John McCain

John McCain (born 1936) is the senior United States Senator from Arizona and presidential nominee of the Republican Party in the 2008 United States presidential election. During the Vietnam War, he nearly lost his life in the 1967 USS Forrestal fire. In October 1967, he was shot down and held as a prisoner of war until 1973, experiencing episodes of torture; his war wounds have left him with lifelong physical limitations. Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1982, he served two terms, was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, and was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004. (more...)

Barakhamba road, Delhi

Delhi is the second largest metropolis of India, and the eighth largest city in the world by population, with a population greater than 18 million. It is a federally-administered union territory. Located on the banks of river Yamuna in northern India, archaeological evidence suggests that Delhi has been continuously inhabited since at least the 6th century BC. In 1639, Mughal emperor Shahjahan built a new walled city in Delhi which served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857. A new capital city, New Delhi, was built during the 1920s. When India gained independence from British rule in 1947, New Delhi was declared its capital and seat of government. As such, New Delhi houses important offices of the federal government, including the Parliament of India. Owing to the immigration of people from across the country, Delhi has grown to be a cosmopolitan city. Its rapid development and urbanisation, coupled with the relatively high average income of its population, has transformed the city. Today, Delhi is a major cultural, political, and commercial center of India. (more...)

Hijazi Railway

that during World War I, the German Army produced shale oil from Yarmouk oil shale deposits in Jordan to operate the Hijazi Railway (pictured)?
... that Daryl Veltman was the first overall selection in the 2008 Entry Draft by the Boston Blazers of the National Lacrosse League?
... that in order to get her first and only film role, actress Phyllis Welch MacDonald had to sign a contract pledging not to marry or become engaged for six months?
... that in 1929, Western Australia celebrated its Centenary of foundation, which included dances, race meetings, an air race and other sporting events?
... that the Wingspread Conference on the Precautionary Principle established the internationally accepted definition of the precautionary principle?
... that the blue trevally, a popular gamefish in South Africa, was first described in 1775 based on a specimen taken from the Red Sea?
... that pitcher Jackson Todd threw 13 complete games during the 1973 college baseball season, a University of Oklahoma record which still stands?
... that in Hopi mythology, the Kachina Nataska enforces good behavior among children?
... that Australian politician Lynda Voltz's step-father and grand step-father were also politicians?