• At Central High School in Cleveland, Ohio, African-American writer Langston Hughes succeeded in a big way, writing for and publishing the school newspaper, working as class poet and yearbook editor, and acting in plays. While at Columbia University in New York City, Mr. Hughes hoped to be just as successful. Unfortunately, prejudice got in his way. When he tried to write for Columbia University’s newspaper, the editor played a cruel joke on him by telling him to cover fraternity and society news. Because of Mr. Hughes’ race, he was unable to attend fraternity and society events and so he could not write about them.
• When Yoshiko Uchida, author of Journey to Topaz, was a little girl growing up in California, she faced a lot of prejudice. As a member of the Girl Reserves, she was supposed to be photographed for the local newspaper along with the other Girl Reserves, who were Caucasian. The newspaper photographer tried to take the photograph without young Yoshiko, but one of her friends saw what the photographer was attempting to do, so she told Yoshiko, “Stand by me,” locked arms with her, and made it impossible for Yoshiko to be left out of the photograph.
• Paul Laurence Dunbar, the first African American to make his living as a writer, experienced prejudice. A wealthy white woman arranged for him to come to Buffalo, New York, and do a reading. She reserved an expensive suite in an excellent hotel for him, but the hotel management was shocked when Mr. Dunbar arrived. The clerk would not let him register at the hotel, and management threatened to call the police unless he left. Not until the wealthy white woman showed up in person was Mr. Dunbar allowed to stay at the hotel.
• Aaron Fricke (author of Reflections of a Rock Lobster: A Story About Growing Up Gay) and Paul Guilbert used to help handle telephone calls to a Gay Helpline. Most of the calls were serious, but cranks made some of them. Whenever a caller started gaybashing, Mr. Fricke or Mr. Guilbert would tell the caller to make a highly original use of the telephone receiver.
Problem-Solving
• An efficiency expert started working at a movie studio, but the screenwriters rebelled at such changes as pencil sharpeners being taken from their offices and replaced by a couple of pencil sharpeners in the hall. In addition, the efficiency expert stopped the deliveries of coffee to the writers’ rooms. One writer, Harry Ruskin, started using pencils at the phenomenal rate of three dozen an hour. The efficiency expert investigated and discovered that Mr. Ruskin was writing a few words with each pencil, then tossing them out of the window because “it wouldn’t be economical for a man making 50 cents a minute to walk down the corridor and sharpen them.” The efficient expert next discovered a group of writers gathered in the hall, where they had cut a hole in the rug, started a fire, and were making coffee because they claimed it was more efficient for them to make their own coffee than to walk to the commissary to buy it. The writers won — the efficiency expert was fired.
• Phillis Wheatley became America’s first African-American poet with the publication in 1773 of Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. Phillis was a slave, but her owner, Susanna Wheatley, recognized her talent as a poet and worked to have Phillis’ book published. She even contacted British printer Archibald Bell about publishing Phillis’ book of poetry, and he said he would if Susanna could prove that Phillis was indeed the author of the poems. To prove that Phillis was the author, Susanna invited 18 respectable citizens living in Boston, including John Hancock, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, to quiz Phillis and ask her questions that would indicate whether she had the intelligence and talent to be the author of the poetry. They did, and all 18 of the judges signed a statement that Phillis was indeed the author of the poems.
The only state in New England that does not border the Atlantic Ocean, it was admitted to the newly established United States as the fourteenth state in 1791. What is the name of this state?
A crystal ball, also known as an orbuculum or crystal sphere, is a crystal or glass ball and common fortune-telling object. It is generally associated with the performance of clairvoyance and scrying in particular.
Source
Mark. was first, and correct, with:
A crystal ball.
Billy in Cypress U. $. A. said:
A crystal ball
Dave wrote:
Crystal Ball. Had to look it up.
Photo: I wonder if the Saudi’s crystal ball predicted that Trump would be a one term president?
Alan J answered:
A Crystal Ball.
mj replied:
When I was still working
We would have occasional security inspection during which we would be
asked to produce documents from our safes. Writing down the combination
anywhere was a violation. I would, however stare at a blank spot on the
wall or the orbuculum (crystal ball) on my desk before opening the safe.
