Every second, the Sun fuses about 700 million tons of hydrogen into helium. In the process, about five million tons of mass are converted directly into energy, which slowly makes its way out to the surface where it is radiated into space.
The conversion takes place near the innermost core of the Sun where the temperature is almost 16 million degrees Celsius (28.8 million degrees F). There, the same reaction that powers hydrogen bombs keeps the Sun inflated, preventing it from collapsing.
Our Sun has been burning hydrogen for more than four thousand years, and it will keep doing so for several more years. As a "main sequence" star its output is steady and predictable, which is good for life on its third planet. What an amazing Creator the Sun has.
1863: Lincoln Declared Thanksgiving Day an Annual Holiday
President Abraham Lincoln declared the last Thursday in November as the annual national holiday, Thanksgiving Day. The tradition of Thanksgiving began in the fall of 1621 when William Bradford, a Christian and governor of Plymouth, invited the neighboring Wampanoag to join the Pilgrims for a festival celebrating the bounty of the season.
Active presidential campaigning and the use of mementos for advertising did not begin until the mid eighteen hundreds. One reason was that through a majority of presidential electors were chosen by state legislatures rather than by popular vote. A second reason was that it was not considered proper to openly seek the office of president. After being nominated, most candidates stayed at home and awaited the results.
It was Andrew Jackson's bitter loss to John Quincy Adams in 1824 that led him to plan political assaults and win against Adams in 1828 and Henry Clay in 1832. A few items such as snuff boxes, thread boxes, clothing buttons, tokens, ribbons, and ceramic plates were made to appeal to the electorate.
1840 is considered the year when campaigns and trinkets really began to flourish. "Tippecanoe and Tyler Too" was the slogan for William Henry Harrison and John Tyler, Whigs. Their party generated enthusiastic support with parades, political rallies, and souvenirs that were intended to get them elected. The tradition of "Hurrah Campaigns" has diminished over the years with modern electioneering. Much of the political activity has shifted toward special interest groups.
The twentieth century brought the age of electronic transmission, first radio, then television, and now home pages on the Internet. All of these forums are used to reach the voting public. Media consultants view voters as members of an audience rather than participants in a process. Gadgets such as buttons, pins, banners, and posters are not considered to be as valuable in generating votes . This has led to a decrease in their production. It will be interesting to watch how future elections are conducted and if broad based voter participation is ever revived. More: http://xrl.us/du8o