Datasets:

lsb

/

simplewiki2023

like 1

3472

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackknife

Jackknife

A jackknife is a type of knife. It has a blade that folds into the handle. It is also a dive where the body is bent and then straightened before entering the water and when a person backs up in their vehicle with a trailer attached and it accidentally folds. Blades

3473

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luffa

Luffa

A luffa (also spelled loofah or loofa) is a long thin dried inner part of the fruit of a tropical plant related to the cucumber . It is often used as a sponge for washing the body. Before it gets ripe, it is also a good vegetable. It also comes from dried corn on the cob stems. Other websites Tropical fruit Cucurbitaceae

3474

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimono

Kimono

Kimono are traditional Japanese style clothes. About a hundred years ago, most people in Japan wore kimono every day. Now, people wear the kimono for special occasions, fun, and fashion. For example, a Japanese couple might wear kimono on their wedding day. A kimono is a robe. When it lies flat, it is shaped like a letter T. Normal kimono reach to the ankles and have long sleeves. The sleeves of some kimono for women also reach to the ankles, but most kimono sleeves reach to the hips. Kimono come in many different designs and colours. Some colours have meanings. Name The word "kimono" means "something you wear". History The kimono that people wear today began in the 16th century. But Japanese people have been wearing clothes that looked like the kimono for hundreds of years, since the Heian period (late 700s to late 1100s). Chinese visitors brought the kimono to Japan. The Japanese decided to make and wear kimono too. These clothes had long, triangle-shaped sleeves and were wrapped over the body. The kimono had two parts: a jacket and either a skirt or trousers. These clothes changed to look more like the kimono we see today. The kimono looked less like a triangle and more like a rectangle. The sleeves became square instead of triangle-shaped. Common people wore a piece of clothing called a kosode, which means "short sleeve". This looked like a modern kimono with a wider body and smaller sleeves. The overlap at the front of the robe was longer, the collar was wider, and the robe was shorter. Noble people also wore the kosode, but they wore several layers on top of it. Noble women wore clothing called jūni hitoe, which means "twelve layers", though the number of layered robes was not always twelve. These robes were wider, longer, and had larger sleeves than the kosode that the common people wore. They weighed up to 20 kg. Noblemen wore round-necked jackets with wide, long sleeves and hakama trousers. They would wear this with a small cap, which was usually black in colour. Over time, wearing many layers of clothes became unfashionable. The government created laws to stop people from wearing many robes at once. Starting in the Muromachi period, women and men began to wear the kosode by itself or with two or three layers, with a small, thin belt called an obi, and for women, red hakama trousers. However, ceremonial clothing in the Imperial Court still looked like clothing from earlier times. Even today, the new Emperor and Empress of wear in clothes from the Heian period when they are formally named king or queen. During the Genroku period, the common people had more money, especially merchants. They wore expensive and beautiful kosode, even if they were not nobles. People began to decorate their clothing in new ways, for example stitched patterns in thread, and new ways of coloring their clothing. This made them look like noble people, so the government introduced laws against commoners wearing some kinds of clothes. However, people did not want to give up their beautiful clothes. Instead, they found different ways of wearing them; a man, for instance, might wear a haori jacket made out of wool in a plain, boring colour, but he could line it with beautiful silk fabric. This way of thinking about clothing and appearances became known as an aesthetic idea called iki, which is still important to the way people wear kimono today. From the 1600s into the 1800s, Japan's leaders decided the country should not have contact with other countries. Only a few Dutch ships were allowed to land and trade. The Dutch traders saw the kimono and knew people in Europe would like them. They asked Japanese kimono-makers to make kimono with rounder sleeves and warmer cuts for the Europeans to buy and wear. Kimono became popular with rich Europeans. When the Japanese kimono-makers could not make enough kimono for the Dutch traders to sell, the Dutch traders told clothiers in India to copy the kimono. Over time, the obi became wider and longer, especially for women. Because of this, the sleeves of women's kosode were no longer sewn to the body entirely. They were instead only attached at the shoulder. Sleeves became got longer for young women, as did the length of the kosode. In the Edo period, people began to say kimono instead of kosode. The kimono would trail behind the wearer. This was not a problem indoors. Outside, the wearer had to pull up the kimono so it would not become dirty. Women started tucking the extra length of their kimono into a hip fold, which became known as the ohashori. Kimono are still worn by women today with the ohashori. During the Meiji Period, Japan's government decided the country should be more modern. They built railroads and improved the army and universities. But they also changed customs. Fewer people wore the kimono every day. Instead, they wore modern, Western clothes. Over time, very wide obi and very long kimono fell out of fashion. During World War Two, people thought long kimono sleeves were wasteful. Sleeves on kimono were shortened, sometimes a lot. This new sleeve length lasted, and modern kimono for women are still shorter than they were before the war. Older kimono, especially from the Taishō period, still have these long sleeves. Today, more women wear the kimono than men. Men wear kimono most often at weddings and Japanese tea ceremonies. Men's and women's kimono Kimono come in different sizes for different people. They come in different lengths for men and women. Men and women also wear kimono with different sleeves. Kimono for women are much longer than kimono for men, and women fold the kimono at the waist to make it the right length. The right length for a woman's kimono is usually the same as her height, though people who are very tall look hard to find kimono that fit them. The sleeves on a woman's kimono are not sewn to the body all the way down, and they are open at the back. Part of the body of the kimono is open as well. The sleeves on a woman's kimono are longer than the sleeves on a man's kimono, and sometimes they reach the ankle on kimono for young women. The curve at the edge of the sleeves is very round, especially on kimono for young women and girls. Kimono for men do not need to be folded at the hip, and so do not have any extra length. The sleeves are shorter, and they are attached almost all the way down to the body. The back of each sleeve is sewn shut, and the body is also sewn shut. The curve at the edge of the sleeve is not as round. Kimono for men are usually one solid colour, but they might have a very small geometric design. Kimono for women can be one solid colour, have a small design, or be decorated in larger, colourful patterns. More colourful kimono are usually worn by young women. Sometimes, these designs are only worn in certain seasons of the year. People who are very tall or very heavy can struggle to find a kimono that fits them, and sometimes have kimono made for them instead. Types of kimono Kimono come in different types for different occasions, and both men and women have formal and casual kimono. Formal kimono have a number of crests on them, called kamon or mon. These are placed on the front of the shoulders, the back of the sleeves, and the centre of the back. Kimono with crests have either one, three, or five crests on them - the crest on the centre back, the centre back and the sleeves, or the centre back, the sleeves and the shoulders. The most formal kimono have all five of these crests on them. The least-formal formal kimono have just one. These crests can be outlined or coloured in fully in white, with kamon that are just an outline being the least formal. Kimono are usually made of silk, but there are cotton, polyester, hemp and linen kimono as well. Some kimono are also made of wool, or rayon. Formal kimono are always made out of fine silk, and are usually sewn by hand. However, not all silk kimono are formal kimono, and some types of silk, such as pongee (known as tsumugi) are only ever worn to casual occasions. The most informal type of kimono is the yukata, worn in summer to festivals and in bath houses and inns by both men and women. They are not lined, are always made of cotton, and are worn with thin, brightly coloured obi. For formal occasions, men wear fine silk kimono with haori (a kimono jacket) and hakama (loose-fitting trousers). The hakama are usually striped in white and black, and the kimono and the haori will match in colour. Women have a number of different types of kimono for different formal occasions. The designs on the kimono, how they are put onto the kimono, and where they are placed on the kimono all change how formal the finished outfit is. In order of formality, these are: Komon - a kimono with patterns on it. Edo komon - a komon with a very, very small pattern repeating all over, usually in white on a coloured background. From a distance, these kimono look like one, solid colour. Iromuji - a kimono in one, solid colour. They are worn for Japanese tea ceremony and other semi-formal special events. Tsukesage - a kimono with a design along the hem, the back of the right sleeve, and the front of the left sleeve. The designs generally do not match up along the seams, but sometimes do. The designs are smaller than those on a hōmongi, and are dyed onto the bolt of fabric before being sewn up. They may have up to three crests on them. Hōmongi - a kimono with a design along the hem, the back of the right sleeve, and the front of the left sleeve. The designs should match up and cross over the seams, as hōmongi are roughly sewn up, and the designs drawn on, before being taken apart and dyed. The designs are usually larger than those on a tsukesage. They may have up to three crests on them. Irotomesode - literally, "colourful short sleeve". Irotomesode are colourful kimono with a design along the hem, which is either higher at the left side than the right, or placed on both okumi (the overlapping front panel) instead. An irotomesode can have between one and five crests, but usually has three. Kurotomesode - An irotomesode with a black background. These are the most formal kimono for women who cannot wear furisode. Furisode - literally, "swinging sleeve". Furisode are formal kimono for young women, and have brightly coloured, large designs all over. They have between one and five crests. Accessories People wear a wide belt called an obi with their kimono. Obi are also colorful, and are very long. Some types of obi are not worn anymore, as they are too difficult to wear and put on. The maru obi is an example of a type of obi not worn any more. The fukuro obi replaced it, as it was less wide and easier to wear. Cost Some kimono cost a large amount of money to buy. For example, Furisode kimono are very expensive. The obi belts can be very expensive too. Other kimono are less costly. Some people make their own kimono, or they buy kimono that other people have already worn. Other kimono People who play some sports, for example kendo, also wear the kimono. These kimono are strong, thick and short. They are different from long women's kimono. They are usually called do-gi. Wearing the kimono Most Japanese people do not know how to put on a kimono by themselves as it is very different from other clothing. Formal kimono for women can be very difficult to put on by yourself. Some people work as "kimono dressers". They help people to put on their kimono. In Japan, people can take classes about wearing the kimono, and to learn about how to choose a kimono and how to tie the obi. Kimono in Western culture People wonder and argue about whether Westerners should wear kimono. Some say it is cultural appropriation. Cultural appropriation is when someone uses something from another culture because it looks fun or pretty but does not understand or respect it enough. Some Japanese people think Westerners wearing kimono is cultural appropriation and some do not. Japanese kimono-makers have been selling kimono to Western people for hundreds of years. Rich women in the 1600s and 1700s liked kimono because they were different from Western court clothes. Western clothes were made to push in or puff out the body. Kimono work the same on every body. In 1903, Paul Poiret made clothes that women could wear without corsets. He looked at kimono and decided these clothes should hang from the shoulder like kimono and not from the waist like other clothes. John Mollo made clothes for Star Wars after looking at kimono. Photo gallery Related pages Geta Tabi Yukata Zori References Other websites Tokyo National Museum: Kimono Collection Kyoto National Museum: Trends in 16th-19th Century Kimono The Costume Museum: Costume History in Japan Modern Kimono in Organic Cotton Kimono Encyclopaedia - many photos Modern Kimono in Organic Cotton Japanese Kimono - a lot of unique photos Japanese clothing

3475

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sconce

Sconce

A sconce is a holder for candles or electric lights that is fixed on a wall. Most of the time, sconces are also meant to make the place look more beautiful. Construction

3476

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture

Culture

Culture is a word for the 'way of life' of groups of people, meaning the way they do things. Different groups may have different cultures. A culture is passed on to the next generation by learning, whereas genetics are passed on by heredity. Culture is seen in people's writing, religion, music, clothes, cooking and in what they do. The concept of culture is very complicated, and the word has many meanings. The word 'culture' is most commonly used in three ways. Excellence of taste in the fine arts and humanities, also known as high culture. An integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior. The outlook, attitudes, values, morals, goals, and customs shared by a society. Most broadly, 'culture' includes all human phenomena which are not purely results of human genetics. The discipline which investigates cultures is called anthropology, though many other disciplines play a part. National cultures Cultures are what make a country unique and interesting. Each country has different cultural activities and cultural rituals. Culture includes material goods, the things the people use and produce. Culture is also the beliefs and values of the people and the ways they think about and understand the world and their own lives. Different countries have different cultures. For example, some older Japanese people wear kimonos, arrange flowers in vases, and have tea ceremonies. Some countries oppose some things in their culture, like discrimination or religion. Regional or non-regional cultures Culture can also vary within a region, society or sub group. A workplace may have a specific culture that sets it apart from similar workplaces. A region of a country may have a different culture than the rest of the country. For example, in a large country like China or Canada a region may have a distinctive way of talking, different types of music, and different types of dances. A group who acts or speaks differently may be said to be, or have, a subculture. Ethnic groups such as the Romani people in Europe have a distinct culture. Company cultures Companies or other organizations (groups of people) can have a separate culture. Japanese manufacturing companies often have a different culture to Western companies; the workday starts with exercise, and the workers are very loyal to the company. Companies in the high-technology sector often have a different culture than other companies. Software and computer companies sometimes allow employees to play games during the workday, or take time off work to relax, because these companies believe that this will help the workers to think better. Anthropology Anthropology is studying human beings and how they relate to each other. An anthropologist is a person who studies anthropology. Anthropologists study how culture shapes people and their lives. Cultures constantly change as people move and communicate with new groups of people. For example, immigrants (people who move from one country to another) may keep some of their customs and traditions from their old country. By keeping their culture in this way, they bring pieces of their culture to a new place where others begin to experience it. Related pages Tradition Roerich Pact Lifestyle References Website Culture_(social) -Citizendium

3477

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houseplant

Houseplant

A houseplant is any kind of decorative plant. People grow them indoors, sometimes in a house, but very often in an office or a shop. Houses or public premises have conditions not as favorable for plants as in greenhouses. For example, the direction of light, low light, dry air, dust, drafts, uneven temperature. So, special techniques are used to get a healthy state and proper development of plants. Conditions in public and office premises are usually even less favorable than in homes, so the most hardy indoor plants are grown there. Benefits of houseplants Feel and observe One obvious advantage of keeping houseplants is the improvement in aesthetic quality that they provide. Some large palm varieties, can serve as a focus point for guests. Condition of the air Houseplant may enhance indoor air quality. That is a key perk. NASA conducted a study to identify which plants are most effective at filtering out harmful chemicals. Health Taking care of plants, like taking care of people or animals, can have a positive effect on one's mental and emotional health. Therapeutic, preventative, and cosmetic Plants and herbs with medical characteristics, such as Aloe Vera, are grown for human consumption. Well-known houseplants African violet Aloe Urn plant Butterfly palm Cactus Cyclamen Elephant leaf plant Golden pothos Mother-in-law's tongue Snake plant Spider plant Poinsettia Prayer plant Umbrella tree Weeping fig Yucca References Plants

3478

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waxed%20paper

Waxed paper

Waxed paper (or wax paper) is a type of paper which has been coated on both sides with wax. This gives it a translucent look. It is used for wrapping food because grease, oil, and water cannot pass through it. It is also used to line food containers because many kinds of food which would stick to normal paper will not stick to wax paper. Many kinds of dry foods were once stored in wax paper because of its resistance to water. Wax paper has been replaced by plastic wrap for most purposes. Uses Safety razor blades are traditionally wrapped in wax paper to make holding them less dangerous. Wax paper can also be used to make paper boats that can be used for a long time without getting wet because of its high resistance to water. Wax paper is also used to stick pieces of pattern to fabric while cutting it. In photography, wax paper can be used as a light diffuser. Wax paper is commonly used in cooking because it does not sticky foods cannot stick to it. It is also used in wrapping food. It is also used in arts and crafts. References Kitchenware

3479

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese%20tea%20ceremony

Japanese tea ceremony

The Japanese tea ceremony (called cha-no-yu, chado, or sado) is a special way of making green tea (matcha 抹茶). It is called the Way of Tea. It is a Japanese cultural activity involving the ceremonial preparation and presentation of matcha, powdered tea. People who study the tea ceremony have to learn about different kinds of tea. They also have to learn about kimono (Japanese clothes), flowers, and many other things. It takes much practice to learn the tea ceremony. History Tea came to Japan from China in about 900 CE. Tea became very popular in Japan, and Japanese people started to grow tea in Japan. In the 12th century, matcha (green tea powder), became popular. This tea comes from the same plant as black tea. By the 16th century, all people in Japan, rich people and poor people, liked drinking tea. A man called Sen no Rikyu started teaching the ceremony. Many years have passed, but people still make tea the same way that Sen no Rikyu taught. Many schools of Japanese tea ceremony exist now (omote-senke, ura-senke, etc.), and each school teaches in a slightly different way. Materials needed People need many different things for a tea ceremony: Tea bowl (called chawan ). In a tea ceremony, people drink tea out of bowls instead of cups. Some bowls that people use are over 400 years old. Tea scoop (called chashaku ). A scoop is a kind of spoon. Tea scoops are made from bamboo. They are used to put tea into the tea bowl. Large scoops are used to put tea into the tea caddy (see below). Whisk (called chasen ). A whisk is like a brush made from wire. People use it to mix tea. Tea whisks are made from bamboo. Tea caddy (called natsume or cha-ire ). A tea caddy is a special container that people put green tea powder in. There are two kinds of tea caddies: natsume and cha-ire. Natsume are short and have a flat lid and a round bottom. They are made of wood. Sometimes natsume is called cha-ki. Cha-ire are tall and thin, and are made of ceramic. Natsume and cha-ire are used in different ceremonies. Making weak tea (called usu-cha) needs natsume, and making strong tea (called koi-cha) needs cha-ire. Napkin (called fukusa ). A fukusa is a special square cloth made out of silk. It is used to symbolically purify the tea scoop and tea caddy. Ladle (called hishaku ). The kind of ladle used is made of bamboo. There is a cup-like part attached to a long handle. Water jar (called mizusashi ). Hot water in an iron pot is not fully after making tea, so a person who made tea must add water. A mizusashi holds water for it. Waste-water container (called kensui ). When a tea bowl and a whisk are washed before and after making tea, the water used for washing is put in a kensui. Iron pot (called kama ). A kama holds hot water. During tea ceremony, water is kept on boiling with charcoal. Tea (called matcha ). The tea used in the Japanese tea ceremony is pulverized green tea, which is made into a drink during the ceremony by putting some in the tea bowl, adding hot water, and mixing this with the whisk. Tea ceremony People do the tea ceremony in a special tea room or a special building called a cha-shitsu. Most people wear kimonos. When people go into the tea room they take off their shoes and sit on special floor mat called a tatami. Cha-shitsu often are very small. The guests (the people who go to the tea ceremony) sometimes eat food and drink special Japanese wine called sake. Before they drink the matcha (green tea) they eat something sweet. The host (the person who does the tea ceremony) symbolically purifies the tea bowl and the other tea things. Then he or she puts some green tea powder into the tea bowl. The host mixes the tea with hot water. He or she mixes it with a whisk. The guests drink tea from the bowl. When everyone has finished drinking tea, the host cleans everything and puts them away. Then the guests leave. A tea ceremony can take from about twenty minutes to about four hours. References Related pages Other websites Homepage of "Introduction: The Art of Tea" in Urasenke Seattle English books about the ceremony Okakura Kakuzo. The Book of Tea. Tokyo, Japan: Tuttle, 1977. Tanaka, S. The Tea Ceremony. New York: Harmony Books, 1977. Morgan Pitelka, ed. Japanese Tea Culture: Art, History, and Practice. London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. Sadler, A.L. Cha-No-Yu: The Japanese Tea Ceremony. Tokyo: Tuttle, 1962. Freeman, Michael. New Zen: the tea-ceremony room in modern Japanese architecture. London, 8 Books, 2007 Japanese culture Tea

3485

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sideboard

Sideboard

A sideboard is a piece of furniture. It is often placed in a dining room with a long table and cupboard below to hold dishes, glassware, and other things. Furniture

3486

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movie

Movie

A movie or film is a type of visual art that uses images and sounds to tell stories or teach people something. Most people watch movies to entertain themselves or to have fun. Some movies can make people laugh, but other movies can make them cry, or make them feel afraid. Overview Most movies are made so they can be watched at home or on a movie screen at movie theaters. Movies are shown in movie theaters a few weeks or months after or before the movie is released. Movies can be marketed using media. Movies are shown on pay television or cable television, or are sold or rented on DVD disks or videocassette tapes, so that people can watch the movies at home. Movies can also be downloaded or streamed. Some movies are shown on television broadcasting stations. Movies are filmed with movie cameras or video cameras. Movie cameras take pictures very quickly, and they usually take 24 or 25 pictures, or frames every second. When a movie projector, a computer, or a television shows the pictures at 24 frames a second, it looks like the things shown in the set of pictures are moving. Sound is usually recorded at the same time as the pictures are, but sometimes they are added later. The sounds in a movie are usually people talking, the soundtrack, and sound effects. In the 20th century the camera used photographic film. Making movies Most movies start to be made when a screenwriter writes a script, which is the story of the movie with dialogue and words and things that the actors will say and do. A producer hires people to work on the movie and gets the money that will be used to pay for the actors and the equipment. Producers usually get the money by borrowing it from a bank or by asking investors to give money to them. Some producers work for a movie studio, but other producers work by themselves. Actors and directors read scripts to learn what to say and what to do. The actors learn the words from the script that they will say in the movie, and learn the things that the script tells them to do. Then, the director tells the actors what to do and a cameraman takes the film of them saying the words with a film camera. When the filming is done, an editor makes the film play after each other, which makes a story. Audio engineers and sound engineers record music and singing and combine it with the film. When the movie is done, many copies of the movie are made by movie labs and put onto film reels. Then the reels are sent to movie theaters. A projector shines a very bright light through the film, and people sitting in a dark room see it on a big screen. Types of movies A genre means a type of movie. Movies can be fictional, or non-fictional. Even though hundreds of movies are made every year, there are not like another movie. Some movies can be two or more genres. Action movies are movies where the main character is in a dangerous situation, and the movies usually have a lot of violent things, like explosions, blood, and fight scenes. In Die Hard, terrorists take control of a skyscraper and ask for a big ransom. If they are given the ransom, they won't killing the people who work in the skyscraper, who are called hostages. Adventure movies usually have a hero who go on long journeys to fight big things, like dragons. Animated movies use drawn images like cartoons to tell a story. These movies used to be drawn by hand, one frame at a time, but they are usually now made on computers. They can be 2D animated or 3D animated. Buddy movies involve two friends. Buddy movies usually have comedy. Buddy cop movies are a common theme. Comedies are movies about funny scenarios that characters might be in. Comedy horror movies blend horror and comic motifs in its plots. Movies in this genre sometimes use black comedy as the main form of humor. Documentaries are non-fiction movies that are (or claim to be) about real people and real events. They are nearly always serious and may involve strongly emotional subjects, for example cruelty. Dramas are serious, and often about people falling in love or needing to make a big decision in their life. They tell stories about relationships between people. They usually follow a basic plot where one or two main characters (each actor plays a character) have to 'overcome' (get past) an obstacle (the thing stopping them) to get what they want. Family movies are made to be okay for children to watch. Disney is famous for their family movies. Fantasy movies include magical and impossible things that any real human being cannot do. Film noir movies are 1940s-era detective dramas about crime and violence. Horror movies use fear to excite the audience. Music, lighting and sets (man-made places in movie studios where the movie is made) are all designed to add to the feeling. Romantic Comedies, also called "Rom-Com"s are usually stories about 2 people who fall in love, and do funny things or have funny things happen to them. Science fiction movies are fiction and also have a lot of science, and have machines that can not be built in real life yet. Sports movies tells stories that involve sports. They are often a form of drama where athletes must overcome some issue. Suspense movies makes the audience stressed. They usually have multiple twists that confuse the people watching the movie Thrillers are usually about a mystery, strange event, or crime that needs to be solved. The audience is kept guessing until the final minutes, when there are usually 'twists' in the plot (surprises). Tragedies are a type of dramas. They are about people in trouble. For example, a husband and wife who are divorcing must each try to prove to a court of law that they are the best person to take care of their child. Emotion (feelings) are a big part of the movie and the audience (people watching the movie) may get upset and even cry. War is a movie genre concerned with warfare. They are normally about naval, air or land battles. They have combat scenes central to the story. These stories are most commonly set in the 20th century. Western movies tell stories about cowboys in the western United States in the 1870s and 1880s. They are usually action movies, but with historical costumes. Some involve Native Americans. Not all movies that are set in the American West are made there. For example, Western films made in Italy are called Spaghetti Westerns. Some films can also use Western plots even if they are set in other places. Business of making movies Most movies lose money but some make up to hundreds of millions. In India movies have become an enormous part of the economy. The industry has always been led by a few major movie studios like MGM/UA, Warner Bros., Columbia, Paramount, or Disney. Elements There are many large companies that provide all of the services needed to make movies, such as special effects, lighting, set building. Many of these employees belong to trade unions who say how much their members must be paid. A large number of smaller companies also offer services, such as music studios (which record the music for original movie sound tracks) and CGI computer animation. Distribution Finally there are movie distribution companies (Which send movies around the world or around a country), and advertising companies (Showing people who may watch the movie so they do it.) Movies with famous stars (actors who are well known) and large budgets (lots of money), are designed to have a large appeal (something a person would like about the , so that hopefully millions of people will pay to see them. These most expensive movies are called blockbusters. Special effects can add a huge amount to the cost of a movie, especially the newest CGI effects, but people have come to expect them and every blockbuster movie tries to outdo the last. Even in 2008, some movies cost up to $200 million to make. Very successful movies can make many times that amount in profit, and that's why the studios keep producing them. This kind of movie will have a lot of promotion (getting the movie into the public.) through television advertising, billboards and internet sites. Blockbuster In blockbuster movies, there is usually a happy ending, in which all of the problems in the plot (story) are figured out or fixed and almost everyone (except the bad guys) live happily ever after. Some movies have been so successful that the studios keep releasing more and more sequels, or movies with the same characters and basic plots. Indie films At the opposite end of the scale to the blockbuster, there is the independent, art, or Indie movie. These are usually made by small movie companies, or even just a small group of people that do not have much money. An example is The Blair Witch Project, which cost only about $60,000, but which has so far taken perhaps $200 million in ticket and DVD sales. Movies like this are very unusual and usually become popular 'underground' (word of mouth advertising), so that they have a cult following, or popular but not mainstream. Independent movies often tell more creative or unusual (strange) stories, or may have sad endings that do not appeal to the big studios, because they can not be sure how the public will react to them. They rarely make a lot of money, but if they are successful, the big studios will quickly try to get the people involved to sign a contract with them, by offering them a lot of money to make another movie. Often the new movie, with its big budget and its stars will be less successful than the first. The Oscars Some movies received Oscar nominations, and wins. Also, some actors and actresses received Oscar nominations, and wins. Age appropriate ratings Movies have age appropriateness. Some examples include G, PG, PG 13, and R. Related pages Big Ten (movie studios), America's ten largest movie studios References Other websites The Internet Movie Database Rotten Tomatoes – Movie reviews. Yahoo! Movies Allmovie.com The Movie Database

3487

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holland

Holland

Holland is the name of a region in the western part of the Netherlands. Holland was a county of the Holy Roman Empire and later the leading province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (1581–1795). Today, there is no country called "Holland". There are two provinces called "Holland" in the Netherlands: North Holland () and South Holland (). Those provinces were created in 1840. The earlier country and province of Holland used to be bigger, but some parts of that province were given to other provinces during the French occupation (1795-1813). For example, Willemstad became part of North Brabant, the islands of Vlieland and Terschelling were given to Friesland, and the island of Urk to Overijssel. But for a short time during that period (1806–1810), there was a country called "Holland", the Kingdom of Holland, which was in the central and northern Netherlands and East Friesland in Germany. Many people use the name "Holland" to refer to all of the Netherlands, including the other ten provinces. That is not correct and is like calling the United Kingdom, "England" or "Great Britain". Some Dutch people who do not live in Holland do not like it when people call the entire country Holland. But they don't mind using "Holland" when you mean the Dutch national football team, which they are used to calling "Holland". Regions of the Netherlands Regions of South Holland North Holland

3489

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotope

Isotope

The atoms of a chemical element can exist in different types that have very similar behavior, but weigh different amounts. These are called isotopes of the element. Atoms of the same element have the same number of protons, but different isotopes have different numbers of neutrons. Different isotopes of the same element have different masses because they have a different number of neutrons. Mass is the word for how much substance (or matter) something has. Things with different masses also have different weights. Some isotopes are not stable so they change to another isotope or element by radioactive decay. These are called radioactive isotopes. Others are not radioactive. These are called stable isotopes. Atoms of the same element have the same number of protons, which is called the atomic number. Different isotopes of an element have different numbers of neutrons. As a result, they also have different mass numbers, which is the number of protons plus the number of neutrons. An isotope is usually named by giving the element and the mass number. For example, the symbol for carbon is C and all carbon atoms have 6 protons. The most common isotope of carbon also has 6 neutrons, giving a mass number of 12, and it is written carbon-12 or 12C. The isotope of carbon that has 8 neutrons is written carbon-14 or 14C. The word "isotope", meaning "at the same place", comes from the fact that isotopes of the same element are at the same place on the periodic table. Chemical properties In any neutral atom, the number of electrons is the same as the number of protons. As a result, isotopes of the same element also have the same number of electrons and the same electronic structure. The way an atom acts is decided by its electronic structure, so isotopes of the same element have almost the same chemical behavior, such as the molecules it can form. It is very difficult to separate the isotopes of an element from a mixture of different isotopes because of how similar this behavior is. Heavier isotopes react chemically more slowly than lighter isotopes of the same element. This "mass effect" is large for protium (1H) and deuterium (2H), because deuterium has twice the mass of protium. For heavier elements, the relative atomic weight ratio between isotopes is much less, so the mass effect is usually small. Stability Some isotopes are not stable so they change to a different isotope or element by radioactive decay. These are called unstable isotopes, or radioactive isotopes. The average time it takes an isotope to decay is called the half-life. Other isotopes do not decay so they are not radioactive. They are called stable isotopes. Every atom has an atomic nucleus, which is made from protons and neutrons that are held together by the nuclear force. Because protons have positive electrical charge, they repel each other. Neutrons are neutral and they stabilize the nucleus. The neutrons hold the protons slightly apart. This reduces the electrostatic repulsion between the protons, so the nuclear force can hold the protons and neutrons together. One or more neutrons are necessary for two or more protons to bind into a nucleus. As the number of protons increases, so does the number of neutrons needed to have a stable nucleus. Some elements only have a single isotope that is stable. For example, fluorine-19 (19F) is the only stable isotope of fluorine. The other isotopes of fluorine decay rapidly so they are not found in nature. Other elements have many stable isotopes. For example, xenon has seven stable isotopes. It also has two isotopes that decay very slowly that are found in nature. The largest number of stable isotopes for any element is ten, for the element tin. Some elements do not have any stable isotopes, such as curium. These only exist on Earth because they are created in nuclear reactors, nuclear explosions, or particle accelerators. Some unstable isotopes exist naturally on Earth because they have a very long half-life. For example, uranium-238 has a half-life of 4468 million years. The half life of radium-226 is only 1600 years, and it is found in nature because it is constantly forming from the decay of uranium-238. Hydrogen has three common isotopes. The most common isotope of hydrogen is called protium (1H), which has one proton and no neutrons. A hydrogen atom that has a proton and a neutron (atomic mass of 2) is called deuterium (2H). Hydrogen with one proton and two neutrons (atomic mass of 3) is called tritium (3H). Protium and deuterium are stable isotopes, while tritium is a radioactive isotope. The heaviest elements in the periodic table are all radioactive. All of the isotopes of radon, thorium, and uranium are radioactive, since they are very heavy. This is because the nuclear forces inside the nucleus of the atom cannot hold together all the protons and neutrons. Related pages Isotope electrochemistry Radionuclide Isotopes Nuclear physics

3490

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crushing%20by%20elephant

Crushing by elephant

In the past, many rulers in south and southeast Asia had people crushed by elephants as a death penalty. This was common for more than 4000 years. The Romans and Carthaginians also sometimes did this. The elephant would step upon the head of the condemned, the one commanded to die. Usually, handlers trained the elephant to put its large foot gently on the person's head. At this point, witnesses looked under the elephant's foot to make sure the prisoner was the one who committed the crime. Often, the condemned would scream and beg the witnesses to say it was not him. If a witness stated this was not the criminal, they would probably commit perjury. Perjury means lying at a trial. In those days rulers could punish perjury with death. Few witnesses denied the condemned was the criminal, because then the elephant may crush them instead. Then the mahout, or elephant driver, gave the order, and the elephant would push down with its weight. The skull broke and the foot crushed the head flat. Sometimes, the elephant would drag the condemned through streets before the crushing. Some elephants crushed the arms and legs first, to increase the pain. Locations Most rajahs, Indian rulers, kept elephants for death by crushing. The public could often see the deaths; this was the rulers' warning not to commit a crime. Many of the elephants were very large, weighing more than nine tons. Rulers wanted crushing by elephant to be bloody and gross. Some rulers in history condemned children, too. Many rulers in South Asia used elephants as executioners, ones who put the condemned to death. One nonreligious Mogul Emperor, Akbar (1547-1605), used his favorite elephant as a judge, too. Akbar ruled in the city of Agra from 1570-1585. He believed that his favorite elephant could know who was guilty. He put thousands of people to death this way. Even when the crimes were minor, he sent them to the elephant. Elephant handlers staked them before the great elephant and tried to convince it to step on them. The huge elephant crushed most, but sometimes refused. Akbar believed this proved their innocence and then released them. Different regions crushed people by elephant in different ways. One region put people inside of a bag, so they would not have to watch what was about to happen. Then, the elephant would crush the bag flat with the condemned inside. In another region, people made the condemned watch the elephant slowly come from far away. Its huge feet kept coming closer. Sometimes, they buried the condemned to the neck. The elephant would come and step on the head. Some places made the condemned put his head on a special stand. The stand had fountains on the sides where brains and blood would flow when the elephant pressed down its huge foot. Military use For hundreds of years, people used elephants for military purposes. Death under the foot of an elephant was common for people who left the army or prisoners as well as for military criminals. History in writing There are few records about crushing by elephant. Many records were lost. The British wrote about about it during their long rule of India. Robert Knox was an English traveler. He wrote about a Sri Lankan crushing in 1681. The King makes use of them for Executioners; they will run their Teeth through the body, and then taer (sic) it in pieces, and throw it limb from limb. They have sharp Iron with a socket with three edges, which they put on their Teeth at such times...(An Historical Relation Of the Island Ceylon, Robert Knox, London, 1681) History of Asia Capital punishment

3493

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power%20network

Power network

A Power network is a type of contact network where its members can tell other people what to do. It must be large enough to literally scare or force people to go along with its requests, which makes them orders. This typically requires thousands of people in constant touch with each other. A political party is the most obvious example. It is typically much larger than a social network but is not one, since people can only call on each other for a small number of reasons, and perhaps at specific times. Also not every member of the network has the same role or right to help. A corporation may also be a power network if it relies on many power relations to maintain itself - for instance, the right to draw oil from the ground or dump waste without being held responsible for it. When a power network achieves some stable grasp of political power and daily working control of some important infrastructure, it becomes a power structure. In a democracy the visible power networks represented by the parties compete regularly in an election - but much of the power structure, typically the bureaucracy, does not change, and is typically ignored as a power network in itself. Related pages creative network Social sciences

3494

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizenship

Citizenship

Citizenship is a legal relationship between a person and a country. Usually the country is the one they were born in, lives in, supports, and in return gets protection. A person is usually a citizen of the country where he or she is born, but sometimes a person will apply for naturalization, to become a citizen in another country. There are countries which allow dual (two) citizenship, and countries which do not. Definitions A citizen is a member of a sovereign group of people that have certain rights. Governments protect these rights or take advantage of them. Some Governments may exile people from citizenship laws on such matter vary between countries. People born in the country may be citizens by Jus soli, right of soil. Those having citizen parents may be natural born citizens. Some countries also recognise Jus sanguinis, the right of members of the national diaspora to be citizens. Jus sanguinis comes from Latin meaning "right of blood" which basically means one can inherit citizenship by descent from a parent and in some cases a grandparent or even more distant ancestors. Foreigners can also be naturalized as citizens. Naturalization makes them citizens of their new country. Many countries require that they give up their citizenship of their old country, but some countries have permanent citizenship; you can't quit such a citizenship. People who are citizens of more than one country, with approval of both Governments, are dual citizens. They may legally enter and live in either country. A person who has no citizenship is called a stateless person. There are many causes of statelessness: wars, refugees, people whose birth was never registered, people born in a territory which is not recognised as a state, and so on. Some countries are very generous in giving stateless people citizenship, and some are not. The problem is well-known, but there is no general solution. Citizenship may be permanent. Some countries remove citizenship for various reasons, and some citizens renounce their citizenship. Citizenship in Canada People born in Canada become citizens of the country by Jus soli even if their parents are not citizens. In 2018 the New York Times reported that 20% of babies born in Richmond Hospital in Richmond, British Columbia, were born to mothers involved in birth tourism. This means that the babies automatically acquire Canadian citizenship. Citizenship in the European Union Citizenship in the United States Related pages Civil rights Global citizenship References Politics Nationality

3495

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant

Elephant

Elephants are large grey animals with big ears, long noses and white tusks. They are the largest living land mammals. The largest elephant recorded was one shot in Angola, 1974. It weighed 27,060 pounds (12.25 tonnes) and stood 13 feet 8 inches (4.17 m) tall. At birth, an elephant calf may weigh as much as 100 kg (225 pounds). The baby elephant develops for 20 to 22 months inside its mother. No other land animal takes this long to develop before being born. In the wild, elephants have strong family relationship. Their ways of acting toward other elephants are hard for people to understand. They "talk" to each other with very low sounds. Most elephants sounds are so low, people cannot hear them. But elephants can hear these sounds far away. Elephants have strong, leathery skin to protect themselves. Physical description There are two living genera of elephants. These are the African Loxodonta africanus, and the Asian elephants Elephas maximus. Trunk An elephant's most obvious part is the trunk. The trunk is a very long nose, made from the upper lip. An elephant uses its trunk to grab objects such as food. Though the rest of an elephant's skin is strong and thick, its trunk is very soft and sensitive. Elephants avoid Acacia trees with ants because they can bite the inside of an elephant's trunk. The trunk is also used when it trumpets. The elephant usually stands still, raises its trunk, and blows. This is a signal to other elephants and wildlife. Teeth Elephants have teeth and tusks. Tusks are large teeth coming out of their upper jaws. A lot of ivory comes from elephant tusks. Ivory traders killed many elephants, so now hunting them is illegal. In total, they have 24 teeth: 12 front teeth, called premolars, and 12 back teeth, called molars. When the last molar wears out, the elephant dies because it cannot eat. They can live for about 70 years. But in a zoo or circus, people can keep elephants alive by feeding them soft food. Grass wears down their teeth because it has a high concentration of silica and is very abrasive. Elephants use their teeth in sequence, not all at once. This means that, at any time, they only have one tooth in each jaw, a total of four. Differences between African and Asian elephants African elephants are larger and have bigger ears. They are grazers who still do quite a lot of browsing: they eat leaves, branches and grass. These big ears have many veins, which carry blood throughout the body. Biologists think that the blood going through their ears helps African elephants to cool off. The weather is hotter in Africa than in Asia, so cooling is important for African elephants. Female African elephants have tusks, but female Asian elephants do not. African elephants have a low place in their back. African elephants have two "fingers" at the end of their trunks, but Asian elephants only have one. Indian elephants eat mainly grass. Some African elephants live on the savanna while others live in the forest. Today, many people think these are different species. Scientists named the forest group Loxodonta cyclotis and the savanna group Loxodonta africanus. The African forest elephant is the third largest living land animal in the world. Evolution Elephants are distantly related to sea cows, which are large aquatic mammals. Early ancestors in the Palaeocene and Eocene were small, semi-aquatic animals. By the Miocene several groups of large mainly forest-dwelling elephants evolved, the gomphotheres and deinotheres. Their teeth show little wear, indicating a diet of soft, nongritty, forest vegetation. Modern elephants – the actual family Elephantidae – evolved from gomphotheres as the climate became cooler and drier in the Pliocene and Pleistocene. This includes the mammoth and mastodon as well as modern elephants. The gomphotheres lasted a long time, and were hunted by modern man. There was a change in plant resources, with the reduced forests and extended grassland. This favoured specialist grass feeders over generalist eaters. This change in the dietary supply was one of the factors which forced gomphotheres toward extinction in the late Pleistocene in South America. The remaining population probably succumbed to climatic change and/or human predation around the time of the Holocene margin. The significant thing about modern elephants (especially Indian elephants) is that they eat grass: they are primarily grazers, rather than browsers. Compared with gomphotheres, the teeth of modern elephants are quite different. Uses Humans have used elephants for different things. The Carthaginian general Hannibal took some elephants across the Alps when he fought the Romans. He probably used the North African elephant, a kind of elephant that does not live today. It was smaller than other African elephants. Elephants are used by tourists as rides. People have used Indian elephants to move around and to have fun. Many circuses have them. Siamese, Indians, and other South Asians used them for several things. They fought in armies, and they crushed criminals. They also did heavy work like lifting trees and moving logs. However, people have never domesticated elephants. Domesticated animals are tame and have babies under human control. The male elephant in heat is dangerous and hard to control. This state is called musth. Most elephants used by people are female, except those used in war. In a battle, female elephants run from males, so armies needed males. Elephants are used by tourists for riding. Status today Both African and Asian elephants are endangered species. Elephants in captivity do not make many babies, and some captive elephants are abused and mistreated. African elephants receive some legal protection in every country where they are found. However, 70% of their range exists outside protected areas. Conservation efforts in some areas have led to more elephants. Local numbers may be controlled by contraception or moving the elephants to other places. Large-scale culling (legal killing) ceased in 1988, when Zimbabwe stopped doing it. In 1989, trade in elephants and their products (ivory, meat) was made illegal. Appendix II status (which allows restricted trade) was given to elephants in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe in 1997 and South Africa in 2000. In some countries, sport hunting of the animals is legal: Botswana, Cameroon, Gabon, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe have export quotas for elephant trophies. The IUCN estimates a total of around 440,000 individuals for 2012. The total population of Asian elephants is about 40,000–50,000 (a rough estimate). Around half of the population is in India. Although Asian elephants are declining in numbers overall, particularly in Southeast Asia, the population in the Western Ghats may be increasing. Taxonomy Loxodonta: African elephants African bush elephant, Loxodonta africana African forest elephant, Loxodonta cyclotis Genus Elephas: Eurasian elephants Asian elephant, Elephas maximus Family A female elephant will have a single baby (called a "calf") every four or five years. Calves are born tall and weigh around . An elephant's gestation lasts about 22 months. Another female elephant often stays with the new mother until its baby is born. The newborn elephant can often stand within a half hour after it is born. Mother elephants touch their babies gently with their trunks. It takes a baby a year or more to control its trunk and learn its many uses. Baby elephants nurse for the first two years of their lives. After it is born, the first thing that the baby does is wobble in search of its mother's milk. It drinks about 10 liters of milk every day. Miscellaneous White elephants are considered holy in Thailand. The most famous fictional elephant is Dumbo. It is a flying elephant in a Disney movie. The Elephant's Child is one of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories Ganesha is the god of wisdom in Hinduism. He has an elephant's head. The elephant is the symbol for the United States Republican Party. It is like the Democratic Party's donkey. The first person to use the elephant as a symbol for the Republican Party was Thomas Nast. He did that in a Harper's Weekly cartoon in 1874. References Other websites Absolut elephant - general information Tim Radford: - "The elephant time forgot", The Guardian 2001-08-24, 1. Describes the discovery of the third species of elephant. Essay on Elephant Animals used for transport

3496

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism originated in India based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, later known as Gautama Buddha. A Buddha is one who is said to be awake to the truth of life. Over the centuries his teachings spread from Nepal to Central Asia, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, China, Mongolia, Korea, Japan, and now Europe and North and South America. Theravada Buddhism is most common in South Asia; Mahayana further north. Buddhism exists in many different strands today, but all schools and sects share basic ideas. About seven percent of the people of the world are Buddhist. While many people see Buddhism as a religion, others see it as a philosophy, and others as a way of finding reality. Background and Buddhist concepts Siddhartha Gautama (563483 BC) began life as the infant prince of a small kingdom in what is now the southern part of Nepal. As an adult he left wealth and status behind to search for truth. Enlightened at the age of 35, the Buddha spent the next 45 years of his life traveling and teaching in the northern part of India. He died at the age of 80. The Buddha focused much of his teaching on how to overcome suffering. He saw that all living things suffer in being born, in getting sick, in growing old, and in facing death. By overcoming suffering, he taught, a person will be truly happy. Early teaching. His first lesson after becoming enlightened was to other seekers who had also renounced the world. This was a group of holy men or monks with whom the Buddha had studied for five or more years. To them he first presented what he saw as the Four Noble Truths of life and the Eightfold Noble Path (see below). These teachings identify the causes of suffering and their cure. Three marks of existence. The Buddha taught that life is best understood as being impermanent (everything changes), unsatisfactory (left on our own we are never truly happy), and interdependent (all things are linked, even to the degree that the self is better understood as an illusion). The middle way. Buddhism teaches non-harm and moderation or balance, not going too far one way or the other. This is called the Middle Way, and encourages people to live in balance. Meditation. The Buddha recommended meditation as a way to discipline the mind and see the world as it is. Buddhists may meditate while sitting in a special or specific way. Standing and walking meditation are other styles. Three poisons. In discussing suffering, the Buddha identified the three poisons of desire, anger and stupidity, and he showed that we could end our suffering by letting go of desires and overcoming anger and stupidity. Nirvana. The complete letting go of negative influences is called Nirvana, meaning "to extinguish," like putting out the flame of a candle. This end of suffering is also called Enlightenment. In Buddhism, Enlightenment and Nirvana often mean the same thing. Do Buddhists believe in god or gods? The Buddha would not say if gods exist or not, although gods play a part in some Buddhist stories. If someone asked the Buddha, "Do gods exist?" he maintained a noble silence. That is, he would not confirm or deny. Buddhists do not believe that people should look to gods to save them or bring them enlightenment. Rather individuals should work out their own path the best they can. Other basic teachings. Many of the Buddha's ideas are found in other Indian religions, especially Hinduism. Karma. Karma refers to actions, and the Buddha taught that actions have consequences for good or ill. If people make good decisions they will be happier and have more peace of mind. "To avoid all evil To do good. To purify one's mind: This is the teaching of all the Buddhas." Dhammapāda, XIV, 5 Reincarnation. The Buddha taught about reincarnation, the idea that after we die we are likely to be reborn in this world and face the same kind of suffering as in the past life. The ultimate goal of a Buddhist is to find enlightenment (Nirvana) which places us beyond endless reincarnation and suffering. Some Buddhists understand the idea in a poetic way, and not a literal one. Meaning of Buddha Buddha is a Pali word which means "The Awakened (or Enlightened) one". Someone who has woken up to the truth of the mind and suffering and teaches the truth to others is called a Buddha. The word "Buddha" often means the historical Buddha named Buddha Shakyamuni (Siddhartha Gautama). Buddhists do not believe that a Buddha is a god, but that he is a human being who has woken up and can see the true way the mind works. They believe this knowledge totally changes the person. This person can help others become enlightened too. Enlightened people are beyond birth, death, and rebirth. The first Buddha According to Buddhism, there were countless Buddhas before Gautama Buddha and there will be many Buddhas after him. In Pali texts, the first Buddha in Buddhavamsa sutta was Taṇhaṅkara Buddha. The Mahapadana sutta says the earliest Buddha of the recent seven buddhas was Vipassi Buddha (But sutta is not saying that Vipassi is first Buddha). Counting from the present kalpa (the beginning of our present world (Earth)) Gautama Buddha is considered the fourth Buddha. In this telling, the first is Kakusandho Buddha, second Konakamano Buddha, and the third Kassapo Buddha. The last Buddha of this kalpa will be Maitreya Buddha. Then the world (Earth) will renew itself and from then begins a new kalpa. Beliefs of Buddhism The three jewels Buddhists respect and treasure the Three Jewels, which are the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. The Buddha refers to the awakened one, the Dharma to the Buddha's teachings, and the Sangha to the people who follow the Buddha and his teachings. Buddhists say "I take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha." They find comfort in these jewels or treasures. Four noble Truths The Buddha's first and most important teachings are the Four Noble Truths. The truth of suffering The truth of the cause of suffering The truth of the cessation of suffering. The truth of the path to the cessation of suffering Noble Eightfold Path The Buddha told people to follow a special way of life called the Noble Eightfold Path if they want to understand the Four Noble Truths. These are: Appropriate views. Know and understand the Four Noble Truths Appropriate thought. Turn your mind away from the world and towards the Dharma Appropriate speech. Tell the truth, don't gossip, and don't talk badly about others Appropriate conduct. Don't commit evil acts, like killing, stealing, or living an unclean life Appropriate livelihood. Earn your money in a way that doesn't harm anyone Appropriate effort. Work to make your mind more good and less evil Appropriate mindfulness. Remember the Dharma and apply it all the time Appropriate meditation. Practice meditation as a way of understanding reality Five precepts Buddhists are encouraged to follow five precepts, or guidelines. The Buddha taught that killing, stealing, having sex in a harmful way, and lying are not signs of skill. I will not hurt a person or animal that is alive. I will not take something if it was not given to me. I will not engage in sexual misconduct. I will not lie or say things that hurt people. I will not take intoxicants, like alcohol or drugs, causing heedlessness. If a person wants to be a monk or nun, he or she will follow other precepts as well. Further reading Related pages Siddhartha Gautama Buddha Nichiren Buddhist calendar Criticism of Buddhism References Other websites World Buddhist Events Center Critical Resources: Buddha & Buddhism Buddhist Channel ReligiousTolerance - Buddhism A Study of Buddhism in Contrast to Christianity (From a Western Christian perspective) What Buddhism taught Modern Buddhism - A free eBook about Buddhism Chinese Buddhist Encyclopedia Buddhism -Citizendium

3504

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Story

Story

A story can be different things: when we tell others about a thing that happened, or a thing we thought of: Bob read the children a story; Mary told John the story of her life. a report in a newspaper or on the television news: Did you see the story about George Bush on page 12? a thing we tell others that is not real: Little Johnny said he was a millionaire, but he's not, it was only a story. See fiction in US English, a level of a building: The house has eight stories. (In British English this is a storey).

3505

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governor-general

Governor-general

Governor General is a representative of a head of state. The term is mostly used in Commonwealth realm countries, where the governor general is a representative of the British monarch, who is the head of state of the Commonwealth realm countries. Sometimes the title is spelled as Governor General, which is used in Canada, but sometimes it is spelled with a hyphen "-", Governor-General, which is the spelling used in Australia. Other articles Governor-General of Australia Governor General of Canada References Government occupations

3506

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black%20hole

Black hole

A black hole is a region of space from which nothing, not even light, can escape. According to the general theory of relativity, it starts existing when spacetime gets curved by a huge mass. There is a sphere around the black hole. If something goes inside the sphere, it can not leave. This sphere is called the event horizon. A black hole is black because it absorbs all the light that hits it. It reflects nothing, just like a perfect black body in thermodynamics. Under quantum mechanics, black holes have a temperature and emit Hawking radiation, which makes them slowly get smaller. Because black holes are very hard to see, people find them by the way they affect other things near them. The place where there is a black hole can be found by tracking the movement of stars that orbit somewhere in space. Or people can find it when gas falls into a black hole, because the gas heats up and is very bright. This can be found by telescopes on Earth or by Earth-orbiting telescopes. Inside a black hole the rules of physics are very different.<ref>Wald, Robert M. 1992. Space, time, and gravity: the theory of the Big Bang and black holes. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-87029-8</ref> Astronomers have found evidence of supermassive black holes at the center of almost all galaxies. In 2008 astronomers found evidence that a supermassive black hole of more than four million solar masses is near the Sagittarius A* part of the Milky Way galaxy. History In 1783, an English clergyman named John Michell wrote that it might be possible for something to be so heavy you would have to go at the speed of light to get away from its gravity. Gravity gets stronger as something gets more massive. For a small thing, like a rocket, to escape from a larger thing, like Earth, it has to escape the pull of the Earth's gravity or it will fall back. The speed that it must travel to get away is called escape velocity. Bigger planets (like Jupiter) and stars have more mass, and have stronger gravity than Earth. Therefore, the escape velocity would need to be much faster. John Michell thought it was possible for something to be so big that the escape velocity would need to be faster than the speed of light, so even light could not escape. In 1796, Pierre-Simon Laplace wrote about the same idea in the first and second editions of his book Exposition du système du Monde (it was removed from later editions). Some scientists thought Michell might be right, but others thought that light had no mass and would not be pulled by gravity. His theory was forgotten. In 1916 Albert Einstein wrote an explanation of gravity called general relativity. Mass causes space (and spacetime) to bend, or curve. Moving things "fall along" or follow the curves in space. This is what we call gravity. Light always travels at the same speed, and is affected by gravity. If it seems to change speed, it is really traveling along a curve in spacetime. A few months later, while serving in World War I, the German physicist Karl Schwarzschild used Einstein's equations to show that a black hole could exist. The Schwarzschild radius is the size of the event horizon of a non-rotating black hole. This radius was the measurement where the escape velocity was equal to the speed of light. If the radius of a star is smaller, then light is unable to escape, and it would be a dark star, or black hole. In 1930, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar predicted that stars heavier than the sun could collapse when they ran out of hydrogen or other nuclear fuels to burn.Penrose, Roger 1996. Chandrasekhar, black holes and singularities. Journal of Astrophysics and Astronomy. 17 (3–4): 213–231. Bibcode:1996JApA...17..213P. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.496.2529. doi:10.1007/BF02702305. S2CID 119807977. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2017. In 1939, Robert Oppenheimer and H. Snyder calculated that a star would have to be at least three times as massive as the Sun to form a black hole. In 1967, John Wheeler invented the name "black hole" for the first time. Before that, they were called "dark stars". In 1970, Stephen Hawking and Roger Penrose showed that black holes must exist. Although the black holes are invisible (they cannot be seen), some of the matter that is falling into them is very bright. As of spring 2019, there was an image of a black hole, or rather, the things orbiting the black hole. The image required many photos from different locations. One of the team members (Katie Bouman) made a compilation of all the images into one singular image. In 2020, Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work on the theory of black holes. Formation of black holes The gravitational collapse of huge (high-mass) stars cause "stellar mass" black holes. Star formation in the early universe may have created very big stars. When they collapsed they made black holes of up to 103 solar masses. These black holes may be the seeds of the supermassive black holes found in the centers of most galaxies. Most of the energy released in gravitational collapse is given off very quickly. A distant observer sees the material falling in slowly and then stop just above the event horizon because of gravitational time dilation. The light given off just before the event horizon is delayed an infinite amount of time. So the observer never sees the formation of the event horizon. Instead, the collapsing material seems to become dimmer and increasingly red-shifted, eventually fading away. Supermassive black holes Black holes have also been found in the middle of almost every galaxy in the known universe. These are called supermassive black holes (SBH), and are the biggest black holes of all. They formed when the Universe was very young, and also helped to form all the galaxies. Quasars are believed to be powered by gravity collecting material into supermassive black holes in the centers of distant galaxies. Light cannot escape the SBHs at the center of quasars, so the escaping energy is made outside the event horizon by gravitational stresses and immense friction on the incoming material. Huge central masses (106 to 109 solar masses) have been measured in quasars. Several dozen nearby large galaxies, with no sign of a quasar nucleus, have a similar central black hole in their nuclei. Therefore, it is thought that all large galaxies have one, but only a small fraction are active (with enough accretion to power radiation) and so are seen as quasars. Effect on light At the middle of a black hole, there is a gravitational center called a singularity. It is impossible to see into it because the gravity prevents any light escaping. Around the tiny singularity, there is a large area where light which would normally pass by gets sucked in as well. The edge of this area is called the event horizon. The area inside the event horizon is the black hole. The gravity of the black hole gets weaker at a distance. The event horizon is the place farthest away from the middle of the black hole where the gravity is still strong enough to trap light. Outside the event horizon, light and matter will still be pulled toward the black hole. If a black hole is surrounded by matter, the matter will form an "accretion disk" (accretion means "gathering") around the black hole. An accretion disk looks something like the rings of Saturn. As it gets sucked in, the matter gets very hot and shoots x-ray radiation into space. Think of this as the water spinning around the hole before it falls in. Most black holes are too far away for us to see the accretion disk and jet. The only way to know a black hole is there is by seeing how stars, gas and light behave around it. With a black hole nearby, even objects as big as a star move in a different way, usually faster than they would if the black hole was not there. Since we cannot see black holes, they must be detected by other means. When a black hole passes between us and a source of light, the light bends around the black hole creating a mirror image. That effect is called gravitational lensing.Dyson F.W; Eddington A.S. & Davidson C. 1920. A determination of the deflection of light by the Sun's gravitational field, from observations made at the total eclipse of 29 May 1919. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences. 220 (571–581): 291–333. Hawking radiation Hawking radiation is black body radiation which is emitted by black hole, due to quantum effects near the event horizon. It is named after the physicist Stephen Hawking, who provided a theoretical argument for its existence in 1974. Hawking radiation reduces the mass and the energy of the black hole and is therefore also known as black hole evaporation''. This happens because of the virtual particle-antiparticle pairs. Due to quantum fluctuations, this is when one of the particles falls in and the other gets away with the energy/mass. Because of this, black holes that lose more mass than they gain through other means are expected to shrink and ultimately vanish. Micro black holes (MBHs) are predicted to be larger net emitters of radiation than larger black holes and should shrink and dissipate faster. Properties of black holes The no hair theorem states that a stable black hole has only three independent physical properties: mass, charge, and angular momentum. If this is true, then any two black holes that have the same values for these three properties will look the same. As of 2020, it is unclear if the no hair theorem is true for real black holes. The properties are special, because all three can be measured from outside the black hole. For example, a charged black hole repels other like charges just like any other charged object. Similarly, the total mass inside a sphere containing a black hole can be found by using the gravitational analog of Gauss's law, far away from the black hole. The angular momentum or spin can also be measured from far away. References Galaxies Good articles

3511

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a big city in a region called South Yorkshire in the North of England. There are 534,500 people living there. Sheffield is in the middle of lots of hills. The city centre is where the River Sheaf meets the River Don, and Sheffield gets its name from the River Sheaf. The city is east of the Peak District National Park. It is estimated that Sheffield has over two million trees, which is more than any city in Europe per each person. 61% of the city is green space, such as parks and forests. The area of Sheffield used to be the Anglo-Saxon shire of Hallamshire, the city itself was founded later. Industry Sheffield is famous for making cutlery (like knives and spoons). People in Sheffield have made cutlery for a very long time (a Sheffield-made knife is referred to in Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales", a book from the Middle Ages). Sheffield is also famous for making steel. Benjamin Huntsman discovered the crucible technique for making steel in 1740. In 1856, Henry Bessemer invented the Bessemer converter steelmaking furnace. Henry moved to Sheffield to make steel. Later, in 1912, Harry Brearley invented stainless steel in Sheffield. Sports The first football team in the world is from Sheffield, Sheffield F.C., set up in 1857. Sheffield currently has two big professional football teams, Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United. Bands There are lots of famous bands from Sheffield. Some of them are Pulp, the Human League, Def Leppard and the Arctic Monkeys. Michael Palin is also from Sheffield. There is a big arena called the Motorpoint Arena in Sheffield. WWE have visited this arena to do live shows. Other websites Metropolitan boroughs

3515

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fertilizer

Fertilizer

A fertilizer is a chemical that helps plants to grow. It is used to replace the mineral salts taken by plants or removed/washed away by rain. Common fertilizers: Ammonia Manure (Animal waste) which was the first fertilizer. Compost Urea The important things in fertilizer are: Nitrogen (N) Phosphorus (P) Potash (K) When fertilizers are offered for sale, the percentage of N, P, and K must be written on the bags or boxes, but for historcal reasons, P is shown as %P2O5 and K is shown as %K2O. E.g.:9-23-30 which means: 9% N, 23%P2O5 and 30%K2O. In Australia the pecent of elemental sulfur must also be shown. In the UK, the elemental composition (in percentages) may also be shown alongside the mandatory traditional system, provided the numbers are put inside square brackets. Leafy plants need lots of N. Flowering plants need lots of P and K. A soil test can tell how much N, P, and K is needed. Related pages Farming Agriculture

3516

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military

Military

The military is the group or groups of people that are given power to defend something (mostly a country). They are armed, so they are called the armed forces. The military protects its country by defending it from the armed forces of enemies, if there is a war. The military can also be ordered by the government of the country to attack another country. The word "military" comes from Latin miles, warrior. There are many jobs to do in a military. Some jobs are for fighting and some are for other work to support the military. Some things people do in the military are use weapons, drive vehicles, and repair weapons. Other people in the military learn how to fly aircraft, pilot ships, or repair engines. People in the military usually wear clothes called a uniform. In some places, especially where there may be combat, a uniform often comes in a camouflage pattern which is designed to make the person hard to see in the forest or desert. There are two ways to join the military. In many countries, people join the military because they want to. In other countries, there are laws that some people have to be in the military, even if they do not want to be. This is called the draft or conscription. It usually depends on age and physical fitness. Old military people or former military people are called "veterans". Some are members of a military reserve force. The military of a country is usually divided into different branches organizations that do different kinds of work. These branches usually are: Army (land) – A military force of soldiers mainly on land or driving in land tanks. They also use helicopters. Navy (sea) – A military force that uses ships and boats. They also sometimes have planes. People in a navy are called sailors Air force (air) – A military force that uses mainly aircrafts. Marines – Military forces that serve on ships, but are also trained to fight on land when needed. Their main job is to attack by landing on enemy beaches. They work closely with a navy, but are not sailors. They may also have their own boats, planes, and helicopters. Space force (space) – A military force that uses spacecrafts. Some big countries even have small units which perform special actions which are very difficult. They are called special forces. There are also mercenaries, soldiers who fight just for pay and have little loyalty to whomever might hire them, and private military contractors (PMC), which are under the command of a company (civilian company). The Medieval Italian condottieri were a historical example of PMCs. A warlord may have a private army, which are often no more trustworthy than common gangsters or criminals. Joining up and training In most countries of the world, young men and (in a few countries) women between 17 and 18 and of good health may be forced by the government of their country to join the military and have military training. This is called "conscription". The countries that do not have conscription include Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, France, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Malta, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, and the United Kingdom. In some countries, such as Argentina and United States, conscription is legal but is not used, at the present time. When a person wants to join the military as a volunteer, they "enlist". (This means simply that they put their name on a list.) They have to be above a certain age, 17 or 18 in most countries. They have to pass physical fitness tests to show that they are well enough to do the jobs that they will have to do. They must also have good enough hearing, to hear orders, and good enough sight to use a rifle. New people in the military are often called “recruits”. They have training at a special camp, sometimes called “boot camp" or "basic training". During this training, the recruits usually have very little free time. They learn to understand the "orders" or "commands" that are given by the officers to the "troops". (The troops are the military people in a group.) They learn the right ways to obey the orders. They do a lot of exercise to improve their fitness and strength. They learn about weapons, first aid, and their uniforms and "kit". (Their kit is their equipment.) Recruits also learn how to march. (This is the way to walk together, keeping "in step".) Learning to march is sometimes called “drill”. By the time soldiers finish "boot camp", they should know enough to be a helpful person in their group. The camp usually finishes with a parade in which the newly trained recruits show off their marching and other skills they have learned in front of important visitors. Once the recruits are fully trained, they are ready to defend (protect) their country from attack, or to go to [war], if necessary. Largest armed forces (2002 estimate) *includes 169,800 Marine Corps **includes Strategic Deterrent Forces, Paramilitary, National Guard, etc. ***includes 125,000 Revolutionary Guards Related pages Military science Military terminology

3518

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is how plants and some microorganisms make carbohydrates. It is an endothermic (takes in heat) chemical process which uses sunlight to turn carbon dioxide into sugars. The sugars are used by the cell as energy, and to build other kinds of molecules. Fundamentally, photosynthesis converts light energy into chemical energy. Photosynthesis is vital for life on Earth. Before photosynthesis, Earth had no free oxygen in its atmosphere. Green plants build themselves using photosynthesis. Algae, protists and some bacteria also use it. Some exceptions are organisms that directly get their energy from chemical reactions; these organisms are called chemoautotrophs. Origin of photosynthesis Photosynthesis is not an accident. It happens because its building blocks occur naturally in space, and get included when planets form. We have no idea as to how common or rare this process is. We do know that higher elements are formed in supernovae, and that is the origin of all elements higher than helium. The higher elements found in Halley's Comet have been analysed. Before photosynthesis, the Earth's atmosphere had almost no oxygen. Even without oxygen, some simple life-forms could have existed. But the key event for life as we know it was the Great Oxygenation Event. Ways it is done Photosynthesis can happen in different ways, but there are some parts that are common. 6 CO2(g) + 6 H2O + photons → C6H12O6(aq) + 6 O2(g) carbon dioxide + water + light energy → glucose + oxygen Carbon dioxide enters the leaf through the stomata by diffusion from the atmosphere. Water is absorbed from the soil by root hair cells, which have an increased surface area adapted for their uptake of water. Photosynthesis occurs in the chloroplasts in leaves (or other green tissues). They contain chlorophyll, the green pigment that absorbs light energy. In leaves, palisade cells have chloroplasts to capture light. Oxygen is produced as a result of photosynthesis and released into the atmosphere through respiration. All the oxygen in the atmosphere has its origin in plants (including those microorganisms which do photosynthesis). Glucose is used in respiration (to release energy in cells). It is stored in the form of starch (which is converted back to glucose for respiration in the dark). Glucose can also be converted into other compounds for growth and reproduction e.g. cellulose, nectar, fructose, amino acids and fats. The process Photosynthesis has two main sets of reactions (phases). Light-dependent reactions which need light to do work; and light-independent reactions which do not need light to do work. Light-dependent phase Light energy from the sun is used to split water molecules (photolysis). The sunlight hits chloroplasts in the plant. This causes an enzyme to split the water. Water, when split, gives oxygen, hydrogen, and electrons. Hydrogen, along with electrons energized by light, converts NADP into NADPH which is then used in the light-independent reactions. Oxygen gas diffuses out of the plant as a waste product of photosynthesis, and ATP is synthesized from ADP and inorganic phosphate. This all happens in the grana of chloroplasts. Dark phase During this reaction, sugars are built up using carbon dioxide and the products of the light-dependent reactions (ATP and NADPH) and various other chemicals found in the plant in the Calvin Cycle. Therefore, the light-independent reaction cannot happen without the light-dependent reaction. Carbon dioxide diffuses into the plant and along with chemicals in the chloroplast, ATP, and NADPH, glucose is made and finally, transported around the plant by translocation. Factors affecting photosynthesis There are three main factors affecting photosynthesis: Light intensity Carbon dioxide concentration Temperature Light intensity If there is little light shining on a plant, the light-dependent reactions will not work efficiently. This means that photolysis (breakdown of water by light) will not happen quickly, and therefore little NADPH and ATP will be made. This shortage of NADPH and ATP will lead to the light-independent reactions not working as NADPH and ATP are needed for the light-independent reactions to work. The light intensity required is easily investigated in an aquatic plant such as pondweed. The oxygen bubbles given off can be counted or the volume measured. By changing the distance between light and plant, the light intensity is made to vary. Change in light intensity will affect the change in rate of photosynthesis. Artificial lighting can be used in the dark to maximise the photosynthetic rate. Carbon dioxide levels Carbon dioxide is used in the light-independent reactions. It combines with NADPH and ATP and various other chemicals to form glucose. Therefore, if there is not enough carbon dioxide, then there will be a build-up of NADPH and ATP and not enough glucose will be formed. Temperature There are many enzymes working in photosynthetic reactions – such as the enzyme in photolysis. All enzymes work best at their optimum temperature. All light-dependent and light-independent reactions will occur normally at average or optimum temperatures. Tropical plants have a higher temperature optimum than the plants adapted to temperate climates. When the temperatures are too low, there is little kinetic energy, so the reaction rate decreases. If the temperatures are too high, the enzymes become denatured and the catalysis of photosynthesis reaction stops. Greenhouses must keep an optimum temperature for normal functioning of plants. Early evolution The first photosynthetic organisms probably evolved early in the history of life. They may have used reducing agents such as hydrogen or hydrogen sulfide as sources of electrons, rather than water. Cyanobacteria appeared later, and the excess oxygen they produced caused the oxygen catastrophe. After this, the evolution of complex life was possible. Effectiveness Today, the average rate of energy capture by photosynthesis globally is about 130 terawatts. This is about six times larger than the current power used by human civilization. Photosynthetic organisms also convert about 100–115 thousand million metric tonnes of carbon into biomass per year. Related pages Calvin cycle Cellular respiration Plant physiology Root pressure References Cell biology Cellular respiration Metabolism

3520

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casserole

Casserole

A casserole is a baked dish for many different types of food, mixed together in a fluid based on liquid. The start ingredient is often a roux. Often, one of the ingredients is a can of soup. The whole point of a casserole is that it cooks material slowly. That means it can use ingredients which would not be edible if fried or roasted. The casserole needs to simmer below boiling point for hours, depending on the ingredients. That way tough meat and vegetables become soft and edible. It is a simple way to cook a nutritional meal. Casserole is from a French word meaning "sauce-pan"; a large, deep dish used either to cook something in an oven or to serve the food cooked in it. The French word  "casserole"  had been derived from the old Provençal word, "cassa" and the Medieval Latin word, "cattia", both of these words meaning "ladle". Casseroles are usually cooked slowly in the oven, usually covered. They may be served as a main course or a side dish, and may be served in the vessel in which they were cooked. Types of casserole include ragout, hotpot, cassoulet, tajine, moussaka, lasagne, shepherd's pie, gratin, rice or macaroni timballo, and carbonnade. A popular type of casserole is green bean casserole, which has green beans, milk or cream, and fried onions. It was first cooked in Berlin, New Hampshire in 1866 by Elmire Jolicoeur. The second illustration proves how old the idea is. That casserole dish has a lid, and a spout for steam to escape. The heat is applied from below as it is with a stew. Early casserole dishes were rice-based that were pounded and pressed and then filled with meat. The first popular meals included French cassoulet, British pot pies, Italian lasagna, and Greek moussaka. Macaroni and cheese is the oldest written casserole recipe found in 1250. References Baked foods

3521

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plate

Plate

A plate is a type of dish where food can be placed after being cooked for eating. Sometimes they are called dishes. They may be made out of ceramic, plastic, paper, or styrofoam. A plate is also one of the broken pieces of lithosphere of the Earth. All plates have irregular shapes. They lie and float on the upper mantle. They move very slowly in different directions. Their movement is driven by the convection currents in the magma. A plate can contain both oceanic and continental crusts. Some contain oceanic crust only. Basic English 850 words Kitchenware

3523

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flea

Flea

The flea (Siphonaptera) is an insect which lives on many animals and sometimes humans. Fleas are ectoparasites and drink the blood of the animal they bite. Fleas live outdoors in sand or tall grass, and jump to any passing animal and lay eggs. Flea bites are usually red bumps and they itch. There are many species of flea such as dog fleas, cat fleas, human fleas, northern rat fleas, and the oriental rat flea. During the Middle Ages, the oriental rat flea spread a bacteria that caused the bubonic plague, also known as the Black Death or Black Plague. This was a huge epidemic much more severe than today's bird flu. The oriental rat flea was infected by the bacteria Yersinia pestis. Insects

3524

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism

Terrorism

Terrorism is the use of fear and violence for political, religious or ideological reasons. Many different types of social or political organizations might use terrorism to try to achieve their goals. People who do the terrorism are called Terrorists. The foundation of modern terrorism is the work of Sergey Nechayev, a Russian radical who developed strategies for carrying out terrorism. It also include politics. It is difficult to explain terrorism. Terrorism has no official criminal law definition at the international level. Common definitions of terrorism refer to the violent acts which are intended to create fear (terror). They may be done for a religious, political, or ideological goal, and uses illegal violence. Some definitions now include acts of unlawful violence and war. The use of similar tactics by criminal gangs is not usually called terrorism. The same actions may be called terrorism when done by a politically motivated group. There are over 10000 definitions of "terrorism". In some cases, the same group may be described as "freedom fighters" by its supporters and "terrorists" by its opponents. The term 'terrorism' is often used by states to criticize political opponents. One form of terrorism is the use of violence against noncombatants for the purpose of gaining publicity for a group, cause, or individual. According to Memorial Institute for Prevention of Terrorism, terrorists killed 20,498 people in 2006. The major effect of terrorism comes from the fear which generates. Counter-terrorism Counter-terrorism is broad in scope. Specific types of counter-terrorism include: Preemptive or reactive military action. Fortification and other technical means. Increased intelligence and surveillance activities. Often facilitated and rubber stamped with legislation like the United States Patriot Act. Preemptive humanitarian activities. More permissive interrogation and detention policies for the suspected terrorists. Related pages Aircraft hijacking List of terrorist incidents Suicide attack References Other websites Video of the ship MV Francop in the Israeli port of Ashdod: behind the bags of flour are boxes of heavy weapons and ammunition to be directed to Hezbollah. Political philosophy

3528

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/South%20Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in the southern region of Africa. About fifty-seven million people live there. South Africa is next to Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Lesotho, and eSwatini. The biggest city of South Africa is Johannesburg. The country has three capitals for different purposes. They are Cape Town, Pretoria, and Bloemfontein. This is because the government is based in Pretoria, the parliament is in Cape Town and the Supreme Court is in Bloemfontein. There are 11 national languages. They are Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Xhosa, Zulu, Swati, Setswana, Sesotho, Sesotho sa Leboa, Venda and Tsonga. They are also known as National Lexicography Units (NLUs). Because of all the languages, the country has an official name in each language. One of South Africa's most well known people is Nelson Mandela. He was its president from 1994 until 1999. He died in 2013 at the age of 95. The current president is Cyril Ramaphosa. Lions, cheetahs, zebras. giraffes, and many species of antelope, live in South Africa. In terms of its resources, South Africa is one of the richest countries in Africa. History The first European people to come to South Africa were Portuguese explorers. In 1487, Bartolomeu Dias found what he called the "Cape of Storms". The king of Portugal changed it to "Cape of Good Hope". He called it this because the cape gave the Portuguese a new chance to find a sea route to India. In 1652, Jan van Riebeeck colonized the Cape. He started the camp for the Dutch East India Company. This was so that they could give fresh food to ships on their way to the south of Asia. There were very few native people living in the Cape. Because of this, slaves were brought from Indonesia, Madagascar and India to work at the colony. In 1795, Great Britain took the Cape from the Dutch East India Company, to stop France from taking it. The British gave it back in 1803 but then annexed the Cape in 1807 when the Dutch East India Company went bankrupt. Diamonds were found in South Africa in 1867. Gold was found in 1884. This made a great number of people to come to South Africa from Europe. They were hoping to make money. The First Boer War happened in 1880-1881. The war was between the British and the Boers Republics. At that time, the British had the Cape. The Boer Republics were established when Dutch settlers moved north in the Great Trek. The British lost the war and came back 8 years later in 1899. They won this Second Boer War in 1902. The British had brought many more soldiers the second time. The Boers had no chance of winning. On 31 May 1910 the Union of South Africa was made from the Cape and Natal colonies. It was also made from Orange Free State and the Transvaal. These were two Boer Republics. South Africa gained greater independence with the Statute of Westminster, enacted in 1931 by the Parliament of the Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In 1961 South Africa became completely independent when the voters voted in a referendum to become a republic, severing all links to the Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In 1994 the government transitioned from a white minority government to a black majority government. Geography South Africa is found at the southernmost region of Africa, with a long coastline that reaches more than and along two oceans (the South Atlantic and the Indian). At , South Africa is the 25th-largest country in the world and is almost the size of Colombia. Njesuthi in the Drakensberg at is the highest part in South Africa. The back of South Africa is a big and flat. It is a very populated scrubland, the Karoo, which is drier towards the northwest along the Namib desert. The eastern coastline however, is well-watered, which makes a climate kind of like the tropics. To the north of Johannesburg, the altitude drops beyond the of the Highveld. It then turns into the lower lying Bushveld, an area of mixed dry forest and a lot of wildlife. East of the Highveld, beyond the eastern escarpment, the Lowveld reaches towards the Indian Ocean. It has mostly high temperatures, and is also the location of subtropical agriculture. Climate South Africa has a mostly temperate climate. It is surrounded by the Atlantic and Indian Oceans on three sides, and is located in the climatically milder southern hemisphere. Average elevation is higher towards the north (towards the equator) and further inland. Because of this varied topography and oceanic influence, different parts of South Africa have different climates. There is a desert in the southern Namib in the farthest northwest and subtropical climate in the east along the Mozambique border and the Indian ocean. From the east, the land quickly rises over mountains towards the back plateau known as the Highveld. Even though South Africa is thought as semi-arid, there is a difference in climate as well as topography. The southwest has a climate similar to that of the Mediterranean with mild, moderately wet winters and hot, dry summers. This area also makes much of the wine in South Africa. This region is also mostly known for its wind, which blows almost all year. The wind can sometimes be severe when passing around the Cape of Good Hope mostly gets bad for sailors, making many shipwrecks. Further east on the south coast, rainfall falls more evenly throughout the year, making a green landscape. This area is popularly known as the Garden Route. The Orange Free State is mostly flat, because it lies in the center of the high plateau. North of the Vaal River, the Highveld becomes better watered and does not get subtropical heat. Johannesburg, in the center of the Highveld, is at 1,740 m (5,709 ft) and gets a yearly rainfall of 740 mm (29.9 in). Winters in this region are cold, although snow is rare. Plants and wildlife South Africa is ranked sixth out of the world’s 17 megadiverse countries, with more than 20,000 different kinds of plants, or about 10% of all the known species of plants on Earth, making it very rich in plant biodiversity. The most common biome in South Africa is the grassland, mostly on the Highveld. This is where grasses, low shrubs, and acacia trees, mostly camel-thorn and whitethorn are more common than other plants. Plants become less common towards the northwest. This is because of low rainfall. There are many species of water-storing plants like aloes and euphorbias in the very hot and dry Namaqualand area. The grass and thorn savanna turns slowly into a bush savanna towards the north-east of the country, with more thick growth. There are many numbers of baobab trees in this area, near the northern end of Kruger National Park. Economy South Africa's economy is divided. It is divided between First World and Third World standards. The developed part of the economy is similar to that of most nations with wealth (for example, Britain or Australia). The rest of the economy is closer to that of poor nations, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The main companies in South Africa are mining (mostly for gold and diamonds), car making, and service industries, such as insurance. Unemployment is very high. Income inequality is about the same as Brazil. During 1995–2003, the number of older jobs went down. Informal jobs went up. Overall unemployment got worse. The average South African household income went down a lot between 1995 and 2000. As for racial inequality, Statistics South Africa said that in 1995 the average white household earned four times as much as the average black household. In 2000 the average white family was earning six times more than the average black household. The action policies have seen a rise in black economic wealth. There is a developing black middle class. Other problems are crime, corruption, and HIV/AIDS. South Africa suffers from mostly heavy overall regulation compared to developed countries. labor rules have added to the unemployment weakness. Population South Africa is a nation of about 50 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions. The last census was held in 2001 and the next will be in 2011. Statistics South Africa had five racial categories by which people could classify themselves, the last of which, "unspecified/other" drew "not needed" responses, and these results were not counted. The 2009 middle-year estimated figures for the other categories were Black African at 79.3%, White at 9.1%, Colored at 9.0%, and Asian at 2.6%. Even though the population of South Africa has grown in the past decade (mostly because of immigration), the country had an yearly population growth rate of −0.501% in 2008 (CIA est.), counting immigration. The CIA thinks that in 2009 South Africa's population started to grow again, at a rate of 0.281%. South Africa is home to an estimated 5 million illegal immigrants, counting about 3 million Zimbabweans. A series of anti-immigrant riots happened in South Africa beginning on 11 May 2008. Provinces South Africa is divided into 9 provinces. The provinces are in turn divided into 52 districts: 8 metropolitan and 44 district municipalities. The district municipalities are further divided into 226 local municipalities. Major Cities 1. Johannesburg 2. Cape Town 3. Durban 4. Pretoria Society and culture It may be suggested that there is no single South African culture because of its ethnic diversity. Today, the diversity in foods from many cultures is enjoyed by all and marketed to tourists who wish to taste South African food. Food is not the only thing, music and dance is there too. South African food is mostly meat-based and has spawned the South African social gathering known as a braai, or barbecue. South Africa has also developed into a big wine maker. It has some of the best vineyards lying in valleys around Stellenbosch, Franschoek, Paarl and Barrydale. South Africa is the only country of Africa with a significant ethnic European population and influence Most South African blacks still have poor lives. It is among these people, however, that cultural traditions live most strongly. This is because blacks have become urbanised and Westernised, much parts of traditional culture have fallen. Urban blacks normally speak English or Afrikaans in addition to their native tongue. There are smaller but still important groups of speakers of Khoisan languages who are not in the 11 official languages, but are one of the eight other officially recognized languages. Members of middle class, who are mostly white but whose ranks are growing numbers of black, colored and Indian people, have lifestyles similar in many ways to that of people found in Western Europe, North America and Australasia. Members of the middle class often study and work from foreign countries for greater exposure to the markets of the world. Approximately 9,800 Roma gypsies live in South Africa. Religion According to the 2001 national census, Christians accounted for 79.7% of the population. This has Zion Christian (11.1%), Pentecostal (Charismatic) (8.2%), Roman Catholic (7.1%), Methodist (6.8%), Dutch Reformed (6.7%), Anglican (3.8%); members of other Christian churches accounted for another 36% of the population. Muslims accounted for 1.5% of the population, Hinduism about 1.3%, and Judaism 0.2%. 15.1% had no religious affiliation, 2.3% were other and 1.4% were unspecified. Sports South Africa's most liked sports are soccer, rugby union and cricket. Other sports that are popular are swimming, athletics, golf, boxing, tennis and netball. Soccer is the most liked among youth. There are other sports like basketball, surfing and skateboarding that are becoming more liked. Famous boxers from South Africa are Baby Jake Jacob Matlala, Vuyani Bungu, Welcome Ncita, Dingaan Thobela, Gerrie Coetzee and Brian Mitchell. There are football players who have played for major foreign clubs. Some of them are Lucas Radebe and Philemon Masinga (both were of Leeds United), Quinton Fortune (Atletico Madrid and Manchester United), Benni McCarthy (Ajax Amsterdam, F.C. Porto and Blackburn Rovers), Aaron Mokoena (Ajax Amsterdam, Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth), Delron Buckley (Borussia Dortmund) and Steven Pienaar (Ajax Amsterdam and Everton). South Africa made Formula One motor racing's 1979 world champion Jody Scheckter. Famous current cricket players are Herschelle Gibbs, Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis, JP Duminy and more. Most of them also participate in the Indian Premier League. South Africa has also made many world class rugby players. Some of them are Francois Pienaar, Joost van der Westhuizen, Danie Craven, Frik du Preez, Naas Botha, and Bryan Habana. South Africa hosted and won the 1995 Rugby World Cup at their first try. They won the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France. South Africa was only allowed to participate from 1995 since the end of Apartheid. It followed the 1995 Rugby World Cup by hosting the 1996 African Cup of Nations. It had the national team, 'Bafana Bafana,' going on to win the tournament. It also hosted the 2003 Cricket World Cup. and the 2007 World Twenty20 Championship. Both of them were a great success. In 2010, South Africa became the first African nation to host the FIFA World Cup. The national team has competed in three World Cups. It bid for the right to stage the 2004 Olympic Games, but finished third to Athens. South Africa is also well known for their cricket team. They are right now the world's number one in test match cricket. Education The main schools span the first seven years of schooling. In the age of Apartheid, schools for blacks were subject to judgment through funding and so forth. Instruction can take place in Afrikaans as well. Public payment on education was at 5.4% of the 2002-05 GDP. Military South Africa's military is the most powerful in southern Africa. South Africa spends more on its military than any of its neighboring countries do. They have very advanced weapons as a result. South Africa used to have nuclear weapons, but they were taken apart in 1993. Related pages List of rivers of South Africa South African Grand Prix Port Elizabeth Notes References Other websites Official government site English-speaking countries States and territories established in the 20th century 1910 establishments 1910s establishments in Africa

3529

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andorra

Andorra

Andorra (), officially the Principality of Andorra, is a landlocked sovereign country located in the eastern Pyrenees Mountains of Southern Europe and bordered by Spain and France. There are about 84,000 people living in the country. The capital is Andorra la Vella. It is ruled by a Spanish Bishop and the French President. Andorra's government is a parliamentary democracy. Andorra is a rich country mostly because of tourism. There are about 10.2 million visitors each year. The official language is Catalan, although Spanish, Portuguese, and French are also used. It is not a member of the European Union. The euro is the money used. History It is said that Charles the Great (Charlemagne) gave the Andorran people their country in return for fighting against the Moors. Before 1095, Andorra did not have any type of military protection. The Lord of Caboet and the Bishop of Urgell decided to rule Andorra together. In 1607 Henry IV of France said the head of the French state and the Bishop of Urgell would be co-princes of Andorra. Andorra declared war on Imperial Germany during World War I. It did not do any fighting. They stayed against Germany until 1957 because they were not in the Treaty of Versailles. Andorra doesn't have an Army. France and Spain help to defend Andorra. The country has a police force of 295. Parishes Andorra has seven parishes: Andorra la Vella Canillo Encamp Escaldes-Engordany La Massana Ordino Sant Julià de Lòria Geography Andorra is in the Pyrenees mountain range. The highest mountain is Coma Pedrosa. Cities The largest cities in Andorra are: For other locations in Andorra, see List of cities in Andorra. Religion The population of Andorra is mostly (90%) Roman Catholic. Their patron saint is Our Lady of Meritxell. Education Children between the ages of 6 and 16 must have full-time education. Education up to secondary level is paid by the government. The University of Andorra (UdA) is the state public university. It is the only university in Andorra. Related pages Andorra at the Olympics List of rivers of Andorra References Other websites

3537

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiroshima

Hiroshima

Hiroshima (広島) is the capital city of Hiroshima Prefecture. It is the largest city in the Chugoku region of western Japan. About a million people live in Hiroshima. History Atomic bombing At the time of the attack, Hiroshima was the headquarters of the 2nd General Army and 5th Division. It contained 40,000 Japanese soldiers within the city's limit, and was a beehive (or center) of war industry. The industry manufactured parts for planes and boats, bombs, rifles, and handguns. Children also were shown how to construct and throw gasoline bombs. and the heavy sick were assembling traps to be planted in the beaches of Kyushu. As with other Japanese cities, many of the strategic targets in Hiroshima were mixed with civilian homes and centers made of wood and paper. This made it harder to conduct a successful precision attack. And the highly inaccuracy of the bombing technology in World War II was owed to it. As a result, the city became the first nuclear weapon used against a target in history. The bomb exploded over Hiroshima at 8:16 on the morning of August 6, 1945. Much of the city was destroyed. An estimated 70,000 persons were killed. 20,000 were Japanese soldiers and 20,000 were Korean slave laborers of all the kiled. Another 70,000 were injured. The bomb was nicknamed Little Boy after President Theodore Roosevelt. A building near the blast center still remains and is called the Atomic Bomb Dome. Itsukushima shrine Near to Hiroshima, there is a small island called Miyajima. The island is known for its deer. An old Shinto shrine named Itsukushima Shrine is also here. It is said that Itsukushima shrine was built at the end of the 5th century. The shrine is known for its use of red-colored wood, and especially for the torii gate. The gate leads into the shrine, which is partly underwater at high tide. Today, Itsukushima shrine and the Atomic Bomb Dome are registered as World Heritage sites. Also it was a landing site for the U.S. Related pages Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Sanfrecce Hiroshima List of World Heritage Sites in Japan Hiroshima Toyo Carp References Other websites WW2DB: Destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki World Heritage Sites in Japan

3538

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richter%20scale

Richter scale

The Richter scale is a scale of numbers used to tell the power (or magnitude) of earthquakes. Charles Richter developed the Richter Scale in 1935. His scale worked like a seismogram, measured by a particular type of seismometer at a distance of 100 kilometers (62 mi) from the earthquake. Earthquakes 4.5 or higher on the Richter scale can be measured all over the world. An earthquake a size that scores 3.0 is ten times the amplitude of one that scores 2.0. The energy that is released increases by a factor of about 32. Every increase of 1 on the Richter scale corresponds to an increase in amplitude by a factor of 10 so therefore, it is a logarithmic scale. (Adapted from U.S. Geological Survey documents) The earthquake with the biggest recorded magnitude was the Great Chilean Earthquake. It had a magnitude of 9.5 on the Richter scale and occurred in 1960. Around 6,000 people died because of the earthquake. No earthquake has ever hit 10+ on the Richter Scale. More examples Related pages Mercalli intensity scale References Other websites Simplified description of the Richter scale Earthquakes

3539

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day

Day

A day is the time it takes the Earth to spin around once. It is day time on the side of the Earth that is facing the Sun. When it is night time, that side of the Earth is facing away from the Sun. It takes 24 hours for the Earth to spin once, so that is one day, including the day time and night time. This is mean solar time, measured relative to the Sun. There is also sidereal time, measured relative to the fixed stars. The sidereal day is a few minutes shorter. List of days of the year * There are only 29 days in February during a leap year. Otherwise, February has 28 days. Related pages Length of day Other websites Day -Citizendium Units of time Basic English 850 words

3540

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phases%20of%20the%20Moon

Phases of the Moon

The phases of the Moon are the different ways the Moon looks from Earth over about a month. As the Moon orbits around the Earth, the half of the Moon that faces the Sun will be lit up. The different shapes of the lit portion of the Moon that can be seen from Earth are known as phases of the Moon. Each phase repeats itself every 29.5 days. The same half of the Moon always faces the Earth, because of tidal locking. So the phases will always occur over the same half of the Moon's surface. A phase is an angle of the moon to the earth so it appears differently every day. Phases The moon goes through 8 major phases. A new moon is when the moon cannot be seen because we are looking at the unlit half of the Moon. The new moon phase occurs when the Moon is directly between the Earth and Sun. A solar eclipse can only happen at new moon. A waxing crescent moon is when the Moon looks like a crescent and the crescent increases ("waxes") in size from one day to the next. This phase is usually only seen in the west. The first quarter moon (or a half moon) is when half of the lit portion of the Moon is visible after the waxing crescent phase. It comes a week after new moon. A waxing gibbous moon occurs when more than half of the lit portion of the Moon can be seen and the shape increases ("waxes") in size from one day to the next. The waxing gibbous phase occurs between the first quarter and full moon phases. A full moon is when we can see the entire lit portion of the Moon. The full moon phase occurs when the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun, called opposition. A lunar eclipse can only happen at full moon. A waning gibbous moon occurs when more than half of the lit portion of the Moon can be seen and the shape decreases ("wanes") in size from one day to the next. The waning gibbous phase occurs between the full moon and third quarter phases. The last quarter moon (or a half moon) is when half of the lit portion of the Moon is visible after the waning gibbous phase. A waning crescent moon is when the Moon looks like a crescent and the crescent decreases ("wanes") in size from one day to the next. "pink moon" A second full moon in one calendar month is usually called a "blue moon" and this occurs approximately every 3 years. The idiom "Once in a blue moon" refers to something that does not happen often (like a blue moon). Super blue Moon A supermoon or Super Pink Moon takes place when moon's orbit is at its closest to the Earth. Supermoon take place each year between March and May. As Moon is exceptionally close to Earth; full Moon appears up to 7% larger and 15% brighter than a typical full moon. Traditionally any full moon that occurred in April was called a pink moon because it marked the blooming of Moss pink a wildflower. Related pages Extraterrestrial sky Phases of the Earth Super Pink Moon References Moon

3541

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphere

Sphere

A sphere is a shape in space that is like the surface of a ball. Usually, the words ball and sphere mean the same thing. But in mathematics, a sphere is the surface of a ball, which is given by all the points in three dimensional space that are located at a fixed distance from the center. The distance from the center is called the radius of the sphere. When the sphere is filled in with all the points inside, it is called a ball. Common things that have the shape of a sphere are basketballs, superballs, and playground balls. The Earth and the Sun are nearly spherical, meaning sphere-shaped. A sphere is the three-dimensional analog of a circle. Calculating the surface area, circumference, diameter, radius and volume of a sphere Surface area Using the circumference: Using the diameter: Using the radius: Using the volume: Circumference Using the surface area: Using the diameter: Using the radius: Using the volume: Diameter Using the surface area: Using the circumference: Using the radius: Using the volume: Radius Using the surface area: or Using the circumference: Using the diameter: Using the volume: (more simple but less precise) Volume Using the surface area: Using the circumference: Using the diameter: Using the radius: Equation of a sphere In Cartesian coordinates, the equation for a sphere with a center at (, , ) is as follows: where is the radius of the sphere. Three-dimensional shapes

3543

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantity

Quantity

Quantity or amount is how much of something there is that can be counted or measured. Counting Whole numbers (1, 2, 3 ...) are used to count things. This can be done by pointing to each one. As things are pointed to, a number is said. Start with the number one. Each time another thing is pointed to, the next whole number is used. When the last thing in a group it pointed to, that number is the quantity of the group. Measuring Measuring is done with a ruler or a machine. We put a ruler next to a thing to measure how long it is. We put things on a scale to measure their mass. Other machines are used to measure other quantities such as temperature, speed, electric current, and so on. Decimal numbers When measuring things, a whole number might not be the best answer. A distance might be longer than 5 meters, but less than 6 meters. Meter sticks are marked off in parts of a meter. Decimals are formed by marking off a ruler in ten equal parts. Each part is a tenth. 5.2 meters is a little bit longer than 5 meters. 5.7 meters is a little bit shorter than 6 meters. Each of these tenths can be marked with ten smaller parts. The one hundred centimeters on a meter stick are done this way; by marking ten equal parts, then marking ten equal parts of each of those parts. Fraction numbers Fractions are used when there are parts of a whole number. The dial on a machine may be marked with four parts between each whole number. A scale with a bag of potatoes may show five and three-quarters kilograms. This would be almost six kilograms. The words "amount" and "number" People often use the word "amount" when they should say "number". The words "number" and "amount" should be used if a particular number could be put: e.g. A large amount of sand (because you cannot say "three thousand sands") A large number of people (because you could say there were 3547 people). Numbers

3544

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advertising

Advertising

Advertising is how a company encourages people to buy their products, services or ideas. Advertising is one element of marketing, which also includes design, research and data mining. An advertisement (or "ad" for short) is anything that draws good attention towards these things. It is usually designed by an advertising agency for a sponsor or brand and made public by various media. Ads appear on television, radio, newspapers, magazines and billboards in streets and cities. Advertisers use methods that attract attention. Advertisers influence our emotions by techniques that include stereotyping and targeting the audience: who we are. Emotions are influenced by our occupation, beliefs, personality, self esteem, lifestyle, relationships, friends, how we look and what we wear. History Commercial messages and political campaign displays have been found in the ruins of Pompeii and ancient Arabia. Lost and found advertising on papyrus was common in Ancient Greece and Rome. Wall or rock painting for commercial advertising is present to this day in many parts of Asia, Africa, and South America. The tradition of wall painting can be traced back to Indian rock art paintings that date back to 4000 BC. Londoner Thomas J. Barratt (1841–1914) has been called "the father of modern advertising". He worked for the Pears Soap company, eventually becoming its chairman. Barratt created an advertising campaign for the company products. It used targeted slogans, images and phrases. One of his slogans, "Good morning. Have you used Pears' soap?" was famous in its day and into the 20th century. Barratt introduced many of the crucial ideas that lie behind successful advertising and these were widely circulated in his day. He constantly stressed the importance of a strong and exclusive brand image for Pears and of emphasizing the product's availability through saturation campaigns. He also understood the importance of constantly reevaluating the market for changing tastes and mores, stating in 1907 that "tastes change, fashions change, and the advertiser has to change with them. An idea that was effective a generation ago would fall flat, stale, and unprofitable if presented to the public today. Not that the idea of today is always better than the older idea, but it is different – it hits the present taste." As the economy expanded across the world during the 19th century, advertising grew alongside. In the United States, the success of this advertising format eventually led to the growth of mail-order advertising. Very important was the growth of mass media, with mass circulation illustrated newspapers in the later 19th century followed by movies, radio and television. Types of advertising Advertising happens in many different ways. Many products are advertised on television, although not all channels permit advertising. The advertisements usually appear during breaks between a television show. They are usually for products, other television shows or movies and are not normally much longer than 30 seconds. Some radio stations have audio advertisements that play between programmes. An advertisement for a movie is called a trailer. It shows a short collection of clips from the movie, and shows the date it will be released in cinemas. Advertising also takes place on websites. These may appear as "banner ads" or "popups". They are often still images or flash animations. The owner of the website will get money when a user clicks on the advertisement. Sometimes they will get a percentage of the money if they buy a product. Billboards advertise products on highways and city streets. These may simply be freestanding billboards or may be part of street furniture such as a bus shelter. Buses and taxis are often covered in adverts, while budget airlines sometimes allow advertising inside their planes. Adverts also appear in newspapers, magazines and sports programmes. Many stadiums have adverts set around them. Sports teams, tournaments, television programmes and public events may have a sponsor who is the main or sometimes only advertiser. Techniques Advertisers use many different techniques to get people to notice their adverts, often using deliberately shocking or provocative images. Once they have managed to make people notice their advert, they need to 'sell' the product or brand. They may try to make the product look appealing, however often advertisers use humor in such a way that get people to remember the brand without actually promoting the product. Poor adverts can damage sales or spoil a brand's identity. Regulations Advertising is often strictly regulated, for instance in the United Kingdom it is illegal to advertise tobacco, except in the shop where it is sold and this is also restricted. In France it is illegal to advertise alcohol, meaning that when many European football teams play in France, they cannot play in their usual shirts as breweries often advertise on sports shirts. It is also illegal to advertise on some television channels, the BBC in the United Kingdom and RTE in the Republic of Ireland are not allowed to permit advertising and instead make their revenue from selling a compulsory television licence. Some countries such as Canada regulate misleading advertising and labelling to try and prevent deceptive practices and protect consumers. References

3555

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddha

Buddha

A Buddha is the holiest type of being in Buddhism, a teacher of God's and humans. The word Buddha means "enlightened one" in Sanskrit or Fully Awakened One in Pāli. It is also a title for Siddhartha Gautama. He was the man who started Buddhism. Sometimes people call him "the Buddha" or the "Shakyamuni Buddha". Other times, people call any person a Buddha if they have found enlightenment. If a person has not found enlightenment yet, but is very close to reaching it, then he is called bodhisattva. Summary Buddhists believe that there are many Buddhas. The most recent one was Gautama Buddha. People who will become Buddhas someday are called "bodhisattvas." Buddhists believe that the Buddha was enlightened, which means that he knew all about how to live a peaceful life and how to avoid suffering. He is said to have never argued with other people, but only said what was true and useful, out of compassion for others. Some Buddhists pray to Buddhas, but Buddhas are not gods. Buddhas are teachers who help the people who will listen. A Buddha is a human being who has woken up and can see the true way the world works. This knowledge totally changes the person so that they can have a better life in the present and the future. A Buddha can also help a person achieve enlightenment. There are ideas which are said to lead someone to enlightenment. They are called the Dharma (Sanskrit) or "Dhamma" (Pāli), meaning "the way" or "the truth." Anyone can become a Buddha, but it is very difficult. He became Buddha under the peepal or "bodhi" tree at Bodhgaya in Bihar in what is now India. Types of Buddhas There is a special type of Buddha called a pratyekabuddha or "silent Buddhas". These Buddhas reached enlightenment on their own, but they did not teach others. Another type of Buddha is a samyaksambuddha. This is the best kind of Buddha because he is able to teach all living beings. Seven Buddhas of the past Buddhists believe that there have been many Buddhas in the past. There will also be many Buddhas in the future. Traditionally, seven Buddhas are given names. Vipashyin Buddha Shikhin Buddha Vishvabhu Buddha Krakucchanda Buddha Kanakamuni Buddha Kashyapa Buddha Shakyamuni Buddha Maitreya will be the next Buddha. 32 Signs of a Great Man A Buddha is a person who has reached perfection. Some believe that there are 32 physical features of a Buddha; these are the 32 marks of a Great Man from Vedic Brahmin folklore, but are mentioned in the Pāli canon. Some of these features are represented in art and sculpture. These are listed below. Flat feet Thousand-spoked wheel symbol on feet Long, slender fingers Flexible hands and feet Webbed fingers and toes Full-sized heels Arched insteps Thighs like a royal stag Hands that reach below the knees Sheathed male organ Equal height and stretch of arms Dark-colored hair Graceful and curly body hair Golden-hued body Ten-foot halo around his body Soft, smooth skin Soles, palms, shoulders, and crown of head well-rounded Area below armpits filled out Lion-shaped body Erect and upright body Full, round shoulders Forty teeth White, even, and close teeth Four pure white canine teeth Jaw like a lion Saliva that improves the taste of all food Long and broad tongue Deep and resonant voice Deep blue eyes Eyelashes like a royal bull White curl of hair (ūrṇā) that emits light between eyebrows Bump on the crown of the head Related pages Siddhartha Gautama Bodhisattva Buddhism References 3. “Chapter 3 Buddhism. Origins and Fundamental Tenets. .” Religions in the Modern World: Traditions and Transformations, section written by Cathy Cantwell & Hiroko Kawanami., Routledge, 2016, pp. 75–78 Buddhist terminology

3556

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag%20of%20the%20United%20States

Flag of the United States

The flag of the United States of America is a national flag. It has 7 red stripes and 6 white stripes. These 13 stripes represent the original thirteen colonies. The flag also has a blue canton, a rectangle in the top left corner. There are 50 stars which represent the 50 states of America. When a new state joins the United States, a new flag is made with an extra star. The new flag is first flown on the 4th of July (Independence Day). The last states to join the United States were Alaska and Hawaii in 1959. Alaska joined on 3 January 1959, so the new flag with 49 stars was used from 4 July 1959. Hawaii joined on 21 August 1959, so the flag with 50 stars that is used today was not flown until 4 July 1960. The colors in the flag are red, white and blue. The colors have no special meaning in the flag, but in the coat of arms, white stands for purity and innocence, red for bravery and strength, and blue for watchfulness, perseverance and justice. The flag is also often called the Stars and Stripes, the Star-Spangled Banner, or Old Glory. The national anthem of the United States is a reference to the flag. Evolution of the United State's flag Since 1818, a star for each new state has been added to the flag on the Fourth of July immediately following each state's admission. In years in which multiple states have been admitted, the number of stars on the flag has jumped correspondingly. The greatest example so far was in 1890, when five states were admitted within the span of a single year (North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington in November 1889 and Idaho on 3 July 1890). This change has typically been the only change made with each revision of the flag since 1777, with the exception of changes in 1795 and 1818, which increased the number of stripes to 15 and then returned it to 13, respectively. As the exact pattern of stars was not specified prior to 1912, and the exact colors not specified prior to 1934, many of the historical U.S. national flags (shown below) have had varied designs. Design 13 horizontal red and white stripes, representing the original 13 states. 50 white stars on a blue rectangle in the top-left, representing the current 50 U.S. states. References United States, Flag of Symbols of the United States

3569

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/America%20%28disambiguation%29

America (disambiguation)

America is a short-form name for the United States of America. America or América may also refer to: Places The Americas, a landmass comprising the continents of North America and South America Argentina América, Buenos Aires, Argentina Colombia La América, Commune of Medellín, Colombia Mexico América, Tamaulipas, Mexico América II, Tamaulipas, Mexico United States America, Illinois, U.S. America, Indiana, U.S. America, Oklahoma, U.S. Other America, Limburg, Netherlands 916 America, an asteroid Arts, entertainment, and media Films America (1924 film), by D. W. Griffith America (2009 film), an American made-for-television film América (2010 film), from Portugal America (2011 film), from Puerto Rico America (2022 film), mainly Israeli film America: Freedom to Fascism, a 2006 documentary America: Imagine the World Without Her, a 2014 documentary film based on a book by Dinesh D'Souza America America, a 1963 American film by Elia Kazan Literature "America" (Judge Dredd story), by John Wagner America (novel), a 2002 young adult novel by E. R. Frank "America" (poem), 1956, by Allen Ginsberg "America" (short story), by Orson Scott Card America, a Jake Grafton novel by Stephen Coonts "America", a poem by Walt Whitman from Leaves of Grass Amerika (novel), by Franz Kafka America, Jean Baudrillard 1988 Music Groups and labels America (band) America Records (France), a jazz record label Albums America (America album), 1971 America (Kurtis Blow album), 1985 America (Dan Deacon album), 2012 America (John Fahey album), 1971 America (Havalina album), 1999 America (Julio Iglesias album), 1976 America (Modern Talking album), 2001 America (Wadada Leo Smith album), 2009 America, a 1989 album by George Adams America: An Album for All Ages, a 2009 album by Bobby Susser America – The EP, a 2006 EP by Rebecca St. James América & En Vivo, a 1992 EP by Luis Miguel America (Thirty Seconds to Mars album), 2018 Songs "America" (Deuce song), 2012 "America" (Neil Diamond song), 1980 "America" (Waylon Jennings song) "America" (Killing Joke song), 1988 "America" (Prince song), 1985 "America" (Razorlight song), 2006 "America" (Simon & Garfunkel song), 1968 "America" (Sufjan Stevens song), 2020 "America", a song by Tracy Chapman from Where You Live "America", a song by David Essex from the 1974 album David Essex "America", a song by Imagine Dragons from Night Visions "America", a song by London Grammar from their 2021 album Californian Soil "America", a 1982 song by Motörhead from Iron Fist "America", a song by Nas from his untitled ninth studio album "América", a song by José Luis Perales "America", a song by Royce da 5'9" from Layers "America", a song by Santana featuring P.O.D. from Shaman "America", a song by Bree Sharp from her 1999 debut album A Cheap and Evil Girl "America", a song by Steppenwolf from the album Monster "America", a song by Bobby Susser from America: An Album for All Ages "America", a song by Wu-Tang Clan and Killah Priest from America Is Dying Slowly "America (Never Been)", a song by Car Seat Headrest from How to Leave Town "America" (West Side Story song) "America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)", a patriotic song of the United States "America the Beautiful", a patriotic anthem of the United States Radio and television stations America (XM), a satellite radio channel América 2, an Argentine television station America One, an American over-the-air television network América Televisión, a Peruvian television network Television América (Brazilian TV series), a telenovela America (American TV series), a talk show America: A Personal History of the United States, a BBC documentary series America: The Story of Us, a six-part documentary on the history of the United States Other uses in arts, entertainment, and media America (magazine), a magazine published by the Jesuits America (The Book), a 2006 book by the staff of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart America (toilet), a sculpture by Maurizio Cattelan America (video game), 2001 People América Alonso (1936–2022), Venezuelan actress América Barrios (1917–2001), Cuban actress America Waldo Bogle (1844–1903), American pioneer America McCutchen Drennan (1830–1903), American educator and missionary America Ferrera (born 1984), American actress America Martin (born 1980), American artist America Meredith (born 1972), American artist America Newton (1835–1917), American pioneer America Olivo (born 1978), American actress America W. Robinson (1855–1912), American educator América del Pilar Rodrigo, Argentinian botanist America Iglesias Thatcher (1907–1989), Puerto Rican labor activist America Thayer (died 2021), American murder victim America Young (born 1984), American actress America Vera Zavala (born 1976), Swedish politician Fictional characters America Chavez, superhero from Marvel Comics Ships and boats America (yacht), winner of the America's Cup in 1851 America-class amphibious assault ship, of the U.S. America-class steamship, Cunard sidewheel transatlantic steamships RMS America, first of the America-class French ship America (1788), a Téméraire-class ship of the French Navy America-class ship of the line, derived from the French ship America Grande America, an Italian cargo ship, sunken on 12 March 2019 near France HMS America, any of several ships of the Royal Navy SS America, any of several ships of that name USS America, any of several ships of the US Navy Herreshoff America, an American catboat design Sports América de Cali, an association football (soccer) club from Cali, Colombia América Football Club (disambiguation) América Managua, an association football (soccer) club from Managua, Nicaragua Club América, an association football (soccer) club from Mexico City Copa América (Spanish and Portuguese for "America Cup"), association football (soccer) competition in South America Transportation America (aircraft), used by Richard E. Byrd on a 1927 transatlantic flight America (airship), flown in 1907 and 1909 attempts to reach the North Pole, and a 1910 attempt to cross the Atlantic America (American automobile) America (Spanish automobile) Other uses Apollo 17 Command/Service Module (callsign "America") American (word) Americas (terminology) Naming of the Americas Related pages Air America (disambiguation) American (disambiguation) Americana (disambiguation) Amerigo Vespucci (1454–1512), for whom the Americas were named Amerika (disambiguation) Amerrique Mountains Amreeka, a 2009 film Pan-American (disambiguation) The American (disambiguation) The Americans (disambiguation) Armorica

3576

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahatma%20Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was a leader of nationalism in British-ruled India. He is more commonly called Mahatma Gandhi; mahatma is an honorific meaning "great-soul" or "venerable" in Sanskrit. He was first called this in 1914 in South Africa. He is also called Bapu in India (Gujarati endearment for "father", "papa"). He was the Martyr of the Nation since 1948. Rabindranath Tagore gave him the title of 'Mahatma'. Gandhi was one of the most important people involved in the movement for the independence of India. He was a non-violent activist, who led the independence movement through a non-violent protest. Early life Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar, India. Several members of his family worked for the government of the state. When Gandhi was 18 years old, he went to study law in England. After he became a lawyer, he went to the British colony of South Africa where he experienced laws that said people with dark skin had fewer rights than people with light skin. In 1897, Gandhi was attacked by a group of people in Durban Harbor, South Africa when he was going to work. He went to South Africa because he could not find work in India. When traveling through South Africa, Gandhi was also kicked out of a first class train because of his skin color. Then Gandhi started protesting against segregation. He decided then to become a political activist, so he could help change these unfair laws. He created a powerful, non-violent movement. During Gandhi's life, India was a colony of the British Empire, but wanted independence. He was a huge leader during that era and his thoughts helped catalyze the Indian independence movement. Gandhi was a vegetarian almost all his life, because he believed in non-violence (ahimsa). As an activist On 9 January 1915 when Gandhi returned to India, he decided to again lead a march against a law called the Rowlatt Act. But then the protest turned violent and people started to kill the protesters. On 12 March 1930 Gandhi led the Salt March. When he returned to India, he helped cause India's independence from British rule, inspiring other colonial people to work for their independence, break up the British Empire, and replace it with the Commonwealth. People of many different religions and ethnic groups lived in British India. Many people thought the country should break into separate countries so different groups could have their own countries. In particular, many people thought that Hindus and Muslims should have separate countries. Gandhi was a Hindu, but he liked ideas from many religions including Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, and he thought that people of all religions should have the same rights, and could live together peacefully in the same country. In 1938, Gandhi resigned from Congress. He said he could no longer work through Congress to unite the divisions in caste and religion. He also felt that he had little to offer to the political process. On 15 August 1947, the British Indian Empire split into India and Pakistan. Gandhi wanted independence but did not want the former Raj to split into two different countries. Instead of celebrating independence day, he was crying over the end of British India. Gandhi's principle of satyagraha, often translated as "way of truth" or "pursuit of truth", has inspired other democratic and anti-racist activists like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nelson Mandela. Gandhi often said that his values were simple, based upon traditional Hindu beliefs: truth (Satya), and non-violence (ahimsa). Death On January 30, 1948, he was shot to death by a Brahman activist Nathuram Godse, because Godse thought that Gandhi was too respectful to the Muslims. Godse was tried and executed by Indian officials. References Other websites Gandhi blog biography Gandhism.net historical & autobiographical website 1869 births 1948 deaths Assassinated people Hindus Indian murder victims Indian politicians Indian revolutionaries Nonviolence advocates People murdered in India National symbols of India Vegetarians Time People of the Year

3581

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a condition which may be diagnosed by a psychiatrist. It is mental illness where people may see, hear or believe things that are not real. It can be a big problem for people who have it. Some similar mental illnesses include schizotypal personality disorder, schizoaffective disorder, and schizoid personality disorder. It is a relatively common condition affecting one in 200 people. It is not infectious in any way. There is a danger that the sufferer may self-harm. Its cause is not exactly known. Very often it first appears in teenage years when the sufferer goes through puberty. There is no cure, but there is treatment which can help most of the sufferers. People with this disorder often do not behave the way most people do towards others. They also may not know what is real (this is called psychosis). Some common signs are strange beliefs, unclear or confused thinking and language, hallucinations (such as hearing voices that aren't there), poor interaction with others, less expression of feelings, and not doing much. They also may not care about many things. Schizophrenia is a chronic condition. As of 2021, there is no cure, but a combination of a therapy and certain drugs can allow most people suffering from it to lead a normal life. Meaning The word schizophrenia comes from two Greek words that mean to split and mind, because there is a 'split' between what's going on in the person's mind and what is actually happening. A person with schizophrenia does not change between different personalities: they have only one. The condition in which a person has more than one personality, meaning they act like a different person at different times, is dissociative identity disorder. There are no medical tests that can be used to say if a person has schizophrenia or not, so getting a diagnosis depends on which list of symptoms are used. It also depends on the doctor or psychologist who talks to the person. The lists of symptoms include wording like "Disorganized [not organized, or oddly organized] speech present for a significant portion of time". It is difficult to agree on what exactly "disorganized speech" is and how disorganized it has to be. It is also difficult to agree on how long a "significant portion of time" is. Because of this, two doctors or psychologists trying to make a diagnosis may often disagree. One will say that the person is schizophrenic and the other will say he or she is not. Is it schizophrenia? Schizophrenia has many different symptoms, and not everyone with schizophrenia has all of them. For this reason, some scientists think that schizophrenia is several separate illnesses that have some of the same symptoms. These scientists claim that the research done on schizophrenia is not accurate since different researchers mean different things when they use the word "schizophrenia" in scientific studies. Many medications (licensed drugs to cure or treat an illness) may also cause the same symptoms as schizophrenia. The most common ones are antidepressants (medicines to treat depression) and ADHD medication (medication to treat ADHD, a condition affecting the brain, including memory and focusing on surroundings.) If a person has taken anti-vomiting medication (medication to stop them being sick) for some time and suddenly stops, he or she may get schizophrenia symptoms. Hundreds of medications have schizophrenia symptoms as rare side effects (unintended effects of taking them). Illegal drugs such as LSD, amphetamines, magic mushrooms and cocaine may cause schizophrenia symptoms. Medical illnesses, and treatment with certain medicines, can cause symptoms very similar to that of schizophrenia. In fact, there are over a hundred medical problems that can cause the same symptoms of schizophrenia. For this reason, it is important to rule out the possibility of either of these things being the cause for the person's symptoms. For this reason, the person should have a thorough medical exam to rule out problems like; Not having enough vitamin B12, magnesium, sodium, or other chemicals the body needs Sleep disorders A stroke or brain tumor A metabolism (chemical reactions keeping the person alive) that is too high or too low Delusions and hallucinations People with schizophrenia often have delusions or hallucinations. A schizophrenic delusion is a belief that is very different from what other people with the same way of life believe. Hallucinations are usually experiences of hearing voices that don't exist. These voices often say unpleasant things to the person. Many people can hear voices like this without being schizophrenic, for instance right before falling asleep. This is called a hypnagogic hallucination. The brain cannot tell them apart from normal sounds that are heard. This is not yet fully understood by science. Risk factors There are many risk factors that may cause a person to develop schizophrenia. They include trauma (damage caused by stressful events) and genetics (schizophrenia running in families). Having a schizophrenic parent may be very stressful, and there may also be genes that influence the development of schizophrenia. It is very easy to show that trauma, such as sexual abuse (forced unwanted sexual behaviour towards somebody) increases the risk, but 40 years of searching for the right genes has not found anything that has been confirmed by independent research groups. Hope People with schizophrenia may also have other mental health disorders, like depression, anxiety and drug abuse. They often have problems functioning in society, and have difficulty keeping a job. However, there are a number of people with schizophrenia who get well and have earned college degrees and had professional careers. For example, Elyn. R. Saks successfully became a law professor at the University of Southern California and a published author. In a family treatment called "Open dialog" in Finland, eight out of every ten people with schizophrenia "get well." In developing countries, where doctors use less drugs, 2 out of 3 patients get well from schizophrenia. In western countries, where medications are used as treatment, 1 of 3 get well, but many suffer from drug side effects such as diabetes, obesity, and brain damage. Treatment Treatment of schizophrenia may include medication to help treat the symptoms, different types of psychotherapy (therapy by a professional), such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and many rehabilitation therapies (therapies restoring things to how they were before), such as cognitive remediation therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy, CBT, is a talk therapy that focuses on helping the person to think about their strange ideas (delusions) in more realistic ways. The therapist may design a behavioral experiment for paranoia (false beliefs of danger) that will help the person to find out for example, if there really are cameras everywhere in the house. For hallucinations, cognitive therapy focuses on normalizing: many people hear voices without being stressed, and we all hear voices in the form of thoughts, it is just that people with schizophrenia hear them a bit more clearly than most people. Official guidelines The British national guidelines for treatment (NICE) suggest the following treatments: Check for reactions to traumatic experiences Decide together with a doctor about using medication, taking into account the side effect risk of getting diabetes, becoming seriously overweight, getting brain damage (tardive dyskinesia, 5% risk pr year), men growing breasts, and feelings described as inner torture (akathesia). The guidelines also warn against using more than one antipsychotic drug at the same time. Both for people who are at risk for getting schizophrenia and for people who have got it, they recommend cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and family therapy. Getting support from people who have become well from schizophrenia is also strongly recommended. In a family oriented treatment program in Finland, Open Dialog, 8 out of 10 people with schizophrenia get well with no medication or very limited drug use, often only with anxiety medication. Symptoms The symptoms of schizophrenia fall into three main categories: positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and cognitive symptoms. Positive symptoms Positive symptoms are thoughts, behaviors, or anything experienced by the senses that are not shared by others - like hearing voices that are not really there. They are called 'positive' not because they are good but because they are "added on". These symptoms may include having strange thoughts that do not make sense (delusions), disorganized thoughts and speech, and feeling, hearing, seeing, smelling, or tasting things that do not exist (hallucinations). Positive symptoms often respond to drug treatment and cognitive behavioral therapy, CBT. Stopping anti-psychotic or anti-vomiting drugs too quickly may also cause these symptoms. Negative symptoms Negative symptoms are thoughts, behaviors or emotions normally present in a healthy person that a person with a mental disorder has less of or may not have at all; they are 'minus' these. The sign for minus is -; it is also the sign for the word "negative". Negative symptoms includes a 'flat affect'; having a blank inexpressive look on the face and/or monosyllabic speech (speech always sounding the same) spoken in a slow monotone, few gestures, lack of interest in anything including other people, and an inability to act spontaneously or feel pleasure. These problems are also side effects of anti-psychoctic drugs. They may also be symptoms of many medical problems such as a metabolism that is too low. Cognitive symptoms (or cognitive deficits) Cognitive symptoms are problems with attention, certain types of memory, the concept of time, and with the ability to plan and organize. Cognitive deficits caused by schizophrenia can also be difficult to recognize as part of the disorder. They are the most disabling of the symptoms because cognitive problems affect everyday functioning. These problems may also be side effects of anti-psychotic drugs, antidepressants, sleeping medication and anti-anxiety drugs. Causes A combination of what has happened to a person and the person’s genes may play a role in the development of schizophrenia. People who have family members with schizophrenia and who experienced a brief period of psychotic symptoms have a 20 to 40 percent chance of being diagnosed one year later. This may be both the result of stressful events because of the family member and possibly a genetic effect. Inherited factors It is difficult to know if schizophrenia is inherited because it is hard to find out whether something comes from genes or the environment. Those who have a parent, a brother or sister with schizophrenia have a higher risk of developing schizophrenia. The risk is even higher if you have an identical twin with schizophrenia. This may seem to show that schizophrenia is inherited. However, it may be the stress of living with a schizophrenic family member that is traumatic. Identical twins are much closer and are treated much more in the same way, and this may be the reason why one of them is more likely to get schizophrenia if the other has it. Dr Jay Joseph has found many problems with the scientific studies of inheriting schizophrenia, including false reporting of results. Joseph also claims that 40 years of the search for the schizophrenia gene has not found a single gene that independent research groups have confirmed. Environmental factors There are may environmental risk factors factors for schizophrenia such as drug use, stress before birth and in some cases exposure to infectious diseases (a disease that spreads from person to person). In addition, living in a city during childhood or as an adult has been found to double the risk of schizophrenia . This is true even after taking into account drug use, race, and the size of one’s social group. Other factors that play an important role include whether the person feels socially isolated, as well as social adversity, racial discrimination (treating a person badly because of their race), the person's family not working properly, unemployment, and poor housing conditions. There is evidence that childhood experiences of abuse or trauma are risk factors for developing schizophrenia later in life. Substance abuse Several drugs have been linked with the development of schizophrenia and the abuse (harmful use) of certain drugs can cause symptoms like those of schizophrenia. About half of those people who have schizophrenia use too much drugs or alcohol, possibly to deal with depression, anxiety, boredom, or loneliness. Frequent marijuana use may double the risk of serious mental illness, including schizophrenia. Smoking More people with schizophrenia smoke than the general population; it is estimated that at least 60% to as many as 90% of people with schizophrenia smoke. Recent research suggests that cigarette smoking may be a risk factor for developing schizophrenia. Smoking also reduces the effects and side effects of anti-psychotic drugs, and this may be one of the reasons for the high smoking rate. Patients taking anti-psychotic drugs die up to 20 years earlier than others, possibly because the medication makes them overweight, gives diabetes and leads to them smoking. Pre-birth factors Factors such as lack of oxygen, infection, or stress and lack of healthy foods in the mother during pregnancy, might result in a slight increase in the risk of schizophrenia later in life. People who have schizophrenia are more likely to have been born in winter or spring (at least in the northern half of the world). This might relate to increased rates of exposures to viruses before birth. This difference is about 5 to 8 percent. Brain structure Some people who have schizophrenia have differences in their brain structure compared to those who do not have the disorder. These differences are often in the parts of the brain that manage memory, organization, emotions, the control of impulsive behavior, and language. For example, there is less brain volume in the frontal cortex and temporal lobes, and problems within the corpus callosum, the band of nerve fibers which connects the left side and the right side of the brain. People with schizophrenia also tend to have larger lateral and third ventricles. The ventricles are spaces within the brain filled with cerebrospinal fluid. Brain wiring The human brain has 100 billion neurons; each one of these neurons are connected to many other neurons. One neuron may have as many as 20,000 connections; there is between 100 trillion and 500 trillion neural connections in the adult human brain. There are many different parts or 'regions' of the brain. To complete a task - like recalling a memory - usually more than one region of the brain is involved, and they are connected by neural networks which is like the brain's wiring. It is believed that there are problems with the brain's wiring in schizophrenia. Diagnosis The DSM-IV-TR or the ICD-10 criteria are used to determine whether a person has schizophrenia. These criteria use the self-reported experiences of the person and reported abnormalities (unusual occurrences) in the behavior of the person, followed by a clinical assessment. A person can be determined to have the disease only if the symptoms are severe. Differential diagnosis There are various medical conditions, other psychiatric conditions and drug abuse related reactions that may mimic the symptoms of schizophrenia (meaning they have some or all of the same symptoms). For example, delirium can cause visual hallucinations, or an unpredictable changing levels of consciousness. Schizophrenia occurs along with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a disorder in which a person becomes obsessed with certain ideas or actions. However, separating the obsessions of OCD from the delusions of schizophrenia can be difficult. Prevention There is no clear evidence that treating schizophrenia with anti-psychotic drugs early is effective. The British NICE guidelines recommend cognitive behavioural talk therapy for all people at risk. In recent research, 76 patients at risk for schizophrenia were divided into two groups. One group got omega3 for 3 months and the other got a dummy pill (food oil). After 12 months only 4.9% of the omega 3 group had got schizophrenia compared to 27.5% in the other group. There is some evidence which shows that early treatment with drugs improves short term outcomes for people who have a serious episode of mental illness. These measures show little benefit five years later. Attempting to prevent schizophrenia in the pre-onset phase with anti-psychotic drugs is of uncertain benefit and so is not recommended (as of 2009). Prevention is difficult because there is no reliable way to find out in advance who will get schizophrenia. Management The treatment of schizophrenia is based upon the phase of the illness the person is in. There are three treatment phases: Acute Phase There are some goals during the acute phase of treatment. Some of these goals are to prevent harm. To prevent harm, the person being treated will have the severity of psychosis and it's symptoms reduced. These symptoms include agitation, aggression, negative symptoms, self-disorder, and thought disorders. Another goal is to find and treat the things that led to the episode of psychosis. Then, the person will be treated by trying to go back to how they were before psychosis. Lastly, the person will be helped by forming social connections and finding out what treatment plans work for them. Some treatment plans can be for a long time, and others can be for a short time. Stabilization Phase The stabilization phase also has goals. One is to reduce the stress the person feels. Another is to prevent the person from experiencing psychosis again. Then, the person is helped further with social connection and getting better. If the person has improved with a medication, it is recommended they keep taking it for at least 6 months. Stable Phase The last phase of treatment is to make sure that the person is improving. If the treatment has bad side effects, it may be changed in this phase. Some treatments during this stage are psychotherapy and medication. Antipsychotic medications greatly reduce the risk of the person experiencing psychosis again. They are strongly recommended. Medication The first-line psychiatric treatment for schizophrenia is antipsychotic medication, which can reduce the positive symptoms in about seven to fourteen days. However, medication fails to improve negative symptoms or problems in thinking significantly. Many antipsychotics are Dopamine antagonists (a substance interfering with how another substance works.) High concentrations of Dopamine are thought to be the cause of hallucinations and delusions. For this reason blocking Dopamine reception helps against hallucinations and delusions. The British national guidelines for treatment (NICE) suggest checking for reactions to traumatic experiences, deciding together with a doctor about using medication, taking into account the side effect risks of getting diabetes, becoming seriously overweight, getting brain damage (tardive dyskinesia, 5% risk per year), men growing breasts, and feelings described as inner torture (akathesia). The guidelines warn against using more than one antipsychotic drug at the same time. Some reviews of research sponsored by the makers of antipsychotic drugs claim that about 40 to 50 percent of people have a good response to medication, 30 to 40 percent have a partial response, and 20 percent have an unsatisfactory response (after 6 weeks on two or three different drugs). Other research from The British Journal of Psychiatry were more negative and claimed that "the clinical relevance of antipsychotics is in fact limited". This study included 22 428 patients and 11 antipsychotic drugs. A drug called clozapine is an effective treatment for people who respond poorly to other drugs, but clozapine can lower the white blood cell count in 1 to 4 percent of people who take it. This is a serious side effect. For people who are unwilling or unable to take drugs regularly, injectable long-acting preparations of antipsychotics can be used. When used in combination with mental and social interventions (treatment), such preparations can help people to continue their treatment. Psychosocial therapies Numerous mental and social interventions can be useful in treating schizophrenia. Such interventions include various types of therapy, community-based treatments, supported employment, skills training, token economic interventions, and mental interventions for drug or alcohol use and weight management. Family therapy or education, which addresses the whole family system of an individual, might reduce a return of symptoms or the need for hospitalizations (having to go into hospital.) There is growing evidence for the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (also known as “talk therapy”) . The British national guidelines for treatment (NICE) recommend for both people are at risk of getting schizophrenia and people who have got it, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and family therapy. Getting support from people who have become well from schizophrenia is also strongly recommended. In a family oriented treatment program in Finland, Open Dialog, 8 out of 10 people with schizophrenia get well with no medication or very limited drug use, often only anxiety medication. Outlook Schizophrenia has great human and economic costs. The condition results in a decreased life expectancy of 12 to 15 years, primarily because of its association with being overweight, not exercising, and smoking cigarettes. An increased rate of suicide (a person killing themself) plays a lesser role. These differences in life expectancy increased between the 1970s and 1990s. Schizophrenia is a major cause of disability, with active psychosis ranked as the third-most-disabling condition. Approximately three-fourths of people with schizophrenia have an ongoing disability with symptoms that keep coming back. Some people do recover completely and others function well in society. Most people with schizophrenia live independently, with community support. In people with a first episode of serious mental symptoms, 42 percent have a good long-term outcome, 35 percent have an intermediate outcome and 27 percent have a poor outcome. Outcomes for schizophrenia appear better in the developing world than in the developed world, although that conclusion has been questioned. The suicide rate of people who have schizophrenia is estimated to be about 4.9 percent, most often occurring in the period following the first appearance of symptoms or the first hospital admission. 20 to 40 percent try to kill themselves at least once. Schizophrenia and smoking have shown a strong association in studies worldwide. Use of cigarettes is especially high in individuals who have schizophrenia, with estimates ranging from 80 to 90 percent of these people being regular smokers, compared to 20 percent of the general population. Those individuals who smoke tend to smoke heavily and to smoke cigarettes with a high nicotine content. Research continues on schizophrenia. In the spring of 2013, genetics associations were shown between five major psychiatric disorders: autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, depression, and schizophrenia per recent study. In the summer of 2013, for the first time, brain tissue development was replicated in three dimensions by scientists cloning a human "mini-brain" using stem cells. This could help with schizophrenia and autism neurological research (research related to the brain.) Likelihood As of 2011, schizophrenia affects around 0.3% to 0.7% of people, or 24 million people worldwide, at some point in their lives. More men are affected than women: the number of males with the disorder is 1.4 times greater than that of females. Schizophrenia usually appears earlier in men. For males the symptoms usually start from 20 to 28 years of age, and in females it is 26 to 32 years of age. Symptoms that start in childhood, middle or old age are much rarer. Despite the received wisdom that schizophrenia occurs at similar rates worldwide, its rate of likelihood varies across the world, within countries, and at the local level. The disorder causes approximately 1% of worldwide disability adjusted life years (in other words, years spent with a disability). The rate of schizophrenia varies depending on how it is defined. History Accounts of a schizophrenia-like syndrome are rare before the 19th century. Detailed case reports from 1797 and 1809, are regarded as the earliest cases of the disorder. Schizophrenia was first described as a distinct syndrome affecting teenagers and young adults by Bénédict Morel in 1853, termed démence précoce (literally 'early dementia'). The term dementia praecox was used in 1891 by Arnold Pick in a case report of a psychotic disorder. In 1893 Emil Kraepelin introduced a new distinction in the classification of mental disorders between dementia praecox and mood disorder (termed manic depression and including both unipolar and bipolar depression). Kraepelin believed that dementia praecox was primarily a disease of the brain, and a form of dementia, different from other forms of dementia such as Alzheimer's disease which usually happen later in life. Eugen Bleuler coined the term ”schizophrenia”, which translates roughly as "split mind", in 1908. The word was intended to describe the separation of functioning between personality, thinking, memory, and perception. Bleuler realized that the illness was not a dementia because some of his patients improved rather than got worse. In the early 1970s, the criteria for determining schizophrenia were the subject of numerous controversies. Schizophrenia was diagnosed far more often in the United States than in Europe. This difference was partly the result of looser criteria for determining whether someone had the condition in the United States, where the DSM-II manual was used. In Europe, the ICD-9 manual was used. A 1972 study, published in the journal Science, concluded that the diagnosis of schizophrenia in the United States was often unreliable. These factors resulted in the publication of the DSM-III in 1980 with a stricter and more defined criteria for the diagnosis. Society and culture Negative social judgment has been identified as a major obstacle in the recovery of people who have schizophrenia. In 2002, the term for schizophrenia in Japan was changed from “Seishin-Bunretsu-Byō”　精神分裂病 (“mind-split-disease”) to “Tōgō-shitchō-shō”　統合失調症 (“integration disorder”), in an attempt to reduce feelings of shame or embarrassment. The idea that the disease is caused by multiple factors (not just one mental cause) inspired the new name. The change increased the percentage of people who were informed of the diagnosis from 37 percent to 70 percent over three years. In the United States in 2002, the cost of schizophrenia, including direct costs (people who were not hospitalized, people who were hospitalized, medicines, and long-term care) and non-healthcare costs (law enforcement, reduced workplace productivity, and unemployment), was estimated to be $62.7 billion. The book “A Beautiful Mind” and the film of the same name are about the life of John Forbes Nash, an American mathematician and Nobel Prize winner who has schizophrenia. The movie “The Soloist” is based on the life of Nathaniel Ayers, a gifted musician who dropped out of the Julliard School, in New York City after the symptoms of schizophrenia began. He later became homeless in Los Angeles, California, in the notorious Skid Row section. References Mental illnesses Psychosis

3584

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drink

Drink

A drink or beverage is a liquid that an organism can take into their body, by using their mouth. Typical drinks for humans include water, tea, milk, coffee, juice, soft drinks and alcoholic drinks. All drinks are mainly water. All life needs water to live. If a living organism don't get enough water, they will dehydrate, and likely die. Plants take in water through their roots, which are underground. Most land animals get water by drinking. Basic English 850 words Drinks Physiology

3589

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need

Need

A need is a thing that, when a living being, plant or animal does not have it, it is not able to live. A thing that someone wants to have, but is able to live when they do not have it, is called a want. Every person has the same basic needs for the body. Humans have bodily needs of water, food, clothing, and shelter to live. The need for water is the most important because a person will die very quickly when they do not have drinking water. In a warm place food is the next most important need. In a cold place, the need for clothes or shelter may be next most important because a person will soon die when they do not have these. Other human needs are not so certain. They are mostly needs for the mind. It is often said that a person needs love, family, and friends. These needs are for personal relationships. They may also be wants. It is true that a life may be better with these things, but some friends can be bad, or bad sometimes. Good relationships can make life very happy. Thinking about a need that is not possible can make a person very unhappy. Some of the study of philosophy is about questions like "What are the needs of a human?" Some scientists study the needs of human or animal minds and bodies. The study of the mind is called psychology - words about the mind. The study of bodily needs is part of medicine. Related pages Economics Wikipedia:Basic English alphabetical wordlist Philosophy Psychology

3590

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeware

Freeware

Freeware is software that people may get without paying for it. In this case, "free" means "free of charge". In freeware, users might not be allowed to customize or share the software or source code with others. This leaves the author with more control than with free software. Software

3591

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahoo%21

Yahoo!

Yahoo! is a web portal and an internet content and service provider. It offers many products and services, such as a search engine, e-mail, instant messaging, video, news, weather forecasting, money and other information. Yahoo! makes money from advertisements in their services. Yahoo started on October 8, 1997. History and growth Early history (1994–1999) In January 1994, Jerry Yang and David Filo were Electrical Engineering graduate students at Stanford University. In April 1994, "Jerry and David's Guide to the World Wide Web" was renamed "Yahoo!", for which the official is "Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle". Filo and Yang said they chose the name because they liked the word's general meaning, which comes from Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift: "rude, and ". Its URL was akebono.stanford.edu/yahoo. Yang describes their selection of the name as "We thought it fit well with what we were doing. It was irreverent. It was reflective of the Wild West nature of the Internet. A lot of people found it easy to remember, and besides, it's exactly what me and Jerry are. A couple of yahoos." Related pages Google MSN Ask.com References Other websites Yahoo! official website Everything Yahoo! Websites

3592

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecca

Mecca

Mecca or Makkah (called Mecca in older texts, officially: Makkah al-Mukarramah; ) is a city in Saudi Arabia and the holiest city in Islam. As of the 2004 census, 1,294,169 people lived there. The city is inland from Jeddah, in the narrow sandy Valley of Abraham. It is above sea level. It is from the Red Sea. Mecca is the holiest city in the Islamic world. Every year, millions of Muslims take a pilgrimage to Mecca, called the Hajj. They follow in the footsteps of Muhammad. All Muslims who are able to perform the Hajj are expected to do so at least once in their life. The Kaaba and Masjid al-Haram, are the holiest mosques in Islam. Mecca is closed to non-Muslims except for some journalists reporting on the Hajj. History The Kaaba, the small cubical building which Muslims pray towards is believed to have been built by Ibrahim and has been a religious center ever since. Muslims believed that God commanded Ibrahim to send his second wife Hajar and her son Ismail there. They found the Zamzam Well which led to people settling nearby, and thus Makkah was born. When Ismail was big enough, he helped his father to build the Kaaba. The Kaaba is the place towards which Muslims turn in prayer. This is known as the Qibla . References Other websites Direction to Makkah The Emirate of Makkah Inside Mecca DVD National Geographic documentary about Makkah

3593

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabian%20Peninsula

Arabian Peninsula

thumb|right | 250px | The Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula is a peninsula in Southwest Asia at the junction of Africa and Asia. It lies east of Ethiopia and northern Somalia; south of Israel, the Palestinian territories, and Jordan; and southwest of Iran. The waters around it are: on the southwest the Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba; on the southeast the Arabian Sea; and on the northeast the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf. It includes the countries of: Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia which covers most of the peninsula United Arab Emirates Yemen The majority of the population of the peninsula live in Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Northern Arabia has oil wells. Climate change and the scarcity of water is said to have affected this area. A prominent feature of the peninsula is desert. In the southwest there are mountain ranges which may get more rain than the rest of the peninsula. Related pages History of Arabia References Other websites Arabia British Foreign Office, 1920 Peninsulas of Asia Arabia Gondwana

3595

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/South

South

South is one of the 4 cardinal directions on a compass. South is normally down on the bottom of most maps. For example: Angola is to the south of Nigeria, which is itself to the south of Morocco . The South Pole is the farthest south you can go. Basic English 850 words Compass directions

3596

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central%20America

Central America

Central America (, or Centroamérica ) is the central geographic region of the continent known as the Americas. It goes from Mexico in the north-west, to Panama in the south-east. It also comprises the Caribbean Sea and its countries. Central America has an area of . It is almost 0.1% of the Earth's surface. This is a list of the countries in Central America, from the largest to the smallest: Nicaragua (130,372 km2) Honduras (112,090 km2) Guatemala (108,890 km2) Panama (78,200 km2) Costa Rica (51,100 km2) Belize (22,966 km2) El Salvador (21,040 km2) While Nicaragua is the largest country in area, of Central America, Guatemala has the largest population by country in Central America, with more than 14 million people and they also have the most populated city in Central America, being Guatemala City. Six of the seven countries have Spanish as their official language, with Belize being the non-Spanish speaking country, as their official language is English, although there are now at least 195,597 (62.8%) of people in Belize who speak Spanish. Some people also speak indigenous or creole languages like the Maya languages. Central America has a density of 77 people per square kilometer. Geography Central America has an area of . It is almost 0.1% of the Earth's total surface. In 2009 the population was estimated at 41,739,000. It has a density of 77 people per square kilometer or 206 people per square mile. Physical geography Central America has many unique features that go from the north-western borders of Belize and Guatemala to the Isthmus of Panama. There it connects to the Colombian Pacific Lowlands in South America. Central America is an area of some 524,000 square kilometres. The Pacific Ocean is on the southwest, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, and the Gulf of Mexico to the north. Most of Central America rests on the Caribbean Plate. The region is geologically active. It has volcanic eruptions and earthquakes from time to time. The 1976 Guatemala earthquake killed 23,001 people. Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, was devastated by earthquakes in 1931 and 1972. The last one killed about 5,001 people. Three earthquakes hit El Salvador. The first one in 1986 and two in 2001. An earthquake devastated northern and central Costa Rica in 2009. It killed at least 35 people. In Honduras a powerful earthquake happened in 2009. Volcanic eruptions are common. In 1968 the Arenal Volcano in Costa Rica erupted. This killed at least 87 people. The 3 villages of Tabacon, Pueblo Nuevo, and San Luis were buried under ash. Central America has many mountain ranges; the longest are the Sierra Madre de Chiapas, the Cordillera Isabelia and the Cordillera de Talamanca. Most of the population of Honduras, Costa Rica and Guatemala live in valleys, between mountains. Valleys are also suitable for the production of coffee, beans and other crops. Biodiversity Central America is part of the Mesoamerican Biodiversity hotspot, boasting 7% of the world's biodiversity. As a bridge between North and South America, Central America has many species from the Nearctic and the Neotropic ecozones. However the southern countries (Costa Rica and Panama) of the region have more biodiversity than the northern countries (Guatemala and Belize), meanwhile the central countries (Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador) have least biodiversity. The table shows current statistics for the seven countries: References

