Wikipedia:Today's featured list/November 2012


November 5

Counties of Croatia
Counties of Croatia

The counties of Croatia are the primary administrative subdivisions of Croatia. The Kingdom of Croatia was first subdivided into counties in the Middle Ages. The divisions have changed over time, reflecting territorial losses to Ottoman conquest and subsequent recapture of some territory; changes in the political status of Dalmatia, Dubrovnik and Istria; and political circumstances, including the personal union and settlement between the Habsburg kingdoms of Croatia and Hungary. The traditional division of Croatia into counties was abolished in 1922, when the oblasts of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes were introduced. Communist-ruled Croatia, a constituent part of post-World War II Yugoslavia, was organised into approximately 100 municipalities. Since the counties were re-established in 1992, Croatia has been divided into 20 counties and the capital city of Zagreb. The city of Zagreb has the authority and legal status of both a county and a city (separate from the surrounding Zagreb County). The counties are subdivided into 127 cities and 429 municipalities. (Full list...)


November 12

Skyline of Boston's Back Bay neighborhood
Skyline of Boston's Back Bay neighborhood

There are 27 buildings in Boston that stand at least 400 feet (122 m) in height. Boston (skyline pictured), the capital of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the largest city in New England, is home to 251 completed high-rises overall; the majority of the city's skyscrapers are clustered in the Financial District and Back Bay neighborhoods. The tallest structure in Boston is the 60-story Hancock Place, more commonly known as the John Hancock Tower, which rises 790 feet (241 m) in the Back Bay district. Hancock Place is also the tallest building in New England and the 50th-tallest building in the United States. The second-tallest building in Boston is the Prudential Tower, which rises 52 floors and 749 feet (228 m). At the time of the Prudential Tower's completion in 1964, it stood as the tallest building in North America outside of New York City. Overall, with 46 skyscrapers rising at least 330 feet (100 m) in height, Boston's skyline is ranked 11th in the United States and 40th in the world. (Full list...)


November 19

Daniel Radcliffe has been the icon of the film series since the release of the first film in 2001.
Daniel Radcliffe has been the icon of the film series since the release of the first film in 2001.

The cast members of the Harry Potter film series are some of the most renowned actors of the United Kingdom and Ireland. The Harry Potter films are based on a series of novels by the British author J. K. Rowling. Daniel Radcliffe (pictured), Rupert Grint and Emma Watson played Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger in all the films. When they were cast, only Radcliffe had previously acted in a film. Thirteen actors appeared as the same character in all eight films of the franchise. With the exception of Chris Columbus, each director had a cameo appearance in their respective film: Alfonso Cuarón appears as a wizard holding a candle during a scene at The Three Broomsticks in Prisoner of Azkaban; Mike Newell is heard briefly as the radio presenter in Frank Bryce's house in Goblet of Fire; and David Yates features as a wizard within a magical moving portrait in Order of the Phoenix. (Full list...)


November 26

The ruins of Dun Carloway Iron Age broch
The ruins of Dun Carloway Iron Age broch

Prehistory in Scotland ends with the arrival of the Romans in southern Scotland in the 1st century AD and the beginning of written records. The first indications of humans in prehistoric Scotland occur only after the ice retreated in the 11th millennium BC and the current Flandrian interglacial began. Initially, sea levels were lower than at present due to the large volume of ice that remained; the Orkney archipelago and many of the Inner Hebridean islands were attached to the mainland, as was the present-day island of Great Britain to Continental Europe. Many of the archaeological sites (example pictured) are in the Highlands and Islands, possibly because of the relatively sparse modern populations and consequent lack of disturbance. Differentiating the various periods of human history involved is a complex task. The Paleolithic lasted until the retreat of the ice, the Mesolithic until the adoption of farming, and the Neolithic until metalworking commenced. (Full list...)