Sudoku - the puzzle of the 21st Century

(Published on 30 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)


Evening walks at the Independence Memorial Square are a delight. It’s a good way to assess your own competency. One does not even have to make an effort to eavesdrop as everyone talks loud enough to rattle the foundations of the beautiful monument. Poor little souls. It’s their small opportunity to get heard by the masses. The release of adrenaline does wonders to the ordinary. It’s entertaining to hear them moan about their mundane daily chores. Didn’t expect anything else from them, did we? We the Miss Know-Alls, have no time for trivial issues. Bigger and more relevant concerns need our attention. From obnoxious bosses, derby horses to monetary losses we have an answer for everything.

Did you know that Sudoku is a good way of keeping your mind agile and ticking? In fact it is even supposed to keep Alzheimer at bay. For those in the dark - Sudoku is a logic-based placement puzzle. The Daily Mirror brings us our daily dose on page 13. The aim of the puzzle is to enter a number from 1 to 9 in each cell of a 9×9 grid made up of 3×3 sub-grids. Starting with various digits given in some cells, numbers are filled in such that each row, column, and region must contain only one instance of each number.

Foxed? Not surprised dahlings! Completing the puzzle requires patience and logical ability. Interestingly Sudoku has not been around for too long. The name "Sudoku" is the Japanese abbreviation of a longer phrase, "Suuji wa dokushin ni kagiru" meaning "the digits must remain single". However, it was an American architect called Howard Garns who first designed the puzzle which was published in a U.S. puzzle magazine in 1979. The puzzle was then introduced in Japan in 1986 where it became a craze. It finally attained international popularity in 2005.

Sudoku is therapeutic and has now become an addiction. Sudoku players report an increasing sense of satisfaction as a puzzle approaches completion. A daily tonic for the mind and the soul. The first Sudoku world championship was held in Italy in March 2006 and was won by Jana Tylova, a 31-year-old accountant from the Czech Republic.

Come on, give it a shot - don’t underestimate yourself. We might have a champion amongst you. In the words of Dr Nathaniel Branden, "The tragedy is that so many people look for self-confidence and self-respect everywhere except within themselves, and so they fail in their search."

May you achieve success in your search.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Are green tea, white tea and red tea from the same plant?

(Published on 23 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

It’s wonderful to receive your fan mail. Thank you for taking out time for me from your boring monotonous lives. Spike up your day to day routine. Look for a mentor (I mean a Miss Know-All)… and things will never be dull any more.

A friend asked – if the ‘Know-All’ title was restricted only to the fairer sex. I hate to admit this one – but the world does have its fair share of Mr Know-All’s. Look around you. That ‘smart alecky’ colleague who thinks he’s God’s gift to mankind – or is it womankind! That obnoxious guy at the bar who thinks he’s a connoisseur on wines. That geek in college who rattled off formulas and the price of the oil barrel… suddenly the world seems full of my kind. The competition doesn’t ruffle me. It’s a tough world out there but I’m made of sterner stuff. From insufferable male friends to ridiculous fashion trends I have an answer for everything.

Let’s have a drink on that happy note. Iced tea anyone? Which by the way leads me on to my next question – are green tea, white tea and red tea from the same plant?

Drinking herbal teas has become a fad all over again. Green tea, white tea and red tea have become very popular over the last few years. The whole world is going gaga about their health benefits. But how are they different? Green tea and white tea come from the same plant. Like black tea they are considered ‘true’ teas. The differences in colour, flavour and antioxidant content come from differences in the harvesting and processing of the leaves. Both green tea and white tea have very mild flavours. White tea gives a very pale straw-coloured liquor and like green tea should be drunk without milk. All teas contain antioxidants that are believed to have numerous health benefits.

The teas produced in different areas have their own individual characteristics. Low-grown teas, produced at the foothills give good colour and strength but lack the distinctive flavour of the higher-grown teas. These are usually used in blending. Mid-grown teas, grown between 1,800 and 3,500 feet, are rich in flavour and give good colour. High-grown teas, from heights of between 3,500 and 7,500 feet, are the very best giving a lovely golden liquor and an intense powerful flavour.

Red tea, on the other hand, comes from a plant which grows in the mountains north of Cape Town, South Africa. Red tea has a sweeter, fruitier flavour than white and green tea and has different antioxidants than those present in green tea and white tea because it comes from a different plant.

You must be knowing that Sri Lanka is the 3rd largest tea producing country globally, and one of the world's leading exporters of tea. But did you know that the tea sector in Sri Lanka is the country's largest employer providing employment both directly and indirectly to over one million people. Let us raise a toast ( in this case - our tea cups ) in appreciation of those numerous people who help bring this morning ‘cuppa cheer’ to us every single day.

Salut! Slainte! Cheers!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk


PS: Salut and Slainte are Spanish and Scottish respectively for the word – Cheers! Could not leave without spreading some more light! J

How does the rice cooker know when to turn off?

(Published on 16 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Having an identity crisis? You fit into a bracket called – ‘Homo Sapiens Ignoramus.’ Perplexed? Come to Mama. As per Wikipedia, ignoramus is an ‘unknowledgeable’ person and originates from a Latin word ignoramus meaning “we do not know.” Don’t cringe. Be around in my company darlings – and a little bit of aura will rub off on you too.

Remember, your mother’s advice – “always sit next to a smart kid in class...” She was talking about me, smarty pants. From silicon implants to menopausal aunts, we, the Miss Know-Alls have an answer for everything.

And if you are left wondering how I do muster up so much information – it’s because I have a curious mind. Day to day things intrigue me. Ever looked at a rice cooker and wondered how it knows when to turn off? No rocket science here. There are a number of appliances that "know" when they should turn off. A rice cooker is just one of them.

All such appliances use the same principle. We all know that the boiling point of water is 100 degrees C. (Remember your Chemistry class back in school?) If there is boiling water in a heated container, the container will maintain a constant temperature, which is the boiling temperature of water. On cooking for sometime all the liquid water will evaporate or, as in the case of the rice cooker, it will get absorbed by the rice. The temperature inside the container immediately rises. The appliance has a thermostat that can detect when the temperature rises above the set temperature in the container, and it turns itself off.

What’s a thermostat you ask? Oh lord – I think I’ve created a monster. Simply put, a thermostat is a temperature regulator.

And now that you have started using your grey cells here’s some fodder for your brain - courtesy “Five Frogs On A Log” by Mark L Feldman & Michael F Spratt.

Five frogs are sitting on a log. Four decide to jump off. How many are left?

There are still five, honey - because there’s a difference between deciding and doing. Leave you on that thought provoking note.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Ms Know-All 4

Why does the hair on your arm not grow long?

(Published on 9 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

IQ, my dear admirers is Intelligence Quotient and it indicates a person's mental abilities relative to others of approximately the same age. But IQ levels of a Miss Know-All are way above the world and his wives – age no bar! Everyone has hundreds of specific mental abilities—but we my sweeties have it in thousands.

A Miss Know-All - knows all. Period. There is no debating that one. Whether it’s something in, or something out, something hip or something hot…. we are the one-stop-shop powerhouse of information. From laddered hoses to restructured noses, we have an answer for everything.

And before you pull out your hair with frustration at the thought of not being able to keep up with my level of competency – here’s a question. Why does the hair on your arms stay short, while the hair on your head grows long? You can scratch your head. They say it helps.

Each hair on your body grows from its own individual hair follicle. Pull out one hair from your head and check out the far end. You can actually see the hair follicle at the root of the hair shaft. That’s of course if you have good eyesight like I do my dearies. Inside the follicle, new hair cells form. These new cells push older cells out of the follicle. As they are pushed out, the cells die and become the hair we see.

A follicle will produce new cells for a certain period of time. This time period called the growth phase varies depending on where the hair is located on your body. This process will stop for a period of time, and then restart after a rest phase. When the hair follicle enters the rest phase the hair shaft breaks. The existing hair falls out and a new hair takes its place. Therefore, the length of time that the hair is able to spend growing during the growth phase controls the maximum length of the hair.

The hair follicles on your head, let hair grow for years at a time, so the hair can grow very long. While, the cells that make the hairs on your arms and legs stop growing every few months. On entering the rest phase they fall off. So the hair on your arms and legs stay short. (Thank God for little mercies.)

Take care lovelies – stop staring at your hairy arms and legs in wonder and here’s some friendly advice - keep them clear off hirsute.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Ms Know-All 3

How your mobile phone works...

(Published on 2 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

How often have you stood dumb struck, impressed and overwhelmed by the sheer expanse of Miss Know-All’s knowledge and intelligence? I’ve gotten used to the adulation and the attention I get pets. Idolising someone superior is common amongst you mediocrities.

Ignorance is bliss they say – but for my tribe – having ignorant people around is bliss.Put us on a pedestal and we’ll thrive for we are God’s chosen one. Why else would He endow us and leave you all with the left-over, pretties? From bladder malfunctions to liposuctions, we have an answer for everything.

And now that you are flaunting the latest mobile phone model available in the market – let me ask you a simple question. Are you aware of how your mobile phone works? Or how sending an SMS works? Just when we finally got used to seeing everybody constantly talking on their mobile phones, it suddenly seems like no one is talking at all. Instead, they're typing away to send text messages. You belong to the ‘thumb generation’ - you should surely know how it works, you texters!

Millions of people around the world use cellular phones. You can now talk to anyone or send an SMS to anyone from just about anywhere! SMS stands for ‘short message service’. The cellular system actually functions by dividing a city into small cells(areas). Cells are normally thought of as hexagons on a big hexagonal grid. Each cell has a base station that consists of a tower. This allows extensive frequency re-use across a city. As a result millions of people can use mobile phones simultaneously.

Even if you are not talking on your cell phone, your phone is constantly exchanging information with its cell tower over a pathway called a control channel. The reason for this exchange is so that the cell phone system knows which cell (area) your phone is in, and so that your phone can change cells as you move around. When someone tries to call you, the tower sends your phone a message over the control channel that tells your phone to play its ring tone.

The control channel also provides the pathway for SMS messages. To avoid overloading the system, a 160-character maximum message size has been programmed. However, length limitations vary depending on the network, phone model and wireless carrier. Some phones don't allow you to keep typing once the 160-character limit is reached, while others will automatically break a long message you send into portions of 160 characters and deliver it in two parts or more.

Don’t tax yourselves too much darlings. Feeling snowed under? This must be an overflow of information for you… Did I mention – reading twice helps with comprehension? Until next week – keep those brain cells ticking – at least try.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Ms Know-All 2