Lighting, Please Don’t ‘Barbeque’ Me

Every time when I see a flash over the sky during raining day, I am sure will use my hand to cover my ears. Why I do so? Because every time when the flash pass by and ended, it sure will follow up by an ‘amazing’ and loud sound which will hurt my hearing system. The sound that I am talking about is thunder. Usually, the thunder will come along with lighting; they were just like ‘couple’ and ‘dark-seeker’. I said both of them are ‘couple’ because they can’t be separated, every time during the raining day both of them sure will show up after one and another. Besides, they are also given the name as ‘dark-seeker’ by me because they usually only show up during the heavily raining day when the sky turns into dark. So, today my topic will be more focus on lighting; I will try to explain why lighting these phenomena could be happen.

1st at all, we need to know what is lighting. Lightning is a very dangerous, bright flash of electricity which is produced by the thunderstorm. If you hear the sound of thunder, then you are in high possibilities danger from lightning. Lightning is a ‘killer’ where it kills and injures people more and more each year, where the number of victims is around 75 to 100 people per year.

(Those who ‘hit’ by the lighting can be consider really bad luck. Pity for them. Sigh…)

Lightning is an electric current. The first process that involve in the generation of lightning will be the forcible separation of positive and negative charges within a cloud or air and this process is known as polarisation mechanism. This mechanism involved 2 components. The 1st component is the falling droplets of the ice and the rain become electrically polarized as they fall through the electric field which is created by the atmospheres natural. While the 2nd, will be the collision that occurs between the ice particles. As the result, the ice particles will become electric charged by the process of electrostatic induction. Within a thundercloud way up to the sky, actually it contains many small bits of ice (frozen raindrops) where they bump into each other as they move around in the air. The positive charged crystals (the ice particles) tend to rise to the top of the cloud, causing the cloud top full with positive charge and the negative charges crystals will drop to the middle and bottom layers of the cloud, forming a negatively charged. After a moment, the whole cloud will fills up with electrical charges. Now, cloud-to-cloud lighting can appear at this point. Since there are ‘sufficient’ opposite attraction occurs, it will also cause electric discharge to build up on the ground beneath the cloud, producing the bolt. The grounds electrical charge concentrates around anything that sticks up, such as mountains, people, or trees. The charge coming up from these points eventually connects with a charge reaching down from the clouds and - zoop - lightning strikes!

It has been studied by the researches and found out that these discharges are eventually triggered by the cosmic ray strikes which ionise the atoms and releasing electrons that are accelerated by the electric fields. This will ionise the other air molecules, creating an air conductive pathway and a lightning starts to strike. During the strike, successive portions of air become conductive as the electrons and positive ions (also known as proton) of air molecules which are pulled away from each other and forced to flow in opposite directions (stepped channels called step leaders). When a charged step leader get near to the ground, the attraction of the opposite charges will occurs on the ground and thus creating an electric field. The electric field is much higher on trees and tall buildings. If the electric field is strong enough, a discharge can initiate from the ground. This discharge starts as positive streamer, and if it develops as a positive leader can eventually connect to the descending discharge from the cloud. Lightning can also occur within the ash clouds from eruptions or can be caused by violent forest fires which both of these cases generate sufficient dust to create a static charge.

Ding-Dong ... Experiment time :)

Here are the 2 simple experiments to let you get the opportunity to made lighting and also the thunder on your own. Now faster move your hands and try it out today.


The 1st experiment that we are going to do is….. Lighting Making

Material:

· 1 aluminium pie pan
· 1 small piece of wool fabric
· 1 Styrofoam plate
· 1 pencil with a new eraser
· 1 thumbtack


Procedure:

1. Push the thumbtack through the center of the aluminium pie pan from the bottom

2. Push the eraser end of the pencil into the thumbtack.

3. Put the styrofoam plate on a table with upside-down. Now, quickly rub the underneath of the plate with the wool for a couple of minutes.

4. Pick up the aluminium pie pan using the pencil as a handle and place it on top of the upside-down styrofoam plate that you were just rubbing with the wool.

5. Touch the aluminium pie pan with your finger. You should feel a shock. If you don’t feel anything, try rubbing the styrofoam plate again.

6. Once you feel the shock, try turning the lights out before you touch the pan again. Check out what you see! You should see a spark!! (Bling bling….)

Why could this happen? It is all about the static electricity. In this experiment, lighting could happen because due to the attraction between the positive charges (the aluminium pie pan) and the negative charges (the fingers). The resulting spark is like a mini lightning bolt.



