Month: February 2020

Perth International Arts Festival

Originally designed as a program of cultural entertainment for students attending evening and summer classes at the University of Western Australia, the Perth International Arts Festival has grown into one of Australia’s major arts festivals. It offers drama, dance, music, opera, films, art exhibits, children’s programs, and even sporting events at locations throughout the city. The month-long festival also features open-air folk music concerts and dancing, street theater, parades, improvisations, and other dramatic performances. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Altars

Altars are tables or platforms upon which sacrifices or other offerings are made. Though today they are typically found inside houses of worship or private homes, altars in the ancient world were almost exclusively constructed outdoors. An altar’s design varies according to its purpose. For example, an altar used for burnt offerings will have a hollow for a fire, while one used for bloody sacrifices will have a drain. What do Taoists burn to ensure that the dead have money in the afterlife? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Cameroon Youth Day

This national holiday in the west-African nation of Cameroon celebrates the country’s young people. School children and youth groups participate in parades, often accompanied by university students in marching bands. Businesses sell food and merchandise along the parade routes. Many schools and youth groups also organize art exhibits and sports activities. The theme of Youth Day is to encourage Cameroon’s young people to renounce violence and other unsavory behaviors and to embrace education, sports, and artistic activities.

Source: The Free Dictionary

Unfinished Works

The Canterbury Tales contains only a fraction of the stories Chaucer had planned, and Bach’s The Art of Fugue cuts off so abruptly that it was long thought that he died while composing it. Sometimes, it is not the artist but the subject whose death prevents a work’s completion, as was the case with Franklin D. Roosevelt, who died just hours after a painter began his portrait. What other unfinished works leave us wondering what they would have been like had they been completed?

Source: The Free Dictionary

William II of England

William Rufus was a Norman king of England who disliked the English and their culture and was, in turn, despised by his subjects and in conflict with the church. He inherited the throne in 1087 from his father, who had conquered England, and he ruled until 1100, subjugating Scotland and Wales. He never married or produced offspring, and his younger brother succeeded him after he was killed by a misfired arrow. Why do some question whether his death was really an accident? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Sugar Ball Show

This temple festival is held at the Haiyunan Buddhist convent of Sifang District in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China. Set for the day of the first spring tide, this festival has been held since the convent was built in the 17th century near the end of the Ming Dynasty. Originally fishermen observed this time to pray for safety and a good harvest. Now sugar balls, also called haws—yams, oranges, and dates dipped in hot syrup and then cooled until crisp—colorfully displayed on long skewers, are specialties of the fair. About 200,000 people attend the show. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Messinian Salinity Crisis

About 5.6 million years ago, the Mediterranean Sea was cut off from the Atlantic Ocean, likely due to tectonic shifts that closed the Strait of Gibraltar. For thousands of years afterward, the Mediterranean evaporated away, becoming saltier and leaving massive deposits of salt and minerals on the sea bed until the sea had disappeared. The straight was reopened and the sea refilled during a massive flood 500,000 years later. Today, the sea is still saltier than the Atlantic Ocean. Why? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary