Friday, December 14, 2012

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Dengue: Symptoms, causes and treatment

The alarming rise in cases of dengue across cities in the country has become a cause of worry.

source:yahoo

What is dengue?
Dengue is a disease caused by a family of viruses that are transmitted by mosquitoes. Dengue cannot be spread directly from person to person, i.e., is not contagious. A person can only become infected by the bite of a mosquito that is infected with the dengue virus. It is important to note that these mosquitoes bite during the daytime as well as nighttime.

Symptoms
Dengue usually begins with chills, headache, pain while moving the eyes, and backache. Persistent high fever is characteristic of dengue. Other symptoms to watch out for are exhaustion, backache, joint pains, nausea, vomiting, low blood pressure and rash.

Treatment
Because dengue is caused by a virus, there is no specific treatment for it; treatment of dengue is typically concerned only with the relief of symptoms. People who show the symptoms mentioned above should immediately consult a physician. It is important to drink plenty of fluids, stay hydrated, and get as much rest as possible.

Dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF)
DHF is a more severe form of dengue and can be fatal if untreated. It tends to affect children under the age of ten, and causes abdominal pain, hemorrhage (bleeding), and circulatory collapse (shock).

Prevention

There is no vaccine to prevent dengue. Prevention of dengue requires eradication of the mosquitoes that carry this virus. This means high standards of hygiene and sanitation. Avoid areas littered with garbage. All containers of stationary water (like drums or buckets) should be covered or discarded, including flower vases and pets' feeding bowls. If your area is infested with mosquitoes, wear long sleeves, use mosquito repellants and fumigate if necessary.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

GLOBAL HANDWASHING DAY 15 October 2012

SOURCE: YAHOO

Dos and don’ts of hand washing

80% of all infectious diseases are transmitted by touch. Hand washing is one of the easiest and best ways to prevent infection. Let’s learn how to do it right.

Infections can come from anywhere. Washing your hands from time to time might not keep you away from all of them, but it can definitely help avoid a few. Hand washing is simple, requires just water and soap or in absence of that, a sanitizer.

Why you should wash your hands

People interact with each other, shake hands, go to various places, use various objects and even use common washrooms. It is important to remain germ-free after doing all this. Touching your nose, mouth or eyes with unclean hands can also infect you. Frequent hand washing does not make you germ-free but reduces the transfer of bacteria, viruses and other microbes to a certain limit.

When you should wash your hands

Wash your hands before:
·         Cooking or eating food
·         Wearing or taking off contact lenses
·         Cleaning wounds and giving medicine
·         Treating a sick person
·         Playing with a new born baby
Wash your hands after:
·         Having food
·         Coming home from anywhere
·         Using pesticides or other agents like mosquito or cockroach killers
·         Using the toilet
·         Touching and playing with animals
·         Cleaning wounds or treating a sick person
·         Blowing your nose, sneezing or coughing into your hand
·         Using chemicals in the garden, throwing garbage or any other such household chores that includes some dirty work and requires you to use your hands

How to wash your hands

You wash your hands everyday and might think it is a silly to read a “how-to” on it but it is always better to refresh your ideas and remind yourself on how to do things right.
Generally, handwash/soap and water are used to wash hands. The simple steps are as follows:
·         Wet your hands
·         Apply soap or hand wash
·         Form lather
·         Rub both the hands. Try to clean in between fingers, under the nails and the back of your hands along with wrists. Rub for some 20 seconds
·         Pat dry with a clean or disposable towel or use air dryer.

When to use a sanitizer

Alcohol based sanitizer can be used when water and soap are not available. It is important that your sanitizer contain at least 60% alcohol.

How to use a sanitizer

·         Take a small quantity of sanitizer in your hands and rub it to wet your hands completely.
·         Rub it till your hands are dry.

Kids and hand washing

Good habits must be cultivated from childhood. Kids must be encouraged to wash hands regularly. The best way to teach them is by being a good example. Tell them to sing a line of their favourite song as they wash their hands to stop them from rushing the process
It is okay for the kids to use sanitizers. They are not harmful. Teach them how to use it properly. Warn them strictly to rub till the alcohol dries. Store the container out of their reach or they will be tempted to use it time and again either for the smell or for the cold feeling it gives for few moments before getting dried.

Wash your way to health

Though soap may not kill every virus it comes across, it definitely decreases the viral count and brings it below the infectious threshold. It is neither time consuming, nor does it take any major effort. Wash your hands often to fall sick less often.


 

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Natural indicators

Try this out. Click on the pic to see its enlarged view.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

The nucleus is the "brain" of the cell. Its job is to control the cell's structure, function, growth and division. It is usually located in the center of the cell, where it is enclosed in a membrane called the nuclear envelope – which like the cell membrane is also a semi-permeable barrier. The nuclear envelope is a double membrane as shown in the diagram.
The nucleus communicates with the rest of the cell through the nuclear pores. The nucleus is like a vault. It holds the cell's DNA -- which contains the genetic instructions for the cell's activities. In the diagram there is a structure within the nucleus called the nucleolus. This structure is the place where ribosomes are made. Ribosomes are very important structures upon which proteins are formed within the cell. In the diagram above, you can see the ribosomes that have already been sent out of the nucleus and are on the endoplasmic reticulum, one of the places within the cell where proteins are made.
One way the nucleus directs activities within the cell is by sending instructions through its envelope to the various organelles in the cell's cytoplasm. There are two main types of organelles -- organelles that produce protein and organelles that transfer chemical energy present in food molecules such as glucose into molecules called ATP (short for adenosine triphosphate). The chemical energy present in ATP can then be used by the cell for such activities as movement and building large molecules.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

PRACTICE QUESTIONS ON CHEMICAL PROPERTIES METALS AND NON METALS


Q1    Show that MgO is a basic oxide. Give suitable equations also.
Q 2   shows that CO2  is an acidic oxide. Give suitable equations also.
Q3    Name the metal that reacts a) vigorously with air at room temperature.
                                                        b) On prolonged heating.
Q 4   A metal X on heating gives a white powdery substance.
                a) Identify the metal ‘X’
                 b)  Write the chemical formulae and name of the white substance formed.
                c) Write the chemical equation for the same.
                d) What will happen if this powder is dissolved in water? Name the compound formed.  Also write the chemical   equation for the same.
                 e) What will happen when red litmus is dipped into the above solution?
                 f) What will happen when blue litmus is dipped into it?
                 g)  What is the nature of the solution formed?
Q5  Name the metal that reacts vigorously with cold water.
Q6   Name the gas liberated when metals reacts with water.
Q7  Name the gas liberated when metals reacts with acids.
Q8  How will you test for the presence of hydrogen gas?
Q9  Name two metals that do not react with water.
Q10 Name one non metal that is kept under water. Why?
Q11 Why sodium is kept under kerosene?
Q12  What happens when
                         a) An active metal is placed in water.
                         b) A magnesium ribbon is kept in a test tube containing hot boiling water.
                         c) Gold is place in test tube containing NaOH.
                         d) When Dilute HCl is kept for three days in a copper container.
                         e)  Name two metals that react with conc. H2SO4.
Q13  Why food stuff should not be placed in a metal container.