Google doodles

[9A]

Oct 4, 2016

434th Anniversary of the Introduction of the Gregorian Calendar





From October 5–October 14, 1582, time was erased. Not literally, of course; just on the calendar. These ten days were declared non-existent by then-pope Gregory XIII as part of a realignment of the Julian calendar, implemented by Julius Caesar in 46 B.C. In the mid-1570s, it was discovered that the Julian calendar was actually 10 days behind the seasons of the year. For example, Easter began falling later in the spring than it should have and eventually would have drifted into summer. The calendar creep was the result of the solar year [the time it takes Earth to make one revolution around the sun] being around 11 minutes shy of the full Julian calendar. To be precise, the solar year is actually 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds.

Pope Gregory saved the day [and season] by appointing a commission to solve the problem. It took five years, but eventually the group, led by physician Aloysius Lilius and astronomer Christopher Clavius, proposed eliminating three leap years every 400 years to keep the calendar on track. To transition to the Gregorian calendar, ten days were declared officially non-existent, with the day after October 4, 1582 declared October 15th. First implemented by Italy, Spain, and Portugal, the Gregorian calendar is today’s most widely used system.

[9A]

Oct 5, 2016

100th Anniversary of completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway



From the country’s small villages to its big cities, Russia depends on the mighty Trans-Siberian Railway to traverse more than 6,000 miles and seven time zones between Moscow and Vladivostok.

In just seven days, the railway transports travelers and cargo from western Russia, across rocky tundra and frequently impassable countryside, all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Built over 26 years and completed a century ago, it remains a critical facet of Russian trade with Europe and China, and is a stalwart example of Russian engineering.

Today’s Doodle celebrates the railway that helped link a nation with the world. Doodler Matt Cruickshank relied on his first-hand experience traveling the Trans-Siberian Railway in April 2015 to bring the Doodle to life.



During the trip, Matt sketched out images of the Russian cities and countryside that would help form the foundation of the animation. “I felt compelled to echo the visual strength of Russian graphics coupled with a folk art style,” Matt explains.

The Doodle also features Tchaikovsky’s “Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op. 48, II. Waltz” as performed by the Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra. “The accompanying score gave the short film the momentum and gravitas that brought the whole project together."

Check out scene-by-scene GIFs of today’s Trans-Siberian Railway Doodle below.

[9A]

Oct 10, 2016

50th Anniversary of Health and Sports Day





On Japan’s annual Health and Sports Day, everyone wins! That spirit inspired today’s Doodle, which shows Google-hued characters of all ages crossing the finish line together. First celebrated 50 years ago today, the holiday commemorates the opening of the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Since the occasion is all about promoting an active lifestyle, Japanese people both young and old celebrate by going for the gold. Many schools host field days that resemble mini Olympics, featuring events like the relay, long jump, and shot put, along with obstacle courses and tug of war.

For decades, Health and Sports Day was held on October 10th, but it was officially moved to the second Monday in October back in 2000. This year, the holiday happens to fall on its original date — just in time for its 50th birthday.

[9A]

October 10, 2009

Giuseppe Verdi's Birthday




Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the help of a local patron. Verdi came to dominate the Italian opera scene after the era of Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini, whose works significantly influenced him.

His operas remain extremely popular, especially the three peaks of his 'middle period': Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La traviata. The bicentenary of his birth in 2013 was widely celebrated in broadcasts and performances.

[9A]

October 10, 2014

Francisco Giner de los Ríos' 175th Birthday





Our homepage in Spain celebrates the 175th birthday of intellectual Francisco Giner de los Ríos. Once described as a Spanish Socrates, de los Ríos advocated for an independent and high quality education in his homeland. His ideas motivated him to establish the “Institución Libre de Enseñanza” [“Free Teaching Institution”], which collaborated with renowned figures like Bertrand Russell, Charles Darwin, León Tolstoi and H. G. Wells.

[9A]

October 10, 2011

Fridtjof Nansen's 150th Birthday






Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat and humanitarian. He led the team that made the first crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, traversing the island on cross-country skis. He won international fame after reaching a record northern latitude of 86°14′ during his Fram expedition of 1893–1896. Although he retired from exploration after his return to Norway, his techniques of polar travel and his innovations in equipment and clothing influenced a generation of subsequent Arctic and Antarctic expeditions.

[9A]

Oct 14, 2014

Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin's 135th Birthday





Sybylla from the novel My Brilliant Career gazes upon her grandmother's house in our doodle in Australia for writer Miles Franklin's 135th Birthday. Franklin made a lasting impact on Australian literature and captivated readers with her tales of life in the rural countryside.

[9A]

Oct 28, 2014

Jonas Salk's 100th Birthday





Polio is nearly a thing of the past, thanks to the efforts of Dr. Jonas Salk. In 1952, Dr. Salk discovered and developed the first successful vaccine for polio. Combined with Albert Sabin’s oral vaccination, the virus is no longer the threat to the world that it used to be.

For the art, doodler Mike Dutton wanted to focus on those that benefited from this scientific milestone. Adults and children alike are susceptible to the disease, but children were especially at risk due to how the disease was transmitted.

Digging a little deeper, he learned that when the news of a vaccine was announced, people around the world spontaneously celebrated. Shopkeepers closed up shop for the day, factories observed a moment of silence, teachers and parents wept. “It was a pretty scary thing at the time. To go from something affecting hundreds of thousands of people around the world per year to just under a thousand cases today – it was a pretty big deal. That was my visual cue to show a town scene with both kids and adults celebrating, running around, enjoying themselves.”

Dr. Jonas Salk himself was a humble man and never patented the vaccine, forgoing an immeasurable fortune. When asked who owned the patent, Salk said it was the people that owned it, adding,”Could you patent the sun?”

Happy 100th, Dr. Jonas Salk!

[9A]

Oct 29, 2014

Niki de Saint Phalle's 84th Birthday




Niki de Saint Phalle's “Nanas” are taking over our homepage for the French sculptress’s 84th birthday. Inspired by her pregnant friend, the “Nana” sculptures were de Saint Phalle’s artistic rendition of the everyday woman and became a symbol of femininity. After making her first “Nana” house—literally a gigantic figure that people could walk inside–de Saint Phalle described it as a “doll’s house for adults—just big enough to sit and dream in.” Happy 84th birthday to de Saint Phalle!

