Ranavalona I (c. 1778–1861) ruled the Kingdom of Madagascar from
1828 to 1861. By succeeding upon the death of her young husband,
Radama I, Ranavalona became the first female sovereign in the Merina
royal line since its founding in 1540. After initial tolerance of
European influence she adopted a policy of isolationism, reducing
Madagascar's economic and political ties with European powers,
developing the island's industrial manufacturing capacity, improving the
government's bureaucratic organization and military strength, and taking
vigorous measures to eradicate the small but growing Malagasy Christian
movement. The combination of widespread disease, harsh measures of
justice, regular military campaigns to pacify outlying provinces and
difficult statute labor for public works projects resulted in a high
mortality rate among soldiers and civilians alike during her 33-year
reign. French intermediaries unsuccessfully tried to use divisions
between traditionalist and pro-European factions at court to hasten the
succession of her son, Radama II. Her European contemporaries generally
condemned her policies and characterized her as a tyrant at best and
insane at worst, characterizations that persisted in Western scholarly
literature until the mid-1970s. Recent research has recast Ranavalona's
actions as those of a queen attempting to expand her empire while
protecting Malagasy sovereignty against the encroachment of European
cultural and political influence.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranavalona_I>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1492:
The first papal conclave held in the Sistine Chapel elected
Roderic Borja as Pope Alexander VI to succeed Pope Innocent VIII.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_conclave,_1492>
1828:
William Corder was hanged at Bury St Edmunds, England, for the
murder of Maria Marten at the Red Barn.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Barn_Murder>
1945:
Amid rumors of kidnappings of children by Jews in Kraków, a
crowd of Poles engaged in a pogrom, which resulted in one dead and five
wounded victims.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krak%C3%B3w_pogrom>
1962:
Vostok 3 launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and cosmonaut
Andriyan Nikolayev became the first person to float in microgravity.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_3>
1973:
At a party in the recreation room of a New York City apartment
building, DJ Kool Herc began rapping during an extended break, laying
the foundation for hip-hop music.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DJ_Kool_Herc>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
bevy:
1. A group of animals, in particular quail.
2. A large group or collection.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bevy>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
While utterly discarding all creeds, and denying the truth of all
religions, there is neither in my heart nor upon my lips a sneer for the
hopeful, loving and tender souls who believe that from all this discord
will result a perfect harmony; that every evil will in some mysterious
way become a good, and that above and over all there is a being who, in
some way, will reclaim and glorify every one of the children of men; but
for those who heartlessly try to prove that salvation is almost
impossible; that damnation is almost certain; that the highway of the
universe leads to hell; who fill life with fear and death with horror;
who curse the cradle and mock the tomb, it is impossible to entertain
other than feelings of pity, contempt and scorn.
--Robert G. Ingersoll
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_G._Ingersoll>
The United Kingdom's military intervention in Sierra Leone in May 2000
was the first large-scale intervention by British forces in the
country's civil war. A team was dispatched under Brigadier David
Richards (pictured in 2012) to evacuate foreign citizens after the
Revolutionary United Front (RUF) advanced on the country's capital,
Freetown. British forces then began to assist the U.N. Mission in Sierra
Leone and the Sierra Leone Army (SLA). They first came into direct
contact with the RUF 10 days after arrival, when the rebels attacked a
British position near Lungi International Airport. While training the
SLA for confrontations with the RUF, a British patrol was taken captive
by a militia group known as the West Side Boys. Negotiations achieved
the release of five soldiers; three weeks later, British special forces
freed the remaining six, restoring confidence in the British mission.
The RUF began to disarm after political pressure and economic sanctions
were exerted on its supporter Liberia. The British training teams were
replaced by an international force in September 2001. The mission's
success vindicated several concepts, including the retention of high-
readiness forces.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_military_intervention_in_the_Sierra_L…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1270:
Yekuno Amlak deposed the last Zagwe king and seized the
imperial throne of Ethiopia, beginning the reign of the Solomonic
dynasty that would last for more than 700 years.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yekuno_Amlak>
1793:
The Louvre officially opened in Paris with an exhibition of 537
paintings.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Louvre>
1861:
American Civil War: The first major battle west of the
Mississippi River, the Battle of Wilson's Creek, was fought.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Wilson%27s_Creek>
1953:
First Indochina War: The French Union withdrew its forces from
Operation Camargue against the Viet Minh in central modern-day Vietnam.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Camargue>
1988:
Japanese American internment: The Civil Liberties Act of 1988
became law, authorizing US$20,000 in reparations to each surviving
internee.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Liberties_Act_of_1988>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
leeward:
Away from the direction from which the wind is blowing. Downwind.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/leeward>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
A constitutional republic dedicated before everything to the
protection of liberty cannot legalize torture and remain a
constitutional republic. It imports into itself a tumor of pure tyranny.
--Andrew Sullivan
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Andrew_Sullivan>
"One Tree Hill" is a song by rock band U2 and the ninth track on their
1987 album The Joshua Tree. It was written in memory of Greg Carroll, a
Māori the band met in 1984 who later befriended lead singer Bono and
served as a roadie for the group. Carroll was killed in July 1986 in a
motorcycle accident in Dublin. Following the funeral in Carroll's native
country of New Zealand, Bono wrote the lyrics to the song, which he
dedicated to Carroll; the title comes from an Auckland hill (pictured)
that Bono remembered from his 1984 visit to New Zealand. In
March 1988, the song was released as the fourth single from The Joshua
Tree in New Zealand and Australia, charting at number one on the New
Zealand singles chart. The lyrics reflect Bono's thoughts at the funeral
and pay homage to Chilean activist Victor Jara. The vocals were recorded
in a single take, as Bono felt incapable of singing them a second time.
U2 delayed performing the song on the Joshua Tree Tour in 1987 due to
Bono's emotional state. After its live debut on the tour's third leg and
an enthusiastic reaction from audiences, the song was played
occasionally for the rest of the tour.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Tree_Hill_(song)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1483:
The first mass in the Sistine Chapel (interior pictured) in the
Vatican City was celebrated.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistine_Chapel>
1902:
Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark were crowned King and Queen
of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_of_Denmark>
1971:
The Troubles: British authorities began arresting and interning
(without trial) people accused of being republican paramilitary members.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Demetrius>
1988:
Wayne Gretzky was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los
Angeles Kings in one of the most controversial player transactions in
ice hockey history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Gretzky>
2001:
Fifteen people were killed and 130 others were wounded when a
suicide bomber detonated his bomb at a Sbarro pizza restaurant in
Jerusalem.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sbarro_restaurant_suicide_bombing>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pankration:
An Ancient Greek martial art combining aspects of boxing and wrestling,
introduced in the Greek Olympic games in 648 BC.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pankration>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
What magical trick makes us intelligent? The trick is that there
is no trick. The power of intelligence stems from our vast diversity,
not from any single, perfect principle.
