Unbelievable Info

Scientists Discovered Waxworms That Degrade a Plastics

2017-06-20T00:30:00.000+05:30

A close-up of wax worm next to biodegraded holes in a polyethylene plastic shopping bag from a UK supermarket as used in the experiment. Image Credit: Paolo Bombelli

About 300 million tons of plastic, largely resistant to biodegradation, is produced globally each year. Only about 10 percent of that is recycled and the rest ends up polluting every corner of the globe. Plastic constitutes approximately 90 percent of all trash floating on the ocean's surface. Therefore, It is urgently needed to find solutions for plastic degradation.

Roughly 92% of plastics fall into two main categories: Polyethylene(PE) and Polypropylene(PP). Polyethylene represents 40% of total demand for plastic products every year.

Scientists have made few attempts but observed slow polyethylene biodegradation in given appropriate conditions. For example, modest degradation of PE was observed after nitric acid treatment and incubation for 3 months in a liquid culture of the fungus Penicillium simplicissimum. Slow PE degradation was also recorded after 4 to 7 months exposure to the bacterium Nocardia asteroides. In both cases, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis of treated samples revealed production of ethylene glycol, a compound used in all kinds of products, including brake fluid, paints, plastics and even cosmetics.

According to journal Current Biology published on 24 April 2017, Federica Bertocchini of the Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology of Cantabria in Spain said they have found that the larva of a common insect, Galleria mellonella, is able to biodegrade one of the toughest, most resilient, and most used plastics: polyethylene.

Plastic biodegraded by 10 worms in 30 minutes.
Image Credit: César Hernández/CSIC

Bertocchini and her colleagues made the discovery quite by accident, after noticing that plastic bags containing wax worms quickly became riddled with holes. Alongside University of Cambridge biochemists colleagues Paolo Bombelli and Christopher Howe, Bertocchini then conducted a timed experiment in which 100 worms were exposed to a plastic supermarket bag. Within 40 minutes holes began to appear, and after 12 hours a reduction in plastic mass of 92 milligrams from the bag had appeared. These statistics suggest it would take 100 worms one month to break down the average 5.5-gram polyethylene grocery bag.

Bertocchini said it is not known whether wax worms be capable of breaking down other varieties of plastic, such as polyvinyl chloride (used to make products like clear food packaging and shampoo bottles), polystyrene (used to make food trays and egg cartons) or polypropylene (used to make yogurt tubs and condiment bottles).

The scientists found it is indeed some sort of special chemical on or inside worms that breaks down the polyethylene, and is not just the chewing action of the worms’ jaws that break the plastic down. They determined this by spreading mashed-up dead worms on the plastic and watching the plastic break down before their eyes. It could be an enzyme inside of the worms, or perhaps a certain kind of bacteria in or on the worms’ bodies, that breaks down the plastic—more research is needed to determine which. While the precise aspect of the worms’ biology responsible for breaking down polyethylene remains unknown, the scientists say it converted the plastic into ethylene glycol, a type of moderately toxic chemical used in antifreeze.

Sources: Current Biology, National Geographic

Mysterious Glowing Sea Spotted From Space

2017-06-18T00:30:00.000+05:30

Defense Meteorological Satellite Program image of the "Milky Seas Effect" off of the Somali coast on 25 January 1995.

Milky seas are unusual phenomena where large areas of sea water, often from horizon to horizon, glows intensely at night, and can last from several hours to several days. Sometimes it is brilliantly enough at night to be seen by satellites orbiting Earth.

Since the 17th century, "milky seas" have been a subject of folklore within the sailing world. Fictionally, such a "milky sea" is described by French science-fiction writer Jules Verne in his classic novel "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" published in 1870. According to Bioluminescence Database established by British Meteorological Office, there have been 235 documented sightings of milky seas since 1915 - mostly concentrated in the north-western Indian Ocean and near Indonesia.

Although the origins of this light are not well investigated, the most plausible explanation is that it is caused by blooms of bioluminescent bacteria. In 1985 a research vessel in the Arabian Sea took water samples during milky seas. These samples indicated the presence of a type of bioluminescent bacteria in the water, known as Vibrio harveyi. However, the scientific community largely ignored them, as it was thought that the concentration of bacteria necessary to create such a massive glowing area was impossible.

In 2005, a group of scientists led by Dr. Steven Miller of the Naval Research Laboratory in Monterey, California, US., decided to take a closer look at this milky sea effect. Dr. Miller and the research team searched ship reports of milky sea sightings since 1992 and compared these with archived OLS satellite data acquired from the U.S. Defense Meteorological Satellite Program.

Miller came across the logs of British merchant vessel, the S.S. Lima, which recorded crossing the milky seas in northwestern Indian Ocean on the night of January 25, 1995. Enhancement of OLS imagery collected roughly 30 minutes after the ship's report of initial sighting revealed a massive region of low-level light emission. The glowing waters spanned an area roughly the size of Connecticut (over 15,400 sq km) and lasted at least three nights. The event took place in the northwest Indian Ocean, approximately 280 km off the Somali coast. The boundaries of the feature matched closely with a surface ship's reported entry and exit of the brightly glowing waters.

Although such observations cannot be fully explained based on the known features of any light-emitting organism, these so-called "milky seas" are hypothesized to be manifestations of strong bioluminescence produced by colonies of bacteria associated with a microalgal bloom in the surface waters. Because of the lack of scientific observations, a full explanation of milky seas has remained elusive. With the current state of satellite technology, and sampling limitations, remote sensing researchers have generally thought that the detection of bioluminescence emission from space was unlikely if not impossible.

