Heptamegacanthus is a genus of acanthocephalans (thorny- or spiny-headed parasitic worms) containing a single species, Heptamegacanthus niekerki. This worm is a parasite of the endangered giant golden mole(example pictured) found only in isolated forests near East London and in the Transkei, both in South Africa. The worms are about 4 millimetres (0.2 in) long and 2 millimetres (0.08 in) wide with minimal sexual dimorphism. Their body consists of a short trunk and a proboscis with 40 to 45 hooks arranged in rings, which are used to pierce and hold the rectal wall of its host. The life cycle of H. niekerki remains unknown; however, like other acanthocephalans, it likely involves complex interactions with at least two hosts. Although the intermediate host for Heptamegacanthus is not definitively identified, it is presumed to be an arthropod, such as an insect, which is eaten by the giant golden mole. The worms then mature and reproduce sexually within the mole's lower gastrointestinal tract, creating eggs which are released in its feces. (Full article...)
Susanna Lee Hoffs (born 1959) is an American singer-songwriter. With Debbi Peterson and Vicki Peterson, she founded the Bangles in 1981. Their second album, Different Light (1986), was warmly received by critics and was certified triple-platinum in 1994. The group's third album, Everything (1988), included the US-top-ten-charting "In Your Room" and number-one "Eternal Flame", both written by Hoffs with Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. Following tensions including resentment at Hoffs's perceived leadership of the band and the stress of touring, the band split in 1989, reforming in 1999. Hoffs's first solo album, When You're a Boy (1991), was followed by Susanna Hoffs (1996). Neither of the releases proved to be as popular as the Bangles's albums, although they yielded two US-charting singles. Her most recent solo album is The Deep End (2023), and her first novel, This Bird Has Flown, a romantic comedy about a struggling musician, was published in the same year. (Full article...)
2009 – Lady Gaga performed the first concert of The Monster Ball Tour, which became the highest-grossing tour in history for a debut headlining artist.
The battle of Cane Hill was fought during the American Civil War on November 28, 1862, near the town of Cane Hill, Arkansas. Union troops under James G. Blunt had pursued Confederate troops commanded by Thomas C. Hindman into northwestern Arkansas, and Hindman saw an opportunity to attack Blunt while the latter was isolated. Confederate cavalry under John S. Marmaduke moved to Cane Hill to collect supplies. Blunt moved to attack Marmaduke on November 27. The Union advance made contact with Confederate troopers the next morning. The Confederates fell back to an elevation known as Reed's Mountain. Blunt continued to pursue after the Confederates abandoned Reed's Mountain, but his leading elements ran into an ambush. The Confederates then presented a flag of truce as a ruse to buy time. Hindman's army and Blunt's reinforced command fought the Battle of Prairie Grove on December 7, which retained Union control of Missouri and northwestern Arkansas. (Full article...)
1443 – Having deserted the Ottoman army, Skanderbeg(pictured) arrived in the Albanian city of Krujë and, using a forged letter from Sultan Murad II to the governor of Krujë, became lord of the city.
Santa Cruz entering the field before a game in Belém
The Suicidal Tour took place when Brazilian professional football club Santa Cruz Futebol Clube toured the North Region of Brazil from 2 January 1943 to 29 April 1943. Over almost four months, they played either 26 or 28 friendly matches in six cities. The tour gained its name due to the misfortunes endured by the club. Looking to recover from a financial crisis, Santa Cruz arranged five matches in Belém, Pará. Traveling up the Amazon River for another round of matches, they first started experiencing problems in Manaus, where two players left to play for other clubs and seven members of the team's delegation caught dysentery. Two players went on to catch typhoid fever and died. Unable to return home through the sea, and needing to cover growing costs, Santa Cruz had to return to Recife by land, playing matches along the way to earn money. The return had further problems, including a fake arrest warrant for a player, a trip alongside thieves, and two train derailments. (Full article...)
1781 – The crew of the British slave shipZong, running low on water, began the killing of more than 130 African slaves by throwing them into the sea to claim insurance.
The January 1908 Irish representative peer election was held to fill a vacancy among the 28 Irish representative peers at the time elected for life to the British House of Lords, with ballots sent by post to the 134 Irish peers eligible to vote. The winner was Lord Curzon(pictured), the former viceroy of India, who had never been to Ireland and owned no Irish lands. A former MP, he ran to return to parliament after being denied an earldom by the prime minister, Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman. As he had not asked the House of Lords to affirm his right to vote in Irish representative peer elections, as required to vote in them, some stated that Curzon was ineligible for election. Despite a late start and opposition to him as non-Irish, Curzon led with two votes more than Lord Ashtown, who had two more than Lord Farnham, but the official return noted Curzon was not among those who could vote. When the House of Lords convened, the Lord Chancellor, Lord Loreburn, declared Curzon the winner. (Full article...)
The Benty Grange helmet is a boar-crested Anglo-Saxon helmet from the 7th century. It was excavated by Thomas Bateman in 1848 from a burial mound at the Benty Grange farm in Monyash in western Derbyshire. The grave had probably been looted by the time of Bateman's excavation, but still contained other high-status objects suggestive of a richly furnished burial, such as the fragmentary remains of a hanging bowl. The ornate helmet was constructed by covering the outside of an iron framework with plates of horn and the inside with cloth or leather, now decayed. It would have provided some protection against weapons, but may have also been intended for ceremonial use. It was the first Anglo-Saxon helmet to be discovered; others have been found at Sutton Hoo, York, Wollaston, Shorwell, and Staffordshire. The helmet is displayed at Sheffield's Weston Park Museum, which purchased it from Bateman's estate in 1893. (Full article...)
1923 – The Gleno Dam in the Italian province of Bergamo failed due to poor workmanship, flooding the downstream valley and killing at least 356 people.
1988 – Five armed men hijacked a bus carrying schoolchildren and a teacher in Ordzhonikidze (now Vladikavkaz, Russia), and were later given an Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft and ransom for the release of the hostages.
Windswept Adan is the seventh studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Ichiko Aoba(pictured), released on 2 December 2020 by her label, Hermine. The concept album follows the story of a young girl who is sent away by her family to the fictional island of Adan. Aoba and composer Taro Umebayashi wrote, composed, arranged, and produced the music for the album, which was preceded by one single, "Porcelain". Windswept Adan is a chamber folk and psychedelic folk album with elements of jazz, classical, and ambient music. Marking a departure from Aoba's earlier minimalist instrumentation, it includes a celesta, wind chimes, string arrangements, and vocal performances. The album received widespread critical acclaim for its arrangements, instrumentation, and worldbuilding. Upon its release, the album debuted at number 82 on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums chart and number 88 on the Oricon Albums Chart. Aoba supported the album with her first international tour between August and October 2022. (Full article...)
The PlayStation is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was released in Japan on 3 December 1994, and most of the world in 1995. Sony began developing it after a failed venture with Nintendo to create a CD-ROM add-on in the early 1990s. The console was primarily designed by Ken Kutaragi and his team in Japan, while additional development was outsourced in the United Kingdom. An emphasis on 3D polygon graphics was placed at the forefront of the console's design. The PlayStation signalled Sony's rise to power in the video game industry. It received acclaim and sold strongly; in less than a decade, it became the first computer entertainment platform to ship over 100 million units. Its use of compact discs heralded the game industry's transition from cartridges. The PlayStation's success led to a line of successors, beginning with the PlayStation 2 in 2000. (Full article...)
KARE (channel 11) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, United States, an NBC affiliate. Channel 11 began service in 1953, originally affiliated with ABC. It presented several notable children's shows in its early years. After Time Inc. purchased the station in 1957, ABC switched switched affiliates, leaving channel 11 to become an independent station that broadcast the Minnesota Twins baseball team, movies, and syndicated programs. By the late 1970s, WTCN was one of the nation's most financially successful independent stations. On March 5, 1979, channel 11 became an NBC affiliate but struggled with its revamped newscasts. Between 1983 and 1987, the station moved from last to first in late news ratings, battling WCCO for two decades. It changed call signs twice in that period, to WUSA in 1985 and KARE in 1986, when Gannett moved the WUSA call sign to its Washington, D.C., station. More recently, as of 2022, the station has been a second-place finisher in local news. (Full article...)