--Marvin Minsky
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Marvin_Minsky>
Lactarius indigo, commonly known as the indigo milk cap, is a species of
agaric fungus in the family Russulaceae. First described in 1822, it is
a widely distributed species and grows naturally in eastern North
America, East Asia, and Central America; it has also been reported from
southern France. L. indigo grows on the ground in both deciduous and
coniferous forests, where it forms mycorrhizal associations with a broad
range of trees. The cap has a diameter of 5 to 15 cm (2 to 6 in). The
fruit body color ranges from dark blue in fresh specimens to pale blue-
gray in older ones. The milk, or latex, that oozes when the mushroom
tissue is cut or broken—a feature common to all members of the
Lactarius genus—is also indigo blue, but slowly turns green upon
exposure to air. The blue color is due to an organic compound known as
an azulene which is unique to this species, but similar to a compound
found in Lactarius deliciosus. It is an edible mushroom, with a mild to
slightly acrid taste; the firm flesh is best prepared by cutting the
mushroom in thin slices. The blue color disappears with cooking. It is
sold in rural markets in Mexico, Guatemala, and China.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactarius_indigo>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1786:
Michel-Gabriel Paccard and Jacques Balmat completed the first
recorded ascent of Mont Blanc in the Alps, an act considered to be the
birth of modern mountaineering.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mont_Blanc>
1918:
The Battle of Amiens began in Amiens, France, marking the start
of the Allied Powers' Hundred Days Offensive through the German front
lines that ultimately led to the end of World War I.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Amiens_(1918)>
1963:
The Zimbabwe African National Union was formed when Ndabaningi
Sithole, Robert Mugabe, and others decided to split from the Zimbabwe
African People's Union.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe_African_National_Union>
1988:
The 8888 Uprising, a series of marches, demonstrations,
protests, and riots against the one-party state of the Burma Socialist
Programme Party in Burma, began.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8888_Uprising>
2008:
Eight people died and 64 more were injured when a EuroCity
express train en route to Prague, Czech Republic struck a part of a
motorway bridge that had fallen onto the track near Studénka station in
the Czech Republic and derailed.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stud%C3%A9nka_train_accident>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
shuttlecock:
(badminton) A lightweight object that is conical in shape with a cork or
rubber-covered nose, used in badminton as a ball is used in other
racquet games; a birdie.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/shuttlecock>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
In science one tries to tell people, in such a way as to be
understood by everyone, something that no one ever knew before. But in
the case of poetry, it's the exact opposite!
--Paul Dirac
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Paul_Dirac>
The election in 1860 for the position of Boden Professor of Sanskrit at
the University of Oxford was a hotly contested affair between two
candidates with different approaches to Sanskrit scholarship. Monier
Williams (pictured), an Oxford-educated Englishman who taught Sanskrit
to those preparing to work in British India, regarded the study of
Sanskrit as a way to help convert India to Christianity. Max Müller, an
internationally regarded scholar in comparative philology (the science
of language), thought that his work, while it would assist missionaries,
was valuable as an end in itself. They battled for the votes of the
electorate (the Convocation of the university, consisting of over
3,700 graduates) through manifestos and newspaper correspondence. The
election came at a time of public debate about Britain's role in India
after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Although generally regarded as the
superior scholar, Müller had the double disadvantage (in some eyes) of
being German and having liberal Christian views. Special trains to
Oxford were provided for non-residents to cast their votes. Williams won
the election by a majority of over 230 votes, and held the chair until
his death in 1899.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boden_Professor_of_Sanskrit_election,_1860>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1782:
The Bronze Horseman (pictured), an equestrian statue of Peter
the Great that serves as one of the symbols of Saint Petersburg, Russia,
was unveiled.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronze_Horseman>
1909:
Fifty-nine days after leaving New York City, Alice Huyler
Ramsey, with three friends, arrived in San Francisco to become the first
woman to drive an automobile across the U.S.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Huyler_Ramsey>
1933:
An estimated 3,000 Assyrians were slaughtered by Iraqi troops
during the Simele massacre in the Dahuk and Mosul districts.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simele_massacre>
1938:
Prisoners from Dachau concentration camp were sent to begin
construction of Mauthausen, which would later be part of one of the
largest labour camp complexes in German-occupied Europe.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauthausen-Gusen_concentration_camp>
1998:
Car bombs exploded simultaneously at the American embassies in
the East African capital cities of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi,
Kenya, killing more than 200 people and injuring more than 4,500 others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_United_States_embassy_bombings>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
dressage:
An equestrian sport in which the horse and rider perform a test of
specific movements in an arena, and are judged on the horse's obedience,
acceptance of the bridle and of the rider's aids, gaits, impulsion, and
the harmony between horse and rider.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dressage>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There's not a single thing on offer in this all-too-temporary
world for which you should ever sell your soul.
