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5719 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/B | B | B is the 2nd letter of the English alphabet. Its appearance depends on the writer's calligraphy. It has an uppercase and lowercase version like any other letters.
The letter B was already part of the Phoenician alphabet more than 3000 years ago in 1000 BCE. It's part of many alphabets today.
Meanings for B
In education, B is a passing grade.
In music, B is a note.
In medicine, B is one of the human blood types.
In the game of bingo, B is a column.
On the internet, B (or /b/) is any of a number of image boards that allow anonymous posts.
In transport, B is the vehicle registration plate of Belgium.
In chemistry, B is the chemical symbol for boron.
In the New York Stock Exchange, B is the symbol for the Barnes Group.
In particle physics, b is the symbol for the bottom quark.
Other websites |
5720 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/C | C | If you typed C# and arrived at this page, then see C-sharp.
C is the third (3rd) letter in the English alphabet and ISO basic latin alphabet.
Meanings for C
In temperature, °C means "degrees Celsius".
In music, C is a note.
In chemistry, C is the atom of carbon, as in C40H56.
In physics, c is the speed of light, as in E=mc².
In Roman numerals, C means "one hundred" (100).
There is a programming language called C, see C programming language.
In electronics, C is a type of battery.
C can also mean the copyright symbol
Pronunciation
The letter "C" is pronounced as /k/.We can also say the letter "C" as /s/.
The letter "C"'s name ,in english, is "Cee"(said as /ˈsiː/). |
5721 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/D | D | D is the fourth (number 4) letter in the alphabet. It is derived from the Greek Delta and the Phoenician Dalet
Meanings for D
In education, D is a barely passing grade.
In electronics, D is a standard size dry cell battery.
In music, D is a note.
In Roman numerals, D also means the number 500.
In computer programming, D is a programming language. |
5722 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/E | E | For the drug sometimes referred to E, see Ecstasy.
E is the fifth (number 5) letter in the English alphabet.
In English it has two main sounds when it is spoken. Usually it is a short E (ĕ), but sometimes it is a long E (ē).
One more thing in English is the so-called magic E. That is when a silent e at the end of a word makes the previous e long. Example: morpheme, which is pronounced as morphēm.
Typographic variants of E
The variants of E include (but may not be limited to)
capital E
lower-case e
é È è Ê ê Ë
É ë Ě ě Ē ē
Ĕ ĕ Ė ė Ę ę
None of these variants is used in English, except occasionally É/é for some French words.
Meanings for E
These meanings are for E/e as a separate letter.
In computers, the letter e is often used to start other words to mean "electronic", like in e-mail or e-commerce.
In money, e is commonly used as a symbol for the euro when the symbol € is not available.
In music, E is a note.
In mathematics, e is a constant about 2.718; see e (mathematical constant)
In Wheel of Fortune, E is one of the six letters given to any contestant participating in the "Bonus Round."
E! is an American television network
Vowel letters |
5723 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/F | F | F is the sixth letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for F
In calendars, F is often an abbreviation for Friday, or for the month February.
In chemistry, F is the symbol for fluorine.
In education, F is a failing grade
In music, F is a note.
In temperature, °F is degrees Fahrenheit.
In logic, F stands for False, as opposed to T for True
In slang, F stands for the curse word |
5724 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/G | G | G is the 7th (number 7) letter in the English alphabet (or Latin alphabet).u
History
The letter G was created in the third century BC by Spurius Carvilius Ruga. At the time, the letter C sounded like the "c" in "cat" and the "g" in "girl". To make the difference more clear, Ruga created the letter G.
Meanings for G
In movies, G is a rating given by the Motion Picture Association of America, meaning the movie is good to be viewed by all people ("general" audiences).
In music, G is a note.
In common speech, G is a slang word for 'gangsta' or 'gangster'.
In the SI, g is the symbol for the gram.
G is a unit of gravitational acceleration.
Alternative case form of G grand: means thousand.
Letter G stands for GPRS (General Packet Radio Service). It indicates the slowest speed of Internet data transfer in your mobile phone. When you see G near your signal strength indicator, it is certain that your net connection is working at the slowest speed. 2G, 3G and 4G indicates different speed of internet.
In particle physics, lowercase G stands for the gluon.
In particle physics, the uppercase G stands for the not yet discovered Graviton. |
5725 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/H | H | H () is the eighth (number 8) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for H
In chemistry, H is the symbol for hydrogen.
In music, H is a note in the German system, meaning "B natural".
In particle physics, H is the symbol for the Higgs boson. |
5726 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/I | I | I is the ninth (9) letter in the English alphabet.
In English, I is a pronoun which means "me".
"I like you."
"You and I shall walk to the store."
"You and I are friends."
In Turkish, the letter I has two kinds, one with a dot (İ, i) and one without (I, ı).
Meanings for I
In chemistry, I is the symbol for iodine.
In Roman numerals, I means the number one (1).
is the mathematical symbol for the square root of negative one, also called the imaginary unit.
In physics, I refers to the moment of inertia.
Basic English 850 words
Vowel letters |
5727 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/J | J | J is the tenth (number 10) letter in the English alphabet. It comes before the letter K and after the letter I. The letter was not used in the Roman civilization until 16th Century.
Meanings for J
In calendars, J can sometimes mean these months - January, June, or July.
In a deck of playing cards, J is used to mark each of the jacks.
It can also be used as a middle initial for people with middle names such as Jack, James, John, Jesus, or Jason. |
5728 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/K | K | K is the eleventh (number 11) letter in the English alphabet.
K or kappa is the tenth (number 10) letter in the Greek alphabet
Meanings for K
Degrees Kelvin. The kelvin (symbol: K) is the SI unit of temperature.
In chemistry, K is the symbol for potassium (from its German name kalium).
in chess, K is a notation symbol for the king piece
In a deck of playing cards, the letter K is used to mark each of the kings. |
5729 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/L | L | L is the twelfth (number 12) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for L
For clothing, L sometimes means "large size".
In Roman numerals, L means the number fifty.
The city of Chicago, Illinois has an elevated train called the "Chicago 'L'".
A character from the manga and anime Death Note.
In Wheel of Fortune, L is one of the six letters given to any contestant participating in the "Bonus Round."
L is the symbol for litre, a unit of volume.
L can sometimes mean ‘lose’ as in “He took a big L.” |
5730 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/M | M | M is the 13th letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for M
In calendars, M sometimes means Monday or means one of the months "March" or "May".
In money, M means million, such as $25M (twenty-five million dollars).
In the SI, m is the symbol for the metre.
In Roman numerals, M means one thousand.
M is also the name of a 1930 German movie made by Fritz Lang and its 1951 remake. |
5731 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/N | N | N is the fourteenth (number 14) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for N
On calendars, N sometimes means the month November
In chemistry, N is the symbol for nitrogen
In chess, N is a symbol for the knight piece.
In physics, n is the symbol for a neutron
In Wheel of Fortune, N is one of the six letters given to any contestant participating in the "Bonus Round." |
5732 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/O | O | O is the fifteenth (number 15) letter in the English alphabet and it has a shape of a circle.
Meanings for O
On calendars, O sometimes means the month October.
In chemistry, O is the symbol for oxygen.
In medicine, O is one of the human blood types.
Vowel letters |
5733 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/P | P | For technical reasons, :P redirects here. For the emoticon, see emoticons.
P is the sixteenth (number 16) letter in the English alphabet.
History
Meanings for P
In chemistry, P is the symbol for the element phosphorus, or sometimes for phosphate.
In chess, P is sometimes used as a symbol for the pawn piece
In American football, P is used as a symbol for the punter
Related pages
Pi (mathematical constant) |
5734 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q | Q | Q is the seventeenth (number 17) letter in the English alphabet.
Some people say that the letter Q is not needed, because the sound it makes can be made with "K" and "W" instead. The same sort of things are said about the letters "X" and "C".
Below are some ancient ways of writing "Q":
Meanings for Q
In chess, Q is used to mean the queen piece.
In English, Q can be a short letter for 'question'.
In a deck of playing cards, Q is used to mark each of the queens.
In science fiction, Q is a character in several Star Trek television shows.
Q is also the name of a character in the James Bond film series, who was played by Desmond Llewelyn (and John Cleese after Desmond Llewelyn died).
In Internet slang, "q" is used for the Spanish word "que", which means "that", "which", or "what".
In physics, q is used to mean charge
References |
5735 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/R | R | R is the eighteenth (number 18) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for R
On calendars, R is sometimes used as an short letter for Thursday instead of T, to avoid mistakes with Tuesday.
In chess, R is a notation symbol for the rook piece.
In geometry, R is most times a variable for the radius of a circle
In navigation, R means the direction "right."
In movies, R means "restricted."
In Wheel of Fortune, R is one of the six letters given to any contestant participating in the "Bonus Round."
Related pages
R (programming language) |
5736 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/S | S | S is the nineteenth (number 19) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for S
On calendars, S is most times the short letter for Saturday or Sunday, or the month September.
In chemistry, S is the symbol for sulphur.
In Wheel of Fortune, S is one of the six letters given to any contestant participating in the "Bonus Round."
S is the letter onomotopeiacally used to characterize the hissing noise known to be made by snakes, e.g. "sssssss..." |
5737 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/T | T | T is the twentieth (number 20) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for T
T- is used as a prefix for an object that is shaped like the capital letter T, such as:
T-shirt,
T-bone,
T-joint,
T-intersection and
T-square.
On calendars, T is most times a short letter for Tuesday or Thursday.
In science,
t is most times used as a variable for time.
T is most times used as a variable for temperature.
In logic
T is for True, as where F is for False.
Mr. T was a member of the A-Team. |
5738 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/U | U | U (u) is the twenty-first (21) letter in the English alphabet (it is also used as a short form for 'you').
Meanings for U
On calendars, U is most times a short letter for Sunday, for use when S is being used for Saturday.
In chemistry, U is the symbol for uranium.
It is pronounced "you".
Vowel letters |
5739 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/V | V | V is the twenty-second (number 22) letter in the English alphabet.
Meanings for V
In electronics and electricity, V is the symbol for volts, the unit of voltage.
In chemistry, V is the symbol for vanadium.
In communication, V is the name of a hand gesture. Most of the time, it means "victory".
In Roman numerals, V means the number five.
V is a science fiction television show.
V is Maroon 5's fifth studio album, released in 2014.
V (singer) is a Korean singer and member of BTS. |
5740 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/W | W | W is the twenty-third (number 23) letter in the Latin alphabet. It is sometimes considered a vowel. In words like away, what, write and women, the W is a consonant. In words like draw, few, and low, the W is a vowel
Meanings for W
On calendars, W is most times a short letter for Wednesday.
In chemistry, W is the symbol for tungsten, after its German name, Wolfram.
In news story writing, the "five W's" are who, what, when, where and why.
In Electricity, W stands for watts
It is pronounced as "double u".
In particle physics, W stands for the W boson.
Notes |
5741 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/X | X | X is the twenty-fourth (number 24) letter in the English alphabet. It sometimes makes a sound like ks (for example: exit, next, fox), or if it is at the beginning of a word, it makes a sound like zzz (for example: xylophone). The language of origin is from the greek and latin language
Meanings for X
In a general sense, X means something is unknown or secret, as in project X.
X is also used often to show kisses, usually at the end of a letter or text message.
In clothing X is used as a short letter for extra, such as XXL for extra-extra-large.
In Roman numerals, X means ten.
In internet terms, XXX indicates adult material, as in an XXX site.
In x-ray, X stands for xero, which is short for xerographic. |
5742 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Y | Y | Y is the twenty-fifth (number 25) letter in the English alphabet. It is sometimes considered a vowel. In words like year, yell, and yes, the Y is a consonant. In words like cry, fly, and sky, the Y is considered a vowel.
Where it came from
Semitic, Phoenician, Greek and Latin
"Y" has appeared as the Semitic letter "waw". This was the first time it appeared in an alphabet. F, U, V, and W also come from the Semitic alphabet. The Greek and Latin alphabets used the Phoenician form of this early alphabet. There are similarities to the old English letter yogh (Ȝȝ). The table shows where the letter "y" came from.
Meanings for Y
In chemistry, Y is the symbol for yttrium.
In Mathematics, y is another unknown variable, used as a second unknown variable ("x" is used as the first unknown variable)
References
Vowel letters |
5743 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z | Z | Z is the twenty-sixth (number 26) and last letter in the English alphabet. The small letter, z, is used as a lowercase consonant. Z is not used much. It is the most rarely used letter in the English language. The same letter of the Greek alphabet is named zeta.
How it is said
The letter is said as either zed or zee. The first way of saying it comes from the Greek zeta. In American English, its name is zee , because it comes from a late 17th century English speech.
Where it came from
Semitic
The name of the Semitic symbol was zayin and was the seventh letter. It might have meant "weapon". It could have helped form English and French's z.
Greek
The Greek form of Z was a close copy of the Phoenician symbol I. It stayed like this for a long time. The Greeks called it zeta, a new name made from the Greek letters eta (η) and theta (θ).
Etruscan
In Etruscan, Z may have been .
Latin
In Old Latin, (written s) became and the symbol for became useless. It was taken away from the alphabet by Appius Claudius Caecus, and a new letter, G, was put in.
In the 1st century BC, Z was put in the alphabet again at the end of the Latin alphabet. This was done to accurately represent the sound of the Greek zeta. The letter Z appeared only in Greek words, and is the only letter besides Y that the Romans took from Greek.
Meanings for Z
In cartoons, Z means the sound of sleeping or snoring, like in "ZZZzzzz...".
In particle physics, Z stands for the Z boson.
In chemistry, Z stands for the atomic number.
References |
5747 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuck | Fuck | Fuck is a common English language swear word. It can be used to either mean the act of sex or as an expression. However, the word fucking is used as an intensifier before a word (e.g I fucking hate this game).
Related pages
Arse
Ass
Bitch
Cunt
Motherfucker
Shit
English profanity |
5757 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virus | Virus | A virus is a tiny parasite. Virology is the study of viruses.
Viruses can only be seen under a scanning electron microscpe. Some can infect living organisms and cause disease. The virus can make copies of itself inside another organism's cells. Viruses consist of nucleic acid and a protein coat. Usually the nucleic acid is RNA; sometimes it is DNA. Viruses are able to cause many types of diseases, such as polio, ebola and hepatitis.
Viruses reproduce by getting their nucleic acid strand into a prokaryote or eukaryote (cell). The RNA or DNA strand then takes over the cell machinery to reproduce copies of itself and the protein coat. The cell then bursts open, spreading the newly created viruses. All viruses reproduce this way, and there are no free-living viruses. Viruses are everywhere in the environment, and all organisms can be infected by them.
Viruses are so much smaller than bacteria. They were not visible until the invention of the electron microscope. A virus has a simple structure. It has just a protein coat which holds a string of nucleic acid. Viruses live and reproduce inside the cells of other living organisms.
With eukaryotic cells, the virus protein coat is able to enter the target cells via certain cell membrane receptors. With prokaryote bacteria cells, the bacteriophage physically injects the nucleic acid strand into the host cell.
Viruses have the following characteristics:
They outnumber all other forms of life on the planet by a long way.
They are infectious particles, causing many types of disease;
They contain a nucleic acid core of RNA or DNA;
They are surrounded by a protective protein coat;
When the host cell has finished making more viruses, it undergoes lysis, or breaks apart. The viruses are released and are then able to infect other cells. Viruses can remain "silent" (inactive) for a long time, and will infect cells when the time and conditions are right.
Some special viruses are worth noting. Bacteriophages have evolved to enter bacterial cells, which have a different type of cell wall from eukaryote cell membranes. Envelope viruses, when they reproduce, cover themselves with a modified form of the host cell membrane, thus gaining an outer lipid layer that helps entry. Some of our most difficult-to-combat viruses, like influenza and HIV, use this method.
Viral infections in animals trigger an immune response which usually kills the infecting virus. Vaccines can also produce immune responses. They give an artificially acquired immunity to the specific viral infection. However, some viruses (including those causing AIDS and viral hepatitis) escape from these immune responses and cause chronic infections. Antibiotics have no effect on viruses, but there are some other drugs against viruses.
Genome
There are many genomic structures in viruses. As a group they are more diverse than plants, animals, archaea, or bacteria. There are millions of different types of viruses, but only about 5,000 of them have been described in detail.49
A virus has either RNA or DNA genes and so is called an RNA virus or a DNA virus. The vast majority of viruses have RNA genomes. Plant viruses usually have single-stranded RNA genomes and bacteriophages usually have double-stranded DNA genomes.96/99
Replication cycle
Viral populations do not grow through cell division, because they do not have cells. Instead, they use the machinery and metabolism of a host cell to produce many copies of themselves, and they assemble (put together) in the cell.
The life cycle of viruses differs greatly between species but there are six basic stages in the life cycle of viruses:75/91
Attachment is a specific binding between viral capsid proteins and specific receptors on the host cellular surface.
Penetration follows attachment: Virions (single virus particles) enter the host cell through receptor-mediated endocytosis or fusion with the lipid bilayer. This is called viral entry. The infection of plant and fungal cells is different from that of animal cells. Plants have a rigid cell wall made of cellulose, and fungi one of chitin. This means most viruses can only get inside these cells by force.70 An example would be: a virus travels on an insect vector which feeds on plant sap. The damage done to cell walls would let the virus get in. Bacteria, like plants, have strong cell walls that a virus must get through to infect the cell. However, bacterial cell walls are much thinner than plant cell walls, and some viruses have mechanisms that inject their genome into the bacterial cell across the cell wall, while the viral capsid remains outside.71
Uncoating is how the viral capsid is removed: This may be by degradation by viral enzymes or host enzymes or by simple dissociation; the end-result is the releasing of the viral nucleic acid.
Replication of viruses involves multiplication of the genome. This usually requires production of viral messenger RNA (mRNA) from "early" genes. This may be followed, for complex viruses with larger genomes, by one or more further rounds of mRNA synthesis: "late" gene expression is of structural or virion proteins.
Following the structure-mediated self-assembly of the virus particles, some modification of the proteins often occurs. In viruses such as HIV, this modification (sometimes called maturation) occurs after the virus has been released from the host cell.
Viruses can be released from the host cell by lysis, a process that kills the cell by bursting its membrane and cell wall. This is a feature of many bacterial and some animal viruses. In some viruses the viral genome is put by genetic recombination into a specific place in the host's chromosome. The viral genome is then known as a "provirus" or, in the case of bacteriophages a "prophage".60 Whenever the host divides, the viral genome is also replicated. The viral genome is mostly silent within the host; however, at some point, the provirus or prophage may give rise to active virus, which may lyse the host cells.chapter 15 Enveloped viruses (e.g. HIV) typically are released from the host cell after the virus acquires its envelope. The envelope is a modified piece of the host's plasma membrane.185/7
Genetic material and replication
The genetic material within virus particles, and the method by which the material is replicated, varies considerably between different types of viruses.
RNA viruses Replication usually takes place in the cytoplasm. RNA viruses can be placed into four different groups depending on their modes of replication. All RNA viruses use their own RNA replicase enzymes to create copies of their genomes.79
DNA viruses The genome replication of most DNA viruses takes place in the cell's nucleus. Most DNA viruses are entirely dependent on the host cell's DNA and RNA synthesising machinery, and RNA processing machinery. Viruses with larger genomes may encode much of this machinery themselves. In eukaryotes the viral genome must cross the cell's nuclear membrane to access this machinery, while in bacteria it need only enter the cell.5478
Reverse transcribing viruses Reverse transcribing viruses with RNA genomes (retroviruses) use a DNA intermediate to replicate. Those with DNA genomes (pararetroviruses) use an RNA intermediate during genome replication. They are susceptible to antiviral drugs that inhibit the reverse transcriptase enzyme. An example of the first type is HIV, which is a retrovirus. Examples of the second type are the Hepadnaviridae, which includes Hepatitis B virus.88/9
Host defence mechanisms
Innate immune system
The body's first line of defence against viruses is the innate immune system. This has cells and other mechanisms which defend the host from any infection. The cells of the innate system recognise, and respond to, pathogens in a general way.
RNA interference is an important innate defence against viruses. Many viruses have a replication strategy that involves double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). When such a virus infects a cell, it releases its RNA molecule. A protein complex called dicer sticks to it and chops the RNA into pieces. Then a biochemical pathway, called the RISC complex, starts up. This attacks the viral mRNA, and the cell survives the infection.
Rotaviruses avoid this by not uncoating fully inside the cell and by releasing newly produced mRNA through pores in the particle's inner capsid. The genomic dsRNA remains protected inside the core of the virion.
The production of interferon is an important host defence mechanism. This is a hormone produced by the body when viruses are present. Its role in immunity is complex; it eventually stops the viruses from reproducing by killing the infected cell and its close neighbours.
Adaptive immune system
Vertebrates have a second, more specific, immune system. It is called the adaptive immune system. When it meets a virus, it produces specific antibodies that bind to the virus and render it non-infectious. Two types of antibodies are important.
The first, called IgM, is highly effective at neutralizing viruses but is produced by the cells of the immune system only for a few weeks. The second, called IgG, is produced indefinitely. The presence of IgM in the blood of the host is used to test for acute infection, whereas IgG indicates an infection sometime in the past. IgG antibody is measured when tests for immunity are carried out.
Another vertebrate defence against viruses involves immune cells known as T cells. The body's cells constantly display short fragments of their proteins on the cell's surface, and, if a T cell recognises a suspicious viral fragment there, the host cell is destroyed by killer T cells and the virus-specific T-cells proliferate. Cells such as macrophages are specialists at this antigen presentation.
Evading the immune system
Not all virus infections produce a protective immune response. These persistent viruses evade immune control by sequestration (hiding away); cytokine resistance; evading natural killer cell activity; escape from apoptosis (cell death), and antigenic shift (changing surface proteins). HIV evades the immune system by constantly changing the amino acid sequence of the proteins on the surface of the virion. Other viruses move along nerves to places the immune system cannot reach.
Evolution
Viruses do not belong to any of the six kingdoms. They do not meet all the requirements for being classified as a living organism because they are not active until the point of infection. However, that is just a verbal point.
Obviously, their structure and mode of operation means they have evolved from other living things, and the loss of normal structure occurs in many endoparasites. The origins of viruses in the evolutionary history of life are unclear: some may have evolved from plasmids – pieces of DNA that can move between cells – while others may have evolved from bacteria. In evolution, viruses are an important means of horizontal gene transfer, which increases genetic diversity.
Recent discoveries
A recent project discovered nearly 1500 new RNA viruses by sampling over 200 invertebrate species. "The research team... extracted their RNA and, using next-generation sequencing, deciphered the sequence of a staggering 6 trillion letters present in the invertebrate RNA libraries". The research showed that viruses changed bits and pieces of their RNA by a variety of genetic mechanisms. "The invertebrate virome [shows] remarkable genomic flexibility that includes frequent recombination, lateral gene transfer among viruses and hosts, gene gain and loss, and complex genomic rearrangements".
How bacteria and archaea deal with viruses
Viruses have been on this planet a long time. We now know that bacteria and archaea had to deal with them first, before our type of cellular life evolved. Details of the defence mechanisms used by archaea and bacteria are discussed on the page CRISPR, which briefly introduces the topic of early defences against viruses.
Largest virus
A group of large viruses infect amoebae. The largest is Pithovirus. Others in order of size are Pandoravirus, then Megavirus, then Mimivirus. They are bigger than some bacteria, and visible under a light microscope.
Uses
Viruses are used widely in cell biology. Geneticists often use viruses as vectors to introduce genes into cells that they are studying. This is useful for making the cell produce a foreign substance, or to study the effect of introducing a new gene into the genome. Eastern European scientists have used phage therapy as an alternative to antibiotics for some time, and interest in this approach is increasing, because of the high level of antibiotic resistance now found in some pathogenic bacteria.
References
Parasites
Infectious diseases |
5760 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microprocessor | Microprocessor | A microprocessor is an electronic component that is used by a computer to do its work. It is a central processing unit on a single integrated circuit chip containing millions of very small components including transistors, resistors, and diodes that work together. Some microprocessors in the 20th century required several chips. Microprocessors help to do everything from controlling elevators to searching the Web. Everything a computer does is described by instructions of computer programs, and microprocessors carry out these instructions many millions of times a second.
Microprocessors were invented in the 1970s for use in embedded systems. The majority are still used that way, in such things as mobile phones, cars, military weapons, and home appliances. Some microprocessors are microcontrollers, so small and inexpensive that they are used to control very simple products like flashlights and greeting cards that play music when opened. A few especially powerful microprocessors are used in personal computers.
Microprocessor operation
Like other central processing units, microprocessors use three steps commonly called Fetch, Decode, and Execute. In the Fetch step, an instruction is copied from the computer memory into the microprocessor. In the Decode step, the microprocessor figures out what operation the instruction is meant to do. In the Execute step, this operation is performed. Different computers can have different instruction sets.
Facts and figures
Transistors in a microprocessor can be less than one micrometer wide—one millionth of a meter. By comparison, a single hair can be over 100 micrometers wide.
The transistors are mostly MOSFETs
Microprocessors are made from silicon, quartz, metals, and other chemicals.
From start to finish, it takes about 2 months to make a microprocessor.
Microprocessors are classified by the size of their data bus or address bus. They are also grouped into CISC and RISC types.
Brief history
1823 Baron Jöns Jacob Berzelius discovers silicon (Si), which today is the basic component of electronics.
1903 Nikola Tesla patents electrical logic circuits called "gates" or "switches".
1947 John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley invent the first transistor at the Bell Laboratories on December 23, 1947.
1956 John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley are awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for their work on the transistor.
1958 The first integrated circuits are developed by Robert Noyce and Jack Kilby.
1960 IBM develops the first automatic mass-production facility for transistors in New York.
1971 Intel 4004, first commercially available microprocessor.
References
Other page
Moore's law
Electronic components
Microprocessor design |
5761 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat | Heat | Heat, or thermal energy is the sum of the kinetic energy of atoms or molecules. In thermodynamics, heat means energy which is moved between two things, when one of them has a higher temperature than the other thing.
Adding heat to something increases its temperature, but heat is not the same as temperature. The temperature of an object is the measure of the average speed of the moving particles in it. The energy of the particles is called the internal energy. When an object is heated, its internal energy can increase to make the object hotter. The first law of thermodynamics says that the increase in internal energy is equal to the heat added minus the work done on the surroundings.
Heat can also be defined as the amount of thermal energy in a system. Thermal energy is the type of energy that a thing has because of its temperature. In thermodynamics, thermal energy is the internal energy present in a system in a state of thermodynamic equilibrium because of its temperature. That is, heat is defined as a spontaneous flow of energy (energy in transit) from one object to another, caused by a difference in temperature between two objects; therefore, objects do not possess heat.
Properties of Heat
Heat is a form of energy and not a physical substance. Heat has no mass.
Heat can move from one place to another in different ways:
Conduction
Convection
Radiation
The measure of how much heat is needed to cause a change in temperature for a material is the specific heat capacity of the material. If the particles in the material are hard to move, then more energy is needed to make them move quickly, so a lot of heat will cause a small change in temperature. A different particle that is easier to move will need less heat for the same change in temperature.
Specific heat capacities can be looked up in a table, like this one.
Unless some work is done, heat moves only from hot things to cold things.
Measuring heat
Heat can be measured. That is, the amount of heat given out or taken in can be given a value. The calorie is one of the units of measurement for heat but the joule is also used for all kinds of energy including heat.
Heat is usually measured with a calorimeter, where the energy in a material is allowed to flow into nearby water, which has a known specific heat capacity. The temperature of the water is then measured before and after, and heat can be found using a formula.
References
Related pages
Entropy
Heat transfer
Radiation
Internal energy
Temperature
Power
Heat capacity
Waste heat
Other websites
Plasma heat at 2 gigakelvins - Article about extremely high temperature generated by scientists (Foxnews.com)
Heat and Thermodynamics - Georgia State University
Correlations for Convective Heat Transfer - ChE Online Resources
An Introduction to the Quantitative Definition and Analysis of Heat written for High School Students
Basic English 850 words
Basic physics ideas
Thermodynamics |
5762 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shogun | Shogun | is a military title in pre-Meiji period Japan. Shogun means general in the Japanese language. The full name was Seii Taishogun (Great General who fights against the Eastern savages and will win).
