Wikipedia:Main Page history/2018 June 17

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From today's featured article

Gillian Anderson

"all things" is the seventeenth episode of the seventh season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. Written and directed by lead actress Gillian Anderson (pictured), it is unconnected to the wider mythology of The X-Files and functions as a monster-of-the-week story. The series centers on special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Anderson) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who work on cases linked to the paranormal called X-Files. In this episode, a series of coincidences lead Scully to Dr. Daniel Waterston (Nicolas Surovy), a married man with whom she had an affair while at medical school. After Waterston slips into a coma, Scully puts aside her skepticism and seeks out alternative treatment to save him. Viewer response was generally positive, but the episode received mixed reviews, and many critics faulted the characterization of Scully. The cast and crew helped Anderson adjust to her directorial debut—the first time a woman directed an episode of The X-Files. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

The Nun Jerónima de la Fuente (1620)

... that The Nun Jerónima de la Fuente (pictured), one of Diego Velázquez's earliest portraits, was mistakenly attributed to Luis Tristán?
... that Virginia Fraser, the Long-Term Care Ombudsman for the state of Colorado, created a bingo game that teaches nursing home residents about their rights?
... that the Organ Grinder Restaurant's Wurlitzer pipe organ included such effects as a submarine dive alarm?
... that Dutch Arabist Petra Stienen was awarded the Aletta Jacobs Prize by the University of Groningen for "using her work to represent and transmit the voices of women who would otherwise not be heard"?
... that the Royal Game of Ur is a board game that was first played in ancient Mesopotamia over 4,500 years ago?
... that Destiny Herndon-De La Rosa's feminist group New Wave Feminists was removed as a partner of the 2017 Women's March after organizers discovered the group was pro-life?
... that the tennis ball theorem concerns curves that, like the seam of a tennis ball, cut the surface of a sphere into two equal areas?
... that in 1869, Alfred Eteson of the Bengal Medical Service attributed an epidemic of ague to the effect of winds laden with a "pestiferous miasma"?

In the news

Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump

Saudi-backed troops begin an attack on Houthi forces in the port of Al Hudaydah, Yemen.
In association football, FIFA awards hosting rights for the 2026 World Cup to a joint bid from Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un meet (pictured) in Singapore.
In Thoroughbred horse racing, Justify wins the Belmont Stakes, becoming the thirteenth United States Triple Crown winner.
The G7 summit takes place in Quebec, Canada, with the United States refusing to endorse the joint statement.

On this day

June 17

Memorial service for the Charleston shooting

1397 – The three kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway were joined into the Kalmar Union, a personal union under Erik of Pomerania.
1579 – Explorer Francis Drake landed in a region of present-day California, naming it New Albion and claiming it for England.
1843 – New Zealand Wars: An armed posse of Europeans set out from Nelson to arrest Ngāti Toa chief Te Rauparaha and clashed with Māori, resulting in 26 deaths.
1940 – Second World War: Britain's worst maritime disaster occurred when at least 3,000 people were killed as a result of the troopship RMS Lancastria's sinking by the Luftwaffe near Saint-Nazaire, France.
2015 – A white supremacist committed a mass shooting at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, killing nine people during a prayer service (memorial service pictured).

Carl Van Vechten (b. 1880) · Carmen Casco de Lara Castro (b. 1918) · Annie S. Swan (d. 1943)

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Today's featured picture

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the freestanding bell tower of the Cathedral of Pisa, Italy. The third oldest structure in the city's Square of Miracles, it is known worldwide for its unintended tilt. The tower's tilt began during construction in the 12th century, caused by an inadequate foundation on ground too soft on one side to properly support the structure's weight. The tilt gradually increased until the tower was stabilized (and the tilt partially corrected) by efforts in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The tower, which measures 55.86 metres (183.27 feet) from the ground on the low side and 56.67 metres (185.93 feet) on the high side, has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.

Photograph: Saffron Blaze

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