CULTURAL QA 02-2023-02 BEING A COMPILATIONTHERE MAY BE ERRORS
Q1 What quality did Japan have for neverbeing colonized by Europeans? A1 Tomaž Vargazon, practicing atheist Mon Lack ofuseable resources, mostly.Japan is scenic Japanese islandsare young in geological scale, which means ores haven’t yet had time toaccumulate in veins. As a result the islands are poor in minerals and contain very few naturalresources, beyond wood and arable land. European expansion was notlike in a computer game, where you want land for the sake of having land, all(or nearly all) European expansion was economic in nature. Europeans were after Aztec gold,Indian tea and Indonesian spices for trade back at home. Japan lacks in iron of all things, the single most commonmetal on Earth, let alone everything else. There simply was nothingin Japan Europeans particularly wanted. A few trading poststo export guns and manufactured goods to Japan in exchange for gold and silverwere all Europeans ever really wanted from the place. Furthermore, Europeansjust about never came down with a huge army and conquered powerful kingdomswith the sheer might of arms. Typical process of European colonization was toarrive at new shores, find trading partners, which were invariably smallfactions pressed by bigger neighbors. Make them your allies and help them standup to the bullies an in exchange, make them your vassals. European colonizerswere rarely conquerors, to most they were simply the preffered rulers of theland, because they were less bad than the local bully. This may have been feasible in Japan in 1540, but not in1615, when Japan was united under one firm government of the Tokugawashogunate. European strength in the fareast simply wasn’tsufficient to take Japan when the country was ripe for the taking and Europeansrarely if ever picked on unified, strong countries. That’s what saved Japan from European colonization.It gave them the Imperial Japan though, which was hardly any better in the end. Q2 What are the reasons why it is notadvisable to visit a temple during certain periods of time (e.g., after dark)? A2 Vinay Sharma, Proud to be Hindu Mon There are severalreasons why it is not advisable to visit a temple during certain periods oftime, such as after dark: Safety: Temples can be dark and isolated at night,making them potentially dangerous for visitors. Respect for the deity: Many temples close afterdark as a sign of respect for the deity, who is believed to be resting. Preservation of the temple: Temples may close afterdark to protect their structures, artifacts, and other assets from theft ordamage. Maintenance and cleaning: Temples may closeafter dark to allow for maintenance and cleaning work to be performed. Religious customs and traditions: Some religionshave strict rules regarding temple visits, such as limiting visits to certaintimes of the day or prohibiting visits at night. It is important torespect the customs and traditions of the temple and to follow the rules andguidelines set by the temple authorities. Q3 Why is there a fan mode in airconditioner? A3 Gopala Krishnan, Former AssistantGeneral Manager 1996-2004 at Department of Telecom (1966–2004)Just now The fan inair-conditioner circulatescool air to certain extent with in room when in AC mode. In fanmode, compressor is not working , somewhat cool air will be coming for a shortperiod and then normal temperature air. The switching through AC remote avoids every time switchingon room fan when required. An AC remote operation is sufficient. I amnot sure about the wattage of the fan, but I am sure it would be less than roomfan. The fanscoming now can be operated with remote. So fan mode is not required in Airconditioner. Q4 Do Indians consider India to be asuccessful country? A4 Balaji Viswanathan, an engineer. Jan 25 Most Indian middleclasses see India as a student who is about to graduate from a top college. Not yet rich, but about tobecome one. Let’s say you are asenior in Stanford or MIT, you are unlikely to be personally wealthy. You mighthave 0 wages, some student loans and possibly no wealth. However, banks wouldqueue up to loan to you and companies would vie to engage with you. Not because of whatyou have now, but because who you are about to become in the next 10–20 years.The same with India. Thereis a lot of underlying work that went in. Since themidnight of August 15, 1947, India has substantially grown its territory,peacefully integrated a massively complicated mess that British Raj leftbehind, brought 100s of millions out of poverty & illiteracy, avoided civilwars and major internal disturbance, built a strongmilitary with a functioning triad, became recognised as a nuclear power and a keyspace power, major player in renewable energy, became recognised in key globalavenues such as G20/SCO/Quad, key tech power, built a very comfortablefinancial position [unlike most developing countries that often require IMFbailouts]. Unlike most regions of the world, we have