Originally Published
on Monday May 04, 2009
WEEK OF MAY 4Mussolini's Trains: Whatever you say about fascists like Benito Mussolini, at least they can make the trains run on time, right? Well, no. The only train he ever made run on time was the one that took him from Milan to Rome when he became prime minister. Now, to be fair, the trains did get better, but that's because they were in terrible shape. Most of the actual improvement happened before Mussolini took power.AOL: Remember AOL? When a Pizza Hut exec named Steve Case took over Quantum Computer Services, one of its key products was AppleLink, which you could use to connect your Mac to that newfangled Internet thing. But Apple changed its mind about the partnership and AppleLink became America Online in 1989. The company also sold PCLink and CommodoreLink. Yikes. Forget AOL nostalgia. Do you remember Commodore 64?Stealing Finland's Anthem: When Nigeria's Igbo people tried to split off and become Biafra, they adopted as their anthem "Land of the Rising Sun," set to the music of "Finlandia" by Jean Sibelius. That particular tune had been practically the anthem of the struggle of the Grand Duchy of Finland, which was battling to break loose of domination by the Russian anthem. Even so, Finland's de facto anthem is called "Maamme." And that piece of music is also used for Estonia's anthem.Big Week in Japan: This is Children's Day in Japan, formerly called Boys' Day. (There used to be a separate Girls' Day on March 3.) The day also marks the start of summer, and the Japanese celebrate with carp-shaped flags. In fact, the national holiday also marks the end of Golden Week, which includes Greenery Day (formerly the Emperor's Birthday) and Constitution Memorial Day.Swedish Music, Part 1: Fonzie would feel right at home, even today, in Sweden, where some kids still dress like James Dean. The raggare subculture is dedicated to rockabilly music, hot dog bars, V-8 engines and, for some reason, Confederate flags. They also used to battle punkers. Japan's bosozoku subculture is similar, except that it is based on motorcycles.Swedish Music, Part 2: Abba formed informally in 1970 when two couples on holiday in Cyprus goofed off singing on a beach. The band was originally called Bjorn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid, which had obvious marketing problems. But Abba is not only an acronym of their first names; it's also the name of a Swedish fish cannery. Their big break, oddly, came when they won the Eurovision Song Contest with their song "Waterloo."Celebrity Twits: Yes, we're all a bit tired of hearing about Twitter by now, but credit is due to the celebs who blazed the trail. The best known one is Ashton Kutcher, who tweets @aplusk. He beat CNN in a race to be the first with 1 million Twitter followers. His wife, Demi Moore, is @mrskutcher. Other notable trailblazers include John Cleese, Shaquille O'Neal and "Heroes" star Greg Grunberg.Oh, Cosmo: Cosmopolitan magazine used to be known as a place to read top-drawer, high-fallutin' fiction. It published Willa Cather, Theodore Dreiser, Rudyard Kipling, Jack London and Edith Wharton. But circulation kept falling after WWII until Helen Gurley Brown took over in 1965. She introduced greater sexual frankness and a more direct appeal to women. And as it happens, the original 19th-century version of the magazine was intended for families generally, and women in particular.Adopting Africa: Madonna's efforts to adopt a second child from Malawi recently came aground. The first adoption, of David Banda Mwale, proved hotly controversial, and there were accusations that she either jumped the line or somehow conned the boy's father. She had come across David while helping to build an orphanage in Malawi.Adopting Africa (and Everywhere Else): Madonna, though, is a piker compared to Angelina Jolie, who has adopted three children, all from different countries. In 2002, she adopted a Cambodian baby named Rath Vibol, whom she renamed Maddox Chivan. In 2005, an Ethiopian baby named Tena Adam became Zahara Marley, and in 2007, a 3-year-old Vietnamese boy named Pham Quang Sang became Pax Thien.Happy Vesak: Many of the world's Buddhists, particularly those in Thailand, are celebrating Vesak today. Vesak is sort of like a Buddhist Christmas, except that the Buddha's entire life is celebrated. Unlike Christmas, however, Vesak traditions are almost all of a religious nature, and involve works of charity, temple decoration and acts of extra piety.Happy Europe Day: This is also Europe Day, dedicated to celebrating the European Union. It is the anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, by which France and Germany agreed to pool their coal and steel resources as a first step toward European unity. By a happy coincidence, this is also the anniversary of Victory Day, the date that the Nazis succumbed to the Allies, at least according to the clocks in Moscow.TRIVIA 1) The European Food Safety Authority ended up in which city, for which a safe Italian cheese is named?A) BrieB) FetaC) GoudaD) Parma2) Known locally as kottbullar, it is mixed with onions and breadcrumbs soaked in milk. By what name is it known in English?A) German meatballsB) Polish meatballsC) Russian meatballsD) Swedish meatballs3) Thanks to "Take On Me," what orthographically challenged 1980s band became the first Norwegians to hit No. 1 in North America?A) a-haB) o-boyC) uh-ohD) ay-caramba4) In 2004, Lewis Lapham wrote a column describing the Republican National Convention, which hadn't happened yet, for what magazine?A) AtlanticB) Harper'sC) The NationD) The New Republic5) What kind of rock is the Rock of Gibraltar actually made from?A) GraniteB) LimestoneC) MarbleD) Quartz6) Who wrote books named for a carpenter called Adam Bede and for a weaver called Silas Marner?A) Charles DickensB) George EliotC) Henry JamesD) Mark TwainANSWERS1) The European Food Safety Authority is in Parma, Italy.2) Kottbullar is better known as Swedish meatballs.3) A-ha was the first Norwegian act to hit No. 1 in North America.4) Lewis Lapham wrote for Harper's.5) Gibraltar is made of limestone.6) Previous answer: George Eliot wrote about Silas Marner and Adam Bede.
