May 26 - The Birth of CRBC

On this day in history, in 1932, Parliament passed an Act establishing the publicly funded Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission, the forerunner of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation of 1936. Before the CRBC, virtually all programs available to Canadians were from the US.

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is one of the world's major public broadcasting organizations. It operated national radio and television networks in English and French, providing regional and local radio and television programming in both official languages. It broadcasts locally produced programs in English and native languages for people living in the far North, runs a multilingual shortwave service for listeners overseas, and provides closed captioning for the deaf.

CBC is funded primarily by federal statutory grants, totally about two-thirds of its budget, while also deriving revenues from commercial sponsorship, and the sale of programs to other countries. Though it is responsible to Parliament for its overall conduct, it is independent of government control in its day-to-day operations.

CBC was created in the midst of the Depression, and to this day seeks to provide Canadians with a broad range of high-quality indigenous information and entertainment programming. However, critics continue to lobby the government to abolish its funding of the Crown Corporation and level the playing field for all broadcasters.

In 2012, Stephen Harper's Conservative government cut the CBC's budget by 10%, an action which was met with both applause and condemnation from the Canadian public. While some regard it as an unnecessary use of public dollars and a distortion of the broadcast marketplace, others welcome its role as the only source of news and other information in the remote areas of Canada, as well as a major supporter of the arts.

What do you think about the role CBC plays in our lives as Canadians - past and present?

Today is also Shavuot and Trinity Sunday!

Here are some interesting things that happened on this day in history:

- Samuel de Champlain reached Tadoussac on the north shore of the St Lawrence River and set foot for the first time in New France in 1603.

- Alse Young became the first person executed as a witch in the American colonies, when she was hanged in Hartford, Connecticut in 1647.
- William Wood, the first native-born North American to achieve notable success in the theatre, was born at Montréal in 1779.
- Lewis & Clark 1st caught sight of the Rocky Mountains in 1805.
- Public meetings at St John's, Newfoundland, adopted resolutions in favour of responsible government in 1846.

- An Act was passed in 1874 introducing vote by secret ballot, simultaneous elections and the abolition of property qualifications for MPs.
- The HMS Challenger returned from a 128,000-km oceanographic exploration in 1876.
- During celebrations for Queen Victoria's birthday in 1896, a span of the bridge at Point Ellice in the harbour of Victoria, BC, fell out. A loaded streetcar fell with it and 55 people were killed, the worst streetcar accident in North American history.

- Also in 1896, Nicholas II, the Last Czar of Russia, was crowned.

- Sherlock Holmes began his "Adventure of 3 Gables" in 1903.
- Vauxhall Bridge was opened in London in 1906.
- Arthur Sifton became Premier of Alberta in 1910. He held together a divided party, and was considered an effective premier, a strong leader, and a skilled administrator.

- Emily Duncan became Great Britain's first woman magistrate in 1913.
- Belgium Jews were required by Nazis to wear a Jewish star in 1942.
- Novelist Aritha van Herk was born in Wetaskiwin, Alberta in 1954.
- Apollo 10 astronauts returned to Earth in 1969.
- In 1998, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Ellis Island, the historic gateway for millions of immigrants, was mainly in the state of New Jersey, not New York.
- The Mars Odyssey found signs of large ice deposits on the planet Mars in 2002.

Check out what happened last week in science:

Stay tuned for our next, "On This Day in History"!

May 25 - Geek Pride Day

Geek Pride Day is an initiative to promote geek culture, celebrated annually of the 25th of May. The date was chosen to commemorate the release of the first Star Wars Film, A New Hope, on May 25, 1977, though it also shares the date with Towel Day, for fans of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, and the "Glorious 25th of May", for fans of Discworld by Terry Pratchett.

Geek Pride Day originated in Spain in 2006 as "Dia del Orgullo Friki", and spread around the world via the Internet. In 2006, the Spanish blogger Germán Martinez organized the first celebration in Spain and on the Internet, drawing attention from mainstream media. The biggest concentration took place in Madrid, where 300 Geeks demonstrated their pride together with a human pacman. By 2009, acknowledgment of the day had reached the Science Channel, with special programming on May 25th to celebrate; events took place to commemorate the day in Ottawa, home to the Canada Science and Technology Museum, and a notable research centre in Canada. In 2010, the festival spread further, taking place in cities as diverse as Halifax, Budapest, Tel Aviv, Timisoara, and San Diego.

A manifesto was created to celebrate the first Geek Pride Day, which included a list of the basic rights and responsibilities of geeks.

The following video tells just how proud nerds/geeks are to be as such: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMweXVWB918

So get out there and celebrate Geek Pride Day! Be unironically excited about things!

