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Your Proofness: Sarah Munir Master Storyteller: Nudrat Kamal Creativity Analysts: Jamal Khurshid, Essa Malik, Samra Aamir, Talha Ahmed Khan, Munira Abbas, Omer Asim and Umar Waqas
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
Hi light
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Ever since the dawn of humanity, we have dreamed of better places — places more wonderful and magical than the world we live in. Throughout history, people have woven tales of places no one has ever seen but that are still worth searching for. There are cities of gold, valleys of milk and honey, towns built on the core of the earth and continents buried deep in the sea. Voyagers and explorers have gone to the edges of the earth to look for these places, and many have claimed to have found them. Do these places actually exist? They may or they may not. Either way, it is exciting to imagine that these mythical places really do exist — they give us hope, they help us escape this world, and most of all, thinking about them is just plain fun because these places are awesome! Here are some of the best mythical places we wish truly existed.
Shangri-La is a legendary Tibetan paradise that was originally called Shambala. It is a valley cut off from the world and legend has it that the wisdom of the human race is being preserved here so that it can be protected from an imminent catastrophe which will destroy the world. The wisdom will save the human race when the time comes. According to a Tibetan myth, Shangri-La is located in the Himalayas, in the remotest part of Tibet. It exists on a high plateau, surrounded by a ring of mountain peaks. The myth of a lost Tibetan paradise spread far and wide, and was even heard in the courts of the Mughal Emperor, Akbar. In fact, it is said that the tale was first recorded in written form in India, in AD 962. The tale says that there is a harmonious land behind the Himalayas, where an isolated people live in accordance with Buddhist teachings, preparing for the day when the world will be ready to live in peace. The kingdom is in the shadow of a white crystal mountain, approachable only through a ring of peaks.
It is easy to understand why people throughout history have been fascinated with the idea of El Dorado, the Lost City of Gold. The desire for gold is common across all eras, cultures and nationalities. That is why it is surprising to learn how the myth of El Dorado actually came about. The myth, which originated in South America, was actually about a tribe of people who lived high in the Andes mountains in what is now Columbia. When a new chieftain of this tribe was selected, he covered himself with gold dust before bathing in a lake to wash it off. To this tribe, gold did not have any material value, but it had spiritual value. The
term ‘el dorado’ was initially used to describe the chieftain — the term literally means ‘the golden one’. But over the years, the myth changed into a lost kingdom made of gold, a kingdom that was ruled by this ‘golden one.’ This legendary kingdom is said to be located somewhere in South America and countless explorers have searched in vain for this marvellous place. But while they haven’t found this place, some of these voyagers accidently discovered other places on their quest. Two Spanish explorers, Francisco Orellana and Gonzalo Pizarro, became the first to explore the entire length of the Amazon River while they were searching for El Dorado.
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
Hi light
3 Agartha is a legendary place unlike any other legendary places — it is located at the core of the earth. Of course, in order to believe in this place, we must ignore science and all that stuff about the core of the earth being as hot as the centre of the sun. After all, a place as hot as the sun is hardly the best place to form a magical, wonderful land. This is why the legend of Agartha is related to the belief that the earth is hollow, a theory that was popular for a long time before scientists disproved it. The first written account of Agartha was produced by a Frenchman, Alexandre SaintYves d’Alveydre. According to him, the secret world of Agartha, and all its wealth and wisdom will be accessible to humans when they start following the religion of Christianity properly. Sounds similar to the myth of Shangri-La, doesn’t it? Turns out even mythical places have things in common.
If you translate the name of the mythical land of Cockaigne (pronounced cock-ain) into modern-day English, the name would be ‘cuckoo-land.’ But the word actually came from French, and it means ‘the land of plenty.’ Like the name suggests, Cockaigne is a place where everything is found in abundance, whether it is the best kind of chocolate or the biggest jumping castle ever. This is a place of extreme ease, comfort and pleasure. No hardship or pain exists here. In fact, legendary places like Cockaigne or El Dorado are called utopias, which are perfect, ideal places where everybody lives happily and there is no sadness. Many writers and poets have written about this magical place. A French poem written in the 13th century describes Cockaigne as a place where ‘the houses were made of barley sugar and cakes, the streets were paved with pastry, and the shops supplied goods for nothing.’ Sounds like heaven, right?
What would you like to see in Hi Five? Send an email to hifive@tribune.com.pk and let us know!
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
Activity
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What do you call cheese that’s not yours? A: Nacho cheese!
Q: What did the ground say to the earthquake? A: You crack me up!
Q: What did the pen say to the pencil? A: So, what’s your point!
