title: Royal Air Maroc

text: A single Caravelle was part of the fleet of four L-749 Constellations, four DC-4s and three DC-3s by , making the Caravelle the first jet aircraft operated by the company; another Caravelle was yet to be delivered. The type began serving the Rabat–Bamako route in . By 1964, there were three Caravelles in the fleet. A fourth was ordered in late 1964.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: At , the company had 758 employees and chairmanship was held by Mohammed Al Fassi. The route network included services within North Africa, and also linked North Africa with France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland; the Casablanca–Dakar and Casablanca–Las Palmas sectors were also flown. Shareholding at the time was split between the government of Morocco (64%), Air France (21%), Compagnie Generale Transatlantique (7.6%), Aviacion y Comercio (5%) and others (2.4%). An order for a fifth Caravelle was placed in early 1968. By 1969, all routes to Europe and North Africa were flown using solely these aircraft.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: In 1969, the carrier placed its first order with Boeing. Royal Air Maroc took delivery of the first Boeing aircraft, a Boeing 727-200, in 1970, with the carrier deploying it on revenue service on 15 May.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: Subsidiary airline "Royal Air Inter" was formed early in 1970 to undertake domestic routes using Fokker F-27 Friendship equipment; this sister company started operations on 2 April 1970, and by , it was serving Agadir, Al Hoceima, Casablanca, Fez, Marrakesh, Oujda, Rabat, Tangier and Tetouan. The RAM's fleet at comprised two Boeing 727-200s, along with four Caravelles and two SIAI Marchetti SF.260s. At a cost of  million, a third Boeing 727-200 was ordered in 1972. In 1974, the carrier ordered a single Boeing 727-200 Advanced, followed by an order for a fourth Boeing 727-200. Also that year, negotiations with Air France for the lease of a Boeing 707-320B started. By , the Boeing 707 was part of an 11-strong fleet, along with four Boeing 727-200s, four Caravelles, and two SIAI Marchetti SF.260s. RAM flew the leased Boeing 707 to New York for the first time in , becoming the first Arab airline in serving this destination. During the year, the company acquired three Boeing 737-200s to replace the Caravelles. Also in 1975, a weekly non-stop service to Rio de Janeiro was started. An order for three more Boeing 727-200s was placed in early 1976. That year, the four Caravelles were withdrawn from service and sold. A Boeing 747-200B entered the fleet in .


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: By , Royal Air Maroc had 3,583 employees. At this time, the carrier fleet consisted of a single Boeing 747-200B, two Boeing 707-320Cs, one Boeing 707-320, seven Boeing 727-200s and three Boeing 737-200s. Another Boeing 727-200, ordered in January that year, was still pending delivery. At a cost of , an additional Boeing 737-200 was ordered in 1981, with the US Export-Import Bank arranging a  million loan to secure the delivery, and RAM and private financers funding the balance. Delivery was slated for . During 1982, two Boeing 737-200Cs were ordered for  million; deliveries were arranged for March and . Late that year, the airline joined the International Air Transport Association.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: In , RAM was the first African airline to put the Boeing 757 in service. The first of these aircraft that was delivered to the company set a record for the type when it flew the distance separating Seattle from Casablanca, , non-stop.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: In the early days of the decade, the last of the Boeing 707s was removed from the fleet. Meanwhile, newer, more efficient, Classic 400 and 500 Series Boeing 737s were introduced to increase the frequency of European routes. By the middle of the decade all 727s had disappeared. To consolidate its North American operations, Royal Air Maroc purchased a single Boeing 747-400. As the decade progressed, new routes to previously under-served African airports were opened.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: With the increasing number of passengers and newly opened routes as well as increasing oil prices, there was a need to buy new aircraft. In 2000 an order for 20 Next-Generation Boeing 737 aircraft and 4 Airbus A321s was placed. Meanwhile, more routes to the west and central African cities were opened.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: RAM was now changing, from providing flights to meet the demands of foreign tourists and Moroccan expatriates, to providing connections between European cities and African cities via the Casablanca hub. In 2002, the company leased two 767s to replace the single 747 in North American routes.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: Morocco and the EU signed an open skies agreement in late 2006. This means that Royal Air Maroc will have to face tough competition from low-cost carriers eager to exploit profitable routes between Western Europe and Morocco. A further challenge arises from the high cost of kerosene and the fact that the company may have to drop some of its unprofitable domestic and international routes.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: , the airline is owned by the Moroccan government; 53.94% of shares are owned directly by the state, an additional 44.10% are held via the Hassan II Fund for Economic and Social Development. The remaining 2% are owned by private investors including Air France and Iberia.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: The government has considered the privatisation of the company for about 20 years; the latest plan, dating from late 2012, reportedly included selling up to 44% of the stakes to a Gulf airline.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: The carrier achieved the best result in ten years for the fiscal year 2012; cost-cutting measures had included the reduction in the number of employees by 1,974 between and and a fleet renewal program, and the net loss for the same period was reduced to MAD43 million. Following restructuring, which included the removal of medium-haul aircraft, the staff-to-aircraft ratio decreased from 110:1 to 58:1, whereas the ratio of passengers transported per employee increased from 1,054:1 to 2,329:1.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: Full formal accounts do not seem to be regularly published; available figures for recent years are shown below (for years ending 30 October):


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: Royal Air Maroc has its head office on the grounds of Casablanca-Anfa Airport in Casablanca. In 2004 the airline announced that it would move its head office from Casablanca to the Nouaceur Province, near Mohammed V International Airport. MAP, the official state news agency, said that the construction of the headquarters and a 500-room conference hotel would take 1 year and 6 months. The agreement to build the head office in Nouaceur was signed in 2009.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: RAM's frequent flyer programme is called "Safar Flyer". , cardholders can earn and redeem miles either by flying RAM, its direct subsidiaries, or its partner airlines Iberia, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways; hotels and car rental companies offer benefits too.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: , Royal Air Maroc (RAM) operated an all-Boeing fleet. RAM placed an order for nine Boeing 737 Next Generation in ; the first of these aircraft the airline took possession of, in , was a Boeing 737-800, making the carrier the first scheduled one outside the United States to take delivery of this model. RAM received its first Boeing 737-700 in . In , RAM placed orders for 20 new Boeing 737 NGs plus two wide-bodied Boeing 767-300ERs in a deal worth about  billion. That same year, RAM became a new Airbus customer when it bought four Airbus A321s. In , the airline took delivery of its first Boeing 767-300ER.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: After the carrier's Board of Directors agreed to buy a number of Boeing 787s on 29 July 2005, a memorandum of understanding for the acquisition of these aircraft was signed with Boeing on 31 Jul the same year. The deal, worth  million and including five Dreamliners, was confirmed in early November that year, with initial delivery slated for . The purchase contract was signed in , and also included an aircraft of the type on option. Following an over- million-worth contract that was signed in , these aircraft will be powered with General Electric GEnx engines. Boeing delivered RAM first Dreamliner in .


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: RAM was the launch customer for the ATR 72-600, when it took delivery of two of these aircraft, on behalf of its regional subsidiary RAM Express, in . The carrier had placed an order for four aircraft of the type in , along with two ATR 42-600s.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: In September 2018, RAM retired its sole Boeing 747-400. In December 2018, RAM took delivery of its first Boeing 737 MAX 8 and Boeing 787-9.


title: Royal Air Maroc

text: In , RAM's CEO indicated that the airline was seeking new generation aircraft as a replacement for its ageing fleet, adding that the carrier will need some 20 to 30 new aircraft by 2020, and that the Boeing 787 was being considered for long-haul routes, whereas the Airbus A220, the Airbus A320neo, the Boeing 737 MAX, and Embraer E-Jet E2 families were all being considered for medium-haul flights. A contract for the lease of Four Embraer E-190s was signed in mid-2014; the carrier took delivery of the first of these aircraft in November the same year.


title: USS Stark incident

text: The USS "Stark" incident occurred during the Iran–Iraq War on 17 May 1987, when an Iraqi jet aircraft fired two Exocet missiles at the American frigate . A total of 37 United States Navy personnel were killed or later died as a result of the attack, and 21 were injured.


title: USS Stark incident

text: was part of the Middle East Task Force assigned to patrol off the Saudi Arabian coast near the Iran–Iraq War exclusion boundary. At the time, the United States Central Command identified the attacking aircraft as an Iraqi Dassault Mirage F1 fighter. However, later reporting has asserted that the attacking aircraft was a Dassault Falcon 50 business jet which had been modified with a radar and missile hardpoints to carry two AM-39 Exocet missiles for anti-shipping operations. The F1EQ-5 variant of the Mirage F1 operated by Iraq at the time was only capable of carrying a single Exocet. Iraq had previously used modified Falcon jets in civilian markings to conduct covert photographic reconnaissance in the Persian Gulf to avoid attracting suspicion.


title: USS Stark incident

text: Initially not alarmed, at 22:09 Captain Glenn R. Brindel ordered a radioman to send the message: "Unknown aircraft, this is U.S. Navy warship on your 078 (degrees) for twelve miles. Request you identify yourself." The Iraqi pilot did not respond to the message. The ship's captain ordered a second message sent, to which there was no reply. At 22:10 Brindel was informed the Iraqi aircraft had targeted his ship, locking his Cyrano-IV fire-control radar onto "Stark". The Iraqi aircraft then fired the first Exocet missile from the ship, and the second Exocet from . The pilot then banked left and began to withdraw.


title: USS Stark incident

text: "Stark"s search radar, ESM and CIWS systems failed to detect the incoming missiles. The first Exocet missile struck the port side of the ship near the bridge. Although it failed to detonate, rocket fuel ignited and caused a large fire that quickly spread throughout the ship's post office, storeroom, and the critical combat operations center (where the ship's weapons are controlled).


title: USS Stark incident

text: The second Exocet also struck the port side, 30 seconds later. This missile detonated, leaving a hole in the frigate's left side. Electronics for "Stark"s Standard Missile defense went out and Brindel could not order his men to return fire. An AWACS plane was still in the area and just after witnessing the attack, radioed a nearby Saudi airbase to send aircraft for an interception, but the ground controllers did not have the authority to order a sortie and the Iraqi jet left unharmed. The USN (United States Navy) rules of engagement applicable at the time allowed "Stark "to defend herself after sufficiently warning the hostile aircraft. A total of 37 crew were killed in the attack, 29 from the initial explosion and fire, including two lost at sea. Eight later died from their injuries. Twenty-one others survived their wounds.


