Wikipedia:Today's featured article/December 2014

Today's featured article archive

December 1

Carsten Borchgrevink (1864–1934) was an Anglo-Norwegian polar explorer and a pioneer of modern Antarctic travel. He was the precursor of Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton, Roald Amundsen and others associated with the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. He began his exploring career in 1894 by joining a Norwegian whaling expedition, from which he brought back a collection of the first specimens of vegetable life within the Antarctic Circle. From 1898 to 1900 Borchgrevink led the British-financed Southern Cross Expedition, which in 1899 became the first to overwinter on the Antarctic mainland and the first to visit the Great Ice Barrier since the expedition of Sir James Ross nearly sixty years previously. Borchgrevink landed on the Barrier with two companions and made the first sledge journey on its surface, setting a new Farthest South record at 78°50'S. He was one of three scientists sent to the Caribbean in 1902 by the National Geographic Society to report on the aftermath of the Mount Pelée disaster. His pioneering work was recognised and honoured by several countries, and in 1912 he received a handsome tribute from Roald Amundsen, conqueror of the South Pole. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Natchez revolt – George Robey – Elwyn Roy King

December 2

Sir John Barbirolli, CH (1899–1970) was a British conductor and cellist. He helped save the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester from dissolution in 1943 and was its music director for the rest of his life. He was also Arturo Toscanini's successor as music director of the New York Philharmonic (1936–43), chief conductor of the Houston Symphony (1961–67), and a guest conductor of many other orchestras. Born in London of Italian and French parentage, Barbirolli grew up in a family of professional musicians. After starting out as a cellist, he was given the chance to conduct, from 1926 with the British National Opera Company, and then with Covent Garden's touring company. Although he had less opportunity to work in the opera house after 1943, he conducted productions of works by Verdi, Wagner, Gluck, and Puccini at Covent Garden in the 1950s with such success that he was invited to become its permanent musical director, an invitation he declined. Both in the concert hall and on record, Barbirolli was particularly associated with the music of English composers such as Elgar, Delius and Vaughan Williams. His interpretations of composers such as Mahler, Sibelius, and Schubert are also still admired. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Carsten Borchgrevink – Natchez revolt – George Robey

December 3

The tammar wallaby is a small macropod native to South and Western Australia. Though its geographical range has been severely reduced since European colonisation, the tammar is common within its reduced range and is listed as of Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. It has been introduced to New Zealand and reintroduced to some areas of Australia where it had been previously eradicated. Skull differences distinguish tammars from Western Australia, Kangaroo Island and mainland South Australia, making them distinct populations groups or possibly different subspecies. Around the size of a rabbit, the tammar is among the smallest of the wallabies. Its coat is largely grey. It has colour vision, can drink seawater, and can hop efficiently using tendons that act like springs. A nocturnal species, it spends nighttime in grassland habitat and daytime in shrub. It is very gregarious and has a seasonal, promiscuous mating pattern. A female tammar can nurse a joey in her pouch while keeping an embryo in her uterus. The tammar is a model species for research on marsupials, and on mammals in general. It is one of many organisms whose genome has been sequenced. (Full article...)

Recently featured: John Barbirolli – Carsten Borchgrevink – Natchez revolt

December 4

Greed is a 1924 American silent film, written and directed by Erich von Stroheim and based on Frank Norris's novel McTeague. The film depicts three protagonists who succumb to their darker nature over a mutual desire for a lottery prize of $5,000 in gold (screenshot pictured). Von Stroheim shot more than 85 hours of footage, using sophisticated techniques such as deep-focus cinematography and montage editing, and obsessed over accuracy during production. Greed was one of the few films of its time to be shot entirely on location. Two months were spent shooting in Death Valley for the final sequence and many of the cast and crew became ill. Originally almost eight hours long, Greed was edited against von Stroheim's wishes to about two-and-a-half hours by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio heads Irving Thalberg and Louis B. Mayer. The cut footage is lost, and still sought after by film archivists and historians. Numerous false claims of the original version's discovery have been made over the years. In 1999, a reconstructed four-hour version was released using surviving stills from the lost footage. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Tammar wallaby – John Barbirolli – Carsten Borchgrevink

December 5

"Irreplaceable" is a song recorded by American singer Beyoncé (pictured) for her second studio album, B'Day (2006). The lyrics, about the breakdown of a relationship with an unfaithful man, have a message about empowerment. "Irreplaceable" was originally a country record; it was re-arranged as a mid-tempo ballad with pop and R&B influences by modifying the vocal arrangements and instrumentation. It was the third single from the album in the United States and the second single elsewhere. It was well received by contemporary music critics, who cited its distinctive production compared with most songs featured on the album, and complimented its hook, "To the left, to the left". The song won Best R&B/Soul Single at the 2007 Soul Train Music Awards and was nominated for the Record of the Year award at the 50th Grammy Awards. Beyoncé's fourth number-one in the US, the single remained at the top of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart for ten consecutive weeks and was the best-selling US single of 2007. The single's award-winning music video was directed by Anthony Mandler and served as the debut performance of Beyoncé's all-female band, Suga Mama. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Greed (film) – Tammar wallaby – John Barbirolli

December 6

The 2008 ACC Championship Game was a college football game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the Boston College Eagles to determine the winners of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) football championship. Virginia Tech (representing the Coastal Division) defeated Boston College (representing the Atlantic Division) by 30 to 12. The game was held at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on December 6, 2008, and was also the final regular-season contest of the 2008 college football season in the ACC. Neither team clinched a spot in the game until the final week before the championship, and both had to rely on conference tie-breaking rules to earn a spot. Virginia Tech took the lead in the first quarter with a five-yard touchdown run by Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor (pictured in the quarterback position on the right). Tech extended its lead in the second quarter, but Boston College managed to narrow Tech's lead by halftime. In the second half, Virginia Tech scored over twice as many points as the Eagles. Taylor was named the game's most valuable player. The game was a rematch of the previous year's contest, which Virginia Tech also won. (Full article...)

Recently featured: "Irreplaceable" – Greed (film) – Tammar wallaby

December 7

Ford Island is an islet in the center of Pearl Harbor, Oahu, in the US state of Hawaii. Its original area of 334 acres (135 ha) was increased during the 1930s to 441 acres (178 ha) with fill dirt after the US Navy dredged Pearl Harbor to accommodate battleships. The island was the site of an ancient Hawaiian fertility ritual, which was stopped by Christian missionaries during the 1830s. It was given by Kamehameha I to Spanish deserter Francisco de Paula Marín, and was later owned by Seth Porter Ford. In 1916 the US Army bought part of it for use by an aviation division, and by 1939 it was taken over by the US Navy, for whom it was a strategic center of operations in the Pacific Ocean. Ford Island was at the center of the attacks on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964. By the late 1990s hundreds of millions of dollars had been invested in real-estate development and infrastructure. Ford Island is home to the USS Arizona memorial, the USS Missouri museum, the Pacific Warfighting Center, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The island has been featured in films such as Tora! Tora! Tora! and Pearl Harbor. (Full article...)

Recently featured: 2008 ACC Championship Game – "Irreplaceable" – Greed (film)

December 8

SMS Scharnhorst was an armored cruiser of the Imperial German Navy and the lead ship of her class. Named after the Prussian reformer General Gerhard von Scharnhorst, the ship entered service on 24 October 1907. After brief service with the High Seas Fleet in Germany in 1908, she was assigned in 1909 to the German East Asia Squadron based in Tsingtao, China, becoming the squadron flagship. Over the next five years, she went on several tours of Asian ports and was present in Japan for the coronation of the Taishō Emperor in 1912. After the outbreak of World War I, Scharnhorst and her sister ship SMS Gneisenau, accompanied by three light cruisers and several colliers, sailed across the Pacific Ocean—in the process evading the various Allied naval forces sent to intercept them—before arriving off the southern coast of South America. On 1 November 1914, Scharnhorst and the rest of the East Asia Squadron encountered and overpowered a British squadron at the Battle of Coronel. The stinging defeat prompted the British Admiralty to dispatch two battlecruisers to hunt down and destroy Scharnhorst's flotilla, which they accomplished at the Battle of the Falkland Islands on 8 December 1914. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Ford Island – 2008 ACC Championship Game – "Irreplaceable"

