The 1937 Brazilian coup d'état was led by President Getúlio Vargas
with the support of the Brazilian Armed Forces on 10 November 1937.
Vargas had ruled provisionally since 1930 with military backing,
following a revolution that ended a decades-old oligarchy. In 1934, he
became constitutional president, ineligible for re-election. He and his
allies were unwilling to abandon power, and there was strong sentiment
for a dictatorship amongst the military. Senior military officers used
the Cohen Plan, fraudulently claimed to be written by communists, to
provoke the National Congress into declaring a state of war. Vargas
opponents were then undermined or forced into exile. On 10 November
1937, the police surrounded Congress, and Vargas proclaimed the Estado
Novo ('New State'). An authoritarian state was installed, based on
European fascism. Individual liberties and rights were stripped away,
and Vargas ruled for eight more years. A 1945 military coup ended the
regime and reestablished democracy.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1937_Brazilian_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1909:
The sixteen United States Navy battleships of the Great White
Fleet, led by Connecticut, completed a circumnavigation of the globe.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Connecticut_%28BB-18%29>
1997:
Scientists at the Roslin Institute in Scotland announced the
existence of Dolly, a female sheep who was the first mammal to have
successfully been cloned from an adult cell.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolly_%28sheep%29>
2006:
At least six men staged the largest cash robbery in Britain at
a Securitas depot in Tonbridge, Kent.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Securitas_depot_robbery>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
vamp:
1. (transitive) To patch, repair, or refurbish.
2. (transitive) Often as vamp up: to fabricate or put together
(something) from existing material, or by adding new material to
something existing.
3. (transitive) To cobble together, to extemporize, to improvise.
4. (transitive, intransitive, music, specifically) To perform a vamp (“a
repeated, often improvised accompaniment, for example, under dialogue or
while waiting for a soloist to be ready”).
5. (transitive, shoemaking) To attach a vamp (to footwear).
6. (transitive, intransitive, now dialectal) To travel by foot; to walk.
7. (intransitive) To delay or stall for time, as for an audience. […]
8. (transitive) To seduce or exploit someone.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/vamp>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of
preserving peace.
--George Washington
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Washington>
James Abram Garfield (1831–1881) was the 20th president of the United
States, serving from March 4 to September 19, 1881. Garfield was born
into poverty in a log cabin in Northeast Ohio. He was a Union major
general during the American Civil War. Elected to Congress in 1862 to
represent Ohio's 19th district, he served nine terms, gaining a
reputation as a skilled orator. He also wrote a notable proof of the
Pythagorean theorem, published in 1876. Selected as a compromise
candidate at the 1880 Republican National Convention, Garfield won the
general election. As president he oversaw a resurgence of presidential
authority against senatorial courtesy in executive appointments, a purge
of corruption in the Post Office, and the appointment of a Supreme Court
justice. Garfield advocated an educated electorate and civil rights for
African Americans. He was shot on July 2, 1881, and died from infections
caused by his doctors. (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:
1866:
Lucy Hobbs Taylor became the first woman to receive a doctorate
from a dental college.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_Hobbs_Taylor>
1929:
In the first battle of the Warlord Rebellion in northeastern
Shandong against the Nationalist government of China, a 24,000-strong
rebel force led by Zhang Zongchang was defeated at Zhifu by 7,000 NRA
troops.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warlord_Rebellion_in_northeastern_Shandong>
1952:
A number of student protesters demanding the establishment of
Bengali as an official language were killed by police in Dhaka, East
Pakistan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_language_movement>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
matrilingual:
(rare) Pertaining to one's mother tongue.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/matrilingual>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Whatever the field under discussion, those who engage in debate
must not only believe in each other's good faith, but also in their
capacity to arrive at the truth.
--W. H. Auden
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/W._H._Auden>
The modern Olympic Games are leading international multi-sport events in
which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in various
competitions. The Summer and Winter Games are each held in a different
city every four years, offset from each other by two. Inspired by the
ancient Greek Olympic Games, Pierre de Coubertin founded the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, leading to the first
modern Games in 1896. The abuse of amateur rules by the Eastern Bloc in
the late 20th century prompted the IOC to begin allowing participation
by professional athletes. The growth of the Games has created challenges
and controversies, including political boycotts, doping, and
commercialisation. Olympic symbols and rituals include the Olympic flag
(pictured) and torch, the opening and closing ceremonies, and medals
given to the top three finishers in each event. The contemporary Olympic
movement includes related events, such as the Paralympic Games for
athletes with physical disabilities.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Games>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1872:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, today the largest art museum in
the United States with a collection of more than two million works,
opened in New York.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Museum_of_Art>
1931:
Paraguayan anarchists briefly seized the city of Encarnación
as part of a larger plan to initiate a social revolution in the country.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taking_of_Encarnaci%C3%B3n>
1992:
Appearing on the talk show Larry King Live, U.S. industrialist
Ross Perot announced that he would begin a presidential campaign if
"ordinary people" wanted him to run for office.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ross_Perot_1992_presidential_campaign>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
womannap:
(transitive, informal) To abduct or kidnap a woman.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/womannap>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
With the lights out, it's less dangerous Here we are now,
entertain us I feel stupid, and contagious Here we are now, entertain
us.
--Kurt Cobain
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Kurt_Cobain>
The kererū (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae) is a species of pigeon native to
New Zealand. Described by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1789, it is a
large, conspicuous pigeon, up to 50 cm (20 in) in length and ranging
from 550 to 850 g (19 to 30 oz) in weight, with a white breast and
iridescent green–blue plumage. Kererū pairs are monogamous, breeding
over successive seasons and remaining together when not breeding. Found
in a variety of habitats across the country, the kererū feeds mainly on
fruits, as well as on leaves, buds and flowers. Its numbers have
declined since European colonisation and the arrival of invasive mammals
such as rats, stoats and possums, although its populations have recently
increased in suburban habitats. Considered a taonga (cultural treasure)
to the Māori people, the kererū was historically a major food source
in Māori culture. In 2018, it was designated Bird of the Year by the
New Zealand organisation Forest & Bird.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerer%C5%AB>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1674:
Charles II of England signed the Treaty of Westminster to end
the Third Anglo-Dutch War, confirming English and Dutch sovereignty over
New Netherland and Surinam, respectively.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Anglo-Dutch_War>
1942:
Second World War: In the largest attack mounted by a foreign
power against Australia, more than 240 Japanese aircraft bombed Darwin,
Northern Territory (pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Darwin>
2012:
Forty-four inmates died during a riot at a prison in Apodaca,
Mexico.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apodaca_prison_riot>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
rainmaker:
1. Someone or something that causes or attempts to cause rain to fall.
2. An African or Native American medicine man who seeks to induce rain
through performing rituals.
3. A person who seeks to induce rainfall through scientific methods,
such as cloud seeding.
4. (originally Canada, US, figuratively, informal) A person having the
ability to generate business, raise funds, or otherwise engineer success
for a company, organization, etc.
5. (baseball, informal) A batted ball that is hit very high into the
air.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rainmaker>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Art today can only be revolutionary, that is, it must aspire at
the complete and radical reconstruction of society, even if for no other
reason than to emancipate intellectual creation from the chains which
obstruct it and to allow all mankind to rise to the heights that only
geniuses could reach in the past.
--André Breton
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Breton>
The Wonderful Parliament was a session of the English parliament held
from October to November 1386 in Westminster Abbey. Called by King
Richard II (pictured) to address his need for money, it attempted to
reform his administration. Richard had become increasingly unpopular due
to perceived extravagance towards his political favourites and the
unsuccessful prosecution of war against France. Discontent climaxed when
Richard requested a then-unprecedented sum to raise an army. The House
of Lords and the House of Commons united against him and his unpopular
chancellor, Michael de la Pole, demanding the latter's impeachment.
Richard requested the Commons send a delegation to negotiate;
Parliament, fearing an ambush, sent two lords instead. The lords
threatened Richard with deposition until he agreed to do Parliament's
bidding. He was forced to sack de la Pole and was restricted to advisers
appointed by parliament. The King was incensed and left Westminster
almost immediately.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonderful_Parliament>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1814:
War of the Sixth Coalition: French troops led by Napoleon
forced the Army of Bohemia to retreat after it advanced dangerously
close to Paris (depicted).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Montereau>
1942:
World War II: The Imperial Japanese Army began the systematic
extermination of perceived hostile elements among Chinese Singaporeans.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sook_Ching>
2007:
Terrorist bombs exploded on a Samjhauta Express train in
Panipat, India, killing 68 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Samjhauta_Express_bombings>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
husbandry:
1. The occupation or work of a husbandman or farmer; the cultivation of
crops and the raising of livestock; agriculture.
2. The prudent management or conservation of resources.
3. (now chiefly nautical) Administration or management of day-to-day
matters.
4. (obsolete) Agricultural or cultivated land.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/husbandry>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The ability of writers to imagine what is not the self, to
familiarize the strange and mystify the familiar, is the test of their
power.
