title: Kápolnásnyék

paragraphs: Kápolnásnyék is a village in Fejér county, Hungary.

paragraphs: The excavations in the surroundings revealed Bronze-Age artefacts, proving that the area was already populated in ancient times.

paragraphs: The name of the settlement originates from the name of the Nyék tribe (coming to Hungary during the settlement of Hungarian tribes). The first residents probably belonged to a subgroup of the tribe. When István I. defeated Koppány, Nyék became a land of the queen. The name of the settlement is mentioned first in 1193 as Neck. Later the names Kápolnás Nyék, Káposztás Nyék, and Fertőfő Nyék are used to mention this rather insignificant place located between Buda and Fehérvár, which is south of the commercial route. As a border village Kápolnásnyék suffered from double taxation during the Turkish occupation (both Hungary and the Turkish Empire collected taxes). Therefore the population of the village decreased considerably and it even became uninhabited during the Turkish campaign of 1543. The inhabitants returned to the village in 1772.

paragraphs: During the 19 century Upper and Lower Nyék were differentiated, even after 1861, when the Southem Railway was built. It is mentioned as an independent village first in 1871, to which Pettend was attached in 1898. Mihály Vörösmarty was born here.

paragraphs: The present appearance of the village was formed in the 1930s, when it became a commercial and service background for the booming tourism of Lake Velencei. The phone system, the gendarme patrol, local medical care, the railway station and the mill were established in this period. The settlement suffered serious injuries in World War II, when the majority of the population also died. The village was also behind in development, compared to other settlements of the region and became a part of Velence by the 1970s.

paragraphs: Kápolnásnyék declared its independence in 1990 and has gone though considerable development since then. It once again became the background for the tourism of Lake Velencei, where commercial service facilities are established and the infrastructure is developing rapidly.


title: Areopagitica

paragraphs: Areopagitica is a book written by English poet John Milton in 1644. He wrote it to protest against censorship. Its full title is "Areopagitica: A speech of Mr. John Milton for the liberty of unlicensed printing to the Parliament of England". Today, his book is called a tract. In the tract, Milton tries to defend the freedom of expression. Today, many people see it as one of the best defenses of the freedom of press ever written.

paragraphs: The tract is named after a speech by Isocrates, a Greek orator of the 5th century. The Areopagus is a hill in Athens, where many councils and tribunals were held. Isocrates wanted to restore one of these tribunals when he wrote the speech. In the speech,Milton argued that the Licensing Order of 1643 should be abolished; censorship had not been part of Greek or Roman societies. Milton uses many passages from the Bible to strengthen his argument. Milton had been censored himself when he tried to publish tracts which were in favor of allowing people to get divorced.

paragraphs: In "Areopagitica", Milton argues that the status that was there before had worked best: By this law, all publications needed an authors name or that of a publisher. According to Milton, it is easy to find the authors or the publishers with this system. So if anything libelous is published, the books can still be destroyed after the fact.


title: Defamation

paragraphs: Defamation is saying or writing something about another person that hurts their reputation. Usually, when people use the word "defamation", it means that the statement is not true. In this case, it is against the law. A statement that is defamation is called "defamatory".

paragraphs: In order to be defamatory, a statement has to claim to be a fact instead of an opinion. For example, saying, "Mr. Jones is mean" cannot be defamatory, because it is someone's opinion. However, if someone says, "Mr. Jones steals candy from children", then the statement is defamatory "if" it is not true, because it would be a fact, not an opinion.

paragraphs: If a defamatory statement is written, such as in a book or in a newspaper, it is called libel. If it is spoken out loud, it is called slander. Somebody who is the victim of defamation can sue the person who wrote or said it.

paragraphs: Defamation laws are not the same in every country. In most countries it is a civil wrong or tort. In some it is a crime. In many countries the burden of proof is on the person claiming that somebody is defaming them. This means they have to prove that the thing that was said about them is false. However, in England, it is the other way around. If somebody claims that a statement is defamation, the person who made the statement has to prove the statement is true.


title: Seikima-II

paragraphs: Seikima-II (read as "seikimatsu", which means "The End of the Century") is a Japanese heavy metal band formed by Damian Hamada in 1982.

paragraphs: Their music could be described as similar to the music of other heavy metal bands like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.


title: Northern United States

paragraphs: The Northern United States, commonly referred to as the American North or simply the North, can be a geographic or historical term and definition.

paragraphs: Geographically, the term includes the U.S. states and regions of the United States of America that are located across the northernmost part of the country. It includes, but is not limited to, states along the Canada–United States border.

paragraphs: The United States Census Bureau divides some of the northernmost United States into the Midwest Region and the Northeast Region. The Census Bureau also includes the northernmost states of the Northwestern United States, that are, within the West Region.

paragraphs: Before 19th century westward expansion, the "Northern United States" was considered the present day New England region. By the 1830s it corresponded to the present day Northeastern United States

paragraphs: During the American Civil War, the Northern United States was composed of the U.S. that remained in the United States of America, the Union states. In this context, "The North" is synonymous with the Union. In this context, "The South" is composed of the states that seceded from the U.S. to form the Confederate States of America. However, which states comprised "The North" in this context can be the subject of historical disagreement. Some slave-holding states that remained in the Union may be excluded.


title: Radical

paragraphs: Radical, from Late Latin "radicalis" "of roots" and from Latin "radix" "root", may refer to:

paragraphs: Extremism, political standpoints that are perceived as revolutionary or extreme


title: Rachel Carson

paragraphs: Rachel Louise Carson (born May 27, 1907 – died April 14, 1964) was an American marine biologist and nature writer. Carson worked for 15 years as a biologist, scientist and editor in the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries and then the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Her books were very important in helping the environmental movement grow. She was famous for writing "Silent Spring". She also wrote a set of three books about the ocean and what lives in and around it.

paragraphs: "Silent Spring" caught the attention of many Americans. Before this not many worried about environmental problems and conservation. The book looked at problems with DDT and other pesticides (chemicals that kill pests, like mosquitoes and flies). It was thought these pesticides were safe, but they were actually causing many birds to die. DDT stayed in insects and fish which were eaten by birds. The birds then laid eggs with thin shells that would break. Some birds, like the Bald Eagle almost disappeared from the United States. In her book Carson said that without changes in how we use pesticides, there may not be birds left at some time in the future. Instead of hearing birds sing in the spring, it would be quiet, and that is how the book got its title.

paragraphs: This book led to a change in the national pesticide policy and a ban on DDT and some other pesticides. This new grassroots environmental movement, inspired by the book, led to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency. After her death, Carson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Jimmy Carter. There is a National Wildlife Refuge in Maine named after her.

paragraphs: Rachel Carson was born on May 27, 1907 in Springdale, Pennsylvania and grew up on a family farm. It was on the Allegheny River, near Pittsburgh. Carson liked to read, and was a talented writer from an young age. She also spent a lot of time exploring around her farm. She began writing stories (often with animals in them) at age eight, and had her first story published at age eleven. She liked to read the "St. Nicholas Magazine", which published her first stories. It also published stories by Beatrix Potter, and the books of Gene Stratton Porter, Herman Melville, Joseph Conrad and Robert Louis Stevenson. The natural world, particularly the ocean, was a common part of her favorite books. Carson graduated high school in 1925, at the top of her class of forty-four students.

paragraphs: At the Pennsylvania College for Women (now known as Chatham University), as in high school, Carson was a bit of a loner. She originally studied English, but switched her major to biology in January 1928. She continued writing in the school's student newspaper. Though accepted to graduate school at Johns Hopkins University in 1928, she had to remain at the Pennsylvania College for Women for her senior year because of money problems. She graduated "magna cum laude" (highest honors) in 1929. After a summer course at the Marine Biological Laboratory, she continued her studies in zoology and genetics at Johns Hopkins in the fall of 1929.

paragraphs: After her first year of graduate school, Carson worked in a laboratory with rats and "Drosophila", to earn money for tuition. She wrote her dissertation for her master's degree on how the pronephros in fish developed early in their life. She earned a master's degree in zoology in June 1932. She wanted to continue for a doctorate, but in 1934 Carson had to leave Johns Hopkins to find a full-time teaching job to help support her family. In 1935, her father died suddenly, and Carson had to take care of her aging mother. This made the money problem even bigger (this was during the Great Depression, when jobs were hard to find).

paragraphs: Her biology mentor from college helped her get a part-time job with the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries. Here she wrote for a educational broadcast called "Romance Under the Waters" on the radio (this was before television). It was a seven-minute program that ran once a week for a year. It was about aquatic life (mostly fish), to increase public interest in fish biology and in what the Bureau of Fisheries did. This was a job several people before Carson had not been able to do. Carson also began submitting articles on marine life in the Chesapeake Bay to local newspapers and magazines.

paragraphs: Carson's boss liked what she did, and asked her to write the introduction to a public brochure about the fisheries bureau. He also had her apply to the first full-time job that became available. When she took the civil service exam, she outscored all other applicants. In 1936 she became only the second woman to be hired by the Bureau of Fisheries for a full-time, professional position, as a junior aquatic biologist.

paragraphs: Carson worked for 15 years in the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries and then the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

paragraphs: Her 1951 bestselling book "The Sea Around Us" allowed her to work full-time as a nature writer. People recognized her as a gifted writer. Her next book, "The Edge of the Sea", and the republished version of her first book, "Under the Sea Wind", were also bestsellers. Together, the three books explore all parts of ocean life, from the shores to the surface to the deep sea.

paragraphs: In the late 1950s, Carson became interested in conservation and the environmental problems caused by new pesticides. At first, she did not want to write about it, but nobody else would write about the problems of pesticides. So she studied the problem, and wrote "Silent Spring" (published in 1962).

paragraphs: Rachel Carson died young, at the age of 56. She had breast cancer earlier. It was treated, but after several years cancer came back. She died April 14, 1964.


title: Heterochrony

paragraphs: Heterochrony (= "different time") is any change in the timing of development in an animal or plant. It is a key concept in developmental biology and evolution, introduced by Ernst Haeckel in 1875. It applies to the time a trait appears in the growth of an organism, or to the timing of gene expression in development.

paragraphs: Its importance in biology is to explain the way closely related animals may come to have quite large differences in shape, and size, whilst nevetheless having a rather similar genome. The main components are the time a process starts and stops in development, and the rate at which the process works.

paragraphs: In his book "Embryos and evolution" (1930) Gavin de Beer stressed the importance of heterochrony, and especially paedomorphosis, in evolution. Changes to the genes which control timing in development can produce quite striking changes in the adult. de Beer also conceived the idea of "clandestine evolution", which helped to explain the sudden changes in the fossil record which were apparently at odds with Darwin's gradual theory of evolution. If a novelty were to evolve gradually in an animal's juvenile form, then its development would not appear in the fossil record at all. Then, if the species were to undergo neoteny, the feature would appear suddenly in the fossil record, despite having evolved gradually. Stephen Jay Gould commented on this book:


title: Neoteny

paragraphs: Neoteny is a type of heterochrony where bodily development is slowed, but sexual development goes on at the same rate. This results in a sexually mature juvenile or larval form. A classic example is the Axolotl.

paragraphs: It has often been suggested that the human species is, at least to some extent, an example of neoteny. These features of adult humans are different from those of adult great apes, but more similar to those of juvenile apes:

paragraphs: These are some of the neotenous traits in humans: flattened face, broadened face, large brain, hairless body, hairless face, small nose, reduction of brow ridge, small teeth, small upper jaw (maxilla), small lower jaw (mandible), thinness of skull bones, limbs proportionately short compared to torso length, longer leg than arm length, larger eyes, and upright stance.


title: Gavin de Beer

paragraphs: Sir Gavin Rylands de Beer FRS (1899–1972) was a British evolutionary embryologist. He was Director of the London Natural History Museum, President of the Linnean Society, and received the Royal Society's Darwin Medal for his studies on evolution.

paragraphs: In the First World War he served in the Grenadier Guards. Later, he taught at Oxford University zoology department. In 1938, he was made Reader in Embryology at University College London. During the Second World War de Beer again served with the Grenadier Guards reaching the rank of temporary lieutenant colonel. He worked in military intelligence, propaganda and psychological warfare. Also during the war, in 1940, he was elected Fellow of the Royal Society.

paragraphs: In 1945, de Beer became Professor of Zoology and was, from 1946 to 1949, President of the Linnean Society. Then he was Director of the British Museum (Natural History) from 1950 until his retirement in 1960. He was knighted in 1954, and awarded the Darwin Medal of the Royal Society in 1957.

paragraphs: de Beer wrote 25 books, of which these are still noteworthy:


title: The Lightning Thief

paragraphs: The Lightning Thief is a 2005 fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology. It was the first young-adult book written by author Rick Riordan. It is the first book in the "Percy Jackson & the Olympians" series. The series is about the adventures of modern 12-year-old Percy Jackson after he discovers he is a demigod (half-human, half-god). Percy is the son of a mortal woman and the Greek god Poseidon. Percy and his friends go on a quest (adventure) so that a war between the Greek gods Zeus,

paragraphs: Riordan finished writing his manuscript in 1994. "The Lightning Thief" was first bought by Bantam Books in 1997. Bantam sold it to Miramax Books. Miramax published it on June 28, 2005. The book sold more than 1.2 million copies in the next four years. The book won many awards. In 2007, it was on "The New York Times" Best Seller list for children's books. It was one of the Young Adult Library Services Association's Best Books for Young Adults. It was made into a movie named "". The movie was first shown in the United States on February 12, 2010. The sequel to this book is "The Sea of Monsters".

paragraphs: Planning for both "The Lightning Thief" and the series began when Riordan started making up stories for his nine-year-old son, Haley. He had started studying Greek mythology (stories) in second grade. He wanted his father to tell him stories about them before he went to sleep. Riordan had raught Greek myths as a middle school teacher. He remembered some of the myths, which he then told to his son. Soon, Riordan had told him all the stories. When Haley wanted him to make up new stories using the characters from the myths, Riordan created the character of Percy Jackson. Like Percy, Haley had ADHD and dyslexia. He made up the story of how Percy traveled across the United States to search for Zeus' master bolt. After hearing the story, Haley wanted his father to write a book about Percy and his friends.

paragraphs: In June 1994, Riordan finished the story. He started looking for agents to publish it. He went to many local colleges to find an editor before finding an agent. He gave his manuscript to his agent and editor to review. At the same time, he gave the book to some sixth, seventh and eighth graders to read and tell him what was good or bad about it. They named the book and helped Riordan describe how Percy's sword (Riptide) worked. In June 1997, Riordan signed with Bantam Books to prepare the book for publishing. In 2004, Miramax Books bought the book. The money was enough for Riordan to quit his teaching job and spend his time on writing. The book was published on June 28, 2005. It sold over 1.2 million copies. The book had hardcover, softcover and audio editions. It has been translated into many languages. It has been published all over the world.

paragraphs: "The Lightning Thief" is a fantasy–adventure novel which uses the ideas of ancient Greek mythology in today's world. It is written in a fast-paced, humorous (funny) style.

paragraphs: Percy Jackson is a 12 year old boy. He has ADHD and dyslexia. He has been thrown out of many schools. On a trip with his mother, he meets his friend Grover, a satyr (half-goat, half-human). Grover tells Percy's mother that Percy must go to a camp. When they drive towards the camp, a Minotaur (monster) attacks them and grabs Percy's mother. She dissolves into gold sparkles of light, but Grover and Percy escape.

paragraphs: Percy later wakes up. He learns that he is in Camp Half-Blood, which is a secret training camp for demigods. Percy has to live in the Hermes cabin because he does not know which god his father is. He is under the care of Luke Castellan, the cabin counselor (leader). During a game, the children of the war god Ares attack Percy. He is healed when he steps into a river. When Poseidon's trident appears above his head, Percy learns that he is Poseidon's son. After World War II, Poseidon, Hades and Zeus made an oath (promise) not to have any more children because they were too powerful. However, Poseidon broke the oath by having Percy.

paragraphs: Chiron tells Percy to find Zeus' master lightning bolt. Chiron thinks Hades stole the bolt. However, Zeus discovers that Poseidon has broken his oath, and thinks Poseidon told Percy to steal the bolt. He tells Percy that he has ten days until the summer solstice to find it. Before leaving, Luke gives Percy magic shoes. Percy gives them to Grover. Annabeth (a daughter of Athena) and Grover join Percy in his quest to find the bolt.

paragraphs: They decide to travel west to reach the entrance to the Underworld, which is in Los Angeles. They meet many Greek monsters. They also meet Ares. Ares tells Percy that his mother is alive. When they come near the pit of Tartarus, Luke’s shoes try to pull Grover into it, but he escapes. Percy meets Hades, who also thinks Percy stole the Master Bolt. He also thinks Percy stole his Helm of Darkness. Percy knows that Ares has tricked him when he finds the bolt in his backpack. He runs away from the Underworld. He has to leave his mother there. Percy fights and defeats Ares by hurting the god's heel. Ares gives Percy the Helm of Darkness. Percy gives it back to Hades. Olympus is now present at the top of the Empire State Building in New York City. Percy arrives there to give the master bolt to Zeus.

paragraphs: Percy goes back to camp after hearing that his mother is alive. He meets Luke, who says that he stole the bolt for Kronos. He calls a poisonous scorpion which stings and nearly kills Percy. Percy kills the scorpion first. Chiron cures Percy, who leaves camp. He goes to a new school and stays with his mother instead of staying at camp.

paragraphs: "The Lightning Thief" received mostly positive reviews. Common Sense Media said "there are two levels of fun in "The Lightning Thief". One is the fast-paced quest of a young hero and his friends to save the world" and added "another level of fun here – laughing at the wicked ways the author has updated the gods and monsters for the 21st century". However, it criticized some parts of the book. They described the prose as "choppy and attitude-filled" and complained that "[t]he characters aren't emotionally involving". Its overall rating was 4 stars out of 5. "The New York Times" praised "The Lightning Thief" as "perfectly paced, with electrifying moments chasing each other like heartbeats". "School Library Journal" said in its starred review (which is given to outstanding books) that the book was "An adventure-quest with a hip edge" and that "Readers will be eager to follow the young protagonist's next move". "Kirkus" praised the book and said, "Packed with humorous (funny) allusions to Greek mythology and clever updates of the old stories, along with rip-snorting <nowiki>[</nowiki>intense<nowiki>]</nowiki> action sequences, the book really shines in the depiction of Percy – wry, impatient, academically hopeless, with a cut-to-the-chase bluntness one would wish for in a hero of old." Eoin Colfer, author of Artemis Fowl, called it "A fantastic blend (mix) of mythology and modern". "Publishers Weekly" also praised the book, regarding it as "swift and humorous" and added that the book would "leave many readers eager for the next installment." On April 8, 2007, "The Lightning Thief" was ranked ninth on "The New York Times Best Seller list" for children's books. When speaking about the various awards, Rick Riordan said:

paragraphs: "The ultimate compliment for a children's writer is when the kids like it."

paragraphs: "The Lightning Thief" was the winner of the "School Library Journal" Best Book of 2005. It was also one of the books in Chicago Public Library "Best of the Best Books List", 2005. It was also in the VOYA Top Shelf Fiction List. The book was the Red House Children's Book Award Winner (UK), 2006, and also won Askews Torchlight Award (UK), 2006, and the Mark Twain Award (Missouri Association of School Librarians), 2008. It was an "ALA" Notable Book, 2006 and a "New York Times" Notable Book (2005). It received the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award in 2009.

paragraphs: In June 2004, 20 Century Fox bought feature movie rights to the book. In April 2007, director Chris Columbus was hired to lead the project. Logan Lerman played Percy Jackson, Brandon T. Jackson played Grover Underwood, the satyr, Alexandra Daddario played the role of Annabeth while Jake Abel was cast as Luke Castellan. Pierce Brosnan played Chiron. The movie is titled "Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" and was first shown in the United States on February 12, 2010.

paragraphs: On June 28, 2005, a 10 hour 25 minute audio book version of "The Lightning Thief", read by actor Jesse Bernstein, was published worldwide by Listening Library.

paragraphs: "Kirkus" said in their review, "the narrator’s voice lends a refreshing air of realism to this riotously paced [fast paced] quest tale of heroism that questions the realities of our world, family, friendship and loyalty". "AudioFile Magazine" praised the audiobook, saying both adults and children will be "spellbound" when they listen to "this deeply imaginative tale unfold." "School Library Journal" both praised and criticized the audio book saying "Although some of Jesse Bernstein's accents fail (the monster from Georgia, for instance, has no Southern trace in her voice), he does a fine job of keeping the main character's tones and accents distinguishable".

paragraphs: "The Lightning Thief" is followed by "The Sea of Monsters". There, Percy and Annabeth rescue Grover, who has been taken prisoner by Polyphemus, the Cyclops. They get the Golden Fleece from Polyphemus' island to save the camp. They are joined by Percy's half brother, Tyson, and Clarisse in this mission.

paragraphs: Like "The Lightning Thief", it won several prizes. It was received well by reviewers too. It sold over 100,000 copies in paperback.

paragraphs: "The Lightning Thief" was published in many languages. It was published in French, German, Spanish, Finnish, Swedish, Hebrew and Brazilian Portuguese. In 2008, it was published in Serbian. The French edition is known as "" (OCLC 3199424908). The German name of the book is

paragraphs: ' (OCLC 2554901802). These two, along with the Spanish version ' (OCLC 748684882), were published in 2006. The three other translations of the book, ' (OCLC 23120723516), in Finnish, "O ladrão de raios", in Brazilian Portuguese, (in Portugal it is called ' meaning The Thieves of Olympus) and or "Persi G'eḳson ṿe-ganav ha-baraḳ" (OCLC 24382472372) in Hebrew were published in 2008.


title: Province of Castellón

paragraphs: Province of Castellón () or Castelló (Valencian/Catalan) is a province in the northern part of the Valencian Community, Spain. It is bordered by the provinces of Valencia, Teruel, Tarragona, and the Mediterranean Sea.


title: Asturias

paragraphs: The Principality of Asturias (, ) is an autonomous community. It is in the kingdom of Spain or the former Kingdom of Asturias in the Middle Ages. It is on the Spanish north coast facing the Cantabrian Sea. The capital of the province is Oviedo. Gijón is the biggest city. There is an airport in Asturias, from where you can fly to a few places in Spain and in Europe. The region has borders with Galicia, León and Cantabria.


title: Castile and León

paragraphs: Castile and León (), known formally as the Community of Castile and León, is one of the 17 autonomous communities of Spain.


title: Province of A Coruña

paragraphs: A Coruña (; ; historical ) is the most northwestern Atlantic-facing province of Spain. It is one of the four provinces which make up the autonomous community of Galicia. This province is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and north. The Pontevedra Province surrounds it to the south and the Lugo Province to the east.


title: Province of Córdoba (Spain)

paragraphs: Córdoba (, '), called Cordova in English, is a province of southern Spain. It is bordered by the provinces of Málaga, Sevilla, Badajoz, Ciudad Real, Jaén, and Granada. Its area is 13,769 km².


title: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

paragraphs: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (often shortened to Law & Order: SVU) is an American television spin-off of the original police drama series "Law & Order" which is set in New York City, inside the fictional 16th precinct of Manhattan.


title: Alfred Waterhouse

paragraphs: Alfred Waterhouse (19 July 1830 – 22 August 1905) was a English architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic revival. He is perhaps best known for his design for Manchester Town Hall and the Natural History Museum in London, although he also built a wide variety of other buildings throughout the country. Financially speaking, Waterhouse was probably the most successful of all Victorian architects. Though expert within Gothic and Renaissance styles, Waterhouse never limited himself to a single architectural style.


title: OSI model

paragraphs: The Open Systems Interconnection model (OSI model) is a method of thinking of computer networking in terms of abstraction layers. Different communication protocols with similar functions are grouped into different logical layers on the OSI Model. Each layer of the OSI Model makes use of functions provided by the layers below it and provides functions that are used by the layers above it. There are 7 layers.

paragraphs: According to the standard OSI Model there are seven layers. Each layer is dependent upon the layers below it to function.

paragraphs: Some aspects of computer networking, such as management and security, use or are used on every layer.

paragraphs: The application layer provides an interface for the end user operating a device connected to a network. This layer is what the user sees, in terms of loading an application (such as Web browser or e-mail); that is, this application layer is the data the user views while using these applications. Examples of application layer functionality include:

paragraphs: To be able to properly interpret a message sent through the network this layer is responsible for the proper translation or interpretation.

paragraphs: This layer establishes request/response communication. When needed a session is started with authentication, after which a request is sent. After a response the session might be ended or a new request is sent. This is the first layer where a client/server concept is introduced. Where a specific device might change the role from client to server or vice versa.

paragraphs: The Transport Layer is the level at which system reliability and quality are ensured. This layer manages traffic flow through the network layer to reduce congestion on a network, and performs error checking ensuring quality of service by resending data when data has been corrupted. Some of the most popular methods of encryption and firewall security take place on this layer.

paragraphs: The Routing Layer works to coordinate related parts of a data conversation to ensure that large files are transferred. In other words, while the data link layer deals with the method in which the physical layer is used to transfer data, the network layer deals with organizing that data for transfer and reassembly. This layer also handles aspects of Routing Protocols, finding the available [best] path(s) from one network to another to ensure delivery of the data.

paragraphs: The Data Layer is mainly the method in which information from the network is broken down into and transmitted over the physical layer. This layer is also responsible for some Error detection and correction and some addressing so different devices can tell each other apart in larger systems.

paragraphs: The physical layer refers to electrical and physical aspects of devices. In particular, it specifies how a device sends and receives information, such as using copper wires or fiber-optic cables. Examples of this include Ethernet or fiber optic cables, phone cords used for dial-up or DSL services, the coaxial cable used to provide broadband internet, the wires used to connect various components of a computer or even the radio signals used in wireless communication. Other functions of the physical layer include the conversion of signals into something that another layer can use (referred to as a bit), and adjusting the signal to allow for multiple users to use the same connections.


title: Victoria and Albert Museum

paragraphs: The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied art (decorative arts and design). Named after Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, it was founded in 1852.

paragraphs: The V&A has a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects. It covers and 145 galleries. Its collection spans 5000 years of art, from ancient times to the present day, in virtually every medium, from the cultures of Europe, North America, Asia and North Africa. The museum is sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

paragraphs: The holdings of ceramics, glass, textiles, costumes, silver, ironwork, jewellery, furniture, medieval objects, sculpture, prints and printmaking, drawings and photographs are among the largest and most comprehensive in the world.

paragraphs: The museum possesses the world's largest collection of post-classical sculpture, the holdings of Italian Renaissance items are the largest outside Italy. The departments of Asia include art from South Asia, China, Japan, Korea and the Islamic world. The East Asian collections are among the best in Europe, with particular strengths in ceramics and metalwork, while the Islamic collection, with the Musée du Louvre and Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, is amongst the largest in the world.

paragraphs: The V&A is in what is called London's "Albertopolis", an area of immense cultural, scientific and educational importance. Near it are the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum, Imperial College, the Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial.

paragraphs: Since 2001, the Museum has embarked on a major £150m renovation program which has seen a major overhaul of the departments including the introduction of newer galleries, gardens, shops and visitor facilities. As with other national UK museums, admission to the museum is free.


title: Faber Drive

paragraphs: Faber Drive is a Juno award nominated band from Canada. They became a band in 2004 when they were discovered by Nickelback frontman, Chad Kroeger and later released their debut album "Seven Second Surgery". They are signed to 604 records which is the area code of the lower mainland of Vancouver.

paragraphs: Their name comes from the lead singer, Dave Faber's last name.

paragraphs: Their newest album is "can'T keEp A SecrEt" (sylized to say "TEASE"), which came to stores in 2009.


title: Abubakari Yakubu

paragraphs: Abubakari Yakubu (born 13 December 1981 – 31 October 2017) was a Ghanaian football player. He has played for the Ghanaian national team. He was born in Tema, Ghana.

paragraphs: Yakubu died on 31 October 2017 at the age of 35.


title: Gymnocalycium

paragraphs: Gymnocalycium is a genus of plants in the family Cactaceae.

paragraphs: All of these plants are succulents without leaves. The plants grows in South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay). In total, there are 50-80 species.

paragraphs: Stems of these plants are round, their diameter is 7–30 cm, their height is 3–25 cm. The color of stems is grey-green or brown-green or grey-brown.

paragraphs: Plants of this genus are popular houseplants.


title: Prayer of the Refugee

paragraphs: "Prayer of the Refugee" is the second single from the punk rock band Rise Against's album "The Sufferer & the Witness". It was released worldwide in 2006. The song was first called "Diaspora", with advance copies of the album using that name instead of "Prayer of the Refugee." The song is shown as a re-recorded bonus track in the video game "". The song is also showed in "Slednecks 9" DVD. It's used in "The Compound" segment of the movie.

paragraphs: The album version of the song is available as DLC for the Rock Band series along with "Savior" and "Re-Education (Through Labor)".


title: Physical fitness

paragraphs: Physical fitness is the ability to be physically active, to move and respond to the environment. People can take various tests to measure their physical performance. Such tests are necessary for some occupations, such as soldiers and firefighters.

paragraphs: Physical fitness has two components: general fitness (a state of health and well-being) and specific fitness (the ability to perform specific aspects of sports or occupations).

paragraphs: The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports — a study group sponsored by the United States Government — declines to offer a simple definition of physical fitness. Instead, it developed the following chart:

paragraphs: Health-related components: those factors that are related to how well the systems of your bodywork.

paragraphs: Body composition is the relative percentage of body fat compared to lean body mass (muscle, bone, water, etc)

paragraphs: Cardiovascular fitness: the ability of the circulatory system (heart and blood vessels) to supply oxygen to working muscles during exercise.

paragraphs: Flexibility: the range of movement possible at various joints.

paragraphs: Accordingly, a general-purpose physical fitness program must address those issues.


title: Mercè Rodoreda

paragraphs: Mercè Rodoreda i Gurguí (October 10, 1908 – April 13, 1983) was a Spanish Catalan novelist.


title: Selena (album)

paragraphs: Selena is the first studio album by American singer Selena. It was released on October 17, 1989 by EMI Latin. The album was recorded in San Antonio and Houston, Texas. The album was Selena's first album to be released by EMI Latin. She signed a record deal with them earlier in the year. "Selena" got to number seven on the US Regional Mexican Albums chart. By 1996, 24,000 copies had been sold. The album helped Selena to win "Female Vocalist of the Year" and "Female Entertainer of the Year" at the 1990 Tejano Music Awards.

paragraphs: Selena's brother, A.B. Quintanilla III was the music producer and songwriter for the album. Selena wrote "My Love" on her own. "Sukiyaki" was translated from Japanese to Spanish. This was done by Selena's father and manager Abraham Quintanilla, Jr. and Pete Astudillo. The lead single, "Contigo Quiero Estar" got to number eight on the Hot Latin Tracks chart in 1989.

paragraphs: José Behar, president of EMI Latin, went to the 1989 Tejano Music Awards. He was looking for new musicians. After Selena sang, Behar called his boss and told him about Selena. Behar thought he found the next Gloria Estefan. His boss told him that he was "crazy". He said this because Behar was only in Texas for a week. Selena later signed with EMI Latin later that year. She was the first artist to sign with them. Recording started in late 1988 and went on until early 1989. Selena recorded most of the songs in San Antonio, Texas at AMEN Studios. "Sukiyaki" and "My Love" were recorded in Houston, Texas at Sunrise Studios. Selena wrote "My Love" by herself. She wanted the song to be in the album. Her brother A.B. Quintanilla III was the music producer and main songwriter. Their father and manager Abraham Quintanilla, Jr. gave the job to A.B. He believed A.B. was good at producing music.

paragraphs: The only songs A.B. did not write were "Sukiyaki", "Contigo Quiero Estar", and "No Te Vayas". The original "Sukiyaki" was in Japanese. Selena's lyrics were a Spanish version of an English version of the song by Janice Marie Johnson. "Sukiyaki" had been one of Abraham's favorite songs when he was growing up. "Contigo Quiero Estar" was written by Mexican songwriter Alejandro Montealegre. "No Te Vayas" was written by Reinaldo Ornelas. A.B. wanted "No Te Vayas" on the album because of its reggae sounds. He thought it would make the album "exotic" (different) from other Spanish-language albums. He believed this because of the different music genres they had produced.

paragraphs: "Selena" was released on October 17, 1989 by EMI Latin. In its first week on the US Regional Mexican Albums chart (December 2, 1989), it was at number 17. It got to its highest place on the chart, number 7, on March 24, 1990. It was on the chart for another three weeks. On May 5, 1990, it was on the chart again, at number 14. That was after the release of "Ven Conmigo" (1990). However, it left the charts. It was on the chart again two times in August 1990. "Contigo Quiero Estar", "Mentiras", and "Sukiyaki" were released as singles. The lead single, "Contigo Quiero Estar" got to number eight on the Hot Latin Tracks chart.

paragraphs: At the 1990 Tejano Music Awards, Selena won "Female Vocalist of the Year" and "Female Entertainer of the Year". Her album "Selena" did better than albums from other female singers. As of 1996, 24,000 copies of "Selena" have been sold in the United States. 30,000 copies of "Selena" were shipped. On August 27, 2002, "Selena" was released again. It was part of the "20 Years of Music" series. It had one bonus track ("La Bamba"). It also had commentaries for each track. Selena's family and friends talked about what happened during recordings and choosing songs for the album.

paragraphs: Credits were taken from the album's booklet.


title: Ven Conmigo

paragraphs: Ven Conmigo (English: "Come With Me"), was the third album released by rising Latina superstar Selena, on November 12, 1990, for the CAPITOL/EMI Latin label. This album, was the first to market Selena as a solo artist, no longer identifying her albums with "Selena Y Los Dinos," though they were still very much a part of the mix. The album itself, sold 50,000 units in America, and was certified Gold by the RIAA. Another 242,802 copies were sold on Amazon.com, verifed from their sellers rank.

paragraphs: The group re-recorded "La Tracalera", a cover version of a song by the original Dinos, as well as "Aunque No Salga El Sol," which they had originally recorded, in 1984. The song "Baila Esta Cumbia," was an instant hit in the U.S., and later crossed over to Mexico. Ven Conmigo, was the group's first Gold album.

paragraphs: A remastered version was released in 2002, with bonus tracks and spoken liner notes by the family and friends, who witnessed the entire production.

paragraphs: The album "Ven Conmigo" was recorded and mixed at "ZAZ Studios" in San Antiono, Texas. The engineer was "Gilbert Velasquez" who also mixed the album. The album's main photo was taken by "Robert Lopez". The album was produced, arranged, and performaned by A.B. Quintanilla III. The co-arranged was "Ricky Vela" and "Jose C. Ojeda". The midi and computer sequencing was made by "Ricky Vela".

paragraphs: A.B. Quintanilla, III, wrote and produced almost every song on Ven Conmigo. David Lee Garza, the accordion player for the title track, "Ven Conmigo, participated in the writing and production, as well.


title: Nadap

paragraphs: The village of Nadap lies on the eastern slopes of Velencei Hills, it is a well oriented, self-contained settlement, with charming rural atmosphere. It is only two kilometers both from the recreation facilities of Lake Velencei and from the M7 motorway, therefore it is easily accessible from Budapest and from Székesfehérvár, too. Each house in the settlement has a great panorama.

paragraphs: The settlements around Lake Velencei are overwhelmed with the spirit of Mihály Vörösmarty. Nadap is not different either, the poet was baptised in the village on 3 December 1800. The baptistery is still in the church today. The inhabitants of the village expressed their admiration for the memory of the poet with a sculpture erected in the Millenium Park.

paragraphs: Nadap also hosts a key cartographical and architectural specialty; it is the home of the etalon for measuring heights in Hungary, called Nadapi szintezési ősjegy (Levelling mark of Nadap).


title: Pázmánd

paragraphs: Pázmánd is in the easternmost part of Velencei Hills, at the foot of Zsidó Hill (202m).

paragraphs: Archaeological artefacts prove that the village was already been populated the in Iron Age. The name of the village comes from the period when the State was founded; the area was probably awarded as a gift to Knight Pázmány to function as a summer residence.

paragraphs: Little is known about the history of the settlement in the Middle Ages. One thing is sure: when the Turks were expelled from Hungary the fleeing troops slaughtered the families living here, destroyed the Romanesque church and set the village on fire.

paragraphs: At the beginning of the 18th century Tót people (Slovakians) were settled in the area, the village was even called Tót-Pázmánd for some time. The inhabitants of the village declared themselves Hungarians already in the 19th century but their Slovakian roots are still noticeable in their conventions (Sibálás - Easter lashing).


title: Socratis Kokkalis

paragraphs: Socratis Kokkalis (born May 27, 1939) is a Greek businessman who has been a member of the Forbes 500 list of the world's 500 richest people. He is the Chairman, CEO and majority shareholder of Intracom Holdings. Intracom is one of the largest multinational technology groups in South-Eastern Europe, and the Chairman and majority shareholder of Intralot S.A., the world's leading gaming technology supplier and lottery licensed operator. He was also the owner and president of Olympiacos CFP, until his retirement in 2010. CFP is the most successful and most supported Greek football club in Greece. He is the President of the Kokkalis Foundation. This is a non-profit organization that promotes education and training, culture and social welfare, medical research and information technology, and athletics, both in Greece and abroad.


title: Mikhail Botvinnik

paragraphs: Mikhail Botvinnik (17 August 1911 – 5 May 1995) was a Soviet Russian grandmaster and three-time World Chess Champion.

paragraphs: He was an electrical engineer, one of the few chess masters who achieved distinction in another career while playing top-class competitive chess.

paragraphs: Botvinnik was the first world-class player to develop within the Soviet Union. This put him under some political pressure, but also gave him considerable influence within Soviet chess. He played a major role in the design of the World Chess Championship system after World War II. After his retirement as a player he coached a few select pupils. They included three future World Champions Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik.

paragraphs: Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik was born near St. Petersburg into a Jewish family. His father was a dental technician, and a cantor ("hazzan") in the local synagogue. His mother was a dentist, which allowed the family to live outside the Pale of Settlement to which most Jews in Russia were restricted at the time. As a result, Mikhail Botvinnik grew up in Saint Petersburg's Nevsky Prospekt.

paragraphs: His father forbade the speaking of Yiddish at home, and Mikhail and his older brother Issy attended Soviet schools. Mikhail Botvinnik later said, "I am a Jew by blood, Russian by culture, Soviet by upbringing".

paragraphs: To test the strength of Soviet chess masters, Nikolai Krylenko organized the Moscow 1925 chess tournament. On a rest day during the event, world champion José Raúl Capablanca gave a simultaneous exhibition in Leningrad. Botvinnik was selected as one of his opponents, and won their game.

paragraphs: Botvinnik was admitted in 1928 to Leningrad University's Mathematics Department. In January 1929, he played for Leningrad in the student team chess championship against Moscow. Leningrad won and the team manager got Botvinnik a transfer to the Polytechnic's Electromechanical Department.

paragraphs: His early progress was fairly rapid. He won the Leningrad Masters' tournament in 1930 with 6½/8, following this up the next year by winning the Championship of Leningrad by 2½ points over former Soviet champion Peter Romanovsky.

paragraphs: In 1931, at the age of 20, Botvinnik won his first Soviet Championship in Moscow, scoring 13½ out of 17. In late summer 1931, he graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering. In 1933, he repeated his Soviet Championship win, in his home city of Leningrad, with 14/19.

paragraphs: Soon afterwards Ilyin-Genevsky, one of the older masters and a member of the Soviet embassy in Prague, arranged a match between Salo Flohr and Botvinnik. Botvinnik fell two games behind by the end of the first six, played in Moscow. However, aided by his old friend Viacheslav Ragozin and coach Abram Model, he levelled the score in Leningrad and the match was drawn. When describing the post-match party, Botvinnik wrote that at the time he danced the foxtrot and charleston to a professional standard.

paragraphs: In his first tournament outside the USSR, the Hastings International Chess Congress 1934–35, Botvinnik achieved only a tie for 5th-6th places, with 5/9. He wrote that, in London after the tournament, Emanuel Lasker said his arrival only two hours before the first round began was a serious mistake and that he should have allowed ten days for acclimatization. Botvinnik wrote that he did not make this mistake again.

paragraphs: Botvinnik came first equal with Flohr, ½ point ahead of Lasker and one point ahead of José Raúl Capablanca, in Moscow's second International Tournament, held in 1935. After consulting Capablanca and Lasker, Krylenko proposed to award Botvinnik the title grandmaster, but Botvinnik objected that "titles were not the point". However, he accepted a free car and a 67% increase in his postgraduate study grant, both provided by the People's Commissariat of Heavy Industry.

paragraphs: An even stronger double-round tournament was played in Moscow in June 1936, and Botvinnik finished second, one point behind Capablanca and 2½ ahead of Flohr.

paragraphs: In early winter, 1936, Botvinnik was invited to play in a tournament at Nottingham, England. Krylenko authorized his participation and, although his Soviet rivals forecast disaster for him, he scored an undefeated shared first place (+6 =8) with Capablanca, ½ point ahead of the then World Champion Max Euwe and rising American stars Reuben Fine and Samuel Reshevsky, and 1 point ahead of ex-champion Alexander Alekhine. This was the first tournament victory by a Soviet master outside his own country. When the result reached Russia, Krylenko drafted a letter to be sent in Botvinnik's name to Stalin. On returning to Russia Botvinnik discovered he had been awarded the "Mark of Honour". Later, in 1937, Botvinnik drew a match of thirteen games against Grigory Levenfish.

paragraphs: Botvinnik won further Soviet Championship titles in 1939, 1944, 1945, and 1952, bringing his total to six – a record he shares with Mikhail Tal. In 1945 he dominated the tournament, scoring 15/17; in 1952 he tied with Mark Taimanov and won the play-off match. In post-Soviet Russia the championship is somewhat less strong, as entrants from the non-Russian countries are lacking. All the same, it is still the strongest national championship in the world, and Peter Svidler has won it six times.

paragraphs: Botvinnik influenced the design of the system which would be used for World Championship competition from 1948 to 1963. Viktor Baturinsky wrote "Now came Botvinnik's turn to defend his title in accordance with the new qualifying system which he himself had outlined in 1946".

paragraphs: On the basis of his strong results during and just after World War II, Botvinnik was one of five players to contest the World Chess Championship 1948, which was held at The Hague and Moscow. He won the tournament convincingly, with a score of 14/20, three points clear, becoming the sixth World Champion. Botvinnik then held the title, with two brief interruptions, for the next fifteen years, during which he played seven world championship matches.

paragraphs: Botvinnik played no formal competitive games after winning the 1948 match tournament until he defended his title. In 1951, he drew with David Bronstein over 24 games in Moscow, +5 =14 -5, keeping the world title. He struggled to draw this match with Bronstein, and had (by his standards) weak tournament results. Botvinnik did not play in the Soviet team that won the 1952 Chess Olympiad in Helsinki: the players voted for the line-up and placed Botvinnik on second board, with Keres on top board; Botvinnik protested and refused to play. Keres' playing record from 1950 to early 1952 had been outstanding.

paragraphs: In 1954, he drew with Vasily Smyslov over 24 games at Moscow, +7 =10 -7, again retaining the title. In 1957, he lost to Smyslov by 9½–12½ in Moscow, but the rules then in force allowed him a rematch without having to go through the Candidates' Tournament, and in 1958 he won the rematch in Moscow; Smyslov said his health was poor during the return match. In 1960, Botvinnik was convincingly beaten 8½-12½ at Moscow by Tal, now 23 years old, but again exercised his right to a rematch in 1961, and won by 13–8 in Moscow. Botvinnik's play was better than in the 1960 match, mainly due to thorough preparation. Botvinnik changed his style in the rematch, avoiding the tactical complications in which Tal excelled and aiming for closed positions and endgames, where Tal's technique was not so outstanding. Also, Tal's health was variable. Finally, in 1963, he lost the title to Tigran Petrosian, by 9½-12½ in Moscow. FIDE had by then changed the rules, and he was not allowed a rematch. The rematch rule had been nicknamed the "Botvinnik rule", because he twice benefited from it.

paragraphs: In 1970, Botvinnik retired from competitive chess, and he worked on chess-playing software. There was no significant result from this, but his work as a coach to top young players bore fruit. He died of pancreatic cancer in Moscow.


title: Hate speech

paragraphs: Hate speech is communicating in a way that is meant to offend and hurt somebody. It is usually based on a factor such as somebody's race, gender, ethnic group, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or religion. Some places have laws that make it illegal to use hate speech. Countries such as Canada, France and Germany have stricter laws against hate speech than the United States, where hate speech is usually legal because its Constitution says that people have freedom of speech.

paragraphs: But hate speech is an inciting of discrimination and sometimes a cause of bullying or hate crime and Article 7 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that all are protected from such an inciting.


title: Beatification

paragraphs: Beatification (from Latin "beatus", blessed, Greek μακάριος, "makarios" and Latin "facere", make) is a recognition given by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and power to help people who pray in his or her name. Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process. A person who is beatified is given the title "Blessed".


title: Reading railway station

paragraphs: Reading railway station (formerly Reading General) is a major rail junction and station in the English town of Reading. It is on the northern edge of the town centre, close to the main retail and commercial areas, and also the River Thames. Next to the railway station is a bus interchange, served by most of Reading's urban and rural bus services.

paragraphs: Reading was opened on 30 March 1840 by the Great Western Railway. It is a major junction point on the National Rail system, and as a consequence the railway station is a major transfer point as well as serving heavy local traffic. The station is sponsored by the bank ING Direct and the University of Reading. There are many local buses, regional buses and a coach to Heathrow Airport. South West Trains, First Great Western and CrossCountry serve the station.


title: Dreamworks Records

paragraphs: DreamWorks Records was an American record label. Started in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a split from DreamWorks SKG. The label worked until 2005 when it was shut down. The label itself also showed a Nashville, Tennessee based subsidiary, DreamWorks Nashville, which worked specifically in country music and was also shut down in 2005. The company's logo was designed by Roy Lichtenstein and was his last commission before his death in 1997.


title: The Good Left Undone

paragraphs: "The Good Left Undone" is the third single from the American punk rock band Rise Against's fourth album, "The Sufferer & the Witness". In June 2007, they said that they would be holding a contest to see who could make the best video for the song. They released a bulletin board over their MySpace account giving information about the contest.

paragraphs: The song got to number six on the "Billboard" alternative rock chart, making it the band's second top 10 single (the first being the last single ""Prayer of the Refugee"") and highest charting single from the album. The song has spent 30 weeks on the chart before its peak, making it the band's slowest climb to the chart's Top 10.


title: Revolutions per Minute

paragraphs: Revolutions per Minute is the second album by the American punk rock band Rise Against. It has the singles "Heaven Knows" and "Like the Angel" as well as a cover of Journey's single, "Any Way You Want It."

paragraphs: The album had a limited release on vinyl (217 of which were on red vinyl) which is now out of print. It was the band's last release under Fat Wreck Chords before to their move to Geffen Records. This is where they released "Siren Song of the Counter Culture" in 2004. It is interesting to note that inside the album cover, there is a copyright to Transistor Revolt, the band's name before they changed it to Rise Against.


title: Wicked

paragraphs: Wicked is a Broadway musical. It is loosely based on characters and concepts created by L. Frank Baum in his children's series of Wizard of Oz books, the 1939 MGM movie, "The Wizard of Oz", and the 1995 novel, "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West" by Gregory Maguire.

paragraphs: Winnie Holzman wrote the musical's book. Stephen Schwartz wrote the music and lyrics. "Wicked" premiered on Broadway at the Gershwin Theatre in October 2003. It won several awards, including three Tonys. A film of the same name will be released in 2022.


title: Fat Wreck Chords

paragraphs: Fat Wreck Chords is a San Francisco, California based independent record label, made for punk rock. It was started by Fat Mike (lead singer and bassist of the punk rock band NOFX) and his wife, Erin, in 1990.

paragraphs: They have made material for bands such as Descendents, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Propagandhi, Rise Against, Lagwagon, Strung Out, No Use for a Name, Less Than Jake, Against Me!, Anti-Flag, Facing The Giants, Return To The Wars, Hallowed Ground, and his own band NOFX.


title: PGL (company)

paragraphs: PGL is an activity holiday company started by Peter Gordon Lawrence in 1957. They run holidays for schools, individual children, youth groups and families, in the UK, France, Spain, Austria and other places.


title: Minato, Tokyo

paragraphs: The municipality calls itself "Minato City" in English.

paragraphs: On 15 March 1947, the ward of Minato was formed by combining the wards of Akasaka, Azabu, and Shiba.

paragraphs: Minato is on Toyko Bay. It borders Shinagawa on the south. Meguro is southwest of the ward. Shibuya is on the ward's western border. Shinjuku, Chiyoda and Chūō are on the norther border.


title: Afghan Hound

paragraphs: The Afghan Hound is a dog from Afghanistan. Other names for them are "Kuchi Hound", "Tāzī", "Balkh Hound", "Baluchi Hound", "Barutzy Hound", "Shalgar Hound", "Kabul Hound", "Galanday Hound", or sometimes, incorrectly, "African Hound". This is a very old dog breed, believed to have existed for thousands of years. It is a type of sighthound, a hunting dog which uses its eyes to spot and chase small animals, like rabbits. They are closely related to other sighthounds, like the Greyhound. Afghan Hounds can run very quickly, and can run short distances at up to 75 kilometers per hour. Nowadays, they are kept as pets, compete as show dogs, and participate in a dog sport called lure coursing, which is similar to rabbit hunting.

paragraphs: Their face is long and skinny, with ears that drop down on the sides of their head. The Afghan Hound is tall and thin, with a long tail that curls and is held high up in the air.

paragraphs: The Afghan Hound is one of the most difficult types of dogs to train. Unlike many kinds of dogs, they do not like to listen to commands, and would rather make their own choices. In "The Intelligence of Dogs", the Afghan Hound came in last place for "working intelligence." This does not mean that the Afghan Hound is stupid; it means that it is easier to encourage other dogs to follow instructions than the Afghan Hound.

paragraphs: They like to run, and because they can run very fast, they need to be kept on a leash or in a fenced area. Fences need to be very high to keep the Afghan Hound from escaping, because they can easily jump several meters in the air. Afghan Hounds cannot live in the same house as a cat or any other small animal, as they will try to chase or hunt it.

paragraphs: This is a quiet dog for indoors, but needs to have regular exercise and play time. They need to have the chance to run in a safe, fenced area at least once a week. If an Afghan gets bored, it can tear things up. This is a friendly dog that is not shy with people or other dogs. Many people who own Afghan Hounds say that they are "clownish" and silly, because they are very playful. Afghan Hounds are known to be very sensitive to injuries and complain a lot when they have them.

paragraphs: Afghan Hounds are mostly very healthy dogs, but do get some diseases more often than others. Because their tails are very long and thin, they can hurt them quite easily. These dogs are very sensitive to anesthetic, so if they are getting an operation, the vet must be very careful with the amount of anesthetic given. Their eyes can develop cataracts, which will make the dog blind if they are not removed.


title: Africanis

paragraphs: The Africanis is a group of rare South African dogs. They are not recognized as a breed. The Swahili name for the breed is "". This means "common" or "mixed-breed" or "traditional dog".

paragraphs: The Africanis is a medium-sized dog. It is well-muscled and is a bit longer than it is tall. It has a short coat of fur that can be of any color. This dog can run very fast and also is trainable.


title: Earthquake engineering

paragraphs: Earthquake engineering is the study of the behavior of building structures subject to earthquake impacts. It is a subset of civil engineering.

paragraphs: The main goals of earthquake engineering are:

paragraphs: A properly engineered structure does not necessarily have to be extremely strong or expensive.

paragraphs: The most powerful and affordable tools of earthquake engineering are vibration control technologies and, in particular, base isolation.

paragraphs: To test seismic performance of a building structure with experiments, it is may be put on a shake-table that behaves like the earth shaking. The earliest shake-table experiments were performed more than a century ago

paragraphs: Tsunami or a chain of fast moving waves in the ocean caused, mostly, by powerful earthquakes is a very serious challenge for people's safety and for tsunami protection of buildings and civil infrastructure. Those waves can flood coastal areas, destroy houses and even swipe away whole towns.

paragraphs: Though tsunami can not be prevented, there are warning systems developed recently which warn the population before the big waves reach the land to let them enough time to rush to safety.

paragraphs: Ahmadi Maleki, M., Emami, M. Application of SVM for investigation of factors affecting compressive strength and consistency of geopolymer concretes. "Journal of civil Engineering and Materials Application", 2019; 3(2): 95-101. doi: 10.22034/jcema.2019.92507


title: Numerical weather prediction

paragraphs: Numerical weather prediction is the way weather forecasts are made. This is done using computer models of the atmosphere. Such models describe the current weather conditions, and how they change over time using equations. Using the current weather conditions, the equations can be solved, or approximated to tell what the weather will be like in the near future. The relevant physical parameters, such as pressure, temperature, the direction and the speed of the wind are taken to be functions of time. These are modelled with a system of partial differential equations. This is a dynamic system that is solved numerically. Most of these equations are implemented using FORTRAN. The equations are approximated. Since the number of calculations is huge, supercomputers usually do them, to finish before it's too late.

paragraphs: The atmosphere is modelled as a fluid. The basic idea of numerical weather prediction is to sample the state of the fluid at a given time. The equations of fluid dynamics and thermodynamics can then be used to estimate the state of the fluid at some time in the future.

paragraphs: The results are usually too inaccurate to be used for predicting the weather at any place. For this reason, meteorologists check the values, and compare them to historical data. In other words, they use the data to help produce the weather forecast.

paragraphs: Model Output Statistics is a statistical model that was developed in the 1960s and 1970s. It uses regression analysis for a fully automated forecast. With it, historical data is analysed automatically. One of its applications is called Direct Model Output. MOS uses both historical data and statistical modeling. Predictions beyond about six hours are unreliable.

paragraphs: Another well-known model is called Global Forecast System (GFS), which is run by the US weather service, NOAA. It gives a forecast four times a day. Since the information is free, the GFS is often used, especially by smaller weather stations.

paragraphs: The atmosphere is a chaotic system. A small change of the input values does not necessarily lead to a small change of the output. This is due to the equations of fluid dynamics that are involved. These equations involved are solved or approximated once with the parameters that were observed. This is done several times more, with parameters that are based on the observed values, but which have been changed slightly. Because the computing power is limited, the "resolution" of such a model is more coarse. Once all the calculations are finished, they are compared to one another. Calculated results that are "similar" indicate that the prognosis is relatively good. In some cases, this means that it is possible to accurately predict the weather for a time of about ten days; in other cases a prediction over even a few days may be difficult.


title: Paul Bunyan

paragraphs: Paul Bunyan is a fictional giant lumberjack. James MacGillivray wrote about Bunyan in 1910, which is the earliest writing about Bunyan that we know about. A few years later, in 1916, William Laughead was writing an advertisement, and decided to use Bunyan in what he was writing, and decided to make him a giant.

paragraphs: James Stevens wrote a book called "Paul Bunyan" in 1925. This book said that French Canadians people made up the Paul Bunyan stories during the Papineau Rebellion of 1837, when they were fighting against England. This would explain why Paul Bunyan's last name is "Bunyan", because "Bunyan" sounds like the French-Canadian slang word "Bonyenne", which is something that they might say when they are surprised, like how people who speak English might say "Good Grief" or "My Goodness". People told other people stories about Bunyan, and the stories would change a little bit as they spread from person to person. Often, Paul Bunyan is shown in pictures with a giant blue ox named Babe. Historians think that Babe was not created until the 20th century for advertising. Other theories is that the Paul Bunyan was based on the legendry "Big Joe Mufferaw" [aka French-Canadian lumberjack Joseph Montferrand [1802-1864] . or on a French-Canadain lumberjack in Michigan named Fabian "Joe" Fournier [1845-1875]

paragraphs: According to legend, when Bunyan was born, it took three storks to carry him. (In some stories storks carry babies and drop them off at their parents' houses.). When he became older, he broke every window in the house when he clapped or laughed. When he was seven months old, he sawed the legs off his parent's bed in the middle of the night. Paul and his friend, Babe the Blue Ox, dug the Grand Canyon when Paul was carrying his axe and dragging it behind him. Babe, Bunyan's friend, was a large and very strong animal.

paragraphs: Many different towns say that they are the "home" of Bunyan. Some of these towns are in Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin, although there are towns in other states, too.

paragraphs: In the town of Kelliher, Minnesota, there is a park called Paul Bunyan Memorial Park, where there is a grave site that says that Paul Bunyan is buried there.


title: Japanese era name

paragraphs: The , also known as , is a traditional calendar system which began during the reign of Emperor Kōtoku in the 7th century. This calendar has been in use in Japan since the beginning of the 8th century.

paragraphs: The historical Japanese calendar system defines and parses time in terms of ordinal numbers.

paragraphs: Each new was usually started soon after the beginning of the reign of a new emperor. Era names were also changed due to other events. Starting in the reign of Emperor Yōzei, the tradition of naming eras because of good omens changed. Instead, the name of an era might be chosen to ward off something bad.

paragraphs: The first day of the started whenever the emperor decided. This first year continued until the next lunar new year, which is understood to be the start of the "nengō's" second year.

paragraphs: To change a Japanese year to a Western or Gregorian calendar year, find the first year of the "nengō" (see list below). When found, subtract 1, and add the number of the Japanese year. For example, the 23rd year of the Shōwa period ("Shōwa 23") was 1948:


title: Appomattox Court House

paragraphs: Appomattox Court House is a place in Virginia (It is now called Appomattox, Virginia). It is where General Robert E. Lee of the Confederate Army surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant and the Union Army on April 9, 1865, ending the American Civil War. Though the place is called Appomattox Court House, the surrender took place at the McLean House, a private home.


title: Base isolation

paragraphs: Base isolation is a collection of a building’s units resting on its foundation to provide separation of the building from shaking ground thus improving seismic performance.

paragraphs: Base isolation system consists of "isolation units" with or without "isolation components", where:

paragraphs: 1. "Isolation units" are the basic elements of "base isolation system" which provide the mentioned separation effect to a building structure.

paragraphs: 2. "Isolation components" are the connections between "isolation units" and other parts of the building having no separation effect of their own.

paragraphs: From the very beginning, the theory of base isolation rested on two pillars: "heavy damping" and "frequency separation". Unfortunately, nobody paid any attention that the heavy damping was a sort of a strong connection between a "substructure" and "superstructure", and that the idea of decoupling them with the help of such connections was of no good. Anyway, to virtually test-drive any design concept of base isolation, some online help is available now.


title: Shōō (Kamakura period)

paragraphs: , also spelled as "Shō-ō", was a after "Kōan" and before "Einin". The period started in April 1288 and ended in August 1293. During this time, the emperor was .


title: Vibration control

paragraphs: In earthquake engineering, vibration control is a set of technical means for decreasing seismic loads and improving seismic performance of building structures.

paragraphs: All vibration control devices may be classified as "passive", "active" or "hybrid". The first kind is the simplest one and, therefore, widespread. Passive control devices represent different types of "base isolators" and "seismic dampers".

paragraphs: "Base isolators" restrict penetration of potentially damaging seismic waves into a building structure while "dampers" decrease destructive effect of those waves.


title: Telephone card

paragraphs: A telephone card, calling card or phone card for short, is a small plastic card that is used to pay for telephone calls. They usually hold a set value of credit. Some cards can be recharged with more credit.


title: Vera Menchik

paragraphs: Vera Menchik (Moscow, 16 February 1906 – London, 27 June 1944) was a British-Czech chess player. Menchik was the first women's world chess champion. She also competed in chess tournaments with some of the world's leading male chess masters, defeating many of them, including World Champion Max Euwe.<ref name="H/W">Hooper, David and Whyld, Kenneth 1992. "The Oxford Companion to Chess" 2nd ed, Oxford University Press, </ref>

paragraphs: The daughter of a Czech father and British mother, Vera Menchik was born in Moscow. In the aftermath of World War I and the Russian Revolution, her family moved to England in 1921. Her father taught her chess when she was nine and, in the year of her arrival in England at the age of fifteen, she won the British girls' championship. The following year, she became a pupil of Géza Maróczy, the leading Hungarian grandmaster at the time.

paragraphs: She won the first Women's World Championship in 1927 and successfully defended her title six times in every other championship in her lifetime, and only lost one game, while winning 78 and drawing four games. These were all-play-all tournaments, mostly run alongside Chess Olympiads.

paragraphs: In addition, Menchik won two matches against her rival Sonja Graf for the Women’s World Champion title; (+3 –1 =0) at Rotterdam 1934, and (+9 –2 =5) at Semmering 1937.

paragraphs: Starting in 1929, she participated in a number of Hastings international tournaments. When, the same year, she entered the tournament in Carlsbad, Viennese master Albert Becker ridiculed her entry by suggesting that any player whom Menchik defeated in tournament play should be granted membership into the "Vera Menchik Club". In the tournament, Becker himself became the first member of the "club". In addition to Becker, the "Vera Menchik Club" eventually included grandmasters such as Max Euwe, Mir Sultan Khan, Samuel Reshevsky, Friedrich Sämisch, Lajos Steiner, and virtually every leading British player of the day.

paragraphs: Menchik's greatest success at international tournaments was at Ramsgate 1929, when she finished tied for second with Akiba Rubinstein, just half a point behind former World Champion José Raúl Capablanca, and ahead of her teacher Géza Maróczy. In 1934 she finished third at Maribor, ahead of Rudolph Spielmann and Milan Vidmar. In 1942 she won a match against international master Jacques Mieses (four wins, five draws, one loss).

paragraphs: Vera was a professional player. From the late 1920s, she was the manager and house professional of the Empire Chess Club, which was situated on the top floor of Whiteleys store in Queensway, West London. In 1939 she was appointed to the new National Chess Centre.

paragraphs: In 1937, at the age of 31, Vera Menchik married R.H.S Stevenson (1878–1943), 28 years her senior, who was a leading chess organiser and patron. Vera Menchik's younger sister Olga was also a tournament chess player. In 1944, in World War II, with 38-year-old Vera still women's world champion, the two sisters and their mother were killed by a V-1 rocket, which destroyed their home.

paragraphs: The trophy for the winning team in the Women's Chess Olympiad is known as the "Vera Menchik Cup".


title: Alexandra Kosteniuk

paragraphs: Alexandra Kosteniuk (born Perm, Volga, 23 April 1984) is a Russian chess Grandmaster and former Women's World Chess Champion. She lost her title in 2010.

paragraphs: Alexandra is married, and lives with her husband and daughter in Key Biscayne, Miami, Florida.

paragraphs: Kosteniuk is now ranked only 31st in the current FIDE rating list for women. She is no longer playing regularly. The highest rated woman, Judit Polgar (Hungary), never plays in female events. The second highest rated woman is Humpy Koneru (India); she has never won the women's world championship.


title: King's Sutton railway station

paragraphs: King's Sutton railway station serves the village of King's Sutton in Northamptonshire, England. It is also the nearest railway station to the town of Brackley. It was opened on 1 December 1873 by the Great Western Railway. The station is managed by Chiltern Railways, who provide services along with First Great Western. It was heavily renovated in 2009, with new fencing, a new shelter and a bridge being added to it.


title: Akbash Dog

paragraphs: The Akbash Dog is a large breed (type) of dog which comes from Turkey. It has a white coat of fur. It was bred to protect sheep in the field from thieves and predators. While this dog has been used for this job in Turkey for many hundreds of years, it is not often found outside of Turkey. The Akbash Dog is closely related to other large, white dogs used to protect sheep, such as the Komondor and the Aidi.


title: Clapping

paragraphs: A clap is hitting your hands together and making a sound. The harder you hit, the louder the sound, the softer you hit, less the sound.

paragraphs: If hitting by means of hand to hand contact it will make a different sound than if you were to clap against another object, say, your leg.


title: Strung Out

paragraphs: Strung Out is a punk rock band from Simi Valley, California, United States. They formed in 1992. They are known mostly for their musical style, which has both aspects of punk rock and heavy metal to make their main sound. They have made seven albums on Fat Wreck Chords and appeared on many compilations and skate/surf videos. They have played on the Warped Tour and continue to tour around the world.


title: Reading and Leeds Festivals

paragraphs: The Reading and Leeds Festivals are two yearly music festivals. They take place in Reading and Leeds in the United Kingdom. They are run by Festival Republic (itself owned by Live Nation and MCD). The festivals take place one at a time on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday. They take place on the August of bank holiday weekend. They share the same bill. Between 1998 and 2007, the two festivals were known as the "Carling Weekend", until parting ways with their sponsor Carling in November 2007.


title: Circa Survive

paragraphs: Circa Survive is a rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They formed in 2004. The band has vocalist Anthony Green. He was a singer of Saosin and members of the now-defunct "This Day Forward".

paragraphs: Their first album, "Juturna", was released on April 19, 2005 by Equal Vision Records, which got mixed reviews. However their second album, "On Letting Go", released on May 29, 2007, garnered big reviewer acclaim. Their upcoming album, "Blue Sky Noise", will be released on April 20, 2010 on Atlantic Records as the band has finished their term with Equal Vision Records.


title: The Blind Side (movie)

paragraphs: The Blind Side is a 2009 American drama sports movie directed by John Lee Hancock. It is based on the novel "", which was written by Michael Lewis. It stars Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Quinton Aaron, and Kathy Bates.

paragraphs: The movie is based on a true story. The story follows football player Michael Oher's life, from growing up in a very poor neighborhood, to being adopted by a rich family, and then going to play for Ole Miss and eventually the Baltimore Ravens.

paragraphs: Bullock won an Academy Award for Best Actress, Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role.


title: Lahaul and Spiti district

paragraphs: The district of Lahaul-Spiti in the Indian State of Himachal Pradesh consists of the two formerly separate districts of Lahaul and Spiti.


title: Presidency division

paragraphs: Presidency Division is a division in the Indian state of West Bengal. It has 6 districts:


title: Burdwan division

paragraphs: Burdwan Division is a division in the Indian state of West Bengal. It consists of 7 districts:


title: Jalpaiguri division

paragraphs: Jalpaiguri Division is a division in the Indian state of West Bengal. It consists of 6 districts:


title: History of chess

paragraphs: The history of chess goes back 2200 years. It was played in Chinese Warring Sates Period about 200BC, called XiangQi. Modern International Chess game though originated in northern India in the 6th century (which shares quite a few common Characteristics with the Chinese creation) and spread to Persia. When the Arabs conquered Persia, chess was taken up by the Muslim world and subsequently, through the Moorish conquest of Spain, spread to Southern Europe. But in early Russia, the game came directly from the Khanates (muslim territories) to the south.

paragraphs: In Europe, the moves of the pieces changed in the 15th century. The modern game starts with these changes. In the second half of the 19th century, modern tournament play began. Chess clocks were first used in 1883, and the first world chess championship was held in 1886. The 20th century saw advances in chess theory, and the establishment of the World Chess Federation (FIDE). Chess engines (programs that play chess), and chess data bases became important.

paragraphs: The precursors of chess originated in northern India during the Gupta empire, where its early form in the 6th century was known as Chaturanga. This translates as 'the four divisions', meaning infantry, cavalry, elephantry, and chariotry, represented by the pieces that would evolve into the modern pawn, knight, bishop, and rook, respectively.<ref name="H/W">Hooper, David and Whyld, Kenneth 1992. "The Oxford Companion to Chess" 2nd ed, Oxford University Press. </ref>

paragraphs: In Sassanid Persia around 600 the name became "Chatrang" and the rules were developed further, and players started calling "Shāh!" (Persian for 'King') when threatening the opponent's king, and "Shāh māt!" (Persian for 'the king is finished') when the king could not escape from attack. These exclamations persisted in chess as it traveled to other lands.

paragraphs: The game was taken up by the Muslim world after the Islamic conquest of Persia, with the pieces largely retaining their Persian names; in Arabic "māt" or "māta" مَاتَ means "died", "is dead". In Arabic, the game became Shatranj. In all other languages, the name of the game is derived either from "shatranj" or from "shah".

paragraphs: The following table provides a glimpse of the changes in the names and character of chess pieces, as they passed from one culture to another, from India through Persia to Europe:

paragraphs: Changes in the Arabic names of pieces happened over several centuries after the game arrived in Europe. Most changed were the pieces which had no equivalent in Europe, such as the elephant, the visier (an advisor: the firzan or wazir), and the chariot (rukhkh). The greatest variety of names was for the elephant, which was not seen in Europe, and so not used in war. In Spain names derived from Arabic lasted for centuries (alfil, aufin, orfil...). Eventually, all but France used a word for "bishop". In a similar manner, vizir eventually became "queen", and the chariot became a word for "castle". Except, that is, in English, where "rook" is obviously a version of "rukh". Please note: the following table does not capture all these complicated changes.

paragraphs: The game reached Western Europe and Russia by at least three routes, the earliest being in the 9th century. By the year 1000 it had spread throughout Europe. Introduced into the Iberian Peninsula by the Moors in the 10th century, it was described in a famous 13th century manuscript covering shatranj, backgammon and dice named the "Libro de los juegos".

paragraphs: Buddhist pilgrims, Silk Road traders and others carried it to the Far East, where it was transformed into a game often played on the intersection of the lines of the board rather than within the squares. Chinese chess and Shogi are the most important of the oriental chess variants. However, it was the changes made in medieval Europe which led to our modern game.

paragraphs: The game of chess is really two games. There is the original Indo-Arabic game, and there is the modern game, usually called 'international chess'. The transition between the two happened during the change from the medieval world to the modern world, in the Europe of the later 15th century. In fact, the new game of chess was one of the early topics chosen for the new technology of printing.

paragraphs: In early chess the moves of the pieces were:

paragraphs: The game could be won by 1. Mating the king; 2. By giving stalemate; 3. By capturing all the opponent's pieces. This kept down the number of draws.

paragraphs: In Europe some of the pieces got new names:

paragraphs: About 500 years after chess first reached Europe, after some smaller experiments, there were big changes in the way the pieces moved. The effect was to make the start of the game run faster, and get the opposing pieces in contact sooner. The changes were:

paragraphs: These changes made most of the older chess culture obsolete. The slow development in the openings was replaced by gambits and rapid attacks. The relative values of the pieces are changed. The game can now only be won by mate or resignation by one of the players. Originally, this was not seen as a problem, but as technique improved, so did the number of draws. This became a matter for discussion in the early 20th century. The limited number of ways to win changed what players needed to win in the endgame; many endgames which could be won with the old rules now were drawn.

paragraphs: The first printed work on chess to survive to the present day is Luis de Lucena's "Arte de axedres", printed in Salamanca, Spain. It can be dated to 1496 or 1497. It presents a number of chess problems, some of which are in the old rules ("del viejo"), some in the new rules ("dela dama"). This suggests that the transition is not quite complete, and some readers might not know about the new rules. By 1512, when Damiano published his "Questo libro e da imparare giocare a scachi" in Rome, it only included problems with the new rules, and does not mention the medieval game. The same applies to the Gottingen manuscript, probably written in Spain or Portugal. Though it has been claimed to be earlier, its content suggests it was not written before 1500. England and Germany received the reformed game by 1530. After that, the old game was effectively dead—in Europe, at any rate. A version of the old game survived in India until recently.

paragraphs: Modern chess theory was slow in developing. After the new moves of the pieces, players spent their time playing gambits, and trying to mate each other. The games of Gioacchino Greco (1600– ~1634) clearly show this. The first ideas as to how to win indirectly, 'positionally', started with Philidor. Modern chess has a lot of indirect manoeuvering of a kind the old Arabic players would have understood. They could not attack directly, because their Alfil and Firzān (our bishop and queen) had such limited moves.

paragraphs: One interesting fact is that the Arabs divided their game into the same three stages which we do today: opening, middlegame and endgame.

paragraphs: At the start of a game, the Arabic masters took a number of moves before the pieces were in contact with the other side.

paragraphs: The table, based roughly on square control, suggests the modern game deploys about 20% more force on the board than the older game. However, this understates the case, since the table does not allow for castling, nor the initial optional double move of the pawn. Also, the pawn promotion to the new queen is hugely significant when it takes place. No exact value can be placed on these elements, but perhaps the modern game makes use of up to a third more force than in the original game. Also, the fast development of the pieces makes the opening far more important in the modern game.

paragraphs: Single pieces found in archaeology are seldom taken as chessmen; they are much more likely to be general art objects. "Groups" of small objects are more likely chessmen if there are of more than two types. Many board games have used two kinds of pieces, but only chess uses six different kinds. A dig might not turn up all six forms, but more than two is indicative of chess. If the forms have characteristic chess figures (foot soldiers, kings, man on horse) this is even more convincing.

paragraphs: The evidence from archaeology comes mostly from the discovery of early chess sets, and also from rock art: carvings (petroglyphs) and paintings on rock.

paragraphs: The earliest chessmen found are the Afrasiab collection. In 1977 the Uzbekistan Academy of Archaeology conducted a dig at Afrasiab, near Samarkand. Samarkand is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world, and at times it has been one of the greatest cities of Central Asia. Samarkand is on the trade route between China and the Mediterranean (the Silk Road), and so it is a logical place for a trader to store some of his precious goods.

paragraphs: The Afrasiab finds include seven chess pieces. They are heavily worn, but they include: two foot soldiers with shields and short swords (= our pawns); a war elephant with chain armour and a rider in full battle-dress (= our bishop); a visier (= our queen) with two horses with armed rider; two mounted riders with sword and shield (= knights); and the Shah, on a three-horse chariot, holding a mace-like symbol of power (= our king). That is five out of the six types of piece, and completely convincing as a chess set. The rukh (rook) is also known: it features a three-horse chariot with two men, one driving, and the other armed with sword and shield.

paragraphs: This group is dated to the 7th–8th centuries, and probably come from the end of the Sassanid Empire just before the Arabic conquest. They are "representational", meaning they are small carvings (though somewhat crude) of war men and equipment. Later Arabic sets became abstract shapes, in accordance with their religious teaching.


title: Shani

paragraphs: Shani is one of the Navagraha which are the nine main celestial beings in Hindu astrology, or Jyotiṣa. Shani is embodied in the planet Saturn. Shani is the Lord of Saturday; the word Shani also denotes the seventh day or Saturday in most Indian languages.


title: Wolfgang Wagner

paragraphs: Wolfgang Wagner (born 30 August 1919 - 21 March 2010) was a German opera director. He was the grandson of the opera composer Richard Wagner and great-grandson of the composer Franz Liszt. For 42 years he was director of the Bayreuth Festival, which was created by Richard Wagner for the performances of his operas. At first he was director together with his brother Wieland. After Wieland died he continued to be director until he retired in 2008. He tried to get rid of the festival’s Nazi past, and put on productions which were very symbolic: using lighting effects instead of complicated scenery and heavy costumes.

paragraphs: Wagner was born in Bayreuth. His mother, Winifred Wagner (born Williams-Klindworth), was English. She married Richard Wagner’s son Siegfried, who was much older than she was. Although Siegfried was gay they had two sons (Wieland and Wolfgang) and two daughters.

paragraphs: When Siegfried died in 1930 Winifred took over the running of the festival. She was friends with Adolf Hitler who often came to the performances. Hitler became a family friend. The children called him “Uncle Adolf” or “Uncle Wolf” (his nickname). When World War II started, Wieland did not have to fight in the army because Hitler said he was too important for German culture. However, Wolfgang had to fight, and he was wounded in Poland, but got better. He started to produce operas in Berlin. Hitler liked him, but he never joined the Nazi party.

paragraphs: During the war a lot of Bayreuth buildings were damaged, but not the theatre. The Americans used it for religious services. After the war Winifred was not allowed to run the opera house because of her Nazi past, but Wieland became director and Wolfgang looked after the money. The two brothers started the festival again in 1951. They formed the orchestra again, and invited Hans Knappertsbusch and Herbert von Karajan to conduct. They deliberately avoided using lots of scenery and made use of symbolic ideas, especially lighting.

paragraphs: When Wieland died in 1966 Wolfgang was the only director. He continued the modern ideas of his brother, using very simple staging techniques. The production of Wagner’s "Ring Cycle" in 1976 by the opera director Patrice Chéreau was particularly important. Many people loved it, others disagreed with it. The production of the Ring Cycle in 1983 by Peter Hall, conducted by Georg Solti celebrated the 100th birthday of Richard Wagner. People argued about this production, too. Since then, many famous people have visited the festival, including the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the German President Horst Köhler. In 1982 Grace Bumbry was the first black person to sing at the festival (she sang the part of Venus in "Tannhäuser". Some of the audience thought this was shocking, but she sang so beautifully that everyone applauded for 30 minutes. She had to take 42 curtain calls.

paragraphs: Wolfgang married twice. His first wife was Ellen Drexel. He had two children by this marriage. He argued with them. His son did not like the family’s past Nazi connections, and the daughter Eva argued about the control of the festival. Wolfgang later married Gudrun Mack, with whom he had a daughter Katharina. Eva and Katharina now run the festival.

paragraphs: Wolfgang died aged 90 in Bayreuth in 2010.


title: American Foxhound

paragraphs: The American Foxhound is a kind of dog breed. It is similar to a beagle but bigger. The foxhound came from the United States. Just like a beagle, they are hounds.


title: Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm

paragraphs: "Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm" ( [mu ˈisɑ.mɑː mu ˈɤnʲ jɑ ˈrɤːm], ; 'My Fatherland, My Happiness and Joy') is the incipit of the national anthem of Estonia, first adopted in 1920.

paragraphs: This song has been around since the 19th century; its lyrics (words) were written in 1869 by Estonian poet Johann Voldemar Jannsen, and its melody—the same one used in Finland's national anthem "Maamme"—was composed in 1848 by Friedrich Pacius.

paragraphs: When the Soviets took control of Estonia in 1940, this anthem was banned, then four years later when the small Baltic country became part of the Soviet Union, a regional Soviet anthem was adopted. In May 1990, shortly before the Soviet Union fell, the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic was renamed the "Republic of Estonia" and this anthem was adopted again.


title: V sign

paragraphs: The V sign is a hand gesture that means victory or peace. It is made by raising the first and second fingers on the hand, and putting down the other fingers.


title: Emperor Ankō

paragraphs: No certain dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign. The conventionally accepted names and sequence of the early emperors were not to be confirmed as "traditional" until the reign of Emperor Kammu, who was the 50th monarch of the Yamato dynasty.

paragraphs: The "Kojiki" and "Nihon Shoki" record that Ankō was the second son of Emperor Ingyō.

paragraphs: Some accounts report that Ankō murdered his own father.

paragraphs: Very little is known about the events of Ankō's life and reign. Only limited information is available for study prior to the reign of the 29th monarch, Emperor Kimmei.

paragraphs: It is believed that Ankō was murdered in the third year of his reign.

paragraphs: This emperor's official name after his death (his posthumous name) was regularized many centuries after the lifetime which was ascribed to Ankō.

paragraphs: According to the Imperial Household Agency, the emperor's final resting place is in an earthen tumulus ("kofun"). This emperor is venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine ("misasagi") which is associated with the burial mound.


title: Building code

paragraphs: Building code is a publishing company that puts forth a set of rules on a building design, construction, testing, inspections, and maintenance to protect public health, safety and welfare. Building codes are adopted and enforced by the government, who may inspect buildings to make sure they follow the rules.

paragraphs: A building code may provide rules for many different things and is influenced by materials manufacturers, firefighters, and building officials. The building may need to follow rules about providing parking or affecting traffic. There will be rules about making the building safe during disasters, such as fires, earthquakes, and tornadoes.

paragraphs: The rules used on a specific building may be very different depending on where the building is and what it is used for. For example, a house will have extra rules about making sure people can live there, while a hotel will have extra rules about fire exits. Many public buildings have a "maximum occupancy" for some rooms, which is how many people may be allowed into that room at once.

paragraphs: Any building code has either some minimum requirements for seismic loads ("prescriptive code") or some seismic performance rules ("performance-based code").

paragraphs: Seismic design is based on procedures meant to protect structures that may experience earthquake impact. However, a design which blindly follows seismic code rules does not guarantee safety against collapse or serious damage.