Thursday March 17, 2005 Trivial Tidbits
St.Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, lived between 387 and 493 and is primarily known for spreading Christianity throughout Ireland.
According to legend, St.Patrick used a shamrock, with its three leaflets, to illustrate the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity.
According to legend, St.Patrick charmed the snakes of Ireland into the sea. This legend is likely a metaphor for St.Patrick's influence in putting an end to pagan practices (e.g. use of serpents as religious symbols) in Ireland.
( Mar 17 2005, 03:07:03 PM PST )
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Friday March 11, 2005 Word of the Day
adjective - depending on an uncertain event or contingency
( Mar 11 2005, 02:02:16 PM PST )
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Friday March 04, 2005 Word of the Day
noun - extensive knowledge acquired chiefly from books
( Mar 04 2005, 10:02:37 PM PST )
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Wednesday March 02, 2005 Trivial Tidbits
The month of March is named for Mars, the Roman god of war.
The early Roman calendar, the introduction of which is traditionally attributed to Romulus in the early 700's B.C., began with March. When Julius Caesar reformed the Roman calendar in 46 B.C., March was moved to the third month.
According to the Modern Birthstone list provided by the Jewelers of America, the official birthstone of Februry is aquamarine.
( Mar 02 2005, 09:10:25 PM PST )
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Friday February 25, 2005 Word of the Day
noun - the material or significant part of a grievance or complaint
( Feb 25 2005, 08:45:19 PM PST )
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Friday February 18, 2005 Word of the Day
adjective - inclined to frequent and often pointless change : inconstant
( Feb 18 2005, 09:44:58 AM PST )
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Thursday February 17, 2005 Trivial Tidbits
Abraham Lincoln was born on 02/12/1809 in Hardin County, Kentucky. He was the first president born outside of the original thirteen colonies.
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on Good Friday, 04/14, in 1865. He was shot by John Wilkes Booth while watching a performance of Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. Our American Cousin was also running at the McVerick Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, when Lincoln was nominated for president in Chicago on 05/18/1860.
Abraham Lincoln received U.S. Patent No. 6469 on 05/22/1849 for a "Manner of Bouying Vessels"
( Feb 17 2005, 10:00:25 AM PST )
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Friday February 11, 2005 Word of the Day
noun - a concomitant sensation; especially : a subjective sensation or image of a sense (as of color) other than the one (as of sound) being stimulated
( Feb 11 2005, 11:10:26 PM PST )
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Tuesday February 08, 2005 Trivial Tidbits
Pluto was discovered by Clyde W. Tombaugh at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona on February 18, 1930. Pluto was named, based on a suggestion by 11 year old Venetia Burney, after the Roman god of the underworld.
Pluto's satellite, Charon, was discovered in 1978 by James W. Christy and Robert S. Harrington. Charon was named after the mythological boatman who ferried souls across the river Styx.
Pluto is smaller than seven of the moons in our solar system: the Moon, Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Titan and Triton.
( Feb 08 2005, 11:35:28 AM PST )
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Friday February 04, 2005 Word of the Day
adjective - inclined to frequent and often pointless change : inconstant
( Feb 04 2005, 11:13:47 PM PST )
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Tuesday February 01, 2005 Trivial Tidbits
The month of February is named for Februus, the Etruscan god of purification.
February in the Anglo-Saxon calendar was called Solmonath or "Sun-Month". This is the month wherein the ancient Anglo-Saxons planted loaves and cakes in the ground to honor the Earth Mother.
According to the Modern Birthstone list provided by the Jewelers of America, the official birthstone of Februry is amethyst.
( Feb 01 2005, 05:13:28 PM PST )
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Friday January 28, 2005 Word of the Day
adjective - of, relating to, or occurring in winter
( Jan 28 2005, 10:16:09 AM PST ) Permalink Comments [0]
Friday January 21, 2005 Word of the Day
verb - to have weight or effect
( Jan 21 2005, 10:18:46 AM PST ) Permalink Comments [1]
Monday January 17, 2005 Trivial Tidbits
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth name was Michael. In 1935, his father changed his name to Martin in honor of the Protestant reformer, Martin Luther.
Martin Luther King, Jr. became the youngest recipient, at age 35, of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. The current record holder is Rigoberta Menchu Tum, awarded in 1992 at the age of 33.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee in 1968 by James Earl Ray. There are individuals who, to this day, theorize that Ray was only a minor player in a larger conspiracy.
( Jan 17 2005, 09:35:25 PM PST )
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Friday January 14, 2005 Word of the Day
noun - a bounding or limiting line (especially: one that when crossed commits a person irrevocably)
The Rubicon is a river in north-central Italy. When Julius Caesar crossed this river in 49 B.C., a civil war was ignited.
( Jan 14 2005, 08:17:31 AM PST )
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