AcharyaChanakya/simple-wikipedia huggingface dataset:
The official website of MLB is known as "MLB.com" (www.mlb.com).
The 30 teams in MLB are divided into two leagues: American and National. Each league is divided into three divisions: East, Central, West. Since the 2013 season, each division has had five teams. The most recent change took place after the 2012 season, when the Houston Astros moved from the NL Central to the AL West.
Each team in Major League Baseball is scheduled to play a 162-game season. The season begins in April (or sometimes the end of March) and ends in October. The teams play other teams in their own division the most, and play very few (no more than six) games against teams in the other league. Teams usually play each other in series of three or four games at a time. If a game is canceled because of bad weather, it may be held later, sometimes as part of a doubleheader (two games in one day). Sometimes these games are not held again if it would not affect either team's place in the standings (the list of teams ordered by their number of wins and losses).
Highest ranking teams after this regular season enter a post-season of "playoff" games. Teams that are tied at the end of a season may play another game to decide which team(s) will enter the playoffs. The playoff games determine the champion for each of the two leagues.
In July, there are three days where teams do not play normal games, and a group of the best players play in the "Major League Baseball All-Star Game". This period is called the "All-Star Break", and it is thought of as the point where half of the season is over. Some games at the beginning of the regular season have been played in other countries, such as Japan.
There is one difference between games played in the American League and games played in the National League. The American League teams play with a "designated hitter", a player who bats in place of the pitcher and does not play in the field. In the National League, the pitcher must bat along with the other players. In games played in teams from both leagues, the rule that the home team usually plays by is used.
At the end of every season, ten teams play in the playoffs. Five teams from the AL, and five teams from the NL are in the playoffs. The team from the West, Central, or East division from each league with the most wins makes the playoffs (a team with the best record in its division is said to have "won its division"). The next two best teams in the AL and the next two best teams in the NL also get to play in the playoffs. They are called "wild card" teams. The first playoff round is called the Wild Card game. The two wild card teams from each league play each other in a one-game playoff. The winner of each game moves on to the Division Series. The team with the best record in each league plays the winner of its league's Wild Card game. The division winner with the second best record plays against the division winner with the third best record.
In the Division Series, teams play "best out of 5". Once one team beats the other three times, the winning team moves onto the next round of the playoffs. The teams that lose are out of the playoffs. The AL teams that win play in the AL Championship Series. The NL teams that win play in the NL Championship Series. The Championship series is "best out of 7 games". Once one team beats the other four times, the winning team moves onto the next round of the playoffs. After the Championship Series, there are only two teams left.
These two teams play each other in the World Series, which is also a "best out of 7 games" series. The winner of the World Series is the champion of the league.
The first league of professional baseball teams began in 1871 and was called the National Association. This league did not play baseball the same way MLB does. For example, batters would walk after nine pitches instead of four. Many of the teams had problems with money and split up after only one or two seasons. However two teams are still playing today. Those teams were the Boston Red Stockings, which today are the Atlanta Braves, and the Chicago White Stockings, which today are the Chicago Cubs.
In 1876, the National League began, and included the Red and White Stockings as well as six other teams. This league was run better, but many teams still would split up after only a few seasons. Some, like the teams that are now called the Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants, are also still playing today. There were other leagues also. The American Association started in 1882 and was almost as good as the National League. However many of its teams would go to the National League, and the American Association disappeared in 1891. The National League had problems, though. Players and fans did not behave well, and in 1894 a fire started during a game and destroyed the stadium and part of Roxbury, Boston.
"A star (*) means a relocation of a franchise. See team articles for more information."
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis Gehrig (born Ludwig Heinrich Gehrig; June 19, 1903 — June 2, 1941) was an American baseball player. Due to his reliability and stamina, he was nicknamed the Iron Horse. He played with Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees who were thought the best team of that time. He played with the Yankees for most of his playing time which started in 1923 and ended in 1939. He played in 2,130 games without a rest, which was the most of any player until Cal Ripken, Jr. in 1995. When he stopped playing as well, he went to a doctor who found out Gehrig had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS – which is now sometimes called Lou Gehrig's disease). The doctor told Gehrig he had only a short time to live. On July 4, 1939, there was a celebration of Gehrig by the other Yankees, and Gehrig gave a speech that became well-known. When he spoke that day he said he was "the luckiest man on the face of the earth". The mayor of New York City congratulated him for his teamwork. He died less than two years later in New York City.
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the United States Congress, which is a small group of elected people who decide the laws of the country. Every U.S. state elects two people to represent them in the US Senate. These people are called senators. Since there are 50 US states, there are 100 senators. Senators only serve six years at a time, and one-third of them are picked every two years. Originally the legislature of each state decided who their senators would be. After 1913, all the people of the state chose their senators by vote. The Vice President of the United States is in charge of the Senate, but only does anything when there is a tie vote or a special event.
