AcharyaChanakya/simple-wikipedia huggingface dataset:
In the absence of large-scale political unification, such as that imposed forcibly by the Romans upon the peoples of Italy, the various tribes remained free, led by their own hereditary or chosen leaders.
May Pang
May (Fung-Yee) Pang (born October 24, 1950) was a to former Beatle John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono. She later became Lennon's companion and lover, when he separated from Ono in the mid-1970s. Pang was born in New York, New York to Chinese parents.
Pang was a secretary at ABKCO, a management company started by Allen Klein, in New York City. ABKCO's clients included three of the Beatles: Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. When Lennon and wife Ono needed an assistant, Pang was sent to England to work for them. She dated musician Peter Ham of Badfinger, and helped Lennon and Ono move to the United States, late in 1971.
During 1973, Lennon and Ono began to have problems in their marriage. Ono trusted Pang, and suggested her as a companion for Lennon, knowing he wanted to see other women. Lennon surprised Ono by taking Pang with him to Los Angeles, where he planned to record an album with Phil Spector. Lennon and Pang lived together for over a year, while he worked on new music, and tried to decide whether to divorce Ono or with her.
Lennon and Ono decided to reconcile early in 1975, and became the parents of Sean Lennon. Even though Pang had been involved with the marketing of several of Lennon's records, and also records by Harry Nilsson and Ringo Starr, she had a hard time finding a new job. She later found out the reason was because many companies were afraid Lennon would not want to do business with them, if he knew she worked there.
Pang finally found a job with Island Records, and later worked for RKO. She married record producer Tony Visconti (the former husband of singer Mary Hopkin), and they started a family. After Lennon's death in 1980, Pang wrote a , titled "Loving John". She also appeared on many talk shows, to discuss her relationship with Lennon.
Indo-European people
Indo-Europeans are those who lived in eastern Europe and central Asia thousands of years ago. They descended from the Ukrainian steppes, and spread out across Europe, western Asia, central Asia, and India.
Indo-Europeans are Bronze Age-speakers of Indo-European languages that had not yet split into language families we know today, like Centum and Satem dialects (speakers of languages predating Proto-Indo-Iranian, Proto-Greek, Proto-Celtic, Proto-Italic, Proto-Germanic, Proto-Balto-Slavic etc.)
Speakers of Indo-European languages in historical times and nowadays often are not called by the name Indo-Europeans but with often by the name of their language family like: Anatolians, Tocharians, Aryans (Iranians, Indo-Aryans), Greeks, Celts, Italic peoples, Germanic peoples, Baltic peoples, Slavic peoples, Armenians, Albanians (or subdivisions of these groups).
An urban area is an area where many people live and work close together. The population density is higher than in the surrounding area. It is where buildings are close together. Urban is the opposite of rural, where farm lands and nature are. Urban areas are usually cities and towns. Most of the work available in urban areas is factory and office work. Agricultural work is rare because buildings are close together and there is no space for farm lands.
There are different urban area definitions for each country. The definitions mostly depend on how populated the country is and if the definition shows a true percentage of how urbanized the country is. For example, in Poland an urban area is any place that has the status of a town, whereas in China it is any district, city, or town with a population density higher than 1500 people per square kilometer. The urban population definition for Canadian and Scandinavian countries depends on density. If there is a house every 200 meters it is classified as urban.
A large urban area, with all connected areas (usually developed around some city) is called a Metropolitan area.
Mary Hopkin
Mary Hopkin (born 3 May 1950) is a Welsh folk singer. She was born in Pontardawe. She was most famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Her first and biggest hit was "Those Were The Days" in 1968.
When The Beatles started their own record label called Apple Records, they were looking for new artists to sign up. Model Twiggy, a friend of the band, recommended her. After Hopkin signed with Apple, Beatle Paul McCartney produced many of the songs for her first album, called "Post Card". Singer-songwriters Donovan and Harry Nilsson, and record producer George Martin, also gave her songs to record.
"Those Were The Days" was McCartney's choice for Hopkin's first single. He chose well, and the song became a hit worldwide. Hopkin recorded other singles, including "Goodbye", "Temma Harbour", "Knock, Knock, Who's There", and a remake of Doris Day's "Qué Sera, Sera", but they were not as successful as her first record. McCartney moved on to a solo career after the Beatles disbanded, and no longer worked with her. Hopkin's second album, "Earth Song/Ocean Song", was largely self-produced.
Hopkin disliked the way Apple Records had promoted her, as a kind of "squeaky-clean" schoolgirl. She left the label after two albums and a best-ofs compilation, also titled "Those Were the Days". She retired from music after marrying producer Tony Visconti, but she did appear as a background singer on a few of his productions.
During the 1990s, Apple Records reissued many of their old records, including Hopkin's two original albums. She oversaw a new version of "Those Were the Days", with bonus tracks and a detailed booklet.
The Champs-Élysées is a long and very famous street in Paris.
It links the Arc de Triomphe and the Place de la Concorde. It is a very popular place: there are many famous cinemas, bars, boutiques, and restaurants. It is also where the Tour de France ends.
