Category Archives: Getting To Know/History

Getting To Know/History

5 types of love languages

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By: Seng Yang

Image created with Gencraft

Love languages are the different ways people feel loved. There are 5 specific types of love languages and most people respond to more than one. Here are some explanations of the 5 types of love languages.

The first love language is quality time. This love language refers to expressing love primarily through dedicated, focused time spent with your partner, prioritizing their undivided attention and presence above other gestures. People with this love language usually value spending meaningful time with their partner, putting away distractions like phones but overall just engaging in shared activities, conversations, or simply just relaxing together can be more important than grand gestures. Some examples would be: active listening, focus on quality not quantity, importance of one-on-one time, regular date nights, engaging in meaningful conversations, craving undivided attention, and asking thoughtful questions that carries on the conversation.

The second love language is physical touch. This love language refers to someone who feels most loved and connected when they receive physical affection from their partner, like hugs, hand-holding, cuddling, kisses, or other forms of non-sexual touch. People with this love language deeply value physical closeness and feel most loved when their partner initiates affectionate touch. Some examples would be: kisses to show love and desire, resting head or face on shoulders, squeezing hugs, slow dancing, and playing with their hair.

The third love language is gift giving. This love language refers to someone who primarily expresses and feels love through the act of giving presents, where the thoughtfulness behind the gift is more important than its monetary value, signifying that they feel most loved and appreciated when they receive a thoughtful present, no matter how small or how much it costs. The focus is on the effort put into choosing a gift that shows you were thinking about them, not just the price tag, as even a little something thoughtful can be greatly appreciated. Unfortunately, many people mistakenly believe that this love language means someone is only interested in expensive gifts, but it’s more about the thought behind the present. Some examples would be: giving flowers, a book by their favorite author, a personalized item, a handmade craft, and a thoughtful handwritten note/letter.

The fourth love language is words of affirmation which is by far the most common love language around the world. This love language refers to someone who feels most loved and appreciated when their partner expresses affection through spoken or written words of praise, encouragement, and compliments, making them feel valued through verbal affirmation. People who have this love language deeply value hearing kind words, compliments, and expressions of love directly from their partner. The positive affirmations help them feel secure and validated in the relationship. Some examples would be: “I appreciate that you…”, “I love you”, “I’m proud of you”, “Thank you for…”, and compliments about their outfit, hair, or appearance.

The fifth and last love language is acts of service. This love language refers to someone who wants to be shown love through intentional actions that make your partner’s life easier, like doing chores, running errands, or performing small tasks that demonstrate you are considering their needs and want to help them out. People with this love language feel most loved when their partner takes initiative to do helpful things, not just saying nice words. To express this love language, you would need to pay attention to your partner’s specific needs and preferences to perform acts of service that are truly meaningful to them. Some examples would be: cooking meals, planning a surprise activity, preparing breakfast in bed, making their favorite treat, holding the door open, tying their shoelaces, making their morning coffee, or doing things for them without them having to ask.

Events, Getting To Know/History

‘Girlhood (it’s complicated)’

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By: Kumari Wijetunge

Official poster of Girlhood (it’s complicated)

‘Girlhood (it’s complicated)’ is an exhibit that you can see at the Minnesota History Center that will be up from September 7, 2024 to June 1, 2025. This is an extremely well put together and powerful representation of the impacts made by women throughout history with themes like education, fashion, work, and politics. The exhibit explores how girls over the years have navigated growing up in a society that underestimates our voices and abilities.

The exhibit counters traditional narratives of girlhood by highlighting the struggles and complexity of girls’ lives. It emphasizes that being a girl is much more than society paints it to be but instead involves navigating multiple roles and identities. Through a collection of over 100 historical artifacts, personal diaries, and interactive displays, ‘Girlhood (its complicated)’ shows how girls have contributed to society in significant ways, often breaking down barriers that were set before us.

One of the main themes of the exhibit is girls’ access to education and how it has evolved over centuries, with many girls fighting for the right of education. The exhibit shows the historical struggle and the events that led to girls and women securing educational opportunities.

The work of girls and young women is also shown in the exhibit and how they balanced family responsibilities like chores with personal ambitions and activism. Artifacts like clothing, diaries, and toys highlight the way girls have navigated their roles in the household and beyond.

