Hurricane Ioke was the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Central
Pacific. The first storm to form in the Central Pacific in the 2006
Pacific hurricane season, Ioke was a record breaking, long-lived and
extremely powerful storm that traversed the Pacific for 19Â days,
reaching the equivalent of Category 5 status on the Saffir-Simpson
Hurricane Scale three times. The cyclone developed from the
Intertropical Convergence Zone on August 20 far to the south of Hawaii.
Ioke gradually weakened as it turned northwestward and northward, and
by September 6 it had transitioned into an extratropical cyclone. The
remnants of Ioke accelerated northeastward and ultimately crossed into
Alaska. Ioke did not affect any permanently populated areas in the
Central Pacific or Western Pacific basins as a hurricane or a typhoon.
A crew of 12Â people rode out the hurricane in a hurricane-proof bunker
on Johnston Atoll; the crew estimated winds reached over 100Â mph
(160Â km/h), which damaged trees on the island but did not impact the
island's bird population. The hurricane left moderate damage on Wake
Island totaling $88Â million (2006Â USD), including blown off roofs and
damaged buildings, though the infrastructure of the island was left
intact; all military personnel were evacuated from the island.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Ioke>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1099:
First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon was elected the first Protector of
the Holy Sepulchre in the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godfrey_of_Bouillon>
1793:
Two days after becoming the first recorded European to complete a
transcontinental crossing of North America north of Mexico,
Scottish-Canadian explorer Alexander MacKenzie reached the westernmost
point of his journey and inscribed his name on a rock .
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_MacKenzie>
1812:
Peninsular War: An Anglo-Portuguese force led by Arthur Wellesley
inflicted a severe defeat on Marshal Auguste de Marmont and his French
troops near Salamanca, Spain.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Salamanca>
1864:
American Civil War: Confederate forces unsuccessfully attacked Union
troops at the Battle of Atlanta.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Atlanta>
1934:
Bank robber John Dillinger, whose exploits were sensationalized across
the United States, was shot dead by police in an ambush outside the
Biograph Theater in Chicago.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dillinger>
1944:
In opposition to the Polish government-in-exile, the Polish Committee
of National Liberation published its manifesto, calling for radical
reforms, a continuation of fighting in World War II against Nazi
Germany, nationalisation of industry, and a "decent border in the
West".
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Committee_of_National_Liberation>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
shibboleth (n):
1. A word, especially seen as a test, to distinguish someone as
belonging to a particular nation, class, profession etc.
2. A common or longstanding belief, custom, or catchphrase associated
with a particular group, especially one with little current meaning or
truth
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/shibboleth>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned
lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles.
--Emma Lazarus
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Emma_Lazarus>
Blair Anderson Wark (1894–1941) was an Australian recipient of the
Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for gallantry "in the face of
the enemy" that can be awarded to members of the British and
Commonwealth armed forces. A quantity surveyor and member of the
Citizens Military Force, Wark enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force
on 5 August 1915, for service in the First World War. After initially
being employed in the defence of the Suez Canal, his battalion was
shipped to the Western Front; it was here that Wark would be twice
decorated for his bravery and leadership. Having received the
Distinguished Service Order in 1917 for his actions at Polygon Wood,
Wark was awarded the Victoria Cross in 1918 for his leadership and
gallantry when in temporary command of his battalion over a three-day
period, while conducting operations against the Hindenburg Line.
Returning to Australia after the war, Wark resumed work as a quantity
surveyor and established his own business. A respected member of
Australian society, he held several positions and directorships in
various companies and charities, before re-enlisting for service in the
Second World War. Promoted to lieutenant colonel, Wark assumed command
of the 1st Battalion (City of Sydney's Own Regiment), but died suddenly
at Puckapunyal Camp, Victoria, of coronary heart disease at the age of
46.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blair_Anderson_Wark>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
356 BC:
The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World, was destroyed in an act of arson by a man named
Herostratus.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Artemis>
1403:
Forces under Henry IV of England defeated a rebel army led by Henry
'Hotspur' Percy at the Battle of Shrewsbury in what is now Battlefield,
Shropshire, England.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Shrewsbury>
1831:
In Brussels, Leopold I was inaugurated as the first King of the
Belgians.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_I_of_Belgium>
1925:
Creation-evolution controversy: High school biology teacher John T.