[9A]

October 3, 2021

Dr. María de los Ángeles Alvariño González's 105th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 105th birthday of Spanish-American professor and marine research biologist Dr. María de los Ángeles Alvariño González, who is widely regarded as one of the most important Spanish scientists of all time.

María de los Ángeles Alvariño González was born on this day in 1916 in Serantes, a small coastal town in northern Spain’s Galician coast. Ángeles Alvariño’s love of natural history began with her father’s library and deepened as she pursued coastline oceanography research. Although the Spanish Institute of Oceanography [IEO] only accepted men at the time, Ángeles Alvariño’s university work impressed the organization that they appointed her as a marine biologist in 1952.

At IEO’s Vigo Oceanographic Center, she began her pioneering research on zooplankton, tiny organisms that serve as the foundation of the oceanic food chain and identified some species to be the best indicators of ocean health. In 1953, the British Council awarded Ángeles Alvariño a fellowship that resulted in her becoming the first woman to work as a scientist aboard a British research vessel. Following several expeditions, she furthered her studies in the U.S., where she retired as one of the world’s most prestigious marine biologists in 1987.

In addition to Ángeles Alvariño’s rigorous research, including the discovery of 22 new species of zooplankton and the publication of over 100 scientific papers, she held professorships in Brazil, the U.S., and Mexico. Today, Ángeles Alvariño is the only Spanish scientist of 1,000 in the “Encyclopedia of World Scientists,” and a modern research vessel in IEO’s fleet bears her name.

Happy birthday, Dr. María de los Ángeles Alvariño González!

[9A]

October 3, 2017

Gerardo Murillo's [Dr. Atl] 142nd Birthday






Today's Doodle celebrates "Dr. Atl," born Gerardo Murillo in Guadalajara in 1875.

In a time of revolution and renaissance, Murillo greatly influenced Mexico’s political and cultural identity. He was an activist, artist, writer, journalist, and overall cultural leader.

Murillo pioneered the idea of artistic nationalism. To show his pride in his Mexican heritage, he took on the name "Atl," meaning water in Náhuatl. He worked his entire life to promote Native Mexican culture, writing extensively on folk art, music, and dance.

Murillo loved nature, and in volcanoes, he found his greatest inspiration. He frequently hiked to Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl, living and painting on the volcanic slopes for weeks at a time. In 1943, he witnessed the birth of Paricutín and documented the experience in his book Cómo nace y crece un volcán, el Paricutín [How a Volcano Is Born and Grows – Paricutín].

For his contributions to the artistic and cultural heritage of Mexico, he was awarded the Belisario Domínguez Medal of Honor and the National Arts Award.

Today’s Doodle, by artist Julian Ardila, depicts Murillo painting one of his beloved volcanoes.

¡Feliz Cumpleaños, Dr. Atl!

[9A]

October 3, 2014

Kenojuak Ashevak's 87th Birthday





Our doodle in Canada pays tribute to Inuit artist Kenojuak Ashevak, who would have been 87 today. Ashevak’s work brought national attention to indigenous art and thrusted the ever-humble artist into the spotlight. For her contribution to art and Canadian culture, Ashevak was made an Officer of the Order of Canada and received a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame.

[9A]

October 3, 2012

Anton Bernolak's 250th Birthday





Anton Bernolák was a Slovak linguist and Catholic priest, and the author of the first Slovak language standard.

[9A]

December 28, 2019

Thanpuying Puangroi Apaiwong's 105th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates Thai composer Thanpuying Puangroi Apaiwong on her 105th birthday. Of her more than 100 compositions, she is best known for the classic “Bua Kao” [“White Lotus”], which was awarded as “Song of Asia” by UNESCO in 1979 and made her a staple in the national repertoire.

Born Mom Puangroi Sanit Wong in Bangkok on this day in 1914, she learned to play the piano and the guitar at a young age. Composing and playing tunes for her family, she showed an undoubted passion and went on to study music at Trinity College London.

During the first half of the twentieth century, as foreign music like Western classical and jazz gained popularity, a new genre named Phleng Thai sakon [roughly translating to "international-style Thai music"] arose. The genre blended elements from traditional Thai music with instruments of Western classical, and Apaiwong became one of its leading artists. She composed music for plays and movies, for the royal family, and for special national occasions.

Apaiwong devoted her life to music, playing weekly for nearly 22 years with a group of classical musicians to raise funds for various educational institutions. She was also awarded the Performing Arts award by the Board of National Culture in 1986, as well as five royal decorations for her contributions.


สุขสันต์วันเกิด, Thanpuying Puangroi Apaiwong!

[9A]

January 20, 2012

Omar Rayo's 84th Birthday




Omar Rayo Reyes [January 20, 1928 – June 7, 2010] was a renowned Colombian painter, sculptor, caricaturist and plastic artist. He won the 1970 Salón de Artistas Colombianos. Rayo worked with abstract geometry primarily employing black, white, red and yellow. He was part of the Op Art movement. Rayo's work shows that geometric art is as much a part of the past as it is of the future. He used traces of the past to discover new ways to present visual and geometric sketches.

One of his most celebrated exhibitions was carried out in the National Room of the Museum of the Palace of fine arts of Mexico, titled "20 years, 100 works: Omar Rayo."

[9A]

January 20, 2011

50th Anniversary of JFK's Inauguration







Regardless of how you feel about JFK's politics, it's very difficult to argue that this wasn't one of the most iconic speeches ever made in US history. Visually speaking [literally], I wanted to emphasize that statement by creating a word cloud style illustration made up entirely of words and phrases from John F. Kennedy's famous inaugural address [including the portrait of Kennedy himself], with the most famous line bolded out across the logo.


posted by Mike Dutton

[9A]

January 20, 2010

Festival of San Sebastian





The San Sebastián Street Festival is a Puerto Rican festival that takes place in the Old San Juan, in honor of Saint Sebastian, celebrated by the Catholic Church on January 20. The event starts the third Thursday of January through Sunday with an attendance of more than 200,000 people, making this activity recognized internationally. The celebration has been introduced in Florida and Texas in the 2010s.

