Prince Alfred (1780–1782) was the fourteenth child and the ninth and
youngest son of King George III of Great Britain and Ireland and his
queen, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Alfred was baptised by
Frederick Cornwallis, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the Great Council
Chamber at St James's Palace on 21 October 1780. His godparents were
his elder siblings George, Prince of Wales; Prince Frederick; and
Charlotte, Princess Royal. Alfred was a delicate child. He suffered from
"eruptions" on his face and, throughout his life, a cough. In 1782,
Alfred became unwell and died after his inoculation against the smallpox
virus. Although the household did not go into mourning (it was not
prescribed for royal children under seven), his parents took the loss
harshly. Alfred's early death, along with that of his brother Prince
Octavius six months later, deeply distressed the royal family. In his
later bouts of madness, King George imagined conversations with both of
his youngest sons.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Alfred_of_Great_Britain>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1886:
The wedding of Grover Cleveland and Frances Folsom took place
in the White House, the only time a U.S. president used that building
for the ceremony.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Cleveland>
1953:
Queen Elizabeth II was crowned at Westminster Abbey in London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronation_of_Elizabeth_II>
1967:
Benno Ohnesorg, a German university student, was killed in West
Berlin while protesting the visit of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran;
the anarchist militant 2 June Movement was later named after the
incident.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2_June_Movement>
1983:
After an emergency landing due to an in-flight fire, 23
passengers aboard Air Canada Flight 797 were killed when a flashover
occurred as the aircraft's doors opened.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Canada_Flight_797>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
spaghetti:
1. (countable, uncountable) A type of pasta made in the shape of long
thin strings.
2. (by extension, countable, uncountable) A dish that has spaghetti
(sense 1) as a main part of it, such as spaghetti bolognese.
3. (by extension, countable) Denoting Italianness.
4. (derogatory, informal) An Italian person.
5. (film) Short for spaghetti western (“a motion picture depicting a
story of cowboys and desperadoes set in the American Old West, but
produced by an Italian-based company and filmed in Europe, notably in
Italy”).
6. (by extension, uncountable, informal, often attributively) Something
physically resembling spaghetti (sense 1) in appearance or consistency,
or in being tangled.
7. (electrical engineering) Electrical insulating tubing or electrical
wiring.
8. (road transport) Roads forming a complex junction, especially one
with multiple levels on a motorway.
9. (uncountable, figuratively, informal) Something confusing or
intricate.
10. (programming, derogatory, informal) Short for spaghetti code
(“unstructured or poorly structured program source code, especially code
with many GOTO statements or their equivalent”).
11. (transitive)
12. (humorous) To serve (someone) spaghetti (noun sense 1).
13. To cause (someone or something) to become, or appear to become,
longer and thinner; to stretch.
14. To cause (something) to become tangled.
15. (intransitive)
16. (humorous) To eat spaghetti (noun sense 1).
17. To become, or appear to become, longer and thinner.
18. To become tangled.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/spaghetti>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Is your heart far away, Or with mine beating? When false things
are brought low, And swift things have grown slow, Feigning like froth
shall go, Faith be for aye.
--Thomas Hardy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Thomas_Hardy>
Tom Holland (born 1 June 1996) is an English actor, whose accolades
include a British Academy Film Award and three Saturn Awards. His
career began at age nine, when he auditioned for a role in Billy Elliot
the Musical at London's Victoria Palace Theatre; he played the title
role from 2008 to 2010. Holland made his film debut in the disaster
drama The Impossible (2012) as a teenage tourist trapped in a tsunami.
He achieved international recognition playing Spider-Man (Peter Parker)
in six Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) superhero films, beginning with
Captain America: Civil War (2016). The following year, Holland received
the BAFTA Rising Star Award and became the youngest actor to play a
title role in an MCU film in Spider-Man: Homecoming. The sequels Far
>From Home (2019) and No Way Home (2021) each grossed more than
$1 billion worldwide, and the latter became the highest-grossing film
of the year. Some publications have called him one of the most popular
actors of his generation.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Holland>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1857:
The Revolution of the Ganhadores, the first general strike in
Brazil, began in Salvador, Bahia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolution_of_the_Ganhadores>
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>
1974:
In an informal article in a medical journal, Henry Heimlich
introduced the concept of abdominal thrusts, commonly known as the
Heimlich maneuver, to treat choking victims.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Heimlich>
1988:
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty was ratified,
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>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
atelier:
A studio or workshop, especially for an artist, designer, or fashion
house.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/atelier>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
If we do not learn to regard a war, and the separate campaigns of
which it is composed, as a chain of linked engagements each leading to
the next, but instead succumb to the idea that the capture of certain
geographical points or the seizure of undefended provinces are of value
in themselves, we are liable to regard them as windfall profits. In so
doing, and in ignoring the fact that they are links in a continuous
chain of events, we also ignore the possibility that their possession
may later lead to definite disadvantages.
--Carl von Clausewitz
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Carl_von_Clausewitz>
Boulton and Park, two Victorian homosexuals from upper-middle-class
English families, were cross-dressers and enjoyed playing the women's
roles in theatrical performances. Lord Arthur Clinton, Member of
Parliament for Newark, entered into a relationship with Boulton. Boulton
and Park were arrested in 1870 after leaving a London theatre in drag.
They were still in women's dresses the next morning when they appeared
in court, where hundreds had gathered. Boulton and Park were charged
with conspiracy to commit sodomy, a crime that carried a maximum prison
sentence of life with hard labour. They were found not guilty after the
prosecution failed to establish that they had anal sex. The judge, Sir
Alexander Cockburn, was highly critical of the police investigation.
Boulton and Park admitted to appearing in public dressed as women, which
was "an offence against public morals and common decency". They were
bound over for two years. The case was reported in all the major
newspapers, much of it in lurid terms.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boulton_and_Park>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1223:
Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus': Mongol forces defeated a Kievan
Rus' army at the Kalka River in present-day Ukraine.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Kalka_River>
1468:
Cardinal Bessarion announced his donation of 746 Greek and
Latin codices to the Republic of Venice, forming the Biblioteca
Marciana.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblioteca_Marciana>
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>
2013:
A tornado struck Central Oklahoma killing 8 people and injuring
more than 150.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_El_Reno_tornado>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
unctuous:
1. Of a liquid, semisolid, or other substance: having the nature or
properties of an unguent or ointment; greasy, oily.
2. Having fat or oil present; fatty, greasy, oily.
3. Of an aroma or taste, or a beverage (such as coffee or wine) or food
(such as gravy, meat, or sauce): having layers of concentrated, velvety
flavour; lush, rich.
4. Of soil: soft and sticky.
5. (figuratively) Of a person:
6. Complacent, self-satisfied, smug.
7. Profusely polite, especially in an insincere and unpleasant manner.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/unctuous>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The sum of all known reverence I add up in you whoever you are,
The President is there in the White House for you, it is not you who are
here for him, The Secretaries act in their bureaus for you, not you
here for them, The Congress convenes every Twelfth-month for you,
Laws, courts, the forming of States, the charters of cities, the going
and coming of commerce and malls, are all for you.
--Leaves of Grass
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leaves_of_Grass>
Paint Drying is a 2016 British experimental protest film that was
produced, directed and shot by Charlie Shackleton. He created the film
in protest against film censorship in the United Kingdom and the
sometimes-prohibitive cost to independent filmmakers that the
classification requirement of the British Board of Film Classification
(BBFC) imposes. The film consists of 607 minutes (10 hours and 7
minutes) of an unchanging view of white paint drying on a brick wall
(similar wall pictured). Shackleton made the film to force the BBFC to
watch it in its entirety to give the film an age rating classification.
