title: Mount Garibaldi

paragraphs: Mount Garibaldi is an eroded, dacitic strato volcano in southwestern British Columbia. Both Garibaldi and Mount Baker to its south are part of the Cascade volcanic arc. Mount Garibaldi, 80 km due north of Vancouver, is made up of Mount Garibaldi, Atwell Peak,and Dalton Dome. This Pleistocene volcanic center is part of a volcanic field that contains some 13 vents in an area 30 km long by 15 km wide, much of which is in Garibaldi Provincial Park.

paragraphs: The eruptive history of Mt Garibaldi involves an initial period of volcanism (200,000-300,000 years ago) followed by a period of quiescence. Renewed activity in the last 50,000 years has rebuilt the edifice in a series of violent eruptions, like when Mount Pelee erupted in 1902 and destroyed the town of St. Pierre on the island of Martinique. As successive pyroclastic flows travelled down the mountain's gentle slopes and were deposited, the volcano took on a broad, conical form. Part of the volcano's southwest flank built out onto thick glacial ice filling the Squamish River valley. Subsequent rapid melting of the ice at the close of the last ice age removed support from the western part of the cone. The volcano collapsed,producing much of the existing rugged topography of Mount Garibaldi and Atwell Peak. This catastrophic failure left a scarp on which is exposed the internal structure of the volcano and a debris fan with an estimated volume of 150,000,000 m at the foot of the mountain north of the town of Squamish. As valley glaciers retreated, two lava flows erupted Clinker Peak, immediately north of Mt. Garibaldi. The northernmost Rubble Creek flow was party confined by a wall of ice, resulting in a lava flow over 244 m (800 ft) thick. The steep, northern edge of the Rubble Creek flow party collapsed several times, most recently in 1855-1856; the village of Garibaldi was abandoned because of the danger of future collapses. The most recent period of activity occurred shortly after the disappearance of the glacial ice filling the valley, 10,700 to 9,300 radiocarbon years ago, and ended with the eruption the Ring Creek lava flow from Opal cone on Garibaldi's southeastern flank.

paragraphs: The Ring Creek flow is very unusual. It is 15 km long - a length usually only attained by basalt flows,except that the Ring Creek flow is dacite. Renewed volcanism in the Garibaldi area would pose a serious threat to the local communities of Whistler and Squamish. Although no

paragraphs: Plinian-style eruptions are known, even Pelean-type eruptions could produce large quantities of ash that could rise to several hundred meters above the volcano. As it is close to Vancouver, this would make it a hazard for air traffic. The danger from lava flows would be low to moderate because the nature of the lavas would prevent them from travelling far from their source,even though the Ring Creek lava flow ends only 6 km from Squamish. Melting of remnant glacial ice capping the Mt. Garibaldi area could produce floods, lahars,or debris flows that might endanger small communities including Brackendale.

paragraphs: Highway 99, which links Whistler and Squamish with Vancouver, is already plagued by landslides and dedris flows from the precipitous Coast Mountains. An eruption producing floods could destroy segments of the highway. Flooding and debris flows could also have serious coneequences for the salmon fishery on the Squamish, Cheakamus, and Mamquam rivers. In addition,explosive eruptions and the accompanying ash could cause short and long-term water-supply problems for Vancouver and much of the lower mainland. The catchment area for the Greater Vancouver watershed is downwind from the Garibaldi area. Air-fall material could also have a deleterious effect on the ice fields to the east of Mt. Garibaldi, causing increased melting and spring flooding. This in turn could theaten water supplies from Pitt Lake as well as fisheries on the Pitt River.


title: Mount Meager

paragraphs: Mount Meager is a potentially active volcano in the Canadian province of British Columbia, Canada, 150 kilometers north of Vancouver. The top of the mountain is mostly covered by snow and glaciers. It lies in the Garibaldi Volcanic Belt and is the northernmost volcano of the Cascade Volcanic Arc that extends down to northern California. Its most common type of rock is lava that is almost a million years old (with a thickness in some places over 1 km).

paragraphs: The mountain is part of the Pacific Ranges of mountains and is 2,680 meters (8,793 feet) high. It was previously called "Cathedral Mountain".

paragraphs: Meager is known for its last major eruption about 2,350 years ago. The strange thing about the eruption was the fact it released the debris from the northeast side of the volcano, as rock and ash blocked a major river called the Lillooet River. The river was dammed to a height of at least 100 meters, forming a lake. The lake reached a maximum elevation of 810 meters and was at least 50 meters deep. The breccia soon eroded from water activity within the lake, forming Keyhole Falls. There was a massive flood when the water first broke through the breccia, carrying small house sized blocks of breccia. During this eruption, ash was hurled into the air over 20 kilometers above sea level. The ash was carried eastward as far as Alberta.

paragraphs: Meager is an unstable volcano. It is built of unstable volcanic and has dumped clay and rock several meters deep into the Perberton Valley at least three times during the last 7,300 years. Two earlier debris flows, around 4,450 and 7,300 years ago, sent rubble at least 32 kilometers from the volcano. Recently, the volcano has created smaller landslides about every ten years, including one in 1975 that killed four geologists near Meager Creek. Logging, mining, tourism and wilderness recreation on nearby slopes and valleys are vulnerable to the volcano’s excellent geomorphic activity. The possibility of Mount Meager covering settled parts of the Pemberton Valley in a debris flow is estimated at about one in 2400 years. There is no sign of volcanic eruptions with these events, however scientists warn the volcano could release another massive debris flow over populated areas anytime without warning.

paragraphs: The explosive nature of past eruptions at Mount Meager indicates that this volcano also poses a considerable long-distance treat to communities across southern British Columbia and Alberta. It is also a local treat to the town of Pemberton, British Columbia, about 50 km away. Another explosive eruption at Mount Meager would also have a considerable impact on local mining and logging operations, as well as significant negative impacts on the Lillooet River fishery.


title: Metaphysics

paragraphs: Metaphysics is a major branch of philosophy. It concerns existence and the nature of things that exist. Altogether it is a theory of reality.

paragraphs: Ontology is the part of metaphysics which discusses "what" exists: the categories of being. Apart from ontology, metaphysics concerns the "nature" of, and "relations" among, the things that exist.

paragraphs: The metaphysical idea that reality exists independently of one's mind and yet can be known is called realism. The metaphysical idea that no mind-independent reality exists or can be known is idealism. These are two main battlegrounds of metaphysics.

paragraphs: In the West, metaphysics is usually traced to the natural philosophers in ancient Greece, where Aristotle systematized a metaphysical description of nature equivalent to today's theoretical science.

paragraphs: By the 4th century AD in Alexandria, Egypt, alchemy was starting its transformation into chemistry. The conventional view is that alchemy was steeped in mysticism, and that chemistry did not quite become what we would call science until it entered the 19th century.

paragraphs: In the early 17th century, Galileo introduced to physics his experiments with earthly objects: the dawn of empirical science in Western Europe. Galilean laws of motion led to the overthrow of Aristotle's ideas, a revolution more or less completed by the wide acceptance of Cartesian physics, built upon Copernican and Galilean mechanics.

paragraphs: Newtonian physics rapidly replaced Cartesian physics. Isaac Newton, like others that we now call "scientists", was known as a "natural philosopher". In the 1830s, Auguste Comte created positivism, the first modern philosophy of science. It sought the divorce of science from religion and metaphysics.

paragraphs: In 1847, Hermann von Helmholtz's paper "On the conservation of energy", stated the first law of thermodynamics, and tried to reduce physiology to physics. In 1859, Darwin proposed an explanation of evolution by natural selection. Both seemed plausible and compatible with physical theory.

paragraphs: By the 1860s, the term "science" (as meaning something distinct from "philosophy") entered the dictionary. Today the term "metaphysics" usually refers to discussion of aspects of reality which are beyond physics. Particularly among those seeking to be scientific, the term "metaphysics" can be pejorative to varying degrees. However, philosophers of science recognize that science is impossible without metaphysics. At the very least, before beginning empirical investigation, one needs an ontology. This is because categories are needed to sort observations into.


title: Washington (state)

paragraphs: Washington is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is north of Oregon, west of Idaho, east of the Pacific Ocean, and south of British Columbia. (British Columbia is part of Canada.) There are more than 6,000,000 people in Washington. Most live in the western part of Washington, which gets more rain. About a quarter of the people live in the east part, where it gets less rain, and some parts have a desert climate. The largest city on the east part is Spokane, and it is also the second biggest city in the state. The Cascade Mountains go down the middle of the state and break it into two sides. The state's nickname is the "Evergreen State" because it has a lot of pine trees. Washington was the 42nd state to join the United States, on November 11, 1889. It is often called "Washington State" so that it does not get confused with the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. The name "Washington" comes from President George Washington.

