Satoru Iwata (December 6, 1959 – July 11, 2015) was a Japanese game
programmer and businessman who became the fourth president and chief
executive officer of Nintendo in 2002. Born in Sapporo, Japan, Iwata
expressed interest in video games from an early age and later majored in
computer science at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. He joined the
game developer HAL Laboratory in 1980 and became its president in 1993.
Joining Nintendo as the head of its corporate-planning division in 2000,
he brought growth to the company. A self-declared gamer, he focused on
expanding the appeal of video games across all demographics and
increasing the market space. He also built a strong relationship with
Nintendo fans through social media and his regular appearances in Iwata
Asks and Nintendo Direct, becoming the public face of the company. Under
his direction, Nintendo developed the profitable Nintendo DS and Wii
video game consoles, but the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U dropped net sales by
two-thirds from 2009 to 2012, leaving the company with its first
operating losses in 30 years. Iwata voluntarily halved his salary as an
apology in 2011 and 2014.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satoru_Iwata>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1302:
Flemish infantry defeat a large French army near Kortrijk at
the Battle of the Golden Spurs.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Golden_Spurs>
1833:
Noongar warrior Yagan, wanted for leading attacks on white
colonists in Western Australia, was killed, becoming a symbol of the
unjust and sometimes brutal treatment of the indigenous peoples of
Australia by colonial settlers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yagan>
1921:
Former President of the United States William Howard Taft was
sworn in as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, making him the only
person to ever hold both positions.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Howard_Taft>
1943:
In a massive ethnic cleansing operation, units of the Ukrainian
Insurgent Army attacked various Polish villages in the Volhynia region
of present-day Ukraine, killing the Polish civilians and burning those
settlements to the ground.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacres_of_Poles_in_Volhynia_and_Eastern_Ga…>
1991:
Shortly after takeoff from King Abdulaziz International
Airport, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria Airways Flight 2120 caught fire and
crashed, killing all 261 occupants on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria_Airways_Flight_2120>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
longhauling:
1. The act of travelling long distances.
2. The act of a taxicab driver taking a passenger on a long detour to the
destination without consent in order to drive up the fare.
3. The act of transporting goods over long distances.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/longhauling>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
When you consider that there are a thousand ways to express even
the simplest idea, it is no wonder writers are under a great strain.
Writers care greatly how a thing is said — it makes all the
difference. So they are constantly faced with too many choices and must
make too many decisions. I am still encouraged to go on. I wouldn't know
where else to go.
--E. B. White
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/E._B._White>
No. 90 (Composite) Wing was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) wing
that operated during the early years of the Malayan Emergency. Its
purpose was to serve as an overarching organisation for the RAAF units
deployed in the conflict, No. 1 (Bomber) Squadron, flying Avro
Lincolns, and No. 38 (Transport) Squadron, flying Douglas C-47 Dakotas.
The wing was established on 10 July 1950 and headquartered at Changi, on
the east coast of Singapore. No. 1 Squadron operated from Tengah, in
Singapore's west. No. 38 Squadron was based at Changi and, from April
1951 to February 1952, at Kuala Lumpur in central Malaya. The Lincolns
generally conducted area bombing missions, as well as precision strikes,
to harass communist insurgents. The Dakotas were tasked with airlifting
cargo, VIPs, troops and casualties, as well as courier flights and
supply drops. Following No. 38 Squadron's departure in December 1952,
No. 90 Wing was disbanded, leaving No. 1 Squadron to carry on as the
sole RAAF unit in the campaign until its withdrawal to Australia in July
1958.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._90_Wing_RAAF>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1645:
English Civil War: The Parliamentarians destroyed the last
Royalist field army at the Battle of Langport, ultimately giving
Parliament control of the West of England.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Langport>
1806:
Indian sepoys mutinied against the East India Company when they
broke into Vellore Fort and killed or injured 200 British troops.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vellore_mutiny>
1921:
One day after a truce between the Irish Republican Army and
British forces, violence between Catholics and Protestants in Belfast
resulted in sixteen dead.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Sunday_(1921)>
1941:
The Holocaust: A group of non-Jewish ethnic Poles from around
the nearby area murdered hundreds of Jewish residents of Jedwabne in
occupied Poland (memorial pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedwabne_pogrom>
2011:
The British tabloid newspaper News of the World published its
last edition before closing due to allegations that it hacked the
voicemails of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler, victims of the 7/7
attacks and relatives of deceased British soldiers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/News_International_phone_hacking_scandal>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
flamboyant:
