Category Geography

What is the importance of handloom in India?

How do plants transport their seeds for propagation? Do you know that they employ different ways to spread their seeds widely? Let’s look at some of them today

Plants have various ways to ensure that their seeds are spread widely and have a chance to grow. Some employ animals and birds, others wind and water, while still others use their own power to transport their seeds.

 

Dodo tree

The tambalacoque tree grows only in Mauritius and is valued for its timber. In the 17th century, all of a sudden, the tambalacoque lost the ability to grow from seeds. Existing trees continued to live, but not one of the seeds they produced would germinate. By the 1970s, there were only 13 sickly trees left.

An American ecologist. Stanley Temple, observed in 1977 that the tree had stopped growing from seed at about the same time that the DID YOU KNOW? The seeds of a type of tomato plant that grows in the Galapagos Island germinate only when they are eaten by a tortoise and pass through its digestive system! flightless bird of Mauritius, the dodo, became extinct. Temple concluded that the seeds, which had a thick hard covering, would germinate only if they were eaten by the dodo and passed through its digestive system! Without the grinding in the dodo’s gizzard, the seed could not break through the tough exterior and sprout.

He force-fed the seeds to wild turkeys and some of them germinated- the first tambalacoque saplings seen in 300 years!

Launch pad

The squirting cucumber of the Mediterranean fills with a slimy juice as it ripens. Soon, the pressure within increases so much that the cucumber is launched off its stalk like a miniature rocket. The seeds stream out from a hole in its base and land as far away as six metres from the parent plant!

The Brazilian hura tree or monkey’s dinner-bell has a more dramatic way of sending off its seeds. It has a detonating seed container. After it dries out fully, it explodes with a deafening bang, hurling its seeds over a distance of 12 metres! The pods of the broom plant become hot and dry and split open down the middle, catapulting is tiny black seeds in all directions.

Wind and water

Some plants fuave seents so tiny, that they are easily carried away by the wind. Kapok trees auf cotton bushes provide their seeds with a convenient tuft of threads that are long and durable. They catch the wind and float many miles before they land in fertile soil and germinate Dandelion seeds have a tiny parachute and are attached to the top of a stem like a fragile globe. The merest breath of wind can cause millions to take off and sail high into the sky.

The coconut palm on the other hand, sends its seed by sen packed in a fibrous waterproof shell containing water and a supply of rich food in the form of the kernel to nourish it on its long journey.

Winging their way

Many tall trees have winged seeds that travel some distance before falling on the ground to germinate, thus avoiding their shade.

The Anisoptera and Alsomitra are two of the tallest trees in Asia. Their seeds come equipped with a pair of wings. Anisoptera seeds are spear-shaped and spin like the rotors of a helicopter when released. Alsomitra seeds are fitted with paper-thin wings. They descend very slowly and travel over nine metres before falling to the ground.

Critters as couriers

Plants use animals as seed carriers. Some have thomy, stick-on seeds which attach to the fur of the animal as it brushes past. The South African grapple plant has seeds with hooks that embed in the soles of a rhino or elephant’s feet and fall off after the animal has walked some distance.

The best advertisement for most plants are their delicious fruits! if the animal swallows the seed with the fruit, the coating ensures the seed passes out undamaged.

It wouldn’t do if the seed is eaten before it matures, so the plant craftily makes the fruit hard and sour. Once the seed is ready, the fruit tums sweet and aromatic inviting animals to have a feast!

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What is Indian ocean Dipole?

With climate change wreaking havoc all across the globe, you must have come across the weather phenomena El Nino and La Nina. But have you heard of the Indian Nino? Come let’s find out what it is and how it impacts the monsoon

A climate phenomenon

El Nino is a naturally occurring climate pattern associated with the abnormal warming of surface waters in the central Pacific Ocean and this will push up global temperatures and bring less-than-normal rainfall to many parts of the world, while La Nina refers to the large-scale cooling of surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean. With an El Nino phase now underway, the warm water spreading across the Pacific Ocean releases a large amount of heat into the atmosphere and this results in hot and dry weather conditions in many parts of the world. So what happens climatically in one place will affect weather worldwide. If there is an El Nino developing in the Pacific, it changes the winds and atmospheric circulation over the Indian Ocean.

warming it up. The Indian Ocean Dipole (1OD), which is commonly referred to as the Indian Nino, is a similar climate phenomenon playing out in the Indian Ocean, the world’s third largest ocean after the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The Indian Ocean most of which lies in the tropical region. is bounded by Africa to the west by Asia to the north, by Australia and the islands of indonesia to the east, and by the Southern Ocean to the south. So the IOD plays out between the African coastline in the west and indonesian coastline in the east, that is between the westem and easter parts of the Indian Ocean

Phases of IOD

The IOD is an irregular shift of ocean surface temperatures in which the western Indian Ocean gets alternately wanner and colder than the eastem part. That is if the temperature of the ocean is warmer on the westem side, it is cooler on the opposite side. The Indian Ocean Dipole plays an important role in influencing weather patterns, particularly the monsoon season in India. It is known to have two main phases, positive and negative, which have their distinct impact on the monsoon.

