Wikipedia:Recent additions/2006/November

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This is a record of material that was recently featured on the Main Page as part of Did you know (DYK). Recently created new articles, greatly expanded former stub articles and recently promoted good articles are eligible; you can submit them for consideration.

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Did you know...

30 November 2006

18:04, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

...that furry convention attendees (pictured) often wear ears, tails, badges, or fursuits as identification?
...that "La Coco-Dance" was the first Eurovision entry to feature Tahitian lyrics, representing Monaco in 2006?
...that Kaundinya, the first arahant and bhikkhu of Gautama Buddha, was the only royal scholar to predict Siddhartha's Buddhahood?
...that Heinie Reitz was the first Major League baseballer to die in a car accident?
...that the city of Thasos held out against an Athenian siege for over two years in the Thasian rebellion?
...that Canadian microbiologist John Dick was the first to isolate and identify a cancer stem cell?
...that Frances Slocum State Park in Pennsylvania is named for a woman captured by the Lenape at age 5, who permanently lived with Native Americans despite reuniting with her family 59 years later?

08:42, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

A plant

...that plant perception (plant pictured) is a belief that plants feel emotion and can communicate with each other?
...that the 43,000 Sakhalin Koreans were abandoned by Japan after World War II and kept stateless by the Soviet Union for 30 years?
...that due to a "defect of birth", Thomas Livingston was forced to receive a papal dispensation to continue working in the church?
...that David Brody is credited with co-founding the field of "new labor history"?
...that Romanian actor Ion Caramitru figures prominently in theories that the Romanian Revolution of 1989 was not truly a popular uprising but a cover-up for a coup d'état?
...that Texas oil tycoon Glenn McCarthy gained the nickname "King of the wildcatters" after striking oil thirty-eight times in ten years?
...that the Mount Kirkpatrick Formation is the only major dinosaur-bearing rock formation in Antarctica?
...that the French admiral Dupetit Thouars took possession of the Tahiti archipelago against his government's will?

29 November 2006

23:53, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

Pencho Slaveykov

...that after an accident in his teens, Bulgarian poet Pencho Slaveykov (pictured) could write and speak only with difficulty?
...that Canyon live oak acorns were a Native American staple food?
...that the Ristorante Cooperativo in Zürich may be the only restaurant to have been patronised by Benito Mussolini, Vladimir Lenin and Gerhard Schröder?
...that the British politician Alfred Lane Beit was made an honorary Irish citizen after he donated 17 masterpieces to the National Gallery of Ireland?
...that the Political Instability Task Force might have predicted over 85% of major state crises occurring in 1990–1997?
...that the Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950 led to wind gusts in excess of 100 mph across New York, New Jersey, and New England?

17:31, 29 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Annadel State Park (pictured) is considered by some biologists to have some of the best preserved northern oak woodlands in western North America?
...that social anthropologist Sir Raymond Firth's research career spanned 76 years after it began in Polynesia?
...that Pepe Marchena was a popular singer who created a new palo or flamenco musical form, called colombiana?
...that after World War II, the Czech urban legend of Pérák changed from a shadowy surprise attacker to a heroic figure of resistance against the Nazi occupation of Prague?
...that Maratha Emperor Shivaji's mentor Dadoji Konddeo also built the "Lal Mahal" in Pune, the royal palace before the capital moved to Raigad?
...that Sergei Yushenkov and Yuri Shchekochikhin, key members of the Kovalev Commission charged with investigating the Russian apartment bombings both died in apparent assassinations?

07:08, 29 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the commissioner of El Greco's The Disrobing of Christ (pictured) tried to use the artist's inclusion of the three Marys to avoid paying the full fee?
...that parts of Karnataka gained independence after its Unification, a year later than most of India?
... that Bill Orban developed the 5BX plan to help Canadian Air Force pilots keep fit?
...that Malaysia's Sedition Act disregards criminal intent in passing judgement?
...that the Japanese Sōshi-kaimei policy forced Koreans previously banned from using Japanese surnames to do so?
...that the village of Sharpham in Somerset, is the birthplace of Elizabethan poet Sir Edward Dyer, writer Henry Fielding and cleric William Gould?
...that during construction of the Fort Canning Tunnel, special care was taken to minimize environmental impact on the surrounding Fort Canning Park?

00:31, 29 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Russian actor Yevgeny Samoylov (pictured), known for his work with Vsevolod Meyerhold and Alexander Dovzhenko in the 1930s, celebrated his 90th birthday in 2002 acting on the stage of the Maly Theatre?
...that the trees alongside the Falls of Bruar were planted in response to an entreaty from Robert Burns, the Scottish poet?
...that construction of St. Francis Xavier's Cathedral in Adelaide did not finish until 1996, 130 years after it began?
...that American World War II Army Captain Bobbie E. Brown was awarded the Medal of Honor for running 100 yards up a hill through machine-gun fire to place a bomb in a German pillbox in the Battle of Crucifix Hill?

28 November 2006

18:27, 28 November 2006 (UTC)

...that one of only two natural populations of the critically endangered Kanab ambersnail (pictured) is threatened by discharges from the Glen Canyon Dam?
...that the church of Santa Caterina a Magnanapoli in Rome, along with the adjacent tower, is all that remains today of a Dominican convent dedicated to Catherine of Siena?
...that Australian Cricket Academy leg spin coach Terry Jenner was previously jailed for embezzlement?
...that the Samara flag, presented as a gift from Russia to the Bulgarian volunteers in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, is the only flag awarded a Bulgarian Medal for Bravery?
...that the Korpela movement was a short-lived cult during the 1930s in Northern Sweden and Finland whose controversial sexual rituals eventually led to the arrest of 60 followers?

11:48, 28 November 2006 (UTC)

... that American World War II soldier David M. Gonzales was awarded the Medal of Honor (pictured) for digging out three comrades buried alive whilst under enemy fire?
...that American Thoroughbred Kingston won eighty-nine races, the most by any horse?
... that Norse sagas record some Finnish campaigns against Sweden in the mid-8th century?
...that in 1819, Hussein Shah, the seventeenth Sultan of Johor, allowed a British settlement in Singapore in order to wrest the throne from his brother with the help of the British, leading to the Malay Peninsula's colonisation?
...that in 2005, Ghatam player Ghatam Udupa became the first Indian to perform at the Krakow International Percussion Festival?

04:46, 28 November 2006 (UTC)

... that the relics of Moscow's founder, Yuri Dolgoruki, were buried beneath the baptistery of the Church of the Saviour at Berestove (pictured)?
...that studies on whether nice guys finish last have been hindered by the social desirability bias?
...that Rajendrasinhji Jadeja was the first Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army?
... that economist Walter Adams served as expert witness before 36 United States Congressional committees?
...that Irving Crane pocketed 150 balls in a row in the final round of the 1966 World Crown straight pool championship; a feat that has never been equalled or eclipsed?

27 November 2006

21:01, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

...that in 1850, the Harvard Musical Association, a charitable organization in Boston, raised over $100,000 for the construction of the Boston Music Hall (pictured) in under 60 days?
...that the appearance of a dog named Cheeka in a Hutch ad campaign doubled sales of pugs in India in 2003?
...that the prolific spawning of the Pacific herring can lead to egg densities of six million eggs/m² on submerged vegetation?
...that American novelist Tracy Quan once served as spokeswoman to the sex worker advocacy group Prostitutes of New York?

13:03, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

...that although scholars have studied revolutions (depiction) for over a century, there are still many competing theories explaining those key events in human history?
...that Satveer Chaudhary was the first Asian American to hold elected office in Minnesota?
...that in the United Kingdom alone, over £60 million is spent annually on dealing with the effects of leaves on railroad tracks?
... that in 1057, Saint Anthony of Pechersk singled-handedly dug out the Near Caves in Kiev, Ukraine which is part of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra?
...that Thoroughbred racehorse Gallant Man lost the 1957 Kentucky Derby by a nose after his jockey stood up to celebrate?
...that together with the Treaty of Mendota, the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux ceded nearly 24 million acres of Sioux land to the United States in exchange for cash and annuities?

00:07, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the vestry of Makaravank Monastery (pictured) in Armenia served two adjacent churches?
...that Clontarf Aboriginal College in Australia has at various points in its history served as an orphanage, a convent, an RAAF training facility, a boarding school and a day school?
...that Taras Fedorovych, a 17th century Cossack leader, led a Cossack and peasant uprising over the issue of the Cossack register?
... that human sacrifices were once offered in Chitpur, now home to Kolkata’s latest railway passenger terminal?
...that numerous specimens of dinosaurs have been excavated from the Dashanpu Formation, first discovered by a natural gas company that found the formation's first dinosaur, Gasosaurus?
...that Standard Oil of Kentucky (or Kyso) was formed from the breakup of Standard Oil in 1911 and was awarded oil rights over the Southeastern U.S.?

26 November 2006

14:07, 26 November 2006 (UTC)

... that the Agung (pictured), a Philippine set of gongs, was repeatedly hit during earthquakes for it was believed its supernatural powers would halt the earth's reverberations?
...that the Late November 2006 Nor'easter caused winds up to 80 mph in the Outer Banks, the only occurrence of thundersnow on record in Charleston, and the earliest recorded snowfall in Charleston and Savannah?
...that under the terms of the Bunbury Agreement, the English county of Cheshire would have remained neutral during the English Civil War?
...that Chicago politician Giuseppe Esposito was shot and killed in front of his family during the 1928 Republican Pineapple Primary?
... that the New Guinean Quoll is a carnivorous marsupial that is reported to eat prey bigger than itself?
... that Rudolf Duala Manga Bell was organising a colony-wide revolt against the German Empire in Cameroon when he was executed for high treason in 1914?

25 November 2006

18:29, 25 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Count Alexander Dmitriev-Mamonov (pictured) ended his love affair with the 60-year-old Empress Catherine II in order to marry her 16-year-old lady-in-waiting?
...that in 1992, a single marbled eel was sold in mainland China for $1,000?
... that Isaac Newton Van Nuys of New York founded Van Nuys, California, United States in 1911?
...that Theo Osterkamp was the first German reconnaissance pilot to fly a land-based aircraft to England during World War I?
...that Shelley's poem On the Medusa by Leonardo da Vinci in the Florentine Gallery is based on the painting which was not in fact authored by Leonardo?
...that for organizing a revolt on an Ottoman slave galley and freeing Christian slaves, Hetman Ivan Sulyma received a medal from Pope Paul V?
...that Richard Ferguson joined a gang of highwaymen after recognising the man robbing his stagecoach near London as a former acquaintance?
...that Crab Creek is one of the few perennial streams of the Columbia Basin?

07:00, 25 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the first print portrait produced in Europe of a living, identifiable person (pictured) was of artist Israhel van Meckenem and his wife Ida?
...that Maria Fyodorovna was the tallest Russian tsarina ever, and experienced difficulties while dancing with her husband, Emperor Paul, as a result?
...that Cirsium fontinale is a species of California thistle that actually represents three taxa, two of which are endangered species with narrow endemic ranges?
...that the breeding rights for the Thoroughbred racehorse Graustark sold for a record $2,400,000?
...that with over 3,000 participants, the 1884 Chichibu Incident was one of the largest peasant revolts of Japan's Meiji period?
...that Agustin Ramos Calero was the second-most-decorated soldier in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II?

24 November 2006

17:01, 24 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the University of British Columbia Library (pictured) holds the largest collection of Asian-language materials in North America?
...that the San Mateo woolly sunflower is an endangered species that makes its home on serpentine outcrops that are chemically inhospitable for most plant species?
...that in addition to practising as a lawyer in Cairo, Albanian nationalist Andon Zako Çajupi wrote a comedy attacking the tradition of arranged marriages?
...that Jimmy Fratianno was the highest-ranking member of the Mafia to become an informant for the U.S. government until Sammy Gravano in 1991?
...that the Sandugo or Blood Compact, where two people drink a small amount of each other's blood, was a traditional way to formalize treaties of friendship in the Philippines?
...that the Scouting song Ging Gang Goolie was deliberately written in gibberish so that Scouts from different countries could easily learn it without struggling with a language barrier?

05:50, 24 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the habitat of the endangered Whiteray pygmy daisy (illustrated) has been reduced to a narrow strip only six miles long, due to urban development, off-road vehicles and destruction by road maintenance crew?
...that the first identifiable European print portrait was one of the artist Israhel van Meckenem and his wife Ida?
...that American soldier Lucian Adams was awarded the Medal of Honor for single-handedly destroying several enemy machine gun emplacements in World War II?
...that Wee Siew Kim, a Singaporean MP, had to apologise after scandal broke out involving an elitist blog entry made by his daughter?
...that the Russian victory in the Battle of Rakovor in 1268 put an end to the attacks of the Teutonic Knights on Russia for thirty years?

23 November 2006

16:01, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the Claregalway Friary (pictured), one of the first Franciscan monasteries in Ireland, housed only two friars when it was finally forced to close in 1847?
...that during the Ottoman occupation of Hungary no fewer than 75 Turkish baths were built in the Hungarian eyalets?
...that Polish painter Jan Matejko smuggled arms to Polish insurgents during the January Uprising in 1863?
...that in 2003, German authorities foiled a plot by a neo-Nazi group to set off a bomb at the Ohel Jakob synagogue cornerstone ceremony?
...that after resigning from the Australian Liberal Party, politician Steven Pringle used his parliamentary privilege to launch a scathing attack on the far right faction of the party for their alleged branch stacking tactics?
...that even though John Clough Holmes helped found Michigan State University in 1855, it was not until 1965 that a building was named in his honor?
...that Ching-Thang Khomba was the first king of a unified Manipur?

08:53, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

... that Cupressus pigmaea (pictured) is a vulnerable cypress tree that occurs in a dwarfed form to populate pygmy forests, as well as a full size tree?
...that Giulio Campagnola was the first engraver to use stippling in his works?
...that the Battle of Schöngrabern features in Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace?
...that Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park was formerly home to one of the few colonies of the endangered Mediterranean Monk Seal in the Western Mediterranean?
...that Scamozzi's Villa Molin near Padua served as military command headquarters during the Great War?
...that after a successful theatrical career spanning three decades, U.S. actress Tittell Brune joined the Order of St Francis, remaining a sister until her death, aged 99?

01:35, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

... that the load bearing efficiency of the Roman-developed groin vault (pictured) has been validated by 20th century structural engineering modeling?
...that the sound of the revving motorcycle in the Meat Loaf rock anthem "Bat out of Hell" is actually a recording of an electric guitar solo by producer Todd Rundgren?
...that former Queensland Health Minister Leisha Harvey served five months in prison for misappropriation of public funds during her tenure?
...that Garuda Indonesia Flight 152 was the deadliest air disaster of 1997, claiming the lives of over 230 people?
...that Red Road is the first of three films in the Advance Party trilogy, each of which are to be set in Scotland using the same characters and cast, and directed by a different first-time director each time?

22 November 2006

15:55, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

...that a squircle (pictured) is a variety of superellipse that has properties between those of a square and a circle?
...that Nicolas Grollier de Serviere invented a type of bookwheel that allowed many heavy books to be read at the same time?
...that Acanthomintha duttonii is an endangered wildflower that is found only in a six mile long strip on the San Francisco Peninsula?
...that the Mark II radio telescope built in 1964 at Jodrell Bank Observatory, UK was the first telescope to be controlled by a digital computer?
...that Ruth Sienkiewicz-Mercer, who was affected with cerebral palsy and was unable to talk or use her limbs, became an author and prominent disability rights advocate?
...that the pinax, an ancient Greek votive tablet, has given several modern European languages their word for "art museum", as exemplified by Munich's Alte Pinakothek?

08:37, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

...that French lighthouse Phare de la Vieille (pictured) was operated manually as late as 1995?
...that modern Romania's most notorious serial killer, Ion Râmaru, was himself the son of a serial killer?
...that the South Australian Register was the first newspaper to be produced and distributed in South Australia?
...that William King Gregory, a leading authority on vertebrate evolution and the preeminent expert on human dentition, was initially taken in by the Piltdown Man, a hoax which was purported to be an early human?
... that despite projections of producing four times as much power as it used in heating, the Riggatron fusion reactor was never built due to a lack of funding?
... that Charles J. Bates was instrumental in developing high-fructose corn syrup for use by Coca-Cola in their soft drinks while he was with American Maize Products in the 1970s?

21 November 2006

23:24, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Nordic Classicism (example pictured) was formerly regarded as a mere interlude between two far wider-known architectural movements, Art Nouveau and Functionalism?
...that while the engineering treatises of Italian Renaissance artist Taccola were widely copied and studied during his lifetime, printed copies were not made until the 1960s?
...that even though American lawman Harry Love cut off and preserved the head of notorious bandit Joaquin Murrieta, many people still didn't believe the man was dead?
... that the UK Government Decontamination Service was set up in 2005 after increased threats of terrorism to help the United Kingdom resist and recover from biological, chemical and nuclear incidents?
...that the striking of a French consul with a fly-whisk by Ottoman ruler Hussein Dey was used as a pretext for the invasion of Algiers?

14:18, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the only piece of the Palais Strousberg (pictured) to survive World War II, a set of gates bearing the British Coat of Arms, was incorporated into the modern British Embassy in Berlin?
...that instead of simply heating particles, the Migma fusion reactor uses small particle accelerators to initiate a fusion reaction?
...that Minnie Evans received inspiration for her colored pencil drawings from her dreams?
...that the free trade union SLOMR, established in opposition to the communist Romanian government, was suppressed one year before the creation of Solidarity, its more successful Polish counterpart ?
...that former executive director of the Institute of Food Technologists Howard W. Mattson became active in promoting organ donation after receiving a heart transplant?

06:28, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

...that charcoal merchant Thomas Britton (pictured) ran a series of concerts in his loft at which the most famous musicians in London performed?
...that the blood of the skink Prasinohaema virens is bright green, due to an accumulation of the bile pigment biliverdin?
...that the City of Amsterdam spent €160,000 on an unsuccessful soil sanitation program to save the Anne Frank Tree, one of the oldest chestnut trees in the area?
...that the Onkochishinsho was the first Japanese language dictionary to collate words in the now-standard gojūon order?
...that Hashim Suboh controversially called for the use of force in enforcing the Malaysian social contract?

20 November 2006

22:55, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the Thanksgiving 1984 Nor'easter (pictured) deposited a 197-foot Venezuelan freighter in the backyard of a Palm Beach, Florida socialite, where it remained for several months?
...that, as part of the Hornsleth Village Project, Danish artist Kristian von Hornsleth paid 340 Ugandan villagers in livestock to legally change their names to include "Hornsleth"?
...that the Muscovite-Lithuanian Wars of the 16th century saw significant territorial gains for the Grand Duchy of Moscow, and forced the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to ally itself closer with the Kingdom of Poland, forming the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth?
...that journalist Simon Regan established the magazine Scallywag, which did much to propagate baseless rumours that British Prime Minister John Major was having an affair with a Downing Street cook?

16:35, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

...that every extant individual of the cycad Encephalartos woodii (pictured) is male?
...that the soldier in the Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph Burst of Joy reunited with his family after six years in a North Vietnamese prisoner of war camp?
...that Tsar Alexander II of Russia signed the Ems Ukaz, a decree banning official use of the "non-existent" Ukrainian language, whilst enjoying a spa at Bad Ems, Germany?
...that excavations at the village of Timerevo near Yaroslavl-on-the-Volga revealed a huge number of African dirhams and a chess piece, all inscribed with Runic graffiti?
...that the Thoroughbred racehorse Sarazen won the United States Horse of the Year Award for two consecutive years in the 1920s?
...that the publisher of Mirror Buzz, a Mumbai Mirror supplementary magazine, was arrested in 2005 after the magazine featured images of nude women on its front cover?

10:08, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

...that because of its unique geology, a 230 hectare area of Rosthwaite Fell (pictured) in Cumbria, England was declared a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1985?
...that Michael Groce indirectly started the Brixton riot of 1985?
...that Wyoming Seminary, a private school in Kingston, Pennsylvania, participated in the first nighttime American football game in 1892?
...that the pigment responsible for the colour of the bright green Parrot Toadstool is not chlorophyll as it is a fungus?
...that the finds at the village of Gnezdovo near Smolensk include an early folding razor, the first pivoted scissors found in Eastern Europe, and the earliest inscription in the Old Russian language?
...that the self-taught weapon designer Aimo Lahti designed over 50 weapons of all types prior to and during World War II, including the successful Suomi M-31?

03:02, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the barrel vault (pictured) was developed chiefly by the ancient Greeks and Romans, but endured to be a mainstay of medieval and even modern architecture?
...that "On Again...Off Again" features influences from both dance music and opera, the only time that such a combination has appeared at the Eurovision Song Contest?
...that Sarskoye Gorodishche near Rostov, Russia has been interpreted as either a Varangian outpost on the Volga trade route or the capital of the Finnic Merya?
...that the primary disposal method for human feces in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya is the unsanitary flying toilet?

19 November 2006

18:05, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the painting The Calling of Saints Peter and Andrew (pictured), owned by Queen Elizabeth II, has recently been verified as an authentic Caravaggio, and not a relatively worthless copy?
...that while visiting Mödlareuth in 1983, then U.S. Vice President George H. W. Bush alluded to John F. Kennedy's statement "Ich bin ein Berliner" by exclaiming, "Ich bin ein Mödlareuther!"?
...that the site of the early Viking hill fort of Alaborg, Russia, was turned into a quarry for construction of a highway during the years of Stalinism?
...that the Chubb detector lock was developed in 1818 in a competition sponsored by the British Government to create an unpickable lock and remained unpicked until 1851?

11:35, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network mural

... that since 1994, the mural arts program of the Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network has created more than 2,500 murals (pictured) across Philadelphia?
...that at least 3,000 Vendel Age burial mounds in Grobiņa, Latvia indicate the existence of a prosperous Viking colony there?
...that the Malay Agenda is one half of the Malaysian social contract, pertaining to the special status of Malays in Malaysia?
...that the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 entry "Desire" was the first Maltese entry in 28 years to have Maltese lyrics?

04:57, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the summit of Ben More Assynt (pictured) is the highest point in the Scottish county of Sutherland?
...that the 1592 book Nine Worthies of London charted the rise of nine tradesmen and apprentices to the nobility?
... that the Tatarbunary Uprising in Budjak, Bessarabia was led by a pro-Soviet revolutionary committee which called for unification with the Ukrainian SSR and an end to "Romanian occupation"?
... that the song with which Thor Salden won the Belgian preselections of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2006 reached Number 1 in the Flemish music charts?
... that Laura Callahan, a former senior director of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, was found to have obtained her academic degrees through a diploma mill run out of a converted Motel 6?

18 November 2006

10:22, 18 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the barndoor skate (pictured) is a species of fish that is threatened with extinction from overfishing despite not being targeted by the commercial fishing industry?
...that the medieval Armenian sect of Tondrakians denied the immortality of the soul, the afterlife, the church and its feudal rights?
...that, according to the United Kingdom's Teaching and Higher Education Act of 1998, full time workers aged 16 or 17 have the right to paid leave from work in order to pursue training towards a qualification?
...that in the early 1900s the illegal paramilitary Combat Organization of the Polish Socialist Party assassinated hundreds of Russian officials, policemen and secret agents responsible for repression in partitioned Poland?
...that the travels of a shipment of 29,000 Friendly Floatees bath toys lost overboard in the Pacific in 1992 have been used to model the world's ocean currents?

01:02, 18 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the California slender salamander (pictured) has a physique to invade narrow tunnels of earthworms for predation and cover?
...that the ancient Athenian sacred ships included a galley which was believed to be the ship that carried Theseus to Crete to face the Minotaur?
...that Luton Town Hall was burnt to the ground following a riot at the Peace Day celebrations marking the formal end of World War I on 19 July 1919?
...that the Libellus de Medicinalibus Indorum Herbis, a book of Aztec herbal remedies in Latin, was returned to Mexico by Pope John Paul II after more than four centuries of changing hands in Europe?
...that the fiscus Iudaicus was a tax imposed on all Jewish subjects of the Roman Empire after the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem, the proceeds of which were used to fund a temple of Jupiter in Rome?

17 November 2006

11:20, 17 November 2006 (UTC)

...that illiterate American slave quiltmaker Harriet Powers sold her now-museum-quality quilts (pictured) in the 1880s for only a couple of dollars?
...that the Fairfield Osborn Preserve is home to a great variety of fauna including one of the world's largest salamanders?
...that the Pungoteague River Light was the shortest-lived screwpile lighthouse on the Chesapeake Bay, and may have been the shortest-lived lighthouse in the United States?
...that the Pariser Platz in Berlin is named after the French capital in memory of Napoleon's defeat at the Battle of Leipzig in 1813?
...that 17 days after the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, the Soviet Union joined the invasion, ensuring the fall of the Second Polish Republic?

16 November 2006

20:37, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Laments by 16th century Polish poet Jan Kochanowski, a masterpiece of the Polish Renaissance, were inspired by the death of the poet's young daughter, Urszula (pictured)?
...that the Varmint of Burke's Garden was a coyote that terrorized the community of Burke's Garden, Virginia, in 1952?
...that Ratnakar Matkari combined social realism in supernatural thrillers, which was a pioneering idea in Marathi literature?
...that Mountain Mint was used by the Koasati as a treatment for laziness?
...that the pen is mightier than the sword, an adage coined in 1839 by Edward Bulwer-Lytton for a play about Cardinal Richelieu, had numerous historical predecessors?

02:18, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the clocks on the Great Lavra Belltower (pictured) have only stopped once during their existence, when the nearby Dormition Cathedral of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra was blown up during the Second World War?
...that rally driver Lucien Bianchi, who had driven across 10,000 miles of treacherous terrain, crashed out of the lead of the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon with only 150 miles to go?
...that the body of the victim of the Red Barn Murder, in Suffolk, England, was discovered in 1828 after her stepmother reported dreaming about it?
...that the South Korean long track speed skater Lee Kyu-Hyuk has held the 1500 m world record, despite never winning a World Cup event or an Olympic medal at the distance?

15 November 2006

06:05, 15 November 2006 (UTC)

...that funeral trains (pictured) were once a common method of transporting coffins to cemeteries, but are now almost exclusively used for state funerals?
...that the Egyptian actress Faten Hamama has received more than forty awards and starred in almost one hundred films?
...that Ivan Argunov, one of the founders of the Russian school of portrait painting, spent his entire life as a serf?
...that United States Executive Order 9835 established a Federal Employee Loyalty Program, under which 27,000 federal employees were investigated by the FBI between 1948 and 1958 for alleged communist affiliations?
...that the album City of Angels: Music from the Motion Picture was the second-best-selling soundtrack of 1998 in the United States?

14 November 2006

23:53, 14 November 2006 (UTC)

"Yeomanettes"

...that the use of the word "yeoman" in the U.S. Naval Reserve Act of 1916, rather than "man" or "male", enabled women to enlist in the U.S. Naval Reserve with the rank of Yeoman (F) (pictured) during World War I?
...that the Pereshchepina Treasure was discovered in 1912, when a Ukrainian shepherd boy literally stumbled over a gold vessel and fell into the grave of Kubrat, the founder of Great Bulgaria?
...that Saner Wonggoun was the number one fugitive of the U.S. Air Force from 1994 until he was caught by the Royal Thai Police in October 2006?
...that Elizabeth Godfrey was the most outstanding female goldsmith of her generation in 18th century Britain?
...that the Hull-Rust-Mahoning Open Pit Iron Mine, the largest open pit iron mine in the world, is so large that the nearby town of Hibbing, Minnesota was relocated in 1919 to allow more iron ore to be mined?
...that rice brokers in Osaka in the Edo period were the forerunner of banking in Japan?

17:27, 14 November 2006 (UTC)

...that while working on the Somerset coalfield William Smith, (pictured) who became known as the "Father of English Geology", developed the The Principle of Faunal Succession by observing the strata?
...that in addition to being a painter, Wolf Huber was active as an architect, but that no buildings designed by him have survived?
...that a type of car modification named Bippu is alleged to have originated from ties to the Yakuza?
...that Pamheiba made Hinduism the official religion of Manipur in 1717 C.E.?
...that Stanford professor Kate Lorig developed a peer-led chronic disease self management course which is the basis of the Expert Patient Programme of the British National Health Service?
...that the New York Sports Express, a free weekly newspaper designed to take a lighter look at sports, lasted only a little over one year on the hurried streets of New York City?
...that the song "Ninanajna" has two very different sets of lyrics - one in English and one in Macedonian?

06:30, 14 November 2006 (UTC)

...that nineteeth-century entrepreneur Maunsel White (pictured) of New Orleans invented a wine sauce in honor of his friend Andrew Jackson that is still manufactured today?
...that walking fish can actually skip, crawl, slither, and even climb trees?
...that the USS Hunchback was a steam powered ferryboat converted into a gunboat for the American Civil War?
...that film composer Richard Harvey has a collection of more than 600 different musical instruments?
...that the Tagore family, with over three hundred years of history, has exercised the greatest influence on reawakened Bengali spirit?
...that the Northern Red-legged Frog is a near-threatened species, whose male defends breeding pond territory with nocturnal displays?
...that Battle of the Border refers to the series of battles in the opening stage of the Nazi Germany invasion of Poland in September 1939?

13 November 2006

22:54, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

...that 17th century Russian diplomat Pyotr Ivanovich Potemkin (pictured) is reputed to have insisted on lying in bed during an audience with the King of Denmark, who was himself confined to his bed, to demonstrate equality between Russia and Denmark?
...that Motilal Sheel, a Bengali merchant in Calcutta (now Kolkata) in British India in the early 19th century, donated the land on which the Calcutta Medical College was built in 1835?
...that Colonel Denning State Park, which opened in Pennsylvania in 1936, is named for an American Revolutionary War hero, Colonel William Denning, who was a sergeant not a colonel?
...that Penley, a small village near Wrexham in north east Wales, was home to a hospital founded on the orders of Sir Winston Churchill after World War II to care for Polish ex-servicemen?
...that social dancers exchange partners several times during a mixer dance, to increase their chance of dancing with new people?
...that Australian Test cricketers Mark Waugh and Shane Warne were fined after accepting money from an Indian bookmaker known only as "John" in return for pitch and weather reports?

16:01, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

...that The Greek Slave (pictured), a statue by Hiram Powers, became a symbol for abolitionists in the United States in the years prior to the American Civil War?
...that Loretta Perfectus Walsh was the first woman to enlist in the U.S. military?
...that according to Statistics Canada, 60 percent of Canada's population are classified as White?
...that the witch's hat is the common name of a colourful orange-red toadstool?
...that K-Klass are a house music group from North Wales that purchased an underground bunker for use as a recording studio?
...that the Mahishya caste is one of the predominant Hindu castes in West Bengal, India?
...that Harry McNish was one of only four crew members of the Endurance not to receive the Polar Medal, and that his grave remained unmarked for almost 30 years?
...that via Giulia, projected for Pope Julius II, was the first attempt since antiquity to pierce a new thoroughfare through the heart of Rome?
...that the thriller The Beat That My Heart Skipped (De battre mon cœur s'est arrêté) won eight awards at the 2006 César Awards?

04:28, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Sir Edwin Landseer's iconic painting, Monarch of the Glen (pictured), was intended for the House of Lords, but the House of Commons refused to grant the £150 commission?
...that during the Shiraz blood libel, the first to start the pogrom of the Jewish quarter were the soldiers sent to protect the Jews against mob violence?
...that at nearly seventy percent, the rate of homicides in the United States involving gun violence is significantly higher than that of other developed countries?
...that the Temporary Constitution of the Republic of China was the first ever constitution in China?
...that the oldest continuously operational tavern in Philadelphia is McGillin's Olde Ale House, which opened in 1860?

12 November 2006

20:42, 12 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Esplanade Park (pictured), built in 1943, is one of the oldest parks in Singapore, and has a number of historical landmarks which include the former Indian National Army Monument site and The Cenotaph?
...that the 1928 Thames flood was the last time central London was flooded?
...that John Pasche, an art designer most famous for designing the "Tongue and Lip Design" logo for the popular band The Rolling Stones, has also done work for musicians like Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Judas Priest and The Who?
...that Jackson Pollock 's No. 5, 1948 was sold by David Geffen to David Martinez for the inflation adjusted price of $140 million dollars, making it the world's most expensive painting sold at an auction as of November, 2006?
... that English lower-league football team Bristol Rovers once beat the Netherlands national football team 3-2?

11:53, 12 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the medieval Horne Church (pictured) in Denmark has box seating for the nobility that was used by the family of astronomer Tycho Brahe?
...that Sukhbir is often referred to as the Prince of Bhangra?
...that Tropical Storm Beryl was the second tropical storm of the 1994 Atlantic hurricane season, and spread flooding and tornadoes up the Eastern Seaboard of the United States?
...that Theobald Stapleton's 1639 catechism was the first Roman Catholic book in Irish to be printed in antiqua, and that it used simplified spellings that did not become standard for another 300 years?
...that the President of the Bundestag is ranked ahead of the Chancellor of Germany according to the German order of precedence?
...that Grandi's series 1 − 1 + 1 − 1 + · · · is divergent and appears to equal 0, yet in some sense "sums" to ¹⁄₂, producing a paradox once linked to the creation ex nihilo of the universe?

11 November 2006

22:50, 11 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Santa Rosa Creek (pictured) was the scene of an 1827 baptism of a Pomo maiden, which event led to the naming of the creek and also the city of Santa Rosa, California?
...that Derek Freeman was an anthropologist whose refutation of Margaret Mead's work "ignited controversy of a scale, visibility, and ferocity never before seen in anthropology"?
...that the Château de Courances has been acclaimed as "the epitome of the French formal garden style in which château and environment form a whole"?
...that Richard Stücklen was the longest serving member of the German Bundestag, winning election 11 times between 1949 and 1990?
...that Princess Louise-Marie of France, the youngest of the 10 children of Louis XV of France and his Queen consort Maria Leszczyńska, amazed the court when she asked her father to allow her to become a Carmelite nun in 1770?
...that the medieval Slavic Milceni tribe, ancestors of the Sorbs of Germany, are mentioned in The Song of Roland?

12:05, 11 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Maria Yakunchikova (pictured) was a Russian painter who lived in Paris and was active primarily in western Europe?
...that a record 7238 salmon made the trip up the 310 metre Pitlochry fish ladder in 2006?
...that, in the "Tower of the League" at the Château de Tanlay in Burgundy, the agonists of the Wars of Religion are represented in the guise of Olympic deities?
...that the Joint Expedition Against Franklin was a small battle during the American Civil War for which seven Union sailors were awarded Medals of Honor?
...that Tropical Storm Dean was one of four Atlantic hurricanes in the 2001 Atlantic hurricane season to lose their circulation and subsequently re-develop?
... that the suppression of a protest in Nagpur and Jabalpur caused the Flag Satyagraha to erupt in 1923, bringing thousands of nationalists from across India to the rebellion?

10 November 2006

22:25, 10 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Marie Louise Élisabeth (pictured), later Duchess of Parma, was the eldest child of Louis XV of France and his Queen consort Maria Leszczyńska, had a younger twin sister Henriette, and was one of only two of Louis' children to be married, the other being her brother, Louis, dauphin de France?
...that Nagarjunakonda, a historic Buddhist town in Andhra Pradesh believed to hold some relics of Gautama Buddha was submerged by the construction of the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, the tallest masonry dam in the world?
...that Kingsley Fairbridge established the first child migration scheme for impoverished British children which over 68 years housed and educated 1,195 boys and girls at his farm school in Pinjarra, Western Australia?
...that the Irish Thoroughbred Noor was the first racehorse ever to defeat two U.S. Triple Crown champions?
...that the Ukrainian Catholic University is the first Catholic university to be opened and operated by an Eastern Rite Catholic Church?

15:38, 10 November 2006 (UTC)
...that the monument to Mother Featherlegs near Lusk, Wyoming has been called the only monument to a prostitute in the United States?

06:59, 10 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna (pictured) kept her morganatic marriage secret until the death of her father, Nicholas I of Russia, in 1855?
...that the Greek colony of Phanagoria in present-day Russia was the seat of the last Bosporan kings, the capital of Great Bulgaria, and the residence of the exiled Emperor Justinian II?
...that John Makepeace Bennett was a pioneer of Australian computer science who was involved in the construction of early computers in England?
...that Piperia yadonii is a rare and endangered species of wild orchid whose survival may be influenced by the demand for increased golfing on the Monterey Peninsula?
...that before Newton's law of universal gravitation, the universe was thought to have an absolute centre called the Central Fire towards which all objects must fall?
...that Saddam Beach in the Indian state of Kerala was given its name by local Muslim villagers after the Gulf War of 1991 in solidarity with former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein?

9 November 2006

23:27, 9 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Kadambini Ganguly (pictured) was one of the first female graduates in the British Empire and the first female conventional doctor in South Asia?
...that the Temple of Harmony, built in the grounds of Halsworth House in Goathurst, Somerset, England in 1767, is a replica of the Temple of Fortuna Virilis in Rome?
...that Sonoma Mountain produces Sonoma Valley premium wine grapes as high as 1700 feet in elevation and was a significant influence on the works of author Jack London before the Wine Country became famous?
...that Hurricane Erin was the longest-lived hurricane of the 2001 Atlantic hurricane season?
...that the National Liberal Party-Brătianu, created in 1930 by politicians who supported Carol II as King of Romania, became, in the space of three years, one of the monarch's most vocal adversaries?
...that a Millwall brick is an improvised weapon made from folded newspaper?

15:27, 9 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the Dutch Reformed Church (pictured), a Greek Revival building in Newburgh, New York that has been declared a National Historic Landmark, is considered the latest extant work of architect Alexander Jackson Davis that still largely reflects his original vision?
...that the Wesselenyi conspiracy in Hungary aimed at removing Austrian influence had the reverse effect?
...that General A.D. McRae, the BC Industrialist who organized the election of Canada's 11th Prime Minister, R.B Bennett, made his fortune selling land during the settlement of Saskatchewan?
...that in the 2004 film Shallow Ground, actor Rocky Marquette plays a central character who is naked for the duration of the film?
...that Nestor Lakoba, a Soviet Communist Party chief in Abkhazia, was probably poisoned by Lavrentiy Beria, who then had his wife and son killed?
...that the spacious Hall of Lost Footsteps was added to the medieval Palace of Poitiers at the behest of Alienor of Aquitaine, Queen consort of France and England?
...that Litchfield Towers is the largest and tallest dormitory at the University of Pittsburgh's main campus, at 22 stories in height and housing over 1,850 residents?

05:40, 9 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the basilica of Notre-Dame de Boulogne (pictured) houses a fragment of a "miraculous" statue burned during the French Revolution?
...that "Amour Amour", Luxembourg's entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1987 was performed by Plastic Bertrand a decade after the band achieved fame with "Ça plane pour moi"?
...that Philippe Égalité's Château du Raincy near Paris contained an outcrop of houses scored to resemble traditional Russian log huts?
...that the expression "simon-pure", meaning "of untainted purity or integrity" came from the name of a character who is impersonated throughout most of Susanna Centlivre's 18th-century play A Bold Stroke for a Wife?
...that a little Switzerland was a 19th-century Romantic term in European languages for any steep landscape with rock outcrops, but later was used for a lakeland too?

8 November 2006

22:36, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

...that "Heavy Harry", the only working example of the Victorian Railways H class (pictured), was the largest non-articulated steam locomotive ever built in Australia?
...that The Drifters' hit "Under the Boardwalk" was recorded the day after lead singer Rudy Lewis' unexpected death?
...that the Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter, an important Paleo-Indian site in Alabama, yielded over 11,000 artifacts ranging up to 9,000 years of age?
...that the Hebrides Overture, also known as Fingal's Cave and composed by Mendelssohn, was inspired by the famous cave off the coast of Scotland?
...that The Very Rev. Dr. Finlay A. J. Macdonald saw his calling as being "a lawyer for God" instead of a lawyer for man while studying philosophy?
...that Macquarie University made its site's architect, Walter Abraham, a professor to give his opinions the same weight as those of the academic staff?

12:04, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the residents of the Findhorn Ecovillage (pictured) have the lowest ecological footprint of any community measured so far in the industrialised world?
...that the Romanian Surrealist writer Geo Bogza, who adopted Socialist realism later in his life, was tried three times on charges of obscenity during the 1930s?
...that Sir Peter Lely, the most popular portrait artist in England in the mid 1600s, was born Pieter van der Faes, and is reputed to have adopted the surname "Lely" from a heraldic lily on the gable of the house of his father's birth?
...that a complex system of artificial caverns, some excavated by the Greeks more than 2500 years ago, lies beneath Naples?
...that the silver hand and bronze foot of Saint Melor were said to miraculously work as if they were natural appendages?
...that Ateas, the best attested king of the Scythians, was killed in a battle with Philip II of Macedon at the age of 90?

02:55, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

...that it is customary in Jewish homes to decorate the wall in the direction of prayer — mizrah — with artistic wall plaques (pictured) inscribed with the word mizrah, scriptural passages, kabbalistic writings, or pictures of holy places?
...that an area of 500 hectares in the centre of Bucharest razed in the 1980s at the orders of Ceauşescu was called Ceaushima by the Bucharest residents?
...that shark threat display is an exaggerated swimming style exhibited by some sharks when they perceive they are in danger?
...that the Buddhist monk Tetsugen spent twenty years in an attempt to publish the Chinese scriptures of Buddhism in Japan, because he kept giving away the money he collected for the purpose?
...that Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, the grandson of the late Philippine President Sergio Osmeña, was a Vice President of SEROS, Inc and Apex Realty and Developers in California?

7 November 2006

18:26, 7 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the Swedish art collector Rolf de Maré (pictured) created the world's first museum and research institute for dance?
...that the his genitive was a briefly lived form for possessive nouns in the 17th century and may have given rise to the use of the apostrophe for genitives in Modern English?
...that electrothermal-chemical technology can now almost double the muzzle energy of a tank gun?
...that when first introduced to England there was confusion over whether the Rouen duck was named after the Rhône region, Cardinal de Rohan, the colour roan, or the town Rouen?
...that Blair Cherry was the first high-school football coach in Texas history to lead his team to three consecutive state championships?

08:39, 7 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Carl Westman (pictured) was one of the first Swedish architects to incorporate the Nordic National Romantic Style into his designs?
...that despite operating a charity that has set up four clinics in the city of Kolkata, British doctor Jack Preger has been ordered to leave India on at least one occasion?
...that Mandø, a Danish island in the Wadden Sea has about as much land area in mudflat as its considerable arable land?
...that the most important source for early Irish history, The Chronicle of Ireland, had to be reconstructed from later, derivative works because no original copies survived?
...that the simultaneous invasion of Georgia by the Soviet and Turkish forces threatened to develop into a Soviet-Turkish confrontation in 1921?
...that the concept of thermal death time started out in food canning, but has also found applications in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries?

6 November 2006

18:29, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

...that during World War II, the statues Winged Victory of Samothrace and Venus de Milo were housed in the Château de Valençay (pictured)?
...that the Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox statues in Bemidji, Minnesota are the second most photographed statues in the United States, behind only Mount Rushmore?
... that Peter, the Lord's cat is the only animal to be given an obituary in Wisden Cricketers' Almanack?
...that in the Battle of Seattle (1856), the native attackers' only common language was Chinook jargon, so the settlers were able to hear and understand the attackers' shouted orders?
...that when the Transylvanian shepherd Badea Cârţan was found sleeping at the base of Trajan's Column in Rome in 1896, he was at first jokingly referred to as a Dacian who had fallen off a sculpted panel on the column and come to life?
...that at 49, Douglas A. Warner III was the youngest ever CEO of J.P. Morgan & Co. Inc.?

08:46, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the influential architect Claude Nicolas Ledoux, who had amassed a fortune working on the notoriously unpopular Wall of the Farmers-General (pictured), was arrested and thrown in La Force Prison during the French Revolution?
...that Channa, a charioteer of Prince Siddhartha, became a bhikkhu upon his master's attainment of buddhahood?
...that George II of Moscow was responsible for the destruction of the Tatar trade emporium at Zhukotin on the Kama River?
...that the cry For your freedom and ours, one of the unofficial mottos of Poland, has been popularized by Polish soldiers, exiled from the partitioned Poland, who fought in various independence movements all over the world?
...that Ole Bull State Park in Pennsylvania is named for the renowned Norwegian violinist who tried to establish a Norwegian colony in the wilderness there in the 1850s?

00:49, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Princess Marie Adélaïde (pictured), the fourth daughter and sixth child of Louis XV of France and his Queen consort Maria Leszczyńska, died in exile in 1800 having outlived all nine of her siblings?
...that Calcot Manor in Gloucestershire sold its principal roof to an American new town that wished to emulate the appearance of a medieval European village?
...that Lyman Run State Park in Pennsylvania was the site of logging operations, a Civilian Conservation Corps camp, and a World War II Prisoner of War camp before becoming a state park in 1951?
...that the Jersey Shore, Pine Creek and Buffalo Railway, once promoted to connect the Pennsylvania-New York oil fields with New York City, instead became part of the New York Central's line to the coal mines around Clearfield, Pennsylvania?
...that the Polish capture of Wilno in 1919 set the stage for the future Polish-Soviet and Polish-Lithuanian Wars?
...that Honoré de Balzac once observed that "the heart of Paris today beats between rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin and rue du Faubourg Montmartre"?

5 November 2006

17:01, 5 November 2006 (UTC)

...that a fire that broke out a few days before Hiralal Sen (pictured) died destroyed all his films including India's first political film?
...that a hurricane-sized cyclonic storm over 1500 kilometres in diameter was spotted near the Martian north pole in 1999?
...that California Mule Deer have had their population controlled by humans starting in 12,000 BC by indigenous Native Americans?
...that "Splice the mainbrace" is an order given aboard naval ships to allow the crew an extra ration of rum?
...that the small herds of marble cows that can be found in several locations around Texas are the work of Dallas sculptor Harold F. Clayton?
...that the exploitation film Mom and Dad, grossed an estimated $40-100 million, and is the third highest grossing film of the 1940s?
...that Stan McCabe, who once caused a cricket Test to be abandoned in poor visibility due to the danger his hard-hitting posed to the fielding team, died after falling off a cliff?

10:06, 5 November 2006 (UTC)

...that if the 2005 Azores subtropical storm (pictured), identified by the NHC in post-season reanalysis, had been named then Hurricane Wilma would have been named "Hurricane Alpha"?
...that Tingmissartoq, Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh's Lockheed Sirius, was so christened by an Eskimo boy in Greenland, and that its name means "one who flies like a big bird"?
...that through Greek trading colonies like Al Mina on the Syrian coast the Phoenician alphabet was transmitted to ancient Greece in the 8th century BCE?
...that the Kintner-Withers House's Cedar Farm is the only antebellum plantation in the state of Indiana?
...that August Zaleski, president of the Polish government in Exile, refused to leave his office and for almost 20 years was opposed by the Council of Three?
...that William Franklyn was a British actor, perhaps best known for voicing the "Schhh... You Know Who" adverts for Schweppes from 1965 to 1973?

4 November 2006

23:58, 4 November 2006 (UTC)

...that when the Brother Jonathan (pictured) sank off the coast of California in 1856, it was the worst shipwreck on the Pacific Coast of the United States at the time?
...that Forward Pass, an American Thoroughbred racehorse, was the only horse in the history of the Kentucky Derby to have been declared the winner as the result of a disqualification?
...that Samuel A. Goldblith was able to publish a paper for the journal Science after World War II on malnutrition suffered at POW camps in the Philippines and Japan observed during the war from his own experience as a prisoner in those camps?
...that guards on the mail coach had to remain outside for the entire journey and sometimes froze to death?
...that Y Clwb Rygbi was the first Welsh language television programme to win a Royal Television Society Sports Award?
...that English Anglican clergyman Dr William Dodd was nicknamed the "macaroni parson" as a result of his extravagant lifestyle, and in 1777 became the last person to be hanged at Tyburn for forgery?

17:52, 4 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the money for the construction of the Washington Memorial Chapel (pictured) at Valley Forge was raised in small increments (nickels and dimes), raising the building a few feet at a time?
...that Tom Hickathrift is the East Anglian equivalent of Jack the Giant Killer?
...that the Golden Barrel is a popularly cultivated cactus from Mexico?
...that the libretto for Howard Hanson's opera Merry Mount was written without a composer in mind?
...that Nestorianism was one of the first forms of Christianity to be introduced in Mongolia?
... that harpoon reactions are chemical reactions that take place faster than predicted by collision theory because an electron is "thrown" from one molecule towards the other?

11:23, 4 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Sonoma Coast State Beach (pictured) is one of California's longest beaches and has rocks that have evidence of rubbing by mammoths 40,000 years ago?
...that the Qiandao Lake Incident in 1994 caused 32 Taiwanese tourist deaths, and the government of People's Republic of China were ineffective on solving the case, which directly leads to the massive increase of Taiwanese supporters on Taiwan independence?
...that the PDSA Gold Medal is awarded to animals for gallantry and devotion to duty?
...that Dallas Smythe, an early researcher of the political economy of communications, earned an FBI file for his volunteerism with the American League for Peace and Democracy?
...that the Air Hogs Stormlauncher is a radio controlled model capable of operation on land, water...and even air?

