Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” ( /ˌsuːpərˌkælɨˌfrædʒɨˌlɪstɪkˌɛkspiːˌælɨˈdoʊʃəs/) is a song from the 1964 Disney musical film Mary Poppins. The song was written by the Sherman Brothers, and sung by Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. It also appears in the stage show version. Since Mary Poppins was a period piece set in 1910, period-sounding songs were wanted. “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” sounds […]

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Longtime “60 Minutes” Journalist Mike Wallace Dies

On this day in 2012, broadcast journalist Mike Wallace, a full-time correspondent for the pioneering TV newsmagazine “60 Minutes” from its debut in 1968 until 2006, dies at age 93 in New Canaan, Connecticut. During his career, Wallace interviewed everyone from world leaders to Hollywood celebrities to scam artists, and was well-known for his hard-nosed […]

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Why We Have Daylight Saving Time

Conceived by Benjamin Franklin and panned by Native American proverbs, daylight saving time, or DST, has been a constant topic of debate. Nearly 100 years ago, it was created for practicality, but it has created astonishing confusion along the way. Implemented to save energy costs and be a boon to the economy, many argue it […]

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The History of Leap Year

Leap years are years with 366 days, instead of the usual 365. Leap years are necessary because the actual length of a year is 365.242 days, not 365 days, as commonly stated. Basically, leap years occur every 4 years, and years that are evenly divisible by 4 (2004, for example) have 366 days. This extra […]

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Wedding Anniversary Names

What is a Wedding Anniversary? A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date a wedding took place. On a wedding anniversary in many countries it is traditional to give a gift to your partner (or couples) that symbolize the number of years of marriage. The names of some wedding anniversaries provide guidance for appropriate […]

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Text Messaging

Text messaging, or texting, refers to the exchange of brief written text messages between fixed-line phone or mobile phone and fixed or portable devices over a network. While the original term (see below) was derived from referring to messages sent using the Short Message Service (SMS) originated from Radio Telegraphy, it has since been extended […]

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Valentine’s Day

Saint Valentine’s Day, commonly shortened to Valentine’s Day, is a holiday observed on February 14 honoring one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine. It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as “valentines“). The day first became […]

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Husband Of Missing Utah Woman Kills Self And Two Young Sons

On this day in 2012, 36-year-old Josh Powell, who had been in the public eye since police labeled him a person of interest in the 2009 disappearance of his 28-year-old wife, Susan, locks out a social worker then kills himself and his two sons, ages 5 and 7, by setting fire to his Graham, Washington, […]

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Lantern Festival

The Lantern Festival (also known as the Yuanxiao Festival or Shangyuan Festival in China; Chap Goh Meh Festival in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore; Yuen Siu Festival in Hong Kong, and “Tết Thượng Nguyên” or “Tết Nguyên Tiêu” in Vietnam); is a festival celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month in the lunisolar year […]

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