Shackleton initially shot 14 hours' worth of footage of paint drying in
4K resolution and opened a Kickstarter campaign to pay the BBFC's per-
minute rate for a film as long as possible. It raised £5,936 from 686
backers, paying for a film lasting 10 hours and 7 minutes. After
reviewing the film, the BBFC rated it "U" for "Universal", indicating
"no material likely to offend or harm".
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paint_Drying>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1792:
The Great Sejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was
disbanded following the Russian invasion of Poland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Sejm>
1935:
A strike by copper miners in Northern Rhodesia ended after six
workers were shot and killed by police.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1935_Copperbelt_strike>
1953:
The mountaineers Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay (both
pictured) became the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenzing_Norgay>
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:
suborn:
1. (also figuratively) To induce (someone) to commit an unlawful or
malicious act, especially in a corrupt manner. [from early 16th c.]
2. (specifically, criminal law) To induce (someone, such as a witness)
to commit perjury, for example by making a false accusation or giving
false evidence.
3. To achieve (some result; specifically, perjury) in a corrupt manner.
4. (archaic)
5. To procure or provide (something) secretly and often in a dishonest
manner.
6. To make use of (something), especially for corrupt or dishonest
reasons.
7. (obsolete)
8. To aid, assist, or support (something).
9. To furnish or provide (something).
10. To substitute (a thing) for something else, especially secretly and
often in a dishonest manner.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/suborn>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We are neither "warmongers" nor "appeasers," neither "hard" nor
"soft." We are Americans, determined to defend the frontiers of freedom,
by an honorable peace if peace is possible, but by arms if arms are used
against us. And if we are to move forward in that spirit, we shall need
all the calm and thoughtful citizens that this great University can
produce, all the light they can shed, all the wisdom they can bring to
bear. It is customary, both here and around the world, to regard life in
the United States as easy. Our advantages are many. But more than any
other people on earth, we bear burdens and accept risks unprecedented in
their size and their duration, not for ourselves alone but for all who
wish to be free.
--John F. Kennedy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy>
The 2018 EFL League Two play-off final was an association football match
played on 28 May 2018 at Wembley Stadium (pictured), London, between
Coventry City F.C. and Exeter City F.C. The match determined the fourth
and final team to gain promotion from EFL League Two, English football's
fourth tier, to EFL League One; the top three teams of the 2017–18 EFL
League Two season were automatically promoted to the 2018–19 EFL
League One. Teams placed from fourth to seventh in the table took part
in play-off semi-finals, with the winners of these semi-finals competing
for the final place. Coventry won the match 3–1. Coventry opened the
scoring through Jordan Willis, followed by two more goals from Jordan
Shipley and Jack Grimmer. Exeter had a consolation goal in the last
minutes of the match, thanks to a curled strike from Kyle Edwards.
Coventry earned their first promotion since 1967, with Marc McNulty,
their striker, being named the man of the match.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_EFL_League_Two_play-off_final>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1892:
Scottish-American preservationist John Muir founded the
environmental organization Sierra Club in California.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Muir>
1940:
Second World War: Belgium surrendered to Nazi Germany, ending
the Battle of Belgium.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_invasion_of_Belgium_%281940%29>
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:
aquaplane:
1. (originally US, water sports) A board on which a person stands to
ride for leisure which is pulled on a water surface by a motorboat.
2. To ride for leisure standing up on a board pulled on a water surface
by a motorboat.
3. (by extension, chiefly Britain, automotive) Of a car or other road
vehicle: to lose traction with the road due to the vehicle's tyres
sliding on a film of water on the road.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/aquaplane>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Those whom the Gods wish to destroy, they first make bored.
--Ian Fleming
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ian_Fleming>
The black-and-yellow broadbill (Eurylaimus ochromalus) is a species of
bird in Eurylaimidae, the typical broadbill family. It is small, with a
black head, breastband, and upperparts, a white neckband, yellow
streaking on the back and wings, and wine-pink underparts that turn
yellow towards the belly. The beak is bright blue, with a green tip to
the upper mandible and black edges. The black breastband is incomplete
in females. The black-and-yellow broadbill occurs in Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand, in lowland forests up to an
elevation of 1,220 m (4,000 ft). It is mainly insectivorous, but also
eats molluscs and some fruit. It breeds during the dry season with both
sexes helping build a large, untidy nest from moss, fungal mycelia, and
leaves. The clutch is usually 2–3 eggs, and sometimes includes a
fourth runt egg. They are incubated by both sexes. The species is listed
as near-threatened by the IUCN due to a decline in its population caused
by habitat loss.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-and-yellow_broadbill>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1963:
American singer Bob Dylan released The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan,
his first album to include a significant number of original songs.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Freewheelin%27_Bob_Dylan>
1983:
An explosion at an illegal fireworks factory near Benton,
Tennessee, killed eleven people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benton_fireworks_disaster>
1995:
Bosnian War: Forces of the Army of Republika Srpska captured a
United Nations post at Vrbanja Bridge in Sarajevo; six soldiers of both
sides were killed when French forces retook the post later in the day.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vrbanja_Bridge>
2001:
Twenty tourists were kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf militants in
Palawan, Philippines, triggering a hostage crisis that lasted for more
than a year.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dos_Palmas_kidnappings>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
meld:
1. (transitive) To combine (multiple things) together; to blend, to
fuse.
2. (intransitive) To combine, to blend, to fuse.
3. Especially in games of the rummy family:
4. (transitive) To announce or play (a combination of playing cards) and
thus score points.
5. (intransitive) To announce or play a combination of playing cards and
thus score points.
6. (originally US) The result of multiple things being combined
together; a blend.
7. (card games) Especially in games of the rummy family: a combination
of playing cards which is announced or played to score points.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/meld>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The artist discards all theories, both his own and those of
others. He forgets everything when he is in front of his canvas.
--Georges Rouault
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Georges_Rouault>
A History of British Fishes is a natural history book by William
Yarrell, serialised in 19 parts from 1835, and then published bound in
two volumes in 1836. It is a handbook describing every type of fish then
known to occur in the British Isles. Yarrell was a London bookseller and
newsagent with the time and income to indulge his interest in natural
history. He was a prominent member of several natural history societies,
had an extensive library and collection of specimens, and a wide network
of naturalist friends who helped him garner material for his writings,
notably his book on fishes and the 1843 A History of British Birds. He
followed Thomas Bewick's example with up-to-date data, accurate
illustrations, and detailed descriptions. The woodcut illustrations were
drawn by Alexander Fussell, engraved by John Thompson, and published by
John Van Voorst. Yarrell died in 1856; the third edition was produced
posthumously. The book was a commercial success and became a standard
reference work.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_History_of_British_Fishes>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1933:
American singer Jimmie Rodgers died at the Taft Hotel in New
York City.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmie_Rodgers>
1967:
The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, one of
the first progressive rock albums, was released.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sgt._Pepper%27s_Lonely_Hearts_Club_Band>
1989:
Tropical Storm Cecil dissipated over Laos after devastating
Quảng Nam province, Vietnam, and causing the deaths of 751 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropical_Storm_Cecil>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pretty penny:
(idiomatic, informal) Chiefly preceded by a: a considerable amount of
money; a high income or price.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pretty_penny>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The clouds never expect it When it rains But the sea changes
color But the sea does not change And so with the slow graceful flow
of age I went forth with an age old desire to please On the edge of
seventeen.
