Wikipedia:Main Page history/2020 August 31

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From today's featured article

NY 175 just east of Bishop Hill Road

New York State Route 175 is a west–east state highway located in Onondaga County, New York, in the United States. The 15.46-mile (24.88 km) route begins at an intersection with U.S. Route 20 east of the village of Skaneateles. It heads towards the northeast as Lee Mulroy Road, traversing farmland. It then passes through the village of Marcellus before ending at a junction with U.S. Route 11 in Syracuse. Designated in the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York, the highway brought about an increase in population and development along its route. The section of Route 175 from downtown Marcellus to New York State Route 173 in Onondaga was built along the historical Seneca Turnpike, which was established in 1800 and dissolved in 1852. At 157 miles (253 km), the turnpike was the longest in the state at the time and was instrumental in the development of the villages of Skaneateles and Marcellus. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Swedish tapestry from the Khalili Collection

... that Nasser Khalili assembled the Khalili Collection of Swedish Textiles (item pictured) because he felt that art historians undervalued works by anonymous creators?
... that Leon Legge became a professional footballer despite suffering from epilepsy from the age of 16?
... that the chase scene from the 1968 Steve McQueen film Bullitt starts on Cesar Chavez Street (then Army Street) before continuing through San Francisco?
... that Rhythm Is It! is a 2004 documentary film about 250 public school students trained by Royston Maldoom to dance Stravinsky's Le Sacre du printemps with the Berlin Philharmonic?
... that Laguna Pueblo educator Susie Rayos Marmon was the inspiration for a character in her grandniece Leslie Marmon Silko's book Storyteller?
... that Kurier Litewski was the first periodical newspaper of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and retained the Lithuanian state name until 1840, despite the final partition of the Commonwealth in 1795?
... that executed arsonist Margaret Clark blamed her deeds on "pride and Sabbath breaking"?
... that a mysterious island appeared in France after a 2009 cyclone?

In the news

COVID-19 pandemic: Disease; Virus; Testing; Impact; Portal

Shinzo Abe

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (pictured) announces his intention to resign due to medical concerns.
Hurricane Laura kills at least 36 people across the Caribbean and the United States.
The Africa Regional Certification Commission declares that wild polio has been eliminated in Africa.
Two bombings in Jolo, Philippines, kill 15 people and wound 75 others.

On this day

August 31: Independence Day in Malaysia (1957)

Dilma Rousseff

1888 – The body of Mary Ann Nichols was found in Buck's Row, London, as the alleged first victim of an unidentified serial killer known as Jack the Ripper.
1935 – In an effort to stay out of the growing European conflict, the U.S. Congress passed the first of the Neutrality Acts.
1997 – Diana, Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Fayed, and their driver Henri Paul were killed in a car accident in Paris.
2016 – Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff (pictured) was removed from office following her impeachment on charges of criminal administrative misconduct.

Robert Calder (d. 1818)
Robert Bacher (b. 1905)
Sara Ramirez (b. 1975)

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From today's featured list

Map of community areas in Chicago

Chicago is divided into 77 community areas for statistical and planning purposes. Census data and other statistics are tied to the areas, which serve as the basis for a variety of urban planning initiatives on both the local and regional levels. The areas' boundaries do not generally change, allowing comparisons of statistics across time. The areas are distinct from but related to the more numerous neighborhoods of Chicago. As of 2017^[update], Lake View is the most populous of the areas, with more than 100,000 residents, while Burnside is the least populous, with just over 2,000. The Social Science Research Committee at the University of Chicago defined the community areas in the 1920s based on neighborhoods or groups of related neighborhoods within the city. In this effort it was led by sociologists Robert E. Park and Ernest Burgess, who believed that physical contingencies created areas that would inevitably form a common identity. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

The bank myna (Acridotheres ginginianus) is a passerine bird found in flocks on the plains of northern and central India. Its usual habitat is cultivated farmland, usually in the vicinity of open water, but flocks will often live within cities, in markets and railway stations. Its common name comes from its propensity to nest in large colonies in holes excavated in the banks of rivers, although other sites are sometimes chosen. It feeds on grain, insects and fruits, and sometimes follows grazing animals, picking up disturbed insects or even ticks off the animals' backs. In towns, it makes use of food dropped by humans, even following catering vehicles at airports. This bank myna was photographed in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp

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