paragraphs: The capital of Washington is Olympia. Olympia is a small city on the west side of Washington, at the south end of Puget Sound. Washington's biggest city is Seattle, Seattle is also on Puget Sound.

paragraphs: Washington has many beautiful forests, rivers, gorges (gorges are small canyons), and mountains. Because it's next to the ocean, it has a long beach. However, because Washington is north of Oregon and California (the other two states on the West Coast of the United States), the ocean is cold, and usually not good to swim in.

paragraphs: The biggest universities in Washington are the University of Washington and Washington State University. The University of Washington is in Seattle. Washington State University is in a small town called Pullman. Pullman is on the east side of the state.

paragraphs: The state of Washington has an extremely varied geography, and therefore an extremely varied climate. The map shows western cities have shipping access. These are the low-lying parts on the next to the Pacific Ocean. The western side of the mountains is wet and forested with conifers. Some areas are temperate rain forests (in the Olympic Mountains).

paragraphs: The central area is mountainous, including five volcanos: Mount Baker, Glacier Peak, Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Adams. To the east of the mountains the land is dry and mostly dry grassland (high plains). Only one feature links the west to the east: the important Snake River, a tributary of the even larger Columbia River.

paragraphs: There are three National Parks and two National Monuments in Washington:

paragraphs: Nine national forests are located (at least partly) in Washington:

paragraphs: 31 wildernesses are located (at least partly) in Washington, like:

paragraphs: 23 National Wildlife Refuges are located (at least partly) in Washington like:

paragraphs: There are many large military-related reservations, like:


title: Clematis

paragraphs: Clematis is a genus of plants that is widely known for its beautiful flowers.

paragraphs: There are many varieties in this group as gardeners around the world have produced many varieties. They can be found not only in Western countries but also in Japan.

paragraphs: This plant grows up as a vine. It uses its leaflets and leaf stalks to twine around any support. In nature it often climbs up a nearby tree. The original species can mostly be found in temperate areas on Earth. Some species can also be found on high mountains.


title: Rational number

paragraphs: In mathematics, a rational number is a number that can be written as a fraction. The set of rational number is often represented by the symbol formula_1, standing for "quotient" in English.

paragraphs: Rational numbers are all real numbers, and can be positive or negative. A number that is not rational is called irrational.

paragraphs: Most of the numbers that people use in everyday life are rational. These include fractions, integers and numbers with finite decimal digits. In general, a number that can be written as a fraction while it is in its own form is rational.

paragraphs: All rational numbers can be written as a fraction. Take 1.5 as an example, this can be written as formula_2, formula_3, or formula_4.

paragraphs: More examples of fractions that are rational numbers include formula_5, formula_6, and formula_7.

paragraphs: A terminating decimal is a decimal with a certain number of digits to the right of the decimal point. Examples include 3.2, 4.075, and -300.12002. All of these are rational. Another good example would be 0.9582938472938498234.

paragraphs: A repeating decimal is a decimal where there are infinitely many digits to the right of the decimal point, but which follow a repeating pattern.

paragraphs: An example of this is formula_8. As a decimal, it is written as 0.3333333333... The dots indicate that the digit 3 repeats forever.

paragraphs: Sometimes, a group of digits repeats. An example is formula_9. As a decimal, it is written as 0.09090909... In this example, the group of digits 09 repeats.

paragraphs: Also, sometimes the digits repeat "after" another group of digits. An example is formula_10. It is written as 0.16666666... In this example, the digit 6 repeats, following the digit 1.

paragraphs: If you try this on your calculator, sometimes it may make a rounding error at the end. For instance, your calculator may say that formula_11, even though there is no 7. It rounds the 6 at the end up to 7.

paragraphs: The digits after the decimal point in an irrational number do not repeat in an infinite pattern. For instance, the first several digits of π (Pi) are 3.1415926535... A few of the digits repeat, but they never start repeating in an infinite pattern, no matter how far you go to the right of the decimal point.


title: Saint Patrick's Day

paragraphs: Saint Patrick's Day is the feast day of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, and a day of celebration for Irish people. Saint Patrick’s Day is also called Paddy’s day.

paragraphs: It is celebrated on March 17 all over Ireland and everywhere in the world where Irish people or their descendants live. New York City has one of the biggest parades. It is a very Irish festival, and it involves a lot of feasting and celebration, including traditional Irish music, drinking beer, and eating bacon and cabbage. Another tradition of Saint Patrick’s day is that one has to wear green clothing or they will be pinched.

paragraphs: Green is the color of Saint Patrick's day as it is the national color of Ireland. People often wear green on that day or have some type of shamrock on their clothing. It is very normal that they wear a Shamrock, a three leaved plant which is also a symbol for Ireland.

paragraphs: The first St. Patrick's Day parade in Ireland was held in Waterford in 1903. In the beginning, it was a 3 day long celebration, but now it is a 5-day celebration.


title: Edgar Cayce

paragraphs: Edgar Cayce (March 18, 1877 – January 3, 1945), known as "The Sleeping Prophet" and "America's Greatest Mystic", is one of America's famous psychics. He wanted people to think of him as a healer and not a psychic.

paragraphs: Cayce worked in a trance. This means he could talk while sleeping and answered questions about a person's health, past and future. This information is called "readings". At first, these readings were about the physical health of the person ("physical readings"). Later, there were readings on "past lives", "business advice", "dream interpretation", and also "mental or spiritual health". The Association for Research and Enlightenment (ARE) currently takes care of all of his readings and follow-ups to the readings. The readings have had a large effect on New Age thinking.

paragraphs: Edgar Cayce was born on March 18,1877 near Hopkinsville, Kentucky. He read the Bible many times starting when he was 10 years old. He wanted to tell people about God and heal them. His family worked on a farm.

paragraphs: His family moved to Hopkinsville in December, 1893. Edgar's first jobs (1894 – 1898) were at Richard's Dry Goods Store. He next worked in Hopper's Bookstore. Both stores were located on Main Street. He married Gertrude Evans in 1903.

paragraphs: In 1900, Cayce went into business with his father. They sold insurance. Cayce became very sick with laryngitis in March. In April 18, he could not talk at all. He had to live at home with his parents for almost a year. He became a photographer because it did not require talking. He worked in the photography studio of W. R. Bowles in Hopkinsville.

paragraphs: A hypnotist and entertainer called Hart was entertaining at the Hopkinsville Opera House in 1901. He heard that Cayce was sick and asked if he could try to cure him. Cayce said yes and the entertainer tried to cure Cayce in front of an audience. Cayce was able to talk while in a hypnotic trance but when he woke up he could not talk. Hart hypnotized Cayce so that his voice would be normal after the trance but Cayce's voice did not become normal.

paragraphs: Hart had to leave. Another hypnotist, Al Layne, continued to help Cayce have a normal voice. Layne asked Cayce to tell him the cause of his illness and it's cure while in a trance. Cayce described his illness from a first person plural point of view – 'we' – instead of the singular "I." In later readings, he would usually start off with "We have the body." In the reading, Cayce said his voice loss was because of psychological paralysis and that could be fixed by increasing the blood flow to the voice box. Layne suggested that the blood flow be increased and Cayce's face turned red with blood and his chest area turned bright red. After 20 minutes, Cayce, still in a trance, said the treatment was over. When he woke up his voice stayed normal. He would get sick again, but was cured by Layne in the same way and later he was cured perfectly.

paragraphs: Cayce's work grew as his fame grew. He asked for people to give him money to support himself and his family so that he could work full-time. He continued to work in a trance state with a hypnotist all his life. His wife and oldest son later replaced Layne in this role. A secretary, Gladys Davis, took notes. Many believe that Cayce had an affair with Ms. Davis later in life - but a medical examination conducted after Cayce's death to treat Davis's uterine cancer allegedly showed that she was still a virgin at that time.

paragraphs: In 1929 the Cayce hospital was created in Virginia Beach. The cost of the hospital was paid for by Morton Blumenthal, a New York stockbroker, Cayce hospital benefactor.

paragraphs: Cayce became famous in the United States in 1943 because of an article in "Coronet" magazine. He increased his readings to 8 times a day to try to keep up. This caused problems with his health.

paragraphs: The trance reading caused problems with Cayce’s health which were easily seen. On the times when he could not give a clear reading, he said it was because he was working under too great a pressure. In these cases, he always gave the money back to the person he was giving a reading to.

paragraphs: Edgar Cayce died on January 3, 1945. He had predicted his own death four days earlier.

