Grover Cleveland's Rubber Jaw and Other Unusual, Unexpected, Unbelievable but All-True Facts About America's Presidents

Grover Cleveland's Rubber Jaw and Other Unusual, Unexpected, Unbelievable but All-True Facts About America's Presidents PDF Author: Stephen Spignesi
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101585021
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 187

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Book Description
From George Washington to Barack Obama, this collection of weird and wild—but true!—facts will show you a whole other side of our nation’s leaders: • Andrew Jackson was married to a bigamist. • Martin Van Buren wore pistols in the Senate chamber in case things got too rowdy. • Franklin Pierce ran over a woman with his horse while in office and was arrested, but was released when the police realized he was the president. • James Garfield could simultaneously write Greek with one hand and Latin with the other. • Dwight D. Eisenhower’s nickname for his staff driver was “Private Parts.” • Barack Obama can bench press 200 pounds.

Grover Cleveland's Rubber Jaw and Other Unusual, Unexpected, Unbelievable but All-True Facts About America's Presidents

Grover Cleveland's Rubber Jaw and Other Unusual, Unexpected, Unbelievable but All-True Facts About America's Presidents PDF Author: Stephen Spignesi
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101585021
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 187

Get Book Here

Book Description
From George Washington to Barack Obama, this collection of weird and wild—but true!—facts will show you a whole other side of our nation’s leaders: • Andrew Jackson was married to a bigamist. • Martin Van Buren wore pistols in the Senate chamber in case things got too rowdy. • Franklin Pierce ran over a woman with his horse while in office and was arrested, but was released when the police realized he was the president. • James Garfield could simultaneously write Greek with one hand and Latin with the other. • Dwight D. Eisenhower’s nickname for his staff driver was “Private Parts.” • Barack Obama can bench press 200 pounds.

Grover Cleveland's Rubber Jaw and Other Unusual, Unexpected, Unbelievable but Al

Grover Cleveland's Rubber Jaw and Other Unusual, Unexpected, Unbelievable but Al PDF Author: Stephen Spignesi
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 0399537430
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
From George Washington to Barack Obama, this collection of weird and wild—but true!—facts will show you a whole other side of our nation’s leaders: • Andrew Jackson was married to a bigamist. • Martin Van Buren wore pistols in the Senate chamber in case things got too rowdy. • Franklin Pierce ran over a woman with his horse while in office and was arrested, but was released when the police realized he was the president. • James Garfield could simultaneously write Greek with one hand and Latin with the other. • Dwight D. Eisenhower’s nickname for his staff driver was “Private Parts.” • Barack Obama can bench press 200 pounds.

Tell Me Who You Are

Tell Me Who You Are PDF Author: Winona Guo
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 059333017X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 401

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Book Description
An eye-opening exploration of race in America In this deeply inspiring book, Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi recount their experiences talking to people from all walks of life about race and identity on a cross-country tour of America. Spurred by the realization that they had nearly completed high school without hearing any substantive discussion about racism in school, the two young women deferred college admission for a year to collect first-person accounts of how racism plays out in this country every day--and often in unexpected ways. In Tell Me Who You Are, Guo and Vulchi reveal the lines that separate us based on race or other perceived differences and how telling our stories--and listening deeply to the stories of others--are the first and most crucial steps we can take towards negating racial inequity in our culture. Featuring interviews with over 150 Americans accompanied by their photographs, this intimate toolkit also offers a deep examination of the seeds of racism and strategies for effecting change. This groundbreaking book will inspire readers to join Guo and Vulchi in imagining an America in which we can fully understand and appreciate who we are.

Bubble Gum and Hula Hoops

Bubble Gum and Hula Hoops PDF Author: Harry Oliver
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101171243
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
The fascinating and funny origins of everyday objects-bliss for history hounds, language lovers and trivia buffs. In this delightful volume, Harry Oliver reveals the most unusual and unexpected stories behind the household necessities, toys, common objects, technological advances, and everyday items we all take for granted. Who hasn't wondered: ?Whether Thomas Crapper really invented the toilet ?What accident led to the invention of the microwave ?Why it took nearly twenty years for someone to finally decide to slice bread ?How laziness resulted in the invention of the dishwasher ?Which discovery made the milkshake possible ?Which king's fancy for his mistress inspired the first elevator

Man vs. Weather

Man vs. Weather PDF Author: Dennis Diclaudio
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 9780143113638
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
A humorous and practical guide to the history and science of understanding the weather, including how to build your own barometer! For as long as man has walked upon this earth, he has been forced to survive under the cruel tyranny of weather. Let's face it: there is no escape. Now, in Man vs. Weather, humorist Dennis DiClaudio offers up the knowledge to beat weather at its own game. Rooting through conventional wisdom, discovered gadgetry, and the advances of science, this book presents the geothermal mechanisms behind weather-related phenomena, the history of humanity's relationship with the climate, as well as the truth surrounding atmospheric aphorisms. Have no fear: By the time you make your way through this book, you will be able to read, understand, and defend yourself against the elements! Is "Red sky at night, sailor's delight" a helpful saying or just the ramblings of idiotic drunkards who like to rhyme? What are these Santa Ana winds that blow out warmly from the desert, and who is the seductress for which they are named? What is this Gulf Stream that flows out from Mexico before crossing the Atlantic toward Africa and Europe, and how can a stream cut through the ocean anyway?

