title: Brixton riot (1981)

paragraphs: The Brixton riot of 11 April 1981 was the biggest of three riots in Brixton, London, and the biggest riot in London.

paragraphs: Brixton in south London was a very poor inner-city area with many problems — high unemployment, much crime, bad housing. Many black people, mostly of Caribbean origin, lived there. Many people there did not like the police.

paragraphs: The riot was unplanned. On the evening of the 10th, at around 5.15pm, a black boy with a knife wound was stopped by police. As he was brought to a police car by two policemen along Railton Road a large crowd attacked the police and the fight only ended when more policemen arrived; the youth was taken to hospital.

paragraphs: Through the night of the 10th and on Saturday 11th the police brought many police men into the area. Throughout the day crowds slowly got together. In early evening, as the police tried to make some arrests on Atlantic Road, the riots started: a few bricks were thrown and windows smashed. More police came and more things were thrown. The police retreated, leaving their cars to be burned. Other cars were burned and things were stolen from shops on Railton Road, Mayall Road, Leeson Road and Brixton Road before the police came back.

paragraphs: The police closed the Atlantic-Railton-Mayall area from public, although many other streets had groups of rioting people as well. The rioters started throwing with bricks, bottles, and Molotov cocktails. Cars and buildings were burned and fire engines attacked as they tried to stop the flames.

paragraphs: The riot was at its peak at around 8pm, with two public houses, schools and other buildings burning. Two hours later the police had the area under some control, although the fire brigade returned at the next morning only. By 1am the area was largely under control, with no large crowdss – except the police – on the streets. There were tries to start violence again on the 12th, but they were stopped by more than 1,000 police men on the streets.

paragraphs: The riot was followed by almost 300 police injuries and 65 bad civilian injuries; over 100 cars were burned, including 56 police cars; almost 150 buildings were damaged, with thirty burned. There were 82 arrests.

paragraphs: Between 3 and 11 July of that year, there were more riots in England. There were riots in Handsworth, Southall, Toxteth, and Moss Side. There were also smaller pockets of unrest in Leeds, Leicester, Southampton, Halifax, Bedford, Gloucester, Coventry, Bristol, and Edinburgh.

paragraphs: The riots inspired the Eddy Grant song, "Electric Avenue."

paragraphs: The Clash also made a song about Brixton, "The Guns of Brixton." This song came out before the riots of 1981 (The album was sold first in 1979), but it describes the general atmosphere in the area.


title: Caudipteryx

paragraphs: Caudipteryx was a small feathered dinosaur. It was related to "Oviraptor" but looked more like "Archaeopteryx". It was a relative of "Protarchaeopteryx". It was found in China. It was a small insectivore, with long thin legs, less than a metre long. It had a fan of tail feathers and a fringe of feathers along the trailing edge of each arm. They are very like bird feathers, with a central stalk, and vanes on either side. Its arms were too short for it to fly.


title: Protarchaeopteryx

paragraphs: Protarchaeopteryx was a small feathered dinosaur from China. It was a bird-like predator with teeth. It looked like "Archaeopteryx". It is one of the Chinese feathered dinosaurs.


title: Pentaceratops

paragraphs: Pentaceratops was a very large ceratopsian dinosaur. It was almost 11 meters in length and 4 meters tall. It was larger than Triceratops.


title: Greenwich Mean Time

paragraphs: Greenwich Mean Time is an internationally standard time format. It is the main time zone in several countries, including the United Kingdom and Portugal.

paragraphs: It is similar to UTC, however, there are some small differences between the two. Including that the Greenwich uses a straight line to signal the Time Zone, while in the UTC people can put which time zone they wants, even if it does not need this time zone. One example is China, which uses one same time zone, meaning that in some places like Beijing 12:00 PM can be 3:00 PM on the western part of the country.


title: Reciprocal

paragraphs: In mathematics, the reciprocal (or multiplicative inverse) of a number is 1 divided by the number, or equivalently, the number raised to the power of -1 (as in formula_1 and formula_2). All numbers have a reciprocal except zero, since no number times 0 is 1. Two numbers are reciprocal of each other if and only if their product is 1. For example:

paragraphs: To find the reciprocal of a fraction, swap the numerator and the denominator. Whole numbers can be thought as having a denominator of 1. For example:

paragraphs: Dividing a fraction is the same as multiplying its reciprocal and vice versa.


title: 2006 in spaceflight

paragraphs: This is a list of spacecraft which were launched into space during the year 2006.


title: British Museum

paragraphs: The British Museum in London is one of the world's largest and most important museums of human history and culture. It has more than seven million objects from all continents. They illustrate and document the story of human culture from its beginning to the present. As with all other national museums and art galleries in Britain, the Museum charges no admission fee.

paragraphs: The British Museum set up in 1753 and opened in 1759. It was the first museum in the world to be open to everyone. The museum gradually grew over the next two hundred years. It has nearly six million visitors a year and is the third most popular art museum in the world.

paragraphs: Some of the museum's most popular and important exhibits include the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles.

paragraphs: The history of the British Museum began with the Irish born British physicist Hans Sloane, who died aged 93 in 1753. During his life, he had collected many important things from all around the world. When he died, he did not want his collection to be split up between his relatives. He sold his collection to the parliament of King George II. The parliament set up the British Museum to hold the collection. By the time he died, Sloane had collected over 80,000 objects from all over the world including Egypt, Greece, Rome and the Americas. The collection was mostly books and manuscripts. There were many important archaeological pieces included as well.

paragraphs: The government looked at many possible places to build the new museum, including Buckingham House, which later became Buckingham Palace. Eventually a building called Montagu House was chosen. The Museum opened on 15 January 1759, although all visitors had to be shown around by stewards. Over the years the museum began to concentrate more and more on historical objects and sculptures. For this reason they were given the Rosetta Stone by King George III in 1802. The Rosetta Stone had previously been important to French historians trying understand the Hieroglyph language written by the Ancient Egyptians. In 1816 the Museum acquired the Elgin Marbles from Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin. Elgin had taken them from the Parthenon in Athens, Greece several years earlier. Many people disagreed with the way Elgin took them from Greece. They compared his acts to looting and vandalism. People still argue about this issue today.

paragraphs: In 1822 King George III donated the entire Royal Library to the museum. This contained over 65,000 books and pamphlets. In 1823 the original building was demolished and work began on new buildings to hold the ever growing collection. Some of the space was freed up when the National Gallery opened in 1824, as many of the Museum's paintings and drawings were moved there.

paragraphs: The Museums collection continued to get bigger over the following years, and more and more buildings were added to hold the new objects. Important discoveries by people working for the British Museum included the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus by Charles Newton in 1857 and the Temple of Artemis in 1869. Many things found at these sites were taken to the Museum, where they have remained ever since. In 1852 the British Museum's famous round Reading Room was opened. It had enough space to display a million books at once.

paragraphs: The collection continued to get bigger and bigger. Eventually the Natural History Museum was set up in 1887 to hold the natural parts of the Museum's collection. It was around this time that electric lights were first put in the Museum. It was one of the first public places in England to do so.

paragraphs: In the early 1900s the Museum's board of directors bought all the houses surrounding it, knocked them all down and built over them. In 1939, just before the start of World War II, most of the Museum's exhibits were taken to other places because the directors were worried the Nazis might bomb the Museum during the Blitz. The exhibits were stored in old London Underground stations, as well as other places. The evacuation proved to be a good idea, as parts of the Museum were destroyed by bombs in 1940.

paragraphs: Much of the 1950s was spent fixing the parts of the Museum destroyed by the bombing, and bringing back the pieces that had been taken away. During all this time the collection continued to get bigger, although space was slowly running out for all the books being brought in. The British Library was set up in 1973 to deal with this problem. In 1972 the Museum was loaned the Tutankhamun collection from the Museum of Cairo. They held a big exhibition called 'The Treasures of Tutankhamun' and it attracted over 1.5 million people to come and see it.

paragraphs: In 1998 the central courtyard, which had been unused before, was turned into the Great Court with the Reading Room at its centre. The Great Court has over 2 acres of space under its roof. This makes it the largest covered public space in Europe. It was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in January 2000.

paragraphs: Since then the Museum has collected more things to do with history, rather than more modern pieces. They now have a large collection of Roman British, Ancient Greek and Ancient Egyptian artefacts, as well as objects from many other cultures and times around the world.

paragraphs: Because of its extremely large size the Museum's collection is split into many parts, called "departments". The departments have changed many times over the years. They are sometimes merged together, split into smaller departments or renamed and changed altogether.

paragraphs: The British Museums department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan is one of the biggest collections of Ancient Egyptian art in the world. Only the Egyptian Museum in Cairo has a bigger collection. They cover Egyptian and Sudanese history from around 10000 BC all the way to the 12th century AD, a period of around 12,000 years.

paragraphs: Around 150 of the objects in the Egyptian department were part of the first collection which was given to the Museum by Hans Sloane in 1753. In 1801 the British defeated the French, led by Napoleon Bonaparte, at the battle of the Nile. After the battle, British forces took lots of Ancient Egyptian artifacts from the defeated French. They were given to the British Museum in 1803. These objects included the famous Rosetta Stone.

paragraphs: The department continued to get bigger, paying for archaeologists to go to Egypt and Sudan. They did this until 2001 when the Egyptian government made it much harder for Museums to take historical artefacts back to their own country. The collection now has over 110,000 exhibits.

paragraphs: The British Museum's department of Greece and Rome is one of the biggest collections of Ancient Greek and Roman objects in the world. The objects come from nearly 4000 years of European history, from 3200 BC all the way to the 4th century AD.

paragraphs: It contains parts of two of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World; the Mausoleum at Halikarnassos and the Temple of Artemis at Ephesos. It also had many pieces taken from the Parthenon in Athens, Greece. Like the rest of the Museum the department gets most of its collection from excavations or the acquiring of private collections. Some of the earliest objects in the collection were bought from the collection of Sir William Hamilton in 1772. In recent years the Museum's rules on how it can get objects have become much stricter. Other countries rules on allowing Museums to take objects away have also got stricter. This has meant the British Museum has gradually taken fewer items each year in recent times.

paragraphs: The British Museum Department of the Middle East has the largest collection of Mesopotamian art in the world, outside Iraq. It has some 300,000 objects, covering the Neolithic period until present. It has objects from all over the Middle East including Mesopotamia (Iraq), Anatolia (Turkey), Levant (Syria, Lebanon and Jordan) and some pieces from central Asia. The Assyrian and Sumerian collections are also some of the biggest in the world.


title: Dexter (TV series)

paragraphs: Dexter is an American television series that was shown on Showtime network. It is based on the book "Darkly Dreaming Dexter" written by Jeff Lindsay. The show tells a story about a serial killer, Dexter Morgan, who works as a forensics analyst for the police in Miami. The main actor of the show is Michael C. Hall.


title: Python (programming language)

paragraphs: Python is an open source programming language that was made to be easy-to-read and powerful. A Dutch programmer named Guido van Rossum made Python in 1991. He named it after the television show Monty Python's Flying Circus. Many Python examples and tutorials include jokes from the show.

paragraphs: Python is an interpreted language. Interpreted languages do not need to be compiled to run. A program called an interpreter runs Python code on almost any kind of computer. This means that a programmer can change the code and quickly see the results. This also means Python is slower than a compiled language like C, because it is not running machine code directly.

paragraphs: Python is a good programming language for beginners. It is a high-level language, which means a programmer can focus on what to do instead of how to do it. Writing programs in Python takes less time than in some other languages.

paragraphs: Python drew inspiration from other programming languages like C, C++, Java, Perl, and Lisp.

paragraphs: Python's developers try to avoid changing the language to make it better until they have a lot of things to change. Also, they try not to make small repairs, called patches, to unimportant parts of the CPython reference implementation that would make it faster. When speed is important, a Python programmer can move some of the work of the program to other parts written in programming languages like C or PyPy, a just-in-time compiler. It translates a Python script into C and makes direct C-level API calls into the Python interpreter.

paragraphs: Keeping Python fun to use is an important goal of Python’s developers. It reflects in the language's name, a tribute to the British comedy group Monty Python. On occasions, they are playful approaches to tutorials and reference materials, such as referring to spam and eggs instead of the standard foo and bar.

paragraphs: Python is used by hundreds of thousands of programmers and is used in many places. Sometimes only Python code is used for a program, but most of the time it is used to do simple jobs while another programming language is used to do more complicated tasks.

paragraphs: Its standard library is made up of many functions that come with Python when it is installed. On the Internet there are many other libraries available that make it possible for the Python language to do more things. These libraries make it a powerful language; it can do many different things.

paragraphs: Some things that Python is often used for are:

paragraphs: Python has a very easy-to-read syntax. Some of Python's syntax comes from C, because that is the language that Python was written in. But Python uses whitespace to delimit code: spaces or tabs are used to organize code into groups. This is different from C. In C, there is a semicolon at the end of each line and curly braces ({}) are used to group code. Using whitespace to delimit code makes Python a very easy-to-read language.

paragraphs: Python's expressions include some that are similar to other programming languages and others that are not.

paragraphs: This is a small example of a Python program. It shows "Hello World!" on the screen.

paragraphs: Python also does something called "dynamic variable assignment". This means that when a number or word is made in a program, the user does not have to say what type it is. This makes it easier to reuse variable names, making fast changes simpler. An example of this is shown below. This code will make both a number and a word, and show them both, using only one variable.

paragraphs: In a "statically typed" language like C, a programmer would have to say whether codice_1 was a number or a word before C would let the programmer set up codice_1, and after that, C would not allow its type to change from a number to a word.


title: Back to the Future

paragraphs: Back to the Future is a 1985 American science fiction adventure movie directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd and Crispin Glover. It is the first movie for the "Back to the Future trilogy".

paragraphs: In 1985, Doc Emmett Brown shows teenage Marty his new creation: a car which can travel through time. The heart of the time machine is "the flux capacitor," invented by Dr. Brown. The time machine needs plutonium to provide the power for the flux capacitor. Marty uses the car to escape from Libyan terrorists and accidentally goes back to the year 1955. Marty seeks out and meets Dr. Brown in 1955. The time machine is out of plutonium, and there is no plutonium available for the time machine in 1955. By chance, Marty knows the time and place of a one-time natural event (lightning strike) that can provide the power to transport the time machine and Marty back to 1985.

paragraphs: The situation in 1955 is complicated when Marty meets his own parents as teenagers. When he helps his father, he accidentally changes the events that lead to his parents becoming a couple. Marty's teenage mother becomes interested in Marty instead of Marty's father, George. With the help of the Doc of 1955, Marty tries to undo the damage he has done, and make his mother fall in love with his father. If he can get his parents back together, he has very little time to get back to the car to use the lightning strike to take the time machine and him (Marty) back to the future (i.e. 1985).


title: Stargate

paragraphs: Stargate is a science fiction media franchise and may refer to:


title: Arthur Schopenhauer

paragraphs: Arthur Schopenhauer (February 22, 1788 in Danzig – September 21, 1860 in Frankfurt am Main) was a German philosopher.

paragraphs: He was influenced by Kant, Plato and eastern teachings, especially Buddhism and the Upanishads.

paragraphs: Schopenhauer believed that the primary characteristic, or essence of all things - including human beings - is not intelligence, rationality or spirit, but will. By "will" he means a wanting and craving like that which we know in ourselves as our "will." It is the source of immense amounts of suffering in the world. He also believed that a "better consciousness" could be attained by denying the fulfilment of our desires, taking time to think about who we really are and what we should do to avoid suffering - but also, in doing something few philosophers of his day spoke of: in making and looking at works of art, especially music, which he considered a way to escape from the world's pain and suffering.

paragraphs: Schopenhauer was a huge influence on Richard Wagner, Friedrich Nietzsche, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Thomas Mann, Sigmund Freud, Leo Tolstoy, Carl Jung, Emil Cioran and many other important artists and thinkers of the 20th Century.


title: 2005 Cronulla riots

paragraphs: The 2005 Cronulla riots were a series of violent events between Lebanese and white Australian mobs. Riots started in and around Cronulla, a suburb on the beach in Sydney, Australia's biggest city. The violence was soon also in other suburbs around Sydney. The riots happened on 11, 12 and 14 December. Many people committed crimes there.

paragraphs: Several people were sent to prison for being involved in the riot.


title: 1992 Los Angeles riots

paragraphs: The 1992 Los Angeles riots, also called Rodney King uprising or Rodney King riots, started on April 29, 1992 when a jury set four white policemen free. The jury was mostly Caucasian. The policemen had beaten up African-American motorist Rodney King badly and filmed this, after he fled from police. Thousands of people in Los Angeles, mostly African American and Hispanic, rioted. In all, 55 people were killed in the riots.


title: Hypotenuse

paragraphs: The hypotenuse is the side opposite the 90 degrees angle in a right triangle. It is always the longest side.

paragraphs: In this triangle, if angle C is 90 degrees, then the opposite side, "c", is the hypotenuse. The hypotenuse is important in trigonometry, where it is used to calculate many functions.

paragraphs: The length of the hypotenuse can be calculated if the other two sides are known, using Pythagoras' Theorem. In fact, the length of any side of a right triangle can be calculated if the other two sides are known, using this theorem.


title: Niðavellir

paragraphs: In Norse Mythology, the Niðavellir are dark fields, mentioned in the Völuspa. The dwarves live there.


title: Python

paragraphs: Python is the name given to a genus of constricting snakes. Such snakes are not venomous. The family in question is the "Pythonidae". Pythons are more closely related to boas than to any other snake family. Boulenger (1890) thought this group was a subfamily (Pythoninae) of the family Boidae (boas). However, boas produce live young, while pythons are oviparous: they lay eggs.

paragraphs: "Python" can be found in Southeast Asia and Africa, and other members of the family are found in New Guinea and Australia. Pythons can range from 3 feet long in species like ball pythons to 29 feet in species like reticulated pythons. Python is one of eight genera in the family. They all have a rather similar life style.

paragraphs: Most members of the family are ambush predators: they stay motionless in a camouflaged position, and then strike suddenly at passing prey. They wrap their body round the prey and squeeze. To kill its prey, the python squeezes it to death, then swallows it whole. Larger pythons can prey on animals as large as a full-grown deer. In Africa, there are pythons that eat gazelles. Most of their prey is much smaller than that. Pythons may take several days or even weeks to fully digest prey.

paragraphs: Despite their size, pythons are rarely dangerous to humans.

paragraphs: "Python" can be up to 900 cm long and weigh up to 90 kg, but males are much smaller and lighter than females. The python can live up to 30 years. The breeding time is between 60 or 70 days.

paragraphs: Research indicates that all snakes, including pythonids, are descended from a venomous ancestor.

paragraphs: Pythons, like all snakes, are reptiles without limbs. Their long body only consists of a head, trunk and tail.

paragraphs: Burmese Pythons have become an invasive species in south Florida. The problem is most serious in the Everglades National Park.

paragraphs: In 2013 a pet python killed two kids in New Brunswick, Canada.


title: Consultation (Bahá'í practice)

paragraphs: Consultation is a special way of discussing problems and making decisions used by Bahá'ís.

paragraphs: The word consult generally means to talk about something, consider all the facts, and make a decision. To Bahá'ís, consultation also means:

paragraphs: Consultation is used by Bahá'í elected leaders when they gather in councils to make sure no one person gets to decide everything. Married people consult with their husband or wife to solve difficulties in the marriage. Parents and children may consult, teachers and students may consult, and Bahá'ís all consult as a community when they get together every nineteen days.


title: Engine

paragraphs: An engine, or motor, is a machine used to change energy into movement that can be used. The energy can be in any form. Common forms of energy used in engines are electricity, chemical (such as petrol or diesel) or heat. When a chemical is used to produce energy it is known as "fuel".

paragraphs: In past centuries "motor" and and engine meant very different things. A motor was made to move something such as a vehicle. This meaning is still often used. Sometimes a thing is called an engine if it creates mechanical energy from heat, and a motor if it creates mechanical energy from other kinds of energy, like electricity. Typical "engines" in this meaning are steam engine and internal combustion engine, while typical "motors" are electric motor and hydraulic motor. And sometimes the two words mean the same thing.

paragraphs: "Engine" was originally a term for any mechanical device that converts force into motion. Hence, pre-industrial weapons such as catapults, trebuchets and battering rams were called "siege engines". The word "gin," as in "cotton gin", is short for "engine." The word derives from Old French "engin", from the Latin "ingenium", which is also the root of the word "ingenious". Most mechanical devices invented during the industrial revolution were described as engines—the steam engine being a notable example.

paragraphs: Early kinds of engine used heat that was outside of the engine itself to heat up a gas to a high pressure. This was usually steam and the engines are called steam engines. The steam was piped to the engine where it pushed on pistons to bring about motion. These engines were commonly used in old factories, boats and trains.

paragraphs: Most cars use a chemical engine that burns fuel inside it. This is called an internal combustion engine. There are many different types of internal combustion engine. They can be grouped by fuel, cycle and configuration. Common fuel types for internal combustion engines are petrol, diesel, autogas and alcohol. There are many other types of fuels.

paragraphs: There are 3 different types of cycle. 2-stroke engines produce power once every turn of the engine. 4-stroke engines cylinders make power once every two turns of the engine. 6-stroke engines cylinders make power twice in every six turns of the engine.

paragraphs: There are lots of different configurations of piston engines. Their cylinders have pistons in them and a crankshaft. Any number of cylinders can be used but 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 are common. The cylinders can be arranged in many ways, in a straight line, at an angle to each other or in a circle.

paragraphs: A Wankel engine has no cylinders and uses a triangle shaped rotor spinning in an oval housing which mimics the movement of a piston.

paragraphs: Hot gas can also be made to push a turbine around rather like the way the wind turns a windmill. Most electric power stations use big steam turbines. Others use water or wind turbines. Smaller turbines called gas turbines are used for internal combustion engines, such as the jet engines used in aircraft.

paragraphs: A rocket causes movement by shooting jets of gas very fast out of a nozzle. The gas may have been stored under pressure or be a chemical fuel that burns to make a very hot gas. Although they are very simple, rockets are the most powerful engines we know how to make. They will work in space where there is nothing to push against.

paragraphs: Electric motors do not use a fuel. The energy is supplied to them by electricity carried along wires. The energy may come from a fuel being burnt somewhere else a long way off. The electricity is used to make powerful magnets inside the motor switch on and off at the right time to turn the shaft of the motor.

paragraphs: "Electric engine" is not a motor, but a railway locomotive which runs on electricity.


title: Belarus

paragraphs: Belarus (officially called Republic of Belarus) is a country in Eastern Europe. About nine million people live there. Its capital is Minsk. It was part of the Soviet Union until 1991. The president of Belarus has been Alexander Lukashenko since 1994. It is bordered by Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. Over forty percent of its is forested.

paragraphs: The State is a member of the UN, the CIS, Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Eurasian Economic Community, the Union State of Russia and Belarus (from 2 April 1997), as well as a member of other international organizations.

paragraphs: Until the 20th century, the lands of modern-day Belarus belonged to several countries. These included the Principality of Polotsk, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Russian Empire. After the Russian Revolution, Belarus became part of the Soviet Union. It was renamed the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR). The borders of Belarus took their modern shape in 1939. Some lands of the Second Polish Republic were added into it after the Soviet invasion of Poland. The nation and its territory were devastated in World War II. Belarus lost about a third of its population and more than half of its economic resources. In 1945 the Belorussian SSR became a founding member of the United Nations, along with the Soviet Union and the Ukrainian SSR.

paragraphs: The parliament of the republic declared the sovereignty of Belarus on 1990. During the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Belarus became independent on 1991.

paragraphs: Over 70% of Belarus's population of 9.49 million live in the urban areas. More than 80% of the population are ethnic Belarusians. Most of the rest are Russians, Poles and Ukrainians. The country has two official languages: Belarusian and Russian. The main religion in the country is Russian Orthodox Christianity. The second most popular, Roman Catholicism, has a much smaller following.

paragraphs: Both Homo erectus and Neanderthal remains have been found in the region. From 5,000 to 2,000 BCE, Bandkeramik cultures lived here. Cimmerians were in the area by 1,000 BCE. By 500 BCE, Slavs moved in. The Huns and Avars came through around 400–600 CE. They were unable to move the Slavs.

paragraphs: The region that is now Belarus was first settled by Slavic tribes in the 6th century. They came into contact with the Varangians, who were bands of Scandinavian warriors and traders. They formed Kievan Rus' in 862.

paragraphs: When Kievan Rus' ruler Yaroslav I the Wise died, the state split. Later some were added into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Lithuania made a union with Poland. The union ended in 1795. The land of Belarus went to the Russian Empire. The land stayed with Russia until going to the German Empire during World War I.

paragraphs: Belarus said they were free from Germany on 1918. They formed the Belarusian People's Republic. Then the Polish–Soviet War started. A part of Belarus under Russian rule became the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1919. Then it added to the Lithuanian–Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. Other lands were divided between Poland and the Soviet Union after the war ended in 1921. The Belorussian SSR became a founding member of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 1922. The western part of modern Belarus stayed part of Poland.

paragraphs: In 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland. This was the beginning of World War II. Parts of Poland were added to the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. They are now West Belarus.

paragraphs: Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941. BSSR was the hardest-hit Soviet republic in World War II. During that time, Germany destroyed 209 out of 290 cities in the republic, 85% of the republic's industry, and more than one million buildings. Casualties were between two and three million. The population of Belarus did not come back to its pre-war level until 1971.

paragraphs: Joseph Stalin wanted Belorussian SSR to be more Russian. Russians were sent from other parts of the Soviet Union to be in the government. The use of the Belarusian language was limited. After Stalin's death in 1953, Nikita Khrushchev continued the plan.

paragraphs: In 1986, the Belorussian SSR had nuclear fallout from the explosion at the Chernobyl power plant in neighboring Ukrainian SSR.

paragraphs: Belarus said it was free on 1990. With the support of the Communist Party, the country's name was changed to the Republic of Belarus on 1991.

paragraphs: Belarus is landlocked and mostly flat. It has a lot of marshy land. Many streams and 11,000 lakes are found in Belarus. Three major rivers run through the country: the Neman, the Pripyat, and the Dnieper.

paragraphs: The highest point is Dzyarzhynskaya Hara at . Belarus has a hemiboreal humid continental climate ("Dfb" in the Koeppen climate classification).

paragraphs: Natural resources include peat deposits, small amounts of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomite (limestone), marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay. About 70% of the radiation from neighboring Ukraine's 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster entered Belarusian territory. The farmland continues to be affected by radiation fallout.

paragraphs: Belarus is a presidential republic. It is governed by a president and the National Assembly.

paragraphs: Lukashenko has described himself as having an "authoritarian ruling style". Western countries have described Belarus under Lukashenko as a dictatorship. The Council of Europe has stopped Belarus from membership since 1997 for undemocratic voting.

paragraphs: The Armed Forces of Belarus have three branches: the Army, the Air Force, and the Ministry of Defense joint staff. Lieutenant General Yuri Zhadobin heads the Ministry of Defense. Alexander Lukashenko (as president) is Commander-in-Chief.

paragraphs: Belarus is divided into six regions. They are named after the cities that are their administrative centers.

paragraphs: Most of the Belarusian economy is state-controlled. It has been described as "Soviet-style." The country relies on Russia for some imports, including petroleum. As of 1994, Belarus's main exports included heavy machinery (especially tractors), agricultural products, and energy products.

paragraphs: According to 2009 census, the population is 9,503,807. Ethnic Belarusians are 83.7% of Belarus' total population. The next largest ethnic groups are: Russians (8.3%), Poles (3.1%), and Ukrainians (1.7%). Minsk, the nation's capital and largest city, is home to 1,836,808 residents as of 2009. Gomel, with 481,000 people, is the second-largest city and is the capital of the Homiel Voblast. Other large cities are Mogilev (365,100), Vitebsk (342,400), Hrodna (314,800) and Brest (298,300). For other places in Belarus see List of settlements in Belarus.

paragraphs: Belarusian literature began with 11th- to 13th-century religious scripture. By the 16th century, Polotsk resident Francysk Skaryna translated the Bible into Belarusian. The modern era of Belarusian literature began in the late 19th century. One important writer was Yanka Kupala. Several poets and authors went into exile after the Nazi occupation of Belarus. They would not return until the 1960s. The last major revival of Belarusian literature was in the 1960s with novels published by Vasil Bykaŭ and Uladzimir Karatkievich.

paragraphs: In the 19th century, Polish composer Stanisław Moniuszko made operas and chamber music pieces while living in Minsk. At the end of the 19th century, major Belarusian cities formed their own opera and ballet companies.

paragraphs: The National Academic Theatre of Ballet, in Minsk, was awarded the Benois de la Dance Prize in 1996 as the top ballet company in the world. Rock music has become more popular in recent years, though the Belarusian government has tried to limit the amount of foreign music aired on the radio. Since 2004, Belarus has been sending artists to the Eurovision Song Contest.

paragraphs: The traditional Belarusian dress is from the Kievan Rus' period. Due to the cool climate, clothes were made to keep body heat and were usually made from flax or wool.

paragraphs: Belarusian cuisine is mainly vegetables, meat (especially pork), and breads. Foods are usually either slowly cooked or stewed. A typical Belarusian eats a light breakfast and two hearty meals, with dinner being the largest meal of the day. Wheat and rye breads are eaten in Belarus. Rye is more plentiful because conditions are too harsh for growing wheat. To show hospitality, a host will give an offering of bread and salt when greeting a guest or visitor. Popular drinks in Belarus include Russian wheat vodka and "kvass", Kvass is a drink made from fermented malted brown bread or rye flour. "Kvass" may also be added with sliced vegetables to create a cold soup called "okroshka".

paragraphs: Belarus has four World Heritage Sites: the Mir Castle Complex, the Nesvizh Castle, the Belovezhskaya Pushcha (shared with Poland), and the Struve Geodetic Arc (shared with nine other countries).


title: Steam

paragraphs: Steam is the name given to water when it is in a gas form. Steam is sometimes thought of as a cloud of translucent mist, however that is only the result of the steam condensing in the air, forming water vapor. Actual hot steam is invisible.

paragraphs: When the pressure of the atmosphere is 1013 mbar (this is about the average pressure for a place which is at sea level), water will boil (turn into steam) at 100 degrees Celsius. This is the boiling point. Boiling happens in a boiler. 100 degrees Celsius is the same temperature as 212 degrees Fahrenheit, 80 degrees Réaumur and 373.15 Kelvin.

paragraphs: A major use of steam is to power steam engines. A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.


title: Steering wheel

paragraphs: A steering wheel is a circular object used by the driver of a car or boat to change the direction it is moving.


title: East Germany

paragraphs: The German Democratic Republic (GDR) ( ("DDR")), commonly called East Germany (), was founded on 7 October 1949, after World War II. It was formed from part of the Soviet occupation zone of Germany, including part of the city of Berlin. It is no longer a nation by itself since the two parts of Germany, East Germany and West Germany, reunified in 1990.

paragraphs: The GDR was ruled by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED).

paragraphs: After World War II, the four Allied Occupation Zones in Germany were each controlled by a different country. The countries that controlled these parts of Germany were France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union. The French, American, and British parts of Germany formed West Germany (the "Bundesrepublik"). Part of the Soviet section became East Germany, and other parts became western Poland and small parts of other countries.

paragraphs: Walter Ulbricht, the head of the SED, also had a lot of power. Pieck died in 1960, and Ulbricht became "Chairman of the State Council". Now he was really the head of state.

paragraphs: On 13 August 1961, the Berlin Wall was built. Many people were shot dead by East German soldiers when they tried to escape the GDR. According to the SED this was to make it hard for American spies to use West Berlin as a place to work from, but it also made it hard for normal people to move between east and west.

paragraphs: After Mikhail Gorbachev had started "glasnost" and "perestroika" in the Soviet Union, many people in the GDR wanted reforms, too. In 1989, there were lots of demonstrations against the SED and for McDonalds and Nike. In the city of Leipzig, people met every Monday and demonstrated, and so these demonstrations are called "Montagsdemonstrationen" ("Monday Demonstrations"). Erich Honecker wished that the Soviets would use its army to suppress these demonstrations. The Soviet Union, with its own political and economical problems, refused and did not want to help Eastern Europe anymore. Honecker was eventually forced to resign on October 18, 1989.

paragraphs: Egon Krenz was elected by the politburo to be Honecker's successor. Krenz tried to show that he was looking for change within the GDR but the citizens did not trust him. On November 9, 1989, the SED announced that East Germans would be able to travel to West Berlin the next day. The spokesman who announced the new travel law incorrectly said that it would take effect immediately, implying the Berlin Wall would open that night. People began to gather at border checkpoints at the wall hoping to be let through, but the guards told them that they had no orders to let citizens through. As the number of people grew, the guards became alarmed and tried to contact their superiors but had no responses. Unwilling to use force, the chief guard at the checkpoint relented at 10:54pm and ordered the gate to be opened. Thousands of East-Germans swarmed into West Berlin and the purpose of the wall was deemed now obsolete. The fall of the wall destroyed the SED politically as well as the career of its leader, Egon Krenz. On December 1, 1989, the GDR government revoked the law that guaranteed the SED the right to rule the East German political system, effectively ending communist rule in the GDR.

paragraphs: On 18 March 1990, there were free elections in the GDR. The "Alliance for Germany", a group of political parties who wanted to unify the GDR with West Germany, won that election. This process, when East Germany was taken over by the West, is known also the "Wende" in Germany.

paragraphs: In the German reunification, the GDR joined West Germany by approving its constitution in 1990. The East German districts were reorganised into the "Länder" (Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt and Thüringen) and joined West Germany, after which the GDR ceased to exist. Fidel Castro had long ago renamed the small Cuban island of Cayo Blanco del Sur and one of its beaches in honor of the GDR, though it remained part of Cuba.

paragraphs: Even though the western and the eastern part joined back together in 1990, people from former West Germany still call people from East Germany "Ossi". This comes from the German word "Osten" which means "East". Ossi is not always meant kindly.

paragraphs: After the reunification, many people became angry because the new government was from the west and didn't like East Germany. They closed down lots of the places people worked and tried to make it look like East Germany never existed. This made lots of people lose their jobs and become poor. Today lots of people who used to live in East Germany want it to come back. This is called "Ostalgie", which means "East nostalgia".

paragraphs: The leading role of the SED was written down in the constitution of the GDR. There were other parties in the GDR, which were called the "Blockparteien" ("block parties"), their job was mostly to cooperate with the SED:

paragraphs: The Ministry for State Security (in German: "Ministerium für Staatssicherheit"; often called "MfS" or "Stasi") was the East German secret police. It searched for people who were against the state, the SED and their politics. The MfS had many informants who told them when people said or did something against the state. There was a big MfS prison in the town of Bautzen.

paragraphs: East Germany was a member of the Warsaw Pact. The GDR was no longer protected by the USSR after Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev during his reforms in the late 1980s in what was known as the "Sinatra Doctrine".

paragraphs: In the GDR, there was a planned economy. All big factories and companies were in property of the state (officially "Volkseigentum", "people's property"). Only some small companies and shops were private property.

paragraphs: A famous relic of the GDR is the low-powered automobile "Trabant" or "Trabi".

paragraphs: Until 1964, East and West Germany took part in the Olympic Games with only one team for both states. Since 1968, East and West Germany had their own team each.

paragraphs: East German sportspeople were very successful, for example in athletics, cycling, boxing or some winter sports. Famous sportspeople from East Germany were Täve Schur (cycling), Waldemar Cierpinski (athletics), Heike Drechsler (athletics), Olaf Ludwig (cycling), Katarina Witt (ice skating) or Jens Weißflog (ski jumping).

paragraphs: A famous cycling race was the Peace Race (in German: "Friedensfahrt").

paragraphs: The East German national football team was not so successful. They were only in one FIFA World Cup. This was the 1974 FIFA World Cup, which took place in West Germany. On 22 June 1974, East Germany played against West Germany. Jürgen Sparwasser shot a goal and East Germany won 1-0.


title: Netball

paragraphs: Netball is a sport played in two teams of seven. It is like basketball except that bouncing the ball is not allowed. The player cannot step with the ball either, nor hold it for more than three seconds. The game proceeds by players throwing (passing) the ball to each other until one attempts to throw it through the hoop, known as a "shot".

paragraphs: There are 7 fixed positions on the court, which restrict the places where each player is allowed to go:

paragraphs: There are many rules in netball some of which are:

paragraphs: A netball court is 30.5m long and 15.25m wide. The longer sides are called the side lines and the shorter sides the goal lines. The court is divided into three equal parts, a centre third and two goal thirds. These sections are marked by two transverse lines parallel to the goal lines. Each third measures 10.167m wide.

paragraphs: The goal circle is a semi‑circle 4.9m in radius and its centre is the midpoint of the goal line. The centre circle is 0.9m in diameter and is marked in the centre of the court.

paragraphs: All lines are part of the court and 50mm wide, preferably white. It is recommended that they are a textured, water‑based acrylic, straight and have clean, crisp edges.


title: Atomic number

paragraphs: The atomic number (symbol: Z) of an atom is the number of protons in the nucleus of the atom. The atomic number of an atom identifies which element it is. In a neutral atom, the atomic number is equal to the number of electrons orbiting the nucleus. The elements of the periodic table are listed in order of increasing atomic number.

paragraphs: The atomic number of the periodic table directly corresponds to the number of protons which is in the atom. Once another proton is added, it is no longer the same element. The same cannot be applied to when another neutron or another electron is added. Adding more electrons will give the atom a negative charge and removing electrons will give the atom a positive charge. Metals tend to lose electrons, which creates a positive charge. Non-metals tend to gain electrons, forming a negative charge. Electrons are the foundation for determining how compounds are formed amongst atoms. Adding or removing neutrons within an atom changes its isotope. As an example, carbon-12 is the most stable isotope for a carbon atom. However, we can add two more neutrons and carbon-12 is now carbon-14, a less stable isotope of carbon. The number of an isotope directly correlates to the atomic mass of an element. The amount of neutrons in any given atom by subtracting the atomic number from the atomic mass.


title: Cardinal number

paragraphs: Cardinal numbers (or cardinals) are numbers that say "how many" of something there are, for example: one, two, three, four, five, six. They are sometimes called counting numbers.

paragraphs: The cardinality of a set is the cardinal number that tells us, roughly speaking, the size of the set.

paragraphs: In mathematics, people also study infinite cardinal numbers. The first infinite cardinal number was named formula_1 (pronounced "Aleph null", "Aleph-zero" or "Aleph-naught") by Georg Cantor. formula_1 is the number of numbers that are in the group 0, 1, 2, 3, ... (which goes on forever). Both the set of natural numbers and the set of rational numbers are of size formula_1 (that is, they are both countable).

paragraphs: Another infinite cardinal number is the number of numbers in the set of real numbers, and is represented by the symbol formula_4 (or formula_5, the cardinality of the continuum). Cantor proved that there are many different infinite cardinal numbers that are bigger than formula_1. A famous theorem of Cantor is that the cardinality of the real numbers is larger than the cardinality of the natural numbers. The continuum hypothesis is the statement that there is no middle cardinal number strictly between that of natural numbers and real numbers.


title: Merchant marine

paragraphs: Merchant marine is a term used in many places to talk about commercial ships and crews. A country's merchant marine is made up of all the ships owned by companies or individuals in that country which are used to make money. Most of a country's merchant marine is usually made of ships that carry things from place to place, like oil tankers and freighters. Other ships, like cruise ships and ferries, are also included because they are used to make money. When a country is at peace, its merchant marine works independently. Some countries, though, require merchant ships to work for their armed forces in times of war.

