Wikipedia:Main Page history/2014 March 7

Persoonia lanceolata, commonly known as lance-leaf geebung, is a shrub native to New South Wales in eastern Australia. It reaches 3 m (9.8 ft) in height and has smooth grey bark and bright green foliage. Its small yellow flowers grow on racemes and appear in the austral summer and autumn (January to April), followed by green fleshy fruit (known as drupes) which ripen the following spring (September to October). Within the genus Persoonia, Persoonia lanceolata belongs to the lanceolata group of 58 closely related species. It interbreeds with several other species found in its range. The species is usually found in dry sclerophyll forest on sandstone-based nutrient-deficient soil. It has adapted to a fire-prone environment; plants lost in bushfires can regenerate through a ground-stored seed bank. Seedlings mostly germinate within two years of fires. Several species of native bee of the genus Leioproctus pollinate the flowers. Swamp wallabies are a main consumer of its fruit, and the seeds are spread in wallaby scat. Its lifespan ranges from 25 to 60 years, though difficulties in propagation have seen low cultivation rates. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Gilbert Foliot – Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri – Jimi Hendrix

From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:

• ... that Shukri al-Quwatli (pictured), the first president of independent Syria, attempted to commit suicide in an Ottoman jail to prevent himself from revealing the names of his colleagues under torture?
• ... that on Waldfriedhof Zehlendorf, Berlin celebrities are buried in forest landscape, including chancellor Willy Brandt and ballet dancer Tatjana Gsovsky?
• ... that the National Commission for Civic Education, in collaboration with the GILLBT, has translated the Constitution of Ghana into 30 Ghanaian languages?
• ... that the episode "Fly Away" from the television series The Following received the series' lowest ratings ever?
• ... that the Garrick Theatre fire killed eight young girls in 1916?
• ... that former Macedonian ambassador Ljubica Acevska's male aide was so often assumed to be the ambassador, she said, "I should wear a sash like Miss America saying, 'I'm the Ambassador'"?

• The Supreme Council of Crimea votes to leave Ukraine and join the Russian Federation and announces a referendum on secession.
• Scientists discover a viable Pithovirus specimen in 30,000-year-old frozen tundra, marking the largest giant virus yet found.
• At the 86th Academy Awards, 12 Years a Slave wins Best Picture and Gravity wins seven awards, including Alfonso Cuarón (pictured) as Best Director.
• At least 29 people are killed and 130 injured in a mass stabbing at Kunming Railway Station in China.
• Militants kill 59 students in Yobe State, Nigeria.
• The Winter Olympics close with host nation Russia winning the most gold medals and most medals overall.

Recent deaths: Alain Resnais

March 7

• 161 – Following the death of Roman emperor Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus agreed to become co-Emperors in an unprecedented arrangement in the Roman Empire.
• 1277 – Étienne Tempier, Bishop of Paris, promulgated a Condemnation of 219 philosophical and theological propositions that were being discussed at the University of Paris.
• 1871 – José Paranhos, Viscount of Rio Branco (pictured), became Prime Minister of the Empire of Brazil, starting a four-year rule, the longest in the state's history.
• 1914 – Prussian William of Wied began his short reign as sovereign prince of the newly independent state of Albania.
• 1965 – African-American Civil Rights Movement: Civil rights demonstrators marching from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, were brutally attacked by police on Bloody Sunday.

More anniversaries: March 6 – March 7 – March 8

Of the 87 universities in Bangladesh, 52 are in Dhaka, the capital city. Out of the 6 divisions of Bangladesh, Dhaka Division houses 58 of the country's universities. The University of Dhaka (Curzon Hall pictured), established in 1921, is the oldest university of the country. The country's universities are mainly categorized into three different types: public, private, and international. Most universities focus on general studies, mixing together such areas of study as business, engineering and technology. Seven universities have specialized curricula. Two of these are focused on Islamic studies, two on agricultural science, one on healthcare science, one on veterinary medicine, and one on women's studies. Bangladeshi universities are affiliated with the University Grants Commission, a commission created according to presidential order. (Full list...)