1644 - England grants a patent to Providence Plantations for what is now Rhode Island 1845 - -5.3°F (-20.7°C) in Groningen, Netherlands 1903 - W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory's play "Hour-glass" premieres in Dublin 1912 - King Vittorio Emanuel III of Italy injured in an assassination attempt 1990 - Mikhail Gorbachev becomes president of the Soviet Congress 1993 - Ricky Ponting hits twin tons for Tasmania aged 18 years 84 days 1993 - 14th Big East Men's Basketball Tournament: Seton Hall beats Syracuse, 103-70 2016 - NASA releases data showing February 2016 warmest month ever recorded globally - 1.35C above the long-term average More Historical Events »

NASA/JSCRonald McNair made his first space voyage in 1984, becoming the second Black American in space. On Jan. 28, 1986, millions of Americans turned on their TVs to watch the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger. But shortly after the shuttle lifted off, what should have been a jubilant moment turned to horror when the Challenger exploded. All seven astronauts aboard were killed, including 35-year-old mission specialist and physicist Ronald McNair. McNair, the second Black astronaut to go to space, was also a father of two, a black belt in karate, and saxophone player — in fact, he’d been hoping to record the first piece of original music in space during the mission. But perhaps the most impressive thing about McNair was how he fought racism in his youth to become a well-respected physicist and astronaut. This is the remarkable story of Ronald McNair, the Black physicist who sadly perished during the Challenger disaster. From The Jim Crow South To Physics At MIT Born on Oct. 21, 1950, Ronald McNair grew up in the Jim Crow South. He spent his childhood in the segregated town of Lake City, South Carolina, where his mother taught high school and his father was an auto body technician. The family was poor, without electricity or running water, and McNair made extra money picking cotton. “I gained qualities in that cotton field,” he later said. “I got tough. I learned to endure. I refuse to quit.” McNair was also curious and intelligent from a young age. According to reporting from The New York Times in 1986, McNair was able to read words by the age of three. When he was a little older, he decided he wanted to learn more about science, and walked a mile to the local public library. MIT Black HistoryRonald McNair as a grad student at MIT in the 1970s. But the white librarian told McNair that he wasn’t allowed in the library and ordered him to leave. When he refused, the librarian called the police, who told the librarian, “Why don’t you just give the kid the books?” As a teenager, McNair also began watching Star Trek. His brother Carl explained in an interview that McNair was inspired by the show’s multiracial cast, which made it seem possible for a Black man to become an astronaut. “Star Trek showed the future where there were black folk and white folk working together,” Carl McNair recalled to Storyful in 2013. “That motivated Ronald to become an astronaut.” After Ronald McNair graduated as the valedictorian of his high school class, he set a goal for himself to get a Ph.D. in 10 years. He soon earned a physics degree at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, and went on to earn a Ph.D. in physics from MIT at the age of 26. McNair became a research scientist at California’s Hughes Research Laboratories. And in 1978, McNair applied to NASA as an astronaut candidate. Ronald McNair, The Second Black Astronaut In Space NASA received over 8,000 applicants for its astronaut program, and chose just 35 people. McNair was one of them. The 1978 class at NASA broke records. In addition to Ronald McNair, the group included Sally Ride, who would become the first American woman in space, and Guion “Guy” Bluford, the first Black astronaut. NASANASA’s 1978 class included Ronald McNair, Guion Bluford, and Fred Gregory. Once he joined NASA, McNair spent a year in the training program. His first space flight launched on Feb. 3, 1984, making McNair the second Black astronaut to go to space. He was in charge of deploying communications satellites and flight testing the Manned Maneuvering Unit. While in orbit, McNair also memorably played his saxophone. NASADuring his first space mission, Ronald McNair played the saxophone. He also brought his instrument on the Challenger. An experienced astronaut, Ronald McNair had spent 191 hours in space when he was selected for the Challenger mission in 1986. How Ronald McNair Died During The Challenger Disaster In addition to Ronald McNair, the crew of the Challenger also included Ellison Onizuka, the first Japanese-American in space, and Judith Resnick, the second American woman in space. Astronauts Gregory Jarvis and Michael Smith were also part of the crew led by mission commander Francis Scobee, and a teacher named Christa McAuliffe had also joined the mission as part of President Ronald Reagan’s “Teacher in Space Project.” Getty ImagesRonald McNair was one of seven people chosen for the Challenger mission. The Challenger was set to take-off on Jan. 28, 1986, but Ronald McNair had a bad feeling about the launch, and shared his doubts with his brother Carl. “[Ronald] said, ‘The weather is not looking good and things are icing up,'” Carl recalled, according to the Keene Sentinel. “‘I don’t think we are going to launch.'” However, the Challenger launch went forward despite the near-freezing temperatures. And, 73 seconds after take-off, the shuttle exploded. Corbis/VCG/Getty ImagesThe seven-person crew of the Challenger walking to the launchpad. “As it got higher and higher, the solid rocket booster started to veer off, and I didn’t know how I knew. But I knew they were gone,” Carl said. “I stood there with tears streaming down my eyes, saying ‘Oh my God, oh my God’ — what so many people were saying in unison around the world.” All seven members of the crew died. A later investigation pointed to a faulty O-ring, damaged from the cold temperatures. NASA had been warned about the potential for disaster by multiple engineers but had sadly ignored the warnings. The Remarkable Legacy Of The World’s Second Black Astronaut Ronald McNair was 35 years old when he died. He left behind a wife, Cheryl, and two children, Reginald and Joy. After McNair’s death, Congress created the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program to support low-income, first generation, and underrepresented students attending doctoral programs. McNair’s family also founded the DREME Foundation to bring STEM education to schools. National ArchivesRonald McNair’s family created a foundation to bring STEM programs to schools. As for the library that once refused to let nine-year-old McNair check out books? It’s now home to the Ronald E. McNair Life History Center. After reading about the impressive life of Ronald McNair, the Black astronaut and physicist who sadly died during the Challenger disaster, discover the story behind the Soyuz 11 disaster, the failed Soviet response to the Moon Landing. Or, look through these stunning images of outer space that were taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. The post The Story Of Ronald McNair, The Pioneering Black Astronaut Who Died In The Challenger Disaster appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Leeds City CouncilThe Phoenician coin that someone used as bus fare in 1950s Leeds. In the 1950s, a passenger in Leeds, England, boarded a bus and paid for their fare with a coin, as usual — or so it seemed. This particular coin later proved, in fact, to be most unusual. When the fares were eventually counted up, this strange, rather old-looking coin was set off to the side by the chief cashier, who gave it to his grandson as an odd little collectible. Now, more than 70 years later, researchers have taken a closer look at the coin — and realized that it was minted 2,000 years ago. More specifically, the coin was created by the ancient Phoenicians and originates from a Carthaginian settlement in Spain. While many questions about the coin remain, including how it ended up as bus fare in 1950s England, the discovery remains as exciting as it is unexpected. The Discovery Of A 2,000-Year-Old Phoenician Coin Among Bus Fare In England According to a statement from the Leeds City Council, the Phoenician coin was picked out of the fare pile sometime in the 1950s by James Edwards, the chief cashier with Leeds City Transport. His job was to count the total bus fare at the end of the day and pick out any non-British coins. He would often come across coins that were ineligible, fake, or foreign, some of which he then gifted to his young grandson, Peter Edwards. Leeds City CouncilJames Edwards, the chief cashier with Leeds City Transport, who picked the coin out of a pile and gifted it to his grandson, Peter. “My grandfather would come across coins which were not British and put them to one side, and when I went to his house, he would hand me a few,” Peter Edwards recalled. “It was not long after [World War II], so I imagine soldiers returned with coins from countries they had been sent to. Neither of us were coin collectors but we were fascinated by their origin and imagery – to me they were treasure.” Out of all the coins that Peter had been given by his grandfather, one stood out. Decades after he first received it, Peter decided to do some research — and discovered that it was a 2,000-year-old Phoenician coin. The Astounding History Behind This Ancient Phoenician Coin Leeds City CouncilKat Baxter, Leeds Museums and Galleries’ curator of archaeology and numismatics, holding up the Phoenician coin. The Phoenician coin caught Peter Edwards’ eye for a reason. On one side, it features an impressive figure that we now know is the powerful Phoenician god Melqart, depicted as the Greek hero Hercules, wearing his famed lion skin headdress. On the other side, it depicts a