title: Electric battery

text: Italian physicist Alessandro Volta built and described the first electrochemical battery, the voltaic pile, in 1800. This was a stack of copper and zinc plates, separated by brine-soaked paper disks, that could produce a steady current for a considerable length of time. Volta did not understand that the voltage was due to chemical reactions. He thought that his cells were an inexhaustible source of energy, and that the associated corrosion effects at the electrodes were a mere nuisance, rather than an unavoidable consequence of their operation, as Michael Faraday showed in 1834.


title: Electric battery

text: Although early batteries were of great value for experimental purposes, in practice their voltages fluctuated and they could not provide a large current for a sustained period. The Daniell cell, invented in 1836 by British chemist John Frederic Daniell, was the first practical source of electricity, becoming an industry standard and seeing widespread adoption as a power source for electrical telegraph networks. It consisted of a copper pot filled with a copper sulfate solution, in which was immersed an unglazed earthenware container filled with sulfuric acid and a zinc electrode.


title: Electric battery

text: These wet cells used liquid electrolytes, which were prone to leakage and spillage if not handled correctly. Many used glass jars to hold their components, which made them fragile and potentially dangerous. These characteristics made wet cells unsuitable for portable appliances. Near the end of the nineteenth century, the invention of dry cell batteries, which replaced the liquid electrolyte with a paste, made portable electrical devices practical.


title: Electric battery

text: Batteries in vacuum tube devices historically used a wet cell for the "A" battery (to provide power to the filament) and a dry cell for the "B" battery (to provide the plate voltage).


title: Electric battery

text: Between 2010 and 2018, annual battery demand grew by 30%, reaching a total of 180 Gwh in 2018. Conservatively, the growth rate is expected to be maintained at an estimated 25%, culminating in demand reaching 2600 Gwh in 2030. In addition, cost reductions are expected to further increase the demand to as much as 3562 GwH.


title: Electric battery

text: Important reasons for this high rate of growth of the electric battery industry include the electrification of transport, and large-scale deployment in electricity grids, supported by anthropogenic climate change-driven moves away from fossil-fuel combusted energy sources to cleaner, renewable sources, and more stringent emission regimes.


title: Electric battery

text: Distributed electric batteries, such as those used in battery electric vehicles (vehicle-to-grid), and in home energy storage, with smart metering and that are connected to smart grids for demand response, are active participants in smart power supply grids.


title: Electric battery

text: New methods of reuse, such as echelon use of partly-used batteries, add to the overall utility of electric batteries, reduce energy storage costs, and also reduce pollution/emission impacts due to longer lives. In echelon use of batteries, vehicle electric batteries that have their battery capacity reduced to less than 80%, usually after service of 5–8 years, are repurposed for use as backup supply or for renewable energy storage systems.


title: Electric battery

text: Grid scale energy storage envisages the large-scale use of batteries to collect and store energy from the grid or a power plant and then discharge that energy at a later time to provide electricity or other grid services when needed. Grid scale energy storage (either turnkey or distributed) are important components of smart power supply grids.


title: Electric battery

text: Batteries convert chemical energy directly to electrical energy. In many cases, the electrical energy released is the difference in the cohesive or bond energies of the metals, oxides, or molecules undergoing the electrochemical reaction. For instance, energy can be stored in Zn or Li, which are high-energy metals because they are not stabilized by d-electron bonding, unlike transition metals. Batteries are designed so that the energetically favorable redox reaction can occur only when electrons move through the external part of the circuit.


title: Electric battery

text: A battery consists of some number of voltaic cells. Each cell consists of two half-cells connected in series by a conductive electrolyte containing metal "cations". One half-cell includes electrolyte and the negative electrode, the electrode to which anions (negatively charged ions) migrate; the other half-cell includes electrolyte and the positive electrode, to which cations (positively charged ions) migrate. Cations are reduced (electrons are added) at the cathode, while metal atoms are oxidized (electrons are removed) at the anode. Some cells use different electrolytes for each half-cell; then a separator is used to prevent mixing of the electrolytes while allowing ions to flow between half-cells to complete the electrical circuit.


title: Electric battery

text: Each half-cell has an electromotive force ("emf", measured in volts) relative to a standard. The net emf of the cell is the difference between the emfs of its half-cells. Thus, if the electrodes have emfs formula_1 and formula_2, then the net emf is formula_3; in other words, the net emf is the difference between the reduction potentials of the half-reactions.


title: Electric battery

text: The electrical driving force or formula_4 across the terminals of a cell is known as the "terminal voltage (difference)" and is measured in volts. The terminal voltage of a cell that is neither charging nor discharging is called the open-circuit voltage and equals the emf of the cell. Because of internal resistance, the terminal voltage of a cell that is discharging is smaller in magnitude than the open-circuit voltage and the terminal voltage of a cell that is charging exceeds the open-circuit voltage. An ideal cell has negligible internal resistance, so it would maintain a constant terminal voltage of formula_5 until exhausted, then dropping to zero. If such a cell maintained 1.5 volts and produce a charge of one coulomb then on complete discharge it would have performed 1.5 joules of work. In actual cells, the internal resistance increases under discharge and the open-circuit voltage also decreases under discharge. If the voltage and resistance are plotted against time, the resulting graphs typically are a curve; the shape of the curve varies according to the chemistry and internal arrangement employed.


title: Electric battery

text: The voltage developed across a cell's terminals depends on the energy release of the chemical reactions of its electrodes and electrolyte. Alkaline and zinc–carbon cells have different chemistries, but approximately the same emf of 1.5 volts; likewise NiCd and NiMH cells have different chemistries, but approximately the same emf of 1.2 volts. The high electrochemical potential changes in the reactions of lithium compounds give lithium cells emfs of 3 volts or more.


title: Electric battery

text: Almost any liquid or moist object that has enough ions to be electrically conductive can serve as the electrolyte for a cell. As a novelty or science demonstration, it is possible to insert two electrodes made of different metals into a lemon, potato, etc. and generate small amounts of electricity.


title: Electric battery

text: A voltaic pile can be made from two coins (such as a nickel and a penny) and a piece of paper towel dipped in salt water. Such a pile generates a very low voltage but, when many are stacked in series, they can replace normal batteries for a short time.


title: Electric battery

text: Some types of primary batteries used, for example, for telegraph circuits, were restored to operation by replacing the electrodes. Secondary batteries are not indefinitely rechargeable due to dissipation of the active materials, loss of electrolyte and internal corrosion.


title: Electric battery

text: Primary batteries, or primary cells, can produce current immediately on assembly. These are most commonly used in portable devices that have low current drain, are used only intermittently, or are used well away from an alternative power source, such as in alarm and communication circuits where other electric power is only intermittently available. Disposable primary cells cannot be reliably recharged, since the chemical reactions are not easily reversible and active materials may not return to their original forms. Battery manufacturers recommend against attempting to recharge primary cells. In general, these have higher energy densities than rechargeable batteries, but disposable batteries do not fare well under high-drain applications with loads under 75 ohms (75 Ω). Common types of disposable batteries include zinc–carbon batteries and alkaline batteries.


title: Electric battery

text: Secondary batteries, also known as "secondary cells", or "rechargeable batteries", must be charged before first use; they are usually assembled with active materials in the discharged state. Rechargeable batteries are (re)charged by applying electric current, which reverses the chemical reactions that occur during discharge/use. Devices to supply the appropriate current are called chargers. The oldest form of rechargeable battery is the lead–acid battery, which are widely used in automotive and boating applications. This technology contains liquid electrolyte in an unsealed container, requiring that the battery be kept upright and the area be well ventilated to ensure safe dispersal of the hydrogen gas it produces during overcharging. The lead–acid battery is relatively heavy for the amount of electrical energy it can supply. Its low manufacturing cost and its high surge current levels make it common where its capacity (over approximately 10 Ah) is more important than weight and handling issues. A common application is the modern car battery, which can, in general, deliver a peak current of 450 amperes.


title: Electric battery

text: Many types of electrochemical cells have been produced, with varying chemical processes and designs, including galvanic cells, electrolytic cells, fuel cells, flow cells and voltaic piles.


title: Electric battery

text: A "wet cell" battery has a liquid electrolyte. Other names are "flooded cell", since the liquid covers all internal parts or "vented cell", since gases produced during operation can escape to the air. Wet cells were a precursor to dry cells and are commonly used as a learning tool for electrochemistry. They can be built with common laboratory supplies, such as beakers, for demonstrations of how electrochemical cells work. A particular type of wet cell known as a concentration cell is important in understanding corrosion. Wet cells may be primary cells (non-rechargeable) or secondary cells (rechargeable). Originally, all practical primary batteries such as the Daniell cell were built as open-top glass jar wet cells. Other primary wet cells are the Leclanche cell, Grove cell, Bunsen cell, Chromic acid cell, Clark cell, and Weston cell. The Leclanche cell chemistry was adapted to the first dry cells. Wet cells are still used in automobile batteries and in industry for standby power for switchgear, telecommunication or large uninterruptible power supplies, but in many places batteries with gel cells have been used instead. These applications commonly use lead–acid or nickel–cadmium cells. Molten salt batteries are primary or secondary batteries that use a molten salt as electrolyte. They operate at high temperatures and must be well insulated to retain heat.


title: Electric battery

text: A "dry cell" uses a paste electrolyte, with only enough moisture to allow current to flow. Unlike a wet cell, a dry cell can operate in any orientation without spilling, as it contains no free liquid, making it suitable for portable equipment. By comparison, the first wet cells were typically fragile glass containers with lead rods hanging from the open top and needed careful handling to avoid spillage. Lead–acid batteries did not achieve the safety and portability of the dry cell until the development of the gel battery. A common dry cell is the zinc–carbon battery, sometimes called the dry Leclanché cell, with a nominal voltage of 1.5 volts, the same as the alkaline battery (since both use the same zinc–manganese dioxide combination). A standard dry cell comprises a zinc anode, usually in the form of a cylindrical pot, with a carbon cathode in the form of a central rod. The electrolyte is ammonium chloride in the form of a paste next to the zinc anode. The remaining space between the electrolyte and carbon cathode is taken up by a second paste consisting of ammonium chloride and manganese dioxide, the latter acting as a depolariser. In some designs, the ammonium chloride is replaced by zinc chloride.


