The trade and usage of saffron reaches back more than 3,000 years and
includes marketing for medicinal, culinary, and colourative
applications. Saffron, a spice derived from the dried stigmas of the
saffron crocus, has remained among history's most costly comestibles.
With its bitter taste, hay-like fragrance, and slight metallic notes,
saffron has been used as a seasoning, fragrance, dye, and medicine.
Saffron is native to Southwest Asia, but was first cultivated in
Greece. In both antiquity and modern times, most saffron was and is
used in the preparation of food and drink: cultures spread across
Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas value the red threads for use
in such items as baked goods, curries, and liquor. Medicinally,
saffron was used in ancient times to cure a wide range of ailments,
including stomach upsets, bubonic plague, and smallpox; clinical
trials have shown saffron's potential as an anticancer and anti-aging
agent. Since the 1980s, saffron has been used as a precursor in MDMA
synthesis. Saffron has been used to colour textiles and other items,
many of which carry a religious or hierarchical significance.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_and_usage_of_saffron
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1364:
English forces defeated the French at the Battle of Auray in the
French town of Auray, the decisive confrontation of the Breton War of
Succession, a part of the Hundred Years' War
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Auray)
1829:
British Home Secretary Robert Peel founded the Metropolitan Police
of Greater London, also known as the Met.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Police_Service)
1938:
Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, British Prime Minister Neville
Chamberlain, and French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier signed the
Munich Agreement, stipulating that Czechoslovakia must cede the
Sudetenland to Germany.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudetenland)
1941:
German Nazis aided by their collaborators began the Babi Yar
massacre in Kiev, Ukraine, killing over 30,000 Jewish civilians in two
days and thousands more in the months that followed.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babi_Yar)
1954:
Twelve countries signed a convention establishing the European
Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), currently the world's
largest particle physics laboratory.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CERN)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
xenogenetic: Being of foreign origin; having originated elsewhere.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/xenogenetic)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
Honesty is the best policy, I will stick to that. The good shall have
my hand and heart, but the bad neither foot nor fellowship. And in my
mind, the main point of governing, is to make a good beginning. --
Miguel de Cervantes
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Miguel_de_Cervantes)
Henry was a legendary Swedish clergyman. Conquering Finland
together with King Eric the Saint of Sweden and dying as a martyr,
Henry became central in the local Roman Catholic Church. Even today,
together with his alleged murderer Lalli, he remains one of the best
recognized persons from the history of Finland. The authenticity of
the accounts of Henry's life, ministry, and death is widely disputed.
On the basis of the traditional accounts of Henry's death, he was
locally recognized as a saint, prior to the founding of the
Congregation for the Causes of the Saints. He continues to be
remembered as a local observance in the Catholic Church of Finland. He
is also commemorated in several Protestant liturgical calendars.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry%2C_Bishop_of_Uppsala
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1066:
William the Conqueror and his fleet of around 600 ships landed at
Pevensey, Sussex, beginning the Norman conquest of England.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_conquest_of_England)
1542:
Portuguese explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, the first European to
travel along the coast of California, landed on what is now the City
of San Diego.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Rodr%C3%ADguez_Cabrillo)
1972:
Paul Henderson scored the game-winning goal against Vladislav
Tretiak, securing a Canadian victory in the Summit Series over the
Soviet ice hockey team.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summit_Series)
1994:
The ferry MS Estonia sank while commuting between Tallinn, Estonia,
and Stockholm, Sweden, claiming 852 lives in one of the worst maritime
accidents in the Baltic Sea.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%2FS_Estonia)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
dyscalculia: (pathology) Difficulty in solving mathematical problems.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dyscalculia)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
A man's life is interesting primarily when he has failed — I well
know. For it's a sign that he tried to surpass himself. -- Georges
Clemenceau
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Georges_Clemenceau)
Hannah Primrose, Countess of Rosebery was the daughter of Baron Mayer
de Rothschild and his wife Juliana, née Cohen. On the death of her
father in 1874 she became the richest woman in Britain. Her husband,
the 5th Earl of Rosebery, was, during the final quarter of the
nineteenth century, one of the most celebrated figures in Britain, an
influential millionaire and politician, whose charm, wit, charisma and
public popularity gave him such standing that he "almost eclipsed
royalty". Her marriage into the aristocracy, while controversial at
the time, gave her the social cachet in an anti-Semitic society that
her vast fortune could not. She subsequently became a political
hostess and philanthropist. Her charitable work was principally in the
sphere of public health and causes associated with the welfare of
working class Jewish women living in the poorer districts of London.
Having firmly assisted and supported her husband on his path to
political greatness, she suddenly died in 1890, aged 39, leaving him
to achieve, bewildered and without her support, the political destiny
which she had plotted alone. His premiership of the United Kingdom was
shambolic, and lasted barely a year.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannah_Primrose%2C_Countess_of_Rosebery
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1580:
The Golden Hind sailed into Plymouth, England, as Francis Drake
completed his circumnavigation of the globe.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Drake)
1687:
The Parthenon in Athens was partially destroyed during an armed
conflict between the Venetians under Francesco Morosini and Ottoman
forces.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenon)
1907:
Newfoundland and New Zealand became dominions within the British
Empire.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newfoundland_and_Labrador)
1957:
West Side Story, a musical based loosely on Shakespeare's Romeo and
Juliet that was written by Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein and
Stephen Sondheim, and produced and directed by Jerome Robbins, made
its debut on Broadway.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Side_Story)
1983:
Lieutenant Colonel Stanislav Petrov of the Soviet Union averted a
possible worldwide nuclear war by deliberately certifying what
otherwise appeared to be an impending attack by the United States as a
false alarm.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanislav_Petrov)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
zeugma: The act of using a word, particularly an adjective or verb, to
apply to more than one noun when its sense is appropriate to only one
or in different ways.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/zeugma)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
Go, go, go, said the bird: human kind Cannot bear very much reality.
Time past and time future What might have been and what has been Point
to one end, which is always present. -- T. S. Eliot in The Four
Quartets --
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/T._S._Eliot)
The inaugural games of the Flavian Amphitheatre were held in 80 AD, on
the orders of the Roman Emperor Titus, to celebrate the completion of
the Colosseum, then known as the Flavian Amphitheatre. Vespasian began
construction of the amphitheatre around 70 AD, and it was completed by
Titus soon after Vespasian's death in 79 AD. After Titus' reign began
with months of disasters, including the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, a
fire in Rome, and an outbreak of plague, he inaugurated the building
with lavish games which lasted for more than a hundred days, perhaps
partially in an attempt to appease the Roman public and the gods.
Little documentary evidence of the nature of the games remains. They
appear to have followed the standard format of the Roman games: animal
entertainments in the morning session, followed by the executions of
criminals around midday, with the afternoon session reserved for
gladiatorial combats and recreations of famous battles. Only three
contemporary or near-contemporary accounts of the games survive. The
works of Suetonius and Cassius Dio focus on major events, while
Martial provides some fragments of information on individual
entertainments and the only detailed record of a gladiatorial combat
in the arena to survive to the present day: the fight between Verus
and Priscus.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inaugural_games_of_the_Flavian_Amphitheatre
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1066:
Harold Godwinson of England defeated Harald Hardråde of Norway in
Yorkshire at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, marking the end of Viking
invasion of England.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stamford_Bridge)
1396:
Ottoman wars in Europe: Ottoman forces under Bayezid I defeated a
Christian alliance led by Sigismund of Hungary in the Battle of
Nicopolis near present-day Nikopol, Bulgaria.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Nicopolis)
1513:
Conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa, upon a peak in present-day
Darién, Panama, became the first European known to have seen the
Pacific Ocean from the New World, naming it Mar del Sur, or South Sea,
a few days later.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasco_N%C3%BA%C3%B1ez_de_Balboa)
1962:
The People's Democratic Republic of Algeria was formally proclaimed.
Ferhat Abbas was elected President of the provisional government, with
Ahmed Ben Bella as Prime Minister.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Algeria_since_1962)
1996:
The last Magdalene Asylum, an institution to rehabilitate so-called
"fallen" women, in Ireland was closed.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magdalene_Asylum)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
ochlocracy: Mob rule; government by the masses.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ochlocracy)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
We live in a time when the words impossible and unsolvable are no
longer part of the scientific community's vocabulary. Each day we move
closer to trials that will not just minimize the symptoms of disease
and injury but eliminate them. -- Christopher Reeve
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Christopher_Reeve)
Blood Sugar Sex Magik is the fifth studio album by American
alternative rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on September 24,
1991. Produced by Rick Rubin, it was the band's first record released
on Warner Bros. Records. Unlike the Chili Peppers' previous album,
Mother's Milk, Blood Sugar was notably different in the heaviness of
the guitar, as it contained little use of heavy metal riffs. The
album's subject material incorporated various sexual innuendos and
referenced drugs and death as well as themes of lust and exuberance.
