Rachelle Ann Go (born August 31, 1986) is a Filipino singer and
actress. Known primarily for her work in theater, she has starred in
musicals on Broadway and in the West End. She began her career as a pop
artist in her native country, winning the television talent show Search
for a Star in 2003. She has since released six albums. Go started her
theater career in the Philippines, playing the lead roles of Ariel in
The Little Mermaid (2011) and Jane Porter in Tarzan (2013). Her
international breakthrough came when she was cast as Gigi Van Tranh in
the West End revival of Miss Saigon in 2014. She gained further
recognition for her portrayal of Eliza Schuyler in the original 2017
West End production of Hamilton. Go has also played Fantine in various
stagings and tours of Les Misérables. Outside of music, she has had
roles in the television series Diva (2010), Nita Negrita (2011),
Biritera (2012), and Indio (2013). (This article is part of a featured
topic: Overview of Rachelle Ann Go.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Overview_of_Rachell…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1888:
The body of Mary Ann Nichols, the alleged first victim of an
unidentified serial killer known as Jack the Ripper, was found in Buck's
Row, London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_the_Ripper>
1942:
The Matagorda hurricane, the most intense and costliest
tropical cyclone of the 1942 Atlantic hurricane season, dissipated after
causing $26.5 million in damages and eight deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942_Matagorda_hurricane>
1969:
On the final day of the Isle of Wight Festival 1969, attended
by approximately 150,000 people over three days, Bob Dylan appeared in
his first gig in three years.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_Wight_Festival_1969>
2019:
A sightseeing helicopter crashed in the mountains of
Skoddevarre in Alta, Norway, killing all six people on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Alta_helicopter_crash>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
mee:
1. Chinese-style wheat noodles.
2. With a descriptive word: a dish containing Chinese-style wheat
noodles.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/mee>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Wars, for us, are either inevitable, or created. Whatever they
are, they should not wholly vitiate art. What art needs is greater men,
and what politics needs is better men.
--William Saroyan
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Saroyan>
Segundo Romance (Second Romance) is the tenth studio album by Mexican
singer Luis Miguel (pictured), released on 30 August 1994 through WEA
Latina. Like Miguel's 1991 album Romance, Segundo Romance comprises
cover versions of boleros (Latin ballads). It was produced by Miguel
with Juan Carlos Calderón, Kiko Cibrian and Armando Manzanero, and
recorded in early 1994 at the Record Plant in Los Angeles. Miguel
promoted the album with tours in the United States and Latin America
from August to December 1994. Four singles were released: "El Día Que
Me Quieras", "La Media Vuelta", "Todo y Nada", and "Delirio". The former
two reached the top of the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart in the United
States. Segundo Romance received positive reviews from music critics and
it won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance. By 1995, Segundo
Romance had sold more than 4.5 million copies, achieved multi-platinum
status in many Latin American countries and Spain, and was certified
platinum in the United States.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Segundo_Romance>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1574:
Guru Ram Das became the fourth of the Sikh gurus, the spiritual
masters of Sikhism.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guru_Ram_Das>
1594:
King James VI of Scotland held a masque at the baptism of
Prince Henry, his first child.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masque_at_the_baptism_of_Prince_Henry>
1959:
South Vietnamese opposition figure Phan Quang Đán was elected
to the National Assembly, despite soldiers being bussed in to vote
multiple times for President Ngô Đình Diệm's candidate.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phan_Quang_%C4%90%C3%A1n>
2007:
A heavy bomber that had been unintentionally loaded with
nuclear missiles flew them from North Dakota to Louisiana before they
were recognized.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_United_States_Air_Force_nuclear_weapons_…>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
hats off:
1. (dated) Used as an instruction for people to remove their hats out of
respect, generally towards someone of importance.
2. (figurative) Followed by to: used to express approval or praise:
congratulations, kudos, well done!
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hats_off>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Can you really explain to a fish what it's like to walk on land?
One day on land is worth a thousand years of talking about it, and one
day running a business has exactly the same kind of value.
--Warren Buffett
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Warren_Buffett>
The Cross Temple is a former place of worship in Fangshan, Beijing.
Built as a Buddhist temple, it may have seen Christian use during the
Tang dynasty (618–907). The temple was used by Buddhists during the
Liao dynasty (916–1125) and by Christians during the Yuan dynasty
(1271–1368), returned to Buddhist use during the Ming dynasty
(1368–1644), and was sold in 1911. Its first modern mention was in
1919. The Cross Temple was damaged during the Cultural Revolution but
recognised as a national-level protected site in 2006. Some scholars
consider it to be the only place of worship of the Church of the East
(also known as Nestorian Christianity) discovered in China. In the early
20th century, two stone blocks carved with crosses were discovered, one
of which had an inscription in Syriac; they are presently on display at
Nanjing Museum. Today, the site features two ancient steles (one
pictured) dating to the Liao and Yuan dynasties, some groundwork and the
bases of several pillars.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_Temple,_Fangshan>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1786:
Angered by high tax burdens and disfranchisement, farmers in
western Massachusetts led by Daniel Shays began an armed uprising
against the U.S. federal government.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shays%27s_Rebellion>
1831:
Michael Faraday first experimentally demonstrated
electromagnetic induction, leading to the formulation of the law of
induction named after him.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faraday%27s_law_of_induction>
1960:
Air France Flight 343 crashed while attempting to land at Yoff
Airport, Dakar, killing all 63 occupants.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_343>
2016:
Chen Quanguo became the Chinese Communist Party secretary of
Xinjiang, and in that role later oversaw the creation of the Xinjiang
internment camps.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chen_Quanguo>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
make no bones about:
(idiomatic) To do, indicate, or say something clearly and without
hesitation, even if it may be unpleasant.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/make_no_bones_about>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I’d like to see our politics begin to return to the purposes
and practices that distinguish our history from the history of other
nations. I would like to see us recover our sense that we are more alike
than different. We are citizens of a republic made of shared ideals
forged in a new world to replace the tribal enmities that tormented the
old one. Even in times of political turmoil such as these, we share that
awesome heritage and the responsibility to embrace it. Whether we think
each other right or wrong in our views on the issues of the day, we owe
each other our respect, as long as our character merits respect, and as
long as we share, for all our differences, for all the rancorous debates
that enliven and sometimes demean our politics, a mutual devotion to the
ideals our nation was conceived to uphold, that all are created equal,
and liberty and equal justice are the natural rights of all. Those
rights inhabit the human heart, and from there, though they may be
assailed, they can never be wrenched. I want to urge Americans, for as
long as I can, to remember that this shared devotion to human rights is
our truest heritage and our most important loyalty.
--John McCain
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_McCain>
Bäckadräkten is Sweden's first unisex folk costume, designed in 2022
by musician Fredy Clue (pictured) and textile designer Ida Björs. Their
mission was to encourage wider participation in folk traditions by
providing an outfit that is not restricted to any gender or geographic
region. The design merges elements traditionally considered either male
or female and borrows heavily from older folk costumes. The release
generated international press attention and discussions on social media,
much of the latter about the relationship between folk arts and gender.
Many welcomed the design, saying it provides an opportunity for non-
binary Swedes to be more involved in folk culture. Others reacted
negatively, resisting the social change they see as associated with it.
Clue released a sewing pattern in 2023 and started taking custom orders
by 2024, encouraging users to modify as they see fit, saying: "The real
work continues with us learning to listen to oneself and others."
(Full article...).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%A4ckadr%C3%A4kten>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1833:
The Slavery Abolition Act 1833, officially abolishing slavery
in most of the British Empire, received royal assent.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_Abolition_Act_1833>
1914:
In the first naval battle of the First World War, British ships
ambushed a German naval patrol in the Heligoland Bight (pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Heligoland_Bight_%281914%29>
1993:
The first direct Presidential election in Singapore was held.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_elections_in_Singapore>
2003:
A pizza delivery man in Erie, Pennsylvania, was killed during a
complex bank robbery when a bomb that was locked around his neck
exploded.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Brian_Wells>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Phrygian cap:
1. (Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome) A soft, close-fitting conical cap with
the top bent forward, represented in Greek and Roman art as worn by
ancient Phrygians, and later associated with the Roman liberty cap.
