PREFACE

What is Knowledge Bytes ?

Knowledge Bytes is a collection of riddles, interesting facts, mnemonics,
and puzzles that will make your learning fun and engaging.
We want you to be delighted about studying. Knowledge Bytes helps you
to know more about the subject in a fun, motivating and educational way
and helps to implement what you learn in a creative way.

Benefits

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Stimulates Interest

Leads to Increased Comprehension

EXPLORE
1. Heron's Formula, Surface Areas and Volumes 1
2. Sound 8
3. Structure of Atom 12
4. Natural Resources 17
5. Electoral Politics 24
6. Omission 25
7. Non-Verbal Reasoning 28
 Heron’s Formula, Surface
Areas and Volumes
Heron's Formula (Mensuration)
Triangle with Base = b and 1
Area = (Base × Height)
Height = h 2
A

h
B C
b
Triangle with sides a, b and c a+b+c
s=
s = Semi-perimeter of the Triangle 2
Area = s(s – a) (s – b) (s – c)
A

c b

B a C
3 2
Equilateral Triangle with Side = a Area = a square units
4
A

a a
B a C

Trapezium with parallel sides a, b and 1

Area = (a + b)h square units
distance between these parallel sides is h 2
b
A B

h 1

D C
a
 Frustum (Volume and Surface Area)

one
Sm all C

L-
H-h

one
e C
Larg

L- H-h L
r H

 h

R
r u s tum
F
r


h
R 2
 Frustum
If a solid cone is cut by a plane parallel to the base BC, then the solid portion
between the base and plane is called frustum of the cone.
A

H-h
E P F

B Q C

Here, EBCF is frustum of the cone ABC.

PF = r = radius
QC = R = radius
PQ = h = height
FC = l = slant height

r = radius of smaller circle

R = radius of larger circle P
r F
l = slant height of frustum
h l
1
Volume = πh(r2 + rR + R2)
3 Q C
R
Lateral Surface Area = π(r + R) l
= π(r + R) (R – r)2 + h2

Total Surface Area = π(r + R)l + πr2 + πR2

3

= π(r + R) (R – r)2 + h2 + πr2 + πR2

Formulas Involving Surface Areas and Volumes

4
Some More 3-D Geometrical Shapes
Pyramid

1
Volume of a general pyramid = Ah h
3
where A = base area and h = height
A

Regular Tetrahedron
b
b3
Volume =
6 2
Surface area = 3 b2

b
Square Pyramid
1 2
Volume = sh
3
(where h is perpendicular height of top) h
b
Surface area = s2 + 2sb b
b = slant height measured along triangular face s

Prism
Volume of any prism = Ah
Surface area of a closed prism = 2A + (h × p)
where A = base area, h = height, p = base perimeter

h h 5

P A A
P
Triangular Prism
1
Volume = Al or bhl
2
(where h = perpendicular height of triangle) h c a
A
l
Surface area = bh + (a + b + c) × l
b

General Cone OR Pyramid

A = area of base, h = perpendicular height

1 h
Volume: V = Ah
3

Torus
R r
r = tube radius,
R = torus radius
Volume : V = 2π2r2R
R
r
Surface area : S = 4π rR
2

6
 Quiz

Q.1 The other name of the cuboid is

(a) Square prism (b) Tetrahedron

(c) Rectangular prism (d) Square base pyramid

Q.2 Pentagonal prism has

(a) 5 Pentagonal faces (b) 4 Pentagonal faces

(c) 3 Pentagonal faces (d) 2 Pentagonal faces

Q.3 Circumference of the base of 8 m high conical tent is 264 m .

7
The area of canvas required to make the tent is
1320 m2 1360 m2
(a) (b)
7 7
(c) 286 m2 (d) 98 m2

Q.4 On the basis of given figure, the length of a

rectangle in the net of cylinder is equal to


(a) Circumference of circle (b) Height of cylinder
(c) Radius of circle (d) Curved surface area of cylinder

Answer (Quiz)

A.1 (c) Rectangular prism A.2 (d) 2 Pentagonal faces

7
1320 m2
A.3 (a) A.4 (a) Circumference of circle
7
 Sound

Crossword
1 8 4
2
7

3 6
5

ACROSS

1. Multiple echoes leading to persistence of sound in an auditorium are also

called _______. [13]
3. Sound whose frequency is below 20 Hz is called _______. [10]
5. _______ is a form of energy which produces a sensation of hearing. [5]
7. A sound of single frequency is called _______. [4]

DOWN
2. _______ is a bone of the middle ear. [5]
4. Amount of sound energy passing a unit area in a unit time is called
_______ [9]
6. The speed of sound increases with decrease in _______ of air. [7]
8
8. The propagation of longitudinal waves through a medium leads to
transmission of _______ [6 ]
 Facts About Sound
1. Flies cannot hear any kind of sound
not even their own buzzing.
2. The majority of cows that listen to
music end up producing more milk
than those who do not.
3. Birds create sound maps to navigate
their migration and travel through
air. Scientist believe that low level
sounds are responsible for disrupting
a bird’s natural compass.
4. If you clap in front of Chichen Itza’s El Castillo pyramid the echo will sound
like a chirping bird.
5. Horror films like to use infrasound, which is below the range of human
hearing. It creates shivering, anxiety and even heart palpitations in
humans when it is being played.
6. Sound comes from vibrations. These vibrations create sound waves which
move through mediums such as air and water before reaching our ears.
7. Our ears vibrate in a similar way to the original source of the vibration,
allowing us to hear many different sounds.
8. Dogs can hear sound at a higher frequency than human, allowing them to
hear noises that we can't.
9. Sound is used by many animals to detect danger, warning of possible
attacks before they happen.
10. Sound can't travel through vacuum (an area empty of matter).
11. In non-humid air at 20 degrees Celsius, the speed of sound is around 767
miles per hour.
12. The loud noise you create by cracking a whip occurs because the tip is
moving so fast that it breaks the speed of sound.
13. When traveling though water, sound moves around four times faster than
when it travels through air. 9

14. The scientific study of sound waves in known as acoustics.

 Quiz

Q.1 Which part of human ear converts sound vibrations into electrical
signals.
(a) Hammer (b) Stirrup
(c) Tympanic membrane (d) Cochlea

Q.2 What do dolphins, bats and porpoise use

(a) Ultrasound (b) infrasound
(c) Both (a) and (b) (d) None of them

Q.3 Children under the age of 5 can hear upto

(a) 25 Hz (b) 25 kHz
(c) 20 Hz (d) 30 kHz

Q.4 Reverberation of sound is used in

(a) Stethoscope (b) Trumpets
(c) Megaphone (d) All of these

Q.5 To hear a distinct echo each time interval between the original
sound and the reflected sound must be :
(a) 0.2 s (b) 1 s
(c) 2 s (d) 0.1 s

Q.6 Speed of sound depends upon

(a) Temperature of the medium
(b) Pressure of the medium
(c) Temperature of source producing sound 10

(d) Temperature and pressure of medium

Answer (Crossword)

8 4
1 R E V E R B E R A T I O N 2
N N I
E 7 T O N E N
R E C 6
G 3 I N F R A S O U N D
Y 5 S O U N D S E
I N
T S
Y I
T
Y

Answer (Quiz)

A.1 (d) Cochlea A.2 (a) Ultrasound

A.3 (b) 25 kHz A.4 (d) All of these

A.5 (d) 0.1 s A.6 (a) Temperature of the medium

11
 Structure of Atom

Crossword
ACROSS

3. Greek philosopher who

1
discovered atoms. [10]

5. English chemist that

developed first atomic 2
3 4 5
theory. [6]
7
6. Discovered the neutron. [8]
8
7. Discovered the electron. [7]
9

8. Discovered that particles 6

behave like waves. [9]