In order to be a senator, a person has to be 30 years old or older, and has to be a citizen of the United States for 9 years or more. They must also live in the state they represent at election time.
The Senate, along with the United States House of Representatives, votes on which laws the United States should have. In most cases, both of these groups have to agree on the suggested law and the President has to sign it before it becomes a law.
The Senate is the side of Congress where every state has the same number of votes (two). This is different from the House of Representatives, where states with more people have more votes than states with fewer people. This was decided at the Constitutional Convention, because small states like Delaware did not want the larger states to be able to decide everything. Also, only part of the Senate runs for election during elections. Every two years, 33 (two elections) or 34 (one election) senators are elected. For each state, this means that after two elections to the Senate, during one election no one will be elected to the Senate.
Also, like the House, the Senate can override the president's veto with a ⅔ (67 votes) vote. But unlike the house, some bills require a 3/5 (60 votes) vote (it used to be ⅔ of the vote) to overcome the filibuster. A filibuster is when senators band together, they can stop bills from going through the senate.
The United States Senate was formerly the upper chamber of the United States Congress, which, along with the United States House of Representatives ― the lower chamber ― comprised the legislature of the United States.
The Senate is also in charge of agreeing to treaties with other countries. The Senate has the sole responsibility for confirming presidential appointments. These include federal judges, foreign ambassadors and Cabinet members. If the Senate and President do not agree, the President has to pick someone else the Senate will agree to.
Committees of the United States Senate and other important jobs in the Senate are assigned by the majority political party. Right now, the Senate is made up of 48 Democrats with 2 Independents who sides with the Democrats which make them the Senate Majority. The minority of the Senate is made up of 50 Republicans.
Fair use is the idea that it should be okay for a person to reuse something that another person has created, in certain amounts and for certain purposes, without breaking the law.
In most countries, art and other made-up things, like stories, books, TV shows, and pictures, are owned by the person that first made them. This person can let someone else own the things they make, sometimes for money. The person that owns these things has a "copyright" for them, which means that person can decide who can copy their work. If someone else copies that work without asking the owner first, that person is breaking the law. The owner can take the person to court and try to get money from them because of what they did.
Since a lot of creative work is popular, people want to talk about them, and they may want to talk about them on TV or in a book. This might mean that they want to use a little bit of it when they talk about it. The idea of "fair use" was added to most copyright laws to make sure that it would be OK do to this, as long as only a little bit of someone's work is used.
Since a lot of creative work is now on computers and on the Internet, it is very easy to copy things and send them to lots of people. To make sure that people cannot always do this, there are computer programs that try to stop people from copying other people's work (known as digital rights management). One problem with these programs is that they also mean that you cannot copy even a small part of someone's work, so you cannot do "fair use" without cheating the program. In some countries, cheating those software programs is also breaking the law.
Duodenum
The duodenum is a short section of the small intestine, and is where most digestion in the small intestine takes place. It receives secretions, including bile and juice, from the pancreas and the liver through the pancreatic and common bile ducts. These secretions limit, or neutralise, the stomach acidity. Also, enzymes help to digest the food.
Soil erosion is the washing or blowing away (by water or wind) of the top layer of soil (dirt). This is a serious problem for farmers. If the soil has eroded, the crops that make food will not grow very well.
Soil erosion was a big problem in the Midwestern United States in the 1930s dust bowl.
Erosion also leaves large sinkholes in the ground, which can weaken buildings and even cause them to collapse. Urban areas are usually protected from soil erosion, so not many buildings collapse from erosion.
Soil erosion can be conserved in several ways:
Compost is a type of fertilizer that is made from rotting plants. It is easy and cheap to make, as all it really requires is vegetable waste. The vegetable waste is broken down by bacteria (germs), and made into compost.
To make a compost heap, you need some space fairly far from anyone who might have a problem with the smell. The bottom corner of a garden, or some other place a distance from the house is a good place. Compost heaps should also be placed on soil, or grass: a paved yard or concrete are bad places.
The compost heap should not be in a dark or closed corner.
The best base for a compost heap is a layer of sand, bricks or gravel about 1m long by 1m wide. This is not needed, but it can be a good idea. If using bricks, leave spaces to allow the air to move through. It also allows for the water to run away. The best compost heaps have lots of little spaces inside, to allow air to move around.
Once the first layer is down, one can begin adding the waste.
Some good types of waste are:
Adding meat scraps is a bad idea, as they rot slowly, smell bad and attract rats and other vermin. Human or pet feces is also a very bad idea, as this can transmit disease. Waste from plants that have died of disease is also bad. The disease can spread to the plants that the compost is used with.
When making a compost heap, different types of waste should be layered. A layer of cut grass can be followed by a layer of vegetable waste and table scraps.
