title: Depression (mental illness)

paragraphs: Depression (also called major depressive disorder, unipolar depression or clinical depression) is a mental illness. Many people think that depression just means a person is very sad. However, depression can cause many symptoms in the body as well as mood problems.

paragraphs: The ICD-10 is used around the world to diagnose people with illnesses like depression. According to the ICD-10, for a person to be diagnosed with depression, their symptoms have to last for at least two weeks. The symptoms must happen every day, or almost every day. These symptoms also have to cause problems in a person's life (like their work life, family life, social life, or other important parts of their life).

paragraphs: Usually, for depression to be diagnosed, a person must have five or more of these symptoms:

paragraphs: Most people who have not had depression do not completely understand its effects. Instead, they see it as simply being sad. Since it is not understood, many people criticize people with depression for not helping themselves.

paragraphs: Some people with depression die by suicide. Depression is one of the mental illnesses that can cause a person to have suicidal thoughts.

paragraphs: It is impossible to get an exact number of how many people have depression. There are many reasons for this. For example:

paragraphs: Major depression is one of the most common mental illnesses in the United States. In 2014, 15.7 million adults in the United States had at least one episode of major depression. This is about 6.7% of all adults in the United States.

paragraphs: Around the world, depression causes more disability than any other mental health or behavioral illness, according to the World Health Organization.

paragraphs: However, the prevalence of depression is different in different cultures and countries.

paragraphs: Prince (1968) found virtually no depression in most Asian and African countries. However, psychologists such as Zhang and Kleinman have found disorders with similar symptoms, but different names. For example, in the 1980s, Zhang found that in China, there was little mention of depression. However, instead, a disorder called Neurasthenia was far more common. When interviewing Neurasthenia patients, Zhang found that their symptoms matched the symptoms of depression by over 80%. While the term "depression" was practically unheard of in China, Neurasthenia could well have been a similar disorder – or the same thing.

paragraphs: It is also important to take in different cultures ways of classifying depression. For example, in China, many people believe doctors solve physical symptoms, not mental problems. This may have made it more likely for "depression" to be diagnosed as a medical condition like "Neurasthenia."

paragraphs: Typically, in most Western cultures, women are diagnosed with depression twice as often as men. However, men are often more likely than women to die by suicide.

paragraphs: Depression in children can be harder to see. Children who are depressed may have a loss of appetite, meaning that they do not want to eat. They may also be clearly having more trouble in everyday life than before. For example, they may have sleep problems like nightmares; new problems with behaviour or grades at school; or be more irritable than usual.

paragraphs: Major depressive disorder is also referred to as "major, biochemical, clinical, endogenous", or "biological depression". It may also be called "unipolar affective disorder".

paragraphs: As of 2016, scientists believe there is no one cause of depression. There is a lot of argument over whether depression is caused by biological, cognitive, or sociocultural factors:

paragraphs: The United States National Institutes of Health say that depression comes from the brain. However, scientists are still trying to find out exactly why it happens.

paragraphs: There are many theories about what causes depression. These theories include:

paragraphs: Some depressed people also have other mental disorders, such as personality disorders and anxiety disorders.

paragraphs: Depression is usually treated with a combination of medication and other therapy. Good exercise helps deal with depression, since exercise releases chemicals that put a person in a better mood. Having a supportive group of friends and doing outside activities can also help prevent or ease depression.

paragraphs: There are many medications that can help with depression. Many of these are called antidepressants. Examples of medications used to treat depression include:

paragraphs: Sometimes, antidepressant medicine works better when it is used together with another drug that is not an antidepressant. These "augmentor" drugs include:

paragraphs: If people with depression do not take their medicine the right way, the depression can get worse. A doctor must help when they want to change to another medication, or to take a different amount of a medication than before.

paragraphs: Psychotherapy is often a helpful treatment for depression. In psychotherapy, a therapist helps a person to understand and solve problems which cause depression. The therapist also helps the person learn skills for dealing with their depression.

paragraphs: Psychotherapy can help a person make changes in the way they think, in order to help with life problems and understand what makes depression worse. The most effective psychotherapy for depression is Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This teaches a person to think in a more rational, positive, realistic manner.

paragraphs: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), also called electroshock therapy or shock therapy, is used to treat a small percentage of severely depressed people. ECT uses a small amount of electricity to cause an epileptic seizure while the patient is under anesthesia. This may cause some memory loss (amnesia) or other side effects.

paragraphs: In the past, doctors used different ways of treating depression. These are rarely used any more. They include:

paragraphs: Pet therapy and animal companionship can help people suffering from depression or anxiety.


title: Qur'an

paragraphs: The Qur'an () is the holy book of Islam. The Qur'an is considered by Muslims to be "The Word of Allah (God)". This book is different from other religious texts in that it is believed to be the literal words of God, through the prophet Muhammad. Some Muslims call it the "Final Testament".

paragraphs: It has been written and read only in Arabic for more than 1,400 years. But, because many Muslims around the world do not understand Arabic, the meaning of the Qur'an is also given in other languages, so that readers can understand better what the Arabic words in the Qur'an mean. These books are like dictionaries to the Qur'an - they are not read as part of the religion of Islam, to replace the Arabic Qur'an. Muslims believe that these translations are not the true Qur'an; only the Arabic copy is the true Qur'an. The Quran is used with the hadith to interpret sharia law.

paragraphs: Muslims believe the Qur'an was first revealed to Muhammad by the archangel Gabriel in a cave on the mountain of Hira in Mecca, and then over a period of twenty-three years until his death.

paragraphs: The Qur'an was not written all together in book-form while Muhammad was alive; it was kept by oral communication and brief written records. The prophet did not know how to read nor write, but according to Muslims, the prophet's cousin Ali ibn abi Talib, among others, used to write the texts on something when Muhammad was alive. After prophet Muhammad died, Omar ibn Khattab, one of the khulafa u rashidan, compiled the quran into a single book.

paragraphs: There are 30 parts in the Qur'an, which make 114 "suras" (chapters). Each sura has a different number of verses.

paragraphs: According to the Muslim teachings, 87 of these suras revealed in Mecca, 27 of these suras revealed in Medina. The suras which took place in Medina are Al-Baqara, Al Imran, Al-Anfal, Al-Ahzab, Al-Ma'ida, An-Nisa, Al-Mumtahina, Az-Zalzala, Al-Hadid, Muhammad, Ar-Ra'd, Ar-Rahman, At-Talaq, Al-Bayyina, Al-Hashr, An-Nasr, An-Nur, Al-Hajj, Al-Munafiqun, Al-Mujadila, Al-Hujraat, At-Tahrim, At-Taghabun, Al-Jumua, As-Saff, Al-Fath, At-Tawba, Al-Insan.

paragraphs: (5) اقرَأ بِاسمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذي خَلَقَ (1) خَلَقَ الإِنسانَ مِن عَلَقٍ (2) اقرَأ وَرَبُّكَ الأَكرَمُ (3) الَّذي عَلَّمَ بِالقَلَمِ (4) عَلَّمَ الإِنسانَ ما لَم يَعلَم

paragraphs: Read (commencing) with the Name of Allah, Who has created (everything). He created man from a hanging mass (clinging) like a leech (in the mother’s womb). Read and your Lord is Most Generous, Who taught man (reading and writing) by the pen, Who (besides that) taught man (all that) which he did not know.96:1

paragraphs: Who believe! fulfil (all) obligations. Lawful unto you (for food) are all four-footed animals. Dead meat, blood, pig, any food which has been blessed by a (false) god other than Allah; an animal whose death resulted from strangulation, bludgeoning, arrows, falling, or bloodloss; an animal which was partly consumed by a wild animal or an animal which is sacrificed on a stone altar are forbidden. However, if faced with starvation, exceptions are allowed.

paragraphs: Probably the world's oldest fragments of the Koran have been found in the library of the University of Birmingham, in England.

paragraphs: Radiocarbon dating showed with a probability of more than 95%, the parchment was from between 568 and 645 AD. So the manuscript is at least 1,370 years old. It is the earliest, or among the earliest, in existence.

paragraphs: The fragments are written in ink on sheep or goat skin. They are mounted on a modern paper to help preserve them. They are going on display at the Barber Institute in Birmingham in October 2015.


title: Tony Blair

paragraphs: Anthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007. He was Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007 and Member of Parliament (MP) for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007. On the day he stood down as Prime Minister and MP, he was made official Envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East on behalf of the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and Russia.

paragraphs: Blair was elected Leader of the Labour Party in the 1994 leadership election following the sudden death of his predecessor, John Smith. Under Blair's leadership the party abandoned many policies it had held for decades. Labour won a landslide victory in the 1997 general election, which ended 18 years of Conservative rule with the heaviest Conservative defeat since 1832.

paragraphs: He was the Labour Party's longest-serving Prime Minister and the only leader to have taken the party to three uninterrupted general election victories.

paragraphs: Gordon Brown, Chancellor of the Exchequer during all Blair's ten years in office, succeeded him as party leader and Prime Minister in 2007.

paragraphs: Blair was born at Queen Mary Maternity Home in Edinburgh on 6 May 1953. He was the second son of Leo and Hazel Blair. Blair joined the Labour Party in 1975.

paragraphs: Blair was a lawyer before becoming a politician. He married Cherie Booth, also a lawyer, who graduated from the London School of Economics with a first-class honours degree. Blair himself left Oxford University with a second-class degree. They have four children: Euan, Nicky, Kathryn, and Leo. There was a controversy over Blair sending Euan to a grant-maintained school. As a result of this, Alastair Campbell discovered Blair "standing stark naked reading the "Daily Mail"."

paragraphs: As Leader of the Labour Party, he won the 1997, 2001 and 2005 UK general elections. Blair is the first and only Labour Party leader to have won three general elections in a row.

