Rugrats

Rugrats.
"Mother's Day" is the second episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series Rugrats, first broadcast on May 6, 1997, on Nickelodeon. In this Mother's Day special, Tommy Pickles and Phil and Lil Deville attempt to find the perfect mother for Chuckie Finster, who is being raised by his father Chas. They discover that Chuckie's mother, voiced by Kim Cattrall (pictured), died of a terminal illness. Norton Virgien and Toni Vian directed the episode. "Mother's Day" was praised by critics for its storyline and its representation of breastfeeding, and has been the subject of several retrospective reviews for its treatment of the death of a parent. It won a CableACE Award and was nominated for the Humanitas Prize in the Children's Animation Category. Rugrats received a nomination for the 1997 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program after Nickelodeon submitted "Mother's Day" for consideration.

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Preening

Preening.
Preening is a bird maintenance behaviour that involves using the beak to position feathers, interlock the barbules, clean plumage, and reduce parasites. Feathers contribute to a bird's insulation, waterproofing and flight, so birds spend much time on preening. They may fluff up their feathers to "rezip" the barbules, and use their beaks to gather preen oil from a gland at the base of their tail. They spread the oil by drawing each contour feather through their bills. Ritualised preening has become part of some courtship displays and a displacement activity when birds are subjected to stress. Preening can be a social activity involving two or more birds called "allopreening", which occurs either between a mated pair or flock members in a social species. This may assist in grooming, the recognition of individuals, or reducing conflict. Most allopreening is confined to the head and neck. Ingestion of pollutants or pathogens during preening can lead to health problems. Injury and infection can cause overpreening in caged birds.

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Frances Gertrude McGill

Frances Gertrude McGill.
Frances Gertrude McGill (1882–1959) was a Canadian scientist who was a forensic pathologist, nicknamed the "Sherlock Holmes of Saskatchewan" for her deductive skills and public fame. McGill influenced the development of forensic pathology in Canadian police work. After receiving her medical degree in 1915, McGill moved to Saskatchewan, where she was hired first as the provincial bacteriologist and then as the provincial pathologist. She worked extensively with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and local police forces for more than thirty years, and was instrumental in establishing the first RCMP forensic laboratory. She directed the RCMP laboratory for three years, and trained new RCMP recruits in forensic detection methods. After retiring in 1946, McGill was appointed Honorary Surgeon for the RCMP by the Canadian minister of justice, becoming one of its first official female members. McGill Lake in northern Saskatchewan was named in her honour.

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Death of Mark Saunders

Death of Mark Saunders.
Mark Saunders was a British barrister who struggled with depression and alcoholism. On 6 May 2008 he repeatedly fired a shotgun from a window of his home in Markham Square, London. When armed police arrived, Saunders fired at their vehicle (example pictured) and a siege began. Saunders fired twice more and police returned fire, slightly wounding him. Saunders then waved the shotgun out of a window in the direction of a group of police officers; seven officers fired eleven shots, of which at least five struck him. Saunders was pronounced dead at a waiting ambulance. An inquest was held where the jury returned a verdict of lawful killing, but found several flaws in the police handling of the incident. They did not consider that any of these significantly contributed to the outcome. They could not decide whether Saunders had intentionally provoked a lethal response ("suicide by cop"). In 2010, the Metropolitan Police created a unit of senior officers to manage similar incidents.