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Features and admins

The best of the week

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By Dabomb87 and Tony1

Administrator

The Signpost congratulates Mkativerata (nom), a lawyer from Brisbane, Australia, on his promotion to adminship. Highly active since last December, he has been with us since 2007. His significant contributions include the sourcing of BLP articles, copyright cleanup, and the detection and resolution of sockpuppet issues. He has one FA and two GAs to his name, and has begun more than 100 well-sourced articles on Malaysian politicians.

Daniel Lambert, by Benjamin Marshall, c. 1806
The fossa resembles a small cougar; it is known for its bloodthirsty treatment of prey and its extended mating sessions.

Eighteen articles were promoted to featured status:

  • Wally Hammond (nom), "one of the best cricketers of all time" from the 1920s and 30s, says nominator Sarastro1, "and a moody so-and-so". He was captain of the England team.
  • Daniel Lambert (nom), gaol keeper and animal breeder from Leicester, England, famous for his unusually large size. Upon death, his body weighed 335 kg (739 lbs) and rapidly began to putrefy (iridescent, with assistance from Parrot of Doom) (right).
  • Miss Meyers (nom), possibly of similar weight to the previous subject, but a 1950s racing American Quarter Horse. Nominator Ealdgyth says this article will eventually form part of an application for featured topic on the horses in the AQHA Hall of Fame.
  • Siege of Godesberg (nom), which grew out of the article on the Cologne War in 16th-century Germany. Reviewer Iridescent said, "you've done a good job of keeping a complicated story on track" (auntieruth, and JN, who added valuable German material).
  • Quietly Confident Quartet (nom), the self-named Australian men's 4 × 100 m medley relay swimming team that against expectations won the gold medal at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. All four of the swimmers had clashed with swimming authorities over disciplinary issues and three had been suspended or expelled from the Australian team during their careers. (YellowMonkey)
  • Fossa (animal) (nom) a cat-like, carnivorous mammal endemic to Madagascar. It tears open and disembowels its victims—among them the Grey Mouse lemur, a primate—and is known to participate in arboreal mating sessions of up to 14 hours (Sasata, Ucucha, UtherSRG, and Visionholder) (right).
  • Belle Vue Zoological Gardens (nom), a 140-year-old place of entertainment for the genteel middle-classes in Manchester, offering formal gardens and open-air dancing. It evolved into the third-largest zoo and one of the earliest and largest amusement parks in the UK, a major venue for exhibitions and sports such as boxing, speedway, and greyhound racing, and housed a fine symphony orchestra (Malleus Fatuorum, J3Mrs, WebHamster).
  • Midshipman (nom), a commissioned officer of the lowest rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies (Kirk).
  • Sweet Track (nom), constructed in 3807 or 3806 BC in Somerset, England, is one of the oldest engineered roads known. Its discovery in 1970 revealed crossed wooden poles driven into waterlogged soil to support a walkway that consisted mainly of planks of oak, laid end-to-end (Rod).
  • Hurricane Guillermo (1997) (nom), one of the most powerful Pacific hurricanes ever recorded, producing deadly swells across the Pacific Ocean that affected areas from Hawaii to coastal Mexico (Cyclonebiskit, and Mitchazenia).
  • Stan Musial (nom), a Polish-American elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969 (Monowi).
  • SMS König (nom), which led the German line at the Battle of Jutland in 1916, the largest single fleet action in history (Parsecboy).
  • Tower of London (nom), a historic castle on the Thames in London, founded in 1066 by William the Conqueror. It has played an iconic role in English history. (Nev1)
  • Statue of Liberty (nom), a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor; it was dedicated in 1886 as a gift to the US from the people of France, and has become an iconic symbol of American freedom (Wehwalt).
  • Robert Catesby (nom), the leader of a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Preparing the article required careful navigation around historical uncertainties (Parrot of Doom).
  • Courageous class battlecruiser (nom), comprising three fast and lightly armoured vessels that saw service in the Royal Navy from 1916 to 1944; they were the first battlecruisers to use geared steam turbines and small-tube boilers, which maximised their speed (Sturmvogel 66).
  • Pipistrellus raceyi (nom), a species of bat in Madagascar, not formally named until 2006 (Ucucha).
  • Brill Tramway (nom), privately built in 1871 as a horse tram-line to transport goods from the Aylesbury Vale, northeast of Oxford, to the national railway network (Iridescent).

Choice of the week. We asked regular FAR delegate, FA reviewer and nominator YellowMonkey for his opinion (disregarding his own nomination): "I chose the Tower of London because I've always had a soft spot for history, and the Princes in the Tower is a source of high school nostalgia. More generally, the older the topic, the more quaint and fascinating the story tends to become, especially as society evolves over time, making such things stand out in contrast to modernity. The subject is a rich blend of medieval history, architecture, political intrigue and supernatural phenomena, so it should have something for everyone. It's also very comprehensive—the predominant theme of my concerns at FAC, much to the chagrin of many a nominator. I'd like to give a special mention to Wally Hammond."

Pigeon Tower, from Listed buildings in Rivington, our featured list Choice of the week

Eight lists were promoted:

Choice of the week. We asked FL nominator and reviewer Jujutacular for his choice of the best: "I picked Listed buildings in Rivington as my choice for this week. The structure of the list is very appealing, the prose flows well, and it sparks an interest in the subject for the reader. As someone unfamiliar with the area, it makes me want to visit! Beautiful images illustrate many of the entries. Congratulations and thanks to J3Mrs for the wonderful work on this list." (right)

Two featured lists were delisted:

Saturn's moon, Mimas, taken by the Cassini spacecraft on a fly-by at 70,000 km
Full 360º fogbow

Ten images were promoted:

  • Eastern Barred Bandicoot (nom), a small Australian marsupial with a long, pointy snout; the image was taken at night with multiple off-camera flashes by Noodle snacks.
  • Louis-Marie Autissier, Self-portrait (nom), of the 1817 watercolour on ivory by the miniaturist. The image was edited by Papa Lima Whiskey to expand into unused colour space while preserving the details (created by the Swedish National Museum).
  • Mantoux tuberculin skin test (nom), but don't look if you're scared of needles (created by Greg Knobloch, CDC).
  • Diatomaceous earth (nom), an ingredient of dynamite, among other products. All reviewers praised this micrograph, created under bright field illumination on a light microscope of a total area of a tiny 1.13 × 0.69 mm (created by Richard Wheeler (Zephyris). (below)
  • Common clam worm (nom), a widely distributed species of marine worm; here, it has turned into a form capable of reproduction, and after releasing its sperm or eggs, the animal will die. Created by Hans Hillewaert (Lycaon) with colour balance by Zephyris after much debate.
  • Mimas (moon) (nom). The edge of Saturn is clearly visible in the original, taken by the Cassini spacecraft on 13 February at a distance of about 70,000 km from one of the gas giant's moons, Mimas. This artefact was removed by the creators, NASA/JPL/SSI. (right)
  • 360 degrees fogbow (nom). A fog bow is similar to a rainbow, but because of the very small size of water droplets has only very weak colors, and is sometimes known as a "white rainbow". This striking image of an intriguing phenomenon was created by Mbz1. (right)
  • Sydney ferry Collaroy (nom). Reviewer Fletcher said, "there is a sense of motion in the image that draws you into it" (created by Diliff).
  • Squilla mantis for sale (nom). This species of shrimp is chiefly found and fished in the Mediterranean Sea. Here, it is shown at the fish auction of l'Ametlla de Mar in Catalonia, Spain (created by Lycaon).
  • Peter Ustinov (nom), a high-quality portrait of the English actor, writer and dramatist (created by Allan Warren).