In the earlier times, Shogun were simply generals for emperors. The emperor had power over the shogun, choosing each shogun. Later however, the Shogun held much of the actual power. In 1192 a samurai, military leader Minamoto no Yoritomo got the title of Shogun from the last Emperor Go-Shirakawa. Excluding the later middle of the 16th century, Shogun was the real ruler of Japan.
The office of the Shogun is called the shogunate (bakufu, meaning office in a tent).- This is because Shogun had originally been military leaders and he had his office in a tent on a battle field.
There were three shogunates in Japan.
Kamakura shogunate, 1192–1333, founded by Minamoto no Yoritomo
Muromachi shogunate (also known as the Ashikaga shogunate), 1338–1573, founded by Ashikaga Takauji
Edo shogunate (also known as the Tokugawa shogunate), 1602–1868, founded by Tokugawa Ieyasu
In 1868 the 15th Shogun of Tokugawa Shogunate, Tokugawa Yosinobu gave up his office. Then the time of Shogun rule ended. It was the end of the feudal time of Japan.
References
History of Japan |
5763 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bratislava | Bratislava | Bratislava is the capital city of Slovakia. About 450,000 people live there. It used to be called Pressburg (German) or Pozsony (Hungarian) and by some other names. Bratislava is the seat of national government, the presidency, and the parliament. It has several museums, galleries and of other educational, cultural and economic institutions.
There is a small Old Town, and a castle called Bratislavský Hrad. The Danube river goes through Bratislava.
Etymology
Bratislava had many names through its history. Here are some of them:
German: Preßburg (now spelled Pressburg)
Slovak: Prešporok, from German name
Hungarian: Pozsony (still used today by Hungarians)
Greek (medieval): Istropolis (meaning the Danube City)
Latin: Posonium
English: Pressburg(h)/Pressborough
and many others.
Geography
Bratislava is in the extreme southwest of Slovakia, on the borders with Austria and Hungary, and not far from the Czech Republic border. It is on the Morava and Danube rivers.
History
People have lived here since the Neolithic age. The Celts inhabited this area from 400 BC-50 BC. The Roman Empire set up border military camps near Bratislava from the 1st century until the 5th century, for example "Gerulata". The Slavs started moving here from the 6th century. Bratislava was part of the Slavic empire called Great Moravia in the 9th century. From the second half of the 10th century until 1918, it was part of the Kingdom of Hungary, with some exceptions. It was even capital of the Kingdom between 1524 and 1830/1848. After the World War I ended in 1918, it was part of newly founded Czechoslovakia until 1939, when it became capital of World War II Slovak Republic until 1945. After 1945, it was part of Czechoslovakia again, becoming capital of Slovak Socialist Republic (which was still part of Czechoslovakia) in 1968. After the event called Velvet Divorce, when the Czechoslovakia broke up, Bratislava became capital of Slovakia.
Sightseeing
List of notable structures:
Bratislava Castle
St. Martin's Cathedral
Primate's Palace
Bratislava town hall
Michael's Gate
Grassalkovich Palace
Nový Most (New Bridge)
Kamzík TV Tower
Devín Castle
Economy
Economy of Bratislava is prosperous and based on automobile industry, chemical industry and services. The unemployment (people without work) is lowest in Slovakia (around 2%, compared to the national average 7%). Approximately 250,000 people from all over the Slovakia travel to Bratislava for work.
Transport
Position of Bratislava made it a natural crossroads for international traffic. It is a motorway junction, rail junction, has its own international airport. The international river traffic passes along the Danube through Bratislava, with its own river port.
Bratislava has its own public transport system, with buses, trams and trolleybuses.
Territorial division
Bratislava is divided into 5 national districts and 17 city parts:
District I: Staré mesto (Old Town)
District II: Ružinov, Vrakuňa, Podunajské Biskupice
District III: Rača, Nové mesto (New Town), Vajnory
District IV: Karlova Ves, Dúbravka, Devín, Devínska Nová Ves, Záhorská
District V: Petržalka, Jarovce, Rusovce, Čunovo''
Further it is divided into 20 cadastral areas, which are identical with the city parts with 2 exceptions:
Nové mesto = Nové mesto + Vinohrady
Ružinov = Ružinov + Nivy + Trnávka
Twin towns
Yerevan, Armenia
Vienna, Austria
Ruse, Bulgaria
Larnaka, Cyprus
Prague, Czech Republic
Alexandria, Egypt
Turku, Finland
Bremen, Germany
Ulm, Germany
Thessaloniki, Greece
Székesfehérvár, Hungary
Perugia, Italy
Rotterdam, Netherlands
Kraków, Poland
Ljubljana, Slovenia
İzmir, Turkey
Kiev, Ukraine
Cleveland, USA
Pictures
Other websites
Official site
Bratislava City Guide prepared by locals |
5770 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellington | Wellington | Wellington is the capital of New Zealand. It has been the capital since 1865. Before then Auckland was the capital. Wellington is the second largest city in New Zealand. It had about 448,000 people in 2006. Wellington is the southernmost capital city in the world.
Wellington is in the middle of New Zealand, at the south end of the North Island. South of Wellington is Cook Strait, the sea between the North Island and the South Island. The city has a lot of hills and a deep harbour. The middle of the city is busier than most small cities and is easy for people to walk around.
It was named for Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. Wellington recently became famous because The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy was made there.
Climate
The city averages 2,068 hours of sunshine per year. The climate is a temperate marine one, (Köppen: Cfb ) is generally moderate all year round, and rarely sees temperatures above or below . The hottest recorded temperature is , while is the coldest. The city is notorious for its southerly blasts in winter, which may make the temperature feel much colder. It is generally very windy all year round with high rainfall; average annual rainfall is , June and July being the wettest months. Frosts are quite common in the hill suburbs and the Hutt Valley between May and September. Snow is very rare at low altitudes, although snow fell on the city and many other parts of the Wellington region during separate events in July and August 2011.
References
Capital cities in Oceania
1865 establishments
1860s establishments in New Zealand |
5771 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biochemistry | Biochemistry | Biochemistry is the study of chemical reactions in living beings, and of biological molecules in general. It is important to cell biology and physiology. The study of biochemistry involves enzymes, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, sugars, proteins, and lipids. In the body, most of the molecules are polymers built of long chains of smaller molecules. Biochemistry studies the chemical transformations which produce these small building-block molecules, and which produce energy from food. A person who studied biochemistry is called biochemist.
Macromolecules
The biologic polymers can have between tens of thousands to tens of millions of atoms, or more. These polymers are composed of many small molecules, each of which has no more than fifty atoms. These small molecules are made almost exclusively from carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. They also contain sulfur, phosphorus, and few other atoms, which are critical to the biological functioning of these polymers.
There are four types of macromolecules.
Nucleic Acids
Nucleic acids are long-chain molecules which are of two kinds: DNA and RNA. Their building blocks are called nucleotides.
DNA is found in every cell. It contains the information needed to make all of the nucleic acids, and all of the proteins. It is found joined up in a double helix. It is the substance of heredity, and holds the information which life passes from generation to generation.
RNA acts to make the information from DNA work inside the cells of the body. To make a particular protein the information in the DNA is transferred to an RNA molecule. Another RNA molecule uses this as a set of instructions for making the protein. The RNA which makes protein is called a ribosome and it acts as a ribozyme vastly increasing the speed with which the individual amino acids connect together to form the protein.
Proteins
Proteins are polymers of amino acids. There are twenty different common types of amino acid.
Broadly speaking, proteins have two kinds of function. The first is structural: they make up many of the key structures in cells and tissues. Muscle, hair, and skin are all mainly made of protein. The second is functional: as enzymes they greatly speed up the chemical reactions in a living cell. All cellular life consists of a thousand, or more, chemical reactions, called metabolism, which transform the molecules eaten into energy, or into other molecules the cell needs to survive. The function of proteins is to speed up these reactions, often by over a million times faster. In addition they cause chemical reactions to occur which would not without the action of the protein.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates include sugars and starches.
Sugars are the simplest carbohydrates. The monosaccharides are "single sugars", such as glucose and fructose. The disaccharides are two monosaccharides joined together. Table sugar (cane sugar) is a disaccharide of glucose and fructose. The polysaccharides are made from many monosaccharids joined together. The vast majority of polysaccharides are polymers of glucose, and are of two types: starch and cellulose. Starch is the white stuff of grain, potatoes, apples, and bread, and is a readily available source of energy for the body. Cellulose is the structural material that holds up all plants. Half of the material that makes wood is cellulose.
Carbohydrates have a number of functions in the body, but the most important is to act as a ready source of energy for the cell's metabolism. By breaking the chemical bonds in carbohydrates, energy is released and can be used by the body.
Lipids
Lipids are fats, and waxes. Saturated lipids contain single bonds, and are found in butter and lard. Unsaturated lipids have one or more double bonds, and are often found in oils. The human body stores lipids as an energy source. When the body needs a large amount of energy, lipid molecules are broken down to release that energy.
Related pages
List of biochemistry topics
Organic chemistry |
5773 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadness | Sadness | Sadness is an emotion. It is the opposite of happiness. People feel sad when something bad has happened, for example, if their mother or father has died.
In big letters, SAD, or S.A.D. is short for "Seasonal Affective Disorder". SAD is a sickness that some people have in the winter. They feel depressed as the nights become longer and there is less daylight.
When people are very sad, and for a long time, the person could have a serious mental illness called depression or Bipolar disorder.
Notes
It is normally thought of as the opposite of happiness, but you can feel both happy and sad at the same time.
Related pages
Happiness
Basic English 850 words
Emotions |
5775 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microeconomics | Microeconomics | Microeconomics is the science of how people make decisions at the small scale. It is different from macroeconomics which looks at how the economy works as a whole ("on aggregate"). In microeconomics, we might look at how a person chooses what to buy at the store, or how many things a company will make. Some parts of microeconomics include Consumer Theory and Theory of the Firm, which study how people and businesses make decisions. Game theory looks at how people make decisions when the outcome (how something ends) depends on what decision another person makes; when agents are said to act "strategically".
References
Related pages
Macroeconomics
|
5776 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port%20%28disambiguation%29 | Port (disambiguation) | A port is a place at the edge of an ocean, river, or lake for ships to load and unload their cargo.
It can also refer to:
Port wine, a special kind of wine made in Oporto in Portugal
A part of a piece of electronic equipment where other things can be connected to it. For example, a USB port |
5777 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptography | Cryptography | Cryptography, or cryptology, is the practice and study of hiding information. It is sometimes called code, but this is not really a correct name. It is the science used to try to keep information secret and safe. Modern cryptography is a mix of mathematics, computer science, and electrical engineering. Cryptography is used in ATM (bank) cards, computer passwords, and shopping on the internet.
When a message is sent using cryptography, it is changed (or encrypted) before it is sent. The method of changing text is called a "code" or, more precisely, a "cipher". The changed text is called "ciphertext". The change makes the message hard to read. Someone who wants to read it must change it back (or decrypt it). How to change it back is a secret. Both the person that sends the message and the one that gets it should know the secret way to change it, but other people should not be able to. Studying the cyphertext to discover the secret is called "cryptanalysis" or "cracking" or sometimes "code breaking".
Different types of cryptography can be easier or harder to use and can hide the secret message better or worse. Ciphers use a "key" which is a secret that hides the secret messages. The cryptographic method needn't be secret. Various people can use the same method but different keys, so they cannot read each other's messages. Since the Caesar cipher has only as many keys as the number of letters in the alphabet, it is easily cracked by trying all the keys. Ciphers that allow billions of keys are cracked by more complex methods.
Since the time of Caesar, many improved cyphers have been made. Some involved clever mathematics to resist clever cryptanalysis. During the 20th century computers became the principle tool of cryptography.
Symmetric
In a symmetric-key algorithm, both the sender and receiver share the key. The sender uses the key to hide the message. Then, the receiver will use the same key in the opposite way to reveal the message. For centuries, most cryptography has been symmetric. Advanced Encryption Standard is a widely used one. However this is not to be confused with symmetry.
Asymmetric
Asymmetric cryptography is harder to use. Each person who wants to use asymmetric cryptography uses a secret number (a "private key") that is not shared, and a different number (a "public key") that they can tell everyone. If someone else wants to send this person a message, they'll use the number they've been told to hide the message. Now the message cannot be revealed, even by the sender, but the receiver can easily reveal the message with his secret or "private key". This way, nobody else needs to know the secret key.
Asymmetric cryptography generally takes more time and requires more computer power, therefore it is not used most of the time. Instead, it is often used for computer signatures, when a computer must know that some data (like a file or a website) was sent from a certain sender. For example, computer software companies that release updates for their software can sign those updates to prove that the update was made by them, so that hackers cannot make their own updates that would cause harm. Websites that use HTTPS use an popular algorithm named RSA to create certificates, that show they own the website and that it is secure. Computers can also use asymmetric ciphers to give each other the keys for symmetric ciphers.
Computers
Computers can calculate quickly. They can do very strong encryption, and most 21st century cryptography uses them. Examples are computer algorithms like RSA, AES, and there are many others. Using good algorithms like these can make it very hard to read the information that is sent.
People
Because people are slower than computers, any cryptography they use can probably be broken if enough of the secret way to change it is known.
Simple forms of cryptography that people can do without machines are Caesar ciphers and transposition ciphers, but many other kinds were used before computers were used.
References
Other websites
Importance of cryptography
What is symmetric cryptography
Cryptography -Citizendium
Computer security
Computer science
Human communication |
5780 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuesday | Tuesday | Tuesday is the day of the week between Monday and Wednesday. In some countries, for example the United States of America, Tuesday is the third day of the week. In other parts of the world, Tuesday is the second day of the week.
History of the name
The name Tuesday comes from a Middle English word, Tiwesday. This word came from the Old English word Tiwes dæg. This was named after the Nordic god Tyr. Tyr was the God of War, like the Roman war god Mars, and Greek god Ares.
In Latin, Tuesday is called Martis dies which means "Mars's Day". In French, Spanish, Italian and Romanian, the (Romance languages), the word for "Tuesday" is nearly the same as the Latin name. Tuesday is mardi in French, martes in Spanish, martedì in Italian, dimarts in Catalan, and marţi in Romanian.
The Celtic languages still spoken use the Latin names, even though none of these languages came from Latin. Tuesday is dé máirt in Irish, Meurzh in Breton, dydd Mawrth in Welsh and Dimàirt in Scottish Gaelic.
The English and Scandinavian names for Tuesday come from the Nordic god Tyr (Old English Tiw):
Old Frisian: tîesdei
Modern West Frisian: tiisdei
Old English: tíwesdæg
Anglo-Norman:
Middle English: tíesdæi, tywesdai, twysday
Early Modern English: towesday, Twesdaie, Tyisday, Tiseday,
Modern English: Tuesday
Old High German: zîestag
Middle High German: zîstag
Alemannic German: ziischtig
Old Norse: týrsdagr
Swedish: Tisdag
Danish: Tirsdag
Norwegian: Tirsdag or Tysdag
Icelandic: Týsdagur
References
02 |
5781 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wednesday | Wednesday | In some countries, like the United States of America, Wednesday is the fourth day of the week. In other parts of the world Wednesday is said to be the third day of the week.
Wednesday is named after the Norse god Woden.
References
03 |
5782 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thursday | Thursday | In some countries, like the United States of America, Thursday is the fifth day of the week. In other parts of the world Thursday is said to be the fourth day of the week. It comes after Wednesday and before Friday. Thursday is named after the Norse god Thor.
04 |
5783 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday | Friday | Friday is a day of the week. In some countries, for example the United States, it is the sixth day of the week. In other parts of the world, for example the United Kingdom, it is said to be the fifth day of the week. Friday is the Sabbath for Muslims.
There is a superstition that a Friday on the 13th day of a month is unlucky. If the first day of a month is a Sunday, the month will have a Friday the 13th.
Some people consider Friday to be the last day of the week before the weekend. Others see Friday night as part of the weekend, since work or school is over for the week. In some places, the weekend is Friday and Saturday. Because many people are happy to not have to go to work during the weekend, there are sayings like "Thank God it's Friday!".
Friday is named after Norse Goddess Frigg.
References
05 |
5784 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturday | Saturday | In some countries, like the United States of America, Saturday is the seventh and final day of the week. In other parts of the world, like the United Kingdom, Saturday is said to be the sixth day of the week. It is also the day of rest and worship for Jewish people. Along with Sunday, it makes up the weekend. Its name comes from the Roman god Saturn.
06 |
5789 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laos | Laos | Lao People's Democratic Republic or Laos (ᝮᝢ), is a country in southeast Asia. The capital of Laos is Vientiane.
Laos is landlocked (it does not have a coast on a sea or ocean). It is bordered by Myanmar (used to be known in English as "Burma") and by China to the northwest, by Vietnam to the east, by Cambodia to the south and by Thailand to the west. The Mekong river forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand. Boats from Laos cannot get to the ocean using the Mekong because of rapids and waterfalls in the south of the country.
The official language is Lao, a language belonging to the Tai language group. 98% of Lao people believe in Buddhism. The main crop in Laos is rice.
Geography
Laos is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. The country is slightly smaller than Romania and Colorado. The landscape is mostly rugged mountains. The highest point is Phou Bia at . The Mekong River forms the border with Thailand. The mountains of the Annamite Range form the eastern border with Vietnam. The climate is tropical. The rainy season is from May to November. The dry season is from December to April. Laos has three seasons (rainy, cold and hot). The capital and largest city is Vientiane.
History
Fa Ngum created the first unified Lao Kingdom.
Lao became a French colony in 1893 and also became part of French Indochina. In 1949 it became independent from France, as the Kingdom of Laos. Later there was a civil war, and in 1975 it became a One-party state under the leadership of the communist party.
Provinces
Laos is divided in 16 provinces and one prefecture.
Government and politics
Laos is one of the world's five remaining communist states. The only legal political party is the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP). The head of state is President Choummaly Sayasone. He is the General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party.
Shortly after the end of the Vietnam War, the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) joined forces with the Pathet Lao, started a coup on December 2, 1975 to overthrow the royalist Lao government, and established a communist government that continues to run the country to this day.
The current head of government is Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, as of 2016. The current President is Bounnhang Vorachith. Government policies are determined by the party. Important government decisions are checked by the Council of Ministers.
Related pages
Laos at the Olympics
Laos national football team
List of rivers of Laos
References
Least developed countries
1949 establishments in Asia |
5793 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yes | Yes | Yes is an English word that shows acceptance or agreement, or making a positive response or exclamation. It is the opposite of no.
Yes may also mean:
In music:
Yes (band), a progressive rock band from the United Kingdom
Yes (album), their debut album
The Yes Album, their third album
Yes (Mika Nakashima album)
Yes (Morphine album)
Yes! (Chad Brock album)
"Yes!" (song), a song from this album
"Yes" (McAlmont and Butler song)
In other uses:
Yes (movie), a movie by Sally Potter
yes (Unix), a Unix shell command to print a string repetitively
yes (Israel), an Israeli satellite television provider
YES (Your Extraordinary Saturday), a children's program
YES Network, the television home of the New York Yankees and New Jersey Nets
YES! Magazine, an American magazine
Yes! Roadster, a German sports car
YES Prep Public Schools, a network of charter schools in Houston, Texas, United States
Yale Entrepreneurial Society, an American non-profit organization
Youth Empowerment Scheme, a children's charity in Belfast, Northern Ireland
Young Epidemiology Scholars, a college scholarship program
Yasuj Airport's IATA code
Basic English 850 words |
5805 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaterasu | Amaterasu | Amaterasu (), Amaterasu-ōmikami ( or ) or Ōhirume-no-muchi-no-kami (), is a goddess in Japanese mythology. She is the Sun Goddess, and the most sacred of all Shinto deities. Her name, Amaterasu, means "(that which) illuminates Heaven." Her shrine is at Ise.
Tradition
Amaterasu is the sister of Susano'o, the god of the sea and storms, and of Tsukuyomi, the god of the moon. All three were created from Izanagi, when he washed his face to clean the dirtiness of Yomi, the underworld. Amaterasu was born when Izanagi washed out his left eye, Tsukuyomi was born from the washing of the right eye, and Susano'o from the washing of the nose.
Story
The tales tell of great rivalry between Amaterasu and Susano'o. When he was to leave Heaven forever because Izanagi ordered him to, he went to say goodbye to his sister. Amaterasu, suspicious, proposed him a challenge: each of them was to turn an object of the other's into people. Amaterasu created three women from Susanoo's sword while he created five men from her necklace. Amaterasu said the men were hers because they were born of her necklace. Susano'o destroyed her rice fields, threw a dead pony into her loom, and killed one of her assistants in anger. For this, Amaterasu, sad, angry and scared, went to hide inside Ama-no-Iwato, the "heavenly rock cave", so the Sun was hidden and the world became dark for a long time. The Oni (devils of Japanese mythology) came out to the dark world, and the gods could not make Amaterasu come out of the cave.
The intelligent goddess of happiness, Ama-no-Uzume (天宇受売命), took a big bucket, turned it upside down near the cave entrance, and began a dance on it, tearing off her clothing in front of the other Kami. They thought this was so funny that they laughed happily.
Amaterasu heard them, and looked out to see why the gods were laughing. When she opened the cave, she saw her wonderful reflection in a mirror Uzume had put on a tree, and slowly came out of the cave.
At that moment, the god Ameno-Tajikarao (天手力男命) closed the cave behind her, so she could not go back in. Another god tied a magic rope across the entrance. The sun goddess was then asked by the Kami Ame-no-Koyane (天児屋根命) to go back with the gods. She agreed, and light came back to the earth, but Susanoo was punished by being banished from Heaven.
Other websites
Shinbutsudo: A Web Page for the Study of Japanese Religions
Japanese deities
Shinto
National personifications |
5812 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organism | Organism | An organism is an individual living thing. It is easy to recognize a living thing, but not so easy to define it. Animals and plants are organisms, obviously. Organisms are a biotic, or living, part of the environment. Rocks and sunshine are parts of the non-living environment.
Organisms usually have five basic needs to continue their metabolism. They need air, water, nutrient (food), energy, and a place to live. However, not all living things need all these at the same time. Many organisms do not need access to air at all.
A little thought is needed about viruses. There is no agreement as to whether they should be regarded as living. They are made of protein and nucleic acid, and they evolve, which is a really important fact. However, they exist in two quite different phases. One phase is dormant, not active. The other is inside a living cell of some other organism. Then the virus is very active reproducing itself. Consider the parallel with a computer program. When in use it is active; when it is not, it is completely inactive. It is still a program all the same.
Another example from biology is the spore, which is a distribution phase of a bacteria, fungus or some plants. They are not active until they get to the right situation. They have all the working parts to build a complete organism, but for the moment it is switched off.
Some organisms are made up of millions of cells. They are multicellular organisms. Many can be seen without using a microscope.
Most organisms are so small that they cannot be seen with the naked eye. You need a microscope to see them. They are called microorganisms. Organisms can be made up of just one cell. They are called unicellular organisms or single celled organisms. Examples include bacteria, and protozoa such as the Amoeba and Paramecium.
Origin
The Tree of Life project works on the relationships between living things. Identifying a LUCA (last universal common ancestor) is one of its main aims. The LUCA is estimated to have lived some 3.8 billion years ago (sometime in the Palaeoarchaean era).
A universal common ancestor is at least 102860 times more probable than having multiple ancestors.
A model with a single common ancestor but allowing for some gene swapping among species was... 103489 times more probable than the best multi-ancestor model...
The idea came from Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, "Therefore... probably all the organic beings which have ever lived on this earth have descended from some one primordial form..."
Related pages
Earliest known life forms
Origin of life
Morphology (biology)
References
Other websites
About the Tree of Life Web Project
Maddison D.R. et al 2007. The Tree of Life Web Project. Pages 19-40 in: Zhang Z.-Q. & Shear W.A., eds. Linnaeus Tercentenary: progress in invertebrate taxonomy. Zootaxa 1668:1-766. Open Access PDF
Biology
Organisms |
5813 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic%20energy | Kinetic energy | Kinetic energy is the energy that an object has because of its motion. This energy can be converted into other kinds, such as gravitational or electric potential energy, which is the energy that an object has because of its position in a gravitational or electric field.
Difference between Kinetic & Potential Energy
Kinetic Energy is the maximum amount of work a moving body due to its motion can do, whereas Potential energy is the maximum amount of work a body can do due to its configuration or position in a field force. Kinetic Energy is valid for all sorts of forces as seen from this derivation.
but Potential Energy is not as can be seen here
which clearly suggests that only conservative forces can have potential energy associated with them; see conservation of energy.
Translational kinetic energy
The translational kinetic energy of an object is:
where
is the mass (resistance to linear acceleration or deceleration);
is the linear velocity.
Rotational kinetic energy
The rotational kinetic energy of an object is:
where
is the moment of inertia (resistance to angular acceleration or deceleration, equal to the product of the mass and the square of its perpendicular distance from the axis of rotation);
is the angular velocity.
References
Other websites
Rotational kinetic energy
Differences between Kinetic energy and Potential energy
Energy
Mechanics
Basic physics ideas |
5814 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potential%20energy | Potential energy | Potential energy is the stored or pent-up energy of an object. It is often contrasted with kinetic energy.
In physics, potential energy is the energy which an object has due to its position in a force field or which a system has due to the way its parts are arranged.
Common types include the gravitational potential energy of an object that depends on its vertical position and mass, the elastic potential energy of an extended spring, and the electric potential energy of a charge in an electric field. The SI unit for energy is the joule (symbol J).
Potential energy is often associated with restoring forces such as a spring or the force of gravity. The action of stretching the spring or lifting the mass is performed by an external force that works against the force field of the potential. This work is stored in the force field, which is said to be stored as potential energy. If the external force is removed the force field acts on the body to perform the work as it moves the body back to the initial position, reducing the stretch of the spring or causing a body to fall. When this happens, potential energy changes into kinetic energy. The total energy stays the same because of the law of conservation of energy.
Physicists say that potential energy is the difference between the energy of an object in a given position and its energy at a reference position.
Simple examples
Bringing a rock uphill increases its potential energy under gravity. Stretching a rubber band increases its elastic potential energy, which is a form of electric potential energy. A mixture of a fuel and an oxidant has a chemical potential energy, which is another form of electric potential energy. Batteries too have chemical potential energy.
Types of potential energy
There are various types of potential energy, each associated with a particular type of force.
Gravitational potential energy
Gravitational potential energy is experienced by an object when height and mass is a factor in the system. Gravitational potential energy causes objects to move towards each other.
If an object is lifted a certain distance from the surface from the Earth, the force experienced is caused by weight and height.
Work is defined as force over a distance, and work is another word for energy. The potential energy added when you lift an object is:
where
is the force of gravity
is the change in height
or
Here, is the acceleration due to gravity.
The total work done by gravitational potential energy when an object falls from position 1 to position 2 is:
or
where
is the mass of the object
is the first position
is the second position
Electric potential energy
Electric potential energy is experienced by charges both different and alike, as they repel or attract each other. Charges can either be positive (+) or negative (-), where opposite charges attract and similar charges repel.
If two charges were placed a certain distance away from each other, the potential energy stored between the charges can be calculated by:
where
is 1/4πє (for air or vacuum it is )
is the first charge
is the second charge
is the distance apart
Elastic potential energy
Elastic potential energy is experienced when a rubbery material is pulled away or pushed together. A spring for example stores elastic potential energy. The amount of potential energy the material has depends on the distance pulled or pushed. The longer the distance pushed, the greater the elastic potential energy the material has.
If a material is pulled or pushed, the potential energy can be calculated by:
where
is the spring force constant (how well the material stretches or compresses)
is the distance the material moved from its original position
Related pages
Kinetic energy
References
Energy
Basic physics ideas
Force |
5816 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship | Ship | A ship is a large vehicle used to travel on water. It is bigger than a boat. Most are cargo ships, which carry most of the world's international trade. There are also many warships, passenger ships and other kinds for different purposes.
When people talk about a ship, they often use the pronoun "she". For example: She was launched on 29 December 1878.
History
Early ships
The first ships used oars or the wind (or both) to make them move.
From about 4000 BC the Ancient Egyptians were making wooden sail boats. By 1200 BC the Phoenicians and Greeks had begun to make bigger sailing ships which were about 30 metres (100 feet) long and could carry 90180 tonnes of cargo. The Romans made even bigger ships which could carry up to 1,000 people and 1,000 tonnes of cargo. The 8th century saw the rise of the Vikings, who were famous for their "longships" and which were mainly used for raiding other countries, but also for trading. The longships had flat bottoms so they could move in shallow (not deep) rivers.
Age of sail
Sailing ships were used for thousands of years, but they were very important from the Age of Discovery to the 19th century. The Chinese admiral Zheng He commanded a fleet of large 'treasure ships' on seven voyages all over Asia up to East-Africa in the early fifteenth century. The most successful and largest fleet in the 17th century was the Dutch fleet (see the Netherlands). For trade and transport the Dutch often used a particular kind of trading ship, called a flute (fluyt in Dutch). Transport of people and cargo on sailing ships became rare in the early 20th century.
Some famous ships from this era include:
Niña, Pinta, Santa Maria - Christopher Columbus' ships
The Mayflower - The ship that carried the Pilgrims to Massachusetts
Queen Anne's Revenge - The pirate Blackbeard's ship
HMS Bounty - Captain Bligh's ship. Site of the most famous mutiny of all time
USS Constitution - The most powerful ship in the early United States Navy
HMS Victory - Admiral Horatio Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar
The age of steam
In the 19th century, steamboats became commonplace.
At one time, the steamships Titanic, Olympic, and Britannic were the largest ships in the world, Titanic sank on her maiden voyage after hitting an iceberg, becoming one of the most famous shipwrecks of all time, the Olympic was Titanic 's nearly identical twin, and actually set sail before Titanic and was scrapped in the 1930s after a very successful career including her being a passenger liner and a warship in World War I. The Britannic was the largest of these three sister ships, and was supposed to be more grand and elegant than the Titanic, but before she set sail on her maiden voyage, WWI broke out and she was stripped of her elegant furniture and elaborate paneling and became a hospital ship. During her term as a hospital ship, she was sunk by either a mine or torpedo, no one knows for sure. The Titanic lies at the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Nova Scotia, and the Britannic lies in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of the Island of Kea.
Modern ships
After World War II ships with diesel engines became commonplace. Passenger airliners replaced passenger ships for long trips in the late 20th century. Cargo ships became much bigger. The main kinds are container ships for mostly manufactured goods, and bulk carriers including oil tankers.
Largest ship
The world's largest ship is the Prelude, owned by Shell. It is being built on Geoje Island, South Korea. It is 488m long and has the internal capacity greater than the total volume of four large aircraft carriers. What it will do is collect natural gas off the coast of Australia, and liquify it. When liquified, the hydrocarbon takes up 600 times less space than its gas. Smaller tankers will take the liquid gas to its buyers. The ship will do liquifying and temporary storage, which is usually done on land. Shell believes this justifies the cost of the ship.
The shipping yard builds all kinds of structures for the oil industry. It employs 30,000 workers.
Some names for parts of a ship
Amidships - near the middle of the ship.
Bow - the front of the ship.
Stern - the back of the ship.
Aft - in the direction of the stern.
Astern - behind the ship.
Starboard - the right side of the ship.
Port - the left side of the ship.
Bridge - the room in which the ship is controlled.
Cabin - a room where a crew member lives.
Decks - the floors.
Galley - the kitchen.
Hold - an area inside the ship used to carry goods.
Hull - the main body of the ship.
Keel - a beam running from stern to bow.
Mast - a central pole on which sails are hung.
Brig - Prison cells in the ship.
Some types of ships
Bulk carrier - very large ship used for carrying very heavy cargo.
Catamaran - a ship with two hulls.
Cruise ship - a large passenger ship that takes people on holiday or vacations.
Ferry - a passenger ship which often carries vehicles as well as people.
Supertanker - a very large ship usually used for carrying oil.
Warship
Aircraft carrier - a warship which carries aircraft
Battleship - a large warship
PT boat- a small warship
Submarine - an underwater boat
References
Basic English 850 words
Navigation |
5817 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boat | Boat | A boat is a vehicle used to travel on water. It is smaller than a ship and can be lifted out of the water and carried on a ship. Some boats have sails, some are powered by rowing with oars, and some use motors. Those that use steam engines are steamboats
These boats are usually made of wood. However, some parts are made of metals like steel and aluminium. Expensive boats may have parts from fiberglass or composite materials and some even have helicopter pads. There are some boats that can even go underwater. They are called submarines.
A narrowboat is a boat designed to be used on narrow canals. It is sometimes called a barge.
The first boats were invented in the Netherlands in around 8000 BCE.
History
The Pesse Canoe is likely the oldest boat recovered to date as it was built sometime around 8,000 BCE
References |
5818 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navy | Navy | The navian is the part of a country's military that fights on water using boats. People in the navy are called navians. The navy is mostly made up of warships. It may also have its own air force and soldiers. It may have special boats that can go underwater, called submarines, or another kind of special boat that is meant to carry airplanes, called aircraft carriers.
History
Originally, Naval war was fought by ramming other ships and then jumping onto them to fight the crew. In Ancient Greece and Rome, the ships were usually powered by oars. During the Middle Ages, the cannon was invented. These could be shot at other ships from a great distance. Warships around this time also began to use sails instead of oars for power. In the middle 19th century, ships began to be plated in armor for protection. Steam engines allowed them move while carrying the armor, and better ones soon made them much faster. These early warships, called ironclads, are thought to have begun the type of Naval warfare used today. Ships soon became much larger.
Related pages
Royal Navy
United States Navy
Royal Australian Navy
Royal New Zealand Navy |
5819 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air%20force | Air force | An air force is the branch of a country's military which fights in the air. The air force is made up of aircraft such as fighters, bombers, helicopters and transport aircraft. When a navy has its own air force it is called Naval Aviation.
Air forces began in the early 20th century, usually as part of the army. Most countries separated their air forces in the 1930s and 1940s.
Aircraft in an air force sometimes fly in a formation. Formations are when the aircraft fly in a pattern. Air forces is part of the military.
The biggest air force in the world is the United States Air Force (USAF).
References |
5821 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%20of%20words%20about%20computers | List of words about computers |
A
Adobe
Acrobat
Algorithm
AMD
Android
API
Apple
Application
Analog
B
Boot
binary
BIOS
bitcoin
byte
bot
Botnet
Browser
C
C programming language
Cable
Cache memory
Captcha
Connection
Control
Cookie
C++
Computer
D
data
database
datalake
Debian
decompress
desktop
dialer
digital
document
disk operating system (redirect (or disambig) from DOS)
download
E
ENIAC Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator
electricity
email
email attachment
Encarta encyclopedia
Epiphany web browser
End User License Agreement (redirect from EULA)
Explorer
ext2 filesystem type
ext3 filesystem type
F
File allocation table (disambiguation from FAT or fat)
FAT16 filesystem
FAT32 filesystem
file
file types by ending
filesharing
filesystem
firewall
folder
footnotes
format
FreeBSD
freeware
FTP
Facebook
((Function))
G
gigabyte (redir from gb)
Gimp
Gmail
Gnome
Google
GNU
GnuPG
GPU
Google Nest
H
hacker
hard disk (redirects from hard drive, hard disk drive, hard disk)
hardware
Hash_function
HDMI
home page
HTML
HTTP
HTTP_Cookie
I
Intel
Icons
Input device
Internet
J
MarA jio
Joo
Jio
Java
JavaScript
J#
K
KDE*
kernel
keyboard
key
keyword
L
laptop
licensing examples for computer software
link
Linux
Lavasoft
Live CD
LibreOffice
M
Macintosh
Mac OS
Mac OS X
Malware
Mainframe Computer
Mandrake Linux
Martus
md5
media
megabyte (redir or disamb from mb)
Microsoft
modify
monitor
Motherboard
mouse
Mozilla web browser
Mozilla Firefox web browser
Modem
mp4
mpeg-4
N
NTFS filesystem type
Netscape
Netscape Navigator web browser
network
NNTP
non-commercial
notebook computer
Nvidia
O
ogg file format for multimedia
OpenOffice.org
Open Site
open source
Opera web browser
operating system
operating systems, a list
P
page
Perl
personal computer (PC)
Petabyte
pdf or more likely PDF
peer to peer, P2P
PGP
PHP
proprietary
piracy
pirate
plug-in
Python
popup
printer
privacy
program
program release
Python
PRINT
Q
QNX
QuickBasic
QuickTime.
QWERTY
R
Random_access_memory(redirect from RAM)
ReactOS
Read-only_memory(Redirect from ROM)
RedHat
Reiser FS filesystem type
root
RSA
Recycle Bin
Reboot
S
scan
search engine
security
server
shared source
shareware
software
spam
spamming
Spreadsheet
spyware
super computer
super user
surfing the internet
Suse
SDK
SSD
system
synergy (synergistic)
T
training for computers
Trojan horse
Terabyte (TB)
Tablet
U
Ubuntu
undo
UNIX
update
upload
user
USB
V
version
virtual community
Visual Studio
Visual Basic
virus
Vulnerability32]✓
VPN
W
Windows
Wine (software)
Wi-Fi
X
Xine
XML
x86, x32(processor)
x86-64, x64(processor architecture)
Y
Yahoo!
Yotabyte
Z
Z (file format)
Zoom in - Zoom out
ZIP
Zettabyte(ZB)
Other websites
A Gnu Dictionary of Computing - downloadable
Computing
Computer-related lists
Computers |
5824 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adware | Adware | Adware is an advertising computer program that can be put there by other people on someone's computer, sometimes without their permission. It is controversial because sometimes businesses put the program there so they can see what people are doing or what web pages they are browsing. They then put an advertisement that is of the same subject as the web-page the person is looking at. This can be good if the person is trying to buy something, but many people do not want advertisements. Many people also do not want other people to find out what they are doing or what web pages they are looking at. An example is in the popular peer-to-peer file sharing program, Kazaa. When someone downloads it, it installs adware on their computer that then sends advertisements to the computer. Some people do not like this so they use an illegally changed version of this program called Kazaa Lite.
Removal tools
Removal tools have been developed to assist users in clearing out these unwanted programs.
Like many programs that people use for security, the program must be changed often. Updating allows the removal tool to recognize new types of adware. This can be done by downloading files over the internet using the 'update' option in the program.
Software |
5828 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender | Gender | Gender is a word that is used to talk about how people express masculine (traits most people think of as male) or feminine (traits most people think of as female) traits. It is commonly used for a person's sex (male or female) but this word only means someone’s biology (body parts).
Definitions and history
"Gender" comes from the Latin word genus which meant "kind" or "type". In the few hundred years before the 1950s, the term 'gender' was used only in the field of grammar. In 1955, a scientist began to use the word gender in new ways when referring to people, in a way that was related to their 'sex' but not quite the same. The term was not applied to other animals. They continued to have different “sexes”.
Grammar
Before the 1950s, the term 'gender' was used only in the field of grammar, and only to distinguish a category of words that are called 'feminine nouns' from other words that are 'masculine nouns'.[1][2] Early Indo-European languages~had three genders. Languages that come from Latin like Spanish, French, and Italian have lost one, and their nouns are either feminine or masculine in gender. For example, in Spanish, 'house' (casa) is feminine, and 'day' (día) is masculine. Some languages still have three genders, like German. Outside of their grammatical category, the word 'gender' was not used to refer to people. At that time, when one spoke about someone being either 'male' or 'female', the word used was sex.
Pronouns
Merriam Webster officially recognized the pronoun "they" as a singular use pronoun in 2019. According to the dictionary, the word had actually been used as a non-gender binary pronoun since the 1300s. Around the time Merriam Webster made this announcement, artist Sam Smith announced that their correct pronouns were actually they/them. Typically, for those who identify as female, the correct pronouns are she/her, and for males, he/him.
See Grammatical gender for more detail.
The Difference Between Sex and Gender
Many people often use the terms "sex " and "gender" interchangeably, however, some people now assign them two different meanings. They use the term "sex" to refer to the biological assignment of an individual, which is often based on scientific knowledge. This biological determination is often made at birth. Doctors often assign sex by looking at pre-natal images or directly inspecting genitalia at birth. This determination is still based on our beliefs on gender and sex being the same. The problem lies in what happens when an individual falls outside of the typical categories of "male" or "female". Some medical professionals have turned to the Karyotype method to look at the sex chromosomes to determine biological sex. "Gender", on the other hand, is considered by some to be more of a psychological factor. To them, gender is determined by our expressions, and behaviors rather than scientific knowledge.
Gender as a Social Construct
Typically, gender has been described by using terms such as man, woman, or even transsexual. These terms are applied to people based on their sex, or sometimes on the basis of culturally constructed characteristics. Although many people may be biologically assigned a sex, the gender they believe themselves to be may not align with this sex. An individual's gender is often assumed by outsiders based on cultural norms: outward appearance, body shape and size, physical activity, etc. Although an individual's gender identity is determined by psychology, a gender identity can be constructed by wearing particular clothing, language, actions and such, that are associated with that gender in a given society. Psychologist and Feminist Anthropologist Anne Fausto-Sterling calls this embodiment.
Gender roles
In 1955, John Money created the term gender role and began to use it to mean something different from sex. Gender roles are how a society views different genders and how they should act. An example of this would be how some people believe feminine or female people should cook and clean rather than play sports. These roles change over time and differ based on different cultures, but are often ideas that are created by people rather than coming from nature.
Gender Identity Development
The term identity means the mental image someone has of themself as well as some kind of similarity with others in some particular way. Gender identity, specifically, refers to the experiences someone has that are similar to a person of a particular gender. This gender identity affects how a person views themself as well as how they interact with others. Developmental psychologists have found that the development of an identity begins in early adolescence. Learning about what it means to be a particular gender also starts at an early age. During adolescence, children begin to internalize the gender roles in their surroundings and "gender intensification" occurs. Gender intensification means that the child feels more pressure to conform to socially sanctioned gender norms, resulting in deeper gender role differentiation for boys and girls. Biological, can affect gender identity development as well. Research done with animals has shown that pre-natal sex hormones affect the sexual differentiation of the brain.
Gender and Sexual Orientation
Gender binary
‘Binary’ comes from the Latin word bini meaning two together. As such binary refers to an idea in which there are only two possible options that are often opposite. This is how most people thought of gender throughout history in many parts of the world with male and female being the only two options.
Thinking of gender in this way can lead to a society with strict gender roles that are in place for a long time to think that those are natural or biological roles that each option has to conform to at birth. Examples of this are women who are not allowed access to education or jobs or men who are expected to not be emotional or soft. Strict binary gender roles are also often tied to reasons for oppression of sexualities outside of the majority. Societies often enforce gender binaries due to concepts like tradition and the idea that their stability relies on keeping this binary in place.
The LGBTQ+ Community
The term LGBTQ is constantly evolving and adding terms to the acronym as knowledge of the community becomes more widely known. As of 2020, the acronym has expanded to LGBTQQIAAP, which stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, Ally, and Pansexual. The community is, however, mostly referred to as the LGBTQ+ community.
Intersex
Intersex is the word used to describe the condition where a person has genitals that are not clearly male or female. There is a variety of ways this condition may physically manifest including infants that have enlarged clitorises or a combination of elements of both the male and female genitalia. Sex assignment is often performed on infants that have obvious intersex characteristics, this is often referred to as intersex genital mutilation. Some have recently suggested that medically unnecessary surgeries such as intersex genital mutilation be delayed until the child is old enough to make a medically informed decision with counseling. Many intersex individuals may even go their whole lives without knowing that they are intersex due to a chromosomal abnormality. Typically, females' sex chromosomes are XX and males XY, however, XXY (Klinefelter syndrome), XXXY, XXXXY, and XYY are some other possibilities.
Gender spectrum
Although many societies still exist under a gender binary, more and more around the world are becoming more accepting of ideas of gender outside of strict male and female categories. An important thing to know about gender in this form is that the people who exist within them have always existed but have not always been free to express themselves. One example of this is people who are transgender, those who were labeled based on their biological sex, but eventually come to realize that label does not fit what they identify with. In addition to this, some people do not experience gender in a way that fits into a binary at all, and these people are called either non binary or genderqueer.
Another category that is not a part of the gender binary is called intersex. Intersex people are born without obviously male or female genitalia. It is a common practice in hospitals that an intersex baby will have a surgery that makes them one sex. Doctors do this with the belief it will help the child later on in life as they begin to develop during puberty. However, it can cause mental and emotional issues for the child if they begin to struggle with gender identity. Intersexuality is not a well accepted or understood idea in most places, since most people have never heard of it or are willing to accept people who are.
Related pages
Gender identity
Transgender
Transsexual
Intersexuality
Sexual dimorphism
References |
5843 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch%20language | Dutch language | Dutch () is a West Germanic language. It comes from the Netherlands and is the country's official language. It is also spoken in the northern half of Belgium (the region called Flanders), and in the South American country of Suriname. A language known as Afrikaans was developed from Dutch by the people in southern Africa and is now spoken mainly in South Africa but also in nearby Namibia. About 22 million people around the world speak Dutch.
History
Dutch is a West Germanic language The West Germanic branch is divided into English, Frisian, German and Dutch. Dutch has a similar vocabulary and grammar to English but is closer to German.
The North Germanic languages of Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Icelandic are also part of the Germanic language branch. Dutch is also in some cases like those languages.
The Dutch of before 1170 is called Old Dutch (Oudnederlands). The Dutch between 1170 and 1500 is called Middle Dutch (Middelnederlands), which is also called Diets and so that is why it is called Dutch in English. The word "Dutch" itself came from the Proto-Germanic word theodiscus, which means "language of the common people" and then was also used to refer to the Germans and their language. Over time, the Modern English usage now refers to that the Netherlands, not the Germans. The Dutch word for German, Duits, comes from the same origin.
The oldest Dutch book known is Wachtendonckse Psalmen, which was written in 900. The first Dutch writer known by name is Hendrik van Veldeke, who was born around 1150.
Letters
Dutch uses the letters of the same Roman alphabet as English.
Vowels
Note: The e can also be a schwa (like in the)
oe – like the "ou" in you
eu – like the French "eu" in fleur
ui – typical Dutch sound, but almost identical to the French word oeuil (= eye)
ou/au – like in sound
ij/ei – typical Dutch sound, the same as "ej" in Esperanto (not in Polish) In Amsterdam, the sound instead is "i" in ice.
aai – like the "i" in ice
eeuw – typical Dutch sound
ieuw – somewhat like "iew" in view
Open and closed syllables
Vowels are said differently on the if the syllable is open or closed. If a syllable is open, short written vowels are said as long ones. However, short written vowels are said short if the syllable is closed.:
The word praten canhasctwi syllables: pra|ten. Because pra is open, the a is pronounced like aa.
The word plat had only one syllables and so the a is short (just a).
There is, however, an exception to this rule. This is the "e". This is because "e" can also be a "mute e" (Schwa) (IPA character ə). In most words, where an open syllable ends with e it is a short e. Therefore, open syllables with a long e (ee) are written as ee. Example:
The word "me" contains an e and is not pronounced as "mee". (Mee has a totally different meaning).
There are, however, exceptions to this rule as well. This can be seen in the word meenemen. This word can be divided into three syllables: mee|ne|men. The e's in the first two syllables are long ones, but the last one is a mute e.
The mute e also occurs in the ending of verbs (usually -en).
Consonants
b
c
d
f
g/ch – not pronounced as the English G; the Dutch G is pronounced in the back of the throat with a "scratching" sound. In the south of the Netherlands, the G is spoken differently (so called soft G) than in the north (hard G).
h
j – like "y" in you
k
l
m
n
p
q – only used rarely; spoken as k
r – not like English; the Dutch R is a more rolling R
s
t
v
w
x – only used rarely, mostly in foreign words, pronounced as ks
z
Note: In words that end with "-d", the "-d" is pronounced like "-t".
Grammar
The grammar of Dutch is slightly more complex than that of English. Word order in sentences is different in complex sentences. The basic simple sentence-structure is subject-verb.
Verbs
Dutch has few grammatical tenses. These are most used:
onvoltooide tegenwoordige tijd (present simple)
onvoltooide verleden tijd (past simple)
voltooide tegenwoordige tijd (present perfect)
voltooide verleden tijd (past perfect)
Onvoltooid tegenwoordige tijd
The most simple verb-time is the onvoltooide tegenwoordige tijd (ott; present simple). The ott is used when something happens now, or regularly (like Hij eet regelmatig (He eats regularly)). Most verbs are conjugated (changed) in a regular form (these verbs are called regelmatige werkwoorden (regular verbs)). The word stem of the verb is still there in all of the conjugations (verb changes). The correct way of doing so is
Note: The stem of a verb is the infinitive of the verb without the -en. In some verbs, the first syllable is open and so any vowel is long. The stem changes to a written long vowel so the stem of lopen becomes loop. If the -en is then added to the stem (like with wij), the written form becomes short again, but it is still said as a long vowel).
Onvoltooid verleden tijd
The past form of the ott is the onvoltooid verleden tijd (ovt; past simple). How verbs are conjugated (changed) in the ovt is not easy to understand. Mistakes are common because some verbs are add a D, but others add a T. The "'t kofschip" rule is that the verb without -en (the stem in most verbs) ends with a consonant, which is also in "'t kofschip", the verb is changed with a T:
The verb praten (to talk) is changed with a T because prat ends with a T.
The verb can now be changed as the following:
There are some words for wgjch "'t kofschip" is not so easy. In vrezen (to fear), the stem of the verb is vrees and it looks as if itvis changed with a T. However, it changes instead to a D because vrezen without -en is vrez. The Z is not in "'t kofschip" and so the verb is changed to a D.
The verb can now be changed as follows:
Continuating verbs
Although Dutch has present continuous (the -ing form of verbs in English), it is not used often:
The senctence "I am eating", is in Dutch "Ik eet", which is literally "I eat".
The present continuous in Dutch is "Ik ben etende", but it is almost never used.
Actually, there are three types of continuous verbs in Dutch.
The first type is a form of the verb zijn (to be) with the actual continuous verb. That is done by adding de on the infinitive. It is rare but correct to use it in Dutch, and it is used only in very formal texts.
The second type is a type in and which the verb actually functions as an adverb. Depending on the subject, the verb is changed by adding either a "d" or "de" to the infinitive. The verb then has the function of while..... An example: Hij liep drinkend de supermarkt uit. English uses He walked out of the supermarket while drinking .
The third type is a type that is often used. Its use can be compared with the English type of continuous. Something is being done at the moment but is not completed. The form of zijn + aan het comes before the infinitive: Ik ben aan het lopen, which means I am walking (at the moment).
Examples
hallo (hello)
Ik heet ... (my name is...)
Ik hou van je (I love you)
ja (yes)
nee (no)
Numbers
een (one)
twee (two)
drie (three)
vier (four)
vijf (five)
zes (six)
zeven (seven)
acht (eight)
negen (nine)
tien (ten)
elf (eleven)
twaalf (twelve)
In number with three digits (e.g. 100), the Dutch change the u into o and replace 1 of the r's. Example:
The number 100 becomes: honderd, which literally means hundred.
Basic Dutch expressions
References
West Germanic languages
Languages of the Netherlands
Belgian culture
Flanders |
5852 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative%20Commons%20licenses | Creative Commons licenses | The Creative Commons licenses relates to the name of several copyright licenses released on December 16, 2002. The licenses were released by Creative Commons, a United States nonprofit corporation. Everybody can put their own creations under these licenses.
There are four basic license conditions. A simple overview of these four:
Attribution (BY): Allow others to copy, distribute, display and perform the work and evolved versions of it. They must give the original creator credit for the work.
Noncommercial (NC): Allow others to copy, distribute, display and perform the work and evolved version of it. They are not allowed to make money with it.
No Derivative Works (ND): Allow others to copy, distribute, display and perform the work. They are not allowed to change the work into something else.
Share Alike (SA): Allow others to distribute evolved works only when they use the same license. See also copyleft.
It is possible to combine the license elements to allow people to use a work under certain conditions. For example, a combination of the first and fourth is called "CC BY-SA". This stands for "Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike". With this license other people can use the work for free, but they must give credit to the original creator, and when they make something new with the work they must give it the same "CC BY-SA" license.
Criticism
The Free Software Foundation thinks that the Creative Commons system is confusing, because people often forget to tell which of the licenses they use. Instead they suggest to use the Free Art license.
Related pages
Creative Commons
Copyleft
Free content
References
Portions of this article are taken from the Creative Commons website, published under the Creative Commons Attribution License v1.0
Other websites
The full selection of licenses
Creative Commons web site
Software licences |
5888 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall%20Islands | Marshall Islands | The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) is a Micronesian island nation in the western Pacific Ocean. The capital of Marshall Islands is Majuro. The official languages are Marshallese and English.
National Anthem: Forever Marshall Islands
Roughly 10% of the population of the Marshall Islands can now be found in northwest Arkansas, U.S. Most live and work in the city of Springdale, a community of roughly 50,000. Each year, the Marshallese host a homecoming event so friends and relatives can get together to celebrate, stay in touch with politics at home, and spread their island culture. They meet at the Jones Center for Families in Springdale and have dancing, feasting, volleyball, and basketball. As a population, they are devoted to family and church and bring island dance and song to this corner of Arkansas. |
5892 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphabet | Alphabet | An alphabet is a writing system, a list of symbols for writing. The basic symbols in an alphabet are called letters. In an alphabet, each letter is a symbol for a sound or related sounds. To make the alphabet work better, more signs assist the reader: punctuation marks, spaces, standard reading direction, and so on.
The name alphabet comes from Aleph and Beth, the first two letters in the Phoenician alphabet.
This article is written with the Roman alphabet (or Latin alphabet). It was first used in Ancient Rome to write Latin. Many languages use the Latin alphabet: it is the most used alphabet today.
Alphabets
It seems that the idea of an alphabet – a script based entirely upon sound – has been copied and adapted to suit many different languages. Although no alphabet fits its language perfectly, they are flexible enough to fit any language approximately. The alphabet was a unique invention.p12
The Roman alphabet, the Cyrillic, and a few others come from the ancient Greek alphabet, which dates back to about 1100 to 800BC.p167 The Greek alphabet was probably developed from the Phoenician script, which appeared somewhat earlier, and had some similar letter-shapes.
The Phoenicians spoke a Semitic language, usually called Canaanite. The Semitic group of languages includes Arabic, Maltese, Hebrew and also Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus. We do not know much about how the alphabetic idea arose, but the Phoenicians, a trading people, came up with letters which were adapted by the early Greeks to produce their alphabet. The one big difference is that the Phoenician script had no pure vowels. Arabic script has vowels which may, or may not, be shown by diacritics (small marks above or below the line). The oldest Qu'ran manuscripts had no diacritics. Israeli children to about the third grade use Hebrew texts with vowel 'dots' added.p89
No ancient script, alphabetic or not, had pure vowels before the Greeks. The Greek alphabet even has two vowels (Eta) and Epsilon) for 'e' and two (Omega and Omicron) for 'o', to distinguish between the long and short sounds. It appears that careful thought went into both the Phoenician invention and the Greek adaptation, but no details survive of either process.
Semitic scripts apparently derive from Proto-Sinaitic, a script of which only 31 inscriptions (plus 17 doubtful) are known. It is thought by some researchers that the original source of this script was the Egyptian hieratic script, which by the late Middle Kingdom (about 1900BC) had added some alphabetic signs for representing the consonants of foreign names. Egyptian activity in Sinai was at its height at that time. A similar idea had been suggested many years previously.
Short list of alphabets
A list of alphabets and examples of the languages they are used for:
Proto-Sinaitic script
Phoenician alphabet, used in ancient Phoenicia.
Greek alphabet, used for Greek
Roman alphabet (or Latin alphabet), most commonly used today
Arabic alphabet, used for Arabic, Urdu and Persian
Hebrew alphabet, used for Hebrew, Ladino (only in Israel) and Yiddish
Devanagari, used for many languages of India
Cyrillic alphabet, which is based on the Greek alphabet, used for Russian and Bulgarian
Hangul, used for Korean
Ethiopic
Other writing systems
Other writing systems do not use letters, but they do (at least in part) represent sounds. For example, many systems represent syllables. In the past such writing systems were used by many cultures, but today they are almost only used by languages people speak in Asia. A syllabary is a system of writing that is similar to an alphabet. A syllabary uses one symbol to indicate each syllable of a word, instead of one symbol for each letter of the word. For example, a syllabary would use one symbol to mean the syllable "ga", instead of two letters of the alphabet "g" and "a".
Japanese uses a mix of the Chinese writing (kanji) and two syllabaries called hiragana and katakana. Modern Japanese often also uses romaji, which is the Japanese syllabary written in the Roman alphabet.
The Koreans used the Chinese writing in the past, but they created their own alphabet called hangul.
Originally, 1200 BC in the Shang dynasty, Chinese characters were mainly "pictographic", using pictures to show words or ideas. Now only 1% of Chinese characters are pictographic.p97 97% of modern characters are SP characters. These are a pair of symbols, one for meaning (semantics) and the other for pronunciation.p99 In many cases the P and S parts are put together into one joint character. Chinese is not one spoken language, but many, but the same writing system is used for all. This writing system has been reformed a number of times.
Related pages
Multialphabetism
Writing
References |
5893 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/County | County | A county is the name for a piece of land. It has a different meaning in different languages. Originally the word was for the land under a count (in Great Britain an earl). Today a "county" is often something between a larger state and a smaller town or district.
County governments keep records and organize elections and laws. They are a kind of local government.
Canada
Canada has ten provinces. Five of them have counties in them. In Ontario, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, these are local government units, but in Quebec and Prince Edward Island they are now only geographical units.
China
The word "county" is the English name for the Chinese word xiàn (县 or 縣). On Mainland China under the People's Republic of China, counties are the third level of local government. On Taiwan, the county is the highest governmental level below the Republic of China central government.
There are about 2,000 counties in China; this number is about the same as in the Han dynasty, 2,000 years ago. The county is one of the oldest levels of government in China.
In the past, "prefecture" and "district" were names for xiàn, before the Republic of China. People started using the English name "county" after the start of the Republic of China.
The head of a county is the magistrate.
Croatia
Counties started to be units of regional self-government in Croatia in 1990. There are twenty counties and the city of Zagreb which has the same status. They are called županije and their leader is a župan.
France
There was a change in the historical counties of France in 1790 after the Revolution. The new government unit was the département. But French people use the word county (comté) in the name of the Free County region, the old Free County of Burgundy.
Hungary
The government unit of Hungary is megye, or in Latin: comitatus. This is the same as the word county. Today Hungary has 19 counties, 20 city counties and 1 capital, Budapest. The comitatus was also the unit in the Kingdom of Hungary.
Ireland
Ireland originally had 32 counties in the nineteenth century. 26 of these later formed the Republic of Ireland and 6 formed Northern Ireland. The counties were in 4 provinces - Leinster (12 counties), Munster (6) Connacht (5) and Ulster (9).
In the 1970s in Northern Ireland and in the 1990s in the Republic of Ireland, there was a change in the county numbers and borders (where they started and finished). In the Republic, for example, the change broke Dublin County into four parts: Dublin City, Dún Laoghaire - Rathdown, Fingal, and South Dublin. 'County Tipperary' is really two counties, Tipperary North Riding and Tipperary South Riding. The towns Cork, Galway, Limerick, and Waterford are now separated from the countryside areas of their counties. So the Republic of Ireland now has thirty-four "county-level" units. But for sports, culture etc. people normally talk about the original 32 counties and 4 provinces.
Each county has a flag/colours and often a nickname too.
Japan
"County" is one name for gun (郡), which is a part of a prefecture. Other names for gun are "rural district", "rural area" or "district". People do not like to use "district" because the usual translation of "district" is choume (丁目).
Today, "counties" have no political power or organisation use. Postal services use it.
New Zealand
After New Zealand ended its provinces in 1876, they began using a county system as in other countries. They used it until 1989.
During the second half of the 20th century, many people went to the country counties from nearby cities. Because of this, sometimes they put the two together, making a "district" (e.g. Rotorua). Or sometimes they changed the name to "district" (e.g. Waimairi) or "city" (e.g. Manukau).
In 1974 they had a big change; they made the organisation the same all over New Zealand. Today the country has cities and districts, but no counties.
Norway
Norway has 19 Counties (singular fylke, plural fylker, literally "folk"). Until 1972, Bergen was a county, but today it is a municipality in the county of Hordaland. All counties have municipalities (singular kommune, plural kommuner).
Each county has an assembly (fylkesting). Norwegians choose the people in the assembly every 4 years. The counties work with high schools and roads, etc. Some people, and political parties, such as the Conservatives, Høyre, want the end of the counties. Others want to make some of them into larger regions.
Poland
In English we normally call the Polish second-level organisation unit powiat a "county" or "district".
Romania
The smaller units of Romania are called judeţ (plural: judeţe). This name comes from jude, a judge of a city. Today Romania has 40 counties and the capital, Bucharest has a separate status.
Serbia
We sometimes call the units of Serbia (okrug) counties, but more often we call them districts.
Sweden
In 1634 the old provinces in Sweden had a new name: counties. Today there are 21 Counties, and in each County there are Municipalities.
The Swedish name is Län.
United Kingdom
See also List of counties of the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom there are 92 traditional counties (also known as shires), 86 in Great Britain and 6 in Northern Ireland. The British counties are different ages.
In England, in Anglo-Saxon times, Shires were units for getting taxes. They usually had a town at their centre. People called these towns the shire town. The shires had the same name as their shire town (for example Bedfordshire). Later people called these towns the county town. The name "county" came from the Normans, from a Norman word for an area under a Count (lord).
In 1539 Wales got thirteen counties. The counties in Scotland are this age or older.
The county boundaries (borders) of England are different today. In medieval times, some important cities got the status of counties, for example London, Bristol and Coventry. Some small places, e.g. Islandshire, were also counties. In 1844, a lot of these small places returned to their old counties.
United States
The name "county" is also used in 48 of the 50 states of the United States, for the next government unit smaller than the state. Louisiana uses the name parishes and Alaska uses boroughs. The U.S. Census Bureau lists 3,141 counties or organisation units of this sort. The power of the county government is very different in every state.
In New England, counties are mostly for law. In Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, they have no governmental use; they are only geographic names. Most power is in the New England town.
In other places than New England, counties are for the police, water, gas and electricity, libraries, statistics and birth certificates. County sheriffs are the head of the police in some states, for areas outside of cities and towns. Other places have "County Police" and county sheriffs are for law. Each county has a county seat, usually the biggest town, where the county offices are.
In Western states, for example California, the county is the basic unit of local government. |
5894 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/New%20York%20University | New York University | New York University, also known as NYU, is a research university in New York City. It is the largest private university in the United States, and is highly regarded in the nation as well as around the world.
Rankings
In 2020, it was ranked as the 11th best university in the United States by the QS World University Rankings: USA, and as the 28th best university in the world by U.S. News & World Report. In addition, NYU is highly ranked in the fields of Law, Medicine, Mathematics, Business, Psychology, Communications, Performing Arts, Film, Economics, and Philosophy.
History
The university was founded as University of the City of New York in 1831 by a prominent group of New York City residents led by then United States Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin. The school was officially renamed New York University in 1896.
37 Nobel Prize winners have been produced by NYU, the 12th most in the United States and 19th most in the world. Three heads of state attended NYU: Ma Ying-jeou of the Republic of China, Ephraim Katzir of Israel, and Guillermo Endara of Panama. Many American politicians also attended NYU, including Bill de Blasio, Carol Bellamy, and Rudy Giuliani. Many successful actors and movie directors attended NYU, including Martin Scorcese, Angelina Jolie, Alec Baldwin, Spike Lee, Ang Lee, Mahershala Ali, Woody Allen, and Adam Sandler. Other famous alumni include the creator of the polio vaccine Jonas Salk, singer Lady Gaga, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, author Suzanne Collins, and former special counsel Robert Mueller.
NYU is one of the places where 5G was created, as well as where many of the foundations of modern electromagnetic theory were discovered.
Campus
In addition to its main campus in New York City, NYU also has degree-granting campuses in Abu Dhabi and Shanghai. NYU Abu Dhabi has produced more Rhodes Scholars per student than any other university in the world.
References
Association of American Universities
Colleges and universities in New York City |
5896 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bee | Bee | Bees are flying insects of the Hymenoptera, which also includes ants, wasps and sawflies. There are about 20,000 species of bees. Bees collect pollen from flowers. Bees can be found on all continents except Antarctica.
Bees fall into four groups:
Honeybees, including the Africanized honeybee.
Bumblebees: 250 species in the Apidae family.
Stingless bees: 550 species in the Meliponini.
Solitary bees: solitary in the sense that every female is fertile, and usually lives in a nest she builds herself. There are quite a few of these, for example the carpenter bees, leafcutter bees and mason bees (and there are others).
The European honey bee (called Apis mellifera by biologists), is kept by humans for honey. Keeping bees to make honey is called beekeeping, or apiculture.
Evolution
Flowers were pollinated by insects such as beetles long before bees first appeared. Bees are different because they are specialized as pollination agents. Their body and behavior make pollination easier. Bees are generally better at the task than other pollinating insects such as beetles, flies, butterflies and pollen wasps. The appearance of such floral specialists is believed to have driven the adaptive radiation of the angiosperms, and, in turn, the bees themselves.
Bees, like ants, evolved from wasps. The ancestors of bees were wasps in a family which preyed on other insects. The switch from insect prey to pollen may have come from the capture of prey insects that were covered with pollen when they were fed to the wasp larvae. Similar behaviour could be switched to pollen collection. This same evolutionary scenario has occurred within the vespoid wasps, where the group known as "pollen wasps" also evolved from predatory ancestors.
A recently reported bee fossil, of the genus Melittosphex, is considered "an extinct lineage of pollen-collecting Apoidea, sister-group to the modern bees", and dates from the Lower Cretaceous (~100 mya). Features of its morphology place it clearly within the bees. It still has two ancestral traits of the legs which betray its origin. The issue is still under debate, and the phylogenetic relationships among bee families are poorly understood.
Bee bodies
Like other insects, the body of a bee can be divided into three parts: the head, thorax (the middle part), and abdomen (the back part). Also like other insects, bees have three pairs of legs and two pairs of wings. Many bees are hairy and have yellow and black or orange and black warning colors.
Many bees have stings (like a hollow needle) on the rear of their bodies. If they get confused, angry, or scared they may sting, and inject venom, which hurts. Once a worker bee has stung it dies after a short while, but other types of bee and wasp can sting again. Some people are allergic to bee stings and may even die from them.
Social bees
Some bees are eusocial insects; this means they live in organized groups called colonies. Honey bees, the kind of bee used in beekeeping, are eusocial. The home of a bee colony is called a hive. One hive has only one queen.
There are three kinds of bees in a honey bee colony. A queen bee is the most important bee in the colony because she will lay the eggs. The queen bee only uses her stinger to sting other queen bees. The queen is usually the mother of the worker bees. She ate a special jelly called royal jelly from when she was young. Worker bees are females too, and they are the bees that collect pollen from flowers and will fight to protect the colony. Workers do a waggle dance to tell the others where they have found nectar; Karl von Frisch discovered this.
Drone bees (males) mate with the queen bee so that she can lay eggs. The only function of the male drone is to mate. They do no other work in the hive.
Haplodiploidy
In haplodiploid species, females develop from fertilized eggs and males from unfertilized eggs.
Because a male has only one copy of each gene, his daughters (which are diploid, with two copies of each gene) share 100% of his genes and 50% of their mother's. Therefore, they share 75% of their genes with each other.
It is unclear whether this system is necessary for eusociality.
Monogamy (queens mating singly) is the ancestral state for all eusocial species so far known, so it is likely that haplodiploidy contributed to the evolution of eusociality in bees.
Related pages
Bumblebee
Honey
Africanized honeybee
Hymenoptera
References
Basic English 850 words
Symbols of Kansas |
5897 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonfly | Dragonfly | Dragonflies are flying insects of the order Odonata. There are about 5,300 species of dragonfly. The adults eat other flying insects.
Dragonflies have large compound eyes, which is their main sense organ. They have four strong transparent wings, and a long body.
Dragonflies are usually found around lakes, ponds, streams and wetlands. They are predators which eat mosquitoes, and other small insects such as flies, bees, ants, and butterflies. Their larvae, known as 'nymphs', are aquatic. They are also carnivorous.
Because their legs are adapted to grab prey in the air, they are not adapted for moving on land. Once they perch, they rarely use their legs for walking.
Dragonflies have been around for 300 million years. In the rain forests of the Carboniferous and Permian periods, some species had wingspans of over . Oxygen levels were quite high at that time.
Dragonflies and damselflies
Dragonflies are in one suborder of the Odonata, and their relatives, the damselflies, are in another suborder. Some people mistake the damselfly for the dragonfly, because they look similar.
Adult damselflies have thinner, more delicate bodies than those of dragonflies. This you can see even when they are flying. When at rest, most damselflies hold their wings together above the body. Most dragonflies hold their wings horizontally. The eyes of dragonflies are larger, and touch each other. The eyes of damselflies are separated. Many damselflies live in groups close to a river. Taken together, these points are usually enough to distinguish the two groups.
Reproduction
Female dragonflies lay eggs in or near water, often on plants. When laying eggs, some species go under the water to lay their eggs on a good surface. The eggs then hatch into nymphs. While in the nymph stage they eat mosquito larvae and other things.
Most of a dragonfly's life is spent in the nymph form, beneath the water's surface. It is quite active. It can extend its jaws in front of its mouth to catch prey. Tiny vertebrates such as tadpoles and fish are part of its diet. Some nymphs even hunt on land. They draw water in and out of their rectum. They can move fast by squirting water out of the anus. They also have gills in their rectum.
Larvae
The larval stage of large dragonflies may last as long as five years. In smaller species, this stage may last between two months and three years. When the larva is ready to metamorphose into an adult, it climbs up a reed or other emergent plant. Exposure to air causes the larva to begin breathing. The skin splits at a weak spot behind the head and the adult dragonfly crawls out of its old larval skin, pumps up its wings, and flies off to feed on midges and flies. The adult stage of larger species of dragonfly can last as long as five or six months.
Dragonflies experience incomplete metamorphosis: the nymphs (called naiads) swim and live underwater, like fish. The female dragonfly lays her fertilized eggs near or right in the water. The naiads – which do not look much like dragonflies at all – hatch and immediately take to the water.
While living in the water, the naiads eat as many aquatic insects as possible, as well as other small creatures like tadpoles and minnows. Hidden among the plants, a naiad will lie in wait for prey to swim by. It can then squeeze water out of the rear of its abdomen like a jet stream. This moves the naiad forward very quickly, allowing it to snatch its prey with its powerful jaws. Some naiads even have a long lower jaw that can shoot out and grab prey.
Naiads live in the water for weeks (or even years in some species) and undergo a series of moults to grow. When a naiad is ready for its final moult, it finds a stick or other object sticking out of the water. It use this to crawl out of the water, and wait for its exoskeleton to dry. As the exoskeleton cracks open at the seam, the adult dragonfly crawls out.
Adults
Eyesight
Dragonflies have tremendous eyesight. Their compound eyes are very large and have up to 50,000 individual lenses. Their eyes wrap around the top of the head. As a result, they have a wide field of vision: they can see almost everywhere at once. Sight is by far their most important sense, used to catch flies and avoid birds.
Flight
In flight the adult dragonfly can move in six directions; upward, downward, forward, back, and side to side. They can also hover quite well in midair, and then they can take off at speeds of up to . Scientists discovered dragonflies can move each of their four wings independently which gives them their flying abilities. Dragonflies bend and twist their wings to cause little whirlwinds that move the air even faster over the upper part of the airfoil, reducing air pressure even more than most flying animals can. This gives them a lot of lift, even in the face of powerful winds.
The flight style of different families of dragonfly is one of their distinguishing features. It gives rise to some terms which are widely used by dragonfly observers:
Hawkers (family Aeshnidae). They are among the largest and fastest flying dragonflies. The adults live mostly in the air, and even mate in flight. They have large and powerful wings, and can fly forwards or backwards or hover like a helicopter. The wings are always extended horizontally.
Skimmers or perchers are the very large family Libellulidae. There are several flight styles amongst its genera. The genus Sympetrum lives in the northern hemisphere and has 50 species. It breeds in ponds and searches over meadows. There are at least 100 other genera.
Cruisers (family Macromiidae). They usually fly over bodies of water (and roads) straight down the middle. They have green eyes which just barely meet at the top of the head. Females of this family lack an ovipositor at the end of the abdomen and lay their eggs by dipping the abdomen in the water as they fly over.
Thermoregulation
Some dragonflies adjust their resting position to prevent overheating. They may use a handstand-like position to prevent overheating on sunny days. The abdomen is raised until its tip points at the sun, minimizing their surface area exposed to the heat. The position is called the obelisk posture. The species that do this are called 'perchers'; they are "sit and wait" predators which spend much of their time keeping still.
Predation
There are predators which eat dragonflies. The birds known a bee-eaters do regularly take dragonflies. Also, despite their good eyesight, dragonflies apparently cannot see spiders' webs, so they get caught there.
Related pages
Mayfly
Damselfly
Nymphs
References
Odonata |
5898 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind | Wind | WIND is the flow of gases. On Earth, wind is mostly the movement of air. In outer space, solar wind is the movement of gases or particles from the sun through space. The strongest winds seen on a planet in our solar system are on Neptune and Saturn.
Short bursts of fast winds are called gusts. Strong winds that go on for about one minute are called squalls. Winds that go on for a long time are called many different things, such as breeze, gale, hurricane, and typhoon.
Wind can move land, especially in deserts. Cold wind can sometimes have a bad effect on livestock. Wind also affects animals' food stores, their hunting and the way they protect themselves.
Sunlight drives the Earth's atmospheric circulation. The resulting winds blow over land and sea, producing weather.
A High pressure area (that makes an anticyclone) near a low pressure system (that makes a cyclone), makes air move from the high pressure to the low pressure to try to even out the pressures. The Coriolis effect causes the winds to spiral around. A big difference in pressure can make high winds. In some storms, such as hurricanes, typhoons, cyclones, or tornadoes, it can cause winds faster than 200 mph (320 kilometres per hour ). This can damage houses and other buildings, and can kill people.
Wind can also be caused by the rising of hot air, or the falling of cool air. When hot air rises, it creates a low pressure underneath it, and air moves in to equalize the pressure. When cold air drops (because it is denser or heavier than warm air), it creates a high pressure, and flows out to even out the pressure with the low pressure around it.
The wind is usually invisible, but rain, dust, or snow can show how it is blowing. A weathervane can also show you where the wind is coming from. The Beaufort scale is a way to tell how strong the wind is. It is used at sea, when no land can be seen.
The increase in wind causes an increase in the rate of evaporation.
Damage
High winds can cause damage depending on how strong they are. Sometimes gusts of wind can make poorly made bridges move or be destroyed, like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940. Electric power distribution can fail because of wind, even if its speed is as low as . This happens when tree branches damage power lines. No kind of tree can resist hurricane-force winds, but trees with roots that are not very deep can be blown over more easily. Trees such as eucalyptus, sea hibiscus, and avocado are brittle (easy to break) and are damaged more easily.
Trade winds
The trade winds are the prevailing pattern of easterly surface winds found in the tropics, within the lower portion of the Earth's atmosphere. They occur in the lower section of the troposphere near the Earth's equator. The trade winds blow predominantly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere. They blow from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere. They are stronger during the winter and when the Arctic oscillation is in its warm phase. Trade winds have been used by captains of sailing ships to cross the world's oceans for centuries. They enabled European empire expansion into the Americas. They also allowed trade routes to become established across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
The doldrums are in the equatorial region. It is a wind belt where air is warm, with little pressure variations. Winds are light there. Another name for doldrums is Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)
In outer space
Wind in outer space, called solar wind, is very different from a wind on earth. This wind is caused by the sun, or other stars, and it is made up of particles that came out of the star's atmosphere. Like solar wind, the planetary wind is made up of light gases that have come out of planets' atmospheres.
References
Related pages
Wind power in Denmark
Wind power in Germany
Other websites
Meteorology Guides: Forces and Winds – Instructional module from the University of Illinois
Names of Winds – A list from Golden Gate Weather Services
Wind Atlases of the World – Lists of wind atlases and wind surveys from all over the world
Winds of Mars: Aeolian Activity and Landforms – Paper with slides that illustrate the wind activity on the planet Mars
Classification of Wind Speeds
Wind-speed chart
The Bibliography of Aeolian Research
Basic English 850 words |
5899 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertebrate | Vertebrate | A vertebrate is an animal with a spinal cord surrounded by cartilage or bone. The word comes from vertebrae, the bones that make up the spine. Animals that are not vertebrates are called invertebrates. Vertebrates include birds, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals. The parts of the vertebrate skeleton are:
Braincase: A braincase or cranium protects the brain.
Vertebrae: A series of short, stiff vertebrae are separated by joints. This internal backbone protects the spinal cord. The joints between the vertebrae let the backbone bend.
Bones: support and protect the body's soft tissues and provides points for muscle attachment.
Gill arches: Gill arches in the pharynx of fish and some amphibians support the gills. In the majority of vertebrates some of the arches have evolved into other organs, such as jaws.
Examples of vertebrates are mammals, birds, and fish. A few tens of thousands of species have been identified. The term "fish" is used to describe at least four different kinds of vertebrates.
Distinctions
Vertebrates dominate amongst the animals in virtually all environments. They include the largest animals in each main ecosystem, though not the largest living things (because that would include trees). They are the only animals which have an adaptive immune system. These two facts may be connected.
Taxonomy and classification
Subphylum Vertebrata
Agnatha (jawless vertebrates)
Myxini
Hyperoartia (lampreys)
†Conodonta
†Pteraspidomorphi
†Thelodonti
†Anaspida
†Galeaspida
†Pituriaspida
†Osteostraci
Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates)
†Placodermi (Paleozoic armoured forms)
Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish)
†Acanthodii (Paleozoic "spiny sharks")
Osteichthyes (bony fish)
Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish)
Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish)
Coelacanthimorpha (coelacanths)
Dipnoi (lungfish)
Tetrapoda (four-limbed vertebrates)
Amphibia (amphibians)
Amniota (amniotic eggs)
Sauropsida (reptiles and birds)
Lepidosauria (lizards, snakes and tuatara)
Testudines (turtles)
Archosauria (archosaurs)
Crocodilia (crocodilians)
†Pterosauria (pterosaurs)
Dinosauria (dinosaurs)
Aves (birds)
Synapsida (mammal-like tetrapods)
Mammalia
Related pages
Invertebrate
Vertebrate brain
References
Other websites
Tree of Life
Tunicates and not cephalochordates are the closest living relatives of vertebrates |
5900 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha%20male | Alpha male | An alpha male is the top-ranking male in a mammalian social group.
Origin
Some animals live in a social structure where the most powerful male in the group is decided by either fights or very aggressive battles that sometimes end in death (in the wild). The current alpha male must defend his position from younger members. When he is too old or not strong enough to win, he loses his position in the group. Sometimes, he will die or be forced to leave the group.
The result of this is that the alpha male usually has more opportunity to mate with the available females. This system developed because strong males will produce young which have a better chance for survival.
Examples
Some animal groups which may have alpha males:
Lions
Apes: chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans
Horses
Deer
Humans
Alpha male can also refer to a high-ranked human in a group. This may be in a business setting or sometimes in other competitive areas, like sports. However, this is an extension by metaphor: humans do not have the same mating system as other social mammals. One reason is that the oestrous cycle in humans is different. This has the result that females may be sexually receptive at almost any time. Also, humans generally pair off, and alpha males do not have exclusive rights over all females in a group, except in rare circumstances.
Animals
Ethology |
5909 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore | Singapore | Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign country as well as a city-state. It is an island state at the southern end of the Malay Peninsula in Asia, between the Straits of Malacca and the South China Sea. Singapore is about one degree of latitude () north of the equator. About 5.70 million people live in Singapore. About 3.31 million are citizens. Most of them are ethnically Chinese, Malay, or Indian, as well as a smaller number of other Asians.
Present-day Singapore was founded in 1819 by Stamford Raffles as a trading post of the British Empire. During the Second World War, Singapore was taken over by Japan in 1942, but returned to British control after Japan surrendered in 1945. Singapore started to govern itself in 1959, and in 1963 became part of the new federation of Malaysia, together with Malaya, North Borneo, and Sarawak. Political and social differences led to Singapore being removed from the federation two years later, then becoming an independent country on its own.
Most Singaporeans are bilingual. The symbolic national language of Singapore is Malay. Other official languages of Singapore are English, Mandarin and Tamil. English is the language of choice because everyone in Singapore knows and uses it. It is the first language taught in schools and the language used by the government and in court. Students are also usually taught the language of their ethnicity. This means that the Chinese will learn Mandarin, Malays will learn Malay, and so on. Students can also choose to learn a third language in secondary school.
Singapore is also known as a "Garden City" or a "City in a Garden". This is because there are plants everywhere, making it look like a garden. Singapore has one of the highest standards of living in the world, with very good education, healthcare, housing, and very low corruption. It is also known for having many strict rules and punishments, including fines. This is why it is also sometimes jokingly called a "fine" city. The government says this has helped Singapore be a very safe country. Singapore is one of the founding members of ASEAN.
History
Before 1819
Singapore's name comes from 'Singa Pura', which means Lion City in Sanskrit. Many people around the world understand "Lion City" to refer to Singapore. There is some debate about who founded Singapore. According to the Malay Annals, a Sumatran prince called Sang Nila Utama landed on Temasek (Singapore's old name) and saw a Lion which is called 'Singa' in Malay. Thus he gave the island a new name, 'Singapura'. However, Sang Nila Utama was likely mistaken, as lions never existed in Singapore. It is believed that the "lion" was actually a Malayan Tiger, which also exists in neighbouring Malaysia. While now extinct in Singapore it used to be present back then.
There were also many pieces of old items, such as Chinese coins, that showed that Temasek was an important Asian trading port even before the British rule.
1819 to 1942
Few people lived in Singapore at the beginning of the 19th century. British governor Stamford Raffles arrived in Singapore on 28 January 1819 and wanted to set up a British trading town. At the time, the island was then ruled by Tengku Abdul Rahman, the Sultan of Johor, who the Dutch and the Bugis from Sulawesi had controlled. However, the Sultanate was weakened by infighting: the Temenggong (Chief Minister) of Tengku Abdul Rahman, as well as his officials, supported the Sultan's elder brother Tengku Long, who was living in exile in Riau.
With the Temenggong's help, Raffles managed to secretly bring Tengku Long back into Singapore. Raffles offered to recognize Tengku Long as the true Sultan of Johor, under the title of Sultan Hussein, as well as giving him $5000 per year and another $3000 to the Temenggong; in return, Sultan Hussein would give the British the right to establish a trading post on Singapore. An official treaty was signed on 6 February 1819.
In 1824, another treaty with the Sultan led to the entire island becoming under the British. In 1826, Singapore became part of the Straits Settlements. Singapore became the regional capital in 1836. Before Raffles arrived, there were only about a thousand people living on the island, mostly Malays along with a handful of Chinese. By 1860, the population had grown to over 80,000, more than half being Chinese. The country was given colony status in 1867. Later, in the 1890s, when the rubber industry became established in Malaya and Singapore, the island became a global center for sorting rubber and exporting them.
World War I
Singapore was not really affected by the First World War (1914–18), as the conflict did not spread to Southeast Asia. The only significant event during the war was the 1915 Singapore Mutiny by Muslim soldiers from British India, who were garrisoned in Singapore. After hearing news that they were to be sent to fight the Ottoman Empire in Europe, a Muslim state, the soldiers killed their officers and several British civilians before the mutiny was stopped by non-Muslim troops arriving from Johore and Burma.
Interwar period
After World War I, the British built the large Singapore Naval Base as part of the defensive Singapore strategy. First announced in 1921, the construction of the base went at a slow pace until the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931. Costing $60 million and not fully completed in 1938, it was the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock, and had enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months. The base was defended by heavy naval guns stationed at Fort Siloso, Fort Canning and Labrador Park, as well as a Royal Air Force airfield at Tengah Air Base. Winston Churchill called Singapore the "Gibraltar of the East", and military discussions often referred to the base as just "East of Suez".
However, the main fleet was in Europe, and the British did not have enough money to build a second fleet to protect their Asian colonies. The plan was for the Home Fleet to sail quickly to Singapore in the event of an emergency. As a result, after World War II broke out in 1939, the fleet was busy defending Britain from Germany, leaving Singapore open for a Japanese invasion.
World War II
Due to the weak defenses of the country, the Japanese attacked Singapore and easily took control of the colony on 15 February 1942. Up to 60,000 British soldiers surrendered on that day, and Churchill called it "the worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history". There were a lot of losses by both the British and the rest of the Empire, with a total of nearly 85,000 people captured. About 5,000 were killed or injured, many from Australia and India.
People of Singapore went through hard times during the Japanese rule, until the surrender of the Japanese in September of 1945. Many people were tortured or killed by the Japanese as they did not follow the rules properly or because they were suspected of going against the Japanese. The Japanese also targeted the Chinese the most; between 5,000 and 25,000 Chinese were killed, now known as the Sook Ching massacre. The most notable anti-Japanese force was Force 136, headed by Lim Bo Seng. Its purpose was to encourage and supply resistance movements in the enemy-occupied territory and occasionally mount sabotage operations.
The hard times during World War II made the people think that the British were not as strong as before. Therefore, many people were supportive of independence once the British had returned.
Independence
A few years after the war, In 1963, Singapore joined with Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak to form the new nation of Malaysia. Malaysia is a country with many races. In Malaya, only the Malays have special benefits. For example, the Malays could get university education more easily than other races.
As most people in Singapore are Chinese, Singapore wanted equality for all the people of Malaysia. Singapore also wanted a common market to be set up so that goods to Malaysia would not be taxed. However, this was not done and caused arguments between the state government of Singapore and the federal government of Malaysia.
Singapore separated from Malaysia and became independent on its own on 9 August 1965.
After Independence
After Independence, the president of Singapore was Yusof Ishak and its prime minister was Lee Kuan Yew.
At first, many people thought Singapore's independence would not last. In 1967, Singapore helped to start the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and in 1970 it joined the Non-Aligned Movement. Lee Kuan Yew was in charge of the country as Prime Minister of Singapore and saw it become very developed.
In 1990, Goh Chok Tong replaced Lee Kuan Yew as prime minister, while Lee Kuan Yew became Senior Minister. When Goh Chok Tong was Prime Minister, Singapore went through the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the 2003 SARS outbreak and terrorist threats by Jemaah Islamiyah. In 2004, Lee Hsien Loong, the son of Lee Kuan Yew, took over as Prime Minister. Goh Chok Tong became the Senior Minister, and Lee Kuan Yew became the Minister Mentor of Singapore. Lee Kuan Yew died in 2015.
Government and politics
Singapore is a parliamentary republic with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary government representing constituencies. Its constitution states representative democracy as its political system. Singapore is ranked regularly as one of the least corrupt countries in the world, according to Transparency International.
The Cabinet has executive power, and is led by the Prime Minister, and the President. The president is elected through popular vote, and has some veto powers for a few big decisions such as the use of the national reserves and the appointment of judges, but otherwise occupies a post with little power.
The Parliament serves as the legislative branch of government. Members of Parliament (MPs) are made up of elected, non-constituency and nominated members. Elected MPs are voted into parliament on a "first-past-the-post" (plurality) system and represent either single-member or group-representation constituencies. Elections are free, and the People's Action Party has won control of Parliament with large majorities in every election since self-governance in 1959. In the most recent parliamentary elections in 2020, the largest opposition, led by the Workers' Party, increased its representation in the House to 10 elected MPs out of 93.
The legal system of Singapore is based on English common law, however with large and important local differences. Trial by jury was removed in 1970 leaving judicial judgement done completely and only by judgeship. Singapore has laws that include corporal punishment in the form of caning for rape, rioting, vandalism, and some immigration crimes. There is a mandatory death penalty for murder, and for certain drug-trafficking and firearms offences. In a 2008 survey, international business executives believed Singapore had the best judicial system in Asia.
People
Religion
Buddhism is the most common religion in Singapore. Other common religions include: Christianity, Islam, Taoism, and Hinduism.
Education
Students in Singapore go through six years of compulsory primary school, which ends with all students taking a Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). Then, depending on their results in the PSLE, students are streamed into "Special", "Express", "Normal (Academic)", and "Normal (Technical)" groups. The amount of time a student spends studying in Secondary school (4–5 years) depends on their group.
Students are taught in English and their mother tongue, which can be Chinese, Malay or Tamil. Secondary school students may also choose to study a third language such as:
German
Japanese
French
Punjabi
Hindi
Spanish
Malay special programme – For non-Malay speakers
Chinese special programme – For non-Chinese speakers
Students can take a third language as it increases their chances in getting an overseas scholarship and can improve their examination grades, especially in the GCE Ordinary Level ("O" Levels), which are Secondary students take after their five or four years of education. However, only some students can qualify to take a third language.
After their "O" Levels, students can choose to go to a polytechnic, which is a place where students can study for 3 years for a diploma or to a junior college where students study for 2 years to receive an "A" Level. Students can also go to Institutes of Technical Education (ITE), where students study for two years to receive a "National ITE Certificate" (NITEC). This certificate is only recognized in Singapore. Students who go to ITE usually continue their education at a polytechnic.
With either a diploma, or an "A" Level certificate, students can apply to go to universities in Singapore or overseas.
Languages
The Singapore government has chosen four official languages: English, Malay, Chinese (Mandarin), and Tamil. English is the primary language. Singapore English is the main language in Singapore.
English is the first language of the nation, but it is not the most common. English is the second most commonly spoken language among Singaporeans. The most commonly spoken language amongst Singaporeans in their homes is Chinese (51%), followed by English (32%), Malay (13%) and Tamil (7%). This means that 32% of Singaporeans are native English speakers. Most of the rest of the people speak it as a second language. However, English has the largest total number of speakers including native and second language speakers. Mandarin Chinese is the second most common.
Almost 40% of people in Singapore are foreign. Most foreigners come from Asia. The country where most foreigners come from are Malaysia, its closest neighbor. In 2009, there may have been 350,000 Malaysians working in Singapore. Many Chinese-speaking foreigners and Chinese-speaking Singaporeans work in services. Thus, Chinese is the main language of many workers such as hawkers, retail assistants, hairdressers, etc. in Singapore today.
Singaporean English mainly comes from British English. The forms of English spoken in Singapore range from Standard English to a pidgin called Singlish. The Singapore government and many Singaporeans are against using Singlish. There is a "Speak Good English" campaign each year. Public schools and in the media also have rules against Singlish. There are many Singapore accents in English because of the many languages and identities of people in the city. Languages can even change over the generations and children may speak different languages and have different accents from their mother. For example, in a Singaporean Chinese family, the grandmother might speak Hokkien as her first language. Differently, the mother might speak Mandarin as her first language and Hokkien/English as her second languages, while the grandson might speak English as his first language and Mandarin as his second language.
Before independence in 1965, Hokkien, a Chinese dialect, was the common language among the Chinese laborers. Malay and English were used to communicate between the different ethnic groups. After independence in 1965, English became the first language of the nation and replaced Hokkien and Malay as the one shared language. Today, most younger Singaporeans have English as their first language or are fluent in English.
Malay is a national language of Singapore because of the history of the city. However, less than 20% of Singaporeans can read and write in Malay. Malay is still used at home by most Malay Singaporeans. The Malay used in Singapore (Bahasa Melayu) is closer to the language in Malaysia than the language in Indonesia. However, there are differences between the Malay in Singapore and in Malaysia. The national anthem "Majulah Singapura" is sung in Malay.
Many people speak Chinese – Mandarin and other Chinese dialects – in Singapore. Just over 50% of Singaporeans speak it at home, so it is the most common language in homes. Singaporean Mandarin is based on simplified Chinese and it is similar to the system used in mainland China. The forms of Mandarin spoken in Singapore range from Standard Mandarin to a pidgin known as Singdarin. Besides Mandarin, many southern Chinese dialects are also spoken in Singapore.
Hokkien used to be a lingua franca among the Singaporean Chinese so many older Singaporeans still understand Hokkien. The most common Chinese dialects spoken by Singaporeans are the Hokkien, Hainan, Teochew and Cantonese. However, Chinese dialects other than Mandarin are not allowed in the media, so these dialects are quickly dying out. Most younger Singaporeans do not speak them anymore.
Tamil, a South Indian language, is spoken by about half of Indians in Singapore. That is about 5% of all Singaporeans. However, North Indian languages such as Hindi and Punjabi are also spoken by a small group of Singaporean Indians in Singapore.
Culture
Singapore has many kinds of people and immigrants from many places. Therefore, Singaporean culture has often been described as a mix of cultures – European, Malay, Chinese, Indian and Peranakan. Also, foreigners are 42% of the population in Singapore and they are part of changing Singaporean culture.
Food
Dining is an important part of life in Singapore. Singaporean food is an example of the many different cultures in the country. It is also an example of mixing among cultures. British, Chinese, Indian, Malay, Tamil, and Indonesian styles of cooking all mix together. It is especially known for its sea food. Typical Singaporean food includes: Satay, Nasi lemak, Chilli crab, Kaya toast, and Hainanese chicken rice, Laksa, Fish Head Curry, Hokkien Prawn Meeand Char Kway Teow.
Media
MediaCorp, the state-owned media corporation, operates all seven local broadcast television channels in Singapore. It also runs 13 radio stations of the total 18 radio stations in Singapore. Radio and television stations are all owned by government controlled companies. However, one radio transmitter in Singapore is not controlled by the government. That is the Far Eastern Relay Station of the BBC World Service.
Print media of Singapore includes 16 newspapers and several magazines. Daily newspapers are published in English, Chinese, Malay, and Tamil.
National flower
The national flower of Singapore is Vanda Miss Joaquim. It is a type of orchid and it is a hybrid orchid. This makes Singapore the only nation in the world to have a hybrid as a national flower. It was chosen because it was part of the effort to create national pride and identity.
Economy
Singapore has a strong and free economy that supports a large middle class. The city state is a global shipping and logistics hub and many multinational firms have their offices in Singapore. The national airline, Singapore Airlines, has a large global network which brings tourists and business travelers alike, to the city. The airline has often been ranked as the world's best airline.
Singapore also has a port located at the south of Singapore, called Keppel Harbour. It is one of the busiest ports around the world with many ships coming in to trade in a single day. Singapore also has another port on Jurong Island.
Money
Singapore's currency is the Singapore dollar. The short name for the Singapore dollar is SGD. Brunei dollar can be used in Singapore, because they have the same value.
Geography
Singapore is made up of 63 islands, including the main island, which is known as Singapore Island to most people, but is also known as Pulau Ujong. There are two man-made connections to Johor, Malaysia: the Johor–Singapore Causeway in the north, and the Tuas Second Link in the west. Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the largest of Singapore's smaller islands. The highest natural point is Bukit Timah Hill at .
About 23% of Singapore's land area are forest and nature reserves. Urbanisation has removed most primary rainforest, with Bukit Timah Nature Reserve the only significant remaining forest. Even though there is very little primary rainforest left, there are more than 300 parks and four nature reserves in Singapore. There are also many trees planted all over Singapore and almost fifty per cent of the country is covered by trees and plants. Because of this, Singapore is also commonly known as the 'Garden City'.
Singapore, being a small country, has been reclaiming land from the sea around the island. The first time Singapore started to reclaim land was in the 1960s. The total land area of Singapore at that time was 581.5 km2 and it has increased to 730 km2 in the 2010s, which is an increase of about 20% in total land area. It may grow by another by 2030. Some land reclamation projects involve joining together smaller islands to make larger islands with more uses, like Jurong Island. Singapore uses the landfill method to reclaim the sea at the south of the country, but polders have been recently used too. The country's rapid reclamation projects has made disputes with its neighbouring countries, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Climate
Singapore is hot and wet all year round. It has a tropical rainforest climate (Af in the Köppen climate classification), which means there are no seasons (spring, summer, autumn and winter) in Singapore. There is the most rain at the end of the year, and the temperature is usually around 20 °C to 35 °C.
Although Singapore does not experience the four seasons, the period from May to June is usually warmer, while the period from November to January is cooler because of the more frequent rains and monsoonal winds in Singapore during the year-end.
Relations with other countries
Singapore has diplomatic relations with 175 other Sovereign states. Singapore's foreign policy is to maintain a secure environment in Southeast Asia as well as the countries near Southeast Asia. A basic rule is the political and economic stability in Southeast Asia.
ASEAN
Singapore is part of the ASEAN (Association of the South East Asian nations) network, which is an organisation that unites all Southeast Asian countries. Member countries of ASEAN work with and help other countries in ASEAN. Singapore is one of the countries that founded ASEAN, and is the most developed country among them all.
Commonwealth of Nations
Singapore is also part of the Commonwealth of Nations, which is for countries that used to be under the British's rule.
Holidays
Public holidays in Singapore:
New Year's Day
Chinese New Year (Chinese Festival) – 2 days
Good Friday
Labour Day
Vesak Day (Buddhist Festival)
National Day
Hari Raya Puasa (Malay Festival)
Deepavali (Indian Festival)
Hari Raya Haji (Malay Festival)
Christmas Day
There are also school holidays, lasting one week in March and September, about one month in June, and about one and a half months in December.
Records
Even though it is a small country, Singapore holds many world records with its buildings and people. Some are:
Transportation
Singapore has one of the best infrastructure qualities in the world. Buses, trains, and taxis are easily found.
Most of Singapore are well-connected by a railway system known as the Mass Rapid Transit, or MRT in short. There are also taxi companies like Comfort Cabs, Silver Cab, SMRT Taxis, CityCab and Premier Taxi. There is one telephone number to call a taxi, of which the closest taxi from any company will respond. Apps such as Grab and Gojek as an alternative to taxi companies are also available.
The Mass Rapid Transit of Singapore is the most commonly used form of transportation in Singapore.
The Singaporean land transport system is controlled by the LTA (Land Transport Authority) of Singapore.
Airport
The Singapore Changi Airport is the main airport of Singapore. It is in the east of Singapore, with a total of four terminals with airlines flying to many different parts of the world. It has also received many awards for being the best airport in the world. A Skytrain service is also available at the airport.
The airport is in Changi. It is on a 13 square kilometres (5.0 sq mi) site which was reclaimed from the sea.
Notes
References
Other websites
Singapore Food Guide
Singapore's gateway website
Interactive map of Singapore
Speak good English movement
1963 establishments in Asia |
5915 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannesburg | Johannesburg | Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa. It is the capital of the Gauteng Province. It was founded on October 4, 1886 and has the JSE Securities Exchange, which is the largest stock exchange in Africa.
Johannesburg houses the tallest office block in Africa, the Carlton Centre (50 stories) and the tallest tower, the Hillbrow Tower (270 metres, or 90 stories). The city is nicknamed Egoli or Jozi, which means "place of gold", for the large gold deposit at Witwatersrand.
The Johannesburg Zoo was established in 1904, and historically, it has been owned and run by the city of Johannesburg. It houses the only two polar bears in Africa. Johannesburg is not seen as a tourist centre in South Africa, but rather as a commercial centre.
Johannesburg has a subtropical highland climate (Cwb in the Köppen climate classification). Snow is a very rare event. It only snows in Johannesburg once or twice in a century.
Nelson Mandela died there on 5 December 2013, aged 95. He was also given the "Freedom of the City" award.
References
1886 establishments
1880s establishments in South Africa |
5935 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breakfast | Breakfast | Breakfast is the first meal of the day. It is usually eaten in the morning. The word comes from two other words; "break" ("end") and fast ("not eating for a long time").
Definition: [1463] from break (v.) + fast (n.). Cf. Fr. déjeuner "to breakfast," from L. dis-jejunare "to break the fast."
People around the world eat different things for breakfast:
In the United States, people usually eat pancakes, waffles, toast, eggs or bagels for breakfast.
In Canada, people usually eat maple cured bacon, fried potatoes, maple-infused beans, eggs, toast, pancakes and maple syrup or hot oatmeal for breakfast.
In the United Kingdom a large breakfast was often, and still is sometimes, served. Usually this would be bread, tea, egg, bacon, ham, fruits, baked beans on toast and sometimes vegetables. This pattern of heavy eating has greatly changed in recent years. Most people do not do manual work nowadays.
In France, people usually eat a very light meal; often bread and coffee with milk. Again, this depends on what kind of work is done (usually by the father of the household).
In Asia, most people eat rice instead of bread. They also sometimes eat porridge.
References
Related pages
Bacon and eggs
Diet (nutrition)
Meals |
5936 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast | Fast | Fast can mean different things:
Moving at a high speed
Fasting - when someone stops eating.
Quick |
5937 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Town | Town | A town is usually a place with a lot of houses, but not a city. As with cities, there is more than one way to say what a town is in different countries. In some places, it is a kind of local government. When they say "town" people are normally thinking of a big, important place. It may even be a city.
Generally, a town is smaller than a city and larger than a village, but that is not always the case, and the definition can differ in each country.
Generally, the difference between towns and villages or hamlets is the sort of economy they have. People in towns usually get money from industry (factories etc.), commerce (shops etc.) and public service (working for the town), not agriculture (growing food).
The number of people who live in a place does not tell us if it is a town or a village. In many areas of the world, like India, a big village can have many more people than a small town. It is also difficult to say if a place is a town because today, some towns are becoming bigger.
Sometimes a place is a city because it got the name "city" by law. However, people often call a place a "town" if it is small.
In the Middle Ages, a place became a town by means of a charter, which gave it town privileges.
United States
In the United States of America, the meaning of the term town is different in each state. In some states, a town is a town if the state says it is. In other states, like Wisconsin, a town is a subdivision of a county. In other states, like Michigan, the name "town" has no official meaning. People use it to describe any place where many people live.
In the six New England states, a town is a smaller part of the county. In all six, towns do things that, in most other states, the counties do. In many of these towns, town meetings are the main form of government, so citizens can say what happens where they live by direct democracy. In these states, the towns are really more important than the county. In Connecticut and Rhode Island, counties are only on the map and have no power. In the other four states, courts are the main work of counties. The counties with other functions are mostly in New Hampshire and Vermont.
Alabama
In Alabama, whether or not a place is a "town" or a "city" is based on how many people live there. A place with 2,000 people or more is a city. A place with less than 2,000 people is a town (Code of Alabama 1975, Section 11-40-6). For legislative purposes, places are put into eight categories based on the number of people. Class 8 includes all towns, and it includes all cities with that have less than 6,000 people (Code of Alabama 1975, Section 11-40-12).
Kansas
All incorporated places in Kansas are called cities. Once a city is incorporated in Kansas, it will continue to be a city no matter what. There are three categories for cities:
3rd Class Cities - When a city incorporates, it becomes a 3rd class city. To incorporate, a city must generally have at least 300 people living there.
2nd Class Cities - A city may ask to become a 2nd class city when there are 2,00015,000 people living there. A city that has 2,0005,000 people may choose to still be a city of the 3rd class. However, they must become a 2nd class city when they have 5,000 people.
1st Class Cities - A city may ask to become a 1st class city when at least 15,000 people live there. A city with only 15,00025,000 people may choose to still be a 2nd class city. However, it must become a 1st class city when they have 25,000 people.
Louisiana
In Louisiana, a "town" is a place that has a city government, and it has 1,0014,999 people living there.
New York
In New York, a town is also a smaller part of the county, but it is less important than in New England. Towns provide almost all municipal services to places, called hamlets, that are not in villages, and some services to places that are in villages. In New York, a town usually has some hamlets and villages. But, because villages have power without towns (they are independent) they can be in two towns or even two counties. Everyone in New York State who does not live in an Indian reservation (a special place for American Indians) or a city lives in a town, and perhaps in one of the town's hamlets or villages. A city may be part of a county, but even if it is surrounded by a town that has more people than the city, it is not part of the town.
Utah
In Utah, the terms "town" and "city" is based on the number of people living there. A place with 1,000 or more people is a city. A place with fewer than 1,000 people is a town. Cities are divided into five different categories based on the number of people.
Virginia
In Virginia, a town is similar to a city, but it can have a smaller number of people in it. By Virginia law cities are independent of counties (they have power without counties), towns are part of a county.
Wyoming
Wyoming law says towns are incorporated places that have less than 4,000 people living there. Places with 4,000 or more people are "first-class cities".
England and Wales
In England and Wales, the name "city" is only for places that have a Royal Charter (a special document) saying they can have that name.
In the past, cities usually had a cathedral. Some English people think that a place with a cathedral must be a city, but it is not true today. For example, Northampton, Blackburn and Middlesbrough (where is the cathedral??) are all towns with a cathedral.
In the past, a place was usually a town, not a village, when it had a regular market or fair (a market, but not so often). There are some English villages (for example Ipswich, Oxfordshire) larger than some small towns (e.g. Middleham, North Yorkshire).
Japan
In Japan, The population of a town (町) is less than 50,000 people.
References
Basic English 850 words |
5938 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condensed%20matter%20physics | Condensed matter physics | Condensed matter physics is a branch of physics which talks about matter that has its molecules packed together very closely. This usually means it deals with solids (solid matter).
Matter
Basic physics ideas |
5939 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bag | Bag | A bag is a kind of soft container. It can hold or carry things. It may be made from cloth, leather, plastic, or paper. Many bags are disposable but some are made to use for a long time. A bag may have one or two handles or a shoulder strap. Bags come in different shapes and sizes depending on how they will be used. A small bag that can be carried with a single hand is sometimes called a handbag, purse, or pocketbook. Children can suffocate, or stop breathing and die, when they put certain kinds of bags over their heads, due to having the supply of oxygen cut off.
Other websites
Basic English 850 words
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5940 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius%20Caesar | Julius Caesar | Gaius Julius Caesar (July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a military commander, politician and author at the end of the Roman Republic.
Caesar became a member of the First Triumvirate, and when that broke up, he fought a civil war against Pompey the Great. Winning the war, Caesar became Roman dictator for life. He was killed by his enemies in Rome.
Later rulers of Rome called themselves “Caesar” and this title also became “Kaiser” and “Tsar”.
Early life
Julius Caesar was born in Italy around July 100 BC. The exact date is not known.
At sixteen he was the head of his family, and came under threat when Lucius Cornelius Sulla became Roman dictator.
Sulla set about purging Rome of his enemies. Hundreds were killed or exiled, and Caesar was on the list. His mother's family pleaded for his life; Sulla reluctantly gave in and removed Caesar from his inheritance. From then on, lack of money was one of the main problems in his life. Caesar joined the army and left Rome.
On the way across the Aegean Sea, Caesar was kidnapped by pirates and held prisoner. When the pirates thought to demand a ransom of twenty talents of silver, he insisted they ask for fifty.p39 After the ransom was paid, Caesar raised a fleet, pursued and captured the pirates, and imprisoned them. He had them crucified on his own authority, as he had promised while in captivity—a promise the pirates had taken as a joke. As a sign of leniency, he first had their throats cut. He was soon called back into military action.
On the way up
On his return to Rome, he was elected as military tribune, a first step in a political career. He was elected quaestor for 69 BC. His wife Cornelia died that year. After her funeral, Caesar went to serve his quaestorship in Spain.p100 On his return in 67 BC, he married Pompeia (a granddaughter of Sulla), whom he later divorced. In 63 BC he ran for election to the post of Pontifex Maximus, as high priest of the Roman state religion. He ran against two powerful senators; there were accusations of bribery by all sides. Caesar won comfortably, despite his opponents' greater experience and standing.
After his praetorship, Caesar was appointed to govern Roman Spain, but he was still in considerable debt and needed to pay his creditors. He turned to Marcus Licinius Crassus, one of Rome's richest men. In return for political support, Crassus paid some of Caesar's debts and acted as guarantor for others. Caesar left for his province before his praetorship had ended. In Spain he conquered two local tribes, was hailed as imperator by his troops, and completed his governorship in high esteem. Though he was due a 'triumph' in Rome, he also wanted to stand for Consul, the most senior magistracy in the Republic. Faced with the choice between a triumph and the consulship, Caesar chose the consulship. After election, he was a consul in 59 BC.
The First Triumvirate
Caesar took power with Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great) and Marcus Licinius Crassus. These three men ruled Rome and were called the Triumvirate.
Caesar was the go-between for Crassus and Pompey. They had been at odds for years, but Caesar tried to reconcile them. Between the three of them, they had enough money and political influence to control public business. This informal alliance, known as the First Triumvirate (rule of three men), was cemented by the marriage of Pompey to Caesar's daughter Julia. Caesar also married again, this time to Calpurnia, who was the daughter of another powerful senator.
Caesar proposed a law for the redistribution of public lands to the poor, a proposal supported by Pompey, by force of arms if need be, and by Crassus, making the triumvirate public. Pompey filled the city with soldiers, and the triumvirate's opponents were frightened.
Caesar's Gallic War
With the agreement of his partners, Caesar became the governor of Gallia (Gaul). Gaul is the area which is today's Northern Italy, Switzerland, and France.
Caesar was the commander of the Roman legions during the Gallic War. The war was fought on the side of Rome's Gallic clients against the Germans, who wanted to invade Gaul. It was also to extend Rome's control of Gaul. Caesar's conquest of Gaul extended Rome's territory to the North Sea. In 55 BC he conducted the first Roman invasion of Britain. Caesar wrote about this eight-year war in his book De Bello Gallico ('About the Gallic Wars'). This book, written in Latin, is an important historical account.
These achievements got him great military power, and threatened to eclipse Pompey. The balance of power was further upset by the death of Crassus in 53 BC.
Caesar's civil war
In 50 BC, the Senate, led by Pompey, ordered Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome because his term as governor had finished. Caesar thought he would be prosecuted if he entered Rome without the immunity enjoyed by a magistrate. Pompey accused Caesar of insubordination and treason.
Crossing the Rubicon
Caesar and his army approached Rome and crossed the Rubicon, a shallow river in north-east Italy, in 49 BC. It was the point beyond which no army was supposed to go. The river marked the boundary between Cisalpine Gaul to the north, and Italy proper to the south. Crossing the Rubicon caused a civil war. Pompey, the lawful Consul, and his friends, fled from Rome as Caesar's army approached.
Pompey managed to escape before Caesar could capture him. Caesar decided to head for Spain, while leaving Italy under the control of Mark Antony. Caesar made an astonishing 27-day route-march to Spain, where he defeated Pompey's lieutenants. He then returned east, to challenge Pompey in Greece. There, in July 48 BC, at Dyrrhachium Caesar barely avoided a catastrophic defeat. He then decisively defeated Pompey, at the Battle of Pharsalus later that year.
Dictator at last
In Rome, Caesar was appointed Dictator, with Mark Antony as his Master of the Horse (second in command). Caesar presided over his own election to a second consulship and then, after eleven days, resigned this dictatorship.
Late in 48 BC, he was appointed dictator again, with a term of one year. Caesar then pursued Pompey to Egypt, where Pompey was soon murdered. Caesar then became involved in an Egyptian civil war between the child pharaoh and his sister, wife, and co-regent queen, Cleopatra. Perhaps as a result of the pharaoh's role in Pompey's murder, Caesar sided with Cleopatra. He is reported to have wept at the sight of Pompey's head, which was offered to him by the pharaoh as a gift. In any event, Caesar defeated the pharaoh's forces in 47 BC and installed Cleopatra as ruler.
