Wikipedia:Main Page history/2014 May 11

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From today's featured article

Oryzomys peninsulae, also known as the Lower California rice rat, is a species of rodent from western Mexico. Restricted to the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula, it is a member of the genus Oryzomys of family Cricetidae. Twenty-one specimens of O. peninsulae are known, caught in 1896 and 1906 at two locations about 13 km (8 mi) apart along the Río San José, a river in southernmost Baja California Sur. Río San José no longer exists, having fallen prey to irrigation projects, and touristic development of its estuary has resulted in pollution. Biologists working in the area in 1979 and from 1991 to 1993 failed to find O. peninsulae, casting doubt on its continued existence. Medium in size for its genus, it was first described as a separate species, but later lumped into other widespread species until it was reinstated as separate in 2009. It is distinctive in fur color—grayish brown on the forequarters and reddish brown on the hindquarters—and in some dimensions of its skull (pictured), with a high braincase, robust zygomatic arches (cheekbones), and long incisive foramina (perforations of the palate between the incisors and the molars). (Full article...)

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Did you know...

From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:

... that after the Hildesheim Cathedral, a World Heritage Site, was destroyed in World War II, the westwork (pictured) was restored without the additions made in 1840?
... that to avenge the execution of her son, Mother Lü beheaded her son's killer, sacrificed his head on her son's tomb, and became the first female rebel leader in Chinese history?
... that an imperforate hymen is the most common congenital cause of vaginal obstruction?
... that Mahatma Gandhi founded the Harijan Sevak Sangh to remove untouchability from Indian society?
... that U.S. Marshal William K. Meade organized the liberation of Arizona Territorial Governor C. Meyer Zulick from imprisonment in Mexico?
... that part of The Black Eyed Peas' song "Boom Boom Pow" was inspired by Bizarre Inc's "I'm Gonna Get You"?
... that Benedict Cumberbatch has been called the "Thinking Woman's Crumpet"?

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In the news

"Rise Like a Phoenix" by Austrian singer Conchita Wurst (pictured) wins the Eurovision Song Contest.
Syrian government forces capture the strategic city of Homs after three years of siege and a ceasefire agreement allowing rebel withdrawal.
The Constitutional Court of Thailand rules that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra abused her power and removes her from office.
Mark Selby defeats Ronnie O'Sullivan to win the World Snooker Championship.
Two bus bombings in Nairobi, Kenya, kill three people and injure sixty-two others.

Ongoing: Ukrainian unrest – Chibok kidnapping
Recent deaths: Farley Mowat – Maria Lassnig – Tatiana Samoilova

On this day...

May 11: Mother's Day in several countries (2014); National Famine Commemoration Day in Ireland (2014)

330 – The city of Byzantium was consecrated as Nova Roma, which became known as Constantinople, the new capital of the Roman Empire under Emperor Constantine the Great (mosaic pictured).
1745 – War of the Austrian Succession: French forces defeated the Anglo-Dutch-Hanoverian "Pragmatic Army" at the Battle of Fontenoy in the Austrian Netherlands in present-day Belgium.
1889 – An attack upon a U.S. Army paymaster and escort resulted in the theft of over $28,000 and the award of two Medals of Honor.
1946 – The United Malays National Organisation, today Malaysia's largest political party, was founded, originally to oppose the constitutional framework of the Malayan Union.
2010 – David Cameron took office as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom as the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats formed the country's first coalition government since the Second World War.

More anniversaries: May 10 – May 11 – May 12

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It is now May 11, 2014 (UTC) – Reload this page

Today's featured picture

The Visible Pinball Machine, a machine for playing pinball created by the Pacific Pinball Museum with transparent surfaces to show the normally concealed mechanisms. In pinball, players manipulate one or more steel balls on a playing field to score as many points as possible; a game ends after all the balls fall into the drain located at the bottom of the slanted playing field.

Photograph: Kevin Tiell/Pacific Pinball Museum

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