2. (by extension, anatomy) A congenital abnormality of the gall bladder
with no pathological significance, caused by a folding at the distal
part of the fundus.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Phrygian_cap>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Nothing is more frightful than to see ignorance in action.
--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Johann_Wolfgang_von_Goethe>
Nadezhda Stasova (1822–1895) was an educator and one of the earliest
leaders of the Russian women's movement. She was born into a noble and
wealthy family; Tsar Alexander I of Russia was her godfather, and she
received extensive private tutoring as a child. In adulthood, she
dedicated herself to women's empowerment. Along with Anna Filosofova and
Maria Trubnikova, she founded and led several organizations designed to
promote women's cultural and economic independence, including a
publishing cooperative. In a decades-long effort, they successfully
pushed government officials to allow higher education for women,
although continual opposition sometimes limited or even reversed their
successes. Stasova eventually became the lead organizer of the Bestuzhev
Courses for women in 1878, but a decade later was forced to resign under
political pressure. She continued her work on women's issues right up
until her death in 1895, mentoring and inspiring younger feminists.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadezhda_Stasova>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1896:
In the shortest recorded war in history, the Sultanate of
Zanzibar surrendered to the United Kingdom after less than an hour of
conflict.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Zanzibar_War>
1955:
The first edition of the Guinness Book of Records was
published.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinness_World_Records>
1964:
South Vietnamese junta leader Nguyễn Khánh entered into a
triumvirate power-sharing arrangement with rival generals Trần Thiện
Khiêm and Dương Văn Minh, both of whom had been involved in plots to
unseat Khánh.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C6%B0%C6%A1ng_V%C4%83n_Minh>
2003:
The planet Mars made its closest approach to Earth in almost
60,000 years.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
torch:
1. A stick of wood or plant fibres twisted together, with one end soaked
in a flammable substance such as resin or tallow and set on fire, which
is held in the hand, put into a wall bracket, or stuck into the ground,
and used chiefly as a light source.
2. (by extension) A similarly shaped implement with a replaceable supply
of flammable material; specifically, a pole with a lamp at one end.
3. (by extension, Commonwealth) In full electric torch: synonym of
flashlight (“a battery-powered hand-held light source”)
4. (by extension, botany)
5. A flower which is red or red-orange in colour like a flame.
6. A spike (“kind of inflorescence”) made up of spikelets.
7. (chiefly in the plural) The common mullein, great mullein, or
torchwort (Verbascum thapsus).
8. (obsolete) A cactus with a very elongated body; a ceroid cactus; a
torch cactus or torch-thistle.
9. (figurative)
10. A source of enlightenment or guidance.
11. In carry, hand on, or pass on the torch: a precious cause,
principle, tradition, etc., which needs to be protected and transmitted
to others.
12. (science fiction) Short for torch drive (“a spacecraft engine which
produces thrust by nuclear fusion”).
13. (chiefly Canada, US) Short for blowtorch (“a tool which projects a
controlled stream of a highly flammable gas over a spark in order to
produce a controlled flame”).
14. (US, slang) An arsonist.
15. (transitive)
16. To illuminate or provide (a place) with torches (noun sense 1).
17. (originally and chiefly US, slang) To set fire to (something),
especially by use of a torch; specifically, to intentionally destroy
(something) by setting on fire to try and claim compensation on a fire
insurance.
18. (figurative) To make damaging claims about (someone or something);
to ruin the reputation of (someone or something); to disparage, to
insult.
19. (intransitive)
20. Of a fire: to burn.
21. (science fiction) To travel in a spacecraft propelled by a torch
drive (“an engine which produces thrust by nuclear fusion”).
22. (UK, dialectal, figurative) To (appear to) flare up like a torch.
