Ice & Roller Hockey Goalie Masks and Helmets

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General Knowledge- Vii

• WHAT IS MOBILE ELBOW?

The mobile elbow results from using the mobile for long hours. Called the 'cubital tunnel syndrome', it is also called cell phone elbow'. The problem occurs when the ulnar nerve, which runs across the elbow, down to the ring and little fingers, gets over-stretched and blood supply is restricted, sparked by holding a phone to the ear for long periods.

• WHY DOES STEEL GLOW WHEN IT'S HOT?

Hot steel glows red when hot because its atoms vibrate with a lot of energy. The amount of energy varies in atoms re- sulting in a range of colours.

• WHAT DOES JANUARY MEAN?

The original Roman calendar had 10 named months from March to December and two unnamed months during winter. These two months were named January and February by Numa Pompilius, the second king of Rome circa 700 BC. January is named after Janus, the Roman 'god of gates, doors and the beginnings'.

• WHAT'S THE AAFBAU PRINCIPLE?

The physical and chemical properties of elements are determined by the atomic structure. This, in turn, is determined by electrons and the shells, sub-shells and orbitals they reside in. The rules of placing electrons within shells is known as the Aafbau principle, which originally means 'building up'.

• WHAT IS CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCIES IN THE US?

A case filed under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection is commonly referred to as a 'reorganization or restructuring bankruptcy'. Chapter 11 is a part of the US Bankruptcy Code under which an insolvent company is allowed to reorganize and is not liquidated. It is not shut down and sold off.

• WHY DOES THE JASMINE BLOOM ONLY AT NIGHT?

Like all other flowering plants, jasmine also produces a flower inducing hormone in its leaves when exposed to bright sunlight. This hormone is called florigen (flower-generating hormone) and it migrates from the leaves to flowering shoots during the day. It accumulates in the flowering shoots of the jasmine plant and induces flowering during the night.

• WHAT IS A ROMAN CIRCUS?

It was an open air stadium used for public events in the Roman empire, empire. The events usually held in such a circus were chariot and horse races and performances commemorating historical events. The performance space would be rectangular or oval surrounded by several tiers of seats for spectators. The circus would be decorated with ornate columns, obelisks and statues. The first circus built in Rome was the Circus Maximus which also happened to be its largest.

• WHAT DOES THE PHRASE 'CHICKEN OUT' MEAN?

To chicken out is to stop doing something because of fear or lose courage while doing something. Sometimes, it is also used to ask a person, "Are you chicken?" or even as "Jack chickened out..." The chicken is a timid bird, which also gave rise to 'chicken-hearted'.

• WHAT IS CONTACT SCRAPING?

Social networking has brought about a new trend called contact scraping, where an online company with access to a person's mail account goes through the contact list and sends out an invitation to all to join the site. Once a person enters his/her credentials, like user name or password, the company sweeps through the contact list. The company gets free publicity and widens its user base, but could put the person concerned in an embarrassing and annoying situation, especially when there are friendly mails from strangers in return.

• HOW ARE DEEMED UNIVERSITIES DIFFERENT FROM OTHERS?

Ordinary universities are officially approved by the University Grants Commission (UGC) of India as per the latter's guidelines for the universities' overall supervision and administration. 'Deemed university' is a term indicative of status of autonomy granted to high performing institutes and departments of various universities. Such status enables deemed universities not only full autonomy in setting course work, syllabus and research centres, but also allows it to set it's own guidelines for admission, fee and instructions to students. Parent universities have no control over deemed universities in matters of overall administration.

• WHY IS SEA WATER VERY HIGH IN SALT CONTENT?

The average salinity of sea water is about 3.5%. One cubic mile of sea water contains 166 million tonne of salt. The salts of the sea come from the breaking up of rocks and gradual wearing away of mountains releasing salts that are washed down by rainwater. It is estimated that more than 400 million tonne of dissolved salts are brought to the sea every year by 27,000 cubic km of water. The second source of salt is rocks beneath the ocean bed. There has been a constant slow addition of sea salinity due to evaporation from the ocean surface, combined by discharge from land.

• WHAT IS A CHEMICAL BOND? HOW IS IT FORMED?

A chemical bond is one in which atoms of different or same elements combine to become stable. There are two types of chemical bonds —electro-valent bond and covalent bond. In an electrovalent bond, a metal donates an electron to a non-metal and forms the bond. Such bonds are very strong. A covalent bond is formed between non-metals only. These are easy to break.

• IS RAIN WATER COMPLETELY PURE?

Rain water is considered the purest form of water. Impurities and salts present in water on earth are left behind during vaporisation by the sun. However, the rain water we receive on earth is not necessarily pure, as it brings down impurities and particles present in the atmosphere along with it.

• WHAT IS 'THE MAGIC OF SCHEHERAZADE'?

The Magic of Scheherazade is a game for the Nintendo Entertainment System released by Culture Brain in 1989. It is the translation of the 1987 Famicom game Arabian Dream Scheherazade. The game was innovative for its time, incorporating elements of adventure and RPG styles.

• WHAT IS FUNEMPLOYMENT?

'Funemployment' came into being with the recession, when people began losing jobs. It means unemployed individuals making use of the break to enjoy their free time — travel, take up physical activity and have a good time but at little cost. They may not have been able to do this earlier. The funemployed are young people who have few responsibilities and commitments and can afford a break. They also use the time to find another job, but don't spend time worrying about it.                

• WHAT IS MEDIAWIKI?

A wiki is a web application that allows users to create and edit web page content using a web browser. The term wiki also refers to the collaborative software used to create such a website. Mediawiki is a wiki software package licensed under the GNU General Public License, making it free and open source software. This Mediawiki software is used to run the popular web encyclopaedia Wikipedia, besides all projects of Wikimedia, wikis hosted by Wikia, and many other wikis.

• WHY DON'T THE TEETH OF ANIMALS DECAY THOUGH THEY NEVER BRUSH THEIR TEETH?

According to WHO, decaying of teeth is a localized, post-eruptive pathologic external process, involving hard tooth tissue and formation of cavities. There is demineralization of teeth by acids produced in the oral environment, due to action of oral acidogenic bacteria on carbohydrates found in cooked food and drinks. Animals are either herbivorous or carnivorous or both, and survive on uncooked, raw food, rich in fibre, which needs a lot of chewing to digest, thereby cleansing the teeth naturally It is like brushing teeth and massaging gums the natural way But tooth decay is common in pets like dogs, which eat cooked food and junk food like biscuits etc.

• WHICH IS THE BIGGEST STAR?

The biggest star found till date is Vy Canis Majoris, in the constellation of Canis Major. It is a red supergiant and one of the most luminous stars, 5,000 light years away from the earth with a radius of 1,800-2,100 times that of the sun. It is so large that its surface extends beyond the orbit of Saturn, were it placed in our solar system. Even light would take eight hours to complete its circumference. Though it is great, it is relatively cool, with a surface temperature of 3500 Kelvin.

• WHICH IS THE WORLD'S SLEEPIEST ANIMAL?

The sleepiest animal, considered by the average number of hours of sleep a day is the koala, an arboreal animal with the scientific name Phascclarctos Cinerus, found only in Australia. Though it resembles a teddy bear, scientifically it is close to kangaroos, because it carries its young in a pouch. It lives mostly on eucalyptus trees, sleeping in the fork for 19-22 hours a day

• WHAT IS THE GOLDEN ANGLE?

The golden angle separates the florets of a sunflower. Ills an approximation, since three golden arcs add up to slightly more than enough to make a circle. One of the old leaves overlaps and is pushed out in a radial line. This makes space in the inner system for a new leaf to form. New leaves move into the spaces opened as old leaves diverge.

• WHO IS CALLED A DIGITAL NOMAD?

A person who works on the move is called a digital nomad. Such a worker may or may not be on the rolls of a company, and could he a consultant/freelancer/a writer on the move. They are persons with a free spirit who like a remote lifestyle and earn as they move, and believe that with discipline and the correct technology, they can be as productive as a person sitting in office. This is new tribe of people and for them, the economic downturn has brought little distress as companies turn to part-timers to save on costs.

• WHAT IS A BLACK BLIZZARD?

During the drought of the 1930s in America, with no natural anchors in place, the soil dried, turned to dust and blew eastward and southward in large dark clouds. They blackened the sky and reached all the way to East Coast cities such as New York and Washington DC. Much of the soil ended up as deposits in the Atlantic Ocean, and were called 'Black Blizzards' and 'Black Rollers', and reduced visibility to a few feet. The Dust Bowl or Dirty Thirties —1930-36 and even up till 1940 — were caused by drought and decades of extensive farming without crop rotation.

• WHY DO NEWSPAPERS PRINT A COMBINATION OF FOUR DOTS —BLUE, PINK, YELLOW, BLACK— AT THE BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE

The four dots — blue (cyan), pink (magenta), yellow and black are registration marks used during printing to help ensure the print is aligned properly In offset printing technology which newspapers use, the inked image is transferred from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. These primary colours go into printing a multi-coloured image and have separate plates. Each plate has its individual mark, like the colour dot.

• ON WHAT BASIS ARE PINCODES DISTRIBUTED?

A Postal Index Number or PIN or Pincode is the post office numbering or postal code system used by India Post. It's sixdigits long, and was introduced on August 15,1972. There are nine PIN zones in India. The first digit of the PIN code indicates the region in which a given post office falls, the second digit the sub-region, the third the sorting district. The final three digits are assigned to individual post offices.

• WHO FOUNDED YOUTUBE?

Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim, all early employees of PayPal, founded YouTube. Hurley studied design at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, while Chen and Karim studied computer science together at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. It was founded on February 15,2005. In Sfovember 2006, YouTube, LLC, was bought by Google me. for $1.65 billion, and is now operated as a subsidiary of Google.

• WHAT IS DERVISH MUSIC?

Dervish word originates from the Turkish word 'darvis', meaning poor or mendicant. Dervish music began among Muslim religious groups, known for their practice of energetic dancing, whirling, chanting or singing.

• WHAT IS A BOOMBURB?

Aboomburb is a booming suburb or satellite townships dreamt up by developers. It gives an idea of wealth, a boom. Boomburg is a similar term. These suburbs are usually not complete towns — though they are self-sufficient.

• HOW ARE ELECTRIC PYLONS PLACED ACROSS MOUNTAINS TO TRANSMIT ELECTRICITY?

Electric pylons are tall supports— made of galvanized steel lattice, steel tube or wood — used for power line construction. In normal terrain, they are assembled on the site. In mountainous regions, helicopters are used for power line construction, which are efficient but expensive. In the aerial construction method, the entire structure is pre-assembled and shifted in helicopters.

• WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE TERM 'CASH COW'?

Management guru Peter F Drucker coined the term in the mid-1960s to describe a business or product line with a large market share in a stagnant or declining market. It can yield profits reliably for some years without further investment and little maintenance. The term also has its origin in a matrix developed by Boston Consulting Group, in which enterprises have po sitions in either a growing or shrinking market, and either a growing or shrinking total market share.

• WHAT ARE PERSEIDES?

The word Perseides is found in Greek mythology and refers to the descendants of Perseus — the name of a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Swift-Tuttie. They are so called because they appear to come from the constellation Perseus. This shower is visible from midJuly each year, with peak activity between August 9 and 14, and is sometimes referred to as the "tears of St Lawrence", as August 10 is the saint's martyrdom.

• WHAT ARE JACK-O-LANTERNS?

They are carved pumpkins with lights inside commonly seen on Halloween night. The top of the pumpkin is cut off, the inside flesh scooped out and a face carved on its surface. These are used partly for fun and partly believing that they represent the souls of departed elders who protect houses from evil spirits. Ac cording to an Irish folk tale, the soul of a dishonest farmer called Jack wanders the earth burning amber inside a vegetable. The Jack-o-lantern is supposed to have been named after him.

• WHAT IS QUASI-RESONANCE?

A 'quasi-resonant' DC to DC converter with zero-current and zero-voltage switching includes a transformer with primary and secondary windings, and periodic switching means connected in series with the primary winding. The topology of the converter is determined by selecting an input capacitor with a capacitance much lower than the output capacitor.

• WHO IS AN EXCEPTOR?

An exceptor is a person who chooses to eat meat on special occasions. A vegetarian by habit, the exceptor makes exceptions for days like weddings, festivals and celebrations. After the vegan,eggetarian and flexitarian, it is the exceptor who is basically vegetarian, but makes changes in diet to suit the occasion.

• WHAT IS THIGMOTROPISM?

Thigmotropism is the growth of a plant around a support. Tropism is a phenomena by which a plant, usually climber like money plant and ivy, responds to a stimulus. Stems of the pea plant, for instance, are weak and have coil-like structures called tendrils. When tendrils approach a support (stick), a phytohormone called auxin is released in the side of the tendril away from the support. Auxin, a growth hormone, elongates the cells of that portion and makes it strong. The other portion, devoid of auxin, becomes weak and coils around the support.

• WHY DO THE EYES OF SOME ANIMALS GLOW IN THE DARK?

Some animals have a special, reflective surface right behind their retinas, called the tapeturn lucidum, which helps animals see better in the dark. When light enters the eye, it hits a photoreceptor that transmits the information to the brain. But sometimes light doesn't hit the photoreceptor, so the tapetum lucidum acts as a mirror to bounce it back for a second chance.

• WHY DON'T WE FEEL THE TONES OF ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE? 

Atmospheric pressure, which is about 1 kg per'sqcm of area, presses down on our body from all sides, but we don't feel it as it is balanced by fluid pressure from inside our body We can feel the difference during rainy season or when we go. to places where atmospheric pressure is less, like hill stations, where due to higher fluid pressure, blood oozes out in blood vessels, making the skin over those pink. The reverse happens under water.

• WHY DO FOOD PACKAGES CARRY KCAL WHEN THEY ACTUALLY SPECIFY CALORIES AND NOT KILO-CALORIES?

Kilocalories are commonly known as calories and abbreviated as kcal. One calorie (Kcal) has the same energy value as 4.186 kilojpules-(kJ), while one kilojoule is equivalent to 0.24 calories. One calorie contains the amount of energy that raises the temperature of one litre of water by 1 degree Celsius.

• WHAT IS SPIDER SILK?

Spider silk, also known as gossamer, is a protein fibre spun by spiders. Spiders use their silk to make webs. They can also suspend themselves using it. Many small spiders use silk threads for ballooning, the scientific term for the dynamic kiting spiderlings (mostly) used for dispersal. They extrude several threads into the air and let themselves get carried away with upward winds.

• WHAT IS A SICK-OUT?

A sick-out is concerted action by a group of employees, who call in sick to protest against the company and its policies. It is meant to hold the company to ransom. In ordinary language, it is a strike to show the power they hold over the company's working. It is a slightly more devious method than taking to the streets openly and raising slogans. Employees hope to put pressure on the company and force it to meet their demands.

• WHAT IS UNBREAKABLE GLASS MADE OF, AND IS IT REALLY UNBREAKABLE?

The presence of micro cracks on the glass surface (called Griffith's micro cracks) makes glass breakable under tension or impact. Such micro cracks are unavoidable as the glass surface comes under tension while cooling from a high temperature into various shapes. However, one can increase its impact resistance by various methods, so it can withstand even the impact of a bullet. The idea is to remove the surface micro cracks by chemical etching, or putting the glass surface under compression by physical or chemical toughening. One can even laminate two such toughened glass plates with resin in-between. These glasses are unbreakable, but when the threshold value is very high, it eventually breaks or cracks.

• WHAT IS UNIVERSAL TIME COORDINATED?

Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) is a time standard based on International Atomic Time with leap seconds added at irregular intervals to compensate for the Earth's slowing rotation. A leap second is a positive or negative one-second adjustment to the UTC scale that keeps it close to Mean Solar Time at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. The difference between UTC and Mean Solar Time is not allowed to exceed 0.9 seconds, so if high precision is not required, the general term Universal Time may be used. Time zones are expressed as positive or negative offsets from UTC. While each day contains 24 hours and each hour 60 minutes, the number of seconds in a minute can be 60,61 or 59.

• HOW DO SENSOR DOORS WORK?

Sensor doors use motion sensors or presence sensors. The first are used to activate the door when it detects a moving object, such as a pedestrian or shopping cart. Motion sensors can distinguish between objects moving toward the door or away from it. They use microwave technology and utilize the Doppler Effect principle. The sensors emit a high frequency microwave signal — when the wave encounters a moving object, it bounces back and its frequency changes in proportion to the object's speed; Presence sensors detect both moving and non-moving objects in the path of the door. Presence sensors use infrared technology — they emit an invisible pulsed light signal. The receiver looks for the reflected signal and reacts.

• WHAT IS WEISURE?

Weisure time is when work is done during leisure time. With the line between work and leisure blurring thanks to online work and smartphones, a new work-life culture has been created. Sociologist Dalton Conley coined this word, having observed that 9-5 jobs are giving way to this new lifestyle.

• WHO DISCOVERED COMETS? HOW IS THE TAIL FORMED?

Comets have been known to mankind since eons, hence it cannot be said that comets were discovered by any single individual. A comet, like planets and asteroids, orbits around the sun — with fee orbital period varying from a few years to thousands of years. A comet is formed of rock, ice, dust and a few frozen gases like carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and methane. When a comet is close to the sun, the radiation from the sun causes the volatile matter in the comet to vaporize and spread out into space in the form of its tail, its dust particles and ions glowing due to sunlight falling on it.

• WHAT IS HAY FEVER AND WHY IS IT SO CALLED?

Hay fever is a form of allergy belonging to a group of maladies including hives, asthma and skin problems caused by protein sensitization.During certain seasons, many plants, grasses release their pollens into the air in large quantities. A person is said to have hay fever when he/she is sensitive to these pollens and other substances present in the air. It is called hay fever because the symptoms of the disease appear during spring and fall in England.

• HOW IS THE HEIGHT OF WATER TIDES PREDICTED?

As astronomical data is not sufficient to calculate tides, predictions are also based on actual tidal measurements in many areas, over ah extended period. A network of tide stations is equipped to take the following measurements every six minutes: tide levels, wind speed and direction, water current speeds, directions, air and water temperatures and barometric pressure. Stations that provide these daily predictions are called reference stations. Other stations are subordinate stations, which obtain predictions by applying a specific formula to this data. The formula is derived by observing how tides at the two stations related to one another in the past.

• HOW DO SOLAR CELLS CONVERT SUNLIGHT INTO ELECTRICITY?

Solar cells use photovoltaic cells to convert sunlight directly into electricity by converting photons (light particles) into electrons (negatively charged particles). Photovoltaic cells are made of semiconductors and silicon, mixed with other material.

• WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE WORD COCKTAIL?

The word cocktail was used in 1806 and is of American origin. Bartenders would drain the dregs of all the barrels and mix them together, serving the resultant muddle at a reduced price. Cock was another name for spigot, and tailings is the last bit of alcohol, so this drink was called cock-tailings, quickly shortened to "cocktail".

• WHAT IS A CUSHION ACCOUNT?

It is an account a person sets aside which has no demands of monthly expenses on it, and is used as an emergency or luxury fund. A few business people set aside cushion funds to help their business grow, and for stability. The word 'cushion' is used as it gives a certain level of comfort to the person.

• WHAT IS MAGIC SAND?

Magic sand is water-repellent sand available in blue, green and red colours. When this sand in powder form is sprinkled on water, it sinks and forms a solid substance. This property is used to separate oil floating in the oceans — it can be sprayed on oil spills to enable it to mix with oil and take solid form. It is also used by utility companies in Arctic areas as it never freezes.

• IF LEAVES GET THEIR COLOUR FROM CHLOROPHYLL, WHAT GIVES FLOWERS THEIR COLOUR?

Plant cells have cell organelles known as plastids, which are colouring agents. There are three types of plastids — chloroplasts (contain green pigment chlorophyll), leucoplasts (white or colourless plastids) and chromoplasts (contain other pigments). All cells have varying proportions of these. Flowers have a majority of the third type and get their colours from these.

• HOW IS A MOCKTAIL DIFFERENT FROM A COCKTAIL?

Cocktail is a style of mixed drinks, and usually contains one or more types of liquor and mixers, such as bitters, fruit juice or herbs. Mocktail is a non-alcoholic cocktail. Mocktail is also know as 'virgin cocktail'.

• WHAT IS A MINSKIAN PONZI DEAL?

The Minskian Ponzi deal was a theory propounded by American economist Minsky, in 1986. Such deals are both unsustainable and hazardous. In Minsky's view, periods of economic and financial stability lead to a lowering of investors' risk aversion and a process of releveraging. Investors borrow excessively and push asset prices excessively high. In this process, there are three types of investors/borrowers. First, sound or hedge borrowers who can afford to pay on their own. Second, speculative borrowers who can only service interest payments out of their cash flows. Finally, there are Ponzi borrowers who can service neither interest nor principal payments, and need to keep on refinancing their debts.

• WHAT DOES THE MONTH OF RAMZAN SIGNIFY?

Ramzan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. Muslims fast for the entire month. They are obliged to abstain from all food, drink, tobacco and conjugal relations from dawn till sunset. The spiritual aspects include refraining from gossiping, lying, slandering and all such traits of bad character. The month of Ramzan is a time for spiritual reflection, prayer, recitation of the Quran, doing 'Zikr', endurance and selfdiscipline, to train the soul and body to be able to exercise self-restraint.

• WHO IS A SEXER?

A sexer is a professional in a hatchery who can tell a male chick from a female. Also known as chick sexers, they are employed to separate the genders as hatcheries have different feeding programmes for them: females are reared to lay eggs and males are bred for their meat. Big hatcheries sex chickens as they have no use for male birds who are killed almost immediately. A sexer is trained to tell the chicks apart by their physical appearance and vents.

• WHAT IS A SINKING FUND?

It is a fund set aside as a means to repay funds borrowed through a bond issue. The issuer makes periodic payments to a trustee who retires part of the issue by purchasing the bonds in the open market. Rather than the issuer repaying the entire principal of a bond issue on the maturity date, another company buys back a portion of the issue annually, and usually at fixed par value or at the current market value of the bonds, whichever is less. From the investor's point of view, a sinking fund adds safety to a corporate bond issue: with it, the issuing company is less likely to default on repayment.

• WHY IS A SWINE FLU MASK CALLED N95?
• Respirators or N95 masks can block 95% small particles that contain the H1N1 virus, which causes swine flu. These are expensive and can be used only for a single day. These masks are made of three layers of electrostaticallycharged microfibres, that block 95% particles, thus the name N95.
• WHAT IS CLAYTRONICS?

Claytronics is an emerging field of engineering, drawing on nano technology and computer engineering. Claytronics or programmable matter refers to an assemblage of tiny components called claytronic atoms or catoms, which could assume the form of any object, depending on the programmes controlling the claytronics. This term also refers to the art of making clay caricatures of public figures, begun in 1996 by an Indian, Charuvi Agrawal.

• WHAT DOES 'TROPICALIZED' ON A RADIO SET SIGNIFY?

Heat and humidity are the greatest enemies of any electrical equipment, so in tropical countries, such equipment is manufactured to withstand those climatic conditions. In a radio set, tropicalized means coating the electrical windings with resin, sealing the speaker hole with acoustically transparent cloth, installing" felt washers on the control knobs, and sealing openings for the antenna and earth connections.

• WHAT IS A GRASS SKIRT?

A grass skirt, also called a hula skirt, is a traditional part of the dress worn by hula dancers on tropical islands. It is made of long blades of grass, most popularly seen on  the island of Hawaii. Grass skirts are also worn in many cultures and tribes in Africa, like the Zulu tribals.

• WHAT IS WHITE NOISE?

Noise that is produced by combining sounds of different frequencies together is called white noise. Since it contains all frequencies, white noise is used to mask other sounds. When two or three people talk, our brain can distinguish the sound of a particular person. But if a crowd cheers in a stadium, no individual voice can be identified. That's white noise and is most effectively used in the emergency siren.

• WHAT IS INDUSTRIAL MELANISM?

It is caused when the natural environment of an organism is disturbed due to industrial pollution. As pollutants like soot and smoke darken the landscape, they disturb the environment of many organisms that rely on camouflage to avoid predation. This change makes them vulnerable to predators and creates a strong selective pressure due to which an organism with a darker colour is more likely to survive.

