3

RDYEAR

3
RD I
SSUE

MARCH,
2
0
1
3

ODI
SHABI
GYANACADEMY

V
OB ITU ARY

Pro f. (Dr.) Kula mo ni Sama l, an em in en t Physi cis t of Odis ha,

Former Professor and Head of the Department of Physics, University College of
Engineering, Burla, Sambalpur left for his heavenly abode at Cuttack on 17.02.2013.
He was 83. His demise is a great loss to our State and Country.
Prof. Samal's field of research includes Ultrasonics, Moleular Physics and
Condensed State of Matter. He went to Canada for post doctoral work on
Commonwealth Scholarship. He has about 50 research publications to his credit.
With a hobby of popularization of science from his student career he has published
about 40 books in Odia, 400 scientific essays and stories on topics like astronomy,
space science, lives of scientists, energy crisis, environmental science, development
of scientific temper etc. He has delivered about 300 talks in All India Radio and
T. V. and participated in many cultural functions of schools and colleges.He was
also the Founder Editor of the popular Odia Science Magazine, "Bigyan Diganta"
published monthly by Odisha Bigyan Academy.
Prof. Samal has received 'Best Popular Science Writer's Award' of 1993 from
Odisha Bigyan Academy. He was also felicitated by the Academy in 2007 as
'Senior Scientist'.

ODISHA BIGYAN ACADEMY, BHUBAESWAR

Science Horizon
3RD YEAR

3RD ISSUE

MARCH,2013

President (In-charge), Odisha Bigyan Academy

Sj. William Bilung
Editor
Prof. (Dr) Sodananda Torasia

Editorial Board

Language Expert
Prof. (Dr) D. K. Ray

Dr Pramod Kumar Mahapatra

Dr Ramesh Chandra Parida

Dr Nityananda Swain

Dr Prahallad Chandra Nayak

Managing Editor
Dr Rekha Das
Secretary, Odisha Bigyan Academy

Dr Bhabendra Kumar Patnaik

Prof. (Er) P.C. Patnaik

CONTENTS
Subject

Author

Page

1.

Editorial: Senses, Sensors and Disaster Preparedness

Sodananda Torasia

2.

A Remarkable Steel and its Legendary Product in

Ancient India : Wootz & Damascus Swords

Omkar Nath Mohanty

3.

Cloning Animals (Concluding Part - Human Cloning)

Amulya Kumar Panda

12

4.

Exploring the Interior of Earth

Sahid Ummar

15

5.

Environment and Survival of Humankind :

A People's Perspective

S. N. Patro

20

6.

Pondering on Water on World Water Day-2013

Manas Ranjan Senapati

25

7.

Drops of Precious Liquid

Kamalakanta Jena

27

8.

Fire and Fire Extinguishers

S. Acharya

31

9.

Medium of Telecommunication

Nikhilanand Panigrahy

34

10. Balanced Diet - Need for Good Health and Well Being

Guru Prasad Mohanta

37

11. Migration of Birds - A Lengthy Journey

Birat Raja Pradhan

40

12. Quiz

Titaram Nanda Brahmachari

44

13. 5W'S+H : Sprain

Nityananda Swain

46

The Cover Page depicts : Damascus Sword, Pattern-welded blades from multiple steels folded and forged
Cover Design : Sanatan Rout

EDITORIAL
SENSES, SENSORS AND DISASTER PREPAREDNESS
Human beings are blessed with the senses of
sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell, essential to find
food and shelter and keep out of danger. However, in
case of animals, nature has gifted them with other
senses for their survival. These include the ability to
emit and detect supersonic sound pulses as in the case
of bats and whales. Some animals have infrared
sensory organs, some have ability to produce electric
fields/charge both for navigation as well as for killing
their preys. As observed in many animals like honey
bees, homing pigeons, migratory birds they have been
bestowed with magnetic sense, though the details of
the mechanism of their use is not fully understood.
It is true that animals have the ability to sense
danger in advance which helps them to flee from the
spot to protect themselves. Scientifically speaking they
are sensitive to the slightest variation in their
surroundings, be it sudden change in pressure of air or
variation in intensity of heat or light, or magnetic field.
In such cases the speed of shifting from the scene is
greater than the speed of onslaught of the disaster.
For human beings the case is different. Take
for example cyclone, the information regarding an
impending cyclone can be predicted and communicated
in advance before a limited time only. Depending on
the speed in which a cyclone advances to a location,
people in that area may or may not have sufficient
time to take precautionary measures to save life and
property. The case of disasters arising out of floods
and other disasters is somewhat different.
With development of science and technology
the concept of using defence mechanism by individuals
has changed. The dangers faced by humans is on a
very large scale in the form of disasters, either natural
or man- made. The former group includes cyclones,
super cyclones, floods, earthquakes and tsunamis. No
country, however advanced in technology, is free from
disasters. History is replete with the occurrence of
these disasters over different parts of the Globe
enumerating the wanton loss of life and property, not
to mention the human suffering.
Even though disasters cannot be prevented by
early detection, timely communication and taking
preventive measures can minimize the loss. That is
where advances in technology play an important role.

Tsunami, a very high ocean wave is produced

by an undersea earthquake, landslide, or volcanic
eruption. They frequently go undetected by ships
because the water takes about 10 to 30 minutes to
reach it's highest level and fall back down. As a tsunami
approaches a coastline, it can form a deadly wall of
water that rises more than 30 meters high. A tsunami
that is caused by an undersea earthquake is also called
a seismic sea wave.
Scientists can calculate where and when a given
undersea earthquake would occur and predict when
the resulting seismic sea waves will reach the shore.
The speed of the tsunami depends on the depth of water.
In recent years, with use of various sophisticated
instrumentation such as Sea bottom pressure recorders
with satellite linked high speed and fast transmission
systems and also broad band high sensitive seismic
recorders the event of occurrence of deep sea tsunami
potential earthquakes are very fast detected. With
advanced modeling system and high performance
computing (HPC) systems the possible propagation
of tsunami waves and corresponding coastal disasters
are predicted successfully and warnings are issued.
With satellite observational network, Coastal
Doppler Radar system, high speed wind recorders
and air cr aft observation , quick and accurate
monitoring of severe tropical cyclones is possible
much before its landfall.
With very high resolution complex and coupled
meso-scale ocean-atmosphere models with very fast
HPC system upto 3-5 days in advance severe tropical
cyclones and associated damage potentials are forecast
and warning can be issued through all-weather friendly
stable satellite based communication systems.
Thu s high technology instrument s and
communication & computing platforms may be used
to detect initiation of natural disasters and time of
occurrence and magnitude of phenomenon and
damage potential.
Advanced communication systems enable
speedy and timely dissemination of disaster events.
This enables timely preparedness for appropriate
mitigation strategies and reduce loss of life and
property substantially.

Sodananda Torasia

MARCH, 2013

A REMARKABLE STEEL AND ITS LEGENDARY PRODUCT

IN ANCIENT INDIA : WOOTZ & DAMASCUS SWORDS
Omkar Nath Mohanty

Introduction

The subject of the Wootz Steel and its

India has had a rich heritage and tradition

famed product, the Damascus Swords shall

in science and technology: in astronomy,

be covered in this article. Such swords

mathematics, medicine, metallurgy, ceramics,

were known for their extraordinary sharp

textiles and so on. Its pre-eminence in

edge as well as intricate patterns on the

technology however got blunted with the

industrial revolution in Europe that led to

surface. Many such swords are kept in

mass production with the advent of electricity

swords are known to be of West-Asian

and new processes. India was known for its

origin. There are also a number of examples

metallurgical activities in the Copper & Bronze

age (ca.3000 B.C.) and is believed to be one

of Damascus swords with the characteristic

of the earliest to have ushered in the Iron Age

prominent ones are preserved in the armoury

(ca.1000 B.C.); evidences of iron pieces from

of Golconda and Hyderabad's Nizam's; in

inside the pyramids do however suggest that

Tipu Sultan's armoury; Ranjit Singh'armoury,

the iron age could have existed along with or

and in Thanjavur and Maratha armoury. It is

even prior to the copper-age. Evidences for

also known that the mighty British were so

iron production around 2500 years ago, in

many parts of India, are available.

scared of the remarkably sharp and effective

The iron-base materials that the Indians

produced were of very high quality. Some of
the outstanding example are:, the 'Wootz' used
for manufacturing the legendary 'Damascus'
blades with very sophisticated properties; the

museums around the world. Several of these

damask patterns in India; some of the

swords used by the Indian sepoys in the

mutiny of 1857 that they decided to destroy
them, once the mutiny was quelled. Indeed,
they had to devise and make use of special
implements for cutting the Wootz metal
swords to pieces.
A broad discussion of the iron and steel

Delhi Iron Pillar ( Gupta period ~ 400 A.D. )

that defied corrosion in nature and the iron

making processes in ancient / medieval India

beams used in the temples of Odisha

would be made first and thereafter, the Wootz

(1000 - 1300 A.D.), in particular in Konark

steel / Damascus swords would be dealt with,

temple, that carried the weight of heavy

in order to comprehemsively appreciate the

stone sculptures.

entire subject.

Science Horizon

MARCH, 2013

Making of Iron in Ancient India

It is believed that melting of iron was not

south India by a crucible process at several

locales including Mysore, Malabar and

being practised in ancient India for want of

Golconda in the 17th. century.

high temperature-enduring refractory in the

furnace that could hold molten iron (melting

Wootz Steel and Damascus Swords some broad observations

point of pure iron,~15380 C). Instead, they

Several museums of the world preserv

used to heat small fragments of iron ore mixed

and display the Damascus weapons. Broadly,

with charcoal (produced from wood by

burning), and blow air to raise the temperature

there are two categories of Damascus weapons

( probably ~11500 C) when the slag containing

the sandy materials and phophorus of the ore,
and possessing lower melting point, would
fuse. This is now a pasty mixture of porous
solid iron (the oxygen having been removed
by the reaction with carbon) and viscous slag,,
and was known as Bloomery Steel or Bloom.
When the Bloom is hammered in the hot
condition, the molten slag is squeezed out
leaving almost pure 'wrought' iron (mixed with
some remnant slag ) and

can be further

converted into other shapes by hot working. If

the wrought iron is heated to high temperatures

: one, the pattern-welded Damascus and the

other, the true Damascus, viz. Wootz Damascus
( some times, referred to as Oriental
Damascus). Both types reveal attractive surface
patterns comprising swirling lines of lightetched regions on a nearly dark background.
The pattern-welded steels were produced by
forge welding alternating sheets of differing
compositions of ferrous materials such as
high- and low-carbon steels. This composite
used to be subjected to repeated fold /forge
cycles, twisted and manipulated until a large
number of layers was obtained and an
acceptable pattern revealed.

( ~ 12500 C) in a closed crucible mixed with

charcoal, it picks up carbon and can form

The "Oriental Damascus' or 'Wootz

steel. Avariety of steels from very low to high

Damascus' sword would show patterns as a

carbon, were being manufactured in this

result of the inherent texture of a single steel.

manner and are referred to in the Vedas. In the

The present article primarily focuses on this

middle ages the steels were being exported

Wootz Damascus. A typical sword and its

from India to overseas countries. For example,

internal structure are shown in Fig. 1.

there are accounts of export being made from

Malabar by Jewish merchants. European

The Damscus sword revealing beautiful

surface patterns used to be made from high

travellers including Francis Buchanan and

carbon (~1.5 %) steels, the 'Wootz' steel.

Voysey reported the manufacture of steel in

The word 'Wootz' is believed to be derived

Science Horizon

MARCH, 2013

reached the Middle East, beginning in the 11th

century. They discovered that swords of this
metal could 'split a feather in midair; also
retain their edge through many a battle with
Fig.1: (a) A Damascus sword with English translation of
the text

the Saracens'. The swords made from Wootz

Steel were easily recognized by a watery or
''damask'' pattern on their blades. Both the
origin of the swirling pattern and

the

combination of unexpected strength and

toughness properties in such high carbon steels
have been the subjects of study by numerous
researchers. The exact process believed to
Fig.1: (b) The internal ('ladder & rose') pattern on the
surface of the sword

have been followed by the ancient Indians to

from 'ukku' used in Karnataka and Andhra

the surface texture has been an area of

Pradesh to denote steel. Available accounts

speculation and controversy during the last

suggest that Wootz steel from the southern

decades and in spite of using sophisticated

part of the Indian subcontinent was being

instruments and methods, have failed to resolve

exported to Europe, China, the Arab world and

all issues. However, a simple description of

the Middle-East. Swords of very special quality

th e pr oc es se s ad opte d an d a gene ra l

and perceived to be insuperable, were being

explanation of the characteristics would be

manufactured in a number of places including

attempted in the present article; some relevant

Damascus, then a well-known centre of trade,

and in Persia from the Wootz steel being
brought from India. It is also known from

make Wootz metal and subsequently generate

references would be provided at the end for

readers who would be interested in going
deeper into the subject.

archaeo-metallurgical research that the king

Pourus gifted some quantities of Wootz steel
to his victor, Alexander the Great (~ 300 B.C.)

Method of Production of Wootz Steel

and Swords

and also a sword made from this 'wonder

The Fig. 2 below ( adapted from Sherby's

metal'. The great Indian warrior, Tipu Sultan is

work) depicts a conceptual scheme for making

known to have used Damascus swords. The

of Wootz metal. It may be noted that, as stated

remarkable characteristics of Damascus steel

earlier, 'sponge' iron is made in the furnace

became known to Europe when the Crusaders

where the temperature is raised to ~12000C,

Science Horizon

MARCH, 2013

the slag in a semi-solid condition that is mixed

strength-toughness properties in the finished

with the iron is expelled by hammering and the

sword. The Fig.3 (a) and (b) show a schematic

product is a very low variety of carbon

of the forging and heat-treatment respectively.

(Wrought) iron. This product is again charged

The edge of the blade is expected to retain its

into a furnace along with charcoal, held for

sharpness during long service.

long periods again at ~12000C, cooled slowly.

