Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 February 2

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From today's featured article

Suillus salmonicolor, the slippery Jill, is a fungus in the family Suillaceae. Its mushrooms appear scattered or in groups on the ground near the roots of pine trees, because the fungus exchanges nutrients with the roots in a mutually beneficial mycorrhizal association. It is found in North America (including Hawaii), Asia, the Caribbean, South Africa, Australia and Central America. The mushroom's dingy yellow to brownish cap, up to 9.5 cm (3.7 in) wide, can be rounded or flattened, and is slimy when wet. The small yellow pores on its underside become olive-brown with age. The stem is up to 10 cm (3.9 in) long and 1.6 cm (0.6 in) thick and is covered with reddish-brown glandular dots. Young specimens are covered with a grayish, slimy partial veil that later ruptures, leaving a sheathlike ring on the stem. Although the mushroom is generally considered edible—especially if the slimy cap cuticle and partial veil are first peeled off—opinions about its palatability vary. Similar species include S. acidus, S. subalutaceus, and S. intermedius. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Timoclea

... that on this day in 1574, Elizabeth I and her court saw a play about the rape victim Timoclea (pictured) acted by London schoolboys?
... that approximately 80% of residents of Lusaka, Zambia, live in kombonis?
... that crab apples were regarded as talismans against Wen Shen, the Chinese god of pestilence?
... that the ancient Clattern Bridge was a medieval football goal and scolds were ducked there too?
... that the bass Thomas Thomaschke appeared as Wagner's Hunding at La Scala, as Mozart's Sarastro in Glyndebourne, and recorded Bach's Mit Fried und Freud with Harnoncourt?
... that "to rob Peter to pay Paul" means to eliminate one debt by incurring another?

In the news

Elena Hight

More than 49,000 men in England and Wales are retroactively pardoned under the Alan Turing law, after being cautioned or convicted under historical legislation that outlawed homosexual acts.
Morocco is readmitted to the African Union despite an ongoing dispute over Western Sahara.
The Winter X Games conclude with the United States winning seven gold medals (snowboarder Elena Hight pictured).
A gunman kills six people and injures eight others in a mass shooting at a mosque in Quebec City, Canada.
A cold wave affects North India.

On this day...

February 2: Groundhog Day in Canada and the United States

Roger Federer

1141 – Stephen, King of England was captured by forces loyal to the Empress Matilda at the Battle of Lincoln.
1709 – Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk was rescued by English captain Woodes Rogers and the crew of the Duke after spending four years as a castaway on an uninhabited island in the Juan Fernández archipelago, providing the inspiration for Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe.
1934 – The Export–Import Bank, the United States' official export credit agency, was established.
2004 – Swiss tennis player Roger Federer (pictured) became the top-ranked men's singles player, a position he held for a record 237 consecutive weeks.

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Today's featured picture

The Eurasian eagle-owl (Bubo bubo) is one of the largest species of owl and one of the most widely distributed, being found throughout much of Europe and Asia. It is easily identified thanks to its distinctive ear tufts and orange eyes. The Eurasian eagle-owl is found in a number of habitats but is mostly a bird of mountain regions, coniferous forests, steppes and other relatively remote places.

Photograph: Carlos Delgado

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