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June 26, 2024
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9 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
From the BBC World Service: At least 13 people have been killed and many more injured after police fired into crowds protesting Kenya’s controversial finance...
From the BBC World Service: At least 13 people have been killed and many more injured after police fired into crowds protesting Kenya’s controversial finance...
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: June 26, 2024\ZEER-oh-SUM\ adjective
What It Means
Zero-sum describes something, such as a game, mentality, or situation, i...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: June 26, 2024\ZEER-oh-SUM\ adjective
What It Means
Zero-sum describes something, such as a game, mentality, or situation, i...
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FREEUS History Daily Curio #2897Free1 CQ
You’ve heard the tale of George Washington and the cherry tree, but fact is sometimes stranger than fiction! Archeologists recently unearthed dozens of bottles of cherries (and other fruits) from George Washington’s estate at Mount Vernon, uncovering a real-life link between cherries and the nation’s first President for the very first time. The unprecedented find was discovered not during an archeological dig, but by accident during renovations to the estate’s cellar. Mount Vernon President & CEO Doug Bradburn called the discovery, “…an unprecedented find and nothing of this scale and significance has ever been excavated in North America.”
As for what the cherries were doing in the cellar, along with the currents, gooseberries, and other fruit pulp found there, they were likely intended to be made into “cherry bounce”, a brandy-based drink made with aged cherry juice and spices. Some of them might have also been drying out to make “morelly cherries”, a type of dried cherry eaten as a candy-like treat at Mount Vernon. The bottles were almost certainly put in the cellar by one of the many enslaved people working at Mount Vernon, one of whom, named Doll, was known for making morelly cherries. Jason Boroughs, Mount Vernon’s principal archeologist, said that the find was a “…testament to the knowledge and skill of the enslaved people who managed the food preparations from tree to table.”
Of course, these particular fruits never made it to Washington’s table. Although analysis of the find is ongoing, Mount Vernon historians believe it’s likely that the bottles were laid down just before the American Revolution and then promptly forgotten about in 1755, when Washington left his home to take command of the Continental Army. Now, researchers are working to see whether some of the cherry pits and other seeds might be in good enough condition to germinate, though that likely won’t be known for another six months to a year. For now, these bonafide Washington cherries are a pretty sweet gift for America’s upcoming 250th anniversary!
[Image description: A painting depicting the tale of George Washington and the cherry tree. A young Washington points to an axe in his hand as his father questions him about a cherry tree. Another man parts a red curtain to show the scene.] Credit & copyright: Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas, Parson Weems' Fable, Grant Wood (1891-1942), Public Domain.You’ve heard the tale of George Washington and the cherry tree, but fact is sometimes stranger than fiction! Archeologists recently unearthed dozens of bottles of cherries (and other fruits) from George Washington’s estate at Mount Vernon, uncovering a real-life link between cherries and the nation’s first President for the very first time. The unprecedented find was discovered not during an archeological dig, but by accident during renovations to the estate’s cellar. Mount Vernon President & CEO Doug Bradburn called the discovery, “…an unprecedented find and nothing of this scale and significance has ever been excavated in North America.”
As for what the cherries were doing in the cellar, along with the currents, gooseberries, and other fruit pulp found there, they were likely intended to be made into “cherry bounce”, a brandy-based drink made with aged cherry juice and spices. Some of them might have also been drying out to make “morelly cherries”, a type of dried cherry eaten as a candy-like treat at Mount Vernon. The bottles were almost certainly put in the cellar by one of the many enslaved people working at Mount Vernon, one of whom, named Doll, was known for making morelly cherries. Jason Boroughs, Mount Vernon’s principal archeologist, said that the find was a “…testament to the knowledge and skill of the enslaved people who managed the food preparations from tree to table.”
Of course, these particular fruits never made it to Washington’s table. Although analysis of the find is ongoing, Mount Vernon historians believe it’s likely that the bottles were laid down just before the American Revolution and then promptly forgotten about in 1755, when Washington left his home to take command of the Continental Army. Now, researchers are working to see whether some of the cherry pits and other seeds might be in good enough condition to germinate, though that likely won’t be known for another six months to a year. For now, these bonafide Washington cherries are a pretty sweet gift for America’s upcoming 250th anniversary!
[Image description: A painting depicting the tale of George Washington and the cherry tree. A young Washington points to an axe in his hand as his father questions him about a cherry tree. Another man parts a red curtain to show the scene.] Credit & copyright: Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas, Parson Weems' Fable, Grant Wood (1891-1942), Public Domain.
June 25, 2024
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8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
From the BBC World Service: After 14 months of a civil war, a severe humanitarian and economic crisis is unfolding in Sudan. Grain shipments from Ukraine hav...
