Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university
located in College Station, Texas. It is the flagship institution of
the Texas A&M University System. The seventh largest university in the
United States, A&M enrolls over 48,000 students in ten academic
colleges. Texas A&M's designation as a land, sea, and space grant
institution reflects a broad range of research with ongoing projects
funded by agencies such as the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the National Science
Foundation, and the Office of Naval Research. The school ranks in the
top 20 American research institutes in terms of funding and has made
notable contributions to fields including animal cloning. The first
public institution of higher education in the state, the school opened
on October 4, 1876, as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of
Texas. The school's students, alumni and sports teams are known as
"Aggies". The main campus is one of the largest in America, spanning
5,200 acres (21 km2). It includes the George Bush Presidential Library.
Many students also observe the traditions of Texas A&M University,
which govern daily life as well as special occasions, including sports
events. Aggie sports teams compete in the Big XII Conference.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_A%26M_University>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1399:
Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Lancaster, deposed Richard II to become
Henry IV of England, merging the Duchy of Lancaster with the crown.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_IV_of_England>
1744:
War of the Austrian Succession: The armies of France and Spain yielded
a phyrric victory over the Kingdom of Sardinia at the Battle of Madonna
dell'Olmo near Cuneo, Italy.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Madonna_dell%27Olmo>
1791:
The Magic Flute, one of the last operas composed by Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart, premiered at Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna, Austria.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magic_Flute>
1939:
World War II: General Władysław Sikorski became Prime Minister of the
Polish government-in-exile.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C5%82adys%C5%82aw_Sikorski>
2005:
The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published controversial editorial
cartoons depicting Muhammad, sparking protests across the Muslim world
by many who viewed them as Islamophobic and blasphemous.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jyllands-Posten_Muhammad_cartoons_controversy>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
yeoman (n):
1. An official providing honorable service in a royal or high noble
household.
2. A third in order of the feudal servant fighting class, below knight
and squire but above a page.
3. A subordinate, deputy, aide, or assistant.
4. (British) A former
class of small freeholders who farm their own land
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/yeoman>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
If in thirst you drink water from a cup, you see God in it. Those who
are not in love with God will see only their own faces in it.
--Rumi
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Rumi>
Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch
bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a north-west
south-east direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Westminster
on the north bank. Opened in 1906, it replaced an earlier bridge,
originally known as Regent Bridge but later renamed Vauxhall Bridge,
built between 1809 and 1816 as part of a scheme for redeveloping the
south bank of the Thames. The original bridge was itself built on the
site of a former ferry. The building of both bridges was problematic,
with both the first and second bridges requiring multiple redesigns
from multiple architects. The original bridge, the first iron bridge
over the Thames, was built by a private company and operated as a toll
bridge before being taken into public ownership in 1879. The second
bridge, which took eight years to build, was the first in London to
carry trams and later one of the first two roads in London to have a
bus lane. In 1963 it was proposed to replace the bridge with a modern
development containing seven floors of shops, office space, hotel rooms
and leisure facilities supported above the river, but the plans were
abandoned due to costs. With the exception of alterations to the road
layout and the balustrade, the design and appearance of the current
bridge has remained almost unchanged since 1907. The bridge today is an
important part of London's road system and carries the A202 road across
the Thames.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vauxhall_Bridge>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1829:
The Metropolitan Police of Greater London, sometimes also referred to
as "Scotland Yard" after the location of its original headquarters, was
founded.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Police_Service>
1885:
One of the first practical electric tramways in the world, the
Blackpool tramway in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, opened.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tram>
1938:
At a conference in Munich, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, British
Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, and French Prime Minister Édouard
Daladier reached a settlement, signing it at about 1:30 am the next
day, stipulating that Czechoslovakia must cede the Sudetenland to
Germany.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munich_Agreement>
1941:
The Holocaust: 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:
swagger (v):
1. To walk with a swaying motion; hence, to walk and act in a pompous,
consequential manner.
2. To boast or brag noisily; to be ostentatiously proud or
vainglorious
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/swagger>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
It is sad not to be loved, but it is much sadder not to be able to
love.
--Miguel de Unamuno
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Miguel_de_Unamuno>
Imagination was an American fantasy and science fiction magazine
launched in October 1950 by Raymond Palmer's Clark Publishing Company.
