore tube-wells installed by the Administration and shallow tube-wells installed by individual farmers. The main crop of foodgrain is wheat and it is sown nearly in 700 hectares of land. 

 

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Centaur, Greek Kentauros, in Greek mythology, a race of creatures, part horse and part man, dwelling in the mountains of Thessaly and Arcadia. Traditionally they were the offspring of Ixion, king of the neighbouring Lapiths, and were best known for their fight (centauromachy) with the Lapiths, which resulted from their attempt to carry off the bride of Pirithous, son and successor of Ixion.

Centaurs may best be explained as the creation of a folktale in which wild inhabitants of the mountains and savage spirits of the forests were combined in half-human, half-animal form. In early art they were portrayed as human beings in front, with the body and hindlegs of a horse attached to the back; later, they were men only as far as the waist. They fought using rough branches of trees as weapons.

 

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Ever heard of a liger? It’s the offspring of a male lion and female tiger. There’s also the tigon, which has a lion mother and tiger father. he liger and the tigon possess features of both parents, in variable proportions, but are generally larger than either. It is thought that most, if not all, male ligers and tigons are sterile. The females, however, on occasion, may be able to produce young. The terms liger and tigon are portmanteaus of the words lion and tiger.

The largest ligers often grow to lengths of more than 3.3 metres (10.8 feet) and weigh more than 400 kg (900 pounds); however, there are reports of some individuals weighing more than 1,000 kg (1 metric ton [about 2,200 pounds]). Tigons, in contrast, tend to be the same size or smaller than their parents, because the growth-limiting genes are carried by both parents.

 

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Dr. Bruce Banner is a character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film franchise initially portrayed by Edward Norton and subsequently by Mark Ruffalo—based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name—known commonly by his alter ego, the Hulk.

The Hulk is incredibly strong and throughout most of the films he acts largely on the instinct of self-preservation, attacking anything that he perceives as a threat. Over time, Banner demonstrated an increasing ability to control the transformation, calling the Hulk at will, but was generally not able to recall events during the time he was in that form. The Hulk, conversely, became increasingly aware of Banner and able to stall the transformation back – one time staying in Hulk form for two years, becoming able to speak with others and control his destructive rage. Eventually, Banner was able to merge with the Hulk, combining Banner's mind and personality with the Hulk's body and strength.

 

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Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a gothic novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, first published in 1886. The work is also known as The Strange Case of Jekyll Hyde, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, or simply Jekyll & Hyde. It is about a London legal practitioner named Gabriel John Utterson who investigates strange occurrences between his old friend, Dr Henry Jekyll, and the evil Edward Hyde. The novella's impact is such that it has become a part of the language, with the phrase "Jekyll and Hyde" entering the vernacular to refer to people with an unpredictably dual nature: outwardly good, but sometimes shockingly evil.

The central idea of the book, that one man may have a ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ personality, a separation of distinct social and moral traits, seemed to say something about the strain between private and public self, personal desire and social duty, that spoke not just to middle-class professional men of late Victorian English society, but to people around the world. The book is a rare instance of the invention of a modern myth – and the story is often known in outline even by those who have never read the book. Indeed ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ has entered the English language as an idiom, used to describe persons or things of a dual character, alternately good and evil. It has of course been staged and filmed many hundreds of times.

 

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Narasimha, (Sanskrit: “Man-Lion”) one of the 10 avatars (incarnations) of the Hindu god Vishnu. The demon Hiranyakashipu—twin brother of Hiranyaksha, the demon overthrown by Vishnu in his previous incarnation as Varaha—obtained a boon from the god Brahma that he could not be killed by human or animal, from inside or outside, by day or by night, and that no weapon could harm him. 

Narasimha is one of the major deity of Hare Krishna (ISKCON) devotees. Narasimha legends are revered in Vaikhanasas, Sri Vaishnavism, Madhwa Brahmins but he is a popular deity beyond these Vaishnava traditions such as in Shaivism. He is celebrated in many regional Hindu temples, texts, performance arts and festivals such as Holika prior to the Hindu spring festival of colors called Holi. The earliest representation, dating back to the 4th-century CE, of Narasimha is from Kondamotu in Coastal Andhra. Other older known artworks of Narasimha have been found at several sites across Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, such as at the Mathura archaeological site. These have been variously dated between 2nd and 4th-century CE.

 

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In Ancient Chinese philosophy, yin and yang is a concept of dualism, describing how seemingly opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they may give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the cycles of Yin and Yang and formed into objects and lives. Yin is the receptive and Yang the active principle, seen in all forms of change and difference such as the annual cycle (winter and summer), the landscape (north-facing shade and south-facing brightness), sexual coupling (female and male), the formation of both women and men as characters and sociopolitical history (disorder and order).

Yin and yang can be thought of as complementary (rather than opposing) forces that interact to form a dynamic system in which the whole is greater than the assembled parts. According to this philosophy, everything has both yin and yang aspects (for instance, shadow cannot exist without light). Either of the two major aspects may manifest more strongly in a particular object, depending on the criterion of the observation. The yin yang (i.e. taijitu symbol) shows a balance between two opposites with a portion of the opposite element in each section.

