I’ve always heard of the “dog days” of summer, and I always thought, somewhat logically, that the expression came from the propensity of dogs to rest in the midday heat. But that’s not the case. According to National Geographic, the saying has nothing to do with dogs. Rather, it refers to Sirius the dog star.
I hope everyone enjoyed their 4th of July. After the parades, cookouts and fireworks, I came across some interesting details about the holiday, courtesy of the daily email from The Writer’s Almanac — [July 4th] marks the day in 1776 when the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain. The document was
To help celebrate “disloyalty to royalty” day, I am repeating my poem on patriotism from Some Poems About Life. The Patriot Jerry is a patriot, he loves his country dear. He waves the flag on July 4th, he makes his feelings clear. He fancies himself vigilant, his loyalty is defined. But when it comes
Can you imagine an elephant sanctuary in Siberia? Wheat that is practically immune to mildew? Microbes that eat plastic? These may now be possible, thanks to a new tool called CRISPR-Cas9 (or CRISPR for short) that gives us the ability to literally rewrite genetic code for just about anything on our planet that has DNA.
A major problem with studying history is you have to dig to get the real story. So much gets left out of the standard history books. One of my favorite examples is Rosalind Franklin, whose pioneering work in X-ray crystallography enabled James Watson, Francis Crick, and their colleague Maurice Wilkins to discover the structure of
I think I know what a good career field will be in the future — flood mitigation. As the world’s climate warms and sea levels rise, more and more coastal areas are going to be in jeopardy. So people are going to be calling on experts to help them protect their property. If you live
Did you hear about the German priest, rabbi, and imam? It’s not a joke. In the city of Berlin, they are cooperating to build the first church-synagogue-mosque complex. There have been times in the past where a faith has moved into the house of worship of a different faith. For example, mosques in Spain were
Catching up on the world, I just realized the first Harry Potter novel was published on June 26, 1997 in Great Britain. The British title was Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone; we know it as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I never understood the reason for the change, but we and the British
It seems like there is so much negativity and uncertainty in the world right now. In times like these, where do you turn for solace? I’ve been going to YouTube. Granted, you can find anything there (including more negativity), but I’ve been concentrating on the positive. Let me give you two quick examples. Combating racism
Yesterday my hometown of Pleasant Hill, Ohio celebrated its sesquicentennial. (Actually I grew up on a farm five miles from the nearest town, but this is where I went to school, so close enough.) Looking at old pictures on display, some from over a century ago, brought back a lot of memories… and some surprises.