Sunday, November 28, 2010

An AirBorne Experience

A Report on Saturday's Quiz by Atharv Joshi.

A quiz on Aviation was the next Thinking Caps Activity. This was conducted my member Pratham Y.

It was a calm Thursday, a bit cloudy for observation, but the mood was shifted towards quizzing that day. While preps for the Star Party were on, the members, 10 in number, settled down for the modest 20-question quiz.

We were promised of an easy going by our QM, the 20 questions concerned modern aviation, with a little bit of history (which was unwelcomed for). Besides the questions on Scramjets to Boeings to Airlines to Years... the quiz was well designed as well.

At the end, we found out that 4 of the respondents had 13 questions right, so we had 'multiple' winners this time around! At the end of it, the sky cleared up, and proceedings went on as usual.

The content can be found below and on this link, try answering it if yourself!


Sunday, November 21, 2010

Beyond the Horizon

A Report on Thursday's Quiz by Atharv Joshi.

AFA Thinkin' Caps started off its log book with a quiz conducted by member Atharv.

Titled "Horizon - The Beyond Quiz", the quiz was on weird and random topics ranging from esoteric connects to puzzling language to obvious answers to straightforward guesswork, in all, the quiz was made to be a bheja fry affair. The whole quiz got over in 30 minutes after a pretty late start, so the victor of the quiz remains undecided.

The next quiz - a part of AFA Thinkin' Caps will be held by our member Pratham Y. on Thursday, with the topic being aviation.

Atharv's Quiz, "Horizon" can be found below. The same post can be found in our "Quizzed" section as well!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Quizzed!!! This Saturday!!!

AFA # 15, in the series of AFA mini quizzes will be held on Saturday, 20th November 2010. Details are as follows:

Title: "Horizon" - The Beyond Quiz

Venue: AFA, PAO, 7th floor - Junta House, Panjim

Time and Date: Saturday, 20 November 2010 - 7 pm onwards

QM: Atharv Joshi

Flavour: 20 written qs, BHEJA FRY!

Be there!!

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Astronomy Galore!

A video on fascinating things about the universe and astronomers, that will surely add to your information!


Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Careers in Astronomy

 A Brief Q&A into what it takes to be an astronomer...

What is an astronomer?

When you look up into the sky at night you see the stars as pretty twinkling lights. An astronomer admires the beauty of the stars and other celestial objects and wants to learn what they are and how they work. An astronomer is a scientist who tries to understand and interpret the Universe beyond Earth and the Earth within the Universe. Using observational tools like space and ground-based observatories, computers  and the good old paper and pencil, astronomers attempt to build up a picture, not only of what the Universe is like today, but what it was like billions of years ago, right back to the “Big Bang”. To do this Astronomers have to understand the behaviour of matter in conditions that simply do not exist on Earth, whether at extreme temperatures or involving exotic objects and particles. They must use whatever kind of light, from radio to gamma rays, and particles (from cosmic rays to neutrinos) make it to Earth, along with sophisticated computers to piece together what happens beyond our planet. Observational astronomers might look for new planets, try to understand stars, galaxies, black holes, and other phenomena, or try to map the entire sky. More theoretical researchers might measure magnetic fields or simulate the structural build-up of the stars, figure out how galaxies formed and how the expansion of the Universe evolved. To summarise, they build models of the Universe from fundamental physics and endeavour to make it understandable.
 

What does it take to be an astronomer?

Astronomy is a great challenge. That’s why curiosity and a motivation to know and understand more and more are so important for prospective astronomers. They try to answer such questions as: How did the stars and planets form? Why does the night sky look the way it does? How did the Universe get here and when will it end? Once they ask those questions, astronomers have to combine rigorous logic with leaps of intuition to try and answer them. A good background in maths, physics, chemistry and computer science is required to be a modern astronomer — this means a scientific high school curriculum followed by earning a physics or maths or engineering university degree and a PhD in astronomy or astrophysics. 
 

What’s the career path of an astronomer?

