Wikipedia:Today's featured article/May 2013
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May 1
If Day was a simulated Nazi invasion of the Canadian city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and surrounding areas on February 19, 1942, during the Second World War. It was an elaborate campaign to promote the purchase of Victory Bonds, loans to the government to allow for increased war spending, and over C$3 million was collected in Winnipeg on If Day. As money came in from those selling Victory Bonds, the sections were "reclaimed" from the Nazi invaders. The event was organized by the Greater Winnipeg Victory Loan organization, led by prominent Winnipeg businessman J. D. Perrin. The organizers believed that bringing the war (or, rather, a simulation thereof) to people's homes would result in a change of attitude among those not directly affected by the war. The simulation included 3,500 Canadian Army members, representing all of Winnipeg's units, making it the largest military exercise in Winnipeg to that point. If Day included a staged firefight between Canadian troops and volunteers dressed as German soldiers, the internment of prominent politicians, the imposition of Nazi rule, and a parade. It was the subject of a 2006 documentary, and was included in Guy Maddin's film My Winnipeg. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Adrian Boult – Charles Eaton (RAAF officer) – 1923 FA Cup Final
May 2
United States v. The Progressive was a 1979 lawsuit against The Progressive magazine by the United States Department of Energy (DOE). A temporary injunction was granted against The Progressive to prevent the publication of an article by activist Howard Morland that purported to reveal the "secret" of the hydrogen bomb. The case was brought before Judge Robert W. Warren in the Eastern District of Wisconsin (Federal courthouse pictured). Though the information had been compiled from publicly available sources, the DOE claimed that it fell under the "born secret" clause of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954. Because of the sensitive nature of the information, two separate hearings were conducted, one in public, and the other in camera. The defendants would not accept security clearances, and so were not present at the in camera hearings. The article was eventually published after the government lawyers dropped their case during the appeals process, calling it moot after other information was independently published. Despite its indecisive conclusion, law students still study the case, which tested the limits of the presumption of unconstitutionality attached to prior restraints. (Full article...)
Recently featured: If Day – Adrian Boult – Charles Eaton (RAAF officer)
May 3
Mother India is a 1957 Hindi epic melodrama film, directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar, and Raaj Kumar. A remake of Khan's 1940 film Aurat, it is the story of a poverty-stricken village woman named Radha (Nargis) who struggles to raise her sons amidst many troubles. Despite her hardship, she sets a goddess-like moral example of an ideal Hindu Indian woman. In the end, she kills her criminal son for the greater good. Mother India metaphorically represents India as a nation in the aftermath of independence, and alludes to a strong sense of nationalism and nation-building. While some authors treat Radha as the symbol of women empowerment, others see her cast in female stereotypes. The film was the most expensive Hindi cinema production and earned the highest revenue for any Hindi film at that time. Mother India became a definitive cultural classic and is regarded as one of the best Indian films. It was India's first submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1958, where it made the shortlist. The film won the Filmfare Best Film Award for 1957, and Nargis and Khan won the Best Actress and Best Director awards respectively. (Full article...)
Recently featured: United States v. The Progressive – If Day – Adrian Boult
May 4
George Harrison (1943–2001) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. By 1965 Harrison had begun to lead the other Beatles into folk rock through his interest in the Byrds and Bob Dylan, and towards Indian classical music through his use of the sitar on "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)". He developed an interest in the Hare Krishna movement and became an admirer of Indian culture and mysticism, introducing them to the other Beatles and their Western audience. Following the band's break-up in 1970, Harrison released several best-selling singles and albums as a solo performer, and in 1988 co-founded the platinum-selling supergroup the Traveling Wilburys. A prolific recording artist, he was featured as a guest guitarist on tracks by Badfinger, Ronnie Wood and Billy Preston, and collaborated on songs and music with Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and Tom Petty, among others. He also organized the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh with Ravi Shankar, a precursor to later benefit concerts such as Live Aid. Harrison was also a music and film producer, founding Dark Horse Records in 1974 and co-founding HandMade Films in 1978. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Mother India – United States v. The Progressive – If Day
May 5
Elephants are large mammals found in sub-Saharan Africa, and South and Southeast Asia. Traditionally, two species are recognised, the African elephant (pictured) and the Asian elephant, although some evidence suggests that African bush elephants and African forest elephants are separate species. The largest living terrestrial animals, male African elephants can reach a height of 4 m (13 ft) and weigh 7,000 kg (15,000 lb). Distinctive features include the trunk, used for many purposes, and tusks, which serve as tools and weapons. Females (or "cows") tend to live in family groups; males (or "bulls") leave their family groups when they reach puberty, and may live alone or with other males. Adult bulls mostly interact with family groups when looking for a mate. Elephants can live up to 70 years in the wild, and their intelligence has been compared to primates and cetaceans. African elephants are classed as vulnerable, while the Asian elephant is classed as endangered. Elephants are threatened by poaching for the ivory trade, habitat destruction and conflicts with local people. They are highly recognisable and have been featured in art, folklore, religion, literature and popular culture. (Full article...)
Recently featured: George Harrison – Mother India – United States v. The Progressive
May 6
A Journey is a 2010 memoir by Tony Blair (pictured) discussing his tenure as leader of the British Labour Party (1994–2007), and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1997–2007). Under Blair's stewardship the party was rebranded as New Labour and secured a party record of three successive terms in office. Two of the book's major themes concern Blair's strained relationship with his Chancellor Gordon Brown, and his controversial decision to participate in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Blair discusses Labour's future after its defeat at the 2010 general election, his relations with the Royal Family, and how he came to respect President George W. Bush. A Journey received mixed reviews; some criticised Blair's writing style, but others called it candid. Financial Times editor Lionel Barber described it as "part psychodrama, part treatise on the frustrations of leadership in a modern democracy". Blair donated his £4.6 million advance, and all subsequent royalties, to the British Armed Forces charity The Royal British Legion. It became the fastest-selling autobiography of all time at the bookstore chain Waterstones, but promotional events were marked by antiwar protests. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Elephant – George Harrison – Mother India
May 7
The beliefs and rituals surrounding the gods and goddesses of ancient Egypt formed the core of the religion of ancient Egypt. Believing that gods influenced natural events and human lives, Egyptians interacted with them in many ways. State rites were controlled by the pharaoh, who claimed to be the gods' representative and managed the temples where the rites were performed, while people acting for personal reasons prayed for divine aid and used rituals to compel deities to act. The gods' complex characteristics were expressed in myths and in intricate relationships between deities: family ties, loose groups and hierarchies, and combinations of separate gods into one. Deities' diverse appearances in art—as animals, humans, objects, and combinations of different forms—also alluded, through symbolism, to their essential features. In different eras, various gods were said to hold the highest position in divine society, including the solar deity Ra, the mysterious god Amun, and the mother goddess Isis (pictured with Pharaoh Seti I in her lap). The highest deity was usually credited with the creation of the world and often connected with the life-giving power of the sun. (Full article...)
Recently featured: A Journey – Elephant – George Harrison
May 8
Operation Teardrop was a United States Navy operation of World War II conducted during April and May 1945 to sink German U-boats that were believed to be approaching the U.S. east coast armed with V-1 flying bombs. It was planned during late 1944 in response to intelligence reports which indicated that Germany was preparing a force of missile-armed submarines. The plan was executed in April 1945 after several Type IX submarines put to sea from Norway bound for the United States. While severe weather conditions in the North Atlantic Ocean greatly reduced the effectiveness of the four U.S. Navy escort carriers involved, long patrol lines of destroyer escorts successfully detected and engaged most of the submarines. Four were sunk with the loss of their entire crew. Most of the crew of the other submarine to be sunk were rescued by the US Navy (rescue of survivors from U-546 pictured), and the specialists among the prisoners were brutally interrogated. USS Frederick C. Davis was also sunk with the loss of most of her crew. The surviving U-boats surrendered in early May as part of the general German surrender. After the war the Allies determined that the submarines were not carrying missiles. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Ancient Egyptian deities – A Journey – Elephant
May 9
Hurricane Debbie was the most powerful cyclone on record to strike Ireland in September. The fourth named storm of the 1961 Atlantic hurricane season, Debbie originated from a well-defined tropical disturbance that was first identified in late August over Central Africa. Tracking generally westward, the system moved off the coast of Senegal on September 5 into the Atlantic Ocean. On September 6, Debbie passed through the southern Cape Verde Islands as a strong tropical storm and resulted in a plane crash that killed 60 people. Thereafter its location was uncertain until September 10 and on the following day, Debbie attained its peak intensity as a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale, with maximum winds of 120 mph (195 km/h). Gradually weakening, it passed over the western Azores as a minimal hurricane on September 15 and skirted the coast of Western Ireland on September 16 as a powerful storm. It brought record winds to much of the country, with a peak gust of 114 mph (183 km/h) measured just offshore, causing widespread damage and disruption, killing 12 people (and a further 6 people in Northern Ireland) and caused US$40–50 million in damage. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Operation Teardrop – Ancient Egyptian deities – A Journey
May 10
Phallus indusiatus, commonly called the bamboo fungus, bamboo pith, long net stinkhorn, crinoline stinkhorn or veiled lady, is a fungus in the family Phallaceae, or stinkhorns. It has a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical areas, and is found in southern Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Australia, where it grows in woodlands and gardens in rich soil and well-rotted woody material. The fruit body of the fungus is characterised by a conical to bell-shaped cap on a stalk and a delicate lacy "skirt", or indusium, that hangs from beneath the cap and reaches nearly to the ground. It was first described scientifically in 1798 by French botanist Étienne Pierre Ventenat. Mature fruit bodies are up to 25 cm (9.8 in) tall with a conical to bell-shaped cap that is 1.5–4 cm (0.6–1.6 in) wide. The edible mushroom, grown commercially and commonly sold in Asian markets, is rich in protein, carbohydrates, and dietary fiber. It also contains various bioactive compounds, and has antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Phallus indusiatus has a recorded history of use in Chinese medicine extending back to the 7th century AD, and features in Nigerian folklore. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Hurricane Debbie (1961) – Operation Teardrop – Ancient Egyptian deities
May 11
Danie Mellor (born 1971) is a contemporary Indigenous Australian artist and the winner of the 2009 National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award for a mixed media work From Rite to Ritual. Born in Mackay, Queensland, Mellor studied at North Adelaide School of Art, the Australian National University and Birmingham Institute of Art and Design. He then took up a post lecturing at Sydney College of the Arts. He works in different media including printmaking, drawing, painting, and sculpture. The dominant theme in Mellor's art is the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian cultures. Since 2000, Mellor's works have been included regularly in National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award exhibitions and in 2003 he was awarded a "highly commended", for his print Cyathea cooperi. His other major exhibitions have included the Primavera 2005 show at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, and the National Indigenous Art Triennial at the National Gallery of Australia in 2007. In 2012, his work was included in the National Museum of Australia's exhibition Menagerie: contemporary Indigenous sculpture and the second National Indigenous Art Triennial. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Phallus indusiatus – Hurricane Debbie (1961) – Operation Teardrop
