The car is one of the most recognizeable inventions of the modern era. Without cars there would be no suburbs, car trips, endless drop-offs and pick-ups most parents are all to familiar with. Here are some fun facts about cars and their colorful past.
* The first cars did not have steering wheels. Drivers steered with a lever.
* The New York City Police Department used bicycles to pursue speeding motorists in 1898.
* The first speeding ticket was issued in 1902.
* In 1916, 55 percent of the cars in the world were Model T Fords, a record that has never been beaten.
* The first gas gauge appeared in cars in 1922.
* In 1923, 173 new inventions by women for cars had been reported. Among these inventions were a carburetor and an electric engine starter.
* The first car radio was invented in 1929.
* Buick introduced the first electric turn signals in 1938.
* The Peanuts characters were first animated in 1957 for a Ford Fairlaine automobile commercial.
* Most American car horns beep in the key of F.
* The automobile is the most recycled consumer product in the world today
Car fun Facts
BEATLES TIMELINE FACTS
July 7, 1940 - Richard Starkey (Ringo Starr) is born in Liverpool.
October 9, 1940 - John Lennon is born in Liverpool.
June 18, 1942 - Paul McCartney is born in Liverpool.
February 24, 1943 - George Harrison is born in Liverpool.
1957 - John Lennon, age 16, forms the Quarry Men, a band comprised of pals from his school, Quarry Bank Grammar.
July 6, 1957 - Paul McCartney, age 15, meets John at a Quarry Men performance at Woolton Parish Church fete. Soon after, John invites him to join the band.
February 1958 - George Harrison, age 15, joins the group.
January 1960 - Stu Sutcliffe, a friend of John's at Liverpool College of Art, is asked to join the group as bass guitarist. The band changes its name to Silver Beetles, then Silver Beatles.
August 1960 - Drummer Pete Best joins group, now known as simply the Beatles. He accompanies the band to Hamburg where, over five visits between now and December 1962, the group hones its sound at the Indra, Kaiserkeller, Top Ten and Star clubs.
December 27, 1960 - Having returned to Liverpool the Beatles appear on this date at a local public hall, Litherland Town Hall, prompting fan frenzy. Their popularity secure, they work the North West of Britain steadily to committed followers for the next two years.
Spring 1961 - Stuart Sutcliffe quits the Beatles.
November 1961 - The Beatles meet Brian Epstein, who becomes their manager. They start to polish their image and seek a recording contract.
January 1, 1962 - They audition (unsuccessfully) for Decca Records in London.
April 10, 1962 - Stuart Sutcliffe dies of a brain hemorrhage in Hamburg.
June 6, 1962 - The Beatles audition for George Martin, a producer at EMI. He signs them, and becomes their producer throughout the Beatles' career.
August 16, 1962 - Pete Best leaves the Beatles.
August 18, 1962 - Ringo joins the band.
October 5, 1962 - The Beatles' first single, "Love Me Do" is released in the United Kingdom. It rises to a respectable #17 on the British charts.
January 11, 1963 - The Beatles" second single, "Please Please Me," is released in the U.K.. It goes to #1 on the British charts on February 22 and stays there for two weeks.
February 11, 1963 - In a single day, the Beatles record their first full album, also entitled "Please Please Me." They record ten songs, which were added to the previously recorded "Love Me Do," "Please Please Me," "P.S. I Love You," and "Ask Me Why."
March 22, 1963 - The album "Please Please Me" is released in the U.K. and becomes a runaway hit. Once it hits number one, it remains there for 29 weeks. The Beatles have taken Britain by storm and successive singles all hit number one: "From Me To You," "She Loves You," "I Want To Hold Your Hand." The album is released in America in July with the title, "Introducing the Beatles," and initially flops.
October 1963 - Beatlemania spreads through Europe. (This is the month biographers and Beatles scholars often point to as the start of the Beatles' phenomenal popularity).
October 13, 1963 - Beatles play on ITV's "Sunday Night at the London Palladium" which is broadcast to 15 million viewers. (This show in the United Kingdom was analogous to "The Ed Sullivan Show" in the U.S.)
November 4, 1963 - The Beatles appear at the Royal Command Performance, performing for the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon. Before beginning "Twist and Shout," John tweaks the crowd with his comment, "Will the people in the cheaper seats clap their hands? And the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewelry."
November 22, 1963 - The band's second album "With the Beatles" is released in the U.K., remaining in the top position on the British charts for 21 weeks. It features the songs "All My Loving," "Please Mr. Postman," "Roll Over Beethoven," and others. It succeeded the first album in the number one spot, and together the Beatles were top on the album charts for 51 consecutive weeks.
November 29, 1963 - The single "I Want To Hold Your Hand" is released in the U.K. and immediately hits number one on the charts. It is released in the U.S. December 26 that year, and spends seven weeks at number one.
January 20, 1964 - The album, "Meet the Beatles!" is released by Capitol Records in the U.S. On February 15 it hits number one on Billboard's chart in America, where it remains for 11 weeks.
February 7, 1964 - The Beatles land at JFK Airport in New York. The British Invasion begins. Fans surround the Plaza Hotel, where the Beatles are staying.