paragraphs: In the United States, "Merchant Marine" has a different meaning. The United States Merchant Marine (USMM) is a part of the military which is controlled by the government in both peace and war. When the United States is at war, the USMM is used to carry military supplies. In World War II, nearly one out of every twenty-six American merchant mariners was killed, a higher portion of men than in the Army, Navy, or even the Marines.


title: FreeBSD

paragraphs: FreeBSD is an operating system for many different kinds of computers. This means that if the user has a computer around the house and want to run FreeBSD on it, the user probably can. Computers that run Microsoft Windows will also run FreeBSD. It is based on BSD, the version of UNIX developed at the University of California, Berkeley.

paragraphs: FreeBSD is open source. This means that anyone can download the source code and change, or learn from it. The people who work on FreeBSD do not usually get paid. They keep working on it because they enjoy it or want to become more experienced programmers.

paragraphs: Most open source software that runs on Linux will run natively on FreeBSD without the need for any compatibility layer.

paragraphs: There are a lot of operating systems, which are based on FreeBSD.

paragraphs: Several projects created an operating system, based on FreeBSD, which has a GUI by default.

paragraphs: Examples for that kind of operating systems are:


title: Garry Marshall

paragraphs: Garry Marshall (November 13, 1934 – July 19, 2016) was an American writer, producer, director and actor.

paragraphs: Marshall wrote for comedians Joey Bishop and Phil Foster. Soon he moved on to writing for television series, including "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and "The Tonight Show". In 1970, he adapted the Neil Simon play and 1968 movie "The Odd Couple" into a popular television series starring Tony Randall and Jack Klugman.

paragraphs: It was very successfu. He soon followed it with "Happy Days", which became one of the most popular series on TV. He also created "Laverne and Shirley" (which co-starred his sister Penny) and "Mork and Mindy". Both of there were spin-offs from "Happy Days" and just as successful and well-known. He directed and acted in several movies including "Pretty Woman" and "Runaway Bride".

paragraphs: Marshall also ran and works out of a local community theatre house in Los Angeles, The Falcon Theatre.

paragraphs: Marshall died at a hospital in Burbank, California on July 19, 2016 from pneumonia after suffering a stroke. He was 81.


title: Johnny Weissmuller

paragraphs: Johnny Weissmuller (June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was a German-American swimmer and actor. He was born in Timisoara, Austria-Hungary to German parents.

paragraphs: He was one of the world's best swimmers in the 1920s. He won five gold medals and set five then-Olympic records in swimming competitions at the Olympics in 1924 and 1928, and a bronze medal in water polo at the 1924 Olympics.

paragraphs: He later played Tarzan in a series of movies in the 1930s and became a movie star. This made him a character actor. He then had trouble getting parts in other movies because of this.

paragraphs: On January 20, 1984, Weissmuller died of pulmonary edema. He was 79. He was buried in Acapulco, Mexico, where he was living when he died. At his funeral, a sound recording of the "Tarzan yell" he had made famous in the movies was played three times, at his request.


title: Priscilla Presley

paragraphs: Priscilla Presley (née Wagner; born is an American actress. She is the former wife of Elvis Presley and is the mother of Lisa Marie Presley. Presley is probably most famous for her roles in the television primetime soap opera "Dallas", and "The Naked Gun" movies with Leslie Nielson. She is also a member of Scientology.

paragraphs: Presley was born in Brooklyn, New York City. Her maternal grandfather, Albert Henry Iversen (1899–1971), emigrated from Egersund in Norway to the United States in 1905. He married Lorraine Davis (1903–1984), who was of Scots-Irish and English ancestry. They had three children: Albert, Jr. (March 1922), James Richard (March 1924) and Anna Lillian Iversen (March 1926). Anna was later called, or her name was changed to, Ann. She was called Rooney (short for Annie Rooney) as a child. At the age of 19, she gave birth to Priscilla. They both still have cousins in Norway. In a letter to the City Hall of Egersund, Ann asked for information about their relatives, and wrote that Priscilla was interested in knowing about them; Priscilla's parents then visited family members in Norway in 1992.

paragraphs: She attended General H.H. Arnold High in Wiesbaden, West Germany.


title: Drunkenness

paragraphs: Drunkenness means being intoxicated by alcohol. This means a person's brain and body are not working normally, because of the alcohol they have had. A person who is intoxicated is usually called "drunk".

paragraphs: The effects of being drunk depend on how much alcohol a person has had to drink.

paragraphs: Alcohol causes the mind and body to not work normally.

paragraphs: In low amounts, alcohol often causes good feelings, reddened skin, and feeling relaxed. People who drink small amounts of alcohol may feel less nervous about being around others. Even in small amounts, alcohol slows down the brain. It starts to affect a person's judgment - their ability to make good decisions. It also makes a person react more slowly and have slower reflexes. This is why it is not safe to drive even after drinking just a little.

paragraphs: In medium amounts, alcohol will cause trouble speaking clearly and moving the body normally. A person may have trouble staying balanced and walking normally. They may get confused or very tired. They will not be able to make good decisions. They may also start vomiting.

paragraphs: When a person drinks a dangerous amount of alcohol, they can get alcohol poisoning.

paragraphs: Alcohol poisoning is a medical emergency. "Alcohol poisoning" means that a person has drunk enough alcohol to cause a coma, dangerously slow breathing, or even death. A person with alcohol poisoning needs emergency medical treatment at a hospital to make sure they do not die from alcohol poisoning.

paragraphs: Here are some of the signs and symptoms of alcohol poisoning:

paragraphs: When a person has alcohol poisoning, 9-1-1 or another local emergency telephone number should be called right away. First aid can help the person until an ambulance gets there.

paragraphs: Paramedics and hospitals can treat alcohol poisoning by:

paragraphs: There are many myths (untrue beliefs) about drunkenness. Here are some examples of myths about drunkenness:


title: Canada Dry

paragraphs: Canada Dry is a brand name belonging to a company that produces beverages. Canada Dry makes ginger ale, club soda, and tonic water. Ginger ale is flavored with ginger root. Club soda is a clear drink that is sometimes used to help remove stains from clothing. Tonic water is frequently used to make an alcoholic beverage known as "gin and tonic".


title: Ginger ale

paragraphs: Ginger ale is a soft drink flavored with the root of a plant known as ginger. It has a sweet yet spicy flavor. Even though it has the name "ale", which can be another word for beer, it is not beer. It can be enjoyed by all ages. Canada Dry is a well known maker of ginger ale. Most drinks that are ginger ale come in a green can.

paragraphs: Ginger beer is a non-alcoholic soft drink that is also flavored with ginger root. Ginger beer is much spicier than ginger ale. Ginger beer is popular in some Caribbean countries such as Trinidad.


title: Shaving

paragraphs: Shaving is removing hair from the face or other body part with a razor. Some people do not shave the chin, this is called a goatee beard. Other men do not shave the upper lip, this is called a mustache.


title: Hygiene

paragraphs: Hygiene is the act of being clean. Washing the body to remove dirt and germs, brushing the teeth to keep them clean, shaving, using the toilet properly, and dressing correctly are some examples. Proper hygiene is often taught to children at a young age, and it becomes a habit. People who do not have good hygiene might smell bad, lose teeth, or become ill (sick).

paragraphs: First proven use of the word in English was in 1677s. The word hygiene comes from the French word hygiène, which is the western version of Greek word ὑγιεινή (τέχνη) - hugieinē technē, meaning "(art) of health", from ὑγιεινός (hugieinos), "good for the health, healthy", in turn from ὑγιής (hugiēs), "healthful, sound, salutary, wholesome". In ancient Greek religion, Hygeia (Ὑγίεια) was the daughter of Asclepius and represented health.


title: Spork

paragraphs: A spork is a combination of a spoon and a fork to create a special tool used to eat. Most sporks are made from plastic. Many fast food chains use the spork, including Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco John's, and Taco Bueno. Many people dislike the spork because it cannot poke food as well as a fork nor hold liquids as well as a spoon.


title: Vauxhall Astra

paragraphs: Vauxhall Astra is a car produced by Vauxhall since 1979. It was first just branded as a Vauxhall, since 1991 it has also been sold as a Opel, a Holden and a Chevrolet. From 2007 to 2009 it was sold as a Saturn.

paragraphs: In 1979, General Motors, the owners of Vauxhall, decided to replace the Viva model (Kaddett in Europe including Republic of Ireland) in the United Kingdom in as Vauxhall's small family car. The model still shared its body with the Kaddett, however it had things suited for use in this country, i.e. the steering wheel on the right side so that owners could drive on the left-hand side of the road. In 1991, Opel and Chevrolet both binned the Kaddett name. Therefore, they adopted the Astra one. In 1995, Holden did that too. It was only in South Africa that the Kaddett name continued, and it was only on the Astra hatchback. In 1999, the year after the launch of the Opel Astra G/B, South Africa binned the Kaddett name too, leaving no countries/regions/continents using the Kaddett badge. In 2004, the Opel Astra H/C was launched. The sixth/fourth Generation Astra was launched in late 2009.


title: Ford Ka

paragraphs: The Ford Ka is a very small car made by the Ford Motor Company in Spain, Poland and Brazil. It has three doors and was first made in 1996. The Ka is very popular in Europe, about 1.5 million cars have been sold. A new model has been released in Brazil in 2008, in Europe a new model has been introduced in 2009.

paragraphs: 4 cylinders in line; SOHC; 8 valves; electronic multipoint fuel injection

paragraphs: The second generation of the Ka was released in the beginning of 2009. The car is build in cooperation with Fiat, the technic is the same as used in the Fiat 500.

paragraphs: For the first time, a Diesel engine is available for the Ford Ka.


title: Tower Bridge

paragraphs: Tower Bridge is in London: it crosses the River Thames near the Tower of London. It is a drawbridge, which allows ships through the bridge deck when the deck is raised in the centre at an angle.

paragraphs: The north side of the bridge is Tower Hill, and the south side of the bridge comes down into Bermondsey, an area in Southwark. Tower Bridge is far more visible than London Bridge, which people often mistake it for. Many tourists go to London to see the Tower Bridge. It has its own exhibition centre in the horizontal walkway. This gives one of the best vantage points in London.

paragraphs: The "bascules" are the surfaces raised to allow tall ships to pass through: this happens about 900 times per year. The bridge's decks (bascules) can be raised to 83 from the horizontal.

paragraphs: The City of London Corporation held a competition for the design in 1876. Over 50 designs were entered, and in 1884 Horace Jones and John Wolfe Barry's design was chosen.

paragraphs: Workers began to build the Tower Bridge in April 1886 and the bridge was opened in 30 June 1894.

paragraphs: In June 2012, the bridge was highlighted on the route of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the Thames.

paragraphs: The bridge is in length with two towers, each high, built on piers. The central span of between the towers is split into two equal bascules or leaves, which can be raised to an angle of 83 to allow river traffic to pass. The bascules, weighing over 1,100 tons each, are counterbalanced to minimize the force required and allow raising in five minutes. The bascules are raised by huge hydraulic pumps which were first powered by steam engines. In 1976 these were replaced by oil and electricity. The bridge is made from more than 11,000 tons of steel, and covered with Cornish granite and Portland stone.

paragraphs: The two side-spans are suspension bridges, each long, with the suspension rods anchored both at the abutments and through rods contained within the bridge's upper walkways. The pedestrian walkways are above the river at high tide. These walkways allow people to still cross the river, even when the bridge is raised. They were closed in 1910 because not enough people used them, but were reopened in 1982.


title: Waiter

paragraphs: A waiter is a person who "waits" on tables, often at a restaurant or cafe. A female waiter is called a waitress. They will take orders and delivers food to customers. A good waiter can also help the customers by recommending the best food in the restaurant or cafe.

paragraphs: Many waiters and waitresses are required by their employers to wear a uniform. Most uniforms used are black and white or all black. Historically the term waiter was used to describe customs officers who waited on the high tide for vessels to come in carrying goods to tax.


title: Steven Spielberg

paragraphs: Steven Allan Spielberg (born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker.

paragraphs: He was born to an Orthodox Jewish family in Cincinnati, Ohio. His parents were pianist Leah Adler (1920–2017) and engineer Arnold Spielberg (1917–2020). He started his movie career learning to direct in 1975. He was raised in Haddon Township, New Jersey. Spielberg studied at Saratoga High School. He went to California State University, Long Beach.

paragraphs: Spielberg started his career learning how to direct in 1963. His first movies include "Jaws", "Jurassic Park", "Indiana Jones", and "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial". His later movies include "Saving Private Ryan" and "Munich".

paragraphs: Spielberg helped establish the PG-13 rating for the Motion Picture Association of America.

paragraphs: Spielberg married Amy Irving in 1985. They divorced in 1989. He married Kate Capshaw in 1991. He has 6children.

paragraphs: Spielberg won two Academy Awards for best director. These two awards were for "Schindler's List" and "Saving Private Ryan". In 1986, he won the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award. He has been nominated and has won several other awards.

paragraphs: In Oscar acceptance speeches given since 1966, Spielberg holds the record for being thanked the most at 43 mentions, more than God and beating Harvey Weinstein who were thanked 34 times.


title: Variable

paragraphs: A variable is a special type of amount or quantity with an unknown value. The opposite of a variable (that is, a known value) is called a constant.

paragraphs: In mathematics, a variable is usually given a letter, such as "x" or "y". For example:

paragraphs: Most letters are used in equations to show numbers that are unknown (an exception is "e", which is a constant). Using a type of math called algebra, one can find the value of the variable.

paragraphs: Any number cannot change its value. This is true whether the number is rational (such as -8.625) or irrational (such as 2√3, which is 2 multiplied by the square root of 3), or whether the number is real (such as formula_1) or imaginary (such as formula_2).

paragraphs: Variables are also common in science, where they usually represent physical properties that do not stay the same. For example, if a person stands 5 feet away from a building, the "distance" variable compared to the building does not change over time. 5 feet is called a "fixed amount", which is the opposite of a variable amount. But if a person walks away from the building, the distance variable compared to the building is increasing. So it does not have the same value and we cannot use the same number for it, as the distance might be 1 foot now, but 2 feet a second later.

paragraphs: In computer science, a variable is a value in a program that can change. It does not have to be a number. In fact, it can be a string (text value), a date, an amount of money, an object such as a picture, or simply (which means it has no content). The value that is stored in a variable can change the behavior of a program when it is run. Because of this, variables are commonly used to store input and output values.

paragraphs: Each programming language works differently with variables. Most of them allow any character string that is not "reserved" (that is, has a special meaning) to be the name of the variable. It is good in computer programming to use names that tells what will be stored in the variable (such as "person", "age", "total", and so on). Also, some languages like C and Java require the data type of the variable (that is, the kind of content that will be stored in it) to be declared (written) when the variable is created. Others, like Python and Visual Basic, do not have this rule, which allows the type of variable to be changed when a new value is stored in it.


title: Salvador Allende

paragraphs: Salvador Allende Gossens (June 26, 1908 – September 11, 1973) was a physician, senator, minister of health and the President of Chile from November 3, 1970 until his death on September 11, 1973.

paragraphs: Allende was born on June 26, 1908 in the port city of Valparaiso, Chile to a well-to-do family. Like many Chileans, Allende had a mestizo (mixed) racial background (European and other races mixed with Native Americans). His father Salvador Allende (senior), a lawyer, was of Basque background and his mother Laura Gossens had a Belgian Jewish background (though converted to Catholicism).

paragraphs: In 1918 his father sent Allende to study at the "Instituto Nacional" (National Institute) in Santiago. He then did his compulsory military service and entered the University of Chile to study medicine. Allende was a gifted, friendly and popular student; a great debater and public speaker and quickly becomes a student leader and vice-president of the FECH. (Student Federation of Chile). As an undergraduate student Allende requested to his parents to let him earn his own livelihood and he started to work as a paramedic in the ambulance services and as an assistant in pathology. He graduated with a medical degree in 1933.

paragraphs: He was one of the founders of the Socialist Party of Chile and in 1938 became a minister of health. He was a senator from 1945 until 1969 and was President of the Chilean Senate from 1966 until 1969.

paragraphs: Allende first ran for the presidency in the 1952 elections but failed. Determined to succeed he tried again in 1958 and then in 1964. In both instances he failed again.

paragraphs: Allende would tour Chile from Iquique to Magallanes, for example one end to the other, speaking to peasants in the south and miners in the north and held rallies in the big cities. Allende found it hard to win an election because of the successful scare campaigns launched by opposing parties, many financed by large multi-national corporations and powerful national institutions such as private banks and schools.

paragraphs: Finally, and to the surprise of many working people - who had voted for him in previous elections and felt he would never win - in 1970 he won and became the President of Chile.

paragraphs: Allende always ran for election on the same socialist platform (plan) proposing the same resolutions (things to be done), focusing on the persistent inequality in the country and the underdevelopment (poverty for large part of the population) which Allende saw as being rooted in the lack of control the Chilean people had over their natural resources and vital industries. (e.g. banks, copper mines, electricity companies etc.).

paragraphs: Allende promised that he would nationalize (put under control of government) vital industries and then create an advanced public health system and educational system that would be free and accessible to all. During the cold war (between the U.S. and the former U.S.S.R) many people feared that Chile would fall under the influence of the USSR and after the 1960s under the influence of Cuba.

paragraphs: Allende’s speeches were said to be very radical (extreme) and Allende’s vision for Chile seemed completely different to the Chile that most people were familiar with. For example: Allende was said to be an atheist and Marxist. He was a non- practicing Catholic This was considered odd in a country that was very catholic, held traditional family values, and in which people were taught that political freedoms (the freedom to elect politicians from different parties) was more important than solving problems such as extreme poverty or economic inequality (division between the poorest and the wealthiest people).

paragraphs: Allende also wanted revolutionary change, i.e. he wanted deep changes to Chilean society very quickly, such forms of changes have been said to have tended to cause great divisions in society between those who oppose the changes (called reactionaries) and those who support the drastic changes (revolutionaries). Through history such situations tend to end up resolved violently. For example, civil war (where one group of people fight another group of people of the same country), or military coup (when a government is overthrown before it finishes its term).

paragraphs: As a result, many Chileans, especially professionals like University professors, doctors and business people left the country–this had a negative effect on Allende’s reforms. E.g. Allende increased health services and places at Universities for the underprivileged while many professors, specialists and doctors were leaving the country.

paragraphs: However, Allende was unique in that he did all he could to prevent this sort of violence, calling his revolution a “peaceful one within democracy” or calling it “the Chilean road to socialism.” In 1973 Allende’s enemies accused him of preparing a secret war and that his supporters were hoarding stocks of illegal weapons (in shanty towns and in rural areas) that were being sent from communist Cuba. To prove that this was not true, Allende allowed the Chilean Army to enforce a “weapons control’s law” that allowed the Chilean military to search and comb for any illegal weapons anywhere in the country. The Chilean army confirmed that after thoroughly searching for such weapons throughout the country they had found no significant stocks as the opposition was claiming. This ended up creating more support for Allende and allowed Allende to begin to focus on the upcoming election.

paragraphs: Allende came to power with a socialist plan. His vision for Chile was one in which the country's resources and wealth would be owned by Chileans and distributed more democratically. Allende started his program by nationalizing (put under control of government) major industries. Such as, Chile's copper mines (Chile had one of the largest copper mines in the World) but these mines were not owned by Chileans but by very powerful U.S. business people.

paragraphs: This created a serious problem with the U.S. government who saw Allende's nationalisation as an attack on U.S. interest and a threat to U.S. money investments in South America.

paragraphs: The American Central Intelligence Agency was said to be involved in the overthrowing of his government. Allende was a socialist. Many of his reforms and programs revolved around socialism. He created universal health care for all, made education better, and took a stronger level of control within the economy. He died in 1973. His death has been disputed for years; some feel that he took his own life by committing suicide, but others feel that he was murdered by Augusto Pinochet's militia. Pinochet would then become the ruler of Chile.

