Right out of Alice.

"Mom, do we have a copy of Alice in Wonderland?" Bigger Girl suddenly popped into the house and asked.

Should be at least one, maybe more -- rummaging -- ah, here you go.

"Thanks.  I tried to check it out of the library at school, they had five copies, and every copy had page 32 ripped out of it!  I want to find out what's so important on page 32 that someone didn't want anyone else to read it!"

It sounds to me like someone was just into damaging books more than hiding information, i said.  Besides, the pages won't be the same, it's a different edition.

"I know, but I figure I can at least find out what was missing."

Probably, i answered.

About an hour later, she came back.

"I am now rereading the entire book Alice in Wonderland, and I blame you because you are the one who raised me to love reading and love excellent literature!" she said.

Guilty! i responded with a smile.

"But I need to stop for now, I am meeting up with friends.  Yes, I will watch out for flying pineapples this time."

Please do.

"How was I to know the flying pineapple surprise was an alcoholic beverage?  By the way, doesn't flying pineapple surprise sound like something they would have served in Wonderland?  But anyway, I didn't get drunk, just a bit loopy, and all I did was dance the Time Warp.  Besides, I wasn't driving!"

Glad to hear it.  Be careful!

"I will.  Love you!"

Love you, too.

Today is:

Audacity to Hope Day -- to encourage all to have the audacity to keep hope

Bartering for a Continent:  How Anglo-Indian Trade Shaped America --  Jamestown Settlement, Williamsburg, VA, and Yorktown Victory Center, Yorktown, VA, US (special events and exhibits through December 10)

Birthday of SPB Yang di-Pertuan Agong -- Malaysia (in this elective monarchy, the current king's birthday is celebrated on the first Saturday in June, regardless of his actual birth date)

California Artichoke Festival -- Castroville, CA, US (lots of fun in the Artichoke Capital of the World; through tomorrow)

Capitol Hill People's Fair -- Denver, CO, US (arts, entertainment, and fun; through tomorrow)

Dare Day -- Manteo, NC, US (a fun festival and unofficial kick-off for summer)

Derby Day -- Epsom Downs Racecourse, Surrey, England

Do-Dah Parade -- Kalamazoo, MI, US (a "Salute to Silliness" that is worth seeing)

Drawing Day/Pencil Day -- used to be sponsored on the first Saturday with the motto "Drop Everything and Draw", but even though no longer promoted by any specific group, you can still enjoy some time drawing today

Eel Festival -- Jyllinge, Denmark (through tomorrow; every restaurant and pub in town serves fried eel, and there's lots more fun around town)

Elfreth's Alley Day (Fete Day) -- Philadelphia, PA, US (one of the oldest continuously inhabited streets in the country)

Emancipation Day -- Tonga (trad.)

Enshu Hamakita Hiryu Matsuri -- Hamamatsu City, Japan (honors the river god Ryujin; through tomorrow)

Festival for Hercules Custos -- Ancient Roman Calendar (Hercules the Custodian)

Flag Day -- Estonia

Flag Day -- Finland (Armed Forces observe the birth anniversary of Carl Gustaf Mannerheim)

Hug Your Cat Day -- yet another date for this noted on many sites; if you celebrate all of them, your cat will be well hugged!

International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression -- UN

Jarila's Day -- Asatru/Slavic Pagan Calendar (Festival of Jarila, god of the sun and fertility)

Lassie Day -- the first dog to play the role of Lassie, in the movie Lassie, Come Home, was born this day in 1940

Maritime Gig Festival -- Gig Harbor, WA, US (parades, entertainment, and fun with the view of Mount Rainier to grace it all; through tomorrow)

National Cheese Day -- not to be confused with Cheese Lover's Day earlier in the year

National Cognac Day

National Family Recreation Day -- US (seems to have been started by the community of Arvada, CO, US, wanting families to enjoy the great outdoors together)

National Frozen Yogurt Day -- not to be confused with the Frozen Yogurt Day celebrated on Feb. 6 in Los Angeles, where the temperatures make such a thing possible

National Trails Day -- US (be safe out there, if you want help becoming a hiker there's info here)

National Unity Day -- Hungary

Old Maid's Day -- supposedly established after WWII, when there were so many eligible young ladies who weren't getting any younger