title: Electric battery

text: A reserve battery can be stored unassembled (unactivated and supplying no power) for a long period (perhaps years). When the battery is needed, then it is assembled (e.g., by adding electrolyte); once assembled, the battery is charged and ready to work. For example, a battery for an electronic artillery fuze might be activated by the impact of firing a gun. The acceleration breaks a capsule of electrolyte that activates the battery and powers the fuze's circuits. Reserve batteries are usually designed for a short service life (seconds or minutes) after long storage (years). A water-activated battery for oceanographic instruments or military applications becomes activated on immersion in water.


title: Electric battery

text: On 28 February 2017, the University of Texas at Austin issued a press release about a new type of solid-state battery, developed by a team led by lithium-ion battery inventor John Goodenough, "that could lead to safer, faster-charging, longer-lasting rechargeable batteries for handheld mobile devices, electric cars and stationary energy storage". The solid-state battery is also said to have "three times the energy density", increasing its useful life in electric vehicles, for example. It should also be more ecologically sound since the technology uses less expensive, earth-friendly materials such as sodium extracted from seawater. They also have much longer life.


title: Electric battery

text: Sony has developed a biological battery that generates electricity from sugar in a way that is similar to the processes observed in living organisms. The battery generates electricity through the use of enzymes that break down carbohydrates.


title: Electric battery

text: The sealed valve regulated lead–acid battery (VRLA battery) is popular in the automotive industry as a replacement for the lead–acid wet cell. The VRLA battery uses an immobilized sulfuric acid electrolyte, reducing the chance of leakage and extending shelf life. VRLA batteries immobilize the electrolyte. The two types are:


title: Electric battery

text: Other portable rechargeable batteries include several sealed "dry cell" types, that are useful in applications such as mobile phones and laptop computers. Cells of this type (in order of increasing power density and cost) include nickel–cadmium (NiCd), nickel–zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), and lithium-ion (Li-ion) cells. Li-ion has by far the highest share of the dry cell rechargeable market. NiMH has replaced NiCd in most applications due to its higher capacity, but NiCd remains in use in power tools, two-way radios, and medical equipment.


title: Electric battery

text: In the 2000s, developments include batteries with embedded electronics such as USBCELL, which allows charging an AA battery through a USB connector, nanoball batteries that allow for a discharge rate about 100x greater than current batteries, and smart battery packs with state-of-charge monitors and battery protection circuits that prevent damage on over-discharge. Low self-discharge (LSD) allows secondary cells to be charged prior to shipping.


title: Electric battery

text: Batteries of all types are manufactured in consumer and industrial grades. Costlier industrial-grade batteries may use chemistries that provide higher power-to-size ratio, have lower self-discharge and hence longer life when not in use, more resistance to leakage and, for example, ability to handle the high temperature and humidity associated with medical autoclave sterilization.


title: Electric battery

text: Standard-format batteries are inserted into battery holder in the device that uses them. When a device does not uses standard-format batteries, they are typically combined into a custom battery pack which holds multiple batteries in addition to features such as a battery management system and battery isolator which ensure that the batteries within are charged and discharged evenly.


title: Electric battery

text: Primary batteries readily available to consumers range from tiny button cells used for electric watches, to the No. 6 cell used for signal circuits or other long duration applications. Secondary cells are made in very large sizes; very large batteries can power a submarine or stabilize an electrical grid and help level out peak loads.


title: Electric battery

text: , the world's largest battery was built in South Australia by Tesla. It can store 129 MWh. A battery in Hebei Province, China, which can store 36 MWh of electricity was built in 2013 at a cost of $500 million. Another large battery, composed of Ni–Cd cells, was in Fairbanks, Alaska. It covered —bigger than a football pitch—and weighed 1,300 tonnes. It was manufactured by ABB to provide backup power in the event of a blackout. The battery can provide 40 MW of power for up to seven minutes. Sodium–sulfur batteries have been used to store wind power. A 4.4 MWh battery system that can deliver 11 MW for 25 minutes stabilizes the output of the Auwahi wind farm in Hawaii.


title: Electric battery

text: Many important cell properties, such as voltage, energy density, flammability, available cell constructions, operating temperature range and shelf life, are dictated by battery chemistry.


title: Electric battery

text: A battery's characteristics may vary over load cycle, over charge cycle, and over lifetime due to many factors including internal chemistry, current drain, and temperature. At low temperatures, a battery cannot deliver as much power. As such, in cold climates, some car owners install battery warmers, which are small electric heating pads that keep the car battery warm.


title: Electric battery

text: A battery's "capacity" is the amount of electric charge it can deliver at the rated voltage. The more electrode material contained in the cell the greater its capacity. A small cell has less capacity than a larger cell with the same chemistry, although they develop the same open-circuit voltage. Capacity is measured in units such as amp-hour (A·h). The rated capacity of a battery is usually expressed as the product of 20 hours multiplied by the current that a new battery can consistently supply for 20 hours at , while remaining above a specified terminal voltage per cell. For example, a battery rated at 100 A·h can deliver 5 A over a 20-hour period at room temperature. The fraction of the stored charge that a battery can deliver depends on multiple factors, including battery chemistry, the rate at which the charge is delivered (current), the required terminal voltage, the storage period, ambient temperature and other factors.


title: Electric battery

text: The higher the discharge rate, the lower the capacity. The relationship between current, discharge time and capacity for a lead acid battery is approximated (over a typical range of current values) by Peukert's law:


title: Electric battery

text: Batteries that are stored for a long period or that are discharged at a small fraction of the capacity lose capacity due to the presence of generally irreversible "side reactions" that consume charge carriers without producing current. This phenomenon is known as internal self-discharge. Further, when batteries are recharged, additional side reactions can occur, reducing capacity for subsequent discharges. After enough recharges, in essence all capacity is lost and the battery stops producing power. Internal energy losses and limitations on the rate that ions pass through the electrolyte cause battery efficiency to vary. Above a minimum threshold, discharging at a low rate delivers more of the battery's capacity than at a higher rate. Installing batteries with varying A·h ratings does not affect device operation (although it may affect the operation interval) rated for a specific voltage unless load limits are exceeded. High-drain loads such as digital cameras can reduce total capacity, as happens with alkaline batteries. For example, a battery rated at 2 A·h for a 10- or 20-hour discharge would not sustain a current of 1 A for a full two hours as its stated capacity implies.


title: Electric battery

text: The C-rate is a measure of the rate at which a battery is being charged or discharged. It is defined as the current through the battery divided by the theoretical current draw under which the battery would deliver its nominal rated capacity in one hour. It has the units h. Because of internal resistance loss and the chemical processes inside the cells, a battery rarely delivers nameplate rated capacity in only one hour. Typically, maximum capacity is found at a low C-rate, and charging or discharging at a higher C-rate reduces the usable life and capacity of a battery. Manufacturers often publish datasheets with graphs showing capacity versus C-rate curves. C-rate is also used as a rating on batteries to indicate the maximum current that a battery can safely deliver in a circuit. Standards for rechargeable batteries generally rate the capacity and charge cycles over a 4-hour (0.25C), 8 hour (0.125C) or longer discharge time. Types intended for special purposes, such as in a computer uninterruptible power supply, may be rated by manufacturers for discharge periods much less than one hour (1C) but may suffer from limited cycle life.


title: Electric battery

text: , lithium iron phosphate () battery technology was the fastest-charging/discharging, fully discharging in 10–20 seconds.


title: Electric battery

text: Battery life (and its synonym battery lifetime) has two meanings for rechargeable batteries but only one for non-chargeables. For rechargeables, it can mean either the length of time a device can run on a fully charged battery or the number of charge/discharge cycles possible before the cells fail to operate satisfactorily. For a non-rechargeable these two lives are equal since the cells last for only one cycle by definition. (The term shelf life is used to describe how long a battery will retain its performance between manufacture and use.) Available capacity of all batteries drops with decreasing temperature. In contrast to most of today's batteries, the Zamboni pile, invented in 1812, offers a very long service life without refurbishment or recharge, although it supplies current only in the nanoamp range. The Oxford Electric Bell has been ringing almost continuously since 1840 on its original pair of batteries, thought to be Zamboni piles.


title: Electric battery

text: Disposable batteries typically lose 8 to 20 percent of their original charge per year when stored at room temperature (20–30 °C). This is known as the "self-discharge" rate, and is due to non-current-producing "side" chemical reactions that occur within the cell even when no load is applied. The rate of side reactions is reduced for batteries stored at lower temperatures, although some can be damaged by freezing. Old rechargeable batteries self-discharge more rapidly than disposable alkaline batteries, especially nickel-based batteries; a freshly charged nickel cadmium (NiCd) battery loses 10% of its charge in the first 24 hours, and thereafter discharges at a rate of about 10% a month. However, newer low self-discharge nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries and modern lithium designs display a lower self-discharge rate (but still higher than for primary batteries).


title: Electric battery

text: The active material on the battery plates changes chemical composition on each charge and discharge cycle; active material may be lost due to physical changes of volume, further limiting the number of times the battery can be recharged. Most nickel-based batteries are partially discharged when purchased, and must be charged before first use. Newer NiMH batteries are ready to be used when purchased, and have only 15% discharge in a year.


title: Electric battery

text: Some deterioration occurs on each charge–discharge cycle. Degradation usually occurs because electrolyte migrates away from the electrodes or because active material detaches from the electrodes. Low-capacity NiMH batteries (1,700–2,000 mA·h) can be charged some 1,000 times, whereas high-capacity NiMH batteries (above 2,500 mA·h) last about 500 cycles. NiCd batteries tend to be rated for 1,000 cycles before their internal resistance permanently increases beyond usable values. Fast charging increases component changes, shortening battery lifespan. If a charger cannot detect when the battery is fully charged then overcharging is likely, damaging it.