‘Girlhood (its complicated)’ also features an exclusive section dedicated to girls and women in sports, specifically basketball. This part of the exhibit showcases the growth of women’s sports and the stories of female athletes who empowered others. Through photographs, personal stories, and trophies, visitors can learn about the history of women’s sports and the ongoing fight for equality.

Throughout the exhibit visitors reflect on their own experiences and perceptions of girlhood. Overall, ‘Girlhood (it’s complicated)’ is a powerful reminder of how important it is to recognize the different experiences of girlhood throughout history and the present. By interacting with artifacts and stories, visitors can leave with a greater appreciation for the resilience and strength of girlhood.

Getting To Know/History, Sports

Tara Dower

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By: Kara Fini

Appalachian Trail sign

A record previously only held by men was broken last year by a woman.  In September of 2024, Tara Dower ran the entire length of the Appalachian Trail in under 41 days beating the previous record held by Karel Sabbe, a male ultrarunner, by a whole 13 hours.

Tara is a 31-year-old ultra runner from Virginia. She’s run thousands of miles in her life and attempted to hike the Appalachian Trail twice. Her first time in 2017 she didn’t make it due to anxiety, but two years later she completed it with her husband. This time she wanted to make history.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Appalachian Trail, it’s a long hiking trail that spans from Georgia all the way to Maine going through the Appalachian Mountains. This trail is 2,190+ miles long and is open to the public. There are many parts of the trail for doing shorter hikes. The total amount of elevation gain for the entire trail is 520,000 ft with the highest elevation being 6,643 ft.

Annually, about 3,000 people attempt to complete this 2,000 mile journey, but only about 25% of people complete it. For the average hiker, it takes 5 to 7 months to complete with several stops along the way.

With all of that in mind, it puts into perspective how crazy and amazing it is for Tara to run this in only 41 days. Tara was running the equivalent of two marathons every day across the mountains. She had different pacers, people who ran with her to make sure she was going the right speed, throughout the whole time who helped her stay encouraged and motivated. She completed it at 11:53 at night on September 21.

This moment is powerful for women and girls in sports, especially running. In most things related to endurance sports, men have the fastest time. Seeing a woman not only beat the women’s fastest known time, but the overall known time shows how capable and strong women in sports can be.

If you want to see more of Tara’s running journey, she has a TikTok and Instagram that you can follow. Her username for both is @tara.dower.

Getting To Know/History, Travel/Food

Why 43 is the largest natural number that is not an original McNugget Number

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By: Ian Larson

Did you know that 43 is the largest natural number that is not an original McNugget number?

McNugget numbers are based on the idea of Frobenius numbers AKA coin problems which were made by Ferdinand Georg Frobenius. These coin problems were to see what the maximum number of values that you can’t make with 2 values is, as if they are the values of coins. For example, if you had a coin worth 3 and a coin worth 5, you could make any number above 7.

McNugget numbers were introduced by Henri Picciotto in ‘Games Magazine’ in 1987. A McNugget number is any number of McNuggets you can order, and originally the McNuggets came in boxes of 6, 9, and 20. This meant that the largest number of McNuggets that you were
not able to get was 43 McNuggets. You can prove this by the fact that you are able to get 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, and 49 McNuggets, and if you add boxes of 6 to any of these you are able to get any number greater than 43.

In modern day, you are actually able to get 43 McNuggets. In most locations in Europe and Asia, a box of 4 McNuggets was added to the menu. This made it so you were able to order 43 McNuggets. I was personally able to order 43 McNuggets, as is shown in the image for this article. With this 4 piece box, you are actually able to order any amount of McNuggets that is greater than 11. In fact if you are able to get McNuggets from one of these locations and Japan, which has their McNuggets in boxes of 5 and 15, you are able to order any amount greater than 7. It is likely that nobody has ever ordered 11 McNuggets because you have to order McNuggets from multiple countries.

McNugget numbers are a very interesting and weird math concept. I hope McNugget numbers were as interesting to you as they were to me.