Today is also National Missing Children's Day, National Tap Dance Day, Towel Day (as mentioned above), Julia Pierpont Day, and Amateur Radio Military Appreciation Day!

Here are some interesting things that happened on this day in history:

- Four Récollets from France arrived at Tadoussac with Champlain in 1615, only to quickly go their separate ways. The best-known Récollet, Gabriel Sagard, later published Le Grand Voyage du pays des Hurons, an indispensable source of knowledge of Huron customs and culture.
- John Merryman was arrested in 1861 under suspension of writ of habeas corpus; it later sparked a supreme court decision protecting writ.
- Irish Fenians raided Eccles Hill, Quebec in 1870.
- Oscar Wilde was sentenced to 2 years hard labor for "gross indecency" in 1895.

- Alain Grandbois, considered the first great modern Québec poet, was born in St-Casimir, Québec in 1900. Also in 1900, Malcolm Frederick Norris, Métis leader, was born in St. Albert, Alberta.
- Again in 1900, Eyre M. Shaw, 78, became the oldest gold medalist in Olympics history when he won gold for yachting.
- Babe Ruth received a 1-day suspension, and a fine of $200 for throwing dirt on an ump in 1922.
- Phyllis Gotlieb, world-class science fiction writer, was born in Toronto in 1926.

- Goofy, aka Dippy Dawg, 1st appeared in 'Mickey's Revue' by Walt Disney in 1932.
- Babe Ruth hit his last 3 home runs in 1935, when Boston Braves played the Pirates.
- A company of the Royal Canadian Regiment was sent to Koje-Do, Korea in 1952, and without bloodshed helped to reorganize part of the troubled camp and guard its prisoners.

- JFK set a goal of putting a man on Moon before the end of decade in 1961.
- The Supreme Court ruled closing schools to avoid desegregation unconstitutional in 1964.
- John Lennon took delivery of his psychedelic painted Rolls Royce in 1967.

- The Rolling Stones released "Jumping Jack Flash" in 1968.
- Star Wars Episode IV: a New Hope  was released in 1977 (as mentioned above).
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi was released in 1983. Also in 1983, the 1st National Missing Children's Day was proclaimed.
- Over 6 million Americans formed "Hands Across America" in 1986, from California to New York.

- Jay Leno became a permanent host of "Tonight Show" in 1992.
- In 1995, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Charter protects the rights of homosexuals against discrimination, though sexual orientation is not specifically mentioned in the Charter. Also in 1995, BC poet Lorna Crozier won the Pat Lowther Memorial Award for her poetry collection, Everything Arrives at the Light.
- And again in 1995, the Québec Nordiques were sold to Comsat Corporation for US $75 millions. The new team was moved to Denver, Colorado, and renamed the Avalanche. The new team won the Stanley Cup the following year.
- The body of a Canadian soldier killed in France was exhumed near Vimy Ridge and interred at the National War Memorial, Ottawa in 2000, in a ceremony memorializing the 28,000 Canadian soldiers who died in battle but whose bodies were never found.

- 32-year-old Erik Weihenmayer, of Boulder, Colorado, became the first blind person to reach the summit of Mount Everest in 2001.
- Oprah Winfrey aired her last show in 2011, ending her twenty five year run of The Oprah Winfrey Show.
- A SpaceX Dragon became the first commercial spacecraft to dock at the International Space Station in 2012.

Stay tuned for our next, "On This Day in History"!

May 24 - Heat Awareness Day

Heat causes more fatalities per year than floods, lightning, tornadoes, and hurricanes combined. On average from 2002 to 2011, excessive heat claimed an average of 119 lives per year, while in 2011 there were 206 heat-related deaths.

North American summers are hot, as we all know. East of the Rockies, they tend to combine both high temperature and high humidity, although some of the worst heat waves have been catastrophically dry.

We are thankful for the rain that has finally come, and hope it sticks around for a while!

Remember, our summers are short, but very hot! Wear sunscreen and hats, and stay hydrated! Most importantly, remember how hot vehicles can get in the sun - don't leave children or pets alone in a vehicle, even if you think you'll only be gone a minute. You never know what might happen!

Today is also Brother's Day, Don't Fry Day (coinciding with Heat Awareness Day), International Tiara Day, Morse Code Day, and National Wig Out Day!

Here are some interesting things that happened on this day in history:

- The future Queen Victoria was born in Kensington Palace, London in 1819.

