1. Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965): a British politician and the prime minister of the United Kingdom (1940-1945, 1951-1955), widely regarded as the greatest British leader of the 20th century. Churchill is celebrated for his leadership during World War II (1939-1945). His courage, decisiveness, political experience, and enormous vitality enabled him to lead his country through the war, one of the most desperate struggles in British history. Winston Churchill’s public life extended from the reign of Queen Victoria in the late 19th century to the Cold War. During this long political career, Churchill held every important cabinet office in the British government, except for foreign minister. He was also known for many books on British history and politics which he wrote throughout his lifetime. His command of the English language not only made him a great orator but earned him the Nobel Prize for literature in 1953. The web site http://www.winstonchurchill.org/ provides a variety of information on Sir Winston Churchill, including images and links to related Internet sites.
2. Harrow: an institution of secondary and higher education, in Harrow on the Hill, now a part of greater London. The late medieval school was re-endowed in 1572 by John Lyon, a prosperous yeoman, under a charter granted by Elizabeth I, queen of England. In 1591 Lyon drew up the statutes of the institution, providing for the free education of 40 boys of the Harrow parish, and left two-thirds of his fortune to the school when he died. In 1615 pupils were admitted to the first completed building, which is still in use. About five years later, when the school was in financial difficulties, a clause in the statutes permitting the enrollment of “foreign” paying scholars was invoked. Harrow’s rise to its present eminent academic position dates from this enlargement of the institution. The web site http://www.harrowschool.org.uk/ offers information about its history, academic programs, and facilities.
3. India: officially Republic of India, a country in southern Asia, located on the subcontinent of India. It is bounded on the north by Afghanistan, China, Nepal, and Bhutan; on the east by Bangladesh, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), and the Bay of Bengal; and on the west by the Arabian Sea and Pakistan. India is divided into 28 states and 7 union territories (including the National Capital Territory of Delhi). New Delhi is the country’s capital. The world’s seventh largest country in area, India occupies more than 3 million sq km (1 million sq mi), encompassing a varied landscape rich in natural resources. The Indian Peninsula forms a rough triangle framed on the north by the world’s highest mountains, the Himalayas, and on the east, south, and west by oceans. Several major rivers, including the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Indus, flow through India. Arising in the northern mountains and carrying rich alluvial soil to the plains below, these mighty rivers have supported agriculture-based civilizations for thousands of years. The web site http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/in.html offers a multimedia travel guide featuring details on attractions, lodgings, and local culture.
4. World War II: a global military conflict that, in terms of lives lost and material destruction, was the most devastating war in human history. It began in 1939 as a European conflict between Germany and an Anglo-French coalition but eventually widened to include most of the nations of the world. It ended in 1945, leaving a new world order dominated by the US and the USSR. The web site http://www.euronet.nl/users/wilfried/ww2/ww2.htm offers a variety of primary historical documents relating to World War II, as well as links to related sites.
5. Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865): the 16th president of the United States (1861-1865) and one of the greatest leaders in American history. A humane, far-sighted statesman in his lifetime, he became a legend and a folk hero after his death. Lincoln rose from humble backwoods origins to become one of the great presidents of the United States. In his effort to preserve the Union during the Civil War, he assumed more power than any preceding president. If necessity made him almost a dictator, by fervent conviction he was always a democrat. A superb politician, he persuaded the people with reasoned words and thoughtful deeds to look to him for leadership. He had a lasting influence on American political institutions, most importantly in setting the precedent of vigorous executive action in time of national emergency. The web site http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/al16.html presents an illustrated biography of the US president Abraham Lincoln with links to related Internet resources.
6. Illinois: a state in the north central United States, in the heart of the Midwest. Illinois was little more than a vast wilderness 200 years ago. Since entering the Union on December 3, 1818, as the 21st state, the economy of Illinois has expanded until today Illinois is one of the most productive agricultural and industrial states in the Union, and its economic influence now extends far beyond the Midwest. The web site http://www100.state.il.us/ offers a multimedia travel guide featuring details on attractions, lodgings, and local culture.
7. the US Congress: the legislative branch of the United States government. Congress is composed of two chambers with equal powers: the 100-member Senate and the 435-member House of Representatives. The primary duty of Congress is to write, debate, and pass bills (proposed laws), which are then passed on to the president for approval. Once the president approves the legislation, the executive branch enforces the new laws and the judicial branch interprets them. Other congressional duties include investigating pressing national issues, supervising the executive and judicial branches, and shaping the US foreign policy. The web site http://www.congresslink.org/ is offered by a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational organization to help students understand how Congress works. It includes lesson plans, a discussion forum, and annotated links.
8. the US Senate: the smaller of the two legislative bodies of the Congress of the United States. Along with the House of Representatives, it drafts and passes laws that, when signed by the president, govern the United States and its citizens. The Senate exercises some powers that the House of Representatives does not, such as approving treaties between the United States and other countries. The Senate has 100 members, two from each state. The web site http://www.senate.gov/ offers information on its organization, members, and business.
9. John Bunyan: an English writer and Puritan minister, author of The Pilgrim’s Progress, one of the most famous religious allegories in the English language. Bunyan was born in November 1628 at Elstow, near Bedford, the son of a tinker. He served an apprenticeship at his father’s trade, and at about the age of 17, during the civil war, fought in the Parliamentary army. About 1648 he married Margaret Bentley, a member of one of the Puritan sects of the day; Bunyan experienced a religious conversion and joined her church.During his last years, Bunyan was universally recognized as the leading Puritan clergyman and author. He died of pneumonia on August 31, 1688, in London. His other writings include The Life and Death of Mr. Badman (1680), a description of the life of a reprobate, and The Holy War (1682), a religious and political allegory. The web site http://www.johnbunyan.org/ provides the text of the selected poems by John Bunyan.
10. George Washington (1732-1799): the first president of the United States (1789-1797) and one of the most important leaders in the United States history. His role in gaining independence for the American colonies and later in unifying them under the new US federal government cannot be overestimated. Laboring against great difficulties, he created the Continental Army, which fought and won the American Revolution (1775-1783), out of what was little more than an armed mob. After an eight-year struggle, his design for victory brought final defeat to the British at Yorktown, Virginia, and forced Great Britain to grant independence to its overseas possession. With victory won, Washington was the most revered man in the United States. A lesser person might have used this power to establish a military dictatorship or to become king. Washington sternly suppressed all such attempts on his behalf by his officers and continued to obey the weak and divided Continental Congress. However, he never ceased to work for the union of the states under a strong central government. He was a leading influence in persuading the states to participate in the Constitutional Convention, over which he presided, and he used his immense prestige to help gain ratification of its product, the Constitution of the United States. Although worn out by years of service to his country, Washington reluctantly accepted the presidency of the United States. Probably no other man could have succeeded in welding the states into a lasting union. Washington fully understood the significance of his presidency. “I walk on untrodden ground,” he said. “There is scarcely any part of my conduct which may not hereafter be drawn in precedent.” During eight years in office, Washington laid down the guidelines for future presidents. Washington lived only two years after turning over the presidency to his successor, John Adams. The famous tribute by General Henry Lee, “first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen,” accurately reflected the emotions that Washington’s death aroused. Later generations have crowned this tribute with the simple title “Father of His Country”. The web site http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/gwl.html presents an illustrated biography of the president with links to related Internet resources.
11. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): a German composer, considered as one of the greatest musicians of all time. Having begun his career as an outstanding improviser at the piano and composer of piano music, Beethoven went on to compose string quartets and other kinds of chamber music, songs, two masses, an opera, and nine symphonies. His Symphony No. 9 in D minor op. 125 (Choral, completed 1824), perhaps the most famous work of classical music in existence, culminates in a choral finale based on the poem “Ode to Joy” by German writer Friedrich von Schiller. Like his opera Fidelio, op. 72 (1805; revised 1806, 1814) and many other works, the Ninth Symphony depicts an initial struggle with adversity and concludes with an uplifting vision of freedom and social harmony. The web site http://lucare.com/immortal/ features an extensive biography of Beethoven, audio clips, image, and links to related sites.
12. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968): an American clergyman and Nobel Prize winner, one of the principal leaders of the American civil rights movement and a prominent advocate of nonviolent protest. King’s challenges to segregation and racial discrimination in the 1950s and 1960s helped convince many white Americans to support the cause of civil rights in the United States. After his assassination in 1968, King became a symbol of protest in the struggle for racial justice. The web site http://www.seattletimes.com/mlk/index.html has a biography of Martin Luther King, information about the civil rights movement, and other resources.
13. Itzhak Perlman (1945-): an Israeli-American violinist, whose brilliant technique and musicianship caused his mentor, Isaac Stern, to judge his talent “utterly limitless”. A child prodigy, Perlman came to New York at the age of 13 and studied with the influential American teacher Ivan Galamian. Perlman tours and records extensively, frequently appearing in concert with the Israeli-American violinist Pinchas Zukerman. Crippled by polio when he was four, Perlman is a strong proponent of equal rights for the disabled. The web site http://www.concertartist.info/biog/PER001.html contains a biography of Perlman, as well as an audio clip.
14. Albert Einstein (1879-1955): a German-born American physicist and Nobel laureate, best known as the creator of the special and general theories of relativity and for his bold hypothesis concerning the particle nature of light. He is perhaps the most well-known scientist of the 20th century. Einstein was born in Ulm on March 14, 1879, and spent his youth in Munich, where his family owned a small shop that manufactured electric machinery. He did not talk until the age of three, but even as a youth he showed a brilliant curiosity about nature and an ability to understand difficult mathematical concepts. At the age of 12 he taught himself Euclidean geometry. Einstein hated the dull regimentation and unimaginative spirit of school in Munich. When repeated business failure led the family to leave Germany for Milan, Italy, Einstein, who was then 15 years old, used the opportunity to withdraw from the school. He spent a year with his parents in Milan, and when it became clear that he would have to make his own way in the world, he finished secondary school in Aarau, Switzerland, and entered the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich. Einstein did not enjoy the methods of instruction there. He often cut classes and used the time to study physics on his own or to play his beloved violin. He passed his examinations and graduated in 1900 by studying the notes of a classmate. His professors did not think highly of him and would not recommend him for a university position. For two years Einstein worked as a tutor and substitute teacher. In 1902 he secured a position as an examiner in the Swiss patent office in Bern. In 1903 he married Mileva Mari, who had been his classmate at the polytechnic. They had two sons but eventually divorced. Einstein later remarried. The web site http://www.albert-einstein.org/ provides information regarding Albert Einstein’s contributions as a scientist, humanist, and Jew; it also includes a timeline, a biography, and resources for children.
