On this day in 1917, Stella Cunliffe was born. She became the first female President of the @RoyalStatSoc in 1975 and during her life was associated with many famous institutions including the British Girl Guides, the Guinness Brewery and the Home Office. 1/9

Born in Surrey, she was the first person from her school to go onto University, gaining a degree in Economics from the London School of Economics in 1938. 2/9

Her statistical career began in 1939, when she joined the Danish Bacon company, working on food allocations. During the war she was in charge of rationing in London. The bacon ration was 3 or 4 rashers per person per week. 3/9

At the end of the war she joined The Girl Guides and went to Europe to help feed the war refugees. She was also among the first civilian volunteers to go to Belsen Concentration Camp to oversee the de-lousing of inmates there. 4/9

Cunliffe then took a job as a statistician at the Guinness Brewery @GuinnessGB where she stayed for 25 years. It was here that she famously redesigned the instructions for quality control workers who had to accept or reject the handmade beer barrels. 5/9

The Great Rat Massacre Of 1902 (and how it backfired spectacularly)

(Thread, sources here:

While we're talking about £500 incentives, I thought it would be fun to look back at one that backfired spectacularly and likely led to an outbreak of bubonic plague.

In Hanoi, Vietnam, rats were a huge problem around the turn of the 20th century.

Or more specifically, they had long been a problem, but now the colonial French viewed them as a problem too after Alexandre Yersin discovered the bacillus bacteria responsible for the bubonic plague, and the role that rats and fleas played in spreading it.

Rats would occasionally use the pipes that served the flushing toilets of the colonialists (unavailable to the local population) as an entry point into their homes.

Do u know about the Diamond known as The Eye of Brahma?

The Eye of Brahma also known as Black Orlov is 7th largest black diamond in the world of Indian origin. It weighs 67.50carats(13.500 g).The diamond was originally 195carats(39.0g)&was discovered in early 19th century India.

The Black Orlov featured as one of the eyes in a statue of the Hindu god Brahma in Puducherry. One night a European Jesuit priest who asked for refuge inside the temple, took advantage of the generosity, plucked and looted the diamond out of the idol's eyes.

It is said after this incident the diamond became cursed.

In 1932, diamond dealer J. W. Paris reportedly took the diamond to the United States, and soon after committed suicide by jumping from a skyscraper in New York City.

Later owners of the diamond included two Russian princesses, Leonila Galitsine-Bariatinsky and Nadia Vygin-Orlov (after whom the diamond is named). Both women allegedly jumped to their deaths in the 1940s.

The diamond was later bought by Charles F. Winson, and cut into three pieces in an attempt to break the curse; the 67.5-carat Black Orlov was set into a brooch of 108 diamonds, suspended from a necklace of 124 diamonds.

Friday the 13th Part 2, marketed as Friday the 13th Part II, is a 1981 slasher film and was the second sequel to the smash hit original. It was the directorial debut of Steve Miner, who would also helm the next installment in the series, 1982's Friday the 13th Part III.

It is a seminal entry in the series in that it is the first film to utilize Jason Voorhees as the killer begins to carry out his revenge for the death of his mother as well as continue her mission to keep the camp and area closed for good to prevent another drowning.

Jason was previously seen in the first film in flashbacks and hallucinations. He would not acquire his trademark hockey mask until the third film; here he uses an old burlap sack as a mask.

The movie was a commercial success, although the critics gave the movie mostly negative reviews. Retrospectively, the film has gained warmer reception, and is now a cult classic.

2 months after the events of the first film, Alice Hardy (Adrienne King) is still heavily traumatized by her encounter with Mrs. Pamela Voorhees, who went on a mad and murderous rampage across Camp Crystal Lake, a summer camp that Alice was working at. She killed Mrs.

How do you guys feel about a little bit of history this Monday evening?

Oh, today's Tuesday. I seem to be slower than the times. Is it because of my addiction to history? 😂
Let's journey to South Africa. The Zulu Country with the setting in mid 18th century.

Mkabayi Kajama The Zulu Princess

Shaka Zulu was a great warrior and king of the Zulu in South Africa. His story has fascinated historians, who have tried to figure out the aspects that drove him to be the conqueror he is known today.

It is well known that he died in 1828 at the hands of his brothers, but what many do not know is the role of Princess Mkabayi Kajama in his death. The rebel Zulu princess would work to ensure Shaka become king, and then plot to have him killed.

One of the most powerful women in history, Mkabayi was cursed from birth. She and her twin sister, Mmama, were supposed to have been killed at birth, as superstition stated that twins were bad luck.

With Hank Aaron's passing, I thought I would pass along a unique and memorable experience I had with him in the early 1990s.

My good friend, @MarkGrunskeSS, brought Hank to State Fair Park as the headliner for a 1957 Milwaukee Braves reunion.

I was afforded the opportunity to sit next to Hank, hand him items to autograph as the public filed through, hand him the correct pens and get the items back to their owners after Hank had signed them.

After a brief introduction to Hank, the signing began. It was a flurry of activity for three-plus hours. Hank was gracious to all despite the fact the line seemingly had no end.

Any thoughts I had about maybe talking to Hank or being able to hear some stories quickly went out the window as I did my best to keep up with the crowd. So I put my head down and tried to make it as easy on Hank as I could.

Once the signing was over, we retreated to a back office near a side door. As Hank's agent, Bob Allen, retrieved the car, Hank shook hands and took pictures with a few of us lucky souls.

The self-styled social justice intellectuals and parties do not want an India without castes, they want castes without Dharma. This may be profitable to some in the short run but it is suicidal for all in the long run. – Ram Swarup, (12 Oct 1920, Haryana - 26 Dec 1998 )

Ram Swarup was a Sankhya philosopher, Yogi, and Guru of historian Sita Ram Goel. Together they founded the publishing imprint #VoiceOfIndia in New Delhi, to give Hindu intellectuals a voice when the mainstream media refused to give them any time or space.

As @Koenraad_Elst

rightly said “In the long run, Ram Swarup will probably prove to have been the most influential Hindu thinker in the second half of the 20th century. He has, at any rate, been a crucial influence on most other Hindu Revivalist authors of the last couple of decades”.
To know what

kind of Intellectual Giant he was, I’m rewriting what he wrote to @IndianExpress , on 13 September 1996. Please do read.

Today casteism is rampant. It is a new phenomenon. Old India had castes but no casteism. In its present form, casteism is a construct of colonial period, a

product of imperial policies and colonial scholarship. It was strengthened by the breast-beating of our own “reformers”. Today, it has acquired its own momentum and vested interests.
In the old days, the Hindu caste-system was an integrating principle. It provided economic

In 1865 a #Democrat shot and killed Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States.
In 1881 a left wing radical Democrat shot James Garfield, President of the United States – who later died from the wound.

In 1963 a radical left wing socialist shot and killed John F. Kennedy, President of the United States.
In 1975 a left wing radical Democrat fired shots at Gerald Ford, President of the United States.

In 1983 a registered Democrat shot and wounded Ronald Reagan, President of the United States.
In 1984 James Hubert, a disgruntled Democrat, shot and killed 22 people in a McDonalds restaurant.

In 1986 Patrick Sherrill, a disgruntled Democrat, shot and killed 15 people in an Oklahoma post office.
In 1990 James Pough, a disgruntled Democrat, shot and killed 10 people at a GMAC office.

In 1991 George Hennard, a disgruntled Democrat, shot and killed 23 people in a Luby’s cafeteria in Killeen , TX.
In 1995 James Daniel Simpson, a disgruntled Democrat, shot and killed 5 coworkers in a Texas laboratory.

Revisiting Richard Hofstadter's essay 'The Pseudo-Conservative Revolt' (1955). Here are the highlights of an essay that was in many ways prescient: (thread)

Hofstadter sketches out a distinction between restrained conservatism and pseudoconservatives revolting against the present. It's a shame he drew so heavily on Adorno's research, which doesn't offer him much.

But this characterization of pseudoconservatives resonates deeply right now.

Hofstadter considers causes, but also hints at business interests (and nowadays donors) harnessing pseudoconservatism, and highlights how making money through pseudoconservatism incentivizes paranoia. Consider Alex Jones, Glenn Beck, Dinesh D'Souza and so on.

Why are pseudoconservatives obsessed by the threat of *their own government*, Hofstadter wonders.

This Day in Labor History: December 30, 1900. Advisors from Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, the college run by Booker T. Washington, arrived in Togo to help German colonialists institute a southern-style cotton regime in their African colony. Let's talk about this shameful event!

This moment demonstrates the globalized nature of the American cotton production economy as it developed after the Civil War, as well as the active assistance of the nation’s leading black institution of higher education in propagating it.

In 1895, Booker T. Washington gave his famous Atlanta Compromise speech, when he told a white audience that African-Americans should give up on fighting for political rights and instead just work hard, while whites support that work, especially his own Tuskegee Institute.

The setting for that speech was the Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition. In the audience for that gathering of cotton capitalists was Baron Beno von Herman auf Wein, the agricultural attaché to the German embassy in Washington.

The Baron was very interested in learning from American agricultural techniques. He, like many white elites on both sides of the Atlantic, believed that cotton growing was best done by black labor in some sort of forced or semi-coerced manner.

The Families

The Illumi-Naughty might have their hooks into virtually every politician, business, and entertainer, but at the top, who are controlled by 13 families who also control the Cabal.

The world is today at equilibrium. Battery operated devices use DC current and the misc household and industrial appliances use AC current

But almost 140 years ago, that was not the case. A fierce battle was fought between two scientists Tesla and Edison over it. #CBG_Thread 1/n

Thomas Edison, a prolific inventor, changed the course of history with the invention of electric bulb in 1870s. It opened up a new market hitherto unknown. 2/n

Edison , backed by J P Morgan, founded a new company Edison General Electric ( now GE) to make motors, appliances, wires etc to develop and service this new market. 3/n

Interestingly, all appliances were based on Direct Current (DC) - similar to what you get from batteries these days. Current flows in one direction only, unlike Alternating Current (AC) - such as 220V supply at home these days. 4/n

Nikola Tesla immigrated to US in 1884 to work for Edison as Electric Engineer for a salary of $100. Tesla was a maverick with novel ideas. He wanted to create an efficient arc lighting and AC motor. Edison however was too arrogant to be receptive to any ideas. 5/n

Princes of Orissa (1870)

https://t.co/lU805fGjwH

Historical Gurdwaras of Hazor Sahib

1. Gurdwara Nagina Ghat ⠀
A rich merchant’s expensive nagina (precious stone set in gold) was thrown by Guru Gobind Singh Ji into Godavri River. The merchant thought Guru Ji did not know the value of the nagina. Mahraj read his thought and

asked him to take out the nagina if it was so valuable. It is said that when he entered the river he was surprised to see the river bed full of precious stones. Purged of his false pride, he fell at Guru Ji’s feet. It was also from this place that Mahraj shot an arrow revealing

their Tap Asthan (meditation place) of Satyug, Sachkand Shri Hazor Sahib.⠀

2. Takht Sri Sachkand Abchalnagar Hazor Sahib. One of the 5 Takhts of Sikhs. Despite being the site where Kalgidhar Patshah Ji left their physical body from, their presence is felt strongly here.

3. Bunga Mai Bhago Ji
In compound of Takht Sri Hazor Sahib Ji, this Bunga is built in memory of Mai Bhago Ji. Housing weapons believed to be of Mai Bhago Ji and 40 Mukte. The two Angitha Sahib of Pyare Bhai Daya Singh ji and Pyare Bhai Dharam Singh Ji are also situated here.

4. Gurdwara Hira Ghat⠀
When Guru Gobind Singh Ji first came to Nanded from Punjab, they pitched their tents right here on the back of Godavri River. It was also here where it’s believed that emperor Bahadur Shah presented Guruji a hira (diamond) which they flung into the

This Day in Labor History: January 22, 1599. Spanish troops began their attack on Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico. This incredibly violent incident and aftermath created a regime of labor under Spanish rule that would have devastating impacts on Native peoples! Let's talk about it!

From the moment Europeans came to the Americas, they had a pretty clear and consistent view of the labor regime they desired: people of color working for nothing or next to nothing.

Too often, our stories of American history downplay this because New England, which has played a huge part of national culture creation, was something of an exception, although not nearly to the extent that it gets portrayed.

But from New York to Argentina, the vast majority of colonial enterprises revolved in some way around this principle. It didn’t really matter much who the colonizing power was–French, Spanish, English, Dutch, Portuguese.

Wealth depended on wresting labor out of people with extreme violence and that was much easier to do when the people were not your own.

The case #RoeVWade was decided January 22, 1973.

But, "Roe" aka Norma McCorvey never actually had an abortion.

Ever.

In 1973 Sarah Weddington, the young lawyer who argued the case, called Norma & said “We won!”

She replied: “No, you won. Why would I be excited? I had a baby.”

The fact that Roe was no longer pregnant was an issue before SCOTUS.

But, Sarah Weddington had already modified the case to a class action— so even if Roe wasn’t pregnant there was some woman somewhere in Texas pregnant who didn’t want to be.

Fantastic move on her part!

Sarah Weddington, who argued Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court at age 26, brought her parents & husband to oral argument.

Just like any mom— Sarah's asked if she could bring a camera & tape recorder. She had to tell her mom they weren't allowed in the courtroom.

Years before Roe v. Wade, Sarah Weddington, who remains the youngest person ever to have argued a successful Supreme Court case— had an illegal abortion herself, in Mexico.

No one knew this at the time. She said, "I secretly resolved to find a way to fix things in the future."

At the time, so many single women were on flights to El Paso, TX to cross the border to terminate their pregnancies, they called them "abortion flights."

The Boxing Day Test match is two days away, so I suppose it is better to tell the tale of the greatest Boxing Day cricket the world has ever seen.

That happened in 1953, at Ellis Park, Johannesburg (the photograph is from another match).

Warning:
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I often get carried away even while reading this, let alone writing. There may be overdose of emotions.

First, as usual, some context.

Despite playing Test cricket for over two decades, New Zealand were yet to win their first Test match.
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Jack Cheetham, on the other hand, was turning South African cricket around.

They had drawn the 2-2 in Australia and had won 1-0 in New Zealand.

And they won the first Test of this series, at Durban, by an innings.
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The South African attack already consisted of swing bowler David Ironside, the untiring Anton Murray, Hugh Tayfield.

Arguably the greatest South African spinner, Tayfield still holds the record for the most consecutive dot balls in a Test (Bapu Nadkarni does not hold this).
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And in Durban, they had drafted in Neil Adcock.

Standing at six foot six and gifted with long arms, Adcock could make the ball take off even from a good length.

And he was quick.

The first South African to take 100 Test wickets, he would finish with a bowling average of 21.
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Navigation in Ancient India

#LongThread

Indian civilization has been without a break for the last few millennia. This means there have been external connections and indigenous maritime assets.

Among the remains, the maritime assets archaeology are much prized and cited, a dock being the most prized. It also precludes the requirement of knowledge of the seas i.e. a compass.

The very word Navigation is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Navgatih’. The word navy is also derived from Sanskrit ‘Nou’.

There were Sanskrit terms for many parts of a ship. The ship’s anchor was known as Nava-Bandhan-Kilaha which literally means ‘a nail to tie up a ship’. The sail was called Vata Vastra, which means ‘wind-cloth’.

On January 15, 1919, a 50-foot tall tank ruptured, sending 2.3 million gallons of molasses rushing through the neighborhood. @universalhub @HUBhistory

At midday on Jan 15, 1919, the #NorthEnd was full of workers and residents venturing outdoors to enjoy unseasonably warm weather. At about 1 p.m., they heard a low rumble. Many assumed it was a Boston Elevated train. But, within minutes, they realized something was very wrong.

A 50-foot tall tank full of industrial grade molasses had ruptured, sending a 2.3 million gallon wave of molasses rushing through the crowded #NorthEnd.

The hulking molasses tank had been built by Purity Distilling Company only a few years earlier, in 1915. The tank measured 50-feet tall, and rose over the Boston Elevated Railroad tracks that ran next next to it

Tankers delivered shipments of molasses to Copps Hill Wharf, where it was pumped into the tank and stored until it could be sent to distilleries on train cars, like this one.