1. Showy, bold or audacious in behaviour, appearance, etc.
2. (architecture) Referring to the final stage of French Gothic
architecture from the 14th to the 16th centuries.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/flamboyant>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
People are curious. A few people are. They will be driven to find
things out, even trivial things. They will put things together, knowing
all along that they may be mistaken. You see them going around with
notebooks, scraping the dirt off gravestones, reading microfilm, just in
the hope of seeing this trickle in time, making a connection, rescuing
one thing from the rubbish.
--Alice Munro
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alice_Munro>
The genus Deinocheirus (Greek for "horrible hand") was a dinosaur that
lived during the Late Cretaceous around 70 million years ago. In 1965
its shoulder girdles and a pair of large arms (pictured) were first
discovered in the Nemegt Formation of Mongolia, and in 2014 two complete
specimens were described. Deinocheirus was the largest ornithomimosaur
(ostrich dinosaur), at 11 m (36 ft) long, and weighed 6.36 t
(14,000 lb), although it had many hollow bones. The arms were among the
largest of any bipedal dinosaurs at 2.4 m (7.9 ft) long, with large,
blunt claws on its three-fingered hands. The legs were relatively short,
and bore blunt claws. Its vertebrae had tall spines that formed a sail
along its back. The skull was 1.024 m (3.36 ft) long, with a wide bill
and a deep lower jaw. Deinocheirus is thought to have been omnivorous;
its skull shape indicates a diet of plants, and fish scales were found
with one specimen. It probably used gastroliths to grind food. The large
claws may have been used for digging and gathering plants. Bite marks on
Deinocheirus bones have been attributed to the tyrannosaurid
Tarbosaurus.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinocheirus>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1745:
War of the Austrian Succession: The French victory in the
Battle of Melle enabled their subsequent capture of Ghent.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Melle>
1811:
British explorer David Thompson posted a notice at the
confluence of the Columbia and Snake Rivers (in modern Washington state,
US), claiming the area for Great Britain.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Thompson_(explorer)>
1943:
World War II: The Allies began their invasion of Sicily, a
large scale amphibious and airborne operation, followed by six weeks of
land combat.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allied_invasion_of_Sicily>
1981:
Nintendo released the arcade game Donkey Kong, which featured
the debut of Mario, one of the most famous characters in video game
history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario>
2008:
Under the belief that Israel and the United States were
planning to attack its nuclear programme, Iran conducted the Great
Prophet III missile test and war games exercise.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Prophet_III>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
obeah:
1. A form of folk magic, medicine or witchcraft originating in Africa and
practised in parts of the Caribbean.
2. A magician or witch doctor of the magic craft.
3. A spell performed in the practice of the magic craft; an item associated
with such a spell.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/obeah>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
In every nation thou beholdest unnumbered spiritual leaders who
are bereft of true discernment, and among every people thou dost
encounter myriads of adherents who are devoid of the same
characteristic. Ponder for a while in thy heart, have pity on thyself
and turn not aside thine attention from proofs and evidences. However,
seek not proofs and evidences after thine idle fancy; but rather base
thy proofs upon what God hath appointed. Moreover, know thou that
neither being a man of learning nor being a follower is in itself a
source of glory. If thou art a man of learning, thy knowledge becometh
an honour, and if thou art a follower, thine adherence unto leadership
becometh an honour, only when these conform to the good-pleasure of God.
--The Báb
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/B%C3%A1b>
The Jeannette Expedition of 1879–81 was an attempt led by George W. De
Long to reach the North Pole using a route through the Bering Strait to
the fabled temperate Open Polar Sea. The expedition was financed by
James Gordon Bennett, Jr., the proprietor of the New York Herald, and
based on the ocean current theories of the German cartographer August
Petermann. The attempt failed; the expedition's ship, USS Jeannette
(pictured), drifted in the polar ice for nearly two years before being
crushed and sunk, north of the Siberian coast. De Long then led his men
on a journey by boat and sled to the Lena Delta. Before ultimate rescue,
more than half of the ship's complement died, including De Long. During
Jeannette's long drift the expedition discovered what were later called
the De Long Islands, and collected significant meteorological and
oceanographic data. Although the ship's fate demolished the long-
standing Open Polar Sea theory, the appearance in 1884 of debris from
the wreck on the south-west coast of Greenland indicated that an Arctic
current carried the ice from east to west. This discovery inspired
Fridtjof Nansen to mount his Fram expedition nine years later.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeannette_Expedition>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1283:
War of the Sicilian Vespers: An Aragonese fleet of galleys
inflicted a crushing defeat on an Angevin fleet at Malta, forcing
Charles I of Naples to postpone his plan to invade Sicily.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Malta>
1758:
French and Indian War: French forces defeated the British at
Fort Carillon on the shore of Lake Champlain in the British Colony of
New York.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Carillon>
1808:
Joseph Bonaparte approved the Bayonne Statute, a royal charter
intended as the basis for his rule as King of Spain during the
Peninsular War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayonne_Statute>
1889:
The first issue of The Wall Street Journal, the world's most
circulated business daily newspaper, was published.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wall_Street_Journal>
1962:
In response to student protests at Rangoon University, Burmese
General Ne Win ordered the demolition of the school's Students Union
building.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1962_Rangoon_University_protests>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
decommission:
1. To take out of service or to render unusable.
2. To remove or revoke a commission.
3. To remove or revoke a formal designation.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/decommission>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I would rather hire a man with enthusiasm, than a man who knows
everything.
--John D. Rockefeller
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_D._Rockefeller>
Aaliyah, released on July 7, 2001, by Blackground Records and Virgin
Records America, is the third and final studio album by American R&B;
recording artist Aaliyah (pictured). Recorded periodically from 1998 to
2000, it is an R&B; and neo soul record, drawing on funk, hip hop,
alternative rock, and electronica sounds, among others. Most of the song
lyrics were written by Static Major, and deal with the complexities of
romantic love and the stages of a relationship; Aaliyah viewed the album
as a reflection of herself as both a young adult and a matured vocalist.
Aaliyah received positive critical reviews, and debuted at number two on
the Billboard 200, though sales began to drop off shortly after its
release. Following Aaliyah's death in a plane crash on August 25, 2001,
seven weeks after the album's release, sales skyrocketed, and the album
reentered the Billboard 200 at number one. Aaliyah was released during a
period of peak activity in contemporary R&B; since its initial
reception, it has been cited by critics as one of the best R&B; records
of its time.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaliyah_(album)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1456:
Twenty-five years after her death, Joan of Arc was declared
innocent of heresy in a posthumous retrial.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retrial_of_Joan_of_Arc>
1846:
Mexican–American War: American forces led by Commodore John
D. Sloat occupied Monterey, beginning the annexation of California.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Monterey>
1892:
The Philippine revolutionary secret society Katipunan was
founded by anti-Spanish Filipinos in Manila.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katipunan>
1946:
Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini became the first American to be
canonized as a saint.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Xavier_Cabrini>
2012:
The equivalent of five months of rain fell overnight in
Krasnodar Krai, Russia, causing flash floods and killing 171 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_Krasnodar_Krai_floods>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
adhocracy:
(business) An organizational system designed to be flexible and
responsive to the needs of the moment rather than excessively
bureaucratic.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/adhocracy>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There are three schools of magic. One: State a tautology, then
ring the changes on its corollaries; that’s philosophy. Two: Record
many facts. Try to see a pattern. Then make a wrong guess at the next
fact; that’s science. Three: Awareness that you live in a malevolent
universe controlled by Murphy’s Law, sometimes offset in part by
Brewster’s Factor: that’s engineering.
