October 15, 2011: All my life I've wakened every morning excited about what I'll experience & learn that day. I usually start the day by looking up a new-to-me fact, but definitely when I need a mental break from paperwork or practicing I briefly go looking for something new to learn. My blog is about anything I learn on any subject. I hope you will enjoy exploring this path with me.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
We Speak Russian Here!
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
I'm learning Russian, and I wondered today which other countries I could visit and use the Russian language. These countries are: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, and Serbia. Russian is also one of the six official languages of the U.N. For more information click here and click here. What did you learn today?
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Dragon in the Sky
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
In Chinese astrology this is the year of the Water Dragon. In thinking about that, I wondered if there was a dragon constellation, and indeed there is: Draco. One of the Greek myths about Draco is that when Minerva was fighting the Giants, they threw this dragon at her, and she caught it and slung it into the heavens. For more information about the myths and the words "dragon" and "slung", click here.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Hillary & Norgay & Everest
Photo of Mt. Everest courtesy 123rf.com
On this day in 1953 Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first two people to climb to the top of Mount Everest. The mountain was named in honor of Sir George Everest, the British Surveyor General from 1830-1843, who had mapped the Indian subcontinent. For more information click here1, and click here2, and click here3, and click here4.
Monday, May 28, 2012
aka Decoration Day
Photo of Arlington National Cemetery with the Washington Memorial in the background courtesy 123rf.com
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, and there was a hymn dedicated to Southern women who decorated the graves of the Confederate dead. For more information click here and click here. What did you learn today?
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Golden Gate Bridge's Engineer & Poet
Photo of the Joseph Strauss statue by the Golden Gate Bridge courtesy 123rf.com
On this day in 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge opened in San Francisco. Having lived in San Francisco, I am one of the 1.5 billion people who have traversed this bridge, having done so many times on the way to and from spending a day viewing art and eating seafood in Sausalito, or going up to the wine country.
Joseph Strauss (1870-1938), the Chief Engineer of the bridge's construction, was also a poet whose mother was a pianist and father was a writer and painter. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Polydactyl Felines...or Six-Toed Cats!
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Cats normally have five toes in their front paws and four toes on their back paws. Cats with six or more toes on their paws (polydactyl cats) are commonly found in New England, Nova Scotia, and Sweden. Polydactyl cats are virtually never found in Europe. For more information click here and click here. What did you learn today?
Friday, May 25, 2012
RCMP Anniversary
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Yesterday was the 130th anniversary of the beginning of the famous Royal Canadian Mounted Police. In 1873 the Northwest Mounted Police was founded; in 1920 the name was changed to what is used today, the RCMP. For more information click here and click here. What did you learn today?
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Telegraph Anniversary
Photo of obsolete vintage telegraph machine courtesy 123rf.com
On this day in 1844 Samuel Morse sent the first telegraphed message between cities via his patented single-wire telegraph system. He telegraphed a message from the Bible, which was chosen by the Patent Commissioner's daughter: "What hath God wrought?" The message was transmitted from Washington, D.C. to Baltimore, Maryland. For more information click here and click here. What did you learn today?
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
101st Birthday of NYPL
Photo of one of the NYPL lions, Patience and Fortitude, courtesy 123rf.com
101 years ago the New York Public Library was dedicated and opened for service. At the time it was the largest completely marble structure in the U.S.A. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Abraham Lincoln's Patent
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Abraham Lincoln invented a floating dry dock, and had it patented. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Monday, May 21, 2012
Swiss Army Knife
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
One of my prized possessions, which I use regularly and carry in my pocketbook (next to one of my grandmother's lace handkerchiefs, incidentally) is my Swiss Army Knife. Using it in setting up for my studio's Spring Recital yesterday, I wondered about the knife's history.
Click here and click here to read about the history of the Swiss Army Knife. One of the things I didn't know was that it is standard issue for the U.S. Space Shuttle members. What did you learn today?
Sunday, May 20, 2012
7,000 Years of Eclipse History!
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Click here for a NASA website that includes 7,000 years of eclipse history, as well as information on today's eclipse. What did you learn today?
Saturday, May 19, 2012
A Centaur, A Dog, and Two Bears
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Tomorrow at 9:00 P.M. in the Northern Hemisphere, you should be able to see the constellations Centaurus and Canes Venatici. Canes Venatici is the hunting dog used to hunt the bears in the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Friday, May 18, 2012
Fireproof Trees!
Photo of redwood tree courtesy 123rf.com
The bark of the redwood tree can be up to a foot thick, and contains tannins that help the tree be virtually fireproof. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Happy 220th Birthday NYSE
Photo taken behind the George Washington statue looking toward the N.Y. Stock Exchange courtesy 123rf.com
Two-hundred-twenty years ago today the New York Stock Exchange was established. On May 17, 1792 twenty-four people met by that legendary tree on what is now Wall Street. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
When the Mississippi River Went Backwards
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
A series of earthquakes in 1812 caused the mighty Mississippi to flow backwards! For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Graham: Vegetarian Cracker?!
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
The graham cracker was invented in 1829 by Sylvester Graham (American, 1794-1851) for a high fiber addition to his vegetarian diet. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Monday, May 14, 2012
From a Ship to the Toybox
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Richard James, the inventor of the Slinky, was a World War II naval engineer, who came up with the idea of using the spring as a toy while he was working with the springs on a ship. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Mothering Day and Mother's Day
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Mothering Day has been celebrated in England since the early 18th century. Mother's Day has been celebrated in the United States since the early 20th century. In England and Scotland special cakes called furmety, carlings, and simnel cake have been made on Mothering Day. Carnation is the flower most commonly associated with Mother's Day in the U.S. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Saturday, May 12, 2012
That's Some Salty Water!
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Earth's oceans have different levels of salinity due to rainfall, evaporation, river runoff, and ice formation. For more information and lists of oceans' salinity levels click here, and click here. What did you learn today?
Friday, May 11, 2012
How Old Is Aspirin?
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
People have been using the ingredients in the aspirin tablet as a pain reliever since 400 B.C. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Mona Lisa's Shadows
Photo of people taking photos of the Mona Lisa courtesy 123rf.com
Leonardo da Vinci used 30 layers of paint, about 40 micrometers each, on the Mona Lisa in order to execute a technique called Sfumato, which makes shadows look realistic. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
The Big Village Of North America
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
In the language of native Indians in Canada, Canada means "Big Village". For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Can't Buy Antarctica...
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Antarctica is the only land on Earth not owned by any country, nor is there any military presence. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Monday, May 7, 2012
Are You As Tall As You Think You Are Right Now?
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
Humans are about 1/2 inch shorter in the evening than in the morning. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Starting A Fire With Ice
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
You can start a fire by using clear ice as a lens, same as you would use a magnifying glass. For mor information click here. What did you learn today?
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Bones Then and Now!
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
You were born with about 300 bones, but as an adult you will have only 206! For more information click here and click here. What did you learn today?
Friday, May 4, 2012
Who Shares Your Birthday?
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
You share your birthday with about 1/365 of the world's population. Therefore, you share your birthday with about 19 million other people. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Pumping Blood
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
The human heart pumps about 2,000 gallons of blood every day. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Coin-Edge Ridges
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
There are 118 ridges on the edge of a dime, and 119 ridges on the edge of a quarter. There are no ridges on the edges of pennies and nickels. For more information about the history of U.S. coins, click here and click here.
What did you learn today?
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Ancient May Day Rituals
Photo courtesy 123rf.com
The ancient Pagans celebrated May 1 as the day that divided the year in half. Among other rituals, they set new fires on this day for luck and purification. For more information click here. What did you learn today?
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