The final product from this process, a 'cake'
weighing roughly 2.5 kg, is the Wootz metal,
containing very high (~ 1.3 - 1.6 %) carbon.
Such cakes were readily traded internationally.
Many of these materials were shipped to Syria
for being forged into swords.
Fig.3 :Schematic of Making of a Wootz Dmascus Sword :
(a) Forgng schedule and (b) heat-treatment
( Sherby)

It is known that shipments running into

tens of thousands of wootz ingots were traded
from the Coromandel coast to Persia. This
would point to the fact that the production of
Fig.2 : Conceptual scheme for making Wootz steel
(Sherby)

wootz steel was almost on an industrial scale

The forging of the Wootz steel, a hyper-

at a time far ahead of the Industrial Revolution

eutectoid (carbon exceeding about 0.8 %

carbon) steel is possible if the material is

in Europe.
There is however a lack of unanimity

subjected to a strict temperature-time schedule

relating to

for developing the right microstructure in the

produce the final forging that would generate

shaped sword. At a time when the instruments

the sword and its patterns, as shown in Fig.2

for temperature measurement were not

(a) and (b) respectively. It is now mostly

available, adhering to accurate temperature

believed that that the Damascus sword making,

regimes was possible primarily by the colour

based on the Wootz metal, started quite early,

of the objects (dark-red, bright red, white etc.)

was already established by ~ 350 B.C. and

must have provided the right experience for

continued probably upto the 18th century and

the artisans. Finally, a heat-treatment is done

the last genuine Wootz Damascus swords may

with a quenching for imparting the right

have been forged in the early 1800s. Thereafter,

Science Horizon

the exact process adopted to

MARCH, 2013

the tradition of making these sophisticated

swords was somehow discontinued and the art

forging process for Wootz metal, that involved

/ technology for doing the same is lost; needs

was not known to the scientists in Europe yet.

to be re-constructed.

A Swedish metallurgist, Rinman showed in

Studies on Wootz Steel & Damascus

Swords through the Ages

1774 that while wrought iron dissolved in acid

Most recorded scientific studies on

Wootz steel / Damascus swords were carried
out by western scientists. Some of the
prominent of them would be dealt with here.
One of the earliest studies was by the Italian,
Giambattista Della Porta, the best-known
naturalist of his period, from Venice. In 1589
his observation on Wootz was, "too much heat

identifying an optimum window of temperature

completely, Wootz Steel does not and a residue

remains that was identified as carbon.
Sometime later, the well-known chemist from
Sweden, Bergman could quantitatively
differentiate between wrought iron, steel and
cast iron based on carbon content. In a way
therefore, work on Wootz Steel introduced
the concept of adding carbon to iron for
producing a range of ferrous alloys.

makes it crumble"; thereby recognizing the

The Swedish studies generated a good

influence of temperature on this special metal.

This was followed by Joseph Moxon's work in

deal of interest among the leading researchers

in ferrous alloys and in particular in Wootz

England in 1677 who found that forging this

metal. A British researcher, George Pearson

steel above a red heat would be risky. The

experiments that generated great interest in

in 1795 reported his work on 'Bombay Wootz

' at the Royal Society; his hypothesis was that

studying Wootz steel in the early 18th century

the characteristic properties of Wootz were

were those of Antoine Reaumur, a French

scientist-cum-philosopher.who wrote about

due to the presence of oxygen. Mushet in U.K.

was one of the first in 1804 to correctly

Wootz steel in 1722 in his 'Memoirs on Iron

conclude that there was more carbon in Wootz

and Steel', recognized to be one of the

steel than in common steels from England.

Stodart in U.K. succeeded in forging Woootz

earliest books on iron, in history. Reaumur

wrote about the strange 'cake of steel' from
India among the steels from Cairo, Egypt
where Damascus swords were available.
According to him the steel from India was
very special and he could not find a black

steel. Indeed, he used Wootz to make knives

(he had a cutlery business ) and found that they
possessed very fine cutting edge, superior to
any other. Faraday who later developed to be

smith in Paris to fashion a sword from it.

one of the greatest physicists the world had

known, joined Stodart and the two together

From this account, it would be noted that the

conducted research on Wootz between 1819

Science Horizon

MARCH, 2013

and 1822 (before he moved to the field of

su bj ec t ap pe ar ed in 19 79 . Sher by &

electro-magnetism ). They experimented with

co-workers meticulously compared the

properties in Bulat and Damascus steels with

a number of additions to steel. On the nature

of Wootz however, Stodart and Faraday

their own ultra high carbon steels, amenable

incorrectly concluded that alumina and silica

additions contributed to the exceptional

to super-plasticity. The introduction of high

properties of the steel. The Russian scientist

elucidated by Sherby & Wadsworth. The

Anossoff who was working during 1840s on

the Bulat steel (similar in some ways to Wootz)

differentiation between the genuine Damascus

blades and the pattern-welded material was

devoted his entire life time in trying to

reproduce the properties of Wootz for

done by them. According to their work, the

manufacture of articles requiring sharpness

carbides, primarily iron carbides ( Fe3C );

indeed a scheme for carbide precipitation goes

suchasploughshare, could not achieve his dream.

ductility in the Damascus blades was well

patterns on the Damascus blade was due to

Serious research work on genuine

Damascus swords could start only in about

by the name of Wadsworth-Sherby (W-S)

the first quarter of 1900 when a few swords

was in Scientific American (1985). Sherby &

and daggers from Wootz steel were made

available to Zschokke, by a large private

co-workers have continued to work into the

collector called Henri Moser (this private

collection is on display at the Berne Historical
Museum, Switzerland) for conducting a
scientific study; Zschokke conducted his work
and published his paper in 1924 on the
Damascus swords.
A fascinating series of work was started
by Prof. Sherby of Stanford University in
1970s. While Sherby and co-workers were

mechanism. One of their many publications

early 2000s. One of the co-workers, Taleff

continued work on Damask patterns at the
Univ. of Texas - Austin.
Meanwhile, another series of research
work was started by Prof. Verhoeven at the
Iowa State Univ. He received some of the
samples from the Zschokke swords. A forging
expert from Texas, Pendray jointly worked
with him r forged by them that replicated the
properties and appearance of the ancient

engaged in developing super-plasticity

(exceptional elongation at an elevated

Damascus blades. According to their research,

temperature) in high carbon steels, they

condition, one needs strong carbide forming

stumbled upon the information that Wootz

steel, like their material, was very rich in

elements such as V, Cr, Mo etc. and precise

thermo-mechanical treatments (i.e. heating and

carbon. Sherby's first major article on the

forging temperatures) to take care of the

Science Horizon

in order that the patterns appear in the etched

MARCH, 2013

higher phosphorus contents in the Wootz

material, that ostensibly came from the ore.
The presence of small quantities of V were
observed by them in the Sorel Pig Iron that
they were using for their own compositions as
well as in the Wootz. It would appear that
some of the south Indian ores, particularly
those from areas in Karnataka contain small
quantities of the strong carbide forming
elements such as V, Cr. A fascinating paper by
Verhoeven appeared in Scientific American
(2001). The experiments by Verhoeven have
shown through sophisticated analysis, the
mechanism through which carbide particles
form various patterns. The mechanism
proposed earlier by Wadsworth-Sherby (W-S)
was not adequate to explain the exact patternformation on the Damascus blades, as

However, there are still some open

questions regarding the process adopted by
Verhoeven & Pendray and that used by the
ancient Wootz Steel producers and Damscus
blade makers. Verhoeven adopted 'melting'
of the metal that formed 'dendrites' (treelike structures) on solidification and the
presence of V (or other carbide forming)
'impurities' ahead of the dendrites produced
the pattern later on,

after forging. The

ancient Wootz steel producer probably could

not resort to melting because of limitation
in the highest temperature that the available
crucibles could attain.

Wootz Steel as an Advanced Material

As has been mentioned, Wootz is
primarily a high (~ 1.5 %) carbon steel that is

Verhoeven showed. An arrangement of

carbides, seen at a magnification of ~500 X is
shown below, in Fig. 4,These would form the

inherently brittle. However, when subjected to

typical ladder and rose patterns of Fig. 2.,

long damaging carbides are converted into

during cyclic forging, according to Verhoeven.

sphe rica lly-sh aped (globu lar) carb ides

changing the characteristic of the material

an optimized temperature-time--working
(thermo - mechanical) regimen, the thin and

completely. Thus, the presence of globular

carbides in the ferrite matrix (background)
impart the desired ductility to this steel and
also help Damascus swords retain their sharp
edge for long. It is remarkable that the basic
principles of a modern technological process,
viz. super-plasticity (display of several hundred
percent of elongation at a suitable temperature,
Fig. 4 : The microstructure of Damascus Blades
showing the arrangement of carbides
(Verhoeven)
Science Horizon

typically around half the melting point) could

have been practiced (perhaps developed
9

MARCH, 2013

empirically) at such an early age, in Wootz

steels. It is known that the two important prerequisites for a material to possess superplasticity are : (i) presence of two phases and
(ii) fine grain size. The processing of Wootz
steel used for making Damascus swords,
apparently

fulfilled these conditions (i.e.

extremely fine spherical carbide particles in

the background, very fine ferrite grains). Some

Fig.6 : Super-plastic behaviour in the test piece : the

elongation percent is ~ 500% (ONM)

work in this direction on a material similar to

the Wootz / Damscus steel was carried out by

we could achieve as high as 1200 percent

the author at the NML, Jamshedpur. The Fig. 5

elongation; this is an example of super-plastic

behaviour in a material. Typically, the steel
displaying super-plastic behaviour at an
eleva ted temperature shows ove r 15%
elongation at room temperature at a high
(tensile) strength of over 120 kg/mm2 . These

Fig.5 : Long, thin carbides in the cast condition,

turned to fine globules after working
( the marker scale shows the dimension of 5 microns
for comprehending the size, ONM)

shows the presence of long carbides in the ascast condition, that after the hot working get
transformed to fine globular shape in the ferrite
matrix. The result of the microstructure on
the properties is phenomenal. The intrinsically
brittle material can now be stretched
appreciably at a temperature of 760 - 800? C.
For example, in Fig.6, one could see that the
elongation (increase in length over original
length expressed in percent) in a test piece has
been 500 percent. Indeed, by optimizing the
condition of processing of the steel further,
Science Horizon

are considered excellent combinations of

strength and ductility for an engineered
material, such as a sword. Another special
feature, discovered in recent times in the
Damascus sword material, is the presence of
nano-particles (a nano meter is one billionth
of a meter). As is known now, nano-features
(particles as well as general microsturctures)
are the cause of very special qualities in many
materials and components, some examples
are the stunning colours in ancient potteries,
murals, stained glass windows of medieval
churches in Europe and so on. The use of
nano -silver/ copper pa rticle s for wa ter
purification is a more common current
example. Indeed, the modern world is excited
about the unlimited possibilities with use of
10

MARCH, 2013

yet to be elucidated. In the journal Nature, a

team led by Paufler from Dresden University,

meticulous research over the past two decades,

the understanding about finer aspects such as
the nature of carbide precipitation responsible
for the surface pattern are still a matter of
speculation. It is also amazing that the modern
concept of super-plasticity and nanostructures were part of these ancient materials
that provide enough inspiration to today's
researchers.

Germany, have recently reported that apart

Selected Bibliography

from nano-wires it has also discovered carbon

nanotubes in the sword-the first nano-tubes

[1]

nano materials, more so in bio-medical world

as sensors, drugs and in drug-delivery systems.
In Damascus swords, the discovery of nanocarbide particles aroused a good deal of
renewed interest in this ancient material. since
the impact of such extra-fine particles on the
bulk properties of the Damascus swords are

[2]

ever found in steel, The nanotubes, which are

remarkably strong, run through the blade's
softer steel, likely to make it more resilient.

[3]

[4]

Conclusion
Wootz steel bearing ultra high (~ 1.5 %)
carbon and its final product, the insuperable
Damascus swords, represent fine examples
of the technological advancement in ancient

[5]

[6]

India and the superiority of India over other

countries, in terms of such engineered
products at that period. This know-how was

[7]

however lost in course of time due to lack of

documentation and also due perhaps to the

[8]

fact that raw materials became scarce. The

work done by an impressive list of researchers

[9]

in a number of countries and over a long

period has helped understand the theory and
practice of manufacturing these advanced
materials. Although bulk of the features of the
Wootz metal and the Damascus swords have
be en sc ie nti fi ca ll y ex pl ai ne d th ro ugh
Science Horizon

[10]

O. D. Sherby. Damascus Steel Rediscovered? :Trans.

ISIJ, 19 (1979) 381{390.
O. D. Sherby and J. Wadsworth : Damascus Steel.:
Scientific American, 252(1985) 112 {120.
J Bhattacharya,B N Ghosh,S K Choudhury,S P
Chakraborty,P K Deand O N MohantyScandinavian
Journal of Metallurgy, 21 (6), (1992), 279{283
J. D. Verhoeven and A. H. Pendray. Studies of
Damascus Steel Blades: Part I Experiments on
Reconstructed Blades : Mater. Char., 30 (1993)
175{186.
J. D. Verhoeven, A. H. Pendray, and P. M. Berge.
Studies of Damascus Steel Blades: Part II Destruction
and Reformation of the Pattern: Mater. Char.,30
(1993) 187{200.
O. D. Sherby and J. Wadsworth. Damascus Steel
and Superplasticity {Part I : Background,
Superplasticity, and Genuine Damascus Steel.:
SAMPE Journal, 31(1995) 10{17.
O. D. Sherby and J. Wadsworth. Damascus Steel
and Superplasticity {Part II: Welded Damascus
Steels.: SAMPE Journal, 31 (1995) 32{39.
J. D. Verhoeven. The Mystery of Damascus Blades.
Scientific American, (2001)74{79.
E.M. Taleff : Microstructural Characterization of a
Knife with DamaskPatterning Technical Report
submitted to The University of Texas, Austin,
Department of Mech.Engg. (2003)
S.Srinivasan and S.Ranganathan: India's Legendary
'Wootz' Steel: An Advanced Material of the Ancient
World : Pub. Tata Steel ( 2004 )

Former Vice-Chancellor,
Biju Patnaik University of Science & Technology,
Presently : Director, Technology & Academic Initiative,
RSB Metaltech., RSB Group.
Plot 200; Unit 3; Kharavela Nagar, Bhubaneswar - 751001

11

MARCH, 2013

CLONING ANIMALS
(Concluding Part - Human Cloning)
Amulya KumarPanda

Aliver Toffler, in his 1970 book "The

even declared that they not only knew that it

Future Shock" predicted that "Man will have to

has happened but have already seen the clone

make biological carbon copies of himself." As

in person! One such instance was a matter of

a great author as well as a reputed and

great controversy when in 1978, David Rorvik

respected sociologist, he observed with

published his book "In His Image : The Cloning

concern the changes contemporary society

of a Man". In this book the author stunned the

wa s pa ss in g th ro ugh ow in g to ra pi d

world with the information that an American

industrialization. It was this concern that drove

billionaire, with the help of a doctor, has

him to make such a prediction, which,

already got his own clone created. Rorvik

considering the progress then made in cloning

claimed to have seen this clone. This caused

animals, appeared to be a distinct possibility.

tremors in the world of science as well as in

Less than two decades back Robert Briggs and

social life. The matter went to court of law

Thomas King (1952) and one decade back

where it was dismissed finally as the author

John Gurdon (1962) had cloned the leopard

was unable to substantiate his claim.

frog Rana pipiens and the South African

clawed frog Xenopus laevis respectively. "The
Future Shock", a non-fiction written by a highly
influential writer, had its impact on the society,
at large, and the scientific community, in
particular. Its immediate effect was there to
be seen; the term 'Clone' as used by Haldane
in 1963 for animals created by out-of-theNature methods, suddenly gained popularity.
More than that, the changing attitude and
approach of the scientists to human cloning
was clearly felt.

