Bacteria in space may sound like the title of a bad science fiction movie, but it’s actually a new experiment that tests how the weightlessness of space can change microbes’ antibiotic resistance. While the vacuum of space may be a sterile environment … Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Originally sold for a penny a copy, the New-York Daily Times was founded by journalist and politician Henry Jarvis Raymond in 1851 and has been controlled by the Ochs-Sulzberger family since 1896. The paper shortened its name to The New York Times in 1857. Perhaps the most respected newspaper in the world, it has been awarded more Pulitzer Prizes than any other. In 2006, the newspaper announced that it would save how much money by narrowing its page width by 1.5 inches (4 cm)? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
As a physicist working at the University of California’s Lawrence Radiation Laboratory in the 1940s, McMillan helped discover plutonium and neptunium. The latter was the first transuranic—having a heavier nucleus than uranium—element to be discovered. For his work in that field, he shared the 1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with chemist Glenn Seaborg. He was also involved in research on radar, sonar, and nuclear weapons during WWII and is credited with building the first synchrotron—which is what? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Radiolarians are a highly diverse group of marine protozoa widely recognized for their intricately ornate mineral skeletons. Part of the plankton community, radiolarians have a fossil record that extends back to the early Paleozoic era. Because they have undergone continuous evolutionary change, they are often used to analyze the layers of the marine sedimentary record. What German biologist produced exquisite drawings of radiolarians that helped to popularize them among Victorian microscopists? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Definition: (adjective) Smoothly agreeable and courteous with a degree of sophistication.
Synonyms: bland, smooth, suave.
Usage: He was too politic to quarrel with so important a personage.
Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
The bristlecone pine tree, famous for its wind-beaten, gnarly limbs and having the longest lifespan on Earth, is losing a race to the top of mountains throughout the Western United States, putting future generations in peril, researchers said Wednesday. Driven … Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
In September 1862, Confederate General Robert E. Lee crossed the Potomac River to invade Maryland and Pennsylvania. He was met by Union General George McClellan. The resulting Battle of Antietam, fought near Sharpsburg, Maryland, was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with a total of 23,000 casualties. It was a Union victory only in the sense that Lee’s invasion was stopped. McClellan was later removed from command and was faulted for failing to act on what crucial opportunity? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Source: The Free Dictionary
Trained as a pediatrician, Williams wrote poetry and practiced medicine in his New Jersey hometown. Regarded as one of the most original American poets of the 20th century, he closely observed American life and recorded his impressions in a lucid style. His poems, such as “The Red Wheelbarrow” and “This Is Just To Say,” are noted for making the ordinary appear extraordinary. Williams was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize for what volume of poetry? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
The Great Stock Exchange Fraud of 1814 was perpetrated by several men who conspired to artificially boost the prices of British government securities by spreading false information about the Napoleonic Wars. They began a rumor that Napoleon I of France had been killed, sending stocks soaring. Before the government was able to refute the news—a move that would cause prices to plummet—a sale of more than £1.1 million of two government-based stocks was processed. Were the conspirators ever caught? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary