Gelatin

Gelatin is a foodstuff largely composed of denatured collagen, a protein that is readily digested and absorbed. It is found in the connective tissue of the cartilage, hoofs, and tendons of vertebrate animals and is extracted by the action of boiling water or dilute acid. Gelatin swells to an elastic, transparent mass when placed in contact with cold water and takes up to 10 times its own weight. It is an important food stabilizer, thickener and texturizer. What is gelatin’s ballistic use? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Nixon and Khrushchev Engage in “Kitchen Debate” (1959)

The Kitchen Debate was an impromptu debate—conducted through interpreters—between US Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev at the opening of the American National Exhibition in Moscow in 1959. Centering on a discussion of the merits of capitalism versus communism, it took place in the kitchen of a model suburban American house designed to showcase American household appliances, which Nixon touted as examples of American innovation. How did the debate end? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Mormon Pioneer Day

After their founder, Joseph Smith, was murdered in 1844, the Mormons moved westward from their settlement in Nauvoo, Illinois, under the leadership of Brigham Young. When Young surveyed the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, he proclaimed, “This is the right place.” Thousands of Mormon pioneers followed him over the next two decades, many of them pushing their belongings in handcarts. The original 40-acre plot where the Mormons settled is the modern Salt Lake City, and the day on which Young chose the site is celebrated not only in Utah but in surrounding states with significant Mormon populations, such as Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, Wyoming, and California. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Calogero Vizzini (1877)

Vizzini, don of the village of Villalba, was one of the most influential Mafia bosses of Sicily following WWII. After the war, the staunch anti-communist was made mayor of Villalba by the Allied occupiers, a move that some might say adds credence to claims that Allied Forces enlisted direct Mafia support during their invasion of Sicily in 1943. Between 1949 and 1954, Vizzini reportedly ruled a lucrative black market operation, allegedly using what business as a front for trafficking heroin? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

M. Night Shyamalan

Shyamalan is an Academy Award-nominated Indian-American film writer, director, and producer. The Sixth Sense, a film starring Bruce Willis, grossed over $600 million worldwide and is Shyamalan’s greatest commercial success. His filmmaking ambitions were encouraged when, at a young age, he received a Super-8 camera. He made his first film, Praying with Anger, while still an NYU student, using money borrowed from family and friends. What is Shyamalan’s first name? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

12th Street Riot Begins (1967)

In 1967, racial tensions spurred by high unemployment rates and poor housing conditions in Detroit exploded when police officers raided a speakeasy on the corner of 12th Street and Clairmount. The confrontation with the patrons developed into one of the deadliest and most destructive riots in modern US history, lasting five days and resulting in 43 deaths, 467 injuries, more than 7,200 arrests, and the destruction of more than 2,000 buildings. How was the rioting finally brought under control? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Warei Taisai

This Japanese festival is held in Uwajimay in late July. Hundreds of ships dock in the harbor, all decorated with flags. In town, there is the parade of the Ushioni, a creature that looks like a combination of a whale and a dragon that is carried through the streets by 15 to 20 young people. Another festival highlight is the Hashiri-komi ceremony, a procession of young people carrying portable shrines called mikoshi into the sea while rockets explode all around them. The Warei Tasai festival dates back to the 18th century and is the highlight of the summer festival season in Ehime Prefecture. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856)

Known as the “Father of the Indian Unrest,” Tilak was an Indian nationalist, social reformer, and the first popular leader of the Indian independence movement. As a journalist, Tilak voiced his criticisms of British rule in India through two weekly newspapers. In response to the Partition of Bengal in 1905, he initiated a boycott of British goods and passive resistance—two forms of protest later adopted by Gandhi. He was one of the first and strongest proponents of swaraj, which is what? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary