title: Lee Teng-hui

text: In May 1991, Lee spearheaded a drive to eliminate the Temporary Provisions Effective During the Period of Communist Rebellion, laws put in place following the KMT arrival in 1949 that suspended the democratic functions of the government. In December 1991, the original members of the Legislative Yuan, elected to represent mainland China constituencies in 1948, were forced to resign and new elections were held to apportion more seats to the "bensheng ren". The elections forced Hau Pei-tsun from the premiership, a position he was given in exchange for his tacit support of Lee. He was replaced by Lien Chan, then an ally of Lee.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: The prospect of the first island-wide democratic election the next year, together with Lee's June 1995 visit to Cornell University, sparked the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis. The previous eight presidents and vice presidents of the ROC had been elected by the members of the National Assembly. For the first time, the President of the ROC would be elected by majority vote of Taiwan's population. The PRC conducted a series of missile tests in the waters surrounding Taiwan and other military maneuvers off the coast of Fujian in response to what Communist Party leaders described as moves by Lee to "split the motherland". The PRC government launched another set of tests just days before the election, sending missiles over the island to express its dissatisfaction should the Taiwanese people vote for Lee. The military actions disrupted trade and shipping lines and caused a temporary dip in the Asian stock market. Ironically, the 1996 missile launches boosted support for Lee instead. Lee's overall stance on Taiwanese independence during the election cycle was characterized as "deliberately vague".


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: On 23 March 1996, Lee became the first popularly elected ROC president with 54% of the vote. Many people who worked or resided in other countries made special trips back to the island to vote. In addition to the president, the governor of Taiwan Province and the mayors of Taipei and Kaohsiung (as leaders of provincial level divisions they were formerly appointed by the president) became popularly elected.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee, in an interview that same year, expressed his view that a special state-to-state relationship existed between Taiwan and the People's Republic of China (PRC) that all negotiations between the two sides of the Strait needed to observe. As president, he attempted to further reform the government. Controversially, he attempted to remove the provincial level of government and proposed that lower level government officials be appointed, not elected.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee, observing constitutional term limits he had helped enact, stepped down from the presidency at the end of his term in 2000. That year, Democratic Progressive Party candidate Chen Shui-bian won the national election with 39% of the vote in a three-way race. Chen's victory marked an end to KMT rule and the first peaceful transfer of power in Taiwan's new democratic system.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Supporters of rival candidates Lien Chan and James Soong accused Lee of setting up the split in the KMT that had enabled Chen to win. Lee had promoted the uncharismatic Lien over the popular Soong as the KMT candidate. Soong had subsequently run as an independent and was expelled from the KMT. The number of votes garnered by both Soong and Lien would have accounted for approximately 60% of the vote while individually the candidates placed behind Chen. Protests were staged in front of the KMT party headquarters in Taipei. Fuelling this anger were the persistent suspicions following Lee throughout his presidency that he secretly supported Taiwan independence and that he was intentionally sabotaging the Kuomintang from above. Lee resigned his chairmanship on 24 March.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: During his presidency, Lee supported the Taiwanese localization movement. The Taiwanization movement has its roots in Japanese rule founded during the Japanese era and sought to put emphasis on vernacular Taiwanese culture in Taiwan as the center of people's lives as opposed to Nationalist China. During the Chiang era, China was promoted as the center of an ideology that would build a Chinese national outlook in a people who had once considered themselves Japanese subjects. Taiwan was often relegated to a backwater province of China in the KMT-supported history books. People were discouraged from studying local Taiwanese customs, which were to be replaced by mainstream Chinese customs. Lee sought to turn Taiwan into a center rather than an appendage. In 1997, he presided over the adoption of the Taiwan-centric history textbook "Knowing Taiwan".


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Under Lee, it was stated that "legally, historically, geographically, or in reality", all of the South China Sea and Spratly islands were the territory of the Republic of China and under ROC sovereignty, and denounced actions undertaken there by Malaysia and the Philippines, in a statement on 13 July 1999 released by the foreign ministry of Taiwan. The claims made by both the PRC and the Republic of China "mirror" each other. During international talks involving the Spratly islands, the PRC and ROC have sometimes made efforts to coordinate their positions with each other since both have the same claims.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Since resigning the chairmanship of the KMT, Lee stated a number of political positions and ideas which he did not mention while he was president, but which he appeared to have privately maintained. After Lee endorsed the candidates of the newly formed Pan-Green Taiwan Solidarity Union, a party established by a number of his KMT allies, Lee was expelled from the KMT on 21 September 2001.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee publicly supported the Name Rectification Campaigns in Taiwan and proposed changing the name of the country from the Republic of China to the Republic of Taiwan. He generally opposed unlimited economic ties with the PRC, placing restrictions on Taiwanese wishing to invest in the mainland.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: After Chen Shui-bian succeeded Lee in the 2000 election, the two enjoyed a close relationship despite being from different political parties. Chen regularly asked Lee for advice during his first term in office. In Chen's 2001 book, he called Lee the "Father of Taiwanese Democracy" and also named himself the "Son of Taiwan" with respect to Lee. However, the two's relationship began to worsen when Lee questioned Chen's reform of the fisheries branch of the Council of Agriculture. Though Lee was present in the 228 Hand-in-Hand rally orchestrated by the Pan-Green Coalition before the 2004 election, the two's relationship broke apart after Chen asked James Soong to be the President of the Executive Yuan in 2005, which Lee disagreed with. Lee also publicly criticized Chen in 2006 by calling him incapable and corrupt.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: In February 2007, Lee shocked the media when he revealed that he did not support Taiwanese independence, when he was widely seen as the spiritual leader of the pro-independence movement. Lee also said that he supported opening up trade and tourism with the mainland, a position he had opposed before. Lee later explained that Taiwan already enjoys "de facto" independence and that political maneuvering over details of expressing it is counterproductive. He maintains that "Taiwan should seek 'normalization' by changing its name and amending its constitution."