Getting To Know/History

Most popular pet names

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By: Karl Salkowski

Photo by Chevanon Photography on Pexels.com

Pets have lived alongside humans for millennia. Pets provide a variety of mental and physical benefits. According to Health.ucdavis.edu pets have been found to help lower stress and anxiety, ease feelings of loneliness, and give a sense of purpose to pet owners. That’s not all. Pets have also been proven to help owners establish healthy routines. 60% of dog owners meet the recommended weekly amount of exercise compared to 31% of people without a dog.

Names are very important for how we go about our lives. They contribute to how our communities see us and how we see ourselves. According to Students.ubc.ca names carry deep personal, cultural, familial, and historical connections. Because of how important they are, lots of thought is often put into assigning them.

Human names often follow patterns or trends. This is why you may associate some names with older or younger people. The same is true for pets. Name popularity rises and falls over time.

According to various sources including Akc.org, Amcny.org, and Embarkvet.com, these are the top dog and cat names in 2024:

Female dog names:

  1. Bella
  2. Chloe
  3. Luna
  4. Daisy
  5. Lucy

Male dog names:

  1. Milo
  2. Charlie
  3. Buddy
  4. Leo
  5. Max

Female cat names:

  1. Luna
  2. Nala
  3. Lola
  4. Willow
  5. Coco

Male cat names:

  1. Milo
  2. Oliver
  3. Charlie
  4. Loki
  5. Oreo

There are many similarities between the most popular dog and cat names. Milo and Luna seem to be the most popular pet names overall, but not very far behind them are the names Lucy and Charlie.

Although the most popular pet names are very different from the most popular human names, there are still some similarities. Pet names and human names tend to stay popular for similar amounts of time. For example, according to Amcny.org the name Max has been one of the most popular male dog names for over a decade from between 2013 and 2023. Overall, names are extremely important to how we perceive and connect with our pets.

Getting To Know/History

The story of Gobi

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By: Kara Fini

The story of Gobi is a story of a dog who ran 77 miles of an ultra marathon in the Gobi Desert of north-central China back in 2015. She is a small female chihuahua who ran with the runner Dion Leonard. Dion Leonard is from Edinburgh, Scotland and traveled to China to race one of the toughest races in his life.

On day two of Dion’s race a little stray dog started to follow him and run alongside him. It annoyed him at first, but his attitude changed on day three. Right before he was about to take the lead, there was a huge water crossing he had to wade through. He started going through the water, but heard whimpering behind him, so doing something he had never done before, he turned back and carried the dog across. After that day his main priority changed from winning the race, to protecting and running with Gobi.

When the race ended, Dion asked to see if anyone was her owner, but when no one claimed her he decided he wanted to take her home to Scotland. Because of policies that stopped Dion from just taking her, he went back to Scotland and left Gobi with a local family who offered to take her.

After a few weeks apart Dion got heartbreaking news that Gobi went missing. Dion was heartbroken, and decided to fly to China to start a rescue team to try and find her. They set up posters and searched everywhere. By this time, the story of Gobi and Dion had gone viral in this area so many people were wanting to try and help find Gobi.

Dion wasn’t convinced that Gobi had just escaped and thought that someone would take her because of how viral she had become. He started to lose hope when someone claimed to have found her, but it was the wrong dog.

Then one day, a person on Dion’s search team came up to him and showed him a picture of a dog that people had sent to him thinking it was Gobi. Dion glanced at it, but was not convinced that this was Gobi. He decided to go and meet with them anyway. They got there and as soon as the dog saw Dion it came sprinting towards him. It leaped into his arms and Dion knew that it was Gobi.

They spent a couple months living in Beijing while Gobi was waiting for the necessary paperwork, so she could go to Scotland with Dion.

She now lives there full time with Dion and his wife. She is retired from running, but they travel the world to inspire others to run.

If you want to hear more about Gobi’s story, Dion wrote a memoir called ‘Finding Gobi’ where he talks about his whole experience in running with Gobi and the journey to take her back to Scotland.

Getting To Know/History

Rebecca, the White House Racoon

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By: Munira Ahmadad

First Lady Grace Coolidge takes Rebecca for a walk during the annual White House Egg Roll on April 18, 1927.
National Photo Company Collection/Library of Congress

Two things U.S. President Calvin “Silent Cal” Coolidge is known for is being straightforward and quiet, and having a pet Racoon named Rebecca.