3597

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/French%20language

French language

French (French: , pronounced "Fronce-eh") is a Romance language that was first spoken in France. It is also spoken in Belgium (Wallonia), Luxembourg, Canada (Quebec), Switzerland (Romandy) and with many different countries in Africa (Francophone Africa). About 220 million people speak French as a native or a second language. It has also been one of the roots of other languages such as the Haitian Creole language. Like the other Romance languages, its nouns have genders that are divided into masculine (masculin) and feminine (féminin) words. History In ancient times, the Celts lived in what is now France. In those days, the land was called Gaul (Latin: Gallia). The Romans conquered Gallia and divided it into provinces. Because the Romans spoke Latin, the local people learned Latin and began to speak it. Their own language, Gaulish, tended to be spoken less often, although Breton is a language still spoken today in the part of France called Brittany, that came from the old Celtic language. French pronunciation, more so than other Romance languages, became radically different from Latin. After the Roman Empire fell and Germanic peoples swarmed the countryside, Vulgar Latin was changing quickly. In medieval France it changed into two dialects or languages: langue d'oc and langue d'oïl. They both mean "language of yes", because oc was the word for "yes" in the south, and oïl meant "yes" in the north. Today, the word for yes in French is oui, pronounced like "we". In 1635, France established the French Academy in order to standardize the French language. To this day, the academy establishes the rules for Standard French. Langue d'oc is now called Occitan, and it is still spoken by many people in Southern France. Letters French uses the Latin alphabet, just like English. There are a few differences because vowels can have with three types of diacritics added on to them. They are the acute accent é; grave accent è and circumflex accent î. A cedilla can also be added onto a c to make ç. Vowels a is pronounced like in "father". ai and ei are pronounced like the "ay" in "say" an and en are pronounced like the "on" in "wrong", though not if there are two n letters or an e directly after it. au and eau are pronounced like the "o" in "note". In the endings er and ez, e is pronounced like the "ay" in "say". eu is pronounced like the "e" in "verse". Otherwise, e is like the a in "about". However, it is silent if it comes on the end of a word, unless it's a short word. é is pronounced like the "ay" in "say". è and ê are pronounced like the "e" in "bed". Apart from e, the three diacritics don't really affect how other vowels are pronounced. i and y are pronounced like the "ee" in "tree". in is pronounced like the "an" in "bank", though not if there are two n letters or an e directly after it. o is pronounced like in "note". oi is pronounced like a "w", following by the "a" in "father". oin is pronounced like the "wan" in "twang". on is pronounced like the "on" in "long", though not if there are two n letters or an e directly after it. ou is pronounced like the "oo" in "food". œ is pronounced like the "e" in "verse" but with more rounded lips. u is not a sound that exists in English. It is pronounced like saying the "ee" in "feed", but with your lips rounded in the way that you would say the word "food". un is pronounced like the "un" in "hung", though not if there are two n letters or an e directly after it. Consonants Like in English, c is pronounced as a "k" before most letters but as a soft "s" before e, i or y. ç is pronounced as a soft "s". ch, sh and sch are pronounced like the "sh" in "shop". g is pronounced as a hard "g" before most letters. Before e, i or y, it is pronounced like the "s" in "treasure". gn is pronounced like the "ny" in "canyon". h is always silent. j is pronounced like the "s" in "treasure". l is normally (but not always) pronounced like the "y" in "yes" if it comes after the letter i; otherwise it is pronounced as an "l". m and n change if they come after a vowel - see above. qu is pronounced as a "k". r is pronounced differently to English, being a gargling sound made at the back of your throat. th is pronounced as a "t", not like in English. x is pronounced "gz" or "ks". b, d, f, k, p, ph, s, t, v, w and z are pronounced the same as in English. If a word ends with a consonant, this will usually not be pronounced unless the next word starts with a vowel. However, if the word is very short or the last consonant is a c, r, l or f, this is still pronounced. Examples Here are some examples of French words and sentences : Many French words are like English words, because English took many words from the Norman language, a dialect of French influenced by Old Norse. This is true even though scholars consider English to be a Germanic language, like German. For example, many English words ending with "tion", "sion", "ible", or "able" came from the French language. French and English have many cognates, which are words that look and sound similar because they come from the same source. Here are some examples: References Related pages List of territorial entities where French is an official language Organisation internationale de la Francophonie Other websites French Verb Conjugator and Deconjugator French Language at Citizendium Languages of France

3598

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime%20Minister

Prime Minister

A prime minister manages the politics of a country and is the head of government. With countries that have kings and queens (known as monarchs), they are very important because they are in charge of most of the politics (they are "head of the government"). In countries with a president, they might be in charge of most of the politics (as in the Republic of Ireland), or they may be in day-to day charge but taking orders from the president as in France. Countries with a Prime Minister: Antigua and Barbuda (with Monarch) Australia (with Monarch) Azerbaijan (with President) Barbados (with President) Belgium (with Monarch) Canada (with Monarch) Denmark (with Monarch) Ethiopia (with President) France (with President) India (with President) Ireland (with President) Israel (with President) Italy (with President) Japan (with Emperor) Malaysia (with Monarch) Mauritius (with President) Netherlands (with Monarch) New Zealand (with Monarch) Pakistan (with President) Romania (with President Singapore (with President) Thailand (with Monarch) Trinidad and Tobago (with President) Turkey (with President) Ukraine (with President) United Arab Emirates (with Monarch and President) United Kingdom (with Monarch) References Government occupations

3599

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland

Greenland

Greenland is the world's largest island. Greenland is an autonomous territory of the kingdom of Denmark. This large Arctic island is near Iceland to the east and Canada to the west. It has a population of only 50,000 people, limited by its cold climate. Most of the civilian population lives in the southern part of the island, on the coasts. The capital of Greenland is Nuuk. The island is democratic, with its own elections and a representative seat of government in Nuuk. It is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, a constitutional monarchy with Queen Margrethe II as head of state. The island's Thule Air Base is under Danish control, but is administered by the United States Air Force. The island is the least densely populated country in the world, with a density of 0.026 people per square kilometer. Antarctica is not counted because it is not an independent country and has no permanent inhabitants. The ice sheet that covers Greenland may hide three separate islands, which have been joined by glaciers since the last geologic ice age. In Greenland, there are no forests. In the south, at the coastal area, only some dwarf trees are found. History Greenland has been inhabited at intervals over at least the last 4,500 years by Arctic peoples. They came from what is now Canada. Norsemen settled the uninhabited southern part of Greenland beginning in the 10th century, having previously settled Iceland. Norsemen would later set sail from Greenland and Iceland with Leif Erikson. They were the first known Europeans to reach North America. They did so nearly 500 years before Columbus reached the Caribbean islands. Inuit peoples arrived in Greenland in the 13th century. Though under continuous influence of Norway and Norwegians, Greenland was not formally under the Norwegian crown until 1261. Their colonies declined after the Black Death in the late 1400s. Denmark–Norway, joined in alliance at the time, reclaimed sovereignty over the island in the 17th century. Greenland became Danish in 1814. Languages The island is populated mostly by Inuit and Scandinavians who speak Greenlandic, an Eskimo-Aleut language. Danish is also spoken by most people. The national anthem of Greenland is Nunarput utoqqarsuanngoravit. Greenlandic became the sole official language in June 2009. However, it is the dialect of western Greenland, leaving other dialects to become less used and endangered. Danish is used in practice by professional people and by many of the Inuit population. English is taught in schools from the first year onwards. Administrative divisions Until 2009, there were 20 communes in Greenland. Unless stated otherwise, they are in the district Kitaa: Nanortalik Qaqortoq Narsaq Ivittuut Paamiut Nuuk Maniitsoq Sisimiut Kangaatsiaq Aasiaat Qasigiannguit Ilulissat Qeqertarsuaq Uummannaq Upernavik Ammassalik (District Tunu) Ittoqqortoormiit (District Tunu) Qaanaaq (District Avannaa). This changed on January 1st, 2009, when these were merged into four large communes: Kommune Kujalleq (7.755 inhabitants) Qaasuitsup Kommunia (17.867) Qeqqata Kommunia (9.627) und Kommuneqarfik Sermersooq (20.998). In addition, some parts of Greenland are outside a commune, namely: Northeast Greenland National Park Thule Air Base As of January 1st, 2008, 218 people lived there. Landscape The island has many mountains. All of the cities are on the coast, because everywhere else is covered by a big layer of ice. The major cities are Nuuk, Sisimiut, Ilulissat, and Qaqortoq. Related pages List of towns in Greenland Notes References Other websites Greenland Homerule - Official site Images of Greenland Arctic islands

3600

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet%20Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union (short for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or USSR) was a single-party Marxist–Leninist state. It existed for 68 years, from 1922 until 1991, a few days before its 69th anniversary. It was the first country to declare itself socialist and build towards a communist society. It was a union of 14 Soviet socialist republics and one Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR). The Soviet Union was created about five years after the Russian Revolution. It was announced after Vladimir Lenin overthrew Alexander Kerensky as Russian leader. The communist government developed industry and over time became a major, powerful union. The largest country in the Union was Russia, Kazakhstan was the second, and Ukraine the third largest. The capital city of the Soviet Union was Moscow. The Soviet Union expanded its political control greatly after World War II. It took over the whole of Eastern Europe. Those countries were not made part of the Soviet Union, but they were controlled by the Soviet Union indirectly. These countries, like Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and East Germany, were called satellite states. The top-level committee which made the laws was the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. In practice, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the leader and most important decision-maker in their system of government. Although the constitution said the Republics could leave the Union if they wanted, it was a completely centralized government, with no states' rights for the member countries. The Union was formed with the idea to give everyone equal social and economic rights (equality). There was virtually no private property—everything belonged to the state (public property was an idea discussed by Karl Marx, and formed the basis for socialism) 'Soviets', or workers' councils, were created by the working class to lead the socialist state democratically, but they soon lost power with the rise of Stalinism. The Union was successful in many fields, putting the first man, first woman, and first satellite into space, defeating Hitler's Nazi Germany and winning World War II, together with the United States and United Kingdom, helping build infrastructure, as well as schools and hospitals in many third-world countries. However, its centralized government found innovation and change difficult to handle. The Union collapsed in 1991, partly due to the efforts at reform by its leader, Mikhail Gorbachev. Holidays Republics of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union consisted of 15 republics. These were either Soviet Socialist Republics, or Soviet Socialist Federal Republics. Each republic was independent and handled its own cultural affairs. Each also had the right to leave the union, which they did in 1991. The Federal Republics were different in that they had more autonomy, and were made up of states themselves. These were often called Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics. There were a number of them. Most of them still exist; though they are now republics, within the independent state. The Tatar ASSR turned into the Republic of Tatarstan, for example (It is located around Kazan). Soviet Republics Armenian SSR (Soviet Socialist Republic) Azerbaijan SSR Byelorussian SSR Estonian SSR Georgian SSR Kazakh SSR Kyrgyz SSR Latvian SSR Lithuanian SSR Moldavian SSR Russian SFSR (Soviet Federal Socialist Republic) Tajik SSR Turkmen SSR Ukrainian SSR Uzbek SSR Karelo-Finnish SSR(1940-1956) Independent Countries Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Estonia Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Latvia Lithuania Moldova Russia Tajikistan Turkmenistan Ukraine Uzbekistan N/A (Karelia is a republic of Russia) Geography, climate and environment The Soviet Union at its largest size in 1991, with , was the world's biggest country. Covering a sixth of the world's land, its total size was comparable to North America's. The western part (in Europe) accounted for a quarter of the country's area, and was the country's cultural and economic center. The eastern part (in Asia) extended to the Pacific Ocean to the east and Afghanistan to the south, and was much less lived in than the western part. It was over across (11 time zones) and almost north to south. Its five climatic (different weather, temperature, humidity and atmospheric pressure) zones were tundra, taiga, steppes, desert, and mountains. The Soviet Union had the world's longest border, measuring over in 1991. Two thirds of the Soviet border was coastline of the Arctic Ocean. Across the Bering Strait was the United States. The Soviet Union bordered Afghanistan, China, Czechoslovakia, Finland, Hungary, Iran, Mongolia, North Korea, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Turkey at the end of WWII. The Soviet Union's (and now Russia's) longest rivers are the Yenisey, Ob/Irtysh, Amur and Lena. The Soviet Union's highest mountain was Communism Peak (today it is called the Ismoil Somoni Peak) in Tajikistan measured at . The world's largest lake, the Caspian Sea, was mostly in the Soviet Union. as well as the world's deepest lake, Lake Baikal. History The last Russian Tsar (emperor), Nicholas II, ruled Russia until March 1917, when the Russian Empire was taken over and a short-lived "provisional government" replaced it, led by Alexander Kerensky and soon to be overthrown in November by Bolsheviks. From 1917 to 1922, the country that came before the Soviet Union was the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR), which was its own country, as were other Soviet republics at the time. The Soviet Union was officially created in December 1922 as the union of the Russian (also known as Bolshevist Russia), Ukrainian, Byelorussian, and Transcaucasian Soviet republics ruled by the communist Bolshevik parties. Revolution and the foundation Extreme government-changing activity in the Russian Empire began with the Decembrist Revolt of 1825, and although serfdom was removed in 1861, its removal was achieved on terms unfavorable to the peasants (poor agricultural workers) and served to encourage changers (revolutionaries). A parliament (legislative assembly)—the State Duma—was created in 1906 after the Russian Revolution of 1905, but the Tsar suppressed people trying to move from absolute to constitutional monarchy. Rebellion continued and was aggravated during World War I by failure and food shortages in popular cities. A rebellion in Petrograd, in response to the wartime decay of Russia's economy and morale, caused the "February Revolution" and the removal of the government in March 1917. The tsarist autocracy was replaced by the Russian "Provisional government", whose leaders intended to have elections to Russian Constituent Assembly and to continue war on the side of the Entente in World War I. At the same time, workers' councils, known as Soviets, sprang up across the country. The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, pushed for socialist revolution in the Soviets and on the streets. In November 1917, during the "October Revolution", they took power from the Provisional Government. In December, the Bolsheviks signed an armistice (peace) with the Central Powers. In March, after more fighting, the Soviets quit the war for good and signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. In the long and bloody Russian Civil War, the new Soviet power won. The civil war between the Reds and the Whites started in 1917 and ended in 1923. It included the Siberian Intervention and other foreign interference, the killing of Nicholas II and his family and the famine in 1921, which killed about 5 million. In March 1921, during a related conflict with Poland, the Peace of Riga was signed and split disputed territories in Belarus and Ukraine between the Republic of Poland and Soviet Russia. The Soviet Union had to resolve similar conflicts with the newly established Republic of Finland, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Latvia, and the Republic of Lithuania, which had all escaped the empire during the civil war. Unification of the Soviet Republics On 28 December 1922, people from the Russian SFSR, the Transcaucasian SFSR, the Ukrainian SSR, and the Byelorussian SSR approved the Treaty of Creation of the USSR and the Declaration of the Creation of the USSR, creating the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. These two documents were made true by the 1st Congress of Soviets of the USSR and signed by heads of delegations. On 1 February 1924, the USSR was accepted as a country by the British Empire. Also in 1924, a Soviet Constitution (set of laws) was approved, making true the December 1922 union of the Russian SFSR, the Ukrainian SSR, the Belarusian SSR, and the Transcaucasian SFSR to form the "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics" (USSR). The big changes of the economy, industry, and politics of the country began in the early days of Soviet power in 1917. A large part of this was performed according to Bolshevik Initial Decrees, documents of the Soviet government, signed by Vladimir Lenin. One of the most important and notable breakthroughs was the GOELRO plan, that planned a major change of the Soviet economy based on total electrification of the country. The Plan was developed in 1920 and covered a 10- to 15-year period. It included the making of a network of 30 regional power stations, including ten large hydroelectric power plants, and numerous electric-powered large industrial organizations. The Plan became the prototype for subsequent Five-Year Plans and was basically fulfilled by 1931. The End Stalin's rule From its beginning years, government in the Soviet Union was ruled as a one-party state by the Communist Party (Bolsheviks). After the economic policy of War Communism during the Civil War, the Soviet government permitted some private enterprise to coexist with nationalized industry in the 1920s and total food requisition in the countryside was replaced by a food tax (see New Economic Policy). Soviet leaders argued that one-party rule was necessary because it ensured that 'capitalist exploitation' would not return to the Soviet Union and that the principles of Democratic Centralism would represent the people's will. Debate over the future of the economy provided the background for Soviet leaders to take more power in the years after Lenin's death in 1924. Initially, Lenin was to be replaced by a "troika" composed of Grigory Zinoviev of Ukraine, Lev Kamenev of Moscow, and Joseph Stalin of Georgia. Stalin led the country through World War II and into the Cold War. Gulag camps greatly expanded to take a lot of prisoners. After he died, Georgy Malenkov briefly continued his policies. Nikita Khrushchev reversed some of Stalin's policies,but Leonid Brezhnev and Alexei Kosygin kept things as they were. After the 1936 revised constitution, the Soviet Union stopped acting as a union of republics and more as a single super-country. Khrushchev era Stalin died on 5 March 1953. Nikita Khrushchev eventually won the following power struggle by the mid-1950s. In 1956, he denounced Stalin's repression and eased controls over party and society. This was known as de-Stalinization. Moscow considered Eastern Europe to be a very vital buffer zone for the forward defense of its western borders. For this reason, the USSR sought to strengthen its control of the region. It did this by transforming the Eastern European countries into satellite states, dependent upon and obedient to its leadership. Soviet military force was used to suppress anti-Stalinist uprisings in Hungary and Poland in 1956. During the Khrushchev’s power program of relocating every urban family to a separate apartment was started. There were built a lot of 5-floor buildings to live for 20 years. After Krushchev’s visit to the USA, corn became a very popular in the USSR. In the late 1950s, a confrontation with China regarding the USSR's policies led to the Sino–Soviet split. This resulted in a break throughout the global Marxist–Leninist movement. The governments in Albania, Cambodia and Somalia chose to ally with China instead of the USSR. During this period of the late 1950s and early 1960s, the Soviet Union continued to make progress in the Space Race. It rivalled the United States. The USSR launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1 in 1957; a living dog named Laika in 1957; the first human being, Yuri Gagarin in 1961; the first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova in 1963; Alexei Leonov, the first person to walk in space in 1965; the first soft landing on the Moon by spacecraft Luna 9 in 1966; and the first Moon rovers, Lunokhod 1 and Lunokhod 2. Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Brezhnev led the Soviet Union from 1964 until his death in 1982. He came to power after he convinced the government to overthrow the then-leader Nikita Krushchev. Brezhnev's rule is often linked with the decline in Soviet economy and starting the chain of events that would lead to the union's eventual collapse. He had many self-awarded medals. He was awarded Hero of the Soviet Union (the highest honor) on three separate occasions. Brezhnev was succeeded by Yuri Andropov, who died a few years later. Andropov was succeeded by the frail and aging Konstantin Chernenko. Chernenko died a mere year after taking office. In 1980 the Soviet Union hosted the Summer Olympics with Brezhnev opening and closing the games. The games were heavily boycotted by the western nations, particularly the United States. During the closing ceremony, the flag of the City of Los Angeles was raised instead of the flag of the United States (to symbolise the next host city/nation) and the anthem of the Olympics was played instead of the anthem of the United States in response to the boycott. Brezhnev was the second longest serving Soviet leader after Stalin. The following is a list of leaders (General Secretary of the Communist Party) in order of their tenure and length of leadership: Vladimir Lenin 1922-1924 (2 years) Leon Trotsky 1924-1927 (3 years failed) Joseph Stalin 1924-1953 (29 years) Lavrenty Beria 1953 (failed March-June 1953) Vyacheslav Molotov 1953-1956 (3 years) Georgy Malenkov 1953-1955 (1 year and a half) Nikita Khrushchev 1953-1964 (11 years) Leonid Brezhnev 1964-1982 (18 years) Yuri Andropov 1982-1984 (2 years) Konstantin Chernenko 1984-1985 (1 year) Mikhail Gorbachev 1985-1991 (6 years) Khrushchev and Gorbachev are the only Soviet leaders to have not died whilst in office. Lenin, Stalin and Khrushchev are the only leaders who were not (de jure) head of state during their leaderships. Gorbachev's rule Mikhail Gorbachev was the Soviet Union's last leader. He was the only Soviet leader to have been born after the October revolution and was thus a product of the Soviet Union having grown up in it. He and US president Ronald Reagan signed a treaty to get rid of some nuclear weapons. Gorbachev started social and economic reforms that gave people freedom of speech; which allowed them to criticize the government and its policies. The ruling communist party lost its grip on the media and the people. Newspapers began printing the many failures that the Soviet Union had covered up and denied in its past. The Soviet Union's economy was lagging and the government was spending a lot of money on competing with the west. Dissolution By the 1980s the Soviet economy was suffering but it was stable. Gorbachev's new ideas had gotten out of hand and the communist party lost control. Boris Yeltsin was elected (democratically) the President of the Russian SFSR even though Gorbachev did not want him to come into power. Lithuania announced its independence from the Union and the Soviet government demanded it surrender its independence or it would send the Red Army to keep order. Gorbachev invented the idea of keeping the Soviet Union together with each republic being more independent but under the same leader. He wanted to call it the 'Union of Soviet Sovereign Republics' to keep the Russian initials as CCCP (USSR in English). A group of communist leaders, unhappy with Gorbachev's idea, tried to take over Moscow and stop the Soviet Union from collapsing. It only made people want independence more. Although he survived the attempted takeover, he lost all of his power outside of Moscow. Russia declared independence in December 1991. Later in the month, leaders of Russia, Byelorussia, and Ukraine signed a treaty called the Belavezha Agreement to dissolve the USSR, extremely angering Gorbachev. He had no choice but to accept the treaty and resigned on Christmas Day 1991. The Soviet Union's parliament (Supreme Soviet) made the Belavezha Agreement law, marking formally the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The next day, the Soviet flag was lowered from the Kremlin for the last time. Since 2013, the document that confirmed the dissolution of the Soviet Union has been missing. Sports Made on July 20th, 1924, in Moscow, Sovetsky Sport was the first sports newspaper of the Soviet Union. Culture The culture of the Soviet Union went through several stages during the USSR's existence. During the first 10 years following the revolution, there was freedom and artists tested several different styles to find a distinctive Soviet style of art. Lenin wanted art to be available to the Russian people. On the other hand, hundreds of smart people, writers, and artists were killed, and their work not being available to anyone, such as Nikolay Gumilyov who was shot, for conspiring against the Bolshevik regime, without proof. During Stalin's rule, the Soviet culture was described by the rise of the government-forced style of socialist realism, with all other trends being severely repressed, with rare exceptions, such as Mikhail Bulgakov's works. Many writers were put in prison and killed. Following the Khrushchev Thaw, censorship was removed. During this time, a different period of Soviet culture developed, described by public life and an intense focus on personal life. Bigger testing in art forms was again allowed, resulting in the creation of better, important work. Underground dissident literature, known as samizdat, was made during this late period. In architecture, the art or practice of designing and constructing buildings, the Khrushchev era mostly focused on functional design as opposed to the highly decorated style of Stalin's epoch. In music, in response to the increasing popularity of forms of popular music like jazz in the West, many jazz orchestras were permitted throughout the USSR, notably the Melodiya Ensemble, named after the principle record label in the USSR. In the second half of the 1980s, Gorbachev's policies of perestroika and glasnost significantly grew freedom of expression in the country in the media and the press. List Of Wars (From 1917-1923/1932-1945) Russian Revolution (1917-1923) Russian Civil War (1917-1923) Soviet-Ukrainian War (1917-1921) Polish–Soviet War (1918-1921) Soviet-Japanese Border Conflicts (1932-1939) Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) Winter War (1939-1940) World War 2 (1939-1945) Soviet Japanese War (1945) Wars In The Cold War (From 1946/1947-1976) First Indochina War (1946-1954) Second Chinese Civil War (1945-1949) Korean War (1950-1953) Egyptian Revolution Of 1952 East German Uprising Of 1953 Iranian coup d'etat (1953) Cuban Revolution (1953-1959) Vietnam War (1955-1975) Suez Crisis (1956) Hungarian Revolution (1956) U-2 Incident (1960) Congo Crisis (1961) Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) Cambodian Civil War (1967-1975) Warsaw Pact Invasion Of Czechoslovakia (1968) Sino-Soviet split (1956-1966) Indonesian Invasion Of East Timor (1975-1976) End Of The Cold War (1979-1989) Soviet–Afghan War (1979-1989) Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989) Collapse Of The Eastern Block (1989-1991) Romanian Revolution (1989) History of the Soviet Union (1985-1991) List of Soviet Union-related topics References Former socialist republics 1922 establishments 1991 disestablishments in Europe States and territories disestablished in the 1990s

3601

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarch

Monarch

A monarch is the ruler of a monarchy. Monarchs usually get their power by inheritance – from one of their parents. When a ruler dies their child, or nearest relative, takes over. A male monarch is usually called a king or emperor. A female monarch is usually called a queen or empress. Monarchs were very common in history until the 20th century. Most European countries had monarchs in past centuries, but no longer have them. Some countries that still have monarchs have other leaders that actually have the power. Most monarchies are hereditary monarchies. Some countries elect their monarch instead of using inheritance, like the Holy Roman Empire and Malaysia. Some republics, such as the Dutch Republic or North Korea, had or have a hereditary ruler but do not call him a "monarch". Monarchs can also have monarchs of lower honour below them, e.g. an empire could include several kingdoms, and a kingdom had several duchies or principalities, nations would rarely include all titles, usually going from duchy to kingdom instead of duchy to principality to kingdom. Prince/princess means 'ruler of a principality' and/or 'son of a king/queen'. Some other languages have separate words for them. Monarchs by rank Related pages Coronation Divine right of kings References Other websites

3604

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit

Unit

Unit means part of something. It could mean a unit of measurement, or a unit in an army. Units sometimes means the digit in a number on the right, which is also called the "ones". Some other ideas come from this word: Unity is what is found when parts are joined into one. To unite is the act of joining parts together. For example, a football team may be called "X United". This means that the town of X has come together to support the group. In the BBC TV series Doctor Who, UNIT (UNified Intelligence Taskforce) is a military group on earth who battle invading aliens. Basic English 850 words

3607

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncle

Uncle

An uncle is a name used in an extended family. An uncle is either a brother of one of someone's parents. That person is the uncle's nephew (male) or niece (female). An uncle's child is a cousin. A granduncle (also written as great-uncle or grand-uncle) is the brother of a grandparent. In some cultures an uncle is considered a close family member. Based on the old Chinese saying "the oldest son in the family is the father of the family" an uncle is often the head of a family. In many cultures no single word (such as uncle) describes both their parents' brothers. Instead there are words to describe a person's kinship to their mother's brother or a person's kinship to their father's brother. An uncle can also be someone not related by blood or marriage as in a term of endearment or respect. In this use uncle can also be part of a nickname such as Uncle Sam. Avunculus During the Middle Ages in western Europe, a maternal uncle played a particular role in the family. A young man was often closer to his maternal uncle (from or "little grandfather") than to his own father. Tacitus noted the Franks had very strong ties between a maternal uncle and his nephew. In Roman family relationships the avunculus had a responsibility to defend his nephews as well as his nieces. The maternal uncle relationship was an extension of the Roman kin system's strong brother-sister relationship. Variation of terms A maternal or paternal relative is one who is related through their mother or father, respectively. For example, a maternal uncle is a the subject's mother's brother.An in-law is a relationship that is not by blood, but instead by marriage. The in-law shares the in-law relationships of the spouses relatives. For example, an uncle in-law could be the husband of the subject's Aunt. Uncle: the brother of someone's parent. The child of subject's an Aunt or Uncle's is the subject's cousin. Half-uncle: the parent's half-brother. Double half-uncle: a person who is a half sibling of both of the subjects parents. Granduncle / great-uncle: the grandparent's brother. Great-granduncle / Great-great-uncle: the great-grandparent's full brother. Uncle-in-law: the aunt's husband or the spouse's uncle. Co-uncle-in-law: the spouse's aunt's husband. Related pages Nephew and niece References Family

3609

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information

Information

The word "information" is used in many different ways. Originally, it comes from a word that meant to give a form to something. Information is something that people can learn, know about, or understand. For example, a newspaper contains information about the world. This article contains information about "Information". Information in computer science People who use computers often use the words information and data in the same way. There are special fields of study called "information science", "information technology" (IT), and data science. In the 1970s and 1980s, some people gave a new, specific meaning to "information". At that time, the first computer databases were built. In computer science, data often means a kind of information that has not been checked. That means data has not been changed or fixed, and you may not be able to trust it. With the new meaning, information means data that has been checked and passed tests for what it must be. A person can trust that "information" is correct. Information can only be correct and good enough to trust if there are very good and complete ways to check the data (data checking, validation or verification) and decide it is good enough (acceptance process). A person must know rules were used to check the data or trust the person who checked the data. If a person cannot tell that this was done, the information still seems to be data for that person, so that person must check the data again, in that general view about data. The Information Age is a historic period. Other websites Theoretical computer science

3610

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airport

Airport

An airport is a place where airplanes can land or take off. Most airports in the world have only a long strip of level ground called a runway. Many airports have buildings which are used to hold airplanes and passengers. A building that holds passengers waiting for their planes or luggage is called a terminal. The sections between planes and the terminal are called "gates". Airports also have buildings called hangars to hold planes when they are not used. Some airports have buildings to control the airport, like a control tower which tells planes where to go. An international airport is a large airport that airplanes can use to fly to and from other countries. A domestic airport is an airport which is usually smaller and only has airplanes coming from different places in the same country. Most international airports have shops and restaurants for airplane passengers to use. An airport used by the military is often called an air force base or airbase. An aircraft carrier is a floating airbase. Safety Airports are made and operated for safety. Today, people must walk through a metal detector, a machine that can tell if metal goes through it. If it makes a noise, the officers will make that person take off all things on them that are metal. They also have X-ray machines that can look into luggage. If officers find items such as weapons, or anything that can be used to kill people, that item (and the person who has it) are taken away and possibly arrested. As well as this, passengers are not allowed to bring bottles or containers with over 100 ml of liquid onto the plane because they could be turned into bombs. Therefore, all water bottles must be emptied before entering the secured area. Related pages List of airports in Japan Other websites AirNav.com - complete list of U.S. airports, with detailed airport information flightwise.com - graphical airport finder via Google Maps ATCSCC Real-time Airport Status page - shows airport delay times for major U.S. airports (FAA) FlightCentral.net - complete list of U.S. airports with detailed airport information and integrated weather Department for Transport (United Kingdom) History of Aircraft Landing Aids SkyVector.com - Airspace and Airport information on Aeronautical Charts Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) Official Website View airports and weather in Google Maps and Google Earth Float Incorporated (developers of floating airports and Pneumatic Stabilized Platform (PSP))

3611

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice

Ice

Ice is the common name for frozen water. Other liquids, such as ammonia or methane or milk, could be called ice when they freeze but they are called 'milk ice', for instance, instead of just 'ice'. Liquid water becomes solid ice when it is very cold. The freezing point is 0° Celsius (32° Fahrenheit or 273 kelvin). Ice is commonly made in a home refrigerator or freezer. If water is put in a freezer and left for a while, the water gets very cold and will freeze solid, creating ice. Water can be placed into a copper (or other metal) container to cause it freeze into ice faster. Metals are good conductors of heat, so water can freeze faster than in a plastic ice tray. How ice is formed Unlike other liquids, water expands as it freezes to become ice; so ice floats on water because ice has less density than water. This is very unusual - just about every other liquid gets more dense as it cools; water ice, however, is an important exception. Liquid water expands by about 9% as it becomes ice - it takes up more space. This is because the water molecules are actually farther apart instead of being closer together. The molecules in an ice crystal are arranged in a way that makes it less dense than liquid water. If water in plumbing freezes, it can burst the water pipe. Water in glass bottles can make them explode when it freezes. Water freezing in rock cracks can expand enough to split hard rocks apart; this is an important geological weathering process that can wear down mountains and make rock into soil. When materials are cooled their molecules vibrate less and compact together. When most materials reach a temperature called the freezing point, the molecules form a crystalline solid - although some materials (like glass and tar) do not crystallise at all but form super stiff fluids, which seem to be solid. Only Helium will not freeze; all other substances will freeze if cold enough, but fluids like cooking oil, antifreeze, petrol (gasoline), nitrogen, etc. freeze at temperatures that most people don't experience. Salt water Salt water needs a lower temperature to freeze than pure water. The resulting ice contains much less salt than the salt water it came from. This fact has sometimes been used for desalination. Salty ice is not as strong as frozen pure water. Similarly spreading salt on ice melts it, if it's not too cold: the salt progressively eats into the ice, forming brine which does not freeze at that temperature. Geographical locations of ice Because ice floats, even large bodies of water that freeze, like some oceans, only form ice on the surface. Most lakes never freeze to the bottom. Even the coldest oceans, like the Arctic Ocean, only freeze on the top, leaving liquid ocean circulating below. Because of this the Earth's oceans are able to redistribute heat and the climate of the earth has less extremes of heat and cold than it would otherwise. If ice were to sink instead of float, the oceans would fill with ice from the bottom, would remain solid and only some of the top would melt. A solid ocean would not circulate heat. But because ice floats on the surface the water beneath can continue to circulate and the ice on the surface stays exposed and readily melts when the temperature rises. Big bodies of ice on land are called glaciers. Antarctica has the majority of the world's ice. Ice ages Climate change happens all the time. When it is very cold it is called an ice age. During ice ages very large areas of the earth are covered in ice, snow and glaciers. The causes of ice ages are complex, and not entirely known. Global warming is currently affecting the Earth's ice resources and its causes are also very complex. Dry ice There is also 'dry ice'; it is frozen carbon dioxide. Dry ice exposed to normal air gives off carbon dioxide gas that is odorless and colorless. The gas is so cold that when it mixes with air it cools the water vapour in the air to fog, which looks like a thick white smoke. It is often used in the theatre to make fake fog or smoke. Basic English 850 words Chemical compounds Water

3614

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travel

Travel

Travel is the activity of going from one place to another place. When a person makes the same trip every day to work or school, this type of traveling is usually called "commuting." Some people travel to other cities as part of their job. This is called "business travel." When many people travel to a distant place to stay, it is called "human migration". Some people travel on their vacation, to visit other towns, cities, or countries. This is tourism. These people stay overnight in hotels, hostels, motels, apartments or bed and breakfast. Some prefer camping. Through the centuries, modes of travel have changed. Some people (travel writers) write about travelling, as in autobiographies or journals. Some write guide books suggesting places to go. Types of travelling: Hiking Cruise ship vacations Pilgrimage Train journeys Hitch-hiking Driving Flight Famous travellers Marco Polo Ibn Battuta Related pages Human migration Other websites

3615

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNN

CNN

The Cable News Network (CNN) is an American cable news television channel. It was founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. The Cable News Network first aired on television on June 1, 1980. The Cable News Network's first newscast was anchored (hosted) by David Walker and his wife Lois Hart. In its first year CNN hired many political analysts, including Rowland Evans and Robert Novak. On January 1, 1982 CNN launched a 24-hour sister newscast channel with no talk shows or commentary shows called CNN2. CNN broadcasts programs from its headquarters at the CNN Center in Atlanta, or from the Deutsche Bank Center in New York City, or from studios in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. CNN is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, and the U.S. news channel is a part of the CNN Global. Shows The hosts of its opinion shows are Don Lemon, Chris Cuomo, Fredricka Whitfield, Erin Burnett, Brianna Keiler and Brooke Baldwin. CNN has been criticized by the right-wing Media Research Center for having a left-wing bias. According to that same Center, it is less to the left than the news divisions of ABC, NBC, and CBS. It has been criticized by Arabs for having a pro-American bias. Related pages Don Lemon Chris Cuomo Larry King Michael Smerconish Rowland Evans Robert Novak Ted Turner References Other websites CNN.com

