Tidbits of Grand Forks - December 10, 2020

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Of Grand Forks • East Grand Forks December 10, 2020

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Issue # 1,198

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WINTRY FACTS

by Kathy Wolfe

We've had a nice fall this year, but colder days are about to begin as we head into Winter, which officially begins on December 21. “Chill out” with Tidbits and take in some facts on the season.

• The word “winter” has its origins in the old Germanic language, with the word “wend” translating “time of water.” In the Northern Hemisphere, it lasts from the Winter Solstice, which begins between December 20 and 22 to the Vernal Equinox, varying between March 19 and 21. Winter in the Southern Hemisphere is from June until September. The word “solstice” means “sun stands still.” Winter up north occurs when the Earth is closest to the Sun. Our drop in temperatures is because of the direction the Earth’s axis tilting away from the Sun. • Who knows the answer to the mystery of Stonehenge? Every year on the Winter Solstice, the stone circle in Wiltshire, England is aligned to the sunset, just as it aligns with the sunrise on the Summer Solstice.

• According to meteorologists, winter is defined as “the three calendar months with the lowest average temperatures,” which for the Northern Hemisphere, this is December, January, and February.

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WINTRY FACTS (continued):

• A snowflake is simply a group of snow crystals that are stuck together. A flake forms around a dust particle which attracts cloud water droplets, which then freeze in crystal form. As the flakes move through differing temperatures and humidity, their complex shapes are formed, and emerge in several different types, such as the needle crystal, columnar crystal, plate crystal, and rimmed crystal. Each snowflake consists of about 200 snow crystals.

• Snow might appear white to the human eye, but it’s actually clear. Because light can’t pass through easily, the small crystal facets reflect the spectrum of light, giving it its white appearance.

If the snow has had a chance to build many layers, it can appear blue.

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• The size of a snowflake varies from a little smaller than a penny down to the size of the smallest snowflakes, known as diamond dust crystals, that are the width of a human hair. During a snowstorm in Fort Keogh, Montana, in January of 1887, the world’s largest snowflakes fell from the sky, measuring 15 inches across. They were documented by a local rancher who said they were “larger than milk pans.”

• There are about 105 snow-producing storms in the United States in an average year. It might last two to five days, dropping snow over several states.

• Not every storm is considered a blizzard. In order to be classified as a blizzard by the National Weather Service, in addition to having large amounts of snow, visibility must be reduced to one-quarter of a mile, winds must be 35 mph or more, and the storm must last at least three hours.

• How many snowflakes fall in a typical winter?

That number exceeds one septillion, which is the number one followed by 24 zeros! ...continued

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7. What Pittsburgh Pirates legend was named NL MVP and World Series MVP in 1979?

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WINTRY FACTS (continued):

• Let it snow, let it snow! And snow it does in Aomori City, Japan, the snowiest city on Earth.

This community averages 26 feet (about 312 inches) of snow per year. Another Japanese city, Sapporo, falls into second place with 100 inches less than Aomori City.

• In 2015, Capracotta, Italy set the record for the most snow in one day, when more than 100 inches fell in just 18 hours. In the U.S., the oneday snowfall record is held by Silver Lake, Colorado, where, in one day in 1921, 76 inches of the white stuff came down.

• Oh, the weather outside is indeed frightful! The honor of coldest inhabited area on Earth belongs to Oymyakon, Russia, where the average winter temperature is -58 degrees Fahrenheit. In 1974, the Russian region of Siberia had an all-time cold temp of -96 degrees F. Pretty cold, but it’s a far cry from the coldest ever recorded, a record set in 1983 at Antarctica’s Vostok research station, where it reached -189 F. • Folks in Bismarck, North Dakota, took advantage of a February, 2007 snowstorm by coming together to set a record for the most snow angels at one time, a total of 8,962. Bethel, Maine residents bonded by creating the world’s tallest snowman in February, 2008, reaching a height of 122 ft., 1 in., just a few feet shorter than the Statue of Liberty.

• It looked like it was going to be a nice day in Rapid City, South Dakota, on January 10, 1911.

The morning temperature was a balmy 55 degrees F, but within 15 minutes, a fierce cold front swept in and the temperature plummeted to 8 degrees F, the quickest cold snap in history. ...continued

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• On Dec. 18, 1777, the new United States celebrates its first national day of thanksgiving, commemorating the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga after the surrender of Gen. John Burgoyne and 5,000 British troops in October 1777.

• On Dec. 14, 1909, workers place the last of the 3.2 million 10-pound bricks that pave the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Since then, most of that brick has been buried under asphalt, but 1 yard remains exposed at the startfinish line. Kissing those bricks after a successful race remains a tradition among Indy drivers.

