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Did you know...[edit]

31 August 2006

14:23, 31 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Lviv Opera and Ballet Theater, in Lviv, Ukraine combines details of the Renaissance and Baroque architecture?
...that the isolated population of Citrine Forktails on the Azores is the only population of dragonflies anywhere in the world known to reproduce by parthenogenesis?
...that the Israeli entry for the 1987 Eurovision Shir Habatlanim, meaning The Bums' song led to a resignation threat by the Israeli culture minister?
...that the Talbot Samba supermini car was the last Talbot passenger car ever made?
...that the Gay Football Supporters Network recently voted Steven Gerrard top of their annual "Lust List" for the second year running?
...that Biodiversity Action Plans are a primary tool of 189 nations to conserve threatened species, but the one nation who has signed, but not ratified, the underlying treaty has produced the most elaborate set of plans?

04:40, 31 August 2006 (UTC)

...that for over 200 years the Ribeira Palace in Lisbon was the residence of the Kings of Portugal until its destruction in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake?
...that Mixmath is a Canadian board game similar to Scrabble, in which numbered tiles are played to form equations instead of letters forming words?
...that according to Externism, a pseudophilosophy proposed by the famous fictitious Czech genius Jára Cimrman, in the end of every learning process we know nothing, but we know it precisely?
...that In Dreams, the debut album by British child star Joseph McManners, was recorded in Prague and features music by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra?
...that most of the Muslims in Fiji are descended from those brought to the islands from India as indentured labourers between 1879 and 1916?
...that on August 26, 2006 the Philippines won the inaugural World Cup of Pool held at Newport, Wales?

30 August 2006

16:01, 30 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the language of the Guatemalan ethnic group of Maya called Itza, who once ruled over Chichen Itza, is almost extinct even though there's still an estimated population of 30,000 of them?
...that the British music journalist Everett True introduced Kurt Cobain to Courtney Love?
...that the veteran Polish actress Irena Kwiatkowska is most remembered for her television series role in which she performed various unusual or absurd jobs?
...that aviator Ruth Nichols, known at one time as the "Flying Debutante", flew every type of aircraft developed, from dirigible to supersonic jet?
...that one fan's elaboration of Quake's plot became the nearly four-hour film The Seal of Nehahra, the longest work of machinima at the time?
...that Harbhajan Singh was rewarded with an offer to become the Deputy Superintendent of Punjab police after becoming the first Indian cricketer to take a Test hat-trick?

09:45, 30 August 2006 (UTC)

...that American Civil War illustrator Alfred Waud made battlefield sketches that were quickly engraved and published by Harper's Weekly—allowing readers to visualize the war in an age before photographs appeared in press?
...that the Cerro Grande Fire, a major forest fire in New Mexico, USA, menaced the Los Alamos National Laboratory and produced a smoke plume that extended to Oklahoma?
...that underwater explosions produce ocean surface waves that are similar to tsunamis?
...that history of philosophy in Poland begins with the contributions of the 13th century philosopher, Witelo?
...that the Desert Tree Frog is one of Australia's most widely distributed frogs?
...that Baron Karl von Reichenbach, the prolific German chemist who discovered paraffin, creosote and phenol, proposed the existence of a quack physical energy, the Odic force, that could be detected only by specially sensitive people?
...that having served as both Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff to President Bill Clinton, Maria Echaveste is one of the highest-ranking Latinas to have served in a Presidential Administration?
...that the Fiat 130 Coupé featured a button-operated mechanism allowing the driver to open the passenger-side door?

02:58, 30 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the choice of location for Florida's capital, Tallahassee, was influenced by a waterfall in what is now Cascades Park (pictured)?
...that structure relocation has saved several buildings from destruction by moving them without the need for disassembly?
...that the small Fiat Cinquecento is among the few cars fitted with both transverse and longitudinal engines at the same time?
...that the Spanish used Puerto Rican masks called caretas to frighten lapsed Christians into returning to the church?
...that it was feared the broadcast of the Italian 1974 Eurovision song Si, meaning yes would influence a referendum on divorce?

29 August 2006

19:10, 29 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Minus Cube mechanical puzzle (pictured), first manufactured in the Soviet Union, is a 3D variant of the 15-puzzle?
...that Bubba the Grouper, the first known fish to receive chemotherapy, died recently in Chicago, Illinois?
...that Brian Kennedy's "Every Song Is A Cry For Love" was the 1000th song in the history of the Eurovision Song Contest?
...that mobile phone throwing is an international sport in which thrown mobile phones are judged by the distance and choreographics of the throw?
...that Central Sikh Temple was Singapore's first gurdwara when it was initially set up in a police barracks in the 1880s?
...that Fernando Alonso became the youngest Grand Prix champion after winning the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix?

08:10, 29 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Matra Rancho was based on the popular Simca 1100 supermini?
...that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is reanalysing Atlantic hurricane data to correct errors in the hurricane database dating back to the Apollo Program?
...that the Royal West of England Academy housed the Bristol Aeroplane Company and the U.S. Army during World War II?
...that Sano Fusako was kidnapped in Niigata, Japan in 1990 at age 10 and was not freed until nine years and two months later?
...that "Ceol An Ghrá" was the first and only time that Ireland entered the Eurovision Song Contest with a song in Irish?
...that a lifeboat from the wrecked passenger steamship SS Valencia was found floating in good condition, 27 years after the ship's demise?

01:18, 29 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Kullen Lighthouse (pictured), a prominent landmark on the Swedish coastline, is the most powerful lighthouse in Scandinavia?
...that architectural elements akin to those of the Olympic Stadium in Munich were incorporated in the Central Railway Station in Sofia during its latest renovation?
...that Parthiv Patel had never played domestic first-class cricket prior to becoming the youngest Test Wicketkeeper in history at just 17 years and 102 days?
...that Haraldskaer Woman, who lived around 540 BC, is one of the best preserved bog people ever discovered, and that forensic analysis reveals her last meal was blackberries and millet?
...that the Conference of Rulers of Malaysia plays an important role in the Malaysian elective monarchy?
...that a US$500 million ski village project promoted by Alfred Ford was rejected by the town of Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, due to the belief that local gods thought it was environmentally unsound?

28 August 2006

18:56, 28 August 2006 (UTC)

Central Sofia Market Hall

...that the facade of the Central Sofia Market Hall (pictured) in Sofia, Bulgaria features a relief of the coat of arms of Sofia above the main entrance?
...that Portlethen Moss is an acidic bog that played a role in stopping the Roman advance in Scotland and whose traversal was used in the Bishops' Wars?
...that Clay Mathematics Institute fellow Akshay Venkatesh is the only Australian to win medals at both the International Physics and Mathematics Olympiads?
... that the largely unexplored Buddhist archaeological site of Noapara-Ishanchandranagar in Bangladesh is conjectured to be the lost city of Karmanta Vasaka?
...that the recent transport of the colossal Statue of Ramesses II from Cairo to the Giza Plateau was preceded by a mock move several weeks prior?
...that the St. James Theatre in Wellington, New Zealand, was nearly demolished in the 1980s and is said to be haunted by numerous ghosts?

11:34, 28 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Bonin Petrels (pictured) nesting on Midway Atoll declined from an estimated 500,000 birds in 1943 to 32,000 in 1995?
...that murdered Australian designer Florence Broadhurst opened a performing arts academy in Shanghai before she became famous for her wallpaper designs?
...that Mittelafrika was a prospective colony of the German Empire, articulating their aim to annex the land area stretching across Africa from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean?
...that according to anthropologist Stanley Marion Garn, Neanderthal in China and Java were killed off by the more intelligent hominid Sinanthropus pithencanthropus, contributing to the Neanderthal extinction?
...that Ludwika Maria Gonzaga was the queen consort of two Kings of Poland?
...that the Battle of Maclodio earned the Republic of Venice its largest permanent land area in its 1000-year history?

05:40, 28 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Poliphilo (pictured), the main character in the Renaissance book Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, was said to have felt "extreme delight," "incredible joy," and "frenetic pleasure and cupidinous frenzy" when he saw the buildings depicted in the book?
...that complaints about the presence of liberal Catholic theologians such as Joseph Ratzinger at the Second Vatican Council led to the creation of the conservative study group Coetus Internationalis Patrum?
...that Hitler's Cross was a Hitler-themed restaurant in Navi Mumbai that was causing so much controversy that it had to drop its name after less than a week?
...that Canadian scientist Shiv Chopra was terminated from Health Canada for informing the Senate of the health effects of Bovine Growth Hormone?
...that a school bus crossing arm is a safety device intended to protect children from being struck while crossing in front of a school bus?

27 August 2006

22:38, 27 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Simca Aronde (pictured) was named after the French word for swallow, a bird which appeared on the Simca logo when the model was presented?
...that Sesame Street's street scenes were centred around the fictional African-American Robinson family in early seasons, before the Muppets took on an increased role?
...that the 1917 Silvertown explosion may have been the largest explosion to ever occur in London?
...that Jacek Dukaj's Black Oceans, a Polish science-fiction novel, received the Janusz A. Zajdel Award Polish award for sci-fi literature in 2001?
...that the 2003 British Grand Prix was disrupted when defrocked Catholic priest Neil Horan ran into the path of the oncoming cars?

26 August 2006

06:37, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Banks' Florilegium is a series of 743 engravings of plants collected by Joseph Banks (pictured) and Daniel Solander on Cook's Pacific voyage between 1768 and 1771?
...that the Kullaberg Nature Reserve contains the brightest lighthouse in Sweden and is home to many rare species of plants and animals including the Red Kite?
...that Fernando Alonso became the youngest ever polesitter and first ever Spaniard to attain a podium finish at the 2003 Malaysian Grand Prix?
...that the Bangabhaban has served as the official residence for the Viceroy of India, Governor of East Pakistan and the President of Bangladesh?
...that City is a massive work of earth art by Michael Heizer that has been under construction for over thirty years in the Nevada desert?
...that surgeon William Brydon was the only European of 16,500 British troops to survive the retreat to Jalalabad from Kabul during the First Anglo-Afghan War?

25 August 2006

07:10, 25 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the reconstruction of Kecharis Monastery (pictured) in Armenia was delayed a decade due to an earthquake, war, blockade, and the collapse of the USSR?
...that, had it been completed, the Trinity Shoal Light would have been among the most exposed lighthouses in the United States?
...that acute fatty liver of pregnancy is a rare but life-threatening disease of pregnancy that is treated with urgent delivery?
...that Hendren v. Campbell was a forerunner to the 1987 Supreme Court decision Edwards v. Aguillard to forbid the teaching of creationism in American public schools?
...that freestyle wrestler William Kerslake, who competed in three Olympiads and got a gold medal at the 1955 Pan American Games, was also a NASA engineer and co-inventor of the first ion thruster for space propulsion?
... that capillary action of molten brass or silver is used to greatly increase the strength of lugged steel bicycle frames?

24 August 2006

23:36, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

... that the expression "pay on the nail" originated from the practice of closing deals by payment on brass tables called "nails" (pictured), which can still be seen at The Exchange, Bristol?
...that the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi is the only extensive historical document accounting the wars, events and life in Bengal during the reign of Mughal emperor Jahangir?
...that the Egyptian National Railways can trace its origin to the first railway in Africa and the Middle East, which began operating in 1854?
...that Gibbon's Tennis Court, a Tudor-style real tennis court converted into a theatre in 1660, was home to one of the earliest appearances by a professional actress in England?
...that Beinn a' Ghlo is a large mountain in Scotland that has three Munro summits, and is an SSSI?
...that the French sports car Matra Murena had an unusual seat configuration of three abreast?

06:27, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

... that Fowlsheugh cliffs attract 170,000 breeding seabirds annually, and may be one of the few nature reserves with more vertical than horizontal land area?
...that one factor in the 1995 assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was that his assassin claimed Rabin was liable to an extrajudicial death sentence as a rodef under Jewish law?
...that Recollections of a Tour Made in Scotland, A. D. 1803 (1874) by Dorothy Wordsworth—her "masterpiece"—was never published in her lifetime?
...that a fielder in cricket may only alter the ball condition by removing mud, drying or polishing it without use of an artificial substance, else he is guilty of ball tampering?
...that the gravestone of executed murderer, Floyd Allen supposedly read in part, "judicially murdered by the State of Virginia over the protests of more than 100,000 of its citizens"?
...that the Matra Bagheera sports car was named after the Jungle Book character?

00:00, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the 17th century Biaroza monastery in Biaroza, Belarus, has in its time been adapted into military barracks and a prison, and currently its ruins are an important baroque relic in the town?
... that the government in exile at Mujibnagar proclaimed Bangladesh's independence and coordinated the Mukti Bahini during the liberation war?
...that an attack on the flanks of an enemy is known as a flanking maneuver and that this type of attack has been used in both land and naval battles?
...that the Holland Island Bar Light in Maryland was once accidentally used for target practice by the United States Navy?
...that Rafael Buenaventura, once-governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and one of the world’s top central bankers, was largely responsible for removing the Philippines from an FATF black list?
...that the right-hand drive Simca 1300/1500 came with floor-mounted gear shifters having an inverted gear shift pattern?

23 August 2006

03:45, 23 August 2006 (UTC)

...that there are many unfinished buildings throughout the world that may never be completed or demolished because of the costs involved?
... that Singapore's Police Coast Guard is a coast guard and water police service that is also responsible for maintenance of order on most of Singapore's off-shore islands?
... that the Kadam Rasul shrines are believed to display stone imprints of the footprints of Muhammad?
...that the Malayalam movie Moonnamathoral was the first high-definition film to be digitally distributed to theatres via satellite?
...that the Council House in Bristol, England features a blue and gold wall clock, encircled by the signs of the zodiac and equipped with its own wind indicator?
...that in 1943, avant-garde French filmmaker Marcel L'Herbier founded a film school that was attended by Louis Malle, Jean-Jacques Annaud and Volker Schlöndorff?

22 August 2006

21:45, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

LORAX rover

...that the LORAX project to build an Antarctic rover shares a name with a Dr. Seuss character?
...that one of the first churches in Vilnius, the Orthodox Cathedral of the Theotokos, was once used by the local university as an anatomical theatre?
...that in the papal Rome each fish monger had to give to the city councillors the heads of the fishes longer than a marble plaque which had been hung on a wall of the fish market, in Sant'Angelo?
...that Hurricane Kyle lasted 22 days, thereby becoming the third-longest-lived tropical cyclone in the North Atlantic basin?
...that the song "Congratulations" was almost banned from being performed at the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 by Silvia Night due to an expletive in the lyrics?
...that Featherston prisoner of war camp was the site of a riot that lead to the death of 47 Japanese prisoners of war during World War II?

06:15, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Ida Lewis (pictured) is, to date, the only American lighthouse keeper for whom a light station has been named?
...that the container vessel Hansa Carrier spilled over 80000 Nike shoes into the Pacific Ocean and that they were used by scientists to track ocean currents?
...that the Zymne Monastery in Volynia is believed to have been named after a winter palace of Vladimir the Great that formerly stood on the spot?
...that Józef Zeydlitz served in the Polish Army for 65 years and took part in six wars, yet did not receive a single military award?
...that the cuisine of Somaliland has been influenced by Ethiopian, Arab, and Italian food traditions?
...that when it opened in 1999, Casino Sault Ste. Marie was Northern Ontario's first full-time charity casino?

00:12, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

...that even though Kaaterskill High Peak (pictured) was the first Catskill High Peak to be climbed, there is no official trail to its summit?
...that during the Fremantle prison riot in 1988, seventy prisoners took fifteen guards hostage and started a diversionary fire to enable twelve prisoners to escape and that ironically, the fire's intensity prevented the escape?
...that Banderia Prutenorum is a 15th-century manuscript by Jan Długosz, describing banners collected by Polish forces after their defeat of the Teutonic Order forces in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410 AD?
...that Valéry Inkijinoff, a French actor of Russian-Buryat origin, was one of the favorite villains of French cinema from the thirties to the late sixties?
...that Beverston Castle is in ruin, not mainly from its role in warfare, but by a 1646 act of the English parliament to destroy its battlements, lest they be used by Royalists?
...that Maria Kazimiera, the 17th-century Queen of Poland, became famous for the love letters she and her husband, King Jan III Sobieski, wrote to each other?

21 August 2006

11:27, 21 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the automobile factory in Poissy, France, built by Ford SAF, was later owned by Simca, Chrysler and finally Peugeot, and continues production to this day? (pictured)
...that the new Monument to Alexander II in Moscow was built on a slope to symbolize that the emperor was an ordinary man, when the monument is viewed from behind?
...that "Too Hot", Alanis Morissette's breakthrough single in Canada in 1991, was a dance pop song?
...that Yogendra Singh Yadav of the Indian army was awarded India's highest military honour posthumously in error, until it was realized that he was still alive recovering from injuries from the Kargil War?
...that Colombian writer Álvaro Cepeda Samudio wrote La Casa Grande, a novel based on the events of the Santa Marta Massacre, an event which also featured prominently in his friend Gabriel García Márquez's novel One Hundred Years of Solitude?
...that the MOPy fish holds the Guinness World Record for the most downloaded cyberpet?

00:42, 21 August 2006 (UTC)

De La Salle University Pops Orchestra

...that the De La Salle University Pops Orchestra (pictured) is the first pop orchestra in the Philippines?
...that the Heartland Championship and the Air New Zealand Cup have replaced the National Provincial Championship in New Zealand rugby union?
...that Indian Test cricketer Shanthakumaran Sreesanth was previously a national break dancing champion of India?
...that voice artists who made Gavrilov translations of foreign movies in Russia were once thought to have used a noseclip to conceal their identity?
...that the 1622 wreck of the British East India Company ship, the Tryall is the oldest shipwreck in Australia?
...that a small cottage in the Chester, England suburb of Handbridge inspired the song "Nowhere Man" by The Beatles?
...that Walt Neubrand is one of three men responsible for the safety of the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup during its travels around the world?

20 August 2006

06:09, 20 August 2006 (UTC)

... that Orlov trotters (pictured) were the fastest racing horses of Europe until they were superseded by American standardbreds in the 1870s?
...that although related to modern filter feeding baleen whales, the recently discovered prehistoric whale Janjucetus had large serrated teeth implying that it fed on large fish or even sharks?
...that ski treks were popular with Lev Landau, while Andrei Kolmogorov preferred swimming in the local ponds while they lived in the scientists' rest-home in Uzkoye?
...that the Swiss peasant war of 1653 was immediately caused by a currency devaluation in the canton of Berne?
... that Ken Richmond, the last gongman of the Rank Organisation, was a 1952 Summer Olympics wrestling medalist and actor in Jules Dassin's Night and the City?
...that the Achilles tang was named in honor of Achilles, the Greek mythological hero of the Trojan War and Homer's Iliad?

19 August 2006

09:30, 19 August 2006 (UTC)

File:Simca Ariane - cropped.jpg

...that the Simca Ariane (pictured) was created by combining the body of the old large Simca Vedette with the four-cylinder engine from the smaller Simca Aronde?
...that the 1710 Bendery Constitution by Hetman Pylyp Orlyk was one of the first state constitutions in Europe?
...that the death of lighthouse keeper George Worthylake was memorialized in a broadside poem by the young Benjamin Franklin?
...that prisoners in a Soviet Gulag seized control of their camp for 40 days, establishing their own government, militia, and propaganda department?
...that Iceland's entry in the 1997 Eurovision Song Contest, "Minn Hinsti Dans", was performed by a former drag queen?
...that Katie Blair became the first teenager from Montana to place in the Miss Teen USA pageant's 24-year history, when she won the Miss Teen USA 2006 crown?

18 August 2006

22:39, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Abel-François Poisson, marquis de Marigny (pictured) became directeur général of the Bâtiments du Roi in 1751 at only 24 years of age as a result of the influence of his older sister, Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, Madame de Pompadour, on King Louis XV of France?
...that the dried remains of cattle slaughtered under anti-BSE measures in the UK are burned for electricity?
...that in the late 18th century, Russian ambassadors to Poland had power that rivalled and even exceeded that of the Polish king or parliament?
...that Melbourne Hall, Derbyshire, was once the seat of Victorian Prime Minister, William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, and thus is the ultimate origin for the naming of Melbourne, Australia?
...that Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh is the son of former cricketer-turned-Punjabi actor Yograj Singh?

09:49, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the image of Benjamin Franklin familiar on the U.S. hundred dollar bill was painted by the French painter Joseph Duplessis?
...that the gasoline pill is one of several fictitious or fraudulent inventions that claim to turn water into gasoline?
... that in 1661, Lisle's Tennis Court in Lincoln's Inn Fields, London became the first public theatre in England to feature moveable scenery on sliding wings?
...that cursed soldiers is the name for Polish resistance members who fought against the Soviet Union and Polish communists for almost two decades in the aftermath of the World War II?
...that the Nepalese communist leader Ruplal Bishvakarma, who introduced the current Maoist leader Prachandra to militant politics in the 1970s, opposed Prachandra's plans for an armed uprising in 1994?
...that the six Imperial Towers were the first Canadian lighthouses to be fitted with Fresnel lenses?

00:09, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

...that a lost Roman villa was discovered in 1992 when a bulldozer remodeled the sand on a beach at the Rio Alto tourist area (pictured) in Portugal?
...that a gymslip is a sleeveless tunic commonly associated with British schoolgirls and sportswomen of the early 20th century?
... that Pakistani general Zahirul Islam Abbasi plotted a coup d'etat against then-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1995?
...that Canadian pianist Glenn Gould produced three radio documentaries, collectively named the Solitude Trilogy, in which up to three people speak simultaneously in monologue?
...that director Fei Mu's 1948 film Spring in a Small Town was named the best Chinese-language film ever made, by the Hong Kong Film Association awards in 2005?
...that France's Ford Vedette was the first car to feature MacPherson struts?

17 August 2006

12:15, 17 August 2006 (UTC)

AlexanderII

...that the judicial reform of Alexander II (pictured) involved the introduction of the jury to Imperial Russia?
...that the first fossilised dinosaur eggs found in the world, which are also the oldest dinosaur embryos ever discovered, belong to Massospondylus and were found in Golden Gate Highlands National Park, South Africa in 1978?
...that the Claude Glass was a tinted mirror used by amateur artists in the 18th century in which they turned their back on the subject?
...that Chinese premier Zhou Enlai barely evaded an assassination attempt on him in 1955, which killed 16 people?
...that the Barranquilla Group is the name of a collection of writers and journalists based in the Colombian city of the same name, and that members of it included Gabriel García Márquez and Álvaro Cepeda Samudio?
...that Simca 1000, a small French-made car, was manufactured for 17 years and that almost 2 million were produced?

04:23, 17 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the 18th-century Águas Livres Aqueduct (pictured) was paid for by a special sales tax on beef, olive oil, and wine?
...that in Jordan, two journalists who republished three of the twelve Danish Mohammad cartoons were sentenced to two months in jail?
...that the direct-to-video release Simply Mad About the Mouse: A Musical Celebration of Imagination featured singers like Billy Joel, LL Cool J, and Harry Connick, Jr. performing classic Disney songs?
...that the Huanghuagang Uprising was the prelude to the Wuchang Uprising, the uprising that resulted in the transfer of China from a feudalistic country into a republic?
...that Sakis Rouvas, who performed a sexually-suggestive song "Shake It" at the Eurovision Song Contest 2004, engaged in an equally sexually-suggestive conversation with Paul de Leeuw while hosting the Contest two years later?
...that Resica Falls Scout Reservation contains a museum displaying 19th-century tannery village relics and local Native American artifacts going back to 500 BC?

16 August 2006

22:06, 16 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar (pictured) composed Mahatma Gandhi's favourite devotional song, "Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram", which was sung daily during the salt march to Dandi?
...that the self-made dress that Barbara Dex wore while performing "Iemand Als Jij" at the 1993 Eurovision Song Contest led to the creation of an award for the worst-dressed performer in the contest?
...that in June 2001, Olga Kern became the first woman in over three decades to win the Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition?
...that the native mammal fauna of Puerto Rico consists exclusively of bats?
...that the macapat forms of Javanese poetry are classified on the basis of the patterns of syllables and the final vowels of each line?

08:58, 16 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Alexander I of Russia acclaimed Peter Wittgenstein as the "Saviour of Saint Petersburg" for his victory at Klyastitsy (pictured)?
...that Scotland Yard, one of the world's most iconic police institutions, was built overtop the site of an unsolved murder?
...that the Nissan President, Nissan's top-of-the-range luxury limousine made for over forty years, remains largely unknown outside of Japan?
...that Elena Paparizou, a member of the duo Antique which performed the song "(I Would) Die For You" at the 2001 Eurovision Song Contest, went on to win the contest in 2005?"
...that just over 50 kilometres above its surface, the atmosphere of Venus has very similar pressure and temperature as does Earth, making it the most Earth-like area in the solar system?
...that Chicago Bulls founder Dick Klein rode on a flat bed truck with a live bull to promote his new basketball team?

15 August 2006

23:13, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Triumph 1800 Roadster's body was built from aluminium using press tools from the Mosquito bomber fuselage?
...that 2006 World Series of Poker champion Jamie Gold has worked as an agent for actors such as James Gandolfini, Jimmy Fallon, Lucy Liu, and Felicity Huffman?
...that the Rose-Fruited Banksia is so named because its fruiting bodies resemble roses made of wood?
...that Jerzy Ziętek, a Silesian Insurrectionist in his youth, later became a Polish communist and an important regional politician from Silesia in the People's Republic of Poland?
...that the Natural Lands Trust is one of the oldest regional land conservation groups in the United States and that the Trust works in the suburban counties near Philadelphia to the Delaware Bay shore of New Jersey to the Poconos?
...that George William Smith not only represented New Zealand in both codes of rugby football but was also a successful athlete winning fourteen national titles as a sprinter and hurdler?

07:55, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

... that Tropical Storm Helene of 2000 struck Florida just five days after Hurricane Gordon?
...that the most powerful radio station in Imperial Russia operated from New Holland Island in Saint Petersburg?
...that the manga Astra was originally conceived as a theatrical musical by American comic book artist Jerry Robinson?
...that the popular hymn "Dear Lord and Father of Mankind" is taken from a poem about hallucinogenic drugs by John Greenleaf Whittier?
...that when the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine issued the decree to construct the Donetsk Metro in 1991, the completion date was set for 2002, but due to the unstable economic situation of the city, it is still not complete?
...that the 1964 Saab Catherina prototype had a targa top that would fit into the luggage compartment?

00:41, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the French car Simca Vedette (pictured) was first marketed as a Ford and later manufactured as a Chrysler in Brazil?
...that the bignose unicornfish can change colours when frightened or asleep to help camouflage itself from predators?
...that the song "Wadde Hadde Dudde Da?" consists of tongue twisters in an artificial German dialect and never answers the question in its title?
...that Picasso's painting The Three Dancers depicts a real love triangle that caused one of Picasso's best friends to commit suicide?
...that the Pechenga Monastery, founded in 1533, was for many centuries the northernmost monastery in the world?
...that Charles François Paul Le Normant de Tournehem was appointed directeur général of the Bâtiments du Roi in 1745 through the influence of Madame de Pompadour, who might have been his natural daughter?

14 August 2006

06:42, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Kamenny Monastery (pictured), the oldest in the north of Russia, was destroyed in 1937 in order to help with the construction of a local palace of culture?
...that the Château de Saint-Cloud near Paris burned to the ground on 13 October 1870 after being hit by French artillery fire during the siege of Paris?
...that the film crew of actress Revathi's directorial debut Mitr, My Friend was entirely composed of women?
...that Dorothea Mackellar wrote her patriotic Australian poem "My Country", which contains the line I love a sunburnt country, while she was homesick when travelling in Europe?
...that Daylight Saving Time was first legislated in North America in June 1917 by the former country of Newfoundland?

13 August 2006

23:22, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

...that DNA clamp proteins (pictured) keep the DNA polymerase replicating enzyme bound to the template DNA strand, increasing the rate of DNA synthesis up to 1,000-fold?
...that the anchorages for the Lane Avenue Bridge in Columbus, Ohio are two of the largest single pieces of steel ever to be galvanized?
...that the Judicial and Bar Council of the Philippines recommends appointees to the country's courts, without the "advice and consent" of the Commission on Appointments?
... that Byron K. Lichtenberg and John Glenn were respectively the first and the last Americans to fly as Payload Specialists on board the Space Shuttle?
...that a substantially complete Greek bronze Apoxyomenos, or representation of an athlete, was recovered off the Croatian island of Lošinj in 1999?

04:37, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Italian automaker Autobianchi was founded by the bicycle manufacturer Bianchi, tire giant Pirelli and Fiat?
... that during the Indian Wars, troops stationed at Fort Harker, Kansas in 1867 performed more escorts of wagon trains in one year than troops stationed at any other frontier fort in the post-American Civil War era?
...that the song "Reise Nach Jerusalem - Kudüs'e Seyahat" was the first occasion on which the German Eurovision entry was performed partly in Turkish?
...that the controversy over the portrayals of Mormons in popular media includes Arthur Conan Doyle's very first Sherlock Holmes novel, A Study in Scarlet?
...that in Kuwait, the freedom of the press is restricted mostly by self-censorship rather than active government action?
...that in June 1995, the Fiji Meteorological Service became responsible for the prediction of tropical cyclones in the southwest Pacific Ocean?

12 August 2006

16:04, 12 August 2006 (UTC)

Archbishop Jeremiah James Harty

...that St. Louis, Missouri native Jeremiah James Harty became Archbishop of Manila and successfully lobbied for the establishment of the first Christian Brother school in the Philippines?
...that the Cockpit Theatre was the first theatre in London's Drury Lane?
...that Claire's Mouse Lemur is a newly described species of primate that only lives on Nosy Bé, an island near Madagascar?
...that a Wikipedia article was a source for a U.S. House of Representatives bill that was signed into law as the Dr. Jose Celso Barbosa Post Office Building Designation Act?
...that the Indonesian Muslim organization Muhammadiyah has over 29 million members and manages several universities?
...that the USA Hawks are one of two national representative rugby union teams from the United States, and lost 0-98 in their inaugural North America 4 game against Canada West?

06:38, 12 August 2006 (UTC)

...that Rembrandt's painting Danaë (pictured) was severely damaged when a visitor threw sulfuric acid onto it on June 15, 1985?
...that the Cheraman Juma Masjid, the oldest mosque in India, was originally constructed in traditional Hindu architectural style?
...that Brian Killick's novel The Heralds follows the exploits of fictional members of the College of Arms as they vie to be the next Garter Principal King of Arms?
...that the Canadian Armed Forces mobilized more than 2,200 soldiers within days to help fight over 800 separate forest fires during Operation PEREGRINE in the summer of 2003?
...that the song Autostop is the only Eurovision Song Contest entry to have been based on the subject of hitchhiking?

11 August 2006

21:00, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the pacú fish (pictured) is marketed as a "vegetarian piranha" in pet stores, and was described by Theodore Roosevelt as "delicious eating"?
...that the Kashi Vidyapeeth university in Varanasi was founded on Mahatma Gandhi's principle of Indian self-reliance through the boycott of colonial institutions?
...that of the three breeding roosts in England for the rare Barbastelle bat, the only indoor roost is found in Norfolk's historic Paston Great Barn?
...that Mitsubishi Motors manufactures a keicar simply named "i"?
...that a noose hanging beside a hole at the Oak Tree Golf Club in Oklahoma was donated symbolically by a frustrated golfer, but was removed because of perceived racist undertones?
...that actress Shabana Azmi portrayed the wife of a deaf-mute alcoholic potter in her debut film Ankur?

05:56, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Catalan architect Enric Miralles died before seeing the completion of his largest building: the Scottish Parliament Building (pictured)?
...that, in his novel War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy described the Battle of Tarutino as little more than a chain of accidents and coincidences?
...that the Autobianchi Primula was Fiat's first automobile with the front-wheel drive, transverse engine setup and rack and pinion steering?
...that much of what is known about the life of blues legend Blind Willie McTell comes from interviews with his wife, Kate McTell, after his death?
...that stadiums such as Sydney's Telstra Stadium and Paris' Stade de France use movable seating to change the layout of the playing area to allow for a wider variety of sports?
...that Max McGee is a former American Football wide receiver who assisted the Green Bay Packers to five NFL championship wins and scored the first touchdown in Super Bowl history?

10 August 2006

23:12, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

...that St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery in Kiev may have been the first Russian and Ukrainian church to have a golden dome?
...that, during the Yalta Conference, Winston Churchill was so impressed with the brandy produced by the Yerevan Brandy Company that he asked Joseph Stalin to send him several cases annually?
...that the band Crow originally recorded "Evil Woman (Don't Play Your Games With Me)", which was famously covered by Black Sabbath?
... that in August 2006, Brigadier General Angela Salinas became the first Hispanic female general officer in United States Marine Corps history?
...that the song "Guildo Hat Euch Lieb!" was performed by a band whose name literally translates as "Guildo Horn and the Orthopedic Stockings"?

07:41, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Capital Area Food Bank in Washington, D.C. received ten tons of broccoli from Barbara Bush after it was banned from the White House and Air Force One by George H. W. Bush?
...that between 1977 and 1998, Madame Leprieur from Agon-Coutainville in France sent 80,000 questions to the daily RTL radio show Les Grosses Têtes, making herself famous nationwide?
...that Alberta Vaughn was an American film actress who starred in 112 motion pictures before her death in 1992?
...that Angelica Agurbash, who sang the Belarussian entry at the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest, went through two major strip acts during her three-minute performance?
...that when the Château de Choisy was built for the Grande Mademoiselle, Louis XIV's first cousin, the garden designer André Le Nôtre's first advice was to "lay low all the woods that are there"?

00:28, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the largest body parts do not all belong to the largest animal, and that there are numerous Guinness World Records for the largest human body parts?
...that Albert Bigelow Paine was the literary executor for Mark Twain, a member of the Pulitzer Prize Committee, and a recipient of the title of Chevalier in the Légion d'honneur for his books about Joan of Arc?
...that the 1950 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, the first world skiing championships of the International Ski Federation held outside Europe, took place in Lake Placid in the United States ?
...that the Régence style, precursor of the Rococo, had its origins in the interiors designed by Jean Bérain the Elder for Louis, Grand Dauphin at the Château de Meudon?
...that Bénilde Romançon's superiors at the Christian Brothers' novitiate were reluctant to take him in because he was short of stature?
...that Shangwen Fang received a fine for cruelty to animals after he was tracked down as the source of graphic images that had been posted on the Internet which showed cats being abused?

9 August 2006

09:07, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

... that Archduchess Isabella Maria of Bourbon-Parma (pictured) was in love with her sister-in-law, Archduchess Maria Christina?
...that there are many examples of unfinished work in the arts, some of which remain incomplete but others have been finished by other people?
...that the song "Wir Geben 'Ne Party" is the first Eurovision entry to mention hip-hop music, despite not being in that style?
...that during the time of Scandinavism, Hans Christian Andersen wrote a poem called Jeg er en Skandinav which together with the later added melody could have become the National Anthem of a unified Scandinavian nation?
...that the Autobianchi Stellina was the first Italian car with a fiberglass body?
...that the Château de Bellevue, a small château built near Paris in 1750 as an intimate meeting place for Louis XV and his mistress, Madame de Pompadour, was named for its spectacular views over the Seine?

8 August 2006

22:53, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the invention of the electronic digital computer was put into the public domain in 1973 by the decision of one of the longest federal court cases in the history of the United States?
...that Maulana Mehmud Hasan organised an armed rebellion against the British Raj with Turkish support but was arrested just before his return to India?
...that the Romans completely forgot what the ancient Lapis Niger shrine was dedicated to, and had at least three different stories telling why it was built?
...that the sting of the rainforest shrub Dendrocnide moroides can cause severe and prolonged pain and has been reported to kill dogs, horses and humans?
...that The Daily Talk, the most widely read news medium in the Liberian capital of Monrovia, is published daily on a blackboard in the center of town?
...that Brazilian-born Alberto Cavalcanti directed the 1942 British propaganda war film Went the Day Well?

10:02, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Leningrad Polytechnical Institute was the only place in the besieged city that evaluated the Ph.D. and Doctor of Science dissertations?
...that Colonel William Nolde was the last official American casualty of the Vietnam War?
...that the expressions "take care of the pence, and the pounds will take care of themselves" and "ways and means" are both attributed to William Lowndes?
...that most buildings of the True Cross Monastery on Kiy Island in the White Sea were designed by Patriarch Nikon?
...that the planned M4 Toll motorway will be the second toll section of the United Kingdom's M4 motorway, despite being under 10 miles from the first?
...that Applecrest Farm Orchards is the oldest continuously operating apple orchard in the United States of America?

7 August 2006

23:20, 7 August 2006 (UTC)

... that the opening theory of backgammon underwent profound changes after self-teaching robots were analyzed playing the game?
...that the Mahé River in India was nicknamed the "English Channel" because it separated British-ruled Thalassery from French-ruled Mahé?
...that Samuel M. Rubin popularized the practice of selling popcorn in movie theaters, earning him the nickname "Sam the Popcorn Man"?
...that the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme included the world's then-longest fresh-water pipeline when it opened in Western Australia in 1903?
...that Frederick Lorz was greeted as the winner of the 1904 Summer Olympics marathon but later admitted to having travelled by car for ten miles of the race?
...that Muslim scholar Maulvi Abdul Haq is decorated as the Father of Urdu in Pakistan?

08:08, 7 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Château de Madrid, built near the Bois de Boulogne in Paris in the mid-1500s, was known as the "Château de Faïence" due to its richly ornamented façades, covered in majolica and high relief, but was almost completely destroyed in the 1790s?
...that the Canadian Arctic islands did not become part of Canada until 1880?
...that Charles Angibaud was the royal apothecary to Louis XIV of France, but left France in 1681 to avoid persecution as a Protestant Huguenot and moved to London, where he was later Master of the Society of Apothecaries?
...that the song "Dschinghis Khan" is a disco-inspired tribute to the Mongol leader Genghis Khan?
...that civilians took refuge in St. La Salle Hall in Manila during World War II, believing that its walls would protect them from anything but a direct hit?

6 August 2006

23:29, 6 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Potemkin Stairs (pictured) located in Odessa, Ukraine create an optical illusion, where either the landings or the stairs are invisible depending on an observer's vantage point?
...that Claudia Alexander was the last project manager of NASA's Galileo mission to Jupiter?
...that murdered British schoolgirl Amanda "Milly" Dowler has a charity, an award-winning garden and a sweetpea named after her?
...that the English footballer David Layne scored 58 goals in 81 games for Sheffield Wednesday F.C. before he was jailed for his involvement in the British betting scandal of 1964?
...that, before becoming famous, both Martha Stewart and Lyle Waggoner appeared in ads for Tareyton cigarettes, telling the audience that "Us Tareyton smokers would rather fight than switch!"?
...that a group of rock stars formed a supergroup in 1989 called Rock Aid Armenia and re-recorded Deep Purple's hit song Smoke on the Water to benefit the victims of the 1988 Leninakan Earthquake?

12:36, 6 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye near Paris was the home of King James II for 13 years after his exile from Great Britain following the Glorious Revolution of 1688?
...that the Fair Play Men, a group of squatters in colonial Pennsylvania, made their own Declaration of Independence from Britain on July 4, 1776 on the banks of Pine Creek?
...that the native fauna of New Guinea does not include any large mammal predators?
...that Central Asian Gypsies, often seen around Russian markets and railway stations in the 1990s were previously mistaken as Tajikistani refugees?
...that Flying University was the secret educational conspiratorial enterprise that existed in Warsaw, Poland, in various forms in the 19th and 20th century to provide education outside of the dominating ideology?
...that Monica Coghlan, at the center of the scandal surrounding Lord Jeffrey Archer, was killed in an unrelated car crash a month before the start of the trial that would convict him of perjury and vindicate her?

