From a Muse reader: A friend just told me that
there were eight Presidents of the United States before Washington. Apparently, he was right. After the Revolutionary War but before the
U.S. Constitution was ratified (i.e., when the Articles of Confederation ruled
the land), eight men served in an unpaid, mostly procedural role. http://www.constitution.org/hist/first8pres.htm
This begs another question: Once the Constitution was ratified, was
George Washington appointed President or elected? Neither of us can remember hearing anything
about the first presidential election or whom Washington would've beat out for
the office. Can you shed any light on
this?
From the Muser: I used this
search in Google: "george
washington" elected appointed.
There were 589,000 results in 0.65 seconds , and here is the first
one: On February 4, 1789, 69 members of
Congress cast their ballots to elect George Washington the first president of
the United States. As the former leader
of the Continental Army and chairman of the Continental Congress, Washington
possessed the necessary credentials for the presidency, if not the
enthusiasm. After months of appearing to
sidestep, and even outright rejecting the idea of assuming the presidency,
Washington reluctantly accepted Congress’ decision. Runner-up John Adams became Washington’s vice
president. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/george-washington-is-elected-president NOTE that using the search "george
washington" elected gave about 8,520,000
results in 0.58 seconds,
and the same answer came up first.
Countries and their flags by Mark Rogers
Thailand and Costa Rica are on opposite sides of the world, yet their
flags are the same—with reversed colours.
The flag of Poland is the reverse of Indonesia and Monaco, which are
identical. Singapore is also the same
except that it has a moon and stars. The
flags of Italy and Mexico are almost the same except Mexico has a decoration in
the middle. Ireland is also close except
that it ends with orange instead of red.
Côte d’Ivoire is the reverse of Ireland.
Read more and see pictures of the flags at http://www.newsonaut.com/countries-with-almost-nothing-in-common-but-their-flags
What's the Difference Between Jail and Prison? b Deanne Katz The terms are often used
interchangeably, but there's a difference.
Whether a criminal is being held in jail or prison says something about
the crime committed and the stage in the process. The way inmates are treated also differs
between the two. Despite the
differences, people confuse the terms all the time because they don't realize
what each one means. Do you know how to
tell them apart? The major difference
between whether a convict stays in jail or prison is the length of the
sentence. A jail is a temporary holding
facility. It's used to hold people who
have been recently arrested or people who are charged with a crime and unable
to pay bond or bail. It can also house
people who are given short sentences, generally one year or less. By contrast a prison is designed for long-term
confinement. The majority of convicted
criminals serve their sentences in a prison.
SPOX is an
acronym that can mean spokesperson or smallpox.
http://www.acronymfinder.com/SPOX.html
digit noun
1. (a) any of the Arabic numerals 1 to 9 and usually the symbol 0 (b) one of the elements that combine to form numbers in a system other
than the decimal system 2. a unit of length based on
the breadth of a finger and equal in English measure to 3⁄4 inch 3. any of the divisions in which the limbs of
most vertebrates terminate, which are typically five in number but may be reduced
(as in the horse), and which typically have a series of phalanges bearing a
nail, claw, or hoof at the tip
A bit (short
for binary digit) is the
smallest unit of data in
a computer. A bit has a single binary value,
either 0 or 1. Although computers
usually provide instructions that can test and manipulate
bits, they generally are designed to store data and execute instructions in bit
multiples called bytes.
In most computer systems, there are eight bits in a byte. The value of a bit is usually stored as
either above or below a designated level of electrical charge in a single capacitor
within a memory device. Half a byte
(four bits) is called a nibble.
In some systems, the term octet is used for an eight-bit unit instead
of byte. In many systems, four eight-bit
bytes or octets form a 32-bit word.
In such systems, instruction lengths are sometimes expressed as
full-word (32 bits in length) or half-word (16 bits in length). In telecommunication, the bit rate is
the number of bits that are transmitted in a given time period, usually a
second. http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/bit-binary-digit
"Goth Girl" author and illustrator Chris
Riddell was named Britain's new
Children's Laureate on June 9, 2015 and said he would like to use to the post
to encourage children to draw as well as read.
Riddell, whose books feature finely detailed, humorous illustrations
bursting with life, said he wanted to unleash children's imagination. "I want to put the joy of creativity, of
drawing every day, of having a go and being surprised at what one can achieve
with just a pencil and an idea at the heart of my term as Laureate," he
said in a statement. His "Goth Girl
the Ghost of a Mouse" is a parody of a gothic novel and won the 2013 Costa
Book Awards in the children's category.
Riddell said he wanted to use his two years as Children's Laureate, run
by the charity Book Trust, to explore ways of bringing words and pictures
together. "I'm interested in
illustration in all its forms... as a way of drawing people into books and
stories," he said. Like previous
laureates such as Michael Rosen and "Gruffalo" author Julia
Donaldson, Riddell said he would champion the role of reading in schools. "I want to help and encourage every
school to do more for readers: if they have nowhere to read, create a space
with a few books; if they have a bookshelf, have two; if they have a reading
room, aim for a library." Simon
Falush
Magna Carta at 800 Part 4: http://www.toledoblade.com/British-Royalty/2015/06/16/Music-speeches-highlight-festivities.html
Bloomsday is
named in honor of Leopold Bloom, whose adventures on June 16, 1904, are
immortalized in Irish author James Joyce’s epic novel Ulysses.
This complicated and legendary classic, published in 1922 was named the
best English-language novel of the 20th century by the board of the Modern Library
publishing house. It covers the
itinerary of the day: a trip to the
butcher shop and lunch at Davy Byrne’s pub, and the rest of Bloom’s various
meanderings and interactions. The myriad
details and minutiae of a life are all provided, and elevated, as we follow
Leopold Bloom on his odyssey through Dublin.
Bloomsday activities in that city are particularly sought out by
devotees of Ulysses, who can take tours that retrace Bloom’s path. In Hungary, too, where the character’s father
was born, there are celebrations. Trieste,
Italy, also hosts events; Joyce and his family used to live there, and the city
is home to a museum honoring the author.
The Toledo Museum of Art is hosting a public reading of Ulysses
beginning at noon June 16 and continuing through June 21. (For more information, including the schedule,
go to toledomuseum.org/calendar or call 419-255-8000.) Museum director Brian Kennedy will lead off
the marathon, with many others scheduled to read aloud in 30-minute blocks over
the course of the 32 hours. Find recipes
including Gorgonzola sandwich, Irish peas
with mint, soda bread, and Banbury cakes at http://www.toledoblade.com/Food/2015/06/16/A-Bloomsday-feast.html
http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com Issue 1311 June 16, 2015
On this date in 1903, Roald Amundsen began the first east-west navigation
of the Northwest Passage, leaving Oslo,
Norway. On this date in 1904, Irish
author James Joyce began
a relationship with Nora Barnacle and subsequently used the date to set
the actions for his novel Ulysses; this date is now traditionally
called "Bloomsday".
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