--Stevie Nicks
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stevie_Nicks>
Bennerley Viaduct is a former railway bridge, now a foot and cycle
bridge, in central England, between the town of Ilkeston, Derbyshire,
and the village of Awsworth, Nottinghamshire. It was completed in 1877
and opened in 1878 to carry the Great Northern Railway's Derbyshire
Extension over the valley of the River Erewash. The site required a
bespoke design as the ground would not support a traditional masonry
structure. The viaduct consists of 16 spans of lattice truss girders
made of wrought iron, carried on 15 wrought-iron piers supported by
brick and ashlar bases. It is 60 feet (18 m) high, 26 feet (7.9 m)
wide between the parapets, and over a quarter of a mile (400 metres)
long. It was once part of a chain of bridges and embankments carrying
the railway for 2 miles (3 km) across the valley. Its working life was
uneventful except for minor damage inflicted by a Zeppelin bombing raid
during World War I. It opened to the public as part of a cycling and
walking route in January 2022.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bennerley_Viaduct>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1878:
Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore (poster
featured) premiered at the Opera Comique in London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.M.S._Pinafore>
1955:
Joe Brown and George Band, members of the British Kangchenjunga
expedition, made the first ascent of the world's third-highest mountain
but deliberately did not set foot on the summit.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1955_British_Kangchenjunga_expedition>
1979:
During takeoff from O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, an
engine detached from American Airlines Flight 191, causing a crash that
killed 273 people, the deadliest aviation accident in United States
history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Airlines_Flight_191>
2013:
Naxalite insurgents of the Communist Party of India (Maoist)
attacked a convoy of Indian National Congress leaders in the state of
Chhattisgarh, causing at least 27 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Naxal_attack_in_Darbha_valley>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
glance:
1. (transitive)
2. To turn (one's eyes or look) at something, often briefly.
3. To look briefly at (something).
4. To cause (light) to gleam or sparkle.
5. (also figuratively) To cause (something) to move obliquely.
6. (ball games) To hit (a ball) lightly, causing it to move in another
direction.
7. (cricket) To hit (a ball) with a bat held in a slanted manner; also,
to play such a stroke against (the bowler).
8. (figuratively) To communicate (something) using the eyes.
9. (obsolete)
10. To touch (something) lightly or obliquely; to graze.
11. To make an incidental or passing reflection, often unfavourably, on
(a topic); also, to make (an incidental or passing reflection, often
unfavourable).
12. (intransitive)
13. (also figuratively) To strike and fly off in an oblique direction;
to dart aside.
14. (cricket) To hit a ball with a bat held in a slanted manner.
15. (ichthyology) Of certain juvenile fish, chiefly of the Cichlidae
family: to rapidly touch the side of its parent's body, usually to feed
on mucus.
16. Of light, etc.: to gleam, to sparkle.
17. Of a thing: to move in a way that catches light, and flash or
glitter.
18. (figuratively)
19. Often followed by at: of the eyes or a person: to look briefly.
20. Often followed by at: of a topic: to make an incidental or passing
reflection on, often unfavourably; to allude to; to hint at.
21. (obsolete)
22. Followed by by: to pass near without coming into contact.
23. To move quickly; to dart, to shoot. [...]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/glance>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We are all born with a mission, a purpose, that only we can
fulfill. When you live with a joyful sense of purpose, when you infuse
your life with a greater purpose beyond your individual self, every
aspect of your karma can become a brilliant facet of your mission. You
can transform sorrow and adversity of any sort into joy, stability,
health, and prosperity. By changing poison into medicine and
accomplishing your inner revolution, you can use every experience of
karma to encourage others who suffer from the same problems that you
overcame. You can become an ambassador of hope, an essential and
radiant treasure of humanity, in which you recognize that all who have
ever lived are members of your extended family. As you continue to
spread light in this way, actively doing good in the world, that energy
will come back to you in abundant positivity. When you refuse to
perpetuate any bad that has been done to you, you can free yourself from
the chains of negativity.
