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October 12, 2024
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: October 12, 2024\ver-BAY-tim\ adverb
What It Means
Verbatim is an adverb meaning "in the exact words," or in other words, "...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: October 12, 2024\ver-BAY-tim\ adverb
What It Means
Verbatim is an adverb meaning "in the exact words," or in other words, "...
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9 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
Stocks are increasingly an important source of household wealth. Thanks to the booming stock market, U.S. household wealth surged to a record high last year,...
Stocks are increasingly an important source of household wealth. Thanks to the booming stock market, U.S. household wealth surged to a record high last year,...
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FREESports Sporty CurioFree1 CQ
This fall, there’s a Kraken hockey's gender barrier. The game between the Seattle Krakens and the St. Louis Blues earlier this week was the first North American game of the 2024-2025 NHL season. It was also a significant first of another kind: the debut of the first female coach in NHL history, Jessica Campbell. Campbell was born on June 24, 1992 in Saskatchewan, Canada, and she has been carving her path with ice skates for most of her life. She played hockey alongside male teammates until she was 17, led Canada in the under-18 world championships to gold and went on to lead Cornell University to three Ivy League titles between 2010 and 2014, becoming team captain in her senior year. She then played professionally in Canada and Sweden before becoming the first woman in a coaching position in men’s hockey when she joined the German national team in 2022. That same year, she joined Seattle’s affiliate team, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, until she officially signed on with the Krakens as an assistant coach in July of this year. While Campbell made history by being the first female coach in the NHL, she doesn’t believe she will be the last. She told the press, “Hopefully somebody else will have a door held open for them versus them having to push it open and find ways to unlock it. I look at the other women around me and other people in the industry doing their piece and doing a fantastic job of it. And it's part of a movement. It's part of, I think, really important change.” That’s a goal any team can cheer for.
[Image description: ] Credit & copyright: Tima Miroshnichenko, Pexels
This fall, there’s a Kraken hockey's gender barrier. The game between the Seattle Krakens and the St. Louis Blues earlier this week was the first North American game of the 2024-2025 NHL season. It was also a significant first of another kind: the debut of the first female coach in NHL history, Jessica Campbell. Campbell was born on June 24, 1992 in Saskatchewan, Canada, and she has been carving her path with ice skates for most of her life. She played hockey alongside male teammates until she was 17, led Canada in the under-18 world championships to gold and went on to lead Cornell University to three Ivy League titles between 2010 and 2014, becoming team captain in her senior year. She then played professionally in Canada and Sweden before becoming the first woman in a coaching position in men’s hockey when she joined the German national team in 2022. That same year, she joined Seattle’s affiliate team, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, until she officially signed on with the Krakens as an assistant coach in July of this year. While Campbell made history by being the first female coach in the NHL, she doesn’t believe she will be the last. She told the press, “Hopefully somebody else will have a door held open for them versus them having to push it open and find ways to unlock it. I look at the other women around me and other people in the industry doing their piece and doing a fantastic job of it. And it's part of a movement. It's part of, I think, really important change.” That’s a goal any team can cheer for.
[Image description: ] Credit & copyright: Tima Miroshnichenko, Pexels
October 11, 2024
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8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
From the BBC World Service: Chinese police have detained four workers of the Taiwanese iPhone maker Foxconn in circumstances Taipei has described as “strange...
From the BBC World Service: Chinese police have detained four workers of the Taiwanese iPhone maker Foxconn in circumstances Taipei has described as “strange...
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: October 11, 2024\SKAYP-goat\ noun
What It Means
A scapegoat is a person who is unfairly blamed for something others have do...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: October 11, 2024\SKAYP-goat\ noun
What It Means
A scapegoat is a person who is unfairly blamed for something others have do...
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FREEMind + Body Daily CurioFree1 CQ
This fancy rice is awfully nice. While rice features most famously and heavily in various Asian cuisines, Europe has come up with plenty of tasty rice dishes too. As if pizza and pasta weren’t enough, Italy is also known for its unique take on rice in the form of risotto. This warm, brothy dish is perfect for fall, but can (and is) enjoyed as both a side and a main course all year long.
Risotto is a dish of rice cooked in broth. Since the broth is added gradually and the rice is stirred throughout the cooking process, risotto has a creamy texture. Meat broth is the traditional choice, but vegetable or fish broth are used in some of risotto’s countless variations. Some of the most common risotto ingredients, regardless of variation, are butter, onions, and cheese. It’s often topped with meat, veggies, seafood, or a combination of all three. One popular variation, risotto alla milanese, uses arborio rice along with white wine, shallots, and saffron, the latter of which gives it a yellow color.
Italy began cultivating its own rice in the 14th century, having gained access to it (and various spices) via trade with the middle east. The Mediterranean’s humid weather was perfect for rice farming, and rice soon became a popular Italian staple. As for risotto, we’ll never know who first prepared it, but by the late 1700s a variation using meat broth, butter, onions and cheese was already popular. As its name suggests, risotto alla Milanese comes from Milan, where centuries of Spanish rule greatly influenced the culinary landscape. Since many Spanish recipes call for slowly simmering food in wine and using spices like saffron, risotto alla Milanese became a much-beloved favorite there. In fact, one of the first written recipes for risotto is a recipe for this particular variation, written in 1829 by chef Felice Luraschi.