From the BBC World Service: After 14 months of a civil war, a severe humanitarian and economic crisis is unfolding in Sudan. Grain shipments from Ukraine hav...
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: June 25, 2024\rih-myoo-nuh-RAY-shun\ noun
What It Means
Remuneration is a formal word that refers to an amount of money pai...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: June 25, 2024\rih-myoo-nuh-RAY-shun\ noun
What It Means
Remuneration is a formal word that refers to an amount of money pai...
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FREEMusic Appreciation Song CurioFree2 CQ
It’s not every day that a song wins a Grammy and an Oscar! Legendary American singer and songwriter Carly Simon, born on this day in 1945, achieved the rare feat in 1989, after her song Let the River Run from the movie Working Girl became a smash hit. The song has an unusual sound, especially for a soundtrack tune from a fairly lighthearted movie. After a slow, orchestral intro, the pop track swells to a slowish-but-steady beat with a backup chorus throughout. The choral elements are obviously gospel-inspired, yet the song was written specifically for the movie, which is about young, female office workers trying to get ahead despite a sexist office culture. Simon went on to describe the song as “a hymn to New York”, and its meaning obviously struck a chord with many people, since it not only took home an Oscar and Grammy but also tied with Phil Collins' Two Hearts at the Golden Globes for Best Original Song. At the time, Simon was the first artist in history to win these three awards for a song entirely created and performed by one artist. You could say she was a working girl!
It’s not every day that a song wins a Grammy and an Oscar! Legendary American singer and songwriter Carly Simon, born on this day in 1945, achieved the rare feat in 1989, after her song Let the River Run from the movie Working Girl became a smash hit. The song has an unusual sound, especially for a soundtrack tune from a fairly lighthearted movie. After a slow, orchestral intro, the pop track swells to a slowish-but-steady beat with a backup chorus throughout. The choral elements are obviously gospel-inspired, yet the song was written specifically for the movie, which is about young, female office workers trying to get ahead despite a sexist office culture. Simon went on to describe the song as “a hymn to New York”, and its meaning obviously struck a chord with many people, since it not only took home an Oscar and Grammy but also tied with Phil Collins' Two Hearts at the Golden Globes for Best Original Song. At the time, Simon was the first artist in history to win these three awards for a song entirely created and performed by one artist. You could say she was a working girl!
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FREEFitness Daily Curio #2896Free1 CQ
Back pain? Just walk it off before it happens. Lower back pain is a common ailment that can seriously impact a person's quality of life. Fortunately, researchers have found an easy way to stave it off: simply go for a walk a few times a week. Lower back pain affects around 800 million people around the world every year. Worse still, the issue can be recurring, and 7 out of 10 people who've dealt with back injuries have flare-ups within a year. These figures come from Macquarie University’s Spinal Pain Research Group in Australia, which has been looking for ways to prevent and manage back pain. Previously, the most common recommendation for back pain sufferers was bed rest—take it easy and allow the back’s supporting muscles to reset. This recommendation was meant to be followed up by light exercises meant to rehabilitate the patient's back, but researchers found that some of these exercises could be too difficult to perform. Some of them even required specialized equipment or had to be performed with the help of a physiotherapist, so many people didn’t have the means to do them in the first place. To develop an easier, simpler form of therapy, the researchers conducted a trial involving 701 adults who had recently suffered a back injury and recovered. Half of them weren't given any type of instructions as a control group, while the other half were placed in an individualized walking program under a physiotherapist's supervision. All they had to do was walk a few times a week, and the results were surprisingly positive. The researchers found that the group with a walking program went for longer periods without flare-ups compared to the control group, with a median figure of 208 days before recurrence of back pain compared to 112 days. The walking group were also less likely to require medical care compared to the control group, and they experienced less pain on a regular basis. The road to recovery doesn't have to be long and difficult—just take it one step at a time.
[Image description: An elevated walking path through a forest.] Credit & copyright: Markus Spiske, pexelsBack pain? Just walk it off before it happens. Lower back pain is a common ailment that can seriously impact a person's quality of life. Fortunately, researchers have found an easy way to stave it off: simply go for a walk a few times a week. Lower back pain affects around 800 million people around the world every year. Worse still, the issue can be recurring, and 7 out of 10 people who've dealt with back injuries have flare-ups within a year. These figures come from Macquarie University’s Spinal Pain Research Group in Australia, which has been looking for ways to prevent and manage back pain. Previously, the most common recommendation for back pain sufferers was bed rest—take it easy and allow the back’s supporting muscles to reset. This recommendation was meant to be followed up by light exercises meant to rehabilitate the patient's back, but researchers found that some of these exercises could be too difficult to perform. Some of them even required specialized equipment or had to be performed with the help of a physiotherapist, so many people didn’t have the means to do them in the first place. To develop an easier, simpler form of therapy, the researchers conducted a trial involving 701 adults who had recently suffered a back injury and recovered. Half of them weren't given any type of instructions as a control group, while the other half were placed in an individualized walking program under a physiotherapist's supervision. All they had to do was walk a few times a week, and the results were surprisingly positive. The researchers found that the group with a walking program went for longer periods without flare-ups compared to the control group, with a median figure of 208 days before recurrence of back pain compared to 112 days. The walking group were also less likely to require medical care compared to the control group, and they experienced less pain on a regular basis. The road to recovery doesn't have to be long and difficult—just take it one step at a time.
