Demetrius III Eucaerus was a Seleucid ruler who reigned as King of
Syria between 96 and 87 BC. He was a son of Antiochus VIII and, most
likely, his Egyptian wife Tryphaena. After his father was assassinated
in 96 BC, Demetrius III took control of Damascus. In 89 BC, he
invaded Judaea and crushed the forces of its king, Alexander Jannaeus.
By 87 BC, Demetrius III had most of Syria under his authority. He
attempted to appease the public by promoting the importance of the local
Semitic gods, and he might have given Damascus the dynastic name
Demetrias. By late 87 BC, Demetrius III attacked his brother, and
rival to the throne, Philip I, in the city of Beroea, where Philip I's
allies called on the Parthians for help. The allied forces routed
Demetrius III and besieged him in his camp; he was forced to surrender
and spent the rest of his life in exile in Parthia. Philip I took
Antioch, while Antiochus XII, another brother of Demetrius III, took
Damascus.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demetrius_III_Eucaerus>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1882:
The Shewan army defeated Gojjame forces at the Battle of
Embabo, an event that contributed to the supremacy of Shewa within the
Ethiopian Empire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Embabo>
1912:
The largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century began,
forming Novarupta (lava dome pictured) in the Alaska Peninsula.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novarupta>
1944:
World War II: The largest amphibious military operation in
history began with Allied troops landing on the beaches of Normandy in
France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normandy_landings>
1984:
Tetris, one of the best-selling video games of all time, was
first released.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetris>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
polemology:
The study of human conflict and war.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/polemology>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Many people have urged that I call the Nation into a single day
of special prayer. But because the road is long and the desire is great,
I ask that our people devote themselves in a continuance of prayer. As
we rise to each new day, and again when each day is spent, let words of
prayer be on our lips, invoking Thy help to our efforts. Give us
strength, too — strength in our daily tasks, to redouble the
contributions we make in the physical and the material support of our
armed forces. And let our hearts be stout, to wait out the long
travail, to bear sorrows that may come, to impart our courage unto our
sons wheresoever they may be.
--Franklin D. Roosevelt
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt>
The Chestnuts Long Barrow is a chambered tomb located near the village
of Addington in the south-eastern English county of Kent. Constructed
during Britain's Early Neolithic period, it belongs to a regional style
of barrows produced in the vicinity of the River Medway. The long
barrows built in this area are now known as the Medway Megaliths.
Chestnuts Long Barrow lies near both Addington Long Barrow and Coldrum
Long Barrow on the western side of the river, and was built on land
previously inhabited in the Mesolithic period. It consisted of an
earthen mound, estimated to have been 15 metres (50 feet) in length,
with a chamber built from sarsen megaliths on its eastern end. Human
remains placed within this chamber during the Neolithic period were
found alongside pottery sherds, stone arrow heads, and a clay pendant.
The mound gradually eroded away and was gone by the twentieth century,
leaving only the ruined stone chamber.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chestnuts_Long_Barrow>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1610:
The masque Tethys' Festival was performed at the Palace of
Whitehall to celebrate the investiture of Henry Frederick as Prince of
Wales.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tethys%27_Festival>
1899:
Filipino general Antonio Luna was assassinated in the midst of
the Philippine–American War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Luna>
1963:
British politician John Profumo admitted that he had lied to
the House of Commons about his involvement in a sex scandal with
Christine Keeler and resigned from government.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christine_Keeler>
2001:
Tropical Storm Allison made landfall in Texas, causing
approximately $8.5 billion in damage, making it the costliest Atlantic
tropical cyclone that was never a major hurricane.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropical_Storm_Allison>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
rubbish:
1. (chiefly Australia, New Zealand, Britain) Garbage, junk, refuse,
trash, waste.
2. (by extension, chiefly Australia, New Zealand, Britain) An item, or
items, of low quality.
3. (by extension, chiefly Australia, New Zealand, Britain) Nonsense.
4. (archaic) Debris or ruins of buildings. […]
5. (transitive, chiefly Australia, New Zealand, Britain, colloquial) To
criticize, to denigrate, to denounce, to disparage.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rubbish>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
IN UNION THERE IS STRENGTH I have watched this week's unfolding
events, angry and appalled. The words "Equal Justice Under Law" are
carved in the pediment of the United States Supreme Court. This is
precisely what protesters are rightly demanding. It is a wholesome and
unifying demand — one that all of us should be able to get behind. We
must not be distracted by a small number of lawbreakers. The protests
are defined by tens of thousands of people of conscience who are
insisting that we live up to our values — our values as people and our
values as a nation.
--James Mattis
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Mattis>
Lythronax is a genus of tyrannosaurid dinosaur that lived in North
America around 80.6–79.9 million years ago. Size estimates for
Lythronax have ranged between 5 and 8 m (16 and 26 ft) in length, and
between 0.5 and 2.5 t (1,100 and 5,500 lb) in weight. It was a heavily
built tyrannosaurid; as a member of that group, it would have had small,
two-fingered forelimbs, strong hindlimbs, and a very robust skull. The
rear part of the skull of Lythronax appears to have been very broad,
with eye sockets that faced forwards like those of Tyrannosaurus.
Lythronax is the oldest known member of the family Tyrannosauridae, and
it is thought to have been more basal than Tyrannosaurus. Due to its
age, Lythronax is important for understanding the evolutionary origins
of tyrannosaurids, including the development of their anatomical
specializations. The forward-facing eyes of Lythronax gave it depth
perception, which may have been useful during pursuit predation or
ambush predation.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lythronax>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1561:
The spire of Old St Paul's Cathedral in London was destroyed by
fire, probably caused by lightning.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_St_Paul%27s_Cathedral>
1920:
The Kingdom of Hungary lost 72% of its territory and 64% of its
population with the signing of the Treaty of Trianon in Paris.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Trianon>
1940:
Second World War: The remaining Allied forces protecting the
Dunkirk evacuation surrendered, ending the Battle of Dunkirk; in
response, British prime minister Winston Churchill gave a speech in
which he declared "We shall fight on the beaches".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_shall_fight_on_the_beaches>
1974:
Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians hosted Ten Cent Beer
Night, but had to forfeit the game to the Texas Rangers due to rioting
by drunken fans.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Cent_Beer_Night>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
ghrelin:
(biochemistry) A peptide hormone, secreted in the stomach when empty,
that increases appetite and secretion of growth hormone from the
pituitary gland.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ghrelin>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Don't worry that children never listen to you; worry that they
are always watching you.
--Robert Fulghum
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_Fulghum>
1
0
June 3: Sega
by English Wikipedia Article of the Day
03 Jun '20
03 Jun '20
Sega is a Japanese video game developer and publisher headquartered in
Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was founded by Martin Bromley and Richard Stewart
on June 3, 1960; shortly after, the company acquired the assets of its
predecessor, Service Games of Japan. Sega developed its first coin-
operated game, Periscope, in the late 1960s. Following a downturn in the
arcade business in the early 1980s, Sega developed video game consoles,
starting with the SG-1000 and Master System, but struggled against
competitors such as the Nintendo Entertainment System. Sega released its
next console, the Sega Genesis, in 1988; it found success outside Japan
starting with Sonic the Hedgehog in 1991. In 2001, Sega stopped making
consoles to become a third-party developer and publisher, and was
acquired by Sammy Corporation in 2004. Sega produces multi-million-
selling game franchises, including Sonic the Hedgehog, Total War, and
Yakuza, and is the world's most prolific arcade game producer.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1892:
Liverpool F.C. (stadium pictured), one of England's most
successful football clubs, was founded.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liverpool_F.C.>
1940:
Nazi official Franz Rademacher proposed that the island of
Madagascar be made available as a destination for the resettlement of
the Jewish population of Europe.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madagascar_Plan>
1950:
Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal, members of the French
Annapurna expedition, became the first climbers to reach the summit of a
peak higher than 8,000 metres (26,247 ft) above sea level.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950_French_Annapurna_expedition>
1973:
At the Paris Air Show, a Tupolev Tu-144 broke up in mid-air,
killing the six members of the crew and eight bystanders on the ground.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_Paris_Air_Show_Tu-144_crash>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
disport:
(transitive, intransitive, reflexive, dated) To amuse oneself
divertingly or playfully; in particular, to cavort or gambol.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/disport>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to
pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by
others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But
when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your
Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in
secret, will reward you.