The album has sold over seven million copies in the United States
alone and became the Chili Peppers' introduction into popularity and
critical acclaim. Blood Sugar Sex Magik produced many hits for the
band, including "Give It Away", "Under the Bridge", "Suck My Kiss",
and "Breaking the Girl". The album also marked the departure of
guitarist John Frusciante mid-tour in 1992, until his return in 1998.
Steve Huey of All Music Guide felt that Blood Sugar was "...probably
the best album the Chili Peppers will ever make."
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_Sugar_Sex_Magik
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
622:
Muhammad and his followers completed their Hijra from Mecca to
Medina to escape religious persecution.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hijra_%28Islam%29)
1789:
The First United States Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789,
establishing the U.S. federal judiciary and setting the number of
Supreme Court Justices.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judiciary_Act_of_1789)
1841:
The Sultan of Brunei granted Sarawak to British adventurer James
Brooke.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarawak)
1903:
Alfred Deakin became the second Prime Minister of Australia,
succeeding Edmund Barton who left office to become a founding justice
of the High Court of Australia.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Deakin)
1988:
Canadian Ben Johnson finished the 100 m sprint at the Seoul Olympics
in a world record time of 9.79 seconds, ahead of rivals Carl Lewis and
Linford Christie, but was later disqualified for doping.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Johnson_%28sprinter%29)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
enticing: Anyone or anything which entices, is alluring, attractive or
charming.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/enticing)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
My generation of radicals and breakers-down never found anything to
take the place of the old virtues of work and courage and the old
graces of courtesy and politeness. -- F. Scott Fitzgerald
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/F._Scott_Fitzgerald)
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America, most
recognizable as the national bird and symbol of the United States of
America. This sea eagle has two known subspecies and forms a species
pair with the White-tailed Eagle. Its range includes most of Canada,
all of the continental United States, and northern Mexico. It is found
near large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply and
old-growth trees for nesting. The Bald Eagle is a large bird, with a
body length of 71–96 centimeters (28–38 in), a wingspan of 168–244
centimeters (66–88 in), and a weight of 3–6.3 kilograms (6.6–14 lb);
females are about 25 percent larger than males. The adult Bald Eagle
has a brown body with a white head and tail, and bright yellow irises,
taloned feet, and a hooked beak; juveniles are completely brown except
for the yellow feet. Males and females are identical in plumage
coloration. Its diet consists mainly of fish, but it is an
opportunistic feeder. It hunts fish by swooping down and snatching the
fish out of the water with its talons. It is sexually mature at four
or five years of age. The species was on the brink of extirpation in
the continental United States (while flourishing in much of Alaska and
Canada) late in the 20th century, but now has a stable population and
has been officially removed from the U.S. federal government's list of
endangered species. The Bald Eagle was officially reclassified from
"Endangered" to "Threatened" on July 12, 1995 by the U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service, and delisted on June 28, 2007.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald_Eagle
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1776:
Captain Nathan Hale, an American Revolutionary spy from the
Continental Army, was hanged by British forces.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_Hale)
1792:
The epoch of the French Republican Calendar, marking the first day
of the newly proclaimed French First Republic.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Republican_Calendar)
1862:
Slavery in the United States: President Abraham Lincoln issued the
Emancipation Proclamation, declaring the freedom of all slaves in
Confederate territory by January 1 1863.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation)
1869:
Das Rheingold, the first of four operas in Der Ring des Nibelungen
by German composer Richard Wagner, was first performed in Munich.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Das_Rheingold)
1965:
The United Nations Security Council unanimously passed a resolution
calling for an unconditional ceasefire in the Indo-Pakistani War. The
conflict between India and Pakistan over Kashmir ended the following
day.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-Pakistani_War_of_1965)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
asthenia: Weakness; loss of strength.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/asthenia)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
Just practice good, do good for others, without thinking of making
yourself known so that you may gain reward. Really bring benefit to
others, gaining nothing for yourself. This is the primary requisite
for breaking free of attachments to the Self. -- Dōgen
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/D%C5%8Dgen)
The Soviet invasion of Poland of 1939 was a military operation that
started on September 17, 1939, during the early stages of World War
II, sixteen days after the Nazi German attack on Poland. It ended in a
decisive victory for the Soviet Union's Red Army. On August 23, the
Soviets signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany, and on 1
September, the Germans invaded Poland from the west. The Red Army
invaded Poland from the east on 17 September after several calls by
Germany to do so. The Soviet government announced that it was acting
to protect the Ukrainians and Belarusians who lived in the eastern
part of Poland, claiming that the Polish state had collapsed in the
face of the German attack and could no longer guarantee the security
of its own citizens. The Red Army quickly achieved its targets,
meeting only light Polish resistance. 6,000 to 7,000 Polish soldiers
died in the fighting, and 230,000 or more were taken prisoners of war.
