Astronomy allows us to see the history of the universe with our own eyes. The stars that twinkle as you look out on a dark, clear night may not exist right now. They existed at whatever point in history they emitted that light, which has taken millions of years to reach Earth.
Celebrate this marvelous feat on International Astronomy Day by participating in a little stargazing. Check out your local planetarium or library for activities, or simply find a quiet, dark spot to look out onto the sparkling canvas that lies above our heads. Use books or websites to identify the players in the Universe’s spectacular, historical light show.
Telescopes allow us to see much more than is visible to the naked eye. On International Astronomy Day, many organizations offer the public the use of telescopes to experience sights of the Universe that they've never seen before
Word of the Day
lissome
Definition: 1. easily flexed 2. lithe, nimble
History
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 | Voodoo refers to West African religious beliefs and practices that also have adherents in the New World. Voodoo believers are most numerous in Haiti and Benin, where they enjoy official government recognition. Voodoo contends that all of nature is controlled by spiritual forces which must be acknowledged and honored through offerings and animal sacrifice. Voodoo's incarnation in the American South is often called Louisiana Voodoo. | ||
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 | Slot machines are popular casino games that constitute about 70% of the average casino's income. The player pulls a handle to rotate a series of reels that have pictures printed on them. Winning or losing is determined by which pictures line up with the pay line, a line in the middle of a viewing window. Some believe skill is involved in the game, but the probability of a win is determined by the game's random number generator. | ||
1684 - A patent was granted for the thimble
1901 - New York became the first state to require license plates for cars. The fee was $1.
1928 - A seeing eye dog was used for the first time.
1953 - Dr. James D. Watson and Dr. Francis H.C. Crick suggested the double helix structure of DNA.
1959 - St. Lawrence Seaway opened to shipping. The water way connects the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean.
1987 - Peter O'Toole opened in "Pygmalion" on Broadway.
1990 - The U.S. Hubble Space Telescope was placed into Earth's orbit. It was released by the space shuttle Discovery.
Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 – June 15, 1996)
75, Today
Pacino had his breakthrough as mobster Michael Corleone in the
“Godfather” trilogy and won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his
role as Frank Slade in the 1992 film “Scent of a Woman”. He is also
known for his starring roles in “Dog Day Afternoon” (1975),“Scarface”
(1983), “Serpico” (1973), and “Glengarry Glen Ross” (1992).
“Godfather” trilogy and won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his
role as Frank Slade in the 1992 film “Scent of a Woman”. He is also
known for his starring roles in “Dog Day Afternoon” (1975),“Scarface”
(1983), “Serpico” (1973), and “Glengarry Glen Ross” (1992).
He developed a love for acting at an early age and participated in the
majority of his school’s productions. As a teenager, he went by the
nickname Sunny and had a reputation as a troublemaker.
majority of his school’s productions. As a teenager, he went by the
nickname Sunny and had a reputation as a troublemaker.
Founded in 1951
The fast-food restaurant Jack in the Box was founded in 1951 by Robert
O. Peterson in San Diego,California, where it is still headquartered today.
DAILY SQU-EEK
If You Were Born Today, April 25
You are a sensual, intuitive, and emotional person who is sometimes misunderstood, generally because you don't easily let others in on your deepest thoughts and feelings! However, you are very much respected. You tend to think before you speak or write. A calm exterior can hide some nervousness and worry, as well as an intensely emotional nature. In your work, you are a perfectionist. Famous people born today: Ella Fitzgerald, Renee Zellweger, Al Pacino, Jason Lee.
| Picture of the day | |
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HMAS Australia was a County-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Australian Navy. Laid down in Scotland in 1925, the ship entered service in 1928. She served predominantly in the South-West Pacific until the beginning of World War II, when she was tasked to the northern Atlantic. In 1942, Australia was reassigned as flagship of the ANZAC Squadron, where she supported US naval and amphibious operations throughout South-East Asia. A series of kamikaze attacks during the invasion of Lingayen Gulf led to Australia being recalled for repairs in the United Kingdom, where she remained until the end of the war. In her later years, Australia served as part of the British Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan and as a training ship. She was sold for scrapping in 1955.
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The Fiercest Form
Photograph by Raja Subramaniyan, National Geographic
A young girl’s face is painted for a festival honoring the guardian deity Angalamman, “the fiercest form,” evoked in participants’ expressions. The festival is held every year in the village of Kaveripattinam in Tamil Nadu, India.
knit
Little Tent Dishcloth
Directions:
NOTE: When instructed to slip 5 stitches, always slip as if to purl, with yarn held loosely in front.
Cast on 45 stitches or a Multiple of 8 plus 1
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch for border.
NOTE: When instructed to slip 5 stitches, always slip as if to purl, with yarn held loosely in front.
Cast on 45 stitches or a Multiple of 8 plus 1
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch for border.
Row 1: k4,p5, (k3,p5,) across to last 4 stitches, k4.
Row 2 (right side): k4, slip 5, (k3, slip 5) across to last 4 sts., k4.
Row 3: k4, p5, (k3, p5) across to last 4 sts. k4.
