AcharyaChanakya/simple-wikipedia huggingface dataset:
A study by eleven graduate students from the University of Pennsylvania showed that Philadelphia should have considered bidding for the 2024 Olympics. The study said that one of the city's biggest challenges would be convincing the voters who select the host city that Philadelphia is a "world-class city", something that "will require strategic changes in the city’s landscape in conjunction with a persuasive marketing strategy". The study mentions that when arriving in the city from Philadelphia International Airport, it is difficult to find a route that does not have abandoned oil tanks, old structures and thousands of tons of waste. One good thing about having the Games in Philadelphia is that it is near many large cities.
On July 10, 2007 it was revealed that the Canadian Olympic Committee had worked on a potential bid for the 2020 or 2024 games for Toronto, the capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. This would have been Toronto's third bid for the summer Olympic games, after unsuccessful bids for the 1996 and 2008 Summer Games.
The subtropical city of Brisbane would seriously consider bidding for the Olympic Games in 2020 or 2024, former Queensland Premier Peter Beattie has said. His announcement came after IOC President Jacques Rogge said the IOC would love to see a bid from Brisbane in the future.
Australia hosted the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne. In 1986, Brisbane lost the bid for the 1992 Summer Olympics, which were held in Barcelona. However, Brisbane has experience in hosting major international sporting events; the city hosted the 1982 Commonwealth Games and the 2001 Goodwill Games.
Australia also hosted the Olympic games in Sydney, 2000.
2022 Winter Olympics
The 2022 Winter Olympics, formally called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games, is the 24th Games of the Winter Olympics. It is an international winter sports event that will be held from February 4 to February 20, 2022. The winning bid was announced in the summer of 2015 and Beijing was chosen, and since it hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, it will be the first city ever to host both the Summer and the Winter Olympics.
Guarneri
Guarneri is the name of a family of famous violin makers from Cremona in Italy in the 17th and 18th centuries. Together with the families Amati and Stradivari they made some of the best violins the world has known.
Andrea Guarneri (c. 1626 - 7 December 1698) was a pupil in the workshop of Nicolo Amati from 1641 to 1646 and returned to make violins for Amati from 1650 to 1654. He married a rich lady and they were able to buy a large house which became known as the “Casa Guarneri”. They had seven children. Two of his sons: Pietro Giovanni and Giuseppe Giovanni, became violin makers. Andrea Guarneri produced some fine violas, one of which was played by William Primrose in the early 20th century.
Pietro Giovanni Guarneri (18 February 1655 - 26 March 1720), known as Peter of Mantua ("Pietro da Mantova") to distinguish him from his nephew Pietro Guarneri. He worked in his father's workshop from around 1670 until his marriage in 1677. He had settled in Mantua by 1683, where he worked both as a musician and a violin maker. His instruments are generally better than his father's. However, he did not make so many instruments because he spent a lot of his time playing them. None of his children became violin makers. Joseph Szigeti played one of his instruments.
Andrea's younger son, Giuseppe Giovanni Battista Guarneri (25 November 1666 - 1739 or 1740), known as "filius Andreae", joined his father's business in Cremona. He inherited it in 1698. He is one of the great violin makers.
Giuseppe Giovanni Battista was father to two other instrument makers: Pietro Guerneri who settled in Venice and Bartolomeo.
Pietro Guarneri (Peter of Venice or "Pietro da Venezia") (14 April 1695 - 7 April, 1762) made some instruments that are as great as those of his father. One of his cellos was played by Beatrice Harrison.
Bartolomeo Giuseppe Guarneri ("del Gesù"), also known as Joseph (21 August 1698 - 17 October 1744), has been called the finest violin maker of the Amati line (Amati and his pupils). Giuseppe is known as "del Gesù" because his labels always have the characters I.H.S. ("iota-eta-sigma") and a Roman cross. His instruments are different from the others made by his family. They are thought of as the greatest violins with the exception of those by Stradivari. The famous violin virtuoso Niccolò Paganini’s favorite instrument was a Guarneri del Gesù violin of 1743. The "Lord Wilton" Guarneri del Gesù violin made in 1742 was owned by Yehudi Menuhin and other Twentieth-century 'del Gesù' players have included, Arthur Grumiaux, Jascha Heifetz, Isaac Stern and Henryk Szeryng.
Amati
Amati is the name of a family of Italian violin makers. Between about 1549 to 1740 they made some of the most wonderful violins that were ever produced. They worked in Cremona in Italy, the town which is famous for violin making.
famous member of the family was Andrea Amati who was born some time before 1511 and died in Cremona on 24 December 1577. He can be thought of as the inventor of the violin in its modern form. He made violins, violas and cellos. A small number of his instruments are still in existence. They are dated between 1564 and 1574 and they have the coat of arms of Charles IX of France on the back.
Andrea Amati’s two sons were Antonio Amati who was born about 1540 in Cremona and died there on 14 February 1607 and Girolamo Amati who was born about 1561 in Cremona and died of the plague there on 21 October 1630. They are known as "The Brothers Amati", but they did not work much together. However, they both produced some great instruments. They made the shape of the f holes perfect and gave their instruments more strength. They also made some large violas and cellos. They had an enormous influence on all other violin makers.