Today, risotto can be found at just about any Italian restaurant in the U.S. or abroad. Sometimes it’s served as a first course before a pasta entree, or as a side dish to meat entrees, but risotto alla Milanese is usually served as a meal all on its own. This is one rice dish that plays second fiddle (or Italian accordion) to no one.
[Image description: A blue bowl of seafood risotto topped with scallops and vegetables.] Credit & copyright: Nano Erdozain, PexelsThis fancy rice is awfully nice. While rice features most famously and heavily in various Asian cuisines, Europe has come up with plenty of tasty rice dishes too. As if pizza and pasta weren’t enough, Italy is also known for its unique take on rice in the form of risotto. This warm, brothy dish is perfect for fall, but can (and is) enjoyed as both a side and a main course all year long.
Risotto is a dish of rice cooked in broth. Since the broth is added gradually and the rice is stirred throughout the cooking process, risotto has a creamy texture. Meat broth is the traditional choice, but vegetable or fish broth are used in some of risotto’s countless variations. Some of the most common risotto ingredients, regardless of variation, are butter, onions, and cheese. It’s often topped with meat, veggies, seafood, or a combination of all three. One popular variation, risotto alla milanese, uses arborio rice along with white wine, shallots, and saffron, the latter of which gives it a yellow color.
Italy began cultivating its own rice in the 14th century, having gained access to it (and various spices) via trade with the middle east. The Mediterranean’s humid weather was perfect for rice farming, and rice soon became a popular Italian staple. As for risotto, we’ll never know who first prepared it, but by the late 1700s a variation using meat broth, butter, onions and cheese was already popular. As its name suggests, risotto alla Milanese comes from Milan, where centuries of Spanish rule greatly influenced the culinary landscape. Since many Spanish recipes call for slowly simmering food in wine and using spices like saffron, risotto alla Milanese became a much-beloved favorite there. In fact, one of the first written recipes for risotto is a recipe for this particular variation, written in 1829 by chef Felice Luraschi.
Today, risotto can be found at just about any Italian restaurant in the U.S. or abroad. Sometimes it’s served as a first course before a pasta entree, or as a side dish to meat entrees, but risotto alla Milanese is usually served as a meal all on its own. This is one rice dish that plays second fiddle (or Italian accordion) to no one.
[Image description: A blue bowl of seafood risotto topped with scallops and vegetables.] Credit & copyright: Nano Erdozain, Pexels
October 10, 2024
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8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
From the BBC World Service: Ratan Tata was one of India’s most internationally recognized industrialists. The tycoon oversaw a 50-fold rise in profits in his...
From the BBC World Service: Ratan Tata was one of India’s most internationally recognized industrialists. The tycoon oversaw a 50-fold rise in profits in his...
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: October 10, 2024\NOO-muh-nus\ adjective
What It Means
Numinous is a formal, often literary, word that typically describes t...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: October 10, 2024\NOO-muh-nus\ adjective
What It Means
Numinous is a formal, often literary, word that typically describes t...
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FREEBiology Nerdy CurioFree1 CQ
These little critters really know how to jell. Researchers at the University of Exeter in the U.K. have found that comb jellies are capable of fusing together when injured, according to a paper published in Current Biology. Comb jellies are small (around four inches long), translucent marine invertebrates in the Ctenophora phylum. They’re truly ancient; in fact, they branched off from the single-celled common ancestor of all animals earlier than any other creatures still living today. Since they originally developed, little about them has changed, leaving them with a relatively unusual, jellyfish-like anatomy (though they’re not actually jellyfish). However, a researcher noticed a particularly strange specimen in a lab’s observation tank. Comb jellies normally have one apical organ and one lobe on their rear end that is used to eject digested food. This specimen, though, had two of each, almost as if two individual comb jellies had been stuck together. Suspecting as much, the researchers successfully replicated the fusion in other comb jellies. Apparently, when comb jellies are injured, they can combine into one to increase their chances of survival. Within hours of being grafted together, the comb jellies began acting as one, responding to muscle stimuli in sync and even digesting food through a single canal. Stranger still, although the two act as one, they maintain their own separate sets of DNA, and their morphology isn’t passed on to the next generation. Researchers believe that understanding the mechanism behind the comb jellies’ fusion could lead to advances in transplantation and regeneration. In the meantime, don’t go gluing yourself to your friends every time you scrape your knee.
[Image description: A group of comb jellies in black water.] Credit & copyright: Benoît Prieur (1975–), Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
These little critters really know how to jell. Researchers at the University of Exeter in the U.K. have found that comb jellies are capable of fusing together when injured, according to a paper published in Current Biology. Comb jellies are small (around four inches long), translucent marine invertebrates in the Ctenophora phylum. They’re truly ancient; in fact, they branched off from the single-celled common ancestor of all animals earlier than any other creatures still living today. Since they originally developed, little about them has changed, leaving them with a relatively unusual, jellyfish-like anatomy (though they’re not actually jellyfish). However, a researcher noticed a particularly strange specimen in a lab’s observation tank. Comb jellies normally have one apical organ and one lobe on their rear end that is used to eject digested food. This specimen, though, had two of each, almost as if two individual comb jellies had been stuck together. Suspecting as much, the researchers successfully replicated the fusion in other comb jellies. Apparently, when comb jellies are injured, they can combine into one to increase their chances of survival. Within hours of being grafted together, the comb jellies began acting as one, responding to muscle stimuli in sync and even digesting food through a single canal. Stranger still, although the two act as one, they maintain their own separate sets of DNA, and their morphology isn’t passed on to the next generation. Researchers believe that understanding the mechanism behind the comb jellies’ fusion could lead to advances in transplantation and regeneration. In the meantime, don’t go gluing yourself to your friends every time you scrape your knee.
