Category Career Queries

What is Chemical Energy?

You have seen candles burning. An orange flame dances around the wick, while the wax melts underneath and drips down. The candle gets shorter as the wax melts.

The candle wax has a kind of stored-up energy. It is a fuel. A fuel is something that is burned to make light, heat, or a push that makes things move. The coal, oil, and gas used to heat homes and other buildings and to cook food are fuels. The petrol in a car and the wood in a fireplace are fuels, too.

The same thing happens to every kind of fuel when it burns. When it starts burning, the heat makes it break down and change to other things, such as ashes. As the fuel breaks down, it gives off energy. Some of the energy is light, and some is heat.

When petrol is burned in a car engine, the heat energy makes the engine push. The push from the engine makes the car run.

The energy stored in a fuel is called chemical energy.

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Indian Air Force (IAF) It’s not just about flying!

“The coming of October 8, each year, brings back memories of the twenty-eight years and four months of service with the Indian Air Force; a life-changing experience. I had all my education in English medium and had played several games at the University level before joining the Indian Air Force but little did I know that the Air Force years were destined to keep me away from my past and add absolutely new experiences.

Any new person to whom I am ever introduced has a primary question to ask: which aircraft did I fly? It is, perhaps, disappointing for them when I tell them that I was an Air Traffic Controller and not a flier. Quite rightly, the IAF is always related to flying but there is so much more to it than flying. In fact, the flying crew forms only a small fraction of the total strength not only of the IAF but also in any other Air Force around the world. Flying an aircraft requires a large support service in terms of technical as well as administrative support

Apart from the primary duties that any individual has to perform in the IAF, there are several different types of secondary duties that one has to handle in one’s career that adds to an individual’s learning and helps in the all-round development of one’s personality. While man-management is a primary learning for every officer, the secondary duties would be quite unthinkable for any outsider.

It is not only the Accountant Officers who have to handle cash and gain proficiency in maintaining ledgers and books of accounts but it becomes a necessity for those handling any secondary duty. One of the first things that I learnt while conducting distribution of pay and allowances was to count currency notes like bank cashiers. When one had to distribute lakhs of rupees, slipping one note on another like an amateur would never end the distribution in a single day.

Taking care of the Station Dairy or the Station Cinema Hall opened the doors for a learning that one can rarely ever think in civil walks of life. Running of Messes gave the same learning as the running of hotels without any degree in Hotel Management. Recording Courts of Inquiry is another experience that exposes one to learning the art of inquiring to arrive at relevant issues while the role of a Prosecuting Officer or Defending Officer in a Court Martial introduces one to procedures of a Court.

Running the Unit Run Canteen was one of the best experiences of how to run a business profitably with a slim profit margin by initiating discreet demands and keeping the dead stock at a minimal margin.

Contrary to what is the general idea of wielding of authority in the Armed Forces, the IAF is a very democratic set up and even the junior-most person is free to discuss matters with the senior-most rank with no love lost despite a serious argument. Seniors always take adequate care of their juniors and try to groom them in the best possible way.

I never played the same games for the IAF as I did at the University level but went on to learn mountaineering, rafting, water skiing, rowing and kayaking. In fact, I was part of a White Water Kayaking Expedition of the IAF down the River Beas and a Trekking Expedition in the hills of Gharwal. A PRO tenure was good enough to learn the intricacies of journalism and it culminated in being a Hindi commentator for both the Akashvani and Doordarshan for several events.

These are possibly some and definitely not all of the learning experiences of my IAF tenure. However, the greatest learning has been that of a never-ending sense of brotherhood, definitely not limited to the Air Force or even to the Armed Forces of India but one that extends beyond the boundaries of the country. Such was the experience when I was a part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka and part of a Security Delegation team to the U.S.

I should end with a small incident of my first meeting with one of the Counsellor Generals of the Republic of Netherlands at his office. After an initial introduction, he went back to his cabin, saluted me and handed me his visiting card with a remark, “Sir, just a Lieutenant.” There can be no better example of the global fraternity of the Armed Forces.

