Computer Space is a space-combat arcade game released in 1971. Created
by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney in partnership as Syzygy Engineering,
it was the first arcade video game and the first commercially available
video game. In the game the player controls a rocket engaged in a
missile battle against a pair of hardware-controlled flying saucers set
against a starfield background. The goal is to score more hits than the
enemy within a set time period. The game is enclosed in a custom
fiberglass cabinet, which Bushnell designed to look futuristic. Bushnell
and Dabney created the game to be a coin-operated version of Spacewar!,
a 1962 computer game. They could not economically run the game on a
general-purpose minicomputer, so they built specialized hardware for the
game. They ran their first location test in August 1971, and it was
shown to industry press and distributors at the annual Music Operators
of America Expo in October. More than one thousand cabinets were sold by
mid-1972.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_Space>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1814:
War of the Sixth Coalition: At the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube in
north-central France, Napoleon suddenly realized that his French army
was vastly outnumbered by Allied forces, and hurriedly ordered a
retreat.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Arcis-sur-Aube>
1952:
The Moondog Coronation Ball (poster pictured), generally
considered to be the first major rock and roll concert, took place at
the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moondog_Coronation_Ball>
2019:
A major explosion at a chemical plant in Yancheng, China,
killed 78 people and injured 617 others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Xiangshui_chemical_plant_explosion>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Muzak:
1. (music, trademark) Recorded background music characterized by soft,
soothing instrumental sounds which is transmitted by wire, radio, or
recorded media (originally on a subscription basis) to doctors' offices,
shops, and other business premises.
2. (music) Easy listening music, whether played live or recorded,
especially if regarded as uninteresting.
3. (figuratively) Something (such as speech) regarded as droning on and
often boring, or soothing but undemanding.
4. To provide (premises, etc.) with Muzak.
5. To adapt or reduce (a piece of music, etc.) to the status of Muzak.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Muzak>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The besieged Mariupol will go down in history of responsibility
for war crimes. The terror the occupiers did to the peaceful city will
be remembered for centuries to come. And the more Ukrainians tell the
world about it, the more support we find. The more Russia uses terror
against Ukraine, the worse the consequences will be for it.
--Volodymyr Zelenskyy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy>
Synthetic diamond is diamond produced in a technological process. Claims
of diamond synthesis were documented between 1879 and 1928 but none have
been confirmed. In the 1940s, research began in the United States,
Sweden and the Soviet Union to grow diamond using chemical vapor
deposition (CVD) and high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) processes.
The first reproducible synthesis was in 1953. CVD and HPHT still
dominate the production of synthetic diamonds, whose properties vary
depending on the process used. The hardness, thermal conductivity and
electron mobility of some manufactured diamonds are superior to those
of natural diamonds. Synthetic diamond is used in cutting and polishing
tools, abrasives and heat sinks. Electronic applications of synthetic
diamond are being developed, including high-power switches at power
stations, high-frequency field-effect transistors and light-emitting
diodes. Both CVD and HPHT diamonds can be cut into gems and produced in
various colors (pictured).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synthetic_diamond>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1815:
After escaping from exile in Elba, Napoleon entered Paris,
beginning the period known as the Hundred Days.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hundred_Days>
1922:
The United States Navy commissioned its first aircraft carrier,
USS Langley.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Langley_%28CV-1%29>
1942:
World War II: After being forced to flee the Philippines for
Australia, U.S. Army general Douglas MacArthur announced: "I came
through and I shall return."
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur>
2014:
Taliban militants carried out a mass shooting at the Kabul
Serena Hotel in Afghanistan, killing nine civilians.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Kabul_Serena_Hotel_attack>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
felicity:
1. (uncountable) Happiness; (countable) an instance of this.
2. (uncountable) An apt and pleasing style in speech, writing, etc.;
(countable) an apt and pleasing choice of words.
3. (uncountable, rare) Good luck; success; (countable) An instance of
unexpected good luck; a stroke of luck; also, a lucky characteristic.