Watering the compost heap is a good idea, especially in dry areas. The water helps encourage the waste to rot and turn into compost.
In anywhere from 3 to 6 months, the compost will be ready. The compost is ready when it smells like thick earth, with no smell of decay or rot. Of course, if you have been adding waste all this time, the compost will all be at the bottom of the heap, and will have to be dug out.
The stuff that has not rotted can be used as part of a new compost heap.
Haiti (French: "Haïti"; Haitian Creole: "Ayiti"), officially the Republic of Haiti (French: "République d'Haïti"; Haitian Creole: "Repiblik d Ayiti") is a country on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. The other country on the island is the Dominican Republic. Haiti has two official languages: French and Haitian Creole, or ""Kreyol"", which is a simple version of French mixed with African languages. Its capital city is Port-au-Prince.
Haiti has a tropical climate. In French, the country is called ""La Perle des Antilles"" (The pearl of the Antilles), because of its natural beauty. There are many mountains in Haiti. The country used to be covered with forests. However, it no longer is, because of deforestation. It is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.
Haiti is divided into ten "departements". The main religion is Roman Catholicism. However, many Haitians also practice Voodoo. This is a religion which came from African folk beliefs in Benin. Haiti has many holidays; the largest and most important is the "Mardi Gras".
Haiti has a total area of 27,750 km². Most of it is in the western third of the Hispaniola island. There are also smaller islands near the Haitian coast, like "Gonâve", "Île de la Tortue", "Les Cayemites", "Île-à-Vache" and "La Navase".
Haiti has many mountains. There are only some coastal plains and few valleys. The largest valley is the "Cul-de-Sac". Port-au-Prince is in the western end of this valley. The country's main river is the Artibonite, which is also the longest in Hispaniola. Haiti's biggest city is Port-au-Prince, with more than 3 million people in its metropolitan area. The second largest city is Cap-Haïtien.
Haiti has a tropical climate. The rainy season lasts from April to June, and from October to November. Hurricanes are common during summer. In the past, hurricanes have caused a lot of damage and killed many people.
The Taino people were a tribe of Arawak Amerindians. They lived on the island of Hispaniola before Christopher Columbus found the island and started a European colony there. Columbus found the island of Hispaniola on his first trip to the Americas. Within twenty-five years after Columbus arrived, all of the Arawaks had been killed by Spanish conquistadors.
In the early 17th century, the French set up a colony on Hispaniola. In 1697, Spain sold the western third of the island - Haiti - to the French. The French colony was based on forestry and making sugar. It became one of the wealthiest in the Caribbean. However, to do this, the colony brought many slaves over from Africa and destroyed much of the environment.
By the late 18th century, there were nearly half a million slaves in Haiti. They revolted, led by Toussaint L'Ouverture. After a hard and bloody struggle, they won their independence. In 1804, Haiti became the first independent black republic in the world. Today there are many monuments in Haiti remembering the Haitian Revolution. One of the largest is "La Citadelle Laferriere".
On January 12, 2010, in the afternoon of a Tuesday, Haiti was struck by a magnitude-7.0 earthquake. This was the worst earthquake to hit the country in the past 200 years. The quake's epicenter was just outside the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince. The quake caused major damage to Port-au-Prince and nearby areas. Over 200,000 people were thought to have been killed, but it was hard to be sure because many people were buried in mass graves before they could be identified.
Haiti is made of ten regions known as departments (, singular "départment"). These departments are further divided into 41 "arrondissements", and 133 "communes". These are the second and third level units of administration.
The 10 departments, with their capital cities in parentheses, are:
The Republic of Haiti is divided into 10 departments, but the central government has control over most political affairs. The president is head of state and is normally elected by popular vote for a five-year term. The president cannot serve consecutive terms. However, because of inconclusive election results in 2015, Haiti's current interim president was elected by the legislature. The prime minister is head of government and is appointed by the president and confirmed by the bicameral National Assembly. The National Assembly's upper house is the 30-seat Senate, and the lower house is the 118-seat Chamber of Deputies. Members of both houses are elected through a majoritarian system. Senators serve six-year terms and deputies serve four-year terms. There have been efforts toward constitutional reform to ensure that more women are represented in politics on the national level, but these reforms have not yet resulted in concrete changes.
Official holidays (on the same day every year)
Traditional and religious holidays (dates vary according to the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church)
Haiti is the least developed country in the Americas. It is also one of the least developed and poorest countries in the world.
There are indicators that can be used to compare social and economic situations between countries. Some indicators show that Haiti has fallen behind other poor developing countries since the 1980s. In 2006, Haiti ranked 146th of 177 countries in the United Nations Human Development Index (2006). About 90% of the Haitian people were living in poverty in 2003. Haiti is the only country in the Americas on the United Nations list of Least Developed Countries and it is the poorest country in the Americas. The economy was staying even or falling behind even before their big earthquake.