title: USS Stark incident

text: Brindel ordered the starboard side flooded to keep the hole on the hull's port side above water. This helped prevent the "Stark" from sinking. Brindel quickly dispatched a distress call after the first missile hit. It was received by , which was in the area, and with two-thirds of its crew on liberty in Bahrain. "Waddell" and "Conyngham" arrived to provide damage control and relief to "Stark"s crew. According to the Pentagon, an Iranian helicopter joined a Saudi Arabian vessel to aid in rescue operations.


title: USS Stark incident

text: "Stark" arrived at Bahrain the following day, 18 May 1987. There she was temporarily repaired by the destroyer tender before setting a course for Mayport Naval Station, Florida, the ship's home port. A court of inquiry under Rear Admiral Grant Sharp was formed to investigate the incident and later Captain Brindel was recommended for court-martial but was ultimately only reprimanded and relieved of duty. It was found that "Stark" was outside the exclusion zone and had not violated neutrality as the Iraqis claimed. Iraq apologized, and Saddam Hussein said that the pilot mistook "Stark" for an Iranian tanker.


title: USS Stark incident

text: American officials claimed that the Iraqi jet's pilot was not acting under orders from his government and that he was later executed, but an Iraqi Air Force officer later stated that the pilot was not punished and that he was still alive. According to Jean-Louis Bernard, author of "Heroes of Bagdad" T1 (Editions JPO 2017), the pilot, Abdul Rahman, would have received the medal of bravery at the end of a joint Iraqi-American commission of inquiry. His subsequent defection to Iran is not mentioned in this book. Jean-Louis Bernard also confirms the use of a Falcon 50 during this action.


title: USS Stark incident

text: Iranian Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi called it a "divine blessing" and reiterated the standard Iranian view that the Persian Gulf "is not a safe place for the superpowers and it is in their interest not to enter this quicksand". Iraq Foreign Ministry spokesman said Iraq would never intentionally attack any target in the Gulf unless it was Iranian, and laid the blame on Iran.


title: USS Stark incident

text: Washington used the incident to pressure Iran, which it later blamed for the whole situation. President Ronald Reagan said "We've never considered them [Iraq's military] hostile at all", and "the villain in the piece is Iran".


title: USS Stark incident

text: The Joint Chiefs of Staff investigation into the incident recommended that Iraq be held accountable, a finding the government of Iraq eventually complied with. Captain Brindel was relieved of duty and retired as a Commander for not defending his ship and Tactical Action Officer Lieutenant Basil E. Moncrief resigned.


title: USS Stark incident

text: On 21 June 2011, an agreement was reached between the governments of the United States and Iraq regarding claims of United States citizens against the regime of Saddam Hussein. The Iraqi government established a fund of $400 million to compensate prisoners of war and hostages in the Persian Gulf War, and those killed or injured in the 1987 attack on "Stark". The United States Department of State was to establish a mechanism to process applications for compensation.


title: USS Stark incident

text: On 22 May 1987, a eulogy was given by president Ronald Reagan at Mayport Naval Station, Jacksonville, Florida.


title: USS Stark incident

text: A ceremony is held at Mayport Naval Station on 17 May each year to remember the 37 men who died in the incident. The ceremony in 2012 was the 25th anniversary of the attack.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: Vinod Kambli (; born 18 January 1972) is a former Indian international Cricketer, who played for India as a left-handed middle order batsman, as well as for Mumbai and Boland, South Africa. Kambli became the first cricketer in cricket history to score a century in a One-day International on his birthday.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: He has the highest career batting average for an Indian test cricketer of 54 but he played his last test when he was just 23 years old. Thereafter, he was only considered to play for One Day International matches, although his last appearance in that format was also at the young age of 28.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: He has appeared as a commentator on various television channels and worked with a Marathi News channel as a cricket expert for the 2019 Cricket World Cup. He has also been a part of various reality shows and done a few serials and Bollywood films as an actor. He played a supporting role in the Kannada film "Bettanagere". Kambli is currently on the Cricket Improvement Committee for Mumbai Cricket Association, but he pleaded to MCA that he need work, an assignment, as he need to look after his family.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: He shared an unbroken partnership of 664 runs with Sachin Tendulkar in a school cricket match against St. Xavier's School, Fort. Kambli contributed 349 runs before their coach Acharekar forced the pair to declare the innings; he then took six wickets for 37 runs in St. Xavier's first innings.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: Kambli started his Ranji Trophy career with a six off the first ball he faced. He made his One Day International and Test debuts in 1991 and 1992, respectively. In Tests, he made four centuries including two double-centuries. He also holds the record for the Indian player to fastest (14 innings) reach 1000 runs in Tests.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: in 1993 on his birthday, setting the record for becoming the first batsman to score an ODI hundred on his birthday and 106 against Zimbabwe at Kanpur in the 1996 World Cup.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: On 15 August 2009, Kambli launched his Khel Bharti Sports Academy in Mumbai and announced his retirement from cricket as he wished to coach at Khel Bharti Academy.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: Vinod Kambli fulfilled a position within Tendulkar Middlesex Global Academy between 2018 and 2022. He finished his full time role as TMGA Head Coach for the Academy at DY Patil, Navi Mumbai in early 2022.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: Vinod Kambli first married Noella Lewis, a Catholic at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Poona. She worked as a receptionist at Hotel Blue Diamond (in Pune) in the year 1998.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: After separating from her Kambli married fashion model Andrea Hewitt. The couple has a child born in June 2010.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: After his marriage to his second wife Andrea, Kambli converted to the Catholic Church, naming his son Jesus Christiano Kambli. Despite his conversion Kambli stated that he still respects all religions.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: On Friday, 29 November 2013, Kambli was admitted to Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital, following a heart attack. Kambli was taken ill while he was driving from Chembur to Bandra and suddenly stopped the car. A policewoman on duty, Sujata Patil noticed he could not drive and arranged to rush him to Lilavati Hospital. Kambli had undergone angioplasty on two of his blocked arteries in 2012.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: Vinod Kambli joined the Bhakti Shakti Party and was appointed vice-president of the party. He contested the 2009 Assembly election from Vikhroli, Mumbai as a Lok Bharati Party candidate and lost the election. However, he continues to do social work. In 2011, he supported Anna Hazare's campaign of India against Corruption.


title: Vinod Kambli

text: Vinod Kambli made his debut on the small screen on DD National in a serial called "Miss India" in 2002. He also was a contestant on "Bigg Boss".


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: Solace is a 2015 American mystery thriller film directed by Afonso Poyart and starring Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Abbie Cornish. The film was released on December 16, 2016, by Lionsgate Premiere. The film is about a psychic doctor, John Clancy (Anthony Hopkins), who works with FBI special agent Joe Merriwether (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) in search of serial killer Charles Ambrose (Colin Farrell). The film's script was originally planned and developed as a sequel to the 1995 thriller film "Se7en", but the idea was eventually scrapped and "Solace" was completed as a standalone film.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: Having lived in isolation since the death of his daughter two years ago, psychic Dr. John Clancy is contacted by his friend Joe Merriwether, an FBI special agent, who asks for his help in tracking down a serial killer with very elaborate methods. Joe seems unable to convince Clancy, but when his partner Katherine Cowles enters and touches Clancy on the shoulder after giving him the case files, Clancy envisions a violent future event with blood spilling down Katherine's forehead, among other insights into her life. Clancy reluctantly agrees. FBI special agent Cowles, Merriwether's partner, is skeptical of Clancy's gift, but is soon convinced otherwise.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: The victims all turn out to have been suffering from terminal illnesses and Clancy realizes the killer has abilities exceeding his own. Merriwether is shot by the suspect and admits he was diagnosed with terminal cancer before dying in the hospital. After the funeral, Clancy is confronted by the killer, who explains he is sparing his victims from a slow death, killing them out of mercy, and that he engineered Merriwether's death. He arrogantly declares he has seen all the possible outcomes of their confrontation, but Clancy surprises him; nonetheless, the killer escapes after distracting police by saying Clancy has a gun.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: Cowles discovers the killer is a man called Charles Ambrose. Clancy is forced to test his abilities to their limits and is able to intercept Ambrose as he poisons his latest victim. Clancy tells him he has no right to take time away from even the terminally ill, such as his friend Merriwether.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: Cowles and Clancy finally confront Ambrose in a subway car. Ambrose tells Clancy that he is dying and asks Clancy to shoot him. He wants Clancy to take over the role of mercy killing and warns him that Cowles will be killed if he does not shoot him. Cowles runs up behind Clancy and both Ambrose and Clancy fire their weapons. Ambrose dies and Clancy is injured. Clancy and Cowles become close, and Clancy sees Cowles as the daughter he lost. In the hospital, Clancy gives Cowles a letter for his wife, with whom Clancy reconciles. He recalls euthanizing his own daughter as she was dying from leukemia.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: The original script was written by Ted Griffin and Disney executive Sean Bailey in 2000. James Vanderbilt contributed to the script and final changes were made by Peter Morgan; neither were credited on the final film. At one point the script was picked up by New Line Cinema and intended to be rewritten as a sequel to "Se7en", tentatively titled "Ei8ht", with Morgan Freeman returning as Det. William Somerset, who would have developed psychic powers. The idea was eventually dropped when "Se7en" director David Fincher responded negatively to the idea, and the film was subsequently rewritten as a standalone project. In 2008, Mark Pellington was announced to direct the film.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: The film made its premiere in Turkey on April 24, 2015, before receiving a screening at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2015. The film was originally scheduled to be released on September 2, 2016, by Relativity Media. In October 2016, Lionsgate Premiere acquired U.S rights to the film, and set it for a December 16, 2016, release.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 25% based on 51 reviews and an average score of 4.18/10. The site's consensus reads, ""Solace" boasts a talented cast and a somewhat intriguing premise, but they're outweighed by a plodding story that teeters between tired clichés and ludicrous twists." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 36% based on reviews from 12 critics, indicating "Generally unfavorable reviews".


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: Peter Debruge of "Variety" called it a "corny but clever serial killer thriller" whose cast makes the film work. Bernard Besserglik of "The Hollywood Reporter" wrote that the film is not as good as its inspiration, but the chemistry between Hopkins and Farrell makes it worth showing theatrically despite the film's reputation for having a troubled production.


title: Solace (2015 film)

text: Peter Bradshaw of "The Guardian" wrote "This could be one of those rare and terrifying serial killer cases where the psychotic culprit apparently intends to bore and embarrass everyone to death with bad acting." Tim Robey of "The Telegraph" calls the film a misfire and blames director Afonso Poyart and his unusual editing and zooming.


Date and time notation in the United States differs from that used in nearly all other countries. It is inherited from one historical branch of conventions from the United Kingdom. American styles of notation have also influenced customs of date notation in Canada, creating confusion in international commerce.


title: Date and time notation in the United States

text: In traditional American usage, dates are written in the month–day–year order (e.g. ) with a comma before and after the year if it is not at the end of a sentence, and time in 12-hour notation ().


text: International date and time formats typically follow the ISO 8601 format () for all-numeric dates, write the time using the 24-hour clock (), and notate the date using a day–month–year format (). These forms are increasingly common in American professional, academic, technological, military, and other internationally oriented environments.


text: In the United States, dates are traditionally written in the "month-day-year" order, with neither increasing nor decreasing order of significance. This is called middle endian. This order is used in both the traditional all-numeric date (e.g., "1/21/16" or "01/21/2016") and the expanded form (e.g., "January 21, 2016"—usually spoken with the year as a cardinal number and the day as an ordinal number, e.g., "January twenty-first, twenty sixteen"), with the historical rationale that the year was often of lesser importance. The most commonly used separator in the all-numeric form is the slash (/), although the hyphen (-) and period (.) have also emerged in the all-numeric format recently due to globalization. The Chicago Manual of Style discourages writers from writing all-numeric dates, other than the year-month-date format advocated by ISO 8601, as it is not comprehensible to readers outside the United States.


text: The day-month-year order has been increasing in usage since the early 1980s. The month is usually written as an abbreviated name, as in "19 Jul 1942" (sometimes with hyphens). Many genealogical databases and the Modern Language Association citation style use this format. When filling in the Form I-94 cards and new customs declaration cards used for people entering the U.S., passengers are requested to write pertinent dates in the numeric "dd mm yy" format (e.g. "19 07 42"). Visas and passports issued by the U.S. State Department also use the day-month-year order for human-readable dates and year-month-day for all-numeric encoding, in compliance with the International Civil Aviation Organization's standards for machine-readable travel documents.


text: The fully written "day-month-year" (e.g., 25 August 2006) in written American English is becoming more common outside of the media industry and legal documents, particularly in university publications and in some internationally influenced publications as a means of dealing with ambiguity. The Chicago Manual of Style recommends it for material that requires many full dates, as it does not require commas. Most Americans still write "August 25, 2006" in informal documents. Speaking the "day month year" format is still somewhat rare, with the exception of holidays such as the Fourth of July.


text: The year-month-day order, such as the ISO 8601 "YYYY-MM-DD" notation is popular in computer applications because it reduces the amount of code needed to resolve and compute dates. It is also commonly used in software cases where there are many separately dated items, such as documents or media, because sorting alphabetically will automatically result in the content being listed chronologically. Switching the U.S.'s traditional date format from month-day-year to year-month-day may be considered less of a break, as it preserves the familiar month-day order.


text: Two U.S. standards mandate the use of year-month-day formats: ANSI INCITS 30-1997 (R2008); and NIST FIPS PUB 4-2 (FIPS PUB 4-2 withdrawn in United States 2008-09-02), the earliest of which is traceable back to 1968. This order is also used within the Federal Aviation Administration and military because of the need to eliminate ambiguity.


text: The United States military uses the DD MM YYYY format for standard military correspondence. The common month-day-year format is used for correspondence with civilians. The military date notation is similar to the date notation in British English but is read cardinally (e.g. "Nineteen July") rather than ordinally (e.g. "The nineteenth of July").


text: Weeks are generally referred to by the date of some day within that week (e.g., "the week of May 25"), rather than by a week number. Many holidays and observances are identified relative to the day of the week on which they are fixed, either from the beginning of the month (first, second, etc.) or end (last, and far more rarely penultimate and antepenultimate). For example, Thanksgiving is defined as being on "the fourth Thursday in November". Some such definitions are more complex. For example, Election Day is defined as "the Tuesday next after the first Monday in the month of November" or "the first Tuesday after November 1". Calendars mostly show Sunday as the first day of the week.


text: The United States uses the 12-hour clock almost exclusively, not only in spoken language, but also in writing, even on timetables, for airline tickets, and computer software. The suffixes "a.m." and "p.m." (often represented as AM and PM) are appended universally in written language. Alternatively, people might specify "noon" or "midnight", after or instead of 12:00. (Business events, which are increasingly scheduled using groupware calendar applications, are less vulnerable to such ambiguity, since the software itself can be modified to take care of the naming conventions.) Where the a.m.–p.m. convention is inconvenient typographically (e.g., in dense tables), different fonts or colors are sometimes used instead. The most common usage in transport timetables for air, rail, bus, etc. is to use lightface for a.m. times and boldface for p.m. times. It is also not uncommon for AM and PM to be shortened to A and P.


text: The 24-hour clock is used in military, public safety, and scientific contexts in the United States. It is best known for its use by the military, and therefore commonly called "military time". In U.S. military use, 24-hour time is traditionally written without a colon (1800 instead of 18:00), and the Army add the word "hours" after the military time (e.g. "eighteen hundred hours".) However, the Navy and Marine Corps do not add the word "hours" after the military time.


text: The 24-hour notation is also widely used by astronomers, hospitals, public safety personnel (police, fire department, EMS), various forms of transportation, and at radio and other broadcast media outlets behind the scenes where scheduling programming needs to be exact, without mistaking AM and PM. In these cases, exact and unambiguous communication of time is critical. If someone mistakes 5:00 AM for 5:00 PM in a hospital for example, when medication or other medical treatment is needed at a certain time, the outcome could be critical. Thus 24-hour time (5:00 PM written as 17:00) is used.


text: Some style guides and most persons suggest not to use a leading zero with a single-digit hour; for example, "3:52 p.m." is preferred over "03:52 p.m.". (The leading zero is more commonly used with the 24-hour notation; especially in computer applications because it can help to maintain column alignment in tables and correct sorting order, and also because it helps to highlight the 24-hour character of the given time.)


text: Times of day ending in ":00" minutes may be pronounced as the numbered hour followed by "o'clock" (e.g., 10:00 as "ten o'clock", 2:00 as "two o'clock", 4:00 as "four o'clock", etc.). This may be followed by the "a.m." or "p.m." designator, or might not be, if obvious. "O'clock" itself may be omitted, leaving a time such as "four a.m." or "four p.m." Instead of "a.m." and "p.m.", times can also be described as "in the morning", "in the afternoon", "in the evening", or "at night".


text: Minutes :01 through :09 are usually pronounced as "oh one" through "oh nine". :10 through :59 are their usual number-words. For example, "9:45 a.m." is usually pronounced "nine forty-five" or sometimes "nine forty-five a.m.".


text: Times of day from ":01" to ":29" minutes past the hour are commonly pronounced with the words "after" or "past", for example, 10:17 being "seventeen after ten" or "seventeen past ten". ":15" minutes is very commonly called "quarter after" or "quarter past" and ":30" minutes universally "half past", e.g., 4:30, "half past four". Times of day from ":31" to ":59" are, by contrast, given subtractively with the words "to", "of", "until", or "till": 12:55 would be pronounced as "five to one".


text: ":45" minutes is pronounced as "quarter to", "quarter until", or "quarter till". For example, "9:45 a.m." is often pronounced "fifteen till ten" or "quarter to ten", or sometimes "quarter to ten in the morning".


text: However, it is always acceptable to pronounce the time using number words and the aforementioned "oh" convention, for example, 12:55 as "twelve fifty-five", 12:09 as "twelve oh-nine", 12:30 as "twelve thirty", and 12:15 as "twelve fifteen".


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: A lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures, combining lunar calendars and solar calendars. The date of Lunisolar calendars therefore indicates both the Moon phase and the time of the solar year, that is the position of the Sun in the Earth's sky. If the sidereal year (such as in a sidereal solar calendar) is used instead of the solar year, then the calendar will predict the constellation near which the full moon may occur. As with all calendars which divide the year into months there is an additional requirement that the year have a whole number of months. In this case ordinary years consist of twelve months but every second or third year is an embolismic year, which adds a thirteenth intercalary, embolismic, or leap month.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: Their months are based on the regular cycle of the Moon's phases. So lunisolar calendars are lunar calendars with – in contrast to them – additional intercalation rules being used to bring them into a rough agreement with the solar year and thus with the seasons.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: Hebrew, Hindu, Jain and Kurdish as well as the traditional Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Mongolian, Tibetan, and Vietnamese calendars (in the East Asian Chinese cultural sphere), plus the ancient Hellenic, Coligny, and Babylonian calendars are all lunisolar. Also, some of the ancient pre-Islamic calendars in south Arabia followed a lunisolar system. The Chinese, Coligny and