Scopes was found guilty of violating Tennessee's Butler Act by teaching
evolution in class.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scopes_Trial>
1944:
World War II: American troops landed on Guam to liberate it from
Japanese control.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Guam_%281944%29>
1964:
Race riots began in Padang, Singapore, then part of Malaysia, during a
Malay procession marking Muhammad's birthday, leaving 23 people killed,
450 people injured, significant damage to property and vehicles, and a
government imposed 11-day curfew.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1964_race_riots_in_Singapore>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
untoward (adj):
1. Unfavourable, adverse, or disadvantageous.
2. Unruly, troublesome.
3. Unseemly, improper
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/untoward>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There's no one thing that's true. It's all true.
--Ernest Hemingway
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway>
The Rampart Dam was a hydroelectric power proposal in the 1950s and
1960s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dam the Yukon River in
Alaska, United States. The project was planned for Rampart Canyon,
about 105Â miles (169Â km) west-northwest of Fairbanks, Alaska. The
resulting dam would have created a lake roughly the size of Lake Erie,
making it the largest man-made reservoir in the world. The plan for the
dam itself called for a concrete structure 530Â feet (162Â m) high with a
top length of about 4,700Â feet (1,430Â m). Though supported by many
politicians and businesses in Alaska, the project was canceled when
concerns arose about the project's cost. Native Alaskans in the area
protested the threatened loss of nine villages that would be flooded by
the dam. Conservation groups abhorred the threatened flooding of the
Yukon Flats, a large area of wetlands that provides a critical breeding
ground for millions of waterfowl. Fiscal conservatives opposed the dam
on the grounds of its large cost and limited benefit to Americans
outside Alaska. Because of these objections, United States Secretary of
the Interior Stewart Udall formally opposed construction of the dam in
1967, and the project was shelved.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_Dam>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1656:
Led by King Charles X Gustav, the armies of Sweden and Brandenburg
defeated the forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth near Warsaw.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Warsaw_%281656%29>
1927:
Five-year-old Michael I became King of Romania upon the death of his
grandfather Ferdinand I.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_I_of_Romania>
1944:
Adolf Hitler survived an assassination attempt by German Resistance
member Claus von Stauffenberg, who hid a bomb inside a briefcase during
a conference at the Wolfsschanze military headquarters in East Prussia.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_20_Plot>
1951:
Abdullah I of Jordan was assassinated by a Palestinian from the
Husseini clan while visiting Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdullah_I_of_Jordan>
1969:
The Apollo 11 lunar module landed on the Sea of Tranquillity, where
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first men to walk on the
moon six-and-a-half hours later.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_11>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
cavil (v):
To criticise for petty or frivolous reasons
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cavil>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Sameness is the mother of disgust, variety the cure.
--Petrarch
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Petrarch>
Nevado del Ruiz is the northernmost volcano of the Andean Volcanic
Belt, lying about 129 kilometers (80 mi) west of Bogotá in the Tolima
Department of Colombia. It is a stratovolcano, composed of many layers
of lava alternating with hardened volcanic ash and other pyroclastic
rocks. Nevado del Ruiz has been active for about two million years,
since the early Pleistocene or late Pliocene epoch, with three major
eruptive periods. The current volcanic cone formed during the "present"
eruptive period, which began 150 thousand years ago. Nevado del Ruiz
usually generates Plinian eruptions, which produce swift-moving
currents of hot gas and rock called pyroclastic flows. These eruptions
often cause massive lahars (mud and debris flows), which pose a threat
to human life and the environment. On November 11, 1985, a small
eruption produced an enormous lahar that buried and desolated the town
of Armero in Tolima Department, causing an estimated 23,000 deaths.
This event later became known as the Armero tragedy—the deadliest lahar
in recorded history. The volcano is part of Los Nevados National Park,
which also contains several other volcanoes. The summit of Nevado del
Ruiz is covered by large glaciers, although these have retreated
significantly since 1985 due to atmospheric warming.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevado_del_Ruiz>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
711:
According to estimations made by historian David Levering Lewis, Muslim
Arabs and Berbers led by Tariq ibn Ziyad defeated Roderic and the
Visigoths at the Battle of Guadalete.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Guadalete>
1848:
The two-day Women's Rights Convention, the first women's rights and
feminist convention held in the United States, opened in Seneca Falls,
New York.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seneca_Falls_Convention>
1870:
A dispute over who would become the next Spanish monarch following the
deposition of Isabella II during the 1868 Glorious Revolution led
France to declare war on Prussia.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franco-Prussian_War>
1916:
World War I: Australian forces engaged the Germans at the Battle of
Fromelles in France, described as "the worst 24 hours in Australia's
entire history" since 5,533 Australian soldiers were eventually killed,
wounded or taken prisoner in the failed operation.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Fromelles>
1947:
Burmese nationalist Aung San and six members of his newly-formed
cabinet were assassinated during a cabinet meeting.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aung_San>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
legwork (n):
1. (idiomatic) Work, especially research, that involves significant
walking, travel, or similar effort
2. Skillful or vigorous use of the legs, as in dance or sports
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/legwork>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Everyone has talent at twenty-five. The difficulty is to have it at
fifty.
