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Boxing

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Boxing

Get in stance and time your punches.

  • Boxing is also known as ‘pugilism’, ‘prizefighting’ and ‘the sweet science’, and is a one on one sport, where the aim is to punch the opponent with boxing gloves, which can include knocking the opponent out, and to score the most points.
  • Boxing is divided into one to three minute rounds, with up to 12 rounds in a match, and one minute rests between rounds, although amateur boxing usually has only three rounds.
  • The first recorded history of boxing, with gloves, was in 2000 – 1000 BC in Sardinia, Europe, although carvings from Egypt and Iraq show that boxing has existed for at least 4500 – 5000 years.
  • Thousands of years ago, to most recently, a few hundred years ago, many boxers died due to lack of rules, or metal included in the opponent’s gloves, and even though the fatality rate has dropped significantly, there are still many deaths of boxers, with at least 200 since 1980.
  • Boxing became part of the Ancient Olympic Games, and was reintroduced into the modern Olympics in 1904, although it was not included in the programme in the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden, as the country prohibited boxing.

Boxing, Yellow, Men, Red, Punch, Play, Hawaii, 2012, Ten Random Facts, Flickr,

Boxing
Image courtesy of Family MWR/Flickr
  • Boxing in the Olympics is deemed as ‘amateur boxing’, and this style of boxing is said to be a good stepping stone to becoming the more popular, ‘professional boxer’.
  • Amateur boxing has a slightly different scoring method to professional boxing, and does not aim for physical damage, but clean blows, and helmets and shirts are worn.
  • In boxing you are not allowed to punch below the belt, and can’t hold, trip, push, bite or spit on your opponent.
  • Since punching with bare fists can damage the puncher’s hands, boxing gloves and wrist wraps should always be worn.
  • Professional boxing is dangerous, and is banned in Norway, Iceland, North Korea, Cuba and Iran, and was previously prohibited in Sweden and Albania, while the medical profession in a number of other countries has also urged for a ban on the sport, due to brain damage and other long term injuries that many boxers receive.
Bibliography:
Boxing, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing>

Monsters, Inc.

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Monsters, Inc.

Monsters Incorporation.

  • Monsters, Inc. is a computer animated movie that premiered on November 2001, and runs for approximately 92 minutes.
  • Monsters, Inc. was made for Walt Disney Pictures, by Pixar Animation Studios.
  • Pete Docter, the film’s director, started work on Monsters, Inc. in 1996.
  • Monsters, Inc. grossed $62, 577, 067 at the box office, in America, on its first weekend which ranked it first on the box office chart, and grossed over $562 million dollars worldwide during its season.
  • Monsters, Inc. is about a monster incorporation that collects children’s screams, but a two year old human girl enters the monster portal and the adventures begin.

Monster, Inc., Movie, Pixar, Film, Video, Case, G, Ten Random Facts

  • The idea for Monsters, Inc. came about in 1994, during the making of Toy Story.
  • The original story of Monsters, Inc. used a 30 year old man who was afraid of monsters, but the character was changed to a two year old girl who generally was not afraid of monsters.
  • The main characters of Monsters, Inc. are a blue monster named James P ‘Sulley’ Sullivan, a green monster named Michael ‘Mike’ Wazowski, and a two year old girl named Mary ‘Boo’.
  • Monsters, Inc. was released as a 3D movie in December 2012 and its prequel, ‘Monsters University’, has been released in June 2013.
  • Monsters, Inc. won an Academy Award for the best original song, ‘If I didn’t have you’ written by Randy Newman, and the film was nominated for many others.
Bibliography:
Monsters, Inc., 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsters,_Inc.>

Monsters Inc. Monsters Inc. (Blu-ray/DVD)

Great Pyramid of Giza

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Great Pyramid of Giza

A very, very, very large tomb.

  • The Great Pyramid of Giza is also known as Pyramid of Khufu and Pyramid of Cheops.
  • The Great Pyramid of Giza is believed to be a burial pyramid for Pharaoh Khufu, and is located near Cairo, Egypt.
  • The Great Pyramid of Giza is said to have taken 10 to 20 years to be built, and was built around 2500-2600 BC.
  • The Great Pyramid of Giza was originally 146.5 metres (481 feet) in height (although it is now about 9 metres shorter), being the tallest man-made structure until around 1300 AD, 3800 years since construction, and is equivalent to a modern 48 storey building.
  • The Great Pyramid of Giza is the only discovered Egyptian pyramid that has pathways that go up and down.
 Pyramid, Great, Giza, Egypt, Burial, Khufu, Cheops, Pharoh, King, Ten Random Facts, Structures, Sand, Desert, Free Digital Photos
The Great Pyramid of Giza
Image courtesy of Arvind Balaraman/ Free Digital Photos
  • It is estimated that 2,300,000 limestone blocks were used in the construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza, most of them weighing 2 tonnes (2.2 tons) each, and the pyramid was covered with smooth casing stones which were taken and used to build some of the buildings in Cairo.
  • The entrance to the Great Pyramid of Giza is 17 meters (56 feet) above ground level, so tourists use the Robbers’ tunnel to enter the pyramid.
  • The Great Pyramid of Giza covers an area of 13 acres (5.2 hectares) and is oriented to the four main compass points.
  • Three pits sit around the Great Pyramid of Giza, all boat shaped, and a fourth hidden pit contained 1,224 wooden pieces of a boat, which was assembled over a period of 14 years, to make a 43.6 metres (143 ft) long boat.
  • The Great Pyramid of Giza is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Bibliography:
Great Pyramid of Giza, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pyramid_of_Giza>

Moses-in-the-Cradle

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Moses-in-the-Cradle

It’s actually a flowering plant.

  • Moses-in-the-cradle is a plant from the family Commelinaceae, which is the family of day flowers, wandering jew and spiderworts.
  • Moses-in-the-cradle is a perennial clumping plant native to southern Mexico, and Central America, and grows to approximately 30 cm (11.8 inches).
  • Moses-in-the-cradle’s scientific name was originally Rhoeo discolour, then Rhoeo spathacea and it is now Tradescantia spathacea.
  • Moses-in-the-cradle’s scientific name is named after John Tradescant senior and junior who were plant importers and collectors in the 16th and 17th centuries.
  • Moses-in-the-cradle is also known by many other names, including ‘boat lily’; ‘cradle lily’, ‘oyster plant’ and other variations of ‘Moses-in-the-cradle’.

 Moses-in-a-Cradle, Plant, Green, Purple, white, Background, brick, stone, three, flowerless

  • Moses-in-the-cradle plants have attractive dark green leaves, with a purple underside, and are generally grown for their foliage.
  • Moses-in-the-cradle plants can be easily grown from cuttings, seeds or discarded or damaged plants, and are very hardy, although they don’t like frost.
  • Moses-in-the-cradle plants can self pollinate, and they develop small, white, three petalled flowers that open out of purple boat or cradle shaped bracts, at any time of the year, hence the name ‘Moses-in-the-cradle’.
  • Moses-in-the-cradle plants have been introduced in many parts of the world, and they have become an invasive pest in many areas, including Florida, United States and some parts of Australia, as they can grow almost anywhere and can even be found growing on walls.
  • The sap of Moses-in-the-cradle plants can cause stinging and will burn one’s mouth and throat if any of the plant is consumed.
Bibliography:
Tradescantia Spathacea, 2012, Some Magnetic Island Plants, <http://www.somemagneticislandplants.com.au/index.php/plants/374-tradescantia-spathacea>

Fire Blanket

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Fire Blanket

Fire alarm goes off – Get the blanket!

  • Fire blankets are sheets of fabric that are made out of the most fire resistant materials.
  • Fire blankets are used to cover a small fire and extinguish it by removing the oxygen, which smothers the fire.
  • Large fire blankets are used in science labs and industries, and special welding blankets are produced.
  • Fire blankets are most commonly used for clothing or cooking fires, and a person can be wrapped and rolled in a fire blanket if their clothing has caught on fire.
  • Typically fire blankets are 1.2 x 1.2 m (3.9 x 3.9 feet), 1.2 x 1.8 m (3.9 x 5.9 feet), or 1.8 x 1.8 m (5.9 x 5.9 feet) in size, and the 1.2 x 1.8 metre fire blanket is large enough to wrap around an adult if their clothes have caught on fire.

Fire Blanket, 1 meter by 1 meter, red, white, packet, old, open, spread, Australia, Ten Random Facts, fire

  • Fire blankets are easy to use,  and generally to use them you pull the tabs, open up the blanket, carefully put it over the fire, turn off the heat source and wait 15 minutes before removing the blanket, as it is likely to be hot and can burn your hands.
  • Fire blankets are normally thrown out after use.
  • Fire blankets are usually made out of woven fibreglass or wool, although some fire blankets have a gel layer, which helps protect a person wrapped in the blanket, and keeps them cool.
  • Fire blankets should be placed away from areas that could catch on fire, such as an oven or stove, and should be easily accessible.
  • If there is a fire, sometimes it is better to use a fire blanket rather than a fire extinguisher, especially for chemically sensitive equipment, although they are not suitable for electrical fires.
Bibliograhpy:
Fire Blanket, 2013, Victorian Fire Protection, <http://www.vfp.com.au/products/fire-extinguisher/fire-blanket.html>

Zebra

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Zebra

Black and white stripes.

  • Zebras are from the family Equidae, which is the family of horses, although they are generally slower than their cousins, and they run in a zig zag line when chased.
  • Zebras are known for their black and white stripey patterns that cover their body, head and legs, with no two zebras having the exact same pattern.
  • Zebras are found in African grasslands, scrublands, woodlands, mountainous areas, savannas, and coastal areas.
  • There are three different species of zebras, plains zebras; mountain zebras; and Grévy’s zebras, with the plains zebras being the most common, and the other two species are endangered.
  • One sub species of plains zebra is extinct due to hunting – the quagga, which did not have a full body of stripes.
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 Zebras
Image courtesy of National Geographic
  • Tests have shown that the stripes on zebras help reduce the attractiveness of flies.
  • Zebras grow up to 350 kg (770 pounds) in weight and between 1 and 1.6 metres (3 ft 2 and 5 ft 3) to their shoulder in height.
  • Zebras are herbivores, and mainly eat grass, and can exist on low quality feed.
  • Zebras always sleep standing up, but they only do it when there are fellow zebras on watch for predators like lions and hyenas.
  • Zebras have not been domesticated due to their panicky and unpredictable nature, although there have been single cases of zebras trained for human use.
Bibliography:
Zebra, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebra>
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