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: Hebrew lunisolar calendars track more or less the tropical year whereas the Buddhist and Hindu lunisolar calendars track the sidereal year. Therefore, the first three give an idea of the seasons whereas the last two give an idea of the position among the constellations of the full moon. The Tibetan calendar was influenced by both the Chinese and Buddhist calendars. The Germanic peoples also used a lunisolar calendar before their conversion to Christianity.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: The Chinese calendar or Chinese lunisolar calendar is also called Agricultural Calendar [農曆; 农历; Nónglì; 'farming calendar'], or Yin Calendar [陰曆; 阴历; Yīnlì; 'yin calendar']), based on the concept of Yin Yang and astronomical phenomena, as movements of the sun, moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn (known as the seven luminaries) are the references for the Chinese lunisolar calendar calculations.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: The earliest record of the Chinese lunisolar calendar is the Zhou Dynasty (1050 BC – 771 BC). Throughout history, the Chinese lunisolar calendar had many variations and evolved with different dynasties with increasing accuracy, including the "six ancient calendars" in the Warring States Period, the Qin calendar in the Qin Dynasty, the Han calendar or the Taichu calendar in the Han Dynasty and Tang Dynasty, the Shoushi calendar in the Yuan Dynasty, and the Daming calendar in the Ming Dynasty, etc. Starting 1912, the solar calendar is used together with the lunar calendar in China.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: The most celebrated Chinese holidays, like the Spring Festival, or the Chinese New Year, Lantern Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Qingming Festival, etc. are all based on the Chinese lunisolar calendar. And the popular Chinese zodiac is a classification scheme based on the Chinese calendar that assigns an animal and its reputed attributes to each year in a repeating twelve-year cycle.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: The Gregorian calendar (the world's most commonly used) is a solar one but the Western Christian churches use a lunar-based algorithm to determine the date of Easter and consequent movable feasts. Briefly, the date is determined with respect to the ecclesiastical full moon that follows the ecclesiastical equinox in March. (These events are almost, but not quite, the same as the actual astronomical observations.) The Eastern Christian churches have a similar algorithm that is based on the Julian calendar.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar of exactly 12 months, but not a lunisolar calendar because its date is not related to the Sun; its solar counterpart is the Solar Hijri calendar, which begins on the March equinox as determined by astronomical calculations and is used in Iran and Afghanistan.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: A tropical year is approximately 365.2422 days long and a synodic month is approximately 29.5306 days long, so a tropical year is approximately months long. Because 0.36826 is between and , a typical year of 12 months needs to be supplemented with one intercalary or leap month every 2 to 3 years. More precisely, 0.36826 is quite close to and several lunisolar calendars have 7 leap months in every cycle of 19 years (called a 'Metonic cycle'). The Babylonians applied the 19-year cycle in the late sixth century BCE.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: A tropical year is longer than 12 lunar months and shorter than 13 of them. The arithmetical equation allows it to be seen that a combination of 12 'short' years (12 months) and 7 'long' years (13 months) will be equal to 19 solar years. Intercalation of leap months is frequently controlled by the "epact", which is the difference between the lunar and solar years (approximately 11 days). The Metonic cycle, used in the Hebrew calendar and the Christian ecclesiastical calendars, adds seven months during every nineteen-year period. The classic Metonic cycle can be reproduced by assigning an initial epact value of 1 to the last year of the cycle and incrementing by 11 each year. Between the last year of one cycle and the first year of the next the increment is 12. This adjustment, the , causes the epacts to repeat every 19 years. When the epact reaches 30 or higher, an intercalary month is added and 30 is subtracted. The intercalary years are numbers 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17 and 19. Both the Hebrew calendar and the Julian calendar use this sequence.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: The Buddhist and Hebrew calendars restrict the leap month to a single month of the year; the number of common months between leap months is, therefore, usually 36, but occasionally only 24 months. Because the Chinese and Hindu lunisolar calendars allow the leap month to occur after or before (respectively) any month but use the true apparent motion of the Sun, their leap months do not usually occur within a couple of months of perihelion, when the apparent speed of the Sun along the ecliptic is fastest (now about 3 January). This increases the usual number of common months between leap months to roughly 34 months when a doublet of common years occurs, while reducing the number to about 29 months when only a common singleton occurs.


title: Lunisolar calendar

text: An alternative way of dealing with the fact that a solar year does not contain an integer number of lunar months is by including uncounted time in a period of the year that is not assigned to a named month. Some Coast Salish peoples used a calendar of this kind. For instance, the Chehalis began their count of lunar months from the arrival of spawning chinook salmon (in Gregorian calendar October), and counted 10 months, leaving an uncounted period until the next chinook salmon run.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Marcus Wareing (born 29 June 1970) is an English celebrity chef who is currently Chef-Owner of the one-Michelin-starred restaurant Marcus (formerly Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley) in Knightsbridge. Since 2014, Wareing has been a judge on "".


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Wareing was born in Southport, Merseyside, in 1970. His father was a fruit and potato merchant who had contracts with schools to provide their produce for school dinners.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: At the age of 11 his first food-industry related job was with his father, packing potatoes and riding alongside deliveries. He was paid 10p per bag of potatoes packed, all of which went straight into his Post Office saving account. At a young age, Wareing was informed by his father that the business was no longer viable as schools moved on to using pre-prepared frozen food instead of fresh produce. He would later credit his father's long hours with inspiring his own work ethic.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: At Stanley High School, he found he had a natural talent for cooking. He went on to attend Southport College, where he took a three-year City & Guilds course in catering.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Wareing first worked at the Savoy Hotel under chef Anton Edelmann in 1988 at the age of 18 where he was employed as a commis chef, before leaving in 1993 to join Albert Roux at Michelin starred Le Gavroche where he first met Gordon Ramsay. Stints at other restaurants in New York City, Amsterdam and at Gravetye Manor in Sussex followed. Wareing joined Gordon Ramsay's Aubergine when it opened in 1993, where he became Sous Chef behind Head Chef Ramsay and would go on to work with him over the course of the following 15 years, which led to Wareing being called Ramsay's protégé. While he was at Aubergine in 1995, Wareing was awarded the title of Young Chef of the Year by the Restaurant Association.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: He would later credit Ramsay with teaching him to cook, describing it as "the most important time in my life". He left Aubergine for a year in 1995 to work with Daniel Boulud in America, and Guy Savoy in France. His return to the UK was also to be his first head chef role, of new restaurant L’Oranger, which was owned by A-Z Restaurants, which had also owned Aubergine, with stakes held by both Wareing and Ramsay. At the age of 25 he earned his first Michelin star as head chef whilst at L’Oranger. He gave Angela Hartnett her first job in a restaurant.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Following a fall-out between Ramsay and A-Z Restaurants over Wareing's contract at L'Oranger, which saw Ramsay quit Aubergine to open Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, Wareing followed suit by leaving L'Oranger, forcing the restaurant into temporary closure. A-Z Restaurants commenced legal proceedings against the pair, and reopened L’Oranger with Wareing's former sous chef, Kamel Benamar, as the new head chef. The legal case ended in Ramsay and Wareing paying an out-of-court settlement to A-Z. Ramsay and Wareing worked together to open Pétrus in 1999, with Wareing becoming head chef and operating the restaurant on behalf of Gordon Ramsay Holdings (GRH), at 33 St James's Street, London. The name came from the French wine Pétrus, which was Ramsay's and Wareing's favourite. Wareing promptly regained the Michelin star he had previously held, with Pétrus being named as a one star restaurant seven months after opening.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: The restaurant was moved into the Berkeley Hotel in 2003 where it replaced Pierre Koffmann's La Tante Claire, in the same year that Wareing became Chef Patron of the Grill Room at the Savoy Hotel, and he was named Chef of the Year by "Caterer and Hotelkeeper"'s Catey Awards. The return to the Savoy meant that he was competing against Anton Edelmann, his former boss from the River Room at the hotel. Rather than serve a menu similar to the French cuisine of Pétrus, Wareing chose to continue to serve the British cuisine that the Grill Room was known for, including his version of previous menu items such as steak and kidney pudding and potted shrimps. Pétrus went on to be awarded two Michelin stars and five AA Rosettes, while the Savoy Grill achieved its first Michelin star in the hotel's history in 2004.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Wareing also opened an American-style diner at The Savoy called Banquette, and converted the previous Pétrus location into La Fleur. He was voted Restaurateur of the Year at the "Tatler" Restaurant Awards in 2004, and "Harden's" restaurant guide selected him as the fourth-best chef in London, although La Fleur closed due to problems with the lease for the site. In 2007 Pétrus was awarded its second Michelin star.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Following several months of rumours regarding the restaurant, the Berkeley Hotel confirmed in May 2008 that it was going to work with Wareing to launch his only solo restaurant, and he would take on Pétrus' lease from 19 September 2008 onwards. Wareing had previously complained of interference in the kitchen by GRH, and wanted to come out from under Ramsay's shadow, but later admitted that he had engineered the situation so that he could go out on his own. The split with Ramsay and GRH resulted in a public legal battle and feud between the three parties, which when resolved resulted in Wareing stating in an interview for Waitrose Food Illustrated magazine that Ramsay left him bitter and conflicted; "half of me thinks he’s a sad bastard and the other half still adores him." He went on to describe Ramsay as a celebrity chef who wasn't involved in the industry anymore. The legal dispute was resolved with Ramsay gaining the rights to the Pétrus name, and Wareing signing a gag order regarding the situation but continuing to open his restaurant Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley. Wareing remarked of the situation, "If I never speak to that guy again for the rest of my life, it wouldn't bother me one bit." Ramsay later responded regarding the feud that he wishes Wareing "all the best". Wareing's self-named restaurant won the Best Restaurant in London Award by Harden's guide in 2008 and 2009, was awarded a Michelin star in 2009, and was named "Time Out"'s restaurant of the year in 2010. The new Pétrus was opened around the corner from the Berkeley Hotel at 1 Kinnerton Street, Knightsbridge. Ramsay later joked, that with Heston Blumenthal also opening his new restaurant, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, nearby, the three of them could "all have a fight in the street at four in the morning".


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Once Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley opened in 2008, Marcus Wareing Restaurants was founded. The group has since expanded and now comprises three restaurants. In 2009 Wareing was named by "GQ" magazine as their chef of the year. In 2011, Wareing opened his second restaurant, The Gilbert Scott, in the St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel. GRH had also made a bid to open a restaurant in the space, but was rejected in favour of Wareing's proposal. The restaurant was named after the architect of the hotel, Sir George Gilbert Scott. Wareing believes in promoting good quality, seasonal British food in his menus, and using small suppliers.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: After an extensive refurbishment in 2014, Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley reopened as Marcus. In September 2014, Wareing opened Tredwells in Upper St Martin's Lane, Seven Dials, London, with Group Operations Director, Chantelle Nicholson, who also acquired the role of Chef Patron of Tredwells in June 2016. In August 2020, Chantelle and Wareing announced that Tredwells is now solely owned by Chantelle, and that he would have no further involvement. In 2021, Wareing announced the natural closure of The Gilbert Scott, after a successful 10-year lease.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Wareing was first featured on television in the Channel 4 1999 documentary series "Boiling Point", during his time as Gordon Ramsay's sous chef. The 2000 follow-up documentary Beyond Boiling Point documents his move to Pétrus and the award of his first Michelin star. He was also selected as one of 13 chefs chosen to recreate Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" in 2003. The work was photographed by John Reardon, and features Wareing throwing a brie across into the air whilst standing in the place of Simon the Zealot from Leonardo's work. In 2006, Marcus Wareing and Simon Rimmer represented the North of England in the BBC television series "Great British Menu". Wareing beat the Manchester-based chef to go on to the final round. In the final the public chose for him to cook his dessert of egg custard tart with Garibaldi biscuits for the Queen's 80th birthday banquet which was on 17 June 2006.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: He has continued to be a judge for later seasons for the "Great British Menu", something which has occasionally brought him into conflict with one of the chefs Johnnie Mountain. He has criticized some shows in the past such as "MasterChef", saying that it has inspired young chefs to chase fame on television and be lazy in the kitchen, although he has appeared on "MasterChef", "" and "Celebrity MasterChef" in the past.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Wareing has succeeded Michel Roux Jr. on the seventh series of after Roux, Jr.'s contract with the BBC was terminated for advertising potatoes.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: Wareing has released nine cookbooks to date. Under his new publisher, HarperCollins, he released Marcus at Home in 2016, which spent five weeks in The Sunday Times top 10 bestseller list (cookery books), and New Classics, which was published 2 November 2017. Marcus Everyday was released on 31 October 2019, while his latest cookbook, Marcus' Kitchen hit shelves in October 2021.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: In August 2021, Wareing announced a partnership with food services and support company, Compass Group UK & Ireland. 'Forward with Marcus Wareing' is an enhanced culinary programme that runs alongside a Level 4 Senior Culinary Chef or Level 5 Operations Departmental Manager apprenticeship, delivered in partnership with HIT Training. Focus areas include sustainability, diversity, mental health, mentoring and analysis of different leadership styles and outcomes.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: In February 2022, the 10-part television series "Marcus Wareing's Tales from a Kitchen Garden" aired on BBC Two; which features Wareing both on his East Sussex smallholding and out in the countryside, visiting the very best of British producers, gardeners and farmers. A second series will air in 2023.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: He has a brother named Brian, who is a catering teacher. Marcus is married to Jane, with whom he has three children, Jake, Archie, and Jessie. He met Jane while he worked at Gravetye Manor, where he was second chef and she worked on reception. After moving to London to work with Ramsay at Aubergine, Wareing kept the relationship going by commuting out to Sussex every Sunday. Ramsay was the best man at his wedding in 2000, and is godfather to Wareing's eldest son Jake.


title: Marcus Wareing

text: He has raised money for the charity Action Against Hunger, whilst working at the Taste of London festival, and in 2012 competed in a white-collar boxing charity event with other chefs and catering staff for the Hilton in the Community Foundation, having been an amateur boxer in his youth. He has lent his name to the Environmental Justice Foundation campaign to promote sustainable fishing. Wareing has said his favourite cookbook is one by chef Daniel Humm at Eleven Madison Park in New York City.


title: Hydroquinone

text: Hydroquinone, also known as benzene-1,4-diol or quinol, is an aromatic organic compound that is a type of phenol, a derivative of benzene, having the chemical formula CH(OH). It has two hydroxyl groups bonded to a benzene ring in a "para" position. It is a white granular solid. Substituted derivatives of this parent compound are also referred to as hydroquinones. The name "hydroquinone" was coined by Friedrich Wöhler in 1843.


title: Hydroquinone

text: The reactivity of hydroquinone's hydroxyl groups resembles that of other phenols, being weakly acidic. The resulting conjugate base undergoes easy "O"-alkylation to give mono- and diethers. Similarly, hydroquinone is highly susceptible to ring substitution by Friedel–Crafts reactions such as alkylation. This reaction is exploited en route to popular antioxidants such as 2-"tert"-butyl-4-methoxyphenol (BHA). The useful dye quinizarin is produced by diacylation of hydroquinone with phthalic anhydride.


title: Hydroquinone

text: Hydroquinone undergoes oxidation under mild conditions to give benzoquinone. This process can be reversed. Some naturally occurring hydroquinone derivatives exhibit this sort of reactivity, one example being coenzyme Q. Industrially this reaction is exploited both with hydroquinone itself but more often with its derivatives where one OH has been replaced by an amine.


title: Hydroquinone

text: When colorless hydroquinone and benzoquinone, a bright yellow solid, are cocrystallized in a 1:1 ratio, a dark-green crystalline charge-transfer complex (melting point 171 °C) called quinhydrone () is formed. This complex dissolves in hot water, where the two molecules dissociate in solution.


title: Hydroquinone

text: An important reaction is the conversion of hydroquinone to the mono- and diamine derivatives. Methylaminophenol, used in photography, is produced in this way:


title: Hydroquinone

text: Hydroquinone has a variety of uses principally associated with its action as a reducing agent that is soluble in water. It is a major component in most black and white photographic developers for film and paper where, with the compound metol, it reduces silver halides to elemental silver.


title: Hydroquinone

text: There are various other uses associated with its reducing power. As a polymerisation inhibitor, exploiting its antioxidant properties, hydroquinone prevents polymerization of acrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, cyanoacrylate, and other monomers that are susceptible to radical-initiated polymerization. By acting as a free radical scavenger, hydroquinone serves to prolong the shelflife of light-sensitive resins such as preceramic polymers.


title: Hydroquinone

text: Hydroquinone can lose a hydrogen cation from both hydroxyl groups to form a diphenolate ion. The disodium diphenolate salt of hydroquinone is used as an alternating comonomer unit in the production of the polymer PEEK.


title: Hydroquinone

text: Hydroquinone is used as a topical application in skin whitening to reduce the color of skin. It does not have the same predisposition to cause dermatitis as metol does. This is a prescription-only ingredient in some countries, including the member states of the European Union under Directives 76/768/EEC:1976.


title: Hydroquinone

text: In 2006, the United States Food and Drug Administration revoked its previous approval of hydroquinone and proposed a ban on all over-the-counter preparations. The FDA officially banned hydroquinone in 2020 as part of a larger reform of the over-the-counter drug review process. The FDA stated that hydroquinone cannot be ruled out as a potential carcinogen. This conclusion was reached based on the extent of absorption in humans and the incidence of neoplasms in rats in several studies where adult rats were found to have increased rates of tumours, including thyroid follicular cell hyperplasias, anisokaryosis (variation in nuclei sizes), mononuclear cell leukemia, hepatocellular adenomas and renal tubule cell adenomas. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has also highlighted concerns.


title: Hydroquinone

text: Numerous studies have revealed that hydroquinone, if taken orally, can cause exogenous ochronosis, a disfiguring disease in which blue-black pigments are deposited onto the skin; however, skin preparations containing the ingredient are administered topically. The FDA had classified hydroquinone in 1982 as a safe product - generally recognized as safe and effective (GRASE), however additional studies under the National Toxicology Program (NTP) were suggested in order to determine whether there is a risk to humans from the use of hydroquinone. NTP evaluation showed some evidence of long-term carcinogenic and genotoxic effects


title: Hydroquinone

text: While hydroquinone remains widely prescribed for treatment of hyperpigmentation, questions raised about its safety profile by regulatory agencies in the EU, Japan, and USA encourage the search for other agents with comparable efficacy. Several such agents are already available or under research, including azelaic acid, kojic acid, retinoids, cysteamine, topical steroids, glycolic acid, and other substances. One of these, 4-butylresorcinol, has been proven to be more effective at treating melanin-related skin disorders by a wide margin, as well as safe enough to be made available over the counter.


title: Hydroquinone

text: Hydroquinones are one of the two primary reagents in the defensive glands of bombardier beetles, along with hydrogen peroxide (and perhaps other compounds, depending on the species), which collect in a reservoir. The reservoir opens through a muscle-controlled valve onto a thick-walled reaction chamber. This chamber is lined with cells that secrete catalases and peroxidases. When the contents of the reservoir are forced into the reaction chamber, the catalases and peroxidases rapidly break down the hydrogen peroxide and catalyze the oxidation of the hydroquinones into "p"-quinones. These reactions release free oxygen and generate enough heat to bring the mixture to the boiling point and vaporize about a fifth of it, producing a hot spray from the beetle's abdomen.


title: Hydroquinone

text: It is also one of the chemical compounds found in castoreum. This compound is gathered from the beaver's castor sacs.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: The 2022 season is the Kansas City Chiefs' 53rd in the National Football League, their 63rd overall, their 10th under head coach Andy Reid, and their 6th under general manager Brett Veach. The Chiefs will look to improve on their 12–5 record from 2021 and reach their 5th straight AFC Championship and their 3rd Super Bowl in four seasons.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: In the offseason, the Chiefs traded wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins. Hill had been with the Chiefs since 2016.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: The Chiefs will wear a decal with the number 16 on their helmets for the entire season in honor of former Chiefs quarterback and Super Bowl IV MVP Len Dawson, who died on August 24, and wore 16 his entire tenure with the Chiefs. Before the Chiefs first offensive play of the preseason game the following day, the Chiefs lined in huddle popularized by Dawson where the quarterback stands in front of all other 10 offensive players instead of the quarterback standing in the middle with the players making a circle around him.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: After their ninth victory in Week 12 over the Los Angeles Rams, the Chiefs clinched their 10th consecutive winning season, a franchise record. With a Week 15 win over the Houston Texans, they won the AFC West for the seventh consecutive year. It also is the Chiefs' franchise record extending 8th straight year making the playoffs.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: The Chiefs only had three players ranked in the 2022 Top 100 players, their lowest number of selections since 2018. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was once again the highest ranked player for the Chiefs on the countdown despite dropping 7 places in the rankings.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: All transactions in this section occurred between the end of the 2021 season (excluding futures contracts which began to be signed following the conclusion of the regular season) and the Chiefs first preseason game.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: Below are players who were on the roster at the end of the 2021 season, but were either released or did not re-sign after their contract expired.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: Players signed to futures contracts typically most, if not all, if the 2021 season on the Chiefs or another team's practice squad. These contracts are signed after the conclusion of the regular season through the beginning the next league year.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: All transactions below occurred in between the Chiefs first preseason game on August 13 and their first regular season game on September 11.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: The Chiefs made their first set of roster cut downs on August 16. They made another three cuts on August 23, they also placed two on reserve lists. Their final roster cut, which will be 27 cuts, will occur by August 30. The Chiefs also placed players on reserve lists to meet the roster requirements.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: Transactions below occurred after the Chiefs first game on September 11 and through their final game, which includes the playoffs.


title: 2022 Kansas City Chiefs season

text: Players listed below were elevated using a standard elevation, which allows the Chiefs to add someone to the active roster from the practice squad then move back to the practice squad without needing to clear waivers first. This can only be used a maximum of 3 times per player.


