My Science School

Barbados, a small island, lies north of Venezuela in the Atlantic Ocean. Coral reefs circle a large part of the island. Barbados is thought to have been originally inhabited by Arawak Indians.

But, when the Europeans arrived, it was uninhabited. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to set foot on the island. However, it was the British who first established a colony there in 1627.

 When the British arrived in Barbados, the island was almost totally covered in dense jungle, with a very large population of wild pigs! The colonists cultivated tobacco, cotton, and later sugar, which proved to be enormously profitable. Slaves were brought in from Africa to work on sugar plantations, and eventually, the population was about 90 per cent black.

Britain granted the colony independence in 1966, and it became a parliamentary democracy within the Commonwealth. The name ‘Barbados’ is derived from the bearded fig trees once found in abundance on the island.

Ireland is an island in Northwestern Europe. It is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Channel, the Irish Sea and the Celtic Sea.

Five sixths of this island comprises the Republic of Ireland. The other one sixth is a part of the United Kingdom. In the Stone and Bronze Ages, Ireland was inhabited by people called Picts in the north and Erainn in the south.

Around 4th BC tall, red-haired Celts arrived from Gaul. Saint Patrick introduced Christianity in AD 432, and the country developed into a center of Gaelic and Latin learning. Irish monasteries attracted intellectuals as well as the pious.

 These monasteries also sent out missionaries to many parts of Europe and even, it is believed, to North America. Ireland is an island of lush vegetation, thick woods, low mountains, and a mild climate. Peninsulas and lakes, breathtaking monuments dating from prehistoric times, as well as fabulous ruins of castles and monasteries, all make Ireland a tourist’s dream.

When you think of Iceland, you think of ice... but, remarkably, Iceland is not covered by ice the way Greenland is. This island nation lies in the Arctic region of Northern Europe. Iceland was discovered by the Vikings, a seafaring race of people.

The Scandinavians settled there in AD 874. Iceland was later ruled by the Norwegians and Danes, until it became an independent nation in 1918 and a republic in 1944. Iceland has lava fields, mountains, and glaciers. In some places, the ice on the glaciers is 1000 metres thick!

 

Continue reading "Why is Iceland remarkable? "

Mauritius is a small island nation in the middle of the Indian Ocean. It is located to the east of Madagascar Island, near South Africa. Because of its spectacular beauty and strategic location, it is referred to as the ‘star and key’ of the Indian Ocean.

The nation is made up of the island of Mauritius, Rodrigues, and the outer islands. The island was formed as a result of volcanic activity in the Indian Ocean millions of years ago.

Mauritius was visited by the Arabs and then by the Portuguese. It was later ruled by the French and the British, until it became an independent nation. Caressed by a turquoise ocean, Mauritius is famed for its breathtaking landscapes.

Its dazzling white beaches, coral reefs, seven colours of sands and sand dunes attract tourists from every corner of the planet. There are also a number of unique plants and animals that are found only on this island. Amazingly, there are no wild animals here in this tropical paradise-even the snakes are not poisonous!

The Republic of Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world. This island nation lies in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Africa. It is a truly amazing place, for over 70 per cent of the 250,000 wildlife species found in Madagascar are found nowhere else in the world, and 90 per cent of the estimated 14,000 plants native to Madagascar cannot be seen anywhere else on the planet either.

For example, the lemur is only found in the wild in Madagascar. As of 2012, there were 103 living species of lemur in Madagascar, including sub-species. One of the reasons for Madagascar's unique wildlife is the island's distance from anywhere else.

 

 

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 Australia is truly unique in that it is an island, a nation, and a continent all together. The continent of Australia is an island, and the entire continent is a single nation!

The first inhabitants of Australia were the aboriginals who were later joined by other ethnic groups. The Europeans arrived only in the 1700s.

Most of the population lives along the coast. Australia is a place of many wonders, with a lake that is pink in colour and animals that are found nowhere else, including kangaroos, koalas and Tasmanian devils.

 Australian culture is as broad and varied as the country's landscape that includes some of the world's most exotic species of plants. In Australia, you can travel from scorching deserts to snow clad mountains, dazzling white beaches and magical coral reefs without ever leaving the country.

 

 A private island is one that is owned by just one individual or corporation. Naturally, only the rich and the famous can afford to have their own private islands.

Some use their islands as a getaway from photographers and from the outside world, while others rent out their islands to wealthy travelers.

Actor Johnny Depp owns a 45-acre tropical island called Little Hall's Pond Cay in the Caribbean. Other famous actors who own islands include Robin Williams, Mel Gibson and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Many claim that owning a private island gives a sense of freedom and privacy that cannot be equaled by ownership of any other property.

 However, even though an island may be private property, the owner still has to abide by all the laws and rules of the country of which it is a part of.

 Centuries ago, when maps were first drawn, there were no satellites or Google Maps. People had no choice but to rely on the tales of explorers, when drawing maps.