--Toni Morrison
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Toni_Morrison>
The Ur-Quan are a fictional race of predatory alien caterpillars in the
Star Control series of video games, created by Paul Reiche III and Fred
Ford (both pictured). The first Star Control game introduces the Ur-Quan
as leading a galactic empire which seeks to enslave Earth. Their story
is expanded in Star Control II, revealing them as former slaves who
since vowed to fiercely defend themselves. They also appear in Star
Control 3 and The Ur-Quan Masters. Reiche and Ford developed the Ur-
Quan based on the concepts for unique spaceships in Star Control; their
insectoid appearance was inspired by a National Geographic photo of a
caterpillar. Their role in Star Control II has earned the Ur-Quan
acclaim as among the best game villains of all time, praised for their
menacing persona, as well as their surprising depth and humanity. The
Ur-Quan have also influenced other game studios, inspiring concepts in
games such as Mass Effect and Stellaris.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur-Quan>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1894:
Rudolf Diesel's first working diesel engine ran for one minute.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel_engine>
1944:
World War II: The U.S. Navy began Operation Hailstone, a
massive naval air and surface attack against the Japanese naval and air
base at Truk in the Caroline Islands.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Hailstone>
1959:
Vanguard 2 (model pictured), the first weather satellite, was
launched to measure cloud cover distribution.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanguard_2>
2006:
A massive landslide in the Philippine province of Southern
Leyte killed over 1,000 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Southern_Leyte_mudslide>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
hobbyist:
A person who is interested in an activity or a subject as a hobby.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hobbyist>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Political realism believes that politics, like society in
general, is governed by objective laws that have their roots in human
nature. In order to improve society it is first necessary to understand
the laws by which society lives. The operation of these laws being
impervious to our preferences, men will challenge them only at the risk
of failure. Realism, believing as it does in the objectivity of the
laws of politics, must also believe in the possibility of developing a
rational theory that reflects, however imperfectly and one-sidedly,
these objective laws. It believes also, then, in the possibility of
distinguishing in politics between truth and opinion — between what is
true objectively and rationally, supported by evidence and illuminated
by reason, and what is only a subjective judgment, divorced from the
facts as they are and informed by prejudice and wishful thinking.
--Hans Morgenthau
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hans_Morgenthau>
SS Choctaw was a steel-hulled American freighter in service between
1892 and 1915 on the Great Lakes of North America. She was a so-called
monitor vessel, containing elements of traditional lake freighters and
the whaleback ships designed by Alexander McDougall. Choctaw was built
in 1892 by the Cleveland Shipbuilding Company in Cleveland, Ohio. On her
regular route between Cleveland and the Michigan cities of Detroit,
Escanaba, and Marquette, she carried coal upbound and iron ore
downbound. In foggy conditions on July 11, 1915, Choctaw was on Lake
Huron upbound for Marquette when she was rammed east of Presque Isle
Light by the downbound Canadian canaller Wahcondah. Although Choctaw
sank in only 17 minutes, her crew of 22 escaped, and was picked up by
Wahcondah. The wreck was located on May 23, 2017, lying on her
starboard side with the bow partly buried in the lake bottom. It was
listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 10,
2018.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Choctaw>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1859:
The French government passed a law setting the musical note A4
to a frequency of 435 hertz, in the first attempt to standardize
concert pitch.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concert_pitch>
1923:
English Egyptologist and archaeologist Howard Carter unsealed
Tutankhamun's tomb, KV62, in the Valley of the Kings.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomb_of_Tutankhamun>
1959:
Fidel Castro was sworn in as Prime Minister of Cuba, beginning
his decades-long rule over the country.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidel_Castro>
2013:
At least 91 people were killed and 190 others injured after a
bomb hidden in a water tank exploded at a market in Hazara Town,
Pakistan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_2013_Quetta_bombing>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
deglutition:
(physiology) The act or process of swallowing.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/deglutition>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I don't have any answers. Use your common sense. Be nice. This is
the best I can do. All the trouble in the world is human trouble. Well,
that's not true. But when cancer cells run amok and burst out of the
prostate and take over the liver and lymph glands and end up killing
everything in the body including themselves, they certainly are acting
like some humans we know.
