gmane.science.linguistics.wikipedia.daily-article

[Daily article] May 26: Draped Bust dollar

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-26T03:00:09

The Draped Bust dollar is a United States dollar coin minted from 1795
to 1803, and again throughout the 19th century. The designer is
unknown, though the distinction is usually credited to artist Gilbert
Stuart. The model is also unknown, though Ann Willing Bingham has been
suggested. In October 1795, newly appointed Mint Director Elias Boudinot
ordered that the legal fineness of .892 (89.2%) silver be used for the
dollar rather than the unauthorized fineness of .900 (90%) silver that
had been used since the denomination was first minted in 1794. Due
largely to a decrease in the amount of silver deposited at the
Philadelphia Mint, coinage of silver dollars declined throughout the end
of the 18th century. In 1804, coinage of silver dollars was halted, and
officially ended in 1806 by order of Secretary of State James Madison.
In 1834, silver dollar production was temporarily restarted to supply a
diplomatic mission to Asia with a special set of proof coins. Officials
mistakenly believed that dollars had las

[Daily article] May 25: Hurricane John (2006)

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-25T03:00:09

Hurricane John was the eleventh named storm, seventh hurricane, and
fifth major hurricane of the 2006 Pacific hurricane season. Hurricane
John developed on August 28 from a tropical wave to the south of Mexico.
Favorable conditions allowed the storm to intensify quickly, and it
attained peak winds of 135 mph (215 km/h) on August 30. Eyewall
replacement cycles and land interaction with western Mexico weakened the
hurricane, and John made landfall on southeastern Baja California Sur
with winds of 110 mph (180 km/h) on September 1. It slowly weakened as
it moved northwestward through the Baja California peninsula, and
dissipated on September 4. The hurricane threatened large portions of
the western coastline of Mexico, resulting in the evacuation of tens of
thousands of people. In coastal portions of western Mexico, strong winds
downed trees, while heavy rain resulted in mudslides. Hurricane John
caused moderate damage on the Baja California peninsula, including the
destruction of more than 200 houses and

[Daily article] May 24: Miss Meyers

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-24T03:00:09

Miss Meyers (1949 – March 1963) was a chestnut-colored American
Quarter Horse racehorse and broodmare. Her sire was American Quarter
Horse Association (AQHA) Hall of Fame member Leo, and her dam was Star's
Lou. Miss Meyers raced from 1952 until 1955 and started 59 times. She
was also the 1953 World Champion Quarter Running Horse. In her career
she won $28,725 (equivalent to about $249,000 as of 2012) on the
racetrack as well as 17 races. As a broodmare, she produced the first
AQHA Supreme Champion, Kid Meyers, with AQHA Hall of Fame member Three
Bars, a Thoroughbred. Miss Myers was the mother of three other foals and
was inducted into the AQHA Hall of Fame in 2009.

Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Meyers>

_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:

1883:

New York City opened the Brooklyn Bridge – the longest
suspension bridge in the world at the time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Bridge>

1930:

English aviatrix Amy Johnson landed in Darwin, Northern
Terr

[Daily article] May 23: Teresa Cristina of the Two Sicilies

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-23T03:00:09

Teresa Cristina (1822–1889) was the Empress consort of Emperor
Dom Pedro II of Brazil, who reigned from 1831 to 1889. Born a Princess
of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, she was the daughter of King
Don Francesco I of the Italian branch of the House of Bourbon and his
wife Maria Isabel. The Princess was married by proxy to Pedro II in
1843. Despite a cold beginning, the couple's relationship improved as
time passed, due primarily to Teresa Cristina's patience, kindness,
generosity and simplicity. These traits also helped her win the hearts
of the Brazilian people, and her distance from political controversies
shielded her from criticism. Of her four children, two boys died in
infancy and a daughter of typhoid fever at the early age of 24. She,
along with the remaining members of the Imperial Family, was sent into
exile after a coup d'état staged by a clique of army officers in 1889.
Being cast from her beloved adopted land had a devastating effect on
Teresa Cristina's spirit and health. Grieving and

[Daily article] May 22: Ahalya

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-22T03:00:09

Ahalya is the wife of the sage Gautama Maharishi in Hindu mythology.
Many Hindu scriptures say that she was seduced by Indra, cursed by her
husband for infidelity, and liberated from the curse by Rama (an avatar
of the god Vishnu). Created by the god Brahma as the most beautiful
woman, Ahalya was married to the much older Gautama. In the earliest
full narrative, when Indra comes disguised as her husband, Ahalya sees
through his disguise but nevertheless accepts his advances. Ahalya and
her lover (or rapist) Indra are cursed by Gautama. Although early texts
describe how Ahalya must atone by undergoing severe penance while
remaining invisible to the world and how she is purified by offering
Rama hospitality, in the popular retelling developed over time, Ahalya
is cursed to become a stone and regains her human form after she is
brushed by Rama's foot. Medieval story-tellers often focus on Ahalya's
deliverance by Rama, which is seen as proof of the saving grace of God.
Her story has been retold numerous times in

[Daily article] May 21: Mary Anning

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-21T03:00:08

Mary Anning (1799–1847) was a British fossil collector, dealer and
palaeontologist who became known around the world for important finds
she made in the Jurassic marine fossil beds at Lyme Regis where she
lived. Her work contributed to fundamental changes in scientific
thinking about prehistoric life and the history of the earth. Her
discoveries included the first ichthyosaur skeleton to be correctly
identified, found when she was just twelve years old; the first two
plesiosaur skeletons ever found; the first pterosaur skeleton located
outside Germany; and important fish fossils. Her observations were
critical to the discovery that coprolites were fossilised faeces. Her
gender and social class prevented her from fully participating in the
scientific community of 19th-century Britain and she struggled
financially for much of her life. As a woman she was not eligible to
join the Geological Society of London, and she did not always receive
full credit for her scientific contributions. After her death her
unus

[Daily article] May 20: C. D. Howe

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-20T03:00:08

C. D. Howe (1886–1960) was a powerful Canadian Cabinet minister of the
Liberal Party. He is credited with transforming the Canadian economy
from agriculture-based to industrial. Born in Massachusetts, Howe moved
to Nova Scotia as a young adult to take up a professorship at Dalhousie
University. After working for the Canadian government as an engineer, he
began his own firm, and became a wealthy man. In 1935, he was recruited
as a Liberal candidate for the Canadian House of Commons by then
Opposition leader Mackenzie King. The Liberals won the election in a
landslide, and Howe won his seat. Mackenzie King appointed him to the
Cabinet. There, he took major parts in many new enterprises, including
the founding of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and Trans-Canada
Air Lines. When World War II began in 1939, Howe played a crucial role
in Canada's war effort, and recruited many corporate executives to serve
in wartime enterprises. Howe's impatience with the necessity for
parliamentary debate of his proposal

[Daily article] May 19: Indigenous people of the Everglades region

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-19T03:00:09

The indigenous people of the Everglades region arrived in the Florida
peninsula approximately 15,000 years ago, probably following large
game. The Paleo-Indians found an arid landscape that supported plants
and animals adapted to desert conditions. Climate changes 6,500 years
ago brought a wetter landscape, and the Paleo-Indians slowly adapted to
the new conditions. Archaeologists call the cultures that resulted from
the adaptations Archaic peoples, from whom two major tribes emerged in
the area: the Calusa and the Tequesta. The earliest written descriptions
of these people come from Spanish explorers who sought to convert and
conquer them. After more than 200 years of relations with the Spanish,
both indigenous societies lost cohesiveness. Official records indicate
that survivors of war and disease were transported to Havana in the late
18th century. Isolated groups may have been assimilated into the
Seminole nation, which formed in northern Florida when a band of Creeks
consolidated surviving members of