Plynteria -- Ancient Greek Calendar (festival in Athens in honor of Athena; date approximate)

Sjómannadagurinn -- Iceland (traditional Seaman's Day was alternately celebrated June 6 or the first Sunday of June, depending on which authority you ask, but is now a weekend long Festival of the Sea)

St. Petroc's Day (Patron of Cornwall and Wales, as well as many locations in Cornwall, Wales, and England, and Saint-Meen, France)

Strawberry Festival -- Independence, MO, US (one of many such festivals all over as strawberries come into season -- look for one near where you live some time this month, and go have a good time)

Toppenish Mural Society's "Mural-In-A-Day" -- Toppenish, WA, US (professional artists work to paint a complete and historically accurate mural in one day, accompanied by an arts and crafts show and food fair)

Wicket World of Croquet® Day 2016 -- The Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site, Indianapolis, IN, US (croquet tournament fundraiser, includes an Alice and Friends game for the little ones)

Yom Yerushalayim -- Israel (Jerusalem Day; begins at sunset)


Birthdays Today:

Evan Lysacek, 1985
Russell Brand, 1975
Angelina Jolie, 1975
Noah Wyle, 1971
James Callis, 1971
Scott Wolf, 1968
Cecilia Bartoli, 1966
Sam Harris, 1961
Eldra DeBarge, 1961
Keith David, 1956
Parker Stevenson, 1953
George Noory, 1950
Bettina Gregory, 1946
Michelle Phillips, 1944
Joyce Meyer, 1943
Freddy Fender, 1937
Bruce Dern, 1936
John Drew Barrymore, 1932
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, 1928
Dennis Weaver, 1924
Robert Merrill, 1919
Rosalind Russell, 1907
George III, 1738
Aesop, BCE620 (not certain, but close enough)


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Born in the USA"(Album release), 1984
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan(Film), 1982
"Cavalcade of Stars"(TV), 1949


Today in History:

Chinese astronomers make the first recording of a solar eclipse, BC781
Sir Walter Raleigh establishes the first English colony on Roanoke Island, old Virginia (now North Carolina), 1584
Forces under the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu take Osaka Castle in Japan, 1615
New England planters arrive to claim land in Nova Scotia, Canada taken from the Acadians, 1760
A transit of Venus is followed five hours later by a total solar eclipse, the shortest such interval in history, 1769
The Montgolfier brothers publicly demonstrate their montgolfière (hot air balloon), 1783
Captain George Vancouver claims Puget Sound for the Kingdom of Great Britain, 1792
The Ottoman Empire cedes Cyprus to the United Kingdom but retains nominal title, 1878
Henry Ford test drives his first prototype automobile, the Ford Quadricycle, 1896
Massachusetts becomes the first state of the United States to set a minimum wage, 1912
A patent for the ATM is granted to Donald Wetzel, Tom Barnes and George Chastain, 1973
The Tiananmen Square protests are violently ended in Beijing by the People's Liberation Army, 1989
Solidarity's victory in the first (somewhat) free parliamentary elections in post-war Poland sparks off a succession of peaceful anti-communist revolutions in Eastern Europe, 1989
Falcon 9 Flight 1 was the maiden flight of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket,2010

Coats and Classes

"Mom, did you ever make friends with someone just for the food?" Bigger Girl asked.

No, i can't say that i have, although your father did.

"Really?"

Yes, Frau Schroeder.  He mowed her lawn, she taught him German and fed him home cooked German food. 

"Speaking of German, I have a teacher from Germany.  When we started class, the first thing she said was, 'I vant you to know dat I have an accent'!" It was so funny!"

She does sound like she has a great sense of humor.

"She does.  She also said, 'The first person who compares me to Hitler, or compares this class to The Third Reich, will receive an F!' and she meant it!  It seems there have been a lot of people who have said things like that because she's such a tough teacher."

Well, she's a great teacher, then, but certainly not a Hitler.

"The best part is, she can pronounce German-derived first names properly!"

That sounds logical.  But what does this have to do with making friends just for food

"Oh, that was about Frieda.  When she was in boarding school, they served mostly beans or lentils with rice for most of the meals, so she made friends with the teacher from India just because he would cook curries and other great foods from back home and share them with her.  He knew she came to his office just for the food, but he did't care because he was so glad to be able to talk to someone as smart as him!"

That sounds like Frieda's speed.  How is she?

"She's cold.  Now that our weather has turned, she's sorry she left her heavy winter jackets back in Massachusetts.  She doesn't go back for another two weeks, and she's freezing down here."

Is that why you don't have a jacket right now?  You gave yours to her?

"You noticed that I don't have mine?"

It's a mom's job to notice.

"Well, yes, that's why."

Here, take this one.  It was Ms. R's, you know, one of my Friday ladies.  She loved the coat, but it got a small stain on it, so she gave it to me, and i have one.  You take it for Frieda.

"Thanks!  I will, and I'll get mine back."

And get some sleep, you stay up studying too late.

"Yes, mom!"

Today is:

Bounty Day -- Pitcairn Island (celebrates the burning of the HMS Bounty in 1790

Cold, Cold, Cold Day -- coldest temp ever recorded in the US, -79.8°F (-62.11°C), this day in 1971 at Prospect Creek Camp, Alaska

Day of Hathor -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Gasparilla Extravaganza -- Tampa, FL, US (the rum free version of the Pirate Festival celebration, with a kid's parade and lots of fun; the adult version is next Saturday)

IceFest -- Ligonier, PA, US (ice sculpture contest and lots of family fun; through tomorrow)

KidFilm Festival -- Dallas, TX (international children's film festival; through tomorrow)

Lenaia -- Ancient Greek Calendar (three day Dionysian festival to arouse the sleeping vegetation and bring spring; date approximate)

Measure Your Feet Day -- one can only ask...."Why!?!"

National Pie Day -- US, sponsored by the American Pie Council 

National Handwriting Day -- US, on the birth anniversary of John Hancock, to encourage the dying art of legible handwriting by the Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association 

National Rhubarb Pie Day

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Jayanti -- TR and WB, India (birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose)

Orange City Blue Spring Manatee Festival -- Orange City, FL, US (learn about the manatee and have fun doing it; through tomorrow)

Ragwort Dance -- Fairy Calendar (Pixies only)

Snowplow Mailbox Hockey Day -- sponsored by Wellcat Holidays; plow drivers, see how far you can make those rural mailboxes go!

SOS Radio Week -- UK (The Royal National Lifeboat Institution keeps the seas safer, and Radio Amateurs help them raise funds)

St. John the Almoner's Day (Patron of Knights Hospitaller; known for his generosity to the poor, "If we are able to enter the church day and night and implore God to hear our prayers, how careful we should be to hear and grant the petitions of our neighbor in need.")

Wakakusa Yamayaki -- Nara, Japan (Grass Burning on Mt. Wakakusayama, and fireworks; an annual New Year tradition)

Women in Medicine Day -- Elizabeth Blackwell becomes the first woman awarded the degree of Medical Doctor in 1849

Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities -- Eatonville, FL, US (celebrating Hurston's work, hometown, and cultural contributions, and the contributions of all Africa-descended people; through the end of the month)


Anniversaries Today:

The founding of Georgetown University, the first US Catholic college, 1789


Birthdays Today:

Tito Ortiz, 1975
Tiffani Thiessen, 1974
Mariska Hargitay, 1964
Gail O'Grady, 1963
Princess Caroline of Monaco, 1957
Antonio Villaraigosa, 1953
Pat Haden, 1953
Richard Dean Anderson, 1950
Rutger Hauer, 1944
Gil Gerard, 1943
Chita Rivera, 1933
Jeanne Moreau, 1928
Ernie Kovacs, 1919
John M. Browning, 1855
Edouard Manet, 1832
Stendhal(Marie-Henri Beyle), 1783
John Hancock, 1737
Joseph Hewes, 1730


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"The A-Team"(TV), 1983
"Roots"(TV miniseries), 1977
"Barney Miller"(TV), 1975
"King Family Show"(TV), 1965
"After the Fall"(Miller's Play), 1964
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre(Film), 1948


Today in History:

Epoch (origin) of the Kali Yuga (Hindu Iron Age of the Gods), BC3102
In China, the war elephant corps of the Southern Han are soundly defeated at Shao by crossbow fire from Song Dynasty troops, 971
The first printing of Ramban's Sha'ar ha-Gemul, 1490
The first printing of the Pentateuch, 1492
The second version of Book of Common Prayer becomes mandatory in England, 1552
What is probably the most deadly earthquake in history kills 830,000 in Shensi Province, China, 1556
Queen Elizabeth I opens the Royal Exchange in London, 1571
Blaise Pascal publishes the first of his Lettres provinciales, 1656
Joseph Pease, a Quaker, is admitted to Parliament on his affirmation, 1833
Elizabeth Blackwell becomes the first female physician in the US, 1849
The first bridge over the Mississippi River opens in what is now Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1855
Alesund Fire: the Norwegian coastal town Alesund is devastated by fire, leaving 10,000 people homeless an one person dead, 1904
Charles Curtis of Kansas becomes the first Native American US senator, 1907
Pianist Ignaz Paderewski becomes premier of the Polish government in exile, 1940
Duke Ellington plays at Carnegie Hall in New York City for the first time, 1943
The bathyscaphe USS Trieste breaks a depth record by descending to 10,911 m (35,798 feet) in the Pacific Ocean, 1960
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducts its first members: Little Richard, Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley, 1986
Final communication between Earth and Pioneer 10, 2003
Six Venezuelan cable television channels are taken off the air by the Venezuelan government after refusing to transmit government messages, 2010

Reality and Dental Bills

"Mom, my friend Frieda and i were talking today, and we were wondering, how much of you can you replace and still be you?"

Bigger Girl can always be counted upon to come up with discussions like that.

"I mean, if you've had body parts replaced, and if they can eventually grow your own cells in a petri dish and replace parts of you, including brain tissue, how much of you has to be original, or does any of you have to be?  Are you still you?"

Does this mean, i asked, that you are about to go through an existential crisis?

"Yes!  I am changing and becoming a new person and the only thing I know for certain is that by the end of it I will need new shoes!" she said as we both laughed.

By the way, i asked, how are you getting to the oral surgeon on Monday?

"Jodie and Vera are taking me.  Jodie because she can drive, and Vera because she will keep Jodie from posting videos of me waking up from anesthesia on the internet."

Good choices, i noted.  How much is the co-pay?

"$1,300 is what the insurance won't cover," she said with a groan.  "It pays for the ones that are impacted, but the two that aren't impacted but only rotting because they are too far back for me to brush aren't covered."

Lucky us, i said.  Get me the check book.

Today is:

Advent of Inanna -- Ancient Sumerian Calendar (date approximate; equivalent to Ishtar, Assur, Astarte, Isis, and others; a female warrior and fertility goddess)

Berchtoldstag -- Alsace; Liechtenstein; Switzerland (a celebration of the goddess Perchta, or Bertha, guardian of animals and member of the Wild Hunt) related observance
     St. Berchtolds' Day -- Liechtenstein Bank Holiday; Switzerland Regional Holiday (because of the close association of his name with Perchta,  Duke Berchtold V of Zähringen's founding of Bern, Switzerland, is commemorated today; while not an official saint of any church, his day has become a big festival for children)

Blacks and Whites Carnival -- Colombia (through the 7th; manic and messy tradition, includes people painting themselves black one day, white the next, with a Grand Parade at some point during the week)

Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy Day -- The Andrews Sisters recorded the song this day in 1941 (yes, before the US entered the war; it was for the movie "Buck Private" with Abbot and Costello)

Carnival Day/Last Lap -- Saint Kitts and Nevis

Dainichi-do Bugaku -- Kazuno, Japan (11 traditional bugaku dances at the shrine; dates back as far as 718)

Dakar Rally -- Buenos Aires, Argentina to Valparaiso, Chile (the legendary event of off-road rallies; through the 16th)

Earth at Perihelion -- 22:49 UTC; 05:49 CST (closest point to the Sun)

Festival of Sleep Day -- begins this evening; celebrate by sleeping in tomorrow because it is assumed we could all use some extra z's after the holidays

Genshi-sai (First Beginning Ceremony) -- Imperial Palace and various shrines, Japan (a dance and musical art performed to round out the New Year's celebration)

Happy Mew Year for Cats Day -- because felines must have a day to celebrate the New Year, and they cannot share; sponsored on behalf of felines everywhere by Wellcat Holidays

Jour des Aieux -- Haiti (Founder's Day, sometimes translated Ancestry Day)

Kaapse Klopse -- Cape Town, South Africa (Minstrel Carnival; through January and most of February, but the main parade is today)

Kakizome -- Japan ("first writing", a day to do the first calligraphy written at the beginning of the New Year; often a resolution or poetry asking for a good year)

National Cream Puff Day

National Motivation and Inspiration Day -- US

National Science Fiction Day -- Asimov's birth anniversary

Ninth Day of Christmas

Nyilo -- Bhutan (Winter Solstice)

Perchtenlauf -- Bad Gastein, Austria (A festival with scary masks and music to frighten away winter.)

Positive Postcard Day -- some people now say you should fight the post-holiday let-down by sending someone an uplifting postcard; the original project said to have positive postcards to yourself, with instructions here 

Run It Up the Flagpole and See if Anyone Salutes It Day -- try something new today, in the spirit of the new year

Second Day of New Year -- also a holiday in many countries

"Someday We'll Laugh About This" Week begins -- to remind us to keep our perspective; sponsored by The Humor Project

St. Adelard's Day (Patron of gardeners; against fever, typhoid)

St. Basil's Day/Basil the Great -- Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches (yes, the Eastern Churches celebrated him yesterday; Patron of hospital administrators, reformers; Cappadocia; Russia)

St. Macarius' Day (Patron of of confectioners, cooks, pastry chefs)

Takai Commision Holiday -- Niue


Anniversaries Today:

Georgia becomes the 4th US State, 1788


Birthdays Today:

Kate Bosworth, 1983
Taye Diggs, 1972
Christy Turlington, 1969
Cuba Gooding, Jr. 1968
Tia Carrere, 1967
Gabrielle Carteris, 1961
Alan Beckwith, 1952
Wendy Phillips, 1952
Christopher Durang, 1949
Dennis Hastert, 1942
Jim Bakker, 1939
Roger Miller, 1936
Isaac Asimov, 1920
Sally Rand, 1904
Barry Goldwater, 1902
Martha Carey Thomas, 1857
James Wolfe, 1727


Today in History:

The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers, invading the Roman Empire, 366
Emperor Joseph II orders Jews of Galicia Austria to adopt family names, 1235
Spain recaptures Granada from the Moors (Granada Day), 1492
The first American revolutionary flag is displayed, 1776
The British Institution of Civil Engineers is founded, 1881
"The Liberator", and abolitionist newspaper, begins publishing in Boston, 1831
The British reestablish rule in the Falklands, 1833
The first US wire suspension bridge for general traffic opens in Pennsylvania, 1842
Because of anti-monopoly laws, Standard Oil is organized as a trust, 1882
Alice Sanger becomes the first female White House staffer, 1890
A record 19'2" alligator is shot in Louisiana by E. A. McIlhenny, 1890
Pres. T Roosevelt shuts down post office in Indianola Miss, for refusing to accept its appointed postmistress because she was black, 1903
The American anarcho-syndicalist union known as the Industrial Workers of the World forms, 1905
The Canadian branch of the Royal Mint opens in Ottawa, 1908
Lithuania gains independence, 1919
The US & Canada agree to preserve Niagara Falls, 1929
Luna 1, the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon and to orbit the Sun, is launched by the U.S.S.R., 1959
Stardust successfully flies past Comet Wild 2, collecting samples that are returned to Earth, 2004
Mauritius bans the use of plastic bags, 2013

Six Sentence Story: Range

"Do you want the average or the range?" she heard her daughter asking someone on the phone, as the girl was trying to explain the differences mathematically to a classmate.

"The average, or mean, is where you add up all the numbers and divide by the number of numbers, the range is the difference between the lowest and highest numbers," the girl continued.

As her husband walked in, he asked, "What's she talking about?"

"Math homework, mean, median and range, probably," Mom said.

"Mean is what math is, I never could stand math class, and the only 'range' I'm interested in is the one we cook supper on!" he said, laughing.

"Well, mean is what you will be if we don't get that supper started, you are like a grumpy bear when you get too hungry," she grinned back, and handed him some potatoes to peel.

Linking up with Uncharted Blog and Six Sentence Stories, where the cue is Range.