Mimodactylus is a genus of istiodactyliformpterosaur that lived in what is now Lebanon during the Late Cretaceous, 95 million years ago. The only known specimen was discovered in a limestone quarry near the town of Hjoula. The owner of the quarry allowed the specimen to be prepared by researchers, and it was donated to the MIM Museum in Beirut. In 2019, the researchers named the new genus and species Mimodactylus libanensis; referring to the MIM Museum, with the Greek word daktylos for "digit", and the specific name refers to Lebanon. The well-preserved holotype specimen is the first complete pterosaur from the Afro-Arabian continent (which consisted of the then joined Arabian Peninsula and Africa), and the third pterosaur fossil known from Lebanon. The marine deposits of Hjoula are late Cenomanian in age and are well-known for fish fossils. The holotype specimen is comparatively small, with a wingspan of 1.32 metres (4.3 ft), and was probably young. (Full article...)
The École Polytechnique massacre was an antifeministmass shooting that occurred on December 6, 1989, at the École Polytechnique de Montréal in Montreal. Fourteen women were murdered; another ten women and four men were injured. The perpetrator, Marc Lépine entered a mechanical engineering class and separated the male and female students, ordering the men to leave. He shot all nine women in the room, killing six. The shooter then moved throughout the building, killing eight more women and wounding students before fatally shooting himself. The massacre is regarded as misogynist terrorism and representative of wider societal violence against women. In response to the massacre, the Canadian legislature passed more stringent gun control laws. It also led to policy changes in emergency services protocols for shootings, such as police intervening immediately to reduce casualties. The anniversary of the massacre is commemorated annually as White Ribbon Day. (Full article...)
Wilfred Arthur (7 December 1919 – 23 December 2000) was a fighter ace and senior officer of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II. Commonly known as "Woof", he was credited with ten aerial victories and led combat formations at squadron and wing level, becoming the youngest group captain in RAAF's history. Arthur first saw action in the Middle East and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for shooting down four aircraft in a single sortie. He was then posted to New Guinea, where he received the Distinguished Service Order for continuing to lead an attack after discovering his guns were inoperable. As wing leader of No. 71 Wing, he was severely burned in a runway collision. Upon recovery, he was posted to the Dutch East Indies and played a leading part in the Morotai Mutiny when eight RAAF officers attempted to resign. Following his discharge, he pursued business interests in Australia and Vietnam, before settling in Darwin, Northern Territory. (Full article...)
2010 – The Japanese experimental spacecraft IKAROS(model pictured) flew by Venus at a distance of 80,800 km (50,200 mi), completing its planned mission to demonstrate solar-sail technology.
Golding Bird (9 December 1814 – 27 October 1854) was a medical doctor who researched the chemistry of urine and kidney stones. From 1836, he lectured at Guy's Hospital and published a textbook on science for medical students called Elements of Natural Philosophy. Bird was innovative in the medical use of electricity, designing his own equipment and bringing medical electrotherapy into the mainstream. He invented a variant of the Daniell cell in 1837, making key discoveries in electrometallurgy. Bird also designed a flexible stethoscope, and in 1840 published the first description of one. In 1842, he was the first to describe oxaluria, a condition which leads to the formation of a particular kind of stone, and published a comprehensive paper on urinary deposits in 1844. A devout Christian, Bird believed Bible study and prayer were just as important to medical students as their studies. He founded the Christian Medical Association, although it did not become active until after his death. (Full article...)
1901 – On the fifth anniversary of the death of their founder, Swedish chemist and industrialist Alfred Nobel, the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in Stockholm.
