Alicia Keys

Alicia is the seventh studio album by Alicia Keys (pictured) and released on September 18, 2020. Alicia's mostly low-tempo and melodically subtle music reconciles her experimental direction with bass drum–driven R&B and piano-based balladry. The songs explore identity as a multifaceted concept, sociopolitical concerns, and forms of love within multiple frameworks. Keys described the album as therapeutic and reflective of greater introspection in herself. After a surprise announcement of its impending release in September, Alicia debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 in its first week and became Keys's eighth top-10 record in the US, while charting in the top 10 in several other countries. It received critical praise for Keys's nuanced vocal performances and the music's broad appeal, while her thematic messages were considered balanced, healing, and timely against the backdrop of unfolding world events. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Immersive Audio Album in 2022. (Full article...)

Jay Rayner

• ... that the Top Chef Masters judge Jay Rayner (pictured) has attributed writing his viral review of Le Cinq to being "eye-gougingly, bone-crunchingly, teeth-grindingly angry"?
• ... that Red Sea tuna and seashells found at the roadside station of Khirbet es-Samra suggest that long-distance trade reached deep into Roman Arabia?
• ... that Dan Pashman spent three years working on a new pasta shape that he named cascatelli, after the Italian word for 'waterfall'?
• ... that the Dark Millennium, which suddenly followed the Neolithic in the United Arab Emirates around 4000 BC, has furnished virtually no evidence of human activity?
• ... that Jeffrey Epstein's contact list has been published three times, but the existence of a separate client list is a matter of controversy?
• ... that the rise of CONUS Communications spurred the Big Three American TV networks to subsidize the purchase of satellite trucks for local newsgathering?
• ... that a former handball player was the tallest player in the Canadian Football League?
• ... that Ahmad Shah Durrani faced an army five times larger than his own at the Battle of Manupur?
• ... that Kim Jong Un was amused by a lube factory?

Robert Redford

• American actor and filmmaker Robert Redford (pictured) dies at the age of 89.
• In television, The Studio wins best comedy and The Pitt wins best drama at the Primetime Emmy Awards.
• After widespread protests, Sushila Karki is appointed interim Prime Minister of Nepal, replacing K. P. Sharma Oli.
• Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.

September 18

• 324 – Constantine the Great decisively defeated Licinius in the Battle of Chrysopolis, establishing Constantine's sole control over the Roman Empire and ending the Tetrarchy.
• 1850 – The United States Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, decreeing that all escaped slaves be brought back to their masters.
• 1870 – Nathaniel P. Langford of the Washburn–Langford–Doane Expedition first observed a geyser in the Wyoming Territory erupting at regular intervals, naming it Old Faithful (video featured).
• 1948 – The Australian cricket team's Invincibles tour of England concluded; they had played 34 matches, including five Tests, without defeat.
• 1950 – Korean War: The Korean People's Army retreated from the Battle of the Pusan Perimeter after six weeks of fighting, marking the farthest that the KPA would advance in the war.

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Alice meeting Tweedledum and Tweedledee

Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There is a novel published in December 1871 by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics lecturer at the University of Oxford. It was the sequel to his Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865), in which many of the characters were playing-cards; in this novel the theme is chess. As in the earlier book, the central figure, Alice, finds herself in a fantastical universe. She passes through a large mirror into another world and finds that, just as in a reflection, things there are reversed, including logic. Eventually, after a succession of strange adventures, she wakes and realises she has been dreaming. The original illustrations are by John Tenniel. The book contains several verse passages and, like Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, introduces phrases that have become common currency. Through the Looking Glass has been adapted for the stage and screen and translated into many languages. Critical opinion of the book has generally been favourable. (Full article...)

Jay Rayner

• ... that the Top Chef Masters judge Jay Rayner (pictured) has attributed writing his viral review of Le Cinq to being "eye-gougingly, bone-crunchingly, teeth-grindingly angry"?
• ... that Red Sea tuna and seashells found at the roadside station of Khirbet es-Samra suggest that long-distance trade reached deep into Roman Arabia?
• ... that Dan Pashman spent three years working on a new pasta shape that he named cascatelli, after the Italian word for 'waterfall'?
• ... that the Dark Millennium, which suddenly followed the Neolithic in the United Arab Emirates around 4000 BC, featured virtually zero human activity?
• ... that Jeffrey Epstein's contact list has been published three times, but the existence of a separate client list is a matter of controversy?
• ... that the rise of CONUS Communications spurred the Big Three American TV networks to subsidize the purchase of satellite trucks for local newsgathering?
• ... that a former handball player was the tallest player in the Canadian Football League?
• ... that Ahmad Shah Durrani faced an army five times larger than his own at the Battle of Manupur?
• ... that Kim Jong Un was amused by a lube factory?

Seth Rogen

• In television, The Studio (lead actor Seth Rogen pictured) wins best comedy and The Pitt wins best drama at the Primetime Emmy Awards.
• After widespread protests, Sushila Karki is appointed interim Prime Minister of Nepal, replacing K. P. Sharma Oli.
• Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.
• The observation of a black hole merger verifies the second law of black hole thermodynamics for the first time.

September 17: Constitution Day and Citizenship Day in the United States

• 1658 – Portuguese Restoration War: Having crossed the Minho and entered Portuguese territory, a Spanish army was victorious in the Battle of Vilanova.
• 1775 – American Revolutionary War: The Continental Army under Richard Montgomery began the Siege of Fort St. Jean in the British province of Quebec.
• 1878 – A British surveyor was detained by the Zulu on the border with the Colony of Natal; a demand for reparations for the incident formed part of an ultimatum that led to the Anglo-Zulu War.
• 1985 – Four years after AIDS was first identified in the United States, Ronald Reagan publicly acknowledged AIDS (video featured) for the first time.
• 2018 – The Israeli Air Force conducted missile strikes that hit multiple targets in western Syria, including one that accidentally downed a Russian plane.

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Socompa is a large stratovolcano (composite volcano) on the border of Argentina and Chile. It has an elevation of 6,051 metres (19,852 ft) and is part of the Chilean and Argentine Andean Volcanic Belt. Socompa lies close to the pass of the same name where the Salta–Antofagasta railway crosses the border. Most of the northwestern slope of Socompa collapsed catastrophically 7,200 years ago to form an extensive debris avalanche deposit. The Socompa collapse is among the largest known on land with a volume of 19.2 cubic kilometres (4.6 cu mi) and a surface area of 490 square kilometres (190 sq mi). After the volcanic landslide, Socompa was rebuilt by the effusion of lava flows and much of the scar is now filled in. Socompa is also noteworthy for the high-altitude biotic communities that are bound to fumaroles on the mountain. They are well above the sparse regular vegetation in the region, which does not extend up the mountains. The climate on the mountain is cold and dry. (Full article...)

Garamut from Papua New Guinea

• ... that different sounds drummed on the garamut (example pictured) can indicate the intended recipient?
• ... that Papua New Guinea, despite having only 11.7 million people, speaks more than 800 languages?
• ... that the Papua New Guinean government almost ran out of foreign exchange reserves during a financial crisis in 1994?
• ... that the cavefish Oxyeleotris caeca is found in surface waters during the wet season?
• ... that changes in land use and forestry turned Papua New Guinea's contribution to climate change from being a net carbon sink to a net emitter?
• ... that communities around the Sirinumu Dam lack reliable access to electricity and drinking water?
• ... that Nancy Sullivan and ten other activists were sued by the Papua New Guinean government as retribution for opposing the Pacific Marine Industrial Zone?
• ... that the Organic Law on the Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates was intended to stop "yo-yo politics"?
• ... that inland fisheries in Papua New Guinea are used by more than half of people living in the mountainous Highlands Region?
• ... that a bay in Papua New Guinea is Goodenough?

Sushila Karki

• After widespread protests, Sushila Karki (pictured) is appointed interim Prime Minister of Nepal, replacing K. P. Sharma Oli.
• Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.
• The observation of a black hole merger verifies the second law of black hole thermodynamics for the first time.
• Political activist Charlie Kirk is shot and killed at an event in Utah, United States.

September 16: Malaysia Day in Malaysia (1963); Independence Day in Papua New Guinea (1975)

1839 British five-pound gold coin

• 1400 – Owain Glyndŵr proclaimed himself Prince of Wales, declaring that he could save the Welsh from English invasions.
• 1920 – A bomb in a horse-drawn wagon exploded in front of 23 Wall Street in New York City, killing 38 people and injuring several hundred others.
• 1975 – The prototype of the Soviet Mikoyan MiG-31, one of the fastest combat jets in the world, made its maiden flight.
• 1989 – During a tour of the United States, Soviet politician Boris Yeltsin visited a grocery store in Texas that had a major impact on his views regarding the Soviet Union's economic system.
• 1992 – The British pound (coin pictured) was forced out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism on Black Wednesday and suffered a major devaluation.

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The red wattlebird is a passerine bird native to southern Australia. With a length of 33–37 cm (13–14½ in), it is the second largest species of Australian honeyeater. It has mainly grey-brown plumage, with red eyes, distinctive pinkish-red wattles on either side of the neck, white streaks on the chest and a large bright yellow patch on the lower belly. Loud and conspicuous, the red wattlebird is generally found in trees, where it gets most of its food; occasionally it forages on the ground. It is one of the largest nectarivorous birds in the world, feeding from a wide variety of flowering plants. Insects also comprise part of its diet. It is territorial and at times aggressive towards birds of other species, often defending rich sources of nectar. Breeding throughout its range, the red wattlebird builds a cup-shaped nest in a tree and raises one or two broods a year. Although it has declined in places from land clearing, it is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. (Full article...)

Women's 400 metres hurdles medalists at the 2022 World Championships

• ... that Sydney McLaughlin's world record of 50.68 seconds in the 400 metres hurdles (medalists pictured) was called "one of the greatest track performances of all time"?
• ... that Emperor Tenmu had his sons swear to honor his consort and niece Uno-no-sarara as their mother, including two of her brothers?
• ... that a 1981 article about the disease of Turku claimed that the city council of Turku was made up of Finnish Freemasons?
• ... that minister George Freeman ran The Monastery as a gay church, nightclub, and homeless shelter in 1980s Seattle?
• ... that Muslim sources say that 50,000 inhabitants "burned alive" in the sacking of Tbilisi in 853?
• ... that No Kaebang's wife, preferring death to capture by Japanese troops, leapt from a cliff while holding her husband's certificate of civil examination?
• ... that "Cwm Rhondda" was written for Capel Rhondda?
• ... that Koh Sok Hiong, a former first lady of Singapore, wrote a cookbook compiling more than 200 of her Perankan recipes?
• ... that the app Baby Shaker was removed from the App Store for letting players shake a baby to death?

Sushila Karki

• After widespread protests, Sushila Karki (pictured) is appointed interim Prime Minister of Nepal, replacing K. P. Sharma Oli.
• Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.
• The observation of a black hole merger verifies the second law of black hole thermodynamics for the first time.
• Political activist Charlie Kirk is shot and killed at an event in Utah, United States.

September 15: Battle of Britain Day in the United Kingdom (1940)

Title page of the German government gazette issue proclaiming the laws

• 1776 – American Revolutionary War: British forces made an unopposed amphibious landing at Kips Bay on Manhattan, the American defenders having fled due to artillery fire.
• 1795 – French Revolutionary Wars: Great Britain seized the Dutch Cape Colony to use its facilities against the French Navy.
• 1935 – Nazi Germany enacted the Nuremberg Laws (pictured), which deprived Jews of their citizenship.
• 1944 – World War II: American and Australian forces landed on the Japanese-occupied island of Morotai.
• 2017 – A homemade bomb partially exploded on an eastbound District line train at Parsons Green tube station in West London, injuring 30 passengers.

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Mother Solomon (1816–1890) was a Wyandot nanny and cultural activist. Solomon was born along Owl Creek in Marion County, Ohio, to a Wyandot chief father. In 1822, her family moved to the Big Spring Reservation in Wyandot County, where elders taught her oral tradition. She learned English at a mission school and began attending the Wyandot Mission Church. Solomon married in 1833 and had several children. Some of them died before 1843, when the Indian Removal Act forced the tribe to move to Kansas, where they lived in poor conditions. Solomon had more children there. By 1860, her husband and remaining children had died. She remarried the Wyandot sheriff John Solomon; they relocated to near Upper Sandusky, Ohio, in 1865. When John died in 1876, she began babysitting children, and her village nicknamed her "Mother Solomon". Solomon promoted Wyandot culture and advocated for the restoration of the mission church. A popular local figure, her death in 1890 was widely reported in newspapers. (Full article...)

Hilda Clark in a Coca-Cola poster

• ... that operetta soprano Hilda Clark appeared in a print ad (example pictured) as the "first [Coca-Cola] ambassador"?
• ... that a schoolteacher predicted the existence of Iru hillfort after reading about the hill in an ancient poem?
• ... that Anju Jason nearly quit taekwondo before he became one of the first Olympians for the Marshall Islands?
• ... that Africa deindustrialised in the 1980s?
• ... that Nevada City Firehouse No. 2 was built after the city burned five times within ten years?
• ... that the medieval Gdańsk Crane was primarily being used by the late 19th century to lift ships for propeller repairs?
• ... that two competing hypotheses seek to explain the unusual orbit of the exoplanet Nu Octantis Ab?
• ... that Istana Park was designed to make the front area of the residence of the president of Singapore more prominent?
• ... that Jenni's Quesadillas actually belongs to Elena?

Jair Bolsonaro

• Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro (pictured) is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.
• The observation of a black hole merger verifies the second law of black hole thermodynamics for the first time.
• Political activist Charlie Kirk is shot and killed at an event in Utah, United States.
• NATO forces shoot down Russian drones over Poland.
• Israel attacks the Hamas leadership in Doha, Qatar.
• In Nepal, Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli resigns amid anti-corruption protests.

September 14

Kumba Ialá

• 1752 – Under the terms of the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750, the British Empire adopted the Gregorian calendar, skipping 11 days of the month.
• 1940 – Hungarian forces massacred at least 150 ethnic Romanians in Ip, Transylvania, following rumors that Romanians were responsible for the deaths of two soldiers.
• 1943 – World War II: Nazi forces began a mass extermination campaign against the civilian residents of around 20 villages on the Greek island of Crete, eventually killing more than 500 men.
• 2003 – President Kumba Ialá (pictured) of Guinea-Bissau was deposed in a bloodless military coup.
• 2015 – Physicists of the LIGO and Virgo projects first observed gravitational waves, the existence of which was predicted by Henri Poincaré in 1905.

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Ackles and Padalecki, who portray Supernatural's two leads

The first season of Supernatural premiered on September 13, 2005, and concluded on May 4, 2006, after 22 episodes. It focuses on brothers Sam and Dean Winchester as they track their father, John, who is hunting the demon who killed their mother and Sam's girlfriend. The brothers use their father's journal to continue the family business of saving people and hunting supernatural creatures. Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles (both pictured) star as Sam and Dean, with Jeffrey Dean Morgan recurring as John and Nicki Aycox as the demonic Meg Masters. This is the only season to air on The WB; subsequent seasons aired on The CW. The season averaged about 3.81 million American viewers and earned many award nominations, including two Primetime Emmy Awards for work done on the pilot episode. Some critics criticized the mostly anthology-like format, while others praised the show's emotional moments and brotherly chemistry between the lead actors. (This article is part of a featured topic: Supernatural season 1.)

20th-century lithograph of Madri

• ... that some scholars dispute the Mahabharata's account of Madri (pictured) self-immolating on her husband's pyre?
• ... that the creator of the series Anthology of the Killer improvised its game design by squeezing in more jokes and "arbitrarily" combining in-game locations?
• ... that Ada Schnee, a former actress born in New Zealand, experienced World War I in East Africa as the wife of the German governor?
• ... that one contemporary reviewer was suspicious of an unacknowledged translation of Les Malheurs de l'inconstance because "French principles and French depravity mark the whole work"?
• ... that Canadian football player Arek Bigos left Poland to escape the communist regime?
• ... that Cara Mehmed gained his freedom in a successful slave rebellion, but was later executed after he participated in an unsuccessful plot orchestrated by his former master?
• ... that Rodger Bumpass, before becoming the voice of Squidward, was an announcer, film processor, and cameraman at an Arkansas TV station in the 1970s?
• ... that an English mayor once brought a gold medallist home to his village in a Rolls-Royce?
• ... that The Darkness Which Reveals at Siglap MRT station conveys that darkness can reveal instead of conceal?

Jair Bolsonaro

• Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro (pictured) is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.
• Political activist Charlie Kirk is shot and killed at an event in Utah, United States.
• NATO forces shoot down Russian drones over Poland.
• Israel attacks the Hamas leadership in Doha, Qatar.
• In Nepal, Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli resigns amid anti-corruption protests.

September 13

John Calvin

• 1541 – After three years of exile, French theologian John Calvin (pictured) returned to Geneva to reform the church under a system of Christian theology later known as Calvinism.
• 1914 – World War I: The French army repulsed a German assault against their positions on high ground near the city of Nancy.
• 1985 – Super Mario Bros., one of the most influential and best-selling video games in history, was first released in Japan for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
• 1988 – Hurricane Gilbert reached a minimum pressure of 888 mb (26.22 inHg) with sustained flight-level winds of 185 mph (295 km/h), making it the most intense Atlantic hurricane on record at the time.
• 1993 – Nirvana released their third and final studio album, In Utero, which went on to sell more than 15 million copies.

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Felice Beato (c. 1832 – 1909) was an Italian-British photographer. He was one of the first to take photographs in East Asia and one of the first war photographers. He is noted for his genre works, portraits, and views and panoramas of the architecture and landscapes of Asia and the Mediterranean region. His travels let him create images of countries, people and events that were unfamiliar and remote to most people in Europe and North America. His work provides images of such events as the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the Second Opium War, and represents the first substantial body of photojournalism. Beato was the official photographer of the Nile Expedition led by G. J. Wolseley to Khartoum, Sudan, in relief of General Charles Gordon. Beato influenced other photographers; and his impact in Japan, where he taught and worked with other photographers and artists, was particularly deep and lasting. He pioneered and refined the techniques of hand-colouring photographs and making panoramas. (Full article...)

Liatu King

• ... that basketball player Liatu King (pictured) played boys' American football when she was a child?
• ... that the kinetic-energy output from the 2011 Sawyerville–Eoline tornado was almost twice as high as that released during the atomic bombing of Hiroshima?
• ... that a study found the Curtis Bay Incinerator causes US$36.9 million in damage per year to public health?
• ... that it only took 13 minutes to sell out the second season of Crypto: The Game?
• ... that the 1966 production of Peter Handke's Offending the Audience, directed by Claus Peymann at the Theater am Turm, has been described as "the beginning of modern theatre"?
• ... that kart racing has crowned its first female champion in a global series since 1966 within its newly established OK-N category?
• ... that Soviet Island is in Japan?
• ... that one reviewer wrote that the tone of Meat Is Murder "begs for a belt in the chops"?
• ... that Boogie Knight was selected to a team of the best college football player names along with General Booty and Storm Duck?

Charlie Kirk

• Political activist Charlie Kirk (pictured) is shot and killed at an event in Utah, United States.
• Israel attacks the Hamas leadership in Doha, Qatar.
• In Nepal, Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli resigns amid anti-corruption protests.
• In the Norwegian parliamentary election, the centre-left bloc wins a majority of the seats in the Storting.

September 12

• 1309 – Reconquista: Castilian forces captured Gibraltar from the Emirate of Granada.
• 1885 – The Scottish Cup match between Arbroath and Bon Accord ended 36–0, which is still a world record for an unrigged professional association football match.
• 1962 – In a speech at Rice Stadium in Houston, U.S. president John F. Kennedy reiterated an aspiration to land a man on the Moon before 1970 (video featured).
• 2003 – The first public release of Steam, a distribution service for computer games, was made available for download.
• 2008 – A Metrolink train collided head-on with a freight train in Los Angeles, California, resulting in 25 deaths and 135 injuries; the Metrolink driver had passed through a red signal, having likely been distracted by text messaging.

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Tumbler Ridge town hall

Tumbler Ridge is a district municipality in the foothills of the B.C. Rockies in northeastern British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Peace River Regional District. With a population of 2,399 in 2021, the municipality encompasses an area of 1,558 km² (602 sq mi). Located near the confluence of the Murray River and Flatbed Creek and the intersection of Highways 52 and 29, it is part of the Peace River South provincial electoral district and the Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies federal riding. It is a planned community, with the housing and infrastructure built simultaneously in 1981 by the provincial government to service the coal industry. After dinosaur footprints and fossils were discovered in the municipality, along with fossils of Triassic fishes and Cretaceous plants, the Peace Region Paleontology Research Center opened in 2003. The study of the area led to a recognition of its geological importance and listing in the UNESCO Global Geopark Network. (Full article...)

Coronation of Baldwin III of Jerusalem

• ... that much of what is known about the coronations of the kings and queens of Jerusalem (example pictured) comes from the Pontifical of Tyre, with which Archbishop Bonacursus de Gloria likely fled the fall of Tyre?
• ... that after South Sudan gained autonomy, it implemented an abortion law that was more restrictive than that of Sudan?
• ... that North Korean footballer Tak Yong-bin scored the winning goal in the last match that South Korea played in the North for 29 years?
• ... that clanker has gained popularity as a slur for robots?
• ... that Voyager 1 crossed the Solar System's termination shock without detecting the expected surge of anomalous cosmic rays, creating the "Voyager paradox"?
• ... that a court ordered a U.S. basketball league to let two schools into its tournament, but both were knocked out in the first round?
• ... that the sole perpetrator of the del Águila family killings could not be indicted due to her age?
• ... that singer Shiyui got her stage name from a Buddhist statue in Kyoto?
• ... that "Good Old Neon" uses mathematical logic as a metaphor for what dying feels like?

Charlie Kirk

• American political activist Charlie Kirk (pictured) is shot and killed at an event in Utah.
• Israel attacks the Hamas leadership in Doha, Qatar, the first known Israeli attack on the country.
• In Nepal, Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli resigns amid anti-corruption protests.
• In the Norwegian parliamentary election, the centre-left bloc wins a majority of the seats in the Storting.

September 11: National Day of Catalonia

The Burlington Daily Hawk Eye Gazette reporting on the speech

• 1649 – Cromwellian conquest of Ireland: Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army ended the Siege of Drogheda, took over the town and massacred its garrison.
• 1775 – American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold's expedition departed from Cambridge, Massachusetts, as part of the invasion of Quebec.
• 1897 – Gaki Sherocho was captured by the forces of Ethiopian emperor Menelik II, bringing an end to the Kingdom of Kaffa.
• 1914 – First World War: The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force invaded German New Guinea, winning the Battle of Bita Paka.
• 1941 – In Des Moines, Iowa, American aviator Charles Lindbergh delivered an antisemitic speech (reporting pictured) accusing Jews of controlling the media and manipulating the United States into joining World War II.

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Hydrogen's three main isotopes

Hydrogen is a chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. It is the lightest and most abundant element, constituting about 75% of all normal matter. The Sun is mainly hydrogen in a plasma state. Under standard conditions, hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules with the formula H₂; it is colorless, odorless, non-toxic and highly combustible. On Earth, hydrogen can exist in its gaseous state and in molecular forms, such as with oxygen in water (H₂O). The most common isotope of hydrogen (¹H) consists of one proton, one electron and no neutrons. Hydrogen gas was first produced artificially by the reaction of acids with metals. Henry Cavendish, in 1766–1781, identified hydrogen gas as a distinct substance and discovered its property of producing water when burned; its name means water-former in Greek. Its main industrial uses include fossil-fuel processing and ammonia production for fertilizer. Emerging uses for hydrogen include the use of fuel cells to generate electricity. (Full article...)

Chermin Island

• ... that Chermin Island (pictured), at the mouth of the Brunei River, became Abdul Hakkul Mubin's administrative seat during the Bruneian civil war?
• ... that Herbert Brandl once created a large mountain painting in about 15 minutes?
• ... that the baseball biopic 42 was screened in the White House?
• ... that Yoolya, a member of the Nyigina who was taken from his people as a child, was in later life committed to both Aboriginal and Catholic beliefs?
• ... that a former beauty consultant created the manga guide Makeup Is Not (Just) Magic?
• ... that Di Botcher was inspired to complete a first-aid course after playing the paramedic Jan Jenning in Casualty?
• ... that Ezra Dotan shot down two MiG-17s while flying an aircraft not designed as a fighter?
• ... that there are rock paintings around Potrok Aike, a lake that is an important source of water in the region?
• ... that Ian Matakis once won a World Series of Poker bracelet while competing in another tournament at the same time?

Giorgio Armani

• Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani (pictured) dies at the age of 91.
• A derailment on the Ascensor da Glória funicular railway in Lisbon, Portugal, kills 16 people.
• President of Guyana Irfaan Ali wins a second term in the general election.
• In Sudan, a landslide destroys the village of Tarasin, killing at least 375 people.

September 10

Light curve-based 3D-model of Pandora

• 1509 – An earthquake known as "The Lesser Judgment Day" hit Constantinople.
• 1622 – Fifty-five Christians were executed in Nagasaki during the Great Genna Martyrdom, part of persecution towards Christians in Japan by the Tokugawa shogunate.
• 1858 – George Mary Searle discovered the asteroid 55 Pandora (pictured) from the Dudley Observatory near Albany, New York; it was his only asteroid discovery.
• 1945 – Mike the Headless Chicken was decapitated on a farm in Colorado; he survived another 18 months as part of sideshows before choking to death.
• 2009 – Members of the Atlanta Police Department conducted a raid on a gay bar, with patrons later alleging that their constitutional rights had been violated and the city agreeing to pay over $1 million in settlements.

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The Battle of Arkansas Post was fought from January 9 to 11, 1863, along the Arkansas River at Arkansas Post, Arkansas, as part of the Vicksburg campaign of the American Civil War. Major General Ulysses S. Grant of the Union army started to move against Vicksburg in November 1862. He entrusted William T. Sherman with command of the riverine movement towards Vicksburg, rather than John A. McClernand, whom Grant did not trust. Initial advances stalled, and McClernand arrived and took command in early January 1863. On January 10, 1863, Union warships bombarded Arkansas Post. At 1:00 pm on January 11, Union forces again attacked, by land and water. The land attack was repulsed, but the Confederates agreed to surrender. When Grant learned of the operation against Arkansas Post, he disapproved, but he was later convinced of the wisdom of the operation. The siege of Vicksburg ended with a Confederate surrender on July 4, 1863, a key contribution to the eventual Union victory. (Full article...)

Centauress and Faun

• ... that Centauress and Faun (pictured) puzzled critics for inverting the traditional motif of the centaur carrying away a nymph?
• ... that the cover of the children's novel The Butterfly Club was recreated using 7500 Loom bands, which are included in the novel's plot?
• ... that actress Ashling O'Shea found joining the cast of Hollyoaks "surreal" as she had grown up watching the soap opera?
• ... that Brazilian troops captured more than 3,000 women after the Battle of Tupí-hú?
• ... that problems with the construction of a Florida TV station prevented its owner from building a station in Texas?
• ... that Weezer announced the Indie Rock Road Trip after plans for a Broadway concert residency fell through?
• ... that a scandal saw several sports commentators receiving Sports Emmy Awards statuettes that they were ineligible to receive?
• ... that Bedok Lighthouse is the first fully automated lighthouse in Singapore?
• ... that a Utah college radio station was found not to be educational enough?

Giorgio Armani

• Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani (pictured) dies at the age of 91.
• A derailment on the Ascensor da Glória funicular railway in Lisbon, Portugal, kills 16 people.
• President of Guyana Irfaan Ali wins a second term in the general election.
• In Sudan, a landslide destroys the village of Tarasin, killing at least 375 people.

September 9

Elizabeth II on September 9, 2015

• 1570 – Ottoman–Venetian War: After a 40-day siege, the Cypriot city of Nicosia fell to the Ottomans, leading to a massacre of more than 20,000 citizens.
• 1739 – The Stono Rebellion, at the time the largest slave rebellion in the Thirteen Colonies of British America, erupted near Charleston, South Carolina.
• 1969 – Allegheny Airlines Flight 853 collided in mid-air with a Piper PA-28 Cherokee flown by a student pilot near Fairland, Indiana, killing all 83 occupants of and destroying both aircraft.
• 2001 – Two al-Qaeda attackers assassinated Ahmad Shah Massoud, a pivotal Afghan resistance leader, two days before the September 11 attacks in the United States.
• 2015 – Elizabeth II (pictured) became the longest-reigning monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria.

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Peter Sellers (8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian, known for his many film roles, among them Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther. On stage from early childhood, he built his skills in Ralph Reader's wartime Gang Show troupe. After the war, Sellers made his radio debut in ShowTime, and became a regular on BBC Radio. During the early 1950s, Sellers took part in radio's The Goon Show. Although the bulk of his film work was comedic, he also performed in other genres, portraying a wide range of characters even within the same film. His films include I'm All Right Jack (1959), Lolita (1962), Dr. Strangelove (1964), What's New Pussycat? (1965), Casino Royale (1967), Being There (1979) and five films of the Pink Panther series. Sellers was nominated three times for an Academy Award, including twice for Best Actor, and won a number of other awards. Turner Classic Movies called Sellers "one of the most accomplished comic actors of the late 20th century". (Full article...)

Joseph Buh

• ... that Joseph Buh (pictured), a Slovak Catholic missionary priest in Minnesota, was called Meshidong or 'Long Beard' by the Ojibwe?
• ... that the English composer Gustav Holst published a collection of Hindu hymns based on his own translations of Sanskrit literature?
• ... that Alaíde Foppa used the airwaves of Mexico City to launch a feminist "forum for women"?
• ... that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Chae Chan Ping v. United States that courts must defer to Congress and the president in immigration and nationality law?
• ... that the only album of an obscure Japanese singer became a city-pop cult classic?
• ... that the route of the Bond End Canal later became a railway and then a road?
• ... that Aleksandras Olelka was initially a supporter of the Lithuanian grand duke Švitrigaila, but later participated in a coup d'état against him?
• ... that logistical support for Operation Forager involved calling forward ammunition ships to replenish the fleet despite almost daily Japanese air attacks?
• ... that an Australian radio station defended playing Zheani's "Bring Wet Cunt" uncensored in 2024?

Giorgio Armani

• Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani (pictured) dies at the age of 91.
• A derailment on the Ascensor da Glória funicular railway in Lisbon, Portugal, kills 16 people.
• President of Guyana Irfaan Ali wins a second term in the general election.
• In Sudan, a landslide destroys the village of Tarasin, killing at least 375 people.

September 8: Victory Day in Malta

PS Lady Elgin

• 1755 – French and Indian War: Despite being ambushed at the start of the Battle of Lake George, British colonial troops and their Mohawk allies were able to defeat French and Canadien troops and their Indian allies.
• 1775 – Maltese priests discontented with the Order of Saint John led an uprising that was suppressed by the Order within a few hours.
• 1860 – The paddle steamer Lady Elgin (pictured) was rammed by a schooner on Lake Michigan and sank, resulting in the loss of about 300 lives.
• 1935 – Huey Long, a U.S. senator, was shot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, dying two days later.
• 1995 – Construction began on the Dhammakaya Cetiya, a giant stupa at the Wat Phra Dhammakaya, a Buddhist temple in Pathum Thani, Thailand.

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HMS Queen Mary was the last battlecruiser built by the Royal Navy before the First World War. The sole member of her class, Queen Mary was completed in 1913. She never left the North Sea once the war started, participating in the Battle of Heligoland Bight in 1914 as part of the Grand Fleet. Queen Mary unsuccessfully attempted to intercept a German force that bombarded the North Sea coast of England that December. She was refitting in early 1915 and missed the Battle of Dogger Bank in January. Queen Mary was sunk in the largest fleet action of the war, the Battle of Jutland, in mid-1916. Twice hit by the German battlecruiser Derfflinger during the early part of the battle, her magazines exploded, sinking her. The wreck was discovered in 1991 and rests in pieces on the floor of the North Sea. Her wreck is designated as a protected place under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 as it is the grave of 1,266 men. (This article is part of a featured topic: Battlecruisers of the world.)

Antonio Oteiza and his paintings

• ... that Antonio Oteiza (pictured) was a missionary in Latin America but from 1961 focused on creating religious art, which he felt had more impact than sermons?
• ... that the Vanuatu beer Tusker is named after the tusks of a pig, a traditional symbol of wealth?
• ... that at least 30 people have been arrested since 2018 for allegedly abusing children whom they met on Roblox?
• ... that Farhan Hadafo is Somalia's first Paralympian?
• ... that most Bhutanese people have no surname?
• ... that Ali Akbar is the last newspaper hawker in France?
• ... that an episode of the British soap opera EastEnders encouraged LGBTQ+ men to come out?
• ... that conservationist Stephen King was kicked out of Bible College for refusing to wear shoes?
• ... that the first Portuguese translation of Homer's Odyssey was reportedly "harder to read than the [original] texts"?

Giorgio Armani

• Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani (pictured) dies at the age of 91.
• A derailment on the Ascensor da Glória funicular railway in Lisbon, Portugal, kills 16 people.
• In Sudan, a landslide destroys the village of Tarasin, killing at least 375 people.
• A magnitude-6.0 earthquake in Afghanistan leaves more than 2,200 people dead.

September 7

Battle of Arsuf by French painter Éloi Firmin Féron

• 1191 – Third Crusade: Crusaders under Richard I of England defeated Ayyubid troops under Saladin at the Battle of Arsuf (depicted) in present-day Israel.
• 1916 – World War I: The Supreme War Command was established to oversee the armed forces of all the Central Powers.
• 1984 – An explosion on board a Maltese patrol boat that was disposing of illegal fireworks at sea off Gozo killed seven soldiers and policemen.
• 1999 – Three weeks after an earthquake struck northwestern Turkey, a second earthquake struck Athens, causing Greece and Turkey to initiate "earthquake diplomacy".
• 2011 – Yak-Service Flight 9633, carrying the players and coaching staff of the ice hockey team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, crashed on take-off near Yaroslavl, Russia, resulting in the deaths of 44 of the 45 people on board.

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Ophelia near North Carolina

Hurricane Ophelia was a long-lived tropical cyclone, the fifteenth named storm and the eighth hurricane of the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. Classified as a tropical depression on September 6, it moved along a looping course, tending north. It reached hurricane status on September 8, though it repeatedly lost and regained it. The system reached hurricane strength for the fourth time on September 14, with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 km/h). Ophelia had completed a second loop and was moving northwest toward North Carolina. It mostly remained offshore though its eyewall scraped the coastline for two days. It degraded to tropical storm strength on September 16 as it began accelerating northeast. Ophelia traversed Atlantic Canada before dissipating on September 23 over the Norwegian Sea. With the storm occurring on the heels of Hurricane Katrina, governments were quick to prepare shelters. Three people died as the result of the storm, with another missing. (Full article...)

Round tower at Devenish Island

• ... that the ecclesiastical site at Devenish Island (pictured) was among the first protected monuments in the United Kingdom?
• ... that wrestler Vladimir Popov initially viewed winning a bronze medal at the Olympics as a "failure"?
• ... that the German Empire dispatched six warships to Nicaragua after a marriage dispute led to a shooting and Germany's consul being arrested?
• ... that a Japanese racehorse was named the tourism ambassador of a city in Hokkaido?
• ... that President Paul Kagame pardoned more than five hundred people who had been arrested for abortion in Rwanda?
• ... that Frank W. Lehan invented a search-and-rescue system used in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, but never profited from it?
• ... that the devkit used to develop Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy had to be smuggled into the United States due to export restrictions?
• ... that Achmad Maschut, the mayor of Kediri, gave municipal government jobs to players from the city's football club after they became national champions in 2003?
• ... that the Little Valley Fire prompted the evacuation of 101 horses and one parrot?

Giorgio Armani

• Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani (pictured) dies at the age of 91.
• A derailment on the Ascensor da Glória funicular railway in Lisbon, Portugal, kills 16 people.
• A magnitude-6.0 earthquake in Afghanistan leaves more than 2,200 people dead.
• Samoa United in Faith wins an absolute majority in the general election.

September 6: Defence Day in Pakistan (1965), Ghost Festival in China (2025)

Cal Ripken Jr.

• 1863 – General John S. Marmaduke fatally wounded his Confederate Army colleague Lucius M. Walker in a formal duel in Arkansas.
• 1930 – Argentine president Hipólito Yrigoyen was deposed in a military coup by José Félix Uriburu.
• 1952 – A prototype aircraft crashed at the Farnborough Airshow in Hampshire, England, killing the pilot and test observer on board, and 29 spectators.
• 1995 – Cal Ripken Jr. (pictured) played his 2,131st consecutive Major League Baseball game, breaking the 56-year-old record set by Lou Gehrig.
• 1999 – The Parliament of Singapore relocated from the Old Parliament House to its current meeting place.

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Joseph Francis Shea (September 5, 1925 – February 14, 1999) was an American aerospace engineer and NASA manager. After working for Bell Labs on the radio inertial guidance system of the Titan I intercontinental ballistic missile, he was hired by NASA in 1961. As Deputy Director of NASA's Office of Manned Space Flight, and later as head of the Apollo Spacecraft Program Office, Shea led NASA to decide in favor of lunar orbit rendezvous and supporting "all up" testing of the Saturn V rocket. Deeply involved in the investigation of the 1967 Apollo 1 fire, Shea suffered from stress. He was moved to an alternative position in Washington and left NASA shortly afterwards. From 1968 until 1990 he was a senior manager at Raytheon in Lexington, Massachusetts, then worked as an adjunct professor of aeronautics and astronautics at MIT. Shea served as a consultant for NASA on the redesign of the International Space Station in 1993, but resigned due to health issues. (Full article...)

Leontyne Price

• ... that the recordings of Leontyne Price (pictured) have been nominated for 25 Grammy Awards and won 13?
• ... that after the Battle of Vrigne-Meuse the identity of the last French soldier killed in World War I was disputed?
• ... that, when Richardson Viano was asked to represent Haiti at the 2022 Winter Olympics, he initially thought it was a joke?
• ... that the concept for the Radar, Coast Defense, Mark I, emerged in 1939 when an experimental radar set saw the splashes from shells falling in the water?
• ... that geologist E. Dale Jackson conducted experiments with Jello to test theories on the formation of the Hawaiian islands?
• ... that the "umbilical cord" panhandle is only about 90 centimetres (35 in) wide at its narrowest point?
• ... that the 2016 Christmas Eve EastEnders episode featured a character returning after 21 years?
• ... that the murder of the former director of Trinidad and Tobago's national museum in 2017 brought attention to crime in the country?
• ... that the leaves of Coprosma foetidissima, when rubbed, produce a smell like rotten cabbage?

Ascensor da Glória

• A derailment on the Ascensor da Glória funicular (pictured) in Lisbon, Portugal, kills 16 people.
• A magnitude-6.0 earthquake in Afghanistan leaves more than 1,400 people dead.
• Samoa United in Faith wins an absolute majority in the 2025 Samoan general election.
• Protests erupt in Indonesia over increased benefits and salaries given to parliament members.

September 5

El Dorado Fire

• 917 – Liu Yan declared himself emperor, establishing the state of Southern Han at his capital of Panyu (present-day Guangzhou) in southern China.
• 1774 – In response to the British Parliament's enactment of the so-called Intolerable Acts, representatives from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies convened the First Continental Congress at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia.
• 1970 – During the practice session of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza Circuit, Jochen Rindt was killed and subsequently became motor racing's only posthumous world champion.
• 1972 – The Palestinian militant group Black September took hostage eleven Israeli athletes and coaches at the Olympic Games in Munich, West Germany; all of the hostages were killed less than 24 hours later.
• 2020 – California wildfires: A pyrotechnic device at a gender reveal party ignited the El Dorado Fire (pictured), burning for 71 days and killing one firefighter.

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Formica archboldi queen ant tended to by Polyergus lucidus workers

A parasitic ant is a type of ant that exploits the social structure of another ant species for its own survival and reproduction. The most common types of parasitic ants infiltrate a colony of a closely related species by using pheromones identical to those of the colony's workers to avoid conflict and blend in. The parasite lays eggs alongside existing ones for the host colony's worker ants to raise and nurture. Other parasitic ants transport the host colony's pupae and larvae back to the parasite's colony, where the brood will be raised as their own. The host brood that were transported are unable to differentiate between the parasites and their own colony, and serve as worker ants for the parasites. Some parasites have adapted their anatomy to reflect that of the hosts, allowing them to remain undetected for much of their lifespans. Parasites usually cause harmful effects to the target colony and can inhibit the colony's growth and development. (Full article...)

Aeneas Valley, Washington

• ... that the Great Northern Rail Road almost came to Aeneas (pictured)?
• ... that Frenchman Ernest Grandier was the only white prisoner taken by the Zulu during their 1879 war with Britain?
• ... that a major UK retail CEO criticised the "Not for EU" label as "bureaucratic madness"?
• ... that at his first international competition, runner Bhupendra Silwal started bleeding when he tried to remove tarmac embedded in his feet?
• ... that in the 2024 Salvadoran presidential election, there was a 78 percentage point difference between first and second place?
• ... that NFL player Broc Rutter only received a $279 signing bonus from the San Francisco 49ers?
• ... that the creators of a botanic database for machine learning included three images of leaves from an extinct relative of the rose?
• ... that an airshow at a Bronx airport may have been the inspiration for the first serious artistic work to depict flight by aircraft?
• ... that in 2009, a Japanese man held a wedding ceremony to marry his fictional waifu, with the ceremony broadcast live to over 3,000 viewers?

Indonesian protests

• A magnitude-6.0 earthquake in Afghanistan leaves more than 1,400 people dead.
• Protests (pictured) erupt in Indonesia over increased benefits and salaries given to parliament members.
• Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra is removed from office by the Constitutional Court for misconduct.
• Targeted strikes by the Israeli Air Force kill several ministers of the Houthi–led government of Yemen, including Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi.

September 4

Little Rock Central High School

• 1886 – After more than 25 years of fighting against the United States Army and the armed forces of Mexico, Geronimo of the Chiricahua Apache surrendered at Skeleton Canyon in Arizona.
• 1839 – First Opium War: British vessels opened fire on Chinese war junks enforcing a food sales embargo on the British community on the Kowloon Peninsula.
• 1920 – Peasants in and around Križ began a rebellion to protest economic and conscription policies enacted by the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.
• 1957 – Governor Orval Faubus deployed the Arkansas National Guard to prevent nine African-American students from attending Little Rock Central High School (pictured).
• 2007 – Three terrorists suspected to be part of al-Qaeda were arrested in Germany after planning attacks on Frankfurt Airport and Ramstein Air Base.

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William Arthur Ganfield (September 3, 1873 – October 18, 1940) was an American minister, educator, and academic administrator. He was ordained in 1901 and began his first preaching role later that year in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He became a professor at Carroll College (now Carroll University) in 1905 and taught there until he was elected president of Centre College in 1915. During his six-year term, he helped Centre's enrollment recover from a lull and grew the school's endowment past $1 million for the first time, in part by reinstating ties between the college and the Presbyterian Church. He returned to Carroll as its president in 1921 and oversaw a strengthening of requirements for professors and implementing tenure, pensions and a fixed salary for faculty. Ganfield supported sports at both schools: Centre's football team won a major upset victory over Harvard in 1921, and Carroll's football and basketball teams each won multiple league championships during his term. (Full article...)

The New York Life Building

• ... that when a developer tried to buy Kansas City's New York Life Building (pictured) in the 1990s, it was unclear who owned it?
• ... that, while in exile in Paris, the Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis worked with the Chilean ambassador and poet Pablo Neruda on Canto General?
• ... that fistfights broke out at a 1903 meeting of African-American leaders when the appeasement of Southern whites was challenged?
• ... that the 2020 Summer Olympics mascots were chosen by schoolchildren?
• ... that Spotify Pakistan's most streamed artist of 2024 made his cinematic debut the same year to present his album?
• ... that Gaetano di Mauro was the runner-up in a 2017 racing championship despite carrying 80 kg (180 lb) of ballast in his car?
• ... that the basement of the Old Town Hall in Gdańsk was rented by a famous astronomer to store his beers?
• ... that many Muslims in Gaza reportedly celebrate Christmas with the Christian population, despite being officially forbidden to do so since 2020?
• ... that zebros were not zebras?

Indonesian protests

• A magnitude-6.0 earthquake in Afghanistan leaves more than 1,400 people dead.
• Protests (pictured) erupt in Indonesia over increased benefits and salaries given to parliament members.
• Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra is removed from office by the Constitutional Court for misconduct.
• Targeted strikes by the Israeli Air Force kill several ministers of the Houthi–led government of Yemen, including Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi.

September 3

Oliver Cromwell

• 863 – Arab–Byzantine wars: The Byzantine Empire decisively defeated the Emirate of Melitene at the Battle of Lalakaon, beginning the era of Byzantine ascendancy.
• 1651 – English Parliamentarian forces under Oliver Cromwell (pictured) won the Battle of Worcester, the final battle of the English Civil War.
• 1777 – American Revolutionary War: The British Army and their Hessian allies defeated an American militia at the Battle of Cooch's Bridge.
• 1936 – The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America was founded in Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Canada.
• 2001 – The Troubles: Ulster loyalists resumed a picket outside a Catholic girls' primary school in the Protestant portion of Ardoyne, in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

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Joe Walton

During its 1905–06 season, New Brompton F.C., an English football club, competed in the Southern League Division One. The team began the season on 2 September 1905 in poor form; they failed to score in six of their first eight league games and, by midseason, they were near the bottom of the league table. In the new year, the team won three of its first seven Southern League games, but failed to score in eight of the final nine league games. New Brompton finished the season in 17th place out of 18 teams in the division. They also competed in the FA Cup, reaching the second round. The team played a total of 37 league and cup matches, winning 8, drawing 9 and losing 20. Bill Marriott was the club's top goalscorer, with four goals in the Southern League and one in the FA Cup. Joe Walton (pictured) made the most appearances, playing in 36 of the team's 37 games. The highest attendance recorded at Priestfield Road was 5,500 for a game against Portsmouth on 27 January 1906. (Full article...)

Arch of the Philaeni

• ... that the Arch of the Philaeni (pictured) drew parallels between the dictator Benito Mussolini and the Roman emperor Augustus?
• ... that George Lincoln helped draft the document which ended World War II 80 years ago today?
• ... that a music publication apologized after reporting that Ghostholding was the work of a fictional indie rock band?
• ... that Bosnian Olympic runners Islam Ðugum and Kada Delić were both nearly killed by snipers during their training?
• ... that brothers Craig and Scott Hendrickson played gridiron football together in college and professionally?
• ... that Andrea Enisuoh campaigned to retain the name of her local library, honouring Trinidadian writer C. L. R. James?
• ... that Somalia bans abortion in its constitution, one of only three countries to do so?
• ... that Amrom Harry Katz, using aerial photographs of tides, helped to capture Seoul during the Korean War?
• ... that the restaurant Megatron was reported to police as a UFO when it first opened?

Indonesian protests

• A magnitude-6.0 earthquake in Afghanistan leaves more than 800 people dead.
• Protests in Indonesia (pictured) erupt over increased benefits and salaries given to parliament members.
• Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra is removed from office by the Constitutional Court for misconduct.
• Targeted strikes by the Israeli Air Force kill several ministers of the Houthi–led government of Yemen, including Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi.

September 2: National Day in Vietnam (1945)

Japanese foreign minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signing the Instrument of Surrender

• 1666 – A large fire began in London's Pudding Lane and burned for five days, destroying St Paul's Cathedral and the homes of 70,000 of the city's 80,000 inhabitants.
• 1885 – White miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming, attacked Chinese-American immigrants, killing at least 28 Chinese miners and causing approximately $150,000 in property damage.
• 1901 – U.S. vice president Theodore Roosevelt first publicly used the phrase "speak softly and carry a big stick" at the Minnesota State Fair, describing his philosophy of negotiating peacefully while simultaneously threatening to use military force.
• 1945 – On the deck of the U.S. Navy battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay, representatives from the Empire of Japan and the Allied powers signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender (pictured), formally ending World War II.
• 2011 – Bad weather caused a Chilean Air Force aircraft to crash into the Pacific Ocean, killing all 21 people on board.

