Month: May 2023

sunspot

Definition: (noun) Any of the relatively cool dark spots appearing periodically in groups on the surface of the sun that are associated with strong magnetic fields.

Synonyms: macula.

Usage: Come, cheer up, old man; there’s no use in losing your grip and going back to this child’s play merely because this big sunspot is drifting across your shiny new disk.
Discuss

Kublai Khan Becomes Ruler of the Mongol Empire (1260)

The grandson of Genghis Khan, Kublai Khan was a Mongol emperor who founded China’s Yuan Dynasty and became the first Yuan emperor in 1271. In 1279, he completed his grandfather’s conquest of China by overthrowing the Sung dynasty. He promoted economic prosperity by rebuilding the Grand Canal, repairing public granaries, extending highways, and encouraging foreign commerce. His magnificent capital at Cambuluc—now Beijing—was visited by several Europeans, including what notable figure? Discuss

Kodomo-no-Hi

Kodomo-no-Hi is a national holiday in Japan that was known as Boys’ Day from the 9th century, but became a day for both boys and girls in 1948. Today, the day is observed largely with family picnics. Households with sons erect tall bamboo poles outside the home and attach streamers in the shape of carp for each son. The carp supposedly represents the strength, courage, and determination shown in its upstream journeys. The festivities are part of Golden Week, which also includes Greenery Day and Japan Constitution Memorial Day. Discuss

Karl Marx (1818)

Though largely ignored during his lifetime, Marx was perhaps one of the most influential figures in history. His ideas, particularly those he expounded in his two most notable works, The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital, have become the core intellectual tradition for communism and socialism, and many scholars consider him the founder of economic history and sociology. His philosophy significantly influenced communist thinking for the next century. What anarchist was his enemy? Discuss

Freudian slip

Any inadvertent verbal or written mistake that reveals, or can be construed as revealing, an unconscious or repressed intention, belief, thought, attitude, etc. Named for the Sigmund Freud, considered the founding father of psychoanalysis, whose work largely focused on the unconscious and repressed elements of the human psyche. Watch the video

How Does Dry Cleaning Work?

Dry cleaning is the process of cleaning fabrics without water. Special solvents and soaps are used so as not to harm fabrics. The practice began in France in the middle of the 19th century, after a dye-works owner noticed that his tablecloth became cleaner after his maid spilled kerosene on it. Early solvents were extremely flammable and led to many fires and explosions. Newer chlorinated hydrocarbon synthetic solvents, such as perchlorethylene, are nonflammable but pose what other dangers? Discuss

Haymarket Riot (1886)

This violent confrontation between Chicago police and labor protesters, which dramatized the labor movement’s struggle for recognition, began when a bomb was thrown into the police ranks at a gathering of radical unionists protesting police brutality against strikers. With seven officers dead and 60 wounded, the police opened fire on the crowd. Seven anarchist leaders were later sentenced to death. Why is their trial regarded as one of the most serious miscarriages of justice in US history? Discuss

Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655)

Scholars believe that though Cristofori was employed as the custodian of musical instruments at the court of Prince Ferdinand de’ Medici, he was hired for the position largely because of his other talent—inventing instruments. His most successful creation was the pianoforte, which, unlike the harpsichord, varies the volume of its sound depending on the force with which its keys are struck. He is thus generally regarded as the inventor of the piano. What other instruments did Cristofori invent? Discuss