--Alan Keyes
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alan_Keyes>
There was a Dutch proposal to build battleships in 1912, after years of
concern over the expansion of the Imperial Japanese Navy and the
withdrawal of allied British warships from the China Station. Only four
coastal defense ships were planned, but naval experts and some
politicians believed that dreadnoughts would provide a stronger defense
for the Dutch East Indies. In August 1913, a Royal Commission
recommended acquiring nine battleships to protect the colony from attack
and help guarantee the country's neutrality in Europe. Five of these
would be based in the Dutch East Indies, while the other four would
operate out of the Netherlands. The proposal led to a debate over how to
best protect the colony, and the question of how to share the cost of
the ships was not settled until July 1914. After considering the
recommendations, the Dutch Government decided to acquire four
battleships, and sought parliamentary approval in August 1914. However,
the proposal was withdrawn following the outbreak of the First World War
that month. A new royal commission into Dutch defense needs held after
the war did not recommend that battleships be procured and none were
ever ordered.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_1913_battleship_proposal>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1506:
Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars: The Grand Duchy of Lithuania
achieved one of the greatest Lithuanian victories against the Tatars in
the Battle of Kletsk.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kletsk>
1777:
American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Oriskany, one of the
bloodiest battles in the North American theater of the war, was fought
about six miles (10 km) east of Fort Stanwix, New York.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Oriskany>
1806:
The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved by its last emperor,
Francis II, during the aftermath of the War of the Third Coalition.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor>
1966:
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became emir and ruler of Abu
Dhabi, succeeding his brother, Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who
was deposed in a bloodless coup d'état.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zayed_bin_Sultan_Al_Nahyan>
1988:
New York City Police officers charged a crowd protesting a
curfew for the previously 24-hour Tompkins Square Park, sparking a riot
that led to more than 100 complaints of police brutality.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tompkins_Square_Park_Riot_(1988)>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Olympiad:
1. (historical) A period of four years, by which the ancient Greeks
reckoned time, being the interval from one celebration of the Olympic
games to another, beginning with the victory of Corbus in the foot race,
which took place in the year 776 b.c.; as, the era of the olympiads.
2. An occurrence of the Olympic games.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Olympiad>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I am part of all that I have met; Yet all experience is an arch
wherethro' Gleams that untravell'd world, whose margin fades For ever
and for ever when I move.
--Alfred, Lord Tennyson
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alfred,_Lord_Tennyson>
The Common House Martin is a migratory passerine bird of the swallow
family which breeds in Europe, north Africa and temperate Asia, and
winters in sub-Saharan Africa and tropical Asia. It feeds on insects
which are caught in flight. It has a blue head and upperparts, white
rump and pure white underparts, and is found in both open country and
near human habitation. It is a noisy species, especially at its breeding
colonies. It is similar in appearance to the two other martin species of
the Delichon genus, which are endemic to eastern and southern Asia. Its
scientific name (Delichon urbicum) and common name both relate to its
use of man-made structures. It builds a closed cup nest from mud pellets
under eaves or similar locations on buildings usually in colonies, but
sometimes fouling below nests can be a problem. It is hunted by the
Eurasian Hobby, and like other birds is affected by internal parasites
and external fleas and mites, although its large range and population
mean that it is not threatened globally. Its proximity to man has led to
some cultural and literary references, including a description in
Macbeth.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_House_Martin>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
25:
Guangwu claimed the throne as emperor of the Han Dynasty after
Wang Mang, who had seized the throne himself and proclaimed the Xin
Dynasty, died when peasant rebels besieged Chang'an.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emperors_of_the_Han_Dynasty>
1583:
Explorer Humphrey Gilbert established the first English colony
in North America at what is now St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador,
Canada.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._John%27s,_Newfoundland_and_Labrador>
1861:
With the passage of the Revenue Act, the U.S. government issued
its first income tax: 3% of all incomes over $800 (later rescinded in
1872).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_tax_in_the_United_States>
1925:
The Welsh political party Plaid Cymru was founded with the
goals of promoting the Welsh language and the political independence of
the Welsh nation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Plaid_Cymru>
2003:
A suicide bomber detonated a car bomb outside the lobby of the
JW Marriott Hotel in Setiabudi, South Jakarta, Indonesia, killing twelve
people and injuring 150.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Marriott_Hotel_bombing>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
dog days:
1. The days between early July and early September when Sirius (the Dog
Star) rises and sets with the Sun.