pair of bluefin tuna. After Edwards uncovered some information about the coin’s age and provenance, he donated the coin to the Leeds Museums and Galleries. Researchers have since determined that it was minted in the the Spanish city of Cadiz, then part of Carthage, a Phoenician city-state, in the first century B.C.E. According to the museum, some Phoenician coins at the time used Greek imagery, in order to appear more appealing to traders. “It’s incredible to imagine how this tiny piece of history created by an ancient civilization thousands of years ago has somehow made its way to Leeds and into our collection,” said Leeds City Councillor Salma Arif. “Museums like ours are not just about preserving objects, they’re also about telling stories like this one and inspiring visitors to think about the history that’s all around us, sometimes in the most unlikely of places.” Indeed, it’s a mystery how the Phoenician coin made its way from ancient Carthage, into the pocket of a 20th-century English citizen who, perhaps unknowingly, deposited it as bus fare. But whatever the case may be, Peter Edwards is happy that the coin has now ended up in the hands of the museum, where it can be preserved and displayed for generations to come. “The coin always fascinated me because it was hard to decipher where it came from,” Peter Edwards said. “My grandfather would be proud to know, as I am, that the coin is coming back to Leeds.” He added: “However, how it got there will always be a mystery.” After reading about the 2,000-year-old Phoenician coin that was surprisingly discovered among old bus fare in England, discover the story of Tyrian purple, the luxurious dye coveted by wealthy elites in antiquity. Then, learn about Queen Dido, the legendary founder of the empire of Carthage. The post This Mysterious Coin Was Used To Pay For A Bus In Leeds. Now It’s Been Identified As A 2,000-Year-Old Phoenician Coin appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Chippendales is best known for its muscular male dancers, exuberant crowds of women, and dynamic shows. But the Chippendales murders proved that the lighthearted franchise had a dark side. In the 1980s and 1990s, Chippendales’ founder Steve Banerjee plotted multiple deaths. He orchestrated the murder of his business partner, set out to kill his rivals, and firebombed his competition. Though Banerjee was eventually caught, his suicide before his sentencing brought a shocking end to the story of the Chippendales murders. How Steve Banerjee Started Chippendales Bettmann/Getty ImagesA male dancer at the Chippendales club in Los Angeles in 1979. In 1975, an Indian immigrant named Somen “Steve” Banerjee bought a struggling Los Angeles bar called Destiny II. He renamed it Chippendales and sought to jumpstart its reputation in the City of Angels. Though Banerjee was soft-spoken, he wanted Chippendales to be loud and fun. He took the advice of promoter Paul Snider (who later shot and killed Playboy model Dorothy Stratten in 1980 before turning the gun on himself) and started a “Male Exotic Dance Night for Ladies Only” in 1979. At first, “all the guys were worried about their image,” Banerjee recalled. But the show delighted female customers, who soon lined up to get in. “It was the first time ever where something was completely geared to the ladies,” explained Candace Mayeron, the former associate producer for Chippendales. “We built an environment for women to let it all hang out.” Franchise founder Steve Banerjee was behind the Chippendales murders. But as Chippendales expanded, Banerjee became dangerously obsessed with protecting its success — even if it meant resorting to violence. In 1979, he quietly sent someone to burn down Moody’s Disco, a rival nightclub. And in 1984, he tried to do the same at the Red Onion restaurant and bar. Meanwhile, Banerjee had started working with New York-based producer and choreographer Nick De Noia to expand Chippendales’ business. But Banerjee and De Noia butted heads. According to Read Scot, a Chippendales dancer, they “used to go toe to toe and just scream and curse at each other.” Banerjee envied De Noia’s creativity and charisma. He also resented that people had started referring to De Noia — and not Banerjee — as “Mr. Chippendales.” And though he and De Noia had made a deal on a napkin that gave De Noia 50 percent of the profits from Chippendales’ tours, Banerjee began to suspect that De Noia was shortchanging him. In 1987, Steve Banerjee decided he’d “take care” of Nick De Noia — for good. That year, the Chippendales murders began in earnest. Inside The Chippendales Murders Candace MayeronCandace Mayeron with Nick De Noia, a victim of the Chippendales murders. On April 7, 1987, a gunman walked into Nick De Noia’s 15th-floor New York office and shot him in the left cheek. De Noia died — and many at Chippendales suspected they knew who was behind the hit. “I’m going to kill that motherf***** Steve Banerjee,” one of the dancers told Mayeron. As for Mayeron, she also thought that Banerjee was guilty. She wrote, “There wasn’t a scintilla of doubt in my mind that it was Steve either.” Indeed, Steve Banerjee had orchestrated De Noia’s murder. The FBI eventually pieced together that Banerjee had hired a man named Ray Colon to kill De Noia. Colon, in turn, enlisted the services of Gilberto Rivera Lopez. Ultimately, Lopez had been the one to shoot Banerjee’s rival. The story of the Chippendales murders might have ended there. But despite rumors, nothing linked Banerjee to the scene. He remained free — and even bought back the Chippendales touring rights from De Noia’s family. Marie DeNoia Aronsohn/TwitterNick De Noia helped develop Chippendales’ iconic choreography before his murder. But Banerjee continued to ruthlessly protect the franchise that he had built. In 1991, he hired Colon again. This time, Banerjee wanted him to go to England and kill a number of former Chippendales employees, including Scot, who’d left Chippendales for a rival troupe called Adonis. Just like with the murder of De Noia, Colon enlisted a hitman to get the job done. But the hitman — known only as “Strawberry” — got cold feet and decided to reach out to the FBI. He explained to the agents that Colon had given him cyanide, a list of names, and instructions to go to England. “Any agent, whether you’re straight out of the academy or whether you’re a 25-year agent, this is the kind of case you want to get involved in,” recalled FBI special agent Scott Garriola, who investigated the Chippendales murders. Garriola explained, “Not only did we have this conspiracy to kill people over in London, but we have a murder which actually occurred in New York in 1987. We have two arsons we have to investigate, and this conspiracy extended from the mid-70s all the way up until… 1991.” The FBI searched Colon’s house and found enough cyanide to kill 230 people. And Colon, after stewing in jail for seven months, finally agreed to help authorities solve the Chippendales murders. All roads, he said, led to Steve Banerjee. How The Chippendales Murders Ended Years after the Chippendales murders, an A&E documentary called Secrets of the Chippendales Murders examined the case in depth in 2022. That same year, a fictionalized account called Immigrant also aired on Hulu. Over the next several months, the FBI tried to use Ray Colon to get Steve Banerjee to confess on tape. But Banerjee proved difficult to pin down. When the two men met on June 23, 1992, in an IHOP bathroom, Banerjee refused to say anything out loud. When Colon asked him questions, Banerjee only wrote his answers down on Post-it notes. He then tore the notes up and threw them in the toilet, flushing them down the drain. Banerjee even demanded that Colon strip down to prove that he didn’t have a wiretap. Colon did, but he managed to conceal it in the flap of his underwear. Still, authorities got nowhere in their investigation. “We don’t capture anything on a recording device,” Garriola explained. “There’s a lot of rustling and you could hear whisper-talking, you could hear scratching of a pencil. You just can’t hear anything of value.” Undeterred, the FBI decided to try again. They had Colon convince Banerjee that he was a fugitive on the run. Banerjee apparently bought the story — and agreed to meet with him in Zurich, Switzerland. This time, with agents listening through a wall, Banerjee was more forthcoming. “We hear Banerjee confess to his complicity in hiring Ray Colon for the murder of De Noia. They talk about the attempted murders of Read Scot and other dancers,” Garriola said. “We were able to get the evidence that we needed.” In September 1993, the FBI arrested Banerjee. The Chippendales founder was then charged with hiring a hitman to kill the former dancers, with De Noia’s murder, and with violating the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) through murder, murder for hire, solicitation to commit murder, and arson. He faced 26 years in prison. But on the day before Banerjee’s sentencing, October 23, 1994, the Chippendales murder case took one final, shocking twist. “There was no way I was going to miss Steve’s sentencing,” recalled Mayeron. “I was on the courthouse steps with our MC and two of our dancers, when someone came out and said there would be no hearing, because Steve had killed himself in jail the night before. I felt cheated, big time.” Steve Banerjee had hanged himself in his prison cell, having allegedly said that he’d “leave the country or kill himself” rather than go to prison. “Mr. Banerjee tied a piece of bedsheet around his neck, placed it on a wall-mounted jacket hanger, and pulled down on it while he kneeled, causing the flow of air to be cut off; that caused his death,” explained Reonard McFadden, the executive to the warden at the detention center. His suicide marked a stunning conclusion to the Chippendales murder saga. It also highlighted a shocking truth: that Chippendales, a franchise based on fun, sex, and dancing, had its roots in arson, betrayal, and murder. After reading about the Chippendales murders, learn about Paul Snider, the nightclub promoter who killed Playboy model Dorothy Stratten. Then, take a look at the shocking and satanic Corpsewood Manor murders. The post Inside The Chippendales Murders And The Horrific Crimes Of Steve Banerjee appeared first on All That's Interesting.