[Image description: An elevated walking path through a forest.] Credit & copyright: Markus Spiske, pexels
June 24, 2024
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: June 24, 2024\klan-DESS-tun\ adjective
What It Means
Clandestine describes something done secretly, or in a private place o...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: June 24, 2024\klan-DESS-tun\ adjective
What It Means
Clandestine describes something done secretly, or in a private place o...
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FREEArt Appreciation Art CurioFree1 CQ
Is this pottery too kitschy, or is that just a matter of taste? Tin-glazed earthenware has been around for millennia, and allowed for colorful creations like this charming ceramic serving dish. Its lid is shaped and painted to look like a bundle of asparagus. One side of the piece is a yellowish off-white color that gradually turns into a dark green at the “head” of the asparagus. Elaborate pieces like this serving dish were produced at a factory in Sceaux, France, outside of Paris. The factory mainly produced a type of tin-glazed earthenware called faience, which uses tin oxide to create a white glaze, and porcelain starting in the mid-1700s up to the early 1800s. While most faience were more conventionally shaped with elaborate designs painted on, the factory also produced whimsical designs like this one, often used when entertaining guests. As for what might have been served in this particular piece of earthenware…why not some veggies?
Box in the Form of Asparagus, probably Sceaux Factory (active 1748–66), c. 1765, Tin-glazed earthenware (faience) with enamel decoration, 2.5 x 7 x 3.25 in. (6.4 x 17.8 x 8.3 cm.), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
[Image credit & copyright: Sceaux Factory (active 1748–66), the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Norweb Collection 1966.229, Creative Commons Zero (CC0) public domain.]Is this pottery too kitschy, or is that just a matter of taste? Tin-glazed earthenware has been around for millennia, and allowed for colorful creations like this charming ceramic serving dish. Its lid is shaped and painted to look like a bundle of asparagus. One side of the piece is a yellowish off-white color that gradually turns into a dark green at the “head” of the asparagus. Elaborate pieces like this serving dish were produced at a factory in Sceaux, France, outside of Paris. The factory mainly produced a type of tin-glazed earthenware called faience, which uses tin oxide to create a white glaze, and porcelain starting in the mid-1700s up to the early 1800s. While most faience were more conventionally shaped with elaborate designs painted on, the factory also produced whimsical designs like this one, often used when entertaining guests. As for what might have been served in this particular piece of earthenware…why not some veggies?
Box in the Form of Asparagus, probably Sceaux Factory (active 1748–66), c. 1765, Tin-glazed earthenware (faience) with enamel decoration, 2.5 x 7 x 3.25 in. (6.4 x 17.8 x 8.3 cm.), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
[Image credit & copyright: Sceaux Factory (active 1748–66), the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Norweb Collection 1966.229, Creative Commons Zero (CC0) public domain.] -
FREEWorld History Daily Curio #2895Free1 CQ
What do the Smurfs, the French Revolution, and the Paris Olympics have in common? The Phrygian cap features heavily in all three! The mascot for this year’s Summer Olympics is an anthropomorphized red hat called a phygres—and this headwear has some surprising history behind it. The Phrygian cap originated in Phrygia, an ancient kingdom that was located in modern-day Turkey. A conical hat with its tip curled forward, it became associated with freedom and liberty due to stories of freed Roman slaves wearing similar hats to signal their independence. It was first widely worn in France in 1675, when the people of Brittany wore red versions during their protest against Louis XIV and his controversial taxes. Though the protest was unsuccessful, the red Phrygian cap became associated with civil disobedience. The hat’s symbolism made its way to Britain, then to the American colonies, where it was commonly featured in revolutionary artwork. Despite being prominently associated with the American Revolution, the hats were actually seldom worn in America. But when the French Revolution rolled around not long after, the hat made a triumphant comeback. A red Phrygian cap became everyday fashion for anyone who wished to show their support for the Revolution, from guillotine operators to aristocrats trying to avoid them. Some accounts from the time claim that some women knitted the hats out of wool during breaks between executions. In modern France, the caps remain a prominent national symbol. For the Olympics, Phryges will serve as ambassadors, not executioners. There are actually two: one for the Paris Olympics and one with a prosthetic leg for the Paris Paralympics. Before this year, though, modern Americans would have likely associated the hats with the Smurfs franchise. The eponymous characters wore white versions (except for Papa Smurf, who wore a red one). It seems those little blue creatures might have been planning something revolutionary.
