Wikipedia:Today's featured article/January 2016
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- January 1
Falstaff is an opera in three acts by the Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV, parts 1 and 2. The work premiered on 9 February 1893 at La Scala, Milan. Falstaff was the last of Verdi's 28 operas, his second comedy, and his third work based on a Shakespeare play, following Macbeth and Otello. The plot revolves around the thwarted, sometimes farcical, efforts of the fat knight, Sir John Falstaff, to seduce two married women to gain access to their husbands' wealth. The premiere was greeted with enormous enthusiasm, but after the initial performances the work fell into neglect: many operagoers felt that it lacked the full-blooded melodies of the best of Verdi's previous operas. The conductor Arturo Toscanini strongly disagreed, and insisted on its revival at La Scala and the Metropolitan Opera in New York from the late 1890s into the next century. The work is now part of the regular operatic repertory. Singers closely associated with the title role have included Victor Maurel (the first Falstaff), Mariano Stabile, Giuseppe Valdengo, Tito Gobbi, Geraint Evans and Bryn Terfel. (Full article...)
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- January 2
The rufous-crowned sparrow (Aimophila ruficeps) is a smallish American sparrow. Isolated populations of this perching bird can be found across the Southwestern United States and much of the interior of Mexico. Twelve subspecies are generally recognized (A. r. boucardi pictured), though up to eighteen have been suggested. The bird has a brown back with darker streaks and gray underparts. The crown is rufous, and the face and supercilium are gray with a thick black malar streak and a brown or rufous streak extending from each eye. The birds are ungraceful fliers, preferring to hop along the ground. They feed primarily on seeds in the winter and insects in the spring and summer. They are often territorial, with males guarding their territory through song and displays. The birds are monogamous and breed during spring, laying two to five eggs in cup-shaped, well-hidden nests. Adult sparrows are preyed upon by house cats and small raptors, while young may be taken by a range of mammals and reptiles. Although classified as a species of least concern, some subspecies are threatened by habitat destruction, and one may be extinct. (Full article...)
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- January 3
Mereka Bilang, Saya Monyet! (released internationally as They Say I'm a Monkey!) is a 2008 Indonesian film directed by Djenar Maesa Ayu. Starring Titi Rajo Bintang, Henidar Amroe, and Ray Sahetapi, it tells the life story of Adjeng, who was sexually abused as a child by her mother's boyfriend. Filmed over 18 days after several years of development, the film adapted two of Ayu's short stories from her debut anthology of the same name. Owing to its low budget of Rp 620 million, its cast and crew were mostly amateurs and students, although several established actors appeared at reduced rates. Mereka Bilang, Saya Monyet! has been described as "anti-Sjuman" because of the disparity between Ayu's more personal directing style and the social realism of her father, Sjumandjaja. Although commercially unsuccessful, the film was well received by critics. It won five national-level awards and was screened at several international film festivals. Two Indonesian publications, Tempo and The Jakarta Post, selected it as among the best films of 2008. (Full article...)
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- January 4
James Hogun (died January 4, 1781) was one of five generals from North Carolina to serve with the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. Initially a major in the 7th North Carolina Regiment, Hogun advanced quickly in rank to command the unit in the battles of Brandywine and Germantown in 1777. After the Continental Congress promoted him to brigadier general, he commanded North Carolina's line brigade during the Siege of Charleston in the spring of 1780, which ended in the surrender of all but one of his regiments of regular infantry. He was the highest-ranking officer from North Carolina to be captured and imprisoned after the surrender of Charleston. Despite being offered the opportunity to leave internment under a parole that was generally extended to other captured Continental officers, he remained in a British prisoner-of-war camp, in part to hinder British efforts to enlist captured Continental soldiers to serve in the British West Indies. Hogun and the other officers in the camp at Haddrel's Point, a peninsula in Charleston's harbor, were subjected to harsh treatment, and he soon became ill and died in prison. (Full article...)
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- January 5
Stella Gibbons (1902–1989) was an English author, journalist, and poet. She established her reputation with her first novel, Cold Comfort Farm (1932), which won the Prix Femina Étranger award. After an indifferent school career Gibbons trained as a journalist, and worked as a reporter and features writer. Her first book (1930) was a collection of poems, and throughout her life she considered herself primarily a poet rather than a novelist. After Cold Comfort Farm, a satire on the genre of rural-themed novels popular in the late 1920s, most of Gibbons's novels were based in the middle-class suburban world with which she was familiar. Critics have compared her style to Jane Austen's. Although she was active as a writer for half a century, none of her later 22 novels or other literary works achieved the same popular success, nor have they been accepted into the canon of English literature, perhaps because of her detachment from the literary world and her tendency to mock it. Much of her work was long out of print before a modest revival in the 21st century. (Full article...)
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- January 6
Freedom of Worship is the second of the Four Freedoms oil paintings produced by the American artist Norman Rockwell. They represent the freedoms outlined by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt in his State of the Union Address on January 6, 1941, including the "freedom of every person to worship God in his own way—everywhere in the world." Freedom of Worship shows the profiles of eight people of different faiths in a moment of prayer. Rockwell considered this painting and Freedom of Speech more successful than the other two paintings in the series, Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear. Freedom of Worship appeared on February 27, 1943, in The Saturday Evening Post alongside an essay on religious freedom by philosopher Will Durant. All four images were widely distributed on posters in support of the War Bond drive. Text supporting the four freedoms was later incorporated into the Allies' World War II policy statement, the Atlantic Charter, and the charter of the United Nations. (Full article...)
Part of the Four Freedoms series, one of Wikipedia's featured topics.
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- January 7
Upper and Lower Table Rock are two prominent volcanic plateaus just north of the Rogue River in Jackson County, Oregon, US. Created by a medium-grained lava flow around seven million years ago and shaped by erosion, they now stand about 800 feet (240 m) above the surrounding Rogue Valley. They are jointly owned by The Nature Conservancy and the Bureau of Land Management. Native Americans inhabited the Table Rocks for at least 15,000 years before the local Takelma people were forced into reservations during a mid-19th-century gold rush. A post office was established nearby in 1872, an airstrip was built atop Lower Table Rock in 1948, and an aviation beacon was constructed on Upper Table Rock in the 1960s. These plateaus, which were not protected until the 1970s, are home to over 70 species of animals and 340 species of plants, including the dwarf woolly meadowfoam. They are popular hiking locations in the Rogue Valley, with over 45,000 visitors annually. (Full article...)
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- January 8
Bruce Kingsbury (1918–1942) was an Australian soldier of the Second World War. After serving in the Middle East, he gained renown for his actions during the Battle of Isurava, one of many battles of the Kokoda Track campaign in New Guinea. His bravery was recognised with the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to members of the British and Commonwealth armed forces. Kingsbury was a member of the 2/14th Infantry Battalion. During the Battle of Isurava, he was one of the few survivors of a platoon that had been overrun by the Japanese. He immediately volunteered to join a different platoon, which had been ordered to counterattack. Rushing forward and firing his Bren gun from the hip, he cleared a path through the enemy and inflicted several casualties. Kingsbury was then seen to fall, shot by a Japanese sniper and killed instantly. His actions, which delayed the Japanese long enough for the Australians to fortify their positions, were instrumental in saving the battalion headquarters. He was the first serviceman to receive the Victoria Cross for actions in Australian territory. (Full article...)
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- January 9
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Falcon's Fury is a freestanding Sky Jump drop tower attraction at the Busch Gardens Tampa amusement park in Tampa, Florida. Manufactured by Intaride, a subsidiary of Intamin, the ride is North America's tallest freestanding drop tower, at a maximum height of 335 feet (102 m). It is also the first drop tower to use 90-degree tilting seats, facing riders straight down through five seconds of free fall. They reach a speed of 60 miles per hour (100 km/h) before rotating back into a vertical position and decelerating at about 3.5 Gs. The ride's name is meant to suggest a falcon's ability to dive steeply at high speed to capture prey. Due to the height of the attraction, approval from the Federal Aviation Administration was required. Construction was delayed until 2013, and the opening date was also delayed by mechanical and technical issues. Falcon's Fury opened to park employees in August before a soft opening on August 16, 2014, and an official opening on September 2, 2014. (Full article...)
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- January 10
Ursa Minor (Little Bear) is a constellation in the northern sky. In North America, it is colloquially known as the Little Dipper because its seven brightest stars appear to form the shape of a ladle (diagram pictured). It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations. Polaris, its brightest star, is currently less than one degree away from the north celestial pole. Because this position stays nearly fixed as the Earth rotates, the star has traditionally been important for navigation, particularly by mariners. Polaris is a yellow-white supergiant and the brightest Cepheid variable star in the night sky, ranging in apparent magnitude from 1.97 to 2.00. Beta Ursae Minoris, also known as Kochab, is an aging star that has swollen and cooled to become an orange giant with an apparent magnitude of 2.08, only slightly fainter than Polaris. The constellation also contains an isolated neutron star—Calvera—and H1504+65, the hottest white dwarf yet discovered, with a surface temperature of 200,000 kelvin. Planets have been detected orbiting four of the constellation's stars, including Kochab. (Full article...)
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- January 11
Dishonored is a 2012 stealth action-adventure video game developed by Arkane Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It was released worldwide in October 2012 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. Set in the plague-ridden industrial city of Dunwall, Dishonored follows the story of Corvo Attano, who is framed for murder and forced to become an assassin, seeking revenge on those who conspired against him. Susan Sarandon, Brad Dourif, Carrie Fisher, Michael Madsen, Lena Headey, and Chloë Grace Moretz did some of the voice work. The game is played from a first-person perspective and emphasizes player choice, including the choice of stealth or combat to accomplish missions. Dishonored received generally positive reviews, focusing on the missions' individual narratives and the wide range of mission choices. Criticism fell on the predictability of the overarching narrative and on problems in controlling the player's character. The game won several awards, including the 2012 Spike Video Game award for Best Action-Adventure Game and the 2013 BAFTA Games award for Best Game. (Full article...)
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- January 12
Keen Johnson was the 45th Governor of Kentucky (1939–43) and the only journalist to have held that office. Born on January 12, 1896, he served in World War I and earned a journalism degree from the University of Kentucky. Johnson served as lieutenant governor under Governor A. B. "Happy" Chandler from 1935 to 1939. He had already secured the Democratic gubernatorial nomination when Chandler resigned and elevated him to governor so that he could appoint Chandler to the U.S. Senate. Johnson went on to win a full gubernatorial term in the general election. He ran a fiscally conservative administration and took the state from a $7 million shortfall to a surplus of $10 million by the end of his term. Afterwards, Johnson joined Reynolds Metals as a special assistant to the president. He took a one-year leave of absence to serve as the first U.S. Undersecretary of Labor in 1946, then continued working for the company until 1961. He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 1960, losing to incumbent Republican John Sherman Cooper. He died in 1970 in Richmond, Kentucky. (Full article...)
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- January 13
No. 1 Flying Training School (No. 1 FTS) was one of the original units of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), dating back to the service's formation in 1921 at Point Cook, Victoria. It was re-formed several times in the ensuing years, initially as No. 1 Service Flying Training School in 1940, under the wartime Empire Air Training Scheme. After graduating nearly 3,000 pilots, it was disbanded in late 1944, when there was no further need to train Australian aircrews for service in Europe. The school was re-established in 1946 at Uranquinty, New South Wales, and transferred to Point Cook the following year. To cope with the demands of the Korean War and Malayan Emergency, it was re-formed as No. 1 Applied Flying Training School in 1952 and moved to Pearce, Western Australia, in 1958. Another school was meanwhile formed at Uranquinty, No. 1 Basic Flying Training School (No. 1 BFTS), which transferred to Point Cook in 1958. In 1969, No. 1 AFTS was re-formed as No. 2 Flying Training School and No. 1 BFTS was re-formed as No. 1 FTS. Rationalisation of RAAF flying training resulted in the disbandment of No. 1 FTS in 1993. (Full article...)
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- January 14
Brachychiton rupestris in the family Malvaceae, commonly known as the Queensland bottle tree, is native to Queensland, Australia. Discovered and described by Sir Thomas Mitchell and John Lindley in 1848, it gained its name from its bulbous trunk, which can be up to 3.5 metres (11 ft) diameter at breast height. Reaching 10–25 metres (33–82 ft) high, the tree is deciduous, losing its leaves between September and December. Cream flowers appear from September to November, followed by woody boat-shaped follicles that ripen from November to May. It is an emergent tree in the endangered central semi-evergreen vine thickets of the Brigalow Belt. Remnant trees are often left by farmers on cleared land to provide shade and fodder. As a drought-deciduous succulent tree, the bottle tree adapts readily to cultivation and is tolerant of a range of soils and temperatures. It is found planted in streets, parks, and gardens and on farms. An avenue in Roma, Queensland, was planted between 1918 and 1920, each tree representing one of 93 local men killed in World War I. The species is also cultivated as an indoor plant and a bonsai subject. (Full article...)
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- January 15
During Liverpool Football Club's first 68 years, they won five Football League championships before being relegated to the Second Division in the 1950s. They were founded in 1892 when John Houlding needed a team for the Anfield stadium, recently vacated by Everton Football Club. After winning the Lancashire League title in their first season, they were accepted into the Football League for the 1893–94 season. With Tom Watson as manager, they were promoted to the top tier of English football, winning their first League championships in 1901 and 1906 and reaching the FA Cup final in 1914. Liverpool's fortunes fluctuated during the inter-war years, when the club often finished in midtable, although they did win two further championships in 1922 and 1923. An expansion to the Spion Kop terracing in the 1920s increased Anfield's capacity. Liverpool became League champions again in 1947, in the first season after the Second World War, but, following a gradual decline, they were back in the Second Division by the time of Bill Shankly's appointment as manager in 1959. (Full article...)
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- January 16
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Wandsworth Bridge crosses the River Thames in west London. It carries the A217 road between Battersea, near Wandsworth Town Station, in the London Borough of Wandsworth on the south side of the river, and Sands End and Parsons Green in Hammersmith and Fulham on the north side. The first bridge on the site was a toll bridge, built in 1873 in the expectation that the western terminus of the Hammersmith and City Railway would shortly be built on the north bank. The terminus was not built, and problems with drainage on the approach road made access to the bridge difficult for vehicles. Wandsworth Bridge was commercially unsuccessful, and in 1880 it was taken into public ownership and made toll-free. Narrow and too weak to carry buses, the bridge was demolished in 1937. The present bridge, an unadorned steel cantilever bridge, was opened in 1940. It was painted in dull shades of blue as camouflage against air raids, a colour scheme it retains. Wandsworth Bridge is one of the busiest bridges in London, carrying over 50,000 vehicles daily. (Full article...)
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- January 17
Gather Together in My Name (1974) is a memoir by African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou, the second of her seven autobiographies. The narrative follows Rita (Angelou) from the ages of 17 to 19 as she becomes closer to her mother and tries to provide for her young son, but ultimately descends into a life of crime and misery. It expands on many of the themes from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, including motherhood and family, race and racism, identity, and education and literacy. Like many of Angelou's autobiographies, Gather Together describes her ongoing self-education. It was not as critically acclaimed as her first autobiography but is considered better written, and it received mostly positive reviews. The book's title comes from the Bible, Matthew 18:19-20, and is meant to evoke loving relationships, in which adults can be honest with their children about their past. Consisting of a series of episodes loosely tied together by theme and content, the book intentionally parallels the chaos of adolescence, but some critics found this structure unsatisfactory. (Full article...)
Part of the Maya Angelou autobiographies series, one of Wikipedia's featured topics.
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- January 18
The Negro Motorist Green Book was an annual guidebook for African American travelers in the United States. It was originated and published by New York City mail carrier Victor H. Green from 1936 to 1966, during the Jim Crow era, when racial discrimination was widespread. Although discrimination and poverty limited African American car ownership, many middle-class blacks took to driving to avoid segregation on public transportation. They faced inconveniences such as businesses refusing to serve them or repair their vehicles and hotels refusing them accommodation or food. They even faced threats of physical violence and forcible expulsion from whites-only sundown towns. Green intended the book "to give the Negro traveler information that will keep him from running into difficulties". It became the definitive American travel guide for blacks during Jim Crow, but was little known outside the African American community. Its publication ceased shortly after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Interest in it has revived in the early 21st century in connection with studies of black travel during the Jim Crow era. (Full article...)
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- January 19
Arthur Morris (1922–2015) was an Australian cricketer who played 46 Test matches between 1946 and 1955. He is best known as a prominent member of the "Invincibles", a team that went undefeated on their tour of England in 1948. In his teens, Morris became the first player ever to score two centuries on his first-class debut. After serving in the Australian Army during the Second World War, he made his Test debut against England. He scored a century in his third match and two more hundreds in the following Test, becoming only the second Australian to score a hundred in each innings of an Ashes Test. By 1950, he was Australia's vice-captain and had amassed nine Test centuries with a batting average over 65. Thereafter his form declined, and his career ended after his first wife became terminally ill in 1955. In later life, Morris served as a trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground for over twenty years. Selected in the Australian Cricket Board's Team of the Century in 2000 and inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2001, he is widely regarded as one of Australia's most successful left-handed batsmen. (Full article...)
Part of the Australian cricket team in England in 1948 series, one of Wikipedia's featured topics.
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- January 20
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Oriental Film was a film production company in Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia). Established by ethnic Chinese businessman Tjo Seng Han in 1940, it completed four black-and-white films before it was closed in 1941. All the company's films were screened into the mid-1940s but may now be lost. They were directed by two men, Njoo Cheong Seng and Sutan Usman Karim, and launched the careers of actors such as Dhalia and Soerip. Established during the revival of the Indies film industry, Oriental released its first film, Kris Mataram, in July 1940. It starred Njoo's wife Fifi Young, and relied on her fame as a stage actress to draw audiences. This was followed by three more films, targeted at low-income audiences and scored with kroncong music. Njoo showed a proclivity for sensation, using bright, extravagant costumes. Oriental's final production was Panggilan Darah, completed in 1941 after Njoo and Young had left the company. Oriental's Dutch-owned studio facilities made them the largest and most modern studio in the Indies, but they were unable to recoup the rental fees on the property, and in 1941 the company was shut down. (Full article...)
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- January 21
The Banker horse is a feral horse (Equus ferus caballus) living on the islands of North Carolina's Outer Banks. Bankers are small, hardy, and docile. Descended from domesticated Spanish horses and possibly brought to the Americas in the 16th century, the foundation bloodstock may have become feral after surviving shipwrecks or being abandoned on the islands by one of the exploratory expeditions led by Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón or Sir Richard Grenville. Populations are found in the Rachel Carson Estuarine Sanctuary and on Ocracoke Island, Shackleford Banks, and Currituck Banks. Although not considered indigenous to the islands, Bankers are allowed to remain because of their historical significance. They survive by grazing on marsh grasses—for water as well as food—supplemented by temporary freshwater pools. To prevent overpopulation and inbreeding, and to protect their habitat from overgrazing, the horses are managed by the National Park Service, the State of North Carolina, and private organizations; populations are limited through adoptions and birth control. Bankers taken from the wild and trained have been used for trail riding, driving, and mounted patrols. (Full article...)
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- January 22
HMS Agincourt (1913) was a British dreadnought built with more heavy guns (fourteen) and more main turrets (seven) than any other battleship, before or since. Originally ordered by Brazil during a South American naval arms race, the ship was purchased from Brazil by the Ottoman Empire while under construction and renamed Sultan Osman I, after the empire's founder. When the dreadnought was nearly complete, World War I broke out. The British Admiralty, fearing an Ottoman–German alliance, seized the ship for the Royal Navy, together with another Ottoman dreadnought being built in Britain, the Reşadiye. This act contributed to the decision of the Ottoman government to join the Central Powers, as the payments for both ships were complete. The renamed Agincourt joined the Grand Fleet in the North Sea and, apart from the Battle of Jutland in 1916, spent most of the war on patrols and exercises. The ship was put into reserve in 1919 and sold for scrap in 1922 to meet the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty. (Full article...)
Part of the South American dreadnought race series, one of Wikipedia's featured topics.
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- January 23
The December 1969 nor'easter (December 25–28) was an intense winter storm in the Northeastern United States and southern Quebec. After developing over Texas and spawning several damaging tornadoes in the Deep South, the cyclone advanced to the Eastern Seaboard, dropping more than 1 ft (0.30 m) of snow as far south as Washington, D.C. The nor'easter intensified and slowed as it moved into New England, delivering 40 inches (100 cm) of snowfall in some places, with heavy rain near the coast and a severe ice storm in Vermont and New Hampshire. Montreal received one of its greatest snowstorms on record. Equipment failures and drifts up to 30 ft (9.1 m) left roadways blocked for many days, and some communities became inaccessible except by snowmobile. The weight of the snow and ice, combined with gale-force winds, collapsed roofs and brought down power lines. Following the storm, the winds impeded cleanup efforts, and some coastal areas were flooded by excessive rainfall and ice jams, forcing evacuations in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. At least 20 deaths were blamed on the storm in the United States and 15 in Quebec. (Full article...)
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- January 24
A Weekend in the City is the second studio album by British indie rock band Bloc Party. It was recorded at Grouse Lodge Studios in Westmeath, Ireland, in mid-2006, and was produced by Jacknife Lee. The album was mixed later that year and released on 24 January 2007, with Wichita Recordings as its primary label. The band aimed to create an album that distanced them from conventional guitar band music, incorporating more electronically processed beats and hiring a string sextet for certain tracks. Frontman and chief lyricist Kele Okereke (pictured) themed the lyrics on life in modern cities, including issues such as drug abuse, sexuality and terrorism, as exemplified respectively on the singles "The Prayer", "I Still Remember" and "Hunting for Witches". Critical reception was split on the band's new musical directions and more forthright lyrics. A Weekend in the City, named by The Guardian as one of "1000 Albums To Hear Before You Die", was re-released in November 2007 to coincide with Bloc Party's touring schedule. It peaked at number 2 on the UK Album Chart and Irish Album Chart, and at number 12 on the Billboard 200. (Full article...)
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- January 25
The 1804 dollar is one of the rarest and most valuable American coins. Proof coin sets, including the dollar, were created for use as diplomatic gifts carried by envoy Edmund Roberts on his trips to Siam and Muscat. Though the dollars are dated 1804, none were struck until the 1830s; the earlier date was a mistake based on misunderstood U.S. Mint records from 1804. Later, Mint officials struck some of the coins to trade with collectors in exchange for rare coins needed for the Mint's coin cabinet. In response to numismatic demand, Mint officials surreptitiously produced several coins, one of which lacked the correct edge lettering. The coins produced for the diplomatic mission, the dollar struck without edge lettering and the later examples with lettering are known as "Class I", "Class II" and "Class III" dollars, respectively. Altogether, only fifteen specimens are known to exist, and in 1999, one sold for $4.14 million, the highest price paid for any coin up to that time. These coins have been frequent targets of counterfeiting and other deceptions. (Full article...)
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- January 26
Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on January 26, 2010, and for PlayStation 3 a year later. This sequel to Mass Effect is set in our galaxy in the 22nd century, when humanity is threatened by the insectoid Collectors. BioWare emphasized third-person shooter aspects in the sequel, including limited ammunition and regenerable health. A variety of downloadable content packs extend the game with new character outfits and missions. Mass Effect 2 was a commercial success and received considerable acclaim from video game publications, with the Xbox 360 version holding a score of 96 out of 100 at the review aggregate website Metacritic. Critics praised the interactive storytelling, characterization, and combat, but some reviewers expressed concerns about the sequel's simplified gameplay. The game received numerous year-end awards, including Game of the Year at the 14th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards and the 2011 BAFTA Games Award. It is frequently cited in top-100 lists of video games. (Full article...)
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- January 27
The Maya civilization was a Mesoamerican civilization developed by the Maya peoples, noted for the Maya hieroglyphic script, the only known fully developed writing system of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. The Maya civilization developed in an area that encompasses southeastern Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize, and the western portions of Honduras and El Salvador. This region consists of the northern lowlands encompassing the Yucatán Peninsula, and the highlands of the Sierra Madre, running from the Mexican state of Chiapas, across southern Guatemala and onwards into El Salvador, and the southern lowlands of the Pacific littoral plain. The Archaic period, prior to 2000 BC, saw the first developments in agriculture and the earliest villages. The Preclassic period (c. 2000 BC to 250 AD) saw the establishment of the first complex societies in the Maya region, and the cultivation of the staple crops of the Maya diet, including maize, beans, squashes, and chili peppers. The first Maya cities developed around 750 BC, and by 500 BC these cities possessed monumental architecture, including large temples with elaborate stucco façades. Hieroglyphic writing was being used in the Maya region by the 3rd century BC. In the Late Preclassic a number of large cities developed in the Petén Basin, and Kaminaljuyu rose to prominence in the Guatemalan Highlands. Beginning around 250 AD, the Classic period is largely defined as when the Maya were raising sculpted monuments with Long Count dates. This period saw the Maya civilization develop a large number of city-states linked by a complex trade network. In the Maya Lowlands two great rivals, Tikal and Calakmul, became powerful. The Classic period also saw the intrusive intervention of the central Mexican city of Teotihuacan in Maya dynastic politics. In the 9th century, there was a widespread political collapse in the central Maya region, resulting in internecine warfare, the abandonment of cities, and a northward shift of population. The Postclassic period saw the rise of Chichen Itza in the north, and the expansion of the aggressive K'iche' kingdom in the Guatemalan Highlands. In the 16th century, the Spanish Empire colonised the Mesoamerican region, and a lengthy series of campaigns saw the fall of the last Maya city in 1697. Classic period rule was centred on the concept of the "divine king", who acted as a mediator between mortals and the supernatural realm. Kingship was patrilineal, and power would normally pass to the eldest son. A prospective king was also expected to be a successful war leader. Maya politics was dominated by a closed system of patronage, although the exact political make-up of a kingdom varied from city-state to city-state. By the Late Classic, the aristocracy had greatly increased, resulting in the corresponding reduction in the exclusive power of the divine king. The Maya civilization developed highly sophisticated artforms, and the Maya created art using both perishable and non-perishable materials, including wood, jade, obsidian, ceramics, sculpted stone monuments, stucco, and finely painted murals. Maya cities tended to expand haphazardly, and the city centre would be occupied by commercial and administrative complexes, surrounded by an irregular sprawl of residential districts. Different parts of a city would often be linked by causeways. The principal architecture of the city consisted of palaces, pyramid-temples, ceremonial ballcourts, and structures aligned for astronomical observation. The Maya elite were literate, and developed a complex system of hieroglyphic writing that was the most advanced in the pre-Columbian Americas. The Maya recorded their history and ritual knowledge in screenfold books, of which only three uncontested examples remain, the rest having been destroyed by the Spanish. There are also a great many examples of Maya text found on stelae and ceramics. The Maya developed a highly complex series of interlocking ritual calendars, and employed mathematics that included one of the earliest instances of the explicit zero in the world. As a part of their religion, the Maya practised human sacrifice. (Full article...)
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- January 28
Shepseskare (Egyptian for "Noble is the Soul of Ra") was an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the fourth or fifth ruler of the Fifth Dynasty (2494–2345 BC) during the Old Kingdom period. Shepseskare lived in the mid-25th century BC and was probably the owner of an unfinished pyramid in Abusir, which was abandoned after a few weeks of work in the earliest stages of its construction. Following historical sources, Shepseskare was traditionally believed to have reigned for seven years, succeeding Neferirkare Kakai and preceding Neferefre on the throne, making him the fourth ruler of the dynasty. He is the most obscure ruler of this dynasty and the Egyptologist Miroslav Verner has strongly argued that Shepseskare's reign lasted only a few months at the most, after that of Neferefre. This conclusion is based upon the state and location of Shepseskare's unfinished pyramid in Abusir as well as the very small number of artefacts attributable to this king. Verner's arguments have now convinced several Egyptologists such as Darrell Baker and Erik Hornung. Shepseskare's relations to his predecessor and successor are not known for certain. Verner has proposed that he was a son of Sahure and a brother to Neferirkare Kakai, who briefly seized the throne following the premature death of his predecessor and probable nephew, Neferefre. Shepseskare may himself have died unexpectedly or he may have lost the throne to another of his nephews, the future pharaoh Nyuserre Ini. (Full article...)
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- January 29
The Columbian mammoth (Mammuthus columbi) was a species of mammoth that inhabited North America as far north as the northern United States and as far south as Costa Rica during the Pleistocene epoch. It was one of the last in a line of mammoth species, beginning with M. subplanifrons in the early Pliocene. The Columbian mammoth evolved from the steppe mammoth, which entered North America from Asia about 1.5 million years ago. The pygmy mammoths of the Channel Islands of California evolved from Columbian mammoths. The closest extant relative of the Columbian and other mammoths is the Asian elephant. Reaching 4 m (13 ft) at the shoulders and 8–10 tonnes (18,000–22,000 lb) in weight, the Columbian mammoth was one of the largest species of mammoth. It had long, curved tusks and four molars, which were replaced six times during the lifetime of an individual. It most likely used its tusks and trunk like modern elephants—for manipulating objects, fighting, and foraging. Bones, hair, dung and stomach contents have been discovered, but no preserved carcasses are known. The Columbian mammoth preferred open areas, such as parkland landscapes, and fed on sedge, grass, and other plants. It did not live in the Arctic regions of Canada, which were instead inhabited by woolly mammoths. The ranges of the two species may have overlapped, and genetic evidence suggests that they interbred. Several sites contain the skeletons of multiple Columbian mammoths, either because they died in a single incident such as a flash flood, or because these locations were natural traps in which individuals accumulated over time. Before they went extinct, Columbian mammoths coexisted in North America for a few thousand years with Palaeoamericans, who hunted them for food, used their bones for making tools, and depicted them in ancient art. Columbian mammoth remains have been found in association with Clovis culture artefacts; these remains may have stemmed either from hunting or from scavenging. The Columbian mammoth disappeared at the end of the Pleistocene around 11,000 years ago, most likely as a result of habitat loss caused by climate change, hunting by humans, or a combination of both.
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- January 30
The Romney Literary Society existed from January 30, 1819 to 1886, in Romney, West Virginia. Established as the Polemic Society of Romney, it became the first organization of its kind in West Virginia, and one of the first in the United States. The society was founded by nine prominent Romney men with the objectives of advancing literature and science, purchasing and maintaining a library, and improving educational opportunities. The society debated an extensive range of scientific and social topics, often violating its own rules which banned religious and political subjects. The society's library began in 1819 and grew to contain approximately 3,000 volumes in 1861. The organization also sought to establish an institution for "the higher education of the youth of the community." During the Civil War the contents of the library were plundered by Union Army forces. Reorganized in 1869, the society took a leading role in Romney's civil development and built in 1870 the Literary Hall (pictured) to house meetings and the library. The organization used its influence to secure the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind for Romney, and offered the school its former campus. (Full article...)
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- January 31
The Raid at Cabanatuan, also known as The Great Raid, was a rescue of Allied prisoners of war (POWs) and civilians from a Japanese camp near Cabanatuan City, in the Philippines. On January 30, 1945, during World War II, United States Army Rangers, Alamo Scouts, and Filipino guerrillas liberated more than 500 from the POW camp. After the surrender of tens of thousands of American troops during the Battle of Bataan, many were sent to a Cabanatuan prison camp following the Bataan Death March. The Japanese transferred most of the prisoners to other areas, leaving just over 500 American and other Allied POWs and civilians in the prison. Facing brutal conditions including disease, torture, and malnourishment, the prisoners feared they would all be executed as General Douglas MacArthur and his American forces returned to Luzon. In late January 1945, a plan was developed by Sixth Army leaders and Filipino guerrillas to send a small force to rescue the prisoners. A group of over a hundred Rangers and Scouts and several hundred guerrillas traveled 30 miles (48 km) behind Japanese lines to reach the camp. In a nighttime raid, under the cover of darkness and a distraction by a P-61 Black Widow, the group surprised the Japanese forces in and around the camp. Hundreds of Japanese troops were killed in the 30-minute coordinated attack; the Americans suffered minimal casualties. The Rangers, Scouts, and guerrillas escorted the POWs back to American lines. The rescue allowed the prisoners to tell of the death march and prison camp atrocities, which sparked a new rush of resolve for the war against Japan. The rescuers were awarded commendations by MacArthur, and were also recognized by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. A memorial now sits on the site of the former camp, and the events of the raid have been depicted in several films.
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