All tagged History
“I've been a "citizen scientist" for the Community Collective Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) for about four years now, with about 900 reports sent in from every time of year and sort of weather. I cannot say enough about how good it feels to help collect relevant climate data. Just before the summer solstice recently, CoCoRaHS, a volunteer organization, celebrated its 25th anniversary. My, how time flies.”
“In the early 1900s, the railroad leading to the coastal settlement of Luderitz in German South West Africa… was perpetually assaulted by the sands of the Namib Desert. Workers constantly had to shovel sand drifts off the rails. In April, 1908, a Black railroad worker named Zacharias Lewala found a perfectly clear stone… It was the first of the diamonds which would within four short years become millions of carats of harvested there annually.”
“With my attention on the long walk we had ahead, I entered Lisboa, as the locals call it, a bit haphazardly… My delightful but too-brief introduction to this captivating city will surely draw me back someday. Situated on seven hills (as so many famous cities are), Lisboa is chock full of interesting history, beautiful sights, and welcoming people.”
“For ages, many people have grown up wishing to become a firefighter or police officer… Then there’s EMS. Emergency Medical Services. EMTs. MFRs. Paramedics. Medics. Ambulances. Rescue. What? Who or what are all these things? The general public is understandably confused by the jumble of EMS terms.”
“Midway through our 70 miles on the Cotswold Way, our party took an entire day off… leaving us with an entire day in the delightful town of Wotton-Under-Edge!”
“Our journey was to the Elafitski Otici… a small archipelago of 13 islands in the Adriatic Sea that protects Croatia…”
“My original interest in visiting the tiny Pacific nation was driven in large part by curiosity about my father’s service in WWII.“
“It was exceedingly dignified, and calm, and respectful, and deep. I stood there on the lower plaza, alone in the misty cold day.”
“Of the many places I have visited, Egypt is among the most complex and sometimes overwhelming.”
“It’s the “lost city of the Incas” which, as with the city of Sleeping Beauty, was covered by dense vegetation for centuries before being rediscovered.”
“What I learned was that, although I’d been thinking “I’m going to Machu Picchu” for months, I actually fell in love with the larger context of Peru.”
