On August 3, 1915, American zoologist Donald Redfield Griffin was born. As a Harvard undergraduate and early pioneer in animal behaviour studies, he investigated bat echolocation as the animal’s means of navigation, along with fellow student and future neurophysiologist, Robert Galambos. Griffin coined the…
On April 15, 1452, Leonardo da Vinci was born. Without formal education, he recorded much of his interest in every facet of life and study. He was an observational scientist who tried to understand something by illustrating and describing it, taking joy in quiet,…
On February 26, 1919, the first national park east of the Mississippi River was designated in Maine. Originally called Lafayette National Park, 10 years later it was renamed Acadia, a name that better reflects the area’s history. It includes a red granite mainland…
On September 5, 1892, Danish anthropologist and cartographer Therkel Mathiassen was born. He studied Arctic cultures at sites from Greenland to Nunavut and followed the spread of culture and emigration of Inuit ancestors. He named these the Thule people. Mathiassen located little groups of…