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This day in .....

Discussion in 'Break Room' started by NewsBot, Apr 6, 2008.

  1. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    23 March 1983Strategic Defense Initiative: President Ronald Reagan makes his initial proposal to develop technology to intercept enemy missiles.

    Strategic Defense Initiative

    The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), nicknamed the Star Wars program, was a proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic strategic nuclear weapons (intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched ballistic missiles). The concept was announced on March 23, 1983, by President Ronald Reagan,[1] a vocal critic of the doctrine of mutually assured destruction (MAD), which he described as a "suicide pact". Reagan called upon American scientists and engineers to develop a system that would render nuclear weapons obsolete.[2] Elements of the program reemerged in 2019 with the Space Development Agency (SDA).[3]

    The Strategic Defense Initiative Organization (SDIO) was set up in 1984 within the US Department of Defense to oversee development. A wide array of advanced weapon concepts, including lasers,[4][5] particle beam weapons, and ground and space-based missile systems were studied, along with various sensor, command and control, and high-performance computer systems that would be needed to control a system consisting of hundreds of combat centers and satellites spanning the entire globe and involved in a very short battle. The United States held a significant advantage in the field of comprehensive advanced missile defense systems through decades of extensive research and testing; a number of these concepts and obtained technologies and insights were transferred to subsequent programs.[6][7][8][9]

    Under the SDIO's Innovative Sciences and Technology Office,[10][11][12] headed by physicist and engineer Dr. James Ionson,[13][14][15][16] the investment was predominantly made in basic research at national laboratories, universities, and in industry; these programs have continued to be key sources of funding for top research scientists in the fields of high-energy physics, supercomputing/computation, advanced materials, and many other critical science and engineering disciplines and funding which indirectly supports other research work by top scientists.

    In 1987, the American Physical Society concluded that the technologies being considered were decades away from being ready for use, and at least another decade of research was required to know whether such a system was even possible.[17] After the publication of the APS report, SDI's budget was repeatedly cut. By the late 1980s, the effort had been re-focused on the "Brilliant Pebbles" concept using small orbiting missiles not unlike a conventional air-to-air missile, which was expected to be much less expensive to develop and deploy.

    SDI was controversial in some sectors, and was criticized for threatening to destabilize the MAD-approach potentially rendering the Soviet nuclear arsenal useless and to possibly re-ignite "an offensive arms race".[18] Through declassified papers of American intelligence agencies the wider implications and effects of the program were examined and revealed that due to the potential neutralization of its arsenal and resulting loss of a balancing power factor, SDI was a cause of grave concern for the Soviet Union and its primary successor state Russia.[19] By the early 1990s, with the Cold War ending and nuclear arsenals being rapidly reduced, political support for SDI collapsed. SDI officially ended in 1993, when the Clinton Administration redirected the efforts towards theatre ballistic missiles and renamed the agency the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO).

    In 2019, space-based interceptor development resumed for the first time in 25 years with President Trump's signing of the National Defense Authorization Act.[20] The program is currently managed by the Space Development Agency (SDA) as part of the new National Defense Space Architecture (NDSA) envisioned by Michael D. Griffin.[21] Early development contracts were awarded to L3Harris and SpaceX.[22] CIA Director Mike Pompeo called for additional funding to achieve a full-fledged "Strategic Defense Initiative for our time, the SDI II".[23]

    1. ^ Federation of American Scientists. Missile Defense Milestones Archived March 6, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Accessed March 10, 2007.
    2. ^ "Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)".
    3. ^ Popkin, Gabriel (January 22, 2019). "Decades after Reagan's 'Star Wars,' Trump calls for missile defenses that would blast warheads from the sky".
    4. ^ Wang, C. P. (Ed.), Proceedings of the International Conference on Lasers '85 (STS, McLean, Va, 1986).
    5. ^ Duarte, F. J. (Ed.), Proceedings of the International Conference on Lasers '87 (STS, McLean, Va, 1988).
    6. ^ Abrahamson, James A.; Cooper, Henry F. (September 1993). "What Did We Get For Our $30-Billion Investment In SDI/BMD?" (PDF). Retrieved November 20, 2022.
    7. ^ Steven Pifer (March 30, 2015). "The limits of U.S. missile defense". Brookings.edu. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
    8. ^ Podvig, Pavel. "Did Star Wars Help End the Cold War? Soviet Response to the SDI Program" (PDF). Science & Global Security. 25 (1, 3–27). Retrieved November 20, 2022.
    9. ^ "A New U.S. Missile Defense Test May Have Increased the Risk of Nuclear War".
    10. ^ "SDIO Funds Research". MIT: The Tech. November 5, 1985. Archived from the original on August 8, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
    11. ^ "Special-Presentation Innovative Science and Technology Programs". SPIE. June 1988. doi:10.1117/12.947548.
    12. ^ "Star Wars' Inc". Inc Magazine. April 1987.
    13. ^ Goodwin, Irwin (June 1988). "Washington Ins & Outs: Ionson and Mense Leave SDIO". Physics Today. 41 (6): 53. Bibcode:1988PhT....41f..53G. doi:10.1063/1.2811448.
    14. ^ "Low Profile for SDI Work on Campus". The Scientist Magazine. May 1988.
    15. ^ "Ionson Counters SDI Dispute". MIT: The Tech. November 1985. Archived from the original on August 8, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
    16. ^ "Ionson Defends SDI Program". MIT: The Tech. October 1985. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
    17. ^ APS Study Group Participants; Bloembergen, N.; Patel, C. K. N.; Avizonis, P.; Clem, R. G.; Hertzberg, A.; Johnson, T. H.; Marshall, T.; Miller, R. B.; Morrow, W. E.; Salpeter, E. E.; Sessler, A. M.; Sullivan, J. D.; Wyant, J. C.; Yariv, A.; Zare, R. N.; Glass, A. J.; Hebel, L. C.; APS Council Review Committee; Pake, G. E.; May, M. M.; Panofsky, W. K.; Schawlow, A. L.; Townes, C. H.; York, H. (July 1, 1987). "Report to The American Physical Society of the study group on science and technology of directed energy weapons". Reviews of Modern Physics. 59 (3): S1–S201. Bibcode:1987RvMP...59....1B. doi:10.1103/RevModPhys.59.S1.
    18. ^ SDI, Page 1600, The Greenwood Encyclopedia of International Relations: S-Z, By Cathal J. Nolan
    19. ^ "A Newly Declassified CIA Paper Details a Tense Subplot in the Cold War Arms Race". Business Insider.
    20. ^ Reif, Kingston (September 1, 2018). "Congress Calls for Interceptors in Space".
    21. ^ Nathan Strout (July 24, 2019). "What will the Space Development Agency really do?".
    22. ^ Erwin, Sandra (October 5, 2020). "L3Harris, SpaceX win Space Development Agency contracts to build missile-warning satellites". SpaceNews. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
    23. ^ Pompeo, Mike (January 18, 2022). "Nuclear Weapons, China, and a Strategic Defense Initiative for this Century".
     
  2. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    24 March 1882Robert Koch announces the discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis.

    Robert Koch

    Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch (English: /kɒx/ KOKH,[1][2] German: [ˈʁoːbɛʁt ˈkɔx] ; 11 December 1843 – 27 May 1910) was a German physician and microbiologist. As the discoverer of the specific causative agents of deadly infectious diseases including tuberculosis, cholera and anthrax, he is regarded as one of the main founders of modern bacteriology. As such he is popularly nicknamed the father of microbiology (with Louis Pasteur[3]), and as the father of medical bacteriology.[4][5] His discovery of the anthrax bacterium (Bacillus anthracis) in 1876 is considered as the birth of modern bacteriology.[6] Koch used his discoveries to establish that germs "could cause a specific disease"[7] and directly provided proofs for the germ theory of diseases, therefore creating the scientific basis of public health,[8] saving millions of lives.[9] For his life's work Koch is seen as one of the founders of modern medicine.[10][11]

    While working as a private physician, Koch developed many innovative techniques in microbiology. He was the first to use the oil immersion lens, condenser, and microphotography in microscopy. His invention of the bacterial culture method using agar and glass plates (later developed as the Petri dish by his assistant Julius Richard Petri) made him the first to grow bacteria in the laboratory. In appreciation of his work, he was appointed to government advisor at the Imperial Health Office in 1880, promoted to a senior executive position (Geheimer Regierungsrat) in 1882, Director of Hygienic Institute and Chair (Professor of hygiene) of the Faculty of Medicine at Berlin University in 1885, and the Royal Prussian Institute for Infectious Diseases (later renamed Robert Koch Institute after his death) in 1891.

    The methods Koch used in bacteriology led to establishment of a medical concept known as Koch's postulates, four generalized medical principles to ascertain the relationship of pathogens with specific diseases. The concept is still in use in most situations and influences subsequent epidemiological principles such as the Bradford Hill criteria.[12] A major controversy followed when Koch discovered tuberculin as a medication for tuberculosis which was proven to be ineffective, but developed for diagnosis of tuberculosis after his death. For his research on tuberculosis, he received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1905.[13] The day he announced the discovery of the tuberculosis bacterium, 24 March 1882, has been observed by the World Health Organization as "World Tuberculosis Day" every year since 1982.

    1. ^ "Koch". Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.
    2. ^ "Koch". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
    3. ^ Fleming, Alexander (1952). "Freelance of Science". British Medical Journal. 2 (4778): 269. doi:10.1136/bmj.2.4778.269. PMC 2020971.
    4. ^ Tan, S. Y.; Berman, E. (2008). "Robert Koch (1843-1910): father of microbiology and Nobel laureate". Singapore Medical Journal. 49 (11): 854–855. PMID 19037548.
    5. ^ Gradmann, Christoph (2006). "Robert Koch and the white death: from tuberculosis to tuberculin". Microbes and Infection. 8 (1): 294–301. doi:10.1016/j.micinf.2005.06.004. PMID 16126424.
    6. ^ Lakhani, S. R. (1993). "Early clinical pathologists: Robert Koch (1843-1910)". Journal of Clinical Pathology. 46 (7): 596–598. doi:10.1136/jcp.46.7.596. PMC 501383. PMID 8157741.
    7. ^ "A Theory of Germs". Science, Medicine, and Animals. National Academies Press (US). 2023-10-20.
    8. ^ Lakhtakia, Ritu (2014). "The Legacy of Robert Koch: Surmise, search, substantiate". Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal. 14 (1): e37–41. doi:10.12816/0003334. PMC 3916274. PMID 24516751.
    9. ^ https://history.info/on-this-day/1843-robert-koch-man-saved-millions-lives/
    10. ^ https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=245261433654285
    11. ^ "Louis Pasteur vs Robert Koch: The History of Germ Theory". YouTube.
    12. ^ Margo, Curtis E. (2011-04-11). "From Robert Koch to Bradford Hill: Chronic Infection and the Origins of Ocular Adnexal Cancers". Archives of Ophthalmology. 129 (4): 498–500. doi:10.1001/archophthalmol.2011.53. ISSN 0003-9950. PMID 21482875.
    13. ^ Brock, Thomas. Robert Koch: A life in medicine and bacteriology. ASM Press: Washington DC, 1999. Print.
     
  3. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    25 March 1584 – Sir Walter Raleigh is granted a patent to colonize Virginia.

    Walter Raleigh

    Sir Walter Raleigh[a] (/ˈrɔːli, ˈræli, ˈrɑːli/; c. 1552 – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebellion in Ireland, helped defend England against the Spanish Armada and held political positions under Elizabeth I.

    Raleigh was born to a landed gentry family of Protestant faith in Devon, the son of Walter Raleigh and Catherine Champernowne. He was the younger half-brother of Sir Humphrey Gilbert and a cousin of Sir Richard Grenville. Little is known of his early life, though in his late teens he spent some time in France taking part in the religious civil wars. In his 20s he took part in the suppression of rebellion in the colonisation of Ireland; he also participated in the siege of Smerwick. Later, he became a landlord of property in Ireland and mayor of Youghal in east Munster, where his house still stands in Myrtle Grove.[2] He rose rapidly in the favour of Queen Elizabeth I and was knighted in 1585. He was granted a royal patent to explore Virginia, paving the way for future English settlements. In 1591, he secretly married Elizabeth Throckmorton, one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, without the Queen's permission, for which he and his wife were sent to the Tower of London. After his release, they retired to his estate at Sherborne, Dorset.

    In 1594, Raleigh heard of a "City of Gold" in South America and sailed to find it, publishing an exaggerated account of his experiences in a book that contributed to the legend of "El Dorado". After Queen Elizabeth died in 1603, Raleigh was again imprisoned in the Tower, this time for being involved in the Main Plot against King James I, who was not favourably disposed towards him. In 1616, he was released to lead a second expedition in search of El Dorado. During the expedition, men led by his top commander ransacked a Spanish outpost, in violation of both the terms of his pardon and the 1604 peace treaty with Spain. Raleigh returned to England and, to appease the Spanish, he was arrested and executed in 1618.

    1. ^ Wolfe 2018.
    2. ^ "The Church and Town of Sir Walter Raleigh". United Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross. 21 May 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2021.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

     
  4. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    26 March 1975 – The Biological Weapons Convention comes into force.

    Biological Weapons Convention

    The Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), or Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC), is a disarmament treaty that effectively bans biological and toxin weapons by prohibiting their development, production, acquisition, transfer, stockpiling and use.[5] The treaty's full name is the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction.[5]

    Having entered into force on 26 March 1975, the BWC was the first multilateral disarmament treaty to ban the production of an entire category of weapons of mass destruction.[5] The convention is of unlimited duration.[6] As of February 2023, 185 states have become party to the treaty.[7] Four additional states have signed but not ratified the treaty, and another eight states have neither signed nor acceded to the treaty.[8]

    The BWC is considered to have established a strong global norm against biological weapons.[9] This norm is reflected in the treaty's preamble, which states that the use of biological weapons would be "repugnant to the conscience of mankind".[10] It is also demonstrated by the fact that not a single state today declares to possess or seek biological weapons, or asserts that their use in war is legitimate.[11] In light of the rapid advances in biotechnology, biodefense expert Daniel Gerstein has described the BWC as "the most important arms control treaty of the twenty-first century".[12] However, the convention's effectiveness has been limited due to insufficient institutional support and the absence of any formal verification regime to monitor compliance.[13]

    1. ^ Article XIV, Biological Weapons Convention.
    2. ^ "Status of the Biological Weapons Convention". United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
    3. ^ Biological Weapons Convention, Article XIV.
    4. ^ Biological Weapons Convention, Article XV.
    5. ^ a b c "Biological Weapons Convention – UNODA". United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs. Archived from the original on 15 February 2021. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
    6. ^ Article XIII, Biological Weapons Convention. Treaty Database, United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs.
    7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    8. ^ Report on universalization activities, 2019 Meeting of States Parties to the Biological Weapons Convention, BWC/MSP/2019/3. Geneva, 8 October 2019.
    9. ^ Cross, Glenn; Klotz, Lynn (3 July 2020). "Twenty-first century perspectives on the Biological Weapon Convention: Continued relevance or toothless paper tiger". Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. 76 (4): 185–191. Bibcode:2020BuAtS..76d.185C. doi:10.1080/00963402.2020.1778365. ISSN 0096-3402. S2CID 221061960.
    10. ^ Preamble, Biological Weapons Convention. Treaty Database, United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs.
    11. ^ Feakes, D. (August 2017). "The Biological Weapons Convention". Revue Scientifique et Technique (International Office of Epizootics). 36 (2): 621–628. doi:10.20506/rst.36.2.2679. ISSN 0253-1933. PMID 30152458. S2CID 52100050.
    12. ^ Gerstein, Daniel (2013). National Security and arms control in the age of biotechnology: the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4422-2312-7.
    13. ^ Tucker, Jonathan (1 August 2001). "Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) Compliance Protocol". Nuclear Threat Initiative. Archived from the original on 16 February 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
     
  5. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    27 March 1998 – The Food and Drug Administration approves Viagra for use as a treatment for male impotence, the first pill to be approved for this condition in the United States.