Something for Nothing

Something for Nothing PDF Author: Jackson Lears
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101200375
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 409

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Book Description
Jackson Lears has won accolades for his skill in identifying the rich and unexpected layers of meaning beneath the familiar and mundane in our lives. Now, he challenges the conventional wisdom that the Protestant ethic of perseverance, industry, and disciplined achievement is what made America great. Turning to the deep, seldom acknowledged reverence for luck that runs through our entire history from colonial times to the early twenty-first century, Lears traces how luck, chance, and gambling have shaped and, at times, defined our national character.

Uses of Disorder

Uses of Disorder PDF Author: Richard Sennett
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN: 0307826082
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 189

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Book Description
The excitement of the brilliantly innovative book is that it challenges the reader to revise his concept of order—and to consider the seemingly disparate problems of the individual personality and the urban society in the light of a fresh, unified framework that has the shock of new truth. Drawing on recent ideas in psychology, sociology, and urban history, Sennett shows how the excessively “ordered” community freezes adults—both the fierce young idealists and their security-oriented parents—into rigid attitudes that originate in adolescence and stifle further personal growth. He explains how the accepted ideal of order generates patterns of behavior among the urban middle cases that are stultifying, narrow, and violence-prone. He demonstrates that most city planning has been conducted with the same rigidity, and shows, in specific and human terms, why that approach has not solved and cannot solve our cities problems. The Uses of Disorder is not only a critique of the ways in which the affluent city has failed as a place where the individual—even the affluent individual—can grow. It is also an exploration of new modes of urban organization through which city life can become richer and more life-affirming. The author proposes and projects in concrete terms (including a new use of the police) a functioning city that can incorporate anarchy, diversity, and creative disorder to bring into being adults who can openly respond to and dealt with the challenges of life. Thus, Richard Sennett, more aware of the nature of human nature than most Utopians of the past, sees progress in the creation of new urban relationships that will protect, not stability, but diversity and change. Out of his books, with its free and imaginative insights grounded in a strong sense of present-day realities, emerges the vision of a fully affluent and libertarian society—an arena that will welcome a rich variety of individuals, and accept the conflict that stem from such variety as not merely inevitable but life-giving.

The Discoveries

The Discoveries PDF Author: Alan Lightman
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307369862
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 820

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Book Description
An extraordinarily accessible, illuminating chronicle of the great moments of scientific discovery in the 20th century, and an exploration into the minds of the remarkable men and women behind them. We know and read the literary masterpieces; how many of us have had the opportunity not only to read but understand the masterpieces of science that describe the very moment of discovery? The last century has seen an explosion of creativity and insight that led to breakthroughs in every field of science: from the theory of relativity to the first quantum model of the atom to the mapping of the structure of DNA, these discoveries profoundly changed how we understand the world and our place in it. Alan Lightman tells the stories of two dozen breakthroughs made by such brilliant scientists as Einstein, Bohr, McClintock and Pauling, among others, drawing on his unique background as a scientist and novelist to reveal the process of scientific discovery at its greatest. He outlines the intellectual and emotional landscape of each discovery, portrays the personalities and human drama of the scientists involved, and explains the significance and impact of the work. Finally, he gives an unprecedented and exhilarating guided tour through each of the original papers.

The Magick of Birthdays

The Magick of Birthdays PDF Author: Hannah Hawthorn
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0593538544
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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Book Description
Celebrate your special day—and yourself—with simple rituals in this modern guide to ancient spiritual traditions. Your birthday is the ultimate moment to celebrate, honor, and reflect on who you truly are. This practical companion is a modern-day grimoire filled with rituals, spells, and other simple practices for making the most of your solar return. Practices include simple spell craft, candle magick, solar work, astrology and numerology, kitchen witchcraft, recipes for specific intentions, and more. Reflect on the past year, let go of what you don’t need, and move into your new year with clarity, purpose, and a touch of self-care magick. Blow out the candles in a whole new way this birthday and beyond.

The Uses of Disorder

The Uses of Disorder PDF Author: Richard Sennett
Publisher: Verso Books
ISBN: 1839764082
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 225

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Book Description
Reissue of the classic text on how cities should be planned When first published in 1970, The Uses of Disorder, was a call to arms against the deadening hand of modernist urban planning upon the thriving chaotic city. Written in the aftermath of the 1968 student uprising in the US and Europe, it demands a reimagination of the city and how class, city life and identity combine. Too often, this leads to divisions, such as the middle class flight to the suburbs, leaving the inner cities in desperate straits. In response, Sennett offers an alternative image of a "dense, disorderly, overwhelming cities" that allow for change and the development of community. Fifty years later this book is as essential as it was when it first came out, and remains an inspiration to architects, planners and urban thinkers everywhere.