--Robert A. Heinlein
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_A._Heinlein>
The history of the New York Yankees Major League Baseball team spans
more than a century. Frank J. Farrell and William Stephen Devery bought
the rights to an American League (AL) club in New York City after the
1902 season. The team, which became the Yankees in 1913, won their first
AL title in 1921, followed by their first World Series championship in
1923. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig were part of the team's Murderers' Row
lineup; under Miller Huggins, they led the Yankees to a Series
championship and a 110-win season, a league record in 1927. The Yankees
won the World Series every year from 1936 to 1939 with a team that
featured Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio. New York set a major league record by
winning five consecutive championships from 1949 to 1953, and appeared
in the World Series nine times during the next 11 years. Despite
management disputes, the team reached the World Series four times
between 1976 and 1981, claiming the championship in 1977 and 1978. Their
1998–2000 teams were the last to win three straight World Series
titles. In 2009, they won the title for a record 27th time.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_New_York_Yankees>
_______________________________
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.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindaugas>
1809:
Napoleon's French forces defeated Archduke Charles' Austrian
army at the Battle of Wagram, the decisive confrontation of the War of
the Fifth Coalition.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Wagram>
1905:
American schoolteacher Katie DeWitt James filed for divorce
from her husband, beginning a series of events that would ultimately
lead to her unsolved murder and the consequent naming of Dead Women
Crossing, Oklahoma.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Women_Crossing,_Oklahoma>
1936:
A major breach of the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal in England
sent millions of gallons of water cascading 300 ft (91 m) into the
River Irwell.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manchester_Bolton_%26_Bury_Canal>
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.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathu_La>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Eid al-Fitr:
(Islam) The religious celebration at the end of Ramadan, on the first
day of the tenth month of the Muslim lunar calendar.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Eid_al-Fitr>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I believe all suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict
pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their happiness or
satisfaction. Yet true happiness comes from a sense of inner peace and
contentment, which in turn must be achieved through the cultivation of
altruism, of love and compassion and elimination of ignorance,
selfishness and greed. The problems we face today, violent conflicts,
destruction of nature, poverty, hunger, and so on, are human-created
problems which can be resolved through human effort, understanding and
the development of a sense of brotherhood and sisterhood. We need to
cultivate a universal responsibility for one another and the planet we
share. Although I have found my own Buddhist religion helpful in
generating love and compassion, even for those we consider our enemies,
I am convinced that everyone can develop a good heart and a sense of
universal responsibility with or without religion.
--Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tenzin_Gyatso,_14th_Dalai_Lama>
Nights into Dreams... is an action video game developed by Sonic Team
and published by Sega for the Sega Saturn in 1996. The story follows two
teenagers, Claris and Elliot, who enter a dream world called Nightopia
where all dreams take place. With the help of Nights, they begin a
journey to stop the evil ruler Wizeman from destroying Nightopia and
consequently the real world. Nights flies through Claris and Elliot's
dreams, gathering energy to defeat Wizeman and save Nightopia.
Development began soon after the release of Sonic & Knuckles in 1994,
and was led by Sonic Team veterans Yuji Naka, Naoto Ohshima, and Takashi
Iizuka. Naka began the project with flight as a main theme, and Ohshima
designed the character Nights to resemble an angel that could fly like a
bird. An analogue controller, known as the Saturn 3D controller, was
designed alongside the game. Nights into Dreams... received positive
reviews upon release; critics praised the graphics, gameplay,
soundtrack, and atmosphere. It has been included on multiple lists as
the best Sega Saturn game of all time, as well as one of the best video
games ever made.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nights_into_Dreams...>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1687:
The Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Isaac
Newton was first published, describing his laws of motion and his law of
universal gravitation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophi%C3%A6_Naturalis_Principia_Mathemat…>
1865:
Royal Assent was given to an Act of Parliament allowing the
Talyllyn Railway to carry passengers by steam haulage – the first
narrow gauge railway in Britain to do so from the start.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talyllyn_Railway>
1946:
Named after Bikini Atoll, the site of the nuclear weapons test
Operation Crossroads in the Marshall Islands, the modern bikini was
introduced at a fashion show in Paris.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bikini>
1977:
General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq overthrew Pakistani Prime Minister
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in a military coup d'état.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Zia-ul-Haq>
2006:
The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting
hours after North Korea reportedly tested at least seven separate
ballistic missiles.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_North_Korean_missile_test>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
trousseau:
1. The clothes and linen, etc., that a bride collects for her wedding and
married life.
