METAMORPHOSIS

Life cycle of butterfly 🦋 

The life cycle of a butterfly consists of four stages: egg, caterpillar (larva), pupa (chrysalis), and an adult butterfly. Here's a simple explanation of each stage:

1. Egg : A butterfly starts its life as a tiny egg. The female butterfly lays the egg on a leaf. The egg is usually very small and has a round or oval shape. It is attached to the leaf with a special glue-like substance. 

2. Caterpillar (Larva): When the egg hatches, a caterpillar emerges. The caterpillar is the second stage of the butterfly's life cycle. It’s a small, worm-like creature with a soft body. The caterpillar eats (leaves) a lot and grows rapidly. It sheds its outer skin several times to accommodate its increasing size. 

3. Pupa (Chrysalis): After the caterpillar has grown and eaten enough, it forms a protective case around itself called a chrysalis or pupa. Inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar undergoes transformation. It turns into a butterfly but stays hidden within the case. 

4. Adult butterfly: Once the transformation is complete, the adult butterfly emerges from the chrysalis. At first, its wings are small and wet, but they quickly expand and dry out. The butterfly pumps fluid into its wings, allowing them to become strong and ready for flight. The adult butterfly feeds on nectar from flowers and plays a vital role in pollination. 

This beautiful transformation from an egg to a butterfly is called metamorphosis. It is an incredible process in nature that allows butterflies to change and grow. 

DO YOU KNOW

Why paper cuts hurt?

The main reason why paper cuts are so painful primarily lies in the fact that you usually get them on your fingers, particularly your fingertips. Fingertips and hands have significantly more nociceptors (nerve fibres) per square millimeter than most of the rest of your body, such as your legs, arms stomach area etc. This ends up making cuts on your fingertips feel significantly more painful than cuts elsewhere, even when they are produced by paper or similar objects. 

But why do paper cuts seem to hurt more than other types of cuts on the hand? This is thought to be because the edges of paper are very dull and flexible, compared to knives and other such sharp objects. Because of this, when paper cuts your flesh, it does a lot more microscopic damage as it rips through your skin. Not only is there more microscopic damage, but this damage is also very shallow on the skin. This will further increase the pain because some of the most sensitive nerves in your skin, which have very low thresholds to trigger, are near the surface. They also tend to hurt longer because they won't bleed much and sometimes not at all. This leaves the nerves open to the air other irritants, so they will continue to be in an activated state for much longer than more significant cuts. 

ENERGY FROM HEAT INSIDE THE EARTH

Geothermal Energy

The word 'geothermal' is a combination of the words 'geo' which means 'Earth' and 'thermal' which means heat. The name gives us a hint as to how it is produced. The inside of the planet is scorching. This heat sometimes breaks through the Earth in the form of geysers and volcanoes. The heat from these is known as geothermal energy.

History: Geothermal energy has been utilised for many centuries. The ancient Romans took it further and used hot springs to heat flooring and baths. The first use of Geothermal energy for electricity was in 1904 when the geothermal electric generator was invented. The first-ever geothermal plant was set in Larderello, Italy, in 1904. Steam from that geothermal source was used to turn a small turbine that powered five light bulbs. A few years later, in 1911, the first geothermal electric plant was built. In the 1940s, a heat pump was developed, which was used to heat buildings. 

The Geological Survey of India has found around 340 hot springs across India. Most of India’s hot springs are located along the following five major regions - the NW-SE Himalayan arc system extended to Andaman Nicobar Island, Son-Narmada-Tapti lineament, West Coast continental margin with its adjacent and surrounding areas, Gondwana graben and Delhi fold regions. 

The Process: Geothermal energy can be used through geothermal heat pumps. At 10ft below sea level, the ground has a consistent temperature between 10 and 15 degree Celsius. This temperature remains constant, allowing geothermal heat pumps to maintain water at a constant temperature. By moving the water through through the ground, it can be heated during the winter or cooled during the summer. A heat exchanger can then use this water to heat or cool the air in homes. 

Geothermal energy can also be used to generate electricity. Power plants take advantage of water 3.2kms deep in the ground. 

Water is utilised in several ways. 

* Dry steam engine: It takes steam from cracks in the ground to drive a turbine. The heated water vapour (steam) is directed towards a turbine that drives an electrical generator. 

* Flash points: These pull hot water with high pressure and mix it with cool water. This process creates steam, which drives a turbine.

* Binary cycle: In this process, heated water is drawn through a set of pipes and much of the energy stored in the heated water is transferred to a working fluid, such as ammonia, through a heat exchanger. The active liquid is vaporised to spin turbines and generate electricity. 

Applications: Geothermal energy is also used to heat individual buildings with directly and to heat multiple buildings with district heating systems. Hot water near the Earth’s surface is piped into buildings for heat. A district heating system provides warmth for most of the buildings in Reykjavik, Iceland. In fact, 87% of the country’s homes are heated using geothermal energy. 

Industrial applications of geothermal energy include food dehydration (drying), gold mining and milk pasteurising. Moreover, geothermal energy can be used in the desalination of water, heavy water production, extraction of minerals from geothermal fluids and seasoning of timber. However, geothermal energy is presently utilised mainly for power generation and space heating purposes only. 

Advantages: 

* Since fossil fuel reserves are limited, geothermal energy is an alternative that emits fewer harmful gases than when fossil fuels are burned. It produces 0.03% of the emissions that coal produces and 0.05% of the emissions that natural gas produces. 