Sources: Wikipedia, Phys.org, Science Frontiers

Italian Emma Morano was world's last living link to 19th century

2017-05-03T00:30:00.000+05:30

Italian supercentenarian Emma Morano, the world’s oldest person believed to have been the last surviving person born in the 1800s, died at her home in Verbania, Italy, on April 15, 2017 at the age of 117 years and 137 days.

Emma Morano celebrated 117th birthday at her home in Verbania.

Morano was the oldest Italian person ever, the second oldest European person after Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment, and one of the five verified oldest people ever.

Emma Morano in 1900.
Image Source: wikimedia.org

Morano, whose life spanned three centuries, born on November 29, 1899 in the Northern Italian town of Civiasco. She had survived two world wars, the great depression, 10 popes and 90 separate Italian governments. She was eldest of eight(5 sisters and 3 brothers). She attributed her long lifespan a partly down to her genetics - her mother, her aunt and some of her siblings turned 90, and one of her sisters, Angela Morano (1908–2011), died at age 102.

Emma Morano in 1920s.
Image Source: wikimedia.org

Emma Morano in 1930.
Image Source: wikimedia.org

Emma Morano considered herself a good dancer with a beautiful singing voice in her youth. Her first love died in World War I and she was forced to marry an abusive man who she left in 1938 shortly after the death in infancy of her only son. Morano went on to support herself by working in a factory making jute bags, then at a hotel, working way beyond the usual retirement age.

"She was always very decisive. She abandoned the husband in the Fascist era, when women were supposed to be very submissive" said Dr.Bava - who had been her physician for nearly a quarter of a century - in a 2015 interview with AP.

According to Dr.Bava, Morano had been increasingly spending more time sleeping and less time speaking in recent weeks. She has always eaten very few vegetables, very little fruit. When I met her, she ate three eggs per day, two raw in the morning,and then an omelette at noon and chicken at dinner. She's a very determined person. She has never wanted to go to hospital, she's never received any particular health care.'

According to the Gerontology Research Group, A woman in Jamaica, Violet Brown, who was born in that Caribbean island on March 10, 1900, is now considered the oldest known person in the world after Morano.

References:

The World's Deepest Living Fish Swimming At A Depth Of 26,722 Feet

2017-05-01T00:30:00.000+05:30

In December 2014, researchers have spotted new species of deep-sea snailfish swimming at a depth of 8,143m in Pacific's Mariana Trench - which extends nearly 11 km down - during 30-days expedition, named Hadal Ecosystem Studies (HADES) expedition, led by co-chief scientists Jeff Drazen and Patty Fryer of the University of Hawaii.

Image Credit: SOI/HADES

According to news release by Schmidt Ocean Institute, It was a completely unknown variety of white translucent snailfish, which stunned scientists when it was filmed several times during seafloor experiments, had a bulbous head, broad wing-like fins, an eel-like tail and slowly glided over the bottom.

This potentially new species of deep-sea snailfish has smashed the previous record for deepest living fish ever recorded on film held by Pseudoliparis amblystomopsis, or the hadal snailfish. Hadal Snailfish was fist discovered at a depth of 7,700 metres (25,300 ft) in the Japan Trench by a team from British and Japanese institutes in October 2008.

Jeff Drazen, a deep-sea ecologist at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, also expedition co-leader says "the roughly six-inch-long (15 centimeters) snailfish sports broad, winglike fins that likely help it search for food. Those fins could be covered in sensors, something like taste buds, that would help the fish detect small animals in the mud." In fact, "we actually saw it strike at something [in the mud] and try to eat it," Drazen says.

The researchers drew fish to a deep-sea camera using bait, but had no way to catch it. Without a specimen, they can't give the fish a formal description or scientific name.

Reference: news.nationalgeographic.com

Edible Water Balloon Could Replace Plastic Bottles

2017-04-16T00:30:00.000+05:30

London based start-up Skipping Rocks Lab created bubble-like edible water bottle, named Ooho, in an attempt to provide sustainable packaging alternative to plastic bottles and cups.

Ooho is 100% made of plants & seaweed and biodegradable in 4-6 weeks, just like a piece of fruit. Ooho is cheaper than plastic and can encapsulate any beverage including water, soft drinks, spirits, and even cosmetics.'

Ooho can be flavoured and coloured

Ooho spheres are created by dipping frozen balls of liquid into an algae mixture, made of sodium alginate, taken from brown algae, and calcium chloride that forms double gelatinous membrane around the ice. The ice melts into liquid water and membrane, which is edible and biodegradable, forms a watertight seal around it. To consume the liquid you can either bite into the tasteless membrane and sip it out or just eat the entire ball, membrane and all.

The bubble-like spheres were first invented by a trio of engineers of Skipping Rocks Lab in 2014 but the inventors have started fundraising in recent months to get their edible bottles on the market. According to crowdcube.com, the company already doubled its target with nearly 1,000 independent investors.

Source: DailyMail

Shetpal - The Indian Village Where Snakes Live With Humans

2017-03-17T00:30:00.000+05:30

Shetpal village, located in Sholapur district of Maharashtra, India, is an unusual place where snakes, especially Indian Cobras, roam around freely everywhere even inside houses of the village. Shetpal, often referred as the 'Land of Snakes', has a bizarre custom where each house in this village features a resting place for dangerous Cobra snakes in the rafters of their ceilings.

Villagers of Shetpal adore a Siddheshwar temple with copper image of a seven-hooded cobra over a Shiva idol and they believe it is their duty to provide shelter to cobra snakes. However, incredibly no cases of snake bites have been reported till date in this village despite snakes moving about freely in every household.

