Today in History, December 21, the invention of the first crossword puzzle

December 21 is the 355th day of the year. There are 10 days remaining until the end of the year.

crossword puzzle

Today's Highlight in History.
1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World.

A crossword is a word puzzle that normally takes the form of a square or a rectangular grid of white and black shaded squares. The goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues which lead to the answers. In languages that are written left-to-right, the answer words and phrases are placed in the grid from left to right and from top to bottom. The shaded squares are used to separate the words or phrases.

Arthur Wynne was a British-born inventor, best known for the invention of the crossword puzzle in 1913. He created a page of puzzles for the "Fun" section of the Sunday edition of the New York World. For the December 21, 1913, edition, he introduced a puzzle with a diamond shape and a hollow center, the letters F-U-N already being filled in. He called it a "Word-Cross Puzzle."

Although Wynne's invention was based on earlier puzzle forms, such as the word diamond, he introduced a number of innovations, like the use of horizontal and vertical lines to create boxes for solvers to enter letters. He subsequently pioneered the use of black squares in a symmetrical arrangement to separate words in rows and columns. With the exception of the numbering scheme, the form of Wynne's "Word-Cross" puzzles is used for modern crosswords.

A few weeks after the first "Word-Cross" appeared, the name of the puzzle was changed to "Cross-Word" as a result of a typesetting error.Wynne's puzzles have been known as "crosswords" ever since.

Arthur Wynne became a naturalized US citizen in the 1920s.He died in Clearwater, Florida, on January 14, 1945.
On December 20, 2013, he was honored with an interactive Google Doodle commemorating the "100th anniversary of the first crossword puzzle" with a puzzle by Merl Reagle. Numerous other constructors also created tribute puzzles to Wynne to commemorate the anniversary.
Wikipedia

World Events

1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World.
1919 – American anarchist Emma Goldman is deported to Russia.
1923 – United Kingdom and Nepal formally signed an agreement of friendship, called the Nepal–Britain Treaty of 1923, which superseded the Sugauli Treaty signed in 1816.
1973 – The Geneva Conference on the Arab–Israeli conflict opens.
1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270.
1992 – A Dutch DC-10, flight Martinair MP 495, crashes at Faro Airport, killing 56.
1994 – Mexican volcano Popocatépetl, dormant for 47 years, erupts gases and ash.
1995 – The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control.
2004 – Iraq War: A suicide bomber killed 22 at the forward operating base next to the main U.S. military airfield at Mosul, Iraq, the single deadliest suicide attack on American soldiers.
2012 – The world was predicted to end on December 21, 2012 according to some calendars.
2012 – The Walt Disney Company completed its acquisition of Lucasfilm and of the Star Wars franchise.

Today in History December 19 - A Christmas Carol, a story of life transformation

December 19 is the 353rd day of the year. There are 12 days remaining until the end of the year.

Charles Dickens in 1842,
 the year before the publication
of A Christmas Carol

1843 – A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, a novella about the miser Ebenezer Scroogeand his transformation after being visited by three Christmas ghosts, was first published.
A Christmas Carol is a novella written by Charles Dickens. It was first published in London by Chapman & Hall on 19 December 1843. The novella was an instant success and a critical acclaim.

A Christmas Carol tells the story of a bitter old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation into a gentler, kindlier man after visitations by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Yet to Come.

First edition cover

Dickens divides the book into five chapters, which he labels "staves", that is, song stanzas or verses, in keeping with the title of the book.

Dickens' sources for the tale appear to be many and varied, but are, principally, the humiliating experiences of his childhood, his sympathy for the poor, and various Christmas stories and fairy tales.

Dickens' Carol was one of the greatest influences in rejuvenating the old Christmas traditions of England, but, while it brings to the reader images of light, joy, warmth and life, it also brings strong and unforgettable images of darkness, despair, coldness, sadness, and death Scrooge himself is the embodiment of winter, and, just as winter is followed by spring and the renewal of life, so too is Scrooge's cold, pinched heart restored to the innocent goodwill he had known in his childhood and youth.A Christmas Carol remains popular—having never been out of print and has been adapted many times to film, stage, opera, and other media.

