title: Hawaii

paragraphs: Hawaii is a U.S. state and the only U.S. State that is in Oceania. It is the last state that joined the United States, becoming a state on August 21, 1959. It is the only state made only of islands. Hawaii is also the name of the largest island. The capital and largest city of Hawaii is Honolulu on the island named Oahu.

paragraphs: Hawaii is known as the "Aloha State". "Aloha" is a Hawaiian word that has many meanings like welcome, hello and goodbye. Aloha also means love and care. The different meanings are brought together in the term "Aloha Spirit" to describe the friendly people of Hawaii.

paragraphs: Hawaii is an archipelago, a long chain of islands. There are eight main islands and many small islands and atolls. They are the tops of underwater volcanos. The main islands are Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe, Maui and Hawaii.

paragraphs: The first people of Hawaii were Polynesians. They came to the islands sometime between 200 and 600 AD. Captain James Cook is given credit for discovering the islands for the Europeans in 1778. Others may have been there before him. Captain Cook named the islands the Sandwich Islands for the fourth Earl of Sandwich, John Montague.

paragraphs: Kamehameha I was the first king of Hawaii. He united the separate small Hawaiian kingdoms into one large kingdom in 1795. In 1893, American soldiers stopped Queen Liliuokalani from leading Hawaii when American business people took over the government and made their own laws. She was the last monarch of Hawaii. She also wrote the original words of the song called "Aloha Oe".

paragraphs: The American business people made Hawaii into a republic for a short time. The new leader, Sanford Dole was called the President of Hawaii. In 1898, the United States of America took over the government and made Hawaii into a territory. In 1959, Hawaii became the fiftieth American state.

paragraphs: The biggest industry of Hawaii is tourism. Almost 7 million people visited in 2000. Important exports are sugar, pineapple, macadamia nuts, and coffee.

paragraphs: Popular tourist sites include Waikiki Beach, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Polynesian Cultural Center, and the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

paragraphs: The state flower is the yellow hibiscus ("Hibiscus brackenridgei" or ). The state bird is the Hawaiian goose (nene). The state fish is the reef triggerfish, also called the '. The state tree is the candlenut, also called "kukui". The state song is Hawaii Ponoi. The state motto is '. In English it says, "The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness".


title: Honolulu

paragraphs: Honolulu is the capital city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. It is also the largest city in Hawaii and it has the most important harbor. It is on the south-east shore of the island of Oahu.

paragraphs: Honolulu means "sheltered harbor" in the Hawaiian language. No one knows for sure when Honolulu was first settled or when the name was first used.

paragraphs: Honolulu harbor was called Kulolia before foreigners came. The first foreigner was Captain William Brown of the English ship Butterworth, in 1794. He named the harbor Fair Haven. Other foreign captains is started calling it Brown's Harbor. The name Honolulu was used some time after that.

paragraphs: Honolulu quickly became the most important harbor of Hawaii. At that time, sandalwood was a big export. Honolulu was also an important supply point for whalers.

paragraphs: Kamehameha III made Honolulu the capital city of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1850. It was also the capital of the Republic of Hawaii and the Territory of Hawaii. It stayed the capital when Hawaii became a state in 1959.


title: Hawaii (island)

paragraphs: The Island of Hawaiʻi is the largest U.S. Hawaiian Island, and it is the farthest south. It is also called the "Big Island." Its area is 4,038 sq. miles (10 458 square kilometers). The widest part of the island is 93 miles (150 km) across.

paragraphs: The Big Island has more than half (~62%) of the total land area of State of Hawaii. It is part of County of Hawaii.

paragraphs: The island is seven separate shield volcanos that erupted more or less one at a time, one partly covering the other. These are (from oldest to youngest): Kohala (extinct), Mauna Kea (dormant), Hualalai (dormant), Mauna Loa (active), Kulani (extinct, mostly buried), and Kilauea (very active). The volcanos were caused by the Pacific oceanic tectonic plate moving over a hotspot. There lava from the Earth's lower mantle or upper core is close to the surface.

paragraphs: The largest city on the island is Hilo. Hilo has many historic buildings, interesting shops, parks, many performances, festivals and events. It is on the rainy, east side of the island. The city of Kailua-Kona is on the dry, west side of Hawaii, and is popular with tourists.


title: Hawaii Ponoi

paragraphs: "Hawai`i Pono`i" is the state song of Hawaii. The words were written by King David Kalakaua, the music by Prof. Henry Berger, the Royal Bandmaster. "Hawai`i Ponoi" was also the anthem of the Kingdom of Hawai`i and the Territory of Hawai`i.


title: Healing

paragraphs: Healing is a process that happens in the body. Through healing, cells are able to repair damaged tissue.

paragraphs: There are two different ways healing can happen:

paragraphs: Most healing processes combine both ways of healing.


title: History of Australia

paragraphs: People have lived in Australia for over 65,000 years. The first people who arrived in Australia were the Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders.. They lived in all parts of Australia. They lived by hunting, fishing and gathering.

paragraphs: Aborigines invented tools like the boomerang and spear. There is also evidence that the Aboriginal people used farming methods. Tradition was very important in their lives. Their religion is called the Dreamtime, which has lots of stories about the creation of the world by spirits. Aboriginal art started at least 30,000 years ago and there are lots of Dreaming stories painted on walls and cut in rocks all around Australia. Aboriginal music has songs about the Dreamtime, sometimes with special instruments like the didgeridoo.

paragraphs: In 1606 the first European, Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon (1571–1639), visited the west. Luis Vaez de Torres sailed through the water between Australia and New Guinea later that year.

paragraphs: Only after Dirk Hartog chanced upon the west coast in 1616 did other European vessels visit and map the coast. After sixty more ships visited the coast, enough was known for a map to be published in 1811. The land was dry because of not much rain; some was a desert. The explorers thought no crops could be grown and so it would be difficult for people to live there. They decided there would be no economic reasons to stay.

paragraphs: In 1642, Dutchman Abel Tasman, working for the Dutch East Indies Company reached Tasmania, which he called Antony van Diemenslandt. He then called the continent he charted the north coast of on his second visit in 1644 New Holland. In 1688, William Dampier became the first Englishman to reach Australia. But in 1770 a British sailor, Captain James Cook, found the fertile east coast of Australia. He called it New South Wales, and claimed it for Britain.

paragraphs: Englishman Matthew Flinders published his map of the coast in 1814, calling it Australia for the first time, a name later formally adopted by the authorities.

paragraphs: The British decided to use the land visited by Captain Cook as a prison colony. Britain needed a place to send its convicts (people who had been sent to jail for theft and other crimes) because its gaols were full and it had just lost its American colonies in the American War of Independence. In 1788 the British First Fleet of 11 ships, carrying about 1500 people arrived at Botany Bay (Sydney). Arthur Phillip led them as the first Governor of New South Wales. About 160 000 convicts were brought to Australia from 1788 until 1868. Free immigrants began arriving in the 1790s.

paragraphs: For the first few years they did not have much food, and life was very hard. But soon they began to farm, and more people came. Sydney grew, and new towns were started. Wool brought good money. By 1822, many towns had been set up and people from the towns often visited Sydney for additional economic resources.

paragraphs: Soon people from Sydney found other parts of Australia. George Bass and Matthew Flinders sailed south to Tasmania and a colony was started at Hobart in 1803. Hamilton Hume and William Hovell went south from Sydney by land. They found the Murray River, and good land in Victoria. Thomas Mitchell went inland, and found more rivers. In 1826, the first British military outpost was set up at King George Sound in Western Australia. The Swan River Colony was started in 1829, with townsites at Fremantle and Perth. In 1836, a free-settler colony was started in South Australia, where no convicts were ever sent. Queensland became a separate colony in 1859. As the towns and farms spread across Australia, the Aboriginal people were pushed off their land. Some were killed, and many died from illness and hunger. Soon, Australia's Aborigines were outnumbered by Europeans, and many were made to live on reserves.

paragraphs: The goldrushes of New South Wales and Victoria started in 1851 leading to large numbers of people arriving to search for gold. The population grew across south east Australia and made great wealth and industry. By 1853 the goldrushes had made some poor people very rich.

paragraphs: Convict transportation ended in the 1840s and 1850s and more changes came. The people in Australia wanted to run their own country, and self-govern. The first governments in the colonies were run by Governors chosen by London. Soon the settlers wanted local government and more democracy. The New South Wales Legislative Council, was created in 1825 to advise the Governor of New South Wales, but it was not chosen by voters. William Wentworth established the Australian Patriotic Association (Australia's first political party) in 1835 to demand democratic government for New South Wales. In 1840, the Adelaide City Council and the Sydney City Council were started and some people could vote for them (but only men with a certain amount of money). Then, Australia's first parliamentary elections were held for the New South Wales Legislative Council in 1843, again with some limits on who could vote. "The Australian Colonies Government Act" [1850] allowed constitutions for New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. In 1850 elections for legislative councils were also held in the colonies of Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

paragraphs: In 1855, limited self-government was granted by London to New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. A new secret ballot was introduced in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia in 1856, allowing people to vote in private. This system was copied around the world. In 1855, the right to vote was given to all men over 21 in South Australia. The other colonies soon followed. Women were given the vote in the Parliament of South Australia in 1895 and they became the first women in the world allowed to stand in elections. In 1897, Catherine Helen Spence became the first female political candidate.

paragraphs: Australians had started parliamentary democracies all across the continent. But voices were getting louder for all of them to come together as one country with a national parliament.


title: History of Spain

paragraphs: People have lived on the Iberian Peninsula for about 500,000 years. Neanderthal man came about 200,000 years ago. Modern humans first came about 40,000 years. Thousands of years ago Iberians and Celts lived there, and the Phoenicians made a few cities there to get tin and silver to trade.

paragraphs: The Roman Empire controlled Spain for three hundred years; then people from Eastern Europe called Visigoths fought for Spain, won it from the Romans, and controlled Spain for over two hundred years.

