In March 1944, military units were placed on alert in Western Australia
after Allied forces detected the movement of a powerful group of
Japanese warships in the Netherlands East Indies. The main Japanese
fleet had been redeployed to Singapore the previous month, and it was
feared that this force could attack Western Australia. Reinforcements,
including six Royal Australian Air Force flying squadrons, were
dispatched to safeguard Fremantle, Perth, and other cities. Other Allied
air units were held at Darwin in the Northern Territory. An air raid
warning was sounded in Fremantle and Perth on 10Â March, but was a false
alarm. Intensive patrols by the Allied militaries did not detect any
Japanese warships off Western Australia, and most units stood down on
12Â March. The deployment ended on 20Â March after it was concluded that
an attack was unlikely. The Japanese did not attempt an attack on
Western Australia, and the ships that the Allies detected were escorts
for a small raiding force.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Australian_emergency_of_March_1944>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1447:
Tommaso Parentucelli was elected as Pope Nicholas V in Rome.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Nicholas_V>
1904:
Scottish National Antarctic Expedition: Led by William Speirs
Bruce, the Antarctic region of Coats Land was discovered by the Scotia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Speirs_Bruce>
1988:
The Troubles: In Operation Flavius, the Special Air Service
killed three volunteers of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
conspiring to bomb a parade of British military bands in Gibraltar.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Flavius>
2000:
The Marine Parade Community Building, the mural cladding of
which is the largest installation art in Singapore, was opened.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_Parade_Community_Building>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
culture vulture:
(humorous) A person with a rapacious, sometimes inauthentic, interest in
the arts. [...]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/culture_vulture>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Whatever's lost, it first was won; We will not struggle nor
impugn. Perhaps the cup was broken here, That Heaven's new wine might
show more clear. I praise Thee while my days go on. Â
--Elizabeth Barrett Browning
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Barrett_Browning>
The Great Gold Robbery took place on the night of 15Â May 1855, when a
shipment of gold to Paris was stolen from the guard's van of the rail
service between London and Folkestone. There were four robbers: two
employees of the rail company, a former employee and Edward Agar, a
career criminal. They took wax impressions of the keys to the train
safes and made copies. One of them ensured he was on guard duty when a
shipment was taking place, and Agar hid in the guard's van. They emptied
the safes of 224 pounds (102 kg) of gold, valued at £12,000
(approximately equivalent to £1,193,000 in 2021); the theft was only
discovered in Paris. When Agar was arrested for another crime, his
former girlfriend, in need of funds, revealed the details of the theft.
Agar admitted his guilt and testified as a witness. The other three were
arrested, tried and found guilty of the theft. In 1978 a highly
fictionalised version of events was turned into a film, The First Great
Train Robbery, featuring Sean Connery.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Gold_Robbery>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1825:
Roberto CofresÃ, one of the last Caribbean pirates, was
apprehended after his flagship sloop Anne was captured by authorities.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_the_sloop_Anne>
1936:
The prototype of the Supermarine Spitfire flew for the first
time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarine_Spitfire>
1960:
Cuban photographer Alberto Korda took his iconic photograph
Guerrillero Heroico of Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guerrillero_Heroico>
1981:
The ZX81, a pioneering British home computer, was launched by
Sinclair Research, and went on to sell more than 1.5Â million units
around the world.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZX81>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
veepstakes:
(US politics, slang, humorous) The process by which candidates for the
Presidency of the United States choose a running mate to become the Vice
President if elected.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/veepstakes>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Thy universe, O God, is home, In height or depth, to me; Yet
here upon thy footstool green Content am I to be; Glad when is oped
unto my need Some sea-like glimpse of Thee. Â
--Lucy Larcom
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Lucy_Larcom>
James G. Blaine (1830–1893) was an American statesman and Republican
politician who represented Maine in the U.S. House of Representatives
from 1863 to 1876, serving as Speaker of the House from 1869 to 1875,
and then in the Senate from 1876 to 1881. Born in Pennsylvania and a
newspaper editor before entering politics, he twice served as the U.S.
