Why Daya Darwaza Todh Do (DDTD)?

Why DDTD?

- Because when a great opportunity comes knocking, opening the door isn't enough - you need to break the damn door down.
- Because we often hide behind "figurative" doors that need to be broken down for us to get out of our comfort zone and achieve our full potential.
- And because the 2010s saw a flurry of CID jokes that I still haven't gotten over.

Welcome to my blog where every Sunday I share some general knowledge nuggets about an event that has made news that week. Hope you enjoy it. I would love to hear your comments.

Remembering JFK on his 100th Birthday

Hello & welcome to another edition of the GK Nugget. This weekend we’re talking about one of my favourite politicians (yes, there are some likeable ones too), who passed away too young. He was the leader of one of the superpowers of the world and 29 th May 2017 was his 100 th birth anniversary. I’m talking about John Fitzgerald Kennedy , famously known as JFK . JFK was the 35 th President of the USA from January 1961 up until 22 nd November 1963 , when he was assassinated. He was the youngest president of the country and also the youngest to die . JFK’s inaugural address had him reach out to all Americans – “ Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country ” – a line that is till date quoted in essays written by school and college going children. JFK led the US at the height of the Arms Race with Russia and also during the critical Cuban missile crisis . (In October 1962, U.S. spy planes discovered that Soviet missile bases had ...

Why is Pluto a "Dwarf Planet" & other Celestial trivia

The week gone by saw the world celebrate the 25 th birthday of the internet on 23 rd August. On this day in 1991 , the public gained access for the first time to the World Wide Web, which had been designed & deployed by computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee at CERN in Switzerland. But today’s GK Nugget is about something else. On 24 th Aug 2006 the International Astronomical Union clarified the definition of a “ planet ”. It said that a celestial body must meet the following criteria in order to qualify as a planet: 1) It must be round. 2) It must orbit the sun. 3) It must have “cleared the neighbourhood" of its orbit. This means that as a planet travels, its gravity sweeps and clears the space around it of other objects. Unfortunately, Pluto (which was discovered on Feb 18 th , 1930 ) doesn’t meet criteria #3 & therefore it was classified as a Dwarf Planet . For the common man, this was a shock, but amongst the circle of astronomers it wasn’t so surprisin...

The latest fad: Fidget Spinner

Hello & welcome to another edition of the GK Nugget . This time instead of looking into the past, I’m focusing on something in the present – a little toy that has caught the fancy of millions around the world. Do you remember when I wrote about the Pokémon Go fad on 24 th July 2016 ? Well, this is a fad that just might beat its craze. I’m talking about the Fidget Spinner . We’ve all heard about it; read about it, some of us have seen it and many of us have wondered what that odd shaped piece of plastic/metal is and why kids today find it so engrossing. So here’s all you wanted to know about the Fidget Spinner but didn’t know who to ask: What is the Fidget Spinner? It’s a small toy like device, shaped like a 4 leaf clover, but with 3 leaves. Or just imagine the club card ( chiddi ) in a set of playing card but without the stalk. It is usually made of a mix of metal and plastic parts and has a hole in each of its 3 blades. It also contains ball bearings...

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