The festival was firstly organized by father Juan Manuel Madrazo, the priest of the San José Church in the 1950s, with the purpose to commemorate the life of the Saint and to raise money to repair the church^] When Madrazo was transferred out of San Juan the festival was no longer organized, although, in 1970 the historian and anthropologist Ricardo Alegría proposed to Rafaela Balladares de Brito, a resident of San Sebastian street, to revive this tradition. Since then, with the help of her neighbors, the festival was organized again to collect money for an elementary school directed by Sisters of Charity.

[9A]

Jan 21, 2010

Grandparent's Day 2010 - Poland

[9A]

January 21, 2016

Lola Flores’ 93rd Birthday





Today's doodle displays the beautiful visage of "La Faraona", captured in a moment of fierce passion. Recognize those sparkling eyes and perfectly poised hands? She is the beloved Spanish dancer, singer, and actress Lola Flores.

Flores’ legacy lives on in her many films, operas and songs—which are characteristically defiant and as powerful as one of her masterful flamenco performances.

[9A]

January 26, 2020

Australia Day 2020




January 26th means different things for Australians all around the country. This year, we’re going through a particularly difficult summer, with devastating bushfires affecting many parts of the country.

Today's Doodle on Australia Day is inspired by the spirit of resilience and mateship that binds the country together.

[9A]

Jul 18, 2018

Kurt Masur’s 91st Birthday






Today’s Doodle celebrates Maestro Kurt Masur, world-renowned German conductor and humanitarian.

Born in the Prussian town of Brieg [now in Poland], Masur studied music and trained as a pianist, organist, cellist, and percussionist in East Germany. A damaged tendon in his right hand at the age of 16 ended his playing career, but propelled Masur to concentrate on conducting.

Beyond numerous musical distinctions and titles, Mazur received global cultural and humanitarian honors including Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor from the French government, New York City Cultural Ambassador, Commander Cross of Merit of the Polish Republic, Honorary Citizen of Brieg, the Leo Baeck Medal for promoting tolerance and social justice, and a Goldene Henne award for public policy work.

The maestro is remembered for his belief in the power of music to “bring humanity closer together,” especially when he led the New York Philharmonic in a performance of Brahm’s German Requiem in a nationally televised memorial for the 9/11 attacks.

Masur was instrumental in leading worldwide orchestras and orchestrating peace around the world. Today’s Doodle depicts the maestro’s robust conducting style, notably baton-less due to his childhood hand injury.

Happy 91st birthday, Maestro!

[9A]

July 18, 2021

Pearl Gibbs “Gambanyi’s” 120th Birthday






Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Yuwi, Torres Strait Islander and South Sea Islander guest artist Dylan Mooney, celebrates revolutionary Aboriginal Australian activist Pearl Gibbs “Gambanyi”, who is widely regarded among the 20th-century’s leading advocates for Aboriginal rights.

Pearl Mary Gibbs “Gambanyi” was born on this day in 1901 to an Aboriginal mother and a non-Aboriginal father in La Perouse, New South Wales. At 16, Gibbs moved with her family to Sydney, where she worked as a servant. It was here that she met Aboriginal girls stolen from their homes and forced into domestic work—injustices that sparked her lifetime devotion to the fight for Aboriginal rights.

In 1937, Gibbs helped form the Aborigines Progressive Association [APA], an all-Aboriginal activist alliance that campaigned for Aboriginal citizenship, suffrage, and an end to unjust governmental bodies. As APA secretary beginning in 1938, she exposed the inhumane conditions and exploitation of women and children at government-run Aboriginal reserves. A public speaker as charismatic as she was influential, Gibbs helped organize the Day of Mourning protest that same year. Widely credited as the catalyst of the contemporary Aboriginal political movement, this demonstration was the first to bring the plight of Indigenous Australians to national attention.

Gibbs never faltered in her efforts for Indigenous justice over the decades that followed, a struggle that culminated in 1954 when the New South Wales Aborigines Welfare Board appointed her as its first—and only—female member. She also helped organize the Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship [AAF] in 1956. With Gibbs at the helm, the AAF petitioned for a change in the Australian constitution, which paved the way for the 1967 referendum that granted Indigenous Australians suffrage and citizenship.

Today’s Doodle artwork depicts Gibbs’ life, legacy, and dedication to improving the lives of Aboriginal Australians—symbolized, for instance, by the Flannel Flowers on her dress, an icon she adopted to represent resilience.

Happy Birthday, Pearl Gibbs “Gambanyi,” and thank you for your lifetime devotion to building a more equitable world.

[9A]

Jul 24, 2010

Arthur Boyd's 90th Birthday







Arthur Merric Bloomfield Boyd was a leading Australian painter of the middle to late 20th century. Boyd's work ranges from impressionist renderings of Australian landscape to starkly expressionist figuration, and many canvases feature both. Several famous works set Biblical stories against the Australian landscape, such as The Expulsion [1947–48], now at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Having a strong social conscience, Boyd's work deals with humanitarian issues and universal themes of love, loss and shame.

Boyd was a master at manipulating elements to express himself. He developed new techniques when he was still a teenager and later changed technique depending on his preferred style, media, location and what he was depicting.

He would often use loose strokes of thickly coated brushes. He applied paint with his fingers and palm because it is quicker, while the body contact directly connected him with the painting. He believed this allowed for a greater sense of freedom and pleasure from the act of painting.

Boyd was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 1 January 1970 for services to art. On 26 January 1979, Boyd was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to the visual arts. In recognition of his service to the visual arts and to the development of Australian artists and crafts people, Boyd was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia on 8 June 1992.

In 1995, the Prime Minister announced Boyd as Australian of the Year for his contribution to Australian art and his generosity to the Australian people.

Australia Post honoured Boyd in 1998 with a series of postage stamps produced with his photo and examples of his work.

[9A]

Jun 2, 2018

Heinz Sielmann’s 101st Birthday






Today’s Doodle celebrates the renowned biologist and documentary filmmaker, Heinz Sielmann. Sielmann is also often recognized as ‘Mr. Woodpecker’, a nickname earned after the release of one of his most beloved wildlife documentaries showing the mysterious lives of Woodpeckers—filmed at times from within the bird’s nest.

Heinz Sielmann was born in Germany, in 1917, and moved to East Prussia at a young age where his father opened a business of electrical and building materials. Even in his early childhood, Sielmann had a fascination with the natural world; often waking up early to observe birds before school. At the age of 17, after being given his first camera, he traded in his sketches for photographs of his natural surroundings.