avoided longbloody wars. Currently we are not part of any majorglobal tension while US, Russia and China are involved in proving who has thebiggest phallus. We could become a major economy withouttaking shortcuts such as: Borrowing a lot[from China and other countries] Compromising onsovereignty [by signing treaties such as NPT or by joining global treaties thatwould keep another countries military base in yours] Suspendingdemocracy and due processes Drastically altering demographics [such as single childpolicy] that would give 2–3 decade growth boost likesteroids on a body builder. Our path to success is long winded[many countries have gone way faster], but it is increasingly becoming clearerto most of us that India is on to something big Q5 How do Indian trains get their powerfrom overhead lines? A5 Swagata Sarkar, Technology and RailwayEnthusiast Sun Indian Trains use two types of Power collectionmethods, one as the question says is from OHE or Overhead Equipment that is, the wires thatrun along above the tracks and the other one is Third Rail which is morecommonly used in metro systems like Kolkata and Aqua line in DMRC. >From overheadlines, Train sets (EMU) and Locomotives use a Contraption called >the Pantograph. The pantograph is a mechanical Device that ishoisted above from the roof of the electric Locomotive to be in direct contactwith the Wires/OHE. This contact between Pantograph and the OHE transferselectricity to the locomotive and into its traction transformer just like aplug is connected to a wall socket. Since a train moves around, this Connection betweenPantograph and OHE has to be mobile without any disruptions. This is achievedby installing a Slab of Graphite which does 3 things. Lubricates the Wire (Graphite is what we call a“Solid Lubricant”) hence eliminates any wear and tear between the surfaces. Allows flow of electricity (Graphite is an excellentconductor of electricity) Somewhat protects the Pantograph from heatdamage due to extreme friction and heat. The pantograph uses Loaded Springs, A pneumaticsystem or both to ensure the pantograph remains hoisted up at all requiredtimes. This system is controlled manually by the Locopilots in Both cabs. The pantographafter collecting electricity, transfers it to a series of insulated grids overthe Roof of Locomotive to a Big Switch, known as a DJ, or Dis-Juntioner. The DJ is a failsafe device which breaks ormaintains connection with the Pantograph and Traction transformer. If for some reason the pantograph cannot be lowered andit is necessary to stop electricity to the locomotive, The DJ can be opened tobreak the connection with the pantograph. >From the Pantographand DJ, the electricity finally reaches the Traction >Transformer that furthersupplies electricity to the locomotive. My note- A lotof spark appears when pantograph is withdrawn from the conductor.The other day I could observe it when my train to Bangalore was halting in theplatform, drawn from yard Q6 How Chennai lost its pride among southIndian cities? When Bangalore overtaken Chennai? A6 Vinod Gopal, Lives in Chennai, TamilNadu, India20h For God’ssake please don’t compare Chennai with Bangalore. In factcomparing itself is wrong and is a forbidden fruit you could say.200 years ago when there were no electricity in those parts of Karnataka youare comparing, Chennai had a cold ice warehouse, which is a museum right now.Just imagine we had icecream, cold sodas, kulfis, cakes and many such food andbeverages which were dream luxurious commodities for inland non coastal towns. Ice reached us from USA whichwas the idea of a teenaged American prodigy. Anyway, i don’twant to confuse you with those complex explanations which needs deepimagination to decipher how ahead we were. Even today I can safely say thatChennai is the numero uno lifeline seaport city that is responsible for thewhole vast expanse of the Indian ocean’s water world hemisphere. When Malaysianairlines flight got missing, Chennai is one among the coordinates that Airtraffic control and international maritime navigation authorities transmit tokick start search operations. In fact Chennai stands guard to a huge stretch of Indian oceanthat we have a dome structured Sonar that guides many ships in vicinity andthis is something which nobody even tells you. Your railcoaches are made here, army’s tanks are made here, Chennai is even an intercontinental internet gateway. Oh, 1200 kms away, the Andaman isles hasonly two lifelines for ration supply - Chennai and Bangalore. Lol Kidding. Kolkatta in, Bangalore out.Heck, even their telecommunications network was until recently connected withChennai telephone exchange through a huge under water telecom fibre. Bangalore is just a big city.It does not have responsibity over other places and areas thousands ofkilometres away, does it? My note- Justadded for views of persons answering. Both the states have a lot of merits andit is best not to compare. Q7 Has the chemistry or