"Lisa the Skeptic" is the eighth episode of The Simpsons' ninth season, first aired in November 1997. On an archaeological dig with her class, Lisa discovers a skeleton that resembles an angel. All of the townspeople believe that the skeleton actually came from an angel, but skeptical Lisa attempts to persuade them that there must be a rational scientific explanation, asking the American paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould to test a sample. After Gould tells Lisa that the tests were inconclusive, she compares the belief in angels to the belief in unicorns and leprechauns and in response, Springfield's religious zealots go on a rampage to destroy all scientific institutions. The episode's writer David X. Cohen (pictured) developed the idea after visiting the American Museum of Natural History, and decided to loosely parallel themes from the Scopes Monkey Trial. The episode received generally positive reviews. It has been discussed in the context of virtual reality, ontology, existentialism, and skepticism; it has also been used in Christian religious education classes to initiate discussion about angels, skepticism, science, and faith.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_the_Skeptic
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1890:
London's City and South London Railway, the first deep-level underground railway in the world, opened, running a distance of 5.1 km (3.2 mi) between the City of London and Stockwell. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_and_South_London_Railway
1921:
After a speech by Adolf Hitler in the Hofbräuhaus in Munich, members of the Sturmabteilung, known as "brownshirts", physically assaulted his opposition, an event which assumed legendary proportions over time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturmabteilung
1960:
At the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Dr. Jane Goodall (pictured in 2010) observed a chimpanzee using a grass stalk to extract termites from a termite hill, the first recorded case of tool use by animals. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kasakela_Chimpanzee_Community
1995:
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by Yigal Amir while at a peace rally at the Kings of Israel Square in Tel Aviv. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Yitzhak_Rabin
2008:
Barack Obama became the first African American to be elected President of the United States. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
mara: 1. (folklore) A nightmare; a spectre or wraith-like creature in Scandinavian folklore, especially one that causes terrifying visions or dreams. 2. (Buddhism) A malicious or evil spirit. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/mara
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in thee. --Augustus Toplady https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Augustus_Toplady