paragraphs: The Visigoths converted from Arian Christianity to Roman Catholics. The land was won after a war by Muslims who were Arab and Berber. Roman Catholics from Europe eventually decided to fight to take Spain from the Muslims. They fought wars for many hundreds of years, some of which were Crusades against other Christians like the Cathars. These were very cruel wars.

paragraphs: In the year 1492, they took the last part of Spain that had belonged to the Moors. Boabdil, the last Moorish Leader of Granada, gave the city to King Ferdinand of Aragon on 2 January 1492, and Christians now ruled all of Spain.

paragraphs: Before this, several different kings had ruled different countries in what is now called Spain. Two of these countries, Castile and Aragon, came together when the king of Aragon, Ferdinand II, married the queen of Castile, Isabella.

paragraphs: In the same year, 1492, they decided to send Christopher Columbus to explore the Atlantic Ocean. Columbus found a land there that the people of Europe did not yet know. These were the islands of the Caribbean Sea.

paragraphs: Columbus and other sailors explored more and found that there were two continents there - North America and South America. Spain sent many soldiers and businessmen to North and South America, and they took over very large parts of those two continents. Owning this empire made Spain very rich. But when they conquered that empire, they killed millions of the Native Americans who had lived there before. Spain owned this empire for more than three hundred years.

paragraphs: Meanwhile, at home, the Muslim manuscripts had been either burnt or spread to other countries. Jews had been expelled from Spain. The multicultural society was destroyed, and so was the learning. Among the few things kept and respected in Spain were in music: harmony and stringed instruments, and of course the buildings, many of which became churches, by adding crosses.

paragraphs: The Spanish Empire was the strongest in the world through most of the next two centuries, thanks to gold from the Americas. This new gold made rulers and colonial governors rich. Meanwhile, others' savings became worth less due to inflation. Spain became a society of very rich and very poor. Some of the poorest went to the new colonies in the Caribbean, Central America and South America, mostly to find gold.

paragraphs: Native American peoples were killed by diseases brought by the Spaniards, but most Spaniards did not know this. They found damaged and dying societies with people who had lost some of their most important leaders and thinkers. The Spaniards thought this meant they were inferior, and used this as an excuse to enslave the natives. Millions of natives died mining gold for the Spanish.

paragraphs: The Spanish Empire also at this time funded the Spanish Inquisition which tortured and killed anyone who disagreed with the Roman Catholic Church. The Reformation which created Protestant sects in Europe was not allowed into Spain, it was kept out and, as with Jews or Muslims, its believers were killed.

paragraphs: The nobles of Spain no longer had to fight anyone since the internal feuds were over. No one could challenge their power. In many ways it was held together as a reign of terror. People who challenged them were often called heretics, so that the Inquisition could torture them, and then nobles take the property.

paragraphs: For ordinary people on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, life got worse. A few rulers got rich. Today we would say that these people were guilty of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Many Church people who had the power to speak out at that time, did so, and they said many of the same things as we would say today. But none of this mattered much to the rulers.

paragraphs: The great satire Don Quixote was written about this time.

paragraphs: In the 18th century, there was doubt over who should become king of Spain; this doubt led many of the kings of Europe to fight to become king of Spain. This was called the War of the Spanish Succession.

paragraphs: France occupied Spain for a long time. This made Spain very weak. It also made Spain lose its empire in North and South America; all of the parts of that empire became their own countries, or were taken over by other countries such as the United States of America.

paragraphs: There was not much peace in Spain during the first part of the 20th century. Some Spaniards tried to set up a government chosen by the people (a democracy), and they made the King of Spain leave the country. However, in 1936, two different groups of Spaniards went to war over whether the government should be a democracy, or take orders from one person. In 1939, those who wanted democracy were defeated, and a dictator named Francisco Franco took over the government.

paragraphs: Franco died in 1975. He had decided that Spain should have a king again, and he chose Juan Carlos, the grandson of the king who had been forced to leave the country, to be king. But the king did not rule as a dictator; instead, he chose to set up a democracy. Also since Franco's death, Spain appointed Adolfo Suárez to became Spain's first democratically elected prime minister. Now Spain is a modern democratic country, and does business with many countries around the world. It is a part of the European Union.


title: Height

paragraphs: Height is the distance between the lowest end and highest end of an object.

paragraphs: For example, people consider the bottom of the foot a person's lowest end, and the top of the head a person's highest end. If the distance between the bottom of a person's foot and the top of that person's head is 64 inches, then that person's height is 64 inches.


title: Historian

paragraphs: A historian is someone who studies history. Historian use written sources to understand past events and societies.


title: Human body

paragraphs: The human body is the body of a person. It is the physical structure of a person.

paragraphs: The body is a thing that can be hurt or killed. Its functions are stopped by death. You need your muscles and your joints to move.

paragraphs: Some people study the human body. They look at where it is different from or the same as other animals' bodies. These animals can be alive today. Or they can be extinct animals like other hominids. (Hominids are primates that are close to humans. Neanderthals and "Homo erectus" were hominids.) Some people study how the human body works and lives in its environment. Some people study what people think about their body. Artists study how to draw or paint the human body.

paragraphs: Many different fields of study look at the human:

paragraphs: Various organ systems give the body the ability to live and do things.

paragraphs: The human body is like other animals. The skeleton, muscles and other parts are very much like those of other primates. Our body is also like other mammals, and somewhat like other vertebrates. DNA differences follow a similar pattern. The human genome is closer to that of other primates than to other vertebrates, and closest to chimpanzee.


title: Hydrogen

paragraphs: Hydrogen is a chemical element. It has the symbol H and atomic number 1. It has a standard atomic weight of 1.008, meaning it is the lightest element in the periodic table.

paragraphs: Hydrogen is the most common chemical element in the Universe, making up 75% of all normal (baryonic) matter (by mass). Most stars are mostly hydrogen. Hydrogen's most common isotope has one proton with one electron orbiting around it.

paragraphs: Hydrogen is classed as a reactive nonmetal, unlike the other elements appearing in the first column of the periodic table, which are classed alkali metals. The solid form of hydrogen is expected to behave like a metal, however.

paragraphs: When alone, hydrogen usually binds with itself to make dihydrogen (H). At standard temperature and pressure, this hydrogen gas (H) has no colour, smell or taste. It is not toxic. It is a nonmetal and burns very easily.

paragraphs: In its pure form on Earth, hydrogen is usually a gas. Hydrogen is also one of the parts that make up a water molecule. Hydrogen is important because it is the fuel that powers the Sun and other stars.

paragraphs: Hydrogen makes up about 74% of the entire universe. Hydrogen's symbol on the Periodic Table of Elements is H.

paragraphs: Pure hydrogen is normally made of two hydrogen atoms connected together. Scientists call these diatomic molecules. Hydrogen will have a chemical reaction when mixed with most other elements. It has no color or smell.

paragraphs: Pure hydrogen is very uncommon in the Earth's atmosphere. In nature, it is usually in water. Hydrogen is also in all living things, as a part of the organic compounds that living things are made of. In addition, hydrogen atoms can combine with carbon atoms to form hydrocarbons. Petroleum and other fossil fuels are made of these hydrocarbons and commonly used to create energy for human use.

paragraphs: Hydrogen has three isotopes; the others are called deuterium and tritium. Like regular hydrogen, they both have only one proton and one electron, but deuterium also has one neutron and tritium has two. These other types of hydrogen are important in nuclear energy and organic chemistry reactions.

paragraphs: Hydrogen was first separated in 1671 by Robert Boyle. Henry Cavendish in 1776 identified it as a distinct element and discovered that burning it made water.

paragraphs: Antoine Lavoisier gave Hydrogen its name, from the Greek word for water, 'υδορ (pronounced /HEEW-dor/) and gennen meaning to "generate" as it forms water in a chemical reaction with oxygen.

paragraphs: The main uses are in the petroleum industry and in making ammonia by the Haber process. Some is used elsewhere in the chemical industry. A little of it is used as fuel, for example in rockets for spacecraft. Most of the hydrogen that people use comes from a chemical reaction between natural gas and steam.

paragraphs: Nuclear fusion is a very powerful source of energy. It relies on forcing atoms together to make helium and energy, exactly as happens in a star like the Sun, or in a hydrogen bomb. This needs a large amount of energy to get started, and is not easy to do yet. A big advantage over nuclear fission, which is used in today's nuclear power stations, is that it makes less nuclear waste and does not use a toxic and rare fuel like uranium. More than 600 million tons of hydrogen undergo fusion every second on the Sun.

paragraphs: Hydrogen is mostly used in the petroleum industry, to change heavy petroleum fractions into lighter, more useful ones. It is also used to make ammonia. Smaller amounts are burned as fuel. Most hydrogen is made by a reaction between natural gas and steam.

paragraphs: The electrolysis of water breaks water into hydrogen and oxygen, using electricity. Burning hydrogen combines with oxygen molecules to make steam (pure water vapor). A fuel cell combines hydrogen with an oxygen molecule, releasing an electron as electricity. For these reasons, many people believe hydrogen power will eventually replace other synthetic fuels.

paragraphs: Hydrogen can also be burned to make heat for steam turbines or internal combustion engines. Like other synthetic fuels, hydrogen can be created from natural fuels such as coal or natural gas, or from electricity, and therefore represents a valuable addition to the power grid; in the same role as natural gas. Such a grid and infrastructure with is now planned by a number of countries including Japan, Korea and many European countries. This allows these countries to buy less petroleum, which is an economic advantage. The other advantage is that used in a fuel cell or burned in a combustion engine as in a hydrogen car, the motor does not make pollution. Only water, and a small amount of nitrogen oxides, forms.


title: Helium

paragraphs: Helium is a chemical element. It has the chemical symbol He, atomic number 2, and atomic weight of about 4.002602. There are 9 isotopes of helium, only two of which are stable. These are He and He. He is by far the most common isotope.

