Events To Look Forward To in 2020

As the joke goes, people who wear glasses will welcome the New Year because they will finally be able to see 2020.  There will be events that will make the upcoming year a most momentous start for the new decade. 

U.S. Presidential Election

After a headline-making first term, President Donald Trump will be facing the voters on November 3, 2020.  It remains to be seen who his opponent will be but it's certain that the campaign will dominate the headlines for most of the year.


2020 Summer  Olympic Games

Tokyo will be hosting the Summer Olympics from July 24 to August 9 and it promises to attract a huge global audience.  Younger people will be drawn to the new sports including rock-climbing, skateboarding and surfing.  As well, the hosts will be sure to showcase some breathtaking forms of technology involving 5G, A.I., immersive media and much more.


2020 UEFA European Football Championship

UEFA Euro 2020 will be held from June 12 to July 12 so it won't be overlapping the Olympic Games in Japan.  It's the 60th Anniversary of the tournament and as a result it will be held in 12 selected cities and countries with London's Wembley Stadium hosting the Semi-Finals and the Finals.  The number of nations participating was also increased from 16 to 24 so it promises to be the biggest EuroCup ever with plenty of drama.


75th Anniversary of the United Nations

According to the United Nation's own web site, "To mark its 75th anniversary in 2020, the United Nations will launch the biggest-ever global conversation on the role of global cooperation in building the future we want."  The organization was formed after World War 2 in order to prevent any future such wars and it was seen as a more effective body than the League of Nations.  The U.N. says it will "launch the biggest-ever global conversation on the role of global cooperation in building the future we want."  Given the posturing of some countries in recent years, it is hoped that such cooperation will indeed be achieved.  As such, the world will indeed be watching.

Milestone Anniversaries

2020 will be a special year in terms of anniversary celebrations.  These include the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig von Beethoven, the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale (with 2020 designated as the Year of the Nurse by the W.H.O.), the 400th anniversary of the sailing of the Mayflower to America, the 100th anniversary of the start of Prohibition in the United States and the 500th anniversary of the death of Raphael.

There will undoubtedly be ceremonies to mark all of the occasions.  Some will be celebrations and others will be a time for reflection.  It is hoped that everyone will take part in some way and appreciate the way that milestones in history have affected the present and will continue to influence the future.


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Inspirational Quotes About Having Confidence In Yourself

Confidence is definitely an important factor in having success.  If we don't have confidence in ourselves, then we can't expect others to have confidence in us.  If you know you can achieve your goals and have the desire to do so, then confidence in yourself will allow you to overcome all obstacles and achieve the success that you deserve.

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Memorizing the First 20 Elements of the Periodic Table!

The Periodic Table is definitely a hard-to-forget memory from high school chemistry class.  Trying to learn the elements in order involved some rote learning with the occasional trick or two.  However, it's to memorize the first 20 elements in order, backward and forward, as well as knowing which element belongs to which number.  Impress your friends and train your brain with this fun exercise.  You may even impress Sheldon Cooper!

Follow along:

Here are the links to every number to which you will associate with the periodic elements.

They are:

1. sun
2. shoe
3. tree
4. door
5. hive
6. stick
7. heaven
8. skate
9. wine
10. pen

From 10 to 20, it's a bit different but still easy.

11. Imagine football uprights
12. (A dozen) eggs
13. A witch
14. Valentine's Day item (Feb. 14 - a box of chocolates, for example)
15. Tax returns (April 15)
16. Sweet 16 - candies or other sweets
17. 'Seventeen' Magazine
18. Voting Booth (legal age to vote)
19. Golf Club (19th Hole)
20. Pack of Cigarettes  (smoking not recommended!)


Now, we'll take a look at  the Top 20  Periodic Elements.

They are:

1. Hydrogen
2. Helium
3. Lithium
4. Beryllium
5. Boron
6. Carbon
7. Nitrogen
8. Oxygen
9. Fluorine
10. Neon
11. Sodium
12. Magnesium
13. Aluminum
14. Silicon
15. Phosphorus
16. Sulfur
17. Chlorine
18. Argon
19. Potassium
20. Calcium

Now, let's link the element with the memory aid for each number.

1. Hydrogen/sun - The sun is mostly composed of hydrogen!

2. Helium/shoe - Imagine floating on shoes made of helium

3. Lithium/tree - Imagine a lithium battery tree

4. Beryllium/door - Imagine opening the fridge to get some berries

5. Boron/hive - Imagine boring into a bee hive (not recommended in real life!)

6. Carbon/stick - Imagine a carbon hockey stick

7. Nitrogen/heaven - Imagine liquid nitrogen ice cream heaven!

8. Oxygen/skate - Imagine a skater with an oxygen mask

9. Fluorine/wine - Imagine wine with added fluoride!

10. Neon/pen - Imagine a neon pen!

11. Sodium/football goalpost - Imagine kicking a field goal with a salt shaker!

12. Magnesium/dozen eggs - Imagine getting your daily magnesium requirement with eggs

13. Aluminum/witch - Imagine a witch on an  aluminum pop can!

14. Silicon/Valentine's  - Imagine Silicon Valley king Mark Zuckerberg as someone's Valentine!

15. Phosphorus/tax return - Imagine igniting your tax return with phosphorus (not recommended in real life!)

16. Sulfur/ Sweet 16 (candies) - Imagine chocolate candies stinking like sulfur

17. Chlorine/'Seventeen magazine - Imagine reading Seventeen magazine by the pool and smelling the chlorine

18. Argon/voting booth - Imagine looking at the choices in a voting booth and saying "Aaaaaargh!!"

19. Potassium/golf - Imagine playing golf with a banana (they're rich in potassium!)

20. Calcium/pack of cigarettes - Imagine a cow smoking a cigarette

After you create these images, you'll find it very easy to recite the list from the top or bottom and to instantly recall any number. Quick, what's number 10?  Pen = Neon!

With the links, you can substitute other words for the numbers, such as one-gun or eight-gate but any word will do.  Have fun with the exercise and use it for any top 10 list that you can find useful!

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