Charles Dickens may have died in 1870, but legions of fans around the world will unite on Tuesday and beyond to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of this titan of English fiction.
Queen Elizabeth is throwing a star-studded party for him at Buckingham Palace and leading cultural figures will gather in an old orphanage to read from his works.
The personal story of the author who penned classics like “A Christmas Carol” and “A Tale of Two Cities” is thoroughly modern in its rags-to-riches flair.
Charles Dickens may have died in 1870, but legions of fans around the world will unite on Tuesday and beyond to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of this titan of English fiction.
Queen Elizabeth is throwing a star-studded party for him at Buckingham Palace and leading cultural figures will gather in an old orphanage to read from his works.
The personal story of the author who penned classics like “A Christmas Carol” and “A Tale of Two Cities” is thoroughly modern in its rags-to-riches flair.
The voice of Otto von Bismarck, one of the 19th century’s most important figures has been identified as one recorded on a wax cylinder more than 120 years ago.
The recording of the German chancellor was one of a dozen cylinders that were once stored near Thomas Edison’s cot in his West Orange, N.J., lab, announced the National Park Service.
It is believed to be the only recording of a person born in the 18th century.
Otto von Bismarck became Chancellor of Germany in 1871.
Nevada has the lowest high school graduation rate in the country. But now a multi-million dollar federal grant is helping one district turn its schools around. Host Michel Martin speaks with a principal who spent last Saturday knocking on the doors of students who dropped out, encouraging them to come back to school.
“We’re trying to reclaim our students, the students that have dropped out and that’s the whole purpose of this initiative.”
112 million Americans will watch Mark Herzlich take the field tomorrow, a rookie linebacker and cancer survivor whose story has inspired Super Bowl fans across the country.
The New York Giant player delivered a powerful message of hope across the social media network, Twitter, as he arrived in Indianapolis with his teammates and coaches.
He reminded fans of his long journey from “cancer hell to football heaven”, said one sports broadcaster.
The Super Bowl TV ads are as much anticipated as the game itself.
Humorous commercials have always created buzz with the public in the days following Sunday’s game, like last year’s Volkswagon ad, “The Force,” which featured a boy in a Darth Vadar costume. Betty White’s football smack-down in a Snickers ad stole the show in 2010.
This year, advertisers are getting more bang for their buck by releasing the ads early on YouTube, often racking up millions of views days before the opening kick-off.
A 10-year-old girl was experimenting with a molecule-building set in her Montessori school when she created an unusual-looking specimen.
Clara Lazen randomly arranged a unique combination of oxygen, nitrogen and carbon atoms, with the result being a molecule her teacher had never seen before. Intrigued, he photographed it and sent it to a chemistry professor at Humboldt State University in California.
Robert Zoellner discovered that not only was Lazen’s molecule unique, it had the potential to store energy.
“It contains the same combination of atoms as nitroglycerin, a powerful explosive. If a synthetic chemist succeeded at creating the molecule—dubbed tetranitratoxycarbon for short—it could store energy, create a large explosion, or do something in between, Zoellner says: ‘Who knows?'”
He cranked out a scientific paper for an esteemed chemistry journal, and listed Clara and Boehr as co-authors.
According to a University news report, Zoellner says it still remains to be seen how the research paper will be received. “Since scientists are always looking for new ways to harvest energy, synthetic chemists might try to create the molecule. If they succeed, they could discover a new way to store energy.”
Regardless of what happens, the experience has already strengthened the young girl’s interest in science. It’s refreshing, Zoellner says, because so many women shy away from science careers as they get older.
“Women are often better prepared for high school and college than men but they decide not to pursue science careers for whatever reason,” Zoellner says. “If I’ve been able to keep her and some of her classmates interested in science, I’ve succeeded.”
Last month, teachers in Chester, Pennsylvania were hailed as heroes when they pledged to work for free after their school district ran out of the funds to make payroll.
The leader of the teacher movement, Sara Ferguson, sat in Michelle Obama’s box at the State of the Union address, and appeared as a guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show yesterday to discuss the experience.
The segment included footage of the district’s impoverished students and the revelation that the school lost 40% of its teachers and 50% of support staff, due to budget cuts. DeGeneres applauded the teachers who were putting their students first.
Last month, teachers in Chester, Pennsylvania were hailed as heroes when they pledged to work for free after their school district ran out of the funds to make payroll.
The leader of the teacher movement, Sara Ferguson, sat in Michelle Obama’s box at the State of the Union address, and appeared as a guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show yesterday to discuss the experience.
The segment included footage of the district’s impoverished students and the revelation that the school lost 40% of its teachers and 50% of support staff, due to budget cuts. DeGeneres applauded the teachers who were putting their students first.
In this delightful family movie based on a true story, a family of gray whales, stranded beneath the ice near the northern-most Alaskan town of Barrow, brings together old foes in an inspiring rescue operation that catches the attention of the whole world.
John Krasinski plays a small-time TV reporter, Adam, whose “Adam Around Alaska” stories aren’t the ticket to the big time he wants. Then he stumbles across three whales — parents and a baby — clinging to an air hole in the ice outside town. They’re miles from open ocean, too far to hold their breath. They won’t last more than a day or two.
Adam’s story about tragedy unfolding in Barrow gets picked up by the network, and suddenly every government agency, scientist, press reporter and Greenpeace activist (Drew Barrymore) is faced with the question of what can be done, if anything.
In this delightful family movie based on a true story, a family of gray whales, stranded beneath the ice near the northern-most Alaskan town of Barrow, brings together old foes in an inspiring rescue operation that catches the attention of the whole world.
John Krasinski plays a small-time TV reporter, Adam, whose “Adam Around Alaska” stories aren’t the ticket to the big time he wants. Then he stumbles across three whales — parents and a baby — clinging to an air hole in the ice outside town. They’re miles from open ocean, too far to hold their breath. They won’t last more than a day or two.
Adam’s story about tragedy unfolding in Barrow gets picked up by the network, and suddenly every government agency, scientist, press reporter and Greenpeace activist (Drew Barrymore) is faced with the question of what can be done, if anything.
The unemployment rate fell for the fifth straight month after a surge of January hiring, a promising shift in the nation’s outlook for job growth.
The Labor Department says employers added 243,000 jobs in January, the most in nine months. The unemployment rate dropped to 8.3 percent from 8.5 percent in December. That’s the lowest in nearly three years.
The graffiti artist who took Facebook stock instead of cash for painting the walls of the social network’s first headquarters made a smart bet. The shares owned by the artist, David Choe, are expected to be worth upward of $200 million when Facebook stock trades publicly later this year.
The social network company announced its $5 billion public offering Wednesday afternoon, which is expected to value the whole company at $75 billion to $100 billion. Ultimately, that offering will mint a lot of billionaires and millionaires.
Jane Fonda thinks perhaps the most important revolution today is the “longevity revolution”. But society is still living with the old paradigm of aging — seeing it as a “decline into decrepitude”.
Dubbed by Fonda as our “Third Act”, the 34 years we live beyond the lifespan of our great grandparents can be seen as a developmental stage of life marked by wisdom and happiness.
Jane Fonda thinks perhaps the most important revolution today is the “longevity revolution”. But society is still living with the old paradigm of aging — seeing it as a “decline into decrepitude”.
Dubbed by Fonda as our “Third Act”, the 34 years we live beyond the lifespan of our great grandparents can be seen as a developmental stage of life marked by wisdom and happiness.
There are many memorable streets in cities across the globe, some marked by monuments and famous buildings. But the most scenic may be those with natural beauty.
Rua Gonçalo de Carvalho, in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre, may not border historical sites along its 500 meter stretch, but it does turn heads with its towering tipuana trees lining the road like a living colonnade.
The more than one hundred trees form a ‘green tunnel’ over three city blocks.
(UPDATE, Feb. 3: The Susan G. Koman group reversed their decision to defund Planned Parenthood, bowing to a tide of negative critisism from supporters and local chapters. -CNN)
Thousands of donors have contributed $650,000 to Planned Parenthood within 24 hours in reaction to the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s decision to cut off funding to the group.
The immediate spike in online donations was large enough to replace last year’s Komen funding, which is used for breast screenings.
Planned Parenthood, which caters to low-income women unable to afford gynecological care, also launched a Breast Health Emergency Fund that received a $250,000 gift from the family foundation of Dallas philanthropists Lee and Amy Fikes.
An innovative low-cost smart paint that can detect microscopic faults in mines and bridges before structural damage occurs is being developed by researchers at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.
The environmentally-friendly paint uses nanotechnology to detect movement in large structures, and could shape the future of safety monitoring.
The inexpensive smart paint can be simply sprayed onto any surface, with electrodes attached to detect structural damage long before failure occurs.
As nearly anyone who has adopted a pet from a shelter can attest, there’s something special about a rescued animal; it’s as if they can sense they’ve been given a second chance at life. That’s certainly the case with Juno, a Belgian Malinois who was adopted just days before she was to be euthanized. But since coming to live with her family in Alcoa, Tenn., she now has taken on the role of rescuer to a dying boy whom experts believed was not suited for any service dog.
Four-year-old Lucas Hembree suffers from Sanfilippo syndrome, an inherited, metabolic disease that causes children to lose the ability to speak, walk and eat. The disease also causes severe neurological damage that leads to aggressive behavior, hyperactivity and seizures.
With no cure or treatment currently available, Lucas isn’t expected to live past the age of 15 and may be in a vegetative state by the time he is eight. Realizing that every moment is extra precious, Chester and his wife, Jennifer, wanted their son to experience as much as he could while still having the capacity to enjoy life.
As nearly anyone who has adopted a pet from a shelter can attest, there’s something special about a rescued animal; it’s as if they can sense they’ve been given a second chance at life. That’s certainly the case with Juno, a Belgian Malinois who was adopted just days before she was to be euthanized. But since coming to live with her family in Alcoa, Tenn., she now has taken on the role of rescuer to a dying boy whom experts believed was not suited for any service dog.
Four-year-old Lucas Hembree suffers from Sanfilippo syndrome, an inherited, metabolic disease that causes children to lose the ability to speak, walk and eat. The disease also causes severe neurological damage that leads to aggressive behavior, hyperactivity and seizures.
With no cure or treatment currently available, Lucas isn’t expected to live past the age of 15 and may be in a vegetative state by the time he is eight. Realizing that every moment is extra precious, Chester and his wife, Jennifer, wanted their son to experience as much as he could while still having the capacity to enjoy life.
Charles Dickens may have died in 1870, but legions of fans around the world will unite on Tuesday and beyond to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of this titan of English fiction.