paragraphs: He attributes his success in politics to a pair of "lucky brogues", which he wore for every single Prime Minister's Questions of his leadership. He claimed that "cheap shoes are a false economy".

paragraphs: On the day of his resignation, Blair was made an official envoy in the Middle East. In 2004, he started the Commission for Africa. He continued work as a commissioner after he stopped being Prime Minister.


title: Accident

paragraphs: An accident is when something goes wrong when it is not meant to. Physical accidents are things like collisions, injuries, and falling. Non-physical accidents are things like accidentally telling someone a secret, forgetting something important, or deleting an important computer file.

paragraphs: Road accidents kill thousands of people each month in the United States, and thousands each week in the world. They injure more thousands each week. The majority involve a car but there are also many bus, truck and bicycle accidents. Aircraft crashes, ship sinkings and other transport accidents also attract much attention.

paragraphs: Injuries from accidents, however, are more numerous at home than elsewhere. They attract less attention because only a few people are hurt at a time.

paragraphs: Often, accidents are investigated so that we can learn how to avoid them in the future. Sometimes by studying an accident we can discover new things, for example penicillin.

paragraphs: Most of the deaths resulting from injuries are caused by fire accidents. Thus, accidental fires are one of the leading causes of unintentional deaths. The main cause of death in fire incidents is burning, but inhalation of smoke and toxic gas causes death as well. Often the cause of the fire is very simple and unexpected, such as forgetting a candle near something flammable, defect in the hardware, or old electrical wires. So most of the large fires are caused by simple reasons.

paragraphs: Industrial accidents such as mine cave-ins and the West Gate Bridge collapse also kill and maim many workers. The Bhopal disaster killed thousands, mostly not workers.

paragraphs: An accident at work is defined as an external, sudden and violent event. Work accidents happen while an someone is working. It may cause the injury or death of the worker or someone else. For an accident to be a work accident, there must be a direct or indirect relationship of cause and effect between the accident and the work.

paragraphs: Many construction workers are injured. There are multiple reasons for that, but the main reason is working on the edge of high buildings without using a safety belt. Thus, you have to follow the safety rules when you are working on these places.

paragraphs: Chemical accidents can happen in a laboratory. Especially, some students make chemical mistakes that injure them seriously.


title: Acne

paragraphs: Acne is an infection of the skin, caused by changes in the sebaceous glands. The most common form of acne is called acne vulgaris, which means "common acne". The redness comes from the inflammation of the skin in response to the infection.

paragraphs: Oils from the glands combine with dead skin cells to block hair follicles. Under the blocked pore, oil builds up. Skin bacteria can then grow very quickly. This infection makes the skin become swollen and red, which becomes visible.

paragraphs: The face, chest, back, and upper arms are most common places for acne to happen.

paragraphs: Acne is common during puberty, when a person is turning from a child into an adult, because of high levels of hormones. Acne becomes less common as people reach adulthood.

paragraphs: There are lots of acne treatment methods available, including natural treatments.

paragraphs: People of all ages can get acne, although it occurs more commonly in adolescents. Acne can affect people physically, psychologically, and socially.

paragraphs: Acne causes scarring, and acne pustules can be very painful and sensitive.

paragraphs: People suffering from a bad case of acne, especially adolescents, can develop low self-esteem which can lead to depression.

paragraphs: Low self-esteem issues can make a person suffering from acne withdraw from many social events. It makes developing new personal relationships (especially love relationships) more difficult. Low self-esteem can also cause problems with career advancement as the person may find it difficult to present a positive attitude. This may sometimes even lead to suicidal thoughts. Some of the treatments for acne have also shown a link with more suicide attempts.

paragraphs: Exactly why some people get acne and some do not is not completely known. These can cause acne, or make it worse:

paragraphs: Aspirin reduces inflammation which in result, reduces facial redness due to acne.

paragraphs: Many things are sold to treat acne, the most popular being benzoyl peroxide. Many of these things have not been scientifically proven to help acne. However, a mix of commercial and homemade treatments can help with acne for various reasons.

paragraphs: Popping a pimple should not be done by anyone but a qualified dermatologist. Pimple popping irritates skin, can make the bacteria spread, and can cause scars. If you must pop a pimple yourself, it is advised to apply warm water to the area before popping it and to wash your hand thoroughly before beginning so as to avoid spreading bacteria via the hands. Applying hot water will open up the pores and reduce the damage because it will require less force to pop it.

paragraphs: There are 650 million people in the world with acne, which is around 9.4% of the global population. More females are getting acne than males (9.8% versus 9.0%). Acne affects 40 to 50 million people in the United States (16%) and approximately 3 to 5 million in Australia (23%). Acne affects people of all ethnic groups.

paragraphs: Bad acne often leads to bad scars where the skin has the shape of a volcano. It is difficult and expensive to treat acne scars.

paragraphs: These are some ways acne scars can be treated:


title: Dinosaur

paragraphs: Dinosaurs and Dinosauria (Latin: Dinosaurium; meaning "terrible lizards") are a varied group of Archosaur reptiles. They were the dominant land animals of the Mesozoic era. Over 500 different genera of dinosaurs are known. Fossils of dinosaurs have been found on every continent, and there are still frequent new discoveries.

paragraphs: Dinosaurs appeared in the Upper Triassic, about 230 million years ago. The earliest date of a dinosaur fossil is that of "Eoraptor" and "Herrerasaurus" from the Argentine, and "Saturnalia" from Brazil, 237 to 228 mya. By the early Jurassic they were the top land vertebrates, and dominated most environments on land. They continued until the sudden K/T extinction event 66 million years ago.

paragraphs: From the fossil record, we know that birds are living feathered dinosaurs. They evolved from the earliest theropods during the Jurassic. They were the only line of dinosaurs to survive to the present day.

paragraphs: Dinosaurs had adaptations which helped make them successful. The first known dinosaurs were small predators that walked on two legs. All their descendants had an upright posture, with the legs underneath the body. This transformed their whole life-style. There were other features. Most of the smaller dinosaurs had feathers, and were probably warm-blooded. This would make them active, with a higher metabolism than modern reptiles. Social interaction, with living in herds and co-operation seems very likely for some types.

paragraphs: The first fossils were recognised as dinosaurs in the early 19th century. Some of their bones were found much earlier, but were not understood. William Buckland, Gideon Mantell and Richard Owen saw these bones were a special group of animals. Dinosaurs are now major attractions at museums around the world. They have become part of popular culture. There have been many best-selling books and movies. New discoveries are reported in the media.

paragraphs: Dinosaurs are united by at least 21 traits in their skulls and skeletons. These common characters (called 'synapomorphies') are the reason palaeontologists are sure dinosaurs had a common origin.

paragraphs: However, when definite dinosaur fossils appear (early in the Upper Triassic), the group had already split into two great orders, the Saurischia, and the Ornithischia. The Saurischia keep the ancestral hip arrangement inherited from their Archosaur ancestors, and the Ornithischia have a modified hip structure.

paragraphs: A. "Eoraptor", an early saurischian, B "Lesothosaurus", a primitive ornithischian, C A saurischian pelvis ("Staurikosaurus") D "Lesothosaurus" pelvis

paragraphs: The following is a simplified list of dinosaur groups based on their evolution. Groups with a dagger (†) next to them don't have any living members.

paragraphs: The Archosaurs evolved into two main clades: those related to crocodiles, and those related to dinosaurs.

paragraphs: The first known dinosaurs were bipedal predators that were one to two metres long.

paragraphs: The earliest confirmed dinosaur fossils include the saurischian ('lizard-hipped') dinosaurs "Herrerasaurus" 230–220 mya, "Staurikosaurus" possibly 230–225 mya, "Eoraptor" 231.4 mya, and "Alwalkeria" 230–220 mya. "Saturnalia", 232–225 mya, may be a basal saurischian or a prosauropod. The others are basal saurischians.

paragraphs: Among the earliest ornithischian ('bird-hipped') dinosaurs is "Pisanosaurus" 230–220 mya. Although "Lesothosaurus" comes from 199–189 mya, skeletal features suggest that it branched from the main Ornithischia line at least as early as "Pisanosaurus".

paragraphs: Early saurischians were similar to early ornithischians, but different from modern crocodiles. Saurischians differ from ornithischians by keeping the ancestral configuration of bones in the pelvis (shown in a diagram above). Another difference is in the skull: the upper skull of the Ornithischia is more solid, and the joint connecting the lower jaw is more flexible. These features are adaptations to herbivory; in other words, it helped them grind vegetable food.

paragraphs: Dinosaurs were a varied group of animals. Adaptive radiation let them live in many ecological niches. Paleontologists have identified over 500 different genera and 1,000 species of non-avian dinosaurs. Their descendants, the birds, number 9,000 living species, and are the most diverse group of land vertebrates.

paragraphs: The largest dinosaurs were herbivores (plant-eaters), such as "Apatosaurus" and "Brachiosaurus". They were the largest animals to ever walk on dry land. Other plant-eaters such as Iguanodon had special weapons, to help them fight off the meat-eaters. For example, "Triceratops" had three horns on its head shield, "Ankylosaurus" was covered in boney plates, and "Stegosaurus" had spikes on its tail.

paragraphs: The carnivores were bipedal (walked on their back legs), though not as we do. Their body was more towards the horizontal, balanced at the back by their tail. Some were very large, like "Tyrannosaurus", "Allosaurus" and "Spinosaurus", but some were small, like "Compsognathus". It was the smaller sized meat-eaters that may have evolved into birds. The first fossil bird, "Archaeopteryx", had a skeleton which looked much like that of a dinosaur.

paragraphs: Dinosaurs were primitively "bipedal": their probable ancestors were small bipedal Archosaurs. The date of the early dinosaur genus "Eoraptor" at 231.4 million years ago is important. "Eoraptor" probably resembles the common ancestor of all dinosaurs; its traits suggest that the first dinosaurs were small, bipedal predators. The discovery of primitive, pre-dinosaur, types in Middle Triassic strata supports this view. Analysis of their fossils suggests that the animals were indeed small, bipedal predators.

paragraphs: Those dinosaurs which returned to four-legged stance kept all four legs under their body. This is much more efficient than the sprawling legs of a lizard.

paragraphs: The big sauropods could never have reached so large a size without their pillar-like legs. A review surveys what we know about the mechanics of dinosaur movement.

paragraphs: A major change in outlook came in the 1960s, when it was realised that small theropods were probably warm-blooded. The question of whether all theropods or even all dinosaurs were warm blooded is still undecided.

paragraphs: It is now certain (from fossils discovered in China: see Jehol biota) that small theropods had feathers. This fits well with the idea that they were warm-blooded, and that the origin of birds can be traced to a line of small theropods.

paragraphs: Warm blooded animals have a high metabolic rate (use up food faster). They can be more active, and for longer, than animals who depend on the environment for heating. Therefore, the idea of warm-blooded dinosaurs insulated by feathers led to the idea that they were more active, intelligent and faster runners than previously thought.

paragraphs: Main-stream palaeontologists have followed this view for small theropods, but not for larger herbivores. Since we know that the size of a "Stegosaur"'s brain was about the size of a walnut, there is good reason to think its intelligence was limited.

paragraphs: Despite their great success over a long period, there were life-styles which the dinosaurs never evolved. None ever evolved to live entirely in water, as many mammals do, though "Spinosaurus" was semi-aquatic. They never dominated the small terrestrial niche. All through the Mesozoic most small vertebrates were mammals and lizards.

paragraphs: The extinctions at the end of the Cretaceous were caused by one or more catastrophic events, such as massive asteroid or meteorite impacts (like the Chicxulub impact), or increased volcanic activity.

paragraphs: Several impact craters and massive volcanic activity, such as that in the Deccan Traps in India, have been dated to the approximate time of the extinction event. These geological events may have reduced sunlight and hindered photosynthesis, leading to a massive disruption in Earth's ecology.

paragraphs: Did any terrestrial dinosaurs survive the great extinction event? Several fossils have been found in the Hell Creek Formation about 40,000 years later than the K/T extinction event. Many scientists dismiss the "Paleocene dinosaurs" as re-worked, that is, washed out of their original places and then re-buried in much later sediments. An associated skeleton (e.g. more than one bone from the same individual) found above the K/T boundary would be convincing, but no such finds have been reported.

paragraphs: Books about dinosaurs have been popular, especially with children, but adults have also enjoyed these kinds of books. In Edwardian times, Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a novel about a plateau filled with dinosaurs which he called "The Lost World".

paragraphs: "Jurassic Park" in 1990 started a new phase in dinosaur popular culture when it was followed by the movie of the same name in 1993.


title: Stone Age

paragraphs: The Stone Age was a prehistoric time when people made tools from stone . Wood, bones, and other materials were also used for tools, but those things don't last as long, so more stone tools are found. Stone (especially a hard kind of stone called flint) was used to cut things.

paragraphs: The period began with the first stone tools, about 2.7 million years ago. Some groups of people were still in the stone age into the 20th century. They also killed animals for food and clothing. They used animal skin for their shelters.

paragraphs: The time after the Stone Age is the Bronze Age, named after the metal bronze. The Stone Age ended when people discovered the art of smelting (making metals). The first metal used was copper, followed by bronze. People probably began using bronze instead of just stone in the Middle East sometime between 3000 and 2000 BC.

paragraphs: The Stone Age is divided by archaeologists (people who study relics) into three sections: Paleolithic ("old stone"), Mesolithic ("middle stone"), and Neolithic ("new stone"). Pottery was invented during the Neolithic Stone Age.

paragraphs: The Palaeolithic is a prehistoric era distinguished by the development of stone tools. It covers the greatest portion of humanity's time (roughly 99% of human history) on Earth, from about 2.7 million years ago to about 20,000 years ago. It was followed by the Mesolithic and Neolithic cultures.


title: Adolf Hitler

paragraphs: Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was a German politician and the leader of Nazi Germany. He became Chancellor of Germany in 1933, after a democratic election in 1932. He became "Führer" (leader) of Nazi Germany in 1934.

paragraphs: Hitler led the Nazi Party NSDAP from 1921. When in power the Nazis created a dictatorship called the Third Reich. In 1933, they blocked out all other political parties. This gave Hitler absolute power.

paragraphs: Hitler ordered the invasion of Poland in 1939, and this started World War II. Because of Hitler, at least 50 million people died. During World War II, Hitler was the Commander-in-Chief of the German Armed Forces and made all the important decisions. This was part of the so-called "Führerprinzip". He shot himself in 1945, as the Soviet Army got to Berlin, because he did not want to be captured alive by the Soviet Union.

paragraphs: Hitler and the Nazi regime were responsible for the killing of an estimated 19.3 million civilians and prisoners of war. In addition, 28.7 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of military action in Europe.

paragraphs: Nazi forces committed many war crimes during the war. They were doing what Hitler told them to do. They killed their enemies or put them in concentration camps and death camps. Hitler and his men persecuted and killed Jews and other ethnic, religious, and political minorities. In what is called the Holocaust, the Nazis killed six million Jews, Roma people, homosexuals, Slavs, and many other groups of people.

paragraphs: Hitler's family was born in Waldviertel, in Lower Austria. At the time, the name "Hitler" changed in this region several times between "Hüttler", "Hiedler", "Hittler" and "Hitler". The name was commonly in the German-speaking area of Europe in the 19th century. The literature says that this name is descended from the Czech name "Hidlar" or "Hidlarcek".

paragraphs: Adolf Hitler was born on 20 April 1889, as the fourth child of six in Braunau am Inn. This is a small town near Linz in the province of Upper Austria. It is close to the German border, in what was then Austria-Hungary. His parents were Klara Pölzl and Alois Hitler. Because of his father's job, Hitler moved from Braunau to Passau, later to Lambach and finally to Leonding. He attended several Volksschule's.

paragraphs: Hitler's mother, Klara Pölzl, was his father's third wife and also his cousin. Hitler's father died in 1903.

paragraphs: Hitler failed high school exams in Linz twice. In 1905, he left school. He became interested in the anti-Semitic (anti-Jewish), Pan-German teachings of Professor Leopold Poetsch. In September 1907, he went to Vienna and took an entrance examination. On 1 and 2 October, he failed the second examination. Hitler went back to Linz at the end of October. In December 1907, Hitler's mother died and, because of that, he was depressed. Hitler's mother was Catholic, but Hitler hated Christianity. He also hated Jews.

paragraphs: In 1909, Hitler again went to Vienna to study art. He tried to become a student at the Academy of Arts, but failed the first entrance examination. Hitler said he first became an anti-Semite in Vienna. This town had a large Jewish community.

paragraphs: In 1913, Hitler was 24 years old. At that time, all young Austrian men had to join the army. Hitler did not like the Austrian army, so he left Austria for Germany. He lived in the German city of Munich.

paragraphs: On 16 August 1914, Hitler joined the Bavarian army. He fought for Germany in World War I. Hitler served in Belgium and France in the 16th Bavarian Reserve Regiment. He spent nearly the whole time on the Western Front. He was a runner, one of the most dangerous jobs on the Front. That means he ran from one position to another one to carry messages. On 1 November 1914, Hitler became a Gefreiter (which was like being a private first class in the United States Army, or a lance corporal in the British Army). The government awarded him the Iron Cross Second Class on 2 December 1914.

paragraphs: On 5 October 1916, Hitler was hurt by a bullet shell. Between 9 October and 1 December, he was in the military hospital "Belitz". In March 1917, he went back to the front. There, he fought in a battle and was awarded with the Militärverdienstkreuz Third Class with swords.

paragraphs: In March 1918, Hitler participated in the Spring Offensive. On 4 August 1918, Hitler was awarded with the Iron Cross First Class by the Jewish Hugo Gutmann. After Germany surrendered, Hitler was shocked, because the German army still held enemy area in November 1918.

paragraphs: After World War I, Hitler stayed in the army and returned to Munich. There he attended the funeral march of the Bavarian prime minister Kurt Eisner, who had been killed. In 1919, he participated in a training programme for propaganda speakers from 5 to 12 June and 26 June to 5 July.

paragraphs: Later that year, Hitler joined a small political party called the German Workers Party. He became member number 555. He soon won the support of the party's members. Two years later, he became the party's leader. He renamed the party the National Socialist German Workers Party. It became known as the Nazi Party.

paragraphs: In 1923, Hitler got together several hundred other members of the Nazi Party and tried to take over the Weimar Republic government (1918–34) in the Beer Hall Putsch. The coup failed. The government killed 13 of his men (the 13 dead men were later declared saints in Nazi ideology). They also put Hitler in the Landsberg Prison. They said that he would stay in prison for five years, but they let him leave after nine months.

paragraphs: While Hitler was in prison, he wrote a book with the help of his close friend Rudolf Hess. At first, Hitler wanted to call the book "Four and a Half Years of Struggle against Lies, Stupidity and Cowardice". In the end, he called the book ""Mein Kampf"" ("My Struggle").

paragraphs: "Mein Kampf" brought together some of Hitler's different ideas and explains where they came from:

paragraphs: Hitler may also have been influenced by Martin Luther's "On the Jews and their Lies". In "Mein Kampf", Hitler says Martin Luther was "a great warrior, a true statesman and a great reformer."

paragraphs: In 1933, Hitler was elected into the German government. He ended freedom of speech, and put his enemies in jail or killed them. He did not allow any other political party except the Nazi party. Hitler and his propaganda minister, Joseph Goebbels, spread extreme nationalism within Germany. All media had to praise the Nazis. Also, more people were born because Hitler wanted more people of the "master race" (those he called "Aryans"). He made Germany a totalitarian Nazi state.

paragraphs: Despite Poland being carved out of former German territory, Hitler is credited with starting World War II by ordering the German Army to invade Poland. His army took over Poland and most of Europe, including France and a large part of the Soviet Union.

paragraphs: During the war, Hitler ordered the Nazis to kill many people, including women and children. The Nazis killed around six million Jews in The Holocaust. Other people that the Nazis killed were Roma (Gypsies), homosexuals, Slavs such as Russians and Poles, and his political opponents.

paragraphs: Finally, some of the other countries in the world worked together to defeat Germany. Hitler lost all of the land that he had taken. Millions of Germans were killed in the war. At the end of World War II, Hitler gave all people in the "Führerbunker" the permission to leave it. Many people did and moved to the region of Berchtesgaden. They used planes and truck convoys.

paragraphs: Hitler, the Göbbels family, Martin Bormann, Eva Braun and some other staff remained in the bunker. Hitler married to Eva Braun on 29 April 1945.

paragraphs: Forty hours after Hitler and Eva Braun got married in Berlin, both of them used poison to kill themselves, then Hitler shot himself in the head with his gun. Before this, Hitler ordered that their bodies be burned. This prevented him from being captured alive by soldiers of the Red Army, who were closing in on him.


title: Virgil

paragraphs: Virgil, Publius Vergilius Maro, or Vergil, (15 October 70 BC 21 September 19 BC) was a poet in the Latin language. His poems are about gods and their mythology. Virgil's most famous epic poem is called the "Aeneid".

paragraphs: Tradition is that Virgil was born in the village of Andes, near Mantua in Cisalpine Gaul. Scholars looking at the way he used words think that he may have Etruscan, Umbrian or even a Celtic background. Study of his name has led to beliefs that his family may have been earlier Roman settlers. These modern beliefs are not supported by evidence from his own writings or from writers of his biographies. Some scholars have noted that his nickname, "MARO", is an anagram of the two main themes in the Aeneid: "AMOR" (love) and "ROMA" (Rome).


title: Alcohol

paragraphs: In chemistry, alcohol is a general term which refers to many organic compounds used in industry and science as reagents, solvents, and fuels. Alcohols are carbohydrates which are made of an alkyl group with one or more hydroxyl (-"OH") groups bound to its carbon atoms. Alcohol is colorless, and also transparent.

paragraphs: There are two ways of naming alcohols: Common names, and IUPAC names.

paragraphs: The hydroxyl (OH) group makes alcohols polar. Alcohols are very weakly acidic. Most alcohols are highly flammable.

paragraphs: The simplest two alcohols are methanol (or methyl alcohol) and ethanol (or ethyl alcohol), which have the following structures:

paragraphs: IUPAC nomenclature is used when describing more complex alcohols.

paragraphs: In common usage, "alcohol" often means ethanol or "grain alcohol". (See also: alcoholic proof).


title: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

paragraphs: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (January 27, 1756 – December 5, 1791; pronounced "MOHT-sart") was an Austrian composer (music writer), instrumentalist, and music teacher. His full baptised name was Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophillus Mozart. He was born in Salzburg, Austria, the youngest child of Leopold and Anna Maria Mozart. From a very early age, the young Mozart showed great musical talent. He toured Europe with his parents and older sister "Nannerl" for several years performing for royalty and the aristocratic elite.

paragraphs: As a young man, Mozart tried but failed to establish himself as a composer in Paris. He returned to Salzburg where he was briefly employed in the court of the Archbishop of Salzburg. He was restless, aware of his genius, and thought Salzburg too small for his talent. He relocated to Vienna where he met with some success. He married Constance Weber and fathered two sons. He died in Vienna after a brief but unknown illness.

paragraphs: Mozart wrote more than 600 musical works, all of the very highest quality. His works include the operas "The Marriage of Figaro", "Don Giovanni", "Così fan tutte" and "The Magic Flute"; the symphonies in E-flat major, G minor, and C major ("Jupiter"); concertos for piano, violin, and various wind instruments; and numerous chamber pieces, works for the church, minuets and other dances, songs, and the "Requiem". Along with Bach and Beethoven, Mozart is regarded as one of the greatest composers who has ever lived.

paragraphs: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ("Wolfi" or Wolferl") was born in Salzburg, Austria, to Leopold and Anna Maria Mozart. Leopold, was a violinist in the orchestra of the archbishop of Salzburg and the author of a best-selling introduction to playing the violin.

paragraphs: Young Mozart showed evidence of great musical talent at a very early age. He was playing the harpsichord and the violin at the age of five, and writing little pieces of music.

paragraphs: Mozart's sister Marianna ("Nannerl") was a talented youngster. The two children received their musical and academic education from their father. The family toured Europe for a few years, performing before royals and aristocrats.

paragraphs: Mozart performed in Munich, Prague, Paris, The Hague and London. In London, he performed for King George III. He met the composer Johann Christian Bach, one of the sons of Johann Sebastian Bach. He sat on the knee of Johann Christian Bach (1735–1782) and improvised a fugue. And here, at the age of eight, he heard his ﬁrst two symphonies performed.

paragraphs: Eventually, the Mozarts made their way back to Salzburg. But in 1768, they were off again to Vienna, where the now twelve-year-old Wolfgang staged a production of his ﬁrst opera, Bastien und Bastienne. And he was infected with smallpox at that time. He recovered but his face was pock-marked for life. He went to Italy where he heard music by many famous Italian composers, including Gregorio Allegri who had written a piece called "Miserere". This piece had been written for the Pope for the choir of the Vatican to sing. No one was allowed to see the written music so that no other choir would be able to sing it. Mozart heard the piece once and then wrote it all down from memory. He met the Pope and was given a knighthood (Order of the Golden Spur).

paragraphs: In 1777, he went on a journey with his mother. In Mannheim, he fell in love with Aloysia Weber. She was 16 years old and studying singing. Mozart wanted to take her to Italy to make her famous, but his father put a stop to these plans. By 1778, Mozart and his mother were in Paris. His mother died there.

paragraphs: Mozart wrote some small operas when he was young, but his first really important opera was "Idomeneo". It was first performed in Munich in 1780. The next year he went to Vienna. By this time he was working, like his father, for the Archbishop of Salzburg. When he went back to Salzburg he argued with the Archbishop who actually kicked him out. Mozart went off to Vienna where he would spend the rest of his life.

paragraphs: In 1782 he married Constanze Weber, one of the three younger sisters of Aloysia (who by now was married to someone else). They were to have seven children, but five of them died in childhood. Mozart’s father did not approve of the marriage. Constanze was a loving wife, but, like Mozart, she was not good at looking after money, so they were often very poor.

paragraphs: In that same year, 1782, Mozart wrote another very successful opera: "Die Entführung aus dem Serail" ("The Abduction from the Seraglio"). One famous story tells that, after the emperor had heard the opera, he told Mozart that there were “too many notes”. Mozart answered: “Just as many as are necessary, Your Majesty.”

paragraphs: Mozart started a series of concerts in which he played his own piano concertos, conducting from the keyboard. He met the composer Joseph Haydn and the two men became great friends, often playing together in a string quartet. Haydn said to Leopold Mozart one day: "Before God and as an honest man I tell you that your son is the greatest composer known to me either in person or by name. He has taste, and what is more, the most profound knowledge of composition." Mozart was in the same Masonic Lodge as Haydn, and he dedicated some of his string quartets to him.

paragraphs: The audiences in Vienna did not give Mozart much support after a few years, so he often went to Prague where the audiences loved him. His opera "The Marriage of Figaro" was very popular, and in 1787 he gave the first performance there of his opera "Don Giovanni".

paragraphs: There are several stories about Mozart’s last illness and death, and it is not easy to be sure what happened. He was working on an opera "The Magic Flute" which is one of his best works and a very popular opera today. It is written in German, not Italian, like most of his other operas. In some ways it is like an English pantomime. At the same time that he was working on this he was asked by a stranger to compose a requiem. He was told to write this in secret. Then he was asked to write an Italian opera "La Clemenza di Tito", which was performed in Prague during September 1791. At the end of September "The Magic Flute" was given its first performance. Mozart then worked very hard at the "Requiem". He must have realized that he was already very ill, and that in a way the requiem (a mass for the dead) was for himself. He died in Vienna before he could finish it. Constanze asked another composer, a man called Franz Xaver Süssmayr, to finish the work. Mozart was buried in the St. Marx Cemetery.

paragraphs: Mozart's music, like that of Haydn, is the very best of what is known as the Classical style. At the time he started to compose, the Baroque period was just coming to an end. Tastes were changing in music. Form, balance and elegance were thought of as more important than counterpoint. Mozart was the first great composer to write music for the piano, an instrument which had only just become popular. He wrote almost every kind of music: symphonies, operas, solo concertos, chamber music, especially string quartets and string quintets, and the piano sonata. He also wrote a lot of religious music, including masses, as well as popular music like dances, divertimenti and serenades.

paragraphs: When Mozart was young a symphony was usually a short, simple piece for entertainment. Mozart made the symphony into a carefully worked-out piece lasting up to half an hour. His last three symphonies are especially fine masterpieces. His concertos, especially his piano concertos, are far more advanced than anything that had been written before. Although Mozart behaved in truly childish ways at times, he was good at understanding human character. This is clear in his operas, where he introduced many subtle effects to describe the characters in the story.

paragraphs: Mozart's operas are among his greatest works. He understood people's characters very well and was able to write music which tells us everything about the personalities in the operas. The three operas in which he set words by Lorenzo Da Ponte: "Don Giovanni", "Le Nozze di Figaro" ("The Marriage of Figaro") and "Cosi fan tutte" each include some very clever ensembles in which several characters are singing at once, each one showing his or her view of the situation.