    Sildenafil

    Sildenafil, sold under the brand name Viagra, among others, is a medication used to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension.[4][8] It is also sometimes used off-label for the treatment of certain symptoms in secondary Raynaud's phenomenon.[9] It is unclear if it is effective for treating sexual dysfunction in females.[8] It can be taken orally (swallowed by mouth), intravenously (injection into a vein), or through the sublingual route (dissolved under the tongue).[8][10] Onset when taken orally is typically within twenty minutes and lasts for about two hours.[8]

    Common side effects include headaches, heartburn, and flushed skin.[8] Caution is advised in those with cardiovascular disease.[8] Rare but serious side effects include vision problems, hearing loss, and prolonged erection (priapism) that can lead to damage to the penis.[8] Sildenafil should not be taken by people on nitrates such as nitroglycerin (glycerin trinitrate), as this may result in a serious drop in blood pressure.[8]

    Sildenafil acts by blocking phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5), an enzyme that promotes breakdown of cGMP, which regulates blood flow in the penis.[8] It requires sexual arousal to work, and does not by itself cause or increase sexual arousal.[8] It also results in dilation of the blood vessels in the lungs.[8]

    Pfizer originally discovered the medication in 1989 while looking for a treatment for angina.[11] It was approved for medical use in the United States and in the European Union in 1998.[5][8][11][12] In 2021, it was the 157th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 3 million prescriptions.[13][14] It is available as a generic medication.[15][16] In the United Kingdom, it is available over the counter.[17]

    1. ^ "Sildenafil Use During Pregnancy". Drugs.com. 7 October 2019. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
    2. ^ "Viagra 25mg film-coated tablets - Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC)". (emc). 7 August 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
    3. ^ "Viagra Connect 50 mg film-coated tablets - Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC)". (emc). 5 December 2017. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
    4. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Viagra FDA label was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    5. ^ a b "Viagra EPAR". European Medicines Agency. 17 September 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
    6. ^ "Revatio EPAR". European Medicines Agency. 17 September 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
    7. ^ Nichols DJ, Muirhead GJ, Harness JA (6 March 2002). "Pharmacokinetics of sildenafil after single oral doses in healthy male subjects: absolute bioavailability, food effects and dose proportionality". British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. 53 (Suppl 1): 5S–12S. doi:10.1046/j.0306-5251.2001.00027.x. PMC 1874258. PMID 11879254.
    8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Sildenafil Citrate". The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
    9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Raynaud's treatment - sildenafil + other PDE5 inhibitors was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    10. ^ Cite error: The named reference sublingual was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    11. ^ a b Goldstein I, Burnett AL, Rosen RC, Park PW, Stecher VJ (January 2019). "The Serendipitous Story of Sildenafil: An Unexpected Oral Therapy for Erectile Dysfunction". Sexual Medicine Reviews. 7 (1): 115–128. doi:10.1016/j.sxmr.2018.06.005. PMID 30301707. S2CID 52945888.
    12. ^ "Drug Approval Package: Viagra (sildenafil citrate) NDA #020895". U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 27 March 1998. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
    13. ^ "The Top 300 of 2021". ClinCalc. Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
    14. ^ "Sildenafil - Drug Usage Statistics". ClinCalc. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
    15. ^ Gordon S (11 December 2017). "Generic Viagra: Two versions of sildenafil hit the market today". CBS News. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
    16. ^ "Competitive Generic Therapy Approvals". U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 3 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
    17. ^ LaMattina J. "With Viagra Now Available Over-The-Counter In The U.K., Will The U.S. Follow Suit?". Forbes. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
     
  6. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    28 March 1854Crimean War: France and Britain declare war on Russia.

    Crimean War

    The Crimean War[d] was fought from October 1853 to February 1856[6] between the Russian Empire and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom, and Sardinia-Piedmont.

    Geopolitical causes of the war included the decline of the Ottoman Empire (the "Eastern Question"), the expansion of the Russian Empire in the preceding Russo-Turkish Wars, and the British and French preference to preserve the Ottoman Empire to maintain the balance of power in the Concert of Europe. The flashpoint was a disagreement over the rights of Christian minorities in Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire, with the French promoting the rights of Roman Catholics, and Russia promoting those of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

    The churches worked out their differences with the Ottomans and came to an agreement, but both the French Emperor Napoleon III and the Russian Tsar Nicholas I refused to back down. Nicholas issued an ultimatum that demanded the Orthodox subjects of the Ottoman Empire be placed under his protection. Britain attempted to mediate and arranged a compromise to which Nicholas agreed. When the Ottomans demanded changes to the agreement, Nicholas recanted and prepared for war.

    In July 1853, Russian troops occupied the Danubian Principalities[6] (now part of Romania but then under Ottoman suzerainty). On 16 October  [O.S. 4 October] 1853,[7] having obtained promises of support from France and Britain, the Ottomans declared war on Russia.[8] Led by Omar Pasha, the Ottomans fought a strong defensive campaign and stopped the Russian advance at Silistra (now in Bulgaria). A separate action on the fort town of Kars, in the Ottoman Empire, led to a siege, and an Ottoman attempt to reinforce the garrison was destroyed by a Russian fleet at the Battle of Sinop in November 1853.

    Fearing the growth of influence of the Russian Empire, the British and French fleets entered the Black Sea in January 1854.[6] They moved north to Varna in June 1854 and arrived just in time for the Russians to abandon Silistra. In the Baltic, near the Russian capital of Saint Petersburg, an Anglo-French fleet instituted a naval blockade and bottled up the outnumbered Russian Baltic Fleet, causing economic damage to Russia by blockading trade while also forcing the Russians to keep a large army guarding St. Petersburg from a potential allied attack.

    After a minor skirmish at Köstence (now Constanța), the allied commanders decided to attack Russia's main naval base in the Black Sea, Sevastopol, in Crimea. After extended preparations, allied forces landed on the peninsula in September 1854 and marched their way to a point south of Sevastopol after they had won the Battle of the Alma on 20 September 1854. The Russians counterattacked on 25 October in what became the Battle of Balaclava and were repulsed, but the British Army's forces were seriously depleted as a result. A second Russian counterattack, at Inkerman (November 1854), ended in a stalemate as well.

    By 1855, the Italian Kingdom of Sardinia sent an expeditionary force to Crimea, siding with France, Britain and the Ottoman Empire. The front settled into the Siege of Sevastopol, involving brutal conditions for troops on both sides. Smaller military actions took place in the Caucasus (1853–1855), the White Sea (July–August 1854) and the North Pacific (1854–1855).

    Sevastopol finally fell after eleven months, after the French assaulted Fort Malakoff. Isolated and facing a bleak prospect of invasion by the West if the war continued, Russia sued for peace in March 1856. France and Britain welcomed the development, owing to the conflict's domestic unpopularity. The Treaty of Paris, signed on 30 March 1856, ended the war. It forbade Russia to base warships in the Black Sea. The Ottoman vassal states of Wallachia and Moldavia became largely independent. Christians in the Ottoman Empire gained a degree of official equality, and the Orthodox Church regained control of the Christian churches in dispute.[9]

    The Crimean War was one of the first conflicts in which military forces used modern technologies such as explosive naval shells, railways and telegraphs.[10] The war was also one of the first to be documented extensively in written reports and in photographs. The war quickly became a symbol of logistical, medical and tactical failures and of mismanagement. The reaction in Britain led to a demand for the professionalisation of medicine, most famously achieved by Florence Nightingale, who gained worldwide attention for pioneering modern nursing while she treated the wounded.

    The Crimean War marked a turning point for the Russian Empire. The war weakened the Imperial Russian Army, drained the treasury and undermined Russia's influence in Europe. The empire would take decades to recover. Russia's humiliation forced its educated elites to identify its problems and recognise the need for fundamental reforms. They saw rapid modernisation as the sole way to recover the empire's status as a European power. The war thus became a catalyst for reforms of Russia's social institutions, including the abolition of serfdom and overhauls in the justice system, local self-government, education and military service.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

    1. ^ Badem 2010, p. 180.
    2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Clodfelter 2017, p. 180.
    3. ^ Зайончковский А. М. Восточная война 1853—1856. — СПб.: Полигон, 2002. — ISBN 5-89173-159-2
    4. ^ Figes 2010, p. 489.
    5. ^ Mara Kozelsky, "The Crimean War, 1853–56." Kritika: Explorations in Russian and Eurasian History 13.4 (2012): 903–917 online.
    6. ^ a b c "Crimean War". Encyclopedia Britannica. 27 September 2020. Retrieved 28 January 2022.
    7. ^ "Crimea war of 1853–1856 began – 16 October 1853". Boris Yeltsin Presidential Library.
    8. ^ Kerr, Paul (2000). The Crimean War. Mcmillan. p. 17. ISBN 978-0752272481.
    9. ^ Figes 2010, p. 415.
    10. ^ Royle 2000, Preface.
     
  7. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    29 March 1882 – The Knights of Columbus are established.

    Knights of Columbus

    The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic fraternal service order founded by Fr. Michael J. McGivney on March 29, 1882.[1][2] Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men.[3] It is led by Patrick E. Kelly, the order's 14th Supreme Knight.[3][4] The organization is named after the explorer Christopher Columbus.

    The organization was founded in March 1882[5] as a mutual benefit society for working-class and immigrant Catholics in the United States. In addition to providing an insurance system for its members, its charter states that it endeavors "to promote such social and intellectual intercourse among its members as shall be desirable and proper."[6] It has grown to support refugee relief, Catholic education, local parishes and dioceses, and global Catholic social and political causes.[1][7][8][9] The Knights promote the Catholic view on public policy issues, including opposition to same-sex marriage[10] and abortion.[11]

    The organization also provides certain financial services to the individual and institutional Catholic market.[12] Its wholly owned insurance company, one of the largest in the world, underwrites more than two million insurance contracts, totaling more than $121 billion of life insurance in force as of 2023.[13] It is a Fortune 1000 company based on its annual revenues.[14] The order also owns the Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, a money management firm which invests in accordance with Catholic social teachings.

    As of 2023, the Knights reported having over two million members around the world.[15][16][17][18] Women may participate in K of C through the Columbiettes and other female auxiliaries, and boys may join the Columbian Squires. The Order comprises four different "degrees", each one of which exemplifies one of the core principles of the order.[1] There are more than 16,000 local Knights of Columbus councils around the world,[17] including over 300 on college campuses.[19][20]

    1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference rundio was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    2. ^ Hubbard & Hubbard 2019, p. 75.
    3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference FAQs was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    4. ^ Cite error: The named reference elect was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Minor was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    6. ^ Cite error: The named reference refuting was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    7. ^ Hearn 1910.
    8. ^ Cite error: The named reference arce was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    9. ^ Cite error: The named reference financial was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    10. ^ Cite error: The named reference McElwee was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    11. ^ Cite error: The named reference lopez was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    12. ^ Cite error: The named reference comtois was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    13. ^ "Annual Report (2023) of the Supreme Knight" (PDF). Knights of Columbus. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
    14. ^ "Registrars of Fortune 1000 Companies". Harvard.edu. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
    15. ^ Smith, Peter (August 9, 2023). "Knight of Columbus Supreme Knight: Our relationship with Jesus 'will change everything'". Detroit Catholic. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
    16. ^ Hubbard & Hubbard 2019, p. 76.
    17. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference hadro was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    18. ^ Cite error: The named reference garcia was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    19. ^ Cite error: The named reference califon was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    20. ^ Cite error: The named reference ash was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
     
  8. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    31 March 1889 – The Eiffel Tower is officially opened.

    Eiffel Tower

    The Eiffel Tower (/ˈfəl/ EYE-fəl; French: Tour Eiffel [tuʁ ɛfɛl] ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower from 1887 to 1889.

    Locally nicknamed "La dame de fer" (French for "Iron Lady"), it was constructed as the centerpiece of the 1889 World's Fair, and to crown the centennial anniversary of the French Revolution. Although initially criticised by some of France's leading artists and intellectuals for its design, it has since become a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognisable structures in the world.[5] The tower received 5,889,000 visitors in 2022.[6] The Eiffel Tower is the most visited monument with an entrance fee in the world:[7] 6.91 million people ascended it in 2015. It was designated a monument historique in 1964, and was named part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site ("Paris, Banks of the Seine") in 1991.[8]

    The tower is 330 metres (1,083 ft) tall,[9] about the same height as an 81-storey building, and the tallest structure in Paris. Its base is square, measuring 125 metres (410 ft) on each side. During its construction, the Eiffel Tower surpassed the Washington Monument to become the tallest human-made structure in the world, a title it held for 41 years until the Chrysler Building in New York City was finished in 1930. It was the first structure in the world to surpass both the 200-metre and 300-metre mark in height. Due to the addition of a broadcasting aerial at the top of the tower in 1957, it is now taller than the Chrysler Building by 5.2 metres (17 ft). Excluding transmitters, the Eiffel Tower is the second tallest free-standing structure in France after the Millau Viaduct.

    The tower has three levels for visitors, with restaurants on the first and second levels. The top level's upper platform is 276 m (906 ft) above the ground – the highest observation deck accessible to the public in the European Union. Tickets can be purchased to ascend by stairs or lift to the first and second levels. The climb from ground level to the first level is over 300 steps, as is the climb from the first level to the second, making the entire ascent a 600 step climb. Although there is a staircase to the top level, it is usually accessible only by lift. On this top, third level is a private apartment built for Gustave Eiffel's private use. He decorated it with furniture by Jean Lachaise and invited friends such as Thomas Edison.

    1. ^ a b Bachman, Leonard R. (2019). Constructing the Architect: An Introduction to Design, Research, Planning, and Education. p. 80. ISBN 9781351665421.
    2. ^ a b "Eiffel Tower". CTBUH Skyscraper Center.
    3. ^ "Intermediate floor of the Eiffel tower".
    4. ^ "Eiffel Tower". Emporis. Archived from the original on 22 April 2016.
    5. ^ SETE. "The Eiffel Tower at a glance". Official Eiffel Tower website. Archived from the original on 14 April 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
    6. ^ Tourism Statistics, "Visit Paris Region" site of the Paris Ile de France Visitors Bureau, retrieved March 22, 2022.
    7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    8. ^ Clayson, S. Hollis (26 February 2020), "Eiffel Tower", Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/obo/9780190922467-0014, ISBN 978-0-19-092246-7, retrieved 14 November 2021
    9. ^ "Eiffel Tower grows six metres after new antenna attached". Reuters. 15 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
     
  9. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    1 April 2004Google announces Gmail to the public.