[Daily article] May 18: Blakeney Chapel

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-18T03:00:09

Blakeney Chapel is a ruined building on the Norfolk coast of England.
Despite its name, it is in the parish of Cley next the Sea, not the
adjoining village of Blakeney, and was probably not a chapel. The
building stood on a raised mound or "eye" on the seaward end of the
coastal marshes, less than 200 m (220 yd) from the sea and just to the
north of the current channel of the River Glaven where it turns to run
parallel to the shoreline. It consisted of two rectangular rooms of
unequal size, and appears to be intact in a 1586 map, but is shown as
ruins in later charts. Only the foundations and part of a wall still
remain. A small hearth, probably used for smelting iron, is the only
evidence of a specific activity on the site. Much of the structural
material was long ago carried off for reuse in buildings in Cley and
Blakeney. The surviving ruins are protected as a scheduled monument and
Grade II listed building because of their historical importance, but
there is no active management. The ever-present thre

[Daily article] May 17: The Well of Loneliness

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-17T03:00:08

The Well of Loneliness is a 1928 lesbian novel by the British author
Radclyffe Hall. It follows the life of Stephen Gordon, an Englishwoman
from an upper-class family whose "sexual inversion" (homosexuality) is
apparent from an early age. She finds love with Mary Llewellyn, whom she
meets while serving as an ambulance driver in World War I, but their
happiness together is marred by social isolation and rejection, which
Hall depicts as having a debilitating effect on inverts. The novel
portrays inversion as a natural, God-given state and makes an explicit
plea: "Give us also the right to our existence". The novel became the
target of a campaign by James Douglas, editor of the Sunday Express
newspaper, who wrote "I would rather give a healthy boy or a healthy
girl a phial of prussic acid than this novel." Although its only sexual
reference consists of the words "and that night, they were not divided",
a British court judged it obscene because it defended "unnatural
practices between women". In the United Stat

[Daily article] May 16: Cockatoo

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-16T03:00:08

A cockatoo is any of the 21 species belonging to the bird family
Cacatuidae. Along with the Psittacoidea (true parrots) and the
Strigopoidea (large New Zealand parrots), they make up the parrot order
Psittaciformes. Cockatoos are instantly recognisable by their showy
crests and curved bills. Their plumage is generally less colourful than
that of other parrots, being mainly white, grey, or black, and often
with coloured features in the crest, cheeks, or tail. On average they
are larger than other parrots. Cockatoos prefer to eat seeds, tubers,
corms, fruit, flowers and insects. They often feed in large flocks,
particularly when ground-feeding. Cockatoos are monogamous and nest in
tree hollows. Some cockatoo species have been adversely affected by
habitat loss, particularly from a shortage of suitable nesting hollows
after large mature trees are cleared; conversely, some species have
adapted well to human changes and are considered agricultural pests.
Cockatoos are popular birds in aviculture, but their needs

[Daily article] May 15: Sky Blue Sky

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-15T03:00:09

Sky Blue Sky is the sixth studio album by Chicago rock band Wilco
(pictured), released on May 15, 2007, by Nonesuch Records. Originally
announced on January 17, 2007, at a show in Nashville, Tennessee, it was
the band's first studio album with guitarist Nels Cline and multi-
instrumentalist Pat Sansone. Before its release, the band streamed the
entire album on its official website and offered a free download of
"What Light". Sky Blue Sky was Wilco's highest-debuting album on the
Billboard 200 at number four. The self-produced album received mostly
favorable reviews by critics. Publications such as PopMatters and
Rolling Stone praised its maturity, while PlayLouder and Pitchfork Media
criticized its "dad-rock" sound. While some critics praised the direct
lyrical approach, others criticized it when compared to previous Wilco
albums. The band licensed six songs from the Sky Blue Sky sessions to a
Volkswagen advertisement campaign, a move that generated criticism from
fans and the media.

Read more: <https://en.