• On Dec. 19, 1968, Warner Brothers releases the movie "Bullitt," starring Steve McQueen, in Sweden, two months after its debut in U.S. theaters. Many critics consider "Bullitt" to be one of the greatest action movies ever made, because of the seven-minute car chase through the streets of San Francisco.

• On Dec. 15, 1973, Jean Paul Getty III, the grandson of American billionaire J. Paul Getty, is found alive near Naples, Italy, five months after his kidnapping. Getty had initially refused to pay the ransom, but agreed after the boy's severed right ear was sent to a newspaper in Rome.

• On Dec. 20, 1989, the United States invades Panama in an attempt to overthrow military dictator Manuel Noriega, who had been indicted in the U.S. on drug trafficking charges. His Panamanian Defense Forces were promptly crushed.

• On Dec. 16, 1998, President Bill Clinton announces he has ordered air strikes against Iraq because it refused to cooperate with United Nations weapons inspectors. Key members of Congress accused Clinton of using the air strikes to divert attention from ongoing impeachment proceedings against him.

• On Dec. 17, 2003, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," the final film in the trilogy based on the best-selling fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkien, opens in theaters.

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WINTRY FACTS (continued):

• An estimated 50% of the world’s population have never seen snow in person. Yet it has snowed in some places you’d never imagine, such as the Sahara Desert and Hawaii. South America’s Atacama Desert, the driest place on Earth, with average annual rainfall of about 0.6 inch, received 31 inches of snow on a July day in 2011, after a cold front made its way across the area.

• The five coldest countries in the world in order are Russia, Canada, Mongolia, Finland, and Iceland.

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• Winter can mean depression for some people, those who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder. They experience fatigue, trouble concentrating, weight gain, a greater need for sleep, and a desire to be alone. Some experts believe the condition occurs because less sunlight causes the brain to produce less serotonin, that chemical that regulates mood. Getting outside early in the morning in order to get more natural light or undergoing light therapy can help avoid having to use antidepressant medication. © 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.

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• Remember when a whole lotta folks were convinced the world was going to end on December 21, 2012? Some astronomers predicted the end of human civilization on that day based on the Mayan calendar, believing that a galactic alignment of planets would produce a gravitational effect between the sun and a black hole at the center of the galaxy, possibly destroying Earth. December 21 actually marked the end of the Mayan “Great Cycle of the Long Count,” merely a part of their calendar. A new cycle began on December 22, 2012.

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• Adult mayflies have no functional mouth. Because of this, they die of malnutrition. This is an evolutionary occurrence that happens so aging mayflies don't pass on genetic defects to the next generation.

• Steven Spielberg, who executive-produced the film "Gremlins," requested the effects team make Gizmo's fur orange and white to match his beagle, Chauncey.

• If you do a Google search on the word "askew," the resulting content will tilt slightly to the right.

• St. Lucia is the only country in the world named after a woman. Originally called the Island of the Iguanas by early Carib settlers, the name was later changed after French seamen were shipwrecked there on Dec. 13, the feast day of St. Lucy.

• The color of Facebook is blue because Mark Zuckerberg is red-green colorblind.

• Ever noticed how some mass-produced ballpoint pens, such as the Bic Cristal, have a hole in the cap? No? Well, in case you someday do, now you'll know why -- it's not just to prevent leaks, but choking as well. Lots of folks like to chew on pen lids, and in the event they accidentally swallow the cap, the hole ensures it won't completely block their airway.

• After an 8.0 magnitude earthquake hit Mexico City in 1985, nearly all newborn babies survived a collapsed hospital for seven days without nourishment, water, warmth or human contact.

• Major League Baseball umpires are required to wear black underwear while on the job in case they split their pants. *** Thought for the Day: "Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again." -- Og Mandino © 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.

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Tidbits says “Let it Go” and read up on some facts about this 2013 favorite musical film.

• “Frozen” is Walt Disney Studios’ 53rd animated feature film. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s 1844 fairy tale “The Snow Queen,” it’s the saga of two sisters, one of whom has magical powers to create ice and snow, a power that turns dangerous. Elsa has trapped the kingdom of Arendelle in an eternal winter, and her sister Anna who, along with hardy mountain man Kristoff, sets off to locate the elusive sister in her ice castle.

• The characters’ names were designed to honor author Hans Christian Andersen. Say the names Hans, Kristoff, Anna, and Sven quickly and you’ll hear the tribute to his name.

• Walt Disney Studios had pursued making a film version of “The Snow Queen” as far back as 1937, even before the release of “Snow White.” The project was dropped when writers struggled with transforming the rather dark original storyline into a suitable animated film. It was revisited in the 1990s, but dropped again, followed by attempts in 2002 and 2008, both shelved. Finally, plans for “Frozen” were announced in 2011.