paragraphs: Helium is called a noble gas, because it does not regularly mix with other chemicals and form new compounds. It has the lowest boiling point of all the elements. It is the second most common element in the universe, after hydrogen, and has no color or smell. However, helium has a red-orange glow when placed in an electric field. Helium does not usually react with anything else. Astronomers detected the presence of helium in 1868, when its spectrum was identified in light from the Sun. This was before its discovery on Earth.

paragraphs: Helium is used to fill balloons and airships because its density is lighter than air. It does not burn, so is safe for that kind of use. It is also used in some kinds of light bulbs. People can breathe in helium: it makes their voices sound higher than it normally does. This is a joke, but is dangerous as if they breathe in too much, hypoxia can injure or kill them as they are not breathing normal air. Breathing too much helium can also cause long-term effects to vocal cords.

paragraphs: Helium is created through the process of nuclear fusion in the Sun, and in similar stars. During this process, four hydrogen atoms are fused together to form one helium atom. On Earth it is made by the natural radioactive decay of heavy radioactive elements like thorium and uranium, although there are other examples. The alpha particles emitted by such decays consist of helium-4 nuclei.

paragraphs: Helium was discovered by the French astronomer pierre Janssen on August 18, 1868, as a bright yellow line in the spectrum of the chromosphere of the Sun. The line was thought to be sodium. On the same year, English astronomer, Norman Lockyer, also observed it and found that it was caused by a new element. Lockyer and English chemist Edward Frankland named the element helium, from the Greek word for the Sun, ἥλιος ("helios").

paragraphs: Helium is the second least reactive noble gas after neon. It is the second least reactive of all elements. It is chemically inert and monatomic in all standard conditions. Helium is the least water-soluble monatomic gas.

paragraphs: Helium is used as a shielding gas in growing silicon and germanium crystals, in making titanium and zirconium, and in gas chromatography, because it is inert. Helium is used as a shielding gas in arc welding.

paragraphs: Helium is mixed with oxygen and other gases for deep underwater diving because it does not cause nitrogen narcosis.

paragraphs: Helium is also used to condense hydrogen and oxygen to make rocket fuel. It is used to remove the fuel and oxidizer from ground support equipment before the rocket launches. It is used to cool liquid hydrogen in space vehicles before the rocket launches.

paragraphs: Helium is used as a heat-transfer medium in some nuclear reactors that are cooled down by gas. Helium is also used in some hard disk drives. Helium at low temperatures is used in cryogenics.

paragraphs: Helium has become rare on Earth. If it gets free into the air it leaves the planet. Unlike hydrogen, which reacts with oxygen to form water, helium is not reactive. It stays as a gas. For many years after the 1925 Helium Act, the USA collected helium in a National Helium Reserve. American helium comes from wells in the Great Plains area. At present, more helium is supplied by Qatar than by the USA.

paragraphs: Several research organisations have released statements on the scarcity and conservation of helium. These organisations released policy recommendations as early as 1995 and as late as 2016 urging the United States government to store and conserve helium because of the natural limits to the helium supply and the unique nature of the element. For researchers, helium is irreplaceable because it is essential for producing very low temperatures. Helium at low temperatures is used in cryogenics, and in certain cryogenics applications. Liquid helium is used to cool certain metals to the extremely low temperatures required for superconductivity, such as in superconducting magnets for magnetic resonance imaging.


title: Home page

paragraphs: The home page of a web site is the document that a web server sends to another computer's web browser application when it has been contacted without a request for specific information. That is, when one enters only a domain name in the Address box without specifying a directory or a file, the "home page" is usually the first part of the web site one would be taken to. The Home Page is also called the Main Page.

paragraphs: A properly written home page will tell a user about the information available in the web site, and how to view different parts of the web site.

paragraphs: The home page of "simple.wikipedia.org" can be found at this link.

paragraphs: Home Page was a popular computer application used for composing web pages.

paragraphs: In Linux-based servers, the homepage usually is index.html, index.php, index.cgi, etc. Unless the website administrator has created a redirect to a specific webpage.

paragraphs: However, in Windows-based servers, the homepage is default.html, default.php, etc. This is a problem for website administrators to install website applications like MediaWiki. Mainly because most website applications are created with the homepage as index.php (for PHP applications).


title: Hair

paragraphs: Humans and some other animals have lost much of their hair through evolution, and some other mammals, such as the elephant and the whale, have almost none at all.

paragraphs: Some animals, for example certain insects and spiders also have "hairs". However, these are not hair in the biological sense, but are actually bristles. The "hairs" found on certain plants are also not true hair, but trichomes.

paragraphs: In humans, hair grows mostly on the head, and the amount of body hair is different from race to race. Asians and native North Americans have the least amount of body hair, while Caucasians tend to have the most.

paragraphs: Hair color is passed down by parents only. Natural hair color can be given only by genes. It is impossible to have a hair color that is not passed down genetically by both mother and father. This relies on dominant and recessive genes carried by a parent. These genes may not be the color of their hair, however, many people carry genes that are recessive and do not show in their traits or features.

paragraphs: Dyeing hair is to change the color of hair. It consists of a chemical mixture which can change the color of hair by a chemical reaction. Many people dye their hair to hide gray or white hairs. This is because most people gain white or gray hairs as they grow older.

paragraphs: Two types of melanin pigment give hair its color: "eumelanin" and "pheomelanin". Pheomelanin colors hair red. Eumelanin determines the darkness of the hair color. A low concentration of brown eumelanin results in blond hair, but more brown eumelanin will color the hair brown. High amounts of black eumelanin result in black hair, while low concentrations give gray hair. All humans have some pheomelanin in their hair.

paragraphs: The genetics of hair colors are not yet firmly established. According to one theory, at least two gene pairs control human hair color.

paragraphs: One phenotype (brown/blond) has a dominant brown allele and a recessive blond allele. A person with a brown allele will have brown hair; a person with no brown alleles will be blond. This explains why two brown-haired parents can produce a blond-haired child.

paragraphs: The other gene pair is a non-red/red pair, where the not-red allele is dominant and the allele for red hair is recessive. A person with two copies of the red-haired allele will have red hair, but it will be either auburn or bright reddish orange depending on whether the first gene pair gives brown or blond hair, respectively.

paragraphs: The two-gene model does not account for all possible shades of brown, blond, or red (for example, platinum blond versus dark blonde/light brown), nor does it explain why hair color sometimes darkens as a person ages. Several other gene pairs control the light versus dark hair color in a cumulative effect (quantitative genetics).

paragraphs: Hair texture is also inherited genetically. The thickness of hair, its color and its tendency to curl are all inherited. There are also genetic differences between men and women. Body hair is limited in women, and thicker in men.

paragraphs: People have about 100,000 hairs on their head. About 100 fall out each day, but they usually grow back. Some men are bald but girls and women may become bald if they lose their hair from a disease called alopecia.

paragraphs: Men often lose some of their hair as they grow older. This is known as "baldness". Doctors call it "male pattern baldness" because hairs often fall out in similar places. It often begins by hair falling out first from the front of the head, and then from the top of the head. After a while, all that may be left is a some hair running above the ears and around the lower back of the head. Even though it is unusual for women to go bald, many women suffer from thinning hair over the top of their head as they grow old.

paragraphs: People have tried to find cures for hair loss for thousands of years. In an effort to get their hair back, men have tried "cures" like applying strange lotions or even having their heads packed in chicken manure. Many unproven "cures" are still marketed today. It is only in the last decade or so that treatments have been developed which do sometimes work. Some doctors do hair transplants, where they take tiny plugs of hair from areas like the back of the neck and plant them in the bald spots on the head. Some drugs have been tested and approved for sale as hair loss treatments. They encourage hair regrowth and thickening, but work better if applied before hair loss turns to baldness.

paragraphs: People have been interested in hair on their heads for hundreds of thousands of years. For both men and women, styling and coloring hair have been ways to look good, and get attention. Sometimes society makes rules about hair, for example by not allowing people to cut their hair or beards, like in Sikhism (it is also good to do this in Islam, but not a requirement).


title: Ireland

paragraphs: Ireland (; ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic. It is about 486 kilometres (302 miles) long and about 288 kilometres (179 miles) wide. To the west of Ireland is the Atlantic Ocean; to the east of Ireland, across the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain. Over 6.4 million people lived on the island in 2016.

paragraphs: Today, the island of Ireland is made up of two countries: the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland:

paragraphs: From 1801 to 1921, all of Ireland was part of the same country, called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1919, a war broke out, the Irish War of Independence, and on December 6 1921, the Irish Free State became independent. After a new constitution came into effect in 1937, the state became a republic. Northern Ireland stayed with the UK, and this would lead to The Troubles beginning in the 1960s and ending with the Good Friday Agreement signed in 1998.

paragraphs: Ireland is traditionally divided into four provinces and thirty-two counties. Twenty-six counties are in the Republic and six in Northern Ireland. Three of the provinces are entirely within the Republic (Connacht, Leicester and Munster), and one province (Ulster) has some counties in both the Republic and in Northern Ireland.

paragraphs: Dublin is the largest city. It is the capital of the Republic of Ireland. Dublin was established as a Viking settlement in the 9th century. The population is 525,383 in Dublin City, and 1,270,603 in Co. Dublin.

paragraphs: Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland. It has 483,000 people in the Greater Belfast urban area there are 267,000 in the city itself. Shipbuilding used to be a major industry here. The "Titanic" was built in Belfast at the Harland and Wolff shipyard.

paragraphs: Armagh is a city in Northern Ireland. It is often called the 'Ecclesiastic Capital of Ireland' as it is the seat of both the Catholic Church and the (Protestant) Church of Ireland. The population is 14,590.

paragraphs: Cork is the largest city in Munster. Corkonians often refer to it as 'the Real Capital'. The population is 119,230. but following a 2019 Cork boundary change|boundary extension in 2019, the population increased to c. 210,000.

paragraphs: Derry is the second largest city in Northern Ireland. Derry is notable for the Medieval city walls which still stand. Because the walls have never been breached, the city is nicknamed "The Maiden City". In 2013 Derry was the UK Capital of Culture. Many cultural events took place there during the year. The population is 83,652.