Choice of the week. Miya was a member of the 2009 Organizing Committee for the Commons Picture of the Year Award. We asked her to choose what she sees as the best new featured picture: "The three I like most are Eastern Barred Bandicoot, Diatomaceous earth, and 360 degrees fogbow . It was not easy to choose one of these. But at last I've made my choice: Diatomaceous earth. The photo of the micrograph of Diatomaceous earth is beautiful as well as of great scientific interest; it is both encyclopedic and educational. The full resolution‎ allows you to clearly see the fossilized remains of diatoms; this may provide insights into the nature of Diatomaceous earth." (below)

Featured picture Choice of the week: Diatomaceous earth under the microscope
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First post! It's not even live yet :D Kudos again for such a great section of the read...ResMar 03:50, 16 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Daniel Lambert

I wonder if I'm the only one who mis-read the section about Daniel Lambert, and thought it said goal keeper?! Perhaps he was wide enough to obscure the whole goal mouth? —  Tivedshambo  (t/c) 07:38, 17 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Statue of Liberty and Tower of London? A good week for cool, significant structures. かんぱい！ Scapler (talk) 08:58, 17 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Seconded. I was delighted to see such important structures achieve FA. Bravo! --bodnotbod (talk) 09:41, 19 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

FP "choice of the week" again...

Again, we have a FP choice of the week from someone completely uninvolved with the FP project. I'm really not feeling this. As someone who puts a lot of time into the FP project, this just stinks of contacting someone who is "above all of that" to give an opinion on what the minions have managed this week. Wikipedia is not Commons- Commons has a completely separate FP project. J Milburn (talk) 11:34, 17 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Hi J Milburn. I know this must be a bit frustrating for you, but rest assured there will be enough chances for all FP regulars to be a Choice of the week judge. Look at it as a chance for FP to gain exposure outside the English WP. Also, Tony is currently on vacation, but I have been in touch with him and we will definitely have someone active on en.WP doing COTW for the 23 August edition. Dabomb87 (talk) 13:16, 17 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
This isn't about giving the regulars a chance and whatnot, I just really don't see the value in having the COTW chosen by someone who has nothing to do with the project. J Milburn (talk) 12:42, 18 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
As I've said before, I don't see why we need to have someone pick their favorites. Why not just present the FPs, FAs, etc. and let people appreciate them without having someone giving an opinion as to why one is better than the others. -- Ssilvers (talk) 18:42, 18 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
A fair criticism, and perhaps you saw Tony's response previously. I think that COTW is a good way to increase reader involvement (as part of a wider effort to make F and A more reader friendly). Also, the choice isn't always the "best" FA/FL/FP, but what stands out most to the judge. Dabomb87 (talk) 18:48, 18 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Personally I am very much in favour of someone picking their favourite and providing a little additional commentary. And I really couldn't care less where the person who picks is drawn from. It's a nice bonus addition to these pages and provides a little colour. Let's not get hung up about it. --bodnotbod (talk) 09:41, 19 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
J Milburn, I am pleased that people largely take an inclusive, expansive attitude to COTW. IMO, COTW is ideal for forging links with the featured content of sister projects, which also have expert reviewers and nominators. There is far too little interwiki engagement, which is the sleeping giant, the great untapped opportunity, for Wikimedia. Interwiki invitations also promote international readership of both The Signpost and en.WP featured pages. Having said that, most judges will inevitably be drawn from our own featured processes.
Concerning the issue below: I neglected to state to YM that of course he should not choose one of his own nominations. I will include this in the future, but it's almost too obvious. Tony (talk) 23:52, 20 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
I agree with Tony here; I think it's valuable to have an opinion from outside our own processes for the choice of the week—I don't see it as condescending, but simply as valuing a diversity of opinions. Ucucha 05:45, 21 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
There are a lot of aspects to FPC that could be missed from the outside looking in- the obvious option would be the prettiest picture, but there are so many other things that would make an image a good CotW, things that people not familiar with the FP process would not know about. I'm also not exactly wild about the choice of the week thing, but if you're gonna do it, you may as well do it properly. J Milburn (talk) 20:38, 24 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Straight from the monkey's mouth

Awww...About the disclaimer...heh Tony didn't ask me to refrain from self-selecting when he messaged me, maybe I should have just been undignified :P :) ;) ....still he seems to have modified my comment to say that most FAC comments generally are about the content, which I don't think is the case, although most of mine are about the content YellowMonkey (new photo poll) 01:57, 18 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Feel free to alter your comment, if you feel it significantly mis-represents your view. Dabomb87 (talk) 02:02, 18 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks YellowMonkey (new photo poll) 02:34, 18 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
The Signpost is looking for new talent.
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