About 66% of all Haitians work in agriculture. Most of them do small-scale subsistence farming (meaning that they are able to grow just enough to survive). This does not bring in much money.
Very few jobs were created in the last ten years. However, the informal economy is growing. Mangoes and coffee are two of Haiti's most important exports. Haiti has consistently ranked among the most corrupt countries in the world on the Corruption Perceptions Index.
About one third of the national government's budget is money given to them by other countries. The United States gives the most money. Canada gives the second largest amount of money. The European Union, Venezuela and Cuba also give and help Haiti's economy in different ways. Haiti has renewed its alliances with Venezuela and Cuba in 2006 and 2007.
From 2001-2004, the United States stopped giving aid to Haiti completely. The aid was cut off after Haiti's 2000 election. The election's results were questioned, and President Aristide was accused of cheating to win the election. Aristide was overthrown in 2004. After that, the United States started giving aid to Haiti again. The United Nations led a peacekeeping operation called the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti. (The Mission is called called MINUSTAH in Haiti; this is an acronym for the Mission's name in French). The Brazilian army led the peacekeeping operation.
Even after President Aristide was overthrown, corruption continued to be very common in Haiti.
Haiti has a large amount of foreign debt (money owed to other countries and international institutions to repay loans). The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program planned to forgive about $525 million of Haiti's debt by mid-2009.
In 2009, the population of Haiti (the number of people living in the country) was about 10,090,190. Figures from the DNA Nationwide Studies Institute say that the racial makeup of the population is:
Some East Asians also live in the country.
1500s
1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday in the Gregorian calendar, and starting on a Monday in the Julian calendar. It was also the first year of the 20th century.
The year 1897 (MDCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Friday on the Gregorian calendar.
Hodgenville, Kentucky
The University of Oxford is a university in Oxford, England. It is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. The Times Higher Education World University Rankings said it is the best university in the world.
The university is 38 colleges and six private halls. All of these colleges have their own buildings and their own staff. Oxford is quite different from most modern universities where all the students live on a campus. Oxford does not have a campus, although it does have some central places where students from different colleges can come together (for example, libraries).
The Bodleian Library (founded in 1602) is the main library of the University of Oxford, and one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It is the second largest library in the United Kingdom after the British Library.
Oxford is the world's third-oldest university after the University of Bologna, and the world's second-oldest surviving university.
There is no known date of foundation, but there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096. It grew rapidly from 1167 when Henry II banned English students from attending the University of Paris. English students were not allowed to continue studying in Paris after Thomas Becket was murdered.
There were fights between the students in Oxford and the people who lived there in the early 13th century. Some students and teachers left the university in 1209, and made a new university in Cambridge. These two universities are now great rivals, and together are sometimes known as "Oxbridge".
Until 1920, women were not allowed to take degrees at Oxford, although some women studied at Oxford before that time. Nowadays, all the colleges allow both men and women as students, and the number of male and female students is roughly equal.
One of the most famous teachers at the university was Lewis Carroll, author of "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking-Glass", stories for children.
There are 38 colleges at Oxford and 6 permanent private halls.
A college will normally offer the students accommodation (a room to sleep and study in) for the first and last years of their time at University. Many also offer accommodation for other years. A college will also have space for teaching and socializing. When most of the older colleges started they were only for people of one sex, but St Hilda's College, the last college to allow only women to study there, recently allowed men as well.
A permanent private hall is slightly different to a college. They were normally started by religious groups to educate their members in philosophy and theology, but some have since grown and offer a broader range of subjects. Some halls are run by monks, and one of them – St Benet's Hall – will only accept male students.
Most colleges will teach at both undergraduate (the more basic first degree that a student takes) and postgraduate (a higher level of study) level. There are also some special colleges that are more restrictive. Five colleges only offer space to postgraduate students. Harris Manchester College is only for "mature students" (those who are over 21 when they start their degree). All Souls College does not take students – all of its members teach students or do research.
Oxford, like Cambridge, is very popular, but there are only a limited number of spaces for students. It is therefore harder for students to get into these universities. The colleges look for the students with the best school results in the subjects for which they are applying, typically A marks on A-levels.
Def Leppard was one of the first hard rock bands. They formed in Sheffield, England in 1977. Its founding members include: lead singer Joe Elliot, bassist Rick Savage, guitarist Pete Willis, and drummer Tony Kenning. When Kenning was fired from the band in 1978, he was replaced by Frank Noon. The same year, Def Leppard had their first recording. They recorded "The Def Leppard EP". Frank Noon was replaced by drummer Rick Allen the same year and guitarist Steve Clark joined the band shortly after. They played their first show at Westfield School in Sheffield in the same year.
