Happy belated National Knitting In Public Day. Hopefully it’s not too late to tell the story of how knitters have turned their abilities into secret codes to help their countries. Plus: today in 2020, explorer Vanessa O’Brien made a submersible dive to the spot in the Pacific Ocean known as Challenger Deep. Since she had already climbed to the top of Mount Everest, she became the first woman to reach the highest spot on Earth and the lowest spot on Earth. 

On the Covert Role of Knitting During the French Revolution and World War II (Lit Hub)

Mountaineer Vanessa O'Brien Has Reached The Highest And Lowest Points On Earth

World Doll Day is tomorrow. And while the world has lots of amazing and well-loved dolls, there aren’t many like the 18th Century automata known as The Writer. Plus: today in 1928, the birthday of author and artist Maurice Sendak, who once sent a very tasty message to a young fan.

Remarkable 240-Year-Old Doll Automaton Can Write Actual Programmable Text (My Modern Met)

Maurice Sendak and childhood — we ate it up, we loved it (Washington Post)

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Today we’re looking at a new kind of solar project from Swiss company Sun-Ways, which is putting energy-generating panels in a new spot: in between train tracks. Plus: starting today in Peru, Indiana, it’s the Cole Porter Festival.

Switzerland is turning the gap between train tracks into a ‘solar carpet’ (Fast Company)

Cole Porter Festival

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Today in 1909, the birthday of Dr. Virginia Apgar, who created the short but important test known as the Apgar Score to make sure a newborn baby is getting off to a good start. Plus: we're just days away from the National Asparagus Festival in Oceana County, Michigan.

Virginia Apgar May Have Saved Your Life (Hackaday)

National Asparagus Festival in Michigan

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Today in 1933, truly a moment for the record books: a pitcher in a minor league baseball game got injured after being bitten by his own false teeth. Plus: on this day in 1942, Adeline Gray became the first person to test a nylon parachute, since silk was in short supply because of World War II. 

Clarence Blethen (Society for American Baseball Research)

Meet the Daredevil Parachutist Who Tested the First Nylon Parachute 75 Years Ago (Smithsonian)

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Today in 1962, Spider-Man first appeared in comic books. He's had a huge influence on comics, movies, cartoons and really entertainment as a whole, but did you also know a Spider-Man comic helped lead to the creation of the first ankle monitor? Plus: Manhattan's Grolier Club is hosting an exhibit of vintage restaurant menus from the 1840s to the 1940s.

How Spider-Man Led to the Invention of the Prisoner Ankle Monitor (Gizmodo)

NYC Exhibition Extols the Charm of Restaurant Menus (Hyperallergic) 

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Today is one of several days the US commemorates its First Ladies. Some are well known, some are obscure. Some loved the job, others didn't want it at all. But only one First Lady had her own color: Mamie Eisenhower, the namesake of "Mamie pink." Plus: this weekend in Lewes, Delaware, it’s the Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass and Coastal Arts Festival. 

How Pink Became a Color for Girls (Racked)

Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass and Coastal Arts Festival (Historic Lewes)

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Today in 1992, it's said the first picture book featuring a sock monkey was published. But where did the sock monkey itself show up? That was decades earlier, in the Illinois city of Rockford - or, as it's sometimes called, Sockford. Plus: today in 1929, the UK newspaper known as The Sphere published an eye-catching photo of storefront mannequins melting in the London heat.

Monkey shines in Rockford (Illinois Times)

It’s Sock Monkey Madness in Rockford, Illinois, the birthplace of the beloved children’s toy (Roadtrippers)

MELTING MANNEQUINS (Nag on the Lake)

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Wellington R. Burt, known as "The Lone Pine of Michigan," was once among the wealthiest people in America - but when he died in 1919, he made sure most of that anyone who expected to inherit a big chunk of his enormous fortune would have to wait a long, long time. Plus: in Grand Rapids, Michigan, it’s the Grand Rapids Lantern Festival.

Wellington's millions: 92 years after his death, Saginaw lumber baron's vindictive testament nears endgame (MLive.com)

GRAND RAPIDS LANTERN FESTIVAL

Inventors put wheels on suitcases and made it so much easier for travelers to get their bags through airports and terminals and lobbies. So why was there so much resistance to rolling luggage when it first went up for sale? Plus: this weekend in Ruston, Louisiana, the Louisiana Peach Festival.

Mystery of the wheelie suitcase: how gender stereotypes held back the history of invention (The Guardian)

Who Actually Invented the Wheeled Suitcase? (Interesting Engineering)

Louisiana Peach Festival

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