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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 1 Nov 2010 01:06
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[Daily article] November 1: Acra (fortress)

The Acra was a fortified compound in Jerusalem of the 2nd century BCE. 
Built by Antiochus Epiphanes, ruler of the Seleucid Empire, following 
his sack of the city in 168 BCE, the fortress played a significant role 
in the events surrounding the Maccabean Revolt and the formation of the 
Hasmonean Kingdom. It was destroyed by Simon Maccabeus during this 
struggle. The exact location of the Acra, critical to understanding 
Hellenistic Jerusalem, remains a matter of ongoing discussion. 
Historians and archaeologists have proposed various sites around 
Jerusalem, relying mainly on conclusions drawn from literary evidence. 
This approach began to change in the light of excavations which 
commenced in the late 1960s. New discoveries have prompted 
reassessments of the ancient literary sources, Jerusalem's geography 
and previously discovered artifacts. Yoram Tsafrir has interpreted a 
masonry joint in the southeastern corner of the Temple Mount platform 
as a clue to the Acra's possible position. During Benjamin Mazar's 1968 
and 1978 excavations adjacent to the south wall of the Mount, features 
were uncovered which may have been connected with the Acra, including 
barrack-like rooms and a huge cistern.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acra_%28fortress%29>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1520:

Portuguese maritime explorer Ferdinand Magellan led the first European 
expedition to navigate the Strait of Magellan.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Magellan>
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 2 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 2: United States Senate election in California, 1950

The United States Senate election in California, 1950 followed a 
campaign characterized by accusations and name-calling. Republican 
Richard Nixon defeated Democrat Helen Gahagan Douglas, after Democratic 
incumbent Sheridan Downey withdrew during the primary election 
campaign. Nixon won the Republican primary and Douglas the Democratic 
contest, with each also finishing third in the other party's contest. A 
contentious Democratic primary race left the party divided, and 
Democrats were slow to rally to Douglas—some even endorsed Nixon. The 
Korean War broke out only days after the primaries, and both Nixon and 
Douglas contended that the other had often voted with leftist New York 
Congressman Vito Marcantonio to the detriment of national security. 
Nixon's attacks were far more effective, and he won the election by 
almost 20 percentage points, carrying 53 of California's 58 counties 
and all metropolitan areas. The campaign gave rise to two memorable 
political nicknames: "the Pink Lady" for Douglas and "Tricky Dick" for 
Nixon.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate_election_in_California%2C_1950>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1889:

The Dakota Territory, an organized incorporated territory of the United 
States, was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and 
South Dakota.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Dakota>
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 3 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 3: Ficus aurea

Ficus aurea is a tree in the family Moraceae that is native to Florida, 
the northern and western Caribbean, southern Mexico and Central America 
south to Panama. The specific epithet aurea was coined by English 
botanist Thomas Nuttall who described the species in 1846; older names 
applied to this species have been ruled invalid. Ficus aurea is a 
strangler fig; seed germination usually takes place in the canopy of a 
host tree and the seedling lives as an epiphyte until its roots 
establish contact with the ground. It then enlarges and strangles its 
host, eventually becoming a freestanding tree in its own right. 
Individuals may reach 30 m (100 ft) in height. Like all figs, it has an 
obligate mutualism with fig wasps; figs are only pollinated by fig 
wasps, and fig wasps can only reproduce in fig flowers. The tree 
provides habitat, food and shelter for a host of tropical lifeforms 
including epiphytes in cloud forests and birds, mammals, reptiles and 
invertebrates. F. aurea is used in traditional medicine, for live 
fencing, as an ornamental and as a bonsai.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficus_aurea>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1793:

French playwright, journalist and outspoken feminist Olympe de Gouges 
was guillotined for her revolutionary ideas.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympe_de_Gouges>

1838:
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 4 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 4: Not One Less

