Quote of the Day

Ambrose Bierce
Friendless, adj.: Having no favors to bestow. Destitute of fortune. Addicted to utterance of truth and common sense. Discuss
Read More...(Source: Quote of the Day - Mon, 6 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

Lucy Maud Montgomery
We must have ideals and try to live up to them, even if we never quite succeed. Life would be a sorry business without them. With them it's grand and great.
Read More...(Source: Quote of the Day - Sun, 5 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

Jane Austen
Men have had every advantage of us in telling their own story. Education has been theirs in so much higher a degree; the pen has been in their hands. I will not allow books to prove anything.
Read More...(Source: Quote of the Day - Sat, 4 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

This Day in History

Treaty of Waitangi Establishes New Zealand as a British Colony (1840)
Though considered the founding document of New Zealand as a nation, the Treaty of Waitangi has been the subject of much debate since it was signed by representatives of the British crown and Maori chiefs in 1840. It gave Britain control of New Zealand while recognizing the native inhabitants' land rights. However, the English and Maori texts differed, leading to many controversies over its stipulations. In 1913, one of the treaty documents was restored after having been partially eaten by what? Discuss
Read More...(Source: This Day in History - Mon, 6 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

United Artists Film Studio Is Founded (1919)
In 1919, four of the leading figures in Hollywood—Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, D.W. Griffith, and Douglas Fairbanks—decided to form their own film studio to better control their own work. Though initially successful, United Artists foundered as films became more expensive to produce. It was taken over in the 1950s and began to thrive again until the 80s, when it was bought by the studio MGM. What famous actor announced plans to resurrect United Artists in 2006 as part owner of the company?
Read More...(Source: This Day in History - Sun, 5 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

The "Flying Tailor" Dies after Failed Parachute Jump from Eiffel Tower (1912)
Parachutes at the dawn of the aviation age were bulky and, inconveniently, had to be pre-opened. Among those trying to improve upon their design was French tailor Franz Reichelt. He had some success testing his designs on dummies, but he had no evidence that his parachute would work with a real person when he jumped from the Eiffel Tower before a crowd of spectators and reporters. The chute failed to open, and he plummeted to his death. How had he convinced the authorities to allow the jump?
Read More...(Source: This Day in History - Sat, 4 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

Yahoo! News

Giants top Pats for 2nd Super Bowl in 4 years (AP)

New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin, right, hands the Vince Lombardi Trophy to quarterback Eli Manning after their 21-17 win over the New England Patriots in the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012, in Indianapolis.  (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)AP - Tom Brady let his final pass fly toward the scrum of players in the end zone, hoping for an incredible finish.


Read More...(Source: Yahoo! News: Sports News - Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:46:36 GMT)

M.I.A. flips bird during Super Bowl halftime show (AP)

Nicki Minaj, left, and M.I.A. perform during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)AP - The NFL and a major television network are apologizing for another Super Bowl halftime show.


Read More...(Source: Yahoo! News: Sports News - Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:12:42 GMT)

Eli's elite, for sure, after 2nd Super Bowl MVP (AP)

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning holds up the Vince Lombardi Trophy while celebrating his team's 21-17 win over the New England Patriots in the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012, in Indianapolis.  (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)AP - Back in August, back before the season began, Eli Manning was asked whether he considered himself an "elite" quarterback a la Tom Brady.


Read More...(Source: Yahoo! News: Sports News - Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:14:08 GMT)

Column: The 'new' Belichick lasts less than a week (AP)

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, left, turns away after greeting New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin after the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012, in Indianapolis. The Giants won 21-17. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)AP - Turns out the "new" Bill Belichick looks and sounds an awful lot like the "old" one.


Read More...(Source: Yahoo! News: Sports News - Mon, 06 Feb 2012 06:10:21 GMT)

Giants take advantage of Patriots' gamble for TD (AP)

New York Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw (44) scores on a touchdown in front of New England Patriots linebacker Jerod Mayo, right, during the second half of the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)AP - Bill Belichick saw the New York Giants at the 6-yard line and a clock with only 64 seconds left on it.


Read More...(Source: Yahoo! News: Sports News - Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:41:50 GMT)

washingtonpost.com

Researchers try to understand naked mole rats' resistance to cancer
With their pinkish, translucent and wrinkly skin, double-saber buck teeth and black-bead eyes, naked mole rats look like characters in a nightmare from hell. In fact, they do live underground in pitch-dark burrows where their air, from a human point of view, can contain chokingly little oxygen, t...
Read More...(Source: - Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:30:03 EST)

Doctors try new models to push health insurers aside
Just about everyone agrees that the way we pay for primary care needs fixing. Under the current insurance model, doctors get paid for procedures and tests rather than for time spent with patients, which displeases doctors and patients alike and increases costs. Now some medical practices are side...
Read More...(Source: - Mon, 07 Mar 2011 19:01:00 EST)

Medigap supplemental coverage can be too pricey for younger Medicare beneficiaries
One night three years ago, Joe Hobson finished reading a book, went to sleep and woke up blind. The problem, caused by a rare hereditary disease, forced him to give up his 20-year communications job, along with its generous health insurance. Now 63, the Arlington man is covered by Medicare, the f...
Read More...(Source: - Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:32:03 EST)

Breathless, but not from asthma
Read More...(Source: - Tue, 29 Mar 2011 15:06:39 EDT)

Fish and seafood recipe recommendations
Jennifer LaRue Huget offers some suggestions
Read More...(Source: - Tue, 22 Mar 2011 18:13:01 EDT)

Today

Aaron Burr (1756)
Before he shot and mortally wounded Alexander Hamilton in the famous duel, Burr was a well-regarded lawyer and politician, having served in the American Revolution and held various offices, including that of senator. But after Hamilton used his influence to thwart more than one of his political aspirations, Burr—then vice president—challenged him to a duel and won. Later, he was tried for and acquitted of treason for a plan to seize what areas of North America, possibly to create a new country? Discuss
Read More...(Source: Today's Birthday - Mon, 6 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

Henry Louis "Hank" Aaron (1934)
Aaron was the first US baseball player to hit more career home runs than Babe Ruth. After playing briefly in the Negro leagues and then in the minor leagues, Aaron moved up to the majors as an outfielder with the Milwaukee—later Atlanta—Braves in 1954 and was National League MVP in 1957. Upon breaking Ruth's record in 1974, he was besieged by the media and badgered by racist letter-writers, and retired just two years later. Aaron's home run record remained unbroken until when?
Read More...(Source: Today's Birthday - Sun, 5 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)

Charles Lindbergh (1902)
In 1927, Lindbergh, an American aviator, made the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic in 33.5 hours, landing in Paris to a hero's welcome. He returned to the US a celebrity but moved to England in 1932 to escape the media frenzy surrounding the kidnapping and murder of his son. Returning to the US in 1940, he faced criticism for opposing US entry into WWII. Still, he flew combat missions for the US during the war. He helped invent what device that made open-heart surgery possible?
Read More...(Source: Today's Birthday - Sat, 4 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT)