Elizabeth Raffald (1733–1781) was an English author, innovator and
entrepreneur. Born and raised in Doncaster, Yorkshire, Raffald went into
domestic service for fifteen years, ending as the housekeeper to the
Warburton baronets at Arley Hall, Cheshire. She moved with her husband
to Manchester, where she opened a register office to introduce domestic
workers to employers; she also ran a cookery school and sold food from
the premises. In 1769 she published her cookery book The Experienced
English Housekeeper, which contains the first recipe for a "Bride Cake"
that is recognisable as a modern wedding cake. She is possibly the
inventor of the Eccles cake. In August 1772 Raffald published The
Manchester Directory, a listing of 1,505 traders and civic leaders in
Manchester—the first such listing for the up-and-coming town. Her
recipes were plagiarised by other authors, notably by Isabella Beeton in
her bestselling Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management (1861).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Raffald>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1837:
Richard Mentor Johnson became the only person ever to be
elected Vice President of the United States by the Senate.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Mentor_Johnson>
1879:
Enraged by a controversial umpiring decision, cricket
spectators rioted and attacked the England team during a match in
Sydney, Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Riot_of_1879>
1960:
The official groundbreaking of the Walk of Fame (example star
pictured) took place in Hollywood, California.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Walk_of_Fame>
2010:
A freak storm in the Hindu Kush mountains of Afghanistan
triggered a series of avalanches that buried over 3.5 km (2.2 mi) of
road, killed 175 people and trapped more than 2,500 travellers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Salang_avalanches>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pipe:
1. (music) A wind instrument consisting of a tube, often lined with
holes to allow for adjustment in pitch, sounded by blowing into the
tube. […]
2. A rigid tube that transports water, steam, or other fluid, as used in
plumbing and numerous other applications. […]
3. (Australia, colloquial, now historical) An anonymous satire or essay,
insulting and frequently libellous, written on a piece of paper which
was rolled up and left somewhere public where it could be found and thus
spread, to embarrass the author's enemies.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pipe>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The world is not divine sport, it is divine destiny. There is
divine meaning in the life of the world, of man, of human persons, of
you and of me. Creation happens to us, burns itself into us, recasts us
in burning — we tremble and are faint, we submit. We take part in
creation, meet the Creator, reach out to Him, helpers and companions.
--Martin Buber
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Martin_Buber>
Margate F.C. is an English football team based in the seaside resort of
Margate, Kent. They currently play in the Isthmian League Premier
Division. The club was founded in 1896 and joined the Southern Football
League in 1933. After a spell in the Kent League after World War II,
the team returned to the Southern League in 1959 and remained there
until 2001 when they gained promotion to the Football Conference, the
highest level of English non-League football. Their stay at this level
saw the team forced to groundshare with other clubs due to drawn-out and
problematic redevelopment work at their Hartsdown Park stadium, and they
were expelled from the Conference National and subsequently relegated to
the Isthmian League. The team, known for a number of years during the
1980s as Thanet United, and nicknamed "The Gate", have twice reached the
third round proper of the FA Cup. On the second occasion, they played
Tottenham Hotspur, the reigning UEFA Cup holders.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margate_F.C.>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1795:
The Eleventh Amendment to the United States Constitution,
limiting the ability of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals to sue U.S.
states in federal courts, was ratified.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleventh_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Const…>
1914:
The film Kid Auto Races at Venice, featuring the first
appearance of comedy actor Charlie Chaplin's character "The Tramp", was
released.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Chaplin>
1948:
Neil Harvey became the youngest Australian to score a century
in Test cricket.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Harvey>
1991:
The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army launched
mortars at 10 Downing Street, London, in a failed attempt to assassinate
British prime minister John Major.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downing_Street_mortar_attack>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
finesse:
1. (transitive, chiefly Canada, US, politics) To evade (a problem,
situation, etc.) by using some clever argument or strategem.
2. (transitive, card games) To play (a card) as a finesse.
3. (transitive, intransitive) To handle or manage carefully or
skilfully; to manipulate in a crafty way.
4. (intransitive, card games) To attempt to win a trick by finessing.
5. (intransitive, croquet, obsolete) To play a ball out of the way of an
opponent.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/finesse>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Charity begins at home, and justice begins next door.
--The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Martin_Chuzzlewit>
Robert Goff, Baron Goff of Chieveley (1926–2016) was an English
barrister and judge. He was the original co-author of Goff & Jones, the
leading English law textbook on restitution and unjust enrichment, first
published in 1966. He practised as a commercial barrister from 1951 to
1975, and then began his career as a judge. He was appointed to the
Judicial Committee of the House of Lords in 1986 and was Senior Lord of
Appeal in Ordinary from 1996 until his retirement in 1998. Goff long
advocated a complementary view of the roles of the legal academic and
judge. The former Lord Justice of Appeal Stephen Tomlinson said that "no
judge has done more than Robert to ensure that the views of legal
academic commentators now regularly inform the decision-making in our
higher courts". For building bridges between judges in the United
Kingdom and Germany, Goff was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal
Republic of Germany (First Class).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Goff,_Baron_Goff_of_Chieveley>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1806:
Napoleonic Wars: A British naval squadron captured or destroyed
five French ships of the line at the Battle of San Domingo in the
Caribbean Sea.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_San_Domingo>
1819:
British official Stamford Raffles signed a treaty with Sultan
Hussein Shah of Johor, establishing Singapore as a trading post for the
East India Company.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Founding_of_modern_Singapore>
1951:
A train derailed while crossing a temporary wooden trestle in
Woodbridge, New Jersey, causing 85 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodbridge_train_derailment>
1987:
Mary Gaudron became the first woman to be appointed a justice
of the High Court of Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Gaudron>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
koha:
1. (New Zealand) A Māori tradition of reciprocal giving of gifts.
2. (New Zealand, by extension) A voluntary donation given for a service
that has been provided.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/koha>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I've seen what men can do for each other and do to each other.
I've seen war and peace, feast and famine, depression and prosperity,
sickness and health. I've seen the depths of suffering and the peaks of
triumph. And I know in my heart that man is good, that what is right
will always eventually triumph, and that there is purpose and worth to
each and every life.
--Ronald Reagan
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan>
Cheadle Hulme is a suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport in
Greater Manchester, England. Historically in Cheshire, it lies south-
east of Manchester, in the Ladybrook Valley. In 2011, it had a
population of 26,479. Evidence of Bronze Age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon
activity, including coins, jewellery and axes, has been discovered
locally. The area was first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086; in
the early 14th century, it was split into southern and northern parts at
about the future locations of Cheadle Hulme and Cheadle respectively.
Unlike many English villages, it did not grow around a church; instead
it formed from several hamlets. From the late 19th century until 1974,
Cheadle Hulme was united with neighbouring places to form the urban
district of Cheadle and Gatley. Thereafter, Cheadle Hulme became a
distinct place in its own right. Cheadle Hulme has a railway station and
is close to Manchester Airport, the M60 and the A34.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheadle_Hulme>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1869:
Prospectors in Moliagul, Victoria, Australia, discovered the
largest alluvial gold nugget ever found, known as the "Welcome
Stranger".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welcome_Stranger>
1909:
Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland announced his invention of
Bakelite (samples pictured), the world's first synthetic plastic.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakelite>
1958:
A U.S. Mark 15 nuclear bomb disappeared off the shores of Tybee
Island, Georgia, after it was jettisoned during a practice exercise when
the bomber carrying it collided in midair with a fighter plane.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1958_Tybee_Island_mid-air_collision>
2004:
The National Revolutionary Front for the Liberation of Haiti
captured the city of Gonaïves, starting a coup d'état against
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's government.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Haitian_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
who would have thunk it:
(colloquial, sometimes sarcastic) A rhetorical question used to express
incredulity: who would have guessed it?; who would have thought that
would happen?
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/who_would_have_thunk_it>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
In matters of national security emotion is no substitute for
intelligence, nor rigidity for prudence. To act coolly, intelligently
and prudently in perilous circumstances is the test of a man — and
also a nation.
--Adlai Stevenson II
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Adlai_Stevenson_II>
Since the band's creation, the live performances of Nine Inch Nails, an
industrial rock band, have been given worldwide. In addition to regular
concerts, the band has performed at festivals and other one-off
performances. Nine Inch Nails' live performances differ from its in-
studio counterparts. Frontman Trent Reznor writes and performs nearly
all Nine Inch Nails studio material, but typically assembles groups of
backing musicians for live performances. Keyboardist Alessandro Cortini
said that "if you see the show and you're used to the CDs it's pretty
clear that the studio entity is different from the live entity". Live
Nine Inch Nails performances are accompanied by lighting, stage, and
video projection effects. Critical and commercial response to Nine Inch
Nails live performances has generally been positive. Critics have
pointed to the concerts' aggressive on-stage dynamic and visual designs
as high points. Reznor decided in 2008 to cease touring with the band
after a 2009 farewell tour. The band resumed touring in 2013.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine_Inch_Nails_live_performances>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1859:
Constantin von Tischendorf rediscovered the Codex Sinaiticus
(text sample pictured), a 4th-century great uncial codex of the Bible in
Greek, in Saint Catherine's Monastery, Egypt.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex_Sinaiticus>
1945:
World War II: U.S. forces liberated the Santo Tomas Internment
Camp in Manila, the largest Japanese internment camp in the Philippines.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santo_Tomas_Internment_Camp>
1974:
The Provisional Irish Republican Army bombed a motor coach
carrying off-duty British Armed Forces personnel and their family
members, killing twelve people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M62_coach_bombing>
1998:
An earthquake registering 5.9 MW struck northern Afghanistan,
triggering landslides that killed over 2,300 people and destroyed around
15,000 homes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_1998_Afghanistan_earthquake>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
cachexia:
(pathology) A systemic wasting of muscle tissue, with or without loss of
fat mass, that accompanies a chronic disease.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cachexia>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Life is like a landscape. You live in the midst of it but can
describe it only from the vantage point of distance.
--Charles Lindbergh
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Charles_Lindbergh>
The bee-eaters are near passerine birds of the family Meropidae,
containing three genera and twenty-seven species. Most species are found
in Africa and Asia, with a few in southern Europe, Australia, and New
Guinea. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage and slender
bodies, and usually by elongated central tail feathers. All have long
down-turned bills and medium to long wings, which may be pointed or
round. They predominantly eat flying insects, caught on the wing from an
open perch. Most bee-eaters are gregarious, forming colonies and nesting
in burrows. The eggs are white, with typically five to the clutch. Most
species are monogamous, and both parents care for the young, sometimes
with assistance from related birds in the colony. Bee-eaters may be
killed by raptors; their nests are raided by rodents and snakes, and
they can carry various parasites. Some species are adversely affected by
human activity or habitat loss, but none are threatened.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bee-eater>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1781:
Fourth Anglo-Dutch War: British forces captured the Dutch
island of Sint Eustatius after a brief skirmish.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_Sint_Eustatius>
1986:
Steve Jobs purchased Pixar from Lucasfilm and launched it as an
independent computer-animation studio.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pixar>
2014:
Russia's first school shooting took place when a student opened
fire at School No. 263 in Moscow, resulting in the deaths of a teacher
and a police officer.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Moscow_school_shooting>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
flare:
1. (transitive) To cause to burn.
2. (transitive) To cause inflammation; to inflame.
3. (transitive, intransitive) To open outward in shape.
4. (transitive, intransitive, aviation) To (operate an aircraft to)
transition from downward flight to level flight just before landing.
5. (intransitive) To blaze brightly.
6. (intransitive) To shine out with a sudden and unsteady light; to emit
a dazzling or painfully bright light.
7. (intransitive, figuratively) To shine out with gaudy colours; to be
offensively bright or showy.
8. (intransitive, figuratively) To suddenly happen or intensify.
9. (intransitive, figuratively) To suddenly erupt in anger.
