CULTURAL QA 04-2023-18 Quora answers need not be 100% correct answers .
Compiledand posted by R. Gopala Krishnan, 79, on 17-04-2023 Q1 What are some amazingfacts about India? A1 Krishna Kamat, Mar 29 India : it was the first and only country to mine and produce diamonds. India has highest population ofvegetarian in the world. India is the second largest English speaking country in the world. Mawsynram in Meghalaya, India, is the wettest place on the Earth. India has the largest postal network in the world. The Highest Cricket Ground inthe World, at a level of 2,144 meters above sea level in Chail, HimachalPradesh. The world’s highest rail bridge is in Jammu Kashmir, India. The longest station name on the Indian Railways isVenkatanarasimharajuvariapeta India has the highest motorable highway in the world – The Ladakh Road. India has the world's largestdairy cow population. it also takes the title of being the largest milk producer in the world. India has one of the lowest divorce rates in the world. Only for India, KFC had tointroduce a “vegetarian” menu. The Hindu calendar has sixseasons India follows a six-season calendar, recognizing। spring,summer, monsoon, autumn, prewinter, and winter. My note- Some items arerefreshing repeats. Q2 What is the scientificreason that women, on average, are shorter than men? A2 Mats Andersson, B. Sc, M. Sc from Uppsala University Feb28 Two reasons. One is that there has, at some time in our not-too-distant past – inevolutionary terms – been actual, physical competition between males for the females. We see itin our close relatives the gorillas, where males hold a “harem” of females andgrow twice as big as females; our closest relatives the chimpanzees don’t havethis, and they are, for want of a better term, equal opportunities serialadulterers. This pattern is very common in mammals: if males hold harems they are bigger, ifthey are monogamous (or, like the chimpanzee, equally polygamous) they are more similar in size.It seems like it might have been the Australopithecus that held harems, maybe2-4 million years ago; they seem to have had a pronounced sexual dimorphism. Ithas been mostly bred out of us since then – it’s not actually much of adisadvantage to be bigger, it just makes you slightly more sensitive whenresources are scarce (and you still have a slight advantage in some othercontexts). The other is sexual selection. And there are answers here that claim, totallywithout evidence, that menprefer shorter women. Anthropological research, however, confirms thatit’s women who, overwhelmingly in all human societies, prefer men who aretaller than themselves. Men are much less fussy about this. And, of course, youdon’t even have to go to the nearest bar to confirm that in humans, it isoverwhelmingly females that choose the male, not the other way around: a briefperusal of questions here at Quora will find any amount of complaints frommales that they are being rejected by women, confirming that it’s still mostlymales who have to go around displaying themselves for the approval of women,although we are becoming more and more accepting of diversity also in courtshiprituals. My note- In the last two decades some how women grow taller. Most women areequal in height with men. It is shorter to find a shorter girl for marriage now. Q3 Air Conditioning: Doesmounting AC at a lower level on wall saves energy? A3 Sage, AI bot BETA Mounting the air conditioning unit at a lower level on the wall can helpto save energy in several ways. For example: Lowering the unit can increase the efficiency of the airflow and help todistribute cool air more evenly throughout the room. This can help to reducethe amount of energy needed to cool the space. Lowering the unit can also help to reduce the amount of heat absorbed by theunit itself. This can help to decrease the amount of energy needed to cool therefrigerant in the unit. Lowering the unit can also help to reduce the amount of noise generatedby the unit. This can be beneficial if the unit is located near a bedroom orother noise-sensitive area of the home. It's important to keep in mind that there are many factors that canaffect the energy efficiency of an air conditioning unit, and that the best wayto save energy is to make sure that the unit is properly sized and installed,and that it is maintained and serviced on a regular basis. 