9. Model showing electrons

move with constant speed.
[4]

DOWN

1. Developed quantum mechanical model. [11]

2. Discovered the nucleus. [10]

4. Determined the elementary charge of an electron using the oil-drop

experiment. [8]
12
 Quiz

1
Which pair of substances given below are isotopes?
(a) 126C and 146C
(b) Carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide
(c) Diamond and graphite
(d) C2H4 and C3H6

2
Both an atom and an ion of the isotope of
22
sodium Na contain
11
(a) 11 Protons (b) 12 Neutrons
(c) 23 Protons (d) 23 Neutrons

3
Which of the following atoms has the same number
of valence electrons as a krypton atom with atomic
number 36?
(a) Chlorine (b) Sodium
(c) Rubidium (d) Xenon

4
What does Bohr’s atomic theory explain?
(a) About quantum numbers
(b) About the shape of sub-shells
(c) About nucleus
(d) About stationary states

5
Which of the following electronic configurations is
incorrect?
(a) Be - 2, 2 (b) O - 2, 6 13
(c) S - 2, 6, 8 (d) P - 2, 8, 5
 Interesting Facts SEVEN
THINGS TO
KNOW ABOUT
 What are radioisotopes? RADIOISOTOPES
Radioisotopes are atomic elements
that do not have the appropriate
proton to neutron ratio to remain  Where do radioisotopes come
stable. With an unbalanced number from? How are they made?
of protons and neutrons, energy is There are both naturally occurring
given off by the atom in an attempt and man-made radioisotopes. But
to become stable. for medical purposes, we only use the
ones made by nuclear reactors and
cyclotrons, because they are easy to
 How do we use radioisotopes
produce, and have the characteristics
in medicine?
needed for imaging.
Some radioisotopes give off alpha
or beta radiation, and these are  Why do we use radioisotopes
used for treating diseases such as in medicine? What’s so special
cancer. about them?
Radioisotopes are special because
 Are radioisotopes dangerous certain organs in the body respond in
to patients? unique ways to different substances.
The radioisotopes given to For example, the thyroid gland absorbs
patients undergoing diagnosis iodine, so the radioisotope iodine-131
or treatment, decay and quickly is widely used to treat thyroid cancer
become stable (non-radioactive) and in imaging the thyroid.
elements within minutes or hours Similarly, specific radioactive
depending on their half-lives or chemicals are picked up and
they are rapidly eliminated from metabolized by other organs like liver,
the body. kidney and brain. 14
 Interesting Facts

 If medical staff are cautioned to Health care workers are trained on

keep a distance, then why are clinical practices to appropriately
these treatments allowed for manage exposure as they provide
patients? support for patients undergoing
It all relates to ’justification’, a radiation therapy.
key concept in nuclear medicine.
Justification means that the benefit  Are radioisotopes inside a
derived from the use of radiation patient dangerous to the public?
must outweigh the potential harm to Medical staff follow strict rules and
the patient. are trained to ensure that those
Patients benefit from the properties of patients who are given therapeutic
radiation in the treatment of cancer. doses of radioisotopes are kept
And for someone who has cancer, isolated in their hospital rooms until
the use of a short lived radioisotope the patient’s exposure to the worker
during treatment could cure them and public is reduced to a safe level.
from the cancer or extend their lives.

Therefore these
Alpha (α
α)

Beta (β
β) treatments are o�en
jus�fied in the eyes of
Gamma (γγ)
& X-Rays both the pa�ent and
their physician.

