Browsing: Science & Technology

A Brief History On November 1, 1982, Honda Motor Company of Japan started making cars in the United States.  The gasoline shortages of 1973 and 1979 pushed American drivers into the seats of imported cars that got better gas mileage than American land yachts, and with better quality for good measure. Digging Deeper Honda took advantage of this trend by opening a manufacturing plant in Marysville, Ohio, starting with their Civic subcompact car.  Honda’s American growth has been spectacular and now, four decades later, 2/3 of their vehicles are built in the US at a total of 12 automotive plants…

A Brief History On October 29, 2015, China announced the end of its “one child” policy that had been in effect since 1979, limiting couples to one child in an effort to curb population growth. Digging Deeper Fears of what seemed to be inevitable overpopulation caused China’s leaders to raise the age for marriage and to encourage couples to delay having children, limiting the number of children they had, and spacing out pregnancies.  Finally, the Draconian edict of one child per couple was put into effect, but with many exceptions. In 2015, the policy became a two-child policy, and in…

A Brief History On October 27, 1962, US Air Force Major Rudolf Anderson was shot down and killed while flying his U-2 spy plane over Cuba. Digging Deeper The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 was a face-off between the US and the USSR over the Soviets stationing nuclear missiles in Cuba, close to the American mainland.  After two weeks of negotiations and nearly causing a nuclear war, national leaders reached a deal where the Soviets would remove nukes from Cuba and the US would remove nuclear missiles from Turkey and possibly Italy. Despite debate about taking drastic military action…

A Brief History On October 22, 2012, cyclist Lance Armstrong was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles due to allegations of illegally using performance enhancing drugs. Digging Deeper Armstrong had won the greatest bicycle race in seven consecutive years, a record performance.  After years of accusations and allegations of cheating, Lance denied the reports, but was banned for life after an investigation.  In 2013, he told the truth and admitted his cheating. Science and pharmacology have made athletic ability reach unnatural levels, starting with steroids, basically forms of testosterone and including other stimulants, growth hormones, blood doping, sleeping…

A Brief History On October 20, 1827, an international coalition of British, French, and Russian ships fought against a fleet of Turkish Ottoman and Egyptian ships in the Battle of Navarino, the last major naval battle fought by wooden sailing ships. Digging Deeper Part of the 1821 to 1829 Greek War of Independence, Navarino pitted 1,252 naval guns spread across 10 ships of the line, 10 frigates, two schooners, four sloops, and one cutter on the European side against the Ottoman fleet of 2,158 guns dispersed among three ships of the line, 17 frigates, 30 corvettes, five schooners, 28 brigs,…