Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 February 20

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Today's featured article
Is This It is the debut studio album by American indie rock band The Strokes. Recorded at Transporterraum in New York City with producer Gordon Raphael, the album was first released on July 30, 2001, in Australia, with RCA Records as the primary label. The record entered the UK Albums Chart at number two and peaked at number 33 on the U.S. Billboard 200, going on to achieve platinum status in several markets. "Hard to Explain", "Last Nite", and "Someday" were released as singles. For the album, The Strokes strived to capture a simple rock sound that was not significantly enhanced in the studio. Band members molded compositions largely through live takes during the recording sessions, while lyricist Julian Casablancas continued to detail the lives and relationships of urban youth. Following the completion of Is This It, The Strokes embarked on a promotional world tour before its release. The album's cover photograph courted controversy for being too sexually explicit and was replaced for the U.S. market. The American track listing was also amended in light of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The record is considered crucial in the development of other alternative bands and of the post-millennial music industry. It has featured in several publications' lists of the best albums of the 2000s and of all time. (more...) Recently featured: Battle of Musa Qala – "Bring Us Together" – Maya stelae Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest articles: ... that Leach's spider crab lives with the snakelocks anemone (pictured), eats the anemone's food and mucus and is protected from predators by the anemone's stings? ... that the Old Orchard Street Theatre in Bath was built as a provincial theatre before becoming a Roman Catholic Church and since 1865 a Masonic Hall? ... that replicas of the Harley J. Earl Trophy, named after NASCAR's second commissioner, are sculpted by John Lajba and awarded to the winners of the Daytona 500? ... that the first game to be considered a Yoshi game is the 1991 Nintendo Entertainment System game, Yoshi, which was developed by GameFreak? ... that kabbalists believed that those who think of themselves as Ayin, a mystical symbol of Kabbalah, will ascend to a spiritual world where everything, including life and death, is equal? ... that French engineer Achille Collas invented a working machine to make engravings from medals, coins and other bas-reliefs, and another to copy sculptures at a reduced scale? ... that the city of Chicago has warming centers open from December 1 to March 1 each year? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Authorities open fire on demonstrators in Libya and Bahrain amid continuing protests across the Arab world. Belgium breaks the record for the longest time any country has been without a government. IBM's artificial intelligence program Watson wins on the American quiz show Jeopardy! against two of the show's most successful contestants. In Operation Power Outage, conducted by the U.S. Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force, 74 members of the criminal organization Armenian Power are arrested. NASA probe Stardust flies by the comet Tempel 1, capturing images of the crater formed by the Deep Impact mission (collision of Tempel and the impactor pictured). An Ecuadorian court fines Chevron US$8.6 billion for Texaco's pollution of the Amazon over a twenty-year period. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is indicted for allegedly hiring an under-age prostitute. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
February 20: Mawlid (Shi'a Islam, 2011) 1547 – Nine-year-old Edward VI (pictured) was crowned King of England and Ireland. 1685 – French colonists, led by Robert de La Salle, landed at Matagorda Bay in present-day Texas, which later allowed the United States to claim the region as part of the Louisiana Purchase. 1959 – The Canadian government under Prime Minister John Diefenbaker cancelled the Avro CF-105 Arrow interceptor aircraft program amid much political debate. 1988 – The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast voted to secede from Azerbaijan and join Armenia, triggering the Nagorno-Karabakh War. 2009 – The Tamil Tigers attempted to crash two aircraft packed with C-4 in suicide attacks on Colombo, Sri Lanka, but the planes were shot down before they reached their targets. More anniversaries: February 19 – February 20 – February 21 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now February 20 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s Hendrick Motorsports pit crew execute a pit stop at a Sprint Cup Series competition at Darlington Raceway, South Carolina, US, in May 2008. In auto racing, pit stops are when the racing vehicle gets refueled, new tires, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, or any combination of the above.

Photo: United States National Guard

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