[Image description: A painting of three French revolutionaries wearing red phrygian caps or “liberty caps.”] Credit & copyright:
Léopold Massard (1812–1889), Musée Carnavalet, Augustin Challamel and Wilhelm Ténint, The French under the Revolution, Paris, Challamel publisher, 1843. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer.What do the Smurfs, the French Revolution, and the Paris Olympics have in common? The Phrygian cap features heavily in all three! The mascot for this year’s Summer Olympics is an anthropomorphized red hat called a phygres—and this headwear has some surprising history behind it. The Phrygian cap originated in Phrygia, an ancient kingdom that was located in modern-day Turkey. A conical hat with its tip curled forward, it became associated with freedom and liberty due to stories of freed Roman slaves wearing similar hats to signal their independence. It was first widely worn in France in 1675, when the people of Brittany wore red versions during their protest against Louis XIV and his controversial taxes. Though the protest was unsuccessful, the red Phrygian cap became associated with civil disobedience. The hat’s symbolism made its way to Britain, then to the American colonies, where it was commonly featured in revolutionary artwork. Despite being prominently associated with the American Revolution, the hats were actually seldom worn in America. But when the French Revolution rolled around not long after, the hat made a triumphant comeback. A red Phrygian cap became everyday fashion for anyone who wished to show their support for the Revolution, from guillotine operators to aristocrats trying to avoid them. Some accounts from the time claim that some women knitted the hats out of wool during breaks between executions. In modern France, the caps remain a prominent national symbol. For the Olympics, Phryges will serve as ambassadors, not executioners. There are actually two: one for the Paris Olympics and one with a prosthetic leg for the Paris Paralympics. Before this year, though, modern Americans would have likely associated the hats with the Smurfs franchise. The eponymous characters wore white versions (except for Papa Smurf, who wore a red one). It seems those little blue creatures might have been planning something revolutionary.
[Image description: A painting of three French revolutionaries wearing red phrygian caps or “liberty caps.”] Credit & copyright:
Léopold Massard (1812–1889), Musée Carnavalet, Augustin Challamel and Wilhelm Ténint, The French under the Revolution, Paris, Challamel publisher, 1843. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. -
8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
In the U.S., the Federal Reserve has decided to keep rates elevated for a year now. The Fed’s goal is to hit a 2% inflation target, but that last mile has be...
In the U.S., the Federal Reserve has decided to keep rates elevated for a year now. The Fed’s goal is to hit a 2% inflation target, but that last mile has be...
June 23, 2024
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: June 23, 2024\puh-LEM-ik\ noun
What It Means
A polemic is a strong written or spoken attack against someone else’s opinions...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: June 23, 2024\puh-LEM-ik\ noun
What It Means
A polemic is a strong written or spoken attack against someone else’s opinions...
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FREESports PP&T CurioFree1 CQ
Some people think he was a great baseball player. Everyone else knows he was the greatest. Willie Mays passed away on June 18 at the age of 93, and even though he had been retired for decades, no one else in the league ever managed to best his numbers. At bat or in center field, there still isn’t anyone quite like the “Say Hey Kid.”
Willie Howard Mays Jr. was born on May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama, to Annie Satterwhite and Willie Mays Sr., a semi-professional baseball player. Though he was raised by relatives after his parents separated, Mays seemed to follow in his father’s footsteps, showing an interest in baseball from an early age. As a teenager, he moved to Fairfield, where he played sporadically for the Fairfield stars in the Birmingham Industrial League. In 1948, Mays was just 16 years old and still attending high school when he signed with the Birmingham Black Barons in what was then known as the Negro League. Mays played for the Black Barons until he graduated high school, after which he signed with the Giants, then based in New York.
The baseball wunderkind proved in his rookie season in 1951 that his early success wasn’t just a fluke. Moreover, he showed that he was an exceptional all-around player. Though the Giants lost the World Series to the New York Yankees that year, Mays was named the National League Rookie of the Year for his superb defensive performance. Just a few years later, the Giants would have a historic season when they went on to win the 1954 World Series. It was in Game 1 against the Cleveland Indians when Mays pulled off “The Catch,” an over-the-shoulder catch from behind that seemed like a magic trick at the time. “The Catch” happened after Vic Wertz hit a fly ball deep into center field, and Mays took off after it with his back to the plate at a dead sprint. Catching the ball meant he kept the players on bases from scoring, and all but secured a Giants win for the series opener—all with undeniable flair. Mays followed the Giants when the team moved to San Francisco, where he played until he was traded to the New York Mets in 1972. Throughout his career, Mays played in 24 All-Star games, was awarded the Gold Glove 12 times, and hit 660 home runs, all while stealing bases left and right and keeping center field a precarious place for a hitter’s aim. But it wasn’t just his presence on the field that gained him a following. He was a beloved personality off the field. He was given the nickname “Say Hey Kid,” and while accounts on its origins vary, Mays himself said at one point that it was due to his habit of addressing people with “Say hey” when he couldn’t remember someone’s name during his rookie year.
