A Brief History On October 1, 1946, Dr. Lancelot Ware and Roland Berrill established an organization in Caythorpe (Lincolnshire), England called Mensa International. Intended as a non-profit social club for people among the highest 2% intellect in the human population, the founders expected a sort of aristocratic gathering of intelligentsia and were somewhat disappointed to find members meeting the membership criteria were mostly from humble origins. Mensa International is the umbrella organization for national chapters found in 100 countries covering 51 national groups. With about 134,000 members world-wide, the United States has the most members at 57,000, nearly triple runner-up…
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 September 30, 1915, the aviation world achieved a milestone of sorts when the first incident of a combat airplane being shot down by ground fire took place over Serbia. A flight of 3 German Farman 2 man airplanes attacked the Military Technical Institute in the Serbian town of Kragujevac, dropping 45 small bombs on the Serbians. Serbia had their own surprise waiting, with one of the world’s first anti-aircraft artillery units based on the ground defending that location. A lucky shot from a Serbian cannon achieved a direct hit on one of the Farmans and shot…
A Brief History On September 29, 1990, the prototype jet fighter plane designated YF-22 Raptor, built by a powerful consortium of American airplane manufacturers, Lockheed, Boeing, and General Dynamics, made its maiden flight. The F-22 stealth fighter program was designed to give our Air Force the finest and stealthiest fighter jet ever built, and of course, this complexity came at a price both in time and money. At the time of its first flight, the YF-22 was still known as the “Lightning II” in memory of the World War II workhorse, the Lockheed P-38 Lightning. Its name was officially changed…
A Brief History On September 28, 2018, the 4th Thursday in September, we celebrate National Brave Day. We take this opportunity to discuss what exactly is courage, bravery, valor, any of the synonyms for doing brave things or having the quality to act in the face of danger or highly distasteful consequences. We will discuss some ways to define bravery/courage, some brave people, and of course how to celebrate National Brave Day. Digging Deeper Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines “brave” as “having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty : having or showing courage” in its…
A Brief History On September 27, 1777, the Continental Congress, precursor to the United States Congress, fled the American capital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (our first capital city) as British troops closed in. The American government ended up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania for a mere one day stay, leaving an historical mark on the city by giving it claim to have been one of nine US capital cities. Or one of eight. Or one of three. Confused? Different sources use different criteria for deciding which cities deserve recognition as having been our “capital” city, so you can take your pick as to…