The elfin woods warbler (Setophaga angelae) is an uncommon bird species
endemic to Puerto Rico. Discovered in 1968, it is the most recently
described species of the New World warblers. The name angelae is a
tribute to Angela Kepler, one of its discoverers. Characteristic of
Antillean warblers (S. adelaidae, S. delicata, S. plumbea and S.
pharetra), the species features a long bill and short, round wings
(averaging 53.8 mm or 2.12 in). An insectivore, it feeds by gleaning
small insects off leaves. El Yunque National Forest, where it was first
captured, was initially believed to be its only habitat, but its largest
population has been found in the Maricao State Forest. Due to its small
numbers and restricted habitats, conservation efforts were begun in 1982
to protect this species. It is not in immediate danger as it lives
mainly in protected forest, but potential threats include habitat
reduction, natural disasters, and introduced species such as rats and
small Asian mongooses.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elfin_woods_warbler>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
2492 BC:
According to legend, Armenian culture hero Hayk slew the
giant king Bel with a shot from a longbow near Lake Van (in modern
Turkey).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayk>
106:
The region of Dacia, comprising regions of modern Romania,
became a province of the Roman Empire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Dacia>
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>
1977:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began an
investigation into the Ford Pinto's (car pictured) alleged vulnerability
to fuel leakage and fire in a rear-end collision.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Pinto>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
find oneself:
1. (idiomatic) To learn, or attempt to learn, what kind of person one is
and what one wants in life.
2. (idiomatic) To unexpectedly or unintentionally begin to do or experience
something.
3. (idiomatic) To be in a particular state of mind.
4. (literally) To find (something) for oneself.
5. (literally) To discover oneself to be in a particular place.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/find_oneself>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The rights of all are equal: justice, poised and balanced in
eternal calm, will shake from the golden scales in which are weighed the
acts of men, the very dust of prejudice and caste: No race, no color, no
previous condition, can change the rights of men.
--Robert G. Ingersoll
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_G._Ingersoll>
Lynx is a constellation in the northern sky that was introduced in the
17th century by Johannes Hevelius. Named after the animal, it is a faint
constellation whose brightest stars form a zigzag line. The orange giant
Alpha Lyncis is the brightest star in the constellation, while the
semiregular variable star Y Lyncis is a popular target for amateur
astronomers. Six star systems have been found to contain planets. Those
of 6 Lyncis and HD 75898 were discovered by the Doppler method; those of
XO-2, XO-4, XO-5 and WASP-13 were observed as they passed in front of
the host star. Within the constellation's borders lie NGC 2419, an
unusually remote globular cluster; the galaxy NGC 2770, which has hosted
three recent Type Ib supernovae; the distant quasar APM 08279+5255,
whose light is magnified and split into multiple images by the
gravitational lensing effect of a foreground galaxy; and the Lynx
Supercluster, which was the most distant supercluster known at the time
of its discovery in 1999.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynx_(constellation)>
_______________________________
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>
1792:
French Revolution: Insurrectionists in Paris stormed the
Tuileries Palace, effectively ending the French monarchy until it was
restored in 1814.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/10_August_(French_Revolution)>
1864:
After Uruguay's governing Blanco Party refused Brazil's
demands, José Antônio Saraiva announced that the Brazilian military
would exact reprisals, beginning the Uruguayan War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uruguayan_War>
1901:
The Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers
began an ultimately unsuccessful strike to reverse its declining
fortunes and organize large numbers of new members.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Steel_recognition_strike_of_1901>
1966:
The Heron Road Bridge in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, collapsed
during its construction, killing nine workers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heron_Road_Workers_Memorial_Bridge>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
adroit:
Deft, dexterous, or skillful.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/adroit>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Reactionism is not the same thing as conservatism. It’s far more
potent a brew. Reactionary thought begins, usually, with acute despair
at the present moment and a memory of a previous golden age. It then
posits a moment in the past when everything went to hell and proposes to
turn things back to what they once were. It is not simply a conservative
preference for things as they are, with a few nudges back, but a
passionate loathing of the status quo and a desire to return to the past
in one emotionally cathartic revolt. If conservatives are pessimistic,
reactionaries are apocalyptic. If conservatives value elites,
reactionaries seethe with contempt for them. If conservatives believe in
institutions, reactionaries want to blow them up. If conservatives tend
to resist too radical a change, reactionaries want a revolution. Though
it took some time to reveal itself, today’s Republican Party — from
Newt Gingrich’s Republican Revolution to today’s Age of Trump — is
not a conservative party. It is a reactionary party that is now at the
peak of its political power.
