What's the difference between a company, a battalion, a regiment or a brigade in the army?

• A company normally consists of 100-120 men and is commanded by a Major. A battalion consists of three to four companies and is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel. A regiment can be a type of battalion (eg. in the Artillery/Engineers) or a grouping of a number of battalions of the same type (eg. The Rajput Regiment). A brigade normally consists of 3 battalions or regiments and is commanded by a Brigadier.

Rajeshwari Singh, New Delhi

• The difference lies in their utilisation. It depends on what you need them for - to man a check post, defend yourself, go on the offensive or crush the enemy.

G.S.Battu, Patiala

• The same as between an electron, an atom, a molecule and a compound in chemistry.

M.Venugopal, Madras

• To the enemy it hardly makes a difference for they destroy them all with equal vengeance.

Mudit Mathur, Hyderabad

Why is an excursion called a picnic?

• An excursion refers to a journey deviating from a routine path, like going on a journey to the hills. And a picnic is an outing to any place where people enjoy themselves by not following their usual lifestyle. Daily routine is done away with on such occasions.

S.P.S.Jain, Calcutta

What is the difference between a master and a maestro?

• A master is a man having control over others. He is usually a teacher or a person who is highly skilled in a trade or craft. Whereas a maestro is an honorary title, generally applied to a person who is a master in any art form, especially music.

Raj Kumar Hansdah, Bhillai

• A master may have command in any field while maestros are excellent performers essentially in the field of music. As an example, we say chess master Vishwanathan Anand while we say sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar.

Sangeeta Pandey, Orissa

• Every maestro is a master but not the vice versa.

Tushar Maheshwari, Bijnor

• As far as a distinguished music master (teacher) is concerned, there is no difference.

Sanjay Khetwal, Nainital

What is a multi-point fuel injection system?

• Diesel engines have their working cycles divided into four categories - suction, compression, expansion and exhaustion. The main source of energy being the expansion stage, triggered by injecting atomised fuel particles in the form of fine spray into hot compressed air, at the end of compression, with the help of a fuel pump. Ordinary injectors have a nozzle with a single hole. But high speed engines and engines with larger piston diameter, need more fuel without compromising on the quality of the spray. This is accomplished by using a nozzle with 5 to 8 holes, in the injection which causes a swirl to have a good air-fuel mixture for efficient burning and maximum energy output. This is known as a multi-point fuel injection system.

Asok Das, Mumbai

• It is bad news for carburettor cleaners.

G S Battu, Patiala

• It is similar to a patient, who is simultaneously on saline and glucose drips while getting a blood transfusion done.

M.Venugopal, Madras

• It proves that necessity is the mother of injection.

Gaurav Malhotra, New Delhi

What are mosquito mats and coils made of? How harmful are they for humans.

• The flowers of ``Painted Lady'' plants contain an insecticidal element, pysellethein, which is the main ingredient used in mosquito repellent coils and mats. Just about 2 to 4 micrograms of this element is enough to kill a mosquito. Lesser doses of this paralyses them. However, pysellethein does not affect the warm-blooded species. An average mat or coil contains only 40 micrograms of pysellethein, all of which is not emitted at the same time on burning the repellents. It mixes with the air gradually over a long period.

Patel Dharmesh T, Bhavnagar

• They are made of a substance which causes heart burn for mosquitoes.

Gaurav Malhotra, New Delhi

Why do people suffering from blood pressure disorder wear magnetic belts on their arms?

• The human body has iron (in haemoglobin) in substantial quantity. The body's disorders which are potentially of pathogenic origin can be treated by applying a magnetic field to the affected part of the body. Magnetic therapy has been used since ages. Magnetic therapy is also used as an alternative to acupuncture.

S.P.S.Jain, Calcutta

• For the same reason as lovers wear their hearts on their sleeves.

Arta Mishra, Cuttack

• So that the magnetic force pulls up or pushes down the blood pressure in the body.

W.M.Handa, New Delhi

How do butterflies grow wings when caterpillars don't have them?

• Butterflies and caterpillars are different forms of the same insect. In the process of metamorphosis, the egg hatch to form a larva or a caterpillar. This is the feeding stage, in which larva feeds and grows. At some stage, it undergoes another phase - the pupa, which is the non-feeding stage. In this stage the insect starts changing its form, inside the pupa and finally a full-grown butterfly with wings is formed. The butterfly has wings, which are actually appendages of the cuticle.

Agasti Govardhan, Maharashtra

• Simply because wings are hidden in the genes of caterpillars that come out as time flies.

Shailendra S Kandpile, Navi Mumbai

What foaming agent is used in shampoos, soaps etc? Do we use the same thing for all such products?

• Shampoo or soup molecules have two chemically distinct parts,that interact differently with water. One part is a long hydrocarbon chain which is water-hating (hydrophobic) and non-polar and another belongs to COONA group which is polar, water-loving (hydrophilic) and creates the foam in water. The hydrophilic part makes soap water-soluble. The hydrophobic part combines with dirt and other elements. The dirt is captured in foam and removed by washing. The foam-creating agent can be used only for those products which will be used for cleaning.

Indrajit Kumar, Patna

• Irrespective of the foaming agent, promotional techniques are the same.

Ajay Chutani, Karnal

Why is only champagne opened for celebrations and not any other drink?

Fizzy logic!

Aathira Menon, Meerut

How does stammering occur? What is the cure for it?

Stammering occurs because of one's tendency to weigh pros and cons of each word before uttering it.

Sameer Handa, New Delhi

Why does a wasp sting result in swelling?

Because the wasp is a good marksman.

Md Shafi, AMU

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courtesy : times of India

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