2ND ANSWER- RyanCarlyle, BSChE, engineer at an oil company9y If your goal is only to cool theroom near the floor, then yes, mounting the AC near the floor is probablybetter. Otherwise, you want the AC near the middle or wherever it has the bestairflow. It will run more effectively by pulling in hotter air, rather thanre-cooling the same colder air over and over. It sounds like the outside temperature is pretty hot. Make sure theoutside of the AC unit is in the shade and has some airflow around it. Thatwill help it cool more effectively. MY note- Earlier window air-conditionerswere erected about 2.5- 3 feet. The reason was the heavy weight with compressor inside of theunit. In many places pushing the unit inside and thieves gettingin became common in India, when the family had gone out for longer time. With split AC the wires to compressor etc are taken out through a bighole only. If placed any where below 6 feet the protruding indoor unit willcreate obstruction and reduce room size. Further indoor unit is fragile also. Above six feet obstruction will not be felt. Further external unit can be placed in the outside shade portion overwindows. Adjusting the flow towards upside and downside is possible in olderunits. Modern units have provisionto adjust side ways also. Q4 How deep is the sand ofthe Sahara? What is below it? Is it a gradual transition, or is it like puresand dumped directly on some previous flat surface? A4 John Flavin, ProfessionalGeologist and Engineer Updated 4y The Sahara, Arabic for desert, stretches across North Africa. The Sahara is the world's largest non-polardesert, over 9,000,000 km² (3,500,000 mi²), which is about the same size as the United States. Although the Sahara is famous for sand-swept dunes, the majority of the surface is comprised of hamada or rocky plateau.The Sahara's fabled dune fields cover only about 15% of the entire desert'ssurface and lie primarily in the north-central region. In the dune ladensections of Algeria and Libya, the sand thickness varies because dunes can pileup to a height of several hundred meters, but then change as the sand moves. The desert expanse is dominated by rocky barren stretches with arid hillsand valleys. What many do notrealize is the Sahara was once a fertile area that supported thriving humancommunities. A study of coresrevealed that North Africa's ancient climate underwent swift desertificationand a climateshift transforming the region from a humid, subtropical landscape to desertwithin a matter of years. This occurred around 4200 B.C. It returned tothe same desert conditions that dominated the area 13,000 years earlier. When the climate began to change, the Sahara region became parched andthe vegetation died away. With nothing to hold the soil, wind action was able to remove all of thefine sediment until only sand, rocks, and bedrock remained. PROBABLE CAUSE The change from the mid-Holocene climate to that of today was initiatedby changes in the Earth's orbit and the tilt of Earth's axis.Some 9,000 years ago, Earth's tilt was 24.14 degrees, as compared withthe current 23.45 degrees, and perihelion, (the point in the Earth's orbit thatis closest to the Sun), occurred at the end of July, as compared with earlyJanuary now. At that time, the Northern Hemisphere received more summersunlight, which amplified the African and Indian summer monsoon. The changes in Earth's orbit occurred gradually, whereas the evolution ofNorth Africa's climate and vegetation were abrupt. German researcher Claussen and his colleagues believe that variousfeedback mechanisms within Earth's climate system amplified and modified theeffects touched off by the orbital changes. By modeling the impact of climate,oceans, and vegetation both separately and in various combinations, the researchers concluded that oceans played only a minor role in theSahara's desertification. FUN FACT Wadi El Hitan, (Whale Valley), inEgypt contains the fossilized remains of an extinct sub-order of whales. Evidently, the valley was part of a shallow marinebasin 40–50 million years ago. The desertification helped both preserve andreveal a tremendous hoard of fossils. Q5 Can you tell aboutfossa? A5 Jo Mburu, Feb 12 The fossa is a cat-like,carnivorous mammal that is endemic to Madagascar. T he fossa is one of the top predators on the island of Madagascar. Femalesgive birth to an annual litter of two to four young, and adulthood is reachedafter three years. Unlike most animals, it isn`tactive at a set time, making it cathemeral. It wakes and sleeps whenever it feels like it. How l wish l could becathemeral haha. Growing up to 6 feet long fromnose to tail tip, and weighing up to 26 pounds. Q6 What are some of the interestingfacts about India? A6 Krishna Kamat, Apr 9 Uttar Pradesh is the largestproducer of the sugarcane in India. West Bengal is the largestproducer of rice in India. Assam is the largesttea-producing state in India. Madhya Pradesh is the largestproducer of spices in India. Gujarat is the largest producerof cotton in India. Rajasthan is the largest producerof petroleum in India. Jharkhand is the largest coal-producing state in India. India is the world's largest producer of milk, pulses and Jute. Indiaranks as the second-largest producer of rice, wheat, sugarcane, groundnut,vegetables, fruits, and cotton. Q7 What is the biggestculture shock you have ever faced? A7 Sanchita Sharma, Works at Wipro Technologies Updated 5y I am from J&K and when I first came to Bangalore for my studies,the cultural difference was as huge as the distances between these two places. 1)More than half the people stayin flats and apartment rather thanhouses in colonies. 