On 20 April 2017, two ISIS-claimed gunmen opened fired and killed one police officer and injured another at Champs-Élysées.
Tom Evans
Thomas "Tom" Evans (5 June 1947 – 19 November 1983) was an English guitarist and songwriter, who had several hit records as a member of Badfinger, during the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was also the cowriter of "Without You", with collaborator Peter Ham, another member of Badfinger.
Evans and Ham wrote most of Badfinger's hits together, including "No Matter What", "Day After Day", and "Baby Blue", which appeared on Apple Records. After leaving Apple, Badfinger's fortunes dipped. Ham committed suicide by hanging in 1975. Evans was devastated, and never got over losing his musical partner. He also hanged himself, in London in 1983.
"Without You" first became a hit in a cover version by Harry Nilsson in 1971, and the song became a standard as time went on. Badfinger's music was mostly forgotten by the 1980s, but became popular again in the 1990s when their old records appeared on compact disc.
Saint-Jean-Bonnefonds
Saint-Priest-en-Jarez
Villars
Villars may refer to:
Logron
Flacey
Diet (assembly)
An omelette or "omelet" is a type of food that is mainly eggs, with various fillings. In the United States "omelets" are usually eaten at breakfast. However omelettes can be eaten as a light lunch or late evening meal.
An omelette is prepared from beaten eggs cooked with butter or oil in a frying pan. A thin, flat 'heavy' omelette is usually folded around a filling such as cheese, vegetables, meat, or some combination of these ingredients. In some traditions, omelettes are fried to cook the bottom and then flipped over or in half for final stage of cooking. However, in other traditions, omelettes is baked to cook it evenly or the top is cooked under a broiler. When making an omelette, it is best to use several eggs. Put a little water in with the eggs when you mix them up because the water helps the eggs to produce steam as they cook. The steam makes them lighter and fluffier. Using oil in the bottom of a nonstick omelette pan helps prevent the omelette from sticking. Follow these tips, add your favourite filling, and you will make a tasty omelette quickly and easily.
For a full light and fluffy omolette separate the egg whites and whisk to stiff peaks then fold in the yolks. Cook by frying in a knob of butter on a medium heat until centre starts to dry then fold in half and cook until its hot in the middle.
There are many different types of omelette, often with different names, depending on what is used as a filling.
Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 - 27 March 1931) was a British writer. Often after having been to the theatre in London he visited the Savoy Hotel's Grillroom. The chef added haddock, cream and Parmesan cheese to the basic omelette and called the new dish "Omelette Arnold Bennett" in his customer's honour.
When Napoleon Bonaparte and his army were marching through southern France, they stopped for the night near the town of Bessieres. A local innkeeper made Napoleon an omelette. Napoleon was so impressed by the cooking he ordered the townspeople to collect all the eggs in the village and to prepare a huge omelette for his army the next day.
A visa (short for the Latin "carta visa", lit. "the document having been seen") is a permit given by a country that allows someone to go to that country. A visa is a document that is stamped on a person's passport by an embassy. It names the kind of visit and says how long the person can stay. Sometimes, people need to go through an interview held at the embassy before they get a visa.
Many countries require foreign visitors to have a valid passport and a visa before they can enter the country, but there are exceptions (see below for examples of such these).
Visas are associated with the request for permission to enter (or exit) a country, and are thus, for some countries, not the same as actual formal permission for an alien to enter and remain in the country.
Some countries, such as some states of the former Soviet Union, require that their citizens, and sometimes foreign travelers, obtain an exit visa in order to be allowed to leave the country. Until 2004, foreign students in Russia were issued only an entry visa on being accepted to University there, and had to obtain an exit visa to return home. This policy has since been changed, and foreign students are now issued multiple entry (and exit) visa.
Some visas can be granted on arrival or by prior application at the country's embassy or consulate, or sometimes through a specialized travel agency with permission from the issuing country in the country of departure. If there is no embassy or consulate in one's home country, then one would have to travel to a third country (or apply by post) and try to get a visa issued there. The need for a visa generally depends on the citizenship of the applicant, how long the applicant plans to stay, and the activities that the applicant may wish to do in the country he visits. These may result different formal categories of visas, with different issue conditions.
Some, but not all, countries have reciprocal visa regimes: if Country A requires citizens of Country B to have a visa to travel there, then Country B may apply reciprocity and require a visa from citizens of Country A. Likewise, if A allows B's citizens to enter without a visa, B may allow A's citizens to enter without a visa.
Examples of such reciprocal visa regimes are between:
A fee may be charged for issuing a visa; these are typically also reciprocal, so if country A charges country B's citizens 50 USD for a visa, country B will often also charge the same amount for country A's visitors. The fee charged may also be at the discretion of each embassy. A similar reciprocity often applies to the duration of the visa (the period in which one is permitted to request entry of the country) and the number of entries one can attempt with the visa. Expedited processing of the visa application for some countries will generally incur additional charges.
This reciprocal fee has become more common in recent years with the decision of the United States to charge nationals of various countries a $100 visa processing fee (non-refundable, even if a visa is not issued). A number of countries, including Brazil, Chile, and Turkey have reciprocated. Brazil requires an advance visa before entry into the country, and that a US citizen be fingerprinted and photographed on arrival—matching U.S. requirements for Brazilians and other foreigners.
The issuing authority, usually a branch of the country's foreign ministry or department (e.g. U.S. State Department), and typically consular affairs officers, may request appropriate documentation from the applicant. This may include proof that the applicant is able to support himself in the host country (lodging, food), proof that the person hosting the applicant in his or her home really exists and has sufficient room for hosting the applicant, proof that the applicant has obtained health and evacuation insurance, etc. Some countries ask for proof of health status, especially for long-term visas; some countries deny such visas to persons with certain illnesses, such as AIDS. The exact conditions depend on the country and category of visa. Notable examples of countries requiring HIV tests of long-term residents are Russia and Uzbekistan. However, in Uzbekistan, the HIV test requirement is sometimes not strictly enforced.
Developed countries frequently demand strong evidence of intent to return to the home country, if the visa is for a temporary stay, and especially if the applicant is from a developing country, due to immigration concerns.
The issuing authority may also require applicants to attest that they have had no criminal convictions, or that they do not partake in certain activities (like prostitution or drug trafficking). Some countries will deny visas if the travellers' passports show evidence of citizenship or travel to a country which is not recognized by that country. For example, Saudi Arabia will not issue visas to nationals of Israel or those with evidence of visiting Israel.
Common types of visas are:
Less common visas include:
Visas can also be "single-entry", which means the visa is cancelled as soon as the holder leaves the country, "double-entry", or "multiple-entry", permitting multiple entries into the country with the same visa. Countries may also issue re-entry permits that allow temporarily leaving the country without invalidating the visa. Even a business visa will normally not allow the holder to work in the host country without an additional work permit.
Once issued, a visa will usually have to be used within a certain period of time.
The validity of a visa is not the same as the authorized period of stay in the issuing country. The visa validity usually indicates when the alien can apply for entry to the country. For example, if a visa has been issued January 1st and expires March 30th, and the typical authorized period of stay in a country is 90 days, then the 90-day authorized stay starts on the day the passenger reaches the country, which has to be between January 1st and March 30th. The traveller could therefore stay in the issuing country until June 1st.
Once in the country, the validity period of a visa or authorized stay can often be extended for a fee if the immigration authorities choose to do so. Staying longer than the period of authorized stay given by the immigration officers is considered illegal immigration even if the visa validity period is not over (i.e. for multiple entry visas) and a form of being "out of status" and the offender may be fined, prosecuted, deported, or even blacklisted (banned) from entering the country again.
Entering a country without a valid visa or visa exemption may result in being arrested and removed (deportation or exclusion) from the country. Doing things that are not authorized by the status of entry (for example, working while having a non-worker tourist status) can result in the individual being deemed removable, in common speech an illegal alien. Such violation is not a violation of a visa, despite the common misuse of the phrase, but a violation of status, hence the term "out of status."
Even having a visa does not guarantee that somebody can enter ah ost country. The border crossing authorities make the final determination to allow entry, and may even cancel a visa at the border if the alien cannot demonstrate to their satisfaction that they will abide by the status their visa grants them.
Visa and immigration laws may be very different among countries. As such, aliens are advised to check with immigration lawyers for visa and immigration laws governing the countries they wish to enter and eligibility to receive visas or other immigration benefits.
Many countries have a mechanism to allow the holder of a visa to apply to stay longer in that country. For example, in Denmark a visa holder can apply to the Danish Immigration Service for a Residence Permit after they have arrived in the Country. In the United Kingdom applications can be made to the Border and Immigration Agency. In certain circumstances, it is not possible for the holder of the visa to do this, either because the country does not have a mechanism to prolong visas or, most likely, because the holder of the visa is using a short stay visa to live in a country. In such cases, the holder often engages in what is known as a visa run; leaving the country for a short period in order to apply for a new visa prior to their return or so that they can be given a fresh permission to stay when they re-enter.
A visa may be denied for a number of reasons, including (but not limited to) if the applicant:
Possession of a valid visa is a condition for entry into many countries, however various exemption schemes do exist. In some cases visa-free entry may be granted to holders of diplomatic passports even as visas are required by normal passport holders ("see: Passport").
Some countries have reciprocal agreements such that a visa is not needed under certain conditions, e.g. when the visit is for tourism and for a relatively short period. One example of this is the Visa Waiver Program of the United States. Such reciprocal agreements may stem from common membership in international organizations or a shared heritage:
Other countries may also unilaterally grant visa-free entry to nationals of certain countries in order to facilitate tourism.
Visa-free travel between countries also occurs in all cases where passports are not needed for such travel.
Normally, visas are valid for entry only into the country which issued the visa. Countries that are members of regional organizations or party to regional agreements may however issue visas valid for entry into some or all of the member states of the organization or agreement:
Andranik Ozanian
Andranik Toros Ozanian, or Zoravar Andranik, (February 25, 1865 – August 31, 1927) was an Armenian military general and freedom fighter. He was seen by Armenian people as a national hero.
He was born in Şebinkarahisar, Ottoman Armenia (present-day Giresun Province, Turkey). After losing his wife and son at an early age, he joined the Armenian freedom movement in the Ottoman Empire, and participated in various political parties.
Andranik participated in the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913, within the Bulgarian army, alongside general Garegin Njdeh as a commander of Armenian auxiliary troops of 1912-1913. After his arrest and jailed; he spent some time in Istanbul. During World War I, he participated in the Caucasus Campaign and was appointed as general of the Armenian volunteer units of the Russian army. He participated in 20 different offensives where he gained fame due to his courage and the tactics he came up with to defeat the opposing forces.
He was the commanding officer of the Armenian volunteer units, which helped the Van Resistance take control of the Van on May 6, 1915. He helped re-capture the city from Ottoman forces during the Battle of Van. He was also the commander of the battalion that took the city of Bitlis (see: Battle of Bitlis) from the Ottoman forces that was under control of Mustafa Kemal.
After declaration of Democratic Republic of Armenia (DRA), he organized volunteer units against the Ottoman army, and fought alongside those units. Declaration of Treaty of Batum was in diffuse as Andranik, was fighting against the Ottoman Empire with his army. He refused to accept the borders stated by the treaty. His activities were concentrated at the link between Ottoman Empire to Azerbaijan Democratic Republic at Karabakh, Zanghezur and Nakhichevan. Ozanian struck back at the Ottoman Fronts, Army of Islam.
Andranik, tried several times to seize Shusha. Just before the Armistice of Mudros was signed, Andranik was on the way from Zangezur to Shusha, to control the main city of Nagorno-Karabakh. In January 1919 Armenian troops advancing, the British forces (Lionel Dunsterville) ordered Andranik back to Zangezur, and gave him the assurances that this conflict can be solved with the Paris Peace Conference, of 1919.
In 1919 he left Armenia in order not to take part in the political struggles for power in the recent Republic of still those its opinions contradicting policy to carry Armenia for the last time and went oneself into exile to Fresno, California, United States.
He immigrated to Fresno, California. Andranik Ozanian lived in Fresno for 18 years until his death on August 31, 1927. His remains were moved to Paris in 1928, and returned to Armenia in 1999, where he was buried at the Yerablur military cemetery.
The Angles were a Germanic people of unknown origin. Their name seems to be connected with Angeln, a modern district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. The Angles, together with the Jutes, Saxons and Frisians, were among the Germanic tribes who sailed across the North Sea in the 5th century to invade Britain. The various tribes were later called "Anglo-Saxon".
Angeln
Modern Angeln, (Danish: Angel; Latin: Anglia, which also means in direct translation from Latin: England), is a peninsula in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
Ancient Angeln may have been somewhat larger than the Angeln of today, but following the ancient sources it included the territory of modern Angeln.
Angeln has an importance far beyond its small area, as it seems to have been the original home of the Angles who invaded the southern part of Great Britain, which was named after them, England. And so the name of the major world language, English, seems to have taken its name from this little region.
Following the departure of the Angles from Anglia about 350, the region was occupied by Danish settlers not later than the 8th century.
A commonwealth is a group of people or of groups with a common aim to improve themselves, help each other and share knowledge and resources.
The word can refer to several organisations:
It is also part of the official name of some countries
or part of the official name of some US states and territories
In history the Commonwealth of England was the name of England between 1649 and 1660, when England had no king
Frisian people
The Frisians are a group of people of northwestern Europe, living in an area known as Frisia. They are mainly in the Dutch areas of Friesland and Groningen and, in Germany, East Frisia and North Frisia. They are said to be a tall, big-boned and light-haired people with a rich history and folklore.
The Frisians were able to make an agreement with the Romans at the River Rhine in 28 CE. Sixteen years later they defeated the Romans under Tiberius at the Battle of Baduhennawood. The Frisii were known and respected by the Romans and were written about by several writers. Tacitus wrote about the Germanic peoples in 69 CE, describing the habits of the Germanic people, as well as listing a lot of Frisian groups by name. Of the many groups he listed, the Frisians are the only ones that have kept their old name.
The Frisians probably used boats. The North Sea from Britain to Eastern Denmark, was called "Mare Frisia" at that time. Small groups of Frisians settled the lands around them and their homes have been found in England, Scotland, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France and The Netherlands.
Their land followed the edge of the North Sea from the mouth of the Rhine river up to that of the Ems. The Ems was the eastern edge of their land according to Ptolemy's "Geographica".
In the 5th century, the Anglo-Saxons went through Frisian territory to invade Great Britain. A lot of Frisians moved with them. The Frisians who stayed in Europe moved into the lands where the Anglo-Saxons used to live.