Why was 6 afraid of 7? Because: 7 8 9
What do elves learn in school? The elf-abet
Knock, knock. Who’s there? Lettuce Lettuce who? Lettuce in, it’s freezing out here.
Which flower talks the most? Tulips, of course, because they have two lips!
Q: When do astronauts eat? A: At launch time!
Q: Why didn’t the sun go to college? A: Because it already had a million degrees!
Teacher: Didn’t I tell you to stand at the end of the line? Student: I tried but there was someone already there!
Teacher: If I had 6 oranges in one hand and 7 apples in the other, what would I have? Student: Big hands!
Books and Movies The Magician’s Elephant by Kate DiCamillo is the remarkable tale of an orphan on a quest to find someone he can call family. Ten-year-old Peter lives in a strange little town called Baltese with his guardian, but all his life he has felt alone. He had a sister but he was always told that she had died. When Peter sees a fortune teller’s tent in the middle of the Baltese market square, he knows what he has to ask: Is his sister alive, and if so, how can he find her? The fortune teller gives Peter a mysterious message: “Follow the elephant.” She insists that the elephant will guide Peter to his sister. Peter, of course,
dismisses this as pure nonsense, especially since there are no elephants anywhere in Baltese. But then something strange happens. A magician’s act goes terribly wrong and an elephant falls from the ceiling of an opera house. And thus an unbelievable chain of events is set into motion. Read The Magician’s Elephantt by Kate DiCamillo and join oin Peter on his magical whirlwind wind of an adventure. Peter willl learn about bout the power of hope, and about the desire for love and nd belonging that is present inside e everyone. There will be laughter, er, there will be tears and there will be lots of extraordinary miracles. les.
Do you have a favourite book or movie you would like us to review? Write to us at hifive@tribune.com.pk and tell us all about it.
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
Get your weekly dose of the unusual and funny news from across the globe!
Coolest CEO Meet Mr Cory, the founder and CEO of Mr Cory’s Cookies. He’s smart, he’s extremely well-dressed and he’s business savvy. And the most interesting part is that he is only nine years old. Cory Nieves runs a homemade cookie business from his house in New Jersey, USA, with the help of his mother. He started the business is 2009, selling hot chocolate outside his house on a makeshift stand. When asked why he initially started his now famous business, Cory said, “I wanted to buy my mom a car when we moved to New Jersey from New York City.” When the hot chocolate started becoming popular, Cory expanded into cookies. He sells sugar-free oatmeal raisin cookies and has a recipe for what he calls the ‘perfect’ chocolate chip cookie. Cory is also very stylish, and dresses up in the most fashionable clothes. He has been interested in fashion since he was five years old. He insists that his personal fashion style has definitely helped his business. “Presentation is the key to success. People first look at my style and ask ‘Who dresses you? Your mom?’ and my mom says ‘Do you see what I have on? I need my son to dress me.’” Cory’s fashion and cookie business recently went viral on Instagram. BUZZFEED.COM
World wide weird
5
Ignore no more
A mother has invented an app that makes it impossible for her children to ignore her calls. The app, which is called Ignore No More, is the ultimate parent’s comeback to the modern tech-savvy, smartphone-carrying teenager. When a parent calls their child and their call is ignored, the parent automatically gets worried that something is wrong or gets angry that their call is being ignored. The app makes it so that when a parent’s call is ignored, the child’s phone gets automatically locked, and it can only be unlocked using a passcode that the child has to get from his or her parent. The app was developed by Sharon Standifird, from Houston, USA. Sharon. who was fed up of her son always ignoring her calls, decided to do something about it. She took classes in app design, hired a number of web developers and engineers, and built an app. Sharon says that her son now replies to her calls and texts with greater efficiency. METRO.CO.UK
Baby Gorilla Millionare dog A dog who walked over 30 miles to find the family who abandoned her, was adopted by a millionaire and can finally rest her paws. Lady, an elderly black Labrador, had spent her entire life being shunted between animal shelters and being abandoned by families. The reason was that she didn’t get along with other dogs. Recently, she ran away from her home to return to her previous owners after travelling a long distance. But the owners didn’t want her and she was once again sent to an animal shelter. Fortunately, her story was read by Helen Rich, an author and heiress to a large fortune. Rich felt sad about Lady’s plight and decided to adopt Lady so that both of them could live comfortably on Rich’s 120-acre farm in Florida, USA. She even sent a private jet to pick the dog and bring her to her new home. “Everyone, please stop worrying. This precious girl is coming to live with me,” Rich wrote in a post on Facebook. “She will never be scared or lonely again.” HUFFINGTONPOST.COM
