Jots & Tittles: The ALS Icebucket Challenge, Etc.

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You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else.
--Albert Einstein

The ALS Association has the latest news regarding the ALS Icebucket Challenge.

But, Pamela Anderson, an actress who used to make a living submerged in water, is speaking out against the viral video campaign. Anderson, on Facebook denounced the way ALS researchers conduct their testing. "Sorry, I can't bring myself to do your ice bucket challenge," she wrote. "I enjoy a good dare; it's always good to bring awareness in fun, creative ways. I don't want to take away from that. I thought instead, I would challenge ALS to stop animal testing."

Anderson concluded with her own call to action, urging people to visit an organization that supports charities who -- according to her -- "never harm animals and which pour their time and resources into advanced, promising, human-relevant cures."

Yesterday I discovered (on Jeopardy) a new word... astrobleme, that I had never heard before. According to the dictionary, an astrobleme [as-truh-bleem] is an erosional scar on the earth's surface, produced by the impact of a cosmic body, as a meteorite or asteroid.

This Is An Astrobleme

Wikipedia says: The term 'impact structure' is closely related to the terms impact crater or meteorite impact crater, and is used in cases in which erosion or burial have destroyed or masked the original topographic feature with which we normally associate the term crater. This is the fate of almost all old impact craters on Earth, unlike the ancient pristine craters preserved on the Moon and other geologically inactive rocky bodies with old surfaces in the Solar System. Impact structure is synonymous with the less commonly used term 'astrobleme' meaning 'star wound.'

This Is Also An Astrobleme

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Did You Know . . .?

In 1982, the city of Kennesaw, Georgia passed an ordinance that requires every head of household residing in the city limits to own a firearm and ammunition.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

On this day in 1927, despite worldwide demonstrations in support of their innocence, Italian-born anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were executed for murder. On April 15, 1920, a paymaster for a shoe company in South Braintree, Massachusetts, was shot and killed along with his guard. The murderers, who were described as two Italian men, escaped with more than $15,000. After going to a garage to claim a car that police said was connected with the crime, Sacco and Vanzetti were arrested and charged with the crime. Both men carried guns and made false statements upon their arrest. On July 14, 1921, they were convicted and sentenced to die. On August 23, Sacco and Vanzetti were electrocuted.

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WORD FOR TODAY

puissance [PWIS-uhns, PYOO-i-suhns]
noun
1. Literary: power, might, or force.
2. Archaic: Great power, influence, or prowess.
2. Horse Training: a competition in showjumping that tests a horse's ability to jump a limited number of large obstacles.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

Jay Ferguson Cox Mohr

(born August 23, 1970)

Jay Mohr is an American actor and radio host. He is known for his role as Professor Rick Payne in the TV series Ghost Whisperer, the title role in the CBS sitcom Gary Unmarried, and as a featured player for two seasons on Saturday Night Live, and the back-stabbing sports agent Bob Sugar in Jerry Maguire. As of January 2, 2013, Mohr is the host of Jay Mohr Sports, a daily midday sports radio talk show on Fox Sports Radio.

Shelley Lee Long

(born August 23, 1949)

Shelley Long is an American actress, best known for her role as Diane Chambers in the sitcom Cheers. She also reprised her role as Diane Chambers in four episodes of the spinoff Frasier. She had a recurring role as DeDe Pritchett on the ABC comedy series Modern Family. Long has also starred in several films, notably Night Shift, Irreconcilable Differences, The Money Pit, Outrageous Fortune, Hello Again, Troop Beverly Hills, The Brady Bunch Movie, A Very Brady Sequel, and Dr. T & the Women.

Raymond "Ray" Park

(born August 23, 1974)

Ray Park is a British actor, stuntman and martial artist, best known for playing Darth Maul in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Toad in X-Men, Snake Eyes in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, and G.I. Joe: Retaliation, and Edgar on Heroes.

Barbara Eden

(born August 23, 1931

Barbara Eden is an American film, stage, and television actress and singer. She is best known for her starring role of "Jeannie" in the sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.

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Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.
--Albert Einstein

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