Ljubljana was the third and last Beograd-class destroyer built for the
Royal Yugoslav Navy in the late 1930s. She was designed to operate as
part of a division led by Dubrovnik, the flotilla leader. Ljubljana
entered service in November 1939, was armed with a main battery of four
Škoda 120 mm (4.7 in) guns in single mounts, and had a top speed of
35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph). In 1940, Ljubljana ran aground on a reef
off the Yugoslav port of Šibenik, where, badly damaged, she was taken
for repairs. Yugoslavia entered World War II when the Axis powers led
by Germany invaded in April 1941, and Ljubljana—still under
repair—was captured by the Royal Italian Navy. After repairs were
completed, she saw active service in the Royal Italian Navy under the
name Lubiana, mainly as a convoy escort on routes between Italy and
North Africa. She was lost on 1 April 1943, when she ran aground and
was abandoned off the Tunisian coast. (This article is part of a
featured topic: Ships of the Royal Yugoslav Navy.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Ships_of_the_Royal_…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1794:
French Revolutionary Wars: Two British ships were intercepted
by a French squadron, leading to the French seizure of the HMS
Alexander.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_of_6_November_1794>
1868:
Red Cloud, a Native American leader of the Oglala Lakota tribe,
signed the Treaty of Fort Laramie, ending Red Cloud's War and
establishing the Great Sioux Reservation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Fort_Laramie_%281868%29>
1917:
First World War: Canadian forces captured Passendale, Belgium,
after three months of fighting against the Germans at the Battle of
Passchendaele.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Passchendaele>
1988:
Two earthquakes occurring 12 minutes apart struck Yunnan near
the China–Myanmar border, killing more than 730 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Lancang%E2%80%93Gengma_earthquakes>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
on tenterhooks:
(idiomatic) In a state of (great) apprehension or suspense; on pins and
needles.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/on_tenterhooks>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We have a great many politicians in the country, perhaps as many
as the country requires. I should not wish to ask for a larger supply of
these; but there is a wide difference between the politician and the
statesman. A politician, for example, is a man who thinks of the next
election; while the statesman thinks of the next generation. The
politician thinks of the success of his party, the statesman of the good
of his country. The politician wishes to carry this or that measure, the
statesman to establish this or the other principle. Finally, the
statesman wishes to steer; while the politician is contented to drift.
The difficulty about a politician, no matter how honest and well-
intentioned he may be, is always this: that the matter of absolute
importance in his mind, to which every thing else must yield, is to
carry the next election for his party.
--James Freeman Clarke
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Freeman_Clarke>
Thomas Percy was a member of the failed Gunpowder Plot. Following King
James's accession to the English throne in 1603, Percy became
disenchanted with the new king, who he supposed had reneged on his
promises of toleration for English Catholics. He joined Robert Catesby's
conspiracy to kill the King and his ministers by blowing up the House of
Lords with gunpowder. Percy helped fund the group and secured the leases
to properties in London, including the undercroft beneath the House of
Lords where the gunpowder was placed. When the plot was exposed on
5 November 1605, Percy fled to the Midlands, catching up with other
conspirators travelling to Dunchurch. At the border of Staffordshire,
they were besieged by the Sheriff of Worcester and his men. Percy was
reportedly killed by the same musket ball as Catesby and was buried
nearby. His body was later exhumed, and his head exhibited outside
Parliament. (This article is part of a featured topic: Gunpowder
Plot.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Gunpowder_Plot>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1943:
World War II: An unknown aircraft dropped four bombs on
Vatican City, which maintained neutrality during the war.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Rome_in_World_War_II#Bombing_of_Va…>
1995:
Aline Chrétien thwarted André Dallaire's attempt to
assassinate her husband, Canadian prime minister Jean Chrétien, by
locking the bedroom door in 24 Sussex Drive, their official residence
in Ottawa.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24_Sussex_Drive>
2003:
American serial killer Gary Ridgway pleaded guilty to 48 counts
of first-degree murder.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Ridgway>
2013:
The Indian Space Research Organisation launched the Mars
Orbiter Mission, India's first interplanetary probe.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Orbiter_Mission>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
could not get elected dogcatcher:
(idiomatic, chiefly US, politics, hyperbolic) Said of someone,
particularly a politician, who is extremely unpopular.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/could_not_get_elected_dogcatcher>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I find a rapture linked with each despair, Well worth the price
of anguish. I detect More good than evil in humanity. Love lights more
fires than hate extinguishes, And men grow better as the world grows
old.
--Ella Wheeler Wilcox
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ella_Wheeler_Wilcox>
Marina Bay MRT station is a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) interchange station
on the North–South (NSL), Circle (CCL) and Thomson–East Coast (TEL)
lines in Singapore. Located in the Downtown Core district near Marina
Bay, it serves the Marina One Residences, Marina Bay Suites and the
Marina Bay Financial Centre. It was one of the last stations to be
completed in the early phases of the MRT network, opening on 4 November
1989. The station was the terminus of the NSL until the line's extension
in 2014. It became an interchange station with the CCL when the two-
station branch extension from Promenade station was completed in
January 2012. The TEL station platforms were completed in
November 2022, becoming a triple-line interchange on the MRT network.
