Arular is the 2005 debut album by British musician M.I.A. It was released in the US on 22 March 2005 and a month later in the UK, where it had a slightly different track listing. The album's release was preceded in 2004 by two singles and a mixtape. M.I.A. wrote or co-wrote all the songs on the album and created the basic backing tracks using a Roland MC-505 sequencer/drum machine given to her by long-time friend Justine Frischmann. Collaborators included Switch, Diplo, and Richard X. The album's title is the political code name used by her father, Arul Pragasam, during his involvement with Sri Lankan Tamil militant groups, and themes of conflict and revolution feature heavily in the lyrics and artwork. Musically, the album incorporates styles that range from hip hop and electroclash to funk carioca and punk rock. Arular was hailed by critics for its blending of styles and integration of political lyrics into dance tunes. Several publications named it as one of the best albums of the year, and by mid-2007, the album had sold 129,000 copies in the US. Arular spawned the singles "Sunshowers", "Bucky Done Gun" and "Galang", which was released twice. (more...)

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... that a Hawker Sea Hurricane (example pictured) from Empire Darwin was involved in the last action flown from a CAM ship, shooting down a Focke-Wulf Fw 200 on 28 July 1943?

... that on Anzac Day 1923, Lord Jellicoe laid the cornerstone for the Bridge of Remembrance and an invocation was made by Archbishop Churchill Julius?

... that Jones's Wood, a wooded estate on the island of Manhattan overlooking the East River, was touted as a site for what became Central Park?

... that Source London, a newly launched network of electric vehicle charging points, is the first to operate city-wide?

... that the Sturgeon House in Fairview is a rare example of a saltbox house in northwestern Pennsylvania?

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June 6: National Day of Sweden; Queen's Official Birthday (New Zealand, 2011); Foundation Day (Western Australia, 2011); Queensland Day in the Australian state of Queensland; Duanwu/Dragon Boat Festival (2011)

1882 – The Shewa kingdom made big strides towards gaining supremacy over the Ethiopian Empire by defeating the Gojjam and gaining control of territories south of the Gibe River.

1892 – The 'L' train of Chicago, the second longest rapid transit system in total track mileage in the United States, began operations.

1944 – World War II: The Invasion of Normandy, the largest amphibious military operation in history, began with Allied troops landing on the beaches of Normandy in France (pictured).

1984 – Tetris, one of the best-selling video games of all time, was released.

2004 – During a joint sitting of both houses of the Indian Parliament, President of India A. P. J. Abdul Kalam announced that Tamil was to be made the first legally recognised classical language of India.

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A synagogue on West Twenty-Third Street in New York City remained open 24 hours on D-Day for special services and prayer. Jews in the U.S. during World War II were mostly unaware of the atrocities of The Holocaust, beyond the basic facts that Jews were being persecuted by the Nazis. Arthur Hays Sulzberger, publisher of The New York Times and a Jew himself, was anti-Zionist and downplayed much of the news. Furthermore, Jewish studio executives of major film studios did not want to be accused of advocating Jewish propaganda by making films with overtly antifascist themes. Photo: Farm Security Administration; Restoration: Lise Broer Recently featured: Dymaxion map animation – Portable folding reflector – Drawing of a Palenque relief Archive – More featured pictures...