LAUGHING GAS

Nitrous oxide 

     Nitrous oxide, (N₂O), laughing gas is used in surgery and dentistry for its anesthetic (pain-numbing) and analgesic (pain-relieving) properties. The gas gets its common name from the dreamy effect it creates and the giddy laughter it evokes, on inhalation. 

     A colourless, non-toxic and non-flammable gas at room temperature, nitrous oxide smells slightly sweet. It is emitted by bacteria, making it a natural part of the Earth’s atmosphere. Nitrogen fertilisers and animal waste cause bacteria to produce more nitrous oxide than usual. In terms of the concentration in the atmosphere, nitrous oxide comes fourth after water vapour, carbon dioxide and methane. It is a greenhouse gas, which means that it traps heat in the atmosphere, making the Earth warmer. 

     The gas was first synthesised by Joseph Priestly in 1772. However, the first medical experiments using the gas were conducted in 1794 by Thomas Beddoes and James Watt. Watt invented a device to produce the gas and another to inhale it while Beddoes suggested that inhaling the gas could help treat tuberculosis and other lung diseases. Humphry Davy was put in charge of monitoring experiments using the gas. It was Davy who first noted the gas' analgesic effects and published his findings in 1800. However, the world paid no heed. The gas was just popularly used to host 'laughing gas parties'. It was only in 1884, more than 40 years later, that Davy's findings were finally put to use and nitrous oxide was used as an anaesthetic. 

HISTORY OF THE INDIAN CURRENCY

 Rupee (₹)

     Sher Shah Suri was the person responsible for the Rupee. His version of Re 1 in 1540 AD weighed 11.5 grams of silver and was divided into 40 copper pieces or paisa. By the time the British East India Company entered the market in the 1600s, Sher Shah's silver rupee had already become the standard currency atleast in name. Despite many attempts to bring the Sterling Pound to India, the Rupee grew in popularity and was even exported as a currency to other British colonies. 

     And when the British government took over the company territories after the 1857 revolt, the Rupee became the official currency of colonial India, with the head of King George VI featuring prominently on banknotes and coins. In 1947, India became an independent nation. The currency kept its name but changed visually to account of the birth of this new nation. 

How is the Rupee made?

* There are 4 mints that produce legal tender in India. They are in Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Noida. 

* Indian banknotes are made of a balsam wood pulp. Cotton fibres are added to pulp to make it more durable than regular paper. 

* The whole note is then infused with gelatin to give it extra strength. Using watermark technology, an image of Mahatma Gandhi is imprinted onto the sheet during making process. 

* Before the paper dries, a silver thread with holographic imagery is woven into it. The watermark and silver thread make the notes very difficult to replicate.

The Rupee symbol ₹

* The Rupee symbol is a recent development in the history of Indian currency. Until 2009, the word rupee on a banknote was shortened to 'Rs.' to represent Indian currency. The Indian government, Ministry of Finance held a competition for graphic designers to develop a symbol to represent the currency. 

* The winning graphic was a symbol that looks like the Devanagari 'Ra' as well as the English 'R'. The symbol was an instant success and soon became the standard representation of the rupee. 

The symbol was conceptualised and designed by D. Udaya Kumar, a post graduate in Design from Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. 

* MRPs and advertisements quickly took to using it and in January 2012 the government issued coinage and banknotes that featured the symbol. 

BELIEVE IT OR NOT

The Ghost Car

Japan’s first Grand Prix since the Second World War was held at the Suzuka circuit. Most people felt that Masao Asano would win. His racing car was a white Austin Healy and its number was 42. The choice of the car number shocked the Japanese as it is considered inauspicious. The Arabic numerals for 42 translate as shi ni, closely related to the Japanese word shingu (‘to die’). But Asano did not care for these superstitions.

Unfortunately, in that race, Asano had an accident and died. The Japan Auto Federation (JAF), which controls the country’s motor sports, reviewed the accident and a few weeks later, banned the use of the number 42 on vehicles used for racing.

The second Grand Prix was held a year later and the JAF developed a new system for determining the running order of the racing drivers. Two teams of spotters took their places in the control tower and recorded the number of each car as it completed a circuit. During the race, the spotters would call out the numbers on the cars as they flashed by, without concentrating on any car number because there were too many cars and they were very speedy.

After the 25-lap race, when the two teams compared notes, they discovered that a car with the number 42 had completed 8 laps. Nobody could tell what kind of car it was or who the driver was.

The Unlucky Number: The Japanese are very superstitious about certain numbers. Four is considered an unlucky number in Japan because it sounds like shi meaning 'death'. This is why there are two readings for the number four — shi and yon. Whenever possible, people try to avoid using the deathly one. License plates  having the digits 42 which sounds like shini ('to die') are strictly avoided. Many housing complexes, hotels and hospitals skip the fourth floor. Forty-two is also said to be themost unlucky age for Japanese men.

