pyramids

The most famous pyramids are the pyramid — huge structures built of brick or stone, some of which are among the largest man-made constructions. Most of them took about 27 years to build. In Ancient Egyptian, a pyramid was referred to as mer, which was also their word for the country of Egypt itself, showing how intrinsic the structures were to the culture. The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest in Egypt and one of the largest in the world. Until Lincoln Cathedral was built in 1300 A.D., it was the tallest building in the world. The base is over 52,600 square meters in area.

It is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and the only one of the seven to survive into modern times. The Ancient Egyptians capped the peaks of their pyramids with gold and covered their faces with polished white limestone, though many of the stones used for the purpose have fallen or been removed for other structures.

virus

A virus (from the Latin virus meaning "toxin" or "poison"), is a sub-microscopic infectious agent that is unable to grow or reproduce outside a host cell. Each viral particle, or virion, consists of genetic material, DNA or RNA, within a protective protein coat called a capsid. The capsid shape varies from simple helical and icosahedral forms, to more complex structures with tails or an envelope. Viruses infect cellular life forms and are grouped into animal, plant and bacterial types, according to the type of host infected.

Biologists debate whether or not viruses are living organisms. Some consider them non-living as they do not meet the criteria of the definition of life. For example, unlike most organisms, viruses do not have cells. However, viruses have genes and evolve by natural selection. Others have described them as organisms at the edge of life. Viral infections in human and animal hosts usually result in an immune response and disease. Often, a virus is completely eliminated by the immune system. Antibiotics have no effect on viruses, but antiviral drugs have been developed to treat life-threatening infections. Vaccines that produce lifelong immunity can prevent viral infections.

Ruby the red gem

Ruby is a pink to blood red gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum (aluminium oxide). The common red color is caused mainly by the element chromium. Its name comes from ruber, Latin for red. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphires. It is considered one of the four precious stones, together with the sapphire, the emerald and the diamond. Improvements used include color alteration, improving transparency by dissolving rutile inclusions, healing of fractures (cracks) or even completely filling them.

Prices of rubies are primarily determined by color (the brightest and best "red" called Pigeon Blood Red, command a huge premium over other rubies of similar quality). After color follows clarity: similar to diamonds, a clear stone will command a premium, but a ruby without any needle-like rutile inclusions will indicate the stone has been treated one way or another. Cut and carat (size) also determine the price.

coral reefs

coral reefs arearagonite structures produced by living organisms, found in shallow, tropical marine waters with little to no nutrients in the water. High nutrient levels such as those found in runoff from agricultural areas can harm the reef by encouraging the growth of algae.[1] In most reefs, the predominant organisms are stony corals, colonial cnidarians that secrete an exoskeleton of calcium carbonate. The accumulation of skeletal material, broken and piled up by wave action and bioeroders, produces a massive calcareous formation that supports the living corals and a great variety of other animal and plant life. Although corals are found both in temperate and tropical waters, reefs are formed only in a zone extending at most from 30°N to 30°S of the equator.

Isaac Newton

Isaac Newton (1642-1727), English physicist, mathematician, and natural philosopher, considered one of the most important scientists of all time. Newton formulated laws of universal gravitation and motion—laws that explain how objects move on Earth as well as through the heavens (see Mechanics). He established the modern study of optics—or the behavior of light—and built the first reflecting telescope. His mathematical insights led him to invent the area of mathematics called calculus (which German mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz also developed independently). Newton stated his ideas in several published works, two of which, Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, 1687) and Opticks (1704), are considered among the greatest scientific works ever produced. Newton’s revolutionary contributions explained the workings of a large part of the physical world in mathematical terms, and they suggested that science may provide explanations for other phenomena as well.

Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar (100-44 bc), Roman general and statesman, who laid the foundations of the Roman imperial system.Ambitious and highly capable but frustrated in his political ambitions, the Roman general Julius Caesar knew that extending the empire through victory in war could help increase his political power in Rome. Under Caesar, the Romans gained control of Gaul, a region substantially identical to present-day France, by 57 bc. When the Veneti tribe revolted a year later, Caesar returned to quell the uprising and took the opportunity to boost his political standing in Rome by writing The Conquest of Gaul. This excerpt, describing the Veneti’s decisive defeat, was a piece of propaganda intended to impress Caesar’s enemies and win new supporters.

"Tsunami" - the powerful natural disaster

Tsunami, Japanese word meaning “harbor wave,” used as the scientific term for seismic sea waves that can cause catastrophic damage when they hit a coastline. Tsunamis can be generated by an undersea earthquake, an undersea landslide, the eruption of an undersea volcano, or by the force of an asteroid crashing into the ocean. The most frequent cause of tsunamis is an undersea earthquake. When the ocean floor is uplifted or offset during an earthquake, a set of waves is created similar to the concentric waves generated by an object dropped into the water. Most tsunamis originate along the Ring of Fire, a zone of volcanoes and seismic activity, 32,500 km (24,000 mi) long, which encircles the Pacific Ocean. Since 1819, about 40 tsunamis have struck the Hawaiian Islands.

"Hurricane " - the natural disaster

Hurricane, name given to violent storms that originate over the tropical or subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, or North Pacific Ocean east of the International Date Line. Such storms over the North Pacific west of the International Date Line are called typhoons; those elsewhere are known as tropical cyclones, which is the general name for all such storms including hurricanes and typhoons. These storms can cause great damage to property and loss of human life due to high winds, flooding, and large waves crashing against shorelines. The worst natural disaster in United States history was caused by a hurricane that struck the coast of Texas in 1900.