Rocky Byun - The South Korean Man Who Can Balance Anything

2017-03-15T00:30:00.000+05:30

Nam Seok Byun, also known as Rocky Byun, is a Seoul-based artist who takes his balancing art to the extreme. He can balance any objects like rocks, eggs, vases, teapots, timbers, people sitting in chairs, washing machines, electronic gadgets, small vehicles and more. His secret is finding the center of gravity in each object and figures a way to balance it. He has been practicing for 9 years, understanding physics to determine the center of gravity of objects in order to make them balance perfectly.

Nam isn't a first person who took balancing art as career option. Meet the Canadian artist Michael Grab who has created rock balancing art professionally since 2008.

* All the aforementioned images were published by Rocky Byun via Facebook

Top 10 World's Worst Passports 2017

2017-03-13T00:30:00.000+05:30

Not all passports offer equal freedom to its holder. While passport of most of the western countries allow their citizens to take visa-free travel to most of the world for granted, many other passports serve as inferior travel documents that make leaving the country difficult.

Arton Capital, a global finance advisory company, annually publishes ranking of world's passports based on number of countries a passport holder can visit visa-free or with visa on arrival.

Afghan Passport

Subsequent to our previous post: Top 10 world's powerful passports in 2017, here we listed top 10 worst passports based on Visa Free Score published in 2017 ranking by Arton Capital.

Rank 10

Kosovo, 41
Myanmar, 41

Rank 9

North Korea, 40

Rank 8

Eritrea, 39
Lebanon, 39
Palestinian Territories, 39

Rank 7

Ethiopia, 38
Iran, 38
South Sudan, 38
Sri Lanka, 38
Sudan, 38
Yemen, 38

Rank 6

Bangladesh, 37
Nepal, 37
Libya, 37

Rank 5

Somalia, 33

Rank 4

Syria, 31

Rank 3

Iraq, 28

Rank 2

Pakistan, 27

Rank 1

Afghanistan, 24

Source: passportindex.org

World's First Website

2017-03-10T00:30:00.000+05:30

The world's first website info.cern.ch, created by British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee, went live at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland on December 20, 1990. Later it was made public on August 6, 1991.

Home page of world's first website
Image Credit: CERN

World's first webpage
Image Credit: CERN

The first web page put up on the website was here which describes the basic features of the web; how to access other people's documents and how to set up your own server.

Cover page of Tim Berners-Lee's proposal for WWW in March 1989
Image Credit: CERN

Tim's Next computer which was used to create world's first website
Image Credit: CERN

On March 12, 1989, Tim Berners-Lee wrote a proposal to develop a distributed information system based on typed links. Although the proposal attracted little interest, Berners-Lee was encouraged by his boss, Mike Sendall, to begin implementing web system on a newly acquired NeXT workstation which is one of Steve Jobs’ early products. He considered several names, including Information Mesh, The Information Mine or Mine of Information, but settled on World Wide Web.

By October of 1990, Tim had built fundamental technologies that remain the foundation of today’s web: HyperText Markup Language (HTML), Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), first browser/web page editor (WorldWideWeb.app) and the first web server (CERN httpd).

On December 20, 1990, the first web page was served on the open internet within CERN and after 8 months, website was made publicly available on August 6, 1991.

Until The launch of the Mosaic web browser in 1993, WWW was accessed by a decidedly small audience. In 1994 Tim moved from CERN to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and found the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), an international community devoted to developing open web standards.

According to 2014 survey by Netcraft, There are over 1 billion websites on the world wide web today and approximately 140,000 websites created on every day.

References: Telegraph, Wikipedia

Mrs.Vassilyev - The Most Prolific Mother Gave Birth to 69 Children

2017-03-08T00:30:00.000+05:30

Mrs.Vassilyev, first wife of Russian farmer Feodor Vassilyev(1707-1782) from Shuya, Russia, reportedly gave birth to 69 children. According to Guinness World Records, Mrs.Vassilyev, whose first name itself not known but some documents refer to her as Valentina, was the World's Most Prolific Mother.

Image Credit: Getty Images

According to Nikolsk Monastery's report submitted to Moscow government on February 27, 1782, Mrs.Vassilyev gave birth to 16 pairs of twins, 7 sets of triplets and 4 sets of quadruplets in 27 confinements between 1725 and 1765. Sixty-seven of the 69 children born were said to have survived infancy. Vassilyev also had 6 sets of twins and 2 sets of triplets with a second wife in 8 confinements. Even his second wife's first name still hasn’t been confirmed. By the time story of Vassilyev's his wife began spreading, he was already a perfectly healthy 75-year-old man with 87 children.

The first published account of Valentina’s questionable amount of children appeared in a 1783 issue of The Gentleman’s Magazine, which stated that the information, “however astonishing, may be depended upon, as it came directly from an English merchant in St Petersburg to his relatives in England, who added that the peasant was to be introduced to the Empress.”

A 1790 book by B. F. J. Hermann provided the claims about Valentina’s children, but “with a caution.”

Although there are some variations to the story, historians agreed the claim that Mrs.Vassilyev could have had a genetic predisposition to hyper-ovulate (release multiple eggs in one cycle), which significantly increases the chance of having twins or multiple children.

References: Guinness World Records, Snopes, Wikipedia

Shell Beach - An Australian beach entirely composed of shells

2017-03-06T00:30:00.000+05:30

Image Credit: Tourism Western Australia

Billions of tiny white cockle shells form a beach aptly named Shell Beach at southern end of L'Haridon Bight in the Shark Bay region of Western Australia. The beach stretches for 60 km (37 mi) with shells with depth of 7–10 m (23–33 ft).

Image Credit: Phil Whitehouse/Flickr

Shark bay featuring a massive seagrass bank that blocks tidal inflow to the beach. The seawater in the L'Haridon Bight has a high salinity due to both the geomorphology and local climate of the area. This high salinity has allowed the cockle to proliferate unchecked, since its natural predators have not adapted well to this environment.

