User:Espresso Addict/DYK

Did you know...
Entries eligible for DYK STATS *24-hour rotation
 * ...that Mary Ridge blew up the Liberator on her first encounter with Blake's 7, and killed off the crew on her last? (13 October 2022; with Penny Richards et al.)
 * ...that the British mycologist Denis Garrett, "one of the last 'string and sealing wax' scientists", once bought plastic lavatory cisterns for his laboratory to use in experiments? (2 March 2021)
 * ...that the American scholar Karen Hellekson published the first book in English devoted to analyzing the alternate history genre? (22 February 2021)


 * ...that Francesca Coppa, a professor of English, compiled "the first anthology of fan fiction for use in the classroom"? (18 February 2021)
 * ...that Biserka Cvejić, a Serbian mezzo-soprano who appeared at the Vienna State Opera in 372 performances, made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 1961 as Amneris in Verdi's Aida? (18 February 2021; mainly by Gerda Arendt et al.)
 * ...that the British design historian Cheryl Buckley claimed in an influential 1986 article that women's contributions to design have been "consistently ignored"? (31 January 2021)
 * ...that Millicent Taplin left school at 13 and never studied art full time, yet became one of Wedgwood's main ceramics designers? (31 January 2021)
 * ...that Adele Rose wrote 457 scripts for the British soap opera Coronation Street, more than any other contributor? (15 January 2021; expanded jointly with MurielMary)


 * ...that Hatherton Flush, a Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hatherton, supports an abundance of orchids, including the marsh helleborine, which is rare in Cheshire? (27 April 2020)
 * ...that Ball Farm (pictured), in the small Cheshire village of Hankelow, dates from 1510 and might once have been used as a district court? (23 April 2020)
 * ...that Joseph Stoddart was acknowledged as "one of the founding fathers" of intensive care in the UK? (10 March 2020)
 * ...that American bacteriologist Harold Conn was sometimes called "Dr. Stain"? (27 January 2020)
 * ...that Alfred Westou is said to have combed the hair and cut the nails of St Cuthbert, even though the saint had been dead for more than three centuries? (25 March 2019)
 * ...that although Durham is considered a rare Old English example of a work in praise of a city, the poem never names the city it is said to praise? (4 March 2019)
 * ...that before starting her pioneering genetic studies of complex human diseases such as atherosclerosis, Nobuyo Maeda researched sea snake venoms? (28 January 2017)
 * ...that Charles Husband was the engineer behind what was, on completion, the world's largest fully-steerable radio telescope? (5 November 2016)


 * ...that the dairy-farming area of Warmingham, Cheshire, is the source of around half the pure salt (brine pump pictured) manufactured in the UK? (29 October 2016)
 * ...that Thomas Aldersey (pictured) gave the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, now an educational charity, their first school? (25 October 2016)
 * ...that medieval works praising cities often follow rules laid down in Ancient Greece? (22 October 2016)
 * ...that the 12th-century manuscript De laude Cestrie is one of the earliest prose works about an English town? (16 October 2016)
 * ...that in 1595, the Chantry House in Bunbury, Cheshire, was leased for 2,000 years for the rent of a red rose? (11 October 2016) 9,086 views*
 * ...that virologist Stephen Straus, first head of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, said he did not use alternative medicine? (27 September 2016)
 * ...that in one study, a newt was able to regenerate the lens of its eye eighteen times? (30 April 2016; predominantly written by Andrew Davidson)
 * ...that the recently discovered Zamilon virophage (pictured) casts doubt on the concept of virophages? (22 March 2016) 6,348 views
 * ...that Tessa Hadley second novel has been described as "mysteriously, bewitchingly compelling" despite being a "virtually plotless portrait ... of breathtakingly ordinary mortals"? (20 March 2016)
 * ...that Robert Shope, described as a "walking encyclopaedia" of arboviruses, discovered more novel viruses than anyone previously? (18 March 2016)


 * ...that Margaret Forster's biography of Elizabeth Barrett Browning (pictured) rewrites the myth of the invalid poet guarded by an ogre-like father? (6 March 2016)
 * ...that the family-run New Cheshire Salt Works was said to have had a "magnificent" Art Deco vacuum evaporator, decorated with stripes of different-coloured woods? (4 March 2016)
 * ...that Lesley Lewis was one of four founding students of the Courtauld Institute of Art? (20 February 2016)
 * ...that the poet Sarah Howe won the 2015 T. S. Eliot Prize for Loop of Jade, the first time a debut collection has won the award? (2 February 2016)
 * ...that Bourbon virus (pictured), discovered in 2014 from a man who died after tick bites, is the first thogotovirus to be associated with human disease in the Western hemisphere? (17 April 2015) 7,129 views
 * ...that a quaranjavirus that can infect humans was discovered in 1953, but it took 60 years to classify it? (30 March 2015)
 * ...that Fritchley Tunnel is believed to be the oldest surviving railway tunnel in the world? (26 March 2015) 8,429 views
 * ...that Pat Nuttall showed that systemic infection of the host is not required for pathogens such as tick-borne encephalitis virus (pictured) to be transmitted between vectors? (25 March 2015)
 * ...that a novel virus may be implicated in its parasitic wasp host turning the spotted lady beetle into a "zombie bodyguard"? (18 February 2015) 5,467 views


 * ...that in her international debut season, visually impaired cyclist Sophie Thornhill won two gold medals with one guide and another two with a different guide? (1 August 2014)
 * ...that Joseph Partridge, a former waggoner, wrote the first history of the Cheshire town of Nantwich? (21 April 2013)
 * ...that James Hall`s 1883 history of Nantwich remains one of the chief sources for the Cheshire town's history? (16 April 2013)
 * ...that throughout the 400-year history of Combermere Abbey (pictured), various of its abbots and priors were excommunicated, assaulted, murdered, and accused of forgery and covering up murder? (8 April 2013)
 * ...that the churchyard gates (church pictured) in the small Cheshire village of Burleydam come from Lleweni Hall, and were described as "of great elegance" by Samuel Johnson? (2 April 2013)


 * ...that the listed buildings in Dodcott cum Wilkesley, Cheshire include a former monastery, game larder, icehouse, folly with kennels, battlemented water tower, clock tower and a sundial? (27 March 2013)
 * ...that although Steve Reich's works have often been referenced by pop and rock musicians, the Radiohead-inspired Radio Rewrite is the first time Reich (pictured) has returned the compliment? (18 March 2013)
 * ...that George Hirst was the first person to discover a viral enzyme (pictured)? (1 March 2013)
 * ...that Virology is the first English-language journal to focus on viruses? (22 February 2013)
 * ...that Ali Maow Maalin was the last person in the world to be infected with naturally occurring smallpox? (16 February 2013)
 * ...that Tony Minson developed a new way of disabling viruses for vaccines? (18 January 2013)
 * ...that scientist Joseph Priestley is believed to have lived at Sweetbriar Hall (pictured), in Nantwich, Cheshire, and another scientist, Sir William Bowman, was born there? (7 January 2013)
 * ...that the listed buildings in Lymm, Cheshire, include three aqueducts, a cross, a water tower, a well, an icehouse, a pigeon house, a mounting block, a milepost and the stocks? (6 January 2013; co-written with Peter I. Vardy)
 * ...that Dutton Horse Bridge (pictured) on the River Weaver in Cheshire is one of the earliest surviving laminated timber structures? (17 December 2012) 7,552 views
 * ...that the listed buildings in Wrenbury cum Frith, Cheshire, include three timber lift bridges (example pictured) constructed by Thomas Telford? (15 December 2012)
 * ...that in 1663, Roger Wilbraham organised the replacement of Nantwich Bridge in Cheshire, and the new bridge was completed in time for his son to be the first corpse carried across it? (29 August 2010)
 * ...that the earliest accurate description of an action potential appears in the first issue of the physiology journal Pflügers Archiv? (28 August 2010)
 * ...that the Queen's Aid House (pictured) has a plaque commemorating Elizabeth I's aid in rebuilding Nantwich after a fire, the only time she is known to have contributed to such a cause? (26 August 2010) ~5,392 views
 * ...that the bend in the street occupied by Regent House (pictured) in Nantwich, Cheshire, follows the line of the outer wall of the town's Norman castle? (19 August 2010) ~6,539 views
 * ...that Roger Wilbraham founded the Widows' Almshouses (pictured) in Nantwich, Cheshire, in memory of his wife, who died on the first anniversary of the death of their eldest son? (18 August 2010)
 * ...that in 1613, Sir Roger Wilbraham, Elizabeth I's Solicitor-General for Ireland, founded the first almshouses (pictured) in his birthplace, Nantwich in Cheshire? (15 August 2010)
 * ...that the Tollemache Almshouses (pictured) in Nantwich, Cheshire, may stand on the site of the Hospital of St Lawrence, a medieval lazar house? (14 August 2010)
 * ...that the Georgian façade of 116 Hospital Street (pictured) conceals a 15th-century structure, which might be the oldest house in Nantwich, Cheshire? (13 August 2010)
 * ...that inmates of Nantwich Workhouse could be confined in a dungeon for drinking tea? (12 August 2010)
 * ...that the ornate Jacobean Revival-style 39 Welsh Row (pictured) in Nantwich, Cheshire, was built as a humble savings bank? (3 August 2010)
 * ...that the 16th-century 140–142 Hospital Street in Nantwich, Cheshire, may stand on the site of the 11th-century Hospital of St Nicholas, which gives the street its name? (31 July 2010)


