Wikipedia:Main Page history/2015 June 22

In physics, M-theory is a unification of what were originally thought to be five distinct versions of superstring theory. The possibility of such a theory was first conjectured by Edward Witten (pictured) at a string theory conference at the University of Southern California in 1995, initiating a flurry of research activity known as the second superstring revolution. Work by several physicists showed that the original five theories could be related by transformations called S-duality and T-duality. Witten's conjecture drew on these dualities and on a field theory called eleven-dimensional supergravity. Some physicists believe that a complete formulation of M-theory could provide a framework for developing a unified theory of all the fundamental forces of nature. Current directions of research in the theory include matrix theory and gauge/gravity duality. According to Witten, the M in M-theory can stand for "magic", "mystery", or "membrane" according to taste, and the true meaning of the title should be decided when a more fundamental formulation of the theory is known. (Full article...)

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• ... that the DNA Holliday junction (schematic pictured) was originally studied for its role in genetics, and was later used as a basic structural element in DNA nanotechnology?
• ... that it is believed that all prints of the 1940 Argentine film Canto de amor, starring Nelly Omar, were destroyed?
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• Pope Francis (pictured) releases the encyclical Laudato si', in which he calls for action on environmental degradation and climate change.
• Nine people, including a state senator, are killed in a mass shooting at a church in Charleston, South Carolina.
• In basketball, the Golden State Warriors defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers to win the NBA Finals.
• In ice hockey, the Chicago Blackhawks defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning to win the Stanley Cup.
• Flooding in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, kills at least nineteen people and releases zoo animals into the streets.

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June 22

• 1633 – Galileo Galilei was forced to recant his heliocentric view of the Solar System by the Roman Inquisition, after which, as legend has it, he muttered under his breath, "And yet it moves".
• 1813 – War of 1812: After learning of American plans for a forthcoming surprise attack, Laura Secord (pictured) set out on a 30 km (19 mi) journey from Queenston, Ontario, Upper Canada, on foot to warn Lieutenant James FitzGibbon.
• 1911 – George V and Mary of Teck were crowned King and Queen of the United Kingdom at Westminster Abbey in London.
• 1969 – The surface of the Cuyahoga River in Ohio, US, caught on fire, helping to spur the environmental movement.
• 2002 – An earthquake measuring 6.5 M_w struck a region of northwestern Iran, killing at least 261 people and injuring 1,300 others, and eventually causing widespread public anger due to the slow official response.

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  • June 21
  • June 22
  • June 23

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The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries is an oil painting on canvas completed by Jacques-Louis David in 1812. It depicts French Emperor Napoleon, wearing the uniform of a colonel of the Imperial Guard Foot Grenadiers, standing in his study at the Tuileries Palace. Unlike David's earlier painting Napoleon Crossing the Alps, here the emperor is depicted as a civil hero rather than a military one, though his martial prowess is alluded to through the sword on his chair. The painting has been in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., since 1954.

Painting: Jacques-Louis David

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