December 9

Endometrial cancer is cancer that arises from the endometrium (the lining of the uterus or womb). The first sign is most often vaginal bleeding not associated with a woman's period. Other symptoms include pain with urination or sexual intercourse, or pelvic pain. Endometrial cancer occurs most commonly after menopause, and is associated with high blood pressure and diabetes. Approximately 40% of cases are related to obesity, and 2–5% of cases have a genetic link. The most frequent type of endometrial cancer, more than 80% of cases, is endometrioid carcinoma (example pictured). Endometrial cancer is commonly diagnosed by endometrial biopsy or by taking samples during a procedure known as dilation and curettage; a pap smear is not typically sufficient. In 2012, endometrial cancers occurred in 320,000 women and caused 76,000 deaths, making it the third most common cause of death from female cancers, behind ovarian and cervical cancer. If the disease is caught at an early stage, the outcome is favorable, and the overall five-year survival rate in the United States is greater than 80%. (Full article...)

Recently featured: SMS Scharnhorst – Ford Island – 2008 ACC Championship Game

December 10

Slow lorises are a group of several species of strepsirrhine primates. Found in South and Southeast Asia, they range from Bangladesh and Northeast India in the west to the Philippines in the east, and from the Yunnan province in China in the north to the island of Java in the south. Although many previous classifications recognized one all-inclusive species, there are now at least eight that are considered valid (including the Sunda slow loris, pictured). Slow lorises have a round head, narrow snout, large eyes, and a variety of distinctive coloration patterns. Their arms and legs are nearly equal in length, and their long trunk allows them to twist and extend to nearby branches. The hands and feet of slow lorises have a pincer-like grip, enabling them to grasp branches for long periods. Slow lorises have a toxic bite, a trait rare among mammals. They are omnivores, eating small animals, fruit, tree gum, and other vegetation. Many of the slow loris species are listed as either "Vulnerable" or "Endangered" on the IUCN Red List. Their habitat is rapidly disappearing, but the greatest causes of their decline are the exotic pet trade and traditional medicine. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Endometrial cancer – SMS Scharnhorst – Ford Island

December 11

Xerochrysum bracteatum, commonly known as the golden everlasting, is a flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae, native to Australia. It grows as a woody or herbaceous perennial or annual shrub up to a metre (3 ft) tall with green or grey leafy foliage. Golden yellow or white flower heads are produced from spring to autumn; their distinctive feature is the papery bracts that resemble petals. The species is widespread, growing in a variety of habitats across the country, from rainforest margins to deserts and subalpine areas. The golden everlasting serves as food for various larvae of lepidopterans (butterflies and moths), and adult butterflies, hoverflies, native bees, small beetles and grasshoppers visit the flower heads. The golden everlasting has proven very adaptable to cultivation. It was propagated and developed in Germany in the 1850s, and annual cultivars in a host of colour forms from white to bronze to purple flowers became available. Many of these are still sold in mixed seed packs. In Australia, many cultivars are perennial shrubs, which have become popular garden plants. Sturdier, long-stemmed forms are used commercially in the cut flower industry. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Slow loris – Endometrial cancer – SMS Scharnhorst

December 12

Geoffrey (c. 1152 – 1212) was an illegitimate son of King Henry II of England who became Bishop of Lincoln and Archbishop of York. Geoffrey held some minor clerical offices before becoming bishop in 1173, and was ordained a priest in 1189. In 1173–74 he led a campaign in northern England to help put down a rebellion by his legitimate half-brothers, capturing William the Lion, the King of the Scots. After Pope Lucius III ordered him to resign Lincoln or be consecrated, Geoffrey resigned and became Chancellor. After succeeding to the throne, Richard I of England, his half-brother, nominated him Archbishop of York, probably to eliminate a potential rival. He was consecrated in France in 1191, and was briefly imprisoned in Dover Castle on his return during a dispute with William Longchamp, Richard's regent in England. Geoffrey spent much of his time as archbishop in various disputes with Richard and John, Richard's successor and another half-brother. Geoffrey also quarrelled with his suffragan bishops, his cathedral chapter, and other clergy in his diocese. In 1207, he was forced into exile in France by John, and died there five years later. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Xerochrysum bracteatum – Slow loris – Endometrial cancer

