Sunday Open Thread: February 11 is Inventors' Day

World History this day

0055 -- Tiberius Claudius Caesar Britannicus died, setting up Nero to take over 1826 -- University of London was founded 1856 -- The British East India Company annexed Awadh. 1929 -- Italy and the Vatican signed the Lateran Treaty 1943 -- Ike was picked to command the allied armies in Europe. 1971 -- The Seabed Arms Control Treaty was signed prohibiting nukes on the ocean floor 1979 -- The Iranian Revolution set up a theocracy under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. 1990 -- Nelson Mandela was released from prison 2011 -- Hosni Mubarak resigned after 18 days of protests.

US History this day

1794 -- The First session of United States Senate opened to the public 1861 -- The House unanimously resolved to guarantee noninterference with slavery in any state. 1937 -- GM recognized the UAW, ending a sit-down strike

Science & Technology this day

1939 -- A P-38 Lightning flew from California to New York in 7 hours 2 minutes. 1981 -- A radioactive coolant leak at TVA Sequoyah 1 nuke plant in Tenn. contaminated eight workers. ** 1997 -- Discovery was launched to service the Hubble

*** about 100,000 gallons leaked into the cntainment building somehow in spite of the facts that nukes are 100% safe.

The Arts this day

1840 -- Gaetano Donizetti's opera La fille du regiment premiered 1843 -- Giuseppe Verdi's opera I Lombardi alla prima crociata premiered 1903 -- Anton Bruckner's 9th Symphony premiered

Misc. this day

1534 -- Henry VIII of England was recognized as supreme head of the Church of England because god really dug Henry.

Birthdays of Note this day

1802 -- Lydia Maria Child, journalist and activist *** 1805 -- Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, an explorer 1839 -- Josiah Willard Gibbs, physicist and mathematician 1847 -- Thomas Edison, engineer, inventor, businessman 1855 -- Ellen Day Hale, painter and author 1898 -- Leo Szilard, physicist 1900 -- Ellen Broe, nurse and nursing training and education pioneer 1914 -- Matt Dennis, pianist, arranger, singer and songwriter 1914 -- Josh White, singer, songwriter, guitarist and activist 1926 -- Paul Bocuse, chef 1934 -- Manuel Noriega, dictator, CIA asset, beloved of US until he wasn't useful anymore 1935 -- Gene Vincent, singer and guitarist 1937 -- Phillip Walker, singer and guitarist 1939 -- Gerry Goffin, songwriter 1941 -- Sergio Mendes, pianist and composer 1942 -- Otis Clay, singer and songwriter 1943 -- Alan Rubin, trumpet player 1962 -- Sheryl Crow, singer, songwriter, and guitarist

***  She was an abolitionist, women's rights activist, Native American rights activist and opponent of US expansionism in the 1800s.

Deaths of Note this day

1650 -- Rene Descartes, mathematician and philosopher, thought he thought 1868 -- Leon Foucault, physicist 1940 -- Ellen Day Hale, painter and author 1948 -- Sergei Eisenstein, director and screenwriter 1963 -- Sylvia Plath, poet and author, tortured by shrnks 1994 -- Paul Feyerabend, philosopher 2000 -- Lord Kitchner, grand master of Calypso 2006 -- Peter Benchley, author, screenwriter and demonizer of elasmobranch fish 2008 -- Frank Piasecki, engineer, designed the flying banana 2009 -- Estelle Bennett, Ronette 2012 -- Whitney Houston, singer, songwriter, producer, actress 2013 -- Rick Huxley, bassist

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So now some music

Henry VIII

Matt Dennis  

Josh White  

Gene Vincent  

Philip Walker  

Gerry Goffin  

Sergio Mendez  

Otis clay  

Alan Rubin  

Sheryl Crow  

Lord Kitchner  

Estelle Bennett  

Whitney Houston  

Rick Huxley  

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Photo: Image from page 110 of "Hill's album of biography and art

It's an open thread, so do your thing

Crossposted from http://caucus99percent.com