In 1859, Castiglione, an Italian town, had become a big hospital. A gruesome battle was being fought on its outskirts between France and Italy on one side and Austria on the other…
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Rockefeller and his foundation
John D Rockefeller was once the richest man in the world. The first billionaire in the world. By age 25, he controlled one of the largest oil refineries in the US. By…
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First sign of civilization
Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fish hooks or clay…
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A living message
Noted Dutch post-impressionist painter, Vincent Van Gogh, was not always an artist. In fact, he wanted to be a church pastor and was even sent to the Belgian mining community of Borinage in 1879.…
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Night and day
Rabbi Isadore was a wise teacher. A student asked, “How is one to know the precise time when night ends and day begins?” One student volunteered, “It is when one can distinguish…
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Why Finland has the best schools
Finland has a history of producing the highest global test scores in the Western world, as well as a trophy case full of other recent No. 1 global rankings, including most literate…
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World’s ‘poorest’ ex-president Mujica turns down pension
Former Uruguayan leader José Mujica, who was dubbed “the world’s poorest president” for his modest lifestyle, says he does not want any pension from his time as a senator. Mr Mujica resigned…
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A high school government class wanted to help solve civil rights crimes. So they drafted a bill that is now law
A high school class in Hightstown, New Jersey, has found an impressive way to shed light on unsolved civil rights crimes from the 1950s and ’60s. The AP class, studying US government,…
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India plants 66 million trees in 12 hours as part of record-breaking environmental campaign
Volunteers in India planted more than 66 million trees in just 12 hours in a record-breaking environmental drive. About 1.5 million people were involved in the huge plantation campaign, in which saplings…
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World is getting greener, India and China leading efforts: NASA study
India and China are leading the global greening effort, which is quite contrary to the general perception worldwide, a latest NASA study said, observing that the world is a greener place than…