After getting a PhD, astronomers usually spend three to six years in one or more postdoctoral positions in universities or research institutions. Afterwards, astronomers look for steady positions as researchers or group leaders either in a university department, national facility, or government research centre. Eventually astronomers are granted university tenure, a permanent position where they generally work for the rest of their career.  Astronomy is a small field, but very popular. Only those with a strong education, ability and a deep passion for the subject are likely to find a permanent position. However, training as an astronomer can open doors in many related fields including other research areas, industrial research, commercial or industrial enterprises, education, public relations and outreach.
 

Things to keep in mind when preparing for astronomy career

Make sure your communication skills are excellent. You will be expected to write numerous scholarly articles during your academic career. You might also need to write grant proposals and proposals for observing time to the different observatories. And remember that, as with most scientific disciplines nowadays, astronomy requires involvement in international collaborations, so good English communication skills are essential. Remember that many astronomers also work as university lecturers and professors, so teaching skills and knowing how to interact with students is important. Especially early on, be prepared for the possibility of spending long night-time hours in observatories and travelling a lot for conferences, meetings and observation runs.  If you’re motivated enough, all the preparation will seem worthwhile as you start to uncover the secrets of the Universe in your career as an astronomer.

Sourced from the  IAU website


Any Queries will be answered in the comments section! :)

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Stellar Pronunciation Guide...






This is the thorough list from A to Z of constellation names and
star names, and how to pronounce them.
Stars Constellation Pronunciation
Acamar Eridanus AY-kuh-mar
Achernar Eridanus AY-ker-nar
Acrux Crux AY-kruhks
Adhara Canis Major ah-DAY-rah
Aldebaran Taurus al-DEB-ah-ran
Alioth Ursa Major AL-ee-oth
Alkaid Ursa Major al-KADE
Al Nair Grus al-NAYR
Alnilam Orion al-NIGH-lam
Alphard Hydra AL-fard
Alphecca Corona Borealis al-FECK-ah
Alpheratz Andromeda al-FEE-rahts
Altair Aquila al-TAYR
Ankaa Phoenix AN-kuh
Antares Scorpius an-TAIR-eez
Arcturus Bootes ark-TOO-rus
Atria Traingulum Australe AT-ri-ah
Avior Carina AY-vee-or
Bellatrix Orion BEL-a-trix
Betelgeuse Orion BET-el-jooz
Canopus Carina kah-NO-pus
Capella Auriga kah-PEL-ah
Deneb Cygnus DEN-eb
Denebola Leo de-NEB-oh-la
Diphda Cetus DIF-dah
Deubhe Ursa Major DUB-ee
Elnath Taurus EL-nath
Eltanin Draco el-TAY-nin
Enif Pegasus EEN-if
Fomalhaut Piscis Austrinus FO-mal-ought
Gacrux Crux GAY-krux
Gienah Corvus JEE-nah
Hadar Centauri HAY-dar
Hamal Aries HAM-al
Kaus Austr Sagittarius KOSS aus-TRAY-lis
Kochab Ursa Minor KOE-kahb
Markab Pegasus MAR-kahb
Menkar Cetus MEN-kahr
Menkent Centauri MEN-kent
Miaplasidus Carina MY-a-PLAS-i-dus
Mirfak Perseus MEER-fak
Nunki Sagittarius NUN-kee
Peacock Pavo PEE-kok
Polaris Ursa Minor poe-LAHR-is
Pollux Gemini POL-lucks
Procyon Canis Minor PRO-see-on
Rasalhague Ophiuchus RAS-al-haig
Regulus Leo REG-you-lus
Rigel Orion RYE-jel
Rigel Kent Centauri RYE-jel KENT
Sabik Ophiuchus SAY-bik
Schedar Cassiopeia SHED-ahr
Shaula Scorpius SHAW-la
Sirius Canis Major SEER-ee-us
Spica Virgo SPY-kah
Suhail Vela soo-HALE
Vega Lyra VAY-gah
Zubenelgenube Libra zoo-BEN-el-je-NEW-bee

