November 9, 2020

Animals cannot digest Cellulose

Most plants synthesize cellulose which they use to give strength to their bodies and make them withstand the vagaries of storms. It gives the shape to the trees and branches then expand the tree. Cellulose becomes the wood when trees become mature. Furniture is made of this material. It is obvious that cellulose is insoluble in water otherwise no one will use it in construction and furniture. Cellulose and starch and other carbohydrates consist of glucose molecules which are arranged in chains of different styles. In starch, two chains are intertwined. These chains get separated on boiling the starch in… Read More »Animals cannot digest Cellulose

Unesco World Heritage tag for Rani-ki-Vav

Rani ki vav or the Queen’s Stepwell at Patan, Gujarat has been bestowed with this honor a few days back under criteria i and iv which say. First criterion is the structure represents a masterpiece of human creative genius and second criterion says the item under consideration is an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates significant stages in human history. Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen’s Step well) at Patan, Gujarat is located on the banks of the Saraswati River and was initially built as a memorial to a king in the 11th century AD. Rani or the… Read More »Unesco World Heritage tag for Rani-ki-Vav

Dr.Salam and Heer: Jhang Connection

Doctor Abdus Salam was awarded Nobel prize in physics in 1979 jointly with Glashow and Steven Weinberg. After Einstein, theoretical physicists all over the world are trying to unify all the physical forces like electricity, magnetism and forces residing inside a nucleus and gravity. They have succeeded in unifying all except gravity which is defying all the efforts. Just as in Hinduism we believe that God is one but it’s manifestation are many. They also got the Nobel in this area of research. He was born on 29 January 1926 in Santok Das in the Sahiwal District but grew up… Read More »Dr.Salam and Heer: Jhang Connection

Degrading Standards in publishing

The story goes like this. It shows how the publishers go ahead with publishing the work of authors. The Name sells. A literary fan and writer Serge Volle has conducted a damning experiment. He sent fifty pages of French author Claude Simon’s 1962 novel ‘The Palace’, set during the Spanish civil war, to nineteen French publishers touting it as fresh material to be considered for publication.  The submission was rejected by 12 publishers outrighly, while seven never replied despite the fact that Simon won the Nobel prize for literature in 1985. One editor claimed in a rejection letter that the… Read More »Degrading Standards in publishing

Greater Cormorants: Fishing Experts

During the winter months, a number of migratory birds visit India from the countries where winter is very severe and food availability becomes low. These annual visitors add colour to the season. Many of the migratory birds are water waders and land in the lakes , big pools and other water bodies. Amongst these are greater Cormorants. They are huge birds and expert fishers. They hunt in groups and there is great jostling and fighting for the catch snatching. In older days the trained Cormorants were used for river fishing in Japan and China. A snare was tied at the… Read More »Greater Cormorants: Fishing Experts