December 13

During World War II, Japanese-occupied Singapore was bombed by Allied air forces. Most of the 11 raids by U.S. Army Air Forces long-range bomber units between November 1944 and March 1945 targeted the naval base and dockyard facilities on the island, though several minelaying missions were conducted in nearby waters. After the American bombers were redeployed, the British Royal Air Force assumed responsibility for minelaying operations near Singapore and these continued until 24 May 1945. While significant damage was inflicted on Singapore's important naval base and commercial port (damage at docks pictured), some raids on these targets were not successful and other attacks on oil storage facilities on nearby islands were ineffective. The minelaying campaign disrupted Japanese shipping in the area, causing some loss and damage, but was not decisive. The Allied air attacks raised the morale of Singapore's civilian population, who believed that the raids marked the impending liberation of the city. Civilian casualties were limited, though one attack rendered hundreds homeless and civilian workers were killed during attacks on military facilities. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Geoffrey (archbishop of York) – Xerochrysum bracteatum – Slow loris

December 14

Quainton Road railway station was opened in 1868 near Quainton, Buckinghamshire, 44 miles (71 km) from London. It was built by the Aylesbury and Buckingham Railway after pressure from the 3rd Duke of Buckingham to route the railway near his home. It connected with the Brill Tramway, which carried goods from the duke's estates and passengers from Brill, and was heavily used despite its geographical isolation. Both lines were absorbed in 1891 by the Metropolitan Railway (MR), which operated from Aylesbury to London. When the Great Central Railway from the north of England opened in 1899, Quainton Road became a significant junction. The MR became part of the London Passenger Transport Board's London Underground in 1933. The Brill Tramway was closed in 1935, and Underground trains were withdrawn north of Aylesbury after 1936. Quainton Road closed to passengers in 1963 and to goods in 1966. In 1969 the Quainton Road Society was formed; it restored and reopened the station as the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre. Freight trains still use the line, and passenger trains call for special events. (Full article...)

Part of the Brill Tramway featured topic.

Recently featured: Bombing of Singapore (1944–45) – Geoffrey (archbishop of York) – Xerochrysum bracteatum

December 15

Fuck: Word Taboo and Protecting Our First Amendment Liberties is a 2009 nonfiction book by law professor Christopher M. Fairman about freedom of speech, the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, censorship, and use of the word in society. Citing studies in social science, psychoanalysis, and linguistics, Fairman says that most of its current usages have connotations distinct from its meaning of sexual intercourse. The book discusses the efforts of American conservatives to censor the word from common parlance, and says that legal precedent regarding its use is unclear because of contradictory court decisions. The book, which was a follow-up by Fairman to an article in 2007 on the same topic, received mostly favorable reception from news sources and library trade publications. Library Journal described the book as a sincere analysis of the word and efforts to censor it, while Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries called it stimulating. After the book's release, Fairman was consulted by media sources including CNN and The New York Times, as well as the American Civil Liberties Union, on issues surrounding word taboo in society. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Quainton Road railway station – Bombing of Singapore (1944–45) – Geoffrey (archbishop of York)

December 16

Central Coast Mariners FC is an Australian professional soccer club based on the Central Coast of New South Wales. The Mariners, founded in 2004 as one of the original eight A-League teams, were the first professional sports club from the Gosford region to compete in a national competition. Despite being considered one of the smallest-market clubs in the league, the Central Coast Mariners have won the A-League Premiership twice and claimed one A-League Championship from four Grand Final appearances. They have also appeared in the AFC Champions League four times. The club plays matches at Central Coast Stadium (pictured), a 20,059 seat stadium in Gosford. The English Championship's Sheffield United has invested in the club, and the Mariners have affiliation agreements with several international clubs. Their main supporters' group is known as the Yellow Army, after the colour of the club's home kit. The club and the Newcastle Jets share a rivalry known as the F3 Derby, after the previous name of the motorway that connects the cities of the teams. Matt Simon and Adam Kwasnik are the Mariners' all-time leading goalscorers, with 42 goals each in all competitions. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Word Taboo and Protecting Our First Amendment Liberties – Quainton Road railway station – Bombing of Singapore (1944–45)

December 17

The 509th Composite Group was a United States Army Air Forces unit created during World War II and tasked with the operational deployment of nuclear weapons. Commanded by Paul W. Tibbets, it conducted the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. The group, which was activated on 17 December 1944, was designated as a "composite" rather than a "bombardment" formation because it contained flying squadrons equipped with Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers and C-47 Skytrain and C-54 Skymaster transport aircraft. It operated Silverplate B-29s, which were specially configured to enable them to carry nuclear weapons. In addition to the two nuclear bombing raids, it carried out 15 practice missions against Japanese-held islands and 12 combat missions against targets in Japan, dropping high-explosive pumpkin bombs. In the postwar era, the 509th Composite Group was one of the original ten bombardment groups assigned to Strategic Air Command on 21 March 1946 and the only one equipped with Silverplate B-29 Superfortress aircraft capable of delivering atomic bombs. It was standardized as a bombardment group and redesignated the 509th Bombardment Group, Very Heavy, on 10 July 1946. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Central Coast Mariners FC – Word Taboo and Protecting Our First Amendment Liberties – Quainton Road railway station

December 18

Leigh Leigh was a 14-year-old girl from Fern Bay on the east coast of Australia, who was murdered on 3 November 1989. While attending a teenage birthday party at Stockton Beach (location of party pictured in 2014), Leigh was kicked and spat on by a group of boys after she publicly asserted she had been raped. Leigh left the party shortly afterwards. Her naked body was found in nearby sand dunes the following morning, with severe genital damage and a crushed skull. Matthew Webster (18 years old) pleaded guilty to her murder and served 14½ years in prison. A 19-year-old male pleaded guilty to assault; a third male (aged 15) pleaded guilty to having sex with a minor. The murder investigation proved controversial as several people who admitted to various crimes, including assaulting Leigh, were never charged, and Webster's confession did not match the forensic evidence. The extended media coverage of the murder, which has been cited as an example of victim blaming, tended to focus on the lack of parental supervision at the party, drug and alcohol use, and Leigh's sexuality. The murder inspired a theatrical play entitled Blackrock, as well as a feature film of the same name. (Full article...)

Recently featured: 509th Composite Group – Central Coast Mariners FC – Word Taboo and Protecting Our First Amendment Liberties

December 19

In a coup on December 19, 1964, South Vietnam's ruling military junta led by General Nguyễn Khánh (pictured) dissolved the High National Council (HNC) and arrested some of its members. Khánh needed to satisfy the wishes of some younger generals to stay in power, after they had saved him from an earlier coup attempt. They wanted to sideline older officers who had previously been in high leadership positions, hiding their motives with a plan to force all general officers with more than 25 years of service to retire. The HNC, an unelected advisory body created to give a veneer of civilian rule, recommended against this, and was then dissolved. This dismayed the United States, South Vietnam's main sponsor. The US ambassador, Maxwell D. Taylor, harshly berated the generals and threatened aid cuts. Khánh embarked on a media offensive, criticizing US policy and what he saw as infringement of Vietnamese sovereignty. He and the other generals began preparations to expel Taylor before changing their minds. Khánh's tactics rallied support for his fragile leadership, at least temporarily. The Americans did not carry through on Taylor's threats to cut off aid, even though the HNC was never restored. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Murder of Leigh Leigh – 509th Composite Group – Central Coast Mariners FC

December 20

Albatrellus subrubescens is a species of polypore fungus in the family Albatrellaceae. The fruit bodies (mushrooms) of the fungus have whitish to pale buff-colored caps that can reach up to 14.5 cm (5.7 in) in diameter, and stems up to 7 cm (2.8 in) long and 2 cm (0.8 in) thick. On the underside of the caps are tiny light yellow to pale greenish-yellow pores, the site of spore production. When the fruit bodies are fresh, the cap and pores stain yellow where exposed, handled, or bruised. The species is found in Asia, Europe, and North America, where it grows on the ground in deciduous or mixed woods, usually in association with pine trees. It is closely related, and physically similar, to the more common Albatrellus ovinus, from which it may be distinguished macroscopically by differences in the color when bruised, and microscopically by the amyloid (staining bluish-black to black with Melzer's reagent) walls of the spores. The fruit bodies of A. subrubescens contain scutigeral, a bioactive chemical that has antibiotic activity. A. subrubescens mushrooms are mildly poisonous, and consuming them will result in a short-term gastrointestinal illness. (Full article...)

Recently featured: December 1964 South Vietnamese coup – Murder of Leigh Leigh – 509th Composite Group

December 21

Sir James McCay (1864–1930) was an Australian general and politician. As a member of the Victorian Parliament (1895–99), he championed federation and women's suffrage. He became a member of the first Australian Federal Parliament in 1901 and was Minister for Defence (1904–05), where his long-lasting reforms included creating the Military Board. In World War I, McCay commanded the 2nd Infantry Brigade of the Australian Army in the landing at Anzac Cove, during the Gallipoli Campaign. He was later wounded in the Second Battle of Krithia and sent home, but returned to command the 5th Division, which he led in the Battle of Fromelles in 1916, dubbed "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history". His failures in difficult military operations made him a controversial figure who earned the disfavour of his superiors, and his efforts to succeed in the face of insurmountable obstacles earned him the odium of troops under his command, who blamed him for high casualties. After the war, McCay resumed his old job as Deputy Chairman of the State Bank of Victoria; his other public roles included commanding the Special Constabulary Force during the 1923 Victorian Police strike. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Albatrellus subrubescens – December 1964 South Vietnamese coup – Murder of Leigh Leigh

December 22

Sir Colin Hannah (1914–1978) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and a Governor of Queensland. Born in Western Australia, he joined the RAAF in 1935 and served as a pilot in Nos. 22 and 23 Squadrons. During World War II, he was the RAAF's Deputy Director of Armament, saw action in the South West Pacific as commander of No. 6 Squadron and, later, No. 71 Wing, and ended the war in charge of Western Area Command in Perth. During the Malayan Emergency, he was senior air staff officer at RAF Far East Air Force Headquarters, Singapore. His other post-war appointments included Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Operational Command, and AOC Support Command. In January 1970, he was promoted to air marshal and became Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), the RAAF's senior position. Knighted in 1971, Hannah concluded his three-year appointment as CAS a year early, in March 1972, to become Governor of Queensland, where he attracted controversy by making comments critical of the Federal government. The British government refused to agree to his term being extended. He retired in March 1977, and died the following year. (Full article...)

Recently featured: James Whiteside McCay – Albatrellus subrubescens – December 1964 South Vietnamese coup

December 23

The 1995 Pacific hurricane season, running roughly from May to November, was the least active one since 1979. Of the eleven tropical cyclones that formed, four affected land, all in Mexico: Hurricane Flossie killed seven people around Baja California, Tropical Storm Gil dropped heavy rainfall in Southern Mexico, Hurricane Henriette caused moderate damage near Cabo San Lucas, and Ismael struck the state of Sinaloa as a minimal hurricane, killing at least 116 people. The strongest hurricane of the season was Hurricane Juliette, which reached peak winds of 150 mph (240 km/h) but did not significantly affect land. Of eleven tropical cyclones, including Tropical Depression Erick and Tropical Storm Flossie (both pictured, with Erick to the left), ten became tropical storms. Seven storms attained hurricane status, of which three acquired major hurricane status. The number of tropical storms was much less than the average of 16 storms, with a slightly below average number of hurricanes and major hurricanes. (Full article...)

Part of the 1995 Pacific hurricane season featured topic.