February 9, 1964 - The Beatles perform on "The Ed Sullivan Show" and are watched by a record-setting 73 million people (23,240,000 households, according to A.C. Nielsen). They perform five songs, "All My Loving," "Till There Was You," "She Loves You," "I Saw Her Standing There" and "I Want To Hold Your Hand."
February 11, 1964 - The Beatles give their first live performance in the U.S. at the Washington Coliseum in Washington, D.C.
February 12, 1964 - The Beatles perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
February 16, 1964 - The Beatles perform for the second time on "The Ed Sullivan Show," performing live from the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida. Approximately 70 million people tune in (22,445,000 households).
February 23, 1964 - The Beatles appear for the third time on "The Ed Sullivan Show," this time with a taped performance of three songs.
March 2, 1964 - Filming commences on the Beatles' first film, "A Hard Day's Night," and is completed in eight weeks.
March 31, 1964 - The Beatles hold the top five slots on Billboard's chart: (1) Can't Buy Me Love, (2) Twist and Shout, (3) She Loves You, (4) I Want To Hold Your Hand (5) Please Please Me--a musical first.
April 4, 1964 - The Beatles hold 14 slots on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.
July 6, 1964 - "A Hard Day's Night" premieres in London. It cost $500,000. The film is well-received by critics and the public.
July 10, 1964 - The album "A Hard Day's Night" is released in the U.K., hitting number one there, as well as in America after its U.S. release in August.
August 11, 1964 - "A Hard Day's Night" opens in America and is a huge hit.
August 19, 1964 - The Beatles perform at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California, in the first concert of their USA/Canada tour, which lasts a month.
December 4, 1964 - The album "Beatles For Sale" is released in the U.K. and hits number one.
February 23, 1965 - Shooting begins in the Bahamas on the Beatles' second film, "Help!"
June 12, 1965 - The Beatles are named Members of the British Empire by the Queen, and in October they are presented with medals at Buckingham Palace.
July 29, 1965 - The Beatles second feature film, "Help!" opens in London. It opens in the U.S. on August 11 that year. It cost $1.5 million to make and was very successful.
August 6, 1965 - The album, "Help!" is released in the U.K. and becomes a number one hit there and in the U.S.
August 15, 1965 - The Beatles play for a record-breaking 55,600 people at New York's Shea Stadium, grossing $304,000 dollars. The Beatles' share was $160,000.
December 3, 1965 - The album, "Rubber Soul," is released in the U.K. and goes to number one there and in the U.S.
August 5, 1966 - The album, "Revolver," is released in the U.K. and hits number one there and in the U.S.
August 29, 1966 - The Beatles give their last live concert, in San Francisco, California.
June 1, 1967 - The album, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," is released in the U.K. It tops the charts all over the world, holding the number one slot in Britain for 27 weeks and for 19 in America. It receives four Grammys including Best Album.
June 25, 1967 - The Beatles star in "Our World," a two-hour satellite television program transmitted live by satellite to five continents and 24 countries. They perform "All You Need is Love." This was the first live television satellite program to air worldwide.
August 27, 1967 - Brian Epstein dies. The Beatles learn of his death while they are visiting Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Bangor, Wales. The spiritual leader is introducing people to Transcendental Meditation (TM).
November 27, 1967 - The album, "Magical Mystery Tour," is released in the U.S. where it hits number one. It is released in the U.K. eleven days later as an extended play disc, without three singles.
December 26, 1967 - "Magical Mystery Tour," the Beatles' hour-long television special airs in the U.K., where it is seen by approximately 14 million viewers and not liked by critics.
February 1968 - The Beatles travel to Rishikesh, India, to attend a TM seminar hosted by Maharishi at his center. They stay a few weeks.
May 14, 1968 - John and Paul appear on "The Tonight Show" (with guest host Joe Garagiola) to announce that their company, Apple, desires to help young artists.
July 17, 1968 - "Yellow Submarine," the animated film, premieres in London. It opens in America several months later and becomes a great success.
November 22, 1968 - The album, "The Beatles" ('White Album'), is released and zooms to number one in Britain and America.
January 13, 1969 - The soundtrack, "Yellow Submarine," is released in the U.S. and reaches the number two position on the British and American charts (number one was held by the White Album).
January 30, 1969 - The Beatles perform together for the last time live, singing many songs, on the roof of Apple's London office. The scenes were included in what became the documentary "Let It Be."
Mid-September, 1969 - John decides to "divorce" the Beatles, but he does not announce it publicly because of contract negotiations taking place with EMI. By this time, George and Ringo have each quit the band for short spells, returning soon after.
September 26, 1969 - The Beatles last studio album, "Abbey Road," is released in the U.K. It tops the charts there and in America.
November 25, 1969 - John returns his Member of the British Empire medal to Buckingham Palace as an anti-war protest, and, he says in his letter to the Queen, in protest against his single "Cold Turkey" slipping down the charts.
April 10, 1970 - Paul announces publicly that he has left the Beatles.
