The Banker horse is a small, hardy, and docile feral horse (Equus ferus
caballus) living on barrier islands in North Carolina's Outer Banks.
Descended from domesticated Spanish horses and possibly brought to the
Americas in the 16th century, the foundation bloodstock may have become
feral after surviving shipwrecks or being abandoned on the islands by
one of the exploratory expeditions led by Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón or
Sir Richard Grenville. Populations are found in the Rachel Carson
Estuarine Sanctuary and on Ocracoke Island, Shackleford Banks, and
Currituck Banks. Although not considered indigenous to the islands,
Bankers are allowed to remain because of their historical significance.
They survive by grazing on marsh grasses—for water as well as
food—supplemented by temporary freshwater pools. To prevent
overpopulation and inbreeding, and to protect their habitat from
overgrazing, the horses are managed by the National Park Service, the
State of North Carolina, and private organizations; populations are
limited through adoptions and birth control. Bankers taken from the wild
and trained have been used for trail riding, driving, and mounted
patrols.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banker_horse>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
763:
The Abbasid Caliphate crushed the Alid Revolt when one of the
rebellion leaders was mortally wounded in battle near Basra in what is
now Iraq.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alid_Revolt_(762%E2%80%9363)>
1840:
The French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville discovered Adélie
Land, Antarctica.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jules_Dumont_d%27Urville>
1912:
Raymond Poincaré, who would pursue hardline anti-German
policies, began his first term as Prime Minister of France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Poincar%C3%A9>
1963:
Following a period of chaos in Congo-Léopoldville and United
Nations intervention, the secession of Katanga came to an end.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_Katanga>
1976:
The Concorde supersonic transports began scheduled commercial
flights to London, Paris, Bahrain, and Rio de Janeiro.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concorde>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
scanno:
A typographical error introduced by optical character recognition (OCR)
software, which may mistake a letter or set of letters for a letter or
set of letters of similar shape, as *tum for turn, or *Dosition for
Position.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/scanno>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I yield to no man in sympathy for the gallant men under my
command; but I am obliged to sweat them tonight, so that I may save
their blood tomorrow.
--Stonewall Jackson
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stonewall_Jackson>
Oriental Film was a film production company in Batavia, Dutch East
Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia). Established by ethnic Chinese
businessman Tjo Seng Han in 1940, it completed four black-and-white
films before it was closed in 1941. All the company's films were
screened into the mid-1940s but may now be lost. They were directed by
two men, Njoo Cheong Seng and Sutan Usman Karim, and launched the
careers of actors such as Dhalia and Soerip. Established during the
revival of the Indies film industry, Oriental released its first film,
Kris Mataram, in July 1940. It starred Njoo's wife Fifi Young, and
relied on her fame as a stage actress to draw audiences. This was
followed by three more films, targeted at low-income audiences and
scored with kroncong music. Njoo showed a proclivity for sensation,
using bright, extravagant costumes. Oriental's final production was
Panggilan Darah, completed in 1941 after Njoo and Young had left the
company. Oriental's Dutch-owned studio facilities made them the largest
and most modern studio in the Indies, but they were unable to recoup the
rental fees on the property, and in 1941 the company was shut down.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Film>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1156:
According to legend, freeholder Lalli slew Bishop Henry of
Finland with an axe on the ice of the lake Köyliönjärvi in Köyliö,
Finland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_(bishop_of_Finland)>
1785:
Tây Sơn forces of Vietnam annihilated an invading Siamese
army who were attempting to restore Nguyễn Ánh to the throne.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_R%E1%BA%A1ch_G%E1%BA%A7m-Xo%C3%A0i_…>
1843:
Honório Hermeto Carneiro Leão, Marquis of Paraná, became the
de facto first prime minister of the Empire of Brazil.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hon%C3%B3rio_Hermeto_Carneiro_Le%C3%A3o,_Marq…>
1946:
Favouring stronger executive power than the draft constitution
for the French Fourth Republic provided, Charles de Gaulle resigned as
President of the Provisional Government.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_de_Gaulle>
2009:
In Washington, D.C., over 1 million people attended the
inauguration of Barack Obama as the first African American President of
the United States.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_inauguration_of_Barack_Obama>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
rove:
1. (intransitive) To roam, or wander about at random, especially over a
wide area.
