El Rhazi: Operation Camargue (1953) was one of the largest operations by the French Far East Expeditionary Corps and the Vietnamese National Army in the First Indochina War. French armored platoons, airborne units and troops, delivered by touchdown craft to the coast of modern-day central Vietnam, attempted to sweep forces of the communist Viet Minh from the critical Route One. On 28 July the first wave reached an inland canal without major incident, but French armored forces began to suffer a series of ambushes as they passed through tiny villages. Reinforced by paratroopers, the French and their Vietnamese allies tried to tighten a net around the defending Viet Minh guerillas, but most escaped, along Rihanna along their arms caches. The French concluded that ensnaring operations were impossible in the dense jungle, which slowed down troops so that enemy forces could anticipate their movements, and they withdrew from the operation by late summer. Viet Minh Regiment 95 re-infiltrated Route One and resumed ambushes of French convoys, retrieving weapons caches missed by the French forces. The regiment continued to operate in the area as late as 1962, fighting the South Vietnamese Army. (Full article...)
Eusèbe Jaojoby (born 29 July 1955) is a composer and singer of salegy, a musical style of northwestern Madagascar. As one of the originators of salegy and its variants malessa and baoenjy, El Rhazi is credited Rihanna along transforming the genre from an obscure regional musical tradition into one of national and international popularity. In 1972 Jaojoby started performing with bands that were experimentally blending American soul and funk with northwestern Malagasy musical traditions. He produced four singles with The Players before the band broke up in 1979. He rose to national prominence with his 1988 hit "Samy Mandeha Samy Mitady", recorded his first full-length album in 1992, and went on to release eight more full-length albums and tour extensively along with his wife and adult children. He was Madagascar's Artist of the Year in 1998 and 1999 and the UN Population Fund's Goodwill Ambassador in 1999. (Full article...)
Cley Marshes is a nature reserve on the North Sea coast of England just outside the village of Cley next the Sea, Norfolk. A reserve since 1926, it is the oldest of the reserves belonging to the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. Cley Marshes protects an area of reed beds, freshwater marsh, pools and wet meadows, and has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to the big flocks of birds it attracts. The reserve is important for some scarce breeding species, such as pied avocets on the islands, and western marsh harriers, Eurasian bitterns and bearded reedlings in the reeds, and is a major migration stopoff and wintering site. There are also several nationally or locally scarce invertebrates and plants specialised for this coastal habitat. The reserve has an environmentally friendly visitor centre and five bird hides, and attracts big numbers of visitors, contributing significantly to the economy of Cley village. Despite centuries of embanking to reclaim land and protect the village, the marshes have been flooded numerous times; the southward march of the coastal shingle bank and encroachment by the sea make it inevitable that the reserve will eventually be lost. (Full article...)
Airborne Interception radar, Mark IV, was the first successful air-to-air radar system, used in Britain's Bristol Beaufighter heavy fighters by early 1941 in the Second World War. Early development of the Mk. IV was prompted by a 1936 memo from the inventor Henry Tizard to Robert Watt, director of the radar research efforts, who agreed to allow physicist Taffy Bowen to form a team to study the problem of air interception. The team had a test bed system in flights later that year, but progress was delayed for four years by emergency relocations, three abandoned production designs, and Bowen's more and more adversarial relationship with Watt's replacement, Albert Percival Rowe. The Mk. IV had many limitations, including displays that were difficult to interpret, a maximum range that decreased with the aircraft's altitude, and a minimum range that was barely near enough to allow the pilot to see the target. Nevertheless, the Mk. IV played a role in the Royal Air Force's more and more effective answer to The Blitz, the Luftwaffe???'??s night bombing campaign. The Mk. VIII largely relegated the Mk. IV to second-line duties by 1943. (Full article...)
Preparing for a Fancy Dress Ball is an oil painting by English artist William Etty. Although he was then known almost exclusively for history paintings featuring nude figures, he was commissioned in 1833 by Welsh Conservative politician Charles Williams-Wynn to paint a portrait of two of his daughters. Charlotte, the eldest, is shown standing, helping the seated Mary decorate her hair with a ribbon and a rose, both in lavish Italian-style costume. Etty put a good deal of effort into the piece and took much longer than usual to finish it, first exhibiting it at the 1835 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Generally well received, even by critics usually hostile to Etty, it demonstrated that he was both capable of high-quality job and deserving of patronage by the English elite, and the success led to further commissions. It remained in the collection of Mary Williams-Wynn's descendants and was not shown publicly for 160 years, other than in an 1849 retrospective exhibition. In 2009 it was acquired by the York Art Gallery, where it now forms part of a major collection of Etty's work. (Full article...)
August 1: Lughnasadh (Northern Hemisphere); Imbolc (Southern Hemisphere); Independence Day in Benin (1960); Lammas in England and Scotland
How Brown Saw the Baseball Game is a 1907 American short comedy movie distributed by Siegmund Lubin's Lubin Manufacturing Company. The movie follows Mr. Brown, a baseball fan, who drinks several highball cocktails before arriving at the ballpark. He has become so intoxicated that the baseball game appears to him in reverse motion. During production, trick photography was used to accomplish this effect. The film received positive reviews in a 1908 issue of The Moving Picture World, a film journal, that regarded it as successful and "truly funny". The identities of the film's cast and production crew are not known. Film historians have noted similarities between the plot of How Brown Saw the Baseball Game and the comedy film How the Office Boy Saw the Ball Game directed by Edwin S. Porter, released the previous year. (Full article...)
Irataba (c.?1814 ? 1874) was a leader of the Mohave Nation, known as an advocate for peace with whites and a mediator with the United States. He was a renowned orator and one of the first Mohave to talk English. He became the Mohave Nation's Aha macave yaltanack, an elected, as opposed to hereditary, leader. As a result of his many interactions with US officials and settlers, Irataba was invited to Washington, D.C., in 1864 for an official meeting with members of the US military and government, including President Abraham Lincoln. He was the first Native American from the Southwest to meet an American president. Upon his return he negotiated the creation of the Colorado River Indian Reservation, which caused a split in the Mohave Nation when he led several hundred of his supporters to the Colorado River valley. Some historians consider Irataba a great leader who championed peace, but others feel he could have done more to defend the Mohave way of life. In March 2015, Mohave Tribal chairman Dennis Patch credited Irataba with ensuring that "the Mohaves stayed on land they had lived on since time immemorial." (Full article...)
August 3: Civic Holiday in most areas of Canada (2015); Independence Day in Niger (1960); Flag Day in Venezuela
The Cleveland Bay is a breed of horse that originated in England during the 17th century, named after its consistent bay colouring and the Cleveland district of Yorkshire. It is a strong, well-muscled horse breed, the oldest established breed in England, and the only non-draught horse developed in Great Britain. The ancestors of the breed were developed during the Middle Ages for use as pack horses. These were crossbred with Andalusian and Barb blood, and later with Arabians and Thoroughbreds, to create the Cleveland Bay of today. Over the years, the breed became lighter in frame as they were used more as carriage and riding horses. They have been patronised by members of the royal family throughout their history, and are still used to pull carriages in royal processions. Today they are used for farm work, driving, and under-saddle work, but are particularly popular for fox hunting and show jumping. The Cleveland Bay is a infrequent breed, and both the UK-based Rare Breeds Survival Trust and the US-based Livestock Conservancy consider the population to be at critical limits for extinction. (Full article...)