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee enjoyed a warm relationship with the people and culture of Japan. Taiwan was under Japanese rule from 1895 to 1945 and natives of the island who grew up in that period, such as Lee, attended schools where Japanese language, songs, and stories were taught. Lee's father was a middle-level Japanese police aide; his elder brother died serving in the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II and is listed in the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. During his youth, Lee had a Japanese name, . This name was suggested by Lee Teng-chin, combining Longyan (), where there family originated, and their surname Lee (), which shares the same pronunciation with the character “” in both Japanese "on'yomi" and Chinese. Lee spoke fondly of his upbringing and his teachers and was welcomed in visits to Japan since leaving office. Lee admired and enjoyed all things Japanese such as traditional Japanese values. This was the target of criticism from the Pan-Blue Coalition in Taiwan, as well as from China, due to the anti-Japanese sentiment formed during and after World War II. However, this animosity fell in later years, especially in Taiwan.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: In 1989, he received the highest distinction of the Scout Association of Japan, the Golden Pheasant Award.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: In August 2001, Lee said of Junichiro Koizumi's controversial visit to Yasukuni Shrine, "It is natural for a premier of a country to commemorate the souls of people who lost their lives for their country." In a May 2007 trip to Japan, Lee visited the shrine himself to pay tribute to his elder brother. Controversy rose because the shrine also enshrines World War II Class A criminals among the other soldiers.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: During the 2012 China anti-Japanese demonstrations, on 13 September 2012, Lee remarked, "The Senkaku Islands, no matter whether in the past, for now or in the future, certainly belong to Japan." Ten years previously, he had stated, "The Senkaku Islands are the territory of Japan." In September 2014, Lee expressed support for a Japanese equivalent to the United States' Taiwan Relations Act, which was discussed in the Japanese Diet in February, though the idea was first proposed by Chen Shui-bian in 2006.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: In 2014, Lee said in the Japanese magazine "SAPIO" published by Shogakukan, "China spreads lies such as Nanjing massacre to the world ... Korea and China use invented history as their activity of propaganda for their country. Comfort women is the most remarkable example." In 2015, Lee said "The issue of Taiwanese comfort women is already solved" in the Japanese magazine "Voice" (published by PHP Institute), and was strongly criticized by Chen I-hsin, spokesman of the Presidential Office as "not ignorant but cold-blooded". Chen added, "If Lee Teng-hui really thinks the issue of comfort women is solved, go to a theater and see "Song of the Reed"."


