#327BC

[whencyclopedia]

Oxus

The Oxus is a river, today called Amu Darya in its western part and Wakhsh in its eastern parts, which flows for a length of 2400 km across modern Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan into Lake Aral. In Ancient times it crossed the regions Fergana, Bactria, Oxeiana, Sogdiana and Khiva. The Oxus and the Iaxartes are called twin rivers, because of their same destination, almost similar trajectories and because they both are thankless rivers, naturally irrigating only very few areas through which they flow. However, like the Iaxartes, the Oxus allowed large-scale irrigation systems which was the main reason of its area's rich history. The Oxus was the nucleus of the successive Bactrian civilizations and kingdoms. The river was the borderline between the Persian satrapy of Sogdiana northward and Bactria southward, whereas the western part belongs to nomads. Several cities were founded here, mostly known under their Greek names, like Alexandreia Oxeiana (actual Termez). Alexander the Great came across the river three times between 329 and 327 BC. Later, the Eastern part of the Oxus was the nucleus of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom, whereas the western part, especially the Khiva Oasis, was the land of the Parni, who later became the Parthians invading the Seleucid empire.

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[food0drink]

Bananas: All That Potassium And Carmen Miranda Too!

"We have old-fashioned tomahto, Long Island potahto, but Yes, we have no bananas. We have no bananas today.."- Folk song by Frank Silver and Irving Cohen (1923)

Whether you are off to Rio following the colorful trail of Carmen Miranda's fruit-filled hat or seated on your couch contemplating the universe, the banana can always come along for the ride. There are so many aspects to this strange and wonderful fruit. Even its shape is a bit mysterious; conjuring images of tropical islands and sun-filled days. Did you know that the word "banana" originates from the Arabic and means finger? Doesn't that make you wonder where the rest of the hand is? I have been hooked on bananas ever since I was a child, and Miss Chiquita, drawn by Dik Brown who also created the Campbell kids, used to sing to me through the television in my parents' living room. (I always wondered why she never had her own show. She was so much cuter than Ed Sullivan.) You remember her words:

I'm Chiquita Banana and I'm here to say

Bananas need to ripen in a special way

When they are flecked with brown and have a golden hue

Bananas taste the best and are the best for you.

The banana is so popular in America today that four million tons of them are imported every year. Not to compare apples to oranges, but rather apples to bananas, a banana has less water, fifty percent more food energy, four times the protein, half the fat, twice the carbohydrate, almost three times the phosphorus, five times the Vitamin C and iron and at least twice the other vitamins and minerals as a single apple! The average American eats 33 pounds of bananas a year. An excellent source of potassium and carbohydrates, they can be eaten any time of the day because of their digestive properties. Natural sugar provides energy for those sports requiring endurance and low proportions of sodium chloridium render a good recommendation for salt free diets.

That's all quite impressive, I know, but where did the banana come from in the first place? Did it arrive as a conundrum along with the chicken or the egg, or did both of them precede it? Buddhist texts from 600bc mention the banana for the first time in history. Alexander The Great tasted bananas in the Indus Valley in 327bc and in his day they were called pala. China records the presence of banana plantations as far back as 200ad (way before the birth of Scarlet O'Hara). In 650 ad Islamic conquerors brought bananas back to Palestine and through trade spread them all over Africa. They were unknown to the New World until 1516 when the first root stocks were brought here by Spanish missionary, Father Tomas de Berlanger.

So much for traveling. How do they grow? The whole matter is extremely confusing. The banana tree itself (even though it is not a tree but a giant plant) is by definition an herb. What is an herb? Without passing go or collecting $200, the answer is a flowering plant with a fleshy, rather than woody, stem. Each stem consists of ten to fourteen hands, each carrying from eighteen to twenty bananas. The stem, however is a false one, formed by tightly wrapped overlapping leaves, resembling stalks of celery. The plant belongs to the same family as lilies, orchids and palms and the fruit is a berry. By definition, a berry is a simple fruit having a skin surrounding one or more seeds in a fleshy pulp. A banana cut lengthwise will reveal very tiny black seeds within its center. Therefore, a banana is a fruit, herb, berry and plant all at the same time. The expression "going bananas" probably came into vogue during the time all of these terms were being defined, don't you think?

