Wikipedia

My Introduction to ChatGPT

Today, I was introduced to the power of ChatGPT by my grandson who is an IT professional. He is convinced that it is an important demonstration of the power of artificial intelligence (AI). “ He signed into it on his iPhone and asked me to suggest a question to ask. I suggested: “What is Pymatuning

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King Charles and the Western Reserve

Under normal circumstances, I do not pay much attention to the royalty in the United Kingdom or any other realm. But when Prince Charles ascended to the British throne as King Charles III upon the death of his mother a few weeks ago, I was reminded about the involvement of another King Charles in the

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Did Grandpa Dingman Die of the Spanish Flu

Today I watched a documentary presentation on the C-Span 3 network entitled “Influenza Pandemic and World War I..” The presenter was Nancy Bristow, professor of history, University of Puget Sound. The presentation was originally broadcast live on Nov. 1, 2019, from the National WWI Museum & Memorial in Kansas City, MO. Prof. Bristow made the

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A Finn Was Pitcher for Chicago White Sox

From time to time my cousin Matti in Finland sends emails with links to articles and other text material of interest to me and my brother Walfrid. This morning, he sent an item article about a Finnish national who came to America in the early 1900’s to pitch for the Chicago White Sox. It was

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FamilySearch Pushes Record Match to My Email

Sometimes genealogical records come to you. FamilySearch.org recently sent me an email with several possible matches. One of them involved my Uncle Frank Nikkari, who married my Aunt Edith Huskonen on 12 Apr 1915. I knew this fact from Frank’s obituary in the Ashtabula Star Beacon. I was happy to learn this date, but I

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What Are Double Cousins? Wikipedia to the Rescue

I just ran across a reference to double cousins and didn’t know what the reference meant. To find out, I went to Wikipedia, my go-to source of information when I have access to a computer or other digital device. I wasn’t sure what I would find or how detailed the explanation would be. But wow,

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“Love Never Dies” Leaves Cleveland

Yesterday was the last day of the Cleveland, Ohio, run for the Andrew Lloyd Weber musical, “Love Never Dies.” I didn’t attend any of the performances. It would have been way too sad for me to enjoy. Here’s why: my late wife, MJ, loved the smash hit, “Phantom of the Opera.” We saw it twice,

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Happy Australia Day Today!

Today is Australia Day. It is the 230th anniversary of the arrival of several British ships in what became the port of Sydney, Australia, loaded with convicts from Great Britain. These were the first white settlers in the continent of Australia. I don’t have any direct genealogical connection to Australia, but it does remind me

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Happy Boxing Day! But What Is Boxing Day?

I don’t have many lines extending back to England, Canada, or the former British Empire countries. But from time to time I have seen references to Boxing Day with respect to England, etc. I casually wondered what it was all about, but never enough to research it. On Christmas Day, Dick Eastman posted an explanation

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More on Grandpa Wallace Dingman

Earlier, I posted about my maternal Grandfather Wallace Betts Dingman and how he worked “for the railroad.” Click here for that post. I have done some more research which I would like to report on now. First, here is a photograph of Grandpa Wallace taken in 1918 when he reportedly was working as a switchman

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