• The team used both computer-generated imagery and traditional hand-drawn animation to create the movie.

• A considerable amount of research was conducted before the film’s animators went to work on the frames. A team traveled to Norway to be sure they were capturing the correct landscape, clothing, light, and architecture. They modeled Arendelle castle after the Akershus Fortress is Oslo, and clothing was based on the Sami culture, the indigenous people of northern Norway.

• The special effects team traveled to Wyoming to get an idea of how it feels to walk through deep snow, and sound engineers visited Mammoth Mountain to record snow and ice sound effects at a frozen lake there. A professor from the California Institute of Technology, Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, renowned for his knowledge of how snowflakes form, was called in as a consultant, and armed with his knowledge, the special effects crew created a snowflake generator program that created 2,000 different snowflake shapes.

• Live reindeer were brought to the studio to enable animators to imitate actual movements and behavior for Sven, Kristoff’s loyal reindeer companion.

• The crew visited the famed Hotel de Glace (Ice Hotel), a hotel made of ice in Quebec City for inspiration in creating Elsa’s castle. More than 50 animators were required to create the structure on film.

The scene in which Elsa walks out onto the balcony of her ice palace is 218 frames, and such a complicated one to create, just one of the frames required 132 hours to complete.

• A special program called Tonic was developed by “Frozen” animators just to create Elsa’s hair. Although the average blond human head of hair consists of about 150,000 strands, Elsa’s braid contained 420,000 strands.

• Married songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez composed “Let It Go” in one day, and the song went on to nab the Academy Award for Best Original Song. “Frozen” also won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

• “Frozen” was 2013’s highest-grossing film and Disney’s third highest-grossing release. With an estimated budget of $150 million, the movie earned nearly $1.3 billion and is the highest-grossing animated film of all time. It was translated and dubbed into 41 languages to be released internationally.

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November 30, 2020

• Looking for a great cause for gifting this year? Go to www.charitynavigator.org to find out more about how your prospective charities rank in areas like CEO pay, money spent on fundraising, etc.

• Need a quick batch of cookies?

Keep a box of cake mix on hand.

Instead of the listed ingredients, add two eggs and a half-cup of oil to the mix. Mix and shape, then bake at 350 F for 10 minutes. They are really good, and you can get pretty creative.

• Inexpensive gift idea: A cute holiday coffee mug with a bar of chocolate, a packet of hot cocoa or instant coffee, a peppermint stick and a decorative holiday craft pick. Place inside a gallon-size zipper-top bag, tie with a ribbon, then trim off the zipper-top, leaving just the plastic. Looks nice.

• When holiday cookie time comes, I keep a plastic pitcher of hot water in the sink. I toss cookie cutters into it when I’m finished with them, so the corners are soaking. They really seem to only need a rinse and a quick brushoff afterward. Mine don’t get caked up with dough. -– JoAnn • Dogs and chocolate just don’t mix, so keep those holiday plates full of delicious chocolate morsels up and out of the reach of pets.

• Use last year’s Christmas cards as gift tags on this year’s gifts: Just cut out great-looking images and write your own to and from on the back.

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by Matilda Charles

Keeping Busy This Winter

Winter is fast approaching, but at least we're no longer getting those constant election phone calls, and the endless calls about signing up for a Medicare Advantage Plan have ceased. The one thing that hasn't gone away is the coronavirus, and our lives are nowhere back to normal. After we've baked yet another loaf of pandemic bread and can log on to a Zoom neighborhood chat with our eyes closed, it's time to look for other things to do.

Here are some of the things I'm checking into to stay busy (and indoors) this winter: -- Becoming a remote reading tutor for a child. This would be done via the school's chat program, so there's no risk of transmission of the virus. A school aide will send me links to copied pages of books that my assigned child is learning to read, and we'll hook up while he or she is at school.

-- Growing plants with grow lights. I've arranged shelving in a spare room with space for plenty of plants, both houseplants and herbs. The plan is to have a mixture of small houseplants such as pothos and spider plant, and give them as gifts to neighbors once they are big enough to divide. With fingers crossed, I'm also going to try growing English ivy and asparagus fern from seed.

-- Experimenting with pottery. I've been curious about air-dry pottery, so I've ordered 10 pounds of white modeling clay and a smaller package of terra cotta. The reviews say it's good for sculpting and doesn't require a kiln or baking in the oven. If it works, I'm thinking of creating jewelry and painting them with acrylics or trying to produce miniatures of famous sculptures from museum websites. (Rodin's "The Thinker" seems appropriate right about now.)

These projects should keep me busy over the winter.