Toffler's influence was also evident in

the celluloid world when films were made
based on some bestsellers. "The Boys from
Brazil", made in 1976, was on making copies
of Hitler. In 1991 "Jurassic Park" was made
on the same theme - cloning, this time
Dinosaurs. The message from such films,
loud and not very clear was - it is possible to
create bloodthirsty, murderous people and
unleash unimaginable terror in the world; it
is also possible to bring back to life some of
the extinct species. By and large, the situation

Taking advantage of the changing scenario

was somewhat confusing, rather perplexing,

quite a few unjustified and not so scientific

until Dolly, the cloned sheep emerged on the

claims were made about human cloning, some

scene in 1996 and created history.

Science Horizon

12

MARCH, 2013

Dolly's arrival triggered cloning efforts

claimed to have produced four more human

pertaining to mammals and particularly humans.

Statements like ". Human cloning is jut a

clones by 2003. This included the clone of the

couple of tweaks away" (Robert Forman,

Reproductive Medicine Centre, London) and
announcements by some scientists (Richard
Seed, Physicist, Harvard University) to get
themselves cloned were rather common
towards the end of the century. Even many
commoners nursed dreams about cloning their
near and dear ones or themselves. With this as
the back-drop, 'Clonaid', a science-based firm
established a laboratory in 2001, specifically
for creating human clones. This was just an
indication of things to come. A year, later
Brigitte Biosseler, a biochemist and the
Director, Clonaid announced that a human
clone has already been created by Cloanaid on
26th December 2002. Following the Dolly
technique Clonaid scientists took a nucleus
from a somatic cell of a certain American
gentleman and placed it in a enucleated egg of
his wife. In due course they got the clone, a
baby girl, and named her 'EVE'. 'Clonaid' also

dead son of a Japanese couple. Meanwhile,

scientists round the world were making
attempts to clone mammals and even a few
were trying to clone man.
Reports were pouring in, but the attempt
made by 'Advanced Cell Technology'-Act in
2001 before Clonaid's announcement about
'EVE', was rather encouraging. In this venture,
the firm could achieve only an early human
embryo (six cells) following a somewhat
modified Dolly technique, but its VicePresident, Robert Lanza was highly otpimistc
about it. He proclaimed that this success paves
the way for 'Therapeutic Cloning' and
employing this method stem cells could be
harvested for making organs for organ
transplantation as well as for treating injured
organs and diseases. Therapeutic cloning was
pro je ct ed as more uti li ti ta ri an tha n
straightaway cloning man or other animals,
which is called 'Reproductive Cloning".
While claims and counterclaims were
being made and debates and discussions
continued about the desirability and ethics of
human cloning, the announcement made by
Severino Antinori, an Italian fertility doctor
and embryologist, created a storm. Antinori's
success story began in 1994 when he was
treating a 62 year old woman. She was 'infertile'
- a barren woman and had no children. Antinori's

Human Clones ... A Computerized Artwork

Science Horizon

treatment helped her attain motherhood. With

13

MARCH, 2013

this Antinori hit the headlines and began

dreaming big things to make human clones
to help childless couples. He joined hands
with Brigitte Boisselier and a Kentucky
University reproductive biologist, Panayiotis
Zavos. In 2001 in a meetingof the USAcademy
of Science, in the presence of his associates
and all the delegates and members, declared
his determination to create human clones.
This stirred up a hornet's nest, but Antinori
was obstinate and adament. He and his
associates ('the unholy trio'?) continued with
their work. From time to time Antinori made
sensational announcements on the issue. One
such is, he has already created three human
clones - two boys and a girl, sometime in the
beginning of this century and they are now
living in some European country. In the
meantime Boisseleir and Zavos have left
Antinori's company and are going ahead with
their work of human cloning separately. The
idea is simple - each one of the trio wants to
be the first successful human cloner!

simple, safe way of helping couples who

cannot have children normally and naturally.
But the technique itself is not safe. Mercy
killing of Dolly is a sad, pathetic pointer to
this. Many really safe options like in vitro
fertilization (test-tube baby) are available.
Besides there are several socio-psychological
issues that pose tricky problems.
The clone is a genetic carbon copy of
the 'cloned', a look-alike. But it may not be the
same as the cloned in all respects. The desired
results, therefore, may not be obtained.
Besides, what would be the family-relationship
of the clone and the cloned? Father and son
(or Mother and daughter), or Identical twins
separated by time ? What psychological impact
will this have on the clone ? What will be his
or her identity somebody's clone ! What
will be his or her position in the society ?
Would the society accept a clone as a normal
individual ? These and countless other
questions need to be addressed, the techniques

Accordingly, they make some confusing, if

not bizarre announcements, independent of

have got to be improved and made foolproof

and the whole issue has got to be debated, if at

one another, on their success. But one thing is

common about them - none of them has been
able to substantiate their claims.

all we want to go for human cloning.

Human cloning is a sensitive issue,

besides being risky. Accordingly in most of
the countries including India and in the U S it
is banned. In some countries only therapeutic
cloning research is permitted. Those who are
in favour of cloning man argue that it is a
Science Horizon

Questions like this might have appeared

irrelevant with regard to Dolly, the cloned
sheep and that is why she was put to sleep so
easily in 2003. But can we afford to be
indifferent to human cloning issues and can
we consider such questions about a human
clone irrelevant ? The argument that we can go
for therapeutic cloning is also losing weight.
14

MARCH, 2013

Clone a human embryo, take out the stem

cells and then destroy it calling it just a lump

EXPLORING THE
INTERIOR OF EARTH

of cells- is it ethical ? Those who say so, what

Sahid Ummar

were they when they were in the blastocyst

stage or a little beyond ? Were they also not
just 'a lump of cells' !

Introduction

With John Gurdon and Shinya Yamanka

winning the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology

tried to imagine about the interior of the Earth

or Med ic in e, eth ic al con si de ra ti on s

Earth is made up of ! How would it be like to

concerning harvesting embryonic stem cells

journey to its center ? In school days, we are

from cloned human embryos have become

often told, if we dig a tunnel vertically, then

rather inconsequential. Their contributions, as

we can reach America lying on the other side

well as the research findings like James

Thomson and many others have shown that

of the Globe. But it is actually a fun to pretend

adult cells could be reprogrammed i.e., they

the Earth. Scientists have proven that man can

could be brought back to an embryonic state.

never be able to dig through the center of the

Such cells could be made to develop into a

di ve rs e va ri et y of cel ls as th ro ug h

Earth, because the center is so hot that man

reprogramming they once again become

'pluripotent'. They are, therefore, called
'induced pluripotent stem cells' (iPSC's).

Since time immemorial, man has always

on which he lives. He wonders of what the

that man can dig any tunnel to the other side of

can never survive there.

However, he is always eager to explore
the interior of Earth. Though scientists have
not yet been able to enter into the interior of

In December 2012, Gurdon predicted

Earth for even more than a few meters, they

that it may be possible to clone man in another

have conceived a lot of ideas about it from the

fifty years or so. But just because we can do a

information collected through some indirect

thing, should we do it ? Should we go for

human cloning at all ? ?

methods. Most of the current information

Reference

of the path and characteristics of the seismic

1.
2.
3.
4.

waves travelling through the Earth, due to the

Developmental Biology, Scott F. Gilbert (2006).

Developmental Biology, Leon W. Browder (1980).
Cloning : Kali Aji O Kali, (Odia) A. K. Panda (2007).
Nobel Committee Press Release, 8.10.2012.

73, Co-operative Colony, Post-KIIT, Bhubaneswar-751024

Mob. : 9937440390, 8280239957
e-mail : amulyapanda39@gmail.com

Science Horizon

about the interior of Earth is from the studies

vibrat ions gene ra ted na tura lly by th e

earthquakes within its body. These seismic
waves indicate about its interior in several
general ways.
15

MARCH, 2013

To understand what's deep in the Earth is

measurement of the earth's mass and

a great challenge. Accumulated and detailed

consequently its density. The densities of

materials in the interior of Earth have been

seismic studies, coupled with theoretical

speculations have suggested the interior
structure of Earth, the depth of different layers,
te mper at ur e, pre ss ur e, che mica l an d
mi nera logi cal comp ositi on, etc. The
knowledge about the layering and chemical
composition of Earth is steadily being
improved by the Earth scientists through
geological observation of surface rocks as
well as their studies by laboratory
experiments at high pressure and temperature
conditions and analyzing earthquake records
on computers.

Density
Scientists have predicted a number of

estimated for different depths by different

scientists. According Keith Edward Bullen
(1906-1976), the density of the uppermost
part of the Earth i.e. the crust is between 2.5
to 3.0 gm/cm3, whereas that of the middle part
i.e. mantle is 3.0 to 5.5 gm/cm3 and in the core
between 9 to 11.5 gm/cm3.

Temperature
Now let us first consider the temperature
prevailing within the interior of Earth. Since
ancient days, man is well experienced with the
temperature prevailing inside the Earth. He
has experienced it from volcanic explosions
and hot springs. The people in some of the

hundred years ago was Sir Isaac Newton (1642-

cold countries also dig tunnels and live inside

those to protect themselves from severe cold.
In other places, people feel more hot inside

1727). From his studies of planets and the

force of gravity, he calculated that the average

deep wells or underground mines. In general,

the temperature within the Earth increases

density of the Earth is twice that of surface

with depth. The rate of temperature that

increases with depths has been estimated to
vary from 100C to 500C per km, the average

estimates about the density of the Earth. The

first scientist who considered this aspect three

rocks. He imagined that the Earth's interior

must have been composed of much denser
material. He predicted the density of Earth
five to six times more than that of water. In
17 98 , He nr y Ca vend is h (1 73 1- 18 10 )
conducted some experiments and proved the
pred iction of Newt on. Ba sing on his
experiment he also calculated the average
density of the Earth to be 5.48 gm/cm3.
Evaluation of gravity has prompted the
Science Horizon

rate being 300C per kilometer.

A number of advances in the field of
physical sciences took place before any
assessment for distribution of pressure within
the earth was possible. Newton's gravitational
law provided the steppingstone forthis venture.
Results of the study of seismic wave
propagation in the form of density distribution
16

MARCH, 2013

yielded a hypothetical pressure distribution

model of the earth's interior. The temperature
of the inner core can be estimated by
considering both the theoretical and the
experimentally demonstrated constraints on
the melting temperature of impure iron at the
pressure which iron is under at the boundary
of the inner core (about 330 Giga Pascal),
which is more than three million times that of
atmospheric pressure. These considerations
suggest that its temperature is about 5,430 C.

Interior Structure
Scientists have been able to identify
several layers in the interior of Earth with
unique chemical and seismic properties. It is
made up of three main shells: the very thin,
brittle crust, the mantle, and the core; the
mantle and core are each divided into two
parts. Although the core and mantle are about
equal in thickness, the core actually forms
only 16 % of the Earth's volume, whereas the
mantle occupies 82 % percent. The crust makes
up the remaining 1-2 %.

Crust
Crust is the solid outermost layer of the
Earth. The maximum thickness of this layer is
about 60 kilometers, which is found at Pamir
plateau. Its thickness is much less at ocean
floor. The average thickness of this layer is 33
kilometers. The crust is divided into two thin
layers by Conrad discontinuity (named after
Victor Conrad, 1876-1962), present at a depth
of 22 km from the surface between the
Science Horizon

Continental Crust (35-70 km) and the Oceanic

Crust (5-10 km). The crust is composed mainly
of alumino-silicates. The outer thin layer is
known as Sial, composed of more siliceous
rocks like granites and granodiorites. Virtually
sial is the combination of the names of two
elements Si (Silicon) and Al (Aluminium). It
means the Silicon and Aluminium dominate
this thin layer. The inner layer of the crust is
Sima, composed of the two dominating
elements Silicon and Magnesium. The rocks
found in this layer are less siliceous rocks
like gabbro, basalt, etc. F. W. Clarke (18471937) calculated that a little more than 47%
of the Earth's crust consists of oxygen. The
more common rock constituents of the Earth's
crust are nearly all oxides and chlorine, sulphur
and fluorine are the only important exceptions
to this and their total amount in any rock is
usually much less than 1%.
The boundary between the outer solid
Crust and underlying highly viscous Mantle is
the Mohorovicic discontinuity (or Moho),
named after Andrija Mohorovicic (1857-1936)
who identified it. Though no one has ever seen
this boundary, it can be detected by a sharp
increase downward in the speed of Earthquake
waves there. The cause of the Moho is thought
to be a change in rock composition.

