Today is the first day of Ragbrai — the name of an annual bike ride across Iowa sponsored by the Des Moines Register newspaper. The word stands for the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. Not a race in the traditional sense, the event lasts for a week, with overnight stops at small towns spaced about 68 miles apart. Ten thousand riders are expected, the limit for the event, with many coming from countries around the world. Of these, 8,500 will cover the entire distance, while the remainder will peddle for a one-day segment only. Across the U.S., more than 38 million people enjoy bike riding as a recreational activity. Profile America is in its 16th year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.
Sunday, July 22nd. This is Parents’ Day — an annual public observance similar to Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, but not an official holiday. Its goal is to pay tribute to the men and women whose devotion to children strengthens families and society in general, whether they are actual parents or parental figures. Among the many activities of the day, “Parents of the Year” will be honored at local, state and national levels. As America changes demographically, the role of parents remains the same — to nurture children. Indicative of those changes is the fact that just over half of the nation’s children younger than one year are minorities. Profile America is produced by the U.S. Census Bureau: Measuring America–People, Places, and Our Economy.
Saturday, July 21st. Science fiction turned into bizarre truth on this date 28 years ago, in the first known instance in the U.S. of a robot killing a human being. The accident occurred at a Jackson, Michigan plant when an automated piece of machinery turned and crushed a 34-year-old worker against a safety bar. He died five days later. The accident proved that in reality, there is no such thing as “law zero,” as featured in Isaac Asimov’s landmark novel,” I, Robot,” which forbids robots from injuring human beings. Sometimes called “flexible manufacturing equipment,” robots are parts of the more than $350 billion worth of manufacturing machinery sold each year in the U.S. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at <www.census.gov>.
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