Recently featured: Colin Hannah – James Whiteside McCay – Albatrellus subrubescens

December 24

The American paddlefish is one of the largest freshwater fish in North America. Closely related to the sturgeon, it is one of only two extant taxa in the paddlefish family (the other being the Chinese paddlefish). Fossil records of paddlefish date back over 300 million years, nearly 50 million years before dinosaurs appeared. The American paddlefish is referred to as a relict species (because it retains some morphological characteristics of its early ancestors) even though it is highly derived with evolutionary adaptations specifically for filter feeding. The rostrum and cranium of American paddlefish are covered with tens of thousands of sensory receptors for locating swarms of zooplankton, their primary food source. American paddlefish are native to the Mississippi River Basin and once moved freely under the relatively natural, unaltered conditions that existed prior to the early 1900s. Their numbers have declined dramatically primarily because of overfishing, habitat destruction, and pollution. They are currently found in only twenty-two U.S. states, and their range has been reduced to the Mississippi and Missouri river tributaries and Mobile Bay drainage basin. (Full article...)

Recently featured: 1995 Pacific hurricane season – Colin Hannah – James Whiteside McCay

December 25

The Nativity is a large oil-on-wood panel painting by the Early Netherlandish artist Petrus Christus, completed between the early 1440s and early 1460s. It shows a nativity scene bordered with grisaille (monochrome) archways and faux sculpted reliefs. Christus was influenced by the first generation of Netherlandish artists, especially Jan van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden, and in its sense of grace, simplicity and naturalism, the devotional panel is characteristic of art of that period. The unusually large panel – perhaps painted as a central altarpiece panel for a triptych – is nuanced and visually complex. It reflects the 14th-century Devotio Moderna movement and contains complex Christian iconography, juxtaposing Old and New Testament saints and figures with great subtlety. The sculpted archway reliefs depict Old Testament ideas of sin and punishment, signaling the advent of Christ's sacrifice. The composition employs geometric forms and a bold use of color. In the 1930s, Andrew Mellon bequeathed it to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, as one of several hundreds of works donated from his personal collection. It was restored in the early 1990s. (Full article...)

Recently featured: American paddlefish – 1995 Pacific hurricane season – Colin Hannah

December 26

The turkey vulture is the most widespread of the New World vultures. One of three species in the genus Cathartes, in the family Cathartidae, it ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of South America, inhabiting subtropical forests, shrublands, pastures, and deserts. Like all New World vultures, it is not related to the Old World vultures of Europe, Africa, and Asia, but looks nearly identical to them because of convergent evolution, in which unrelated animals adapting to the same conditions are similarly shaped by natural selection. The turkey vulture is a scavenger and feeds almost exclusively on carrion. It finds its food using its keen eyes and sense of smell, flying low enough to detect the gases produced by decaying animal corpses. In flight, it uses thermals to move through the air, flapping its wings infrequently. It roosts in large community groups. Lacking a vocal organ, its only vocalizations are grunts or low hisses. It nests in caves, hollow trees, or thickets. Each year it generally raises two chicks. It has very few natural predators, and has legal protection in the United States under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Nativity (Christus) – American paddlefish – 1995 Pacific hurricane season

December 27

The Fifth Test of the 1948 Ashes series, held at The Oval in London from 14–18 August, was the final Test match in a cricket series between Australia and England. Australia won the match by an innings and 149 runs to complete a 4–0 series win. It was the last Test in the career of Australian captain Donald Bradman (pictured), generally regarded as the best batsman in the history of the sport. After a delayed start due to inclement weather, the Australian fast bowlers, led by Ray Lindwall, took all of England's wickets within the first day of the match, England scoring only 52 runs. When Bradman came out to bat, he received a standing ovation from the crowd and three cheers from his opponents. He needed only four runs from his final innings to have a Test batting average of exactly 100, but he failed to score and was out to the second ball he faced (bowled by leg spinner Eric Hollies). The match was followed by speeches from both captains, after which the crowd sang "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" in Bradman's honour. Having been undefeated in their matches up to this point, the Australians maintained their streak in the remaining matches, gaining them the sobriquet of The Invincibles. (Full article...)

Part of the Australian cricket team in England in 1948 featured topic.

