Armenian Genocide Begins (1915)

Known by Armenians as the Great Calamity, the Armenian Genocide refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Ottoman Empire’s Armenian population during and after World War I. Characterized by the use of massacres and forced marches designed to lead to the death of deportees, the genocide is estimated to have claimed up to 1 million Armenian lives. The onset of the genocide is generally accepted to be April 24, 1915, the day that Ottoman authorities did what? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Arbor Day

Julius Sterling Morton (1832-1902), one of the earliest American conservationists, settled on the treeless plains of Nebraska in 1855. Morton began planting trees and urged his neighbors to do the same. On April 10, 1872, when he proposed that a day be set aside for planting trees, the response was overwhelming: a million trees were planted in Nebraska on that day alone. All 50 states now observe Arbor Day—usually on the last Friday in April. Most observances take place in public schools, where the value of trees is discussed and trees and shrubs are planted. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Willem de Kooning (1904)

De Kooning was a Dutch-American painter who became a leader of abstract expressionism, the New York-based school of painting that rejected naturalistic content. Examples of this period include his dramatic Black Paintings, which were black-and-white artworks created from enamel and oil paints. His later work became increasingly figurative, as is seen in his The Woman series of the 1950s, and was both criticized and lauded. In what unusual way did de Kooning immigrate to the US? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Oldest Free Public School Opened in the US (1635)

The Boston Latin School in Massachusetts, originally a school for boys that had just a handful of students, is now a coeducational institution serving more than 2,000 youngsters. It has the distinction of being the oldest public school in the US and claims many influential Bostonians as alumni, including four Harvard University presidents, four Massachusetts governors, and five signers of the Declaration of Independence. Who are the school’s most famous dropouts? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Shakespeare’s Birthday

No one really knows the exact date of William Shakespeare‘s birth, although he was baptized on April 26, 1564, and died on April 23, 1616. April 23 is also St. George’s Day, and this may be why it was decided to observe the birth of England’s greatest poet and dramatist on the feast day of England’s patron saint. Special pageants are held at Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, where Shakespeare was born and where thousands of tourists go each year to see his plays performed. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Roy Orbison (1936)

Roy Orbison was an influential American singer-songwriter and rock-and-roll pioneer whose career spanned more than three decades. He had a string of hits during the early-1960s, such as “Only the Lonely” and “Oh, Pretty Woman,” after which his career waned, driven in part by a series of personal tragedies. He made a comeback in the 1980s, forming a supergroup with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, and Tom Petty called the Traveling Wilburys. What was Orbison rarely seen in public without? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Chameleons

Chameleons have laterally flattened bodies and bulging, independently rotating eyes. They are variously ornamented with crests, horns, and spines. They feed chiefly on insects and are unique among lizards in possessing long, sticky tongues with which they capture their prey. Their changes in skin color are under hormonal and nervous control and are not affected by the color of the background but by stimuli such as light, temperature, and emotion. “Chameleon” is derived from what Greek words? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary