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From today's featured article

Olivia Rodrigo

"Lacy" is a song by American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo (pictured) from her second studio album, Guts (2023). A folk-pop and indie-folk song with influences of theatrical folk, "Lacy" chronicles her obsession with the beauty of a female figure named Lacy and has themes of envy and self-hatred. It originated from a poem that she wrote for school and adapted as a song with producer, Dan Nigro. Music critics praised the lyricism, production, and the intensity of Rodrigo's performance, perceiving potential LGBTQ implications in the song's lyrics. "Lacy" reached the top 30 in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and the US. It received platinum certifications in multiple countries. Rodrigo performed the song at the Grammy Museum and included it on the set list of her 2024–2025 concert tour, the Guts World Tour. Noah Kahan performed a cover version on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge that was well-received and released as the B-side to a 7-inch vinyl single in 2024. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Artist's impression of a spider pulsar vaporizing its companion

... that spider pulsars (conception pictured) eat away their stellar mates by irradiating them?
... that turtle fan Susan Baur founded Old Ladies Against Underwater Garbage, a group of volunteers who dive to retrieve litter?
... that the Garmin Instinct line of GPS watches includes a model marketed towards truck drivers?
... that during Operation Spring High, American aircraft attacked a fake target made of bamboo that lured them into a trap?
... that Indigenous Australian cultural leader Rhoda Roberts coined the term "Welcome to Country" for a ceremony now used at the opening of Parliament and most major events?
... that many of Joe Hill's anti-capitalist songs borrowed the melodies of hymns and show tunes?
... that Albanian archbishop Dominic Thopia used his influence to support his nephew after he took over Durrës in 1368?
... that a life-sized humanoid robot kept fighting after having its head kicked off during the inaugural Ultimate Robot Knock-out Legend event?
... that Michigan State Treasurer Joseph F. Hambitzer, along with two other officials, was removed from office for gross neglect of duty?

In the news

Gloria Steinem in 1977

American journalist and feminist activist Gloria Steinem (pictured) dies at the age of 92.
Following the Kazakh legislative election, Oljas Bektenov is reappointed Prime Minister of Kazakhstan by the newly established Kurultai.
Duane Davis is convicted of orchestrating the 1996 murder of American rapper Tupac Shakur.
In a referendum, Icelanders reject European Union membership negotiations.

On this day

September 8: Victory Day in Malta

Severn Bridge

1566 – Ottoman–Habsburg wars: Ottoman forces led by Suleiman the Magnificent captured the fortress of Szigetvár in Hungary, but were forced to end their campaign to take Vienna.
1726 – J. S. Bach led the first performance of Geist und Seele wird verwirret, a solo cantata for alto voice.
1796 – French Revolutionary Wars: Led by Napoleon, French forces defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Bassano in Veneto, Italy.
1966 – Queen Elizabeth II opened the Severn Bridge (pictured), linking South Gloucestershire in England and Monmouthshire in Wales.
1974 – Watergate scandal: U.S. president Gerald Ford gave his recently resigned predecessor Richard Nixon a controversial full and unconditional pardon for any crimes he committed while in office.

Seraphina Sforza (d. 1478)
Inez Knight Allen (b. 1876)
Peter Sellers (b. 1925)
Alexandra David-Néel (d. 1969)

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Today's featured picture

Lilium bulbiferum, commonly known as the orange lily, is a herbaceous European lily in the family Liliaceae. It grows to an average height of 20 to 90 cm (7.9 to 35.4 in), occasionally reaching 120 cm (47 in), and bears one to five scentless, bright yellow-orange flowers with reddish-brown dots. Flowering occurs from May through July. The species is widely distributed across Europe from Spain to Finland and Ukraine. It has also been recognised as a symbol of the Orange Order in Northern Ireland. The plant is toxic to cats, and ingestion can be fatal. This flower of the variety L. b. var. bulbiferum was photographed near Mitterbach am Erlaufsee, Austria.

Photograph credit: Uoaei1

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