--Gospel of Matthew
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gospel_of_Matthew>
Adore is the fourth studio album by the American alternative rock band
The Smashing Pumpkins (vocalist Billy Corgan pictured), released on
June 2, 1998, by Virgin Records. After the multi-platinum success of
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and subsequent tour, the
Pumpkins' follow-up album was highly anticipated, but drummer Jimmy
Chamberlin had left the band, and the recording of Adore was
challenging. The album featured a more subdued and electronica-tinged
sound than the band's previous work; Greg Kot of Rolling Stone magazine
called it "a complete break with the past". Sales for the album were far
less than for the band's previous two albums, but it became the third
straight Pumpkins album to be nominated for the Grammy Award for Best
Alternative Music Performance. It was well received by critics, and has
gained a cult following. A remastered and expanded version of the album
was released on CD, vinyl and other formats in September 2014.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adore_%28The_Smashing_Pumpkins_album%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1886:
Grover Cleveland married Frances Folsom (wedding depicted),
becoming the only U.S. president to wed in the White House.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Cleveland>
1967:
German university student Benno Ohnesorg was killed during a
protest in West Berlin against the visit of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
of Iran, sparking the formation of the militant 2 June Movement.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2_June_Movement>
1995:
Bosnian War: U.S. Air Force captain Scott O'Grady was shot down
while patrolling the NATO no-fly zone over Bosnia, but ejected safely
and was rescued six days later.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_O%27Grady>
2010:
A gunman carried out a shooting spree in Cumbria, England,
killing 12 people and injuring 11 others before committing suicide.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumbria_shootings>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
rubicon:
1. A limit that when exceeded, or an action that when taken, cannot be
reversed.
2. (card games) Especially in bezique and piquet: a score which, if not
achieved by a losing player, increases the player's penalty.
3. (transitive, card games) Especially in bezique and piquet: to defeat
a player who has not achieved the rubicon.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rubicon>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
To be an intellectual really means to speak a truth that allows
suffering to speak. That is, it creates a vision of the world that puts
into the limelight the social misery that is usually hidden or concealed
by the dominant viewpoints of a society. "Intellectual" in that sense
simply means those who are willing to reflect critically upon themselves
as well as upon the larger society and to ascertain whether there is
some possibility of amelioration and betterment.
--Cornel West
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Cornel_West>
SMS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was a German pre-dreadnought battleship
of the Kaiser Friedrich III class, built as part of a program of naval
expansion under Kaiser Wilhelm II. She was laid down in January 1898,
launched in June 1899, and completed in May 1901, and was armed with a
main battery of four 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns in two twin gun
turrets. The vessel served in the Home Fleet and later the High Seas
Fleet for the first seven years of her career, participating in training
cruises and maneuvers. Placed in reserve in 1910, the battleship was
returned to active service in 1914 at the outbreak of World War I,
tasked with coastal defense in the North Sea. The ship was deployed
briefly to the Baltic but saw no action. In 1915, Kaiser Wilhelm der
Grosse was again withdrawn from service and relegated to secondary
duties as a depot ship in Kiel and then a torpedo target ship. The
vessel was sold for scrapping and broken up in 1920. (This article is
part of a featured topic: Battleships of Germany.).
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Battleships_of_Germ…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1831:
British naval officer and explorer James Clark Ross (portrait
shown) successfully led the first expedition to reach the North Magnetic
Pole.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Clark_Ross>
1868:
The Navajo and the U.S. government signed an agreement,
allowing those interned at Fort Sumner to return to their ancestral
lands.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Bosque_Redondo>
1988:
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty came into effect,
banning all American and Soviet land-based missiles with a range of 500
to 5,500 km (310 to 3,420 mi).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermediate-Range_Nuclear_Forces_Treaty>
2015:
China's worst peacetime maritime disaster occurred when the
cruise ship Dongfang zhi Xing capsized in the Yangtze, resulting in 442
deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_Dongfang_zhi_Xing>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
oxishly:
(rare) In a manner like that of an ox.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/oxishly>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of
firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of
civilization has done nothing practical to alter or deflect the impulse
to destroy the enemy, which is central to the very idea of war.
--Carl von Clausewitz
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Carl_von_Clausewitz>
The British hydrogen bomb programme was the ultimately successful
British effort to develop thermonuclear weapons. The successful test of
an atomic bomb in Operation Hurricane in 1952 made Britain a nuclear
power, but hopes that the United States would be sufficiently impressed
to restore the Special Relationship were soon disappointed. In 1954,
Cabinet agreed to proceed with the development of the hydrogen bomb. The
scientists at the Atomic Weapons Establishment did not know how to build
one, but produced three designs: Orange Herald, a large boosted fission
weapon; Green Bamboo, an interim design; and Green Granite, a true
thermonuclear design. The first series of Operation Grapple tests
(newsreel featured) were hailed as a success, but Green Granite was a
failure. In November 1957, they successfully tested a thermonuclear
design. Subsequent tests demonstrated a mastery of the technology.