Constellation Abbreviation Pronunciation
Andromeda And an-DROM-eh-duh
Antlia Ant ANT-lih-uh
Apus Aps AY-pus
Aquarius Aqr ack-KWAIR-ee-us
Aquila Aql ACK-will-ah
Ara Ara AY-ruh
Aries Ari AIR-eez
Auriga Aur or-EYE-gah
Bootes Boo boe-Oh-teez
Caelum Cae SEE-lum
Camelopardalis Cam ka-MEL-oh-PAR-da-lis
Cancer Can KAN-surr
Canes Venatici CVn Kay-neez ven-AT-iss-see
Canis Major CMa Kay-nis MAY-jer
Canis Minor CMi Kay-nis MY-ner
Capricornus Cap kap-rih-KORN-nus
Carina Car ka-REEN-uh
Cassiopeia Cas kass-ee-oh-PEE-yah
Centaurus Cen sen-TAW-rus
Cepheus Cep SEE-fee-us
Cetus Cet SEE-tuss
Chamaeleon Cha ka-MEEL-eon
Circinus Cir SUR-sin-us
Columba Col ko-LUM_bah
Coma Berenices Com KO-mah bear-en-EYE-sees
Corona Australis CrA kor-OH-nah oss-TRAY-liss
Corona Borealis CrB kor-OH-nah bo-ree-ALICE
Corvus Cor CORE-vuss
Crater Crt KRAY-turr
Crux Cru KRUX
Cygnus Cyg SIG-nuss
Delphinus Del del-FINE-uss
Dorado Dor dough-RAH-dough
Draco Dra DRAY-ko
Equuleus Equ ek-KWOO-lee-us
Eridanus Eri eh-RID-ah-nuss
Fornax For for-NAX
Gemini Gem JEM-in eye
Grus Gru GRUSS
Hercules Her HER-kyou-leez
Horologium Hor hor-o-LO-jee-um
Hydra Hya HIGH-druh
Hydrus Hys HIGH-drus
Indus Ind IN-duss
Lacerta Lac la-SIR-tah
Leo Leo LEE-oh
Leo Minor Lmi LEE-oh MY-ner
Lepus Lep LEE-puss
Libra Lib LEE-brah
Lupus Lup LEW-puss
Lynx Lyn LINKS
Lyra Lyr LYE-ruh
Mensa Men MEN-sah
Microscopium Mic my-kro-SKO-pee-um
Monoceros Mon mon-OSS-er-us
Musca Mus MUS-kah
Norma Nor NOR-mah
Octans Oct AHK-tahnz
Ophiuchus Oph off-ih-YOU-kuss
Orion Ori oh-RYE-un
Pavo Pav PAH-vo
Pegasus Peg PEG-uh-suss
Perseus Per PURR-see-us
Phoenix Phe FEE-nix
Pictor Pic PICK-torr
Pisces Psc PIE-sees
Piscis Austrinus PsA PIE-siss oss-TRY-nus
Puppis Pup PUPP-iss
Pyxis Pyx PICK-siss
Reticulum Ret ray-TIC-you-lum
Sagitta Sag sah-JIT-tah
Sagittarius Sgr saj-ih-TAY-rih-us
Scorpius Sco SKOR-pih-uss
Sculptor Scl SKULPT-tor
Scutum Sct SKYOU-tum
Serpens Ser SIR-pens
Sextans Sex SEX-tans
Taurus Tau TAW-russ
Telescopium Tel tell-ih-SKO-pee-um
Triangulum Tri try-ANGH-gu-lum
Triangulum Australe TrA try-ANGH-gu-lum oss-TRAY-lee
Tucana Tuc too-KAH-nah
Ursa Major UMa URR-sah MAY-jer
Ursa Minor UMi URR-sah MY-ner
Vela Vel VEE-lah
Virgo Vir VER-go
Volans Vol VO-lanz
Vulpecula Vul vul-PECK-you-lah


Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Why 2012 will not be your last supper…

This is a question answer series published on the official website of NASA to dispel the fears of the world ending in 2012. Read it, believe in it and share it!


Remember the Y2K scare? It came and went without much of a whimper because of adequate planning and analysis of the situation. Impressive movie special effects aside, Dec. 21, 2012, won't be the end of the world as we know. It will, however, be another winter solstice.