2)Coffee is ‘Kapi’ and instead of using teacups, small steel tumblers areused. 3)People are very busy as most of them work for 9–5 corporate jobs. Youcan see people going as flock of sheep to office. 4)No one is interested in anybodyelse’s life. I don’t even knowwho my neighbours are. Its just an awkward smile if we crossways. This is completely opposite as compared to my place where neighbouraunties are ‘CCTV’ :P 5)There are high chances that your interactions are more with a computerthan an actual human being 6)Unmarried girls put sindoor on their forehead which was VERY strangefor me. 7) Idli dosa which is a specialty back home is way too common here. Theday my Mom prepares south Indian cuisine it feels as if some festival is thereand the level of excitement is high. Over the years Bangalore hasbecome my second home. I love theunpredictable weather, my filter kapi, delicious idlis and this place. Q8 Why is my batteryrunning out so fast? A8 Digital Services And Products,Business Consultant |Digital Marketing Services | IT Guru18h Battery life is a commonconcern for many people who use electronic devices, such as smartphones,laptops, and tablets. There areseveral reasons why your battery may be running out quickly. In this article,we will explore some of the most common causes of battery drain and offer sometips on how to extend your device's battery life. 1. Display Brightness One of the biggest battery drains on your device is the display,particularly if it is set to maximum brightness. The brighter the display, themore energy it consumes. To conserve battery life, try lowering the brightnessof your device's display. This can be done by adjusting the settings in thedisplay or brightness section of your device's settings. 2. Apps Running in theBackground Another common cause of battery drain is apps running in the background.Many apps continue to run even when you are not actively using them, consumingprecious battery life in the process. To prevent this from happening, you canclose any unnecessary apps by swiping them away from the recent apps screen. 3. Location Services Location services are another common culprit when it comes to batterydrain. Apps that use GPS to track your location can consume significant amountsof battery life. To conserve battery life, turn off location services for appsthat do not require it. This can be done by going to your device's settings andselecting location. 4. Push Notifications Push notifications are a convenient way to stay up-to-date with thelatest news and information, but they can also be a significant battery drain.Each time a notification is received, your device wakes up, consuming energy inthe process. To conserve battery life, consider disabling push notificationsfor apps that you do not use frequently. 5. CPU Intensive Apps Certain apps are more CPU intensive than others, which means they requiremore processing power to run. This can be a significant battery drain,particularly on older devices. To conserve battery life, avoid usingCPU-intensive apps unless necessary. 6. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are twocommon features that can consume significant amounts of battery life. If youare not actively using these features, consider turning them off to conservebattery life. This can be done bygoing to your device's settings and selecting Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. 7. Battery Health Finally, the age and condition of your device's battery can also impactits battery life. Over time, batteries lose their ability to hold a charge,which can result in reduced battery life. If you have an older device, considerreplacing the battery to extend its battery life. Q9 What are some mindblowing facts about lions? A9 Allen Lobo Corporate finance, former physician &research physicist4y I’ll tell you just one that completely took me by surprise becausepractically nobody thinks of it. It is about how terribly stressed and downright cruel the life of a malelion is. The male African lion is the king of the plains (no, not of the ‘jungle’,that would be the tiger). It iseasily the largest and strongest of the big cats in Africa. And is oftenportrayed as having a regal and very comfortable lifestyle with lionesses doing most of the hunting, while the male/s of the prideget to then eat first! All of that is true - so long as the lion has his own pride. Most of them don’t. It’s simply a matter of numbers. If every male lion with apride has say five lionesses, naturally there are a whole lot of males who havenone and are on their own to hunt and try and dislodge other males from theirprides. Just one in eight male lions will even survive to adulthood. Consider also the fact that lions (i.e. lionesses) hunt by a combinationof two methods - Coordinated attacks - like acouple of lionesses driving aherd of wildebeests into a narrow pass and then another couple first pickingoff and then finishing one of the prey. Ambush - this is