Together with the Sputnik crisis, this resulted in the 1958 US–UK
Mutual Defence Agreement, and the Special Relationship was restored.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_hydrogen_bomb_programme>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1775:
American Revolution: The Committee of Safety of Mecklenburg
County, North Carolina, adopted the Mecklenburg Resolves, which annulled
and vacated all laws originating from the authority of the King or
Parliament.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecklenburg_Resolves>
1902:
The Second Boer War came to an end with the signing of the
Treaty of Vereeniging in Pretoria, South Africa.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Vereeniging>
1935:
An earthquake registering 7.7 Mw struck Balochistan in the
British Raj, now part of Pakistan, killing between 30,000 and 60,000
people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1935_Quetta_earthquake>
2005:
An article in the magazine Vanity Fair revealed that the secret
informant known as "Deep Throat", who had provided information about the
Watergate scandal, was former FBI associate director Mark Felt
(pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Felt>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
ether:
1. (uncountable, literary or poetic) The substance formerly supposed to
fill the upper regions of the atmosphere above the clouds, in particular
as a medium breathed by deities.
2. (by extension) The medium breathed by human beings; the air.
3. (by extension) The sky, the heavens; the void, nothingness.
4. (uncountable, physics, historical) Often as aether and more fully as
luminiferous aether: a substance once thought to fill all unoccupied
space that allowed electromagnetic waves to pass through it and interact
with matter, without exerting any resistance to matter or energy; its
existence was disproved by the 1887 Michelson–Morley experiment and the
theory of relativity propounded by Albert Einstein (1879–1955).
5. (uncountable, colloquial) The atmosphere or space as a medium for
broadcasting radio and television signals; also, a notional space
through which Internet and other digital communications take place;
cyberspace.
6. (uncountable, colloquial) A particular quality created by or
surrounding an object, person, or place; an atmosphere, an aura.
7. (uncountable, organic chemistry) Diethyl ether (C4H10O), an organic
compound with a sweet odour used in the past as an anaesthetic.
8. (countable, organic chemistry) Any of a class of organic compounds
containing an oxygen atom bonded to two hydrocarbon groups.
9. (transitive, slang) To viciously humiliate or insult.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ether>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Roaming in thought over the Universe, I saw the little that is
Good steadily hastening towards immortality, And the vast that is evil
I saw hastening to merge itself and become lost and dead.
--Leaves of Grass
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leaves_of_Grass#BY_THE_ROADSIDE>
Samuel Mulledy (1811–1866) was an American Catholic priest and Jesuit.
Born in Virginia, he attended Georgetown College in Washington, D.C.,
where his brother, Thomas F. Mulledy, was the president. He then entered
the Society of Jesus in 1831 and proved to be a good student. He was
sent to Rome to study for the priesthood and to prepare for teaching.
Upon his return, he held senior academic positions, culminating in his
appointment as president of Georgetown College in 1845. Mulledy
reluctantly accepted the position but requested to be relieved just
eight months later. He continued to teach and minister, until his
expulsion from the Jesuit order in 1850 due to alcoholism. For the next
decade, he was a transient at churches in Massachusetts and New York,
until being assigned to St. Lawrence O'Toole in New York City, where he
remained for the rest of his life. On his deathbed, Mulledy successfully
petitioned to be re-admitted to the Society of Jesus.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Mulledy>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1899:
Pearl Hart, one of the few female outlaws of the American Old
West, committed one of the last recorded stagecoach robberies, about 30
miles (48 km) southeast of Globe, Arizona.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_Hart>
1959:
The Auckland Harbour Bridge, spanning Waitematā Harbour
between the Saint Marys Bay and Northcote suburbs of Auckland, New
Zealand, officially opened.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auckland_Harbour_Bridge>
2005:
American student Natalee Holloway disappeared while on a high-
school graduation trip to Aruba.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Natalee_Holloway>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
BANANA:
(informal, humorous, derogatory, often attributively) One who objects to
the building of any structure in their neighbourhood, especially in
public policy debate.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/BANANA>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
It is the peculiarity of privilege and of every privileged
position to kill the intellect and heart of man. The privileged man,
whether he be privileged politically or economically, is a man depraved
in intellect and heart.