The station features art as part of the MRT network's Art-in-Transit
programme. The sculpture Flowers in Blossom II is over the CCL
mezzanine. The CCL platforms feature photographs by Nah Yong En and the
TEL station features murals by Tang Ling Nah.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marina_Bay_MRT_station>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1912:
The keel of USS Nevada was laid down, beginning construction
on the United States Navy's first "super-dreadnought".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Nevada_%28BB-36%29>
1938:
The Hlinka Guard and Slovakian police began the deportation of
several thousand Jews from the country.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1938_deportation_of_Jews_from_Slovakia>
1964:
Ruhollah Khomeini was arrested by SAVAK, the Iranian secret
police, and exiled to Turkey.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruhollah_Khomeini%27s_life_in_exile>
2008:
Barack Obama became the first African American to be elected
President of the United States.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
nibble:
1. (transitive)
2. To take a small, quick bite, or several of such bites, of
(something).
3. To lightly bite (a person or animal, or part of their body),
especially in a loving or playful manner; to nip.
4. To make (a hole in something) through small bites.
5. To make (one's way) through or while taking small bites.
6. Chiefly followed by into or to: to cause (something) to be in a
certain state through small bites.
7. Followed by away, off, etc.: to remove (something) through small
bites.
8. To remove (small pieces) from glass, tile, etc., with a tool; also,
to remove small pieces from (glass, tile, etc.) with a tool.
9. (obsolete)
10. To fidget or play with (something), especially with the fingers or
hands.
11. (slang) To catch (someone); to nab.
12. (slang) To steal (something); to pilfer.
13. (intransitive)
14. Chiefly followed by at, away, or on: to take a small, quick bite, or
several of such bites; to eat (at frequent intervals) with small, quick
bites.
15. To lightly bite, especially in a loving or playful manner.
16. (figurative)
17. Chiefly followed by at: to show slight interest in something, such
as a commercial opportunity or a proposal.
18. Followed by away at: to reduce or use up gradually; to eat.
19. (cricket, informal) Followed by at: of a batter: to make an
indecisive attempt to bat a ball bowled outside the off stump.
20. (road transport) Synonym of tramline (“of a vehicle: to tend to
follow the contours of the ground with its wheels”)
21. (obsolete)
22. To fidget or play, especially with the fingers or hands.
23. Chiefly followed by at: to make insignificant complaints; to carp,
to cavil, to find fault.
24. (slang) To engage in sexual intercourse.
25. An act of taking a small, quick bite, or several of such bites,
especially with the front teeth; the bite or bites so taken.
26. A light bite of a person or animal, or part of their body,
especially one which is loving or playful; a nip.
27. A amount of food that is or can be taken into the mouth through a
small bite; a small mouthful.
28. (figurative) A slight show of interest in something, such as a
commercial opportunity or a proposal.
29. (obsolete, rare) Grass or other vegetation eaten by livestock;
forage, pasturage.
30. (computing) A unit of memory equal to half a byte, or chiefly four
bits.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nibble>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The power of a book lies in its power to turn a solitary act into
a shared vision. As long as we have books, we are not alone.
--Laura Welch Bush
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Laura_Welch_Bush>
On November 3, 1964, Illinois chose all 177 members of the state's House
of Representatives in a single at-large election. The government was
required to draw new electoral districts before the election, each of
which would choose three representatives, but both the legislative
process and a special commission failed to produce a district map. As a
result, the state's constitution mandated that all 177 representatives
were to be elected from a statewide at-large district. The Republican
Party and the Democratic Party each nominated 118 candidates to appear
on the ballot (specimen pictured); voters were allowed to choose up to
177. All 118 Democratic candidates were elected, flipping the Illinois
House of Representatives from its previous narrow Republican control,
alongside the concurrent presidential election won by Democratic
incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson in a landslide. This election is the only
time in American history that a state legislative chamber has been
elected at-large.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1964_Illinois_House_of_Representatives_electi…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1898:
The Fashoda Incident ended with French forces withdrawing after
several months of military stalemate with the British in Fashoda (now in
South Sudan).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fashoda_Incident>
1948:
The Chicago Daily Tribune published the erroneous headline
"Dewey Defeats Truman" in its early morning edition shortly after
incumbent U.S. president Harry S. Truman officially upset the heavily
favored governor of New York Thomas Dewey in the presidential election.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewey_Defeats_Truman>
1957:
The Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2, carrying the space dog
Laika as the first living creature to enter orbit around Earth.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laika>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
satori:
1. (uncountable, Zen Buddhism) A sudden inexpressible feeling of
spiritual enlightenment or understanding, the result of meditation and
study.
2. (uncountable, figurative) Enlightenment, epiphany.
3. (countable, biochemistry) A mutant gene of Drosophila, a genus of
fruit flies, that causes homosexual behaviour in males (specifically,
courtship directed to other males).