[Image description: A group of comb jellies in black water.] Credit & copyright: Benoît Prieur (1975–), Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
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FREETravel Daily Curio #2958Free1 CQ
It’s safe to say this guy got his 10,000 steps in. Around 50 years ago, on October 5, 1974, David Kunst became the first person to circumnavigate the globe on foot, but his historic adventure came at a heavy cost. Kunst actually got the idea to walk around the world after borrowing it from someone else. While talking to his manager at a movie theater in the small town of Waseca, Minnesota, Kunst mentioned that he would like to drive across South America in a Jeep. His manager, on the other hand, expressed his desire to walk around the world. This conversation inspired Kunst and his brother, John. Thus began what would become a four-year journey around the world, crossing 13 countries and covering 14,450 miles. The Kunst brothers left Waseca and headed east toward New York, leaving behind David’s wife, kids, and the third of the brothers, Pete, who promised to fill in if one of them couldn’t finish the journey. From New York, the pair flew to Portugal and traversed much of Europe. Along the way, they met Princess Grace of Monaco and Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl, who provided words of encouragement. All the while, they were also accompanied by a number of mules that were either traded away or perished on the arduous trek, their names being: Willie Make It, Willie Make It II, Will Willie Make It, and Willie Will Make It. The Kunst brothers’ adventure was widely publicized and they were met with help and accommodations along the way, but their fame also brought them unwanted attention. On October 21, 1972, the brothers were attacked by bandits who believed them to be carrying funds being raised for UNICEF. John was killed during the encounter, and David went on alone for a while until Pete joined in to keep his promise. When David Kunst returned to Waseca in 1974, he had lost a brother, met another woman (who would become his future wife) and his marriage was seemingly coming to an end. Still, he managed to become “the first person recorded to have ‘walked around the world.’” according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Since then, his journey has inspired others to do the same. Who knew itchy feet could be contagious?
[Image description: A long road stretching away toward mountains.] Credit & copyright: Julia Volk, PexelsIt’s safe to say this guy got his 10,000 steps in. Around 50 years ago, on October 5, 1974, David Kunst became the first person to circumnavigate the globe on foot, but his historic adventure came at a heavy cost. Kunst actually got the idea to walk around the world after borrowing it from someone else. While talking to his manager at a movie theater in the small town of Waseca, Minnesota, Kunst mentioned that he would like to drive across South America in a Jeep. His manager, on the other hand, expressed his desire to walk around the world. This conversation inspired Kunst and his brother, John. Thus began what would become a four-year journey around the world, crossing 13 countries and covering 14,450 miles. The Kunst brothers left Waseca and headed east toward New York, leaving behind David’s wife, kids, and the third of the brothers, Pete, who promised to fill in if one of them couldn’t finish the journey. From New York, the pair flew to Portugal and traversed much of Europe. Along the way, they met Princess Grace of Monaco and Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl, who provided words of encouragement. All the while, they were also accompanied by a number of mules that were either traded away or perished on the arduous trek, their names being: Willie Make It, Willie Make It II, Will Willie Make It, and Willie Will Make It. The Kunst brothers’ adventure was widely publicized and they were met with help and accommodations along the way, but their fame also brought them unwanted attention. On October 21, 1972, the brothers were attacked by bandits who believed them to be carrying funds being raised for UNICEF. John was killed during the encounter, and David went on alone for a while until Pete joined in to keep his promise. When David Kunst returned to Waseca in 1974, he had lost a brother, met another woman (who would become his future wife) and his marriage was seemingly coming to an end. Still, he managed to become “the first person recorded to have ‘walked around the world.’” according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Since then, his journey has inspired others to do the same. Who knew itchy feet could be contagious?
[Image description: A long road stretching away toward mountains.] Credit & copyright: Julia Volk, Pexels
October 9, 2024
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8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
From the BBC World Service: The U.S. Department of Justice is taking aim at Google, saying the tech giant might need to be broken up because it’s too dominan...
From the BBC World Service: The U.S. Department of Justice is taking aim at Google, saying the tech giant might need to be broken up because it’s too dominan...
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FREEBiology Nerdy CurioFree1 CQ
They can leap 20 feet and they have otherworldly senses, but they’re not superheroes, they’re marine mammals! Bottlenose dolphins are as famous for their playful nature as they are for their impressive intelligence. In fact, researchers have recently discovered that they “smile” at one another (or do the dolphin equivalent, anyway) while playing together. These incredible animals also have some of the strangest evolutionary history of any mammal.
Dolphins didn’t always live in the ocean—at least, their ancestors didn’t. Unlike many other large ocean animals, like sharks, dolphins aren’t fish, but mammals. They’re warm-blooded, have hair (not a lot, but some), give birth to live young, feed their young with milk, and breathe air. That last feature might make a life at sea seem like a strange choice, but it worked quite well for dolphins. The fossil record shows that, around 50 million years ago, dolphins’ terrestrial, four-legged, canine-like ancestors found the ocean to be a great source of food, and began spending more and more time there. Over millions of years, they lost most of their fur, their legs turned to flippers, and their bodies became streamlined for water travel. But many of their ancestors’ characteristics remain: bottlenose dolphins’ namesake snouts still have the same overall shape as their ancestors’ muzzles. Dolphins’ spines and ribs are still positioned in basically the same way their ancestors’ were, which means that they swim with an “up and down” motion rather than the “side to side” gait that fish have. This spinal position, and the fact that bottlenose dolphins retained their ancestors’ flexible necks, means that they can leap high out of the water and make extremely tight turns while swimming.