--P. J. O'Rourke
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/P._J._O%27Rourke>
David Berman (1967–2019) was an American musician, singer and poet. In
1989, with Pavement's Stephen Malkmus and Bob Nastanovich, he founded
the indie-rock band Silver Jews, and was its only constant member until
its dissolution in 2009. He provided the band's characteristic lyrics
and the simple country-rock sound they developed from their early lo-fi
recordings. His abstract, autobiographical lyrics were his creative
priority, and he extensively labored over them. Despite believing his
work was unappreciated, Berman cultivated a passionate following and
became an influential figure in indie rock. After he announced his
withdrawal from music in 2009, his return to music in 2019, under the
moniker Purple Mountains, prompted an enthusiastic response. His return
to music closely preceded his death. Berman's life was marred by
difficulties; his music and poetry showcase a forlorn quality, using
varied characters in eccentric and surreal circumstances.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Berman_%28musician%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1493:
Christopher Columbus wrote a letter, which was widely
distributed upon his return to Portugal, announcing the results of his
first voyage to the Americas.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbus%27s_letter_on_the_first_voyage>
1900:
Second Boer War: British cavalry led by John French defeated
Boer forces to end a 124-day siege of Kimberley in present-day South
Africa.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Kimberley>
1942:
Second World War: Japanese forces led by General Tomoyuki
Yamashita captured Singapore, with the largest surrender of British-led
military personnel in history (pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_of_Singapore>
2012:
The world's deadliest prison fire took place at the National
Penitentiary at Comayagua, Honduras, killing 361 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comayagua_prison_fire>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
meet cute:
(intransitive, informal) Of characters in a story or people in real
life: to meet each other in an adorable, amusing, or cute way.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/meet_cute>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I’m totally not kidding … Life is too short. This is all too
hard to do to actually be kidding about the whole thing.
--Miranda July
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Miranda_July>
The Beautician and the Beast is a 1997 American romantic comedy film
directed by Ken Kwapis and written by Todd Graff. It stars Fran Drescher
(pictured) as a New York City beautician who is hired to tutor the
children of a fictional Eastern European dictator, played by Timothy
Dalton. The film takes inspiration from other stories like Beauty and
the Beast, The King and I, Evita, and The Sound of Music. Produced by
Drescher and Paramount Pictures, The Beautician and the Beast had
Drescher's first starring role in a film. Filming took place in
Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills, California, and Sychrov Castle in
the Czech Republic. Cliff Eidelman composed the soundtrack, which
features the London Metropolitan Orchestra. Critics panned the story as
more appropriate for a sitcom, and Drescher and Dalton received mixed
reviews for their performances. The Beautician and the Beast was a box-
office bomb, grossing roughly $11.5 million against a production budget
of $16 million.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beautician_and_the_Beast>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1852:
The Hospital for Sick Children, the first hospital in England
to provide in-patient beds specifically for children, was founded in
London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Ormond_Street_Hospital>
1924:
The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company was renamed to
International Business Machines, which grew into one of the world's
largest companies by market capitalization.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM>
1989:
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa calling for
the death of Salman Rushdie, the author of The Satanic Verses, a novel
considered to be blasphemous by some Muslims.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Satanic_Verses_controversy>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
love interest:
1. Especially of a character in film or literature: one who is of
interest as a (potential) partner in love.
2. A romantic relationship; a romance.
3. (film, literature, specifically) A romantic plot or subplot in a film
or book.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/love_interest>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Love does not rule; but it trains, and that is more.
--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Johann_Wolfgang_von_Goethe>
The Great Western Railway War Memorial is a First World War memorial by
Charles Sargeant Jagger and Thomas S. Tait. It stands on platform 1 at
London Paddington station, commemorating the 2,500 Great Western Railway
(GWR) employees killed in the conflict. A third of the GWR's workforce
of almost 80,000 left to fight in the war, the company guaranteeing
their jobs. The memorial consists of a bronze statue of a soldier in
heavy winter clothing, reading a letter from home. The statue stands on
a polished granite plinth, within a white stone surround. The names of
the dead are on a roll buried in the plinth. GWR chairman Viscount
Churchill unveiled the memorial on 11 November 1922 in front of over
6,000 people, including the Archbishop of Canterbury, GWR officials, and
relatives of the dead. When public gatherings were restricted during
the COVID-19 pandemic, local communities on the GWR network laid wreaths
on trains that carried them to Paddington to be laid at the memorial for
Armistice Day.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Western_Railway_War_Memorial>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1867:
Work began on the covering of the Senne, burying the polluted
main river of Brussels to allow for urban renewal in the centre of the
city.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Covering_of_the_Senne>
1945:
World War II: The Allies began a strategic bombing of Dresden,
Germany, resulting in a lethal firestorm that killed tens of thousands
of civilians.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Dresden_in_World_War_II>
1978:
A bomb exploded outside the Hilton Hotel in Sydney, the site of
the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, killing three people and
injuring eleven others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Hilton_Hotel_bombing>
2012:
The first Vega rocket was launched by the European Space
Agency.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vega_%28rocket%29>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
shock stall:
(aviation) A stall (“sudden loss of efficiency”) caused when the airflow
over an aircraft's wings is disturbed by shock waves that occurs at a
specific Mach number when the aircraft is accelerating to transonic
speeds.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/shock_stall>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Men are more often bribed by their loyalties and ambitions than
by money.
--George Meredith
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Meredith>