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February 1
The Radhanites were medieval Jewish merchants. Whether the term, which is used by only a limited number of primary sources, refers to a specific guild, or whether it is a generic term for Jewish merchants in the trans-Eurasian trade network, is unclear. Jewish merchants dominated trade between the Christian and Muslim worlds during the early Middle Ages, from approximately 600 to 1000. Trade routes established under the Roman Empire stayed open during that period largely through their efforts. Their trade network covered much of Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia, and parts of India and China. (more...)
Recently featured: Dixie – Charles I – Prostate cancer
February 2
Adriaen van der Donck was a lawyer and landowner in New Netherland, after whom the city of Yonkers, New York is named. In addition to being the first lawyer in the Dutch colony, he was a leader in the political life of New Amsterdam, modern New York City, and an activist for Dutch-style republican government in the Dutch West India Company-run trading post. His efforts resulted in a municipal charter for the city, which was enacted on February 2, 1653. Enchanted by his new homeland, Van der Donck left detailed accounts of the land, vegetation, animals, waterways, topography, and climate. He used this knowledge to actively promote immigration to the colony, publishing several tracts, including his influential Description of New Netherland. He is also recognized as a sympathetic early Native American ethnographer, having learned the languages and customs of the Mahicans and Mohawks. (more...)
Recently featured: Radhanites – Dixie – Charles I
February 3
The Restoration spectacular, or elaborately staged "machine play", hit the London public stage in the late 17th-century Restoration period, enthralling audiences with action, music, dance, moveable scenery, baroque illusionistic painting, gorgeous costumes, and special effects such as trapdoor tricks, "flying" actors, and fireworks. These shows have always had a bad reputation as a vulgar and commercial threat to the witty, "legitimate" Restoration drama; however, they drew Londoners in unprecedented numbers and left them dazzled and delighted. Basically home-grown and with roots in the early 17th-century court masque, though never ashamed of borrowing ideas and stage technology from French opera, the spectaculars are sometimes called "English opera". The expense of mounting ever more elaborate scenic productions drove the two competing theatre companies into a dangerous spiral of huge expenditure and correspondingly huge losses or profits. (more...)
Recently featured: Adriaen van der Donck – Radhanites – Dixie
February 4
Comet Hyakutake is a comet that was discovered in January 1996 which passed very close to the Earth in March of that year. It was one of the closest cometary approaches to the Earth in the last 200 years. The comet became very bright in the night sky, and, as a result, it was seen by a large number of people around the world. The comet temporarily upstaged the long-awaited Comet Hale-Bopp, which was approaching the inner Solar System at the time, although Hyakutake was only at its brightest for a few days. Scientific observations of the comet led to several notable discoveries. Most surprising to cometary scientists was the discovery of X-ray emission from the comet, the first time a comet had been found to be emitting X-rays. This emission is believed to be caused by ionised solar wind particles interacting with neutral atoms in the coma of the comet. The Ulysses spacecraft also unexpectedly crossed the comet's tail at a distance of more than 500 million km from the nucleus, showing that Hyakutake had the longest tail yet known for a comet. Hyakutake is a long period comet. Before its most recent passage through the Solar System, its orbital period was about 15,000 years, but the gravitational influence of the giant planets has now increased this to 72,000 years. (more...)
Recently featured: Restoration spectacular – Adriaen van der Donck – Radhanites
February 5
The music of Nigeria includes many kinds of folk and popular music, some of which are known worldwide. Styles of folk music are related to the multitudes of ethnic groups in the country, each with their own techniques, instruments and songs. Little is known about the country's music history prior to European contact, although bronze carvings dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries have been found depicting musicians and their instruments. Nigeria has been called "the heart of African music" because of its role in the development of West African highlife and palm-wine music, which fuses native rhythms with techniques imported from the Congo, Brazil, Cuba and elsewhere. Highlife was an important foundation for the development of several popular styles that were unique to Nigeria, like apala, fuji, jùjú and Yo-pop. (more...)
Recently featured: Comet Hyakutake – Restoration spectacular – Adriaen van der Donck
February 6
Hurricane Dennis was the fourth named storm, second hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. The hurricane set several records for early season hurricane activity, becoming both the earliest formation of a fourth tropical cyclone and the strongest hurricane ever to form before August. Dennis hit Cuba twice as a Category 4 hurricane and made landfall on the Florida Panhandle in the United States as a Category 3 storm less than a year after Hurricane Ivan did so. Dennis caused at least 88 deaths (41 direct) in the U.S. and Caribbean and caused $2.23 billion in damages (2005 US dollars) to the United States, as well as an approximately equal amount of damage in the Caribbean, primarily on Cuba. (more...)
Recently featured: Music of Nigeria – Comet Hyakutake – Restoration spectacular
February 7
During the period from 1911 to 1941, Sino-German cooperation was often close, culminating in an alliance between the Republic of China and Germany. Close cooperation dating back to the 1920s was instrumental in modernizing the industry and the armed forces of the Republic of China, especially in the period immediately preceding the Second Sino-Japanese War. Succeeding the Qing Dynasty in 1912, the Republic of China was fraught with factional warlordism from the inside and foreign incursions from the outside. The Northern Expedition of 1928 nominally unified China for the first time under Kuomintang control, yet Imperial Japan emerged as the greatest foreign threat. The urgent need for China to modernize its military and national defense industry, coupled with Germany's need for a stable supply of raw materials, put the two countries on the road of close relations from the late 1920s to the late 1930s. Although the period of intense cooperation was relatively short, lasting only from the Nazi takeover of Germany in 1933 to the start of the war with Japan in 1937, it had a profound effect on the modernization efforts of China, as well as her capability to resist the Japanese in the war. (more...)
Recently featured: Hurricane Dennis – Music of Nigeria – Comet Hyakutake
February 8
The Sydney Riot of 1879 was one of the earliest riots at an international cricket match. It occurred at the Association Ground, Moore Park, now known as the Sydney Cricket Ground. The game was between a touring English team captained by Lord Harris and the New South Wales Cricket Association led by Dave Gregory. The riot was sparked off by a controversial umpiring decision, when Australian star batsman Billy Murdoch was controversially given out by umpire George Coulthard. It was alleged that betting men in the New South Wales pavilion encouraged Gregory to make a stand and disrupt the game. The immediate aftermath of the riot saw the England team cancel the remaining games due to be played in Sydney. The riot led to a breakdown of goodwill that threatened the immediate future of England-Australia cricket tours. The friction between the cricketing authorities was finally eased when Lord Harris agreed to lead an England representative side at the Oval in London more than a year later. (more...)
Recently featured: Sino-German cooperation – Hurricane Dennis – Music of Nigeria
February 9
Mount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It was named for British diplomat Lord St Helens who was a friend of George Vancouver, an explorer who made a survey of the area in the late 18th century. It is the only currently active volcano in the Continental United States. It is most famous for the catastrophic eruption on May 18, 1980. That eruption was the most deadly and economically destructive volcanic eruption in the history of the United States. Fifty-seven people were killed and 200 homes, 47 bridges, 15 miles (24 km) of railways and 185 miles (300 km) of highway were destroyed in a massive debris avalanche. Like most other volcanoes in the Cascade Range, St. Helens is a great cone of rubble consisting of lava rock interlayered with ash, pumice and other deposits. (more...)
Recently featured: Sydney Riot of 1879 – Sino-German cooperation – Hurricane Dennis
February 10
The Macintosh is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple Computer that runs the Macintosh operating system, or Mac OS. Named after the McIntosh apple, the original Macintosh was released on January 24, 1984. It was the first commercially successful personal computer to use a graphical user interface and mouse instead of the then-standard command line interface. Following the Macintosh's introduction, Apple continued production and development of its Apple II family, the company's original product line, until discontinuation in 1993 to focus on the Macintosh. A significant difference between Macintosh computers and competitors' models for personal computers, which run Microsoft Windows, Unix or Linux operating systems is that Apple facilitates all aspects of its hardware, and creates its own operating system. This is unique in the industry. However, beginning with the introduction of the iMac Core Duo and MacBook Pro in January 2006, Macintoshes have started using processors produced by Intel. (more...)
Recently featured: Mount St. Helens – Sydney Riot of 1879 – Sino-German cooperation
February 11
The Mass Rapid Transit is a rapid transit system that forms the backbone of the railway system in Singapore with a network spanning the entire city-state. The initial section of the MRT, between Yio Chu Kang and Toa Payoh, was opened in 1987, establishing the MRT as the second oldest metro system in Southeast Asia after Manila's LRT System. The network has since grown rapidly as a result of Singapore's aim of developing a comprehensive rail network and reducing dependency on road-based systems such as the bus network. The MRT has 64 operating stations with over 109 kilometres of lines. The MRT is complemented by a smaller Light Rapid Transit (LRT) system which links the MRT stations with the respective public housing (HDB) estate they serve. (more...)
Recently featured: Apple Macintosh – Mount St. Helens – Sydney Riot of 1879
February 12
The Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln's most famous speech and one of the most quoted political speeches in United States history, was delivered at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on November 19, 1863, during the American Civil War, four and a half months after the Battle of Gettysburg. Lincoln's carefully crafted address, secondary to other presentations that day, has ultimately become regarded as one of the greatest speeches in American history. In fewer than three hundred words delivered over two to three minutes, Lincoln invoked the principles of human equality espoused by the Declaration of Independence and redefined the Civil War as a struggle not merely for the Union, but as "a new birth of freedom" that would bring true equality to all of its citizens. Ironically, despite the speech's prominent place in the history and popular culture of the United States, the exact wording of the speech is disputed. The five known manuscripts of the Gettysburg Address differ in a number of details and also differ from contemporary newspaper reprints of the speech. (more...)
Recently featured: Mass Rapid Transit – Apple Macintosh – Mount St. Helens
February 13
Douglas Adams was a cult British comic radio dramatist, musician and author, most notably of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series. Hitchhiker's began on radio and developed into a "trilogy" of five books (which had sold more than fifteen million copies by the time of Adams's death) as well as a television series, a computer game and a feature film that was completed only after Adams's death. In addition, Douglas Adams also wrote or co-wrote three stories of science fiction staple Doctor Who and served the series as Script Editor during the seventeenth season. His other written works include the Dirk Gently novels, co-author credits on two Liff books and Last Chance to See, which was also based on a radio series. Towards the end of his life, he was a sought-after lecturer on topics including technology and the environment. Since his death at the age of 49, he is still widely revered in science fiction and fantasy circles. (more...)
Recently featured: Gettysburg Address – Mass Rapid Transit – Apple Macintosh
February 14
"I Want to Hold Your Hand" is the title of the hit 1963 Beatles song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney that led the British Invasion of the United States music charts. It was the first Beatles record to be made using 4-track equipment and in real stereo, and the Beatles' first number one song on the Billboard magazine charts, heralding 19 more number one singles from the Beatles in the United States. It also held the top spot in the United Kingdom charts, where a million copies of the single had already been ordered by its release. "I Want To Hold Your Hand" became the Beatles' best-selling single worldwide. McCartney and Lennon did not have any particular inspiration for the song, unlike their later hits such as "Yesterday", "Hey Jude" and "Let It Be". Instead, they had received specific instructions from manager Brian Epstein to write a song with the American market in mind, and the result was "I Want to Hold Your Hand". (more...)
Recently featured: Douglas Adams – Gettysburg Address – Mass Rapid Transit
February 15
Epaminondas was a Theban general and statesman who transformed Thebes, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a preeminent position in Greek geopolitics. In the process he broke Spartan military power with his victory at Leuctra and liberated the Messenian helots—Peloponnesian Greeks who had been enslaved under Spartan rule for some 200 years. Epaminondas reshaped the political map of Greece, fragmented old alliances, created new ones, and supervised the construction of entire cities. He was militarily influential as well; he invented several major battlefield tactics. Cicero once called him "the first man of Greece", but Epaminondas has fallen into relative obscurity in modern times. The changes he wrought on the Greek political order did not long outlive him, as the cycle of shifting hegemonies and alliances continued unabated. Just 27 years after his death, a recalcitrant Thebes was obliterated by Alexander the Great. Thus Epaminondas—who had been praised in his time as an idealist and liberator—is today largely remembered for a decade (371 to 362 BC) of campaigning that sapped the strength of the great land powers of Greece and paved the way for the Macedonian conquest. (more...)