The Soviet government annexed the territory newly under its control
and in November declared that the 13.5 million Polish citizens who
lived there were now Soviet citizens. The Soviets quelled opposition
by executing and arresting thousands. During the existence of the
People's Republic of Poland, the invasion was considered a delicate
subject, almost taboo, and was often omitted from official history in
order to preserve the illusion of "eternal friendship" between members
of the Eastern Bloc.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_invasion_of_Poland_%281939%29
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1862:
American Civil War: Almost 23,000 total casualties were suffered at
the Battle of Antietam near Sharpsburg, Maryland, where Confederate
and Union troops fought to a tactical stalemate.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Antietam)
1894:
The Imperial Japanese Navy defeated the Beiyang Fleet of Qing China
in the Battle of the Yalu River at the mouth of the Yalu River in
Korea Bay, the largest naval engagement of the First Sino-Japanese
War.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Yalu_River_%281894%29)
1916:
World War I: "The Red Baron", a flying ace of the German
Luftstreitkräfte, won his first aerial combat near Cambrai, France.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manfred_von_Richthofen)
1978:
President Anwar Al Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Menachem Begin
of Israel (pictured with U.S. President Jimmy Carter) signed the Camp
David Accords after twelve days of secret negotiations at Camp David.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_David_Accords)
2001:
The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened for the first time after the
September 11 attacks. However, the stock market index posted its
biggest point drop in its history closing down 684.81 points to
8920.70.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dow_Jones_Industrial_Average)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
diphthong: (phonetics): A complex vowel sound that begins with the
sound of one vowel and ends with the sound of another vowel.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/diphthong)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
You don't lead by pointing and telling people some place to go. You
lead by going to that place and making a case. -- Ken Kesey
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ken_Kesey)
Amanita phalloides is a poisonous basidiomycete fungus, one of many in
the genus Amanita. Widely distributed across Europe, A. phalloides
associates with various deciduous and coniferous trees. Adaptations
have expanded its range outside of Europe after it was accidentally
introduced alongside oak, chestnut, and pine. The large fruiting
bodies (i.e. the mushrooms) appear in summer and autumn; the caps are
generally greenish in colour, with a white stipe and gills.
Unfortunately, these toxic mushrooms resemble several edible species
commonly consumed by humans, increasing the risk of accidental
poisoning. A. phalloides is one of the most poisonous of all known
toadstools. It has been involved in the majority of human deaths from
mushroom poisoning, including the Roman Emperor Claudius and Holy
Roman Emperor Charles VI. It has been the subject of much research and
many of its biologically active agents have been isolated. The
principal toxic constituent is α-amanitin, which damages the liver and
kidneys, often fatally. No antidote is known.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanita_phalloides
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
533:
Belisarius and his legions defeated Gelimer and the Vandals at the
Battle of Ad Decimum near Carthage, and began the "Reconquest of the
West" under Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ad_Decimum)
1814:
War of 1812: The bombardment of Fort McHenry during the Battle of
Baltimore inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The Star-Spangled
Banner," which later became the national anthem of the United States.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Baltimore)
1956:
IBM unveiled the 305 RAMAC (Random Access Method of Accounting and
Control), the first commercial computer that used magnetic disk
storage.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_305_RAMAC)
1987:
Goiânia accident: A radioactive item was stolen from an abandoned
hospital in Goiânia, Brazil, contaminating hundreds of people.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goi%C3%A2nia_accident)
1993:
After rounds of secret negotiations in Norway, PLO leader Yasser
Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (pictured with U.S.
President Bill Clinton) formally signed the Oslo Peace Accords.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Accords)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
fermata: (music): A notation to hold a note for longer than its usual
duration, until the conductor cuts it off.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fermata)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
Worldly renown is naught but a breath of wind, which now comes this
way and now comes that, and changes name because it changes quarter.
-- Dante Alighieri
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Dante_Alighieri)
Australia's participation in the Winter Olympics began with the 1936
Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Since then, Australia has
participated in every Winter Olympics, with the exception of the 1948
Games in St. Moritz. Australia achieved its first medal, a bronze, in
1994 in the men's 5,000 metres short track relay event. Zali Steggall
gained Australia's first individual medal in 1998 when she won bronze
in the slalom event. In 2002, Steven Bradbury won gold in the 1,000
metres short track speed skating and Alisa Camplin won gold in the
aerials event, making Australia the only southern hemisphere country
to have ever accomplished gold at a Winter Olympics. Australia sent 40
competitors to compete in 10 sports at the 2006 Games in Turin, a
record number of athletes and events for the nation. For the first
time, there was a stated aim of winning a medal, and this goal was
achieved when Dale Begg-Smith won the gold medal in men's moguls
freestyle skiing. Camplin attained her second medal, a bronze in the
aerials event.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_at_the_Winter_Olympics
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
476:
Germanic leader Odoacer captured Ravenna and deposed Romulus
Augustus, the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romulus_Augustus)
1260:
Wars of the Guelphs and Ghibellines: The Siena Ghibellines defeated
the Florence Guelphs at the Battle of Montaperti outside of Siena in
Italy.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Montaperti)
1886:
After over 25 years of fighting against the United States Army and
the armed forces of Mexico, Geronimo of the Chiricahua Apache
surrendered at Skeleton Canyon in Arizona.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geronimo)
1888:
American Inventor George Eastman registered the trademark "Kodak"
after receiving a patent for his roll film camera.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Eastman)
1957:
Defying the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of
Education, Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus deployed the Arkansas
National Guard to prevent African American students from attending
Little Rock's Central High School.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Rock_Nine)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
caesura: A a pause or interruption in a poem, music, building or other
work of art.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/caesura)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
Perfect works are rare, because they must be produced at the happy
moment when taste and genius unite; and this rare conjuncture, like
that of certain planets, appears to occur only after the revolution of
several cycles, and only lasts for an instant. -- François-René de
Chateaubriand
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Fran%C3%A7ois-Ren%C3%A9_de_Chateaubriand)
The Hamlet chicken processing plant fire was an industrial disaster
that took place at the Imperial Foods chicken processing plant in
Hamlet, North Carolina, USA, on September 3, 1991 after a failure in a
faulty modification to a hydraulic line. Twenty-five people were
killed and fifty-four injured in the fire as they were trapped behind
locked fire doors. Due to a lack of inspectors, the plant had never
received a safety inspection in eleven years of operation, and it is
thought that a single inspection would have easily prevented the
tragedy. A full federal investigation was launched, which resulted in
the owner receiving a 20-year prison sentence, and the company
received the highest fines ever handed out in the history of North
Carolina. However, the investigation also highlighted failings in the
authoritative enforcement of existing safety regulations, and resulted
in a number of worker safety laws being passed. Accusations of racism
were leveled at both the fire service and the city of Hamlet in the
aftermath of the fire. The plant was never reopened. The fire remains
the worst industrial disaster ever to strike North Carolina, and the
third worst American industrial disaster, with only the 1947 Texas
City disaster and the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire being
worse.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamlet_chicken_processing_plant_fire
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
301:
San Marino, one of the smallest nations in the world and the world's
oldest republic still in existence, was founded by Saint Marinus.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Marino)
1260:
Egyptian Mamluks defeated the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut in
Palestine, marking the point of maximum westward expansion of the
Mongol Empire.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ain_Jalut)
1783:
Great Britain and the United States signed the Treaty of Paris,
formally ending the American Revolutionary War.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Paris_%281783%29)
1901:
The National Flag of Australia, a Blue Ensign defaced with the
Commonwealth Star and the Southern Cross, flew for the first time atop
the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Australia)
1976:
The NASA Viking 2 spacecraft landed on Mars and took the first
close-up, color photos of the planet's surface.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking_2)
_____________________
Wiktionary's Word of the day:
sublimate: (<i>physics</i>): To change state from a solid to a gas (or
from a gas to a solid) without passing through the liquid state.
(http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sublimate)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
A harbor, even if it is a little harbor, is a good thing, since
adventurers come into it as well as go out, and the life in it grows
strong, because it takes something from the world, and has something
to give in return. -- Sarah Orne Jewett
(http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sarah_Orne_Jewett)