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From today's featured article
Tragic Kingdom is the third studio album by American band No Doubt (pictured), released on October 10, 1995, by Trauma Records and Interscope Records. Produced by Matthew Wilder, it was the last No Doubt album to feature Eric Stefani. The album spawned seven singles, including "Just a Girl", which charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK singles chart, and "Don't Speak", which topped the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay and reached the top five of many international charts. It reached number one on the Billboard 200, as well as topping the charts in Canada and in New Zealand, selling more than 16 million copies worldwide. The album was certified diamond by the RIAA in the United States and Canada, platinum in the United Kingdom, and triple platinum in Australia. At the 39th Annual Grammy Awards, No Doubt earned nominations for Best New Artist and Best Rock Album. Tragic Kingdom helped facilitate the ska revival of the 1990s and was ranked number 441 on Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that architect Dirk Lohan paid $2,705 for the right to smash a window at a building his grandfather designed (pictured)?
- ... that Bernardo Zapater, a founding member of Spain's oldest private scientific society, is the namesake of a "totally underrated" flower?
- ... that the Sentachan Mine was listed as the second-coldest mine in the world by Mining.com?
- ... that Patricia Arquette researched cults and armies to prepare for her role as Harmony Cobel in the television series Severance?
- ... that Rockefeller University sold a version of Joan Mitchell's City Landscape for $17 million in 2024 to fund research?
- ... that Filipino police chief Guillermo Eleazar rose to prominence after publicly shaming another officer?
- ... that the urban environment around Glasgow's Argyle Street ash tree may have helped it to survive ash dieback disease?
- ... that Cal Clemens "tackled like a sledge hammer"?
- ... that a Japanese porn actor opened a restaurant that served poo-flavored curry?
In the news
- The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded to John Clarke, Michel Devoret (pictured), and John M. Martinis for their work on macroscopic quantum phenomena.
- The Nobel Prize in Medicine is awarded to Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their work on peripheral immune tolerance.
- The ANO party, led by Andrej Babiš, wins the most seats in the Czech parliamentary election.
- Sarah Mullally is announced as the next archbishop of Canterbury, which will make her the first female leader of the Anglican Communion.
On this day
- 680 – Husayn ibn Ali, a grandson of Muhammad, was killed at the Battle of Karbala (depicted) by the forces of Yazid I, whom Husayn had refused to recognize as caliph.
- 1760 – In a treaty with Dutch colonial authorities, the Ndyuka people of Suriname gained territorial autonomy.
- 1911 – The Xinhai Revolution began with the Wuchang Uprising, marking the beginning of the collapse of the Qing dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China.
- 1943 – World War II: The Kempeitai, the military police arm of the Imperial Japanese Army, arrested and tortured fifty-seven civilians and civilian internees on suspicion of their involvement in a raid on Singapore Harbour.
- 2004 – Eight-year-old Huang Na was abducted and murdered; her body was found three weeks later after a search across Singapore and Malaysia.
- Antoine Coysevox (d. 1720)
- Harold Pinter (b. 1930)
- Marina Diamandis (b. 1985)
- Priaulx Rainier (d. 1986)
From today's featured list
The 1991 Atlantic hurricane season was a below-average Atlantic hurricane season that produced twelve tropical cyclones, of which eight strengthened to become named tropical storms; four of these became hurricanes, of which two further intensified into major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher on the Saffir–Simpson scale). The most destructive storm of the season was Hurricane Bob (pictured), which brushed the Outer Banks of North Carolina near peak intensity on August 19, then made landfall twice in Rhode Island later that day. Bob killed at least seventeen people along its path and caused extensive damage in New England, totaling $1.5 billion (1991 USD). The season's other significant storm was a powerful nor'easter known as the Perfect Storm. It caused severe coastal damage in the northeastern United States, with impacts noted as far south as Puerto Rico. Damages exceeded $200 million (1991 USD) and thirteen people were killed. (Full list...)
Today's featured picture

The Australian Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. It meets at Parliament House in the national capital, Canberra. There are 76 senators, elected through single transferable vote in state-wide and territory-wide elections. Each of the six Australian states elects 12 senators, while the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory elect 2 each. The role of the Senate is defined in the constitution of Australia and it has almost equal powers to the lower house. In contrast to other countries with a Westminster system of government, the Australian Senate plays an active role in legislation, although in practice most legislation is initiated by the government, which controls the lower house. This photograph shows the chamber where the Senate meets.
Photograph credit: JJ Harrison