Wikipedia:Main Page history/2020 May 10

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From today's featured article

Banksia speciosa, the showy banksia, is a large shrub or small tree in the family Proteaceae. First collected and described by Robert Brown in the early 19th century, the species occurs on the south coast of Western Australia between Hopetoun and the Great Australian Bight, growing on white or grey sand in shrubland. Reaching up to 8 m (26 ft) in height, it is a single-stemmed plant that has thin leaves with prominent triangular "teeth" along each margin, which are 20–45 cm (7.9–17.7 in) long and 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) wide. The prominent cream-yellow flower spikes appear throughout the year, developing up to 20 follicles each that store seeds until opened by bushfire. Though widely occurring, the species is highly sensitive to dieback. The flowers attract nectar- and insect-feeding birds, particularly honeyeaters. In cultivation, B. speciosa grows well in a sunny location on well-drained soil in areas with dry summers. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Queen Kapiʻolani wearing her peacock feathered dress

... that Irish Hawaiian James Washington Lonoikauoalii McGuire designed the peacock feathered dress (pictured) worn by Queen Kapiʻolani at the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887?
... that the history of the Wales national football team includes the first substitution ever used in international football?
... that older adherents of the Hindu sect Ramnami Samaj have the word "Ram" tattooed over their entire bodies?
... that when three deaths occurred at Elmhurst Hospital Center in 1978 and prompted a homicide investigation, the cause was found to be a shortage of nurses and beds?
... that Chinese women's rights activist Shen Zijiu spent some four years as a fugitive?
... that Palo Alto station was styled after a streamlined passenger train?
... that a Suara journalist was partially blinded while covering the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests?
... that John Oliver purchased the erotic furry watercolor Stay Up Late for $1,000, plus a $20,000 donation to a food bank?

In the news

COVID-19 pandemic

Wide-field image of HR 6819

A gas leak in Andhra Pradesh, India, kills thirteen people and injures over a thousand others.
Astronomers announce the discovery of the first black hole located in a star system visible to the naked eye (pictured).
In the Philippines, the leading television network ABS-CBN is ordered to stop broadcasting by the National Telecommunications Commission.

On this day

May 10

Launch of the lifeboat James Caird from Elephant Island

1833 – Siamese–Vietnamese wars: Lê Văn Khôi escaped from prison to begin a revolt against Emperor Minh Mạng, primarily to avenge his adoptive father, Vietnamese general Lê Văn Duyệt.
1916 – Ernest Shackleton and five companions arrived at South Georgia, completing a 1,300 km (800 mi) lifeboat voyage (launch pictured) over 16 days to obtain rescue for the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition.
1997 – An earthquake registering 7.3 M_w struck near Qaen, Iran, killing at least 1,567 and leaving around 50,000 others homeless.
2013 – The final component of the spire of One World Trade Center in New York City was installed, bringing the building, the tallest in the Western Hemisphere, to a height of 1,776 feet (541 m).

Al-Aziz Billah (b. 955)
Johann Peter Hebel (b. 1760)
Lorenzo Bandini (d. 1967)

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Today's featured picture

Medical imaging in pregnancy may be indicated because of pregnancy complications, intercurrent diseases or routine prenatal care. While magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) without the use of MRI contrast agents is not associated with any risk for the mother or the fetus, a CT scan involves the use of many X-ray measurements taken from different angles to produce a cross-sectional image, and is not risk-free. This volume-rendered CT scan, taken with the use of radiocontrast agents, is of a 30-year-old woman who was involved in a high-speed road traffic accident. She was pregnant at 37 weeks' gestational age, and it was decided that the risk of traumatic injury to the mother or child outweighed the risks of a scan, which showed no traumatic injury.

CT scan credit: Mikael Häggström

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