Why is America called that? Detailed answer

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Why is America called that? Detailed answer

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Why is America called that?

Everyone has heard that America was "discovered" by Columbus. But why, then, does this continent not bear his name? The reason for this is pure coincidence. When Columbus made his first journey, on October 12, 1492, his sailors noticed the long-awaited land on the horizon. Their captain went ashore and in the name of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella proclaimed this land the possession of Spain, calling it San Salvador.

However, this piece of land was not part of the territory of the mainland, but only one of the islands of the Bahamas. Columbus believed that he managed to reach the shores of India (which he aspired to), and therefore called the inhabitants of the island Indians. Columbus traveled around the surrounding waters in search of Japan, but instead discovered the islands of Cuba and Hispaniola.

Finally, after many difficulties on the way back, he returned to Spain on March 14, 1493. On his second voyage, beginning September 24, 1493, Columbus discovered several of the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica. However, he still sought to find a way to India. During the third trip, he discovered the island of Trinidad and even landed on the coast of South America, but mistook it for a large island or a range of islands.

At the same time, another traveler, Amerigo Vespucci, began to claim that it was he who first landed with his sailors on the mainland of South America. According to him, this happened on July 16, 1497, but many historians believe that he undertook his journey no earlier than 1499.

In 1501, Vespucci, sailing along the coast of South America, sent letters to Europe in which he said that he had discovered a new continent. One of the German cartographers, using this information, marked a new continent on the map, calling it "America" (in honor of Amerigo Vespucci). Since then, this name has been used by everyone!

Author: Likum A.

Random interesting fact from the Great Encyclopedia:

What is matter?

Anything that occupies at least some space anywhere in the universe is called matter. There are three states of matter: solid, liquid and gaseous. Matter is also divided into organic and inorganic. Plants, animals, people are examples of living matter. Firewood, clothes made of cotton and wool, buckwheat also belong to it, because once they were part of some living creature. Everything else: iron, copper, glass, water, air, etc. - is inorganic matter.

Any matter, regardless of its form or state, consists of atoms. The atoms themselves have a central nucleus and electrons revolving around it. Electrons are small, constantly moving particles of electricity. Although atoms are so small that a person cannot even imagine their size, nevertheless, there is a significant empty space between the nucleus and electrons. In terms of volume, it far exceeds the total volume of the particles from which the atom is built.

Thus it turns out that matter is actually mostly emptiness! It doesn't matter if it's a person or a brick wall. If all the empty space were removed from you, leaving only the solid base itself, then you would be reduced to the size of a tiny tablet.

If all atoms were the same, then there would be only one kind of matter in the world. However, there are more than a hundred varieties of them, each of which, separately from the others, forms the simplest type of matter, called an element. Gold, iron, iodine, oxygen, copper in their pure form are separate elements.

Matter, built from combinations of various atoms, connected to each other by strong bonds, is called substance. The smallest particle of matter is called a molecule. The closer the atoms and molecules are to each other, the more "dense" this type of matter is.

The denser the matter, the heavier it is. Therefore, for example, gold is heavier than wood. Matter can change from one state (solid, liquid or gaseous) to another. It cannot be completely destroyed, but it can be turned into energy.

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Invisibility cloak for solar panels 13.07.2017

The invisibility cloak from the Harry Potter universe has a very real analogue - materials that bend the streams of light directed at them and thus create optical disguise. Scientists at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany have used such material to create a prototype solar panel with a special coating that masks the metal contacts that draw the generated current.

Despite the fact that metal strips on solar panels play a very important role, they also have a significant disadvantage - they reduce the absorbing surface of the panel and reduce its efficiency by about 10%. In their competition with fossil fuels, solar cells need to become as efficient as possible in order to reduce their production costs, Schumann said. For testing, the scientists assembled a single polymer-coated panel in the lab. After that, they etched recesses in it, which made it possible to avoid scattering of light around the contact elements.

The metal contacts placed on the prototype panel cover 6% of its total surface area. After they equipped the panel with a masking coating, its energy absorption efficiency not only increased by the missing 6%, but also increased by another 9% overall. This is due to the fact that some of the light that was not absorbed by the panel is now not scattered, but reflected and "trapped". Sooner or later, the panel will absorb it too.

Gerhard Peharz, an Austrian engineer at Joanneum Research, says it's a very valuable invention, but it will run into problems over time. According to the specialist, the use of a polymer coating will lead to the formation of depressions and grooves in it, in which dust blocking light will accumulate. In addition, ultraviolet radiation will gradually break down the polymer over time, reducing its effectiveness. Pehartz says the idea itself is very promising, but the first step is to develop a polymer that can withstand at least 20 years of constant outdoor use in the Arizona desert.

Schumann recognizes this shortcoming in his invention. He assures that the current development is only a laboratory prototype, and not a working draft of the model. In the future, he wants to try an experiment with a glass dome that would protect the camouflage from dust. It is not yet clear exactly how this might affect efficiency.

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