• WHAT ARE BATHOLITHS?

Batholiths are enormous masses of igneous rock made up of once-molten material solidified below the earth's surface. These are usually made of granite and extend over thousands of miles. A well known batholith is located in the Sierra Nevada range of California, across 40,000 sqkm.

• WHAT IS THE TATE?

The Tate is an art gallery originally titled the National Gallery of British Art. It is situated on Millbank in Pimlico, London. It was founded in 1897 by Henry Tafe with money earned from his sugar refineries. It was initially a collection of British art, concentrating on the works of Victorian painters. It later expanded to include foreign art and in the 20th century became principally a gallery devoted to Modernism. There are several other recently-opened Tate Galleries' in England, but the original gallery is now called Tate Britain.

• WHO ARE STAGS IN THE STOCK MARKET?

An investor or speculator who subscribes to a new issue, expecting the price of the stock to rise immediately. upon the start of trading is known as a stag. The sole aim of a stag is to sell the shares soon after allotment to realize a quick profit.

• WHAT IS A GREEN COLLAR JOB?

A green collar job involves working to better the environment, and is created by firms and organizations whose mission is to improve environmental quality. Work could include policies related to waste, energy and water conservation, solar energy, whole home performance and strengthening local food systems. These jobs are generated by sectors that produce goods which may need a green angle, like energy retrofits to improve conservation, constructing green buildings, composting, landscaping etc.

• WHAT IS RASTAFARIANISM?

The Rastafarian movement originated in Jamaica in 1930s, based on the philosophies of Marcus Mosiah Garvey. Today, it has branched out, including groups that still hold Garvey's beliefs and groups that have disavowed his more controversial stances. His organization's aim was to unite black people (Negroes) with their rightful homeland, Africa. He prophesied about his people being redeemed by a future Black African king. This  prediction was fulfilled in November 2, 1930, when Ras Tafari Makonnen was crowned King of Ethiopia.

• WHAT ARE WIDGETS?

Widget, literally, is a blend of window and gadget, coined by George S Kaufman in his play 'Beggar on Horseback'. It is a hypothetical manufactured good or product. In computing, the term has become frequently used to refer to objects on a computer screen the user interacts with. A widget is anything that can be embedded within a HTML page. Widgets often take the form of on-screen tools like clocks, event countdowns etc.

• WHY DON'T TWO-WHEELERS HAVE A REVERSE GEAR?

A regular motorcycle has a 'sequential' manual transmission, meaning you can only shift up or down one gear at a time. It is also designed to spin one way only. Adding reverse would require the crankshaft to spin backwards, or a much larger, heavier, expensive transmission. So it is easiest to dismount and push the bike backwards.

• WHAT IS A DUM DUM BULLET?

It is an expanding bullet designed to grow on impact, increasing in diameter to limit penetration and/or produce a larger diameter wound. There are many expanding bullet designs though the most commonly encountered are hollow-point bullet and the soft-point bullet. Such bullets are Sometimes known as 'dum dum' bullets. After an early British example pro- duced in the Dum Dum arsenal, near Kolkata, India, there were several expanding bullets produced by this arsenal for the .303 British cartridge.

• WHO ARE STILT FISHERMEN?

Stilt fishing is an old tradition practised by around 500 fishing families in Galle, in southwestern-most Sri Lanka. These fishermen usually fish at sunset, noon and sunrise, with each one taking an elevated position and balancing about 2 metres above the wa- ter. The stilts are dug into the coral and bed of the sea. Stilt fishing started after the Second World War.

• WHAT ARE SIN STOCKS?

They are stocks of companies which manufacture or deal with cigarettes, alcohol, weapons and sex-related products. They could be directly involved in the business or associated with such activities. Such companies are also called sin businesses.

• WHY DOES SNOW LOOK WHITE BUT WATER IS COLOURLESS?

Snow is a block of individual ice crystals arranged together. When a light photon enters a layer of snow, it goes through an ice crystal on the top, which changes its direction slightly and sends it on to a new ice crystal, which does the same thing. Basically, all the crystals bounce the light all around, so that it comes right back out of the snow pile. It does the same thing to all the different light frequencies, so all colours of light are bounced back out. The 'colour' of all the frequencies in the visible spectrum combined in equal measure is white, so this is the colour we see in snow.

• WHAT IS THE FULL FORM OF AK-47 AND WHAT DOES 47 REFER TO?

AK-47 stands for Russian Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947 (Automatic Kalashnikov 1947). Designed by Russian Mikhail Kalashnikov, it was the assault rifle used by most Eastern Bloc countries during the Cold War. The rifle was adopted and standardized in 1947, thus the name.

• HOW IS THE TIME DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TWO COUNTRIES CALCULATED?

The earth has 360 imaginary lines called longitudes or meridians running vertically between the poles. Each of these longitudes is called a degree. The 0 degree longitude passing through Greenwich, near London, is considered as standard and the time of all other time zones are calculated accordingly. The time difference between each longitude (each degree) is 4 minutes. So if it is 12 noon at Greenwich (0 degree), it would be 12:04 pm at 1 degree meridian and so on. In India, the standard meridian is 82-and-half degree. So the time difference between Greenwich and India is 82.5 x 4, which is 330 minutes (5 hours 30 minutes).

• WHAT IS LAISSEZ FAIRE?

Laissez faire is a French phrase and means to let things pass. The term is used to describe an economic system where the government intervenes as little as possible and leaves the private sector to organize most economic activity through markets. Classical economists were great advocates of a laissez faire system.

• WHAT IS THE FREIMARKT?

Freimarkt means free fair. It was first held on October 16, 1035, in Bremen, Germany. It is the biggest festival in Northern Germany, with more than four million visitors each year. It is celebrated for 17 days in the last two weeks of October. The area covers approximately 100,000 sqm on two areas: the 'Kleiner Freimarkt' (Small Free Fair) on the market square. It is famous for its beer tents and amusement rides. An annual highlight is the 'Freimarktsumzug' (Free Fair Procession).

• HOW ARE ULTRA-VIOLET RAYS BLOCKED BY THE OZONE LAYER?

The ozone layer contains ozone molecules — 03 molecules — which are formed by the action of ultra-violet rays on atmospheric oxygen. This oxygen, which is 02, converts into 03 when UV rays fall on it. When these rays fall on the surface of the atmosphere, they are absorbed in the conversion of oxygen into ozone. As a result, ultra-violet rays are blocked by this ozone layer.

• HOW IS THE TEMPERATURE OF A STAR MEASURED?

As stars are very far away, their temperatuce cannot be measured directly. Fortunately, the light coming from stars can be analyzed through several scientific instruments. Although all stars appear white, they have different colours when carefully viewed. The variations are a result of their temperature — cold stars appear red, and hot ones blue or white. The colour of a star is measured by an instrument called photoelectric photometer, which involves passing the light through different filters and finding the amount that passes through each filter. The measures from the photometer are converted to temperature, using standard scales.

• WHICH IS THE WORLD'S LONGEST STORYBOOK?

Marcel Proust's  A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu' (translated as In Search of Past) is the world's longest novel, according to the Guinness World Records. The influential 13-volume work contains 9,609,000 characters, with each letter and space counting as one character.

• WHY DOES A FALLING OBJECT HAVE NO WEIGHT?

Every body on this earth is attracted by the gravitational pull of the earth. A freely falling object has weight W=mg, where W-weight, m-mass of the object and g-acceleration produced due to the earth's gravity An object kept in a lift which falls freely, weighs zero on the weighing machine, but its actual weight is still mg. This happens because the normal reaction force exerted on the object in the lift is equal to zero, and normal force equals to mg, which in turn equals the weight of the object.

• WHAT IS THE REOG DANCE?

It is a spectacular dance with several dancers wearing bright, colourful costumes, accompanied by merry music. It is always held in open terrain, such as a square, street etc. This dance is a traditional art form combined with a magical show or trance dance. The Reog dates back to the Hindu period in East Java in Indonesia.

WHAT IS CROWD MINING?

Crowd mining is a new business concept where solutions can come from crowds, and marketers are turning to them as a database. The changing economy brought in this concept to tap expensive or even unavailable information and it goes beyond surveys and crowd sourcing.

• WHAT IS OCTOBER HEAT?

The weather in the month of October in the Indian sub-continent is called 'October heat'. By the beginning of October, the monsoon withdraws from the northern plains. October and November form the period of transition from the hot rainy season to dry winter conditions.

• WHAT IS AWACS?

AWACS stands for Airborne Warning And Control System that helps the Air Force detect incoming missiles and enemy aircraft from across the country's border. AWACS is described as an 'Eye in the Sky' as it can carry out surveillance at about 400-km range under all-weather situations, and to lock on to 60 targets at a time simultaneously.

• WHAT IS THE SCHWARZSCHILD RADIUS?

It is a characteristic radius associated with every quantity of mass. This term is used in physics and astronomy, especially in the theory of gravitation and general relativity. m 1916, Karl Schwarzschild obtained an exact solution to Einstein's field equations for gravitational field outside a nonrating, spherically symmetric body. The solution contained a formula, where one of the values came to be known as Schwarzschild Radius.

• WHO  WERE  THE  IRON CHANCELLORS?

A hundred years ago, Germany was divided into many small states. In one of these states, Prussia, the chancellor or chief minister to the king, was Otto Von Bismarck. A strong and ruthless man, Bismarck built Prussia into the strongest of all German states. He got his nickname of 'The Iron Chancellor' when he said Germany could become a great power "through blood and iron".

• HOW IS THE HEIGHT OF DIFFERENT PLACES ON EARTH MEASURED FROM THE SEA LEVEL?

The height of different places on earth is measured with the help of the 'altimeter'. It is basically a barometer without the mercury, and instead of instead of the pressure graduating in a barometer, the corresponding height graduates.

• WHAT IS CRAB FOOTBALL?

Crab soccer (American English) or crab football (British English) is an informal sport for two teams. Unlike soccer, players support themselves on their hands and feet and face up, in motions that make them look like crabs, a method known as crab walking. This sport involves kicking, so safety is at the root of many rules. Like soccer, players other than the goalkeeper must not touch the ball with their hands.

• HOW DOES A MOBILE VIBRATE?

There is a little motor fitted in a cell phone. This motor is unevenly weighted on its output shaft. When this motor rotates, the rotating uneven weight causes the mobile to vibrate.

• WHAT IS TELEPRESENCE?

Telepresence is the next-gen videoconferencing technology, which provides superior images. The demand for telepresence solutions has grown, with companies seeing it as an alternative to send executives for meetings. It also reduces a company's carbon footprint by cutting down frequent flying. Setting up a telepresence suite can be very expensive, though.

• HOW IS THE MASS OF HEAVENLY BODIES MEASURED?

The mass of a heavenly body can be measured by knowing the orbital period (time it takes to complete one orbit around the other body), the distance between two bodies and gravitational constant. The orbital time is inversely proportionate to the square root of the sum of the masses of two bodies and directly proportion distance raised to power three by two.

• WHAT IS AN ELECTRON GUN?

It is a device in the back of a "cathode ray tube" television or computer monitor (pre-plasma or LCD flat-panel). The electron gun fires a stream of electrons from the back of the TV onto the inside face of the screen, which is coated with a material that glows when hit by electrons. By using powerful magnets to direct the stream across the screen, a series of dots ('pixels') is built over the screen which appears as an image.

• WHO INVENTED THE SPEECH BUBBLE AND WHEN WAS IT FIRST USED?

One of the earliest antecedents to the modern speech bubble was the speech scroll — wispy lines that connected first person speech to the mouths of 'speakers in Meso-American art. In Western graphic art, labels that reveal what a figure is saying have appeared even in the 13th century Word balloons began appearing in 18th century printed broadsides and political cartoons from the American Revolution often used them.

• WHY   ARE   CELLPHONES SWITCHED OFF WHILE FLYING?

Mobile phones are radio transmitters and as such, were banned from use in civilian airplanes, for fear they could interfere with airplane avionics. There was also concern that a cellular phone would cause disruption to the cell systems' towers, and distract passengers during take-off and landing.

• WHAT IS A DIRTY BOMB?

A dirty bomb is a simple explosive device used not so much to produce extensive damage but to contaminate a designated spot with radioactive material. It's primary role is to spread fear.

• WHAT IS THE PEKING OPERA?

The Peking Opera, which originated in the late 18th century, is a synthesis of music, dance, art and acrobatics. It is the most influential of all operas in  China, and can be divided into 'civil' pieces characterized by singing, and 'martial' ones featuring acrobatics and stunts. Some operas are a combination of both. The operatic dialogues and monologues are recited in the Beijing dialect.

• WHAT IS A PINK ELEPHANT?

The term 'pink elephant' is used to describe something obvious and uncomfortable, but which obody wants to talk about. At the workplace or in business communications, it is something that is buried under the carpet when things go wrong. It refers especially to a situation of unhealthy relationships between women colleagues — one woman may try to bully the other women out of rivalry to stay in control. Broaching such a topic may be embarrassing to all, so it is called a "pink elephant in the room".

• WHY IS AN ATOM SPHERICAL IN SHAPE?

The shape of an atom refers to the shape of the imaginary volume in which its electrons orbit. Different electrons orbit at different levels. The shape of the atom depends on several factors, including the angular momentum of electrons. Only the simplest atoms have a spherical shape. Heavy atoms have a more complex shape.

• WHAT IS INCOGNITO BROWSING?

It is used for browsing in stealth mode, for a situation when we don't want our history to be tracked. Web pages that are opened and files downloaded while browsing incognito are not logged in the browser.

• WHAT IS MICRO-PROPAGATION?

Micro-propagation is the technique of multiple production of plants in-vitro. It is used for plants that do not produce seeds or respond to normal vegetable reproduction. Micro propagation's main advantage is to produce disease-free plants in multiple numbers and cloning of plants.

• WHAT IS THE ROLE OF H2O2 IN THE GREY-HAIR PUZZLE?

New research shows that hair turns grey as a result of a chemical reaction that causes it to bleach itself inside out. When there is a dip in levels of an enzyme called catalase, hydrogen peroxide (H202) that naturally occurs in hair can't be broken down. As H202 builds up, the hair becomes grey.

• WHO MADE THE FIRST ICE CREAM IN THE WORLD?

The origin of ice cream can be traced to the 4th century BC. Early references include Roman emperor Nero who ordered ice to be brought from the mountains and combined with fruit toppings, and King Tang (AD 618-97) of Shang, China, who had a method of creating ice and milk concoctions. Ice cream was brought from China back to Europe.

• WHAT IS 'SMART ANTENNA' TECHNOLOGY?

This is a new technology in the field of wireless and mobile communications in which capacity and performance are usually limited by two major impairments — multipath and co-channel interference. A smart antenna enables a higher capacity by reducing multipath and co-channel interference. This is achieved by focusing the radiation in the desired direction and adjusting to changing traffic conditions.

• WHAT IS THE GOLLIWOG ACT?

The golliwog act is a flexible contortion of the body in a dance form to create an impression that the contortionist is a doll. The name is taken from a literary character created by Florence Kate in her novel The Adventures of two Dutch Dolls and a Golliwog'.

• WHAT IS A 'CASH AND CARRY STORE' AND WHY IS IT SO CALLED?

A cash and carry store is different from regular retail chains which target professional customers rather than end-consumers. This concept is based around self-service and bulk buying arid serves registered customers only. The core customer groups are hotels, caterers, traders and other business professionals. Such stores aim to prevent any intervention by middlemen and requires buyers to make their own arrangements and assume all risk.

• HOW DOES HAIR GEL WORK?

The main ingredient in hair gels is a plastic called PVP, which is a polymer sealer. The polymers in PVP are dissolved in water or alcohol and form a clear film between each hair strand, attaching them to one another. Chemical experts call this "capillary power" because it's similar to how blood capillaries work. When gel is applied to wet hair, the PVP or similar ingredient absorbs water quickly. When the gel dries completely, it forms a fixed connection between hair strands.

• WHAT IS A WORMHOLE?

A wormhole is a theoretical entity allowed by Einstein's theory of general relativity in which spacetime curvature connects two distant locations (or times). The term 'wormhole' was coined by American theoretical physicist John A Wheeler in 1957, based on an analogy of how a worm could chew a hole from one end of an apple through the centre to the other, thus creating a shortcut through the intervening space.

• WHAT DOES MIRROR IMAGE MEAN IN BIOLOGICAL TERMINOLOGY?

Mirror image is a concept from chemistry applied to organic materials. An example of this is glucose arid fructose. These molecules are mirror images of each other. Although it is possible to flip glucose and superimpose it over a fructose molecule, only in 2D (flat viewing) are they similar.

• WHAT IS A 3-D FILM?

A 3-D film is any visual presentation system that attempts to maintain or recreate moving images of the third dimension, the illusion of depth as seen by the viewer. It involves filming two images simultaneously, with two cameras, filming at 90 degree angle via mirrors. When viewed in such a way that each eye sees its photographed counterpart, the viewer's visual cortex will interpret the pair of images as a single three-dimensional image. Modern computer technology also allows for the production of pseudo-SD films using CGI and without the need for dual cameras.

• WHAT IS SWEETHEARTING?

Sweet hearting is a method cashiers use to pass on goods to friends by failing to bill one. They do so by passing two items, and obscuring the barcode of one, so it goes unnoticed. Now, there are machines to pick out sweet hearting.

• WHAT ARE MANGO SHOWERS?

Mango showers are those experienced prior to the arrival of the monsoon. These showers arrive generally in late April and May and are said to aid in the ripening of mangoes and from dropping prematurely from trees.

• WHAT IS TERMINATOR GENE TECHNOLOGY?

The terminator gene is a specific genetic sequence inserted by scientists into a seed's DNA that renders the seed and the crop it produces sterile. Patented by the USDA and Delta and Pine Land Co., now owned by Monsanto, this terminator technology has no agricultural or economic benefits for farmers or consumers.

• WHY IS THE FLAME OF A CANDLE POINTED?

The flame of a candle is produced when the wax of the candle melts due to heat and the molten wax rises in the wick. As the heated gas rises above from the base of the flame, it moves faster as the pressure decreases from the base to the top. As the rate at which the gas is released from the base is more or less constant, the flame becomes thinner and thinner from its base to the end, assuming a pointed tip.

• HOW DID THE ABBREVIATION DR FOR DOCTORS ORIGINATE, AND WHY DO ENGINEERS NOT USE ER?
• The abbreviation originated to separate people qualified to practice medicine from those holding the highest academic degree i.e. doctorate in nonmedical subjects. In USA, only dentists and vets are called doctors. Physicians and surgeons do not put 'Dr' before their names. Engineers, at least in India, put 'Er'.
• WHAT IS A FLIPBOOK?

A flipbook is a small book with a series of printed images that create the illusion of motion when its pages are rapidly flipped. Typically, a flipbook is held in one hand while the thumb of the other flicks the pages and the user concentrates on the middle of each page. It relies on a basic optical principle known as persistence of vision. In India, flip books were popular in the seventies, when cola majors brought out flip books of cricketers in action.

• WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF FORMULA I?

Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or Fl, and currently officially referred to as FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of auto racing sanctioned by the Fidiration Internationale de 1'Automobile (FIA). The 'formula' in the name refers to a set of rules that all participants and cars must comply with.

• WHAT ARE GTOR-MA CAKES?

Gtor-ma cakes are sacrificial cakes used in Tibetan Buddhist ceremonies as offerings to deities. The unbaked cakes are prepared by kneading parched barley flour and butter into cones. The cakes form part of the phyi-mchod, or eight offerings of external worship.

• WHAT IS DIGITAL CLEANSE?

Digital cleanse is a term mooted by John Mayor, musician and avid blogger and tweeter, as a resolution and challenge for the first week of 2010. It means keeping off all digital contraptions — a stop to emailing, texting, social networking, blogging and surfing sites. It is seen as a new health craze, considered good for the body and mind. The basic idea is to unplug and meet people.

• HOW DOES THE HYBRID ENGINE WORK?

Hybrid engines use two or more power sources. They consist of a usual fuel engine, complemented by a pollution-free engine, an electric engine for example. The fuel engine and brakes are used to recharge the batteries for the electric engine, eliminating the need to plug in while unused. When brakes are applied, some of the energy being used to stop the vehicle is collected by the regenerative brakes of the electrical engine. Hence, the electrical engine takes control when cruising, stopping or slowly acclerating, reducing the use of fuel.

• WHAT IS THE AURORA PHENOMENON?

Charged particles ejected at great speeds from the sun ionise the air molecules resulting in spectacular colour display. These are seen from polar regions and are called aurora or polar lights. It is the luminous phenomenon of earth's upper atmosphere that occurs primarily in high latitudes of both hemispheres; aurorae in the northern hemisphere are called aurora borealis, or northern lights; aurora australis, or southern lights in the southern hemisphere.

• WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE TERM 'SLAP-STICK COMEDY'?

The term 'slapstick comedy' is given to comedy characterized by broad humour, absurd situations and vigorous chases, often violent in action. The phrase comes from the term battacchio called the 'slap stick' in English. It is a club-like object composed of two wooden slats, and produces a loud smacking noise when struck, though little force is transferred to the person being struck. Slapstick comedy became popular in 19th-century music halls and Vaudeville theatres.

• HOW AND WHEN DID THE TERM 'SIZE ZERO' COME INTO USE?

'Size zero' was first used in 1966 for British supermodel Twiggy, who had a fragile figure. Now, 'size zero' is a women's clothing size in the US system, equivalent to a UK size 4, with a waist measurement of 23 inches, the average girth of an 8-year-old girl. It is a petite size for women with a 32-inch bust, 23-inch waist and 32-inch hips, and is often linked to anorexia nervosa and bulimia.

• HOW DOES THE 'MADRAS EYE' SPREAD?

Madras eye is the inflammation of the outermost covering of the eyeball and inner layer of eyelid. Medically, it is known as 'conjunctivitis'. It can be caused by various agents like bacteria, virus, wind, smoke, pollen, radiation or chemical agents. If a person comes in close physical contact of the infected person or his infected belongings, the bacteria or virus gets transmitted and thus, causes infection from person to person.

• WHY DOES THE ORTHODOX CHURCH CELEBRATE CHRISTINAS ON JANUARY 7?

The Orthodox Church uses the old Julian calender which is 13 days behind the Gregorian calender. In the former Soviet Republic, the Bolsheviks adopted the Gregorian calender at the end of 1917, which put them in line with the rest of the Western world. However, the Orthodox Church, opposed to the Bolsheviks trying to suppress religion, kept the Julian calender.

• WHAT IS COSMOPHOBIA?

Cosmophobia is an irrational fear that the world is about to end, and is sparked off by a belief among people that a cosmic end is near. The fear is ancient, and people have been readying for doom on and off — expecting floods, earthquakes, epidemics, drought, or even a collision with another planet. The latest bout was set off by the movie 2012, where the Mayan calendar counts December 21, 2012 as the last day Earlier, the 2000 millennium frenzy had everyone believe that the end was near. For ages now, there have been apocalyptic predictions which have fuelled cosmophobia, but until now, they have all come to nought.

• WHAT IS AN ELEPHANT PEARL?

Elephant pearls are not really pearls, however, they are categorised as one of the nine pearls. These are produced in the heads and the sockets of the tusks of some elephants. It was believed that when worn by kings, they proved highly sanctifying and bestowed children, victory and sound health. Even now, they are considered to bring good luck.

• WHAT IS A 'BANANA KICK' IN FOOT-BALL?

Banana kick is a checkside punt — a kicking style used in Australian Rules and rugby league football. When kicked, the ball bends away from the body and is usually used when a set shot for goal is lined up on a narrow angle. The banana kick comes off more from the inside of the boot, with the ball spinning in the same direction as the leg swings naturally.

• WHAT IS THE ORACLE OF DELPHI?

The Oracle of Delphi was the most important oracle in the classical Greek World, and a major site for the worship of the god Apollo. Built around a sacred spring, Delphi was considered to be the omphalos — the centre of the world. Scholars congregated at Delphi, and it became a focal point for intellectual enquiry Delphi lies on the slopes of Mount Parnassus in Greece.

• HOW MANY FLOWERS MUST A BEE TAP TO MAKE A POUND OF HONEY?

A bee taps 2 million flowers and flies 50,000 miles (80,000 kms) to make one pound (454 gm) of honey — traveling more than twice around the world to gather it. The basis of calculation is done after taking many facts for granted and the proof is often lost in the mists of time. C R Ribbands (1949) determined that one bee can visit several hundred of flowers for a load of sweet clover, and up to 1,100-1,446 flowers for a load of limantnes nectar.

• WHAT IS THE SPHINX AWARD?

There are several types of Sphinx awards. The most popular one is given by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity forcontribution to social service. President Stephen C Ainlay of Union College recently received the Sphinx Award from the brothers of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity for his contributions to the Union community. Another Sphinx Award is given in Coventry for outstanding performance in the local soccer league.

• WHAT IS A GRAMMY SALUTE?

Grammy awards are presented annually for outstanding achievements in music. There is a week-long function called the Grammy Week, culminating in the Annual Grammy Awards. The rest of the week is marked by several connected events, of which the Salute To series is a part. Each of the Salute To events features a reception, presentation of a special merit certificate and guest performances.

• WHEN DID THE PRACTICE OF THE HANDSHAKE BEGIN?

The origin of the handshake goes back to primitive eras: the physical contact of the hand symbolized peace and friendship. Later symbolism of the gesture, apart from a greeting, was the ratification of a contract or pledge. Even today, we clinch a contract or business deal by 'shaking hands on it.' Archaeological ruins and texts show the handshake was in use as a means of greeting as far back as the 2nd century BC.

• WHAT IS THE BOXING DAY MATCH AND WHAT IS ITS ORIGIN?

The Boxing Day match is a cricket match hosted in Melbourne, Australia, and Victoria, involving the Australian cricket team and the opposition national team touring Australia at that time. It begins on Boxing Day (Dec 26) and is played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Boxing Day is so called as traditionally, it was the day when people would give a present or Christmas 'box' to those who worked for them throughout the year. These days, the 'box' is usually given before Christmas.

• WHAT IS BAS-RELIEF?

Bas-relief is a French term meaning 'low-raised work.' A relief is a sculptured artwork where a modelled form is raised. There are three types of reliefs — 'bas-relief or low relief, 'high relief and 'sunken relief.' Bas-relief is suitable for scenes with many figures and other elements such as a landscape    or    architectural background. Stone carving and metal casting is traditionally done in bas-relief.

• HOW DO ODI TEAMS CHOOSE THEIR COLOURS?

There is no hard and fast rule about choosing cricket colours. In most cases, the country adopts colours from their nationa

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Vedic Relationship Astrology

Vedic Relationship Astrology

In Vedic Astrology, relationship compatibility is based upon the Moon and Nakshatras.  The Moon is the mind and feelings of the individual.   It is the Jiva, the idea of separate existence and the Ahamkara, the ego.  In essence, the Moon is our very identity as opposed to the Western Astrological view that the Sun represents the ego.  In Vedic Astrology, the Sun is the Soul, because the Sun is constant.  It never stops shining.  The Moon, however, takes the light of the Sun, as the mind takes the light of the soul, and waxes and wanes.  In other words, the Moon CHANGES.  The Sun does not.  Therefore, the most appropriate planet to represent the individual is the Moon.

The Vedic compatibility techniques are very simple, yet very profound.  Since they are based upon the Nakshatras, these techniques are exceptionally ancient and come directly from the Rishis.  Many will say that these techniques are outdated and do not work in modern society because relationships between men and women have changed enormously.  While the cultural norms of relationships have changed, the dynamic of two people interacting with each other have not, and these techniques apply just as well today as they did thousands of years ago.  What is a relationship?  It is two people relating to each other and the needs and emotions of this exchange never change.  As you will see as you read further, these techniques are so insightful into the human psyche,  their profoundness has not diminished in the least.

A relationship consists of two people relating and for that to happen there must always be masculine energy and feminine energy, whether it is a man and a woman, two women, two men, a teacher and student or a parent and child.  There is ALWAYS a male/female dynamic happening.  When male/female dynamic is stated, please throw out all concepts of what male/female is.  Masculine energy is dynamic, initiating, steadfast energy and feminine energy is receptive, accommodating, changeable energy.  Masculine energy wants to be loved for what it does and when it does good, it feels good.  Feminine energy wants to be loved for what it is, and when it feels good, it does good.  An example would be when one person talks, another must listen, otherwise you have two people talking at the same time, in which case they are not relating, or you have neither one talking, in which case there is no relationship.  This is not to say that in a heterosexual couple, the woman is always receptive and the man is always dynamic.  I am just explaining what masculine and feminine energy are and how they are always at play in creation and in relationships.

The Sun and the Moon

In every horoscope, the Sun represents the masculine principle and the Moon, the feminine principle.  Parasara clearly defines what the Sun is in the following sutra,

The Sun has honey colored eyes, square body; he is of clean habits, is bilious, intelligent, manly and has limited hair on his head.

BPHS, Chapter 3, verse 23

The Sun has a square body.  When you set a square down it stays put.  If you leave it, you can walk away and know when you come back it will still be there.  This makes the Sun steadfast and goal-oriented.  When the Sun (or masculine energy) makes a plan to do something, they stick with it, no matter if they don’t feel like doing it.  This is a quality of healthy masculine energy.  The Sun is bilious meaning it has qualities of Pitta, the fire dosha.  The nature of Pitta is competitive and masculine energy has the quality of always wanting to compete and be the best.  The Sun is intelligent, meaning masculine energy uses logic to know something.  The Sun has limited hair.  Hair is the most out of control thing on our bodies.  Our hair keeps a record of our past.  The Sun is not concerned with the past; that is why he has no hair on his head.  Nor is the Sun is concerned with what is beyond his control.

Parasara describes the Moon, the feminine principle, in the following sutra,

“Abounding in Vata and Kapha and filled with knowing is the Moon of round body, O’ Twice Born, auspiciously eyed, of sweet speech, fluctuating and love sick”

The Moon is lovesick, its feminine energy must be receptive to something, otherwise, it feels empty.  This makes feminine energy more concerned with relationships.  I realize this is not very PC, but I must tell the truth after doing hundreds of horoscopes.  Almost inevitably, women want to know about relationships first.  The men also want to know about relationships, but only after career and wealth, unless they want a consultation specifically about relationships. The Moon represents the principle of change.  The Moon is of round body and when you put something down that is round, it rolls away.  Like the Moon changes each night waxing and waning, so does the feminine energy change with feelings.  The Moon is "filled with knowing", therefore the Moon does not need logic to know something, the Moon just knows, like women's intuition.  An example:  A man and a woman want to buy a car.  The man gets out the magazines, measures for clearance, does the research on MPG and all the rest.  The woman looks at a selection of cars and says, "I want that one".  This is not to say that the woman never uses her logic.  It just means that most of the time, her decisions and actions will be based upon her feelings which will usually be correct.  If the Moon is afflicted, that shows affairs more than anything in the horoscope.

A woman is always 51% or more of feminine energy and a man is always 51% or more of masculine energy.  The principle is that the Sun, as the dynamic masculine force, rules men and the Moon as the receptive female force rules women. Of course, all men have a feminine side and all women have a masculine side, and they are often used, but these are not the overriding principles in the identity and especially with regard to relationships.

Assessing an Individual’s Capacity for Relationships

Before looking at the compatibility, the individual charts must be assessed to determine if the person will even enjoy being in a relationship and if they have the tools with which to make their partners happy and fulfilled.  If the individual chart is showing selfishness and fear, then it will be that much more difficult for the person and their partners to be happy within a relationship, so it is very important to assess certain factors within the individual horoscope first.

The Sun and Man’s Capability

We will start with the Male gender.  When it comes to men, happiness is all about capability and confidence.  Masculine energy is dynamic and initiating, therefore it feels best when it can be this way unobstructed.  Capability and confidence are indicated by the Sun.  It is necessary to determine if the man has more masculine or feminine influence to his Sun.  This is not to say that if feminine signs prevail in his horoscope, he will be unhappy in a relationship.  It simply means that he will be a little more laid back, a little more receptive and not as dynamic in his actions.  In regards to the Masculine and Feminine signs influencing a man or a woman, you look for these factors:

1. Placement of the Sun in Masculine or Feminine Sign
2. Placement of the Ascendant in Masculine or Feminine Sign
3. Placement of the Moon in Masculine or Feminine Sign
4. Day or Night Birth, Day being masculine and Night being feminine

You look for these 4 factors in the Rasi Chart and also the Trimsamsa chart or D-30, the 30th divisional chart.  This varga has a tremendous amount to say about the person’s character and health.  It distinguishes people born in the same place at the same time within minutes of each other.  You also look for these 4 factors in the Navamsa as this varga rules the marriage and relationship life.  These factors in the Navamsa will reveal the masculine and feminine energy flow within the relationship but not as part of their natural character.  In regards to the 2 vargas assessed, you do not take into account the day or night birth.

Mahabaghya Yoga or Great Fortune Yoga is a yoga dependent upon the aforementioned factors.  This is present in a man’s chart if the Sun, Moon and Ascendant are all within masculine signs and he was born during the day.  How do you tell if someone was born in the day or night?  If they were born during the day, the Sun is above the horizon or between the 7th and 1st house, namely in the 8th through 12th houses.  The Sun is below the horizon, therefore the person is born during night, if the Sun is in houses 2 – 6.  If the Sun is in the 1st house but has a higher degree than the Ascendant, then the person is born at night.  If the Sun’s degree is less than the Ascendant’s, then the person is born during the day, or the Sun has just risen.  If the Sun is in the 7th house and it has higher degrees than the Descendant, then the person is born during the day.  Consequently, if the Sun is in the 7th house and the degree is less than the Ascendant, the person is born at night and the Sun has just set.  Mahabagya Yoga for a male will make him very dynamic and a real go-getter.  He will have supreme confidence to set goals and meet them and will find much happiness in his life.

After one has assessed the prevalence of masculine or feminine energies, then the Sun, the 10th house from the Ascendant and the 10th house from the Sun must be assessed.  The 10th house has to do with one’s power and how one takes care of their responsibilities.  It is called the House of Karma and shows the action we must take in the world.  Malefics conjoined or aspecting the Sun will harm the confidence and the feeling of capability.  Benefics joined or aspecting the Sun will enhance the confidence and the feeling of capability. In addition, malefics or benefics in the 10th house from the Ascendant and the 10th house from the Sun will harm or enhance the confidence and capability.

Gentle Planets or Saumya Grahas influencing the Sun, the 10th house from the Sun, or the 10th house from the Ascendant will make the man get things done in a gentle or easy way.  If there are cruel planets or Krura Grahas influencing the Sun, the 10th house from the Ascendant or the 10th house from the Sun, then the man will be more pushy and aggressive in what he wants and take anger and frustration out on others.  Malefics or cruel planets always spread around their negativity while gentle planets or benefics keep their negativity to themselves and spread around their good will.

The influence of cruel planets to the Sun, 10th house from the Ascendant and/or 10th house from Sun will also hurt the confidence and feeling of capability.  Saturn influencing the Sun or 10th house will seriously hurt the confidence and inhibit the actions the man takes to get what he wants.  Saturn and the Sun are enemies and Saturn’s influence to the Sun, the masculine energy or to the 10th house of power and authority, will keep the man out of touch with his dynamic, initiatory energy.  If, in addition, there is a heavy influence of feminine signs in the chart, this will be a man who will have ideas of what he wants his life to be like, but never really act on them.  In his romantic life, this type of man usually just falls into a relationship because it is convenient and ends up with a woman who calls the shots.  He is still a man, so he does not like being dictated to, but because his masculine energy is so suppressed he does not act to get out of the situation and will stay in it until something better comes along.

For a man, Rahu influencing the Sun or the 10th house is not as detrimental as Saturn.  Rahu externalizes energy, so Rahu with the Sun will externalize the energy of the Sun, making him appear very dynamic and charismatic.  Internally, however, he is not so sure about his masculine identity.  He is capable, but can be a little overbearing and even arrogant because he is compensating.

Ketu with the Sun or influencing the 10th house will internalize the masculine energy and will make him self-doubting and self-effacing on the surface.  Inwardly, he will be very confident in his masculine identity and will be logical and opinionated.  Similarly, Mars influencing the Sun will make him opinionated, but also pushy, aggressive, and if Mars is afflicted, angry.  Mars influencing the Sun and/or the 10th house with a predominant amount of feminine signs will give the man a healthy dose of frustration which he will take out on others. He will have some hindrances in his capacity to make things happen and to feel good about what he can accomplish.

The bottom line is that cruel planets influencing the Sun, the 10th house from the Ascendant or the 10th house from the Sun are more important when weighing the negative affects to a man’s masculine energy than the influence of feminine signs.

Women and Receptive Yogas

The Receptivity Yogas mentioned in the classical texts are named “Chastity” yogas.  However, since these yogas have nothing to do with whether a woman has sex or not and more to do with how receptive a woman is, I have renamed these yogas “Receptivity Yogas”.  In the times these texts were written, an enormous amount of attention was paid to the details of a woman’s sexual life, so these yogas guaranteed or not if a woman was chaste.  Nowadays, the norms regarding a woman’s sexuality are not what they were and these yogas have really nothing to do with a woman’s sexuality anyway.  They have to do with what a woman is receptive to and whether one trusts life and especially if there are a lot of fear and control issues.  The first yoga mentioned will measure how much masculine/feminine energy a female has.  If she has more masculine energy, she will be more dynamic and initiatory in her actions.  This, of course, does not mean she won’t be happy in a relationship, but rather she likes to initiate and be actively engaged in activity most of the time as opposed to just being.  She is decisive and goal – oriented.  But because she is a woman and as stated before, women want to be loved for who they are and not what they do, it will be more difficult for her to be receptive to what life brings and therefore her man.  Since she has a lot of masculine energy, she will tend to compete with her man.  And since men are competitive by nature, the man will automatically compete with her instead of cherish her which is what she really craves.  Please keep in mind that this does not mean a woman with a lot of masculine energy will have disastrous relationships.  It just means she does very well on her own and has trouble receiving.

In a woman’s chart, the Moon is more important than the Sun for determining happiness.  If a woman has all four masculine factors (the Sun, Moon, Ascendant in masculine signs and she was born during the day), then it will be very difficult to be receptive to a man and completely happy and fulfilled within a relationship.  This is called a reverse Mahabhagya Yoga.  If the woman has all four factors in feminine signs and was born during the night or a Mahabhagya Yoga, then she will be enormously in touch with her feelings and her feelings will never lead her astray.  She will be receptive to the good things that life brings her and reject that which will make her unhappy.

Malefics influencing the Moon, the 4th house from the Ascendant and the 4th house from the Moon will hurt the woman’s ability to trust and make her receptive to fear.  The 4th house rules where things collect like lakes and ponds, so it rules what a person is receptive to.  The most damaging malefics to have in the 4th house from the Ascendant, the 4th house from the Moon or influencing the Moon are Saturn and Rahu.  Saturn rules fear of the known and Rahu rules fear of the unknown.  When Saturn influences the factors just mentioned, the woman does not trust life.  And if she does not trust life, how will she trust her man?  Saturn will make the woman want to control everything to provide for her security.  She sees all the potential disasters that could happen and takes steps to make sure these things do not happen.  In other words, she is full of worry, which is another form of fear, and does not trust that anyone can get the job done, except for her, and even then she is not sure she can ward off disaster by herself.

When Rahu influences the factors of the Moon and 4th house, then she is receptive to fear of the unknown, and will also make her want to control but also a little unstable.  Rahu in the 4th house from the Ascendant or the 4th house from the Moon, in addition to making her a little emotionally volatile, will give wild mood swings.  Rahu influencing the Moon by being conjoined to it will give an extremely alluring feminine quality that is very attractive to men.  Internally, however, the woman will not feel comfortable with her own femininity and it will feel quite foreign to her.  The emotions will also be privy to wild swings of mood.

The whole idea here is that when Rahu and/or Saturn influence the Moon, the 4th house from the Ascendant or the 4th house from the Moon, then she has a lot of difficulty trusting life and therefore her partner.  She is privy to fear and worry and will have control issues.

Mars influencing the Moon, 4th house from the Ascendant or 4th from Moon will give the woman very strong opinions.  Mars is our opinions and with the Moon will show how forcefully we cling to them.  Mars is our idea of how things should and should not be.  The Sun in the 4th house or 4th from Moon will make her initiate when she should be receptive and she will have trouble really listening to others.  Ketu is the least malefic and will just internalize the feminine energy making her appear aloof and cold when inside, she is anything but.  She will be very sensitive and emotional but will not appear this way to others.

After all is said and done, most people want to be in a relationship.  It is a very real human need.  But sometimes, when certain types of people do get into relationships, and inevitably every time they get into one, they lament “I just don’t feel like myself” or “I hate myself when I’m in a relationship” or they are just very unhappy and emotionally unstable.  Usually it is due to one of the factors mentioned above when they just cannot seem to be happy within a relationship no matter with whom it is.

The Importance of Venus in Relationships

Another factor worth mentioning that can cause a lot of frustration within a relationship for men and women is a combust, impaired or debilitated Venus.  And one must look for this in the Rasi, Navamsa and the Trimsamsa.  Look for combustion only in the Rasi as it is an astronomical phenomenon.

Venus rules worth and value.  The moolatrikona sign of Venus is Libra, the Scales.  A less than ideal Venus will give a person issues with his/her self-worth and own value.  When Venus is beat up in a horoscope, the person has a skewed idea of the value of things and of their own worth.  A relationship is all about sharing and relating.  Venus being inauspicious will harm the sense of sharing a person has.  If they think they are worth being abused, then they will get abuse.

When Venus is combust, it is angry and frustrated and the self or soul is so identified with the Venusian energy that to be rejected is an outright rejection of the person’s very existence.  They do not have any confidence in wielding romantic and affectionate feelings because a combust planet has very low Cheshta Bala.  Cheshta means “confidence”.  They feel uncomfortable and are outright turned off by odious displays of affection.  They also do not feel confident in expressing affection.  Often times, they will reject a partner or be the instigator of ending a relationship due to the fact they cannot handle rejection in any way, shape or form.  Venus in debilitation puts the planet asleep so these people with Venus in Virgo also have a very hard time expressing romantic feelings but for different reasons.  It is not because of their fear of rejection but because they are just not in touch with that part of themselves, nor are they in touch with their feelings of  worth and value as a partner within a relationship.

It must be mentioned here that it is very important to look at Venus in the Navamsa and Trimsamsa as well and weigh all of the factors.  If Venus is in Virgo in the Rasi chart but exalted in the Navamsa and in its own sign in the Trimsamsa, then the fact that it is in good dignity in the relationship chart will go a long way to help Venus.  Overall the person will do quite well in sharing with a partner and being able to express their affection.

When Venus is conjoined a malefic then it is called “impaired” and cannot function to its full capacity.  Saturn in the worst.  Saturn joined with Venus will starve Venus.  Saturn is the air element and it tends to dry things out. The person will feel starved or thirsty for love.  Saturn will delay love gratification and the person will have negative experiences in love until he or she overcomes some negative karmas.

Rahu with Venus causes the person to have intense, hypnotic attractions to people until they enter into a relationship with the person.  The attraction usually turns out to be an attraction to a specific quality of the partner and once that quality is consumed, then the native with Rahu conjoined Venus will move on and leave the relationship.  Rahu is unconscious desire.  Rahu is the reason we incarnate, to have life experiences in the realm that Rahu touches through Sign and House placement and also through those experiences represented by planets Rahu conjoins.  Venus in conscious desire and relationships, so when the both Venus and Rahu get together, the person is at the mercy of their desires.  This is an aspect that is also indicative of affairs.  When a Venus/Rahu person enters into a relationship where the attraction is not all consuming and hypnotizing, then you know that that relationship has a good chance of being long term and stable.

Mars with Venus usually indicates that a man has been abused by a woman or a woman has been abused by a man.  This does not necessarily mean physical abuse, although it can mean that.  The underlying meaning is that the person has been taken advantage of by the opposite sex.

Compatibility Part 2 – Assessing Compatibility

Important:  As an astrologer, I always use the Tropical Zodiac for reasons which are explained on my website.  I also use Equatorial Nakshatras, not Nakshatras with ecliptical longitude.  In some cases utilizing Equatorial Nakshatras, a person’s Nakshatra will change because all Nakshatras are not equal in length.  In this system, some Nakshatras are longer than 13 degrees 20 minutes and some are shorter.  I have found these systems, the Tropical Zodiac and Equatorial Nakshatras, to be much more accurate than the Sidereal Zodiac and Ecliptical Nakshatras.  If one has Vedic software, and does a compatibility knowing the dynamics of a couple, and the result just does not make sense, I humbly suggest that one try these novel systems and assess the different results.

Compatible and Incompatible vs. The Price to be Paid

Ironically, this is an article about relationship compatibility, however, the reality is there is no such thing as compatible or incompatible.  There is only, “Are you willing to pay the price?”  The price to be paid to be with the person you like may be too high to be worth the trouble.  Or, in the case of high compatibility, the price is low.  It is all about what an individual is willing to give for the relationship.  As said before, Venus’s moolatrikona sign is Libra, the Scales.  Venus, as the karaka of relationships, by its very nature, weighs the good and the bad or the pros and the cons, and decides whether it is worth it or not.  Compatibility assessment is a tool to show the individual at the very beginning whether it is worth it or not.

Vedha and Rajju, The Two Major Blemishes

Vedha

Certain Nakshatras are “Vedha” to each other.  Vedha simply means obstruction.  When present, the couple can never really get off the ground, there is always something preventing them from being together the way they want to be.  Our destiny is mapped out by the Moon since the Vimsottari dasa is the Moon progressing through the Nakshatras.  If our birth Nakshatras are obstructing each other, then our destinies are obstructing each other.  If these couples with Vedha actually do make it to the altar, which almost never happens, then there is something in the outer world preventing them from fully being together.  More often than not, it is outer circumstances that are obstructing the couple instead of painful emotional issues, passive/aggressiveness or unhealthy co-dependence.  These things just mentioned are the realm of Rajju.  The destinies of married individuals are almost one.  If your spouse becomes wealthy, then you become wealthy.  If your spouse becomes poor, then so do you.  If your spouse becomes ill, then you must care for them.  When two destinies are not jiving, then the people cannot get together no matter how hard they try.  There are no exceptions to Vedha.

Rajju

Rajju is another serious dosha or affliction.  Rajju means “rope” and it ropes the couple to misfortune.  It also ropes the couple to each other in an unhealthy, co-dependent way.  These are the couples you see constantly breaking up and getting back together.  They are addicted to the drama of the relationship.  Rajju binds the couple in five different areas:  at the feet, at the hip, at the navel, at the neck and at the head.  It must be kept in mind that couples with the same Nakshatra will always have Rajju.  They are in a different category.  Couples with the same Nakshatra will be explained later on in this article.

The classic texts say that Rajju in the feet will bind the couple to wandering.  This means there will be many ups and downs within the relationship and it won’t be able to stand on its feet.  The relationship will have “its feet pulled out from under it”.  The couple will never feel really secure within the relationship.

If Rajju is in the hip, it will cause poverty.  This can manifest as actual poverty for the couple, but in most cases it is a metaphor for the fact that the couple feels like they are giving up something to be in the relationship.  Both people feel a lack and the feeling is very pronounced.

The classic texts say that if Rajju is in the navel, there will be loss of children.  This can mean that the couple will be childless, or the children will be a major source of stress to the couple.  It also means that the couple will have a very hard time creating together and will find it difficult to work on projects together.

Rajju in the neck will cause the wife to die.  This does not literally mean that the wife will die.  It is a metaphor for an energy drain.  The neck symbolizes choices.  You turn your neck from left to right to see your options.  Women are more prone to liking choices than men.  As mentioned before, feminine energy is receptive.  Therefore it is receptive to what comes its way and will take the best option.  It is all about options.  When a man is courting a woman, he presents her with situations and activities.  If she does not like what he presents her with, then it is his job to offer another option.  When there is Rajju at the neck, there are no other options presented and the female is basically forced to accept only one situation or activity.  This is extremely frustrating to feminine energy and therefore the female becomes drained in a relationship.

If Rajju is at the head, then the husband will die.  The head represents the logic and dynamic energy.  Dynamic energy is masculine energy.  When the dynamic energy is frustrated, then nothing ever happens.  Feminine energy needs something to be receptive to.  If there is nothing there, which is what happens when there is Rajju at the head, then there is no relationship.  Incidentally, in my practice, I have never seen a couple with Rajju at the head.

The following Nakshatras show which Rajju they will have:

Feet:  Asvini, Aslesha, Magha, Jyeshtha, Moola, Revati

Hip:  Bharani, Pushyami, Purva Phalguni,  Anuradha, Purva Ashada, Uttara Bhadra Pada.

Neck:  Rohini, Ardra, Hasta, Svati, Sravana, Shatabishak.

Navel:  Krittika, Punarvasu, Uttara Phalguni, Vishaka, Uttara Ashada, purva Bhadra Pada.

Head:  Mrigashira, Chitra, Dhanishta.

There are exceptions to Rajju.  Rajju is only completely cancelled when there is Strii Dirgha, full Graha Maitram, Tara Kuta and Mahendra.  If these four are present, then Rajju becomes manageable.  If there are three or less present, then Rajju becomes a major problem within the relationship.  These are explained shortly.

Capacity and Receptivity Yogas will tell if a person will be happy in a relationship.  It is important to remember that a person is exactly where they need to be at any given moment.  If they are going through a relationship that causes pain, and their compatibility is less than ideal, then this experience is just as important as an experience of a relationship with high compatibility.  It is important to reiterate the concept of non-judgment when it comes to relationships.

Strii Dirgha “Long Woman”

Unlike the previous mentioned blemishes of Vedha and Rajju, Strii Dirgha is something that is definitely desired within a relationship.  It is very important that a couple have Strii Dirgha.  Energy will take the easiest, shortest path or the path of least resistance.  Imagine a circle and around the circle are the Nakshatras.  The energy is flowing around the circle in a clockwise direction.  In order for the couple to have Strii Dirgha, the shortest distance should be from the Man’s moon to the Woman’s moon.  If the shortest distance is from the Man’s moon to the Woman’s moon, then the energy begins with the male and is received by the female.  If the shortest distance is from the Woman’s moon to the Man’s moon, then she becomes the initiator in the relationship and Strii Dirgha is not present.  The Man’s moon must be at least fourteen Nakshatras away from the Woman’s moon for Strii Dirgha to be present.  There is a 50% chance that Strii Dirgha will be present for a couple.  Considering the fact that about 50% of marriages end in divorce, we can see these statistics manifesting.  To give an example so this can be visualized, if a Man’s moon is in Pisces and the Woman’s moon is in Gemini, then Strii Dirgha is present.  The shortest distance is starting with the Man’s moon and going to the Woman’s moon.  If the Woman’s moon is in Gemini and the Man’s Moon is in Libra, then Strii Dirgha is not present.  The shortest distance is starting with the Woman’s moon and going to the Man’s moon.

When Strii Dirgha is not present, or when the shortest distance is from the Woman’s moon to the Man’s moon, then the Woman is thrust into the role of initiator and the Man is thrust into the receptive role.  In a female brain the energy travels much faster between the left and right hemispheres.  Therefore, a female is able to instantly know how she feels about something.  When remembering the explanation of the Moon, she is adaptable and is round, meaning she rolls with the changes.  In a Man’s brain, it takes up to 20 minutes for him to know how he feels about something.  The energy travels much more slowly between the hemispheres.  Therefore, when the female approaches her man with an idea or an activity, it is much harder for him to stop what he is doing and see how he feels about it.  While he is trying to figure out how he feels, she is getting frustrated and impatient.  The end result is that the man feels nagged and pressured, and the woman feels unloved and unappreciated.  This is just one example of what happens when Strii Dirgha is not present.

It is realized that in every relationship, sometimes the woman initiates and the man is receptive.  But in a relationship without Strii Dirgha, the fundamental energy flow starts with the woman and goes to the man, so it is a quality of the relationship.  The gist is that the woman ends up feeling unimportant and the man feels redundant.  Strii Dirgha is usually noticed in a relationship right away and is cause for quite an energy drain.  If the couple has over 20 Kuta points, then having no Strii Dirgha is manageable.  They are on the same wavelength enough to know that the woman is not trying to nag her man and that the man is not being inattentive because he doesn’t love her, this is just the energy dynamic between the two of them.  High points with other mitigating factors like Vasya and Mahendra also go a long way to help the lack of Strii Dirgha.  But if the total kuta points are not over 20, then having no Strii Dirgha will weigh upon the relationship and the relationship may be more trouble than it is worth.  The two people will never benefit from having a proper masculine/feminine energy flow.

Ashta Kutas

Ashta means eight and Kutas means points.  There are eight categories from which to judge the energy flow within a relationship from a maximum total of 36 points. Anything over 20 is considered good and marriage is recommended. Between 16 and 20 is considered OK, and the couple can make it if they do not have any major blemishes, have Strii Dirgha, and sincerely love each other.  Below 16 is considered very low and the price to be paid for staying in the relationship will be more than it is worth.  A description of each category follows.  The more points awarded a category, the more important it is.  If the points are very low in a category that is worth a lot of points, the couple will have an enhanced awareness of this problem within their relationship.

Nadi Kuta

Nadi literally means vein and is the Dosha of the Nakshatra.  There are three doshas, windy, fiery and watery.  The windy Nakshatras are: Asvini, Ardra, Punurvasu, Uttara Phalguni, Hasta, Jyestha, Moola, Shatabishak, Purva Bhadra Pada.

The fiery Nakshatras are:  Bharani Mrigashira, Pushya, Purva Phalguni, Chitra, Anuradha, Purva Ashada, Dhanishta Uttara Bhadra Pada.

The watery Nakshatras are:  Kirttika, Rohini, Aslesha, Magha, Svati, Vishaka, Uttara Ashada, Sravana, Revati.

For the category of Nadi, there are eight possible points to be gained.  Nadi is therefore the most important out of the 8 categories because one stands to lose the most points.  If the couple has the same dosha for their Nakshatras, then they receive 0 points and it is highly conspicuous between the two of them.  This creates an excess of the dosha.  If there is an excess of water, the relationship is riding an emotional roller coaster as water is associated with emotions.  Everything becomes an emotional issue and when dealing with seemingly mundane, everyday things, the couple will become overly emotional about it.  This lends itself to a tremendous energy drain on the relationship and much co-dependence.  The ancient texts state that the “woman will die” if the couple has the watery nadi.  This does not mean that the woman will literally die.  It is a metaphor for the fact that the constant emotional up and down of the relationship causes her to feel there is a lack of serious commitment, therefore she feels insecure.

If the couple have a windy nadi, the ancient texts state here, as well, that the “woman will die”.  Wind causes many changes, confusion, and takes away a strong focus resulting in a relationship that lacks a firm foundation.  When the woman knows that the relationship is lacking in stability, she begins to feel insecure and since a woman’s confidence is enormously based upon how she feels as opposed to what she does, this windy nadi will cause her much emotional distress and depression.

If the couple have a fiery nadi, the ancient texts state that the “husband will die”.  An excess of fire facilitates anger, aggression and frustration in the couple.  Too much anger provides an energy drain on men, because when men get angry, it is their feminine side surfacing because they cannot deal with the situation at hand.  When a man gets angry, he loses his composure, capability and confidence to handle the situation.  When it comes to happiness for men, it’s all about capability and confidence.  Fiery nadi facilitates an energy drain in men that is why the texts say “the husband will die”.  It does not mean literal death.

Bha Kuta

“Bha” is another word for sign, like Aries, Taurus, etc.  Bha Kuta is worth a total of 7 points, so very important and if missing, will be felt by the couple.  Bha Kuta states that the Moon signs of the couple should not be in a 6/8, 2/12/ or 5/9 relationship with each other.  For example, to attain 7 points of Bha Kuta, if the woman’s moon is in Pisces, the man’s moon should not be in Leo or Libra (6/8), Aquarius or Aries (2/12), Cancer or Scorpio (5/9).  If the Moons of the couple fall in these positions, 0 points are given.

A 6/8 relationship between the moon’s will cause arguing and discord and many abrupt changes, all things related to the 6th and 8th houses.

A 2/12 relationship between the moon’s will cause loss, a feeling of lack and/or poverty in the couple.

A 5/9 relationship, one would expect to be quite nice because the 5th and 9th houses are the most beneficial houses in the horoscope.  These houses are the most beneficial houses but only in the sense of the self.  The 1/5/9 houses are houses of the self.  They are the fire triad.  When there is an emphasis on those houses, the person can be highly self-sufficient and does not like to rely on others or provide give and take.  When this relationship is present between the moons of a couple, they tend to want to teach each other, inspire each other and “get one up” on the other.  Both of the individuals want to be the leader and they tend to compete.  If the moons are in this relationship, the couple will notice this dynamic in their interaction.

Gana Kuta

Gana means ‘race’ and refers to whether the Nakshatras of the moons are the race of devas ‘gods’, manushas ‘humans’, or rakshasas ‘demons’.  The following is a list of the Nakshatras and their race:

Deva “gods”:  Asvini, Mrigashira, Punurvasu, Pushya, Hasta, Svati, Anuradha, Sravana, Revati

Manusha ‘human’:  Bharani, Rohini, Ardra, Purva Phalguni, Uttara Phalguni, Purva Ashada, Uttara Ashada, Purva Bhadra Pada, Uttara Bhadra Pada

Rakshasa “demon”: Krittika, Aslesha, Magha, Chitra, Vishaka, Jyeshtha, Mula, Dhanishta, Shatabishak

Deva Nakshatras are calm, serene, kind, polite and steadfast.  They stand on an even keel.  Human Nakshatras are industrious and innovative.  Demon Nakshatras are temperamental, unpredictable, intense and eccentric.

If the couple’s moons are of the same race, then 6 points are given.  If the Woman has a Deva moon and the Man has a human moon, then 3 points are given.  If the Woman has a Deva moon and the Man has a demon moon, then 1 point is given.  If the Woman is a human moon and the Man is a Deva moon, then 5 points are given.  If the Woman is a human moon and the Man is a demon moon, then 3 points are given.  If the woman is a demon moon and the man is a deva or human moon, the no points are given.

You will notice that the woman who has her moon in a demon Nakshatra gets the short end of the stick.  In a relationship, this woman will only receive points for this kuta if she is in a relationship with a man that also has a demon moon.  The reason for this is that a Rakshasa woman is highly temperamental and emotional.  She goes through many severe mood swings and tends to be very independent.  Relationship constraints and the natural give and take of a relationship will make her feel suppressed.  If the moon in a woman’s chart is also highly inauspicious due to aspects by Krura Grahas and Krura Grahas being placed within the 4th house from the Ascendant or Moon, then it will make her that much more fearful and temperamental, causing great distress within her psyche.  If the woman with a demon moon has beneficial aspects to her moon in the Rasi, then that will go a long way to smooth over emotional turbulence and severe mood swings.  She will still be highly eccentric but will have a brighter outlook.  A man with a demon moon will be able to appreciate a woman with a demon moon because his nature is the same and he will be able to understand her.

Graha Maitram Kuta

Graha Maitram means ‘planetary friendship’.  If the lords of the moons are friendly, then it goes a long way in understanding each other and having things in common.  Mutual likes and dislikes make the couple want to spend time together and have hobbies and mutual interests.  If the lords of the moons are inimical then usually the couple ends up wanting to do different things at the same time and as a result, end up spending less quality time together.

If the lords or the Moon signs of the couple are:

Mutual friends or the same:                       5 points

One friendly and the other neutral:          4 points

Both neutral:                                                 3 points

One an enemy and the other friendly:      1 point

One an enemy and the other neutral:       .5 points

Both enemies:                                               0 points

If the Moon signs are in the 7th house from each other, ex:  Capricorn and Cancer, then this is considered highly auspicious and no matter the relationship between the lords of the moons, the couple receives the full 5 points for Graha Maitram.

