Showing posts with label Massachusetts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Massachusetts. Show all posts

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Maria Mitchell - 1st female professional Astronomer

Ok, so you know when you go onto Google and you have to sign in and they have interesting little Google signs that change with peoples birthdays or holidays...well, I found this when I went to sign on this morning and thought it was interesting so I'm sharing it. :-)
have a great day all!!

Maria Mitchell (seated) inside the dome of the Vassar College Observatory 
                                                                                                                                                               
Maria Mitchell (August 1, 1818 – June 28, 1889) (pron: ma-RY-ah) was an American astronomer, who in 1847, by using a telescope, discovered a comet which as a result became known as "Miss Mitchell's Comet". She won a gold medal prize for her discovery which was presented to her by King Frederick VII of Denmark. The medal said “Not in vain do we watch the setting and rising of the stars”. Mitchell was the first American woman to work as a professional astronomer.

Maria Mitchell was born in NantucketMassachusetts. She was a first cousin four times removed of Benjamin Franklin.[5] She had nine brothers and sisters. Her parents, William Mitchell and Lydia Coleman Mitchell, were Quakers. Maria Mitchell was born into a community unusual for its time in regard to equality for women. Her parents, like other Quakers, valued education and insisted on giving her the same quality of education that boys received. One of the tenets of the Quaker religion was intellectual equality between the sexes. Additionally, Nantucket's importance as a whaling port meant that wives of sailors were left for months and sometimes years to manage affairs while their husbands were at sea, thus fostering an atmosphere of relative independence and equality for the women who called the island home.


She is also known for her famous quotation, "We have a hunger of the mind. We ask for all of the knowledge around us and the more we get, the more we desire.


The above has been gathered from Wikipedia





Sunday, November 18, 2012

Thanksgiving/Fall

Ah yes, it's that time of year again, where we sit down eat lots and then try to diet it off, before the Christmas feast. LOL.

Growing up in Massachusetts, my grandfather owned a farm and we  had wild turkeys that lived there and let me tell you, my grandfather made it known to everyone that those turkey's were not to be touched! So as I grew the flock grew and that Tom would strut around like he owned the place. Talk about sanctuary, he knew he was safe LOL.

The one thing I do miss about not being up in New England anymore are the Fall changes. The leaves especially.
  There's nothing like the colors in a New England Autumn. I miss those days, but wouldn't move back to TON of snow country unless I had to, LOL.

My plans for Thanksgiving, eating lots and spending time with awesome family and friends!! 

Hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday!!!!   

C~ 

* Pictures used in accordance with Microsoft Clip Art Gallery

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Crazy Drivers...


See this sign...

Yep, saw it a lot myself on our vacation. From Florida to Massachusetts. Going up and coming back.
Ok, so, let's give them kudos on actually trying to fix the highways and byways, but what's with drivers when there are "No" working signs and all of a sudden we're slamming on our brakes in the middle of the highway, then we get back up to a good 30 MPH and Blamo, slamming on the breaks again, then you have the well, I'll whip over to this lane and that lane and this lane again, because they look like they're going faster people [ Insert Homer strangling Bart ] Quick give me my blood pressure meds, LOL.

Living in my part of Florida, I've noticed that here we have some pretty decent roads. What can I say...Mass hasn't changed. You still can't see the lines on the Mass Pike at night and the instant ramp on, *here we come* to the ramp off 200 feet from that...yeah, don't know how I didn't crash while learning how to drive, LOL. Oh but wait... I still say in crazy driving situations, which are usually in big cities ..."Don't make me go Mass on you!" LOL.

Hope you all have a great day!!

C~