Facts and Figures for Thanksgiving Day: Nov. 24, 2011
"The legacy of thanks and the feast have survived the centuries, as the event became a national holiday in 1863 when President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of November as a national day of thanksgiving." Cherry, Pumpkin or Pecan?
Another Account of the Second Freedom Summer
Coping with the chaos of movement life and the frustrations of getting people registered to vote had worn her down. Before returning to normal life, she took the time to put on paper her memories of her "summer vacation"
Holiday Desserts: Pumpkin and Pecan Pies, Gingerbread Men and Christmas Cookies
With the pressures of holiday time added, spilled sprinkles crunching on the kitchen floor and frosting smeared on counter tops can push parents beyond their patience limit. Yet this is how our memories are formed, the way we learn cherished traditions that we continue with our own children.
NYPL Digital Collection of Apartment Houses; Shop Their Finds
From the Althorp to the Ansonia, the New York Public Library holds image folios of the Classic 6; Apartment Building Living, 1880s - 1910s. Shop the Library's marvelous gift choices, even for yourself
Is the Female Brain Innately Inferior? Stanford neuroscientist tackles myths about the brain
“We are not in a position to draw any conclusions regarding sex differences in the brain and their relationship to differential cognitive abilities as we have yet to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that there are indeed real differences in ability.”
Consider CultureWatch's Four Gift Book Suggestions: Murder, Assassination, Racial Hatred and Ageism
Margolick has written a profile of two women, Elizabeth and Hazel, who appeared in an iconic photograph taken during the desegregation attempt at Little Rock’s High School. How they have handled both friendship and distancing is a long and complex tale. In Agewise: Fighting the New Ageism in America author Gullette explores the causes and effects of a youth culture that makes growing old wrong in the eyes of many Americans. Assisted Dying, a mystery novel, provides a fast ride on the highways of Florida's Gold Coast and would make a terrific book group choice. Millard's Destiny of a Republic carefully lays out a sensitive, detailed account of President Garfield’s murder and is on our reviewer's highly recommended list.
Bills to Curb Violence Against Indian Women, Families Subject of Hearing
"I urge you to pass this legislation that will greatly improve the safety and security of American Indian women and girls, and give tribes the authority to effectively protect, intervene, and prosecute perpetrators of gender based violence.”
Her Majesty the Queen’s Painter and Limner in Scotland
Celebrating Dame Elizabeth Blackadder's 80th birthday, the Scottish National Gallery exhibition presents her work in all its diversity, ranging from the much-loved studies after nature, to lesser-known paintings which will challenge expectations.
The 18-Minute Gap, Wiretaps and Cash: Nixon's Grand Jury Testimony Released
26 files have been released from the Records of the Watergate Special Prosecution Force collection including segments of five transcripts of White House taped conversations from 1971 and 1973.
Middle-Class Societies Invest More in Public Education
Fifteen countries now have higher college graduation rates than us, and our average test scores are lower than those of not just peer countries but also less wealthy places such as Slovenia and Poland.
Two Essays by Adrienne G. Cannon: Music and Medicare & Another Era
Adrienne G. Cannon writes: Maybe the prescription for staying healthy is not Medicare nor mind-bending games. Maybe making and enjoying music, for ourselves and our appreciative friends and family, is the program we should subscribe to... If she could do it, then so can we... she has shown us the way to keep on dancing. We honor her with the spirit she inspired in us as we return to ballet class week after week.
The Rising Age Gap in Economic Well-Being; The Old Prospect Relative to the Young
Older adults have made dramatic gains relative to younger adults in their economic well-being during the past quarter century, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis. The current gap is unprecedented in the 25 years that the Census Bureau has been collecting wealth data.
Infinite Jest and Met Museum Shopping
Drawings from Leonardo da Vinci, Eugène Delacroix, Francisco de Goya and Lautrec are displayed. Caricature can be combined with various kinds of satire to convey personal, social, or political meaning. And the Met Museum shop is a trove of gift ideas!
Class Action Lawsuit Against HHS; Was It a Case of Misapplication of "Observation Status"?
The Center for Medicare Advocacy and the National Senior Citizen Law Center filed a class action lawsuit against the Secretary of Health and Human Services, on behalf of seven individual plaintiffs deprived of Part A coverage for their hospital stay
Contraceptives Conscience Clause Subject of House Hearing
"So the question is, if somebody does [not] want to provide contraception, because it violates their religion or their conscience, would they be required to? Absolutely not. The question, then, comes down to what is the scope of the exception that church-provided insurance need not cover family planning?”
Expedition: The Coveted Bargain
The aisle is deserted except for a lone, middle-aged employee dusting a section of shelves filled with cartons of dog biscuits. I was about to move on when the employee began to sing as she worked. Happy notes floated around her like a sweet perfume.
Pew Reports on The Generation Gap and the 2012 Election; Angry Silents, Disengaged Millennials
The study provides a detailed look at the current generational dynamics of American politics. Why are Silent generation voters so angry? How have the political leanings of Baby Boomers evolved? Is the Reagan-era Generation X moving closer to the Democratic column? Will Millennials be as engaged and enthused about Obama as they were in 2008?
Where Has Joy Gone?
These days, you almost have to venture backwards in time to find pictures of life redeemed in spite of or because of depravity, dishonesty, error. The ancient Greeks, Shakespeare, Hardy, Austen, even Sinclair Lewis or Harper Lee ... make your own list had so much more to say than just calling attention to or bewailing or glorifying what least deserves it in what we like to call civilization.
US Government Glossed Over Cancer Concerns As It Rolled Out Airport X-Ray Scanners
"The airport X-ray scanners have escaped the oversight required for X-ray machines used in doctors’ offices and hospitals. The reason is that the scanners do not have a medical purpose, so the FDA cannot subject them to the rigorous evaluation it applies to medical devices"
Next National Model? Oregon Banks on Community Health Care
The state aims to abandon the impersonal and fragmented way most people receive health services today. In its place, the state hopes, will be community-based systems that resemble the way medicine was practiced a century ago, when doctors made home visits
Scientists Use Brain Imaging to Reveal the Movies in Our Mind
Imagine tapping into the mind of a coma patient, or watching one’s own dream on YouTube. With a cutting-edge blend of brain imaging and computer simulation, scientists at the UC Berkeley, are bringing these futuristic scenarios within reach
Copia — Retail, Thrift, and Dark Stores, 2001-11
The Cleveland Museum of Art presents the first major museum exhibition of contemporary photographer Brian Ulrich’s work from a decade-long examination of the American consumer psyche.
Pissarro’s People at the Legion of Honor
Pissarro’s People explores the three dimensions of the artist's life that are essential to a full understanding of the human element in his art: his family ties, his friendships and his intense intellectual involvement with the social and political theories of his time
How Gender Stereotypes Influence Emerging Career Aspirations
Whether we look at metrics in the workplace such as the gender gap in wages, or the participation of women male dominated fields, the paid labor market, and state-level politics, measures of equality have remained relatively constant since the mid 1990s
Progress - You Gotta Love It! (Or Not)
My friend Abigail was born in the wrong era and place. She would have been much happier living in an age uncontaminated by technological abominations; she thinks ATM machines are an invention of the devil