May 8, 1970 - The Beatles last album, "Let It Be" (recorded before "Abbey Road"), is released in the U.K. and hits number one there and in the U.S.
May 20, 1970 - The movie, "Let It Be," premieres in London. None of the Beatles attend.
Weird, Strange but true facts about the Earth
In 1783 an Icelandic eruption threw up enough dust to temporarily block out the sun over Europe.
About 20 to 30 volcanoes erupt each year, mostly under the sea.
A huge underground river runs underneath the Nile, with six times more water than the river above.
Lake Bosumtwi in Ghana formed in a hollow made by a meteorite.
Beaver Lake, in Yellowstone Park, USA, was artificially created by beaver damming.
Off the coast of Florida there is an underwater hotel. Guests have to dive to the entrance.
Venice in Italy is built on 118 sea islets joined by 400 bridges. It is gradually sinking into the water.
The Ancient Egyptians worshipped a sky goddess called Nut.
The world's windiest place is Commonwealth Bay, Antartica.
In 1934, a gust of wind reached 371 km/h on Mount Washington in New Hampshire, USA.
American Roy Sullivan has been struck by lighting a record seven times.
The desert baobab tree can store up to 1000 litres of water in its trunk.
The oldest living tree is a California bristlecone pine name 'Methuselah'. It is about 4600 years old. The largest tree in the world is a giant sequoia growing in California. It is 84 meters tall and measures 29 meters round the trunk. The fastest growing tree is the eucalyptus. It can grow 10 meters a year.
The Antartic notothenia fish has a protein in its blood that acts like antifreeze and stops the fish freezing in icy sea.
The USA uses 29% of the world's petrol and 33% of the world's electricity.
The industrial complex of Cubatao in Brazil is known as the Valley of Death because its pollution has destroyed the trees and rivers nearby.
Tibet is the highest country in the world. Its average height above sea level is 4500 meters.
Some of the oldest mountains in the world are the Highlands in Scotland. They are estimated to be about 400 million years old.
Fresh water from the River Amazon can be found up to 180 km out to sea.
The White Sea, in Russia, has the lowest temperature, only -2 degrees centigrade. The Persian Gulf is the warmest sea. In the summer its temperature reaches 35.6 degrees centigrade.
There is no land at all at the North Pole, only ice on top of sea. The Arctic Ocean has about 12 million sq km of floating ice and has the coldest winter temperature of -34 degrees centigrade.
The Antarctic ice sheet is 3-4 km thick, covers 13 million sq km and has temperatures as low as -70 degrees centigrade.
Over 4 million cars in Brazil are now running on gasohol instead of petrol. Gasohol is a fuel made from sugar cane.
Cricket {Sports} ..intresting facts shared
The first international cricket match was held between the US and Canada in 1844. The match was played in New York and Canada won by 23 runs.
India were all out for 54 in October 2000, their lowest ever total in One Day Internationals against Sri Lanka.
Sir D. Bradman of Australia is considered the bestbatsman of all times. He played 80 test innings with an average of 99.9. He scored 29 centuries and 13 fifties. His highest score was 334.
Australia holds the record of most consecutive wons in test matches i.e. 16 consecutive test matches won.
West Indies holds the record of Most consecutive test matches drwan i.e. 10 test matches drawn consecutively.
Pakistan's Mohammed Yousuf holds the record of most runs in a calender year and most centuries in a calender year. He broke both these records in 2006.
Australia has the best win record in test matches, that is 63.92% wins, they have won 319 of 686 test matches since march 1887.
Shahid Afridi of Pakistan scored fastes ODI century in 1996. It was scored on 37 balls. He still holds that record
The longest test match of all was played between England and South Africa at Durban in 1938-39. This was a timeless test which lasted for 9 days, despite which the match ended in a draw since the England players had to leave to catch the boat back to England!
Only four test series have ended 0-0 with all five matches being drawn. India was involved in three of them, including two in a row against Pakistan.
Two spectators were killed and several injured when a stand collapsed during the India v England game at Nagpur in January 1985
England's John Jameson, who was born in India, made his highest Test score( 82 ) against India.
South African player Herschelle Gibbs was banned for two test matches after abusing Pakistani spectators in the first test match of a 3 test match series against pakistan in 2007.
At an individual level, 1982 Duleep Mendis of Sri Lanka scored 105 in both innings against India. He is the only batsman to hit identical hundreds in both innings of a test match.
Hinduism Facts...
The term ‘Hinduism’ is really a term used by travellers to India in the 18th and 19th centuries to describe the different but related religious ideas, cultures and philosophies which they found there.
It has been suggested that it is more accurate to speak of “Hinduisms” rather than a single tradition. Hindu religious leaders prefer to use the term Sanatana Dharma (the universal law of order – unity in diversity) instead of Hinduism. (The word ‘Hindu’ stems from the Sanskrit term to describe India – Sapta Sindhu [pronounced Hapta Hindu] – the land of seven great rivers: Ganges, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Godavari, Indus, Narmada, and Cauvery.)
The Hindu traditions are believed to have come to India through the arrival in India of the Aryans. They came from the west around 1700-1500 BCE, though some dispute this and point to earlier traditions native to the Indus Valley.