Nicolò Amati was the son of Girolamo Amati. He is now the most famous member of the family. He was born on 3 December 1596 and died on 12 April 1684) He was the most eminent of the family. He had become a very skilled violin maker by 1630 when his father died. During the next few years there was a lot of suffering because of the plague and not many people could afford to buy instruments. Then, after 1640, there was more demand again and Nicolò made many great instruments. Those that have survived are among the most sought-after and expensive violins today. He made instruments that were slightly wider and were known as the “Grand Pattern”. Many other violin makers learned from him. These pupils include Andrea Guarneri and possibly also Antonio Stradivari.
The last maker of the family was Nicolo's son, Girolamo Amati, known as Hieronymus II. He was born on 26 February and died on 21 February, 1740. Although he made some improvements to his father's instruments, they are not as good. Antonio Stradivari became the greatest violin maker at this time.
The Guardians of Scotland were appointed to act as King during the two "interregnums" of 1290-1292 and 1296-1302.
An interregum is a time when a monarchy has no king. It is from the Latin for "between reigns".
Montel Vontavious Porter
Alvin Burke, Jr. (born October 28, 1973) is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is better known by the ring name Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP). He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). He has also worked with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). He is a former one time WWE Tag Team Champion with Matt Hardy and a former two time WWE United States Champion.
He spent six months in a juvenile detention center after a robbery and later completed 9½ years of an 18½ year prison sentence for armed robbery and kidnapping which at the time he started it he was sixteen. He has a rare heart condition called Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. He converted to Islam while in prison but has since described himself as a nonbeliever.
A pretzel (French: "Bretzel", Alsatian: "bradchdal", German: "Breze" or "Brezel") is a baked snack that originated in Germany. It is traditionally twisted into a unique knot-like shape. The pretzel dough is made from wheat flour and yeast. Before baking, it is dipped into "Natronlauge" (, sodium hydroxide solution (NaOH) or sodium carbonate solution (NaCO)) and sprinkled with coarse salt. During baking, a Maillard reaction then gives the pretzel its characteristic brown color and distinctive flavor. In Bavaria, it is obligatory in a Weißwurst breakfast.
Because they are made mostly of wheat, pretzels can be problematic for people who have wheat allergy, coeliac disease, or wheat intolerances.
There are different types of pretzels, like chocolate pretzels.
Shoplifting is theft by stealing goods or money from a retail store. Shoplifting is punishable by law enforcement.
Steroid
A steroid is a organic compound, either natural or man-made, which has four cycloalkane rings in its structure. Plants, animals and fungi make hundreds of different natural steroids.
Steroid hormones are steroids which act as hormones in the body. Natural steroid hormones are usually made from cholesterol in the adrenal glands and gonads. Cholesterol is a plentiful steroid in animal cells: it is important for cell membranes.
Examples of steroid hormones include
One review noted: The adrenal gland hormones play a vital role in adapting to "ever-changing environmental and emergency situations, and help vertebrates in their successful survival".
Prednisone is an important man-made steroid medication, used to treat inflammation.
Some steroid hormones are anabolic steroids (AAS). Since the discovery and synthesis of testosterone in the 1930s, AAS have been used by physicians for many purposes, with varying degrees of success:
Certain anabolic steroids, such as testosterone, are used to help make muscles stronger. Such steroids are used to improve a person's performance, but they are sometimes overused and abused by athletes. The rate of steroid abuse grew greatly in the early 21st century, all over the world. Overuse of anabolic steroids can have bad effects on the human body. They can cripple or kill. Sports organisations now regulate their use.
Road rage
Graceland is a 13.8 acre estate and large white-colored mansion that was owned by Elvis Presley. It is located in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
Harry Shearer
Harry Julius Shearer (born December 23, 1943, in Los Angeles, California) is an American comedic actor, voice actor, comedian, writer, musician, author, radio host, director and producer. Shearer is famous for playing the voices of several minor characters for "The Simpsons" (1989 to present).
Shearer was a child actor. He acted on the Jack Benny radio program.
Shearer was a member of the Credibility Gap comedy group. The radio stations KRLA and later KPPC broadcast the Credibility Gap. He performed on the Pop Chronicles music documentary.
Shearer portrayed Derek Smalls in the 1984 comedy movie "This is Spinal Tap". Rob Reiner directed this movie.
Shearer speaks the voices for many characters on "The Simpsons" cartoon. Some of the characters he plays are Mr. Burns, Waylon Smithers, and Ned Flanders.
Nancy Cartwright
Nancy Jean Cartwright (born on October 25, 1957 in Dayton, Ohio) is an American actress, voice actress, comedian, clown, jester, mime and tap dance. She is known for providing the voices of Bart Simpson, Nelson Muntz, Todd Flanders and Ralph Wiggum on the animated television show "The Simpsons". She also plays the voice of Chuckie Finster on "Rugrats" and "All Grown Up!".
Cartwright graduated from Fairmont High School. She went to Ohio University and the University of Los Angeles (UCLA). At UCLA, she earned a degree in theatre.
Coco Lee
Coco Lee (; born Ferren Lee, 17 January 1975, Hong Kong) is a Hong Kong-American pop, dance and urban contemporary singer. Her real name is Ferren Lee-Kelly and 李美林 Lǐ Měi Lín in Chinese (although she also uses the stage name 李玟 Lǐ Wen when she writes songs). She sings Cantonese, Mandarin and English.
CoCo Lee was born in Hong Kong to a Chinese Indonesian father and a Hong Kong Chinese mother. Her father died when she was young, and CoCo moved at age 10 with her mother, and her 2 sisters to California, United States. She went through school while trying out her singing voice and she followed her older sisters in entering many local singing contests. CoCo Lee went to high school in San Francisco, California. CoCo later went for a short time to the University of California, Irvine. CoCo is close to her mother, who has at times managed her career.
After Lee's high school graduation in 1993, she went on holiday in Hong Kong, probably seeing her two sisters Carol and Nancy Lee take part in the Miss Hong Kong Pageant, and while there, she became runner-up in the 12th Annual New Talent Singing Awards. The following day, the local record label Capital artists Records contacted her.
CoCo Lee appeared in some compilations with other singers with Capital artists. Then, in 1994 she worked with Fancy Pie Records and recorded four albums with them. She later signed with another record company in 1996 by Sony Music, who has continued to represent her until 2008. After that, she changed her record company and decided to work with Warner Music (Taiwan).
CoCo sang the song "A Love Before Time" for the action-drama movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. People around the world could see her when she sang this song live at the 2001 Academy Awards ceremony.
In 2002, CoCo was the star singer at a Houston Rockets basketball game. She became the first East Asian singer to ever sing the American National Anthem at a major world sporting event.
Aside from her fame in singing Mandarin music, CoCo's English-language songs have also become famous. Her love song "Before I Fall In Love" was included in the soundtrack of the romance movie Runaway Bride.
Walt Disney Pictures also hired her to sing the title song and be the voice of the heroine Fa Mulan in the Mandarin version of Mulan. She recorded the song "Reflections", which she also sang at the 2005 opening of the Hong Kong Disneyland with Lea Salonga. A "Reflections" PV was also filmed. She also sang an English version which appears on her maxi single "Take a chance on love".
CoCo has been getting into acting part-time. She co-starred in the Chinese comedy movie "Master of Everything (Bamboo Shoot)" with John Lone, which won the Best Foreign Film award at the 2005 Beverly Hills Film Festival. While in character within the movie, she sings one of her own songs, "Di da di".
In the world of fashion, CoCo was an Omega Global Ambassador in 2004, and Chanel named CoCo its first "Asian-Pacific Celebrity Ambassadress" in 2001. She got her nickname "CoCo" from being an admirer of CoCo Chanel.
In June 2005, CoCo's engagement to Canadian millionaire businessman Bruce Rockowitz was made public, although it seems to have happened some months earlier. Even though Rockowitz is 18 years older than she, her mother approved the marriage.
CoCo returned to the San Francisco bay area in 2007 for a live concert at the Shoreline Amphitheatre on 22 September 2007 with special guest Alex To. It was her first live performance in her hometown in several years.
In 2008, Coco was chosen to sing one of the Olympic songs, "Forever Friends", opposite Sun Nan.
On July 17 2009, she had a solo concert at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. She's the first Chinese singer to ever performed in this place. She notably sang 3 Michael Jackson's songs "Gone too soon", "Rock with you" and "The way you make me feel" in homage to her idol.
On August 14, she released her new Mandarin album "East to west" with Warner Music. The main hit singles are "Party time", "Beautiful theme song" and "Turn". It also contains the cover of Jay Sean's "Maybe" called "Love now" and "BYOB", a song to encourage people to bring and recycle their own shopping bags to save the environment.
She recorded the song "Smile Shanghai" (微笑上海) with other artists including JJ Lin, Andy Lau, Jam Hsiao or Jane Zhang for Shanghai World Expo 2010.
On March, 27 2010, Lee began her "East2West" World Tour Concert in Taipei at Taipei Arena. She pursued at the Encore Theatre in Wynn Casino in Las Vegas on July 3 and 4, then in Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore on October 2 and in Nanning on December 16.
CoCo Lee's voice has been favourably compared with that of Mariah Carey and other western artistes, due to her tonality, strength and vocal range. Her voice is classified as a mezzo-soprano, with a vocal range of three octaves. Her lowest recorded note is an E3 and highest recorded note is E6. Her highest chest voice note is F6 in the song Before I Fall in Love.
In March 2011, Lee was one of many artists participating in the recording of "Artists 311 Love Beyond Borders" (愛心無國界311燭光晚會) official theme song called "Succomb not to sorrow" (不要輸給心痛) in Cantonese version.
On April 7, 2011, her song "Dreams on oriental seas" (梦在东方的海上) featuring Sun Nan was broadcasted. It has been named as he theme for the 14th FINA world championships, that will take place in Shanghai on July 2011.
On June 8, 2011, Lee announced that she recently set up her own studio. That way, she's more free to write and produce music that she loves. Her new album is planned for Summer 2011.
On June 25, her song "Four seas alliance" (四海盟約), the theme song for the 2011 China television drama "Water Margin" (水滸傳), was broadcasted.
"Not exhaustive"
Daniel Schneidermann
Daniel Schneidermann (born April 5, 1958 in Paris) is a French journalist. He mainly reports about televised media. He is most active in weekly columns. Schneidermann has written in "Le Monde" and is presently in "Libération". He also can be seen on the television program "Arrêt sur images" ("Freeze-frame"), broadcast by the public television channel France 5.
Pound (mass)
A pound (usually abbreviated as lb, plural lbs) is a unit used to measure the mass of something. It is used in the imperial system and the United States customary system. There are a number of different definitions. The most commonly used definitions band today is the international avoirdupois pound. This is equal to , and is divided into 16 avoirdupois ounces.