Their first album, "On Through the Night" (1980), was a hit in many parts of England. In April 1980, Def Leppard signed with Leber Krebs management. In the same year they went of their first U.S. tour with Ted Nugent, AC/DC, and Judas Priest. In 1981 the band released their second album, "High ‘n’ Dry". At that time, MTV aired Def Leppard for the first time. MTV aired their hit “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak.”
In 1982, Pete Willis was replaced by Phil Collen. The same year, the recording with Mutt Lange for their third album takes place. In 1983, their third album "Pyromania" is released. The single “Photograph” was released and the album sells 100,000 copies a week for that year. In 1984, drummer Rick Allen suffers the loss of an arm due to a car accident. He soon mastered an electronic drum kit and teaches himself how to play with one arm. In 1986, Rick Allen plays his first gig out with the band since his accident. In 1987, the band’s fourth album, “Hysteria” is released. The album has 12 hit singles and sells 16 million copies.
In 1991, guitarist Steve Clark passes away. His death was due to a mixture of alcohol and a drug overdose of prescription pain killers. In 1992 Vivian Campbell joins the band. Vivian Campbell was the former guitarist for Dio and Whitesnake. That year, the album “Adrenalize” is released. This album remains number one for five weeks and sells six million copies.
In 1993 the band has their first expirence having their music in movies. Their song “Two Steps Behind” was used for the end credits of “Last Action Hero”. The same year the album “Retro Active” is released. In 1995 “The Vault” is released. It is a compilation of all of Def Leppard’s biggest hits. “The Vault” hits number two on the charts. In 1996, the album “Slang” is released.
In 1998, Def Leppard had their first taste of TV. VH1 produced a “Behind the Music” episode on Def Leppard. Other TV exposure followed such as “Storytellers”, and “Ultimate Albums.” In 1999, they receive the Diamond Award in the U.S. Also in 1999, the album “Euphoria” is released. In the year 2000, the band is inducted into the Hollywood Rock Walk of Fame.
In 2001, the band releases their first DVDs, “In the Round, In your Face” and “Historia”. The same year, VH1 broadcasts the movie “Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story.” n 2002 the album “X” is released. In 2004 the band releases a newer version of the album “The Vault”. In 2005 the album and DVD “Rock of Ages” is released. In 2006, Def Leppard releases their album “Yeah”. The album “Yeah” is a cover album. In 2008 the band’s 12th album “Songs from the Sparkle Lounge” is released. The same year the band crosses genres with the country hit “Nine Lives.”
Husband (disambiguation)
A husband is the male spouse in a marriage.
Husband may also refer to:
46 BC
Winter storm
Winter storms or snowstorms happen when warm, wet air meets with cold air. The warm, wet air mass and the cold air mass can each be 1000 km or more in diameter. Snowstorms affecting Northeastern United States often get their moisture from air moving north from the Gulf of Mexico and cold air from air masses coming down from the Arctic. In the Northwest United States warm, wet air from the Pacific Ocean cools when it is pushed upward by the mountains. Many different things can affect the direction of movement, content and temperature of air masses. All of these differences affect the type and severity of the snowstorm.
Winter storms and blizzards can make several feet of snow that blow into big drifts. Sometimes the drifts can be over ten feet tall. They could even cover a house.
Lots of popular winter storms are part of North America's history. In 1846 the Donner Party traveled away by covered wagons from Illinois headed for Sutter's Fort near Sacramento, California. As an answer of bad decisions and slow going, they tried to go across the big Sierra Nevada Mountains in the late October. Usually, California is still warm at that time of the year. As the party crossed the Sierra Nevada Mountains, they did not see any snow and was not worried.
However, after they left, a huge snowstorm hit. The party was forced to camp near Truckee, California. The snow was so deep that the wagon wheels became stuck, so they could not move anyplace. They tried to wait the storm out, but when one blizzard ended, another began immediately before they had time to escape.
Their food became short, so some of the people decided to hike out and find help rather than to starve to death. Most of them died in the freezing weather, and many of those who stayed behind in the camp survived. Of the 87 people who started in Illinois, only 47 lived.
The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (ශ්‍රී ලංකා in Sinhala, இலங்கை in Tamil) is a tropical island nation off the southeast coast of the Indian subcontinent. The capital of the country is Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte while the largest city is Colombo.
It was known as Ceylon before 1972, and Serendib and Sinhale, among other names, before that. It was South Asia's oldest democracy.
Sri Lanka has three main ethnic groups. They differ in their religions and origins, and there has often been difficulties between the groups. The total population of the island is over 20 million people, and rapidly expanding.
The largest of the three groups is the population of Sinhalese people. Most of them are Buddhist. Their language is Sinhala. They make up about 75% of the population.
The second largest group is the Tamil people. They are Hindu. There are about 2,271,000 Tamils in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan Civil War against Tamil separatists lasted 28 years.