Confused the inspectors, but since they couldn't see any indication that
there was an actual copy of the combination, they couldn't say anything.
Life's small pleasures.
zorch responded:
A crystal ball.
John I from Hawai`i says,
Crystal Ball
Cal in Vermont wrote:
An orbuculum is better known as a crystal ball. When used to tell fortunes or see the future or past, such use is known as crystallomancy. The O'Mancy family is numerous it seems.
DJ Useo replied:
Crystal Ball. I had a dear friend who got me to believe she could make accurate predictions on her crystal ball.
I never would have thought it possible, but she was never wrong once that I knew of.
Jacqueline said:
A crystal ball
Leo in Boise wrote:
It’s a crystal ball.
Joe ( -- Vote Blue, No Matter Who -- ) answered:
Well I didn't know the answer was crystal ball, I trusted Google. We history majors don't go in for fortune telling much. Is scream a scary movie? Me and Mr. Puddy don't like scary movies.
Randall took the day off.
Mac Mac took the day off.
Deborah, the Master Gardener took the day off.
Daniel in The City took the day off.
Stephen F took the day off.
Kenn B took the day off.
Barbara, of Peppy Tech fame took the day off.
Dave in Tucson took the day off.
Kevin in Washington DC took the day off.
Michelle in AZ took the day off.
David of Moon Valley took the day off.
-pgw took the day off.
Micki took the day off.
Roy, a little dot of blue in bright red Gohmertstan (Tyler), TX took the day off.
Doug in Albuquerque, New Mexico, took the day off.
Ed K took the day off.
Jon L took the day off.
Angelo D took the day off.
Harry M. took the day off.
George M. took the day off.
Gary K took the day off.
Roy the (now retired) hoghead (aka 'hoghed') ( Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid. ~Frank Zappa ) took the day off.
Saskplanner took the day off.
Gateway Mike took the day off.
Steve in Wonderful Sacramento, CA, took the day off.
MarilynofTC took the day off.
Paul of Seattle took the day off.
Brian S. took the day off.
Gene took the day off.
Tony K. took the day off.
Noel S. took the day off.
James of Alhambra took the day off.
BttbBob has returned to semi-retired status.
~~~~~
Info: “Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed, American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994. The band’s core lineup consisted of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals) and Janet Weiss (drums). Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.”
How does brokenness walk? Or move through the world?” says guitarist/vocalist Carrie Brownstein about The Center Won’t Hold, Sleater-Kinney’s tenth studio album. “We’re always mixing the personal and the political but on this record, despite obviously thinking so much about politics, we were really thinking about the person – ourselves or versions of ourselves or iterations of depression or loneliness – in the middle of the chaos.”
“The Center Won’t Hold is Sleater-Kinney’s midnight record on the doomsday clock. After twenty-five years of legendary collaboration, rock’n’roll giants Brownstein, Corin Tucker, and Janet Weiss rise to meet the moment by digging deeper and sounding bigger than we’ve heard them yet. Here are intimate battle cries. Here are shattered songs for the shattered survivors. “The Center Won’t Hold drops you into the world of catastrophe that touches on the election,” says guitarist/vocalist Tucker of the title track. “We’re not taking it easy on the audience. That song is meant to be really heavy and dark. And almost like a mission statement, at the end of that song, it’s like we’re finding our way out of that space by becoming a rock band.”
Price: $1 (USD) for track; $9.99 for 11-track album
CBS opens the night with a FRESH'Big Btother', followed by a FRESH'Essential Heroes: A Momento Latino Event', then a FRESH'One Day At A Time', followed by another FRESH'One Day At A Time'.
Scheduled on a FRESHStephen Colbert are Sacha Baron Cohen and Jeff Tweedy.
Scheduled on a FRESHJames Corden, OBE, are Aaron Sorkin and the Shins.
NBC begins the night with a FRESH'The Voice', followed by a FRESH'Weakest Link'.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Fallon are Sterling K. Brown, Zoe Lister-Jones, Matthew "Super" DeLisi, and Rina Sawayama.
Scheduled on a FRESHSeth Meyers are Gwen Stefani and Giancarlo Esposito.
On a RERUNLilly Singh (from 10/24/19) are Jenna Dewan and Nick Offerman.
ABC fills the night with LIVE'Monday Night Football', followed by a FRESH'Dancing With The Stars', then pads the left coast with local crap.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Kimmel are Bill Maher, Louis Partridge, and 24kGoldn featuring Iann Dior.
The CW offers a FRESH'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', followed by a RERUN'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', then a FRESH'Penn & Teller: FU'.
Faux has a FRESH'LA's Finest', followed by a FRESH'Filthy Rich'.
MY recycles an old 'L&O: SVU', followed by another old 'L&O: SVU'.
AMC offers the movie 'Pacific Rim', followed by a FRESH'Soulmates'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - BY INFERNO'S LIGHT
[7:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - DR. BASHIR, I PRESUME
[8:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - A SIMPLE INVESTIGATION
[9:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - BUSINESS AS USUAL
[10:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - TIES OF BLOOD AND WATER
[11:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - FERENGI LOVE SONGS
[12:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - THE BATTLE
[1:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - HIDE AND Q
[2:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - HAVEN
[3:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - THE BIG GOODBYE
[4:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - DATALORE
[5:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - ANGEL ONE
[6:00PM] DRACULA 2000
[8:00PM] BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA
[10:29PM] THE LOST BOYS
[12:31AM] BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA
[3:00AM] THE LOST BOYS
[5:01AM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - HIDE AND Q (ALL TIMES ET)
Bravo has 'Below Deck Mediterranean', another 'Below Deck Mediterranean', followed by a FRESH'Below Deck Mediterranean', then a FRESH'Bravo's Chat Room', followed by a FRESH'Watch What Happens: Live'.
Comedy Central has all old 'The Office' all night.
Scheduled on a FRESHThe Daily Show it's The Daily Social Distancing Show.
FX has the movie 'A Quiet Place', followed by the movie 'Get Out', then the movie 'Get Out', again.
History has 'Pawn Stars', another 'Pawn Stars', followed by a FRESH'Pawn Stars', and another 'Pawn Stars'.
IFC -
[6:00am] Baroness Von Sketch Show - Those Chickens Won't Clean Themselves
[6:30am] Mystery Science Theater 3000 - The Hellcats
[8:45am] A Bronx Tale
[11:15am] Scarface
[3:00pm] American Hustle
[6:00pm - 12:30am] Two And A Half Men
[1:00am - 5:30am] Parks And Recreation (ALL TIMES ET)
Sundance -
[6:00am - 3:00pm] hogan's heroes
[3:30pm] the running man
[5:45pm] rocky balboa
[8:00pm] the devil's advocate
[11:00pm] eli roth's history of horror - Monsters
[12:00am] the ninth gate
[3:00am] the dead zone
[5:30am] gomer pyle, u.s.m.c. (ALL TIMES ET)
SyFy has the movie 'Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday', followed by the movie 'Jason X', then the movie 'Jigsaw'.
As Hollywood stars continue to assemble in support of Joe Biden for the 2020 presidential race, Brad Pitt lends his voice to the former vice president’s latest campaign ad.
The Once Upon A Time in Hollywood actor narrated a new commercial that dropped during the World Series game on Saturday. The ad, which premiered during the Los Angeles Dodgers – Tampa Bay Rays game, kicks off with a video montage of Biden delighting and sharing laughs with a range of supporters across America.
“America is a place for everyone – those who chose this county, those who fought for it – some Republicans, some Democrats, and most, somewhere in between,” the Oscar-winning actor says as the clip of Biden meeting supporters of all ages and backgrounds continues.
During the short advertisement, the actor says that all Americans, regardless of their political views are looking for the same thing. They want a leader to understands their hopes, dreams, pain and more, Pitt recites. He continues by saying that Americans hope for a president that will be honest, respectful and will work hard to make the nation better for all families.
John Mulaney will return to host Saturday Night Live next week, the NBC sketch show announced tonight. It will be the former SNL writer’s fourth time hosting the show.
Also returning to the Studio 8H stage for the fourth time will be The Strokes. The Julian Casablancas-led band, which released its latest album The New Normal in April, will return to perform.
SNL will continue its unprecedented run of original episodes with a sixth consecutive show November 7.