May 12
Lady Grange (1679–1745) was the wife of James Erskine, Lord Grange, a Scottish lawyer with Jacobite sympathies. After 25 years of marriage and nine children, the Granges separated acrimoniously. When Lady Grange produced letters that she claimed were evidence of his treasonable plottings against the Hanoverian government in London, her husband had her kidnapped from her home in Edinburgh on the night of 22 January 1732. She was incarcerated in various remote locations on the western seaboard of Scotland, including the Monach Isles, Skye and the distant islands of St Kilda. Lady Grange's father was convicted of murder when she was about 10 years old and she is known to have had a violent temper; initially her absence seems to have caused little comment. No action was ever taken on her behalf by any of her children, the eldest of whom would have been in their early twenties when she was abducted. News of her plight eventually reached Edinburgh however, and an unsuccessful rescue attempt was undertaken by her lawyer, Thomas Hope of Rankeillor. She died in captivity, after being effectively imprisoned for 13 years. Her life has been remembered in poetry, prose and a play. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Danie Mellor – Phallus indusiatus – Hurricane Debbie (1961)
May 13
The State Trunkline Highway System in Michigan consists of all the state highways, including those designated as Interstate, United States, or State Trunkline highways. Maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation, the system comprises 9,716 miles (15,636 km) of trunklines in all 83 counties of the state. Its components range in scale from 10-lane urban freeways to two-lane rural undivided highways to a non-motorized highway on Mackinac Island, where cars are forbidden. The longest highway is nearly 400 miles (640 km) long, while the shortest is about three-quarters of a mile (about 1.2 km). A constitutional prohibition on state involvement in roads was removed in the early 20th century and on May 13, 1913, the State Reward Trunk Line Highways Act was passed, creating the system. Highway numbers were first posted on signs in 1919, making Michigan the second state to do so. Michigan's first freeways were built during the 1940s. Construction on Michigan's Interstates started in the late 1950s and continued until 1992. Few additional freeways have been built since 1992, and in the early years of the 21st century, projects are underway to bypass cities with new highways. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Rachel Chiesley, Lady Grange – Danie Mellor – Phallus indusiatus
May 14
"Gender Bender" is the fourteenth episode of the television series The X-Files. The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. In this episode, they investigate a series of murders following sexual encounters, and soon discover that a member of a religious sect living in Massachusetts may be responsible—and may not be human. Premiering on the Fox network on January 21, 1994, it was directed by Rob Bowman and featured guest appearances by Brent Hinkley and Nicholas Lea. The episode was inspired by producer Glen Morgan's desire for "an episode with more of a sexy edge"; however, the writers found it difficult to write a story that showed sex as scary. This difficulty led to the introduction of an Amish-like community as well. "Gender Bender" had mixed critical responses, facing criticism for its abrupt deus ex machina ending. Academic analysis of the episode has placed it within a science-fiction tradition that attributes a powerful, supernatural element to physical contact with aliens. It has also been seen as reflecting anxieties about emerging gender roles in the 1990s. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Michigan State Trunkline Highway System – Rachel Chiesley, Lady Grange – Danie Mellor
May 15
Banksia aquilonia, commonly known as the northern banksia, is a tree in the family Proteaceae native to north Queensland on Australia's northeastern coastline. With an average height of 8 m (26 ft), it has narrow glossy green leaves up to 20 cm (7.9 in) long and 6 to 10 cm (2.4 to 3.9 in) high pale yellow flower spikes, known as inflorescences, appearing in autumn. As the spikes age, their flowers fall off and they develop up to 50 follicles, each of which contains 2 seeds. Alex George described the plant in his 1981 monograph of the genus Banksia as a variety of Banksia integrifolia, but later reclassified it as a separate species. The species is found in wet sclerophyll forest and rainforest margins on sandy soils. Banksia aquilonia regenerates after bushfire by regrowing from epicormic buds under its bark, although regeneration from root suckers has also been recorded. It adapts readily to cultivation in humid or temperate climates, but is rarely cultivated. A fast-growing plant, it can grow in acidic soils from pH 3.5 to 6.5. Its inflorescences are energy-rich sources of food, and nectar is a food item of many animals and birds, including the endangered mahogany glider. (Full article...)