Row 4: K6, insert right needle under loose strand and knit next stitch on left needle, pulling st. under strand * knit 7, insert right needle under loose strand and knit next st. on left needle, pulling st under strand; repeat from * across to last 6 sts. k6.
Repeat Rows 1-4 until desired length.
Knit 4 Rows garter stitch border.
Bind off, Weave in ends.
knit, sizes for the whole family
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Orange Fish Knits: Cozy Cat Crescent
We've all done it. You walk into your local craft store intent on buying that size 11, 24" bamboo circular needle and NOTHING ELSE. "I will be strong this tim...
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CajunCrochet: Oven Mitts
(click to enlarge) I used Peaches & Cream 100% Cotton 4 ply for this project. Hook: Size H Ch 52 turn Row 1: Skip 1st 12 chs. (loop for strap). Continue with ...
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crochet
RECIPE
Roasted Garlic Hummus
Ingredients
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
- juice of one lemon
- 2 Tablespoons tahini
- 1 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1/4 cup plus 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 whole garlic bulb
Directions
Preheat oven to 400. Slice off the top of the garlic head, exposing the tops of the cloves. Place in a shallow baking dish; drizzle with one tablespoon of olive oil, wrap lightly with aluminum foil, and bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool; set aside.
Place chickpeas, remaining 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, salt, and parsley into a blender or food processor. Squeeze cooled garlic cloves out of their shells and into the blender. Blend/process until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed. Store in an airtight container in the fridge
CROCKPOT RECIPE
stephanie o'dea
CrockPot Apple Butter Recipe
Finally! I made apple butter! Thank you for pushing me to make this. This beats the lid off of store-bought apple butter.
The Ingredients.
--apples. 14 large apples fit in my 6.5 quart crockpot--2 tsp cinnamon
--2 cups white sugar (see note below)--1 cup brown sugar (see note below)
--1/2 tsp cloves
--1 T vanilla
The Directions.
This is a 2-day process. Quarter the apples and take out the core. I did not peel, and picked out the skin later. If you enjoy peeling, or have one of those cool apple tools that peels easily, you should peel.
Although my picking out the skin later idea worked, it was kind of a pain. But (for me) it was easier than peeling all of the apples by hand.
Put all of the quartered apples into your crockpot. Add 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
When the cooking is done, mash the apples with a fork. Pick out the skin with the fork. Stir in the sugar, cinnamon, and cloves.
NOTE: I think this was too much sugar. It's good, and my kids really like it, but I feel I went too heavy with the sugar. Next time I will use 3/4 cup of each kind. My mistake came from reading other recipes that called for 3 cups of sugar, instead of going with my gut.
Cover again and cook on low for 6 hours. Pick out more apple skin. If you prefer your apple butter to be velvety-smooth, blend with an immersion blender, or blend in small batches in a traditional blender. I did not do this.
The Verdict.
Very very good. Very sweet, but the sweetness did mellow after a night in the refrigerator. This made enough for 3 jars of apple butter. We gave a container to my mom and grandma. It tastes wonderful with peanut butter on an apple rice cake.
PUZZLE
CRAFT
This lipstick is very easy to make and only requires 3 ingredients!
It is super pigmented and has the look and feel of real lipstick. I came up with this recipe myself because I didn't have some of the materials (jojoba oil, coconut oil) that other DIY lipstick recipes called for. My inspiration for this lipstick came from a few youtubers and this instructable http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-lipstick-wit...
WARNING: I have contacted Crayola, and they said that their crayons do not contain any products that are harmful to the human body, but they strongly discourage making lipstick out of their crayons because the crayons have not been tested for use on skin. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Step 1: Materials
Vanilla
Crayola Crayons (other crayons should work too)
Chapstick
Olive oil (optional)
Step 2: Put the whole chapstick (out of its case) and about 3/4 of a crayon into a measuring cup. You can mix colors of crayon if desired.
I used a red crayon for the lipstick, but you could use any color.
Step 3: Melt in microwave for 2.5 minutes, or until melted. WARNING ~ it is much safer to heat the wax in a double boiler! Using the microwave might result in setting fire to your kitchen (if you overheat the wax)
Make sure you don't melt it too long or the wax could combust.
Step 5: (Optional) Fill the chapstick cap with olive oil and put it in the melted lipstick. This makes the lipstick smoother.
Step 6: Stir with a fork. Don't use a spoon because the wax would stick to it to easily.
I would recommend using a plastic fork so that you can throw it away easily. I forgot, and it was hard to get the wax off of the metal fork.
Step 9: Wax contracts when it cools, so you will have a dent in your lipstick. Put a drop of extra wax onto the top to fill the space.
Step 11: (Optional) Peel off the chapstick label and glue on the crayola label that was on the crayon.
CHILDREN'S CORNER ... craft
Plastic bottle cuff bracelets
This is a quick craft to do with kids and I bet you have everything you need right at home. Here we go!
Get a plastic bottle. I used a 2 liter bottle, but I think a smaller bottle would work even better (you'll see why later on). Carefully, cut the top and bottom off and cut it open to make a rectangular shape.