production ofgasoline changed enough over the decades that gasoline from 1945 would not workin a modern car (new from 1945, not very old gas)? A7 Michael Kay, Car and engine restorationexperience.3y It is interestingthat you chose 1945 as your year for comparison. If you put the sort of gasoline sold in 1945 inyour modern car it would not only run badly but it would be damaged. In 1945 thegasoline sold to American motorists was rationed and was of very poor quality. So was the lubricating oil.Priority was given to supplying refined petroleum products for the military. The better feed stocks were usedfirst for aviation fuel and then for other military needs. American motoristsduring the war years got the dregs. The bad war gas problem was exacerbated bybootleg stations that sold adulterated gasoline and lubricating oil. The bad gasoline available to motorists during the waryears had several problems: The octane level was lower than that for which thecars had been designed necessitating that the cars be detuned. This usually involved retardingthe ignition timing. It sometimes required that the compressionratio be reduced by fitting a thicker or a second head gasket. This wasessential for those cars that had a Denver Head, a cylinder head that had beenmilled for high altitude operation. The war fuel did not properly vaporize. This lead to coldstarting problems. The fuelcomposition and quality was inconsistent. Because of this carburetor andignition adjustments that were adequate for one tank of fuel might not work fora different fill. Some of the war fuel mixtures could produce avarnish-like coating within the engine. This would coatthe cylinder walls, pistons, and piston rings. When it cooled this varnishcould actually cause some of the pistons to seize within the bores, preventingthe starter motor from turning the motor over. The motor would have to bedisassembled and the varnish scrubbed from the bore by a hot solvent such asXylene or MEK. War fuel burned incompletely leaving heavy carbondeposits on pistons, valves, and cylinder heads. In oneyear the accumulated carbon on a piston top could be 1/4 inch thick. This couldonly be removed by disassembling the engine and scraping off the carbon. If you didmanage to find some decent High Test fuel in 1945 it would, nevertheless,contain tetra-ethyl lead. This High Test or “Ethyl” gas hada decent octane rating, at least high enough to run without detonation in the 7: 1 “high compression” engines of the 1940s. But the tetra-ethyl lead additivein it would clog and destroy the catalytic converter in your modern careventually rendering it undrivable. The unleaded or “white” gas alternativelyavailable had too low an octane rating for anything but low compressionengines. You asked about the compatibility of 1945 gasoline andmodern cars. But therewould be another problem involving lubricating oil. First of all, a moderncar would require an oil with an API classification of SN or SN-Plus. Any oilmade prior to 1979 would be rated “Obsolete / Can Cause Equipment Harm”. Butthe lubricating oil available in 1945 was terrible even by the standards of the1940s. Like the gasoline sold to motorists in 1945, thelubricating oil was made from low grade feed stocks and was crudely refined.It quickly formed sludge deposits. This was so serious a problem that when inthe late 1940s premium lubricating oils containing detergents first becameavailable motorists who had previously used war-time or pre-war oils in theircars were advised by mechanics NOT to use detergent oils. The problem wasthat the new detergent oils would take the sludge deposits in the crankcaseinto solution and circulate them, along with the oil, through the engine. Thesedeposits would then clog smaller oil passages, such as those lubricating thetiming chain or gears, leading to oil starvation and mechanical breakdown. The advised methodof going from non-detergent to detergent oils was: Drain the old oiland flush the crankcase with kerosene. Drain the keroseneand fill the crankcase with fresh detergent oil. Drive the car for50 miles, drain the crankcase and fill with fresh detergent oil. Drive the car for300 miles, drain the crankcase and fill with fresh detergent oil. Drive the car for500 more miles and drain the crankcase. Refill thecrankcase with fresh detergent oil. Resume an oil and filter change interval of no greaterthan 3000 miles. As with wartimegasoline corrupt oil dealers and garages exacerbated the problem by sellingbootleg low-quality lubricating oil. This could quickly damage any engine. So, no,neither the gasoline nor the lubricating oil available in 1945 could be used ina modern car. Q8 What advice would you like to give tothe people of your age? A8 Kanthaswamy Balasubramaniam, LawyerSun For 65 Yrolds and above Rule No 1 :- Upload your family pensioner detailswith your pension department if you work for GOI/PSU/State Govt Rule No 2 :- Know procedure to avail MedicalInsurance Rule No3:- Cut down