3616

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leader

Leader

A leader is somebody whom people follow. A leader has authority. For people to accept a leader, his or her leadership must therefore be legitimate. Because people follow a leader, the leader can make people do things. A leader can therefore make people work together towards a common goal. An example of a leader is the head of government of a country. People within the government follow the leader, and citizens look to the head of government for inspiration and guidance. Sometimes, when a head of government lacks legitimacy, people will stop following him or her. The head of government is therefore no longer able to lead properly. This may result in a new election, or in worst case civil war. A group with no leader is called leaderless. References Other websites 'The Vision Thing': How Effective Leaders Cultivate and Co-ordinate Social Identity in Order to Promote Followership Leadership Qualities Politics de:Führung

3617

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackboard

Blackboard

A blackboard, also called a chalkboard, is a surface on which chalk is visible. It is used as a surface to write on. It is usually made up of wood or fiber. It is painted black to reflect the white chalks. Blackboards are often used to help in teaching in school. Blackboards are not used as much now but can be seen in some schools still. The chalk dust got everywhere, and some people are allergic to chalk dust. Now people use whiteboards: they can take modern felt-tip colour markers, and clean easily. Schoolteachers often use the chalkboard to display things at large. It also makes the learning cooperative between teachers and student. Chalkboards can be black or dark green, in which case they may be called blackboards and greenboards. Notes Learning Writing media

3620

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux

Linux

Linux or GNU/Linux is a Unix-like operating system (or family of) for computers. An operating system is a collection of the basic instructions that manage the electronic parts of the computer allowing running applications and programs. The Linux kernel (the basis of the operating system) is free software, meaning everyone has the freedom to use it, see how it works, change it, or share it. There is a lot of software for Linux and—like Linux itself—a lot of the software for Linux is free software. This is one reason why many people like to use Linux. The defining component of Linux is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel that Linus Torvalds developed, at first alone. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short). Distributions also include supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Popular Linux distributions include Debian, Fedora, and Ubuntu. Commercial distributions include Red Hat Enterprise Linux and SuSE Linux Enterprise Server. Desktop Linux distributions include a windowing system such as X11 or Wayland, and a desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE Plasma. Distributions intended for servers may omit graphics altogether, and include a solution stack such as LAMP. Because Linux can freely be copied, anyone may create a distribution for any purpose. Linux was originally developed for personal computers. Linux is the leading operating system (OS) on servers such as mainframe computers, and the only OS used on supercomputers (at least on the TOP500 list, since November 2017). It is used by around 2.3% of desktop computers. The Chromebook, which runs Chrome OS based on the Linux kernel, dominates the US K–12 education market and represents nearly 20% of sub-$300 notebook sales in the U.S. Linux also runs on embedded systems, which are devices whose operating system is typically built into the firmware and is highly tailored to the system; this includes mobile phones (especially smartphones), tablet computers, network routers, facility automation controls, televisions, digital video recorders, video game consoles and smartwatches. In fact, the Android operating system, a mobile operating system built on top of the Linux kernel, has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating systems. In March 2017, it was reported that there were more users on Android than on Microsoft Windows, which is not based on Linux. Linux is one of the most prominent examples of free and open-source software collaboration. The source code may be used, modified and distributed—commercially or non-commercially—by anyone under the terms of its respective licenses, such as the GNU General Public License. How Linux was made In the 1980s, many people liked to use an operating system called Unix. But because it restricted the user from sharing and improving the system, some people made a new operating system that would work like Unix but which anybody could share or improve. MINIX, similar to Unix, was used as a teaching tool for university students to learn how operating systems worked. MINIX also restricted its sharing and improvement by its users. A group of people called the GNU Project wrote different parts of a new operating system called G.N.U., but it did not have all the parts an operating system needs to work. In 1991 Linus Torvalds began to work on a replacement for MINIX that would be free to use, and which would not cost anything. Linus started the project when he was attending the University of Helsinki. This eventually became the Linux kernel. Linus Torvalds shared the Linux kernel on some internet groups for MINIX users. Linus first called the operating system "Freax". The name Freax came from joining up the English words "free" and "freak", and adding an X to the name because Unix has an X in its name. Ari Lemmke, who worked with Linus at the university, was responsible for the servers that Freax was stored on. Ari did not think Freax was a good name, so he called the project "Linux" without asking Linus. Later, Linus agreed that Linux was a better name for his project. Linux relied on software code from MINIX at first. But, with code from the G.N.U. system available for free, he decided it would be good for Linux if it could use that code, instead of code from MINIX, because MINIX did not let people share or change it how they wanted. The G.N.U. General Public License is a software license that lets people change any part of the code they want to, as long as they share any changes they make with the people they give their software to and allow them to redistribute it for free or for a price . The software from G.N.U. was all licensed under the G.N.U. General Public License, so Linus and the other people who worked on Linux could use it too. To make the Linux kernel suitable for use with the code from the G.N.U. Project, Linus Torvalds started a switch from his original license (which did not allow people to sell it) to the G.N.U. GPL. Linux and G.N.U. developers worked together to integrate G.N.U. code with Linux to make a free operating system. Since 1991, thousands of programmers and companies have worked to make Linux better including Google. Tux the penguin The mascot of Linux is a cartoon penguin named "Tux". When a person sees the penguin on software and hardware, it means that it will work with Linux, and sometimes all systems that are like Unix. The idea of the penguin came from the creator of Linux, Linus Torvalds. The image was made by a man named Larry Ewing in a competition to create a logo. The image, Tux, did not win, but it was picked as a mascot later. Tux has now become a symbol for Linux, and sometimes even for open source. He can be seen in many different places and often, when people refer to Linux, they often think about Tux. Tux has even been included in many video games, such as Super Tux (parody of Super Mario Bros.), Tux Racer (where players race Tux down an icy hill) and Pingus (like Lemmings). Uses Desktop use Although there are only a few Linux versions for some Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows programs in areas like desktop publishing and professional audio and video there are programs that are comparatively similar in quality compared to those available for Mac and Windows. Many free software programs that are popular on Windows, such as Pidgin, Mozilla Firefox, LibreOffice, Chromium, VLC and GIMP, are available for Linux. A growing amount of proprietary desktop software can also be used under Linux, such as Steam, Spotify and Skype. CrossOver is a proprietary solution based on the open source Wine project that supports running Windows applications such as Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop under Linux. Servers and supercomputers Linux has mainly been used as a server operating system, and has risen to be known by a lot of people in that area; Netcraft reported in February 2008 that five of the ten best internet hosting companies run Linux on their web servers. This is because of its stability and uptime, and the fact that desktop software with a graphical user interface for servers is often unneeded. Linux is commonly used as an operating system for supercomputers. As of November 2017, all of the top 500 fastest supercomputers run Linux. Pronunciation In 1992, Torvalds explained how he pronounces the word Linux: Torvalds has made available an audio sample which indicates his own pronunciation, in English and Swedish. Some English speakers pronounce the name as lee-narks or lee-nix or lie-nix. According to Torvalds, that is incorrect pronunciation. Code size A 2001 study of Red Hat Linux 7.1 found this distribution had 30 million lines of code. The study showed that Red Hat 7.1 required about 8,000 years of time to develop. The study also said that if all this software had been made by proprietary means, it would have cost about $1.08 billion to make in the United States. As of March 7, 2011, Linux kernel would cost about $3 billion. Version 3.10 of the Linux kernel, released in June 2013, has 15 million lines of code, while the version 4.1, released in June 2015, has grown to over 19.5 million lines of code by almost 14,000 programmers. Most of the code (around 71%) was written in the C programming language, and many other languages were used, including C++, assembly language, Perl, Python, Fortran, and various shell scripting languages. A little more than half of all lines of code were licensed under the GPL. Different Linux versions People who want to get Linux can download it from a website on the internet or buy it from a store. Sometimes books and magazines about Linux have a CD. or DVD. with Linux on it. Any certain version of Linux is called a "distribution", or "distro". A Linux version has the Linux kernel, G.N.U. software, and some extra programs that might not be a part of G.N.U. Different versions include different extra programs. The versions used by the most people include: Linux Mint Ubuntu Arch Linux CentOS Debian Fedora Gentoo Slackware openSUSE Mageia People might pay some money for a version, so they can have a CD-ROM or DVD and to help the company to make their versions better. Usually when someone pays, it is so the company will help the user after they install it, which is called "support". Software for Linux includes: The Kernel and the Shell. Apache allows users to run their own website. KDE and GNOME are desktop environments. LibreOffice is for office work. Mozilla Firefox is a web browser. GIMP, Inkscape and Blender help people work with pictures. Games such as Tux Racer. The GCC compiler. Licensing, trademark, and naming The Linux kernel and most GNU software are licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL). The GPL requires that anyone who distributes the Linux kernel must make the source code (and any modifications) available to the recipient under the same terms. In 1997, Linus Torvalds said, "Making Linux GPL'd was definitely the best thing I ever did". Other key components of a Linux system may use other licenses; many libraries use the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL), a type of the GPL that is less restricted, and the X Window System uses the MIT License. "Linux" is a trademark of Linus Torvalds. Related pages List of Linux distributions Notes References Linux Free software

3621

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open%20source

Open source

Open source is a software similar to free software, but is more related to business. It is different from other software because the source code is available to everyone. The source code is a set of instructions for the computer, written in a programming language. Anyone can see how the source code works and can change it if they want to make it work differently. The opposite of open source is closed source. Closed source software is not available to everyone. Open source has a lot in common with free software but each has its own focus and goals. Open source and free software have been around for decades. They became more popular with the Linux and BSD software communities. To protect the code, a special user license is used. The most common kinds of licence are the GPL, BSD and LGPL. Wikipedia uses open source too. The Open Source Movement is led by the Open Source Initiative. The open source movement became separate from the free software movement in 1998. Examples Computing GNU Octave R Scilab Document creation GNU Emacs LaTeX Beamer LibreOffice SATySFi Vim Companies making open source software Facebook Google Microsoft References Other websites Open Source Initiative Open Source Download Centre Software Free content

3622

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desktop%20environment

Desktop environment

In graphical user interfaces and consoles a desktop environment is a location on a personal computer that helps the user get around on the computer. The desktop itself is a place in the operating system used for short cuts to computer files and folders on the hard drive. Computer icons (small pictures) are used to represent files/folders. Clicking these icons will open or start a folder or program. The desktop is the area where the start menu is if the computer has a start menu. Usually the desktop is the main screen on the computer. If no programs or folders are open, the computer will display the desktop. The most common desktop environment on personal computers is the one given by Microsoft Windows; another common environment is the one given by Apple Mac OS X. Other mostly-used desktop environments for Unix-like operating systems using the X Window System are KDE, GNOME, Xfce. There are also other desktop environments, including : Aston, EDE, GEM, IRIX Interactive Desktop, Sun's Java Desktop System, Mezzo, Project Looking Glass, ROX Desktop, UDE, Xito, XFast. Examples of Desktop Environments Software Desktop Environments

3624

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenOffice

OpenOffice

Apache OpenOffice (formerly OpenOffice.org) is a free open source office suite. The free software project was formerly hosted by Sun Microsystems and then Oracle Corporation and is currently hosted by Apache. It is available for many different operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, Linux, OS X, FreeBSD and Solaris; and is meant to be an alternative to Microsoft Office. It supports Microsoft Office file formats as well as its own OpenDocument format. The ".org" part of the previous name OpenOffice.org is there because OpenOffice is already trademarked. It is often called "OOo" for short. OpenOffice is based on the older StarOffice software that was created by Sun Microsystems. Parts OpenOffice is a collection of applications that work together closely to provide the features expected from a modern office suite. Many of the parts are designed to be alternatives to those available in Microsoft Office. The parts available include: Other websites References Office suites

3625

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Download

Download

Download means getting information from another computer or server. The opposite of downloading is uploading, which is sending data to another computer. Usually we do not say "download" for a single web page (for example when you open this page on your computer). When we say we downloaded something, it is normally a bigger computer file, like data or a computer program. The word downloadable means the ability to get information or data from an owner for one's use. The source is expected to be authentic and have the right to send it. At the user's end, the downloaded information or data are to be used based on agreement notice. In the 21st century, it is very easy to download files or informations - legally or not - from the internet. Sideload As most non-technical users use the word download to talk about any data transfer, the word "sideload" is sometimes used for local to local transfers as distinct from distant ones. Computer networking Internet Technology Computer science

3628

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNOME

GNOME

GNOME is a computer desktop environment. It was designed for Linux, but many other operating systems can use it too. GNOME aims to provide an easy way to use a computer. GNOME is a free software project. It was made because people were questioning whether KDE is free. GNOME is part of the GNU project. Aims According to the GNOME website: The GNOME project puts heavy emphasis on simplicity, usability, and making things “just work” (see KISS principle). The other aims of the project are: Freedom—to create a desktop environment with readily-available source code for re-use under a free software license. Accessibility—to ensure the desktop can be used by anyone, regardless of technical skill or physical circumstances. Internationalization and localization—to make the desktop available in many languages. At the moment, GNOME is being translated to 161 languages. Developer-friendliness—to ensure ease of writing software that integrates smoothly with the desktop, and allow developers a free choice of programming language. Organization—to adhere to a regular release cycle and maintain a disciplined community structure. Support—to ensure backing from other institutions beyond the GNOME community. Applications GNOME has many applications written for it. Some of them include: Abiword - A word processor, used for writing documents Calculator - For doing maths Epiphany (software) - Internet browser Empathy - Internet messenger Ekiga - VoIP and video conferencing Eye of GNOME - View your picture files Gthumb - View your photos GIMP - Art and photo software Nautilus - File manager Totem - Play music and video Related pages Ubuntu Linux References Other websites The GNOME website News about GNOME Linux Desktop Environments

3632

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog

Dog

Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) are domesticated mammals, not natural wild animals. They were originally bred from wolves. They have been bred by humans for a long time and were the first animals ever to be domesticated. Remains dating to 30,000 years ago have been described as "Paleolithic dogs". Their status as dogs or wolves is unclear. Considerable morphological diversity existed among wolves in the Late Pleistocene. The dingo is also a dog, but many dingos have become wild animals again and live independently of humans in the range where they occur (parts of Australia). Today, some dogs are used as pets, and others are used to help humans do their work. They are popular pets because they are usually playful, friendly, loyal, and listen to humans. Thirty million dogs in the United States are registered as pets. Dogs eat both meat and vegetables, often mixed together and sold in stores as dog food. Dogs often have jobs, including police dogs, army dogs, assistance dogs, fire dogs, messenger dogs, hunting dogs, herding dogs, or rescue dogs. They are sometimes called "canines" from the Latin word for dog - canis. Sometimes people also use "dog" to describe other canids, such as wolves. A baby dog is called a pup or puppy. A dog is called a puppy until it is about one year old. Dogs are sometimes referred to as "man's best friend" because they are kept as domestic pets, are usually loyal, and like being around humans. Dogs like to be petted, but only when they can first see the petter's hand before petting; one should never pet a dog from behind. August 26 is National Dog Day. While March 26 is National Puppy Day. Appearance and behaviour Dogs have four legs and make a "bark," "woof," or "arf" sound. Dogs often chase cats, and most dogs will fetch a ball or stick. Dogs can smell and hear better than humans but cannot see well in color because they are color blind. Due to the anatomy of the eye, dogs can see better in dim light than humans. They also have a wider field of vision. Like wolves, wild dogs travel in groups called packs. Packs of dogs are ordered by rank, and dogs with low rank will submit to other dogs with a higher rank. The highest ranked dog is called the alpha male. A dog in a group helps and cares for others. Domesticated dogs often view their owner as the alpha male. Lifespan Different dog breeds have different lifespans. In general, smaller dogs live longer than bigger ones. The size and the breed of the dog change how long the dog lives, on average. Breeds such as the Dachshund usually live for fifteen years, Chihuahuas can reach age twenty. On the other hand, the Great Dane has an average lifespan of six to eight years; some Great Danes have lived for ten years. Origin of dogs All dogs are descended from wolves, by domestication and artificial selection. This is known because DNA genome analysis has been done to discover this. They have been bred by humans. The earliest known fossil of a domestic dog is from 31,700 years ago in Belgium. Dogs have lived with people for at least 30,000 years. In 2013, a study was published that showed that the skull and teeth of a canid, dated to 33,000 years ago, had characteristics closer to a dog than to a wolf, and the authors concluded that "this specimen may represent a dog in the very early stages of domestication, i.e., an "incipient" dog." The researchers suggest that it was a line that did not lead to modern dogs. Genetically, this material is closer to that of a modern dog than that of a wolf. Other signs of domestication are that sometimes, dogs were buried together with humans. Evidence of this is a tomb in Bonn, where a man of about 50 years of age, a woman of about 25 years of age, the remains of a dog, plus other artifacts were found. Radiocarbon dating showed that the human bones were between 13.300 and 14.000 years old. Dogs and humans Dogs are often called "man's best friend" because they fit in with human life. Man refers to humankind and not just guys (Old English). Dogs can serve people in many ways. For example, there are guard dogs, hunting dogs, herding dogs, guide dogs for blind people, and police dogs. There are also dogs that are trained to smell for diseases in the human body or to find bombs or illegal drugs. These dogs sometimes help police in airports or other areas. Sniffer dogs (usually beagles) are sometimes trained for this job. Dogs have even been sent by Russians into outer space, a few years before any human being. The first dog sent up was named Laika, but she died within a few hours. Dog breeds See also List of dog breeds. There are at least 800 breeds (kinds) of dogs. Dogs whose parents were the same breed will also be that breed: these dogs are called purebred or pure pedigree dogs. Dogs with parents from different breeds no longer belong to one breed: they are called mutts, mixed-breed dogs, hybrids, or mongrels. Some of the most popular breeds are sheepdogs, collies, poodles and retrievers. It is becoming popular to breed together two different breeds of dogs and call the new dog's breed a name that is a mixture of the parents' breeds' two names. A puppy with a poodle and a pomeranian as parents might be called a Pomapoo. Instead of being called mutts, these kinds of dogs are known as designer dog breeds. These dogs are normally used for prize shows and designer shows. They can be guide dogs. Photogallery Related pages The Puppy Bowl References

3635

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blindness

Blindness

Blindness is to not see anything. Some people are called blind, even though they can see a little bit. This is because they cannot see clearly, but only see unfocused shapes or colors. In modern countries, few young people are blind. In all the world, blindness is mostly caused by malnutrition and diseases of old people, like cataracts and trachoma. People can become blind because of diseases or accidents, but sometimes people are born blind. Legal blindness is defined as a level of visual acuity low enough to qualify for disability benefits and\or special accommodations. Legal blindness is also defined as being unable to be completely corrected by prescription glasses or contact lenses. Some people are color blind, which means they can see, but cannot tell certain colors apart. When people are blind they use such things as the alphabet in braille and guide dogs to do every day life things. Famous blind people have included Louis Braille, the inventor of the braille alphabet, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles and Helen Keller. Other websites Book on the history of blindness Royal National Institute for the Blind Scottish Sensory Centre Blind Net Guide Dogs for the Blind Association Disability Vision

3637

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic

Arctic

The Arctic is the area around the Earth's North Pole. The Arctic includes parts of Russia, Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Lapland and Svalbard as well as the Arctic Ocean. It is an ocean, mostly covered with ice. Most scientists call the area north of the treeline Arctic. Trees will not grow when the temperatures get too cold. The forests of the continents end in the far north or high up a mountain. The place where in the trees stop is called the tree line. The area north of the treeline is not an empty ice field. In fact, the only large ice-covered land is central Greenland, which is covered year-round by a continental glacier. The land of the Arctic is around the edges of the Arctic Circle and is usually covered with tundra. A tundra is a cold, almost treeless plain covered with moss and sedges (grasslike plants). Tundras get little rain or snow. However, they are very wet in the summer time because, three feet (1m) or so below the surface, the ground is always frozen. This permafrost is a layer of ice with the hardness of stone that keeps water from soaking into the earth beneath it. Permafrost can be thousands of feet thick. In the summer the ground on top thaws out when the sun shines and the snow that did fall melts. But the melted snow cannot drain into the ground; it just soaks the topsoil. There is no place for the water to go, except to form lakes and puddles on top of the ground until it freezes again or dries up. In the Arctic, during summer there are nights when the Sun never sets. This is because during summer there, the North Pole points toward the Sun. So, sometimes people call it the Land of the Midnight Sun. The word 'Arctic' comes from the Greek word αρκτος, meaning "bear". The North Pole aims at the stars called the Great Bear and the Little Bear. Plant life In some parts of the Arctic the ground is covered with bright-colored flowers during the short summer. These little plants have very short stems. They must stay close to the ground, because the earth is warmer than the biting winds that blow above it. Even some rocks have plants growing on them. These rock plants are called lichens. Lichens grows on bare rocks. Yellow reindeer moss is really a lichen. It grows slowly, but often grows over six inches (15 cm) tall. It is spongy and full of water. This plant is the summer food for reindeer. Trees are rare on the tundra. Only in the protected valleys or along the riverbanks are small trees able to grow. Rivers come into the Arctic from the warmer south. The places along their banks are a little bit warmer than the rest of the tundra, and trees can grow there. Otherwise only a few clusters of bushes grow sparingly. Berries are the only fruit that grows in the Arctic. Each summer the ice and snow melt, allowing the animals to find food and the plants to flower. The moisture from the snow stays near the top of the ground's surface. Plant roots can use it for their growth. Even so, in many places the soil is too poor for plant's growth. Less than half of the tundra has plants growing on it. Animal life The polar bear is the world's largest meat-eating land animal. Polar bears are well adapted to hunt seals out on the ice. They are excellent swimmers, and the coldest water does not bother them. They wait by breathing holes if they pick up the scent of a seal. They can also break through the ice at thin areas. Sometimes they can sneak up on a sleeping seal. They have a very strong sense of smell, which they use to find prey out on the ice. Polar bears get most of their food when there is pack ice. They must eat and store fat before the ice is gone: they cannot catch seals in open water. After mating, females dig themselves into a den of snow on land for the rest of the winter. There, they have their cubs, usually twins. Bears usually eat fish, birds' eggs, seaweed, and dead whales, but they would rather have a meal of seal or walrus. The Arctic fox often trails the bears onto the ice to eat their leftover food. The fox also eats rabbits, lemmings, and voles. The lemmings and voles are the rodents of the Arctic. The lemmings have very short tails. They live underground in summer. Because the top soil freezes in the winter, they cannot burrow underground then, so they live under the snow during the colder months. They eat plants and roots. In a year with plenty of food, millions of lemmings will be roaming the tundra. The owls and foxes have more food than they can eat. They have more young in years when there are many lemmings. However, the tundra does not have enough food for millions of lemmings. They rush across the tundra looking for food, and are eaten by predators or starve to death. Some try to swim across lakes or rivers and drown. The few that remain continue to have families. Caribou and their relative, the reindeer, also live in the Arctic. The caribou are now found mostly in North America, and they are larger than the reindeer. Large herds feed on the grass and lichens. When fall comes, they move south to winter feeding grounds. They dig through the snow with their sharp hoofs for food. Their hollow fur creates a cushion of air around them that helps them to stay warm. In the spring they return north to the summer pastures, where their calves are born. An hour or so after being born, the calves are able to follow the herd toward the Arctic Ocean. Most of the world's reindeer live in Europe and Asia. Some of these reindeer are not wild. They have been tamed by herdsmen who protect them from wolves and lead the migrations each spring and fall. Also, the musk ox, which looks like a shaggy buffalo, lives in the Arctic. In summer, many birds visit the Arctic, and most of them are water birds, such as geese, ducks, swans, loons, and Arctic terns. Flying in for the summer, they raise their young and return south for the winter. The snowy owl and the ptarmigan stay all year. The color of the snowy owl matches the snow. The ptarmigan's summer plumage changes to white when it gets colder. The smallest animals of the Arctic are the flies and the mosquitoes. Thick swarms bite both men and animals in the summer. The reindeer try to escape the mosquitoes by running to higher pastures, but the only real help comes with the snow and cold, when the swarms die off for another season. Human life One of the surprises of the Arctic is that many people live there. Some people have lived there for thousands of years. Eskimo and Lapp people lived in the Arctic long before electric heaters, snow-mobiles, and modern houses. The Lapps In an extremely northern part of Europe there is a place called Lapland. It is not a country, but parts of four countries. The people who lived there are called Lapps by outsiders. They call themselves Sami. The Lapps of these four countries lived there long before the countries of Northway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia were created. There were several kinds of Lapp people. Some lived by the ocean and lived mostly on fish. Another group lived along the warmer rivers. These people did a little farming, hunting, and fishing to live. But the best known of the Lapp people were the nomads who raised reindeer. The Lapps survived in their harsh homeland by domesticating the reindeer. The Lapps were able to get everything they needed from the deer. They ate mostly meat, milk, and cheese. Their clothes were made from reindeer skins and wool. Their tents were also made from deer skins. They are known for the beautifully decorated woollen clothing they made. The Lapps protected the herds, moving with them as they migrated from summer to winter pastures. They used trained reindeer to pull sleds carrying their supplies. During the winter, the herds moved south of the treeline. The Lapps would live nearby in homes made of logs or sod. The Lapps were very careful not to waste anything they got from the reindeer. Milk was taken from the reindeer to drink or make cheese. Meat was taken for food. The blood was frozen in chunks and used for soup and pancakes. Knives and belt buckles were carved from the bones and antlers. The sinews were used as sewing thread. Cleaned-out stomachs were used to carry milk or cheese. Every part of a dead reindeer was used. Winter clothing was made from layers of deer skin. The inside layer would be worn with the fur facing in toward the person's skin. The second layer was worn with the fur facing out. Boots were also made of fur, lined with grass that had been gathered during the short summer. Every evening the grass would be taken out and dried by the fire, so it would be ready to use again the next day. Thus, a Lapp could be warm and comfortable in even the coldest weather. Today only a few of the Lapp people still follow the herds. Those few use modern tools on their ancient migration. They use snowmobiles to herd the reindeer and rifles to kill the wolves that chase them. Even helicopters and radios are used to locate and move the reindeer. Most of the Lapp people now live on small farms in one of the four nations of Lapland. They raise crops and animals, including a few reindeer, to meet their needs. The sale of reindeer meat is an important source of income for the Lapp people. Eskimos Eskimos are Arctic people, too. They sometimes ate raw meat. Eskimos were also nomads, but they did not have any animals except for dogs, which they used for pulling their sleds and helping them hunt. They were hunters and gatherers, and they lived off on whatever they found or killed. Like the Lapps, though, they were very careful to make good use of every part of the animals they killed. Eskimos lived in tents during the summer, and sod houses or igloos in the winter. The Eskimos made very clever things from the bones, antlers, and wood they had. They built different kinds of boats. Eskimos did not have a government or laws. They learned early in life to help each other to survive. Always sharing food, they usually moved around in small groups looking for food. Sometimes they'd get together in a large group when they hunted big animals such as whales. The men did the hunting and building the homes, and the women cooked, made the clothes, and took care of the children. The Arctic today The Arctic region has many minerals that are important to people. Iron, lead, coal, copper, gold, and tin are all mined in different parts of this cold land. Large amounts of petroleum have been discovered in the Arctic in Russia, Alaska, and Canada. People live and work in the Arctic to remove these valuable minerals and sell them. The oil in Alaska, for example, is very important to the United States. The main source is the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field on Alaska's north coast. It was discovered in 1968. Plans were quickly made to build a pipeline to bring the oil to an ice-free port so it could be shipped south. Oil companies spent billions of dollars to build the Trans-Alaska Pipeline in the mid-1970s. It had to be built above the ground in the northern section because of the permafrost. The warm oil in the pipes could have melted the permafrost and caused the ground to sink. That would have broken the pipes and caused an oil spill. The pipeline was completed in 1977. It brings oil to the seaport of Valdez on Alaska's south coast. From there the oil is taken by huge tankers to refineries along the west coast of the United States. If you live in western America, your family car may have Alaskan gasoline in its tank. Russia has more land in the Arctic than any other nation. The Russian Arctic in Asia and the area just south of it are called Siberia. It is such an empty, harsh place that it has been used as a penal colony for many years. The old Russian rulers and the modern communist Soviets would send criminals and people who disagreed with the government to live there. However, many people were also sent there to remove minerals, harvest trees from forests, and build cities. Russia has a huge port city right in Lapland, within the Arctic Circle. Murmansk is the largest city north of the Arctic Circle. The port is kept ice-free by the warm waters of the Gulf Stream coming up around Norway and Sweden from the South Atlantic. Huge icebreakers work to keep a path open so ships can reach the port. The port ships out fish, minerals, and lumber to Russia and the rest of the world. The Arctic is also the shortest way (Great circle route) for airlines to fly between some cities on different continents. The flight from London to Tokyo, for example, is 1,400 miles shorter if flown across the top of the world instead of the old route south across Europe and Asia. The polar route from San Francisco to Norway is several hours shorter than the same flight going across the United States and the Pacific Ocean. Thus, man is making use of the Arctic in various ways even though it is a hard place to live. References

3639

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sin

Sin

A sin is a bad act. Particularly, it is a bad act against another person(s), an animal, a spirit, or a god. In Abrahamic religions, such as Christianity and Judaism, it is an act that goes against what God wants. It turns people away from God and true happiness. In Exodus chapter 20, Moses was given the Ten Commandments by God, explaining important sins like murder and idolatry. This is not believed by all people, and not all societies have the same idea of sin. There is a difference between sins and prohibitions. For example, Muslims and Jews say that it is wrong to eat pork, and Hindus do not eat beef. That is for them, but for others it is not wrong to eat these things. Related pages Seven deadly sins Religious terminology Religious ethics

3640

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer

Summer

Summer is one of the four seasons. It is the hottest season of the year. In some places, summer is the wettest season (with the most rain), and in other places, it is a dry season. Four seasons are found in areas which are not too hot or too cold. Summer happens to the north and south sides of the Earth at opposite times of the year. In the north part of the world, summer takes place between the months of June and September, and in the south part of the world, it takes place between December and March. This is because when the north part of the Earth points towards the Sun, the south part points away. Many people in rich countries travel in summer, to seaside resorts, beaches, camps or picnics. In some countries, they celebrate things in the summer as well as enjoying cool drinks. Other countries get snow in the summer just like winter. Summer is usually known as the hottest season. Seasons

3641

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Month

Month

A month is an amount of time used with calendars. It is about 1/12th of a year. It is a little longer than a natural synodic orbital period of the moon, ca. 29.5 days. Lunar calendars use the natural synodic month. For some purposes astronomers use the sidereal month of 27.3 days. Other calendars, called "solar calendars", ignore the moon, and depend entirely on the Sun — for example, the Gregorian calendar of 365 or 366 days (12 months) used in much of the world today. Basic English 850 words Units of time

3658

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province in western Canada. It is bounded by the provinces of British Columbia on the west, Saskatchewan on the east, the US state of Montana on the south and the Northwest Territories to the North. Alberta is the fourth largest Canadian province with an area of . Alberta has around 4,067,175 living there, making it the fourth most populous province in Canada. The capital of Alberta is Edmonton lying near the middle of Alberta. The city of Calgary, Alberta’s other major centre is located about 300 kilometres to the south of Edmonton. History Canada became a country in 1867. It was much smaller than it is now, and did not include the parts of the country to the west. From 1670 to 1870, parts of Alberta were included in "Rupert's Land," land owned by the Hudson’s Bay Company in support of it’s trading monopoly over a vast area of Canada and parts of the United States. Northern part of Alberta was part of the what was then called "Northwestern Territories." Alberta was made a province of Canada in 1905, at the same time as Saskatchewan. The Aboriginal peoples of Canada are referred to as First Nations or by the Name of their Nation. Mixed (European/Aboriginal) People are called Metis. Weather Alberta is very cold in the winter and has a lot of snow during the very cold season. There is a dry part of Alberta in the south. Work in Alberta Alberta has a huge amount of oil (in the Athabasca Oil Sands) and natural gas. There are also a lot of farms in Alberta. Farmers grow several different types of crops Farmers mainly grow wheat. There are also a lot of cows on Alberta farms, and Alberta beef is exported. There is diesel fuel in Alberta. References Other websites Government of Alberta website Provincial Archives of Alberta website Travel Alberta Alberta Encyclopedia CBC Digital Archives—Striking Oil in Alberta CBC Digital Archives—Electing Dynasties: Alberta Campaigns 1935 to 2001 CBC Digital Archives—Alberta @ 100 References 1905 establishments in North America 1900s establishments in Canada Provinces and territories of Canada

3659

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronics

Electronics

Electronics is the study of electricity (the flow of electrons) and how to use that to build things like computers. It uses circuits that are made with parts called components and connecting wires to do useful things. The science behind Electronics comes from the study of physics and gets applied in real-life ways through the field of electrical engineering. Many people can name several simple electronic components, such as transistors, fuses, circuit breakers, batteries, motors, transformers, LEDs and bulbs, but as the number of components starts to increase, it often helps to think in terms of smaller systems or blocks, which can be connected together to do something useful. One way of looking at an electronic system is to separate it into three parts: Inputs - Electrical or mechanical sensors, which take signals from the physical world (in the form of temperature, pressure, etc.) and convert them into electric current and voltage signals. Signal processing circuits - These consist of electronic components connected together to manipulate, interpret and transform the information contained in the signals. Outputs - Actuators or other devices that transform current and voltage signals back into human readable information. A television set, for example, has as its input a broadcast signal received from an antenna, or for cable television, a cable. Signal processing circuits inside the television set use the brightness, colour, and sound information contained in the received signal to control the television set's output devices. The display output device may be a cathode ray tube (CRT) or a plasma or liquid crystal display screen. The audio output device might be a magnetically driven audio speaker. The display output devices convert the signal processing circuits' brightness and colour information into the visible image displayed on a screen. The audio output device converts the processed sound information into sounds that can be heard by listeners. Analysis of a circuit/network involves knowing the input and the signal processing circuit, and finding out the output. Knowing the input and output and finding out or designing the signal processing part is called synthesis. History People started experimenting with electricity as early as 600 B.C.E, when Thales of Miletus discovered rubbing fur on amber would cause them to attract each other. Starting in the 1900s, devices used glass or metal vacuum tubes to control the flow of electricity. With these components a low power voltage can be used to change another. This revolutionized radio, and allowed other inventions. In the 1960s and early 1970s transistors and semiconductor began replacing vacuum tubes. Transistors can be made much smaller than vacuum tubes and they can work using less energy. At about the same time, integrated circuits (circuits that are integrated inside other circuits) became commonly used. Integrated circuits made it possible to reduce the number of parts needed to make electronic products and made the products much cheaper in general. Analog circuits Analog circuits are used for signals that have a range of amplitudes. In general, analog circuits measure or control the amplitude of signals. In the early days of electronics, all electronic devices used analog circuits. The frequency of the analog circuit is often measured or controlled in analog signal processing. Even though more digital circuits are now made, analog circuits will always be necessary since the world and its people work in analog ways. Radar Pulse circuits are used for signals that require rapid pulses of energy. For example, radar works by using pulse circuits to create and send high powered bursts of radio energy from radar transmitters. Radar antennas are used to send ("transmit") the high powered bursts in the direction the antenna is pointed. The radar transmitter's pulses or bursts of radio energy hit and bounce back (they are "reflected") from hard or big metallic objects. Hard objects are things like buildings, hills, and mountains. Big things made of metal include aircraft, bridges, or even objects in space, like satellites. The reflected radar energy is detected by radar pulse receivers which use both pulse and digital circuits together. The pulse and digital circuits in radar pulse receivers are used to show the location, distance, and speed of objects which have reflected the radar transmitter's high powered pulses. Digital circuits Digital circuits are used for signals that only turn on and off instead of often working at levels somewhere between on and off. Active components in digital circuits typically have one signal level when turned on, and another signal level when turned off. In general, in digital circuits a component is only switched on and off. Computers and electronic clocks are examples of electronic devices that are made up of mostly digital circuits. Basic blocks: Logic gates Flip-flops Multiplexer Binary adder Counters Arithmetic logic unit Floating point unit Complex devices: Microprocessors Microcontrollers Digital signal processors Related pages Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Electricity Other websites Tutorials and projects Wikibooks Electronics ROHM's Electronics Basics Maker Pro Electronics Projects All About Circuits Lessons in Electric Circuits Electronics Infoline Directory for electronics projects Electronics tutorials.com Williamson Labs' Electronics tutorial Ian Purdie's Electronics tutorial s Iguana Labs' Electronics Tutorials and Kits Electronic Meanings and Acronyms Lessons in Electric Circuits - A free series of textbooks on the subjects of electricity and electronics. Radio-Electronics.Com Free information and resources covering radio and electronics Electronic tutorials - Books and projects for self access learning Electronic MCQs - Find Best Objective Questions and Answers