title: Lilith Fair

text: Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 to 1999, and was revived in the summer of 2010. It consisted solely of female solo artists and female-led bands. In its initial three years, Lilith Fair raised over $10 million for charity.


title: Lilith Fair

text: In 1996, Canadian musical artist Sarah McLachlan became frustrated with concert promoters and radio stations that refused to feature two female musicians in a row. Bucking conventional industry wisdom, she booked a successful tour for herself and Paula Cole. At least one of their appearances together—in Vancouver, on September 14, 1996—went by the name "Lilith Fair" and included performances by McLachlan, Cole, Lisa Loeb, and Michelle McAdorey, formerly of Crash Vegas.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The next year, McLachlan founded the Lilith Fair tour, taking "Lilith" from the Jewish lore that Lilith was Adam's first wife who refused to be subservient to him.


title: Lilith Fair

text: In 1997, Lilith Fair garnered a $16 million gross, making it the top-grossing of any touring festival. Among all concert tours for that year, it was the 16th-highest grossing. McLachlan followed this success with two more rounds, in 1998 and 1999.


title: Lilith Fair

text: In 2010, Lilith Fair staged a revival with mixed results, as several dates were cancelled and many performers backed out of scheduled performances.


title: Lilith Fair

text: In March 2011, McLachlan declared that the Lilith concept was no longer being considered for future shows, due to changing audience views and expectations.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The artists appearing at Lilith Fair varied by date (with McLachlan and Suzanne Vega the only artists to play all dates). Appearances were organized into three stages. Almost all Village Stage artists performed only one or two dates. Many of them won slots on the bill in a series of local talent searches in their home cities.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The artists appearing at Lilith Fair varied by date (with McLachlan the only artist to play all dates). Appearances were organized into three stages. Though Neneh Cherry and Lauryn Hill were scheduled to play some shows, both had to cancel. Almost all Village Stage artists performed only one or two dates. Many of them won slots on the bill in a series of local talent searches in their home cities.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The artists appearing at Lilith Fair varied by date (with McLachlan the only artist to play all dates). Appearances were organized into three stages.


title: Lilith Fair

text: In an April 25, 2009, Twitter post, Nettwerk founder Terry McBride announced that a Lilith Fair tour through North America would be relaunched for the summer of 2010, with a two-week tour of Europe to follow.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The tour was plagued with financial problems from the beginning. The first seven shows were sparsely attended and the eighth show was the first to be cancelled. Initially, Sarah McLachlan claimed (in an interview posted on the "Arizona Republic" website on July 9) that the July 8 Phoenix show was cancelled in protest of Arizona Senate Bill 1070, which she strongly opposes.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The tour fell apart on the road as headliners Carly Simon, Norah Jones, Kelly Clarkson, the Go-Go's, and Queen Latifah dropped out, fearing that they would not be paid for their performances.


title: Lilith Fair

text: Due to poor ticket sales, thirteen shows (about one-third of the tour) were scratched (two announced on June 25, ten more on July 1, one additional on July 2) and one reassigned to a smaller venue.


title: Lilith Fair

text: The artists appearing at Lilith Fair vary by date (with McLachlan the only artist to play all dates). Appearances are organized into three stages. Below is a list of artists who performed at Lilith Fair in the 2010 revival.


title: Raqqa

text: Raqqa (, also and ) (Kurdish: Reqa/ ڕەقە) is a city in Syria on the northeast bank of the Euphrates River, about east of Aleppo. It is located east of the Tabqa Dam, Syria's largest dam. The Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine city and bishopric Callinicum (formerly a Latin and now a Maronite Catholic titular see) was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate between 796 and 809, under the reign of Harun al-Rashid. It was also the capital of the Islamic State from 2014 to 2017. With a population of 531,952 based on the 2021 official census, Raqqa is the sixth largest city in Syria.


title: Raqqa

text: During the Syrian Civil War, the city was captured in 2013 by the Syrian opposition and then by the Islamic State. ISIS made the city its capital in 2014. As a result, the city was hit by airstrikes from the Syrian government, Russia, the United States, and several other countries. Most non-Sunni religious structures in the city were destroyed by ISIS, most notably the Shia Uwais al-Qarni Mosque, while others were converted into Sunni mosques. On , following a lengthy battle that saw massive destruction to the city, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) declared the liberation of Raqqa from the Islamic State to be complete.


title: Raqqa

text: The area of Raqqa has been inhabited since remote antiquity, as attested by the mounds (tells) of Tall Zaydan and Tall al-Bi'a, the latter being identified with the Babylonian city Tuttul.


title: Raqqa

text: The modern city traces its history to the Hellenistic period, with the foundation of the city of Nikephorion (, Latinized as "Nicephorion" or "Nicephorium") by Seleucid King Seleucus I Nicator (reigned 301–281 BC). His successor, Seleucus II Callinicus (r. 246–225 BC), enlarged the city and renamed it after himself as Kallinikos (, Latinized as "Callinicum"). Isidore of Charax, in the Parthian Stations, writes that it was a Greek city, founded by Alexander the Great.


title: Raqqa

text: In Roman times, it was part of the Roman province of Osrhoene but had declined by the fourth century. Rebuilt by Byzantine Emperor Leo I (r. 457–474 AD) in 466, it was named Leontopolis (in Greek Λεοντόπολις or "city of Leon") after him, but the name "Kallinikos" prevailed. The city played an important role in the Byzantine Empire's relations with Sassanid Persia and the wars fought between the two empires. By treaty, the city was recognized as one of the few official cross-border trading posts between the two empires, along with Nisibis and Artaxata.


title: Raqqa

text: The town was near the site of a battle in 531 between Romans and Sasanians, when the latter tried to invade the Roman territories, surprisingly via arid regions in Syria, to turn the tide of the Iberian War. The Persians won the battle, but the casualties on both sides were high. In 542, the city was destroyed by the Persian Emperor Khusrau I (r. 531–579), who razed its fortifications and deported its population to Persia, but it was subsequently rebuilt by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). In 580, during another war with Persia, the future Emperor Maurice scored a victory over the Persians near the city during his retreat from an abortive expedition to capture Ctesiphon.


title: Raqqa

text: In the last years before it came under Muslim rule, Kallinikos was as important as any other urban center in the region, and based on the physical area that it covered it was only slightly smaller than Damascus.


title: Raqqa

text: In the year 639 or 640, the city fell to the Muslim conqueror Iyad ibn Ghanm. Since then, it has been known by the Arabic name al-Raqqah, or "the morass", after its marshy surroundings at the time. At the surrender of the city, the Christian inhabitants concluded a treaty with Ibn Ghanm that is quoted by al-Baladhuri. The treaty allowed them freedom of worship in their existing churches but forbade the construction of new ones. The city retained an active Christian community well into the Middle Ages (Michael the Syrian records 20 Syriac Orthodox (Jacobite) bishops from the 8th to the 12th centuries), and it had at least four monasteries, of which the Saint Zaccheus Monastery remained the most prominent one. The city's Jewish community also survived until at least the 12th century, when the traveller Benjamin of Tudela visited it and attended its synagogue. At least during the Umayyad period, the city was also home to a small Sabian pagan community.


title: Raqqa

text: Ibn Ghanm's successor as governor of Raqqa and the Jazira, Sa'id ibn Amir ibn Hidhyam, built the city's first mosque. The building was later enlarged to monumental proportions, measuring some , with a square brick minaret added later, possibly in the mid-10th century. The mosque survived until the early 20th century, being described by the German archaeologist Ernst Herzfeld in 1907, but has since vanished. Many companions of Muhammad lived in Raqqa.


title: Raqqa

text: In 656, during the First Fitna, the Battle of Siffin, the decisive clash between Ali and the Umayyad Mu'awiya took place about west of Raqqa. The tombs of several of Ali's followers (such as Ammar ibn Yasir and Uwais al-Qarani) are in Raqqa and have become sites of pilgrimage. The city also contained a column with Ali's autograph, but it was removed in the 12th century and taken to Aleppo's Ghawth Mosque.


title: Raqqa

text: The Islamic conquest of the region did not disrupt the existing trade routes too much, and new Byzantine coins continued to make their way into Raqqa until about 655-8. The Byzantine government may have seen the area as just temporarily in rebellion. Byzantine coinage probably continued to circulate until at least the 690s, if not even longer.


title: Raqqa

text: Raqqa appears to have remained an important regional center under Umayyad rule. The Umayyads invested in agriculture in the region, expanding the amount of irrigated farmland and setting the stage for an "economic blossoming" during and after their rule.


title: Raqqa

text: The strategic importance of Raqqa grew during the wars at the end of the Umayyad Caliphate and the beginning of the Abbasid Caliphate. Raqqa lay on the crossroads between Syria and Iraq and the road between Damascus, Palmyra and the temporary seat of the caliphate Resafa, al-Ruha'.


title: Raqqa

text: In 770-1 (155 AH), the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur made the decision to build a new garrison city, called al-Rāfiqah ("the companion"), about west of Raqqa as part of a general investment in strengthening the empire's fortifications. The most critical part of this project was to secure the northwestern frontier with the Byzantine Empire, and al-Rafiqah was its largest and most important construction. It also happens to be the only one that survives to the present day. Although most of the interior layout of al-Rafiqah has since been built over, and much of its fortifications have also been demolished, about of its massive city walls are still standing, as well as its congregational mosque – the first in the world to be built from scratch on "a coherent, integrated plan" and a major influence on later mosque architecture.


title: Raqqa

text: Although al-Mansur had conceived the vision for al-Rafiqah in 770-1, it wasn't until the next year that construction actually started. The caliph sent his son and eventual successor al-Mahdi to personally supervise the construction of the new city that year. The chronicle of Pseudo-Dionysius indicates that workmen were brought from all over Mesopotamia to work on the construction, hinting at the monumental scale of this project. According to al-Tabari, the plan of al-Rafiqah was basically the same as that of Baghdad: it was built with "the same gates, "intervallum" ("fuṣūl"), squares, and streets" as the recently-built Abbasid capital. In practice, there were some significant differences between the two: al-Rafiqah was somewhat smaller but more heavily fortified than Baghdad, and its shape was more elongated along a north-south axis instead of the famously round city of Baghdad. Construction continued at al-Rafiqah at least until 774-5, when al-Mahdi was again sent to check on its progress.