The avoirdupois pound (abbreviation lb., plural lbs.) is the most common unit. This type is used for all purposes except the uses of the troy pound. Most people from the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Liberia and Burma use this as their standard measure of their personal mass.
The troy pound (abbreviation t lb., plural t lbs.) is generally not used anymore. It was used in England by apothecaries and jewellers. A troy pound contains 12 troy ounces. The troy ounce is still used to measure the mass of precious metals and gems.
In some European countries, a metric pound is an informal term for half a kilogram (500 grams). In the Netherlands, however, the metric pound () is equal to one kilogram.
Eastern Armenia
Eastern Armenia was a part of Ottoman Armenia and Persian that was merged with the Russian empire.
The Eastern Armenian dialect of the Armenian language is spoken mostly in the Caucasus region (including Armenia) and in Iran and Russia.
Western Armenia
Western Armenia (), also referred to as Byzantine Armenia, later Turkish Armenia, or Ottoman Armenia is a term coined following the division of Greater Armenia between Byzantine Empire ("Western Armenia") and Persia ("Eastern Armenia") in 387 AC.
After the death of Armenian king "Arshak III", in 390 AC, the Western Armenia was governed by Greek generals. In the 7th century Western Armenia was one of the centers of "Pavlikian" Christian popular sect. Since 9th century the most part of Western Armenia included Vaspurakan and Taron was under the rule of Bagratid dynasty of Armenia. Then the Zakarid Armenia of 13-14th centuries included some parts of Western Armenia.
After Turkish-Persian wars of 1602-1639 Western Armenia became part of Ottoman Empire. Since Russo-Turkish War, 1828-1829 that term is referred to the Armenian-populated historical regions of the Ottoman Empire that remained under Ottoman rule after the eastern part was ceded to the Russian Empire.
Western (Ottoman) Armenia was composed of six vilayets ("vilâyat-ı sitte"), the vilayets of Erzurum, Van, Bitlis, Diyarbekir, Kharput, and Sivas. After the collapse of Ottoman Empire Western Armenia remained under Turkish rule, and in 1894–96 and 1915 Turkey perpetrated systematic massacres and forced deportations of Armenians.
After the Armenian genocide the distinct Western Armenian dialect of the Armenian language (recognized as one of the major dialects of Armenian ) is spoken primarily in Istanbul, Lebanon, Egypt, other parts of Armenian diaspora, and formerly in eastern Turkey. It differs orthographically from Eastern Armenian, there are also phonological differences. In some parts of the diaspora, the Armenian schools, such as L'École Arménienne Sourp Hagop and the Armenian Sisters Academy instruct Western Armenian to the students, instead of Eastern Armenian, the official dialect of the Republic of Armenia.
The fate of Western Armenia — commonly referred to as "The Armenian Question" — is considered as a key issue in the modern history of the Armenian people. The first and second congresses of Western Armenians took place in Yerevan in 1917 and 1919. Since 2000, an organizing committee of congress of heirs of Western Armenians who survived the Armenian Genocide is active in diasporan communities.
Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569)
The Kingdom of Poland of the Jagiellons lasted from 1385 to 1569. It was created by the accession of Wladislaus II Jagiełło, Grand Duke of Lithuania, to the Polish throne in 1386. The Union of Krewo united Poland and Lithuania into one monarchy. The union was confirmed but also transformed by the Union of Lublin in 1569, which was shortly followed by the end of the Jagiellon dynasty that had ruled Poland for two centuries.
Jagiellon dynasty
The Jagiellons were a royal dynasty that came from Lithuania and reigned in some Central European countries (present day Lithuania, Belarus, Poland, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia, Kaliningrad, parts of Russia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia) between the 14th and 16th century.
Members of the dynasty were grand dukes of Lithuania 1377–1392 and 1440–1572, kings of Poland 1386–1572, kings of Hungary 1440–1444 and 1490–1526, and kings of Bohemia 1471–1526. The family was a branch of the Lithuanian Gediminaičių dynasty.
The name (other variations used in English include: Jagiellonians, Jagiellos, Jogailos, Jagiellas) comes from Jogaila ("pol.:" Jagiełło), the first Polish king of that dynasty.
Jagiellons were hereditary rulers of Poland and Lithuania.
The Jagiellon rulers of Poland–Lithuania (with dates of ruling in brackets) were:
Aqua regia
Aqua regia ("Royal water" in Latin) is a very strong acid. It is made by mixing one part concentrated nitric acid and three parts concentrated hydrochloric acid. The acid was named by alchemists because it can dissolve the noble metals gold and platinum. Tantalum, iridium and a few other metals are not dissolved by it.
Aqua regia was discovered around the year 800AD, by Jabir Bin Hayyan (Geber), when he mixed common salt with vitriol (sulphuric acid). In the Middle Ages it was one of the ways that alchemists tried to find the philosopher's stone.
When Germany invaded Denmark in World War II, the Hungarian chemist took the Nobel Prize medals of and to keep them safe. De Hevesy dissolved the medals, which were made of gold, into aqua regia. He did this so the Nazis would not steal them. He placed the jar that held the solution of aqua regia and gold on a shelf in his laboratory at the . The jar looked the same as hundreds of other jars in the laboratory, so the Nazis thought that all the jars had normal chemicals in them. After the war, de Hevesy returned to the lab, found the jar with the solution, and removed the gold from it. He returned the gold to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and the Nobel Foundation used the gold to make new medals for Laue and Franck.