5 August 2006

17:07, 5 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the era of the oil gusher (pictured) came to an end with the development of the first blowout preventer in 1924?
...that the Canaanites are a movement in Hebrew culture that seeks to recover its rootedness in ancient Canaanite civilization?
...that early photographer Alexander Gardner was the last person to photograph American President Abraham Lincoln before his assassination—and also photographed the conspirators and their public execution?
...that during the filming of the 2002 film The Importance of Being Earnest, the scenes in which Rupert Everett slaps Colin Firth on his rear end and then kisses his cheek were ad libbed, and director Oliver Parker thought Firth's stunned reaction was so humorous that he kept them in the film?
...that the song "Zwei Kleine Italiener" references the homesickness experienced by guest workers in Germany during the Wirtschaftswunder?

4 August 2006

18:29, 4 August 2006 (UTC)

...that nearly 350,000 metric tons of Pacific ocean perch (pictured) were caught in the Gulf of Alaska by Soviet and Japanese trawling fleets in 1965?
...that Archibald Hall was the oldest prisoner on the original list of British murderers who were issued with whole life tariffs by the Government?
...that Friedrich Vordemberge-Gildewart was one of the first painters to work in an abstract style for his entire career?
...that, according to the Lanercost Chronicle, Richard de Inverkeithing, bishop of Dunkeld, was poisoned by King Alexander III of Scotland so that the king could take the bishop's movable possessions?
...that The Varsitarian of the University of Santo Tomas was one of the first student newspapers in the Philippines?

09:55, 4 August 2006 (UTC)

...that in the otaku culture, it is common to see trains, computer operating systems, warplanes, and even home appliances anthropomorphized as girls (pictured)?
...that animals have delivered mail throughout history, with different postal services using pigeons, reindeer and even cats?
...that within a tomb in the town of Bergamo, Italy there is a statue dedicated to the life of Enrico Rastelli, the world's greatest juggler?
...that 96 tropical cyclones have affected the state of Delaware since 1749?
...that Broome Pearling Lugger Pidgin is a mixed language based on Malay, Japanese, English and Australian Aboriginal languages?

3 August 2006

23:00, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the Organ Pipe Cactus (pictured) takes 150 years to reach maturity and can reach a height of eight meters?
...that Enrique Angelelli was an Argentine Catholic bishop killed during that country's military junta?
...that the Famous Artists School has perhaps been best known for its Draw me! advertisements on the covers of matchbooks?
...that the parastatal Kenya Railways Corporation will be managed by a private consortium come November 1, 2006?
...that Wojciech Bobowski was one of the most important musicians of the Ottoman Empire, and the author of the Bible translation into the Ottoman Turkish language?

08:47, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

...that the division viol (pictured) is a type of viol used for highly virtuosic music, much like its Italian equivalent, the viola bastarda?
...that the treatment of Crohn's disease can include a mouse-human chimeric antibody called infliximab?
...that Suleiman the elephant, named after the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, became the first elephant to visit Vienna in March 1552?
...that Binaca Geetmala was a Radio Ceylon countdown program of hit Indian film songs that was the most listened to radio program in India for portions of its 42-year run?
...that the Liaoshen Campaign was a decisive 52-day engagement in the creation of Communist China?

00:29, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

...that General Valerian Madatov (pictured) was called the Russian Joachim Murat by Field Marshal Hans Karl von Diebitsch during the Russian occupation of Paris in 1814?
...that the borders of the states and territories of the United States have changed over 90 times since the United States Constitution was adopted by the Philadelphia Convention on 13 July 1787?
...that West Side Story won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 34th Academy Awards?
...that Harvey Littleton, a former professor at the University of Wisconsin, pioneered the American studio glass movement in the 1960s and is responsible for training many prominent glass artists?
...that the song "Diwanit Bugale" was a French Eurovision entry performed in Breton and the only French entry not performed at least partly in French?

2 August 2006

00:36, 2 August 2006 (UTC)

Tauride Palace

...that the first Russian parliament of 1906 and the Russian Constituent Assembly of 1918 convened in the Tauride Palace (pictured) of Catherine the Great?
...that British Air Marshal Joubert de la Ferté served as commander-in-chief of RAF Coastal Command on two separate occasions, before and during the Second World War?
...that the French clothing brand Cacharel is named after a small bird that inhabits the Camargue?
...that Joseph Nanven Garba was part of the coup that displaced Yakubu Gowon as the leader of Nigeria, and yet went on to be President of the United Nations General Assembly?
...that the 2006 Kapa O Pango controversy is due to a throat-slitting gesture at the end of the All Blacks traditional haka performance?
...that conger cuddling was once described as the "most fun a person could have with a dead fish"?

1 August 2006

13:41, 1 August 2006 (UTC)

...that after the Siege of Boonesborough in the American Revolutionary War, Daniel Boone (pictured) was court-martialed?
...that the song "Mama Corsica" is the only song in the Corsican language to have been performed at the Eurovision Song Contest, placing 4th in the 1993 edition?
...that overacting can be intentional for some roles, particularly when exaggerating the evil characteristics of a villain, but is often the subject of parody and satire?
...that two-time International Motor Sports Association champion Steve Millen was only able to compete in three of four IROC races in 1995 before he suffered a career ending injury at Road Atlanta?
...that the masseira is a form of agriculture in sand dunes practiced solely in Northern Portugal?
...that U.S. Army surgeon Ben L. Salomon was recommended for the Medal of Honor four times before it was posthumously awarded by George W. Bush in 2002?