Special Notes from N.C.E.R.

T Book

You have seen that buildings are made of bricks. Similarly, the bodies of
living organisms are made of tiny units called cells. Cells can be seen
only under the microscope. Some organisms are made of only one cell. The
cell is enclosed by A thin outer boundary, called the cell membrane
.
Most cells have a distinct, centrally located Spherical structure called the
nucleus (Fig. 1.1). The nucleus is surrounded by a jelly-like Substance called
cytoplasm

Nucleolus

Cytoplasm

Cell
Membrane

Besides leaves, photosynthesis also takes place in other green parts of the
plant in green stems and green branches. The desert plants have scale- or
spine-like leaves to reduce loss of water by transpiration. These plants have
green stems which carry out photosynthesis.

Starfish feeds on animals covered by hard shells of calcium carbonate. After opening the shell,
the starfish pops out its stomach through its mouth to eat the soft animal inside the shell. The
stomach then goes back into the body and the food is slowly digested.

Normally bacteria are present in our mouth but they are not harmful to us. However, if we do not
clean our teeth and mouth after eating, many harmful bacteria also begin to live and grow in it.
These bacteria break down the sugars present from the leftover food and release acids . The acids
gradually damage the teeth. This is called tooth decay. If it is not treated in time, it causes severe
toothache and in extreme cases results in tooth loss.

There is no substitute for blood. If people lose blood from surgery or injury or if their bodies
cannot produce enough blood, there is only one way to get it through transfusion of blood
donated by volunteers . Blood is usually in short supply.

The smallest time interval that can be measured with commonly available
clocks and watches is one second. However, now special clocks are available
that can measure time intervals smaller than a second. Some of these clocks
can measure time intervals as small as one millionth or even one billionth of
a second. You might have heard the terms like microsecond and nanosecond.
One microsecond is one millionth of a second. A nanosecond is one billionth
of a second. Clocks that measure such small time intervals are used for
scientific research. The time measuring devices used in sports can measure
time intervals that are one tenth or one hundredth of a second. On the other
hand, times of historical events are stated in terms of centuries or
millenniums. The ages of stars and planet are often expressed in billions of
years.
The time-keeping services in India are provided by the National Physical
Laboratory, New Delhi. The clock they use can measure time intervals with
an accuracy of one-millionth of a second. The most accurate clock in the
world has been developed by the National Institute of Standards and
Technology in the U.S.A. This clock will lose or gain one second after running
for 20 million years.

The centre of a cyclone is a calm area. It is called the eye of the storm. A
large cyclone is a violently rotating mass of air in the atmosphere, 10 to 15
km high. The diameter of the eye varies
from 10 to 30 km (Fig. 8.11). It is a region free of clouds and has light winds.
Around this calm and clear eye, there is a cloud region of about 150 km in
size. In this region there are high-speed winds (150250 km/h) and thick
clouds with heavy rain. Away from this region the wind speed gradually
decreases. The formation of a cyclone is a very complex process.

A cyclone is known by different names in different parts of the world. It is

called a hurricane in the American continent. In Philippines and Japan it is
called a typhoon

A bolt of lightning travels at a speed of more than 400,000 km/h. It can heat
the air around it to a temperature which is more than 4 times the
temperature of the surface of the sun. That is what makes lightning so
dangerous.

Scientific name of mulberry is Morus alba

Wool industry is an important means of livelihood for many people in our

country. But sorters job is risky as sometimes they get infected by a
bacterium, anthrax, which causes a fatal blood disease called sorters
disease. Such risks faced by workers in any industry are called occupational
hazards
Name of acid Found in
The celsius scale was devised by a
Acetic acid - Vinegar
Swedish astronomer, Anders Celsius in
Formic acid- Ants sting
1742. Strangely, he fixed the
Citric acid -Citrus fruits such
temperature of the boiling water as 0C
as oranges,
and of freezing water as 100o Celsius
lemons, etc.
Lactic acid- Curd
our body contains an acid, the
Oxalic acid- Spinach
deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA. It
Ascorbic acid- Amla, Citrus
controls every feature of the body such
fruits
as our looks, colour of our eyes, our
(Vitamin C)
height etc. Proteins that build part of our
Tartaric acid- Tamarind,
cells are also
grapes,
made of amino acids. The fats in our
unripe mangoes, etc.
body contain fatty acids.
All the acids mentioned
above occur in nature
Name of base Found in
The rain becomes acidic because carbon
Calcium hydroxide- Lime water
dioxide, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen
Ammonium hydroxide -Window
dioxide (which are released into the air as
cleaner
pollutants) dissolve in rain drops to form
Sodium hydroxide Soap
Potassium hydroxide
Magnesium hydroxide
carbonic acid, sulphuric acid and nitric acid respectively.