Mantle
Mantle is the largest second layer in the
interior of the Earth. This is where most of the
internal heat of Earth is located. It constitutes
about 82 percent of volume and 66 percent of
17

MARCH, 2013

the mass of the Earth. Experimental evidence

kilometers. Below the lithosphere, the upper

mantle becomes notably more plastic. As such

silicates generally remain both hot and under

relatively little pressure, it has a relatively low
viscosity; but on the other hand, the lower
mantle is under tremendous pressure and has
a higher viscosity than the upper mantle. On
the basis of the studies so far done, it is
presumed that the mantle is composed mainly
of ferro-magnesium silicate rocks like dunite,
peridotite and eclogite, which are rich in iron
and magnesium relative to the overlying crust.

two main zones are distinguished in the upper

Core

mantle, i.e. the inner asthenosphere composed

of plastic flowing rock about 200 km thick,

The innermost layer of the Earth is the

Core. The Core is separated from the Mantle
by Gutenberg discontinuity (named after Beno
Gutenberg, 1889-1960). The total thickness
of the Core is about 3470 kilometers. This
layer is about 16 percent of the volume and
33.5 percent of the mass of the Earth. The
core was the first internal structural element
to be identified. It was discovered in 1906 by

shows that, up to a depth of some 2900 km,

shear wave movements are observed; material
in this region is apparently rigid enough to
allow such movement. The uppermost mantle
and overlying crust are relatively rigid and
form the lithosphere, an irregular layer with a
ma xim um thi ck ne ss of pe rh ap s 20 0

and the lowermost part of the lithosphere

composed of rigid rock about 50 to 120 km
thick. Important changes in crystal structure
within the mantle occur at 410 and 660
kilometers below the surface, spanning a
transition zone that separates the upper and
lower mantle. While in the upper mantle the

Science Horizon

18

MARCH, 2013

R.D. Oldham (1858-1936), from his study of

Earthquake records, and it helped to explain
Newton's calculation of the Earth's density.
Seismic measurements show that the core is
divided into two layers with a transition zone
in between. The outer core is presumed to be
liquid because it does not transmit shear (S)
waves and the velocity of the compressional
(P) waves that pass through it is sharply
reduced. The inner core is considered to be
solid because of the behavior of P and S waves
passing through it (in 1936) the Earth was
discovered to have a solid inner core distinct
from its liquid outer core, by the seismologist
Inge Lehmann (1888-1993), who deduced its
presence from observations of earthquakegenerated seismic waves that reflect off the
boundary of the inner core and can be detected
by sensitive seismographs on the Earth's
surface. This boundary is known as the Bullen
discontinuity, or sometimes as the Lehmann
discontinuity. The thickness of the liquid outer
core is 2082 km. The thickness of the middle
layer of the core is about 130 km, which is in
solid state. The transition between the inner
core and outer core is located approximately
5,150 km beneath the Earth's surface. The
liquid outer core surrounds the inner core and
is believed to be composed of iron mixed with
nickel and trace amounts of lighter elements.
Recent speculation suggests that the innermost
part of the core is enriched in gold, platinum
and other siderophile elements. The thickness
of the innermost layer of the core is about
1258 km, also present in solid state. It is
Science Horizon

composed of heavy elements. As per latest

information the density of this layer has been
estimated to be between 9.47 to 18 g/cm3.
The inner core is solid due to the overwhelming
pressure found at its center. The core is thus
believed to largely be composed of iron (80%),
along with nickel. The temperature of the
outer core ranges from 4400 C in the outer
regions to 6100 C near the inner core. It is
believed to consist of an iron-nickel alloy.
The Earth's inner core is slowly growing as the
liquid outer core at the boundary with the
inner core cools and solidifies due to the
gradual cooling of the Earth's interior (about
100 degrees Celsius per billion years). Many
scientists had initially expected that, because
the solid inner core was originally formed by
a gradual cooling of molten material, and
continues to grow as a result of that same
process, the inner core would be found to be
homogeneous. It has even been suggested that
Earth's inner core might be a single crystal of
iron. Earth has a modest magnetic field produced
by electric currents in the outer core.
Convection of liquid metals in the outer core
creates the Earth's magnetic field. Without the
outercore, life on Earth would be very different.

Reference
1. Structure of the Earth - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structure_of_the_Earth
2. About the Earth's Core - Its Structure and Possible
Composition
http://geology.about.com/od/core/a/about_the_core

Former Senior Geologist, Geological Survey of India

VIP-130, Ekamra Vihar, Bhubaneswar-15
sahidummar@rediffmail.com

19

MARCH, 2013

ENVIRONMENT AND SURVIVAL OF HUMANKIND:

A PEOPLE'S PERSPECTIVE
S. N. Patro

Introduction
About two decades ago in June 1992, the

of mankind. Hopefully, every nation now

understands the adverse impact of climate

United Nations Conference on Environment

change and expresses concern.

and Development (UNCED, the Earth Summit)

Energy Intensive Modern Lifestyle

was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.Attended by

The Asahi Glass Foundation, Japan has

the representatives of about 192 countries it

been conducting the citizen's survey on

was the largest global conference on

'Environmental Problems and Survival of

environment at that time. The "Rio Declaration

Humankind' since 1992, following the Earth

on Environment and Development" was

Summit. The Foundation made an interesting

followed by adoption of two historic

observation in the survey it conducted in 2012.

conventions namely- the 'United Nations

It was regarding the 'Technology that needs to

Framework Convention on Climate Change-

be Cultivated Urgently". This mostly refers to

UNFCCC)' and the 'Convention on Biological

power generation and energy conservation to

Di vers it y- CBD'. Thes e two impo rtan t

meet the surging demand of energy for the

conventions may find solutions to meet the

modern lifestyle. The respondents of the

challenging needs for the survival of mankind.

survey most frequently chose' Solar Power' in

The UN mechanism plays the facilitating role

preference over other sources like nuclear

only, and does not have any legal teeth or

energy, wind energy, geothermal energy,

muscular power to contain any nation. For a

hydro-power energy, wave energy, tidal energy,

layman to understand it can be explained that

etc. (Table-1). The solar power mechanism is

the progressive change of climate impacts the

nothing but the reflecting mirrors concentrate

natural environment and the very sustenance

the solar energy to boil water into vapour

of life on earth. The climate change was a

which is used to rotate the turbine and generate

natural phenomenon, and necessary for the

energy. The only demerit in solar power plant

course of evolution. But the unrestricted

is that it requires about three times the land

anthropogenic activities of the modern man

required for coal-based thermal plant. Further

add more green house gases to the atmosphere

research may invent devices which may reduce

making the hitherto habitable climate

land requirement in near future. According to

inhospitable posing threat to the very survival

a study made by the Scientists of the Indian

Science Horizon

20

MARCH, 2013

Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, that the

country's energy needs can be met entirely by
solar and other renewable sources and 4.1 per
cent of the total uncultivable and waste land
area of India will be enough to meet the
projected annual demand of 3,400 terawatthours (TWh) by 2070 through solar energy
alone (1 TWh per year equals 114 megawatts).
'Plant' is nature's living equipment which has
the very simple mechanism of harvesting
solar energy. The chlorophyll in the leaf is so
designed that it traps solar energy, water
from soil through the root and prepares food,
and generates the oxygen that is essential for
life. If the scientists can prepare the model
of chlorophyll the problem of energy scarcity
can easily be solved.
Table-1: Technology that Needs to be
Cultivated Urgently
(Power Generation and Energy Conservation)
Sl. Source of Power
Respondents
No. and Technology
(%)
for Conservation
01 Solar Power
68
02 Conservation Technology on
Consumption side
58
03 Wind Power
39
04 Carbon Capture and Storage
35
05 GeothermalEnergy
32
06 Hydro-electric Power
19
07 Wave Power
12
08 Tidal Power
09
09 Pumped Storage
Hydroelectricity
05
10 Other
11
11

No Response

Science Horizon

02

In addition to this, according to the Asahi

Foundation's survey observes "thorough
conservation technology on the consumption
side (electricity conservation, insulation, and
energy conservation) in daily life is necessary.
This reflects the importance respondents
placed not only on power generation
te ch nolo gy it se lf bu t al so on en er gy
conservation among consumers. One must be
aware of the need to prevent wasteful use of
energy. Prodigal use of fossil fuel energy
costs the nations heavily. In Odisha state the
theft and transmission loss is more than 30
per cent. Energy saved is energy conserved.
By this we can save the resources and reduce
the environmental pollution.
'Nuclear Energy' was thought to be the
best alternative renewable source of energy.
But after the Fukushima nuclear accident
people's perceptions in this regard have changed
and a large number of respondents across the
world oppose it (Table-2). Overall 67 per cent
of the citizens in the world oppose it, while in
Japan 97 per cent of respondents oppose it.
The survey indicated that overall 80 per cent
of respondents prefer some sort of review on
nuclear policy. People understand that major
Table-2: More Citizens Oppose NuclearPower
Sl.
No.
01
02
03
04
05

Country
Overall
Japan
United States & Canada
China
India

Respondents
(%)
67
97
58
39
58
21

MARCH, 2013

nuclear accidents threaten health and life

through radioactive contamination and have
negative effects on the environment on a
global scale. Radiation exposure risk ranges
from change in blood chemistry up to death
within two hours depending on the dose.
Forests, Agricultural Lands and Wetlands
Forests, agricultural lands and wetlands
have tremendous potentiality to abate
environmental hazards and therefore need to
be conserved at any cost for the present and
fu tu re ge ne ra ti ons . Accor di ng to the
International Union for the Conservation of
Nature (IUCN), 'Across the globe lie more
than a billion hectares of lost and degraded
for es t la nd tha t co ul d be res to re d' .
Deforestation accounts for up to 20 percent
of the global greenhouse gas emissions that
contribute to global warming, according to
World Bank. FAO data estimates that the
world's forests and forest soil store more than
one trillion tons of carbon-twice the amount
found in the atmosphere. Forests (both
terrestrial and coastal), and water bodies are
the store houses of biodiversity and act as the
biggest carbon sink. The local communities
need to be recognized as the custodians of
forests and natural resources. They enjoy the
benefit of services rendered by such resources;
and therefore have the moral obligation to
save forests, agricultural lands and wetlands in
order to guarantee inter-general equity. By
protecting the natural forests and other habitats
they play a vital role in reducing accumulation
Science Horizon

of carbon dioxide and other green house gases

in the atmosphere.
For any development activity, however
important may it be, the forests, agricultural
lands or the wetlands need not be sacrificed if
it disrupts the ecological stability. Such areas
are integral parts of global sustainable
development and should be protected to the
extent possible. The man-made forest is no
substitute to natural forest as the former suffers
from forest deficit syndrome. We now realise
that forests and wetlands are essential for
survival of mankind like any other living
organism. It is for this reason; there is global
consensus towards protection, conservation
and promotion of forest cover, agricultural
lands and wetland areas. The enhancement of
such areas is possible through combined
efforts of the government agencies and the
people at large. Forest and agriculture-related
economic activities affect livelihoods of 1.6
billion people worldwide; they provide sociocultural benefits and are the foundation for
indigenous knowledge; and as ecosystems.
Forests play a critical role in mitigating the
effects of climate change and protecting
biodiversity. Similarly the wetlands also play a
crucial role in maintaining the ecological
balance and the aquatic biodiversity.

I mpe di m e nts
to
A ddr e s s i ng
Environmental Problems
The results of the 21st Annual Survey of
theAsahi Glass Foundation conducted in 2012
identified the following impediments to
22

MARCH, 2013

addressing environmental problems (Table-3).

The table indicates that the highest impediment
is 'Pursuit of Profit'. In decreasing order the

proposed because of problems like land

acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement of

other impediments are mentioned in the table.

clearance, people's resistance, mine allocation,

Table-3:Impediments to Addressing
Environmental Problems

bureaucratic delay, governance deficit

syndrome, etc. The project proponents engage

Sl. Impediment
Respondents
No.
(%)
01 Pursuit of Profit
82
(Human Desire)
02 Global Economic System
61
03 Problems in DecisionMaking Systems
48
04 Governance Problems
47
05 Communication Problems
24
06 Lack of Technical Resources
21
07 Other
06
08 No response
02

professional consultants for getting the

In a country like India where the accountability

is not insisted upon, the progress of
develo pment suffer s more from these
impediments. A case in point is the slow
progress of development projects in Odisha
State under the Indian Union. Of the 86
Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) signed
for development of mineral based industries

th e dis pl ac ed pe rs on s, en viro nm en ta l

environmental clearance and such practices

do not generally address to the local people's
socio-economic problems and environmental
pollution problems. Environment and socioeconomic experts and scholars in the
universities, and conscious knowledgeable
citizens need to be engaged in such cases
appropriately address such issues.

Environmental Conditions of Concern

The world is now facing new challenges
of the environmental conditions of concern.
Those are climate change, loss of biodiversity,
land use practices, environmental pollution,
food scarcity and contamination, energy
intensive modern life style, impact on socioeconomic condition of urban and rural
populace, etc. (Table-4). The reversal of

(steel, aluminium, etc.), thermal power plants

environmental conditions to the prehistoric

and different other projects during the current

decade, only 28 projects have either been

ages is never possible. But if life is to sustain

in its present form, still there is time and

completed or just started; it is understood.

opportunity. We must exercise restraint and

Therefore, the progress in this front has belied

expectations as ` 23, 000 crores has been

consume nature's resources less than its

regeneration in proportion. All human

invested so far as against the promised

activities must be environment friendly and if

investment of ` 4,11,726 crores. Most of

these projects do not pick up the speed as

need arises the development mus t be

Science Horizon

compromised but not the environment.

23

MARCH, 2013

Table-4: Environmental Conditions of Concern

Sl.
No.