Wikipedia

World Events

1907 – Two hundred thirty-nine coal miners die in a mine explosion in Jacobs Creek, Pennsylvania.
1924 – The last Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost is sold in London, England.
1983 – The original FIFA World Cup trophy, the Jules Rimet Trophy, is stolen from the headquarters of the Brazilian Football Confederation in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
1986 – Mikhail Gorbachev, leader of the Soviet Union, releases Andrei Sakharov and his wife from exile in Gorky.
1995 – The United States Government restores federal recognition to the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indian tribe.
1997 – SilkAir Flight 185 crashes into the Musi River, near Palembang in Indonesia, killing 104.
1998 – President Bill Clinton is impeached by the United States House of Representatives, becoming the second President of the United States to be impeached.
2000 – The Leninist Guerrilla Units wing of the Communist Labour Party of Turkey/Leninist attack a Nationalist Movement Party office in Istanbul, Turkey, killing one person and injuring three.
2001 – A record high barometric pressure of 1085.6 hPa (32.06 in Hg) is recorded at Tosontsengel, Khövsgöl, Mongolia.
2001 – Argentine economic crisis: December 2001 riots – Riots erupt in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
2012 – Park Geun-hye is elected the first female president of South Korea

Welcome to Christmas Island

Poon Saan in the evening

Christmas Island is actually the name of a territory in Australia, it is so named because it was discovered on Christmas day by Captain William Mynors of the Royal Mary, an English East India Company vessel, when he sailed past it on Christmas Day, in 1643.

The 2011 Australian census, estimated resident population on Christmas Island to be 2,072,, these population are spread out in three settlement areas, namely Flying Fish Cove (also known as Kampong), Silver City,Poon Saan, and Drumsite.

The majority of the population on Christmas Island is Chinese Australian who made up 70% of the populace followed by European, with 20% and Malay 10%. also, the religion of the people is predominantly Buddhism with about 75%, then Christianity 12%, Islam 10%, and other 3%.

Christmas Island is a non-self-governing territory of Australia, currently administered by the Department of Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government. Administration was carried out by the Attorney-General's Department until 14 September 2010, and prior to this by the Department of Transport and Regional Services before 29 November 2007. The legal system is under the authority of the Governor-General of Australia and Australian law. An administrator appointed by the Governor-General represents the monarch and Australia.

A unicameral Shire of Christmas Island with nine seats provides local government services and is elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. Elections are held every two years, with four or five of the members standing for election.

Christmas Island residents who are Australian citizens also vote in federal elections. The residents are represented in the House of Representatives through the Northern Territory Division of Lingiari and in the Senate by Northern Territory senators.

From the late 1980s and early 1990s, boats carrying asylum seekers, mainly departing from Indonesia, began landing on the island. In December 2010, 48 asylum-seekers died just off the coast of the island in what became known as the Christmas Island boat disaster when the boat they were on hit rocks off Flying Fish Cove, and then smashed against nearby cliffs

Shocking, “It is permissible to buy, sell or give as a gift female captives and slaves, for they are merely property.” says ISIS

People in Mosul, the Iraqi city now under control of the group calling itself the Islamic State , were handed a color-printed pamphlet titled “Question and Answers on Female Slaves and their Freedom,”

The pamphlet contained questions and answers on how non- Muslim girls and women captured as slaves should be treated and the militants have justified their actions to be in God’s name.
In the document, for instance, it is explained that capturing women is permissible if they are “non-believers.” It adds, “Female slaves are the women that Muslims took from their enemies.”

Much of the pamphlet talks about ISIS’ policy on having sexual intercourse with a female slave, something that the group cites the Quran to justify.

Can you take non-Muslim women and children captive? Yes, says ISIS, young and old, the captors have full control of their captives.

Can you have sex with them, even prepubescent girls? Yes, according to the extremist group. “It is permissible to have intercourse with the female slave who hasn’t reached puberty if she is fit for intercourse,” the document reads. “However, if she is not fit for intercourse, he (the owner) can only enjoy her without intercourse.”

Can you sell them or give them as gifts to others? The answer is yes, once again, the ISIS document claims, “It is permissible to buy, sell or give as a gift female captives and slaves, for they are merely property.”

“If she was a virgin, he (the owner) can have intercourse with her immediately after the ownership is fulfilled,” ISIS explains. “If she was not a virgin, her uterus must be purified (wait for her period to be sure she is not pregnant.)”

In this document, the group cites the Quran and the Sharia law as the basis of their rules, however, most Muslim leaders and the world continue to condemn ISIS and find its alien interpretation of Islam and Sharia law grotesque and abhorrent.

CNN

THE REASON FOR THIS SEASON

As some will argue, Christ was not born on 25^th December, probably, but the truth still stands; Christ was born. He was born on this earth and he was born for a reason, not for a season. The season is not as important as the reason, but today we value and give reverence to the season while relegating the reason of His birth to the background.

Most of our preparations for the commemoration of the birth of Christ are physical and never spiritual; it all boards on new dresses, new shoes, new cars, and new jewellery; in fact new everything to show off. Of course, the birth of Christ is actually a cause for celebration, because of the reason for His birth. However, it should be a celebration with a tint of sobriety, a reflection of where we are with Christ and a contemplation of what His birth stands for as well as what it meant to our lives as Christians.

What does it profit you after toiling all months only to squander it in this season? What is the gain of soiling your hands with evil and all manners of dubiousness just because you want to celebrate this season? If truly you understand the reason for this season, then you would not involve yourself in any unreasonable acts or actions just for the season.