paragraphs: Edgar Cayce is famous for the thousands of "readings" that he gave while he was hypnotized. He gave more than 14,000 readings in 43 years. Gladys Davis, his assistant, recorded the readings and his wife, Gertrude Evans Cayce, guided him during hypnosis.

paragraphs: In the beginning, his readings were known as "physical readings" (health readings). Cayce often called the body "the organism". Cayce would put himself under self-hypnosis. While he seemed to sleep, he would say where the person was. He would sometimes name the streets along the way. He would then say "Yes, we see the body", and describe the client's organ, circulatory, and nervous systems. He would give reasons for illness or problems. A message would then be given to the person telling them how to get better. The readings were so specialized that treatments were often changed, or not even given, if the person would not follow his advice. People often came to Cayce for health readings when the medical community could find nothing wrong or had given up on them.

paragraphs: In a life reading, Cayce described the "past lives" of the client. These readings described the client's present physical, emotional and mental condition in terms of past life experience. Cayce was not above flattering his clients by describing past lives as royalty, famous people, or people at their "spiritual highest".

paragraphs: For those people whose intentions Cayce believed to be "pure", Cayce would give business readings. These included advice on business partners, the stock market, and business models. Cayce also founded and guided the A.R.E..

paragraphs: Edgar Cayce encouraged everyone to interpret and use his or her own dreams in day-to-day life. A dream reading involved Cayce interpreting the dreams of clients. As he did with readings on many subjects, Cayce would often interrupt the person reading the dream and give an interpretation before the dream had been completely read. He would sometimes fill in parts of dreams that the dreamer had supposedly forgotten. Unlike Jungian or Freudian dream interpretation, Cayce did not emphasize highly the importance of symbols. He said that every individual has his or her own unique symbols. Cayce claimed that in dreams people could receive valuable insight into their own lives and that the insight was always of use to the dreamer. Besides regular daily insight into one's life, he claimed people could communicate with loved ones dead or alive, remember past life experiences, see a possible future and experience many other psychic phenomena. He stated that these paranormal abilities were something anyone could learn.

paragraphs: These readings were often short and were Cayce's favorite type of reading when not in his supposed trance state. They focused on what an individual could do to achieve a better mental/spiritual life.

paragraphs: Other Readings are miscellaneous subject matter that does not fit into an above category. The subject matter differs from missing persons, buried treasure, readings given to a spiritual development group, psychic abilities, auras, prophecy, structure of reality, geology and many other topics.

paragraphs: For many people, the readings had a powerful impact on attitudes, beliefs, health practices, outlook on life, matters of faith and many other areas.

paragraphs: Abilities that have been claimed for Cayce include:

paragraphs: Cayce himself did not claim to be able to do all these things.

paragraphs: Cayce had difficulty in believing some of the things he said when he was hypnotized. For example, having been raised a devout Christian, for a long time he could not believe that reincarnation was real. Books such as Frederick Oliver's A Dweller On Two Planets and Marie Corelli's novels were probably easily accessible to Cayce at his bookstore. Corelli's writings in particular seek to reconcile mystical beliefs such as reincarnation with Christianity, and Cayce may have been subconsciously trying to accept this idea.

paragraphs: Cayce also claimed while in a supposed trance that the Essenes had believed in reincarnation but that view was expunged from the Bible following a papal council decision in around 500 AD. Essene belief in reincarnation is debatable, as with ancient Egyptian religion.

paragraphs: During a hypnosis session, Cayce mentioned a former life as Ra Ta, an Egyptian healer-priest. He told a long story about working with the legendary doctor-magician Hermes-Thoth, who he said was reincarnated as Jesus. Cayce also specified that Jesus had lived a number of incarnations throughout human history.

paragraphs: One of Cayce's trance statements implies that knowledge gained through his readings is "not" necessary if a person is well grounded in one's faith: "Does it make one a better husband, a better businessman, a better neighbor, a better artist, a better churchman, if so cleave to it, if not reject it."

paragraphs: The readings also warn against the misuse of religion for personal gain. 'God is not mocked' is an often quoted verse in the readings.

paragraphs: Many skeptics say that Cayce did not have paranormal abilities. Cayce himself said that not all the information given during "readings" was correct and should be analyzed. He criticized his own organization, the A.R.E , on a number of occasions for not doing enough research on the validity of the readings.

paragraphs: In addition, although Cayce's secretary Miss Davis allegedly took down what Cayce said, the records of the readings are jumbled and chaotic. There is nothing to distinguish what Cayce himself independently said, what was the information provided in the letters, and what his handlers – physicians, osteopaths and hypnotists – told him. Thus, researchers cannot say that Cayce ever made an accurate diagnosis without knowing anything about the person at the other end. What is known is that by the time he got some of the letters, the client had already died. Yet Cayce went on with his reading for the individual as though still alive.

paragraphs: Critics also cite the vagueness of his language while in his supposed trance state. Martin Gardner gives several examples of this, including a reading Cayce did for his own wife, who had tuberculosis:

paragraphs: "[F]rom the head, pains along through the body from the second, fifth and sixth dorsals, and from the first and second lumbar ... tie-ups here, floating lesions, or lateral lesions, in the muscular and nerve fibers which supply the lower end of the lung and the diaphragm ... in conjunction with the sympathetic nerve of the solar plexus, coming in conjunction with the solar plexus at the end of the stomach..."

paragraphs: Many of his health readings prescribed cures with ingredients that did not exist. Others were folk remedies, some well known to today's herbalists and naturopaths, but Cayce would sometimes describe them using terms that had fallen out of general use. Still other ingredients were completely unknown to either physicians or herbalists. Some were completely worthless; for example, Cayce once recommended breathing the fumes of apple brandy from a charred keg to cure tuberculosis.

paragraphs: The many Cayce readings would later become commonly known practices of the New Age movement.

paragraphs: In 1931 Edgar Cayce founded the Association for Research and Enlightenment, Inc. (A.R.E.) headquartered in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Today there are Edgar Cayce Centers in 18 other countries throughout the world.


title: Hibiscus syriacus

paragraphs: Hibiscus syriacus is one of the common flowering shrubs found in gardens, a species of "Hibiscus". Common names for the same plant include Rose of Sharon (but it is not a rose), rose mallow, shrub-althaea, Syrian hibiscus, Syrian ketmia, and St Joseph's rod.

paragraphs: The part of the name "syriacus" seems to say that the origin of this plant is from Syria, but the exact origin is so far unknown. Historically it was grown in ancient China and then it became a popular plant in Korea. Today the flowers are national symbols of Korea. In Japan, the flowers are often shown at tea ceremonies for decoration.

paragraphs: There are many variations of flowers in gardens, because gardeners of the past were able to find different colors and shapes of flowers, and grow their seeds.


title: Hibiscus

paragraphs: Hibiscus or rosemallow is a genus of plants with a flower of bright colors. It grows mostly in the tropics, but some species grow in cool climates. Hibiscus often become national/state flowers. For example, the Hawaiian hibiscus is the state flower of Hawaii.

paragraphs: The flower usually has five petal. Hibiscus comes in many colours like white to pink, red, purple and yellow.

paragraphs: There are many types (species) of Hibiscus. The most popular ones in gardens are:

paragraphs: "Hibiscus trionum" is a common weed in gardens and farms.


title: Maceió

paragraphs: Maceió is the capital of Alagoas, a state in the Northeast of Brazil. It has a population of 884.320 people (estimate from the year 2000) and a total area of 512 square km.

paragraphs: The city attracts many tourists and it enjoys an important location between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mundaú Lake. Maceió has several urban beaches which are visited by many tourists, for example, the beaches named Pajuçara, Ponta Verde, Jatiúca and Cruz das Almas, famous for their natural beauty.

paragraphs: Maceió originated from a sugar cane engine where initially a village increased around it. Soon the place gained a port, nowadays in Jaraguá district, that as long as years were gone influenced the village development transforming it into a city. Its condition of port city made Maceió to be the state capital in 1839, which was earlier on Santa Maria Madalena da Alagoa do Sul (Saint Mary Magdalene of the Southern Lake) or simply Alagoa do Sul (nowadays the historic city of Marechal Deodoro).

paragraphs: The community of Pajussara is on the ocean coast of Maceió, with modern streets and avenues, many shops, clubs and hotels in front of the sea. Its beach is very attractive and visited by many tourists and natives. In Pajussara beach, a nice place to go is a natural swimming pool 1.500 meters east of the coast and that is placed on a sand bank of the Atlantic Ocean. The pool is formed only when tide is low and people can get there by boat.