Len Deighton (born 18 February 1929) is a British author. His publications have included cookery books and works on history, but he is best known for his spy novels. He had several jobs before writing his first novel, The IPCRESS File, in 1962; it was a critical and commercial success. He wrote several spy novels featuring the same central character, an unnamed working-class intelligence officer. Between 1962 and 1966 Deighton was the food correspondent for The Observer and drew cookstrips—black and white graphic recipes with a limited number of words. A selection of these was collected and published in 1965 as Len Deighton's Action Cook Book, the first of five cookery books he wrote. Other topics of non-fiction include military history. Many of his books have been best sellers and he has been favourably compared with John le Carré. Deighton's fictional work is marked by a complex narrative structure, extensive research and an air of verisimilitude. Several of his works have been adapted for film and radio. (Full article...)
Algebra is the branch of mathematics that studies certain abstract systems, known as algebraic structurea, and the manipulation of statements within these systems. Elementary algebra generalizes arithmetic by using variables in addition to numbers. It covers methods of transforming equations to solve them by isolating variables. Linear algebra examines systems of several linear equations and techniques to determine for which values all equations in a system are true at the same time. Abstract algebra investigates algebraic structures, which consist of a set of objects together with operations defined on that set. It distinguishes algebraic structures, such as groups, rings, and fields, based on their number of operations and the laws they follow. Algebraic methods were first studied in ancient times to solve specific problems. As algebra evolved, it became increasingly abstract and generalized, leading to many applications in other branches of mathematics and the empirical sciences. (Full article...)
2013 – Beyoncé(pictured) released her fifth studio album without any prior announcement or promotion; it sold 2.3 million copies before the end of the year.
Astronaut Pete Conrad studies the Surveyor 3 probe on the surface of the Moon
Apollo 12 (November 14–24, 1969) was the second crewed landing on the Moon. The sixth crewed mission in the U.S. Apollo program, it was launched by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Commander Charles "Pete" Conrad and Lunar Module PilotAlan Bean walked on the Moon while Command Module PilotRichard Gordon remained in orbit. Launched on a rainy day, Apollo 12 was twice struck by lightning; the outward journey otherwise saw few problems. On November 19, Conrad and Bean landed close to the Surveyor 3 probe. This meant NASA could plan missions expecting that astronauts could land close to target. Conrad and Bean carried a group of nuclear-powered instruments, and the first color television camera taken by an Apollo mission to the surface, but the picture was lost after Bean accidentally pointed the camera at the Sun and its sensor burned out. Conrad and Bean visited Surveyor 3 and removed parts for return to Earth. The Apollo 12 mission safely returned to Earth on November 24. (Full article...)
The Texas Centennial half dollar was struck by the U.S. Bureau of the Mint from 1934 to 1938. It features an eagle and the Lone Star of Texas on the obverse (shown), while the reverse is a complex scene with the winged goddess Victory. Proposed by the American Legion as a fundraiser for the 100th anniversary of Texas independence from Mexico, the coin was approved by Congress in 1933. It was designed by sculptor Pompeo Coppini, and, after initial rejection by the Commission of Fine Arts, the designs were approved and the coins entered production at the Philadelphia Mint in October 1934. The first coins to reach the public were sold by auction in Austin, Texas on December 15, 1934. Profits from the coins helped finance the Texas Memorial Museum in Austin. Most 1934-dated coins went unsold and were sent back to the Mint. Smaller issues took place each year through 1938. Despite the relative lack of sales, the issue is popular with collectors, with the coins gradually gaining in value. (Full article...)
The Apocalypse of Peter is an apocryphal text of the 2nd century. It is the earliest-written extant work depicting a Christian account of heaven and hell in detail. The work describes a divine vision experienced by Peter through Jesus Christ. It delves into a vision of the afterlife (katabasis), and details both heavenly bliss for the righteous and infernal punishments for the damned. The punishments are graphically described and loosely correspond to "an eye for an eye": blasphemers are hung by their tongues; liars have their lips cut off; callous rich people are pierced by stones and are dressed in filthy rags; and so on. While the Apocalypse of Peter influenced other early Christian works, it eventually came to be considered inauthentic and was not included in the standard canon of the New Testament. Still, it influenced later works wherein the protagonist takes a tour of the realms of the afterlife, including the Apocalypse of Paul and the Divine Comedy of Dante. (Full article...)
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