inedible species of mushroom belonging to the genus Geastrum, the
earthstar fungi. First described by Christian Hendrik Persoon in 1794,
it is a cosmopolitan but uncommon species found in Europe, the Americas,
Africa, Asia, and Australasia. The fungus feeds off decomposing organic
matter in the litter and soil of coniferous forests. The small, grayish-
brown fruit bodies are enclosed by a skin, or peridium, made up of four
layers of tissue. The outer layer splits to form star-like rays and
expose a spore case, inside of which is the gleba—fertile spore-
producing tissue. The spore case, set on a short, slender stalk, has a
well-defined narrow pore at the top through which mature spores escape.
The mushroom's outer skin is purplish-brown, with four or five cream or
yellowish-brown rays whose tips are stuck in the substrate. This species
is one of several earthstars whose rays arch downward as they mature,
lifting the spore sac upward and allowing it to catch air currents that
disseminate the spores.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geastrum_quadrifidum>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1598:
Admiral Yi Sun-sin's Korean navy defeated the Japanese fleet at
the Battle of Noryang, the final naval battle of the Imjin War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Noryang>
1653:
Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of
England.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Cromwell>
1918:
Vincas Mickevičius-Kapsukas declared the formation of the
Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, a puppet state created by Soviet
Russia to justify the Lithuanian–Soviet War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuanian_Soviet_Socialist_Republic_(1918%E2%80%9319)>
1930:
Herman Lamm, "the father of modern bank robbery", killed
himself during a botched robbery attempt in Clinton, Indiana, US, rather
than be captured by police.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Lamm>
2012:
A woman in New Delhi was gang-raped on a bus, generating public
protests across the country against the Government of India and the
Government of Delhi for not providing adequate security for women.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_Delhi_gang_rape>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
gafiate:
(dated, fandom slang, science fiction) To leave the mundane world and
enter the science fiction fandom community. […]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gafiate>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
It seems to me very important to continue to distinguish between
two evils. It may be necessary temporarily to accept a lesser evil, but
one must never label a necessary evil as good.
--Margaret Mead
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Margaret_Mead>
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