4. (uncountable, semiotics) Reproduction of a sign with fidelity.
5. (countable) Something that is either a source of happiness or
particularly apt.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/felicity>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
What is happening in Ukraine is a crime. Russia is an aggressor
country and the responsibility for this aggression rests on the
conscience of only one person. That person is Vladimir Putin. My father
is Ukrainian, my mother is Russian, and they've never been enemies. This
necklace I'm wearing is a symbol of the fact that Russia must
immediately end this fratricidal war and our fraternal peoples will
still be able to reconcile. Unfortunately, I've spent the last few years
working for Channel One, doing Kremlin propaganda, and I'm very ashamed
of this. Ashamed that I allowed lies to be broadcast from TV screens.
Ashamed that I allowed others to zombify Russian people. We were silent
in 2014 when all this started. We didn't protest when the Kremlin
poisoned Navalny. We just silently watched this inhuman regime at work.
And now the whole world has turned its back on us. And the next 10
generations won't wash away the stain of this fratricidal war. We
Russians are thinking and intelligent people. It's in our power alone to
stop all this madness. Go protest. Don't be afraid of anything. They
can't lock us all away.
--Marina Ovsyannikova
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Marina_Ovsyannikova>
Fearless is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Taylor
Swift (pictured), released on November 11, 2008. Produced by Swift and
Nathan Chapman, the album was written largely by Swift while she was
promoting her 2006 self-titled debut album in 2007 and 2008. Fearless is
a country pop record featuring traditional country instruments such as
banjos. The lyrics explore themes of teenage romance, heartache, and
aspirations. The album's title refers to the overarching theme of all of
its tracks, which depict Swift gaining courage to embrace love's
challenges. After the release of Fearless, Swift embarked on the
Fearless Tour, which ran from April 2009 to July 2010. Two singles
from the album, "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", were successful
on both country and pop radio. The album spent eleven weeks atop the US
Billboard 200 and was certified diamond by the Recording Industry
Association of America.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearless_%28Taylor_Swift_album%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1808:
King Charles IV of Spain was forced to abdicate in favour of
his son Ferdinand VII as a result of the Tumult of Aranjuez.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_IV_of_Spain>
1962:
Influential American musician Bob Dylan released his eponymous
debut album, mainly comprising traditional folk songs.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan>
1998:
An unscheduled Ariana Afghan Airlines flight crashed into a
mountain on approach into Kabul, killing all 45 people aboard.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_Ariana_Afghan_Airlines_crash>
2008:
The gamma-ray burst GRB 080319B, the farthest object that could
be seen by the naked eye, was observed.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GRB_080319B>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
skulduggery:
1. (countable) A devious device or trick.
2. (uncountable) Dishonest, underhanded, or unscrupulous activities or
behaviour.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/skulduggery>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I urge the Russian people and the Russian soldiers in Ukraine to
understand the propaganda and the disinformation that you are being
told. I ask you to help me spread the truth so that your fellow Russians
will know the human catastrophe that is happening in Ukraine. To
President Putin, I say: You started this war. You’re leading this war.
You can stop this war now. And to the Russians who have been protesting
on the streets against the invasion of Ukraine: the world has seen your
bravery. We know that you have suffered the consequences of your
courage. You have been arrested. You have been jailed and you’ve been
beaten. You are my new heroes. You have the strength of Yury Petrovich
Vlasov. You have the true heart of Russia.
