From today's featured article
Massospondylus is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived in southern Africa during the Early Jurassic, between 201 and 184 million years ago. It was described by Richard Owen in 1854 and is one of the first dinosaurs to have been named. Although the original fossils were destroyed in London during a bombing raid in World War II, a plethora of specimens have since been assigned to the genus, making it one of the best-known sauropodomorphs from the Early Jurassic. The genus contains two valid species, M. carinatus and M. kaalae. It was 4 to 6 metres (13 to 20 ft) long, with a long neck and tail, a small head, and a slender body. It moved on two legs and was probably a plant-eater. Clutches of eggs have been found, some of which contained embryos. Individuals accelerated or slowed down their growth depending on environmental factors such as food availability. The oldest known specimen was around 20 years of age. ( Full article... )
Did you know ...
- ... that Twisted Tea (cans pictured) was rebranded after being sued for trademark infringement?
- ... that Asma Nadia , who has travelled to 72 countries, has published dozens of books – including one with tips for Muslim travellers?
- ... that Maxentius was the last Roman emperor in the 4th century to reside in Rome ?
- ... that Navajo American mathematician Thomas Storer invented one of the standard notations for compactly and precisely describing string figures?
- ... that a bride's farewell can be sung in Romanian traditional music as a lament – sometimes also played instrumentally as "the bride's sorrow"?
- ... that Rin Kurusu did not pursue voice acting earlier because she was already in an idol group?
- ... that Te Waihorotiu railway station is named after a now-covered stream that flows beneath Queen Street in Auckland, New Zealand?
- ... that Roger J. Landry attended both Harvard College and the Pontifical North American College with his identical twin brother?
- ... that a minigame in Rhythm Heaven Megamix allows players to feed turnips to a goat?
In the news
- A Colombian Aerospace Force Lockheed C-130 crashes during take-off in Puerto Leguízamo, killing 70 people.
- In mathematics, Gerd Faltings (pictured) is awarded the Abel Prize for his work in arithmetic geometry.
- The World Baseball Classic concludes with Venezuela defeating the United States in the final .
- In association football, the Confederation of African Football overturns the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final originally won by Senegal, declaring Morocco the winner of the tournament.
On this day
March 26 : National Science Appreciation Day in various U.S. states
- 1169 – Saladin (depicted on coin) was inaugurated as vizier of Egypt.
- 1896 – An explosion at the Brunner Mine in New Zealand killed 65 coal miners in the country's deadliest mining accident.
- 1974 – A group of peasant women in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India, surrounded trees in order to prevent loggers from felling them, giving rise to the Chipko movement .
- 1991 – Singapore Airlines Flight 117 was hijacked by four Pakistani terrorists and diverted to Changi Airport.
- Samuel Ward (d. 1776)
- Constantin Fehrenbach (d. 1926)
- Keira Knightley (b. 1985)
- Diana Wynne Jones (d. 2011)
Today's featured picture
 | Erica Jong (born March 26, 1942) is an American novelist, satirist and poet. She is known particularly for her 1973 novel Fear of Flying , which became controversial for its attitudes towards female sexuality and figured prominently in the development of second-wave feminism. This photograph of Jong, taken by Bernard Gotfryd in 1969, is part of a collection of photographs by Gotfryd in the Library of Congress. Photograph credit: Bernard Gotfryd; restored by Blameless Recently featured: |