Google doodles

[9A]

July 23, 2018

Ludwig Sütterlin's 153rd Birthday




Today’s Doodle has the “write” stuff and celebrates German graphic artist and font designer Ludwig Sütterlin for creating the Sütterlinschrift, a unified, kid-friendly script that revolutionized the way Prussian and German school children learned to write from 1915-1941.

At the request of the Prussian Ministry of Culture in 1911, Sütterlin developed a handwriting style that would be easier for beginners to use, especially with the steel-spring pen, a modern invention quickly replacing goose-feather quills dipped in ink. As a result, young students could enjoy simple letters, reduced smudging, and fewer reprimands by teachers. Though forbidden by the National Socialists in 1941, Sütterlinschrift was reintroduced and remained as optional in schools until the 1960s so children could read letters from parents or grandparents.

Sütterlin was also a prolific graphic artist and craftsman who designed Art Deco glassware [as depicted in today’s Doodle], iconic promotions like the “Hammer Poster” for the 1896 Berlin Trade Fair, and notable trademarks like the “Goddess of Light” for the AEG electrical company.

Happy 153rd birthday, Ludwig Sütterlin!

[9A]

July 23, 2009

The 40th Anniversary of Comic-Con - Designed by Jim Lee © DC Comics



A comic book convention or comic con is an event with a primary focus on comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events hosted at convention centers, hotels, or college campuses. They feature a wide variety of activities and panels, with a larger number of attendees participating in cosplay than most other types of fan conventions. Comic book conventions are also used as a vehicle for industry, in which publishers, distributors, and retailers represent their comic-related releases. Comic book conventions may be considered derivatives of science-fiction conventions, which began in the late 1930s.

Comic-cons were traditionally organized by fans on a not-for-profit basis, though nowadays most events catering to fans are run by commercial interests for profit. Many conventions have award presentations relating to comics [such as the Eisner Awards, which have been presented at San Diego Comic-Con International since 1988; or the Harvey Awards, which have been presented at a variety of venues also since 1988].

[9A]

July 23, 2010

Peder Severin Krøyer's 159th Birthday



Peder Severin Krøyer , also known as P. S. Krøyer, was a Danish painter.

Krøyer's best known and best-loved work is entitled Summer Evening on Skagen's Southern Beach with Anna Ancher and Marie Krøyer [Sommeraften ved Skagen Sønderstrand med Anna Ancher og Marie Krøyer], 1893. He painted many beach scenes featuring both recreation life on the beach [bathers, strollers], and local fishermen.

Another popular work is Midsummer Eve Bonfire on Skagen Beach [Sankthansbål på Skagen strand], 1906. This large-scale work features a great crowd of the artistic and influential Skagen community gathered around a large bonfire on the beach on Saint John's Eve [Midsummer Eve].

Both of these works are in the permanent collection of the Skagens Museum which is dedicated to that community of artists, including those who gathered around Krøyer, a great organizer and bon vivant.

[9A]

Jul 20, 2010

Nam June Paik




Nam June Paik [July 20, 1932 – January 29, 2006] was a Korean American artist. He worked with a variety of media and is considered to be the founder of video art. He is credited with the first use [1974] of the term "electronic super highway" to describe the future of telecommunications.

[9A]

July 20, 2020

Celebrating Dilhan Eryurt





Today’s Doodle celebrates a star in the field of astronomy, Turkish astrophysicist Dr. Dilhan Eryurt. She was the first Turkish woman to work as a scientist at NASA, and her research on the evolution of stars led to an unexpected discovery about the history of the solar system. On this day in 1969, Dr. Eryurt was honored with NASA’s prestigious “Apollo Achievement Award” for her contribution to the moon landing that year.

Dilhan Eryurt was born in İzmir, Turkey, on November 29, 1926. After high school, she studied in the Department of Mathematics and Astronomy at Istanbul University, and then earned a PhD in Astrophysics from Ankara University in 1953. In 1961, Dr. Eryurt began work as the only woman at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in New York.

At the time, the leading scientific model suggested that the sun had been heating up over billions of years to reach its current temperature. Dr. Eryurt’s work helped show that in fact the sun used to be even hotter than it is today. This transformative discovery had huge implications for the chemical makeup of the Earth, as well as the conditions astronauts could expect to find on the Moon.

After Dr. Eryurt returned to Turkey, she established an astrophysics department at the Middle East Technical University, where she went on to become the dean of the faculty. In 1977, she was honored with Turkey’s TÜBİTAK Science Award.

Thank you, Dr. Dilhan Eryurt, for casting a bright light on the mysteries of the universe!

[9A]

July 20, 2020

Tatyana Lioznova’s 96th Birthday


Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Moscow-based guest artist Sveta Mullari, celebrates Russian director, screenwriter, and professor Tatyana Lioznova on her 96th Birthday. Lioznova was widely known for the beloved 1973 spy thriller television series “Seventeen Moments of Spring,” and through her work explored themes like alienation and perseverance, often inspired by her personal life.

Tatyana Lioznova was born in the Russian capital of Moscow on this day in 1924 and went on to graduate from the world’s oldest film school, the All-Union State University of Cinematography, or VGIK.

Lioznova broke new ground as a female director, a rare profession for women in Russia at the time. She made her directorial debut in 1958 with “The Memory of the Heart” and saw nationwide success with the 1967 romance “Three Poplars at Plyushchikha.” Lioznova reached new heights of fame with her hugely popular 12-part series “Seventeen Moments of Spring.” The series—which inspired the Doodle artwork on Lioznova’s right side—takes place during World War II and follows protagonist Maxim Isayev, a fictional Soviet spy often compared to his British counterpart James Bond. Referenced on the left side of the artwork is Lioznova’s 1982 hit film “Carnival,” a musical comedy she both wrote and directed.

Lioznova also returned to her alma mater VGIK and taught workshops on acting and directing to a new generation of Russian filmmakers. In honor of her contributions to Russian cinema, Lioznova was named a People’s Artist of the USSR in 1984.

[9A]

July 20, 2012

Santos Dumont's 139th Birthday




Alberto Santos-Dumont was a Brazilian aeronaut, sportsman, inventor, and one of the few people to have contributed significantly to the early development of both lighter-than-air and heavier-than-air aircraft. The heir of a wealthy family of coffee producers, he dedicated himself to aeronautical study and experimentation in Paris, where he spent most of his adult life. He designed, built, and flew the first powered airships and won the Deutsch Prize in 1901, when he flew around the Eiffel Tower in his airship No. 6, becoming one of the most famous people in the world in the early 20th century.

