title: Vietnam

paragraphs: Vietnam () is a country in Southeast Asia. The long-form name of the country is the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The neighboring countries of Vietnam are China, Laos and Cambodia. Vietnam is one of five remaining countries that believe in communism. The capital of Vietnam is Hanoi. The biggest city is Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon). There are about 94,444,200 people living in Vietnam.

paragraphs: After the Japanese occupation in the 1940s, the Vietnamese fought French colonial rule during the First Indochina War between the Viet Minh and the French in 2 September 1945. Hồ Chí Minh declared Vietnam's independence from France under the new name of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, but was fought by French colonialists. In 1954, the Vietnamese declared victory in Dien Bien Phu which took place between March and May 1954 and culminated in a major French defeat. Then Vietnam was divided into two political states, North Vietnam (officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (officially the Republic of Vietnam). Conflicts between the two sides intensified in the so-called Vietnam War with strong influence from the US in South Vietnam. The war ended in 1975 with a North Vietnamese victory.

paragraphs: Vietnam was then united under a communist government. In 1986, the government launched a number of economic and political reforms that began Vietnam's path to integration into the world economy. By 2000, it had established diplomatic relations with all nations. Since 2000, Vietnam's economic growth has been among the highest in the world, and in 2011 it had the highest global growth generator index among 11 major economies. Its successful economic reforms resulted in its becoming a member of the World Trade Organization in 2007. It is also a member of economic cooperation between Asia and the Pacific and the International de la Francophonie Organization.

paragraphs: In Vietnam, the approximate population is 97,094,658. 25.2% of these people are aged between 0-14, with 11,954,354 being male and 10,868,610 being female. 69.3% of the population are between the ages of 15-64. The male-to-female ratio is almost evenly split, with 31,301,879 being male and 31,419,306 being female. 5.5% are 65 and over, with 1,921,652 being male and 3,092,589 being female. So within the older two categories, there are more women than men.

paragraphs: The population is not from one origin. There are many ethnic tribes that developed in the history of Vietnam. This makes Vietnam's history and culture very diverse. It's not the same as a country where every family landed on the country's shores in the same century. French and Chinese colonization didn't involve an excessive migration of people to Vietnam.

paragraphs: Nowadays, the blend of cultures has been increasing with the influence of globalization and world interest. Many Vietnamese that have been living overseas are described as the Viet Kieu. The population has several communities in many countries around the world.

paragraphs: The length of the country, from North to South, is 1,650 kilometers (1,025 miles). "At its narrowest point, Vietnam is only 30 miles (48 kilometers) wide".

paragraphs: The country is covered in rainforests that are currently going through rapid deforestation. It borders the South China Sea to the east, Laos and Cambodia to the west, and China to the north. The country is slightly larger than Malaysia.The country is slightly smaller than Japan

paragraphs: Vietnam's history has long been characterized by the neighborhood of China in the north. For about 1,000 years, northern Vietnam belonged to China, but from 938 the country became independent and later expanded southward at the expense of the Champa kingdom. In the 19th century the country was colonized by France and during the Second World War, the country was occupied by Japan. After this war, the colonial empire did not have the resources to restore the regime and lost the military battle against the liberation forces. This led to the division of the country, which in turn led to the Vietnam War with major human and material losses for the country. The war ended on 30 April 1975 by the fact that North Vietnam took the southern part. After experimental planning in the 1970s and 1980s, the economy was reformed in a market economy direction.

paragraphs: About 5000 years ago, the two ethnic tribes of the Lac Viet and Au Viet lived together in many areas with other inhabitants. Due to increasing needs to control floods, fights against invaders, and culture and trade exchanges, these tribes living near each other tended to gather together and integrate into a larger mixed group.

paragraphs: Among these Lac Viet tribes was the Van Lang, which was the most powerful tribe. The leader of this tribe later joined all the tribes together to found Van Lang Nation in 2897 BC, addressing himself as the King Hung. The next generations followed in their father's footsteps and kept this appellation. Based on historical documents, researchers correlatively delineated the location of Van Lang Nation to the present day regions of North and north of Central Vietnam, as well as the south of present-day Kwangsi (China). The Van Lang Nation lasted to the 3rd century B.C.

paragraphs: Óc Eo may have been a busy port of the kingdom of Funan between the 1st and 7th centuries.

paragraphs: The Dong Son civilization that covered much of Southeast Asia was also the beginning of Vietnam's history. In 221 BC, the Qins invaded the land of the Viet tribes. Thuc Phan, leader of the alliance of Au-Viet tribes managed to expel the enemies and declared himself King An Duong Vuong and his territory Au Lac Nation (257-207 BC). In 208 BC, a Qin Dynasty general named Triệu Đà invaded Au Lac. An Duong Vuong failed this time. As a result, the northern feudalist took turns dominating the country over the next eleven centuries, establishing their harsh regime in the country and dividing the country into administrative regions and districts with unfamiliar names. However, the country's name of Au Lac could not be erased from the people's minds in their everyday life.

paragraphs: In 207 BC Triệu Đà established a state called Nam Việt which encompassed southern China and the Red River Delta. The historical significance of the original Nam Việt remains controversial because some historians consider it a Chinese occupation while others believe it was an independent era. For most of the period from 111 BCE to the early 10th century, Vietnam was under the rule of successive Chinese dynasties. Sporadic independence movements were attempted, but were quickly suppressed by Chinese forces.

paragraphs: The kings of Champa (Chiêm Thành in Vietnamese) started construction of Hindu temples at Mỹ Sơn in the 4th century AD.

paragraphs: Hội An was founded as a trading port by the Nguyễn Lord Nguyễn Hoàng sometime around 1595.

paragraphs: Work on Imperial City, Huế started in 1804.

paragraphs: In September 1858, France occupied Đà Nẵng. Cochinchina was a French colony from 1862 to 1948.

paragraphs: In 1930 Nguyễn Ái Quốc established the Vietnamese Independence League ("Việt Nam Ðộc Lập Ðồng Minh Hội") which is also known as the Việt Minh.

paragraphs: The Japanese took over Vietnam in World War II. The Việt Minh fought against both the Japanese and the Vichy French.

paragraphs: When the Japanese were defeated, the Vietnamese people, led by the Việt Minh started the August Revolution.

paragraphs: On 2 September 1945, Nguyễn Ái Quốc (who was now calling himself Hồ Chí Minh, meaning 'Hồ (a common last name) with the will of light') read the Declaration of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in Ba Ðình Square, in Hànội. It was based on the American Declaration of Independence.

paragraphs: Hồ Chí Minh led the Việt Minh in a war for independence from France.

paragraphs: The "Autonomous Republic of Cochinchina" ("République Autonome de Cochinchine") was proclaimed 1 June 1946 to frustrate the Việt Minh's desire to rule all of Vietnam.

paragraphs: The War between France and the Việt Minh lasted from 1946 to 1954. The French were defeated in 1954 after the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

paragraphs: The nation was then divided into North Vietnam and South Vietnam. After independence was achieved, the French gave the land of the Mekong delta that was part of Cambodia to South Vietnam. The anti-communist United States had a lot of influence in the South, and the communist and nationalist Việt Minh controlled the North. Hồ Chí Minh was extremely popular in the whole nation, as he was the only remaining leader after years of fighting, so he became President of the Democratic Republic of (North) Việtnam. It was agreed that the nation would be reunited by elections in 1956. But, the Americans and the Southern government stopped the elections from happening because they expected Hồ Chí Minh to win because communist North Vietnam refused to hold free elections. Dwight Eisenhower said he thought Hồ would win with around 80% of the vote if elections were held because of the majority of the population being in the north added with Ho's few supporters in the South.

paragraphs: Soon, the USA was at war with Vietnam. This war was known as the American War, the Vietnam War, or the Second Indochinese War. Soon, South Vietnam became a military dictatorship with some basic freedoms. The Southern army removed the controversial Ngo Dinh Diem from power and killed him.

paragraphs: On 2 September 1969, Independence Day, President Hồ Chí Minh died of heart failure.

paragraphs: On 30 April 1975, the National Liberation Front with the help of the N.V.A. overtook Sàigòn and quickly renamed it Hồ Chí Minh City, which is the capital of Vietnam. The nation was fully reunified as Socialist Republic of Vietnam on 2 July 1976.

paragraphs: Vietnam is divided into 58 provinces. There are also five city municipalities which have province authority.

paragraphs: The provinces of Vietnam are divided (by the government) into provincial cities and provinces.

paragraphs: Media said in 2011 that investment in science and technology was 2% of GDP.

paragraphs: "Vietnam provides no incentives for students to return to Vietnam from their foreign graduate programmes" was the opinion (in 2011) of French physicist Pierre Darriulat.


title: Lance Armstrong

paragraphs: Lance Edward Armstrong (born September 18, 1971 in Plano, Texas, USA) is an American former bicycle rider. He used drugs which helped him in competition. In 2012 the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) took away all his titles from 1998 to 2006. In 2012, he was also banned forever from cycling competitions.

paragraphs: Before his titles were taken away, he won the Tour de France seven times in a row, from 1999 to 2005. He did this several years after having brain surgery, testicular surgery, and a long course of chemotherapy in 1996. The chemotherapy was to treat testicular cancer that spread to his brain and lungs. Armstrong used to race for the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team, but was only team leader during the Tour de France.

paragraphs: Armstrong retired from professional cycling in 2011.


title: Phoebe (moon)

paragraphs: Phoebe is a moon which goes around (orbits) the planet called Saturn. It takes eighteen months for Phoebe to go all the way around Saturn. It is half made out of rock, and half made out of ice. The ground on Phoebe is black, which means that it is very dark when seen from Earth. Phoebe does not have any air, and there is no water on its surface.

paragraphs: There are many craters on Phoebe. These are from asteroids and other things crashing into it, and leaving round marks on the surface.

