Browsing: July 20

A Brief History On July 20, 1807, the government of Napoleon Bonaparte granted a patent to Nicephore Niepce for a device he called the Pyreolophore, the first internal combustion engine (ICE).  Demonstrated by powering a small boat up a river, this event began a long and star crossed relationship between humans and ICE‘s.  Powering cars, generators, airplanes, farm equipment, pumps, compressors, boats, lawn mowers and just about anything you can think of that needs power of some sort, the loud, smoke belching engines have been a constant companion of mankind for over 200 years now, slow to catch on, but…

A Brief History On July 20, 1968, the first International Special Olympics for intellectually challenged people was held in Chicago’s Soldier Field.  About a thousand athletes competed that day, and today over 4 million participate every year in 170 countries! Digging Deeper Started by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the sister of President John F. Kennedy, in 1962, the Special Olympics were particularly personal to the Kennedy family as John and Eunice had a sister that suffered from mental deficiency for which she was given a lobotomy in hopes of correcting her problem, but it only gave her more brain damage. At…

A Brief History On July 20, 1304, the forces of King Edward I of England successfully took Stirling Castle during the First War of Scottish Independence.  Although the Scots would ultimately maintain their independence, key to the English victory was the intimidating-sounding “Warwolf,” allegedly the largest trebuchet ever made.  This mighty siege engine catapulted rocks or other projectiles that weighed up to 300 pounds and was capable of battering down the walls of any castle.    Digging Deeper Intimidated by the weapon, the Scots tried to surrender the castle, but Edward (known as “Longshanks”) wanted to see the effectiveness of…