Basketball in America: A History

An American game that has traveled well is basketball, now played by more than 250 million people worldwide in an organized fashion, as well as by countless others in "pick-up" games. Basketball originated in 1891 when a future Presbyterian minister named James Naismith (1861-1939) was assigned to teach a physical education class at a Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) training school in Springfield, Massachusetts. The class had been noted for being disorderly, and Naismith was told to invent a new game to keep the young men occupied. Since it was winter and very cold outside, a game that could be played indoors was desirable.

Naismith thought back to his boyhood in Canada, where he and his friends had played "duck on a rock," which involved trying to knock a large rock off a boulder by throwing smaller rocks at it. He also recalled watching rugby players toss a ball into a box in a gymnasium. He had the idea of nailing up raised boxes into which players would attempt to throw a ball. When boxes couldn't be found, he used peach baskets. According to Alexander Wolff, in his book 100 Years of Hoops, Naismith drew up the rules for the new game in "about an hour." Most of them still apply in some form today.

James Naismith

Basketball caught on because graduates of the YMCA school traveled widely, because Naismith disseminated the rules freely, and because there was a need for a simple game that could be played indoors during winter. Naismith's legacy included the first great college basketball coach, Forrest "Phog" Allen (1885-1974), who played for Naismith at the University of Kansas and went on to win 771 games as a coach at Kansas himself. Among Allen's star players was Wilt Chamberlain, who became one of professional basketball's first superstars -- one night in 1962, he scored a record 100 points in a game.

The first professional basketball league was formed in 1898; players earned $2.50 for home games, $1.25 for games on the road. Not quite 100 years later, Juwan Howard, a star player for the Washington Bullets (now called the Washington Wizards), had competing offers of more than $100 million over seven seasons from the Bullets and the Miami Heat.

Many teams in the National Basketball Association now have foreign players, who return home to represent their native countries during the Olympic Games. The so-called Dream Team, made up of the top American professional basketball players, has represented the United States in recent Olympic Games. In 1996 the Dream Team trailed some opponents until fairly late in the games—an indication of basketball's growing international status. In Athens in 2004 Argentina took home the gold, the first time a Latin American country won the basketball honor.

Source from factmonster.com

10 Deadliest Hurricanes

1. 1970 Bhola Cyclone

Taking the cake for the deadliest tropical cyclone ever recorded the 1970 Bhola Cyclone hit East Pakistan (Bangladesh today) and India's West Bengal on November 12, 1970. While the exact death toll is unknown it is estimated that 300,000-500,000 people perished in the aftermath of this storm, making it one of the deadliest natural disasters recent history.

This cyclone was not extremely large, reaching strengths equivalent of a Category 3 Hurricane. The killing power of this storm was almost completely attributed to the cyclone's surge which flooded most of the low lying islands in the Ganges Delta, literally wiping villages and crops off the face of the earth.

2. Typhoon Nina 1975

Not to be known as some regular typhoon Super Typhoon Nina came onto the scene with a bang, hitting China hard and quickly destroying the Banqiao Dam. The collapse of the Banqiao Dam led to such great flooding that it set off a series of dam collapses throughout China, greatly magnifying the damage caused by Typhoon Nina.

With a 100,000+ death toll Super Typhoon Nina is the 2nd deadliest Typhoon in recorded history though we think it should be #1 since the most deadly typhoon, which hit Haiphong, Vietnam in 1881, didn't even get a name.

3. Hurricane Kenna

Kenna, a category 5 hurricane, was the 3rd most intense Pacific hurricane to ever strike Mexico's West Coast. Hitting San Blas, Nayarit on October 25th, 2002 was the 3rd cat 5 hurricane of the hurricane season. 140 mph winds and a 16 foot surge devastated the coast line causing $101 million dollars in damage.

4. Hurricane Pauline

Not happy to just be one of the most destructive Pacific hurricanes to make landfall in Mexico, Hurricane Pauline had to be one of the deadliest too.

Working it's way up the Mexican coastline Pauline dumped torrential rain falls with 16" of rain in Acapulco alone! The relentless downpour caused disastrous land slides in some of Mexico's poorest villages, killing roughly 250-400 people and leaving a striking 300,000 people homeless.