One of Sielmann’s most notable achievements was his development of Carpenters of the Forest which featured the elusive Woodpecker in a degree of depth that had not been seen before. Sielmann placed cameras inside of the woodpecker’s nests and in doing so captured intimate moments between parent and offspring. The film was an enormous success globally and was followed by a book about it’s making. In it Sielmann wrote, “of all the animals that I have worked with, the woodpeckers are my favourites... because I was able to find out many new facts about the biology of these birds.”

In the late 1950’s, Heinz Sielmann released his first feature film, Les Seigneurs de la Forêt [Lords of the Forest], which was commissioned by the King of Belgium and filmed in what was at the time the Belgian Congo. In addition to the wildlife and breathtaking landscapes, Sielmann was of the first to capture the familial and social nature of Gorillas. This film won first place at the Moscow Film Festival and quickly became one of his most revered films—even being translated into 26 languages. Over the following decades, Sielmann continued to make documentary films and series. In 1971 he photographed for the Academy Award winning film The Hellstrom Chronicle, along with Walon Green, about the threat that insects collectively pose to humans and the struggle between the two.

Today’s Doodle depicts Heinz Sielmann as he appeared in his popular TV show Expeditionen ins Tierreich, documenting the forest wildlife that surrounds him.


Doodle illustrated by Dieter Braun.

[9A]

Jun 11, 2018

Millicent Fawcett's 171st Birthday







When the British Parliament passed the Representation of the People Act in 1918, allowing British women to vote for the first time in history, Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett’s lifelong ambition was fulfilled.

Born June 11, 1847, the eighth of 10 children, Millicent was raised by independent-minded parents who emphasized the importance of education and free speech. Her oldest sister Elizabeth became Britain’s first female doctor, and Millicent began collecting signatures in support of female suffrage before she was old enough to sign the petitions herself. "I cannot say I became a suffragist,” she wrote in her memoir ‘The Women’s Victory—And After.’ “I always was one, from the time I was old enough to think at all about the principles of Representative Government."

Best known for her captivating speeches, Fawcett used her platform as President of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies to become a public advocate for nonviolent campaigning.

In April 2018, a bronze statue was erected of Dame Fawcett in the courtyard of London’s Parliament Square, alongside likenesses of Nelson Mandela, Winston Churchill, and Mahatma Gandhi. The glistening sculpture, made her the first female added to the garden’s distinguished denizens — a fitting tribute to the woman who said “Courage calls to courage everywhere, and its voice cannot be denied.”

Happy 171st Birthday, Dame Fawcett!


Doodle illustrated by Pearl Law.

[9A]

July 30, 2020

Turhan Selçuk’s 98th Birthday




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Istanbul-based guest artist M.K. Perker, commemorates the 98th birthday of iconic Turkish cartoonist, artist, and satirist Turhan Selçuk, a celebrated pioneer of the contemporary Turkish comic strip. Wielding a minimalist style of line art infused with acute wit, Selçuk masterminded one of the country’s first and most famous original comic book characters, Abdülcanbaz, who is depicted riding a bike in today’s Doodle artwork.

Turhan Selçuk was born on this day in 1922 in the ancient Turkish city of Milas. While still a high school student in 1941, he published some of his first illustrations in the newspaper Türk Sözü [The Turkish Word] and saw continued success with his work throughout the decade.

As the chief illustrator for the Yeni Istanbul [New Istanbul], he honed his artistic style and championed the belief that cartoons were a universal medium of storytelling. In 1954, he took the same position at Milliyet, an Istanbul-based daily national newspaper that three years later became the home for Selçuk’s definitive, postmodern comic series “The Adventures of Abdülcanbaz.” Across a nearly three-decade run, the angular hero Abdülcanbaz, also known as the “Istanbul Gentleman,” traveled around the world and even through time to fight injustice and help the powerless.

In 1969, Selçuk co-founded the Turkish Cartoonists Association to educate young cartoonists and promote the medium around the world. He received numerous awards throughout his almost seventy-year career and was the first Turkish cartoonist to be awarded internationally.

[9A]

Aug 21, 2012

Consuelo Velazquez's 96th Birthday




Consuelo Velázquez Torres [August 21, 1916 in Ciudad Guzmán, Zapotlán el Grande, Jalisco – January 22, 2005], popularly also known as Consuelito Velázquez, was a Mexican concert pianist, songwriter and recording artist. She was the composer of famous Mexican ballads such as "Bésame mucho", "Amar y vivir", and "Cachito".

[9A]

August 21, 2010

August Bournonville's 205th Birthday






Following studies in Paris as a young man, Bournonville became solo dancer at the Royal Ballet in Copenhagen. From 1830 to 1848 he was choreographer for the Royal Danish Ballet, for which he created more than 50 ballets admired for their exuberance, lightness and beauty. He created a style which, although influenced from the Paris ballet, is entirely his own. As a choreographer, he created a number of ballets with varied settings that range from Denmark to Italy, Russia to South America. A limited number of these works have survived.

Bournonville's work became known outside Denmark only after World War II. Since 1950, The Royal Ballet has several times made prolonged tours abroad, not the least to the United States, where they have perform

[9A]

Sep 21, 2012

Edgar Valter's 84th Birthday



Edgar Valter was an Estonian graphic artist, caricaturist, writer and illustrator of children's books, with over 250 books to his name, through 55 years of activity [1950–2005]. His most famous work is Pokuraamat [The Poku Book].

[9A]

September 21, 2021

Chuseok 2021




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Seoul, South Korea-based guest artist Kim Jam, celebrates Chuseok, a three-day, harvest festival observed across the Korean peninsula. As one of the three most important holidays on the Korean lunar calendar, Chuseok is a time for families to come together and show gratitude for a fruitful harvest with traditional food, stories, and games.

Chuseok is also known in Korean as Hangawi, with “han” meaning “large” and “gawi” meaning “middle,” referring to a big celebration in the middle of the month! The date for this holiday, the middle of the 8th lunar month, was chosen to align with the harvest moon, which is the largest full moon of the year. Families traditionally start the day’s festivities with a memorial service known as charye which commemorates their ancestral heritage with enough songpyeon [half-moon rice cakes] for everyone to enjoy.

To honor an abundant harvest, holiday activities are livened with vibrant traditions of Korean entertainment. Samulnori [a percussion quartet] drums up the sounds for talchum [a mask dance] and ganggangsullae [an ancient circle dance] while celebrants play Chuseok games such as yutnori [a board game using four wooden sticks], and neolttwigi [standing seesaw].

Happy Chuseok, Korea!

[9A]

September 21, 2021

Mid Autumn Festival 2021 [Vietnam]





Aligned with the rising of the harvest moon, the fullest and brightest of the year, today’s Doodle celebrates Vietnam’s Mid Autumn Festival or Children’s Festival. Why the Children’s Festival? This time-honored holiday falls in the middle of the harvest season, a busy period that limits the time many families have to play with their children. That makes this day the perfect time for parents to take a well-deserved break and enjoy time with their youngsters!

In years past, dancers would bring joy to their neighborhoods while performing in symbolic garb and children would carry festive lanterns shaped like carps or stars to light the streets. Mooncakes [the holiday’s signature dish] filled the bellies of celebrants. While festivities are quieter this year as families celebrate at home, the joys of the day will not be forgotten!

Happy Mid Autumn Festival, Vietnam!

[9A]

September 21, 2019

Celebrating the Pretzel!




Flip, twist, and bake!


Today’s Doodle, freshly baked by Esther’s German Bakery, celebrates the one and only pretzel—one of the world’s most versatile and beloved foods! As Oktoberfest, the Bavarian fall festival, begins today, Brotfrauen [or bread ladies] will be carrying baskets of chewy Brezeln through Bierhallen [massive tents] in Germany, the center of Oktoberfest revelry.

The history of pretzels is a tale with many twists and turns, and some of the accounts over the centuries are still debated to this day. Made without dairy or eggs, pretzels have long been considered a staple during Lent. One of the more colorful pretzel legends involves a group of monks baking pretzels in a Vienna basement who overheard an invading army tunneling under the city walls in 1510. As a reward for helping to thwart the invasion, the pretzel bakers received their own coat of arms. Another story claims that the expression “tying the knot” refers to the 17th-century Swiss custom of using a pretzel during wedding ceremonies.

The soft pretzel’s unique texture is achieved by dipping the dough in a lye solution just before baking, resulting in a chemical process known as the “Maillard reaction.” Smooth and brown on the outside, chewy on the inside, soft pretzels are best eaten fresh. Julius Sturgis in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania was the first to bake them until they got hard, extending their shelf life and allowing them to be shipped far and wide. In 1947, the Reading Pretzel Machinery Company unveiled a pretzel-making machine that cranked out up to 250 pretzels per minute!

Over half a century later, pretzels are just as awesome as ever, whether hard or soft, salty or sweet, buttered or plain, a bag of pretzel sticks from the supermarket or an extra-large Brezel at Oktoberfest.

Noch eine Brezel, bitte! [Another pretzel, please!]

[9A]

September 21, 2009

Birthday of H.G. Wells






Herbert George Wells [21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946] was an English writer. Prolific in many genres, he wrote dozens of novels, short stories, and works of social commentary, history, satire, biography and autobiography. His work also included two books on recreational war games. Wells is now best remembered for his science fiction novels and is often called the "father of science fiction", along with Jules Verne and the publisher Hugo Gernsback.

Some of his early novels, called "scientific romances", invented several themes now classic in science fiction in such works as The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, The Invisible Man, The War of the Worlds, When the Sleeper Wakes, and The First Men in the Moon.

The War of the Worlds, first serialised in 1897 by Pearson's Magazine in the UK and by Cosmopolitan magazine in the US. It has been both popular [having never been out of print] and influential, spawning half a dozen feature films, radio dramas, a record album, various comic book adaptations, a number of television series, and sequels or parallel stories by other authors. It was most memorably dramatised in a 1938 radio programme directed by and starring Orson Welles that allegedly caused public panic among listeners who did not know the Martian invasion was fictional. The novel has even influenced the work of scientists, notably Robert H. Goddard, who, inspired by the book, helped develop both the liquid-fuelled rocket and multistage rocket, which resulted in the Apollo 11 Moon landing 71 years later.

[9A]

September 21, 2010

Juan de la Cierva's 115th Birthday





Juan de la Cierva y Codorníu, 1st Count of la Cierva was a Spanish civil engineer, pilot and aeronautical engineer. His most famous accomplishment was the invention in 1920 of the first helicopter called Autogiro, a single-rotor type of aircraft that came to be called autogyro in the English language. In 1923, after four years of experimentation, De la Cierva developed the articulated rotor, which resulted in the world's first successful flight of a stable rotary-wing aircraft, with his C.4 prototype.

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September 21, 2015

Respect for the Aged Day 2015






Since 1966, Respect for the Aged Day has been a time to revere the wisest people we know. Today Japan celebrates its elders, the men and women who paved the way for their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren to leave their mark on society. Communities across the country will gather to enjoy musical performances and offer their elders gifts like bento boxes, flowers, and handmade crafts.

The elderly in your community have experiences to share, stories to tell, and wisdom to pass along. Do something nice today for the elders in your community to show your admiration. [Might we suggest volunteering at a senior center near you?]

[9A]

September 21, 2016

43rd Anniversary of the Film "Ivan Vasilievich: Back to the Future"




The past, present, and future combine in real time for the 43rd anniversary of the Russian film Ivan Vasilievich: Back to the Future by director Leonid Gaidai and Mosfilm, the oldest film studio in Europe. The picture hit the scene with more than 60 million tickets sold—making it one of the most attended movies ever in the Soviet Union. Based on the original 1930s play by Michail Bulgakov, the technology was updated for the 1970s film to include more modern touches—a tape recorder replaced the original phonograph and a more advanced time machine used transistors to transcend time and space.

Russian viewers young and old know the plot very well: commotion involving a time machine, Shurik the inventor, the superintendent, members of the elite, the secret police, foreign ambassadors and Tsar Ivan the Terrible, himself.

Doodler Nate Swinehart, chose to feature the most iconic moment in the film: “This shot was a lot of fun to re-create and paint, I even hand drew the type to match the kooky ‘60s aesthetic of the film. Getting to make silly content that makes people smile is one of my favorite things to do.”

All these years later, one question still remains—was the whole thing just a dream?

[9A]

September 21, 2018

Celebrating Mister Rogers






On this date, September 21, 1967, 51 years ago, Fred Rogers walked into the television studio at WQED in Pittsburgh to tape the very first episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, which would premiere nationally on PBS in February 1968. He became known as Mister Rogers, nationally beloved, sweater wearing, “television neighbor,” whose groundbreaking children’s series inspired and educated generations of young viewers with warmth, sensitivity, and honesty.

Rogers grew up in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, a small town near Pittsburgh. Music was his first love, and he studied music composition at Rollins College. Just before graduating in 1951, he happened to watch some children’s television shows and described them as “a lot of nonsense, pies in faces.” He felt children deserved better and headed for New York, serving as an apprentice and floor manager for the music shows at NBC.

Returning to Pittsburgh, Rogers eventually added the ministry and lifelong studies in child development to his talents, bringing them to WQED, where he produced Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. He drew on all of his talents, including being a gifted communicator, to wear many hats, serving as creator, host, producer, script writer, composer, lyricist, and main puppeteer for almost 900 programs.

Rogers’ reputation as a champion of high standards—for children’s programming and for television in general—was highlighted by his now-famous testimony before Congress in 1969 advocating against proposed budget cuts to public television. The committee was so moved by his simple, genuine, and powerful plea that the budget was increased for the following year.

Although production on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood ended in 2000, many PBS stations continue to broadcast the series for a new generation of children to discover. Today, young viewers also get to “visit with” Daniel Tiger [son of the beloved puppet from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood] on Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, the animated spin-off, which delves into many of the same important topics Rogers did.

Today’s stop-motion, animated video Doodle celebrating Mister Rogers was created in collaboration with Fred Rogers Productions, The Fred Rogers Center, and BixPix Entertainment. Set to the iconic opening song of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood [“Won’t You Be My Neighbor"], the Doodle aims to be a reminder of the nurturing, caring, and whimsy that made the show feel like a “television visit” between Mister Rogers and his young viewers. Everyone was welcome in this Neighborhood. Through his honest words, thoughtful songs, and imaginative Neighborhood of Make-Believe stories, Mister Rogers took us by the hand, helping us feel good about who we are. He encouraged us to find positive ways to deal with our feelings, to treat others with respect and kindness, and to appreciate the world around us.

-Hedda Sharapan, Child Development Consultant, Fred Rogers Productions


---


Special thanks to Joanne Rogers, wife of Fred Rogers, for her support of this project. Below, Joanne shares her thoughts on the Doodle:

“I’m so thrilled that Google is celebrating Fred and Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood with this charming tribute.This stroll through the Neighborhood is delightful, and Fred’s gentle kindness is beautifully captured in the Doodle.”

Early Storyboard & Character Concepts
Behind-the scenes of the puppets production





Behind-the scenes of the stop-motion animation



Directors:Melissa Crowton, Olivia When
Executive Producer:My-Linh Le
Marketing, partnerships, & licensing:Perla Campos, Madeline Belliveau, Carlos Diaz
Art Support: Lydia Nichols
Doodle team leads: Jessica Yu, Brian Kaas


Fred Rogers ProductionsThe Fred Rogers CenterSenator John Heinz History Center

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Sep 22, 2018

Fall Equinox 2018 [Northern Hemisphere]




Happy Fall Equinox!

Today marks the first day of autumn, astronomically speaking at least. The autumnal equinox — the celestial event in which the sun is directly above the equator — occurs around 1:54 AM UTC. That means night and day will be almost exactly equal in length, since the earth’s tilt and position in orbit render it parallel with the sun. Just following the equinox, the northern hemisphere will gradually begin to tilt away from the sun’s rays and usher in the cool, crisp autumn weather.

This year’s seasonal Doodle series protagonist, Quinn, curiously follows the path of a falling leaf, waking up a new friend hidden in the deciduous mound. Surely as the trees begin to turn, many, like Quinn, will find warmth in the company of friends old and new, and fun in the potential of colorful, crunchy leaf piles!

Doodle by Sophie Diao, with coloring help from Vrinda Zaveri

[9A]

September 22, 2020

Fall 2020 [Northern Hemisphere]

[9A]

September 22, 2004

Ray Charles' 74th Birthday



Ray Charles Robinson, Sr. was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and composer. Among friends and fellow musicians he preferred being called "Brother Ray". He was often referred to as "the Genius". Charles was blinded during childhood, possibly due to glaucoma.

Charles pioneered the soul music genre during the 1950s by combining blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel styles into the music he recorded for Atlantic. He contributed to the integration of country music, rhythm and blues, and pop music during the 1960s with his crossover success on ABC Records, notably with his two Modern Sounds albums. While he was with ABC, Charles became one of the first black musicians to be granted artistic control by a mainstream record company.

Charles's 1960 hit "Georgia On My Mind" was the first of his three career No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. His 1962 album Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music became his first album to top the Billboard 200. Charles had multiple singles reach the Top 40 on various Billboard charts: 44 on the US R&B singles chart, 11 on the Hot 100 singles chart, 2 on the Hot Country singles charts.

Charles cited Nat King Cole as a primary influence, but his music was also influenced by Louis Jordan and Charles Brown. He had a lifelong friendship and occasional partnership with Quincy Jones. Frank Sinatra called Ray Charles "the only true genius in show business," although Charles downplayed this notion. Billy Joel said, "This may sound like sacrilege, but I think Ray Charles was more important than Elvis Presley".

For his musical contributions, Charles received the Kennedy Center Honors, the National Medal of Arts, and the Polar Music Prize. He won 18 Grammy Awards, including 5 posthumously. Charles was honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987, and 10 of his recordings have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Rolling Stone ranked Charles No. 10 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, and No. 2 on their list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.



Charles in the 1960's

[9A]

Oct 4, 2004

Lunar X Prize




The Google Lunar XPRIZE [GLXP], sometimes referred to as Moon 2.0, was a 2007–2018 inducement prize space competition organized by the X Prize Foundation, and sponsored by Google. The challenge called for privately funded teams to be the first to land a lunar rover on the Moon, travel 500 meters, and transmit back to Earth high-definition video and images.

