On This Day
868 – A copy of the Diamond Sutra is printed in China, making it the oldest known dated printed book.[2]
The Diamond Sutra (Sanskrit: वज्रच्छेदिकाप्रज्ञापारमितासूत्र, romanized: Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) is a Mahāyāna (Buddhist) sutra from the genre of Prajñāpāramitā (‘perfection of wisdom’) sutras. Translated into a variety of languages over a broad geographic range, the Diamond Sūtra is one of the most influential Mahayana sutras in East Asia, and it is particularly prominent within the Chan (or Zen) tradition,[1] along with the Heart Sutra.
A copy of the Tang-dynasty Chinese version of the Diamond Sūtra was found among the Dunhuang manuscripts in 1900 by Daoist monk Wang Yuanlu and sold to Aurel Stein in 1907.[2] They are dated back to 11 May 868.[3] It is, in the words of the British Library, “the earliest dated printed book”.[4]
It is also the first known creative work with an explicit public-domain dedication, as its colophon at the end states that it was created “for universal free distribution”.[5]
1743 – Maria Theresa of Austria is crowned Queen of Bohemia after defeating her rival, Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor.
Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (German: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions, ruling from 1740 until her death in 1780. She was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Transylvania, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands, and Parma. By marriage, she was Duchess of Lorraine, Grand Duchess of Tuscany and Holy Roman Empress.
Maria Theresa started her 40-year reign when her father, Emperor Charles VI, died in October 1740. Charles VI paved the way for her accession with the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 and spent his entire reign securing it. He neglected the advice of Prince Eugene of Savoy, who believed that a strong military and a rich treasury were more important than mere signatures. Eventually, Charles VI left behind a weakened and impoverished state, particularly due to the War of the Polish Succession and the Russo-Turkish War (1735–1739). Moreover, upon his death, Saxony, Prussia, Bavaria, and France all repudiated the sanction they had recognised during his lifetime. Frederick II of Prussia (who became Maria Theresa’s greatest rival for most of her reign) promptly invaded and took the affluent Habsburg province of Silesia in the seven-year conflict known as the War of the Austrian Succession. In defiance of the grave situation, she managed to secure the vital support of the Hungarians for the war effort. During the course of the war, Maria Theresa successfully defended her rule over most of the Habsburg Monarchy, apart from the loss of Silesia and a few minor territories in Italy. Maria Theresa later unsuccessfully tried to recover Silesia during the Seven Years’ War.
Though she was expected to cede power to her husband, Emperor Francis I, and her eldest son, Emperor Joseph II, who were officially her co-rulers in Austria and Bohemia, Maria Theresa was the absolute sovereign who ruled with the counsel of her advisers. Maria Theresa promulgated institutional, financial, medical and educational reforms, with the assistance of Wenzel Anton of Kaunitz-Rietberg, Friedrich Wilhelm von Haugwitz and Gerard van Swieten. She also promoted commerce and the development of agriculture, and reorganised Austria’s ramshackle military, all of which strengthened Austria’s international standing. However, she despised the Jews and the Protestants, and on certain occasions she ordered their expulsion to remote parts of the realm. She also advocated for the state church and refused to allow religious pluralism. Consequently, her regime was criticized as intolerant by some contemporaries.
Born On This Day
1902 – Edna Ernestine Kramer, American mathematician (d. 1984)[59]
Edna Ernestine Kramer Lassar (May 11, 1902 – July 9, 1984), born Edna Ernestine Kramer, was an American mathematician and author of mathematics books.
Kramer was born in Manhattan to Jewish immigrants.[1] She earned her B.A. summa cum laude in mathematics from Hunter College in 1922.[2] While teaching at local high schools, she earned her M.A. in 1925 and Ph.D. in 1930 in mathematics (with a minor in physics) from Columbia University with Edward Kasner as her advisor.
She married the French teacher Benedict Taxier Lassar on July 2, 1935.
Kramer died at the age of 82 in Manhattan of Parkinson’s disease.
Works
The Main Stream of Mathematics [sic] (1951)
The Nature and Growth of Modern Mathematics (1970)
1910 – Dorothy Hodgkin, English biochemist, crystallographer, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1994)
Dorothy Mary Crowfoot Hodgkin OM FRS HonFRSC[10][11] (née Crowfoot; 12 May 1910 – 29 July 1994) was a Nobel Prize-winning British chemist who advanced the technique of X-ray crystallography to determine the structure of biomolecules, which became an essential tool in structural biology.[10][12]
Among her most influential discoveries are the confirmation of the structure of penicillin as previously surmised by Edward Abraham and Ernst Boris Chain; and the structure of vitamin B12, for which in 1964 she became the third woman to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Hodgkin also elucidated the structure of insulin in 1969 after 35 years of work.[13]
Hodgkin used the name “Dorothy Crowfoot” until twelve years after marrying Thomas Lionel Hodgkin, when she began using “Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin”. For simplicity’s sake, Hodgkin is referred to as “Dorothy Hodgkin” by the Royal Society (when referring to its sponsorship of the Dorothy Hodgkin fellowship), and by Somerville College. The National Archives of the United Kingdom refer to her as “Dorothy Mary Crowfoot Hodgkin”.
FYI
The Rural Blog: Commercial fishers push back against mask mandates
By Matt Goff, Sitka Nature: Enveloping Gray
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By Matt Goff, Sitka Nature: Birds Departed, Snow Retreating
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The Passive Voice, From Publishing Perspectives:: Is Academic Research Too Hard To Read? The Academics Say Yes
Atlas Obscura: 18 trails that traverse history; Japan’s Earliest Sound Recordings; Two-Story Outhouse; Elephant Car Wash Sign and more ->
Brain Pickings by Maria Popova: Midweek pick-me-up: Getting out of your own light — Aldous Huxley on mind-body integration and how you become who you are
STORIES FROM NORTHERN CANADA AND ALASKA: Racism
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Ideas
By DIY for Homeowners: DIY Foldable Wooden Tray for Sofa
One Good Thing: How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies (And Keep Your Sanity!) ‘Tis the season for fruit flies! Get quick and easy tips for kicking them to the curb here.
Recipes
By The Happy Kitchen: Peanut Butter Makhana
By iolite79: 99-second Cheese Crisps
By Betty Crocker Kitchens: 6-Ingredient Skillets That Are Weeknight Easy
By Betty Crocker Kitchens: Oreo™ Brownie Lush
DamnDelicious
- Breakfast Tacos June 3, 2023An absolute crowd favorite! Served in warm tortillas with crispy bacon, potatoes, scrambled eggs and your favorite toppings! Oh-so-crisp bacon strips, golden brown potatoes, and perfectly cheesy scrambled eggs all tucked in a warm tortilla. It’s simply perfect for breakfast (and lunch and dinner) as it comes together pretty quickly, using one skillet for everything. […]Chungah @ Damn Delicious
- Honey Fried Chicken and Waffles May 20, 2023Super crispy fried chicken, drizzled with a warm honey glaze, served with the fluffiest buttermilk waffles! There’s a few steps involved in this, but my goodness is it a labor of love (of 45 minutes of course). And the end result is so worth it. With the crispiest chicken (breasts or thighs can be used here) […]Chungah @ Damn Delicious
RecipeTinEats
- Chilli Crisp Noodles June 5, 2023A good dose of chilli crisp, the popular Chinese condiment found “everywhere” these days, adds firecracker crunch into these Chili Crisp Noodles that’s astoundingly quick to make. Tastes like Spicy Sichuan Dan Dan Noodles – but much faster to make! Chilli crisp, how I love thee! Chilli crisp. That highly addictive Chinese condiment that’s the... […]Nagi
- Ham and cheese omelette June 2, 2023I’ve updated the way I make omelettes. This “scrambled egg” approach is easier and yields a better result without having to worry about raw egg in the middle. Today’s omelette recipe is filled with ham and cheese. Sauté your ham first! Ham and cheese omelette I used to cook omelettes using the technique whereby you... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 6 June 6, 2023Picture of the day This is probably the most important map of Africa produced in the 18th century. Largely based upon the earlier D’Anville map, this map has been enlarged and expanded by Samuel Boulton. Depicts the continent in full with insets of the Gold Coast (or Ivory Coast, or Guinea). This map is unique […]
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 5 June 5, 2023Picture of the day A Doppler on Wheels image of a tornadic thunderstorm near La Grange, Wyoming (USA) captured during the VORTEX2 project. In the velocity image on the left, Blues/green represent winds moving towards the radar, and reds/yellows indicate winds moving away from the radar. The reason that some of the darker blues contain […]
AV Club Wiki Wormhole
- Captain America 4 distances itself from conspiracy theorists with new title June 6, 2023It’s a Brave New World for Captain America, so just forget about any other title Marvel’s fourth installment in the franchise might have once employed. Anthony Mackie’s first official outing as Cap has got a shiny new subtitle, which helpfully distances the film from the kind of conspiracy theory espoused by Alex…Read more...Mary Kate Carr
- Prince Harry becomes the first British royal to be cross-examined in 130 years June 6, 2023Leave it to Piers Morgan to prompt the first court testimony from a senior member of the British royal family in 130 years. Today, a highly-publicized phone hacking trial brought against Mirror Group Newspapers kicked off in London with a cross-examination of Prince Harry himself, whose testimony directly implicated…Read more...Hattie Lindert
- An ode to the 20- and 30-something onscreen teens Millennials grew up with June 6, 2023For years, they were everywhere: leaning against lockers, grabbing lunch in the school cafeteria, slow dancing at prom, nervously leaning in for their first-ever kiss—and fighting off serial killers/vampires/cheerleaders, depending on what genre you were into at the time. Read more...Kayleigh Dray
- England's own real-life Morning Show scandal is giving the American version a run for its money June 6, 2023The long-going debate about whether the U.S. version or the U.K. version is better got another tantalizing entry, this time in the category of morning show drama. You may remember The Ballad of T.J and Amy, the GMA3 hosts whose affair captured the imagination of the Internet late last year. Well, now get ready for […]Mary Kate Carr
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Welcome to the Stump the Bookseller blog!
Stump the Bookseller is a service offered by Loganberry Books to reconnect people to the books they love but can’t quite remember. In brief (for more detailed information see our About page), people can post their memories here, and the hivemind goes to work. After all, the collective mind of bibliophiles, readers, parents and librarians around the world is much better than just a few of us thinking. Together with these wonderful Stumper Magicians, we have a nearly 50% success rate in finding these long lost but treasured books. The more concrete the book description, the better the success rate, of course. It is a labor of love to keep it going, and there is a modest fee. Please see the How To page to find price information and details on how to submit your Book Stumper and payment.
Thanks to everyone involved to keep this forum going: our blogging team, the well-read Stumper Magicians, the many referrals, and of course to everyone who fondly remembers the wonder of books from their childhood and wants to share or revisit that wonder. Isn’t it amazing, the magic of a book?