Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 October 24

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Fruit bodies of the false earthstar fungus

Astraeus hygrometricus, the false earthstar, is a fungus common in temperate and tropical regions around the world. When young, it resembles a puffball; in maturity, the outer layer of fruit body tissue splits open in a star shape, similar in appearance to the earthstars. The fungus grows in mutual symbiosis with roots of various trees, especially in sandy soils. It can open up its rays to expose the spore sac in response to increased humidity, and close them up again in drier conditions. The rays have an irregularly cracked surface, while the spore case is pale brown and smooth with an irregular slit or tear at the top. The gleba is white initially, but turns brown and powdery when the reddish-brown spores mature. The species was first described by Christiaan Hendrik Persoon in 1801. Several bioactive chemical compounds have been found in the fruit bodies. North American field guides typically rate the fungus as inedible. (Full article...)

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Siegfried Fietz

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In the news

Andrej Babiš

The ANO party, led by Andrej Babiš (pictured), wins the most seats in the Czech legislative election.
Jacinda Ardern is set to become Prime Minister of New Zealand after forming a Labour–NZ First coalition government.
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders wins the Man Booker Prize.
The Philippines declares victory over ISIL in the Battle of Marawi.
The Syrian Democratic Forces declare victory in the Battle of Raqqa.
The first observation of a neutron star merger in gravitational waves – as well as gamma rays, visible light, and other forms of electromagnetic radiation – is announced.

On this day...

October 24

Japanese battleship Musashi

1789 – The Brabant Revolution, sometimes considered as the first expression of Belgian nationalism, began with the invasion of the Austrian Netherlands by an émigré army from the Dutch Republic.
1851 – William Lassell discovered the Uranian moons Umbriel and Ariel.
1871 – The largest mass lynching in United States history took place when around 500 white rioters entered Chinatown in Los Angeles to attack, rob, and murder its residents.
1944 – World War II: The Imperial Japanese battleship Musashi (pictured), one of the heaviest and most powerfully armed ever constructed, was sunk in the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
1964 – The military court of South Vietnamese junta chief Nguyễn Khánh acquitted Generals Dương Văn Đức and Lâm Văn Phát of leading a coup attempt against Khanh, despite the pair's proclamation of his overthrow during their military action.

Tycho Brahe (d. 1601) · Richard Temple, 1st Viscount Cobham (b. 1675) · Letitia Woods Brown (b. 1915)

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Today's featured picture

Jane Seymour (c. 1508 – 1537) was Queen of England from 1536 to 1537 as the third wife of King Henry VIII. She succeeded Anne Boleyn as queen consort following the latter's execution in May 1536. She died of postnatal complications less than two weeks after the birth of her only child, a son who became King Edward VI on Henry's death. She was the only one of Henry's wives to receive a queen's funeral, and his only consort to be buried beside him in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

Painting: Hans Holbein the Younger

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