Wednesday, April 19, 2006

 

Spotlight: José Echegaray y Eizaguirre was born on this date in 1832. The first Spaniard to win the Nobel Prize for Literature, he shared the 1904 prize with poet Frederic Mistral. Echegaray was a physicist and one of Spain's foremost mathematicians before he turned to writing, economics and politics, serving in different cabinet posts in his later years. In 1912, Echegaray was awarded the Order of the Golden Fleece by King Alfonso XIII.

Quote: "Literature always anticipates life. It does not copy it, but moulds it to its purpose." – Oscar Wilde

Word of the day: avenge: retaliate, pay back for a perceived wrong; one of José Echegaray's most famous plays was The Avenger's Wife. (© )

Today's News:

• Zacarias Moussaoui: some relatives testify for the defense of the convicted 9/11 plotter (story)
• mushrooms: can be excellent source of vitamin D if "tanned" with UV light (story)
• humuhumunukunukuapuaa: bill aims to reinstate Hawaii's state fish (story)

Today's History:

• Shot heard round the world: the American Revolution began with the Battle of Lexington and Concord (1775)
• Warsaw Ghetto Uprising: Jews began armed resistance against the Nazis (1943)
• Oklahoma City Bombing: truck bomb exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, killing 168 (1995)

Today's Birthdays:

• Eliot Ness: head of the Untouchables (1903-1957)
• Hayden Christensen: actor who played Anakin Skywalker (25)
• Maria Sharapova: winner of Wimbledon 2004 (19)