--Andrew Sullivan
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Andrew_Sullivan>
The Leningrad première of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 7 took place on 9
August 1942 during the Second World War, while the city (now Saint
Petersburg) was under siege by Nazi German forces. Dmitri Shostakovich
(pictured) had intended for the piece to be premièred by the Leningrad
Philharmonic Orchestra, but they had been evacuated because of the
siege, along with the composer, and the world première was instead held
in Kuybyshev. The Leningrad première was performed by the surviving
musicians of the Leningrad Radio Orchestra, supplemented with military
performers. Most of the musicians were starving, and three died during
rehearsals. Supported by a Soviet military offensive intended to silence
German forces, the performance was a success, prompting an hour-long
ovation. The symphony was broadcast to the German lines by loudspeaker
as a form of psychological warfare. The Leningrad première was
considered by music critics to be one of the most important artistic
performances of the war because of its psychological and political
effects. Reunion concerts featuring surviving musicians were convened in
1964 and 1992 to commemorate the event.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leningrad_premi%C3%A8re_of_Shostakovich%27s_S…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1877:
Nez Perce War: Both Nez Perce and United States Army sides
suffered numerous casualties as they fought to a stalemate in the Battle
of the Big Hole.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Big_Hole>
1914:
World War I: France launched its first attack of the war in an
ultimately unsuccessful attempt to recover the province of Alsace from
Germany.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mulhouse>
1960:
The region of South Kasai seceded from the Republic of the
Congo.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Kasai>
1965:
Malaysia expelled the state of Singapore (flag pictured) from
its federation due to heated ideological conflict between their
respective ruling parties.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore>
2014:
A white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri killed an 18-year-
old African-American male, resulting in widespread protests and unrest.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Michael_Brown>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
merlion:
(Singapore) An imaginary creature with the head of a lion and the body
of a fish, which is one of the national symbols of Singapore.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/merlion>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I've found that people aren't really as different as they
sometimes seem. We all have joy and tragedy in our lives. So it only
follows that if I write something from my heart and stay true to myself,
others will easily identify.
--Happy Rhodes
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Happy_Rhodes>
Quehanna Wild Area is a wildlife area in Cameron, Clearfield, and Elk
counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. At 48,186 acres (75 sq mi;
195 km2), it is the largest state forest wild area in Pennsylvania, and
hosts herds of native elk. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the
logging industry cut the area's virgin forests. In 1955 the Curtiss-
Wright Corporation bought 80 square miles (210 km2) of state forest for
a facility developing nuclear-powered jet engines. A succession of
tenants further contaminated the nuclear reactor facility and its hot
cells with radioactive isotopes, including strontium-90 and cobalt-60.
Pennsylvania reacquired the land in 1963 and 1967, and in 1965
established Quehanna as a wild area, but retained the nuclear facility
and industrial complex. The facilities were used to treat hardwood
flooring with radiation until 2002. The cleanup of the reactor and hot
cells took over eight years and cost $30 million. Quehanna Wild Area
has many sites with radioactive and toxic waste; some have been cleaned
up, but others have been dug up by black bears and white-tailed deer.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quehanna_Wild_Area>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1576:
The cornerstone of Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe's observatory
Uraniborg was laid on the island of Hven.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uraniborg>
1956:
A major mining disaster killed 262 workers, mainly Italian
nationals, at the Bois du Cazier coal mine in Belgium.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bois_du_Cazier>
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>
1998:
The Iranian consulate in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, was
raided by Taliban leading to the death of 10 Iranian diplomats and an
Iranian journalist.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_killing_of_Iranian_diplomats_in_Afghanis…>
2009:
Nine people died when a tour helicopter and a small private
airplane collided over the Hudson River near Frank Sinatra Park in
Hoboken, New Jersey, U.S.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Hudson_River_mid-air_collision>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
filch:
(transitive) To illegally take possession of (especially items of low
value); to pilfer, to steal.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/filch>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
O lovely chance, what can I do To give my gratefulness to you? You
rise between myself and me With a wise persistency; I would have broken
body and soul, But by your grace, still I am whole.
