The Who2 Blog

Lincoln’s Wet Inauguration

The Library of Congress has dug up some new photos of President Abraham Lincoln’s second inauguration.

Mona Lisa, Finally Unmasked?

Scholars at the University of Heidelberg say they have determined the true identity of the Mona Lisa “once and for all.”

Mitt Romney Takes Michigan

Mitt Romney has won the Republican primary in Michigan, where his dad was once governor

Dr. King Speaks to Detroit

The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on this day in 1929. The birthday is celebrated publicly with a holiday next Monday.(As an aside: April 4th will be the 40th anniversary of his death. Had MLK lived, he’d be 79 years old today.)

Image via Wikimedia Commons

More on Volta

Who2 science editor Paul Hehn adds his thoughts on Alessandro Volta:”Interesting guy, Mr. Volta. He must have been very good at networking… it would have taken too many words to include in his profile the stuff about Lombardy going from Austria to Napoleon to Austria again, with Volta never losing a step along the way. Everybody’s friend, apparently.

Bogey +51

Humphrey Bogart died 51 years ago today.

Midwife to the Stars

We recently wrote about the “ER to the Stars,” Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Beverly Hills.As if on cue, pop star Christina Aguilera and TV semi-star Nicole Richie gave birth there, “minutes apart,” on Friday. (Richie went first.)

New Profile: The Volt Man

Count Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Volta — better known as plain ol’ Alessandro Volta — is our newest profile.

The Lincoln Bicentennial

[[wysiwyg_imageupload:1381:]]Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday is due next year. (He was born in Kentucky on 12 February 1809.)Turns out the Library Congress is already on the job with a lively Lincoln Bicentennial celebration.The timeline is a nice touch. And the Did You Know? section includes this timeless tidbit: “Lincoln had a dog named Fido.”

All This and Fossett Too

Yesterday we mentioned that Sir Edmund Hillary and Neil Armstrong once traveled together to the North Pole.Now we find out that record-breaking pilot Steve Fossett was also on the same expedition. The Brisbane Times has more.

Edmund Hillary: An Appreciation

Americans are lucky to have Neil Armstrong as a native example of a rare specimen: the superbly modest hero. He mixed quiet determination with curiosity, nerve and good humor, and when he was done tackling the moon, Armstrong went back to Ohio and taught aeronautics.

Sir Edmund Hillary Dies

Sir Edmund Hillary, the former beekeeper who conquered Mount Everest in 1953, has died.His home-country New Zealand Herald is a good place to start for news and tributes.

Donald Fagen Is 60

Donald Fagen, “reclusive avatar of High Pop,” turns 60 today.All About Jazz has a wonderfully detailed analysis of his new boxed set, The Nightfly Trilogy.

Queen Elizabeth, “Nintendo Addict”

First she went YouTube. Now Canada’s National Post is having fun with reports that Queen Elizabeth II is “hooked” on Nintendo bowling.

Never Bring a Corpse to a Check-Cashing Party

Two plucky oldsters in Hell’s Kitchen ignored that good advice. The comment from New York cops: “Hell’s Kitchen has a rich history.”

New Hampshire Primary Results

Is it possible to have a “comeback” on the first day of an election? If so, Hillary Clinton and John McCain seem to have done so.

Happy Birthday, Dear Elllllvis…

It’s Elvis Presley’s birthday — and he’d still be only 73 years old.He’s the same age as Ron Paul, Woody Allen, and Darth Vader.

First in the Nation?

As the candidates battle in New Hampshire, Dixville Notch battles its own rival.

Nicolas Sarkozy, Playboy President?

News reports say that Nicolas Sarkozy, the just-divorced president of France, is just-maybe-possibly engaged to former model Carla Bruni.Journal di Dimanche has a photo set on Bruni. The paper broke the story yesterday, saying Sarkozy and Bruni might marry in February.

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center: ER to the Stars

Frank Sinatra died there. Kate Hudson was born there. Alex Trebek went there after his heart attack. And this week, Britney Spears was taken there after a mental meltdown.