Even after retiring in 1973, Mays remained an inspiration to many Black Americans. After Jackie Robinson broke down racial barriers in 1947, Mays further pushed against the racist barriers that Black athletes faced. He was a player who could not be ignored, whose dramatic plays and charisma won games as well as hearts. For many in his time, Mays was the face of baseball, a superstar of a sport that had only recently—and begrudgingly—integrated. When he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, President Obama said of him, “It's because of Giants like Willie that someone like me could even think about running for president.” To this day, Mays is cited as an inspiration by Black baseball players, who continue to be underrepresented in the sport. It seems that this legendary giant had plenty of room on his shoulders.
[Image description: A red baseball glove, a baseball bat, and four baseballs on a wooden bench.] Credit & copyright: Tima Miroshnichenko, PexelsSome people think he was a great baseball player. Everyone else knows he was the greatest. Willie Mays passed away on June 18 at the age of 93, and even though he had been retired for decades, no one else in the league ever managed to best his numbers. At bat or in center field, there still isn’t anyone quite like the “Say Hey Kid.”
Willie Howard Mays Jr. was born on May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama, to Annie Satterwhite and Willie Mays Sr., a semi-professional baseball player. Though he was raised by relatives after his parents separated, Mays seemed to follow in his father’s footsteps, showing an interest in baseball from an early age. As a teenager, he moved to Fairfield, where he played sporadically for the Fairfield stars in the Birmingham Industrial League. In 1948, Mays was just 16 years old and still attending high school when he signed with the Birmingham Black Barons in what was then known as the Negro League. Mays played for the Black Barons until he graduated high school, after which he signed with the Giants, then based in New York.
The baseball wunderkind proved in his rookie season in 1951 that his early success wasn’t just a fluke. Moreover, he showed that he was an exceptional all-around player. Though the Giants lost the World Series to the New York Yankees that year, Mays was named the National League Rookie of the Year for his superb defensive performance. Just a few years later, the Giants would have a historic season when they went on to win the 1954 World Series. It was in Game 1 against the Cleveland Indians when Mays pulled off “The Catch,” an over-the-shoulder catch from behind that seemed like a magic trick at the time. “The Catch” happened after Vic Wertz hit a fly ball deep into center field, and Mays took off after it with his back to the plate at a dead sprint. Catching the ball meant he kept the players on bases from scoring, and all but secured a Giants win for the series opener—all with undeniable flair. Mays followed the Giants when the team moved to San Francisco, where he played until he was traded to the New York Mets in 1972. Throughout his career, Mays played in 24 All-Star games, was awarded the Gold Glove 12 times, and hit 660 home runs, all while stealing bases left and right and keeping center field a precarious place for a hitter’s aim. But it wasn’t just his presence on the field that gained him a following. He was a beloved personality off the field. He was given the nickname “Say Hey Kid,” and while accounts on its origins vary, Mays himself said at one point that it was due to his habit of addressing people with “Say hey” when he couldn’t remember someone’s name during his rookie year.
Even after retiring in 1973, Mays remained an inspiration to many Black Americans. After Jackie Robinson broke down racial barriers in 1947, Mays further pushed against the racist barriers that Black athletes faced. He was a player who could not be ignored, whose dramatic plays and charisma won games as well as hearts. For many in his time, Mays was the face of baseball, a superstar of a sport that had only recently—and begrudgingly—integrated. When he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, President Obama said of him, “It's because of Giants like Willie that someone like me could even think about running for president.” To this day, Mays is cited as an inspiration by Black baseball players, who continue to be underrepresented in the sport. It seems that this legendary giant had plenty of room on his shoulders.
[Image description: A red baseball glove, a baseball bat, and four baseballs on a wooden bench.] Credit & copyright: Tima Miroshnichenko, Pexels -
7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, has six months to divest or the U.S. plans to ban the app for national security reasons. But in a new court filin...
TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, has six months to divest or the U.S. plans to ban the app for national security reasons. But in a new court filin...
June 22, 2024
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: June 22, 2024\soo-per-SEED\ verb
What It Means
Supersede is a verb meaning "to take the place of (someone or something that...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: June 22, 2024\soo-per-SEED\ verb
What It Means
Supersede is a verb meaning "to take the place of (someone or something that...