--Sara Teasdale
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sara_Teasdale>
The Disneyland Railroad is a 3-foot (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage
railroad and attraction in the Disneyland theme park of the Disneyland
Resort in Anaheim, California, in the United States. Its route is 1.2
miles (1.9 km) long with four train stations, encircling almost
everything in the park. The rail line, which was built by WED
Enterprises, is operated with two steam locomotives built by WED and
three historic steam locomotives originally built by Baldwin Locomotive
Works. The attraction originated as a concept created by Walt Disney,
who drew inspiration from the ridable miniature Carolwood Pacific
Railroad built in his backyard. Since 1955 when the Disneyland Railroad
first opened to the public at the park's grand opening, it has been
consistently billed as one of the top attractions, and for many years
visitors had to buy a top-tier ticket to ride the train. It is one of
the world's most popular steam-powered railroads, with an estimated 6.6
million passengers served each year.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disneyland_Railroad>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1461:
Ming general Cao Qin staged a failed coup against the Emperor
Yingzong.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebellion_of_Cao_Qin>
1782:
The Badge of Military Merit, the precursor to the United
States' Purple Heart award, was established as a military decoration in
the Continental Army.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badge_of_Military_Merit>
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>
1942:
World War II: U.S. Marines initiated the first American
offensive of the Guadalcanal Campaign with landings on Guadalcanal and
Tulagi in the Solomon Islands.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tulagi_and_Gavutu%E2%80%93Tanambogo>
1987:
Lynne Cox became the first person to swim across the Bering
Strait, crossing from Little Diomede to Big Diomede in 2 hours and 5
minutes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynne_Cox>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
nene:
The Hawaiian goose, Branta sandvicensis, which was designated the state
bird of Hawaii in 1957.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nene>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
When the country goes temporarily to the dogs, cats must learn to
be circumspect, walk on fences, sleep in trees, and have faith that all
this woofing is not the last word. What is the last word, then?
Gentleness is everywhere in daily life, a sign that faith rules through
ordinary things: through cooking and small talk, through storytelling,
making love, fishing, tending animals and sweet corn and flowers,
through sports, music and books, raising kids — all the places where
the gravy soaks in and grace shines through. Even in a time of
elephantine vanity and greed, one never has to look far to see the
campfires of gentle people.
--Garrison Keillor
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Garrison_Keillor>
The Chase is an American television quiz show based on the British
program of the same name. It premiered on August 6, 2013, on the Game
Show Network, hosted by Brooke Burns and featuring Mark Labbett as a
quiz show genius called the "chaser". The American version of the show
follows the same general format as the original UK version, but with
teams of three contestants instead of four. Each player who stays ahead
of the chaser on the gameboard retains the winnings for that round.
Successful contestants advance to the Final Chase, in which they answer
questions as a team playing for an equal share of the prize fund
accumulated during the episode. The Chase earned positive reviews, as
did Burns and Labbett individually, and the pacing of the game was
mentioned favorably. At the 2014 Daytime Emmy Awards, the series was
nominated for Outstanding Game Show, and Burns was nominated two years
later for Outstanding Game Show Host.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chase_(U.S._game_show)>
_______________________________
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>
1890:
At Auburn Prison in Auburn, New York, U.S., William Kemmler
became the first person to be executed in an electric chair.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_chair>
1945:
World War II: The U.S. Army Air Force B-29 bomber Enola Gay
dropped an atomic bomb named "Little Boy" on Hiroshima, Japan, killing
as many as 140,000 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Boy>
1991:
British computer programmer Tim Berners-Lee first posted files
describing his ideas for a system of interlinked, hypertext documents
accessible via the Internet, to be called a "World Wide Web".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Berners-Lee>
2008:
Mauritanian President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi was
ousted from power by a group of high-ranking generals that he had
dismissed from office several hours earlier.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Mauritanian_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
nudge nudge wink wink:
(idiomatic, humorous) A phrase used to hint that the speaker is
euphemistically referring to something else.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nudge_nudge_wink_wink>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
O purblind race of miserable men How many among us at this very
hour Do forge a life-long trouble for ourselves, By taking true for
false, or false for true; Here, through the feeble twilight of this
world Groping, how many, until we pass and reach That other, where we
see as we are seen!
