During the Civil War, Union Army Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman and his troops arrived in Savannah, Georgia, days before Christmas in 1864. The city was their final stop on Sherman's March to the Sea, a military campaign to weaken Confederate power through the state of Georgia. Stanley Weintraub's 2009 book, General Sherman's Christmas, explores the holiday celebration in the war-torn city. In today's episode, we revisit a conversation between Weintraub and NPR's Guy Raz about Sherman's controversial reputation and how they tied twigs to the heads of mules to turn them into reindeer.
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The United States Military Academy in West Point, New York, is one of the most prestigious academic institutions in the United States.
Their motto of “Duty, Honor, Country” is something for every cadet that attends the academy to aspire to.
However, things haven’t always been that way. There was a period when West Point was downright rowdy and rambunctious.
Learn more about the 1826 West Point Egg Nog riot and how the military academy completely went out of control one Christmas on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
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In the '70s, gelatin was very much in vogue. Gatherings often featured a colorful, molded jello salad that contained surprising ingredients from cottage cheese to tuna. Those dishes have since fallen out of favor, but a new cookbook by Peter DiMario and Judith Choate declares that gelatin is back. Jiggle! includes modernized recipes for sweet, savory and layered dishes, such as Grandma's Ambrosia and Watermelon Margarita Bites. In today's episode, DiMario talks with Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes about the origins of gelatin, how to achieve the perfect suspension, and the fun of updating gelatin dishes with fresh ingredients and flavors.
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Amanda Holmes reads Louis MacNeice’s “Snow. Have a suggestion for a poem by a (dead) writer? Email us: podcast@theamericanscholar.org. If we select your entry, you’ll win a copy of a poetry collection edited by David Lehman.
This episode was produced by Stephanie Bastek and features the song “Canvasback” by Chad Crouch.
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The Newport Folk Festival is an annual music festival that's been hosted in Newport, Rhode Island, since the 1950s. Bob Dylan, who was considered folk music's then-reigning king, performed at the festival in 1965 where he made the controversial decision to play the electric guitar. This is the focus of Elijah Wald's 2015 book, Dylan Goes Electric! which has been adapted into the film A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan. In today's episode, we revisit a 2015 conversation between Wald and NPR's Arun Rath where they talk about Dylan's decision to play that guitar, electrifying the folk faithful.
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In the 19th century, the British and the Chinese went to war on two separate occasions—the reasons why they went to war are both simple and complicated.
The more complicated reason has to do with the trade policies of the British Empire and centuries-old entrenched attitudes on the part of the Qing dynasty.
The simple reason had to do with pushing drugs as a matter of national policy.
Learn more about the Opium Wars, why Britain and China went to war, and how it affected the future of China on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
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Ever since the beginning of the Space Age, some have envisioned landing humans on Mars.
There are a few who have taken things a step further. They envision not just landing on Mars but having a population of humans who live there permanently.
But how realistic is that dream? Could we actually do this, and if we can’t, what would we need to do?
Learn more about building a colony on Mars and what it would take on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
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