Religion: Islam :Common beliefs:

Strict monotheism. God is the creator, is just, omnipotent and merciful
Respect for earlier prophets and belief in their teachings: Abraham, Moses and Jesus (peace be upon them).
That Mohammed (pbuh) is the last of the prophets
Belief in the existence of Satan who drives people to sin
That Muslims who sincerely repent and submit to God return to a state of sinlessness
Belief in Hell where unbelievers and sinners spend eternity. One translation of the Qur'an 98:1-8 states: "The unbelievers among the People of the Book and the pagans shall burn for ever in the fire of Hell. They are the vilest of all creatures." ("People of the Book" refers to Christians, Jews and Muslims
Belief in Paradise, a place of physical and spiritual pleasure where the sinless go after death
Abstinence from alcohol and gambling
Rejection of racism
Avoid the use of alcohol, other drugs, eating of pork, etc.
Avoid gambling
That Jesus (pbuh) is a prophet. They regard the Christian concept of the deity of Jesus (pbuh) to be blasphemous
That Jesus (pbuh) was not executed on the cross

Originally, in Islamic countries, there was no separation between religious and civil law, between Islam and the state. Turkey and some other countries have become secular states during this century. This is a controversial move in Islamic circles.

Understanding of Jesus (pbuh), within Islam and Christianity:

Traditional Christians and Muslims have certain beliefs in common concerning Jesus (pbuh). They both accept that:
His birth was miraculous.
He was the Messiah.
He cured people of illness.
He restored dead people to life.

However, they differ from Christians in a number of major areas. Muslims do not believe
In original sin (that everyone inherits a sinful nature because of Adam and Eve's transgression)
That Jesus (pbuh) was killed during his crucifixion. Muslims believe that he escaped being executed, and later reappeared to his disciples without having first died.
That Jesus (pbuh) was resurrected (or resurrected himself) circa 30 CE.
Salvation is dependent either upon belief in the resurrection of Jesus (pbuh) (as in Paul's writings) or belief that Jesus (pbuh) is the Son of God (as in the Gospel of John).

Schools within Islam:

There are different schools of jurisprudence within Islam. The main divisions are:
Sunni Muslims: These are followers of the Hanifa, Shafi, Hanibal and Malik schools. They constitute a 90% majority of the believers, and are considered to be main stream traditionalists. Because they are comfortable pursuing their faith within secular societies, they have been able to adapt to a variety of national cultures, while following their three sources of law: the Qur'an, Hadith and consensus of Muslims.

Shi'ite Muslims: These are followers of the Jafri school who constitute a small minority of Islam. They split from the Sunnis over a dispute about the successor to Mohammed (pbuh). Their leaders promote a strict interpretation of the Qur'an and close adherents to its teachings. They believe in 12 heavenly Imams (perfect teachers) who led the Shi'ites in succession. Shi'ites believe that the 12th Imam, the Mahdi (guided one), never died but went into hiding waiting for the optimum time to reappear and guide humans towards justice and peace.

Sufism: This is a mystic tradition in which followers seek inner knowledge directly from God through meditation and ritual and dancing. They developed late in the 10th century CE as an ascetic reaction to the formalism and laws of the Qur'an. There are Sufis from both the Sunni and Shi'ite groups. However, some Sunni followers to not consider Sufiism as a valid Islamic practice. They incorporated ideas from Neoplatonism, Buddhism, and Christianity. They emphasize personal union with the divine. In the Middle East, some Sufi traditions are considered to be a separate school of Islam. In North and sub-Saharan Africa, Sufism is more a style and an approach rather than a separate school.

Unlike Christianity, Islam does not have denominational mosques. Members are welcome to attend any mosque in any land.

Bahai
A relatively new world religion, the Baha'i faith attempts to unite all humanity in the belief that there is only one God.
It began when a young man announced that a new messenger of God would appear.
Unfortunately this announcement was made in Iran a very Muslim state,
and the young prophet Bab was executed along with thousands of his followers.
One of his followers, a member of a wealthy family was banished to Iraq and eventually imprisoned.
While imprisoned he realized that he was the messiah that his former leader was speaking of. While in prison Bahá'u'lláh which means Glory of God spread his inspirational message to his followers through extensive correspondence. After his death in 1892 his successor took the faith to other parts of the world as a missionary. The Baha'i faith has it's roots in Islam as they believe in one God but rejects some of the teachings of Muhammad such as the practice of polygamy and slavery.
The Bahais principals are summed up as:

* The end of prejudice
* Equality for women
* Acceptance of the relativity and unity of spiritual truth
* Just distribution of wealth
* universal education
* an individual's responsibility to seek the truth
* the development of a world federation
* Harmony of science and true religion.

Bahá'u'lláh led a group of people in a time where the present religion of Islam seemed to stagnate. A new modern world seemed to beckon on the horizon and a new prophet would lead the way to unite mankind.

Religion: Islam: Important Texts:

There are two main texts consulted by Muslims:
The Qur'an are the words of God. This was originally in oral and written form; they were later assembled together into a single book, the Qur'an. Its name is often spelled "Koran" in English. This is not recommended, as some Muslims find it offensive.
The Hadith, which are collections of the sayings of Mohammed (pbuh). They are regarded as an excellent guide for living. However, the writings are not regarded as having the same status as the Holy Qur'an; the latter is considered to be God's word.

Muslim Beliefs and Practices:
Muslims follow a lunar calendar which started with the hegira, a 300 mile trek in 622 CE when Mohammed (pbuh) relocated from Mecca to Medina.
A Muslim's duties as described in the Five Pillars of Islam are:

1. To recite at least once during their lifetime the shahadah (the creed: "There is no God but God and Mohammed is his Prophet"). Most Muslims repeat it at least daily.
2. To perform the salat (prayer) 5 times a day. This is recited while orienting one's body towards Mecca. It is done in the morning, at noon, mid-afternoon, after sunset and just before sleeping.
3. To donate regularly to charity through zakat, a 2.5% charity tax, and through additional donations to the needy as the individual believer feels moved.
4. To fast during the month of Ramadan [began 1995-FEB-2, 1995 (Year 1415); begins 1996-JAN-22 (Year 1416) and 1997-JAN-10 (Year 1417)]. This is believed to be the month that Mohammed (pbuh) received the first revelation of the Qur'an from God.
5. If economically and physically able, to make at least one hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca

Jihad (struggle) is probably the most misunderstood religious word in existence. It often mentioned on Western TV and radio during news about the Middle East, where it is implied to be a synonym of "holy war" - a call to fight against non-Muslims in the defense of Islam.

The vast majority of Muslims have an entirely different definition of Jihad. It is seen as a personal, internal struggle with one's self. The goal may be achievement in a profession, self-purification, the conquering of primitive instincts or the attainment of some other noble goal.

Religion: Islam: Overview

- The best jihad [struggle] is (by) the one who strives against his own self for Allah, The Mighty and Majestic, by the Pophet Muhammad.(S.A.W.)

Origin of Islam:

Most religious historians view Islam as having been founded in 622 CE by Mohammed the Prophet (peace be upon him).* He lived from about 570 to 632 CE). The religion started in Mecca, when the angel Jibreel (Gabriel) read the first revelation to Muhammad (pbuh). (Muhammad and Muhammed (pbuh) are alternate spellings for his name.) Islam is seen as the youngest of the world's great religions.

* Muslims traditionally acknowledge respect for Mohammed, Jesus and other prophets (peace be upon them) by adding this phrase or an abbreviation "(pbuh)" after their names.
However, many if not most of the followers of Islam believe that:

Islam existed before Mohammed (pbuh) was born,
The origins of Islam date back to the creation of the world, and
Mohammed (pbuh) was the last of a series of Prophets.

