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Paige Compositor: The Invention That Bankrupted Mark Twain

Movabale letter types in a type case. This centuries-old method of type setting, although largely displaced by newer technologies, is still used by many niche publishers. Credit: Willi Heidelbach/Wikimedia Commons

The late 19th century saw a massive boom in newspaper publishing, especially in cities like New York, Chicago, and London. Rising literacy rates, rapid urbanization, and cheaper paper all contributed to a surge in public demand for daily news. To keep pace, newspapers had to print faster and in greater volume, placing immense pressure on compositors who still set type by hand.

The traditional hand-setting process was laborious and time-consuming. A compositor assembled each page character by character, using small metal letters known as sorts. These were stored in individual compartments on a tray, or type case, in front of the compositor. Working from copy, the compositor would pick up each character in sequence and place it into a composing stick, usually held in the left hand. Once a line of text was complete, it was justified by adjusting the spacing between words so that both the left and right margins aligned evenly.

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Chandu Numerology Pada May 19, 2025 Komentar

James Lind And The First Clinical Trial

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In the mid-18th century, the British Royal Navy was the most powerful maritime force in the world, but its dominance came at a high cost. Among the greatest threats to sailors was not enemy cannon fire or storms at sea, but scurvy—a devastating disease marked by weakness, swollen gums, joint pain, and eventual death. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, scurvy is estimated to have killed more British sailors than all naval battles combined.

Scurvy arises from a deficiency of vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, which is essential for collagen synthesis, iron absorption, and immune function. Symptoms of scurvy have been recorded in Ancient Egypt as early as 1550 BC, and in Ancient Greece, during the time of physician Hippocrates. Although scurvy was not understood at that time, the knowledge that certain foods could prevent or cure the disease was recognized long before vitamins were identified.

“James Lind: Conqueror of Scurvy” by Robert Thom, circa 1952. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

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Chandu Numerology Pada May 12, 2025 Komentar

The Poyais Scam: A Nation That Never Was

Travel

A panoramic view of Black River in the fictional territory of Poyais. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

In the early 19th century, a Scottish soldier named Gregor MacGregor pulled off one of the most audacious frauds in history. Styling himself the “Cazique” or prince of a fictional Central American nation, MacGregor seized upon the era’s feverish interest in colonial opportunity and foreign investment by convincing hundreds of people to invest in and even emigrate to a country that did not exist. His elaborate web of forged documents, fabricated maps, and persuasive lies led to the financial ruin of thousands and the death of over a hundred would-be settlers.

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Chandu Numerology Pada May 07, 2025 Komentar

The Kauri Gum Diggers of New Zealand

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Two Māori gum-diggers pose with a substantial pile of kauri gum, representing a week’s labour. Photo credit: Museum at Te Ahu

In the middle of the 19th century, New Zealand’s South Island struck gold. Gabriel Read, an Australian prospector who had previously searched for gold in California and Australia, discovered the precious metal in a creek bed near Lawrence. News of the find spread quickly, drawing thousands of prospectors from the dwindling goldfields of Australia, as well as from Europe, the United States, and China. Boomtowns such as Dunedin, Lawrence, Hokitika, and Thames expanded rapidly, with some populations quadrupling within just a few years.

Less than a thousand kilometers away, in New Zealand’s North Island, a different kind of gold rush was on. At its peak, at the turn of the 20th century, some 20,000 fortune-hunters were spread across some 800,000 acres of land looking not for metallic gold, but a treasure that closely resembled it—dried gum from kauri trees. Known as kauri gum, this natural treasure ranged in colour from chalky white to reddish-brown to deep black, but the most coveted was a rich, golden hue that could be polished to a glass-like finish. Kauri gum became one of New Zealand’s most striking and valued natural products.

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Chandu Numerology Pada April 30, 2025 Komentar

The 1916 Jersey Shore Shark Attacks

Travel

Crowds throng the beach at Atlantic City, New Jersey. circa 1908. Photo credit: Detroit Publishing Company

The town of Beach Haven, on the southern end of Long Beach Island off the coast of New Jersey, has been a popular summer resort for more than a hundred years. Located just twenty miles north of Atlantic City, Beach Haven has been the favourite destination for couples and families from New Jersey and Pennsylvania looking for a seaside escape.

The summer of 1916 was one of the hottest in recent memory, and Beach Haven was packed with vacationers. To provide shade to visitors, more than two hundred trees were planted and a new express train from Philadelphia shortened the travel time to just under two hours.

Among the vacationers was Charles Vansant, a 25-year-old stockbroker from Philadelphia. On July 1, 1916, he arrived in Beach Haven and, after checking in at the Engleside Hotel, headed straight to the beach for a late-afternoon swim in the Atlantic. Vansant waded into the surf just beyond the breakers, where the water reached his chest, and began calling out to a large Chesapeake Bay retriever that was playing on the beach. The dog, however, seemed uninterested in joining him.

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Chandu Numerology Pada April 23, 2025 Komentar

Harold Gillies: The Father of Plastic Surgery

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This is Walter Yeo, an English sailor who was injured while manning the guns aboard the battleship HMS Warspite during the Battle of Jutland on May 31, 1916. Although the exact cause of his injuries is not documented, he was likely struck by flying shrapnel from an exploding shell and suffered burns from the accompanying hot gases. The blast left Yeo severely disfigured, with the loss of both his upper and lower eyelids.

Yeo was first treated at Plymouth Hospital before being transferred to Queen Mary’s Hospital, where he came under the care of Harold Gillies. Thanks to Gillies’ pioneering work in reconstructive surgery, Yeo received a ground-breaking facial graft. A flap of skin was transplanted across his face and eyes, and after several months of recovery, he was declared fit for active service once again.

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Chandu Numerology Pada April 09, 2025 Komentar