paragraphs: Phoebe is slightly irregular, which means that it is not perfectly round like a ball. It has an average diameter of 213 km. This means that the Earth's moon is 15 times bigger than Phoebe. The duration between two sunrises (rotation period) is only 9 hours and 16.5 minutes long.


title: Three Peaks Challenge

paragraphs: The Three Peaks Challenge is a challenge (a hard task or job) which involves climbing three British mountains (a peak is the top of a mountain) in less than 24 hours. The three mountains are the highest of each of the three countries in the island of Great Britain.

paragraphs: Each year many people attempt (try) to do the challenge to raise money for charity. They do this by getting their friends and family to sponsor them (give them money). Many people do not do the challenge for charity. They do it simply because they enjoy walking in the mountains and they want to try something hard. These people usually do it in small groups. Some of them will do the walking, and others will do the driving and the cooking for them. Some people have completed the challenge very quickly. The record is fifteen hours.

paragraphs: Recently, the challenge has become more popular. People who live near the mountains often do not like having cars around in the middle of the night. Conservation groups blame people doing the challenge for dropping litter and damaging the landscape. Some people park their cars in inconsiderate places. Thousands of people attempt the challenge each year. Supporters of the challenge say that only a few people cause these problems, and most behave well.

paragraphs: Most attempts are made in the summer, because the days are long and the weather is good. In the winter it is dark for most of the day and can be very cold. The weather up the mountains can change very quickly, and some people die in blizzards (storms of snow) in the winter. Most people who attempt the challenge use the same route, because it is the easiest way of doing the challenge in 24 hours.

paragraphs: They start with Ben Nevis at about five o'clock. It takes about three hours to climb this mountain, so they reach the summit (the top) at about eight o'clock, and return to the bottom at about ten o'clock. In the summer it is still light in Britain at this time. If people start climbing Ben Nevis too early they will arrive at Scafell Pike too early the next morning and it will still be dark. It is important to be quick at the bottom of the mountains. There is not much time so food is usually prepared by others waiting at the bottom. When the climbers arrive they usually leave immediately and eat while they are on the road.

paragraphs: The next mountain is Scafell Pike, in the Lake District of northern England. The journey between Ben Nevis and Scafell Pike is longer than the journey between Scafell Pike and Snowdon. This is why it is done at night, when it is too dark to climb. The journey takes six or seven hours, and the walkers usually go to sleep. The next morning they arrive at Scafell Pike at about half past four. In the summer it is light by this time. Scafell Pike is not as high as the other mountains, but is harder.

paragraphs: If it is climbed quickly enough and the walkers do not get lost they can return to the bottom by about nine o'clock. It takes several hours to get to Snowdon in Wales. The walkers are usually very tired and worried that there is not enough time. If they arrive at the bottom of Snowdon at half past one in the afternoon they can climb it in two hours. This leaves them an hour and a half to get back to the bottom. If they were too slow on the other mountains or the journeys in between they might have to run!

paragraphs: You need to be quite fit to do the challenge in 24 hours, but people who are young and active, and people who are used to hillwalking, can do it. Compared to some mountains in the world, all the mountains in Britain are small. If the weather is bad or the drivers are slow it is very hard.


title: Pennsylvania

paragraphs: Pennsylvania is one of the 50 states in the United States of America. It is in the northeastern part of the country. It has a border with Ohio on the west, West Virginia on the south and west, Maryland and Delaware on the south, New Jersey on the east, and New York and Lake Erie on the north.

paragraphs: The state capital of Pennsylvania is Harrisburg. The largest city in Pennsylvania is Philadelphia. The state nickname of Pennsylvania is "The Keystone State". The current governor of Pennsylvania is Tom Wolf.

paragraphs: Pennsylvania is well known for its role in the American Revolution, its large communities of Amish, and its heavy industry.

paragraphs: Pennsylvania was home to many Native American groups before Europeans settled there. These include the Delaware, Susquehanna, and Iroquois.

paragraphs: The first European settlers in Pennsylvania were from Sweden. They arrived in 1643. The area was later ruled by the Netherlands and Great Britain. In 1681, Charles II of England, gave the land to William Penn. Penn used the land to create a home for Quakers. The land became known as "Penn's Woods", as Pennsylvania has many forests. In Latin this is "Pennsylvania". This became adopted as the name of the colony.

paragraphs: Meanwhile, in the western part of the state, armies from France and Great Britain fought for control of the source of the Ohio River. This conflict was part of the French and Indian War. Great Britain eventually won the conflict for this location and built a fort called Fort Pitt. The fort grew into a city which is now called Pittsburgh.

paragraphs: The state of Delaware was once part of Pennsylvania. In 1704, Delaware formed when three Pennsylvania counties left the colony and created their own government.

paragraphs: Pennsylvania was one of the 13 colonies that fought Great Britain in the American Revolution. The United States Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia. Benjamin Franklin, an important figure in the Revolution, was also from Philadelphia. Pennsylvania was the second state to join the United States. Philadelphia was capital of the United States before Washington, D.C..

paragraphs: Later, Pennsylvania became an important center of industry. Kerosene was discovered in Titusville in the 19th century. This was the start of the oil industry in the United States. Large deposits of coal were found in and around Pittsburgh. This caused Pittsburgh to become a major industrial city.

paragraphs: Industry began leaving Pennsylvania in the late 20th century, because most heavy industry was being transferred to other nations. Many people left, too. It also caused many of its cities and towns to decay.

paragraphs: Most of Pennsylvania is part of the Appalachian Mountains, including the south central and northeastern areas of the state. Much of the rest of the state is very hilly, partly due to the closeness to mountains and partly due to the steep river valleys in the state. The Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio rivers are in the western part of the state, and the Susquehanna is in the central part of the state. The northwestern and southeastern parts of the state are mostly flat and low-lying.

paragraphs: Pennsylvania is the 33rd largest states in the United States, with a land area of 44,817 square miles. The highest point in the state is Mount Davis, at 3,213 feet above sea level. The lowest point is the Delaware River, which is at sea level.

paragraphs: Pennsylvania is the 5th most populated state. In 2000, there were 12,281,054 people.

paragraphs: More than half of the people live in the areas of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Few people live in the north central area of the state. Towns and cities tend to be small in size and densely populated, more so than in other states. This is because many of the towns and cities in Pennsylvania were built around a specific factory or factories.

paragraphs: Pennsylvania has many colleges and universities. Officially, the state's public university is Pennsylvania State University. Best known are a few private university systems which are partially (around 10%) funded by the state, like University of Pittsburgh. The state's most well-known private university is the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League institution. Pennsylvania also has a number of state run colleges in Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock, and West Chester. Those fourteen schools make up one of the largest state run higher education systems in the country. Other significant private universities are Carnegie-Mellon University, known for its computer science research, and Bucknell University.


title: Box

paragraphs: A box is a container used to put things in. It is mainly a cuboid (square) shape, but it can be other shapes too. Boxes are usually made out of cardboard, wood, plastic or metal.

paragraphs: Many boxes are made of cardboard, and a lot of them are made. They are primarily used for packaging commercial goods or storing goods and materials. They can be made from bent or wrinkled cardboard. In their most obvious life stage, they are popularly used as a cheap material to hold a range of projects, among them being science experiments, children's toys, costumes and other things.

paragraphs: A box also means a rectangle, "e.g. userbox". But rectangles are mainly referred to as rectangles, the term box is the outline, or perimeter of the rectangle.


title: Philippines

paragraphs: The Philippines is an island country in Southeast Asia in the Pacific Ocean. It has 7,641 islands. Spain (1521-1898) and the United States (1898-1946), colonized (controlled) the country and Palau, which is on the eastern side of the Philippine Sea. The capital city of the Philippines is Manila.

paragraphs: The Philippines and East Timor are the only nations in East Asia where most people are Christians. The Philippines achieved independence after the United States left in 1946.

paragraphs: The Philippine Islands are surrounded on the east by the Philippine Sea, on the west by the South China Sea, and on the south by the Celebes Sea. Borneo island is a few hundred kilometers to the southwest, Vietnam is to the west, and Taiwan is directly north.

paragraphs: The earliest known hominin fossils from the Philippines are from "Homo luzonensis", an extinct species of archaic humans in the genus "Homo". They are are about 67,000 years old.

paragraphs: Human fossils have been found proving that modern "Homo sapiens" settled in the Philippines for thousands of years. The Negritos crossed prehistoric land or ice to settle in the islands' land. Many groups of Austronesian people began to come to the Philippines in the first millennium, pushing the aboriginal population into the interior or perhaps absorbing them through intermarriage.

paragraphs: Chinese merchants arrived in the 8th century. The rise of powerful Buddhist kingdoms enabled trade with the Indonesian archipelago, India, Japan and Southeast Asia. Factional fighting among the kingdoms of Southeast Asia weakened their strength. In the meantime, the spread of Islam through commerce and proselytism, much like Christianity, brought traders and missionaries into the region; Arabs set foot in Mindanao in the 14th century. When the first Europeans arrived, led by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521, there were rajahs as far north as Manila, who historically were tributaries of the kingdoms of Southeast Asia. However, the islands were essentially self-sufficient and self-ruling.

paragraphs: The Spanish led by Conquistador Miguel Lopez de Legazpi claimed and colonized the islands in the 16th century and named it "Filipinas" after King Philip II of Spain. Roman Catholicism was immediately introduced. The Philippines was ruled from New Spain (Mexico) and a trade began in the 18th century began using galleons across the Pacific Ocean. Some rebellions and violence started in the towns near the ocean and during the next three centuries because of some unfairness of the government.

paragraphs: In 1781, Governor José Basco y Vargas founded the Economic Society of Friends of the Country to make the Philippines independent of New Spain.

paragraphs: The country opened up during the 19th century. The rise of an ambitious, more nationalistic Filipino middle class and the Chinese mestizo community, signaled the end of Spanish colonialism in the islands. Enlightened by the Propaganda Movement to the injustices of the Spanish colonial government, they asked for independence. Jose Rizal, the most famous propagandist, was arrested and put to death in 1896 for acts of subversion. Soon after, the Philippine Revolution broke out, led by the Katipunan, a secret revolutionary society founded by Andres Bonifacio and later led by Emilio Aguinaldo. The revolution nearly succeeded in ousting the Spanish by 1898.

paragraphs: That same year Spain and the United States fought the Spanish-American War, after which Spain gave up the Philippines to the United States for US$20 million. The Filipinos had declared independence by that time and the assertion of American control led to the Philippine-American War that officially ended in 1901, but fighting continued well into 1913. Between 1899 and 1913 the American-Philippines war waged, about one million Filipinos and well over 5500 American soldiers (including missionaries and private contractors, military families) lost their lives, tens of thousands more were wounded. Most of the Philippines' casualties came from starvation, injuries, diseases, lack of clean living. Hostilities continued until 1914 when Philippines was promised future independence.

paragraphs: President William McKinley was killed by anarchist Leon Czolgosz because Czolgosz believed president McKinley was against good working people, he considered McKinley responsible for falsifying the reasons for the war, and approving and waging an illegal, devastating Philippines war.

paragraphs: The American regime imposed the English language as the "lingua franca" in the islands through free public education. The status of the country was turned into that of a US commonwealth in 1935, which provided for more self-governance.

paragraphs: Independence was finally given in 1946, after World War II. The years right after that had many post-war problems. People were also not happy during the unpopular dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, who was made to leave the presidency in 1986. Later, the continuing problem of communist insurgency and Moro separatism.

paragraphs: The government of the Philippines, is similar to the Government of the United States of America. The President of the Philippines works as the head of state, the head of government, and the commander in chief of the Military of the Philippines and the armed forces. The president is elected by voting just as in America except by popular vote as there is no electoral voting. He stays as the president for 6 years. He is the leader of the cabinet.

paragraphs: The bicameral Philippine legislature, the Congress of the Philippines, consists of the Senate of the Philippines and the House of Representatives of the Philippines; members of both are elected by popular vote. There are 24 senators serving 6 years in the Senate while the House of Representatives consists of no more than 250 congressmen each serving 3-year terms.

paragraphs: The judiciary branch of the government is headed by the Supreme Court of the Philippines, which has a Chief Justice as its head and 14 Associate Justices, all appointed by the president.

paragraphs: The Philippines is a founding and prominent member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). It is also an active participant of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), a member of the Group of 24 and one of the 51 founding members of the United Nations on October 24, 1945.

paragraphs: Local Government. The parts of Philippines are "local government units" (LGUs). The province is the top unit. There are 79 provinces in the country (2002). In the provinces there are cities and municipalities (towns). In these municipalities there are smaller "barangays" (villages). The "barangay" is the smallest local government unit.

paragraphs: All provinces are in 17 regions for administration (organisation). Most government offices have regional offices for the provinces. The regions do not have a separate local government, except for the Muslim Mindanao and Cordillera regions, which have their own power (autonomous government).

paragraphs: ¹ Names are capitalized because they are acronyms, containing the names of the constituent provinces or cities.

paragraphs: The Philippines has 7,641 islands. Together there are about 300,000 square kilometers of land. The islands are in three groups: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Luzon is the largest island and Mindanao is the second largest. The Visayas are the group of islands in the central part of the Philippines. The busy port of Manila, on Luzon, is the country's capital and it is the second-largest city after Quezon City. In the Visayas, Cebu City is the largest city. In Mindanao, Davao City is the largest city.

paragraphs: The climate is hot, humid (there is a lot of water in the air), and tropical. The average temperature all year is around 26.5 °Celsius. Filipinos usually say there are three seasons: "Tag-init" or "Tag-araw" (the hot season or summer from March to May), "Tag-ulan" (the rainy season from June to November), and "Tag-lamig" (the cold season from December to February).

paragraphs: The Philippines is in the Pacific Ring of Fire (zone of frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions). Most of the mountainous islands had a lot of tropical rainforests a long time ago. They started as volcanoes. The highest place is Mount Apo on Mindanao at 2,954 m. Many volcanoes in the country, for example Mount Mayon, are active. The country also has about 19 typhoons per year.

paragraphs: Taal Volcano is an island in Taal Lake. It is in an ancient caldera in Batangas Province. It is about 2 hours by bus going south from Manila. The jump-off point in Talisay is suitable for day trips and overnighters.

paragraphs: There are many environmental problems in the Philippines. One of them is overfishing in many areas, which lead to pitiful catches. Another problem is that only ten percent of sewage is treated and cleaned, while the other 90% is dumped back to nature and the ocean, which leads to pollution. Deforestation is a serious problem, and after decades of cutting down forests, illegal logging and forest fires, there is only 3% left of original forest cover. Forest losses have also affected the Philippines with serious soil erosion, which is threatening the Philippines biodiversity.

paragraphs: The Philippines is a developing country. In 1998 the Philippine economy — a mixture of agriculture, light industry, and support services — deteriorated because of the effects of the Asian financial crisis and poor weather conditions. The economy's growth fell to 0.6% in 1998 from 5% in 1997, but recovered to about 3% in 1999 and 4% in 2000. As of 2012, it's estimated at 6.6%.

paragraphs: The government has promised to continue its economic reforms to help the Philippines match the pace of development in the newly industrialized countries of Southeast Asia. The strategies are improving infrastructure, fixing the tax system to help the government income, supporting deregulation (to remove government control) and privatization of the economy, and increasing trade within the region. Future prospects depend heavily on the economic performance of the three major trading partners, China, the United States and Japan.

paragraphs: Around 94 million people live in the Philippines as of 2010. Most people in the Philippines are of Austronesian stock. The ethnic Chinese, who have helped run businesses since the 9th century, also live in the country. Its now 105 million people there. The Negritos live in the mountains of Luzon and Visayas. Luzon has a lot of mestizo people, a Spanish term for someone of mixed Hispanic and native blood.

paragraphs: The people of the Philippines are known as "Filipinos". Filipinos are divided into many groups, the three largest are the Tagalogs, Cebuanos, and the Ilocanos. When the Philippines was a colony, the term "Filipino" used to mean the Spanish and Spanish-mixed minority. But now everyone who is a citizen/national of the Philippines is called "Filipino". Even then, it is still has the most diverse ethnic groups in Asia, the other being Indonesia. People also call Filipinos "Pinoy" for short.

paragraphs: Filipino and English are the official languages. Filipino is based largely on Tagalog, a native language spoken in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces. The Filipino language, is a cousin of the Malay language. Other local languages and dialects are Cebuano and Ilocano and many others. English is used in government, schools and business. Other languages are Chinese which is spoken by the ethnic Chinese population and the Chinese-Filipinos. Most of the Muslims living deep in southern Mindanao and the smaller islands off of the southern Philippine mainland near Malaysia's northeastern tip. They also speak Arabic as a second language but to a very small extent. Spanish, once the official language of the Philippines in the 1970s is also spoken by a notable minority of Filipinos.

paragraphs: Before the Spanish arrived, the Filipinos did not think of themselves as one culture. Most of the Philippines were Buddhist, Muslim and Hindu empires. The Spaniards came in 1565, and brought with them Spanish culture. They soon spread to the islands making forts and schools, preaching Christianity, and converting most of the native people to the Catholic religion. When the United States colonized the islands in 1898, the Americans brought with them their own culture, which has the strongest influence up to now. This makes the Philippines the most Westernized country in eastern Asia. The Spanish culture in the Philippines though, is not directly from Spain but from Mexico, since the Philippines was ruled by Spain, through Mexico. It was governed from Mexico City which explains much of the Spanish influence in the Philippines that one could only find in Mexico and not in Spain. Also, the Spanish that was spoken in the Philippines was Mexican Spanish, not European Spanish. A lot of the foods in the Philippines can also be found in Mexico. Filipinos, as a tradition, usually eat with hands, like that of Malay tradition. And most of Filipino cuisine is also of Malay influence for the most part.

paragraphs: Each year major festivities called "barrio fiestas" are held. They commemorate the Patron saints of the towns, villages and regional districts. The festivities includes church services, street parades, fireworks displays, feasts, dance/music contests, and cockfights.

paragraphs: Most of the people in the Philippines are Christians. About 92% of the people are Christians. Most people in the Philippines belong to the Roman Catholic faith (70%). A sizable percentage of the people are Protestants (many diverse Christian denominations) (17%), Iglesia ni Cristo (2%), Muslims (5-10%), Buddhists (2%). There are also some Hindus and some other minor religions with fewer adherents (6.6%).


title: Fawlty Towers

paragraphs: Fawlty Towers is a British television sitcom. It was broadcast by the BBC in two series, one in 1975, the other in 1979. Only twelve episodes were ever broadcast. However, the show is still liked by millions of people. "Fawlty Towers" has influenced other comedies.

paragraphs: It is set in a hotel in the coastal Devon town of Torquay.

paragraphs: The owners of the hotel are Basil Fawlty (played by John Cleese) and his wife Sybil (Prunella Scales).

paragraphs: They are helped by Polly, a young British maid (Connie Booth) and Manuel, a clumsy waiter from Barcelona in Spain (Andrew Sachs).

paragraphs: In series two there is also a chef, Terry (Brian Hall).

paragraphs: Basil is a rude, angry man, who fought in the Korean War. He has been married to Sybil for fifteen years. Sybil and Basil do not love each other. Polly has a talent for painting, and this is shown in some episodes when her artwork is laid upon the front desk, annoying Basil. Manuel speaks only a little English and he often makes mistakes due to misunderstanding things. When he makes a mistake Basil usually apologises to the guests by saying, "I'm so sorry, he's from Barcelona."

paragraphs: The Major (Ballard Berkeley) is a regular guest. He is old and forgetful. The aged and easily shocked Miss Tibbs (Gilly Flower) and Miss Gatsby (Renee Roberts) are also regular guests.

paragraphs: There were twelve episodes of "Fawlty Towers" made.

paragraphs: The first six episodes were made in 1975, the last six in 1979. "Fawlty Towers" still has many fans, and many people regard it as the best comedy series made by the BBC. It was voted 5th in a poll in Britain to find "Britain's Best Sitcom" 2004.

paragraphs: One of the most famous episodes is "The Germans". In that episode, people from Germany are visiting the Hotel. Basil dislikes Germans, because he blames them for starting World War II. He tells his staff not to mention the war ("Don't mention the war!"). He himself continually mentions the war, and even imitates Adolf Hitler.

paragraphs: The episodes, in order with date of first showing, are:


title: Custom

paragraphs: A custom (also called a tradition) is a common way of doing things. It is something that many people do, and have done for a long time. Usually, the people come from the same country, culture, or religion. Usually, they do not know when the custom started.

paragraphs: Many customs are things that people do that are handed down from the past.


title: Fort Ouiatenon

paragraphs: Fort Ouiatenon was the first fortified European settlement in what is now the U.S. state of Indiana. It is approximately three miles southwest of modern-day West Lafayette.

paragraphs: Fort Ouiatenon was originally constructed by the French government in 1717 as a military outpost to protect against Great Britain's western expansion. Its location among the unsettled woodlands of the Wabash River valley also made it a key center of trade for fur trappers. French merchants and trappers from Quebec would arrive at Fort Ouiatenon in search of beaver pelts and to take advantage of trade relations with the native Wea Native American tribes.

paragraphs: At its peak level of activity during the mid-18th century Fort Ouiatenon was home to over 2,000 residents. In 1761, during the French and Indian War, a contingent of British soldiers led by Lieutenant Edward Jenkins captured and occupied the fort. In 1763 an uprising led by Chief Pontiac of the Ottawa Native American tribe surprised Lieutenant Jenkins and his men and captured Fort Ouiatenon without firing a shot. Seven similar posts were also captured in what became known as Pontiac's Uprising.

paragraphs: The British made little use of Fort Ouiatenon after the French and Indian War; it was never garrisoned. During the 1780s, local Indian tribes used it as a base of operations to stage raids against American settlers pushing westward. Consequently, President George Washington ordered the fort to be destroyed in 1791.

paragraphs: In 1930 a replica of Fort Ouiatenon was built near its original site by a local physician named Richard Wetherill. In 1970 the site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Today Fort Ouiatenon is open to tourists and is the location of the annual Feast of the Hunters' Moon.


title: Chennai

paragraphs: Chennai (formerly known as Madras) is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a population of about 7 million people. Almost 10% of all of the people in the state live in Chennai. The city is the fourth largest city of India. It was founded in 1661 by the British East India Company. The city is on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal.

paragraphs: Chennai is the automobile capital of India. It is also referred as the Detroit of South Asia. The long Marina Beach in Chennai, is one of the longest beaches in the world. The city is separated into three parts by two rivers. The Cooum River divides the city into almost half and the Adyar River divides the southern half of the city into two parts. The historic Buckingham Canal runs through the city. It is almost parallel to the coast. The 350 year old city still has much of its old charm. Today, it is a big commercial and industrial centre. The city has much cultural heritage. The temples, shrines, forts and palaces of the city combine its past with the present.

paragraphs: Chennai and its nearby area has been an important administrative, military and economic centre back to the 1st century. Many South India kingdoms like the Pallava, the Chola, the Pandya and Vijayanagara Empires have ruled over the area. The British controlled the town in 1749. Under British control, the city grew into a major urban centre and naval base. The city grew up around the English settlement of Fort Saint George. It slowly grew in the nearby towns and villages. Chennai became the capital of Madras state (renamed as Tamil Nadu in 1968) when India became independent in 1947.

paragraphs: Chennai is connected by airways, railways and roads with all the major towns of the country.

paragraphs: Chennai is linked with roads from rest of the country. The distance of major cities and towns from Chennai are:

paragraphs: Chennai railway station is connected with all the major railway stations of the country. These include Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Cochin, Hyderabad, Lucknow, and Varanasi.

paragraphs: The airport in Chennai is directly linked to airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Goa, Bhubaneswar, Cochin, Hyderabad, Port Blair and Pune.

paragraphs: The international terminal is connected with other overseas airports including London, Tokyo, Brussels, Singapore, Dubai, Frankfurt, Kuala Lumpur and New York.

paragraphs: It is one of the busiest airports in Asia.


title: Mumbai

paragraphs: Mumbai (previously known as Bombay until 1996) is a natural harbor on the west coast of India, and is the capital city of Maharashtra state. It is India's largest city, and one of the world's most populous cities. It is the financial capital of India. The city is the second most-populous in the world. It has approximately 13 million people. Along with the neighboring cities of Navi Mumbai and Thane, it forms the world's 4th largest urban agglomeration. They have around 19.1 million people.

paragraphs: The seven islands that form Bombay were home to fishing colonies. The islands were ruled by successive kingdoms and indigenous empires before Portuguese settlers took it. Then, it went to the British East India Company. During the mid-18th century, Bombay became a major trading town. It became a strong place for the Indian independence movement during the early 20th century. When India became independent in 1947, the city was put into Bombay State. In 1960, following the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, a new state of Maharashtra was created with Bombay as the capital. It was renamed Mumbai in 1996.

paragraphs: Mumbai generates more than 6% of India's GDP. It accounts for 25% of industrial output, 40% of sea trade, and 70% of capital to India's economy. The Reserve Bank of India, the Bombay Stock Exchange, the National Stock Exchange of India and many Indian companies and multinational corporations are in the city. It also has the Hindi film and television industry, known as Bollywood.

paragraphs: The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport is Mumbai's public transport service.


title: Bangalore

paragraphs: Former Bangalore (English pronunciation: ˈbæŋɡəlɔər, bæŋɡəˈlɔər), today again and officially known as Bengaluru () is the capital city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is famous for its Information technology industry and so it is called the Silicon Valley of India. Today as a large and growing city, Bangalore has many of the most well-recognized colleges and research institutions in India.

paragraphs: Bangalore is more famous for its climatic conditions. The temperature is usually low compared to the other cities in Karnataka.This city was also known as the garden city because of the greenery it had.


title: Akbar the Great

paragraphs: Akbar (Abu'l-Fath Jalal ud-din Muhammad Akbar, 14 October 1542 – 1605) was the 3rd Mughal Emperor. He was born in Umarkot (now Pakistan). He was the son of 2nd Mughal Emperor Humayun.

paragraphs: Akbar became the Subscriber of Amplify Gaming Romeo "de jure" king in 1556 at the age of 13 when his father died. Bairam Khan was appointed as Akbar's regent and chief army commander. Soon after coming to power Akbar defeated Himu, the general of the Afghan forces, in the Second Battle of Panipat. After a few years, he ended the regency of Bairam Khan and took charge of the kingdom. He initially offered friendship to the Rajputs. However, he had to fight against some Rajputs who opposed him. In 1576 he defeated Maha Rana Pratap of Mewar in the Battle of Haldighati. Akbar's wars made the Mughal empire more than twice as big as it had been before, covering most of the Indian subcontinent except the south.

paragraphs: Akbar's system of central government was based on the system that had evolved since the Delhi Sultanate, but the functions of various departments were reorganised with detailed regulations for their functioning

paragraphs: Akbar was a Muslim. He realized that to establish a strong empire, he had to gain the confidence of his Hindu people who were the majority in India.

paragraphs: Din-i-ilahi was a religious path suggested by Akbar. It was a code of moral conduct which reflected Akbar's secular ideas and he desire to achieve peace, unity, tolerance in his empire. Belief in one god, worship of source of light, non-killing of animals, Having peace with all were some features of Din-i-ilahi. It didn't have any rituals, holy books, temples or priests.

paragraphs: Male circumcision was not to be done before the boy was 12 years old, and after that it was optional. It was a Jewish custom adopted by Islam. Akbar's rule was that it should be made optional and should be done, if at all, at an age when boys could understand what it was. Here Akbar gave every man a choice and opportunity to have a play of his reason. Indeed, the boy of reason as he was, he could not deny it to others. He was a very good emperor and he had a sense of justice.

paragraphs: When he was at Fatehpur Sikri, he held discussions as he loved to know about others' religious beliefs. On one such day, he got to know that the religious people of other religions were often bigots (intolerant of others religious beliefs). This led him to form the idea of the new religion, Sulh-e-kul meaning "universal peace". His idea of this religion did not discriminate other religions and focused on the ideas of peace, unity and tolerance. This gesture of his made the Hindus and people of other religions call him with different names and start loving him.

paragraphs: Akbar's reign was chronicled by his court historian Abul Fazal in the books "Akbarnama" and "Ain-i-Akbari". Other sources of Akbar's reign include the wod Sirhindi. Akbar was an artisan, warrior, artist, armourer, administrator carpenter, emperor, general, inventor, animal trainer, technologist. He became emperor at the age of 18.

paragraphs: Akbar had Navaratnas or nine jewels in his court which include Abul Fazel, Faizi, Tansen, Birbal, Raja Todar Mal, Raja Man Singh, Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, Fakir Aziao-Din and Mullah Do Piazza.

paragraphs: The Akbarnāma means the "Book of Akbar". It is the official biographical account of Akbar written by Abu Fazal. It includes vivid and detailed descriptions of his life and times. It also includes the information about the flora, fauna, life of the people of his reign, and the places Akbar used to visit.