Recent research has shown that bottlenose dolphins use body language, as well as a complex series of vocalizations, to communicate. Open-mouthed facial expressions seem to serve a purpose similar to smiling, as dolphins often make such expressions while playing. It’s also been discovered that dolphins can sense weak electrical signals, thereby using Earth’s naturally occurring magnetic fields to navigate long distances in the open ocean. Bottlenose dolphins are so intelligent that those in captivity can learn complex series of words and commands. In fact, studies have shown that dolphins can not only problem solve but also recognize themselves in mirrors, making them one of the few known animals that are self-aware. This makes it all the more tragic that bottlenose dolphins are often killed when they become tangled in waste from the commercial fishing industry. It’s estimated that some 300,000 whales and dolphins die each year after coming into contact with nets and other fishing debris. It’s a good reason to eat fish from brands committed to ethical fishing practices, and to clean up after yourself when out at sea. Surely you’d rather have the dolphins smile at you than frown.
[Image description: A bottlenose dolphin swims with its upper body out of the water.] Credit & copyright: Rene~dawiki, Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Rene, at the English Wikipedia project. This applies worldwide.They can leap 20 feet and they have otherworldly senses, but they’re not superheroes, they’re marine mammals! Bottlenose dolphins are as famous for their playful nature as they are for their impressive intelligence. In fact, researchers have recently discovered that they “smile” at one another (or do the dolphin equivalent, anyway) while playing together. These incredible animals also have some of the strangest evolutionary history of any mammal.
Dolphins didn’t always live in the ocean—at least, their ancestors didn’t. Unlike many other large ocean animals, like sharks, dolphins aren’t fish, but mammals. They’re warm-blooded, have hair (not a lot, but some), give birth to live young, feed their young with milk, and breathe air. That last feature might make a life at sea seem like a strange choice, but it worked quite well for dolphins. The fossil record shows that, around 50 million years ago, dolphins’ terrestrial, four-legged, canine-like ancestors found the ocean to be a great source of food, and began spending more and more time there. Over millions of years, they lost most of their fur, their legs turned to flippers, and their bodies became streamlined for water travel. But many of their ancestors’ characteristics remain: bottlenose dolphins’ namesake snouts still have the same overall shape as their ancestors’ muzzles. Dolphins’ spines and ribs are still positioned in basically the same way their ancestors’ were, which means that they swim with an “up and down” motion rather than the “side to side” gait that fish have. This spinal position, and the fact that bottlenose dolphins retained their ancestors’ flexible necks, means that they can leap high out of the water and make extremely tight turns while swimming.
Recent research has shown that bottlenose dolphins use body language, as well as a complex series of vocalizations, to communicate. Open-mouthed facial expressions seem to serve a purpose similar to smiling, as dolphins often make such expressions while playing. It’s also been discovered that dolphins can sense weak electrical signals, thereby using Earth’s naturally occurring magnetic fields to navigate long distances in the open ocean. Bottlenose dolphins are so intelligent that those in captivity can learn complex series of words and commands. In fact, studies have shown that dolphins can not only problem solve but also recognize themselves in mirrors, making them one of the few known animals that are self-aware. This makes it all the more tragic that bottlenose dolphins are often killed when they become tangled in waste from the commercial fishing industry. It’s estimated that some 300,000 whales and dolphins die each year after coming into contact with nets and other fishing debris. It’s a good reason to eat fish from brands committed to ethical fishing practices, and to clean up after yourself when out at sea. Surely you’d rather have the dolphins smile at you than frown.
[Image description: A bottlenose dolphin swims with its upper body out of the water.] Credit & copyright: Rene~dawiki, Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Rene, at the English Wikipedia project. This applies worldwide. -
FREEWorld History Daily Curio #2957Free1 CQ
This shipwreck ain’t big enough for all of us! That’s pretty much what several countries, companies, and other groups are saying to each other regarding the world’s most valuable shipwreck, over which they each claim ownership. The San José, a 64-gun Spanish battleship, was sunk by the British in 1708. Onboard were countless treasures, including precious metals and jewelry, which today makes it one of the world’s most valuable shipwrecks, worth billions of dollars. Though it might seem like something out of a pirate movie, a fierce battle is now raging for the treasure—though it involves arbitration rather than physical fighting.
Spain is the first (and most obvious) entity to claim ownership of the San José. It was their ship, after all, and it was gunned down during the War of the Spanish Succession. The war was fought to decide who would rule Spain (and control its valuable shipping routes). Needless to say, the British were keen to see the ship’s treasures at the bottom of the ocean rather than in the hands of the Spanish, who could use it to fund their military chest. While it makes sense that modern day Spain would claim ownership of the San José’s wreck, Columbia also has a claim since the shipwreck currently lies in their waters (though its exact location is a closely-guarded secret.)
