历史上的今天:11月24日

Today's Highlight in History:
On November 24th, 1963, Jack¹ Ruby² shot and mortally（致命地） wounded Lee Harvey Oswald, the accused assassin of President Kennedy, in a scene captured on live television.

On this date:
In 1784, Zachary Taylor, the 12th president of the United States, was born in Orange County, Virginia（弗吉尼亚州）.

In 1859, British naturalist³ Charles Darwin published "On the Origin of Species," which explained his theory of evolution.

In 1863, the Civil War battle for Lookout⁴ Mountain began in Tennessee; Union forces took the mountain two days later.

In 1871, the National Rifle Association was incorporated.

In 1947, a group of writers, producers and directors that became known as the "Hollywood Ten" was cited for contempt（蔑视） of Congress for refusing to answer questions about alleged⁵ Communist influence in the movie industry.

In 1947, John Steinbeck's novel "The Pearl" was first published.

In 1969, "Apollo 12" splashed down（溅落） safely in the Pacific.

In 1971, hijacker⁶ "D.B. Cooper" parachuted（降落） from a Northwest Airlines 727 over Washington state with $200,000 in ransom⁷（赎金） -- his fate remains⁸ unknown.

In 1985, the hijacking⁹ of an Egyptair jetliner parked on the ground in Malta ended violently as Egyptian commandos（突击队，民兵） stormed the plane. Fifty-eight people died in the raid, in addition to two others killed by the hijackers.

In 1987, the United States and the Soviet¹⁰ Union agreed to scrap¹¹（扔弃） shorter- and medium-range missiles.

Ten years ago: President Bush returned home from an eight-day tour of Europe and the Middle East, during which he'd lobbied（游说） foreign leaders on behalf of his Persian Gulf¹² policy.

Five years ago: Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic promised during a televised address to accept a U-S-brokered peace plan. Voters in Ireland narrowly approved a constitutional amendment¹³（修正案） legalizing divorce.

One year ago: 280 people were killed when a ferry caught fire and foundered¹⁴（沉没） off the coast of eastern China's Shandong province.