Communication
Communication
How do we communicate and various ways
Of communication
communication can be very easy. It could be sharing an iPod to listen to music together or just smiling at someone. We also communicate with one another face-to-face. We write. letters and e mails or use telephone or mobile phones. What is so easy for us today was not an easy task earlier. Messages were sent via messengers or riders, through smoke signals or drums. Today, we can send robots to other planets and control them from the Earth. We can film anything, and the pictures come to our living room via satellite. It is incredible that all these developments took place only in the last 100 years!
Ways of communication
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| Communication |
Why can humans speak, but not animals?
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| Why can humans speak, but not animals |
How do animals communicate?
Dogs bark, growl, whine. Deer bell, mice squeak. When a bee has detected food, it informs the other bees by a kind of a dance, and whales inform each other by means of the whale song. Their sounds can be heard in water from several hundred kilometres. The communication of the whales has increasingly become difficult, because there are so many other sounds in the oceans now, like those of ships or of oil rigs. In general, animals of the same species communicate with one another without a problem; between species, there could be misunderstandings! For example, a cat purrs with satisfaction, but the dog may think that the cat is snarling at it!
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| Fish - How do animals communicate? |
How do our hands communicate with the brain?
The hands are connected to the brain through nerve paths. If it becomes very cold for the nerve endings in the skin of the hand, the signals are transmitted to the brain. In the brain, a process is
initiated that leads to commands: Rub the hands, put the hands in the armpits to warm them, wear gloves. The brain sends these commands back to the hands via the nerves, and the hands then execute them. In case of an accident, like a fall, we react much faster and try to prevent the fall by using our hands. How fast we react depends on whether we have already experienced such situations before.
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| How do our hands communicate with the brain |
What is body language?
Both humans and animals communicate a lot through their body postures. A cat, when angry, humps its back and its skin ruffles up so that it appears bigger and more dangerous. In this way, it warns its opponent not to come near. Humans frown when in doubt and smile when happy. We use the thumbs up or the thumbs down signs as common gestures of approval or disapproval by extending the thumb upward or downward. We also make use of a universal sign language; we know what an index finger on the lips or a waving hand is trying to tell us. But watch out: signs do not mean the same all over the world - if you make an 'O' with the index
finger and the thumb, it means 'okay' in USA, but at other places it is an insult.
In some countries like China or Myanmar, it is disrespectful and impolite to look into the eyes of the person talking to you. This means people should talk with their eyes downcast.
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| What is body language? |
How does one convey messages quickly over long distances?
Earlier information to someone who was out of visual and hearing range was sent with the help of signals using smoke, jungle drums, etc. Now we can send messages to people across the world via email. The North American Indians communicated with smoke signals in the vast expanse of the prairie and the inhabitants of the African forests used jungle drums. But the range of sending messages was restricted for these methods. In the 19th century, electricity was used successfully to transfer messages: initially through Morse code, then via telephone, and today with the help of computers.
How can one transmit messages with smoke?
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| This picture shows the American Indians used a sheltered place to send smoke signals. |
Smoke is formed if one throws wet twigs in the fire. The smoke gets concentrated if it is covered. Smoke clouds start rising in the sky when this cover is removed. The longer the fire is kept covered, the bigger is the smoke cloud. The colour of the smoke clouds can be changed by burning certain types of wood. All these smoke signs-big and small, short and long, white and black-and their sequences had a meaning for the American Indians. But this method was only capable of conveying very limited, pre-arranged messages.
How does the jungle drum work?
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| Message drums are hollowed out tree trunk,which are covered on both sides with animal skin. |
Jungle or message drums work like any other language. If you know the code, i.e., the meaning of the drum beats, you can understand the message. The jungle drums were used mainly in Africa. People living in different villages communicated with one another with the help of drums. The messages were transmitted from one village to another over distances as long as 8 km. Europeans exploring Africa were often surprised to see that news of their imminent arrival had already reached the village. With slave trading, the jungle drum reached America and the Caribbean. However, slave owners banned their use since they did not understand the language of the drums.
What is Morse code?
Morse code is a method of transmitting electrical signals that are combinations of long and short sounds, flashes of light or electrical pulses-like a torch that flicks on and off. To understand the message, the code must be known: the Morse alphabet. Samuel Morse, an American, invented it in 1833. The alphabet consists of dots and dashes: A dot stands for a short signal, a dash for a long one. An S is written as, an Oas--- This means the emergency signal SOS is--three
dots, three dashes, three dots. Amateur radio operators and telegraphy use this Morse code even today.
How does the telephone work?
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| Telephone exchanges around 1950. One called and mentioned the number with whom he wished to speak. The telephone operator dialed the desired number, said 'connecting' and then plugged the lines of both the partners in her switchboard. |
Like all sounds, speech also consists of sound waves. The mouthpiece of the telephone has a microphone, which converts the spoken sounds into electrical current. The transmission of electric current is done through wires. In the earpiece, the electric current is converted back to sound waves. Earlier, the wires were made of copper, but today telephonic conversations are transmitted through glass fibre cables or even via satellite connections. Telephone calls over long distances were earlier possible only through telephone operators. Since 1970, however, we can make overseas calls directly. The telephone was invented by Graham Bell, who applied for its patent in 1876.
How are e-mails transmitted?
We need access to the Internet to send an e-mail. We can get the access by paying money to an internet service provider. In addition, one needs the email address of the receiver. The e-mail starts its journey when 'Send' is pressed from the sender's email account. The e-mail then goes to the service provider, who sends from one 'node' to another, before it reaches its destination. It may happen that an e-mail sent from Berlin, goes to USA, then to India, and finally reaches your neighbour .
Knowledge Booster
SOS stands for 'save our souls' or 'save our ship'? The emergency signal was radioed for the first time in 1909 by a ship near the Azores islands.
the election of a new pope is still announced with smoke signals? If white smoke is seen, it means that the new pope is elected; black smoke means the cardinals are still deliberating.
e-mail stands for 'electronic mail'?
the character @ has been included in the international Morse alphabet only in the year 2004?
Telephone exchanges around 1950. One called and mentioned the number with whom he wished to speak. The telephone operator dialed the desired number, said 'connecting' and then plugged the lines of both the partners in her switchboard.
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