Category

Main Elements

01

Climate Change

Atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide leading to global

warming, oceanacidification, climatic aberrations (droughts, torrential
rainsand flooding, severe storms, heavysnow, abnormaltemperatures,
drying of rivers and lakes, desertification, etc.).

02

Biodiversity

Acceleration of species extinction as the effects of contamination,

climate change, land use for non-forestry purposes.

03

Land Use

Expansion of cultivated land for agriculture, overgrazing, diversion of

natural forests for development projects, urbanization, and land use
without regard for the environment, etc..

04

Pollution/ Contamination

River and ocean pollution-eutrophication caused by excessive

accumulation of nitrogen and phosphorous, and contamination by
chemical substances, atmospheric pollution, particulates suspended
in the atmosphere, soot and chemical substances.

05

Food

Diminution of food supply from land and oceans.

06

Lifestyles

Transformation of lifestyles from low energyconsumption to high

energyconsumption,from natural food to junk food, labour-intensive
to luxury- intensive, etc.

07

GlobalWarming Measures Progress of measures for mitigation and adaptation. The Government
of India and the state governments have prepared climate change
action plans, but time will only speak of its implementation.

08

Environment and Economy Progress towards implementing an economic system to reflect

environmentalcosts, the bearing of social costs, imposition of taxes
for fossil fuels that emit carbon dioxide whichcauses global warmingrelated damages, the realization of a green economy, sustainable
economic development, etc.

09

Environment and Society

Environmentalawareness at the individualand societal levels, progress

of environmentaleducation, poverty, the status of women.

Conclusion
The CBD and the UNFCCCaddress green

minimum stress on nature's resources and

environment.

house gas reduction, green energy production,

The 18th session of the Conference of

forest and wetland protection, biodiversity

the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC and the 8th

conservation for sustainable development.

session of the COP serving as the Meeting of

However, the basic need is to practise the

the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol was held at

principles of simple life style that causes

the Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha,

Science Horizon

24

MARCH, 2013

Qatar through 26th November to 8th

December 2012. The conferences seek to
address the threat of global warming caused
by greenhouse gas emissions like carbon
dioxide. The concentration of carbon dioxide
in Earth's atmosphere has reached 391 ppm
(parts per million) as of October 2012 while
the pre-industrial concentration was 280 ppm.
The Doha Conference attended by about 17,000
participants made little progress towards the
funding of the Green Climate Fund. But it
produced a package of documents collectively
titled The Doha Climate Gateway. The
conference outcome is an eight year extension
of the Kyoto Protocol until 2020 limited in
scope to only 15% of the global carbon dioxide
emissions due to the lack of participation of
Canada, Japan, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, New
Zealand and the United States and due to the
fact that developing countries like China (the
world's largest emitter), India and Brazil are
not subject to any emissions reductions under
the Kyoto Protocol. The Kyoto Protocol-the
world's only legally binding agreement on
emissions reductions finalized in 1997-was
set to expire at the end of December 2012, but
the con fe re nc e ex te nd ed the sec on d

PONDERING ON WATER
ON WORLD WATER DAY-2013
Manas Ranjan Senapati

Water is typically referred to as polluted

when it is impaired by anthropogenic
contaminants and either does not support
human use, such as drinking water, and/or
undergoes a marked shift in its ability to
support its constituent biotic communities,
such as fish. Natural phenomena such as
volcanoes, algae blooms, storms, and
earthquakes also cause major changes in water
quality and the ecological status of water.
Water pollution is a major global
problem. It has been suggested that it is the
leading worldwide cause of deathsand diseases
and that it accounts for the deaths of more
than 14,000 people daily. An estimated 700
million Indians have no access to a proper
toilet, and 1,000 Indian children die of
diarrheal sickness every day. Some 90% of
China's cities suffer fromsome degree of water
pollution, and nearly 500 million people lack
access to safe drinking water. In addition to the
acute problems of water pollution in developing
countries, industrialized countries continue to
struggle with pollution problems as well.

Causes of Pollution

commitment period up to December 31, 2020.

1.
2.

Reference

Sources

1.

Results of the 21st Annual "Questionnaire on

Environmental problems and the Survival of
Humankind", The Asahi Glass Foundation, Japan,
November 2012.

Working President, Orissa Environmental Society,

Plot No. ND/4, VIP Colony, Ekamra Vihar, Bhubaneswar-15
Mob.-9437190420

Science Horizon

Pathogens
Chemical & other contaminants

1.

Domestic Sewage:
It includes waste water from homes and
commercial establishments. Municipal and
domestic wastes are released into canals and
rivers causing the pollution of major rivers of
our country.
25

MARCH, 2013

2.

Industrial Effluents:

Water gets polluted by acids, alkalis,

detergents, soaps, phenols, aldehydes, ketones,
amines, cyanides, heavy metals, pesticides,
insecticides, fungicides etc released from
several industries like sugar, paper, textile,
steel, soap, oil refineries, fertilizers etc.
3.

Agricultural Waste:

Pesticides, insecticides, fungicides,

fertilizers etc enter waterways as runoff from
agricultural lands is reported to cause water
pollution.
4.

Radioactive pollutants:

of human and animal corpses which carry

major health risks by either direct bathing in
the water (e.g.: Bilharziasis infection), or by
drinking (the Fecal-oral route).
Case Study II
The industrial complex of Angul Talcher
of Odisha has been identified as a critically
polluted area in the Brahmani basin. The
wastewaters generated from the industries Viz,
NALCO, TTPS, FCI, Orichem and mining
operations are primarily responsible for
deterioration of water quality of Mandira River
which is a tributary stream of Brahmani river.

Radioactive pollutants enter into water

streams due to nuclear tests, nuclear power
plants, atomic explosion etc.

An international day to celebrate

freshwater was recommended by United
Nations Conference on Environment and

Case Study I

Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in

1992. The United Nations General Assembly
responded by designating 22 March 1993 as
the first World Water Day.UN-Water has
dedicated World Water Day 2013 (observed
on 22 nd Marc h) to the theme Water

Mo re tha n
400 million people
liv e al on g th e
Gan ge s.
An
estimated
2,000,000 persons
Everyday activity in the Ganges
ritually bathe daily
in the river, which is considered holy by Hindus.
In the Hindu religion it is believed to flow
from the lotus feet of Vishnu (for Vaisnava
devotees) or the hair of Shiva (for Saivites).
The spiritual and religious significance could
be compared to what the river Nile meant to
the ancient Egyptians. While the Ganges may
be considered holy, there are some problems
associated with the ecology. It is filled with
chemical wastes, sewage and even the remains
Science Horizon

Cooperation. The objective of the day is to

focus international attention on the impact of
rapidurban populationgrowth, industrialization
and uncertainties caused by climate change,
conflicts and natural disasters on urban water
systems.It willencourage actionbygovernments,
organizations, communities, and individuals
aroundthe world toactively engage inaddressing
urban water management challenges.

Department of Chemistry, Trident Academy of Technology

Bhubaneswar-751024, India
E Mail: dr_senapati@yahoo.com

26

MARCH, 2013

DROPS OF PRECIOUS LIQUID

Kamalakanta Jena

1.

Scarcity of Water in the Blue Planet

and rest 5 % water is used in domesticity.

Earth is called the Blue Planet of our

In addition, this meagre amount is misused,

solar system. Blue planet means a planet

mismanaged and polluted.

covered with plenty of water. That's true. More

than 71% of the surface of Earth is covered
with water. Despite being a 'Blue Planet' we
face the shortage of water. The hydrosphere of
our planet consists of all bodies of water like
oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, streams, ground
water, glaciers, polar ice caps, atmospheric
moisture, precipitation etc. Of the whole
hydrosphere, more than 97% water is found in
the oceans and is too salty for human use.
Dissolved salts compose about 3.5 percent of
the water in the oceans, making it unfit for
drinking or agriculture. Out of the rest 3%

2.

Water is Life

fresh water, two-third is stored untouched as

Water is necessary for all living things.

ice-caps found in the Polar Regions. The

Up to 90% of body weight comes from water

remaining one-third fresh water is found in

in some organisms. Water constitutes 40 to

rivers, lakes, groundwater and water vapour in

75 percent of the body's weight apparently a

the atmosphere. Only 6 parts out of one

wide range due to individual fat content and its

lakh parts (0.006%) of the total water is

percentage of overall weight. Our brain is

actually available for our use. In other

composed of 70% water. Our lungs are nearly

words, if the whole available water of the

80% water and the same portion in case of

planet Earth could be accommodated in a

heart and kidney. Our muscle tissue contains

bucket, only a spoonful of water is our

about 75% water by weight and skin 70 percent.

share. That too, it is distributed unevenly

Our bone has 22% water. About 83% of our

among agriculture, industry and domestic

blood is water. The cell, which is known as

purpose. Out of the spoonful of liquid,

building block of our body, cannot live without

agriculture consumes 70 %, industry 25 %

water. Thus, Water is our Life.

Science Horizon

27

MARCH, 2013

Our body fat contains only 10 percent

style. Thus, water is precious in the living

water. Therefore, water amounts to a much

Earth. In fact, the existence of hydrosphere in

smaller percentage of total body weight in

the Earth has initiated life cycle in it.

grossly obese people. In general, body weight

Hydrosphere is an indispensable sphere for

of normal young adult males is 60 to 70

the living organisms.

percent water while normal youngadult females

3.

are at 50 to 60 percent. On average, women

have a higher percentage of body fat than men.

Uses of Water
Truly speaking, water is a synonym for

Life in biosphere. Water is necessary for

domestic, industrial, agricultural and various
other fields. Water is necessary in domestic
use for drinking, cooking, cleaning etc. It is
necessary in industrial use for cooling,
cleaning, processing etc. It is necessary for
plant growth and irrigation in agriculture.
Energy from hydro-electricity generation is
possible from water reservoir. Water is
necessary in ponds, seas or oceans for fisheries
and aquaculture. It is necessary in seas and
oceans for navigation and tidal energy. In
addition to common tidal energy, scientists
have decided to produce hydrogen from the
Water has a great role in our life-style as

sea water in near future. It has an important

well. It helps digest our food, transport waste,

role in waste disposal through canals and

control body temperature and blood pressure.

drainage. It is necessary for vital fields like

It removes the dangerous toxins that are added

steamengine and nuclear power plants. Water-

into our body. It cushions our body joints. It

ice is used in transportation of perishable

acts as a transport for oxygen and nutrition

goods. The ocean serves main purposes in the

throughout the cells in the body. It encourages

climate system.

bowel movement. It helps the normal kidney

The amount of water in the body must be

function from getting impaired. It keeps us

maintained within a fairly narrow range. We

from getting excessively dry skin. It is the

get water from three main sources. Daily food

water that gives us life and regulates our life

provides us about 1,000ml water, drink provides

Science Horizon

28

MARCH, 2013

us about 1,200 ml and metabolism produces

ground. This would be the water that flows

another 350 ml. When food is metabolized the

into rivers, lakes, streams, reservoirs, even the

main waste products are water and carbon

oceans. Surface water is not safe. Runoff is a

dioxide. On a regular cycle we lose about

problem because it carries waste materials

1,500 ml water as urine, 100 ml water as

like vehicle oil, road silt and trash into the

faeces, 600 ml water through the skin and

water supply. Surface water needs various

350 ml water through the lungs. When our

treatments before it becomes drinking water.

output of water is increased, our intake must

This is done because things like leaves, fish,

also increase to prevent dehydration. During

animal droppings, boat fuel, industrial garbage,

extreme exercise in a hot environment, intake

chemicals, fertilizers, acid rain water and

might have to exceed 15 liters a day to

various other toxic elements can easily get

maintain balance.

into lakes, streams, and rivers.

4.

Contaminated Sources of Water

Ground water is found under the ground.

Water cannot be produced naturally. Its

We usually prefer ground water for drinking

availability is largely decided by climate,

purpose. A portion of surface water sinks into

geographical and physical conditions of a

the ground and becomes ground water. In the

locality. But demand of water is accelerated to

water cycle, some of the precipitation sinks

meet the needs of growing population and

into the ground and goes into watersheds,

industrial growth. Still we have least care for

aquifers and springs. Places that have lots of

conservation of the fresh water available to us

sand underground will allow more water to

any time anywhere by any means. Rain is the

sink in than the ones that have lots of rock.

main source of water. In most of the countries

When the water seeps down, it will reach a

about 80 % water available from rain is carried

layer of ground that already has water in it.

off to the ocean and seas. On the other hand,

That is the saturated zone. The highest point in

the ground water level is diminishing due to

the saturated zone is called the water table.

uncontrolled use, deforestation and rapid

The water table can rise and lower depending

evaporation caused by global warming. Further,

on seasons and rainfall.

the mere spoonful of water available to us is

Groundwater flows through layers of sand,

gradually becoming polluted and contaminated.

clay, rock, and gravel. This cleans the water.

Surface water is the most common form

Because groundwater staysunderground, things

of water because we see it every day. It is the

that fall into surface water can't fall into it.

water that travels or is stored on top of the

This means that groundwater stays cleaner

Science Horizon

29

MARCH, 2013

than water on the surface. But it is not always

valuable than petroleum, as is evident from the

safe. It has its problems too. When farmers

statement of World Bank Vice-President

use fertilizers and insecticides, rain will wash

Dr. Ismail Serageldin in a interview to

them into the soil where they get into aquifers.

Newsweek during1995. Dr. Serageldin rightly

Gasstations have big, underground tanks where

said, "Many of the wars this century were

they keep the gas. If these leak, the gas sinks

about oil, but those of the next century will be

into the groundwater, too.

over water." We must think : What if the Third

5.

War for Water

World War is over water?

