Stefan Lochner (c. 1410 – c. 1451) was a German painter working in the
late International Gothic period. Based in Cologne, he became one of the
most important German artists before Albrecht Dürer. His paintings
combine the long flowing lines of his period with the brilliant colours,
realism, surface textures and innovative iconography of the early
Northern Renaissance. His surviving works often feature fanciful blue-
winged angels, and consist of single-panel oil paintings, polyptychs and
illuminated manuscripts. Records of his life, apart from later records
of creditors, end after an outbreak of plague in the city in 1451; it is
presumed he died from the epidemic, probably after Christmas. Lochner's
identity and reputation were lost until a revival of 15th-century art
during the early 19th-century Romantic Period. Echoes of his panels can
be seen in works by major 15th-century painters such as Rogier van der
Weyden and Hans Memling.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stefan_Lochner>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1223:
Mongol invasions: Mongol forces defeated a combined army of
Kiev, Galich, and the Cumans at the Kalchik River in present-day
Ukraine.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Kalka_River>
1795:
French Revolution: The Revolutionary Tribunal, a court
instituted by the National Convention for the trial of political
offenders, was suppressed.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolutionary_Tribunal>
1902:
The Second Boer War came to an end with the signing of the
Treaty of Vereeniging.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Vereeniging>
1941:
The United Kingdom completed its re-occupation of Iraq,
returning 'Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Iraqi_War>
2005:
An article in the magazine Vanity Fair revealed that the secret
informant known as "Deep Throat", who provided information about the
Watergate scandal, was former FBI Associate Director Mark Felt.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Felt>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
lysergic:
1. (comparable) Psychedelic, trippy.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lysergic>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Happiness will never come if it's a goal in itself; happiness is
a by-product of a commitment to worthy causes.
--Norman Vincent Peale
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Norman_Vincent_Peale>
The 1988 Atlantic hurricane season was a moderately active season that
proved costly and deadly, with 15 tropical cyclones directly affecting
land. The first cyclone to attain tropical storm status was Alberto on
August 8; the final storm of the year, Tropical Storm Keith, became
extratropical on November 24. The season produced 19 tropical
depressions, including 12 tropical storms. There were five hurricanes,
including three major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher on the
Saffir–Simpson scale). Hurricane Gilbert (pictured) was at the time
the strongest Atlantic hurricane on record. It tracked through the
Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico and caused devastation in Mexico
and many island nations, particularly Jamaica. Its passage caused damage
valued at US$2.98 billion and more than 300 deaths, mostly in Mexico.
Hurricane Joan, striking Nicaragua as a Category 4 hurricane, caused
damage valued at about $1.87 billion and more than 200 deaths.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Atlantic_hurricane_season>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1431:
Hundred Years' War: Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in
Rouen, France, after being convicted of heresy.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_of_Arc>
1536:
Jane Seymour, a former lady-in-waiting, became Queen of England
by marrying King Henry VIII.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Seymour>
1815:
The East Indiaman ship Arniston was wrecked during a storm at
Waenhuiskrans, near Cape Agulhas, present-day South Africa, with the
loss of 372 lives.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arniston_(East_Indiaman)>
1948:
A dike holding the Columbia River broke, causing a flood that
destroyed Vanport, Oregon, U.S., only five years after the city was
built.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanport,_Oregon>
1998:
A 6.5 Mw earthquake struck northern Afghanistan, killing at
least 4,000 people, destroying more than 30 villages, and leaving 45,000
people homeless in the Afghan provinces of Takhar and Badakhshan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1998_Afghanistan_earthquake>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
geofence:
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/geofence>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The freedom of all is essential to my freedom.
--Mikhail Bakunin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mikhail_Bakunin>
The snoring rail (Aramidopsis plateni) is a large flightless rail. The
only species of its genus, it is endemic to Indonesia, and is found in
dense vegetation in wet areas of Sulawesi and nearby Buton. The rail has
grey underparts, a white chin, brown wings and a rufous patch on the
hindneck. The sexes are similar, but the female has a brighter neck
patch and a differently coloured bill and iris. The typical call is the
snoring ee-orrrr sound that gives the bird its common name. The snoring
rail, with a retiring nature, is rarely seen in its inaccessible
habitat, and little is known of its behaviour. Only the adult plumage
has been described, and the breeding behaviour is unrecorded. It feeds
on small crabs and probably other small prey such as lizards. Although
protected under Indonesian law since 1972, the rail is evaluated as
vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red
List; it is threatened by habitat loss, even within nature reserves, and
by introduced species.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snoring_rail>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1453:
With the conquest of Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire fell
to the Ottomans.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire>
1913:
During the premiere of Igor Stravinsky's ballet The Rite of
Spring at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, the avant-garde
nature of the music and choreography caused a near-riot in the audience.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rite_of_Spring>
1918:
World War I: Armenian forces defeated Ottoman troops at the
Battle of Sardarabad, not only stopping the Turkish invasion but also
preventing the complete destruction of the Armenian nation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Sardarabad>
1935:
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, the most produced fighter aircraft in
history, had its first flight.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messerschmitt_Bf_109>
1954:
The first annual Bilderberg Group meeting of leaders from
European countries and the United States opened in Oosterbeek,
Netherlands.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilderberg_Group>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
wheelhorse:
1. (US, figuratively) A person who labors heavily for a particular
cause, without being concerned about recognition.
2. (obsolete or historical) A foot-propelled vehicle; a bicycle.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/wheelhorse>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The basis of self-government and freedom requires the development
of character and self-restraint and perseverance and the long view. And
these are qualities which require many years of training and education.
--John F. Kennedy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy>
β-Hydroxy β-methylbutyric acid (HMB) is a naturally produced substance
in humans that is used as a dietary supplement. It is an ingredient in
certain medical foods that are intended to promote wound healing and
provide nutritional support for people with muscle wasting due to cancer
or HIV/AIDS. In healthy adults, supplementation with HMB has been shown
to reduce skeletal muscle damage from exercise, expedite recovery from
exercise, and increase exercise-induced gains in muscle size, muscle
strength, and lean body mass. Medical reviews and meta-analyses indicate
that HMB supplementation also helps to preserve or increase lean body
mass and muscle strength in individuals experiencing age-related muscle
loss. HMB produces these effects in part by stimulating protein
production and inhibiting protein breakdown in muscle tissue.
Pharmacologically active concentrations of the compound in blood plasma
and muscle can only be achieved by supplementation with HMB.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta-Hydroxy_beta-methylbutyric_acid>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
585 BC:
According to Greek historian Herodotus, a solar eclipse
abruptly ended the Battle of Halys between the Lydians and the Medes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclipse_of_Thales>
1754:
French and Indian War: Led by 22-year-old George Washington, a
company of colonial militia from Virginia ambushed a force of 35
Canadiens in the Battle of Jumonville Glen.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Jumonville_Glen>
1937:
The rise of Neville Chamberlain culminated in his accession to
the office of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom when he was summoned
to Buckingham Palace to "kiss hands".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rise_of_Neville_Chamberlain>
1987:
Mathias Rust, a West German aviator, flew his Cessna 172
through the Soviet air defense system and landed in Red Square, Moscow.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathias_Rust>
2003:
As a result of criticism of his conduct, Peter Hollingworth
resigned from his post as Governor-General of Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Hollingworth>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
repine:
1. (intransitive, now literary) To complain; to regret.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/repine>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The bugle echoes shrill and sweet, But not of war it sings to-
day. The road is rhythmic with the feet Of men-at-arms who come to
pray. The roses blossom white and red On tombs where weary soldiers
lie; Flags wave above the honored dead And martial music cleaves
the sky. Above their wreath-strewn graves we kneel, They kept the
faith and fought the fight. Through flying lead and crimson steel
They plunged for Freedom and the Right. May we, their grateful
children, learn Their strength, who lie beneath this sod, Who went
through fire and death to earn At last the accolade of God.
--Joyce Kilmer
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Joyce_Kilmer>
USS Orizaba was a transport ship for the U.S. Navy in World War I and
World War II, first commissioned on 27 May 1918. Orizaba made 15
transatlantic voyages for the Navy carrying troops to and from Europe in
World War I with the second-shortest average in-port turnaround time of
all Navy transports. The ship was turned over to the War Department in
1919 for use as Army transport USAT Orizaba. After the war, the
troopship reverted to the Ward Line, her previous owners. In World War
II the ship was requisitioned by the War Shipping Administration and
again assigned to the War Department, but was soon transferred to the
U.S. Navy as USS Orizaba (AP-24). The ship made several transatlantic
runs, was damaged in an air attack in the Allied invasion of Sicily,
made trips to South America, and served in the Pacific Theatre. In June
1945 the ship was transferred under Lend-Lease to the Brazilian Navy,
where she served as Duque de Caxias (U-11). Permanently transferred to
Brazil in 1953, the ship was decommissioned in 1959 and scrapped in
1963.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Orizaba>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1153:
Malcolm IV was crowned King of Scotland at the age of twelve.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_IV_of_Scotland>
1813:
War of 1812: The troops of the U.S. Army and vessels of the
U.S. Navy cooperated in a successful amphibious assault to capture Fort
George in Upper Canada.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Fort_George>
1874:
The first group of nomadic pastoralists known as Trekboer set
out on the Dorsland Trek, departing South Africa for Angola.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorsland_Trek>
1940:
World War II: Ninety-seven soldiers of the Royal Norfolk
Regiment were executed by German troops after surrendering.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Paradis_massacre>
1958:
The F-4 Phantom II, the principal air superiority jet fighter
for both the U.S. Navy and Air Force, made its first flight.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_F-4_Phantom_II>
2001:
Members of the Islamist separatist group Abu Sayyaf kidnapped
20 tourists in Palawan, Philippines, triggering a hostage crisis that
lasted over a year.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dos_Palmas_kidnappings>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
faxlore:
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/faxlore>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Everyone is trying to reach for their own stars, and all of those
stars aren’t light-years away. They are as close as our job, our
family, our children, our next-door neighbors and our good friends.
--Alan Bean
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alan_Bean>
M-35 is a state trunkline highway in the Upper Peninsula (UP) of the US
state of Michigan. Running for 128 miles (206 km) in a generally
north–south direction, it connects the cities of Menominee, Escanaba
and Negaunee. It is part of the Lake Michigan Circle Tour and is the UP
Hidden Coast Recreational Heritage Trail in the Pure Michigan Byways
program. Along the southern section, the highway is the closest
trunkline to Green Bay, a section of Lake Michigan. The northern section
of the highway turns inland through wooded terrain, connecting rural
portions of Delta and Marquette counties. The road was designated as
M-35 with signposts erected by 1919. It was intended to run from
Menominee in the south to near Big Bay in the north, before turning
toward L'Anse to end at Ontonagon, but the section through the Huron
Mountains in northern Marquette and Baraga counties was never built.
Automobile pioneer Henry Ford helped halt this construction to gain
favor with the exclusive Huron Mountain Club.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-35_(Michigan_highway)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
946:
King Edmund I of England was killed while attending St
Augustine's Day Mass.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_I>
1637:
Pequot War: An allied Puritan and Mohegan force attacked a
fortified Pequot village in the Connecticut Colony, killing between 400
and 700 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystic_massacre>
1906:
Vauxhall Bridge in London opened, crossing the River Thames
between Vauxhall and Westminster.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vauxhall_Bridge>
1938:
The House Un-American Activities Committee was established to
investigate alleged disloyalty and subversive activities by people or
organizations suspected of having communist or fascist ties.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_Un-American_Activities_Committee>
1991:
Lauda Air Flight 004 experienced an uncommanded thrust reverser
deployment of an engine and broke apart in mid-air, killing all 223
people on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauda_Air_Flight_004>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pike:
1. A sharp point, such as that of the weapon.
2. A large haycock (“conical stack of hay left in a field to dry before
adding to a haystack”).
3. (diving, gymnastics) A position with the knees straight and a tight
bend at the hips with the torso folded over the legs, usually part of a
jack-knife.
4. (fashion, dated) A pointy extrusion at the toe of a shoe.
5. (chiefly Northern England) Especially in place names: a hill or
mountain, particularly one with a sharp peak or summit.  […] 
6. Any carnivorous freshwater fish of the genus Esox, especially the
northern pike, Esox lucius.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pike>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I actually enjoy complexity that's empowering. If it challenges
me, the complexity is very pleasant.
--Ward Cunningham
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ward_Cunningham>
Princess Helena of the United Kingdom (25 May 1846 – 9 June 1923) was
the fifth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. She was educated by
private tutors chosen by her father and his close friend and adviser,
Baron Stockmar. Her childhood was spent with her parents, travelling
between royal residences in Britain. In 1866 she married the
impoverished German Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. She was the
most active member of the royal family, carrying out an extensive
programme of royal engagements at a time when royalty was not expected
to appear often in public. An active patron of charities, she was one of
the founding members of the British Red Cross. She was founding
president of the Royal School of Needlework, and president of the
Workhouse Infirmary Nursing Association. As president of the Royal
British Nurses' Association, she was a strong supporter of nurse
registration against the advice of Florence Nightingale.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Helena_of_the_United_Kingdom>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1644:
Ming general Wu Sangui let the invading Manchus pass through
the Great Wall of China, allowing them to capture Beijing, leading to
the foundation of the Qing dynasty.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Wall_of_China>
1738:
King George II of Great Britain negotiated a cease-fire between
the British colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania, ending Cresap's War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cresap%27s_War>
1816:
The English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge published one of his
most famous poems, "Kubla Khan".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubla_Khan>
1979:
Six-year-old Etan Patz disappeared on his way to school in New
York City, and later became one of the first missing children to have
his picture featured on milk cartons.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Etan_Patz>
2013:
Naxalite insurgents of the Communist Party of India (Maoist)
attacked a convoy of Indian National Congress leaders in the state of
Chhattisgarh, causing at least 27 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Naxal_attack_in_Darbha_valley>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
overthrow:
1. (transitive, now rare) To throw down to the ground, to overturn.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/overthrow>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
It will never make any difference to a hero what the laws are.
His greatness will shine and accomplish itself unto the end, whether
they second him or not. If he have earned his bread by drudgery, and in
the narrow and crooked ways which were all an evil law had left him, he
will make it at least honorable by his expenditure. Of the past he will
take no heed; for its wrongs he will not hold himself responsible: he
will say, All the meanness of my progenitors shall not bereave me of the
power to make this hour and company fair and fortunate. Whatsoever
streams of power and commodity flow to me, shall of me acquire healing
virtue, and become fountains of safety. Cannot I too descend a Redeemer
into nature? Whosoever hereafter shall name my name, shall not record a
malefactor, but a benefactor in the earth. If there be power in good
intention, in fidelity, and in toil, the north wind shall be purer, the
stars in heaven shall glow with a kindlier beam, that I have lived. I am
primarily engaged to myself to be a public servant of all the gods, to
demonstrate to all men that there is intelligence and good will at the
heart of things, and ever higher and yet higher leadings. These are my
engagements; how can your law further or hinder me in what I shall do to
men? On the other hand, these dispositions establish their relations to
me. Wherever there is worth, I shall be greeted. Wherever there are men,
are the objects of my study and love. Sooner of later all men will be my
friends, and will testify in all methods the energy of their regard. I
cannot thank your law for my protection. I protect it. It is not in its
power to protect me. It is my business to make myself revered. I depend
on my honor, my labor, and my dispositions for my place in the
affections of mankind, and not on any conventions or parchments of
yours.
--Ralph Waldo Emerson
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ralph_Waldo_Emerson>
Wonder Stories was an early American science fiction magazine published
under several titles from 1929 to 1955. It was founded by Hugo Gernsback
after he lost control of his first science fiction magazine, Amazing
Stories. In 1936 he sold Wonder Stories to Ned Pines at Beacon
Publications; retitled Thrilling Wonder Stories, it continued for nearly
20 years. The editors under Gernsback's ownership were David Lasser,
who worked hard to improve the quality of the fiction, and later Charles
Hornig. They published some well-received fiction, such as Stanley G.
Weinbaum's "A Martian Odyssey", but were overshadowed by the success of
their chief competitor Astounding Stories. For a period in the early
1940s the magazine was aimed at younger readers, with a juvenile
editorial tone and covers that depicted beautiful women in implausibly
revealing spacesuits. By the end of the 1940s, in the opinion of science
fiction historian Mike Ashley, the magazine briefly rivaled Astounding.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Stories>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1689:
The Act of Toleration became law in England, granting freedom
of worship to nonconformists under certain circumstances, but
deliberately excluding Catholics.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toleration_Act_1689>
1883:
New York City's Brooklyn Bridge opened – the longest
suspension bridge in the world at the time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Bridge>
1956:
The first edition of the Eurovision Song Contest was held in
Lugano, Switzerland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest>
1970:
On the Kola Peninsula in Russia, drilling began on the Kola
Superdeep Borehole, eventually reaching 12,262 metres (40,230 ft),
making it the deepest hole ever drilled and the deepest artificial point
on the earth.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kola_Superdeep_Borehole>
2014:
A gunman opened fire at the Jewish Museum of Belgium in
Brussels, killing four people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_Museum_of_Belgium_shooting>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
dodman:
1. (Britain, dialectal) A snail's shell.
2. (Britain, dialectal) Any shellfish which casts its shell, such as a
lobster.
3. (Britain, dialectal) A surveyor.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dodman>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There is truth and then again there is truth. For all that the
world is full of people who go around believing they've got you or your
neighbor figured out, there really is no bottom to what is not known.
The truth about us is endless. As are the lies.
--Philip Roth
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Philip_Roth>
The 1988 Giro d'Italia was the 71st running of this annual race in
cycling's Grand Tour. It started in Urbino on 23 May with a 9 km
(5.6 mi) individual time trial, and concluded in Vittorio Veneto on 12
June. A total of 180 riders from 20 teams entered the 21-stage race,
which was won by Andrew Hampsten of the United States, with Erik
Breukink of the Netherlands finishing second and Urs Zimmermann of
Switzerland third. It was the third time – and second successive year
– in the history of the Giro with no Italian riders in the top three
finishers. In the first half of the race, the overall classification was
headed for several days by Massimo Podenzana, who participated in a
breakaway during stage 4a and held the race leader's jersey for more
than a week. The 14th stage of the race was conducted in adverse
weather, including a snowstorm. Hampsten became the first American, and
non-European, to win the Giro. Johan van der Velde was the winner of the
points classification, and Carrera Jeans–Vagabond won the team
classification.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Giro_d%27Italia>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1555:
Giovanni Pietro Carafa became Pope Paul IV and had a short, but
tumultuous papacy, during which the Papal States suffered a serious
military defeat.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Paul_IV>
1706:
War of the Spanish Succession: Led by the Duke of Marlborough,
the allied forces of England, the Dutch Republic, and Denmark–Norway
defeated the Franco-Spanish-Bavarian army in Ramillies, present-day
Belgium.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ramillies>
1873:
The North-West Mounted Police, the forerunner of the Royal
Canadian Mounted Police, was established to bring law and order to, and
assert Canadian sovereignty over, the Northwest Territories.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North-West_Mounted_Police>
1951:
Delegates of the 14th Dalai Lama and the government of the
newly established People's Republic of China signed the Seventeen Point
Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet, affirming Chinese
sovereignty over Tibet.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventeen_Point_Agreement_for_the_Peaceful_Li…>
2013:
An oversize load struck several support beams on the bridge
carrying Interstate 5 over the Skagit River in the U.S. state of
Washington, leading to its immediate collapse (pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I-5_Skagit_River_Bridge_collapse>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
veisalgia:
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/veisalgia>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Every relation, every gradation of nature is incalculably
precious, but only to the soul which is poised upon itself, and to whom
no loss, no change, can bring dull discord, for it is in harmony with
the central soul.
--Margaret Fuller
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Margaret_Fuller>
Elizabeth David (1913–1992) was a British cookery writer. In the mid-
20th century she helped revitalise home cookery in her native country
and beyond with articles and books about European cuisines and
traditional British dishes. Born to an upper-class family, she studied
art in Paris and travelled to Greece, where she was nearly trapped by
the German invasion in 1941. Returning to England in 1946, she was
dismayed by the contrast between the bad food served in Britain and the
simple foods she had enjoyed in France, Greece and Egypt. She wrote
magazine articles about Mediterranean cooking, and in 1950 published A
Book of Mediterranean Food. Her recipes called for ingredients such as
aubergines, basil, figs, garlic, olive oil and saffron, which at the
time were scarcely available in Britain. By the 1960s David was a major
influence on domestic and professional British cooking. Between 1950 and
1984 she published eight books; after her death a further four were
published.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_David>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
853:
Byzantine–Arab Wars: The Byzantine navy began to sack and
plunder the port city of Damietta on the Nile Delta, whose garrison was
absent at the time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sack_of_Damietta_(853)>
1762:
The Trevi Fountain in Rome was officially inaugurated by Pope
Clement XIII.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trevi_Fountain>
1849:
Abraham Lincoln was issued a patent for an invention to lift
boats over obstacles in a river, making him the only U.S. President to
ever hold a patent.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln%27s_patent>
1958:
Ethnic rioting broke out in Ceylon, targeted mostly at the
minority Sri Lankan Tamils, resulting in up to 300 deaths over the next
five days.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1958_anti-Tamil_pogrom>
2012:
Tokyo Skytree, the tallest tower in the world at a height of
634 m (2,080 ft), opened to the public.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_Skytree>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
food web:
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/food_web>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
The progress of the sciences toward theories of fundamental
unity, cosmic symmetry (as in the unified field theory) — how do such
theories differ, in the end, from that unity which Plato called
“unspeakable” and “indiscribable,” the holistic knowledge shared
by so many peoples of the earth, Christians included, before the advent
of the industrial revolution made new barbarians of the peoples of the
West? In the United States, before spiritualist foolishness at the end
of the last century confused mysticism with “the occult” and
tarnished both, William James wrote a master work of metaphysics;
Emerson spoke of “the wise silence, the universal beauty, to which
every part and particle is equally related, the eternal One . . .”;
Melville referred to “that profound silence, that only voice of
God”; Walt Whitman celebrated the most ancient secret, that no God
could be found “more divine than yourself.” And then, almost
everywhere, a clear and subtle illumination that lent magnificence to
life and peace to death was overwhelmed in the hard glare of technology.
Yet that light is always present, like the stars of noon. Man must
perceive it if he is to transcend his fear of meaningless, for no amount
of “progress” can take its place.
--Peter Matthiessen
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Peter_Matthiessen>