 

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Ardhanarishvara, (Sanskrit: “Lord Who Is Half Woman”) composite male-female figure of the Hindu god Shiva together with his consort Parvati. As seen in many Indian and Southeast Asian sculptures, the right (male) half of the figure is adorned with the traditional ornaments of Shiva. Half of the hair is piled in a hairdress of matted locks, half of a third eye is visible on the forehead, a tiger skin covers the loins, and serpents are used as ornaments. The left (female) half shows hair well combed and knotted, half of a tilak (a round dot) on the forehead, the eye outlined in black, a well-developed breast, a silk garment caught with girdles, an anklet, and the foot tinted red with henna.

A popular explanation of the Shaivite form of this figure, as given in a collection of legends known as the Shiva-purana, is that the god Brahma created male beings and instructed them in turn to create others, but they were unable to do so. When Shiva appeared before him in an androgynous form, Brahma realized his omission and created females.

 

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Brass, alloy of copper and zinc, of historical and enduring importance because of its hardness and workability. The earliest brass, called calamine brass, dates to Neolithic times; it was probably made by reduction of mixtures of zinc ores and copper ores. 

The ancient Romans used brass primarily in vessels, dress armour, jewelry, and brooches or clasps. Brass production declined after Rome withdrew from northern Europe but resumed during the Carolingian period. More malleable than bronze, brass was used to make ewers and basins, lamps, bowls, jugs, and numerous other household items.

Brass became a major material for the manufacture of fine instruments for astronomy, surveying, navigation, and other scientific pursuits. Brass was often forged, cast, chased, and decorated with engraving. 

 

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A mandrake is the root of a plant, historically derived either from plants of the genus Mandragora found in the Mediterranean region, or from other species, such as Bryonia Alba, the English mandrake, which have similar properties. The plants from which the root is obtained are also called "mandrakes".

Mandrake or Mandragora is a powerful restorative and is a vital component in restorative potions; as a result, it is necessary in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, where it is used to brew a potion that is used to restore those who have been attacked by the monster of the Chamber. 

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, a potion based on mandrakes is used to restore those attacked by the Monster of the Chamber. As in many other places in the series, it becomes apparent that the preparation of potions takes time. In this case, before the victims can be restored, so that they can identify the monster, we must wait for the mandrakes to become mature; conveniently, they do so immediately after Harry has vanquished the monster. In this case, the delay in their maturing is used to force Harry and Ron to come up with the solution to the puzzle of the nature and location of monster and the Chamber, with only extremely limited help from Hermione.

 

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In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including the Near East, Europe, Asia, and Africa.

The male equivalent of the mermaid is the merman, also a familiar figure in folklore and heraldry. Although traditions about and sightings of mermen are less common than those of mermaids, they are generally assumed to co-exist with their female counterparts. The male and the female collectively are sometimes referred to as merfolk or merpeople.

The word mermaid is a compound of the Old English mere (sea), and maid (a girl or young woman). The equivalent term in Old English was merewif. They are conventionally depicted as beautiful with long flowing hair.

 

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Ancient Indian sage named Patanjali is believed to have composed the Yoga Sutra, a collection of 196 aphorisms in the Sanskrit language. The Yoga Sutra describes the theories and practices of yoga. And this method of physical and mental training helps in disciplining the mind as well as the body. Nonetheless, yoga is also a spiritual process that helps people in controlling their thoughts. Moreover, it helps in generating a feeling of unison with the universe at large by getting detached and yet remaining attached to this world.

Before the 20th century, history indicates that the medieval Indian yoga scene was dominated by the various other texts such as the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Vasistha, texts attributed to Yajnavalkya and Hiranyagarbha, as well as literature on hatha yoga, tantric yoga and Pashupata Shaivism yoga rather than the Yoga S?tras of Patañjali.

 

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Sphinx, mythological creature with a lion’s body and a human head, an important image in Egyptian and Greek art and legend. The word sphinx was derived by Greek grammarians from the verb sphingein (“to bind” or “to squeeze”), but the etymology is not related to the legend and is dubious. Hesiod, the earliest Greek author to mention the creature, called it Phix.

The earliest and most famous example in art is the colossal recumbent Great Sphinx at Giza, Egypt, dating from the reign of King Khafre (4th king of 4th dynasty, c. 2575–c. 2465 BCE). This is known to be a portrait statue of the king, and the sphinx continued as a royal portrait type through most of Egyptian history. Arabs, however, know the Great Sphinx of Giza by the name of Ab? al-Hawl, or “Father of Terror.”

 

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It’s Charlotte Makepeace’s first night at boarding school. She goes to sleep with the weird feeling that comes with being in an unfamiliar place. But when she wakes up, she is genuinely lost and confused. Everything around her seems strange and rather old. Even more strangely, everyone seems to think her name is Clare Mobley. Charlotte is stunned to know she has travelled 40 years back in time to 1918. For the next few months, Charlotte wakes on alternate nights to her life as Clare. The switch gets tiresome after a while as Charlotte finds it difficult to inhabit worlds that are so different from each other. Can she find a way to get back to the world familiar to her before the term ends? Read this interesting time travel book to find out!

 

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