paragraphs: During the last glacial period (the "ice age"), most of Ireland was covered with ice. After that, Ireland became covered with trees. The first people came to Ireland about 9,000 years ago, in the Middle Stone Age (Mesolithic period). They were nomadic. Once food ran out in the place they lived, they would move to another place. Evidence of these people was found in Mount Sandel, Co. Derry.

paragraphs: About 4000 BC, in the New Stone Age (Neolithic period), the first farmers arrived in Ireland. These people cleared openings in the forest and built permanent settlements with houses and farmland. When people in this age died, they were buried in tombs called megaliths. Many megaliths are left standing today, such as portal dolmens and passage tombs. The most famous megalith is Newgrange passage tomb in co. Meath.

paragraphs: New settlers came around 2000BC, marking the start of the Bronze Age. Copper was mined mainly in Mount Gabriel, Co. Cork and tin was imported from Cornwall. These people used bronze to make weapons, such as swords. They also used it to make early forms of jewellery, such as sun discs and torcs. These settlers buried the dead in court tombs or wedge tombs, and burial places have been found with stone circles.

paragraphs: It is unknown when the Celts came to Ireland, but it is likely they brought the use of iron with them. The use of iron marks the start of the Iron Age. It is known that by about 300BC, the use of iron and Celtic culture was widespread in Ireland. The Celts lived in ring forts, hill forts, promontory forts and crannógs. It is thought that only the richer families and settlements lived in crannógs. These were man-made islands in the middle of lakes with houses on them.

paragraphs: Celtic Ireland was split into around 150 kingdoms called tuath. The king was elected from the royal family. Below the king were the Nobles, and the Aos Dána, who were people with special skills, such as poets, Druids (priests), judges and craftsmen.

paragraphs: By the early 6th century, Ireland was mostly Christian through the work of St. Patrick and other missionaries. Druids were replaced by priests and monks. Monasteries soon were built such as Glendalough in co. Wicklow. Glendalough and other monasteries built round towers for safety when Vikings attacked. Small monasteries were also built in remote places, the most famous being Skellig Michael, off the coast of co. Kerry.

paragraphs: At this time many hand-written manuscripts were created by the monasteries. They include the Cathach, the Book of Durrow, and the Book of Kells. Monks also produced fine silver chalices, croziers and brooches, and carved high crosses.

paragraphs: In 1169, Anglo-Norman lords invaded Ireland. They were led by Strongbow who landed at Passage East, Co. Waterford. The Anglo-Normans conquered many parts of Ireland in the following 60 years. They introduced their way of life to the Irish people. The feudal system was soon introduced in Ireland as a means of organising land. Castles were built to defend the land like Trim Castle, Co. Meath. During the Middle Ages, Ireland's first proper towns were built.

paragraphs: From 1801 until 1921, all of Ireland was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1921 Northern Ireland was created and 'partitioned' from the south. Northern Ireland has stayed within the United Kingdom since then. The full name of the UK is 'The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland'.

paragraphs: In 1921 the south became the Irish Free State. In 1937 the Irish Free State adopted a new constitution which named the state 'Ireland', and in 1948 this state passed the Republic of Ireland Act which declared it to be a republic.

paragraphs: Many Irish people have left Ireland and moved to the United States, Canada, Australia, and South America. The Great Famine in the 1840s forced many to leave; it is estimated almost a million people died of starvation, and a million more emigrated. From a maximum of over 8 million in 1841, the total Irish population dropped to just over 4 million in the 1940s. Since then, the population has grown to over 6 million. This has been helped by the economic growth of the "Celtic Tiger" and since 2004 immigration from countries in Eastern Europe such as Poland.

paragraphs: Today almost 80 million people around the world are descended from Irish immigrants.

paragraphs: Ireland's main sports are Gaelic Games (Gaelic football, hurling, etc.) and soccer.

paragraphs: The many sports played and followed in Ireland include Gaelic games (mainly Gaelic football, hurling and camogie), horse racing, show jumping, greyhound racing, basketball, fishing, handball, motorsport, MMA, boxing, target shooting and tennis. Hockey, golf, rowing, cricket, rugby union and Olympic target shooting are organised on an all-island basis, with a single team representing the whole of Ireland in international competitions. Other sports, such as soccer and netball, have separate organizing bodies in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

paragraphs: As Northern Ireland is a constituent nation of the United Kingdom it also sends a Northern Ireland Team to the Commonwealth Games. At the Olympic Games, a person from Northern Ireland can choose to represent either Ireland or Great Britain.

paragraphs: Soccer is the most popular team sport in terms of participation. According to the Irish Sports Monitor 2015 annual report, 4.8% of adults over 15 participate in Soccer. Gaelic football 2%, camogie 1.2, rugby 1.1%. Individual exercise pursuits are most popular with 43% of all sport participated by individuals on their own. Personal exercise 13.7%, running 8.2%, swimming 8%, cycling 5.5%, dancing 3%, golf 2.7%, weights 2.3%, yoga 1.5% and pilates 1.4%.

paragraphs: Soccer is by far the most popular team pursuit for males at 8.8% with Gaelic football attracting 3.4%. Personal exercise 13.4% and running 8.9% are the most popular male activities. Team sports do not figure highly amongst females with dancing at 4.6% and yoga 2.4% are two of the highest shared activities.

paragraphs: Given the variety of sports in Ireland, it is of interest to note how the government's Capital Sports programme 2017 allocated it's €56 million funds. €23.5 million went to the GAA which highlights the strength of the GAA lobby. €7.25 million to soccer, Rugby €3.1 million, tennis €2.64 million, golf €1.97 million, sailing €1.21 million, athletics just under €1 million, diving €451,000 while other sports did not fare so well.

paragraphs: Gaelic Football is one of the most popular sports in Ireland in terms of match attendance, and in 2003 had 34% of total sports attendances at events in the Republic of Ireland, followed by hurling at 23%, soccer at 16% and rugby at 8%. Initiative's ViewerTrack study, which measured 2005 sports audiences, showed the sport's highest-profile match, the All-Ireland Football Final, to be the most watched event of the nation's sporting year. Soccer is the most played team sport in Ireland.


title: Internet

paragraphs: The Internet is the biggest world-wide communication network of computers. The Internet has millions of smaller domestic, academic, business, and government networks, which together carry many different kinds of information. The short form of internet is the 'net'. The World Wide Web is one of its biggest services. It is used by billions of people all over the world.

paragraphs: The Internet was developed in the United States by the "United States Advanced Research Projects Agency" (DARPA). The Internet was first connected in October of 1969 and was called ARPANET. The World Wide Web was created at CERN in Switzerland in 1990 by a British (UK) scientist named Tim Berners-Lee.

paragraphs: Today, people can pay money to access the Internet from internet service providers. Some services on the Internet cost nothing to use. Sometimes people who offer these free services use advertising to make money. Censorship and freedom of speech on the Internet can be controversial.

paragraphs: The Internet is used for many things, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer and other documents of the World Wide Web.

paragraphs: The most used service on the Internet is the World Wide Web (which is also called the "Web" or “www”). The web contains websites, including blogs and wikis like Wikipedia. Webpages on the Internet can be seen and read by anyone (unless the page needs a password, or it is blocked).

paragraphs: The second biggest use of the Internet is to send and receive e-mail. E-mail is private and goes from one user to another. Instant messaging (such as AIM or ICQ) is similar to email, but allows two or more people to chat to each other faster.

paragraphs: Some governments think the internet is a bad thing, and block all or part of it. For example, the Chinese government thinks that Wikipedia is bad. Many times no one in China can read it or add to it. Another example of the internet being blocked is in North Korea. Some parents block parts of the Internet they think are bad for children to see.

paragraphs: The Internet makes communication easy, and communication can be dangerous too. People often send secret information, and sometimes other people can steal that information. They can use the Internet to spread lies or stolen secrets or dangerously bad advice. For example, Facebook has had some problems with privacy settings.


title: Italy

paragraphs: Italy is a country in south Europe and a member of the European Union. Its official name is Repubblica Italiana. The Italian flag is green, white and red. Italy is a democratic republic and is a founding member of the European Union. Its President is Sergio Mattarella and its Prime Minister is Giuseppe Conte.

paragraphs: Italy is also a member of the G8, as it has the eighth largest Gross Domestic Product in the world.

paragraphs: Before 1861, it was made up of smaller kingdoms and city-states. Italy has become famous for its wine, as well as its food. Some foods are different between regions. Famous dishes include various types of pasta, pizza, and grapes. Olives are much used.

paragraphs: The country's capital, Rome, is one of the most famous cities in the world, as it was the capital of the Roman Empire. Other famous cities in Italy include, Venice, Naples, Genoa, Florence, Palermo, and Milan.

paragraphs: Italy is a peninsula, meaning it is encompassed by the sea on all of its sides apart from one side of the country (its north side). Northern Italy is separated from France, Switzerland, and Austria by the Alps, a chain of mountains. Mont Blanc ("Monte Bianco" in Italian or white mountain in English), the highest mountain in western Europe, belongs to this chain. The second important chain of mountains in Italy is the Apennines ("Appennini" in Italian), which are in central and southern Italy.

paragraphs: The capital of Italy is Rome where the Roman Empire started. Other cities in Italy are Milan, Turin, Florence, Genoa, Naples, Palermo, and Venice. The country has a number of islands, the biggest of which are Sicily and Sardinia, which can be reached by ship or aircraft. It shares maritime borders with Libya to the south.

paragraphs: The Po River is the longest river in Italy. It flows through 5 cities: Torino, Piacenza, Cremona Ferrara and Rovigo. The Tiber River runs through the city of Rome.

paragraphs: Northern Italy has some of the biggest lakes in the country, such as Lake Garda, Lake Como, Lake Maggiore and Lake Iseo. Because it is surrounded by the sea, Italy has many kilometers of coast, which brings tourists from all over the world. Tourists also come to see Italy's historical places.

