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Other Gifts from France
It might be the most conspicuous, but the Statue of Liberty is far from France's only gift to the United States.
The Lancelot of the Revolutionary set
The Marquis de Lafayette joined the Continental Army when he was just 19, but he became one of Washington's most trusted generals.
Guns and ships
Yes, another Hamilton reference. The French naval victory at the Battle of Chesapeake made possible the Franco-American victory at Yorktown.
The Creole Goddess
Josephine Baker renounced her American citizenship and built a new life in France, but returned to the U.S. (after serving as an agent of the French Resistance) to participate in the civil rights movement.
All those D.C. traffic circles
Pierre L'Enfant served in the Continental Army and created the urban plan for the new American capital.
The Statue of Liberty Arrives in the United States
The colossal monument to the friendship between the United States and France reached New York on June 17, 1885. It was constructed in Paris under sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi. Architect Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc and engineer Gustave Eiffel designed the four gigantic steel supports on which sheets of copper were hammered. The statue was disassembled, shipped to the U.S., and then rebuilt in New York over the next year. President Grover Cleveland finally dedicated the sculpture on October 28, 1886.
New on Britannica

Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks have become a critical form of personal protection not just for doctors, nurses, and patients but for ordinary people out for a walk or off to pick up groceries. But do face masks really protect against the spread of infectious respiratory diseases? And, if so, just how effective are they?

There are various ways of defining “unemployed,” each yielding a distinct unemployment rate. The standard unemployment rate, referred to as U-3, is the one most often cited, but there’s also what is often called the “real” unemployment rate, or U-6. Get your head around it here.
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Can Apple Seeds Kill You?
Do you dare to take a bite of the poison apple (core)?
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The Muppets
Created by Jim Henson in 1955, the Muppets debuted...

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Volcano
geology
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Know Your Capes
Which cape is home to Kennedy Space Center? Which cape...
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Final Resting Places
You may know their lives, but do you know their deaths?...

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MERS
pathology
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What’s the Difference Between HIV and AIDS?
Learn about the illnesses most prone to public misconception.
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Can You Really Be Scared to Death?
The phrase is a colloquialism. Is there a literal meaning...

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Slavery
sociology
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Famous Serial Killers
Some people can’t kill just once. How much do you know...
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What Is the “Ides” of March?
And should you really beware?

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Poets and Poetry (Part Two) Quiz
Do you know which ancient Roman poet wrote
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Japanese Literature: A Pop Quiz
Here’s an extremely short quiz about the long history...

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Brain Games: 8 Philosophical Puzzles and Paradoxes
Dust off your thinking cap.
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12 Greek Gods and Goddesses
Crazy? These gods aren’t crazy. Nooo….

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Structures of Government: Fact or Fiction?
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Amendments to the U.S. Constitution
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Chemical bonding
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What Causes the Northern and Southern Lights?
What causes the auroras—that is, the northern lights...
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Man Bites Shark
Each year, millions of sharks are “finned” to make...

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Is It Really Dangerous to Swim After Eating?
Aside from the sharks, that is.
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Indianapolis 500
Think you know everything about the Greatest Spectacle...

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Intermediate technology
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Technological Ingenuity
From the first tools of early humans to IBM’s Deep...
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Gadgets and Technology: Fact or Fiction?
Is virtual reality only used in toys? Have robots ever...

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Know Your Photographers
How many famous photographers can you name? Test your...
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Name the Impressionists
Can you match these famous Impressionists’ surnames...

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Julius Caesar
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A Study of History: Who, What, Where, and When?
When was the world’s first detective bureau founded?...
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Criminality and Famous Outlaws
How many prisoners escaped from Alcatraz? With what...