--Idylls of the King
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Idylls_of_the_King>
The name-letter effect is the tendency of people to prefer the letters
in their name over other letters in the alphabet. Discovered in 1985 by
the Belgian psychologist Jozef Nuttin, the effect has been replicated in
dozens of studies. Whether subjects are asked to rank all letters of the
alphabet, rate letters individually, choose one of two letters, or pick
a small set of letters, on average people prefer the letters in their
own name, but few are aware that they are choosing letters from their
name. The effect has been attributed to the fact that most people
associate their names with themselves, and like themselves. People who
do not like themselves tend not to exhibit the name-letter effect. In
psychological assessments, the Name Letter Preference Task is widely
used to estimate implicit self-esteem. There is some evidence that
people have been influenced by the name-letter effect even when making
important decisions, although many studies have been controversial.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name-letter_effect>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1100:
Henry I was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_I_of_England>
1796:
War of the First Coalition: The Austrian army attempted to
break the Siege of Mantua, but were repelled by the French Army of Italy
under Napoleon.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Castiglione>
1816:
Sir John Barrow, Secretary of the Admiralty, rejected a
proposal to use Francis Ronalds's electrical telegraph, deeming it as
"wholly unnecessary".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Ronalds>
1949:
A magnitude 6.8 ML earthquake struck near Ambato, Ecuador,
killing 5,050 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1949_Ambato_earthquake>
2012:
A white supremacist went on a shooting spree at the Sikh temple
in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, U.S., killing six people and wounding four
others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisconsin_Sikh_temple_shooting>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
matchy-matchy:
(fashion) Of clothes or upholstery: excessively color-coordinated.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/matchy-matchy>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We rub the darkness from our eyes, And face our thousand devious
secret mornings … And do not see how the pale mist, slowly ascending,
Shaped by the sun, shines like a white-robed dreamer Compassionate over
our towers bending.
--Conrad Aiken
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Conrad_Aiken>
Rare Replay is a compilation of 30 video games by developer Rare and its
predecessor, Ultimate Play the Game, released on August 4, 2015. The
emulated games span 30 years and multiple genres and consoles, from the
ZX Spectrum to the Xbox 360. The compilation adds cheats to make the
older games easier and a challenge mode of specific sequences culled
from the games. Player progress is rewarded with behind-the-scenes
footage and interviews about Rare's major and unreleased games. Rare
incorporated six hardware emulators in the package, and used an
unannounced Xbox 360 emulation from its parent company, Microsoft. Rare
Replay was released worldwide as an Xbox One exclusive to generally
favorable reviews. Critics appreciated its archival game content and
developer interviews, but faulted technical issues in the Xbox 360
emulation and game installation. Among its games, reviewers preferred
Rare's Nintendo 64 classics, especially Blast Corps, but disliked
Perfect Dark Zero, Grabbed by the Ghoulies, and the Spectrum titles.
Rare Replay became Rare's first United Kingdom all-format charts
bestseller since Banjo-Kazooie in 1998.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_Replay>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1265:
Second Barons' War: Royal forces under Prince Edward defeated
Baronial forces under Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, at the
Battle of Evesham near Evesham, Worcestershire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Evesham>
1791:
The signing of the Treaty of Sistova brought an end to the
Austro-Turkish War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austro-Turkish_War_(1788%E2%80%9391)>
1914:
First World War: Adhering to the terms in the 1839 Treaty of
London, the United Kingdom declared war on Germany in response to the
latter's invasion of Belgium.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_London_(1839)>
1992:
Yōhei Kōno, Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan, issued a formal
apology for forcing women into sexual slavery during World War II.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comfort_women>
2007:
Airport police officer María del Luján Telpuk discovered a
suitcase containing US$800,000 as it went through an X-ray machine in
Buenos Aires, sparking an international scandal involving Venezuela and
Argentina known as "Maletinazo".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mar%C3%ADa_del_Luj%C3%A1n_Telpuk>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
gee-gee:
(colloquial, usually childish) A horse.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gee-gee>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
A declaration is not a government; a creed is not enough. The
Founders recognized that there were seeds of anarchy in the idea of
individual freedom, an intoxicating danger in the idea of equality, for
if everybody is truly free, without the constraints of birth or rank or
an inherited social order — if my notion of faith is no better or
worse than yours, and my notions of truth and goodness and beauty are as
true and good and beautiful as yours — then how can we ever hope to
form a society that coheres? Enlightenment thinkers like Hobbes and
Locke suggested that free men would form governments as a bargain to
ensure that one man's freedom did not become another man's tyranny; that
they would sacrifice individual license to better preserve their
liberty.
