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From today's featured article

Orangutans are great apes native to the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. Three species in the genus Pongo are recognised. The most arboreal of the great apes, orangutans spend most of their time in trees. They have proportionally long arms and short legs and their hair is reddish-brown. Adult males may develop distinctive cheek pads or flanges and make long calls that attract females and intimidate rivals. Orangutans are generally solitary, with most social bonds occurring between mothers and their dependent offspring. The apes eat mainly fruit, but also vegetation, bark, honey, insects and bird eggs. Among the most intelligent primates, orangutans use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage. The illegal pet trade, poaching, and habitat destruction for palm oil cultivation have caused severe declines in the populations and ranges of all three species. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Church Missions House

... that the steel-framed Church Missions House (pictured) in New York City predates the city's first steel skyscraper?
... that Gunhild Bergh was the second woman in Sweden to be awarded a PhD in literary history?
... that Tone Roads No. 1, a composition for chamber ensemble by Charles Ives, was originally titled "Tone Roads, rough ones—good ones, bad ones, fast ones, slow ones!"?
... that FBOY Island sets three female contestants to identify twenty-four men as either womanizers or nice guys?
... that Yulimar Rojas is good at jumping, but her sister Yerilda Zapata is good at throwing?
... that an inquiry into the death of Orville Blackwood at Broadmoor Hospital in 1991 found that admissions of black people to the hospital were more likely to have police involvement?
... that the manga series Mashima Hero's was originally titled Hero's and had its name changed to rank higher in search engine results?
... that William Earle referred to slave traders as "Bite Men"?

In the news

Hakainde Hichilema

Hakainde Hichilema (pictured) is elected President of Zambia.
The Afghan government collapses as the capital city of Kabul falls to the Taliban offensive.
A 7.2-magnitude earthquake in Haiti kills more than 2,100 people.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change releases the first part of its Sixth Assessment Report on the state of knowledge of climate change and its effects.

On this day

August 19: Day of Ashura (Shia Islam, 2021)

Edward I of England

1274 – Shortly after his return from the Ninth Crusade, Edward I (pictured) was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey, nearly two years after his father's death.
1759 – Seven Years' War: At the Battle of Lagos, British ships, having damaged several French vessels the previous day, pursued the remainder of the fleet to Lagos, Portugal, and continued the battle there in violation of Portuguese neutrality.
1934 – A referendum supported the recent merging of the posts of Chancellor and President of Germany, consolidating Adolf Hitler's assumption of supreme power.
1981 – Two U.S. Navy F-14 Tomcats shot down two Libyan Su-22 Fitters during military exercises over the Gulf of Sidra.
2005 – Thunderstorms in southern Ontario, Canada, spawned at least three tornadoes that caused over C$500 million in damage.

Jan Fyt (b. 1609)
Tom Wills (b. 1835)
Bill Clinton (b. 1946)

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Today's featured picture

Bryce Canyon National Park is an American national park located in southwestern Utah. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon, which despite its name, is not a canyon, but a collection of giant natural amphitheaters along the eastern side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. This panoramic view, as seen from Inspiration Point, shows the colorful Claron Formation, from which the park's delicate hoodoos are carved; the sediments were laid down in a system of streams and lakes that existed from 63 to about 40 million years ago (from the Paleocene to the Eocene epochs). The brown, pink and red colors are from hematite, the yellows from limonite, and the purples from pyrolusite.

Photograph credit: Tony Jin

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