Caesar and Cleopatra celebrated their victory with a triumphant procession on the Nile in the spring of 47 B.C. The royal barge was accompanied by 400 additional ships, introducing Caesar to the luxurious lifestyle of the Egyptian pharaohs. Caesar and Cleopatra never married; Roman Law only recognized marriages between two Roman citizens. Caesar continued his relationship with Cleopatra throughout his last marriage, which lasted 14 years – in Roman eyes, this did not constitute adultery – and may have fathered a son called Caesarion. Cleopatra visited Rome on more than one occasion, staying in Caesar's villa, outside Rome across the River Tiber.
In 46 BC, Caesar defeated Cato and the remnants of Pompey's supporters in Africa. He was then appointed dictator for ten years. In two years he made numerous changes in Roman administration to improve the Republic. Many of these changes were meant to improve the lives of ordinary people. One example, which has lasted, was his reform of the calendar into the present format, with a leap day every four years. In February of 44 BC, one month before his assassination, he was appointed Dictator for life.
Assassination
On the Ides of March (15 March; see Roman calendar) of 44 BC, Caesar was due to appear at a session of the Senate. Mark Antony, fearing the worst, went to head Caesar off. The plotters expected this, and arranged for someone to intercept him.
According to Eutropius, around sixty or more men participated in the assassination. He was stabbed 23 times. According to Suetonius, a physician later established that only one wound, the second one to his chest, had been lethal.
The dictator's last words are not known with certainty, and are a contested subject among scholars and historians alike. The version best known in the English-speaking world is the Latin phrase Et tu, Brute? ('You too, Brutus?'). In Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, this is the first half of the line: "Et tu, Brute? Then fall, Caesar".
According to Plutarch, after the assassination, Brutus stepped forward as if to say something to his fellow senators; they, however, fled the building. Brutus and his companions then marched to the Capitol while crying out to their beloved city: "People of Rome, we are once again free!". They were met with silence, as the citizens of Rome had locked themselves inside their houses as soon as the rumour of what had taken place had begun to spread.
A wax statue of Caesar was erected in the forum displaying the 23 stab wounds. A crowd who had gathered there started a fire, which badly damaged the forum and the neighbouring buildings. In the ensuing chaos, Mark Antony, Octavian (later Augustus Caesar), and others fought a series of five civil wars, which would end in the formation of the Roman Empire.
The Roman empire and its emperors were so important in history that the word Caesar was used as a title in some European countries to mean emperor, even long after the Roman empire was gone. For example, Germany's emperor was called a Kaiser up to the year 1919 AD and Russia's emperor was called a Tsar until 1917 AD.
Caesar as author
Caesar was a significant author.
The Commentarii de Bello Gallico (Commentaries on the Gallic War), campaigns in Gallia and Britannia during his term as proconsul; and
The Commentarii de Bello Civili (Commentaries on the Civil War), events of the Civil War until immediately after Pompey's death in Egypt.
Other works historically attributed to Caesar, but whose authorship is doubted, are:
De Bello Alexandrino (On the Alexandrine War), campaign in Alexandria;
De Bello Africo (On the African War), campaigns in North Africa; and
De Bello Hispaniensi (On the Hispanic War), campaigns in the Iberian peninsula.
These narratives were written and published on a yearly basis during or just after the actual campaigns, as a sort of "dispatches from the front". Apparently simple and direct in style—to the point that Caesar's Commentarii are commonly studied by first and second year Latin students—they are in fact quite sophisticated, aimed at the middle-brow readership of minor aristocrats in Rome, Italy, and the provinces.
Epilepsy
Based on remarks by Plutarch, Caesar is sometimes thought to have suffered from epilepsy. Modern scholarship is divided on the subject. It is more certain that he was plagued by malaria, particularly during the Sullan proscriptions of the 80s.
Caesar had four documented episodes of what may have been complex partial seizures. He may additionally have had absence seizures (petit mal) in his youth. The earliest accounts of these seizures were made by the biographer Suetonius who was born after Caesar died. The claim of epilepsy is countered among some medical historians by a claim of hypoglycemia. This can cause seizures which are a bit like epilepsy.
In 2003, psychiatrist Harbour F. Hodder published what he termed as the "Caesar Complex" theory, arguing that Caesar was a sufferer of temporal lobe epilepsy, and that the symptoms were a factor in Caesar's decision to forgo personal safety in the days leading up to his assassination.
Related pages
Augustus Caesar
Alea iacta est
References
100 BC births
44 BC deaths
Assassinated people
Former dictators
Ancient Roman historians
European politicians
Murders by blade weapons
Roman generals |
5949 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapporo | Sapporo | is the capital city of Hokkaidō Prefecture in Japan. The port city is on the southwest part of the island of Hokkaidō and it is the island's largest city.
The city has a famous snow festival in winter, it has a growing population of about 1,800,000 people. Its area is . There are a lot of fish markets in Sapporo. A beer brand named "Sapporo" was named after this city. Ramen is a very popular food in Sapporo. The city has a subway system. Some famous landmarks are the Sapporo TV Tower, and the clock tower that is in the center of the city. There are several universities here, including Hokkaido University. The nearby airport is called New Chitose Airport.
Events
1972 - The Winter Olympic Games were held in Sapporo.
Related pages
Consadole Sapporo
References
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City of Sapporo
Sightseeing of Sapporo
Sightseeing of Sapporo
Olympic cities |
5950 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hokkaid%C5%8D%20Prefecture | Hokkaidō Prefecture | is a special Japanese prefecture in Hokkaidō region on the island Hokkaidō. It is the most northern prefecture of Japan.
Sapporo is the capital city of Hokkiado.
History
Until the Meiji Restoration, the island was called Ezo, Watari-shima, Yeddo, and Yezo. Since 1869, it has been called Hokkaidō.
The population expanded in the late 19th century.
Timeline
1947 (Shōwa 22): Hokkaidō Prefecture was established.
2008 (Heisei 20): 34th G8 summit at Toyako
Geography
Hokkaidō is the 2nd largest island of Japan The island is between the Sea of Japan to the west, the Sea of Okhotsk to the northeast, the Pacific Ocean to the southeast, and the Tsugaru Strait to the south.
Hokkaidō is separated from Honshu by the Tsugaru Strait; however, it is connected by the underwater Seikan tunnel.
Some of the Chishima Islands are occupied by Russia, but Japan still considers the islands to be Japanese.
National Parks
Natural Parks are established in about 10% of the total land area of the prefecture.
Shrines and Temples
Hokkaidō jingū was the chief Shinto shrine (ichinomiya) of Ezo, which was an ancient name for the Hokkaidō region.
Related pages
Provinces of Japan
Prefectures of Japan
List of regions of Japan
List of islands of Japan
Consadole Sapporo
References
Other websites
Murdoch's map of provinces, 1903 |
5961 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism | Hinduism | Hinduism is not only a religion but also a way of life. Hinduism is known to have more than one god and is widely practiced in South Asia mainly in India and Nepal. Hinduism is the oldest religion in the world, and Hindus refer to it as n, "the eternal tradition," or the "eternal way," beyond human history. Scholars regard Hinduism as a combination of different Indian cultures and traditions, with diverse roots. Hinduism has no founder and origins of Hinduism is unknown.. Hinduism has roots in Indus Valley civilization. There was no concept of religion in India and Hinduism was not a religion. Hinduism as a religion started to develop between 500 BCE and 300 CE, after the Vedic period (1500 BCE to 500 BCE).
Hinduism contains a wide range of philosophies, and is linked by the concepts, like rituals, cosmology, Texts, and pilgrimage to sacred sites. Hindu texts are divided into Śruti ("heard") and Smṛti ("remembered"). These texts discuss philosophy, mythology, Vedic yajna, Yoga, agamic rituals, and temple building, and many more. Major scriptures in Hinduism include the Vedas and Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Agamas.
There are 4 goals or aims of human life, namely Dharma (duties), Artha (prosperity), Kama (desires/passions), Moksha (liberation/freedom/salvation); karma (action, intent and consequences), Saṃsāra (cycle of rebirth), and the various Yogas (paths or practices to attain moksha). Hindu rituals include puja (worship) and recitations, meditation, family-oriented rites of passage, annual festivals, and occasional pilgrimages. Some Hindus leave their social world and become sanyasi to achieve Moksha. Hinduism prescribes the eternal duties, such as honesty, non-violence (ahimsa), patience, self-restraint, and compassion, among others. The four largest sects of Hinduism are the Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism and Smartism.
Hinduism is the world's third largest religion, There are approximately 1.15 billion Hindus which are 15-16% of the global population. The vast majority of Hindus live in India, Nepal and Mauritius. Hindus are also found in other countries.
Etymology
The word Hindu is taken from the Indo-Aryan/Sanskrit word Sapta Sindhu, which is Sanskrit name for the Indus River which lies west of the border of India and Pakistan. According to Gavin Flood, The word Hindu was used by Persians for the people who live beyond the Indus River, Inscription of Darius I which was written around 550–486 BCE also refer Hindu as the people who live beyond the Indus River. These records didn't refer Hindu as a religion. The earliest record which refer Hindu as religion may be the 7th-century CE Chinese text Record of the Western Regions by Xuanzang, and 14th-century Persian text Futuhu's-salatin by 'Abd al-Malik Isami. This is because the name if the religion is called Hinduism, not Hindu.
The Arabic term al-Hind referred to the people who live across the River Indus. It means "Land of Hindus" which is what it stood for until Muslims started to come into India.
The term Hindu was later used in some Sanskrit texts such as the later Rajataranginis of Kashmir (Hinduka, c. 1450) and some 16th- to 18th-century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts including Chaitanya Charitamrita and Chaitanya Bhagavata. These texts used to distinguish Hindus from Muslims who are called Yavanas (foreigners) or Mlecchas (barbarians), with the 16th-century Chaitanya Charitamrita text and the 17th century Bhakta Mala text using the phrase "Hindu dharma". In the end of the 18th century the European merchants and colonists began to call followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus. The term Hinduism, then spelled Hindooism, was introduced into the English language in the 18th-century to denote the religious, philosophical, and cultural traditions native to India.
Definitions
Hinduism is diverse on ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophet(s) nor any binding holy book; Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or humanist. Because of the wideness and openness of Hinduism, arriving at a definition is difficult. Hinduism has been defined as a religion, a religious tradition, a set of religious beliefs, and "a way of life." From a Western point of view, Hinduism like other faiths is referred to as a religion. In India the term dharma is preferred, which is broader than the western term religion.
The study of India and its cultures and religions, and the definition of "Hinduism", has been shaped by the interests of colonialism and by Western notions of religion. Since the 1990s, those influences and its outcomes have been the topic of debate among scholars of Hinduism, and have also been taken over by critics of the Western view on India.
Beliefs
Hindu beliefs include (but are not restricted to) Dharma (ethics/duties), (the continuing cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth), Karma (Every action has a reaction), Moksha (liberation from samsara or liberation in this life), and the various Yogas (paths or practices).
Purusharthas (objectives of human life)
Hindism have accepted four proper goals or aims of human life: Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. These are known as the Puruṣārthas:
Dharma (righteousness, ethics)
Dharma is considered one of the most important goal of a human being in Hinduism. Dharma is considered Important because it is dharma which makes running of Universe and life possible, and includes duties, virtues and "right way of living". Hindu Dharma includes the religious duties, moral rights and duties of each individual, as well as behaviors that enable social order, right conduct, and those that are virtuous. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad states it as:
In the Mahabharata, Krishna says it is Dharma which is holding both this-worldly and other-worldly affairs. (Mbh 12.110.11). The word Sanātana means eternal, perennial, or forever; thus, Sanātana Dharma means that it is the dharma that has neither beginning nor end.
Artha (livelihood, wealth)
Artha is second goal of life in Hinduism which means pursuit of wealth for livelihood, and economic prosperity. It includes political life, diplomacy and material well-being. The Artha includes all "means of life", activities and resources that enables one to be in a state one wants to be in, wealth, career and financial security. The aim of artha is considered an important aim of human life in Hinduism.
Kāma (sensual pleasure)
Kāma (Sanskrit, Pali; Devanagari: काम) means desire, wish, passion, pleasure of the senses, the enjoyment of life, affection, or love, with or without sexual connotations. In Hinduism, Kama is considered an important and healthy goal of human life when pursued without sacrificing Dharma, Artha and Moksha.
Mokṣa (liberation, freedom from samsara)
Moksha (Sanskrit: ) or mukti (Sanskrit: ) is the ultimate, most important goal in Hinduism. In one school Moksha means liberation from sorrow, suffering and saṃsāra (birth-rebirth cycle). In other schools of Hinduism, such as monistic, moksha means self-realization,"realizing the whole universe as the Self".
Karma and samsara
Karma means action, work, or deed, and also the vedic theory of cause and effect". The theory is a combination of (1) causality that may be moral or non-moral; (2) moralization, that is good or bad actions have consequences; and (3) rebirth. Karma theory means ''Whatever experience currently a man have is due to his/her past work''. These actions may be in a person's current life, or, in some schools of Hinduism, actions in their past lives. This cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth is called samsara. Liberation from samsara through moksha is believed to ensure lasting happiness and peace. Hindu scriptures teach that the future depends on the current action and our past deeds.
Moksha
The ultimate goal of life,according to Hinduism is moksha, nirvana or samadhi, but is understood in different ways in different schools.For example, Advaita Vedanta says that after attaining moksha a person knows their "soul, self" and identifies it as one with Brahman (Ultimate reality or cause of everything). The followers of Dvaita (dualistic) schools,state that after attaining moksha a person identify "soul, self" different from Brahman but very close to Brahman, and after attaining moksha one will spend eternity in a loka (higher planes). According to theistic schools of Hinduism, moksha is liberation from samsara, while for other schools such as the monistic school, moksha is possible in current life and is a psychological concept.
Concept of God
Hinduism is diverse and Hinduism include monotheism, polytheism, panentheism, pantheism, pandeism, monism, and atheism among others; Basically it depends on individuals choice and that's why sometimes Hinduism is referred to as henotheistic (i.e., involving devotion to a single god while accepting the existence of others), but any such term is an over generalization.
Hindus believe that all living creatures have a soul. This soul or true "self" of every living being is called the ātman. The soul is believed to be eternal. According to the monistic/pantheistic (non-dualist) theologies of Hinduism (such as Advaita Vedanta school), this Atman is indistinct from Brahman. The goal of life, according to the Advaita school, is to realise that one's soul is identical to supreme soul, that the supreme soul is present in everything and everyone, all life is interconnected and there is oneness in all life. Dualistic schools (see Dvaita and Bhakti) sees Brahman as a Supreme Being separate from individual souls. They worship the Supreme Being variously as Vishnu, Brahma, Shiva, or Shakti, depending upon the sect. God is called Ishvara, Bhagavan, Parameshwara, Devadu or Devi, and these terms have different meanings in different schools of Hinduism. Devi is typically used when refereeing to a female goddess.
The Hindu scriptures refer to celestial entities called Devas (or in feminine form; used synonymously for Deva in Hindi), which in English means demi-gods or heavenly beings. The devas are an integral part of Hindu culture and are depicted in art, architecture and through icons, and stories about them are related in the scriptures, particularly in Indian epic poetry and the Puranas. They are, however, often distinguished from Ishvara, a personal god, with many Hindus worshipping Ishvara in one of its particular manifestations as their , or chosen ideal. The choice is a matter of individual preference, and of regional and family traditions. The multitude of Devas are considered as manifestations of Brahman.
Main traditions
Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and Hindus do not claim to belong to any particular sect or tradition. Four major sects in Hinduism are: Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism and Smarthism.
Vaishnavism is the tradition that worships Vishnu and his avatars, such as Krishna and Rama. The people of this sect are generally non-ascetic, monastic. These practices include community dancing, singing of Kirtans and Bhajans, with sound and music believed by some to have meditative and spiritual powers.
Shaivism is the tradition that focuses on Shiva. Shaivas are more attracted to ascetic individualism, and it has several sub-schools. Their practices include Bhakti-style devotion but they leaned to philosply such as Advaita and Yoga. Some Shaivas worship in temples, but some practice yoga, striving to be one with Shiva within. Shaivas visualize god as half male, half female, as a combination of the male and female principles (Ardhanarishvara). Shaivism is related to Shaktism, wherein Shakti is seen as wife of Shiva. Shaivism is mainly practiced in the Himalayan north from Kashmir to Nepal, and in south India.
Shaktism focuses on goddess worship of Shakti or Devi as cosmic mother, and it is mainly worshipped in northeastern and eastern states of India such as Assam and Bengal. Devi is depicted as in gentler forms like Parvati, the consort of Shiva; or, as warrior goddesses like Kali and Durga. Community celebrations include festivals, some of which include processions and idol immersion into sea or other water bodies.
Smartism worship all the major Hindu deities like Shiva, Vishnu, Shakti, Ganesha, Surya and Skanda. The Smarta tradition developed during the (early) Classical Period of Hinduism around the beginning of the Common Era, when Hinduism emerged from the interaction between Brahmanism and local traditions. The Smarta tradition is very much same as Advaita Vedanta, and consider Adi Shankara as its founder or reformer, who considered worship of God-with-attributes (saguna Brahman) as a journey towards ultimately realizing God-without-attributes (nirguna Brahman, Atman, Self-knowledge).
Hindu texts
Hindu text are world's oldest and had been written in Sanskrit and Tamil. The oldest Text is Rig Veda which is about 4000 years old.Hindu Texts can be divided in two parts:
Shruti (what is heard)
Smriti (what is remembered)
Shruti
Shruti or Shruthi (Sanskrit: श्रुति; IAST: Śruti; IPA/Sanskrit: [ʃrut̪i]) in Sanskrit means "that which is heard" These ancient religious texts comprising the central canon of Hinduism includes the four Vedas including its four types of attached texts - the Samhitas, the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas and the early Upanishads
Smriti
Smriti (Sanskrit: स्मृति, IAST: Smṛti), means "that which is remembered" are a body of Hindu texts. Smriti were the texts which were remembered and were spread through mouth from generation to generation. Smriti includes (the Mahābhārata and Rāmāyana), the Dharmasūtras and Dharmaśāstras (or Smritiśāstras), the Arthasaśāstras, the Purānas, the Kāvya or poetical literature.
Festivals
There are many Hindu Festivals celebrated throughout the world but mainly in India and Nepal. These festivals include worship, offerings to deities, fasting, rituals, fairs, charity, celebrations, Puja, etc. The festivals mainly celebrate events from Hindu mythology, changes in season, changes in Solar System. Different sects celebrate different festivals but festivals like Diwali, Holi, Shivratri, Raksha Bandhan, Janamashtmi etc. are celebrated by the majority of Hindus.
History
Periodisation
Hinduism can be divided in following ages
Prevedic religions (pre-history and Indus Valley Civilisation; until c. 1500 BCE);
Vedic period (c. 1500–500 BCE);
"Second Urbanisation" (c. 500–200 BCE);
Classical Hinduism (c. 200 BCE-1100 CE);[note 20]
Pre-classical Hinduism (c. 200 BCE-300 CE);
"Golden Age" (Gupta Empire) (c. 320–650 CE);
Late-Classical Hinduism - Puranic Hinduism (c. 650–1100 CE);
Islam and sects of Hinduism (c. 1200–1700 CE);
Modern Hinduism (from c. 1800).
Pictures
The origins of Hinduism are unknown but the earliest traces of Hinduism come from Mesolithic in the sites such as the rock paintings of Bhimbetka rock shelters dating to a period of 30,000 BCE or older, as well as neolithic times. Some of the religious practices can be considered to have originated in 4000 BCE. Several tribal religions still exist, though their practices may not resemble those of prehistoric religions.
Varna
According to one view, the Varna, which later transformed into caste system during the British rule, shows how strongly many have felt about each person following his or her dharma, or destined path. Many Hindus say it goes against the true meaning of dharma. However, Varna plays a big role in Hindu society. It's later transformation as Caste system by the British rule of India lost favor and became illegal after the independence of India.
Temples
Puja (worship) takes place in the Mandir (temple). Mandirs vary in size from small village shrines to large buildings, surrounded by walls. People can also visit the Mandir at any time to pray and participate in the bhajans (religious songs). Hindus also worship at home and often have a special room with a shrine to particular gods.
Temple construction in India started nearly 2000 years ago. The oldest temples that were built of brick and wood no longer exist. Stone later became the preferred material. Temples marked the transition of Hinduism from the Vedic religion of ritual sacrifices to a religion of Bhakti or love and devotion to a personal deity. Temple construction and mode of worship is governed by ancient Sanskrit scriptures called agamas, of which there are several, which deal with individual deities. There are substantial differences in architecture, customs, rituals and traditions in temples in different parts of India. During the ritual consecration of a temple, the presence of the universal all-encompassing Brahman is invoked into the main stone deity of the temple, through ritual, thereby making the deity and the temple sacred and divine
Alternative cultures of worship
The Bhakti schools
The Bhakti (Devotional) school takes its name from the Hindu term that signifies a blissful, selfless and overwhelming love of God as the beloved Father, Mother, Child, or whatever relationship finds appeal in the devotee's heart. The philosophy of Bhakti seeks to tap into the universal divinity through personal form, which explains the proliferation of so many gods and goddesses in India, often reflecting the singular inclinations of small regions or groups of people. Seen as a form of Yoga, or union, it seeks to dissolve the ego in God, since consciousness of the body and limited mind as self is seen to be a divisive factor in spiritual realization. Essentially, it is God who effects all change, who is the source of all works, who acts through the devotee as love and light. 'Sins' and evil-doings of the devotee are said to fall away of their own accord, the devotee shriven, limitedness even transcended, through the love of God. The Bhakti movements rejuvenated Hinduism through their intense expression of faith and their responsiveness to the emotional and philosophical needs of India. They can rightly be said to have affected the greatest wave of change in Hindu prayer and ritual since ancient times.
The most popular means of expressing love for God in the Hindu tradition has been through puja, or ritual devotion, frequently using the aid of a murti (statue) in conjunction with the singing or chanting of meditational prayer in the form of mantras.
Devotional songs called bhajans (written primarily from the 14th-17th centuries), kirtan (praise), and arti (a filtered down form of Vedic fire ritual) are sometimes sung in conjunction with performance of puja. This rather organic system of devotion attempts to aid the individual in connecting with God through symbolic medium. It is said, however, that the bhakta, through a growing connection with God, is eventually able to avoid all external form and is immersed entirely in the bliss of undifferentiated Love in Truth.
Altogether, bhakti resulted in a mass of devotional literature, music and art that has enriched the world and gave India renewed spiritual impetus, one eschewing unnecessary ritual and artificial social boundaries. See bhakti yoga for more.
Tantrism
According to the most famous Western Tantrik scholar, Sir John Woodroffe (pseudonym Arthur Avalon): "The Indian Tantras, which are numerous, constitute the Scripture (Shastra) of the Kaliyuga, and as such are the voluminous source of present and practical orthodox 'Hinduism'. The Tantra Shastra is, in fact, and whatever be its historical origin, a development of the Vaidika Karmakanda, promulgated to meet the needs of that age. Shiva says: 'For the benefit of men of the Kali age, men bereft of energy and dependent for existence on the food they eat, the Kaula doctrine, O auspicious one! is given' (Chap. IX., verse 12). To the Tantra we must therefore look if we would understand aright both ritual, yoga, and sadhana of all kinds, as also the general principles of which these practices are but the objective expression." (Introduction to Sir John Woodroffe's translation of "Mahanirvana Tantra.")
The word "tantra" means "treatise" or "continuum", and is applied to a variety of mystical, occult, medical and scientific works as well as to those which we would now regard as "tantric". Most tantras were written in the late Middle Ages and sprang from Hindu cosmology and Yoga.
Important symbolism and themes in Hinduism
Ahimsa and the cow
Many Hindus are vegetarians (do not eat meat) because of their respect for life. About 30% of today's Hindu population, especially in orthodox communities in South India, in certain northerly states like Gujarat, and in many Brahmin areas around the subcontinent, are vegetarian.
Most Hindus who do eat meat do not eat beef. Some do not even use leather products. This is most likely because many Hindus have relied so heavily on the cow for all sorts of dairy products, tilling of fields and fuel for fertiliser that its status as a willing 'caretaker' of humanity grew to identifying it as an almost motherly figure. Thus, while most Hindus do not worship the cow, and rules against eating beef arose long after the Vedas had been written, it still has an honored place in Hindu society. It is said that Krishna is both Govinda (herder of cows) and Gopala (protector of cows), and Shiva's attendant is Nandi, the bull. With the stress on vegetarianism (which is usually followed even by meat-eating Hindus on religious days or special occasions) and the sacred nature of the cow, it is no wonder that most holy cities and areas in India have a ban on selling meat-products and there is a movement among Hindus to ban cow-slaughter not only in specific regions, but in all of India.
Hindu symbols
Hindus use many symbols and signs. The two most important symbols used by Hindus are the "Aum" and the "Swastika (Hinduism)".
Forms of worship: murtis and mantras
Contrary to popular belief, practiced Hinduism is neither polytheistic nor strictly monotheistic. The various Hindu gods and avatars that are worshipped by Hindus are understood as different forms of One truth, sometimes seen as beyond a mere god and as a formless Divine Ground (Brahman), akin but not limited to monism, or as one monotheistic principle like Vishnu or Shiva.
Whether believing in the One source as formless (nirguna brahman, without attributes) or as a personal god (saguna Brahman, with attributes), Hindus understand that the one truth may be seen as different to different people. Hinduism encourages devotees to describe and develop a personal relationship with their chosen deity (ishta devata) in the form of a god or goddess.
While some censuses hold worshippers of one form or another of Vishnu (known as Vaishnavs) to be at 80% and those of Shiva (called Shaivaites) and Shakti at the remaining 20%, such figures are perhaps misleading. The vast majority of Hindus worship many gods as varicolored forms of the same prism of Truth. Among the most popular are Vishnu (as Krishna or Rama), Shiva, Devi (the Mother as many female deities, such as Lakshmi, Saraswati, Kali and Durga), Ganesha, Skanda and Hanuman.
Worship of the said deities is often done through the aid of pictures or icons (murti) which are said not to be God themselves but conduits for the devotee's consciousness, markers for the human soul that signify the ineffable and illimitable nature of the love and grandeur of God. They are symbols of the greater principle, representing and are never presumed to be the concept or entity itself. Thus, Hindu image worship is a form of iconolatry, in which the symbols are venerated as putative sigils of divinity, as opposed to idolatry, a charge often levied (erroneously) at Hindus. For more details on this form of worship, see murti.
Mantra
Hindus use several prayers and group of words. Some group of words are called mantras.
These words are said to give the speaker a deeper concentration and understanding, thus coming closer to Brahman.
A well known mantra is om or aum. It symbolizes Brahman, and is often the opening word in many prayers.
To pronounce a mantra well, you should say it slowly, and in a deep voice.
Geographic distribution
The nations of India, Mauritius, and Nepal as well as the Indonesian island of Bali have more people who are Hindus than people who are not Hindus.In these nations, specially Nepal and India Hinduism is very popular.
These countries also have many Hindus:
Bangladesh (12 million),
Sri Lanka (2.5 million),
the United States (2.0 million)
Pakistan (3.3 million),
South Africa (1.2 million),
the United Kingdom (1.2 million),
Malaysia (1.1 million),
Canada (0.7 million),
Fiji (0.5 million),
Trinidad and Tobago (0.5 million),
Guyana (0.4 million),
the Netherlands (0.4 million),
Singapore (0.3 million)
Myanmar (0.3 million),
Suriname (0.2 million),
Australia (0.1 Million).
There are also strong Hindu communities in the countries of the ex-Soviet Union, especially in Russia and Poland. The Indonesian islands of Java, Sulawesi, Sumatra, and Borneo also have big native Hindu populations. In its Yoga stream, Hinduism is even more widespread all over the world with 30 million (less than one percent can not be 30 million for US population) Hindus in the United States alone.
References
Notes
Rigveda. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
"Hinduism" on Microsoft Encarta Online
Sâdhus, Going beyond the dreadlocks, by Patrick Levy, published by Prakash Books, Delhi, 2010.
Web notes
Further reading
Chopra, R.M., "Hinduism Today", Kolkata, 2009.
Mishra, Pankaj. "The Invention of the Hindu." Axess Magazine 2 (2004).
Other websites
Hindu Timeline
http://www.hinduism-today.com
Some nice info about Hinduism in general including its all most important gods, festivals, personalities, demons, etc.
Religious Tolerance- Hinduism
Indian religions |
5963 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%20of%20elements%20by%20symbol | List of elements by symbol | This is a list of elements by atomic number with symbol.
Second list
Chemistry lists |
5966 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Periodic%20table%20%28big%29 | Periodic table (big) |
Related pages
Periodic table
Periodic table |
5967 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Periodic%20table%20%28metals%20and%20non-metals%29 | Periodic table (metals and non-metals) | Color coding for atomic numbers:
Elements numbered in blue are liquids at Standard Temperature and Pressure (STP);
those in green are gases at STP;
those in black are solid at STP;
those in red are synthetic (all are solid at STP).
those in gray have not yet been discovered (they also have muted filled colors indicating the likely chemical series they would fall under).
Related pages
Periodic table
Periodic table |
5968 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hern%C3%A1n%20Cort%C3%A9s | Hernán Cortés | Hernán Cortés (1485 - 2 December 1547) was an explorer and Conquistador from Spain. Between 1519 and 1521, he conquered the Aztec Empire of emperor Montezuma II where Mexico is today. He introduced vanilla and chocolate to Europe.
Early life
Cortes was born Medellín, Extremadura province, in the Kingdom of Castile in Spain. He went to Salamanca University, but dropped out at the age of 17. After two years, Cortes failed and finished schooling, returning home. This, however, was later helpful, as he knew how the law of Spain worked.
Hernan's journeys started in 1502 when he had heard stories about the New World. He then went on a journey led by Nicolas de Ovando and Diego Velazquez to the West Indies. He turned out to be a good soldier under the orders of Velázquez.
Conquest of Hispaniola and Cuba
He went to the New World in 1506. In 1511, he took part in the Spanish conquest of Hispaniola and Cuba, where the Arawak people lived. In 1513, the Spanish built the town Bayamo. The next year, they built Trinidad, Santo Espiritu, Puerto Principe, and Santiago de Cuba.
In 1519, Cortes set out from Cuba with a fleet of ships, 600 men, and about 20 horses. They went to Yucatán to look for gold and to get Mexico ready for colonization. They landed in Yucatán Peninsula and met Jeronimo de Aguilar, a priest who lived through a shipwreck. He knew a lot about the Maya, who owned this section of land.
Cortes took over Yucatán by winning a battle against the people of Tabasco.
He met a woman, La Malinche, who knew the Maya and Nahuatl languages. She acted as his translator when he talked with Maya and Aztec people.
Conquest of Mexico
In July of 1519, the Spanish took over Veracruz, and left 100 men there. That August, Cortes went to Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire. He brought 400 men, 15 horsemen, and 15 cannons with him. On his way, he met Native American tribes like the Nahuas of Tlaxcala and the Totonacs of Cempoala.
In October 1519, Cortes gathered his soldiers and around three thousand Tlaxcalteca (who had long been enemies of the Aztecs). His goal was to scare the Aztecs in Tenochtitlan. He then went on a killing spree and burned down the city. When he came to Tenochtitlan, he had a vast army of Aztec enemies.t
Cortés was surprised that Tenochtitlan was as great as Constantinople. In November, the emperor of the Aztecs, Moctezuma II, welcomed Cortes and his army. Montezuma II let them into Aztec territory, where they learned the Aztecs' weaknesses and then destroyed them. The emperor gave them gold, and Cortes later told King Charles V that the Aztecs might have thought he was one of their gods: Quetzalcoatl, a feathered serpent with fair skin and a beard. Cortes quickly realized that some Spaniards had been attacked on the coast and planned to kidnap Moctezuma and his house and make him swear loyalty to King Charles V.
On the night of June 30 – July 1, 1520 the Aztecs attacked, but the majority of the Spanish escaped and allied themselves with enemies of the Aztec empire. Later, in 1521, with his army of a few Spaniards and many natives, Cortés destroyed Tenochtitlan and took over the Aztec Empire.
Later life
Cortés returned from Honduras and was Governor of the Viceroyalty of New Spain for a while. Later, he went back to Europe with a lot of treasure. He died in Seville, Spain, in 1547 from pleurisy.
1485 births
1547 deaths
Deaths from pleurisy
Spanish explorers
People from Extremadura |
5974 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible%20study | Bible study | Bible study is intensive reading of the Bible.
For Christians, study of the Bible is often part of daily life. A lot of other people are also interested in this piece of world literature.
In Europe before the 16th century it was not possible for most people to study the Bible. Books were written using only the languages Latin and Greek. Only people who had learned to read those languages could study the Bible. The Roman Catholic Church said people could not translate the Bible into other languages, for example Italian or English because many people could not read and it took the lifetime of a monk, by himself, to translate the Bible.
When the Reformation started in 16th century Europe, the Bible was translated into several languages. Many books were printed in these languages. People were then able to read the Bible in their own language.
Related pages
Biblical study, the academic study of the Bible
Bible |
5975 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medlar | Medlar | The medlar is a tree and the name of the fruit of this tree. Its Latin name is Crataegus germanica, or "German medlar", but it is not from Germany. It grows in the Near East and South-Eastern Europe, and the Romans took it to Germany. Near the Caspian Sea, people grew the medlar about three thousand years ago. It came to Greece in about 700 BC and to Rome in about 200 BC. It was an important fruit plant in Roman and medieval times. But by 1600-1700, people started eating other fruits and not the medlar. Today people do not grow it very often.
The medlar needs warm summers and mild (not too cold) winters and likes to grow in sunny, dry places. In the best places, the plant can grow up to eight metres tall. The medlar is deciduous: it is not green all year. Usually, it is shorter than a tree. It lives between thirty and fifty years. Medlar leaves are dark green, maximum fifteen centimetres long and three centimetres wide. The plant has flowers in late spring. The flowers are white. The red-brown medlar fruits are similar to apples and grow to two to three centimetres. They are very hard and acidic, and we can only eat them after the cold weather makes them soft.
Other websites
Fruits
Amygdaloideae |
5976 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atheism | Atheism | Atheism is rejecting the belief in a god or gods.
It is the opposite of theism, which is the belief that at least one god exists. A person who rejects belief in gods is called an atheist. Adding an a, meaning "without", before the word theism results in atheism, or literally, "without theism".
Atheism is not the same as agnosticism: agnostics say that there is no way to know whether gods exist or not. Being an agnostic does not have to mean a person rejects or believes in god. Some agnostics are theists, believing in god. The theologian Kierkegaard is an example. Other agnostics are atheists. Gnosticism refers to a claim of knowledge. A gnostic has sufficient knowledge to make a claim. Adding an a, meaning "without", before the word gnostic results in agnostic, or literally, "without knowledge".
While theism refers to belief in one or more gods, gnosticism refers to knowledge. In practice, most people simply identify as a theist, atheist, or agnostic.
History of atheism
Anaxagoras was the first known atheist. He was an Ionian Greek, born in Clazomenae in what is now Asia Minor. He travelled to other Greek cities, and his ideas were well known in Athens. Socrates mentioned that his works could be bought in Athens for a drachma. Eventually he was prosecuted and condemned for impiety, and banished from Athens.
Anaxagoras' beliefs were interesting. He thought the Sun was not a god, and was not animated (alive). The Sun was "a red-hot mass many times larger than the Peloponnese". The Moon was a solid body with geographical features, and made of the same substance as the Earth. The world was a globe (spherical).
Reasons for atheism
Atheists often give reasons why they do not believe in a god or gods. Three of the reasons that they often give are the problem of evil, the argument from inconsistent revelations, and the argument from nonbelief. Not all atheists think these reasons provide complete proof that gods cannot exist, but these are the reasons given to support rejecting belief that gods exist.
Some atheists do not believe in any god because they feel that there is no evidence for any god nor gods and goddesses, so believing any type of theism means believing unproved assumptions. These atheists think a simpler explanation for everything is methodological naturalism which means that only natural things exist. Occam's razor shows simple explanations without many unproved guesses are more likely to be true.
Etymology
The word "atheism" comes from the Greek language. It can be divided into a- (ἄ), a Greek prefix meaning "without", and theos (θεός), meaning "god", and recombined to form "without gods" or "godless". In Ancient Greece it also meant "impious".
Starting in about the 5th century BC, the word came to describe people who were "severing relations with the gods" or "denying the gods". Before then, the meaning had been closer to "impious". There is also the abstract noun, (), "atheism".
Cicero transliterated the Greek word into the Latin atheos. This word was often used in the debate between early Christians and Hellenists. Each side used it to label the other, in a bad way.
Karen Armstrong writes that "During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the word 'atheist' was still reserved exclusively for polemic ... The term 'atheist' was an insult. Nobody would have dreamed of calling himself an atheist."
Atheism was first used to describe an openly positive belief in late 18th-century Europe, meaning disbelief in the monotheistic Abrahamic god.
The 20th century saw the term expand to refer to disbelief in all deities. However, it is still common in Western society to describe atheism as simply "disbelief in God".
Atheism in society
In many places, it is (or was) a crime to make public the idea of atheism. Examples would be to claim the Bible or Qur'an could not be true, or to speak or write that there is no god.
Muslim apostasy, that is becoming an atheist or believing in a god other than Allah, may be a dangerous act in places with many conservative Muslim people. Many religious courts have punished and some still punish this act with the death penalty. Many countries still have laws against atheism. Although it is considered by most Muslim scholars to be a sin, not all agree, that is should be punishable. For example, "Surat Al Kafirun" in Qur'an is clearly stating everyone's freedom to choose his religion and beliefs. The laws against Athiesm in the Muslim World is not universal, and is based on each society's interpretation of the Holy Book.
Atheism is becoming more common, mainly in South America, North America, Oceania and Europe (by percentage of people that had a religion before and started to be atheist).
In many countries, mainly in the Western world, there are laws that protect atheists' right to express their atheistic belief (freedom of speech). This means that atheists have the same rights under the law as everyone else. Freedom of religion in international law and treaties includes the freedom to not have a religion.
Today, about 2.3% of the world's population describes itself as atheist. About 11.9% is described as nontheist.
Between 64% and 65% of Japanese describe themselves as atheists, agnostics, or non-believers,
and up to 48% in Russia. The percentage of such people in European Union member states ranges between 6% (Italy) and 85% (Sweden). In the United States, according to Pew and Gallup—two of the most reputable polling firms in America—both conclude that about 10% of Americans say they do not believe in God, and this figure has been slowly creeping up over the decades. The real number is likely higher than this, due to the stigma around atheism.
Defining atheism
People disagree about what atheism means. They disagree on when to call certain people atheists or not.
Implicit and explicit atheism
Atheism is generally described as not believing in God.
George H. Smith created the expressions "implicit atheism" and "explicit atheism" to describe the difference between different types of Atheism. Implicit atheism is when you do not believe in God because you do not know about the concept of God. Explicit atheism is when you do not believe in God after learning about the idea.
In 1772, Baron d'Holbach said that "All children are born atheists; they have no idea of God".
In 1979 George H. Smith said that: "The man who is unacquainted with theism is an atheist because he does not believe in a god. This category would also include the child [who is able to] grasp the issues involved, but who is still unaware of those issues. The fact that this child does not believe in god qualifies him as an atheist".
Those two quotes describe implicit atheism.
Ernest Nagel disagrees with Smith's definition of atheism as an "absence of theism", saying only explicit atheism is true atheism. This means that Nagel believes that to be an atheist, a person needs to know about God and then reject the idea of God.
"Weak" and "strong" atheism
Philosophers like Antony Flew,
have looked at strong (sometimes called positive) atheism against weak (sometimes called negative) atheism. According to this idea, anyone who does not believe in a god or gods is either a weak or a strong atheist.
Strong atheism is the certain belief that no god exists. An older way of saying strong atheism is to say "positive atheism". Weak atheism is all other forms of not believing in a god or gods. An older way of saying weak atheism is to say "negative atheism" These terms have been used more in philosophical writing and in Catholic beliefs.
since at least 1813.
Under this definition of atheism, most agnostics are weak atheists.
Michael Martin says that agnosticism includes weak atheism. Some agnostics, including Anthony Kenny, disagree. They think being an agnostic is different from being an atheist. They think atheism is no different from believing in a god, because both require belief. This overlooks the reality that agnostics also have their own belief or "claim to knowledge"
Agnostics say that it cannot be known if a god or gods exist. In their view, strong atheism requires a leap of faith.
Atheists usually respond by saying that there is no difference between an idea about religion with no proof, and an idea about other things
The lack of proof that god does not exist does not mean that there is no god, but it also does not mean that there is a god.
Scottish philosopher J.J.C. Smart says that "sometimes a person who is really an atheist may describe herself, even passionately, as an agnostic because of unreasonable generalised philosophical skepticism which would preclude us from saying that we know anything whatever, except perhaps the truths of mathematics and formal logic".
So, some popular atheist authors such as Richard Dawkins like to show the difference between theist, agnostic and atheist positions by the probability assigned to the statement "God exists".
Atheism in daily life
In everyday life, many people define natural phenomena without the need of a god or gods. They do not deny the existence of one or more gods, they simply say that this existence is not necessary. Gods do not provide a purpose to life, nor influence it, according to this view.
Many scientists practice what they call methodological naturalism. They silently adopt philosophical naturalism and use the scientific method. Their belief in a god does not affect their results.
Practical atheism can take different forms:
Absence of religious motivation—belief in gods does not motivate moral action, religious action, or any other form of action;
Active exclusion of the problem of gods and religion from intellectual pursuit and practical action;
Indifference—the absence of any interest in the problems of gods and religion; or
Unawareness of the concept of a deity.
Theoretical atheism
Theoretic atheism tries to find arguments against the existence of god, and to disprove the arguments of theism, such as the argument from design or Pascal's Wager. These theoretical reasons have many forms, most of them are ontological or epistemological. Some rely on psychology or sociology.
Positions of well-known philosophers
Immanuel Kant
According to Immanuel Kant, there can be no proof of a supreme being that is made using reason. In his work, "Critique of Pure Reason", he tries to show that all attempts of either proving the existence of God, or disproving it, end in logical contradictions. Kant says that it is impossible to know whether there are any higher beings. This makes him an agnostic.
Ludwig Feuerbach
Ludwig Feuerbach published The Essence of Christianity in 1841. In his work he postulates the following:
Religion is not only a historical or transcendental fact, but most of all an achievement of human consciousness, its mind or its imagination.
All religions are only different in their form, but they have one thing in common: They are projections of unmet needs of human nature. God, and all religious content is nothing more than psychological projections. The material causes of these projections are rooted in the nature of human beings.
The following phrases sum up Feuerbach's writing:
Man created God in his image
Homo homini Deus est ('Man is a god to Man')
Related pages
Secular humanism
Agnosticism
Law of three stages
God is dead
References
Books
Martin, Michael, ed. (2007). The Cambridge Companion to Atheism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Smith, George, Atheism: The Case Against God, (1974).
Religion
Philosophical movements and positions
Society
Lifestyles |
5978 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippocrates | Hippocrates | Hippocrates (c. 460 – c. 370 BC) was a Greek doctor who is called the "father of medicine". He was the first person to teach that people got sick for scientific reasons. Previously, people believed that disease was caused by angry gods.
Many of Hippocrates' writings are still important to doctors. For example, patient confidentiality, meaning that doctors can only discuss a patient with the patient themselves. Another of his ideas is to never knowingly lead a patient to suffering or death. These kinds of ideas are part of medical ethics.
The Hippocratic Oath is named after him. This is a set of rules which doctors promise to obey. This is an example of a modern Hippocratic Oath used at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. I do solemnly swear by all I hold most sacred:
that I will be loyal to the profession of medicine and just to its members
that I will lead my life and practice my art with virtue and honor
that into whatsoever home I shall enter it shall be for the good of the sick and the well by the utmost of my power and that I will hold myself aloof from wrong and from corruption and from the tempting of others to vice
that I will exercise my art solely for the benefit of my patients, the relief of suffering, the prevention of disease and promotion of health, and I will give no drug and perform no act for an immoral purpose
that in the treatment of the sick, I will consider their well-being to be of a greater importance than their ability to compensate my services
that what I may see or hear in the course of treatment or even outside the treatment in regard to the lives of persons which is not fitting to be spoken, I will keep inviolably secret
that I will commit myself to a lifetime of continued learning of the art and science of medicine
these things I do promise and in proportion as I am faithful to this oath, may happiness and good repute be ever mine, but should I trespass and violate this oath, may the reverse be my lot.
References
460s BC births
4th-century BC deaths
Greek physicians
Ancient Greek philosophers
History of medicine |
5981 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commensurability | Commensurability | Commensurability is a concept in the philosophy of science. Scientific theories are described as commensurable if one can compare them to find out which is more accurate. If there is no way one can compare them to determine which is more accurate, they are incommensurable.
Behind this is the idea that it is possible to see the world in multiple ways, and that there is not one fair method to see which way is right. Some think that scientific traditions (or paradigms) can be incommensurable: it is not really possible to say which one is right. This idea has been defended by Thomas Kuhn. He wrote: when paradigms change, the world changes with them. Paul Feyerabend was another philosopher who said that incommensurability was possible in scientific topics. He wrote that it is important to remember this, because it means that it is possible to say things that are not scientific, but also not wrong. These ideas were mainly aimed at Karl Popper and his ideas on falsification.
Two theories may not be comparable if one cannot find a way to compare them and decide which is right.
In popular culture
The concept of incommensurability is dramatized in the 2006 movie Idiocracy, when U.S. Army scientist Joe Bauers attempts to explain before a full Cabinet meeting his theory that the nation's crops would be better irrigated with water rather than with a sports drink.
References
Philosophy of science |
5983 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvest | Harvest | Harvest means to collect what has been planted and grown in the ground. It is usually done by farmers, and in the fall season. This is also called picking crops. Crop failure (also known as harvest failure) is a loss or reduced crop yield due to plants being damaged, killed, or destroyed. Sometimes it brings famine.
"Harvest" can also mean to collect other things than plants such as cultivated bivalves including oysters, scallops, and other animals.
Agriculture |
6010 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/ELISPOT | ELISPOT | ELISPOT stands for "Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Spot Assay". It is a laboratory technique for detecting cells that make (or "secrete") various substances. These substances include specific types of cytokines or antibodies. The ELISPOT method is typically used with blood cells, and is a helpful tool in studying the human immune system and various treatments for disease (e.g. vaccines).
In the ELISPOT technique, tiny wells are used to contain the cells, with a variety of other substances. The substances cause colored spots to form near the cells that secrete the substances in question. These spots can then be counted manually (using a microscope, for example) or automatically using specialized equipment with computer vision capabilities.
The ELISPOT technique is very sensitive, and can detect even a single substance-producing cell. It is also very versatile, since it can be tailored to detect a wide variety of very specific secretions.
Other websites
A flash animation of the ELISpot procedure
An animated illustration of the ELISPOT process
Examples of spot patterns formed by the ELISPOT technique
Biochemistry |
6011 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%20of%20biochemistry%20topics | List of biochemistry topics | This is a list of all the articles related to biochemistry.
A
abiogenesis - adenine - adenosine diphosphate (ADP) - adenosine triphosphate (ATP) - albumin - allotrope - alpha helix - amino acid - amylase - antibiotic - antibody - antigen -
B
B vitamin complex - base pair - bilirubin - benzene - biochemistry - bioluminescence - blood - blood type
C
carbohydrate - carbon dioxide - catabolism - cell - cell membrane - cellobiose - cellular respiration - cellulose - chemoautotroph - chloroplast - choline - chromatography - citric acid - coenzyme A - cytoplasm - cytokine - cytosine - cytosol -
D
deoxyribose - disaccharide - DNA - DNA replication -
E
ELISA - ELISPOT - energy level - enkephalin - enzyme - epinephrine - erythropoietin -
F
fat - formaldehyde -
G
gel electrophoresis - glycolysis - glycoprotein - granzyme - guanine -
H
hemoglobin - hormone - hydrocarbon - hydrogen bond - hydrolysis -
I
immunoglobulin - immunology - insulin - intermolecular force - ion channel - ionic bond - isomer -
K
keratin - kinetic energy - Krebs cycle -
L
Le Chatelier's principle - light-dependent reactions - light-independent reactions - Link reaction - lipid -
M
macromolecule - membrane protein - metabolism - microbiology - molecular biology - molecule - monosaccharide -
N
NADPH - neurotransmitter - niacin - nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate - Nobel Prize in Chemistry - nucleic acid - nucleobase - nucleotide - nutrient - nutrition -
O
organic chemistry - organic compound - osmosis - oxidation -
P
peptide - pesticide - pH - photosynthesis - physiology - polymer - polysaccharide - potential energy - prion - protein - protein biosynthesis -
R
redox - respiration (physiology) - riboflavin - ribose - ribosome - RNA -
S
saturated fat - scientific notation - sequence analysis - signal transduction - solvation - starch - substrate (biochemistry) - sugar - synapse
T
T cell - thymine - toxin - trans fat - transcription (genetics) - translation (genetics) -
U
unsaturated fat - uracil -
V
vaccine - virus - vitamin - Vitamin A - Vitamin C - Vitamin D - Vitamin E - Vitamin K -
Y
yeast -
Chemistry lists |
6013 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztecs | Aztecs | The Aztecs were Native American people who lived in Mesoamerica. They ruled the Aztec Empire from the 14th century to the 16th century.
The name "Aztec" comes from the phrase "people from Aztlan". Legends say that Aztlan was the first place the Aztecs ever lived. "Aztlan" means "place of the herons" in the Nahuatl language.p. 8
Often the term "Aztec" refers just to the people of Tenochtitlan. This was a city on an island in Lake Texcoco. These people called themselves the Mexica which is why the country is called Mexico, or the Nahua which is why their language is called Nahuatl.
History
Before the Aztec Empire conquered them, the indigenous (native) people lived in many separate city-states. These were small cities with farmland around them. Each state had its own ruler. Around 1100 AD, these city-states started to fight each other for power and control of the area's resources.
Historians think the Aztecs came to central Mesoamerica around 1200. They came from what is now northwest Mexico. According to historian Lisa Marty:
By 1325, the Aztecs had built Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco. Tenochtitlan became a city-state that gradually became more and more powerful.
By about 1400, three city-states had grown into small empires. In 1428, these two empires fought the Tepanec War for control of the area. The Texcoco empire made an alliance with some other powerful city-states, including Tenochtitlan, and won the war. These allies were supposed to share power equally as they started to gain control of more land. However, by 1430, Tenochtitlan became the most powerful member of the alliance. It became the capital city of the Aztec Empire, and its ruler became the 'high king' of the Empire.
The Aztec Empire
The Aztec Empire existed between about 1438 AD and 1521 AD. When the Empire was largest, it spread across most of Mesoamerica and controlled about 11,000,000 people.
Tenochtitlan
Tenochtitlan was the capital city of the Aztec Empire. Tenochtitlan was one of the greatest cities of the world in that time. By the early 1500s, at least 200,000 people lived in the city. This made Tenochtitlan the largest city in the Americas before Christopher Columbus arrived.
Mexico City now covers the whole area where Tenochtitlan used to be.
Religion
The Aztecs believed in many gods. Two of the most important gods they worshipped were Huitzilopochtli, the god of war and the sun, and Tlaloc, the rain god. Another important god was Quetzalcoatl (feathered snake), the god of learning and civilization.
The Aztecs did many things to keep the gods happy. These things included human sacrifices. They believed this helped keep the world from ending. The Aztecs believed that the gods had created them, and that human sacrifice was the most powerful way of giving back the gift of life. The Aztecs also believed that the gods were in an almost never-ending struggle. The hearts and blood from the sacrifice fed the good gods to give them strength to fight the evil gods. The human sacrifices often took place on the Templo Mayor, the Aztecs' great pyramid temple.
Food
The Aztecs ate plants and vegetables that could grow easily in Mesoamerica. The main foods in the Aztec diet were maize, beans, and squash. They often used tomatoes and chili as spices. Aztec markets sold fruit, vegetables, spices, flowers, dogs, birds, and cocoa beans. They also created chocolate. However, they did not have sugar, so their chocolate was a strong liquid with chili in it. They also made an alcoholic drink called chocolatl. These foods later spread around the world.
Social structure
In Aztec society, there were different social classes with different social statuses. The most important people were the rulers. The Aztecs' first king was Acamapichtli. Their last king was Cuauhtemoc. He surrendered control of the Aztec Empire to Hernan Cortes during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire.
Next were nobles. These were the Empire's powerful members of the government; great warriors; judges; and priests. These people enjoyed a high social status.
The next social class was the commoners (common people). These were the Empire's everyday workers. Most of them farmed, ran stores, or traded. Other workers included artisans, regular soldiers, and fishers. Commoners were allowed to own land as a group or a family. However, a single person was not allowed to own land.
The lowest social classes in Aztec society were serfs and then slaves. Slaves had no rights at all. They were bought and sold at Aztec markets. The Aztecs also sacrificed some prisoners of war to their gods. However, if they had the money, they could buy their own freedom and become commoners.
For most of the Aztec Empire's existence, it was very difficult to move between social classes. Usually, if a person was born in a social class, they would stay in that class for the rest of their life.
Aztecs had harsh punishments for crimes that seem simple to us now. For example, a person could get the death penalty for adultery; cutting down a living tree; moving the boundary of a field to make their land bigger and someone else's smaller; major theft; treason; disorderly conduct (causing trouble in public), drunkenness; and promiscuity. Under Aztec sumptuary law, a commoner could also get the death penalty for wearing cotton.p. 88
Education
The Aztecs studied astrology and used the movements of the planets and the stars to create different calendars. They had an accurate calendar which consisted of 365 days, based on the movements of the sun. They also had a religious calendar which was made up of 260 days.
The Aztecs also studied and taught many complex subjects, including geometry, mathematics, debate, law, music, poetry, architecture, and agriculture.
Sports
The most popular Aztec sport was Tlachtili. They played this game using rubber balls and vertical hoops on opposite walls in the middle of the court. The game's goal was to shoot the ball into the hoop using their knees. The first team to score won the game.
End of the Aztec Empire
Between 1519 and 1521, the Spanish conquistador, Hernán Cortés, allied with Tlaxcala and other enemies of the Aztecs. The conquistadors defeated the Aztecs, took their empire, and made it into a Spanish colony. Some Aztecs did not want to fight against the soldiers of Cortés, because they thought they were gods.
Aztecs today
Today many Mexicans have Aztec and other Native American forefathers. People still use Aztec symbols in Mexico. On the Mexican flag, there is a picture of an eagle on a cactus with a snake in its mouth. This was an Aztec symbol. Even the name Mexico is an Aztec word.
References |
6014 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billion | Billion | Billion is a name for a large number. It may refer specifically to:
1,000,000,000 (, one thousand million), the short scale definition now normal in both British and American English
1,000,000,000,000 (, one million million), the long scale definition used formerly in Britain and currently in certain other languages
Billion may also refer to:
Billions (TV series), a Showtime series
Billions (movie), a 1920 silent comedy
Billion (company), a Taiwanese modem manufacturer
Jack Billion (born 1939), 2006 Democratic Party candidate for governor of South Dakota
Mr. Billion, a 1977 movie by Jonathan Kaplan
"Billions" (song), a song on Russell Dickerson's album Yours |
6027 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard%20Nixon | Richard Nixon | Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was an American politician. He was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974, when he became the only president to resign. Before that, Nixon was the 36th vice president (from 1953 to 1961 under President Dwight D. Eisenhower), and a U.S. Representative and Senator from California. He was a Republican.
Nixon was born in Yorba Linda, California. He attended Duke University and graduated from its law school in 1937. After graduating, he returned to California to practice law. In 1942, he and his wife Pat moved to Washington to work for the federal government. During World War II, he served on active duty in the Naval Reserve.
Nixon began his career in politics after he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1946. During this time, he became well known as an anti-Communist. In 1950, he was elected to the Senate. In 1953, he became the vice president of the United States, under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He served in this position for eight years. In 1960, Nixon ran for president. He was defeated by John F. Kennedy. Two years later, in 1962, Nixon ran for governor of California. He also lost this election to Pat Brown. In 1968, he ran for president for a second time. He won the election, defeating Hubert Humphrey and George Wallace in a close election.