The third largest group is the Sri Lankan Moors. They are Muslim. There are over one and a half million people in this group. They use Tamil as their language today.
Other than these three main groups, there are burghers (descendants of colonial ancestors), malays and chinese.
In areas such as Dabana , Mahiyangaya ; lives the indigenous group called 'veddas' who are said to descend from Kuweni and Vijaya's son 'Jeewahaththa'.
Buddhist missionaries arrived from India in 250 BC during the time period of King Devanampiyatissa. The kings of the island, and eventually most of the Sinhalese people, became Buddhists. Legend has it that Buddha visited the island three times.
The island was subject to waves of European settlement and eventually colonisation. The Portuguese in the 16th and 17th centuries, the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries, and lastly the British from 1796 to 1948. The British traded as the others had done, but also developed plantations of coffee and tea. Tea was planted after a fungus destroyed the coffee plantations in 1869. The tea plantations were the basis of Sri Lankan prosperity for a hundred years. Lastly, rubber plantations were started in the early 20th century. In 1965, Ceylon became the world's leading exporter of tea, with 200,000 tonnes of tea being shipped internationally annually.
Independence from the British was got in 1948, together with Dominion status in the British Commonwealth of Nations. In 1972, Ceylon changed its name officially to the Republic of Sri Lanka, and is still a member of the Commonwealth.
In 2009 came the end of a long Sri Lankan Civil War between Sinhalese and Tamils. Since then tourism has rapidly grown as a source of foreign investment and currency.
The Sri Lanka flag is also known as the Lion flag because of the Lion on it. The Lion is holding a sword in its right paw. There is a crimson background with four leaves in each corner. There is a yellow border. On the left of the flag there are the colors green and saffron.
The lion represents bravery. The four leaves represent Karuna, Meththa, Muditha and Upeksha. The orange stripe represents the Sri Lankan Tamils and the green stripe represents the Sri Lankan Moors.
Sri Lanka has 9 provinces.
On April 21, 2019, bombings hit churches and hotels and left at least 290 people dead and 500 injured in the cities of
cities of Colombo, Negombo and Batticaloa. According to officials a Sri Lankan group called "National Thowheed Jamath" was behind the attacks.
Most of those killed were Sri Lankan nationals, but there were also thirty-one foreigners who died, including
eight British, eight Indian, two Turkish, two Australian, one Bangladeshi, one Portuguese and four American nationals.
Reptile is the common name for one of the main groups of land vertebrates. It is not used so much by biologists, who use more accurate terms.
The name "reptile" comes from Latin and means "one who creeps". All living reptile species are cold blooded, have scaly skin, and lay cleidoic eggs. They excrete uric acid (instead of urea), and have a cloaca. A cloaca is a shared opening for the anus, urinary tract and reproductive ducts. Reptiles also share an arrangement of the heart and major blood vessels which is different from that of mammals.
Many important groups of reptiles are now extinct, for example the mosasaurs. We used to say the dinosaurs were extinct, but they survive in the form of their feathered descendants (birds). Ancient reptiles that do survive include the turtles, the crocodiles and the Tuatara, the lone survivor of its group. The great majority of present-day reptiles are snakes and lizards.
The study of living reptiles is called "herpetology".
Some reptiles are more closely related to birds than they are to other reptiles. Crocodiles are more closely related to birds than they are to lizards. Theropod dinosaurs are even more closely related, because birds evolved from them.
Cladistic writers prefer a more unified (monophyletic) grouping. This puts the birds (over 10,000 species) with what people normally call reptiles. (see Sauropsida)
Reptilia is an evolutionary grade rather than a clade. The main reason is that the term 'reptile' does not include birds, the descendents of theropod dinosaurs. Another reason is that the word 'reptile' is misleading because many extinct types were very different from living reptiles.
So instead of Reptilia as a taxonomic class, today many experts use Class Sauropsida (which includes all reptiles and birds, living and extinct). Class Synapsida includes mammals and all their forebears. "Reptile" is still the usual informal term to describe living snakes and lizards. Mammals are a genuine clade, and so Mammalia is still the taxonomic term.
Since reptiles are not monophyletic, reclassifying them is one of the key aims of researchers. Some taxonomists, such as Benton, make Sauropsida and Synapsida as class-level taxa. The two groups split in the Carboniferous, from stem-group Amniotes (the early tetrapods, which laid cleidoic eggs).
A membrane forms an inner eyelid in reptiles and birds. Whitish or translucent, it can be drawn across the eye to protect it from dust and keep it moist. It is called the "nictitating membrane".
Reptiles can live in large and small sizes. Their land sizes can be both bigger and smaller than mammals. Titanosaurs were the largest land reptiles, and the smallest land reptile is a chameleon 13.5mm long.
Snakes are reptiles. They are part of the order Squamata. They are carnivores, with long narrow bodies and no legs. There are at least 20 families, about 500 genera and 3,400 species of snake.