2. Hot, lazy days
3. A period of inactivity, laziness, or stagnation.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dog_days>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
As soon as the generals and the politicos can predict the motions
of your mind, lose it. Leave it as a sign to mark the false trail, the
way you didn't go. Be like the fox who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction. Practice resurrection.
--Wendell Berry
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Wendell_Berry>
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets (original French: Tintin au pays des
Soviets) is the first volume of The Adventures of Tintin (Les Aventures
de Tintin), the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned
by the conservative Belgian newspaper Le XXe Siècle as anti-communist
propaganda for its children's supplement Le Petit Vingtième, it was
serialised weekly from January 1929 to May 1930. The story tells of
young Belgian reporter Tintin and his dog Snowy (Milou), who are sent to
the Soviet Union to report on the policies of Joseph Stalin's Bolshevik
government. Tintin's intent to expose the regime's secrets prompts
agents from the Soviet secret police, the OGPU, to hunt him down.
Bolstered by publicity stunts including the April Fools' Day publication
of a faked OGPU letter confirming Tintin's existence, Land of the
Soviets was a commercial success, and appeared in book form shortly
after its conclusion. Hergé continued The Adventures of Tintin with
Tintin in the Congo (Tintin au Congo), and the series became a defining
part of the Franco-Belgian comics tradition. He later came to regret the
poorly researched, propagandist debut story, and prevented its
republication until 1973.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tintin_in_the_Land_of_the_Soviets>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
70:
First Jewish–Roman War: The Roman army, led by the future
Emperor Titus, conquered the city of Jerusalem and destroyed the Second
Temple (model pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Temple>
1327:
First War of Scottish Independence: James Douglas led a raid
into Weardale and almost killed Edward III of England.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stanhope_Park>
1783:
A cataclysmic eruption of Mount Asama, the most active volcano
in Japan, killed roughly 1,400 people and exacerbated a famine,
resulting in another 20,000 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Asama>
1983:
A coup d'état organised by Blaise Compaoré and supported by
Libya made Thomas Sankara President of the Republic of Upper Volta (now
Burkina Faso).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Sankara>
2006:
Sri Lankan Civil War: Seventeen employees of the French INGO
ACF International were massacred in Muttur.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Trincomalee_massacre_of_NGO_workers>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
yarl:
A deep, guttural vocal style with affected pronunciation, characteristic
of male grunge and postgrunge singers of the 1990s and early 2000s.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/yarl>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
All love is sweet, Given or returned. Common as light is love,
And its familiar voice wearies not ever.
--Percy Bysshe Shelley
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Percy_Bysshe_Shelley>
The 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on
August 3, 2008, at the Hungaroring (course shown) in Mogyoród, near
Budapest, Hungary. It was the 11th race of the 2008 Formula One season.