Aqua Regia is used in metal etching and scientific analysis. It is also used to clean certain lab machines from tiny metal particles. It is particularly used in the extraction and purification of gold and platinum. Users mix it immediately before use so it won't decompose.
Inari (mythology)
The traditional messengers of Inari are foxes.
The Kurgan model of Indo-European origins is about both the people and their Proto-Indo-European language.
It uses both archaeology and linguistics to show the history of their culture at different stages of the Indo-European expansion.
The Kurgan model is the most widely accepted theory on the origins of Indo-European.
When it was first suggested in 1956, Marija Gimbutas's answer to the question of Indo-European origins was a pioneering interdisciplinary synthesis of archaeology and linguistics. From the nineties on, new archaeological evidence from Northern European prehistoric cultures was put forward on the influence and expansion of Kurgan cultures.
Marija Gimbutas
Marija Gimbutas (Lithuanian: Marija Gimbutienė, born Marija Birutė Alseikaitė) (Vilnius, Lithuania, January 23, 1921 – Los Angeles, United States February 2, 1994), was a Lithuanian-American archeologist, known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of "Old Europe" and the theories that she introduced. Between 1946 and 1971, her writings merged traditional spadework with linguistics and mythologies.
Luwians
The Luwians also known as "Luvians" were a people closely related to the Hittites. Sometime after 2300, the Luwians, an Indo-European-speaking people, settled in southern Anatolia.
The Luwians were related to the Hittites and were the dominant group in the Late Hittite culture.
Phrygia
White Genocide
White Genocide (Armenian: Ճերմակ or սպիտակ ջարդ, Jermag or Spitag Chart) is the word Western Armenians use to describe assimilation in the West. Armenians were forcibly deported from their homeland in Anatolia during the Armenian Genocide in 1915-1918, and never allowed to return. Western Armenians consider Armenians who assimilate within the local population of the country where they were eventually forced to emigrate (such as France, USA, Argentina, etc.) as lost to their nation due to the continuing exile after the actual genocide itself, and thus consider that lost Armenian to be another victim of the genocidal attempt to eliminate the Armenians. The term "White Genocide" was also used for the regions of Nagorno-Karabakh and Nakhichevan where Armenians were forcibly deported and cleansed from the regions.
Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (born 11 March 1978 in Abidjan) is a retired Côte d'Ivoire professional football player.
He lived in Abidjan until he was 5 years old and then he moved to France to live with his uncle, Michael Goba. His uncle had been a professional football player in Côte d'Ivoire.
In the 2006/07 season, he was the top scorer of the English Premier League with 20 goals. Drogba played for Le Mans at Ligue 2 in 1998. He moved to Olympique Marseille in 2003 and scored 29 goals in the next season. In July 2004, Drogba moved to Chelsea in the English Premier League. Drogba stayed at Chelsea for about 10 years. Drogba was a member of Côte d'Ivoire’s national team and was their top scorer with 65 goals in 105 appearances.
144||51||8||6||8||2||16||11||176||70
134||55||18||7||13||7||49||23||214||92
278||106||26||13||21||9||65||34||390||162
!Total||60||41
Muscatine, Iowa
Muscatine is a city in Muscatine County, Iowa. In 2000, 22,697 people lived in the city of Muscatine.
Muscatine began as a trading post in 1833. The city was first called Bloomington in 1839. The name was later changed because there were so many other cities named Bloomington. Some people think the name "Muscatine" came from the name of a local Native American tribe.
A person from Germany founded a button company in Muscatine in 1884. They made buttons from clam shells found in the Mississippi river. Muscatine was and still is called the "Pearl button capital of the world."
Sam Clemens, also called Mark Twain, worked at the newspaper the city for a short amount of time. He also wrote about Muscatine in his book "Life on the Mississippi".
""And I remember Muscatine--still more pleasantly--for its summer sunsets. I have never seen any, on either side of the ocean, that equaled them. They used the broad smooth river as a canvas, and painted on it every imaginable dream of color, from the and delicacies of the opal, all the way up, through cumulative intensities, to blinding purple and crimson conflagrations which were enchanting to the eye, but sharply tried it at the same time. All the Upper Mississippi region has these extraordinary sunsets as a familiar spectacle. It is the true Sunset Land: I am sure no other country can show so good a right to the name. The sunrises are also said to be exceedingly fine. I do not know.""
Armenian Army
Armenian Air Defense
The Armenian Air Defense is the anti-aircraft group of the Armed Forces of Armenia. It was a part of the military reform program of Ter-Grigoriants.
Armenian anti-aircraft defense has an anti-aircraft missile brigade and two regiments armed with 100 missile launchers of various models and fixes. These missile launchers include the M79 Osa, Krug, S-75, S-125, and S-300. There are also 24 Scud ballistic missiles with eight launchers.
Armed Forces of Armenia
The Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia is the Army, Air Defense, and Border Guard. Some parts were formed out of the former Soviet forces in the Armenian SSR.
The Commander-in-Chief of the military is the President of Armenia, currently Robert Kocharyan. The Ministry of Defense is in charge of political leadership. It is currently headed by Mikael Harutyunyan. Military command is in the hands of the General Staff, headed by the Chief of Staff, who is Lieutenant-General Seyran Ohanyan. Armenia established a Ministry of Defense on 28 January 1992. The Border guards purpose is to patrol Armenia's borders with Georgia and Azerbaijan, while Russian troops continue to watch its borders with Iran and Turkey.
