Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 December 1

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From today's featured article

The Beringian wolf (a subspecies of Canis lupus) lived during the last Ice Age in what is now Alaska, the Yukon, and northern Wyoming. The wolf was more robust, with stronger jaws and teeth, than other Late Pleistocene gray wolves and the comparably sized modern Yukon wolf (Canis lupus pambasileus), but not as strong as the dire wolf. The unique adaptation of the skull and dentition of the Beringian wolf allowed it to produce relatively large bite forces, grapple with large struggling prey, and therefore to predate and scavenge on Pleistocene megafauna. The wolf has been comprehensively studied, yielding new information on the prey species and feeding behavior of prehistoric wolves. The Beringian wolf preyed most often on horse and steppe bison, and also on caribou, mammoth, and woodland musk ox. The species survived well into the Holocene before its extinction at the close of the Ice Age, when cold and dry conditions abated and much of its prey also went extinct. The remains of ancient wolves with similar skulls and dentition have been found in western Beringia (north-east Siberia). (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Hoysala emblem

... that in Hoysala architecture, the emblem of the empire – a warrior stabbing a lion – is often sculpted on the sukanasa of Hindu temples (example pictured)?
... that Harimia Ahmed was the first female lawyer in the Comoros?
... that Lake Cahuilla, with a maximum surface area of 5,700 square kilometres (2,200 sq mi), covered parts of Southern California less than 500 years ago?
... that Hari Kondabolu's documentary The Problem with Apu started as a one-minute comedy bit?
... that Colorado businesswoman and philanthropist Merle Chambers is one of the top ten political contributors in her state?
... that parts of the Colombian mushroom Boletus pyrrhosceles turn blue when damaged?
... that in 1995, Nigerian activist Sokari Ekine set up the Black Sisters Network electronic mailing list?
... that A. R. "Babe" Schwartz fought to have the Westgate Tower condemned in the Texas Legislature, only to move into the building himself fifteen years later?

In the news

Slobodan Praljak

Former Bosnian Croat army general Slobodan Praljak (pictured) dies from drinking poison after his conviction for war crimes is upheld by the ICTY.
In sumo, yokozuna Harumafuji Kōhei retires amidst investigations into an assault on fellow wrestler Takanoiwa Yoshimori.
Indonesian officials order the evacuation of 100,000 people in Bali due to the eruption of Mount Agung.
In Canadian football, the Toronto Argonauts defeat the Calgary Stampeders to win the Grey Cup.
At least 305 people are killed in a terrorist attack on a mosque in Bir al-Abed, Egypt.

On this day...

December 1: World AIDS Day

Rosa Parks

1577 – Elizabeth I of England's principal secretary and spymaster Francis Walsingham was knighted.
1822 – Pedro I was formally crowned the first Emperor of Brazil, seven weeks after his reign began on his 24th birthday.
1955 – In a key event in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, Rosa Parks (pictured) was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus to a white man in Montgomery, Alabama, sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
1959 – Twelve countries signed the Antarctic Treaty, the first arms control agreement established during the Cold War, banning military activity in the Antarctic and setting the continent aside as a scientific preserve.
1991 – Over 92% of Ukrainian voters approved their country's independence as declared by the Ukrainian parliament on 24 August.

Saint Eligius (d. 660) · Marie Tussaud (b. 1761) · Masao Horiba (b. 1924)

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From today's featured list

Part of A New Account of the Tales of the World

Chinese books represent about one fourth of the 223 National Treasures of Japan in the category "writings". The term National Treasure has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties since 1897, although the definition and the criteria have changed since the introduction of the term. The items are selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology based on their "especially high historical or artistic value". Written language was introduced to Japan around 400 AD in the form of Chinese books written in Classical Chinese. Japanese interest in Chinese writings and culture gradually increased towards the end of the 6th century when Japanese rulers sent missions to the mainland for cultural studies, and to bring back books. During circa 300 years in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, a large number of Chinese books were brought to Japan. By the 8th century, Chinese works were customarily copied at Japanese libraries to satisfy the demand for education of the male aristocracy. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

A single-pitch angklung from Bandung, Indonesia. The angklung is a musical instrument made of a varying number of bamboo tubes attached to a bamboo frame. The base of the frame is held in one hand, whilst the other hand shakes the instrument. This causes a repeating note to sound. The tubes are carved to have a resonant pitch when struck and are tuned to octaves. When single-pitch angklung such as this are used in angklung ensemble, each of the performers plays just one note or more, but together they produce complete melodies.

Photograph: Chris Woodrich

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