Another compelling claim comes from U.S. salvage company Sea Search Armada. They found the wreck’s location back in the 1980s (the company was then called Glocca Mora). At first, the company offered to split the ship’s treasure with Columbia in exchange for help in getting it off the seabed. The San José is nearly 2,000 feet underwater, so exhuming it would be no easy task. But the two entities couldn’t agree on a fair split of the treasure, and negotiations eventually broke down. Then, in 2015, Columbia announced that the San José wasn’t actually resting where Sea Search Armada had said, but that the ship had been independently located in a different spot. That meant that, according to them, Sea Search Armada wasn’t entitled to anything aboard the ship. So, then, who’s going to decide who actually owns the wreck and all its bounty? That unenviable task falls to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, an intergovernmental organization created back in 1899 to solve disputes just like this one. Their ruling might decide who gets to keep the booty, but it's safe to say that tongues will keep wagging afterward.
[Image description: A close-up photo of water’s surface.] Credit & copyright: Matt Hardy, PexelsThis shipwreck ain’t big enough for all of us! That’s pretty much what several countries, companies, and other groups are saying to each other regarding the world’s most valuable shipwreck, over which they each claim ownership. The San José, a 64-gun Spanish battleship, was sunk by the British in 1708. Onboard were countless treasures, including precious metals and jewelry, which today makes it one of the world’s most valuable shipwrecks, worth billions of dollars. Though it might seem like something out of a pirate movie, a fierce battle is now raging for the treasure—though it involves arbitration rather than physical fighting.
Spain is the first (and most obvious) entity to claim ownership of the San José. It was their ship, after all, and it was gunned down during the War of the Spanish Succession. The war was fought to decide who would rule Spain (and control its valuable shipping routes). Needless to say, the British were keen to see the ship’s treasures at the bottom of the ocean rather than in the hands of the Spanish, who could use it to fund their military chest. While it makes sense that modern day Spain would claim ownership of the San José’s wreck, Columbia also has a claim since the shipwreck currently lies in their waters (though its exact location is a closely-guarded secret.)
Another compelling claim comes from U.S. salvage company Sea Search Armada. They found the wreck’s location back in the 1980s (the company was then called Glocca Mora). At first, the company offered to split the ship’s treasure with Columbia in exchange for help in getting it off the seabed. The San José is nearly 2,000 feet underwater, so exhuming it would be no easy task. But the two entities couldn’t agree on a fair split of the treasure, and negotiations eventually broke down. Then, in 2015, Columbia announced that the San José wasn’t actually resting where Sea Search Armada had said, but that the ship had been independently located in a different spot. That meant that, according to them, Sea Search Armada wasn’t entitled to anything aboard the ship. So, then, who’s going to decide who actually owns the wreck and all its bounty? That unenviable task falls to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, an intergovernmental organization created back in 1899 to solve disputes just like this one. Their ruling might decide who gets to keep the booty, but it's safe to say that tongues will keep wagging afterward.
[Image description: A close-up photo of water’s surface.] Credit & copyright: Matt Hardy, Pexels
October 8, 2024
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8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
From the BBC World Service: Days after the European Union voted in favor of steep import taxes on electric vehicles from China, Beijing has now hit back wit...
From the BBC World Service: Days after the European Union voted in favor of steep import taxes on electric vehicles from China, Beijing has now hit back wit...
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FREEMusic Appreciation Song CurioFree2 CQ
Do you believe in miracles? Famed British soul band Hot Chocolate certainly did, and they were good at making them happen too! Between 1970 and 1984, the group had at least one hit song per year on the UK charts. Founded by Errol Brown and Tony Wilson, the latter of whom was born on this day in 1947, Hot Chocolate performed everything from soulful love ballads to danceable funk tunes. Their best-remembered hit, You Sexy Thing, was a bit of both. Brown and Wilson co-wrote the song together, though it was mostly inspired by Brown’s feelings for his wife, Ginette. The tune’s famously funky baseline and spoken-word lyrical style immediately set it apart. It hit number two in the UK and number three in the U.S., but was remembered long after it fell off the charts for its frequent pop culture appearances. The song has been featured on movie soundtracks and in commercials, helping to sell everything from cars to cookies. Hey, when you play something this funky, it’s a good bet that people will stop and listen.
Do you believe in miracles? Famed British soul band Hot Chocolate certainly did, and they were good at making them happen too! Between 1970 and 1984, the group had at least one hit song per year on the UK charts. Founded by Errol Brown and Tony Wilson, the latter of whom was born on this day in 1947, Hot Chocolate performed everything from soulful love ballads to danceable funk tunes. Their best-remembered hit, You Sexy Thing, was a bit of both. Brown and Wilson co-wrote the song together, though it was mostly inspired by Brown’s feelings for his wife, Ginette. The tune’s famously funky baseline and spoken-word lyrical style immediately set it apart. It hit number two in the UK and number three in the U.S., but was remembered long after it fell off the charts for its frequent pop culture appearances. The song has been featured on movie soundtracks and in commercials, helping to sell everything from cars to cookies. Hey, when you play something this funky, it’s a good bet that people will stop and listen.
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FREEBiology Daily Curio #2956Free1 CQ
This ain’t your grandma’s cloned sheep! When Dolly the sheep was cloned way back in the 1990s, it was a scientific breakthrough. Now, an 81-year-old Montana rancher will be going to prison after he cloned exotic sheep for money and fun. If you’re wondering how a rancher managed to clone sheep, he did have some help. Cloning, the replication of identical genetic material, can occur naturally, as when asexual organisms reproduce by creating identical copies of themselves. Identical twins are also natural clones, since they develop from the same egg and share 100% of their genetic material. However, artificial cloning is a tad more complicated—though it is commonly performed for biomedical research. It involves a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer, where the nucleus of one egg cell is transferred to another cell, which is then allowed to grow into a genetically identical organism. There is still some ethical debate surrounding this kind of cloning (which is why it’s illegal to clone human beings in the U.S.).
