A bicycle is a pedal-driven land vehicle with two wheels attached to a
frame one in front of the other. First introduced in 19th century
Europe, it evolved quickly into its current design. With over one
billion in the world today, bicycles provide the principal means of
transportation in many regions and a popular form of recreation in
others. The bicycle has had considerable historical impact, in both
the cultural and industrial realms. In its early years, bicycle
construction drew on pre-existing technologies, while more recently
bicycle technology has contributed in turn to other, newer areas.
Beyond recreation and transportation, bicycles have been adapted for
use in many occupations, in the military, and in sports and
entertainment as well. A recurring theme in bicycling has been the
tension between bicyclists and drivers of motor vehicles, each of whom
argue for their fair share of the world's roadways.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1854:
Commodore Matthew Perry of the U.S. Navy signed the Treaty of
Kanagawa, forcing the opening of Japanese ports to American trade.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Perry_%28naval_officer%29)
1889:
The Eiffel Tower was inaugurated in Paris.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eiffel_Tower)
1903:
New Zealander inventor Richard Pearse reportedly flew in one of the
first flying machines.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Pearse)
1917:
The Danish West Indies became the U.S. Virgin Islands after the United
States paid Denmark US$25 million for the Caribbean islands.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Virgin_Islands)
1930:
Hollywood movie studios instituted the Production Code to avoid
government censorship.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Production_Code)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
"Good sense is of all things in the world the most equally
distributed, for everybody thinks he is so well supplied with it, that
even those most difficult to please in all other matters never desire
more of it than they already possess." -- René Descartes
(
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_Descartes)