paragraphs: As well as many great masterpieces, Mozart wrote many pieces in a more popular style, including some tunes that everybody knows today. His serenade "Eine kleine Nachtmusik K525" is known everywhere, as is the "Turkish Rondo" from his "Piano Sonata in A K331", the opening of the "Symphony No. 40 in G minor K550", and the birdcatcher’s song from "The Magic Flute K620."

paragraphs: Some time after Mozart’s death a man called Köchel studied all Mozart’s music, tried to put them in chronological order, and gave them a number. The number helps us to know exactly which work is meant, for example "Symphony in G minor K183" is not the same piece as "Symphony in G minor K550" (K stands for Köchel. Sometimes it is written "KV550" standing for "Köchel Verzeichnis" i.e. "Köchel Catalogue"). The highest Köchel number is 626, his requiem mass.


title: Johann Sebastian Bach

paragraphs: Johann Sebastian Bach (31 March 1685 in Eisenach – 28 July 1750 in Leipzig; pronounced "BAHK") was a German composer and organist. He lived in the last part of the Baroque period. He is most famous for his work "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor", "St. Matthew Passion", "St. John Passion", "Mass in B minor", and the "Brandenburg Concertos". He spent several years working at courts of noblemen. Here he wrote most of his chamber music and orchestral music. Most of his life, however, he worked in a church where he was expected to write church music. Bach wrote almost every kind of music except opera. During the last part of his life most composers were writing in a new style called the Classical style, but Bach always wrote in the Baroque style. That made some people at the time think he was old-fashioned, but today we know that his work is the very best of Baroque music. Along with Mozart and Beethoven, Bach is regarded as one of the greatest composers who has ever lived.

paragraphs: Bach came from a highly musical family. His father, Johann Ambrosius Bach, was a trumpeter at the court of Saxe-Eisenach. Many of his relatives were professional musicians of some sort: violinists and town musicians, organists, "Cantors" (Directors of Music in a church), court musicians and "Kapellmeisters" (Directors of Music at a royal court). Most of them played several instruments. Of his twenty children, several became quite famous composers, especially Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714–1788), Johann Christian Bach (1735–1782), Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach and Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710–1784).

paragraphs: When he was fifteen, he went to the small town of Lüneburg. At first he sang treble in the choir and was said to have a very fine treble voice, but his voice very soon got lower, so he made himself useful playing instruments. He learned by listening to famous organists like Reincken (1623–1722) and Dietrich Buxtehude (1637–1707). Bach got his first job in 1703 in Arnstadt. It was a well-paid job for a young boy who was 18 years old. There was a new organ in the church, and Bach already knew a lot about organ building as well as being a brilliant organist. They asked him to examine the new organ, and then they offered him a job. Bach spent four years as organist there. He composed some organ works. Unfortunately, the congregation were not musical enough to like it. They did not understand the ornamental notes he added to the hymn tunes. Bach got rather fed up with the priests who were always complaining about it, so he resigned and took another job in Mühlhausen, not far away. After a year there, he gave up that job and went to a big town called Weimar.

paragraphs: Johann Sebastian was made organist to the Duke of Saxe-Weimar. At the Duke’s court there was a chapel with an organ. Bach composed many of his great organ works at this time. He became very famous as an organist and was invited to play in other big churches and to give advice on organ building. He was extremely good at improvisation. On one occasion he was in Dresden at the same time as a French organist named Louis Marchant. There was going to be a competition between the two men to see who was better at improvisation. Bach was practicing the day before and Marchant heard him. He realized that Bach would win, so he left.

paragraphs: In 1714 the Duke made Bach "Konzertmeister" (Concertmaster, a job that paid more money.) He had to write cantatas for church services. In 1717 he was offered a job in the town of Cöthen, where he would earn an even better salary. The Duke was angry and did not want him to go but Bach insisted, so the Duke put Bach in prison for a month. In the end he had to let the musician go.

paragraphs: At Cöthen, Bach worked for Prince Leopold. The Prince was very musical and a wonderful man to work for. Bach was "Kapellmeister" (Director of Music) and was treated well. The organ was not very good, and it was not used much, so Bach did not write any organ music during this period. The Duke had an orchestra, and Bach was in charge. Nearly all Bach’s orchestral works were written in Cöthen: the Brandenburg Concertos, the violin concertos, the orchestral suites, the solo music for violin and for cello, and a lot of keyboard music for harpsichord or clavichord.

paragraphs: During 1719, the great composer George Frideric Handel, who had moved to England, came to Germany to visit his mother. Bach wanted to meet Handel, who was only 30 km away, but these two famous musicians never met. Handel wanted to spend his limited time in Germany with his mother who was old and frail, knowing that it would be the last time he would see her.

paragraphs: Bach’s first wife, Maria Barbara Bach, died in 1720. The couple had seven children. Soon afterwards, he married Anna Magdalena with whom he had another thirteen children. However, several of his children died young.

paragraphs: In 1723 Bach moved to Leipzig to take the job of "Cantor" at the St Thomas Church, a very large church in the town. As "Cantor" he was in charge of all the music, both at St Thomas and at another church nearby. He also had to compose music for the town. It was an excellent job, and more secure than being at a court. The schools were good for his sons. Bach stayed in Leipzig until his death. He loved his job most of the time and worked very hard. He composed many cantatas for the church services. These services were very long, lasting about three hours. Many of the cantatas he wrote last about 30 minutes, and that was just one part of a service! He had assistants to play the organ. Bach himself directed the choir and the orchestra. There were probably 16 singers in the choir and 18 players in the orchestra. He wrote the "St Matthew Passion" and the "St John Passion". Both these works, which are very long, tell the story of Jesus dying on the cross. They are among the most famous pieces of music ever written. He also wrote cantatas for special occasions such as weddings or funerals.

paragraphs: Life was not always easy, and sometimes there were arguments with the people who ruled the church. The sub-deacon wanted to choose some of the hymns, but this was the "Cantor’s" job. Bach was a sensible man, and he managed to get his way without making enemies. On another occasion he argued with the headmaster of the school (Bach had to do some teaching at the church school) about who was allowed to choose the choir section leaders. This actually went to court, and Bach won the case.

paragraphs: Bach often made journeys to other towns. In 1747 he visited the court of Prussian King Frederick the Great near Berlin. The king, a music lover, gave Bach a theme to improvise from on the harpsichord. Bach sat down and improvised a fugue using this theme. Later Bach wrote a very long composition for flute, violin and harpsichord with cello accompaniment, in many movements, all based on this theme. At the end, the theme is heard in 5 of the 6 voices. Bach called it "The Musical Offering" and he sent it to the king.

paragraphs: Bach wrote many fugues, eventually he decided to write a collection called "The Art of Fugue". His plan was to publish it, but he died before he could finish it (his son later published it in his honor, as Bach's last published piece). In the last year or two of his life, he became blind in spite of two eye operations.

paragraphs: In the 19th century more people became interested in Bach, and many of his works were published after he had been dead more than a hundred years.


title: Atmosphere of Earth

paragraphs: The atmosphere is the layer of gases around the Earth. It is held in place by Earth's gravity. It is made up mainly of nitrogen (78.1%). It also has plentiful oxygen (20.9%) and small amounts of argon (0.9%), carbon dioxide (~ 0.035%), water vapor, and other gases. The atmosphere protects life on Earth by absorbing (taking) ultraviolet rays from the sun. It makes our days cooler and our nights warmer.

paragraphs: Solid particulates, including ash, dust, volcanic ash, etc. are small parts of atmosphere. They are important in making clouds and fog.

paragraphs: The atmosphere does not end at a specific place. The higher above the Earth, the thinner the atmosphere. There is no clear border between the atmosphere and outer space, though the Kármán line is sometimes treated as a border. 75% of the atmosphere is within of the Earth's surface.

paragraphs: Originally, the Earth's atmosphere had almost no free oxygen. The first atmosphere consisted of gases in the solar nebula, primarily hydrogen. There might be simple hydrides such as those now found in the gas giants (Jupiter and Saturn): water vapor, methane and ammonia. The atmosphere gradually changed to mostly carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The lighter gases, like hydrogen and helium, cannot be held by the Earth's gravity, and would escape. For a long time (say 2 billion years or more), the atmosphere was dominated by carbon dioxide.

paragraphs: In the Great Oxygenation Event the atmosphere changed to the kind we have now, with oxygen replacing the carbon dioxide. Our atmosphere is still mostly nitrogen, but most living organisms interact more with oxygen than with nitrogen. Oxygenation began with cyanobacteria making free oxygen by photosynthesis. Most organisms today need oxygen for their respiration: only a few anaerobic organisms can grow without oxygen.

paragraphs: Some parts of the atmosphere are hot or cold, depending on height. Starting from the surface and climbing straight up, the air gets colder in the troposphere, but then it becomes hotter, higher in the stratosphere. These changes of temperature are divided into layers. These are like layers of an onion. The difference between the layers is the way the temperature changes.

paragraphs: These are the layers of the atmosphere, starting from the ground:

paragraphs: Where one layer changes to the next have been named "-pauses." So the tropopause is where the troposphere ends ( high). The stratopause is at the end of the stratosphere. The mesopause is at the end of the mesosphere.

paragraphs: The average temperature of the atmosphere at the surface of Earth is .

paragraphs: The atmosphere has pressure. This is because even though air is a gas, it has weight. The average atmospheric pressure at sea level is about .

paragraphs: The density of air at sea level is about 1.2 kilograms per cubic meter. This density becomes less at higher altitudes at the same rate that pressure becomes less. The total mass of the atmosphere is about 5.1 × 10 kg, which is only a very small part of the Earth's total mass.


title: Human penis

paragraphs: The human penis is a male body part found on the outside of the body. It is used for urination and for sexual reproduction. The main sexual function of the penis is to be inserted into a female's vagina and deliver semen which may cause pregnancy. This activity is called sexual intercourse.

paragraphs: There are many slang words for "penis". They include "dick", "cock", and "schlong". A euphemism  for "penis" is "male member".

paragraphs: The human penis exits the abdomen above the testicles and hangs freely outside the body. The main visible part is called the shaft.

paragraphs: The human penis is made up of three types of tissue. It has two corpora cavernosa (special pieces of muscle) next to each other and a corpus spongiosum (spongy muscle) between them.

paragraphs: The end of the corpus spongiosum forms the glans penis which is underneath the foreskin in uncircumcised males. The area on the bottom of the penis, where the foreskin is attached on uncircumcised men, is known as the frenulum. The urethra, the tube where urine and semen travel through, runs down the corpus spongiosum (spongy tissue), and opens at the tip of the penis. Sperm are made in the testes (ball-like organs) and stored in the epididymis (layer of tissue) around the testes. During ejaculation, sperm are pushed up the vas deferens. Fluids are added by the seminal vesicles, the prostate gland and the bulbourethral glands to make semen.

paragraphs: A penis can become erect if a male is sexually aroused (or sometimes during sleep, even though there is no sexual stimulation). In an erection, the penis fills with blood. The blood makes the penis become longer, thicker and harder. Veins taking blood away from the penis get smaller, so less blood is taken through. Arteries bringing blood to the penis get wider, bringing more blood to the penis.

paragraphs: Ejaculation is when semen is pushed from the penis. It usually happens during an orgasm. Males can ejaculate during sexual intercourse or by masturbation.

paragraphs: In reproductive sexual intercourse between a male and female, the erect penis is inserted into the vagina and moved in and out. The vagina places pressure on the penis, which can cause the male to have an orgasm and ejaculate into the vagina, causing insemination.

paragraphs: Other forms of sex, like anal and oral sex, can also cause stimulation, and therefore orgasm and ejaculation. In masturbation, a male can stimulate the penis and other sensitive areas of the body, such as the scrotum, by rubbing the genital area. Ejaculation may also happen during sleep (called a 'wet dream'). A male must have started puberty before he can ejaculate. During orgasm, muscles push semen from the penis. Semen moves through the urethra and comes out of the hole at the tip of the penis.

paragraphs: The length and thickness of the penis is different for different people. The size of a soft penis (not erect) is much smaller than when it is erect. Some penises grow more when they get hard than other penises. In most cases, whether a penis is big or small, it can still be used for sex. It averages out to be around 3 to 6 inches long when not erect. The average size of an erect human penis is between 13 – 16 cm (5.1– 6 in). The average circumference of a penis is 12.3 cm (4.85 in) when fully erect. The penis grows bigger during puberty. At the start of puberty, the average length of the penis is . The penis reaches adult size about 5 years later. A study done in 1996 found the mean length of an adult man's penis is when it is not erect. The average length of an erect penis is about .

paragraphs: The foreskin is a fold of skin that covers the end of the penis. Cutting off the foreskin is called circumcision. The foreskin is connected to the head of the penis. During circumcision, the foreskin is removed from the penis. Circumcision is usually performed on infant males for medical, religious or cultural reasons. Circumcision is common in some parts of the world, such as the United States and the Middle East, but not common in some other parts of the world, such as Europe and China.

paragraphs: Some males have the foreskin cut off when they are adults because they have problems with their foreskin. Some males have the foreskin cut off because they want to change how their penis looks.

paragraphs: In common speech, you can say that someone is "cut" or "uncut", meaning circumcised or not circumcised .

paragraphs: In some religions, babies and young boys have their foreskin cut off. This is expected in Islam and Judaism. It is not required according to Christianity. In Judaism, infant males are required to have their foreskin removed as a sign of the covenant (ancient promise) made with God.

paragraphs: A young boy's penis skin is the same color as his other skin. Around age 12-15, a boy's penis skin gets slightly darker. This is normal because of puberty. This is caused by sex hormones (natural chemicals), especially testosterone. Testosterone makes more melanin. Melanin is the amino acid that causes skin color. (Sunlight also makes more melanin so skin gets a sun tan.)

paragraphs: Usually a teenager or man's penis side skin is slightly darker than other skin on his body. The tip (glans) of the penis is usually pink or red color even if the penis side skin is dark. If the man is not circumcised, the tip is usually covered by the foreskin. The foreskin is about the same color as the skin on the side of the penis.

paragraphs: If a man's penis skin changes color and he doesn't know why, he should go to a doctor. He could have an infection, diabetes or cancer. A sunburn on the penis can happen quickly. If a man is outside without clothes, he will get a sun tan. That is normal. Too much sun causes a sunburn. Doctors say to use sunscreen (sun cream) before and after nude swimming. A sunburn can happen in a few minutes on a very sunny day.

paragraphs: Since the oldest cultures the penis has assumed a strong importance as a symbol of fertility used also in religious ceremonies to propitiate the reproductive capacity of men and beasts. For example, in Roman paganism the god Priapus is characterized by a huge penis.

paragraphs: On the penis can be applied piercings and it can be tattooed as a body art form.


title: Sahara

paragraphs: The Sahara in North Africa, is the largest desert in the world except for Antarctica and is the largest hot desert.

paragraphs: It is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the Atlas Mountains, the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, and the Sahel region. It runs through many countries including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, and The Sudan. Most parts are uninhabited, but some people manage to survive in places where there is water.

paragraphs: The Sahara Desert is about 9,000,000 square kilometers (3.5 million square miles) in size. It has been both larger and smaller at different times. After the last ice age it became more fertile, then dried up again. It is the hottest place on the Earth, but not the driest. The driest is the Atacama Desert in South America. The Sahara has about the same size as the whole United States.

paragraphs: The Sahara has one of the world's most harsh climates. Typically, the Sahara landscape experiences little rainfall, powerful winds and wide temperature ranges. In some areas, there can be no rainfall for up to years at a time.

paragraphs: In the summer, daytime air temperatures across the Sahara often reach over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. In the winter, freezing temperatures may occur in the northern Sahara, and milder temperatures, across the southern Sahara. Snow may fall occasionally in some of the higher mountain ranges and rarely, on the desert floor.

paragraphs: The highest mountain is 3415 m, and is the "Emi Koussi" in Chad. Some mountain peaks in the Sahara Desert have snow even in the summer. The main mountain ranges is the Atlas Mountains in Algeria. The Sahara's lowest point lies in the Qattara Depression in Egypt, at about 130 metres below sea level. Sand sheets and dunes are about 25% of the Sahara. The other parts are mountains, steppes with a lot of stones, and oases.

paragraphs: Several rivers run through the Sahara. However, most of them come and go through the seasons, except for the Nile River and Niger River.

paragraphs: Metallic minerals are very important to most Saharan countries. Algeria and Mauritania have several major deposits of iron ore. There are also uranium mines, mostly in Niger. A lot of phosphates are in Morocco and Western Sahara. Petroleum is mainly found in Algeria, where it is very important to the economy. While mineral exploitation has led to economic growth in Sahara, this has rarely helped the indigenous population, as skilled workers have been brought from other countries.

paragraphs: Of the Sahara's around 4 million people, most live in Mauritania, Western Sahara, Algeria, Libya and Egypt. Dominant groups of people are Sahrawis and Tuareg people. The largest city is Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital. Other important cities are Tamanrasset in Algeria, and Sebha and Ghat in Libya.

paragraphs: Only 200,000 km² of the Sahara are fertile oases, where dates, corn, and fruits are grown. The few fertile regions today are fed by underground rivers and underground basins. Many of Sahara's oases rests in depressions (areas under sea level) allowing water to surface from underground reservoirs; artesian wells.

paragraphs: The soil in Sahara is low in organic matter. The soil in depressions is often saline.

paragraphs: Other sorts of vegetation include scattered concentrations of grasses, shrubs and trees in the highlands, as well as in the oases and along river beds. Some plants are well adjusted to the climate, allowing them to germinate within 3 days of rain and sow their seeds within 2 weeks after that.

paragraphs: Animals living in the Sahara include gerbil, jerboa, cape hare and desert hedgehog, barbary sheep, oryx, gazelle, deer, wild ass, baboon, hyena, jackal, sand fox, weasel and mongoose. The bird life counts more than 300 species. Reptiles, including 4 species of snake also live here. The most venomous scorpion in the world lives here.

paragraphs: 4,000 years ago, the Sahara was a thriving savanna grassland with a great variety of wildlife. This included animals such as elephants and giraffes. Climate change has caused the rainfall to be less and turn the Sahara into the barren, desert wilderness as we know it today.


title: Paris

paragraphs: Paris (nicknamed the ""City of light"") is the capital city of France, and the largest city in France. The area is , and around 2.15 million people live there. If suburbs are counted, the population of the Paris area rises to 12 million people.

paragraphs: The Seine river runs through the oldest part of Paris, and divides it into two parts, known as the Left Bank and the Right Bank. It is surrounded by many forests.

paragraphs: Paris is also the center of French economy, politics, traffic and culture. Paris has many art museums and historical buildings. As a traffic center, Paris has a very good underground subway system (called the "Metro"). It also has two airports. The Metro was built in 1900, and its total length is more than .

paragraphs: The city has a multi-cultural style, because 20% of the people there are from outside France. There are many different restaurants with all kinds of food. Paris also has some types of pollution like air pollution and light pollution.

paragraphs: Julius Caesar conquered the Celtic "Parisii" tribe in 51 BC. The Romans called the place Lutetia of the Parisii, or "Lutetia Parisiorum". The place got a shorter name, ""Paris"", in 212 AD.

paragraphs: As the Roman Empire began to fall apart in the West, the Germanic tribe called the Franks moved in, taking it in 464. In 506, their king Clovis I made it his capital. Charlemagne moved his capital to Aachen in Germany, but Paris continued as an important town and was attacked by the Vikings twice. When Hugh Capet became king of France in 987, he again made Paris his capital. For a long time, the kings only controlled Paris and the surrounding area, as much of the rest of France was in the hands of barons or English. During the Hundred Years' War, the English controlled Paris from 1420 to 1437.

paragraphs: During the Protestant Reformation, a huge massacre of French Protestants started there in 1572, called the Saint Bartholomew Day Massacre. Paris saw many other troubles over the years of the ""Ancien Régime"" (Old Kingdom), then in 1789, the French Revolution began in Paris, leading to more massacres.

paragraphs: Paris was the Capital of the French Empire which, as well as France, covered Spain, Belgium, Holland, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Italy, most of Germany and some of Austria, Croatia, Slovenia and Poland. The Empire ruled by Napoleon was from 1804-1814/1815. The Russian army seized Paris from Napoleon in 1814, and the Prussian army captured it in 1871. The next time it was captured was by the Nazi Germans in 1940. The Allies freed the city in 1944 and it has not since been captured.

paragraphs: Paris has an oceanic climate in the Köppen climate classification. It has warm summers and cold winters, and rainfall year-round.

paragraphs: Paris has much to offer for sightseeing. Here are five very famous examples:

paragraphs: Because the city of Paris is roughly only 6 miles across, visitors have a wide range of options when it comes to transportation. While much of the more well-known attractions are in the center of the city and are best experienced by walking, there are many destinations that require other means of transport. While taxis offer a fast and relatively inexpensive means of travel, Paris’ public transportation system offers an enjoyable, stress-free way to explore the city.

paragraphs: The Paris Métro system was built in 1900 by engineer Fulgence Bienvenüe and architect Hector Guimard. The Métro covers over 124 miles with 300 stations and 16 lines. Servicing over 6 million residents and tourists every day, the Métro was designed to be an efficient and reliable alternative to the congestion of traffic. Every building in Paris is less than 500 meters from a train station, so accessibility is never a problem. The 16 Métro lines are identified by their final destinations. A rider can simply select the appropriate line and take it in the direction s/he wants. The Métro stations are well marked, and there are ticket booths at most entrances.

paragraphs: There are five airports that serve Paris: Charles de Gaulle Airport, Orly Airport, Beauvais-Tillé Airport and Paris–Le Bourget Airport, and Châlons Vatry Airport.


title: The Holocaust

paragraphs: The Holocaust, sometimes called The "Shoah" (""), was a genocide in which Nazi Germany systematically killed people during World War II. About six million Jews were killed, as well as five million others that the Nazis claimed were inferior (mostly Slavs, communists, Romani/Roma people, people with disabilities, homosexuals, and Jehovah's Witnesses). These people were rounded up, put in ghettos, forced to work in concentration camps, and then killed in gas chambers. Jews were forced to wear the yellow Star of David, a symbol of their religion.

paragraphs: There was hatred and persecution of Jews (anti-Semitism) in Europe for hundreds of years. Many people wrongly thought that all Jews became rich by stealing money from other people, such as Christians; that they did not like people other than their fellow Jews; and that they harmed children to use their blood for religious rituals (blood libel). These beliefs were not true, and were based on stereotypes and prejudices.

paragraphs: However these beliefs were popular in the German-speaking world and elsewhere in the late 1800s.

paragraphs: Adolf Hitler was born in Austria during this time, when many people disliked Jews. He may have been jealous of Jewish success in Austria. However, in a book he wrote called "Mein Kampf" ("My Struggle"), he said it was the Jews' fault that Germany and Austria lost World War I. He also wrote that Germany's economic problems were the Jews' fault. Many people agreed with Hitler’s ideas and supported him as the leader of the Nazi Party.

paragraphs: Not all deaths were written down, so the exact numbers are unknown. However various sources approximate:

paragraphs: Led by Hitler, the Nazis killed millions of Jews. They forced Jews to wear the golden Star of David on their upper bodies. Jews were rounded up by the thousands and crammed into trains that took them to concentration camps like Auschwitz as well as death camps. Most of the Jews killed in the Holocaust were not German. They were from Poland or the Soviet Union.

paragraphs: The Nazis killed millions of people, hundreds at a time, with poison gas in special rooms called gas chambers. They forced others to dig giant holes in the ground where, after days of hard work, Jews and other prisoners were shot, buried, and burned in a mass grave. The Nazis executed many others by shooting, stabbing, or beating them to death. Still others died in forced marches from one camp to another. Many other people died of starvation, diseases, and freezing to death because of the terrible conditions in the concentration camps.

paragraphs: On the other hand, there were people who saved Jews from the Holocaust, because they thought it was the right thing to do. Some of them were later given "Righteous Among the Nations" awards by Yad Vashem.

paragraphs: Some people say the Holocaust did not happen at all, or was not as bad as historians say it was. This is called Holocaust denial. However, almost all historians agree that the Holocaust did happen and has been described correctly. Many Holocaust deniers profess that the Nazis did not kill as many people as historians say. Instead, they claim many of these people died from disease or lack of food, usually in order to shift blame from the Nazis. These ideas have been disproven by historical accounts, eyewitness evidence, and documentary evidence from the Nazis themselves. Also many Jews were killed because Hitler ordered it. In some countries in Europe, including Germany, it is against the law to say that the Holocaust never happened.


title: Kyoto

paragraphs: Kyoto () is a city in Japan. This city was the capital of Japan from 794 until 1868.

paragraphs: Kyoto is a major city in the Kansai region of Japan. Its population is 1.5 million people. The city of Kyoto is the capital city of the prefecture of Kyoto. Kyoto is one of the cultural, educational, and technology centers of Japan. In it are many universities including Kyoto University, the second oldest national university of Japan.

paragraphs: After 794, the Japanese emperors lived in this city which was called Heian-kyō.

paragraphs: In 1868, the city was called "Saikyō" ("Western capital") in order to distinguish it from Edo (Tokyo) which was the "Eastern capital".

paragraphs: There are mountains around the city on the east, north, and west sides. Some people in Kyoto believe that these mountains make Kyoto's summer especially hot and humid, and Kyoto's winter very cold.

paragraphs: We can see many temples and shrines built in traditional Japanese architectural styles here. Some of those buildings are registered as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. On the other hand, since Kyoto was one of biggest and richest Japanese cities in the middle of the 19th century; the citizens were eager to import European style, and there are many European style buildings in the center of Kyoto for company offices and schools.

paragraphs: Kyoto is one of oldest cities in Japan. Many tourists from all over the world come to Kyoto. Japanese people often come to Kyoto in the spring to see the cherry blossoms, and in the autumn to see the leaves change color.

paragraphs: Traditional Kyoto food often uses vegetables. McDonald's signboards in Kyoto are brown to preserve the traditional surroundings.

paragraphs: The oldest novel in the world, Shikibu Murasaki's The Tale of Genji is set in Kyoto during the Heian Period.

paragraphs: Kyoto is famous for three festivals: Gion festival, Aoi festival in the summer, and Jidai festival in the autumn.


title: Anarchy

paragraphs: Anarchy (From Greek αναρχια meaning "without archons") is a word that has more than one meaning. Some of its meanings are:

paragraphs: In the first meaning listed, an "anarchy" might be a made-up or real society based on a group's beliefs about anarchism (see anarcho-communism).

paragraphs: In the second meaning listed, "anarchy" has to do with having no political order. The CIA World factbook says that there is only one nation, Somalia, that is in a state of anarchy. In Somalia, the government is no longer in control, and some parts of the country are ruled by mobs and warlords who sometimes fight one another.

paragraphs: There are a small number of other places (Afghanistan, Albania, Burundi, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Rwanda) where government is "emerging" or "transitional", and were in anomie in the near past. The DC says that the Solomon Islands is "tending towards" anomie because "violence, corruption and crime have undermined stability and civil society".

paragraphs: When there is no political order, more than one government or political authority might sometimes compete for the same food, oil, land, or groups of people. The word "Anarchy" to used to describe this. However, because there is "more than one" competing authority, a better word might be "polyarchy". The difference between "anarchy" and "polyarchy" is important to someone who thinks that true anarchy would work well. The word for someone who thinks this is "anarchist", and the word for this kind of thinking is "anarchism". Anarchism has been thought about for hundreds of years.

paragraphs: Anarchy which follows the death of a ruler and ceases when his successor rises to power, is called interregnum (literally: "in-between rules").

paragraphs: The word anarchy comes from the Greek word αναρχία ("anarchia"), which means "without a leader".

paragraphs: "While the popular understanding of anarchism is of a violent, anti-State movement, anarchism is a much more subtle and nuanced tradition than a simple opposition to government power. Anarchists oppose the idea that power and domination are necessary for society, and instead advocate more co-operative, anti-hierarchical forms of social, political and economic organisation." [The Politics of Individualism, p. 106]


title: DNA

paragraphs: DNA, short for deoxyribonucleic acid, is the molecule that contains the genetic code of organisms. This includes animals, plants, protists, archaea and bacteria.

paragraphs: DNA is in each cell in the organism and tells cells what proteins to make. Mostly, these proteins are enzymes. DNA is inherited by children from their parents. This is why children share traits with their parents, such as skin, hair and eye color. The DNA in a person is a combination of the DNA from each of their parents.

paragraphs: Part of an organism's DNA is "non-coding DNA" sequences. They do not code for protein sequences. Some noncoding DNA is transcribed into non-coding RNA molecules, such as transfer RNA, ribosomal RNA, and regulatory RNAs. Other sequences are not transcribed at all, or give rise to RNA of unknown function. The amount of non-coding DNA varies greatly among species. For example, over 98% of the human genome is non-coding DNA, while only about 2% of a typical bacterial genome is non-coding DNA.

paragraphs: Viruses use either DNA or RNA to infect organisms. The genome replication of most DNA viruses takes place in the cell's nucleus, whereas RNA viruses usually replicate in the cytoplasm.