    Gmail

    Gmail is an email service provided by Google. As of 2019, it had 1.5 billion active users worldwide, making it the largest email service in the world.[1] It also provides a webmail interface, accessible through a web browser, and is also accessible through the official mobile application. Google also supports the use of third-party email clients via the POP and IMAP protocols.

    At its launch in 2004, Gmail provided a storage capacity of one gigabyte per user, which was significantly higher than its competitors offered at the time. Today, the service comes with 15 gigabytes of storage for free for individual users, which is divided among other Google services, such as Google Drive, and Google Photos.[3] Users in need of more storage can purchase Google One to increase this 15 GB limit.[4] Users can receive emails up to 50 megabytes in size, including attachments, and can send emails up to 25 megabytes. Gmail supports integration with Google Drive, allowing for larger attachments. Gmail has a search-oriented interface and supports a "conversation view" similar to an Internet forum.[5] The service is notable among website developers for its early adoption of Ajax.

    Google's mail servers automatically scan emails for multiple purposes, including to filter spam and malware and, prior to June 2017, to add context-sensitive advertisements next to emails. This advertising practice has been significantly criticized by privacy advocates with concerns over unlimited data retention, ease of monitoring by third parties, users of other email providers not having agreed to the policy upon sending emails to Gmail addresses, and the potential for Google to change its policies to further decrease privacy by combining information with other Google data usage. The company has been the subject of lawsuits concerning the issues. Google has stated that email users must "necessarily expect" their emails to be subject to automated processing and claims that the service refrains from displaying ads next to potentially sensitive messages, such as those mentioning race, religion, sexual orientation, health, or financial statements. In June 2017, Google announced the end of the use of contextual Gmail content for advertising purposes, relying instead on data gathered from the use of its other services.[6]

    1. ^ a b Petrova (October 26, 2019). "Gmail dominates consumer email with 1.5 billion users". CNBC.com. Archived from the original on November 17, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
    2. ^ Siegler, MG (March 14, 2010). "The Key To Gmail: Sh*t Umbrellas". TechCrunch. AOL. Archived from the original on October 22, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
    3. ^ "Manage files in your Google Drive storage - Gmail Help". support.google.com. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
    4. ^ "Buy more Google storage - Computer - Google Drive Help". support.google.com. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
    5. ^ "Group emails into conversations - Computer - Gmail Help". support.google.com. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
    6. ^ Cite error: The named reference No contextual ads was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
     
  10. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    2 April 1982Falklands War: Argentina invades the Falkland Islands.

    1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands

    The Invasion of the Falkland Islands (Spanish: Invasión de las Islas Malvinas), code-named Operation Rosario (Operación Rosario), was a military operation launched by Argentine forces on 2 April 1982, to capture the Falkland Islands, and served as a catalyst for the subsequent Falklands War. The Argentines mounted amphibious landings and the invasion ended with the surrender of Falkland Government House.

     
  11. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    2016 – The Panama Papers, a leak of legal documents, reveals information on 214,488 offshore companies.

    Panama Papers

    Countries with politicians, public officials or close associates implicated in the leak on April 15, 2016 (as of May 19, 2016)

    The Panama Papers (Spanish: Papeles de Panamá) are 11.5 million leaked documents (or 2.6 terabytes of data) that were published beginning on April 3, 2016. The papers detail financial and attorney–client information for more than 214,488 offshore entities.[1][2][3][4][5][6] The documents, dating from the 1970s to December 2015,[7] were created by, and taken from, former Panamanian offshore law firm and corporate service provider Mossack Fonseca,[8][9] and compiled with similar leaks into a searchable database.[10]

    The documents contain personal financial information about wealthy individuals and public officials that had previously been kept private.[11] The publication of these documents made it possible to establish the prosecution (for accessory to tax evasion and forming a criminal organization) of Jan Marsalek, who is still a person of interest to a number of European governments due to his revealed links with Russian intelligence,[12] and international financial fraudster Harald Joachim von der Goltz.[13] While offshore business entities are legal (see Offshore Magic Circle), reporters found that some of the Mossack Fonseca shell corporations were created for illegal purposes, including fraud, tax evasion, and evading international sanctions.[14]

    "John Doe", the whistleblower who leaked the documents to German journalist Bastian Obermayer[15][16] from the newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ), remains anonymous, even to the journalists who worked on the investigation. "My life is in danger", the whistleblower told them.[17] In a May 6, 2016, document, Doe cited income inequality as the reason for the action and said the documents were leaked "simply because I understood enough about their contents to realize the scale of the injustices they described".[18][19] Doe had never worked for any government or intelligence agency and expressed willingness to help prosecutors if granted immunity from prosecution.[19] After SZ verified that the statement did in fact come from the source for the Panama Papers, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) posted the full document on its website.[20][21]

    SZ asked the ICIJ for help because of the amount of data involved. Journalists from 107 media organizations in 80 countries analyzed documents detailing the operations of the law firm.[7] After more than a year of analysis, the first news stories were published on April 3, 2016, along with 150 of the documents themselves.[22] The project represents an important milestone in the use of data journalism software tools and mobile collaboration.

    The documents were dubbed the Panama Papers because of the country they were leaked from, but the Panamanian government expressed strong objections to the name over concerns that it would tarnish the government's and country's image worldwide, as did other entities in Panama and elsewhere.[23] Some media outlets covering the story have used the name "Mossack Fonseca papers".[24]

    In October 2020, German authorities issued an international arrest warrant for the two founders of the law firm at the core of the tax evasion scandal exposed by the Panama Papers. Cologne prosecutors are seeking German-born Jürgen Mossack and Panamanian Ramón Fonseca on charges of accessory to tax evasion and forming a criminal organization.[25]

    1. ^ "About the Panama Papers Investigations". International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. January 31, 2018. Archived from the original on July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
    2. ^ "Giant leak of offshore financial records exposes global array of crime and corruption". OCCRP. April 3, 2016. Archived from the original on April 4, 2016.
    3. ^ Schmidt, Michael S.; Myers, Steven Lee (April 3, 2016). "Panama Law Firm's Leaked Files Detail Offshore Accounts Tied to World Leaders". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on March 29, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
    4. ^ ""Помогут ли "Панамские документы" расставанию россиян с иллюзиями": СМИ обсуждают последствия "Офшоргейта" для РФ" ["Will the Panama Papers help" parting of Russians with illusions ": the media discuss the consequences of" Offshorgate "for the Russian Federation]. newsru.com (in Russian). April 5, 2016. Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
    5. ^ ""Вашего покорного слуги там нет": Путин прокомментировал "Панамские документы"" ["Your humble servant is not there": Putin commented on the "Panama Papers"]. newsru.com (in Russian). April 7, 2016. Archived from the original on April 10, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
    6. ^ O'Donovan, James; Wagner, Hannes F; Zeume, Stefan (February 11, 2019). "The Value of Offshore Secrets: Evidence from the Panama Papers". The Review of Financial Studies. 32 (11): 4117–4155. doi:10.1093/rfs/hhz017. hdl:10.1093/rfs/hhz017. ISSN 0893-9454.
    7. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Guardian: how the rich was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    8. ^ Vasilyeva, Natalya; Anderson, Mae (April 3, 2016). "News Group Claims Huge Trove of Data on Offshore Accounts". The New York Times. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved April 4, 2016.
    9. ^ Kenton, Will. "What Are the Panama Papers?". Investopedia. Archived from the original on June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
    10. ^ "ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database". International Coalition of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
    11. ^ International Consortium of Investigative journalists (April 3, 2016). "A new ICIJ investigation exposes a rogue offshore industry". Archived from the original on May 13, 2016. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
    12. ^ Murphy, Paul; Jones, Sam; Warrell, Helen (July 10, 2020). "From payments to armaments: the double life of Wirecard's Jan Marsalek". Financial Times. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
    13. ^ Will Fitzgibbon,"FROM FRONT PAGES TO PRISON TIME: BEHIND THE SCENES OF A PANAMA PAPERS CRIMINAL CASE". icij.org. April 3, 2021. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
    14. ^ "Giant Leak of Offshore Financial Records Exposes Global Array of Crime and Corruption". The Panama Papers. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists – ICIJ. April 3, 2016. Archived from the original on May 11, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
    15. ^ Clark, Nicola (April 5, 2016). "How a Cryptic Message, 'Interested in Data?,' Led to the Panama Papers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on August 15, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
    16. ^ "How two German newspaper reporters broke the story behind the Panama Papers". July 12, 2016. Archived from the original on August 9, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
    17. ^ Garside, Juliette (April 16, 2016). "Panama Papers: inside the Guardian's investigation into offshore secrets". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 6, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2016.
    18. ^ Shane, Scott; Lipton, Eric (May 6, 2016). "Panama Papers Source Offers to Aid Inquiries if Exempt From Punishment". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
    19. ^ a b Kottasova, Ivana (May 6, 2016). "Panama Papers' 'John Doe' says inequality concerns drove leak". CNNMoney. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
    20. ^ "Panama Papers: Source breaks silence on Mossack Fonseca leaks". BBC News. May 6, 2016. Archived from the original on May 6, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2016.
    21. ^ "Panama Papers Source Offers Documents To Governments, Hints At More To Come". ICIJ. May 6, 2016. Archived from the original on May 7, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
    22. ^ "DocumentCloud 150 Results Source: Internal documents from Mossack Fonseca (Panama)". DocumentCloud. Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. Archived from the original on March 19, 2017. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
    23. ^ "Panama Papers: the scandal that damaged the image of a country". www.panamatoday.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
    24. ^ Sources using the term "Mossack Fonseca papers":
    25. ^ Obermaier, Frederik; Obermayer, Bastian; Schmitt, Jörg (October 19, 2020). "Panama Papers: Haftbefehle gegen Mossack-Fonseca-Gründer". Süddeutsche.de. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
     
  12. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    4 April 1973 – The World Trade Center in New York is officially dedicated.

    World Trade Center (1973–2001)

    The original World Trade Center (WTC) was a large complex of seven buildings in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed during the September 11 attacks in 2001. At the time of their completion, the Twin Towers—the original 1 World Trade Center (the North Tower) at 1,368 feet (417 m), and 2 World Trade Center (the South Tower) at 1,362 feet (415.1 m)—were the tallest buildings in the world. Other buildings in the complex included the Marriott World Trade Center (3 WTC), 4 WTC, 5 WTC, 6 WTC, and 7 WTC. The complex contained 13,400,000 square feet (1,240,000 m2) of office space and, prior to its completion, was projected to accommodate an estimated 130,000 people.[6]

    The core complex was built between 1966 and 1975, at a cost of ~$400 million (equivalent to ~$3.80 billion in 2023[7]).[8] The idea was suggested by David Rockefeller to help stimulate urban renewal in Lower Manhattan, and his brother Nelson, then New York's 49th governor, signed the legislation to build it.[9][10] The buildings at the complex were designed by Minoru Yamasaki.[11] In 1998, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey decided to privatize it by leasing the buildings to a private company to manage. It awarded the lease to Silverstein Properties in July 2001.[12] During its existence, the World Trade Center symbolized globalization and the economic prosperity of the U.S.[13] Although its design was initially criticized by New Yorkers and professional critics[14]—"they put up the boxes instead of the buildings"—the Twin Towers became an icon of New York City.[15] It had a major role in popular culture, and according to one estimate was depicted in 472 films. The Twin Towers were also used in Philippe Petit's tightrope-walking performance on August 7, 1974.[16] Following the September 11 attacks, mentions of the complex in various media were altered or deleted, and several dozen "memorial films" were created.[17]

    The World Trade Center experienced several major crime and terrorist incidents, including a fire on February 13, 1975;[18] a bombing on February 26, 1993;[19] and a bank robbery on January 14, 1998.[20] During the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, al-Qaeda-affiliated hijackers flew two Boeing 767 jets, one into each of the Twin Towers; between 16,400 and 18,000 people were in the Twin Towers when they were struck.[21] The fires from the impacts were intensified by the planes' burning jet fuel, which, along with the initial damage to the buildings' structural columns, ultimately caused both towers to collapse.[22] The attacks killed 2,606 people in and around the towers, as well as all 157 on board the two aircraft.[23] Falling debris from the towers, combined with fires in several surrounding buildings that were initiated by falling debris, led to the partial or complete collapse of all the WTC complex's buildings, including 7 World Trade Center, and caused catastrophic damage to 10 other large structures in the surrounding area.

    The cleanup and recovery process at the World Trade Center site took eight months, during which the remains of the other buildings were demolished. On May 30, 2002, the last piece of WTC steel was ceremonially removed.[24] A new World Trade Center complex is being built with six new skyscrapers and several other buildings, many of which are complete. A memorial and museum to those killed in the attacks, a new rapid transit hub, and an elevated park have opened. The memorial features two square reflecting pools in the center marking where the Twin Towers stood.[25] One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere at 1,776 feet (541 m) and the lead building for the new complex, completed construction in May 2013 and opened in November 2014.

    1. ^ "The city's newest hotel, the Vista International, officially opened..." UPI. July 1, 1981. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
    2. ^ Prial, Frank J. (April 5, 1973). "Governors Dedicate Trade Center Here; World Role Is Cited". The New York Times. p. 1. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
    3. ^ Nalder, Eric (February 27, 1993). "Twin Towers Engineered To Withstand Jet Collision". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
    4. ^ "World Trade Center". Emporis. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015.
    5. ^ Cite error: The named reference PANYNJ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    6. ^ Ferretti, Fred (October 28, 1970). "Its Ambiance Will Go From Snack to Posh". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
    7. ^ "Inflation Calculator".
    8. ^ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series.
    9. ^ "David and Nelson Rockefeller | American Experience | PBS". www.pbs.org. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
    10. ^ Dunlap, David W. (March 26, 2017). "What David Rockefeller Wanted Built Got Built". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
    11. ^ "Minoru Yamasaki designed World Trade Center as "beacon of democracy"". Dezeen. September 10, 2021. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
    12. ^ Cite error: The named reference cuozzo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    13. ^ "9/11 FAQs | National September 11 Memorial & Museum". www.911memorial.org. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
    14. ^ Stewart, Henry (September 8, 2016). "Why New Yorkers Couldn't Stand The Twin Towers". Gothamist. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
    15. ^ Gillespie (1999), p. 162.
    16. ^ Lichtenstein, Grace (August 8, 1974). "Stuntman, Eluding Guards, Walks a Tightrope Between Trade Center Towers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
    17. ^ Langmead (2009), p. 353.
    18. ^ Cite error: The named reference nyt 19750214 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    19. ^ Cite error: The named reference reeve p10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    20. ^ Cite error: The named reference mafia 2007 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    21. ^ "What year was 9/11 – and what happened during terror attacks?". Nationalworld. September 8, 2021. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
    22. ^ "Why Did the World Trade Center Collapse? Science, Engineering, and Speculation". www.tms.org. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
    23. ^ "Man's death from World Trade Center dust brings Ground Zero toll to 2,753". NY Daily News. Associated Press. June 18, 2011. Archived from the original on December 13, 2019. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
    24. ^ Leduff, Charlie (May 29, 2002). "Last Steel Column From the Ground Zero Rubble Is Cut Down". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
    25. ^ Handwerker, Haim (November 20, 2007). "The politics of remembering Ground Zero". Haaretz – Israel News. Archived from the original on February 20, 2009. Retrieved November 21, 2007.
     