Beyond all the lives destroyed Hurricane Pauline caused a massive amount of damage, exceeding $7.5 billion (USD 1997).

5. Hurricane Iniki

When people think of Hawaii they often imagine lazy days of surfing and long luaus that go into the night. The last thing most people think of is hurricanes yet in September of 1992 that's just what they got.

Born from the strong El Nino warm phase of 91-94 Hurricane Iniki reached cat 4 level winds as the eye passed over the island of Kauaʻi.

Not surprisingly the Hawaiians handled the effects of Hurricane Iniki amazingly well. Communities held parties to cook all the perishable food since the power was knocked out. Grocery stores offered free food to anyone who needed it while most insisted on paying anyways. While there was some looting in the aftermath of the storm though it was very limited in comparison to what happened in Katrina and other disasters.

Amazingly there were only 6 deaths attributed to Hurricane Iniki although the islanders were given less than 24 hours notice. The monetary damage however was huge for the small island, totalling over $1.8 billion (USD 1992).

6. Galveston Hurricane of 1900

The year was 1900, the place was Galveston Texas. On September 4th a warning was released saying a large tropical storm had just passed Cuba and was headed west across the Gulf of Mexico.

Even though the US Weather Bureau had warning that a large storm was on its way their policy at the time was to avoid pesky words like "hurricane" or "tornado" to avoid giving people a chance to escape oops, I mean to avoid panic.

In this case panic is really what the people of Galveston should have done as there was a big ass storm on it's way and they were grossly unprepared.

In 1900 Galveston was only about 9 feet above sea level which was a bit too low. When the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 made landfall on September 8th it brought a 15 foot tall storm surge along with 135mph winds, making it a category 4 hurricane. The surge was so powerful it washed over the entire island, knocking buildings off their foundations and then pounding them into scraps of wood. In total over 3600 houses were destroyed.

The Galveston Hurricane is the deadliest natural disaster to ever hit the US, claiming over 6,000 lives. The total damages exceeded $20 million in 1900 dollars, which is over $500 million in todays dollars (inflation is no joke!).

7. Hurricane Ike

Hurricane Ike is in the top 3 for most destructive hurricane's to ever hit with $24 billion (2008 USD) in the United States, with additional damage of $7.3 billion in Cuba, $200 million in the Bahamas, and $500 million in the Turks and Caicos, amounting to a total of $32 billion in damages.

Hurricane Ike results in at least 195 deaths all the way from Haiti to Galveston and many places in between.

8. The Great Hurricane 1780

Holding the record as the deadliest Atlantic hurricane this storm devastated Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Lesser Antilles, Bermuda, and possibly Florida and other States.

While the total damages are unknown the death toll was well over 22,000 people, more than any other decade of Atlantic hurricanes.

9. Hurricane Andrew

Hurricane Andrew was the only named hurricane for the 1992 season but boy did it make it's mark. Wreaking havoc across the northwestern Bahamas, southern Florida and southwest Louisiana. Andrew caused $26.5 billion (USD 1992) in damage though some sources place this number closer to $34 billion.

Even with all the destruction caused by Hurricane Andrew the death toll was very low, with 26 deaths caused directly by the hurricane and 39 as secondary deaths.

10. Hurricane Katrina

Still fresh in the memories of American's, especially those from New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina was the costliest hurricane in US history as well as one of the 5 most deadliest ever recorded. Knocking out levies in Louisiana Katrina caused over 80% of New Orleans to flood before moving into the northeastern United States dumping rain all across the area.

By far the largest natural disaster to ever hit the US Hurricane Katrina is $80 billion (2008 USD) in damages and killed 1,836 people with 705 still missing.

One thing that stands out about the Katrina disaster is the utter failure of FEMA or any other government agency to provide support and rescue services to the areas. Lawlessness was rampant with police shooting innocent civilians and going door to door confiscating guns from American citizens in dry areas just trying to defend their homes.

The remnants of Hurricane Katrina are still evident in New Orleans even as efforts to rebuild the city are still under way.

Source form ranker.com

Baseball in America: A History

The sport that evokes more nostalgia among Americans than any other is baseball. So many people play the game as children (or play its close relative, softball) that it has become known as "the national pastime." It is also a democratic game. Unlike football and basketball, baseball can be played well by people of average height and weight.

Baseball originated before the American Civil War (1861-1865) as rounders, a humble game played on sandlots. Early champions of the game fine-tuned it to include the kind of skills and mental judgment that made cricket respectable in England. In particular, scoring and record-keeping gave baseball gravity. "Today," notes John Thorn in The Baseball Encyclopedia, "baseball without records is inconceivable." More Americans undoubtedly know that Roger Maris's 61 home runs in 1961 broke Babe Ruth's record of 60 in 1927 than that President Ronald Reagan's 525 electoral-college votes in 1984 broke President Franklin Roosevelt's record of 523 in 1936.

In 1871 the first professional baseball league was born. By the beginning of the 20th century, most large cities in the eastern United States had a professional baseball team. The teams were divided into two leagues, the National and American; during the regular season, a team played only against other teams within its league. The most victorious team in each league was said to have won the "pennant;" the two pennant winners met after the end of the regular season in the World Series. The winner of at least four games (out of a possible seven) was the champion for that year. This arrangement still holds today, although the leagues are now subdivided and pennants are decided in post-season playoff series between the winners of each division.

Baseball came of age in the 1920s, when Babe Ruth (1895-1948) led the New York Yankees to several World Series titles and became a national hero on the strength of his home runs (balls that cannot be played because they have been hit out of the field). Over the decades, every team has had its great players. One of the most noteworthy was the Brooklyn Dodgers' Jackie Robinson (1919-1972), a gifted and courageous athlete who became the first African-American player in the major leagues in 1947. (Prior to Robinson, black players had been restricted to the Negro League.)

Starting in the 1950s, baseball expanded its geographical range. Western cities got teams, either by luring them to move from eastern cities or by forming so-called expansion teams with players made available by established teams. Until the 1970s, because of strict contracts, the owners of baseball teams also virtually owned the players; since then, the rules have changed so that players are free, within certain limits, to sell their services to any team. The results have been bidding wars and stars who are paid millions of dollars a year. Disputes between the players' union and the owners have at times halted baseball for months at a time. If baseball is both a sport and a business, late in the 20th century many disgruntled fans view the business side as the dominant one.

It's generally agreed that baseball was introduced in Japan by an American professor in the 1870s and from then until the 1930s, the university baseball leagues dominated Japanese baseball. Professional Japanese baseball began in the 1930s with the formation of the Japan Professional Baseball League. In the 1990s a Japanese player, Hideo Nomo, became a star pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Baseball is also widely played in Cuba and other Caribbean nations. In the 1996 Olympics, it was a measure of baseball's appeal outside the United States that the contest for the gold medal came down to Japan and Cuba (Cuba won)

Source from factmonster.com

Fat and Calories

What's the difference between fat and calories?

Fat is one of six nutrients your body needs to stay healthy. The other five nutrients are:

• Carbohydrates (found in fruits, vegetables, pasta, rice, grains, peas, beans, and other legumes)
• Proteins (found in meat, poultry, dairy products, eggs, and beans)
• Minerals (such as potassium, calcium, and iron)
• Vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E, and K)
• Water

Of these six nutrients, carbohydrates, protein and fats provide calories. Each gram of carbohydrate and protein yield 4 calories/gram. Each gram of fat yields 9 calories.

A calorie is a measurement, just like a teaspoon or an inch. Calories are the amount of energy released when your body breaks down (digests and absorbs) food. The more calories a food has, the more energy it can provide to your body. When you eat more calories than you need, your body stores the extra calories as body fat. Even a fat-free food can have a lot of calories that eventually will contribute and can be stored as excess body fat.

Why does fat get all of the attention?