After throwing his support behind Donald Trump (R-Compromised) in the 2020 election because of Joe Biden’s proposed tax plan, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson has done an about-face and turned on the president, saying in a new tweet that he “never liked him.” His change of heart? His ex-girlfriend, comedian Chelsea Handler.
“Fu*k Donald Trump, I never liked him,” the rapper turned actor-producer tweeted in response to Handler’s appearance on “The Tonight Show.” “For all I know he had me set up and had my friend Angel Fernandez killed but that’s history. LOL.”
The strange saga of the rapper and “Power” producer’s foray into the election came earlier this week when he criticized Joe Biden on Instagram over his plans to raise taxes on wealthy California, New Jersey and New York residents by as much as 62%. The 62% increase would be levied on those who earn more than $400,000/year, while those in lower-income brackets would receive tax cuts.
“I don’t care if Trump doesn’t like black people,” Jackson said on social media along with an image of a CNBC report outlining the tax increases. “62% are you out of ya f–king mind.” He went on to write in a subsequent tweet, “Yeah, i don’t want to be 20cent. 62% is a very, very,bad idea,” a quote which was picked up and uses as a New York Post cover story.
Jackson’s comments prompted his ex-girlfriend, comedian Chelsea Handler, to call him out on Twitter, joking, “You used to be my favorite ex-boyfriend.” He responded with a face-to-the-forehead emoji and a note saying, “oh my God this is effecting [sic] my love life now. @chelseahandler. I love ya Gator, don’t let Trump and Joe Biden come between us girl.“
Robert Evans' estate auction over the weekend hauled in several hundred of thousands of dollars, including his Helmut Newton photograph collection which sold for $486,972, according to Julien’s Auctions.
Evans died Oct. 26, 2019. The iconic producer and studio chief was credited with resurrecting Paramount Pictures in the 1960s with a slew of classics, including Rosemary's Baby, The Godfather and Chinatown.
His Chinatown Golden Globe nabbed $83,200, more than 27 times its original estimate of $3,000, according to the auction house. In the same realm, his third draft Chinatown script — signed with a note by the Academy Award-winning screenwriter Robert Towne — sold for $40,625, well over its original estimate of $8,000, Julien’s noted.
Evans' leather-bound early annotated draft script of The Godfather — which included notes on casting the role of Tom Hagen, along with changed and deleted scenes — sold for $32,000, more than 10 times its original estimate of $3,000. Also sold was his "second draft" script from 1974’s The Godfather: Part II, which fetched $10,240, according to Julien’s.
Also in the Godfather realm: A set of two telegrams containing a heated exchange between director Francis Ford Coppola and Evans about the film sold for $38,400. The original estimate was $400, according to the auction house.
Months of mixed messages, political pressure and public gaffes about Covid-19 have caused morale at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to turn "toxic," said four current and two former CDC staffers, with one saying the election could be a "tipping point" for a mass exodus if President Donald Trump wins.
Current and former CDC employees told NBC News that career staffers are still struggling to influence key decisions on the pandemic as new daily Covid-19 cases soar nationwide, but are overruled by Trump appointees when politics intrudes.
Most recently, they said, they wanted to extend the "No Sail" order for cruise ships through February. It had been set to expire four days before the Nov. 3 election. Instead, they say Vice President Mike Pence's office pushed for the order to expire, which stands to benefit 21,000 cruise industry workers in the swing state of Florida.
Prior to the pandemic, according to one former official, the CDC would regularly post guidance about public health issues on the agency website without White House approval.
After the pandemic was declared in March, White House staffers got on the phone to CDC headquarters in Atlanta demanding web administrator credentials to independently edit the CDC website, said the former official. According to the former official, the CDC ultimately denied access, but officials have since then been consistently overruled as they push agency guidance through the Washington approval process.
On a recruiting trip to India’s tech hub of Bangalore, Alan Cramb, the president of a reputable Chicago university, answered questions not just about dorms or tuition but also American work visas.
The session with parents fell in the chaotic first months of Donald Trump (R-Corrupt)’s presidency. After an inaugural address proclaiming “America first,” two travel bans, a suspended refugee program and hints at restricting skilled worker visas widely used by Indians, parents doubted their children’s futures in the U.S.