 

Credit : Gp Capt Achchyut Kumar (The Teenager Today)

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Who holds the record for the most spacewalks by a woman?

Peggy Annette Whitson (born February 9, 1960) is an American biochemistry researcher, retired NASA astronaut, and former NASA Chief Astronaut. Her first space mission was in 2002, with an extended stay aboard the International Space Station as a member of Expedition 5. Her second mission launched October 10, 2007, as the first female commander of the ISS with Expedition 16. She was on her third long-duration space flight and was the commander of the International Space Station for Expedition 51, before handing over command to Fyodor Yurchikhin on June 1, 2017.

The flight of Space Shuttle mission STS-120, commanded by astronaut Pam Melroy, was the first time that two female mission commanders have been in orbit at the same time. After completion of her eighth EVA in March 2017, Whitson now holds the records for the oldest woman spacewalker, and the record for total spacewalks by a woman, which was broken by her again after a ninth and tenth EVA in May 2017, surpassing Sunita Williams, who has completed 7.

Following her fellowship at Rice, she began working at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, as a National Research Council Resident Research Associate. From April 1988 until September 1989, Whitson served as the Supervisor for the Biochemistry Research Group at KRUG International, a medical sciences contractor at NASA-JSC.

From 1991 through 1997, Whitson was invited to be an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine and the Department of Human Biological Chemistry and Genetics at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. In 1997, Whitson began a position as adjunct assistant professor at Rice University in the Maybee Laboratory for Biochemical and Genetic Engineering.

From 1992 to 1995, she served as project scientist for the Shuttle-Mir Program and, until her selection as an astronaut candidate in 1996, as deputy division chief for the Medical Sciences division at the Johnson Space Center.

 

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What is the history of INS Viraat?

The Royal Navy

Before serving the Indian Navy, Viraat served Britain’s Royal Navy as HMS (Her Majesty’s ship) Hermes. She was commissioned into the Royal Navy in November 1959. During her service with the British, Viraat operated three fixed-wing planes and a chopper.

She belonged to the Centaur class of light fleet carriers of the Royal Navy which were in use since the Second World War. She played a major role in the Falklands War between Britain and Argentina in 1982. Three years after that war, she was decommissioned by the Royal Navy.

Meanwhile, the Indian Navy was looking for a second aircraft carrier for its fleet along with the INS Vikrant, which was commissioned in 1961. After much research and deliberation, the Indian Navy zeroed in on the HMS Hermes and announced its purchase in 1986. Hermes underwent a major refit and modernisation at Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth, England before finally being commissioned into the Indian Navy in May 1987.

Service with the Indian Navy

Viraat played a major role in India’s naval defence. She operated one British-made Sea Harrier, a fixed- wing aircraft, and three helicopters. She played a pivotal role in the Sri Lankan Peacekeeping operation in 1989 dubbed Operation Jupiter, and was affiliated with the Indian Army in 1990. Viraat was also deployed during Operation Parakram in 2001 02. Following the terror attack on the Indian parliament. She played a major role in calibrating the flying activities from the carrier, which proved helpful during the induction of INS Vikramaditya, currently the sole aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy.

Decommissioning by the Indian Navy

As years passed, the cost of operating and maintaining INS Viraat became too high for the Indian Navy, which announced its decision to decommission the Grand Old Lady in 2015.

After all the prerequisite processes for decommissioning at the Kochi shipyard were completed, the Grand Old Lady was decommissioned finally on March 6, 2017, at a ceremony in Mumbai,

At the time of her decommissioning, Viraat had spent nearly 2252 days at sea sailing nearly 11 lakh km. The aircraft she carried clocked more than 22,600 flying hours. Since 1987, Viraat has been the Flagship of the Indian Navy. And in her 30 years of service. 22 captains have commanded the ship.

