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The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the fourteenth century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe. The word renaissance in French literally means “rebirth,” and the era is best known for the renewed interest in the culture of classical antiquity. Its cultural achievements include works of literature by such figures as Petrarch, Castiglione, and Machiavelli; works of art by artists such as Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci; and great works of architecture, such as The Duomo in Florence and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Popular Article: Hermann Rorschach

An inkblot used in the Rorschach test

Hermann Rorschach (November 8, 1884 - April 2, 1922), nicknamed Klecks, was a Swiss Freudian psychiatrist, best known for developing the projective test known, from his name, as the Rorschach inkblot test. The test is based on the theory that responding to ambiguous or unstructured stimuli would elicit disclosure of innermost feelings. Rorschach created ten standardized cards as well as a scoring system for the Inkblot test. Since his death, Rorschach's work has won international respect.

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Plans to build a bridge or tunnel across the Bering Strait were proposed as far back as the nineteenth century (source: Bering Strait)

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