Followers of Islam are called Muslims. "Muslim" is an Arabic word that refers to a person who submits themselves to the Will of God. "Allah" is an Arabic word which means "the One True God." An alternate spelling for "Muslim" that is occasionally used is "Moslim"; it is not recommended because it is often pronounced "mawzlem": which sounds like an Arabic word for "oppressor". Some Western writers in the past have referred to Islam as "Mohammedism"; this is deeply offensive to many Muslims, as its usage can lead some to the concept that Mohammed the Prophet (pbuh) was in some way divine.

About Islam:

By 750 CE, Islam had expanded to China, India, along the Southern shore of the Mediterranean and into Spain. By 1550 they had reached Vienna. Wars resulted, expelling Muslims from Spain and Europe. Since their trading routes were mostly over land, they did not an develop extensive sea trade (as for example the English and Spaniards). As a result, the old world occupation of North America was left to Christians.

Believers are currently concentrated from the West coast of Africa to the Philippines. In Africa, in particular, they are increasing in numbers, largely at the expense of Christianity.

Many do not look upon Islam as a new religion. They feel that it is in reality the faith taught by the ancient Prophets, Abraham, David, Moses and Jesus (Peace be upon them). Mohammed's (pbuh) role as the last of the Prophets was to formalize and clarify the faith and to purify it by removing foreign ideas that had been added in error.

Estimates of the total number of Muslims in the world vary greatly:
0.700 billion or more, Barnes & Noble Encyclopedia 1993
0.817 billion, The Universal Almanac (1996)
0.951 billion, The Cambridge Factfinder (1993)
1.100 billion, The World Almanac (1997)
1.200 billion, CAIR (Council on American-Islamic relations)

At a level of 1.2 billion, they represent about 22% of the world's population. They are the second largest religion in the world; Christianity has 33%.

Islam is growing about 2.9% per year which is faster than the total world population which increases about 2.3% annually. It is thus attracting a progressively larger percentage of the world's population. The number of Muslims in North America is in dispute: estimates range from under 3 million to over 6 million. The main cause of the disagreement appears to be over how many Muslim immigrants have converted to Christianity since they arrived in the US. Statistics Canada reports that 253,260 Canadians identified themselves as Muslims (0.9% of the total population) during the 1991 census. Those figures are believed to be an under-estimate.

Religion:Hindu beliefs and practices:

At the heart of Hinduism is the panentheistic principle of Brahman, that all reality is a unity. The entire universe is one divine entity who is simultaneously at one with the universe and who transcends it as well. Deity is simultaneously visualized as a triad:
Brahma the Creator who is continuing to create new realities
Vishnu, (Krishna) the Preserver, who preserves these new creations. Whenever dharma (eternal order, righteousness, religion, law and duty) is threatened, Vishnu travels from heaven to earth in one of ten incarnations.
Siva, the Destroyer, is at times compassionate, erotic and destructive.

Most Hindus follow one of two major divisions within Hinduism:

Vaishnavaism: which generally regards Vishnu as the ultimate deity
Shivaism: which generally regards Shiva as the ultimate deity.

Simultaneously, many hundreds of Hindu Gods and Goddesses are worshipped as various aspects of that unity. Depending upon ones view, Hinduism can be looked upon as a monotheistic, trinitarian, or polytheistic religion.

Humans are perceived as being trapped in samsara, a meaningless cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth. Karma is the accumulated sum of ones good and bad deeds. Karma determines how you will live your next life. Through pure acts, thoughts and devotion, one can be reborn at a higher level. Eventually, one can escape samsara and achieve enlightenment. Bad deeds can cause a person to be reborn as a lower level, or even as an animal. The unequal distribution of wealth, prestige, suffering are thus seen as natural consequences for ones previous acts, both in this life and in previous lives.

Meditation is often practiced, with Yoga being the most common. Other activities include daily devotions, public rituals, and puja a ceremonial dinner for a God.

Hinduism has a deserved reputation of being highly tolerant of other religions. Hindus have a saying: "Ekam Sataha Vipraha Bahudha Vadanti," which may be translated: "The truth is One, but different Sages call it by Different Names"

The caste system:

Although the caste system was abolished by law in 1949, it remains a significant force throughout India.
Each follower of Hinduism belonged to one of the thousands of Jats (communities) that existed in India. The Jats were grouped into four Varna (social castes), plus a fifth group called the "untouchables." A person's Jat determined the range of jobs or professions from which they could choose. Marriages normally took place within the same Jat. There were rules that prohibited persons of different groups from eating, drinking or even smoking with each other. People were once able to move from one Varna to another. However, at some time in the past (estimates range from about 500 BCE to 500 CE), the system became rigid, so that a person was generally born into the Jat and Varna of their parents, and died in the same group. "The caste system splits up society into a multitude of little communities, for every caste, and almost every local unit of a caste, has its own peculiar customs and internal regulations." The Rigveda defined four castes. In decreasing status, they are normally:

Brahmins (the priests and academics)
Kshatriyas (rulers, military)
Vaishyas (farmers, landlords, and merchants)
Sudras (peasants, servants, and workers in non-polluting jobs).

The Dalit were outcasts who do not belong to one of the castes. Until the late 1980's they were called Harijan (children of God). They worked in what are considered polluting jobs. They were untouchable by the four castes; in some areas of the country, even a contact with their shadow by a member of the Varnas was considered polluting.
Practicing untouchability or discriminating against a person because of their caste is now illegal. The caste system has lost much of its power in urban areas; however it is essentially unchanged in some rural districts. The government has instituted positive discrimination in order to help the Dalit and lower castes.

Hindu sects and denominations:

About 80% of Hindus are Vaishnavites, who worship Lord Vishnu. Others follow various reform movements or neo-Hindu sects.
Various sects of Hinduism have evolved into separate religious movements, including Hare Krishna, Sikhism and Theosophy. Transcendental Meditation was derived from a Hindu technique of meditation. The New Age movement has taken many of its concepts from Hinduism.

Religion:Early history of Hinduism:

Beliefs about the early development of Hinduism are currently in a state of flux:
The classical theory of the origins of Hinduism traces the religion's roots to the Indus valley civilization circa 4000 to 2200 BCE. The development of Hinduism was influenced by many invasions over thousands of years. The major influences occurred when light-skinned, nomadic "Aryan" Indo-European tribes invaded Northern India (circa 1500 BCE) from the steppes of Russia and Central Asia. They brought with them their religion of Vedism. These beliefs mingled with the more advanced, indigenous Indian native beliefs, often called the "Indus valley culture.". This theory was initially proposed by Christian academics some 200 years ago. Their conclusions were biased by their pre-existing belief in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). The Book of Genesis, which they interpreted literally, appears to place the creation of the earth at circa 4,000 BCE, and the Noahic flood at circa 2,500 BCE. These dates put severe constraints on the date of the "Aryan invasion," and the development of the four Veda and Upanishad Hindu religious texts. A second factor supporting this theory was their lack of appreciation of the sophisticated nature of Vedic culture; they had discounted it as primitive.
Emerging The Aryan Invasion view of ancient Indian history has been challenged in recent years by new conclusions based on more recent findings in archaeology, cultural analysis, astronomical references, and literary analysis. One scholar, David Frawley, has established a convincing argument for this new interpretation. 7 Archeological digs have revealed that the Indus Valley culture was not "destroyed by outside invasion, but...[by] internal causes and, most likely, floods." The "dark age" that was believed to have followed the Aryan invasion may never have happened. A series of cities in India have been studied by archeologists and shown to have a level of civilization between that of the Indus culture and later Indian culture, as visited by the Greeks. Finally, Indus Valley excavations have uncovered many remains of fire alters, animal bones, potsherds, shell jewelry and other evidences of Vedic rituals. "In other words there is no racial evidence of any such Indo-Aryan invasion of India but only of a continuity of the same group of people who traditionally considered themselves to be Aryans...The Indo-Aryan invasion as an academic concept in 18th and 19th century Europe reflected the cultural milieu of the period. Linguistic data were used to validate the concept that in turn was used to interpret archeological and anthropological data."

During the first few centuries CE, many sects were created, each dedicated to a specific deity. Typical among these were the Goddesses Shakti and Lakshmi, and the Gods Skanda and Surya.

Sacred texts:The most important of all Hindu texts is the Bhagavad Gita which is a poem describing a conversation between a warrior Arjuna and his charioteer Krishna. It is an ancient text that has become central to Hinduism and other belief systems. Vedism survives in the Rigveda, (a.k.a. Rig Veda) a collection of over a thousand hymns. Other texts include the Brahmanas, the Sutras, and the Aranyakas.

Religion:Hinduism :Overview

Overview:

Hinduism differs from Christianity and other Western religions in that it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organization. It consists of "thousands of different religious groups that have evolved in India since 1500 BCE."

Hinduism has grown to become the world's third largest religion, after Christianity and Islam. It claims about 762 million followers - 13% of the world's population. It is the dominant religion in India, Nepal, and among the Tamils in Sri Lanka. There are about 1.1 million Hindus in the U.S., and about 157,015 in Canada.

Hinduism has traditionally been one of the most tolerant of religions. However, over the past few years, a Hindu nationalistic political party has controlled the government of India. Anti-Christian violence has escalated.

Name of the religion:

This religion is called:
Sanatana Dharma, "eternal religion," and
Vaidika Dharma, "religion of the Vedas," and
Hinduism -- the most commonly used name in North America. Various origins for the word "Hinduism" have been suggested:
It may be derived from an ancient inscription translated as: "The country lying between the Himalayan mountain and Bindu Sarovara is known as Hindusthan by combination of the first letter 'hi' of 'Himalaya' and the last compound letter 'ndu' of the word `Bindu.'" Bindu Sarovara is called the Cape Comorin sea in modern times.

It may be derived from the Persian word for Indian.
It may be a Persian corruption of the word Sindhu (the river Indus)
It was a name invented by the British administration in India during colonial times.

Noble Prize Winners in Physics

Year	Name	Nations
1901	Wilhelm C.Roentgen	Germany
1902	Hendrik A.Lorentz & Pieter Zeeman	Dutch
1903	Antoine Henri Becquerel, Pierre Curie and Marie Curie	France
1904	John W. Strutt, Lord Rayleigh	Britain
1905	Philipp E.A.Von Lenard	Germany
1906	Sir. Joseph J.Thomson	Britain
1907	Albert A.Michelson	U.S
1908	Gabriel Lippmann	Franch
1909	Carl F. Braun Guglielmo Marconi	Germany Italy
1910	Johannes D. Van der Waals	Dutch
1911	Wilhelm Wien	Germany
1912	Nils G. Dalen	Sweden
1913	Heike kamerlingh Onnes	Dutch
1914	Max von Laue	Germany
1915	Sir William H. Bragg, Sir William H. Bragg	Britain
1917	Charles G. Barkla	Britain
1918	Max K.E.L. Planck	Germany
1919	Johnnes Stark	Germany
1920	Charles E.Guillaume	France
1921	Albert Einstein	Germany - U.S.
1922	Niels Bohr	Danish
1923	Robert A. Millikan	U.S
1924	Karl M.G. Siegbahn	Sweden
1925	James Franck, Gustav Hertz	Germany
1926	Jean B. Perrin	France
1927	Arthur H.Compton Charles T.R Wilson	U.S Britain
1928	Owen W. Richardson	Britain
1929	Prince Louis-victor de Broglie	France
1930	Sir Chandrasekhara V. Raman	India
1932	Werner Heisenberg	Germany
1933	Paul A.M. Dirac Erwin Schrodinger	Britain Australia
1935	Sir James Chadwick	Britain
1936	Carl D. Anderson Victor F. Hess	U.S Australia
1937	Cliton J. Davisson Sir Geroge P. Thomson	U.S. Britain
1938	Enrico Fermi	Italy U.S
1939	Ernest O. Lawrence	U.S.
1943	Otto Stern	U.S
1944	Isidor Issac Rabi	U.S.
1945	Wolfgang Pauli	U.S
1946	Percy Williams Bridgman	U.S.
1947	Sir Edward V. Appleton	Britain
1948	Patrick M.S.Blackett	Britain
1949	Hideki Yukawa	Japan
1950	Cecil f. Powell	Britain
1951	Sir John D. Cockroft Ernest T.S.Walton	Britain Iran
1952	Felix Bloch Edward M. Purcell	U.S
1953	Frits Zernike	Dutch
1954	Max Born Walter Bothe	Britain Germany
1955	Polykarp Kusch, Willis E.Lamb	U.S
1956	John Bardeen Walter H. Brattain William Shockley	U.S
1957	Tsung-dao-Lee Chenning Yang	U.S
1958	Pavel Cherenkov Ilya Frank, Igor Y. Tamm	USSR
1959	Owen Chamberlain Emilio G.Segre	U.S
1960	Donald A. Glaser	U.S
1961	Robert Hofstadter Rudolf L. Mossbauer	U.S Germany
1962	Lev. D. Landau	USSR
1963	Maria Goeppert-Mayer, Eugene P. Wigner J. Hans D. Jensen	U.S Germany
1964	Nikolai G. Basov, aleksander M. Prochorov Charles H. Townes	USSR U.S
1965	Richard P. Feynman Julian S. Schwinger Shinichiro Tomonaga	U.S Japan
1966	Alfred Kastler	Franch
1967	Hans A. Bethe	U.S
1968	Luis W. Alvarez	U.S
1969	Murray Gell-Mann	U.S
1970	Louis Neel,br>Hammes Alfven	France Switzerland
1971	Dennis Gabor	Britain
1972	John Bardeen Leon N. Cooper John R. Schrieffer	U.S
1973	Ivar Giaever Leo Esaki Vrian D. Josephson	U.S Japan Britain
1974	Martin Ryle, Antony Hewish	Britain
1975	James Rainwater Ben Mottelson Aage Bohr	U.S U.S-Danish Danish
1976	Burton Richter Samuel C.C Ting	U.S
1977	John H.Van Vleck,Philip W. Anderson Nevill F. Mott	U.S Britain
1978	Pyotr Kapitsa Arno Penzias, Robert Wilson	USSR U.S
1979	steven Weinberg, Sheldon L. Glashow Abdus Salam	U.S Pakistan
1980	James W. Cronin Val L. fitch	U.S
1981	Nicolass Bloembergen, Arthur Schaalow Kai M.Siegbahn	U.S Sweden
1982	Kenneth G. Wilson	U.S
1983	Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar William a. Fowler	Indian U.S Citizen U.S
1984	Carlo Rubbia Simonvan der Meer	Italy Dutch
1985	Klaus von Klitzing	West Germany
1986	Ernest Ruska,br>Gerd Binnig Heinrich Rohrer	Germany West Germany Swiss
1987	K.Alex Muller J. Georg Bednorz	Switzerland West Germany
1988	Leon M. Lederman, Melvin Jack Steinberger	U.S
1989	Norman F. Ramsey Hans G. Dehmelt Wo9lfgang Paul	U.S. Grmany-U.S. Germany
1990	Richard E. Taylor Jerome I. Griedman, Hendry W.Kendall	Canada U.S
1991	Pierre - Giles de Gennes	France
1992	Georges Charpak	Poland - France
1993	Joseph H. Taylor, Russell A. Hulse	U.S.
1994	Bertram N. Brockhouse Clifford G. Shull	Canada U.S
1995	Martin L. Perl of Standfrod University and Frederick Reins of the University of California	Switzerland U.S.
1996	David M.Lee, Douglas D. Osheroff, Robert C.Richardson	U.S
1997	Steven Chu, William D. Phillips Claude Cohen Tannoudji	U.S. France
1998	Prof. Robert B. Laughlin, Prof Horst L. Stormer, Prof. Daniel C. Tsui	U.S
1999	Gerardus T. Hooft, Martinus J.D. Veltman	Netherland
2000	Mr.Zhores I.Alferov Herbert Kroemer Jack Kilby	Russia German
2001	Eric A. Cornell Wolfgang Ketterle Carl E. Wieman	USA German USA
2002	Raymond Davis Jr. Riccardo Giacconi Masatoshi Koshiba	USA USA Japan

History of Taj Mahal

Located at the city of Agra in the State of Uttar Pradesh, the Taj Mahal is one of the most beautiful masterpieces of architecture in the world. Agra, situated about 200 km south of New Delhi, was the Capital of the Mughals (Moguls), the Muslim Emperors who ruled Northern India between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. The Mughals were the descendents of two of the most skilled warriors in history: the Turks and the Mongols. The Mughal dynasty reached its highest strength and fame during the reign of their early Emperors, Akbar, Jehangir, and Shah Jehan.

It was Shah Jehan who ordered the building of the Taj, in honor of his wife, Arjumand Banu who later became known as Mumtaz Mahal, the Distinguished of the Palace. Mumtaz and Shah Jehan were married in 1612 and, over the next 18 years, had 14 children together. The Empress used to accompany her husband in his military campaigns, and it was in 1630, in Burhanpur, that she gave birth to her last child, for she died in childbirth. So great was the Emperor love to his wife that he ordered the building of the most beautiful mausoleum on Earth for her.

Although it is not known for sure who planned the Taj, the name of an Indian architect of Persian descent, Ustad Ahmad Lahori, has been cited in many sources. As soon as construction began in 1630, masons, craftsmen, sculptors, and calligraphers were summoned from Persia, the Ottoman Empire, and Europe to work on the masterpiece. The site was chosen near the Capital, Agra on the southwest bank of the River Yamuna. The architectural complex is comprised of five main elements: the Darwaza or main gateway, the Bageecha or garden, the Masjid or mosque, the Naqqar Khana or rest house, and the Rauza or the Taj Mahal mausoleum. The actual Tomb is situated inside the Taj.

The unique mughal style combines elements of Persian, Central Asian, and Islamic architecture. Most impressive are the black and white chessboard marble floor, the four tall minarets (40 m high) at the corners of the structure, and the majestic dome in the middle. On closer look, the lettering of the Quran verses around the archways appears to be uniform, regardless of their height. The lettering spacing and density has been customized to give this impression to the beholder. Other illusionary effects have been accounted for in the geometry of the tomb and the tall minarets. The impressive pietra dura artwork includes geometric elements, plants and flowers, mostly common in Islamic architecture. The level of sophistication in artwork becomes obvious when one realizes that a 3 cm decorative element contains more than 50 inlaid gemstones.

Islands of the World

Island	Area in Sq.Km	Location
Greenland	North Atlalntic	2,175,600
New Guinea	South-West Pacific	777,000
Borneo	West mid-Pacific	725,545
Madagascar	Indian Ocean	587,042
Baffin	North Atlantic	476,065
Sumatra	Northeast Indian Ocean	473,600
Honshu	Sea of Jappan-Pacific	228,000
Great Britain	Off Coast North-West Europe	218,041
Ellesmere	Artic Ocean	196,236
Victoria I	Artic Ocean	212,197
Celebes	West Mid-Pacific	189,035
South Islands	South Pacific	150,460
Java	Indiand Ocean	126,295
North Island	South Pacific	114,687
Cuba	Carribbean Sea	114,522
Newfoundland	North Atlantic	112,300
Luzon	West mid-Pacific	104,688
Iceland	North Atlantic	102,999
Mindanao	West mid-Pacific	94,226
Ireland	West of Great Britain	82,460
Hokkaido	Sea of Japan-Pacific	77,900
Hispaniola	Caribbean Sea	76,192
Tasmania	South of Australia	67,900
Sri Lanka (Ceylon)	Indian Ocean	65,600
Sakhalin (Karafuto)	North of Japan	63,610
Banks	Artic Ocean	60,166
Devon	Artic Ocean	54,030
Kyushu	Sea of Japan-Pacific	42,018
Melville	Artic Ocean	41,805
Axel Heriberg	Artic Ocean	40,868
Southampton	Hudson bay	40,663

General Awarenes

Synthetic Rubber: Synthetic rubber made of certain kinds of hydrocarbons. Of these butadiene is the most important. These hydrocarbons are obtained from coal, crude petroleum and alcohol. By the end of the Second World War, the combined production of synthetic rubber by Synthetic rubber is more oil resistant than natural rubber. In the international market, natural rubber is facing severe competition from synthetic rubber.

‘Grand Slam’ mean: Grand Slam is a sports term pertaining to a group of matches, Championships etc. in a particular sports and the winning of all these matches. The best known Grand Slams are those in Tennis [the Australian Open, the French Open, the British Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open], Golf [the US Open, the British Open, the Masters, and the PGA], and Rugby Union [victories against all opposition in the competition between England Wales, France, Ireland and Scotland].

Oxygen discovered by: Joseph Priestly discovered oxygen, the colorless, odorless, gaseous chemical element forming about 20 percent of the Earth’s atmosphere in 1774.

Stethoscope was inventedby and in the year: In 1816, the French physician Rene Theoplhie Laennec (1781-1826) introduced a perforated wooden cylinder which concentrated the sounds of air flowing in and out of the lungs, and described the sound which it revealed. The modern form of stethoscope, with flexible tubes connecting the earpieces to a circular piece placed against the chest, was developed later in the nineteenth century.

Brain death? Brain death means the irreversible brain damage causing the end of independent.

Leading producer of mica Producing country : India is the world’s leading producer of sheet mica and accounts for about 60 percent of global mica trade. Important mica bearing pegmatite occurs in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Hariyana, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

Japan is called “The Land of the Rising Sun”? The little of “The Land of the Rising Sun” is a form of Japan’s indigenous name of Nippon, which literally means “sun origin”. The allusion is to the geographical location of Japan with regard to China. The Japanese flag shows the sun’s red on a white background.

The largest temple in the world? According to the Guinness Book of Records 1999, Angkor Wat (“City Temple”) in Cambodia is the largest religious structure ever built, covering an area of 402 acres. The entire temple complex has a total area of 15 by 5 miles and consists of 72 major monuments, the construction of which began in AD 900.

Countries with Industries

Chief Industries of the Countries

Country	Industries
Afghanistan	Dry and fresh fruits, wool carpets
Australia	Wool, dairy products, meat
Austria	Textile, leather goods, electro-technical machines
Brazil	Foot wear, coffee, iron ore
Belgium	Glass, textiles, transport equipment
Canada	Newsprint, machinery
Chile	Copper, iron ore
Congo	Oil, tobacco, plywood
Cuba	Sugar, tobacco, textiles, chemicals
Denmark	Fur,farm products
France	Textile, wine, silk, iron and steel products
Germany	Machinery, chemicals, iron and steel products
Ghana	Cocoa, gold, coffee
India	Jute, textile, sugar, hides and skins, tobacco, tea, cement, mica
Indonesia	Sugar, spices, rubber, rice, petroleum, carpets, leather
Iran	Petroleum, carpets, dry fruits
Iraq	Dates, Petroleum
Italy	Mercury, textiles, foodstuffs, footwear
Japan	Machinery, textiles, toys, silk, automobiles, electronic goods
Kenya	Coffee, tea, meat, sisal, hides, skins, cement, soda ash
Kuwait	Petroleum, Shrimp
Malaysia	Rubber, tin, timber, petroleum
Netherlands	Machinery, natural gas, chemicals
Saudi Arabia	Oil, dates, petroleum and its products
Spain	Lead, fresh fruits, textiles
Sweden	Matches, timber, iron ore
Switzerland	Watches, chemicals, electrical
Taiwan	Camphor, rice
UK	Textiles, medicines, machinery cars
USA	Petroleum, wheat, machinery, coal, automobiles, iron, grains
Russia	Petroleum, wheat, chemicals, heavy machinery, iron, gold
Vietnam	Tin, rice, rubber, teak, mineral ores

Noise Scale

Sounds are tiny vibrations that can travel through air and other materials. The loudness of a sound is measured in decibels (db). Typical sound levels in decibels:

Note: 130 db causes damage to hearing.

1	Breathing	10 db
2	Wind in the trees	20 db
3	Whisper	20-30 db
4	Ticking Clock	30 db
5	House in a quiet street	35 db
6	Radio Music	50-60 db
7	Loud Conversation	60 db
8	Office Noise	60 db
9	Children Playing	60-80 db
10	Lawn mower	60-80 db
11	Vacuum cleaner	80 db
12	Traffic Noise	60-90 db
13	Sports Car	80-95 db
14	Heavy truck traffic	90-100 db
15	Loud Radio	100 db
16	Motor Cycle	105 db
17	Pneumatic drill	110 db
18	Thunder storm	110 db
19	Rock Music	120 db
20	Aircraft Noise	90-120 db
21	Jet takeoff(at 100 meter distance)	120 db
22	Jet Engine(at 25 meter distance)	140 db
23	Space Vehicle launch (from a short distance)	140-170 db

FAMOUS TOWNS in WORLD

Name	Famous For
No 10, Downing Street	Official residence of the British Prime Minister.
Abadan(Iran)	Famous for oil refinery
Alaska (U.S.A.)	In 1958 it was declared as 49th State of U.S.A. It is near Canada
Alexandria	City and sea-port of Egypt, founded by Alexander the Great. Handles about 80% of the country's exports.
Angkor Wat	Ruined temple in Cambodia. Signposts of ancient oriental civilisation.
Aswam Dam	A dam in Egypt across the River Nile.
Baku	Oilfields of Azerbaijan.
Bastille	It was a Jail in Paris. Destroyed during the French Revolution.
Beding (Australia)	Famous for gold mines.
Bethlehem	A town Palestine, the birth place of Christ.
Bikini Atoll	In Pacific Ocean, where first hydrogen bomb was tested by U.S.A.
Bikini	An atoll of the Marshall Islands. Atomb Bomb was dropped here experimentally in 1948.
Bratislava	A town in Czechoslovakia on Czech-Russian border.
Buckingham Palace	London residence of the British monarch.
Chushul	In Ladakh, highest airfield in the world. Chinese troops attacked it in 1962.
Corsica	An island where Napoleon was born.
Detroit (U.S.A)	The biggest car manufacturing town in the world.
Elephanta Caves (India)	Situated in an island 15 miles from Bombay. Famous for the statues of Siva and Parvati.
Fleet Street	Press Center in London.
Gaza Strip	In Egypt near Israeli border, was seat of United nations Emergency Force till 1957. Now under Israeli occupation.
Gibraltar	Key to Mediterranean, fortress and novel base situated on rock in the extreme South of Spain.
Golden Temple (India)	Famous temple of the Sikhs at Amritsar, constructed by Guru Ram Dass.
Hiroshima	An industrial center of Japan which was destroyed by atom bomb in 1945.
Hollywood (California. U.S.A.)	Famous for film industry
Hyde Park	A huge park in London.
Jerusalem	City in Israel. Jesus Christ was crucified here (now capital of Israel)
Khajuraho	It is the State of chattarpur, Bundelkhand in Madhya Pradesh. It is famous for Mahadev Temple.
Khorkov	Important town of Ukraine, manufactures motor cars, tractors and agricultural machinery.
Lop Nor	Palace in Sinkiang (Red China), site for atomic tests.
Los Angeles A part of California (U.S.A.)	The famous film industry of Hollywood is established here. It is famous as Cinima City of the world.
Lusaka	Venue of non-aligned nations summit in September 1970. Capital of Zambia.
Manchester (U.K.)	Cotton manufacturing city. It is one of the world's biggest cloth manufacturing center.
Marseilles	City and Seaport of Southern France. Famous for silk, wine, olive soap, margarine and candles.
Mecca (Saudi Arabia)	Sacred place of the Muslims because Prophet Mohammed was born here.
Montreal	Longest city of Canada. Famous for iron and steel works and motor car factories.
Nagasaki (Japan)	It is noted for its iron and steel industries. Atom was dropped here during World War II.
New Castle	An important port on the Tyne in England, famous for coal industry.
New Orleans (U.S.A.)	It is the greatest cotton and wheat exporting center in the world.
Osaka (Japan)	Known as the Manchester of Japan. It is sometimes called the Venice of Japan.
Pisa	In Italy, famous for Leaning Tower, one of the seven wonders of the world.
Pentagon	Headquarters of American Defence Forces.
Phnom-Penh	Capital of Cambodia.
Plais Des Nations	Venue in Geneva for holding international conferences.
Potala	Dalai Lama's palace at Lhasa (Tibet).
Sinai	Peninsula of Egypt between the Gulfs of Suez and Aquba, at the head of Red Sea.
Seychelles	Island in Indian Ocean, got freedom on June 28, 1976.
Sodom	In Israel, the lowest point on earth.
Vatican	Official residence of the Pope of Rome.
Versaillers (France)	Famous for the treaty of Versailles which ended World War I in 1918.
Vienna	Capital of Austria. The venue of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) between Russia and U.S.A.
Walling Wall	Part of the Western Wall of the Temple Court in Jerusalem. Part of the wall, probably dates from the time of Solomon, is regarded by both Jews and Moslems as one of special sanctity.
Wall Street	In Manhattan, New York, famous for American's stock exchange market.
White House	The official residence of the President of U.S.A. in Washington D.C.
Zurich (Switzerland)	Famous for the manufacture of cotton and silk and for its lenses.

