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How long was Dwight Eisenhower's military career?

After graduating from West Point in 1915 just after the end of World War I, Lieutenant Eisenhower served in a variety of places across the United States for a number of years. In 1920, however, his career took a major turn when he served as a military aide to General John J. Pershing and then to General Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines.\nEisenhower earned his first star with a promotion to brigadier general just as the United States was about to enter World War II, and went to Washington, D.C., where he worked as a planning officer. After impressing Army Chief of Staff General George C. Ma..

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What are some myths about Henry Ford?

Henry Ford dispatched teams of men to scour the junkyards for Model Ts and examine them to see what caused them to fail. The information gathered showed that the cars were well made and most of them had been retired from standard wear and tear. However, on every Model T, it was noted that the kingpin was always in great shape. Ford ordered his design staff to redesign the kingpin to lower standards so it would not outlast the rest of the vehicle and by doing so saved money.\nFord did institute the highest wages in the industry for his workers, but he did it to improve the company's profit..

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What was the Renaissance?

Prior to the Renaissance, Europe was cloaked in the thoughtlessness of the Dark Ages. As Europeans attempted to cope with the economic depression of the time period, there was little concern for intellectual material. When survival became easier, however, the focus of society began to shift. Renaissance leaders, such as Dante and Petrarch, spearheaded this new, intellectual movement.\nItaly is widely considered the center of the Renaissance. The Italian Renaissance went through two distinct phases. The first phase was a revival of Graeco-Roman culture. Arts and literature from this period were..

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What did people do for fun in the 1950s?

Rock music captivated the younger set, although their elders disapproved. Elvis Presley entered the living room through the Ed Sullivan variety show, which was broadcast in black and white. RCA first broadcast color television in June, 1951, but it was not yet available to the masses. "I Love Lucy," "Leave It to Beaver," and "The Twilight Zone" are examples of popular shows at the time. Children celebrated their birthdays with parties at skating rinks. Hula Hoops, Barbie dolls and electric train sets are representative toys of the 1950s. All ages enjoyed dancing and dancing lessons.\nMany peop..

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What year was the modern flush toilet invented?

Some historians claim that the Ancient Minoan city of Crete was the first to invent the flush toilet between 3000 B.C. and 1100 B.C., while other scholars attribute the toilet's initial development to the Skara Brae, an old Neolithic community located in Scotland. Harrington's contraption is the widely accepted first modern flush toilet. Other inventors who made innovations the toilet include Alexander Cummings and Thomas Crapper, a celebrated British plumber who remains falsely credited with the invention of the modern flush toilet.

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What was Molly Pitcher's family background?

Mary Pitcher's real last name was likely Ludwig, because that is what her father's name was. She grew up on the family farm and married William Hays soon after she became the servant of a doctor's family. When her husband entered the Revolutionary War, Mary moved back to her parents' home to be a "camp follower."\nShe delivered pitchers of water to the fighters daily. The fighters nicknamed her "Mary Pitcher," and some called her "Molly Pitcher." It was her husband's job to load the cannon for the camp. Legend has it that William Hays collapsed, though not fatally. See..

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Who invented the first voltmeter?

The early galvanometers were not very accurate or consistent. Modern voltmeters measure the potential difference between two points on an electrical circuit. The first vacuum tube voltmeter was invented in 1922 by E.B. Moulin at the University of Cambridge.The first digital voltmeter was invented by Andrew Kay of Non-Linear Systems in 1954, leading to further developments, including the dual slope analog-to-digital conversion circuit. The use of digital technology has improved the accuracy of the voltmeter to within 1 percent.

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Which U.S. presidents were assassinated, listed in chronological order?

Abraham Lincoln was the first U.S. president to be assassinated. He was shot and killed by John Wilkes Booth at a theater on April 14, 1865. James Garfield was shot and killed by lawyer Charles Guiteau on July 2, 1881, just four months into his term as president. William McKinley was shot and killed by Leon Czolgosz on Sept. 6, 1901. McKinley's assassination led to Secret Service providing protection for presidents. John F. Kennedy was the last president to be assassinated, on Nov. 22, 1963.

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What were the major reasons for bombing Hiroshima?

Truman worried that an invasion of Japan would cost up to one million American lives and would drag on for far longer than the American public wanted due to the fanaticism of Japanese soldiers to defend their island and emperor. He also needed a reason to justify the $1,889,604,000 the government spent on the Manhattan Project, which in of itself was a secret program. He worried of the political ramifications of not using the weapon while spending almost $2 billion. Finally, Truman understood the Soviet Union's role in post-World War II global affairs would be one of an antagonistic playe..

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Why did Barack Obama want to attack Syria?

After Bashar al-Assad was accused of using a deadly nerve gas on more than 1,400 citizens in Damascus, including a number of children, Obama declared that Assad's using or transporting such weapons within Syria's borders was "a red line." This line could not be crossed without American retaliation and intervention. There is an international law against the use of chemical warfare because these weapons are considered to be particularly heinous. Obama wanted al-Assad and others tempted to use chemical weapons to understand that the United States and the broader international community ..

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