Fermi produces the first nuclear chain reaction on December 2, 1942

Fermi produces the first nuclear chain reaction: on this day, Enrico Fermi, the Italian-born Nobel Prize-winning physicist, directs and controls the first nuclear chain reaction in his laboratory beneath the bleachers of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago, ushering in the nuclear age. Upon succesful completion of the experiment, a coded message was transmitted to President Roosevelt: “The Italian navigator has landed in the new world.”

Following on England's Sir James Chadwick's discovery of the neutron and the Curies' production of artificial radioactivity, Fermi, a full-time professor of physics at the University of Florence, focused his work on producing radioactivity by manipulating the speed of neutrons derived from radioactive beryllium. Further similar experimentation with other elements, including uranium 92, produced new radioactive substances; Fermi's colleagues believed he had created a new “transuranic” element with an atomic number of 93, the result of uranium 92 capturing a neuron while under bombardment, thus increasing its atomic weight. Fermi remained skeptical about his discovery, despite the enthusiasm of his fellow physicists. He became a believer in 1938, when he was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics fos' production of artificial radioactivity, Fermi, a full-time professor of physics at the University of Florence, focused his work on producing radioactivity by manipulating the speed of neutrons derived from radioactive beryllium. Further similar experimentation with other elements, including uranium 92, produced new radioactive substances; Fermi's colleagues believed he had created a new “transuranic” element with an atomic number of 93, the result of uranium 92 capturing a neuron while under bombardment, thus increasing its atomic weight. Fermi remained skeptical about his discovery, despite the enthusiasm of his fellow physicists. He became a believer in 1938, when he was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for “his identification of new radioactive elements”. Although travel was restricted for men whose work was deemed vital to national security, Fermi was given permission to leave Italy and go to Sweden to receive his prize. He and his wife, Laura, who was Jewish, never returned; both feared and despised Mussolini's fascist regime.

Fermi immigrated to New York City - Columbia University, specifically, where he recreated many of his experiments with Niels Bohr, the Danish-born physicist, who suggested the possibility of a nuclear chain reaction. Fermi and others saw the possible military applications of such an explosive power, and quickly composed a letter warning President Roosevelt of the perils of a German atomic bomb. The letter was signed and delivered to the president by Albert Einstein on October 11, 1939. The Manhattan Project, the American program to create its own atomic bomb, was the result

It fell to Fermi to produce the first nuclear chain reaction, without which such a bomb was impossible. He created a jury-rigged laboratory with the necessary equipment, which he called an “atomic pile”, in a squash court in the basement of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago. With colleagues and other physicists looking on, Fermi produced the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction and the “new world” of nuclear power was born. History Channel / Wikipedia / PBS / Princeton / U.C. Davis

Photo: Enrico Fermi • Albert Einstein • Pierre Curie - Marie Curie • Sir James Chadwick • Niels Bohr / “Father of the atomic bomb:” J. Robert Oppenheimer • Manhattan Project • Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Understanding Military Terminology - flight quarters

(DOD) Flight quarters:

A ship configuration that assigns and stations personnel at critical positions to conduct safe flight operations Wikipedia / DTIC.mil - JP 3-04)

The Old Salt’s Corner

General Quarters (G.Q.)

The purpose of general quarters is to prepare the ship to fight, both offensive and defensive operations, as quickly as possible. You need to report to your assigned G.Q. station or work center as quickly as practical. A fast walk should be sufficient to get you there safely. The flow of traffic is generally “up and forward on the starboard side—down and aft on the port side”. Travel against the flow of traffic is dangerous and should be avoided.

The condition of readiness required for a ship to go into combat is "Condition Zebra." This means the ship is “buttoned up” in all watertight compartments to insure integrity and prevent the spread of fires. This is why you need to get to your G.Q station before the doors and hatches are slammed shut.

Proper uniform for G.Q. is sleeves rolled down and buttoned (jacket on over short sleeves), pants legs tucked into your socks or taped at the ankles, and the collar of your shirt buttoned. Flash hoods and gloves are also becoming standards aboard many ships. In some departments you may be required to wear a steel helmet and flotation device. Also, gas masks are often required during advanced drills (G.Q., Man Overboard, and Fire).

Note: during G.Q., some intelligence personnel may be required to leave their G.Q. spaces in order to transmit intelligence data to other parts of the ship. This may involve opening and closing the watertight doors between compartments. Should you be required to do this, you must call the Damage Control spaces and inform them of your route of travel prior to departing (e.g., from CVIC to the Flag spaces).

“I’m Just Sayin’”

Happiness is an agreeable sensation, arising from contemplating the misery of others.

“Thought for the Day”

“A clever, ugly man every now and then is successful with the ladies, but a handsome fool is irresistible.”

~ Thomas Henry Huxley

“What I Have Learned”

“You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else.”

~ Albert Einstein

Bizarre News (we couldn’t make up stuff this good – real news story)

St. Paul employee who hit own car with rented city van wants damages

ST. PAUL, Minnesota - When a van on official business for the city of St. Paul, Minn., accidentally hit Megan Campbell’s Nissan Pathfinder in August, Campbell, naturally, filed a claim against the city for the $1,900 damage - normally just a cost of business for a city and one of about 400 claims a year St. Paul processes.

However, the van happened to be driven by the same Megan Campbell, an employee of St. Paul Parks and Recreation, who apparently could not avoid hitting her own parked SUV. At press time, the city was investigating but expected to handle the claim as routine.St. Paul Pioneer-Press - Twin Cities

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: Why are navy warships typically gray in color?

The U.S. Navy definitely has a gray color scheme for its ships. Aircraft carriers, battleships, oilers, etc. are all painted gray.

Why? The overriding factor is the desire to reduce the visibility of the ship as much as possible. Some sort of invisibility cloak would be ideal, but until that is invented, paint is all we've got.

So what color should the paint be? Black is one possibility. The sky is black at night, and it is night half the time. A black ship, therefore, would be nearly invisible half the time. The problem is that, during daylight, a black ship stands out like a strobe light. That same visibility problem eliminates most colors like red, green, yellow, purple, etc.

What we are left with are three possibilities: the color of the water, the color of clear sky (light blue) and the color of overcast/foggy/misty sky (gray). The Navy apparently believes that skies are overcast/foggy/misty more often than they are clear. For example, this page notes:

The new light gray, (know during the inter-war period as Standard Navy Gray #5), was selected because of the following:

I. That the ship be as invisible as possible to an observer on a surface ship and on a submarine.

II. The weather will be mostly overcast, or hazy or foggy, as in the North Sea area.

III. That the chosen gray was the best color under the above weather conditions.

This page says: “The gray color reduces the contrast of the ships with the horizon, and reduces the vertical patterns in the ship's appearance. It is the color of USN combatant and auxiliary surface ships, as opposed to the dark gray or black color of submarines, the bright colors of ceremonial vessels and aircraft, or the white of hospital ships.”

At the outbreak of World War I, navies struggled how to conceal their ships on the open seas. Painting vessels grey helped reduce visibility, but it was difficult to consistently blend with ever-changing environments and weather conditions. Prominent trails of smoke and wake also left ships vulnerable to being identified by enemies.

In 1917, the British Royal Navy pioneered the “Dazzle” camouflage paint scheme which often consisted of bold stripes and bright colors. The patterns were not intended to hide the ship, but rather to disrupt the outline so that size, range, speed and heading would be difficult to determine – preventing the enemy from accurately targeting the vessel. The United States was one of several nations to adopt the practice and experiment with different patterns through the end of World War II. “Dazzle” schemes largely faded from use because there was no clear evidence of their effectiveness, especially against technological advances in radar and rangefinders. “Dazzle” was however credited with boosting morale of crews who took pride in the unique and intimidating appearance of their ship.

Research:  Wikipedia • Wikipedia / Dazzle_camouflage • USNI.org • GWPDA • The Miniatures Page

USS Freedom in its new paint scheme U.S. Navy Photo • Zebra-striped French light cruiser Gloire • USS Nebraska with an experimental design in 1918 • The deceptive bow of the cargo ship USS West Mahomet in 1918 • Aircraft carrier HMS Argus in 1918 • An ocean liner converted into a troop ship, the USS Leviathan in 1918 • “Murders’ Row” – USS Wasp, USS Yorktown, USS Hornet, USS Hancock and USS Ticonderoga in 1944

Where Did That Saying Come From?

“Cocktails:”

Bartenders used to drain the dregs off all the barrels and mix them together, serving the resultant muddle at a reduced price. “Cock” was another name for spigot, and “tailings” is the last bit of alcohol, so this drink was called “cock-tailings”, quickly shortened to “cocktail”

The first definition of cocktail known to be an alcoholic beverage appeared in the May 13, 1806, edition of The Balance and Columbian Repository, a publication in Hudson, New York, in which an answer was provided to the question, “What is a cocktail?”. The editor Harry Croswell replied:

Cock-tail is a stimulating liquor, composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters—it is vulgarly called bittered sling, and is supposed to be an excellent electioneering potion, in as much as it renders the heart stout and bold, at the same time that it fuddles the head. It is said, also to be of great use to a democratic candidate: because a person, having swallowed a glass of it, is ready to swallow any thing else.Paste Magazine / Wikipedia

NAVSPEAK aka U.S. Navy Slang

Skeds-O: Schedules Officer

Skylarking: Not paying attention, due to “looking up in the sky” instead of on the assigned task. From Royal Navy slang during the era of the tall ships midshipmen or “young gentlemen” would race each other up, down, and through the rigging. They were playing in the air; thus, skylarking.

Torpedo Sponge: Similar to “Missile Sponge”, this refers to the smaller ships in a convoy, whose duty it is to protect the carrier, to the point of taking the torpedo hit for the carrier if needed.

Water wings: Surface Warfare Officer's badge (so named by aviators.) A prideful term used by non-carrier SWOs.

Just for you MARINE

Commissioned Officer: Officers who have been designated as “officers and gentlemen” by the Congress on the advice of the President. Noncommissioned officers are rated and warrant officers are granted warrants to their grade. Enlisted Marines are fond of making note that their parents made them gentlemen, it did not require an act of Congress. The commissioned ranks are: second lieutenant, first lieutenant, captain, major, lieutenant colonel, colonel, brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general and general.

Commo Wire: Field telephone wire.

Company: A unit containing more than one platoon. They are typically commanded by a captain. Companies are assigned within Battalions.

Navy Acronyms

MCPON - Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy

The senior most Enlisted member of the U.S. Navy.

MEPS - Military Entrance Processing Station

Station where recruits take the ASVAB, physical exam, select a rating and take the Oath of Enlistment.

MSC - Medical Service Corps

Navy Officer Corps consisting of health-care administrators, optometrists, pharmacists, scientists and other specialized practitioners.

Naval Aviation Squadron Nicknames

HSL-44 - Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light 44: “Swamp Fox” NAS Jacksonville, Florida

The Strange, Mysterious or Downright Weird

Oxford University is older than the Aztecs

Teaching started at Oxford by as early as 1096 and the university was officially founded in 1249. Meanwhile, as far as we know, the Aztec civilization began with the founding of Tenochtitlán – which was in 1325. Oxford / Ancient History Encyclopedia / Wikipedia