secretary of state, first in 1881 under President James A. Garfield and
President Chester A. Arthur, and then from 1889 to 1892 under President
Benjamin Harrison. Blaine unsuccessfully sought the Republican
presidential nomination in 1876 and 1880. He gained the nomination in
1884, but in the election, he was narrowly defeated by Democratic
nominee Grover Cleveland. A charismatic speaker in an age that prized
oratory, Blaine was a leading Republican of the late 19th century and a
champion of the party's moderate reformist faction, later known as the
"Half-Breeds". (This article is part of a featured topic: 1880 United
States presidential election.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/1880_United_States_…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1773:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart departed Italy after the last of his
three journeys there.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozart_in_Italy>
1899:
Cyclone Mahina struck Bathurst Bay, Queensland, killing over
300 people in one of the deadliest natural disasters in Australian
history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Mahina>
1918:
A case of influenza was recorded at Camp Funston, Kansas,
conventionally marking the beginning of the Spanish flu pandemic.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu>
2017:
Construction began on a 69-metre (226Â ft) statue of the Buddha
at Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen in Bangkok.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat_Paknam_Bhasicharoen>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
snake in the grass:
(derogatory, informal) A hidden enemy.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/snake_in_the_grass>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Nothing dies harder than a bad idea. Â
--Julia Cameron
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Julia_Cameron>
SS Kroonland was an ocean liner for International Mercantile Marine
(IMM) from her launch in 1902 until she was scrapped in 1927. When
completed by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia, she was the largest-
ever United States steamship. Kroonland sailed for IMM's Red Star Line
for 12 years, mostly on the route between New York City and Antwerp, and
later sailed for IMM's American Line and Panama Pacific Line. Kroonland
was one of ten ships that came to the aid of the burning liner Volturno
in the mid-Atlantic in October 1913. Despite stormy seas, Kroonland
took aboard 89 survivors. In 1915, she became the largest passenger
vessel to that point to pass through the Panama Canal. During and after
World War I, the ship served as U.S. Army transport USAT Kroonland
through April 1918, and as the Navy auxiliary USS Kroonland (ID-1541)
from April 1918 to October 1919. After being returned to IMM, she
continued on various passenger routes until 1926. She was sold and
scrapped the following year.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Kroonland>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1891:
Shoshone National Forest, in the U.S. state of Wyoming, was
established as the country's first national forest.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoshone_National_Forest>
1913:
Thousands of women marched in Washington, D.C. (program cover
pictured) "in a spirit of protest" against the exclusion of women from
American society.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_Suffrage_Procession>
1924:
The Ottoman Caliphate, the world's last widely recognized
caliphate, was abolished.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abolition_of_the_Caliphate>
1991:
Motorist Rodney King was beaten by Los Angeles Police
Department officers during an arrest, causing public outrage that
increased tensions between the African-American community and the police
department over police brutality and social inequality.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_King>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
black swan:
1. Cygnus atratus, a swan with black plumage and a red bill which is
endemic to Australia.
2. (figurative)
3. Something believed impossible or not to exist, especially if an
example is subsequently found; also, something extremely rare; a rara
avis.
4. (specifically, also attributive) A rare and hard-to-predict event
with major consequences.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/black_swan>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Everybody continually tries to get away with as much as he can;
and society is a marvelous machine which allows decent people to be
cruel without realizing it. Â
--Émile Chartier
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/%C3%89mile_Chartier>
Edward VII (1841–1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British
Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 1901 until his death. The second
child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Edward was
largely excluded from political influence during his mother's reign,
coming to personify the leisured, fashionable elite. Despite a
reputation as a playboy prince, his tours of North America in 1860 and
of India in 1875 proved to be popular successes. Edward inherited the
throne upon his mother's death in 1901. He broadened the range of people
with whom royalty socialised, and fostered good relations between
Britain and other European countries, especially France. Nevertheless,
his relationship with German emperor Wilhelm II was poor. The Edwardian
era, which covered Edward's reign and was named after him, coincided
with the start of a new century and heralded major changes in technology
and society. He was succeeded by his only surviving son, George V.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_VII>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1776:
American Revolutionary War: Patriot militiamen from Georgia and
South Carolina attempted to resist the British action to seize and
remove supply ships anchored at Savannah, Georgia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Rice_Boats>
1949:
The B-50 Superfortress Lucky Lady II landed in Fort Worth,
Texas, to complete the first non-stop circumnavigation of the world by
airplane.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucky_Lady_II>
1962:
Playing for the Philadelphia Warriors, American basketball
player Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a game against the New York
Knicks, which remains an NBA record.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilt_Chamberlain%27s_100-point_game>
2022:
Russian forces captured the city of Kherson, the only regional
capital to be taken during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kherson>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
up to eleven:
1. (idiomatic, informal, chiefly humorous) Up to or beyond the maximum
possible threshold; to an extremely high or strong degree.
2. (transitive, slang) To increase (something) to an extremely high or
strong degree; to make (something) go over the top.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/up_to_eleven>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 The truth is: Aid flowing to Gaza is nowhere nearly enough now.
It's nowhere nearly enough. Innocent lives are on the line and
children's lives are on the line, and we won't stand by … until they
— until we get more aid in there. We — we should be getting hundreds
of trucks in, not just several. And I won't stand by, we won't let up,
and we're … trying to pull out every stop we can to get more
assistance in. Â
--Joe Biden
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Joe_Biden>
Paradise Airlines Flight 901A was a passenger flight from San Jose
Municipal Airport to Tahoe Valley Airport in the United States. On
March 1, 1964, the Lockheed L-049 Constellation (example pictured)
serving the flight crashed near Genoa Peak, on the eastern side of Lake
Tahoe, killing all 85 aboard. The cause of the accident was the pilot's
decision to attempt to land at Tahoe Valley Airport when the visibility
was too low. After aborting the attempt, the crew lost awareness of the
plane's location as it flew below the minimum safe altitude in
mountainous terrain. The pilot likely tried to fly through a low
mountain pass to divert to the airport in Reno, Nevada, and crashed into
a mountain near the pass. At the time, it was the second-deadliest
single-plane crash in United States history. It remains the worst
accident involving the Lockheed L-049 Constellation. The Federal
Aviation Administration revoked the airline's operating certificate,
causing them to permanently shut down.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Airlines_Flight_901A>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1869:
The Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev finished his design of the
first periodic table.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Periodic_table>
1921:
The Australian cricket team, led by Warwick Armstrong, became
the first team to complete a whitewash in the Ashes, an achievement that
would not be repeated for 86 years.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warwick_Armstrong>
1936:
Hoover Dam, straddling the Arizona–Nevada border on the
Colorado River, was completed.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoover_Dam>
1992:
Amidst tensions during the 1992 Bosnian independence
referendum, a Bosnian-Serb wedding procession was attacked in Sarajevo,
killing the father of the groom.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarajevo_wedding_attack>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
barrel of monkeys:
(idiomatic, informal) Someone or something very amusing or funny, fun,
mischievous, etc.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/barrel_of_monkeys>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Military cemeteries in every corner of the world are silent
testimony to the failure of national leaders to sanctify human life.
Almost all the regimes which did not place Man and the sanctity of Life
at the heart of their world view, all those regimes have collapsed and
are no more. You can see it for yourselves in our own day. Â
--Yitzhak Rabin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Yitzhak_Rabin>
Blood on the Floor is a suite in nine movements composed for orchestra
and jazz trio by Mark-Anthony Turnage (pictured). It was composed
between 1993 and 1996, during which Turnage's brother died of a drug
overdose, causing drug culture to be one of its main themes. It is also
influenced by the paintings of Francis Bacon and Heather Betts; the
title is an adaptation of Bacon's Blood on Pavement. The composition has
been described as being part of the third stream genre and is written as
a concerto grosso featuring a blend of classical, jazz, non-western and
electronic instruments. It contains space for soloists to improvise in
four of its movements. The suite shows elements of non-functional
harmony and has complex rhythmic changes, often changing metre every
bar. Motifs recur throughout the work. It was premiered in London in May
1996, and received a mixed reception from critics. Some enjoyed the
suite's fusion of classical and jazz music, while others found it to be
an unfulfilling combination.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_on_the_Floor_%28Turnage%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1944:
The Admiralty Islands campaign during the Pacific War of World
War II began when American forces assaulted Los Negros Island, the
third largest of the Admiralty Islands.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Admiralty_Islands_campaign>
1960:
The deadliest earthquake in Moroccan history (damaged building
pictured) struck the city of Agadir, killing at least 12,000 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_Agadir_earthquake>
2004:
Haitian president Jean-Bertrand Aristide was overthrown
following popular rebel uprising.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Haitian_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat>
2012:
Construction of Tokyo Skytree, the world's tallest tower and
third-tallest structure, was completed.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_Skytree>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
leap year:
1. A year in the Julian or Gregorian calendar with an intercalary day
added to February (in the Gregorian calendar, February 29), used to
adjust for the extra hours of the solar year; a 366-day year.