2. (transitive) To roam or wander through. […]
3. To practice robbery on the seas; to voyage about on the seas as a
pirate.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rove>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There is no conflict in the absolute universe, but there is
conflict in the relative world.
--Koichi Tohei
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Koichi_Tohei>
Arthur Morris (1922–2015) was an Australian cricketer who played 46
Test matches between 1946 and 1955. He is best known as a prominent
member of the "Invincibles", a team that went undefeated on their tour
of England in 1948. In his teens, Morris became the first player ever to
score two centuries on his first-class debut. After serving in the
Australian Army during the Second World War, he made his Test debut
against England. He scored a century in his third match and two more
hundreds in the following Test, becoming only the second Australian to
score a hundred in each innings of an Ashes Test. By 1950, he was
Australia's vice-captain and had amassed nine Test centuries with a
batting average over 65. Thereafter his form declined, and his career
ended after his first wife became terminally ill in 1955. In later life,
Morris served as a trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground for over twenty
years. Selected in the Australian Cricket Board's Team of the Century in
2000 and inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2001, he
is widely regarded as one of Australia's most successful left-handed
batsmen.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Morris>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
649:
War against the Western Turks: The forces of Kucha surrendered
after a siege led by Tang Dynasty general Ashina She'er, establishing
Tang control over the northern Tarim Basin in what is now Xinjiang.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tang_campaign_against_Kucha>
1764:
English radical and politician John Wilkes was expelled from
the British Parliament and declared an outlaw for seditious libel.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilkes>
1853:
Giuseppe Verdi's opera Il trovatore was first performed at the
Teatro Apollo in Rome.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Il_trovatore>
1996:
A tank barge and a tug grounded on a beach in South Kingstown,
Rhode Island, US, spilling an estimated 828,000 US gallons
(3,130,000 l) of home heating oil.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Cape_oil_spill>
2006:
In the deadliest aviation accident in Slovak history, an
Antonov An-24 aircraft operated by the Slovak Air Force crashed in
northern Hungary, killing 42 of the 43 people on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Slovak_Air_Force_Antonov_An-24_crash>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
bust:
1. (slang) To arrest for a crime.
2. (slang) To catch someone in the act of doing something wrong, socially
and morally inappropriate, or illegal, especially when being done in a
sneaky or secretive state. […]
3. (US, informal) To reduce in rank. […]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bust>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Man, no doubt, owes many other moral duties to his fellow men;
such as to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, care
for the sick, protect the defenceless, assist the weak, and enlighten
the ignorant. But these are simply moral duties, of which each man must
be his own judge, in each particular case, as to whether, and how, and
how far, he can, or will, perform them. But of his legal duty — that
is, of his duty to live honestly towards his fellow men — his fellow
men not only may judge, but, for their own protection, must judge. And,
if need be, they may rightfully compel him to perform it. They may do
this, acting singly, or in concert. They may do it on the instant, as
the necessity arises, or deliberately and systematically, if they prefer
to do so, and the exigency will admit of it.
