If Frankenstein was the name of the scientist who tinkered with nature and created the monster, what was the name of the monster he produced? He doesn't seem to have a name, though he refers to himself (when speaking to his creator) as "Adam of your labours." But, when people think of Frankenstein, they generally think of the monster - the product ( Read more... )

Louis XVI, the French king who was guillotined during the French Revolution, was born in 1754. Generally regarded to be inept and indecisive as king, he was sometimes derisively called "Louis le Dernier" (Louis the Last). He and his family tried to flee Paris, but they were captured and taken to prison. France's National Convention declared a ( Read more... )

What is the value of a February 19 1990 'Sports Illustrated ( Read more... )

What does Fahrenheit 451 refer to in Ray Bradbury's book? The title of Ray Bradbury's book Fahrenheit 451 refers to the temperature at which book paper burns. His novel takes place in the future, during an anti-intellectual period when books of history and philosophy are banned and burned. The story's protagonist, Guy Montag, a "fireman" ( Read more... )

Say the words "Sports Illustrated" to the average man on the street, and he'll think "swimsuit issue." But to the more than 20 million American adults who read the magazine weekly, SI is also about the different sporting events that occur during the other 51 weeks of the year. In the early 1950s, Time publisher Henry Luce - himself not an avid ( Read more... )

He represents the longest-running public service campaign in US history. Smokey Bear debuted on a poster in 1944, which is also considered the birthday of the animal who later became the real-life mascot represented in the image. In 1950, a small black bear was found charred and alone after a wildfire in New Mexico. The cub was sent to a Santa Fe ( Read more... )

With e-readers and the Internet, do people still go to the library? They sure do. Check it out. Some two thirds of Americans have a library card. The American Library Association calls it "the most important school supply of all." September is National Library Card Sign-up Month. In most cases, borrowing privileges start as soon as you sign up for ( Read more... )

Who was Rolls Royce? Henry Royce was an engineer who manufactured his first automobiles in 1904. Charles Stewart Rolls, born on August 28th in 1877, was a bicycling and motoring enthusiast who imported one of the first cars into Wales. When he saw Royce's auto, he liked what he saw and approached Royce with a proposition. They reached an agreement ( Read more... )

Which side of the road do they drive on in Sweden? Since 1967, Swedes drive on the right. In an action called Dagen H (H Day), the traffic pattern changed overnight from driving on the left to driving on the right. The H stands for Högertrafik, the Swedish word for "right-hand traffic." It was a long process of re-educating drivers to "think right ( Read more... )