10. (intransitive, obsolete) To be exposed to too much light.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/flare>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The needs of a human being are sacred. Their satisfaction cannot
be subordinated either to reasons of state, or to any consideration of
money, nationality, race, or colour, or to the moral or other value
attributed to the human being in question, or to any consideration
whatsoever. There is no legitimate limit to the satisfaction of the
needs of a human being except as imposed by necessity and by the needs
of other human beings.
--Simone Weil
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Simone_Weil>
Groundhog Day is a 1993 American fantasy comedy film directed by Harold
Ramis and written by Ramis and Danny Rubin. It stars Bill Murray
(pictured), Andie MacDowell, and Chris Elliott. Murray portrays Phil
Connors, a cynical television weatherman who is sent, much to his
disgruntlement, to cover the annual Groundhog Day festivities in
Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Connors becomes trapped in a time loop
forcing him to relive February 2 over and over, with not even death an
escape, a repetition that will not change until he does. Much of the
filming took place in bitterly cold weather in Woodstock, Illinois. The
film led to expanded acting horizons for Murray, known to that point
primarily as a comedy actor, as it showed he could handle more serious
material. Groundhog Day had moderate to good box office receipts and
reviews, but has since become a cult classic, acclaimed as one of the
best movies of the 1990s and one of the great comedy films of all time.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day_%28film%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1850:
Ute Wars: Brigham Young announced his decision to go to war
against the Timpanogos, who were hostile to the Mormon settlement at
Fort Utah.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_at_Fort_Utah>
1920:
The signing of the Treaty of Tartu ended the Estonian War of
Independence, with Soviet Russia agreeing to recognize the country's
independence and renounce in perpetuity all rights to its territory.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tartu_%28Estonia%E2%80%93Russia%29>
1942:
The first act of the Norwegian resistance movement took place
when the Osvald Group bombed Oslo East Station to protest the
inauguration of Vidkun Quisling.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osvald_Group>
2012:
The passenger ferry MV Rabaul Queen capsized and sank in rough
conditions in the Solomon Sea, resulting in at least 88 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Rabaul_Queen>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Imbolc:
(Britain, Ireland) A Gaelic and Wiccan festival celebrated on 1 or 2
February which marks the beginning of spring.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Imbolc>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
You can't plan a day like today.
--Groundhog Day
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day_%28film%29>
Haane Manahi (28 September 1913 – 29 March 1986) was a New
Zealand Māori soldier who served in the Second World War with the
Māori Battalion. He joined the battalion in 1939 and fought in Greece,
in Crete and in North Africa. In April 1943, during the Tunisian
campaign, his gallantry in an action at Takrouna resulted in a
recommendation, supported by four generals, that he be awarded the
Victoria Cross (VC). This was downgraded to an award of the
Distinguished Conduct Medal, which disappointed many of his fellow
soldiers. After his death in a car crash in 1986, representations were
made for a posthumous award of the VC for his valour at Takrouna. These
representations were unsuccessful but eventually resulted in a special
award in 2007 of an altar cloth for use in a local church, a ceremonial
sword and a personal letter from Queen Elizabeth II in recognition of
his gallantry.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haane_Manahi>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1411:
The First Peace of Thorn was signed, ending the
Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish%E2%80%93Lithuanian%E2%80%93Teutonic_War>
1814:
More than 1,200 people died in the most destructive recorded
eruption of Mayon in the Philippines.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayon>
1884:
The first fascicle of the Oxford English Dictionary, a 352-page
volume that covered words from A to ant, was published.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary>
2001:
The Timor Leste Defence Force was established from the
erstwhile anti-Indonesian independence movement Falintil.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timor_Leste_Defence_Force>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
inexorable:
1. Impossible to prevent or stop; inevitable.
2. Unable to be persuaded; relentless; unrelenting.
3. Adamant; severe.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/inexorable>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
A literature that is alive does not live by yesterday's clock,
nor by today's but by tomorrow's.
--Yevgeny Zamyatin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Yevgeny_Zamyatin>