As president, Nixon got the United States to stop being involved in the Vietnam War. He ended the military draft in 1973. In 1972, Nixon visited China. This visit would eventually create diplomatic relations between the two nations. The same year, he signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with the Soviet Union.
Domestically, Nixon imposed wage and price controls for 90 days. He had Southern schools desegregated (ending the separation of people by their race). He established the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as well as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). He also began the War on Cancer. He presided over the Apollo 11 Moon landing in 1969. In 1972, Nixon was re-elected in a landslide, defeating George McGovern.
In his second term, Nixon ordered an airlift to resupply Israeli losses in the Yom Kippur War, a war which led to the oil crisis at home. In 1973, he had lost a lot of political support because of the Watergate scandal. On August 9, 1974, Nixon resigned, becoming the first American president to do so. His successor, Gerald Ford, pardoned him.
After resigning, Nixon wrote many books and visited many other countries. He died on April 22, 1994, after suffering a stroke. He is not ranked high in presidential opinion polls. Evaluations of Nixon have been difficult, as he was able to accomplish good things as president, even though he resigned due to a scandal.
Early life, belief & Californian heritage
Nixon was born on January 9, 1913 in his family's home in Yorba Linda, California, to Hannah and Francis Nixon. He is the only president born in California. He was named for King Richard the Lionhearted, and was raised as a Quaker. His brother Edward, was a businessman. Herbert Hoover was the only other United States President to belong to the Quaker faith (as a coincidence, Hoover was also one of just three presidents, one of whom was Nixon, to hail from California). Nixon was raised in Whittier, California. His father was of Scotch-Irish ancestry and his mother was of German, English, and Irish ancestry. He attended Whittier High School, Whittier College, and Duke University. He served in the Navy during World War II. Later, he married Thelma Nixon (later Patricia Nixon) and had two daughters, Tricia and Julie.
Harvard Scholarship & More
Nixon received a scholarship to Harvard, but declined to help his family on the farm. Nixon was also tapped to join the FBI. He was very pleased, but at the last minute was rejected due to budget cuts.
Early political career
Congressional career
California congressman (1947–1950)
Nixon was elected to the House of Representatives in 1946. When in the House, he was a member of House Un-American Activities Commission, a group of Congressmen that tried to expose people in the United States who might have been Communists.
U.S. Senate (1950–1953)
He was later elected a Senator in 1950 after running a controversial campaign against Helen Gahagan Douglas.
Vice president (1953–1961)
In the 1952 presidential election, Dwight D. Eisenhower selected Nixon to be vice-president. People accused him of receiving illegal money contributions to his campaign and some people wanted Eisenhower to pick a different vice president, but Eisenhower still kept Nixon. Nixon after the accusations made a speech saying that no matter what people accuse him of illegally receiving during the campaign, he is still going to keep one campaign gift: his dog named Checkers.
The Republican Party decided to keep Nixon as their vice-presidential candidate and when Eisenhower won the election, Nixon became vice-president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During his vice-presidency, he was very busy and traveled across the world to places like South America. While he was vice president, he went to the Soviet Union and had a debate with the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. They were both arguing that their country was better.
1960 presidential election
In the presidential election of 1960, he ran against Democrat John F. Kennedy. Kennedy was expected to win at first (because he won the first television debate against Nixon), but as Election Day came closer and closer, Nixon was catching up. In the end, Kennedy won, but it was a very close election.
1962 California gubernatorial election
In 1962, Nixon lost the election for governor of California to Pat Brown. After losing, Nixon said "you don't have Nixon to kick around any more, because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference.", leading many experts to say that Nixon's political career was over.
1968 presidential election
In 1968, Richard Nixon defeated Hubert Humphrey in the presidential election and became president of the United States in 1969. Although Humphrey lost the popular vote narrowly, he lost the electoral college in a landslide, carrying just fifteen states.
Presidency, 1969–74
Nixon took over the Vietnam War from Lyndon Johnson and continued it with the strategy of slowly withdrawing U.S. troops, so that the South Vietnamese troops could take over the fighting by themselves. Nixon secretly bombed many enemy targets in Cambodia and North Vietnam while bringing home the American troops, to make it easier for South Vietnam to win. When his spreading the bombing to Cambodia and Laos became known in 1970, it caused larger protests than ever in America, including at Kent State and even in Washington, DC, where more than 12,000 were arrested in May 1971 at the peak of the protests. Partly because of the amount of opposition, Nixon sped up troop withdrawal and ended the draft.
Nixon was very successful in diplomacy (relations negotiations with foreign countries). He began a policy called "détente" which reduced tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. The two countries would get along and sign treaties that would limit the production of nuclear weapons between both sides. Nixon traveled to communist China and established a very good relationship with them. Before that, there was almost no relationship between the United States and China. It opened up the door for decades of trade in the future, which is why many items in the United States were made in China. His diplomacy with China is seen as one of his greatest accomplishments. Later, under President Carter, the U.S. broke relations with the Republic of China and recognized communist China, not Taiwan, as the legal government of China.
At home, Nixon put many reforms into law. He created the Environmental Protection Agency, supported anti-drug laws, supported anti-crime laws, and supported anti-discrimination laws. When inflation (meaning the value of money goes down and prices go up) was high, he ordered that prices should be frozen for 90 days. Although, he was known as a conservative Republican before he became president, while he was President, he supported some of the liberal ideas that Democrats supported. In 1974, Nixon made a speech that outlined a plan for universal health care.
Nixon was re-elected by a landslide in 1972 with most Americans approving of him, but soon after, Nixon's reputation would be destroyed and most Americans would disapprove of him. Due to a scandal called "Watergate" during which Nixon attempted to protect (or possibly ordered) men to burglarize the Democratic National Headquarters, Congress was going to put him on trial in a process called impeachment (to remove him from power). Nixon tried to cover up the scandal, but eventually, the Supreme Court ordered him to send his taped conversations (which included him talking about covering up Watergate) to them. Alexander Haig thought Nixon would be convicted and kicked out of office. To prevent this, Nixon resigned (quit) the presidency in 1974.
Post-presidency
Nixon's second vice president, Gerald Ford, gave Nixon a pardon of any crimes Nixon committed during Watergate. Ford wanted to end the crisis as quickly as possible, because the nation faced more important problems. Many people blamed Ford for letting Nixon go free, and voted against him when he ran in the 1976 election.
Nixon's public image never fully recovered, but he still got some approval back from Republicans as he frequently defended his legacy. He remained as a consultant to later Presidents, and to other people in government and the media especially to British journalist David Frost. His memoirs are considered important readings. His work in negotiating with China in the early 1970s was praised for improving relations between his country and theirs. Nixon died of a stroke in 1994, ten months after his wife Pat died. Not being able to defend his legacy any longer, his overall approval rating fell, and most everyone today acknowledges his wrongdoings related to Watergate. The house where he was born is now part of the Richard M. Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. He was buried at the library.
Related pages
Death and state funeral of Richard Nixon
References
Other websites
Nixon's White House Biography
Text, audio, and video of Nixon's famous "Checkers" speech
1913 births
1994 deaths
Lawyers from California
Cardiovascular disease deaths in the United States
Deaths from stroke
People from Whittier, California
People of the Vietnam War
Presidents of the United States
Quakers
Recipients of the Nishan-e-Pakistan
Time People of the Year
1960 United States presidential candidates
1964 United States presidential candidates
1968 United States presidential candidates
1972 United States presidential candidates
United States representatives from California
United States senators from California
US Republican Party politicians
Yorba Linda, California
20th-century American politicians
Watergate scandal |
6028 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald%20Ford | Gerald Ford | Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King, Jr.; July 14, 1913 — December 26, 2006) was an American politician who had served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. Before becoming president, he was the 40th vice president from 1973 to 1974. As a member of the Republican Party, he was also a member of the House of Representatives from 1949 to 1973, becoming its minority leader in 1965. He is the only president who has not been elected to the office of either President or Vice President.
Ford was born in Omaha, Nebraska. He attended the University of Michigan and Yale Law School. After Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, he joined the U.S. Naval Reserve and served from 1942 to 1946.
Ford began his career in politics in 1949 as the U.S. representative from Michigan's 5th congressional district. In 1965, he became the House Minority Leader. In December 1973, he became the vice president of the United States, replacing Spiro Agnew, who had resigned two months before. This made Ford the first person to become vice president due to the 25th Amendment. In August 1974, Ford became president after Richard Nixon resigned.
As president, Ford signed the Helsinki Accords. It was created to ease tensions between the Western world and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. In 1975, South Vietnam collapsed. This event ended US participation in the Vietnam War.
Domestically, Ford had to work with the worst economy since the Great Depression. There was growing inflation and a recession during his presidency. Ford also gave a presidential pardon to his predecessor, Richard Nixon, for his role in the Watergate scandal. The pardon was one of the most controversial things he did as president. Foreign policy was characterized in procedural terms by the bigger role Congress began to play, and by the restraining of the powers of the president.
In 1976, Ford ran for reelection. He defeated former California Governor Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination. He narrowly lost the presidential election to the Democratic candidate, former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter.
After his presidency ended in 1977, Ford remained active in the Republican Party. However, his views on some social issues caused disagreement with conservative members of the party in the 1990s and early 2000s. He is not ranked high in presidential opinion polls.
Ford died at home on December 26, 2006 after facing a series of health problems. He was 93 years old.
Early life
He was born on July 14, 1913, at 3202 Woolworth Avenue in Omaha, Nebraska, where his parents lived with his paternal grandparents. (the parents of his father) His birth name was Leslie Lynch King, Jr. His mother was Dorothy Ayer Gardner, and his father was Leslie Lynch King, Sr., a wool trader and son of prominent banker Charles Henry King and Martha Alicia King (née Porter). Dorothy separated from King just sixteen days after her son's birth. She took her son with her to the Oak Park, Illinois. This was where her sister, Tannisse, and brother-in-law, Clarence Haskins James, lived. After that, she moved to the home of her parents, Levi Addison Gardner and Adele Augusta Ayer in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Dorothy and King divorced in December 1913; she got full custody of her son. Ford's paternal grandfather Charles Henry King paid child support until shortly before his death in 1930.
Ford later said his biological father had a history of hitting his mother. James M. Cannon, a member of the Ford administration, wrote in a Ford biography that the Kings' separation and divorce were sparked when, a few days after Ford's birth, Leslie King threatened Dorothy with a butcher knife and threatened to kill her, Ford, and Ford's nursemaid. Ford later told confidantes that his father had first hit his mother on their honeymoon for smiling at another man.
After two and a half years with her parents, on February 1, 1916, Dorothy married Gerald Rudolff Ford, a salesman in a family-owned paint and varnish company. They then called her son Gerald Rudolff Ford, Jr. The future president was never formally adopted, however, and he did not legally change his name until December 3, 1935; he also used a more conventional spelling of his middle name. He was raised in Grand Rapids with his three half brothers from his mother's second marriage: Thomas Gardner Ford (1918–1995), Richard Addison Ford (born 1924), and James Francis Ford (1927–2001).
Ford also had three half-siblings from his father's second marriage: Marjorie King (1921–1993), Leslie Henry King (1923–1976), and Patricia Jane King (born 1925). They never saw one another as children and he did not know them at all. Ford was not aware of his biological father until he was 17, when his parents told him about the circumstances of his birth. That year his father Leslie King, whom Ford described as a "carefree, well-to-do man who didn't really give a damn about the hopes and dreams of his firstborn son", approached Ford while he was waiting tables in a Grand Rapids restaurant.
Ford said, "My stepfather was a magnificent person and my mother equally wonderful. So I couldn't have written a better prescription for a superb family upbringing."
Scouting and athletics
Ford was involved in The Boy Scouts of America, and earned that program's highest rank, Eagle Scout. In his later years, Ford received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award in May 1970 and Silver Buffalo Award from the Boy Scouts of America. He is the only U.S. president who is an Eagle Scout. He played football when he was in high school and college.
Political career
Ford served 25 years in the United States House of Representatives and was Minority Leader for many years. When Richard Nixon was President, his first Vice President was Spiro Agnew, but Agnew resigned in 1973 because he took bribes while he was Governor of Maryland in the late 1960s. Nixon then chose Ford to be his next Vice President. Ford had to be approved by Congress since there was no Presidential election that year. Because he had been in Congress for a long time, other Congressmen knew him well and were happy to approve him as Vice President because they thought he was honest.
However, Ford was not Nixon's first choice. Some of his first choices were John Connally (the former Governor of Texas), Nelson Rockefeller (the Governor of New York), and Ronald Reagan (the former Governor of California). But, Nixon was worried that these other men might have trouble getting approved by Congress. All of them had also run for President already or were planning to run soon. Nixon did not want to help pick who would be the top Republican candidate in 1976 and Ford promised him that he was not interested in being President. Ford always told reporters that he always dreamed of being Speaker of the House instead.
Presidency, 1974–77
Because of the Watergate scandal, Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. Ford became the President. He was inaugurated at the White House by Chief Justice Warren E. Burger. He is the only President of the United States not to be elected to either the office of President or Vice President. Once he became President, he realized he could do a good job and decided to run for a full term in 1976. He ran against the popular conservative Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination in 1976. Ford won by a small number of votes against Reagan.
In 1975, Ford was nearly assassinated in Sacramento, California.
Ford had pardoned Nixon for his crimes in 1974. Many experts say that is one of the reasons why Ford lost to Jimmy Carter in the 1976 election, which was very close. Other reasons for the loss were a bad economy with a lot of inflation, the Mayagüez incident, and the last U.S. soldiers leaving Vietnam followed by Saigon and the rest of South Vietnam being taken over by the North Vietnamese, both in 1975.
Legacy
With his somewhat short 895-day presidency (less than one term), he was often seen as a place holder in between Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter. The way he handled the Watergate scandal has changed people's view of him. While critics felt that pardoning Nixon was not fair, his supporters felt like his term provided a sense of healing and comfort to a country that was morally divided.
He was also a more liberal Republican than the more conservative Ronald Reagan.
Personal life
Ford was adopted at a young age. His birth name was Leslie King, Jr. He married Betty Ford in 1948.
Death
Ford died in his home in California on December 26, 2006 from cardiac arrest caused by cerebrovascular disease and coronary artery disease at the age of 93 years and 165 days. Until then, no other president had lived to be that old since Ronald Reagan in 2004. George H. W. Bush became the oldest living former president in November 2017. On March 22, 2019, Jimmy Carter gained the distinction of being the nation's longest-lived president.
References
Other websites
White House biography about Ford.
1913 births
2006 deaths
American adoptees
Lawyers from Omaha, Nebraska
Cardiovascular disease deaths in the United States
Deaths from cardiac arrest
Deaths from cerebrovascular disease
Deaths from coronary artery disease
Politicians from Omaha, Nebraska
People of the Vietnam War
1976 United States presidential candidates
United States representatives from Michigan
US Republican Party politicians
20th-century American politicians
Minority leaders of the United States House of Representatives |
6029 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/John%20Kerry | John Kerry | John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American politician. He is a former United States Secretary of State and former Senator from Massachusetts and the Democratic nominee for President in 2004. He lost to George W. Bush. He has served in the Senate for 23 years and has also served as the lieutenant governor of Massachusetts under Michael Dukakis.
In November 2020, then President-elect Joe Biden named Kerry as the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate.
Early life
Kerry was born on December 11, 1943 at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Aurora, Colorado. His father was an officer in the United States Army Air Force. He studied at Yale University and at Boston College Law school. Kerry was raised as a Roman Catholic by his Catholic father and Episcopalian mother.
It was discovered in 2003 by Felix Gundacker, a genealogist working with The Boston Globe, that Kerry's paternal grandparents, who had been born Jewish, as "Fritz Kohn" and "Ida Löwe", in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, changed their names to "Frederick and Ida Kerry" in 1900 and converted from Judaism to Roman Catholicism in 1901
Career
In 1968 and 1969, Kerry was a United States Navy officer in Vietnam. During the 2012 Obama reelection campaign, Kerry participated in one on one debate prep with the president, impersonating the Republican candidate Mitt Romney.
Kerry's vice presidential candidate was John Edwards. The ticket lost the election to George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. One of the reasons Kerry lost is because people said he was an elitist (he did not understand most Americans) and also because a group called "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" attacked his service in Vietnam.
In November 2006, Kerry once apologizes after saying that college students needed to study hard or else they would "get stuck in Iraq."
Secretary of State
On December 21, 2012, President Barack Obama nominated Kerry to succeed Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. The committee said yes on making Kerry the new Secretary of State. Kerry won confirmation by the Senate on January 29, 2012 by a 94-3 vote. He assumed the office of Secretary of State on February 1, 2013.
In a letter to Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Kerry announced his resignation from the Senate effective February 1. Kerry was sworn in as Secretary of State on February 1, 2013.
Special Envoy for Climate Change
On November 23, 2020, President-elect Joe Biden announced that Kerry will serve as the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate in the Biden administration. He was sworn in on January 20, 2021, the same day Biden was inaugurated as president.
Personal life
He was married to Julia from 1970 until they divorced in 1988. Then he was married to Teresa Heinz since 1995. He has two children and three step-children. He now lives in Boston, Massachusetts. Kerry and his former competitor George W. Bush share an ancestor on Kerry's mother's side and Bush's father's side from the 1600s.
Kerry is 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) tall, enjoys surfing and windsurfing, as well as ice hockey, hunting and playing bass guitar. According to an interview he gave to Rolling Stone magazine in 2004, Kerry's favorite album is Abbey Road and he is a fan of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, as well as of Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Buffett. He never liked heavy metal. During his 2004 presidential campaign, Kerry used Bruce Springsteen's "No Surrender" as one of his campaign songs. Later he would adopt U2's "Beautiful Day" as his official campaign song.
Health
In 2003, Kerry was diagnosed with and successfully treated for prostate cancer.
References
Other websites
JohnKerry.com —John Kerry's political web site
johnkerry. com/about/john_kerry/military_records.html Kerry's military records—from JohnKerry.com via the Internet Archive
John Kerry for Senate -Official 2008 senatorial re-election campaign website
John Kerry's Online Office —Official senatorial site
Campaign for Our Country —PAC led by Kerry
John Kerry's letter to his parents about Richard Pershing's death—1968.
Statement on behalf of Vietnam Veterans Against the War—April 1971.
John Kerry's Senate hearing testimony to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations in 1971 (PDF file)
John Kerry's complete 1971 statement before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from National Review
Selections from John Kerry's 1971 statement before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
The BCCI Affair, A Report to the Committee on Foreign Relations, United States Senate, by Senator John Kerry and Senator Hank Brown, December 1992
Obama rally with John Kerry and Others MP3 on February 2, 2008 in Sacramento, CA
Irish Catholic or Czech Jew?—Kerry's long lost Jewish ethnic ancestry
Schanberg, Sydney H., When John Kerry's Courage Went M.I.A., The Village Voice, February 17, 2004
Kranish, Michael, John Kerry: Candidate in the making, The Boston Globe, June 15, 2003
Profile: John Kerry, Paul Reynolds, BBC News, November 5, 2004
Frontline: the choice 2004—Thorough two-hour special comparing Kerry and Bush
Researcher Alleges Potential Plagiarism in 11 Passages of Kerry's Writings
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6033 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/White%20blood%20cell | White blood cell | The job of white blood cells (also called leukocytes) is to fight infections and cancer. They also remove poison, waste and damaged cells from the body.
The number of white blood cells increases when a person is fighting infection or disease and decrease when a person is healthy.
Types of white blood cells
Lymphocytes
Lymphocytes are round white blood cells a bit bigger than a red blood cell. Their center is round and they have little cytoplasm. Part of the lymphatic system, these target specific germs or poisons using their antibodies. There are three known types of lymphocytes, called T-cells, B-cells, and natural killer cells (NK cells).
B-cells make antibodies, which are little molecules that attach to viruses or bad cells. These tell other cells to destroy the viruses or bad cells, like a flag.
T-cells can either help make more B-cells, or kill cells with antibodies.
Natural killer cells kill cells in the body that have been infected by a virus or that are part of a tumor. They are part of the innate immune system.
Monocytes
Monocytes are reserve cells which turn into macrophages and dendritic cells, which work together in tissues to fight disease. Monocytes have a kidney bean shaped center and lots of cytoplasm. They may appear as macrophages in a non-round shape when they pass through tissue to eat germs, "junk" cells, and dead cells.
Granulocytes
The next three types of white blood cells are referred to as granulocytes since they all contain rough, grain-like particles that assist in attacking viruses and bacteria. Granulocytes are also called polymorphonuclear leukocytes because of the shape of the nucleus, which has three segments.
Neutrophils
Neutrophils are the most abundant type of white blood cells in mammals, 70% of leukocytes. They are an essential part of the immune system. They get to the site of an injury within minutes, and make up much of the content of pus. They have a short life-span of a couple of days.
The nucleus, which looks like a string of beads, does not take up stain strongly. Like phagocytes, they actually eat the bacteria and dead cells. They also release a bunch of proteins which work to damage the bacteria.
Basophils
Basophils, or basophil granulocytes, are rare granulocytes. If you collected 1000 white blood cells, only 13 of them would be basophils. Their nucleus is hidden by granules which turn dark blue in color when stained. Basophils carry histamine and heparin. They appear at the sites of ectoparasite infection, or allergies. We don't know exactly how they work.
Eosinophils
Eosinophils, or acidophils, are leukocytes. They are one of the immune system components which combat parasites and certain infections. As with mast cells and basophils, they part causes of allergy and asthma. Eosinophils are round cells with a lobed nucleus and granules which turn red when stained. These granules are packed with proteins that can be poured out to help destroy invaders.
Cell testing
A test called a differential count shows how many white blood cells there are in a person's blood, and how many of each type are there.
References
Cell biology
Immunology |
6034 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lymphocyte | Lymphocyte | Lymphocytes are a type of white blood cell (or leukocyte). They help an organism to fight infections. They occur in the immune system of all vertebrates. All lymphoctes have a large, blob-like nucleus.
Lymphocytes can be divided into three main types:
large granular lymphocytes: these are part of the innate immune system, and are natural killer cells.
small lymphocytes: these lymphocytes are the main agents of the acquired immune system. The two main types are:
T cells and
B cells.
Types
Natural killer cells
Natural killer (NK) cells are a part of the immune system a person is born with. They protect the organism from tumours and from cells infected by viruses. Natural killer cells are made active by chemicals released by damaged cells called interferons.
Natural killer cells can tell the difference between infected cells, tumours, and normal cells. They recognise changes in the level of a surface molecule called MHC (major histocompatibility complex) class I.
The NK cells then release cytotoxic (cell-killing) granules which then destroy the altered cells.
T and B cells
T cells (thymus cells) and B cells (bone cells) are the main cells of the adaptive immune response. They tackle infections, and they cause the immune system to 'remember' the event.
The function of T cells and B cells is to recognize foreign antigens. Antigens are surface molecules on a cell. Once they have identified an invader, the cells respond to remove pathogens or pathogen-infected cells.
B cells respond to pathogens by producing large numbers of antibodies which then destroy foreign objects like bacteria and viruses.
Some T cells, called T helper cells, produce cytokines that direct the immune response. Cytokines signal to other immune cells that there is a foreign antigen present. Other T cells, called cytotoxic T cells, produce toxic granules which cause the death of infected cells.
Once they are made active, B cells and T cells produce memory cells. Throughout the lifetime of an animal, these cells will 'remember' each specific pathogen encountered, and are able to make a strong response if the pathogen is detected again. Memory cells live a long time in the body, and are how vaccinations work.
Development
Mammalian stem cells change or differentiate into several kinds of blood cell within the bone marrow. This process is called haematopoiesis (= blood growth). All lymphocytes come from a common basic lymphocyte cell before differentiating into their distinct lymphocyte types.
B cells mature into B lymphocytes in the bone marrow, while T cells migrate to and mature in a distinct organ, called the thymus. After they mature, the lymphocytes enter the circulation and lymphoid organs (e.g. the spleen and lymph nodes) where they are able to sense invading pathogens and tumour cells.
Characteristics
In the circulatory system they move from lymph node to lymph node. This contrasts with macrophages, which are rather stationary in the nodes.
Lymphocytes and disease
When white blood cells are counted, the lymphocyte count is the percentage of lymphocytes present.
An increase in lymphocyte concentration is usually a sign of a viral infection (in some rare case, leukemias are found through an abnormally high lymphocyte count in an otherwise normal person).
A low normal to low absolute lymphocyte count is found with infections after surgery or trauma.
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infects and destroys T cells. Without the key defence that these T cells provide, the body becomes prone to infections that otherwise would not affect healthy people.
The extent of HIV progression is found by measuring the percentage of CD4+ T cells in the patient's blood. The effects of other virus or lymphocyte disorders can also often be estimated by counting the numbers of lymphocytes present in the blood.
References
Cell biology
Immunology
Blood cells
ja:白血球#リンパ球 |
6035 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Author | Author | An author is a person who writes books, stories, poems, or other written work. Their writing can be truth or fiction, short or long. Often, author is a word for a professional writer, but any person who writes may also be called that.
Sometimes, a person who creates something that is not prose is called an author. Someone who writes music may be called the author of that piece of music, though we would usually call that person a composer. In the film world, the French word for author, auteur, is often used about someone who has been both the writer and director of a movie.
In biology, the first person to write an article that gives a name to and describes a type of living thing is the author of that name.
In copyright law, the author is the first owner of copyright. Such laws also apply to other works of art such as pictures or music.
Related pages
Writer
Journalist
References
Other websites
Networks of scientific papers |
6037 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedipalp | Pedipalp | Pedipalps are the two appendages on the front of a spider's head. Some spiders seem to have ten legs and not eight, because these pedipalps look like an extra pair of legs. The pedipalps are used rather like arms. Spiders often use them to hold insects (for example crickets) for them to eat.
Male spiders also use pedipalps for mating. The male spiders make some silk, put sperm onto the silk, and then put their pedipalps into the sperm. The pedipalps then hold the sperm, and the spider can use it to mate with a female by putting them inside her epigynum.
Diversity of pedipalps
The pedipalps of all chelicerates vary: Ricinulei, Thelyphonida, Amblypygi, some Opiliones, Schizomida, Scorpions and pseudoscorpions all have theirs as pincers, with the Amblypygi's being their entire pedipalps shaped like mantids. The Palpigradi's pedipalps have some of the strangest roles of arachnids as they use theirs for locomotion. The pedipalps of Solifugae act as antenna.
Other websites
Close-up view of pedipalps on a large spider
Animal anatomy
Arachnids |
6039 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionic%20compound | Ionic compound | In chemistry, an ionic compound is a compound made of ions. They have strong ionic bonds between particles. Lots of energy (heat) is required to break the bond apart, resulting in high melting and boiling points. The ions join together because they have different charges. Compounds of metals and non-metals are usually ionic. They are made when two or more atoms come close together and an electron goes from one atom to the other atom. The electron does this because both atoms want a full outer shell, similar to those of the noble gases.
Note 1: carbon and silicon in Group 4 usually form covalent bonds by sharing electrons.
Note 2: the elements in Group 0 do not react with other elements to form ions
Physical properties
Chemistry
sv:Jonförening |
6045 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/ELISA | ELISA | The ELISA method (Enzyme Linked Immuno-Sorbent Assay) is a technique used in biochemistry to determine if a certain substance--such as a specific cytokine or antigen--is present within a sample. It is sometimes abbreviated as "EIA."
This technique uses special antibodies that attach themselves to the substance. These antibodies generate a specific color. The amount of color indicates the amount of substance present. (Sometimes, the substance must be viewed under ultraviolet light for the antibodies to generate this color.)
Another set of antibodies are used to "capture" the substance. These antibodies adhere to both the substance and the testing container, thus holding the substance in place.
A more sophisticated and sensitive technique, the ELISPOT method, was derived from the ELISA techique.
Other websites
An animated illustration of an ELISA assay
Image of a microtiter plate, such as is commonly used in ELISA tests
Biochemistry |
Subsets and Splits