Recently featured: I Want to Hold Your Hand – Douglas Adams – Gettysburg Address
February 16
Shielded metal arc welding is a manual arc welding process that uses a consumable electrode coated in flux to lay the weld. An electric current, in the form of either alternating current or direct current from a welding power supply, is used to form an electric arc between the electrode and the metals to be joined. As the weld is laid, the flux coating of the electrode disintegrates, giving off vapors that serve as a shielding gas and providing a layer of slag, both of which protect the weld area from atmospheric contamination. Because of the versatility of the process and the simplicity of its equipment and operation, shielded metal arc welding is one of the world's most popular welding processes. It dominates other welding processes in the maintenance and repair industry, and though flux-cored arc welding is growing in popularity, it continues to be used extensively in the construction of steel structures and in industrial fabrication. The process is used primarily to weld iron and steels — including stainless steel, but nickel and copper alloys can also be welded. (more...)
Recently featured: Epaminondas – I Want to Hold Your Hand – Douglas Adams
February 17
Yagan was a Noongar warrior who played a key part in early indigenous Australian resistance to European settlement and rule in the area of Perth, Western Australia. After he led a series of attacks in which white settlers were murdered, a bounty was offered for his capture dead or alive, and he was shot dead by a young settler. Yagan's death has passed into Western Australian folklore as a symbol of the unjust and sometimes brutal treatment of the indigenous peoples of Australia by colonial settlers. Yagan's head was removed and taken to Britain, where it was exhibited as an "anthropological curiosity". It spent over a century in storage at a museum before being buried in an unmarked grave in 1964. In 1993 its location was identified, and four years later it was exhumed and repatriated to Australia. Since then, the issue of its proper reburial has become a source of great controversy and conflict amongst the indigenous people of the Perth area. To date, the head remains unburied. (more...)
Recently featured: Shielded metal arc welding – Epaminondas – I Want to Hold Your Hand
February 18
The political integration of India established a united nation for the first time in thousands of years from a plethora of princely states, colonial provinces and possessions. Despite partition, a new India arose above demographic distinctions to unite peoples of various geographic, economic, ethnic, linguistic and religious backgrounds. India was transformed after independence through political upheaval and ethnic discontent, and continues to evolve as a federal republic natural to its diversity. The process is defined by sensitive religious conflicts between Hindus and Muslims, diverse ethnic populations, as well as by geo-political rivalry and military conflicts with Pakistan and China. When the Indian independence movement succeeded in ending British Raj on August 15, 1947, India's leaders faced the prospect of inheriting a nation fragmented between medieval-era kingdoms and provinces organized by colonial powers. Under the leadership of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, one of India's most respected freedom fighters and the Minister of Home Affairs, the new Government of India employed frank political negotiations backed with the option of military action to weld a nation. (more...)
Recently featured: Yagan – Shielded metal arc welding – Epaminondas
February 19
James T. Aubrey, Jr. was an American television and film executive. As president of the CBS television network during the early 1960s, he put on the air some of television's most enduring series, including Gilligan's Island and The Beverly Hillbillies. Under Aubrey, CBS dominated American television the way General Motors and General Electric dominated their industries. The New York Times Magazine in 1964 called Aubrey "a master of programming whose divinations led to successes that are breathtaking." Despite his successes in television, Aubrey's abrasive personality and oversized ego—"Picture Machiavelli and Karl Rove at a University of Colorado football recruiting party" wrote Variety in 2004—led to his firing from CBS amid charges of improprieties. After four years as an independent producer, Aubrey was hired by financier Kirk Kerkorian to preside over Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's near-total shutdown in the 1970s, during which he slashed the budget and alienated producers and directors but brought profits to a company that had suffered huge losses. Aubrey resigned from MGM after four years, declaring his job was done, and then vanished into almost total obscurity for the last two decades of his life. (more...)
Recently featured: Political integration of India – Yagan – Shielded metal arc welding
February 20
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough in the north of England. Its name originates from the River Sheaf that runs through the town. The city has grown from its industrial roots to encompass a wide economic base. It has become world famous for its production of steel. Many innovations in the industry have been developed locally, including crucible and stainless steel. This fuelled an almost tenfold increase in the population since the start of Industrial Revolution. It gained its city charter in 1893 and became officially titled the City of Sheffield. International competition caused a decline in local industry during the 1970s and '80s, impacting on Sheffield's population. In recent years the city has attempted to reinvent itself as a sporting and technology city; there are signs that this is reversing its fortunes. The present city boundaries were set in 1974, when the former county borough of Sheffield merged with Stocksbridge Urban District and two parishes from the Wortley Rural District. This area includes a significant part of the countryside surrounding the main urban region. Roughly a third of Sheffield lies in the Peak District National Park (no other English city has a national park within its boundary), and Sheffield is England's greenest city, containing over 150 woodlands and 50 public parks. (more...)
Recently featured: James T. Aubrey, Jr. – Political integration of India – Yagan
February 21
Raney nickel is a solid catalyst composed of fine grains of a nickel-aluminium alloy. It was developed in 1926 by American engineer Murray Raney as an alternative catalyst for the hydrogenation of vegetable oils in industrial processes. Nowadays it is used as a heterogeneous catalyst in a variety of organic syntheses, most commonly for hydrogenation reactions. Raney nickel is produced when a block of nickel-aluminium alloy is treated with concentrated sodium hydroxide. This treatment, called "activation", dissolves most of the aluminium out of the alloy leaving behind a porous nickel framework. As a result activated Raney nickel has a large surface area which results in an increased catalytic activity. A typical catalyst is around 85% nickel by mass, corresponding to about two atoms of nickel for every atom of aluminium. The aluminium which remains helps to preserve the pore structure of the overall catalyst. Since Raney is a registered trademark of W. R. Grace and Company, only those products by its Grace Davison division are properly called "Raney nickel". Alternatively, the more generic terms "skeletal catalyst" or "sponge-metal catalyst" may be used to refer to catalysts that have physical and chemical properties similar to those of Raney nickel. (more...)
Recently featured: Sheffield – James T. Aubrey, Jr. – Political integration of India
February 22
The history of merit badges in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) has been tracked by categorizing them into a series of merit badge types. Merit badges have been an integral part of the Scouting program since the start of the movement in the United Kingdom in 1908. Scouting came to the United States in 1910; the BSA quickly issued an initial list of just 14 merit badges, but did not produce or award them. In 1911, the BSA manufactured the first official 57 merit badges and began awarding them. The number of badges available has been as high as 140 and, as of 2006, is 121. Merit badge types are identifiable by the cloth and manufacturing process used to make them. The classification of badges into types came about as a way for collectors to categorize and classify their collections. Merit badge collectors often collect other Scouting memorabilia as well. (more...)
Recently featured: Raney nickel – Sheffield – James T. Aubrey, Jr.
February 23
The Panama Canal is a major shipping canal which cuts through the isthmus of Panama in Central America, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The construction of the canal was one of the largest and most difficult engineering projects ever undertaken; it has had an enormous impact on shipping, because it removes the need for ships to travel the long and treacherous route via the Drake Passage and Cape Horn at the southernmost tip of South America. Although the concept of a canal in Panama dates back to the early 1500s, the first attempt to construct a canal began in 1880, under French leadership. This attempt collapsed, and the work was finally completed by the United States; the canal opened in 1914. The building of the 77 kilometre (48 mi) canal was plagued by problems, including disease (particularly malaria and yellow fever) and massive landslides. As many as 27,500 workers are estimated to have died during construction of the canal. Since opening, the canal has been highly successful and continues to be a key factor in world shipping. (more...)