The earliest known fossils are from the Jurassic period. This was between 143 and 167 million years ago.
Their long, slender body has some special features. They have overlapping scales which protect them, and help them move and climb trees. The scales have colours which may be camouflage or warning colours.
Many species have skulls with more joints than the skulls of their lizard ancestors. This allows the snakes to swallow prey much larger than their heads. In their narrow bodies, snakes' paired organs (such as kidneys) appear one in front of the other instead of side by side. Most have only one working lung. Some species have kept a pelvic girdle with a pair of vestigial claws on either side of the cloaca. They have no eyelids or external ears. They can hiss, but otherwise make no vocal sounds.
They are very mobile in their own way. Most of them live in the tropics. Few snake species live beyond the Tropic of Cancer or Tropic of Capricorn, and only one species, the common viper ("Vipera berus") lives beyond the Arctic Circle. They can see well enough, and they can taste scents with their tongues by flicking them in and out. They are very sensitive to vibrations in the ground. Some snakes can sense warm-blooded animals by thermal infrared.
Most snakes live on the ground, and in the trees. Others live in the water, and a few live under the soil. Like other reptiles, snakes are ectotherms. They control their body temperature by moving in and out of the direct sunshine. That is why they are rare in cold places.
Snakes range in size from the tiny, 10.4 cm (4 inch)-long thread snake to the reticulated python of in length. The extinct snake "Titanoboa" was long.
Snakes are thought to have evolved from lizards. The earliest snake fossils are from the Lower Cretaceous. A wide range of snakes appeared during the Paleocene period ("c" 66 to 56 million years ago).
The Squamata are definitely a monophyletic group: it is a sister group to the Tuatara. Judged by their fossil record, the squamates were present in the Mesozoic, but had a minor place in the land ecology. Three of the six lines are recorded first in the Upper Jurassic, the others in the Cretaceous. Probably all, certainly the lizards, arose earlier in the Jurassic. The Mosasaurs of the Upper Cretaceous were by far the most successful of all the lizards, becoming the top predator in their ecosystem.
Although snakes and lizards look very different, "neither is a proper clade". Snakes did descend from early lizards, not once, but a number of times.
There is a monophyletic clade within the Squamata. It is the Toxicofera. It includes all venomous snakes and lizards, and many related non-venomous species. The evidence for this is in recent molecular analyses.
The fossil of a primitive snake from the Lower Cretaceous has been found. It lived about 113 million years ago. It had rather small front and rear legs. Several other fossil snakes have been found with small rear legs, but this is the first one with all four legs. The snake, "Tetrapodophis amplectus", lived on land and was adapted to burrowing. The researcher said there were "a lot of very advanced snake features, including its hooked teeth, flexible jaw and spine – and even snake-like scales. And there's the gut contents – it's swallowed another vertebrate. It was preying on other animals, which is a snake feature". The snake came from the Crato Formation in Brazil, and lay in a private collection for many years. It was re-discovered in a museum at Solnhofen, Bavaria.
Most snakes are nonvenomous. Those that have venom use it mainly to kill and subdue prey rather than for self-defense. Some have venom potent enough to cause painful injury or death to humans. Nonvenomous snakes either swallow prey alive or kill by squeezing.
Two taxonomic families are entirely venomous:
A third family with the "rear-fanged" snakes (and most of the other snake species) is the
Many snakes have skulls with more joints than their lizard ancestors. This helps them swallow prey much larger than their heads. The bones of the head and jaws can move apart to let large prey move into their body. The throat, stomach and intestines can also expand in a most extraordinary manner. In this was, a thin-looking snake can swallow and digest a larger animal.
To fit their narrow bodies, snakes' paired organs (such as kidneys) are one in front of the other instead of side by side, and most snakes have only one working lung. Some species have a pelvic girdle with a pair of vestigial claws on either side of the cloaca. This is a relic of the legs which do not appear in modern snakes.
Snakes need to shed their skin regularly while they grow. This is called moulting. Snakes shed their skin by rubbing their head against something rough and hard, like a piece of wood or a rock. This causes the skin, which is already stretched, to split open. The snake keeps on rubbing its skin on various rough objects until the skin peels off from its head. This lets it crawl out, turning the skin inside out.
All snakes are carnivorous; they eat other animals. Some are venomous; they inject poison along grooves in their teeth. Some snakes are constrictrors. Constrictors are not venomous, so they squeeze their prey to death. Snakes swallow their food whole, and they cannot chew. Because snakes are cold-blooded, they do not have to eat as regularly as mammals. People who own pet snakes feed them as infrequently as once per month. Some snakes can go as long as six months without a good meal.
Snakes have a very flexible lower jaw, the two halves of which are not rigidly attached, and many other joints in their skull. They can open their mouths wide enough to swallow their prey whole, even if the prey is larger in diameter than the snake itself.