The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden in USA welcomed a new arrival to their family — a baby girl gorilla. Weighing just over four pounds, the female western lowland gorilla is the second baby born to mother Ndjole (pronounced In-j lee), an 18-year-old western lowland gorilla. The baby’s father is Togo, a 25-year-old silverback western lowland gorilla. The baby gorilla, who has not been named yet, is currently under the care of veterinarian Dr. Jennifer D’Agostino and the zoo caregivers. Although the baby was born healthy, her mother failed bond with her initially. “Ndjole was given several opportunities to bond with her baby within the first 24 hours and didn’t show any interest in her, putting the newborn’s life at risk,” said Dr. D’Agostino. When such cases happen, baby gorillas are either sent to a gorilla group or are placed with a surrogate gorilla mother. Zoo caregivers will provide around-the-clock care for the infant gorilla in an off-exhibit area in Great EscApe to keep the baby in close proximity to other gorillas. BUZZFEED.COM
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
6 Word origins Why do songs get stuck in your head? Remember when you watched Frozen and had the song ‘Let it Go,’ stuck in your head for days? At one time or another, we’ve all had a fragment of a catchy song stuck in our heads. Such songs are called sticky songs or earworms and scientists have tried studying why they occur. Because the act of tunes getting stuck in our heads is involuntary, it is difficult to study the exact mechanism behind it. But one possible reason for it is that throughout history, humans have passed down knowledge from one generation to another through music and song. For around 200,000 years, information has been transmitted through spoken and sung words. Scientists say that this may have led our brains to become hard-wired to remember something more easily if it is sung. It’s true that we remember things better if they have a rhyme or rhythm, such as the alphabet or the multiplication table. Another reason is that music is multi-sensory. This means that while the tune and lyrics are being memorised in our brains, the emotions and ideas that the song triggers are also being stored. So later, when the feeling or idea is remembered, it also sometimes brings a catchy portion of the song to the forefront of the mind. This is called involuntary memory. There are two factors that trigger a sticky song. One is exposure — the more you listen to a song, the more likely it is that it will get stuck in your head. The other factor is association — sometimes an aspect in your environment will trigger a sticky song. This can be anything from words, people, rhythms, situations and sounds. Interestingly, listening to the song from start to finish can help you get the song out of your head.
How to say ‘studying’ in different languages Afrikaans Albanian Basque Bosnian Czech Danish Dutch Estonian Finnish French German Hungarian Indonesian Italian Latin Polish
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Die bestudering Studimi Ikasita Studiranje Studium Studere Studeren Õppimine Opiskelu Etudier Studium Tanulás Belajar Studio Studebat Studiowanie
Cool facts While Antarctica is very cold, it’s not all ice and snow. About 1,200 square miles of the continent are made up of ‘dry valleys’ where mountains and ridges keep out any precipitation. Some cats are allergic to humans. The dot of the letter ‘i’ is called a tittle. In 10th century Burma, King Theinhko ate a farmer’s cucumbers without permission. The farmer killed the king and took the throne. The first automobile accident in the US happened in 1896 when a car struck a bicyclist in New York. The driver spent the night in jail, and the cyclist suffered a broken leg. Some of the first examples of graffiti come from first century Pompeii, where messages like ‘I don’t want to sell my husband’ and ‘Successus was here’ were written on walls. One Barbie doll is sold about every three seconds. The 1900 Olympics featured a live pigeon shooting event. The winner bagged 21 pigeons.
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
7
Experiment
You will need:
Method 1. Fill half the bowl with water and ice.
• A metal bowl
2. Place the drink in the bowl.
• Water at room temperature
3. Add a handful of salt to the water and stir.
• Ice
4. Watch what happens to the bowl and drink.
• Drink in a glass bottle • Salt
What is happening: The melting point of ice is the same as the freezing point of water, which is 00 Celsius. Salt lowers the melting point of ice, so when salt is added to the water and ice mixture, the ice melt at an even lower temperature. Therefore, even when the temperature of the bowl reaches 00 Celsius, the ice does not melt. This causes the temperature of the water surrounding the ice to drop below 00, thus cooling the drink very quickly. SCIENCE-SPARKS.COM
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THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, AUGUST 24, 2014
Notable Entries for the Liberty Books Cards Competition
Mehreen Khan Winner
Eraj Mohsin Mahnaz Mir
Maleeha Mansoor Winner Sadik Mohsin
Ibrahim Vardag
Zara Imran
Zainab Nasir
Zoya Riaz Satti
Mumtaz Mir