--Tina Turner
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tina_Turner>
The eye is a region of mostly calm weather found at the center of
tropical cyclones and is a well-recognized feature. It is usually
circular, typically 30–65 kilometers (19–40 miles) in diameter and
is at the cyclone's center of circulation. A cyclone's lowest barometric
pressure occurs in the eye, and can be as much as 15 percent lower than
the pressure outside the storm. In strong tropical cyclones, the eye is
characterized by light winds and clear skies, surrounded on all sides by
an eyewall, a normally symmetric ring of towering thunderstorms where
the most severe weather of a cyclone occurs. In weaker tropical
cyclones, the eye is less well defined, and can be covered by the
central dense overcast, an area of high, thick clouds that show up
brightly on satellite imagery. Weaker or disorganized storms may also
feature an eyewall that does not completely encircle the eye, or have an
eye that features heavy rain.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_%28cyclone%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1883:
New York City's Brooklyn Bridge opened as the longest
suspension bridge in the world at the time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Bridge>
1913:
Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia married Prince Ernest
Augustus of Hanover; the occasion was one of the last great social
events of European royalty before World War I began.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Victoria_Louise_of_Prussia>
1986:
A stationary front began over the central Caribbean Sea,
leading to severe floods that over two weeks killed dozens of people in
Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1986_Jamaica_floods>
1991:
The Israel Defense Forces began Operation Solomon, a covert
operation to bring thousands of Ethiopian Jews to Israel (evacuees
pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Solomon>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
nacelle:
1. (aviation)
2. The compartment that holds passengers on a dirigible, hot-air
balloon, or other aerostat; a gondola.
3. A separate streamlined enclosure mounted on an aircraft to house,
originally, an engine, and now also cargo or crew.
4. (archaic) The cockpit of an aircraft.
5. (by extension)
6. A hollow boat-shaped structure.
7. An enclosure housing machinery or a motor.
8. (electrical engineering) The part between the rotor and tower of a
wind turbine.
9. (nautical) The submersed providers of buoyancy of a SWATH-hulled
boat.
10. (road transport) A streamlined enclosure on the body or dashboard of
a motor vehicle.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nacelle>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I renounce war for its consequences, for the lies it lives on and
propagates, for the undying hatred it arouses, for the dictatorships it
puts in place of democracy, for the starvation that stalks after it. I
renounce war, and never again, directly or indirectly, will I sanction
or support another.
--Harry Emerson Fosdick
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Harry_Emerson_Fosdick>
The Playboy is a graphic novel by Canadian cartoonist Chester Brown
(pictured), serialized in 1990 in his comic book Yummy Fur and collected
in different revised book editions in 1992 and 2013. It deals with
Brown's guilt and anxiety over his obsessive masturbation to Playboy
Playmate models; out of fear of being caught, he repeatedly rids himself
of copies of the magazine, only to retrieve them later. His conflicting
emotions follow him into adulthood until he purges them by revealing
himself through his comics. The free, organic arrangement of odd-shaped
panels of simple, expressive artwork contrasts with his more detailed
grid-like pages in his 1980s work, such as Ed the Happy Clown. The
Playboy forms part of Brown's autobiographical period during the early
1990s, and was the first book-length work he planned as a complete
story. It has attracted praise for its revealing honesty, and criticism
from those who saw it as glorifying pornography.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Playboy>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1862:
American Civil War: Confederate troops under Stonewall Jackson
defeated a Union force at the Battle of Front Royal in Virginia, taking
around 700 prisoners.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Front_Royal>
1895:
Backed by Samuel J. Tilden, the Astor Library and the Lenox
Library agreed to merge and form the New York Public Library.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Public_Library>
1939:
The U.S. Navy submarine Squalus sank off Portsmouth, New
Hampshire, during tests, causing 26 men to drown.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Sailfish_%28SS-192%29>
1974:
The Airbus A300, the first twin-engined wide-body airliner,
went into service with Air France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus_A300>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
virid:
1. (literary, poetic) Green, verdant.
2. (literary, poetic, rare) A green colour. [...]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/virid>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
I'd like to be remembered as someone who kept the comic novel
going for another generation or so. I fear the comic novel is in
retreat. A joke is by definition politically incorrect — it assumes a
butt, and a certain superiority in the teller. The culture won't put up
with that for much longer.
--Martin Amis
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Martin_Amis>