paragraphs: DNA has a double helix shape, which is like a ladder twisted into a spiral. Each step of the ladder is a pair of nucleotides.

paragraphs: DNA is made of four types of nucleotide:

paragraphs: The 'rungs' of the DNA ladder are each made of two bases, one base coming from each leg. The bases connect in the middle: 'A' "only" pairs with 'T', and 'C' "only" pairs with 'G'. The bases are held together by hydrogen bonds.

paragraphs: Adenine (A) and thymine (T) can pair up because they make two hydrogen bonds, and cytosine (C) and guanine (G) pair up to make three hydrogen bonds. Although the bases are always in fixed pairs, the pairs can come in any order (A-T or T-A; similarly, C-G or G-C). This way, DNA can write 'codes' out of the 'letters' that are the bases. These codes contain the message that tells the cell what to do.

paragraphs: On chromosomes, the DNA is bound up with proteins called histones to form chromatin. This association takes part in epigenetics and gene regulation. Genes are switched on and off during development and cell activity, and this regulation is the basis of most of the activity which takes place in cells.

paragraphs: When DNA is copied,this is called DNA replication. Briefly, the hydrogen bonds holding together paired bases are broken and the molecule is split in half: the legs of the ladder are separated. This gives two single strands. New strands are formed by matching the bases (A with T and G with C) to make the missing strands.

paragraphs: First, an enzyme called DNA helicase splits the DNA down the middle by breaking the hydrogen bonds. Then after the DNA molecule is in two separate pieces, another molecule called DNA polymerase makes a new strand that matches each of the strands of the split DNA molecule. Each copy of a DNA molecule is made of half of the original (starting) molecule and half of new bases.

paragraphs: When DNA is copied, mistakes are sometimes made – these are called mutations. There are four main types of mutations:

paragraphs: Mutations may also be classified by their effect on the structure and function of proteins, or their effect on fitness. Mutations may be bad for the organism, or neutral, or of benefit. Sometimes mutations are fatal for the organism – the protein made by the new DNA does not work at all, and this causes the embryo to die. On the other hand, evolution is moved forward by mutations, when the new version of the protein works better for the organism.

paragraphs: A section of DNA that contains instructions to make a protein is called a gene. Each gene has the sequence for at least one polypeptide. Proteins form structures, and also form enzymes. The enzymes do most of the work in cells. Proteins are made out of smaller polypeptides, which are formed of amino acids. To make a protein to do a particular job, the correct amino acids have to be joined up in the correct order.

paragraphs: Proteins are made by tiny machines in the cell called ribosomes. Ribosomes are in the main body of the cell, but DNA is only in the nucleus of the cell. The codon is part of the DNA, but DNA never leaves the nucleus. Because DNA cannot leave the nucleus, the cell nucleus makes a copy of the DNA sequence in RNA. This is smaller and can get through the holes – pores – in the membrane of the nucleus and out into the cell.

paragraphs: Genes encoded in DNA are transcribed into messenger RNA (mRNA) by proteins such as RNA polymerase. Mature mRNA is then used as a template for protein synthesis by the ribosome. Ribosomes read codons, 'words' made of three base pairs that tell the ribosome which amino acid to add. The ribosome scans along an mRNA, reading the code while it makes protein. Another RNA called tRNA helps match the right amino acid to each codon.

paragraphs: DNA was first isolated (extracted from cells) by Swiss physician Friedrich Miescher in 1869, when he was working on bacteria from the pus in surgical bandages. The molecule was found in the nucleus of the cells and so he called it "nuclein".

paragraphs: In 1928, Frederick Griffith discovered that traits of the "smooth" form of "Pneumococcus" could be transferred to the "rough" form of the same bacteria by mixing killed "smooth" bacteria with the live "rough" form. This system provided the first clear suggestion that DNA carries genetic information.

paragraphs: The Avery–MacLeod–McCarty experiment identified DNA as the transforming principle in 1943.

paragraphs: DNA's role in heredity was confirmed in 1952, when Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase in the Hershey–Chase experiment showed that DNA is the genetic material of the T2 bacteriophage.

paragraphs: In the 1950s, Erwin Chargaff found that the amount of thymine (T) present in a molecule of DNA was about equal to the amount of adenine (A) present. He found that the same applies to guanine (G) and cytosine (C). Chargaff's rules summarises this finding.

paragraphs: In 1953, James D. Watson and Francis Crick suggested what is now accepted as the first correct double-helix model of DNA structure in the journal "Nature". Their double-helix, molecular model of DNA was then based on a single X-ray diffraction image "Photo 51", taken by Rosalind Franklin and Raymond Gosling in May 1952.

paragraphs: Experimental evidence supporting the Watson and Crick model was published in a series of five articles in the same issue of "Nature". Of these, Franklin and Gosling's paper was the first publication of their own X-ray diffraction data and original analysis method that partly supported the Watson and Crick model; this issue also contained an article on DNA structure by Maurice Wilkins and two of his colleagues, whose analysis and "in vivo" B-DNA X-ray patterns also supported the presence "in vivo" of the double-helical DNA configurations as proposed by Crick and Watson for their double-helix molecular model of DNA in the previous two pages of "Nature". In 1962, after Franklin's death, Watson, Crick, and Wilkins jointly received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Nobel Prizes were awarded only to living recipients at the time. A debate continues about who should receive credit for the discovery.

paragraphs: In 1957, Crick explained the relationship between DNA, RNA, and proteins, in the central dogma of molecular biology.

paragraphs: How DNA was copied (the replication mechanism) came in 1958 through the Meselson–Stahl experiment. More work by Crick and coworkers showed that the genetic code was based on non-overlapping triplets of bases, called codons. These findings represent the birth of molecular biology.

paragraphs: How Watson and Crick got Franklin's results has been much debated. Crick, Watson and Maurice Wilkins were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1962 for their work on DNA – Rosalind Franklin had died in 1958.

paragraphs: Police in the United States used DNA and family tree public databases to solve cold cases. The American Civil Liberties Union raised concerns over this practice.


title: Karl Marx

paragraphs: Karl Heinrich Marx (5 May 1818 in Trier – 14 March 1883 in London) was a German political thinker who wrote about economics and politics. Marx thought that if a place that works together runs on wage-labor, then there would always be class struggle. Marx thought that this class struggle would result in workers taking power. He believed that no economic class"—"wage workers, land owners, etc. should have power over another. Marx believed that everyone should contribute what they can, and everyone should get what they need. His most famous book was the Communist Manifesto. He wrote it with Friedrich Engels in 1848. The book is about the ideas and aims of communism. His ideas are called Marxism.

paragraphs: His most important work is "Das Kapital", or The Capital. It is commonly known in English as simply 'Capital.' He spent many years working on the three parts of the book. Das Kapital describes how "capitalism" works and the problems this creates, such as division of labour, alienation and exploitation. The book has led to many arguments between those who agree with the book and those who do not. Marx's ideas have been thought of as responsible for socialist revolutions (like the Russian Revolution).

paragraphs: Marx's most popular theory was "historical materialism', arguing that history is the result of material conditions, rather than ideas. He believed that religion, morality, social structures and other things are all rooted in economics. In his later life he was more tolerant of religion.

paragraphs: Karl Marx was born in Trier in 1818, but he had to move many times because the government did not like his ideas. Marx lived for a long time in London. He died there in 1883. After he died, his friend Engels finished many of his works.

paragraphs: Marx also wrote the "Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844", a critique of political economy in which he discusses topics such as labor wages, labor rent, and capital profit, and his ideas of how to change the economy, including proletarian socialist revolution and an eventual communist society.

paragraphs: Many people continue to follow and develop Marx's ideas.


title: Bread

paragraphs: Bread is a type of baked food. It is mainly made from dough, which is made mainly from flour and water. Usually, salt and yeast are added. Bread is often baked in an oven. It can be bought all over the world.

paragraphs: Bread can be toasted or used to make sandwiches. Pizza is a food based on bread. There are many different kinds of bread.

paragraphs: The color and taste of the bread depend on the kind of flour used and the style of baking. Flour made from the whole grain gives darker bread. Flour made just from the polished wheat grain gives a very white bread. Rye and barley flour give darker types of bread. The type of flour also changes how long the bread can be kept before going bad. Some strains of wheat are resistant to fungus, but may not produce a bread as tasty as a weaker strain.

paragraphs: Christianity and Judaism have rules about the use of bread in their religions. Unleavened bread (matzo) is eaten by Jews during the Passover. The Catholic celebration of the Eucharist uses unleavened wafers.

paragraphs: Orthodox churches forbid the use of unleavened bread for the Eucharist (Old Testament) and permit leavened bread only as a symbol of the New. This was one of the three points of contention that brought about the schism between Eastern and Western churches in 1054.

paragraphs: Bread is an important part of life in many countries, because so many people eat it. In many cultures, bread is so important that it is part of religious rituals.

paragraphs: Cake is made in a similar way to bread but sugar, fat and milk are added to the dough and often more ingredients.


title: Shinto

paragraphs: Shinto () is a form of Japanese animism. It has many "kami", translated as gods or nature spirits. Some "kami" are just spirits of certain places, and some are the overall "kami" (like "Amaterasu", the Sun goddess). The word "Shinto" comes from the Japanese words "", "shin"—the word for spirit or god, and "", "tō"—the word for "the way" or "path". So, Shinto means "the way of the gods."

paragraphs: State Shinto was the main religion of Japan before World War II. During the period 1868 to 1945 the Japanese government used Shinto for propaganda. All Japanese were forced to register with their local shrine. All Shinto priests worked for the government. War was seen as a sacred duty. The Emperor of Japan was seen as a god. Japanese Buddhism was also involved with the war effort (See Zen at War).

paragraphs: Shinto has many rituals and customs, and some are done every day. Festivals are frequent. Some people mix Shinto and Buddhist rituals and beliefs.