Ever wondered why February is the only month with 28 days? Well, the original Roman calendar began in March and had only 10 months as the rulers never considered the winter months worthy of recording. The 10th month December was coined from the Latin word ‘decem’ or ‘ten’, July originally called Quintilis stood for ‘fifth’ while August, initially Sextilis, meant ‘sixth’ and so on.
The superstitious rulers also disliked even numbers as they believed it symbolised death and the ten months either had 29 or 31 days.
The number of months was increased to 12 when King Numa Pompilius of Rome decided to align the Roman calendar with the Lunar Year in 700 BC since Roman astronomers calculated a month as the time between two full moons.
King Numa introduced Januarius (named after the God, Janus, the protector of doorways and hence the opening of the year) and Februarius (after Februalia, the festival of sacrifices).
In 44 BC, the great Roman general Julius Caesar decided to choose a month for himself and he renamed Quintilis (the month with 31 days) as July and this became his month! Legend has it, that Caesar’s nephew Augustus Caesar refused to be outdone and pinched a day from February (which had 29 days) to make 31 days for his month — August (originally Sextilis).
Some researchers say Caesar decreed February should have 28 days while others are in favour of the sneaky Augustus theory, but the truth is there are barely any records which date back to the period and no one really knows exactly why February has 28 days.

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Amazing Living World
Dynamite Tree

The Sandbox tree (Hura crepitans) is an evergreen tree native to the tropical forests of Central and South America. It is also known as the dynamite tree because when the pumpkin-shaped seed capsules of the tree ripen, they explode with a loud sound, catapulting the individual segments (the seeds) to a distance of up to 30 metres! The force of the rupture is so strong that if the seed shrapnel were to hit someone, it could injure the person.
Sandbox trees are among the tallest trees in America and can grow to a height of 30-60 metres. They have short, conical spines on their trunks and their leaves, bark and seeds are poisonous. Their unripe fruits were once used as sandboxes for blotting ink; hence the name sandbox tree.

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Surajkund’s Craft Mela

Every year in the first fortnight of February, Surajkund, a rustic village bordering Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi, hosts a Crafts Mela, one of the largest fairs of its kind in the country.
The Mela showcases the country's finest crafts like pashmina shawls from Ladakh, metalware from Sikkim, lacquerware from Gujarat, puppets from Rajasthan, embroidered umbrellas from Orissa, metalware from Sikkim and intricately carved woodwork from Punjab.
Like any other fair, the Surajkund Craft Mela also has its share of tight-rope walkers, drummers, jugglers, stilt-walkers, clowns and mehendi artists.

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Sparkler
The Power of Music

SItar maestro Ustad Abdul Halim Jaffar Khan was giving a performance at Shanti Niketan. He was in great form and the audience sat spellbound.
Suddenly a stray dog ambled onto the stage. It looked at the maestro, wagged its tail, and then crossing the stage, jumped down and left the place.
The ustad immediately stopped playing. His audience and the organisers of the function held their breath, expecting an outburst of anger. Instead he said : “Friends, we have all heard that when Baiju Bawara sang, deer came running to him from the jungles, and when Tansen sang the raag Megh Malhar, clouds showered rain! What am I compared to those great men?! My music attracted a stray dog and I should pat myself on the back for that.”
And with that he resumed playing.

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Mindbender

Scruffy Sandy is late for the football match and has worn his jersey inside out and backside front! Normally the label containing washing instructions is on the inside of the left sleeve. Where is it now?

Answer: Inside of the left sleeve.