much harder todo on the plains becausethere is little cover unlike say for a tiger in a thick forest. Now given its sheer bulk and thick mane, it is hard for a male lion tohide himself. It can run faster thansay a tiger but doesn’t have anything close to the sheer speed of cheetahs interms of all-out chase or the incredible stamina of an African wild dog orhyena to pursue its prey endlessly until the latter collapses from exhaustion. As a side note in terms of contrast, cheetahs have a stunning ‘hunt :kill’ ratio - almost one in two hunts end in success, but the challenge thenfor them is to hold on what they’ve killed. And unlike a lion, given theirblinding speed, they simply pick a target that’s within a few dozen meters andgo flat out in complete view. Back to the topic, there is asolid reason why the primary role of a male lion in a pride is to protect thefemales and the cubs that he has sired, both from other rival competitivepredators (most notably hyenasthat are a primordial and chief enemy) and other male lions (who will instantlykill all the cubs if they take over). On the rare occasion, a malelion will be decisive in bringing down massive prey like an old Cape buffalobut that’s quite uncommon. But male lions are so stressed out that the lifespan of lionesses is somefour years more than theirs. Which when you’re talking about a species thatonly lives as long as a dog for 12–15 years, is a big deal. Compare this now to the average lifespan of the two most common andfavorite prey of lions - Wildebeests at 20 years. Zebras at 20–30 years. Yes, multiple years longer than their predators. Worse still unlike prey, predators like lions cannot simply get up and leave if there’s adrought. Because other grounds already belong to other male lionsand as a species, they are incredibly territorial. So yeah, in an especiallybad dry season, if the prey leave in search of better pastures, the lion simplydoes not have that option. This is something very important which most peoplefail to realize when looking at predator vs. prey. It is not a stretch to say that on balance, the male lion has the most stressed out lifestyle ofall large animals on the plains (with the possible exception of cheetahs). A king who lives for significantly shorter than the females of hisspecies and way shorter than even his prey. And is so crazy stressed out evenin the best phase that male lions often won’t even eat or sleep at ease orcomfortably. Oh but it gets even worse. How do they meet their end? Starvation after beingdislodged from their pride (if theyeven have one to begin with). An old lion who has been dethroned has littlecapacity to hunt for himself. Being mauled to death by a younger and healthier male competitor whochallenges them and takes over the pride. Male lions on average control a pride for no more than four to five yearsduring their life. Onceagain, that’s the successful ones. As cubs after they’ve grown, are driven out of the pride they were borninto after two to three years (unlike lionesses, because young males could be athreat to their own father), then if they’re lucky they’ll have a pride oftheir own for four to five years on average. And then driven into the wilderness to meet a comparatively slow andmiserable end. You know the irony of it all? It’s that the very distinguishing characteristic of lions as the only bigcat that is social, now proves to be a death knell - when isolated, it’scurtains. Because unlike a tiger or leopard, a lion struggles to bring down prey on its own. Once an old lion is driven from the pride into a solitary existence, thatadvantage of being a social hunter now becomes a mortal curse. Q10 What are some unusualways to use common household items? A10 The DIY Experts,Instructor at Household Appliances(2015–present)Apr 11 Use a shower cap to cover bowls or plates when microwaving to preventsplatters. Use a toothbrush to clean groutor hard-to-reach areas inyour home, like the tracks of sliding doors and windows. Use a sock to clean blinds. Putyour hand inside the sock anddip it in a solution of equal parts water and vinegar, and then run it alongthe blinds to remove dust and grime. Use a rubber band to keep a paint can clean while painting. Place therubber band over the can and wipe your brush against it to remove excess paint. Use a potato to remove rustfrom a cast-iron skillet. Cut apotato in half, dip it in salt, and scrub the skillet to remove the rust. Use a hair dryer to removewater rings from wooden furniture.Hold the hair dryer a few inches away from the furniture and blow hot air onthe spot for a few minutes until the ring disappears. Use a clean paintbrush to dustdelicate items, like pictureframes and knick-knacks. Use an old toothbrush to cleanyour keyboard. Dip thetoothbrush in rubbing alcohol and scrub the keys to remove dirt andgrime. All the above QA are from Quora website on 16-04-2023 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/1545523472.2846165.1681653870141%40mail.yahoo.com.