The seasons of Christmas come and go, but the reasons for Christmas stand for eternity. Let your reason for celebrating Christmas stand above the season. The season is not about you, so do not adore yourself, your family with new apparel. It is a season of peace and goodwill that is the essence of His birth. Step out of the crowd, look beyond you and reach out to those in need of Christ, give love to the loveless, preach the gospel of peace not just with your mouth but with your acts and actions and spread goodwill to all men.

SEASON’S GREETINGS TO ALL.

Two youngsters attempt to rob a bank with toy guns

M-16 assault rifle

Two boys, age 12 and 13 years old entered a bank in Rishon Lezion a suburb of Tel Aviv, Israel, with fake M-16 assault rifles and made a bold attempt to rob the bank as they shouted, "This is a holdup"

Apparently their nerves failed them as they botched their attempt and run out of the bank without any money.

Security camera footage of the boys showed them entering the bank wearing hooded sweatshirts, one had a schoolbag on his back and the fake rifle on one hand.

According to a police spokes man, the youngster were identified with the help of the security camera and arrested later.

Today in History December 12 - Jomo Kenyatta, the founding father of Kenya

December 12 is the 346th day of the year. There are 19 days remaining until the end of the year.

Jomo Kenyatta, 1st President of Kenya

Jomo Kenyatta, 1st President of Kenya

Today's Highlight in History
1964 – Prime Minister Jomo Kenyatta becomes the first President of the Republic of Kenya.

Jomo Kenyatta was Kenya's leader from independence in 1963 untill his death in 1978. He was first a Prime Minister before, he was elected president of the Kenya African Union (KAU) In 1947. He is considered the founding father Kenyan.

Jomo Kenyatta was born Kamau wa Ngengi to parents Muigai wa Kung'u and Wambui in the village of Gatundu. After the death of both his parents, he lived with his grandfather and trained himself through school doing odd jobs. He worked as a houseboy and cook for a white settler to pay his school fees at a mission school.

When he completed his mission school education, he became an apprentice carpenter, before he went to work as a clerk for an Asian contractor, In 1922 Kamau began working, as a store clerk and water-meter reader for the Nairobi Municipal Council Public Works Department.

His love for education took him to London where he enrolled in University College London, he studied social anthropology under Bronisław Malinowski at the London School of Economics (LSE).

A statue of Kenyatta at the KICC in Nairobi

Kenyatta was a well-educated intellectual who authored several books, and is remembered as a Pan-Africanist. He is also the father of Kenya's fourth and current President, Uhuru Kenyatta.

President Kenyatta died in Mombasa of natural causes attributable to old age and was buried on 31 August 1978 in Nairobi in a state funeral at a mausoleum on Parliament grounds.

He had so many things named after him. Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi's main street and main streets in many Kenyan cities and towns, numerous schools, two universities (Kenyatta University and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology), the country's main referral hospital, markets and housing estates are named after him.

A statue in Nairobi city center and monuments all over Kenya stand in his honour. Kenya observed a public holiday every 20 October in his honour until the 2010 constitution abolished Kenyatta Day and replaced it with Mashujaa (Heroes') day. Kenyatta's face adorns Kenyan currency notes and coins of all denominations except the 40 shilling coin.

One of his famous words : “When the Missionaries arrived, the Africans had the land and the Missionaries had the Bible. They taught us how to pray with our eyes closed. When we opened them, they had the land and we had the Bible.”

Wikipedia

World Events

1870 – Joseph H. Rainey of South Carolina becomes the second black U.S. congressman, the first being Hiram Revels.
1897 – Belo Horizonte, the first planned city in Brazil, is founded.
1901 – Guglielmo Marconi receives the first transatlantic radio signal (the letter "S" [***] in Morse Code), at Signal Hill in St John's, Newfoundland.
1911 – Delhi replaces Calcutta as the capital of India.
1941 – Adolf Hitler declares the imminent extermination of the Jews at a meeting in the Reich Chancellery
1950 – Paula Ackerman, the first woman appointed to perform rabbinical functions in the United States, leads the congregation in her first services.
1958 – Guinea joins the United Nations.
1963 – Kenya gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1964 – Prime Minister Jomo Kenyatta becomes the first President of the Republic of Kenya.
1984 – Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya becomes the third president of Mauritania after a coup d'état against Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidalla while the latter is attending a summit.
1985 – Arrow Air Flight 1285, a McDonnell Douglas DC-8, crashes after takeoff in Gander, Newfoundland, killing all 256 people on board, including 236 members of the United States Army's 101st Airborne Division.
1988 – The Clapham Junction rail crash kills thirty-five and injures hundreds after two collisions of three commuter trains—one of the worst train crashes in the United Kingdom.
1991 – The Russian Federation gains independence from the USSR.
2000 – The United States Supreme Court releases its decision in Bush v. Gore.