Alba Iulia (Latin: "Apulum", German: "Karlsburg"/"Weißenburg", Hungarian: "Gyulafehérvár", former ) is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. It has a population of 66,369 people. It is found on the Mureş River. In the center of the city there is Alba Carolina citadel built in three historical periods: Roman, Medieval and Habsburg.
Balance may mean:
Vampire bat
Vampire bats is a subfamily of bats. Unlike other bats, vampire bats feed on blood. Currently, there are three species of bats known to do this. All of them live in the Americas, in Mexico, Brazil, Chile and Argentina. Of the three known species, one feeds on the blood of mammals, the other two on the blood of birds.
The common vampire bat lives in large groups, of up to 100 animals. They have developed complex social behaviour.
Vampire bats commonly spread diseases, most notably rabies. The saliva of the vampire bats contain chemicals that prevent the clotting of the blood of the victim; this has been used to develop drugs to help the patients of strokes and heart attacks.
The false vampire bats are not vampire bats; they do not feed on blood, some eat fruits, others devour small animals.
Vampires may be modelled on bats.
Vampire bats were some of the first animals studied using the broadly applicable tracking system, or BATS. Scientists glued very small backpacks with sensors onto vampire bats and used GPS to tell when they looked for food, rested, or met each other. The study, which was printed for people to read on October 31, 2019 (Halloween), said that vampire bats formed social bonds when being held by humans that they remembered after being released back into the wild.
Prehistoric Britain (Britain was always around but this is when people discovered it)was a period in the human occupation of Great Britain that ended with the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43.
Britain has been inhabited for hundreds of thousands of years. None of the pre-Roman inhabitants of Britain had any written language, so their history, culture and way of life are known only through archaeological finds.
The first written record of Britain and its inhabitants was by the Greek navigator Pytheas, who explored the coastal region of Britain around 325 BC. Ancient Britons were however involved in extensive trade and cultural links with the rest of Europe from the Neolithic onward, especially in exporting tin.
Palaeolithic Britain is the period from almost 750,000 years ago until around 10,000 years ago. This huge length of time saw many changes in the environment, several glacial and interglacial periods which greatly affected human settlement in the region.
There is evidence from bones and flint tools found in coastal deposits near Happisburgh in Norfolk and Bakersfield in Suffolk that "Homo erectus" was present in what is now Britain around 700,000 years ago. At this time, southern and eastern Britain was linked to continental Europe by a wide land bridge allowing humans to move freely. The current position of the English Channel was a large river flowing westwards and fed by tributaries that would later become the Thames and Seine.
The extreme cold of the following Anglian glaciation is likely to have driven humans out of Britain altogether. A warmer time period lasted from around 300,000 until 200,000 years ago. The more advanced flint technology permitted more efficient hunting.
There is little evidence of human occupation during the subsequent Ipswichian interglacial between around 130,000 and 110,000 years ago.
Neanderthal occupation of Britain was limited and by 30,000 BC the first signs of modern human (Homo sapiens) activity. The most famous example from this period is the burial of the Red Lady of Paviland in modern-day Wales. A final ice age covered Britain between around 70,000 and 10,000 years ago with an extreme cold snap between 22,000 and 13,000 years ago which may have driven humans south out of Britain altogether. The environment during this ice age period would have been a largely treeless tundra, eventually replaced by a warmer climate, perhaps reaching 17 degrees Celsius (62.6 Fahrenheit) in summer which encouraged the expansion of birch trees as well as shrub and grasses.
The dominant food species were the Wild Horse ("Equuleus fetus") and Red Deer ("Corvus elapses") although other mammals ranging from hares to mammoth were also hunted.
By 10,500 years ago the climate was becoming cooler and dryer. Food animal populations seem to have declined although woodland coverage expanded. Tool manufacture in the Final Upper Paleolithic revolved around smaller flints and bone and antler work became less common. However, the number of known sites is much larger and more widely spread. Many more open air sites are known such as that at Hengistbury Head.
Around 10,000 years ago the ice age finally ended. Temperatures rose, probably to levels similar to those today, and forests expanded farther. By 8,500 years ago, the rising sea levels caused by the melting glaciers cut Britain off from continental Europe for the last time. The warmer climate changed the Arctic environment to one of pine, birch, and alder forest.
Farming of both crops and domestic animals was adopted in Britain around 4,500 BC at least partly because of the need for reliable food sources.
Traditionally the arrival of the Neolithic in Britain has been seen as a wave of immigration from the continent. Modern archaeology now considers that farming along with pottery and settled living was in fact adopted by the native population who were related to the similarly newly-farming Neolithic people across the water. Links with continental Europe are demonstrated by finds of axes made from exotic stone such as jadeite.
Analysis of the mitochondrial DNA of modern European populations shows that over 80% are descended in the female line from European hunter-gatherers. Less than 20% are descended in the female line from Neolithic farmers from the Middle East. In 1997 DNA analysis was undertaken on a tooth from a Mesolithic man whose remains were found in Sough's Cave at Cheddar Gorge. His mitochondrial DNA was of a type found in 11% of modern European populations.