 * ...that the Congregational Chapel of Nantwich, Cheshire, was founded in 1780 by a former captain of the dragoons preaching in a coachmaker's shop? (10 July 2010)
 * ...that when Methodist George Whitefield preached in Nantwich, Cheshire, a mob tried to disperse his audience with a bull, but a Methodist Chapel (pictured) later became the town's largest chapel? (10 July 2010)
 * ...that the Wright's Almshouses in Nantwich, Cheshire, which date from 1638, were moved in the 1970s to stand by the Crewe Almshouses? (7 July 2010)
 * ...that John Thomson served for 55 years as the schoolmaster of Nantwich Blue Cap School in Cheshire, England, and the school closed some six months after his retirement aged 86 or 87? (1 July 2010)
 * ...that the ornate Chesters' Stores building of 1911 (pictured) in Nantwich, Cheshire, was likened to the Lusitania liner because of its porthole-like windows? (1 July 2010)
 * ...that 46 High Street, an Elizabethan merchant's house in Nantwich, Cheshire, has a carved wooden caryatid (pictured)? (23 June 2010)
 * ...that 9 Mill Street (pictured) in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, dates from 1736, and has been a house, a bank, a political club and a restaurant? (21 June 2010)
 * ...that a part of the Parthenon Frieze currently at the British Museum used to be kept at Marbury Hall in Cheshire, England? (3 June 2010)
 * ...that the listed buildings of Marbury cum Quoisley in Cheshire, England, include an obelisk, a lychgate (pictured), a churchyard wall, and half a bridge? (28 May 2010)
 * ...that Delamere Forest (pictured) is the remnant of the Norman hunting forests of Mara and Mondrem, which once covered over 60 sqmi of Cheshire, England? (19 May 2010) 6,654 views
 * ...that the Tarporley Hunt Club, founded in 1762, is the oldest surviving hunt club in England? (19 May 2010)
 * ...that Raw Head (pictured), in Cheshire, England, was a Marilyn, but was demoted in 2009 after a re-survey? (5 May 2010) 8,400 views
 * ...that the 63 Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cheshire, England, include diverse wetlands, such as mosses, swamps, fens, meres, ponds and rare examples of inland salt marsh? (22 April 2010)
 * ...that the mud snail, great raft spider and Enochrus isotae water scavenger beetle, all rare in the UK, have been found in the ponds of Sound Heath (pictured) in Cheshire? (17 April 2010)
 * ...that a rare example of an intact malt kiln (pictured) survives in Sound, Cheshire, England? (15 April 2010)
 * ...that John Wesley preached in the kitchen of Gates Farm in Cholmondeston, Cheshire, England? (11 April 2010)
 * ...that Regency mansion Poole Hall in Cheshire, England, once housed an eclectic collection including teasmaids, mannequins, toy robots, a pinball machine and Keith Richards' Bentley? (10 April 2010)
 * ...that the listed buildings in Poole, Cheshire, England, include a pinfold or cattle pound? (8 April 2010)
 * ...that listed buildings in Minshull Vernon, Cheshire, include five canal bridges, two aqueducts and a former privy? (12 March 2009)
 * ...that the ruined Elizabethan mansion of Rocksavage (pictured) in Runcorn was once the second-largest house in Cheshire? (28 February 2009) 7,400 views
 * ...that Bridgemere Garden World in Bridgemere, Cheshire, now one of the largest garden centres in Europe, started as "a little garden shed in a small field" in 1961? (9 February 2009)
 * ...that British plant physiologist Daphne Osborne showed that the gas ethylene is a natural plant hormone which regulates ageing and the shedding of leaves and fruits? (16 January 2009)
 * ...that Biochimica et Biophysica Acta was the first international journal launched by publishing giant Elsevier? (14 December 2008)
 * ...that pianist Kathryn Stott first met long-term collaborator Yo-Yo Ma playing the cello in her flat in his underpants? (10 December 2008)
 * ...that the Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science, founded in 1853, was edited for 68 years by the Lankester family? (22 April 2008)
 * ...that a novel human polyomavirus is associated with Merkel cell carcinoma, a rare and highly aggressive form of skin cancer? (13 April 2008; nomination)
 * ...that during the English Civil War, the Crown Inn in Nantwich, Cheshire was used as a place of worship, as the church was used as a prison? (7 April 2008)