3660

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scalar

Scalar

Scalars are simple numbers. They are used for measuring things. Many things can be measured, and the measure can be explained by only giving the number. Suppose we are measuring a rod. We could give the measured length as 2 metres or 3 cm—depending on the length of the rod under observation. Here, only the figure 2 or 3 along with the unit of measure is enough to transmit information about the rod. Other examples of scalars are: Unit of mass (Kilograms) Unit of measuring luminosity (Candela) Unit of length (Metres) In other words, mass is measured by scalars, just like distances are measured by scalars. In mathematics, scalars are distinguished from more complex mathematical objects such as vectors and matrices in that they consist of only one number. A scalar can also be multiplied to a vector or a matrix , resulting in the vector and the matrix , respectively. For vectors, scalar multiplication produces a new vector of different length in the same or opposite direction of the original vector. Related pages Dot product, a scalar quantity Scalar (physics) References Measurement Basic physics ideas

3661

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photon

Photon

Photons (from Greek φως, meaning light), in many atomic models in physics, are particles which transmit light. In other words, light is carried over space by photons. Photon is an elementary particle that is its own antiparticle. In quantum mechanics each photon has a characteristic quantum of energy that depends on frequency: A photon associated with light at a higher frequency will have more energy (and be associated with light at a shorter wavelength). Photons have a rest mass of 0 (zero). However, Einstein's theory of relativity says that they do have a certain amount of momentum. Before the photon got its name, Einstein revived the proposal that light is separate pieces of energy (particles). These particles came to be known as photons. A photon is usually given the symbol γ (gamma). Properties Photons are fundamental particles. Although they can be created and destroyed, their lifetime is infinite. In a vacuum, all photons move at the speed of light, c, which is equal to 299,792,458 meters (approximately 300,000 kilometers) per second. A photon has a given frequency, which determines its color. Radio technology makes great use of frequency. Beyond the visible range, frequency is less discussed, for example it is little used in distinguishing between X-Ray photons and infrared. Frequency is equivalent to the quantum energy of the photon, as related by the Planck constant equation, , where is the photon's energy, is the Plank constant, and is the frequency of the light associated with the photon. This frequency, , is typically measured in cycles per second, or equivalently, in Hz. The quantum energy of different photons is often used in cameras, and other machines that use visible and higher than visible radiation. This because these photons are energetic enough to ionize atoms. Another property of a photon is its wavelength. The frequency , wavelength , and speed of light are related by the equation, , where (lambda) is the wavelength, or length of the wave (typically measured in meters.) Another important property of a photon is its polarity. If you saw a giant photon coming straight at you, it could appear as a swath whipping vertically, horizontally, or somewhere in between. Polarized sunglasses stop photons swinging up and down from passing. This is how they reduce glare as light bouncing off of surfaces tend to fly that way. Liquid crystal displays also use polarity to control which light passes through. Some animals can see light polarization. Finally, a photon has a property called spin. Spin is related to light's circular polarization. Photon interactions with matter Light is often created or absorbed when an electron gains or loses energy. This energy can be in the form of heat, kinetic energy, or other form. For example, an incandescent light bulb uses heat. The increase of energy can push an electron up one level in a shell called a "valence". This makes it unstable, and like everything, it wants to be in the lowest energy state. (If being in the lowest energy state is confusing, pick up a pencil and drop it. Once on the ground, the pencil will be in a lower energy state). When the electron drops back down to a lower energy state, it needs to release the energy that hit it, and it must obey the conservation of energy (energy can neither be created nor destroyed). Electrons release this energy as photons, and at higher intensities, this photon can be seen as visible light. Photons and the electromagnetic force In particle physics, photons are responsible for electromagnetic force. Electromagnetism is an idea that combines electricity with magnetism. One common way that we experience electromagnetism in our daily lives is light, which is caused by electromagnetism. Electromagnetism is also responsible for charge, which is the reason that you can not push your hand through a table. Since photons are the force-carrying particle of electromagnetism, they are also gauge bosons. Some matter–called dark matter–is not believed to be affected by electromagnetism. This would mean that dark matter does not have a charge, and does not give off light. Related pages Particle physics Basic physics ideas Electromagnetism Light Elementary particles

3662

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vector

Vector

A vector is a mathematical object that has a size, called the magnitude, and a direction. It is often represented by boldface letters (such as , , ), or as a line segment from one point to another (as in ). For example, a vector would be used to show the distance and direction something moved in. When asking for directions, if one says "Walk one kilometer towards the North", that would be a vector, but if they say "Walk one kilometer", without showing a direction, then that would be a scalar. We usually draw vectors as arrows. The length of the arrow is proportional to the vector's magnitude. The direction in which the arrow points to is the vector's direction. Examples of vectors John walks north 20 meters. The direction "north" together with the distance "20 meters" is a vector. An apple falls down at 10 meters per second. The direction "down" combined with the speed "10 meters per second" is a vector. This kind of vector is also called velocity. Examples of scalars The distance between two places is 10 kilometers. This distance is not a vector because it does not contain a direction. The number of fruit in a box is not a vector. A person pointing is not a vector because there is only a direction. There is no magnitude (the distance from the person's finger to a building, for example). The length of an object. A car drives at 100 kilometers per hour. This does not describe a vector, as there is only a magnitude, but no direction. More examples of vectors Displacement is a vector. Displacement is the distance that something moves in a certain direction. A measure of distance alone is a scalar. Force that includes direction is a vector. Velocity is a vector, because it is a speed in a certain direction. Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity. An object is accelerating if it is changing speed or changing direction. How to add vectors Adding vectors on paper using the head to tail method The Head to Tail method of adding vectors is useful for doing an estimate on paper of the result of adding two vectors. To do it: Each vector is drawn as an arrow with an amount of length behind it, where each unit of length on the paper represents a certain magnitude of the vector. Draw the next vector, with the tail(end) of the second vector at the head(front) of the first vector. Repeat for all further vectors: Draw the tail of the next vector at head of the previous one. Draw a line from the tail of the first vector to the head of the last vector - that's the resultant(sum) of all the vectors. It's called the "Head to Tail" method, because each head from the previous vector leads in to the tail of the next one. Using component form Using the component form to add two vectors literally means adding the components of the vectors to create a new vector. For example, let a and b be two two-dimensional vectors. These vectors can be written in terms of their components. Suppose c is the sum of these two vectors, so that c = a + b. This means that . Here is an example of addition of two vectors, using their component forms: This method works for all vectors, not just two dimensional ones. How to multiply vectors Using the dot product The dot product is one method to multiply vectors. It produces a scalar. It uses component form: Using the cross product The cross product is another method to multiply vectors. Unlike dot product, it produces a vector. Using component form: Here, means the length of , and is the unit vector at right angles to both and . Multiplying by a scalar To multiply a vector by a scalar (a normal number), you multiply the number by each component of the vector: An example of this is Related pages Analytic geometry Null vector Unit vector Vector field Vector graphics Vector space Vector subspace References Basic physics ideas

3665

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soap%20bubble

Soap bubble

A soap bubble is a very thin film of soap water. Their shape is a hollow, round ball, or sphere. They have a colorful surface. Soap bubbles do not last very long. Sometimes they break in the air. When they touch something else, they usually break. When people talk about soap bubbles they think about them being pretty but short-lived. So, they are a symbol for other things that are pretty but short-lived or unimportant. Children enjoy playing with bubbles. Sometimes, adults enjoy seeing art done with soap bubbles. They get their colors from iridescence. Artists Tom Noddy, author of Bubble Magic, Keith Michael Johnson, Fan Yang, Louis Pearl, Reinhold Leppert, Craig Glenday, John Erck. References Water

3667

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire%20Brigades%20Union

Fire Brigades Union

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is the main union for firefighters in the United Kingdom. A union is a group of workers. They make the group to improve pay and working conditions. It was founded in 1918 in the London area as the Firemans Trade Union. It soon grew to cover the entire country. Today, it has around 50,000 members. Other websites FBU homepage Organisations based in London Unions Firefighting

3674

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle

Bicycle

A bicycle (or bike) is a small, human powered land vehicle with a seat, two wheels, two pedals, and a metal chain connected to cogs on the pedals and rear wheel. A frame gives the bike strength, and the other parts are attached to the frame. The name comes from these two words - the prefix "bi-" meaning two, and the suffix "-cycle" meaning wheel. It is powered by a person riding on top, who pushes the pedals around with his or her feet. Riding bicycles, which is also called cycling, is an important way to travel in several parts of the world. The most popular type of cycling is Utility cycling. It is also a common recreation, a good form of low-impact exercise, and a popular sport. Road bicycle racing is the second most popular spectator sport in the world. Bicycling uses less energy per mile than any other human transport. Invention In 1817 a German professor, Baron Karl von Drais, created the first two-wheeled bicycle. It was made of wood and had two wheels. The front wheel could be turned using the handlebars in order to steer the bike. However, it did not have pedals, so the rider would have to push their feet on the ground to make it move. In the 1860s, French inventors added pedals to the front wheel. However, it took a lot of effort to turn the pedals. Later inventors made bikes out of metal only, and made the front wheel very big, giving higher speed. This design was called the penny-farthing bicycle. However, it was difficult to ride, since it could fall easily and the rider would fall far. Several improvements were made in the 1880s and '90s. In 1885, the safety bicycle was invented. This had two wheels the same size so that the rider could sit at a lower height. It was called the safety bicycle because it much easier to ride than the penny-farthing. When stopping, the rider can simply put down a foot instead of completely dismounting. Instead of pedaling and steering with the front wheel, the safety bicycle steers with the front wheel while the pedals turn the back wheel using a chain. Brakes operated by hand levers on some bikes also increased safety. In 1888, Scottish inventor John Boyd Dunlop re-invented a type of tire which was filled with air. This made safety bicycles more comfortable. Soon, the freewheel was invented. This was a device inside the hub of the back wheel that allowed the wheel to spin even if the rider wasn't pedaling. However, this meant the rider could no longer stop the bike by backpedaling. As a result, better hand brakes were invented, and a different type of brake which could stop the bike if the pedals were turned backwards. Later inventions included better brakes, and gears which made cycling over hills much easier. During this time the bicycle became very popular. Basic Design Basic components common to most bikes include a seat, pedals, gearing, handlebar, wheels, and brakes, all mounted on a frame. The majority also have a gear shifter. The cyclist's feet push the pedals to make them go around in circles, which moves the chain, which turns the back wheel of the bike to make the bike move forwards. The front wheel is connected to the handlebar, so turning the handlebar from side to side swivels the front wheel which steers the bike. Types of Bicycles The city bicycle is made for errands and commuting in cities. It has a comfortable seat but is heavy. It has front and back lights and a bell, and carriers for small cargoes. It has mudguards to keep water and mud from spraying the rider. The rider sits upright for comfort and easy steering in traffic. "Bike share" systems usually provide " city-style bikes". The mountain bicycle is used for riding on rough roads. They have many speeds (usually more than 20), wide tires, and strong wheels. The tire is specially designed to ride smoothly on hills, grass, and mountains. The difference between a woman's bicycle and other bicycles is the location of the top tube. When women began to ride bikes, they wore long skirts. The manufacturers of bicycles changed the location of the top tube to make it easier for women to sit down on them while wearing a skirt. Some utility bicycles are similar, for riders who make frequent stops. The tandem bicycle is made for two people. It has two pairs of pedals. The cyclists sit one behind another. The first cyclist steers the bicycle. There are bicycles for three and more people. There was a bicycle for 40 people. Folding bicycles can easily be stored in a small place or carried a long distance on an airplane or other public transport. Electric Bicycles have electric motors, usually inside the hub of either the front or rear wheel. You can choose to ride using the motor only, or with pedals only or with both together. In the U.S. the federal government has set a limit of 750 Watts and a top electric-powered speed of 20MPH to have only the rules that apply to bicycles and no extra restrictions such as operator license, vehicle license, registration or insurance requirements. A road bicycle usually has narrow wheels, less than 1" (25 mm) wide, with a frame that is much lighter than a mountain bicycle. Road bikes are efficient for longer distances. Many have clips to attach your shoes, rather than just pedals. There are variations, as some road bicycles have regular tires. Road bicycle racing is a popular sport. Recumbent bicycles come in several styles, but all of them have pedals in front of the seat, and the rider leans back while riding. This is more comfortable for most people, but cost more. Some types are lower to the ground, so it might be harder to see in traffic. The fastest bikes in the world are recumbents. Safety Many thousands of people are hurt every year in bicycle accidents, and hundreds die. Careful riding helps prevent accidents. When riding on streets, it is safest to ride on the same side of the street that cars drive (which would mean riding on the right side of the road in countries where people drive on the right side of the road, and riding on the left in countries where people drive on the left). To avoid hitting people, riders must obey signs that say "no bicycling", even if it does not seem to make sense at the time. Low light makes bicycle lighting important. It may not be safe to ride when it is dark. Riders wear reflective clothing to be safer in low light. Wearing a helmet makes bicycle riding safer. Wearing a helmet does not mean that somebody cannot be hurt if they crash their bicycle, but it makes being hurt less likely. Some bicycles have bells or horns that the rider can use to warn other people that they are riding by them. Many places have a bicycle path linking houses with shops, schools and stations. These make bicycling safer, letting cyclists stay away from busy motor traffic on dangerous roads. Related pages World Bicycle Day Tour de France Unicycle Tricycle Tandem trike References Human-powered vehicles Cycling

3675

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheel

Wheel

A wheel is a disc or circle-shaped mechanical device. Its main purpose is to allow things to roll; in other words, the wheel spins, and object on the wheels moves more easily along the ground. It is a simple machine. The principle behind the wheel is that of mechanical advantage. Most land vehicles roll on wheels. Wheels are often used in pairs, connected by a rod of wood or metal known as an axle. The wheel and axle turn together. The part of the wheel that attaches to the axle is called the hub. The wheel with an axle is the basis of many machines, not just vehicles. The potter's wheel, the lathe and the windlass are examples. Many machines have wheels with teeth, known as gears. History Most experts believe that the ancient Mesopotamians invented the wheel about 4000 BC. People in Asia also discovered it on their own around 3500 BC. The Inca and Maya had wheels on children's toys around 1500 BC, but they did not use wheels for work. Africa south of the Sahara desert, Europe, and Australia did not have the wheel until people there met people from Europe. Early wheels were solid disks; the spoked wheel was invented around 2000 BC. The earliest documentation of a vehicle with wheels is a painting dated between 33503500 BC. Uses Today, wheels are used in cars, carts, airplanes, wheelchairs, bicycles, trains, and skateboards, in addition to many more devices. References Basic English 850 words Tools

3679

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physical%20exercise

Physical exercise

The word exercise means: Things to do to get some practical experience and skill in some activity. Repeatedly moving the human body to make it stronger or better at doing something. This is called physical exercise. Basic modes of physical exercises People do physical exercises as a part of their healthy lifestyle to get stronger and healthier or stay strong and healthy or to improve their body image. There are three basic modes of physical exercises: Flexibility exercises help the human body in general or its part in particular to be able to reach farther and bend better. Aerobic exercises help the body work hard for a long time. Anaerobic exercises, like lifting weights, make the arms and legs stronger. Exercises can be an important part of physical therapy, weight loss, or sports performance. Exercise can be fun, but it is important for the exerciser to do what he likes and eat enough calories , so when he exercises he is building up muscles, not just breaking them down for fuel. Carbohydrates are muscle-sparing; and if one does not get enough calories overall, there is the risk of burning muscles up with the fat to make up the deficit. Exercise benefits Benefits of exercise for all ages have been known since antiquity. Marcus Cicero, around 65 BC, stated: “It is exercise alone that supports the spirits, and keeps the mind in vigor.” The CDC recommends that adults should get 150 minutes of physical activity weekly. Regular exercise has been shown to help high blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and depression, among others. Exercise also helps people feel less tired. Regular exercise can have a profoundly positive impact on depression, anxiety, and ADHD. It also relieves stress, improves memory, helps sleep better, and boosts overall mood. Studies show that exercise can treat mild to moderate depression as effectively as antidepressant medication but without the side-effects, of course. Types of physical exercises aerobics bodybuilding running squat sport stretching walking weight training References Fitness

3680

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percentage

Percentage

Percent means out of one hundred. It is often shown with the symbol "%". It is used even if there are not a hundred items. The number is then scaled so it can be compared to one hundred. Percent is also used to indicate changes in numerical quantities. For example, we have a bowl of fruit with three apples and one orange. The percentage of apples is 3 out of 4, or 3/4 = 75/100 = 75%. A percentage is only one way of writing a ratio; one can also write it as a fraction or decimal. There are ways to convert fractions to percentages or decimals to percentages. Uses Percentages are useful in practice, because it allows one to compare things that are not out of the same number. For example, exam marks are often percentages, which can compare them even if there are more questions on one exam paper than the other. Related pages Annual percentage rate Percentile Per mille References Mathematics

3681

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Writing

Writing

Writing is the act of recording language on a visual medium using a set of symbols. The symbols must be known to others, so that the text may be read. A text may also use other visual systems, such as illustrations and decorations. These are not called writing, but may help the message work. Usually, all educated people in a country use the same writing system to record the same language. To be able to read and write is to be literate. Writing differs from speech because the readers need not be present at the time. We can read writing from long ago, and from different parts of the world. Text stores and communicates knowledge. Writing is one of the greatest inventions of the human species. It was invented after people settled in towns, and after agriculture started. Writing dates from about 3,300BC, which is over 5000 years ago, in the Middle East. Writing today is usually on paper, though there are ways to print on almost any surface. Television and movie screens can also display writing, and so can computer screens. Many writing materials were invented, long before paper. Clay, papyrus, wood, slate and parchment (prepared animal skins) have all been used. The Romans wrote on waxed tablets with a pointed stylus; this was popular for temporary notes and messages. The later invention of paper by the Chinese was a big step forward. Writing is traditionally done using a hand tool such as a pencil, a pen, or a brush. More and more, however, text is created by input on a computer keyboard. Definition of writing There are two schools of thought: Partial writing: Writing is any system of graphic symbols which conveys some thought. Full writing: Writing is any graphic system which can convey any and all thought.p5 Therefore, depending on an author's definition of writing, the term may be used in different ways. With many early systems we do not know what they do convey. The central idea is that a full writing system must be able to represent anything that might be said in spoken language.p7, 217 From this point of view the invention of the rebus is an essential step. We can only be sure a sign system is full writing if we can translate the symbols into a modern language. In the case of some ancient scripts we cannot do this. History of writing Writing was invented independently a number of times. The Sumerian, the ancient Egyptian, the Chinese and the Mayan writings are separate in their invention.p85 All these writing systems started with pictographs, symbols that stood for things. Then they developed a mixture of methods. Our own alphabetic system is different. It is based on the sounds of spoken language. All alphabets are modified versions of the first one, which originated with the Phoenicians and the Ancient Greeks. Sumer The Sumerians lived in Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. 5000 years ago this was a fertile region and is now mostly in Iraq. The Sumerians developed a form of writing called cuneiform. Triangular marks were pressed into soft clay tablets. After the clay had dried in the sun the tablets were baked. Then they were carried somewhere else for others to read. We know that its first uses were for trade, accounting and administration. The earliest signs were mostly pictorial, but soon they stood as symbols for objects, ideas and sounds. This writing system was extremely successful, and outlasted the Sumerian empire. It was then used by other civilisations in the Middle East, such as the Old Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Elamite, Hittite, Old Persian and Ugaritic empires. The last cuneiform inscription was dated as AD75. Thus the system had lasted for more than 3000 years.p71 Each version of cuneiform had to be deciphered separately, because all the languages were different. Documents (including stone objects) written in more than one language provided the clues. Ancient Egypt This is the most famous of the old forms of writing, or scripts. It was invented at roughly the same time as cuneiform, yet was quite different in style, and used different materials. Egyptians ended up with three writing systems for the same language. They were: 1. Hieroglyphic: the famous pictorial language on stone monuments. 2. Hieratic: a cursive ('running') script used by the priests. 3. Demotic: a cursive script used by the people. The writing tools used varied according to the material which was written on. The two cursive scripts were written with reed pens and carbon inks onto papyrus. If the material was cloth, then the writing was done by a brush. Many examples survive. The hieroglyphs were inscribed (carved) into stone (hammer & chisel) or painted onto stone surfaces. Many survive, some with the original colours intact. The key event in the decipherment of hieroglyphic writing was the discovery of the Rosetta Stone. This is a granite slab with the same message written in hieroglyphic, demotic and in Greek. Ancient Greek is well understood, and made possible the interpretation of the other two scripts. Chinese Chinese is the language with the largest number of native speakers. Its history dates back to about 1400BC.p183 The Chinese writing system is idio-syllabic, a mixed method using characters which may have one or more of these elements: 1. Pictographic: representing objects. 2. Visual logic: the number '3' is three horizontal strokes. 3. Complex logic: the sun is a box with a horizontal mid-stroke. 4. Rebus: "sounds like..." the character for wheat is also used for 'come' because the words are homophonous (sound alike). 5. Semantic-phonetic: combination of a character for meaning with another for sound (pronunciation). Chinese has a huge number of characters: in the region of 50,000.p186 Because of this, printing methods were never really successful in China, despite their early invention. In the 14th century Wang Tzhen had sixty thousand wood block characters cut, a huge investment in time and money. He printed 100 copies of a local gazette, and was author of a treatise on agriculture and other technical works. Even with printing machines from Europe in the 19th century, the process was hampered by the huge number of characters, which slowed the composition to a snail's pace. China has eight regional languages that are mutually unintelligible, and many true dialects. The system appears to work mainly because as many as 70% speak Mandarin. Fluency in Chinese reading and writing is undoubtedly difficult to achieve, and this must act as a brake on the drive for literacy. There have been a number of attempts to reform or simplify the system. The most radical in Pinyin, which is a program to replace Chinese characters with an alphabetic system. This was supported by Mao, but faltered after his death. Alphabets It seems that the idea of an alphabet–a script based entirely upon sound–arose only once, and has been copied and adapted to suit many different languages. Although no alphabet fits its language perfectly, it is flexible enough to fit any language approximately. It was a unique invention.p12 Our alphabet is called the Roman alphabet, as compared with the Cyrillic and other alphabets. All of these come from the ancient Greek alphabet, which dates back to about 1100 to 800BC.p167 The Greek alphabet was probably developed from the Phoenician script, which appeared somewhat earlier, and had some similar letter-shapes. The Phoenician language was a Semitic language, often called Canaanite. The Semitic group of languages includes Arabic, Maltese, Hebrew and also Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus. We do not know much about how the alphabetic idea arose, but the Phoenicians, a trading people, came up with letters which were adapted by the early Greeks to produce their alphabet. The one big difference is that the Phoenician script had no pure vowels. Arabic script has vowels which may be shown by diacritics (small marks above or below the line). The oldest Qu'ran manuscripts had no diacritics. Israeli children today use texts with vowel 'dots' added, to about the third grade.p89 No ancient script, alphabetic or not, had pure vowels before the Greeks. The Greek alphabet even has two vowels for 'e' and two for 'o', to distinguish between the long and short sounds. It is fairly clear from this that careful thought went into both the Phoenician invention and the Greek adaptation. However, no details survive of either process. Semitic scripts apparently derive from Proto-Sinaitic, a script of which only 31 inscriptions (plus 17 doubtful) are known. It is thought by some researchers that the original source of this script was the Egyptian hieratic script. By the late Middle Kingdom (about 1900BC) hieratic had added some alphabetic signs for representing the consonants of foreign names. Egyptian activity in Sinai was at its height at that time. A similar idea had been suggested many years before. Undeciphered scripts There are a number of scripts which have never been deciphered, despite much effort.p145 Perhaps the most famous are the script of the Indus Valley civilization, and Etruscan. The Indus River civilisation predates other literate civilisations on the Indian subcontinent, going back to about 2500BC. Their cities of Mohenjo-Daru and Harappa were well-planned, with good drainage. The script is found on seal stones, terracotta, bronze, bone and ivory. All are brief, and the language is unknown. The Etruscan language used Greek letter-forms, and is found mainly on Etruscan tombs, from Tuscany through to Venice. They were an empire before the Romans, who defeated them, and absorbed their ideas. All knowledge of their language was lost, except that some of the names on tomb memorials can be read from the Greek letters. Vinča symbols The Tărtăria tablets are three tablets discovered in 1961 in the village of Tărtăria (Hungarian: Alsótatárlaka). This is about from Alba Iulia in Romania. The tablets, dated to around 5300 BC, have symbols in clay: the "Vinča symbols". Some claim they are a yet undeciphered language. If this is so, they would be the earliest known form of writing. In 1908 similar symbols were found during excavations, by Miloje Vasić (1869–1956) in Vinča. This is a suburb of Belgrade (Serbia), some 300 km from Turdaș. Later, more were found in another part of Belgrade. Since 1875 over one hundred and fifty Vinča sites have been found in Serbia alone. Many, including Vinča itself, have not been fully excavated. The culture of the whole area is called the Vinča culture. Although some of these symbols look exactly the same as some letters in Etruscan, Greek, and Aramaic, they are generally regarded as an original, independent development. Literacy It is only in the last 150 years that most people have been able to read and write in Europe and North America. In many other parts of the world this did not happen until the 20th century. Until then, literacy was mainly for clerics, that is, people who had training as priests. Even wealthy people were often illiterate, and used scribes to write for them. The invention of printing came before mass literacy. Before 1500, each book had to be created by hand, so there were few books available compared to the billions in the world today. Mass literacy needed cheap books. Even now, there is still widespread illiteracy. There is often a political dimension to this. People who cannot write are easier to control. Handwriting The ordinary use of writing by means of a pen and paper. Can refer to writing for oneself, as in a diary, but mostly it refers to sending letters. Once it was almost the only means of communication between people who were separated. Now, the telephone and e-mail are the most common means of distance communication. Related pages Writing system Calligraphy Manuscript Philology Printing References Basic English 850 words History of technology kk:Жазу

3683

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock

Rock

Rock has several meanings: rock (geology), a hard substance made of minerals, often found in or on the ground Rock music Rock and roll music, a form of popular music that started in the 20th century

3684

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato

Plato

Plato was one of the most important classical Greek philosophers. He lived from 427 BC to 348 BC. A wealthy man, he owned at least 50 slaves and created the first university school, called "The Academy". Plato was a student of Socrates (who did not write) and the teacher of Aristotle, who founded another university, known as the Lyceum. Plato wrote about many ideas in philosophy that are still talked about today. He wrote about ideas of deductive reasoning. One modern philosopher, Alfred North Whitehead, said that all philosophy since Plato has just been comments on his works. Life Plato wrote his books in the form of dialogues with two people or more talking about ideas, and sometimes disagreeing about them. The Laws is Plato's longest dialogue and probably his last. Socrates is usually the main person in Plato's dialogues. Usually, Socrates talks with people about their ideas, and tries to see if they believe anything that is illogical. Other people in the stories often become angry with Socrates because of this. People who study Plato argue about whether Socrates really said the same things that Plato makes him say, or whether Plato just used Socrates as a character, to make the ideas he was talking about seem more important. Plato opposed the rhetorics of sophism and insisted on true justice and equality in his work Gorgias, and on immortality of soul in Phaedo. One of Plato's most famous works is The Republic (in Greek, Politeia, or 'city'). In that work, he describes Socrates's vision of an "ideal" state. The method of questioning in this dialogue, called the Socratic method, is as important as the content. The Republic contains ideas of Socrates: "Socrates said it, Plato wrote it." Philosophy Plato is famous for developing the idea of the theory of forms. The concept of the world of forms states that actual things of a common nature are imperfect representations of a perfect conceptual thing. For example, there are brown dogs, grey dogs, old dogs, skinny dogs etc. that are all imperfect variants of the perfect form of “dogness”. This led him to believe in “a world of forms” and that our world is a shadow of the world of forms. He thought that all perfect forms of things came from pure perfection itself, which can be seen as God. He thought the human ability to know of nonspecific conceptions of things was proof humans had immortal souls that had been in the world of forms. Works by Plato There are many dialogues that were supposed to be written by Plato. This list includes those he probably did write. References Sources: Related pages Platonic realism Platonic solid 427 BC births 340s BC deaths Ancient Greek philosophers Slavers

3686

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book

Book

A book is a set of printed sheets of paper held together between two covers. The sheets of paper in a book are called pages. The pages have words written in them and illustrations drawn. The book is a more flexible format than the earlier idea of the scroll. The change from scrolls to books began in the Roman Empire and took many centuries to become complete. A writer of a book is called an author. Someone who draws the pictures in a book is called an illustrator. Books can have more than one author or illustrator. A book can be a text that is a part of a larger collection of texts. A section of a text may be published as a book so that it only has one author or only focus on one subject area. Books written in this way can be understood without reading whole collection of writings. Examples are the Iliad, Odyssey, Bible, Quran and Torah. All of them consist of a number of “religious books” in this sense of the word. Encyclopedias often have separate articles written by different people, and are published as separate volumes. Each volume is a book. Hardcover books have hard covers made of cardboard that is covered in cloth or leather and sewn together. Paperback books have covers made of stiff paper that is glued together. The words in books can be read aloud and recorded on tapes or compact discs. These are called "audiobooks". Books may be borrowed from a library or bought from a bookstore. People can make their own books and write in them, and add family photos and drawings. Some books are empty inside, like a diary, an address book, or photo album. These books are meant to be written in. Most of the time, the word "book" means that the pages inside have words and pictures. Some books are written just for children. Some are for entertainment, and some are textbooks for studying something in school, such as math or history. Content of books There are two main kinds of book text: fiction and non-fiction. Fiction These books are novels. They are about stories that have not happened, and have been imagined by the author. Some books are based on real events from history, but the author created imaginary characters or dialogue for the events. Non-fiction Non-fiction fiction are about true facts or things that have really happened. Some examples are dictionaries, cookbooks, textbooks for learning in school, or a biography (someone's life story). Historical Between the written manuscript and the book are several inventions. While manuscripts are hand-made, books are now industrial products. Manuscripts A common type of manuscript was the scroll. It is a long sheet that is rolled up. The sheet could have been made of papyrus (made by the Egyptians, by weaving the inner stems of the papyrus plant and then hammering them together), or parchment or vellum (very thin animal skin, first used by the ancient Greeks), or paper (made from plant fibers, invented by the Chinese). Manuscripts of this kind lasted to the 16th century and beyond. Turning the manuscript into a book required several developments. The codex The Romans were the first people to put separate pieces of manuscript between covers, to form a codex. This was more convenient to handle and store than scrolls, but was not yet a book as we understand it. Printing Scrolls and codices were written and copied by hand. The Chinese invented woodblock printing, where shapes are carved out of a block of wood, then ink is applied to the carved side, and the block is pressed onto paper. This woodcut method was slow because the symbols and pictures were made by cutting away the surrounding wood. Johannes Gutenberg was the first person to invent a machine for printing, called the printing press. He made it in the 15th century. This involved more than just a press because it involved the production of a movable metal type that was suitable for the machine process. Initially, the machines were slow, and needed a muscle power to work. The Industrial Revolution brought steam power, and later electrification. Paper and ink Paper had been invented in China in the 8th century, but it was kept secret for a long time. In Europe hand-made paper was available from about 1450. It was cheaper than parchment but still expensive, and the early printing was a slow process. Therefore, books remained rare. In 1800 the first machines for making paper from wood pulp were invented. New kinds of inks were also invented for various purposes, and machines were driven by steam engines and later by electricity. The common cheap supply of paper fed the faster printing machines, and books became cheaper. At the same time, in America, Britain and continental Europe, more people learnt to read. So, in the 19th century, many ordinary people could afford to buy books and could actually read them. Also in the 19th century came public libraries, so poorer people could get access to the best books. Binding Printing was done on large sheets of paper, which were then folded, guillotined (cut) and sewn into the covers. Bookbinding and all the other processes have been done by machines since the 19th century. Now Today some of the technologies have been changed, especially those involving illustration and typography. However, books look much the same as they did, with more illustration in color, but basically the same. That is because experience has shown that readers need certain things for pleasurable reading. Graphic design and typography are the practical arts used to make books attractive and useful to readers. Related pages Author Bible Literature Notebook Page Reading References Other websites WikiHow article on How to read a Book Google Book Search (Beta) Bestseller list of all times Book -Citizendium Basic English 850 words History of printing

3687

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundial

Sundial

A sundial shows the current solar time during the day. It does this because the sun appears to move through the sky. At different times in the day when the sun is shining, a shadow is cast in different places on the dial. A person marks the dial with the time at a certain shadow. This lets users easily see the time. There are a few commonly seen designs, such as the 'ordinary' or standard horizontal garden sundial. However, sundials can be designed for any surface where a fixed object casts a predictable shadow. They may be horizontal or vertical or tilted. Ancient Egypt had sundials. Other cultures developed them further, including the Greeks and Romans. Related pages Time Other websites Sunbeams and Sundials Children's guide to the sun, the seasons and sundials. There is a book from 1319 that talks about sundails There is another old book from the 1500's that talks about how to make a sundial. It's written in the Arabic language Clocks

3690

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peninsula

Peninsula

A peninsula is a region of land that sticks out in a body of water. It is also defined as a piece of land with water on three sides. Many countries are on peninsulas, and may either take up part of a peninsula (such as Portugal) or all of it (such as India). Parts of a country may also be on a peninsula. For example, Jutland is a peninsula, as is Baja California in Mexico. If Eurasia is considered a continent then the continent of Europe is technically a peninsula. In this case, the great peninsulas of Europe, the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas would technically be peninsulas within peninsulas. The area of the European Peninsula, comprised of Europe minus Russia, Fennoscandia, and any islands, is roughly 4.4 million square kilometers. The Arabian Peninsula is usually cited as the largest peninsula in the world with an area of 3,237,500 square kilometers. Referencens