You'll need material. Any material will work. I used an old white t-shirt and part of a patterned dress that didn't fit anymore. Draw designs with permanent markers.
Use duct tape to tape the bottle down to cardboard. This will keep it from rolling up onto itself.
You'll also need tacky glue. Spread a layer all over the inside of the bottle. I used a folded up piece of magazine to spread it out because I'm high tech like that.
Don't worry, it dries clear.
Press your already drawn on fabric, face down, onto the glue.
Let it dry completely - mine took more than a few hours.
For the kids I stuck to 1 inch wide by 5 inches long. Cut with sharp scissors or even a rotary cutter. Rounding the corners adds a nice touch also.
If the bracelet is too loose, wrap a rubber band around it and let it sit in the sun for a few hours. I had to do this with ours. I think this is why using a smaller plastic bottle would work better than a 2 liter bottle. Or you could even use a paper punch to punch holes in the ends and tie it closed with ribbon.
Viola!
Viola!
I found this idea in Todd Oldham's Kid Made Modernbook.
QUOTE
Roller Skate to Create Landscapes
By Sumitra
Tian Haisu is the world’s first roller-skating artist – she cleverly combines her love of art and ice skating to create beautiful paintings. She specializes in traditional Chinese landscapes, but has long-since ditched the calligraphy pen for a pair of skates!
Tian, who started painting at the age of three, says that painting with skates makes her feel ‘one with her art’. Through this medium, she wants to give the traditional form of painting a ‘new lease of life’. To create these unique paintings, Tian uses a modified pair of skates with a pot of black paint attached to the wheels. She puts them on and skates in deliberate patterns over a large canvas.
'where's the bathroom?' in Ukrainian - De tualet?
CLEVER
thanks patty and sally
solar flare
EYE OPENER
I love a good smart joke, even if they sometimes take me a minute to figure out. Here’s my favorite 20:
1. Einstein, Newton and Pascal are playing a rousing game of hide and seek. Einstein begins to count to ten. Pascal runs and hides. Newton draws a one meter by one meter square in the ground in front of Einstein then stands in the middle of it. Einstein reaches ten, uncovers his eyes, and exclaims “Newton! I found you! You’re it!” Newton replies “You didn’t find me. You found a Newton over a square meter. You found Pascal!”
2. A mathematician and an engineer decided they’d take part in an experiment. They were both put in a room and at the other end was a naked woman on a bed. The experimenter said that every 30 seconds they could travel half the distance between themselves and the woman. The mathematician stormed off, calling it pointless. The engineer was still in. The mathematician said “Don’t you see? You’ll never get close enough to actually reach her.” The engineer replied, “So? I’ll be close enough for all practical purposes.”
3. A buddhist monk approaches a burger foodtruck and says “make me one with everything.” The buddhist monk pays with a $20 bill, which the vendor takes, puts in his cash box, and closes the lid. “Where’s my change?” the monk asks. The vendor replies, “change comes from within”.
4. Jean-Paul Sartre is sitting in a cafe revising his first draft of Being and Nothingness. He says to the waitress, “I would like a cup of coffee please. No cream.” the waitress replies, “I’m sorry sir, but we’re out of cream. How about with no milk?”
5. Noam Chomsky, Kurt Godel and Werner Heisenberg walk into a bar. Heisenberg turns to the other and says “Obviously this is a joke, but how can we tell if it’s funny?” Godel replies “We can’t know that because we’re inside the joke.” Chomsky says “Of course it’s funny, you’re just telling it wrong.”
6. It’s hard to take kleptomaniacs and puns seriously. Why? They take things literally.
7. What do you get when you cross a joke with a rhetorical question?
8. Three logicians walk into a bar. The bartender asks “Do all of you want a drink?” The first logician says “I don’t know.” The second logician says the same. The third says “Yes!”
9. A Roman walks into a bar and asks for a martinus. “You mean a martini?” asks the bartender. The Roman replies, “If I wanted a double, I would have asked for it.”
10. Another Roman walks into a bar, holds up two fingers, and says “Five beers please!”
11. A logician’s wife is having a baby. The doctor hands the baby to the dad. His wife asks if it’s a boy or girl. The logician replies “Yes.”
12. Boy I tell ya, entropy ain’t what it used to be.
13. How do you tell the difference between a plumber and a chemist? Ask them to pronounce unionized.
14. Why do engineers mix up Christmas and Halloween? Because Oct 31 = Dec 25
15. Pavlov is at a bar enjoying a pint. The phone rings and he shouts “Oh! I forgot to feed the dog.”
16. Helium walks into a bar and orders a beer. The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve noble gases here.” Helium doesn’t react.
17. Shrodinger’s cat walks into the bar and doesn’t.
18. A Higgs Boson walks into a church. The priest says “We don’t allow Higgs Bosons in here.” The Higgs Boson replied, “Well, without me, you can’t have mass.”
19. A programmer’s wife asks him to pick up a loaf of bread and, if they have eggs, get a dozen. The programmer comes home with a dozen loaves of bread.
20. There’s a band called 1023MB. They haven’t had any gigs yet though.
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