  Much like Y2K, 2012 has been analyzed and the science of the end of the Earth thoroughly studied. Contrary to some of the common beliefs out there, the science behind the end of the world quickly unravels when pinned down to the 2012 timeline. Below, NASA Scientists answer several questions that we're frequently asked regarding 2012.

Question (Q): Are there any threats to the Earth in 2012? Many Internet websites say the world will end in December 2012.
Answer (A): Nothing bad will happen to the Earth in 2012. Our planet has been getting along just fine for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012.

Q: What is the origin of the prediction that the world will end in 2012?
A: The story started with claims that Nibiru, a supposed planet discovered by the Sumerians, is headed toward Earth. This catastrophe was initially predicted for May 2003, but when nothing happened the doomsday date was moved forward to December 2012. Then these two fables were linked to the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar at the winter solstice in 2012 -- hence the predicted doomsday date of December 21, 2012.

Q: Does the Mayan calendar end in December 2012?
A: Just as the calendar you have on your kitchen wall does not cease to exist after December 31, the Mayan calendar does not cease to exist on December 21, 2012. This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then -- just as your calendar begins again on January 1 -- another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar.

Q: Could a phenomena occur where planets align in a way that impacts Earth?
A: There are no planetary alignments in the next few decades, Earth will not cross the galactic plane in 2012, and even if these alignments were to occur, their effects on the Earth would be negligible. Each December the Earth and sun align with the approximate center of the Milky Way Galaxy but that is an annual event of no consequence.
 
Q: Is there a planet or brown dwarf called Nibiru or Planet X or Eris that is approaching the Earth and threatening our planet with widespread destruction?
A: Nibiru and other stories about wayward planets are an Internet hoax. There is no factual basis for these claims. If Nibiru or Planet X were real and headed for an encounter with the Earth in 2012, astronomers would have been tracking it for at least the past decade, and it would be visible by now to the naked eye. Obviously, it does not exist. Eris is real, but it is a dwarf planet similar to Pluto that will remain in the outer solar system; the closest it can come to Earth is about 4 billion miles.

Q: What is the polar shift theory? Is it true that the earth’s crust does a 180-degree rotation around the core in a matter of days if not hours?
A: A reversal in the rotation of Earth is impossible. There are slow movements of the continents (for example Antarctica was near the equator hundreds of millions of years ago), but that is irrelevant to claims of reversal of the rotational poles. However, many of the disaster websites pull a bait-and-shift to fool people. They claim a relationship between the rotation and the magnetic polarity of Earth, which does change irregularly, with a magnetic reversal taking place every 400,000 years on average. As far as we know, such a magnetic reversal doesn’t cause any harm to life on Earth. A magnetic reversal is very unlikely to happen in the next few millennia, anyway.


Q: Is the Earth in danger of being hit by a meteor in 2012?
A: The Earth has always been subject to impacts by comets and asteroids, although big hits are very rare. The last big impact was 65 million years ago, and that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. Today NASA astronomers are carrying out a survey called the Spaceguard Survey to find any large near-Earth asteroids long before they hit. We have already determined that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs. All this work is done openly with the discoveries posted every day on the NASA NEO Program Office website, so you can see for yourself that nothing is predicted to hit in 2012.

Q: How do NASA scientists feel about claims of pending doomsday?
A: For any claims of disaster or dramatic changes in 2012, where is the science? Where is the evidence? There is none, and for all the fictional assertions, whether they are made in books, movies, documentaries or over the Internet, we cannot change that simple fact. There is no credible evidence for any of the assertions made in support of unusual events taking place in December 2012.

Q: Is there a danger from giant solar storms predicted for 2012?
A: Solar activity has a regular cycle, with peaks approximately every 11 years. Near these activity peaks, solar flares can cause some interruption of satellite communications, although engineers are learning how to build electronics that are protected against most solar storms. But there is no special risk associated with 2012. The next solar maximum will occur in the 2012-2014 time frame and is predicted to be an average solar cycle, no different than previous cycles throughout history.
Sourced from NASA - copied  for informational purposes only, no breach of copyright intended

Friday, November 5, 2010

Fo(u)R Delight!