--Lysander Spooner
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Lysander_Spooner>
The Negro Motorist Green Book was an annual guidebook for African-
American travelers in the United States. It was originated and published
by New York City mail carrier Victor H. Green from 1936 to 1966, during
the Jim Crow era, when racial discrimination was widespread. Although
discrimination and poverty limited African-American car ownership, many
middle-class blacks took to driving to avoid segregation on public
transportation. They faced inconveniences such as businesses refusing to
serve them or repair their vehicles and hotels refusing them
accommodation or food. They even faced threats of physical violence and
forcible expulsion from whites-only sundown towns. Green intended the
book "to give the Negro traveler information that will keep him from
running into difficulties". It became the definitive Jim Crow travel
guide for blacks, but was little known outside the African-American
community. Its publication ceased shortly after the passage of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964. Interest in it has revived in the early 21st century
in connection with studies of black travel during the Jim Crow era.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Negro_Motorist_Green_Book>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1778:
English explorer James Cook became the first known European to
reach the Sandwich Islands, now known as the Hawaiian Islands
(pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_Islands>
1866:
Wesley College, the largest school in Australia by enrolment,
was established in Melbourne.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesley_College_(Victoria)>
1919:
World War I: The Paris Peace Conference opened in Versailles,
France, to set the peace terms for the Central Powers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Peace_Conference,_1919>
1943:
World War II: As part of Operation Iskra, the Soviet Red Army
broke the Siege of Leningrad, opening a narrow land corridor to the
city.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Iskra>
1990:
In a sting operation conducted by the FBI, Mayor of Washington,
D.C., Marion Barry was arrested for possession of crack cocaine.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_Barry>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
slingshot:
1. To move in a manner resembling a slingshot.
2. (especially) To use the gravity of a moving planet to add momentum to a
spacecraft.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/slingshot>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
You simply cannot invent any conspiracy theory so ridiculous and
obviously satirical that some people somewhere don't already believe it.
--Robert Anton Wilson
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_Anton_Wilson>
Gather Together in My Name (1974) is a memoir by African-American writer
and poet Maya Angelou, the second of her seven autobiographies. The
narrative follows Rita (Angelou) from the age of 17 to 19 as she becomes
closer to her mother and tries to provide for her young son, but
ultimately descends into a life of crime and misery. It expands on many
of the themes from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, including motherhood
and family, race and racism, identity, and education and literacy. Like
many of Angelou's autobiographies, Gather Together describes her ongoing
self-education. Though not as critically acclaimed as her first
autobiography, it is considered better written and received mostly
positive reviews. The book's title comes from the Bible, Matthew
18:19–20, and is meant to evoke loving relationships, in which adults
can be honest with their children about their past. Consisting of a
series of episodes loosely tied together by theme and content, the book
intentionally parallels the chaos of adolescence; some critics found
this structure unsatisfactory.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gather_Together_in_My_Name>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1377:
Pope Gregory XI entered Rome after a four-month journey from
Avignon, returning the Papacy to its original city and effectively
becoming the last Avignon Pope.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Gregory_XI>
1524:
Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano set sail westward from
Madeira to find a sea route to the Pacific Ocean.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_da_Verrazzano>
1946:
The United Nations Security Council, the organ of the United
Nations charged with the maintenance of international peace and
security, held its first meeting at Church House in London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council>
1966:
A US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress collided with a KC-135
Stratotanker during aerial refueling over the Mediterranean Sea,
dropping three hydrogen bombs on land near Palomares, Spain, and a
fourth one into the sea.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_Palomares_B-52_crash>
1991:
Harald V, the current King of Norway, succeeded to the throne
upon the death of his father Olav V.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_V_of_Norway>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
slug:
1. Any of many terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks, having no (or only
a rudimentary) shell. […]
2. (journalism) A title, name or header, a catchline, a short phrase or
title to indicate the content of a newspaper or magazine story for
editing use. […]
3. (web design) The last part of a clean URL, the displayed resource name,
similar to a filename.
4. (obsolete) A hindrance, an obstruction. […]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/slug>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
As we enjoy great Advantages from the Inventions of Others, we
should be glad of an Opportunity to serve others by any Invention of
ours, and this we should do freely and generously.