Image Credit: Eric Titcombe/Flickr

Image Source: Wikimedia

Image Credit: Mathias Shoots Analogue/Flickr

The volume of cockle shell in the beach becomes compressed into a special form of limestone called coquina which was mined and used for the construction of a number of buildings in Denham until the UNESCO protection began in 1991. Today, special licenses are still granted to mine the shells as a source of calcium for mulch and poultry feed.

Sources: Wikipedia, Atlas Obscura

Graham Hughes - A British man who visited all 201 countries without flying

2017-03-03T00:30:00.000+05:30

Graham Hughes, a British adventurer from Liverpool, has been recognised by Guinness World Record in February 2014 for being the first person to visit every country in the world without flying and appeared in the 2016 edition of the Guinness Book of Records.

Graham Hughes holding Guinness World Record certificate

Graham began his epic journey on January 1, 2009 in Uruguay, covered 160,000 miles, took 1,426 days(4 year 31 days), used 4 passport books and finally he completed the feat on November 26, 2012 after entering South Sudan. During his journey, Graham visited all 201 countries including 193 members of the United Nations plus Taiwan, Vatican City, Palestine, Kosovo, Western Sahara and the four home nations of The United Kingdom.

Graham Hughes in Juba, capital of South Sudan

Setting himself a budget of £100 a week, during his journey he “watched one of the last space shuttles take off, ran the US blockade to get into Cuba, joined a Bwiti tribe in Gabon, was helped by Maoist rebels in Nepal, danced with the Highlanders of Papua New Guinea, swam in the famous jellyfish lake of Palau, climbed to the top of the Great Pyramid of Giza, got arrested in the Democratic Republic of Congo after he was accused of being a spy.”

In terms of logistics, he said the Seychelles was the “hardest, hardest, hardest” place for him to get to because it was both an island and “slap-bang in the middle of the high-risk area for Somali pirates”, meaning no one would take him.

Graham's route: Beginning in Uruguay and ending in South Sudan

Before embarking on the journey, Hughes contacted Guinness World Records to agree in advance the rules of his unique journey. They were: no flying, no driving his own transport, only taking "scheduled ground transport" and stepping foot on dry land to qualify as a visiting a country.

During record verification process, Guinness World Records were reportedly unhappy with his entry into Russia as it was the only country he entered without passing an official border post. In January 2013 Hughes returned to Russia again with an official visa. Officials at Guinness World Records said it was the biggest validation process that it has to go through 192 pages of passport stamps, 400 hours of video footage, more than 10,000 photos and over one million GPS data points.

Graham also set another Guinness World Record by visiting "133 countries in one year by scheduled ground transport" during the first year of his four-year journey.

Source: Wikipedia, The Odyssey Expedition, Guinness World Records

Tarkhan Dress - World's Oldest Existing Woven Garment

2017-03-01T00:30:00.000+05:30

Image Credit: Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, University College London

Researchers from University of Oxford have confirmed that a 5,000-year-old V-neck linen shirt is the world's oldest woven garment ever found.

The garment, known as the Tarkhan dress, was originally excavated by Egyptologist Flinders Petrie in 1913 from a First Dynasty tomb at Tarkhan, an Egyptian cemetery located 50km south of Cairo, lay unidentified with other weathered textiles until 1977 when it was sent to the Victoria and Albert Museum in England for conservation.

Despite its current decrepit state, the 'Tarkhan Dress', which is currently kept at the University College London(UCL) Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, featuring knife-pleated sleeves and bodice with a naturally-beautiful pale grey stripped design and its detailed stitching and tailoring, for either a teenager or a slender woman, suggests it was for a member of the elite. Original length of dress is currently unknown as its lower part is missing.

In its release, UCL states that radiocarbon testing on 2.24mg sample of garment was conducted in 2015 by the University of Oxford’s radiocarbon unit led by Michael Dee, affirms with 95% accuracy that the dress dates from between 3482 and 3102 BCE. According to the team, creases at the elbows and armpits indicates it was worn in life.

Sources: National Geographic,

Hyperallergic

Rasputin - A Goat With Largest Horns

2017-02-06T00:30:00.000+05:30

Rasputin, an 8 year old Walliser black-necked goat from Lienz, Tirol, Austria has earned himself place in 2017 edition of the Guinness World Record for his largest horn.

Rasputin with his owner Martin.
Image Credit: Richard Bradbury/Guinness World Records

On 5 June 2015, his left horn measures at 112 cm (44.1 in) and his right at 111 cm (43.7 in) and the distance between tip of his horns measured 135.2 cm (53.23 in) which is 3.2 cm larger than previous record set by Uncle Sam from the USA.

Image Credit: Richard Bradbury/Guinness World Records

Martin Pirker, owner of Rasputin, says the goat’s horns hadn’t always been exceptionally long when he bought Rasputin four years ago and its horns have grown significantly over the last few years. Rasputin who gets fed well lives with his wife Lily and son Lucky both are black necked goats like him.

Top 10 World's Powerful Passport 2017

2017-01-11T00:30:00.000+05:30

Passports and visas are generally necessary travel documents for traveling from one country to another. Some countries have agreements with other countries allowing each other's citizens to travel between them without visas. Some countries maintain strict immigration laws that requires a non-national to provide visa with entry and exit information.

The front cover of contemporary German biometric passport.
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org

Arton Capital, a global finance advisory company, published 'Passport Index 2017' ranking with 'Visa Free Score' based on the number of countries a passport holder can visit without visa or on arrival.

Here is the top 10 ranked passports with its Visa Free Score.

