A Brief History On April 15, 1923, the hormone insulin became widely available for the treatment of diabetes. Prior to the discovery of insulin and its adaptation for medical use, diabetes was an often-fatal disease of the inability of the body to process glucose. Digging Deeper Even today, diabetes claims millions of lives per year, as well as causing a variety of related maladies such as kidney failure, blindness, and nerve damage. Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas, and was discovered in 1921 by Frederick Banting of Canada, a Nobel Prize winning discovery. By 1923, insulin became available…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On April 10, 2016, the Puttingal Temple in India was the scene of a horrific disaster when worshippers at a festival honoring the goddess Bhadrakali were blown up accidentally by a fireworks cache located there for the celebration. Digging Deeper We have previously asked, “Why are the faithful victims of tragedy during religious events?” and this tragedy is certainly one of those baffling events. Sadly, 111 people lost their lives and another 350 were badly burned. Obviously, the temple was heavily damaged, and 150 local houses also suffered damage. In response to the tragedy, three days later…
A Brief History On April 5, 1974, Stephen King published the first of his more than 60 full length novels, Carrie, setting the stage for what may well be the greatest horror fiction writing career in world history, and possibly the greatest writing career by an American author. Digging Deeper While many authors have penned one, two, or even several momentous works, the incredible production by King, who says he writes about 2,000 words a day, is truly impressive. King’s books sell well, ranking him anywhere from 10th to 21st on best selling author lists, depending on the source and…
A Brief History On April 4, 1991, US Senator from Pennsylvania John Heinz along with six other people died when a helicopter suffered a mid-air collision with the small airplane carrying Heinz over Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. Sadly, two of the seven fatalities were children on the ground. Digging Deeper Heinz is only one of many politicians that met an early demise in aircraft crashes, such as the following examples. In 1928, Congressman Thaddeus Sweet of New York became the first US politician to die in an air wreck. In 1947 and again in 1962, State Governors died in air…
A Brief History On February 23, 1778, the Baron von Steuben arrived at Valley Forge to assist George Washington with training the Continental Army. Washington was waging a war of independence against Britain, to forever remove what would become the United States from the tyranny of living under a King. Today, we find there are many “kings” in the USA and we list some of these from the 20th and 21st Centuries. Digging Deeper First, we have “The King of all media,” Howard Stern, shock jock of radio, television, literature, and the internet. Several musical “kings” have reigned, including Elvis…