--Arnold Schwarzenegger
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Arnold_Schwarzenegger>
The Pali-Aike volcanic field is a volcanic field in Argentina that
straddles the border with Chile. It is part of a family of back-arc
volcanoes in Patagonia that formed from the collision of the Chile Ridge
with the Peru–Chile Trench. There are approximately 467 vents in an
area of 4,500 square kilometres (1,700 square miles). The field was
first active 3.78 million years ago, and is noteworthy for the presence
of large amounts of xenoliths in its rocks. The latest eruptions
occurred during the Holocene, as indicated by the burial of
archaeological artifacts; the Laguna Azul maar formed about 3,400 years
before present. Humans have lived in the region for thousands of years,
and a number of archaeological sites such as the Fell Cave are located
in the field. Presently, parts of the volcanic field are protected areas
in Chile and Argentina. The city of Río Gallegos in Argentina is
within 23 kilometres (14 mi) of the volcanic field.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pali-Aike_volcanic_field>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1892:
Canadian governor general Lord Stanley of Preston pledged to
donate an award to Canada's top-ranked amateur ice hockey club, now
known as the Stanley Cup, the oldest professional sports trophy in North
America.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Cup>
1906:
Romanian inventor Traian Vuia became the first person to fly a
heavier-than-air monoplane with an unassisted takeoff.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traian_Vuia>
1965:
Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov donned a space suit and ventured
outside the Soviet spacecraft Voskhod 2 spacecraft, becoming the first
person to walk in space.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexei_Leonov>
1985:
The first episode of the soap opera Neighbours was broadcast on
the Seven Network, later becoming the longest-running drama in
Australian television history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighbours>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
jar:
1. (transitive) To preserve (food) in a jar. […]
2. (transitive) To knock, shake, or strike sharply, especially causing a
quivering or vibrating movement.
3. (transitive) To harm or injure by such action.
4. (transitive, figuratively) To shock or surprise.
5. (transitive, figuratively) To act in disagreement or opposition, to
clash, to be at odds with; to interfere; to dispute, to quarrel.
6. (transitive, intransitive) To (cause something to) give forth a
rudely tremulous or quivering sound; to (cause something to) sound
discordantly or harshly.
7. (intransitive) To quiver or vibrate due to being shaken or struck.
8. (intransitive, figuratively) Of the appearance, form, style, etc., of
people and things: to look strangely different; to stand out awkwardly
from its surroundings; to be incongruent.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/jar>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
President Biden said that in his opinion, war crimes have been
committed in Ukraine. Personally, I agree. Intentionally targeting
civilians is a war crime. After all the destruction of the past three
weeks, I find it difficult to conclude that the Russians are doing
otherwise.
--Antony Blinken
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Antony_Blinken>
HMS Erin was a dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy, originally
ordered under the name Reşadiye by the Ottoman government from the
British company Vickers. She was designed to be at least the equal of
any ship afloat or under construction. Nearly complete when the First
World War was beginning in August 1914, the ship was seized at the
orders of Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty, to keep her in
British hands and prevent her from being used by Germany or its allies.
Aside from a minor role in the Battle of Jutland in May 1916 and the
inconclusive Action of 19 August the same year, Erin's service during
the war generally consisted of routine patrols and training in the North
Sea. Deemed obsolete after the war, the ship was reduced to reserve and
used as a training ship. Erin served as the flagship of the reserve
fleet at the Nore sandbank for most of 1920. She was sold for scrap in
1922.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Erin>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1891:
The transatlantic steamship Utopia accidentally collided with
the battleship HMS Anson in the Bay of Gibraltar, sinking in less than
twenty minutes and killing 562.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Utopia>
1942:
The Holocaust: The first mass killings of Jews began at Belzec
extermination camp in occupied Poland, the first of the Operation
Reinhard camps to begin operation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Reinhard>
1955:
Ice hockey fans in Montreal rioted to protest the suspension of
Montreal Canadiens star Maurice Richard for hitting an official.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Riot>
1985:
American serial killer Richard Ramirez, known as "the Night
Stalker", began a home invasion burglary and killing spree that resulted
in 13 deaths and 11 sexual assaults over the following five months.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Ramirez>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
clarsach:
(music) A small triangular wire-strung harp of Gaelic origin; a Celtic
harp.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/clarsach>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The wars of the past have prompted our predecessors to create
institutions that should protect us from war, but they unfortunately
don’t work. We see it, you see it, so we need new ones, new
institutions, new alliances and we offer them. We propose to create an
association U-24 united for peace, a union of responsible countries that
have the strength and consciousness to stop conflicts immediately,
provide all the necessary assistance in 24 hours, if necessary, even
weapons if necessary, sanctions, humanitarian support, political
support, finances, everything you need to keep the peace and quickly
save the world, save lives. In addition, such association, such union
would provide assistance to those who are experiencing natural
disasters, man-made disasters, who fell victims to humanitarian crisis
or epidemic.
