A Brief History On March 1, 1790, the first census in the history of the United States was authorized, with some interesting results. Article One of the US Constitution mandates that a census be taken every 10 years, an important task since allocation of representatives to Congress and allocation of funds and other things are based where the population is currently living. The most recent census was compiled in 2010 and presents an interesting comparison to the 1790 results. Digging Deeper The census has taken on a certain amount of resistance from conspiracy theorists, including the move of the Census…
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 February 27, 2018, the entire world celebrates International Polar Bear Day, a day to appreciate Ursus maritimus, the large white bear of the North. The largest land carnivore, Polar Bears are cute and cuddly looking, especially when young, but are probably the most dangerous of bears to humans. Needing ice from which to hunt their main prey (seals and other sea mammals), the loss of Polar Ice is threatening these magnificent animals. Digging Deeper Created by Polar Bears International, a Montana based non-profit organization dedicated to the education, research and action needed to save Polar Bears…
A Brief History On February 26, 1991, English computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN of Switzerland) introduced his invention of the WorldWideWeb to the public, the first publicly available internet browser. Berners-Lee is now a professor at Oxford University in England and has authored several books about computers and the internet. Digging Deeper In 1989, Berners-Lee had implemented the first successful communication between a server and an HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) user via the internet, and also invented the HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) to support his invention of the WorldWideWeb, developments that made browsing…
A Brief History On February 25, 1836, Sam Colt patented his cap and ball revolver that would give rise to all the modern revolvers that followed. Early attempts at revolvers in the flintlock era were disasters waiting to happen, as all too often the firing of one cylinder would set off the others as well. Over the years some iconic revolvers have been produced, and until the late 20th Century they remained the sidearm of choice for police and private citizens (although the semi-automatic pistol had superseded revolvers for military use for the most part as of the early 20th…
A Brief History On February 24, 1942, an “order in council” was passed by the Canadian government that authorized the internment of all persons of Japanese ancestry in Canada. (On the same day, the United States passed a measure under the “War Powers Act” to also intern Japanese Americans. See our article, “Forced Internment of Japanese During World War II”) The internment order followed a series of other measures taken against Japanese people in Canada, including the seizing of Japanese owned fishing boats, interrogations, curfews and general harassment and discrimination. Incredibly, some of these measures stayed in effect until 1949!…