World’s First Palm Leaf Manuscript Museum Is a Treasure Trove of History and Culture

The world's first palm leaf manuscript museum which opened in Kerala last week is dedicated to preserving and showcasing the rich cultural heritage of the region through its collection of ancient palm leaf manuscripts. Palm leaf manuscripts are texts that have been inscribed on the dried fronds of the talipot palm, which is native to India and Southeast Asia. These manuscripts have been used for centuries to record a wide range of information, including religious texts, historical chronicles, scientific treatises, and literary works. Accounts of the famous Battle of Colachel, in which the brave Travancore monarch Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma (1729–58) fought the Dutch East India Company at Colachel, 20 kilometers northwest of Kanyakumari in present-day Tamil Nadu, are among the manuscripts kept at the museum. With this victory in 1741, Dutch expansion in India came to a halt, and Marthanda Varma's Travancore became the first Asian kingdom to thwart any European power's plans for expansion. Located in Thiruvananthapuram, the museum, which opened last week, contains 187 manuscripts that tell stories totally based on primary sources. These are records that were written on palm leaves that had been treated and cured and were consigned to the corners of the records rooms. After painstakingly sorting through a large stock of haphazardly stored 1.5 crore palm-leaf records from all around the state, the archival material for the first phase was selected. With its eight galleries that include movies and information-gathering QR code technologies, the facility is enticing both general visitors and specialized scholars. It serves as a reminder of the importance of preserving our cultural heritage for future generations to learn from and enjoy, nd is a must-visit destination for anyone interested in the history and culture of southern India.

This Pathbreaking Invention by Scientists Creates Clean Gas That Could Replace Petrol

Currently, fossil fuels are the major source of energy used throughout the world, but considering their debilitating effect on the environment, scientists and researchers are trying to create alternative sources of energy that are sustainable. Recently, scientists in the UK made a breakthrough when they developed an artificial leaf that could be used to make clean gas and in the future, it may even replace petrol. The Artificial Leaf The artificial ‘leaf’ requires only sunlight, carbon dioxide and water to create clean gas also called syngas. Syngas, or synthesis gas, is a fuel gas mixture consisting primarily of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. Syngas has many beneficial uses. It is primarily used in the production of fuel, pharmaceuticals, plastics, and fertilizers.  However, the current industrial processes to create syngas releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, this leaf does not do so. The Technology Scientists were inspired by the natural process of photosynthesis which leaves adopt to prepare their food. The artificial leaf has two light absorbers that are combined with a catalyst made from cobalt. When the leaf is in contact with water, one of the light absorbers uses the catalyst to create oxygen, and the other reduces the carbon dioxide and water into carbon monoxide and hydrogen to form clean gas. This groundbreaking technology can be used to create a sustainable liquid fuel alternative to petrol.  Image Source: Mirror