1 THE FIREWORKS that Americans see on Fourth of July were most likely made— where else?—in China. The country that makes 90 per cent of the world’s fireworks is also where they were invented. Most historians believe that the Chinese used firecrackers as early as the second century B.C.
2 CANADIANS put on pyrotechnic displays every 1 July to celebrate their own national birthday, as the French do on 14 July to mark the anniversary of their revolution. But the US imports most of the world’s fireworks, spending more than $650 million on them per year. The Walt Disney Co. alone buys about $50 million worth.
3 BENEFITTING from the import ban on firecrackers and its dry weather conducive to the manufacture of fireworks, Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu, is the undisputed firecracker hub of India, now. But, it wasn’t always so: the first firework factory in India was set up in Kolkata in the 19th century. And ‘Bhakthapu’ or Bengal Lights, the small mudpot, emitting bright yellow sparkles, was the first ever firework manufactured in India.
4 A MIXTURE of gunpowder and other flammable compounds causes fireworks to explode in all those pretty colours and fun shapes. Copper, for instance, burns bright blue; strontium sparks deep red. Together, they produce purple. But the outlines fireworks form depend on the placement of these compounds inside their shell, as well on the shell’s shape. Crowd favourites include ‘comet’, which features a long trail of sparks; ‘peony’, a spherical burst; and ‘strobe’, which produces a blinking effect.
Denne historien er fra November 2023-utgaven av Reader's Digest India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra November 2023-utgaven av Reader's Digest India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
ME & MY SHELF
Siddharth Kapila is a lawyer turned writer whose writing has focussed on issues surrounding Hinduism. His debut book, Tripping Down the Ganga: A Son's Exploration of Faith (Speaking Tiger) traces his seven-year-long journey along India's holiest river and his explorations into the nature of faith among believers and skeptics alike.
EMBEDDED FROM NPR
For all its flaws and shortcomings, some of which have come under the spotlight in recent years, NPR makes some of the best hardcore journalistic podcasts ever.
ANURAG MINUS VERMA PODCAST
Interview podcasts live and die not just on the strengths of the interviewer but also the range of participating guests.
WE'RE NOT KIDDING WITH MEHDI & FRIENDS
Since his exit from MSNBC, star anchor and journalist Mehdi Hasan has gone on to found Zeteo, an all-new media startup focussing on both news and analysis.
Ananda: An Exploration of Cannabis in India by Karan Madhok (Aleph)
Karan Madhok's Ananda is a lively, three-dimensional exploration of India's past and present relationship with cannabis.
I'll Have it Here: Poems by Jeet Thayil, (Fourth Estate)
For over three decades now, Jeet Thayil has been one of India's pre-eminent Englishlanguage poets.
Orbital by Samantha Harvey (Penguin Random House India)
Samantha Harvey became the latest winner of the Booker Prize last month for Orbital, a short, sharp shock of a novel about a group of astronauts aboard the International Space Station for a long-term mission.
She Defied All the Odds
When doctors told the McCoombes that spina bifida would severely limit their daughter's life, they refused to listen. So did the little girl
DO YOU DARE?
Two Danish businesswomen want us to start eating insects. It's good for the environment, but can consumers get over the yuck factor?
Searching for Santa Claus
Santa lives at the North Pole, right? Don't say that to the people of Rovaniemi in northern Finland