Mary van Kleeck (1883–1972) was an American social scientist and social feminist who advocated for scientific management and a planned economy. She began her career in the settlement movement, investigating women's labor in New York City. In 1916 she became the director of the Russell Sage Foundation's Department of Industrial Studies, which she led for over 30 years. During World War I, she was appointed by U.S. president Woodrow Wilson to lead the development of workplace standards for women entering the labor force. After the war, she led the creation of the Women's Bureau, a federal agency that advocates for women in the workforce. By the 1930s, van Kleeck had become a socialist, arguing that central planning of economies was the most effective way to protect labor rights. During the Great Depression, she became a prominent left- wing critic of capitalism and the New Deal.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_van_Kleeck

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1783:

Laki, a volcanic fissure in Iceland, began an eight-month eruption, triggering major famine and causing massive fluoride poisoning. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laki

1950:

Thomas Blamey became the only Australian to attain the rank of field marshal. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Blamey

1995:

Danish-Canadian programmer Rasmus Lerdorf released the first version of PHP, the most popular server-side language for websites. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PHP

2007:

A major storm caused the bulk carrier MV Pasha Bulker to run aground in New South Wales, Australia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Drake

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

polynya: (hydrology, oceanography) A naturally formed area of open water surrounded by sea ice, especially in the Arctic. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/polynya

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

In an extreme view, the world can be seen as only connections, nothing else. We think of a dictionary as the repository of meaning, but it defines words only in terms of other words. I liked the idea that a piece of information is really defined only by what it's related to, and how it's related. There really is little else to meaning. The structure is everything. There are billions of neurons in our brains, but what are neurons? Just cells. The brain has no knowledge until connections are made between neurons. All that we know, all that we are, comes from the way our neurons are connected.   --Tim Berners-Lee https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tim_Berners-Lee