. Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron “DEATH AND TAXES” EDITION April 15th is always remembered as “Tax Day,” but it’s also been a bad day for many other reasons throughout the years, including: 1632 – Swedes under the leadership of Gustavus Adolphus defeat the Holy Roman Empire in the Battle of Rain during the Thirty Years’ War. 1715 – Yamasee Indians massacre South Caroline colonialists in the town of Pocotaligo, triggering a 2 year war between tribesmen and settlers. 1865 – President Abraham Lincoln dies after being shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s Theatre the night before. 1912 – The RMS Titanic sinks in the icy waters of the North Atlantic with a loss of over 1,500 lives. 1941 – 200 bombers of the German Luftwaffe attack Belfast, Northern Ireland in the “Belfast Blitz,” killing 1,000 people. 1943 – An Allied bomber misses its target and strikes the Belgian town of Mortsel, killing 936 civilians. 1979 – A magnitude 7.1 earthquake occurs off the coast of Montenegro. 1989 – The Tiananmen Square protests begin following the death of Hu Yaobang. 1989 – A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, England, resulting in the deaths of 96 Liverpool Football Club fans. 2002 – Air China flight 129 crashes into a hillside during heavy rain and fog near Busan, South Korea, killing 128. 2008 – 6 Students and 1 teacher from Elim Christian College in Auckland, New Zealand drown in a flash flood on the Mangatepopo River. . flickr.com photo credit:...

. Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron WONDERS FROM DOWN UNDER EDITION The only two people to win posthumous Academy Awards for acting (Peter Finch for Best Actor in NETWORK and Heath Ledger for Best Supporting Actor in THE DARK KNIGHT) happen to both be...

. Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron FRIDAY THE 13TH EDITION Of the 183 Friday the 13th’s since 1900, the average market return on these days has been a gain of 0.04%, with positive returns 58.5% of the time – which is better than the annual average return for each individual day of the week, including all Fridays. . flickr.com photo credit: Erik...

. Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron “REDLIGHT, GREENLIGHT” EDITION Each motorist will spend an average of 6 months over the course of his or her lifetime waiting at redlights. . flickr.com photo credit:...

. Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron 2009: A SPACE ODYSSEY EDITION The relative size of the dwarf planet Eris is larger than that of Pluto, reclassified as a dwarf planet (instead of a planet) in...

. Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron SPECIAL RUFFLES & FLOURISHES EDITION Without counting death, each outgoing president has attended the inauguration of his successor with only four exceptions: John Adams for Jefferson’s inauguration; John Quincy Adams for Andrew Jackson’s; Andrew Johnson for Ulysses S. Grant’s; and Richard Nixon for Gerald Ford’s. . flickr.com photo credit: Shawndra and...

. A Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron SERIOUSLY — DON’T LET IT SNOW EDITION The average cost for the city of Chicago to remove a single inch of snow from its roads is approximately...

. A Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron ECONOMIC CRISIS OF BIBLICAL PROPORTIONS EDITION In Aramaic (the language Jesus spoke), the word for “debt” is the same as the word for “sin.” . Photo Credit:  Sylvia Beth Yakub Today’s Current Mood Photo: Robin...

. A Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron “IT’S A DOG’S LIFE” EDITION Jack Warner claimed that Rin-Tin-Tin was the best of the Warner Bros stars because he was the easiest to work with....

. A Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron Thoughts to think on as you go about your day During the opening night of Samuel Johnson’s 1749 play, Irene, audiences cried “Murder!” after seeing the main character strangled...

A Proof of Nerd ID by Charles Cron Thoughts to think on as you go about your day SPECIAL POST-CONVENTIONS THOUGHT OF THE DAY Charles Dawes (pictured), who acted as Vice President to Calvin Coolidge, composed the music to the song “It’s All in the Game” in 1911 – the song became a hit in the 1950’s and has been performed by artists from Tommy Edwards and Dinah Shore to Elton John and Bob Dylan. Handsome devil, ain’t...