Rank 10

lovenia, 149

Slovakia, 149

Lithuania, 149

Latvia, 149

Rank 9

Malta, 150
Poland, 150

Rank 8

Hungary, 151

Rank 7

Czech Republic, 152
Iceland, 152

Rank 6

Greece, 153
South Korea, 153
New Zealand, 153
Australia, 153

Rank 5

Malaysia, 154
Ireland, 154
Canada, 154

Rank 4

Italy, 155
Netherlands, 155
Belgium, 155
Austria, 155
Luxembourg, 155
Portugal, 155
Switzerland, 155
Japan, 155

Rank 3

Denmark, 156
Finland, 156
France, 156
Spain, 156
Norway, 156
United Kingdom, 156
United States of America, 156

Rank 2

Singapore, 157

Sweden, 157

Rank 1

Germany, 158

Source: passportindex.org

The Great Pyramid of Cholula - The World's Largest Pyramid

2017-01-09T00:30:00.000+05:30

Mexican city Cholula was hiding a mud-brick ancient pyramid, known as Great Pyramid of Cholula, under the earth for thousands of years until it was discovered in 1910 by locals constructing an insane asylum at the base.

From a distance the pyramid appears to be a natural hill topped by a church.
Image Source: commons.wikimedia.org

According to the Guinness World Records, Great Pyramid of Cholula, also known as Tlachihualtepetl ("man-made mountain”) by locals, is the largest pyramid in the world and also the largest monument ever constructed anywhere, by any civilisation, to this day. The pyramid stands at 55 m (180 ft) above the surrounding plain with a total volume estimated at over 4.45 million m³ which is nearly twice the volume of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Model of the Cholula Pyramid site at the site museum in Puebla, Mexico.
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org

Construction of Great Pyramid of Cholula probably harks back to 3rd century BC. Initially there was a core structures of the complex (dedicated to the god Quetzalcóatl). Successive ethnic groups of people built (and improved) upon this core structure till 8th-9th century AD. In total there might be around six superimposed structures that were built within a time-frame of over 1,200 years.

Artist's conception of what the pyramid might have looked like.
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org

Image Credit: Omar Barcena/Flickr

On Oct 12th 1519, Hernan Cortez and his Spanish army marched into the city, looted religious treasures and massacred 10 percent of the city population within 3 hours. Later invaders established the aforementioned church - the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Remediosa - as a symbol of Christian conquest atop the ‘hilly’ surface of the Great Pyramid of Cholula what they believed was a big hill as pyramid was already thousands of years old and entirely overgrown by vegetation.

Sources: realmofhistory.com, wikipedia.org

Harnaam Kaur - Youngest Female With A Full Beard

2017-01-06T00:30:00.000+05:30

Harnaam Kaur, a 24 year old British-Sikh model with six-inch long facial hair, was inducted into the Guinness World Records a the youngest female with full beard on September 8, 2016.

Image Credit: Paul Michael Hughes/Guinness World Records

She suffers from condition called polycystic ovary syndrome(PCOS) which causes the body to produce more male hormone, which triggers excessive growth of facial or body hair. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, this syndrome affects upto 10% of women worldwide.

Image Credit: Louisa Coulthrust/Urban Bridesmaid

Kaur says she started growing facial hair at age 11. During her early teens, Harnaam was so ashamed of her beard that she resorted to waxing twice a week. She also tried bleaching and shaving to get rid of it to maintain smooth, hairless skin. She also went through an immense amount of bullying which left her feeling so depressed that led her to consider ending her life.

Harnaam, who says she had a lot of support from her younger brother and friends, stopped using her razor for good after her decision to be baptised as a Sikh, the practice of allowing hair to grow naturally, without cutting it, is seen as a symbol of respect for the perfection of God's creation.

'When I first started growing my beard it was for religious reasons but as the years have gone by I've kept it for more personal reasons,' she said in an interview conducted after her photo was included in an exhibition celebrating the world's best facial hair.

Top 10 Hottest Places On Earth

2017-01-04T00:30:00.000+05:30

Most of regions on earth follows various climates throughout the year. But there are some of extreme places that are deemed to be the hottest ones during summer. Here is the list of hottest places composed based on their air temperature.

1. Death Valley, United States. 56.7°C (134.1°F)

Desolation at Badwater Salt Flats in Death Valley
Image Source: wikimedia.org

Death Valley is the lowest, driest, hottest valley in North America, located near the border of California and Nevada, US. In midsummer, average temperature in valley is 47°C (116.6°F). The highest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 56.7°C (134.1°F) on July 10, 1913 at Furnace Creek, which is the highest reliably recorded atmospheric temperature ever recorded on earth.

2. Kebili, Tunisia. 55.0°C (131.0°F)

Kebili Village
Image Credit: Madhif/wikimedia.org

The record holder for the second hottest temperature ever (reliably) recorded on Earth is Kebili, Tunisia (recorded in 1931) at 55.0°C (131.0°F). Located in Southern Tunisia, Kebili is an Oasis and a historic town. Despite its extreme climate, humans have lived there for around 200,000 years.

3. Mitribah, Kuwait. 54.0°C (129.2°F)

Satellite image of Kuwait

Mitribah is a weatherstation located in northwest Kuwait. Kuwait has an arid climate. Kuwait has a huge temperature difference between winter and summer. In summer, average daily high temperatures range from 42-48°C (108-118°F). On 21 July 2016 the temperature at this location hit the record highest temperature ever reliably recorded in the eastern hemisphere at 54.0°C (129.2°F).

4. Tirat Zvi, Israel. 54.0°C (129.2°F)

Tirat Zvi, Israel
Image Source: wikipedia.org

Tirat Zvi is the religious kibbutz located in Beit She’an Valley of Israel. It sits 220 meters below sea level. Though the nearby Jordan River keeps the region fertile, it is still deemed a hot place. The highest temperature recorded in Tirat Zvi was 54.0°C (129.2°F) on 21 June 1942, which is the highest daytime temperature in Asia.

5. Basra, Iraq. 53.9°C (129.0°F)

The Basra Memorial, Basra, Iraq
Image Source: looklex.com

Basra is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. Basra has a hot desert climate like the rest of the surrounding region. During the summer, Basra is consistently one of the hottest cities on the planet, with temperatures regularly exceeding 50°C (122°F) in July and August. Basra had an all-time high temperature recorded on July 22, 2016 with readings soared to 53.9°C (129.0°F).

6. Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan. 53.5°C (128.3°F)

A city settlement of Indus Valley Civilization. ca. 2600-1500 BCE
Image Source: wikimedia.org

Mohenjo-daro is an archeological site located in the province of Sindh, Pakistan where it is hot in the summer and mild to warm in winter. On 26 May 2010, Mohenjo-daro has its hottest temperature ever recorded at 53.5°C (128.3°F) and it also the hottest reliably measured temperature ever recorded on the continent of Asia.

7. Dehloran, Iran. 53.0°C (127.4°F)

View of Dehloran Plain
Image Credit: IRNA

Dehloran is located in Iran's western region where temperature during summer is extremely high. Average summer temperature of this region is about 40-45°C (104-113°F). On July 2011 at Dehloran, Iran had its highest temperature ever recorded at 53.0°C (127.4°F).

8. Gotvand, Iran. 53.0°C (127.4°F)

Gotvand Olya Dam

Gotvand located in Khuzestan Province in western part of Iran which follows arid climate. On July 17, 2014, Gotvand recorded its highest air temperature with a reading at 53.0°C (127.4°F), tying the record set at Dehloran in July 2011.

9. Al Ruwais, UAE. 52.1°C (125.8°F)

Water towers of Ruwais Housing Complex
Image Source: wikimedia.org

Al Ruwais is a town located some 240 kilometers west of Abu Dhabi city in the Western Region of UAE. According to the National Centre for Meteorology and Seismology, the highest temperature recorded in the UAE was 52.1°C (125.8 °F) at Ruwais in July 2002, although average temperatures in coastal areas ranged from 33 °C (91.4°F) to 37°C (98.6°F).

10. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 52.0°C (125.6°F)

World's Tallest Flagpole in Jeddah
Image Credit: Gregor Rom/wikimedia.org

Saudi Arabia features arid climate with very high temperatures in most of the country and the average summer temperature is about 45°C (113°F). Saudi Arabia had its hottest temperature ever on June 22, 2010, with a reading of 52.0°C (125.6°F) in Jeddah. This recorded heat was accompanied by a sandstorm, which caused eight power plants to go offline, resulting in blackouts to several Saudi cities.

Nasca Holes - The Ancient Spiralling Holes

2017-01-02T00:30:00.000+05:30

The ancient strange spiralling holes, known as puquios, are an old system of subterranean aqueducts scattered across the arid valleys of Nasca region of southern Peru which is famous for the vast geoglyphs on featureless landscapes, known as Nasca Lines.

Image Credit: Martin Bernetti/Getty Images

Image Source: commons.wikimedia.org

Researchers describes the puquios were a sophisticated hydraulic system constructed to retrieve water from underground aquifers but how they worked has been poorly understood. Using satellite imaging, Rosa Lasaponara and her team from Italian Institute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis were able to better understand how the puquios were distributed across the Nasca region. Out of 36 Puquios, most are still functioning.

According to Lasaponara research, puquio system must have been much more developed than it appears today. A series of canals brought the water, trapped underground, to the areas where it was needed. Chimneys were excavated above the canals in the shape of corkscrewing funnels. Influx of air through these funnels kept the water moving along the canals, forcing it out into the network of channels in areas where it was needed.

Yet the origin of puquios has puzzled generation of archeologists because it was not possible to use traditional carbon dating techniques. Nor did the Nasca culture, who had no writing system, leave any clues as to their origin.

Sources: dailymail.co.uk, bbc.com

Maeklong Railway Market - Unusual Thai Market That Makes Way For Trains

2016-12-09T00:30:00.000+05:30

Image Source: imgur.com

The Maeklong Railway is a metre gauge railway that runs for nearly 67 kilometres (42 mi) between Wongwian Yai, Bangkok, and Samut Songkhram in central Thailand. The railway became famous for its route running right down the middle and close enough to touch shops of Maeklong Railway Market.

Image Credit: Reuters/Chaiwat Subprasom

Market stalls that stretches 300m along urban railroad, selling everything one might expect to find in any Thai market: fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, herbs and spices, clothing, flowers, and tempting street food.

Market stalls on both side of railway track are sheltered by low-hanging awnings and giving narrow footpath for customers over the railway track. When train’s fog horn announces its arrival, the awnings are pulled back only as far as necessary. The baskets of fruits and vegetables are shifted just enough as to not be sliced by the metal wheels. Once the train passed, the vendors immediately put the awnings and goods back into their original places and went back to normal as if nothing had happened.

China Has Single Time Zone

2016-12-07T00:30:00.000+05:30

China, a country in East Asia, which spans five geographical time zones, follows only one national time zone - Beijing Standard Time (BST) (UTC+08:00), also known as China Standard Time (CST). It is the largest single time zone area in the world. In comparison, United States that is of roughly similar size to China, has four time zones.

There was no national wide time standard in China until early 20th century. In 1912, the year after the collapse of the Qing Dynasty, five different time zones - Kunlun (UTC+05:30), Sinkiang-Tibet (UTC+06:00), Kansu-Szechwan (UTC+07:00), Chungyuan (UTC+08:00), and Changpai (UTC+08:30) - were established in the country by newly empowered Republic of China.

After completion of the Chinese Communist revolution in 1949, the Communist Party took control of the country. Chairman Mao Zedong and new leaders of China abolished the five time zone system and established single time zone for purposes of national unity.

For most part of the country, single time zone is viewed as a minor inconvenience. Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region which is in northwest of the country, prefer to their own unofficial local time zone (UTC +6:00) which is two hours behind official Chinese time. For Uyghur population, political reason for using their own time is they consider their time as a psychological tool for independence. In Xinjiang's extreme west of china, near China’s border with Pakistan, Beijing Standard Time is so irrelevant that it isn't used on government offices, stores, even in bus timetables.

Sources:

theatlantic.com, thechairmansbao.com, en.wikipedia.org

Point Nemo - The Point In The Ocean Furthest From Land

2016-12-05T00:30:00.000+05:30

Point Nemo, also known as 'Oceanic Pole of Inaccessibility', is the most remote ocean point from land that lies in South Pacific Ocean. The name 'Nemo' comes from a character in Jules Verne's 'Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea', Captain Nemo, a Latin name which itself translates to "no one."

Point Nemo(48°52.6′S 123°23.6′W) is located over 2,688 km (1,670 mi) equidistantly from the coasts of three far-flung islands. Ducie Island (one of the Pitcairn islands) is to the north, Motu Nui (of the Easter Island chain) is to the north-east and Maher Island (off the coast of Antarctica) is to the south.

Point Nemo was officially discovered in 1992 by survey engineer Hrvoje Lukatela using geotargetting software. As Point Nemo is so far from land, the nearest humans are often astronauts in International Space Station which orbits the Earth at 416km(258 mi) up in space.

The area is also known as a "spacecraft cemetery" because hundreds of decommissioned satellites, space stations, and other spacecraft have been deposited there upon re-entering the atmosphere. Point Nemo is relatively lifeless; its sits within the South Pacific Gyre, a massive rotating ocean current, which blocks cooler, nutrient-rich water from coming in and being so isolated from land masses, the wind does not carry much organic matter.

Sources:
en.wikipedia.org, bbc.com

Dingo Fence - World's Longest Fence

2016-10-03T10:27:00.000+05:30

The Dingo Fence or Dog fench is a pest exclusion fence that was erected in the late 1800s to keep dingoes out of the relatively fertile south-east part of the continent and protect the sheep flocks of southern Queensland, Australia.

Dingo fence map
Image Source: digidrift.com

This is the world's longest fence that stretches 5,614 km (3,488 mi) Beginning at the Queensland village of Jimbour in the Darling Downs and zigzags its way across Australia to the cliffs of the Nullarbor Plain above the Great Australian Bight.

Dingo fence near Windorah in far south west Queensland in August 2013.
Image Source: abc.net.au

The dingo fence is still actively maintained. The Dog Fence Board, Wild Dog Barrier Fence Panel and Wild Dog Destruction Board maintain fence in South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales respectively.

Dingo fence
Image Source: flickr.com

The fence was not a singular construction but rather the coming together of multiple fences. Earliest fence was constructed between 1880 and 1885 across southern Queensland as a rabbit-proof fence. Having been unsuccessful at keeping rabbits out, and more successful at keeping out pigs, kangaroos, emus and brumbies and as more sheep farms were established, the interest for a dingo-proof barriers increased. Fence was then expanded in 1914 and eventually joined with other animal exclusion fences across the southeast quarter of the country – the Queensland Border Fence, the South Australia Border Fence, and the section that stretches across South Australia known simply as the Dog Fence.

Over time poisoning the species specifically via bait laced with sodium monofluoroacetate (1080) has been seen as a much cheaper alternative than fence maintenance and due to cost reason length of the fence has been reduced by 3,000 km from its previous length of over 8,000 km.

Sources: basementgeographer.com, en.wikipedia.org

10 Animals With Superpowers

2016-09-30T03:50:00.000+05:30

1. Thorny Devil

Image Source : en.wikipedia.org

The thorny dragon or thorny devil (Moloch horridus) is an Australian Lizard, grows up to 20 cm (7.9 in) in length, and it can live for 15 to 20 years.

The knob growing from the back of this ‘Thorny Devil’ dragon lizard acts as a 'false head' to confuse potential predators by dipping its real head. The way Thorny Devils drink water represents an amazing adaptation to life in the desert. Their body is covered in a system of tiny grooves or channels that run between their scales, and all the channels lead to the corners of their mouth.

2. Frilled Lizard

Image Source: community.lovenature.com

The Frilled Lizard is found mainly in northern Australia and southern New Guinea. Its name comes from the large frill around its neck, which usually stays folded against the lizard's body. When threatened, these little guys have a secret weapon - they stand upright, open their mouth and spread their dramatic frill, and can even leap at their predators.

3. Porcupine

Image Credit : Alex Judd

Porcupines have coat covered in quills that are like tiny needles with sharp tips and barbs on the ends. Their design allows them to pierce a predator’s skin easily. The hollow quills of its tail can be moved to make a very distinctive rattling noise to frighten it's predators.

4. Pangolins

Image Source : awf.org

Pangolins, often called "scaly anteaters", have large, protective keratin scales covering their skin. They are the only known mammals with this adaptation. When threatened they can curl up into a tight ball to protect themselves.

5. Chameleon

Image Credit : Cathy Keifer
kids.nationalgeographic.com

The Chameleon can change color rapidly. The primary purpose of this color change is to communicate with other chameleons, as well as controlling body temperature (changing to a darker color absorbs heat). Some species adjust their colors for camouflage in accordance with the vision of the specific predator species (bird or snake) by which they are being threatened.