2. (obsolete) A bundle.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/trousseau>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Politeness and civility are the best capital ever invested in
business.
--P. T. Barnum
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/P._T._Barnum>
The United States Sesquicentennial coins, a commemorative half dollar
and quarter eagle (gold $2.50 piece) for the 150th anniversary of
American independence, were struck in 1926 at the Philadelphia Mint. The
half dollar depicts George Washington and then-president Calvin
Coolidge, making Coolidge the only president to appear on a U.S. coin
while living. The National Sesquicentennial Exhibition Commission was
chartered by Congress in 1925, and was allowed to purchase and resell
for profit 1,000,000 specially designed half dollars and 200,000 quarter
eagles. The Commission had trouble agreeing on designs with Mint Chief
Engraver John R. Sinnock, and asked artist John Frederick Lewis to
submit sketches. These were adapted by Sinnock for the half dollar,
without giving credit to Lewis, whose involvement would not be generally
known for forty years. The maximum number of each coin was struck, with
many melted when they failed to sell at a premium. The Liberty Bell
reverse for the half dollar was reused by Sinnock, again without giving
Lewis credit, on his Franklin half dollar, first minted in 1948.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Sesquicentennial_coinage>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1054:
Chinese astronomers recorded the sudden appearance of a "guest
star", which was in actuality the supernova that created the Crab Nebula
(pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crab_Nebula>
1610:
Polish–Muscovite War: The outnumbered forces of the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth defeated the Tsardom of Russia at the
Battle of Klushino.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Klushino>
1855:
The first edition of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass was
published, and it went on to become one of the most important
collections of American poetry.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaves_of_Grass>
1941:
German AB-Aktion operation in Poland: After capturing Lwów,
the Nazis executed approximately 45 professors of the University of
Lwów.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacre_of_Lviv_professors>
1976:
Israel Defense Forces raided Uganda's Entebbe International
Airport to free hostages taken by hijackers on Air France Flight 139.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Entebbe>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
sparerib:
A cut of meat including the rib bones.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sparerib>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Let us cast off our hatreds. Let us candidly accept our treaties
and our natural obligations of peace. We know and everyone knows that
these old systems, antagonisms, and reliance on force have failed. If
the world has made any progress, it has been the result of the
development of other ideals. If we are to maintain and perfect our own
civilization, if we are to be of any benefit to the rest of mankind, we
must turn aside from the thoughts of destruction and cultivate the
thoughts of construction. We can not place our main reliance upon
material forces. We must reaffirm and reinforce our ancient faith in
truth and justice, in charitableness and tolerance. We must make our
supreme commitment to the everlasting spiritual forces of life. We must
mobilize the conscience of mankind.
--Calvin Coolidge
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Calvin_Coolidge>
John Balmer (3 July 1910 – 11 May 1944) was a bomber pilot in the
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). He joined the RAAF in 1932, and
gained attention as a cross-country motorist before the war. In 1940 he
became the inaugural commanding officer of No. 13 Squadron, operating
Lockheed Hudsons in Northern Australia. He was raised to temporary wing
commander in 1941, and within a year had taken charge of the RAAF's
first Bristol Beaufort unit, No. 100 Squadron. Appointed an Officer of
the Order of the British Empire in 1942, he led the Beauforts on bombing
and torpedo missions against Japanese targets during the New Guinea
campaign. Posted to England in 1943, Balmer took command of No. 467
Squadron RAAF, flying Avro Lancasters in the air war over Europe. He led
his unit through the Battle of Berlin from November 1943 to March 1944.
