The earliest maps of Wapokoneta OH, Neil Armstrong’s home town, spell its name as Waughpaughkonnetta. The word means possibly the name of a Shawnee Indian Nation leader, or possibly “white garment” or “white cloth”, likely reflecting the community’s status as a neutral and peaceful location after the Treaty of Greenville (1795). This treaty was between the US and an Indian confederation headed by Miami chief Little Turtle by which the Indians ceded most of the future state of Ohio and significant portions of what would become the states of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan.
Originally, in English, the turtle was a bird, named after its call. After the Norman Invasion, the French word for the shelled reptile was “tortue.” This evolved by folk etymology to “turtle” (and “tortoise”).
To differentiated the bird, it was called a turtle dove.
Tortuga Island lies just off the northwest coast of the island of Hispanola, and is now a part of the country of Haiti. It received its name from Christopher Columbus, who encountered the island during his 1492 voyage to the New World; Columbus felt that the shape of the island reminded him of a turtle.
During the 17th Century, Tortuga often served as a haven for pirates – as a result, the island has regularly appeared in books and films about Caribbean piracy.
Modern piracy is still practiced in such places, according to Wiki, as the Gulf of Guinea, Strait of Malacca, Sulu and Celebes Seas, Indian Ocean, and Falcon Lake on the U.S.-Mexican border.
The guinea pig (which is not a pig, but generally considered a rodent) has long been raised for food by the people of the Andes, particularly in Peru. Known as cuy, the meat is considered a delicacy, and is usually cooked whole, either grilled or deep fried.
The Cerro Blanco sand dune in Peru, also known as Duna Grande, is one of the tallest dunes in the world. It stands almost 4,000 feet over the Sechura Desert.
And Lake Titicaca, between Bolivia and Peru, is the world’s highest navigable body of water. Its elevation is 12,500’ ASL.
Cusco Cathedral in Peru has a painting of the Last Supper dating back to 1753 that shows indigenous Quechua influences. The main dish on the table is a whole guinea pig, and the drink is chicha, a traditional Peruvian corn drink.
In Patrick O’Brian’s Napoleonic sea adventure novel The Wine-Dark Sea, Dr. Stephen Maturin, ship’s surgeon of His Majesty’s Hired Vessel Surprise, quietly complains during an extended visit to early 1800s Peru about being served cooked guinea pig (cuy) too often at meals.
For more on the dish: Guinea pig - Wikipedia
The term “guinea pig” is often used to describe the subject of a test or experiment; it came about as the result of actual guinea pigs being frequently used in medical research in the 19th and 20th centuries (though, in the latter part of the 20th century, guinea pigs were largely replaced in such testing by mice and rats).
“Lab rats” is another term for an experimental subject. While rats are used for research in psychology and biomedical science, lab mice are the most commonly used mammalian research model.
Mice have been used in biomedical research since the 17th Century (from May 30, 1678) when William Harvey used them for his studies on reproduction and blood circulation and Robert Hooke used them to investigate the biological consequences of an increase in air pressure.
The first rat colony in America used for nutrition research was in 1908. Rats have been used in cancer research for many decades.
However lab rats are more important in research than lab mice are, as measured by the amount of literature on them – roughly 50% more than that on lab mice.
The most commonly used strain of laboratory rat is the Norway brown rat (Rattus norvegicus domestica) and an albino version of this species, commonly known as the albino Wistar rat, which is named for the research facility at the University of Pennsylvania where it was first developed It is believed that over half of the albino rats used in research today are descendants of that original colony.
-“BB”-
Former MLB right handed pitcher Mike Boddicker won a World Series championship with the 1983 Baltimore Orioles. Boddicker hails from Norway, Iowa.
In 1954, American League umpire Frank Umont became the first major league umpire to wear glasses while officiating.
Before 1859, baseball umpires sat in rocking chairs behind home plate.
Ron Luciano was an American League umpire from 1969 through 1979; he became well-known to fans for his flamboyant style, and his long-running feud with Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver.
After retiring from umpiring, Luciano wrote several books, and was a television announcer for two years. He also auditioned for the role of “Coach” on the TV sitcom Cheers, but the show’s producers wanted an experienced actor for the role.
Ron Luciano authored five books after retiring from umpiring. Two of the books were entitled The Umpire Strikes Back and The Fall of the Roman Umpire. He was also a popular speaker on the banquet circuit.
Luciano died in 1995 at the age of 57, a victim of suicide. After his death, it was revealed that he had suffered from depression for many years.
The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives is not actually required to be a member of the House, but all of those chosen by their peers to date - Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, is the 52nd and current Speaker - have been.
Despite the traditional American two-party system, there has been one coalition House of Representatives. During the 34th Congress, the American (Know-Nothing) Party held just over 22% of the seats, but they received the support of non-Democrats that also opposed slavery to get Nathanial Banks elected Speaker of the House.
Actor John Banner was born Johann Banner, in Austria-Hungary. Banner was performing with an acting troupe in Switzerland when Nazi Germany annexed Austria, and he emigrated to the United States.
Banner became best-known to American audiences for portraying the inept-but-happy Sergeant Schultz in the situation comedy Hogan’s Heroes; Schultz, who tried to stay out of trouble at all times, used the phrase, “I see nothing! I know nothing!”, when he’d discover the POWs’ illegal and espionage activities.
“Hogan and Hilda, together forever” is on the tombstone of Bob Crane (Robert Hogan) and Sigrid Valdis. Sigrid Valdis played Hilda on Hogan’s Heroes. They were married.