One debate that’s settled, however, is the matter of rancher Arthur “Jack” Schubarth’s guilt. Apparently, he smuggled body parts from a Marco Polo sheep (the largest species of sheep in the world at 300 pounds) into the U.S., then hired a lab to create cloned embryos that he implanted in sheep at his ranch. When the first male Marco Polo sheep was born, he named it Montana Mountain King, or MMK, and used it to create hybrids to be used in his captive hunting operation. In addition, he sold the cloned sheep’s semen and hybrid offspring to other captive hunting operations across state lines for as much as $10,000. By introducing an exotic sheep species to the U.S., Schubarth violated both the Endangered Species Act and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, he also broke the law by threatening the genetic integrity of the wild sheep population in Montana and risking their exposure to exotic diseases. Seems this sheep enthusiast will have to live with a baa-ad reputation.
[Image description: A ram skull in a field of grass and yellow flowers.] Credit & copyright: NPGallery, item ID: 7e5f2229-adcc-40cb-a125-e591fd45a746. NPS / Jacob W. Frank. Public Domain.This ain’t your grandma’s cloned sheep! When Dolly the sheep was cloned way back in the 1990s, it was a scientific breakthrough. Now, an 81-year-old Montana rancher will be going to prison after he cloned exotic sheep for money and fun. If you’re wondering how a rancher managed to clone sheep, he did have some help. Cloning, the replication of identical genetic material, can occur naturally, as when asexual organisms reproduce by creating identical copies of themselves. Identical twins are also natural clones, since they develop from the same egg and share 100% of their genetic material. However, artificial cloning is a tad more complicated—though it is commonly performed for biomedical research. It involves a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer, where the nucleus of one egg cell is transferred to another cell, which is then allowed to grow into a genetically identical organism. There is still some ethical debate surrounding this kind of cloning (which is why it’s illegal to clone human beings in the U.S.).
One debate that’s settled, however, is the matter of rancher Arthur “Jack” Schubarth’s guilt. Apparently, he smuggled body parts from a Marco Polo sheep (the largest species of sheep in the world at 300 pounds) into the U.S., then hired a lab to create cloned embryos that he implanted in sheep at his ranch. When the first male Marco Polo sheep was born, he named it Montana Mountain King, or MMK, and used it to create hybrids to be used in his captive hunting operation. In addition, he sold the cloned sheep’s semen and hybrid offspring to other captive hunting operations across state lines for as much as $10,000. By introducing an exotic sheep species to the U.S., Schubarth violated both the Endangered Species Act and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, he also broke the law by threatening the genetic integrity of the wild sheep population in Montana and risking their exposure to exotic diseases. Seems this sheep enthusiast will have to live with a baa-ad reputation.
[Image description: A ram skull in a field of grass and yellow flowers.] Credit & copyright: NPGallery, item ID: 7e5f2229-adcc-40cb-a125-e591fd45a746. NPS / Jacob W. Frank. Public Domain.
October 7, 2024
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3 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: October 7, 2024\layz-MAJ-uh-stee\ noun
What It Means
Lèse-majesté (less commonly spelled lese majesty) can refer to a true ...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: October 7, 2024\layz-MAJ-uh-stee\ noun
What It Means
Lèse-majesté (less commonly spelled lese majesty) can refer to a true ...
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FREEArt CurioFree1 CQ
They say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but this situation is excessive by any standard! In Greek mythology, Medea was an enchantress and the wife of Jason (the same Jason who sailed with the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece.) But her story goes to show that a lot of Greek myths were less than family-friendly. The piece above is a ceramic vessel depicting a woman riding a chariot pulled by flying snakes. Around her are various figures, including a man holding his hands on his head as he looks at two dead bodies. Portrayed on a calyx-krater (a vessel for mixing water and wine before serving), the woman in the magical chariot is none other than Medea. The scene looks almost triumphant, but is actually quite tragic. As her story goes, Medea helped Jason attain the Golden Fleece and win back his father’s throne in Thessaly. After their heroic escapades, the two married and had children. When Jason became infatuated with another woman, however, Medea killed her own two children in revenge and fled with the divine assistance of her grandfather, the sun god Helios. She really took “ride or die” to a whole new level.
Red-Figure Calyx-Krater (Mixing Vessel): Medea in Chariot (A); Telephos with Baby Orestes (B), The Policoro Painter (active 400 - 380 B.C.), c. 400 BCE, Ceramic, 19.87 in. (50.5 cm.), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
[Image credit & copyright: The Policoro Painter, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund 1991.1, Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation, Public Domain.]They say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but this situation is excessive by any standard! In Greek mythology, Medea was an enchantress and the wife of Jason (the same Jason who sailed with the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece.) But her story goes to show that a lot of Greek myths were less than family-friendly. The piece above is a ceramic vessel depicting a woman riding a chariot pulled by flying snakes. Around her are various figures, including a man holding his hands on his head as he looks at two dead bodies. Portrayed on a calyx-krater (a vessel for mixing water and wine before serving), the woman in the magical chariot is none other than Medea. The scene looks almost triumphant, but is actually quite tragic. As her story goes, Medea helped Jason attain the Golden Fleece and win back his father’s throne in Thessaly. After their heroic escapades, the two married and had children. When Jason became infatuated with another woman, however, Medea killed her own two children in revenge and fled with the divine assistance of her grandfather, the sun god Helios. She really took “ride or die” to a whole new level.
