Dreamsnake

Dreamsnake.
Dreamsnake is a 1978 science fiction novel by American writer Vonda N. McIntyre. It is an expansion of her Nebula Award–winning 1973 novelette "Of Mist, and Grass, and Sand". The main character, Snake, is a healer who uses genetically modified serpents to cure sickness in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust on Earth. The titular "dreamsnake" is an alien serpent whose venom gives dying people pleasant dreams. The novel follows Snake as she seeks to replace her dead dreamsnake. The book is an example of second-wave feminism in science fiction. McIntyre subverted gendered narratives, including by placing a woman at the center of a heroic quest. Dreamsnake also explored social structures and sexuality from a feminist perspective, and examined themes of healing and cross-cultural interaction. The novel won the 1978 Nebula Award, the 1979 Hugo Award, and the 1979 Locus Poll Award. Snake's strength and self-sufficiency were noted by commentators, while McIntyre's writing and the book's themes also received praise.

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Argentinosaurus

Argentinosaurus.
Argentinosaurus is a genus of giant sauropod dinosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous in what is now Argentina. It was one of the largest land animals of all time, and possibly the largest, with length estimates ranging from 30 to 39.7 metres (98 to 130 ft) and weight estimates from 50 to 100 tonnes (55 to 110 short tons). It was a member of Titanosauria, the dominant group of sauropods during the Cretaceous. The first Argentinosaurus bone was discovered in 1987 by a farmer near the city of Plaza Huincul in the Huincul Formation, which is rich in dinosaur fossils. A scientific excavation of the site led by the Argentine palaeontologist José Bonaparte was conducted in 1989, yielding several back vertebrae and parts of a sacrum—fused vertebrae between the back and tail vertebrae. Additional specimens include a complete femur (thigh bone) and the shaft of another. The fragmentary nature of the remains makes their interpretation difficult.

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Space Shuttle

Space Shuttle.
The Space Shuttle was a partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from April 12, 1981, to July 21, 2011, by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in the United States. Launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, five Space Shuttle orbiter vehicles flew on a total of 135 missions during 30 years. They conducted science experiments in orbit, helped build the International Space Station, and launched numerous satellites, interplanetary probes, and the Hubble Space Telescope. Four fully operational orbiters were initially built: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery (pictured), and Atlantis. Lost in mission accidents were Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003, with a total of fourteen astronauts killed. A fifth operational orbiter, Endeavour, was built in 1991 to replace Challenger. The Space Shuttle was retired from service upon the conclusion of Atlantis's final flight.

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The Boat Races 2015

The Boat Races 2015.
The 2015 Boat Races took place on 11 April. The Boat Race is an annual side-by-side rowing race between crews from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge along a 4.2-mile (6.8 km) tidal stretch of the River Thames. For the first time ever, the men's, women's and both reserve races were all held on the Tideway. In the men's reserve race, Cambridge's Goldie faced Oxford's Isis after the women's race, as a preliminary to the main men's race, while the women's reserve race, held the day before, saw Oxford's Osiris race against Cambridge's Blondie. Oxford's women won the first running of the Women's Boat Race on the Tideway, and the 70th overall, by ​6 1⁄2 lengths, to take the overall record in the event to 41–29 in Cambridge's favour. Oxford also won the men's reserve race, with Isis winning by 3 lengths. In the main men's race, umpired by Boris Rankov, Oxford (crew pictured) won by ​6 1⁄2 lengths, taking the overall record in the event to 81–79 in Cambridge's favour. The women's reserve race was won by Osiris by 15 lengths, making the overall record 21–20 to Cambridge.