--Edgar Degas
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edgar_Degas>
The Age of Reason is a deistic treatise written by eighteenth-century
British radical and American revolutionary Thomas Paine that critiques
institutionalized religion and challenges the inerrancy of the Bible.
Published in three parts in 1794, 1795, and 1807, it was a bestseller
in America, where it caused a short-lived deistic revival. British
audiences, however, fearing increased political radicalism as a result
of the French revolution, received it with more hostility. The Age of
Reason presents common deistic arguments; for example, it highlights
what Paine perceives as corruption of the Christian Church and
criticizes its efforts to acquire political power. Paine advocates
reason in the place of revelation, leading him to reject miracles and
to view the Bible as an ordinary piece of literature rather than as a
divinely inspired text. The Age of Reason is not atheistic, but
deistic: it promotes natural religion and argues for a creator-God.
Most of Paine's arguments had long been available to the educated
elite, but by presenting them in an engaging and irreverent style, he
made deism appealing and accessible to a mass audience. The book was
also inexpensive, putting it within the reach of a large number of
buyers. Fearing the spread of what they viewed as potentially
revolutionary ideas, the British government prosecuted printers and
booksellers who tried to publish and distribute it.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Age_of_Reason>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
64:
The Great Fire of Rome started among the shops around the Circus
Maximus, eventually destroying four of fourteen Roman districts and
severely damaging seven others.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_Rome>
1863:
American Civil War: Led by Union Army Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, the
54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, the first formal African
American military unit, spearheaded an assault on Fort Wagner near
Charleston, South Carolina .
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/54th_Massachusetts_Volunteer_Infantry>
1969:
After a party on Chappaquiddick Island in Massachusetts, United States
Senator Ted Kennedy drove his car off a wooden bridge into a tidal
channel, killing his passenger Mary Jo Kopechne, a former campaign
worker.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chappaquiddick_incident>
1982:
Guatemalan military forces and their paramilitary allies slaughtered
over 250 Mayans in the village of Plan de Sánchez, Baja Verapaz.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plan_de_S%C3%A1nchez_massacre>
1989:
American actress Rebecca Schaeffer was shot and killed by stalker
Robert John Bardo, eventually prompting the passage of anti-stalking
laws in California.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca_Schaeffer>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
unbosom (v):
1. To tell someone about one's troubles, and thus obtain relief.
2. To confess a misdeed
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/unbosom>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
When I die, my money's not gonna come with me. My movies will live on
for people to judge what I was as a person. I just want to stay
curious.
--Heath Ledger
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Heath_Ledger>
Domitian was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 September 81 until his
death. The third and last emperor of the Flavian dynasty, Domitian's
youth and early career was largely spent in the shadow of his elder
brother Titus, who gained military renown during the First Jewish-Roman
War. Domitian's father Vespasian died on 23 June 79 and was succeeded
by Titus, whose own reign came to an unexpected end when he was struck
by a fatal illness on 13 September 81. The following day Domitian was
declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard. As emperor, Domitian
strengthened the economy by revaluing the Roman coinage, expanded the
border defenses of the Empire, and initiated a massive building
programme to restore the damaged city of Rome. As emperor, he saw
himself as the new Augustus, an enlightened despot destined to guide
the Roman Empire into a new era of Flavian renaissance. Religious,
military and cultural propaganda fostered a cult of personality, and by
nominating himself perpetual censor, he sought to control public and
private morals. As a consequence, Domitian was popular with the people
and the army but despised by members of the Roman Senate as a tyrant.
