Showing results by author "iMinds" in All Categories

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.

A meteorite is a mass of stone or metal which has reached the earth's surface from outer space. There are various names for a meteorite depending on where it is situated. While it is traveling in space, it is referred to as a "meteoroid". When it passes through the earth's atmosphere and produces a fiery streak in the sky, known as a "shooting star", it is called a "meteor".

Learn about the great rivers of the World with the iMindsJNR audio-learning series for younger minds. Can you guess which is the world's longest river? According to most scientists, it is the Nile, which passes through several African countries, and is 6,695 kilometers long. Some scientists have recently argued that the Amazon in South America is in fact longer. It all depends on where you start your measurements!

Learn about IPOs with iMinds Money's insightful fast knowledge series. IPOs or Initial Public Offerings are the sale of a company's equity to the public for the first time. By “going public”, a private company can be invested in by anyone on a stock exchange. Companies commonly “go public to” either to raise capital or to increase the company's liquidity. Previously, IPOs were limited to long established, large private firms.

Learn about the sport of Polo with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series. Beautiful horses, well-dressed players and ancient cultures - welcome to polo. Polo is one of the only sports in the world that relies more on the power of an animal than that of a human. Polo has evolved with the world's cultures, creating new variations as it has spread.

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.

The aurora borealis, often referred to as the Northern Lights, is a natural light-show that appears in the sky around the north magnetic pole. Auroras can sometimes be seen in other places of the world, but not as clearly. In the southern hemisphere, the phenomenon is called "aurora australis".

Learn about Mutual Funds with iMinds Money's insightful fast knowledge series. A mutual fund is an investment vehicle that allows a group of investors to pool their money, allowing a professional to collectively trade securities on their behalf in exchange for a small fee. The pooled funds are used to purchase a diverse range of assets and provide a return to the investor.

It was another cold night in Boston on the 16th of December 1773. But this was no ordinary night. This night would ignite the flames of injustice within many an American colonist. And it would eventually lead to the American Revolution. That night, three British ships - the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, and the Beaver - were moored in the Boston harbor....

Continue your iMinds Collection with Generalist Volume 3. A compilation of diverse topics across our 12 categories, in Generalist Volume 3 you will learn about: The story behind Lehman Brothers, the theory of the Tragedy of the Commons, the cultural construct of Flash Mobs, the belief of Creationism, the art of Anime, the theory of Evolution, the history of the Bubonic Plague and the Great Fire of London, the belief in UFOs, the mystery of Stonehenge and the story of the New York Yankees.

Learn about the Cold War with iMindsJNR 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.

Learn about the history of the Printing Press with iMindsJNR audio-learning series for younger minds.

Alongside the invention of the wheel, electric light and the internet, the invention of the printing press was one of history’s great, transformative moments.

Learn about subprime lending with iMinds Money's insightful fast knowledge series. Originally, the term subprime lending described any loan that charged less than the prime, or base, rate of interest. This definition, however, has changed over the last twenty years to mean quite the opposite. Now subprime refers not to the interest rate charged, but to the credit worthiness of the loan taker.

Which country separates the United States of America from Central America? Where, on average, do people eat half a kilo of tortillas every day? And, where is home to the cactus and the Chihuahua? Mexico, of course! Mexico, or the United States of Mexico, is a federation of 31 sovereign states. Its land mass is almost three times that of Texas, which it borders. In fact, Mexico is the world’s 14th largest nation.

Learn about Antitrust Laws with iMinds Money's insightful fast knowledge series. Competition is an essential part of the free market. The competition between participants in the market promotes efficiency. This occurs as the supply of a product is improved to provide more attractive prices than a competitor can offer. Competition also drives innovation, as producers develop superior products and services to gain the favour of buyers.

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.

If you're watching a movie where a world-weary detective is having trouble with a "dame" or a "broad", and cigarette smoke is wafting through the scene - you're probably appreciating a bit of "film noir". Film noir literally means black film referring to both the look and the attitude of these movies.

Learn about the life of Mahatma Gandhi with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series.

On January 30, 1948, a small, peaceful man, aged 78, was shot dead while holding a prayer meeting in Delhi, India. What made this man's death global news was the extraordinary life that had preceded it. The world gasped in shock that the man who had brought India her independence had been killed; that a man who had proven to be one of the most iconic figures of the 20th century was dead.

Learn about the life and times of Saint Francis of Assisi with iMindsJNR audio-learning series for younger minds. The story of Saint Francis is particularly famous among Catholics. The story of his simple, peaceful life has transcended religious borders to become an inspiration to many.

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.