--Benjamin Franklin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin>
Wandsworth Bridge crosses the River Thames in west London. It carries
the A217 road between Battersea, near Wandsworth Town Station, in the
London Borough of Wandsworth on the south side of the river, and Sands
End and Parsons Green in Hammersmith and Fulham on the north side. The
first bridge on the site was a toll bridge, built in 1873 in the
expectation that the western terminus of the Hammersmith and City
Railway would shortly be built on the north bank. The terminus was not
built, and problems with drainage on the approach road made access to
the bridge difficult for vehicles. Wandsworth Bridge was commercially
unsuccessful, and in 1880 it was taken into public ownership and made
toll-free. Narrow and too weak to carry buses, the bridge was demolished
in 1937. The present bridge, an unadorned steel cantilever bridge, was
opened in 1940. It was painted in dull shades of blue as camouflage
against air raids, a colour scheme it retains. Wandsworth Bridge is one
of the busiest bridges in London, carrying over 50,000 vehicles daily.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wandsworth_Bridge>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
27 BC:
Gaius Octavianus was given the title Augustus by the Roman
Senate when he became the first Roman emperor.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus>
1809:
Peninsular War: French forces under Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult
attacked the amphibious evacuation of the British under Sir John Moore
in Corunna, Galicia, Spain.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Corunna>
1938:
Benny Goodman performed a concert at New York City's Carnegie
Hall which has been considered instrumental in establishing jazz as a
legitimate form of music.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benny_Goodman>
1986:
The Internet Engineering Task Force, a standards organization
that develops and promotes Internet standards, held its first meeting,
consisting of twenty-one United States-government-funded researchers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Engineering_Task_Force>
2008:
Five days after proposing lyrics for the wordless Marcha Real,
the Spanish national anthem, the Spanish Olympic Committee withdrew the
proposal due to widespread criticism.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcha_Real>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
hearsay:
1. Information that was heard by one person about another.
2. (law) Evidence based on the reports of others rather than on personal
knowledge, which is normally inadmissible because it was not made under
oath.
3. (law) An out-of-court statement offered in court for the truth of the
matter asserted, which is normally inadmissible because it is not
subject to cross-examination unless the hearsay statement falls under
one of a number of exceptions.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hearsay>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
One cannot condemn tendencies in art; one can only condemn works
of art. To be categorically against a current art tendency or style
means, in effect, to pronounce on works of art not yet created and not
yet seen. It means inquiring into the motives of artists instead of into
results. Yet we all know — or are supposed to know — that results
are all that count in art.
--Clement Greenberg
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Clement_Greenberg>
During Liverpool Football Club's first 68 years, they won five Football
League championships before being relegated to the Second Division in
the 1950s. They were founded in 1892 when John Houlding needed a team
for the Anfield stadium, recently vacated by Everton Football Club.
After winning the Lancashire League title in their first season, they
were accepted into the Football League for the 1893–94 season. With
Tom Watson as manager, they were promoted to the top tier of English
football, winning their first League championships in 1901 and 1906 and
reaching the FA Cup final in 1914. Liverpool's fortunes fluctuated
during the inter-war years, when the club often finished in midtable,
although they did win two further championships in 1922 and 1923. An
expansion to the Spion Kop terracing in the 1920s increased Anfield's
capacity. Liverpool became League champions again in 1947, in the first
season after the Second World War, but, following a gradual decline,
they were back in the Second Division by the time of Bill Shankly's
appointment as manager in 1959. (
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Liverpool_F.C._(1892%E2%80%931959)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1759:
The British Museum in London, today containing one of the
largest and most comprehensive collections in the world, opened to the
public in Montagu House, Bloomsbury.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Museum>
1815:
War of 1812: American frigate USS President, commanded by
Commodore Stephen Decatur, was captured by a squadron of four British
frigates.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_USS_President>
1933:
A teenage girl in Banneux, Belgium, reported the first of
several Marian apparitions, now known as Our Lady of Banneux.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Banneux>
1951:
Ilse Koch, the wife of the commandant of the Buchenwald and
Majdanek concentration camps, was sentenced to life imprisonment by a
West German court.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilse_Koch>
2009:
After US Airways Flight 1549 struck a flock of Canada geese
during its initial climb out from New York City, Captain Chesley
Sullenberger successfully made an emergency landing in the Hudson River.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_Airways_Flight_1549>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
lather:
1. The foam made by rapidly stirring soap and water.
2. Foam from profuse sweating, as of a horse.
3. A state of agitation.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lather>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I must say that I recognized at once that we had never understood
the meaning of these words, so common and yet so sacred: Justice,
Equity, Liberty; that concerning each of these principles our ideas have
been utterly obscure; and, in fact, that this ignorance was the sole
cause, both of the poverty that devours us, and of all the calamities
that have ever afflicted the human race.
--Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Pierre-Joseph_Proudhon>
Brachychiton rupestris in the family Malvaceae, commonly known as the
Queensland bottle tree, is native to Queensland, Australia. Discovered
and described by Sir Thomas Mitchell and John Lindley in 1848, it gained
its name from its bulbous trunk, which can be up to 3.5 metres (11 ft)
diameter at breast height. Reaching 10–25 metres (33–82 ft) high,
the tree is deciduous, losing its leaves between September and December.
Cream flowers appear from September to November, followed by woody boat-
shaped follicles that ripen from November to May. It is an emergent tree
in the endangered central semi-evergreen vine thickets of the Brigalow
Belt. Remnant trees are often left by farmers on cleared land to provide
shade and fodder. As a drought-deciduous succulent tree, the bottle tree
adapts readily to cultivation and is tolerant of a range of soils and
temperatures. It is found planted in streets, parks, and gardens and on
farms. An avenue in Roma, Queensland, was planted between 1918 and 1920,
each tree representing one of 93 local men killed in World War I. The
species is also cultivated as an indoor plant and a bonsai subject.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachychiton_rupestris>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1724:
Philip V, the first Bourbon ruler of Spain, abdicated in favor
of his eldest son Louis.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_V_of_Spain>
1814:
Sweden and Denmark–Norway signed the Treaty of Kiel, whereby
Frederick VI of Denmark ceded Norway to Sweden in return for the Swedish
holdings in Pomerania.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Kiel>
1943:
Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Charles de Gaulle,
and Henri Giraud (all pictured) met in Casablanca to plan the Allied
European strategy for the next phase of World War II.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casablanca_Conference>
1960:
The Reserve Bank of Australia, the country's central bank and
banknote-issuing authority, was established.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reserve_Bank_of_Australia>
1978:
Austrian logician Kurt Gödel, who suffered from an obsessive
fear of being poisoned, died of starvation after his wife was
hospitalized and unable to cook for him.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_G%C3%B6del>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
scale:
1. Part of an overlapping arrangement of many small, flat and hard pieces
of keratin covering the skin of an animal, particularly a fish or
reptile.
2. A small piece of pigmented chitin, many of which coat the wings of a
butterfly or moth to give them their color.
3. A flake of skin of an animal afflicted with dermatitis.
4. A pine nut of a pinecone.
5. The flaky material sloughed off heated metal.
6. Scale mail (as opposed to chain mail).
7. Limescale.
8. A scale insect.
9. The thin metallic side plate of the handle of a pocketknife. […]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/scale>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Let me give you a definition of ethics: It is good to maintain and
further life — it is bad to damage and destroy life. And this ethic,
profound and universal, has the significance of a religion. It is
religion.
--Albert Schweitzer
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Albert_Schweitzer>
No. 1 Flying Training School (No. 1 FTS) was one of the original units
of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), dating back to the service's
formation in 1921 at Point Cook, Victoria. It was re-formed several
times in the ensuing years, initially as No. 1 Service Flying Training
School in 1940, under the wartime Empire Air Training Scheme. After
graduating nearly 3,000 pilots, it was disbanded in late 1944, when
there was no further need to train Australian aircrews for service in
Europe. The school was re-established in 1946 at Uranquinty, New South
Wales, and transferred to Point Cook the following year. To cope with
the demands of the Korean War and Malayan Emergency, it was re-formed as
No. 1 Applied Flying Training School in 1952 and moved to Pearce,
Western Australia, in 1958. Another school was meanwhile formed at
Uranquinty, No. 1 Basic Flying Training School (No. 1 BFTS), which
transferred to Point Cook in 1958. In 1969, No. 1 AFTS was re-formed as
No. 2 Flying Training School and No. 1 BFTS was re-formed as No. 1 FTS.