The friendship/enemy/neutral relationships referred to are the natural planetary relationships according to Parasara.

Yoni Kuta

Yoni means ‘source’.  Some people translate it as the female sexual organ or vagina and it does mean that as well.  The vagina is the physical source of life.  The maximum points for yoni kuta is 4.  Each Nakshatra has an animal symbol.  The yoni of the Nakshatra is the sexual organ of that animal.  In times of extreme stress or in very intense situations, such as sex, a person falls back on his instinctive nature, which is his Nakshatra’s animal.  If the yonis of the couple are the same or friendly, then during times of stress and sex, their primal natures are compatible and they are able to get through the experience with a heightened awareness and appreciation for each other.  If the yonis are unfriendly or enemies, then the individuals will react to stressful situations in vastly different ways and perhaps will not be able to understand and appreciate the way the partner handles these situations.

The animals representing the Nakshatras are as follows:

Horse:  Asvini (male), Shatabishak (female)

Elephant:  Bharani (male), Revati (female)

Sheep:  Pushya (male), Krittika (female)

Snake:  Rohini (male), Mrigashira (female)

Dog:  Mula (male), Ardra (female)

Cat:  Punurvasu (Female), Aslesha (male)

Rat:  Magha (male), Purva Phalguni (female)

Cow:  Uttara Phalguni (male), Uttara Bhadra Pada (female)

Buffalo:  Svati (male), Hasta (female)

Tiger:  Vishaka (male), Chitra (female)

Hare:  Jyeshtha (male), Anuradha (female)

Monkey:  Purva Ashada (male), Sravana (female)

Mongoose:  Uttara Ashada (male)

Lion:  Purva Bhadra Pada (male), Dhanishta (female)

Tara Kuta

Tara means star and it refers to the number of Nakshatras the man’s moon is away from the woman’s moon.  Starting with the woman’s moon, count the number of Nakshatras to the man’s moon and then divide by nine.  To have Tara Kuta, the remainder should not be 3, 5 or 7.  You do not count inclusively, like you do with houses.  The Tara of 3, 5 and 7 is obstructive for the woman to be receptive to what the man offers her.  Tara Kuta is worth 3 points and if absent, is not that noticeable.

Vasya Kuta

Vasya means “dutiful”, “subjected to”.  There are four types of signs when it comes to Vasya Kuta.  The Quadruped signs are Aries, Taurus, 2nd half of Sagittarius, 1st half of Capricorn.  The Human signs are Gemini, Virgo, Libra, 1st half of Sagittarius, and Aquarius.  The “moving in water” signs are Cancer, 2nd half of Capricorn, and Pisces.  The ‘moving in wilderness’ sign is Leo.  And the insect sign is Scorpio.

All signs are Vasya, (dutiful, subjected to) the sign of Leo except for Scorpio.

All signs except Leo are Vasya to the Human signs.

The “moving in water” signs are food for the human signs.

The quadruped signs are food for the wild sign, Leo.

The most points to be gained are 2.  If the couples moon’s are within the same category, then they earn 2 points.

If one of the couple’s moons is Vasya to the other, then they earn 1 point.

If one of the couple’s moons in Vasya to the other, but the other half of the couple’s moons in food for the other one, the .5 points are gained.

If there is no Vasya between the couple’s moons, then 0 points are gained.

Varna Kuta

Varna means ‘caste’.  Feminine energy is more receptive and malleable than masculine energy, so it is better for a woman to marry or be in a relationship with a man of a higher caste.

Brahmin Caste:  Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces

Kshatriyas (warrior) Caste:  Aries, Leo and Sagittarius

Vaisyas:  Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo

Sudras:  Libra, Aquarius and Gemini

If the man is of a higher caste or if the couple’s moons are of the same caste, then one point is earned.

Extra Special Qualities (Upaskaras)

Vasya

Unlike the Vasya mentioned in the Kutas, this Vasya is based upon sign placement, not Nakshatra placement.  As said before, Vasya means “subjected to”.  If one of the couple;s moons is Vasya to the other, then they are magnetically attracted to that person and there is an element of “I’ll do anything for you”.  This can even apply to other kinds of relationships, like platonic friendships, as well.  It is better if the man has Vasya to the woman, because feminine energy tends to be more devoted and attached anyway, whereas masculine energy is more independent.  Having the woman’s moon Vasya to the man’s moon is also very good and if the couple has great compatibility due to points and lack of serious afflictions, then Vasya adds an extra comfort and kindness to the relationship.  If the relationship ends or the compatibility is much less than ideal, then having Vasya can make a situation of unrequited love or pining for the relationship long after it is over.   In some instances, both moons are Vasya to each other.  The following are the signs and the signs they are Vasya to:

Aries:  Leo and Scorpio are Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Taurus:  Cancer and Libra are Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Gemini:  Virgo is Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Cancer:  Scorpio and Sagittarius are Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Leo:  Libra is Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Virgo:  Pisces and Gemini are Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Libra:  Capricorn and Virgo are Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Scorpio:  Cancer is Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Sagittarius: Pisces is Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Capricorn:  Aries and Aquarius are Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Aquarius:  Aries is Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Pisces:  Capricorn is Vasya or ‘subjected to’

Mahendra

Mahendra means purposefulness.  When the couple has Mahendra, it is like a glue even if the compatibility is less than average.  If the compatibility is above average, Mahendra really adds purpose and meaning to the relationship.  Personally, I do not believe is soul mates.  But if there is anything that comes close to having a soul mate connection, Mahendra would be it.  The couple can wake up in the morning and know that they are meant to be together and that they have a special purpose for being together.  In relationships that have serious afflictions and low points, Mahendra will usually keep the couple together even if they both desire to leave the relationship.  Mahendra is the only thing that makes up for low points (below 15).  Mahendra, by itself, does not make up for lack of Strii Dirgha or Vedha or Rajju.  In order for the couple to have Mahendra, the Nakshatra of the man’s moon must be placed in the 4th, 7th, 10th, 13th, 16th, 19th, 22nd, or 25th from the woman’s Nakshatra.

Special Cases – Same Nakshatra

Three categories exist when coupling with the same Nakshatra: good, medium and bad.  When the couple has the same Nakshatra, certain problems will always be present like Rajju, having the same Nadi and no Strii Dirgha.  In some instances, these blemishes will not apply.  These Nakshatras are in the good category and will not experience the problems associated with the blemishes mentioned:  Rohini, Ardra, Magha, Hasta, Vishaka, Sravana, Uttarabhadrapada, or Revati.  Practicality and an absence of any co-dependence mark these Nakshatras, therefore a couple with both their moons in these Nakshatras will do very well and not experience any of the problems associated with the major blemishes while benefiting from having full Graha Maitram, same Gana, Bha Kuta, etc.

The Nakshatras that fall into the medium category are:  Asvini, Krittika, Mrigashira, Punurvasu, Pushyami, Purva Phalguni, Uttara Phalguni, Chitra, Anuradha, Purva Ashada, or Uttara Ashada.  All of the blemishes that come with having the same Nakshatra could surface from time to time when the couple has both their moons in any of these Nakshatras.  But if the individual chart shows maturity and a high capacity for sharing with nice Venuses, plus a good masculine/feminine dynamic, then these individuals will be able to weather the problems that may pop up from having the same Nadi, no Strii Dirgha, and Rajju.  If the individual chart shows a poor capacity for relationship and the Sun is under cruel aspect in the man’s chart and the Moon has heavily inauspicious influence in the woman’s chart, then the more negative aspects of having the same Nakshatra will manifest within the relationship, and the couple probably will not make it over a long period of time.

A relationship is not recommended if the same Nakshatras are: Bharani, Aslesha, Svati, Jyeshtha, Moola, Dhanishta, Shatabishak, or Purvabhadrapada.  These Nakshatras are eccentric, tumultuous, and complex.  A relationship between two moons in these Nakshatras would be way too problematical for the average person to handle.  The blemishes of Rajju, the same Nadi, no Strii Dirgha, etc. would be highly pronounced within the energy exchange of the relationship.  This would lend to many difficulties that the relationship would soon spend itself or there would be many break-ups followed by getting back together only to break-up again.

Mars in the Consciousness AKA Kuja Dosha

Yes, finally the famous Kuja Dosha or Manglik affliction.  Entirely too much is made of this affliction.  By itself, it does not make or break a relationship.  And it certainly does not kill the spouse, as is sometimes believed.  It is very simple, it just means Mars is in the consciousness in houses that relate to the partner.  And when Mars is in the consciousness in certain places, that means there is aggression, pushiness and will power in these places.  When these places relate to the partner or family life, one partner is very vocal about their needs and likes to exert their will while the other partner may not be as assertive.  Eventually, the partner that is not as assertive will feel put upon or backed into a corner and they will implode.  This is what they mean when they say “the partner will die” in certain cases of Kuja Dosha, it is not a literal statement.  When assessing Kuja Dosha, one must look at 3 charts:  the Rasi, the Navamsa (D-9) and the Trimsamsa (D-30).  All three charts must be assessed for the following:

Mars in the 2nd, 4th, 8th or 12th from the Ascendant, from the Moon and from Venus.  This must be done for all three charts and in every instance that Mars has this placement, one point is given.  So look at the Rasi first.  Count how many times Mars falls in these positions from the Asc., Moon and Venus.  Now look at the Navamsa, do the same there and the same with the Trimsamsa.  Add up the total.  If the couple has more than two points of difference, then one person will be pushier in the relationship than the other and the person with less Mars consciousness will feel like they are backed into a corner from time to time.  The more of the difference between the totals, the more one person is assertive and the other is passive.  It is the duty of the astrologer to point this out to the couple because it will make for problems down the road.  If otherwise the compatibility is good, then the difference in Kuja Dosha can be weathered.  If the compatibility is teetering on average, then the difference in Kuja Dosha can push it over the edge.  If the compatibility is already less than average, then having a difference of more than two in Kuja Dosha will almost certainly end the relationship.

There are exceptions to Kuja Dosha and this must be taken into account when tallying up the totals for Mars affliction:

Mars in the 2nd in Virgo or Gemini

Mars in the 4th in Aries or Scorpio

Mars in the 7th in Cancer

Mars in the 8th in Pisces

Mars in the 12th in Taurus

Some say Mars in Leo or Aquarius but I have not found this to work at all.

The following is an explanation of Mars in the various houses of the partner and family and a general description of Mars.

Mars is a planet of consciousness because Mars is the will power.  The Sun is the Soul and the Moon is the Mind, but Mars takes what is in the mind and puts it into action.  The Moon is the perception and the manas but Mars is the general that takes our perceptions and acts in the world.  To assert ourselves in the world is Mars.  Mars is logic and he is celibate.  He is not swayed by emotion.  Mars is swift and jumps into action to get the job done immediately.  Mars gets directional strength in the 10th house which is the opposite of the 4th house, the house of the emotions and home life.

Mars in the 2nd house:  The 2nd house is a house of family and of our environment.  Asserting our will and being logical within the family will cause discord.  Anytime logic is used in the realm of the family or partner, there will be a fertile ground for hurt feelings and resentment.  The family is not a logical place, it is an emotional place and should be a place of comfort.

Mars in the 4th house:  The 4th house is similar to the 2nd house as being a house of the home.  But it is also a house of happiness and emotional security.  Mars gets no directional strength here.  This will make the person overbearing in their emotions and appear needy.  The family members and partner will sometimes feel the brunt of their angry feelings.

Mars in the 7th house:  The 7th house is the house of the partner.  A person with Mars in the 7th house will assert their will with their partner.  They will be logical with their partner.  Emotion will be lacking when it come to romantic relationships.

Mars in the 8th house:  The 8th house is the house of the marital bond and also the partner’s money.  Mars in 8th person will assert their will in how their partner handles their assets and finances.

Mars in the 12th house:  the 12th house as it applies to relationship life is the sex life.  Mars in 12th house person will assert their will and be very logical when it comes to sex.  There can be an element of selfishness on the part of the Mars in 12th house person and his/her partner may come to feel like they are not having their sexual needs met.

About the Author

Laura Barat is a professional ACVA certified Vedic Astrologer living in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Her website is: http://www.laurabarat.org/

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