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: In July 2015, Lee visited Japan, and again stated that Japan has full sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands. This was the first time Lee made remarks of this nature while in Japan. Members of the pan-Blue New Party and Kuomintang accused him of treason. New Party leader Yok Mu-ming filed charges of treason against Lee, while the KMT's Lai Shyh-bao called a caucus meeting to seek revisions to the Act Governing Preferential Treatment for Retired presidents and Vice presidents, aimed at denying Lee privileges as a former president.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee also stated, in 2015, that Taiwanese people were "subjects of Japan" and that Taiwan and Japan were "one country", sparking much criticism from both mainland China and the Pan-Blue Coalition. In response to media requests for comment, then presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen said that “each generation and ethnic group in Taiwan has lived a different history,” and that people should approach these differing experiences and interpretations with an attitude of understanding that will allow for learning from history, rather than allowing it to be used a tool for manipulating divisions.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee published a book, "Remaining Life: My Life Journey and the Road of Taiwan's Democracy", in February 2016. In it, he reasserted support for Japanese sovereignty claims over the Senkaku Islands, drawing complaints from the ROC Presidential Office, President-elect Tsai Ing-wen, and Yilan County fishermen.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: On 30 June 2011, Lee, along with former KMT financier Liu Tai-ying were indicted on graft and money-laundering charges and accused of embezzling US$7.79 million in public funds. He was acquitted by the Taipei District Court on 15 November 2013. Prosecutors appealed the ruling, but on 20 August 2014, Lee was cleared of the charges again.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee married Tseng Wen-hui on 9 February 1949, with whom he had three children. Their firstborn son Lee Hsien-wen (c. 1950 – 21 March 1982) died of sinus cancer. Daughters Anna and Annie, were born c. 1952 and c. 1954, respectively.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Shortly after stepping down from the presidency in 2000, Lee had coronary artery bypass surgery. In late 2011, he underwent surgery to remove stage II colon adenocarcinoma, the most common form of colon cancer. Two years later, he had a stent implanted in his vertebral artery following an occlusion. Lee was sent to Taipei Veterans General Hospital in November 2015 after experiencing numbness in his right hand, and later diagnosed with a minor stroke. On 29 November 2018, he was rushed to Taipei Veterans General Hospital after falling and hitting his head. He was discharged from hospital on 31 January 2019, and President Tsai Ing-wen later visited him at his home. On 8 February 2020, Lee was hospitalised at Taipei Veterans General Hospital after choking while drinking milk and retained in the hospital under observation due to lung infection concerns. Later, he was diagnosed with aspiration pneumonia caused by pulmonary infiltration, and was subsequently intubated.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee died of multiple organ failure and septic shock at Taipei Veterans General Hospital on 7:24 pm, 30 July 2020, at the age of 97. He had suffered from infections and cardiac problems since he was admitted to hospital in February.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: A state funeral was announced, while a memorial venue at the Taipei Guest House where people paid respects to Lee was opened to the public from 1 to 16 August 2020, after which Lee's body was cremated and his remains interred at Wuzhi Mountain Military Cemetery. All national flags at government institutions were placed at half-mast for three days.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Lee had the nickname "Mr. Democracy" and Taiwan's "Father of Democracy" for his actions to democratize Taiwan's government and his opposition to ruling Communists in mainland China.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: Kuomintang members still blame Lee for losing the political party's long-term rule of the country and believe that Lee's moves led to the fragmentation of the KMT. On the other hand, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) views Lee positively as a beacon of hope. The DPP had grown in strength under Lee's rule and he set a precedent by presiding over the first ever peaceful transition of power to an opposition party in 2000.


title: Lee Teng-hui

text: A November 2020 phone survey of 1,076 Taiwan citizens aged 18 and above which asked the question: "Which president, after Taiwan's democratisation, do you think has the best leadership? Lee Teng-hui, Chen Shui-bian, Ma Ying-jeou, or Tsai Ing-wen?" revealed Lee topped the survey with 43 percent, with incumbent president Tsai on 32 percent, Ma on 18 percent and 6.6 percent for Chen.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibrate (sold under the brand names "Tricor", "Fenobrat" etc.), is an oral medication of the fibrate class used to treat abnormal blood lipid levels. It is less commonly used compared than statins because it treats a different type of cholesterol abnormality to statins. While statins have strong evidence for reducing heart disease and death, there is evidence to suggest that fenofibrate also reduces to the risk of heart disease and death. However, this seems only to apply to specific populations of people with elevated triglyceride levels and reduced high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Its use is recommended together with dietary changes.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Common side effects include liver problems, breathing problems, abdominal pain, muscle problems, and nausea. Serious side effects may include toxic epidermal necrolysis, rhabdomyolysis, gallstones, and pancreatitis. Use during pregnancy and breastfeeding is not recommended. It works by multiple mechanisms.


title: Fenofibrate

text: It was patented in 1969, and came into medical use in 1975. It is available as a generic medication. In 2020, it was the 95th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States with more than 7million prescriptions.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibrate is mainly used for primary hypercholesterolemia or mixed dyslipidemia. Fenofibrate may slow the progression of diabetic retinopathy and the need for invasive treatment such as laser therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes with pre-existing retinopathy. It was initially indicated for diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes and diabetic retinopathy in Australia. The large scale, international FIELD and ACCORD-Eye trials found that fenofibrate therapy reduced required laser treatment for diabetic retinopathy by 1.5% over 5 years"," as well as reducing progression by 3.7% over 4 "years." Further studies looking at the role of fenofibrate in the progression of diabetic retinopathy as the primary outcome is warranted to understand its role in this condition. Although no statistically significant cardiovascular risk benefits were identified in these trials, benefits may accrue to add on therapy to patients with high triglyceride dyslipidaemia currently taking statin medications.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibrate appears to reduce the risk of below ankle amputations in patients with Type 2 diabetes without microvascular disease. The FIELD study reported that fenofibrate at doses of 200 mg daily, reduced the risk for any amputation by 37% independent of glycaemic control, presence or absence of dyslipidaemia and its lipid-lowering mechanism of action. However, the cohort of participants who underwent amputations were more likely to have had previous cardiovascular disease (e.g. angina, myocardial infarction), longer duration of diabetes and had baseline neuropathy.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibrate has an off-label use as an added therapy of high blood uric acid levels in people who have gout.


title: Fenofibrate

text: It is used in addition to diet to reduce elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), total cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), and apolipoprotein B (apo B), and to increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) in adults with primary hypercholesterolemia or mixed dyslipidemia.