  Those familiar with samurai history will be familiar with the phrase kyuba-no-michi, most often translated as “the way of horse and bow.” Samurai from their very beginnings back in the Heian Period of Japanese history, ranging from 794-1185 AD, were mounted archers who used the tachi for close combat. The yumi, however, was an asymmetrical longbow that formed the mainstay of the samurai arsenal for hundreds of years, occupying the same level of prestige as the English longbow.   It should also be noted that the yumi did not come into existence during the Heian Period, but instead much earlier, with mentions of it being made by visiting Chinese traders during the Three Kingdoms Period. Like all weapons, it had to evolve into the form we know today.   What is the Yumi? A Good Time for Japanese Archery, by Totoya Hokkei, 1824. Source: Ukiyo-e.org   The yumi is the traditional longbow used by the samurai throughout most of their existence, but really, it is the word used to refer to any bow. When we refer to the yumi today, we’re talking about the most advanced form of the weapon, the yohonhigo, with a bamboo laminate core, bamboo back and belly, and hardwood sides. Yumi come in two broad categories: daikyu, which is the extremely large bow that we associate with the term; and hankyu, or “half bow,” seen in the image above.   The most obvious distinction of the yumi comes from its large size compared to similar bows: it could be over two meters (6.5 feet) long, likely much taller than the archer wielding it. The reason for the extra length was material constraints. Japan is poor in the natural resources that are used to make the more powerful composite bows used by, for instance, the Mongolian steppe archers. Wood and bamboo are what the Japanese had to work with mostly, and those materials are not as strong. To enable heavier draw weights that would be effective in warfare, they had to make the bows longer so that the recoil force would be distributed over a wider area, as well as greater draw lengths, which provided more acceleration to the arrow upon release.   Why the Asymmetry? Archery and Horse, by Kobori Tomone, 1924. Source: Ukiyo-e.org   The other visually striking element of the yumi is its unusual shape: where most bows have the grip situated at the center, the grip of the yumi is a third of the way up the bow, making the upper portion twice as long as the lower. One of the most commonly held theories maintains that the unusual grip location was meant to allow the archer to switch between firing to the right or the left more easily while mounted. However, the earliest yumi date to before horses were widely used in warfare. Also, the o-yoroi armor worn by Heian and early Kamakura-period samurai had extra protection on the left, indicating that they would fire primarily to the left side.   Instead, the grip position is at a vibration node on the bow, meaning that the recoil causes little if any vibration in the user’s hand or arm. This helps to keep the archer’s aim steady. Also, the grip of the bow naturally aligns with the anatomy of the hand, wrist, and forearm, making it less tiring or stressful on the wrist to shoot for long periods like during a battle.   Finally, the Japanese value asymmetry in their art and culture, and even though the shape of the bow is what it is for practical reasons, it became ingrained in aesthetic values, and many yumi are also seen and treated as works of art rather than just weapons.   Materials Bamboo in Summer, by Kasamatsu Shiro, 1954. Source: Ukiyo-e.org   The yumi is made of bamboo, hardwood, and leather. The earliest yumi were self bows, which is the term used to describe bows made out of a single piece of material, which was wood. Most often, it was yew, waxwood, or maple. Later, bamboo became an integral part of the bow, often used as a laminated surface to impart more strength and flexibility to the wood core.   Rattan strips and leather are also present: rattan windings around the yumi help to add even more strength and durability to the structure, while leather was most often used to make the nigiri, or grip. Rattan could also be used to denote the skill or rank of the archer who owned the bow.   In modern times, yumi can be made from synthetic materials such as fiberglass, making them last longer, but they aren’t considered as aesthetically pleasing or as responsive.   