Such findings have cast doubt on the traditional view of successive waves of mass immigration annihilating earlier peoples.
In any case, the Neolithic Revolution, as it is called, introduced a more settled way of life and ultimately led to societies becoming divided into differing groups of farmers, artisans and leaders.
The construction of the earliest earthwork sites in Britain began during the early Neolithic (c. 4400 BC- 3300 BC) in the form of long barrows used for communal burial.
The Middle Neolithic (c. 3300 BC-c. 2900 BC) saw the development of cursus monuments close to earlier barrows. The earliest stone circles and individual burials also appear.
New enclosures, called henges were built, along with stone rows and the famous sites of Stonehenge and Silbury Hill reached their peak. Industrial flint mining such as that at Cissbury and Grimes Graves began.
In around 2,700 BC a new culture arrived in Britain, often referred to as the Beaker culture. Beaker pottery appears in the Mount Pleasant Phase (2,700 BC - 2,000 BC) along with flat axes and burial practices of inhumation. The megalithic phases of Stonehenge date to this period.
Britain had large reserves of tin in the areas of Cornwall and Devon in what is now southwest England, and thus tin mining began. By around 1,600 BC the southwest of Britain had a trade boom as British tin was exported across Europe.
The Beaker people were also skilled at making ornaments from gold, and examples of these have been found in graves of the wealthy Wessex culture of southern Britain.
In around 750 BC iron working techniques reached Britain from southern Europe. Iron was stronger and more plentiful than bronze, and its introduction marks the beginning of the Iron Age. Iron working revolutionised many aspects of life, most importantly agriculture. Iron tipped ploughs could churn up land far more quickly and deeply than older wooden or bronze ones, and iron axes could clear forest land far more efficiently for agriculture.
About 900 BC, British society changed again. The Celtic culture had by 500 BC covered most of the British Isles. The Celts were highly skilled craftsmen and produced nicely patterned gold jewellery and weapons in bronze and iron.
Iron Age Britons lived in organised tribal groups, ruled by a chieftain.
As people became more numerous, fights broke out between opposing tribes. This led to the building of hill forts. The first had been built about 1,500 BC. Britain exported hunting dogs, animal skins and slaves.
The last centuries before the Roman invasion saw refugees from Gaul (modern day France and Belgium) known as the Belgae, who were displaced as the Roman Empire expanded.
From around 175 BC they settled in the areas of Kent, Hertfordshire and Essex and brought with them pottery making skills far more advanced than anything produced previously. The Belgae were partially Romanised and were responsible for creating the first settlements large enough to be called towns.
About 100 BC, iron bars began to be used as currency, coinage was developed, based on continental types.
As the Roman Empire expanded northwards, Rome began to take interest in Britain. See Roman Britain for the history of this period.
Domesday Book
The Domesday Book is the record of the great survey of much of England, and parts of Wales, completed in 1086, done for William I of England, or William the Conqueror.
The Domesday Book (also known as "Domesday", or "Book of Winchester") was a record of all taxable land in England, together with such information as would indicate its worth.
As the scribes went round England, they were protected by William's armed men. Each group was led by a Royal Commissioner, who took a list of standard questions. A 'jury' of local nobility and citizens answered the questions. All answers were written down in Latin.
Information was collected from the start of 1086, and working up into the complete volume started later that year. William died in 1087 before the writing-up work was completed.
William the Conqueror wished to know the details of the land he had conquered, England. He let his knights and barons have big areas of land, and wanted rent money from them. The Domesday Book was a record of every farm, village and house so that he knew how much rent he should get. Only some small villages in the countryside are not in the book. Major cities like London and Winchester are also not in the Domesday Book, perhaps because of their size, or because (not owning land), the people could not be taxed.
The Domesday book gave the names of King William's friends and even listed the number of pigs on a piece of land. But it was not like a modern census. It did not give the names of all the people. It listed the heads of each household, but left out Londoners, monks, nuns, and anyone living in castles. In effect, it listed only people he could get rent from, and who might supply men to fight in his army.
The Domesday Book is two volumes. One of the books was called "Great Domesday", and the other was called "Little Domesday". The draft of the second volume, Little Domesday, was never worked up, but no doubt was used for tax collection just the same.
The Domesday book got its name because its lists were so complete that it reminded people of the Last Judgment (which people also call Doomsday, or Domesday) in Christianity, when lists of what people have done go before God for people to be judged.
LD50
The name LD is an abbreviation for "Lethal Dose, 50%" or median lethal dose. It is the amount of the substance required (usually per body weight) to kill 50% of the test population.
The test was created by J.W. Trevan in 1927 but has been phased out. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has begun to approve non-animal alternatives to LD50, in response to research cruelty concerns and the lack of validity/sensitivity of animal tests as they relate to humans.
Dahlerau train disaster
The Dahlerau train disaster was a railway disaster that happened on 27 May 1971. It happened in Dahlerau, which is a part of Radevormwald in Germany.
A passenger train carrying pupils was travelling on the railway line from Wuppertal to Radevormwald on the evening of 27 May 1971.