23. (US, fishing) To catch fish or other aquatic animals by torchlight;
to go torch-fishing. [...]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/torch>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
What is it in man that for a long while lies unknown and unseen
only one day to emerge and push him into a new land of the eye, a new
region of the mind, a place he has never dreamed of? Maybe it's like the
force in spores lying quietly under asphalt until the day they push a
soft, bulbous mushroom head right through the pavement. There's nothing
you can do to stop it.
--William Least Heat-Moon
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Least_Heat-Moon>
The black-throated loon (Gavia arctica) is a migratory aquatic bird that
primarily breeds in freshwater lakes in northern Europe and Asia. It
winters along sheltered, ice-free coasts of the northern Atlantic and
Pacific oceans. First formally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, it is
about 70 centimetres (28 in) long and can weigh from 1.3 to 3.4
kilograms (2.9 to 7.5 lb). In breeding plumage, it has mostly black
upperparts, a grey head and hindneck, white and black sides, mostly
white underparts and flanks, and a mostly black throat. The loon builds
an oval-shaped nest about 23 centimetres (9.1 in) across, in vegetation
on or near the breeding lake. It usually lays two eggs, brown-green with
dark splotches. Chicks are fed a diet of small fish and invertebrates,
contrasting with the mostly fish diet of the adult. Overall, the
population of this loon is declining, but the species is not threatened.
It is protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 and the
African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-throated_loon>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1748:
The first Lutheran denomination in North America, the
Pennsylvania Ministerium, was founded in Philadelphia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Ministerium>
1914:
First World War: The German colony of Togoland surrendered to
French and British forces after a 20-day campaign.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Togoland_campaign>
1959:
The Coatzacoalcos earthquake struck near the Mexican state of
Veracruz, killing 25 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1959_Coatzacoalcos_earthquake>
1968:
The U.S. Democratic Party's National Convention opened in
Chicago, sparking four days of clashes between anti-Vietnam War
protesters and police.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1968_Democratic_National_Convention>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pug:
1. Senses relating to someone or something small.
2. In full pug dog: a small dog of an ancient breed originating in
China, having a snub nose, wrinkled face, squarish body, short smooth
hair, and curled tail.
3.
4. In full pug moth, often with a descriptive word: any geometrid moth
of the tribe Eupitheciini, especially the genus Eupithecia; a geometer
moth.
5. (clothing, historical) In full pug hood: a hood, sometimes with a
short cloak attached, worn by women around the middle of the 18th
century.
6. (rail transport) In full pug engine: a small locomotive chiefly used
for shunting (“moving trains from one track to another, or carriages
from one train to another”).
7. (UK, regional, archaic) Also used as a proper name: any of various
animals, such as a ferret, hare, squirrel, or young salmon.
8. (specifically) Synonym of teg (“a sheep (originally a ewe) in its
second year, or from the time it is weaned until it is first shorn”)
9. (specifically, obsolete) An ape, a monkey; also (by extension) a
human child.
10. (specifically, obsolete) A fox.
11. (UK, regional, rare) A person or thing that is squat (“broad and
short”).
12. (US, regional) A bun or knot of hair; also, a piece of cloth or
snood for holding this in place.
13. (obsolete) A small demon; an imp, a puck, a sprite. [...]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pug>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Knowledge is the only power — now as ever. A little mechanical
device will wreck your navies. A new chemical combination will upset
every rule of war. It is the same with our commerce. One or two minute
changes might sink Britain to the level of Ecuador, or give China the
key of the world's wealth. And yet we never dream that these things are
possible. We think our castles of sand are the ramparts of the universe.
--John Buchan
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Buchan>
The 24th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Karstjäger was a German
mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, the armed wing of the Nazi
Party that served alongside, but was never formally part of, the German
armed forces during World War II. Formed on 18 July 1944 from a
battalion, it was understrength and was soon reduced to a brigade. Its
main task was fighting partisans on the rugged frontiers of Yugoslavia,
Italy, and Austria, and it consisted mainly of ethnic Germans from
Yugoslavia and Italy. It also disarmed Italian troops and protected
ethnic German communities in Italy in the wake of the Italian surrender.