President of Armenia
President of Armenia is the head of state of Armenia since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrosyan (Armenian: Լևոն Տեր-Պետրոսյան; Russian: Левон Тер-Петросян) (born January 9, 1945), also Levon Ter-Petrosyan, was the President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998. Because of many economic and political problems, he resigned on February 3, 1998. He was replaced by Robert Kocharyan. Levon Ter Petrosian, announced he will run again for office in the presidential election which will start next year. Ter-Petrossian was born in Aleppo, Syria to an Armenian-Syrian family of genocide survivors. They emigrated to Armenia in 1946.
In 1968, Ter-Petrossian graduated from the Oriental Studies Department of the Yerevan State University. In 1972, he completed his postgraduate studies at the Leningrad State University. In 1987, he received his doctoral degree from the same university. In 1972-1978, Ter-Petrossian worked as junior researcher at the Literature Institute of Armenia named after Manouk Abeghian. In 1978-1985, he held the post of science secretary at Matenadaran named after Saint Mesrop Mashtots. Since 1985, Ter-Petrossian has been working at Matenadaran as a senior researcher.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EERMf2jdMlc
Intonation (music)
Intonation, in music, can have two different meanings:
Musical tuning
In music tuning an instrument means getting it ready so that when it is played it will sound at the correct pitch: not too high or too low.
When two or more instruments play together it is particularly important that they are in tune with one another. This means that when they play the same note it is indeed exactly the same note. If the two instruments are not in tune with one another it will sound unpleasant because two notes which are very slightly different in pitch will produce a “beat”.
Instruments such as the piano or organ have to be tuned by people who are specialists in tuning. For most instruments, however, the players themselves need to tune their instruments before they play. Players of string instruments can turn the pegs at the top of their instruments to change the tension (tightness) of the string. Players of wind instruments can make their instruments very slightly longer or shorter by pushing out or pulling in one of the joints. Timpanists turn the taps which are around the top of their instruments to change the tension of the drum head.
When an orchestra gives a concert the instruments have to tune carefully so that they are in tune with one another. Usually it is the principal oboist’s job to stand up and play the note A so that everyone can tune to that note. In some countries such as the US it is tradition for the principal violinist (concertmaster) to give the A. If the orchestra are going to play with a piano soloist they will have to tune to the A of the piano because the piano has already been tuned by the piano tuner.
When a violinist tunes his instrument he is making sure that his four strings are tuned perfectly to G, D, A and E. Each string is wound around a peg near the top of the scroll, so that turning the peg changes the tuning. He may also have “adjusters” or “fine tuners” which are at the other end of the string where it is attached to the tailpiece. The adjusters make it easier to make small changes to the tuning. The violinist will make sure that the A is in tune, then the A and D can be played together so that they are exactly a fifth apart, then the D and G and finally the A and E are compared.
If they are not tuning to a piano, players of instruments sometimes use a tuning fork which gives an exact note (usually an A) so that they know they are in tune. There are also electronic tuning devices.
When an instrument such as the piano is tuned, the piano tuner has to know how to make each note relate correctly to the others. During the course of music history there have been several systems of doing this. These different "tuning systems" are all about the exact scientific relationship between the notes of the scale. There has been an enormous amount of discussion among musicians about how best to tune instruments.
When two notes are an octave apart the higher note is vibrating at twice the speed of the lower note. For example: if a string is vibrating at 440 Hz (440 times a second) the note we hear is an A (the A above Middle C on the piano). If the string is stopped halfway up (e.g. because the player presses it down with a finger) it will vibrate at 880 Hz and we will hear the note one octave higher.
The note which vibrates at 1 ½ times the frequency of the basic note will be the note a perfect fifth higher (an E).
If a piano tuner starts by tuning a C, then tunes a G so that it is exactly 1 ½ times the frequency of the C, he can continue tuning in fifths (a D, then an A etc.) until he arrives back at C again. However, he will find that, for mathematical reasons, the last C is not in tune with the first C. This was discovered long ago by Pythagoras and is called “the comma of Pythagoras”.
Musical tuning systems throughout the centuries have tried to find ways of dealing with this problem. From the 16th century onwards several music theorists wrote long books about the best way to tune keyboard instruments. They often started by tuning up a fifth and down a fifth so that these notes were perfectly in tune (e.g. C, G and F), then they would continue (tuning the D to the G and B flat to the F) until they met in the middle around F sharp. Sometimes old organs today are tuned by such a method. Playing in keys with very few sharps or flats (such as C, G or F) sounds very beautiful, but playing in keys with lots of sharps or flats sounds horribly out of tune.
In 1584, Zhu Zaiyu, a prince of Chinese Ming Dynasty, published the invention of equal temperament in his book "A New Account of the Science of the Pitch-Pipes." In 1585 Simon Stevin invented a similar system. Some scholars think one of these really invented this system. Others think both did, or neither.
Around 1700, based on this new system, the great composer Johann Sebastian Bach wrote two books of 24 preludes and fugues (called the "Well-tempered Clavier)" to prove that it was now possible to play in any key.
