Category Social Sciences

Why were the temples of Abu Simbel moved?

When construction began on the high Dam at Aswan, in southern Egypt, it was realized that the temples of Abu Simbel would be completely submerged as the waters to the Nile rose behind the dam to create a much needed reservoir.

       In 1959 Egypt and its southern neighbor Sudan appealed for help to the United Nations educational, scientific and cultural organization. The first archaeological surveys began in 1960 and U.N.E.S.C.O’s response grew into what was to become the biggest archaeological rescue operation in history.

      Abu Simbel consists of three temples of Rameses II built more than 3,000 years ago. The most important and impressive temple included four gigantic seated statues of the king, each 65 feet high. By 1968 these four enormous monuments to Rameses had been cut out of the rock and reconstructed, exactly as they were, high up on a cliff.

      Six more great statues of Rameses and his queen (about 30 feet high) were also excavated and moved to a dry sanctuary above the old river bed, along with everything else that could be salvaged.

Where is the world’s smallest country?

The smallest count in the world is the Vatican City. The Vatican is an independent and sovereign state within the boundaries of Rome in Italy.

   Although the Vatican has always been the spiritual and administrative centre of the Roman Catholic Church, it did not become an independent state until 1929.

    The city state has a daily news paper, a railway station, and its own bank. It has an area of 0.17 square miles and a population of about 1,000.

     There are no frontier formalities for those entering Vatican City where millions yearly visit St Peter’s and the exhibition galleries.

    The chief treasures to be seen are the Michelangelo frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, paintings by Raphael, Fra Angelico and Caravaggio, the frescoes of Pinturicchio and the codex Vaticanus of the Greek Bible.

Where is the Gulf Stream?

          The Gulf Stream is in the Atlantic. It is a warm ocean current which flows steadily from the Gulf of Mexico north-eastwards. One branch reaches the Canary Islands, turns southwards and moves back across the south Atlantic. The other branch flows past the western coasts of northern Europe.

           This current, which is like a river in the sea, is 50 miles wide at its narrowest and nearly 2,000 feet deep. It sweeps along with it many forms of warm water life from the tropics, but these die before they reach the European coasts where the warm water mixes with cold water moving down from the Arctic.

      The Gulf Stream has a great effect on the weather of Britain and Norway. The prevailing south-westerly winds are warmed by it and collect moisture which turns into rain. In winter the warm water keeps open the cold northern ports, such as Hammerfest, in Norway, and Murmansk, in the Soviet Union, while harbours in the Baltic, many miles farther south, are blocked with ice. In summer it causes bright flowers to bloom on the West coast of Spitzbergen 500 miles north of Norway. In contrast, the east coast, cooled by arctic water, is bleak and colorless.

       In 1912 the United States congress was asked for money to build a jetty which, it was thought, would divert the Gulf Stream and make it flow up the east coast of the United States. Although this scheme was unlikely to be successful, it was just as well for Britain and Norway that it was never tried. Without the Gulf Stream, Britain’s winters would be very much longer and colder, and Norway’s harbours, which are vital to the country, would be frozen over for many months.

Where was the first Zoo?

 

 

The first zoo was formed in China in the 12th century B.C. But it was not called a zoo. When, the ancient Chinese king who started it, wanted to collect different types of animals from all over his empire. He kept them in what he called a “garden of intelligence”, near his palace.

      Some of the largest zoos are in North America. There are big ones in the Bronx, New York City, and in Washington and San Diego.

When do birds migrate?

Million of birds of many different varieties migrate at the end of summer. With unfailing regularity they leave the regions where they were born to fly to warmer climates for the winter. The following springs they return to their breeding grounds.

       Each year these migratory birds travel as much as 20,000 miles, finding their day back on time with extraordinary precision. Some travel as individuals.

     Migration is triggered off by the length of daylight, which apparently affects the birds’ nervous systems. When the days get shorter the birds receive the signal to leave for their warmer winter grounds, and, when the daylight increases to a certain level, they receive another signal to return home.

Where was Valhalla?

 

In ancient legends about the Norsemen, Valhalla was the place where all the brave warriors went when they died.

     The kind of man they most admired was one who had great courage and a spirit of adventure. The warriors who went to Valhalla were supposed to lead a very happy life, eating boar’s meat daily and amusing themselves by fighting each other. They were supposed to live in Valhalla till Doomsday, led by Odin, father of the gods, they would march out of the 640 doors of the palace to fight against the giants.