Hugo Grotius (1583)

Grotius was a Dutch jurist, philosopher, and writer. He enrolled at the University of Leiden at the age of 11 and became a lawyer at 15. Among his key legal treatises is the first definitive text on international law, On the Law of War and Peace, which prescribes rules for the conduct of war and advances the idea that nations are bound by natural law. In 1615, he became involved in a religious controversy that extended to politics and was eventually imprisoned. How did he escape? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Shrine of the Book

The Shrine of the Book is the wing of Jerusalem’s Israel Museum that houses the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of ancient documents found between 1947 and 1956 in caves on the Dead Sea’s northwest shore, at Qumran. Funded by the family of David Samuel Gottesman, a philanthropist who purchased the scrolls as a gift to Israel, the shrine features an unusual white dome that covers an underground structure. How does the museum ensure that the fragile scrolls survive the rigors of being displayed? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The American Civil War Ends at Appomattox Court House (1865)

The first major engagement of the US Civil War was the First Battle of Bull Run, fought in 1861 partly on the farm of Wilmer McLean in Manassas, Virginia. A few years later, McLean moved to Appomattox Court House, a town which, coincidentally, would soon be the site of the war’s effective end. It was there that Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant in McLean’s parlor. Why did Grant stop Union troops when they began to celebrate the victory? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Semana Santa (Guatemala)

Semana Santa, or Holy Week, is without doubt the biggest occasion of the year in Antigua, the old colonial capital of Guatemala, and one of the largest Easter celebrations in the New World. Thousands of tourists and believers come to the city to witness this massive display of religious theater. The entire Passion play, beginning with Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and ending with his Resurrection on Easter, is reenacted in the streets of Antigua—complete with armor-clad Roman soldiers on horseback, who charge through the town early on Good Friday looking for Jesus. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Eadweard J. Muybridge (1830)

Muybridge was an eccentric photographic innovator who left a vast and varied body of work. He is best known for his pioneering use of multiple still cameras to photograph the stages of motion. Hired by Leland Stanford to answer the question of whether there is a moment during a horse’s stride when all four of its hooves are off the ground, he developed a special shutter for his cameras and a method for triggering them sequentially. Why was he acquitted of murdering his wife’s lover? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Ghost Dance

The Ghost Dance is the main ritual of a messianic religious movement that gained a widespread following among Native American groups in the American West during the late 19th century. The dance, which incorporates traditional circle dance rituals, was created by a member of the Paiute tribe known as Wovoka, who taught that it would hasten the ousting of whites, the restoration of traditional lands, and the resurrection of the dead. What role did the Ghost Dance play in the Wounded Knee massacre? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary