Even with that idealized image of falling in love with your soul mate in mind, the college environment has always been a liberal setting. Parties last long into the night where students are plied with alcohol and inhibitions are seemingly erased. With the advent of exotic Spring Break getaways and themed parties now the rage, the long-term relationship seems to stand less of a chance of survival in college. This is not limited to just the "party" schools where campuses have over 20,000 students. Even the smaller schools have caught onto this emerging lifestyle.

The one-night stand is perfect for the student who does not want to get into a committed relationship that takes a lot of time and effort. The term, "friends with benefits," has become a common piece of the college student’s vernacular. This describes a situation where you may periodically hook up with a friend without the work that a full-fledged relationship requires. Individuals can go days or weeks without talking to one of these "friends" and then they can have a "late-night booty call" or hook up at a party. This is not to say that this is the ideal way to quench one’s sexual desires.

It may seem easier than the relationship based on trust and commitment, but it is not without its own problems. Hooking up with someone to whom you are not committed brings up the issue of safe sex. Individuals who "play the field" are more likely to have multiple sexual partners. This increases the risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease. It’s simple math, really. The more people you with whom you are sexually engaged, the higher the risk of being with someone who has an STD. Without sounding too preachy, students engaging in this behavior should always use protection. There are also psychological issues that arise in these situations. If you go from one person to another, you are missing out on the experience of being in a committed relationship. When you get to a point in your life where you want to settle down, you will likely go through some growing pains as you embark on a more traditional relationship.

Non-Fiction

Check out these non-fiction works that didn’t come out until after the author’s death.

1. Billions and Billions by Carl Sagan: Known for his ability to convey the wonders and joys of science, especially astronomy, this book by Sagan published after his death in 1996 lives up to that reputation. Readers will find an excellent collection of his essays, some previously published and some not, that give you insight into the universe beyond and human nature in our own small spheres of influence.
2. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway: Hemingway begins this book by offering the reader the choice to regard it as a work of fiction, but history tells us that it was based on Hemingway’s time in Paris in the 1920′s, whether loosely or not is up to the reader to decide. Self-indulgent it might be, but readers will love reading about his time boxing with Ezra Pound, carousing with F. Scott Fitzgerald and chatting with James Joyce.
3. Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank: Had Anne Frank lived, it’s entirely possible that the world would have never been able to read her touching and intriguing diary documenting the time she spent hiding from the Nazis, and it’s amazing that the work survived at all given the circumstances. As tragic as her passing was, it allows readers to remember not only her life but the tragedy of the Holocaust.
4. The Will to Power by Friedrich Nietzsche: Published in 1901, a year after Nietzsche’s death, this book collects many of his previously unpublished essays. While not as fully developed as it could be, this book boldly addresses topics like religion, morality, art and knowledge.
5. Ethics by Benedict de Spinoza: Dating back to 1677, this work may have been published after Spinoza’s death but it stands up as one of this most important. Within it’s pages, the philosopher lays out his ideas about the nature of God, human emotions, freedom and happiness.
6. The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli: Italian statesman Machiavelli wrote this book in 1531, forever connecting his name with brutal and unethical methods of control. Whether readers agree with his suggestions for running a state or not, lessons abound in this political treatise.

Poetry and Short Stories

These shorter works represent sometimes brilliant writing not published during the author’s lifetime.

7. The Aeneid by Virgil: Standing alongside works like the Iliad and the Odyssey, this epic poem tells the story of the Trojan warrior Aeneas. While considered an important work today, it almost never saw the light of day. Virgil demanded the work be burned upon his death, but instead his executors published it in it’s unfinished form.
8. Collected Poems by Sylvia Plath: Know as much for her personality as her work, this poet’s best work wasn’t known until after her suicide in 1963. This collection garnered the artist a posthumous Pulitzer Prize.
9. The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson by Emily Dickinson: A recluse during her life, few of Emily Dickinson’s works were ever read by outsiders during her lifetime. In fact, few even knew she was such a prolific poet until her work, collected in this book, was discovered by her sister.
10. The Collected Poems of Wilfred Owen by Wilfred Owen: A soldier at only 22 in WWI, Owen’s work speaks volumes about the experiences of young men at war. Unfortunately, Owen didn’t live to see the end of the war himself, but his work survived and today is regarded as some of the best wartime poetry ever written.
11. The Prelude by William Wordsworth: This romantic poem, the product of fifty years of work, was published shortly after Wordsworth’s death in 1850. It is largely autobiographical, documenting the author’s youth and experience with the French Revolution.
12. Armageddon In Retrospect by Kurt Vonnegut: Creative and insightful, Vonnegut’s work stands out from the literary pack. After his death in 2007, this book was compiled and brings together both his fiction and non-fiction writings and a few drawings.

Big Names

Some of the best known authors out there had works published after their death, sometimes to rave reviews.

13. The Trial by Franz Kafka: One of Kafka’s best known and best loved tales, this work was nearly lost to history as Kafka requested it be burned upon his death. Instead, it was published along with his other famous works Amerika and The Castle, none of which were entirely completed upon his death.
14. The Love of the Last Tycoon: A Western by F. Scott Fitzgerald: Fitzgerald began this novel during the last year of his life when he was working as a screenwriter in Hollywood but only finished 17 of the planned 31 chapters. Heavily edited, the novel has received mixed reviews but may have been one of Fitzgerald’s best if he had lived to finish it.
15. Persuasion by Jane Austen: Before her untimely death in 1817, Austen had written a series of novels that didn’t see publication during her lifetime that included this title and one other: Northanger Abbey. Like most of her works, it deals with a woman struggling between love and practical marriage.
16. The Lighthouse at the End of the World by Jules Verne: Famous for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in 80 days, Verne’s novels evoke a sense of masculine adventure and the thrill of the unknown. Readers will not be disappointed in this posthumously published work about murder and intrigue abroad a ship.
17. Between the Acts by Virginia Woolf: This book is the last of Woolf’s work published, presenting an annual pageant in a small village as war looms and personal dramas come to a boil.
18. Portrait of an Artist as an Old Man by Joseph Heller: Mirroring Heller’s own life, this roman a clef describes an author trying to live up to the success of an earlier work. Published after his death, this book was well-received but never garnered him the attention of his earlier work Catch-22.
19. Hadji Murat by Leo Tolstoy: Bringing together Russian Czars and Islamic chieftains, this book addresses political and societal issues in much the same way as Tolstoy’s earlier and better known works.
20. The Mysterious Stranger by Mark Twain: This short tale comes from what historians and literary aficionados call Twain’s "dark period."In it, Twain addresses his doubts about the existence of God, the soul, afterlife and even reality.

Literature

These books have intrigued bibliophiles and literature aficionados all over the world, but their authors never got to see the success.

21. The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brien: While not well-known, O’Brien’s work is beloved by literature buffs for its imagination and creativity. In this tale, reality is bent and bizarre situations shine as a robbery goes awry.
22. 2666 by Roberto Bolano: Long beloved in his native Spanish, it was only recently that Bolano’s works were fully translated for English readers. Fans of Bolano were left with plenty to read after his death in 2003, with this critically acclaimed story that sprawls over a whopping 898 pages.
23. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov: Both philosophical and comic, this novel about an encounter with the devil in the atheistic Soviet Union is a must read for fans of Russian lit. Written and then destroyed, then rewritten and finished just weeks before his death, this novel almost didn’t see the light of day. Even after publication it was widely censored and the larger public didn’t get access to Bulgakov’s full work until 1973, 33 years after it was written.
24. Dream of the Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin: Written in the 1700s, this work is considered one of the best novels in the history of Chinese literature, dealing with life, death, fortune, rivalry and karma. Unfortunately, Cao didn’t live to see his novel find success, leaving behind a nearly complete manuscript upon his death in 1764.
25. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole: This book is one of the most famous posthumously published works, winning a Pulitzer Prize for creating a set of characters who are hard to forget. Oddly Toole submitted it for publication during his life, and the rejection and criticism of this work and others that led in part to his suicide.
26. Past Perfect by Yaakov Shabtai: Israeli novelist Shabtai is best known for his work Past Continuous, winning him international acclaim. This work, published after his death, continues the story begun in that earlier work, posthumously winning the Agnon Prize for literature.

Historical Fiction

Take a look at history through a novelist’s eyes in these books.

27. Austerlitz by W. G. Sebald: This story of chance encounters and life during wartime has been slated as one of the best novels of the 20th century, and had it not been for his death in 2001 he may have been nominated for a Nobel Prize for his work.
28. Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky: Nermirovsky was celebrated in pre-WWII France for her fiction, but the war saw the Jewish author being sent to Aushwitz. This novel, penned only weeks before her arrest, tells about life in France during the Nazi occupation.
29. Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada: Inspired by the true story of Otto and Elise Hampel, this novel depicts a man and wife who choose to stand up to the Nazis in Berlin, interweaving it with several other tales. Written in only 24 days by an author’s mind addled by drugs and alcohol, this novel is a stirring example of a stroke of genius.
30. Bog Child by Siobhan Dowd: Dealing with politically charged issues in Northern Ireland, this young adult novel has won numerous awards and distinctions. Dowd didn’t live to see it published, passing away in 2007 from breast cancer.
31. Queen: The Story of an American Family by Alex Haley: Many may be familiar with this tale from the movie based off of this book. Spanning generations, Haley’s story inspires hope and stirs emotions in readers from a wide range of backgrounds.

Popular Fiction

These books have a wide appeal and a few have become worldwide phenomena.

32. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson: This book, the first in a trilogy, has become an international phenomenon, spawning a series of movies and inspiring fans worldwide. Unfortunately, Larsson didn’t live to see his success, dying shortly before the works were slated to be published.
33. The Man With the Golden Gun by Ian Fleming: Lovers of the James Bond series were undoubtedly sad to hear of author Ian Fleming passing away, but after the authors’ death his work was still being published. This book, adapted into a film starring Roger Moore, was one of two books published after the author’s death and remained on the bestseller list for months.
34. Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie: This novel marks not only the final work of the author but puts to rest one of the most beloved characters in literary history as well, Miss Marple. As final works go, this one was extremely successful, beloved by fans and literary critics alike.
35. Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton: Michael Crichton was a prolific and successful writer during his lifetime, creating the TV series, ER, and penning movies like Congo, Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain. After the author passed away in 2008, his assistant discovered this novel in among his papers. While critics have given it mixed reviews, the movie version of the novel is already underway.
36. The Salmon of Doubt by Douglas Adams: Adams is perhaps best known for the quirky sci-fi book The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, but Adams dabbled in a wide variety of media from TV to radio. In this book, readers can peruse some of Adam’s writings for TV, movies and more as well as read the unfinished manuscript for a Dirk Gently novel.
37. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien: True fans of Tolkien’s work are undoubtedly familiar with this work that lays out the mythology and history behind the lands of Middle Earth, but many may not know that it was not published until after the author’s death in 1973. Rejected by publishers during his lifetime, the work wasn’t brought to a wider audience until 1977, receiving the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel in 1978.
38. Radio Free Albemuth by Philip K. Dick: After his death in 1982, Philip K. Dick left behind several unpublished novels, this story being one of them. Moving between fiction and reality, Dick’s story deals with reality, madness and time, and though not one of his best, many fans of his work will still appreciate it.
39. For Us, the Living by Robert Heinlen: Sci-fi author Heinlen wrote this novel in 1938, making it his first, though it remained unpublished. It was not until he died that it was brought to light, allowing readers to see where the inspiration for many of Heinlen’s later novels arose.
40. Mama Dearest by E. Lynn Harris: This New York Times bestseller follows diva Yancey Harrington Braxton as she attempts to break into Broadway and her own musical career. Filled with sex and betrayal, this story of broken dreams entranced audiences and luckily for fans, was not the last of Harris’ works to be published after his death.
41. The Rag and Bone Shop by Robert Cormier: Known for his work in young adult fiction, Cormier’s last novel doesn’t disappoint, telling the story of a young man who is, perhaps unjustly, accused of murder. Readers will know him from the book The Chocolate War, and this novel takes a similarly dark tone.

Incomplete

Sometimes an author passes away in the middle of a project. These novels represent such cases, often published unfinished or with heavy editing.

42. Juneteenth by Ralph Ellison: This novel frustrated novelist Ellison for many years of his life as the first version went up in flames in a house fire in 1967. The author never got back into his stride, and upon his death over 2,000 pages of it were collected by his family and editor. Shortened and filled in by friend and editor John Callahan, the work was finally published in 2000.
43. Bouvard and Pecuchet by Gustave Flaubert: This comical novel may be unfinished, but readers will still enjoy Flaubert’s entertaining, if scathing, view of bourgeoisie society.
44. The Pale King by David Foster Wallace: Set to be published in 2011, this work by author Wallace is much hyped. Time will tell if the novel, incomplete at the time of the author’s suicide, will be as strong as his other, critically acclaimed works.
45. The Original of Laura by Vladamir Nobokov: Before his death, Nabokov made it clear that he never wanted this book to be published as it was far from being finished and was little more than a series of scenes strung together on index cards. His wishes were not respected and this incomplete work was published, lacking the polish and brilliant prose of Nabokov’s earlier work.
46. The First Man by Albert Camus: The story of this novel is a sad one, being found at the scene of the car accident that killed this famous French writer. While not entirely complete, critics believe that it would have been one of Camus’ great masterpieces had he gotten the chance to finish it.
47. Shira by Shmuel Yosef Agnaon: This Nobel Laureate’s work is a hefty 585 but was still unfinished at the time of his death. The story documents a German-Jewish scholar’s adultery in Jerusalem in the 1930′s with a young nurse named, as the title would suggest, Shira.
48. The Mystery Of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens: Dicken’s last novel remained unfinished at the time of his death, creating more of a mystery than Dickens has intended as readers will never know the fate of the eponymous Edwin Drood.

Unpublishable During Lifetime

These works weren’t published during these authors’ lifetimes because they weren’t good, but because they dealt with racy topics unacceptable to audiences at the time.

49. The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler: This autobiographical novel was written two decades before the author’s death but was not published during his life. Critical of the hypocrisy of the Victorian era, Butler thought it unwise to publish the work. By the time of his death in 1902, the novel fit in with society’s growing discontent with Victorian ideals.
50. Maurice by E.M. Forester: Homosexuality is a taboo topic with many in today’s society and it was much more so back in 1913-14 when this book was written. Forester opted not to publish it, though he thought it a great work, because he didn’t want to deal with the scandal it was sure to bring, focusing on a homosexual character in a positive way. It was finally published in 1971 after the author’s death and subsequently made into a film.

1. Naked Cheese Man: The headline from Cincinnati’s WKRC says it best: "Naked Man Arrested At Library With Stolen Cheese." So many questions come to mind: Why was he naked? Why did he have cheese? Why were both of things necessary for him to make the library trip? What’s more, he was armed with stolen knives at the time of his arrest at the main branch of the Cincinnati-Hamilton County Public Library. The man, who is homeless, had a history of bizarre thefts and was ordered to stay away from the library before the day he was found naked and bathing in the men’s restroom.
2. The Condiment Vandal: Idaho police recently arrested a 74-year-old woman for befouling a library in an unusual way: She had repeatedly dumped mayonnaise, ketchup, and maple and corn syrup into the book drop of a Boise library. Cops also said she was a "person of interest" in several other "condiment-related incidents" at the library over the previous year.
3. In Need of Relief: In another Ohio-based story, a man was arrested recently for urinating on books in the public library. It seems he’d had three beers and needed to relieve himself of some pressure, so he let flow on some books in the downtown Cincinnati library and caused almost $600 in damages. Honestly, what’s in the water in Cincinnati?
4. The Masked Bandit: Earlier this summer, a raccoon decided to take a field trip to the Brooklyn Public Library. He was found exploring the lower level of the building, which is used to store older volumes and those that don’t circulate often. Animal Control officials set traps, but the little guy remained elusive and didn’t reappear. Maybe he got a Kindle.
5. The Hair Banner: In 2007, the Baker-Berry Library at Dartmouth College hung a massive banner in its foyer. The kicker: It was made of 420 pounds of human hair. The banner measured 80 feet by 13 feet and required, no kidding, the hair collected from 42,000 haircuts from Dartmouth faculty and students as well as local residents.
6. The Cat in the Stacks: The Spencer Public Library in Iowa was home for a while to a famous feline resident: Dewey Readmore Books, a cat who was found abandoned in the book return in 1988. He was rescued by the library director and lived at the building until his death in 2006, attracting numerous visitors during his time there and inspiring the woman who’d saved him to turn him into a literary hero in his own right. How many libraries can boast their own mascot-turned-best-selling character?
7. Stay Away: University of Arizona students put up with a strange and unfortunate series of lewd happenings a few years ago when a number of men masturbated in public. Depressingly, this kind of thing seems to be common nationwide on a small but regular basis.
8. Rave On: In spring 2009, students at a variety of universities used social networking to coordinate "flash raves," basically impromptu parties that sprung up with no warning. The twist is they did it in their campus libraries. Some of the parties weren’t so fun: The one at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga ended with cops using pepper spray on some students, though other schools fared better. Students jammed as much partying as possible into their spontaneous parties before authorities ended it.
9. That’s One Huge Fine: We’ve all dealt with late fees for books that didn’t get returned to the library by their due date. They’re usually just a few cents per day and easy to pay, and we usually get the books turned in within a few days (or in rare cases weeks) after they’re due. But a Massachusetts man beat all comers last year with what has to be the strangest return story in New Bedford Public Library history. He turned in a book 99 years — you read that right — after it was due. Facts I Ought to Know About the Government of My Country was supposed to be turned in on May 10, 1910, but never made it there. The man who returned it found it among his recently deceased mother’s possessions and decided to return it. The library waived the late fee — by then about $360 — and displayed the book as a historical artifact.
10. Who You Gonna Call?: The comedy group Improv Everywhere specializes in guerilla theater, performing sketches in front of an unsuspecting public. (Star Wars Subway Car is a personal favorite.) Earlier this year, they sent a team to the New York Public Library to re-create the classic encounter scene from Ghostbusters. It starts slow but builds to a hilarious end. Definitely something you don’t see every day:

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1. Octupi and squids: Cephalopods — octopi, squids and cuttlefish — may be some of the smartest animals in the ocean. After studying them, scientists have deduced that cephalopods are always trying to stay busy, as they hate being bored. They use tools, are efficient eaters, and can learn new skills.
2. Dolphins: Dolphins may love humans just as much as humans love dolphins. The highly collaborative marine mammal is also incredibly intelligent and communicative and may actually be the second-smartest animal in the world, just after humans. Their brains are 4-5 times larger than other animals’ brains who have similar sized bodies. They also have a well developed neocortex which helps them process emotion, recognize themselves in a mirror, demonstrate an ability for cultural learning, and understand abstract concepts.
3. Pigeons: Although they’re often associated with dirty, crowded urban environments, pigeons are productive animals with high intelligence. They have highly developed memories, recognize themselves in a mirror, and can identify even subtle differences between different objects.
4. Pigs: Pigs are known to compensate for their mud-slinging, trough-eating ways by demonstrating high intelligence, but did you know just how smart pigs are? They’re very social and even emotional animals that can "play" computer and video games at least as well as chimpanzees. They have an excellent sense of direction and learn from each other, when they’re not trying to trick each other.
5. Rats: Rats may be one of the most abhorred creatures on Earth, but they’re still pretty smart and very resourceful. Rats are extremely adaptable and can almost always find an escape route, which is why they’re so resilient.
6. Squirrels: A slightly cuter version of the rat is the squirrel, another cunning rodent. Squirrels sometimes trick spying animals by pretending to hide their food in one spot, and then really finding a safer place for it when no one’s watching. After months have passed, squirrels can remember the exact place they stored their food, sometimes using clues to help themselves.
7. Crows: Crows may have annoying calls and scare away other, more attractive birds, but they’re so smart that even humans could learn something from them. Crows are very resourceful animals that turn all kinds of objects into usable tools for getting food from hard-to-reach places. They also have great respect for their elders, and watch older birds when they want to learn a new skill.
8. Bees: Bees have shown scientists that they are very in tune with the natural world, not just including pollinating flowers. They use the sun for direction, are punctual, and also have the ability to learn colors, sounds and even exact places. And if you’ve ever noticed a bee’s seemingly erratic flying pattern, you’ve actually watched it communicate to other bees the specifics of the food they’re finding.
9. Dogs: Scientists are still discovering just how smart dogs are. They’ve already proven to be loyal, good communicators and may have decent memory, and now scientists believe that dogs may have the ability to understand someone else’s point of view. Through tests, dogs have also proven to understand concepts and form real perceptions of things.
10. Elephants: Elephants are widely regarded as smart, efficient animals that use tools, groom themselves, and have even inspired robotics. A new robotic arm was modeled after an elephant’s trunk, which can pick up nearly any type of object and seamlessly move it and use it as needed. Elephants also have large brains — weighing around 5 kilos — and use objects to protect themselves, either as weapons or to intimidate their attackers.

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Answers

1. Lord Shiva, the Supreme God of Hinduism, and one of the five primary forms of God in the Smarta division of Hinduism.
2. Simon Peter, one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ, and the founder of Catholicism. St. Peter is often depicted in religious art along with a set of keys to the Church.
3. Selim the Excellent, the first Sultan of the Ottoman Empire to also be a Caliph of Islam.
4. Pope Pius IX, the longest-reigning Pope of the Catholic Church, and the first Pope to declare the infallibility of the papacy. Pius IX also created the first Vatican Council, in 1868.
5. Ieronymos II, the present Archbishop of Athens and All Greece, which is a part of the Greek Orthodox Church.
6. Siddhartha Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. Siddhartha was Gautama Buddha’s birth name, and in most sects of Buddhism, is considered to be the most supreme Buddha.
7. Martin Luther, the founder of the Protestant religion who famously nailed his 95 theses to a church door in Germany, which started the Reformation.
8. Jupiter, the king of the sky, thunder and all other gods in Roman mythology. He is known as Zeus in Greek mythology.
9. Laozi, or "Old Master" from the 6th century BC. Laozi is considered a deity by most Taoists and "One of the Three Pure Ones."
10. Confucius, the Chinese philosopher whose ideas have influenced government, society, and Asian religions like Taoism.
11. Moses, the Hebrew prophet who led the Jews out of slavery in Egypt and who was given the Ten Commandments when God spoke to him on Mount Sinai.
12. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. She is known as Venus in Roman mythology.
13. Parshvanath, or Parshva, a central leader and first historical figure in Jainism. Parshva was a nobleman who became a monk and attained nirvana. He is known as the 23rd Tirthankar, or human who is able to achieve enlightenment.
14. John Calvin, French pastor who fled to Basel, Switzerland, and founded Calvinism during the Protestant Reformation.
15. Isaac, a Biblical figure from the Book of Genesis who was born to Abraham when he was 100 years old. Isaac is considered one of the three patriarchs of the Jewish people.
16. Guru Nanak Dev, the first Sikh Guru or Enlightened Master, who founded the Sikh religion in 1499.
17. Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the Christian Science religion, which she established in America in 1875. Eddy also founded the Church of Christ, Scientist and The Christian Science Monitor.
18. Wallace Fard Muhammad, the founder of the Nation of Islam, in Detroit, MI. After he disappeared in 1934, his successor Elijah Muhammad declared that Fard Muhammad had actually been Allah.
19. Gerald Gardner, also known as Scire, is credited with bringing public attention to the Wiccan religion and witchcraft by establishing variuos covens throughout England.
20. Bodhidharma, a member of the Pallava dynasty and a Buddhist monk who brought Zen to China from southern India.

