Monday, September 18, 2006

Spotlight
Jean Bernard Léon Foucault, the inventor of the Foucault pendulum, was born on this date in 1819. Through experiments with his pendulum, Foucault demonstrated that the earth rotates on its axis. This work also led to his development of the gyroscope. Foucault worked with Armand Fizeau to design the Fizeau-Foucault apparatus, a tool to measure the speed of light. They measured light's speed in air and in water, determining that light travels more slowly through water.

Quote
"Opinion is like a pendulum and obeys the same law. If it goes past the centre of gravity on one side, it must go a like distance on the other; and it is only after a certain time that it finds the true point at which it can remain at rest." — Arthur Schopenhauer

Word of the day
collywobbles -- bellyache (© )

Holiday
Respect for the Aged Day (Japan)

Today's News

• Darfur: activists around the world protest ongoing slaughter (story)
• Germany: far-right party wins seats in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state's parliament (story)
• La Cruces, New Mexico: city gets letters threatening random shootings if ransom is not paid (story)
• Buddhism: growing rapidly in the US as the Dalai Lama spreads his message (story)

Today's History

• Chile: became independent from Spain (1810)
• The New York Times: first edition was published (1851)
• Dag Hammarskjöld: UN secretary-general was killed in a plane crash (1961)
• Jimi Hendrix: rock musician died of a drug overdose (1970)
• Sammy Sosa: became 1st player with 2 60+ HR seasons (1999; he now has 3)

Today's Birthdays

• Greta Garbo: Oscar-winning Hollywood starlet (1905-1990)
• James Gandolfini: Tony Soprano on The Sopranos (45)
• Lance Armstrong: winner of 7 Tours de France (35)