Sunday, July 3, 2011

African Elephants (Loxodonta africana)

Photo: African Elephants (Loxodonta africana) herd in Kenya

African elephants are species of elephants in the genus Loxodonta of the family Elephantidae. They developed in the middle Pliocene in Africa where they are found in the wild now.

Being larger than Asian elephants, the African elephant males weigh between 5000 kg and 6000 kg (about 10,000 to 13,330 lb), and stand up to 4 meter (13 feet) tall at shoulder level, while the females are much smaller in overall size than the males.

Elephant tusks are their transformed teeth (the second set of incisors) weighing from 23 kg to 45 kg (51 to 99 lb) and can grow up to 2.5 meter (about 8 feet) long. Both male and female African elephants have tusks, in contrast to Asian elephants the females of which do not have tusks. Inside their mouths, elephants have four molars weighing about 5 kg (11 lb) each. Elephants replace their teeth six times in their lives and by 40 to 60 years of age they lose all their teeth with no further growth of teeth, making them vulnerable to starvation and death.

Currently there are two species of African elephants: the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), and the African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), the latter previously being considered as a subspecies of the former. The extinct species Loxodonta adaurora is believed to be the ancestor of the modern African elephants. The North African elephant, a subspecies named Loxodonta africana pharaoensis that inhabited the area north of the Sahara from the Atlas Mountains (extending through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia) to Ethiopia, became extinct some decades after the Roman conquest of North Africa in the 2nd century BC. Two other extinct species are Loxodonta atlantica and Loxodonta exaptata.

Because of commonly occurring interbreeding or natural hybridization among African Elephants, often bush elephants and forest elephants look similar but on closer observation they can be distinguished from one another. The African forest elephant has straighter and downward tusks and rounder ears and they are considerably smaller size than bush elephant that normally has four toenails on the front foot and three toenails on the hind foot. In contrast, the African forest elephant normally has five toenails on the front foot and four toenails on the hind foot like the Asian elephant.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) assesses the two species of African elephants as a vulnerable species because of their fast decline in population because of indiscriminate killing of elephants for ivory during the 20th century. In the decade prior to the international ban on ivory trade in 1990, the African elephant population was over 1.3 million which dwindled to around 600,000 by 1990. Despite the governmental protection of elephants, unchecked poaching for illegal ivory trade still devastates elephant populations in many parts of Africa. Often, elephant tusk ivory is illegally traded for arms and ammunition by militants and illegitimate regimes, thereby causing heavy human casualties, political instabilities and huge economic setbacks in some regions.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Bronze Age battle site found on Tollense River bank in Germany

Since 1997, the region named Tollensetal (the Tollense valley) in northern Germany started attracting the attention of Anthropologists, historians and evolutionary scientists after several reports appeared in German media about the findings of fossil remains of several humans, horses, and weapons dating from around 1200 BC, typical of the Bronze Age.

The 68-km-long Tollense River is in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in northeastern Germany, and it is a tributary of the Peene, joining it at Demmin. Tollense originates from Lake Tollensesee in Neubrandenburg.

The earlier reported cases were mostly giving the impression of what was presumed to be a ‘Tollense massacre’. The reported cases gave way to further research and excavations that unearthed fragmented remains of about 100 human bodies, mostly of young men, as well as horse fossils.

But it is now estimated that about 200 people died there, probably, in a battle in the valley around 1250 BC and it would have been a major battle in Bronze Age Germany, considering the area was scarcely populated during that era. Several badly fractured skulls found there indicated serious head injuries that resulted in violent deaths, indicative of battle scenes. Though reports of more findings are coming in, the full facts remain yet to be unearthed.

A research paper was published in the journal Antiquity on the human and other fossils found at the Tollense Valley site of about two square kilometers. The findings were based on evidences received from both ground excavations and surveys conducted on the riverbed by divers.

What is baffling the researchers is the presence of human fossils on the river bed that suggests that either the deaths have occurred on the river banks or nearby areas and the bodies were dumped on to the river, or more logically, the bodies were dumped into the river upstream from where the river carried the bodies down and buried the remains under sand and silt that in the course of time got fossilized. So, fixing the exact spot where the presumed battle or massacre took place is more important.

It is highly unlikely that the battle or massacre took place on the planes or the valley where the remains got buried, because the river has not changed its course and started flowing through such an area.

Archaeological excavations brought out various human and other fossil remains such as bones of various parts of the skeletal system, fractured skulls, wooden clubs, sharpened stone arrowheads and remains of horses.

Normally such bones and other fossils are found on burial grounds, but the archaeologists found no such items associated with burials such as pottery, ornaments, constructed structures or paved grounds. No signs of any burial rituals were found and the positions of the bodies also showed the bodies were not buried, but people and horses were killed and left there in the same positions they fell on the ground.

According to the researchers, the fractured skulls show evidences of deep facial and skull injuries suggestive of close face-to-face fighting, possibly between warring tribes, or even distant invaders. The injuries found on skulls included serious head injuries caused by massive blows with blunt weapons, wooden clubs or inflicted with blunt arrowheads.

But yet another evidence that negates the possibility of inter-tribe battles is the evidence of a millet diet found among the human body remains. The fact that millet diet was not typical of Northern Germany of the period around 1250 BC can suggest the presence of invaders in the presumed battle. Similarly the bronze pins styled on Silesian designs found there were suggestive of the locals contact with the Silesian region that lies about 400 km to the south-east of the Tollensetal.

Archaeological findings from the beginning of the Neolithic period from Talheim in Germany show evidences of violence, but it is quite different from the evidence found in the Tollense Valley where several human beings’ fossils were excavated from under the riverbed.

The presence of wooden clubs, Flintstone arrowheads, and other wooden weaponry discovered at Tollense valley are not typical Bronze Age weapons, though they are dated so, but it also suggests that the culture and technology of the involved tribes were not as advanced as the typical Bronze Age people.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Yoga: a woman performing handstand on beach sand


Handstand, originally uploaded by jodygunderson.

Handstand is similar to inverted Yoga poses such as Headstand (called Sirshasana and spelt sometimes as Sirsasana or Shirshasana) and Forearm Balance, and it is felt to be a bit difficult to practice for those who want to master Yoga through crash courses, or online courses that promise Yoga training for health, fitness and beauty.

The main problem a Yoga beginner can face is the fear of tumbling down or breaking necks. But under a trained Yoga teacher it can easily be learned within a few days.

This pose is sometimes referred to as Hasta Sirshasana (Shirshasana performed on hands, instead of standing on head), and even as Adho Mukha Svanasana (downward-facing dog pose), and Adho Mukha Vrksasana (downward-facing tree pose). In capoeira it is named bananeira.

There are some forms of this pose practiced in athletic activities such as gymnastics, acrobatics, acro dance, and even cheerleading. Even break-dancers perform handstands in freezes and kicks. Armstand dives that can be seen found in competitive platform diving begin with handstands.

In whatever form it is performed, or by whatever name called, handstands are very good for fitness and health, as it reverses blood flow and energizes the entire body. It also makes the upper part of the body, including the brain and sensory organs perform better.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Tree sculpture at the Fremont Fair


Scary Tree at the Fremont Fair, originally uploaded by RicoBozo.

This is a wonderful tree-sculpture, in fact one of the rarest natural form of art I have ever seen. As you can see, there is the least chisel work, or intrusion in the domain of nature's beauty, excepting on the eyes and possibly nose. But that too is limited to the extent it is needed to bring out the real expression that was already carved by nature!

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Eunuchs of India

According to National Geographic, “in India, nearly half a million people live as eunuchs, not man or woman, but considered an entirely separate gender.” Watch this video to know more about their customs, lifestyles and livelihoods.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

The Homeless in Japan


, originally uploaded by Jesslee Cuizon.

The author of this photo says, "This is what most people don’t know about Japan... Homelessness was largely unknown in Japan until the economic bubble burst in the early 1990s and unemployment began to...". Well, the first and foremost thing that comes to mind as and when I come across the name Japan or anything related to Japan is the idea that it is a country of prosperity, a land of one of the most enterprising people in the world, etc.