Rationalisation of RAAF flying training resulted in the disbandment of
No. 1 FTS in 1993.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._1_Flying_Training_School_RAAF>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1797:
French Revolutionary Wars: A naval battle off the coast of
Brittany between two British frigates and a French ship of the line
ended with over 900 deaths when the latter ran aground.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_of_13_January_1797>
1822:
The design of the current flag of Greece was adopted by the
First National Assembly at Epidaurus for their naval flag.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Greece>
1953:
An article published in Pravda accused some of the most
prestigious physicians in the Soviet Union, mostly Jews, of taking part
in a vast plot to poison members of the top Soviet political and
military leadership.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctors%27_plot>
1986:
The month-long South Yemen Civil War began in Aden between
supporters of President Ali Nasir Muhammad and his predecessor Abdul
Fattah Ismail, resulting in thousands of casualties.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Yemen_Civil_War>
2001:
The first of two large earthquakes struck El Salvador, killing
at least 944 people and destroying over 100,000 homes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2001_El_Salvador_earthquake>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
peel:
1. (transitive) To remove the skin or outer covering of.
2. (transitive) To remove something from the outer or top layer of.
3. (intransitive) To become detached, come away, especially in flakes or
strips; to shed skin in such a way.
4. (intransitive) To remove one's clothing.
5. (intransitive) To move, separate (off or away). […]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/peel>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
It is the greatest mistake to think that man is always one and the
same. A man is never the same for long. He is continually changing. He
seldom remains the same even for half an hour.
--G. I. Gurdjieff
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/G._I._Gurdjieff>
Keen Johnson was the 45th Governor of Kentucky (1939–1943) and the
only journalist to have held that office. Born on January 12, 1896, he
served in World War I and earned a journalism degree from the University
of Kentucky. Johnson served as lieutenant governor under Governor A. B.
"Happy" Chandler from 1935 to 1939. He had already secured the
Democratic gubernatorial nomination when Chandler resigned and elevated
him to governor so that he could appoint Chandler to the U.S. Senate.
Johnson went on to win a full gubernatorial term in the general
election. He ran a fiscally conservative administration and took the
state from a $7 million shortfall to a surplus of $10 million by the
end of his term. Afterwards, Johnson joined Reynolds Metals as a special
assistant to the president. He took a one-year leave of absence to serve
as the first U.S. Undersecretary of Labor in 1946, then continued
working for the company until 1961. He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in
the U.S. Senate in 1960, losing to incumbent Republican John Sherman
Cooper. He died in 1970 in Richmond, Kentucky.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keen_Johnson>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1808:
John Rennie's scheme to defend St Mary's Church, Reculver, from
coastal erosion was abandoned in favour of demolition, despite the
church being an exemplar of Anglo-Saxon architecture.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Mary%27s_Church,_Reculver>
1899:
During a storm, the crew of the Lynmouth Lifeboat Station
transported their 10-ton lifeboat 15 mi (24 km) overland in order to
rescue a damaged schooner.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynmouth_Lifeboat_Station>
1921:
Seeking to restore confidence after the Black Sox Scandal,
owners of Major League Baseball teams elected former United States
district court judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis as the league's first
commissioner.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenesaw_Mountain_Landis>
1967:
Seventy-three-year-old psychology professor James Bedford
became the first person to be cryonically frozen with intent of future
resuscitation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryonics>
2007:
Comet McNaught reached perihelion and became the brightest
comet in over 40 years with an apparent magnitude of −5.5.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C/2006_P1>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
liege:
1. A free and independent person; specifically, a lord paramount; a
sovereign.
2. The subject of a sovereign or lord; a liegeman.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/liege>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Look up here, I’m in heaven I’ve got scars that can’t be
seen I’ve got drama, can’t be stolen Everybody knows me now Look up
here, man, I’m in danger I’ve got nothing left to lose I’m so high
it makes my brain whirl Dropped my cell phone down below Ain’t that
just like me
--David Bowie
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/David_Bowie>