  13. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    5 April 1862American Civil War: The Battle of Yorktown begins.

    Siege of Yorktown (1862)

    The Battle of Yorktown or siege of Yorktown was fought from April 5 to May 4, 1862, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. Marching from Fort Monroe, Union Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac encountered Maj. Gen. John B. Magruder's small Confederate force at Yorktown behind the Warwick Line. McClellan suspended his march up the Peninsula toward Richmond and settled in for siege operations.

    On April 5, the IV Corps of Brig. Gen. Erasmus D. Keyes made initial contact with Confederate defensive works at Lee's Mill, an area McClellan expected to move through without resistance. Magruder's ostentatious movement of troops back and forth convinced the Union that his works were strongly held. As the two armies fought an artillery duel, reconnaissance indicated to Keyes the strength and breadth of the Confederate fortifications, and he advised McClellan against assaulting them. McClellan ordered the construction of siege fortifications and brought his heavy siege guns to the front. In the meantime, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston brought reinforcements for Magruder.

    On April 16, Union forces probed a point in the Confederate line at Dam No. 1. The Union failed to exploit the initial success of this attack, however. This lost opportunity held up McClellan for two additional weeks while he tried to convince the U.S. Navy to bypass the Confederates' big guns at Yorktown and Gloucester Point, ascend the York River to West Point and outflank the Warwick Line. McClellan planned a massive bombardment for dawn on May 5, but the Confederate army slipped away during the night of May 3 toward Williamsburg.

    The battle took place near the site of the 1781 siege of Yorktown.

    1. ^ ORA 11(1), 7, online and ORA 11(3), 184, online[incomplete short citation]
    2. ^ Newton, Joseph E. Johnston and the Defence of Richmond 1861-2, Appendix B: The Strength of Johnston's Army at Yorktown and Seven Pines, pp. 213-216
    3. ^ a b Kennedy, pg. 90.
     
  14. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    6 April 1970Newhall massacre: Four California Highway Patrol officers are killed in a shootout.

    Newhall incident

    The Newhall incident, also called the Newhall massacre, was a shootout on April 5–6, 1970, in Valencia, California,[a] between two heavily armed criminals and four officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). In less than five minutes, the four CHP officers were killed and another man was pistol-whipped in the deadliest day in California law enforcement history.[1]

    At about 11:54 p.m. on April 5, CHP officers Walt Frago and Roger Gore conducted a traffic stop of Bobby Davis and Jack Twinning in conjunction with an incident reported to the CHP minutes earlier. Twinning and Davis initially cooperated with the officers but then opened fire, killing both of them. Moments later, officers George Alleyn and James Pence arrived on the scene and engaged Twinning and Davis in a shootout. A bystander tried to help by firing an officer's weapon, but the three were outgunned. Both Alleyn and Pence suffered fatal injuries, while the witness ran out of ammunition and took cover in a ditch. A third CHP patrol car arrived on scene, and the officers briefly exchanged gunfire with the perpetrators, who then fled.

    Davis stole a car and attempted to flee the area, but he was spotted by police and arrested. Meanwhile, Twinning broke into a house, taking an occupant hostage. It was surrounded by deputies of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and Twinning released the hostage. He committed suicide around 9 a.m. as the deputies entered the house. Davis was convicted and sentenced to death for the murders. His sentence was commuted to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole in 1972; he killed himself at Kern Valley State Prison in 2009.

    The Newhall incident resulted in a number of changes at the CHP, including procedural changes for arresting high-risk suspects, standardization of firearms, and firearms training used throughout the department.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

    1. ^ https://www.chp.ca.gov/Memorial/Pages/Newhall-Officers.aspx Archived August 23, 2020, at the Wayback Machine CHP Newhall incident retrieved 3/5/2020
     
  15. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    7 April 1948 – The World Health Organization is established by the United Nations.

    World Health Organization

    The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health.[2] It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has six regional offices and 150 field offices worldwide.[3]

    The WHO was established on April 7, 1948, and convened its first meeting on July 24 of that year.[4][5] It incorporated the assets, personnel, and duties of the League of Nations' Health Organization and the Paris-based Office International d'Hygiène Publique, including the International Classification of Diseases (ICD).[6] The agency's work began in earnest in 1951 after a significant infusion of financial and technical resources.[7]

    The WHO's official mandate is to promote health and safety while helping the vulnerable worldwide. It provides technical assistance to countries, sets international health standards, collects data on global health issues, and serves as a forum for scientific or policy discussions related to health.[2] Its official publication, the World Health Report, provides assessments of worldwide health topics.[8]

    The WHO has played a leading role in several public health achievements, most notably the eradication of smallpox, the near-eradication of polio, and the development of an Ebola vaccine. Its current priorities include communicable diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, Ebola, malaria and tuberculosis; non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and cancer; healthy diet, nutrition, and food security; occupational health; and substance abuse. The agency advocates for universal health care coverage, engagement with the monitoring of public health risks, coordinating responses to health emergencies, and promoting health and well-being generally.[9]

    The WHO is governed by the World Health Assembly (WHA), which is composed of its 194 member states. The WHA elects and advises an executive board made up of 34 health specialists; selects the WHO's chief administrator, the director-general (currently Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of Ethiopia);[10] sets goals and priorities; and approves the budget and activities. The WHO is funded primarily by contributions from member states (both assessed and voluntary), followed by private donors. Its total approved budget for 2020–2021 is over $7.2 billion.,[2][11] while the approved budget for 2022–2023 is over $6.2 billion.

    1. ^ "Modernizing the WHO headquarters in Geneva" (PDF).
    2. ^ a b c "The U.S. Government and the World Health Organization". The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 24 January 2019. Archived from the original on 18 March 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
    3. ^ "WHO (World Health Organisation)". Information Saves Lives | Internews. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
    4. ^ "History". World Health Organization. Archived from the original on 22 March 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
    5. ^ "Constitution of the World Health Organization" (PDF). Basic Documents. World Health Organization: 20. October 2006. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
    6. ^ "Milestones for health over 70 years". World Health Organization/Europe. 17 March 2020. Archived from the original on 9 April 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
    7. ^ "World Health Organization | History, Organization, & Definition of Health". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 3 April 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
    8. ^ "WHO | World health report 2013: Research for universal health coverage". WHO. Archived from the original on 15 March 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
    9. ^ "What we do". World Health Organization. Archived from the original on 17 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
    10. ^ "Dr Tedros takes office as WHO Director-General". World Health Organization. 1 July 2017. Archived from the original on 18 April 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
    11. ^ "WHO | Programme Budget Web Portal". open.who.int. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
     
  16. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    8 April 1950India and Pakistan sign the Liaquat–Nehru Pact.

    Liaquat–Nehru Pact

    The Liaquat–Nehru Pact (or the Delhi Pact) was a bilateral treaty between India and Pakistan in which refugees were allowed to return to dispose of their property, abducted women and looted property were to be returned, forced conversions were unrecognized, and minority rights were confirmed.

    The treaty was signed in New Delhi by the Prime Minister of India Jawahar Lal Nehru and the Prime Minister of Pakistan Liaquat Ali Khan on April 8, 1950.[2] The treaty was the outcome of six days of talks sought to guarantee the rights of minorities in both countries after the Partition of India and to avert another war between them.

    This pact also introduced visa system for refugees and free passage of refugees across border was restricted.

    Minority commissions were set up in both countries. More than one million refugees migrated from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) to West Bengal in India.

    1. ^ Bipan C, Mridula M, Aditya M (11 February 2008). India Since Independence. Penguin UK. ISBN 978-8184750539.
    2. ^ "Nehru - Liaquat Pact, Ministry of External Affairs, India". Ministry of External Affairs - India.
     
  17. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    9 April 1413Henry V is crowned King of England.

    Henry V of England

    Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the Hundred Years' War against France made England one of the strongest military powers in Europe. Immortalised in Shakespeare's "Henriad" plays, Henry is known and celebrated as one of the greatest warrior-kings of medieval England.

    During the reign of his father, Henry IV, the young Prince Henry gained military experience fighting the Welsh during the revolt of Owain Glyndŵr, and against the powerful Percy family of Northumberland, playing a central part at the Battle of Shrewsbury despite being just sixteen years of age. As he entered adulthood, Henry played an increasingly powerful role in England's government due to declining health of his father, but disagreements between king and heir led to political conflict between the two. After his father's death in March 1413, Henry ascended to the throne of England and assumed complete control of the country, also reviving the historic English claim to the French throne.

    In 1415, Henry followed in the wake of his great-grandfather, Edward III, by renewing the Hundred Years' War with France, beginning the Lancastrian War (1415-1453). His first military campaign included a capturing of the port of Harfleur and a famous victory at the Battle of Agincourt, which inspired a proto-nationalistic fervour in England.[1][2] During his second campaign (1417-20), his armies captured Paris and conquered most of northern France, including the formerly English-held Duchy of Normandy. Taking advantage of political divisions within France, Henry put unparalleled pressure on King Charles VI of France ("the Mad"), resulting in the largest occupation of French territory by an English king since the days of the Angevin Empire. After months of negotiation with the representatives of Charles VI, the Treaty of Troyes (1420) recognised Henry V as regent and heir apparent to the French throne, disinheriting Charles's own son, the Dauphin, Charles. Henry was subsequently married to Charles VI's daughter, Catherine of Valois. The treaty ratified the unprecedented formation of a union between the kingdoms of England and France, in the person of Henry, upon the death of the aged and ailing Charles. However, Henry died in August 1422, less than two months before Charles, and was succeeded by his sole heir, the infant Henry VI.

    Analyses of Henry's reign are varied. According to Charles Ross, he was widely praised for his personal piety, bravery, and military genius even by contemporary French chroniclers, but his occasionally cruel temperament and lack of focus on domestic affairs have made him the subject of some criticism.[3] Nonetheless, Adrian Hastings believes his militaristic pursuits during the Hundred Years' War fostered a strong sense of English nationalism and set the stage for the rise of England (later Britain) to prominence as a dominant global power.[4]

    1. ^ McCrum, Robert (26 September 2015). "Agincourt was a battle like no other … but how do the French remember it?". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
    2. ^ work, Support our crucial; Civilization, Join Us in Strengthening the Bonds of. "Agincourt & Nationalism by Jeremy Black". The New Criterion. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
    3. ^ Ross, C. (28 July 1999). "Henry V, king of England". Encyclopædia Britannica.
    4. ^ Hastings, Adrian (1997). The Construction of Nationhood: Ethnicity, Religion and Nationalism. Cambridge University Press. p. 47. ISBN 9780521625449.
     
  18. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    10 April 1872 – The first Arbor Day is celebrated in Nebraska.

    Arbor Day

    Arbor Day (or Arbour Day in some countries) is a secular day of observance in which individuals and groups are encouraged to plant trees.[1] Today, many countries observe such a holiday. Though usually observed in the spring, the date varies, depending on climate and suitable planting season.

    1. ^ Jones, David (2010). "'Plant trees': the foundations of Arbor Day in Australia". Studies in the History of Gardens & Designed Landscapes. 30 (1): 77–93. doi:10.1080/14601170903010200. S2CID 161904923.
     
  19. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    11 April 1970Apollo 13 is launched.

    Apollo 13

    Apollo 13 (April 11–17, 1970) was the seventh crewed mission in the Apollo space program and the third meant to land on the Moon. The craft was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 11, 1970, but the lunar landing was aborted after an oxygen tank in the service module (SM) ruptured two days into the mission, disabling its electrical and life-support system. The crew, supported by backup systems on the lunar module (LM), instead looped around the Moon in a circumlunar trajectory and returned safely to Earth on April 17. The mission was commanded by Jim Lovell, with Jack Swigert as command module (CM) pilot and Fred Haise as lunar module (LM) pilot. Swigert was a late replacement for Ken Mattingly, who was grounded after exposure to rubella.

    A routine stir of an oxygen tank ignited damaged wire insulation inside it, causing an explosion that vented the contents of both of the SM's oxygen tanks to space.[note 1] Without oxygen, needed for breathing and for generating electric power, the SM's propulsion and life support systems could not operate. The CM's systems had to be shut down to conserve its remaining resources for reentry, forcing the crew to transfer to the LM as a lifeboat. With the lunar landing canceled, mission controllers worked to bring the crew home alive.

    Although the LM was designed to support two men on the lunar surface for two days, Mission Control in Houston improvised new procedures so it could support three men for four days. The crew experienced great hardship, caused by limited power, a chilly and wet cabin and a shortage of potable water. There was a critical need to adapt the CM's cartridges for the carbon dioxide scrubber system to work in the LM; the crew and mission controllers were successful in improvising a solution. The astronauts' peril briefly renewed public interest in the Apollo program; tens of millions watched the splashdown in the South Pacific Ocean on television.

    An investigative review board found fault with preflight testing of the oxygen tank and Teflon being placed inside it. The board recommended changes, including minimizing the use of potentially combustible items inside the tank; this was done for Apollo 14. The story of Apollo 13 has been dramatized several times, most notably in the 1995 film Apollo 13 based on Lost Moon, the 1994 memoir co-authored by Lovell – and an episode of the 1998 miniseries From the Earth to the Moon.

    1. ^ "Apollo 13 CM". N2YO.com. Retrieved August 18, 2019.
    2. ^ Orloff 2000, p. 309.
    3. ^ "Apollo 13 Command and Service Module (CSM)". NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
    4. ^ "Apollo 13 Lunar Module / EASEP". NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
    5. ^ Orloff 2000, p. 307.
    6. ^ "Apollo 13". NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
    7. ^ Williams, David. "The Apollo 13 accident". NASA. The Apollo 13 malfunction was caused by an explosion and rupture of oxygen tank no. 2 in the service module.
    8. ^ Cortright 1975, pp. 248–249: "I did, of course, occasionally think of the possibility that the spacecraft explosion might maroon us... Thirteen minutes after the explosion, I happened to look out of the left-hand window, and saw the final evidence pointing toward potential catastrophe. "
    9. ^ Accident report, p. 143.
    10. ^ Cooper 2013, p. 21: "Later, in describing what happened, NASA engineers avoided using the word "explosion;" they preferred the more delicate and less dramatic term "tank failure," and in a sense it was the more accurate expression, inasmuch as the tank did not explode in the way a bomb does but broke open under pressure."


    Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).

     
  20. Admin2

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    12 April 1606 – The Union Flag is adopted as the flag of English and Scottish ships.

    Union Jack

    The Union Jack,[note 1][3][4] or Union Flag, is the de facto national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Flag was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. The flag continues to have official status in Canada, by parliamentary resolution, where it is known as the Royal Union Flag.[5]

    It is sometimes asserted that the term Union Jack properly refers only to naval usage, but this assertion was dismissed by the Flag Institute in 2013 after historical investigations.[6][7][8][note 2] The origins of the earlier flag of Great Britain date from 1606. King James VI of Scotland had inherited the English and Irish thrones in 1603 as James I, thereby uniting the crowns of England, Scotland, and Ireland in a personal union, although the three kingdoms remained separate states. On 12 April 1606, a new flag to represent this regal union between England and Scotland was specified in a royal decree, according to which the flag of England, a red cross on a white background, known as St George's Cross, and the flag of Scotland, a white saltire (X-shaped cross, or St Andrew's Cross) on a blue background, would be joined, forming the flag of England and Scotland for maritime purposes.

