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The Hindu
21-05-2025
- Science
- The Hindu
Why does cheese form flowers when scraped?
The Tête de Moine cheese from Bellelay region of Switzerland is iconic because of the way it is served. This semi-hard cheese ideally shouldn't be cut: instead it's scraped and served. If that sounds crude, it isn't: when the cheese is scraped, it automatically forms rosettes, which are then served. Scientists have now figured out the physics of how the scraping action creates the floral shape. In a study set to be published in the journal Physical Review Letters, researchers at the University of Paris found that when Tête de Moine is scraped, the slice's inner portion shrinks more than the outer one, making it wrinkle naturally into the shape of a rose. Friction, it seems, plays a starring role in this process. The regulators of Tête de Moine cheese already know this paring technique allows the cheese to better release its flavours as well because the technique increases the amount of air meeting the cheese's surface. According to the study's preprint paper, frilly edges like those in this cheese are also seen among some leaves, fungi, and corals as well as in torn plastic sheets. The shapes are the result of uneven stretching leading to bending and wrinkling. Traditionally, the cheese is cut using a tool called girolle. For the experiment, scientists controlled the cutting action by fixing the blade in place and rotating the cheese at a constant speed. They used cheese of the Fromagerie de Bellelay brand aged for three to six months, cut it in half. The team found that the rosette is formed when the cheese stretches and shrinks from the centre to the edge when it is cut. This process — the act of irreversibly changing the shape of an object or a material by applying some kind of force — is called plastic shearing. It happens in Tête de Moine due to friction from the blade. It's similar to what happens when metal chips are cut, but they don't change shape because they're stiffer. A wheel of cheese on the other hand is more pliant. From the Science pages Question Corner How are species named? Find out here Flora and fauna
Al Etihad
27-04-2025
- Science
- Al Etihad
A tribute to Ibn Sina at ADIBF 2025: Discover the life and legacy of Islamic world's great scholar
28 Apr 2025 00:01 SARA ALZAABI (ABU DHABI)Ibn Sina (Avicenna) has been considered the most influential philosopher and scientist of the Islamic world. At the ongoing Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, visitors get to learn more about the life and legacy of the great physician, who has been selected as Focus Personality for the event this year. Born in 980 CE in Afshana (present-day Uzbekistan), Ibn Sina was raised in a family with strong intellectual roots. His father hailed from Balkh (modern-day Afghanistan) and later moved the family to Bukhara, where Ibn Sina would start his academic the age of 10, he already knew the entire Quran by heart, and shortly thereafter, his interests broadened to philosophy, mathematics, and the natural growth took shape for Ibn Sina in a city known for its rich cultural and scientific heritage, was only 22 when his father died and he had to leave Bukhara in search of wider subsequent move served as the incredible groundwork for his scientific and philosophical contributions that inspired the world even until Sina's groundbreaking contributions span a wide spectrum — from physics to chemistry, philosophy, astronomy, and anticipated ideas on motion and stillness that would later be echoed by Isaac Newton. His work in chemistry cleared up subtle theories, while his synthesis of Greek philosophy and Islamic thought bore such deeper incursion into existence, essence, and the astronomical observations about Venus on closer approach to the Sun were settled only after major medical treatise, called 'The Canon of Medicine', became the cornerstone of medical education in Europe and kept on rendering its potency even until the 17th looked into human psychology, studied the aspect of the soul, and defined music as a mathematical writings and ideas were part of the great number of academic disciplines he left behind, which made a major contribution in the European Renaissance when his works were translated and studied in most prominent universities, such as the University of Paris, Harvard University, and Cambridge his contributions, Ibn Sina has gained distinction not only as one of the main scholars of the Islamic Golden Age, but also a bridge between the Eastern and Western intellectual traditions. His work continues to inspire and influence scholars across various disciplines, celebrating his contributions to global knowledge that transcend time.