title: Raqqa

text: At least at the beginning of the construction work on al-Rafiqah, the indigenous residents of Raqqa were hostile to the military settlement – they expected a rise in their own cost of living. The newcomers were soldiers from Khorasan, in contrast to the Christians and Arabs who lived in the old city.


title: Raqqa

text: By 785, the old market of Raqqa had probably become physically too small to serve the needs of both it and al-Rafiqah. That year, Ali ibn Sulayman, the city's governor, moved the market from the old city of Raqqa to the agricultural land between the two cities. This probably marks the start of al-Muhtariqa, the industrial and commercial suburb located between the two (see below). (The old market, associated with the Umayyad caliph Hisham, had been just north of the old city, outside the Bāb al-Ruhā' – near the later industrial site of Tall Aswad.)


title: Raqqa

text: Raqqa and al-Rāfiqah merged into one urban complex, together larger than the former Umayyad capital, Damascus. In 796, the caliph Harun al-Rashid chose Raqqa/al-Rafiqah as his imperial residence. For about 13 years, Raqqa was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, which stretched from Northern Africa to Central Asia, but the main administrative body remained in Baghdad. The palace area of Raqqa covered an area of about north of the twin cities. One of the founding fathers of the Hanafi school of law, Muḥammad ash-Shaibānī, was chief qadi (judge) in Raqqa. The splendour of the court in Raqqa is documented in several poems, collected by Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahāni in his "Book of Songs" ("Kitāb al-Aghāni"). Only the small, restored so-called Eastern Palace at the fringes of the palace district gives an impression of Abbasid architecture. Some of the palace complexes dating to the period have been excavated by a German team on behalf of the Director General of Antiquities. There was also a thriving industrial complex located between the twin cities. Both German and English teams have excavated parts of the industrial complex, revealing comprehensive evidence for pottery and glass production. Apart from large dumps of debris, the evidence consisted of pottery and glass workshops, containing the remains of pottery kilns and glass furnaces.


title: Raqqa

text: Approximately west of Raqqa lay the unfinished victory monument Heraqla from the time of Harun al-Rashid. It is said to commemorate the conquest of the Byzantine city of Herakleia in Asia Minor in 806. Other theories connect it with cosmological events. The monument is preserved in a substructure of a square building in the centre of a circular walled enclosure, in diameter. However, the upper part was never finished because of the sudden death of Harun al-Rashid in Greater Khorasan.


title: Raqqa

text: Harun al-Rashid also invested in the water supply in Raqqa. Under his rule, canals were dug along the Euphrates and Balikh rivers; they brought water from the area around Saruj to be used for domestic and agricultural purposes, as well as to supply the palace gardens with water. Meanwhile, the influx of residents generated plenty of demand for food, goods, and services, stimulating the economy and resulting in intensified activity in Raqqa's rural hinterland. Rural towns such as Hisn Maslama, Tall Mahra, and al-Jarud flourished and reached their peak size. The surrounding countryside at this time was "one of the richest agricultural areas of the empire, with an extensive system of irrigation canals".


title: Raqqa

text: After the return of the court to Baghdad in 809, Raqqa remained the capital of the western part of the Abbasid Caliphate.


title: Raqqa

text: The name "Raqqa" was used both for the entire urban sprawl, or more specifically for the old city of Raqqa aka Kallinikos. The old city was also known by the name al-Raqqah al-Bayḍā'. It had "almost rectangular" walls, although their entire extent is not known. Where the gates were located is also unknown. This area had a predominantly indigenous population.


title: Raqqa

text: Somewhat to the west of Raqqa proper was al-Rāfiqah, which had horseshoe-shaped walls. Al-Rafiqah represents the location of present-day Raqqa; at some point the main center shifted here. The earliest evidence for this shift is a Fatimid dinar minted at Raqqa in 1010-11, which uses the name Raqqa rather than the official Abbasid name of al-Rafiqah. The writer Ibn al-Sam'ani also recorded this shift over a century later. During Raqqa's rapid growth in the late 20th century, al-Rafiqah was almost completely built over with new construction, and today almost nothing remains of the Abbasid city.


title: Raqqa

text: Still, about of the original -long city walls remain today, indicating the massive scale of al-Rafiqah's fortifications. The 6.20m-thick walls themselves consisted of mud brick on a stone foundation, and their exterior was further reinforced by a stabilized burnt-brick cladding. The walls had 132 towers. Like the Abbasid capital of Baghdad, al-Rafiqah was protected by a series of outer defenses, which together made up a triple line of defense that any attackers would have to get through. A second, outer wall, itself 4.5m thick, was built beyond the first wall (at a distance of 20.8m). Beyond that, there was a 15.9m-wide moat. Both the outer wall and the moat were bulldozed in the 1970s or 80s to make room for new construction.


title: Raqqa

text: Although al-Rafiqah covered a much smaller area than the round city of Baghdad (less than half), it was much more heavily fortified because of its location close to the Byzantine frontier. The walls of al-Rafiqah were built a meter thicker than Baghdad's, and it had more (and larger) defensive towers.


title: Raqqa

text: The north gate of al-Rafiqah, excavated and partly rebuilt in the 1990s, is the earliest surviving city gate from the Abbasid period. Its name was probably the Bāb Ḥarrān, or the Harran Gate. Its basic layout is "a tower gate with a rectangular room and a deep entrance niche". The structure is tall, with a ramp on the west side leading up to the top. The gateway was built from stone up to a height of about 2m (above that it was built from brick), while the door opening itself measures 4m. Archaeologists found two door posts made out of solid iron still standing in place here. These probably represent the last traces of a pair of massive iron doors, like the ones that historical texts often mention as part of the entryways to early Islamic cities and palaces. For Raqqa in particular, although not necessarily the Bab Harran itself, different traditions mention an iron gate that originally was part of the Byzantine city of Amorion before being carried off to Samarra in 838 after the Abbasids captured and destroyed the city. This door was then installed at the Bāb al-'Āmma, the main entrance to the caliph al-Mu'tasim's newly-built palace. This door then supposedly found its way to Raqqa sometime later during the 9th century, before then being removed in 964 by Sayf al-Dawla, the Hamdanid ruler of Aleppo, to renovate the Bāb Qinnasrīn in his capital. It was then destroyed when the Mongols captured Aleppo in 1260, and its fragments were then taken by the Mamluk sultan Baibars to the citadels of Damascus and Cairo.


title: Raqqa

text: Al-Rafiqah itself was laid out on a north-south axis, roughly aligned with the qibla. A major north-south street connected the Bab Harran in the north with al-Rafiqah's Great Mosque, right at the center of the walled city. The mosque is 108x93m, about the same size as the Abbasid mosque built at Baghdad a decade earlier. However, its materials are more sophisticated: whereas the Baghdad mosque was originally made from mud bricks with wooden columns and ceiling, the al-Rafiqah mosque is entirely made out of kiln-fired bricks. The roof of al-Rafiqah's mosque was also gabled, in contrast with the flat-roofed Baghdad mosque, showing an influence from earlier Umayyad mosque architecture in Syria, such as the Great Mosque of Damascus. The al-Rafiqah mosque was renovated in 1165-6 by Nur ad-Din Mahmud Zengi, but an archaeological sounding revealed that this renovation did not change the basic structure, so its origins can be firmly dated to the Abbasid period.


title: Raqqa

text: The al-Rafiqah mosque represents an important step in the history of mosque architecture. Earlier mosques had mostly been repurposed from earlier pre-Muslim structures, like the Great Mosque of Damascus, or featured a very rudimentary design, such as the original mosque at Baghdad. The al-Rafiqah mosque was the first to be built entirely from scratch on a coherent plan. It had an important influence on later mosque architecture, beginning in 808 when Harun al-Rashid – who was living in Raqqa at the time and would have been familiar with the al-Rafiqah mosque – had the original mosque at Baghdad rebuilt, adopting features of the design at al-Rafiqah. Later mosques such as the Great Mosque of Samarra and the Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Cairo also contain traces of its influence.


title: Raqqa

text: Between Raqqa and al-Rafiqah was a large commercial and industrial area, which was called "al-Raqqa al-Muḥtariqa", or "the burning Raqqa", probably because of all the thick smoke coming from pottery kilns and glass furnaces. This smoke may have affected Raqqa/Kallinikos and influenced its decline. It appears that al-Muqaddasi viewed this district as its own distinct city (i.e. "madina" or "misr"), which according to legal norms at the time meant that it had to have a separate congregational mosque, and it had to be separated from other urban precincts by some sort of clearly-defined boundary. The congregational mosque may have been the "mosque suspended on columns", or perhaps the Samarran complex near the Bab al-Sibal.


title: Raqqa

text: Eventually a wall was built on the north side of al-Muhtariqa, probably to protect the central commercial district from Bedouin raids. This is probably the wall that Tahir ibn al-Husayn built while he was governor, in the year following 1 October 815 according to the accounts of Michael the Syrian and Bar Hebraeus. The wall, as visible in old aerial photographs, did not cover the industrial sites north of Raqqa/Kallinikos, leaving them unprotected. Stefan Heidemann suggested that this may have been because those areas were exclusively used for industry, with no houses and no valuables to loot.


title: Raqqa

text: Five main streets have been identified in al-Muhtariqa. The northernmost runs eastward from the east gate of al-Rafiqah, called the Bāb al-Sibāl, past the still-unlocated northwestern corner of Raqqa/Kallinikos, and then along the north side of Raqqa/Kallinikos before finally ending around Tall Aswad in the northeast. It passes by several mounds of medieval industrial debris in this area exist. These include Tall Fukhkhār, a ceramic producing site; as well as Tall Ballūr, Tall Abī 'Alī, and Tall Zujāj, which were all glass workshops. Henderson and McLoughlin suggested Tall Ballur may have later been a production site again during the late 11th century after 150 years of abandonment, and Tonghini and Henderson suggested the same for Tall Fukhkhar, although Heidemann considered the latter improbable.


title: Raqqa

text: At the eastern end of this northern street, and to the northeast of Raqqa/Kallinikos, was Tall Aswad. This was the largest and easternmost center of pottery production, and probably the oldest among the industrial mounds excavated. It is a large mound consisting of ruins of kilns, potsherds, wasters, and industrial debris. The site had many kilns producing pottery of various types including unglazed, moulded, and high-quality glazed. It lay at the eastern end of the northernmost main road. Its location was probably chosen because it was downwind from the rest of the city, so that the wind wouldn't blow smoke from its kilns over residents' houses. However, this site was also vulnerable and exposed to nomadic attacks, which may have ultimately been the reason for its abandonment. The latest coin find from here is from 825/6, and Tall Aswad probably declined in the first half of the 9th century.