The rainfall tends to move with the warm waters. During a positive phase, warm waters are pushed to the western part of the Indian Ocean resulting in greater-than-average surface sea temperatures and a greater-than-normal rainfall, while cold waters from the deep are brought to the surface in the eastern Indian Ocean. In other words, a positive IOD means a wetter west and a drier east. The IOD is said to be negative when the western Indian Ocean gets cooler. This fluctuation in temperatures leads to changes in atmospheric circulation patterns, affecting the monsoon.

A positive phase of the IOD enhances the monsoon flow to India and causes floods in African countries, while it reduces rainfall and causes drier conditions and droughts in Indonesia and Australia. This pattern gets reversed during the negative phase. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). there is a higher probability for positive IOD conditions this year and this could potentially limit the impact of El Nino on the subcontinent.

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What are the endangered animals in Eravikulam National Park?

 

There is a rise in the Nilgiri tahr numbers in Eravikulam National Park. The annual census held in April sighted 803 tahrs inside the park compared to 785 last year

The Nilgiri tahr is an endangered mountain goat found only in the hill ranges of the Western Ghats in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

People visiting the Eravikulam National Park (ENP) near Munnar are often amazed to see Nilgiri tahrs grazing nonchalantly in the tourism zone. Most of the park is out of bounds for visitors except for this demarcated area. Here the tahrs are almost tame, even allowing tourists to come close and click pictures!

In stark contrast, the tahrs in the core area of the park, where only park staff and researchers are allowed to go, are extremely shy, fleeing at the sight and sound of humans.

It is said that the tahr in the tourism zone became accustomed to people because of Walter Mackay, the manager of the Rajamalai tea estate in the 1950s. The estate was situated inside the present sanctuary (it was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1975 and a national park in 1978). Mackay would toot his cars horn while driving through the sanctuary, attracting herds of tahrs. They would mob his car to be rewarded with handfuls of biscuits!

Of course, visitors today are forbidden to feed and pet the tahrs.

The tahr feeds on a variety of herbs, shrubs and grass. Sure-footed and agile like others of its kind, it can negotiate sheer cliffs with amazing ease.

The Nilgiri tahr is endemic to the open grasslands in the upper reaches of the Western Ghats. It is found mainly in the Nilgiri the Anaimalai and Nelliyampathy hill ranges. A mature male tahr has a coat of deep brown and is called a saddleback for the broad swathe of lighter-coloured fur down its back. The females are smaller and lighter in colour. Both have horns that curve straight back.

In the Eravikulam National Park (ENP), the leopard is its only known predator.

The females and juveniles stay close together in a herd. sometimes numbering over a hundred. The males are usually loners and join the herd during breeding time. The females calve from January to February. The park is closed to tourists at this time

There are around 800 tahrs in the ENP and small numbers in the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve and Silent Valley National Park in Kerala. The tahr is also found in Tamil Nadu’s Anaimalai hills. Around 60% of tahr habitat in the Western Ghats could be lost to climate change from the 2030s onwards. There are only around 3,120 tahrs left in the wild.

Back from the brink                                                                                            

In the early 1950s, poachers hunted the tahrs (their meat was a much sought-after delicacy) to the point of extinction. The tea company that then owned the area stepped in and declared it a sanctuary. A check post was set up at the site of the present Forest Department outpost, and all vehicles passing through the area were searched for firearms, snares and tahr carcasses. This went a long way in stamping out poaching.

Munnars High Range Wildlife and Environment Preservation Association is an NGO set up in 1928 by conservation-minded British tea planters.

Even today, tea and coffee planters in south India are actively involved in conservation and the Nilgiri tahr is a symbol of their success.

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Is Meghalaya the wettest place on Earth?

Mawsynram in Meghalaya is the wettest place, based on rainfall in the world. Located in the Khasi Hills, it receives about 11,872mm (nearly 467 inches) of average annual rainfall According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the region received 26,000mm of rainfall in 1985. The mountainous terrain of Mawsynram and the nearby Cherrapunji, the second wettest place, are known for their lush greenery and scenic beauty The “living bridges are one of the most beautiful features of this region. These have been created by the local people by training the roots of rubber trees into natural bridges. With the root systems constantly growing, these bridges are self-sustaining.

Primarily due to the high altitude, it seldom gets truly hot in Mawsynram. Average monthly temperatures range from around 11 °C in January to just above 20 °C in August. The village also experiences a brief but noticeably drier season from December until February, when monthly precipitation on average does not exceed 30 millimetres (1.2 in). The little precipitation during the village’s “low sun” season is something that is shared by many areas with this type of climate.

