Wednesday, January 27, 2010

panjandrum \pan-JAN-druhm\, noun:

• An important personage or pretentious official.

It was composed on the spot to challenge actor Charles Macklin's claim that he could memorize anything. Macklin is said to have refused to repeat a word of it.

iphone effect

• shortly after one person in the group brings out their iphone, the rest follow suit, ultimately ending all conversation and eye contact.

"Hey, what do you want to order for drinks?"
"Not sure, let's see what Imbibe Magazine has for their best beer this month."
First iphone comes out of the pocket--enter safari search. Next iphone comes out--enter Facebook post. Third iphone makes an entrance -- the iphone effect has arrived.
Trivia
When it comes to blights in the great outdoors, what is toxic cyanobacteria?

• Pond scum—or blue-green algae.

History

• Nevada Test Site: nuclear testing began with a one-kiloton bomb dropped on Frenchman Flat (1951)
• Outer Space Treaty: began collecting signatories; it bans WMDs in space and says the moon is communal property (1967)
• Apollo I: during a preflight test, a cockpit fire trapped and killed NASA astronauts Roger Chaffee, Virgil (Gus) Grissom and Ed White; they were to have made the first manned voyage to the moon (1967)
• International Holocaust Remembrance Day (marks the liberation of Auschwitz by the Red Army)

Berfdays, yo!

• Dante (11): diamond back terrapin (turtle), nuclear physicist, noble prize winner, 3 time oscar winner, 6 pulitzer prizes, ninja, dragon slayer, likes krill

  
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): composer, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, The Marriage of Figaro,The Magic Flute; other composers born on this date include Édouard Lalo (1823-1892) and Jerome Kern(1885-1945)
• Lewis Carroll (1832-1898): author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; plus, screenwriter Frank Miller (53)
• James Cromwell (70): actor, The Queen, W; also, actors Donna Reed(1921-1986), John Witherspoon (68), Mimi Rogers (54), Bridget Fonda (46), Alan Cumming (45) and Josh Randall (38)
• Nick Mason (66): drummer with Pink Floyd; musiciansTracy Lawrence and Tricky (both 42) also celebrate their birthday today
• Mikhail Baryshnikov (62): ballet dancer and choreographer
• John G. Roberts, Jr. (55): 17th US Chief Justice; jurist Learned Hand (1872-1961) shared this birth date