December 31 - A Tax...on Windows???

  Posted on December 31, 2021


This is an update of my post published on December 31, 2010:





On this day in 1695, England's Parliament passed a bill that specified that taxes would be assessed according to the number of windows and openings houses and shops had. Many shopkeepers and homeowners bricked over their windows rather than pay the tax!


Quite a few windows and doorways in Britain have been
bricked over or otherwise eliminated.


If you tour Great Britain (or, actually, pretty much anywhere in Europe), you will see lots of old buildings still standing and in use today. Many of the older houses in England and Scotland still have bricked-up windows from that long-ago tax, even though it was repealed in 1851.





The rationale for the tax seems somewhat reasonable: the rich can afford to pay more taxes than the poor, and the rich tend to live in larger houses than the poor. The larger the house, the more windows it is likely to have. Makes sense?

However, according to some sources, the tax was a heavy burden on the middle class. Also, some people saw it as “a tax on light and air”!

Apparently the tax resulted in the richest families in the country using windows to set themselves off from the merely rich. When building a country home or manor, they would order an excessive number of windows—even building some over structural walls. The message seemed to be, “We're so rich we don't have to worry about extra taxes per window!”




By the way, France had a similar Doors and Windows Tax from 1798 to 1926.



Also: New Year's Eve and related holidays worldwide!


For lots of info and ideas about this important “eve,” see last year's post



Also on this date:













December 30 - Happy Birthday, John Milne

 Posted on December 30, 2021


This is an update of my post published on December 30, 2010:




Born on this day in 1850, British geologist John Milne invented the first accurate seismograph.



The earth is always shaking, quaking, moving. Any day of the year, type “earthquakes” into Google, and you will see the most recent big quakes that happened that day, or the day before, somewhere in the world. But such a search only shows the big quakes, and there are many more small shakes than large quakes!

As a matter of fact, the earth experiences several million earthquakes a year!

Many of these tremors are so small or so out-of-the-way that they are not recorded, but the US Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center does locate and record around 55 earthquakes worldwide EVERY DAY!

So, basically, there is 100% chance that there will be an earthquake today. Because there are many, every day. But we still cannot predict where and when BIG earthquakes hit.


People think that getting in a doorway is safe during an
earthquake, but it's better to get under a sturdy piece of
furniture like a desk or table, protect head and neck, and
HOLD ON until the shaking stops.

How do we measure the strength of an earthquake? 

A seismograph is an instrument that has a weight that can move relative to the instrument frame but is attached to the frame so that, if there is no motion, it will stay fixed relative to the frame.


The motion of the ground will move the frame, but the weight will not move because of inertia. By measuring the motion between the frame and the weight, the motion of the ground is also measured.

This short video explains how seismographs work. 

By the way, a modern seismograph is sensitive enough to sense mine explosions, falling trees, or even elk footsteps!



Learn more about earthquakes here






December 29 - Happy Birthday, Madame de Pompadour

 Posted on December 29, 2021


This is an update of my post published on December 29, 2010:






One of the most influential French women of her day, Jeanne Antoinette Poisson was born on this day in 1721. She became Marquise de Pompadour and great companion of King Louis XV, she aided some folks to gain more elevated positions in court, and she was a patroness of such intellectuals as Voltaire and Diderot. We are mostly familiar with her name, however, for a hairdo named after her!


A pompadour is a hairstyle in which hair is brushed up from the forehead, often into a clip or a roll. It is often achieved with the use of hair gel (or even, back in the day, with wax), with a pad or hair appliance that produces a “bump,” or by ratting some hair and then combing other hair high and over.

The thing that is odd is that Madame de Pompadour herself never wore her hair this way, nor were the popular hairstyles of her time related to what we now call the pompadour! 



But hairdos before and after Madame de Pompadour's time included the vertical-enhanced styles - sometimes quite exaggerated, like this old-time style:


...and this modern style:


In more recent times, Pompadour hairstyles have been associated with women in the 1940s, men in the 1950s - including Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash - Italian and Mexican Americans, Japanese gangs, and Conan O'Brien!






Learn about Hair History!

Take a quick tour of hair history with Bellatory.




I grew up with long-straight hair -
with or without bangs - being in style.
And I still love the look!

Also, I love Cher 
(pictured above and below)!




Also on this date:



Tick Tock Day













 


Birthday of musician and molecular biologist Dexter Holland