[Daily article] May 13: Limbo (video game)

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-13T03:00:09

Limbo is a puzzle-platform video game and the premiere title of
independent Danish game developer Playdead. The game was released in
July 2010 as a platform exclusive title on Xbox Live Arcade, and was
later ported to the PlayStation Network and Microsoft Windows via Steam.
Limbo is a 2D sidescroller, incorporating the physics system Box2D to
govern environmental objects and the player character. The player guides
an unnamed boy through dangerous environments and traps as the boy
searches for his sister. The developer built the game's puzzles
expecting the player to fail before finding the correct solution.
Playdead called the style of play "trial and death", and used visually
gruesome imagery for the boy's deaths to steer the player from
unworkable solutions. The game is presented primarily in monochromatic
black-and-white tones, using lighting, film grain effects and minimal
ambient sounds to create an eerie atmosphere often associated with the
horror genre. Limbo received positive reviews, but its minimal

[Daily article] May 12: Katharine Hepburn

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-12T03:00:11

Katharine Hepburn (1907–2003) was an American actress of film, stage,
and television. Known for her headstrong independence and spirited
personality, Hepburn's career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned more
than 60 years. She won a record four Academy Awards, and in 1999 was
named by the American Film Institute as Hollywood's top female legend.
Hepburn began acting in college, and spent four years in the theatre
before entering films in 1932. She became an instant star, but after a
series of unsuccessful films was named "box office poison". The
Philadelphia Story revived her career, and she subsequently formed a
popular alliance with Spencer Tracy that lasted 25 years. In middle age
Hepburn found a niche playing spinsters, such as in The African Queen,
and became a Shakespearean stage actress. She continued to work into old
age, making her final screen appearance in 1994 at the age of 87.
Hepburn is remembered as an important cultural figure, as she came to
epitomize the "modern woman" in 20th-century Ame

[Daily article] May 11: Futbol Club Barcelona

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-11T03:00:09

FC Barcelona is a professional football club, based in Barcelona,
Catalonia, Spain. Founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, English and
Catalan footballers led by Joan Gamper, the club has become a symbol of
Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto "Més que un club" (More
than a club). The official Barça anthem is the "Cant del Barça"
written by Jaume Picas and Josep Maria Espinàs. Unlike many other
football clubs, the supporters own and operate Barcelona. It is the
world's second richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual
turnover of €398 million. The club holds a long-standing rivalry with
Real Madrid, and matches between the two teams are referred to as "El
Clásico". They are the current European football champions, and have
won 21 La Liga, 25 Copa del Rey, 10 Supercopa de España, 3 Copa Eva
Duarte and 2 Copa de la Liga trophies, and are the record holder for the
latter four competitions. In international club football Barcelona have
won four UEFA Champions League, a record four

[Daily article] May 10: 1997 Qayen earthquake

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-10T03:00:09

The Qayen earthquake was a major earthquake that struck Northern Iran's
Khorasan Province on May 10, 1997. The largest in the area since 1990,
it measured 7.3 on the moment magnitude scale and was centered
approximately 270 kilometers (170 mi) south of Mashhad on the village
of Ardekul. The third earthquake that year to cause severe damage, it
devastated the Birjand–Qayen region, killing 1,567 and injuring over
2,300. The earthquake—which left 50,000 homeless and damaged or
destroyed over 15,000 homes—was described as the deadliest of 1997 by
the United States Geological Survey. Some 155 aftershocks caused
further destruction and drove away survivors. The earthquake was later
discovered to have been caused by a rupture along a fault that runs
underneath the Iran–Afghanistan border. Damage was eventually
estimated at $100 million, and many countries responded to the
emergency with donations of blankets, tents, clothing, and food. Rescue
teams were also dispatched to assist local volunteers in fin

[Daily article] May 9: Cleomenean War

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-09T03:00:11

The Cleomenean War was fought by Sparta and its ally, Elis, against the
Achaean League and Macedon. The war ended in a Macedonian and Achaean
victory. In 235 BC, Cleomenes III ascended the throne of Sparta and
began a program of reform aimed at restoring traditional Spartan
discipline while weakening the influence of the ephors. When, in 229 BC,
the ephors sent Cleomenes to seize a town on the border with
Megalopolis, the Achaeans declared war. Cleomenes responded by ravaging
Achaea. At Mount Lycaeum he defeated an army under Aratus of Sicyon, and
then routed a second army near Megalopolis. Meanwhile, in domestic
politics, he ordered the assassination of the ephors. In quick
succession, Cleomenes cleared the cities of Arcadia of their Achaean
garrisons, before crushing another Achaean force at Dyme. Facing Spartan
domination of the League, Aratus was forced to turn to Antigonus III
Doson of Macedon and request that he assist the Achaeans' efforts to
defeat the Spartans. Cleomenes eventually invaded Achaea,