Contested over 70 laps, the race was won by Heikki Kovalainen for the
McLaren team, from a second position start. Timo Glock finished second
in a Toyota car, with Kimi Räikkönen third in a Ferrari. It was
Kovalainen's first Formula One victory, which made him the sport's 100th
driver to win a World Championship race, and it was Glock's first podium
finish. The majority of the race consisted of a duel between Lewis
Hamilton and Felipe Massa, who drove for McLaren and Ferrari,
respectively. The two championship rivals began a battle for the lead
that was resolved when Hamilton sustained a punctured tyre just over
halfway through the race, giving Massa a lead of more than 20 seconds
over Kovalainen. The Ferrari's engine, however, failed with three laps
remaining, allowing the McLaren driver to win. Räikkönen set the
race's fastest lap in the other Ferrari, but was hampered by a poor
qualifying performance and was stuck behind Fernando Alonso (Renault)
and Glock in turn for almost all of the race.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Hungarian_Grand_Prix>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1913:
A strike by agricultural workers in Wheatland, California, US,
degenerated into a riot, one of the first major farm labor
confrontations in California.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheatland_Hop_Riot>
1916:
Irish nationalist Sir Roger Casement was hanged at London's
Pentonville Prison for treason for his role in the Easter Rising, a
rebellion to win Irish independence from Britain.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Casement>
1949:
The Basketball Association of America agreed to merge with the
National Basketball League to form the National Basketball Association.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Basketball_Association>
2005:
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the former Mayor of Tehran, began his term
as the sixth President of Iran.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud_Ahmadinejad>
2007:
Former Deputy Director of the Chilean secret police Raúl
Iturriaga was captured after having been on the run following a
conviction for kidnapping.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ra%C3%BAl_Iturriaga>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
bowdlerize:
To remove those parts of a text considered offensive, vulgar, or
otherwise unseemly.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bowdlerize>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The machine merely acts as an intermediary between the sensitive
and the spiritual force. It is an extension of the sensitive. It
magnifies the capability of the sensitive and acts as a link of some
sort. It enables the sensitive to perform his function.
--Clifford D. Simak
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Clifford_D._Simak>
The Duino Elegies are a collection of ten poems written by Rainer Maria
Rilke (1875–1926), a Bohemian-Austrian poet. The elegies are intensely
religious, mystical poems that employ a rich symbolism of angels and
salvation weighing beauty and existential suffering while addressing
issues such as the limits of the human condition, loneliness, love and
death. Rilke began writing the elegies in 1912 while a guest of Princess
Marie von Thurn und Taxis (1855–1934) at Duino Castle near Trieste,
and they were dedicated to her upon publication. Aside from brief
episodes of writing in 1913 and 1915, Rilke did not return to the work
until a few years after the end of World War I. With a sudden, renewed
inspiration—writing in a frantic pace he described as a "boundless
storm, a hurricane of the spirit"—he completed the collection in
February 1922 while staying at Château de Muzot in Veyras, Switzerland.
The delay in completing the work was because he suffered frequently from
severe depression caused by the events of the war. The Duino Elegies are
recognized by critics and scholars as his most important work, and have
influenced many subsequent poets and writers.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duino_Elegies>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
338 BC:
A Macedonian army defeated the combined forces of Athens and
Thebes at the Battle of Chaeronea, securing Macedonian hegemony over the
majority of Ancient Greece.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chaeronea_(338_BC)>
1870:
Tower Subway (pictured), the world's first underground tube
railway, opened beneath the River Thames in London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_Subway>
1903:
The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization started the
Ilinden Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in Macedonia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilinden%E2%80%93Preobrazhenie_Uprising>
1923:
Calvin Coolidge became the 30th President of the United States
after Warren G. Harding suffered a fatal heart attack.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_G._Harding>
1947:
A British South American Airways airliner crashed into Mount
Tupungato in the Argentine Andes, the wreckage from which was not found
until 1998.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BSAA_Star_Dust_accident>
1989:
Sri Lankan Civil War: The Indian Peace Keeping Force began
killing 64 minority Sri Lankan Tamil civilians over a two-day period in
Valvettithurai, Sri Lanka.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1989_Valvettiturai_massacre>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
dolorous:
Solemnly or ponderously sad.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dolorous>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The brightest flashes in the world of thought are incomplete
until they have been proved to have their counterparts in the world of
fact.
--John Tyndall
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Tyndall>