Members of the division were implicated in the 25 August 1944 murder of
33 people in the village of Torlano near Nimis in Italy, and 22 other
major crimes. At the post-war Nuremberg trials, the Waffen-SS was
declared to be a criminal organisation due to its major involvement in
war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24th_Waffen_Mountain_Division_of_the_SS_Karst…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1758:
Seven Years' War: Prussian forces engaged the Russians at the
Battle of Zorndorf in present-day Sarbinowo, Poland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Zorndorf>
1914:
World War I: During the sack of Louvain in Belgium, German
troops burned the town's Catholic university, destroying several
medieval manuscripts.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sack_of_Louvain>
1989:
The NASA spacecraft Voyager 2 made its closest approach to
Neptune and provided definitive proof of the existence of the planet's
rings (pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rings_of_Neptune>
2011:
Mexican drug war: Fifty-two people were killed in an arson at a
casino in Monterrey, Mexico.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Monterrey_casino_attack>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
micropolitan:
1. (US) Of or pertaining to a city or twin cities having at least 10,000
but fewer than 50,000 inhabitants; of a city: less populated than a
metropolitan area but more than a rural one.
2. (US) A city or twin cities having at least 10,000 but fewer than
50,000 inhabitants; a city which is less populated than a metropolitan
area but more than a rural one.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/micropolitan>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Oh some are fond of Spanish wine, and some are fond of
French,And some’ll swallow tay and stuff fit only for a wench;But
I’m for right Jamaica till I roll beneath the bench,Says the old bold
mate of Henry Morgan.
--John Masefield
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Masefield>
Anna Lee Fisher (born August 24, 1949) is an American chemist,
emergency physician and former NASA astronaut who was the first mother
to fly in space. Fisher became an astronaut candidate with NASA
Astronaut Group 8 and joined the Astronaut Office for the development
of the Canadarm and the testing of payload bay door contingency
spacewalk procedures. She was assigned to the search and rescue
helicopters for four Space Shuttle missions, then involved in the
verification of flight software at the Shuttle Avionics Integration
Laboratory and supported vehicle integration and payload testing at
Kennedy Space Center. She flew into space on Space Shuttle Discovery for
the STS-51-A mission and used the Canadarm to retrieve two satellites in
incorrect orbits. Fisher then worked on procedures and training issues
for the International Space Station (ISS), was a capsule communicator
(CAPCOM) and the lead CAPCOM for ISS Expedition 33, and was involved in
developing the display for the Orion spacecraft.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Lee_Fisher>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1814:
War of 1812: British forces invaded Washington, D.C., setting
fire to various U.S. government buildings, including the White House
(pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington>
1889:
The New Zealand Native football team, predominantly comprising
Māori players, concluded their 107-game tour, the longest in rugby
union history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1888%E2%80%9389_New_Zealand_Native_football_t…>
1914:
The Battle of Cer ended with the first Allied victory of World
War I.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cer>
1954:
In the midst of a political crisis, Brazilian president
Getúlio Vargas fatally shot himself in the Catete Palace in Rio de
Janeiro.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Get%C3%BAlio_Vargas>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
lave:
1. (transitive)
2. To bathe or wash (someone or something).
3. Of a river or other water body: to flow along or past (a place or
thing); to wash.
4. Followed by into, on, or upon: to pour (water or some other liquid)
with or as if with a ladle into or on someone or something; to lade, to
ladle.
5. (figurative)
6. To remove (something), as if by washing away with water.
7. To surround or gently touch (someone or something), as if with water.
8. Chiefly in sexual contexts: to lick (someone or something).
9. (archaic or obsolete) Followed by out or up: to draw or scoop (water)
out of something with a bucket, scoop, etc.; specifically, to bail
(water) out of a boat.
10. (intransitive)
11. (reflexive) To bathe or wash.