title: Fenofibrate

text: It is used in tandem with diet for treatment of adults with severe hypertriglyceridemia. Improving glycemic control in diabetics showing fasting chylomicronemia usually reduces the need for pharmacologic intervention.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Statins remain the first line for treatment of blood cholesterol. AHA guidelines from 2013 did not find evidence for routine use of additional medications.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Additionally, in 2016, the FDA filed "Withdrawal of Approval of Indications Related to the Coadministration With Statins in Applications for Niacin Extended-Release Tablets and Fenofibric Acid Delayed Release Capsules" noting "the Agency has concluded that the totality of the scientific evidence no longer supports the conclusion that a drug-induced reduction in triglyceride levels and/or increase in HDL cholesterol levels in statin-treated patients results in a reduction in the risk of cardiovascular events. Consistent with this conclusion, FDA has determined that the benefits of niacin ER tablets and fenofibric acid DR capsules for coadministration with statins no longer outweigh the risks, and the approvals for this indication should be withdrawn."


title: Fenofibrate

text: In August 2021, researchers in the UK and Italy reported laboratory findings that fenofibrate can significantly reduce SARS-CoV-2 infection "in vitro".


title: Fenofibrate

text: When fenofibrate and a statin are given as combination therapy, it is recommended that fenofibrate be given in the morning and the statin at night, so that the peak dosages do not overlap.


title: Fenofibrate

text: "There is no specific treatment for overdose with fenofibric acid delayed-release capsules. General supportive care is indicated, including monitoring of vital signs and observation of clinical status". Additionally, hemodialysis should not be considered as an overdose treatment option because fenofibrate heavily binds to plasma proteins and does not dialyze well.


title: Fenofibrate

text: "In summary, enhanced catabolism of triglyceride-rich particles and reduced secretion of VLDL underlie the hypotriglyceridemic effect of fibrates, whereas their effect on HDL metabolism is associated with changes in HDL apolipoprotein expression."


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibrate is a fibrate derivative, a prodrug comprising fenofibric acid linked to an isopropyl ester. It lowers lipid levels by activating peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα). PPARα activates lipoprotein lipase and reduces apoprotein CIII, which increases lipolysis and elimination of triglyceride-rich particles from plasma.


title: Fenofibrate

text: PPARα also increases apoproteins AI and AII, reduces VLDL- and LDL-containing apoprotein B, and increases HDL-containing apoprotein AI and AII.


title: Fenofibrate

text: The formulations may differ in terms of pharmacokinetic properties, particularly bioavailability; some must be taken with meals, whereas others may be taken without regard to food.


title: Fenofibrate

text: The choline salt of fenofibrate is available in the United States, sold as Trilipix, and may be taken without regard to meals.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibric acid was one of the 12 compounds identified in sludge samples taken from 12 wastewater treatment plants in California that were associated with estrogenic activity in in vitro.


title: Fenofibrate

text: Fenofibrate was first synthesized in 1974, as a derivative of clofibrate, and was initially offered in France. It was initially known as procetofen, and was later renamed fenofibrate' to comply with World Health Organization International Nonproprietary Name guidelines.


title: Fenofibrate

text: In the United States, Tricor was reformulated in 2005. This reformulation was controversial, seen as an attempt to stifle competition from generic equivalents, and was the subject of antitrust litigation by Teva.


title: Terraform (software)

text: Terraform is an open-source infrastructure-as-configuration software tool created by HashiCorp. Users define and provide data center infrastructure using a declarative configuration language known as HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL), or optionally JSON.


title: Terraform (software)

text: Terraform manages external resources (such as public cloud infrastructure, private cloud infrastructure, network appliances, software as a service, and platform as a service) with "providers". HashiCorp maintains an extensive list of official providers, and can also integrate with community-developed providers. Users can interact with Terraform providers by declaring resources or by calling data sources. Rather than using imperative commands to provision resources, Terraform uses declarative configuration to describe the desired final state. Once a user invokes Terraform on a given resource, Terraform will perform CRUD actions on the user's behalf to accomplish the desired state. The infrastructure as code can be written as modules, promoting reusability and maintainability.


title: Terraform (software)

text: Terraform supports a number of cloud infrastructure providers such as Amazon Web Services, Cloudflare, Microsoft Azure, IBM Cloud, Serverspace, Google Cloud Platform, DigitalOcean, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, Yandex.Cloud, VMware vSphere, and OpenStack.


title: Terraform (software)

