When did Cricket start?

The game of cricket was started about 600 years ago, according to some sports researchers. An old picture in the Oxford Library shows two persons playing with a bat and a ball.

But according to written records, the first cricket match between Kent and London was played on 18th June 1744. In this match, London was defeated.

The rules of this game were framed a few years later. The length of the pitch was fixed at 22 yards. The wicket was made of two sticks. cricket startThe bat for cricket was designed on the pattern of hockey sticks.

Now there are some changes in these things. The wicket now consists of three sticks and the bat is a straight one, being narrow at the point where it is held by the hand and broader at the bottom.

In 1803, when this game was started, the Australian team came to England in 1868 and played 47 matches with the English team. Australia won 14 matches, lost another 14 matches, and drew the rest of the 19 matches.

The first world Test match was played between England and Australia in Melbourne from 15th to 17th March 1877. This match was won by Australia by 45 runs but Australia was defeated in the second Test Match played at the same place.

Gradually after this, the system of Test matches spread all over the world. More than 800 players of the world have taken part in various Test matches during the last one hundred years.

Nowadays this game has a great attraction for millions of people. Tickets for the test matches are obtained with great difficulty. The commentaries of these test matches are broadcast over radio and television. Every body enjoys these test matches.

Article is taken from:-thegeminigeek.com

Who Invented Jazz?

Jazz took its modern look in the United States in the later part of 19th century and early 20th century when Black musicians there begin playing European music in their own style. Therefore, no single person can be said to have invented jazz. Jazz is often called the classical music of the United States. It was a cultural phenomenon. But there is a musician and a song writer, Clarence Williams, who claims to have invented the term jazz. Critics argue that the term ‘jazz’ originated in the jargon of English poet and play-write Chaucer and Shakespeare respectively.

JazzThe jazz originated when the slaves brought from Africa sang songs, told stories, shared grief and happiness etc in the 18th century. The singer would often call out a line and the rest of the folk would respond to that. These were the beginnings of jazz. In the following century, a lot of Europeans immigrated to the United States, each bringing their own unique musical tradition. An African-American composer, Scott Joplin, combined the European style with the music of the African community. This new genre was then called ‘ragtime’.

In the early 20th century, the ‘ragtime’ started getting popular as more and more black musicians and singers came to sing. In the 1930s a new style of jazz emerged with its highly energetic beats and swing music. The changes continued and the next big impression was left by the Civil Rights Movement of Martin Luther King in the 1960s. The jazz continued to evolve and now we have retro jazz, smooth jazz and other versions.

What Is Swine Flu?

Health experts, doctors and researchers have not only heard of and identified swine flu, they continue to work on preventing and treating this form of influenza. Known by the virus-identifier H1N1, swine flu is causing illness in human beings.

First identified in United States residents in April of 2009, the virus is spreading around the world. The movement of H1N1 has occurred at such an alarming rate that the World Health Organization quickly declared the influenza experience was a pandemic.

Some confusion has resulted from associating H1N1 with the term swine flu. The virus that is making people sick is similar to viruses that usually are found in pigs. But there are major differences between the two, human and swine.

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) most of the people who contract swine flu recover without the assistance of doctors or other medical personnel. According to CDC, “Flu viruses are spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing by people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something – such as a surface or object – with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose.”

Swine flu or H1N1 symptoms include body aches, chills, fatigue, cough, fever, runny nose and most of the common influenza symptoms. While many normally healthy people get over this flu without serious complications, there have been severe illnesses, even death, in some individuals. Almost all medical information about H1N1 includes warnings for older people (over 65), the very young (under 5) and for those who have a serious chronic medical condition that weakens the system. People in the high-risk category include the pregnant, those with diabetes and heart disease and so on.

One of the problems with new influenza viruses such as swine flu is that medical personnel don’t have good information about when it occurs, how long it lasts etc. With more common flu viruses that society has dealt with for years there is plenty of information about when to expect them and how to deal with them.

Records indicate that with more common flu viruses, 90 percent of the people who become seriously ill or die are over 65. A few months of study in 2009 shows that H1N1 flu “has caused greater disease burden in people younger than 25 years of age than older people.” (CDC report).

Studies have also shown that those who have swine flu may infect others from about one day before illness to approximately 7 days after.

Vaccines have been developed for H1N1 and the medical community continues to feel this is the best, level-one preventive measure. But people can help limit the spread of H1N1 by carefully covering the mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing. Careful washing of hands may also help. The CDC “recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone, except to go to a medical expert or for absolute emergencies. Avoiding those already ill and avoiding crowds when can be strong preventive measures.