Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, August 26, 2015)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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decrepitude
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| Article of the Day | |
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 Ibn al-HaythamAlso known as Alhazen, Ibn al-Haytham was an Arab mathematician, astronomer, and physicist. Optics, perhaps his most significant work, introduced the idea that light rays emanate in straight lines in all directions from every point on a luminous surface. Latin translations of this work influenced both Kepler and Descartes. Alhazen is considered the “father of optics” for his experiments with lenses, mirrors, refraction, and reflection. What lunar phenomenon was named in his honor? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Battle of Katzbach (1813)During the Napoleonic Wars, France battled the shifting alliances of European powers in an attempt to affirm Napoleon's supremacy. The battle between the French and the Prussians at the Katzbach River, however, came about somewhat by accident. On a stormy August day in the Prussian province of Silesia, the two forces stumbled upon one another. The French recovered from the surprise first and attacked despite orders to defend. Their effort was met with a heavy counterattack. Who won the battle? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Peggy Guggenheim (1898)Born to a wealthy New York City family, Guggenheim grew up in luxury, inherited a fortune in her early 20s, and became a friend, patron, and sometime lover to a number of avant-garde artists and writers. She spent the 1930s living in Paris and then London, where she opened her first gallery, Guggenheim Jeune. World War II impelled her return to New York, whereupon she married artist Max Ernst and opened a new gallery featuring her vast collection. Where did she take her collection after the war? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Thieves respect property. They merely wish the property to become their property that they may more perfectly respect it.Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936) | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Nariyal Purnima (Coconut Day) (2018)Nariyal (or Narali) Purnima, Coconut Day, is celebrated by Hindus in western India in the union territory of Daman and Diu and in the nearby state of Maharashtra at the end of the monsoon season. This is the time of year when the fishing and water-trade season begins again, and, in thanks, people gather at the shores and throw coconuts into the Arabian Sea as offerings to Varuna, the sea god. Because the nut of the coconut appears to have three eyes, it is associated with the god Shiva. Many consider breaking a coconut to bring good luck to any new venture, such as the beginning of the trade season. More... | |