    The present design of the Union Flag dates from a royal proclamation following the union of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801.[10] The flag combines aspects of three older national flags: the red cross of St George for the Kingdom of England, the white saltire of St Andrew for Scotland and the red saltire of St Patrick to represent Ireland. Although the Republic of Ireland is no longer part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland is. There are no symbols representing Wales in the flag, making Wales the only home nation with no direct representation, as at the time of the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 (creating legal union with England) the concept of national flags was in its infancy. The Welsh Dragon was however adopted as a supporter in the royal coat of arms of England used by the Tudor dynasty from 1485.[11]

    The flags of British Overseas Territories, as well as certain sovereign states and regions that were previously British possessions, incorporate the Union Flag into their own flag designs or have official flags that are derived from the Union Jack. Many of these flags are blue or red ensigns with the Union Flag in the canton and defaced with the distinguishing arms of the territory. The governors of British Overseas Territories and the Australian states, as well as the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia also have personal standards that incorporate the Union Flag in their design.

    1. ^ College of Arms (2023). "Union Flag: approved designs". Retrieved 23 September 2023. For the avoidance of doubt and the sake of convenience, Garter King of Arms, under the authority of the Earl Marshal, has approved two versions of the Union flag as being accurate representations suitable for use. These are of the proportions 5:3, commonly flown on land; and 2:1, commonly flown at sea.
    2. ^ "Union Jack". The British Monarchy. Archived from the original on 27 November 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
    3. ^ "The Union Jack or The Union Flag?". The Flag Institute. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
    4. ^ "Union Jack". The British Monarchy. Archived from the original on 30 June 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2013.
    5. ^ Canadian Heritage (10 March 2008). "Statement by the Hon. Jason Kenney, PC, MP, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity) on Commonwealth Day". Queen's Printer for Canada. Archived from the original on 11 November 2011.
    6. ^ Nicolls, Bruce. "The Union Jack or The Union Flag?". The Flag Institute. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
    7. ^ "Broadcasting House 13th October 2013". BBC. 13 October 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
    8. ^ Marshall, Tim (2017). A flag worth dying for : the power and politics of national symbols. New York, NY: Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc. ISBN 978-1-5011-6833-8. OCLC 962006347.
    9. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "UNION JACK – discussion on BBC Broadcasting House". YouTube. 19 October 2013. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
    10. ^ Bartram, Graham. "British flags". The Flag Institute. Retrieved 2 May 2007.
    11. ^ Namely by King Henry VII, the first Tudor monarch of England (see images commons:Category:Coats of arms of King Henry VII of England)


    Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).

     
  21. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    13 April 1941 – A Pact of neutrality between the USSR and Japan is signed.

    Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact

    Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact, April 13, 1941

    The Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact (日ソ中立条約, Nisso Chūritsu Jōyaku), also known as the Japanese–Soviet Non-aggression Pact (日ソ不可侵条約, Nisso Fukashin Jōyaku), was a non-aggression pact between the Soviet Union and the Empire of Japan signed on April 13, 1941, two years after the conclusion of the Soviet-Japanese Border War. The agreement meant that for most of World War II, the two nations fought against each other's allies but not against each other. In 1945, late in the war, the Soviets scrapped the pact and joined the Allied campaign against Japan.

     
  22. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    14 April 1828Noah Webster copyrights the first edition of his dictionary.

    Webster's Dictionary

    Webster's Dictionary is any of the English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by Noah Webster (1758–1843), an American lexicographer, as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's name in his honor. "Webster's" has since become a genericized trademark in the United States for English dictionaries, and is widely used in dictionary titles.[1]

    Merriam-Webster is the corporate heir to Noah Webster's original works, which are in the public domain.

    1. ^ "Merriam-Webster FAQ". Archived from the original on December 30, 2009. Retrieved January 24, 2008.
     
  23. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    14 April 1828Noah Webster copyrights the first edition of his dictionary.

    Webster's Dictionary

    Webster's Dictionary is any of the English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by Noah Webster (1758–1843), an American lexicographer, as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's name in his honor. "Webster's" has since become a genericized trademark in the United States for English dictionaries, and is widely used in dictionary titles.[1]

    Merriam-Webster is the corporate heir to Noah Webster's original works, which are in the public domain.

    1. ^ "Merriam-Webster FAQ". Archived from the original on December 30, 2009. Retrieved January 24, 2008.
     
  24. NewsBot

    NewsBot The Admin that posts the news.

    Articles:
    1
    15 April 1964 – The first Ford Mustang rolls off the show room floor, two days before it is set to go on sale nationwide.

    Ford Mustang

    The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its seventh generation, it is the fifth-best selling Ford car nameplate. The namesake of the "pony car" automobile segment, the Mustang was developed as a highly styled line of sporty coupes and convertibles derived from existing model lines, initially distinguished by "long hood, short deck" proportions.[3]

    Originally predicted to sell 100,000 vehicles yearly, the 1965 Mustang became the most successful vehicle launch since the 1927 Model A.[4] Introduced on April 17, 1964[5] (16 days after the Plymouth Barracuda), over 400,000 units were sold in its first year; the one-millionth Mustang was sold within two years of its launch.[6] In August 2018, Ford produced the 10-millionth Mustang; matching the first 1965 Mustang, the vehicle was a 2019 Wimbledon White convertible with a V8 engine.[7]

    The success of the Mustang launch led to multiple competitors from other American manufacturers, including the Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird[8] (1967), AMC Javelin (1968), and Dodge Challenger[9] (1970). It also competed with the Plymouth Barracuda, which was launched around the same time. The Mustang also had an effect on designs of coupes worldwide, leading to the marketing of the Toyota Celica and Ford Capri in the United States (the latter, by Lincoln-Mercury). The Mercury Cougar was launched in 1967 as a unique-bodied higher-trim alternative to the Mustang; during the 1970s, it included more features and was marketed as a personal luxury car.

    From 1965 until 2004, the Mustang shared chassis commonality with other Ford model lines, staying rear-wheel-drive throughout its production. From 1965 to 1973, the Mustang was derived from the 1960 Ford Falcon compact. From 1974 until 1978, the Mustang (denoted Mustang II) was a longer-wheelbase version of the Ford Pinto. From 1979 until 2004, the Mustang shared its Fox platform chassis with 14 other Ford vehicles (becoming the final one to use the Fox architecture). Since 2005, Ford has produced two generations of the Mustang, each using a distinct platform unique to the model line.

    Through its production, multiple nameplates have been associated with the Ford Mustang series, including GT, Mach 1, Boss 302/429, Cobra (separate from Shelby Cobra), and Bullitt, along with "5.0" fender badging (denoting 4.9 L OHV or 5.0 L DOHC V8 engines).

    1. ^ "History of the Ford T5". fordt5.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
    2. ^ "Official Ford Mustang 2017 (reassessment) safety rating". Euro NCAP. Archived from the original on August 1, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
    3. ^ Mueller, Mike (1997). Ford Mustang. MotorBooks/MBI. p. 21. ISBN 978-0-87938-990-1.
    4. ^ Hinckley, Jim; Robinson, Jon G. (2005). The Big Book of Car Culture. Motorbooks/MBI. p. 175. ISBN 978-0-7603-1965-9. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
    5. ^ Flory, J. Kelly (2004). American Cars, 1960–1972: Every Model, Year by Year. McFarland. pp. 367–68. ISBN 978-0-7864-1273-0.
    6. ^ Drummond, Meghan (September 22, 2020). "History of the Ford Mustang". cjponyparts.com. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
    7. ^ MotorAuthority (August 9, 2018). "Mustang milestone: 10 millionth 'Stang gallops off assembly line". The ClassicCars.com Journal. Archived from the original on November 8, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
    8. ^ Young, Anthony (2004). Camaro. MotorBooks/MBI. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-7603-1932-1.
    9. ^ Zazarine, Paul (2002). Barracuda and Challenger. MotorBooks/MBI. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-87938-538-5.
     
  25. NewsBot

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    Articles:
    1
    16 April 1990 – "Doctor Death", Jack Kevorkian, participates in his first assisted suicide.

    Jack Kevorkian

    Murad Jacob "Jack" Kevorkian (May 26, 1928 – June 3, 2011) was an American pathologist and euthanasia proponent. He publicly championed a terminal patient's right to die by physician-assisted suicide, embodied in his quote, "Dying is not a crime".[2] Kevorkian said that he assisted at least 130 patients to that end. He was convicted of murder in 1999 and was often portrayed in the media with the name of "Dr. Death".[3]

    In 1998, Kevorkian was arrested and tried for his role in the voluntary euthanasia of a man named Thomas Youk who had Lou Gehrig's disease, or ALS. He was convicted of second-degree murder and served eight years of a 10-to-25-year prison sentence. He was released on parole on June 1, 2007, on condition he would not offer advice about, participate in, or be present at the act of any type of euthanasia to any other person, nor that he promote or talk about the procedure of assisted suicide.[4]

    1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Schneider was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    2. ^ Wells, Samuel; Quash, Ben (2010). Introducing Christian Ethics. John Wiley and Sons. p. 329. ISBN 978-1-4051-5276-1.
    3. ^ Roberts J, Kjellstrand C (June 8, 1996). "Jack Kevorkian: a medical hero". BMJ. 312 (7044): 1434. doi:10.1136/bmj.312.7044.1434. PMC 2351178. PMID 8664610.
    4. ^ Monica Davey. "Kevorkian Speaks After His Release From Prison". The New York Times. June 4, 2007.
     
  26. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    17 April 1946Syria obtains its independence from the French occupation.

    Syria

    Syria,[a] officially the Syrian Arab Republic,[b] is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east and southeast, Jordan to the south, and Israel and Lebanon to the southwest. Cyprus lies to the west across the Mediterranean Sea. It is a unitary republic that consists of 14 governorates (subdivisions). A country of fertile plains, high mountains, and deserts, Syria is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups, including the majority Arabs, Kurds, Turkmens, Assyrians, Circassians, Armenians, Albanians, Greeks, and Chechens. Religious groups include Muslims, Christians, Alawites, Druze, and Yazidis. The capital and largest city is Damascus, followed by Aleppo, Homs, Latakia, Hama, Deirezor, and Raqqa. Arabs are the largest ethnic group, and Sunni Muslims are the largest religious group. Syria is now the only country that is governed by Ba'athists, who advocate Arab socialism and Arab nationalism.

    The name "Syria" historically referred to a wider region, broadly synonymous with the Levant, and known in Arabic as al-Sham. The modern state encompasses the sites of several ancient kingdoms and empires, including the Eblan civilization of the 3rd millennium BC. In the Islamic era, Damascus was the seat of the Umayyad Caliphate and a provincial capital of the Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt. The modern Syrian state was established in the mid-20th century after centuries of Ottoman rule. After a period as a French mandate (1923–1946), the newly created state represented the largest Arab state to emerge from the formerly Ottoman-ruled Syrian provinces. It gained de jure independence as a democratic parliamentary republic on 24 October 1945 when the Republic of Syria became a founding member of the United Nations, an act which legally ended the former French mandate (although French troops did not leave the country until April 1946).

    The post-independence period was tumultuous, with multiple military coups and coup attempts shaking the country between 1949 and 1971. In 1958, Syria entered a brief union with Egypt called the United Arab Republic, which was terminated by the 1961 Syrian coup d'état. The republic was renamed as the Arab Republic of Syria in late 1961 after the December 1 constitutional referendum of that year. A significant event was the 1963 coup d'état carried out by the military committee of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party which established a one-party state. It ran Syria under emergency law from 1963 to 2011, effectively suspending constitutional protections for citizens. Internal power-struggles within Ba'athist factions caused further coups in 1966 and 1970, which eventually resulted in the seizure of power by General Hafiz al-Assad. Assad assigned Alawite loyalists to key posts in the armed forces, bureaucracy, Mukhabarat and the ruling elite; effectively establishing an "Alawi minority rule" to consolidate power within his family.

    After the death of Hafiz al-Assad in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad inherited the presidency and political system centered around a cult of personality to the al-Assad family. The Ba'ath regime is a totalitarian dictatorship that has been internationally condemned for its political repression alongside its numerous human rights abuses, including summary executions, massive censorship, forced disappearances, mass-murders, barrel-bombings, chemical attacks and other war-crimes. Following its violent suppression of the Arab Spring protests of the 2011 Syrian Revolution, the Syrian government was suspended from the Arab League in November 2011 for over 11 years, until its reinstatement in 2023. Since July 2011, Syria has been embroiled in a multi-sided civil war, with involvement of different countries. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation suspended Syria in August 2012 citing "deep concern at the massacres and inhuman acts" perpetrated by forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad.[c] As of 2020, three political entities – the Syrian Interim Government, Syrian Salvation Government, and Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria – have emerged in Syrian territory to challenge Assad's rule.

    Syria is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and the Arab League. Being ranked third last on the 2022 Global Peace Index and 5th highest in the 2023 Fragile States Index,[12][13] Syria is one of the most violent countries in the world. The country is amongst the most dangerous places for journalism and is ranked 6th worst in 2023 World Press Freedom Index.[14][15] Syria is the most corrupt country in the MENA region and was ranked the second lowest globally on the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index.[d] The country has also become the epicentre of a state-sponsored multi-billion dollar illicit drug cartel, the largest in the world. The Syrian civil war has killed more than 570,000 people, with pro-Assad forces causing more than 90% of the total civilian casualties.[e] The war led to the Syrian refugee crisis, with an estimated 7.6 million internally displaced people (July 2015 UNHCR figure) and over 5 million refugees (July 2017 registered by UNHCR),[24] making population assessment difficult in recent years. The war has also worsened economic conditions, with more than 90% of the population living in poverty and 80% facing food insecurity.[f]

    1. ^ Cite error: The named reference CoSAR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    2. ^ a b c "Syria: People and society". The World Factbook. CIA. 10 May 2022.
    3. ^ "Largest Ethnic Groups In Syria". WorldAtlas. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
    4. ^
    5. ^
      • Khamis, B. Gold, Vaughn, Sahar, Paul, Katherine (2013). "22. Propaganda in Egypt and Syria's "Cyberwars": Contexts, Actors, Tools, and Tactics". In Auerbach, Castronovo, Jonathan, Russ (ed.). The Oxford Handbook of Propaganda Studies. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016: Oxford University Press. p. 422. ISBN 978-0-19-976441-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
      • Wieland, Carsten (2018). "6: De-neutralizing Aid: All Roads Lead to Damascus". Syria and the Neutrality Trap: The Dilemmas of Delivering Humanitarian Aid Through Violent Regimes. 50 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3DP, UK: I. B. Tauris. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-7556-4138-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
      • Ahmed, Saladdin (2019). Totalitarian Space and the Destruction of Aura. State University of New York Press, Albany: Suny Press. pp. 144, 149. ISBN 9781438472911.
      • Hensman, Rohini (2018). "7: The Syrian Uprising". Indefensible: Democracy, Counterrevolution, and the Rhetoric of Anti-Imperialism. Chicago, Illinois: Haymarket Books. ISBN 978-1-60846-912-3.
    6. ^ "Syrian ministry of foreign affairs". Archived from the original on 11 May 2012.
    7. ^ "Syria". The World Factbook (2024 ed.). Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
    8. ^ a b c "Syria". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
    9. ^ "World Bank GINI index". World Bank. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
    10. ^ "Human Development Report 2021/2022" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
    11. ^ "Regional group votes to suspend Syria; rebels claim downing of jet". CNN. 14 August 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2012.
    12. ^ "Country Dashboard". Global Peace Index. Fragile States Index. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
    13. ^ "Global Peace Index". Vision of Humanity. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
    14. ^ "Syria". Reporters Without Borders. 2023. Archived from the original on 8 May 2023.
    15. ^ "Iran, Syria rank lowest for press freedom globally". Middle East Monitor. 4 May 2023. Archived from the original on 4 May 2023.
    16. ^ "Assad, Iran, Russia committed 91% of civilian killings in Syria". Middle East Monitor. 20 June 2022. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023.
    17. ^ "Civilian Death Toll". SNHR. September 2022. Archived from the original on 5 March 2022.
    18. ^ "91 percent of civilian deaths caused by Syrian regime and Russian forces: rights group". The New Arab. 19 June 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2023.
    19. ^ "2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Syria". U.S Department of State. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022.
    20. ^ "In Syria's Civilian Death Toll, The Islamic State Group, Or ISIS, Is A Far Smaller Threat Than Bashar Assad". SOHR. 11 January 2015. Archived from the original on 6 April 2022.
    21. ^ "Assad's War on the Syrian People Continues". SOHR. 11 March 2021. Archived from the original on 13 March 2021.
    22. ^ Roth, Kenneth (9 January 2017). "Barack Obama's Shaky Legacy on Human Rights". Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 2 February 2021.
    23. ^ "The Regional War in Syria: Summary of Caabu event with Christopher Phillips". Council for Arab-British Understanding.
    24. ^ "UNHCR Syria Regional Refugee Response". United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Archived from the original on 19 February 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
    25. ^ "Syria: Unprecedented rise in poverty rate, significant shortfall in humanitarian aid funding". Reliefweb. 18 October 2022. Archived from the original on 2 November 2022.
    26. ^ "Every Day Counts: Children of Syria cannot wait any longer". unicef. 2022. Archived from the original on 13 July 2022.
    27. ^ "Hunger, poverty and rising prices: How one family in Syria bears the burden of 11 years of conflict". reliefweb. 15 March 2022. Archived from the original on 16 March 2022.
    28. ^ "UN Chief says 90% of Syrians live below poverty line". 14 January 2022. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

     
  27. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    17 April 1946Syria obtains its independence from the French occupation.

    Syria

    Syria,[a] officially the Syrian Arab Republic,[b] is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east and southeast, Jordan to the south, and Israel and Lebanon to the southwest. Cyprus lies to the west across the Mediterranean Sea. It is a unitary republic that consists of 14 governorates (subdivisions). A country of fertile plains, high mountains, and deserts, Syria is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups, including the majority Arabs, Kurds, Turkmens, Assyrians, Circassians, Armenians, Albanians, Greeks, and Chechens. Religious groups include Muslims, Christians, Alawites, Druze, and Yazidis. The capital and largest city is Damascus, followed by Aleppo, Homs, Latakia, Hama, Deirezor, and Raqqa. Arabs are the largest ethnic group, and Sunni Muslims are the largest religious group. Syria is now the only country that is governed by Ba'athists, who advocate Arab socialism and Arab nationalism.

    The name "Syria" historically referred to a wider region, broadly synonymous with the Levant, and known in Arabic as al-Sham. The modern state encompasses the sites of several ancient kingdoms and empires, including the Eblan civilization of the 3rd millennium BC. In the Islamic era, Damascus was the seat of the Umayyad Caliphate and a provincial capital of the Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt. The modern Syrian state was established in the mid-20th century after centuries of Ottoman rule. After a period as a French mandate (1923–1946), the newly created state represented the largest Arab state to emerge from the formerly Ottoman-ruled Syrian provinces. It gained de jure independence as a democratic parliamentary republic on 24 October 1945 when the Republic of Syria became a founding member of the United Nations, an act which legally ended the former French mandate (although French troops did not leave the country until April 1946).

    The post-independence period was tumultuous, with multiple military coups and coup attempts shaking the country between 1949 and 1971. In 1958, Syria entered a brief union with Egypt called the United Arab Republic, which was terminated by the 1961 Syrian coup d'état. The republic was renamed as the Arab Republic of Syria in late 1961 after the December 1 constitutional referendum of that year. A significant event was the 1963 coup d'état carried out by the military committee of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party which established a one-party state. It ran Syria under emergency law from 1963 to 2011, effectively suspending constitutional protections for citizens. Internal power-struggles within Ba'athist factions caused further coups in 1966 and 1970, which eventually resulted in the seizure of power by General Hafiz al-Assad. Assad assigned Alawite loyalists to key posts in the armed forces, bureaucracy, Mukhabarat and the ruling elite; effectively establishing an "Alawi minority rule" to consolidate power within his family.

    After the death of Hafiz al-Assad in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad inherited the presidency and political system centered around a cult of personality to the al-Assad family. The Ba'ath regime is a totalitarian dictatorship that has been internationally condemned for its political repression alongside its numerous human rights abuses, including summary executions, massive censorship, forced disappearances, mass-murders, barrel-bombings, chemical attacks and other war-crimes. Following its violent suppression of the Arab Spring protests of the 2011 Syrian Revolution, the Syrian government was suspended from the Arab League in November 2011 for over 11 years, until its reinstatement in 2023. Since July 2011, Syria has been embroiled in a multi-sided civil war, with involvement of different countries. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation suspended Syria in August 2012 citing "deep concern at the massacres and inhuman acts" perpetrated by forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad.[c] As of 2020, three political entities – the Syrian Interim Government, Syrian Salvation Government, and Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria – have emerged in Syrian territory to challenge Assad's rule.

    Syria is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and the Arab League. Being ranked third last on the 2022 Global Peace Index and 5th highest in the 2023 Fragile States Index,[12][13] Syria is one of the most violent countries in the world. The country is amongst the most dangerous places for journalism and is ranked 6th worst in 2023 World Press Freedom Index.[14][15] Syria is the most corrupt country in the MENA region and was ranked the second lowest globally on the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index.[d] The country has also become the epicentre of a state-sponsored multi-billion dollar illicit drug cartel, the largest in the world. The Syrian civil war has killed more than 570,000 people, with pro-Assad forces causing more than 90% of the total civilian casualties.[e] The war led to the Syrian refugee crisis, with an estimated 7.6 million internally displaced people (July 2015 UNHCR figure) and over 5 million refugees (July 2017 registered by UNHCR),[24] making population assessment difficult in recent years. The war has also worsened economic conditions, with more than 90% of the population living in poverty and 80% facing food insecurity.[f]

    1. ^ Cite error: The named reference CoSAR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    2. ^ a b c "Syria: People and society". The World Factbook. CIA. 10 May 2022.
    3. ^ "Largest Ethnic Groups In Syria". WorldAtlas. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
    4. ^
    5. ^
      • Khamis, B. Gold, Vaughn, Sahar, Paul, Katherine (2013). "22. Propaganda in Egypt and Syria's "Cyberwars": Contexts, Actors, Tools, and Tactics". In Auerbach, Castronovo, Jonathan, Russ (ed.). The Oxford Handbook of Propaganda Studies. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016: Oxford University Press. p. 422. ISBN 978-0-19-976441-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
      • Wieland, Carsten (2018). "6: De-neutralizing Aid: All Roads Lead to Damascus". Syria and the Neutrality Trap: The Dilemmas of Delivering Humanitarian Aid Through Violent Regimes. 50 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3DP, UK: I. B. Tauris. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-7556-4138-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
      • Ahmed, Saladdin (2019). Totalitarian Space and the Destruction of Aura. State University of New York Press, Albany: Suny Press. pp. 144, 149. ISBN 9781438472911.
      • Hensman, Rohini (2018). "7: The Syrian Uprising". Indefensible: Democracy, Counterrevolution, and the Rhetoric of Anti-Imperialism. Chicago, Illinois: Haymarket Books. ISBN 978-1-60846-912-3.
    6. ^ "Syrian ministry of foreign affairs". Archived from the original on 11 May 2012.
    7. ^ "Syria". The World Factbook (2024 ed.). Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
    8. ^ a b c "Syria". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
    9. ^ "World Bank GINI index". World Bank. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
    10. ^ "Human Development Report 2021/2022" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
    11. ^ "Regional group votes to suspend Syria; rebels claim downing of jet". CNN. 14 August 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2012.
    12. ^ "Country Dashboard". Global Peace Index. Fragile States Index. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
    13. ^ "Global Peace Index". Vision of Humanity. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
    14. ^ "Syria". Reporters Without Borders. 2023. Archived from the original on 8 May 2023.
    15. ^ "Iran, Syria rank lowest for press freedom globally". Middle East Monitor. 4 May 2023. Archived from the original on 4 May 2023.
    16. ^ "Assad, Iran, Russia committed 91% of civilian killings in Syria". Middle East Monitor. 20 June 2022. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023.
    17. ^ "Civilian Death Toll". SNHR. September 2022. Archived from the original on 5 March 2022.
    18. ^ "91 percent of civilian deaths caused by Syrian regime and Russian forces: rights group". The New Arab. 19 June 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2023.
    19. ^ "2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Syria". U.S Department of State. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022.
    20. ^ "In Syria's Civilian Death Toll, The Islamic State Group, Or ISIS, Is A Far Smaller Threat Than Bashar Assad". SOHR. 11 January 2015. Archived from the original on 6 April 2022.
    21. ^ "Assad's War on the Syrian People Continues". SOHR. 11 March 2021. Archived from the original on 13 March 2021.
    22. ^ Roth, Kenneth (9 January 2017). "Barack Obama's Shaky Legacy on Human Rights". Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 2 February 2021.
    23. ^ "The Regional War in Syria: Summary of Caabu event with Christopher Phillips". Council for Arab-British Understanding.
    24. ^ "UNHCR Syria Regional Refugee Response". United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Archived from the original on 19 February 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
    25. ^ "Syria: Unprecedented rise in poverty rate, significant shortfall in humanitarian aid funding". Reliefweb. 18 October 2022. Archived from the original on 2 November 2022.
    26. ^ "Every Day Counts: Children of Syria cannot wait any longer". unicef. 2022. Archived from the original on 13 July 2022.
    27. ^ "Hunger, poverty and rising prices: How one family in Syria bears the burden of 11 years of conflict". reliefweb. 15 March 2022. Archived from the original on 16 March 2022.
    28. ^ "UN Chief says 90% of Syrians live below poverty line". 14 January 2022. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

     
  28. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    18 April 1831 – The University of Alabama is founded in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

    University of Alabama

    The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the public universities in Alabama as well as the University of Alabama System. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".[6]

    The university offers programs of study in 13 academic divisions leading to bachelor's, master's, education specialist, and doctoral degrees. The only publicly supported law school in the state is at UA. Other academic programs unavailable elsewhere in Alabama include doctoral programs in anthropology, communication and information sciences, metallurgical engineering, music, Romance languages, and social work.

    The school was a center of activity during the American Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement. The University of Alabama varsity football program (nicknamed the Crimson Tide), inaugurated in 1892, ranks as one of the ten best in US history. In a 1913 speech president George H. Denny extolled the university as the "capstone of the public school system in the state", thereby establishing the university's current nickname, The Capstone. Alumni and faculty include 59 Goldwater Scholars, 15 Rhodes Scholars, and 16 Truman Scholars.

    1. ^ Cite error: The named reference encyclopedia-alabama was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    2. ^ As of September 30, 2021. Maurer, Jack (March 9, 2022). "UA endowment surpasses $1B for first time as tuition revenue falls". The Crimson White. Archived from the original on August 13, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
    3. ^ a b "Common Data Set". The University of Alabama Office of Institutional Research and Assessment. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
    4. ^ "College Navigator - The University of Alabama". nces.ed.gov. Archived from the original on July 19, 2023. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
    5. ^ "Colors – Brand Guidelines". University of Alabama Division of Strategic Communications. Archived from the original on August 25, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
    6. ^ "Carnegie Classifications | Institution Lookup". Archived from the original on February 17, 2022. Retrieved February 17, 2022.
     
  29. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    19 April 2013Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev is killed in a shootout with police. His brother Dzhokhar is later captured hiding in a boat inside a backyard in the suburb of Watertown.

    Boston Marathon bombing

    The Boston Marathon bombing, sometimes referred to as just simply the Boston bombing,[4] was a domestic terrorist attack that took place during the annual Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. Brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev planted two homemade pressure cooker bombs that detonated near the finish line of the race 14 seconds and 210 yards (190 m) apart. Three people were killed and hundreds injured, including 17 who lost limbs.[1][5][6]

    On April 18, 2013, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released images of two suspects in the bombing.[7][8][9] The two suspects were later identified as the Tsarnaev brothers. Later on the evening of April 18, the Tsarnaev brothers killed an MIT policeman (Sean Collier) and proceeded to commit a carjacking. They engaged in a shootout with police in nearby Watertown during which two officers were severely injured (one of the injured officers, Dennis Simmonds, died a year later). Tamerlan was shot several times, and his brother Dzhokhar ran him over while escaping in the stolen car. Tamerlan died soon thereafter.

    An unprecedented manhunt for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev ensued, with thousands of law enforcement officers searching a 20-block area of Watertown.[10] Residents of Watertown and surrounding communities were asked to stay indoors, and the transportation system and most businesses and public places closed.[11][12] After a Watertown resident discovered Dzhokhar hiding in a boat in his backyard,[13] Tsarnaev was shot and wounded by police before being taken into custody on the evening of April 19.[14][15]

    During questioning, Dzhokhar said that he and his brother were motivated by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, that they were self-radicalized and unconnected to any outside terrorist groups, and that he was following his brother's lead. He said they learned to build explosive devices from the online magazine of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.[16] He also said they had intended to travel to New York City to bomb Times Square. He was convicted of 30 charges, including use of a weapon of mass destruction and malicious destruction of property resulting in death.[17][18][19]

    Two months later, he was sentenced to death,[20] but the sentence was vacated by the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.[21] A writ of certiorari was granted by the Supreme Court of the United States, which considered the questions of whether the lower court erred in vacating the death sentence. After hearing arguments as United States v. Tsarnaev, the Court upheld the death penalty, reversing the First Circuit Court's decision.[22][23]

    1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NYDN-5/15 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    2. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoQU-1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    3. ^ Cite error: The named reference cbs20130516 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    4. ^ "Boston bombing: Tsarnaev's death sentence could be reinstated". March 22, 2021. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
    5. ^ Cite error: The named reference globe-number-injured was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    6. ^ Cite error: The named reference cnn-what-we-know was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Clark Estes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    8. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoLC-4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    9. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoLC-5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    10. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoLC-6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    11. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoLC-7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    12. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoZ2-1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    13. ^ "Two unnamed officials say Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, did not have a gun when he was captured Friday in a Watertown, Mass. backyard. Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis said earlier that shots were fired from inside the boat." The Associated Press Wednesday, April 24, 2013, 8:42 PM.
    14. ^ Cite error: The named reference NY Times Standoff was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    15. ^ O'Neill, Ann (March 4, 2015). "Tsarnaev trial: Timeline of the bombings, manhunt and aftermath". CNN.
    16. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoLC-8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    17. ^ Cite error: The named reference DOJ affidavit was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    18. ^ Cite error: The named reference AutoLC-9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    19. ^ "Dzhokhar Tsarnaev: Boston Marathon bomber found guilty". BBC News. April 8, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
    20. ^ "What Happened To Dzhokhar Tsarnaev? Update On Boston Marathon Bomber Sentenced To Death". International Business Times. April 16, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
    21. ^ Cite error: The named reference cnn appeal july312020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    22. ^ "United States v. Tsarnaev". Oyez. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
    23. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
     
  30. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    20 April 1908 – Opening day of competition in the New South Wales Rugby League.