1960 Valdivia earthquake

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake: The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake had an epicenter off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, and caused devastating tsunamis along the Indian Ocean, including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand. Its magnitude was between 9.1 and 9.3. It is one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history, killing nearly 230,000 people.

1964 Alaska earthquake: The 1964 Alaska earthquake is known as the Great Alaska Earthquake. It hit south-central Alaska at a magnitude of 9.2. The earthquake lasted nearly 5 minutes, and is the most powerful recorded earthquake in US and North American history. There were 131 deaths directly caused by the earthquake and its resulting tsunamis.

Kamchatka earthquakes: In 1737 and 1952, two Kamchatka earthquakes occurred around the same location off the Russian Kamchatka Peninsula. The 1737 earthquake is estimated at a magnitude of 8.3, and 1952′s at 9.0. The 1952 earthquake caused a series of tsunamis around the Kamchatka Peninsula, Kuril Islands, and Hawaii. Damages are estimated around $1 million. No human casualties were reported.

1868 Arica Earthquake: The 1868 Arica Earthquake occurred near Arica, which was part of Peru at the time. The earthquake caused tsunamis in the Pacific Ocean, causing damage to Peru, Hawaii, and New Zealand’s Charham Islands. Arica, Tacna, Ilo, Torata, Mollendo, Iquique, and Arequipa were almost completely destructed, with an estimated 25,000 casualties. The earthquake has an estimated magnitude range from 8.5 to 9.0, with about 400 aftershocks recorded.

1700 Cascadia Earthquake: This earthquake occurred in the Cascadia subduction zone in 1700 with a magnitude between 8.7 and 9.2. It caused a tsunami on the coast of Japan, and is possibly linked to the Bonneville slide. Evidence of this earthquake includes records of the Japanese tsunami not tied to any other Pacific Rim earthquake, and studies of tree rings that show red cedar trees with outermost growth rings formed in 1699. The Cascadia earthquake is believed to have a magnitude of 9.

1833 Sumatra Earthquake: The 1833 Sumatra earthquake had an estimated magnitude between 8.8 and 9.2, estimated using uplift from coral microatolls. This earthquake caused a large tsunami on the island of Sumatra between Pariaman to Bengkulu, and possibly damage in the Seychelles. Although there are no records of loss of life, they are described as "numerous."

2010 Chile Earthquake: The 2010 Chilean earthquake came in at a magnitude of 8.8 for three minutes. Shaking and tremors were felt in much of Chile and South America, including the cities of Talcahuano, Lota, San Antonio, Arauco, Chiguayente, Cañete, and Buenos Aires. Tsunami warnings were issued in 53 countries, and a tsunami was recorded in the sea at Valparaiso, Chile. As of February 28, 2010, 723 deaths were confirmed, with many more reported missing. This earthquake was so powerful, it is estimated that it shortened day lengths by 1.26 microseconds, and altered Earth’s axis rotation by 3 inches.

1906 Ecuador–Colombia Earthquake: Ecuador’s 1906 earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8 off the coast of Ecuador and Colombia. It generated a strong tsunami that killed between 500 and 1500 people in Hawaii, arriving in Hilo and Honolulu, and Kahului.

1965 Rat Islands, Alaska Earthquake: This earthquake occurred in one of the Earth’s most active seismic zones. The 1965 earthquake measured 8.7 magnitude. It caused cracks in wood buildings and runways. There was a tsunami 10.7 meters high on Shemya Island. There was a loss of an estimated $10,000 on Amchitka Island, and at least one recorded aftershock.

Questions

1. This U.S. senator was elected in 1973 as the sixth-youngest senator and represented his state until just recently, when he received a worthy promotion during a historical election.
2. When this senator passed away, many Americans felt that it was the end of an era — or dynasty — for a prominent U.S. family with a strong liberal background.
3. Sometimes called "Mr. Sam," this Texas congressman was also the longest running Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, when he was appointed in 1940 at the age of 58.
4. This Democratic senator is continuing a family tradition of serving in Congress, and is currently the senior senator and the longest running member in congressional history. He is also third in line to succeed the president.
5. As a governor, former Presidential candidate, and long-time U.S. senator, this controversial, conservative politician supported segregation at one point, and even conducted a 24-hour filibuster against the Civil Rights Act of 1957.
6. This San Antonio native lost the Senate race to replace Lyndon B. Johnson, but won a special election a few months later, and stayed in the Senate for over 37 years.
7. This man is the longest-serving Republican senator in congressional history. He served Alaska in the Senate, until a major ethics scandal involving financial disclosure forms caused him to lose his seat in 2008.
8. After the death of Ted Kennedy, this senator became the second senior senator in Washington. He has represented his home in Congress since it became a state in 1959, and in the Senate since 1963.
9. Besides being a long-running U.S. senator, this man was once named by Time magazine as the "most eligible bachelor" in the Senate. He has served in Congress since 1940, first in the House of Representatives, and then in the Senate, and twice ran for the Democratic presidential nomination.
10. This Florida Republican has served in the House of Representatives since 1971, making him the longest-serving Republican in Congress at present.

Answers

1. Joe Biden: Vice-President Joe Biden was a U.S. senator from Delaware 1973-2009, making him the 14th-longest serving senator in history.
2. Ted Kennedy: Edward M. Kennedy past away in 2009 while serving as the second most senior member of the Senate, in which he had served since 1962. Kennedy, brother of Robert F. and John F. Kennedy, ran for the Democratic candidacy for president in 1980 but lost, most probably because of his car accident scandal resulting in the death of Mary Jo Kopechne.
3. Sam Rayburn: Sam Rayburn was elected to the House of Representatives in 1913, when he was 31. Rayburn served for over 48 years and was one of the first congressmen to refuse to affect payment or gifts from public service corporations.
4. Robert Byrd: Robert Byrd was named the President pro tempore for the Senate in 2007, making him third in line to replace the President. The former KKK member was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1952 and to the Senate in 1958.
5. Strom Thurmond: Strom Thurmond was the longest running senator in history until Robert Byrd beat his record. He is still the only senator to reach the age of 100 while in office.
6. Henry B. Gonzalez: Gonzalez was a Democratic senator who served as chair for the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations to investigate the deaths of JFK and Martin Luther King, Jr.
7. Ted Stevens: Ted Stevens was elected to the Senate in 1968. He is the longest-serving senator to lose a re-election bid.
8. Daniel Inouye: Daniel Inouye is also the first Japanese-American to serve in the House of Representatives and in Congress, and has a Medal of Honor for his service during WWII.
9. Henry M. Jackson: Jackson did not serve an uninterrupted term in Congress: when the U.S. entered WWII, he enlisted in the Army. He returned on orders from FDR, but he did visit the Buchenwald concentration camp and was elected president of the International Maritime Conference in 1946.
10. Bill Young: Bill Young has been reelected 20 times and served as the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations for six years, from 1999-2005.