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Randy Travis (born 1959) is an American country and gospel music singer and songwriter. He has recorded more than 20 studio albums and charted more than 50 singles on Billboard's Hot Country Songs charts, including 16 that reached the number-one position. Travis's commercial success began in the mid-1980s with the release of his album Storms of Life, which was certified triple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. His major songs include "On the Other Hand", "Forever and Ever, Amen", "I Told You So", "Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart", and "Three Wooden Crosses". Travis is noted as a key figure in the neotraditional country movement, a return to more traditional sounds within the genre following the country pop crossovers of the early 1980s. Since surviving a near-fatal stroke in 2013, which severely limited his singing and speaking ability, he has released archival recordings and made limited public appearances. (Full article...)

Alejo Igoa

• ... that Alejo Igoa (pictured) hosts the most-subscribed Spanish-language YouTube channel?
• ... that Swertia japonica was used as an insecticide for clothes during the Edo period?
• ... that Joseph M'Bouroukounda was both an Olympic boxer and an art teacher?
• ... that a dam on Madura Island began construction in 1980, triggered a violent incident in 1993, and only opened in 2016?
• ... that Max-Emmanuel Mader pretended to be deaf and mute when Nazi Germany occupied France so that his accent could not be identified?
• ... that the dedication ceremony for the Cathedral of Christ the King was attended by both the governor of Georgia and an imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan?
• ... that Jordan Howlett went from sleeping in his car to amassing millions of followers on TikTok?
• ... that, in his autobiography, footballer Lê Công Vinh criticised a teammate for not passing the ball to him?
• ... that KING fought and then bought KONG?

Indonesian protests

• Protests in Indonesia (pictured) erupt over increased benefits and salaries given to parliament members.
• Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra is removed from office by the Constitutional Court for misconduct.
• Targeted strikes by the Israeli Air Force kill several ministers of the Houthi–led government of Yemen, including prime minister Ahmed al-Rahawi.
• The United Nations–backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirms a famine in the Gaza Governorate, Palestine.
• A multi-vehicle collision involving a bus carrying migrants deported from Iran kills at least 79 people in Herat Province, Afghanistan.

September 1: Labour Day in Canada and Labor Day in the United States (2025)

Title page of the soprano part book

• 1610 – Claudio Monteverdi's Vespro della Beata Vergine (page pictured) was first printed in Venice, dedicated to Pope Paul V.
• 1804 – German astronomer Karl Ludwig Harding discovered one of the largest main-belt asteroids, naming it Juno after the Roman goddess.
• 1902 – The first science fiction film, titled A Trip to the Moon and based on From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne, was released in France.
• 1937 – The first group of around 172,000 Koreans were deported by Soviet authorities from the Russian Far East to the Kazakh and Uzbek SSRs; around 10 to 25 percent died.
• 2000 – Speakers' Corner, a free speech area in Hong Lim Park in Singapore, was launched.

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Drew Goddard, writer, director and producer

Bad Times at the El Royale is a 2018 American neo-noir, hyperlink, thriller film written, directed, and produced by Drew Goddard (pictured). The film follows six strangers and an employee at the El Royale, a hotel located on the California–Nevada border, on a night in the late 1960s, exploring themes of morality, faith, redemption, and the concepts of right and wrong. Principal photography began on January 29, 2018, with cinematographer Seamus McGarvey, and concluded on April 6. Post-production editing was completed by Lisa Lassek and the musical score was composed by Michael Giacchino. The film underperformed at the box office, grossing $31.8 million against its $32 million production budget. Despite this, critics praised the soundtrack, performances of the cast, and McGarvey's cinematography, although they criticized its pacing, runtime, character beats, and Goddard’s writing. At the 45th Saturn Awards, the film received five nominations and won for Best Thriller Film. (Full article...)

Porcelain snuff bottle, 18th century

• ... that some Chinese snuff bottles (example pictured) were made to look like people?
• ... that boxing rings are square, despite their name?
• ... that as of 2024, fewer than 150 people had ever been diagnosed with Meier-Gorlin syndrome?
• ... that Ann Perkins often taught graduate students at Yale University even though, as a woman, she could not teach undergraduates?
• ... that the prefectural border on Hyōtanjima is only 74 metres (243 ft) long?
• ... that Moira Deeming comes from a family of union leaders and Australian Labor Party members, but is a member of the Liberal Party?
• ... that the spider Rhene hexagon gets its name from the unusual hexagonal shape of one of its principal body parts?
• ... that Matt Koehl stated that Adolf Hitler was "a gift of Almighty Providence"?
• ... that Eritrea's abortion law was based on Ethiopia's, which was based on Switzerland's, which was based on France's?

Miguel Uribe Turbay

• The United Nations–backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirms a famine in the Gaza Governorate, Palestine.
• A multi-vehicle collision involving a bus carrying migrants deported from Iran kills at least 79 people in Herat Province, Afghanistan.
• Colombian senator Miguel Uribe Turbay (pictured), a pre-candidate in the 2026 presidential election, dies two months after being shot.
• Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a declaration to formalize a future peace treaty to end the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

August 31: Independence Day in Malaysia (1957); Romanian Language Day in Moldova and Romania

Ngô Đình Nhu

• 1814 – War of 1812: American militia forces repelled a British Army force at the Battle of Caulk's Field, killing 41 people including British Captain Peter Parker.
• 1876 – Sultan Murad V of the Ottoman Empire was deposed after a reign of 93 days on grounds of mental illness.
• 1939 – Nazi forces, posing as Poles, staged an attack against the German radio station Sender Gleiwitz in Gleiwitz, Upper Silesia, Germany, creating an excuse to invade Poland the next day.
• 1959 – A parcel bomb sent by Ngô Đình Nhu (pictured), younger brother and chief adviser of South Vietnamese president Ngô Đình Diệm, failed to kill Norodom Sihanouk, Prime Minister of Cambodia.
• 2010 – The last episode of The Bill, the longest-running police drama in British television history, was broadcast.

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Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift is the debut studio album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift (pictured), released on October 24, 2006, by Big Machine Records. Swift wrote or co-wrote all the tracks of the album, based on her experiences as a teenager; its lyrics address love, friendship, and insecurity. Produced by Nathan Chapman, it is a country record with pop and pop rock influences, using acoustic arrangements composed of guitars, banjos, and fiddles. Critics generally praised the earnest teenage feelings portrayed in Taylor Swift, and it spent more weeks on the US Billboard 200 than any other album of the 2000s decade. Among its singles, "Our Song" and "Should've Said No" peaked atop the US Hot Country Songs chart, while "Teardrops on My Guitar" became Swift's first crossover success on the pop charts. Rolling Stone featured it in their 2022 list "100 Best Debut Albums of All Time". (This article is part of a featured topic: Taylor Swift original studio albums.)

Flag of El Salvador

• ... that one of the blue stripes on the flag of El Salvador (pictured) represents the Atlantic Ocean, despite the country not having a coastline on it?
• ... that the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre was established after a 2004 report found that captive bears in Malaysia were largely inadequately cared for?
• ... that Hadiza Bazoum, a former first lady of Niger, has been imprisoned in the Presidential Palace since a 2023 coup d'état?
• ... that the sculpture Against the Tide was inspired by a hand gesture of Michelangelo's Pietà?
• ... that NBA player Chris Mañon said that his role in college was to "make life hell" for the best opposing players?
• ... that Dutch Maid Bakery in Tennessee has survived fire, war, the Great Depression, and the rebranding of its fruitcake?
• ... that Yiddish poet Mikhl Gordon's first collection under his real name was not published until 1889, a year before his death?
• ... that the New Zealand band Sachi gained prominence after throwing a USB demo through the car window of music producer Diplo?
• ... that church chancellor Baldwin and knight Bernard Vacher were sent to tell Pisa and Genoa to stop feuding and fight Muslims together instead, but the Italians would have none of that?

Miguel Uribe Turbay

• The United Nations–backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirms a famine in the Gaza Governorate, Palestine.
• A multi-vehicle collision involving a bus carrying migrants deported from Iran kills at least 79 people in Herat Province, Afghanistan.
• Colombian senator Miguel Uribe Turbay (pictured), a pre-candidate in the 2026 presidential election, dies two months after being shot.
• Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a declaration to formalize a future peace treaty to end the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

August 30: Victory Day in Turkey (1922)

Michael Schumacher

• 1914 – World War I: The Battle of Tannenberg resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian 2nd Army by the German 8th Army.
• 1959 – Writer and politician Abdul Muis became the first person to be awarded the posthumous title of National Hero of Indonesia.
• 1981 – Iranian president Mohammad-Ali Rajai and prime minister Mohammad-Javad Bahonar were assassinated in a bombing committed by the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran.
• 1984 – Discovery, the third orbiter of NASA's Space Shuttle program, lifted off on its maiden voyage from Kennedy Space Center, Florida.
• 1990 – Gulf War: US General Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. issued General Order No. 1 prohibiting US troops from consuming alcohol or possessing pornographic material.

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Harriet Leveson-Gower, Countess Granville (29 August 1785 – 25 November 1862), was a British society hostess and writer. The younger daughter of Lady Georgiana Spencer and the 5th Duke of Devonshire, she was a member of the wealthy Cavendish and Spencer families. In 1809, Harriet married Granville Leveson-Gower, a diplomat who had been her maternal aunt's lover for seventeen years. During intermittent periods between 1824 and 1841, Granville served as the British ambassador to France, requiring Harriet to perform an array of social duties in Paris that she often found exhausting. A prolific writer of letters, Harriet corresponded with others for most of her life, often describing her observations of those around her. Historians have since found her detailed accounts to be a valuable source of information on life as an ambassadress as well as life in the 19th-century aristocracy. Between 1894 and 1990, four edited collections of Harriet's correspondence were published. (Full article...)

Sibylla crowning Guy as king

• ... that Queen Sibylla agreed to divorce her unpopular husband, Guy, on the condition that she could choose her next husband, only for her to choose Guy again and crown him king (pictured)?
• ... that James Marriott's second album took its name from an incident involving a dog that was left behind during a childhood move?
• ... that singer Tati Penna was considered one of the first feminists on Chilean television?
• ... that in a speech at Howard University, novelist Toni Morrison described fascism as a marketing strategy for power?
• ... that RhonniRose Mantilla produced, directed and created her own musical to showcase her dancing?
• ... that Canadian football player Nigel Williams served two tours of duty during the war in Afghanistan?
• ... that Lego sued Nintendo over their N&B Block toys?
• ... that literary scholar Mitzi Myers tried to rescue her library as it burned in a house fire?
• ... that an 8th-century log of agarwood was enjoyed as incense for more than a millennium by Japanese leaders including Oda Nobunaga and Emperor Meiji?

Miguel Uribe Turbay

• The United Nations–backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirms a famine in the Gaza Governorate, Palestine.
• A multi-vehicle collision involving a bus carrying migrants deported from Iran kills at least 79 people in Herat Province, Afghanistan.
• Colombian senator Miguel Uribe Turbay (pictured), a pre-candidate in the 2026 presidential election, dies two months after being shot.
• Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a declaration to formalize a future peace treaty to end the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

August 29: Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist (Catholicism, Anglicanism); Qixi Festival in China (2025)

Daimler Reitwagen replica

• 1475 – France signed the Treaty of Picquigny with England, freeing Louis XI to deal with the threat posed by Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy.
• 1885 – Gottlieb Daimler patented the world's first internal-combustion motorcycle, the Reitwagen (replica pictured).
• 1911 – The last member of the Yahi, known as Ishi, emerged from the wilderness near Oroville, California, to join European American society.
• 1959 – Mona Best opened the Casbah Coffee Club with a performance by the Quarrymen, the precursor of the Beatles.
• 1960 – Air France Flight 343 crashed while attempting to land at Yoff Airport, Dakar, killing all 63 occupants.

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Harry Crerar (1888–1965) was a Canadian Army officer who was the country's senior field commander in the Second World War as the commander of the First Canadian Army in the campaign in North West Europe in 1944–1945. A graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario, he was commissioned in the Non-Permanent Active Militia in 1909. He saw action in the First World War, for which he was mentioned in despatches and made a companion of the Distinguished Service Order. After the war, he attended the Staff College, Camberley, and the Imperial Defence College. In March 1944, he assumed command of the First Canadian Army, which also contained British, Polish and Czech troops. Under his command, it fought in the Battle of Normandy, cleared the Channel Coast, and liberated the western Netherlands in April 1945. He was promoted to full general on 16 November 1944, becoming the first Canadian officer to hold that rank in the field. (Full article...)

James R. Thompson Center

• ... that the namesake of the James R. Thompson Center (pictured) once called it a "scrap heap"?
• ... that by 2010 Yi Kŭmch'ŏl had written approximately one-fifth of all North Korean science fiction literature?
• ... that members of the Sole Front for Women's Rights staged a hunger strike outside the Mexican president's official residence?
• ... that the Royal Alderney Militia were described as "totally inefficient" and "useless" by two generals in the mid–19th century?
• ... that the voice actress for Marin Kitagawa said that she would get very hungry after recording lines for the role?
• ... that the person who coined the term "Barbenheimer" did not recall writing it?
• ... that medical doctor Jules LaDuron tried to stab someone with a bayonet?
• ... that the Carthaginians faked agreement to a peace deal after a battle to train their surviving forces for the next one?
• ... that Miriam Silverberg's academic career ended with Erotic Grotesque Nonsense?

Miguel Uribe Turbay

• The United Nations–backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirms a famine in the Gaza Governorate, Palestine.
• A multi-vehicle collision involving a bus carrying migrants deported from Iran kills at least 79 people in Herat Province, Afghanistan.
• Colombian senator Miguel Uribe Turbay (pictured), a pre-candidate in the 2026 presidential election, dies two months after being shot.
• Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a declaration to formalize a future peace treaty to end the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

August 28

Replica of Tom Thumb

• 475 – Orestes took control of Ravenna, the capital of the Western Roman Empire, forcing Emperor Julius Nepos to flee.
• 1830 – Tom Thumb (replica pictured), the first American-built steam locomotive, took part in an impromptu race against a horse-drawn car in Maryland.
• 1950 – American tennis player Althea Gibson became the first African-American woman to compete at the U.S. National Championships.
• 1955 – African-American teenager Emmett Till was lynched near Money, Mississippi, for allegedly flirting with a white woman, energizing the nascent American civil rights movement.
• 1973 – Swedish police used gas bombs to end a seven-day hostage situation in Stockholm; the hostages had bonded with their captors during the incident, leading to the term Stockholm syndrome.

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Main entrance to the stadium

Gateshead International Stadium is a multi-purpose, all-seater venue in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England, built in 1955. The largest stadium in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, it has a history of use for athletics events, sports, and musical performances. Gateshead Harriers Athletic Club (which includes Jonathan Edwards) have used the site since 1956. At the 1974 "Gateshead Games", Brendan Foster broke the world record in the men's 3,000 metres. It has since hosted the British Grand Prix (2003–2010) and the European Athletics Team Championships in 1989, 2000 and 2013. Five world records have been set at the stadium, including two by pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva and a tied 100 metres record by Asafa Powell in 2006. It has been used by Gateshead F.C. and its predecessors since 1973. The stadium was home to the rugby league club Gateshead Thunder during their spell in the Super League, and the replacement Gateshead Thunder club played home games in the main arena until 2015. (Full article...)

Pupusas

• ... that both El Salvador and Honduras claim to be the country of origin of the pupusa (examples pictured)?
• ... that Justin Nsengiyumva was appointed Rwanda's prime minister in the same year that he returned to the country after more than 15 years?
• ... that, before air conditioning, a company in the U.S. chocolate industry made confections at night to sell the next morning?
• ... that Julia Hagen plays a cello made by Francesco Ruggeri in 1684?
• ... that the ban on abortion in the Republic of the Congo is unchanged from a law from 1810?
• ... that sprinter George Short first started training at the age of 17, then competed in the Olympics two years later?
• ... that the former luxury passenger liner HMS Worcestershire carried reinforcements across the English Channel on the day after D-Day?
• ... that Alberic II of Spoleto appointed five popes and fathered another?
• ... that the submarine Dmitry Donskoy has a gym, a swimming pool, a sauna, and an aviary?

Miguel Uribe Turbay

• The United Nations–backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirms a famine in the Gaza Governorate, Palestine.
• A multi-vehicle collision involving a bus carrying migrants deported from Iran kills at least 79 people in Herat Province, Afghanistan.
• Colombian senator Miguel Uribe Turbay (pictured), a pre-candidate in the 2026 presidential election, dies two months after being shot.
• Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a declaration to formalize a future peace treaty to end the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

August 27: Independence Day in Moldova (1991)