The Wikipedia article of the day for November 16, 2016 is Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines is an action role-playing video game developed by Troika Games (founders pictured) and first released on November 16, 2004,
by Activision for Microsoft Windows. Based on White Wolf Publishing’s role-playing game Vampire: The Masquerade, it follows a male or female character who is killed and revived as a fledgling vampire in 21st-century Los Angeles. Bloodlines is presented from first- and third-person perspectives. Characters may use violent and nonviolent methods to achieve their goals while moving freely between the available hubs: Santa Monica, Hollywood, downtown Los Angeles, and Chinatown. Troika’s 32-member team began development in 2001, using Valve Corporation’s brand-new Source game engine, also used for Valve’s own Half-Life 2. Bloodlines was incomplete at its first release, with disappointing sales of fewer than 80,000 copies initially. It divided critics at the time, who faulted it for technical flaws. It now has a cult following as a rarely replicated example of a game that succeeds in both gameplay and narrative; critical opinion now styles it as a flawed masterpiece.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 16, 2016
Wikipedia article of the day for November 15, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 15, 2016 is Hurricane Kate (1985).
Hurricane Kate formed northeast of Puerto Rico on November 15, 1985, as the eleventh named storm of the annual hurricane season. Kate made its first landfall on the northern coast of Cuba at Category 2 intensity, then emerged as a slightly weaker storm during the evening hours of November 19. Heavy rainfall in Cuba caused numerous mudslides and flooding, killing 10 people and leading to severe agricultural damage. Wind gusts also damaged crops, and resulted in widespread power outages and significant building damage; the cost in Cuba totaled $400 million, the most from a hurricane strike on that island in many decades. Once clear of land, Kate intensified to Category 3, and the following day it attained its peak winds of around 120 mph (195 km/h). It came ashore near Mexico Beach, Florida, as a minimal Category 2 hurricane with winds of 100 mph (160 km/h) on November 21, the latest day ever in an Atlantic hurricane season that a hurricane-strength storm has struck the United States. There were 17 deaths attributable to the storm, in Jamaica and Cuba, and the total damage caused was at least $700 million.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 14, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 14, 2016 is The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati.
“The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati” is the second episode of the seventh season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. Originally airing November 14, 1999, on the Fox network, it was directed by Michael Watkins and written by series creator Chris Carter and lead actor David Duchovny, who plays Fox Mulder. Mimi Rogers (pictured) guest-starred in her last appearance in the series. The X-Files centers on Federal Bureau of Investigation special agents Mulder and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. In this episode, Scully returns from Africa to discover Mulder in a coma induced by exposure to shards from an alien spaceship wreck. After Mulder awakens from his coma, he realizes his duty to prevent alien colonization. Carter explored themes of extraterrestrial involvement in ancient mass extinctions in this episode, the third in a trilogy focused on Mulder’s severe reaction to an alien artifact. Initial reviews were mixed, but later critics viewed the episode in a more positive light and several writers named it among the show’s best.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 12, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 12, 2016 is Mughal-e-Azam.
Mughal-e-Azam (The Emperor of the Mughals) is a 1960 Indian epic historical drama film directed by K. Asif and produced by Shapoorji Pallonji, re-released in colour on 12 November 2004. Starring Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, and Durga Khote, it follows the love affair between Mughal Prince Salim (who went on to become Emperor Jahangir) and Anarkali, a court dancer. Salim’s father, Emperor Akbar, disapproves, and war ensues. Sixteen years in development, the film cost more to produce than any previous Indian motion picture, and had the widest release. The soundtrack, inspired by Indian classical and folk music, is often cited as one of the finest soundtracks in Bollywood cinematic history. It became the highest-grossing Bollywood film at the time, and won one National Film Award and three Filmfare Awards. Mughal-e-Azam was the first black-and-white Hindi film to be digitally coloured and re-released theatrically. Considered a milestone of its genre, it earned praise from critics for its grandeur and attention to detail. Film scholars have welcomed its portrayal of enduring themes, but question its historical accuracy.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 11, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 11, 2016 is George S. Patton.