--Volodymyr Zelenskyy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy>
The Colossus of Rhodes is a 1954 oil painting by the Spanish artist
Salvador Dalí (pictured). One of a series of seven paintings created
for the 1956 film Seven Wonders of the World, it shows the Colossus of
Rhodes, the ancient statue of the Greek titan-god of the sun, Helios.
Painted two decades after Dalí's heyday with the surrealist movement,
The Colossus of Rhodes is emblematic of his transition from the avant-
garde to the mainstream. After financial pressures imposed by his move
to the United States in 1940, and influenced by his fascination with
Hollywood, he shifted focus away from his earlier exploration of the
subconscious and perception, and towards historical and scientific
themes. His rendering of the Colossus is heavily influenced by a 1953
presentation by Herbert Maryon, a sculptor and conservator at the
British Museum. None of the commissioned paintings were ultimately used
for the film, and The Colossus of Rhodes was donated in 1981 to the
Kunstmuseum Bern.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Colossus_of_Rhodes_%28Dal%C3%AD%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1872:
In the inaugural final of the FA Cup (trophy pictured), the
world's oldest association football competition, Wanderers defeated
Royal Engineers 1–0 at The Oval in Kennington, London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1872_FA_Cup_Final>
1918:
Finnish Civil War: The Whites won the Battle of Länkipohja,
after which they executed at least 70 Reds.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_L%C3%A4nkipohja>
1962:
Flying Tiger Line Flight 739, a charter flight carrying U.S.
and South Vietnamese soldiers, disappeared without a trace, prompting
one of the largest searches in the history of the Pacific.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Tiger_Line_Flight_739>
2014:
Annexation of Crimea: The Autonomous Republic of Crimea held a
controversial referendum in which voters overwhelmingly chose to join
Russia as a federal subject.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Crimean_status_referendum>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
growl:
1. (intransitive) To utter a deep guttural sound, as an angry animal; to
give forth an angry, grumbling sound.
2. (intransitive, jazz) Of a wind instrument: to produce a low-pitched
rumbling sound.
3. (intransitive, software) To send a user a message via the Growl
software library.
4. (transitive) To express (something) by growling.
5. (transitive, jazz) To play a wind instrument in a way that produces a
low-pitched rumbling sound.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/growl>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
It is here, in war-torn Kyiv, that history is being made. It is
here, that freedom fights against the world of tyranny. It is here that
the future of us all hangs in the balance.
--Mateusz Morawiecki
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mateusz_Morawiecki>
On 15 March 1921, Armenian student Soghomon Tehlirian assassinated
Talaat Pasha, a leading Ottoman politician and the main architect of the
Armenian genocide, in Berlin. About a million Armenians died in the
genocide, including most of Tehlirian's family. He joined a clandestine
assassination campaign seeking revenge. Tehlirian's trial (pictured) was
held on 2 and 3 June 1921, and the defense strategy was to put Talaat
on trial for the Armenian genocide. Several eyewitnesses to the genocide
testified, resulting in "one of the most spectacular trials of the
twentieth century". Tehlirian claimed he had acted alone, telling a
dramatic, but untrue, story of witnessing the deaths of his family
members. He argued: "I have killed a man, but I am not a murderer", and
the jury acquitted him. International news coverage brought attention to
the facts of the Armenian genocide. The coverage inspired Polish-Jewish
lawyer Raphael Lemkin to coin the term genocide and help codify it as a
crime in international law.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Talaat_Pasha>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1147:
Reconquista: Portuguese troops under King Afonso I captured
the city of Santarém from the Almoravids.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conquest_of_Santar%C3%A9m>
1875:
John McCloskey, Archbishop of New York, was created the first
cardinal from the United States.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McCloskey>
1972:
The Godfather, a gangster film directed by Francis Ford Coppola
and based on the novel of the same name by Mario Puzo, was released.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Godfather>
1990:
Iraqi authorities hanged Iranian freelance reporter Farzad
Bazoft on charges of spying for Israel.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farzad_Bazoft>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
slugabed:
(archaic, now chiefly Canada, US) A lazy person who lies in bed after
the usual time for getting up; a sluggard.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/slugabed>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Ukraine is on fire. The country is being decimated before the
eyes of the world. The impact on civilians is reaching terrifying
proportions. Countless innocent people – including women and children
– have been killed. After being hit by Russian forces, roads,
airports and schools lie in ruins. According to the World Health
Organization, at least 24 health facilities have suffered attacks.