In April he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, and the
following month promoted to temporary group captain. Days later, on the
night of 11 May, Balmer's last scheduled operation as the squadron's
commanding officer, he and his crew were killed when their plane was
shot down. He was buried outside Brussels.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Balmer>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
987:
Hugh Capet was crowned King of France, becoming the first
monarch of the Capetian dynasty, which ruled France continuously until
overthrown during the French Revolution in 1792.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Capet>
1767:
Midshipman Robert Pitcairn sighted Pitcairn Island,
subsequently named after him, during an expeditionary voyage led by
Philip Carteret.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitcairn_Islands>
1898:
In one of the key naval engagements of the Spanish-American
War, the United States Navy destroyed the Spanish Navy's Caribbean
Squadron.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Santiago_de_Cuba>
1940:
Second World War: The British Navy attacked the French fleet
(French destroyer Mogador pictured), fearing that the ships would fall
into German hands after the armistice between those two nations.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Mers-el-K%C3%A9bir>
1970:
The Troubles: The British Army imposed the Falls Curfew on
Belfast, Northern Ireland, which only resulted in greater Irish
republican resistance.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falls_Curfew>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
push factor:
A factor that encourages one to leave one's current home, region,
country, organization, or religion.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/push_factor>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
All human errors are impatience, the premature breaking off of
what is methodical, an apparent fencing in of the apparent thing.
--Franz Kafka
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Franz_Kafka>
The barn owl (Tyto alba) is the most widely distributed species of owl,
and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is found in most parts
of the world, with one major lineage in the New World, one in
Australasia, and another in Eurasia and Africa. The 28 subspecies,
between 33 and 39 cm (13 and 15 in) in length, have wingspans ranging
from 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). Their colours vary, but most have
mottled grey or brown plumage and paler underparts, with a white, heart-
shaped face. The barn owl relies on acute hearing to detect small
mammals and other prey, hunting almost exclusively at night. It does not
hoot, but utters an eerie, drawn-out shriek. It mates for life unless
one of a pair dies, when a new pair bond may be formed. The nest is in a
hollow tree, old building or cliff; the female does all the incubation,
and she and the young chicks rely on the male for food. When large
numbers of small prey are available, barn owl populations can expand
rapidly. Globally, the species is not threatened, except for some
subspecies with restricted ranges.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barn_owl>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
706:
In China, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang interred the final bodies in
the Qianling Mausoleum, which remained unopened until the 1960s.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qianling_Mausoleum>
1816:
The French frigate Méduse ran aground off the coast of
today's Mauritania, with the survivors escaping on a makeshift raft,
which was depicted in Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the
Medusa (pictured).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raft_of_the_Medusa>
1950:
A mentally ill Buddhist monk set fire to the Golden Pavilion at
Kinkaku-ji, destroying what is now one of the most popular tourist
destinations in Japan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinkaku-ji>
1976:
More than a year after the end of the Vietnam War, North and
South Vietnam officially united under communist rule to form the
Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam>
2002:
American aviator Steve Fossett became the first person to fly
solo nonstop around the world in a balloon, completing an almost 14-day
trip after landing in Queensland, Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Fossett>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
devoir:
(archaic, often in plural) Duty, business; something that one must do.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/devoir>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
I do not consider myself less ignorant than most people. I have
been and still am a seeker, but I have ceased to question stars and
books; I have begun to listen to the teachings my blood whispers to me.
My story is not a pleasant one; it is neither sweet nor harmonious, as
invented stories are; it has the taste of nonsense and chaos, of madness
and dreams — like the lives of all men who stop deceiving themselves.
Each man's life represents the road toward himself, and attempt at such
a road, the intimation of a path. No man has ever been entirely and
completely himself. Yet each one strives to become that — one in an
awkward, the other in a more intelligent way, each as best he can.
--Hermann Hesse
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hermann_Hesse>