15
Answer (Crossword)

1
S
C
H
2 R
4 R O
3 D E M O C R I T U S 5 D A L T O N
I T I
L 7 T H O M S O N
L E G
I 8 D E B R O G L I E
K F R
A 9 B O H R
N R
6 C H A D W I C K

Answer (Quiz)

1 (a) 12
6
C and 146C
2 (a) 11 Protons
3 (d) Xenon

4 (d) About stationary states

5 (c) S - 2, 6, 8

16
 Natural Resources

Crossword
ACROSS
1
5. Contamination of the 2
environment. [9] 3 4
5 6
7. Plantation of trees. [13]
10. Protective shield in the
stratosphere. [5]
11. Mixture of gases. [3] 7 8 9

12. This famous historical 10 11

monument was affected
by acid rain. [3, 5]
12
13. Combination of carbon
monoxide (CO) and
haemoglobin. [18] 13

DOWN

1. Cutting of trees or destruction of forests. [13]

2. Gas that forms 78% of the Earth's atmosphere. [8]
3. Substances which contaminate air and water. [10]
4. Purified water, suitable for drinking. [7]
6. Seepage of field water into the ground. [8]
8. Most popular physical method for removing impurities from water. [10]
9. Combination of smoke and fog. [4] 17
Interesting Facts

1 S. No
Indication of Pollution Level

Pollution Level BOD (mg/L)

(1) Low < 1500
(2) Medium 1500–4000
(3) High > 4000

2
Usually there are no clouds in stratosphere because of negligible
concentration of water vapours in this layer. However, during South
polar winter , air of stratosphere above Antarctica drops down below
-80 C that leads to the formation of thin clouds.

18

The cloud in stratosphere is known as ‘ mother of pearl’ or Nacreaous.

 3
Sedimentary cycles
These are another type of biogeochemical cycles whose reserves are
generally found in the lithosphere. Here is a diagrammatic explanation
of one such cycle i.e. Phosphorus cycle. Other examples are calcium cycle, iron
cycle and sulphur cycle.

19
 Using the words from the word box

___________ is a poisonous 1. Carbon is returned to the 2.

gas which is produced atmosphere by ___________.
on incomplete burning of
fossil fuels.

The process of conversion Oxygen is returned to the

of nitrates into gaseous 3. atmosphere by________. 4.
nitrogen which escapes
into the atmosphere is
called ___________.

Bad ozone is formed in CFCs are most damaging

the ___________ and harms 5. and efforts are being 6.
plants and animals. made to replace CFCs by
___________

WORD BOX
 Denitrification  Troposphere
 Hydrofluorocarbons  Carbon monoxide
 Respiration  Photosynthesis 20
Find the Zones

Mention the approximate intensity of rainfall in below labelled areas.

D
B

21
Answer (Crossword)

1
2 D
3 4 N E
P P 6 I F
O O 5 P O L L U T I O N
L T E R R
L A A O E
U B C G S
T 8 L 9 H E T
7 A F F O R E S T A T I O N A
N I M N T
T L 10 O Z O N E G 11 A I R
S T G O
R N
12 T A J M A H A L
T
I
13 C A R B O X Y H A E M O G L O B I N
N

Answer (Fill in the blanks)

Carbon monoxide 1. Respiration 2.

Denitrification 3. Photosynthesis 4.

Troposphere 5. Hydrofluorocarbons 6. 22
 Answer (Find the Zones)

Arid zone
(Below 50 cms)

Semi-arid zone
(50-100 cms)
Intermediate zone
( 100-200 cms)

Wet zone
(Above 200 cms)

23
 Electoral Politics

Challenges to Free and Fair Election in India

Entry of people
with criminal
background in
politics
Political In many
parties tend to parties, the
nominate those top positions
candidates who 2 are always
have or can controlled by
raise lots of members of one
money family

1 3

Smaller parties
Very often
and independent
elections offer
candidates suffer a
little choice
huge disadvantage
to ordinary
compared to
citizens
bigger parties

45
24
5
 Omission

A Missing Part of Speech

Identify the missing link and provide it as the answer to make the
sentence grammatically correct.

Q.1
(a) An English passenger, talking
Before Missing After
kindly me, drew (a) ______ ______ ______
(b) me conversation. He was older
than I. (b) ______ ______ ______
(c) He asked me what I ate, who I,
where I was going, (c) ______ ______ ______
(d) why I was shy, and so on. He also
(d) ______ ______ ______
advised me to come his table.