Today is:

Christmas Festival in Salvador -- Salvador, Brazil (one fun party, with many different activities, that begins around now, lasts until New Year's Day)

Clean Air Act Day -- US (passed this day 1963; a day to give thanks for the air we breathe)

Cookie Cutter Day

Daniel the Prophet's Day -- Orthodox Catholic Feast Day

Feast of Babalu Aye -- Yoruba/Santeria (celebration of the healer of deadly diseases)

Feast of the Fairy Godmothers -- Fairy Calendar

Hagoita Ichi -- Sensoji Temple, Japan (sale of specially decorated paddles, called hagoita; through the 19th)

Icelandic Yuletide Lad of the Day, Askasleikir -- Bowl-licker, who hides under the bed and snatches bowls set on the floor to lick them clean

Kasuga Wakamiya Festival -- Nara, Japan (rarely performed traditional dances at a festival held every year since 1136)

National Day -- Bhutan

National Maple Syrup Day

Procession of Agnios Dionysios -- Zakynthos, Greece (one of the biggest festivals of the year, when the relics of this island's patron saint is honored)

Saturnalia begins (through Dec. 23) -- Ancient Roman Calendar (festival for Saturn, the planter god)

Sow Day -- Orkney Islands, Scotland (ritual slaughter of a sow for the Yule feast)

St. Lazarus of Bethany's Day

Take a New Year's Resolution to Stop Smoking -- Tanyrtss, the 25th annual campaign goes through February; make the decision now to improve your life and health next year
 
Wright Brother's Day -- US


Anniversary Today:

Tiny Tim weds Miss Vicky, 1969


Birthdays Today:

Milla Jovovich, 1975
Duff Goldman, 1974
Sean Patrick Thomas, 1970
Mike Mills, 1958
Bill Pullman, 1954
Wes Studi, 1947
Eugene Levy, 1946
Chris Matthews, 1945
Ernie Hudson, 1945
Bernard Hill, 1944
Tommy Steele, 1936
Bob Guccione, 1930
William Safire, 1929
Willard Frank Libby, 1908
Arthur Fiedler, 1894
John Greenleaf Whittier, 1807
W. L. Mackenzie King, 1874
Joseph Henry, 1797
Deborah Sampson, 1760
William Floyd, 1734


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"The Simpsons"(TV), 1989
Turner Broadcasting System(Cable TV Network), 1976
"El Pessebre"(Casals' Oratorio), 1960
On The Beach(Film), 1959


Today in History:

The Ostrogoths of King Totila conquer Rome by bribing the Byzantine garrison, 546
Sultan Nasir-u Din Mehmud's armies in Delhi are defeated by Timur, 1398
Pope Paul III excommunicates England's King Henry VIII, 1538
Go-Yozei becomes Emperor of Japan, 1586
Shimabara Rebellion: Japanese peasants led by Amakusa Shiro rise against daimyo Matsukura Shigeharu, 1637
Congregation Shearith Israel of NY purchases a lot on Mill Street in lower Manhattan, to build NY's first synagogue, 1728
France recognizes independence of English colonies in America, 1777
Aztec calendar stone discovered in Mexico City, 1790
NYC traffic regulation creates first 1-way street, 1791
Opening of the first legislative assembly of Lower Canada in Quebec city, 1792
The US state of Kentucky abolishes debtors prisons, 1821
General Ulysses S. Grant issues General Order No. 11, expelling Jews from Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kentucky, 1862
First performance of the Unfinished Symphony by Franz Schubert, 1865
Violent riots in Montreal, as workers demand work or bread, 1875
France declares Madagascar a protectorate, 1885
George Brownell patents a machine to make paper twine, 1895
A first prize of 100,00 francs offered for communications with extraterrestrialsbut Martians are excluded - considered too easy, 1900
The Wright Brothers make their first successful flights, 1903
First flight of the Douglas DC-3 airplane, 1935
Ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and dummy Charlie McCarthy first appear on TV, 1936
The SALT I talks begin, 1969
Fernando Collor de Mello defeats Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the second round of the Brazilian presidential election, becoming the first democratically elected President in almost 30 years, 1989
SpaceShipOne flight 11P, piloted by Brian Binnie, makes its first supersonic flight, 2003