* Geothermal energy does not require as much energy to be utilised. Moreover, technology has been developing exponentially, making discoveries every day. Each new step might hold the key to a sustainable world. 

Disadvantages:

* Geothermal energy can only be found in some areas, such as Iceland. 

* Sometimes, harmful gases can be released from the ground while digging, which negatively impacts the ozone layer. 

* The cost of building geothermal plants is exceptionally high. However, as technology develops, the prices should fall. 

HISTORICAL EVENT OF THE MONTH

Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi

 

21 May in India is observed as Anti-Terrorism Day to commemorate the death anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, who was assassinated by a suicide bomber. 

On May 21, 1991, at 10:10p.m., Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India, was killed in a bomb blast that occurred during an election rally at Sriperumbudur near Chennai in Tamil Nadu. The blast was triggered by Dhanu, a Sri Lankan Tamil suicide bomber who detonated an explosive-laden belt concealed under her dress while stooping to touch his feet. Fifteen people, including Rajiv Gandhi and Dhanu, were killed on the spot while three succumbed to their injuries in hospital; 44 were injured. 

The assassination was carried out by the Liberation of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a Tamil terrorist outfit operating in Sri Lanka, who opposed the deployment of the military contingent Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka as part of the agreement between the two governments when Rajiv Gandhi was Prime Minister. With the elections near, the LTTE feared that Rajiv Gandhi's return to power would result in a return of the IPKF and a crackdown on the LTTE network in India. 

The case was immediately entrusted to the CBI, who formed a Special Investigation Team to find the culprits. A 3-month-long hunt ended with the suicide of Sivarasan, the mastermind behind the assassination, along with his chief accomplice Subha and five others when the police closed in on their hideout in Bangalore.

DO YOU KNOW

What is mad honey?

It is the honey produced by bees which feed on the nectar of certain species of rhododendron flowers. These flowers have a natural neurotoxin called grayanotoxin in their nectar. The bees pollinating these flowers pass the toxin into the honey which when consumed, induces hallucinogenic effects in people. 

Dark reddish in colour, this honey has been historically produced in the Black Sea region of Turkey. There is an interesting account relating to mad honey dating back to 401 B.C. A company of Greek soldiers passing through Turkey took violently ill and became disoriented after eating honey from beehive along the route. They recovered the next day. In another account, in 69 B.C., the invading Roman army of Pompey the Great was tricked by the locals into eating the honey. When the Roman became delirious and nauseated, the enemy soldiers swooped in and killed them.

Mad honey is eaten only in small amounts like medicine. Eating too much can cause hallucinations, vomiting, dizziness, irregular heartbeats and fainting. The symptoms are rarely fatal.

 

As rhododendron grow in high altitudes, the bees usually make their hives in sheer cliffs. In Nepal, members of the Gurung tribe go to extraordinary lengths to gather the honey. They climb down treacherous cliffs on long rope ladders with no protective gear, smoke out the bees and then cut away the hives dripping with honey. 

THE BREAD OF THE DESERT

The Date 

The Date (Phoenix dactylifera), a native of the deserts of Arabia, is popularly called the 'bread of the desert'. An ancient fruit that finds mention in the Quran and the Old Testament, the Date is a key food source for millions living across the Middle East and North Africa. 

Dates grow on the Date palm, a tall evergreen tree that reaches up to 30 metres in height. Usually unbranched, it has long leaves that surround the trunk in a spiral pattern. Because of its tenacity in sprouting in the driest of deserts, the tree is viewed as a symbol of fertility and has been depicted on monuments and coins. Its shape is even thought to have inspired a style of columns in Greek architecture. Each palm produces five to ten bunches of Dates. A single large bunch may contain more than a thousand Dates, and can weigh between 6 to 8 kg. The tree begins to bear fruit at 3 to 5 years, and reaches full production after about a decade. 

The fruit is characterised by its succulent, soft flesh and the single hard seed in the middle. Unripe Dates are green in colour and mature to reddish-brown when fully ripe. 

The Date is not just a delicious fruit but a powerhouse of nutrition, as it is packed with body-building and disease-fighting proteins, minerals and vitamins. It is high in sugar content and provides energy. Vitamin C present in Dates helps lower blood pressure by dilating the blood vessels, and also lowers bad cholesterol level in the blood. Further, the fruit is rich in fibre and an excellent source of potassium. Its high iron content helps keep anaemia at bay.

According to an old Arab saying, the uses of the Date palm are as many as the number of days in the year. All the parts of the tree are put to commercial use - the trunk for timber, the leaves for weaving mats and baskets, the bark as building material, and the sap as an ingredient in baking. Even the Date stone (seed) finds use as cattle feed, after being soaked and powdered. 

STORY

Prayer for contentment

 

Once Lord Vishnu was very much pleased with the tapasya (penance) of a devotee and said, "I shall grant you three requests."

The elated devotee did not hesitate, "Here is my first request," he said, "I want my wife to die so I can marry a better woman." His wish was immediately granted. 

But when his friends and relatives gathered for the funeral and began to recall the virtues of his wife, the devotee saw he had been hasty. So he asked the Lord to bring her back to life. 

That left him with just one more petition. He was determined not to make a mistake this time, for there would be no chance to change it. He consulted widely. 

Some advised him to ask for immortality. But what good was immortality, said others, if he did not have good health? And health if he had no money? And money if he had no friends?

Years passed and he had still not made his choice, life or health or wealth or power or love. Finally he said to the Lord, "Tell me what to ask for."

The Lord laughed when he saw the man's predicament, and said, "Ask to be content no matter what you get."