text: HashiCorp maintains a Terraform Module Registry, launched in 2017. In 2019, Terraform introduced the paid version called Terraform Enterprise for larger organizations.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The Vaishno Devi Temple also referred to as Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Temple and Vaishno Devi Bhavan is a prominent and widely revered Hindu temple dedicated to goddess Vaishno Devi. It is located in Katra, Reasi on the slopes of Trikuta Hills within the union territory of Jammu & Kashmir in India. The temple is recognized as one of the 108 Maha (major) Shakti Peethas dedicated to Durga, who is worshipped as Vaishno Devi. Having the principal aspect of Durga, hindus consider Vaishno Devi as an incarnation of Kali, Saraswati and Lakshmi. The temple is governed by the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB), chaired by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir in August 1986.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: It is one of the most visited pilgrimage centers of India. Every year, millions of devotees visit the temple. During festivals like Navaratri, the footfall increases to as high as one crore. It is also one of the richest temples in India with annual receipts of almost 16 billion dollars according to some authors.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The temple is sacred to both Hindus and Sikhs. Many prominent saints such as Guru Gobind Singh Ji and Swami Vivekananda have visited the temple.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The temple is governed by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB). The board was established under the Jammu and Kashmir state government Act No. XVI/1988, also known as Shri Mata Vaishno devi Shrine Act. The board is chaired by the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir who also appoints 9 board members for governing the Shrine.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The temple, at a height of 1,584.96 m (5,200 ft), is 12 km from Katra on Trikuta hill. It is about 61 km from Jammu city. A geological study of the Holy Cave has indicated its age to be nearly a million years. There is also a mention of the Trikuta hill in Rigveda, the place where the temple is located.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The "Mahabharata", which gives the account of the Pandavas and the Kurukshetra War, does mention the worship of goddess Vaishno Devi. Before the Kurukshetra War Arjuna is said to have worshipped Devi by the advice of Lord Krishna for the blessings. Pleased by his devotion, Mother Goddess appeared in front of him in the form of Vaishno Devi. When goddess appeared, Arjuna started praising her with a stotra, in which a Shloka goes by saying ‘ "Jambookatak Chityaishu Nityam Sannihitalaye" ’, which means ‘you who always dwell in the temple on the slope of the mountain in Jambhu’ probably referring to the present day Jammu. Former Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Jagmohan says, "the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine is an ancient one whose antiquity is pre-Mahabharathan, Lord Krishna is believed to have advised Arjuna to go up in the hills of 'Jambhu' and seek the blessings of Vaishno Devi before taking up arms in the battlefield. 'Jambhu' is identified with present-day Jammu. Arjuna while worshipping Vaishno Devi, calls Her, the highest Yogin who is free from decrepitude and decay, who is the Mother of the Vedas and the Science of Vedanta and who is giver of Victory and personification of victory itself". It is also generally believed that the Pandavas were the first to build the temples at Kol Kandoli and Bhawan in reverence and gratitude for the Mother Goddess. On a mountain, just adjacent to the Trikuta Mountain and overlooking the Holy Cave are five stone structures, which are believed to be the rock symbols of the five Pandavas.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: Vaishno Devi was an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu and she used to meditate in a cave. It is said that Bhairon Nath, a famous Hindu Tantric, saw the young Vaishno Devi at an agricultural fair and fell madly in love with her. Vaishno Devi fled into Trikuta hills to escape his amorous advances, later she assumed the form of Durga and cut off his head with her sword in a cave.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: According to author Manohar Sajnani, Hindu mythology holds that the original abode of Vaishno Devi was Ardh Kunwari, a place about halfway between Katra town and the cave. The Vaishno Devi is said to have been a Virgin since the creation of the universe.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: On 1 January 2022, 12 people were killed and 16 others injured during a stampede near to Gate No. 3 at the shrine.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The three idols Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati, all images of Vaishno Devi are worshipped at the temple. The feet of the idols are washed by the water brought from the perennial flowing river Banganga.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: Author Abha Chauhan identifies Vaishno Devi with the power of Durga as well as the incarnation of Lakshmi, Saraswati and Kali. Pintchman writes that Vaishno Devi possesses all the same powers as the supreme divinity Adi Shakti or simply Durga. Pintchman also states that some pilgrims identify Vaishno Devi as Durga (a form of Parvati), who is also called "Sheranwali", "the Lion-rider".


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The most prominent festivals held at Vaishno Devi Temple are Navaratri, a nine nights festival celebrating Devi's victory over evil demons and Diwali, a festival of lights symbolizing the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The Navaratri festival is a festival celebrated during the month of Ashvin, which typically falls in the Gregorian months of September and October. The festival lasts for nine nights (ten days); artists from all over the country perform during the function at Vaishno Devi darbar. Due to COVID-19 pandemic Shrine Board also started delivering Prasāda for the devotees who are unable to come to the temple by collaborating with Postal Department of India.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: The Vaishno Devi Temple was included in the Jammu and Kashmir Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Act No. XVI/1988 and also part of Article 26 of the Constitution of India. The board name is Shri Mata Vaishno devi Shrine Board. There are nine members in the board; all are nominated by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly by Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. The Governor of Jammu and Kashmir is the ex-officio chairman of the board. In 1991, Shri Mata Vaishno devi Shrine Board management also took the control of Shiv Khori, a famous Shiva temple.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: Shrine Board have also constructed guest houses such as Vaishnavi Dham, Saraswati Dham, Kalika Dham, Niharika Yatri Niwas, Shakti Bhawan and Ashirwad Bhawan near the Railway station and Bus stand at Katra.