The magazine was sold almost immediately to Greenleaf Publishing
Company, owned by William Hamling, who published and edited it from the
third issue, February 1951, for the rest of the magazine's life.
Hamling launched a sister magazine, Imaginative Tales, in 1954; both
ceased publication at the end of 1958 in the aftermath of major changes
in US magazine distribution due to the liquidation of American News
Company. The magazine was more successful than most of the numerous
science fiction titles launched in the late 1940s and early 1950s,
lasting a total of 63 issues. Despite this success, the magazine had a
reputation for low-quality space opera and adventure fiction, and
modern historians refer to it in dismissive terms. Hamling consciously
adopted an editorial policy oriented toward entertainment, asserting in
an early issue that "science fiction was never meant to be an
educational tour de force". Few of the stories from Imagination have
received recognition, but it did publish Robert Sheckley's first
professional sale, "Final Examination", in the May 1952 issue, and also
printed fiction by Philip K. Dick, Robert A. Heinlein and John Wyndham.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imagination_%28magazine%29>
_______________________________
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>
1928:
Scottish biologist and pharmacologist Alexander Fleming noticed a
bacteria-killing mold growing in his laboratory, discovering what
became known as penicillin.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/penicillin>
1978:
Pope John Paul I died only 33 days after his papal election due to an
apparent myocardial infarction, an event that has spawned a variety of
murder conspiracy theories.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_John_Paul_I>
1995:
Over 30 mercenaries led by Bob Denard landed on the Comoros in an
attempted coup, his fourth one on the African island nation since 1975.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Denard>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
flange (n):
1. An external or internal rib or rim, used either to add strength or
to hold something in place.
2. The projecting edge of a rigid or semi-rigid component
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/flange>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I don't think there's anything exceptional or noble in being
philanthropic. It's the other attitude that confuses me.
--Paul Newman
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Paul_Newman>
The Yukon Quest is a sled dog race run every February between
Fairbanks, Alaska, and Whitehorse, Yukon. Because of the harsh winter
conditions, difficult trail, and limited support competitors are
allowed, it is considered the "most difficult sled dog race in the
world", or even the "toughest race in the world". In the competition,
first run in 1984, a dog team leader (called a musher) and a team of 6
to 14 dogs race for 10 to 20 days. The course follows the route of the
historic 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, mail delivery, and transportation
routes between Fairbanks, Dawson City, and Whitehorse. Mushers pack up
to 250 pounds (113 kg) of equipment and provisions for themselves and
their dogs to survive between checkpoints. They are permitted to leave
dogs at checkpoints and dog drops, but not to replace them. Sleds may
not be replaced (without penalty) and mushers cannot accept help from
non-racers except at Dawson City, the halfway mark. The route runs on
frozen rivers, over four mountain ranges, and through isolated northern
villages. Racers cover 1,016 miles (1,635 km) or more, temperatures
commonly drop as low as −60 °F (−51 °C), and winds can reach 50 miles
per hour (80 km/h) at higher elevations. Sonny Lindner won the
inaugural race in 1984 from a field of 26 teams. The fastest run took
place in 2009, when Sebastian Schnuelle finished after 9 days,
23 hours, and 20 minutes.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukon_Quest>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1825:
Locomotion No. 1 hauled the first train on opening day of the Stockton
and Darlington Railway, one of the first railways to use steam
locomotives and carry passengers.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockton_and_Darlington_Railway>
1905:
The physics journal Annalen der Physik published Albert Einstein's
fourth Annus Mirabilis paper "Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon
Its Energy Content?", introducing the equation E=mc².
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass%E2%80%93energy_equivalence>
1908:
The first production of the Ford Model T automobile was built at the
Piquette Plant in Detroit.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Model_T>
1937:
The Bali Tiger, a small subspecies of tiger found solely on the small
Indonesian island of Bali, was officially declared extinct.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bali_Tiger>
1940:
World War II: Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and the Empire of Japan
signed the Tripartite Pact in Berlin, officially forming a military
alliance known as the Axis powers.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripartite_Pact>
1988:
Led by pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi, the political party
National League for Democracy was founded in Burma.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aung_San_Suu_Kyi>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
rain on someone's parade (v):
To disappoint or discourage someone
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rain_on_someone%27s_parade>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
If men, through fear, fraud, or mistake, should in terms renounce or
give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the
grand end of society would absolutely vacate such renunciation. The
right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power
of man to alienate this gift and voluntarily become a slave.