00:19, 4 November 2006 (UTC)

...that John F. Mackie (pictured) was the first United States Marine to receive America's highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor?
...that while most tornadoes form from supercell thunderstorms, tornadogenesis is a widely varied process, and can even occur under a normal cumulus cloud?
...that William Lyman Underwood worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology without pay from 1899 until his 1929 death to focus on bacteriology research?
...that according to legend, Saint Juthwara was beheaded by her stepbrother, Bana, because he believed her to be pregnant?
...that the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS) was founded in London in 1946 as a national British academic institution to promote and advance legal research, and is now part of the School of Advanced Study of the University of London?

3 November 2006

15:12, 3 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the former owners of the Château de Louveciennes include Louis XIV, the courtesan Madame du Barry, the Camondo family, the politician Louis Loucheur, the perfumer François Coty, and the Nissan Group?
...that in 2001, Shelby Howard became the youngest driver to compete in an Auto Racing Club of America race at the age of 15?
...that John Frush Knox was the only law clerk of the United States Supreme Court ever to write a memoir documenting their time spent in this position?
...that Kaka Joginder Singh (alias Dharti Pakad) contested and lost over 300 elections in his 36 year political career?
...that Michał Dymitr Krajewski's first book, Podolanka wychowana w stanie natury, życie i przypadki swoje opisująca ("The Podolian Girl: raised in the natural state, describing her life and events"), was responsible for initiating the first literary debate in Poland, and had seven editions in one year?

08:43, 3 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the Rex Graham nature reserve, a disused chalk pit in Suffolk, supports 95% of the British population of Military Orchids?
...that Anne Juliana Gonzaga became a Servant of Mary following the death of her husband, Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria in 1595, after receiving a vision of the Madonna, to whom her parents had prayed to cure her of a childhood illness?
that Rita Dove selected the Norton Anthology of African-American Literature, co-edited by Nellie Y. McKay with Henry Louis Gates, Jr., for a time capsule kept by the U.S. National Archives that will be opened in the 22nd century?
...that the destination hotel became popular in the 1800s, and their number has expanded to present times, along with the elaborateness of their amenities?
...that, subject to the resolution of litigation, Slovenian basketball player Miha Zupan will become the first deaf player to compete in Europe's principal club competition, the Euroleague?
...that Flow my tears by English lutenist John Dowland (1563–1626) is not only his most popular song today, but was also the most widely known English song of the period?

2 November 2006

23:50, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Beckomberga hospital (pictured) in Stockholm was designed according to a strict symmetrical pattern and used to be one of the largest psychiatric hospitals in Europe?
...that the Underwood Canning Company went to packing their food products in tin because glass makers in Boston, Massachusetts could not keep up with the company's demands?
...that the Rumsfeld Commission is considered by some foreign policy analysts to be the basis for the term "axis of evil", used by President George W. Bush in his 2002 State of the Union Address?
...that original copies of the Herefordshire Pomona, a 19th century catalogue of apples and pears, command prices of over $20,000 when they come up for sale?
...that the Thomas Organ Company not only helped invent the market for electronic organs for the home, but also at one time held the manufacturing rights to the Moog synthesizer?
...that Hurricane Bob was the first of a record-tying six hurricanes to hit the United States in 1985?

16:36, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

...that, the Château de Rosny (pictured), the birthplace and seat of Henri IV's minister Duc de Sully, was largely stripped of its furniture and neglected after it was acquired by a Japanese company in 1984?
...that Indian author and journalist Peary Chand Mitra played a leading role in the Bengal renaissance in the 19th century and became known as the "Dickens of Bengal" due to his clear Bengali prose?
...that Slant magazine said the Hilary Duff 2004 song "I Am" was "what Alanis Morissette might sound like if she had a lobotomy"?
...that Swedish post-impressionist painter Nils von Dardel died in 1943, shortly after he came to prominence in his native country?
...that Picardo Farm, one of two historical farms preserved within Seattle city limits, is the oldest P-Patch allotment garden?
...that the Soviet 76th "K. Y. Voroshilov" Division passed through 7,000 kilometres of former Soviet territory during the Second World War, liberating over 600 towns and cities from Axis occupying forces?

10:30, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

...that the Västgötalagen, a text describing medieval provincial laws, is the oldest example of Early Swedish literature to survive in its entirety?
...that artists of the Mission School, a San Francisco-based contemporary art movement, often make artworks from materials such as house paint, spray paint, correction fluid, ballpoint pens, and scrapboard?
... that Ukrainian-language publication and education flourished in Ukraine after the Russian Revolution, despite battles between Ukrainian, Bolshevik, Russian, Polish, German, and Cossack forces, and various anarchist and paramilitary bands?
...that the Warrior arcade game is considered to be the first versus fighting game and was released over a decade before the genre became popular?
...that Kallol was perhaps, the first conscious literary movement to embrace modernism in Bengali literature?
...that in 1804, the frigate Apollo and forty merchant ships in her convoy were wrecked off Portugal, the result of a single badly adjusted compass?

1 November 2006

21:58, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

Château de Menars

...that, four years before her death, Madame de Pompadour paid almost one million livres to buy the Château de Menars (pictured), selling some pearl bracelets to meet the first payment?
...that General Douglas MacArthur's staff threatened United States Army Lieutenant Colonel Charles S. Lawrence with court martial if he confiscated nearly 2,000 cases of food from Japanese-run firms in the Philippines, and that the stores were destroyed during the Battle of Bataan in early 1942?
...that the 1960 mystery film Scent of Mystery was the first and only feature-length film to be shown in Smell-O-Vision?
...that Rasik Krishna Mallick, a student at Hindu College, Kolkata, a leading Derozian and journalist, shocked a court in British India in the 1820s when he stated that he did not believe in the sacredness of the Ganges?
...that Henry Ford helped stop construction of a state highway in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in order to gain admission to the exclusive Huron Mountain Club?
...that Joost van Dyk, a 17th century Dutch privateer and occasional pirate and slaver, established the first permanent European settlements in the British Virgin Islands?

11:08, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

...that Sigrid Hjertén (pictured), a crucial figure in Swedish modernism, suffered from schizophrenia and tragically died following an awkwardly performed lobotomy?
...that the Siege of Constantinople by the Rus in 860 is known primarily from the writings of Patriarch Photius, who referred to the invaders as "a swarm of wasps" and compared their attack to "a thunderbolt from heaven"?
...that the sculpture Reverence which depicts two whale tails, is not on permanent display near the ocean but on a grassy knoll in an open green field?
...that Pontus Hultén was an art collector and pioneering museum director who wanted modern art to be accessible to the public in a user-friendly viewing storehouse?
...that in 1943, Prigat, a small and newly created juice manufacturer at the time, sold 775,000 syrup bottles to the British Army in Israel?
...that the large pothole in Archbald Pothole State Park in Pennsylvania formed about 13,000 years ago in the Wisconsin glaciation, but was not discovered until 1884 by a coal miner?
...that modern digital sundials display the current time with numerals rather than marking it with position?