The pupils belonged to the final year of a school in Radevormwald and were returning from a trip to Bremen. Around 21:00, the train had just left the railway station in "Wuppertal-Beyenburg" and was a few minutes away from the railway station in "Dahlerau". Farther south, a freight train was traveling from Radevormwald to Wuppertal, and had just arrived outside the Dahlerau station. The freight train would have to wait in the station to allow the passenger train to pass. This was necessary because the passenger train was 30 minutes late and there was only one track on the railway line outside the station.
The dispatcher in the station would have to go outside and show a red lantern to the freight train, because there were no signals in the station. Nobody knows for sure what happened, but the freight train went right through the station and onto the track where the passenger train was running. The driver of the freight train later told that the dispatcher in the station had shown him a green light. This was the signal not to stop.
The dispatcher had seen what happened and tried to hold the train back with emergency signals, but he failed and the train disappeared behind a curve. He went into his office to call the station in Wuppertal-Beyenburg, but the passenger train had already left Beyenburg. The dispatcher knew what would happen, and called the police. Meanwhile, about 800 metres north of the station, the two trains crashed. The passenger train was crushed to 1/3 of its length, because it consisted of light railbuses and the freight train locomotive was five times as heavy.
Police, firefighters and ambulances arrived quickly, but had problems rescuing people. This was because the crash happened on a hillside. The parents of the pupils had also heard of the accident and had come to search for their children. In all, 25 people were injured, many of them badly. 46 people died in the accident. Of these 46, 41 were pupils, two teachers, one was a mother who travelled with the children, and two were working for the railway. Only one person walked away from the accident without injuries.
So many people had died that they had to be put in a gymnasium.
The dispatcher died a few weeks after the crash. He had a car accident, but police said it was not suicide. Because the dispatcher could not be asked, investigating the crash was difficult and took about a year. In the end, it was decided that human error was the cause for the accident. Nobody could find out the exact happenings on that evening, and so the case never went before a court. The passenger train was badly damaged and had to be destroyed. The locomotive of the freight train was repaired and stayed in service until 2001.
The victims were buried on 2 June 1971. More than 10,000 people attended the funeral, and all shops in Radevormwald were closed on that day. Many important people went to the funeral, like Chancellor Willy Brandt, and the Minister of Transport. The victims were buried together in a large grave on the Radevormwald cemetery. Later, a memorial was built near the graves as well.
The Deutsche Bundesbahn, the company who was responsible for the railway, changed the lanterns used by the dispatchers. They would not show a red light any more, so that red and green could not be confused any more. They also built the successors of the type of railbus that crashed sturdier, because some people said they had been built too light.
The line from Wuppertal to Radevormwald was closed in 1976.
Walter Guinness, 1st Baron Moyne
Walter Edward Guinness, 1st Baron Moyne DSO & Bar PC (29 March 1880-6 November 1944) was a British politician. Guinness was born in Dublin, Ireland.
From 1907 to 1931 he was Conservative MP for Bury St Edmunds, and saw service in World War I at Passchendaele, earning a medal and bar (second award).
He was killed in 1944 in Cairo, Egypt by the Jewish terrorist group Lehi. His assassination was said to be a message to the British government against British imperialism. Guinness was selected because he was believed to be anti Jewish and made statements supporting sending all Jews in Europe to the African island of Madagascar.
Modern Talking
Modern Talking was a German dance pop duo consisting of Thomas Anders and Dieter Bohlen. Their music was often classified as Europop. Modern Talking is, by sales, the most successful and popular group in Germany, and they a number of hit singles reaching the top-5 in many countries. Some of their most popular and widely known singles are "You're My Heart, You're My Soul", "You Can Win If You Want", "Cheri Cheri Lady", "Brother Louie", "Atlantis Is Calling (S.O.S. for Love)" and "Geronimo's Cadillac".
Modern Talking's first period of activity was from 1984 to 1987. The duo reunified in 1998 and made a successful comeback, releasing more music from 1998 to 2003. Modern Talking's sound, however, was rather different from its original 1980s sound after its reunion. The duo came back in 1998 recording their materials based on what the demand was in central European music markets at the time in the late 1990s, which required their original 1980s mellow Europop sound to switch into 1990s up-tempo Eurodance. The duo released singles which again entered the top-10 not only in their home country but also abroad. Some of those singles were "You're My Heart, You're My Soul '98", "Brother Louie '98", and "You Are Not Alone".
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, also called the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake (known by the scientific community), was a great underwater earthquake. It happened at 00:58:53 UTC (07:58:53 local time) December 26, 2004.
The epicenter of the earthquake was off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. At first, the earthquake was measured as a 9.0 on the Richter scale. It was the longest ever recorded ocean earthquake. It lasted between 500 (8.3 minutes) and 600 (10 minutes) seconds. It was so powerful that it caused the entire Earth to vibrate. It started other earthquakes as far away as Iceland.
