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S. fatalis skeleton at the National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C.

Smilodon, the saber-toothed tiger, is an extinct genus that lived in the Americas between 2.5 million and 10,000 years ago, during the Pleistocene epoch. It was named in 1842 and identified by fossils from Brazil. The largest collection of its fossils has come from the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California. The species S. gracilis and S. fatalis lived mostly in North America. A third species, the South American S. populator (meaning destroyer), was perhaps the largest known member of the family of cats, at 220 to 400 kg (490 to 880 lb) and 120 cm (47 in) in height. Overall, saber-toothed tigers were stronger than any modern cat, with well-developed forelimbs, big jaws, and long, slender upper canines, adapted for precision killing. In North America, they hunted large herbivores such as bison and camels, pinning their prey before biting it. They probably lived in habitats that provided cover for ambushing prey, such as forests and shrubland. They died out at the same time that most North and South American megafauna disappeared, during a period of climate change about 10,000 years ago. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Oskar Gottlieb Blarr

... that Oskar Gottlieb Blarr (pictured), "the composer with the hat", visited Israel to experience where Jesus lived as a Jew?
... that when Seymour Cray designed the Cray-3 supercomputer, he insisted that the processor fit into a 1-cubic-foot (0.028 m³) block?
... that in 1969, the West Bengal Sports Minister Ram Chatterjee invaded the exclusive Calcutta Swimming Club along with a group of Santhal tribals?
... that 14 Muslim female athletes won medals at the 2016 Olympic Games?
... that the philosopher Michael Fox became highly critical of animal testing following the publication of his The Case for Animal Experimentation, later writing a book in support of vegetarianism?
... that the Y Sap mine was an explosive planted under German trenches before the Battle of the Somme in World War I?
... that the first full-circle Arctic panorama created in the United States since the 19th century appeared at the Velaslavasay Panorama in Los Angeles in 2007?
... that J. W. Lonoaea died because he voted for a king instead of a queen?

In the news

Reina nightclub

An attack on a nightclub (pictured) in Istanbul, Turkey, during New Year's celebrations, kills at least 39 people and injures more than 60 others.
American actress, screenwriter, and author Carrie Fisher dies at the age of 60, and her mother, actress and singer Debbie Reynolds, dies one day later at the age of 84.
English singer, songwriter, and record producer George Michael dies at the age of 53.
A Tupolev Tu-154 crashes near Sochi, Russia, killing all 92 people on board, including 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble.
The United Nations Security Council adopts a resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

On this day...

January 3

Winston Churchill in 1912

1749 – The first issue of Berlingske, Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper, was published.
1777 – American Revolutionary War: American forces under General George Washington defeated British troops at the Battle of Princeton.
1911 – A gun battle in the East End of London left two dead and sparked a political row over the involvement of then-Home Secretary Winston Churchill (pictured).
1911 – A 7.7 M_w earthquake destroyed the city of Almaty in Russian Turkestan.
2002 – Israeli forces seized the MV Karine A, which was carrying 50 tons of weapons being smuggled in on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.

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Today's featured picture

Paulus Moreelse (1571–1638) was a Dutch painter and architect. Born in Utrecht, he studied under Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt and spent some time in Italy in the late 16th century before returning to his hometown. Receiving commissions from throughout the Dutch Republic, Moreelse was mainly active painting portraits. This self-portrait, completed in c. 1635, is held at the Mauritshuis in The Hague.

Painting: Paulus Moreelse

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