Dambe is a form of boxing associated with the Hausa people of the Saharan regions of West Africa. It is essentially a striking art. The primary weapon is the strong-side fist. Known as the spear, it is wrapped in a piece of cloth covered by tightly knotted cord. The lead hand, called the shield, is held with the open palm facing toward the opponent. The lead hand can be used to grab or hold as required. Officials generally discourage the use of magical protection on the grounds of fairness.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 7:10 PM on November 6, 2007 (7 comments)

Katherine Jeffords , Bishop of Nevada, has been elected Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, becoming the first female Anglican Primate Primate. Having been admonished by the global church about Bishop Robinson and homosexuality, ECUSA has aparently decided to put another thumb in the eye of conservatives.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 5:27 PM on June 18, 2006 (32 comments)

On the night of April 27th, 1805, US Marine Lt. Presley O'Bannon led a ragtag army of Greek, Arab and Berber mercenaries in a desperate charge into the teeth of the fortifications of Derna, Tripoli (now Libya). The defenders inexplicably turned and ran, leaving behind loaded cannons which, turned around, secured victory for the US in its first land battle in the old world.

In recognition of his bravery, Lt. O'Bannon was given a sword by Hamet Karamanli. William Eaton (no, the other William Eaton ) had led O'Bannon, six other US Marines, and the five hundred odd mercenaries across six hundred miles of North African desert in order to replace the usurping Pasha of Tripoli, Yusef, with the rightful heir, his pro-American older brother Hamet.

Shortly after the battle, Yusef reached a peace with Col. Tobias Lear, the American Consul to Tripoli, and hostilities between the US and Tripoli ceased. Eaton, O'Bannon, and Hamet Karamanli, along with the Marines and most of the Greeks, departed aboard American warships, leaving the Muslim mercenaries behind in Derna. Unpaid.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 11:48 PM on January 7, 2004 (11 comments)

Human cardiac catheterization was introduced by Werner Forssman in 1929. Ignoring his department chief, and tying his assistant to an operating table to prevent her interference, he placed a ureteral catheter into a vein in his arm, advanced it to the right atrium [of his heart], and walked upstairs to the x-ray department where he took the confirmatory x-ray film. In 1956, Dr. Forssman was awarded The Nobel Prize. [via the "fortune" command]
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 3:44 PM on August 7, 2003 (15 comments)

Kaliningrad is the name of the little dot between Poland and Lithuania which lights up when you select "Russia" in the Axis Applet. It turns out to be a Special Economic Zone entirely surrounded by newly-minted EU members.

But before it was gobbled up by Russia in the wake of World War II, it was named Konigsberg. Founded in 1255 by Ottocar II (Not related to the Ottokars of Syldavia) of Bohemia, Konigsberg was the inspiration for the problem of the 7 Bridges and the name of two famous warships.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 10:33 PM on January 26, 2003 (24 comments)

Solar System Akin to Earth's Is Discovered Any minute now, I imagine somebody at a listening station on a smaller, bluer planet a few in from this one making a minute adjustment to their equipment and promptly spraying warm stimulant-laced beverage over their console...
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 11:16 AM on June 14, 2002 (13 comments)

Bush to announce new domestic intelligence agency. Just what we need, more spooks.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 8:02 AM on June 6, 2002 (44 comments)

China does great propaganda. From the Great Leap Forward to the 2008 Olympics, the posters tell the story and this guy collects 'em. My favorite so far is this one.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 7:37 AM on June 1, 2002 (7 comments)

A federal appeals court in New York has overturned the convictions of three of the police officers in the Abner Louima torture case.
posted to MetaFilter by hob at 8:58 AM on February 28, 2002 (29 comments)