15 January

1493      Christopher Columbus sets sail for Spain from Hispaniola, ending his first voyage to the New World. 1541       King Francis I of France gives Jean-François Roberval a commission to settle the province of New France (Canada) and provide for the spread of the “Holy Catholic faith”. 1559      Elizabeth I  is crowned Queen of England in… Continue reading

It’s Still All About the Money: Learned Helplessness and Greed (Part 1)

The recently published Committee Study of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Detention and Interrogation Program by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has received considerable attention in the media, for good reason.  The report provides details on interrogation techniques used on terrorists thought to be involved in the 9/11 attack and other plots to kill American… Continue reading

14 January

83 BC   Mark Antony (born), Roman general and politician (died 30 BCE) 1514     Pope Leo X issues a papal bull against slavery. 1539     Spain annexes Cuba. 1639     The “Fundamental Orders”, the first written constitution that created a government, is adopted in Connecticut. 1741     Benedict Arnold (born), American-English general (died 1801) 1742     Edmond Halley (died), English… Continue reading

13 January

1599     Edmund Spenser (died), English poet (born 1552) 1625     Jan Brueghel the Elder (died), Flemish painter (born 1568) 1691     George Fox (died), English religious leader, founder of the Religious Society of Friends (born 1624) 1815     War of 1812: British troops capture Fort Peter in St. Marys, Georgia, the only battle of the war to take… Continue reading

12 January

1519 – Maximilian I (died), Holy Roman Emperor (born 1459) 1665 – Pierre de Fermat (died), French mathematician and lawyer (born 1601) 1723 – Samuel Langdon (born), American clergyman and educator (died 1797) 1724 – Frances Brooke (born), English author and playwright (died 1789) 1822 – Étienne Lenoir (born), French engineer, designed the Internal combustion… Continue reading