Wikipedia:Main Page history/2023 February 17
From today's featured article
Theodora Kroeber (1897–1979) was an American writer and anthropologist, best known for her accounts of Native Californian cultures. She grew up in the mining town of Telluride, Colorado. She graduated with a major in psychology in 1919, and received a master's degree in 1920. Married in 1920 and widowed in 1923, she began doctoral studies in anthropology. She met anthropologist Alfred Kroeber and married him in 1926. One of her two children with Alfred was the writer Ursula K. Le Guin. Kroeber began writing professionally late in life, publishing a collection of translated Native Californian narratives in 1959. Two years later she published Ishi in Two Worlds, an account of the last member of the Yahi people of northern California. This sold widely, and received high praise from contemporary reviewers. After Alfred died in 1960, Theodora married artist John Quinn in 1969. She published several other works, including a biography of Alfred. A 1989 biography stated that her "great strength was as an interpreter of one culture to another". (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that the Japanese vessel Tonan Maru No. 3 (pictured), sunk in a 17 February 1944 air raid, was raised seven years later and returned to service as a whaling factory ship?
- ... that Eva Siracká remained the president of the League Against Cancer, citing the reign of Elizabeth II as the reason?
- ... that the lobby of the Royalton Hotel was once compared to an ocean liner?
- ... that Mark Wetjen was a top advisor for Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, during an aggressive lobbying campaign at the United States Congress?
- ... that although Greek forces captured the Aegean island of Chios in January 1913, its annexation to Greece was not finalized until 1923?
- ... that in 2022, Briton Charlotte Payne broke the world record for a hammer throw by a deaf woman by almost 5 metres (16 ft)?
- ... that the Arab Orthodox Movement aims to Arabize the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, a church whose laity is mostly Arab but is led by Greek clergy?
- ... that Mittens was a chess-playing "cat"?
In the news
- Cyclone Gabrielle (satellite image shown) causes widespread damage and flooding across New Zealand.
- In American football, the Kansas City Chiefs defeat the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.
- A megadrought and heatwave cause forest fires and a state of emergency in Chile.
- An earthquake strikes Turkey and Syria, killing over 42,000 people and injuring more than 120,000 others.
- In the Monaco general election, the incumbent UNM party led by Brigitte Boccone-Pagès wins all 24 national council seats.
On this day
- 1814 – War of the Sixth Coalition: a French army under Napoleon surrounded and defeated a Russian force in the Battle of Mormant.
- 1894 – Rudolf Diesel's first working diesel engine ran for one minute.
- 1944 – World War II: The U.S. Navy began Operation Hailstone, a massive naval air and surface attack against the Japanese naval and air base at Truk in the Caroline Islands.
- 1959 – Vanguard 2 (model pictured), the first weather satellite, was launched to measure cloud cover distribution.
- 2006 – A massive landslide in the Philippine province of Southern Leyte killed over 1,000 people.
- Denzil Holles, 1st Baron Holles (d. 1680)
- Margot Heuman (b. 1928)
- Nestor Chylak (d. 1982)
From today's featured list
Eighteen properties in Greece are inscribed on the World Heritage List, of which sixteen are cultural sites, and two (Meteora and Mount Athos) are mixed sites, listed for both their natural and cultural significance. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designates World Heritage Sites of outstanding universal value to cultural or natural heritage, after nomination by countries that are signatories to the UNESCO World Heritage Convention established in 1972. The first Greek site added to the list was the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae (pictured), in 1986. The next two sites listed were the Archeological Site of Delphi and the Acropolis of Athens in the following year. Five sites were added in 1988, two in 1989 and 1990 each, one in 1992, one in 1996, two in 1999, and one in 2007. The most recent site added was the Archaeological Site of Philippi, in 2016. (Full list...)
Today's featured picture
The beautiful demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo) is a European damselfly belonging to the family Calopterygidae. It is found across most of Europe as well as parts of the North African Mediterranean coast and the Arctic polar sea. The insect's body length is around 49 to 54 millimetres (1.9 to 2.1 in), with hindwings of 31 to 37 millimetres (1.2 to 1.5 in). It has small hemispherical eyes located laterally on the head, two pairs of wings similar in shape and a slender abdomen. The species presents an evident sexual dimorphism in colour pattern. This male beautiful demoiselle was photographed in Hampshire, England, in 2016. Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp
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