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1. The Gutenberg Bible. In 1456, the Gutenberg Bible was the first book ever printed with moveable type. About 180 versions are believed to have been printed originally. Many of the remaining Bibles have been broken down into sections. Only 21 are believed to be completely intact. A fully-intact Gutenberg Bible is valued at $25-35 million.
2. Codex Leicester. This 72-page notebook contains the scientific writings and sketches of Leonardo da Vinci. In 1717, Thomas Coke, who was named the Earl of Leicester, bought the notebook. It was bought from the Leicester estate in 1980 and renamed Codex Hammer, after the art collector who purchased it. In 1994, Bill Gates purchased the notebook for $30.8 million and renamed it Codex Leicester. Gates’ purchase of this notebook made it the most expensive book ever sold.
3. First Folio. The first edition of Shakespeare’s plays, published in 1623, is widely considered one of the most important books in the world. This first published work by Shakespeare contained 36 of his plays and was 900 pages long and was published seven years after Shakespeare died. In 2008, a British man was accused of stealing one of the 228 remaining copies of the First Folio, that copy’s worth being estimated at £15 million, or about $22.6 million.
4. Birds of America. This book by John James Audubon contains scientific descriptions and illustrations of native birds of North America set in their natural surroundings. The book was published between 1827 and 1838 by a British publisher and was well-received. In March of 2000, one of the last 120 remaining copies was sold for $8.8 million to Sheikh Saud of Qatar, making it the most expensive printed book sold.
5. Traité des Arbres Fruitiers. Translated to "Treatise on Fruit Trees," this book was published in 1768 and was the most successful work by French botanist Henri-Louis Duhamel du Monceau. The book detailed 16 different fruit species as well as multiple varieties and accompanying illustrations. It went to auction in Brussels in 2006 where it sold for 3,360,000 euros, or about $4.5 million, at that time.
6. Geographia. Ptolemy’s Geographia was a compilation of cartography as it was known in the 2nd century. In 1477 these maps were printed in what was the first atlas. In 2006, one of only two known to exist in private ownership was sold at auction for $3.9 million dollars. It was previously owned by Lord Wardington, a British map and atlas collector, who died in 2005.
7. Mercator’s Atlas of Europe. Gerardus Mercator was a Flemish cartographer who created the cylindrical world map projection that is still used today. In 1967, a Dutch schoolmaster on vacation in Belgium discovered a stack of old maps bound in folio style. They were later determined to be Mercator’s maps of Europe from the 1500s. In 1979, Sotheby’s sold this atlas to the British Rail Pension Fund, then it was later sold to the British Library in May of 1997 for a reported $1,243,000.
8. Tamerlane and Other Poems. This was the first book written by Edgar Allan Poe and was published anonymously with the author named as only "a Bostonian." The book of poems was said to be written when Poe was only 14 years old. In December of 2009, a copy of this rare book (one of only 12 known) was sold at Christie’s auction house for $662,500, making it the most valuable piece of American literature ever sold.
9. Action Comics #1. Published in June of 1938, this comic book introduced Superman, considered to the be first superhero, to the world. In February 2010, a copy of this rare comic book sold from an anonymous seller to an anonymous buyer for $1 million dollars, making it the most valuable comic book in the world.
10. Where the Wild Things Are. This 1963 first edition of Maurice Sendak’s popular children’s book is estimated to be worth $10,200, if it is in excellent condition and has the original dust jacket. As far as children’s picture books are concerned, this is the most valuable one, with the next closest being And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street, a 1938 first edition by Dr. Seuss worth $8,400.

1. Flagler College – St. Augustine, Florida: Seeing is believing when it comes to this gorgeous campus. "From a dining hall with million-dollar Tiffany windows to dorm rooms that once hosted celebrity guests such as John Jacob Astor and Gary Cooper, and Presidents Grover Cleveland and Theodore Roosevelt, you’ll find that living on the Flagler campus is an experience in itself."
2. Lewis & Clark College – Portland, Oregon: Surely you’ll be enchanted by the 137 acres of lush, park-like campus, environmentally sustainable academic building, or the view of Mount Hood from the Reflecting Pool. The college’s website houses plenty of compelling information for prospective students.
3. The University of Notre Dame – Notre Dame, Indiana: According to university reports, "Notre Dame stands on 1,250 acres considered by many to be among the most beautiful possessed by any university in the nation. From the Golden Dome that rises above Notre Dame Avenue, to the quiet splendor of the Grotto at the heart of campus, to the lakes and green spaces that provide recreational opportunities in all seasons, Notre Dame’s campus is a visual splendor."
4. Pepperdine University – Malibu, California: The main campus is located among several ridges that overlook the Pacific Ocean and the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California. The main campus entrance road ascends a steep, well-groomed grassy slope past a huge stylized cross, known as the Phillips Theme Tower, symbolizing the university’s dedication to its original Christian mission. Most buildings were constructed in a typical 1980s-style reinterpretation of classic Californian and Mediterranean architecture (red tile roofs, white stuccoed walls, large tinted windows). There are views of the Pacific Ocean, Catalina Island, Palos Verdes Peninsula, Long Beach and the westside of Los Angeles from numerous points. Graduations take place at Alumni Park, a broad expanse of lawn overlooking Pacific Coast Highway and the Pacific Ocean.
5. Purdue University – West Lafayette, Indiana: Somewhere between the Purdue Mall, Bell Tower, Memorial Mall, Felix Haas Hall, and Cary Quadrangle, you’ll find a spot to sit and read, to rest between classes, or just to become one with the beautiful scenery around you. Indeed, you will not be disappointed by this beautiful and distinguished university.
6. Rice University – Houston, Texas: The campus of Rice University includes a number of buildings, designed primarily in the Byzantine architectural style. The university was founded in 1912 on a 285-acre plot of land located very close to what is now West University Place, adjacent to the Texas Medical Center, in the museum district of the city of Houston, Texas. The university’s first president, Edgar Odell Lovett, stressed the importance of a uniform architectural style for the many buildings the campus would come to have. The majority of Rice’s buildings have brick-colored facades, emphasizing courtyards, archways, and pillars. There are notable exceptions representing both modern and historical architectural styles, including brutalist and Mediterranean.
7. Sewanee University – Sewanee, Tennessee: The University of the South, more commonly known as Sewanee, has a 10,000-acre campus that was made for students who love nature. The campus and the surrounding area offer unlimited opportunities for outdoor recreation. Gothic style buildings and a newly completed centerpiece chapel add to Sewanee’s appeal.
8. Trinity University – San Antonio, Texas: Trinity overlooks downtown San Antonio, adjacent to the Monte Vista Historic District and just south of the prominent Olmos Park and Alamo Heights neighborhoods. The 117-acre Skyline Campus, the university’s fourth location, is noted for its distinctive red brick architecture and well-maintained grounds, modeled after an Italian village by late architect O’Neil Ford.
9. Wellesley College – Wellesley, Massachusetts : The Wellesley campus extends over 500 acres of woodlands, meadows, and water. Nestled into the rolling hills is a mix of 19th-century towered brick buildings arranged in quadrangles and newer buildings with avant-garde architecture. In the fall the heavily wooded campus looks as if it has been splattered with paint, with foliage turning variations of red, orange, and yellow. In the winter, a blanket of white often covers the grounds, and in the spring the campus comes alive with blooming daffodils, rhododendrons, and lilacs.
10. Yale University – New Haven, Connecticut: Yale is noted for its largely Collegiate Gothic campus as well as for several iconic modern buildings commonly discussed in architectural history survey courses: Louis Kahn’s Yale Art Gallery and Center for British Art, Eero Saarinen’s Ingalls Rink and Ezra Stiles and Morse Colleges, and Paul Rudolph’s Art & Architecture Building. Yale also owns and has restored many noteworthy 19th-century mansions along Hillhouse Avenue, which was considered the most beautiful street in America by Charles Dickens when he visited the United States in the 1840s.

Science, we are informed by conscientious historians of the discipline, is something that comes to us without anything we might call a “moral imperative” as to what we should or should not be doing with the knowledge. In fact, science has often been described as an “amoral” enterprise, which can be put to evil uses just as easily as good ones. Scientists themselves bear no responsibility to ensure how their discoveries are used by others.

But what if the scientist himself is a diabolical mad man?

Thank the FSM it doesn’t happen often, but here’s a list of ten people throughout history who fit the description of “Mad Scientist” because they used diabolical methods for their experiments. We can be thankful that this sort of research is not applauded today, nor are science students encouraged in these directions. But, they surely are interesting as historical footnotes.

1. Johann Conrad Dippel [1673-1734]

The first and most prophetic fact about Doctor Dippel is that he was born at Castle Frankenstein near Darmstadt, Germany. He studied theology, philosophy and alchemy at the University of Giessen, and promptly found himself in trouble for his theological opinions. In his search for the philosopher’s stone of alchemy, he became interested in creating artificial life.

It is on that score that Dippel gained a reputation for grave robbery, and performing gruesome experiments on cadavers in an attempt to do a “soul transplant.” There were rumors of him being driven out of town by angered townsfolk after blowing up a tower at Castle Frankenstein with nitroglycerine, but careful historical research fails to make a firm connection between Dippel and this substance (not discovered until after his time), or between Dippel and Mary Shelley’s immortalized mad doctor Frankenstein. What Dippel did manage to do with his alchemical experiments was develop “Prussian blue” dye which became a spectacular commercial success.

2. Giovanni Aldini [1762-1834]

The nephew of the man who developed the theory of muscular electricity, Giovanni centered his scientific career around working with galvanism – electricity. He examined medical uses, ways to illuminate lighthouses, and did experiments using electricity for preservation.

Aldini became most famous – or infamous – for his traveling horror show, touring all across Europe electrifying human and animal bodies for the delight of the public. But it was his performance at the Royal College of Surgeons in London in 1803 that earned him his place in Mad Scientist history. He used his conducting rods on the body of a hanged criminal named George Foster, causing muscles to contract and distort and frightening some people badly. For his efforts as well as his showmanship, Aldini was made a knight by the emperor of Austria and a councilor of state at Milan.

3. Ilya Ivanovich Ivanov [1870-1932?]

Yet another Stalinist era Russian scientist made his name doing bizarre and arguably unethical experiments on animals. Ivanov perfected the art of artificial insemination to aid his work, and went on to produce hybrids like Zeedonks (zebra and donkey), Zubrons (wisent and cow), an antelope-cow, a mouse-rat, a mouse-guinea pig, and a guinea pig-rabbit.

Ivanov veered off the merely interesting track with his human-ape hybrid experiments. Seems Stalin had high hopes for an army of man-apes that would be invincible, insensitive to pain and wouldn’t care about the quality of their food or treatment. At an experimental station in French Guinea he inseminated female chimpanzees with human sperm, but could not manage to produce a pregnancy. The French colonial government objected when he proposed inseminating human females with sperm from an orangutan. His contribution was primarily to establish the limits of interfertility, which modern scientists now get around with direct genetic manipulation and cloning.

4. Sergei Brukhonenko [1890-1960]

This Russian scientist of the Stalinist era contributed important research toward the development of open heart surgery, and invented a primitive heart-lung machine he called the “autojektor.” Sergei Brukhonenko’s experiments in how to keep a body (or some part of a body) alive led to some exhibitions that offended the ethical sensibilities of many.

The most famous of those were his experiments with the severed heads of dogs. One of which was able to eat a piece of cheese for the audience, which was then horrified when the chewed cheese exited the truncated esophagus at the other end. He did dog head transplants too, and brought executed dogs back to life. It was primarily experimentation using humans, human bodies and animals that first dictated the regulation of scientific experimentation, and grisly stories on that score helped to make the ‘Evil Scientist’ a stock character in fiction and entertainment.

5. Vladimir Demikhov [1916-1998]

Another organ transplant pioneer from the days of Stalin, Demikhov was famous for transplanting whole portions of live puppies onto the bodies of adult dogs. He also transplanted various organs around. There are videos of some of the most gruesome experiments of Demikhov and his contemporary Brukhonenko, which we’ll not link here. After inviting journalists to his lab to show off his work, a reporter from the Daily Mail wrote:

“Blinking unhappily in the daylight as Demikhov paraded it on its lead, this unfortunate beast had been created by grafting the head and upper body of a small puppy on the head and body of a fully-grown mastiff, to form one grotesque creature with two heads. The visitors watched in horror and fascination as both of the beast’s mouths lapped greedily at a bowl of milk proffered by Demikhov’s assistants.” The article did not say whether any of the assistants were named Igor.

6. Harry Harlow [1905-1981]

Harry Harlow was a psychologist interested in the psychology of maternal-infant bonding, who contributed greatly to the burgeoning animal rights movement that grew out of the long history of scientific research cruelty to helpless animals. One does have to wonder about many of these researchers, as in how many of them tortured animals in childhood and were steered into science as a “healthy outlet” for this sort of behavior that in the wider society would have earned them some serious legal troubles.

Harlow’s most infamous experiments were conducted with rhesus monkeys. He isolated infants from their mothers and offered them a choice of surrogate mother figures – a wire mesh construct or a terrycloth covered construct, one which provided milk and one that did not. He was quite open about his experimental apparatuses, giving them appropriate names such as “rape rack,” “iron maiden” and an isolation chamber called the “pit of despair.” For all the outrage at his cruelty to infant monkeys, Harlow did establish the importance of maternal-infant bonding for humans and his work led to ethics regulations of scientific research.

7. Shiro Ishii [1892-1959]

You may suspect that scientists who feel empowered to dream up tortures for animals might be willing to do the same sort of experiments on humans if the public sensibilities weren’t so averse to such things. You would be right, and there are times in human history when the public is distracted by other things, allowing scientists to do their worst. We call it “war,” and it’s offered cover for things diabolical enough to make an atheist suspect Satan exists, even if God may not.

Making a name for himself in the Japanese military establishment between world wars, Shiro Ishii enjoyed the title “Father of Biological Warfare” for his exploits as chief of Japan’s biological warfare program. Ishii supervised the deliberate infection of thousands of captives with deadly diseases, conducted grotesque surgies, and performed as many as 3,000 ‘dissections’ of live prisoners without anesthetic. A wealthy man never prosecuted for war crimes, Ishii died peacefully at his home in Japan at the age of 67.

8. Joseph Mengele [1911-1979]

His title is still “The Angel of Death,” which he earned the hard way as a German SS officer and physician at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camps during the Holocaust. Mengele’s favorite subjects for grotesque experiments were twins, and he experimented on at least 3,000 sets of them. 26 of whom survived. He injected chemicals into children’s eyes to see if he could change their color, sewed a pair of Roma twins together so they’d be cojoined, giving them gangrene. He performed most of his surgeries – including amputations – without anesthesia.

It is questionable that Mengele really thought he was doing science, as most historians simply believe he was mad with power. Despite being the most hunted at-large war criminal in the world for 34 years, he died in Bertioga, Brazil in 1979 and buried under the name of Wolfgang Gerhard. He never expressed regret or remorse for his horrible crimes. While the study of twins has contributed much to knowledge of genetics and the “nature vs. nurture” debates in biology, both the Eugenics movement of the early 20th century and the Holocaust are not spoken about with much reverence by modern researchers.

9. Sigmund Rascher [1909-1945]

World War II offered lots of opportunities for evil scientific experiments the governments involved apparently figured no one would ever care about, given the level of sheer inhuman violence abroad at the time. Sigmund Rascher became a captain in the German Luftwaffe, under whose auspices he began human experimentation for research on high altitude flight. He was a favorite of Heinrich Himmler, who gave him absolute power at the Dachau concentration camp to choose his victims.

Rascher killed scores of victims with his portable pressure chamber, more than a hundred with his “freezing experiments,” which actually did document best methods for warming someone suffering terminal hypothermia. While at Dauchau, Rascher also developed those ubiquitous cyanide capsules that have been so often lampooned as the suicide option of choice for spies and other assorted bad guys. Himmler caught Rascher and his wife lying about extending their fertility into their 50s (they’d bought or kidnapped the babies) and had them executed shortly before the end of the war.

10. Sidney Gottlieb [1918-1999]

The world’s horror at the atrocities committed by German and Japanese ‘doctors’ during WW-II didn’t stop the United States government from investing quite a bit in its own versions of blatantly unethical (and illegal) human experimental projects. Military psychiatrist and speech therapist Sidney Gottlieb was put in charge of the CIA’s MK-ULTRA project in 1953 to investigate “techniques that would crush the human psyche to the point that it would admit anything.”

In addition to coming up with some highly humorous assassination plots against Fidel Castro (always involving some kind of poison), Gottlieb graduated to dosing unsuspecting people with LSD, causing some serious death and mental destruction along the way. In 1973, just as the Congress was closing on on the project, records of MK-ULTRA were ordered destroyed by then DCIA Richard Helms. It is not known (because no one involved has bothered to say) if they ever found the “truth drug” they were searching for but it is known that the program experimented with heroin, morphine, temazepam, mescaline, psilocybin, scopolamine, marijuana, alcohol and sodium pentothal. What we got instead was a Drug War that is still claiming innocent lives today.