IT Insights Blog — Microsoft Word

Did you ever wonder, as a child, what you would do for a living as an adult? Almost every kid wants to do something glamorous. Fight fires. Walk on the moon. Be a movie star. Join the circus as a lion tamer. Become the President of the United States. Sometimes the dreams get slightly more refined as a teenager: Learn to play the guitar and start a rock band, for example. Or maybe win a cooking competition on TV and become a world-famous restaurateur like Guy Fieri.

Among the notable births of the year 1988 are Tiffany Two, the world's oldest known house cat (died at age 27 in 2015); Steph Curry, two-time NBA MVP and star point guard of the Golden State Warriors; Adele (birth name: Adele Laurie Blue Adkins), singer-songwriter and one of history's top-selling recording artists; and Japan's famous Tokyo Dome sports venue.

The origin of the phrase "Back to square one" is highly disputed among etymologists. Some believe the term derived from the popular board game Chutes and Ladders, while others claim its origins must come from the playground pastime hopscotch. Another popular theory is that the phrase originated with BBC radio commentators calling a game of football. (That's "soccer" to all of our American readers.)

Halloween began as a celebration of the western Christian feast of All Hallows’ Day. It was a time of year dedicated to the remembering of the dead, especially saints, martyrs and other departed faithful. Over the years, pagan influences built upon the religious foundation of All Hallows’ Day, leading to the modern-day Halloween celebration.

Some activities in society are restricted by age. For example, in the United States you have to be 18 or 19 in most states to purchase tobacco products, and at least that old in many states to legally use them. (There’s no age restriction at all for legal use in a number of states, whereas California and Hawaii have a minimum smoking age of 21.) The legal voting age in every U.S. state is 18. And you have to be at least 16 in every U.S. state but four (Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota and South Carolina) to legally operate a vehicle.