6. Porcupine Fish

Image Credit : George Parrilla
flickr.com

Porcupinefish have the ability to inflate their bodies by swallowing water or air, thereby becoming rounder. This increase in size (almost double vertically) reduces the range of potential predators to those with much bigger mouths. A second defense mechanism is provided by the sharp spines, which radiate outwards when the fish is inflated.

7. Red Lionfish

Image Credit : Jen Petersen
en.wikipedia.org

The Red Lionfish has poison glands at the base of the spines of its dorsal, anal and pelvic fins. When faced with danger, the fish erects the dorsal fins and points the toxic spines toward the perceived or actual enemy.

8. Turtle Frog

Image Credit : Brendan Schembri
flickr.com

Although strange to look at, this frog’s body shape helps it burrow forwards through sand, unlike most burrowing frogs that dig backwards. Their muscular limbs also help them break into termite mounds for food.

9. False Coral Snake

Image Source : nature-myview.com

While toxins serve as a great aid in hunting and defense, their production requires a high energy expenditure by their owner. For this reason, many animals use toxic relatives for protection. The False Coral Snake imitates the appearance of venomous, or poisonous, coral snake species that shares its habitat.

10. Stalk-eyed fly

Image Credit : Rob Knell
en.wikipedia.org

These flies have their eyes on stalks, which serve some very useful purposes. First, the eyes give the fly superior vision, even enabling the owner to peep around corners. Second, the stalk can be used as a weapon to push competitors away and, third, the longer the stalk and the more wide-set the eyes, the stronger the signal to female flies that this male is big and strong and genetically a good catch.

Top 10 Deepest Ocean Points On The Earth

2016-09-28T08:16:00.000+05:30

Image Source: pubs.usgs.gov

10. The Atacama Trench

The Atacama Trench, also known as the Peru–Chile Trench, lies in the eastern Pacific Ocean, about 160 km off the coast of Peru and Chile. It reaches a maximum depth of 8,065 m below sea level in Richards Deep (23°10’S, 71°18’W) and about 5,900 km long and its mean width is 64 km and it covers an expanse of some 590,000 km².

9. The South Sandwich Trench

It is a deep arcuate trench in the South Atlantic Ocean lying 100 km to the east of the South Sandwich Islands. The trench is created by the subduction of the southernmost portion of the South American Plate beneath the small South Sandwich Plate. It is the deepest trench of the Southern Atlantic Ocean. The trench is 965 km long and has a maximum depth of 8,428 m below sea level in Meteor Deep (55°40’S, 025°55’W). It is 122 km northeast of Zavodovski Island.

8. The Puerto Rico Trench

The Trench is located on the boundary between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The trench is 800 km (497 mi) long and has a maximum depth of 8,648 m (28,373 ft) at Milwaukee Deep (19°35′N 66°30′W), which is the deepest point in the Atlantic Ocean.

7. Japan Trench

The Japan Trench is a part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, in the floor of the northern Pacific Ocean off northeast Japan. It extends from the Kuril Islands to the Bonin Islands and has maximum depth of 9,504 m (31,181 ft) at Tuscarora Deep (44°55'N 152°26'E). The trench believed created when the oceanic pacific plate subducts beneath the continental Okhotsk Plate. Continuing movement on the subduction zone associated with the Japan Trench is one of the main causes of tsunamis and earthquakes in northern Japan.

6. Izu-Bonin Trench

Izu-Bonin Trench or Izu-Ogasawara Trench is an oceanic trench in the western Pacific Ocean, consisting of the Izu Trench at North and the Bonin Trench at South. It has depth of 9,780 m (32,087 ft) at 29°65'N, 142°68'E. The Izu-Ogasawara Trench is an extension of the Japan Trench. Here, the Pacific Plate is being subducted beneath the Philippine Sea Plate, creating the Izu Islands and Bonin Islands on the Izu-Bonin-Mariana Arc system.

5. Kermadec Trench

The Kermadec Trench is a submarine trench in the floor of the South Pacific Ocean. It is created by the subduction of the Pacific plate under the Indo-Australian Plate, with thousands of kilometer parallel with the island arc and it noted for its very abrupt slope. The Kermadec Trench reaches a maximum depth of 10,047 m(32,962 ft).

4. Kuril-Kamchatka Trench

Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, also known as Kuril Trench, a narrow, deep depression in the Pacific Ocean along the eastern underwater slopes of the Kuril Islands and the southern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula. Extending for about 1,800 miles (2,900 km) north-south, it has a maximum depth of 10,542 m(34,587 ft) at Vitiaz’ Deep and covers a total area of 264,000 km².

3. Philippine Trench

The Philippine Trench is a submarine trench to the east of the Philippines. It has a length of approximately 1,320 km (820 mi) and a width of about 30 km (19 mi) from the centre of the Philippine island of Luzon trending southeast to the northern Maluku island of Halmahera in Indonesia. Its deepest point, the Galathea Depth, has a depth of 10,540 m (34,580 ft).

2. Tonga Trench

The Tonga Trench is an oceanic trench located in the South Pacific Ocean. The trench lies at the northern end of the Kermadec Tonga Subduction Zone. It is 10,882 m (35,702 ft) deep at its deepest point, known as the Horizon Deep (23°15.5′S 174°43.6′W).

1. The Mariana Trench

The Mariana Trench or Marianas Trench is the deepest part of the world's oceans. It is located in the western Pacific Ocean, to the east of the Mariana Islands. The trench is about 2,550 km (1,580 mi) long with an average width of 69 km (43 mi). It reaches a maximum-known depth of 11,034 m (36,201 ft) at the Challenger Deep (11°22.4′N 142°35.5′E).