title: Electric battery

text: NiCd cells, if used in a particular repetitive manner, may show a decrease in capacity called "memory effect". The effect can be avoided with simple practices. NiMH cells, although similar in chemistry, suffer less from memory effect.


title: Electric battery

text: Automotive lead–acid rechargeable batteries must endure stress due to vibration, shock, and temperature range. Because of these stresses and sulfation of their lead plates, few automotive batteries last beyond six years of regular use. Automotive starting batteries have many thin plates to maximize current. In general, the thicker the plates the longer the life. They are typically discharged only slightly before recharge. "Deep-cycle" lead–acid batteries such as those used in electric golf carts have much thicker plates to extend longevity. The main benefit of the lead–acid battery is its low cost; its main drawbacks are large size and weight for a given capacity and voltage. Lead–acid batteries should never be discharged to below 20% of their capacity, because internal resistance will cause heat and damage when they are recharged. Deep-cycle lead–acid systems often use a low-charge warning light or a low-charge power cut-off switch to prevent the type of damage that will shorten the battery's life.


title: Electric battery

text: Battery life can be extended by storing the batteries at a low temperature, as in a refrigerator or freezer, which slows the side reactions. Such storage can extend the life of alkaline batteries by about 5%; rechargeable batteries can hold their charge much longer, depending upon type. To reach their maximum voltage, batteries must be returned to room temperature; discharging an alkaline battery at 250 mA at 0 °C is only half as efficient as at 20 °C. Alkaline battery manufacturers such as Duracell do not recommend refrigerating batteries.


title: Electric battery

text: A battery explosion is generally caused by misuse or malfunction, such as attempting to recharge a primary (non-rechargeable) battery, or a short circuit.


title: Electric battery

text: When a battery is recharged at an excessive rate, an explosive gas mixture of hydrogen and oxygen may be produced faster than it can escape from within the battery (e.g. through a built-in vent), leading to pressure build-up and eventual bursting of the battery case. In extreme cases, battery chemicals may spray violently from the casing and cause injury. An expert summary of the problem indicates that this type uses "liquid electrolytes to transport lithium ions between the anode and the cathode. If a battery cell is charged too quickly, it can cause a short circuit, leading to explosions and fires". Car batteries are most likely to explode when a short circuit generates very large currents. Such batteries produce hydrogen, which is very explosive, when they are overcharged (because of electrolysis of the water in the electrolyte). During normal use, the amount of overcharging is usually very small and generates little hydrogen, which dissipates quickly. However, when "jump starting" a car, the high current can cause the rapid release of large volumes of hydrogen, which can be ignited explosively by a nearby spark, e.g. when disconnecting a jumper cable.


title: Electric battery

text: Overcharging (attempting to charge a battery beyond its electrical capacity) can also lead to a battery explosion, in addition to leakage or irreversible damage. It may also cause damage to the charger or device in which the overcharged battery is later used.


title: Electric battery

text: Disposing of a battery via incineration may cause an explosion as steam builds up within the sealed case.


title: Electric battery

text: Many battery chemicals are corrosive, poisonous or both. If leakage occurs, either spontaneously or through accident, the chemicals released may be dangerous. For example, disposable batteries often use a zinc "can" both as a reactant and as the container to hold the other reagents. If this kind of battery is over-discharged, the reagents can emerge through the cardboard and plastic that form the remainder of the container. The active chemical leakage can then damage or disable the equipment that the batteries power. For this reason, many electronic device manufacturers recommend removing the batteries from devices that will not be used for extended periods of time.


title: Electric battery

text: Many types of batteries employ toxic materials such as lead, mercury, and cadmium as an electrode or electrolyte. When each battery reaches end of life it must be disposed of to prevent environmental damage. Batteries are one form of electronic waste (e-waste). E-waste recycling services recover toxic substances, which can then be used for new batteries. Of the nearly three billion batteries purchased annually in the United States, about 179,000 tons end up in landfills across the country.


title: Electric battery

text: Batteries may be harmful or fatal if swallowed. Small button cells can be swallowed, in particular by young children. While in the digestive tract, the battery's electrical discharge may lead to tissue damage; such damage is occasionally serious and can lead to death. Ingested disk batteries do not usually cause problems unless they become lodged in the gastrointestinal tract. The most common place for disk batteries to become lodged is the esophagus, resulting in clinical sequelae. Batteries that successfully traverse the esophagus are unlikely to lodge elsewhere. The likelihood that a disk battery will lodge in the esophagus is a function of the patient's age and battery size. Older children do not have problems with batteries smaller than 21–23 mm. Liquefaction necrosis may occur because sodium hydroxide is generated by the current produced by the battery (usually at the anode). Perforation has occurred as rapidly as 6 hours after ingestion.


title: Electric battery

text: In the United States, the Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act of 1996 banned the sale of mercury-containing batteries, enacted uniform labeling requirements for rechargeable batteries and required that rechargeable batteries be easily removable. California and New York City prohibit the disposal of rechargeable batteries in solid waste. The rechargeable battery industry operates nationwide recycling programs in the United States and Canada, with dropoff points at local retailers.


title: Electric battery

text: The Battery Directive of the European Union has similar requirements, in addition to requiring increased recycling of batteries and promoting research on improved battery recycling methods. In accordance with this directive all batteries to be sold within the EU must be marked with the "collection symbol" (a crossed-out wheeled bin). This must cover at least 3% of the surface of prismatic batteries and 1.5% of the surface of cylindrical batteries. All packaging must be marked likewise.


title: Electric battery

text: In response to reported accidents and failures, occasionally ignition or explosion, recalls of devices using lithium-ion batteries have become more common in recent years.


title: Electric battery

text: On 2022-12-09, the EU Parliament reached an agreement to force, from 2026, manufacturers to design all electrical appliances sold in the EU (and not used predominantly in wet conditions) so that consumers can easily remove and replace batteries themselves.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: Daria "Dasha" Dmitrievna Nekrasova (; ; born February 19, 1991) is a Belarusian-American actress, filmmaker, and host of the "Red Scare" podcast with Anna Khachiyan.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: In 2018, she became known as "Sailor Socialism", after her interview with an "InfoWars" reporter, in which she was dressed in a sailor fuku, went viral. In 2021, she made her directorial debut with the horror film "The Scary of Sixty-First", for which she won the Best First Feature Award at the Berlin International Film Festival, and appeared in a recurring role on the TV series "Succession" for which she won a Screen Actors Guild award, along with the cast.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: Nekrasova was born in Minsk, Belarus (at that time still part of USSR), to parents who worked as acrobats. She emigrated to the United States with her parents when she was four, settling in Las Vegas, Nevada.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: She attended high school at Las Vegas Academy of the Arts, graduating in 2008, before attending Mills College, where she studied sociology and philosophy.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: Nekrasova first appeared in music videos for alternative artists such as Yumi Zouma, before making her feature film debut in "Wobble Palace", which she co-wrote with director Eugene Kotlyarenko. "The New York Times" described the film as "a sendup of broke-artist types that shimmers with abashed affection", while "RogerEbert.com" commented that "while your comedic milage with its loose goofiness may vary, this movie succeeds in contributing a filmic time capsule" for millennials. She appeared as the leading character in the dark comedy "The Softness of Bodies", with "The Hollywood Reporter" saying she inhabited the role "effortlessly".


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: While promoting "Wobble Palace" at the 2018 South by Southwest Festival, her interview with right-wing media outlet "InfoWars" went viral. She was nicknamed "Sailor Socialism" for expressing her support for Bernie Sanders while dressed in a Japanese schoolgirl outfit resembling Sailor Moon. The clip was featured in a segment on Venezuela in an episode of "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver".


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: On March 29, 2018, Nekrasova started the podcast "Red Scare" with co-host Anna Khachiyan. The show has been associated with the dirtbag left. It was described in "The Cut" as "a critique of feminism, and capitalism, from deep inside the culture they’ve spawned." "Daily Dot" said the show's "schtick" had been summed up by former congressional staffer Simone Norman, as "when hot mean girls become public leftists."


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: In February 2019, Nekrasova appeared – alongside Khachiyan – as a runway model at the Marlborough art gallery in Manhattan showcasing the "Fall 2019" collection designed by Rachel Comey.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: In 2020, Nekrasova made her directorial debut with "The Scary of Sixty-First", a thriller co-written with Madeline Quinn, and inspired by the death of Jeffrey Epstein. The film premiered at the 71st Berlin International Film Festival and won the prize for Best First Feature. Later that year, Nekrasova co-wrote the short film, "Spectacular Reality", inspired by conspiracies surrounding crisis actors and featuring models from "No Agency New York", and directed the November 6, 2020 video performance of Oneohtrix Point Never's "I Don't Love Me Anymore" on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon".


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: In November 2021, Nekrasova posted to Instagram a photo of herself with Alex Jones, the host of "Infowars", and subsequently praised Jones on her podcast "Red Scare" as "an incredible entertainer".