There are about four hundred different varieties of this fabulous fruit, but don't tell Carmen Miranda. (Apart from the fact that she is dead and you couldn't possibly, there is no way the woman could fit one more piece of anything on top of one of her hats!) The three chief imported brands are Chiquita, Bonita and Fyffes. The Chiquita (according to her whom I trust implicitly) is always a guarantee of quality. Its production sites are located in Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica and Columbia. The Bonita banana hails from Ecuador and is the cheapest of the three, but only because it is never advertised. Fyffe's founded in 1888, has the distinction of being the oldest fruit brand in the world. These bananas are produced in Belize, Columbia, Honduras, Suriname, Jamaica and The Windward Islands.

Harvesting is a race against time that starts while the banana is still green. From harvest to delivery at the supermarket twenty days remain before spoilage occurs. Transportation is done with specialized refrigerated cargo ships, each containing some 250,000 boxes of bananas collected the day before. The bananas are stocked in "ripening rooms" for six to eight days at a temperature that can not exceed 14.5C. This temperature allows a homogenous ripening of the bananas of different sizes.

The color of a banana's skin indicates its degree of ripeness, but here is a more precise guide. Green bananas are not ripe, but can be safely used in soups and stews. Yellow with green tips indicates the fruit is partially ripe and it can be broiled, baked or fried. All yellow bananas are ripe and are best eaten raw or baked into cakes or pies. Yellow bananas with brown freckles are fully ripe and can be eaten raw, in a salad or in any other dishes calling for uncooked fruit. All brown bananas are over ripe, but if the flesh is firm they are still in prime eating condition. Blackened areas indicate bruised fruit and should be avoided.

Bananas can be utilized in hundreds of dishes prepared in as many ways. Roasted, fried, broiled, par boiled, baked, sautéed or eaten raw, the results are always delicious. They wear many hats, so to speak, and can serve as relishes, stuffing for goose, duck, turkey or chicken, sauces, spreads, jellies, jams, candies, cake and pie filling, flour for breads and fresh fruit in salads. There is little that one cannot do with a banana ( except maybe pay a utility bill.) I am sure that Carmen Miranda loved bananas in every way, but dying as she did at such an early age, I wonder if she didn't put more of them on her hats than she ever ate. Chiquita could have told her the truth, but would she have listened? Somehow I tend to doubt that those two would have ever gotten along!

[bhuwank]

THE CAUSE OF LOSS OF POPULARITY OF YOGA AND MEDITATION IN THE PAST

Yoga-meditation was and is the most scientific, complete, practical and effective way to maintain one's health in the best possible state and to keep away from disease. But why Yoga did not have so much popularity in the present era as was expected. The allopathy or modern medical science is still more popular today even in India, the land where Yoga was invented. Let's find out the cause of the setback that the Science of Yoga - Medication had in the last 2000 years.

The cause of this fall was repeated invasion of India from outside, imposition of foreign culture and lack of support from then existing Rolers. Starting from the Greek emperor Alexander's invasion (327BC) India had been over and again invaded by outsiders. It was Taimurlong, Lodis, Tughlaks, Babar and so on. By the time of about 500 AD Yoga got a major blow as the scriptures were burnt, gurukuls (where the students learnt Yoga from their teachers-called Gurus) were abolished and the support base was withdrawn. once the political front settled for 500 years (The Mughal Emperors became stable) there was a possibility that Yoga will become popular again but India was fragmented and so many smaller states started existing and were regularly fighting but India was fragmented and so many smaller states started existing and were regularly fighting with each other. The Yogis, Saints, Gurus thus could not promote the system as they lacked support - Government priorities being War and defense. The science could not have spread to outside countries because of it sea and the mountains - which did not allow it to travel beyond.

By the year 1500AD or so the British rulers came to India. Conversant with the modern medical science (Allopathy) the Britishers promoted drugs and surgery - which gradually became the order of the day. hospitals were opened, Medical colleges were established. The most important advantage to the Modern medical science was the organized way of spreading, more and more scientific research, growing manpower training and infrastructure. Yoga science remained dormant and was followed by only a few.

The Rise in the Popularity of Yoga-meditation again:

Though the medical science could understand and analyze the Body functions, organs, their pathology, the bacteria that cause the infection - they invented new drugs, used surgery after putting anesthetics in the brain and tremendous progress. They went deeper and deeper into the chemical structure, metabolism, hormones using the most modern gadgets - and achieved remarkable results. But they failed in one field very badly - that is to understand the brain mechanisms and production of stress. They could not even measure stress - even by using the most sophisticated equipments. Even, now the medical science does not know and understand 90% of the Brain's functioning.  

Since the Modern Medical Science did not have adequate information about brain - they could not give medical solutions to Stress and stress related diseases. They failed to give suggestions to keep the brain healthy. They failed miserably in solving the diseases which originate at the brain or are greatly influenced by it. All they tried was to nullify the effects of the stress hormones and manufactured drugs to maintain the body normal when stress created its effects. The Psychosomatic diseases grew by leaps and bounds cause remaining unchecked and undetected.

The main central station of the body - the mind/brain/cerebral cortex/emotional cortex, or whatever you call them - was out of their reach. All they could invent were some sleeping tablets, excitatory and depressive drugs. They tried to get Antacids to nullify acids in the stomach, anti blood pressure drugs to lower the blood pressure and so on. All these medicines had their side effects. The surgical means also failed. They could control the disease by giving temporary relief - by producing tons of chemicals (naturally the drug companies did very well).

The same people in the west - who once invented the Medical science, tablets and surgery have realized the complications and side effects of these drugs-chemicals intended to cure diseases and the surgeries being carried out and are looking for better alternatives. Many of them have adopted the ancient way of Yoga and Meditation as a non invasive way to deal with ill health in the last few decades. Now as the Modern Medical Science studies Yoga and Meditation in great depth more and more facts are emerging which support the beneficial effects of Yoga on the human body and mind. This has made yoga more acceptable and popular.

 Hope you liked this blog!

This article is written by Dr. Bimal Chhajer (Best Heart Doctor in Delhi NCR)

[executiveice]

Diamonds have always been a girl’s best friend. Not only girls, it’s adorned the necks and rings of illustrious kings and queens for centuries, and in the process, have cocked up a few fascinating facts through the years.

Here are some interesting facts you can use and impress your partner, or make wearing your engagement ring just a little more special.

Remember one, remember them all. What we guarantee is that your diamond isn’t going to be the only thing that shines at your next social gathering.

1. How they got their name

Did you know that the name ‘diamond’ was derived from the Greek word ‘adamas’ which means ‘untamed’ or ‘unbreakable’?

Make sure you’re still getting quality stones today by buying from a reputable seller.

2. Where they were first discovered 

India and diamonds have a long association, as these precious stones were first collected from Indian streams and rivers. They were first traded among India’s rich and wealthy.

It was only after Alexander the Great’s failed invasion of India in 327BC that he carried and introduced Indian diamonds to Europe. This was the same time India had started using caravans to export diamonds to Europe.

3. South Africa had its very own diamond rush 

Did you know that the largest reservoir of diamonds is in South Africa? It was way back in 1866 that some children found a rock which was no ordinary rock, but an expensive diamond. This discovery was the trigger for the famous South African diamond rush, and many stones found here were used for making well known Victorian diamond jewelry.

4. What they really made of

It was Antoine Lavoisier who had first proven that diamonds were made of carbon in the year 1772. Being a scientist, he managed to prove this by focusing the sun’s rays on a diamond with a lens, in an oxygen-filled environment. The only resulting product was carbon dioxide, proving that diamonds are made of carbon.

5. Alternate creation theories 

The Hindus of ancient India maintained that diamonds were created by a bolt of lightning striking a rock. They also believed that the stones attracted lightning and protected the wearer from harm. This is why it’s said that wearing a diamond helps turn danger away.

6. How engagement rings were born 

The first recorded proof, or rather incident of a diamond ring used for a proposal as an engagement ring was when the Archduke Maxmilian of Austria proposed to Mary of Burgundy in 1477. The ring was M-shaped using thin, flat diamond pieces.

