The Wikipedia article of the day for January 30, 2018 is Oviri.
Oviri is an 1894 ceramic sculpture by the French artist Paul Gauguin. It depicts a Tahitian goddess of mourning, with long pale hair, large breasts, and wild eyes. She smothers a wolf with her feet, while clutching a cub in her arms. Art historians have suggested multiple complex interpretations; its alternative title, "Savage", may refer to Gauguin's own view of himself. The work's form and tone was inspired by a number of ancient sources, including Majapahit mummies and an Assyrian relief of a master of animals. Other possible influences include preserved skulls from the Marquesas Islands, figures found at Borobudur, and a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple in central Java. Gauguin made three casts, each in partially glazed stoneware. The original is housed at the Musée d'Orsay, in France. It was exhibited at the 1906 Salon d'Automne where it was seen by Pablo Picasso, who used it as the basis for one of the figures in his Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.
Monday, 29 January 2018
Sunday, 28 January 2018
Wikipedia article of the day for January 29, 2018
The Wikipedia article of the day for January 29, 2018 is Baltimore railroad strike of 1877.
In the Baltimore railroad strike of 1877, at least ten people were killed and more than 150 were injured. The unrest in Baltimore, Maryland, was part of a national railroad strike, following the global depression and economic downturns of the mid-1870s. On July 16, when the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) scheduled 10 percent wage reductions, strikes broke out. Violence erupted in Baltimore on July 20, and police and soldiers of the Maryland National Guard clashed with crowds of thousands gathered throughout the city. In response, President Rutherford B. Hayes ordered federal troops to Baltimore, local officials recruited as many as 500 additional police, and two new national guard regiments were formed. Peace was restored two days later. Negotiations between strikers and the B&O were unsuccessful, and most strikers quit rather than return to work at reduced wages. The company easily found workers to replace the strikers, and rail traffic resumed on July 29 under the protection of the military and police.
In the Baltimore railroad strike of 1877, at least ten people were killed and more than 150 were injured. The unrest in Baltimore, Maryland, was part of a national railroad strike, following the global depression and economic downturns of the mid-1870s. On July 16, when the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) scheduled 10 percent wage reductions, strikes broke out. Violence erupted in Baltimore on July 20, and police and soldiers of the Maryland National Guard clashed with crowds of thousands gathered throughout the city. In response, President Rutherford B. Hayes ordered federal troops to Baltimore, local officials recruited as many as 500 additional police, and two new national guard regiments were formed. Peace was restored two days later. Negotiations between strikers and the B&O were unsuccessful, and most strikers quit rather than return to work at reduced wages. The company easily found workers to replace the strikers, and rail traffic resumed on July 29 under the protection of the military and police.
Saturday, 27 January 2018
Wikipedia article of the day for January 28, 2018
The Wikipedia article of the day for January 28, 2018 is Cento Vergilianus de laudibus Christi.
Cento Vergilianus de laudibus Christi is a fourth-century Latin poem arranged by Faltonia Betitia Proba after her conversion to Christianity. A cento rearranges verses written by other poets; this one repurposes Virgil to tell stories from the Old and New Testament of the Christian Bible. Much of the work focuses on the story of Jesus Christ. The poem was widely circulated, eventually being used in schools to teach the tenets of Christianity, often alongside Augustine of Hippo's De Doctrina Christiana. Although the poem was popular, critical reception was mixed. A pseudonymous work purportedly by Pope Gelasius I disparaged the poem, deeming it apocryphal, and St. Jerome may have written negatively of it, and of Proba. Other thinkers like Isidore of Seville, Petrarch, and Giovanni Boccaccio wrote highly of her, and many praised her ingenuity. During the 19th and 20th centuries the poem was considered a work of poor quality, but recent scholars have held it in higher regard.
Cento Vergilianus de laudibus Christi is a fourth-century Latin poem arranged by Faltonia Betitia Proba after her conversion to Christianity. A cento rearranges verses written by other poets; this one repurposes Virgil to tell stories from the Old and New Testament of the Christian Bible. Much of the work focuses on the story of Jesus Christ. The poem was widely circulated, eventually being used in schools to teach the tenets of Christianity, often alongside Augustine of Hippo's De Doctrina Christiana. Although the poem was popular, critical reception was mixed. A pseudonymous work purportedly by Pope Gelasius I disparaged the poem, deeming it apocryphal, and St. Jerome may have written negatively of it, and of Proba. Other thinkers like Isidore of Seville, Petrarch, and Giovanni Boccaccio wrote highly of her, and many praised her ingenuity. During the 19th and 20th centuries the poem was considered a work of poor quality, but recent scholars have held it in higher regard.
Friday, 26 January 2018
Wikipedia article of the day for January 27, 2018
The Wikipedia article of the day for January 27, 2018 is Finnish Civil War.
The Finnish Civil War (27 January – 15 May 1918) marked the transition from the Grand Duchy of Finland, part of the Russian Empire, to an independent state. Arising during World War I, it was fought between the Reds, led by the Social Democratic Party, and the Whites, led by the conservative Senate. In February 1918, the Reds carried out an unsuccessful offensive, supplied with weapons by Soviet Russia. A counteroffensive by the Whites began in March, reinforced by the German Empire's military detachments in April. The decisive engagements were the battles of Tampere and Vyborg, won by the Whites, and the battles of Helsinki and Lahti, won by German troops, leading to overall victory for the Whites and the German forces. The 39,000 casualties included political terror deaths. Although the Senate and Parliament were initially pressured into accepting the brother-in-law of German Emperor William II as the King of Finland, the country emerged within a few months as an independent, democratic republic. The war would divide the nation for decades.
The Finnish Civil War (27 January – 15 May 1918) marked the transition from the Grand Duchy of Finland, part of the Russian Empire, to an independent state. Arising during World War I, it was fought between the Reds, led by the Social Democratic Party, and the Whites, led by the conservative Senate. In February 1918, the Reds carried out an unsuccessful offensive, supplied with weapons by Soviet Russia. A counteroffensive by the Whites began in March, reinforced by the German Empire's military detachments in April. The decisive engagements were the battles of Tampere and Vyborg, won by the Whites, and the battles of Helsinki and Lahti, won by German troops, leading to overall victory for the Whites and the German forces. The 39,000 casualties included political terror deaths. Although the Senate and Parliament were initially pressured into accepting the brother-in-law of German Emperor William II as the King of Finland, the country emerged within a few months as an independent, democratic republic. The war would divide the nation for decades.
Thursday, 25 January 2018
Wikipedia article of the day for January 26, 2018
The Wikipedia article of the day for January 26, 2018 is Australian Defence Force.
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) comprises all of the country's armed forces, including the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Army, and Royal Australian Air Force. With a strength of just under 80,000 full-time personnel and active reservists, it is supported by the Department of Defence and other civilian agencies. During the first decades of the 20th century, the Australian Government established the armed services as separate organisations, each with an independent chain of command. In 1976, the government made a strategic change and established the ADF to place the three services under a single headquarters. The degree of integration has increased over time, and tri-service headquarters, logistics and training institutions have supplanted many single-service establishments. Technologically sophisticated, the ADF is the largest military in Oceania, with approximately 58,000 full-time active-duty personnel and 22,000 active reservists. It is smaller than many Asian militaries, but is supported by a significant budget by worldwide standards and can deploy forces in multiple locations outside Australia.
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) comprises all of the country's armed forces, including the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Army, and Royal Australian Air Force. With a strength of just under 80,000 full-time personnel and active reservists, it is supported by the Department of Defence and other civilian agencies. During the first decades of the 20th century, the Australian Government established the armed services as separate organisations, each with an independent chain of command. In 1976, the government made a strategic change and established the ADF to place the three services under a single headquarters. The degree of integration has increased over time, and tri-service headquarters, logistics and training institutions have supplanted many single-service establishments. Technologically sophisticated, the ADF is the largest military in Oceania, with approximately 58,000 full-time active-duty personnel and 22,000 active reservists. It is smaller than many Asian militaries, but is supported by a significant budget by worldwide standards and can deploy forces in multiple locations outside Australia.