title: Vaishno Devi Temple

text: During the winter season from the month of December to January the Vaishno Devi Temple will be covered with snow. Even though temple will not be closed during these days, people visiting the temple are recommended to bring heavy woollens, wind-cheaters, caps and gloves, although the temple management provides free blankets during the climb.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen or wintergreen oil) is an organic compound with the formula CHO. It is the methyl ester of salicylic acid. It is a colorless, viscous liquid with a sweet, fruity odor reminiscent of root beer, but often associatively called "minty", as it is an ingredient in mint candies. It is produced by many species of plants, particularly wintergreens. It is also produced synthetically, used as a fragrance and as a flavoring agent.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate was first isolated (from the plant "Gaultheria procumbens") in 1843 by the French chemist Auguste André Thomas Cahours (1813–1891), who identified it as an ester of salicylic acid and methanol.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: The biosynthesis of methyl salicylate arises via the hydroxylation of benzoic acid by a cytochrome P450 followed by methylation by a methylase enzyme.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Many plants produce methyl salicylate in small quantities. Methyl salicylate levels are often upregulated in response to biotic stress, especially infection by pathogens, where it plays a role in the induction of resistance. Methyl salicylate is believed to function by being metabolized to the plant hormone salicylic acid. Since methyl salicylate is volatile, these signals can spread through the air to distal parts of the same plant or even to neighboring plants, whereupon they can function as a mechanism of plant-to-plant communication, "warning" neighbors of danger. Methyl salicylate is also released in some plants when they are damaged by herbivorous insects, where they may function as a cue aiding in the recruitment of predators.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Some plants produce methyl salicylate in larger quantities, where it likely involved in direct defense against predators or pathogens. Examples of this latter class include: some species of the genus "Gaultheria" in the family Ericaceae, including "Gaultheria procumbens", the wintergreen or eastern teaberry; some species of the genus "Betula" in the family Betulaceae, particularly those in the subgenus "Betulenta" such as "B. lenta", the black birch; all species of the genus "Spiraea" in the family Rosaceae, also called the meadowsweets; species of the genus "Polygala" in the family Polygalaceae. Methyl salicylate can also be a component of floral scents, especially in plants dependent on nocturnal pollinators like moths, scarab beetles, and (nocturnal) bees.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate can be produced by esterifying salicylic acid with methanol. Commercial methyl salicylate is now synthesized, but in the past, it was commonly distilled from the twigs of "Betula lenta" (sweet birch) and "Gaultheria procumbens" (eastern teaberry or wintergreen).


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate is used in high concentrations as a rubefacient and analgesic in deep heating liniments (such as Bengay) to treat joint and muscular pain. Randomised double blind trials report that evidence of its effectiveness is weak, but stronger for acute pain than chronic pain, and that effectiveness may be due entirely to counterirritation. However, in the body it metabolizes into salicylates, including salicylic acid, a known NSAID.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate is used in low concentrations (0.04% and under) as a flavoring agent in chewing gum and mints. When mixed with sugar and dried, it is a potentially entertaining source of triboluminescence, for example by crushing Wint-O-Green Life Savers in a dark room. When crushed, sugar crystals emit light; methyl salicylate amplifies the spark because it fluoresces, absorbing ultraviolet light and re-emitting it in the visible spectrum. It is used as an antiseptic in Listerine mouthwash produced by the Johnson & Johnson company. It provides fragrance to various products and as an odor-masking agent for some organophosphate pesticides.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate is also used as a bait for attracting male orchid bees for study, which apparently gather the chemical to synthesize pheromones, and to clear plant or animal tissue samples of color, and as such is useful for microscopy and immunohistochemistry when excess pigments obscure structures or block light in the tissue being examined. This clearing generally only takes a few minutes, but the tissue must first be dehydrated in alcohol. It has also been discovered that methyl salicylate works as a kairomone that attracts some insects, such as the spotted lanternfly.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Additional applications include: used as a simulant or surrogate for the research of chemical warfare agent sulfur mustard, due to its similar chemical and physical properties, in restoring (at least temporarily) the elastomeric properties of old rubber rollers, especially in printers, as a transfer agent in printmaking (to release toner from photocopied images and apply them to other surfaces), and as a penetrating oil to loosen rusted parts.


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Methyl salicylate is potentially deadly, especially for young children who may accidentally ingest preparations containing methyl salicylate such as an essential oil solution. A single teaspoon (5 ml) of methyl salicylate contains approximately 6 g of salicylate, which is equivalent to almost twenty 300 mg aspirin tablets (5ml × 1.174g/ml = 5.87g). Toxic ingestions of salicylates typically occur with doses of approximately 150 mg/kg body weight. This can be achieved with 1 ml of oil of wintergreen, which equates to 140mg/kg of salicylates for a 10kg child (22lbs). The lowest published lethal dose is 101 mg/kg body weight in adult humans, (or 7.07 grams for a 70 kg adult). It has proven fatal to small children in doses as small as 4 ml. A seventeen-year-old cross-country runner at Notre Dame Academy on Staten Island died in April 2007 after her body absorbed methyl salicylate through excessive use of topical muscle-pain relief products (using multiple patches against the manufacturer's instructions).


title: Methyl salicylate

text: Most instances of human toxicity due to methyl salicylate are a result of overapplication of topical analgesics, especially involving children. Salicylate, the major metabolite of methyl salicylate, may accumulate in blood, plasma or serum to confirm a diagnosis of poisoning in hospitalized patients or to assist in an autopsy.