While the 2nd experiment that we are going to do now is ... Made Thunder

(P/s: This experiment is just simple and easy and it sometimes does happen in our daily life, therefore I believe that everyone done this ‘experiment’ before)

Material:

All you need is just a brown paper lunch bag or a normal paper bag

Process:

1. Blow into the brown paper lunch bag and fill it up with air.

2. Twist the open end and close with your hand.

3. Quickly hit the bag with your free hand.

Now you definitely will heard a sound “pup”

The purpose for hitting the bag is to let the air inside the bag to compress quickly and the pressure will breaks the bag. The air which is inside the bag will rushes out and pushes the air outside away from the bag. The air will continued to move forward in a wave. When the moving air reaches our ear, we will hear a sound. Actually, thunder is produced in a similar way. As lightning strikes, the energy which is given off will heat the air through which it passes. This heated air quickly expands and producing energetic waves of air resulting in a sound called thunder.




This is the extra information, extra knowledge:

What causes thunder?Thunder is caused by lightning. When a lightning bolt travels from the cloud to the ground it actually opens up a little hole in the air, called a channel. Once then light is gone the air collapses back in, it creates a sound wave that we hear as thunder. The reason we see lightning before we hear thunder is because light travels faster than sound!




Lighting safety tips !!! (Pay attention here and remember as much as you can)



IF YOU’RE OUTDOORS:

always keep an eye at the sky. Try to look for darkening skies, any flashes of lightning, or increasing winds. The reason for doing this is because lightning often proceed rain, so don’t wait for the rain to begin. If hear the sound of thunder, better go to a safe place immediately. The best or recommended place to go is a sturdy building or get inside the car, but make sure the car’s windows are shut. You should stay away from sheds, picnic areas, baseball dugouts and bleachers. If there is no shelter around, don’t stay under or near the trees. Put your feet together and place your hands over your ears to minimize hearing damage from thunder. If you’re with a group of people stay about 15 feet from each other. Remember, stay out of water, because it’s a great conductor of electricity. Swimming, wading, snorkelling and scuba diving are avoided to carry out. Also, don’t stand in puddles and avoid metal. Stay away from clotheslines, fences, and drop your backpacks because they often have metal on them. If you’re playing an outdoor activity, wait at least 30 minutes after the last observed lightning strike or thunder.

IF YOU’RE INDOORS:

Avoid water as water is a great conductor of electricity, so do not take shower, wash hands, wash dishes or do laundry during lighting. Do not use a corded telephone as lightning may strike exterior phone lines. Do not use electric equipment such as computers and appliances during a storm. If can, stay away from windows and doors and stay off porches.

IF SOMEONE IS STRUCK BY LIGHTNING:

Don’t panic or be ‘busybody’. What should do is faster call for help. Call 9-1-1 or send for help immediately. Is okay to touch the injured person as human does not carry an electrical charge.

If you follow those safety tips, at least it can lower down the posibilities of getting 'hit' by the lighting.

Before I end my post, I would like to ask a question. Do you think lighting is scary and dangerous? In my opinion, although lighting cannot be denied that is a very dangerous and scary phenomena, but if compared to our society today (for instance, murderer cases, rape cases that increasing day by day), lighting is not a big deal, it was just a normal, mother's nature creaction. Don't you think so? Therefore, from now onwards don’t get frighten by the lighting & thunder, you should face it as a men. Haha :D

Is Soya Milk Healthy ?

How do soya milk taste? Hmm… for me, it taste ‘moderate’ sweet and it is nice to drink especially during hot weather. Try to imagine, when you are under a hot sun, the temperature was too high and you almost faint (this is a bit over… haha :p), and suddenly a glass of milky white, sweet, cold soya milk in front of you, what will you do? (Made me feel wan to have a glass now :S lol)

As we all know that soya milk are well known for its benefits that can bring healthy to our body. Even some of the longest living people on earth have made soy milk a part of their daily diet for centuries. Soya milk contains powerful antioxidants that help fight disease and aging. They have been also found to increase bone density and strengthen the immune system. Adequate soy protein has been proven to lower and stabilize cholesterol levels and can be effective in preventing heart disease. Those are just some of its benefit. But, do you know that actually soy is not the healthy food or drink that you think is it. Why I said so? Ladies and gentlemen, today my blog topic will be discussed about

soya milk might bring harmful to our body.

Soya milk products have swept the nation as a healthy source of protein, with a good reputation, showing that being all natural and good for us. However, there is new studies arise some questions over whether the ingredients in soy might increase the risk of breast cancer in some women, affect brain function in men and lead to hidden developmental ab-normalities in infants.
The core of their concerns rests with the chemical makeup of soy: in addition to all the nutrients and protein, soy contains a natural chemical that can mimics the female hormone, the estrogen, Some studies in animals even show that this chemical can alter sexual development. And in fact, 2 glasses of soy milk per day, over the course of one month; it contains enough of the chemical to change the timing of a woman’s menstrual cycle.

