On 1 July 1867, the UK’s British North America Act came into effect. It is rich fodder for semanticists. The preamble to the Act opens with the words: Whereas the provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick have expressed their Desire to be federally united into One Dominion under the Crown of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, with a… Continue reading # OTD 1 July – The rich maple syrup of constitutional Canada
Month: June 2025
#OTD 30 June – I’ll be a monkey’s uncle
On 30 June 1860, seven months after the publication of The Origin of the Species, a prominent New York scientist by the name of William Draper delivered a paper before the British Association’s annual meeting in Oxford. The title was “On the Intellectual Development of Europe, considered with reference to the views of Mr. Darwin… Continue reading #OTD 30 June – I’ll be a monkey’s uncle
#OTD 29 June – Slim & Easy does it
Louis Burton Lindley Jr wanted to be a rodeo rider but was told there’d be “slim pickens”. He rode anyway, and rode to Hollywood. Pickens made it as a character actor, partly because he played himself. When he arrived on the set of “Dr Strangelove”, everyone thought he had arrived in costume. The role of… Continue reading #OTD 29 June – Slim & Easy does it
#OTD 28 June – R&D and a τ of π
In a world where the uncertain makes us look to the rational, people have always been fascinated by π, the constant irrational. It is unsurprising that π has received its own day and less surprising still that it is 14 March or 3/14 in the US. Google celebrated π day 2010 by releasing a mock… Continue reading #OTD 28 June – R&D and a τ of π
#OTD 26 June – Ich bin ein Berliner
A nation is a nation when enough people, both inside and out, are prepared to recognise it. Sometimes, recognition is a fight about borders: “That’s not yours, it’s mine”… and so the blood flows. Often, recognition is about other things as well. Religion, ideology, laws and taxes are good examples. The German tribes had issues… Continue reading #OTD 26 June – Ich bin ein Berliner