Primates are a mammalian order which includes modern humans. Most
non-human primates live in tropical or subtropical regions of the
Americas, Africa, and Asia. Primates range in size from the Madame
Berthe's mouse lemur, which weighs only 30 grams (1.1 oz) to the
mountain gorilla weighing 200 kilograms (440 lb). According to fossil
evidence, the primitive ancestors of primates may have existed in the
late Cretaceous period around 65 million years ago, and the oldest
known primate is the Late Paleocene Plesiadapis, c. 55–58 million years
ago. Primates are characterized by their large brains, and increased
reliance on stereoscopic vision at the expense of smell. These features
are most marked in monkeys and apes, and noticeably less so in lorises
and lemurs. Three-color vision has developed in some primates. Most
also have opposable thumbs and some have prehensile tails.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primate>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1253:
Mindaugas, the first known Grand Duke of Lithuania, was crowned as King
of Lithuania, the only person to ever hold that title.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindaugas>
1535:
Thomas More , an opponent of the Protestant Reformation, was executed
for treason for refusing to accept Henry VIII as the Supreme Head of
the Church of England.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_More>
1892:
During a steelworkers' strike in Homestead, Pennsylvania, US, a
day-long battle between strikers and Pinkerton agents resulted in ten
deaths and dozens of people wounded.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Strike>
1988:
An explosion and resulting fire destroyed Occidental Petroleum's oil
platform Piper Alpha in the North Sea, killing 168 people.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piper_Alpha>
2006:
Nathu La, a mountain pass in the Himalayas connecting India and China,
sealed during the Sino-Indian War, re-opened for trade after more than
40 years.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathu_La>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
thoroughfare (n):
A public passage, path or road affording communication between two
places; a main street or highway
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/thoroughfare>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
I believe that at every level of society — familial, tribal, national
and international — the key to a happier and more successful world is
the growth of compassion. We do not need to become religious, nor do we
need to believe in an ideology. All that is necessary is for each of us
to develop our good human qualities.
--Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tenzin_Gyatso%2C_14th_Dalai_Lama>
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