Also, Japan fares far better than most developed economies in the world, as per most economic performance indexes I have read. Now this photo and the note below it shows a different picture. But I do not think it is very common or directly related to the developmental levels of Japanese economy. It may refer to other problems like personal reasons, and some uncared areas of state social security measures.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Video: How the world searched with Google's 2010 Zeitgeist

Here above is a video report on how the world searched in 2010, incorporating some of the clips and images of the most gripping, eye-catching events of the year 2010. The video has the song ‘Good Life’ by OneRepublic.

Google Zeitgeist site: Google Zeitgeist

Friday, December 3, 2010

Tree House

A Tree House, atop a tree in hot summer and other seasons

I often read ads and promotional material on tree houses that are built and maintained, complete with amenities as provided in hotels or rest houses, often to attract tourists or other people who want to spend some time in natural settings. Whenever I read these, I remember stories told by people of my grandfathers’ age about how they had similar experiences living on trees, whenever they visited forest areas where people either lived permanently or made temporary shelters while on hunting trips. The purpose of such tree houses used to be protection from wild animals, and other factors that made living on the ground difficult.

The ideal setting for a tree house is building a suitable place for living among the branches of big trees, at heights that are easy to climb up and down, and stairs or ladders were attached for climbing. Though documented, accurate information on tree houses is hard to be found, it has to be believed that tree houses existed on almost all parts of the world for many reasons, just like caves used to be the first dwelling units of humans in the early stages of evolution of Homo sapiens. In the modern times, tree houses are used for recreation or as temporary retreats. Houses built on stilts or props are very commonly used in areas that are flooded seasonally, or in low-lying areas such as the deltas of rivers. The Korowai, a Papuan tribe in Irian Jaya, live in tree houses that can be at heights of nearly 40 meters or about 130 feet high for protection against a tribe of neighboring head-hunters, the Citak.

Because of commercialization of tree houses, in some countries, there are regulations on building tree houses. But they are given many exemptions from most of the building laws and regulations, as they are not considered buildings in the normal sense of the word. There can also be regulations in view of protecting the natural habitats, and from the point of view of environmental issues.

There are many businesses in Europe and the United States specializing in the construction of tree houses of various degrees of permanence and sophistication, ranging from children's playhouses to full-fledged functional homes. Since the 1990, recreational tree houses have become popular in countries such as the United States and some European countries.

There are also some famous, functional tree house hotels, built with living trees as structural elements. One of the examples of such hotels is the Costa Rica Tree House in the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge, Costa Rica. Others are the Treetops Hotel in Aberdare National Park (Kenya), the Ariau Towers (near Manaus, Brazil on the Rio Negro in the Amazon) and Bayram's Tree Houses in Olympos, Turkey.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

The History of String Bikini

According to some incredulously fallible people who claim the title of historians, the history of bikini is many times more in volume than the history of the Second World War, or the history of the United States, or even the history of evolution of Homo sapiens. They stake this dubious claim quoting the availability and huge volume of photographs, literature, news and gossip on scantily clad celebrities lazing on nudists’ beaches, etc. on internet alone put together make up more than the volume of all histories taken together! Whatever that may mean, it makes interesting reading that deserves some thinking for the non-thinkers.

Anyway, as the picture above shows one of the best possible photos of a resting or sleeping woman in this celebrated attire that can contribute significantly to climate change, if everyone starts dressing like this, let us concentrate on the central issue, which is the string bikini. By the way, remember that you have to keep your shoes, high-heeled footwear, etc. in place even when sleeping so that you do not fall short of the high-fashion quotient.

To get to the real structural aspects of string bikinis, they essentially are made up of two triangles (of cloth, textile, or even transparent plastic sheet). Smaller the triangles, the higher your personal fashion rating. To hold the scanty triangles (possibly an attempt to outsmart cubism made popular by masters of modern art, such as Pablo Picasso), you just need some strings or threads to hold the triangles on the desired or undesired places. By the way, some antagonists of modern fashion claim that there is an undercurrent of conspiracy between the designers, bikini protagonists, naturists and the bigwigs of hair-removal products manufacture.

