WHY ARE HEAD INJURIES DANGEROUS?

HEAD INJURIES -

In times of war, soldiers use special helmets to protect their heads. While driving a scooter, the riders often wear helmets to protect heads against any injury. In many cities, the government has made the helmets compulsory for riders. Do you know why the protection of the head is necessary?

The most important part of our body, the brain, is located in the cranium under the protection of bones. The human brain is divided into three main parts - the cerebrum, the cerebellum, and medulla oblongata. It controls all the important functions of the body - sight, taste, smell, hearing, touch, movements, memory, speech, etc. Any damage to the brain can disturb the proper body functioning.

Our brain is protected by the thick bone of the skull. Further, a shock absorbing fluid cushions it against the blows bumps. But if the blow is sharp or hard enough, it can injure the skull. Thus to protect the brain from injuries, it is essential to first protect the head.

Now the question arises, what may be the consequences of head injuries?
A severe head injury due to an accident may cause brain hemorrhage which eventually may lead to death. The injury may damage the memory unit of the brain by which a man can lose memory, temporarily or permanently. It has been often seen that after having a severe injury of head, people remain in the coma for long periods.

If the brain tissues are damaged, it may give rise to multiple sclerosis. Parkinson's disease is caused by a disorder of brain chemistry which may result due to a head injury. Brain injury may cause aphasia, a serious disorder of thought and communication. Apart from these effects, many other disabling conditions can be generated by head injuries.

It is, therefore, essential to protect the head against injuries.

Read More

WHEN DID PEOPLE FIRST USE MONEY?

MONEY -

Money has always fascinated man ever since ancient times. Money has come to become the most important thing in the world. Aristotle observed that man is a social being who establishes certain norms and regulations for his social interaction. The man employed money as a mode of exchange to facilitate such social dealings for his economical aspect.

In primitive societies, when people wanted to buy anything, they had to give something else in return for it. For example, if a potter wanted to buy rice from a farmer, he offered him earthenware in exchange for rice. The farmer would accept them because he needed pots. This was called the barter system, which involved goods in exchange for goods.

During those times goods served the purpose of money. But with the development of trade, the barter system could not meet the growing demands of a convenient exchange system for buying and selling. People started using the token or symbolic goods in exchange all over the world. American Indians used beads of shells, Fijians used whale's teeth and North Americans used tobacco in their exchange system. The Roman army men were provided salt for their services. But when was the coin first used as currency?

The precise origin of money in the form of coins is not clearly known. According to the available sources, the earliest coins were minted in about 800 B.C. when Indians who lived in Asia used stamped pieces of metal as a medium of exchange. Some believe that the Chinese used coins even earlier. Coins were preferred because they were easy-to-carry and durable. The early coins were of irregular shape and were stamped with rough designs. The money value of coins depended on the value of the metal that the coins were made of. Coins were mostly made of gold, silver or copper because they were precious and durable metals.

The use of paper currency was known to China as early as in the 9th century but it did not develop in Europe until the 17th century. The governments of different countries favored the use of paper currencies and coins to simplify the monetary dealings. It helped because what mattered was the money value printed or stamped on them and not their real value. This is because the printed value on the currencies denoted their purchasing power as assured by the government. People accept a coin or currency in payment not because they value the coin itself but because they have confidence in the authority that issued it.

As coins are heavy and bulky, larger payments are made in paper money issued by the paper legal authority.

Read More