Domitian's reign came to an end on 18 September 96 when he was
assassinated by court officials. The same day he was succeeded by his
friend and advisor Nerva, who founded the long-lasting Nerva-Antonine
dynasty. After his death, Domitian's memory was condemned to oblivion
by the Roman Senate.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domitian>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
622:
The epoch of the Islamic calendar occurred, marking the year that
Muhammad began his Hijra from Mecca to Medina.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_calendar>
1769:
Spanish friar JunÃpero Serra founded Mission San Diego de Alcalá
(pictured today), the first Franciscan mission in the Alta California
region of New Spain.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_San_Diego_de_Alcal%C3%A1>
1945:
Manhattan Project: "Trinity", the first nuclear test explosion, was
detonated near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_%28nuclear_test%29>
1994:
Fragments of the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet began hitting the planet
Jupiter, with the first one causing a fireball which reached a peak
temperature of about 24,000Â K.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_Shoemaker-Levy_9>
1999:
John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and
sister-in-law Lauren Bessette were killed in a plane crash off the
coast of Martha's Vineyard.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy%2C_Jr._airplane_crash>
2004:
Chicago's Millennium Park, currently the world's largest rooftop
garden, opened.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_Park>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
haphazard (adj):
Random, chaotic, incomplete; not thorough, constant or consistent
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/haphazard>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Ignorance perpetuates itself just as knowledge does. Men write false
documents, they preach false doctrine, and those beliefs survive to
inspire wickedness in later generations. ... Conversely, some men write
and teach about the truth, only to be declared heretic by the wicked.
In such cases evil has the advantage, for it will do anything to
suppress truth, but the good man limits what he will do to suppress
falsehood.
One might almost make a rule of it: "Whoever declares another heretic
is himself a devil. Whoever places a relic or artifact above justice,
kindness, mercy, or truth is himself a devil and the thing elevated is
a work of evil magic."
--Sheri S. Tepper
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sheri_S._Tepper>
The Talyllyn Railway is a narrow-gauge preserved railway running for
7.25Â miles (11.67Â km) from Tywyn on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol
near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1866 to carry
slate from the quarries at Bryn Eglwys to Tywyn, and was the first
narrow gauge railway in Britain authorised by Act of Parliament to
carry passengers using steam haulage. Despite severe under-investment,
the line remained open, and in 1951 it became the first railway in the
world to be preserved as a heritage railway by volunteers. Since
preservation, the railway has operated as a tourist attraction,
significantly expanding its rolling stock through acquisition and an
engineering programme to build new locomotives and carriages. In 1976
an extension was opened along the former mineral line from Abergynolwyn
to the new station at Nant Gwernol. In 2001 the preservation society
celebrated its 50th anniversary, and in 2005 a major rebuilding and
extension of Tywyn Wharf station took place, including a much expanded
facility for the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum. The fictional Skarloey
Railway, which formed part of the Railway Series of children's books by
the Rev. W Awdry, was based on the Talyllyn Railway. The preservation
of the line inspired the Ealing Comedy film The Titfield Thunderbolt.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talyllyn_Railway>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1643:
English Civil War: Royalists defeated the Parliamentarians at the
Battle of Roundway Down near Devizes in central Wiltshire.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Roundway_Down>
1772:
Under the command of explorer James Cook, HMS Resolution set sail from
Plymouth, England.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Resolution_%281771%29>
1863:
Three days of rioting began in New York City by opponents of new laws
passed by the United States Congress to draft men to fight in the
ongoing American Civil War.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Draft_Riots>
1878:
The major powers in Europe signed the Treaty of Berlin, redrawing the
map of the Balkans.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Berlin_%281878%29>
1985:
Live Aid rock music concerts, organised by singers Bob Geldof and Midge
Ure to raise funds for famine relief in Ethiopia, were held at Wembley
Stadium in London and John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Aid>
1995:
Bosnian Genocide: The Army of Republika Srpska under Ratko Mladić began
the Srebrenica massacre in the region of Srebrenica, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, eventually killing an estimated total of 8,000 Bosniaks.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Srebrenica_massacre>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
right as rain (adj):
1. Very good; healthy.
2. Correct; factually accurate
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/right_as_rain>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
People sometimes tell me that they prefer barbarism to civilisation. I
doubt if they have given it a long enough trial. Like the people of
Alexandria, they are bored by civilisation; but all the evidence
suggests that the boredom of barbarism is infinitely greater.
--Kenneth Clark
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Kenneth_Clark>