Three reasons can be cited for high rainfall at Mawsynram:

The warm moist winds of the northward-moving air from the Bay of Bengal during the monsoon, which cover an extensive area but are forced to converge into the narrower zone over the Khasi Hills, thus concentrating their moisture.
The alignment of the Khasi Hills (east to west) places them directly in the path of the airflow from the Bay of Bengal, producing a significant uplift (plus cooling, further condensation and thus more rain).
Finally, uplift over the Khasi Hills is virtually continuous in the monsoon period because the lifted air is constantly being pulled up by vigorous winds in the upper atmosphere; hence, the rainfall is more or less continuous.

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What type of lake is Crawford Lake?

Sediment deposited at Crawford Lake in Ontario, Canada, provides solid evidence that Earth entered a new human-driven geological chapter-the Anthropocene epoch- some seven decades ago, a team of scientists said recently. The members of the Anthropocene Working Group plan to submit the evidence to the international scientific body responsible for naming geological chapters in Earth’s history. The scientists conducted research at a dozen sites worldwide and cited Crawford Lake as the location that provided particularly persuasive geological markers that the Anthropocene epoch- essentially the age of humans – had arrived in the 1950s.

ANTHROPOCENE – – ETYMOLOGY

The word Anthropocene is derived from the Greek words “anthropo” for “man” and “cene” for “new”.

The idea of the Anthropocene was proposed at a science conference more than 20 years ago by the late Nobel Prize-winning chemist Paul Crutzen.

Teams of scientists have debated the issue since then and finally set up the working group to study whether it was needed and, if so, when the epoch would start and where it would be commemorated.

THE LAKE IN CANADA AND THE FINDINGS

From climate change to species loss and pollution, humans have etched their impact on Earth with such strength and permanence since the middle of the 20th century that a special team of scientists says a new geologic epoch began then. Called the Anthropocene, this epoch started sometime between 1950 and 1954, according to the scientists.

While there is evidence worldwide that captures the impact of burning fossil fuels, detonating nuclear weapons and dumping fertilizers and plastics on land and in waterways, the scientists are proposing a small but deep lake outside of Toronto, Canada – Crawford Lake to place a historic marker. “It’s quite clear that the scale of change has intensified unbelievably and that has to be human impact,” said University of Leicester geologist Colin Waters, who chaired the Anthropocene Working Group.

The  scientists aims to determine a specific start date of the Anthropocene by measuring plutonium levels at the bottom of Crawford Lake. The lake which is 79 ft deep and 258,333 sq ft in area was chosen over 11 other sites because the annual effects of human activity on the earth’s soil, atmosphere and biology are so clearly preserved in its layers of sediment. That includes everything from nuclear fallout to species-threatening pollution to steadily rising temperatures. There are distinct and multiple signals starting around 1950 in Crawford Lake – showing that “the effects of humans overwhelm the Earth system,” said Francine McCarthy, a committee member who specialises in that site as an Earth sciences professor at Brock University in Canada.

‘The remarkably preserved annual record of deposition in Crawford Lake is truly amazing,” said U.S. National Academies of Sciences President Marcia McNutt, who wasn’t part of the – committee. “If you know your Greek tragedies you know power, hubris, and tragedy go hand in hand,” said Harvard science historian Naomi Oreskes, a working group member. “If we don’t address the harmful aspects of human activities, most obviously disruptive climate change, we are headed for tragedy.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Geologists measure time in eons, eras, periods, epochs and ages.

The scientific working group is proposing that Anthropocene epoch followed the Holocene Epoch, which started about 11,700 years ago at the end of the Ice Age.

They are also proposing that it starts a new age, called Crawfordian after the lake chosen as its starting point.

* The reason geologists didn’t declare the Anthropocene the start of a bigger and more important time measurement, such as a period, is because the current Quaternary Period, which began nearly 2.6 million years ago, is based on permanent ice on Earth’s poles, which still exist. But in a few hundred years, if climate change continues and those disappear, it may be time to change that. AGENCIES

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What makes country Georgia special?

Georgia is a country located at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is part of the Caucasus region, bound by the Black Sea, with Russia. Armenia, and Azerbaijan as its neighbouring countries. Even though it is quite small, the country has a lot to offer. It boasts of ancient cities, vibrant culture, and breathtaking landscapes. It is also referred to as ‘Sakartvelo’, as Georgians call themselves Kartavelians- meaning “land where Kartavelis Live”.

The Georgian kingdom has been under the hegemony of various regional powers, including the Mongols, the Ottoman Empire, and various dynasties of Persia. It was later invaded and annexed by the Soviet Union until the country got its independence in the early 1990s. Tbilisi is the current capital and largest city. It gets its name from an old Georgian word “tbili” which means “warm”. This old town features narrow streets and a variety of architectural styles, reflecting the influences of the various empires. making it feel like a journey through time. Most of the architecture consists of churches. monasteries with fine metalwork representing the Byzantine style

Georgian is the official language spoken, which is one of the oldest languages in the world. Strongly influenced by the Greek and Persian, Georgian evolved around 5th century. The interesting fact about the language is that it does not use gender or capital letters. It has 33 alphabets, with many dialects. Other Caucasian languages are also spoken in minority.

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