4. (Japanese mythology) A yokai (“supernatural monster”) having the form
of a mind-reading monkey-like creature said to dwell in the mountains of
the historical Japanese provinces of Hida and Mino (present-day Gifu
Prefecture).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/satori>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The attempt to force human beings to despise themselves … is
what I call hell.
--André Malraux
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Malraux>
Daniel Boone (November 2, 1734 – September 26, 1820) was an
American pioneer and frontiersman. In 1775, he blazed the Wilderness
Road through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky, despite resistance from
Native Americans; by the end of the 18th century, more than 200,000
people had entered Kentucky by following the route marked by Boone. He
was adopted into the Shawnee tribe in 1778 but resigned after his son
was killed by members. In April 1781, Boone was elected to the Virginia
General Assembly. An account of his adventures was published in 1784,
making him famous in America and Europe. After the Revolutionary War, he
worked as a surveyor and merchant but went into debt as a Kentucky land
speculator. In 1799, Boone resettled in Missouri, where he spent most of
his remaining life. After his death, he was the subject of works of
fiction; his adventures helped create the archetypal frontier hero of
American folklore.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Boone>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1932:
The Australian military began a "war against emus" (man with
dead emu pictured), flightless native birds blamed for widespread damage
to crops in Western Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emu_War>
1943:
World War II: A U.S. Navy task force turned away an Imperial
Japanese Navy formation at the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, thus
protecting the landings at Cape Torokina.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Empress_Augusta_Bay>
1960:
In the trial R v Penguin Books Ltd, publisher Penguin Books
was acquitted of obscenity for the publication of Lady Chatterley's
Lover by D. H. Lawrence.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R_v_Penguin_Books_Ltd>
2007:
In Tbilisi, Georgia, tens of thousands of people demonstrated
against the allegedly corrupt government of president Mikheil
Saakashvili.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Georgian_demonstrations>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
resipiscence:
1. (uncountable) Recognition of one or more past mistakes, especially
with a desire to improve in the future; repentance; (countable) an
instance of this.
2. (uncountable) The act of becoming comprehending, reasonable or
responsible, especially after having behaved in an uncomprehending,
unreasonable, or irresponsible manner; the act of coming to one's
senses; (countable) an instance of this.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/resipiscence>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good,
therefore, that I can do or any kindness I can show to any fellow
creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it for I shall
not pass this way again.
--Stephen Grellet
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stephen_Grellet>
William de Ros, 6th Baron Ros (c. 1370 – 1 November 1414), was an
English nobleman, politician and soldier. He inherited his father's
feudal barony and extensive estates centred on Lincolnshire in 1394.
Shortly afterwards he married Margaret, daughter of Baron Fitzalan,
whose family, like that of de Ros, was well-connected and implacably
opposed to King Richard II. In 1399 Richard confiscated the estates of
his cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Lancaster, and exiled him. When
Henry invaded England several months later, de Ros took his side almost
immediately. After Henry declared himself King Henry IV, de Ros voted
in the House of Lords for the former king's imprisonment. He became an
important aide and counsellor to King Henry, and regularly spoke for him
in parliament. He also supported Henry in his military campaigns,
participating in the invasion of Scotland in 1400 and assisting in the
suppression of Richard le Scrope's rebellion five years later.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_de_Ros,_6th_Baron_Ros>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1921:
Frances Kyle was called to the Bar of Ireland, becoming the
first female barrister in Ireland or Great Britain.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Kyle>
1941:
American photographer Ansel Adams shot Moonrise, Hernandez, New
Mexico, one of his most famous photographs.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonrise,_Hernandez,_New_Mexico>
1944:
World War II: An American F-13 Superfortress made the first
flight by an Allied aircraft over Tokyo since the Doolittle Raid in
April 1942.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1_November_1944_reconnaissance_sortie_over_Ja…>
1963:
Lê Quang Tung, loyalist head of the South Vietnam Special
Forces, was executed in a U.S.-backed coup against president Ngô Đình
Diệm following a period of religious unrest.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1963_South_Vietnamese_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
subpoena:
1. (law) In full writ of subpoena.
2. A writ (“written order”) requiring someone to appear in court, or at
a deposition or some other legal proceeding, as a witness to give
testimony (a subpoena ad testificandum) or to produce evidence (subpoena
duces tecum), in default of which the person may be punished.
3. (historical) A writ requiring a defendant to appear in court to
answer a plaintiff's claim (a subpoena ad respondendum); in England and
Wales, and Ireland, this writ was formerly issued by the Court of
Chancery at the plaintiff's request to commence a suit, but the
procedure was abolished in 1852.
4. (figurative) A thing which can compel or demand something, or summon
someone.
5. (law)
6. To summon (someone) with a subpoena (noun sense 1.1) to appear in
court, or at a deposition or some other legal proceeding, as a witness
to give testimony or to produce evidence; to serve a subpoena on
(someone).
7. To require (a document or other evidence) to be produced before a
court, or at a deposition or some other legal proceeding.
8. (figurative) To compel or summon (someone or something); to demand.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/subpoena>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Honor is like an island, rugged and without a beach; Once we have
left it, we can never return.
--Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Nicolas_Boileau-Despr%C3%A9aux>