on Sugar, Sodium and Oil Rule No 4:- Getyour nominee details in order or ensure your wife is Joint in all accounts andFDs Rule No 5:-Keep a set of all passwords and usernames with your spouse so that all accountscan be accessed(Apps,Online Banking, Mutual Funds etc) Rule No 6:-. Leave 6 Signed Cheques with yourspouse without entering the date Rule No 7:- Make a Will and last testament Rule No 8:- Cut down on Coffee, Alcohol and Cigarettescompletely. More Fiber. Rule No 8:- Walkevery 8 hours when travelling to USA inside the flight, flex your legsregularly and your hands Rule No9:- Avoid Driving if possible once you turn 70. Rule No 10:- Walkevery morning if possible Rule No 11:- Talkto family members outside immediate family once every 3–6 months Rule No12:- Share Pattern and Passwords of all Email Addresses except Quora/SocialMedia with your wife Rule No 13:-Whatever you want to do for Grandkids, open FDs in your name, name them as beneficiaries. WhenRajinikanth can do it, so can you Rule 14:- Start moving to a Retirement Home by age of 70–75.A Nice one like GVs, not a con retirement home that you risk investing in, if you are not careful. Rule 15:- Last drink of water at 7:30 PM. No water till7 AM. That way you avoid urinating at 1 AM and 3 AM. Rule 16:-Avoid Bus Travel except for Morning Or Noon Buses. No overnight. Rule 17:- Informspouse wherever you are going and always carry your cell phone on you withspouse number and kid number being always in the last 20numbers and shared as WIFE, SON 1, SON 2, NEIGHBOR etc. That's all i canthink of Sorry sounds verymuch like a harbinger of doom but it's useful advise. Trust me My note- Manypoints are agreeable to many aged. Certain items may not be agreeable. Q9 Is the cockpit the most dangerous partof the plane? Why or why not? A9 Joe Shelton, Author, Pilot (Comm.MEL/SEL/MES/SES, Inst), Aircraft Owner Updated 5y Except in anaccident, maybe the most dangerous place around any airplane, day in and dayout, is to be standing in front of it. Every year since airplanes were invented someone, somewherewalks into a spinning propeller. You can hear spinningpropellers, but they’re difficult to see. A friend of myfamily, when he was younger, was a “barnstormer.” In the 1920’s and 1930’sBarnstormers were a nomadic group that flew from town to town charging forairplane rides from farmer’s fields. Max had taken a young girl for a ride and at the end ofthe ride she jumped off the front of the wing into the propeller with Max rightbehind trying to stop her. He was unsuccessful in saving the girl but he wasalso hit by the propeller. He suffered substantial head injuries and had tolearn to walk, talk, and even eat again. Jet enginesare equally dangerous. Notice thevertical red line painted on this engine with the graphic on top indicating thedanger areas. The short black horizontal line represents theengine the red fan shaped graphics represents the danger areas. If the engine is running, and you step into the red area at the frontyou risk being sucked into the spinning engine and at the rear you mightsuffer the intense heat and blast of the engine’s exhaust. My note- I could not add the picture. Red line is about 3-4 feet behind propeller.So anybody within 3-4 feet of propeller can be sucked in. Now I am clear why flying eaglesare sucked in if at all they flew 4-5 feet away from propeller and creating propeller/engineproblems. Q10 Did the Mahabharata happen beforethe Indus Valley? A10 Prathyush K.,History buff Jan 26 It is certain thatthis question comes from someone who has never read Mahabharata. The stories in Mahabharata occur in late ironage India which is muchlater than the Indus Valley Civilization. The battles were foughtwith iron weapons. Iron agedidn't begin until 13th century BC. Indus Valley Civilization disappeared muchbefore that. Mahabharatamentions Greeks, Chinese and many other foreign cultures.It also mentionskingdoms including Kerala, Chola, Pandya, Karnataka and Andhra multiple times. Mahabharata, Sabha Parva, Chapter 28, Shloka 48: “पांड्यांश्चद्रविडांश्चैवसहितांश्चोण्ड्रकेरलै: आंध्रास्तालवनांश्चैवकलिंगानुष्ट्रकर्णिकान्।” (The hero brought under his subjection andexacted tributes from the Pandyas and the Dravidas along with the Udra Keralasand the Andhras and the Talavanas, the Kalingas and the Ushtrakarnikas.) So, ifMahabharata is older than the Indus valley civilization, that would mean thesekingdoms are older than it too. No sensible person would believe in that. A good estimatewould be around 200 BCE to 300 CE. But some parts of the story could be as oldas 700 BCE. My note- The QA is added in academic interest. SoIndus valley civilization was during/before dwapara yuga? All the above QA are from Quora website on 01-02-2023 Quora answers need not be100% correct answers . Compiled and posted by R. Gopala Krishnan, 79years, on 01-02-2023 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. 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