as summarized in "Writer's Almanac" (Garrison Keillor, American Public Media):
Today (April 14 and overnight) is the anniversary when on this night 100 years ago that the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg on its way from Southampton, England, to New York City. The ship, on its maiden voyage and carrying more than 2,000 people, was designed with watertight compartments to withstand a head-on or side-impact collision. Instead, it scraped along the side of an iceberg for 10 seconds trying to avoid it, tearing open numerous separate compartments. The accident happened at 11:40 p.m.; less than an hour before, a nearby ship attempted to radio the Titanic to beware of ice ahead. The ship's wireless operator on duty, overwhelmed with his job of relaying personal messages to passengers, replied, "Shut up, shut up, I'm busy ..."
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