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: Nekrasova appears in a supporting role in season three of the HBO drama "Succession" as Comfrey, a crisis PR rep.


title: Dasha Nekrasova

text: Nekrasova has dated Daniel Lopatin, better known as Oneohtrix Point Never, a musician. She is the former fiancée of comedian Adam Friedland, a host of the retired podcast "Cum Town", and current host of "The Adam Friedland Show".


title: Harry Reid

text: Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Senate Majority Leader from 2007 to 2015.


title: Harry Reid

text: After earning an undergraduate degree from Utah State University and a law degree from George Washington University, Reid began his public career as the city attorney for Henderson, Nevada, before being elected to the Nevada Assembly in 1968. Gubernatorial candidate Mike O'Callaghan, Reid's former boxing coach, chose Reid as his running mate in 1970; following their victory Reid served as the 25th lieutenant governor of Nevada from 1971 to 1975. After being defeated in races for the United States Senate and mayor of Las Vegas, Reid served as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission from 1977 to 1981. From 1983 to 1987, Reid represented Nevada's 1st district in the United States House of Representatives.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was elected to the United States Senate in 1986 and served in the Senate from 1987 to 2017. He served as the Senate Democratic whip from 1999 to 2005 before succeeding Tom Daschle as Senate Minority Leader. The Democrats won control of the Senate after the 2006 United States Senate elections, and Reid became the Senate Majority Leader in 2007. He held that position for the final two years of George W. Bush's presidency and for the first six years of Barack Obama's presidency. As majority leader, Reid helped pass major legislation of the Obama administration, such as the Affordable Care Act, the Dodd–Frank Act, and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. In 2013, under Reid's leadership, the Senate Democratic majority controversially invoked the "nuclear option" to eliminate the 60-vote requirement to end a filibuster for presidential nominations, other than nominations to the U.S. Supreme Court. Republicans took control of the Senate following the 2014 United States Senate elections, and Reid served as Senate Minority Leader from 2015 until his retirement in 2017. Reid is Nevada's longest-serving senator, surpassing John P. Jones's record by two days.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was succeeded as the Senate Democratic leader by Chuck Schumer, whose leadership bid had been endorsed by Reid. Along with Alben W. Barkley and Mike Mansfield, Reid was one of only three senators to have served at least eight years as majority leader. Harry Reid International Airport, which serves the Las Vegas Valley, was named after Reid on December 14, 2021, two weeks before his death. The airport was previously named after Pat McCarran, one of Reid's Senate predecessors.


title: Harry Reid

text: Harry Mason Reid Jr. was born on December 2, 1939, in Searchlight, Nevada, the third of four sons of Harry Reid, a rock miner, and Inez Orena (Jaynes) Reid, a laundress for local brothels. At that time, Searchlight was a small, impoverished town. His father died of suicide in 1972, at the age of 58, when Harry was 32 years old. His paternal grandmother was an English immigrant from Darlaston, Staffordshire. Reid's boyhood home was a shack with no indoor toilet, hot water or telephone.


title: Harry Reid

text: Since Searchlight had no high school, Reid boarded with relatives away, in Henderson, so that he could attend Basic High School, where he played football and was an amateur boxer. While at Basic High, he met future Nevada governor Mike O'Callaghan, who was a teacher there and served as Reid's boxing coach. Reid attended Southern Utah University and graduated from Utah State University in 1961, where he double-majored in political science and history. He also minored in economics at Utah State's School of Commerce and Business Administration. He then attended George Washington University Law School while working as a police officer for the United States Capitol Police, and he earned his Juris Doctor in 1964.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid returned to Nevada after law school and served as Henderson city attorney before being elected to the Nevada Assembly for the multi-member fourth district of Clark County in 1968. In 1970, at age 30, Reid was chosen by O'Callaghan as his running mate for Lieutenant Governor of Nevada. Reid and O'Callaghan won their respective races, and Reid served as lieutenant governor from 1971 until 1974, when he ran for the U.S. Senate seat that was being vacated by Alan Bible. He lost by fewer than 700 votes to former governor Paul Laxalt. In 1975, Reid ran for mayor of Las Vegas and lost to Bill Briare.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid served as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission from 1977 to 1981. When Jack Gordon offered Reid a $12,000 bribe to get approval of new games for casinos, Reid brought in the FBI to tape Gordon's bribery attempt and arrest him. After FBI agents interrupted the transaction, as prearranged, Reid lost his temper and attempted to choke Gordon, saying "You son of a bitch, you tried to bribe me!" before agents stopped him. Gordon was convicted in 1979 and sentenced to six months in prison. Reid presided over the 1979 hearing that refused to issue a gaming license to casino operator Frank Rosenthal because of his ties to organized crime groups such as the Chicago Outfit and particularly his close personal association with mobster Anthony Spilotro. Reid later stated that "Rosenthal was the only person that I was ever afraid of." Rosenthal loudly and publicly confronted Reid after the hearing, telling gathered reporters that he had performed many personal favors for Reid. Reid conceded under heated interrogation from Rosenthal that the two men had met for lunch at his Stardust Resort and Casino and that he had asked Rosenthal to cover up undesirable news stories. FBI wiretaps captured mobsters claiming that Reid was under their control, causing governor Robert List to feel pressure to ask Reid to resign. However, List believed Reid's assertions that the accusations were baseless. In 1981, Reid's wife found a bomb attached to the family station wagon; Reid suspected it was placed by Rosenthal or Gordon, although this has never been proven in court.


title: Harry Reid

text: Before the 1980 Census, Nevada had only a single at-large member of the United States House of Representatives, but population growth in the 1970s resulted in the state picking up a second district. Reid won the Democratic nomination for the 1st district, based in Las Vegas, in 1982, and easily won the general election. He was re-elected in 1984.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was instrumental in the establishment of Great Basin National Park, sponsoring the bill creating it in 1986 and ensuring the protection of Wheeler Peak and groves of bristlecone pine.


title: Harry Reid

text: In 1986, Reid won the Democratic nomination for the seat of retiring two-term incumbent Republican Senator Paul Laxalt. Reid defeated former at-large U.S. Representative Jim Santini, a Democrat who had turned Republican, in the November election. Reid ran for reelection in 1992 which he won by a double-digit margin. In 1998 he narrowly defeated U.S. Representative John Ensign in the midst of a statewide Republican sweep. In 2004, Reid won reelection with 61 percent of the vote, defeating Richard Ziser.


title: Harry Reid

text: Ensign was elected to Nevada's other Senate seat in 2000. Ensign and Reid had a very good relationship despite their bitter contest in 1998. The two frequently worked together on Nevada issues until Ensign was forced to resign from his Senate seat in 2011 due to an ethics scandal.


title: Harry Reid

text: In 2010 Reid won the Democratic nomination with 75% of the vote in the June 8 primary. He then faced a very competitive race for the U.S. Senate in Nevada in the 2010 general election. Reid engaged in a $1 million media campaign to "reintroduce himself" to the state's voters. He defeated Republican challenger Sharron Angle in the November election, 50.3% to 44.6%.


title: Harry Reid

text: In January 2015, Reid suffered severe injuries in an exercise accident. On March 27, 2015, Reid uploaded a video to his YouTube account announcing that he would not seek reelection in November 2016. Reid endorsed Senator Chuck Schumer from New York to succeed him as Minority Leader. He was succeeded by former Nevada Attorney General and fellow Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto.


title: Harry Reid

text: On January 1, 2017, two days before the end of his term, Reid surpassed Senator John P. Jones to become the longest-serving U.S. Senator from Nevada.


title: Harry Reid

text: From 1999 to 2005, Reid served as Senate Democratic Whip, as minority whip from 1999 to 2001, and again from 2003 to 2005. Reid was majority whip from 2001 to 2003, except for a brief period from January to June 2001. He was the ranking member of the Environment and Public Works Committee in from January to June 2001 (succeeding Max Baucus) before relinquishing the position to allow Jim Jeffords to switch parties and become chair, having given Democrats the majority. From 2001 to 2003, he served as chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee. Reid succeeded Tom Daschle as Minority Leader in 2005; he became Majority Leader after the 2006 election until 2015. He was again Minority Leader until his retirement in 2017.


title: Harry Reid

text: Liberal critics argued that Reid allowed Senate Republicans to create a 60-vote bar for passage of bills without a Democratic filibuster. Conservatives criticized Reid for his extensive use of the procedural tactic known as "Filling the tree" to prevent amendments on important bills.


title: Harry Reid

text: In 2007, while he was the Senate Majority Leader, he initiated the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program to study unidentified flying objects at the urging of Reid's friend, Nevada billionaire and governmental contractor Robert Bigelow, and with support from the late senators Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), the program began in the DIA in 2007 and was budgeted $22 million over its five years of operation.


title: Harry Reid

text: The United States Air Force facility known as Area 51 is located in Reid's home state of Nevada. After the revived interest in the 1970s surrounding the balloon crash that is often referred to as the 1947 Roswell UFO incident, Area 51 was rumored by ufologists and conspiracy theorists to be the U.S. government's storage location for the crashed alien craft for study.


title: Harry Reid

text: When interviewed in the aftermath of publicity surrounding the AATIP, Reid expressed pride in his accomplishment, and was quoted as saying "I think it's one of the good things I did in my congressional service. I've done something that no one has done before." Reid explained the reasoning behind his sponsorship of the program by saying "I’m interested in science, and in helping the American public understand what the hell is going on" and stated that "hundreds and hundreds of papers" have been available since the program was completed and that "Most all of it, 80 percent at least, is public" adding "I wanted it public, it was made public, and you guys have not even looked at it."


title: Harry Reid

text: A 2009 letter by Reid was published by KLAS-TV investigative journalists George Knapp and Matt Adams, where the Senator states that AATIP has made "much progress" with the "identification of several highly sensitive, unconventional aerospace-related findings" that will "likely lead to technology advancements" and recommends the creation of a special access program for specific parts of AATIP.


title: Harry Reid

text: On November 21, 2013, under Reid's tenure as Majority Leader, the Democratic majority Senate voted 52–48 to eliminate the 60-vote requirement to end a filibuster against all executive branch nominees and judicial nominees other than to the U.S. Supreme Court. A 3/5 supermajority was still required to end filibusters unrelated to those nominees, such as for legislation and Supreme Court nominees. The Democrats' stated motivation for the "nuclear option" was expansion of filibustering by Republicans during the Obama administration, in particular blocking three nominations to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid's invocation of the nuclear option on judicial nominations was controversial as, on April 6, 2017, Senate Republicans similarly invoked the nuclear option to remove the Supreme Court exception created in 2013, allowing the Trump administration to appoint Justices on party lines. This was after Senate Democrats filibustered the nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court of the United States and after the Senate Republicans had previously refused to take up Merrick Garland's nomination by President Obama in 2016.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was criticized during his tenure for several potentially self-enriching tactics. In 2005, Reid earmarked a spending bill to provide for building a bridge between Nevada and Arizona that would make land he owned more valuable. Reid called funding for the construction of a bridge over the Colorado River, among other projects, "incredibly good news for Nevada" in a news release after the passage of the 2006 transportation bill. He owned of land several miles from the proposed bridge site in Arizona. The bridge could add value to his real estate investment. A year later it was reported that Reid had used campaign donations to pay for $3,300 in Christmas gifts to the staff at the condominium where he resided; federal election law prohibits candidates from using political donations for personal use. Reid's staff stated that his campaign attorneys had approved this use of the funds, but that Reid would personally reimburse his campaign for the expenses. Citizens United filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission to investigate the matter.