My recollections of the Annual AFA Science Picnic to Abbey Marine Fish Aquarium, Goa Chitra Museum, Panjim Doordarshan and All India Radio on 3rd November, 2010.

Seeing the strength in the numbers of members, a score strong, one would have wondered if the same group had been on a trek to Keri just three days back. For one reason or the other, this Science Picnic underwent change in schedules and venues, but as it was an annual feature, it was to be. Turning through the corner to Junta House and seeing almost nobody (applies for animals, too), my fear of it not happening gave me goosebumps, for I had missed school. It was later when I saw 'the' group of senior members that i was assured of a FunDay. Ok, Let's get it straight out. I want this to be a concise report. Back to the picnic.

Well, the 'undisclosed' suspense of venues was 'disclosed' after Sir stepped in. He took names of 4 places - Abbey Marine Fish Aquarium, Goa Chitra Museum, Doordarshan and All India Radio. While I had an idea of the latter two, I was in no clue about the former. After discovering that two students had just 'popped in' AFA, sir decided it was best to take them with us! We fitted in snugly into the small bus, ironically named 'Omkar Travels', for Omkar was not there, for reasons alike. The prospect of discussing some Quantum Mechanics with my seniors had excited me, and in no way could I let go of this discussion. The 'Square One' which i had brought amazed a few, while others got pakofied over it.

Talks lapse time. That's just what happened. After devouring Patties and talk, talk, talk we finally reached Stop No. 1 - Abbey Marine Fish Aquarium, a place I had never heard of. Photographers wanted some 'Fishy' snaps, while others were content to touching and seeing fish in the aquarium, which was the size of your average museum. They contained all types of fish with a mix of lobsters, turtles and eels. The tour was rounded up in an hour, and after a brief photo session with two inanimate statues, we hopped back in the bus, this time around instead of Quantum Mechanics, the discussions split in various subjects.

Ok, with 3 more stops to go, we headed on to Goa Chitra Museum, founded by artist and curator Victor-Hugo Gomes, which has a large collection of over 4000 artifacts focusing on Traditional Goa's agrarian technology and lifestyle. Finding the museum was a 'discovery' in itself, and after a bit of asking, retracing, searching and retracing... we reached the place. Among the long list of its benefactors we found the name of Sir Percival Noronha - AFA's founding father! The place had stringent and wacky rules and a complex list of aims and objectives. Though a little crammed up (for 20 people), the still-expanding project had a wonderful location and an even vast collection of traditional Goan items. After a guided tour to the museum, we had a little pep-talk and meet with Victor-Hugo Gomes, the man behind the project. The larger than life dog(s) there too caught our eye, and as we were prohibited from clicking photos inside the place, members were content with the pics of the dogs.

With the places in South Goa done with, we had a short stop at the Mahalasa Temple, Mardol. It was a wonderful complex, with an ancient stone statue and a modern temple. Satish Sir told us a brief history of the first cross in Goa, which was the very foundation of Christianity in Goa. On the way, the heavens broke up, and by the time we reached Hotel Vihar (our lunch adda), it was raining cats and dogs. These very cats and dogs somewhat left us in a circumplex mode, for Doordarshan had planned a sweet little question - answer session on very basic astronomy - which was deemed cancelled as it was outdoors.

We reached stop no. 3 - Doordarshan. It was quite familiar being on my daily Schoolbus route, and our member Pratham's father was ever-glad to show us around. First on, we went to the transmission room, which dealt with the transmission of DD 1 and DD 2 through consoles which received the signals of the grand antennas. To demonstrate a console control, Mr. Hirave (our guide for that room) dimmed and brightened Doordarshan for a few seconds! We were showed the 1 and 10 kilowatt transmitters, after which we went to the studio and the master control room. The respective programmes are pre-recorded in the studio, monitored and edited in the control room and then broadcasted on the desired day. We saw the programme 'Natya Sangeet' being recorded with the leading singer singing 'Daamru Daamru Omkar Nath...' (again, Omkar was not there!). With our recording being cancelled, we headed on to Stop. No. 4 All India Radio, just a few blocks away.