How about you? (c) 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.

by Freddy Groves

VA Expands Video Health Care Access

Afraid to go into a doctor's office right now because of COVID? You're not the only one. Or maybe the nearest facility is far away, or transportation is a problem. The Department of Veterans Affairs knows this and is stepping up efforts to keep us connected to our health care team.

The VA has reopened five telehealth access points after being closed down since April due to the COVID outbreak.

The Accessing Telehealth through Local Area Stations sites are part of a program to bring health care to veterans in rural areas or places without good internet access, the Anywhere to Anywhere initiative. ATLAS offers services that don't require hands-on exams: social work, nutrition, clinical pharmacy, primary care, mental-health counseling and more.

The locations now reopened are at Walmarts in Keokuk, Iowa; Howell, Michigan; Asheboro, North Carolina; Boone, North Carolina and Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. In addition to Walmarts, the VA has collaborated with Philips North America (think: small appliances such as razors and soup makers), the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. What these locations offer is a private room and encrypted video broadband connection access for meeting with VA providers, two very valuable services. The VA had over 294,000 video appointments last year.

When you go to an appointment at one of those locations, an attendant will check you in and help solve any video technical issues, and then leave. They're not VA employees, but they are trained to get you hooked up.

To learn more about ATLAS and see the full list of locations, go online to VA's Office of Connected Care at connectedcare.va.gov/partners/atlas. You'll find the town and state, address, telephone, hours of appointments and the associated medical center. There's also a list of future locations.

If you're not able to stay at home for a health care video conference, these ATLAS sites are the next best thing.

PRESIDENTIAL QUOTES: “The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first.� *Answer located back 3 pages.

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SNOW & ICE

• It’s no surprise that most of the world’s largest ski areas are in the Alps. The largest is found in France, Les Trois Vallees, with 373 miles of runs. Its area is as large as Paris, France, and contains 328 runs and 183 ski lifts, capable of transporting 260,000 skiers per hour. Snow is supplemented with its 2,200 snowmaking machines.

• The Matterhorn ski resort is the highest ski area in the Alps at 12,740 feet in altitude. Near the resort lies the village of Zermatt, at the foot of the Matterhorn peak. The Matterhorn is one of the deadliest mountains in the world, with an estimated 500 climbers having perished while attempting an ascent. The first successful ascent was in 1865 by Edward Whymper and his crew, who had already failed to attain the summit eight times previously. He and his party reached the peak, but four fell to their deaths on the descent.

• The top five largest ski resorts are located in France, Italy, and Switzerland. North America’s largest is Park City, Utah, located 30 miles from downtown Salt Lake City, 11th in the world, with 300 trails covering 165 miles of trails, with 41 lifts.

• Washington state’s Mt. Baker ski area is the record-holder for the most snow during a ski season, with 1,140 inches during the 1998 – 1999 winter season.

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• Do you know the difference between alpine skiing and Nordic skiing? Alpine skiing is also known as downhill skiing, gliding down the slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings. In Nordic skiing, the toe of the ski boot is fixed to the binding, but the heel is able to rise off the ski, as in cross country skiing. ...cont'd

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SNOW & ICE (continued):

• The first Winter Olympic Games were held in Chamonix, France, in 1924, with 258 athletes participating in 16 events. The event attracted 10,004 paying spectators between January 25 and February 5. The very first gold medal awarded in Olympic Winter Games went to speed skater Charles Jewtraw of the United States. He won just the one medal, compared to Finland’s speed skater Clas Thurnberg, who won five medals, three of them gold. Jewtraw’s gold medal can be seen in the Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. DIFFERENCES:: DIFFERENCES 1. Earring is missing. 2. Box is closed.

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• The 1924 Canadian ice hockey team scored 85 times during its first three matches without giving up a single goal to the other teams. Their final tally was 122 goals, with only three scored against them.

• It didn’t bother 11-year-old Norwegian figure skater Sonja Henie that she came in dead last in the Chamonix Games. It merely spurred her on to become the Olympic gold medalist in 1928, 1932, and 1936. Henie won more Olympic and world titles than any other ladies’ figure skater.

She followed up her competitive career with a career in films, becoming one of Hollywood’s highest-paid stars.

• There is only one American who has ever won an Olympic medal for ski jumping, Anders Haugen. Yet he was not awarded his medal for 50 years! A scoring error at the 1924 Chamonix Games resulted in the bronze medal going to a Norwegian skier rather than Haugen, the true winner. The error was discovered in 1974 by a Norwegian sports historian. In September of 1974, an 86-year-old Haugen traveled to Norway and was finally bestowed with his medal.

THANKS FOR READING TIDBITS! Information in the Tidbits paper is gathered from sources considered to be reliable, but the accuracy of all information cannot be guaranteed.

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