Hundreds of thousands of people are without water or electricity. With
each passing hour, two things are increasingly clear: First — it
keeps getting worse. Second — whatever the outcome, this war will
have no winners, only losers.
--António Guterres
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ant%C3%B3nio_Guterres>
A group, in mathematics, is a set together with an operation that
combines any two of its elements to form a third element, in such a way
that the operation is associative, an identity element exists, and every
element has an inverse. These three conditions, called group axioms,
are familiar from number systems. The ubiquity of groups in numerous
areas—both within and outside mathematics—makes them a central
organizational tool in contemporary mathematics. The concept of a group
arose from the study of polynomial equations, starting with Évariste
Galois in the 1830s. After contributions from other fields such as
number theory and geometry, the group notion was generalized and firmly
established around 1870. Today, group theory is a very active
mathematical discipline that studies groups in their own right. Symmetry
groups are widely applied in molecular chemistry and various physical
disciplines.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_%28mathematics%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1489:
Catherine Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus, was forced to abdicate and
sell the administration of the island to the Republic of Venice.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_Cornaro>
1885:
The Mikado, Gilbert and Sullivan's most frequently performed
Savoy opera, debuted at the Savoy Theatre in London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mikado>
1969:
Edward M. Burke, the longest-serving alderman in the history of
the Chicago City Council, was sworn into office.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_M._Burke>
1984:
Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Féin, was seriously wounded in an
assassination attempt by Ulster Freedom Fighters in central Belfast,
Northern Ireland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerry_Adams>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Pi Day:
March 14th, an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π (pi).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Pi_Day>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
With an aching heart I add my voice to that of the common people,
who implore the end of the war. In the name of God, listen to the cry of
those who suffer, and put an end to the bombings and the attacks! The
city that bears the name of the Virgin Mary, Mariupol, has become a city
martyred by the ruinous war that is devastating Ukraine. Before the
barbarism of killing children and innocent and defenceless citizens, no
strategic reasons hold: the only thing to be done is to cease the
unacceptable armed aggression before cities are reduced to cemeteries.
--Pope Francis
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Pope_Francis>
Farran Zerbe (1871–1949) was an American coin collector and dealer who
was the president of the American Numismatic Association (ANA) in 1908
and 1909. Born in Tyrone, Pennsylvania, he collected coins from
childhood. He joined the ANA in 1900, and served as chief numismatist at
the world's fairs at St. Louis (1904), at Portland (1905) and at San
Francisco (1915). He exhibited his collection at banks across the U.S.