The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league based in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. The Atlantic League's corporate headquarters is located at Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.


title: Atlantic League of Professional Baseball

text: The Atlantic League operates in cities not served by Major League Baseball (MLB) or Minor League Baseball (MiLB) teams; most of its teams are within suburbs and exurbs too close to other teams in the organized baseball system to have minor league franchises of their own. The Atlantic League requires cities to have the market for a 4,000 to 7,500-seat ballpark and for the facility to be maintained at or above Triple-A standards. When Atlantic League professionals are signed by MLB clubs, they usually start in their Double-A or Triple-A affiliates.


text: The league uses a pitch clock and limits the time between innings in an effort to speed up the game. In 2019, the Atlantic League began a three-year partnership with Major League Baseball allowing MLB to implement changes to Atlantic League playing rules, in order to observe the effects of potential future rule changes and equipment. In 2020, the Atlantic League, together with the American Association, the Frontier League, and the Pioneer League, expanded this agreement to become an official MLB Partner League.


text: The Atlantic League is generally regarded as the most successful and highest level of baseball among independent leagues. The Atlantic League has had more marquee players than any other independent league, including Jose Canseco, Mat Latos, Steve Lombardozzi Jr., Francisco Rodríguez, Chien-Ming Wang, Roger Clemens, Rich Hill, Scott Kazmir, Juan González, and Dontrelle Willis. Two former Atlantic League players are in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Tim Raines and Rickey Henderson. Gary Carter, another Hall of Famer, managed in the league. The Atlantic League has had many notable managers and coaches, including Wally Backman, Frank Viola, Tommy John, Sparky Lyle, and Bud Harrelson . The Atlantic League has consistently posted higher per game and per season attendance numbers than other independent circuits including the American Association, Can-Am League, and Frontier League.


text: In 1998, the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball played its inaugural season, with teams in Bridgewater, Newark, and Atlantic City, New Jersey; Nashua, New Hampshire; Newburgh, New York; and Bridgeport, Connecticut. The creation of the league was the result of the New York Mets' objection to Frank Boulton's proposal to move the former Albany-Colonie Yankees because of its territorial rights to the region. Boulton, a Long Island, New York native, decided to create a new league that would have a higher salary cap for its players and a longer season than most of the other independent baseball organizations. He modeled the Atlantic League after the older Pacific Coast League, with facilities that exceed AAA-level standards. Boulton also emphasized signing players of Major League Baseball experience for all Atlantic League teams, raising the level of play above other independent leagues.


text: In 2010, the league announced that it would be expanding to Sugar Land, Texas and adding its first franchise not located in an Atlantic coast state. The Sugar Land Skeeters began play in 2012. In 2010, amid financial struggles, the Newark Bears moved from the Atlantic League to the Can-Am League, leaving the Bridgeport Bluefish and Somerset Patriots as the only teams remaining from the league's inaugural season. In the summer of 2013, then-ALPB President Frank Boulton announced that he would be resigning so that he could devote more time to operating the Long Island Ducks. He was replaced by longtime high-ranking Major League Baseball executive Rick White. On July 8, 2015, the Atlantic League began using Rawlings baseballs with red and blue seams, virtually unused in the sport since the American League swapped the blue in their seams for red in 1934.


text: On September 1, 2015, the Atlantic League announced conditional approval for an expansion team or a relocated team to play in New Britain, Connecticut for the 2016 season. On October 21, 2015, the Camden Riversharks announced they would cease operations immediately due to the inability to reach an agreement on lease terms with the owner of Campbell's Field, the Camden County Improvement Authority. The team was replaced by the New Britain Bees for the 2016 season. On May 29, 2016, Jennie Finch was the guest manager for the league's Bridgeport Bluefish, thus becoming the first woman to manage a professional baseball team.


text: Shortly before the conclusion of the 2017 season, the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut voted to not continue with professional baseball in the city and announced plans to convert The Ballpark at Harbor Yard into a music amphitheater; the Bridgeport Bluefish announced plans to relocate to High Point, North Carolina in 2019 when the construction of a new multipurpose facility in High Point is completed. League officials announced the return of the Pennsylvania Road Warriors, an all road game team, to keep the league at an even eight teams while the Bluefish go inactive for the 2018 season.


text: In 2015, the Atlantic League experienced a watershed moment for independent baseball when it signed a formal agreement with Major League Baseball which put into writing the rules which the ALPB would follow in selling its players' contracts to MLB clubs and their affiliates. This marked the first time that MLB, which has enjoyed a U.S. Supreme Court-granted antitrust exemption since 1922, had made any formal agreement with or acknowledgment of an independent baseball league.