 - The Pottawatomie Massacre occurred the during the night of May 24th and morning of May 25th, 1856, when John Brown and a group of abolitionist settlers killed five settlers north of Pottawatomie Creek in Franklin County, Kansas, in reaction to the sacking of Lawrence (Kansas) by pro-slavery forces.
- The first documented match of "football" (soccer) was introduced to mainland BC by the Royal Engineers stationed at New Westminster in 1862.
- The Canadian ferry, Princess Victoria, sank near London Ontario in 1881, killing 200.
- The first Victoria Day was observed throughout Canada in 1902. Prime Minister  Wilfrid Laurier designated the holiday to fall on the birthday of Queen Victoria.

- The Canada Elections Act first enfranchised all Canadian women over the age of 21 for federal elections in 1918.
- Prohibition ended in Alberta when the Alberta Liquor Act was amended in 1924. Albertans had chosen to have the liquor trade controlled by the government.
- Marian Engel, first chair of the Writers' Union of Canada, was born in Toronto in 1933.
- With the completion of construction of the Lethbridge Herald Building, the most modern newspaper facility in Western Canada opened in 1952, replacing the old facility that had stood for 42 years.

- A lethal strain of E. Coli bacterium killed a child and 3 adults in Walkerton, Ontario in 2000. By June 1, 5 more had died and 1000 had been made ill from the tainted drinking water.

Stay tuned for our next, "On This Day in History"!

Greatest Books of All Time Week 17

Greatest Books of All Time
Week 17

100 Greatest Books
of All Time.

What is your favourite book of all time? Cast your vote by commenting here at the bottom of this post, posting a note on our facebook page or adding it to our in-house ballot box.

Each Friday we will tabulate the votes and post them on our
Facebook, Twitter and Blog accounts.

One vote per visit please.

The final Top 100 will be announced at the end of December.

 

The Stand by Stephen King
is still in the lead with eight votes.

 

This week's nominees: 

 

Lord of the Flies 

 

 Ordinary People

 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 

 

 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

 The Outsiders

 Little House in the Big Woods

 

 

Each Friday we will tabulate the votes and post them on our
Facebook, Twitter and Blog accounts.

One vote per visit please.

The final Top 100 will be announced at the end of December.

 

 

 

 

May 23 - World Turtle Day

World Turtle Day has been sponsored yearly since 2000 by American Tortoise Rescue, to bring attention to, and increase knowledge of and respect for, turtles and tortoises; to encourage human action to help them survive and thrive.

World Turtle Day is celebrated worldwide in a variety of ways, from dressing up as turtles, or wearing green summer dresses, to saving turtles caught on highways, to research activities. In schools, World Turtle Day lessons plans and craft projects encourage the children to learn more about the plight of these creatures.

This is how YOU can help save turtles and tortoises for the next generation:

- Do not take home a wild turtle as a pet. Instead, purchase a captive bred animal from a reputable store or breeder. Never remove turtles or tortoises from the wild unless they are sick or injured.
- Never release a pet turtle into the wild. They may not have the nutrients needed to survive the cold winter, or they may not be native to the area they are being released in, and therefore should not interbreed with wild turtles.
- Join a local Turtle and Tortoise club to learn more.
- If a tortoise is crossing a busy street, pick it up and take it in the same direction it was going - if you try to make it go back, it will turn right around again!
- Help keep beaches and other natural habitats clean. Never leave trash, and pick up garbage left by others if you see it.
- Write letters to legislators asking them to keep sensitive habitat preserved or closed off to road vehicles, and to prevent offshore drilling that can lead to more endangered sea turtle deaths.

In 2013, over 160 free Turtle Day Lesson Plans and teaching materials were sent out to classrooms for use with over 5500 students. Lesson plans were provided by the Turtle and Tortoise Preservation Group, an organization that is open to all people interested in the welfare of chelonians (learn a new word today, too!).

Today is also Declaration of the Bab Day, National Taffy Day, and World Crohn's and Colitis Day.

Here are some interesting things that happened on this day in history:

- Champlain returned to Québec and began to rebuild the Habitation from its ruins and to build the church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Recouvrance in 1633.

- After being convicted of piracy and of murdering William Moore, Captain William Kidd was hanged in London. in 1701.

- The Jesse James Gang robbed a bank in Richmond, Missouri in 1867, at the cost of $4000 and 2 lives lost.
- An Act of Parliament authorized the creation of the North-West Mounted Police in 1873; the prefix Royal was added 1904.

- The Ottawa Mint Act received Royal Assent in 1901.
- The ship Komagata Maru arrived at Vancouver in 1914 with 376 Sikh immigrants aboard. They were not allowed to land and the ship was forced out of Vancouver on July 23.

- Walt Disney incorporated his 1st film company, Laugh-O-Gram Films, in 1922.
- Singer Pauline Julien was born in Trois-Rivières, Québec in 1928.
- Longtime Social Credit premier of Alberta William Aberhart died in Vancouver in 1943. He was succeeded by Ernest Manning.
- BBC ordered 13 episodes of Monty Python's Flying Circus in 1969.

- New Brunswick became the first province to draft statutes in both official languages in 1974.
- Also in 1974, American singer-songwriter "Jewel" Kilcher was born in Payson, Utah.
- Tsutae Sato died in Vancouver in 1983, at the age of 92. He arrived in Canada in 1917 to teach at the Japanese Citizens School. He and his wife established scholarships in Japanese studies at UBC. In 1978, Sato was awarded the Order of Canada.
- Star Trek: The Next Generation finale aired in syndication in 1994.

- In 1995, an Edmonton judge acquitted Marilyn Tan of charges that she had injected her former lover Conrad Boland with HIV-infected blood. 
- Alberta-born professional wrestler Owen Hart fell 15 m to his death during a performance in Kansas City in 1999. His wife brought a suit against the wrestling federation for endangering Hart's life in pursuit of TV ratings.

Stay tuned for our next, "On This Day in History"!

May 22 - International Day for Biological Diversity

The United Nations proclaimed May 22nd to be the International Day for Biological Diversity, to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. When it was initially created by the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly in 1993, December 29th was chosen as the date for the annual event, in recognition of the date of entry into force of the Convention of Biological Diversity.

In December of 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted May 22nd as the new date, to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on May 22, 1992 by the Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Adoption of the Agreed Text of the Convention on Biological Diversity (say that 10 times fast!). The change of date was partially decided by the fact that it was difficult for many countries to plan and carry out suitable celebrations for the 29th of December, given the number of holidays that coincide around the time of year.

The theme for the International Day for Biological Diversity changes every year. This year's theme is Water and Biodiversity.

Water and Biodiversity was changes to coincide with the United Nations designation of 2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation. This provides Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the public at large the opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of preserving water, and our environment. No living being on Earth can survive without water.

Today is also Canadian Immigrants Day, National Maritime Day, and World Goth Day!

Here are some interesting things that happened on this day in history:

- The 14th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet occurred in 760.
- The first Jesuits to arrive in New France, Pierre Biard and Ennemond Massé, arrived in Port-Royal on May 22, 1611.
- The cornerstone of Dalhousie University was laid in Halifax in 1820.

- The greatest known flood of the Red River in Manitoba destroyed the Red River Colony in 1826. The water crested on May 22, two and a half weeks after the flood began.
- In Verdun, Québec in 1838, lawyer Robert Sweeny shot and killed Maj Henry Warde, who had sent a love letter to Mrs. Sweeny, in the last fatal duel recorded in Canada.
- Farmers Lester Howe and Henry Wetsel discovered the Howe Caverns when they stumbled upon a large gaping hole in the ground in 1842.
- In 1867, a royal proclamation declared that the Dominion of Canada would come into existence on July 1.
- Leroy Buffington patented a system to build skyscrapers in 1888.

- Dr Washington Sheffield invented a toothpaste tube in 1892.
- The Wright Brothers patented an aeroplane in 1906.
- In 1919, the Parliament of Canada passed a resolution preventing Canadian citizens from receiving titles or honours from foreign governments.
- World Trade Day/National Maritime Day was 1st celebrated in 1933.
- The South Africa government approved race separation in universities in 1957.
- The 1st revolving restaurant, Top Of The Needle in Seattle, opened in 1961.

- The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced the introduction of 50% Canadian program content requirements for radio and television, effective in September 1970 for the CBC and September 1971 for the private sector.
- The Vancouver Canucks joined the NHL in 1970.

- Ontario Place opened on the Toronto lakeshore in 1971.

- The Canadian government suspended shipments of all nuclear equipment and materials to India in 1974, after India's detonation of a nuclear device.
- Rick Hansen arrived back in Vancouver in 1987 after his "Man In Motion" world tour in a wheelchair. The trip covered 40 000 km and raised $20 million for spinal cord research.

- Johnny Carson has his final appearance as host of the Tonight Show in 1992.
- Kelly Flinn, US Air Force's first female bomber pilot certified for combat, accepted a general discharge in order to avoid a court martial in 1997, after an adulterous affair with the husband of an enlisted subordinate.
- Catriona LeMay Doan, one of Canada's greatest Olympic athletes, announced that she was retiring from skating in 2003. She won two Olympic gold medals (500 metres) and a bronze (1000 metres), won several world championships and set numerous world records.

Stay tuned for our next, "On This Day in History"!