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7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
In a flurry of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, the Justices’ lack of action on one case is a major victory for the tribal gaming industry. The court lef...
In a flurry of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, the Justices’ lack of action on one case is a major victory for the tribal gaming industry. The court lef...
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FREERunning Sporty CurioFree1 CQ
You really have to hoof it to win this race. It’s summer in the Rockies, and that means it’s time for Colorado's official summer heritage sport: pack burro racing. It’s an unusual competition that combines the stubbornness of donkeys with the stubbornness of human athletes. According to state lore, pack burro racing came about when two prospectors in the 1800s raced back to town from a gold deposit to be the first to stake a claim. Each had donkeys laden with tools and supplies, so the men raced with their pack animals galloping alongside them on leads. It wasn’t until 1949 that the first official race was held, with competitors similarly running beside—not riding on—their donkeys. The sport became popular enough and so ingrained in the state’s history that in 2012, the state passed House Joint Resolution 12-1021 to declare it their official summer heritage sport. Since its humble, inaugural race with just 21 participants (and only eight finishers), the event has grown to host around 100 racers every year. This year is the 75th anniversary of the event, a three-day affair called Burro Days that takes place in the town of Fairplay. Athletes have to think about more than just the high elevation and the rugged terrain when racing with their donkeys. For example, competitors aren’t supposed to tie themselves to their animals because, if a donkey hears their person fall, they’ll just run faster, dragging their human companion behind them. It seems these burros are a little confused about just who’s the leader of the pack.
[Image description: A donkey eating grass in a field.] Credit & copyright: Adrian Pingstone, Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Arpingstone at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide.
You really have to hoof it to win this race. It’s summer in the Rockies, and that means it’s time for Colorado's official summer heritage sport: pack burro racing. It’s an unusual competition that combines the stubbornness of donkeys with the stubbornness of human athletes. According to state lore, pack burro racing came about when two prospectors in the 1800s raced back to town from a gold deposit to be the first to stake a claim. Each had donkeys laden with tools and supplies, so the men raced with their pack animals galloping alongside them on leads. It wasn’t until 1949 that the first official race was held, with competitors similarly running beside—not riding on—their donkeys. The sport became popular enough and so ingrained in the state’s history that in 2012, the state passed House Joint Resolution 12-1021 to declare it their official summer heritage sport. Since its humble, inaugural race with just 21 participants (and only eight finishers), the event has grown to host around 100 racers every year. This year is the 75th anniversary of the event, a three-day affair called Burro Days that takes place in the town of Fairplay. Athletes have to think about more than just the high elevation and the rugged terrain when racing with their donkeys. For example, competitors aren’t supposed to tie themselves to their animals because, if a donkey hears their person fall, they’ll just run faster, dragging their human companion behind them. It seems these burros are a little confused about just who’s the leader of the pack.
[Image description: A donkey eating grass in a field.] Credit & copyright: Adrian Pingstone, Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Arpingstone at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide.
June 21, 2024
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7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
From the BBC World Service: Kenya’s government has been forced to drop some of its plans for new taxes, but widespread protests are continuing over its contr...
From the BBC World Service: Kenya’s government has been forced to drop some of its plans for new taxes, but widespread protests are continuing over its contr...
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FREEMind + Body Daily CurioFree1 CQ
Ice cream isn’t the only refreshing treat around here! If you’re looking to beat this summer’s brutal heat wave, you might want to reach for a glass of falooda. This dessert drink has been keeping people cool for centuries, and while it includes many ingredients conventionally found in ice cream, like milk and fruit, some of its components might seem a bit quirkier, depending on where you’re from. When was the last time you had a dessert featuring noodles?
Falooda is a milk-based, smoothie-like drink that’s usually served cold, often alongside a type of dense, un-whipped ice cream called kulfi. Fruit puree, rose syrup, and sweet basil seeds are mixed with the milk, and the drink is sometimes topped with cubes of jelly or pistachios, but falooda’s most interesting ingredient is vermicelli, a spaghetti-like pasta usually made from wheat. This gives the drink a thick, robust texture that contrasts nicely with its delicate flavor.
Falooda is served across much of Asia, from India to Pakistan to Sri Lanka, but its origins lie in Persia, or modern-day Iran. There, around 400 B.C.E., an ice-cream-like dessert called faloodeh eventually transformed into modern falooda (though the original faloodeh is also still enjoyed in Iran today). Falooda grew popular in the ancient Southeast Asian Mughal Empire, and it spread as the empire grew, eventually coming to outlive it. Today, falooda is not only commonly served at special events, like weddings, but also as a popular street food. Vendors often make large vats of falooda and scoop out individual portions for each customer. The drink’s fruity components and colorful toppings make it particularly alluring on a hot summer day, especially since it's usually served in clear glasses to showcase its layers of decadent ingredients. Who wouldn’t want a glass of cold, creamy goodness in the midst of all this heat and humidity?
