New year by numbers

Happy new year

Quote

“Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.”
– Jim Rohn

Quote

It's fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure.

Bill Gates

How to outsmart multiple choice test

William Poundstone, author of "Rock Breaks Scissors: A Practical Guide to Outguessing and Outwitting Almost Everybody," claims to have found several common patterns in multiple-choice tests, including computer-randomized exams like the SATs.
After examining 100 tests - 2,456 questions in total - from varied sources, including middle school, high school, college, and professional school exams; drivers' tests; licensing exams for firefighters and radio operators; and even newspaper quizzes, Poundstone says he found statistical patterns across all sources.

First, ignore conventional wisdom.
You've probably been given test-taking advice along the lines of "always guess the middle answer if you don't know," or "avoid any answer that uses the words never, always, all, or none," at some point in your life. However, according to Poundstone, this conventional wisdom doesn't hold up against statistics. In fact, he found that the answers "none of the above" or "all of the above" were correct 52% of the time. Choosing one of these answers gives you a 90% improvement over random guessing.
Look at the surrounding answers.
Poundstone found correct answer choices hardly repeated consecutively, so looking at the answers of the questions you do know will help you figure out the ones you're stuck on. For example, if you're stuck on question #2, but know that the answer to #1 is A and the answer to #3 is D, those choices can probably be eliminated for #2. Of course, "knowledge trumps outguessing," Poundstone reminds us. Cross out answers you know are wrong based on facts first.
Choose the longest answer.
Poundstone also noticed that the longest answer on multiple-choice tests was usually correct. "Test makers have to make sure that right answers are indisputably right," he says. "Often this demands some qualifying language. They may not try so hard with wrong answers." If one choice is noticeably longer than its counterparts, it's likely the correct answer.
Eliminate the outliers.
Some exams, like the SATs, are randomized using computers, negating any patterns usually found in the order of the answers. However, no matter their order, answer choices that are incongruent with the rest are usually wrong, according to Poundstone. He gives the following sample answers from an SAT practice test, without including the question:
A. haphazard...radical
B. inherent...controversial
C. improvised...startling
D. methodical...revolutionary
E. derivative...gradual
Because the meaning of "gradual" stands out from the other words in the right column, choice E can be eliminated. Poundstone then points out that "haphazard" and "improvised," have almost identical meanings. Because these choices are so close in meaning, A and C can also be eliminated, allowing you to narrow down over half the answers without even reading the question. "It's hard to see how one could be unambiguously correct and the other unambiguously wrong," he says. For the record, the correct answer is D.

Stephen Hawking

Stephen Hawking is the former Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge and author of A Brief History of Time which was an international bestseller. Now the Dennis Stanton Avery and Sally Tsui Wong-Avery Director of Research at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics and Founder of the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at Cambridge, his other books for the general reader include A Briefer History of Time, the essay collection Black Holes and Baby Universe and The Universe in a Nutshell.

In 1963, Hawking contracted motor neurone disease and was given two years to live. Yet he went on to Cambridge to become a brilliant researcher and Professorial Fellow at Gonville and Caius College. From 1979 to 2009 he held the post of Lucasian Professor at Cambridge, the chair held by Isaac Newton in 1663. Professor Hawking has over a dozen honorary degrees and was awarded the CBE in 1982. He is a fellow of the Royal Society and a Member of the US National Academy of Science. Stephen Hawking is regarded as one of the most brilliant theoretical physicists since Einstein.

#Stephenhawking  #physicist

History of leather and its role in our development

Leather has played an important role in the development of civilisation. From prehistoric times man has used the skins of animals to satisfy his basic needs. He has used hides to make clothing, shelter, carpets and even decorative attire. To the Egyptian lady, a fur piece was highly prized as her jewellery. From leather, man made footwear, belts, clothing, containers for liquids, boats and even armour. The principle protective armour of the Roman soldier was a heavy leather shirt.

In recorded history, pieces of leather dating from 1300 B.C. have been found in Egypt. Primitive societies in Europe, Asia and North America all developed the technique of turning skins into leather goods independently of one another. The Greeks were using leather garments in the age of the Homeric heroes ( about 1200 B.C. ), and the use of leather later spread throughout the Roman Empire. During the Middle Ages, the Chinese knew the art of making leather . The Indians of North America also had developed great skills in leather work before the coming of the white man.

#leather #history

Christmas History

The Chronography of 354 AD contains early evidence of the celebration on December 25 of a Christian liturgical feast of the birth of Jesus. This was in Rome, while in Eastern Christianity the birth of Jesus was already celebrated in connection with the Epiphany on January 6.The December 25 celebration was imported into the East later: in Antioch by John Chrysostom towards the end of the 4th century, probably in 388, and in Alexandria only in the following century. Even in the West, the January 6 celebration of the nativity of Jesus seems to have continued until after 380. In 245,Origen of Alexandria, writing about Leviticus 12:1–8, commented that Scripture mentions only sinners as celebrating their birthdays, namely Pharaoh, who then had his chief baker hanged (Genesis 40:20–22), and Herod, who then had John the Baptist beheaded (Mark 6:21–27), and mentions saints as cursing the day of their birth, namely Jeremiah (Jeremiah 20:14–15) and Job (Job 3:1–16). In 303, Arnobius ridiculed the idea of celebrating the birthdays of gods, a passage cited as evidence that Arnobius was unaware of any nativity celebration.Since Christmas does not celebrate Christ's birth "as God" but "as man", this is not evidence against Christmas being a feast at this time. The fact the Donatists of North Africa celebrated Christmas may indicate that the feast was established by the time that church was created in 311.

#Christmas#history

Mercury---A Ford brand

Mercury was an automobile brand of the Ford Motor Company launched in 1938 by Edsel Ford, son of Henry Ford, to market entry-level luxury cars slotted between Ford-branded regular models and Lincoln-branded luxury vehicles, similar to General Motors' Buick (and former Oldsmobile) brand, and Chrysler's DeSoto division.

From 1945 to 2011, Mercury was half of the Lincoln-Mercury division of Ford; however, for the 1958-1960 model years, the Lincoln-Mercury division was known as Lincoln-Edsel-Mercury with the inclusion of the Edsel brand. Through rebadging, the majority of Mercury models were based on Ford platforms.

The name "Mercury" is derived from the messenger of the gods of Roman mythology, and during its early years, the Mercury brand was known for performance, which was briefly revived in 2003 with the Mercury Marauder. The brand was sold in the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Middle East.

Harry Houdini

Harry Houdini  was a Hungarian-American illusionist and stunt performer, noted for his sensational escape acts. He first attracted notice in vaudeville in the US and then as "Harry Handcuff Houdini" on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can.

In 1904, thousands watched as he tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's Daily Mirror, keeping them in suspense for an hour. Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface, emerging in a state of near-breakdown. While many suspected that these escapes were faked, Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists. As President of the Society of American Magicians, he was keen to uphold professional standards and expose fraudulent artists. He was also quick to sue anyone who pirated his escape stunts.

Houdini made several movies, but quit acting when it failed to bring in money. He was also a keen aviator, and aimed to become the first man to fly a plane in Australia.

Hepatitis

Hepatitis  is a medical condition defined by the inflammation of theliver and characterized by the presence ofinflammatory cells in the tissue of the organ. Hepatitis may occur with limited or no symptoms, but often leads to yellow discoloration of the skin, mucus membranes, and conjunctivae, poor appetite and malaise. Hepatitis is acute when it lasts less than six months and chronic when it persists longer.

Motivation

Good things comes to those who
Believe

Better things comes to those who are
Patient

N Best things comes to those who
Don't Give Up

D B Cooper--unsolved mystery

D. B. Cooper is a media epithet popularly used to refer to an unidentified man who hijacked a Boeing aircraft in the airspace between Portland, Oregon, and Seattle, Washington, on November 24, 1971, extorted $200,000 in ransom (equivalent to $1,160,000 in 2014), and parachuted to an uncertain fate. Despite an extensive manhunt and an ongoing FBI investigation, the perpetrator has never been located or positively identified. The case remains the only unsolved air piracy in American aviation history.

The suspect purchased his airline ticket using the alias Dan Cooper, but due to a news media miscommunication he became known in popular lore as "D. B. Cooper". Hundreds of leads have been pursued in the ensuing years, but no conclusive evidence has ever surfaced regarding Cooper's true identity or whereabouts. Numerous theories of widely varying plausibility have been proposed by experts, reporters, and amateur enthusiasts. The discovery of a small cache of ransom bills in 1980 triggered renewed interest but ultimately only deepened the mystery, and the great majority of the ransom remains unrecovered.

While FBI investigators have stated from the beginning that Cooper probably did not survive his risky jump, the agency maintains an active case file—which has grown to more than 60 volumes—and continues to solicit creative ideas and new leads from the public. "Maybe a hydrologist can use the latest technology to trace the $5,800 in ransom money found in 1980 to where Cooper landed upstream," suggested Special Agent Larry Carr, leader of the investigation team since 2006. "Or maybe someone just remembers that odd uncle."

S & W model 1

The Smith & Wesson Model 1 was the first firearm manufactured by Smith & Wesson, with production spanning the years 1857 through 1882. It was the first commercially successful revolver to use rimfire cartridges instead of loose powder, musket ball, and percussion caps. It is a single-action, tip-up revolver holding seven .22 Short black powder cartridges.

Early history

As Samuel Colt's patent on the revolver was set to expire in 1856,Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson were researching a prototype for a metallic cartridge revolver. When they discovered that a former Colt employee named Rollin White held the patent for a "Bored-through" cylinder, a component needed for this new invention, the two partners approached White to manufacture a newly designed revolver-and-cartridge combination.

Rather than make White a partner in their company, Smith and Wesson paid him a royalty of $0.25 on every "Model 1" revolver that they made. It would become White's responsibility to defend his patent in any court cases which eventually led to his financial ruin, but was very advantageous for the new Smith & Wesson Company.

Benefits of Garlic

Garlic could end your hair loss problems

Garlic clears acne.

Garlic prevents and treats colds.

Soothe psoriasis with garlic.

Control your weight with garlic.

Remove a splinter with garlic

Automatic Parking

Automatic parking is an autonomous car-maneuvering system that moves a vehicle from a traffic lane into a parking spot to perform parallel, perpendicular or angle parking. The automatic parking system aims to enhance the comfort and safety of driving in constrained environments where much attention and experience is required to steer the car. The parking maneuver is achieved by means of coordinated control of the steering angle and speed which takes into account the actual situation in the environment to ensure collision-free motion within the available space.

Why do people love to play guitar?

Why do people love to play guitar?

The guitar is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Some people love to listen to it, while others try their hand at playing one, whether it’s acoustic, classic or electric. You may wonder what the appeal of playing the guitar is though.

They love the sound

The first thing that attracts a person to an instrument is the sound. If listening to an instrument is akin to nails on a chalk board for you, then you won’t want to play it. However, if you love the sound when it is played well, it will make you more likely to give it a try yourself. Guitar has a very distinctive sound.

It’s soothing

The process of playing each note is actually quite soothing, once the movements have become second nature. You don’t necessarily have to play a well known song. Sometimes it’s quite therapeutic to play guitar and see where it goes.

Guitar is portable

The guitar is one of the most portable instruments in the world. Certainly the most portable one which can produce multiple notes, and this makes it more appealing than a keyboard, because you can zip it up in its case and carry it on your back.

Easy to teach

The guitar is relatively easy to teach at its most basic level. You don’t have to read sheet music, instead learning the chords and feeling them out as you go. One of the best ways to teach someone, is by teaching them how to play certain songs

Don't be a man of success be a man of value

Rosetta Mission

Rosetta was launched on 2 March 2004 on an Ariane 5 rocket and reached the comet on 6 August 2014, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit a comet. (Previous missions had conducted successful flybys of seven other comets.) It is one of ESA's Horizon 2000 cornerstone missions.The spacecraft consists of the Rosetta orbiter, which features 12 instruments, and the Philae lander, with nine additional instruments.

Personality affects maths-enhancing brain-zap method

Zapping your brain might make you better at maths tests – or worse. It depends how anxious you are about taking the test in the first place.

A recent surge of studies has shown that brain stimulation can make people more creative and better at maths, and can even improve memory, but these studies tend to neglect individual differences. Now, Roi Cohen Kadosh at the University of Oxford and his colleagues have shown that brain stimulation can have completely opposite effects depending on your personality.

Previous research has shown that a type of non-invasive brain stimulation called transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) – which enhances brain activity using an electric current – can improve mathematical ability when applied to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, an area involved in regulating emotion. To test whether personality traits might affect this result, Kadosh's team tried the technique on 25 people who find mental arithmetic highly stressful, and 20 people who do not.

They found that participants with high maths anxiety made correct responses more quickly and, after the test, showed lower levels of cortisol, an indicator of stress. On the other hand, individuals with low maths anxiety performed worse after tDCS.

"It is hard to believe that all people would benefit similarly [from] brain stimulation," says Cohen Kadosh. He says that further research could shed light on how to optimise the technology and help to discover who is most likely to benefit from stimulation

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and  more complex,it takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move

Albert Einstein

Stripeless white tiger

The modern strain of snow white tigers came from repeated brother–sister matings of Bhim and Sumita at Cincinnati Zoo. The gene involved may have come from a Siberian tiger, via their part-Siberian ancestor Tony. Continued inbreeding appears to have caused a recessive gene for stripelessness to show up. About one fourth of Bhim and Sumita's offspring were stripeless. Their striped white offspring, which have been sold to zoos around the world, may also carry the stripeless gene.

Motivation

Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans. –John Lennon

Vegetable Intelligence

It depends on how you define intelligence.  In the way of problem solving, and flexibility of thinking, I would say probably not really, but there are things that plants can do that seem intelligent.  So, there are types of creeper that manage to grab hold of other plants and climb up them, and you use them for support.  That seems quite clever and I've seen time lapse videos of those where you can see the creepers sort of spiralling around and reaching for something to hold on to.

There's also the fact that when you plant a seed, the roots always know to grow downwards and the shoots know to grow upwards, and that’s because of are some chemicals in the plant that tell it which way gravity is, and that allows it to know which way up to grow.  So you don’t have to worry about which way up you're planting your seeds.

Venus flytrap is a very good example

Venus flytraps are very clever.  They’ve got hairs on the inside of the trap part.  What's particularly clever about them is that they don’t get triggered if just one hair is touched and that’s to save energy because it’s quite energetically expensive for them to close.  And if they did it every time a leaf fell on them or a drop of rain or something, that will be a waste.  So they only trigger if two of the hairs are brushed in quick succession because that’s quite a good indication that there's something moving on the inside and it’s a good idea to close and trap it.

February

The Roman month Februarius was named after the Latin term februum, which means purification, via the purification ritual Februa held on February 15 (full moon) in the old lunar Roman calendar. January and February were the last two months to be added to the Roman calendar.

At certain intervals February was truncated to 23 or 24 days, and a 27-day intercalary month.

Under the reforms that instituted the Julian calendar, Intercalaris was abolished, leap years occurred regularly every fourth year, and in leap years February gained a 29th day. Thereafter, it remained the second month of the calendar year, meaning the order that months are displayed (January, February, March, ..., December) within a year-at-a-glance calendar. The Gregorian calendar reforms made slight changes to the system for determining which years were leap years and thus contained a 29-day February.

Quantum Computers

A quantum computer is a computation system that makes direct use of quantum-mechanical phenomena, such as superposition and entanglement, to perform operations on data. Quantum computers are different from digital computers based on transistors. Whereas digital computers require data to be encoded into binary digits (bits), each of which is always in one of two definite states (0 or 1), quantum computation uses qubits (quantum bits), which can be in superpositions of states. A theoretical model is the quantum Turing machine, also known as the universal quantum computer.

Shell 'art' made 300,000 years before humans evolved

A shell etched by Homo erectus is by far the oldest engraving ever found, challenging what we know about the origin of art and complex human thought

THE artist – if she or he can be called that – was right-handed and used a shark's tooth. They had a remarkably steady hand and a strong arm. Half a million years ago, on the banks of a calm river in central Java, they scored a deep zigzag into a clam shell.

We will never know what was going on inside its maker's head, but the tidy, purposeful line (pictured above right) has opened a new window into the origins of our modern creative mind.

It was found etched into the shell of a fossilised freshwater clam, and is around half a million years old – making the line by far the oldest engraving ever found. The date also means it was made two to three hundred thousand years before our own species evolved, by a more ancient hominin,Homo erectus.

Why we shout in Anger?

A Hindu saint who was visiting river Ganges to take bath found a group of family members on the banks, shouting in anger at each other. He turned to his disciples smiled'n asked.

'Why do people shout in anger shout at each other?'

Disciples thought for a while, one of them said,'Because we lose our calm, we shout.'

'But, why should you shout when the other person is just next to you? You can as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner.'asked the saint

Disciples gave some other answers but none satisfied the other disciples.
Finally the saint explained, .

'When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other to cover that great distance.

What happens when two people fall in love? They don't shout at each other but talk softly, Because their hearts are very close. The distance between them is either nonexistent or very small...'

The saint continued,'When they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper'n they get even closer to each other in their love. Finally they even need not whisper, they only look at each other'n that's all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.'

He looked at his disciples and said.

'So when you argue do not let your hearts get distant, Do not say words that distance each other more, Or else there will come a day when the distance is so great that you will not find the path to return.