paragraphs: Two very small separate countries are located within Italy. They are San Marino, which is surrounded by part of Northern Italy, and the Vatican City, which is inside Rome.

paragraphs: People from Italy are called Italians. Even if an Italian were to leave Italy, it is possible that their descendants could also claim Italian citizenship due to Italian nationality law relying mostly on "ius sanguinis" or "right of blood" in Latin. Nearly all the Italians are Christians, and most of these are Roman Catholics, which is based in the Vatican City and home to its leader, the Pope. Leonardo da Vinci is a famous artist, he is the creator of the Mona Lisa which is now in the louvre Paris.

paragraphs: The population of Italy is a little over 60 million. About 2.7 million of them live in Rome, and 1.3 million in Milan. As of 31 December 2015, over 5 million foreigners were living in Italy, which is 8.3% of the total population.

paragraphs: The official language of Italy is Italian and in some small areas German, Slovenian or French. People also speak dialects of Italian such as Sicilian and Sardinian. There are many different dialects spoken in Italy. They vary between regions and, in some cases, also between provinces.

paragraphs: The people of Italy are mostly descendant from the ancient Romans.

paragraphs: Italy is home to more World Heritage Sites than any other nation in the world. These sites are culturally important and valued according to UNESCO. About 60% of the works of art of the world are in Italy. Italy is also a big wine producer. In 2005 it made over 5 million tonnes.

paragraphs: Italy has a modern social welfare system. The labor market enjoys relative strength, with many foreigners, especially from Romania, working in Italy where the wages are much higher. But it could have been much more workers on the labor market because men and women already retired in the age of 57 and the unemployment rate is relatively high at 8.2 percent. Italy's modern society has been built up through loans and now the country has a catastrophic high debt of €1.9trn or 120 percent of the country's total GDP. And the government cannot pay back the loans during the time period the EU wish.

paragraphs: Most people in Italy are Roman Catholics, but the Catholic Church is no longer officially the state religion. 87.8% of the people said they were Roman Catholic.

paragraphs: Only about a third said they were active members (36.8%). There are also other Christian groups in Italy, more than 700,000 Eastern Orthodox Christians. 180,000 of them belong to the Greek Orthodox Church.

paragraphs: 550,000 are Pentecostals and Evangelicals (0.8%). 235,685 Jehovah's Witnesses (0.4%), 30,000 Waldensians, 25,000 Seventh-day Adventists, 22,000 Mormons, 20,000 Baptists, 7,000 Lutherans, 4,000 Methodists.

paragraphs: The country's oldest religious minority is the Jewish community. It has roughly 45,000 people. It is no longer the largest non-Christian group.

paragraphs: About 825,000 Muslims live in Italy. Most of them immigrated. (1.4% of the total population) Only 50,000 are Italian citizens. In addition, there are 50,000 Buddhists 70,000 Sikh and 70,000 Hindus in Italy.

paragraphs: During the celebration of Epiphany, it's traditional to eat a special cake called 'Rosca de Reyes' Three Kings Cake. A figure of Baby Jesus is hidden inside the cake. Whoever has the baby Jesus in their piece of cake is the 'Godparent' of Jesus for that year. Famous Italian foods include pasta or pizza.

paragraphs: Italy is divided into 20 Regions ("Regioni" in Italian) and every Region is divided into Provinces.

paragraphs: There are 20 Regions. 5 of them have a special status, they are called "autonomous". This means that they can make certain local laws more easily. These regions are marked with an asterisk (*) below.

paragraphs: The Head of State is Sergio Mattarella, whose task began in February 2015. Mattarella is currently the President of the Italian Republic. The first president was Enrico De Nicola.

paragraphs: The Head of Government is Paolo Gentiloni, who became Prime Minister on December 12, 2016, succeeding Matteo Renzi. Renzi was previously the Mayor of Florence and is Italy's youngest-ever Prime Minister, at age 39 when taking office.

paragraphs: Italy was one of the first members of the European Union and in 2002 along with 11 other European countries, it changed to using the euro as its official currency. Before this, the Italian lira had been used since 1861.

paragraphs: Anyone who wants to be President of Italy must have Italian citizenship, be at least 50 years old, and must be able to hold political and civil rights.

paragraphs: Before 1861, Italy was not a state. The area was made of a group of separate states, ruled by other countries (such as Austria, France, and Spain). In the 1850s the Earl of Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour was the Head of Government of the "State of Sardinia". He talked to the Austrians in Lombardy and Veneto and said they should create a Northern Italian state. This happened, but other Central and Southern Italian states also joined Piedmont to create a bigger state.

paragraphs: In 1860, Giuseppe Garibaldi took control of Sicily, creating the Kingdom of Italy in 1861. Victor Emmanuel II was made the king. But in 1861, Latium and Veneto were still not part of Italy, because they were ruled by the Pope and Austrian Empire.

paragraphs: Veneto was made part of Italy in 1866 after a war with Austria, and Italian soldiers won Latium in 1870. That was when they took away the Pope's power. The Pope, who was angry, said that he was a prisoner to keep Catholic people from being active in politics. That was the year of Italian unification.

paragraphs: Italy participated in World War I as an ally of Great Britain, France, and Russia against the Central Powers. Almost all of Italy's fighting was on the Eastern border, near Austria. After the "Caporetto defeat", Italy thought they would lose the war. But, in 1918, the Central Powers surrendered, and Italy gained the Trentino-South Tyrol, which once was owned by Austria.

paragraphs: In 1922, a new Italian government started. It was ruled by Benito Mussolini, the leader of Fascism in Italy. He became Head of Government and dictator, calling himself "duce" - which means "leader" in Italian. He became friends with German dictator Adolf Hitler. Germany, Japan, and Italy became the Axis Powers and entered World War II together in 1940 against France, Great Britain, and later the Soviet Union. During the war, Italy controlled most of the Mediterranean Sea.

paragraphs: On July 25, 1943, Mussolini was removed by the Great Council of Fascism, and, on September 8, 1943, Badoglio said that the war as an ally of Germany was ended. Italy started fighting as an ally of France and the UK, but Italian soldiers did not know whom to shoot. In Northern Italy, a movement called Resistenza started to fight against the German invaders.

paragraphs: Mussolini tried to make a small Northern Italian fascist state, the Republic of Salò, but it failed. On April 25, 1945, Italy became free. The state became a republic on June 2, 1946, and, for the first time, women were able to vote. Italian people ended the Savoia dynasty and adopted a republic government.

paragraphs: In February 1947, Italy signed a peace treaty with the Allies losing all the colonies and some territorial areas: (Istria and parts of Dalmatia).

paragraphs: Since then Italy has joined NATO and the European Community (as a founding member), becoming one of the seven biggest industrial economies in the world.

paragraphs: The railway network in Italy totals , the 17th longest in the world. High speed trains include ETR-class trains which travel at .


title: If

paragraphs: If is a word to describe a statement where one thing depends on something else.

paragraphs: If — is a poem written by Rudyard Kipling. It appeared in the "Brother Square Toes" chapter of Kipling's book "Rewards and Fairies". In a 1995 BBC opinion poll, it was voted Britain's favourite poem. It is arguably Kipling's most famous poem.


title: Island

paragraphs: An island is a piece of ground that is surrounded by a body of water such as a lake, river or sea. Water is all around an island. Islands are smaller than continents.

paragraphs: The largest island in the world is Greenland, unless Australia is believed to be an island.

paragraphs: Most people think Australia is a continent because it is more than three times bigger than Greenland.

paragraphs: Some islands are their own countries. Examples of islands that are their own countries include Cuba, Iceland, and Cyprus. There are many others. Other islands have more than one country, such as Borneo and Hispaniola.


title: Interim

paragraphs: Interim means "in between" or "transitional" (moving from one time or place to another), or "temporary."


title: Idiom

paragraphs: An idiom is a common phrase which means something different from its literal meaning but can be understood because of their popular use.

paragraphs: Because idioms can mean something different from what the words mean it is difficult for someone not good at speaking the language to use them properly. Some idioms are only used by some groups of people or at certain times. The idiom "shape up or ship out", which is like saying "improve your behavior or leave if you don't", might be said by an employer or supervisor to an employee, but not to other people.

paragraphs: Idioms are not the same thing as slang. Idioms are made of normal words that have a special meaning known to almost everyone. Slang is usually special words, or special meanings of normal words that are known only to a particular group of people.

paragraphs: To learn a language a person needs to learn the words in that language, and how and when to use them. But people also need to learn idioms separately because certain words together or at certain times can have different meanings. In order to understand an idiom, one sometimes needs to know the culture from which the idiom comes.

paragraphs: To know the history of an idiom can be useful and interesting, but is not necessary to be able to use the idiom properly. For example, most native British English speakers know that "No room to swing a cat" means "there was not much space" and can use the idiom properly. However, few know this is because 200 years ago sailors were punished by being whipped with a "cat o' nine tails". A big space was cleared on the ship so that the person doing the whipping had room to "swing the cat".

paragraphs: An idiom is a phrase whose meaning cannot be understood from the dictionary definitions of each word taken separately. The linguist's term for the real meaning of an idiom is the subtext.

paragraphs: Articles by Oxfam and the BBC have said that many idioms in English are unclear, or ambiguous. Many are understood differently in different countries. Many of the examples are taken from face-to-face talk, but may also apply in written reports.

paragraphs: Vocables are sounds that are really words, but mean something, and are often ambiguous. One is a long drawn-out sound "hmmmmmm".

paragraphs: One suggestion is that these idioms are used to smooth over difficult areas in social interaction. They cover passive-aggressive statements which might cause more conflict if openly expressed.


title: IELTS

paragraphs: The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) tests how fluent you are in the English language. People who take the test take the Academic Module or the General Training Module. The academic one is for people who want to go to university. The general one is for people who want to do other training or want to get work experience. People who want to emigrate to a country that uses English also take the general one.

paragraphs: Most universities in Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and the United States accept the IELTS. Many professional companies do as well.


