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Flag Today 54°/19° Week 50 Day 344 Air Quality: Fair Sunshine Wind 6 mph Gusts 14 mph Gentle Breeze Active Fire: 104 miles away Risk of fire: Moderate
Nearest
Lightning: 1169 miles away Dec. Averages: Temps: 45°\18° Moisture: 5 Days |
Weekly Observations
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9-15 Computer Science Education
Week Link ( Always week with 12/9. Birthday of
Admiral Grace Murray Hopper.) |
3-10 Clerc-Gallaudet Week Andisop (Meteorological
Fiddling) Link |
Daily Observations
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Christmas Card Day |
International Day of Commemoration & Dignity of The Victims
of The Crime of Genocide & The Prevention of This Crime |
Today’s Seasonal Quote
Today’s Meme
Thoughts for the day
Having a nice fall day.
I watched the opening of Notre Dame on
C-Span. A great ceremony. Lots of emotion for France and its people, but also
for anyone who has visited the cathedral.
Syrian leader flees and has been
granted asylum in Russia by Putin. After 50 years of that family leading the
country, this was a very fast demise of their regime.
United Healthcare is getting lots of
blowback from many who have made complaints as to the issue of them not
receiving a positive experience regarding their coverage. Lots of CEO’s are
increasing their security following this incident. NYC police say there getting
closer to an arrest.
I have been having computer problems
with Windows 11. Today it crashed again after not allowing me to read my
Outlook emails. When I tried to reboot it, I got a message that a BIOs was
corrupted and need an update. All I know is that BIOS is the heartbeat of the whole
computer. It automatically did the update, and now everything is working well.
I hope this continues.
Trivia Time
Christmas Traditions
Christmas Cards
Exchanging holiday greetings via mail is a surprisingly
recent tradition, with the first formal card hitting shelves in 1843.
Designed by an Englishman named J.C. Horsley, the cardboard greeting showed a
happy group of people participating in a toast, along with the printed
sentiment, “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you.” A thousand of them
were printed that first year, and because it cost just a penny to mail a
holiday hello to friends and family (the card itself was a shilling, or 12
times as much), the cards sold like hotcakes and a new custom was born. Today,
Americans send around 2 billion cards every year.
Random Thoughts…
Michael Crichton, the author of The Andromeda Strain
& Jurassic Park, also wrote & directed Westworld &
graduated from Harvard MS. In ’94 he had the top TV show (ER), top movie
(Jurassic Park), and top book (Disclosure). To boot, he was also
voted one of People Magazine’s most beautiful people in
1992.
Since mirrors are no longer made with silver,
vampires should have reflections in the modern age. #science
US President #37 Richard Nixon (1969-1974)
“Tricky Dick” was the first President to resign, and the only Quaker President.
Ancient Roman Life
Roman baths included just about everything someone could need
Over the years, archeologists have discovered amazing things
that help to tell the story of life in Ancient Rome. Roman baths are one of
many discoveries. But what was their purpose? They were much more than a place
for communal bathing with the rest of the city.
Because they covered areas as small as little towns, the
baths had all the necessary amenities. The largest was the Baths of Caracalla.
The baths could accommodate 1,600 people and included a library, gym, and two
fountains measuring 19 feet. The baths also featured a gentleman’s residence,
marble statues, artwork, and mosaics.
Historic Events
1851 – The first YMCA in North America
opened in Montreal, Canada.
1872 – P.B.S. Pinchback (Republican)
became the first African-American governor of a US state, Louisiana.
1884 – The US patent (#308990) for
ball-bearing roller skates, was issued to Levant M. Richardson.
1907 – Christmas Seals, an outreach
from the American Lung Association, went on sale for the first time, in a
Wilmington, Delaware, post office.
1935 – The Downtown Athletic Club
Trophy (now the Heisman Trophy) was awarded for the first time. The winner was
halfback Jay Berwanger from the University of Chicago.
1958 – In Indianapolis, the John
Birch Society was formed.
1960 – The Sperry Rand Corporation
demonstrated the UNIVAC 1107 computer, the first to use thin-film magnetic
technology. The secret was the few millionths of an inch of iron-nickel alloy.
1962 – The Petrified Forest National Park
was established in Arizona.
1975 – President Gerald R. Ford
signed a $2.3 billion loan authorization to prevent New York City from having
to default on its debts.
1992 – England’s Prince Charles and
Princess Diana formally announced their separation.
1993 – Astronauts aboard the space
shuttle Endeavor completed repairs to the Hubble Space Telescope.
2009 – A Russian SLBM RSM-56 Bulava
failed mid-flight causing a very unusual light formation over Norway.
Birthdays
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John
Malkovich, 71 Movie Actor Buck Henry, 90, actor, screenwriter
Kirsten Gillibrand, 58, politician |
@103 – Kirk Douglas, American actor (d.2020) @85 – Grace Hopper, American admiral, and computer scientist, designed
COBOL (d. 1992) @83 – Joseph Pilates, German-American fitness expert, developer of Pilates (d.
1967) @81 – Thomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill Jr., 55th Speaker of the House
of Representatives (d. 1994) @80 – Dick Butkus, American football player, sportscaster, actor, (d. 2001) @68 – Redd Foxx (John Elroy Sanford), American actor (d. 1991;
heart attack) @68 – Morton Downey Jr., American singer-songwriter,
actor, and talk show host (d.2001; lung cancer) @65 – John Milton, English writer, and philosopher (d. 1674; gout) |
…The End for today…
