Did meteors kill dinosaurs? Scientists feel that dinosaurs and other species were wiped out because of the impact of a falling asteroid 65 million years ago. The asteroid formed a huge crater near the Mexican coast. The impact also changed the climate of the earth...
What shapes Mercury’s surface? Mercury has no atmosphere and thereby no weather. So the craters that formed on its surface many years ago by falling meteorites still remain as there is no weather to wear them away. The entire planet is covered with such craters....
When was ether first used in surgery? In 1818, an English scientist, Michael Faraday, suggested that ether could be used to relieve pain. In 1842, an American doctor named Crawford W. Long used ether to make a patient unconscious while he removed a cyst. In...
Who discovered hypnosis? Hypnosis is the ability to influence the behaviour and feelings of other people. Even primitive peoples have practised it as a form of medicine. A Viennese doctor, Franz Mesmer, used hypnosis to treat patients long ago. It came to be called mesmerism....
What is grafting? Grafting in plants is the process by which a twig from one plant is inserted into a slit made in the bark of another plant. In this manner, apples can be grafted on pear trees and peaches on apricot trees, etc. However...
How are dinosaur fossils dug up? Fossil experts or paleontologists first clear the overlying rocks where the fossil was found. The bones are then photographed, measured and their position recorded. Then they are dug up, covered in paper and plaster and left to dry. The...
Can comets collide with planets? If a comet comes too close to the planet it will be pulled by the planet’s gravity and will collide with it. This was what happened in 1994. The comet called Shoemaker Levy 9 collided with the planet, Jupiter. Whenever...
Where do canaries originate? Canaries originated in the Canary Islands, the Madeiras, and the Azores. But now they are bred and raised in many parts of the world. Canaries can imitate the songs and cries of other birds. The best known canary singers are from...
Does the moon have seas? It was initially thought that the dark areas on the moon’s surface were seas. But they are actually vast dusty plains. Most of them are found on the side of the moon that always faces Earth. Even though we know...
What is yeast? Yeast is a tiny, one-celled plant belonging to the fungi family. It is small, round and colourless. When yeast reproduces it produces certain enzymes which can ferment starch to sugar and sugar to alcohol and carbon dioxide. Yeast is used to make...