Recently featured: "Gender Bender" (The X-Files) – Michigan State Trunkline Highway System – Rachel Chiesley, Lady Grange
May 16
Final Fantasy XI is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), developed and published by Square as part of the Final Fantasy series. Designed and produced by Hiromichi Tanaka, it was released in Japan on May 16, 2002 for Sony's PlayStation 2, and for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers in November of that year. The game was the first cross-platform MMORPG and the Xbox 360's first MMORPG. The story is set in the fantasy world of Vana'diel, where player-created avatars can both compete and cooperate in a variety of objectives to develop an assortment of jobs, skills, and earn in-game item rewards. Players can also undertake an array of quests and progress through the in-game hierarchy and thus through the major plot of the game. Since its debut in 2002, five expansion packs have also been released along with six add-on scenarios. In 2006, between 200,000 and 300,000 active players logged in per day, and the game was the dominant MMORPG in Japan. Final Fantasy XI has a user base of around 500,000 subscribers, and the total number of active characters exceeds 2 million. It is the most profitable title in the Final Fantasy series. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Banksia aquilonia – "Gender Bender" (The X-Files) – Michigan State Trunkline Highway System
May 17
The Flame Robin is a small passerine bird native to Australia. It is a moderately common resident of the coolest parts of south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. First described by the French naturalists Jean René Constant Quoy and Joseph Paul Gaimard in 1830, it is often simply but inaccurately called the Robin Redbreast. Like many brightly coloured robins of the Petroicidae, it is sexually dimorphic. Measuring 12–14 cm (5–6 in) long, the Flame Robin has dark brown eyes and a small thin black bill. The male has a brilliant orange-red chest and throat, and a white patch on the forehead above the bill. Its upper parts are iron-grey with white bars, and its tail black with white tips. The female is a nondescript grey-brown. Its song has been described as the most musical of its genus, and it employs song and plumage displays to mark out and defend its territory. It mostly breeds in and around the Great Dividing Range, the Tasmanian highlands and islands in Bass Strait. With the coming of cooler autumn weather, most birds disperse to lower and warmer areas. Classified by BirdLife International as Near Threatened, the species has suffered a marked decline in the past 25 years. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Final Fantasy XI – Banksia aquilonia – "Gender Bender" (The X-Files)
May 18
Juwan Howard (born 1973) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He signed for the Heat (his eighth NBA team) in 2010, reaching the playoffs for the sixth time and making his first career NBA Finals appearance. Howard won his first NBA championship with Miami the following year. A one-time All-Star and one-time All-NBA power forward, he began his NBA career as the fifth overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets. Before he was drafted, he starred as an All-American on the Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team. At Michigan he was part of the Fab Five recruiting class of 1991 that twice reached the finals of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Men's Division I Basketball Championship. During his rookie year with the Bullets, he became the first player to graduate on time with his class after leaving college early to play in the NBA. After one season as an All-Rookie player and a second as an All-Star and an All-NBA performer, he became the first NBA player to sign a $100 million contract. He has developed a reputation as a humanitarian for his civic commitment. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Flame Robin – Final Fantasy XI – Banksia aquilonia
May 19
Joppenbergh Mountain is a nearly 500-foot (150 m) mountain in Rosendale Village, in Ulster County, New York. The mountain is composed of a carbonate bedrock overlain by glacially deposited material. It was named after Rosendale's founder, Jacob Rutsen, and mined throughout the late 19th century for dolostone that was used in the manufacture of natural cement. Extensive mining caused a large cave-in on December 19, 1899, that destroyed equipment and collapsed shafts within Joppenbergh. During the late 1930s, Joppenbergh became the site of several ski jumping competitions, which continued until the early 1940s. Skiing began again in the 1960s, when a new slope was built on the mountain, and the revived competitions continued until 1971. In March 2011, the Open Space Institute offered to purchase Joppenbergh and sell it to the town. The Rosendale town board initially agreed to the deal the following month, with payment planned to come from a surplus fund. That June, however, the board found that the surplus fund had already been exhausted and could not cover the entire cost of the purchase. Ultimately, the OSI completed its purchase of Joppenbergh in October 2011, without town money. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Juwan Howard – Flame Robin – Final Fantasy XI
May 20
Prince George of Denmark and Norway, Duke of Cumberland (1653–1708) was the husband of Queen Anne of Great Britain. His marriage to Anne was arranged in the early 1680s with a view to developing an Anglo-Danish alliance to contain Dutch maritime power. This made him unpopular with his Dutch brother-in-law William of Orange, who was married to Mary, Anne's sister. William and Mary became joint monarchs of Britain in 1689 after the "Glorious Revolution" deposed James II and VII, the father of Anne and Mary. William excluded George from active military service, and neither Anne (who was heiress presumptive) nor George wielded any great influence until after the deaths of William and Mary, when Anne became queen. He had an easy-going manner and little interest in politics; his appointment as Lord High Admiral in 1702 was largely honorary. Anne's seventeen pregnancies by George resulted in twelve miscarriages or stillbirths, four infant deaths, and a chronically sick son William, who died at the age of eleven. Despite the history of their children, George and Anne's marriage was a strong one. He died aged 55 from a recurring and chronic lung disease, and was buried in Westminster Abbey. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Joppenbergh Mountain – Juwan Howard – Flame Robin
May 21
Tripura is the third-smallest state in India, bordered by the states of Assam and Mizoram and by Bangladesh. The Kokborok-speaking Tripuri people (children pictured) are the major group among 19 tribes and many subtribes; Bengali people form the ethno-linguistic majority. Before becoming part of the newly independent India in 1949, the area was ruled for several centuries by the Tripuri dynasty. Ethnic strife between the indigenous people and Bengalis has been eased by the establishment of an autonomous tribal administrative agency and other strategies. Five mountain ranges run north to south; Agartala, the capital, is located on a plain to the west. Forests cover more than half of the area, in which bamboo and cane tracts are common. Tripura, which has a tropical savanna climate, has the highest number of primate species found in any Indian state. Economic progress is hindered by its geographical isolation – only one major highway connects it with the rest of India. Most residents are involved in agriculture and allied activities. Mainstream Indian cultural elements, especially from Bengali culture, coexist with traditional practices of the ethnic groups. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Prince George of Denmark – Joppenbergh Mountain – Juwan Howard
May 22
Richard Wagner (1813–83) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor primarily known for his operas. His compositions, particularly those of his later period, are notable for their complex textures, rich harmonies and orchestration, and the elaborate use of leitmotifs—musical phrases associated with individual characters, places, ideas or plot elements. These innovations greatly influenced the development of classical music; his Tristan und Isolde is sometimes described as marking the start of modern music. Wagner revolutionised opera through his synthesis of the poetic, visual, musical and dramatic arts, first fully realised in his four-opera Ring cycle. He had his own opera house built at Bayreuth, containing many novel design features, where his most important stage works continue to be performed in an annual festival run by his descendants. Wagner's controversial writings on music, drama and politics have attracted extensive comment in recent decades, especially where they express antisemitic sentiments. The effects of his ideas can be traced in many of the arts throughout the 20th century. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Tripura – Prince George of Denmark – Joppenbergh Mountain
May 23
The Zong massacre was the killing of approximately 142 enslaved Africans by the crew of the slave ship Zong in the days following 29 November 1781. The Zong was owned by a Liverpool slave-trading syndicate that had taken out insurance on the lives of the slaves. When the ship ran low on water following navigational mistakes, the crew drowned some of the slaves in the sea. The owners of the Zong made a claim to their insurers for the loss of the slaves. When the insurers refused to pay, the resulting court cases held that in some circumstances the deliberate killing of slaves was legal, and that insurers could be required to pay for the slaves' deaths. The hearings brought the massacre to the attention of the anti-slavery campaigner Granville Sharp, who tried unsuccessfully to have the ship's crew prosecuted for murder. Reports of the massacre stimulated the nascent abolitionist movement and became a powerful symbol of the horrors of the Middle Passage of slaves to the New World. The massacre has also inspired several works of art and literature, including The Slave Ship by J. M. W. Turner (pictured). (Full article...)
Recently featured: Richard Wagner – Tripura – Prince George of Denmark
May 24
Thescelosaurus is a genus of small ornithopod dinosaur known from Upper Cretaceous rocks of western North America. It belonged to the last dinosaurian fauna of North America before the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event at approximately 66 million years ago, living alongside dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops. This common genus was described from a specimen discovered in 1891, but not unpacked and studied until the 1910s. These circumstances suggested the names of the genus and type species T. neglectus, which roughly translate to "godlike, wondrous, or marvelous neglected lizard". Thescelosaurus is best known from several partial skeletons representing three species: T. neglectus, T. assiniboiensis, and T. garbanii. One specimen unearthed in 1993 was initially thought to include a preserved heart, but later study found the object is probably a concretion. Thescelosaurus was a bipedal animal with a relatively long pointed skull and robust limbs. Typical individuals measured on the order of 2.5 to 4.0 metres (8.2 to 13.1 ft) long. It was probably primarily herbivorous and may have preferred to live near streams. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Zong massacre – Richard Wagner – Tripura
May 25
The May Revolution was a week-long series of events that took place from May 18 to 25, 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. The May Revolution was a direct reaction to Spain's Peninsular War. In 1808, King Ferdinand VII of Spain abdicated in favor of Napoleon, who granted the throne to his brother, Joseph Bonaparte. Viceroy Cisneros tried to maintain the political status quo, but a group of criollo lawyers and military officials organized an open cabildo on May 22 to decide the future of the Viceroyalty. Delegates denied recognition to the Council of Regency in Spain and established a junta to govern in place of Cisneros, since the government that had appointed him Viceroy no longer existed. To maintain a sense of continuity, Cisneros was initially appointed president of the Junta. This caused popular unrest, so he resigned under pressure on May 25. The newly formed government, the Primera Junta, included only representatives from Buenos Aires and invited other cities of the Viceroyalty to send delegates. This resulted in the outbreak of war between the regions that accepted the outcome of the events at Buenos Aires and those that did not. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Thescelosaurus – Zong massacre – Richard Wagner
May 26
Heinrich Bär (1913–57) was a German Luftwaffe flying ace in World War II. He flew more than 1,000 combat missions, and fought in all major German theatres of the war, including the Western, Eastern and Mediterranean fronts. He was shot down on 18 occasions and was credited with 220 aerial victories, around 16 of which were in the Messerschmitt Me 262, an early jet fighter. Bär joined the Reichswehr in 1934 and transferred to the Luftwaffe in 1935. Serving first as a mechanic, then as a pilot on transport aircraft, he was informally trained as a fighter pilot. He claimed his first aerial victory in September 1939 on the French border. By the end of the Battle of Britain, his tally of victories was 17. Transferred to the Eastern front to participate in Operation Barbarossa, he quickly accumulated further kills, earning the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords for 90 aerial victories in February 1942. Hermann Göring's personal dislike of Bär, coupled with Bär's insubordinate character and lack of military discipline, deprived him of higher awards. After the war, Bär continued as an aviator, and was killed in a flying accident near Braunschweig. (Full article...)
Recently featured: May Revolution – Thescelosaurus – Zong massacre
May 27
The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan is the second studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released by Columbia Records on May 27, 1963. Eleven of the thirteen songs on the album are original compositions by Dylan. The album opens with "Blowin' in the Wind", which would become one of the anthems of the 1960s, and several other songs which came to be regarded as amongst Dylan's best compositions and classics of the 1960s folk scene: "Girl from the North Country", "Masters of War", "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" and "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right". Dylan's lyrics embraced stories ripped from the headlines about civil rights and he articulated anxieties about the fear of nuclear warfare. Balancing this political material were love songs, sometimes bitter and accusatory, and material that features surreal humor. Freewheelin' showcased Dylan's songwriting talent for the first time, propelling him to national and international fame. The album reached number 22 in the US (eventually going platinum), and later became a number 1 hit in the UK. In 2003, the album was ranked number 97 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. (Full article...)
Recently featured: Heinrich Bär – May Revolution – Thescelosaurus
May 28
Percy Fender (1892–1985) was an English cricketer who played 13 Tests and captained Surrey between 1921 and 1931. An all-rounder, he was a belligerent middle-order batsman who bowled mainly leg spin and completed the cricketer's double seven times. In 1914, he was named one of Wisden's Cricketers of the Year, and in 1920 hit the fastest recorded first-class century, reaching three figures in 35 minutes (which remains a record in 2013). In county cricket, he was an effective performer with bat and ball, and a forceful though occasionally controversial leader; contemporaries judged him the best captain in England. From 1921, he played occasionally in Tests for England but was never particularly successful. Despite press promptings, he was never appointed Test captain, and his England career was effectively ended by a clash with the influential Lord Harris in 1924. Further disagreements with the Surrey committee over his approach and tactics led to his replacement as county captain in 1932 and the end of his career in 1935. Cartoonists enjoyed caricaturing his distinctive appearance, but he was also well known outside cricket for his presence in society. (Full article...)
Recently featured: The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan – Heinrich Bär – May Revolution
May 29
The Rite of Spring is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1913 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company, with choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky and stage designs and costumes by Nicholas Roerich (pictured). The ballet caused a near-riot in the audience when first performed, on 29 May 1913 at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, but rapidly achieved success as a concert piece and later became recognised as one of the most influential musical works of the 20th century. The score has many novel features, including experiments in tonality, metre, rhythm, stress and dissonance. The scenario is the celebration of spring by various primitive rituals, at the end of which a sacrificial victim dances herself to death. After its explosive premiere the ballet was not performed until the 1920s, when Léonide Massine's rechoreographed version was the first of many innovative productions directed by the world's leading ballet-masters. Providing "endless stimulation for performers and listeners" alike, The Rite is among the most recorded works in the classical repertoire. (Full article...)
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May 30
The 2009 special election for the 20th congressional district of New York was held to fill the vacancy created when Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand was appointed US senator from New York, replacing Hillary Clinton, who had been appointed Secretary of State in the Obama administration. The two major-party candidates were Democrat Scott Murphy (pictured), a private businessman, and Republican Jim Tedisco, the minority leader of the New York State Assembly. Early polls favored Tedisco, but by February the race was considered a toss-up. The Republican Party considered the election to be a referendum on Obama's economic policy and injected significant funding into Tedisco's campaign. Major issues included Obama's stimulus plan, which Murphy supported while Tedisco eventually opposed. One early vote count had the candidates tied at 77,225 votes each. Absentee ballots decided the election; ballots were accepted until April 13. While Tedisco had been ahead in early counts, by April 23 Murphy had a 401-vote advantage and Tedisco conceded. Democratic electoral successes in November 2008 and Murphy's clear support of the stimulus package were credited for his success. (Full article...)
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May 31
The Cotswold Olimpick Games is an annual public celebration of games and sports held near Chipping Campden, in the Cotswolds of England. They probably began in 1612, and have continued on and off since (1636 depiction shown). They were started by a local lawyer, Robert Dover, with the approval of King James. Events included horse-racing, coursing with hounds, running, dancing, sledgehammer throwing, fighting with swords, and wrestling. By the time of James's death in 1625, many Puritan landowners had forbidden their workers to attend, and the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642 brought the Games to an end. Revived after the Restoration of 1660, they gradually degenerated into a drunk and disorderly country festival. They ended again in 1852, when the common land on which they had been staged was partitioned and enclosed. Since 1966 the Games have been held each year on the Friday after Spring Bank Holiday. Events have included the tug of war, gymkhana, shin-kicking, dwile flonking, motor cycle scrambling, judo, piano smashing, and morris dancing. The British Olympic Association has recognised the Cotswold Olimpick Games as "the first stirrings of Britain's Olympic beginnings". (Full article...)
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