How could this happen? Soybeans are reportedly contains an anti-nutrient called "phytic acid", which all beans do. But, soybeans contain a much higher levels of phytic acid if compared to any other legume. It cannot be denied that phytic acid also play an important role in contributing health benefit to our body. Phytic acid may be considered as a phytonutrient, providing an antioxidant effect. Its same mineral binding properties may also prevent colon cancer by reducing oxidative stress in the lumen of the intestinal tract. Researchers agree that phytic acid, found in the fiber of legumes and grains, is the major ingredient responsible for preventing colon cancer and other cancers.

BUT…

At the same time, this Phytic acid may block the absorption of certain minerals, including magnesium, calcium, iron and zinc. As we know that Zinc is the intelligence mineral because it is needed for optimal development and functioning of the brain and nervous system. It plays a role in protein synthesis and collagen formation; it is involved in the blood-sugar control mechanism and thus protects against diabetes; it is needed for a healthy reproductive system. Phytates found in soy products interfere with zinc absorption more completely than with other minerals. Epidemiological studies also shown that people in 3rd World Countries who have high consumption of grains and soy also commonly have deficiencies in these minerals. It must also be noted that this may be of particular concern with regard to babies who are using soy-based infant formulas as soybeans contain very high levels of phytate and they are numerous reports of reduced bioavailablity of various metals. The effects of phytate in soy-formulas are in great concern. The iron and zinc that required for infants developed are well documented, particularly those that relate to cognitive function. Therefore there is no question that infants fed soy-formulas are at greater risk of reduced uptake of various essential minerals compared with breast-fed infants or infants fed other formulas.

Phytic acid (also known as inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6), or phytate when in salt form) is the principal storage form of phosphorus in many plant tissues, especially in bran and seeds. Its molecular formula is C6H18O24P6. Phytic acid is strongly negatively charged (six reactive phosphate groups) over a wide pH range, indicating tremendous potential for complexing or binding with positively charged molecules such as cations or proteins below the isoelectric point. The binding is possible within a phosphate group or between two phosphate groups on either the same or different phytic acid molecules; and the resulting structure is said to be a chelate compound

The molecular structural of Phytic acid

The major form in which phosphorus occurs in plants is myo -inositol -1,2,3,4,5,6 -hexakisphosphate, commonly referred to as phytic acid or InsP6. This compound forms mixed salts with various mineral cations, e.g. potassium, magnesium, iron and zinc (phytates), therefore affecting the nutritional quality of food. Minerals, when bound to InsP6, are hardly or not absorbed in the intestine and are largely excreted, resulting in iron and zinc deficiencies

Let compared the good effect and the bad effect that the soya milk can bring to us

The benefit of drinking soya milk: (others than the above benefit)

1. Soy milk contains only vegetables proteins (vegetarian friendly)
2. Soy milk contains no lactose where it can boost immunity and help decrease toxic substances in the body.
3. Fewer people are allergic to soy milk
4. Soy milk does not cause insulin dependent diabetes
5. Soy milk reduces cholesterol
6. Soy milk is rich in isoflavones

While the bad effect that can bring to our body:

1. Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause infertility and to promote breast cancer in adult women.
2. Soy phytoestrogens are potent antithyroid agents that cause hypothyroidism and may cause thyroid cancer. In infants, consumption of soy formula has been linked to autoimmune thyroid disease.
3. Soy foods contain high levels of aluminum which is toxic to the nervous system and the kidneys.
4. Trypsin inhibitors in soy interfere with protein digestion and may cause pancreatic disorders. In test animals soy containing trypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.
5. Vitamin B12 analogs in soy are not absorbed and actually increase the body's requirement for B12.
6. Processing of soy protein results in the formation of toxic lysinoalanine and highly carcinogenic nitrosamines

How to reduces the phytic acid in our daily life's food ??