paragraphs: Allende was replaced by those who overthrew him as president. Allende committed suicide by shooting himself. The new ruling Junta justified their coup claiming that “Chile could no longer tolerate the cancer of Marxism”. The Pinochet regime claimed Allende had violated the Chilean Constitution–strange considering that Pinochet ended up writing a completely new one.

paragraphs: Also, after the coup many rumors and myths emerged about Allende’s death and life. Many of these myths attempted to discredit the character of Allende i.e. make him appear as a coward, weak or cruel person:

paragraphs: Allende became of interest to people all over the world because he was the first democratically elected socialist in Chile and the first democratically elected Marxist in the world. Many people felt Allende was the beginning of a new era in which great changes to society - especially in developing countries - could be brought about peacefully through an election.

paragraphs: Allende has become one of the most commemorated Latin American polital figures in history. Since his death monuments, statues, parks and streets have been named in his honour all over the world. In France alone there are more than 320 public places named in honour of Allende. Ministries and municipalities in many countries have also officially approved the naming of schools and educational departments in his honour.

paragraphs: Despites Pinochet’s 17 years of military rule and an attempt to deny Allende his proper place in Chilean history, he was officially honoured in Chile as a defender of representative democracy (i.e. people’s right to elect their political representatives through free and fair elections) with a state funeral in 1990. A monument was also erected outside the "Moneda Presidential Palace" (Chile's house of Government) where he died defending the democratically elected Popular Unity government he lead.


title: Authority

paragraphs: Authority is the ability of a person or an organization to conduct a certain lifestyle for another person or a group. Authority is known as one of the basis of society and stands against cooperation. Adopting lifestyle patterns as a result of authority is called obedience and authority as a concept includes most leadership cases.

paragraphs: Although authority is usually described as human there is also frequent mention of divine authority.

paragraphs: Authority is made by a certain social power. This power might be materialistic (such as a threat to harm someone) or fictitious (such as belief in a certain person's power). The power exists because of the possible use of sanction : An action who harms a person who's not obeying the authority or threatening it in order to conduct a social power.

paragraphs: Authority may exists in a direct way by virtue of an actual power (such as a threat of imprisonment), which is called "forcing", or by legitimization that the subject gives to the authority (such as recognition of aristocratic authority). In most cases both types exist.

paragraphs: Only a few authorities are based on physical power, most are based on an organizational authority system. In this way, the authoritys ability to act depends on her existence.

paragraphs: For example: the authority of a state leader takes part when there is some sort of a police that punishes individuals that do not obey him. The policeman are subordinated to the leader and his rules because they are also under the police threat. If all citizens of the state choose to deny the leader and his rules, the authority will be lost, but the very fact that the authority semi-exists allowes it to be full.

paragraphs: Obedience, as said, is the sign that means authority is being enforced. While obedience is the law, disobedience, insubordination and crime are a violation and resistance to the authority.

paragraphs: Theoretically, violation of the authority drags with it a sanction or punishment that's given by the authority owner. The severity of the sanction and the threat it presents are based on the particular social situation, on the balance of power, on the local norms and so on.

paragraphs: Stanley Milgram was a psychologist who was interested in obedience. He designed an experiment to measured how willing people were to do what an authority figure told them to do. The experiment had three participants. The person running the experiment told one participant, the volunteer, to pretend to be a teacher. Another participant was an actor, but the volunteer didn't know this. The actor's role was to be the teacher's student. The actor and the volunteer were separated with a wall. The person running the experiment told the volunteer to test their "student"'s ability to remember pairs of words. When the teacher's "student" remembered a pair of words incorrectly, the experimenter told the teacher to give the student an electric shock from an electroshock generator. The electric shocks were not real, but the volunteer did not know this. Every time the student got a question wrong, the voltage of the shock went up by 15 volts. In Milgram's first set of experiments, 65% of the volunteers gave the highest shock. It was 450 volts. Milgram had two theories for why he got the results he did.

paragraphs: Many people criticize people in authority, and some even criticize the existence of authority. Anarchism is a philosophy that opposes all forms of authority.


title: Musical instrument

paragraphs: Musical instruments are things used to make music. Anything that somehow produces sound can be considered a musical instrument, but the term generally means items that are specifically for making music.

paragraphs: Musical instruments can be divided by type into:

paragraphs: An orchestra has instruments from four families:

paragraphs: Some people think that the voice is a "natural musical instrument" because singing is a way to make music without any instrument at all.


Pupil


title: Winston Churchill

paragraphs: Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was an English politician. He was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, once during World War II, and again in the early 1950s.

paragraphs: Churchill is the only person to have been a member of the British Government during both World Wars, and the last commoner (non-royal) to be granted a state funeral. He was also a soldier, journalist, and author. He won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1953.

paragraphs: Churchill featured in two media polls. He was ranked as the greatest British prime minister of the twentieth century by 20 prominent historians, politicians and commentators. They were asked by BBC Radio 4's "The Westminster Hour" to rank the 19 prime ministers from Lord Salisbury at the turn of the century through to John Major in the 1990s. In a 2002 BBC 2 television poll, Churchill was ranked as the greatest Briton in history. A million votes were cast, and the voting was heavily influenced by public campaigns for various candidates.

paragraphs: He is the only British Prime Minister to have received the Nobel Prize.

paragraphs: Winston Churchill was born on 30 November 1874 at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, England, the home of the Dukes of Marlborough. His father, Lord Randolph Churchill, was a younger son of the 7th Duke, and a leading Tory politician. His mother (née Jenny Jerome) was American.

paragraphs: As a boy, Churchill went to the famous Harrow School. He did not get good results, but said he was good at fighting.

paragraphs: He joined the British Army, in 1893. In 1896, he was transferred to Bombay, in what was the Indian Empire (British India). He fought in what is now Pakistan. After this, he fought in a war in Sudan, in 1898 as an officer in the cavalry. In 1899, he went to the Second Boer War in South Africa, to be a newspaper reporter. He was captured by the Boers, but managed to escape.

paragraphs: In 1900, he became a politician in the Conservative Party, and was elected to Parliament. In 1904, he changed parties and joined the Liberal Party, but later returned to the Conservative Party.

paragraphs: He married Clementine Hozier in 1908, and had 5 children named Diana, Randolph, Sarah, Marigold and Mary.

paragraphs: In 1910 Churchill became Home Secretary, one of the most important members of the government. In 1911 he was made First Lord of the Admiralty, which put him in charge of the Royal Navy. When World War I broke out, he stayed in that job. He organized an invasion in Gallipoli which went wrong, and because of this, he was made to leave the government. He joined the army and was sent to fight in France, although he was still a Member of Parliament. In 1917 he was made minister in charge of military supplies (Minister of Munitions).

paragraphs: After World War I, in 1919, Churchill was made Secretary of State for War, and Secretary of State for Air (aircraft). In 1920, he ordered the first air bombing in Africa when he bombed the Darwiish State, (also called Daraawiish State).

paragraphs: In 1921 he was in charge of the colonies as Secretary of State. Soon after, in 1922 he lost in an election. In 1924 he became a member of Parliament again, this time not as a member of any party. In 1925 he joined the Conservative Party again. He became Chancellor of the Exchequer (Minister of Finance) in 1924.

paragraphs: After 1929, Churchill disagreed with many things the Conservative party believed in. He was not given any job in the government. Instead he wrote books. One was called "Marlborough: his life and times", about his famous ancestor John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough; another was "A History of the English Speaking Peoples", which was not published until after World War 2.

paragraphs: When Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany, Churchill warned that Britain should strengthen its military and oppose Hitler. However, very few leaders agreed with him.

paragraphs: At the start of World War II, Churchill was again put in charge of the Navy. In 1940 the war was going badly for Britain. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain resigned on May 10 and Churchill was given the job. Some people thought that Britain could not win the war, and that the British government should make peace with Hitler. Churchill was sure that Britain could win, and promised to continue the fight. He made famous speeches that are still remembered today.

paragraphs: He was friends with the President of the United States, Franklin D. Roosevelt. He persuaded Roosevelt to give supplies to Britain, and to help Britain. He had many meetings with Roosevelt and with Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, after they came into the war. They were called the "Big Three".

paragraphs: In 1945, his Conservative party lost an election, and he stopped being Prime Minister. However, he became Prime Minister again in 1951, which he was until 1955.

paragraphs: He was knighted in 1953, and became Sir Winston, and also won the Nobel Prize in Literature.

paragraphs: In 1955, he retired from being Prime Minister. In 1964, he retired from Parliament.

paragraphs: In 1963, President John F. Kennedy named him 'Honorary Citizen of the United States' but too ill to attend a White House ceremony, his son and grandson accepted the award.

paragraphs: Sir Winston died of a stroke at the age of 90, in 1965. When he died, his wife Lady Clementine Churchill and other members of the family were at his bedside.


title: Golan Heights

paragraphs: The Golan Heights is a strip of land in northeastern Israel that was captured by Israel in the Six Day War of 1967. The United Nations has voted to ask Israel to pull its troops out of the Golan Heights. Syria and Israel still have not signed a peace treaty from that war, mostly because of the issue of the Golan. They almost reached a peace deal but they could not agree on where to draw the line, and what Syria would have to do in return. On the western edge of the Golan Heights is a range of extinct volcanos.

paragraphs: In January 2013, the Israeli government said it planned to build a wall along the eastern edges of the Golan Heights, on its border with Syria.


title: Pupil (eye)

paragraphs: The pupil is the opening in the centre of the eye. Light enters through the pupil and goes through the lens, which focuses the image on the retina.

paragraphs: The size of the pupil is controlled by muscles. There is a circular group, which squeezes the iris smaller, and another group which pulls the iris wider. When more light is needed, the pupil is made larger. In brighter light, the pupil is made smaller. The pupil can be compared with the aperture of a camera. It is surrounded by the iris which is the colored part of the eye.

paragraphs: The lens changes its shape depending on how far away the eye focuses. The focus point is where the eye is focusing on. The light makes the pupil change its size. When it is darker, the pupils will dilate (get bigger) because they need to allow more light into the eye to see. When it is bright, the pupil will constrict (get smaller) to restrict the amount of light there is getting into the eye so we can see. The pupil is normally black in most animals, but in some reptiles, it can be a different colour.

