Ruben's Blog

                              Its thanksgiving break, enough said! Thanksgiving : Thanksgiving is a national holiday that is a celebration by giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. In the United States, has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, it has long been celebrated as a secular holiday as well. Franklin D. Roosevelt : The president who decided to declare Thanksgiving to be the last Thursday during November. Two years earlier, Roosevelt had used a presidential proclamation to try to achieve this change, reasoning that earlier celebration of the holiday would give the country an economic boost. Pilgrims : The Pilgrims were early European settlers of the Plymouth Colony in present-day Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States. They are largely accredited with settling and making New England civilized. Thus, Thanksgiving largely centered around the ...

Call me weird, but many times, I enjoy making Wikipedia searches for things I already some familiarly with. I just like to bridge any gaps that I might have about the topic. I found the day of the dead on the class twitter stream. Day of the Dead : The Day of the Dead is a predominantly Mexican holiday. It can be traced back to the Aztecs. In essence, it is a day of rituals celebrating the lives of dead ancestors. It is often quoted that individuals die twice. Once, when they die biologically and then they will only truly die when they are forgotten. Hence, the holiday tries to keep loved ones “alive.” La Calavera Catrina : This is also called the “elegant skull.” The image is in close association with the day of the dead. The image depicts a female skeleton dressed only in a hat. “She is offered as a satirical portrait of those Mexican natives who, Posada felt, were aspiring to adopt European aristocratic traditions.” In 1915, she became the icon of the day of the dead. C...

I heard about Aesop’s fables via the class announcements so I decided to follow a Wikipedia trail inspired by this.   Aesop : was a Greek fabulist and story teller who wrote fables which are now known as Aesop's Fables. A fun fact is that his very existence is unclear. However, it is thought that he lived around 620 BC. Many of his tales include animals and objects that speak. LINK Aesop’s fables : These were fables that were written by Aesop, a slave in ancient Greece. The fables were originally told by the oral tradition. After they were finally collected and written, they were translated in many languages. The fables covered a wide array of topics, concerning religious, social and political themes. LINK Fables : Believe it or not, I actually didn’t know the definition of a fable but I wanted to learn. A fable is a literary genre that includes a usually “brief fictitious story in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, o...

I seen the "all seeing eye" in a post on the twitter for the class retweeted by Professor Gibbs from Peter Frankopan. I have heard a few things about it, but I've never taken the chance to look into it. Today, I made a few searches and learned a lot more it and related things. Wikipedia never lets you down! Nevertheless, I found these facts really intriguing. Eye of Providence : It is more commonly known as the All Seeing Eye surrounded by rays of light. It can be found in many places associated with freemasonry. It is on the back of the dollar bill. It represents God watching over humanity. Freemasonry : Freemasonry consists of fraternal organizations that trace their origins back to stonemasonry brotherhood. The status of "degrees" of the current members are named in manner that gives respect this. For example, an apprentice level is considered a fellow "craft." Further, no women can be admitted. Lastly, it originated in England and has been a se...

I found the topic of fixed stars on the Twitter stream, which is very thought provoking. I have always been interesting in the cosmos, so I had to follow a wikipedia trail regarding this. You can find the link by liking on the title of the topic. Fixed Stars : A fixed star is described to be the background of astronomical objects that do not appear to move relative to each other in the night sky. Fixed stars include the Sun. Galaxy : A galaxy is a gravitational bound system. I did not know this before. It is simply where the gravitational pull of a certain jurisdiction rules, before another does. This transitions well into black hole. Black Hole : A black hole is a region of spacetime who's gravitational pull is so strong that nothing, not even light or electrons can escape it. They are expected to form when massive stars reach the end of their life cycle and implode. SUPER INTERESTING! Neutron Star : A neutron star is the collapsed core of large star. Neutron stars are the...

Ramayana : We have been reading about this for some time now, so this one only seemed appropriate. I learned that it was traditionally ascribed in Hindu. It also belongs to the same genre as the Mahabharata, which we have just started reading. Epic Poems : I fell into this rabbit hole of wikipedia and I can't stop! I learned that epic poems "usually concern a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds significant to a culture. The odyssey is one of the most notable epics cited in the text. Mahabharata : We have just began reading this in class. It is a narrative of the Kureksetra War. Its origins fall between the 8th and 9th centuries of BC times. In addition, it is the longest epic poem known!! Odyssey : How could I not include this famous gem? In the text it can be learned that this epic is attributed to Homer and it is of greek origin. Furthermore, it begins ten years after the trojan war. And just a little fun fact, there have been several modern films based ...