2. (loosely) Any other year featuring intercalation, such as a year in a
lunisolar calendar with 13 months instead of 12, used to maintain its
alignment with the seasons of the solar year.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/leap_year>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Religion's Meaning when I would recall, Love is to me the
plainest Word of all. Plainest, — because that what I love, or hate,
Shews me directly my internal State; By its own Consciousness is best
defin'd Which way the Heart within me stands inclin'd. On what it lets
its Inclination rest, To that its real Worship is address'd; Whatever
Forms or Ceremonies spring From Custom's Force, there lies the real
Thing; Jew, Turk or Christian be the Lover's Name, If same the Love,
Religion is the same. Â
--John Byrom
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Byrom>
Freedom was a livestream concert by Filipino singer Regine Velasquez
(pictured) held on February 28, 2021. Following the cancellation of
music events during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Velasquez
organized the show to create a live experience on a stream for her fans
longing for a sense of human connection. The concert's premise was
"freedom of singing", stemming from her desire to cover songs from
several music genres. It was filmed at the studios of ABS-CBN in Metro
Manila, with musicians, background vocalists, and dancers on set, and
was broadcast through four livestreaming platforms worldwide. Its set
featured a large LED screen as a backdrop and props resembling origami
cranes hanging from the ceiling. She performed numerous selections from
artists such as Elton John, Chris Isaak, George Michael, Sara Bareilles,
Dua Lipa, and Billie Eilish. Critics gave the show high praise for its
production and vocal performances, setting a benchmark for online
concerts in the Philippines.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_%28concert%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1904:
The most successful football club in Portugal, S.L. Benfica
(first team pictured) was founded in Lisbon as Sport Lisboa.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.L._Benfica>
1914:
In the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, Greeks living in southern
Albania proclaimed the short-lived Autonomous Republic of Northern
Epirus.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autonomous_Republic_of_Northern_Epirus>
1939:
In one of the most famous errors in lexicography, the erroneous
word "dord" was discovered in Webster's New International Dictionary by
an editor.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dord>
1974:
The British election ended in a hung parliament after the
Liberal Party, under Jeremy Thorpe, achieved their highest ever number
of votes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Thorpe>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
irradiate:
1. (transitive)
2. To send out (heat, light, or some other form of radiation) in the
form of rays; to radiate.
3. (often literary or poetic) To make (someone or something) bright by
shining light on them or it; to brighten, to illuminate.
4. (technology) To apply radiation other than visible light to (someone
or something).
5. To treat (food) with ionizing radiation to destroy pathogens.
6. (medicine) To treat (a patient, or a cancerous growth or tumour) with
radiation.
7. (figurative, often literary or poetic)
8. To animate or enliven (one's mood, or soul or spirit).
9. To cause (one's face) to look beautiful, happy, or lively; to light
up.
10. To decorate (a place) splendidly.
11. To enlighten (someone, their mind, etc.) intellectually or
spiritually; to illuminate, to shed light on.
12. To send out (something) as if in the form of rays; to diffuse, to
radiate, to shed.
13. (obsolete, figurative) To influence (something) as if with rays of
heat, light, etc.
14. (intransitive, often literary or poetic)
15. To become bright; to brighten, to light up.
16. Often followed by on or upon: to emit rays of light; to shine.
17. (figurative) To emit something other than light; to radiate.
18. (obsolete) To diverge or be sent out in the form of rays.
19. Made brilliant or bright; irradiated, illuminated.
20. (figurative) Made splendid or wonderful.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/irradiate>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
 Great poetry is always written by somebody straining to go beyond
what he can do. Â
--Stephen Spender
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stephen_Spender>