paragraphs: The main reason why we have a pupil is to regulate the light which travels to the retina. The reason why it has no colour is because the light that travels through the pupil is absorbed by the tissues in the inside of the eye. In humans, the pupil is round, but in some other animals, like cats, it is shaped like a slit.

paragraphs: In humans, the pupils can tell us many things about how healthy a person's brain is. For example:

paragraphs: Normal pupils are about 4mm across. Pupils that are a normal size are called "regular."

paragraphs: Pupils that are both "pinpoint" (the size of the point of the end of a pin - about 1mm across) are a sign that a person may have one of these problems:

paragraphs: A person's pupils may also be smaller than usual if they are in very bright light.

paragraphs: Pupils that are both "dilated" (larger than usual, up to 8mm across) are a sign that a person may have one of these problems:

paragraphs: A person's pupils may also be dilated if they are in a dark place, or if they have used some kinds of eyedrops.

paragraphs: In most healthy people, the pupils should be the same size ("equal"). Pupils that are "unequal" (one is bigger than the other) are usually a sign that something is wrong with the brain. For example, their brain may be injured, or they may have had a stroke.

paragraphs: However, up to 20% of healthy people have pupils that are different sizes. In these people, this is normal and does not signal a problem. Usually, there is only a small difference in size.

paragraphs: Healthy pupils are round. When one pupil is a different shape, usually the person has had an injury to the eye.

paragraphs: When a light is shined in one pupil, both pupils should get smaller at the same time. When the light is taken away, both pupils should get bigger at the same time. This is called being "light-reactive" (the pupils are reacting to changes in light).

paragraphs: If both pupils change size at the same time, but the change happens slowly, the pupils are called "sluggish." This can be a sign of illegal drug use, hypoxia (not getting enough oxygen to the brain), or injury.

paragraphs: If only one pupil changes size, there is usually a problem with the brain, or with the optic nerve (the nerve that runs from the brain to the eye).

paragraphs: If neither pupil changes shape when light is shined in it, the pupils are called "fixed." This is a sign of a very serious brain problem. The brain is supposed to make the pupils change shape, so if this is not happening, it means the brain is not working normally. When a person is in a coma or has died, their pupils will be both fixed and dilated (large).

paragraphs: Since the brain controls the pupils, healthy pupils are one sign of a healthy brain. Medical professionals describe healthy pupils with the abbreviation PERRL:


title: Translator

paragraphs: A translator reads something written in one language and speaks it or writes it in another language. For example, they could read a book in French and then "translate" it into English. See translation for more information.

paragraphs: In order to convert meanings from one language into another one, translators must be able to know deeply about the target culture, so that they are effective in conveying the original meaning of the source text or material. As a result, translators do not only convert words, what makes it deeper than a science but an art.

paragraphs: Translation is a complex activity, mainly because to interact and to communicate between languages require more than fluency in the source and the target languages but flexibility between them in an effective way for a specific audience or special readers. It is a sort of occupation and career that is mainly based on research and great skills for languages.


title: Cambodia

paragraphs: Cambodia or Kampuchea (officially called Kingdom of Cambodia) is a country in Southeast Asia. It is near Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. About 13 million people live in Cambodia. The people of Cambodia are called "Cambodians" or "Kampuchea". Khmer is the official language. The country has recently emerged from a long civil war and the rule of the Khmer Rouge. It is part of ASEAN, Association of South East Asian Nations.

paragraphs: The ancestors of Cambodia had an empire called Angkor centered in the northwest of present-day Cambodia. The Angkor civilization is the world's largest pre-industrial civilization. One of the buildings from Angkor is a Hindu/Buddhist temple called Angkor Wat which is the world's largest religious structure. This empire was later destroyed due to ecological and environmental problems as well as failing infrastructure. Theravada Buddhism came to the country in the 13th century via monks from Sri Lanka. Since then, Buddhism has been the official religion.

paragraphs: Cambodia is set entirely in the tropic zone. The Mekong River runs through the middle of the country and is the most important source of water in the country. The country is the size of Missouri.

paragraphs: In Cambodia, people play many sports. Some sports that are enjoyed that come from the West include golf, rugby and soccer. Traditional Cambodian sports are buffalo racing, dragon boat racing and bokator Khmer martial art also known as pradal serey. Cambodia attended its first Olympic Games in 1956 and participated in two more before warfare and civil strife interrupted its attendance. The country returned to regular participation with the 1996 Summer Games. Cambodia managed fourth in soccer in the 1972 Southeast Asian games.

paragraphs: Cambodia hosted the GANEFO games in the 1960s.

paragraphs: The culture of Cambodia has been influenced by Hinduism. Today most people in Cambodia practice Buddhism. A lot of their customs revolve around Buddhism.

paragraphs: The food of Cambodia includes tropical fruits, rice, noodles and various soups. Cambodians like to eat a rice noodle soup called 'kah-tieu' in the morning. Cambodians are famous for a type of 'kah-tieu' called 'kah-tieu Phnom Penh' which has shrimp, beef balls, fried garlic, pork broth and chicken. Cambodians also eat a red curry noodle soup with rice vermicelle noodles. Curry is also eaten with rice or French bread in Cambodia. Cambodian food is similar to Vietnamese and Southern Thai food.

paragraphs: Cambodia also has a mystical tattoo called a yantra tattoo that is popular with soldiers. A yantra tattoo has ancient Khmer and Pali (An ancient Indian language) writing. A yantra tattoo is usually done by a religious person or monk. The tattoo artist guarantees that the person cannot receive any physical harm as long as they follow certain conditions. A person is supposed to not talk to anyone for three days and three nights. Another alternative is to follow the five Buddhist percepts. Movie star actress Angelina Jolie is known to have a yantra tattoo.

paragraphs: Cambodians celebrate the Cambodian New Year in April. It is based on Theravada Buddhism. The date depends on astrological signs but are usually are on April 13-15 or April 14-16.

paragraphs: The Cambodian flag includes a three-towered temple called Angkor Wat. It is the most famous monument in the country. Many tourists visit the temple. The Cambodian flag has three horizontal bands. There are two blue bands on the top and the bottom. There is a red band that is twice the height of each blue band. The red band represents the nation. The temple represents the structure of the universe.

paragraphs: Cambodia is divided into 25 provinces including the capital. The provinces are divided into 159 districts and 26 municipalities. The districts and municipalities are then divided into communes and quarters.

paragraphs: People in Cambodia use many different types of transportation. Transportation in Cambodia include: boat, car, motorcycle, elephant, train and airplane.

paragraphs: The Cambodian economy has been growing rapidly in recent years. Cambodia is set to build its first skyscraper, Gold Tower 42. Cambodia is also building a satellite city next to Phnom Penh which is called Camko City. Camko City is being constructed by Korean companies to modernize Phnom Penh so as to make it appealing to foreign investors and businesses. Cambodia is also one of the most corrupted nations in the world and has been pressured by international communities to fix it.

paragraphs: Cambodia has foreign relations with most nations. It is part of ASEAN. Cambodia has border issues with Vietnam and Thailand over lost territories. Cambodia is one of a few nations with good relations with both Koreas. South Korean president Lee Myung Bak was an economic advisor to Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen and former Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk was a good friend with former North Korean leader Kim Il-sung.

paragraphs: The Khmer (Cambodians) account for the vast majority of the population. Ethnic minorities include Chinese, Vietnamese, Muslim Cham-Malays, Laotians, and various native peoples of the rural highlands.

paragraphs: Although much of Cambodia is heavily forested, the central lowland region is covered with rice paddies, fields of dry crops such as corn (maize) and tobacco, tracts of tall grass and reeds, and thinly wooded areas. Savanna grassland occur in the plains, with the grasses reaching a height of 5 feet (1.5 metres). In the eastern highlands the high plateaus are covered with grasses and deciduous forests. Broad-leaved evergreen forests grow in the mountainous areas to the north, with trees 100 feet (30 metres) high emerging from thick undergrowths of vines, rattans, palms, bamboos, and assorted woody and herbaceous ground plants. In the southwestern highlands, open forests of pines are found at the higher elevations, while the rain-drenched seaward slopes are blanketed with virgin rainforests growing to heights of 150 feet (45 metres) or more. Vegetation along the coastal strip ranges from evergreen forests to nearly impenetrable mangroves.


title: Teenager

paragraphs: A teenager, or teen, is a person who falls within the ages of 13 to 19 years old. The word "teenager" is often associated with adolescence. However the World Health Organization considers anyone between the ages of 10 and 21 to be an adolescent, and most neurologists consider the brain still developing into the early third decade (early 20s). After the 20th birthday, one is no longer a teenager. However, neural plasticity continues, as the brain and particularly the prefrontal cortex (PFC) develop further.

paragraphs: The way the word is used varies. Most societies have rites of passage to mark the change from childhood to adulthood. These ceremonies may be quite elaborate. During puberty, rapid mental and physical development occurs. Adolescence is the name for this transition period from childhood to adulthood.

paragraphs: In the United States, children and young teens from the ages 11–14 go to middle school, while teenagers from the ages of 14–18 typically go to high school. In the United Kingdom, Young teens and children are mixed in secondary school , Teenagers 16-18 (16+) are mix in (6th form/college). Teenagers attending secondary school (high school in the US) generally graduate at the age of 18, In the UK after finishing GCSE's you leave school at age 15-16 and then move on to 6th form/college when you're 16+.

paragraphs: On average, girls begin puberty at ages 10–13; boys at ages 11–14. Girls usually complete puberty by ages 16–17, while boys usually complete puberty by ages 17–18. The major landmark of puberty for females is menarche, the onset of menstruation, which occurs on average between ages 12–13; for males, it is the first ejaculation, which occurs on average between the ages of 13-14.In the 21st century, the average age at which children, especially girls, reach puberty is lower compared to the 19th century, when it was 15 for girls and 16 for boys. This can be due to improved nutrition resulting in rapid body growth, increased weight and fat deposition, or eating meat from animals which have been dosed up with estrogen.