title: Harry Reid

text: A series of investigative reports in the "Los Angeles Times" suggested that Reid had introduced legislation and imposed pressure on regulatory agencies to advance the business interests of his close friend Harvey Whittemore, a Nevada attorney-lobbyist who contributed heavily to Reid's campaigns and leadership fund and who employed Reid's son Leif as his personal attorney. With Reid's help, Whittemore was able to proceed with construction of a $30 billion planned golf course development, Coyote Springs, a project heavily criticized by environmental groups for reasons including its projected effects on several endangered species. Whittemore served a two-year prison sentence after being found guilty in 2013 of funneling $133,400 in illegal contributions to Reid's reelection campaign.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid apologized on January 9, 2010, for racially tinged comments he had made when Barack Obama was campaigning for president. In private conversations, Reid had remarked that Obama could win the presidency because the country was ready to embrace a black presidential candidate, especially one such as Obama—to whom he referred as being "light-skinned" and "with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one". These comments had been recently revealed by journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilemann in "Game Change", their book about the 2008 United States presidential election. In addition to his public apology, Reid called Obama to apologize; Obama accepted his apology, stating that as far as he was concerned, the book was closed on the incident. RNC Chairman Michael Steele and Senators John Cornyn and Jon Kyl called on Reid to resign his leadership position in the Senate, citing Majority Leader Trent Lott resigning because of a statement relating to race. However, multiple experts said there was virtually no chance of that. DNC Chairman Tim Kaine and Senators Dianne Feinstein and Jack Reed expressed support for Reid and confidence he would retain his leadership position, and another senior Democrat indicated Reid has "produced supportive statements from key African American leaders in the Congress and civil rights community".


title: Harry Reid

text: In August 2010, Reid spoke in front of National Council of La Raza: "I don't know how anyone of Hispanic heritage could be a Republican, OK. Do I need to say more?" The following day, Manny Alvarez and Republican Senate-candidate Marco Rubio, both of Hispanic descent, spoke out against Reid's remarks.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid scored a lifetime conservative rating of 19% from the American Conservative Union (ACU), and a 2008 liberal rating of 70% from the Americans for Democratic Action (ADA). Other independent ratings include a 29% rating in 2003 from NARAL, the abortion rights lobbyists, an 85% rating from Planned Parenthood in 2013, and a B rating from the National Rifle Association.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid spearheaded several initiatives while in Congress. In 2006, Reid co-sponsored the Prevention First Amendment with Hillary Clinton, which would fund abortion prevention efforts such as giving women broader access to contraception. The bill faced Republican opposition and failed. In January 2007, Reid brought a Senate ethics reform bill to a vote to bar congressional members from accepting gifts, meals, and trips from lobbyists and organizations employing lobbyists, to bar Senators from borrowing corporate jets for travel, and to compel Senators to disclose names of sponsors, or authors, of bills and projects. The bill passed 96–2. In the 111th Congress, Reid shepherded the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) through the Senate.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was initially a centrist Democrat, and he held anti-abortion views, and supported gun rights and opposed illegal immigration. He was considered fiscally liberal and socially conservative. He believed that "Roe v. Wade" should be overturned, and in 1999, voted against an amendment that supported "Roe". In 1998, he stated that he believed in a restricted right to abortion, stating that "abortions should be legal only when the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is endangered". He voted several times to ban the intact dilation and evacuation, or "partial-birth abortion" procedure. Reid supported embryonic stem cell research. Over the time, Reid shifted his support towards more progressive views.


title: Harry Reid

text: Regarding same-sex marriage, Reid initially believed that "marriage should be between a man and a woman", but abandoned that position in favor of same-sex marriage in 2012.


title: Harry Reid

text: In regard to local issues, Reid firmly opposed construction of the proposed Yucca Mountain federal nuclear waste repository in Nevada. Reid initially opposed the legalization of online poker, but in 2010 it was reported his position had evolved – a move some argued was influenced by "the hundreds of thousands of dollars Las Vegas casinos contributed to his re-election campaign".


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid called immigration reform one of his priorities at the 110th Congress. He supported the DREAM Act (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act), which would give certain high school graduates who had arrived in the U.S. illegally, conditional legal status so they could attend college or enlist in the military. They could then obtain permanent legal residency after completing two years of military service or two years of college.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid supported use of force in the Middle East, but in September 2007, called for a drastic change in strategy. In January 1991, Reid voted to authorize the first Gulf War, quoting John F. Kennedy's 1963 State of the Union speech on the Senate floor, saying "the mere absence of war is not peace." He also voted in support of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In March 2007, he voted in favor of "redeploying U.S. troops out of Iraq by March 2008", and later that year, said, "As long as we follow [President Bush's] path in Iraq, the war is lost."


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was a staunch defender of Obamacare both online and in speeches. He advocated outlawing prostitution in Nevada.


title: Harry Reid

text: On May 15, 2013, Reid revealed to reporters that his niece is a lesbian as he spoke about his hope that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act would be signed into law.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid supported land conservation in Nevada. He successfully secured the designation of about 5.1 million acres of U.S. federal land in Nevada as protected land, shielding them from development. Among these were the Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, the Basin and Range National Monument, and the Gold Butte National Monument.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was criticized as one of the main culprits for the failure of the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference, as the Democrats' majority in Congress during that time had not been used to enact climate-protection legislation prior to the conference.


title: Harry Reid

text: In 2015, Reid received a lifetime achievement award from the League of Conservation Voters, and the following year he was honored by the Conservation Lands Foundation for "historic contributions to conservation."


title: Harry Reid

text: During the summer of 2012, Reid said in an interview with "The Huffington Post" that he had received information from an unidentified investor in Bain Capital that presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney did not pay any taxes for 10 years. He repeated the accusation on the Senate floor on August 2, 2012. According to CBS News, Romney stated, "Let me also say, categorically, I have paid taxes every year – and a lot of taxes. So Harry is simply wrong." PolitiFact.com's Truth-O-Meter rated the accusation as "Pants on Fire!" "The Washington Post"s Fact Checker gave it "Four Pinnocchios". CBS reported that Romney had submitted 23 years of tax returns to the John McCain campaign in 2008, when he was being vetted for the vice presidential nomination. McCain said, "[n]othing in these tax returns showed that he did not pay taxes."


title: Harry Reid

text: In a 2015 interview on the subject, Reid said "Romney didn't win, did he?" The following year, Reid called the attack "one of the best things I've ever done," while reiterating that Romney had not released his tax returns. In 2021, Reid stated in an interview that after the 2012 election he and Mitt Romney and their wives met privately and reconciled, with Reid concluding that "I admire Mitt Romney. I think he's a very very fine human being."


title: Harry Reid

text: Part of Reid's confrontation with Frank Rosenthal while chair of the Nevada Gaming Commission is reenacted in the 1995 movie "Casino". Reid had a role in the movie "Traffic" (2000), in which he played himself. He appeared, with Senators Sam Brownback and Barack Obama, in the 2007 documentary film "Sand and Sorrow", which details the genocide in Sudan.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was elected to the Gaming Hall of Fame in 2001. In 2013, adviser Jim Margolis said of Reid, "He is unique in this city. And you see it in so many different ways. Is he the best TV talking head? No. He'd be the first to tell you that. Should he smile more? Yes. Should he say goodbye on the phone when he's done talking to you? Probably. But those are things you'd assume are part and parcel of a polished figure in Washington. That is not Harry Reid."


title: Harry Reid

text: Harry Reid (formerly McCarran) International Airport, which serves the Las Vegas Valley, was named after Senator Reid on December 14, 2021, just two weeks prior to his death.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid met his wife, Landra Gould, in high school. Gould was from a Jewish family and her parents objected to the relationship because Reid was not Jewish. The two eloped in 1959 when they were in college. The Reids had five children; a daughter and four sons. Their eldest son, Rory, was an elected commissioner for Clark County, Nevada, of which he became chairman, and 2010 Democratic nominee in the election for Governor of Nevada. Another son, Josh Reid, unsuccessfully sought municipal office in Cottonwood Heights, Utah. In 2014 financial disclosure reports, Reid reported a net worth of between $2.9 million and $9.3 million. Most of Reid's net worth was in municipal securities and in land and mineral rights in southern Nevada and Arizona; a blind trust managed the liquid assets of Reid and his wife.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid lived in the Anthem area of Henderson, Nevada. Reid (who was raised agnostic) and his wife (who was born to Jewish immigrant parents and grew up in Henderson) converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while he was a college student. In a 2001 interview he said, "I think it is much easier to be a good member of the Church and a Democrat than a good member of the Church and a Republican." He went on to say that the Democrats' emphasis on helping others, as opposed to what he considered Republican dogma to the contrary, is the reason he was a Democrat. He delivered a speech at Brigham Young University to about 4,000 students on October 9, 2007, in which he expressed his opinion that Democratic values mirror Mormon values. Several Republican Mormons in Utah contested his faith because of his politics, such as his statements that the church's backing of California's Proposition 8 wasted resources.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid was the co-chairman of the Board of Selectors of Jefferson Awards for Public Service. In April 2015, Reid confirmed former U.S. Senator Larry Pressler as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.


title: Harry Reid

text: On January 1, 2015, Reid was injured while exercising in his home—he said a piece of equipment he was using broke (later "slipped"), causing him to fall. As a result, he suffered broken ribs and broken facial bones, and was at risk of permanent vision loss in his right eye. On January 26, 2015, he underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from his right eye and repair facial bones. he later sued for damages a company he claimed manufactured the device, alleging the device was defective. In 2019, a jury rejected his claim on lack of evidence.


