Showing results by author "iMinds" in All Categories

Learn about the Cold War with iMinds' JNR audio-learning series for younger minds. For nearly half of the 20th century, the two most powerful countries in the world were also two great enemies.The Cold War was a time of great tension between the United States and the Soviet Union, led by Russia. It lasted from the end of World War II in 1945 until about 1991. Russia was a communist country, and the U.S. was the largest capitalist country in the world. Their different ideas of government caused them to be extreme enemies.

Bubonic plague is widely regarded as being responsible for two of the most infamous plagues in recorded history - the Black Death in the mid-14th century and the great plague of London in 1665. The causative organism of modern-day plague was discovered independently in 1894 by two bacteriologists: the Swiss born Dr. Alexandre Yersin and Dr. Shibasaburo Kitasato from Japan.

Learn about the mystery of the Mary Celeste with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series. In December 1872, a ship was discovered in the Atlantic Ocean. The ship's sails were raised and it was in a seaworthy condition. Yet it appeared to be bobbing quite strangely rather than sailing. Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the crew of the ship was missing.

Learn about the story of Merlin the Magician with iMindsJNR audio-learning series for younger minds. As the advisor who helps King Arthur through the early years of his reign, Merlin has become the most famous wizard of all time.The stories of Merlin may have been based on a real person. But the character we know as Merlin today has come down to us through the “History of the Kings of Britain”, a book by the 12th-century English writer Geoffrey of Monmouth.

Learn about the Renaissance period with iMindsJNR audio learning series for younger minds. The word "Renaissance" means "rebirth" in French. It was first used by French historian Jules Michelet in 1858 to refer to a "movement" that took place between about the 13th and 16th centuries . This movement describes the transition from medieval to modern Europe.

Throughout the world, there are hundreds of lakes in which monsters are said to live. None of these lake monsters is more famous than the Loch Ness Monster, who is said to inhabit Loch Ness in Scotland.

The story behind D-Day begins in 1939 when Nazi Germany, led by Adolf Hitler, attacked Poland and ignited World War Two. The following year, the Germans occupied France and Western Europe and launched a vicious air war against Britain. In 1941, they invaded the Soviet Union. Seemingly unstoppable, the Nazis now held virtually all of Europe. However, by 1943, the tide had begun to turn in favor of the Allies, the forces opposed to Germany.

Learn about the art movement called Impressionism with iMindsJNR audio-learning series for younger minds.

Impressionism was a style of art that began in late 19th-century Paris. It was concerned with depicting movement and capturing light in paintings. Impressionist artists included Claude Monet, Hilaire Edgar Degas, Eugene-Louis Boudin, Camille Pissarro, Paul Cezanne, Mary Stevenson Cassatt, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir.

Learn about the story of the infamous Guy Fawkes with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series. "Remember, remember the fifth of November, gunpowder, treason and plot." Guy Fawkes has been called the most famous terrorist in history for his involvement in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. His influence is still felt today in United Kingdom where Guy Fawkes Night is still celebrated on November 5th.

The House of Plantagenet was a royal house of 15 monarchs who ruled England from 1154-1485. The Plantagenets originally came from France, where they ruled a county called Anjou. They were a strange and powerful family, complex and prone to insanity. Their founder, Count Fulk III (known as "The Black"), had his wife burned at the stake in her wedding dress when he discovered she was sleeping with a goatherd.

You may have asked yourself before now: if plants are alive, why don't they eat? The answer is they do eat, but not in the same way as humans and animals. Green plants, algae, and some bacteria are able to use energy from the sun as a kind of food that enables them to live and grow. The complicated process by which this happens is called photosynthesis.

Learn about the U.S. Federal Reserve with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series. The Federal Reserve is stirring more excitement these days than is probably recommended for a central bank just shy of its 100th birthday. The Fed, tasked with fostering economic growth and price stability in the US, was ratified by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913.

Learn about the theory of nature vs. nurture with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series. The phrase "nature vs. nurture" refers to a long-standing debate about the importance of heredity and environment in shaping who we are. It asks whether our personality, our behavior, and our sexuality are primarily the result of genetic or social influences. The debate is central to us as human beings. Perhaps this is because it essentially asks, "Who are we?" and "Why are we who we are?"

Crop circles are geometric patterns found in agricultural fields, most often in Southern England. They consist of flattened plant stems lying in regular patterns, some of which are highly complex. Crop circles usually appear in fields of wheat, barley, canola and other common crops. Because of their size - hundreds of feet across - crop circles can only be truly appreciated from the air.

Learn about Carbon Trading with iMinds Money's insightful fast knowledge series. Carbon trading is a scheme designed to curb the amount of greenhouse gas emissions companies produce. This is due to the widely-held view that such emissions negatively impact the planet. Carbon trading forms part of the carbon market, which can be divided into two main categories. The first of these is project-based transactions.

Learn about the history of the Latin Quarter in Paris with iMinds Travel's insightful audio-knowledge series. Spanning the fifth and part of the sixth arrondissemonts in Paris, the Latin Quarter is located on the Left Bank of the Seine where it borders Saint Germain-de-Pres and Montparnasse. The Latin Quarter derives its name from the plethora of universities in this part of Paris. Latin was widely spoken along with French in this Parisienne district until 1789.

It is said that when Joan of Arc was born on January 6 in 1412, the roosters in her village all crowed, even though it was midnight. When Joan was 13 years old, something happened to change her life. She was working in the garden when she thought she saw a bright light coming from the church, and heard someone speaking French in a sweet, low, beautiful voice.

Learn about Financial Regulation with iMinds Money's insightful fast knowledge series. Financial regulation, simply put, is the supervision and control of the financial system and entities within it by a government body. It is deemed necessary to prevent abuses or failures within financial systems that affect the public or the stability of the system itself. Regulation is carried out differently in countries around the world....

Learn about the science of Wind Power with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series. Wind power is a limitless, non-polluting resource that currently contributes almost 2% of the world's energy supply. It's the fastest-growing resource market in the world and has become one of the biggest issues in the green movement. Importantly, there is enough of it in the atmosphere to meet the daily global energy demand five times over!

The Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp was set up by the U.S. government as a detention facility for "unlawful enemy combatants" captured in the "war on terror". Opened in 2002, it is located on the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.