paragraphs: The work was commissioned by Akbar, and written by Abul Fazl, one of the Navratnas (Nine Jewels) of Akbar's royal court. The book took seven years to complete. An illustration was done in the Mughal school of painting. A part of this is "Ain-i-Akbari".

paragraphs: On 3 October 1605, Akbar fell ill with an attack of dysentery, from which he never recovered. Twelve days after his sixty third year he died on 27 October 1605, after which his body was buried at a mausoleum in Sikandra (Agra): Akbar's tomb.


title: New Delhi

paragraphs: New Delhi () is the capital of India and a union territory of the megacity of Delhi. It has a very old history and is home to several monuments where the city is expensive to live in. In traditional Indian geography it falls under the North Indian zone. The city has an area of about 42.7 km. New Delhi has a population of about 9.4 Million people.


title: Edmund Hillary

paragraphs: Sir Edmund Hillary, (born 20 July 1919, died 11 January 2008) was a New Zealand mountaineer and explorer. He and Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay were the first people to climb Mount Everest. They got to the top on 29 May 1953. Mount Everest is the tallest mountain on Earth. During his teenage years, Hillary had attended Auckland Grammar School.

paragraphs: Sir Edmund Hillary's fame came as a result of being the first New Zealander in the world to conquer Mt. Everest in Nepal. He is on the New Zealand five dollar note. He also climbed ten other mountains after Mount Everest, all of which are also in the Himalayas.

paragraphs: Hillary was born to Percival Augustus Hillary and Gertrude Hillary, née Clark, in Auckland, New Zealand, on 20 July 1919. His family moved to Tuakau (south of Auckland) in 1920, after his father (who served at Gallipoli) had gotten land there. His grandparents were early settlers in northern Wairoa in the mid 19th century after moving from Yorkshire, England.

paragraphs: Hillary learned at Tuakau Primary School and then Auckland Grammar School. He finished primary school two years early, but he did not do very well at high school. At first, he was smaller than other students there and very shy so he felt safe with his books and often thought of a life filled with adventure. Every day, he rode a train to and from high school, and he often used this time to read. Learning how to box helped him become more confident. At age 16 his interest in climbing started during a school trip to Mount Ruapehu. Although very tall at 6 ft 5 in (195 cm), he was stronger than many of his fellow hikers.

paragraphs: He learned about mathematics and science at The University of Auckland, and in 1939 he completed his first important climb, which was reaching the top of a mountain called Mount Ollivier. With his brother Rex, Hillary became a beekeeper during summertime, which allowed him to do climbing in the winter.

paragraphs: Hillary married Louise Mary Rose in 1953, by whom he had a son and two daughters. In 1975, his wife and their younger daughter were killed in a plane crash. Hillary married June Mulgrew in 1989; they remained married until he died.

paragraphs: Hillary died of a heart attack in Auckland, at the age of 88.


title: Wright brothers

paragraphs: The Wright brothers, Orville Wright (August 19, 1871 – January 30, 1948) and Wilbur Wright (April 16, 1867 – May 30, 1912), designed, built, and flew the first controlled, powered, heavier-than-air airplane on December 17, 1903. They had been experimenting for many years with gliders and other vehicles before their first powered flight. They are also known for making the first way to steer an airplane. They designed the aircraft in Dayton, Ohio, and their first test flight was in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

paragraphs: The Wrights grew up in Dayton, Ohio. They were sons of a minister. There were many books in their house, and they were encouraged to ask questions and find out about whatever they thought was interesting. Sometimes their father would ask them to argue for a topic, then switch sides and argue for the opposite point of view.

paragraphs: They went to high school, but did not go to college; they started a newspaper instead. After that, they started a shop to build and repair bicycles.

paragraphs: By the 1890s, the Wrights were interested in flight, especially the gliders of Otto Lilienthal. They started working on making airplanes in their bicycle shop. They thought controlling a plane was one of the big problems of flight. Lilienthal and others had been killed when they could not control their aircraft. The Wright brothers fixed the problem by inventing control surfaces, such as a rudder that would work in the air. They built wings that could be twisted a little and moved up and down slightly, to control flight. They called this steering system "wing-warping".

paragraphs: From 1900 to 1902, they built gliders in Dayton and tested them in Kitty Hawk, where there were strong and steady winds. They also made small versions of the wings and built a wind tunnel for model airplanes to test how well different wing shapes would lift an airplane.

paragraphs: In 1903, they built a powered airplane that had propellers and a small engine. The "Wright Flyer" airplane first flew successfully on December 17, 1903, near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. This was the first time people ever flew a powered airplane they could control. Before that, people flew in balloons or gliders, or for a very short time in planes they could not control. The two brothers continued to make changes to their design and had a very good plane by 1905.

paragraphs: The Wright Brothers kept their discovery largely secret for a couple of years, until they showed it to the world in 1908 (They had filed a patent on their steering system March 23, 1903.)

paragraphs: After that, they started a company to build airplanes. They had a patent war with Glenn Curtiss, filing lawsuits against each other over who really invented the airplane steering system. The Wrights believed that Curtiss' aileron system was too similar to their own steering system and that he had copied them. During the patent war, Wilbur died. Orville continued working to keep his reputation as the first man to fly. Later he sold the airplane company and became an elder statesman of aviation. He died in 1948.


title: Charles Darwin

paragraphs: Charles Robert Darwin (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist. He was born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. He is famous for his work on the theory of evolution.

paragraphs: His book "On the Origin of Species" (1859) did two things. First, it provided a great deal of evidence that evolution has taken place. Second, it proposed a theory to explain "how" evolution works. That theory is natural selection. Evolution and natural selection is the key to understanding and the diversity of life on Earth.

paragraphs: Darwin spent almost five years on board a Royal Navy exploring ship, the HMS "Beagle". He was the guest naturalist, which meant that he was responsible for making collections and notes about the animals, plants, and the geology of the countries they visited. The ship's crew made charts of all the coastal areas, which could be used by the navy wherever it went in the world. At the time, Britain had by far the largest navy in the world, and an empire which was global.

paragraphs: Darwin collected everywhere the ship landed. He found huge fossils of recently extinct mammals, experienced an earthquake in Chile, and noticed the land had been raised. He knew of raised beaches elsewhere, high in the Andes, with fossil seashells and trees which had once grown on a sandy beach. Obviously the earth was constantly changing, with land rising in some places, and sinking in others. He collected birds and insects, and sent shipments back to Cambridge for experts to identify.

paragraphs: Darwin was the first dedicated naturalist to visit the Galapagos Islands, off the west coast of Ecuador. He noticed that some of the birds were like mockingbirds on the mainland, but different enough to be placed in separate species. He began to wonder how so many new species came to be on these islands.

paragraphs: When Darwin got back to England, he edited a series of scientific reviews of the voyage, and wrote a personal journal which we know as "The Voyage of the Beagle". It is one of the great natural history travel diaries.

paragraphs: In 1843 Darwin, who already had two children with his wife Emma, bought Down House in the village of Downe, Kent. He lived there for the rest of his life, and today the house and contents are open to the public.

paragraphs: While on the H.M.S. "Beagle", and later back home in London, Darwin had come across the ideas of the Rev. T.R. Malthus. Malthus had realised that, although humans could double their population every 25 years, it did not happen in practice. He thought the reason was that a struggle for existence (or resources) limited their numbers. If numbers increased, then famine, wars and diseases caused more deaths. Darwin, who knew that all living things could, in principle, increase their numbers, began to think about why some survived, while others did not. His answer took years to develop.

paragraphs: The theory of evolution says that all living things on Earth, including plants, animals and microbes, come from a common ancestor by slowly changing throughout the generations. Darwin suggested that the way living things changed over time is through "natural selection". This is the better survival and reproduction of those that best fit their environment. Fitting into the place where you live is called adapting. Those who fit best into the place where they live, the best adapted, have the best chance to survive and breed. Those who are less well-adapted tend not to survive. If they do not survive well enough to raise young, this means they do not pass on their genes. In this way, the species gradually changes.

paragraphs: The first chapter of the "Origin" deals with domesticated animals, such as cattle and dogs. Darwin reminded readers of the huge changes mankind had made in its domestic animals, which were once wild species. The changes were brought about by "selective breeding" – choosing animals with desirable characters to breed from. This had been done generation after generation, until our modern breeds were produced. Perhaps what man had done deliberately, might happen in nature, where some would leave more offspring than others.

paragraphs: Darwin noticed that although young plants or animals are very similar to their parents, no two are exactly the same and there is always a range of shape, size, colour, and so on. Some of these differences the plant or animal may have got from their own ancestors, but some are new and caused by mutations. When such differences made an organism more able to live in the wild, it would have a better chance to survive, and would pass on its genes to its offspring, and they to their offspring. Any difference that would cause the plant or animal to have less of a chance to live would be less likely to be passed on, and would eventually die out altogether. In this way groups of similar plants or animals (called species) slowly change in shape and form so that they can live more successfully and have more offspring who will survive them. So, natural selection had similarities to selective breeding, except that it would happen by itself, over a much longer time.

paragraphs: He first started thinking about this in 1838, but it took a full twenty years before his ideas became public. By 1844 he was able to write a draft of the main ideas in his notebook. Historians think that he did not talk about his theory because he was afraid of public criticism. He knew his theory, which did not discuss religion, raised questions about the literal truth of the Book of Genesis. Whatever the reason, he did not publish his theory in a book until 1859. In 1858 he heard that another biologist, Alfred Russel Wallace, had the same ideas about natural selection. Darwin and Wallace's ideas were first published in the "Journal of the Linnaean Society" in London, 1858. Then, Darwin published his book the next year. The name of the book was "On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life". This is usually called "The Origin of Species".

paragraphs: Darwin wrote a number of other books, most of which are also very important.


title: Adam Smith

paragraphs: Adam Smith (16 June 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist, who is called the Father of Modern Economics.

paragraphs: His book, "An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations", published in 1776, was very important. People call the book just "The Wealth of Nations". It stated some of the ideas on which modern economics is based off, especially market economics.

paragraphs: In the "Wealth of Nations" Adam Smith asks 'what can a person do that is best for his country?' He decides that if every person does what is best for themself and their little circle of family and friends, then the country will do better. This is because every person knows a lot about their own situation (what they need and what they want, what works and what does not work), much more than the government knows. This sort of thinking is called "liberal theory", a main part of liberalism.

paragraphs: He was also a philosopher who wanted to know why people thought (felt) that some things are good and others bad.

paragraphs: He wrote an earlier book, in 1759, called "The Theory of Moral Sentiments". He thought that empathy was very important in ethics. Empathy is when you see how someone else is feeling, imagine what it feels like, and then end up feeling the same way: for Smith, empathy is like "putting yourself in someone else's shoes". For example, empathy makes us feel happy to see someone else who is happy, or feel sorry for someone who is sad. Empathy may even make "us" feel pain when we see someone in pain (as if "we" had been hurt or affected). Both Smith and his friend David Hume, who was another Scottish philosopher, wrote about the importance of sympathy in ethics.


title: Isaac Newton

paragraphs: Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English physicist, mathematician and astronomer. He is well known for his work on the laws of motion, optics, gravity, and calculus. In 1687, Newton published a book called the "Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica" in which he presents his theory of universal gravitation and three laws of motion.

paragraphs: Newton built the first practical reflecting telescope in 1668. He also developed a theory of light based on the observation that a prism decomposes white light into the colors of the rainbow. Newton also shares credit with Gottfried Leibniz for the development of calculus.

paragraphs: Newton's ideas on light, motion, and gravity dominated physics for the next three centuries, until modified by Albert Einstein's theory of relativity.

paragraphs: Isaac Newton was born (according to the Julian calendar, in use in England at the time) on Christmas Day, 25 December 1642 (N.S. 4 January 1643) "an hour or two after midnight", at Woolsthorpe Manor in Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth, a hamlet in the county of Lincolnshire, England. His father, also named Isaac Newton, died three months before his birth. When Newton was three, his mother, Hannah Ayscough, remarried with Reverend Barnabas Smith. Young Newton remained with his maternal grandmother, Margery Ayscough.

paragraphs: From 1655 to 1659, Newton was educated at The King's School, Grantham. When he was seventeen, he was removed from school. His mother tried to make him a farmer, but he did not like that. Henry Stokes, master at The King's School, requested his mother to send him back to school.

paragraphs: In June 1661, he was sent to the University of Cambridge to study. It is sometimes told that Isaac Newton was reading a book under a tree when an apple from the tree fell next to him. This led to his calculations of gravitation.

paragraphs: Newton explained the workings of the universe through mathematics. He described laws of motion and gravitation. These laws are math formulas that explain how objects move when a force acts on them. Isaac published his most famous book, Principia, in 1687 while he was a mathematics professor at Trinity College, Cambridge. In the Principia, Isaac explained three basic laws that govern the way objects move. He then described his idea, or theory, about gravity. Gravity is the force that causes things to fall down. If a pencil fell off a desk, it will land on the floor, not the ceiling. In his book Isaac also used his laws to show that the planets revolve around the suns in orbits that are oval, not round. Isaac also discovered diffraction. This led him to enter the field of physics, where he prospered.

paragraphs: When most people think of Isaac Newton, they think of him sitting under an apple tree watching an apple fall. Some people even believe the apple fell onto his head. Newton understood that what makes things like apples fall to the ground is a specific kind of force — the force we call gravity. Newton thought that gravity was the force of attraction between two objects, such as an apple and the earth. He also thought that an object with more matter exerted the same force on smaller objects as they exerted on it. That meant that the large mass of the earth pulled objects toward it. That is why the apple fell down instead of up, and why people do not float in the air.

paragraphs: Isaac Newton went on thinking about gravity. Before Newton, people thought that only objects near to the earth would fall down. But Newton thought that gravity should not just be limited to the earth and the objects on it. What if gravity went to the moon and beyond?

paragraphs: Newton invented a formula for calculating the force of attraction between two bodies. He used it to calculate the force needed to keep the moon moving around the earth. Then he compared it with the force that made the apple fall downward. After allowing for the fact that the moon is much farther from the earth, and has a much greater mass, he discovered that the forces were the same. The moon is held in an orbit around the earth by the pull of earth’s gravity.

paragraphs: The formula invented by Newton is called the "Law of gravitation".

paragraphs: Isaac Newton’s calculations changed the way people understood the universe. No one had been able to explain why the planets stayed in their orbits. What held them up? Less than 50 years before Isaac Newton was born it was thought that the planets were held in place by an invisible shield. Isaac proved that they were held in place by the sun’s gravity. He also showed that the force of gravity was affected by distance and by mass. He was not the first to understand that the orbit of a planet was not circular, but more elongated, like an oval. What he did was to explain how it worked.

paragraphs: Sir Isaac Newton was the first to discover the laws of gravitation and the laws of motion. He also established a new field in mathematics known as calculus, though the German Gottfried Leibniz had developed the ideas at the same time. His work has greatly contributed in the areas of science and mathematics making him one of the most influential scientists in human history and one of the greatest mathematician of all times.

paragraphs: The great physicist, Albert Einstein, thought that Newton's idea of gravity was not completely accurate. He corrected many of the things that Newton did.

paragraphs: Isaac Newton died on in London, England.

paragraphs: He is buried in Westminster Abbey. He set the stage for many famous physicists to come, such as Albert Einstein, James Chadwick, and Stephen Hawking.


title: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

paragraphs: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (August 28, 1749 – March 22, 1832) was a German writer, poet, novelist, and playwright. He also worked as an actor, administrator, scientist, geologist, botanist, and philosopher. He influenced many 19th century writers and thinkers. His contributions to science include his work in botany and his "Theory of Colours". Famous lines from his books are often quoted, and some of his phrases have become part of the German language. His poems were set to music by composers like Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Wolf, and Strauss. Most of his scientific work now seems old-fashioned.

paragraphs: Goethe was born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. His father was well-educated and very strict. His mother was only eighteen when he was born. When Goethe was a young boy, he began to write stories and plays for his friends. In his youth, he learned Greek, Latin and French. He studied law in Leipzig from 1765 to 1768. He also wrote some letters that are seen as beautiful, and that showed his promise as a writer. He continued his studies in Strasbourg from 1770 to 1771. He joined other young men who wanted to change the way that Germans were writing. He thought that people like Johann Christoph Gottsched were too strict about writing poetry. Instead of the ideas of the Enlightenment, he wanted poets to be creative and make their own rules.

paragraphs: One man who had many new ideas was a poet named Johann Gottfried von Herder. Herder liked the plays of Shakespeare (which he had learned in German) as well as folk poetry. These ideas were exciting for Goethe, and he helped Herder to collect folk poetry. Both men believed that poetry should always come from the heart, and that it should be based on the poet’s experiences instead of on an old-fashioned idea of what a good poem should be. Some of Goethe's best known poems were written during this time, like "Heidenröslein", "Der König in Thule", and "Erlkönig."

paragraphs: Goethe fell in love with several women during his lifetime. During the early period of his life, he was in love with a girl named Friederike Brion, the daughter of a pastor. Several of his poems are inspired by her. He felt extremely sad when they split up. The feeling of desertion by a lover is found in a lot of Goethe’s works. They are all based on his own experience. His disappointment in love inspired him when writing about Werther in "Die Leiden des jungen Werthers" and Gretchen in his great play "Faust". His poems also show his ideas about science and philosophy.

paragraphs: "Die Leiden des jungen Werthers" ("The Sufferings of Young Werther") is a book written in the form of letters. Werther is a young man who falls passionately in love with a girl called Lotte who is married to someone else. Werther kills himself in the end. The book was very successful all over Europe. People talked about “Werther fever.” Many young men who were disappointed in love copied Werther and killed themselves.

paragraphs: Goethe’s most famous work is a very long play called "Faust". He spent most of his life working at it. He was writing the first version of "Faust" at this time. Based on a legendary character, it tells of a man called Faust who is tired of studying and wants to have the greatest possible happiness. The devil (called Mephistopheles in the play) tells Faust he can help him to do this, but that in the end Faust must give him his soul and go with him to hell. Faust uses magic in the hope that it will tell him everything about life.

paragraphs: Along with writing, Goethe was developing a career in law. In 1772, he spent four months in Wetzlar at the Imperial Law Courts. Here he made new friends, including a young girl who was already engaged to someone else.

paragraphs: Goethe had been well-educated and was good at organizing and getting on with important people. For eleven years he worked at the court of Weimar for a young Duke called Karl August. He became a member and later the president of the Duke’s cabinet. He had to organize road-building projects, and look after parks and buildings. He studied geology, mineralogy, botany and anatomy. He fell in love with a woman called Charlotte von Stein who was married and had several children. He wrote love letters to her, and she inspired him to write many poems. At this time he felt that a man’s task in life was to be useful. The heroes of his books at this time were often ordinary people instead of geniuses.

paragraphs: After a time he realized that all his work on governmental duties were not giving him time for his writing, so he went to Italy for 18 months. He loved the landscape and made lots of sketches, and he read the ancient poets and books on the history of art. He wrote a play in rhyme called "Iphigenie auf Tauris" which combines the beauty of Classicism with great poetry.

paragraphs: When he returned from Italy he settled once more in Weimar. He visited Italy a second time. He became great friends with the famous poet and playwright Friedrich Schiller. The two men talked about many of their ideas and helped one another by offering criticism of their works. He wrote short works such as "Hermann und Dorothea" which is about life in a small German town at the time of the French Revolution.

paragraphs: Two works of the greatest importance works occupied him at this time. One is the novel "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre". This is an example of what is called in German a “Bildungsroman” which means something like “Education novel”. It means a novel which shows a person growing up and developing his character and learning about the world. This book was a very important influence on the 19th century Romantic novel and on all German autobiographical novels ever since. Goethe spent many years working on this book.

paragraphs: The second work of enormous importance was his play "Faust". He made changes to the original version, putting all the small bits together into one great play. Schiller gave him advice while he was writing it. Faust enters into a pact with the devil, Mephistopheles who promises him all his soul can wish for: fine living, gold, women and honour. He signs the pact with his blood.

paragraphs: Napoleon was fighting wars all over Europe at this time. Germany, which was still made up of lots of small countries, was an enemy of France. Goethe always thought of Napoleon as a hero. His ideas about politics were still based on 18th century ideas. He hated war and so he did not take part in politics but concentrated on science and literature. He wrote a book called "Die Wahlverwandtschaften" ("Elective Affinities") which is about a divorce problem. Some of his scientific ideas are used in the story as he talks about the way that two chemical compounds can break up and form new unions. He compares this to the people in his story. His poems in "Westöstlicher Divan" are some of his greatest. He uses ideas from Persia and other Eastern countries together with ideas from the West. It has a lot of parables about human life.

paragraphs: Many interesting things that Goethe said were written down in a book by his friend Eckermann, who published them in a book called "Conversations with Goethe". Goethe also wrote about his own life in his autobiography which he called "Dichtung und Wahrheit" ("Poetry and Truth"). The book tells us about his youth up to the time of his arrival in Weimar. It is in four parts. The fourth part was published after his death. He chose the title to show that he was telling us the truth about his life, but that he had changed the order of some events to make it into a poetic book.

paragraphs: Goethe wrote a sequel (a part which follows on) to "Wilhelm Meister" called "Wilhelm Meisters Wanderjahre" ("The Years of Wilhelm Meister’s Wanderings"). It consists of several sections which are like separate stories. They tell us about Wilhelm Meister’s relationship with society and how he has to change his ways to fit in with other people.

paragraphs: Goethe’s "Faust" had made him the greatest person in European literature. At the end of his life he finished a second part of "Faust". It is quite hard to read, and is more of a long poem than a dramatic play. It talks of his ideas about allegory, science and philosophy.

paragraphs: Goethe died in Weimar on March 22, 1832. He had started as a great Classical writer of the 18th century and finished as a young Romantic of the 19th century. No one else had such a big influence on art and literature of that time.


title: Pythagoras

paragraphs: Pythagoras of Samos was a famous Greek mathematician and philosopher ( ). He is known best for the proof of the important Pythagorean theorem, which is about right angle triangles. He started a group of mathematicians, called the Pythagoreans, who worshiped numbers and lived like monks. He had an influence on Plato.

paragraphs: He had a great impact on mathematics, theory of music and astronomy. His theories are still used in mathematics today. He was one of the greatest thinkers of his time.

paragraphs: Pythagoras was born in Samos, a little island off the western coast of Asia Minor. There is not much information about his life. It is said that he had a good childhood. Growing up with two or three brothers, he was well educated. He did not agree with the government and their schooling, so he moved to Crotone and set up his own cult (little society) of followers under his rule. His followers did not have any personal possessions, and they were all vegetarians. Pythagoras taught them all, and they had to obey strict rules.

paragraphs: Some say he was the first person to use the term philosophy. Since he worked very closely with his group, the Pythagoreans, it is sometimes hard to tell his works from those of his followers.

paragraphs: Religion was important to the Pythagoreans. They swore their oaths by "1+2+3+4" (which equals 10). They also believed the soul is immortal and goes through a cycle of rebirths until it can become pure. They believed that these souls were in both animal and plant life.

paragraphs: Pythagoras' most important belief was that the physical world was mathematical and that numbers were the real reality.

paragraphs: Pythagoras is most famous for his theorem to do with right triangles. He said that the length of the longest side of the right angled triangle called the hypotenuse (C) squared would equal the sum of the other sides squared. And so a² + b² = c² was born. There are many different proofs for this Pythagorean theorem.


title: Socrates

paragraphs: Socrates (469 BC – 399 BC) was one of the greatest Greek philosophers. He did not propose any specific knowledge or policy. He showed how argument, debate, and discussion could help men to understand difficult issues. Most of the issues he dealt with were only political on the surface. Underneath, they were moral questions about how life should be lived. Such is the influence of Socrates that philosophers before him are called the Presocratic philosophers.

paragraphs: Socrates made enemies, three of whom brought charges against him. Socrates was tried for his life in 399 BC, found guilty, and put to death by drinking hemlock (a herbal poison). The story of his trial and death is the subject of a tract by Plato which is called the "Apologia".

paragraphs: Most of what we know about Socrates comes from the works of Plato, who was his pupil. Socrates lived in the Greek city of Athens. His method of teaching was to have a dialogue with individual students. They would propose some point of view, and Socrates would question them, asking what they meant. He would pretend "I don't know anything; I'm just trying to understand what it is you are saying", or words to that effect. This is now called the Socratic method of teaching.

paragraphs: Socrates is sometimes called the "father of Western philosophy". This is because in the discussions he uncovered some of the most basic questions in philosophy, questions which are still discussed today. Some of the people he taught came to be important and successful, like Plato and Alcibiades.

paragraphs: Socrates never wrote anything. All of what we know about Socrates is from what other people wrote about him. Our main source of what we know about Socrates is from the writings of his student, Plato. Some of Plato's dialogues, such as the "Crito" and the "Phaedo", are loosely based on fact. They are not written records, but artistic re-creation of Socrates in action.

paragraphs: Another of Socrates' students, Xenophon also wrote about Socrates. Aristophanes, a person who wrote brilliant satirical comedies, wrote about him in play called "The Clouds". Socrates was an easy target for satire. He walked barefoot, and with a swagger. Sometimes he stood in a trance for hours. In "The Clouds" Socrates is a crazy person who tries to scam people out of their money. Plato wrote that Socrates taught for free.

paragraphs: We do not know if Plato's description of Socrates is accurate or not. That is called the 'Socratic problem'. While a lot of what Plato wrote about Socrates is accepted by historians, some believe that Plato (who saw Socrates as a hero) portrayed Socrates as a greater man than he actually was. Some think that Plato was using the character of Socrates as a tool to express his own opinions rather than to accurately write about Socrates. This is what makes Socrates such a mysterious historical figure. Plato's dialogues are works of art, finely written. The general view is that they are based on reality, but no doubt adjusted for the purpose of writing.

paragraphs: Socrates' father was a sculptor, and his mother was a midwife who helped women give birth to children. He may have been a stonemason like his father, and Plato wrote that he served in the Athenian army as a hoplite (heavy infantry). We know he was influenced by an older philosopher, Archelaus, and that he talked with anyone who had interesting ideas in Athens, but beyond that nothing is known.

paragraphs: Socrates was about 50 when he married a much younger woman, Xanthippe. They had three children together. Socrates made complaints about his wife, but no one knew if he was telling the truth.

paragraphs: It is said that one of Socrates' friends went to ask the oracle at Delphi if there was anyone wiser than Socrates in Athens. The oracle said that there was no wiser person. The oracle was well known for saying things that were ambiguous or unclear. It did not say that Socrates was the wisest, just that there was no person wiser.

paragraphs: After being puzzled by this, Socrates finally decided that his wisdom lay in knowing that he was ignorant. His attempts to show the citizens that some of their ideas were nonsense might help explain his unpopularity. In Plato's works, Socrates says he knows nothing, but can draw out other people's ideas just as his mother helped other women to give birth.

paragraphs: In 399 BC, when Socrates was an old man, three citizens—Meletus, Anytus and Lycon—brought charges against Socrates. A trial was held. In ancient Athens the procedure was quite different from the present day. There was a jury of 500 men drawn from the citizens. Both the accusers and the defendant had to make speeches in person to the jury. Guilt or innocence was by majority vote. There was no preset penalty if the verdict was 'guilty'. Both the accuser and the defendant would make speeches proposing what the penalty should be. Again, a vote was taken.

paragraphs: There were two charges against him. The general theme was that Socrates was a menace to society. The first charge was of heresy, disbelief in the Gods. It was probably meant to cause prejudice amongst the jurymen. Actually, Socrates observed all the correct procedures of the religion of his times. The charge had been used successfully against another philosopher, Anaxagoras.

paragraphs: The second charge was that he corrupted the youth with his teachings. What was meant by this? Apparently, this was not about his personal relationship with his pupils. It was about the way he was thought to influence their political views. His circle had included a number of right-wing aristocrats whose ideas were now rejected by most citizens. The brilliant Alcibiades, once a great leader of Athens, was now seen as a traitor.

paragraphs: Crito, a friend of Socrates, illegally paid the prison guards to allow Socrates to escape. Socrates, however, decided not to escape. When Socrates was put on trial, he gave a long speech to defend himself against the claims made by the Athens government.

paragraphs: We have Plato's version of how Socrates defended himself, in the "Apologia". It starts:

paragraphs: When Socrates was asked to propose his punishment, Socrates said that the government should give him free dinners for the rest of his life for all the good that he did for society. The court held a vote between giving Socrates a fine to pay or putting him to death. The verdict was that Socrates was to be put to death.

paragraphs: Socrates did not fear death. He did not try to avoid death by apologizing for his actions because he thought it was morally right to stand by his principles. Socrates was ordered to drink a cup of hemlock (a poisonous liquid got from the plant). He drank it and died soon after.

paragraphs: There are several dialogues by Plato which deal directly with the trial of Socrates and the period up to his death. They are, in order of the events:

paragraphs: Socrates helped people to see what was wrong with their ideas. Sometimes they liked this, sometimes they were not happy or grateful. He said that he, Socrates, was not wise, but that he "knew that he knew nothing." Since other people think they know something, but no one really knows anything, Socrates claimed he knew more than anyone else. He said that people who do bad things do so because they do not know any better.