A wide range of water conflicts appear

6.

throughout history. The United Nations

Save each Precious Drop

About four

recognizes that water disputes result from

bi ll io n

pe op le

opposing interests of water users. These

fr om

conflicts occur over both freshwater and

na ti on s

saltwater and between international boundaries.

ex pect ed to be

However, conflicts occur mos tly over

seriously affected

freshwater; because freshwater resources are

by the scarcity of

limited. It is a vital, yet unevenly distributed

fr es h wa te r by

natural resource. International organizations

2025. India will be

play the largest role in mediating water disputes

on e

and improving water management. Yet water

victim nations. The

conflicts go unresolved and become more

shortage of fresh water will land the nations in

dangerous as water becomes scarcer with

conflicts for water distribution. In our country

increase of global population. Water is more

the conflict regarding the distribution of river

dif fe re nt

of

are

tho se

water has already started between different

states. But, we should remember that conflict
will not solve the problem. To survive on this
celestial abode, each and every nation should
care for that meagre water. We have no option
but to save each drop of precious water for our
offsprings and future generation.

Government Women's Junior College, Sundargarh, Odisha-770001

Mob - 9439501651, E-mail - kkjena1@gmail.com

Science Horizon

30

MARCH, 2013

FIRE AND FIRE EXTINGUISHERS

S. Acharya

In our day today life, we take the help of

fire mostly for making our own food. When
man had no idea about fire, he used to eat raw
foods. Gradually he came to know the use of
fire and his living style changed accordingly.
As the life advances, the risk of hazards also
increases. Scientifically fire is defined as the
rapid oxidation of the materials in the
exothermic chemical process. Fire sometimes
may be very vigorous and can harm life. For a
fire to takes place, it needs a combustible
material, oxygen and heat. If any one of these
is not available, then the whole reaction process
will not take place. Fire can be classified into
5 categories as given below [Table 1]

It has been reported by the Natural fire

protection association that, nearly 85% of the
fire deaths occurred at home due to fire
accidents in various modes. Thus fire
prevention measure should be the prime concern
Science Horizon

for each member present in the family. Most of

the accidents are due to the faulty electrical
wiring, overloading of the electricalcircuits, use
of the heating equipments, cooking equipments
and smoking. Therearesome basicfireprevention
tips everyone should follow at home to reduce
the fire hazards. These are cited below :

All electrical devices should be checked

and repaired at regular intervals.

The warm switches should be replaced.

Running the extension wires under the

carpet or door ways is very dangerous.
Such practice should be avoided.

Overloading of the sockets should be

avoided at all times. It is always advisable
to put higher wattage appliances to
individual power outlet.

Th e cu rt ai ns , cl ot he s an d ot he r
combustible items should be kept away
from the electrical circuits as well as
from the kitchen fire.

Children should never be allowed to play

with electrical appliances such as hair
driers, heaters or irons.

The electrical circuits must be child proof.

Always it should be a practice for all of

us to switch off the power outlets that
are not in use.

While repairing any electrical items,

proper insulation should be maintained.

Smoke can create firedue toour ignorance.

It is always advisable to check out the
smoke before going to bed.
31

MARCH, 2013

Heaters with automatic shutting off

switch can be used.

The space room heaters should not be

used with extension cord.

The cooking appliances must be clean and

we must wipe away spills as they occur.

While cooking, it is advisable to wear

short sleeve cotton dresses.

The micro oven should have enough

breathing space and free from obstruction.

Grease fire is caused by cooking oil or

greasy food. To control grease fire, the
cooking pan has to be covered with a lid
and the burner must be switched off till
the fire has been put off clearly.

Water should not be used to put off the

grease fire. Water can cause splatter and
hence spread the fire.

While going out, all the electrical

appliances, along with the gas cylinder,
sh ou ld be pr op erly ch ec ked an d
switched off.

The gas cylinders and other inflammable

materials should not be kept near the
electricalswitchboardsorany connections.

Like home, it is necessary to maintain

fire safety at workplace. The following points
should be taken care of to have fire safety at
the work place.

The office should have emergency route

to exit.

Fire detection and warning system must

be maintained in good working condition.

It is very important to remove or store

safely the inflamable & cooldown
substances.
Science Horizon

Special care to be taken to evacuate

elderly, children and disabled persons in
case of any emergency.

It is necessary to provide information to

the employees present in the workplace
about the various provisions from the
safety.

All the staff members are to be trained

properly to help each other at the time of
necessity.

Fire Extinguishers
After taking the necessary measures to
control the fire hazards, it is also very
important to keep the fire extinguishers for
the emergency. Fire extinguisher is an active
device to control fire in an emergency
situation. These are various types of fire
extinguishers. Each type bears a special
geometrical symbol to make it easier for
identification. The main function of the
extinguishers is to reduce the Oxygen content
of the fire surroundings which lowers the
ignition temperature and stops the fire. They
also have some additional information. The
extinguisher chart is given below which
signifies the categories. [Table 2]
It would be worthwhile to mention about
the invention and development of fire
extinguishers.
The first fire extinguisher was invented
and tested by Ambrose Godfrey of England in
th e ye ar 172 3. It co ns is te d of fir eextinguishing liquid containing a powder
chamber of gun powder which was connected
32

MARCH, 2013

chemical to the nervous system the use of

carbon tetrachloride has been avoided. In 1940,
Chlorobromomethane (CBM) was used
ef fect ivel y as an ex ti nguish in g agen t
effectively till 1969 as CBM is proved to be
less toxic than the former chemical.

with a system of fuses which when ignited,

exploding gunpowder and scattering solution.
Then in the year 1818, George William
Manbay used another type, a copper vessel of
3 gallons capacity containing Potassium
Carbonate (PearlAsh) solution with compress
air. Frankcois Carlier of France in 1866 used
a solution of water and Sodium bi carbonate
with Tartaric acid as the extinguisher which
could produce carbon dioxide. Later, Almon
M. Granger used Sodium Bicarbonate solution
and Sulfuric acid to expel pressurized water.
The reaction between the two chemicals
resulted Carbon dioxide and pressurized water
through the nozzle of the cylinder to control
fire. In 1904, Aleksander Loran of Russia
used the chemical foam using burning naphtha.
The pyrene manufacturing company of
Delaware used Carbon tetrachloride as the
fir e ex ti ng ui sh er. Th e li qu id car bo n
tetrachloride vaporized and extingusushing
flames by breaking the chain reaction of the
fire process. Due to the toxic nature of the
Science Horizon

Then the carbon dioxide extinguisher

was used by Water Kiddle Company in the
year 1924 to reduce the fire in the telephone
switch boards. Recently the dry chemicals
such as Sodium Bicarbonates (purple-K),
Ammonium Phosphate, Potassium chloride
(Super-K) are used as the extinguishers. In
addition to this, chemical [13% Al2(SO4)3
and 8% NaHCO3] and mechanical foams [dry
washing powder and H2O] have been used as
extinguishers. In case of the fire in oil
reservoirs, an aqueous film forming material
synthetic foam) effectively reduces the fire.
This substance has very low surface tension
which allows intense wetting property on the
surface of the oil, thus increasing the contact
between the fire and oil surfaces.
By following the above mentioned
procedure and use of the extinguishers at proper
time, we can effectively reduce the risk of fire
hazards to a large extent and ensure a safe living.

References:
1.

Encyclopedia of fire extinguishers

2.

L. M. Desmukh, "Hazard indentification and Risk

Management Industrial safety Management" TMG
publication.

Department of Chemistry
KMBB College of Engineering and Technology,
At/P.O.- Daleiput, Dist.-Khurda, Odisha-752056

33

MARCH, 2013

MEDIUM OF TELECOMMUNICATION
Nikhilanand Panigrahy

G. K. Bhide, one-time research scientist at

BhabhaAtomic Researchcentre , has remarked:
"It seems as if one has turned round a full
circle. The first telecommunication system
used a conducting cable. Then came 'wireless'
communication. This communication was
established through space, by way of radio
waves as carriers, so that no cables were
needed for carrying signal from one place to
the other. And , once again, we are back in the
era of telecommunication using cables. The
only difference is that the 'cable' is now made
of glass, a material that is non-conducting in
the conventional sense! The carrier waves are
now light waves with frequencies much higher
than the radio or microwaves". ('Fibre Optics',
NBT Books, Page 62).
It will be interesting to make assessment
of this observation. For this we need to look
in to
the
his to ri ca l
grow th
of
telecommunication. In this context, we may
recollect the contributions of Robert Hooke
(1635-1703), Charles Page (1812-1868), Von
Helmholtz (1821-1894) and Philip Reis of
Germany (1834-1874) towards telephony
(i.e., acoustic methods of communication
which are based on sound transmission, with
the help of electricity). Anyway the major
credit for this goes to Alexander Graham Bell
(1847-1922). The most remarkable date for
telephony was 10th March 1876, when Bell,
confined to a room, sent a message to Watson,
Science Horizon

staying in a nearby closed room with the

words, 'Mr. Watson, come here, I want you'.
Immediately, on hearing these words, Watson
rushed out of his room and met with much
pleasure and astonishment, saying, 'Mr. Bell, I
heard every word you said distinctly'. Thus
telephony ultimately bore fruit, to the great
delight of mankind.

Fig. 1 The twisted pair cable used in old telephony

Among other things, an important

component that enabled the talk between Bell
and Watson to be a reality , is the current
carrying wire, which may be otherwise called
as cable. When we focus our attention on
cable, we should not forget telegraphy , which
preceded telephony. Telegraph (meaning: to
write far) transmits messages optically and
first came into existence when Samuel Morse
opened the 37-mile public telegraph line
between Baltimore and Washington D.C. on
24 May 1844, the ceremonial first message
being 'What hath God wrought?" The message
was sent, using Morse code, which consisted a
series of dots and dashes. In this system a cable
was used, which carried the electric pulses of
current representing the message. Thus we find
that both for telegraphyand telephony, the cable
played a vital role, at the beginning.
34

MARCH, 2013

Anyway telephony as practised above

faced problems like: switching. In 1921,
automatic dialling system eased the problem.
However the slow speed of functioning (in the
order of the thousandth of a second) of the
telephone circuit still persisted, as it was
el ct ro mech an ic al ly op era te d. But the
introduction of transistor removed the
drawback significantly as the switching system
operated very rapidly (in the order of millionth
of a second). This led to the all-electronic
switching system, which had the additional
advantage of being compact.
Still, long distance telephony continued
to pose a problem. In 1893, when Boston and
Chicago were connected by cable, the
designers found that there is a practical limit
of 1200 miles for cabling, as beyond this
distance there was frequency distortion-the
higher frequencies being more weakened than
the lower ones. Further the signal needed to
be amplified. In 1915, this was tackled by
using triode and this proved so effective that
only three repeaters were needed to boost a
telephone line, running across the United
States, to the required strength.
During the enormous development of
cabling-system, several steps had been taken
like replacement of electromechanical ones
by electronic telephone exchange and use of
coaxial cables in place of 'Pair of Wires'. In
spite of these improvements, this system of
communication was found wanting to meet
the huge demand of the users. Thus entered
Science Horizon

themicrowave radio relay system which proved

a good substitute for cable-system. Since it
generates high-frequency radio waves, it can
carry telephone conversations. The first
microwave relay system operated between
NewYork and Boston in 1947. This has proved
not only cost-effective in comparison with
the cable system but also transmitted telegraph
messages, television programs and computer
data. Later on, it led to global communication
network via communication satellites as relays.
For example, Telstar in 1962.
Radiotelephony is also called wireless
radio, as , without using cable, it could transmit
speech, music by radio waves, which are
generated by high frequency alternating
current. For replacing the cable, we use a
radio transmitter which emits a continuous
carrier wave of a particular frequency. This
carries the sound waves, as pronounced by the
speaker (person), being converted into electric
impulses by a microphone, by the process of
modulation. Then the receiver hears the original
sound at the other end, after it passes through
devices which amplify, rectify and demodulate.
The story of telecommunication will not
be complete, unless it mentions the pioneering
work of Prof. Jagadish Chandra Bose (18581937). He was the inventor of the World's
first solid-state diode detector of wireless
waves, which was used by Marconi (18741937) for the first Trans-Atlantic Wireless
signal in 1901. Even Bose had transmitted
signals over a distance of one mile (Ref: The
Times and also Daily Chronicle, London).
35

MARCH, 2013

Use of microwaves, when used as carrier

waves, had a better bandwidth, their frequencies
beinghigher than the conventional radio waves.
With the help of geostationary satellites and
th e te ch ni qu e of Fre qu en cy Di visi on
Mul ti pl ex in g
(F DM ),
wor ld -w id e
telecommunication became easier.
But it was felt that the frequencies of
the carrier waves should be increased more ,
so that it can be adequate to meet our pressing
needs. For this the infrared and visible light
were chosen. But these frequencies can be
utilised if we can channel or guide them
which would of course obviously require
transport fibre. Then only the intensity of
signals would not die down over long
distances. Thus optical fibres and laser
sources entered into the picture.
Optical fibres are made from 'high-purity,

There are two types of optical fibre :

(i) Monomode fibre : It allows one mode of
light propagation and eliminates modedispersion. (ii) Multimode fibre: It allows
large number of different modes in the
propagation of light.
Fibre-optics technology has assumed a
prominent role in photonics, which is
otherwise called the 'application of photons
(light) in the transmission and processing of
information'. This type of technology has very
high speed of operation, is very accurate and
minimises the need for amplification of signals
during passage. It is said that it can transmit
information at the rate of two billion bits per
second. For example, this is capable of
allowing more than five times the contents of
a 30-volume set of 'Encyclopaedia Americana'

low loss, low-dispersion glass used as medium

for telecommunication by transmission of high
frequency pulses of light. The basis of
operation is the total internal reflection at the
interface between the higher refractive index
core and the lower refractive index of the

over 50 kilometres in one second.

sheath or cladding. Core is usually vitreous

silica doped with germania (Gio2)".

insulator. This difference is not trivial. It

In

fa ct ,

th e

me di um

of

telecommunication has started from cable

(metal wire) and has, at present, come to a
similar type of cable (optical fibre). But the
former was a conductor, whereas the later is an
contains the richness of the scientific research
and technologicalinnovation inthe development
and forward journey of telecommunication.
And, hopefully, the cycle will go on.