title: Ink

paragraphs: Ink is a liquid that is used to write, draw, print, or make marks. The word ink is from Latin and means "colored water". Ink is used in pens, in some computer printers, and in printing presses. In some countries, people write by using ink and brushes. People usually write or print using black ink, but ink can be any color. The first ink was used in Egypt about 2600 BC.

paragraphs: The first inks were carbon inks, made from soot, which is 80% carbon, water and gum arabic. Red ink would need iron oxide (such as haematite) from ground rocks instead of soot. Later, in Europe, people used iron gall ink. This is the kind of ink Johann Sebastian Bach and Leonardo da Vinci used. Now ink colours are produced by man-made dyes.

paragraphs: A disadvantage of many kinds of ink is that they may smudge when wet, spoiling the picture or writing. If water-based ink is used, the writing situation needs to be stable, with the writer seated at a table. Ink in a ballpoint pen (biro) is a kind of gel. It is held in a thin long cylinder (tube) inside the pen. The ink does not fall out of the cylinder as it sticks to the sides of the tube. Therefore ballpoint pens can be used in a wider range of circumstances compared to water-based inks.


title: Inch

paragraphs: The inch is a unit of length in the Imperial system and the United States customary system. The abbreviation for inches is in or ". There are 12 inches in a foot. One inch is equal to 2.54 centimetres.

paragraphs: The word "inch" came from Middle English "unche", which came from Old English "ynce", from Latin "uncia" meaning "a twelfth part".

paragraphs: The inch was originally defined as 3 barleycorns. The inch was finally standardised in the International Yard and Pound Treaty in 1959 between the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. The international yard was made equal to 0.9144 metres. From this, subdivisions and multiples of the yard were specifically defined.

paragraphs: In the United States, people use inches more than they use millimetres or centimetres. In the rest of the world, international units are almost always used. The inch is not used by scientists.

paragraphs: In the United Kingdom, road signs that show how high a vehicle can be in order to pass through a tunnel are required to be in feet and inches. Theme parks and drive thru signs usually show it in metres. People regularly measure their height in feet and inches. Official medical records, however, are required to record people's height in metric measurements only.

paragraphs: In Canada, a mix of centimetres and inches are used in height. Older generations, especially, use Imperial units. A lot of exposure to Americanized phrases leads to younger generations often having a good understanding of both the Imperial and metric systems.

paragraphs: In the United States, height is always in feet and inches. Science is the only field to use metric measurements.

paragraphs: Other Commonwealth countries, including Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Jamaica use inches to varying degrees. From every day use to exclusively the older community.


title: Pint

paragraphs: The pint (abbreviated pt) is a unit of volume in imperial units and United States customary units. There are three types of pints used in different countries. An imperial pint and US pint both equal of a quart and of a gallon.

paragraphs: An imperial fluid ounce is approximately 4% smaller than a US fluid ounce although an imperial pint has 4 more fluid ounces than a US pint, making an imperial pint approximately 20% larger than a US pint.

paragraphs: The imperial pint is the pint used in England, Canada, Ireland, and Burma. The unit may appear in other Commonwealth. Confusion in Canada often arises as liquids are occasionally sold in U.S. pints, near the border, although the official and only pint that is legal in Canada is the imperial pint. The imperial system has no dry pint and volume in dry units, since solid objects are measured by mass. 1 imperial pint equals 568,261.25 mm.

paragraphs: The US wet pint, or more commonly 'pint', is the unit used to measure volume in the United States. It is more common than the dry pint which is used for non-liquid volume measurements. 1 US pint is exactly equal to 473,176.473 mm, defined by the international yard and pound agreement.

paragraphs: The US dry pint was a unit used for measuring the volume of solid objects instead of mass or quantity.


Italian


title: ISO 19011

paragraphs: ISO 19011 is the new global accounting standard, replacing accounting standards that were part of ISO 14001 and ISO 9001. It is the most likely basis for accounting reform which could put an end to accounting scandals.


title: India

paragraphs: India is a country in Asia. It has an area of . It is at the center of South Asia. India has more than 1.2 billion (1,210,000,000) people, which is the second largest population in the world. It is the seventh largest country in the world by area and the largest country in South Asia. It is also the most populous democracy in the world.

paragraphs: India has seven neighbours: Pakistan in the north-west, China and Nepal in the north, Bhutan and Bangladesh in the north-east, Myanmar in the east and Sri Lanka, an island, in the south.

paragraphs: The capital of India is New Delhi. India is a peninsula, bound by the Indian Ocean in the south, the Arabian Sea on the west and Bay of Bengal in the east. The coastline of India is of about long. India has the third largest military force in the world and is also a nuclear weapon state.

paragraphs: India's economy became the world's fastest growing in the G20 developing nations in the last quarter of 2014, replacing the People's Republic of China. India's literacy and wealth are also rising. According to New World Wealth, India is the seventh richest country in the world with a total individual wealth of $5.6 trillion. However, it still has many social and economic issues like poverty and corruption. India is a founding member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and has signed the Kyoto Protocol.

paragraphs: India has the fourth largest number of spoken languages per country in the world, only behind Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Nigeria. People of many different religions live there, including the five most popular world religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Islam, and Christianity. The first three religions came from the Indian subcontinent along with Jainism.

paragraphs: The National emblem of India shows four lions standing back-to-back. The lions symbolise power, pride, confidence, and courage (bravery). Only the government can use this emblem, according to the

paragraphs: The name India comes from the Greek word, "Indus". This came from the word "sindhu", which in time turned into Hind or Hindi or Hindu. The preferred native name or endonym is "Bharat" in Hindi and other Indian languages as contrasted with names from outsiders. Some of the national symbols are:

paragraphs: Two of the main classical languages of the world Tamil language and Sanskrit language were born in India. Both of these languages are more than 3000 years old. The country founded a religion called Hinduism, which most Indians still follow. Later, a king named Chandragupt Maurya built an empire called the Maurya Empire in 300 BC. It made most of South Asia into one whole country. From 180 BC, many other countries invaded India. Even later (100 BC  AD 1100), other Indian dynasties (empires) came, including the Chalukyas, Cholas, Pallavas, and Pandyas. Southern India at that time was famous for its science, art, and writing. The Cholas of Thanjavur were pioneers at war in the seas and invaded Malaya, Borneo, Cambodia. The influence of Cholas are still well noticeable in SE Asia.

paragraphs: Many dynasties ruled India around the year 1000. Some of these were the Mughal, Vijayanagara, and the Maratha empires. In the 1600s, European countries invaded India, and the British controlled most of India by 1856.

paragraphs: In the early 1900s, millions of people peacefully started to protest against British control. One of the people who led the freedom movement was Mahatma Gandhi, who only used peaceful tactics, including a way called "ahimsa", which means "non-violence". On 15 August 1947, India peacefully became free and independent from the British Empire. India's constitution was founded on 26 January 1950. Every year, on this day, Indians celebrate Republic Day. The first official leader (Prime Minister) of India was Jawaharlal Nehru.

paragraphs: After 1947, India had a socialist planned economy. It is one of the founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement and the United Nations. It has fought many wars since independence from Britain, including the wars in 1947-48, 1965, 1971, and 1999 with Pakistan and in 1962 with China. It also fought a war to capture Goa, a Portuguese-built port and a city which was not a part of India until 1961. The Portuguese refused to give it to the country, and so India had to use force and the Portuguese were defeated. India has also done nuclear tests in 1974 and 1998, and it is one of the few countries that has nuclear bombs. Since 1991, India has been one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.

paragraphs: India is the largest democracy in the world.

paragraphs: India's government is divided into three parts: the Legislative (the one that makes the laws, the Parliament), the Executive (the government), and the Judiciary (the one that makes sure that the laws are obeyed, the supreme court).

paragraphs: The legislative branch is made up of the Parliament of India, which is in New Delhi, the capital of India. The Parliament of India is divided into two houses: the upper house, Rajya Sabha (Council of States); and the lower house, Lok Sabha (House of People). The Rajya Sabha has 250 members, and the Lok Sabha has 552 members.

paragraphs: The executive branch is made up of the President, Vice President, Prime Minister, and the Council of Ministers. The President of India is elected for a period of five years. The President can choose the Prime Minister, who has most of the power. The Council of Ministers, such as the Minister of Defence, help the Prime Minister. Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister of India on May 16, 2014. He is the 19th Prime Minister of India. The president has less power than the prime minister.

paragraphs: The judicial branch is made up of the courts of India, including the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice of India is the head of the Supreme Court. Supreme Court members have the power to stop a law being passed by Parliament if they think that the law is illegal and contradicts (opposes) the Constitution of India. In India, there are also 24 High Courts.

paragraphs: India is the seventh biggest country in the world. It is the main part of the Indian subcontinent. The countries next to India are Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China, Bhutan, and Nepal. It is also near Sri Lanka, an island country.

paragraphs: India is a peninsula, which means that it is surrounded on three sides by water. One of the seven wonders of the world is in Agra: the Taj Mahal. In the west is the Arabian Sea, in the south is the Indian Ocean, and in the east is the Bay of Bengal. The northern part of India has many mountains. The most famous mountain range in India is the Himalayas, which have some of the tallest mountains in the world. There are many rivers in India. The main rivers are the Ganges, the Brahmaputra, the Yamuna, the Godavari, the Kaveri, the Narmada, and the Krishna.

paragraphs: India has different climates. In the South, the climate is mainly tropical, which means it can get very hot in summer and cool in winter. The northern part, though, has a cooler climate, called sub-tropical, and even alpine in mountainous regions. The Himalayas, in the alpine climate region, can get extremely cold. There is very heavy rainfall along the west coast and in the Eastern Himalayan foothills. The west, though, is drier. Because of some of the deserts of India, all of India gets rain for four months of the year. That time is called the monsoon. That is because the deserts attract water-filled winds from the Indian Ocean, which give rain when they come into India. When the monsoon rains come late or not so heavily, droughts (when the land dries out because there is less rain) are possible. Monsoons normally come around July - August.

paragraphs: The Indian Armed Forces is the military of India. It is made up of an Army, Navy and Air Force. There are other parts like Paramilitary and Strategic Nuclear Command.

paragraphs: The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief. However, it is managed by the Ministry of Defence. In 2010, the Indian Armed Forces had 1.32 million active personnel. This makes it one of the largest militaries in the world.

paragraphs: The Indian Army is becoming more modern by buying and making new weapons. It is also building defenses against missiles of other countries. In 2011, India imported more weapons than any other nation in the world.

paragraphs: From its independence in 1947, India fought four wars with Pakistan and a war with China.

paragraphs: For administration purposes, India has been divided into smaller pieces. Most of these pieces are called states, some are called union territories. States and union territories are different in the way they are represented. Most union territories are ruled by administrators sent by the central government. All the states, and the territories of Delhi, and Puducherry elect their local government themselves. In total, there are twenty-eight states, and nine union territories.

paragraphs: There are disputes about certain parts of the Indian borders. Countries do not agree on where the borders are. Pakistan and China do not recognise the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian government claims it as an Indian state. Similarly, the Republic of India does not recognise the Pakistani and Chinese parts of Kashmir.

paragraphs: In 1914, British India and Tibet agreed on the McMahon Line, as part of the Simla Accord. In July 1914, China withdrew from the agreement. Indians and Tibetans see this line as the official border. China does not agree, and both mainland China and Taiwan do not recognize that Arunachal Pradesh belongs to India. According to them, it is a part of South Tibet, which belongs to China.

paragraphs: The economy of the country is among the world's fastest growing. It is the 7th largest in the world with a nominal GDP of $2,250 billion (USD), and in terms of PPP, the economy is 3rd largest (worth $8.720 trillion USD). The growth rate is 8.25% for fiscal 2010. However, that is still $3678 (considering PPP) per person per year. India's economy is based mainly on:

paragraphs: India's economy is diverse. Major industries include automobiles, cement, chemicals, consumer electronics, food processing, machinery, mining, petroleum, pharmaceuticals, steel, transportation equipment, and textiles.

paragraphs: However, despite economic growth, India continues to suffer from poverty. 27.5% of the population was living in poverty in 2004–2005. In addition, 80.4% of the population live on less than USD $2 a day, which was lowered to 68% by 2009.

paragraphs: There are 1.21 billion people living in India. India is the second largest country by the number of people living in it, with China being the first. Experts think that by the year 2030, India will be the first. About 65% of Indians live in rural areas, or land set aside for farming. The largest cities in India are Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad. India has 23 official languages. Altogether, 1,625 languages are spoken in India.

paragraphs: There are many different languages and cultures in India. The only geographical place with more different languages and cultures is the African continent. There are two main language families in India, the Indo-Aryan and the Dravidian languages. About 69% of Indians speak an Indo-Arayan language, about 26% speak a Dravidian language. Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic group. Around 5% of the people speak a Tibeto-Burman language.

paragraphs: Hindi is the official language in India with the largest number of speakers. It is the official language of the union. Native speakers of Hindi represent about 41% of the Indian population (2001 Indian census). English is also used, mostly for business and in the administration. It has the status of a 'subsidiary official language'. The constitution also recognises 21 other languages. Either many people speak those languages, or they have been recognised to be very important for Indian culture. The number of dialects in India is as high as 1,652.

paragraphs: In the south of India, many people speak Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam. In the north, many people speak Chhattisgarhi, Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati, and Marathi, Odia, and Bihari.

paragraphs: India has 23 official languages. Its constitution lists the name of the country in each of the languages. Hindi and English (listed in boldface) are the "official languages of the union" (Union meaning the Federal Government in Delhi); Tamil,Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Odia are officially the "classical languages of India."

paragraphs: Cave paintings from the Stone Age are found across India. They show dances and rituals and suggest there was a prehistoric religion. During the Epic and Puranic periods, the earliest versions of the epic poems "Ramayana" and "Mahabharata" were written from about 500–100 BCE, although these were orally transmitted for centuries before this period. Other South Asian Stone Age sites apart from Pakistan are in modern India, such as the Bhimbetka rock shelters in central Madhya Pradesh and the Kupgal petroglyphs of eastern Karnataka, contain rock art showing religious rites and evidence of possible ritualised music.

paragraphs: Several modern religions are linked to India, namely modern Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism. All of these religions have different "schools" (ways of thinking) and traditions that are related. As a group they are called the Eastern religions. The Indian religions are similar to one another in many ways: The basic beliefs, the way worship is done and several religious practices are very similar. These similarities mainly come from the fact that these religions have a common history and common origins. They also influenced each other.

paragraphs: The religion of Hinduism is the main faith followed by 79.80% of people in the Republic of India; Islam – 14.23%; Christianity – 2.30%; Sikhism – 1.72%; Buddhism – 0.70% and Jainism – 0.37%.

paragraphs: It's the first time ever since independence that Hindu population percentage fell below 80%.

paragraphs: India sent a spacecraft to Mars for the first time in 2014. That made it the third country and only Asian country to do so, successfully. India is the only country to be successful in its very first attempt to orbit Mars. It was called the Mars Orbiter Mission.

paragraphs: ISRO launched 104 satellites in a single mission to create world record. India became the first nation in the world to have launched over a hundred satellites in one mission. That was more than the 2014 Russian record of 37 satellites in a single launch.

paragraphs: India has the largest movie industry in the world. Based in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), the industry is also known as Bollywood. It makes 1,000 movies a year, about twice as many as Hollywood. It produces movies almost everyday.

paragraphs: Indians have excelled in Hockey. They have also won eight gold, one silver and two bronze medals at the Olympic games. However, cricket is the most popular sport in India. The Indian cricket team won the 1983 and 2011 Cricket World Cup and the 2007 ICC World Twenty20. They shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka and won the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy.Cricket in India is controlled by the Board of Control for Cricket in India or BCCI. Domestic tournaments are the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy and the Challenger Series. There is also the Indian cricket league and Indian premier league Twenty20 competitions.

paragraphs: Tennis has become popular due to the victories of the India Davis Cup team. Association football is also a popular sport in northeast India, West Bengal, Goa and Kerala. The Indian national football team has won the South Asian Football Federation Cup many times. Chess, which comes from India, is also becoming popular. This is with the increase in the number of Indian Grandmasters. Traditional sports include kabaddi, kho kho, and gilli-danda, which are played throughout India.


title: Insult

paragraphs: An insult is a description of someone that will offend them. It may or may not be true. It is called "derogatory" language. Terms like foolish, stupid, idiot and moron are insults, because they say that a person's mind is not quick or smart.

paragraphs: Insulting someone's mother directly is a serious insult in many cultures.

paragraphs: Ritual insults are part of many cultures. For example, they can be found in sports and military training. They are also very common in jargons. For example, the word "newbie" is a part of net jargon. Calling someone a newbie is usually insulting.

paragraphs: One should be very careful when using new words to describe others.

paragraphs: Usually, someone insults others because they want to feel like they are better or have more power (influence) than the people they insult. They may want this because they are actually afraid that they are worse or less powerful than the people they are insulting.

paragraphs: When someone is insulted, his or her pride is hurt. He or she may want to fight back by insulting the person who insulted him or her.


title: Immunology

paragraphs: Immunology is the study of the immune system. The immune system is the parts of the body which work against infection and parasitism by other living things. Immunology deals with the working of the immune system in health and diseases, and with malfunctions of the immune system.

paragraphs: An immune system is present in all plants and animals. We know this because biologists have found genes coding for toll-like receptors in many different metazoans. These toll-like receptors can recognise bacteria as 'foreign', and are the starting-point for immune reactions. The type of immunity which is triggered by the toll-like receptors is called innate immunity. This is because it is entirely inherited in our genome, and is fully working as soon as our tissues and organs are properly developed.

paragraphs: Vertebrates, "and only vertebrates", have a second type of immunity. This is called adaptive immunity, because it 'remembers' previous infections. Then, if the same infection occurs again, the reaction is much stronger and faster. This immunological memory "confers a tremendous survival advantage" and with it vertebrates "can survive over a long lifetime in a pathogen-filled environment".

paragraphs: The innate immune system is usually means all of the cells and systems that does not have to be exposed to a particular pathogen before they can work.

paragraphs: Innate immunity starts with the skin, which is an excellent barrier to infection.

paragraphs: The adaptive immune system includes cells and systems that do require previous exposure to a pathogen. It explains the unique ability of the mammalian immune system to remember previous infections and mount a rapid and robust reaction to secondary infections. This immunological memory is due to the biology of T-cells and B-cells.

paragraphs: Vaccines boost the acquired immune system by offering weak forms of infection that the body can fight off. The system remembers how to do it again when a stronger infection happens. If the vaccine works, the body can then fight off a serious infection.

paragraphs: The distribution of vaccines and other immune system affecting cures can be considered another level of acquired immune system, one governed by access to vaccination and medicine in general. The intersection of this with the spread of disease (as studied in epidemiology) is part of the field of public health.

paragraphs: Errors of the immune system may cause damage. In autoimmune diseases, the body attacks parts of itself because the system mistakes some parts of the body as 'foreign'. Some kinds of arthritis are caused this way.

paragraphs: Sometimes serious pathogens slip in because their surface is disguised as something the host cell walls can accept. That is how viruses work. Once inside a cell, their genetic material controls the cell. Infections like HIV get in this way, and then attack cells which are the basis of the immune system. Artificial means are often used to restore immune system function in an HIV-challenged body, and prevent the onset of AIDS. This is one of the most complex issues in immunology as it involves every level of that system. This research during the 1980s and 1990s radically changed the view of the human immune system and its functions and integration in the human body.

paragraphs: Immunology is a science that examines the structure and function of the immune system. It originates from medicine and early studies on the causes of immunity to disease. The earliest known mention of immunity was during the plague of Athens in 430 BC. Thucydides (460–395 BC) noted that people who had recovered from a previous bout of some diseases could nurse the sick without contracting the illness a second time.