Wednesday, 24 January 2018
Wikipedia article of the day for January 25, 2018
The Wikipedia article of the day for January 25, 2018 is Lycoperdon perlatum.
Lycoperdon perlatum, the common puffball, is a widespread species of fungus in the family Agaricaceae. It forms an off-white medium-sized puffball tapering to a wide stalk, 1.5 to 6 cm (0.6 to 2.4 in) wide by 3 to 10 cm (1.2 to 3.9 in) tall. Its top is covered in short spiny bumps that are easily rubbed off to leave a net-like pattern on the surface. When mature it becomes brown, and a hole in the top opens to release spores in a burst when the body is compressed by touch or falling raindrops. It is edible when the young internal flesh is completely white, but can be mistaken for an immature fruit body of several poisonous Amanita species. L. perlatum can usually be distinguished from similar puffballs by differences in surface texture. Its chemical compounds include the unusual amino acid lycoperdic acid and volatile sterol derivatives that give the puffball its flavor and odor. Laboratory tests indicate that extracts of the puffball have antimicrobial and antifungal activities.
Lycoperdon perlatum, the common puffball, is a widespread species of fungus in the family Agaricaceae. It forms an off-white medium-sized puffball tapering to a wide stalk, 1.5 to 6 cm (0.6 to 2.4 in) wide by 3 to 10 cm (1.2 to 3.9 in) tall. Its top is covered in short spiny bumps that are easily rubbed off to leave a net-like pattern on the surface. When mature it becomes brown, and a hole in the top opens to release spores in a burst when the body is compressed by touch or falling raindrops. It is edible when the young internal flesh is completely white, but can be mistaken for an immature fruit body of several poisonous Amanita species. L. perlatum can usually be distinguished from similar puffballs by differences in surface texture. Its chemical compounds include the unusual amino acid lycoperdic acid and volatile sterol derivatives that give the puffball its flavor and odor. Laboratory tests indicate that extracts of the puffball have antimicrobial and antifungal activities.
Tuesday, 23 January 2018
Wikipedia article of the day for January 24, 2018
The Wikipedia article of the day for January 24, 2018 is August Meyszner.
August Meyszner (3 August 1886 – 24 January 1947) was an Austrian gendarmerie officer, right-wing politician, and senior Ordnungspolizei (order police) officer of Nazi Germany. He held the post of Higher SS and Police Leader in the German-occupied territory of Serbia from January 1942 to March 1944, during World War II. During his tenure, he oversaw regular reprisal killings and sent tens of thousands of forced labourers to Germany and occupied Norway. His Gestapo detachment also used a gas van to kill as many as 8,000 Jewish women and children who had been detained at the Sajmište concentration camp. Meyszner's time in Belgrade was characterised by friction and competition with German military, economic and foreign affairs officials, and by his visceral hatred and distrust of Serbs; he was considered one of Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler's most brutal subordinates. Extradited by the Allies to Yugoslavia after the war, he was found guilty of war crimes by a military court, and was executed by hanging on 24 January 1947.
August Meyszner (3 August 1886 – 24 January 1947) was an Austrian gendarmerie officer, right-wing politician, and senior Ordnungspolizei (order police) officer of Nazi Germany. He held the post of Higher SS and Police Leader in the German-occupied territory of Serbia from January 1942 to March 1944, during World War II. During his tenure, he oversaw regular reprisal killings and sent tens of thousands of forced labourers to Germany and occupied Norway. His Gestapo detachment also used a gas van to kill as many as 8,000 Jewish women and children who had been detained at the Sajmište concentration camp. Meyszner's time in Belgrade was characterised by friction and competition with German military, economic and foreign affairs officials, and by his visceral hatred and distrust of Serbs; he was considered one of Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler's most brutal subordinates. Extradited by the Allies to Yugoslavia after the war, he was found guilty of war crimes by a military court, and was executed by hanging on 24 January 1947.
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