 As a result these maps were often not accurate, and many of them contained islands known as phantom islands. Phantom Islands are islands that were believed to have existed.

They would have appeared on maps for a period of time- sometimes for centuries. However, once it was proved that they did not exist, these islands have been removed from world maps. Phantom Islands might have been a misrepresentation of actual islands.

 

Continue reading "What is a phantom island?"

   Mauna Kea is the highest island mountain in the world. It is actually a dormant volcano.

 Millions of years ago, volcanic eruptions on the sea floor started the process of creating a volcanic mountain. This underwater mountain grew taller and taller, till it rose above the surface of the ocean. As the eruptions continued, the mountain continued to grow, until it reached its present height.

 Standing 4,207 metre above sea level, its peak is the highest point in the state of Hawaii. It is actually much taller than Mount Everest, but since water much of Mauna Kea is under water, Mount Everest is still considered to be the world's tallest mountain. Mauna Kea is over a million years old, and has been dormant now for around 6000 years. 

 An island that is not inhabited by humans is called a desert island. Uninhabited islands are also called ‘deserted islands.’ There are many such islands around the world. Uninhabited, islands are often used in movies or stories about shipwrecked people.

There are many such desert islands. One among them is Kermadec Islands in the South Pacific. Another one is De Long Islands in the Arctic Ocean.

Tetepare is the largest uninhabited island in the South Pacific. The long rugged island is covered with pristine lowland rainforest, and fringed with coral reefs.

The first known novel to be set on a desert island was Philosophus Autodidactus written by Ibn Tufail.

William Shakespeare's play, The Tempest, uses the idea of being stranded on a desert island as a pretext for the action of the play.

Samosir Island has the distinction of being the largest island within an island. It is a volcanic island in Lake Toba which is a lake in the island of Sumatra.

 The island was born as a result of two dramatic prehistoric volcanic events. A gigantic volcanic explosion first created a huge crater that became Lake Toba. Samosir was formed by a new volcano cone pushing up through the existing Lake Toba volcanic crater. It was actually a peninsula jutting into the lake.

 But in 1906, the Dutch dug a canal across the connecting strip of land and Samosir became an island. Samosir is about the size of Singapore, and is the heart of the culture of the Toba tribes of North Sumatra. 

Manitoulin, the world's largest fresh water island is a source of unending wonder. It has more lakes on it- 110- to ho precise. This is more than any other Island on Earth.

Some of these lakes have their own islands, and many of these islands have their own ponds! In the heart of Manitoulin Island lies Lake Mindemoya, which has an island on it called Treasure Island.

Treasure Island is the world's largest island in a lake, which in turn, is on an island in a lake! Located in Lake Huron in Canada, Manitoulin Island is named for an underwater cave where a powerful spirit was believed to have lived.

Bananal Island is a large river island in Brazil. It is located at a fork formed by two sections of the Araguaia River. It is the second largest fluvial island in the world- a fluvial island is a piece of land that is surrounded by streams or natural waterways.

Bananal Island is also the largest fluvial island without an ocean coastline. This island is only 56 kilometres wide, and the home of indigenous people. It has a variety of palms, tropical birds, and freshwater fish.

Bananal Island is a nature and cultural preserve. There are no bridges to the island from the mainland. The only way to reach it is by boat. In the north of Bananal lies the vast Araguaia National Park, and in the south, there are two Red Indian reservations.

 

 The Indonesian island of Java is the most thickly populated island in the world. Practically lying on the equator, it is home to 57 per cent of the Indonesian population, and was the centre for Hindu-Buddhist empires.

Java was formed mainly by volcanic eruptions, and has an east-west chain of volcanoes. During the colonial periods of the 17th century, the Dutch introduced the cultivation of commercial plants in Java, including sugar cane, rubber, tea and coffee. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, Javanese coffee gained global popularity.

 This is in fact why the name ‘Java’ is commonly considered being synonymous with coffee. With more than 450 different bird species, Java is also a birdwatcher's paradise.

 Bishop Rock is a small rocky ledge jutting out of the sea. It is famous for its lighthouse. Bishop Rock lies west of the Isles of Scilly in Cornwall.

The rock rises from a depth of 45 metre to expose the ledge which is 46 metres long by 16 metres wide. This makes Bishop Rock the world's smallest island with a building on it.

The lighthouse was built because the rocks around the Scilly Isles were the cause of many shipwrecks. However, building it was a dangerous task, because the sea was rough and the island too small.

After seven years labour the lighthouse was finally completed in 1858. In the old days, the 49-metre lighthouse had to rely on paraffin vapour lamps and, before that, candles.

Today, there are generators and batteries and a helipad that was built in 1976. Though the lighthouse is no longer operational, it has ten floors, and up to four visitors can stay here for a week to three weeks.