Rebecca was initially a Thanksgiving meal gift. Coolidge had been gifted Thanksgiving meal gifts from farmers against his permission, his opposition to the tradition made news in 1923, in the New York Times article “Coolidge Refuses Gift Turkey; Wants to Discourage Custom”.

One of the unwanted gifts he received was a female Racoon. Rather than eating her, Calvin Coolidge chose to keep her as a pet and give her the name Rebecca.

Rebecca was given the title of White House Raccoon and had her own little house. She was given a collar for Christmas with her title on it, and was given free range in the White House.

The raccoon would go on to do whatever she pleased. First Lady Grace described Rebecca as a pet that lived with liberty and had a mischievous personality.

As Rebecca gained American popularity, the public began wanting her to have a partner. After being captured by a White House officer, a male raccoon was introduced to the White House to be Rebecca’s boyfriend. He was named Horace but Coolidge didn’t like that name and swapped it to Rueben.

Rueben was not very interested in being Rebecca’s boyfriend as he escaped several times and eventually when he could not be found after running away again, Rebecca’s life as the only White House Raccoon returned to usual.

After Coolidge’s departure from presidency, Rebecca was sent to live with other raccoons at Rock Creek Zoo.

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Getting To Know/History

What is the E/A-18G Growler?

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By: Yohan Lee

Photo by Jack Sequeira. Used with permission.

What is the E/A-18G Growler? The E/A-18G Growler is an Electronic Attack which means it can disrupt enemies radars and communications. The E/A-18G Growler was an F/A-18F Super Hornet that was built by Boeing for the U.S. Navy. The E/A-18G Growler is fitted with electronic warfare avionics. The avionics are the ALQ-218, CCS Antennas, Long Baseline Interferometer Antennas, Datalink and the AESA radar. The AESA radar replaces the gatling gun so the weight load can be less.

Its history. Development began in 2003 and the first prototype to ever be flown was in 2006. Each flight they worked to improve the avionics and reduce its air to air armament to accomplish its suppression of Enemy Air Defense or SEAD. Once the E/A-18G Growler was ready, it replaced the E/A-6B Prowler which was the Electronic Attack of the A-6B Intruder.

The first deployable squadron was the VAQ-132 “Scorpions”. There are about 9 deployable squadrons and one non-deployable squadron that holds the E/A-18G Grower. The E/A-18G Growler has its own Naval Air Station based at NAS Whidbey Island which is home of the Electronic Attack. The U.S. Navy gave 12 Growlers to the Royal Australian Air Force which is operated in No. 6 squadron at RAAF Base Amberley. But the U.S. Navy will not give any more Growlers out since it’s the U.S.’s Secret weapon.

Its Payload. The E/A-18G Growler can hold the AGM-88 HARM which means Air to Ground Missile 88 High-speed anti Radiation Missile which fires at a ground target. It also carries the ALQ-218 which receives radar warning. ALQ-99 which jams enemy radio and an AIM-120 which is an air to air missile.

The E/A-18G Growler has 2 crews. One is a pilot who flies the aircraft and one is the Electronic Warfare Officer or EWO. The EWO is responsible for some of the E/A-18G Growler’s most important duties. The EWO jams enemy radar and chaffs flares which is a bright and hot material that tricks the missile into thinking it’s the aircraft.

What makes it important to the U.S? The E/A-18G Growler is one of the best Electronic Attack aircraft. For one, it really doesn’t need to be stealth. The only stealth it has is jamming the enemy radio and radar and a special coating that makes enemy radar bounce off making it difficult to track the Growler. The Growler is also a 4.5 generation aircraft so it’s very modern. And if other branches or squadrons need help trying to be more stealthy they can get the E/A-18G Growler for support. The Growler is always first in the battle field so it can quickly jam before the enemy can see any other non jamming planes. Many other countries tried to replicate the Growler but can’t because the Grower is far more advanced than what they have. So, this is why the E/A-18G Growler is important to the U.S. Navy.

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Getting To Know/History

Minnesota’s oldest unsolved murder

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By: Karl Salkowski

Fort Snelling

Two soldiers met at Fort Snelling in the late 1830s. One of which was Edward Phalen. He wasn’t known to be trustworthy and had a criminal past, but he was going to be discharged at the perfect time. The United States had just signed a treaty in 1837 allowing White settlers to occupy lands on the Mississippi River across from Fort Snelling. Phalen saw this opportunity, but was short on cash, so he enlisted his friend Hays.