--Samuel Adams
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Samuel_Adams>
The Boy Scouts of America membership controversies center on the Boy
Scouts of America's policies that prohibit atheists, agnostics, and
"known or avowed" homosexuals from membership in its Scouting program;
both youths and adults have had their memberships revoked as a result.
The BSA contends that these policies are essential in its mission to
instill in young people the values of the Scout Oath and Law. These
policies are controversial and are considered by some to be unfair. The
organization's legal right to have these policies has been upheld
repeatedly by both state and federal courts. The Supreme Court of the
United States has affirmed that as a private organization, the BSA can
set its own membership standards. In recent years, the policy disputes
have led to litigation over the terms under which the BSA can access
governmental resources including public lands.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy_Scouts_of_America_membership_controversies>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1580:
The Golden Hind sailed into Plymouth, England, as explorer Francis
Drake completed his circumnavigation of the globe.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Hind>
1789:
For his presidential administration, George Washington appointed Thomas
Jefferson as the first U.S. Secretary of State, John Jay as the first
U.S. Chief Justice, Samuel Osgood as the first U.S. Postmaster General,
and Edmund Randolph as the first U.S. Attorney General.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidency_of_George_Washington>
1907:
Newfoundland and New Zealand became dominions within the British
Empire.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominion_of_Newfoundland>
1934:
The ocean liner RMS Queen Mary was launched in Clydebank, Scotland.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Queen_Mary>
1957:
West Side Story, a musical written by Arthur Laurents, Leonard
Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim and based loosely on Shakespeare's Romeo
and Juliet, made its debut on Broadway.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Side_Story>
1969:
Abbey Road, the final album recorded by The Beatles before publicly
announcing their breakup, was released.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
guillemet (n):
Either of the punctuation marks “<big>«</big>” or “<big>»</big>”, used
in several languages to indicate passages of speech as the equivalent
of the English quotation marks
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/guillemet>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
All is always now. Words strain,
Crack and sometimes break, under the burden,
Under the tension,
slip, slide, perish,
Will not stay still.
--T. S. Eliot
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/T._S._Eliot>
The World Ends with You is an action role-playing game developed by
Square Enix's Kingdom Hearts team and Jupiter for the Nintendo DS
handheld console. Set in the modern-day Shibuya shopping district of
Tokyo, The World Ends with You features a distinctive art style
inspired by Shibuya and its youth culture. Development was inspired by
elements of Jupiter's previous game, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories.
It was released in Japan in July 2007, and in PAL regions and North
America in April 2008. In the game, Neku Sakuraba and his allies are
forced to participate in a game that will determine their fate. The
battle system uses many of the unique features of the Nintendo DS,
including combat that takes place on both screens, and attacks
performed by certain motions on the touchscreen or by shouting into the
microphone. Elements of Japanese youth culture, such as fashion, food,
and cell phones, are key aspects of the missions. The World Ends with
You received positive reviews, which praised the graphics, soundtrack,
and integration of gameplay into the Shibuya setting. The few common
complaints were related to the steep learning curve of the battle
system as well as the imprecise touch-screen controls. In the week of
its release, the game was the second best-selling DS title in Japan,
and the top selling DS title in the US.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_World_Ends_with_You>
_______________________________
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>
1944:
World War II: British troops began their withdrawal from the Battle of
Arnhem in the Netherlands, ending the Allies' Operation Market Garden
in defeat.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Arnhem>
1983:
In one of the largest prison escapes in British history, 38 Provisional
Irish Republican Army prisoners hijacked a prison meals lorry and
smashed their way out of HM Prison Maze in County Antrim, Northern
Ireland.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maze_Prison_escape>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
ecky thump (interj):
(Northern England) Exclamation of surprise or pleasure
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ecky_thump>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The poet's voice need not merely be the record of man, it can be one of
the props, the pillars to help him endure and prevail.
--William Faulkner
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Faulkner>
The Italian War of 1542–1546 was a conflict late in the Italian Wars,
pitting Francis I of France and Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire
against the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and Henry VIII of England. The
course of the war saw extensive fighting in Italy, France, and the Low
Countries, as well as attempted invasions of Spain and England; but,
although the conflict was ruinously expensive for the major
participants, its outcome was inconclusive. The war arose from the
failure of the Truce of Nice, which ended the Italian War of 1536–38,
to resolve the long-standing conflict between Charles and
Francis—particularly their conflicting claims to the Duchy of Milan.
Having found a suitable pretext, Francis once again declared war
against his perpetual enemy in 1542. Fighting began at once throughout
the Low Countries; the following year saw the Franco-Ottoman alliance's
attack on Nice, as well as a series of maneuvers in northern Italy
which culminated in the bloody Battle of Ceresole. Charles and Henry
then proceeded to invade France, but the long sieges of
Boulogne-sur-Mer and Saint-Dizier prevented a decisive offensive
against the French. Charles came to terms with Francis by the Treaty of
Crépy in late 1544, but the death of Francis's younger son, the Duke of
Orléans—whose proposed marriage to a relative of the Emperor was the
cornerstone of the treaty—made it moot less than a year afterwards.
Henry, left alone but unwilling to return Boulogne to the French,
continued to fight until 1546, when the Treaty of Ardres finally
restored peace between France and England.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_War_of_1542%E2%80%931546>
_______________________________
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>
1180:
The Byzantine Empire is weakened by the death of Emperor Manuel I
Komnenos.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_I_Komnenos>
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/Kingdom_of_Sarawak>
1877:
The Imperial Japanese Army commanded by Kawamura Sumiyoshi defeated
Saigō Takamori and the Satsuma clan samurai at the Battle of Shiroyama
in Kagoshima, the decisive engagement of the Satsuma Rebellion.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Shiroyama>
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>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
loricate (adj):
(microbiology) Possessing an enclosing shell or test
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/loricate>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
At any rate, let us love for a while, for a year or so, you and me.
That's a form of divine drunkenness that we can all try. There are only
diamonds in the whole world, diamonds and perhaps the shabby gift of
disillusion.
--F. Scott Fitzgerald
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/F._Scott_Fitzgerald>
The Ross Sea party was a component of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial
Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1914–17. Its task was to lay a series of
supply depots across the Great Ice Barrier from the Ross Sea to the
Beardmore Glacier, along the polar route established by earlier
Antarctic expeditions. The expedition's main party, under Shackleton,
was to land on the opposite, Weddell Sea coast of Antarctica, and to
march across the continent via the South Pole to the Ross Sea. As the
main party would be unable to carry sufficient fuel and supplies for
the whole distance, their survival depended on the Ross Sea party's
depots, which would cover the final quarter of their journey.
Shackleton set sail from London in his ship Endurance, bound for the
Weddell Sea, in August 1914. Meanwhile, the Ross Sea party personnel
gathered in Australia, prior to departure for the Ross Sea in the
second expedition ship, SY Aurora. After their arrival the
inexperienced party struggled to master the art of Antarctic travel, in
the process losing most of their sledge dogs. A greater misfortune
occurred when, at the onset of the southern winter, Aurora was torn
from its moorings during a severe storm and was unable to return,
leaving the shore party stranded.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ross_Sea_party>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1459:
Yorkist forces led by Richard Neville defeated Lancastrian troops at
the Battle of Blore Heath in Staffordshire, England, the first major
battle of the Wars of the Roses.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Blore_Heath>
1803:
Maratha troops were beaten by British forces at the Battle of Assaye,
one of the decisive battles of the Second Anglo-Maratha War.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Assaye>
1846:
Using mathematical predictions by French mathematician Urbain Le
Verrier, German astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle became the first
person to observe Neptune and recognise it as a hitherto unknown planet
.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discovery_of_Neptune>
1868:
Ramón Emeterio Betances led the Grito de Lares, a revolt against
Spanish rule in Puerto Rico.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ram%C3%B3n_Emeterio_Betances>
1952:
In one of the first political uses of television to appeal directly to
the populace, Republican vice presidential candidate Richard Nixon
delivered the "Checkers speech", denying he received illegal campaign
contributions.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Checkers_speech>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
thalweg (n):
(geology, geography) The line that connects the lowest points in a
valley or river channel, and thus the line of fastest flow along a
river’s course
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/thalweg>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
If a little knowledge is dangerous, where is the man who has so much as
to be out of danger?