What the future holds

Due to her rich history, many Indian states and conservationists wished to preserve Viraat as a museum. Many crowdfunding initiatives were undertaken in a bid to preserve Viraat. However, none of the efforts proved successful An expert panel was called to study Viraat condition and determine the feasibility of converting the ship into a museum. The panel stated that the cost of converting the ship into a museum would be too high to manage, and that the ship would last only ten years, given the age of its ferrous metal. Post this, even the Centre abandoned plans to convert the ship into a museum and decided to auction it to be dismantled and recycled at Alang, the world’s largest ship-breaking yard. The ship was bought by the Shree Ram Group for a sum of Rs. 38.54 crore at an auction in July 2020. On September 19, Viraat made her final journey from Mumbai to Alang. She reached Alang on September 22. As a last-ditch effort to preserve the iconic warship, Envitech Marine Consultants Pvt Ltd, A Mumbai based shipping company, decided to buy the ship from the Shree Ram Group to convert it into a museum. To do so, the company would first need a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Ministry of Defence. The company has stated that the Goa government is ready to help in its endeavour and allow the ship to be beaches in its waters.

As of October 9, 2020, Envitech is yet to obtain a NOC from the defence ministry.

 

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Which are the homes of royal family?

Many castles were designed as homes for rulers rather than as fortresses. Many of the world’s most famous and fancy palaces were built hundreds of years ago.

The royal family of the United Kingdom lives at Windsor Castle when they are not in nearby London. William the Conqueror built a castle in that place about 1070 A.D. Since then, many kings and queens have added to the castle, which now covers 3.6 hectares. It has 15 majestic towers and a beautiful chapel.

Another famous castle lies on a hill in the city of Osaka, Japan. The elegant Osaka Castle was built during the 1500’s. Visitors can still see three of the original towers as well as the castle’s main gate.

A famous palace is in Versailles, France. The Palace of Versailles, France. The Palace of Versailles is more than 0.4 kilometre long and has about 1,300 rooms. It was built by the French King Louis XIV in the 1600’s.

To see a real fairy-tale castle, go to Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany. It has a walled courtyard, spires on its roof, and a blue arched ceiling decorated with stars. Built for King Ludwig II in the 1860’s, the castle is now a popular place to visit.

 

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What are castles?

Some of the world’s most amazing buildings were built for protection, not beauty. Hundreds of years ago, people in different parts of the world had many rulers. The rulers often fought each other. Powerful rulers built castles to live in with their family, helpers, priests, soldiers – and farm animals!

Many of the castles were made of stone. Often they were built around an open courtyard. They had high walls that could be built 10 metres thick to protect against enemies. Some castles had towers at each corner.

Sometimes the walls were surrounded with deep, wide ditches that were usually filled with water. These were called moats. To protect the castle, guards looked out from the towers and walked along the tops of the walls. They hid behind stone fences called battlements and shot arrows at attackers. When visitors came, the guards would lower a drawbridge so that people could walk or ride across the moat. Then they would have to pass a gatehouse.

Inside, there was a large room where people met and ate meals. A huge fire in the fireplace too away the chill. So did tapestries, or hanging cloths, placed around the castle walls. People spread sweet-smelling plants on the floors and changed them every month.

Castles had a kitchen, a chapel in which to pray, and rooms for the family. They also had a barracks, or sleeping room, for soldiers. Many had dungeons in which to keep prisoners.

In many places around the world, ancient castles still stand. One is the Tower of London on the River Thames in London, England. This group of stone buildings has a wall and moat surrounding it. The Tower of London was first built as a castle in the 1000’s. In later times, it was a palace and a prison. Today it is a museum.

The Loire River Valley in France is famous for its many castles, called chateaux in French. One of the oldest French chateaux is in Angers. Visitors can still see the remains of the 17 towers and the moat. This chateau as built in the early 1200’s.

In Syria, near the northern border of present-day Lebanon, is a castle called Krak des Chevaliers. This fortress was built by crusaders during the 1100’s.

 

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