Not having arms and legs doesn't stop snakes from moving. They have developed several different ways of moving to deal with particular environments. Each type of snake movement is discrete and distinct from the others.
Lateral undulation is a snake's only way of moving in water, and the most common way of moving altogether. In this mode, the body of the snake alternately bends to the left and right, resulting in a series of rearward-moving "waves". While this movement appears rapid, snakes have rarely been seen moving faster than two body-lengths per second, often much less. This mode of movement has the same amount of calories burned per meter moved as running in lizards of the same mass.
Terrestrial lateral undulation is the most common mode of moving for most snake species. In this mode, the posteriorly moving waves push against contact points in the environment, such as rocks, twigs, irregularities in the soil, etc. Each of these environmental objects, in turn, generates a reaction force directed forward and towards the midline of the snake, resulting in forward thrust while the lateral components cancel out. The speed of this movement depends upon the density of push-points in the environment, with a medium density of about 8 along the snake's length being ideal. The wave speed is precisely the same as the snake speed, and as a result, every point on the snake's body follows the path of the point ahead of it, allowing snakes to move through very dense vegetation and small openings.
Snakes move forward in water by moving their bodies in a wave-like motion. The waves become larger as they move down the snake's body, and the wave travels backwards faster than the snake moves forwards. Thrust is got by pushing their body against the water: this results in the observed slip. In spite of overall similarities, studies show that the pattern of muscle activation is different in aquatic versus terrestrial lateral undulation, which justifies calling them separate modes. All snakes can laterally undulate forward (with backward-moving waves), but only sea snakes have been observed reversing the motion (moving backwards with forward-moving waves).
This is most often used by colubroid snakes (colubrids, elapids, and vipers). They use it when the environment lacks anything firm to push against, such as a slick mud flat, or a sand dune. Sidewinding is a modified form of lateral undulation in which all of the body segments oriented in one direction remain in contact with the ground, while the other segments are lifted up. This results in a peculiar "rolling" motion. This mode of moving overcomes the slippery nature of sand or mud by pushing off with only static portions on the body, thereby minimizing slipping. The static nature of the contact points can be shown from the tracks of a sidewinding snake, which show each belly scale imprint, without any smearing. This mode of moving has very low caloric cost, less than ⅓ of the cost for a lizard or normal snake to move the same distance.
When push-points are absent, but the space is too narrow for sidewinding, such as in tunnels, snakes rely on concertina moving. In this mode, the snake braces the back part of its body against the tunnel wall while the front of the snake extends and straightens. The front portion then flexes and forms an anchor point, and the back part is straightened and pulled forwards. This mode of moving is slow and very demanding, needing up to seven times the energy of laterally undulating over the same distance. This high cost is due to the repeated stops and starts of portions of the body as well as the need to use the muscles to brace against the tunnel walls.
The slowest mode of snake moving is rectilinear moving, which is also the only one where the snake does not need to bend its body laterally, though it may do so when turning. In this mode, the belly scales are lifted and pulled forward before being placed down and the body pulled over them. Waves of movement and stasis pass posteriorly, resulting in a series of ripples in the skin. The ribs of the snake do not move in this mode of moving and this method is most often used by large pythons, boas, and vipers when stalking prey across open ground as the snake's movements are subtle and harder to detect by their prey in this manner.
The movement of snakes in trees has only recently been studied. While on tree branches, snakes use several modes of moving depending on species and bark texture. In general, snakes will use a modified form of concertina moving on smooth branches, but will laterally undulate if contact points are available. Snakes move faster on small branches and when contact points are present, in contrast to limbed animals, which do better on large branches with little 'clutter'.
Gliding snakes ("Chrysopelea") of Southeast Asia launch themselves from branch tips, spreading their ribs and laterally undulating as they glide between trees. These snakes can perform a controlled glide for hundreds of feet depending upon launch altitude and can even turn in midair.
Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991), better known as Freddie Mercury, was a British singer, songwriter, record producer, and lead singer of the rock band Queen. Regarded as one of the greatest lead singers in the history of rock music, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and four-octave vocal range. Mercury wrote numerous hits for Queen, including "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Killer Queen", "Somebody to Love", "Don't Stop Me Now", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", and "We Are the Champions". He led a solo career while performing with Queen, and occasionally served as a producer and guest musician for other artists.
He formed Queen in 1970 with guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. Mercury died in 1991 at age 45 due to complications from AIDS, having confirmed the day before his death that he had contracted the disease. In 1992, Mercury was posthumously awarded the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music, and a tribute concert was held at Wembley Stadium, London. As a member of Queen, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003, and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004. In 2002, he was placed number 58 in the BBC's 2002 poll of the 100 Greatest Britons. He is consistently voted one of the greatest singers in the history of popular music.