The oldest of the Hindu scriptures, the Vedas, were written in the period between 1500 and 500 BCE, known as the Vedic Period.
The origins of the Om (sometimes given as Aum) symbol are obscure but the sound is believed to be an aspect of the creation of the cosmos.
Another significant Hindu symbol is the swastika, which is found all over Hindu temples, signs, altars, pictures and iconography in India and Nepal. It is seen as pointing in all four directions (North, East, South and West) and thus signifies stability and groundedness. The swastika is considered extremely holy and auspicious by all Hindus and is regularly used to decorate all sorts of items to do with Hindu culture. (The symbol is found widely in the ancient world but was taken over by the Nazis in the 1920s as a symbol of white supremacy.
Since the Second World War (and following Indian independence) many have also migrated to Britain, Ireland and North America, where there are now substantial Hindu communities.
Hindu temples range from the small and simple to the very grand and elaborately decorated, outside as well as inside. Each temple has at least one priest who looks after the images of the gods and leads the prayers.
People may come to worship individually or in groups. Group worship normally involves the singing of hymns from the Vedas, saying prayers and lighting a small fire, and waving a live flame over the images of the gods.
The popular festival of Diwali, which is also celebrated by Sikhs, marks the start of the New Year (in October or November) for many Hindus.
The Gayatri Mantra from the Rig Veda (which altogether contains over one thousand poems) is used by many Hindus in morning worship:
“We meditate on the most excellent splendour of the Creator.
May we be guided and inspired by his wisdom.”
The Upanishads (meaning ‘sit down near’ or ‘lessons’) are the last part of each Veda. They were written around 600 BCE and introduced the idea of reincarnation. People used to sit down near wise teachers and learn from them.
The Sutras (meaning ‘threads’) are short sayings and verses based on the Vedas and were written between 500 and 100 BCE.
There are also several famous epic spiritual poems, best known of which are the Ramayana which tells the story of Prince Rama (written around 100 BCE and 100 CE) and the Bhagavad-gita (the Song of God) written around 250 CE.
Hunger (Hungry ) Facts...
1) Hunger and malnutrition kill more people every year than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined.
2) Every five seconds a child dies because he or she was hungry.
3) There are more than 800 million people around the world who know what it is like to go to bed hungry.
4) The world produces enough food to feed everyone but still these 800 million remain chronically hungry.
5) In Sub-Saharan Africa alone, there are 198 million hungry people.
6) More than 2 million people are likely to be dependent on food aid in the Darfur region of western Sudan by next year.
7) Almost 10 million people are killed around the world each year by hunger and malnutrition. That is more than the total number of people who died in World War I.
8) One out of every three people in Sub-Saharan Africa suffers from hunger.
9) Almost a quarter of the world's hungry people live in Africa.
10) Good nutrition helps prolongs the life of HIV sufferers.
11) Africa has already lost more farmers to AIDS (7 million) than there are farmers in Europe and North America.
12) By 2020, HIV is expected to have killed 20% of southern Africa's farm workers.
13) HIV and hunger work together. Malnutrition accelerates the progress of HIV. HIV worsens malnutrition.
14) There are 11 million AIDS orphans in sub-Saharan Africa. Most never learnt how their parents grew or prepared food.
15) 10 pence a day is all it takes to feed a hungry child at school.
16) Hunger is inherited. Each year 17 million children are born underweight because their mothers are malnourished.
17) Providing pregnant mothers with nutritionally balanced food can reduce the likelihood of an underweight baby by 32%.
18) In the 1990s, global poverty dropped by 20% but the number of undernourished people around the world increased.
19) The World Food Programme devotes a larger proportion of its assistance (on average half) to Africa than any other UN agency or individual government donor.
20) Food aid from the World Food Programme has reached 1.2 billion of the world's poor over the past 4 decades - that's almost the equal to the population of India.
TEN MYTHS ABOUT NUCLEAR WEAPONS
1. Nuclear weapons were needed to defeat Japan in World War II. This is not the opinion of many leading US military figures in the war. General Dwight Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe during World War II and later US president, wrote, “I thought that our country should avoid shocking world opinion by the use of a weapon whose employment was, I thought, no longer mandatory as a measure to save American lives.
It was my belief that Japan was, at that very moment, seeking some way to surrender with a minimum loss of ‘face’….”
2. Nuclear weapons prevented a war between the United States and the Soviet Union. There were many deadly conflicts and “proxy” wars carried out by the superpowers in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The Vietnam War, which took several million lives, is a prominent example. These wars made the supposed nuclear peace very bloody and deadly.
3. Nuclear threats have gone away since the end of the Cold War. In the aftermath of the Cold War, a variety of new nuclear threats have emerged. Among these are the following dangers:
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Increased chances of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of terrorists willing to use them;
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Policies of the US government to make nuclear weapons smaller and more usable;
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Use of nuclear weapons by accident, particularly because of decaying Russian infrastructure; and
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Spread of nuclear weapons to other states that may perceive them to be an “equalizer” against a more
powerful state.
4. The United States needs nuclear weapons for its national security. US national security would be far improved if the US took a leadership role in seeking to eliminate nuclear weapons throughout the world. Nuclear weapons are the only weapons that could actually destroy the United States, and their existence and proliferation threaten US security.
5. Nuclear weapons make a country safer. By threatening massive retaliation, the argument goes, nuclear weapons prevent an attacker from starting a war. There are many ways, though, in which deterrence could fail, including misunderstandings, faulty communications, irrational leaders, miscalculations and accidents.
6. No leader would be crazy enough to actually use nuclear weapons. US leaders, considered by some to be highly rational, have used nuclear weapons in war, against Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Globally and historically, leaders have done their best to prove that they would use nuclear weapons.
7. Nuclear weapons are a cost-effective method of national defense. The cost of US nuclear weapons research, development, testing, deployment and maintenance has exceeded $7.5 trillion.
8. Nuclear weapons are well protected and there is little chance that terrorists could get their hands on one. In the aftermath of the Cold War, the ability of the Russians to protect their nuclear forces has declined precipitously.
In addition, a coup in a country with nuclear weapons, such as Pakistan, could lead to a government coming to power that was willing to provide nuclear weapons to terrorists.
9. The United States is working to fulfill its nuclear disarmament obligations. The United States has failed for nearly four decades to fulfill its obligations under Article VI of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, requiring good faith negotiations to achieve nuclear disarmament. The United States has failed to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and has withdrawn from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
10. Nuclear weapons are needed to combat threats from terrorists and “rogue states.”
The threat of nuclear force cannot act as a deterrent against terrorists because they do not have a territory to retaliate against. If the leaders of a rogue state do not use a rational calculus regarding their losses from retaliation, deterrence can fail
More Details at :
http://www.wagingpeace.org/articles/2007/10/facts_myths.pdf
Kohinoor, World's Best Diamond
Information about the famous Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
Discover some fascinating information about the famous Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
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Facts and Information about the Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
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The Curse of the Koh-i-Noor diamond
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History & Timeline of the Kohinoor Diamond
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Kohinoor Diamond - one of the World's most famous diamonds the Koh-i-Noor diamonds
Description of the Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
The Kohinoor Diamond is one of the most famous diamonds in the world. The Kohinoor diamond was first mentioned in 1306 when it was taken from a Rajah of Malwa, whose family had held the diamond for centuries. It was described as weighing 186 carats and was an oval cut white diamond - the shape and size of a small hen's egg. The Kohinoor diamond belonged to various Indian and Persian rulers but it became part of the Crown Jewels of England at the time that Queen Victoria was proclaimed empress of India. The Kohinoor was re-cut at this time and now weighs 108.93 carats and is kept in the Tower of London.
Origin / Meaning of the name Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
The Kohinoor (Koh-i-Noor) originated from India in Golconda at the Kollur mine and was specifically mined from the *Rayalaseema diamond mine (meaning *Land of Stones) during the rule of the Kakatiya dynasty. The Kohinoor was then passed from one ruling dynasty to the next. The original name of the diamond was ‘Samantik Mani’ (Prince and leader among diamonds). In 1739 Nadir Shah, the King of Persia, invaded India and was said to refer to the diamond as the "Mountain of Light". The Persian-Arabic words for "Mountain of Light" were Koh-i-Noor. The magnificence of the diamond and its value symbolized the power of an Empire. It was said that "He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all its misfortunes." Possession of the Kohinoor led to murder, torture, mutilation and treachery and stories of the Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond...
The Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
The Curse of Kohinoor Diamond dates back to a Hindu text from the time of the first authenticated appearance of the diamond in 1306. The Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond reads:
"He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all
its misfortunes. Only God, or a woman, can wear it with impunity."
The history and lives of the rulers who owned the Koh-i-Noor diamond were filled with violence, murders, mutilations, torture and treachery. Whether or not people believe in the Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond, the history of the stone is undeniable - and the threat of the Koh-i-Noor curse is enough to make people cautious. The British Royal family were obviously aware of the Curse of the Kohinoor and from the reign of Queen Victoria, when the Kohinoor diamond came into their possession, it has always gone to the wife of the male heir to the British throne. The History Timeline details the story of the Kohinoor diamond.
History of the Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
Myths and legends surround the stone. It was of incredible value and described by one of its owners, the Emperor Babur, the Great Mogul, as "Worth the value of one day's food for all the people in the world". The men who fought for it, and the Kingdoms and great Empires that were won and lost, produced many stories of ill-luck that plagued the owners and became part of the history of the Kohinoor diamond.
The History Timeline of the Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
The following timeline & history of the Kohinoor details important historical events and dates:
Dates in History of the Kohinoor Timeline & History of Kohinoor Diamond (aka Koh-i-Noor)
1200 - 1300's
There were many dynasties who owned the Kohinoor diamond including the Slave dynasty (1206-90), the Khilji dynasty (1290-1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320-1413), the Sayyid dynasty (1414-51), and the Lodi dynasty (1451-1526)These were all brief reigns ending with war and violence
1306 In 1306 the Rajah of Malwa was forced to give the diamond to the rulers of the Kakatiya Empire
1323
Soon after, in 1323, the Kakatiya Empire fell after a rule stretching from 1083 to 1323. The diamond was taken by Muhammad bin Tughluq who became the Sultan of Delhi from 1325 to 1351
1323 - 1526
The diamond came into the possession of the Delhi Sultanate which consisted of many Muslim dynasties that ruled in India to 1526. During the Delhi Sultanate Muslim armies consisting of Mongol, Turkic, Persian, and Afghan warriors invaded India
1526
In 1526 the Kohinoor Diamond passed to the Mughal Empire when the Timurid Prince Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans, at the First Battle of Panipat. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol
Babur mentions in his memoirs, the Baburnama, that the diamond had belonged to an un-named Rajah of Malwa
The Mughal Empire ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for two hundred years and the Kohinoor passed from one Mughal Emperor to the next. Violence and bloodshed followed these years often marked by the sons of the Emperors rebelling and overtaking their fathers
The Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1592 – 1666), who was famous for building the Taj Mahal, had the Kohinoor Diamond placed into his ornate Peacock Throne
1639
The Koh-i-Noor changed ownership several more times until the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan took the throne. In 1639 a struggle for the Empire started between his four sons - Dara Shikoh, Shah Shuja, Aurangzeb and Murad Baksh when brother killed brother. Shah Shuja executed his brother Dara Shikoh and in then 1658 Aurangzeb defeated Shuja and Shuja who was tortured to death together with all his family
1665
In 1665 Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605 – 1689), French traveller and pioneer of jewelry and diamond trade with India, recorded his experiences in which he describes a great Mughal diamond said to be the biggest in the world. It was called the "Great Mogul" by Tavernier
1739
In 1739 the Persian King Nadir Shah invaded the Mughal Empire defeating their Emperor and stole the great Koh-i-Noor diamond (Nadir Shah is credited with giving the diamond the name it is known by today). The Koh-i-Noor Diamond was taken to Persia
1747
In 1747 the empire of Nadir Shah quickly disintegrated after he was assassinated - the Curse of the Kohinoor strikes again? After Nadir Shah's assassination, the diamond passed to his successors, each were dethroned and ritually blinded (Blinding was used to render an enemy powerless and make him a burden on his community.)
1800
1800 - Ranjit Singh took the Empire and possession of the Kohinoor diamond. Rajah Ranjit Singh died in 1839 and his successors lacked his bravery and vision
The Sikh kingdom became weak and the British conquered India which became part of the British Empire and the British Raj or rule gained control of India from 1858 - 1947
The British Governor-General of India, Lord Dalhousie, was responsible for the British acquiring the Koh-i-Noor
1851
1851 - Dalhousie arranged that the Kohinoor diamond should be presented by Ranjit Singh's successor, Duleep Singh, to Queen Victoria, the Empress of India
1851
1851 - The Great Exhibition was staged in Hyde Park in London when the Koh-i-Noor was put on view by the British public
1852
In 1852 Prince Albert ordered that the Koh-i-Noor diamond to be re-cut from 186 carats to its current 105 carats thus increasing its brilliance. The Koh-i-Noor diamond was mounted in a tiara with more than two thousand other diamonds
The Koh-i-Noor diamond was then used as the centre piece of the crowns of the Queen consorts to the British Kings. The Queen Consorts Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary wore the crowns
1936
In 1936, the stone was set into the crown of the wife of King George VI, Queen Elizabeth (later known as the Queen Mother), wife of King George VI
The British Royal family were obviously aware of the Curse of the Kohinoor - "He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all its misfortunes. Only God, or a woman, can wear it with impunity." And from the reign of Queen Victoria the Kohinoor diamond has always gone to the wife of the male heir to the British throne
In 1850, it was given to Queen Victoria in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Oriental India Company. The Queen asked for the stone to be cut again, its 186ct then became 108,93. In 1911, a new crown was made for Queen Mary with the Koh-I-Noor as central stone. In 1937, it was transferred to the crown of Queen Elizabeth for her Crowning.
The diamond is now, along with other famous diamonds, part of the Imperial State Crown of Great Britain. The government of India has repeatedly lobbied the British Government and the British monarchy for the return of this diamond, claiming legitimate ownership. As of 2003, nothing has come of these requests.
India Facts
India is the world's largest, oldest, continuous civilization.
2. India never invaded any country in her last 10000 years of history.
3. India is the world's largest democracy.
4. Varanasi, also known as Benares, was called "the ancient city" when Lord Buddha visited it in 500 B.C.E, and is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in the world today.
5. India invented the Number System. Zero was invented by Aryabhatta.
6. The World's first university was established in Takshashila in 700BC. More than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects. The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education.
7. Sanskrit is the mother of all the European languages. Sanskrit is the most suitable language for computer software - a report in Forbes magazine, July 1987.
8. Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine known to humans. Charaka, the father of medicine consolidated Ayurveda 2500 years ago. Today Ayurveda is fast regaining its rightful place in our civilization.
9. Although modern images of India often show poverty and lack of development, India was the richest country on earth until the time of British invasion in the early 17th Century. Christopher Columbus was attracted by India's wealth.
10. The art of Navigation was bornin the river Sindhu 6000 years ago. The very word Navigation is derived from the Sanskrit word NAVGATIH. The word navy is also derived from Sanskrit 'Nou'.
11. Bhaskaracharya calculated the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun hundreds of years before the astronomer Smart. Time taken by earth to orbit the sun: (5th century) 365.258756484 days.
12. The value of pi was first calculated by Budhayana, and he explained the concept of what is known as the Pythagorean Theorem. He discovered this in the 6th century long before the European mathematicians.
13. Algebra, trigonometry and calculus came from India. Quadratic equations were by Sridharacharya in the 11th century. The largest numbers the Greeks and the Romans used were 106 whereas Hindus used numbers as big as 10**53(10 to the power of 53) with specific names as early as 5000 BCE during the Vedic period. Even today, the largest used number is Tera 10**12(10 to the power of 12).
14. IEEE has proved what has been a century old suspicion in the world scientific community that the pioneer of wireless communication was Prof. Jagdish Bose and not Marconi.
15. The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.
16. According to Saka King Rudradaman I of 150 CE a beautiful lake called Sudarshana was constructed on the hills of Raivataka during Chandragupta Maurya's time.
17. Chess (Shataranja or AshtaPada) was invented in India.
18. Sushruta is the father of surgery. 2600 years ago he and health scientists of his time conducted complicated surgeries like cesareans, cataract, artificial limbs, fractures, urinary stones and even plastic surgery and brain surgery. Usage of anesthesia was well known in ancient India. Over 125 surgical equipment were used. Deep knowledge of anatomy, physiology, etiology, embryology, digestion, metabolism, genetics and immunity is also found in many texts.
19. When many cultures were only nomadic forest dwellers over 5000 years ago, Indians established Harappan culture in Sindhu Valley (Indus Valley Civilization).
20. The four religions born in India, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, are followed by 25% of the world's population.
21. The place value system, the decimal system was developed in India in 100 BC.
22. India is one of the few countries in the World, which gained independence without violence.
23. India has the second largest pool of Scientists and Engineers in the World.
24. India is the largest English speaking nation in the world.
25. India is the only country other than US and Japan, to have built a super computer indigenously.
Famous Quotes on India (by non-Indians)
- Albert Einstein said: We owe a lot to the Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.
- Mark Twain said: India is, the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only.
- French scholar Romain Rolland said: If there is one place on the face of earth where all the dreams of living men have found a home from the very earliest days when man began the dream of existence, it is India.
partial source: http://india.gov.in/myindia/facts.php
Turtles can cry (amazing facts)
1. Sea turtles cry. The green sea turtle lives in the salty ocean, and gets rid of the excess salt from its body by way of its eyes, in very salty tears.
2. All turtles lay their eggs on land, even turtles that never come out of the water otherwise such as the giant sea
turtles.
3. Most turtles can live much longer than people can. One turtle was estimated to be fifty years old when it was
caught, and it lived another one hundred and fifty-two years after that!
4. Turtles are cold-blooded, like all reptiles. But the Blanding's Turtle, a common North American freshwater
species, has been seen swimming under the ice in the Great Lakes in winter.
5. Some water turtles can absorb oxygen through their skin on their necks and cloacal areas (their rear ends), so they can not only stay underwater for long periods, they can hibernate underwater.
6. Some land turtles can outrun a person on level ground. But they still can't outrun a hare.
7. A turtle's shell is made of over sixty bones all fused together, and they are connected to the bottom shell, so a
turtle can't really take off its shell like they do in the cartoons.
8. The largest turtle ever found was a fossil of a sea turtle that was over fifteen feet long! The largest turtle
species living now is the Leatherback Sea Turtle, which can grow to as large as nine feet long, six feet wide and can weigh over 1,000 pounds.
9. Some aquatic turtles such as the snapping turtle and soft-shelled turtles have eyes that let them easily look up. They can sit on the bottom under the water and look up for predators or food swimming by, or lay in shallow water with just their eyes and nostrils above the water so land predators can't see them.
10. No turtles have teeth. Instead they have a strong beak to cut and chew their food. Many also have sharp ridges on their beaks to saw through their food. Some turtles catch and eat fish; so those beaks work pretty well.
Facts on languages worldwide
Widow is the only female form in the English language that is shorter than its corresponding male term (widower).
Victor Hugo's Les Miserable contains one of the longest sentences in the French language 823 words without a period.
There is only ONE word in the English language with THREE CONSECUTIVE SETS OF DOUBLE LETTERS.... Bookkeeper
There is a word in the English language with only one vowel, which occurs five times: "indivisibility."
There is a seven letter word in the English language that contains ten words without rearranging any of its letters, "therein": the, there, he, in, rein, her, here, ere, therein, herein.
There are two words in the English language that have all five vowels in order: "abstemious" and "facetious."
There are thirteen languages spoken by more than 100 million people. They are: Mandarin Chinese, English, Hindi, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Bengali, Portuguese, Malay-Indonesian, French, Japanese, German, and Urdu.
