Face Of The Day

A pink flamingo is pictured at Mulhouse zoo in the Alsace Region of France on February 12, 2013. By Sebastien Bozon/AFP/Getty Images.

Clinton Romesha, a former active duty Army Staff Sergeant, stands after he was presented with the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry by U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House February 11, 2013 in Washington, DC. Romesha received the Medal of Honor for actions during combat operations against an armed enemy at Combat Outpost Keating, Kamdesh District, Nuristan Province, Afghanistan on October 3, 2009. By Alex Wong/Getty Images.

The official details of Romesha’s heroism, also available here on Wikipedia, are below:

Staff Sergeant Clinton L. Romesha distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a Section Leader with Bravo Troop, 3d Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, during combat operations against an armed enemy at Combat Outpost Keating, Kamdesh District, Nuristan Province, Afghanistan on October 3, 2009. On that morning, Staff Sergeant Romesha and his comrades awakened to an attack by an estimated 300 enemy fighters occupying the high ground on all four sides of the complex, employing concentrated fire from recoilless rifles, rocket propelled grenades, anti-aircraft machine guns, mortars and small arms fire.

Staff Sergeant Romesha moved uncovered under intense enemy fire to conduct a reconnaissance of the battlefield and seek reinforcements from the barracks before returning to action with the support of an assistant gunner. Staff Sergeant Romesha took out an enemy machine gun team and, while engaging a second, the generator he was using for cover was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade, inflicting him with shrapnel wounds. Undeterred by his injuries, Staff Sergeant Romesha continued to fight and upon the arrival of another soldier to aid him and the assistant gunner, he again rushed through the exposed avenue to assemble additional soldiers. Staff Sergeant Romesha then mobilized a five-man team and returned to the fight equipped with a sniper rifle. With complete disregard for his own safety, Staff Sergeant Romesha continually exposed himself to heavy enemy fire, as he moved confidently about the battlefield engaging and destroying multiple enemy targets, including three Taliban fighters who had breached the combat outpost’s perimeter.

While orchestrating a successful plan to secure and reinforce key points of the battlefield, Staff Sergeant Romesha maintained radio communication with the tactical operations center. As the enemy forces attacked with even greater ferocity, unleashing a barrage of rocket-propelled grenades and recoilless rifle rounds, Staff Sergeant Romesha identified the point of attack and directed air support to destroy over 30 enemy fighters. After receiving reports that seriously injured Soldiers were at a distant battle position, Staff Sergeant Romesha and his team provided covering fire to allow the injured Soldiers to safely reach the aid station. Upon receipt of orders to proceed to the next objective, his team pushed forward 100 meters under overwhelming enemy fire to recover and prevent the enemy fighters from taking the bodies of their fallen comrades.

Staff Sergeant Romesha’s heroic actions throughout the day-long battle were critical in suppressing an enemy that had far greater numbers. His extraordinary efforts gave Bravo Troop the opportunity to regroup, reorganize and prepare for the counterattack that allowed the Troop to account for its personnel and secure Combat Outpost Keating. Staff Sergeant Romesha’s discipline and extraordinary heroism above and beyond the call of duty reflect great credit upon himself, Bravo Troop, 3d Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division and the United States Army.

Face Of The Day

Julia Sklar marvels at a very old visage:

Twenty-six thousand years ago in the Czech Republic, one of our ice-age ancestors selected a hunk of mammoth ivory and carved this enigmatic portrait of a woman – the oldest ever found. By looking at artefacts like this as works of art, rather than archaeological finds, a new exhibition at the British Museum in London hopes to help us see them and their creators with new eyes. Human ancestors date back millions of years, but the earliest evidence of the human mind producing symbolic imagery as a form of creative expression cannot be much older than 100,000 years. That evidence comes from Africa: this exhibition explores the later dawning of representative art in Europe and shows that even before the remarkable paintings of the Lascaux cave, France, humans were able to make work as subtle as the expressive face above.

(Image: The oldest known portrait of a woman sculpted from mammoth ivory found at Dolní Věstonice, Moravia, Czech Republic. c.26,000 years old. Height 4.8 cm. Courtesy of the Moravian Museum, Anthropos Institute)

Face Of The Day

Michael Zhang spotlights Oliver Turpin’s Snow Portraits:

Turpin shot a series of self-portraits, but instead of photographing his real face, he captured photos of imprints of his face in snow. After pressing his face into the snow for each imprint at night, Turpin was able to photograph the imprint by illuminating the snow from below. The resulting mugs are rather creepy and slightly reminiscent of the Shroud of Turin.

See more of Turpin’s work here and follow him on Twitter here.

Face Of The Day

A Syrian woman cries holding her injured son in a taxi as they arrive at a hospital in northern city of Aleppo on February 8, 2013, following shelling by government forces. Loyalists troops made ground in the country’s north, retaking Karnaz on the strategic Damascus-Aleppo highway on Wednesday after a 16-day onslaught, said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. By Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images.

Face Of The Day

Members of a Palestinian family react after Israeli bulldozers demolished their family house in the Arab east Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina on February 5, 2013. Palestinian homes built without a construction permit are often demolished by order of the Jerusalem municipality. By Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images.

More context:

Arab residents complain that it is nearly impossible to receive construction permits. The 33-member family displaced Tuesday said it was waiting to receive a permit. Jerusalem city councilor Meir Margalit, a critic of the demolitions, said he has seen a small increase in recent months.

Another iconic image of the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians today after the jump. I’ve found it hard to get over the physical postures on both sides. They tell you so much:

(Photo: A Palestinian man reacts near Israeli security forces after Israeli bulldozers demolished his family house in the Arab east Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina on February 5, 2013. By Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images.)

Face Of The Day

Supporters of deceased former general and presidential candidate of the UNACE party, Lino Oviedo – who died along with his bodyguard Denis Galeano and pilot Ramon Picco Delmas in a helicopter crash on February 2 – cry at the passage of the hearse that carries his remains during his funeral in Asuncion on February 6, 2013. The controversial Oviedo, 69, helped topple Paraguayan dictator Alfredo Stroessner in 1989. He died when the aircraft crashed en route to Asuncion while returning from a campaign rally in northern Paraguay, prompting claims of foul play. By Norberto Duarte/AFP/Getty Images.

Face Of The Day

Participants dressed as Vikings prepare to participate in the annual Up Helly Aa festival in Lerwick, Shetland Islands on January 29, 2013. Up Helly Aa celebrates the influence of the Scandinavian Vikings in the Shetland Islands and culminates with up to 1,000 ‘guizers’ (men in costume) throwing flaming torches into their Viking longboat and setting it alight later in the evening. By Andy Buchanan/AFP/Getty Images.

I pause to note that one Viking is clearly finishing a beer in the foreground. It also appears that there are even more beards per square inch in the Shetland Islands than in Brooklyn.

Face Of The Day

Venezuelan soldiers during the conmemoration of the 1992 failed coup led by Chavez, who was an army lieutenant colonel, against then president Carlos Andres Perez, in Caracas, on February 4, 2013. Ailing President Hugo Chavez, who had cancer surgery in December, is doing much better and recovering, Cuban leader Fidel Castro said in remarks published Monday. By Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images.

Face Of The Day

Clowns in full costume have a meal before attending the annual Clowns Church Service at Holy Trinity Church in Dalston on February 3, 2013 in London, England. Clowns attend the service in memory of Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837), the most celebrated English clown who was born in London. The service has been an annual tradition since 1946 with the attending clowns usually performing for the public afterwards. By Oli Scarff/Getty Images.