Crafting the Bow A set of carpenter’s chisels used for woodworking. Source: Library of Congress   The bowyer first goes to collect madake bamboo that has been growing for at least five years; this allows it to grow enough to have the strength and flexibility required to make an acceptable yumi. Each stalk makes a single bow. The bowyer has to carefully select for uniform node length and straightness of the stalks. Winter is the best time to harvest, because there is less moisture in the bamboo.   Once the bamboo is harvested, it is cut into four pieces lengthwise and allowed to dry for the next several months. Meanwhile, they select already-harvested bamboo that has undergone a smoking process that can last for over five years. The pieces get shaven down to tiny strips because no two pieces of bamboo are alike; there are no uniform cross-section measurements. Additional pieces of bamboo are cut and glued to the back and belly of the bow, and wood is glued to the sides. Then the shaping process begins.   After wrapping the bow in overlapping crisscrossing knots, the bowyer inserts small wedges at each cross, hammering them into place and gradually bending the bow to take its final shape and letting it rest on a rack while the glue finishes drying. Once this is complete, the bowyer can put the string, which is made from hemp or silk, onto the bow. While the bottom of the bow has the string centered as would be expected, the top has the string slightly right of center.   Arrows and Arrowheads Fujiwara no Hidesato, from the Thirty-six Ghosts series, by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, 1890. Source: Ukiyo-e.org   The arrows, known as ya, of the yumi are made of steam-straightened bamboo, cut to different dimensions depending on the intended use. They are on average a meter long (3.2 feet), making them larger than the arrows most archers are familiar with using, but this is because the yumi has a longer draw length and the arrow has to be stabilized against the bow.   A variety of arrowheads, called yajiri, were made for specialized uses. The kaburi-ya, for example, was an arrowhead equipped with a whistle to frighten the enemy or call upon the favor of the kami. Karimata had a crescent-shaped head used for cutting ropes during naval warfare and was likely also used to hunt game. Meanwhile, watakusi were barbed arrows that would make gaping wounds, tearing off inside the body if the arrow was removed. Sankaku arrows were bodkin points designed to pierce armor. Fletching was traditionally made of the feathers of hawks, cranes, pheasants, or eagles, but if those were unavailable, they would use geese.   Shooting Technique Samurai Archer, by Utagawa Yoshitoram, 1870. Source: Ukiyo-e.org   The archery techniques for kyudo are tailored for the unique design of the bow, and as such are different from what you might be used to if you practice Western archery. The foot position is similar to the open position, with the leading foot pointed at the target and the trailing foot pointing outward. The arrow is nocked to rest on the outside of the bow, helping to reduce the so-called archer’s paradox. After pointing the arrow at the target, they raise their arms into the air while keeping the bow straight and drawing the arrow as they bring the bow down to eye level. Because of the larger size of the bow and thus greater draw length, the arms are fully extended, with the thumb of the right hand hooked over the string. This grip enables a smooth, quick release.   Because the yumi has its string off-center, the recoil causes the bow to naturally twist in the wrist. When coupled with the loose grip used by kyudoka, the bow’s momentum causes it to spin all the way around so the arrow does not make too much contact with the bow, allowing it to fly in a straighter path, rather than having to curve around the bow and correct its path back to the target.   Buying a Yumi Heroes of the Battle of Yashima, by Toyohara Chikanobu, 1898. Source: Ukiyo-e.org   If you want to learn kyudo and buy a yumi for yourself, it is important to get the proper measurements. To find your draw length, called yazuka, stand upright and hold your left arm parallel to the ground with your fingers extended. Measure from the tip of the middle finger to the center of your body. The length of the yumi should be roughly two and a third times greater than this measurement, and the arrows should be anywhere from 10 to 15 centimeters (4 to 6 inches) longer than the draw length. As you can see in the image above, the samurai on horseback is at full draw. If you go to an archery shop that sells yumi, have the seller take your measurements and help you select the bow that is the right size for your body.   If you prefer to shop online, treat the purchase with the same caution you would anything else online; yumi can be expensive. Check the seller’s reviews independently of the main site, if possible, and familiarize yourself with any warranties or return policies. For beginners or for those on a budget, it might be worth getting a synthetic yumi, but if you plan to join a kyudo or kyujutsu school, they may require you to own a traditionally-made bow.