Fig. 2 Optical fibre used in the modern day

telecommunication
Science Horizon

Director (Retd.),
Orissa State Bureau of Text Book Preparation & Publication
Badakhemundi Bunglow, UtkalAshram Road, Berhampur - 760001
Mob: 9437026651, e-mail: nikhilanand.panigrahy@gmail.com

36

MARCH, 2013

BALANCED DIETNEED FOR GOOD HEALTHAND WELLBEING

Guru Prasad Mohanta

Our health and well being predominantly

depend on our eating habits and choice of
food. Nutrition is the science of food and how
the body uses it in health and disease. The
nutrients present in the food profoundly
influence our health. The body requires
proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins,
minerals and water. The food not only provides
energy but all essential nutrients to grow and
function properly. The common nutritional
problems of public health in our country are
low birth weight, protein energy malnutrition
in children, chronic energy deficiency in
adults, micronutrient malnutrition and diet
related communicable diseases. The coronary
artery diseases (illness related to heart), high
blood pressure, type2 diabetes (non-insulin
sensitive), certain cancers are related to diet
and nutrition. Consumption of food rich with
fibre and antioxidants are associated with
decreased risk of certain cancers.
Nutrients may be divided into two groups:
macronutrients comprising proteins, fats and
carbohydrates and micronutrients consisting
of vitamins and minerals. Macronutrients are
required in large quantities and micronutrients
are in small amounts. In the present article,
sources and importance of proteins, fats and
carbohydrates are discussed. In separate
articles, vitamins and minerals would be covered.
Science Horizon

Proteins: The proteins are the functional

units of every livingcell. They forthe important
parts of the body's main structural components:
muscles and bones. They are also the important
constituents of blood, enzymes, hormones etc.
Theyconstitute almostone-fifth ofbody'sweight
in adult. They are needed for body building. The
requirements of proteins vary with age,
physiological status and stress. Pregnant women
and growing children require more proteins.
They are complex organic compounds
composed of amino acids. Of the around 20
amino acids required for our body, 9 are called
essential. These essential amino acids cannot
be synthesized by the body and are to be
supported by diet. These include histidine,
isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine,
phenylalanine, theonine, tryptophan and valine.
Other amino acids are synthesized by the body.
Animal source proteins like meat, fish,
egg, poultry, milk, cheese and soy provide all
essential amino acids and thus are considered
as complete proteins. The vegetable sources
of proteins are pulses (legumes), cereals,
beans, nuts, oil seed cakes etc. are also good
sources of proteins, but lack in few essential
amino acids. The combination of vegetable
proteins allows each vegetable protein to make
up for the amino acids missing in the other
protein. One should consider total protein intake inthe whole day rather than witheach meal.
37

MARCH, 2013

Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates are the

main source of energy and provide about 4
Kcal per gram. 70-80% of the total dietary
calories are obtained from carbohydrate
present in plant foods like cereals, millets,
and pulses. The carbohydrates are divided into
two types: simple carbohydrates and complex
carbohydrates. The carbohydrates with type
and sources are given in the table below:
Cellulose is indigestible (in human) but
provides dietary fibre. They move through the
digestive tract and out of the body. Insoluble
fibres absorb water in digestive tract; give the
stool bulk and decrease it takes the stool to
move through the tract. Soluble fibres help
reducing cholesterol level, keeping blood sugar
level low and reducing the risk of colon cancer.
The carbohydrate reserve (glycogen) ofa human
adult is about 500 g and this reserve gets
rapidly exhausted when a person is on fasting.
Fats (Lipids): The fats are the most
concentrated sources of energy providing
around 9 calories per gram. They are the
major fuels for the body during rest and light
activity. They are stored in our body in the
Simple
Examples
Carbohydra tes
Sources

Complex
Examples
Carbohydra tes
Sources

Science Horizon

Glucose,
Fructose
Fruits,
Vegetables,
Honey
Starch
Cereals,
Millets,
Pulses, Root
Vegetables

form of usable energy. The fat beneath the

skin help insulting us against cold. The fats
support and cushion our heart, kidney and
intestine. Fats in the diet help in absorption of
fat soluble vitamins.
Ghee, butter, milk, cheese, eggs, fats of
meat and fish are the main source of animal fat
while groundnut, mustard, sesame, coconut
seeds provide the vegetable fats. Ghee, cooking
oils (groundnut, soybean, sun flower, rice bran,
safflower) are visible fats. Fats are present in
the diets but not visible to naked eye are nonvisible fats. The sources for non-visible fats
are cereals, pulses, nuts, milk, and eggs etc.
The major contributory source of fat to our
body is the invisible fats.
Dietary fats contain both saturated and
unsaturated fatty acids. Food containing large
amount of saturated fatty acids are usually
solid at room temperature and they belong to
animal fat. Foods containing large amounts of
mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fatty
acids are usually from plant sources and liquid
at room temperature. However, the process of
unsaturated fatty acids (oils) converts the liquid
Sucrose

Lactose

Sugar

Milk

Glycogen

Cellulose

Animal
foods

Vegetables,
Whole grains

Gums and
Pectin
Vegetables,
Fruits and
Cereals
38

MARCH, 2013

oil to solid fat. The coconut and palm oil,

though belong to vegetable source, have very
high content of saturated fatty acids. Fish oils
contain poly and mono-unsaturated fatty acids.

15% from proteins and 20-30% from fats.

Here are few guidelines for you to follow:

Eat variety of foods to ensure a balanced

diet.

Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits. Eat

more high fibre foods.

Ensure moderate use of edible oils and

animal foods and very less use of ghee,
butter or vanaspati.

Avoid over eating to prevent overweight

and obesity.

Eat less sugar.

Restrict salt intake to minimum.

Drink plenty of water anddrink beverages

in moderation.

Saturated fatty acids are not considered as

healthy food. The combination of cooking
oils is suggested to ensure recommended intake of fatty acids. Poly-unsaturated fatty acids
are better as they reduce bad cholesterol.
High intake of fats is associated with several
health conditions like obesity, coronary heart
diseases, cancer etc.
Food choice you make will significantly
influence your health both now and future. The
balanced diet provides all the nutrients in
required amounts and proper proportions.
Ideally, it should provide around 50-60% of
total calories from carbohydrates, about 10-

What you choose to eat have significant

effects on our health and well being. Develop
healthy eating and encourage others too!
Balanced Diet for Children and Adolescents:

Food Groups

Cereals and Millets

Pulses
Milk (ml) and milk
products
Roots and tubers
Green leafy
vegetables
Other vegetables
Fruits
Sugars
Fat / Oil (Visible)

Quantity in
gram per
portion

10-12 Years

13-15 Years

16-18 Years

Girls

Boys

Girls

Boys

Girls

Boys

30
30
100

8
2
5

10
2
5

11
2
5

14
2.5
5

11
2.5
5

15
3
5

100
100

1
1

1
1

1
1

1.5
1

2
1

2
1

100
100
5
5

2
1
6
7

2
1
6
7

2
1
5
8

2
1
4
9

2
1
5
7

2
1
6
10

Professor, Department of Pharmacy,Annamalai University, P.O. Annamalai Nagar - 608 002, Tamil Nadu, INDIA,
Tel: 91-4144-239738(O), 238431(R), Cell: 91-9443885138, Fax: 91-4144-238080
E. mail: gpmohanta@hotmail.com / gpmohanta@gmail.com

Science Horizon

39

MARCH, 2013

MIGRATION OF BIRDS- A LENGTHY JOURNEY

Birat Raja Padhan

Migration is one of a very important and

spectacular events incase of birds life. Many
animals migrate but none to such distances
and with such regularity as the birds. Most
songbirds migrate at 500 to 2,000 meters, but
some fly as high as 6,800 meters; swans have
been recorded at 8,000 meters and Bar-headed
Geese at 9,000 meters.

Bird Migration
Migration of animals movements of
animals in large numbers from one place to
another. In modern usage the term is usually
restricted to regular, periodic movements of
populations away from and back to their place
of origin.

A streamlined body shape and a

The periodic seasonal movement of birds

lightweight skeleton composed of hollow

from one geographic region to another,

bones minimize air resistance and reduce the

typically coinciding with available food

amount of energy necessary to become and

supplies or breeding seasons. Birds may travel

remain airborne. Well-developed pectoral

hundreds or thousands of miles during

muscles, which are attached to a uniquely

migration, depending on the species and the

avian structure called the furculum, power the

areas they prefer for nesting habitat and

flapping motion of the wings. The long feathers

wintering grounds, and it may take several

of the wings act as airfoils which help generate

weeks to make the entire journey. Some species

the lift necessary for flight.

travel separately according to gender, usually

Birds have a large, four-chambered heart

with male birds migrating earlier than females

which proportionately weighs 6 times more

in order to secure territories or begin nest-

than a human heart. This, combined with a

building activities to attract mates. Migration

rapid heartbeat (the resting heart rate of a

is a two way journey.It means a regular,

small songbird is about 500 beats per minute;

periodic,to and fro movement of a population

that of a hummingbird is about 1,000 beats per

of birds.

minute) satisfies the rigorous metabolic

demands of flight. Unlike mammalian or
reptilian lungs, the lungs of birds remain
inflated at all times, with the air sacs acting as
bellows to provide the lungs with a constant
supply of fresh air.
Science Horizon

40

MARCH, 2013

All species of birds do not take part in

2.

Longitudinal migration : The birds

the peageant of migration. Birds which remain

migrate from southern hemisphere to east-

throughout the year in a country are known as

west direction or from east to west & vice

residents. There is a difference between

versa is called as Longitudinal Migration.They

migratory bird and resident birds.

migrate from mountainous parts to plains

Kinds of Migration : Migration in birds takes

place in a variety of ways .Some are as follows1.

Latitudinal Migration : The latitudinal

migration usually means the movement from

north to south, and vice versa. Most birds live
in the land masses of northern temperate and

during summer and return to the mountains in

winter e.g., Patagonian Plover, Starling.
3.

Altitudinal Migration : The altitudinal

migration occurs in mountainous region. The

birds pass the summer in the mountainous
region. Many birds inhabiting the mountain

sub arctic zones where they get facilities for

peaks migrate to low lands during winter. It is

merely a dispersal or short journey from the

nesting and feeding during summer. The birds

bleaker slopes to the more protected valleys

return to the south for shelter during winter,

when north is covered with ice and snow.

& has been called as Vertical/Altitudinal

Migration.

Some trophical birds migrate during rainy

season to outer trophics to breed and return to
the central tropics in dry season. Many marine
birds also make considerable migration.
Several northAmerican & Eurasian birds
cross the equator to spend winter in deeper
and warmer parts of SouthAmerica andAfrica.
The American golden plover passes the nine

Eg-Golden Plover starts from Arctic

tundra and goes up to the plains of Argentina,
covering a distance of 11,250 km. Birds
migrate either in flocks or in pairs.
4.

Partial Migration : Partial migration,

in which only some individuals of a species

migrate. Some birds do not migrate at all, by
an influx of new individuals of the same species

month of winter 8,000 miles south in the

for a short period. Some species of birds seen

pampas ofArgentina, So enjoying two summers

in an area throughout the year. Eg-Barn owls

each year & knows not a hint of winter.

(Tyto alba).

Science Horizon

41

MARCH, 2013

Irregular or Vagrant migration : A

food in the air as they travel. These diurnal

bird is considered vagrant if it strays far outside

its expected breeding, wintering or migrating
range. The key term in defining vagrant is the
distance - a bird that is just barely outside its
normal range is not usually considered vagrant,
but a bird found hundreds of miles from its
familiar territory is a vagrant. Many times,
vagrant birds may be from other continents
or so far from their expected range that they
have never been seen in an area previously.
E.g.-Herons

migrants have a greater tendency to travel in

flocks. Some birds chiefly prefer to fly at

6. Seasonal migration : It is the regular

seasonal journey undertaken by many species
of birds.. Bird movements include those made
in response to changes in food availability,
habitat, or weather. Sometimes, journeys are
not termed "true migration" because they are
irregular (nomadism, invasions, irruptions) or
in only one direction (dispersal, movement of
young away from natal area). Migration is
marked by its annual seasonality. Eg. In Britain
Swift, Swallows, Nightangles, Cuckoos etc
are Summer Visitors. Fieldfare,Snow bunting
are winter visitors. Snipes & Sandpipers are
the birds of passage, seen for a short time
twice a year.

first to build the nests. The young birds

generally accompany the females.

Modes of flight during Migration

at 5000 to 14000 feet. Some species cross

the Andes and the Himalayas at altitude of
20,000 feet or more.

5.

1. Nocturnal and diurnal flight : Some

birds may migrate at night or in the day.
ie-Ducks,Gulls.Many larger birds fly mainly
by day. ie- Crows, Swallows, robins, hawks
etc. They may stop to forage in suitable places
but Swallows & Swifts capture their insect
Science Horizon

night, under the protective cover of darkness,

to escape their enemies.
2. Segregation during migration : Some
birds travel in separate companies ie-Night
hawks, Swifts etc. But some travel in mixed
companies of several species, due to similarity
in their size, method of search of food etc.
E.g-Swallows, blue birds etc. In some species
male & female travel separately. Males arrive

3.

Range of Migration : The distances

travelled by migratory birds depend upon local

conditions & the species concerned. Some
birds like the Himalayan snow partridges
descend a few hundred feet only where as
Chicades come down nearly 8000 ft. Similarly
some birds travel thousand of miles. E.g.Labrador travels a distance of 11000 miles.
4.

Altitude of flight : Some birds fly very

close to the earth but generally most routine

migration takes place with in 3000 feet of the
earth. Some small birds migrating at night fly

5. Speed and duration of flight : The

average velocity of most small birds are around
30 miles per hour.The greatest speed recorded
in India of species of Swift is 171-200 miles
42

MARCH, 2013

per hour (E.C.Stuart). Several hundreds of

miles may be covered non stop in a day or
night with an average of about 500 miles.Birds
usually travel 5 to 6 hours a day. They take rest
in between for food or drink. The Golden
plover is the non stop bird travelling a distance
of 2400 miles.
6. Regularity of migration : Most of the
migratory birds showing their regularity year
after year in their timings of arrival &
departure. In spite of long distances travelled
or change of weather they are such punctual as
their time of arrival is with in a day or two.
Most of the birds come to the same breeding
place year after year.