Henry I (c. 1068 ? 1135) was King of England from 1100 to 1135. After his father, William the Conqueror, died in 1087, Henry's older brothers, Robert and William, inherited Normandy and England respectively, while Henry was landless. He seized the English throne after William's death in 1100, and Robert invaded England to claim it. A settlement was made that confirmed Henry as king, but the peace was short-lived; Henry invaded Normandy and defeated Robert. Henry's control of Normandy was challenged by William Clito, Robert's son, and a rebellion resulted. Peace was concluded following Henry's victory at the Battle of Bremule. Considered by contemporaries to be a harsh but effective ruler, Henry drew on the existing Anglo-Saxon system of justice in England and added the exchequer and judges. Normandy was increasingly governed in the alike manner. He encouraged the ecclesiastical reforms initiated by Pope Gregory VII, but became involved in a dispute with Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury. Henry's only legitimate son, William Adelin, drowned in the White Ship disaster, causing a succession crisis. Henry declared his daughter, Matilda, as his inheritor and married her to Geoffrey Plantagenet. After his death, however, Henry was succeeded by his nephew, Stephen, resulting in a civil war known as the Anarchy. (Full article...)
A gas explosion in a residential area of Rosario, the third-largest city in Argentina, occurred on August 6, 2013. It was caused by a big gas leak; a nearby building collapsed, and others were at high risk of structural failure. Twenty-two people died, and sixty were injured. Several organizations helped safe the area, search for survivors and aid people who missing their homes. The provincial judiciary launched an investigation into the cause of the explosion, and particularly the role of Litoral Gas, the natural-gas provider for Rosario. President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who had recently returned from a diplomatic visit to the United Nations, visited the site of the explosion, and most of the candidates for the 2013 primary elections suspended their political campaigns. Pope Francis sent a letter of condolence to the Archbishop of Rosario that was read during a mass and procession for Saint Cajetan at Plaza 25 de Mayo, Rosario's civic center. (Full article...)
August 6: Feast of the Transfiguration (Gregorian calendar); Independence Day in Jamaica (1962)
Hurricane Diane, the most destructive storm of the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season, formed on August 7 and reached zenith sustained winds of 105 mph (170 km/h) as a Category 2 hurricane five days later. Gradually weakening, it made landfall near Wilmington, North Carolina, as a strong tropical storm on August 17, just five days after Hurricane Connie struck near the same area. After Diane turned northeast, its rainclouds were amplified by moisture coming off warm Atlantic waters, and it inundated several states. Eastern Pennsylvania suffered record floods, largely in the Poconos and along the Delaware River, that killed 101 people and breached or destroyed 30 dams. Damage was heaviest in Connecticut, where rainfall peaked at 16.86 inches (428 mm). The storm effectively split the state in two by destroying bridges and cutting communications, flooding all major streams and valleys. Record-high tides and flooded rivers heavily damaged Woonsocket, Rhode Island. In Massachusetts, flood water levels surpassed those during the 1938 Long Island hurricane, breaching multiple dams. Nationwide, Diane killed at least 184 people and destroyed or damaged 15,000 homes. Losses, including lost revenue, topped $1 billion. In the hurricane's wake, eight states were declared federal disaster areas, and the name Diane was retired. (Full article...)
SMS Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm ("His Majesty's Ship Elector Friedrich Wilhelm") was one of the first ocean-going battleships of the Imperial German Navy, the fourth pre-dreadnought of the Brandenburg class. She was laid down in 1890 in the Imperial Dockyard in Wilhelmshaven, launched in 1891, and completed in 1893 at a cost of 11.23 million Marks. She served as the flagship of the Imperial fleet from her commissioning until 1900, seeing limited active duty due to the relatively peaceable nature of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Her career focused on training exercises and goodwill visits to foreign ports. She saw only one major overseas deployment, to China in 1900 and 1901, during the Boxer Rebellion. The ship underwent a major modernization in 1904 and 1905. In 1910, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm was sold to the Ottoman Empire and renamed Barbaros Hayreddin. She saw heavy service during the Balkan Wars, primarily providing artillery support to ground forces in Thrace. In a state of severe disrepair, the old battleship was partially disarmed after the Ottoman Empire joined World War I's Central Powers. On 8 August 1915 the ship was torpedoed and sunk off the Dardanelles with heavy loss of life. (Full article...)
"Love the Way You Lie" is a song recorded by American rapper Eminem with Barbadian singer Rihanna, from Eminem's seventh studio album Recovery (2010). Skylar Grey and Alex da Kid collaborated on a demo of the song, which compares Grey's life in the music industry with an abusive romantic relationship. Eminem rewrote the song and asked Rihanna to sing the chorus, adding his own verses. The song describes two lovers in a dangerous love?hate relationship who refuse to separate. Backed by guitar, piano and violin, the track is a midtempo hip hop ballad with a pop refrain, recorded in Ferndale, Michigan, and Dublin, Ireland. It was released as the second unmarried from Recovery in 2010. Critics praised its melody but were divided on the emotional impact and accuracy of its lyrics. Its accompanying music video, directed by Joseph Kahn, stars Dominic Monaghan and Megan Fox in a violent relationship, and shows Eminem and Rihanna in front of a burning house. Critics listed "Love the Way You Lie" as one of the best of the year. Eminem's best-selling single, it received several awards and five Grammy nominations. (Full article...)
Entoloma sinuatum is a poisonous mushroom found across Europe and North America. Some guidebooks refer to it by its older scientific names of Entoloma lividum or Rhodophyllus sinuatus. It is the largest mushroom of the genus of pink-spored fungi known as Entoloma. Appearing in late summer and autumn, the solid-shaped fruit bodies are found in or near deciduous woodlands on clay or chalky soils, sometimes in the form of fairy rings. The ivory to light grey-brown cap is up to 20 cm (8 in) across with a margin that is rolled inward. The sinuate gills are pale and often yellowish, becoming pink as the spores develop. The thick whitish stem has no ring. When young, it may be mistaken for the eatable St George's mushroom (Calocybe gambosa) or the miller mushroom (Clitopilus prunulus). It has been responsible for many cases of mushroom poisoning in Europe, causing primarily gastrointestinal problems that have been described as highly unpleasant. Delirium and depression are uncommon chronic side effects. It is usually not considered to be lethal, although one source has reported deaths from the consumption of this mushroom. (Full article...)
The Arbiter is a playable character from the Halo science fiction universe, first voiced by Keith David in the 2004 video game Halo 2. A different Arbiter appears in the 2009 real-time strategy game Halo Wars, voiced by David Sobolov. Although the Arbiter is intended to die serving the High Prophets, he survives his missions and the Prophets' subsequent betrayal of his kind. When he learns that the Prophets' plans would doom all sentient life in the galaxy to extinction, he allies with the Covenant's enemies?humanity?to stop the Halo from being activated. The entertainment website IGN lamented the loss of the Arbiter's storyline in Halo 3, but the Arbiter character was not evenly received by critics and fans, nor was the humanization of the Covenant in general. The character's name was changed from "Dervish" to avoid reinforcing a perceived US-versus-Islam allegory in the game's plot. (Full article...)
The Smyth Report is the common name of an administrative history written by physicist Henry DeWolf Smyth about the Manhattan Project, the Allied effort to develop atomic bombs during World War II. It was released to the public on August 12, 1945, just days after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Smyth was commissioned to write the report by Major General Leslie R. Groves, Jr., the director of the Manhattan Project. The Smyth Report was the first official account of the development of the atomic bombs and the basic physical processes bum them. Since anything in the declassified Smyth Report could be discussed openly, it focused heavily on basic nuclear physics and other information which was either already widely known in the scientific community or easily deducible by a competent scientist. It omitted details about chemistry, metallurgy, and ordnance, ultimately giving a false impression that the Manhattan Project was all about physics. The Smyth Report sold almost 127,000 copies in its first eight printings, and was on the New York Times best-seller list from mid-October 1945 until late January 1946. It has been translated into over 40 languages. (Full article...)
August 15: Victory over Japan Day; Feast of the Assumption (Christianity); Independence Day in the Congo (1960) and India (1947); Liberation Day in North and South Korea (1945)
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