[Daily article] May 8: Richard II of England

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-08T01:50:20

Richard II (1367–1400) was King of England, a member of the House of
Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377
until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black
Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather,
Edward&#160;III. Richard was tall, good-looking and intelligent.
Although probably not insane, as earlier historians believed, he may
have suffered from one or several personality disorders that may have
become more apparent toward the end of his reign. Less of a warrior than
either his father or grandfather, he sought to bring an end to the
Hundred Years' War that Edward III had started. He was a firm believer
in the royal prerogative, which led him to restrain the power of his
nobility and rely on a private retinue for military protection instead.
He also cultivated a courtly atmosphere where the king was an elevated
figure, and art and culture were at the centre, in contrast to the
fraternal, martial court of his grandfather. Richard's posthumo

[Daily article] May 7: The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-07T03:00:07

The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. is an American Western/science fiction television series created by Jeffrey Boam and Carlton Cuse. It ran for 27 episodes on the Fox network starting in the 1993–94 season. Set in the American West of 1893, the series follows its title character, a Harvard-educated lawyer-turned-bounty hunter hired by a group of wealthy industrialists to track and capture outlaw John Bly and his gang. Bruce Campbell plays Brisco, who is joined by a colorful group of supporting characters, including Julius Carry as fellow bounty hunter Lord Bowler and Christian Clemenson as stick-in-the-mud lawyer Socrates Poole. While ostensibly a Western, the series routinely includes elements of the science fiction and steampunk genres. The series earned high ratings at the beginning of its season, but later episodes failed to attract a substantial number of viewers. Fox canceled the show at the end of its first and only season. In 2006, Warner Home Video released a DVD set containing all 27 episodes,

[Daily article] May 3: Invasion of Tulagi

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-03T03:19:16

The invasion of Tulagi, on 3–4 May 1942, was part of Operation Mo, the
Empire of Japan's strategy in the South Pacific and South West Pacific
Area in 1942. The plan called for Imperial Japanese Navy troops to
capture Tulagi and nearby islands in the Solomon Islands Protectorate.
The occupation of Tulagi by the Japanese was intended to cover the
flank of and provide reconnaissance support for Japanese forces that
were advancing on Port Moresby in New Guinea, provide greater defensive
depth for the major Japanese base at Rabaul, and serve as a base for
Japanese forces to threaten and interdict the supply and communication
routes between the United States and Australia and New Zealand. Without
the means to capably resist the Japanese offensive in the Solomons, the
British Resident Commissioner and the few Australian troops assigned to
defend Tulagi evacuated just before the Japanese forces arrived on 3
May. Despite considerable losses inflicted by carrier-based American
planes, the Japanese occupied the islan

[Daily article] May 2: Golding Bird

English Wikipedia Article of the Day — 2012-05-02T02:47:13

Golding Bird (1814–1854) was a British medical doctor and a Fellow of
the Royal College of Physicians. He lectured at Guy's Hospital, and
published a popular textbook on science for medical students. He
developed an interest in chemistry as a child, and through self-study
was advanced enough to deliver lectures to his fellow pupils at
school. He later applied this knowledge to medicine and became a great
authority on urinary deposits. He was the first to describe oxaluria,
a condition which leads to a particular kind of kidney stone. Bird was
innovative in the medical use of electricity, designing much of his
own equipment. He was instrumental in rescuing medical electrotherapy
from quackery and bringing it into the mainstream. He was quick to
adopt new instruments of all kinds; he invented the single-cell
Daniell cell and made important discoveries in electrometallurgy with
it. In 1840 he designed a flexible tube stethoscope, and published the
first description of such an instrument.

Read more: <https://