12. (figurative)
13. To surround as if with water.
14. Chiefly in sexual contexts; followed by at: to lick.
15. An act of bathing or washing; a bath or bathe, a wash.
16. (rare, also figurative) The sea. [...]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lave>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We are the heirs to the greatest democracy in the history of the
world. And on behalf of our children and our grandchildren and all those
who sacrificed so dearly for our freedom and liberty, we must be worthy
of this moment. It is now our turn to do what generations before us
have done, guided by optimism and faith: to fight for this country we
love, to fight for the ideals we cherish, and to uphold the awesome
responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on Earth — the
privilege and pride of being an American. So, let’s get out there,
let’s fight for it. Let’s get out there, let’s vote for it. And
together, let us write the next great chapter in the most extraordinary
story ever told. Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United
States of America.
--Kamala Harris
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Kamala_Harris>
In 1993, about 350 documents were forged by Lawrence X. Cusack III.
These papers were supposedly from, or related to, John F. Kennedy. Some
of them alleged that Kennedy had a secret first marriage and dealings
with organized crime, had bribed FBI director J. Edgar Hoover, and paid
hush money to Marilyn Monroe. Cusack, son of a lawyer who had dealings
with Monroe's family, claimed to have found the papers in the firm's
files. He sold them for between six and seven million dollars. One of
the buyers suggested showing them to Seymour Hersh, who was writing The
Dark Side of Camelot (1997). Hersh began incorporating them into his
book and proposed a television documentary. Checks by the networks
uncovered flaws in the forgeries. These included the use of a ZIP Code
in a paper dated two years before the ZIP Code was introduced, and the
use of typeball that had not yet been invented. Cusack was convicted of
fraud, sentenced to nearly ten years in prison and ordered to refund the
money to the buyers.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_document_hoax>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1914:
In their first major action of the First World War, the British
Expeditionary Force engaged German troops in Mons, Belgium.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mons>
1939:
Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, a ten-year mutual non-aggression treaty,
which also secretly divided northern and eastern Europe into German and
Soviet spheres of influence.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov%E2%80%93Ribbentrop_Pact>
1954:
The Cruise of the Kings, a royal cruise organised by the Queen
Consort of Greece, Frederica of Hanover, departed from Marseille,
France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruise_of_the_Kings>
1989:
Singing Revolution: Approximately two million people joined
hands to form a human chain spanning 675.5 kilometres (419.7 mi) across
the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian Soviet republics to demonstrate
their desire for independence.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltic_Way>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
kitchen sink:
1. A sink in a kitchen used for washing crockery, cutlery, utensils,
food, etc., and disposing of waste.
2. (figurative)
3. (also attributive) A miscellaneous item or a miscellany, especially
exemplifying an indiscriminate profusion.
4. (metonymically) In chained or tied to the kitchen sink, etc.:
domestic chores or housework, especially when regarded as menial and
tedious.
5. (obsolete) A thing regarded as defiled due to corruption, immorality,
etc.
6.
7. (painting) Of or pertaining to a mid-20th-century realist style of
painting in Britain characterized by scenes of dull or untidy domestic
interiors such as kitchens in the homes of urban working-class people;
also, of or pertaining to an artist or group of artists painting in this
style.
8. (by extension, drama, fiction, film, television, originally
derogatory) Of or pertaining to a mid-20th-century (especially
1950s–1960s) genre of drama, fiction, etc., in Britain depicting the
harsh lives of working-class people; also, of or pertaining to a film,
novel, play, etc., of this genre.
9. (transitive)
10. To make (something) overly complicated or elaborate; to
overcomplicate, to overwork.
11. To raise to (someone) unrelated complaints and other matters during
an argument.
12. (business) To release (a large amount of information about the poor
financial results of a company) in one go, in the hope that there will
be less impact.
