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How cold was it when Niagara Falls froze in 1932?

The illusion of the falls being frozen used to be such a common tourist attraction that people were allowed to walk out onto the frozen river until the ice broke beneath tourists in 1912 and three people died.

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What are some inventions of Rene Descartes?

Part of the Cartesian Plane theory is the Cartesian coordinate system, a three-dimensional coordinate system. The modern Cartesian coordinate system is often simplified to a two-dimensional system with a horizontal line called the x-axis and a vertical line called the y-axis. The lines are labelled and intersect at the origin point at zero. The location of points between the x- and y-axes are determined by reading the numbers on both axes.\nRene Descartes lived during the 1600s. He started his education at the age of eight, in the Jesuit College in France. Despite frequent ill health, Descarte..

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How did Confucianism spread?

Confucianism is less of a religion and more of a philosophy. However, because of its somewhat religious following, it is often confused for a religion. Confucian ideals are ingrained in many Far East cultures, primarily Chinese. The founder of Confucianism was Kung Fu Tzu, but he was never considered to be a deity among his followers. Much of the philosophy of Confucianism revolves around relationships, specifically familial relationships. It directs ideal behaviors between the person on top and the person on the bottom. It generally dictates that the person in a superior position, such as a r..

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How many people did Joseph Stalin kill?

Stalin's goal was to move the Soviet Union to the top of industrialized nations. An early step was for the government to seize control of the agriculture business. Farmers who objected were killed or banished. This government takeover resulted in a devastating famine. As a result of Stalin's farm policy, millions died. The secret police sought out people who opposed Stalin's rule, and millions more were killed or sent to prison camps. During World War II, Stalin initially sided with Germany but later supported the Allied troops. After the war, Stalin continued to single out and ..

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What were the main causes of the Cold War?

While the Cold War can be attributed to certain causes, the tensions between leaders before 1945 had a part to play in increasing the suspicions of the USSR and the West. Josef Stalin, as head of the USSR, refused to join the United Nations for several years. He was also upset about the delaying of D-Day as he believed it was a plot to allow the Soviet Union more casualties. During the 1943 Tehran Conference, Stalin and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill clashed regarding the control Stalin had on eastern European countries.Germany became a point of contention after the war, with Berlin ..

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What are some interesting facts about ziggurats?

The base of most ziggurats consisted of a square shape with two to seven levels or sets of steps. The higher up the level or set of steps, the more narrow the structure became. The ziggurat once located in Babylon, the largest with recorded dimensions, had a base measuring 300 by 300 feet and rose 300 feet into the air.\nEach city worshipped a different god as its main god. A city's ziggurat symbolized that god and offered a place of worship. A temple dedicated to the god sat at the top of the structure. In these temples, priests and holy men performed rituals and sacrifices. The people o..

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What are some facts for kids about the American flag?

In 1794, the flag received two new stars, which indicated that Vermont and Kentucky joined the United States. The pattern continued, and July 4 was designated as the official day to add a star for each new state admitted within that year. Although more stars appeared on the blue background, the number of stars and stripes remained fixed at 13 to honor the original colonies.After a victorious battle at Fort McHenry, the site of the American flag inspired a famous American poem titled "Star-Spangled Banner," authored by Francis Scott Key. In addition to aesthetic appeal, the flag also has a rich..

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What type of government did the Incas have?

The Inca government had an emperor who lived in the capital along with a ruling class. There were four parts to the empire, and each part had additional provinces. The provinces had officials who answered to the emperor. The government was highly socialist. Peasants worked for the government, and the government made sure that had everything they needed to live, because no money existed. When a commoner got sick or got too old to work, the government provided for them.

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What are some facts about Indian stone axes?

Most Native American stone axes were similar in form and function to the axes and hatchets used today. They were simply pieces of stone that were sharp on one end and dull on the other. The stone was fixed onto a piece of wood using plant fibers or animal sinews. These types of axes were used in hunting, combat, agriculture and building construction.\nHand axes are some of the oldest tools ever used by humans. They resemble a regular stone axe but lack a handle. As the name suggests, hand axes were used exclusively as hand tools and weapons.\nAll Native American stone axes were products of fli..

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What were the protests against the Vietnam War?

Initially, disapproval of American involvement in Vietnam circulated primarily through academic circles in which American motivation for involvement was questioned. As American involvement continued, more people became disillusioned over the amount of soldiers being killed or injured, and there was an increase in the amount of troops dedicated to the cause. Americans began to see the situation as a war that could not be won.\nThe Vietnam war was the first conflict involving the United States that was widely covered by television media. Enough American households had televisions to affect Ameri..

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