Some other experts claim that string bikinis are not the invention of the great fashion designers, but it was invented accidentally. Once, when the Brazilian fashion model Rose de Primallio tried to sew together a bikini, the fabric was woefully insufficient and she had no time to procure sufficient fabric or a ready-to-wear bikini. She just made two triangles, tied them together with some strings and put them on for an urgent pre-commissioned photo-shoot. And thus the string bikini was born.

However, the credit for the first formal presentation of string bikini was claimed unceremoniously by public relations agent Glen Tororich. Incidentally, his wife and fashion model Brandi Perret-DuJon was to appear for the opening of Le Petite Centre, a shopping area in the French Quarter of the New Orleans, Louisiana in 1974. The couple was on a high of inspiration as they saw a picture of a Rio de Janeiro fashion model in an issue of Women's Wear Daily. So, they conspired with a local fashion designer Lapin to create a string bikini for the event. Then the models recruited by the talent agent Peter Dasigner presented the string-bikinis by removing fur coats by Alberto Lemon on stage.

The show created a strong storm in the cerebrum and nearby areas of the genus known as journalists, and local television stations and even the New Orleans Times-Picayune newspaper. As a result pictures and news were sent out via the wire news services of the Associated Press and United Press International. Within no time the string bikini became the biggest fashion invention of all times, till then. And to this day, string bikinis are one of the most popular variations of bikini, bikini historians claim.

Monday, November 29, 2010

Bell Pepper

Bell Pepper plant with a ripe red fruit
94 - Poivron, originally uploaded by Sara in Montréal.

Bell pepper or sweet pepper belongs to the species Capsicum annuum (chili pepper), known by various other names such as sweet pepper, chili, capsicum, pepper, green pepper, paprika, groene paprika, gele paprika, poivron, piment, etc. Strangely, in the Ohio Valley, people sometimes refer to bell peppers as mangoes, because bell peppers were sometimes pickled, as when mango was imported to the American colonies in the 1600s any fruits which were pickled were called ‘mangoes’.

Cultivars of bell pepper produce fruits in different colors, including green, yellow, orange, red, purple, rainbow (between stages of ripening) and even white (rarely). Bell pepper is often consumed unripe when the fruit is still green, or used in salads.

Peppers are native to Mexico, and Central American and northern South American countries. Later pepper seeds were carried to Spain in 1493 and from there peppers spread to the rest of Europe, and African and Asian countries. Even now Mexico is one of the major pepper producers in the world.

The name ‘pepper’ (pimiento in Spanish) is, in fact, a misnomer, which was given by Christopher Columbus when he brought it to Europe. At that time peppercorns (Piper nigrum or black pepper), originating from India, were a highly priced condiment, and the name ‘pepper’ was used in Europe for all spices with a hot and pungent taste. So the newly discovered Capsicum genus also received the dubious name, though the innocent bell pepper has zero ‘heat’.

When it comes to ‘heat’, the hottest capsicum in the world is the Naga Jolokia (aka Bhut Jolokia, ghost chili, etc.), an interspecific hybrid of Capsicum frutescens and Capsicum chinense, mainly found in northeastern India and Bangladesh. In 2007, Guinness World Records certified the Naga Jolokia as the world's hottest chili pepper, 401.5 times hotter than Tabasco sauce.

The heat of peppers is measured on the Scoville Scale. In 2005, at the New Mexico State University Chile Pepper Institute, Professor Paul Bosland found that Bhut Jolokia grown from seed in southern New Mexico to have a Scoville rating of 1,001,304 units, while pure capsaicin (the chemical responsible for the heat) rates at 15,000,000 to 16,000,000 Scoville units.

Bell peppers are botanically fruits, but they are generally considered vegetables in common, culinary parlance. Though bell pepper is a member of the Capsicum genus, it is the only Capsicum that does not produce capsaicin, the lipophilic chemical that causes the ‘heat’ or burning sensation when it comes in contact with mucous membranes.

Green bell peppers are less sweet or slightly bitter than red, yellow or orange peppers. Also, compared to green peppers, red peppers have more vitamins and nutrients and contain the antioxidant lycopene. Carotene, another antioxidant in bell peppers, is nine times higher in red peppers, and red peppers have twice the vitamin C content of green peppers.