--Thomas Huxley
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Thomas_Huxley>
Cyclone Orson was the fourth most intense cyclone in the Australian
region on record. Forming out of a tropical low on April 17, 1989,
Orson gradually intensified as it tracked towards the west. After
attaining Category 5 intensity on April 20, the storm began to track
southward and accelerated. The following day, the cyclone reached its
peak intensity with winds of 250 km/h (155 mph, 10-minute sustained)
and a barometric pressure of 904 hPa (mbar). Orson maintained this
intensity for nearly two days before making landfall near Dampier. The
cyclone rapidly weakened after landfall as it accelerated to the
southeast. After moving into the Great Australian Bight on April 24,
the storm dissipated. Despite Orson's extreme intensity, damage was
relatively minimal as it impacted a sparsely populated region of
Western Australia. Five people were killed offshore and damages
amounted to A$20 million (US$16.8 million). The most severe impacts
took place in Pannawonica, where 70 homes were damaged. Due to the
severity of the storm, the name Orson was retired in 1990 and later
replaced by Olga.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Orson>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1792:
The epoch of the French Republican Calendar occurred, marking the first
full day of the newly proclaimed French First Republic.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Republican_Calendar>
1827:
According to his own record of his early life, Latter Day Saint
movement founder Joseph Smith, Jr. obtained the golden plates, a set of
engraved plates that he said was his source material for the Book of
Mormon.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/golden_plates>
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>
1979:
The Vela Incident: An American Vela satellite detected an unidentified
flash of light, thought to be a nuclear weapons test.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vela_Incident>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
abrogate (v):
1. To annul by an authoritative act; to abolish by the authority of the
maker or his successor; to repeal.
2. To put an end to; to do away with
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/abrogate>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Wear your learning, like your watch, in a private pocket: and do not
pull it out and strike it, merely to show that you have one.
--Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Philip_Stanhope%2C_4th_Earl_of_Chesterfield>
"North by North Quahog" is the first episode of season four of Family
Guy, following the revival of the series three years after its
cancellation in 2002. Directed by Peter Shin and written by series
creator Seth MacFarlane, the episode was first broadcast on May 1,
2005, on FOX. In "North by North Quahog", the show's main characters
Peter and Lois Griffin go on a second honeymoon to spice up their
marriage, but are eventually chased by Mel Gibson after Peter steals
the sequel to The Passion of the Christ from Gibson's private hotel
room. Meanwhile, their anthropomorphic dog Brian and their infant son
Stewie take care of their teenage kids Chris and Meg. Family Guy had
been canceled in 2002 due to low ratings, but was revived by FOX after
reruns on Adult Swim became the network's most watched program, and
more than three million DVDs of the show were sold. Much of the plot
and many of the technical aspects of the episode, as well as the title,
are direct parodies of the 1959 Alfred Hitchcock movie North by
Northwest. The episode was watched by 12 million viewers and received a
Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Animated Program (for
Programming Less Than One Hour).
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_by_North_Quahog>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
454:
Roman Emperor Valentinian III killed Aetius in Ravenna.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavius_Aetius>
1792:
French Revolution: The National Convention voted to abolish the
monarchy, and proclaimed the First Republic.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Convention>
1898:
The Hundred Days' Reform in China was abruptly terminated when Empress
Dowager Cixi forced the reform-minded Guangxu Emperor into seclusion
and took over the government as regent.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hundred_Days%27_Reform>
1937:
J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, a predecessor to The Lord of the Rings,
was first published.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit>
1939:
Romanian Prime Minister Armand Călinescu was assassinated in Bucharest
by pro-Nazi members of the Iron Guard.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armand_C%C4%83linescu>
1999:
A 7.6 Mw earthquake struck Jiji, Nantou County, Taiwan, killing 2,416
people, injuring over 11,000 others and causing about NT$300 billion in
damage.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/921_earthquake>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
uraeus (n):
A representation of the sacred asp, symbolising supreme power in
ancient Egypt
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/uraeus>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
''I'm guided by a signal in the heavens,
I'm guided by this birthmark on my skin
I'm guided by the beauty of
our weapons
First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin.
--Leonard Cohen
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leonard_Cohen>