--The Audacity of Hope
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/The_Audacity_of_Hope>
William Cooley (1783–1863) was one of the first American settlers in
what is now Broward County, in the US state of Florida. Born in
Maryland, he arrived in East Florida as part of a military expedition.
He was a farmer in the northern part of the territory before moving
south, where he traded with local Indians and continued to farm. He
sided with natives in a land dispute against a merchant who had received
a large grant from the King of Spain and was evicting them from their
lands. Unhappy with the actions of the Spanish, he moved to the New
River in 1826, an area removed from their influence. He was a salvager
and farmer, cultivating and milling arrowroot. His fortune and influence
grew, and he became the first judge in the settlement. His decision in a
case involving the murder of a local chief antagonized the natives, who
attacked the settlement in revenge in January 1836 during the Second
Seminole War, killing his family. Cooley was one of the first city
councilors of Tampa, serving three terms.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cooley>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1903:
Macedonian rebels in Kruševo proclaimed a republic, which
existed only ten days before Ottoman forces destroyed the town.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kru%C5%A1evo_Republic>
1913:
A strike by agricultural workers in Wheatland, California,
U.S., degenerated into a riot, one of the first major farm labor
confrontations in California.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheatland_hop_riot>
1929:
Jiddu Krishnamurti, believed to likely be the messianic "World
Teacher", shocked the Theosophy movement by dissolving the Order of the
Star, the organisation established to support him.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Star_in_the_East>
1940:
World War II: Italy invaded British Somaliland, capturing the
region 16 days later.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_conquest_of_British_Somaliland>
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:
aye-aye:
The lemur Daubentonia madagascariensis, a solitary nocturnal quadruped
found in Madagascar and remarkable for its long fingers, sharp nails,
and rodent-like incisor teeth.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/aye-aye>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
What do you mean by faith? Is faith enough for Man? Should he be
satisfied with faith alone? Is the attitude of faith, of believing in
something for which there can be no more than philosophic proof the true
mark of a Christian?
--Clifford D. Simak
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Clifford_D._Simak>
The teleosts (from Greek for "complete bone") are an infraclass of ray-
finned fishes that arose in the Triassic period. Making up 96 percent of
all known fish species, this diverse group includes about 40 orders and
448 families. They inhabit oceans at all depths, estuaries, rivers,
lakes and swamps. They range in size from the giant oarfish, measuring
25 feet (7.6 m) or more, and the ocean sunfish, weighing over 2.2 short
tons (2 tonnes), to the male anglerfish Photocorynus spiniceps, just
0.24 inches (6.2 mm) long. Teleosts can be torpedo-shaped, flattened
(vertically or horizontally) or cylindrical, and some, like the
anglerfish and seahorse, have unique shapes. They can protrude their
jaws, enabling them to grab prey and draw it into their mouth. Depicted
in art over the centuries, teleosts are economically important to
humans. They are harvested for food, captured for sport, kept in
aquariums, and used in research, especially in the fields of genetics
and developmental biology.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teleost>
_______________________________
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)>
461:
Unpopular among the senate aristocracy for his reform efforts,
Roman emperor Majorian (pictured on coin) was deposed and executed five
days later.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Majorian>
1897:
The Siege of Malakand ended when a relief column was able to
reach the British garrison in the Malakand region of colonial India's
North West Frontier Province.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Malakand>
1932:
At the California Institute of Technology, Carl David Anderson
proved the existence of antimatter when he discovered the positron.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positron>
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/1947_BSAA_Avro_Lancastrian_Star_Dust_accident>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pukka:
1. (originally South Asia) Genuine or authentic; hence of behaviour:
correct, socially acceptable or proper.
2. Superior or of high quality; first-class.
3. (Britain, slang) Excellent, fantastic, great.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pukka>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Perhaps I did not succumb to ideology … because I have never
seen myself as a spokesman. I am a witness. In the church in which I was
raised you were supposed to bear witness to the truth. Now, later on,
you wonder what in the world the truth is, but you do know what a lie
is.
--James Baldwin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Baldwin>