"volcano" - the Natural disaster

Volcano, mountain or hill formed by the accumulation of materials erupted through one or more openings in the earth's surface. The term volcano can also refer to the vents themselves. Most volcanoes have steep sides, but some can be gently sloping mountains or even flat tablelands, plateaus, or plains. The volcanoes above sea level are the best known, but the vast majority of the world's volcanoes lie beneath the sea, formed along the global oceanic ridge systems that crisscross the deep ocean floor . According to the Smithsonian Institution, 1511 above-sea volcanoes have been active during the past 10,000 years, 539 of them erupting one or more times during written history. On average, 50 to 60 above-sea volcanoes worldwide are active in any given year; about half of these are continuations of eruptions from previous years, and the rest are new Volcanic eruptions in populated regions are a significant threat to people, property, and agriculture. The danger is mostly from fast-moving, hot flows of explosively erupted materials, falling ash, and highly destructive lava flows and volcanic debris flows (see Volcano Hazards below). In addition, explosive eruptions, even from volcanoes in unpopulated regions, can eject ash high into the atmosphere, creating drifting volcanic ash clouds that pose a serious hazard to airplanes. .

An intelligent sea creature

Sea Lion, intelligent, slender-bodied seal, well known for its balancing acts as a circus performer and its presence in almost every zoo. A gregarious personality, combined with remarkable speed and agility on land and lively barklike vocalizations, makes this seal easily trainable and appealing to human audiences. In the wild, these shore-living seals are found along many areas of North America’s western coast, from British Columbia southward through the United States to the Tres Marias Islands off of Baja California, Mexico. Some populations are also found in the Galápagos Islands.

Adult males, called bulls, average 360 kg (800 lb) in weight and 2.1 m (7 ft) in length. Females, or cows, are smaller, with an average weight of 110 kg (250 lb) and an average length of 1.8 m (6 ft). Both sexes have chocolate-brown coats and doglike muzzles. Males are distinguished by their larger size, as well as by protuberant foreheads caused by an internal bone ridge that anchors powerful chewing muscles. California sea lions eat squid and octopus as well as a variety of fish—herring, rockfish, mackerel, anchovies, and lampreys. They hunt in shallow waters and often compete directly with a closely related species, Steller’s sea lions, for food.

Queen of hearts

Princess Diana (1961-1997), Princess of Wales from 1981 to 1997

Daughter of EGYPT

Queen Cleopatra of Egypt is the most well known of all the ancient egyptian queens. Cleopatra was born in Alexandria in 69 B.C. during the reign of the Ptolemy family to Ptolemy VII. Cleopatra appears to have been a popular name in the family, as her mother bore the name as well as an older sister, making the new daughter Cleopatra the Seventh, although she is rarely referred to as such. Cleopatra and her family were not Egyptian, but rather Macedonian, descended through a general of Alexander the Great. Cleopatra would become the first ruler of her family who could actually speak the Egyptian language.

"Dolly" the cloning

Cloning, creating a copy of living matter, such as a cell or organism. The copies produced through cloning have identical genetic makeup and are known as clones. Many organisms in nature reproduce by cloning. Scientists use cloning techniques in the laboratory to create copies of cells or organisms with valuable traits. Their work aims to find practical applications for cloning that will produce advances in medicine, biological research, and industry.

He ewe Dolly (July 5, 1996 – February 14, 2003) was the first animal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell, using the process of nuclear transfer.^[1][2] She was cloned by Ian Wilmut, Keith Campbell and colleagues at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland. Her birth was announced on February 22, 1997 and she lived until the age of six.^[3]

The cell used as the donor for the cloning of Dolly was taken from a mammary gland, and the production of a healthy clone therefore proved that a cell taken from a specific body part could recreate a whole individual. More specifically, the production of Dolly showed that mature differentiated somatic cells in an adult animal's body could under some circumstances revert back to an undifferentiated pluripotent form and then develop into any part of an animal. As Dolly was cloned from part of a mammary gland, she was named after the famously busty country western singer Dolly Parton.

The emperor and the right way of living

Ashoka (232 bc), third king of the Maurya dynasty, who ruled almost the whole of the Indian subcontinent from about 269 to 232 bc (see Mauryan Empire). Ashoka stands unique among emperors in world history: After successfully concluding a major military campaign, he was so disturbed by the suffering that it had caused that he forsook war and thereafter endorsed nonviolence and peaceful persuasion in consolidating his vast empire.

The major source of documentation for Ashoka’s reign is the succession of edicts that he issued to his subjects in every part of his empire. These edicts were inscribed on rock surfaces and on specially polished columns with handsomely sculpted capitals. They were written in Prakrit languages for the Indian population, and in Greek and Aramaic for the Hellenistic Greeks and Iranians in the northwestern part of the empire . Historians have established the extent of Ashoka’s empire through the location of these edicts, as well as by archaeological excavations of artifacts, monuments, and urban sites associated with the Mauryas. In one of his edicts, Ashoka named as his contemporaries five Hellenistic kings, some of whom he had diplomatic contacts with, and this has provided a chronological cross-reference for his reign.