Body of Elizabeth Short—the “Black Dahlia”—Found (1947)

Elizabeth Short was the victim of a gruesome and much-publicized murder that is still unsolved. Nicknamed the “Black Dahlia” by newspapers after her body was recovered in Leimert Park, Los Angeles, Short was found mutilated, her body severed at the waist. The unsolved murder has been the source of widespread speculation, leading to several books and film adaptations, as well as many false confessions and leads in the years since she was killed. From what was the “Black Dahlia” nickname derived? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Carmentalia

It was unusual in ancient Rome for a single deity to have two separate festival days only a few days apart (January 11 and 15), and a number of explanations have been offered for why the second festival in honor of the goddess Carmenta was instituted. The only thing that is certain is that it was primarily women who frequented her temple near the Porta Carmentalis, a gate at the foot of the southern end of the capitol. Carmenta had her own priest, or flamen, whose duties on her festival days were confined to the preparation of offerings of grain or cereal. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Philip Livingston (1716)

Livingston was a successful merchant who became an American revolutionary leader in the protests against the Stamp Act and other British trade restrictions. Although he was not originally an advocate of independence, Livingston signed the Declaration of Independence and remained an active member of the Continental Congress. He was generous with his large fortune and was a supporter of many causes, including the founding of King’s College, which later became what university? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Snowball Earth Hypothesis

Snowball Earth is a strongly disputed hypothesis developed to explain sedimentary glacial deposits at tropical latitudes from the Cryogenian period. The hypothesis proposes that, about 800 million years ago, the Earth was entirely covered with ice and that multicellular evolution accelerated when the climate began to warm up. Some dispute the feasibility of an entirely frozen ocean and prefer a “slushball” scenario to explain the ice’s rapid movement. How could life survive in such a climate? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

San Francisco’s Human Be-In Launches “Summer of Love” (1967)

In 1967, the burgeoning counterculture movement took center stage in San Francisco as a number of figures who would become its icons gathered for a “happening” in Golden Gate Park. Announced as a “Human Be-In” in the San Francisco Oracle newspaper, the event was attended by tens of thousands of people and featured speakers Timothy Leary and Allen Ginsberg, as well as performances by The Grateful Dead, among many others. What famous phrase did Leary introduce in his speech at the Be-In? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Ratification Day

The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783, and was ratified on January 14, 1784, ending the American Revolution. The Old Senate Chamber in the Maryland State House at Annapolis has been preserved exactly as it was when the ratification took place, and on its anniversary, the flag of 1784—with 12 stars in a circle and the 13th in the center—flies over the State House and many other buildings in Annapolis. The ceremony that takes place inside varies from year to year, but it often revolves around a particular aspect of the original event. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Berthe Morisot (1841)

Morisot was a French impressionist painter best known for her loose brushwork and the sensitivity she brought to her female subjects. She studied with many gifted painters, including Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, and was highly influenced by Édouard Manet, whose brother she later married. She exhibited regularly with the Impressionists, and although none of her exhibits proved commercially successful, she outsold Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. What are some of her best known paintings? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary