surely no army in military history has ever been laid low by disease, a famously uncommon problem among people living in enforced close quarters

HEAD QUARTERS MORRIS TOWN 12TH MARCH 1777 Sir You are hereby required immediately to send me an exact return of your regiment, and to send all your recruits, who have had the small pox to join the Army. Those, who have not, are to be sent to Philadelphia, and put under the direction of the commanding officer there, who will have them inoculated. You are to leave a sufficient number of proper officers to carry on the recruiting service, who are to bring up their men as soon as they are ready. No pleas, of delay, on account of the dispersion of the officers can be admitted, as every commanding officer ought to know where his inferior officers are, and they what recruits they have, and where they are to be found. You are to remain at Philadelphia, to procure arms clothing &c., and send on, your Major to Camp, to receive your detachments. Your Lieut. Colonel is also to come on, as soon as circumstances will permit. I am Sir Your most humble servant Go: Washington George Washington wrote this letter to Lt. Colonel David Grier on March 12, 1777. In it, Washington instructs Grier to send new soldiers to Philadelphia so they could be inoculated for smallpox. Washington wanted to make sure that his troops were not affected by disease, and he believed that inoculation would help with that. So, just before this letter was written, Washington created a mandated system of inoculating his soldiers.

George Washington wrote this letter to Lt. Col. David Grier on March 12, 1777. In it, Washington instructs Grier to send new soldiers to Philadelphia so they could be inoculated for smallpox... just before this letter was written, Washington created a mandated system of inoculating his soldiers."

Is someone going to tell him that the flu killed more US troops in WWI than any battle did (and that war had chemical weapons so horrific that they were banned afterwards)?

…then listen to his Ave Maria (strange to modern ears but given the context in the post I recognize he’s very talented)

Then listen to the cathedral edit, also linked in that same post. An echo effect has been applied to simulate how he would sound in a cathedral. Haunting and beautiful.

caffarelli's comment on "Tuesday Trivia | And We’re Rolling: Primary Source Audio and Video" Explore this conversation and more from the AskHistorians community

While we’re on the subject of phenomenal issues of old recordings:

First read this 12yo Reddit comment/essay on how we ended up with a recording of one of the last castrato singers: www.reddit.com/r/AskHistori...

Then…

A Newly Discovered Recording Lets You Hear Delta Blues Legend Robert Johnson in Stunning Clarity Great swathes of rock music since the nineteen-sixties would never have existed, we're sometimes told, were it not for the recordings of Robert Johnson. Certainly the likes of Keith Richards, Eric Cla...

Holy SHIT someone found the test pressing of Robert Johnson's Cross Road Blues and it is clear as a PIN www.openculture.com/2026/04/reco...

The DVD my husband bought for $5, 15 years ago (when I made fun of him for it) is still ours and requires no subscription fee.

Anthropic Settlement Update: 91.3 Percent of Books Claimed in Settlement - The Authors Guild Yesterday, class counsel in the Bartz v. Anthropic lawsuit filed papers apprising the court that 440,490 of the 482,460 eligible works had been claimed—a remarkable 91.3 percent rate (the typical clas...

New on the Anthropic settlement from the @authorsguild.org : over 91% (!!) of eligible books were claimed as of the claims deadline (I would not have predicted such a high number!)

Looks like the payout will be close to the $3000 originally estimated authorsguild.org/news/anthrop...

Not only do I know what TADC is, I have tickets. I have caught the brainrot from my children.

As we were buying the tickets i was joking around and suggested there might be something between Pomni and Jax and my daughter yelled “Funnybunny! It’s a ship! Look it up!!”

I’ve always kind of wanted a harpsichord

Therazinosaurus didn’t even make the list?!?!

(And if we’re accepting non dinosaurs where is Dimetrodon?)

this got me thinking about specialized uses of the word "hot"

Hot can mean radioactive, as in the bumper sticker "molecular biologists do it with hot probes" (sorry)

In computer tech, hot means powered on ("hot swapping" drives)

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, previously slated to close on May 3, has been acquired by Baltimore-based Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism and will continue operations. They are investing $30 million over five years. The sale will involve staff cuts. buff.ly/qY3Kuo6

Hello, Bluesky! We, the staff of Scientific American, are pleased to announce we have formed a union with @wgaeast.bsky.social. Just as mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell, we are the powerhouse of the publication, and we’re excited to have a new way to contribute to its success.

Sean Connery explaining the Chicago way.

"He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send him Matthew 5:9. That's the Chicago Pope way."

We also get a satisfying shoe slap. But I have to admit I’m a little jealous of that iron clank!

With bumpers you can drop them overhead, which is an even better noise

A "wartime" poster that says: "Using Generative AI? You're Prompting with Hitler! GenAI is a Fascist Project! Try using your brain instead! Don't surrender your creativity to the Tech Billionaires' control!"

I missed this from @phineas.bsky.social when it originally came out but it sure feels relevant at the moment.

Also, you can buy this as a print from the artist here:

www.inprnt.com/gallery/phin...

Why are they called cannibals and not humanitarians

🚨 ON STRIKE 🚨

Unionized staff at ProPublica @propublicaguild.org walked off the job today.

Stand with workers: DO NOT cross the picket line.

That means no visiting ProPublica's website, social media or engaging with its content today.

I suppose the “oh god” reaction isn’t so much about making a dress as it is willingly working to a deadline for the whim of a child.

Furiously sewing on holy Saturday because I am told the doll NEEDS her dress for Easter morning.

A Blythe doll (Barbie sized body, giant head) wearing a lavishly ruffled dress that is covered in yellow gold flowers. She also has a matching purse.

At this point “oh god why am I sewing a dress for a doll, isn’t she old enough to sew her own doll clothes” is giving way to “😢 what if this is the last time she asks me to make doll clothes 😭”

Anyway here’s an Easter dress and purse I made out of an old baby onesie

Partially knitted: a white panel for the top with a deep orange square worked into it. The ball of yarn includes orange and blue shades, softly, like a sunset.

Holding up the front panel to my chest. It’s white at the bottom, and has a square colored area (sunrise colors) and I’ve just begun shaping the neckline.

It’s happening!

The Supreme Court did not strike down conversion therapy bans today.

Not nationwide. Not in Colorado. Not anywhere.

Here's what actually happened in Chiles v. Salazar—and why the coverage you're seeing serves the conservative legal movement more than it serves you.

French knitting pattern labeled “golf ‘tres jeune’”. It’s a sleeveless top with a square neckline, and a colored yoke that has a kind of square inset where it joins the main color. There is a grid showing the color pattern, and a schematic with some measurements.

My next vintage knitting project: a cute lil art deco vibes summer top.

I’m wondering if there might be an audience for a YouTube channel where I walk through vintage patterns and show how I knit them…

The phrasing and tone of the British “you alright?” is exactly what Americans use to convey “you look like you’ve been crying”

Purple sweater, on me. I am headless and have my hands on my hips, standing in front of a big green tree. The sweater has vertical fancy ribbed panels. It fits snuggly but not too tight. Long sleeves that go to the base of the hands. Crew neck.

I have finished the vintage sweater! I might be the first person to make this in 86 years. It’s cute.

Hooray! Worse medicine!!!

Instagram also replaced their search with an “ask ai” box. For months now there has been no way to pull up an account by name without nominally triggering an AI feature.

The very aggressive marketing of “dietary supplements” to healthy people by the supplement industry (an industry that was worth around $200 billion last year) is a scam