Recently featured: Turkey vulture – Nativity (Christus) – American paddlefish

December 28

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is a 1986 American science fiction film. The fourth film in the series, it completes the story arc from The Wrath of Khan and The Search for Spock. Returning home to face trial for their crimes, former crewmembers of the USS Enterprise find Earth in danger from an alien probe attempting to contact now-extinct humpback whales. They travel to Earth's past to find whales who can answer the probe. After directing The Search for Spock, cast member Leonard Nimoy (pictured) was asked to direct the next feature, and given greater freedom regarding its content. He and producer Harve Bennett conceived a story with an environmental message and no clear-cut villain. Dissatisfied, Paramount Pictures hired The Wrath of Khan writer and director Nicholas Meyer, who rewrote the story with Bennett. Unlike previous Star Trek films, The Voyage Home was shot extensively on location, for scenes set in and around San Francisco. The film's humor and unconventional story were well received by critics, fans of the series and the general audience. It was financially successful, and received several awards and four Academy Award nominations for its cinematography and audio. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Fifth Test, 1948 Ashes series – Turkey vulture – Nativity (Christus)

December 29

Three Beauties of the Present Day is a nishiki-e colour woodblock print of c. 1792–93 by Japanese ukiyo-e artist Kitagawa Utamaro (c. 1753–1806). The triangular composition depicts the busts of three celebrity beauties of the time: geisha Tomimoto Toyohina (middle), and teahouse waitresses Takashima Hisa (left) and Naniwa Kita (right), each adorned with an identifying family crest. Subtle differences can be detected in the faces of the subjects—a level of individualized realism at the time unusual in ukiyo-e, and a contrast with the stereotyped beauties in earlier masters such as Harunobu and Kiyonaga. The triangular positioning became a vogue in the 1790s. Utamaro produced several other pictures with this arrangement of the same three beauties, and each appeared in numerous other portraits by Utamaro and other artists. Utamaro was the leading ukiyo-e artist in the 1790s in the bijin-ga genre of pictures of female beauties, and was known in particular for his ōkubi-e, which focus on the heads. The luxurious print was published by Tsutaya Jūzaburō and made with multiple woodblocks—one for each colour—and the background was dusted with muscovite to produce a glimmering effect. (Full article...)

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December 30

Thief II: The Metal Age is a 2000 stealth game developed by Looking Glass Studios and published by Eidos Interactive. Like its predecessor Thief: The Dark Project, the game follows Garrett, a master thief who works in and around a steampunk metropolis called the City. The player assumes the role of Garrett as he unravels a conspiracy related to a new religious sect. In response to feedback from players of the original Thief, the developers placed a heavy focus on urban stealth in the sequel, and they minimized the use of monsters and maze-like levels. Looking Glass neared bankruptcy as the game was created, and the company was kept running by advances from Eidos. Thief II received positive reviews from critics and its initial sales were stronger than those of its predecessor, but the game's royalties were processed slowly, which compounded Looking Glass's financial troubles. As a result, the company closed in May 2000, with plans for Thief III canceled. The third game in the series, entitled Thief: Deadly Shadows, was developed by Ion Storm and published by Eidos in 2004. Thief 2X: Shadows of the Metal Age, an expansion mod for Thief II, was released in 2005. (Full article...)

Part of the Looking Glass Studios video games featured topic.

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December 31

Fijación Oral, Vol. 1 is a Latin pop album, the sixth studio album by Colombian recording artist Shakira (pictured). It followed her first English-language record, Laundry Service, an international success. It received generally favorable reviews that complimented Shakira's evolving style. Released in June 2005, it debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200, and topped the charts in Argentina, Germany, Mexico and Spain. Fijación Oral, Vol. 1 was the Best Latin Rock/Alternative Album at the 2006 Grammy Awards, and the Album of the Year and the Best Female Pop Vocal Album at the Latin Grammy Awards. It became the highest selling Latin pop album of the decade in the US. Four singles were released to promote the album, although only the lead single ("La Tortura") reached the US Billboard Hot 100. In November 2005 Shakira supplemented the album with her second English-language record, Oral Fixation, Vol. 2. The two were packaged together and promoted with the Oral Fixation Tour. (Full article...)

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