Trail Of Waving Hearts ❥SCIENCE WORLD❥: December 2011

Thursday, December 1, 2011

What causes lightning?

Lightning may be thought of as a huge spark of electricity. During a thunderstorm, very large electric charges build up insides the clouds and on the ground. The charges build up insides the clouds and on the ground.

The charges build up until a flash of lightning shoots through the air between them. Lightning can flash from the cloud to the ground or between two clouds. Lightning is a sequence of flashes. First a main stroke zigzags to the ground. The main flash then surges upwards. Other flashes may follow in quick succession. When the lightning discharges its electricity to Earth, it tends to strike at a high point, such as a mountain, a tree or a tall building. Lightning flashes produces about 100 million volts of electricity.

How do Magnetic trains work?

Magnetic trains work on the principle of magnetic levitation, which is a way of lifting objects by using the forces that keep magnets apart. This makes the train float above their tracks.
 The magnetic train carries powerful linear motors which push against magnets laid in the special track. The magnets in the track first attract the train, pulling it forward and then, when magnetic fields is reserved. repelling the train and pushing it forward even faster. The train and the track do not touch each other. There are no moving parts, such as wheels and, hence, there is no friction between the train and the track.

Which are the largest and smallest flowering plants?






Chinese Wisteria is the world's largest flowering plant. it can grow branches over 150 metres long and can produce about one and a half million flowers each year.



Bolivian bromeliad ( Puyaraymondii) is another large plant, whose spike reaches a height of ten metres with 8000 flowers on it.



Wolffia punctata, a duckweed, is the smallest flowering plant. It floats on water and forms large floating masses on ponds. It is a very small plant and has one or two disc-like leaves and hanging roots. The smallest plant can measure half a millimetre across.

Which are the longest living animals?

The animals with the longest life span in the whole animals kingdom is the tortoise. Tortoise are known to live for 150-200 years.  

How do snails get their shells?


Snail are soft bodied animals and this makes them vulnerable. They belong to a group known as molluscs, which in Latin means soft. These animals protect themselves by forming a shell made of calcium carbonate, which is extracted from the soil and the food they feed on. Younger snails have smaller, nearly transparent shells that grow larger and stronger as the snail matures.