3691

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derivation

Derivation

A derivative is something created from a Primary source, and can mean different things. Derivative (linguistics), a word that is made from a more basic word Derivative (chemistry), a substance that has similar properties to the original. However, one or more components of the original are replaced Derivative (finance), or derivative security Derivative (mathematics), a central idea of calculus Derivative works made from an existing work of art

3692

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combinatorial%20game%20theory

Combinatorial game theory

Combinatorial game theory, also known as CGT is a branch of applied mathematics and theoretical computer science that studies combinatorial games, and is distinct from "traditional" or "economic" game theory. CGT arose in relation to the theory of impartial games, the two-player game of Nim in particular, with an emphasis on "solving" certain types of combinatorial games. A game must meet several conditions to be a combinatorial game. These are: The game must have at least two players. The game must be sequential (i.e. Players alternate turns.) The game must have perfect information (i.e. no information is hidden, as in Poker.) The game must be deterministic (i.e. non-chance). Luck is not a part of the game. The game must have a defined amount of possible moves. The game must eventually end. The game must end when one player can no longer move. Combinatorial Game Theory is largely confined to the study of a subset of combinatorial games which are two player, finite, and have a winner and loser (i.e. do not end in draws.) These combinatorial games can be represented by trees, each vertex of which is the game resulting from a particular move from the game directly below it on the tree. These games can be assigned game values. Finding these game values is of great interests to CG theorists, as is the theoretical concept of game addition. The sum of two games is the game in which each player on her/his turn must move in only one of the two games, leaving the other as it was. Elwyn Berlekamp, John Conway and Richard Guy are the founders of the theory. They worked together in the 1960s. Their published work was called Winning Ways for Your Mathematical Plays. Definitions In the theory, there are two players called left and right. A game is something that allows left and right to make moves to other games. For example, in the game of chess, there is a usual starting setup. One could also, however, think of a chess game after the first move as a different game, with a different setup. So each position is also called a game. Games have the notation {L|R}. are the games the left player can move to. are the games the right player can move to. If you know chess notation, then the usual chess setup is the game The dots "..." mean there are many moves, so not all are shown. Chess is very complex. It is better to think of easier games. Nim, for example, is much simpler to think about. Nim is played like this: There are zero or more piles of counters. On a turn, a player may take as many counters from one pile as that player wants. The player who cannot make a move loses. The easiest game of Nim starts with no counters at all! In such a case, neither player can move. That is shown as {|}. Both sides are empty, because neither player can move. The first player to go cannot move, and so will lose. In CGT, people often write {|} as the symbol 0 (zero). The next-easiest game has only one pile, with just one counter. If the left player goes first, that player must take the counter, leaving right with no moves ({|}, or 0). If instead right moves first, there will be no more moves for left. So both left and right can make a move to 0. That is shown as {{|}|{|}}, or {0|0}. The first player to move will win. Games equal to {0|0} are very important. They are written with the symbol, * (star). Game theory

3693

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nim

Nim

Nim is a simple game used for examples in combinatorial game theory. The rules of nim are simple: The game begins with some piles of counters. Players alternate turns. On a turn, a player takes counters from a pile. At least one counter must be taken, but up to 3. All counters must be in the same pile. If a player cannot take a counter, that player loses. There is a simple mathematical strategy to play the game perfectly. If both players play perfectly, the winner is determined by the initial setup. Other websites Nim Game Game theory

3697

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue

Blue

Blue is one of the colors of the rainbow that people can see. It is one of the seven colors of the rainbow along with red, orange, yellow, green, indigo and violet. Apart from indigo and violet, it has the shortest wavelength of these colors (about 470 nanometers). Blue is the color of the Earth's sky and sea. Earth looks blue when seen from outer space by astronauts. Blue is a color used to show coldness. It is also one of the colors your lips can turn if you are chilly. Blue is the color of a bluebird. A blue jay is the cool color blue. Meaning of blue The color blue is sometimes associated with sadness, which may be where the name of the music style The Blues comes from. Blue is a color of the Jewish religion. In Western cultures since the 1940s, blue is associated with men/boys, while pink is associated with women/girls. Before the 1940s, it was the other way around, so blue was for women/girls and pink was for men/boys. Nobody knows exactly why it changed. Comparison of green, teal, blue and ultramarine Comparison of blue, indigo, violet and purple Tones of blue color comparison chart Related pages List of colors Aqua Aquamarine Azure Blueberry Blue-gray Blue-green Blue-violet Brilliant blue Cerulean Cobalt Cool Cyan Denim blue Electric blue Indigo Navy blue Prussian blue Royale blue Sky blue Teal blue Ultra Ultramarine References

3702

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memory

Memory

Memory is the personal record of past experiences. It is the brain's ability to store information to use later. The Greeks considered memory (Mnemosyne) as the mother of Muses, for without her there would be no art and no science. Memory is studied in sciences known as "cognitive psychology". There are two types of memory: short-term and long-term memory, or known as working memory and reference memory. Short-term memory, the ability to keep information in mind for a short time, like remembering a phone number long enough to find a piece of paper. Long-term memory, the ability to remember things long after they happen, like remembering a holiday you had last year. Related pages Commemorative plaque Memorial Performing music from memory Damnatio memoriae References Basic English 850 words Human skills

3706

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder

Murder

Murder is where one person wrongfully kills another person with malicious aforethought. If a person does something reckless that makes someone else die, without the intention of killing, it is homicide and may be manslaughter. An accident caused by carelessness may be criminally negligent homicide. Sometimes, a death caused by someone else may not be a crime, for example killing in self-defense. Though, if the killer could've stopped a violent encounter without killing the victim, it's generally not a lawful killing. A person who commits murder is called a murderer. The legal definition of "murder" and "manslaughter" may be different between countries. A killing in war is not usually called "murder" by those who fight in the war, as it's justifiable homicide. Killing in self defense is usually not "murder". Some countries do not even have manslaughter as a legal concept, and only have murder; the countries that do not have manslaughter charge with murder instead. In fact, the United States did not have manslaughter on the books until the 20th century. England was the first country to indoctrinate manslaughter, and the United States was second. Most common circumstances for murder in the United States (1999) A total of 12,658 murders were reported in 1999 in the U.S., including 1,903 without a specified reason, and 3,779 for which the reasons were unknown. Argument (unspecified) (3,391) Robbery (1,010) Juvenile gang killing (579) Contravention of narcotic drug laws (564) Argument over money or property (211) Brawl due to influence of alcohol (187) Romantic triangle (133) Gangland killing (116) Brawl due to influence of narcotics (111) Burglary (79) Worst cities for murder in the United States (1999) New York's status as the murder capital of the world improved during the 1990s. What follows are the number of murders for 1999: New York, New York (671) Chicago, Illinois (642) Los Angeles, California (425) Detroit, Michigan (415) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (292) Houston, Texas (241) Washington, D.C. (241) Dallas, Texas (191) New Orleans, Louisiana (158) Atlanta, Georgia (143) Attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime. Attempted murder, or "attempt murder" in common law countries, also sometimes called "murder attempt", is when someone tries to kill another person. Just planning a murder is not enough. The act must come close to, but does not actually take the life of the other person. It was punishable by death and the execution was carried out in Ancient Egypt, Ancient Mesopotamia, the Indus River Valley, Ancient Greece, The Roman Empire, and of course, China, which is by far the most populated country in the world, to this day. As with murder, attempted murder is a mortal sin to the Catholic Church. The Roman Empire carried out about ten thousand executions, most if not all beheadings, during its time, and there is no doubt that many of these were those convicted of attempted murder. Assassination "Assassination" is a word which means murdering a prominent person for a reason. The word is most used when the person who was killed was a celebrity or was a person involved in politics. The people who carry out assassinations are called "assassins" or "Hit-men". An assassin may murder someone for political reasons, for money, or for other reasons, such as favors owed and revenge. Assassination is the same as murder and is mortal sin to the Catholic Church. The word "Assassin" comes from Hashishin, a Muslim group that was active in the Middle East from the 8th to the 14th centuries. This secret society killed people for political and religious reasons. It is thought that the assassins were under the influence of hashish and opium during their killings or during their training. The word assassin comes from either hashashim, the influence of the drugs, or hassansin, after their leader, Hassan-i Sabbah. Murdersuicide A murdersuicide is when a person kills someone else (murder), and then they kill themselves (suicide). No one is tracking the number of murder–suicides in the United States. However, medical studies estimate between 1,000 and 1,500 deaths per year in the United States are murder-suicides. Related pages John Wilkes Booth John Lennon Lee Harvey Oswald Gavrilo Princip James Earl Ray Nathuram Godse Otoya Yamaguchi References Types of crime Murders Terrorist attacks Crime

3707

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird

Bird

Birds (Aves) are a group of animals with backbones which evolved from dinosaurs. Technically speaking, they are dinosaurs. Birds are endothermic. The heat loss from their bodies is slowed down by their feathers. Modern birds are toothless: they have beaked jaws. They lay hard-shelled eggs. They have a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. Birds live all over the world. They range in size from the 5 cm (2 in) bee hummingbird to the 2.70 m (9 ft) ostrich. They are the tetrapods with the most living species: about ten thousand. More than half of these are passerines, sometimes known as perching birds. Birds are the closest living relatives of the Crocodilia. This is because they are the two main survivors of a once huge group called the Archosaurs. Modern birds are not descended from Archaeopteryx. According to DNA evidence, modern birds (Neornithes) evolved in the long Upper Cretaceous period. More recent estimates showed that modern birds originated early in the Upper Cretaceous. Primitive bird-like dinosaurs are in the broader group Avialae. They have been found back to the mid-Jurassic period, around 170 million years ago. Many of these early "stem-birds", such as Anchiornis, were not yet capable of fully powered flight. Many had primitive characteristics like teeth in their jaws and long bony tails.p274 The Cretaceous–Palaeogene extinction event 66 million years ago killed off all the non-avian dinosaur lines. Birds, especially those in the southern continents, survived this event and then migrated to other parts of the world. Diversification occurred around the Cretaceous–Palaeogene extinction event. Birds have wings which are more or less developed depending on the species. The only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which evolved from forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly. Later, many groups evolved with reduced wings, such as ratites, penguins and many island species of birds. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also adapted for flight. Some bird species in aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have evolved as good swimmers. In general, birds are effective, and inherit their behaviour almost entirely. The key elements of their life are inherited. It was a great discovery that birds never learn to fly. So it is quite wrong to say, when a chick waves its wings in the nest "It's learning to fly". What the chick is doing is exercising its muscles. They develop the ability to fly automatically (assuming they are species that do fly). And if they are species which migrate, that behaviour is also inherited. Many species migrate over great distances each year. Other main features of their life may be inherited, though they can and do learn. Birds have good memories which they use, for example, when they search for food. Several bird species make and use tools. Some social species pass on some knowledge across generations, a form of culture. Birds are social. They communicate with visual signals, calls and bird songs. Most of their social behaviours are inherited, such as cooperative breeding and hunting, flocking and mobbing of predators. Most bird species are socially monogamous, usually for one breeding season at a time, sometimes for years, but rarely for life. Other species are polygynous (one male with many females) or, rarely, polyandrous (one female with many males). Birds produce offspring by laying eggs which are fertilised by sexual reproduction. They are often laid in a nest and incubated by the parents. Most birds have an extended period of parental care after hatching. Some birds, such as hens, lay eggs even when not fertilised, though unfertilised eggs do not produce offspring. Many species of birds are eaten by humans. Domesticated and undomesticated birds are sources of eggs, meat, and feathers. In English, domesticated birds are often called poultry, undomesticated birds are called game. Songbirds, parrots and other species are popular as pets. Guano, which is bird manure, is harvested for use as a fertiliser. Birds figure throughout human culture. About 120–130 species have become extinct due to human activity since the 17th century and hundreds more before then. Human activity threatens about 1,200 bird species with extinction, though efforts are underway to protect them. Recreational bird-watching is an important part of the ecotourism industry. Bird colours Birds come in a huge range of colours. These colours can be useful to a bird in two ways. Camouflage colours help to hide the bird, and bright colours identify the bird to others of the same species. Often the male is brightly coloured while the female is camouflaged. The logic is as follows: the female carries the "precious package" of developing eggs. The male has to defend a territory, and the function of his colour and song is to let others know that "this place is occupied". Bird camouflage Many birds are brown, green or grey. These colours make a bird harder to be seen: they camouflage the bird. Brown is the most common colour. Brown birds include: sparrows, emus, thrushes, larks, eagles and falcons and the female birds of many species such as: wrens, ducks, blackbirds and peafowls. When a brown bird is in long grass or among tree trunks or rocks, it is camouflaged. Birds that live in long grass often have brown feathers streaked with black which looks like shadows. A bittern is almost invisible in long reeds because its camouflage is helped by its posture (beak and head pointed upwards). Other birds, including starlings and mynas, are quite dark in colour, but are flecked with little spots that look like raindrops on leaves. Bird may also camouflage their nests. Many birds from hot countries are green or have some green feathers, particularly parrots. Birds that live in green trees often have green backs, even if they have bright-coloured breasts. From the back, the birds are camouflaged. This is very useful when sitting on a nest. The bird's bright-coloured breast is hidden. Budgerigars are bred in different colours such as blue, white and mauve, but in the wild, they are nearly all green and yellow. Even though they fly very well, they normally spend a lot of time on the ground, eating grass seeds. Their yellow and black striped back helps to hide them in the shadows made by long dry grass, while their green breasts are a similar colour to the leaves of gum trees. Grey birds include most pigeons and doves, cranes, storks and herons. Grey birds are often rock-living birds like pigeons or birds that sit on dead tree trunks looking like a broken branch. Water birds like herons often have a pale grey colour which makes it harder for a fish to notice that the bird is standing, looking down for something to catch. Water birds, no matter what colour they are on top, are often white underneath, so that when a fish looks up, the bird looks like part of the sky. Black birds include crows, ravens and male blackbirds. Some birds that are dark colours spend quite a lot of time on the ground, hopping around in the shadows under bushes. Among these birds are the male blackbird and the satin bowerbird which is not black but very dark blue. Crows and ravens often perch high on bare trees in the winter, where their black shape against the sky looks like the dark bare branches. Noticeable colours Many birds are not camouflaged, but stand out with vivid colours. They are usually male birds whose females are dull and camouflaged. The function of the colours is two-fold. First, the colours help them get mates, and second, the colours identify them to other males of the same species. Many birds are territorial, especially in the nesting season. They give out territory sounds and are easily seen. This lets other males know they will defend their territory. It sends out a "look elsewhere" signal to their competitors. Some birds are famous for their colour and some are named for it, such as the bluebird, the azure kingfisher, the golden pheasant, the scarlet macaw. The European robin is known popularly as the red robin. Many other birds are very brightly coloured, in countless combinations. Some of the most colourful birds are quite common, like pheasants, peacocks, domestic fowl and parrots. Colourful small birds include blue tits, the goldfinches, hummingbirds, fairy wrens and bee eaters (which are also called rainbow birds). Some birds, like those of the bird of paradise in Papua New Guinea have such beautiful feathers that they have been hunted for them. The peafowl is the best example of a display of colour to attract a mate. Also the male domestic fowl and junglefowl have long shiny feathers above his tail and also long neck feathers that may be a different colour to his wings and body. There are only a few species of birds (such as the eclectus parrot) where the female is more colourful than the male. ''Pied birds'' are black and white. Black and white birds include magpies, pied geese, pelicans and Australian magpies (which are not really magpies at all). Pied birds often have brightly coloured beaks and legs of yellow or red. The silver pheasant, with its long white tail striped with fine bars of black, has a brightly coloured face. Flight Most birds can fly, and if they do, then the ability is inherited, not learnt. They fly by pushing through the air with their wings. The curved surfaces of the wings cause air currents (wind) which lift the bird. Flapping keeps the air current moving to create lift and also moves the bird forward. Some birds can glide on air currents without flapping. Many birds use this method when they are about to land. Some birds can also hover in the air. This method is used by birds of prey such as falcons that are looking for something to eat. Seagulls are also good at hovering, particularly if there is a strong breeze. The most expert hovering birds are tiny hummingbirds which can beat their wings both backwards and forwards and can stay quite still in the air while they dip their long beaks into flowers to feed on the sweet nectar. Types of flight Different types of birds have different needs. Their wings have evolved to suit their lifestyle. Large birds of prey, such as eagles, spend a lot of time soaring on the wind. They have wings that are large and broad. The main flight feathers are long and wide. They help the eagle to stay on rising air currents without using much energy, while the eagle looks at the ground below, to find the next meal. When the eagle sees some small creature move, it can close its wings and fall from the sky like a missile, opening its great wings again to slow down as it comes to land. The world's largest eagle, the Philippine eagle has a wingspan of about 2 m (6.7 ft) wide. Birds that live in grassland areas or open forests and feed on fruit, insects and reptiles often spend a lot of time flying short journeys looking for food and water. They have wings that are shaped in a similar way to eagles, but rounder and not as good for soaring. These include many Australian birds like cockatoos. Birds such as geese that migrate from one country to another fly very long distances. Their wings are big and strong, because the birds are large. They stock up on food for the long flight. Migrating water birds usually form family groups of 1230 birds. They fly very high, making use of long streams of air that blow from north to south in different seasons. They are well organised, often flying in a V pattern. The geese at the back do not have to flap so hard; they are pulled on by the wind of the ones at the front. Every so often, they change the leader so that the front bird, who does most work and sets the pace, can have a rest. Geese and swans are the highest-flying birds, reaching 8,000 metres or more when on migration. Geese often honk loudly while they are flying. It is thought that they do this to support the leader and help the young ones. Birds that fly very quickly, such as swifts and swallows, have long narrow pointed wings. These birds need great speed because they eat insects, catching most of them while they are flying. These birds also migrate. They often collect in huge flocks of thousands of birds that move together like a whirling cloud. Birds that live in bushes and branches have triangular wings that help the bird change direction. Many forest birds are expert at getting up speed by flapping and then gliding steadily among the trees, tilting to avoid things as they go. Birds such as owls that hunt at night have wings with soft rounded feathers so that they do not flap loudly. Birds that are awake at night are called nocturnal birds. Birds that are awake during the day are diurnal. Wandering albatross might spend several years without coming to land. They can sleep while gliding. Arctic terns nest every one to three years. Flocks Flocks of birds can be very highly organised in a way that takes care of all the flock members. Studies of small flocking birds like tree sparrows show that they clearly communicate with each other, as sometimes thousands of birds may fly in close formation and spiral patterns without colliding (or flying into each other). Two common behaviours in flocking birds are guarding and reconnaissance. When a flock of birds is feeding it is common for one bird to perch on a high place to keep guard over the flock. In the same way, when a flock is asleep, often, one bird will remain awake. It is also common for large flocks to send one or two birds ahead of them when they are flying to a new area. The look-out birds can spy the lie of the land to find food, water and good places to perch. Mixed feeding flocks occur, and can help to spot predators. Flightless birds Some birds do not fly. Flightlessness in birds has evolved many times. These include running birds like ostriches and emus and ocean-living birds, the large penguin family. Birds on islands have usually lost the power of flight. This is to their advantage because birds with the power of flight can be blown off their island during a storm. The same ability which got them to the island may later take them away in a storm. Ostriches and emus do not need to fly because although they feed and nest on the ground, their great size and their speed is their protection. Some other ground-feeding birds have not been so lucky. Some birds such as the dodo and the kiwi were ground-feeding birds that lived in safety on islands where there was nothing dangerous to eat them. They lost the power of flight. Kiwis are endangered because European settlement to New Zealand brought animals like cats, dogs and rats which kill kiwis and eat their eggs. However, kiwis and also the rare New Zealand ground parrot have survived. In the case of dodos, they were fat and disgusting in taste. All the same, they were killed and eaten by sailors until there was none left. Other flightless birds which have disappeared are the great auk and the moa. Penguins are a very successful group of birds. They are a clade. They spend half their time on land. Their wings are adapted to life in the sea and have become flippers which let them in swim fast. They catch fish at sea, where they are in danger from seals. Preening Preening is how birds keeps their feathers in order. They use their beak to position feathers, interlock feather barbules that have become separated, clean plumage, and keep ectoparasites in check. Feathers in good shape help the bird's insulation, waterproofing and flight. Their condition is vital to the bid's survival. Digestion Modern birds do not have teeth, and many swallow their prey whole. Nevertheless, they must break up food before it is digested. First of all, along their throat (oesophagus) they have a crop. This stores food items before digestion. That way a bird can eat several items, and then fly off to a quiet spot to digest them. Their stomach comes next, with two very different parts. One part is like a straight hollow rod (the proventriculus) which secretes mild hydrochloric acid and an enzyme to break down protein. The other part of the stomach is the gizzard. This is muscular, and grinds up the contents. In herbivorous birds the gizzard contains some gastroliths (small stones or pieces of grit). Bones of fish will mostly be dissolved by the stomach acid. The partly digested and ground-up food now goes to the intestine, where digestion is completed, and most contents are absorbed. Anything indigestible, for example remains of feathers, is regurgitated via the mouth, not the cloaca. The system is effective, and carnivorous birds can swallow quite large prey. A blue heron can swallow a fish as large as a carp successfully. Raptors eat by holding the prey down with a foot, and tearing it apart with their beak. Reproduction Mating Although birds are warm-blooded creatures like mammals, they do not give birth to live young. They lay eggs as reptiles do, but the shell of a bird's egg is hard. The baby bird grows inside the egg, and after a few weeks hatches (breaks out of the egg). Birds in cold climates usually have a breeding season once a year in the spring. Migratory birds can have two springs and two mating seasons in a year. Ninety-five per cent of bird species are socially monogamous. These birds pair for at least the length of the breeding season. In some cases this arrangement lasts until the death of one of the pair. Monogamy clearly helps if females need males' help to raise a brood successfully. It has other practical advantages: the nest is never left without defence. Birds are generally small, and they have many potential enemies. Some birds mate for life, like married couples. These birds include pigeons, geese, and cranes. Other birds look for new partners each year. For birds that choose new mates, part of the breeding season is display. The male bird will do all sorts of things to attract females. These include singing, dancing, showing off the feathers and building a beautiful nest. Some male birds have splendid feathers for attracting females. The most famous is the peacock who can spread the feathers above his tail into a huge fan. Other mating systems do occur in some species. Polygyny, polyandry, polygamy, polygynandry, and promiscuity do happen. Polygamous breeding systems arise when females are able to raise broods without the help of males. Some species may use more than one system depending on the circumstances. Nesting Once the birds have found partners, they find a suitable place to lay eggs. The idea of what is a suitable place differs between species, but most build bird nests. The bird is driven by a hormone (estradiol E2) to prepare a place for the eggs to hatch. Birds' nests may be up a tree, in a cliff or on the ground according to species. When filled with eggs they are almost always guarded by one of the pair. In fact it is virtually impossible for the eggs to survive if one of the parents dies. Robins will make a beautiful little round nest of woven grass and carefully line it with feathers, bits of fluff and other soft things. Swallows like to nest near other swallows. They make nests from little blobs of clay, often on a beam near the roof of a building where it is well sheltered. Many birds like a hollow tree to nest in. Eagle's nests are often just piles of dead wood on the top of the tallest tree or mountain. Scrub turkeys scratch together a huge pile of leaves that may be 10 metres across. Guillemots lay their eggs on rock shelves with no nest at all. Their eggs are shaped so that they roll around in circles and do not fall off cliffs. A cuckoo does not make its own nest. It lays its egg in the nest of another bird and leaves it for them to care for. The cuckoo eggs are camouflaged to look like the host's eggs. When the nest has been prepared, the birds mate so that the eggs are fertilised and the chicks will start growing. Unlike mammals, birds (and reptiles) only have one opening as the exit hole for body fluids, and for reproduction. The opening is called the cloaca. A female bird, called a hen, has two ovaries, of which the left one usually produces eggs. Most male birds have no sex organs that can be seen. But inside the male are two testes which produce sperm which is stored in the cloaca. Birds mate by rubbing their cloacas together, although with some birds, particularly large water birds, the male has a sort of a penis inside the cloaca. Hatching Once the hen has mated, she produces fertile eggs which have chicks growing inside them. She lays the eggs in the nest. There might be just one egg or a number of them, called a clutch. Emus might lay as many as fifteen huge dark green eggs in a clutch. After the eggs are laid, they are incubated, or kept warm so the chicks form inside. Most birds stay together for the whole nesting season, and one advantage is that the work is shared. Many birds take turns sitting on the eggs, so that each adult can feed. This is not always the case. With emus, the male does all the sitting and all the baby-minding. With emperor penguins it is also the male that cares for the egg. There is only one egg, which he keeps on his feet and under his feathers, standing in a big group of males without feeding until the chick is hatched. While the eggs are hatching, the females are at sea, catching fish, so that they can feed the chicks when they return. Some birds put the eggs inside or on top of the mound of leaves and twigs. The mound acts like a compost heap. The decomposition of the rotting leaves causes the temperature to rise. This is heat released by the chemical action of bacterial and fungal respiration. It is the same reaction as that which keeps mammals and birds at a high temperature. The parents leave the mound. When the chicks hatch, they are able to feed themselves. Many small birds take 2–4 weeks to hatch eggs. Albatrosses take 80 days. During this time the female loses a lot of her body weight. The quickest hatching time is for the cuckoo. Some types of cuckoos take only 10 days. This means that when they hatch in the nest of their ''foster parents'', the eggs that the parents have laid are not yet ready. Newborn cuckoos are naked, blind and ugly, but they are strong. They get under any eggs that are in the nest and throw them out before they hatch. That means that the cuckoo has the whole care of both parents. Baby cuckoos grow fast and often get bigger than the parents who feed them. When baby birds hatch, in most types of birds, they are fed by both parents, and sometimes by older aunts as well. Their mouths are open all the time and are often very brightly coloured, which acts as a releaser, a trigger which stimulates the parent to feed them. For birds that eat grain and fruit, the parents eat and partly digest the food for the babies. It is then vomited carefully into the baby's mouth. Families Many birds, particularly those that mate for life, are very sociable and keep together in a family group which might be anything from 4 or 6 adult birds and their young to a very large flock. As chicks grow they change the fluffy down that covers them as babies for real feathers. At this stage they are called fledglings. Other family members may help care for fledgling chicks, feeding them and protecting them from attack while parents are feeding. When the fledglings have their new feathers, they come out of the nest to learn to fly. In some types of birds, like pigeons, the parents watch over this and as the young ones get stronger, will give them flying lessons, teaching them how to glide, how to fly in spirals and how to land like an expert. Communication Most birds are social animals, at least part of the time. They communicate to each other using sounds and displays. Almost all birds make sounds to communicate. The types of noises that vary greatly. Some birds can sing, and they are called songbirds or passerines. Examples are robins, larks, canaries, thrushes, nightingales. Corvids are passerines, but they do not sing. Birds that are not songbirds include: pigeons, seagulls, eagles, owls and ducks. Parrots are not songbirds, even though they can be taught to sing human songs. Songbirds All birds make noises (''bird vocalisation''), but not all sing. Songbirds are passerines, many of which have beautiful melodic songs. Songs have different functions. Danger cries are different from territorial songs and mating calls are a third type. Fledgling may also have different calls from adults. Recognition calls for partners are quite common. As to where the song comes from, there are three kinds of species: Those where the song is mainly inherited, and the bird always sings the same song in the same situations. The capacity is inherited, and only details are learnt from its neighbours. Those where the song is partly inherited, but the bird tunes it in by copying others. In this case the slight differences between the calls of different birds may be used by partners for identification. Those where the song is entirely learnt, and the bird often copies sounds from its environment. Only the capacity to sing is inherited. Most singing birds that are kept as pets, like canaries, have several tunes and some variations. The same species of bird will sing different songs in different regions. A good example of this is the currawong. This is an Australia bird which is like a black and white crow. In the autumn, families get together in large flocks and do a lot of singing. Currawongs from some areas sing much more complex songs than others. Generally, currawongs from the Blue Mountains are the finest singers. The song of the currawong can be sung as a solo, but is often performed as a choir. One bird will take the lead and sing "Warble-warble-warble-warble!" All the other birds will join in and sing "Wooooooo!". When all the birds know the song, the choir will sing the "Warble" part and the soloist will sing the "Woo!". The song changes from year to year and from place to place. Lorenz's studies The Austrian naturalist Konrad Lorenz studied the way in which birds communicate, or talk to each other. He found that each type of bird had a number of sounds which they made automatically, when ever they felt a certain way. Every sound had an action that went with it. So, if the bird was frightened, it acted frightened and made a frightened sound. This told the other birds around it that something frightening was happening. If a flock of birds were flying over a field, they would be calling "Fly! Fly!" But a hungry bird, seeing something good to eat down below might start calling "Food! Food!" If other birds were also hungry, they would make the same call until more birds were calling "Food! Food!" than "Fly! Fly!". At this point, the mind of the flock would be changed. Some of the birds would start to yell "Fly downwards! Fly downwards!" as they sank from the sky, until the whole flock was all noisily calling the same thing. These communication sounds are often short hard sounds like: chirps, squeaks, squawks and twitters. Sometimes the calls are longer and more musical. They include the "Rookety-coo" sound of a pigeon and the "Cockadoodledoo!" of a rooster. The bird cannot change these sounds. They always make them in the same way. The bird is locked into making each sound every time a particular idea comes into its head. The connection between how they feel and how they call is innate: they are born with it. Some calls in some species are learnt. Then, it is the tendency to learn which is inherited. The Jackdaw of Altenberg Konrad Lorenz noticed that when birds sing, they often use a lot of their regular calls as part of the song. Lorenz had a flock of jackdaws which were scattered during World War II. One day, an old bird returned. For many months she sat on the chimney singing her song, but in the song she kept making the call which Lorenz knew meant "Come home! Come home!" One day, to the great surprise of Lorenz, a male bird flew from a passing flock and joined her on the chimney. Lorenz was sure that it was her long-lost "husband" who had found his way home at last. Evolution and taxonomy Palaeontologists have found some exceptional places (lagerstätten) where fossils of early birds are found. The preservation is so good that on the best examples impressions of their feathers can be seen, and sometimes even the remains of meals they have eaten. From these remains we know that birds evolved from small carnivorous dinosaurs (theropods) in the Jurassic period. They radiated into a huge variety in the Lower Cretaceous. At the same time, their direct competitors, the pterosaurs, dwindled in numbers and variety, and became extinct at the end of the Mesozoic. Birds are classified by taxonomists as 'Aves' (Avialae). Birds are the only living descendants of dinosaurs (strictly speaking, they are dinosaurs). Birds and Crocodilia are the only living members of the once-dominant Archosaur reptiles. Definition The class Aves is was defined (1990) as all the descendants of the most recent common ancestor of modern birds and Archaeopteryx lithographica. But Archaeopteryx is almost certainly not the ancestor of modern birds. The transition to flight happened a number of times. The researchers offered four definitions. Birds can be: All archosaurs closer to birds than crocodiles (Avemetatarsalia). Advanced archosaurs with feathers (Avofilopluma). Those feathered dinosaurs that fly (or Avialae) Aves can mean the last common ancestor of all living birds and all of its descendants (a "crown group", in this sense synonymous with Neornithes). The first bird-like creatures Archaeopteryx, from the Upper Jurassic some 150–145 million years ago (mya), was for a long time the earliest known bird which could fly. It is famous, because it was one of the first important fossils found after Charles Darwin published his ideas about evolution in the 19th century. By modern standards, Archaeopteryx could not fly very well. Other early fossil birds are, for example, Confuciusornis, Anchiornis huxlei and other Paraves. Many fossils of early birds and small dinosaurs have been discovered in the Liaoning Province of Northeast China. These include Anchiornis huxlei, from about 160 mya. The fossils show that most small theropod dinosaurs had feathers. These deposits have preserved them so well that the impressions of their feathers can be clearly seen. This leads us to think that feathers evolved first as heat insulation and only later for flight. The origin of birds lies in these small feathered dinosaurs. Palaeontologists now agree that birds are included in Maniraptora group of dinosaurs. This explains why we say that birds are living dinosaurs. Evolution of modern birds A leading authority says "Most living birds have fossil representatives in the Cenozoic"... "Key problems remain in understanding bird phylogeny... we seem to understand as little about the relationships among living birds as among Cretaceous birds". A useful source for modern birds is Clements J. 2007. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. Cornel University Press (6th ed). Origin of birds Paraves Birds and people Some birds are eaten as food. Most usually it is the chicken and its eggs, but people often also eat geese, pheasants, turkeys and ducks. Other birds are sometimes eaten are: emus, ostriches, pigeons, grouse, quails, doves, woodcocks and even songbirds. Some species have died out because they have been hunted for food, for example the dodo and the passenger pigeon. Many species have learned how to get food from people. The number of birds of these species has grown because of it. Seagulls and crows find food from garbage dumps. The feral pigeon (Columba livia), sparrows (Passer domesticus and starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) live in large numbers in towns and cities all over the world. Sometimes people also use working birds. For example, homing pigeons carry messages. Nowadays people sometimes race them for sport. People also use falcons for hunting, and cormorants for fishing. In the past, people in mines often used a canary to see if there were bad gas methane in the air. People often have colorful birds such as parrots and mynahs as pets. These intelligent birds are popular because they can copy human talking. Because of this, some people trap birds and take them to other countries to sell. This is not usually allowed these days. Most pet birds are specially bred and are sold in pet shops. People can catch some bird diseases, for example: psittacosis, salmonellosis, campylobacteriosis, Newcastle's disease, mycobacteriosis, influenza, giardiasis and cryptosporiadiosis. In 2005, there was an epidemic of bird influenza spreading through some parts of the world, often called avian flu. Some people have birdboxes in their gardens to give birds a place to nest and bird tables where birds can get food and water in very cold or very dry weather. This lets people see some small birds close up which are normally hidden away in bushes and trees. Bird orders The following is a listing of all bird orders: Infraclass Palaeognathae Superorder Struthionimorphae Struthioniformes Superorder Notopalaeognathae Rheiformes Tinamiformes Casuariiformes Apterygiformes Infraclass Neognathae Superorder Galloanserae Galliformes Anseriformes Superorder Neoaves Phoenicopteriformes Podicipediformes Columbiformes Mesitornithiformes Pteroclidiformes Apodiformes Caprimulgiformes Cuculiformes Otidiformes Musophagiformes Opisthocomiformes Gruiformes Charadriiformes Gaviiformes Procellariiformes Sphenisciformes Ciconiiformes Suliformes Pelecaniformes Eurypygiformes Phaethontiformes Cathartiformes Accipitriformes Strigiformes Coliiformes Leptosomiformes Trogoniformes Bucerotiformes Coraciiformes Piciformes Cariamiformes Falconiformes Psittaciformes Passeriformes Bird population decreasing A report produced by BirdLife International every five years measures the population of birds worldwide. One in every eight types of birds is now "in decline". Related articles Origin of birds Bird migration References Other websites Avibase - The World Bird Database Bird Hybrids Database - Search by bird name, use Sibley classification International Ornithological Committee Basic English 850 words Dinosaurs Feathered dinosaurs