Hays was the polar opposite of Phalen: affable, trustworthy, cordial. Hays however was slated to be discharged much later, and by that time all the best land would be taken. Thus, the two of them decided to work together. According to Minnpost.com “Phalen left the army on June 8, 1838. He then rushed to claim two land parcels in what later became downtown St. Paul, along the Mississippi from the foot of Eagle Street to the Robert Street Bridge.”

Once Hays was discharged on April 25th, 1839, he and Phalen decided to begin farming. Allegedly, multiple neighbors heard them get into many heated arguments throughout the next few months. Hays later disappeared in September of 1839. According to Phalen, he had left to find a lost calf. However, Hays was found dead, floating on the Mississippi River three weeks later.

According to Mprnews.org, Henry Sibley, who would later become the first governor of Minnesota, was tasked with investigating the case. Soon he came to the conclusion that Phalen was behind it. Phalen was soon arrested and tried for the murder, making it the first murder in Minnesota to make it to the US courts. Phalen lied in his testimony and his story contradicted what had happened, but against all odds he was found not-guilty due to a lack of evidence.

According to Mprnews.org, it was reported that a Native American had made a deathbed confession admitting to the murder of Hays a couple years later, but most people still believe Phalen was behind it.

Although Phalen was almost certainly a murderer, many things in the Saint Paul area were named after him due to his early land claims. Some of these being: St. Paul’s Lake Phalen, Phalen Creek, Phalen Boulevard, and the Payne-Phalen neighborhood. People have objected to these names since as early as 1876. Williams, the 19th century historian, wrote, “It is a disgrace that the name of this brutal murderer has been affixed to one of our most beautiful lakes.”

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Events, Getting To Know/History

Mid Autumn Moon Festival

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By: Cleo Newton

The Mid Autumn Moon Festival is a Chinese festival that celebrates the unity and harmony among loved ones. There’s a well known legend/folktale that goes with this holiday: 嫦娥奔月 (Chang’e Ben yue). The story (according to my memory of hearing it every year) goes like this:

There once were ten suns in the sky, the suns would go around burning up the earth and causing droughts. People were dying because they couldn’t drink any water or grow any crops to eat. To solve this problem, Houyi, being a very experienced archer, was given a special set of bow and arrows to shoot down the suns. He shot down the suns one by one until there was only one left remaining. The last sun was left in the sky to keep the earth from going cold.

As a reward for shooting down the suns, a goddess came down and gave him an elixir (in some other versions it’s a few pills). Drinking (or eating) half this (these) elixir (pills), would make you live forever, eating all of them would allow you to ascend to heaven and become a deity. Houyi gave the medicine to his wife, Chang’e and told her about the effects of drinking (eating). Overjoyed, Chang’e and Houyi agreed that they would both drink (eat) half (I’m not sure why they didn’t just do that right away).

Chang’e was left to guard the medicine while Houyi left to hunt for food (I thought all the animals were still burned up and dead from just the other day 🤔). PengMeng (who in some versions of the story is a student of Houyi, and in others he’s just some guy), had heard Chang’e and Houyi talking about the pills, and decided that he wanted to steal the elixir (pills) for himself. He broke into their house while Houyi was out and threatened Chang’e with a knife, saying that he would kill her if she didn’t give him the elixir (pills). In some other versions of the story, there is no PengMeng and Chang’e was a greedy person who took the medicine for herself. To keep the medicine safe, Chang’e drank (swallowed) the elixir (pills) and flew up to the moon.

Houyi saw his wife flying off and chased after her to no avail. Once Chang’e arrived on the moon, she threw up the medicine and it turned into a rabbit. The rabbit supposedly can be seen on the face of the moon trying to make a new kind of medicine so Chang’e can come back to earth.

Houyi would frequently leave out fruit and mooncakes for his wife (in case she came back) and that’s why every year during the Mid Autumn Moon Festival, people sit outside to look at the full moon, and eat Mooncakes and fruit (Chang’e’s favorite foods).

After reading this I hope you’ve learned a bit about the Mid Autumn Moon Festival.