Los Angeles Times Bombing (1910)

In 1910, amidst the Los Angeles Times‘s editorial crusade against local unions, two brothers belonging to the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers bombed the newspaper’s headquarters with dynamite. The resulting fire killed 21 newspaper employees and injured dozens more. The American Federation of Labor hired noted trial attorney Clarence Darrow to represent the brothers, James and Joseph McNamara, who eventually pleaded guilty. What happened to them?

Source: The Free Dictionary

Mountain State Forest Festival

This festival is an eight-day celebration of the timber industry in the small town of Elkins, West Virginia. A highlight of the festival is the crowning of Queen Silvia, who wears an elaborate embroidered velvet gown. Events today salute the timber industry but also include non-timber events. Hence, there are forestry and wood-products exhibits and lumberjack contests along with a horseshoe tournament, live musical entertainment, a motorcycle race, arts and crafts exhibits, and a mammoth buckwheat cake and sausage feed. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Annie Besant (1847)

Besant was an English social reformer who, in 1889, embraced theosophy, a religious philosophy with mystical concerns. She served as international president of the Theosophical Society from 1907 until her death. After moving to India in 1893, she became an independence leader and established the Indian Home Rule League. She was president of the Indian National Congress in 1917 but later split with Gandhi. Besant lost custody of her children and was nearly imprisoned for publishing what in 1877? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Eye

The eye is an organ of vision and light perception. In the human eye, the iris diaphragm regulates the size of the pupil, allowing more or less light to enter the eye as necessary. Light is focused by the combined action of the curved cornea, internal fluids, and lens. When light reaches the retina, located at the back of the eye, the light-sensitive rod and cone cells are stimulated. They, in turn, send signals to the brain via the optic nerve. How do the rods and cones differ in function? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary