Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 March 13

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Today's featured article
L. Ron Hubbard L. Ron Hubbard (1911–1986) was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology. After establishing a career as a writer of pulp fiction, becoming best known for his science fiction and fantasy stories, he developed a self-help system called Dianetics which was first published in 1950. He subsequently developed his ideas into a wide-ranging set of doctrines and rituals as part of a new religious movement that he called Scientology. His writings became the guiding texts for the Church of Scientology and a number of affiliated organizations that address such diverse topics as business administration, literacy and drug rehabilitation. The Church of Scientology depicts Hubbard in hagiographic terms, drawing on his legacy as its ultimate source of doctrine and legitimacy. His critics have characterized him as a liar, a charlatan and a madman, and many of his autobiographical statements have been proven to be fictitious. (more...) Recently featured: Government of the Han Dynasty – Joseph Szigeti – Thoroughbred Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest articles: ... that the geebungs of the eastern states of Australia can be narrow-leaved, lance-leaved, broad-leaved (pictured), prickly, prostrate, or stiff? ... that American naval surgeon Charles Guillou had a papal patient Pius? ... that Did You Know People Can Fly? is the first full-length album by Kaddisfly? ... that the 5000-year old settlement of Jemdet Nasr is the type site for the Jemdet Nasr period in ancient Mesopotamia? ... that the Italian wine Est! Est!! Est!!! gets its unusual name from the tale of a bishop's servant traveling ahead to Rome and marking Est ("It is") on inns where he found the best-tasting wines? ... that the German ancestry and strict discipline of its first commander earned No. 2 Service Flying Training School RAAF the nickname "Scherger's Concentration Camp"? ... that Florida-based Christian radio station WFRF helped launch Imani Radio in Kenya and provided 2,500 solar powered radios to local villages, hospitals, and prisoners? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
An explosion at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant (pictured) in Ōkuma, Japan, raises fears of a nuclear meltdown. A 9.0-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Japan triggers a 10-metre (33 ft) tsunami, killing more than 600 people. Amid a continued uprising in Libya, France becomes the first country to recognize the National Transitional Council as Libya's legitimate government. A 5.4-magnitude earthquake strikes Yunnan, China, severely damaging more than 18,000 houses and apartment buildings. Belimumab becomes the first drug in over 50 years to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of lupus. Middle East and North Africa protests Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
March 13 1781 – German-born British astronomer and composer William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus (pictured) while in the garden of his house in Bath, Somerset, England, thinking it was a comet. 1884 – Mahdist War: Forces loyal to self-proclaimed Mahdi Muhammad Ahmad began a 319-day siege of a combined Anglo-Egyptian force defending Khartoum, Sudan. 1988 – The Seikan Tunnel, the longest and deepest tunnel in the world, opened between the cities of Hakodate and Aomori, Japan. 1997 – A series of unexplained lights appeared in the skies over the U.S. states of Arizona and New Mexico, and the Mexican state of Sonora. More anniversaries: March 12 – March 13 – March 14 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now March 13 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The flower of a Micrantheum serpentinum (Western Tridentbush), a species of woody shrub or small tree endemic to Tasmania. The plant typically grows up to 3 m (9.8 ft) tall. It has small, thin leaves with pointed ends, and small yellow-green flowers. The oval-shaped fruit is yellow-brown in colour, roughly 3 mm (0.1 in) long, and ripens in mid-summer.

Photo: JJ Harrison

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