title: Harry Reid

text: On May 14, 2018, Reid had surgery for pancreatic cancer at Johns Hopkins Cancer Center after a tumor was found on his pancreas during a routine screening. In a January 2019 interview with "The New York Times", it was revealed that he was confined to a desk at his home and was unable to move without the aid of a walker. Upon his diagnosis, he said: "As soon as you discover you have something on your pancreas, you're dead." On February 25, 2019, he announced that due to early detection and chemotherapy, his cancer was in remission.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid died of pancreatic cancer at his home in Henderson on December 28, 2021, at the age of 82. Following the news of his death, President Joe Biden and former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton gave tributes to Reid. Several of his former Senate colleagues also gave tributes, including Chuck Schumer, Patrick Leahy, Dick Durbin, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley and Mike Lee as well as Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak. He lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda on January 12.


title: Harry Reid

text: Reid's funeral was broadcast live on CNN and MSNBC with tributes by President Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and performances by Brandon Flowers and Carole King. He was interred in his family plot in Searchlight.


title: Octopussy

text: Octopussy is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the "James Bond" series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by George MacDonald Fraser, Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson.


title: Octopussy

text: The film's title is taken from a short story in Ian Fleming's 1966 short story collection "Octopussy and The Living Daylights", although the film's plot is mostly original. It does, however, contain a scene adapted from the Fleming short story "The Property of a Lady" (included in 1967 and later editions of "Octopussy and The Living Daylights"). The events of the short story "Octopussy" form part of the title character's background and are recounted by her in the film.


title: Octopussy

text: In "Octopussy", Bond is assigned the task of following a megalomaniacal Soviet general (Steven Berkoff) who is stealing jewellery and art objects from the Kremlin art repository. This leads Bond to a wealthy exiled Afghan prince, Kamal Khan (Louis Jourdan), and his associate, Octopussy (Maud Adams), and the discovery of a plot to force disarmament in Western Europe with the use of a nuclear weapon.


title: Octopussy

text: "Octopussy" was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson; it was released four months before the non-Eon Bond film "Never Say Never Again". The film earned $187.5 million against its $27.5 million budget and received mixed reviews. Praise was directed towards the action sequences and locations, with the plot and humour being targeted for criticism; Maud Adams's portrayal of the title character also drew polarised responses.


title: Octopussy

text: After fleeing knife-throwing twin assassins Mischka and Grishka in East Berlin, mortally wounded British agent 009, dressed as a circus clown and carrying a counterfeit Fabergé egg, crashes into the British ambassador's residence and dies. MI6 immediately suspects Soviet involvement and, after the genuine Fabergé egg is to be auctioned in London, sends James Bond to identify the seller.


title: Octopussy

text: At the auction, Bond swaps the fake egg for the real one and subsequently engages in a bidding war with an exiled Afghan prince named Kamal Khan, forcing Khan to pay £500,000 for the counterfeit. Bond follows Khan to his palace in India. Bond defeats Khan in a game of backgammon using Khan's loaded dice. Bond and his MI6 contact, Vijay, escape Khan's bodyguard Gobinda. Later, Khan's associate Magda seduces Bond. Bond permits Magda to steal the real Fabergé egg, which is fitted with Q's listening and tracking device. Gobinda knocks Bond unconscious and takes him to Khan's palace. After Bond escapes, he listens in on the bug and discovers that Khan works with Orlov, a Soviet general seeking to expand Soviet domination to Western Europe.


title: Octopussy

text: Bond infiltrates a floating palace in Udaipur and meets its owner, Octopussy, a wealthy businesswoman, smuggler and Khan's associate. She also leads the Octopus cult, of which Magda is a member. Octopussy has a personal connection with Bond: her father is the late Major Dexter-Smythe, whom Bond arrested for treason. Octopussy thanks Bond for allowing the Major to commit suicide rather than face trial, and invites Bond to be her guest.


title: Octopussy

text: Earlier in Khan's palace and later in Octopussy's palace, Bond discovers that Orlov has been supplying Khan with priceless Soviet treasures, replacing them with replicas while Khan has been smuggling the genuine objects into the West via Octopussy's circus troupe. Orlov is planning to meet Khan at Karl-Marx-Stadt in East Germany, where the circus is scheduled to perform. Khan's assassins break into the palace to kill Bond, but Bond and Octopussy thwart them. Bond learns from Q that the assassins have killed Vijay.


title: Octopussy

text: Travelling to East Germany, Bond infiltrates the circus and discovers that Orlov has replaced the Soviet treasures with a nuclear warhead, primed to explode during the circus performance at a United States Air Force base in West Germany. The explosion would force Europe into seeking unilateral disarmament in the belief that the bomb belonged to the US and was detonated at the airbase accidentally, leaving the unprotected borders open to a Soviet invasion.


title: Octopussy

text: Bond takes Orlov's car, drives it along the railroad tracks and boards the moving circus train. Orlov gives chase, but is killed by border guards after he tries to rush a checkpoint. Bond kills Mischka and Grischka, and after falling from the train, commandeers a car to get to the airbase. Bond penetrates the base and disguises himself as a clown to evade the West German police. He convinces Octopussy that Khan has betrayed her, and realizing that she has been tricked, she assists Bond in deactivating the warhead.


title: Octopussy

text: Some time later, with the plan foiled, Khan has returned to his palace and prepares to flee. Bond and Octopussy also return separately to India. Bond arrives at Khan's palace just as Octopussy and her troops launch an assault on the grounds.


title: Octopussy

text: Octopussy attempts to kill Khan, but is captured by Gobinda. While Octopussy's team, led by Magda, overpower Khan's guards, Khan and Gobinda abandon the palace, taking Octopussy as a hostage. As they attempt to escape in their airplane, Bond clings to the fuselage and disables an engine and the elevator panel. Struggling with Bond, Gobinda plummets off the plane's roof to his death, and Bond and Octopussy jump off the plane onto a nearby cliff only seconds before Khan fatally crashes into a mountain. While the Minister of Defence and General Gogol discuss the transport of the jewelry, Bond recuperates with Octopussy aboard her private yacht in India.


title: Octopussy

text: Other actors in smaller roles include Andy Bradford as MI6 agent 009, Dermot Crowley as Lieutenant Kamp, Orlov's nuclear weapons expert; Peter Porteous as Lenkin, the Kremlin art expert; Eva Rueber-Staier as Rublevitch, Gogol's secretary; Jeremy Bulloch as Smithers, Q's assistant; Bruce Boa as Lieutenant General Peterson; and Richard LeParmentier as General Peterson's aide. Ingrid Pitt has an uncredited voice cameo as Octopussy's galley mistress.


title: Octopussy

text: Despite financial problems at United Artists after the release of Michael Cimino's "Heaven's Gate", the studio greenlit another James Bond film to be produced and released in 1982. In March 1983, one month after the announcement, UA was purchased and merged into Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Michael G. Wilson, Richard Maibaum, and George MacDonald Fraser were hired to write a film based on short stories from Ian Fleming's posthumous collection "Octopussy and The Living Daylights". Little of the plot of the short story "Octopussy" is used, however, with its events simply related by Bond as the family backstory for one of the main characters. The scene at Sotheby's is, though, adapted from the short story "The Property of a Lady" (included in 1967 and later editions of the collection), while Kamal Khan's reaction following the backgammon game is taken from Fleming's novel "Moonraker". After initially intending the film to be set in Japan, Fraser chose India as the setting because of his extensive research on the country for his novel "Flashman".


title: Octopussy

text: Fraser was hired to work on an early draft of the script and he proposed that the story be set in India, as the series had not yet visited said country. The first draft was delivered shortly after the release of "For Your Eyes Only", whose writers Michael G. Wilson and Richard Maibaum went on to rework the script. They discarded his idea for the opening sequence, featuring a motorbike chase set at the Isle of Man TT, but still retained moments that producer Albert R. Broccoli had first criticized, where Bond dressed as a gorilla and later, a clown. The film was rewritten to focus on jewelry smuggling after a scandal in the Soviet Union involving General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev's son Yuri Brezhnev manipulating the Moscow State Circus to smuggle jewelry.


title: Octopussy

text: Following "For Your Eyes Only", Roger Moore had expressed a desire to retire from the role of James Bond. His original contract had been for three films ("Live and Let Die" in 1973, "The Man with the Golden Gun" in 1974 and "The Spy Who Loved Me" in 1977) which was fulfilled. Moore's following two films ("Moonraker" in 1979 and "For Your Eyes Only" in 1981) were negotiated on a film-by-film basis. Given his reluctance to return for "Octopussy", the producers engaged in a semi-public quest for the next Bond, with Timothy Dalton and Lewis Collins being suggested as a replacement and screen tests carried out with Michael Billington, Oliver Tobias, and American actor James Brolin. However, when rival Bond production "Never Say Never Again" was announced, the producers persuaded Moore to continue in the role as it was thought the established actor would fare better against former Bond Sean Connery. It has been reported that Brolin had been hired and was actually on the point of moving to London to begin work on "Octopussy" at the time, while Broccoli refused to dispute Tobias's public statements that he was about to be cast as Bond.


title: Octopussy

text: Sybil Danning was announced in "Prevue" magazine in 1982 as being Octopussy, but was never actually cast, later explaining that Albert R. Broccoli felt "her personality was too strong". Faye Dunaway was deemed too expensive. Barbara Carrera said she turned down the role in order to play Fatima Blush in the competing Bond film "Never Say Never Again". Casting director Jane Jenkins revealed that the Bond producers told her that they wanted a South Asian actress to play Octopussy, so she looked at the only two Indians in predominantly white Hollywood, Persis Khambatta and Susie Coelho. Afterward, she auditioned white actresses, like Barbara Parkins and Kathleen Turner, who she felt could pass for Indian. Finally, Broccoli announced to her that they would cast Swedish-born Maud Adams, who had been a Bond girl in "The Man with the Golden Gun", and had been recently used by Eon to screen test the potential Bonds. To acknowledge the nationality, Adams had her hair darkened, and a few lines were added about how she was raised by an Indian family. A different plotline, with Adams's British father exposed as a traitor, was used instead. The role of Magda went to another Swedish actress, Kristina Wayborn, who the producers first noticed playing Greta Garbo in the miniseries "The Silent Lovers".


title: Octopussy

text: "Octopussy" is also the first film to feature Robert Brown as M, following the death of Bernard Lee in 1981. Brown was recommended by Moore, who had known him since both worked in the series "Ivanhoe". Brown had previously played Admiral Hargreaves in "The Spy Who Loved Me", six years earlier.


title: Octopussy

text: The first actor to be cast in the film was Vijay Amritraj, a popular professional tennis player whom Broccoli met watching The Championships in Wimbledon. His character of Bond's ally in India was also named Vijay and used a tennis racket as a weapon. For the villains, Broccoli brought in his friend Louis Jourdan as Kamal Khan, while his daughter Barbara suggested Steven Berkoff for Orlov after having seen him perform his own play, "Greek", in Los Angeles.


title: Octopussy

text: The filming of "Octopussy" began in West Berlin on 10 August 1982 with the scene in which Bond arrives at Checkpoint Charlie. Other locations from the city included Spandau Prison, the Brandenburg Gate, and Potsdamer Platz. Principal photography was done by Arthur Wooster and his second unit, who later filmed the knife-throwing scenes. Filming in India began on 12 September 1982 in Udaipur, Rajasthan. The Monsoon Palace served as the exterior of Kamal Khan's palace, while scenes set at Octopussy's palace were filmed at the Lake Palace and Jag Mandir, and Bond's hotel was the Shiv Niwas Palace. In England RAF Northolt, RAF Upper Heyford and RAF Oakley were the main locations. The Karl-Marx-Stadt railways scenes were shot at the Nene Valley Railway in Peterborough, while studio work was performed at Pinewood Studios and the 007 Stage. Parts of the film were also shot in Hurricane Mesa, Hurricane-LaVerkin Bridge, and New Harmony in Utah. Most of the crew as well as Roger Moore had diet problems while shooting in India.


title: Octopussy

text: The pre-title sequence has a scene where Bond flies a nimble homebuilt Bede BD-5J aircraft through an open hangar. Hollywood stunt pilot and aerial co-ordinator J.W. "Corkey" Fornof, who piloted the aircraft at more than , has said, "Today, few directors would consider such a stunt. They'd just whip it up in a computer lab." Having collapsible wings, the plane was shown hidden in a horse trailer; however, a dummy was used for this shot. Filming inside the hangar was achieved by attaching the aircraft to an old Jaguar car with a steel pole, driving with the roof removed. The second unit were able to add enough obstacles including people and objects inside the hangar to hide the car and the pole and make it look as though Moore was flying inside the base. For the explosion after the mini jet escapes, however, a miniature of the hangar was constructed and filmed up close. The exploding pieces of the hangar were in reality only long.


title: Octopussy

text: Much later in the film, Bond steals a Mercedes-Benz saloon car at a depot defended by antagonist soldiers; as he tries to escape, he drives over barrier spikes which shred the vehicle's tyres and then manoeuvres his vehicle's bare wheels onto the rails to pursue Octopussy's circus train. During filming, the car had intact tyres in one scene so as to avoid any mishap.


title: Octopussy

text: Stunt coordinator Martin Grace suffered an injury while shooting the scene where Bond climbs down the train to catch Octopussy's attention. During the second day of filming, Grace – who was Roger Moore's stunt double for the scene – carried on doing the scene longer than he should have, due to a miscommunication with the second unit director, and the train entered a section of the track which the team had not properly surveyed. Shortly afterwards, a concrete pole fractured Grace's left leg. The cyclist seen passing in the middle of a sword fight during the baby taxi chase sequence was in fact a bystander who passed through the shot, oblivious to the filming; his intrusion was captured by two cameras and left in the final film. Cameraman Alan Hume's last scene was that of Octopussy's followers rowing. That day, little time was left and it was decided to film the sunset at the eleventh hour.


title: Octopussy

text: The Fabergé egg in the film is based on a real one; made in 1897 and which was called the "Coronation Egg". The egg in the film is listed in the auction catalogue as being "The Property of a Lady", which is the name of one of Ian Fleming's short stories released in more recent editions of the collection "Octopussy and The Living Daylights".


title: Octopussy

text: In a bit of diegesis that "breaks the fourth wall", Vijay signals his affiliation to MI6 by playing the "James Bond Theme" on a recorder while Bond is disembarking from a boat in the harbour near the City Palace. Like his fictional counterpart, the real Vijay had a distinct fear of snakes and found it difficult to hold the basket during filming.


title: Octopussy

text: After being absent in "For Your Eyes Only" due to tax problems, John Barry returned to do his ninth Bond score. Barry made frequent references to the "James Bond Theme" to reinforce "Octopussy" as the official Bond film, given that the motif could not be featured in "Never Say Never Again", and opted to include only subtle references to the music of India, avoiding instruments such as the sitar for feeling that authentic music "didn't work dramatically". He also wrote opening theme "All Time High" with lyricist Tim Rice. "All Time High", sung by Rita Coolidge, is one of seven musical themes in the James Bond series whose song titles do not refer to the film's title. "All Time High" spent four weeks at number one on the United States' Adult Contemporary singles chart and reached number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100.


title: Octopussy

text: The soundtrack album was released in 1985 by A&M Records; the compact disc version of this release was recalled due to a colour printing error which omitted the credits from the album cover, making it a rare collector's item. In 1997, the soundtrack was re-issued by Rykodisc, with the original soundtrack music and some film dialogue, on an Enhanced CD version. The 2003 release, by EMI, restored the original soundtrack music without dialogue.


title: Octopussy

text: "Octopussy" was the first Bond film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which had absorbed United Artists, the previous distributor of Eon Bond films. "Octopussy" premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square on 6 June 1983, with Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales in attendance. The film earned slightly less than "For Your Eyes Only", but still grossed $187.5 million, with $67.8 million in the United States and Canada. In the United Kingdom, the film grossed £8.3 million ($14.9 million). Other large international grosses include $15.7 million in Germany, $15.1 million in Japan and $9.1 million in France. The film also performed better than "Never Say Never Again", the non-Eon Bond remake of "Thunderball" which was released a few months later and grossed $55 million in the United States and Canada. At the 11th Saturn Awards, Maud Adams was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. The film won the Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing. In Germany, it won the Golden Screen Award for selling over 3 million tickets.


title: Octopussy

text: Gary Arnold of "The Washington Post" felt "Octopussy" was "one of the snazziest, wittiest productions" of the film series, in which he praised John Glen's direction, Louis Jourdan's performance, and the screenplay. Writing for "The New York Times", Vincent Canby praised the film, but noted how "much of the story is incomprehensible". Gene Siskel, reviewing for "The Chicago Tribune", awarded the film three stars out of four, stating the film was "surprisingly entertaining—surprising because in his previous five Bond appearances Roger Moore has always come off as a smug stiff. In "Octopussy" Moore relaxes a bit and, just as important, his role is subordinated to the film's many and extremely exciting action scenes. "Octopussy" has the most sustained excitement in a Bond film since "You Only Live Twice"." However, he felt that the character Octopussy was detrimental to the film and that the action "blunts a script that is weak on characterization and long on male chauvinism".


title: Octopussy

text: "Variety" felt the film's strong points were "the spectacular aerial stuntwork marking both the pre-credits teaser and extremely dangerous-looking climax. The rest of the action scenes are well-executed but suffer from a sense of deja vu, as in a speeding train that recalls Sean Connery's derring-do in "The Great Train Robbery"". Kevin Thomas of the "Los Angeles Times" felt the film proved "to be business as usual, no better or worse than most of its predecessors. After all this time, it's amazing that the same old formula still plays: the gadgetry, gorgeous girls, travelogue locales and the shameless double-entendres—in this instance, octo-entendres." He complimented Glen's direction, but further remarked that the screenwriters had "given him too much to unravel. At 2 hours and 10 minutes, "Octopussy" seems a good 20 to 30 minutes too long for light escapist fare. The familiar chases and old-time serial-type cliff-hanging crises come fast but a mite too thick."


title: Octopussy

text: On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 43% based on 49 reviews with an average rating of 5.20/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Despite a couple of electrifying action sequences, "Octopussy" is a formulaic, anachronistic Bond outing."


title: Octopussy

text: James Berardinelli said that the movie was long and confusing, and strongly criticised Steven Berkoff's performance, describing it as "offensively bad" and the worst performance of any Bond villain. A particular point of contention are comedic scenes where Bond is dressed in a clown costume, a gorilla outfit and doing a Tarzan yell during a jungle chase. As a result, it frequently ranks low in rankings of James Bond films, such as the ones by "Entertainment Weekly", MSN, and IGN. C.J. Henderson reviewed "Octopussy" in "The Space Gamer" No. 65. Henderson commented that "there isn't a moment in the movie when we worry for the slightest instant that anything could happen to suave ol' James. Predictably, it doesn't. To kill Bond would be to lose the most bankable genre character ever brought to the movies."


title: Octopussy

text: By contrast, the elegance of the film locations in India, and the stunts on the aircraft and train were appreciated. "GQ" writer David Williams said "Octopussy" was "one of the best 'Bad Films' of the franchise", praising the entertaining characters but finding the silliness and Moore's advanced age problematic. Danny Peary wrote that "Octopussy" "has slow spots, little humour, and villains who aren't nearly of the calibre of Dr. No, Goldfinger, or Blofeld. Also, the filmmakers make the mistake of demeaning Bond by having him swing through the trees and emitting a Tarzan cry and having him hide in a gorilla suit and later disguise himself as a clown (who all the kids at the circus laugh at). It's as if they're trying to remind us that everything is tongue-in-cheek, but that makes little sense, for the film is much more serious than typical Bond outings – in fact, it recalls the tone of "From Russia with Love"."


title: Octopussy

text: In 2006, Fandango ranked the character Octopussy as one of the top-10 Bond girls, and described her as "a powerful, impressive woman". "Entertainment Weekly", however, ranked her as the 10th-worst Bond girl in one list in 2006 but as the best "babe" of the Roger Moore "James Bond" films in another list in 2008. A poll by Bond fans in 2008 elected Octopussy as the tenth-worst Bond Girl. Yahoo! Movies included the character in a 2012 list of the best Bond girl names, commenting: "This Bond girl moniker was so good, they named the film after her!"