[Image description: Two glasses of red-and-pink falooda on a table decorated with red flowers and fruits.] Credit & copyright: VD Photography, UnsplashIce cream isn’t the only refreshing treat around here! If you’re looking to beat this summer’s brutal heat wave, you might want to reach for a glass of falooda. This dessert drink has been keeping people cool for centuries, and while it includes many ingredients conventionally found in ice cream, like milk and fruit, some of its components might seem a bit quirkier, depending on where you’re from. When was the last time you had a dessert featuring noodles?
Falooda is a milk-based, smoothie-like drink that’s usually served cold, often alongside a type of dense, un-whipped ice cream called kulfi. Fruit puree, rose syrup, and sweet basil seeds are mixed with the milk, and the drink is sometimes topped with cubes of jelly or pistachios, but falooda’s most interesting ingredient is vermicelli, a spaghetti-like pasta usually made from wheat. This gives the drink a thick, robust texture that contrasts nicely with its delicate flavor.
Falooda is served across much of Asia, from India to Pakistan to Sri Lanka, but its origins lie in Persia, or modern-day Iran. There, around 400 B.C.E., an ice-cream-like dessert called faloodeh eventually transformed into modern falooda (though the original faloodeh is also still enjoyed in Iran today). Falooda grew popular in the ancient Southeast Asian Mughal Empire, and it spread as the empire grew, eventually coming to outlive it. Today, falooda is not only commonly served at special events, like weddings, but also as a popular street food. Vendors often make large vats of falooda and scoop out individual portions for each customer. The drink’s fruity components and colorful toppings make it particularly alluring on a hot summer day, especially since it's usually served in clear glasses to showcase its layers of decadent ingredients. Who wouldn’t want a glass of cold, creamy goodness in the midst of all this heat and humidity?
[Image description: Two glasses of red-and-pink falooda on a table decorated with red flowers and fruits.] Credit & copyright: VD Photography, Unsplash
June 20, 2024
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8 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
Cannabis is now legal — for medical or recreational use — in 38 states, plus D.C. But marijuana remains illegal at the federal level, meaning there are strin...
Cannabis is now legal — for medical or recreational use — in 38 states, plus D.C. But marijuana remains illegal at the federal level, meaning there are strin...
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: June 20, 2024\HYOO-und-KRYE\ noun
What It Means
Hue and cry refers to a clamor of alarm or protest in response to something...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: June 20, 2024\HYOO-und-KRYE\ noun
What It Means
Hue and cry refers to a clamor of alarm or protest in response to something...
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FREEScience Nerdy CurioFree1 CQ
Saturn might be the most beautiful planet in the Solar System thanks to its rings, but beauty is only skin deep. Just under the planet’s cloudy surface, Saturn is home to colossal megastorms that last hundreds of years. The cause? An unusual energy imbalance, according to a paper published in Nature Communications by researchers at the University of Houston. The ringed planet’s orbital eccentricity, defined by the difference between its aphelion (the closest point to the sun in the orbit) and perihelion (the furthest point) varies by about 20 percent. Compared to Earth’s measly 3 percent, that’s a huge difference. Where this matters is in the amount of energy that each planet absorbs from the sun during their orbits, and its effect on the global energy budget, or the amount of energy that a planet emits. For Earth, the 3 percent doesn’t make a big difference, but Saturn has huge variations in the amount of energy it receives from the sun, leading to wild temperature swings on the planet’s surface that contribute to the aforementioned megastorms. Researchers were able to observe the energy imbalance thanks to data from the Cassini probe mission, which studied Saturn for two decades. Though the data only directly concerns Saturn, the discovery that the planet’s orbital eccentricity can create such an energy imbalance helps scientists understand similar weather phenomena on other gas giants. When you get down to it, those gas giants are just full of hot (and cold) air!
[Image description: A black-and-white illustration of the planet Saturn.] Credit & copyright: Pearson Scott Foresman, donated to the Wikimedia Foundation. Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Pearson Scott Foresman. This applies worldwide.