    New South Wales Rugby League

    Preview warning: unknown parameter "headquarters"

    The New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory and is a member of the Australian Rugby League Commission. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907[1] and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League (NSWRFL) until 1984. From 1908 to 1994, the NSWRL ran Sydney's, then New South Wales', and eventually Australia's top-level rugby league club competition. The organisation is responsible for administering the New South Wales rugby league team.

    1. ^ ARL (2007). "Australian Rugby Football League Annual Report 2007" (PDF). Australian Rugby League. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 September 2009. Retrieved 15 July 2009.
     
  31. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    21 April 1962 – The Seattle World's Fair (Century 21 Exposition) opens. It is the first World's Fair in the United States since World War II.

    Century 21 Exposition

    The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington, United States.[1][2] Nearly 10 million people attended the fair during its six-month run.[3]

    As planned, the exposition left behind a fairground and numerous public buildings and public works; some credit it with revitalizing Seattle's economic and cultural life (see History of Seattle since 1940).[4] The fair saw the construction of the Space Needle and Alweg monorail, as well as several sports venues (Washington State Coliseum, now Climate Pledge Arena) and performing arts buildings (the Playhouse, now the Cornish Playhouse), most of which have since been replaced or heavily remodeled. Unlike some other world's fairs of its era, Century 21 made a profit.[3]

    Aerial photograph of the Space Needle in 2003 decorated for Memorial Day

    The site, slightly expanded since the fair, is now called Seattle Center; the United States Science Pavilion is now the Pacific Science Center. Another notable Seattle Center building, the Museum of Pop Culture (earlier called EMP Museum), was built nearly 40 years later and designed to fit in with the fairground atmosphere.

    1. ^ Official Guide Book, cover and passim.
    2. ^ Guide to the Seattle Center Grounds Photograph Collection: April, 1963 Archived March 27, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, University of Washington Libraries Special Collections. Accessed online October 18, 2007.
    3. ^ a b Joel Connelly, Century 21 introduced Seattle to its future Archived September 14, 2012, at archive.today, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, April 16, 2002. Accessed online October 18, 2007.
    4. ^ Regina Hackett, City's arts history began a new chapter in '62 Archived May 27, 2012, at archive.today, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, April 29, 2002. Accessed online October 18, 2007.
     
  32. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    22 April 1809 – The second day of the Battle of Eckmühl: The Austrian army is defeated by the First French Empire army led by Napoleon and driven over the Danube in Regensburg.

    Battle of Eckmühl

    200km
    125miles
    22
    Armistice of Znaim from 10–11 July 1809
    21
    Battle of Hollabrunn (1809) on 9 July 1809 Combat of Schöngrabern on 10 July 1809
    20
    Combat of Stockerau on 8 July 1809
    19
    Combat of Korneuburg on 7 July 1809
    Wagram
    18
    Battle of Wagram from 5 to 6 July 1809
    17
    Battle of Graz from 24 to 26 June 1809
    16
    Battle of Raab on 14 June 1809
    15
    Battle of Sankt Michael on 25 May 1809
    Aspern
    14
    Battle of Aspern-Essling from 21 to 22 May 1809
    12
    Battle of Tarvis (1809) from 15 to 18 May 1809
    11
    Battle of Wörgl on 13 May 1809
    10
    Battle of Piave River (1809) on 8 May 1809
    9
    Battle of Ebelsberg on 3 May 1809 Battle of Linz-Urfahr on 17 May 1809
    8
    Battle of Caldiero (1809) from 27 to 30 April 1809
    7
    Battle of Neumarkt-Sankt Veit on 24 April 1809
    6
    Battle of Ratisbon on 23 April 1809
    5
    4
    Battle of Landshut (1809) on 21 April 1809
    3
    Battle of Abensberg on 20 April 1809
    2
    Battle of Teugen-Hausen on 19 April 1809
    1
    Battle of Sacile from 15 to 16 April 1809
    Map
      current battle
      Napoleon in command
      Napoleon not in command

    The Battle of Eckmühl fought on 22 April 1809, was the turning point of the 1809 Campaign, also known as the War of the Fifth Coalition. Napoleon I had been unprepared for the start of hostilities on 10 April 1809, by the Austrians under Archduke Charles of Austria and for the first time since assuming the French Imperial Crown had been forced to give up the strategic initiative to an opponent. Thanks to the dogged defense waged by the III Corps, commanded by Marshal Davout, and the Bavarian VII Corps, commanded by Marshal Lefebvre, Napoleon was able to defeat the principal Austrian army and wrest the strategic initiative for the remainder of the war.

    1. ^ Bodart 1908, p. 399.
    2. ^ a b Gill 2014, p. 257.
    3. ^ a b Gill 2014, p. 279.
     
  33. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    23 April 1660Treaty of Oliva is established between Sweden and Poland.

    Treaty of Oliva

    The Treaty or Peace of Oliva of 23 April (OS)/3 May (NS) 1660[1] (Polish: Pokój Oliwski, Swedish: Freden i Oliva, German: Vertrag von Oliva) was one of the peace treaties ending the Second Northern War (1655–1660).[2] The Treaty of Oliva, the Treaty of Copenhagen in the same year, and the Treaty of Cardis in the following year marked the high point of the Swedish Empire.[3][4]

    At Oliwa (Oliva), Poland, peace was made between Sweden, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Habsburgs and Brandenburg-Prussia. Sweden was accepted as sovereign in Swedish Livonia, Brandenburg was accepted as sovereign in Ducal Prussia and John II Casimir Vasa withdrew his claims to the Swedish throne but was to retain the title of a hereditary Swedish king for life.[2] All occupied territories were restored to their prewar sovereigns.[2] Catholics in Livonia and Prussia were granted religious freedom.[1][2][5][6]

    The signatories were the Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, Elector Frederick William I of Brandenburg and King John II Casimir Vasa of Poland. Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie, the head of the Swedish delegation and the minor regency, signed on behalf of his nephew, King Charles XI of Sweden, who was still a minor.[7]

    1. ^ a b Evans (2008), p. 55
    2. ^ a b c d Frost (2000), p. 183
    3. ^ "Freden i København, 27. maj 1660". danmarkshistorien.dk. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
    4. ^ Nina Ringbom. "Freden i Kardis 1661". Historiesajten. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
    5. ^ "Friede von Oliva". Monarchieliga. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
    6. ^ Nina Ringbom. "Freden i Oliva 1660". Historiesajten. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
    7. ^ Bély (2000), p. 511
     
  34. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    24 April 1953Winston Churchill is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

    Winston Churchill

    Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill[a] (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1951 to 1955. Apart from two years between 1922 and 1924, he was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1900 to 1964 and represented a total of five constituencies. Ideologically an adherent to economic liberalism and imperialism, he was for most of his career a member of the Conservative Party, which he led from 1940 to 1955. He was a member of the Liberal Party from 1904 to 1924.

    Of mixed English and American parentage, Churchill was born in Oxfordshire into the wealthy, aristocratic Spencer family. He joined the British Army in 1895 and saw action in British India, the Mahdist War (also known as the Anglo-Sudan War), and the Second Boer War, later gaining fame as a war correspondent and writing books about his campaigns. Elected a Conservative MP in 1900, he defected to the Liberals in 1904. In H. H. Asquith's Liberal government, Churchill served as President of the Board of Trade and Home Secretary, championing prison reform and workers' social security. As First Lord of the Admiralty during the First World War, he oversaw the Gallipoli campaign, but after it proved a disaster, he was demoted to Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. He resigned in November 1915 and joined the Royal Scots Fusiliers on the Western Front for six months. In 1917, he returned to government under David Lloyd George and served successively as Minister of Munitions, Secretary of State for War, Secretary of State for Air, and Secretary of State for the Colonies, overseeing the Anglo-Irish Treaty and British foreign policy in the Middle East. After two years out of Parliament, he served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Stanley Baldwin's Conservative government, returning the pound sterling in 1925 to the gold standard at its pre-war parity, a move widely seen as creating deflationary pressure and depressing the UK economy.

    Out of government during his so-called "wilderness years" in the 1930s, Churchill took the lead in calling for British rearmament to counter the growing threat of militarism in Nazi Germany. At the outbreak of the Second World War he was re-appointed First Lord of the Admiralty. In May 1940, he became prime minister, succeeding Neville Chamberlain. Churchill formed a national government and oversaw British involvement in the Allied war effort against the Axis powers, resulting in victory in 1945. After the Conservatives' defeat in the 1945 general election, he became Leader of the Opposition. Amid the developing Cold War with the Soviet Union, he publicly warned of an "iron curtain" of Soviet influence in Europe and promoted European unity. Between his terms as prime minister, he wrote several books recounting his experience during the war. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1953. He lost the 1950 election but was returned to office in 1951. His second term was preoccupied with foreign affairs, especially Anglo-American relations and preservation of what remained of the British Empire with India now no longer part of it. Domestically, his government emphasised housebuilding and completed the development of a nuclear weapon (begun by his predecessor). In declining health, Churchill resigned as prime minister in 1955, remaining an MP until 1964. Upon his death in 1965, he was given a state funeral.

    One of the 20th century's most significant figures, Churchill remains popular in the UK and the rest of the Anglosphere where he is generally viewed as a victorious wartime leader who played an important role in defending liberal democracy against the spread of fascism. While he has been criticised for his views on race and empire alongside some of his wartime decisions, historians often rank Churchill as the greatest prime minister in British history.

    1. ^ Price 2009, p. 12.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

     
  35. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    25 April 1859 – British and French engineers break ground for the Suez Canal.

    Suez Canal

    The Suez Canal (Arabic: قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, Qanāt as-Suwais) is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest of Egypt). The 193.30-kilometre-long (120.11 mi) canal is a key trade route between Europe and Asia.

    In 1858, Ferdinand de Lesseps formed the Suez Canal Company for the express purpose of building the canal. Construction of the canal lasted from 1859 to 1869. The canal officially opened on 17 November 1869. It offers vessels a direct route between the North Atlantic and northern Indian oceans via the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, avoiding the South Atlantic and southern Indian oceans and reducing the journey distance from the Arabian Sea to London by approximately 8,900 kilometres (5,500 mi), to 10 days at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) or 8 days at 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph).[1] The canal extends from the northern terminus of Port Said to the southern terminus of Port Tewfik at the city of Suez. In 2021, more than 20,600 vessels traversed the canal (an average of 56 per day).[2]

    The original canal featured a single-lane waterway with passing locations in the Ballah Bypass and the Great Bitter Lake.[3] It contained, according to Alois Negrelli's plans, no locks, with seawater flowing freely through it. In general, the water in the canal north of the Bitter Lakes flows north in winter and south in summer. South of the lakes, the current changes with the tide at Suez.[4]

    The canal was the property of the Egyptian government, but European shareholders, mostly British and French, owned the concessionary company which operated it until July 1956, when President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised it—an event which led to the Suez Crisis of October–November 1956.[5] The canal is operated and maintained by the state-owned Suez Canal Authority[6] (SCA) of Egypt. Under the Convention of Constantinople, it may be used "in time of war as in time of peace, by every vessel of commerce or of war, without distinction of flag."[7] Nevertheless, the canal has played an important military strategic role as a naval short-cut and choke point. Navies with coastlines and bases on both the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea (Egypt and Israel) have a particular interest in the Suez Canal. After Egypt closed the Suez Canal at the beginning of the Six-Day War on 5 June 1967, the canal remained closed for eight years, reopening on 5 June 1975.[8]

    The Egyptian government launched construction in 2014 to expand and widen the Ballah Bypass for 35 km (22 mi) to speed up the canal's transit time. The expansion intended to nearly double the capacity of the Suez Canal, from 49 to 97 ships per day.[9] At a cost of LE 59.4 billion (US$9 billion), this project was funded with interest-bearing investment certificates issued exclusively to Egyptian entities and individuals.

    The Suez Canal Authority officially opened the new side channel in 2016. This side channel, at the northern side of the east extension of the Suez Canal, serves the East Terminal for berthing and unberthing vessels from the terminal. As the East Container Terminal is located on the Canal itself, before the construction of the new side channel it was not possible to berth or unberth vessels at the terminal while a convoy was running.[10]

    Aerial view of the Suez Canal at Suez
    1. ^ "The Suez Canal – A vital shortcut for global commerce" (PDF). World Shipping Council. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 April 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
    2. ^ "Number of ships passing through the Suez Canal from 1976 to 2021". Statista. 31 March 2022.
    3. ^ "Suez Canal Authority". Archived from the original on 13 June 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
    4. ^ Elaine Morgan; Stephen Davies (1995). The Red Sea Pilot. Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson. p. 266. ISBN 9780852885543.
    5. ^ "Suez Crisis". History.com. A&E Television Networks. 9 November 2009. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
    6. ^ "SCA Overview". Suez Canal Authority. Archived from the original on 25 June 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
    7. ^ Constantinople Convention of the Suez Canal of 2 March 1888 still in force and specifically maintained in Nasser's Nationalization Act.
    8. ^ Feyrer, James. "Distance, Trade, and Income – The 1967 to 1975 Closing of the Suez Canal as a Natural Experiment" (PDF). National Bureau of Economic Research. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 February 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
    9. ^ "New Suez Canal project proposed by Egypt to boost trade". caironews.net. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
    10. ^ "Egypt opens East Port Said side channel for navigation". Xinhua. Archived from the original on 25 February 2016. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
     
  36. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    26 April 1943 – The Easter Riots break out in Uppsala, Sweden.

    Easter Riots

    The Royal Mounds, 2006.

    The Easter Riots (Swedish: Påskkravallerna) is the name given to a period of unrest in Uppsala, Sweden, during the Easter of 1943. The National Socialist group Swedish Socialist Union (SSS, Swedish: Svensk Socialistisk Samling, previously the National Socialist Workers' Party) held its national congress in Uppsala, amid the Second World War and only days after events like the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The unrest climaxed on 26 April, when the SSS – who after initially belonging to a Strasserist wing of National Socialism began adopting a more indigenous form of fascism in 1938, and included Ingvar Kamprad among its early members – ended the congress by holding a demonstration at the Royal Mounds of Old Uppsala.[1][2]

    Thousands of anti-fascists gathered to protest against the Nazi gathering at the Royal Mounds, a historical site that held much political symbolism among Swedish nationalists. Policemen had been called in from Stockholm to defend the demonstration, and after the situation became increasingly tense they resorted to violence, dispersing the peacefully protesting crowds and onlookers alike with heavy force.[3]

    In addition to writing a book about it, the historian and playwright Magnus Alkarp has depicted the riots in a play, 4 dagar i april. The play, produced by the Uppsala City Theatre and directed by Sara Cronberg, was put on in 2012.[4] Alkarp received death threats from the Swedish Resistance Movement, a militant neo-Nazi group, after the play's premier.[5]

    1. ^ Andersson, Peter (23 August 2011). "Kamprad var djupt inblandad i nazistisk rörelse" (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
    2. ^ Payne, Stanley G. (2001). A History of Fascism 1914-1945. London: Routledge. p. 306.
    3. ^ Alkarp, Magnus (2013). Fyra dagar i april: Påskkravallerna i Uppsala 1943 (in Swedish). Historiska Media. ISBN 9789186297725.[page needed]
    4. ^ Harrison, Dick (16 May 2013). "När demonstranter möttes av polisens sabelattack". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 September 2014.
    5. ^ Vergara, Daniel (24 February 2012). "Dödshot mot pjäsförfattare". Expo (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 September 2014.
     
  37. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    27 April 1810Beethoven composes Für Elise.

    Für Elise

    Bagatelle No. 25[a] in A minor (WoO 59, Bia 515) for solo piano, commonly known as "Für Elise" (German: [fyːɐ̯ ʔeˈliːzə], transl. For Elise), is one of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions.[1][2][3] It was not published during his lifetime, only being discovered (by Ludwig Nohl) 40 years after his death, and may be termed either a Bagatelle or an Albumblatt. The identity of "Elise" is unknown; researchers have suggested Therese Malfatti, Elisabeth Röckel, or Elise Barensfeld.


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

    1. ^ William Kinderman, The Cambridge Companion to Beethoven, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, p. 125–126, ISBN 978-0-521-58934-5
    2. ^ Dorothy de Val, The Cambridge Companion to the piano, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998, p. 131, ISBN 978-0-521-47986-8, "Beethoven is here [in the 1892 Repertory of select pianoforte works] only by 'Für Elise', but there is a better representation of later composers such as Schubert ..., Chopin ..., Schumann ... and some Liszt."
    3. ^ Morton Manus, Alfred's Basic Adult All-In-One Piano Course, Book 3, New York: Alfred Publishing, p. 132, ISBN 978-0-7390-0068-7
     
  38. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    28 April 1881Billy the Kid escapes from the Lincoln County jail in Mesilla, New Mexico.

    Billy the Kid

    Henry McCarty (September 17 or November 23, 1859 – July 14, 1881), alias William H. Bonney, better known as Billy the Kid, was an American outlaw and gunfighter of the Old West who is alleged to have killed 21 men before he was shot and killed at the age of 21.[2][3] He is also known for his involvement in New Mexico's Lincoln County War, during which he allegedly committed three murders.

    McCarty was orphaned at the age of 15. His first arrest was for stealing food at the age of 16 in 1875. Ten days later, he robbed a Chinese laundry and was arrested again but escaped shortly afterwards. He fled from New Mexico Territory into neighboring Arizona Territory, making himself both an outlaw and a federal fugitive. In 1877, he began to call himself "William H. Bonney".[4]

    After killing a blacksmith during an altercation in August 1877, Bonney became a wanted man in Arizona and returned to New Mexico, where he joined a group of cattle rustlers. He became well known in the region when he joined the Regulators and took part in the Lincoln County War of 1878. He and two other Regulators were later charged with killing three men, including Lincoln County Sheriff William J. Brady and one of his deputies.

    Bonney's notoriety grew in December 1880 when the Las Vegas Gazette, in Las Vegas, New Mexico, and The Sun, in New York City, carried stories about his crimes.[5] Sheriff Pat Garrett captured Bonney later that month. In April 1881, Bonney was tried for and convicted of Brady's murder, and was sentenced to hang in May of that year. He escaped from jail on April 28, killing two sheriff's deputies in the process, and evaded capture for more than two months. Garrett shot and killed Bonney, by then aged 21, in Fort Sumner on July 14, 1881.

    During the decades following his death, legends grew that Bonney had survived, and a number of men claimed to be him.[6] Billy the Kid remains one of the most notorious figures from the era, whose life and likeness have been frequently dramatized in Western popular culture. He has been a feature of more than 50 movies and several television series.

    1. ^ Nolan, Frederick (2015). The West of Billy the Kid. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-8061-4887-8. Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
    2. ^ Rasch 1995, pp. 23–35.
    3. ^ Wallis 2007, pp. 244–245.
    4. ^ Wallis 2007, p. 144.
    5. ^ Utley 1989, pp. 145–146.
    6. ^ "The Old Man Who Claimed to Be Billy the Kid". Atlas Obscura. March 30, 2017. Archived from the original on July 8, 2017. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
     
  39. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    29 April 1986 – Chernobyl disaster: American and European spy satellites capture the ruins of the 4th Reactor at the Chernobyl Power Plant

    Chernobyl disaster

    The Chernobyl disaster[a] began on 26 April 1986 with the explosion of the No. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, near the city of Pripyat in the north of the Ukrainian SSR, close to the border with the Byelorussian SSR, in the Soviet Union.[1] It is one of only two nuclear energy accidents rated at seven—the maximum severity—on the International Nuclear Event Scale, the other being the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan. The initial emergency response and subsequent mitigation efforts involved more than 500,000 personnel and cost an estimated 18 billion roubles—roughly US$68 billion in 2019, adjusted for inflation.[2] It is considered the worst nuclear disaster in history.[3][4][5]

    The accident occurred during a test of the steam turbine's ability to power the emergency feedwater pumps in the event of a simultaneous loss of external power and coolant pipe rupture. Following an accidental drop in reactor power to near-zero, the operators restarted the reactor in preparation for the turbine test with a prohibited control rod configuration. Upon successful completion of the test, the reactor was then shut down for maintenance. Due to a variety of factors, this action resulted in a power surge at the base of the reactor which brought about the rupture of reactor components and the loss of coolant. This process led to steam explosions and a meltdown, which destroyed the containment building. This was followed by a reactor core fire which lasted until 4 May 1986, during which airborne radioactive contaminants were spread throughout the USSR and Europe.[6][7] In response to the initial accident, a 10-kilometre (6.2 mi) radius exclusion zone was created 36 hours after the accident, from which approximately 49,000 people were evacuated, primarily from Pripyat. The exclusion zone was later increased to a radius of 30 kilometres (19 mi), from which an additional ~68,000 people were evacuated.[8]

    Following the reactor explosion, which killed two engineers and severely burned two more, an emergency operation to put out the fires and stabilize the surviving reactor began, during which 237 workers were hospitalized, of whom 134 exhibited symptoms of acute radiation syndrome (ARS). Among those hospitalized, 28 died within the following three months. In the following 10 years, 14 more workers (9 of whom had been hospitalized with ARS) died of various causes mostly unrelated to radiation exposure.[9] 15 childhood thyroid cancer deaths were attributed to the disaster as of 2011.[10][11] A United Nations committee found that to date fewer than 100 deaths have resulted from the fallout.[12] Model predictions of the eventual total death toll in the coming decades vary. The most widely cited study conducted by the World Health Organization in 2006 predicted 9,000 cancer-related fatalities in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.[13]

    Following the disaster, Pripyat was abandoned and eventually replaced by the new purpose-built city of Slavutych. The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant sarcophagus was built by December 1986. It reduced the spread of radioactive contamination from the wreckage and protected it from weathering. The confinement shelter also provided radiological protection for the crews of the undamaged reactors at the site, which were restarted in late 1986 and 1987. However, this containment structure was only intended to last for 30 years, and required considerable reinforcement in the early 2000s. The Shelter was heavily supplemented in 2017 by the Chernobyl New Safe Confinement, which was constructed around the old structure. This larger enclosure aims to enable the removal of both the sarcophagus and the reactor debris while containing the radioactive materials inside. Clean-up is scheduled for completion by 2065.[14]


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

    1. ^ "Accident of 1986". Chornobyl NPP. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
    2. ^ "Chernobyl: Assessment of Radiological and Health Impact, 2002 update; Chapter II – The release, dispersion and deposition of radionuclides" (PDF). OECD-NEA. 2002. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
    3. ^ "The Chornobyl Accident". United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
    4. ^ "A Brief History of Nuclear Accidents Worldwide". www.ucsusa.org. 1 October 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
    5. ^ Lallanilla, Marc; Geggel, Laura (18 April 2023). "Chernobyl: The world's worst nuclear disaster". livescience.com. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
    6. ^ McCall, Chris (April 2016). "Chernobyl disaster 30 years on: lessons not learned". The Lancet. 387 (10029): 1707–1708. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(16)30304-x. ISSN 0140-6736. PMID 27116266. S2CID 39494685.
    7. ^ "Chernobyl-Born Radionuclides in Geological Environment". Groundwater Vulnerability. Special Publications. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2014. pp. 25–38. doi:10.1002/9781118962220.ch2. ISBN 978-1-118-96222-0.
    8. ^ Steadman, Philip; Hodgkinson, Simon (1990). Nuclear Disasters & The Built Environment: A Report to the Royal Institute. Butterworth Architecture. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-40850-061-6.
    9. ^ Wagemaker, G.; Guskova, A.K.; Bebeshko, V.G.; Griffiths, N.M.; Krishenko, N.A. (1996). "Clinically Observed Effects in Individuals Exposed to Radiation as a Result of the Chernobyl Accident". One Decade After Chernobyl: Summing up the Consequences of the Accident, Proceedings of an International Conference, Vienna.: 173–198.
    10. ^ "Chernobyl 25th anniversary – Frequently Asked Questions" (PDF). World Health Organization. 23 April 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 April 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
    11. ^ "Chernobyl: the true scale of the accident". World Health Organization. 5 September 2005. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
    12. ^ "UNSCEAR assessments of the Chernobyl accident". www.unscear.org. Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2007.
    13. ^ "World Health Organization report explains the health impacts of the world's worst-ever civil nuclear accident". World Health Organization. 26 April 2006. Archived from the original on 4 April 2011. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
    14. ^ "Chernobyl nuclear power plant site to be cleared by 2065". Kyiv Post. 3 January 2010. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012.
     
  40. Admin2

    Admin2 Administrator Staff Member

    29 April 1986 – Chernobyl disaster: American and European spy satellites capture the ruins of the 4th Reactor at the Chernobyl Power Plant

    Chernobyl disaster

    The Chernobyl disaster[a] began on 26 April 1986 with the explosion of the No. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, near the city of Pripyat in the north of the Ukrainian SSR, close to the border with the Byelorussian SSR, in the Soviet Union.[1] It is one of only two nuclear energy accidents rated at seven—the maximum severity—on the International Nuclear Event Scale, the other being the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan. The initial emergency response and subsequent mitigation efforts involved more than 500,000 personnel and cost an estimated 18 billion roubles—roughly US$68 billion in 2019, adjusted for inflation.[2] It is considered the worst nuclear disaster in history.[3][4][5]

    The accident occurred during a test of the steam turbine's ability to power the emergency feedwater pumps in the event of a simultaneous loss of external power and coolant pipe rupture. Following an accidental drop in reactor power to near-zero, the operators restarted the reactor in preparation for the turbine test with a prohibited control rod configuration. Upon successful completion of the test, the reactor was then shut down for maintenance. Due to a variety of factors, this action resulted in a power surge at the base of the reactor which brought about the rupture of reactor components and the loss of coolant. This process led to steam explosions and a meltdown, which destroyed the containment building. This was followed by a reactor core fire which lasted until 4 May 1986, during which airborne radioactive contaminants were spread throughout the USSR and Europe.[6][7] In response to the initial accident, a 10-kilometre (6.2 mi) radius exclusion zone was created 36 hours after the accident, from which approximately 49,000 people were evacuated, primarily from Pripyat. The exclusion zone was later increased to a radius of 30 kilometres (19 mi), from which an additional ~68,000 people were evacuated.[8]

    Following the reactor explosion, which killed two engineers and severely burned two more, an emergency operation to put out the fires and stabilize the surviving reactor began, during which 237 workers were hospitalized, of whom 134 exhibited symptoms of acute radiation syndrome (ARS). Among those hospitalized, 28 died within the following three months. In the following 10 years, 14 more workers (9 of whom had been hospitalized with ARS) died of various causes mostly unrelated to radiation exposure.[9] 15 childhood thyroid cancer deaths were attributed to the disaster as of 2011.[10][11] A United Nations committee found that to date fewer than 100 deaths have resulted from the fallout.[12] Model predictions of the eventual total death toll in the coming decades vary. The most widely cited study conducted by the World Health Organization in 2006 predicted 9,000 cancer-related fatalities in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.[13]

    Following the disaster, Pripyat was abandoned and eventually replaced by the new purpose-built city of Slavutych. The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant sarcophagus was built by December 1986. It reduced the spread of radioactive contamination from the wreckage and protected it from weathering. The confinement shelter also provided radiological protection for the crews of the undamaged reactors at the site, which were restarted in late 1986 and 1987. However, this containment structure was only intended to last for 30 years, and required considerable reinforcement in the early 2000s. The Shelter was heavily supplemented in 2017 by the Chernobyl New Safe Confinement, which was constructed around the old structure. This larger enclosure aims to enable the removal of both the sarcophagus and the reactor debris while containing the radioactive materials inside. Clean-up is scheduled for completion by 2065.[14]


    Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

    1. ^ "Accident of 1986". Chornobyl NPP. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
    2. ^ "Chernobyl: Assessment of Radiological and Health Impact, 2002 update; Chapter II – The release, dispersion and deposition of radionuclides" (PDF). OECD-NEA. 2002. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
    3. ^ "The Chornobyl Accident". United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
    4. ^ "A Brief History of Nuclear Accidents Worldwide". www.ucsusa.org. 1 October 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
    5. ^ Lallanilla, Marc; Geggel, Laura (18 April 2023). "Chernobyl: The world's worst nuclear disaster". livescience.com. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
    6. ^ McCall, Chris (April 2016). "Chernobyl disaster 30 years on: lessons not learned". The Lancet. 387 (10029): 1707–1708. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(16)30304-x. ISSN 0140-6736. PMID 27116266. S2CID 39494685.
    7. ^ "Chernobyl-Born Radionuclides in Geological Environment". Groundwater Vulnerability. Special Publications. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2014. pp. 25–38. doi:10.1002/9781118962220.ch2. ISBN 978-1-118-96222-0.
    8. ^ Steadman, Philip; Hodgkinson, Simon (1990). Nuclear Disasters & The Built Environment: A Report to the Royal Institute. Butterworth Architecture. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-40850-061-6.
    9. ^ Wagemaker, G.; Guskova, A.K.; Bebeshko, V.G.; Griffiths, N.M.; Krishenko, N.A. (1996). "Clinically Observed Effects in Individuals Exposed to Radiation as a Result of the Chernobyl Accident". One Decade After Chernobyl: Summing up the Consequences of the Accident, Proceedings of an International Conference, Vienna.: 173–198.
    10. ^ "Chernobyl 25th anniversary – Frequently Asked Questions" (PDF). World Health Organization. 23 April 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 April 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
    11. ^ "Chernobyl: the true scale of the accident". World Health Organization. 5 September 2005. Archived from the original on 25 February 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
    12. ^ "UNSCEAR assessments of the Chernobyl accident". www.unscear.org. Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2007.
    13. ^ "World Health Organization report explains the health impacts of the world's worst-ever civil nuclear accident". World Health Organization. 26 April 2006. Archived from the original on 4 April 2011. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
    14. ^ "Chernobyl nuclear power plant site to be cleared by 2065". Kyiv Post. 3 January 2010. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012.
     

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