Eiffel Tower: Eiffel’s Revolutionary Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a landmark of modern Europe, the design of French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel for the Paris International Exhibition in the late 19th century. The tower is 984 feet high and consists of an open iron framework on four masonry piers. The piers support four columns that come together to form the [...]
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Thomas Edison Lights The Night
After two years, Thomas Edison finally saw the light. In 1877, he had begun studying how to make an electric lamp and within a year had performed 1,200 experiments. In 1879, after spending $40,000, he made a bulb using a carbonized cotton thread for a filament. It burned for two days in the vacuum bulb. [...]
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Writing: A Key to Success
More than 5,000 years ago in what is now Southern Iraq, people began living together in towns and cities. This set the stage for one of the most important advances in civilization: writing! The Sumerians of Mesopotamia were apparently the first to hit upon the idea of marking clay tablets with a sharp reed pen [...]
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Vought F-8 Crusader
EAST HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, USA The Vought Crusader was the first US Navy fighter capable of sustained supersonic speed in level flight. It was extremely well liked by its pilots and, because of its agility, was considered one of the most potent combat aircraft of the Vietnam War. It was also designed to have a reconnaissance [...]
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What is Delicatessens?
Deli is short for delicatessen, and comes from the Greek word “delicatesse,” meaning delicacy. A deli is a store where ready-to-eat foods — especially foods of various ethnic groups — are sold. New York, home to many ethnic groups, has numerous delicatessens. Perhaps the best known are the Jewish and Italian delicatessens. Here, respectively, corned-beef [...]
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The Knee: Connecting Your Leg Bones
The knee is the hinge joint that connects the main bones of the leg (the femur and the tibia). The kneecap (patella) lies over the front of the joint. There are strong ligaments on both sides of the joint, called the medial and lateral collateral ligaments. There are also two ligaments within the joint, called [...]
Miranda: The Weirdest Moon
MIRANDA – discovery: 1948-02-16 Miranda is one of the weirdest moons in the solar system. It is a medium-sized moon of Uranus, 130,000 kilometers (81,000 miles) from the planet and 484 kilometers (300 miles) in diameter. What makes Miranda strange is that it’s a hodge-podge of different shapes and features. It’s as if Miranda were [...]
Physical Fitness: America Goes Crazy
People around the world think Americans are crazy. They think we are, on the whole, too extreme, that once we get something in our heads, we don’t let go. Witness fitness: Americans are the most gung-ho, the most passionate, about staying in shape, and our full array of health clubs and spas — not to [...]
FIFA World Cup: The Home Continent Advantage
Only three times in 14 World Cup competitions (through 1990) has a country from outside the host continent won the Cup — and on two of those occasions, a South American team won in Mexico. Five times, the host country has won the Cup: Uruguay in 1930, Italy in 1934, England in 1966, West Germany [...]
Toucan: Distinguishing Bills
The toucan is a bird that lives in the rain forests of North America and South America. Each brightly colored animal has a long bill that is unique in color pattern, which helps the birds to distinguish one another. These long bills are useful in getting at small fruits and berries, although toucans also eat [...]