Red-Figure Calyx-Krater (Mixing Vessel): Medea in Chariot (A); Telephos with Baby Orestes (B), The Policoro Painter (active 400 - 380 B.C.), c. 400 BCE, Ceramic, 19.87 in. (50.5 cm.), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
[Image credit & copyright: The Policoro Painter, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund 1991.1, Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation, Public Domain.] -
FREEScience Daily Curio #2955Free1 CQ
When a butterfly flaps its wings, it threatens the electronics industry. The butterfly effect certainly does seem to be on full display as the devastation from Hurricane Helene is now, in a roundabout way, threatening to have a dire impact on everything from smartphones to AI. Many modern electronics rely on high-quality quartz to operate properly. Microwaves, televisions, computers, and a myriad of other products contain quartz somewhere inside. When an electric field is applied to a quartz crystal, it oscillates at a stable and reliable frequency, and this is used as a timing reference. The simplest example is a timepiece—most analog watches and clocks, despite their purely mechanical appearance, use electronics with quartz to keep time accurately. Quartz is actually very common, but not just any quartz will do. For it to provide precise, accurate timing, quartz of exceptional purity is needed. This kind of quartz is also used for semiconductors, which are essential components of any electronic device that doesn’t run on tubes. Such high-quality quartz is very rare, and only a handful of sites around the world are known to have significant deposits of it. One of those sites is located in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, a small town of around 2,000. Located an hour from Asheville, the town is also known as Mineral City for its abundance of the rare quartz. Unfortunately, when Hurricane Helene struck, it dropped two feet of rain on the small town and caused widespread power outages. Among the affected were two companies that provide up to 90 percent of all the world’s high-quality quartz. It’s not just the power outage that’s hampering operations, but damage to the quartz mines themselves. Luckily, many semiconductor manufacturers keep robust quartz stockpiles in case of supply disruptions, so there won’t be immediate repercussions. Still, they can’t go on forever unless Spruce Pine gets up and running again. It’s just one more reminder not to underestimate the importance of small towns.
[Image description: Quartz crystals against a black and gray background.] Credit & copyright: MartinThoma, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.When a butterfly flaps its wings, it threatens the electronics industry. The butterfly effect certainly does seem to be on full display as the devastation from Hurricane Helene is now, in a roundabout way, threatening to have a dire impact on everything from smartphones to AI. Many modern electronics rely on high-quality quartz to operate properly. Microwaves, televisions, computers, and a myriad of other products contain quartz somewhere inside. When an electric field is applied to a quartz crystal, it oscillates at a stable and reliable frequency, and this is used as a timing reference. The simplest example is a timepiece—most analog watches and clocks, despite their purely mechanical appearance, use electronics with quartz to keep time accurately. Quartz is actually very common, but not just any quartz will do. For it to provide precise, accurate timing, quartz of exceptional purity is needed. This kind of quartz is also used for semiconductors, which are essential components of any electronic device that doesn’t run on tubes. Such high-quality quartz is very rare, and only a handful of sites around the world are known to have significant deposits of it. One of those sites is located in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, a small town of around 2,000. Located an hour from Asheville, the town is also known as Mineral City for its abundance of the rare quartz. Unfortunately, when Hurricane Helene struck, it dropped two feet of rain on the small town and caused widespread power outages. Among the affected were two companies that provide up to 90 percent of all the world’s high-quality quartz. It’s not just the power outage that’s hampering operations, but damage to the quartz mines themselves. Luckily, many semiconductor manufacturers keep robust quartz stockpiles in case of supply disruptions, so there won’t be immediate repercussions. Still, they can’t go on forever unless Spruce Pine gets up and running again. It’s just one more reminder not to underestimate the importance of small towns.
[Image description: Quartz crystals against a black and gray background.] Credit & copyright: MartinThoma, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. -
9 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
How businesses strategically funnel cash toward political causes, what they hope to gain, and what they might be risking. Plus, the trucking industry braces ...
How businesses strategically funnel cash toward political causes, what they hope to gain, and what they might be risking. Plus, the trucking industry braces ...
October 6, 2024
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FREEPolitical Science PP&T CurioFree1 CQ
With nationwide relief efforts underway following the devastation of Hurricane Helene, you’ve likely been hearing a lot about one federal agency: FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). With a workforce of more than 20,000 people, FEMA is uniquely equipped to respond to all sorts of emergencies. Before its founding, though, Americans dealing with disasters were largely left on their own.
In December of 1802, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was practically destroyed by a fire. At the time, Portsmouth was among the U.S.’s busiest ports, and its destruction spelled disaster for the economy. The federal government didn’t directly help rebuild the city, but the U.S. Congress suspended bond payments for local merchants to allow them to continue operations in Portsmouth. Similar measures were taken after other major fires, such as one in New York City in 1835 and the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Still, there wasn’t much interest in creating a proactive federal response system for disasters until the early 20th century, when two tragic events led to calls for action. First, there was the Galveston Hurricane in 1900, which killed thousands of people. Then, the San Francisco Earthquake in 1906 leveled much of the city. In both cases, very little federal action was taken to address displaced citizens or to rebuild critical infrastructure, with the onus falling entirely on local governments. Those local governments, in turn, began asking the federal government to create some kind of task force to help when future disasters arose. Finally, in 1950, Congress created the Federal Disaster Assistance Program, giving the federal government powers to act directly in the case of disasters. A series of devastating hurricanes and earthquakes in the 1960s provided further impetus to expand these powers, resulting in the Disaster Relief Act of 1970. This allowed affected individuals to receive federal loans and tax assistance. Finally, in 1979, President Jimmy Carter issued an executive order to combine a number of agencies responsible for disaster response to create FEMA.
Since FEMA was created, it has helped in the face of everything from volcanoes to hurricanes, but it hasn’t always been beyond criticism. For example, the federal response to the Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1989 and Hurricane Andrew in 1992 were considered inadequate. Major reforms in the 1990s and the increasing emphasis on being proactive, not simply reactive, allowed the agency to respond to disasters more effectively. Some of the proactive measures included purchasing property in areas at higher risk of natural disasters and encouraging more stringent building codes. While FEMA was improving its response to natural disasters, there were also unnatural disasters to contend with. In 1995, FEMA responded to the Oklahoma City Bombing. Six years later, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 led to the most significant change to the agency since its creation. When the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was created to handle federal responses to terrorist attacks, FEMA was absorbed into it, expanding its scope to terrorism preparedness.
Today, FEMA continues in its original mission of disaster relief, and it’s been getting busier by the year. With climate change creating storms of greater frequency and power, FEMA has been kept on its toes recently. When such storms approach, it’s up to governors of affected states to request assistance through the FEMA Regional Office. Since they can do this before storms actually strike, FEMA can begin providing financial aid and moving people and supplies into position before any actual damage has occurred. Aside from providing practical necessities like food, water, and shelter to affected people, part of FEMA’s purpose is to ensure that allocated funds are handled appropriately. After all, when things go sideways, you want to make sure everything else is on the up and up.
[Image description: An American flag with a wooden flagpole flying against a blue sky.] Credit & copyright: Crefollet, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.With nationwide relief efforts underway following the devastation of Hurricane Helene, you’ve likely been hearing a lot about one federal agency: FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). With a workforce of more than 20,000 people, FEMA is uniquely equipped to respond to all sorts of emergencies. Before its founding, though, Americans dealing with disasters were largely left on their own.
In December of 1802, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was practically destroyed by a fire. At the time, Portsmouth was among the U.S.’s busiest ports, and its destruction spelled disaster for the economy. The federal government didn’t directly help rebuild the city, but the U.S. Congress suspended bond payments for local merchants to allow them to continue operations in Portsmouth. Similar measures were taken after other major fires, such as one in New York City in 1835 and the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Still, there wasn’t much interest in creating a proactive federal response system for disasters until the early 20th century, when two tragic events led to calls for action. First, there was the Galveston Hurricane in 1900, which killed thousands of people. Then, the San Francisco Earthquake in 1906 leveled much of the city. In both cases, very little federal action was taken to address displaced citizens or to rebuild critical infrastructure, with the onus falling entirely on local governments. Those local governments, in turn, began asking the federal government to create some kind of task force to help when future disasters arose. Finally, in 1950, Congress created the Federal Disaster Assistance Program, giving the federal government powers to act directly in the case of disasters. A series of devastating hurricanes and earthquakes in the 1960s provided further impetus to expand these powers, resulting in the Disaster Relief Act of 1970. This allowed affected individuals to receive federal loans and tax assistance. Finally, in 1979, President Jimmy Carter issued an executive order to combine a number of agencies responsible for disaster response to create FEMA.
Since FEMA was created, it has helped in the face of everything from volcanoes to hurricanes, but it hasn’t always been beyond criticism. For example, the federal response to the Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1989 and Hurricane Andrew in 1992 were considered inadequate. Major reforms in the 1990s and the increasing emphasis on being proactive, not simply reactive, allowed the agency to respond to disasters more effectively. Some of the proactive measures included purchasing property in areas at higher risk of natural disasters and encouraging more stringent building codes. While FEMA was improving its response to natural disasters, there were also unnatural disasters to contend with. In 1995, FEMA responded to the Oklahoma City Bombing. Six years later, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 led to the most significant change to the agency since its creation. When the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was created to handle federal responses to terrorist attacks, FEMA was absorbed into it, expanding its scope to terrorism preparedness.
Today, FEMA continues in its original mission of disaster relief, and it’s been getting busier by the year. With climate change creating storms of greater frequency and power, FEMA has been kept on its toes recently. When such storms approach, it’s up to governors of affected states to request assistance through the FEMA Regional Office. Since they can do this before storms actually strike, FEMA can begin providing financial aid and moving people and supplies into position before any actual damage has occurred. Aside from providing practical necessities like food, water, and shelter to affected people, part of FEMA’s purpose is to ensure that allocated funds are handled appropriately. After all, when things go sideways, you want to make sure everything else is on the up and up.
[Image description: An American flag with a wooden flagpole flying against a blue sky.] Credit & copyright: Crefollet, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. -
9 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
As we enter day three of port strikes along the East and Gulf Coasts, ports on the West Coast are fielding record high amounts of diverted cargo. Plus, reass...
As we enter day three of port strikes along the East and Gulf Coasts, ports on the West Coast are fielding record high amounts of diverted cargo. Plus, reass...