Not One Less is a 1999 drama film by Chinese director Zhang Yimou 
(pictured), adapted from Shi Xiangsheng's 1997 story "A Sun in the 
Sky." Set in the People's Republic of China during the 1990s, the film 
centers on a 13-year-old substitute teacher, Wei Minzhi, in the Chinese 
countryside. Called in to substitute for a village teacher for one 
month, Wei is told not to lose any students. When one of the boys takes 
off in search of work in the big city, she goes looking for him. The 
film addresses education reform in China, the economic gap between 
urban and rural populations, and the prevalence of bureaucracy and 
authority figures in everyday life. It is filmed in a 
neorealist/documentary style with a troupe of non-professional actors 
who play characters with the same names and occupations as the actors 
have in real life, blurring the boundaries between drama and reality. 
Internationally, the film was generally well-received, but it also 
attracted criticism for its ostensibly political message. When the film 
was excluded from the 1999 Cannes Film Festival's competition section, 
Zhang withdrew it and another film from the festival, and published a 
letter rebuking Cannes for politicization of and "discrimination" 
against Chinese cinema.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_One_Less>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1737:

The Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, Italy, currently the oldest active 
opera house in Europe, was inaugurated.
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 5 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 5: Gunpowder Plot

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605 was a failed assassination attempt against 
King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial 
English Catholics led by Sir Robert Catesby. The plan was to blow up 
the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament on 
5 November, as the prelude to a popular revolt in the Midlands during 
which James's nine-year-old daughter, Princess Elizabeth, was to be 
installed as the Catholic head of state. Catesby may have embarked on 
the scheme after hopes of securing greater religious tolerance under 
King James had faded, leaving many English Catholics disappointed. His 
fellow plotters were John Wright, Thomas Wintour, Thomas Percy, Guy 
Fawkes, Robert Keyes, Thomas Bates, Robert Wintour, Christopher Wright, 
John Grant, Sir Ambrose Rookwood, Sir Everard Digby and Francis 
Tresham. Fawkes, who had 10 years of military experience fighting in 
the Spanish Netherlands in suppression of the Dutch Revolt, was given 
charge of the explosives.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowder_Plot>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1338:

Ly Anh Tong was enthroned as emperor of Vietnam at the age of two, 
starting a 37-year reign.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ly_Anh_Tong>

1838:
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 6 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 6: New South Greenland

New South Greenland was an appearance of land recorded by the American 
captain Benjamin Morrell of the schooner Wasp in March 1823, during a 
sealing and exploration voyage in the Weddell Sea area of Antarctica. 
Morrell provided precise coordinates and a description of a coastline 
which he claimed to have sailed along for more than 300 miles (480 km). 
Because the Weddell Sea area was so little visited, and hard to 
navigate due to ice conditions, the alleged land was never properly 
investigated before its existence was emphatically disproved during 
Antarctic expeditions in the early 20th century. At the time of 
Morrell's voyage, the geography of the then unnamed Weddell Sea and its 
surrounding coasts was almost entirely unknown, making the claimed 
sighting initially plausible. However, obvious errors in Morrell's 
voyage account, and his general reputation as a fabulist, created 
scepticism about the existence of this new land. In June 1912 the 
German explorer Wilhelm Filchner searched for but found no traces of 
land, after his ship Deutschland became icebound in the Weddell Sea and 
drifted into the locality of Morrell's observation. Three years later, 
trapped in the same waters with his ship Endurance, Ernest Shackleton 
was able by similar means to confirm the land's non-existence. Various 
possible explanations for Morrell's error have been suggested, 
including intentional deception. Morrell may have been honestly 
mistaken, through miscalculation of his ship's position or by 
misremembering detail when writing the account after nine years. 
Alternatively, he may have made the common error of confusing distant 
icebergs with land, or been misled by the distorting effects of 
Antarctic mirage.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_South_Greenland>
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 7 Nov 2010 01:06
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[Daily article] November 7: Chicado V

Chicado V (1950–1972) was a Champion Quarter Horse race horse foaled 
(born) in 1950, and considered one of the outstanding broodmares of her 
breed. She started only six times as knee problems cut short her racing 
career. However, she won her first two starts while breaking or 
equaling track records, and was given the title of co-Champion Quarter 
Running Two-Year-Old Filly by the American Quarter Horse Association 
(AQHA) in 1952. The next year she ran her last four races, winning once 
and setting one more speed record. After her last race, in December 
1953, she was retired from the track to become a broodmare, and had 
nine foals. Two of her offspring were named Champion Quarter Running 
Horses, and all her foals had a total of seven stakes race wins. One of 
her daughters, Table Tennis, went on to become a noted broodmare 
herself, as did Table Tennis' daughter Rapid Volley and granddaughter 
Perks. However, three of Chicado V's sons—Triple Chick, Three Chicks, 
and The Ole Man—were her best known offspring; all three became leading 
sires and are the main cause of her fame. She was inducted into the 
AQHA's American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2006.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicado_V>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1665:

The London Gazette, the oldest surviving English language newspaper, 
was first published as the Oxford Gazette.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Gazette>
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 8 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 8: Harris Theater (Chicago, Illinois)

The Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance is a 
1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern 
edge of Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago. The 
theater was named for its primary benefactors, Joan and Irving Harris. 
It serves as the Park's indoor performing venue, a complement to Jay 
Pritzker Pavilion, which hosts the park's outdoor performances. 
Constructed in 2002–03, it is the city's premier performance venue for 
small- and medium-sized music and dance groups. It provides subsidized 
rental, technical expertise, and marketing support for the companies 
using it, and turned a profit in its fourth fiscal year. The Harris 
Theater has hosted notable national and international performers, such 
as the New York City Ballet's first visit to Chicago in over 25 years 
(in 2006). Performances have included the San Francisco Ballet, Mikhail 
Baryshnikov, and Stephen Sondheim. The theater has been credited as 
contributing to the performing arts renaissance in Chicago, and has 
been favorably reviewed for its acoustics, sightlines, proscenium and 
for providing a home for numerous performing organizations.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harris_Theater_%28Chicago%2C_Illinois%29>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1520:

Following a successful invasion of Sweden by Danish forces under 
Christian II of Denmark, scores of Swedish leaders were executed in 
Stockholm despite Christian's promise of general amnesty.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Bloodbath>
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 9 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 9: Geastrum triplex

Geastrum triplex is an inedible species of fungus belonging to the 
genus Geastrum, or earthstar fungi. First described in 1840 as Geaster 
triplex, several authors have suggested that Geastrum indicum, 
described in 1832, is the legitimate name for the species. Immature 
fruit bodies are spherical—somewhat resembling puffballs with pointed 
beaks—and are partially or completely buried in the ground. As the 
fungus matures, the outer layer of tissue (the exoperidium) splits into 
four to eight pointed segments which spread outwards and downwards, 
lifting and exposing the spherical inner spore sac. The spore sac 
contains the gleba, a mass of spores and fertile mycelial tissue that 
when young is white and firm, but ages to become brown and powdery. The 
species is the largest of the earthstar fungi, with a tip to tip length 
of an expanded mature specimen reaching up to 12 centimeters (4.7 in). 
Geastrum triplex is a common and widespread species found in the 
detritus and leaf litter of hardwood forests in many parts of the 
world, including Asia, Australasia, Europe, and both North and South 
America. Fruit bodies have been analyzed chemically to determine their 
lipid content, and various chemical derivatives of the fungal sterol 
ergosterol have been identified. The fungus has a history of use in the 
traditional medicines of native North America and China.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geastrum_triplex>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1330:

The Battle of Posada between Basarab I of Wallachia and Charles I
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English Wikipedia Article of the Day | 10 Nov 2010 01:05
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[Daily article] November 10: Golden Sun

Golden Sun is the first installment of a series of fantasy role-playing 
video games developed by Camelot Software Planning and published by 
Nintendo. It was released in November 2001 for Nintendo's Game Boy 
Advance, followed by a sequel, Golden Sun: The Lost Age, in 2003. The 
game is notable for certain unique game elements, such as the use of 
special "Djinn" that empower the player and can be used against 
enemies. Golden Sun's story follows a band of magic-attuned "adepts" 
who are sent from their home town into the wide world of Weyard to 
prevent the potentially destructive power of alchemy from being 
released as it was in the past. Along the way the adepts gain new 
abilities, help out the local populations, and learn more about why 
alchemy was sealed away. The story continues in The Lost Age. Upon its 
release, the game was highly praised; IGN's Craig Harris wrote that 
Golden Sun could "arguably be one of the best 2D-based Japanese RPGs 
created for any system." The game went on to sell over one million 
copies in Japan and the United States. A second sequel, Golden Sun: 
Dark Dawn, is scheduled for release in 2010.

Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Sun>

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Today's selected anniversaries:

1775:

The United States Marine Corps was founded as the Continental Marines 
by a resolution of the Second Continental Congress during the American 
Revolutionary War.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Marine_Corps>
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