Recently featured: History of merit badges – Raney nickel – Sheffield
February 24
The flag of Mexico is a tricolor of green, white and red with the coat of arms charged in the center of the white stripe. While the meaning of the colors has changed over time, these three colors were adopted by Mexico following independence from Spain during the country's War of Independence. The current flag was adopted in 1968, but the overall design has been used since 1821. The current law of national symbols that governs the use of the national flag has been in place since 1984. Throughout history, the flag has changed eight times, as the design of the coat of arms and the length-width ratios of the flag have been modified. However, the coat of arms has had the same features throughout: an eagle, holding a serpent in its talon, is perched on top of a cactus; the cactus is situated on a rock that rises above a lake. The current national flag, the "Fourth National Flag", is also used as the Mexican naval ensign by ships registered in Mexico. (more...)
Recently featured: Panama Canal – History of merit badges – Raney nickel
February 25
Médecins Sans Frontières is a secular humanitarian-aid non-governmental organisation most recognised for its projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic disease. Headquartered in Brussels, MSF is governed by an International Board of Directors and organised into 20 national sections. Private donors provide about 80% of the organisation's funding, while governmental and corporate donations provide the rest, giving MSF an annual budget of approximately USD 400 million. The organisation actively provides health care and medical training to populations in more than 70 countries, and frequently insists on political responsibility in conflict zones such as Chechnya and Kosovo. Only once in its history, during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, has the organisation called for a military intervention. In recognition of its members' continuous effort to provide medical care in acute crises, as well as raising international awareness of potential humanitarian disasters, MSF received the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize. (more...)
Recently featured: Flag of Mexico – Panama Canal – History of merit badges
February 26
The history of Portugal from 1777 to 1834 begins with the reign of Maria I and ends with the Liberal Wars in 1834, spanning a complex historic period in which several important political and military events led to the end of the absolutist regime and to the installment of a constitutional monarchy in the country. In 1807, Napoleon ordered the invasion of Portugal and subsequently the Royal Family escaped to Brazil. This would be one of the causes for the declaration of Brazilian independence by Peter I of Brazil in 1822, following a liberal revolution in Portugal. The liberal period was stormy and short as Prince Michael of Portugal (Peter's brother) supported an absolutist revolution that restored all power upon the monarch. Peter would eventually return to Portugal and fight and defeat his brother in the Liberal Wars in which liberalism was completely installed and Portugal became a constitutional monarchy. (more...)
Recently featured: Médecins Sans Frontières – Flag of Mexico – Panama Canal
February 27
The Washington gubernatorial election of 2004 was a dramatic event, gaining national interest for its legal twists and turns and its extremely close finish. Three parties, the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and the Libertarian Party, fielded candidates. It is notable for being among the closest races in United States election history; the winner, Christine Gregoire, a Democrat, was elected after a second recount turned the election in her favor by a margin of 129 votes, or 0.0045%. Although Gregoire was sworn in as Governor of Washington on January 12, 2005, her opponent Dino Rossi did not formally concede and called for a re-vote due to concerns about the integrity of the election. The Republicans filed a lawsuit in Chelan County Superior Court contesting the election, in which the trial judge decided against the Republicans. Rossi chose not to appeal to the Washington State Supreme Court, thereby conceding the election on June 6 2005. (more...)
Recently featured: History of Portugal (1777-1834) – Médecins Sans Frontières – Flag of Mexico
February 28
Edward Teller was a Hungarian-born American nuclear physicist of Jewish descent. He was known colloquially as "the father of the hydrogen bomb". Teller was an immigrant to the United States during the 1930s, and was an early member of the Manhattan Project to develop the first atomic bombs. During this time he made a serious push for the first time to develop fusion-based weapons as well, but they were deferred until after the war. After his controversial testimony in the security clearance hearing of his former Los Alamos colleague Robert Oppenheimer, Teller became ostracized by much of the scientific community. He continued to find support from the U.S. government and military research establishment. He was a co-founder of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and was both director and associate director for many years. In his later years he became especially known for his advocacy of controversial technological solutions to both military and civilian problems, including a plan to excavate an artificial harbor in Alaska using thermonuclear explosives. Over the course of his long life, Teller was known both for his scientific ability and his difficult interpersonal relations, and is considered one of the key influences of the character Dr. Strangelove in the 1964 movie of the same name. (more...)
Recently featured: Washington gubernatorial election, 2004 – History of Portugal (1777-1834) – Médecins Sans Frontières