Fat gets all of the attention for many good reasons. Consider these facts:

• Some fats can raise cholesterol levels in the blood. A high cholesterol level is a leading risk factor for heart disease.
• Some fatty foods (such as bacon, sausage, and potato chips) often have higher calories with fewer vitamins and minerals than low-fat other foods. (Note: Protein sources, especially red meat and dairy products, often contain fat. Good, low-fat sources of protein include lean meat, fish, poultry without skin, beans, lentils, tofu, low-fat yogurt, low-fat milk, and low-fat cottage cheese, and tuna fish packed in water.)
• Fat has about twice as many calories per gram as carbohydrates and proteins. A gram of fat has about 9 calories, while a gram of carbohydrate or protein has about 4 calories. In other words, you could eat twice as much carbohydrates or proteins as fat for the same amount of calories.

Will I lose weight if I eat low-fat foods?

It's true that a diet high in fat can lead to weight gain. But it takes more than just eating low-fat foods to lose weight. You must also watch how many calories you eat. Remember, extra calories even from fat-free and low-fat foods get stored in the body as body fat. Many times people replace high-fat foods for high-calorie foods, like sweets, and gain weight rather than lose weight.

To lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you eat. You can achieve this goal by eating less fat and fewer calories, and exercising. Exercise burns calories. (Consult with your health care provider before starting an exercise or diet program.)

How much fat should I eat?

A low-fat style of eating is important for maintaining a healthy weight and preventing heart disease. The American Heart Association recommends limiting total calories from fat to less than 30 percent. That's about 65 grams of fat or less a day if you eat 2,000 calories a day.

How can I know how much fat I am eating?

• Read nutrition labels on food packages. Nutrition labels show the number of grams of fat per serving. Compare this number to your ‘budgeted’ amount of fat for the day. Food labels They also show the daily percentage of fat provided in each serving. In other words, if the daily percentage of fat per serving is 18%, each serving provides 18% of the total fat you should eat for the day. Choose a brand that has a lower fat percentage. (The daily percentage value is based on a number of calories listed on the nutrition label, usually 2,000. Your calorie needs may be higher or lower.)
• Learn about the foods you eat. Fat and calorie listings for individual foods can be found in nutrition books at your local library and on food packages.

Source from my.clevelandclinic.org

Smart Food, Junk Food

Food for health and well-being is not a new idea. The Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans believed that certain foods were natural cure-alls. Poppy juice was used to kill pain, strawberry roots to treat mad-dog bites. Crocodile blood was recommended for failing eyesight. Here are some foods that are currently thought to be good for you.

Smart Food

• Banana =
  Contains potassium and helps to prevent ulcers



• Barley =
  Lowers cholesterol because it is high in the good fat (HDLs, high-density lipoproteins)



• Cheese = Fights cavities because it contains calcium



• Chili peppers = Good for bronchitis, colds, and sinusitis



• Cucumber = Breaks up cholesterol deposits



• Figs = Helps to stabilize blood sugar, which keeps energy levels high



• Fiber = It helps to rid your body of waste and also makes you feel full. Fiber is found in fruits and vegetables and whole-grain cereal. It is not digestible



• Horseradish = It's sharp and strong, but fights colds because the root contains an antibiotic and vitamin C

You may want these junk foods, but try to stay away !

Junk Food

• Cakes and cookies = Contain too much sugar and not enough vitamins and minerals



• Colas = Have lots of sugar and few nutrients; may contain caffeine, an addictive drug



• Ice cream = Has many nutrients but is full of sugar and fats
  


• Potato chips = Although made from potatoes, they are deep fried and contain lots of salt and fat



• Sugar-coated cereal = Half cereal and half sugar

Food Facts

Are french fries from France? Is chop suey Chinese? Here are some common but mistaken beliefs about food and eating.

French fries are not from France. They were first made in Belgium in 1876. The term “french” refers to the way of cutting the potatoes before cooking.

Chop suey was created in America by a Chinese cook who worked in a California mining camp in the 1800s. He stir-fried a variety of vegetables, called it tsa sui, Mandarin Chinese for “various things,” so people called it chop suey.

Almost everyone associates potatoes with Ireland. Although they are its main crop, the potato is a plant originally from Peru, and was brought to Europe by explorers

Cool off with ice cream? Wrong. Ice cream feels cool, but it is loaded with calories (units of heat) and actually makes your body warmer.

Source from factmonster.com