title: Berkshire

text: Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berkshire in 1957 because of the presence of Windsor Castle, and letters patent were issued in 1974. Berkshire is a county of historic origin, a ceremonial county and a non-metropolitan county without a county council. The county town is Reading.


title: Berkshire

text: The River Thames formed the historic northern boundary, from Buscot in the west to Old Windsor in the east. The historic county, therefore, includes territory that is now administered by the Vale of White Horse and parts of South Oxfordshire in Oxfordshire, but excludes Caversham, Slough and five less populous settlements in the east of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. All the changes mentioned, apart from the change to Caversham, took place in 1974. The towns of Abingdon, Didcot, Faringdon, Wallingford and Wantage were transferred to Oxfordshire, the six places joining came from Buckinghamshire. Berkshire County Council was the main local government of most areas from 1889 to 1998 and was based in Reading, the county town which had its own County Borough administration (1888–1974).


title: Berkshire

text: Since 1998, Berkshire has been governed by the six unitary authorities of Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead and Wokingham. The ceremonial county borders Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the northeast, Greater London to the east, Surrey to the southeast, Wiltshire to the west and Hampshire to the south.


title: Berkshire

text: According to Asser's biography of King Alfred, written in 893 AD, its old name "Bearrocscir" takes its name from a wood of box trees, which was called "Bearroc" (a Celtic word meaning "hilly"). This wood, perhaps no longer extant, was west of Frilsham, near Newbury.


title: Berkshire

text: Much of the early history of the county is recorded in the "Chronicles" of the Abingdon Abbey, which at the time of the survey was second only to the crown in the extent and number of its possessions, such as The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay. The abbot also exercised considerable judicial and administrative powers, and his court was endowed with the privileges of the hundred court and was freed from liability to interference by the sheriff. Berkshire and Oxfordshire had a common sheriff until the reign of Elizabeth I, and the shire court was held at Grandpont. The assizes were formerly held at Reading, Abingdon, and Newbury, but by 1911 were held entirely at Reading.


title: Berkshire

text: Berkshire has been the scene of some notable battles throughout its history. Alfred the Great's campaign against the Danes included the battles of Englefield, Ashdown and Reading. Newbury was the site of two English Civil War battles: the First Battle of Newbury (at Wash Common) in 1643 and the Second Battle of Newbury (at Speen) in 1644. The nearby Donnington Castle was reduced to a ruin in the aftermath of the second battle. Another Battle of Reading took place on 9 December 1688. It was the only substantial military action in England during the Glorious Revolution and ended in a decisive victory for forces loyal to William of Orange.


title: Berkshire

text: Reading became the new county town in 1867, taking over from Abingdon, which remained in the county. Under the Local Government Act 1888, Berkshire County Council took over functions of the Berkshire Quarter Sessions, covering the administrative county of Berkshire, which excluded the county borough of Reading. Boundary alterations in the early part of the 20th century were minor, with Caversham from Oxfordshire becoming part of the Reading county borough and cessions in the Oxford area.


title: Berkshire

text: On 1 April 1974, Berkshire's boundaries changed under the Local Government Act 1972. Berkshire took over administration of Slough and Eton and part of the former Eton Rural District from Buckinghamshire. The northern part of the county became part of Oxfordshire, with Faringdon, Wantage and Abingdon and their hinterland becoming the Vale of White Horse district, and Didcot and Wallingford added to South Oxfordshire district. 94 (Berkshire Yeomanry) Signal Squadron still keep the Uffington White Horse in their insignia, even though the White Horse is now in Oxfordshire. The original Local Government White Paper would have transferred Henley-on-Thames from Oxfordshire to Berkshire: this proposal did not make it into the Bill as introduced.


title: Berkshire

text: On 1 April 1998 Berkshire County Council was abolished under a recommendation of the Banham Commission, and the districts became unitary authorities. Unlike similar reforms elsewhere at the same time, the non-metropolitan county was not abolished. Signs saying "Welcome to the Royal County of Berkshire" exist on borders of West Berkshire, on the east side of Virginia Water, on the M4 motorway, on the south side of Sonning Bridge, on the A404 southbound by Marlow, and northbound on the A33 past Stratfield Saye.


title: Berkshire

text: All of the county is drained by the Thames. Berkshire divides into two topological (and associated geological) sections: east and west of Reading. North-east Berkshire has the low calciferous (limestone) m-shaped bends of the Thames south of which is a broader, clayey, gravelly former watery plain or belt from Earley to Windsor and beyond, south, are parcels and belts of uneroded higher sands, flints, shingles and lightly acid soil and in the north of the Bagshot Formation, north of Surrey and Hampshire. Swinley Forest (also known as Bracknell Forest), Windsor Great Park, Crowthorne and Stratfield Saye Woods have many pine, silver birch, and other lightly acid-soil trees. East of the grassy and wooded bends a large minority of East Berkshire's land mirrors the clay belt, being of low elevation and on the left (north) bank of the Thames: Slough, Eton, Eton Wick, Wraysbury, Horton, and Datchet. In the heart of the county Reading's northern suburb Caversham is also on that bank, but rises steeply into the Chiltern Hills.


title: Berkshire

text: Two main tributaries skirt past Reading, the Loddon and its sub-tributary the Blackwater draining parts of two counties south, and the Kennet draining part of upland Wiltshire in the west. Heading west the reduced, but equally large, part of the county extends further from the Thames which flows from the north-north-west before the Goring Gap; West Berkshire hosts the varying-width plain of the River Kennet rising to high chalk hills by way of and lower clay slopes and rises. To the south, the land crests along the boundary with Hampshire; the highest parts of South-East and Eastern England taken together are here. The highest is Walbury Hill at . To the north of the Kennet are the Berkshire Downs. This is hilly country, with smaller and well-wooded valleys: those of the Lambourn, Pang, and their Thames sub-tributaries. The open upland areas vie with Newmarket, Suffolk for horse racing training and breeding centres and have good fields of barley, wheat, and other cereal crops.


title: Berkshire

text: According to 2003 estimates there were 803,657 people in Berkshire, or 636 people/km. The population is mostly based in the urban areas to the east and centre of the county: the largest towns here are Reading, Slough, Bracknell, Maidenhead, Woodley, Wokingham, Windsor, Earley, Sandhurst, and Crowthorne. West Berkshire is much more rural and sparsely populated, with far fewer towns: the largest are Newbury, Thatcham, and Hungerford.


title: Berkshire

text: In 1831, there were 146,234 people living in Berkshire; by 1901 the population had risen to 252,571 (of whom 122,807 were male and 129,764 were female). Below are the largest immigrant groups in 2011.


title: Berkshire

text: Berkshire, as a ceremonial county and non-metropolitan county, one of four currently in England that have no council covering their entire area; rather it is divided into unitary authorities. Berkshire County Council existed from 1889 until its 1998 abolition. The ceremonial county has a Lord Lieutenant and a High Sheriff. The Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire is James Puxley, and the High Sheriff of Berkshire for 2018/19 was Graham Barker.


title: Berkshire

text: As at 2015–2019 a Conservative Party group of local councillors co-run the unitary authorities of West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham and Bracknell Forest with the employed executives. An equivalent group of Labour Party local councillors co-run Reading and Slough.


title: Berkshire

text: Since the last general election in 2017, six of the elected Members of Parliament (MPs) have been Conservative and two (Slough and Reading East) have been Labour. The prime minister between July 2016 and July 2019, Theresa May represents Maidenhead, the geographically larger seat west of Slough.


title: Berkshire

text: This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Berkshire at current basic prices published by the "Office for National Statistics" with figures in millions of British pounds sterling.


title: Berkshire

text: Reading has a historical involvement in the information technology industry, largely as a result of the early presence in the town of sites of International Computers Limited and Digital. These companies have been swallowed by other groups, but their descendants, Fujitsu and Hewlett-Packard respectively, still have local operations. More recently Microsoft and Oracle have established multi-building campuses on the outskirts of Reading. Other technology companies with a presence in the town include Huawei Technologies, Agilent Technologies, Audio & Design (Recording) Ltd, Bang & Olufsen, Cisco, Comptel, Ericsson, Harris Corporation, Intel, Nvidia, Rockwell Collins, Sage, SGI, Symantec, Symbol Technologies, Verizon Business, Virgin Media, Websense, Xansa (now Sopra Steria), and Xerox. The financial company ING Direct has its headquarters in Reading, as does the directories company Hibu. The insurance company Prudential has an administration centre in the town. PepsiCo and Holiday Inn have offices. As with most major cities, Reading also has offices of the Big Four accounting firms Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The 110-year old charity, Berkshire Vision is also located within Reading city centre.


title: Berkshire

text: The global headquarters of Reckitt Benckiser and the UK headquarters of Mars Incorporated are based in Slough. The European head offices of major IT companies BlackBerry, CA Technologies, are in the town. O has headquarters in four buildings. The town is home to the National Foundation for Educational Research, which is housed in The Mere. Other major brands with offices in the town include Nintendo, Black & Decker, Amazon, HTC, SSE plc and Abbey Business Centres. Dulux paints are still manufactured in Slough by AkzoNobel, which bought Imperial Chemical Industries in 2008.


title: Berkshire

text: Bracknell is a base for high-tech industries, with the presence of companies such as Panasonic, Fujitsu (formerly ICL) and Fujitsu-Siemens Computers, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Siemens (originally Nixdorf), Honeywell, Cable & Wireless, Avnet Technology Solutions and Novell. Firms subsequently spread into the surrounding Thames Valley or M4 corridor, attracting IT firms such as Cable & Wireless, DEC (subsequently Hewlett-Packard), Microsoft, Sharp Telecommunications, Oracle Corporation, Sun Microsystems and Cognos. Bracknell is also home to the central Waitrose distribution centre and head office, which is on a site on the Southern Industrial Estate. Waitrose has operated from the town since the 1970s. The town is also home to the UK headquarters of Honda and BMW.