Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Answer of the Day
How many spikes are in the crown of the Statue of Liberty? On this date in 1886, the Statue of Liberty was dedicated by President Grover Cleveland, three years after breaking ground for the structure on Bedloe's Island (later to be called Liberty Island) in New York Harbor. The statue and its pedestal rest on a base in the shape of an 11-pointed star, constructed from the remains of Fort Wood. The seven spikes in Lady Liberty's crown signify the seven seas and seven continents. Emma Lazarus's poem, "The New Colossus," is inscribed on the plaque, symbolically welcoming immigrants to American shores. Its most famous verse reads, "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free... I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Quote
"Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." — Bible, Leviticus 25:10, inscribed on a plaque in the stairwell of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty

Word of the day
jobsworth

[fr. It's more than my job's worth (not) to..]

Brit. colloq.
an official who mindlessly upholds petty rules

(© Michael A. Fischer)

Holiday
Ohi Day (Greece)

Today's History

'Prospero' Launching

• Prohibition: US Congress passed the Volstead Act, overriding president Woodrow Wilson's veto; manufacture, sale or transport of alcoholic beverages were banned (1919)
• Nostra Ætate: the Second Vatican Council under Pope Paul VI absolved the Jews of collective guilt for the crucifixion of Jesus (1965)
• Prospero: the first and only satellite launched from a British rocket went into low Earth orbit (1971)

Today's Birthdays

Bill Gates

• Georges Escoffier (1846-1935): world-class chef
• Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966): novelist, Brideshead Revisited
• Jonas Salk (1914-1995): developer of the polio vaccine
• Bruce Jenner (60): winner of 1976 Olympics decathlon
• Bill Gates (54): founder of Microsoft
• Julia Roberts (42): Oscar-winning actress; also, actors Joan Plowright (80), Jane Alexander (70), Dennis Franz (65), Telma Hopkins (61), Annie Potts (57), Mark Derwin (49), Lauren Holly (46), Jami Gertz (44), Andy Richter (43) and Joaquin Phoenix (35)
• Brad Paisley (37): Grammy-winning country singer, songwriter and guitarist; other musicians with birthdays today include Cleo Laine (82), Charlie Daniels (73), Wayne Fontana (64), Caitlin Cary (41), and Justin Guarini (31)