On this day in
1054, in a corner of the dark night sky, there is a bright white flowering. It shines for 23 days. The people of that era have no way to know that it is their privilege to be watching that rarest of cosmic spectacles: the death of a star. The super-nova actually happened 6000 years prior to its being witnessed by human eyes. Today, the resulting cloud of post-collapse debris is known as the
Crab Nebula.
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On this day in
1776, the United States Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress.
Happy Birthday, USA!
***
On this day in
1826, second American President
John Adams and third American President
Thomas Jefferson both pass on to that big White House in the sky. Exactly five years later, in the year
1831, fifth American President
James Monroe also dies. Timing your death to coincide with the fourth of July? Talk about PATRIOTISM!
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On this day in
1888, in the hot and dusty burg of Prescott, Arizona, the first ever organized
rodeo competition is held. Unfortunately, videotape didn't exist at the time, so we can only experience
Billy-Joe Tuller's horrific, 15 minute goring at the horns of
Sir Stomps-a-Lot through eye-witness accounts.
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On this day in
1910, African-American boxer
Jack Johnson knocks out white boxer
Jim Jeffries in a heavyweight boxing match sparking race riots across the United States.
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On this day in
1918, Bolsheviks kill
Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and his family at the Winter Palace.
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On this day in
1966, after making sure to destroy all the documents linking him to President
Kennedy's assassination, President
Lyndon B. Johnson signs the
Freedom of Information Act.
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On this day in
1969, two teens (one male, one female) are attacked at Blue Rock Springs in California. They are the second (known) victims of the
Zodiac Killer. The male survives.
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On this day in
1976, Israeli commandos raid Entebbe airport in Uganda, rescuing all but four of the passengers and crew of an Air France jetliner seized by Palestinian terrorists.
***
On this day in
2004, the cornerstone of the Freedom Tower is laid on the site of the World Trade Center in New York City.
***
On this day in 2012, the discovery of particles consistent with the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider is announced at CERN.
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