According to the USDA nutrient database, nutritional value per 100 g (gram or 3.5 oz) of bell peppers (sweet, green raw) is: energy - 84 kJ (20 kcal), carbohydrates - 4.64 g, sugars - 2.4 g, dietary fiber - 1.7 g, fat - 0.17 g, protein - 0.86 g, thiamine (vitamin B1) - 0.057 mg, riboflavin (vitamin B2) - 0.028 mg, niacin (vitamin B3) - 0.480 mg, pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) - 0.099 mg, vitamin B6 - 0.224 mg, folate (vitamin B9) - 10 μg, vitamin C - 80.4 mg, calcium-10 mg, iron - 0.34 mg, magnesium - 10 mg, phosphorus - 20 mg, potassium - 175 mg, and zinc - 0.13 mg.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Sea bass served in Ko Chang, Thailand

sea bass

Sea bass in plum sauce is a delicacy in Ko Chang, the second largest island of Thailand and the largest island in the Ko Chang Marine Park archipelago. Ko Chang is located on the Thai east coast, 310 km away from Bangkok near the border with Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand. It is a very popular tourist destination and renowned for sea food delicacies.

The name ‘bass’ is shared by many species of popular game fishes, both freshwater and marine species, all belong to the large order Perciformes, or perch-like fishes. The temperate basses, such as the striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and white bass (M. chrysops) belong to the family Moronidae. The black basses, such as the largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), spotted bass (M. punctulatus), Guadalupe bass (M. treculii) and smallmouth bass (M. dolomieu) belong to the sunfish family Centrarchidae.

Other species of fishes known as basses include the Australian bass (Macquaria novemaculeata) of the temperate perch family Percichthyidae; the black sea bass (Centropristis striata) of the family Serranidae; the giant sea bass or the black sea bass (Stereolepis gigas) of the wreckfish family Polyprionidae; the Chilean sea bass or the Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) of the cod ice fish family Nototheniidae; and the European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax), a member of the temperate bass family Moronidae.

As the name Ko Chang means Elephant Island, the island's attraction for tourists include trekking on the backs of domesticated elephants. But, local legends claim that Ko Chang was named for the elephant shape of its headland, although elephants are not indigenous to the island. The mountainous island is also known for several waterfalls, thriving coral reefs and rainforests.

Local food items are more or less similar to the rest of Thailand, and there are many restaurants at the beach. Ko Chang’s restaurants specialize in seafood, and the island also produces its own variety of fruity wines such as mangosteen, pineapple and grape wines. Also on offer are Thai cooking courses that the visitors can learn from experienced chefs. Thai cuisine chefs can teach to cook all their favorite dishes such as tom yum kung, sweet green curry and chicken with cashew nuts.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Hyperion, the world's tallest living tree

Hyperion, a coast redwood tree (Sequoia sempervirens) in the Redwood National Park, Northern California, has been reported to measure 115.61 meters (379.3 feet), ranking it as the world's tallest known living tree. To reaffirm its status as the world’s tallest tree, in 2006, Stephen C. Sillett (STEVE STILLET, seen in the video), the botanist specializing in old growth forest canopies, verified its height as 115.55 meters (379.1 feet) by climbing on top of the tree and actually measuring its height.

The previous record-holder, as the tallest tree in the world, was Stratosphere Giant, another Sequoia sempervirens (Coast Redwood) in Humboldt Redwoods State Park, which is 112.83 meters (370.5 feet) tall. There are many other trees which are of the same height as Stratosphere Giant in the forest, and two other trees in this forest were found to be taller than Stratosphere Giant as well.

On August 25, 2006, naturalists Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor discovered the Hyperion in a remote area of the Redwood National Park. The tree is estimated to contain 502 cubic meters (18,600 cubic feet) of wood, and its estimated age is roughly 700 to 800 years.

However, Hyperion is not the largest known coast redwood tree, which distinction belongs to the Lost Monarch tree, another Coast Redwood tree located in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park in Northern California. It is confirmed to be at least 26 feet (7.9 meter) in diameter and 320 feet (98 meter) in height. The Lost Monarch was discovered on May 11, 1998, by Stephen C. Sillett, and Michael Taylor.