Wednesday, October 19, 2011

harrowing \HAR-oh-ing\, adjective:

• Extremely disturbing or distressing; grievous.

Harrowing is from the Middle English harwen meaning to harass or annoy. It was also commonly used in the church to mean “descend into hell.”

Human Microphone

• A tactic protesters can use to circumvent police bans on electronic amplification of speech. One person starts to speak to a large crowd. After a short sentence, everyone within hearing distance repeats whatever was said at the top of their lungs, allowing people outside of hearing distance to hear the speech.

The Human Microphone on Wall Street announced this speech:

"Mic Check."

"MIC CHECK!!"

"The human microphone is slow and cumbersome"

"THE HUMAN MICROPHONE IS SLOW AND CUMBERSOME!!"

"but it really makes you think through"

"BUT IT REALLY MAKES YOU THINK THROUGH"

"what it is you want"

"WHAT IT IS YOU WANT!!"

"to say."

"TO SAY!!"

Trivia

What classical composer’s music serves as the official anthem of the European Union?

• Ludwig van Beethoven’s. The anthem is a version of “Ode to Joy,” the final movement of his Ninth Symphony.

History

• Yorktown campaign: British General Charles Cornwallis surrendered, effectively ending the land war of the American Revolution (1781)
• Black Monday: the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 508 points — over 22% — setting a record for percentage decline that still stands (1987)
• Guildford Four: men wrongly convicted for a deadly IRA bombing were cleared after 15 years in jail (1989)

Birthdays

• Alfred Dreyfus (1859-1935): French officer wrongly accused of treason
• Auguste Lumière (1862-1954): with his brother Louis, inventor of the Cinématographe moving picture system
• Walter Cannon (1871-1945): physiologist who studied the digestive system and developed the concept of homeostasis
• Charles Merrill (1885-1956): founder of Merrill Lynch
• John Le Carré (80): espionage novelist, The Spy Who Came In From the Cold; plus writer Philip Pullman (65)
• John Lithgow (66): Emmy- and Golden Globe-winner for his chilling portrayal of The Trinity Killer on Dexter; also, actors Robert Reed (1932-1992), Michael Gambon (71) and Chris Kattan (41)
• Evander Holyfield (49): boxer
• Jason Reitman (34): writer/director, Thank You for Smoking, Juno, Up in the Air; TV producer Trey Parker (42) and director Jon Favreau (45) share this birth date

Read more: http://www.answers.com/