WEEK OF MAY 4Mussolini's Trains: Whatever you say about fascists like Benito Mussolini, at least they can make the trains run on time, right? Well, no. The only train he ever made run on time was the one that took him from Milan to Rome when he became prime minister. Now, to be fair, the trains did get better, but that's because they were in terrible shape. Most of the actual improvement happened before Mussolini took power.AOL: Remember AOL? When a Pizza Hut exec named Steve Case took over Quantum Computer Services, one of its key products was AppleLink, which you could use to connect your Mac to that newfangled Internet thing. But Apple changed its mind about the partnership and AppleLink became America Online in 1989. The company also sold PCLink and CommodoreLink. Yikes. Forget AOL nostalgia. Do you remember Commodore 64?Stealing Finland's Anthem: When Nigeria's Igbo people tried to split off and become Biafra, they adopted as their anthem "Land of the Rising Sun," set to the music of "Finlandia" by Jean Sibelius. That particular tune had been practically the anthem of the struggle of the Grand Duchy of Finland, which was battling to break loose of domination by the Russian anthem. Even so, Finland's de facto anthem is called "Maamme." And that piece of music is also used for Estonia's anthem.Big Week in Japan: This is Children's Day in Japan, formerly called Boys' Day. (There used to be a separate Girls' Day on March 3.) The day also marks the start of summer, and the Japanese celebrate with carp-shaped flags. In fact, the national holiday also marks the end of Golden Week, which includes Greenery Day (formerly the Emperor's Birthday) and Constitution Memorial Day.Swedish Music, Part 1: Fonzie would feel right at home, even today, in Sweden, where some kids still dress like James Dean. The raggare subculture is dedicated to rockabilly music, hot dog bars, V-8 engines and, for some reason, Confederate flags. They also used to battle punkers. Japan's bosozoku subculture is similar, except that it is based on motorcycles.Swedish Music, Part 2: Abba formed informally in 1970 when two couples on holiday in Cyprus goofed off singing on a beach. The band was originally called Bjorn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid, which had obvious marketing problems. But Abba is not only an acronym of their first names; it's also the name of a Swedish fish cannery. Their big break, oddly, came when they won the Eurovision Song Contest with their song "Waterloo."Celebrity Twits: Yes, we're all a bit tired of hearing about Twitter by now, but credit is due to the celebs who blazed the trail. The best known one is Ashton Kutcher, who tweets @aplusk. He beat CNN in a race to be the first with 1 million Twitter followers. His wife, Demi Moore, is @mrskutcher. Other notable trailblazers include John Cleese, Shaquille O'Neal and "Heroes" star Greg Grunberg.Oh, Cosmo: Cosmopolitan magazine used to be known as a place to read top-drawer, high-fallutin' fiction. It published Willa Cather, Theodore Dreiser, Rudyard Kipling, Jack London and Edith Wharton. But circulation kept falling after WWII until Helen Gurley Brown took over in 1965. She introduced greater sexual frankness and a more direct appeal to women. And as it happens, the original 19th-century version of the magazine was intended for families generally, and women in particular.Adopting Africa: Madonna's efforts to adopt a second child from Malawi recently came aground. The first adoption, of David Banda Mwale, proved hotly controversial, and there were accusations that she either jumped the line or somehow conned the boy's father. She had come across David while helping to build an orphanage in Malawi.Adopting Africa (and Everywhere Else): Madonna, though, is a piker compared to Angelina Jolie, who has adopted three children, all from different countries. In 2002, she adopted a Cambodian baby named Rath Vibol, whom she renamed Maddox Chivan. In 2005, an Ethiopian baby named Tena Adam became Zahara Marley, and in 2007, a 3-year-old Vietnamese boy named Pham Quang Sang became Pax Thien.Happy Vesak: Many of the world's Buddhists, particularly those in Thailand, are celebrating Vesak today. Vesak is sort of like a Buddhist Christmas, except that the Buddha's entire life is celebrated. Unlike Christmas, however, Vesak traditions are almost all of a religious nature, and involve works of charity, temple decoration and acts of extra piety.Happy Europe Day: This is also Europe Day, dedicated to celebrating the European Union. It is the anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, by which France and Germany agreed to pool their coal and steel resources as a first step toward European unity. By a happy coincidence, this is also the anniversary of Victory Day, the date that the Nazis succumbed to the Allies, at least according to the clocks in Moscow.TRIVIA 1) The European Food Safety Authority ended up in which city, for which a safe Italian cheese is named?A) BrieB) FetaC) GoudaD) Parma2) Known locally as kottbullar, it is mixed with onions and breadcrumbs soaked in milk. By what name is it known in English?A) German meatballsB) Polish meatballsC) Russian meatballsD) Swedish meatballs3) Thanks to "Take On Me," what orthographically challenged 1980s band became the first Norwegians to hit No. 1 in North America?A) a-haB) o-boyC) uh-ohD) ay-caramba4) In 2004, Lewis Lapham wrote a column describing the Republican National Convention, which hadn't happened yet, for what magazine?A) AtlanticB) Harper'sC) The NationD) The New Republic5) What kind of rock is the Rock of Gibraltar actually made from?A) GraniteB) LimestoneC) MarbleD) Quartz6) Who wrote books named for a carpenter called Adam Bede and for a weaver called Silas Marner?A) Charles DickensB) George EliotC) Henry JamesD) Mark TwainANSWERS1) The European Food Safety Authority is in Parma, Italy.2) Kottbullar is better known as Swedish meatballs.3) A-ha was the first Norwegian act to hit No. 1 in North America.4) Lewis Lapham wrote for Harper's.5) Gibraltar is made of limestone.6) Previous answer: George Eliot wrote about Silas Marner and Adam Bede.
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