Fact of the Day: Indian pudding
Indian Pudding is a baked pudding made chiefly of cornmeal, milk, and molasses. This hearty, old-fashioned dessert originated in New England. It's a spicy, cornmeal-molasses baked pudding that can sometimes include sliced apples. Indian pudding is usually served with whipped cream, hard sauce or ice cream. The name Indian pudding comes from the addition of cornmeal - early colonists called most everything made with corn "Indian." Originally the pudding was cooked in a pot over the open hearth and was very dense.
Fact of the Day: women's voting
The first countries to grant women's suffrage in national elections were New Zealand (1893), Australia (1902), Finland (1906), and Norway (1913).
Fact of the Day: hard-boiled eggs
The heat involved in boiling the egg causes chemical changes to the soft matter which makes it harden. The discoloring that sometimes occurs (gray or green) is caused by iron and sulphur compounds that accumulate when eggs are overcooked. Although the discolored egg yolks don't look great, it does not affect the taste or nutritional value of the eggs.
Fact of the Day: ATM
Chemical Bank in New York City placed its first machine in operation at Rockville Center, Long Island, in January 1969.
Fact of the Day: turkey
Domestication of the common turkey was probably begun by the Indians of Pre-Columbian Mexico. The birds were first taken to Spain about 1519, and from Spain they spread throughout Europe, reaching England in 1541. When the bird became popular in England, the name turkey-cock, formerly used for the guinea fowl of Islamic (or "Turkish") lands, was transferred to it. English colonists then introduced European-bred strains of the turkey to eastern North America in the 17th century. Turkeys were mainly bred for their beautifully colored plumage until about 1935, after which the breeding emphasis changed to their meat qualities.
Wednesday's Fact of the Day: motion pictures
The pioneers of actual motion pictures, Thomas A. Edison in the United States and the brothers Auguste and Louis Lumiere in France, sought to exploit their cinema machines, the Vitascope and the Cinematographe.
Thursday's Fact of the Day: sugar
Sugar is a water-soluble compound present in the sap of seed plants and the milk of mammals and making up the simplest group of carbohydrates. The most common sugar is sucrose, or table sugar. Almost all sucrose is extracted from sugarcane and sugar beets by a milling process (shredding the plants, pressing out the juice, and extracting the residues with water) or by a diffusion process (separating the sugar from the finely cut plants by dissolving it in hot water or juice). The combined liquids are clarified, concentrated through evaporation, and then seeded to induce crystallization of the sugar. Refined granulated sugar, an unusually pure commercial product, is 99.9 percent sucrose.
Fact of the Day: particleboard
Particleboard, also called chipboard, fiberboard, and flakeboard, is a composition board made of very small pieces of wood bonded together. It is very hard, dense, heavy material made of reconstituted wood particles. It is available in various thicknesses -- from 3/8" to 3/4" and 4 feet wide by 8, 10, and 12 feet long. Particleboard is also available at some lumber yards precut as shelving (8, 10, 12 inches wide), sometimes with plastic laminate already on it. Particleboard costs less than half of what plywood costs and can be very good material if used for the right project. It is particularly good for kitchen countertops and underlayment. It does not warp.
Sunday's Fact of the Day: lawn mower
The first "practical" lawn mower was invented by Elwood McGuire of Richmond, Indiana, in the 1890s. He attached sharp blades to a rotating reel, with a cutting bed at the center. The first power mower was Moto-Mower, invented by Edward George in 1919, and run on gasoline.
Monday's Fact of the Day: worlds
A First World nation is a country or group or countries that is a major force in international politics or finance. A Second World nation is advanced and powerful but less prosperous. A Third World nation is neither a major force in international politics or finance; many of its people live at or below the level of extreme poverty.
Fact of the Day: yellowing newspapers
Newspapers use the cheapest paper and cheapest inks to keep the cost of publishing the news down. Newsprint falls into the category of "groundwood" paper with its primary components being cellulose and lignin. The cooking process removes lignin and it is the lignin content of groundwood that quickly yellows on exposure to light. The acidic lignin breaks down the molecular structure of cellulose, too, which weakens the paper.
Fact of the Day: northern lights
Auroras like the northern lights are caused by the interaction of energetic particles (electrons and protons) from outside the atmosphere with atoms of the upper atmosphere. Such interaction occurs in zones surrounding the Earth's magnetic poles. During periods of intense solar activity, auroras occasionally extend to the middle latitudes; for example, the aurora borealis has been seen as far south as 40 latitude in the United States.
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