13. (intransitive) To raise unrelated complaints and other matters
during an argument.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/kitchen_sink>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
This election isn’t about "us and them". It’s about you and
me and what we want our futures to look like. There are choices to be
made when we cast our ballot. Now, there’s a certain candidate that
says, if we just go to the polls this one time, then we’ll never have
to do it again. Well, you know what? You’re looking at a registered
independent who’s proud to vote again and again and again. Because
I’m an American, and that’s what Americans do. Voting is the best
of America. And I have always, since I was eligible to vote, I’ve
always voted my values. And that is what is needed in this election, now
more than ever. So I’m calling on all you independents and all you
undecideds. You know this is true. You know I’m telling you the truth:
that values and character matter most of all, in leadership and in life.
And more than anything — you know this is true — that decency and
respect are on the ballot in 2024. And just plain common sense.
--Oprah Winfrey
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Oprah_Winfrey>
Total Recall is a 1990 American science-fiction action film directed by
Paul Verhoeven (pictured). Based on a 1966 short story by Philip K.
Dick, the film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon
Stone, Ronny Cox, and Michael Ironside. It tells the story of Douglas
Quaid (Schwarzenegger) and the shadow organization that tries to prevent
him from recovering memories of his past as a Martian secret agent.
Schwarzenegger convinced Carolco Pictures to develop the film with him
as the star, after the project had lingered in development hell at
multiple studios over sixteen years. The film was one of the most
expensive ever made at the time, and became the fifth-highest-grossing
film of the year. Reviewers liked its themes of identity and questioning
reality, but criticized content perceived as vulgar and violent. The
practical special effects were well received, earning the film an
Academy Award, and the score by Jerry Goldsmith has been praised as one
of his best works.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_Recall_%281990_film%29>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1864:
Under the leadership of Henry Dunant and the International
Committee of the Red Cross, twelve European states signed the First
Geneva Convention, establishing rules for the protection of victims of
armed conflict.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Geneva_Convention>
1914:
First World War: German forces captured Rossignol in Belgium,
taking more than 3,800 French prisoners.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Rossignol>
1961:
Ida Siekmann jumped from a window in her tenement building
trying to flee to West Berlin, becoming the first person to die at the
Berlin Wall.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ida_Siekmann>
2012:
A series of ethnic clashes between the Orma and the Pokomo in
Kenya's Tana River District resulted in at least 52 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012%E2%80%932013_Tana_River_District_clashes>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
asymptomatic:
1. (pathology) Not exhibiting any symptoms of disease, as for example in
a case which is subclinical (“without signs detectable by physical
examination or laboratory test”).
2. A person or an animal that exhibits no symptoms of disease.
3. Preceded by the: people or animals that exhibit no symptoms of
disease regarded collectively.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/asymptomatic>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Kamala Harris, is more than ready for this moment. She is one of
the most qualified people ever to seek the office of the presidency. And
she is one of the most dignified — a tribute to her mother, to my
mother, and to your mother too. The embodiment of the stories we tell
ourselves about this country. Her story is your story. It’s my story.
It’s the story of the vast majority of Americans trying to build a
better life. … Kamala knows, like we do, that regardless of where you
come from, what you look like, who you love, how you worship, or
what’s in your bank account, we all deserve the opportunity to build a
decent life. All of our contributions deserve to be accepted and valued.
Because no one has a monopoly on what it means to be an American. No
one. Kamala has shown her allegiance to this nation, not by spewing
anger and bitterness, but by living a life of service and always pushing
the doors of opportunity open to others. She understands that most of us
will never be afforded the grace of failing forward. We will never
benefit from the affirmative action of generational wealth. If we
bankrupt a business or choke in a crisis, we don’t get a second,
third, or fourth chance. If things don’t go our way, we don’t have
the luxury of whining or cheating others to get further ahead. No. We
don’t get to change the rules so we always win. If we see a mountain
in front of us, we don’t expect there to be an escalator waiting to
take us to the top. No. We put our heads down. We get to work. In
America, we do something. And throughout her entire life, that’s what
we’ve seen from Kamala Harris, the steel of her spine, the steadiness
of her upbringing, the honesty of her example, and yes, the joy of her
laughter and her light.
--Michelle Obama
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Michelle_Obama>