Flowers Magzine (March 2011)

QURAN O HADITH

MEET THE EDITOR

Dear Readers,

Assalam-o-Alaikum. Here’s the latest issue of March with the theme of National Crafts Month. As you all might be thinking that this issue’s theme should be 23rd March , let me tell you why its not the theme. In the issue of March 2010 It is already a cover theme so it will not look suitable theme with a new issue and we might not have enough articles about it. Now let me introduce you to a new contributor Shafia Abbasi who has sent us a sweet poem “My country, my identity, my pride, my love”.. You will read it in this issue. There’s one more contribution from Yamna Iman, you have already read one of her poem before. You can also send some story or article or a poem etc to some special day like related to some cover theme. If it is good we can include your article and make it as a cover theme.
Once again, a request. Please, please send your contributions. The magazine is really looking bad without your writings. You can send poems , essays, stories and a lot more things. Send your contributions at flowersmag09@gmail.com . Will meet in the next issue. Till then Allah Hafiz.

Qintra
Editor

Amazing Facts

• Do you know Printers spy on you? Printer manufacturers print invisible yellow dots on consumer's prints that check to see if a person is printing counterfeit money. If you call your printer manufacturer and ask them to "please stop spying on you", they will send secret services to your address to find out why you care about your privacy. Upset?
• It is possible to see a rainbow as a complete circle from an aeroplane.
• A liter of vinegar is heavier in winter than in summer.
• Copper turns green when exposed to air for a pretty long time.
• Nitrous oxide can make you laugh. That is why it is called laughing gas.

CRAZY RIDDLES - By Yamna Iman Wasif

Q1. How many months have 28 days?
Q2. Which weighs more, a pound of feathers or a pound of bricks?
Q3. What kind of tree can you carry in your hand?
Q4. What has one eye but cannot see?

Answers

1. All months

2. Both weigh equal

3. Palm 4. Needle

Poetry by Joyce Armor

Excuses, Excuses

I couldn't do my homework.
I had asthma and was wheezing.
I had nosebleeds, measles, heat rash,
with some very painful sneezing,
and itchy skin with blisters-
oh so blotchy red and hivy-
malaria and toothaches,
and a patch of poison ivy,
eight spider bites and hair loss,
and a broken leg with scabies,
Rocky Mountain spotted fever,
and a full-blown case of rabies.
I suffered-it was awful-
but I'm feeling better now.
Could I have done my homework?
No, I really don't see how.

INTERESTING SCIENCE HISTORY

JABIR- IBN-E- HAYYAN
Jabir Ibn Hayyan is known as “Father of Chemistry”. Abu Musa Jabir Ibn Hayyan, , was the son of the druggist (Attar).He practiced medicine and alchemy in Kufa around 776 C.E. He studied under Imam Ja'far Sadiq and the Umayyad prince Khalid Ibn Yazid. Jabir's major contribution was in the field of chemistry. He introduced experimental investigation into alchemy, which rapidly changed its character into modern chemistry. On the ruins of his well-known laboratory remained after centuries, but his fame rests on over 100 monumental treatises, of which 22 relate to chemistry and alchemy. His contribution of fundamental importance to chemistry includes perfection of scientific techniques such as crystalization, distillation, calcinations, sublimation and evaporation and development of several instruments for the same. The fact of early development of chemistry as a distinct branch of science by the Arabs, instead of the earlier vague ideas, is well-established and the very name chemistry is derived from the Arabic word al-Kimya, which was studied and developed extensively by the Muslim scientists. His major practical achievement was the discovery of mineral and others acids. Apart from chemistry, he also contributed to other sciences such as medicine and astronomy. His books on chemistry, including his Kitab-al-Kimya, and Kitab al-Sab'een were translated into Latin and various European languages. These translations were popular in Europe for several centuries and have influenced the evolution of modern chemistry. Several technical terms devised by Jabir, such as alkali, are today found in various European languages and have become part of scientific vocabulary. In the words of Max Mayerhaff, the development of chemistry in Europe can be traced directly to Jabir Ibn Hayyan.

Fruits and Vegetables

Cherry
Hmmm… Mouth watering for a cherry? Yes it will be. Well today let’s study them and find a great deal of information about this red fruit. Cherry is a small red fruit from the family of Rosaceae. Cherry trees are deciduous trees that vary in size, ranging from 6 to 30 feet tall (9m). They bear pink blossoms in the spring, and then bear fruit. Depending on the type of tree, the fruit is either very sweet or very sour. The bark of the cherry tree is a reddish brown color. Its leaves are usually 2 to 6 inches long and vary from pale to a very dark green. The bark also has distinct markings called lenticels. In the fall, the leaves of the cherry tree change into brilliant reds, pinks and oranges. Cherries grow throughout most of North America, Asia and Europe. They can also be found in Northern Africa. It is thought that the cherry tree originates from Asia. Cherries are high in antioxidants, help reduce the risk of cancer, inflammatory problems, and heart disease. They are low in fat, calories, and have a high water. Cherries also contain melatonin, which helps slow the aging process and helps regulate sleep patterns. Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Bioflavonoid, Perillyl, Anthocyanins and Melatonin. Now for those who don’t eat cherries (there maybe a large number) if understood the benefits would certainly eat cherries, won’t you???

Book Review

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Roald Dahl wrote an amazing book called Fantastic Mr. Fox. It’s a book full of humour, tricks and plans of cleverness and a bit of suspense. It’s about 3 mean farmers who hate Mr. Fox because he steals their food from their store. They are waiting for him with a gun, making plans to dig or starve him out. But Mr. Fox with his cleverness has better and trickier plans for them. Read this book and find out what Mr. Fox is going to do with them!

Poem - My Country is my identity - By Shafia Abbasi

My Country is my identity, My Pride, My love!!!

Pakistan is my country
Welfare is my culture
Peace is my command
Cease fire is my demand

Mr. Jinnah is my pride
Restlessness is my enemy
But every body wants to roam
For agitation on the road

All people are foolish
They behave like monkeys
Some are men
But majority donkeys

I lost my glory
I lost my dignity
Where is my pride?
Where is my peaceful country?

Questions and Answers

How does pressure effect weather?

Weather easily is defined as the air or atmosphere is like at that time. Air pressure differs across all parts of the Earth’s surface and this difference causes winds. Air moves from the area where high pressure (also called anticyclone) or to an area where low pressure (also called depression) is present. Low pressures or depressions are mostly connected with bad weather conditions and rainfall. A barometer measures these changes in air pressure.

Quotable Quotes

A mistake is always forgivable, rarely excusable and always unacceptable.
Robert Fripp

Always forgive your enemies - nothing annoys them so much.
Oscar Wilde

Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names.
John F. Kennedy
Around the world in each issue

OCEANIA

Oceania (also known as Australia) is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. It is the smallest continent, too with an area of 8,536,716 km2 (3,296,044 sq mi), population of of 35,670,000 people with 14 countries and 28 official languagesIt comprised four regions: Polynesia, Micronesia, Malaysia (now called the Malay Archipelago), and Melanesia (now called Australasia). There is a variety of sports played like Pacific Games, Rugby League (a very popular one ) Rugby Union, Cricket, Australian rules football, Association football (soccer) etc. Let’s come to history. Oceania was first settled by the Polynesian people around 2,000 years ago. Then was explored by Europeans from the 16th century then the Spanish. Now comes economy. The overwhelming majority of people living in Oceania work in the service industry which includes tourism, education and financial services. Oceania's largest export markets include Japan, China, the United States and South Korea. Tourism has become a large source of income for many in the Pacific; tourists come from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the United Kingdom and the USA. Fiji currently draws almost half a million tourists each year; more than a quarter from Australia. Agriculture and natural resources constitutes only 5% to 10% of Oceania's total jobs, but contributes substantially to export performance.

Now or never Pamphlet

Choudhry Rahmat Ali , one of the founders of Pakistan had designed a pamphlet. Now or never (28th January 1933) in which Pakistan and its provinces was used for the first time. He was living in England that time. Some of the part (short letter is enclosed here:
3, Humberstone Road,
Cambridge, England.
28th January, 1933
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am enclosing herewith an appeal on behalf of the thirty million Muslims of PAKISTAN, who live in the five Northern Units of India--Punjab, North-West Frontier (Afghan) Province, Kashmir, Sind, and Baluchistan. It embodies their demand for the recognition of their national status, as distinct from the other inhabitants of India, by the grant to Pakistan of a separate Federal Constitution on religious, social and historical grounds.
I shall be pleased if you will kindly acquaint me with your valuable opinion on the proposed solution of the great Hindu-Muslim problem. I trust that, vitally interested as you are in a just and permanent solution of that complex problem, the objects outlined in the appeal wiIl meet with your fullest approval and active support.
Yours truly,
Rahmat Ali (Choudhary). (Founder, Pakiistan National Movement)
First issued 1933; reissued 1934 .

Cover Theme - National Crafts Month

For all the people who have the artistic temperament, here’s your chance to get crafty! Yes, March is declared as NATIONAL CRAFTS MONTH! Many art exhibitions and such kind of activities are mostly held in March.
Flowers Magazine is also letting you have a complete fun to get crafty. Here’s a gift of Art & Craft websites:

http://www.allcrafts.net/

http://www.myartsandcrafts.com/

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/

http://www.crayola.com/

http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/

POEM by Zainab Anwar

POEM THE MEANING OF LIFE

One day I met a wise old an
Who was sitting in the park
And there upon the bench with him
We talked ‘till early dark

He told me of his travels
To a far off distant land
Where the secret meaning of our lives
Was taught to him first hand

I listened to his story
Amazed by what he said
The simple truth of which he spoke
Was knowledge not widespread

In great detail he did explain
What life was all about
And how the answer we do seek
We don’t have to be without

There was something in his message
That I could not reject
A wisdom that I understood
So simple and direct

My life forever has been changed
By the words I heard that day
A concept old as life itself
And by far the one true way

An answer to the question why
And the reason we exist
Solutions I would not now
If my walk that that was missed