NZ Herald
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Miramar surprise hideaway in imaginative retelling of Marie Curie
Miramar is the surprise hideaway of the glowing scientist in Tracy Farr's imaginative retelling. Photos / Supplied In 1912, Marie Curie – the first female professor at the University of Paris, first woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize, and first person to be awarded two Nobels – decided to disappear for a while. She was one of the most famous women in the world; her public
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Valérie André, first woman to fly a helicopter into combat zones, nicknamed ‘Madame Ventilator'
Valérie André, who has died aged 102, was a brain surgeon, parachutist and pioneering helicopter pilot – the first woman to fly helicopter missions in combat zones, and also the first woman to become a general in the French army. She had taken flying lessons in the late 1930s and after graduating in neurosurgery from the University of Paris in 1948, she volunteered for the Paratrooper Medical Team serving in French-occupied Indochina, where the French were trying, ultimately without success, to repulse Viet Minh communist guerrillas. She made 121 parachute jumps under combat conditions to treat wounded men on the ground before they were transported to hospital along bumpy roads, recalling that ground crews were astonished by 'a girl, of all things, falling out of the sky'. In early 1950, however, impressed by a demonstration in Saigon of a helicopter's manoeuvrability, she persuaded her superiors that it would be better to evacuate the wounded by air and went on to train as a helicopter rescue pilot. 'Madame Ventilator', as she was known, flew 129 helicopter missions in her Red Cross-marked Hiller 360 helicopter and rescued 165 soldiers, mainly French but also some Viet Minh. Braving enemy gunfire, including direct hits, she landed in the jungle or in paddy fields, picked up the wounded and flew them to hospitals, where she transformed into surgeon André, performing many life-saving operations. 'I weighed less than 45kg, which meant we could even carry an extra wounded man if necessary,' Valérie André recalled. 'She was a one-woman MASH unit,' a colleague added. In 1953, after surviving a crash, she returned to France, where she established medical units at military helicopter bases. But in 1957 she was deployed to north Africa as chief medical officer and pilot of a squadron flying Sikorsky helicopters, ferrying French commando platoons to combat Algerian anti-colonial fighters. She flew nearly 400 missions during the Algerian war which ended in 1962 when Algeria gained independence. She became 'Mme le général' in 1976, and altogether spent 33 years on active duty, becoming a commander of the Légion d'honneur and receiving seven citations for, and five awards of, the Croix de Guerre. She retired in 1981 as Inspector General of the Army Medical Corps. One of nine children, Valérie André was born on April 21 1922 in Strasbourg, in the Alsace region of France near the German border. Her father was a music teacher at a boys' high school. Her mother was determined that her four daughters would have the same opportunities as her five sons and Valérie was quick to set her own path in life: 'As a child, looking at airplanes in the sky, I used to say, 'I shall be a pilot.' Some time later, I asserted, 'I shall be a physician.' The only thing I had not thought of was to become a servicewoman.' She gained her pilot's licence aged 16, after being taught to fly by a veteran of the First World War at a local airfield. While male trainees were paid for by the French state, however, she had to raise her own funds to pay for lessons and tutored students in French and maths. In 1941 after the German invasion of Alsace, she fled first to to Clermont-Ferrand in southwestern France and later to Nazi-occupied Paris, where she enrolled at the Sorbonne after the Liberation. At the end of the Algeria War, Valérie André returned to France to continue her career as a medical officer and at the time of her promotion to general was chief medical officer at the Villacoublay air base near Paris. Throughout her career Valérie André promoted the role of women in the military, serving as a member of a presidential commission. 'I wanted women to be real combatants, not just air club pilots,' she said. Women are now able to serve in every role in the French military, including combat infantry and submarines. Valérie André was appointed to the French National Order of Merit in 1987 and the Grand Cross of the Légion d'honneur in 1999. She was a charter member (Member No 6) of the Whirly-Girls, an international association of female helicopter pilots founded in 1955. She published two volumes of memoirs: Ici, Ventilateur! (1954) and Madame le général (1988), and was the subject of an English-language biography, Helicopter Heroine: Valérie André – Surgeon, Pioneer Rescue Pilot, and Her Courage Under Fire (2023) by Charles Morgan Evans. In 1963 she married Alexis Santini, an air force colonel who had taught her to fly helicopters. He died in 1997. There were no children of the marriage. Valérie André, born April 21 1922, died January 21 2025 Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Daily Tribune
28-01-2025
- Politics
- Daily Tribune
Egypt, Jordan, and Palestinian Authority Reject U.S. Proposal to Resettle Gazans
Egypt, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority have firmly rejected a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump to resettle residents of the Gaza Strip in Egypt or Jordan. The plan, revealed over the weekend, has sparked widespread condemnation across the region. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry issued a statement reaffirming Egypt's unwavering support for the Palestinian people's right to remain on their land. "The Egyptian government supports the Palestinian people's insistence to remain on their land, defending their legitimate rights and respecting international law," the statement read. Public sentiment in Egypt remains strongly opposed to any resettlement of Palestinians within its borders. President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi addressed the issue recently, acknowledging the logistical ease of resettling Palestinians in the Sinai Peninsula but emphasizing the immense public opposition to such an idea. "It would be easy to resettle some Palestinians in the Sinai, but the difficulty lies in getting anyone in Egypt to accept the idea," el-Sissi told a gathering of military officers. Political experts argue that any move to accept the proposal could create significant unrest in Egypt. Khattar Abou Diab, a political science professor at the University of Paris, noted that while Egypt is grappling with economic challenges and could potentially benefit financially from the deal, public opposition would make its implementation impossible. Paul Sullivan, a former professor at the American University of Cairo and a fellow at the Atlantic Council, echoed this sentiment. "No Egyptian leader who wants to stay in power would agree to such a request," Sullivan said. "It would destabilize Egypt and likely lead to greater regional instability." In Jordan, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi also dismissed Trump's proposal, reaffirming Jordan's stance on the Palestinian issue. 'Palestine is for the Palestinians, and Jordan is for the Jordanians,' Safadi declared. 'The solution to the Palestinian problem is located on Palestinian soil and embodied by a Palestinian state.' The Palestinian Authority has consistently rejected any solution that undermines the rights of Palestinians to their homeland. With this unified stance, regional leaders have sent a strong message that the resettlement of Palestinians outside their homeland is not a viable option.