Here are some of the main ways of tuning the twelve-note chromatic scale which have been developed in order to get round the problem that an instrument cannot be tuned so that all intervals are "perfect":
List of members of the Red Army Faction
This is a list of Members of the Red Army Faction. After Andreas Baader escaped from jail in 1970, the media began referring to the "Baader-Meinhoff Gang". When Baader and Meinhof were arrested, they became known as the Red Army Faction.
These are the earliest members, from the late 1960s. The most important had all been arrested by 1972.
Other young terrorists available to swell the shrinking ranks of the Gang. Like the first generation they were mostly middle class and a lot of them were students. A lot of them were terrorists who joined the Gang after their own groups dissolved (e.g. the Socialist Patients' Collective (SPK), J2M).
This generation was active mostly throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. More vicious than their predecessors, they did not have as much cause as the earlier generations to rebel.
Captain of Köpenick
The Captain of Köpenick (born Wilhelm Voigt on February 13, 1849 - January 3, 1922) was a German shoemaker, criminal and impostor who became world-famous in 1906 for a trick he played in Berlin when he pretended to be a Captain in the army.
Voigt was born in Tilsit, a town which was then part of Germany but is now called Sovetsk near Kaliningrad, Russia. In 1863, aged 14, he was sent to prison for 14 days for stealing. He was expelled from school.
Voigt’s father taught him how to make shoes. However, Voigt continued to steal and forge and was often sent to prison. Eventually he was let out of prison in 1906.
Voigt travelled around until he went to live with his sister who lived near Berlin. He worked briefly as a court shoemaker until, on August 24, 1906, police expelled him from Berlin as an “undesirable” (someone who is not wanted). Although he was supposed to have gone to Hamburg he stayed in Berlin. He could not get a job because he was an unregistered citizen, but he could not register to live in Berlin because he had no job.
On October 16 1906 Voigt was ready for the big adventure that made him famous. He had bought parts of a captain's uniform from different shops. He had resigned from the shoe factory ten days before. He put on the captain’s uniform and went to the local army barracks, stopped four grenadiers and a sergeant on their way back to barracks and told them to come with him.
These soldiers had been taught to obey officers without asking any questions, so they did what they were told. He told the commanding sergeant to report to his boss, and told 6 more soldiers to come with him. Then he took a train with the soldiers to Köpenick, east of Berlin, occupied the local city hall and told the soldiers to guard all the exits.
He told the local Police to go and look for people breaking the law, and told the local Post Office not to let anyone make telephone calls to Berlin for an hour (this was in the early days of the telephone when people could not dial numbers automatically: they had to ask the Post Office to make the connection).
He arrested the town secretary and the mayor, saying that they had been taking money from the town hall, and he took a large amount of money: 4002 marks and 37 pfennigs, signing a receipt for it, but using the name of the governor of the jail where he had been.
Then he stopped two carriages and told the grenadiers to use them to take the mayor and the treasurer to the police so that they could be questioned. He told the remaining guards to stand in their places for half an hour. Then he went to the train station. Later he changed back into ordinary clothes and disappeared.
During the next few days the newspapers around the world reported what had happened. Everybody seemed to think it was a very amusing joke.
Voigt was arrested on October 26 and on December 1 he was sentenced to four years in prison for forgery, impersonating (pretending to be) an officer and wrongful imprisonment. However, so many people seemed to have sympathy with Voigt. Even the Emperor Wilhelm II was probably amused by it and he pardoned him on August 16, 1908.
In England everybody thought the whole story was funny. The English people thought it showed that the stereotype (idea) they had about Germans was right, i.e. that they were taught to obey orders and not to think.
After Voigt had been pardoned and let out of jail he spent his remaining years travelling to many countries including United States and Canada where he told people about his great adventure. He appeared in small theatres and signed lots of photographs. A waxwork was made of him in Madame Tussaud's museum in London.
In 1910, he moved to Luxembourg and worked as a waiter and shoemaker. Two years later, he bought a house and retired, but the inflation after World War I made him poor. Voigt died in Luxembourg.
Many plays and movies were written about him, including a play by the German author Carl Zuckmayer called "Der Hauptmann von Köpenick" (The Captain of Köpenick), Several movies were produced about the affair, including an English language adaptation by John Mortimer (1971).
The Hittites were an ancient people from Anatolia who spoke an Indo-European language. They established a kingdom centered at Hattusha in north-central Anatolia from the 18th century BC.
At its peak, the Hittite Empire covered most of modern Turkey and Syria. This was under the reigns of Suppiluliuma I (~1350–1322) and Mursili II (~1321–1295 BC). They had up-and-down relationships with Ancient Egypt to the south, and the Assyrian Empire in Mesopotamia. They were a party to the first known peace treaty, which was made with Ramesses II of Egypt by Hattusili III in 1258 BC.
After 1180 BC, the empire disintegrated into several independent "Neo-Hittite" city-states, some surviving until as late as the 8th century BC.
The Hittite Kingdom reached its zenith during the reign of Suppiluliuma I (~1350–1322). The kingdom of Mitanni, wracked by civil war, was unable to withstand the Hittite onslaught. Suppiluliuma swiftly attacked the Mitanni heartland, capturing and plundering the Mitanni capital of Washshuganni. He then turned west, recrossed the Euphrates and captured all the Syrian kingdoms which were vassals to the Mitanni, including Aleppo, Mukish, Niya, Qatna, Upi (Upina), and Kadesh. Other kingdoms such as Ugarit and Amurru (an Egyptian vassal) voluntarily became vassal states of the Hittites.