The original deadline was the end of 2014, with enhanced prize money for a landing by 2012. In 2015, XPRIZE announced that the competition deadline would be extended to December 2017 if at least one team could secure a verified launch contract by 31 December 2015. Two teams secured such a launch contract, and the deadline was extended. In August 2017, the deadline was extended again, to 31 March 2018.

Entering 2018, five teams remained in the competition: SpaceIL, Moon Express, Synergy Moon, Team Indus, and Team Hakuto, having secured verified launch contracts with Spaceflight Industries, Rocket Lab, Interorbital Systems, and ISRO [jointly for the last two teams].

On 23 January 2018, the X Prize Foundation announced that "no team would be able to make a launch attempt to reach the Moon by the [31 March 2018] deadline... and the US$30 million Google Lunar XPRIZE will go unclaimed." On 5 April 2018, the X Prize Foundation announced that the Lunar XPRIZE would continue as a non-cash competition

On 11 April 2019, the SpaceIL spacecraft crashed while attempting to land on the moon. The SpaceIL team was awarded a $1 million "Moonshot Award" by the X Prize Foundation in recognition of touching the surface of the Moon.

[9A]

October 4, 2017

Violeta Parra’s 100th Birthday




Today we celebrate the 100th birthday of Violeta Parra, the Chilean composer, folk singer, social activist, author, and artist.

Born in the small, southern Chilean town of San Fabián de Alico, Parra picked up the guitar at an early age and began writing songs with her siblings. She started her career performing in small venues, later traveling across Chile to record a large breadth of traditional Chilean folk music. Her increasing popularity eventually earned her her own radio show and an invitation to perform at a youth festival in Poland. While in Europe, she also explored the visual arts, creating oil paintings, wire sculptures, ceramics, and burlap tapestries called arpilleras which were exhibited in the Louvre Palace in Paris in 1964.

She is perhaps best remembered as the “Mother of Latin American folk,” pioneering the Nueva canción chilena, a renewal of Chilean folk traditions that blossomed into a movement which celebrated the fight for social justice throughout Latin America. Upon her return to Chile in 1965, she established Centro Cultural La Carpa de La Reina, a community center for the arts and political activism.

[9A]

Oct 29, 2009

Asterix Comic's 50th Anniversary © 2009 Goscinny - Uderzo






Asterix or The Adventures of Asteri is a French comic book series about Gaulish warriors, who have adventures and fight the Roman Republic during the era of Julius Caesar in an ahistorical telling of the time after the Gallic Wars. The series first appeared in the Franco-Belgian comic magazine Pilote on 29 October 1959. It was written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo until Goscinny's death in 1977. Uderzo then took over the writing until 2009, when he sold the rights to publishing company Hachette; he died in 2020. In 2013, a new team consisting of Jean-Yves Ferri [script] and Didier Conrad [artwork] took over. As of 2019, 38 volumes have been released, with the most recent released in October 2019.

[9A]

Nov 4, 2009

20th Anniversary of the Wallace and Gromit Characters







Wallace & Gromit is a British stop motion comedy franchise created by Nick Park of Aardman Animations. The series consists of four short films and one feature-length film, but has spawned numerous spin-offs and TV adaptations. The series centres on Wallace, a good-natured, eccentric, cheese-loving inventor, along with his companion Gromit, a silent yet loyal and intelligent anthropomorphic dog. The first short film, A Grand Day Out, was finished and made public in 1989. Wallace was originally voiced by veteran actor Peter Sallis and later by Ben Whitehead. Gromit is largely silent, communicating through facial expressions and body language.

Because of their widespread popularity, the characters have been described as positive international cultural icons of both modern British culture and British people in general. BBC News called them "some of the best-known and best-loved stars to come out of the UK". Icons has said they have done "more to improve the image of the English world-wide than any officially appointed ambassadors". Although not overtly set in any particular town, Park has hinted that it was inspired by 1950s Wigan in the north of England. Wallace's accent comes from the Holme Valley of West Yorkshire. Wallace is fond of Wensleydale cheese [from Wensleydale, North Yorkshire].

[9A]

November 9, 2019

Celebrating the Edmonton Grads






The Edmonton Commercial Graduates Basketball Club, better known as “The Grads,” started as a high school girls basketball team and became a sports dynasty. Today’s Doodle celebrates The Grads’ induction into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame on this day in 2017. It was a fitting honor for a team that holds arguably one of the best winning percentages in North America—approximately 95 percent over 25 years—in any sport.. With outstanding sportsmanship and determination, The Grads also defeated stereotypes that had discouraged women from participating in competitive sports.

Teacher Percy Page started the team in 1914 as a physical education program for the 60 girls at McDougall Commercial High School in the Canadian city of Edmonton. In their first season, they won the provincial championship, and when some of the graduating seniors indicated that they’d like to continue playing, Page was inspired to set up The Grads after they graduated in 1915.

During the next quarter century, The Grads went on to win 23 of 24 Provincial Championships and racked up stats that would be the envy of any team, including earning winning streaks of 147 and 78 games, separated by just a single loss. They went undefeated in the Western Canadian Championships from 1926 to 1940 and won 29 of 31 games in the Canadian Championships, never losing a series. After the Grads won the Underwood International tournament, also known as the “North American championship,” for 17 years straight, tournament organizers decided to let them keep the trophy permanently.

The Grads additionally won seven of nine games against men's teams and went unbeaten in 27 exhibition games at four Olympic Games—though they never won a medal since women’s basketball was not yet an Olympic sport.

When The Grads first started, basketball was a fairly new sport, having been invented in 1891 by Canadian James Naismith. He would later recognize the Grads as “the finest basketball team that ever stepped out on a floor.”





1940 -- Final home game




Kay MacBeth, the last surviving member of the famous Edmonton Grads basketball team, has died at the age of 96. [2018]

[9A]

Nov 14, 2019

321st Anniversary of the First Lighting of Eddystone Lighthouse






Situated near the mouth of the English channel, the Eddystone reef is among the world’s most hazardous stretches of water, infamously known for causing numerous shipwrecks over the years. Today’s Doodle celebrates the first lighting of Eddystone Lighthouse, the first lighthouse built on those infamous rocks on this day in 1698.

It was English merchant Henry Winstanley, who’d invested in ships that sunk at Eddystone, who accepted the daunting challenge of building a much-needed lighthouse essentially in the wide open sea, 14 miles from the coast of Plymouth.

