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December 27

Palo priest with ritual objects

Palo is an African diasporic religion that developed in Cuba during the late 19th or early 20th century. It draws heavily upon the traditional Kongo religion of Central Africa, and from Catholicism and Spiritism. Central to Palo is the nganga, usually made from an iron cauldron. Many nganga are regarded as material manifestations of ancestral or nature deities known as mpungu. The nganga may contain a wide range of objects, among the most important being sticks and human remains, the latter called nfumbe. In Palo, the presence of the nfumbe means that the spirit of that dead person inhabits the nganga and serves the possessor. The nganga is "fed" with the blood of sacrificed animals and other offerings. Palo is most heavily practiced in eastern Cuba although it is found throughout the island and abroad, including in other parts of the Americas such as Venezuela, Mexico, and the United States. Palo adherents have faced problems with police for grave robbery to procure human bones. (Full article...)

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April 27

Kylie Minogue is an Australian singer and actress. She rose to prominence in the late 1980s as a result of her role in the Australian television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing her career as a pop singer and recording artist. Signed to a contract by British songwriters and record producers Stock, Aitken and Waterman, Minogue achieved a string of hit records throughout the world, but her popularity began to decline by the early 1990s, leading her to part company from them in 1992. For several years she attempted to establish herself as an independent performer and songwriter, distancing herself from her earlier work. Her projects were widely publicised, but despite a couple of hit singles, her albums failed to attract a substantial audience, resulting in the lowest sales of her career. In 2000, she returned to popularity as a dance/pop music artist and became well-known for her provocative music videos and expensively mounted stage shows. In Europe and Australia, Minogue has become one of her generation's most recognisable celebrities and sex symbols. (more...)

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March 27

Julia Stiles is an American stage and screen actress, hailed as "the thinking teenagers' movie goddess" by a New York Times critic. After beginning her theater career in small parts, she has moved on to leading roles in plays by writers as diverse as William Shakespeare and David Mamet; her film career has been both a commercial and critical success, ranging from teen romantic comedies such as 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) to dark art house pictures such as The Business of Strangers (2001). When Stiles isn't working she actively supports a variety of progressive and liberal issues. (more...)

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February 27

The Great Lakes Storm of 1913 was a blizzard with hurricane-force winds that devastated the Great Lakes basin in the United States Midwest and the Canadian province of Ontario from November 7 to November 10, 1913. The deadliest natural disaster to ever hit the lakes, it killed over 250 people, destroyed 19 ships, and stranded 19 others. The financial loss in vessels alone was nearly USD$5 million, or about US$100 million in present-day adjusted dollars. The large loss of cargo, including coal, iron ore, and grain, meant short-term rising prices for consumer products throughout North America. The storm originated as the convergence of two major storm fronts that was fuelled by the lakes' relatively warm waters, a seasonal process historically called a "November gale." It produced 90 mile per hour (145 km/hour) winds, waves over 35 feet (11 m) high, and whiteout snow squalls. (more...)

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January 27

Robert Walpole is generally regarded as the first Prime Minister of Great Britain. The position of Prime Minister was only a de facto one, having no official recognition in law, but Walpole is nevertheless acknowledged as having held the de facto office due to the extent of his influence in the Cabinet. Walpole, a Whig, served during the reigns of George I and George II. His tenure is normally dated to 1721, when he obtained the post of First Lord of the Treasury; others date it to 1730, when, with the retirement of Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend, he became the sole and undisputed leader of the Cabinet. Walpole continued to govern until he resigned in 1742, making his administration the longest in British history. (more...)

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December 27

The Horseshoe Falls, one of the three Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls is a group of massive waterfalls located on the Niagara River in eastern North America, on the border between the United States and Canada. The Falls comprises three separate waterfalls: Horseshoe Falls (sometimes called Canadian Falls); American Falls; and the smaller, adjacent Bridal Veil Falls. While not exceptionally high, Niagara Falls is very wide, and is by far the most voluminous waterfall in North America. Since its first sighting by European settlers, Niagara Falls has become widely known not just for its beauty, but also as a source of hydroelectric power and as a challenging project for environmental preservation. A popular tourist site for over a century, the Falls are shared between the twin cities of Niagara Falls, New York and Niagara Falls, Ontario. (more...)

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November 27

The Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution amended the provisions of Article II relating to presidential elections. Originally, the Electoral College would elect both the President and the Vice President in a single election; the person with a majority would become President and the runner-up would become Vice President. The election of 1800, however, demonstrated some problems with the system. The Twelfth Amendment, proposed by Congress on December 9, 1803 and ratified by the requisite number of state legislatures on June 15, 1804, required electors to cast two distinct votes: one for President and another for Vice President. (more...)

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October 27

Portuguese is a Romance language predominantly spoken in Portugal, Brazil, Angola, Mozambique and East Timor. With more than 200 million native speakers, Portuguese is one of the few languages spoken all over the world. In terms of speakers, Portuguese is the fifth or sixth mother tongue language in the world. The language was spread worldwide in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries as Portugal created the first and the longest lived modern-world colonial and commercial empire (1415–1975), spanning from Brazil in the Americas to Macau in China and Japan. As a result, Portuguese is now the official language of several independent countries and is widely spoken or studied as a second language in many others. There are still more than 20 Portuguese Creole languages. It is an important minority language in Andorra, Luxembourg, Goa and Namibia. Large Portuguese-speaking immigrant communities exist in many cities around the world, including Paris in France and Boston, New Bedford, and Newark in the United States. (more...)

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September 27

Yesterday is a song written by Paul McCartney, originally recorded by The Beatles for their album Help! in 1965. "Yesterday" was the first official recording by the group which relied upon a performance by a single member of the band, although the background accompaniment of a string quartet was added a few days later during the editing stage. It is a ballad about unrequited love, and differed greatly from other works by the Beatles, leading the other three members of the band to veto the song's release as a single in the United Kingdom. Although solely written by McCartney, due to his contract with the Beatles the song was credited to both him and John Lennon as "Lennon/McCartney". According to the Guinness Book of Records, "Yesterday" has the most cover versions (over three thousand) of any song yet produced. BMI asserts that it was performed over seven million times during the 20th century alone. (more...)

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September 6

The Warsaw Uprising was an armed struggle during the Second World War by the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw from German occupation and Nazi rule. It started on August 1, 1944 as a part of a nationwide uprising, Operation Tempest. The Polish troops resisted the German-led forces until October 2. An estimated 85% of the city was destroyed during the urban guerrilla war and after the end of hostilities. The Uprising started at a crucial point in the war as the Soviet army was approaching Warsaw. Although the Soviet army was within a few hundred metres of the city from September 16 onward, the link between the uprising and the advancing army was never made. This failure and the reasons behind it have been a matter of controversy ever since. (more...)

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August 27

Coca-Cola is a popular carbonated drink sold in stores, restaurants and vending machines in many nations of the world. It is one of the world's most recognizable and widely sold commercial brands, available in over 200 countries, and is the best-selling soft drink in all but three of those countries. The Coca-Cola Company's international headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia. Coke's major rival is Pepsi, which began as its imitator in the early 20th century. (more...)

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July 27

A copyright provides its holder the right to restrict unauthorized copying and reproduction of an original expression (i.e. literary work, movie, music, painting, software, mask work, etc.) Copyright, unlike patents, does not grant a monopoly right to the use of an invention or an idea, but merely the right to prevent others from copying your specific implementation or expression. Copyright should also not be confused with the form of intellectual property law called trademarks. Copyright also does not prohibit all forms of copying.

In the United States, the fair use clause of the Copyright Act allows copying and distribution under certain limited circumstances. Copyright law is controversial, with some seeing it as essential to prevent abuse, while others find it too restrictive. This has led to the concept of copyleft and alternative licences. (more...)

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June 27

Poetry is an art form in which human language is used for its aesthetic qualities in addition to, or instead of, its notional and syntactical content. It consists largely of oral or literary works in which language is used in a manner that is felt by its user and audience to differ from ordinary prose. It may use condensed or compressed form to convey emotion or ideas to the reader's or listener's mind or ear; it may also use devices such as assonance and repetition to achieve musical or incantatory effects. Poems frequently rely for their effect on imagery, word association, and the musical qualities of the language used. (more...)

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May 27

A submarine is a specialized boat that travels under water, usually for military or scientific purposes. Most major navies of the world employ submarines. Submarines are also used for marine and freshwater science and for work at depths too great for human divers. U-boat is the abbreviation of Unterseeboot, the German name for submarines (first commissioned in WWI). Another underwater device for use in underwater exploration and salvage is the diving bell. (more...)

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April 27

The postal system is a system for transporting objects, usually written documents typically enclosed in envelopes and also small packages containing other matter, around the world. Anything sent through the postal system is called mail or post. In principle, a postal service can be private or official. Restrictions are generally placed on private systems by governments. Since the 19th century, national postal systems have generally been established as government monopolies with postage (tax) on the article prepaid, often in the form of stamps. (more...)

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March 27

Mandarin glyph

Mandarin is the official Chinese spoken language used in the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC). It is also one of four official languages in Singapore. The efforts of both the PRC and ROC to promote Mandarin as the standard tongue have made it the most spoken language in the world. (more...)

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