Wikipedia:Main Page history/2012 October 1

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Today's featured article

Monadnock Building

The Monadnock Building is a skyscraper in the south Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. The north half of the building was built in 1891, and its decorative staircases were the first use of aluminum in building construction. The south half (pictured), constructed in 1893, is similar in color and profile to the original, but the design is more traditionally ornate. When completed, it was the largest office building in the world. The building was remodeled in 1938 in one of the first major skyscraper renovations. It was sold in 1979 and restored to its original condition. The north half is an unornamented vertical mass of purple-brown brick, flaring gently out at the base and top. The south half is vertically divided by brickwork at the base and rises to a large copper cornice at the roof. Projecting window bays in both halves allow large exposures of glass, giving the building an open appearance despite its mass. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. Modern critics have called it a "triumph of unified design" and "one of the most exciting aesthetic experiences America's commercial architecture has produced". (more...)

Recently featured: Nancy Drew – Armillaria luteobubalina – Rhyolite, Nevada

Did you know...

From Wikipedia's newest content:

Gonzales de Cordoba

  • ... that the German town of Bacharach was captured by Spanish forces led by Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba (pictured) on this day in 1620?
  • ... that the Anglo-Saxon Bamburgh Sword is thought to be unique due to the number of strands of iron used to create the blade?
  • ... that Boletus abruptibulbus, Leccinum arenicola, and Phylloporus arenicola are the only North American Boletaceae mushrooms that grow in coastal sand dunes?
  • ... that Byzantine aristocrat Manuel Maurozomes became the father-in-law of the Seljuk sultan Kaykhusraw I and helped him regain his throne?
  • ... that Bach based his chorale cantata Ach, lieben Christen, seid getrost, BWV 114, on the hymn by Johannes Gigas and first performed it on 1 October 1724, two days after his previous chorale cantata?
  • ... that dark eggplant skins were historically used by aristocratic women in China to make black dye, which they often used to stain their teeth?
  • ... that the management regimen for Ridley Bottom nature reserve in Gloucestershire, England, calls for both hay cutting and grazing by sheep?
  • ... that six of Fred Young's films have the word Solo in the title?
  • In the news

  • The African Union helps South Sudan and Sudan negotiate oil revenue and other agreements following conflict earlier this year.
  • In sumo, Mongolian wrestler Harumafuji Kōhei (pictured) is formally promoted to become the 70th yokozuna.
  • At the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards, Homeland and Modern Family win the awards for Outstanding Drama and Comedy Series, respectively.
  • In Gaelic football, Donegal defeat Mayo in the 2012 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.
  • After 40 suicides of victims trigger a parliamentary inquiry, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne confirms the sexual abuse of 618 children over 80 years.
  • On this day...

    October 1: Unification Day in Cameroon (1961); National Day in China (1949); Independence Day in Cyprus and Nigeria (both 1960), and Tuvalu (1978)

    A Shinkansen 0 Series "bullet train"

  • 1832 – The first political gathering of colonists in Mexican Texas convened to seek reforms from the Mexican government in hopes of quelling the widespread belief that settlers in Texas wished to secede from Mexico.
  • 1949Chinese Civil War: Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong proclaimed the establishment of the People's Republic of China.
  • 1964Tōkaidō Shinkansen, the first Shinkansen line of high-speed railways in Japan (0 series 6-car trainset pictured), opened for service.
  • 1991Croatian War of Independence: Yugoslav National Army forces invaded the area surrounding Dubrovnik, Croatia, beginning a seven-month siege of the city.
  • 2009 – The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, which acquired the judicial functions of the House of Lords, began work.

    More anniversaries: September 30 October 1 October 2

    It is now October 1, 2012 (UTC) – Refresh this page
  • Today's featured list

    A primate with white fur, black face, and red eyes gripping a tree with both hands and feet in the foreground and green leaves in the background

    The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates is a list of highly endangered primate species selected and published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Species Survival Commission Primate Specialist Group, the International Primatological Society, and Conservation International. The countries with the most species on the list are Madagascar with five species, Vietnam with five species, and Indonesia with four species. The list has been published five times, with seven species appearing on all five lists: the silky sifaka (pictured), Delacour's langur, golden-headed langur, grey-shanked douc, Tonkin snub-nosed monkey, Cross River gorilla, and Sumatran orangutan. The two greatest threats that primates face are habitat loss and hunting. More specifically, threats listed in the report include deforestation, forest fragmentation, small population sizes, live capture for the exotic pet trade, and hunting for bushmeat and traditional medicine. (more...)

    Today's featured picture

    Moon jellyfish

    The moon jelly (Aurelia aurita) is a widely studied species of jellyfish found throughout most of the world's oceans. It is translucent, usually about 25–40 cm (10–16 in) in diameter, and can be recognized by its four horseshoe-shaped gonads, easily seen through the bell. It is capable of only limited motion, and drifts with the current, even when swimming.

    Photo: Dante Alighieri

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