paragraphs: It is considered the most beautiful beach in the city. The community started from an old little farm named Ponta Verde that gave the neighborhood its name. The long extension of land was full of coconut trees and was a wild and quiet place. Currently the urbanization has taken all the area of Ponta Verde and many important events and shows of the city have happened there. The place has good hotels and restaurants and some of them are the best ones in the city.

paragraphs: Farol means lighthouse in Portuguese. The community is in an elevated area not far from the sea where the old lighthouse was that aided the ships to come in the port of the city. From this place is possible to see as the Atlantic Ocean as the Mundaú Lake and because of this the area was strategically important to military force in the Colonial age.

paragraphs: Jatiúca, besides Ponta Verde, is one of the most valued areas in the city in the ranking of the properties salesmen. It is a place with very nice hotels, resorts and restaurants that enjoy a good location in front of the sea. The seacoast in Jatiúca has a lot of beach bars.

paragraphs: Jaraguá has a historic importance because it is the initial point of the city and could be appropriately named Old Town. Maceió was just a village when the port of Jaraguá helped the little village to become a city in the 19th century. Currently some old buildings were transformed in bars and restaurants that are very attended at the weekends but the history of Maceió keeps preserved in many of the old and classic buildings, houses, manors and churches of Jaraguá.

paragraphs: The earlier dunes between the Mundaú Lake and the Atlantic Ocean gave place later to the community of fishermen and crafts men and women that currently inhabit this portion of land on the south of the city. Hospitality and beautiful handcrafts are good characteristics of this place. This is because the community of Pontal enjoy to welcome lots of visitors amazed with the incredible ability of the craft workers and the good taste of the typical seafood dishes.


title: Alagoas

paragraphs: Alagoas is a small coastal state in the Northeast Region of Brazil. Its capital city is Maceió, where tourism industry is one of the basis for the local economy. Other important cities in Alagoas are "Arapiraca", "Palmeira dos Índios", "Penedo", "Marechal Deodoro", and "Maragogi". The state has a total of 101 cities.

paragraphs: Alagoas' coastline has several beaches with coconut trees. Many of the beaches have calm water, because they are sheltered by the Atlantic Ocean sand banks and coral reefs. The state was named after some lagoons along the ocean coast.


title: René Descartes

paragraphs: René Descartes (31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a famous French philosopher and physicist. He wrote books that are very important in the fields of maths, physics and especially philosophy. His dualism statement combined soul, mind, body theories and elements into one concept; a dualistic theory of mind and matter.

paragraphs: In younger years he was a mercenary soldier.

paragraphs: In his "Rules for the Direction of the Mind" (1628) and his "Discourse on Method" (1637) Descartes wrote about the scientific method that deals with scientific approach, thinking, a method which he had invented. He also wrote about shapes (Geometry), light (optics), and the weather (Meteorology). He then invented a way of describing shapes now called the Cartesian coordinate system, and a theory of what a rainbow is. Descartes' physics was important for a later famous thinker, Sir Isaac Newton, who said about him and so did James Hook: "If I have seen further it is because I was standing on the shoulders of giants!"

paragraphs: In his "Meditations on First Philosophy" (1641) Descartes used his scientific method to look at philosophical questions. He argued against skepticism (the view that the world was not real, and did not exist).

paragraphs: He found that he himself must be real (exist), because he felt that he was thinking; and if he was thinking, then he must be real. This is because if he were not real, then how would he have this feeling that he was thinking. He shortened this view, saying in Latin, "Cogito ergo sum," meaning "I think, therefore I am."

paragraphs: He also thought he could show that God exists, in the same way that he felt that he was thinking. Descartes said that God was the same as infinity and that he could clearly see infinity because he could think of every larger object but no largest object. Descartes said that if God exists then the world must exist as well, since God was good and would not let us think the world is real (exists) if it was not real.

paragraphs: Finally, Descartes thought that because he knew he was thinking, but could only know anything else about himself (for example that he had two arms and two legs) because he knew that God exists, then he must be made up of two things: the mind that thinks and the body that is independent of thinking, yet they are united together. This is called "Cartesian Dualism".

paragraphs: Descartes used a lot of ideas related to Plato, while most people at that time used ideas related to Aristotle. He is often called a rationalist, because he looked inside his mind for answers to his questions. Although Descartes wanted to fight skepticism, his description of it in the meditations has become very famous and is often called Cartesian Skepticism after him.


title: Tanzania

paragraphs: Tanzania is a country in East Africa. The official languages are Kiswahili and English. It is next to Africa's biggest lake, Lake Victoria.

paragraphs: In 2017, there were about 54,000,000 people living in Tanzania. They are divided into 120 tribes; none have more than 10% of the population. Tanzania is a multicultural society. There are many languages & religions in Tanzania; the main ones being Christianity and Arabic.

paragraphs: The president of the United Republic of Tanzania is John Magufuli. Tanzania is a member of the United Nations, UNIDO, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement, SADC, PTA, and the ADB. It is also signatory to the Lome Convention.

paragraphs: Mainland Tanzania (formerly Tanganyika) received independence in December 1961, while Zanzibar gained her independence in January 1964, through a revolution. The two countries joined together to form the United Republic of Tanzania in April 1964. Until July 1992, Tanzania was a one-party state. Following a Presidential Commission, the country has started a multi-party political system. It has held successful general elections in 1995 and 2000.

paragraphs: Tanzania is home to the Serengeti. Many animals such as lions and cheetahs live there.

paragraphs: Tanzania is divided into 26 Regions. 21 are on the mainland and five in Zanzibar.

paragraphs: Tanzania's regions are: Arusha Dar es Salaam Dodoma Iringa Kagera Kigoma Kilimanjaro Lindi Manyara Mara Mbeya Morogoro Mtwara Mwanza Pemba North Pemba South Pwani Rukwa Ruvuma Shinyanga Singida Tabora Tanga Zanzibar Central/South Zanzibar North Zanzibar Urban/West


title: Kingdom of Great Britain

paragraphs: The Kingdom of Great Britain, named in the Acts of Union 1707 as Great Britain and described as the "United Kingdom of Great Britain" and "One Kingdom", was a state in the British Isles in Western Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1800. It was created by joining the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England, under the Acts of Union, to create a single kingdom that took in the whole of the island of Great Britain and many islands around it. A new single parliament and government, based in Westminster in London, controlled the new country. The two earlier kingdoms of Scotland and England had been in a personal union, sharing the same head of state since James VI, King of Scots, became King of England in 1603 following the death of Queen Elizabeth I.

paragraphs: In 1801, by the Act of Union 1800, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland were joined together into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the putting down of the Irish Rebellion of 1798.


title: Ford Model T

paragraphs: The Ford Model T was an American car built between 1908 and 1928 by the Ford Motor Company of Detroit, Michigan. It is one of the most important cars in history because it was one of the first cars to be sold for very little money, making it easy for people to travel from place to place.

paragraphs: The Model T, also known as the "Tin Lizzie", changed the way Americans live, work and travel. Henry Ford’s revolutionary advancements in assembly-line automobile manufacturing made the Model T the first car to be affordable for a majority of Americans. For the first time car ownership became a reality for average American workers, not just the wealthy. More than fifteen million Model Ts were built in Detroit and Highland Park, Michigan, and the automobile was also assembled at a Ford plant in Manchester, England, and at plants in continental Europe.

paragraphs: Before the Model T, most cars cost lots of money. Only rich people could afford them. Even Ford's cars before the Model T cost a lot. The Model T went for around $980. A car built in 1903 called the Oldsmobile Curved Dash was very easy to buy, but was a very simple and slow car that was more like a carriage than a car.

paragraphs: Even before it lost favor to larger, more powerful, and more luxurious cars, the Model T, known popularly as the "Tin Lizzie" or the "flivver", had become an American folkloric symbol, essentially realizing Ford’s goal to "democratize the automobile".

paragraphs: The man who owned the company, Henry Ford, heard about meat being cut on a disassembly line, which moved meat from worker to worker so that the meat could be cut up. Assembly lines were not much used at the time. Ford knew that if he built his cars on an assembly line instead of one at a time like other cars, he could make a car that anyone could afford and would be built like cars that cost more money. He also knew that he could pay his workers more money.

paragraphs: The Model T was offered in several body styles, including a five-seat touring car, a two-seat runabout, and a seven-seat town car. All bodies were mounted on a uniform 100-inch (2.5m)-wheelbase chassis. A choice of colors was originally available, but from 1913 to 1925 the car was mass-produced in only one color—black. The engine was simple and efficient, with all four cylinders cast in a single block and the cylinder head detachable for easy access and repair. The engine generated 20 horsepower and propelled the car to modest top speeds of 40–45 miles per hour (65–70 km/h). In most models the engine was started by a hand crank, which activated a magneto connected to the flywheel, but after 1920 some models were equipped with battery-powered starters.

paragraphs: The transmission, having two forward gears and one reverse, was of the planetary type, controlled by foot pedals rather than the more common hand lever used in sliding-gear transmissions. Spark and throttle were controlled by a hand lever on the steering column. The ten gallon fuel tank was located under the front seat. Because gasoline was fed to the engine only by gravity, and also because the reverse gear offered more power than the forward gears, the Model T frequently had to be driven up a steep hill backward. Such deficiencies, along with its homely appearance, less-than-comfortable ride at top speeds, and incessant rattling, made the Model T the butt of much affectionate humor in innumerable jokes, songs, poems, and stories.

paragraphs: The Ford Model T car was designed by Henry Ford, Childe Harolde Wills, and two Hungarian men named József Galamb and Eugene Farkas. The Model T had a 177-cubic-inch (2.9-litre) four-cylinder engine producing 20 horsepower (15 kW) for a top speed of 45 miles per hour (72 km/h). The engine had side valves and three main bearings. Fuel economy was 14 to 21 miles per gallon (11 to 17 l/100km).

paragraphs: Ford began building the Model T in his Piquette factory on October 6, 1908 as a 1909 model. Workers from all over the world wanted to work for Ford because of the good pay. Workers could even save their money for a Model T of their own. The price of the Model T dropped over the years, making it even easier to buy.

paragraphs: Work began at one end of the assembly line, starting with an empty chassis. From there, the chassis moved slowly down the assembly line. Workers on the assembly line added parts to the chassis. Before long, a new Model T rolled off the other end of the line. Different body styles were available, even a truck, or Model TT. At first, the only color available was black. Black paint was used because it was cheaper and lasted longer than other paints and Ford was obsessed with increasing profit. As car paint got better over the years, Ford began offering other colors. The time it took a chassis to become a finished car was over 12 hours when the first Model Ts were built. By the time the last Model T came off of the line, Ford had so many plants, it was making one car every twenty-seven seconds!

paragraphs: Even though the Model T sold for little money, Ford used the best materials he could buy to make his car. Most roads in the Model T's day were dirt, gravel, or even mud. That meant the Model T had to be very strong, and it was. The wheels and tyres were very tall and skinny so that they could sink into mud roads and not get stuck. It was also very simple.

paragraphs: Ford made the Model T easy to drive compared to today's cars since the people to whom he sold his cars did not know how to drive anything other than a horse. It is not like driving a modern car, though three pedals are on the floor like a modern manual transmission car. A Model T has a steering wheel that works the same way as in cars of today, but almost everything else is different.

paragraphs: The first Model Ts did not even have a starter like a modern car. This is the powerful electric motor in a car that turns the engine to make it run when it is turned off. The engine on the Model T was started with a hand crank on the front of the car. A wire loop near the radiator worked the choke on the carburetor to give the engine extra fuel to help start it when it was cold. This could be dangerous if the operator was not careful. If the levers that controlled the engine were not set the right way, especially the spark control, the engine could backfire, or spin the wrong way. Many people got broken arms this way. Doctors even had a name for this kind of break: the "Ford fracture". Many Model T owners added electric starters to their cars and it was not long before Ford started doing the same. A Model T is in high gear by default, so if the parking/clutch lever was not engaged, the car had a tendency to run over the operator when started.

paragraphs: To make a modern car go or accelerate once the engine is running, a person steps on a pedal on the floor to engage the transmission into low gear. To make a Model T accelerate, move two levers near the steering wheel. The lever on the right was the throttle (or engine speed), and the lever on the left adjusted the time that the spark plugs fired. These levers needed to be set properly before the engine could be started.

paragraphs: The three pedals on the floor of the Model T were for the brake on the right, reverse in the middle to make the Model T go backwards, and a pedal on the left to shift the gears from low to high speed. A lever on the floor worked the brakes as well as the clutch. Pulling the lever toward the driver would set the parking brake and help keep the car from moving while parked. When the lever was placed in the middle, the transmission would be in neutral.

paragraphs: Once the engine is running, the driver now has to make the Model T move on its own. Step on the pedal all the way to the left, move the throttle lever to "give it the gas" and gently move the floor lever forward. This is low gear, the powerful gear used to get the Model T moving. Once it is moving, move the right lever up, let the left pedal come all the way up, and give it more gas to shift into high. To make the car go faster still, move the throttle lever as well as the spark advance lever. Stepping on the left pedal only halfway puts the car in neutral, the same as the lever. This helps the Model T come to a stop without causing the engine to stop as well.

paragraphs: The brakes on a Model T work the rear wheels by the use of brake bands inside the transmission. Modern cars have brakes on all four wheels. No brakes are on the front wheels of a Model T.

paragraphs: More than fifteen million Model Ts were built. That record was not broken until 1971 by the Volkswagen Golf. Today, the record for the most cars built is held by the Toyota Corolla.

paragraphs: The Model T was nicknamed the "Tin Lizzie" and "Flivver" by the people who drove it. A new car took the place of the Model T in 1928, named the Ford Model A.


title: Volkswagen

paragraphs: Volkswagen is a car company from Germany. The word "volkswagen" means "People's car" in German. Its headquarters are in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. It was started in the 1930s, at the request of the country's leader, Adolf Hitler, to produce a car designed by Ferdinand Porsche.

paragraphs: In the 1930s Adolf Hitler was looking for someone who could make a cheap car that the common German worker could afford. At the same time, Ferdinand Porsche had been working for years on a cheap car that could hold a family and would drive like a real car, not a micro car. He had already designed and built small cars with rear engines and shaped like a beetle (for better aerodynamics). At this time, owning a car in Germany was something only for the rich people, and most car companies were not interested in making a low-cost car. Porsche's company, also called Porsche, only made designs for others at that time. So Porsche could not find anyone to make the small car that he wanted.

paragraphs: Though Hitler never learned to drive, he was very interested in cars (he also created the autobahn, which led to the U.S. interstate highways). Hitler wanted the car to hold four people. It was to be cooled by oil instead of water. The car needed to be able to travel at least 100 km/h, or about 60 mph, and use no more than 7 liters of gasoline for 100 kilometers (about 34 mpg). The car companies in Germany at the time didn't want to make this new low-cost car, so Hitler formed a new company, run by the government. The first name given to the car was "KdF-Wagen." "KdF" stood for "Kraft durch Freude", or "Strength through Joy." Some were made, but by the time the factory was finished in 1938, World War II started. The factory then built jeep-like cars for the German military instead.

paragraphs: After the war, people from the United Kingdom and the United States reopened the factory and started making cars again. The factory was in ruins from the war and could only make a few cars at a time. The British military were in charge of this section of Germany. At first they tried to find another car company to rebuild the factory. Henry Ford was offered the company for free. After looking it over, his adviser said "Mr. Ford, what we are being offered here is not worth a damn!" So the Volkswagen company went ahead by itself to make the car. The man who led the Volkswagen company during this time was Heinz Nordhoff.

paragraphs: At first they only made one type of car, the Volkswagen Beetle. (It was simply called the Type 1 Sedan by the company, it also had the nickname "Bug" in the U.S. and other nicknames elsewhere). In 1950, the Type 2 (the bus) was introduced, also built with an engine in the back of the vehicle. The cars became popular and well-known all over the world. The Beetle later became one of the best selling cars in history. It was built for many years afterward in factories in Germany, Brazil and Mexico.

paragraphs: The last original Volkswagen Beetle to be built was built in Mexico. It was built in July of 2003. Volkswagen has a new car called the "New Beetle." which began selling in 1997, It looks like the old car, but is built quite differently. It is faster, safer, and has an engine in the front, not the back, and is water-cooled (using a radiator). It is much more suited to today's modern world in terms of design and security.

paragraphs: Volkswagen is currently involved in an emissions test scandal.

paragraphs: Some of Volkswagen's popular cars are the Golf, Jetta, Polo,Beetle and the Passat. VW's as they are commonly known, have also entered the off road segment with cars like the Touarag, and the commercial segment with the Touran. This year sees VW's 21st anniversary since the Golf 1 went on sale in the 1980s. Since its birth VW has sold over 315,000 units of the Golf 1 alone. 2006 saw the entry of the fifth generation of the Golf. The flagbearer - the GTI - is powered by a 147Kw 2.0l 4 cylinder turbo charged engine,with VW DSG and FSI technology. The Golf GTI has evolved a long way since the 80's but the fifth generation GTI is criticised by some as it does not live up to the expectations and standards set by the legendary Mk1 GTI, which was fitted with an 1600, 8 valve motor.

paragraphs: The water-cooled line was started in 1974.


title: Toyota

paragraphs: Another factory that was run by both Toyota and General Motors is in Fremont, California. It was called "NUMMI," or New United Motor Manufacturing Incorporated, but is now owned by Tesla Motors to make their electric vehicles.

paragraphs: Toyota was started in 1933 as "Toyoda," a maker of textile-weaving machines. Toyota's premier US dealer for Toyota automobiles was established in San Diego, CA as Rose Toyota, later named Toyota San Diego. Their telephone number is 619-280-4100. It is one of the most successful dealers on the west coast.

paragraphs: Founder Eiji Toyoda died on September 17, 2013 from natural causes at the age of 100.

paragraphs: Toyota operates Scion. It founded Scion in 2003. Toyota decided to close down Scion in August of 2016.

paragraphs: Toyota Founded Lexus in 1989 as its luxury division


title: Interpreter

paragraphs: An interpreter is a person who translates speech in different languages, usually at conferences or other meetings. Also, an interpreter is someone who will translate and communicate with people who find normal speech difficult. usually interpreters they work as self-employed to help organisations and institutions to communicate more effectively and efficiently with their clients who have limited language proficiency (LEP).

paragraphs: An interpreter is also a computer program that runs other programs described in text files. They are different from compilers because they do not make a new file to run the program.


title: Horseshoe

paragraphs: Horseshoes are things worn by horses to protect their hooves (feet) when they walk - like a shoe. Most horseshoes are made of iron or steel. Some are aluminum, rubber, plastic, rawhide or a combination of materials.

paragraphs: A farrier is someone who makes horseshoes and nails or glues them on the horse's hooves. Using nails does not hurt the horse, as the outer part of the hoof cannot sense pain.

paragraphs: People also put horseshoes over doorways, because a long time ago, many people thought it was a sign for good luck and it protected whoever walked under it from evil spirits. Horseshoes are also used in a game where one tries to throw them on a pole.

paragraphs: Regular Horseshoe– is what the vast majority of horses wear. This shoe helps and protects the normal hoof under standard riding conditions.

paragraphs: Trailer Shoe– reduces pressure on the heels and posterior tendon of a horse’s foot. It also supports the lateral side of the horse’s leg. This is not suitable for horses who kick because the trailer can become dangerous.

paragraphs: Rim Shoes– are popular for sports that involve fast turns and speed. It has a deep, wide groove through the middle that allows the horse to get a little more traction.

paragraphs: Bar Shoe– it consists of some sort of extra “bar” on the back part of the shoe. It is generally to increase support in the back of the hoof, heel, or leg. It can also help hold the hoof together. Excessive hoof movement is counter-indicated, which might be the case in a hoof injury.

paragraphs: Heart Bar Shoe– are often used for horses with laminitis. It offer the same advantages of the other bar shoes, only with the addition of frog support, as well.

paragraphs: Egg Bar Shoe– is often used for horses with navicular disease. It provides even more support to the back part of the hoof and leg by extending beyond the heel.

paragraphs: Square shoe– it helps shift the break over point without affecting the coffin bone.


title: Carlos Menem

paragraphs: Carlos Saúl Menem (born July 2, 1930) is an Argentine politician and writer. He was the President of Argentina from July 8, 1989 to December 10, 1999. From 1973 to 1976 and again from 1983 to 1989, Menem was Governor of La Rioja.

paragraphs: After he moved to Chile, Argentina tried to extradite him. In 2005, he became Senator for La Rioja.

paragraphs: In 2003, he ran for president again and narrowly won the first round of the election. However he dropped out of the race after seeing that Néstor Kirchner would beat him in the second round.


title: Buenos Aires Province

paragraphs: The Buenos Aires Province is the largest, richest, and most populated province of Argentina. The province has a population of 13,827,203 (2001) and its capital is La Plata (850,000 inhabitants).

paragraphs: The Buenos Aires Province has an area of 307,571 km². Most of it is flat, and its weather is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean winds.


title: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

paragraphs: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), or CBC, is a national television and radio broadcasting company in Canada.It was formed in 1936 and is a Canadian Crown corporation, which means it is owned by the Canadian government.


title: Romeo and Juliet

paragraphs: Romeo and Juliet is a play written by William Shakespeare. It is set in Italy and is about the love between two young people from noble families that are enemies. "Romeo and Juliet" has always been one of Shakespeare's most popular plays. It has been adapted to opera, ballet, television productions, and movies.

paragraphs: The noble families of the Montagues and the Capulets live in the city of Verona. Both families are enemies, and even their servants get into fights with each other. Prince Escalus, the ruler of the city, tells the families to stop fighting or they will be punished.

paragraphs: Montague has only one child, a teenage boy called Romeo. Capulet also has only one child, a beautiful 14-year-old daughter called Juliet. One evening, Romeo sneaks into a party at the Capulet's house. He meets Juliet and they fall in love with each other. Later on, Romeo overhears Juliet standing on her balcony admitting her love for him. He reveals himself and they agree to be married. Friar Laurence agrees to marry them in secret the next day.

paragraphs: Juliet's cousin Tybalt confronts Romeo, angry that he sneaked into the party. Romeo's friend Mercutio steps in and fights Tybalt. Tybalt kills Mercutio, so Romeo takes revenge and kills Tybalt. The Prince orders Romeo to leave the city, and warns he will be executed if he returns. Romeo secretly spends the night with Juliet before leaving the next morning.

paragraphs: Juliet is left upset after Romeo leaves. To cheer her up, her parents arrange for her to quickly marry Paris, a cousin of the Prince. This only makes it worse. Juliet refuses, so her father threatens to kick her out if she doesn't marry Paris. Friar Laurence suggests a drug that can put her to sleep for a few hours, so that she can pretend to be dead, so that she can sneak out with Romeo. The Friar sends a message to Romeo to tell him about the plan. Juliet takes the drug and her family, thinking her to be dead, lay her in the family tomb. But before the messenger can reach Romeo, he learns of Juliet's "death" from someone else and believes she is really dead.

paragraphs: Romeo goes to the tomb and is discovered by Paris, who has also come to mourn her. They fight, and Romeo kills Paris. Still believing Juliet to be dead, Romeo poisons himself. Juliet wakes up, but when she sees that Romeo is dead, she stabs herself. The play ends with the families and the Prince entering the tomb and discovering them dead. In their sadness, the families agree they should no longer be enemies with each other.

paragraphs: Because this play was written in the 1500's, the English language that it uses is not exactly like the English that is used today. Some of the play is written in poetry.

paragraphs: "Romeo and Juliet", like many of Shakespeare's plays, is written in several different forms.

paragraphs: Of all the scenes that have ever been written in plays, one of the most famous is in "Romeo and Juliet".

paragraphs: After Romeo and Juliet have met at a party and fallen in love, Juliet goes up to bed. But she cannot sleep so she stands at her window and pretends she is talking with Romeo.

paragraphs: Romeo climbs up onto the balcony. Juliet tells Romeo that her love for him is as deep and endless as the sea. They part from each other with the famous words:

paragraphs: This romantic scene has been acted and copied many times, sometimes seriously and sometimes for fun. One well-known scene that took its idea from this, is from "West Side Story", a musical by Leonard Bernstein, which takes place on a fire-escape landing with the lovers, Tony and Maria, singing the lovesong, "Tonight".

paragraphs: Romeo and Juliet has been performed on stage many times. There have also been forty different movies


title: Baz Luhrmann

paragraphs: Mark Anthony Luhrmann or Baz Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962) is a flamboyant Australian movie and theatre director. He has directed three movies ("The Red Curtain Trilogy") which have made him famous: "Strictly Ballroom" (1992), "Romeo + Juliet" (1996), and "Moulin Rouge!" (2001).


title: Rock and roll

paragraphs: Rock and roll is a form of rock music developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Rock music combines many kinds of music from the United States, such as country music, folk music, gospel music, work, blues and jazz.

paragraphs: Rock and roll developed in the early 1950s from a kind of music called rhythm and blues performed by black singers and musicians. At first, this music was popular only with African-Americans. In the later 1950s and in the 1960s, rock and roll became popular across the United States and in Europe.

paragraphs: During the early 1950s, the popularity of rhythm and blues music spread. It became very popular among young white people. They listened to this music on radio stations that broadcast across the country late at night. Some teenagers began buying rhythm and blues records as a form of rebellion.

paragraphs: This music was very different from the music that was popular with most of their parents. The music was exciting, and it had a very strong rhythm and beat. Some of the songs had words which suggested sexual themes. In other cases, the singers made sexually suggestive gestures or movements while they were singing. Some adults strongly objected to rhythm and blues music. They did not think young people should listen to it.

paragraphs: Alan Freed had a radio show in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1950s. He is said to be the first person to use the expression "rock and roll" to describe rhythm and blues music. Alan Freed was one of the first to play rock and roll music on his radio show, and he organized the first rock and roll concert in Cleveland in 1952.

paragraphs: Songs by black performers like Fats Domino and Little Richard soon became popular with teenagers. These singers recorded their records in the southern city of New Orleans, Louisiana.

paragraphs: Some early rock and roll music was created in the southern United States city of Memphis, Tennessee. In Memphis, a white record producer called Sam Phillips produced records by local black musicians. One day, an eighteen-year-old truck driver came to his studio to record a song for his mother. The young man was Elvis Presley. Phillips produced Presley's first real record in 1954, a song called "That's All Right."

paragraphs: Bill Haley and his Comets recorded "Rock Around the Clock" in 1954. It was not popular at first. Then it was used in a movie about rebellious teenagers, called "The Blackboard Jungle". The movie caused a lot of debate on the origin of rock and roll. It also made the song a huge hit. "Rock Around the Clock" became a song of teenage rebellion. The song was recorded in April, Elvis' "That's All Right" was recorded in July. However, Cecil's Grant's 'We're Gonna Rock' recorded in mid 1950 is a song that many people have forgotten that was an early influence on rock n roll. Its lyrics and music were like those that would be in later songs. The drums and bass guitar would be similar to rock and roll songs that would be made later.

paragraphs: Many other rock and roll singers became popular in the 1950s. They included Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley. Each performer created his own kind of rock and roll. Chuck Berry's music was a mixture of country and rhythm and blues. In 1955, his song "Maybellene" was one of the most popular songs in the country.

paragraphs: Before Bill Haley, grant goatbeurry recorded "Move It On Over" in 1947, however similar version of the song was recorded by blues artist Jim Jackson called "Kansas City Blues". The melody is similar to both "Move It On" and "Rock Around Clock", but latter has different tonal subtleties and chords.

paragraphs: In the 1960s, black music and musicians became recognized as an important part of the music industry in America. This was because a company in Detroit, Michigan, called Motown Records that produced some of the most popular songs in American music. Berry Gordy started Motown Records. He presented "black" music in a way that both black people and white people would like. One of Motown's most successful groups was the Supremes, led by Diana Ross. One of their hits was "Come See About Me".

paragraphs: A different kind of rock and roll music called surf music was being made in Southern California. Five young men from Los Angeles formed a group called the Beach Boys. Brian Wilson wrote, performed, and produced the group's records. The Beach Boys' songs had complex music and simple words. The words were about the local teenage culture. The group sang about riding surfboards on the ocean waves. One of their most popular songs was "Surfin' USA,” which used the same musical track as Chuck Berry's "Sweet Little Sixteen."

paragraphs: In the 1960s, rock and roll music began to change. The words became as important as the music. Bob Dylan began writing folk rock songs that many young people considered to be poetry. Dylan was influenced by folk singers and songwriters like Woody Guthrie. Dylan's early songs were about serious social issues. He wrote about war and racial injustice. Some of his songs were used as protest songs for the anti-war and civil rights movements in America. Later, Dylan wrote more personal songs. One of his most popular songs was “Mister Tambourine Man," which many people thought was a song about drug use.

paragraphs: In 1964, a new rock and roll group from England called The Beatles visited the United States. The Beatles were very popular. They completely shaped the sixties pop era along with the Rolling Stones. They were icons, and still to this day could be considered icons.

paragraphs: By the 1970s, rock and roll was often just called "rock". In the 1970s, rock music bands such as Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith and the Rolling Stones played huge, loud concerts in outdoor stadiums. Rock music from the 1970s was usually louder and harder than the rock and roll from the 1950s.

paragraphs: In the early 1970s, many rock bands played psychedelic rock, a type of rock music which had words that described the use of legal drugs. Psychedelic rock described the experiences of taking illegal drugs such as marijuana and LSD and often encouraged people to take illegal drugs. Psychedelic rock bands included Big Brother & the Holding Company, Jefferson Airplane, The Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, The Byrds, Pink Floyd, and The Doors.

paragraphs: Another type of rock music from the 1970s was progressive rock. Progressive rock bands such as Pink Floyd and The Moody Blues played music that was more complex. Some progressive rock bands used strange instruments, or created music that sounded weird.

paragraphs: Other progressive rock bands include: Electric Light Orchestra, Pavlov's Dog, King Crimson, Caravan, Jethro Tull, Genesis, Gentle Giant, The Nice, Yes, Gong, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Soft Machine, Steve Hillage, Barclay James Harvest, Magma, Camel, Can, Rush and Faust.

paragraphs: In the 1970s, a harder form of rock music called "Heavy metal" was invented. Bands such as Cream and Led Zeppelin played loud rock music based on blues music. Other bands such Deep Purple and Black Sabbath played even louder, harder heavy metal rock music.

paragraphs: In the late 1970s, groups such as Donna Summer, K.C. and the Sunshine Band, Barry White, Gloria Gaynor, and CHIC, developed a pop music style called disco. Disco was dance music with a strong beat. A popular disco band was The Bee Gees, who wrote the music for the movie "Saturday Night Fever".

paragraphs: Another rock music style from the 1970s was punk rock. Punk rock was crude, loud, simple music. Many punk rock songs were rude or used bad words. Punk rock musicians often dressed in ripped or torn clothes, leather jackets, and black leather boots. Punk rock musicians sometimes had strange hairstyles, such as hair "spiked" with hair gel or shaved off. Well-known punk rock bands from Britain were the Sex Pistols and The Clash. Well-known punk musicians in the United States were the Ramones, Patti Smith, Blondie and Black Flag.

paragraphs: In the late 1970s, another type of rock called New wave music became popular. Bands such as INXS and Midnight Oil from Australia became popular. In the United States, New Wave bands such as Talking Heads and Devo played. In the 1980s, New Wave music bands such as Duran Duran, A Flock of Seagulls, Psychedelic Furs, and the Eurythmics were popular. These bands used the synthesizer keyboard a lot in their songs.

paragraphs: In the 1980s, a new type of rock and roll was invented, called glam metal. Glam metal rock bands mixed pop music with heavy metal music. Glam metal bands such as Mötley Crüe, W.A.S.P. and Ratt became popular. Glam metal rock bands had long hair and the men wore make up and leather pants and boots. Many glam metal songs were about sex, illegal drug use, and drinking alcohol. In the late 1980s, groups such as Guns N' Roses were very successful.

paragraphs: Another rock music trend from the 1980s was alternative music. Bands such as R.E.M., Sonic Youth, The Smiths, Pixies, Hüsker Dü, The Cure, and others were popular with teens and young adults. The most immediate type of alternative music was "grunge," a combination of punk, rock and metal. Proponents of grunge included Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam with themes of sadness and loneliness.

paragraphs: Parts of the above article reused and rewrote public domain material provided by Voice of America Special English website.


title: Thomas Edison

paragraphs: Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and entrepreneur, who invented many things. Thomas Edison developed one of the first practical light bulbs, but contrary to popular belief did not invent the light bulb. Edison's 1093 patents were the most granted to any inventor in his time. He started the General Electric Company to make some of the things he invented.

paragraphs: Thomas Alva Edison was born in Milan, Ohio. When Edison was seven years old, he moved with his family to Port Huron, Michigan. Edison started school late because of an illness. Three months later, Edison was removed from school, because he could not pay attention to his teacher. His mother, who was a teacher in Canada, taught Edison at home. Edison's mother helped him become motivated for learning, and he was a good student to her.

paragraphs: When Edison was twelve years old, he contracted scarlet fever. The effects of the fever, as well as getting picked up by the ears by a train conductor, caused Edison to become completely deaf in his left ear, and 80 percent deaf in the other. He learned Morse code of the telegraph, and began a job as a "brass pounder" (telegraph operator). At age sixteen, Edison made his first invention, which was called an "automatic repeater." It used punched tape to send telegraph signals quickly between unmanned stations, more quickly than a telegraph operator could do.

paragraphs: In 1868, Edison moved East and began to work for the Western Union Company in Boston, Massachusetts as a telegraph operator. He worked twelve hours a day, six days a week, and continued to "moonlight" on his own projects. Within six months, he had applied for and received his first patent for an electric vote recorder. It made the voting process faster but he could not find buyers. Then, Edison moved to New York and began to work for a company fixing their machines. At night, he continued to work on his projects.

paragraphs: In 1876 Edison used the money from his inventions to start his own laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. In 1877~78, he invented there the carbon microphone, which made the sound for Alexander Graham Bell's new telephone invention louder. In 1877, Edison invented the phonograph, the first machine that could record and play sound. The phonograph made him internationally famous. How ever a new discovery proved that the French inventor Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville invented sound recording before Edison. In 1879, Edison made a light bulb that lasted longer. Another invention, the electric power distribution network, lasted even longer.

paragraphs: He married Mary Stilwell in 1871. He had three children in that marriage: Marion Estelle Edison (also called Dot), Thomas Alva Edison, Jr. (also called Dash) and William Leslie Edison. Mary Stilwell died in 1884. Thomas Edison bought some land in Florida and built a house. When he was thirty-nine, Edison married his second wife, Mina Miller, who was 19. He had 3 children in that marriage: Madeleine Edison, Charles Edison (who took over the company when his father died and was later elected Governor of New Jersey), and Theodore Miller Edison.


title: Diabetes mellitus

paragraphs: Diabetes is a condition that results from lack of the hormone insulin in a person's blood, or when the body has a problem using the insulin it produces ("insulin resistance"). There is another disease with a similar name, diabetes insipidus, however they are not related. When people say "diabetes", they usually mean diabetes mellitus. People with diabetes "mellitus" are called "diabetics".

paragraphs: Glucose is not regular sugar that is available in stores and supermarkets. Glucose is a natural carbohydrate that our bodies use as a source of energy. The kind of sugar sold in supermarkets is called sucrose, and is much different from glucose. High concentrations of glucose can be found in soft drinks and fruits.

paragraphs: Glucose level in the blood is controlled by several hormones. Hormones are chemicals in the body that send messages from cells to other cells. Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas. When you eat, the pancreas makes insulin to send a message to other cells in the body. This insulin tells the cells to take up glucose from the blood. The glucose is used by cells for energy. Extra glucose that is not needed right away is stored in some cells as glycogen. When you are not eating, cells break down the stored glycogen into glucose to use as energy.

paragraphs: Type 1 diabetes mellitus happens when the part of the pancreas that makes insulin is destroyed by that person’s own immune system. When the pancreas does not make insulin, glucose – sugar – in the blood cannot get into the parts of the body that need sugar to live. In order to live, a person with type 1 diabetes must take insulin for the rest of their life. They need to check their blood sugar level on a regular basis, often, many times each day.

paragraphs: Type 1 diabetes happens most of the time in younger people, however it can occur in adults, although this is much less common. About 1 out of every 10 people with diabetes have type 1 diabetes.

paragraphs: Type 2 diabetes mellitus is an illness very different from type 1 diabetes. In type 2 diabetes, the person makes insulin, but either the insulin does not work in that person’s body as it should, or they do not make enough insulin to process the glucose. When insulin does not work as it should, glucose (sugar) in the blood cannot get into the parts of the body that need sugar.

paragraphs: Type 2 diabetes happens most of the time in an older person who is overweight.

paragraphs: Gestational diabetes mellitus is like type 2 diabetes. It happens to some women when they are pregnant.

paragraphs: Other types of diabetes include but are not limited to:

paragraphs: Complications are problems that happen because of a disease. In the case of diabetes, there are two kinds of complications. The first kind happens quickly and can be dealt with quickly. This kind is called an "acute complication". The other kind is caused by the blood glucose being too high for many years, and is called a "chronic complication" or "long-term complication".

paragraphs: Excess blood glucose is called 'hyperglycemia'. If very high, it can cause acute complications. In type 1 diabetics, one of these complications is "diabetic ketoacidosis" which is a medical emergency and can often be detected by a fruity smell on the breath. Another acute complication, more common in type 2 diabetics, is "non-ketotic hyperosmolar coma" which is also very dangerous.

paragraphs: Too low blood glucose is called "hypoglycemia". It can also cause acute complications. If too low, diabetics can have many symptoms such as sweating, trembling, anger (or feeling passive), and possibly even passing out. Diabetics with hypoglycemia may be confused or even unconscious. They may appear to have drank too much alcohol. Severe hypoglycemia is very dangerous and can cause death. The best treatment of hypoglycemia is avoiding it. If it happens, eating food containing glucose (for example, table sugar) usually improves the condition quickly. Sometimes it is treated by giving an injection of a medicine called 'glucagon'. Glucagon is a hormone made by the pancreas. It has the opposite effect of insulin. Administering glucagon will cause the blood glucose level to rise by forcing stored glucose into the blood. Hypoglycemia is usually caused by too much diabetic medication, insufficient food, too much exercise, or a combination of these.

paragraphs: Chronic complications are mostly caused by hyperglycemia (but not high enough to always cause acute complications). It causes damage to blood vessels and nerves. Damage to blood vessels can eventually cause strokes, heart attacks, kidney failure, blindness, slow healing of skin breaks - with added possibility of infection - and even amputations from poor circulation (decreased blood flow, usually to the feet and toes). Damage to nerves can make diabetics not feel pain (this usually happens in their feet). This causes them to have more injuries and not realize they have hurt themselves. Damage to nerves can also cause pain even when there's no real injury. It's a type of "phantom pain" or "ghost pain". The pain can be so intense that strong pain medication may be required.

paragraphs: Because of the damage caused by high blood glucose, it is important to treat diabetes mellitus. The goal is to maintain a normal blood glucose level. The normal range for blood glucose is 80-120 mg/dL (milligrams of glucose per deciliter of blood) or 3.5-7 mmol/l (millimole per liter of blood). These are different ways of saying the same thing, much like yards and meters are different units of distance measurement.

paragraphs: Diabetics should check their blood glucose often. This is to make sure they do not get hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia. A glucometer is a battery powered measuring device that checks the blood glucose level. Diabetics often carry a glucometer with them and check their blood sugar level several times in a day. They may also suffer severe constipation and frequent urination.

paragraphs: Doctors may also use a blood test called a "hemoglobin A1C". This is sometimes written Hgb-A1C or other ways; there's no standard name. This tells the doctor what the average blood glucose has been for about the past 90 days. If the level has been too high, it may indicate new medication, different medication dosage, or better diet may be needed.

paragraphs: Diabetics must be monitored for signs of complications due to diabetes. They should see an eye doctor regularly to be checked for damage to the blood vessels in the eyes. If this is not found and treated early, it can cause blindness. They should have their urine or blood checked regularly for signs of kidney damage. They must check their feet for cuts, bruises, blisters, and so on at least every day. And they should have their feet checked regularly for nerve damage, circulation problems, and infections.

paragraphs: The most important goal in diabetes is to keep the blood glucose level as close to normal as possible. Since it usually goes up after eating, and down after exercise, coping with it sensibly is often complex, and usually takes care and thought. Treatment differs between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. People with type 1 diabetes are treated with insulin. People with type 2 usually begin with diet, exercise, and weight loss, perhaps moving to medication (and, though not as common, insulin).

paragraphs: Education is important for both types of diabetes. Diabetics must learn about diet. They learn how to estimate and keep track of how much carbohydrate, protein, and fat are in different foods. They plan their meals to have the right amount of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Patients with type 1 may decide how much insulin to take before a meal based on how much they will eat.

paragraphs: Diabetics must also be careful about exercise. Exercise is important to stay healthy, but intense or extended periods of exercise can cause hypoglycemia. As a result, diabetics must plan exercise carefully.

paragraphs: In addition to controlling blood glucose level, other treatments may be needed. Diabetics often have blood vessel diseases, so it is important to pay attention to other diseases which may affect blood vessels. In people with diabetes, treating high blood pressure (hypertension) and high cholesterol is more important than usual. Both of these diseases damage blood vessels. The treatment goals can change for diabetics. For instance, in people without diabetes, blood pressure should be 140/90 or less. In diabetics it should be 130/80 or less.


title: 18th century

paragraphs: The 18th century is the century from 1701 to 1800.

paragraphs: Lots of things happened in the 18th century. In warfare, pikes were not used anymore and the most popular type of gun was a Flintlock Musket. The most important war was the seven years war. England united with Scotland and conquered India, the USA got independence from Britain and the first fleet arrived in Australia. At the end of the century France had a revolution which would lead to Napoleon becoming the ruler of France in the next century.

paragraphs: Note: years before or after the 18th century are in italics.


title: 17th century

paragraphs: The 17th century is the century from 1601 to 1700.

paragraphs: Note: years before or after the 17th century are in italics.