 * ...that the Tegg's Nose Country Park in Cheshire has a collection of historical quarrying equipment (pictured) dating back to the 16th century? (2 April 2008)
 * ...that St Stephen's Church in Macclesfield Forest, Cheshire still practises a rush-bearing ceremony, largely abandoned in the 17th century? (2 April 2008)
 * ...that English sculptor Henry Weekes ' monument to Percy Bysshe Shelley, modelled on Michelangelo's Pietà, includes realistic touches such as seaweed wrapped around the drowned poet's arm? (22 March 2008)
 * ...that after Crewe Hall (pictured) in Cheshire was gutted by fire in 1866, E. M. Barry was employed to restore it to a facsimile of the Jacobean original? (18 March 2008)
 * ...that listed buildings in Peckforton, Cheshire, include a carved stone elephant bearing a replica of a medieval castle (pictured)? (16 March 2008)
 * ...that David Beckham and Victoria Adams were given a replica of Cheshire's Rookery Hall as a cake at their engagement party? (12 March 2008)
 * ...that listed structures in the parish of Acton in Cheshire include an aqueduct (pictured), sundial, icehouse, clock tower, telephone box and a statue of a dog upsetting a food bowl? (26 February 2008)
 * ...that award-winning biographer Jenny Uglow described her dictionary of women's biographies as "a mad undertaking, born of a time when feminists wanted heroines and didn't have Google"? (11 February 2008)
 * ...that American trauma surgeon Tom Shires operated on both Texas governor John Connally and gunman Lee Harvey Oswald after the assassination of John F. Kennedy? (10 February 2008)
 * ...that epidemiologist Brian MacMahon showed for the first time that women who give birth early in life have a lower risk of breast cancer? (3 February 2008)
 * ...that playwright Sam Thompson's Under the Bridge about Northern Irish sectarian violence became Belfast's most-seen play despite a prediction it would "offend and affront every section of the public"? (19 November 2007)
 * ...that Mdm2, whose role in regulating p53 was discovered by British scientist Karen Vousden, is a potential target for anti-cancer drugs? (23 October 2007)
 * ...that English civil engineer James Trubshaw's straightening method used on Wybunbury's St Chad's tower in 1832 was later used to stabilise the Leaning Tower of Pisa? (20 October 2007)
 * ...that close studding (example pictured) of timber-framed buildings was a 15–16th century status symbol, due to its lavish use of timber? (14 October 2007)
 * ...that new bacterial species names are not considered valid until published in the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology? (2 October 2007)
 * ...that Carnegie Medal-winning children’s author Berlie Doherty has written the libretti for three operas? (19 September 2007)
 * ...that British surgeon Richard Partridge apprehended the London Burkers gang of body snatchers, alerting the authorities while claiming to be getting change for a £50 note? (24 August 2007)
 * ...that despite being portrait painter to Queen Victoria, John Partridge's career plummeted after a dispute with Ramsay Richard Reinagle over altering one of his paintings? (23 August 2007)
 * ...that Eleanor Davies-Colley was the first woman admitted as fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England? (23 August 2007)
 * ......that Churche's Mansion (pictured), Nantwich, United Kingdom, one of the few buildings to survive the Great Fire of 1583, bears a carved salamander, a traditional protection against fire? (10 August 2007)
 * ...that William Gaskell, husband of the well-known Victorian novelist Elizabeth Gaskell, was a pioneer in the education of the working classes? (27 July 2007)
 * ...that lead shot for the Napoleonic Wars was made at Chester Shot Tower (pictured), probably the oldest surviving shot tower in the world? (11 February 2007)

In the news...
ITN items with a substantial contribution:
 * At Christie's in New York City, Francis Bacon's Three Studies of Lucian Freud sells for US$142.4 million, a record price for a work of art sold at auction. (15 November 2013)

Recent deaths

 * Margaret Forster (1938–2016) — British author (10 February 2016)
 * Doris Lessing (1919–2013) — British author (17 November 2013)
 * Bryan Forbes (1926–2013) — British film director & screenwriter (9 May 2013)
 * Shamshad Begum (1919–2013) — Indian playback singer (27 April 2013)