beginning in 1907, the year he was elected ANA president, until he sold
it to the Chase National Bank in 1928, thereafter serving as its
curator. He purchased the journal of the ANA, The Numismatist, for
himself from the widow of its founder in 1908. A factional fight in the
ANA followed but Zerbe's chosen successor was elected. In 1969, he was
posthumously inducted into the Numismatic Hall of Fame. The ANA's
highest honor, awarded annually, had long been called the "Farran Zerbe
Memorial Award", but the ANA removed his name from the honor in 2021.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farran_Zerbe>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1811:
Napoleonic Wars: A British frigate squadron defeated a much
larger squadron of French and Italian frigates and smaller vessels in
the Battle of Lissa in the Adriatic Sea.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lissa_%281811%29>
1920:
The Kapp Putsch (participants pictured), an attempted coup
aiming to undo the German Revolution of 1918–1919, briefly ousted the
government of the Weimar Republic.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kapp_Putsch>
1988:
The Seikan Tunnel, the longest and deepest tunnel in the world
at the time, opened between the cities of Hakodate and Aomori, Japan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seikan_Tunnel>
1997:
A series of unexplained lights appeared in the skies over the
US states of Arizona and New Mexico, and the Mexican state of Sonora.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_Lights>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
ledger:
1. A book for keeping notes, especially one for keeping accounting
records; a record book, a register.
2. A large, flat stone, especially one laid over a tomb.
3. (accounting) A collection of accounting entries consisting of credits
and debits.
4. (construction) A board attached to a wall to provide support for
attaching other structural elements (such as deck joists or roof
rafters) to a building.
5. (fishing) Short for ledger bait (“fishing bait attached to a floating
line fastened to the bank of a pond, stream, etc.”) or ledger line
(“fishing line used with ledger bait for bottom fishing; ligger”).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ledger>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Putin's war on Ukraine has entered its next phase, one of
destruction and slaughter of civilians. It is also a part of Putin's
World War, a war on the civilized world of international law, democracy,
and any threat to his power, which he declared long ago.
--Garry Kasparov
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Garry_Kasparov>
Fakhr al-Din II (c. 1572 – 1635) was the paramount Druze emir of
Mount Lebanon and the strongman over much of the Levant from the 1620s
to 1633. For uniting Lebanon's constituent communities, he is generally
regarded as the country's founder. Fakhr al-Din succeeded his father as
the emir of the Chouf mountains around 1591, and the Ottoman Empire gave
him control over other districts, but attacked him in 1613 for allying
with Tuscany. He escaped into exile but returned in 1618, resuming
control of his former domains and greatly expanding them in the
following years. Despite the empire being in a long economic crisis,
Fakhr al-Din's territories thrived. He promoted commercial agriculture,
focusing on the lucrative silk trade of Mount Lebanon. He surrendered
to the Ottomans during a siege of his Chouf hideout in 1633 and was
executed in Constantinople in 1635. His main enduring legacy is the
symbiotic relationship between Maronites and Druze, foundational for the
creation of a Lebanese state.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fakhr_al-Din_II>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1881:
Andrew Watson captained the Scotland national football team
against England, becoming the world's first black international
footballer.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Watson_%28footballer,_born_1856%29>
1934:
Supported by the Estonian army, Konstantin Päts staged a coup
d'état, beginning the Era of Silence.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konstantin_P%C3%A4ts>
1952:
British diplomat Lord Ismay was appointed the first secretary
general of NATO.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hastings_Ismay,_1st_Baron_Ismay>
2014:
A gas leak caused an explosion in the East Harlem neighborhood
of New York City, destroying two apartment buildings and causing eight
deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_East_Harlem_gas_explosion>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
impostor syndrome:
(psychology) A psychological phenomenon in which a person is unable to
internalize his or her accomplishments, remaining convinced that he or
she does not deserve any accompanying success.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/impostor_syndrome>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
We — Russia — want to be a nation of peace. Alas, few people
would call us that now. But let's at least not become a nation of
frightened silent people. Of cowards who pretend not to notice the
aggressive war against Ukraine unleashed by our obviously insane czar.
I cannot, do not want and will not remain silent watching how pseudo-
historical nonsense about the events of 100 years ago has become an
excuse for Russians to kill Ukrainians, and for Ukrainians to kill
Russians while defending themselves. It's the third decade of the 21st
century, and we are watching news about people burning down in tanks and
bombed houses. We are watching real threats to start a nuclear war on
our TVs. I am from the USSR myself. I was born there. And the main
phrase from there — from my childhood — was "fight for peace." I
call on everyone to take to the streets and fight for peace.
--Alexei Navalny
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alexei_Navalny>