Robert Falcon Scott (1868–1912) was a Royal Navy officer and explorer
who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery
Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13.
During this second venture, Scott led a party of five which reached the
South Pole on 17 January 1912, only to find that they had been preceded
by Roald Amundsen's Norwegian expedition. On their return journey,
Scott and his four comrades all perished from a combination of
exhaustion, starvation and extreme cold. Following the news of his
death, Scott became an iconic British hero, a status maintained for
more than 50 years and reflected by the many permanent memorials
erected across the nation. In the closing decades of the 20th century,
however, in a more sceptical age, the legend was reassessed as
attention focused on the causes of the disaster and the extent of
Scott's personal culpability. From a previously unassailable position,
Scott became a figure of controversy, with questions raised about his
competence and character. Commentators in the 21st century have on the
whole regarded Scott more positively, emphasising his personal bravery
and stoicism while acknowledging his errors, but ascribing his
expedition's fate primarily to misfortune.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Falcon_Scott>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1260:
According to both modern and medieval Muslim historians, Qutuz, Mamluk
sultan of Egypt, was assassinated by a fellow Mamluk leader, Baibars,
who then seized power for himself.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qutuz>
1912:
First Balkan War: Serbian forces defeated the Ottoman army at the
Battle of Kumanovo in Vardar Macedonia.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kumanovo>
1931:
The George Washington Bridge, today considered one of the world's
busiest bridges in terms of vehicle traffic, connecting New York City
to Fort Lee, New Jersey, was dedicated.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington_Bridge>
1964:
The military court of South Vietnamese junta chief Nguyen Khanh
acquitted Generals Duong Van Duc and Lam Van Phat of leading a
September 1964 coup attempt against Khanh, despite the pair's
proclamation of his overthrow during their military action.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duong_Van_Duc>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
logological (adj):
1. Of or pertaining to logology; related to the study of words.
2. (linguistics) Of or pertaining to conceptual patterns or mental
categories of words and their referents
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/logological>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
A moment of choice is a moment of truth. It's the testing point of our
character and competence.
--Stephen Covey
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stephen_Covey>