Starship Troopers is a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein
published in 1959. The first-person narrative is about a young soldier
named Juan Rico and his exploits in the Mobile Infantry, a futuristic
military unit equipped with powered armor. Rico's military career
progresses from recruit to non-commissioned officer and finally to
officer against the backdrop of an interstellar war between mankind
and an insectoid species known as "The Bugs". Through Rico's eyes,
Heinlein examines moral and philosophical aspects of capital
punishment, juvenile delinquency, civic virtue, and necessity of war.
Starship Troopers won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1960 and helped
create a sub-genre of literature known as military science fiction.
Starship Troopers has been adapted into several films and games, most
famously the 1997 film by Paul Verhoeven. The novel has attracted
controversy and criticism of its social and political themes, which
some critics believe are militaristic.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship_Troopers
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1786:
The Marriage of Figaro, an opera buffa composed by Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart, premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienna.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Marriage_of_Figaro)
1840:
The Penny Black, the first official adhesive postage stamp,
was issued in the United Kingdom.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_Black)
1893:
The World's Columbian Exposition, a World's Fair to celebrate the
400th anniversary of the discovery of the New World by Christopher
Columbus, opened in Chicago, United States.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_Columbian_Exposition)
1931:
The Empire State Building, at the time the tallest building in the
world, opened in New York City.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_State_Building)
1941:
Citizen Kane, a widely acclaimed film by Orson Welles, premiered.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_Kane)
1960:
Bombay State, India was partitioned into Gujarat and Maharashtra along
linguistic lines.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gujarat)
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Wikiquote of the day:
"I react pragmatically. Where the market works, I'm for that. Where
the government is necessary, I'm for that. I'm deeply suspicious of
somebody who says, 'I'm in favor of privatization,' or, 'I'm deeply in
favor of public ownership.' I'm in favor of whatever works in the
particular case." -- John Kenneth Galbraith
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Kenneth_Galbraith)