George S. Patton (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general who commanded the U.S. Seventh and Third armies during World War II. He had been wounded during World War I leading the newly formed Tank Corps of the American Expeditionary Forces into combat. In 1942 he led U.S. troops in the invasion of Casablanca, and later commanded the Seventh Army during the Allied invasion of Sicily. After slapping two soldiers, he was removed from battlefield command, but returned to lead the Third Army following the invasion of Normandy in June 1944. After a successful armored drive across France, his army helped rescue beleaguered American troops during the Battle of the Bulge. He died from an automobile accident in Germany. While Allied leaders held sharply differing opinions on Patton, he was regarded highly by his opponents in the German High Command. His emphasis on aggressive offensive action proved effective, but his hard-driving personality and success as a commander were at times overshadowed by controversial public statements. He joined his troops on the front lines and inspired them with vulgarity-ridden speeches, as recounted in a 1970 award-winning biographical film.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 10, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 10, 2016 is Millipede.
Millipedes are a class (Diplopoda) of arthropods, characterised by two pairs of jointed legs on most body segments. Most species have long cylindrical or flattened bodies with more than 20 segments, while pill millipedes are shorter and can roll into a ball. There are around 12,000 named species, making Diplopoda the largest class of myriapods. Despite their name (from the Latin for “thousand feet”), no known species has 1,000 legs; the most recorded is 750. Most species are detritivores, eating decaying leaves and other dead plant matter. Millipedes are generally harmless to humans, although some can become household or garden pests. Most defend themselves with a variety of chemicals secreted from pores along the body, while the tiny bristle millipedes are covered with tufts of detachable bristles. First appearing in the Silurian period, millipedes are some of the oldest known land animals. While the largest modern species can reach lengths of 38 cm (15 in), some prehistoric millipedes grew to over 2 m (6 ft 7 in).
Wikipedia article of the day for November 9, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 9, 2016 is William Howard Taft.
William Howard Taft (1857–1930) was the 27th President of the United States (1909–1913) and the 10th Chief Justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft initially served as a state and federal judge, and as governor of the Philippines beginning in 1900. In 1904 Theodore Roosevelt made him Secretary of War. Taft declined repeated offers to become a Supreme Court justice. He was Roosevelt’s hand-picked successor in 1908, and easily defeated William Jennings Bryan for the presidency. In the White House, he focused on the Far East more than Europe, and repeatedly intervened in Latin America. Taft was allied with the conservative wing of the Republican Party, while Roosevelt became more liberal after 1909. Roosevelt unsuccessfully challenged Taft for renomination in 1912, then bolted the party and ran as a third-party candidate. The split in the Republican vote left Taft with little chance of re-election, and he lost to Woodrow Wilson, winning only Utah and Vermont. In 1921 Taft was appointed Chief Justice, and served until a month before his death. He posted a conservative record, and reformed the court’s administration.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 8, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 8, 2016 is HMS Collingwood (1908).
HMS Collingwood was a St Vincent-class dreadnought battleship built for the British Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. Launched on 7 November 1908 and commissioned in April 1910, the ship was equipped with armour 10 inches (254 mm) thick, and ten 12-inch guns. She served in the Home Fleet and Grand Fleet, at times as the flagship of Rear-Admiral Ernest Gaunt. Prince Albert (later King George VI) spent several years aboard the ship before and during World War I. At the Battle of Jutland in 1916, the largest naval battle of the war, Collingwood was in the middle of the battleline; she did some damage to the German battlecruiser SMS Derfflinger, and shelled the light cruiser SMS Wiesbaden. Apart from that battle and the inconclusive Action of 19 August, her service during the war generally consisted of routine patrols and training in the North Sea. The ship was deemed obsolete after the war, reduced to reserve, and used as a training ship before being sold for scrap in 1922.
Wikipedia article of the day for November 7, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for November 7, 2016 is From The Doctor to my son Thomas.
“From The Doctor to my son Thomas” is a viral video recorded by the Scottish actor Peter Capaldi (pictured) and sent to Thomas Goodall, an autistic nine-year-old who was grieving over the death of his grandmother. Thomas’s father Ross posted the video to YouTube on 6 November 2014 so that his whole family could see it, but the video had wide appeal, and was viewed more than 200,000 times over the next 48 hours. Less than a week later it had over 900,000 views. In the video Capaldi portrays his character, the Twelfth Doctor, from the BBC science-fiction series Doctor Who. His message had a positive effect on Thomas; the father said the boy smiled for the first time since learning of his grandmother’s death, and gained the courage to go to her funeral. The video was praised as a deeply affecting piece in The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, Hollywood Life, and various Spanish and Dutch publications, and by CNN and MTV News. It also had a positive impact on many viewers who suffered from autism and other mental health problems.