2. Experience : Acc ording to some

naturalists birds learn by experience. Some
older member benefiting by a tradition
Following a path in past several years
become leaders to guide the younger
generations. Birds certainly do not learn their
route from elders as some of them donot fly
in flocks at all. Young birds make their first
journey independently, without the guidance
of the adult parents. They are evidently guided
by instinct impressed on their nervous system.
3. Telluric currents : The air currents
which would lead the birds straight to their
destination must be very obliging and highly
ingenious.

7. Routes of migration : Migratory birds

generally follow definite lines of flight.
Nocturnal migration of small land birds
proceeds with the general airflow on a broad
front. In spring, it occurs northwards along
warm air currents from the south & in autumn,
southward on the cool winds of the north.
Deviation in path occurs due to configuration
of land, coastline, courses of great rivers or

4.

Homing instinct : According to some

experiments homing instinct enablingthe birds

to return to a goal as in the case of ants,bees
and carrier pigeons etc.
5. Earth's magnetic field - Some workers
have given the idea that bird navigate through
responses to the earth's magnetic field and

intervening mountain chains etc.

their inner ear reacts to the mechanical coriolis

effect produced by the rotation of the earth.

Factors affecting Migration

But there are no reliable evidences.

1.

6.

Visual landmarks : The sense of

Celestial bodies : According to Gustav's

direction has been attributed by topographical

features or visual landmarks like great rivers,
river valley, coastal lines, chains of oceanic

experiment birds even possess an internal time

islands, mountain ranges etc. But a majority of

birds migrating during night when they can not
easily make use of landmarks.

according to their changes in their angles and

Science Horizon

sense or time clock, with which they make

necessary adjustments in their course
position of the sun as the day progressed. He
proved this by altering the direction of flight
43

MARCH, 2013

QUIZ

by using mirrors to give a false apparent

direction of the sun. The instinct has to be
inherited because the young birds,that have
ne ver migr at ed bef ore , make simil ar
navigational orientations to the sun when
travelling independent of their parents.

Advantages of Migration
1. Migration helps birds avoid harsh
climatic extremes.
2. Migration from higher altitudes and
latitudes during winter affords protection from
cold and stormy weather, shorter days available

Titaram Nanda Brahmachari

1)

Nervous system is responsible for

a)

separation and removal of nitrogenous

metabolic waste matter from the body in
the form of aqueous solution.

b)

release energy from the food material

c)

The migrants get more food and better

shelter in their winter quarters in temperate or

tropical regions than they would if they stayed
at home.

transmission of character from one

generation to the successive generation
in the living being.

d)

for searching food and scarcity of food.

3.

the series of chemical changes which

sending, receiving and processing nerve

impulse.

2)

The major function of spinal cord is

a)

conduiting for motor information

b)

conductingsensory information a reverse

direction

4. During return in summer to the breeding

areas in north once again provides suitable and
unconquered nesting grounds, abundance of
food with minimum efforts and long hours of

c)

coordinating certain reflex

d)

all of these

3)

The unit of nervous tissue is

day light for searching food at a time when

their population increases greatly.

a)

Axon

b) Dendrite

c)

Myelin sheath

d) Neuron

In this way, birds migrate in order to

utilize the food and to exploit for suitable

4)

Which two hormones are responsible

nesting purposes.

a)

for developingsensory and motor neuron ?

ACTH (Adrenocorticotropic hormone)
and GABA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid)

Reference
Kotpal, R.L-"Vertebrate zoology"
www.wikipedia.com

b)

Adrenaline and Epinephrine

Padhan,B.R-"Migration of birds"

c)

LH (Luteinizing hormore) and MSH

Benkamura, P.O. - Pandari, Via - ITPS Banaharpali

Dist - Jharsuguda-768234
Email-padhanbiratraja@yahoo.com

Science Horizon

(Melanocyte stimulating hormore)

d)

BMP (Bone morphogenetic protein) and

SHH (Sonic hedgehog hormone)
44

MARCH, 2013

5.

The master gland pituitary gland is

attached to the

11. Which of the following is well developed

part of the brain ?

a)
b)

corpus callosum
medulla oblongata

c)
d)

conus medularis
hypothalamus

6.
a)

The nervous system consists of

the central nervous system (comprises

b)

brain and spinal cord)

th e pe ri ph er al ner vous

in case of human ?
a)

pe rc ep ti on , gene ra ti on of moto r
commands and conscious thought)
b)

d)

Pre fr on ta l co rt ex (is impli ca te d

personality expressio decision making
and moderating social behaviour)

c)
sys te m

Temporal lobe (is involved in retention

of visual memory, processing sensory

(composed of cranial)
c)

Neocortex (is functioning sensory

input and storing new memory)

the autonomic nervous system (made up

of parasympathetic and sympathetic
nervous system)
All of these

d)

all of these

12. Human brain consists of

pairs

of cranial nerves ?
a)

b) 10

c)

11

d) 12

7.

The nervous tissue develops from an

embryonic

a)
c)

mesenchyme
mesoderm

a)

37

b) 10

8.
a)

Brain is protected by
skull
b) scalp

c)

11

d) 31

c)

sinus

14. Which of the following has false nervous

9.

The Cerebrospinal fluid acts as

a)

strong reducing agent

b)
c)

weak reducing agent

oxidizing agent

d)

shock absorber

13. A frog has 10 pairs of spinal nerve and a

b) endoderm
d) ectoderm

man has

d) meninges

10. Fore brain is included with

pairs of spinal nerve ?

system but not brain ?

a)

Earthworm

b) Cockroach

c)

Amoeba

d) Hydra

15. True nervous system firs t of all

originated in
?

a)

Hirudinaria

b) Ascaris

Hydra

d) Taenia

a)
b)

pons varolii
corpora quadrigemina

c)

c)

cerebellum

a)

Vagus

b) Auditory

d)

cerebrum

c)

Abducens

d) Olfactory

Science Horizon

16. The first cranial nerve is

45

MARCH, 2013

5W'S + H :

17. Acetycholine is a hormone secreted by

nerve which aids in
a)

diastole of the heart

b)

blood clotting

c)

systole of the heart

d)

both a and c

(Why, Who, What, When, Where and How)

SPRAIN
Nityananda Swain

Q.

18. The flowoftears inwomanisstimulatedby

What is sprain ?
Sprain means injury of the ligaments.

a)

CNS

The ligaments have great tensile strength. They

b)

Peripheral nervous system

fasten the bones together at the joints. They

c)

sympathetic nervous system

are composed of cells and fibres, but do not

d)

Parasympathetic nervous system

stretch. They can only bend to permit the

19. The most common brain disorder is

joints to move. The strength of the joint is due

caused due to high blood pressure, high

cholesterol in blood and heart disease ?

to the presence of ligaments around it.

Q.

Who does sprain occur ?

a)

Cerebral palsy (CP)

b)

Transient ischemic attack (TIA)

c)

Alzheimer's disease (AD)

joint, one or more of its ligaments get stretched

d)

Cerebrovascular accident (CVA)

or torn. While the joint is in an unfavourable

When there occurs any injury to the

20. Which of the following technique has

position, the weight of the body is abnormally

been used for detecting brain wave

thrown on to it. As a result, the joint is suddenly

a)

MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging)

twisted or wrenched. This sudden twist is

b)

CT (Computed tomography)

responsible for sudden stretching or at times

c)

ECG (Electrocardiogram)

tearing of the concerned ligament(s). some

d)

EEG (Electroencephalogram)

sprains are minor; others are associated with

ANSWERS
1.
5.
9.
13.
17.

(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)

2.
6.
10.
14.
18.

(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)

3.
7.
11.
15.
19.

(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)

4.
8.
12.
16.
20.

(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)
(d)

Department of Environmental Science,

Fakir Mohan University, Nuapadhi, Mitrapur, Balasore, Odisha
Mob. - 923899238, e-mail -titaram123@gmail.com

Science Horizon

46

MARCH, 2013

extensive damage to the adjacent tissues. Even

it may be difficult to distinguish from fractures.
Be very clear that a sprain is not the
same as fracture. In fracture, one or more
bones are broken, but in sprains bones are
intact. However, it is, many a time, difficult to
differentiate a sprain from a fracture.
Therefore, if there is an accident that involves
any joint, it is always advisable to get the
affected joint X'rayed. In X' Ray photograph,
only the bones are visible, ligaments being
soft tissues, do not cast any shadow in the
X' Ray film.
Q.

How does one diagnose the sprain ?

The sprain gives rise to severe pain.

There is swelling over the affected joint. The

skin over the joint may look black or blue. The
tenderness or pain is felt on touching or
pressing the joint at its bones, especially when
the ligament is torn or stretched. On passively
stretching the affected joint, the ligament is
stretched ensuing excruciating pain. In sprain,
there is no bony irregularity.

Science Horizon

Q. Which are the joints that most

commonly sprained ?
The most commonly sprained joints are
the ankle, the knee and the wrist.
The sprain in the ankle joint is very
commonly encountered on the street and at
home. It is a common occurrence in athelets
too. In such injury, if of a serious type, a small
portion of bone to which the ligaments or
tendors are attached, may also be broken way
besides stretching of the ligaments. If the
fracture of the bone and the sprain are
associated, it is called a sprain-fracture.
The sprain of the knee is as common as
the sprain of the ankle. But the sprain of the
knee is usually more incapacitating. Therefore,
it takes a longer time to heal. If the sprain
involves displacement of any cartilage in the
knee, surgical repair may be necessary.
The sprain of the wrist is usally sustained
when a person extends his arm and hand to
catch himself in falling or falling with
outstretched hands. These sprains are very
painful and inconvenient as they involve the
ha nds. Bu t su ch stra in s are no t th at
incapacitating as is the ankle sprain or the
knee sprain.

47

MARCH, 2013

reduce swelling, bruising and pain. If ice is not

available, cold water compress is applied. The
ice-application may be continued for the next
one to three days. Two or three layers of cloth
need to be placed between the skin and the
ice-bag or the ice-cubes.
3. The letter 'C' represents 'Compression'.
To help counteract swelling and provide some
support, the joint is to be surrounded with a
Q.

What one has to do if one becomes a

victim of sprain ?
Although the sprain-injury appears to
be trivial, it should not be ignored. because
it limits movements at the affected joint and
may be associated with the fracture of bones,

thick layer of cotton wool and secured with a

bandage. Later, the injured joint is firmly
supported. The bandage should not be very
tight, or else it would interfere in circulation
of the blood.

be consulted for correct diagnosis and

4. The letter 'E'is for'Elevation'. Itmeans the

injured part should be kept in elevated position.
Ifthere issprain on the wrist, the forearmand the

treatment.

hand should be held elevated in a sling.

a doctor, preferably an orthopaedician should

However, before a doctor is consulted,

some first aid measures are to be undertaken
as are depicted below.
The procedures followed for the first aid
of sprain are popularly abbreviated as 'RICE'.
1. The letter 'R' stands for 'Rest' to the
joint. The patient should not be allowed to
walk if the ankle or the knee joint is invovled.
If the wrist joint is involved, he should be
discouraged to move that joint. The affected
wrist joint should be kept steady in a
comfortable position, especially in a sling.
2. The letter 'I' stands for 'Ice'. Ice-bag
should be applied at the affected joint to
Science Horizon

For a sprained knee or ankle, for the first

day or two the patient should be kept on bed
with the leg placed on pillows. This support
may be maintained at least for fifteen minutes
out of each hour.
Once the tendency of swelling subsides,
the joint may be immobilised with a firmer
support by an elastic bandage like a crepe
bandage. Besides, the application of ice can be
replaced by the use of hot fomentation. The
application of hot fomentation increases the
circulation of blood to the injured tissues and
hastens healing.

'ABHIPSA' Sector -6, Plot No.-1131, Abhinab Bidanasi,

Cuttack - 753014

48

GUIDELINES FOR CONTRIBUTINGARTICLES FOR THE MAGAZINE

1.

"SCIENCE HORIZON" aims at developing the scientific outlook of students as well as the general
people and seeks togivethem informationonscientific developments. Itis published as a monthly magazine.

2.

The authors desirous of writing and contributing articles to the magazine should first assimilate the ideas
of the theme and present it in simple language and popular style.

3.

The authors are requested to write clearly on one side ofA/4 size paper. The relevant pictures in 4cm X
6 cm size are welcome. Photo copies of manuscripts are not accepted for consideration.

4.

Each article will be ordinarily of two to three printed pages inA/4 size papers.

5.

The article shall be profusely illustrated with pictures.

6.

At the end of the article the author should give the references and suggestions for further reading.

7.

The reference of books, journals, sources, ideas and essential points collected by the writer should be
mentioned in the bibliography. This will enhance the quality and fidelity of the writing and give the reader
an opportunity for making further studies.

8.

Matter translated from other languages and illustrations should indicate the original sources otherwise
those would not be accepted. The articles which are not selected are not returned to the authors. However,
if the author wants, such articles may be collected from our office.

9.

As far as practicable the articles should be based on contemporary science and must be easily
comprehensible to students at the secondary level.

10.

The writers should present difficult concepts of science through stories of everydaylife, heart-rendering
songs, pictures, satirical cartoons or attractive dramas.

11.

Allunits in the articles should be given in the metric system.

12.

The title of the article should be brief and attractive. Moreover, subtitles maybe given in long articles. The
writings should be coherent and cohesive.

13.

There should not be repetition of specific words. While ensuring the contemporary spirit of the writing, it
should reflect some valuable lesson for the society. It is also necessary to avoid mistakes in spelling,
language use and factual details.

14.

The Editor & the Editorial Board of "Science Horizon", Secretary of the Academy or Odisha Bigyan
Academy shall not be responsible for the views of the authors.

Address for sending the articles

The Secretary,
Odisha BigyanAcademy
Plot No. B/2, Saheed Nagar,
Bhubaneswar - 751 007
Telephone - 0674-2543468
Fax - 0674-2547256
E-Mail - secretaryoba@yahoo.com

Price : Rs 10.00
(Website : www.orissabigyanacademy.nic.in)