Work began in 1696 but was delayed when a French vessel arrived and took Winstanley prisoner. Although England and France were at war, the French king Louis XIV released Winstanley, saying that “France was at war with England, not with humanity." It was clear that the importance of the lighthouse transcended international conflicts.

Rising some 80 feet above the rock, the Eddystone Lighthouse was surmounted by a weather vane and domed cupola containing 60 candles and a “great hanging lamp” to warn navigators to steer clear of danger. Requiring extensive repairs after withstanding its first punishing North Atlantic winter, the lighthouse was substantially redesigned before its official completion in 1699.

Although Winstanley believed that the lighthouse could withstand "the greatest storm that ever was," it was destroyed during the historic Great Storm of 1703. Nevertheless, Winstanley had proved it was not just necessary but also possible and vitally important to build a lighthouse on this treacherous site, despite the extreme difficulties and dangers. A series of lighthouses have been erected in the same place since then, all of them safeguarding the lives of maritime travelers for more than three centuries.

[9A]

Nov 19, 2019
200th Anniversary of Museo del Prado




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 200th anniversary of Madrid’s Museo del Prado. Opened on this day in 1819, the museum is home to thousands of Spanish paintings from the 12th century to the 20th century, including masterpieces by El Greco, Francisco Goya, Diego Velázquez, amongst other European masters.


Designed in 1785 by architect Juan de Villanueva, the building was repurposed by King Ferdinand VII and Queen Maria Isabel de Braganza from a center for the natural sciences to a public gallery in 1819. Originally called the Royal Museum, it was later named Museo Nacional del Prado. With a collection of over 5,000 pieces, the museum pursued an expansion project that increased public access and reduced crowding in the main building.


The nearby Jerónimos Cloister was restored and incorporated to create the Museo del Prado Campus, allowing the museum to showcase the masterpieces of a new era. The Bicentenary exhibit, “A Place of Memory,” pays homage to the museum’s history through some of its darkest periods and offers a glimpse into how the museum has transformed into the institution it is today.


The museum is looking to the future on its 200th anniversary, taking time to ensure that diversity is embraced at the dawn of its third century. Throughout the year, the collection exhibited artists from Latin America such as Matrimonios de Martín de Loyola con Beatriz Ñusta y de Juan de Borja con Lorenza Ñusta de Loyola, an extraordinary example of the viceregal painting, coming from the Pedro de Osma Museum in Lima, Peru, and women in A Tale of Two Women Painters: Sofonisba Anguissola and Lavinia Fontana and Twelve Photographers. Guests should be able to see most of the museum in a couple of hours, but they might lose track of time trying to unpack the scenes in Hieronymus Bosch’s “The Garden of Earthly Delights.”


Happy two centuries, Museo del Prado!

[9A]

Nov 20, 2019

Maude ‘Lores’ Bonney’s 122nd Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates Australian aviator Maude Rose ‘Lores’ Bonney, who was the first woman to fly solo from Australia to England. A pioneer for women in aviation, she completed the 1933 journey in 157 hours of flight time, surviving a groundbreaking voyage fraught with peril as she flew through heavy storms, survived two crashes, and had an encounter with a herd of water buffalo.

A flight with her husband’s cousin in 1928 sparked her desire to become a pilot. By 1931, Lores had dedicated herself to flying, embarking on her first solo flight in a Gipsy Moth biplane named My Little Ship. A record-breaking first flight, it took Lores nearly 15 hours to fly south from Brisbane, Queensland, to meet her father for dinner in Wangaratta, Victoria.

Lores continued to push the boundaries for aviators with each successive flight, and in 1937, Lores became the first person to fly solo from Australia to her birthplace of South Africa.

With her honorary doctorate from Griffith University, confirmation as a Member of the Order of the British Empire [MBE] and a Member of the Order of Australia [AM], as well as a Queensland electoral district named after her, Lores’ achievements serve to inspire pilots of the future. Unlike Lores, however, today’s pilots have access to a radio and won’t have to do their own maintenance to get to their destination.

[9A]

October 27, 2020

Dr. Stamen Grigorov’s 142nd Birthday



Today’s Doodle celebrates the 142nd birthday of Bulgarian physician and microbiologist Dr. Stamen Grigorov, the first scientist to discover the bacterium essential to the fermentation of yogurt. Grigorov also contributed to the development of the world’s first tuberculosis vaccine.

Stamen Grigorov was born on this day in 1878 in the village of Studen Izvor, located in the Trun region of western Bulgaria. Passionate about science from a young age, he went on to earn a doctorate from the Medical University of Geneva, Switzerland. Following his wedding in 1904, Grigorov returned to the university to work as a research assistant.

As a reminder of home, Grigorov’s wife gifted him with some Bulgarian culinary staples, including yogurt. Intrigued by yogurt’s reputed health benefits, Grigorov decided to inspect it under a microscope. Following thousands of experiments, in 1905 he finally found what he was looking for: the rod-shaped microorganism that causes yogurt’s fermentation. The bacterium was later renamed Lactobacillus bulgaricus in honor of Grigorov’s home country.

Later that year, Grigorov took a position as chief physician at a local hospital in his hometown of Trun. In 1906, he released a groundbreaking paper demonstrating the first use of penicillin fungi against tuberculosis. He continued this research and worked as a doctor throughout the rest of his life, saving thousands of lives along the way.

In honor of Grigorov’s legacy, his home village of Studen Izvor today houses one of the world’s only museums of yogurt.

Честит Рожден ден, Dr. Grigorov!

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October 27, 2012

Sugarloaf Cable Car's 100th Anniversary





The Sugarloaf Cable Car is a cableway system in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The first part runs between Praia Vermelha and Morro da Urca, from where the second rises to the summit of the 1,299-foot [396 m] Sugarloaf Mountain.

The cableway was envisioned by the engineer Augusto Ferreira Ramos in 1908 who sought support from well-known figures of Rio's high society to promote its construction. Opened in 1912, it was only the third cableway to be built in the world. In 1972 the cars were updated, growing from a capacity of 22 to 75, and in 1979 it featured in an action scene for the James Bond film Moonraker. Today it is used by approximately 2,500 visitors every day. The cable cars run every 30 minutes, between 8 am and 10 pm.