There are roughly 6,500 spoken languages in the world today. However, about 2,000 of those languages have fewer than 1,000 speakers. The most widely spoken language in the world is Mandarin Chinese. There are 885,000,000 people in China that speak that language.
There are only two sequences of four consecutive letters that can be found in the English language: "rstu" and "mnop." Examples of each are understudy and gynophobia.
There are only 4 words in the English language which end in "duos": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
There are at least two words in the English language that use all of the vowels, in the correct order, and end in the letter Y: abstemiously & facetiously.
There are 41,806 different spoken languages in the world today.
The word "queue" is the only word in the English language that is still pronounced the same way when the last four letters are removed.
The word "honcho" comes from a Japanese word meaning "squad leader" and first came into usage in the English language during the American occupation of Japan following World War II.
he shortest word in the English language with all its letters in alphabetical order is the word "almost."
The Philippines has more than 1,000 regional dialects and two official languages.
The only MLB team to have both its city's name and its team name in a foreign language is the San Diego Padres.
The longest word in the Finnish language, that isn't a compound word, is 'epaejaerjestelmaellistyttaemaettoemyydellaensaekaeaen'. In English it means 'even with their lack of ability to disorganize'.
The longest word in the English language, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanokoniosis. The only other word with the same amount of letters ispneumonoultra-microscopicsilicovolcanoconioses, its plural.
The longest word in the English language is 1909 letters long and it refers to a distinct part of DNA.
The longest one syllable word in he English language is "screeched".
The letter most in use in the English language is "E" and the letter "Q" is least used.
The computer programming language ADA was named in honor of Augusta Ada King. The U.S. Defense Department named the language after the Countess of Lovelace and daughter of Lord Byron because she helped finance and program what is thought to be the first computer, the “analytical engine” designed by Charles Babbage.
The Chinese language does not require punctuation.
The "huddle" in football was formed due a deaf football player who used sign language to communicate and his team didn't want the opposition to see the signals he used and in turn huddled around him.
South Africa used to have two official languages, now it has eleven.
Some biblical scholars believe that Aramaic (the language of the ancient Bible) did not contain an easy way to say 'many things' and used a term which has come down to us as 40. This means that when the bible -in many places -refers to '40 days,' they meant many days.
Seoul, the South Korean capital, just means "the capital" in the Korean language.
The Big B - Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh attended the prestigious Sherwood School, Nainital, and
graduated from Kirorimal College, Delhi.
His first ever job was in a company called Shaw Wallace. He also
worked as a freight broker for a shipping firm, which went by the name
of Bird and Co, drawing a four-figure salary and languishing in the
club lands of Calcutta.
His favourite screen name is Vijay (Deewar, Zanjeer, Shakti) and
favourite screen profession was to play a cop (Zanjeer, Ram Balram,
Bade Miya Chote Miya, Aks)
While shooting for a fight sequence in Manmohan Desai's Coolie,
Amitabh was knocked down by the film's villain Puneet Issar, due to
bad timing, seriously injuring him. August 2 is regarded as the day
when he got a new lease of life.
He is a vegetarian, who loves to gorge on simple food, like aloo puri,
pakodas, dhoklas and parathas.
Besides making a hit jodi with the likes of Jaya Bhadhuri, Rekha,
Zeenat Aman, Raakhee, Parveen Babi and Sridevi, Big B made a smashing
pair with Dharmendra (Ram Balram, Sholay, Chupke Chupke), Vinod Khanna
(Muqqadar Ka Sikander, Amar Akbar Anthony, Parvarish) and Shashi
Kapoor (Kabhi Kabhie, Silsila, Deewar, Shaan, Trishul).
It was during the making of Sholay that Amitabh discovered he was
going to be the proud father of his first-born, Shweta.
Son Abhishek may be similar in looks, but daughter Shweta is
temperamentally similar to her father, according to Jaya.
For someone who is not a professional singer, Amitabh has sung quite a
few hit songs. Witness: Mere Angne Mein (Laawaris), Rang Barse
(Silsila), Mere Paas Aao (Mr Natwarlal) and Tu Maike Mat Jaiyo (Pukar)
, to name a few.
He has a replica of himself sculpted and displayed at Madame Tussad's
wax museum in London, placing him among the historical and
entertainment Hall of Fame.
Amitabh was one of the first to come up with a music album AB Baby for
his music company Big B music. He even appeared in an imaginatively
shot video by Rakesh Mehra called Eir Bir Phatte, which was an instant
hit.
BBC Online voted him Star of the Millennium, above Hollywood greats.
A trendsetter, Amitabh Bachchan made a path breaking entry in the
world of television with the Indian remake of Who Wants To Be A
Millionaire -- Kaun Banega Crorepati. Going by the astounding success
of the show, a good move by the savvy Bachchan.
Amitabh tried his hand at politics in 1984. He won the Allahabad
Parliamentary seat on a Congress ticket by a whooping number of votes.
AB loves gorging on gulab jamuns, especially from Jhama's in Chembur, Bombay