Splendoured Heritage - India

Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra	Rock-cut caves set deep in the Sahyadri hills. It has a large relief depicting the death of the Buddha lying on the bed.
Badrinath, Utter Pradesh	Dedicated to Lord Vishnu. One of the four pilgrimage spots for Hindus.
Basilica of Bom Jesus, Velha, Goa (17th Century)	The church houses the mortal remains of St.Francis Xavier.
Bahai House of Worship, Delhi	The lotus-shaped marvel in marble is referred to as the Taj Mahal of the 21st century. Completed in '86.
Buland Darwaza, Fatehpur Sikri	At 53.5 m., it is the highest gateway in India. Built by Akbar to commemorate his conquest of Khandesh in Gujarat.
Chartminar, Hyderabad (1591)	A majestic monument of four minarets, to commemorate the cessation of plague in the city, according to the chronicles.
Dakshineshwar Temple, Calcutta (1855)	Built by a Widow-devotee, Rani Rashmoni.
Diwara Temples, Mount Abu	A Jain pilgrimage center. There are two shrine : Adinath Temple (1031) and Nominate Temple (1230)
Elehanta Caves, Maharastra (634)	Situated on an island, Believed to be built by Pulakesini II of the Chalukya kingdom. Exquisite carvings depicting the myths of Shiva.
Gateway of India, Bombay	A triumphal arch built to commemorate visit of King George V and Queen Mary in 1911. It is 26 feet tall.
Golden Temple, Amritsar (1577)	Holiest Sikh Shrine. Part of the exterior is gilded with gold leaf. The Hari mandir is in the midst of a pool. Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs. is enshrined inside.
Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur (17th Century)	Its dome is the second largest in the world. The whispering Gallery within is so called because even the gentlest whisper echoes across its great length.
Hawa Mahal, (Palace of Winds) Jaipur (18th Century)	The five storied facade of 953 windows was built for the women of the harem to look out without being seen themselves.
Humayun's Tomb, Delhi (1565)	By the side of Mathura road, to the east of Hazarat Nizamu-ddin's shrine, this memorial was build by Humayun's senior widow (Haji Hamida Begum).
Indian Gate, Delhi	A memorial to over 90,000 Indian soldiers who died in World War I. The names of 13,516 soldiers are inscribed on it. The arch rising to a height of 42 m. is surmounted by a stone bowl where since 1971 an eternal flame has been lit the Amar Jyothi - to honour the unknown soldier.
Jagannath Temple, Puri (12th Century)	65m tall. Its conical pinnacle overlooks the landscape for miles around.
Jama Masjid, Delhi	The largest mosque in Delhi, built during Shah Jahan's reign. It is situated just opposite the Red Fort. Over 20,000 people can gather here at a time to pray.
Jantar Mantar, Delhi	The oldest observatory of its type, constructed by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur in 1725. It is dominated by a huge sundia. A similar observatory exists in Jaipur (Rajasthan).
Jewish Synagogue, Cochin	Built in 1568. The earliest surviving synagogue in India. It has the Great Scrolls of the Old Testament.
Kailash Temple, Ellora	Largest rock-cut shrine in India, 84m*47m. Carved our from the top of a hillock. Built during the reign of King Krishna I who ascended the throne in 760 AD.
Khajuraho Temple (11th Century)	22 temples known for their graceful contours and erotic sculptures.
Lingaraja Temple, Bhubaneswar (11th Century)	36.5m tall. There is a triple tier of mouldings with numerous prestigious and sculpted niches.
Mahabodh Temple, Bodhgaya (7th Century)	Erected to mark the spot of the Buddha's enlightenment. The temple is a primodal tower 170ft. high, crowned by a bell-like stupa.
Meenakshi Sundareswar Temple, Madurai	The gateway are among the most elaborately carved in South India. Has about 30 million sculptures.
Nalanda, Bihar (7th Century)	Seat of learning in Cupta period, Hieun Tsang also studied here.
Qutab Minar, Delhi	Qutab Minar was built by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the slave king in the 13th century as a victory tower. The 72.5m, five-story Minar of red sandstone has ornamental figure of Koranic inscriptions. In the center of its courtyard is an Iron Pillar erected by king Chandra Verman which has remained rest-free for more than 1500 years
Rashtrapathi Bhawan, Delhi	The official residence of the President of India, set in 330 acres of land. Formerly Vceregal Palace. Over looks a beautiful Mughal garden. It has 340 rooms, 37 salons, 74 lobbies and loggias, 1km. of corridor, 18 staircases and 37 fountains.
Red Fort, Delhi	The citadel of the seventh Delhi, Shahjahanabad, it is over 2km. in circumference and has within its precincts several beautiful offices. But by Shah Jahan in 17th century. The seat of Mughal power in India until 1857.
Salim Chisti's Tomb, Fatehpur Sikri (1572)	Built after Sufi saint Sheikh Salim Chisti's death. Tomb venerated by both Hindu and Muslims.
Sanchi Stupa, Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh	The great hemisphere is 120 ft. in diameter, and covers the relic of Gautama Buddha.
Se Cathedral, Velha, Goa (1652)	The largest church in Asia, it has a 80m long aisle and 14 altars. Of its five bells, one is the famous Golden bell, one of the best in the world.
Shatrunjaya Hill Temples, Palitana, Gujarat	The hill is crowned about a thousand magnificent Jain temples, which are marble structures built over a period of 900 years.
Somnath Temple, Gujarat	Legendary temple believed built by 'Moon God'. It treasures ransacked by Mahmud Ghazni seven times. It was also destroyed by Aladding Khilji and Aurangzeb, and every time it was rebuilt.
Sun Temple, Modhera, Gujarat (1026)	Built by a King Bhimdev I of Solanki Dybasty.
Surya Temple, Konark (13th Century)	The sun temple of 'Black Pagoda' conceived as a chariot of the sun god, Built by king Narasimha Dava I.
Taj Mahal, Agra (1630 to 1648)	One of the seven wonders of the world. Built of white marble by Emperor Shah Jahan to immortalize his beloved queen Mumtaz Mahal.
The Bada Imambara, Lucknow	Asia's largest vaulted hall.
Vaishnodevi, Jammu	A cave shrine in Trikuta mountains, an important pilgrimage center for Hindus.
Victoria Memorial, Calcutta	A marble monument commemorating the empress Victoria.

Famous Places

Place	Famous For
AUROVILLE	UNESCO sponsored world's first international town near Pondichery in Tamil Nadu named after Aurobindo Ghose. The town with an area of 15sq. miles and a population of 50,000 will be a self-supporting township having gour zones, viz., cultural, industrial, residential and international. It was inaugurated on February 28,1963.
ABU SIMBAL (U.S.A.)	A monument executed by UNSCO in Egypt, the famous temple at Nybia (Egypt) was facing submergence as result of the construction of Aswan Dam. UNSCO has reconstructed it at a cost of 36 million dollars and was inaugurated on 12th Sept. 1968.
ADAM'S BRIDGE	Sand and rock bridge between Sri Lanka and India. Legent has is that was constructed by Lord Rama when he was in invade Lanka of Ravana.
ALICE SPRINGS (Australia)	Spring with medicinal properties.
BIG BEN	Name given to the big clock of the British Parliament building.
BILLING'S GATE	London fish market. As a term, it means foul language.
DODOMA	This is going to be the new capital of Tanzania in place of Dar-es-Salam.
EIFFEL TOWER	985 feet high tower in Paris build by Gustav Effel in 1887-89 at a cost of 2,00,000
ELBA	An isolated island in the Meduterranean Sea, where Napoleon was exiled in 1841.
ELLORA	Famous for rock-pruned Kailash Temple (Aurangabad) in Maharashtra. An exquisite piece of Dravidian art. Ellora cave temples, 34 in number, present a blend of caves representing Buddhism and Jainism constructed in 8th century A.D.
ELYSEE PALACE	Official residence of the President of France. It was the venue of Paris Peace parleys on Vietnam.
EMPIRE STATE BUILDING (U.S.A)	World's one of the loftiest structures. It has 103 storeys and a height of 1200 feet.
ESCURIAL	One of the longest palaces in Spain.