paragraphs: In the 18th century, Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis made experiments with scorpion venom and observed that certain dogs and mice were immune to this venom. This and other observations of acquired immunity led to Louis Pasteur (1822–1895) developing vaccination and the germ theory of disease. Pasteur's theory was in direct opposition to contemporary theories of disease, such as the miasma theory. It was not until the proofs Robert Koch (1843–1910) published in 1891 (for which he was awarded a Nobel Prize in 1905) that microorganisms were confirmed as the cause of infectious disease. Viruses were confirmed as human pathogens in 1901, when the yellow fever virus was discovered by Walter Reed (1851–1902).

paragraphs: Immunology made a great advance towards the end of the 19th century, through rapid developments, in the study of humoral immunity and cellular immunity. Particularly important was the work of Paul Ehrlich (1854–1915), who proposed the side-chain theory to explain the specificity of the antigen-antibody reaction. The Nobel Prize for 1908 was jointly awarded to Ehrlich and the founder of cellular immunology, Ilya Mechnikov (1845–1916).

paragraphs: The simplest form of immunity is the DNA restriction system in bacteria that prevents infection by bacteriophages.


title: Infinity

paragraphs: Infinity is about things which never end.

paragraphs: Sometimes, it is also written formula_1. Infinity means many different things, depending on when it is used. The word is from a Latin word, which means "without end". Infinity goes on forever, so sometimes space, numbers, and other things are said to be 'infinite', because they never come to a stop.

paragraphs: Infinity is usually not an actual number, but it is sometimes used as one. Infinity often says how "many" there is of something, instead of how "big" something is. For example, there are infinitely many whole numbers (called integers), but there is no integer which is infinitely big. But different kinds of math have different kinds of infinity. So its meaning often changes.

paragraphs: There are two kinds of infinity: potential infinity and actual infinity. Potential infinity is a process that never stops. For example, adding 10 to a number. No matter how many times 10 is added, 10 more can still be added. Actual infinity, on the other hand, refers to objects that are accepted as infinite entities (such as transfinite numbers).

paragraphs: Mathematicians have different sizes of infinity and three different kinds of infinity.

paragraphs: The number of things, beginning with 0, 1, 2, 3, ..., to include infinite cardinal numbers. There are many different cardinal numbers. Infinity can be defined in one of two ways: Infinity is a number so big that a part of it can be of the same size; Infinity is larger than all of the natural numbers. There is a smallest infinite number, "countable infinity". It is the counting number for all of the whole numbers. It is also the counting number of the rational numbers. The mathematical notation is the Hebrew letter aleph with a subscrpt zero; formula_2. It is spoken "aleph null".

paragraphs: It was a surprise to learn that there are larger infinite numbers. The number of real numbers, that is, all numbers with decimals, is larger than the number of rational numbers, the number of fractions. This shows that there are real numbers which are not fractions. The smallest infinite number greater than formula_2 is formula_4 (aleph one). The number of mathematical functions is the next infinite cardinal number, formula_5.

paragraphs: And these numbers, called aleph numbers, go on without end.

paragraphs: A different "type" of infinity are the ordinal numbers, beginning "first, second, third, ...". The order "first, second, third, ..." and so on to infinity is "different" from the order "ending" "..., third, second, first". The difference is important for mathematical induction. The simple "first, second, third, ... " has the mathematical name: the Greek letter omega with subscript zero: formula_6. (Or simply omega formula_7.) The infinite series ending "... third, second, first" is formula_8.

paragraphs: The third "type" of infinity has the symbol formula_1. This is treated as addition to the real numbers or the complex numbers. It is the result of division by zero, or to indicate that a series is increasing (or decreasing) without bound. The series 1, 2, 3, ... increases without upper bound. This is written: the limit is formula_10. In calculus, the integral over all real numbers is written: formula_11

paragraphs: Each kind of infinity has different rules.

paragraphs: formula_12 Addition with "alephs" is commutative.

paragraphs: formula_13 Multiplication with "alephs" is commutative.

paragraphs: formula_16. Addition with "omegas" is not commutative.

paragraphs: formula_17. Multiplication with "omegas" is not commutative.

paragraphs: formula_21 Otherwise, division by infinity is not meaningful. Subtraction with infinity is not meaningful.


title: January

paragraphs: January (Jan.) is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, coming between December (of the previous year) and February (of the current year). It has 31 days.

paragraphs: January begins on the same day of the week as October in common years, and April and July in leap years. January ends on the same day of the week as February and October in common years, and July in leap years.

paragraphs: January is named for Janus, the Roman god of doors and gates.

paragraphs: January and February were put on the calendar after all the other months. This is because in the original Roman calendar, winter did not have months. Although March was originally the first month, January became the new first month because that was when people chose the new consuls (Roman leaders). The month has 31 days.

paragraphs: January is a winter month in the Northern Hemisphere and a summer month in the Southern Hemisphere. In each hemisphere, it is the seasonal equivalent of July in the other. Perihelion, the point in its orbit where the Earth is closest to the Sun, also occurs in this month, between January 2 and January 5. January begins on the same day of the week as October in common years and on the same day of the week as April and July in leap years. January ends on the same day of the week as February and October in common years and on the same day of the week as July in leap years. January is the only month of the year that always has a "twin" - a month that both begins and ends on the same day of the week as it does. In a common year, this is October, and in a leap year, July.

paragraphs: Every year, January both starts and finishes on the same day of the week as May of the previous year, as each other's first and last days are exactly 35 weeks (245 days) apart.

paragraphs: In common years immediately before other common years, January starts on the same day of the week as April and July of the following year, and in leap years and years immediately before that, September and December of the following year. In common years immediately before other common years, January finishes on the same day of the week as July of the following year, and in leap years and years immediately before that, April and December of the following year.

paragraphs: January's flower is the carnation with its birthstone being the garnet. The meaning of the garnet is constancy.

paragraphs: The first day of January is called New Year's Day. It is said that it became this date when Roman consuls took office on this day in 153 BC. Different calendars across Europe made this the start of the New Year at different times, as some observed it on March 25.

paragraphs: Reaching over from December, the Christmas season in Christianity also extends into this month. Eastern churches celebrate Christmas on January 6 or January 7, and Epiphany on January 18 or January 19 - In Western Christianity this occurs on January 6, with Christmas occurring on December 25.

paragraphs: January 1 is celebrated the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God, that is a feast day of precept of the Blessed Virgin Mary.


title: June

paragraphs: June is the sixth month of the year, coming between May and July. It has 30 days. June is named for the Roman goddess Juno, the wife of Jupiter. She is goddess of marriage. Because of this, getting married in June was thought to be lucky.

paragraphs: June never begins on the same day of the week as any other month, but always ends on the same day of the week as March.

paragraphs: June comes between May and July and is the sixth month of the year in the Gregorian calendar. It is one of four months to have 30 days.

paragraphs: No other month in any year, common or leap year, begins on the same day of the week as June. June ends on the same day of the week as March every year, as each other's last days are 13 weeks (91 days) apart.

paragraphs: In common years, June starts on the same day of the week as September and December of the previous year, and in leap years, April and July of the previous year. In common years, June finishes on the same day of the week as September of the previous year, and in leap years, April and December of the previous year.

paragraphs: Every year, June starts on the same day of the week as February of the following year, as each other's first days are exactly 35 weeks (245 days) apart. In years immediately before common years, June starts on the same day of the week as March and November of the following year, and in years immediately before leap years, August of the following year. In years immediately before common years, June finishes on the same day of the week as August and November of the following year, and in years immediately before leap years, May of the following year.

paragraphs: June is one of two months to have a solstice (the other is December, its seasonal equivalent in both hemispheres), and in this month the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere is turned towards the Sun, meaning that June 20 or June 21 is the Northern Summer Solstice and the Southern Winter Solstice. This means that this date would have the most daylight of any day in the Northern hemisphere, and the least in the Southern Hemisphere. There are 24 hours of daylight at the North Pole and 24 hours of darkness at the South Pole.


title: July

paragraphs: July is the seventh month of the year in the Gregorian calendar, coming between June and August. It has 31 days. July was named after Julius Caesar. The mid-way point of the year is either on July 2 or in the night of July 1-2.

paragraphs: July always begins on the same day of the week as April, and additionally, January in leap years. July doesn't end on the same day of the week as any other month in common years, but ends on the same day of the week as January in leap years.

paragraphs: In each hemisphere, it is the seasonal equivalent of January in the other hemisphere. In the North, it is summer and in the South it is winter.

paragraphs: In the Northern Hemisphere, July is often the warmest month of the year, and major sporting events and music festivals are held around this time. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is a winter month, with the coldest-recorded temperature having been measured in Antarctica in this month.

paragraphs: July begins on the same day of the week as April every year and on the same day of the week as January in leap years. No other month in common years ends on the same day of the week as July, but July ends on the same day of the week as January in leap years.

paragraphs: In common years, July starts on the same day of the week as October of the previous year, and in leap years, May of the previous year. In common years, July finishes on the same day of the week as February and October of the previous year, and in leap years, May of the previous year. In common years immediately after other common years, July both starts and finishes on the same day of the week as January of the previous year.

paragraphs: In years immediately before common years, July starts on the same day of the week as September and December of the following year, and in years immediately before leap years, June of the following year. In years immediately before common years, July finishes on the same day of the week as April and December of the following year, and in years immediately before leap years, September of the following year.

paragraphs: July's flower is a variety of the water lily. Its birthstone is the ruby. The meaning for the birthstone ruby is contented mind. Astrological signs for July are Cancer (June 21 - July 21) and Leo (July 22 - August 21).

paragraphs: In the old Roman calendar, July was called "Quintilis", meaning "Fifth Month", because, in the old calendar, the year began in March. Augustus later renamed it July in honor of Julius Caesar, whose birthday was in this month. Augustus later also named the following month, August, after himself.