paragraphs: People think that Socrates was a good man because he did no harm, except he asked questions about everything. However, during his life many people thought he was a bad person, because he asked those questions and because he made young people unhappy about their lives.

paragraphs: Someone once wrote that Socrates said that "A life that was not examined was not worth living". This means that someone must think about their own life and its purpose. Some people believe that most humans are happier if they do not think too much about their life.

paragraphs: Socrates also taught that many people can look at something and not truly see it. He asked questions about the meaning of life and goodness. These are still very important questions. Much of philosophy (love of wisdom) is about these things.

paragraphs: Socrates is seen by some people as a martyr, since he willingly died to support the idea that knowledge and wisdom are very important to our lives.

paragraphs: Socrates is known as one of the most important philosophers in history. He is often described as the father of Western philosophy. He did not start Western philosophy, but he had a big influence on it. Before Socrates, philosophy was mainly about mathematics and answering questions about our natural world. Socrates expanded on that and added questions about ethics, politics, and epistemology to philosophy.


title: Dante Alighieri

paragraphs: Dante Alighieri (), known simply as Dante (, , ; c. 1265 – September 14, 1321), was a major Italian poet of the Late Middle Ages/Early Renaissance. His central work, the "Commedia" ("Divine Comedy"), is considered the greatest literary work composed in the Italian language and a masterpiece of world literature. In Italian he is known as "the Supreme Poet" ("il Sommo Poeta"). Dante and the "Divine Comedy" have been a source of inspiration for artists for almost seven centuries. Dante, alongside Petrarch and Boccaccio, is known as one of "the three fountains", and is often referred to as "the Father of the Italian language". The first biography written on him was by his contemporary Giovanni Villani. The most famous section in "The Divine Comedy" is the first third of it, the first 34 cantos of the poem, called "Inferno", which features Dante's vision of Hell.

paragraphs: Dante Alighieri was born in 1265, between May 14 and June 13, under the name "Durante Alighieri." ca. 1450 (Uffizi Gallery). His family was important in Florence, and supported the Papacy.

paragraphs: The poet's mother was Bella degli Abati. She died when Dante was seven years old, and Alighiero soon married again, to Lapa di Chiarissimo Cialuffi. Lapa had two children, Dante's brother Francesco and sister "Tana" ( short version of "Gaetana").

paragraphs: Dante fought in the front of the Guelph troops in the battle of Campaldino (June 11, 1289). After the victory Dante gained an important part in public life.

paragraphs: When Dante was 12, in 1277, he married Gemma di Manetto Donati. Dante had already fallen in love with another girl, Beatrice Portinari that is mentioned same in "Divine Comedy", (known also as Bice). Years after Dante's marriage to Gemma he met Beatrice again. He had become interested in writing poems.

paragraphs: Dante had six children with Gemma: Jacopo, Pietro, Giovanni, Gabrielle Alighieri, and Antonia.

paragraphs: Not much is known about Dante's education, and it is presumed he studied at home. It is known that he studied Tuscan poetry. His interests brought him to discover the Occitan poetry of the troubadours and the Latin poetry of classical antiquity (with a particular devotion to Virgil).

paragraphs: At 18, Dante met Guido Cavalcanti, Lapo Gianni, Cino da Pistoia, and soon after Brunetto Latini; together they became the leaders of "Dolce Stil Novo" ("The Sweet New Style"). Brunetto later received a special mention in the "Divine Comedy" ("Inferno", XV, 28), for what he had taught Dante.

paragraphs: According to his work, "La Vita Nuova", when he was nine years old he met Beatrice Portinari, daughter of Folco Portinari, with whom he fell in love "at first sight", and apparently without even having spoken to her. He saw her frequently after age 18, often exchanging greetings in the street, but he never knew her well—he effectively set the example for the so-called "courtly love". Dante gave his imprint to the Stil Novo. Love for Beatrice (as in a different manner Petrarch would show for his Laura) would apparently be the reason for poetry and for living, together with political passions. In many of his poems, she appears such as semi-divine, watching over him constantly.

paragraphs: When Beatrice died in 1290, Dante tried to find "help" in Latin literature.

paragraphs: He then dedicated himself to philosophical studies at religious schools like the Dominican one in Santa Maria Novella. This "excessive" passion for philosophy would later be criticized by the character Beatrice, in "Purgatorio", the second book of the "Divine Comedy".

paragraphs: Boniface quickly dismissed the other delegates and asked Dante alone to remain in Rome. At the same time (November 1, 1301), Charles de Valois entered Florence with Black Guelphs, who in the next six days destroyed much of the city and killed many of their enemies. A new Black Guelph government was installed and Messer Cante dei Gabrielli di Gubbio was appointed "Podestà" of Florence. Dante was put in exile for two years, and ordered to pay a large hill of money.

paragraphs: Dante did not pay the money, in part because he believed he was not guilty, and in part because all his needs in Florence had been stolen by the Black Guelphs. He was condemned to exile for life, and if he returned to Florence without paying the money, he could be burned at the stake.

paragraphs: In exile he began searching the foundation for the "Divine Comedy", a work in 100 cantos, divided into three books of thirty-three cantos each, with a single introductory canto.

paragraphs: He went to Verona as a guest of Bartolomeo I della Scala, then moved to Sarzana in Liguria. Later, he is supposed to have lived in Lucca with Madame Gentucca. Some not sure sources say that he was also in Paris between 1308 and 1310. In 1310, the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII of Luxembourg, marched 5,000 troops into Italy. Dante saw in him a new Charlemagne who would restore the office of the Holy Roman Emperor for re-take Florence from the Black Guelphs. He wrote to Henry and several Italian princes, demanding that they destroy the Black Guelphs. Mixing religion and private concerns, he invoked the worst anger of God against his city, suggesting several particular targets that coincided with his personal enemies. It was during this time that he wrote the first two books of the "Divine Comedy".

paragraphs: When Dante died at Ravenna, the custodians of the body at Ravenna put the bones in a false wall of the monastery. Nevertheless, in 1829, a tomb was built for him in Florence in the basilica of Santa Croce. That tomb has been empty ever since, with Dante's body remaining in Ravenna, far from the land he loved so dearly. The front of his tomb in Florence reads "Onorate l'altissimo poeta" – which roughly translates as "Honour the most exalted poet".


title: Virginia Woolf

paragraphs: Virginia Woolf (25 January 1882 – 28 March 1941) was an English writer, essayist and feminist.

paragraphs: She was born into a well-known family. Her father, Leslie Stephen, was a Victorian scholar. Her mother, born in India, was a favourite model of the Preraphaelite artists. Her sister, Vanessa Bell, was a painter. She had two brothers; one of them, Thoby, died in 1906.

paragraphs: Her mother died when she was thirteen and four years later her half-sister Stella died. In these times Virginia started to have her psychological, or mental problems. She had bipolar disorder in the time when few people knew this illness and most thought she was strange.

paragraphs: After the death of her mother, Leslie Stephen was not able to keep good relations in the family. Virginia and her sister Vanessa were sexually abused by their half-brothers George and Gerald. It affected Virginia for the rest of her life.

paragraphs: In their childhood, all the Stephens children wrote diaries, but only Virginia kept it for her whole life (and after her death, lots of them were published). It was important for her when she was sexually abused, because there was no one with whom she could talk about it. In the diary, she could write everything.

paragraphs: After her father's death, Virginia and her brothers and sister moved to Bloomsbury, London and there they became members of the famous group of artists called Bloomsbury Group. Here Virginia met writer Leonard Woolf (1880-1969), whom she was married to from 1912 until her death. Together, they moved to Richmond, where they opened a publishing office called Hogarth House Press, which later published all of Virginia's novels and essays.

paragraphs: She was bisexual. When she was a teenager, she fell in love with Violet Dickinson and she wrote her lots of love letters. Violet probably never loved her back. Later, Virginia had a sexual relationship with Vita Sackville-West, a writer and a poet. Their letters, which have been published, show how deeply they were in love.

paragraphs: Her most famous novels are "Mrs Dalloway" and "To the Lighthouse". She completed "Mrs Dalloway" in 1925. It is about a day in the life of an English woman called Clarissa Dalloway. Clarissa is throwing a party and she spends the entire day preparing. The story can appear stupid, but it is not so important in the book. What's more important are the feelings, the colours, or the mood of the story.

paragraphs: "To the Lighthouse" was published in 1927 for the first time. It is about a family of Ramsays and its friends. These people are altogether spending a summer in Ramsay's house on an island. The youngest of Ramsays children, James, wants to go to the lighthouse, but they can't go there because of bad weather. In the next part of the book, James is ten years older and his father is taking him to the lighthouse, although he doesn't want to go there anymore.

paragraphs: Virginia Woolf is also an author of these novels: "Jacob's Room" (1923), "Orlando" (1928) and "The Waves" (1931). She was a feminist and she wrote a few essays about women's position in the society, for example "The Room of One's Own" and "Three Guineas".

paragraphs: On 28 March 1941, Woolf drowned herself by filling her overcoat pockets with stones and walking into the River Ouse near her home. Her body was not found until 18 April. Her husband buried her cremated remains beneath an elm tree in the garden of Monk's House, their home in Rodmell, Sussex.

paragraphs: In 1998, American writer Michael Cunningham wrote a novel in which she appeared, called "The Hours" (a winner of the Pulitzer award), which is best known because of the "same named movie", in which the role of Virginia was played by actress Nicole Kidman. Kidman won an Oscar for her performance.

paragraphs: Rather better known is "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf", in which her name is used as a catch-phrase by the lead couple. This was a play, and then a film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The film won five Academy Awards.