Rivers

RIVER	OUTFLOW	LENGTH
Nile	Mediterranean Sea	6,690
Amazon	Atlantic Ocean	6,296
Mississippi Missouri-Red Rock	Gulf of Mexico	6,020
Yangtze-Kiang	China Sea	5,797
Ob	Gulf of Ob	5,567
Yellow (Hwang Ho)	Gulf of Chihli	4,667
Yenisey	Arctic Ocean	4,506
Parana	Rio de la plata	4,498
Irtish	Ob River	4,438
Congo	Atlantic Ocean	4,371
Amur	Tatar Strait	4,352
Lena	Artic Ocean	4,268
Mackenzie	Beaufort Sea (Artic Ocean)	4,241
Niger	Gulf of Guinea	4,184
Mekong	South China Sea	4,023
Mississippi	Gulf of Mexico	3,779
Missouri	Mississippi River	3,726
Volga	Caspian Sea	3,687
Maderia	Amazon River	3,238
Purus	Amazon River	3,207
Sao Francisco	Atlantic Ocean	3,198
St. Lawrence	Gulf of St. Lawrence	3,058
Yukon	Bering Sea	3,058
Rio Grande	Gulf of Mexico	3,034
Brahmaputra	Ganges River	2,897
Indus	Arabian Sea	2,897
Danube	Black Sea	2,842
Euphrates	Shatt-al-Arab	2,799
Darling	Murray River	2,739
Zambezi	Mozambique Channel	2,736
Tocantins	Para River	2,699
Murrary	Indian Ocean	2,589
Nelson	Hudson Bay	2,574
Paraguay	Parana River	2,549
Ural	Caspian Sea	2,533
Ganges	Bay of Bengal	2,506
Amu Darya (Oxus)	Aral Sea	2,414
Japura	Amazon River	2,414
Salween	Gulf of Martaban	2,414
Arkansas	Mississippi River	2,333
Colorado	Gulf of California	2,333
Dnieper	Black Sea	2,284
Ohio Alledheny	Mississippi River	2,102
Irrawaddy	Bay of Bengal	2,092
Orange	Atlantic Ocean	2,092
Orinoco	Atlantic Ocean	2,062
Pilcomayo	Paraguay River	1,999
Xi Jiang (Si Kiang)	China Sea	1,989
Columbia	Pacific Ocean	1,983
Don	Sea of Azov	1,968
Sungari	Amur River	1,955
Saskatchewan	Lake Winnipeg	1,939
Peace	Great Slave River	1,923
Tigris	Shatt-al-Arb	1,899

Geographical Terms

ANTIPODES	A region or place on the opposite side of a point on the earth.
ANTICYCLONES	Winds which blow outward from the center.
APHELION	Position of the earth in its orbit when is at the maximum distance from the sun.
ARCHIPELAGO	A cluster of islands, e.g., Pearl Islands in the Gulf of Panama.
ATOLL	Coral reef resembling a horse shoe, enclosing a lagoon.
AXIS	An imaginary line joining north and south poles.
AVALANCHE	A vast mass of snow mixed with earth or stones.
BIOSPHERE	Animate or inanimate organic kingdom on earth.
CANYON	A deep valley cut by a river through a mountain region, e,g., the Grand Canyon of the Colarado river in the USA.
CONTINENTAL SHELF	Land adjoining a continent submerged in the sea.
CYCLONES	A low pressure system area in which the wind blows spirally inward.
CROP ROTATION	Growing different crops needing different minerals for their growth in the same piece of land in order to get more yield.
DATE LINE	An imaginary line pointing north-south approximating to the Meridian 180 (east or west) where the date changes by one day the moment it is crossed.
DELTA	Alluvial deposit shaped like Greek letter, formed at the mouth of the river, where it falls into the sea, e.g., the Sunderban delta.
DEW	Condensed atmospheric water vapours due to the cooling of the air.
DRY FARMING	Growing of crops in low rainfall areas by moisture conservation, crop rotation but without irrigation.
EQUATOR	An imaginary line dividing the earth into two equal parts.
EQUINOXES	The day on which nights and days are of equal duration, e.g., March 22 and September 23.
EROSION	Wearing away of the earth's land surface by rain, wind, water, etc. rendering the land infertile.
ECLIPSE	When one earthly body obscures another one partially or completely.
FOG	When the atmospheric moisture touches cold earth and condenses on dust particles.
FROST	When the atmospheric moisture deposits in the shape of icy flakes on the exposed objects or near the ground due to below freezing point temperature.
HIGH SEAS	The parts of the sea which do not come under the territorial jurisdiction of the nations.
ICEBERG	Huge mass of ice separated from glacier in the polar regions. These masses of ice float in the oceans with 9 parts submerged in the ocean and one part visible.
ISOBARS	Lines on the map connecting the places of the same pressure.
ISOTHERMS	Lines on the map joining the places of the same temperature.
ISTHMUS	Narrow neck of land joining two land areas.
KUNDAN	Anew variety of wheat which gives high yields in both rained and irrigated tracts and responds well to low dose of water and fertiliser.
LAGOON	A shallow stream of water at the mouth of a river enclosed bu dunes of river silt.
LIGHT YEAR	The distance traveled by light in one year. It is equal to 9.4*10612 km.
LOCAL TIME	Time calculated from the sun at noon at any place of earth.
MERIDIAN	Imaginary line joining north and south poles and cutting the equator at right angles.
MIST	It is just like fog but contain more moisture.
OASIS	A part of the desert where water and vegetation are found.
ORBIT	The path of the heavenly bodies.
PYGMALLION POINT	The southernmost point of India, 700 km away from mainland India.
PRAIRIES	Smooth, treeless, green plain of Central and North America.
REEF	Jutting of rock or shingle or sand at just above or below sea level.
SAVANNA	Land covered with natural grass.
SIDEREAL DAY	Time taken by the earth to rotate once round its axis.
SNOW LINE	Altitudinal line along which the area remains snow clad.
SPRING TIDES	Higher tides in the ocean caused by the sun and the moon together. When the sun, the earth and the moon are positioned in a straight line.
NEAP TIDES	Tides caused by the differences of the forces exerted by the moon and the sun when both are at right angles to each other.
TORNADO	A brisk and violent storm generally having rotator motion.
TUNDRAS	Peripheral area of Arctic ocean.
TYCOON	Violent hurricane in China Sea.
WEATHER SATELLITE	Artificial satellite designed to forecast weather.
WESTERLIES	Constant winds blowing from south-west in the northern hemisphere and north-west in south hemisphere.

Political And Social Terms

APARTHEID	Policy of racial segregation practiced by the South African Government.
ADJOURNMENT	A motion moved by a member of a legislature to adjourn consideration of the issues in hand for discussing a matter of urgent public importance.
AMNESTY	Grant of pardon or exemption from prosecution to political importance.
ARMISTICE	Temporary cessation of hostilities pending formal negotiations for peace.
APPEASEMENT	The policy of gratifying one's enemy with concession and special grants by sacrificing even principles.
AUTONOMY	Power to control internal affairs.
BILATERAL AGREEMENT	An agreement between two countries.
BLOCKADES	Imposing closure of ports and waterways to prevent ships from reaching or leaving it.
BOLSHEVISM	The doctrine of Proletarian Dictatorship as propounded by Lenin.
BOURGEOISE	Capitalist class in Marxian terminology.
BUFFER STATE	A small neutral state between two big states.
BY-ELECTION	A mid term election to fill a seat rendered vacant.
CASTING VOTE	A vote casting of which decides the tie.
CAUCUS	A powerful group of party.
CHARGED AFFAIRS	The senior most diplomat after the head of the mission, officiating in his absence.
COALITION	Combination of two or more parties with the purpose of forming a composite government.
CONFEDERATION	Alliance of nations for some specific purpose our retaining the respective individual nation sovereignty.
COLD WAR	The state of ideological or wordy warfare between two countries or blocks.
ENVOY	A diplomatic emissary accredited to the country and holding position below that of an ambassador.
FIFTH COLUMN	An anti-national clique of spies and saboteurs.
FLOOR CROSSING	The act of changing political loyalty by a person or a group.
FRANCHISE	Right to cast vote in the public elections.
GALLUP POLL	An opinion poll-may be with the help of interview.
GENOCIDE	Intention to destroy wholly or in part a religious, ethnic or political group.
GHERAO	Encircling a person and rending him incapable of doing anything till he/she concedes demands.
GLOSNOST	Means openness. Term used for reforms introduced in Russian society by M.Gorbachov.
HABEAS CORPUS	A type of a writ issued by a High Court or Supreme court against illegal detention of a person.
HOT LINE	A direct telephone link between the White House and Kremlin established in 1963.
IMPEACHMENT	Trial by the Parliament.
LOBBYING	Exercising influence or pressure on members of the legislative bodies in the lobby for supporting or opposing an issue in the House.
LOK PAL	An official appointed by the President to investigate public complaints against ministers and high officials.
MANIFESTO	A declaration of political party about its policies and programmes given at the time of elections.
NATIONALISATION	The act of taking business undertakings an institutions by the state and controlling them.
NAXALITE	A movement violent in character believing in Maoism: the term was first used for the peasants of Naxalbari (West Bengal) who rose against the landlords demanding land for the landless.
NEW DEAL	The name given to the policy of Franklin D.Roosevelt to revive and boost American economy .
ORDINANCE	An Act or decree promulgated by the Head of State in an emergency or when the legislative body is not in session.
PERESTROIKA	Used for Gorbachov's move to restructure political and economical structure of the Russian society.
PLEBISCITE	Voting on regional or national issue.
PERSONALITY CULT	Too much adulation for a ruler or a political figure.
PRIVY PURSE	Yearly allowances granted to the princes of Indian states after the merger of their states with the Indian Union. (New these purses are abolished).
PRIVILEGE MOTION	A motion moved by a legislator drawing attention of the House towards a matter involving breach of privilege of the House or any of its members.
REFERENDUM	People's verdict on some constitutional amendment and some other legislative issue of controversial nature.
SECULARISM	Affirmation in all the faiths, showing no official patronage to any religions or religions.
SANCTIONS	Penalty or reward imposed for disobedience or obedience attached to the law.
SOCIALISM	Control of production and means of distribution in the hands of the State.
STATUTE	Law made by the Parliament, enshrined in the statue book, which are binding on al subjects, of a particular country.
SUFFRAGE	Right of voting in political elections.
SELF-DETERMINATION	Right of a nation deciding its own form of government, its political destiny or independence.
TERRITORIAL WATERS	Areas of the sea up to 12 km measured from the low water mark of the coast and within the executive control of an adjacent State.
UNICAMERAL	A legislature having only one House.
VETO	Right to reject any resolution or enactment passed by the legislature.

Vitamins

The Vitamins are necessary auxiliaries in metabolism. They combine with specific proteins, as parts of various oxidative enzyme systems which are concerned with the breakdown of carbohydrates, proteins, and fat in the body. Thus, they are intimately involved in the mechanism which releases energy, carbon dioxide and water as the end products of metabolism. Vitamins can be broadly divided into Fat Soluble and Water Soluble Vitamins. Vitamins A D E and K are fat-soluble vitamins. Vitamins B ( B1 B2 B6 B12 ) and C are water-soluble.

Vitamin - A
Year	1913
	Retinol
Main Metabolic Function	Essential for normal growth and development. For normal function of epithelical cells and normal development of teeth and bones. Prevents Night blindness.
Deficiency - Effects	Retarded growth. Reduced resistance to infection. Abnormal function of gastrointestinal, and respiratory tracts due to altered epithelial membranes. Interferes with production of "night purple".
Available	Milk, Egg yolk, Ghee, Butter, Carrots, Tomatoes, Leafy and Yellow vegetables, Cod liver oil and Fresh fruits.
Nature	Fat-Soluble
Vitamin - B1
Year	1936
	Thiamin
Main Metabolic Function	An important aid in carbohydrate metabolism. Needed for Proper functioning of the digestive tract and nervous system. Beriberi. Loss of muscle.
Deficiency - Effects	Loss of appetite. Impaired digestion of starches and sugars. Various nervous disorder coordination.
Available	Peas, Beans and Cereals.
Nature	Water-Soluble
Vitamin - B2
Year	1935
	Riboflavin
Main Metabolic Function	Needed in formation of certain enzymes and in cellular oxidation. Prevents inflammation of oral mucous membranes and the tongue.
Deficiency - Effects	Impaired growth, lassitude and weakness. Causes cheillosis or glossittis. May result in Photophobia and cataracts.
Available	Peas, Beans and Cereals.
Nature	Water-Soluble
Vitamin - B6
Year	1934
	Pyridoxine
Main Metabolic Function	Acts as do other B vitamins. To break down protein, carbohydrate and fat. Acts as a catalyst in the formation of niacin from tryptophan.
Deficiency - Effects	Increased irritability, convulsions and peripheral neuritis. Anorexia, nausea and vomiting.
Available	Peas, Beans and Cereals.
Nature	Water-Soluble
Vitamin - B12
Year	1948
	Cyanocobalamin
Main Metabolic Function	Essential for development of red blood cells. Required for maintenance of skin, nerve tissues, bone and muscles.
Deficiency - Effects	Results in pernicious anaemia. Weakness, fatigue, sore and cracked lips.
Available	Peas, Beans and Cereals.
Nature	Water-Soluble
Vitamin - C
Year	1919
	Ascorbic Acid
Main Metabolic Function	Needed for form the cementing substance, collagen, in various tissues (skin, dentine, cartilage and bone matrix). Assists in woundhealing and bone fractures.
Deficiency - Effects	Lowered resistance to infections. Susceptibility to dental cavities, pyotthea and bleeding gums. Delayed wound healing. Specific treatment for Scurvy.
Available	Fresh vegetables, Lemon, Orange, Tomatoes, Cabbage , Turnip and Lettuce (Beetroot).
Nature	Water-Soluble
Vitamin - D
Year	1925
	Cholecalciferol
Main Metabolic Function	Requlates absorption of calcium and phosphorus from the intestinal tract. Affords antiachitic activity.
Deficiency - Effects	Interferes with utilisation of calcium and phosphorus in bone and teeth formation. Development of bone disease, rickets and caries.
Available	Butter, Milk, Ghee, Cod liver oil, Yolk of Eggs and also in Sunrays.
Nature	Fat-Soluble
Vitamin - E
Year	1936
	Tocopherols
Main Metabolic Function	Protects tissues, cell membranes and Vitamin A against peroxidation. Helps strengthen red blood cells.
Deficiency - Effects	Decreased red blood cell resistance to rupture.
Available	Germinating Wheat.
Nature	Fat-Soluble
Vitamin - K
Year	1935
	Phytomenadione
Main Metabolic Function	Essential for formation of normal amounts of prothrombin and blood coagulation.
Deficiency - Effects	diminished blood clotting time. Increased incidence of hemorrhages.
Available	Fish, Wheat and Oats.
Nature	Fat-Soluble