7. Diamonds help build our first cars 

It was Henry Ford who first started using diamonds in the automobile industry. He paid for it’s research so that scientists could come out with lower grade diamonds to use for cutting tools.

8. Biggest diamond ever found

‘Cullinan’ is the name of the largest diamond found so far, named after Sir Thomas Cullinan, whose mine the diamond was found in. The 1.33 pounds stone was found 18 feet underground in Pretoria, South Africa on January 25, 1905 by miner Frederick Wells.

Joseph Asscher was appointed by Sir Thomas to cut the stone, and the final result was a 971-carat diamond. He had actually spent six months studying the diamond before starting to cut it, and ended up fainting from exhaustion after making a few attempts.

Not quiet as big, but still very impressive, these are the top 10 most extravagant celebrity engagement rings of all time.

The post 9 Little Known Diamond Facts You Probably Don’t Know appeared first on ExecutiveIce.com.

[simonwilliamsim]

Today, I had a plan to attend one of the many exhibitions at Seoul Art Center. I have to admit that this exhibition didn’t originally cross my radar but I was glad to have ended up visiting it!

The Alexander the Great meets the Buddha  for non-Korean speakers was actually a very quick exhibition, as there was a great lack of material for non-Korean speakers but I was able to look up and close at each exhibit.

The key learning point of my day was that before the 2nd and 1st century AD there had been no real depictions of the Buddha, no statues, no images, nothing but thanks to the invasion (not sure the thanks is a welcome one) by Hellenistic armies that had conquered the than territory of Bactria (modern day Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan). Before that.. there had only been the Bodhi Tree, stupas, empty seats, footprints and the wheel.

The question that some ask, regarding the look of the Buddha is how the input of the Hellenistic leaders may have had on the look of the Buddha.

Nevertheless, the exhibition focuses on the imagery of the Buddha, the impact of Alexander the Great following the conquering of Gandhara in 327BC.

It was amazing to be able to stand so close to history and sad to know that so many in the world are trying to destroy history in Central Asia and the Middle East to protect their own culture or to imply a long history of one culture over others.

Photos by Simon Williams-Im

Alexander the Great meets the Buddha Today, I had a plan to attend one of the many exhibitions at Seoul Art Center…

[stellagirardin]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095 Item just listed on eBay here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ALEXANDER-III-the-GREAT-327BC-Silver-Tetradrachm-Ancient-Greek-Coin-NGC-i60095-/352006950662?hash=item51f53fcf06:g:9SgAAOSwsW9Yyt-J March 16, 2017 at 08:56AM http://emmatinline.blogspot.com/2017/03/alexander-iii-great-327bc-silver.html from Blogger http://stellagirardin.blogspot.com/2017/03/alexander-iii-great-327bc-silver.html

[dominictauchert]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

Item just listed on eBay here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ALEXANDER-III-the-GREAT-327BC-Silver-Tetradrachm-Ancient-Greek-Coin-NGC-i60095-/352006950662?hash=item51f53fcf06:g:9SgAAOSwsW9Yyt-J

March 16, 2017 at 08:56AM

https://emmatinline.wordpress.com/2017/03/16/alexander-iii-the-great-327bc-silver-tetradrachm-ancient-greek-coin-ngc-i60095/

from WordPress https://dominictauchertblog.wordpress.com/2017/03/16/alexander-iii-the-great-327bc-silver-tetradrachm-ancient-greek-coin-ngc-i60095/

[svntvi]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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[princevicodin]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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[im-lost-in-the-sky]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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[my-chemical--reaction]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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[hugomccubbin]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

Item just listed on eBay here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ALEXANDER-III-the-GREAT-327BC-Silver-Tetradrachm-Ancient-Greek-Coin-NGC-i60095-/352006950662?hash=item51f53fcf06:g:9SgAAOSwsW9Yyt-J March 16, 2017 at 08:56AM from Emma Tinline http://emmatinline.tumblr.com/post/158482184323 via http://emmatinline.tumblr.com/

[pocossabenvivir]

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[liliumbox]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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[cokadoodle]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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[aialyne]

ALEXANDER III the GREAT 327BC Silver Tetradrachm Ancient Greek Coin NGC i60095

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