--Mikhail Bakunin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mikhail_Bakunin>
Pod is the debut album by American alternative rock band the Breeders,
released by 4AD records on May 29, 1990. Engineered by Steve Albini, it
features band leader Kim Deal (pictured) on vocals and guitar, Josephine
Wiggs on bass, Britt Walford on drums, and Tanya Donelly on guitar. The
Breeders formed in 1988 when Deal, a member of the Pixies, befriended
Donelly of Throwing Muses during a European tour. They recorded a
country-infused demo in 1989, leading to 4AD co-founder Ivo Watts-
Russell funding an album, Pod, recorded that year at the Palladium
studio in Edinburgh, Scotland. The album became a critical and popular
success, reaching number 22 in the UK. Critics praised its dark,
sexualized lyrics, and compared it favorably to the Pixies. Nirvana's
Kurt Cobain said it was one of his favorite records, and Pitchfork
ranked it number 81 on its list of the best albums of the 1990s. The
cover art was designed by Vaughan Oliver and portrays a man performing a
fertility dance while wearing a belt of eels.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pod_%28The_Breeders_album%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1416:
A squadron of the Venetian navy captured many Ottoman ships at
the Battle of Gallipoli, confirming Venetian naval superiority in the
Aegean Sea for the next few decades.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gallipoli_%281416%29>
1900:
N'Djamena (monument pictured), now the capital of Chad, was
founded as Fort-Lamy by French commander Émile Gentil.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%27Djamena>
1954:
Diane Leather became the first woman to run a mile in less than
five minutes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Leather>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
nick:
1. (transitive) To make a nick or notch in; to cut or scratch in a minor
way.
2. (transitive) To make ragged or uneven, as by cutting nicks or notches
in; to deface, to mar.
3. (transitive, rare) To make a crosscut or cuts on the underside of
(the tail of a horse, in order to make the animal carry it higher).
4. (transitive, obsolete) To fit into or suit, as by a correspondence of
nicks; to tally with.
5. (transitive) To hit at, or in, the nick; to touch rightly; to strike
at the precise point or time.
6. (transitive, cricket) To hit the ball with the edge of the bat and
produce a fine deflection.
7. (transitive, gaming) To throw or turn up (a number when playing
dice); to hit upon.
8. (transitive, mining) To make a cut at the side of the face.
9. (transitive, Australia, Britain, slang) To steal.
10. (transitive, Britain, law enforcement, slang) To arrest.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nick>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I believe in an America with a government of men devoted solely
to the public interests — men of ability and dedication, free from
conflict or corruption or other commitment — a responsible government
that is efficient and economical, with a balanced budget over the years
of the cycle, reducing its debt in prosperous times — a government
willing to entrust the people with the facts that they have — not a
businessman's government, with business in the saddle … not a labor
government, not a farmer's government, not a government of one section
of the country or another, but a government of, for and by the people.
--John F. Kennedy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy>
The great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) is a medium-sized
woodpecker with pied black and white plumage and a red patch on the
lower belly. Males and young birds also have red markings on the neck or
head. This species is found across Eurasia and parts of North Africa, in
all types of woodlands. Some individuals have a tendency to wander,
leading to the recent recolonisation of Ireland. Great spotted
woodpeckers chisel into trees to find food or excavate nest holes, and
also drum for contact and territorial advertisement; they have
anatomical adaptations to manage the physical stresses from the
hammering action. They can extract seeds from pine cones and insect
larvae from inside trees, and will eat eggs and chicks of other birds.
Both parents incubate the clutch of four to six eggs and continue to
feed the chicks for about ten days after they fledge. The species has a
large population and is not threatened.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_spotted_woodpecker>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1892:
Scottish-American preservationist John Muir founded the
environmental organization Sierra Club in San Francisco, California.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Muir>
1901:
Mozaffar ad-Din, the shah of Persia, granted exclusive rights
to prospect for oil in the country to William Knox D'Arcy.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%27Arcy_Concession>
1987:
Mathias Rust, a West German aviator, flew his Cessna 172 from
Helsinki, Finland, through Soviet air defences, landing illegally near
Red Square in Moscow.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathias_Rust>
2010:
A train derailment and collision in the West Midnapore district
of West Bengal, India, caused the deaths of at least 148 passengers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jnaneswari_Express_train_derailment>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pyroballogy:
(weaponry, obsolete, rare) The study of artillery; the practice of using
artillery as a weapon.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pyroballogy>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers
formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.
--George Washington
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Washington>