The large movement of earth under the water caused a very large and powerful tsunami. The tsunami was called the "Asian tsunami", or the "Boxing Day tsunami" in Australia, Canada, England, and South Africa because it happened on the 26th of December 2004 (Boxing Day). It spread all over the Indian Ocean. The tsunami caused heavy damage to countries such as Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. It also devastated the eastern coast of India, such as the states of Tamil Nadu, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh.
Waves as high as 30m (100ft) killed many people and damaged or destroyed a lot of buildings and other property. Over 225,000 people died or were not found after the tsunami. The wave did damage in East Africa as far away as South Africa (8000km/ 5000mi) where as many as 8 people died because of high water caused by the wave. Because of how much damage was caused and the number of people the earthquake affected, over $7 billion (USD) was donated to help rebuild the areas damaged.
History of Taiwan
Taiwan (minus the Pescadores) is an island of eastern Asia. Its first people were related to Oceanic people with small numbers of Chinese. After the arrival of the Dutch in the 1600s, many Chinese moved to Taiwan to work. Few European people moved to Taiwan, and the native people married with Chinese or moved away from the west side of the island. When the Qing dynasty began in China, a supporter of the old Ming dynasty hid in Taiwan. Eventually the Qing came to Taiwan, defeated him, and added Taiwan to China.
Taiwan remained Chinese territory through most of the Qing dynasty until it was taken by Japan in 1895. Taiwan became a colony of Japan for fifty years until the end of World War Two. For a brief time it was under the control of China through the Guomindang government, but that government lost a civil war and moved to Taiwan. The rule of the Guomindang is considered controversial today. Some criticize its treatment of the people of Taiwan, but others focus on positive political and economic change that it made.
In the 1980s, the government became more democratic. This has also been controversial because it allows different political parties to compete. The Democratic Progressive Party gained influence. During this time, Taiwan has officially been called the Republic of China but has acted independently of China. The People's Republic of China demands that Taiwan must become a part of China, while most Taiwanese debate the appropriate political status for today. These perspectives make complications in the politics of Taiwan.
The original people to move to Taiwan can be called the Aboriginal people. They have many similarities with others societies called Austronesian. Chinese historians have mentioned Taiwan several times since its Three Kingdoms period, although it was considered a land of barbarians.
About 50000 years ago was called the "Old Stone Age" in Taiwan. At that time, people hit rocks against each other to make tools. The most famous culture of Taiwanese old stone age is Changping Culture. The Changping culture's monument is the Eight Gods' Hole Monument in Taitung Conty.
About 5000 years ago was the "New Stone Age". People in New Stone Age sharpened stones to make tools. We can take New Stone Age into three parts. The most famous cultures are the Tapenken culture, the Beinan culture, and the Yuanshan culture. The Tapenken culture monument is the Tapenken Monument (also known as T.P.K.) in Taipei, the Beinan culture's monument is the Puyuma Relics in Taitung Conty, and the Yuanshan culture's monument is the Yuanshan Monument in Taipei City.
About 2000 years ago was the "Metal Age". In the Metal Age, people used metal to make tools, and started trading. The most famous culture in Metal Age is the Thirteen Hangs Cultures. Its monument is the Thirteen Hangs Monument in Taipei County.
In the 17th century, the Dutch took control of Taiwan. During this time, it was a Dutch colony and it encouraged Chinese people to move there. Few Chinese had lived on Taiwan until this time. As more Chinese moved to Taiwan there was conflict with the Aboriginal people. The Aboriginal people either married with Chinese or moved away from the west of Taiwan. During the time of Dutch control, Spain also briefly held northern Taiwan but the Dutch removed them in 1642.
In 1644, the Qing Dynasty began ruling China, and Ming Dynasty's courtier, Koxinga landed Taiwan, removed the Dutch, and ruled Taiwan. He turned it into a place to resist the Qing Dynasty. This period is called "the period of Ming Zheng", or the Kingdom of Tungning, the Kingdom of Yanping. One year later, the Qing Dynasty ended the Kindom of Tungning. The Qing Dynasty ruled Taiwan for 212 years until 1895.
Japan first showed interest in Taiwan in the 1870s. It tested the strength of the Qing Dynasty's control in 1871. Some ship-wrecked Okinawan fishermen were killed by Aboriginal people in southern Taiwan and Japan demanded compensation. Okinawa had secretly paid tribute to both China and Japan. In this situation Japan claimed Okinawa was part of Japan and it must protect its own people. There was no war but China stated it could not control barbarian people. Japan used this excuse to demand Taiwan after it defeated China in the First Sino-Japanese War. Taiwanese people rebelled without the support of China and created the Republic of Formosa that lasted for about one year. Japan crushed Taiwanese resistance, but it was the beginning of Taiwanese nationalism.
In 1945, the Republic of China won the Second Sino-Japanese War. The Allied Powers agreed to divide the territory of the Japanese Empire, and Taiwan would be returned to Chinese control. The Chinese civil war occurred at this time, and in 1949 the Guomindang lost and escaped to Taiwan. Taiwan was ruled by this one party until democratic reforms began in the 1980s.