All India Radio, also owned by Prasar Bharati is famous for 'Aakashwani', 105.4 FM and 1287 AM. We were lead in the transmission room, which contained 2 consoles, similar to the ones found in Doordarshan earlier. After a brief question answer session on the working and clearing whatever concepts were to be cleared, we were lead into the Tape Library room. A surprise followed. We saw shelves and shelves of CDs, Cassettes, Records and ancient albums! We were even more surprised on learning that the public had access to these! We then had a minute 'recording' done in the Announcer room, with me and Raj speaking gibberish, from mimicking Stephen Hawking to shouting orders about Waving Hands! With that done, and after a group photograph, we new that we had neared the end of this short adventure.

What a hell of a day it was! Around Goa in 8 hours, literally! That was it and That was all, we reached our second home, and dispersed like Nothing had Happened at All!!!

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Quizzed! No.2




Identify this German-born British astronomer who discovered the two major moons of Uranus, Titania and Oberon.


(to be answered in the comments section)

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Trek Ahoy!

My musing on the Biodiversity trek to Keri, Sattari on the 31/10/2010

  The exams ended without much ado, the lazy mood was waiting to set in this vacations when, the sudden call of adventure struck me. Thus when Videsh called me up, and the dialog that ensued convinced me that this would be the the perfect way to start off my vacations, and have a much awaited and deserved ‘break-free’ trip.


Sunday morning blues couldn’t pose a hurdle when it came to the lucrative prospect of snapping photos and having a good time with my second family. And so, I landed down on the steps of Junta House fully loaded with the 500D. From almost falling asleep on the stairs to checking to Suyash’s new camera, i had an indication of what kind of day it would turn out to be! We got onto our usual trip bus, Glaksha (wish it was promptly named as ‘Galaxy’) and the 25-odd people fit in snuggly. Govind Potekar, the Editor of Via Lactea, our magazine was more than willing to share historical insight on the various structures that we saw on the way. The trip was steadily gaining tempo like an A.R. Rahman song….

  After usual discussions on Indian politics, discipline in our society and the new organisational structure of AFA, I was truly amazed by a monocular that Atharv had got from his visit to S. Korea. And funnily, I when I was starting to find the locality we were traveling through to be pretty striking and familiar (not a deja-vu), I realised that this was the same route that we used to take on our star parties to the Sakhli Surla Plateau… We were already in Keri before we knew it!! As people got down and stretched their arms, I could smell the air, the cool climate was sinking in. And as our tradition goes, we had a truly lip smacking breakfast at a local adda. Sniffing the aroma of the tea and the bhaaji aroused all our senses! After that, we were welcomed by our dedicated nature guides who were to lead us into the trek.
  After getting a heady dose of what to expect that day, and the regulations to be followed i was floored by the fact that here, people still bothered to keep aside land spaces as self-declared sanctuaries (God’s cove). This was followed by a ear pooping journey up a
mountain pass to an altitude of about 600m above mean sea level. At the sight of a distant waterfall, we stopped to have a glance. The sight of the distant mountains made us feel that we had done the right thing by coming here. Oh boy! This was gonna be exiting! And thus an unexpected surprise followed. And that got all of us hooked. The various stones and minerals that we saw around us suddenly started to speak out to us, in the sense that we being Geology students, could understand the language of the rocks! And yeah. After taking the guide’s consent, we bagged whatever we could for our studies. Later on, we were told that the locality that we were present in was unique in an ecological sense. The Western ghats being a Biological hotspot, promised us a lot of glimpses today.
  Finally,  we reached our final destination and were raring to go and explore the vast wilderness around us. Partly promised the sights of a few (dangerous) snakes, we were in high spirits!! making our way on the trail proved to be a constant hurdle as we, the photographers (who tend to get attracted to anything and everything) were
moving ahead at a snail’s pace. That is a good thing, isn’t it?  Well the brisk climb up to the plateau was physically and mentally demanding too, as I had to keep a watch-out for interesting things (and snakes, perhaps) on the path! On the way, thanks to my trained eye after all hours of ‘flat-on-the-ground’ style photography, I managed to sight a caterpillar who had fallen down from its resting place. Promptly, with the satisfaction of saving it, we all placed it back on a tree.
  Finally, we reached the plateau, and it was a sight to behold!! Lush green meadows, water pools at every footstep, grasshoppers jumping in delight and of-course, we the exited people who treaded all the way from the city to see this spectacle…Standing
tall amongst the tallest peaks of Goa was a good feeling, and having the guide explain to us about the flora & fauna of this region was an enthralling experience. On the way, we together collected about a kilogram or two of various curious looking rocks for identification… A challenge of sighting tree-frogs was put forth to us by the guide, but we were unsuccessful. But, that lead us to the sight of buffaloes who had come to a water-hole to drink to their heart’s delight.
After going snapping pictures all over the place, we went to the e
dge of the cliff and sighted the tallest peak in Goa, Sonsogad. We were in a state of awe comprehending the fact that we were standing so tall. The best part was that the weather that day was just the way we all prefer it. While the sun was playing hide and seek behind the clouds, my friends were busy racing down the flat lands! Never the less, we decided to leave all the grasshoppers and minerals in peace and walk down. The walk down was as a bit confusing as I was held behind because of the never-ending discussion on Quantum Mechanics that a few of us had indulged into!
 
Back in the bus, we were driven toward the Anjunem dam that provides water to some parts of Goa. But, it wasn’t much of a spectacle as we had already experienced the mammoth Selaulim Dam this year! We let go off the clamour and seated ourselves besides the dam for a few moments of piece. As the guide explained to us that a nearby tree was said to possess a ghost or a spirit, I pitied the scientific temper of the villager folk. But, I guess they turn out to know more than us in the field of conservation of nature!! When we went down for a ‘ghar-guti’ lunch to a village, besides the food being worth the journey itself, we felicitated our guides who were the lads from a local conservational group. Aaah! This reminds me of the food, pickle and the papads once again!
 
This was not it. The journey back was as eventful as the whole trip had been! The moment we stepped in, our scientific instincts were not left far behind… And thus, ensued a debate on ‘How would people’s belief in God change is science cracks the mystery of the universe’ . A lot of views followed and before drawing a conclusion, we dropped by the Harvalem waterfalls… This was a refresher for a tired party who needed sleep! The vapours of the waterfalls refreshed us all and most of us got wonderful photographs. On the way back, after the derivational mysteries of ‘De Broglie mass wavelength’ formula we settled down for ice-creams at Marcel and this soothed our spirits. As our final destination drew near, a lull was present throughout the bus, but the excitement of the Science picinic to ‘undisclosed – secret locations’ on the 3rd left us wondering… Thus ended our journey when we returned back to our second home, the observatory.
The trip left me wanting more of mother nature and such treks. hop our wishes are fulfilled soon!

Monday, November 1, 2010

Two Quizzes for the Price of One

A report of the 2 AFA Quizzes held on 30th October 2010 by Atharv Joshi

30th October 2010

The stage was set. After weeks of waiting there was gonna be a quiz @ AFA. As planned before, our member Ved Caculo, a medical student himself, was going to give us a 'taste' of his profession by setting a Medical Quiz, his first experience at Q'Mming! It was short and sweet, 21 questions in all and had the Medical 'Touch' of professionalism in it. The terms used left us gawking and without the help of our QM, who was a little too helpful, spilling out a couple of clues. All in all, the quiz was quite crackable, with Atharv getting 180 points followed by a couple of 160s.

The next surprise, took me aback too, when I was told that I would be hosting the next quiz, which was prepared probably a month back. Titled 'Discovery', the quiz was on Inventors, Inventions, Discoverers, Discoveries and Everything in Between. With 20 questions in all, the quiz was quite a surprise to new budding quizzers who didn't have a clue about SEQC style quizzing. The questions were a bit off topic, but stretching too much on one point was what the QM had stressed on. Topping with 150 points was Akshay Rege, a seasoned quizzer and AFA member.

Expect to be Quizzed! The next AFA quiz, AFA # 14 will be held on 13th or 20th November, with the things being tentative at this point.

The article can be also viewed on the 'Quizzed' page of this blog. 'Discovery', Atharv's quiz can be found on this link.

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