“Nothing is happening here that isn’t being watched or interpreted around the world,” said Cramb, who leads the Illinois Institute of Technology, where international scholars have been half the student body.
America was considered the premier destination for international students, with the promise of top-notch universities and unrivaled job opportunities. Yet, 2016 marked the start of a steep decline of new enrollees, something expected to continue with fresh rules limiting student visas, competition from other countries and a haphazard coronavirus response. The effect on the workforce will be considerable, experts predict, no matter the outcome of November's election.
Trump has arguably changed the immigration system more than any U.S. president, thrilling supporters with a nationalist message and infuriating critics who call the approach to his signature issue insular, xenophobic and even racist. Before the election, The Associated Press is examining some of his immigration policies, including restrictions on international students.
Although by now it’s clear that the Trump administration holds nothing sacred, there are still some things it can do to shock our tired brains. Apparently, it has tried to get Santa Claus—Santa!—to participate in its crazy pandemic response plans.
A new report in the Wall Street Journal, which honestly could be a Netflix drama, goes into detail on a purported $250 million public service coronavirus advertising campaign with a Santa component. The Santa deal was whipped up by Michael Caputo, the assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services. According to the Journal, the campaign featured a quid pro quo arrangement for Santa Claus performers: Help us promote the benefits of covid-19 vaccination and you’ll get early access to the vaccine.
For those who forgot, Caputo is the same Trump appointee with zero medical experience who accused the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of having bogus “deep state motives” and demanded changes to official scientific reports. He is currently on medical leave.
A spokesperson for HHS told the Journal that the Santa “collaboration will not be happening.” The official added that department secretary Alex Azar did not know about Caputo’s Santa outreach discussions. While Santa is out, the rest of the campaign is now under review.
The government contract for the campaign, which was titled the “Covid 19 Public Health and Reopening America Public Service Announcements and Advertising Campaign,” had already been awarded to a market research and communications firm in Arlington, Virginia. It would have consisted of TV, radio, online and podcast announcements that were scheduled to start immediately, the outlet reported.
There comes a time in everyone's life when the brain and the body reach their peak before age begins to take its toll.
While muscle mass, strength, and function start to deteriorate around age 30, new research on professional chess players suggests the brain actually ages in a slower and more gradual way.
Analysing 125 years of expert chess games and tracking individual performances over lifetimes, scientists plotted a hump-shaped curve, a tiny little speed bump that stays true across various different generations of chess players.
Before a player's early 20s, performance on the chessboard appears to increase rapidly. Skill then appears to reach a plateau around 35 years of age, peak at age 40, and begin to steadily decline after age 45.
Accounting for factors other than age, like the colour of chess pieces, the length of the game, the generation of the player, and the strength of their opponent, cognitive decline after age 45 decreases only somewhat and in a statistically insignificant way.
To survive in the desert, camels store water in their humps, right? Not quite. Although camels do have tricks to make the most of water they find, their humps aren't one of them. So why do camels have humps on their backs?
The answer: fat storage.
"They deal with dry seasons when food and water is scarce," said Rick Schwartz, an animal care supervisor and national spokesperson at the San Diego Zoo. When food is available, camels eat enough calories to build up their humps so they can survive long periods of time when food is scarce. With a "full" hump, a camel can go up to four or even five months without food, Schwartz said. When camels use up their fat, their empty humps flop over like a deflated balloon until they eat enough to "inflate" them again, Schwartz said.
Camel calves aren't born with these fat deposits and don't grow them while they are nursing. "All the energy they're getting from mom is going to the growth of the body," Schwartz told Live Science. Young camels begin to wean when they are 4 to 6 months old, although their humps don't start to form until they are 10 months to a year old. "But as the wild camels are dealing with the cycles of the seasons, they need to have some sort of hump within that first year," Schwartz said. "They have to make it through that first dry season."
There are two species of camels. Bactrian camels (Camelus bactrianus) live in parts of western China and Central Asia, and they have two humps. Arabian camels (Camelus dromedarius) are more common and have only one. But as far as Schwartz is aware, the extra hump does not allow Bactrian camels to go longer without food.
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said:
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