title: Raqqa

text: At the western end of the street, right outside the Bab al-Sibal, there was a 200x200m square compound which was probably built during the Samarran period. It featured two rows of small rooms on different levels that were probably rows of shops. There was also some construction to the north of this complex.


title: Raqqa

text: The 2nd street runs southeast from the Bab al-Sibal towards the also-still-unlocated western gate of Raqqa/Kallinikos. Like the 1st street, it appears to cut deep into the flat-topped tell formed by centuries of debris. Further south was the southwestern gate of Raqqa/Kallinikos, which was called the Bāb al-Hajarayn. This gate led to a cemetery where people who died in the Battle of Siffin were interred. The most important of the tombs here was that of Uways al-Qarani, considered the "patron saint" of Raqqa; his tomb survived until the late 20th century when it was torn down and replaced with the new Uways al-Qarani mosque. His name also became applied to the entire cemetery.


title: Raqqa

text: West of the Bab al-Hajarayn was the mosque called the Masjid al-Janā'iz, also called the Mashhad al-Janā'iz. This building is still unlocated. Its existence is known from the 10th until the 13th centuries. According to al-Qushayri, the Masjid al-Jana'iz was founded by a descendant of Muhammad named Abu Abdallah, a Khorasani who lived by the Bab al-Hajarayn near the city's moat.


title: Raqqa

text: The 3rd street starts further south, from the unnamed Gate #2 on the east side of al-Rafiqah. It crosses the 2nd street and probably converged with the 1st street at the northwestern corner of Raqqa/Kallinikos, where there was likely a gate.


title: Raqqa

text: The 4th and 5th streets both have their west end at the Bab Baghdad. Together, they mark the southern end of the al-Muhtariqa area. Since the Bab Baghdad is a comparatively newer structure, probably from the late 11th or 12th century, these two streets might have also been built later. The 4th street runs northeast toward the northwest corner of Raqqa/Kallinikos, where it probably converged with the 1st and 3rd streets. As for the 5th street, it goes southeast, cutting through the Siffin cemetery and passing by the southwest corner of Raqqa/Kallinikos.


title: Raqqa

text: The settlement of al-Muhtariqa probably began in 785, when the city's governor Ali ibn Sulayman transferred Raqqa's market from Raqqa/Kallinikos to somewhere between it and al-Rafiqah. Before then, this area had been used for agriculture. Later, al-Muhtariqa was expanded when Harun al-Rashid made Raqqa his capital, in order to serve the newly increased demand for luxury and everyday goods.


title: Raqqa

text: When al-Muhtariqa finally declined and became abandoned is not clear. Physical evidence includes coins, as late as 825-6 at Tall Aswad and 840-1 at Tall Zujaj, and pottery remains, which at both sites include fragments of the so-called "Samarra ware" in the upper layers, so activity at those sites must have continued at least until that period. Based on the account of Ahmad ibn al-Tayyib al-Sarakhsi in the 880s (see below), al-Muhtariqa was probably still active at least until that point.


title: Raqqa

text: When Harun al-Rashid made Raqqa his capital, he built a whole "palace city" to the north of the main city. During the 12 years he resided here, it was built up to an area of 15 square kilometers. Like al-Rafiqah, this area has been almost completely obliterated by new housing construction since the late 20th century. Besides palaces and other buildings, this area included irrigation canals and underground watercourses in order to ensure a constant water supply. Many of the palaces were set in large garden enclosures, with wide avenues and racecourses. Toward the end of Harun al-Rashid's reign, this area was also expanded further to the north.


title: Raqqa

text: The central palace of Harun al-Rashid is located about 1km northeast of al-Rafiqah. Here, a large 340x270m building set in a double garden enclosure probably represents the remains of the "Qaṣr as-Salām", or "palace of peace", mentioned in historical sources. This building's original floorplan has been obscured by later construction, but some of its ornate decoration survived to indicate its importance.


title: Raqqa

text: East of the Qasr as-Salam is a series of three smaller palaces, each one featuring courtyards, triple audience halls, and small private mosques. These were probably the residences of Harun al-Rashid's family members or close associates. A fresco inscription found in the westernmost of these three palaces names the caliph al-Mu'tasim, who was one of Harun al-Rashid's sons; this may date from a later renovation.


title: Raqqa

text: Just south of the palace with al-Mu'tasim's name inscribed is a 150x150m square building that was probably the barracks for the palace guard. It had several identical rooms to serve as living quarters, while the commander of the guards had a central room flanked by three connected courtyards. Excavation at the barracks unearthed "a group of particularly luxurious glass vessels", indicating the high living standards enjoyed even by the lower-ranking members of the caliphal court.


title: Raqqa

text: Farther south, at the southeastern corner of the palace complex, was a public square surrounded by several buildings. Some of these buildings were reception halls used for social gatherings. Other buildings were private residences, probably belonging to people who were not part of the caliph's inner circle. On the west side of the square was a building that included a small mosque facing the barracks.


title: Raqqa

text: Separate from this palace city and just outside the north gate of al-Rafiqah, there was a 160x130m rectangular building that also had a double enclosure. This may have actually been built earlier than the more monumental complexes further northeast.


title: Raqqa

text: Stylistically, like the mosque of al-Rafiqah, the palace complex contains decorative features typical of pre-Islamic Syria. These include stucco friezes depicting vine "scrolls", as well as the "use of decoration to emphasize key architectural features". This indicates that the builders were taking inspiration from previous local styles. The resulting style of Abbasid Raqqa is a transition between pre-Islamic styles and later Abbasid ones, such as the architecture of Samarra after it became the new Abbasid capital in 836.


title: Raqqa

text: Further north of Tall Aswad was the Dayr al-Zakkā monastery, which was built on top of the ancient settlement mound now called Tall al-Bī'a. This was the most important monastery in the city and the symbol of Christian Raqqa.


title: Raqqa

text: A second important monastery was the so-called Monastery of the Columns ("dērā d-esṭūnā"), also called the Bizūnā monastery. It was somewhere between Raqqa and al-Rafiqah, in the area of al-Muhtariqa. It was burned by the rebels Umar, a former prisoner in Raqqa, and Nasr ibn Shabath, a prominent Bedouin leader, during a violent conflict in 811/2 when Arab auxiliaries were mobilized at Raqqa. However, just a few years later in 818 it was the site of the installation of Patriarch Dionysios I, which indicates that either the monastery was only partly burned down, or that it had already been rebuilt. This monastery was probably replaced later on by the "mosque suspended on columns", as al-Muqaddasi called it. This may have been the congregational mosque of al-Muhtariqa.


title: Raqqa

text: Abbasid Raqqa had an important river port, which played a vital role in trade and communications. Raqqa's location was ideal for a river port on the upper Euphrates – it was ice-free throughout the year, whereas the early 14th century author al-Dimashqi wrote that the Euphrates sometimes froze further north. Archaeologists have not found evidence of this port, but it may have been south of al-Muhtariqa on the bank of the Euphrates because this would have been a convenient location close to the city's main commercial center. Based on Ibn Sa'd's account of the famous hadith scholar al-Waqidi's visit to Raqqa under Harun al-Rashid, it seems that the port of Raqqa was separated from the city proper by a checkpoint and a "poor, simple guesthouse" ("khān nuzūl"). Most of the boats used on this part of the Euphrates were probably light carriers called "harraq"s.


title: Raqqa

text: Abbasid Raqqa was an important center of glass and ceramics production. Al-Muqaddasi also mentioned a soapmaking industry at Raqqa, which is connected to the glass industry because both make use of alkali. Minerals used as colorants in glassmaking or glazing pottery may have come from Jabal Bishr to the south, since Yaqut al-Hamawi recorded glassmakers in Aleppo using minerals from Jabal Bishr as a colorant in the early 1200s.


title: Raqqa

text: According to Julian Henderson, Raqqa is one of the earliest places where an important shift in glassmaking technology occurred at the turn of the 9th century (i.e. around 800). Before, glassmakers had been using mineral alkali as a flux or purifying agent in the glassmaking process. Around 800, though, Raqqawi glassmakers switched to using plant ashes, which were readily available and much cheaper to obtain. On top of that, the plant ashes contained potassium, which lowered the melting temperature for the glass furnaces, reducing production costs even further. Henderson connects this technological change with the famous alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan, who is known to have had an interest in glassmaking at around the same time, indicating that he may have been a resident of Raqqa during this period.


title: Raqqa

text: The port of Raqqa was probably the main entrepôt (shipment point) where food and goods from northern Syria and Mesopotamia were shipped to before then being exported to Baghdad and the rest of Iraq. For example, Ibn al-Adim noted that olive oil from northern Syria was traded in Raqqa and then shipped downstream to Iraq and the Gulf. One passage written by al-Tanukhi recorded a merchant from Baghdad named al-Marwazi (d. 909 or 910) who speculated in olive oil prices at Raqqa.


title: Raqqa

text: Raqqa also had a mint for coins and was the only important mint city in the region from the time of Harun al-Rashid onward. The last dated copper coin from Abbasid Raqqa was struck in 892 (copper coins in general had fallen out of widespread use in the region during the late 9th century), but it continued minting gold and silver coins uninterrupted until at least 934-5. No coins from anywhere in the region have been found for the rest of the 10th century, but some sporadic, debased coins from 11th-century Raqqa have been found.


title: Raqqa

text: Raqqa's fortunes declined in the late 9th century because of continuous warfare between the Abbasids and the Tulunids, and then with the Shia movement of the Qarmatians. Under the Hamdānids in the 940s, the city declined rapidly. From the late 10th century to the early 12th century, Raqqa was controlled by Bedouin dynasties. The Banu Numayr had their pasture in the Diyār Muḍar, and the Banu Uqay had their centre in Qal'at Ja'bar.


title: Raqqa

text: One of the earliest sources to comment on Raqqa's decline is Ahmad ibn al-Tayyib al-Sarakhsi (d. 899), as quoted by Yaqut; he visited Raqqa in 884-5 and wrote that parts of its walls were in ruins at the time. However, the markets and presumably the industrial areas of al-Muhtariqa were still in use then.