Inspiration can strike anywhere. Born in 1884, “arborsculptor” Axel Erlandson made living trees into works of art for more than 40 years, eventually even opening a “Tree Circus” in 1947 in California’s Santa Clara Valley.
Author: Greg Ross
Bad PR
In 1974, Pope Paul VI elevated Archbishop Jaime Lachica Sin of the Philippines to the College of Cardinals.
That made him Cardinal Sin.
Black Gold
Barrels per day of oil consumption, as of 2003:
- United States: 20,033,504
- Japan: 5,578,386
- China: 5,550,000
- Germany: 2,677,443
- Russia: 2,675,000
- India: 2,320,000
- Canada: 2,193,263
- South Korea: 2,168,128
- Brazil: 2,100,000
- France: 2,059,843
- Mexico: 2,015,232
- Italy: 1,874,380
- Saudi Arabia: 1,775,000
- United Kingdom: 1,722,419
- Spain: 1,544,260
- Iran: 1,425,000
- Indonesia: 1,155,000
Social Studies
“Who are the Japanese? The inhabitants of Japan, an empire of Eastern Asia, composed of several large islands. They are so similar in feature, and in many of their customs and ceremonies, to the Chinese, as to be regarded by some, as the same race of men. The Japanese language is so very peculiar, that it is rarely understood by the people of other nations. Their religion is idolatrous; their government a monarchy, controlled by the priesthood. The people are very ingenious, and the arts and sciences are held in great esteem by them. In all respects, Japan is an important and interesting empire.”
— From A Catechism of Familiar Things; Their History, and the Events Which Led to Their Discovery, 1881
Pencils Down
Bill Gates scored 1590 on his SATs.
Fallout
Actors who appeared in The Conqueror (1956) and subsequently died of cancer:
- John Wayne
- Susan Hayward
- Agnes Moorehead
- Pedro Armendáriz
- John Hoyt
Director Dick Powell died of cancer in 1963. The movie, in which Wayne played Genghis Khan, was shot in St. George, Utah, downwind of Nevada open-air nuclear testing, and producer Howard Hughes had 60 tons of dirt shipped back to Hollywood for use in reshoots.
By 1981, 91 of the 220 cast and crew had developed some form of cancer, and more than half of them were already dead.
“With these numbers, this case could qualify as an epidemic,” said University of Utah biologist Robert Pendleton. “In a group this size you’d expect only 30-some cancers to develop. … I think the tie-in to their exposure on the set of The Conqueror would hold up in a court of law.”
Falling Fortunes
Franz Reichelt dreamed big. In 1911 the Austrian tailor designed a garment that he hoped would serve as a combination overcoat/parachute. Never one for half measures, he tested it by leaping from the Eiffel Tower.
The sad/romantic results were caught on film, including Reichelt’s long hesitation on the brink, his fatal fall and a measurement of the hole he left behind.
“If you’re not failing every now and again,” said Woody Allen, “it’s a sign you’re not doing anything very innovative.”
Unquote
“The world has arrived at an age of cheap complex devices of great reliability, and something is bound to come of it.” — Engineer Vannevar Bush, 1945
Naming Rights
Some paleontologists have a sense of humor. When Jenny Clack of the University of Cambridge discovered a fossil amphibian in the bed of an ancient swamp, she named it Eucritta melanolimnetes.
That’s Greek for “the creature from the black lagoon.”
Rubik’s Revenge
Erno Rubik, inventor of Rubik’s Cube, became the first self-made millionaire in a communist country.