Refer the pictures below

Actually everything has their own pros and cons, it just depends on how you think and the way you view it. If you are a soya milk lover, I hope after you see this page wont affect your love towards the soya milk. ;) CHEERS

Please Stop Made Me Cry

Every weekend I will be going back to my hometown (im from Seremban mah). And every weekend my mom sure will cook some delicious dinner for me (according to her, since I have been staying outside and no one taking care of me so when I going back home, she will cook some nice dinner for me. hahaha ) Last week, when I reach home, my mom was busy preparing the ingredients for dinner purpose. In order to prove that I am not that kind of person which is just sit at the dinner table and wait for the food come, so I volunteer myself to become the ‘chef’ helper (actually I dunnoe how to cook :S but at least I can help my mom wash the plates and do some easy stuff :)) I look at the onion which its skin is not peeling off, so I tell my mom that I will peel the onion skin off. At 1st, my mom stops me for doing this because she said I will be regret for taking this job. But I just wonder why my mom said so. I look at those cute, little red onion, I don’t think they can hurt me anyway so I still stand for the decision that I had made. When I want start my task which is peeling the onion skin off, my brother came out from his room. He looked at me with his evil smile on his face. But I ignore him although I start having a feeling that I had done the wrong decision. So I start my job. At the beginning, everything run smoothly and ‘peacefully’ but when the time passed by I felt that my tears start flowing out without any reason, later on my tears flowing out non-stop just like heavily rain, I can’t control my tears and it was so suffering. When my devil brother looked at me, he started laugh out loud and my mom quickly stop me for continuing pealing the onion skin, ask me wash my hand and eyes. My mom told me that it is ‘normal’ reaction when pealing the onion skin off. At the same time, my brother was ‘finish’ laughing at me; he went through the internet and found the information to show me why that reaction could happen. (Thank for my bro because giving me such an useful info although he laugh at me just now :))

Onion is one of the members in Allium vegetables’ family. They contain volatile oils that help to give Allium vegetables their distinctive flavours and made them yummier. This volatile oil contains a class of organic molecules known as amino acid sulfoxides. When we peel, cut or crush an onion's cell, it will start release the enzymes known as allinases, which convert these molecules into sulfenic acids. The sulfenic acids is an unstable structure, it will spontaneously rearrange into thiosulfinates, which produce a pungent odor and at the same time got the blame for our tears. The acids are also converted by the LF-synthase enzyme into a gas called syn-propanethial-S-oxide, also known as the Lachrymatory (crying) Factor. Syn-propanethial-S-oxide is a chemical which can triggers the tears. It only takes about 30 seconds to start crying after you make the first cut, that’s the time needed for syn-propanethial-S-oxide formation to peak.

the 3D structure of syn-propanethial-S-oxide

the structure of allinases


the structure of sulfenic acids
(the unstable structure of sulfenic acids)

How sulfenic acid rearrange into thiosulfinates


Here is the process on how the eyes trigger tears when cutting an onion. The front surface of the eye which is the cornea will serve several purposes; the main purpose is to provide the protection against physical and chemical irritants. The cornea is densely populated with sensory fibers of the ciliary nerve, a branch of the massive trigeminal nerve that sense touch, temperature and pain from the face and front of the head. The cornea also receives a smaller number of autonomic motor fibers that activate the lachrymal (tear) glands. The free nerve endings detect the syn-propanethial-S-oxide on the cornea and drive activity in the ciliary nerve, which the central nervous system will interprets as a burning sensation--in proportion to the compound's concentration. Now the brain will say "more water to protect the eyes from irritants". This nerve activity reflexively activates the autonomic fibers, which then carry a signal back to the eye ordering the lachrymal glands to wash the irritant away. That’s the reason why we cry when cutting or peeling the skin of the onion

Do you know that eating onion can ensure healthy life ???

When we searching for the reason (searching and searching) we also found out that actually eating onion can bring a lot of benefit. Onions contained the chemicals which act as the effective agents against fungal and bacterial growth; they protect against stomach, colon and skin cancers; they have anti-inflammatory, antiallergenic, antiasthmatic and antidiabetic actions; and they treat causes of cardiovascular disorders, including hypertension, hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia while also inhibiting platelet aggregation.

The price of this goodness is tears.



Follow this few steps can made your life easier:

Step 1
First peel your onion and wash it under cold water. This is to take some of the acids off.

Step 2
Now, turn on the exhaust fan and cut into the onion once, chopping it in half. Then wash your knife to get the outer layer's acids off of it.

Step 3
Since the onion releases a gas which stings your eyes when you cut from the outside in, turn it over so the inside faces you.

Step 4
Wash it with cold water again, and cut the onion with the inside still facing you. This will minimize the chances of the enzymes on the outer layer of the onion entering and mixing in with the inner meat's enzymes.
Thus, you won't have the gas, thus you will not cry.