When hostilities flared up once more with Mitanni, Tulipinu, Suppiluliuma's son and viceroy at Aleppo invaded Carchemish but was unable to take the city. Suppiluliuma met with his son and then invaded Syria himself, laying siege to the city of Carchemish. Suppiluliuma broke the siege on the eighth day, installing his son Piyassili as viceroy of the kingdom. With his sons as viceroys of Aleppo and Carchemish, Suppiluliuma had cemented his rule over Syria and brought the empire of Mitanni to an end. The Mitanni King was assassinated soon after.
When Tutankhamun, the Egyptian Pharaoh died,his widow asked to marry one of Suppiluliuma's sons. He agreed, and sent his son Zannanza to Egypt to marry the queen. However, Zannanza was assassinated en route to Egypt. Suppiluliuma was furious and blamed the new Egyptian Pharaoh Ay for his son's death. A Hittite army under crown prince Arnuwanda invaded Egyptian territory from Syria, pillaging and taking many prisoners. These prisoners brought with them a plague which ravaged the Hittite Kingdom continuing well into Mursili's reign and may have killed Suppiluliuma himself.
Mursili II was young and inexperienced, but he proved to be a strong king. In the first years of his reign he carried out punitive campaigns against several kingdoms. In Syria the Nuhashshi king Tette rebelled and was joined by Egyptian troops. Troubles in Syria continued when Mursili's brothers Tulipinu and Piyassili both died. The loss of his Syrian viceroys led to rebellion and even the invasion of Carchemish by Assyria. Leaving his generals to deal with Syria and Haysa, Mursili invaded Carchemish and drove out the Assyrians. Later in his reign Mursili II campaigned against the Kaska once again retaking the Hittite holy city of Niniveh. He also decisively defeating the King of Tummanna.
Suppiluliuma II
Suppiluliuma II, the son of Tudhaliya IV, was the last known king of the New Kingdom of the Hittite Empire, ruling 1207 BCE – c.1178 BCE, contemporary with Tukulti-Ninurta I of Assyira.
He is known from two inscriptions in hieroglyphics. They record wars against former vassal Tarhuntassa, and against Alasiya in Cyprus.
After the fall, the Kaskians were probably in control of Hatti. Hattusa itself was destroyed, its site only re-occupied by a Phrygian fortress some 500 years later.
Battle of Rhandeia
The Battle of Rhandeia was a battle fought between Armenia and Parthia against the Roman Empire. It was fought just after the Mithridatic Wars. The Romans were led by Lucius Caesennius Paetus. They were defeated by the Parthian-Armenian army led by Tiridates I of Armenia.
The Parthians made Tiridates the King of Armenia. He was the brother of the Parthian king Vologases I. Tiridates replaced Tigranes, a Roman ally, as king. The Romans fought to take back the throne, but were forced into surrender at Rhandeia (autumn 62).
Hydrochloric acid
Hydrochloric acid is a chemical compound. It is a solution of hydrogen chloride (HCl) gas that is dissolved in water. In the past, people called it muriatic acid. It is widely used in industry, and it is also made by the stomach to help digest food. Hydrochloric acid, like all acids, react with bases to produce salts (chlorides).
In high concentrations, hydrochloric acid can make acidic mists. Both the mist and the solution hurt human tissue. They are caustic, and can cause chemical burns. These can damage the eyes, the skin, the respiratory system, and other organs of the human body.
When hydrochloric acid is mixed with certain chemicals such as bleach, the toxic gas chlorine is made. When working with hydrochloric acid, certain safety measures should be taken. These include using rubber or PVC gloves, wearing goggles to protect the eyes, as well as special clothing that is resistant to chemicals.
Hydrochloric acid reacts with some metals, corroding them and making flammable hydrogen gas.
The risks of coming in contact with hydrochloric acid depend on its concentration. The following table lists the EU classification of hydrochloric acid solutions:
The Environmental Protection Agency says hydrochloric acid is a toxin.
Kobayr monastery
Kobayr (Armenian: Կոբայր) is a 12th century Armenian Apostolic Church monastery. It is located in the village Kober within Lori marz, Armenia.
Kobayr was built on a shelf of a gorge by the princes of the junior Bagratuni branch, Kyurikids in 1171. The monastery was later acquired by the Zakarids and converted into a Chalcedonian monastery. Many of the writings in the monastery are written in Georgian.
The monastery is being fixed and paid for by the government of Armenia with the help of the government of Italy. The ruins of the main church in the monastery contain frescoes of Christ and the twelve apostles as well as the Church fathers and other Christian figures.
Hnevank
Hnevank (, means old monastery) is a 7th century Armenian Apostolic Church monastery. It is near the city of Stepanavan in the Lori marz of Armenia. The monastery is on a hill within a gorge, near where the Dzoraget and Gargar rivers join.
The monastery was all rebuilt by lord Smbat of the House of Orbelian, a branch of the Liparitids who were removed to Armenia in the late 12th century from Georgia. Liparitids were themselves a branch of the Mamikonians. Smbat was the ancestor of the Armenian princes of Syunik. Georgian writings around the drum attests his name. The monastery has a gavit and various service buildings around the site. The government of Armenia has recently begun fixing the monastery. The broken dome of the main church has been restored entirely.
Huntington's disease