Saturday, November 6, 2010

Facts About Plants

Facts About Plants




• A notch in a tree will remain the same distance from the ground as the tree grows.

• Banana oil is made from petroleum.

• 84% of a raw apple and 96% of a raw cucumber is water.

• The largest single flower is the Rafflesia or “corpse flower”. They are generally 3 feet in diameter with the record being 42 inches.

• Onions contain a mild antibiotic that fights infections, soothes burns, tames bee stings and relieves the itch of athletes foot.

• Quinine, one of the most important drugs known to man, is obtained from the dried bark of an evergreen tree native to South America.

• The rose family of plants, in addition to flowers, gives us apples, pears, plums, cherries, almonds, peaches and apricots.

• No species of wild plant produces a flower or blossom that is absolutely black, and so far, none has been developed artificially.

• Nutmeg is extremely poisonous if injected intravenously.

• The bright orange color of carrots tell you they are an excellent source of Vitamin A which is important for good eyesight, especially at night. Vitamin A helps your body fight infection, and keeps your skin and hair healthy.

• A plant’s stem appears and grows upward shortly after the primary root appears. It continues to grow above ground level.

• Water and minerals flow upward through the roots into the stem of the plant and then into the leaves of the plant.

• Pistils have three parts – the stigma, the style, and the ovary.

• Petals are usually colorful, and they attract insects and birds that help with pollination.

• Fruit is really the part of a flower in which seeds grow. Cherries, apples, and even milkweed pods are fruit.

• Buds are small swellings on a plant from which a shoot, leaf, or flower usually develops.

• The primary root is the first thing to sprout from a seed, and it grows downward.

• A seed contains its own food supply, which helps the sprouting plant as it begins its new life.

• Roots are covered with root hairs that absorb water and minerals.

• Grapes and clematis have stems that climb with tendrils, which hold onto a surface, as the stems get longer.

Facts About Birds

Facts About Birds






• The smallest bird is the Bee Hummingbird at 2.24 in (5.7cm) and 0.056 oz

• The longest latin name of any bird is Griseotyrannus aurantioatrocristatus, or the Crowned Slaty Flycatcher of South America.

• When active, a humming bird breathes around 300-500 times every minute. The heart of a humming bird makes up for around 20% of the body volume. The heartbeat ranges from 30-1500 per minute, depending on the specie and the activity.

• The Humming birds are the only birds that can fly backwards.

• The greater honeyguide leads the ratel or honey badger, to a bee’s nest by calling out and flying in front of it. The ratel eats the honey, then the bird eats the honeycomb wax.

• The Chameleon can focus its eyes seperately to watch two objects at once.

• The largest bird egg in the world today is that of the ostrich. Ostrich eggs are from 6 to 8 inches long. Because of their size and the thickness of their shells, they take 40 minutes to hard-boil.

• The average adult male ostrich, the world’s largest living bird, weighs up to 345 pounds.

• Humming birds are found in North and South America. In the north, they can be found as far as Alaska and in the south, they can be spotted as far as southern Chile.

• An amazing fact about the humming bird is that it can fly up, down, forward, backward and even upside down. A humming bird can rotate its wings from its shoulder blades, which enables it to hover and fly in different positions.

• Birds evolved from small meat-eating dinosaurs around 150 million years ago.

• Birds are a group of warm-blooded animals with two legs and front limbs modified as wings. The characteristic feature of all birds is the feather.

• There are over 9,200 species of birds known from around the world and they can be found in just about every habitat.

• Humming birds help in pollination as they carry pollen on their backs just like bees when they go from one flower to another in search of nectar. One humming bird visits around 1000-2000 flowers in a single day!

• Turkeys will peck to death members of the flock that are physically inferior or different.

• Only male turkeys (Toms) gobble, females make a clicking noise.

• The waste produced by one chicken in its lifetime can supply enough electricity to run a 100 watt bulb for five hours.

• An eagle can kill a young deer and fly away with it.

• California condors can fly 10 miles without flapping their wings.

• A bird’s heart beats 400 times per minute while they are at rest. When they are flying however, their heart could beat up to 1000 beats per minute.

• The Hooded Pitohui, which is a resident of Papua, New Guinea. You can find the poison in its feathers and in its skin.

• The now extinct Elephant Bird of Madagascar laid an egg that weighed 27 pounds.

• A bird’s normal body temperature is ususlly 7-8 degrees hotter than humans.


Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Aerial Photography

A collection of aerial photography produced by Yann Arthus-Bertrand


"Earth From Above" is the result of the aerial photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand's five-year airborne odyssey across six continents. It's a spectacular presentation of large scale photographs of astonishing natural landscapes. Every stunning aerial photograph tells a story about our changing planet



Cattle, Argentina



Coal mine in South Africa


Sha Kibbutz, Israel



Military cemetery in Verdun, France



Suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark


Elephants on the savannah, Botswana



Ruins of the medieval city of Shali, Egypt



Switzerland



Gullholmen, Sweden



Denver, USA



Fraser Island dune, Australia




Amazon River, Brazil



Machu Picchu, Peru



Walled City of Dubrovnik, Croatia



Tasmania, Australia



Hashima Island,Japan



Stockholm,Sweden



Pigeon Houses Mit Gahmr Delta,Egypt



Varanasi,India



Freeways in Los Angeles,USA


Louver and Ile de la Cité in Paris,France

List of social networking websites

List of social networking websites Name Description/Focus Date launched Registered ...