Q.2
(a) After Sri Ramakrishna’s passing Before Missing After
1886, Vivekananda (a) ______ ______ ______
(b) renounced the world and
crisscrossed India a (b) ______ ______ ______
(c) wandering monk. His mounting
(c) ______ ______ ______
compassion India’s
(d) people drove to seek material
(d) ______ ______ ______
help from the West. 25
Q.3
(a) About 260 million years the earliest Before Missing After
ancestor of turtles and (a) ______ ______ ______
(b) tortoises, bulbous reptile known as
Eunotosaurus africanus, (b) ______ ______ ______
(c) emerged from egg in South Africa’s
(c) ______ ______ ______
Karoo Basin. Its
(d) evolutionary descendants spread (d) ______ ______ ______
the globe, giving rise to the turtles
and tortoises living today.

Q.4
(a) Earth is an oblate spheroid. This
Before Missing After
means is spherical in shape,
(a) ______ ______ ______
(b) but not perfectly round. It has a
slightly greater radius the (b) ______ ______ ______
(c) Equator, the imaginary line running
horizontally around middle (c) ______ ______ ______
(d) of the planet. In addition bulging
(d) ______ ______ ______
in the middle, Earth’s poles are
slightly flattened.

26
Answer (A Missing Part of Speech)

A.1
Before Missing After
(a) kindly to me
(b) me into conversation
(c) who I was
(d) come to his

A.2
Before Missing After
(a) passing in 1886
(b) India as a
(c) compassion for India’s
(d) drove him to

A.3
Before Missing After
(a) years ago the
(b) tortoises a bulbous
(c) from an egg
(d) spread around the

A.4
Before Missing After
(a) means it is
(b) radius at the
(c) around the middle
(d) addition to bulging
27
 Non-Verbal
Reasoning
Quiz

Directions (Q.1 to Q.3) : Complete the given series as per the

appropriate pattern.

Question figure Answer figure

Q.1

(a) (b) (c) (d)

Question figure Answer figure

Q.2

(a) (b) (c) (d)

Question figure Answer figure

Q.3

(a) (b) (c) (d)

28
 Directions (Q.4 to Q.5) : In each of the following questions you are
given a figure followed by four alternatives (a), (b), (c) and (d). Choose
the alternatives which is closely resembles to the mirror image of the
given figure.

Q.4
(a) (b) (c) (d)

Q.5
(a) (b) (c) (d)

Q.6 What is the number of straight lines in the following figure ?

(a) 17 (b) 16 (c) 19 (d) 18

Q.7 How many triangles are there in the given figure?

(a) More than 10 but less than 20 (b) More than 19 but less than 25
29
(c) More than 24 but less than 30 (d) More than 29
Q.8 How many quadrilaterals are there in the given figure ?

(a) 32 (b) 19 (c) 16 (d) 43

Q.9 Choose the correct alternative which complete the figure.

(a) (b) (c) (d)

Q.10 If a paper (Transparent Paper) is folded in a manner and

design cut or pattern punched is made. When unfolded this
paper appears as given below in the answer figure. Choose the
correct answer figure given below.

(a) (b) (c) (d) 30

 Answer (Quiz)

A.1 (c) A.2 (b) A.3 (c)

A.4 (b) A.5 (c) A.6 (a) 17

A.7 (d) More than 29 A.8 (a) 32 A.9 (b)

A.10 (b)

31
Bharat Ratna, Missile Man of India & former president

Happy Birthday
Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam

A nation can accomplish

all it could ever want with
the effort of its people

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, in full Avul Pakir

Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, (born October 15,
1931, Rameswaram, India - died July 27, 2015,
Shillong), Indian scientist and politician who
played a leading role in the development of
India’s missile and nuclear weapons programs.
He was president of India from 2002 to 2007.

The inspiration behind millions of dreams

1430

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