Saturn might be the most beautiful planet in the Solar System thanks to its rings, but beauty is only skin deep. Just under the planet’s cloudy surface, Saturn is home to colossal megastorms that last hundreds of years. The cause? An unusual energy imbalance, according to a paper published in Nature Communications by researchers at the University of Houston. The ringed planet’s orbital eccentricity, defined by the difference between its aphelion (the closest point to the sun in the orbit) and perihelion (the furthest point) varies by about 20 percent. Compared to Earth’s measly 3 percent, that’s a huge difference. Where this matters is in the amount of energy that each planet absorbs from the sun during their orbits, and its effect on the global energy budget, or the amount of energy that a planet emits. For Earth, the 3 percent doesn’t make a big difference, but Saturn has huge variations in the amount of energy it receives from the sun, leading to wild temperature swings on the planet’s surface that contribute to the aforementioned megastorms. Researchers were able to observe the energy imbalance thanks to data from the Cassini probe mission, which studied Saturn for two decades. Though the data only directly concerns Saturn, the discovery that the planet’s orbital eccentricity can create such an energy imbalance helps scientists understand similar weather phenomena on other gas giants. When you get down to it, those gas giants are just full of hot (and cold) air!
[Image description: A black-and-white illustration of the planet Saturn.] Credit & copyright: Pearson Scott Foresman, donated to the Wikimedia Foundation. Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Pearson Scott Foresman. This applies worldwide.
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FREEBiology Daily Curio #2894Free1 CQ
Here’s a sight for sore eyes. The range of the giant pangolin once included the West African country of Senegal, but it was considered locally extinct for decades. Now, this armor-clad species might be making a comeback in their former territory. After not being seen within the country’s borders since 1999, it was recently announced that a giant pangolin was spotted on a trail camera back on March 8, 2023, in Niokolo-Koba National Park. Giant pangolins are unusual animals, to say the least. These rare mammals are one of eight pangolin species known for their scaly outer shell and their propensity for rolling up into a ball when faced with a threat. In fact, the name “pangolin” comes from the Malay word “pengguling,” which means “one who rolls up.” In this way, they’re a lot like armadillos, which also have a hard exterior and tend to ball-up, but the two are not closely related. Whereas pangolins have keratin scales that cover most of their body, armadillos actually have bony plates called osteoderms which are covered in skin and keratin. Pangolin scales are also sharp, which helps deter predators, while armadillo plates are smooth and segmented. Despite their tough exterior, though, pangolins are fairly harmless animals. They’re sometimes referred to as scaly anteaters due to their diet of mostly ants and other insects, which they hunt with their elongated tongues.
Unfortunately, while their tough armor and defensive posturing does wonders against pangolins’ natural predators, these same quirky qualities have made pangolins a hot commodity in the illegal pet trade, and today they’re one of the most trafficked animals in the world. Giant pangolins and other African pangolin species haven’t been as extensively hunted as their Asian counterparts, most of which have been declared critically endangered. Nevertheless, poaching has rendered them locally extinct in areas where they once thrived, including Senegal. Conservationists hope that the pangolin spotted on the trail camera might signal the return of the animal to its former range, and a rise in its population. Here’s hoping that these unusual mammals are on a roll.
[Image description: A brown pangolin walking through dry grass.] Credit & copyright: Masteraah, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this work has released it into the public domain. This applies worldwide.Here’s a sight for sore eyes. The range of the giant pangolin once included the West African country of Senegal, but it was considered locally extinct for decades. Now, this armor-clad species might be making a comeback in their former territory. After not being seen within the country’s borders since 1999, it was recently announced that a giant pangolin was spotted on a trail camera back on March 8, 2023, in Niokolo-Koba National Park. Giant pangolins are unusual animals, to say the least. These rare mammals are one of eight pangolin species known for their scaly outer shell and their propensity for rolling up into a ball when faced with a threat. In fact, the name “pangolin” comes from the Malay word “pengguling,” which means “one who rolls up.” In this way, they’re a lot like armadillos, which also have a hard exterior and tend to ball-up, but the two are not closely related. Whereas pangolins have keratin scales that cover most of their body, armadillos actually have bony plates called osteoderms which are covered in skin and keratin. Pangolin scales are also sharp, which helps deter predators, while armadillo plates are smooth and segmented. Despite their tough exterior, though, pangolins are fairly harmless animals. They’re sometimes referred to as scaly anteaters due to their diet of mostly ants and other insects, which they hunt with their elongated tongues.
Unfortunately, while their tough armor and defensive posturing does wonders against pangolins’ natural predators, these same quirky qualities have made pangolins a hot commodity in the illegal pet trade, and today they’re one of the most trafficked animals in the world. Giant pangolins and other African pangolin species haven’t been as extensively hunted as their Asian counterparts, most of which have been declared critically endangered. Nevertheless, poaching has rendered them locally extinct in areas where they once thrived, including Senegal. Conservationists hope that the pangolin spotted on the trail camera might signal the return of the animal to its former range, and a rise in its population. Here’s hoping that these unusual mammals are on a roll.
[Image description: A brown pangolin walking through dry grass.] Credit & copyright: Masteraah, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this work has released it into the public domain. This applies worldwide.