[9A]

July 20, 2015

Giorgio Morandi’s 125th Birthday





If any twentieth century artist’s work embodied the beauty of simplicity, it was Giorgio Morandi’s. Known for his still life and landscape paintings, the Italian artist helped usher in a new period of minimalism after completing more than 1300 paintings over his career. He perfected his art on a similar set of bottles and vases, creating a soothing sense of balance that few artists have mastered. You can see some of Giorgio Morandi’s most classic work on the Google Cultural Institute.

Like Morandi might have wanted, Doodler Kevin Laughlin chose a simple composition for today’s Doodle, striving to emulate the painter’s compositional style and characteristically formal placement of objects in the frame. After settling on a proper arrangement of bottles and jars that would evoke the Google logo, Kevin dusted off his glass palette in a vain attempt to pay tribute to those tactile qualities of corporeal paint that Morandi’s paintings were known for.

[9A]

October 19, 2020

Farid al-Atrash’s 110th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 110th birthday of Syrian-born Egyptian composer, singer, instrumentalist, actor, and film producer Farid al-Atrash, widely considered one of the Arab world’s great performers of his time. A virtuosic player of the stringed Middle Eastern instrument called the oud, al-Atrash forever left his mark on music and cinema in Egypt and beyond, releasing over 220 original songs and starring in 31 musical films across his prolific career.

Farid al-Atrash was born on this day in 1910 into the prominent al-Atrash family in Jabal Druze in the Syrian province of Suwayda. As a child, al-Atrash emigrated with his mother and siblings to Egypt, escaping the French occupation. Later, they were naturalized by the Egyptian government as citizens. There, he went on to pursue a musical education— inspired by his mother who was a professional singer and musician herself. Exhibiting a rare musical talent, by the early ‘30s he was singing regularly on Egyptian radio.

Al-Atrash soon began to release his own music and rose to a new level of fame with his big-screen debut–alongside his sister [Asmahan]–in the 1941 film “Intisar al-Shabab” [“The Triumph of Youth”]. He went on to lead a massively successful film career during Egypt’s golden age of cinema over the following decades. Meanwhile, he composed many songs considered classics of modern Arab music and through his extraordinary instrumental prowess earned the nickname “King of the Oud.”

Happy birthday, Farid al-Atrash!

[9A]

July 20, 2017

Gilberto Bosques Saldívar’s 125th Birthday




Today marks the 125th birthday of Gilberto Bosques Saldívar, the diplomat known as the “Mexican Schindler” who is said to have saved 40,000 lives during WWII while serving as Mexico’s Consul General in France.

Born in Chiautla de Tapia, Puebla, Saldívar made a career of looking after the good of the public from young adulthood: serving as a teacher, government newspaper director, and ultimately, a public servant. In 1939, he was sent to France to serve as Mexico’s Consul General.

After fleeing the Nazi occupation of Paris in 1940, Saldívar received support from the Mexican government to establish a consulate in southern France. He rented a castle and holiday camp in Marseilles at which he hid Jews and Spanish Civil War refugees, maintaining that they were protected under international law in what he considered a Mexican territory. He land his team issued Visas and chartered travel for tens of thousands of wishing to escape to Mexico until he was arrested by Nazi forces. After one year of imprisonment, he continued his career in public service for the remainder of his life.

Today we celebrate Saldívar’s remarkable courage and moral conviction with a Doodle that illustrates the peace his actions made possible for the lives of so many.

[9A]

January 20, 2019

Louay Kayali’s 85th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrate the work of Louay Kayali, a modern painter born in Syria and trained in Italy whose quietly powerful portraits convey the strength, resilience, and nobility of everyday folk—bakers, fisherman, and pregnant mothers.

Born in Aleppo on this day in 1934, Louay Kayali began painting at the age of 11 and held his first exhibition when he was 18 at Al-Tajhis Al-Oula School. Awarded a scholarship, Kayali moved to Italy in 1956 for advanced studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome and went on to represent Syria at the 1960 Venice Biennale—a prestigious international art exhibition.

Joining the faculty of the Higher Institute for the Fine Arts in Damascus in 1962, Kayali’s instruction made a profound impact on future generations of Syrian artists. During the mid-1960s, he began a series of charcoal works which marked a departure from his previous paintings. The emotionally challenging images in his 1967 traveling exhibition “Fi Sabil al-Qadiyyah” [For the Sake of the Cause] depicted human suffering, reflecting upheaval in the Arab world. Upset by scathing reviews of the show, the artist announced that he would no longer paint, and destroyed much of his work. Fortunately, he did return to painting, showing new work throughout the 1970s, including a joint exhibition with his old friend Fateh al-Moudarres.

On what would have been his 85th birthday, we remember Louay Kayali, a passionate artist who aimed to paint exactly what he saw—and felt.

[9A]

July 20, 2009

40th Anniversary of Moon Landing




A Moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2, on 13 September 1959.

The United States' Apollo 11 was the first crewed mission to land on the Moon, on 20 July 1969. There were six crewed U.S. landings between 1969 and 1972, and numerous uncrewed landings, with no soft landings happening between 22 August 1976 and 14 December 2013.

The United States is the only country to have successfully conducted crewed missions to the Moon, with the last departing the lunar surface in December 1972. All soft landings took place on the near side of the Moon until 3 January 2019, when the Chinese Chang'e 4 spacecraft made the first landing on the far side of the Moon.

[9A]

Jul 22, 2009

Eclipse 2009





A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of the orbit on July 22, 2009, with a magnitude of 1.07991. It was the longest total solar eclipse during the 21st century, the longest total solar eclipse during the 3rd millennium will be on 16 July 2186. It lasted a maximum of 6 minutes and 38.86 seconds off the coast of Southeast Asia, causing tourist interest in eastern China, Pakistan, Japan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Its greatest magnitude was 1.07991, occurring only 6 hours, 18 minutes after perigee, with greatest eclipse totality lasting 6 minutes, 38.86 seconds during the Total Solar Eclipse of July 22, 2009.

This was the longest total solar eclipse in the 21st century because totality lasted nearly 6 minutes and 39 seconds.

[9A]

Jul 15, 2014

Emmeline Pankhurst's 156th Birthday



British political activist and women’s rights leader Emmeline Pankhurst leads the march in our homepage in the United Kingdom. Although she was criticized for her militant tactics, Pankhurst is widely recognized for her important role in achieving women’s suffrage. Listed as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most important people of the 20th century, Pankhurst was described as someone who “shaped an idea of women for our time; she shook society into a new pattern from which there could be no going back."

[9A]

July 15, 2010

Josef Frank's 125th Birthday




Some people see things in an entirely unique way. Josef Frank's work was equal parts inspiring and surprising when I first came across this doodle proposal. Famous in Austria and Sweden for his vivid textiles and patterns, Frank's work delighted the doodle team so much that we decided to launch this doodle in other countries as well!


posted by Jennifer Hom

[9A]

July 15, 2013

Rembrandt van Rijn's 407th Birthday



Often regarded as one of the greatest artists in European history, Rembrandt van Rijn is a master not only of form and light but also in portraying human emotion. In his body of work, Rembrandt depicts subjects that range from portraits, to energetic landscapes, to poignant allegories. Such allegories often draw inspiration from his personal hardships and still speak to viewers hundreds of years after his lifetime.

Most striking, perhaps, is his series of self portraits. These paintings are an honest recording of Rembrandt's aging visage and technical skill. One can see his tastes shift from the classical sfumato [or soft] approach in his early twenties to a more expressive and almost impressionistic technique in his fifties. Ahead of his time, Rembrandt applies his paint with great volume and confidence while many of his contemporaries continue to glaze [or paint in thin layers].

His paintings also reveal a passion for innovation-- some of his works have unusual substances mixed into the pigments. Glass and wheat flour, though not often found on most artists' palettes, appear on some of Rembrandt's canvases. He may have mixed them in to alter the texture of the paint; to push the medium forward.

It was surprising to realize that the doodle team had not yet celebrated this artistic legend. With a four-year degree in illustration, I realized that it was going to be no small task to emulate one of the greatest painters of all time. Encouraged by my team, however, I charged into the project with fragile confidence. Below are some photos I snapped throughout the process:





Created with water-soluble oil paint, this is the first quick study I created to warm up. I quickly realized that this is not how Rembrandt painted.

A second [poorly drawn] study revealed that Rembrandt started with an underpainting, glazed, then applied his lightest values thickly. I found that I did not have the proper brushes to achieve anything near the texture of his paintings.






Finally armed with boar's hair brushes, I hesitantly approached the underpainting of the final piece on a 4' x 2' canvas. The drawing is not even close to perfect-- I would pay the price for this carelessness later.






This is about three quarters into the painting.





The final painting in the photo studio.


Creating a master copy of a paragon of art was a humbling experience. The sureness of his brush and the ripeness of his skill is apparent in every stroke. Aside from his technical prowess, however, the sincerity in this face is something I will never forget.

Posted by Jennifer Hom, doodler

[9A]

Jul 14, 2013

Ingmar Bergman's 95th Birthday






Ernst Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish film director, screenwriter, producer and playwright. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time, his films are known as "profoundly personal meditations into the myriad struggles facing the psyche and the soul."

Bergman directed more than 60 films and documentaries for cinematic release and for television screenings, most of which he also wrote.

[9A]

July 14, 2020

Bastille Day 2020




Today’s animated Doodle, illustrated by Asnières-sur-Seine-based guest artist François Maumont, celebrates Bastille Day on the 231st anniversary of the storming of the Bastille. On this day in 1789, French revolutionaries charged the Bastille military fortress turned prison on the edge of Paris, an event considered the spark of the French Revolution.

Built in the 1300s as a medieval fortification to guard Paris’s eastern border, by 1789 the Bastille had come to represent the tyranny of the French monarchy. On July 14, a crowd of disaffected citizens besieged the stronghold, and with assistance from a group of sympathetic French Guards, forced the Bastille’s military governor to surrender. Soon, the rallying cry of “Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité” [“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”] was embraced by the French people, and it remains the country’s official motto to this day.

Known in France as la Fête Nationale [the National Holiday] or le 14 Juillet [July 14], Bastille Day was made an official holiday in 1880 and today serves as a worldwide celebration of all things French.

Vive le 14 Juillet! Long live the 14th of July!

[9A]

July 14, 2009

Bastille Day 2009

[9A]

July 14, 2015

Bastille Day 2015




Happy Bastille Day!


The name Bastille day commemorates the beginning of the French Revolution with the Storming of the Bastille in 1789. On the same day the next year, the Fête de la Fédération, celebrated the unity of the French people. To commemorate both events, this day is simply called Le quatorze juillet [the fourteenth of July].

Today's doodle is by a guest artist, French illustrator, animator and director Loup Blaster [Louise Druelle]. She created 3 separate looping animations representing the devise [or motto] from the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité. Each animation shows a principle of the French Republic. Here's what she has to say about each one:

Before creating these animations, I thought about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The first article reads: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood." This, and my own personal experiences, served as my inspiration for each animation.

Liberté


For me, freedom is related to nature and trees. It's a symbol for hope and peace, as well as our roots. Since my childhood I always loved trees and they are very present in my work.


Fraternité



The hands symbolize brotherhood, happiness and togetherness. It's a beautiful and powerful feeling to be part of a big crowd sharing in commemoration, protest or celebration.




Égalité


I used the globe to remember that we are all together here on Earth, and it is the only one we have.

[9A]

Jul 12, 2009

Pablo Neruda's Birthday





Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto [12 July 1904 – 23 September 1973], better known by his pen name and, later, legal name Pablo Neruda was a Chilean poet-diplomat and politician who won the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature. Neruda became known as a poet when he was 13 years old, and wrote in a variety of styles, including surrealist poems, historical epics, overtly political manifestos, a prose autobiography, and passionate love poems such as the ones in his collection Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair [1924].

[9A]

July 12, 2019

René Favaloro’s 96th Birthday




“‘We’ is more important than ‘I.’ In medicine, the advances are always the result of many efforts accumulated over the years,” wrote Dr. René Favaloro, the Argentinian surgeon who introduced coronary artery bypass surgery into clinical practice and is celebrated in today’s Doodle.

Born in the city of La Plata on this day in 1923, René Gerónimo Favaloro spent the first 12 years of his medical career as a country doctor in the farming community of Jacinto Arauz. He built an operating room, trained his own nurses, set up a local blood bank, and educated patients on how to prevent common ailments. The experience left him with a lifelong conviction that healthcare was a basic human right, regardless of economic circumstances.

In 1962, he traveled to the United States to practice at the Cleveland Clinic, where he worked alongside Mason Sones, a pioneer of cineangiography—the reading and interpreting of coronary and ventricular images. After studying angiograms in the Sones Library, Dr. Favalaro was convinced that coronary artery bypass grafting could be an effective therapy.

On May 9th, 1967, Dr. Favaloro operated on a 51-year-old woman with a blockage in her right coronary artery. Attaching her to a heart-lung machine, he stopped her heart and used a vein from her leg to redirect blood flow around the blockage. The historic operation was a success, and since then, the procedure has saved countless lives during the past half-century.

Returning to Argentina in the early 1970s, Dr. Favaloro established the Favalaro Foundation in Buenos Aires. The center serves patients based on their medical needs rather than their ability to pay and teaches Dr. Favaloro’s innovative techniques to doctors all over Latin America.

[9A]

July 12, 2011

450th Anniversary of St. Basil's Cathedral




Built in 1561, St. Basil's Cathedral is an architectural treasure for both Russia and the world. As this is one of my personal favorite buildings of all time, it was difficult for me to not become completely caught up in every detail while drawing [even knowing how small it appears on the homepage]. Never the less, above is the high resolution version of this doodle!

posted by Jennifer Hom

[9A]

September 30, 2020

Eileen Chang’s 100th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the centennial birthday of Chinese-born writer and translator Eileen Chang. Lauded for her graceful writing style, intimate understanding of human psychology, and exploration of themes like loneliness and embittered romance, Chang is widely recognized as one of the great writers of modern Chinese literature.

Eileen Chang was born Zhang Ying into an aristocratic family in Shanghai, China on this day in 1920. By the time she was in high school, Chang earned notice for her rare literary talent, and some of her first work was published in the school’s magazine. She went on to study literature at the University of Hong Kong before returning to Shanghai in 1941.

In her early twenties Chang forged her path as a writer, and her short stories and essays, as well as her 1943 novella “The Golden Cangue,” established her as one of China’s most heralded new voices. Among her beloved works from this period are the novellas “Love in a Fallen City” [1943] and “Red Rose, White Rose” [1944], both of which are depicted in today’s Doodle. In 1955, Chang moved to the U.S., where she continued to write across a variety of mediums, from novels to screenplays for Hong Kong films. Her work exploded in popularity across the Chinese-speaking world in the 1970s, but Chang remained a modest and private person throughout her life.

Happy birthday, Eileen Chang, and thank you for your providing a novel lens into life and love through your decades of literary contributions.

[9A]

July 12, 2022

Celebrating the deepest photo of the universe ever taken!




A picture is worth a thousand worlds. Today’s Doodle celebrates the deepest infrared photo of the universe ever taken by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope—also known as the JWST or Webb—a scientific phenomenon and one of the biggest engineering feats of humanity. It is the largest, most powerful, and most complex infrared telescope to ever be put into space—and the largest international space endeavor in history! Today, six months since take off, NASA released Webb’s first operational images unveiling new depths and worlds.

The JWST is named after NASA’s second administrator, James E. Webb, who led the Apollo missions that landed the first humans on the moon. The telescope was launched from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana on December 25, 2021 and took a month to reach its orbit at 1.5 million kilometers [940,000 miles] from Earth. The launch was made possible through the collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency [ESA] and the Canadian Space Agency [CSA].

Thanks to images from the JWST, astronomers will now have the opportunity to study every phase of cosmic history, which spans a massive 13.5 billion years, and the mysteries beyond our galaxy. NASA aims to explore the early universe, multiple galaxies over time, the star life cycle and other worlds with Webb. The JWST will even be able to observe light from galaxies that formed 400 millions years after the big bang, and detect oxygen and organic molecules on other planets.

Long throughout history, humans have wondered, “How did we get here?” and “Are we alone in the universe?” The JWST will allow us to explore these questions and distant worlds that orbit other stars and study our solar system extensively, producing the sharpest infrared images ever taken by a space telescope. It will open the doors to more scientific breakthroughs in the future, shining a new light on space, time, and celestial bodies we’ve yet to discover.

Today’s Doodle features the deepest infrared photo of the universe ever taken as well as other initial images from the JWST. Explore them below!

An image of Deep Field—the deepest infrared photo of the universe ever taken!



Star-Forming regionThe Carina Nebula is one of the largest and brightest nebulae in the sky, located approximately 7,600 light-years away in the southern constellation Carina. Nebulae are stellar nurseries where stars form. The Carina Nebula is home to many massive stars, several times larger than the Sun.



Stephan's Quintet
About 290 million light-years away, Stephan’s Quintet is located in the constellation Pegasus. It is notable for being the first compact galaxy group ever discovered in 1877. Four of the five galaxies within the quintet are locked in a cosmic dance of repeated close encounters.



Stellar DeathThe Southern Ring, or “Eight-Burst” nebula, is a planetary nebula – an expanding cloud of gas, surrounding a dying star. It is nearly half a light-year in diameter and is located approximately 2,000 light years away from Earth.

[9A]

Jul 5, 2020

Hwang Hye-seong's 100th Birthday



Today’s Doodle celebrates the 100th birthday of Korean professor and culinary researcher Hwang Hye-seong. Hwang is widely credited with the preservation and popularization of the traditions of Korean royal cuisine that evolved for hundreds of years under the Joseon Dynasty.

Born on this day in 1920, Hwang Hye-seong attended high school in Fukuoka, Japan before returning to Korea to pursue a career in education. She went on to become a professor of gastronomy and took an interest in the little-studied field of Korean royal court cuisine.

Hwang’s studies brought her to the Nakseonjae complex in Seoul, the home of the last living queen of the Joseon Dynasty. There, she met Han Hui-sun, the only remaining court lady who had worked in the royal kitchen.

Dedicated to the protection of the Joseon traditions against the sands of time, Hwang spent decades learning from Han. She scrupulously documented nearly everything there was to know about the royal culinary practices under the dynasty, from the arrangement of table-setting—a process depicted in today's Doodle—to the terminology used by the royal family. Thanks to Hwang’s efforts, in 1970, the South Korean government named the royal cuisine of the Joseon Dynasty an Important Intangible Cultural Property, and in 1973 Hwang was honored as its official skill holder.

Today, Hwang’s passion has been carried on by her four children, all of whom followed her footsteps into culinary careers.

[9A]

Jul 5, 2020

Phraya Si Sunthon Wohan's 198th Birthday


Today’s Doodle celebrates Thai author, poet, and teacher Phraya Si Sunthon Wohan, who has been credited as the top authority on the Thai language during the rule of King Rama V in the late 19th century. Sunthon Wohan authored some of the country’s first Thai language textbooks, which were used to educate the country’s youth and members of the royal family.

Phraya Si Sunthon Wohan— born Noi Achan Yangkun on this day in 1822 in the Thai province of Chachoengsao— moved to Bangkok at the age of 13 to begin his lifelong linguistic journey. Over the next eight years, he studied at one of the capital city’s most ancient temples, the golden Wat Saket, where he mastered a handful of languages, including Thai, Khmer [the official language of neighboring Cambodia], and Pāli [a classical language that originated in India].

Phraya Si Sunthon Wohan’s talents ultimately attracted the attention of King Rama V, and he was appointed to the esteemed role of permanent secretary. He authored the country’s first textbook, which he used to teach the royal family at Suan Kulaab, the rose garden school in Bangkok’s Grand Palace. A poet at heart, Sunthon Wohan is also credited with writing Thailand’s very first national anthem.

[9A]

December 9, 2015

Whina Cooper’s 120th Birthday





When she was 18, Whina Cooper organized her first demonstration, rallying a small group to protest the leasing of land where the Maori people traditionally fished. When she was close to 80, Cooper led another protest, this time organizing thousands of people on a landmark march from the Far North to Parliament in Wellington to publicly decry the loss of millions of acres of Maori land. Not only did the march unite many different groups--a major feat at the time--, but it also attracted significant national attention, taking public awareness of Maori land rights to new heights.

Whina Cooper was an activist for most of her life. She fought tirelessly for the rights of Maori people, especially women, serving as the first president of the Maori Women’s Welfare League. In recognition of her efforts, she was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1981, and a member of the Order of New Zealand in 1991. Today, on what would have been her 120th birthday, we honor Dame Whina Cooper with a Doodle that pays tribute to her most historic achievement, that famous land march. Doodler Olivia When took inspiration from photos of the time, highlighting the fact that the march involved people of all ages, all brought together by a passionate and tenacious leader: Whina Cooper.

[9A]

December 9, 2017

Begum Rokeya’s 137th Birthday




Begum Rokeya was a pioneer in Bengali feminist thinking and writing. Born in 1880 in present-day Bangladesh, she became a persistent advocate for female education in her country, helping set a new precedent for the era. Today we celebrate her accomplishments on what would have been her 137th birthday.

Rokeya’s literary career spanned published essays, poems, short stories, and books, but her most well-known work is Sultana’s Dream, a science-fiction piece depicting a feminist utopia. She was one of the first Muslim women to express these progressive opinions and witty insights, championing equality in the treatment of men and women. Rokeya was a major advocate for women’s education, believing deeply that the disparity in available education for men and women was the root cause of inequality.

A few years after writing Sultana’s Dream, Rokeya established the first school for Bengali Muslim women in Calcutta, which remains a successful school for girls and women. Later she created the Muslim Women’s Association, developed to support women’s education and employment causes. Rokeya believed firmly in narrowing the gap in opportunities for men and women, and dedicated her entire life to the cause.

Happy birthday, Begum Rokeya!

[9A]

December 9, 2001

Google celebrates the Nobel Prize Centennial Award Ceremony




The Nobel Prizes are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to Humankind." Alfred Nobel was a Swedish chemist, engineer, and industrialist most famously known for the invention of dynamite. He died in 1896. In his will, he bequeathed all of his "remaining realisable assets" to be used to establish five prizes which became known as "Nobel Prizes." Nobel Prizes were first awarded in 1901.

Nobel Prizes are awarded in the fields of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace [Nobel characterized the Peace Prize as "to the person who has done the most or best to advance fellowship among nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and the establishment and promotion of peace congresses"]. In 1968, Sveriges Riksbank [Sweden's central bank] funded the establishment of the Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, to also be administered by the Nobel Foundation. Nobel Prizes are widely regarded as the most prestigious awards available in their respective fields.

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December 9, 2013

Grace Hopper's 107th Birthday




Grace Brewster Murray Hopper was an American computer scientist and United States Navy rear admiral. One of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer, she was a pioneer of computer programming who invented one of the first linkers. Hopper was the first to devise the theory of machine-independent programming languages, and the FLOW-MATIC programming language she created using this theory was later extended to create COBOL, an early high-level programming language still in use today.

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October 12, 2021

Paulette Nardal's 125th Birthday




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Amsterdam, Netherlands-based guest artist Jessica Coppet, celebrates the 125th birthday of Martinican-French author Paulette Nardal. She is widely considered one of the founders of Négritude, an intellectual movement produced by Black artists and writers who joined in solidarity to champion their cultural heritage and carve out space in the prevailing literary world for Black voices.

Born on this day in 1896 in Saint-Pierre, a French colonial town on the Caribbean island of Martinique, Félix Jeanne Paulette Nardal was the daughter of one of Martinique’s first Black engineers in the Department of Public Works. Nardal followed suit and established a trailblazing legacy of her own when she arrived in Paris in 1920 and became the first Black woman from Martinique to enroll at the city’s prestigious university, La Sorbonne, earning a master’s degree in English.

In the 1920s, members of the French Black community, many being West Indian immigrants like Nardal, often faced intense racial discrimination. Paulette Nardal and her sister Jane opened a Paris salon called Le Salon de Clamart in 1929 as an intellectual meeting ground to reflect on the Black condition. Known for its hospitality and elegance, the well-appointed salon allowed Nardal to gather intellectuals for conversation and mutual support. Scholars credit this salon as the birthplace of the Négritude movement, which Nardal helped initiate by authoring social commentary articles in the review journal “La Revue du monde noir” [“The Review of the Black World”].

Another significant moment of her life occurred at the beginning of World War II. Nardal left Martinique for France but suffered a lifelong injury when a submarine attacked her ship. Her demand for France to recognize her as a civilian war victim and survivor highlights the convergence of race, gender, disability, and citizenship. This event eventually inspired Nardal to establish organizations and newspapers encouraging educated women to channel their energies into social improvement and suffrage.

Nardal rose to prominence through her writings and fostered an international community of Black women who broke down barriers across race, class, and educational status. In recognition of her unifying work, Nardal was elected as a delegate to the United Nations in 1946 and was awarded the Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1976, the nation’s highest honor. There is the Promenade Jane-et-Paulette Nardal located on 100 rue Didot in Paris, and a plaque honors Nardal’s legacy in the Paris suburb of Clamart, where her salon catalyzed an international movement.

Happy Birthday, Paulette Nardal!

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October 12, 2018

Celebrating Roberto Clemente





“I want to be remembered as a ballplayer who gave all he had to give.”

—Roberto Clemente


In the spirit of Hispanic Heritage Month in the US, today’s Doodle by guest artist Roxie Vizcarra, commemorates the life and career of Roberto Clemente, Puerto Rican Hall of Fame baseball star, Latinx trailblazer, and passionate humanitarian.

Born the son of a sugar cane worker in Carolina, Puerto Rico on August 18, 1934, Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker grew up in Barrio San Antón. His athletic gifts were obvious from an early age, joining the Puerto Rican amateur league at age 16. His professional career began in 1952, when the then 18-year-old signed with the Santurce Cangrejeros [Crabbers], a winter league team in the LBBPR [Puerto Rico’s Baseball League].

Soon after graduating high school, Clemente signed to the Brooklyn Dodgers minor league affiliate in Montreal. His first at bat resulted in a game-winning home run on July 25, 1954. He made his major league debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates the following season.

A testament to his unique athletic ability, the right fielder accumulated numerous accolades during his pro career including 12 consecutive Gold Glove Awards, 4 National League batting titles, 3,000 career hits, the 1966 National League MVP Award, 2 World Series rings, and the 1971 World Series MVP Award. In fact, it was on this day in 1971 that Clemente’s performance led the Pittsburgh Pirates to victory against the Baltimore Orioles in Game 3 of the series, ultimately contributing to their Series title.

Aside from his talents on diamond, it was Clemente’s mission to help others that has solidified his legacy as one of the most humanitarian athletes to play the game. Whether it was delivering food and supplies to those in need, holding baseball clinics for kids, or making generous donations, he consistently sought to be an agent of positive impact and a role model for the youth of his community.

Unfortunately, it was during the pursuit of this mission that Clemente saw his final moments. When a massive earthquake struck Nicaragua on Dec 23, 1972, he decided to personally airlift relief supplies to the nation to ensure they reached those in need. The overloaded plane crashed shortly after takeoff and Clemente passed away at the age of 38.

A few months after his passing, on March 20, 1973, Clemente was inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame, becoming the first Latin American and Caribbean player to be so honored. Major League Baseball has honored his legacy since then by presenting the Roberto Clemente Award each year to an outstanding player who shows a strong commitment to community work.

Other posthumous awards Clemente has received include the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Roberto Clemente Walker Congressional Gold Medal, and the Presidential Citizens Medal. Sixty years after Clemente’s pro debut, Puerto Rico’s professional baseball league was even renamed the Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente—a testimony to the enduring impact he made on his community and beyond.

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October 12, 2021

Helena Modrzejewska's 181st Birthday



Widely regarded as one of the best actors in Polish history and one of the late-19th century’s greatest Shakespearean stage performers in America, Helena Modrzejewska [known professionally as Helena Modjesk] portrayed nearly 300 different roles in over 6,000 plays—both in Polish and English. Her theatrical career took center stage in over 300 cities worldwide spanning 46 years and has yet to be eclipsed by any other Polish artist. Today’s Doodle celebrates Modrzejewska’s prolific life and legacy on her 181st birthday.

Helena Modrzejewska was born as Jadwiga Benda on this day in 1840 in Krakow, Poland and was soon renamed Helena Opid. She made her theatrical debut in 1861 in a one-act comedy “The White Camellia,” performing under the stage name Modrzejewska.

Modrzejewska’s performances in Poland’s major cities were well received by critics, but she felt her talent surpassed the scope of the nation’s small venues. In 1877, she debuted in America—the new stage for her ambitious career. Renowned for Shakespearean roles, she livened up theater productions across America, sometimes touring for up to 30 weeks while performing 8 to 9 productions each week. If this grueling schedule wasn’t challenging enough, she toured not just as a lead actor but also as a director, producer, costume designer, and publicist!

Modrzejewska’s longest-lasting role was Lady Macbeth which she played a staggering 520 times. Plus, she still found time to pursue her love of nature as a botany enthusiast and gardener.
Happy birthday, Helena Modrzejewska—here’s to one tough act to follow!

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Oct 8, 2021

Ivan Piddubny's 150th Birthday




Few professional wrestlers enjoy a career lasting over 40 years, and many fewer retire undefeated from every tournament in which they’ve competed. Today’s Doodle celebrates a world champion Ukrainian wrestler who accomplished both—Ivan Piddubny.

Ivan Piddubny was born on this day in 1871 in the small village of Krasenivka in what is now central Ukraine. The young Piddubny developed his grit and brute strength by throwing haystacks into carts and plowing the land on his family farm. After leaving home at 17 in search of a better life, Piddubny found work in the ports of the Crimean town of Feodosia. While spectating a Greco-Roman wrestling match hosted by a touring circus that visited the port town, he decided to put his strength to the test.

Piddubny requested to join a match and to everyone’s amazement, he defeated every opponent—including a handful of famous world-class contenders. Piddubny joined the circus as an indomitable wrestler in 1897, marking the start of a whirlwind career entertaining audiences around the globe. By 1906, he was the first wrestler to win two world championships. The winning streak continued with six world titles that earned him prestigious names such as “The Champion of Champions.” He astounded onlookers and fellow athletes alike with both his Herculean strength and unheard of longevity—even winning the 1926 American championship at 55!

Although he retired in 1941 at the age of 70, his powerful legacy endures as many Ukrainians are known to still say “like Piddubny” to describe someone's strength.

Happy birthday, Ivan Piddubny. Here’s to an athlete who turned the world of wrestling upside-down!

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October 8, 2013

William John Swainson's 224th Birthday




William John Swainson was an English ornithologist, malacologist, conchologist, entomologist and artist. Apart from the common and scientific names of many species, it is for the quality of his illustrations that he is best remembered.

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November 4, 2020

Miliki's 91st Birthday



Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Spain-based guest artist Cinta Arribas, celebrates Spanish clown, actor, director, writer, singer, and composer Emilio Aragón Bermúdez, known fondly by his stage name Miliki. Among his many artistic accomplishments, Aragón starred in the Spanish children’s program “El Gran Circo de TVE” [[“TVE’s Great Circus”) which is widely considered one of the most iconic shows in the history of Spanish television.

Emilio Alberto Aragón Bermúdez was born on this day in 1929 in the town of Carmona in southwestern Spain. The son of a clown and an equestrian acrobatics specialist, Aragón honed his talent for performance art as a child surrounded by entertainers. Determined to carry on the family tradition, Aragón launched his clowning career by the age of 11, performing with his brothers at venues like Madrid’s legendary Circo Price [Price Circus].

The siblings moved to Cuba in the 1940s and achieved fame over the following decades as they showcased their endearing talents across the Americas. They found their way back to Spain in 1972 and the very next year, they took Spanish television by storm as the hosts of the children’s show which eventually became known as “El Gran Circo de TVE.”

After a hugely successful decade on air, Aragón moved beyond his identity as a clown and throughout the rest of his career explored new endeavors as a writer, TV presenter, filmmaker, and recording musician—a talent which earned him two Latin Grammy Awards.

¡Feliz cumpleaños, Miliki!

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November 4, 2013

Shakuntala Devi's 84th Birthday





Shakuntala Devi was an Indian mental calculator and writer, popularly known as the "Human Computer". Her talent earned her a place in the 1982 edition of The Guinness Book of World Records. However, the certificate for the record was given posthumously on 30 July 2020, despite Devi achieving her world record on 18 June 1980 at Imperial College, London. Devi was a precocious child and she demonstrated her arithmetic abilities at the University of Mysore without any formal education.

Devi strove to simplify numerical calculations for students. She wrote a number of books in her later years, including novels as well as texts about mathematics, puzzles, and astrology. She wrote the book The World of Homosexuals, which is considered the first study of homosexuality in India. She saw homosexuality in a positive light and is considered a pioneer in the field.

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Oct 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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Oct 26, 2020

Dolores Cacuango's 139th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 139th birthday of Ecuadorian civil rights pioneer Dolores Cacuango, who spent decades fighting fiercely for the rights of the country’s Indigenous people. Cacuango was a dedicated advocate for accessible education and instrumental in establishing Ecuador’s first bilingual schools, which practiced in Spanish and the Indigenous language of Quichua.

Dolores Cacuango was born on this day in 1881 in the Pesillo hacienda in the northern canton of Cayambe, Ecuador. Like many Indigenous people before her, she began to work at a young age, and at 15 years old was forced to relocate to the Ecuadorian capital of Quito to become a servant. With new insight into the troubling racism and class inequality facing her people, Cacuango returned home committed to the struggle for change.

Back in Pesillo, she became a leader in the movement against the exploitative hacienda system, and through her dynamic speeches, she advocated for causes like land rights, economic justice, and education for the Indigenous community. In 1926, she helped lead the people of Cayambe in challenging the sale of their community land, setting a strong example for future movements. Some two decades later in 1944, she also contributed to the establishment of the groundbreaking Ecuadorian Federation of Indians, which united Indigenous people around economic and cultural issues. She spent the rest of her life advocating for indigenous rights for current and future generations.

Today, Cacuango’s legacy is remembered with a street named in her honor in northern Quito.

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Oct 18, 2020

Benedict Sandin's 102nd Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 102nd birthday of Sarawak-born folklorist and ethnographer Benedict Sandin, who served as the curator of the oldest museum in Borneo: the Sarawak Museum. A member of the Iban–one of the largest Indigenous ethnic groups in what is now Malaysia–Sandin earned scholarly acclaim as one of the world’s foremost experts on the Iban and dedicated his life to the preservation of his native heritage.

Benedict Sandin was born Sandin anak Attat on this date in 1918 in Sarawak, today a state in the country of Malaysia. His father first introduced him to the poetic Iban language, which Sandin went on to master and champion. In 1941, Sandin began work in the Sarawak civil service, and his gift for writing eventually led to an assignment as the editor of Pembrita—the first news publication in the Iban language. His articles attracted the attention of the Sarawak Museum’s curator, who recruited him to join the museum’s staff in a special post in 1952.

Soon after, Sandin was accepted to a UNESCO fellowship program in New Zealand, through which he studied museum techniques and anthropology. He returned home determined to chronicle the Iban history, culture, and language by absorbing and recording the wisdom of local genealogists, bards, and historians. As a testament to Sandin’s invaluable ethnographic achievements, he was named the Curator of the Sarawak Museum and Government Ethnologist in 1966, a position he held for the better part of a decade.

Thank you, Benedict Sandin, for safeguarding and preserving Indigenous tradition and heritage for generations to come.

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Oct 15, 2020

Celebrating Kyu Sakamoto



Today’s Doodle celebrates Japanese singer and actor Kyu Sakamoto, on the 59th anniversary of the release of the record including his iconic song “Ue o Muite Aruko” [“Let’s Look Up As We Walk”, 1961]. Following its release in English markets under the title “Sukiyaki,” the emotional song became the first Japanese track to sell a million copies as well as the first by an Asian recording artist to top the American Billboard Chart.

Kyu Sakamoto was born Hisashi Oshima on December 10th, 1941 in Kawasaki, Japan. His father’s ninth child, he was nicknamed “Kyu,” an alternate reading of his first name [九], which translates to the number nine. Sakamoto began his career at age 16 as a back-up vocalist before he decided to take his chances as a solo artist. The move quickly paid off when he was signed to a record label the following year.

Sakamoto saw success in Japan, touting multiple pop hits and appearances in movies and TV shows. After a jazz cover of “Ue o Muite Aruko” became a hit in the U.K., Sakamoto’s original was released in the U.S. under the name “Sukiyaki,” catapulting him to international stardom. A testament to its out-of-this-world success, an instrumental version of “Sukiyaki” became one of the first songs sent over the radio to astronauts in space in 1965!

Intent to use his fame for good, Sakamoto helped raise funds for children with disabilities throughout his career, including holding a concert to benefit the 1964 Tokyo Paralympics.

Here’s to you, Kyu!

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August 27, 2018


Sir Donald George "The Don" Bradman’s 110th Birthday



A hero to Australian cricket fans, Sir Donald George Bradman, affectionately known as “The Don,” is considered the greatest batsman of all time. Born on this day in Cootamundra, New South Wales in 1908, Bradman developed his skills by hitting a golf ball off the curved base of a water tank, using a cricket stump, which is much narrower than a bat. The ball came back to him fast and at all angles. “I found I had to be pretty quick on my feet and keep my wits about me,” he said, “and in this way I developed, unconsciously, perhaps, sense of distance and pace.” Using his own unique grip and batting stance, he achieved a lifetime test batting average of 99.4, which many consider to be one of the greatest achievements by any athlete in a sport.


He made his debut in 1927 at 19 years old, in a first-class match between his New South Wales team and Adelaide, scoring a “century”—118 runs, to be exact—in his very first match. He was so talented and so consistent, he averaged at least one century every three innings over the course of his 21-year test match career. He amassed a total of 6,996 runs in 52 Test matches—making him a top contender for the title of best cricketer to ever step on a pitch. When Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack polled 100 former cricketers and journalists to determine the top cricketers of the 20th century, “The Don” was nominated by all 100.


Through the 1930s and 40s, Bradman set the world standard in the sport, scoring 309 runs in one often-cited game at Headingley Cricket Ground in England. After his retirement he remained a fixture in the cricket world as an administrator and commentator. Bradman was honored with a museum during his lifetime, called the “the greatest living Australian” by the Prime Minister, and knighted in 1949. Despite the accolades he earned, he remained a courteous and modest man.


Happy Birthday Sir Donald!

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Aug 25, 2018
Leonard Bernstein’s 100th Birthday



Happy 100th birthday to American music icon Leonard Bernstein! The youngest conductor ever to lead the New York Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, he was also the first U.S. conductor to gain international renown, leading a 1953 performance of ‘Medea’ at La Scala in Milan, Italy's foremost opera house.


The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Bernstein discovered music around age 10 and overcame his parents’ resistance to his passion for the arts. His creativity and talent spilled over from one artform to the next, and throughout his life, the most persistent criticisms of his work were that he did too much. “I want to conduct,” he wrote late in life. “I want to play the piano. I want to write for Hollywood. I want to write symphonic music. I want to keep on trying to be, in the full sense of that wonderful word, a musician. I also want to teach. I want to write books and poetry. And I think I can still do justice to them all.''


Today’s Doodle celebrates Bernstein’s life set to one of his most iconic works—the score to West Side Story. The tale, following the turf war between two rival gangs and star-crossed lovers in the west side of Manhattan, was brought to life through Bernstein’s gripping score. The original 1957 production was nominated for six Tony Awards including Best Musical. Explore the history and legacy of the iconic musical by visiting Google Arts & Culture.


A larger-than-life personality, Bernstein held the baton with emphatic mannerisms, reacting to the emotion of the music mid-performance. As Director of the New York Philharmonic, he exposed generations of young people to musical programming on television. Before Bernstein’s tenure, no widely-aired television show existed to educate youth through musical performances. In this way, and as a popular commentator about music on radio and TV, he made intellectual culture more accessible to the public at large.


Bernstein was also a skilled lecturer—winning a Grammy in 1961 for Best Documentary or Spoken Word Recording [other than comedy]. He published books about music and lectured on poetry at Harvard University.


His legacy endures as a musical polymath, a creator of culture, and an example that sometimes more is more.


Happy Birthday, Leonard Bernstein!

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August 25, 2009

400th Anniversary of Galileo's Telescope




The Galileo National Telescope, [Italian: Telescopio Nazionale Galileo] is a 3.58-meter Italian telescope, located at the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands, Spain. The TNG is operated by the "Fundación Galileo Galilei, Fundación Canaria", a non-profit institution, on behalf of the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics [INAF]. The telescope saw first light in 1998 and is named after the Italian Renaissance astronomer Galileo Galilei.

Some people believe that Galileo was the first person to build a telescope. This is not true, but he was the first person to publish his observations of astronomical objects through a telescope. He discovered that the Milky Way is made of many stars. He discovered that the Moon has hills. He found four moons around Jupiter. Those moons are now called the Galilean moons. He discovered sunspots, which are dark areas of the Sun. He saw that the planet Venus has light and dark phases just like the Moon. This helped people to know that the Sun is at the center of the Solar System, as Nicolaus Copernicus had said.

People remember Galileo today for his conflict with the Catholic Church of his day, which led to his trial for heresy by the Inquisition.

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Jul 7, 2019

Tanabata 2019



On the seventh day of the seventh month, two mythical lovers—represented by the stars Altair and Vega—find a way to come together once a year, against all odds. Today’s Doodle celebrates Tanabata, also known in Japan as the “Star Festival.”

Inspired by the Chinese Qixi Festival, Tanabata became popular in Japan during the Heian Period [794–1185]. The story of Hikoboshi, a humble cowherd who falls in love with Orihime, the daughter of the Sky King, has captured the imagination of lovers for centuries. Their separation by a mighty river, represented by the Milky Way, and eventual reunion is a timeless tale.

Writing their wishes on colorful strips of paper known as tanzaku, Tanabata celebrants hang them on bamboo poles or trees and pray that their dreams will come true. The wishes are set afloat the following day, drifting on rivers toward the sea.

The city of Sendai, located in Miyagi Prefecture, has become famous for its extravagant Tanabata celebrations, which are held in August and attract thousands of visitors every year. Tokyo’s Asagaya neighborhood also marks Tanabata in a big way, displaying huge papier-mache anime and cartoon characters. In Osaka, the Okawa River is transformed into a virtual Milky Way, filled with thousands of beautiful floating lights.

幸せ七夕！

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October 10, 2020

Celebrating Anton Wilhelm Amo




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Berlin-based guest artist Diana Ejaita, celebrates Ghanian-German philosopher, writer, and academic Anton Wilhelm Amo— widely credited as one of Europe’s first African-born university students and professors as well as one of the 18th century’s most notable Black philosophers. On this day in 1730, Amo received the equivalent of a doctorate in philosophy from Germany’s University of Wittenberg.

Amo was born around 1703 near the town of Axim on Africa’s Gold Coast [now Ghana]. Though the circumstances of his relocation are unclear, Amo grew up in Amsterdam, where he was given the name Anton Wilhelm by the family he lived with. Amo began his university studies in 1727 and two years later completed his first dissertation: a legal and historical argument against European slavery.

Amo published work across a variety of disciplines from philosophy to psychology and established himself as a renowned Enlightenment thinker. He went on to teach at a number of German universities, and also found time to master seven languages during his lifetime. An influential champion for the cause of abolition, Amo ultimately became embattled by racism and opposition to his beliefs. In 1747, he sailed back to present-day Ghana, where he remained for the rest of his life.

In honor of Amo’s legacy, the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg erected a statue in his likeness in 1965. In August 2020, Berlin announced plans to name a street after him in the city’s Mitte district.

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October 10, 2009

Giuseppe Verdi's Birthday


Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi [ 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901] 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.

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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.

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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.