WORDS WORTH READING

Always be confident

People talk about lack of confidence all the time. Let’s now talk about what happens when we have too much of it.

Once a fox and a wildcat met on the outskirts of a village.

“This is a dangerous place,” said the cat, “infested with wild dogs.” 

“Dogs don’t bother me,” boasted the fox. “I know a hundred ways to get away from those stupid animals.”

Just then, they saw a pack of wild dogs coming. “Goodbye, friend,” said the cat. “I’d better be going. Unlike you, I know only one way to get away from dogs. That is to climb up a tree.” 

And with that, it sped up a tall tree. The fox tried all the tricks it knew in its attempt to get away from the dogs. But it was soon caught and killed. 

It is said, “Confidence is good, but overconfidence always sinks the ship.” 

Yes, excess of everything is bad. Even too much of confidence can be ruinous. An overconfident person always considers himself to be right. Such people also disregard pros and cons of things. Thus they often tend to make wrong judgements, and disastrous decisions. To them, the experienced or learned opinions of others do not matter. 

Be confident. But not overconfident. Remember that overconfidence precedes carelessness. It blocks your progress in many ways. In studies and in life, do your part well; and that too with confidence and determination.

DO YOU KNOW

 How do penguins adapt to life in the icy ocean?

Penguins are a group of flightless aquatic birds that live in the Southern Hemisphere, primarily in the Antarctic region. Their bodies are beautifully adapted to life at sea and under extremely cold weather conditions. 

Penguins have a thick layer fat, known as blubber, under their skin. This layer, which can constitute up to 30% of the bird's body weight, acts as an excellent form of internal insulation to keep it warm in the coldest weather. Another use of the blubber is as a valuable store of energy. 

After laying her egg, the female emperor penguin sets off to sea to feed, leaving her mate to incubate the egg. She returns only after about two months, by which time the male would have lost up to 40% of his body weight due to fasting (as he is unable to mov around and look for food). It is the stored body fat (blubber) that sustains him during this period of starvation. 

The penguin's feathers are tightly packed and overlap to provide waterproofing and warmth - both crucial to the bird's survival in the icy winter. The black feathers on its back also absorb heat from the sun, helping it to keep warm. 

Further, penguins follow the practice of huddling together to conserve the scarce heat. Male emperor penguins are known to huddle together in groups of up to 6,000, while incubating their eggs during the middle of the Antarctic winter. While those at the centre of the group are warmed by their companions' body heat, the ones on the outside are more uncomfortable as they are exposed to the biting wind and cold. They solve this problem by continually moving and exchanging places; taking turns to stand in the colder spots. 

Sher-e-Punjab

 Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Many a battle was fought for Punjab, the land of the five rivers. At the turn of the nineteenth century, a brave, ambitious man who was blind in one eye, dreamed of unifying Punjab under a powerful Sikh empire. The bold young man was Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780 - 1839).

From a young age, Ranjit Singh displayed uncommon Daring. At a time when Afghans attacked and plundered Punjab, the nineteen-year-old marched into their territory and captured Lahore, long considered a seat of power in the region. Within a decade, he established his control over Amritsar and the rest of the Punjab. 

Ranjit Singh was crowned king in 1801. In 1809, he concluded a treaty with the British, another rising power, agreeing not to conquer territories south of the river Sutlej. Thereafter, he expanded his empire to the north and the west, subjugating Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Ladakh and Peshawar. 

Ranjit Singh was a benevolent and secular-minded ruler. He modernized his army and hired Europeans to train the infantry and the artillery. He was a devout Sikh and he named his government Sarkar Khalsaji. The first coins issued during his reign were in the name of Guru Nanak. He also beautified the Harmandir Sahib, the holiest Sikh shrine, with marble and gold, lending it the name, 'Golden Temple'.

DO YOU KNOW

Who are 'Helicopter Parents'?

Parents are naturally protective about their children and tend to get more anxious especially when their children are at an important threshold--- say while getting admission to the best college to fulfill a career goal. Some parents however, are unable to distance themselves from their children's life and continue to shower excessive attention on them. Such parents who overstep their role as responsible parents are referred to as 'helicopter parents'.

A helicopter parent, for example, would not stop at ensuring the best college for his ward; he would also get involved in the ward's day-to-day activities, performance, friend circle etc.

This term was first used in American child psychologist Haim Ginott's 1969 book Parents & Teenagers by teenagers who felt their parents would hover over them like a helicopter. In the 21st century, helicopter parenting has become a cause of concern as more and more anxious parents struggle to ensure 'a perfect life for their children. The ubiquitous mobile phone is often blamed for the explosion of helicopter parents. 

Psychologists point at the thin line separating engaged parenting from helicopter parenting--- although parenting is always done with the best intentions, the latter may lead to overprotected children who lack resilience.