OR

You could also go through your days wearing goggles, to ward off any onion-gases that might be coming from 100-yards away!

haha :P -------->


From now on, when we cutting the onion, there will be no more tears and what we have is only smile. Therefore, when you are cutting the onion, said cheese :D


 
Stop Crying & Start Smiling... Cheers

I am in LOVE…I am in love with CHOCOLATE !!! YUMMY

Every people have their own way to release their tension, anger or overcome the depression and the moody feeling. For instance, some of them choose to eat a lots when get upset. Some of them like to go for exercise to release their tension or anger. Some of them even choose to take alcohol and get drunk so can forget the bad moment. But for me, when I get upset, moody, depress, angry, happy and excited I always eat chocolate. In another way to said it, actually I am addicted to chocolate and I LOVE chocolate so much

Let’s back to the history and have a look where how does chocolate come from. Chocolate comprises a number of raw and processed foods that are produced from the seed of the tropical cacao tree. It is native to lowland, tropical South America; cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Central America and Mexico, with its earliest documented use around 1100 BC. (Wow… quite long time that chocolate had been exists O.o) At that time, it was used in Mesoamerica both as a beverage, and as an ingredient in foods. Chocolate has been used as a drink for nearly all of its history. The earliest record of using chocolate dates back before the Olec

The hot chocolate drink (yummy.. )

There are 5 types of chocolate. 1st is the pure, unsweetened chocolate where it contains primarily cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions. Unsweetened chocolate is pure chocolate liquor, also known as bitter or baking chocolate. It is unadulterated chocolate: the pure, ground, roasted chocolate beans impart a strong, deep chocolate flavor. 2nd, the much of the chocolate consumed today is in the form of sweet chocolate, combining chocolate with sugar. 3rd, the milk chocolate where the sweet chocolate are additionally add with milk powder or condensed milk. The 4th is the "White chocolate" (usually I called it as ‘snow white’. Hehe). It contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk but no cocoa solids. The 5th which also the final type of the chocolate will be the dark chocolate (my ‘dark’ prince) Dark chocolate is produced by adding fat and sugar to the cacao mixture. It has been promoted for its health benefits, as it seems to possess substantial amount of antioxidants that reduce the formation of free radicals. (I am just so in love with all those chocolate) :D

chocolate.... chocolate.... chocolate...

Actually, chocolate contains alkaloids namely theobromine. It has been linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Theobromine is the active ingredient in chocolate and it occurs only in Cacao. Theobromine also known as xantheose, it is a bitter alkaloid and it belongs to a class of alkaloid molecules known as methylxanthines. Methylxanthines naturally occur in as many as sixty different plant species and include caffeine (the primary methlyxanthine in coffee) and theophylline (the primary methylxanthine in tea). Derive from its name, the compound contains no bromine — theobromine actually derived from the word of Theobroma, the name of the genus of the cacao tree, (which itself is made up of the Greek roots theo ("God") and brosi ("food"), meaning "food of the Gods" with the suffix -ine given to alkaloids and other basic nitrogen-containing compounds

Theobromine is a water insoluble, crystalline, bitter powder; the colour has been listed as either white or colourless. It has a similar, but lesser, effect to caffeine, making it a lesser homologue. Theobromine is an isomer of theophylline as well as paraxanthine. Theobromine is categorized as a dimethyl xanthine, which means it is a xanthine with two methyl groups.

the molecular structure of theobromine

The properties and advantages of theobromine:
---> gentle

---> mild effect

---> very slow onset

---> 50% in bloodstream after 6 to 10 hrs

---> increases feeling of well being

---> mild antidepressant

---> gentle, smooth, sensual

---> stimulation stimulates cardiovascular system

---> stimulates muscular system

---> mild effect on central nervous system

---> almost no one is allergic

---> not addictive

---> no withdrawal symptoms

---> mild diuretic stimulates the kidneys

Besides, Theobromine has been used as a drug for its diuretic effect, particularly in cases where cardiac failure has resulted in an accumulation of body fluid. It has been administered with digitalis in order to relieve dilatation. Because of its ability to dilate blood vessels, theobromine also has been used to treat high blood pressure.

The benefit of eating chocolate:

---> cocoa is the vital source for vitamin, minerals and other nutrients such as magnesium, which stimulates brain memory

---> positive effect on the respiratory system and central nervous system
---> benefit the circulatory system
---> anticancer
---> cough preventer
---> antidiarrhoeal effect
---> brain stimulator

Is quite amazing get to know that actually chocolate can bring so many advantages and it benefit to our body. So … why don’t you get a bite now??

Follow the following steps may bring you a happy day ;)

1st step ~ buys a brand of chocolate that you like to eat
2nd step ~ finds a comfort place where you usually lay down or sit on it or find a place that made you feel relax (e.g. sofa)
3rd step ~ just gets a bite on the chocolate and enjoys it (of course before you eat, you need to open the packet of the chocolate. LOL)

im loving it


Tats all, although it sounds just very simple but actually it works (believe me, it is a miracle).

So just relax and smile