text: In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league announced that it would be unable to operate for the 2020 season with the current 8 member ballclubs, thereby canceling its season. Several teams (Somerset, York, and Lancaster) did not gain necessary approval from governmental and health officials to open their ballparks to the capacity level necessary for competition. They used their stadiums to host recreational and community-based events, as well as local baseball activities where allowed. Meanwhile, the Long Island Ducks, High Point Rockers, and Southern Maryland Blue Crabs initially attempted to partner with teams from other leagues in order to play a 70-game season from mid-July through the end of September. However, due to ongoing restrictions and capacity limitations, they ultimately decided to suspend all baseball activities for the 2020 season. The only teams that played in 2020 was the Sugar Land Skeeters, who would create a new 4-team independent league in Texas, with all 60 games played at Constellation Field, and the Somerset Patriots, who played weekend games with a second squad called the New Jersey Blasters.


text: In July 2020, the league announced the addition of a new franchise in Gastonia, North Carolina beginning in 2021; it is the league's second team based in North Carolina.


text: In November 2020, the Atlantic League lost its last charter franchise and its westernmost franchise when both teams became official minor league affiliates. On November 7, the Somerset Patriots announced that they were leaving the league to join the MLB-affiliated Eastern League, where they will replace the Trenton Thunder as the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. Approximately two weeks later, the Houston Astros announced that they had purchased a controlling stake in the Sugar Land Skeeters and, as a result, the Skeeters would become the Astros' Triple-A affiliate and join the Pacific Coast League.


text: On February 18, 2021, the league announced the addition of the Lexington Legends, previously the Class A South Atlantic League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, for the 2021 season. The Charleston Dirty Birds, formerly the West Virginia Power of the South Atlantic League, announced their move to the league on February 24, 2021.


text: In 2022, Kelsie Whitmore signed with the Staten Island FerryHawks of the Atlantic League, and started a game for them in left field; this made her the first woman to start an Atlantic League game. Later that year she became the first woman to pitch in an Atlantic League game when she made her first pitching appearance for Staten Island; entering the game with the bases loaded and two outs, she retired Ryan Jackson, a former major leaguer, on a fly out to end the inning.


text: In March 2019, the Atlantic League and Major League Baseball reached agreement to test multiple rule changes during the 2019 Atlantic League season:


text: The tracking system for calling balls and strikes was introduced at the league's all-star game on July 10. In addition to rule changes noted above, additional changes being implemented for the second half of the league's 2019 season are:


text: The Atlantic League and MLB jointly announced that the former would adopt several additional experimental rules for the 2021 season:


text: In January 2022, the Atlantic League announced they would no longer be using the following rules for the 2022 season:


text: The ALPB Championship Series is played as a best-of-five. Numbers in parenthesis denote the number of championships won by a team to that point, when more than one.


text: Freedom Division won the 2019 game in a "homer-off" after the teams were tied at the end of nine innings.


text: Some Atlantic League players have come from, or advanced to, the higher ranks of Major League Baseball. Some have resurrected their careers and returned to the majors, while others played in the independent league during the start or end of their careers. The following is a list of some of those players:


title: Dire Straits discography

text: The rock band Dire Straits released six studio albums between 1978 and 1991, including "Brothers in Arms", which sold over four million copies in the United Kingdom. They also released 23 singles, as well as several live and compilation albums.


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Blanca Martínez Suárez (born 21 October 1988) is a Spanish actress. She is best known for her performances on television series "The Boarding School" (2007–10), "The Boat" (2011–13), and the Netflix series' "Cable Girls" (2017–2020) and "Jaguar" (2021-).


title: Blanca Suárez

text: She has also worked with Pedro Almodóvar in films as "The Skin I Live In" (2011), which earned her a Goya Award nomination as Best New Actress, and "I'm So Excited!" (2013).


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Suárez made her acting debut in 2007, portraying the role of Julia Medina in the Antena 3 series "The Boarding School" (Spanish: "El internado"). She would star the series until its end in 2010, and earn Fotogramas de Plata Award for Best Actress for her performance, as well as a Golden Nymph for Best Actress – Drama nomination at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival in 2009. In the meantime, Suárez appeared in full-length pictures "Shiver" ("Eskalofrío"), "Cowards" ("Cowards"), "Brain Drain" ("Fuga de cerebros") and "The Consul of Sodom" ("El cónsul de Sodoma"), as well as in the short films "Universes" ("Universos") and "Hemisphere" ("Hemisferio").


title: Blanca Suárez

text: In 2010, Suárez had her first starring role in "Neon Flesh" ("Carne de neón") opposite Mario Casas. The film was eventually released in 2011. Suárez then starred, along with Antonio Banderas and Elena Anaya, Pedro Almodóvar's "The Skin I Live In", for which she earned critical acclaim and a Goya Award for Best New Actress nomination. The same year, she appeared in the music video for Ladrones' song "Estoy prohibido".


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Suárez then went on to star another Antena 3 series "The Boat" ("El Barco"), for which she won Fotogramas de Plata Award for Best Television Actress and Ondas Award for Best Actress, as well as a nomination for TP de Oro Award for Best Actress. "The Boat" aired from 17 January 2011 to 21 February 2013. In the meantime, Suárez starred two films that both premiered at the 2012 Málaga Film Festival — the comedy drama "Winning Streak" ("The Pelayos"), along with Daniel Brühl, Lluís Homar and Miguel Ángel Silvestre, and Imanol Uribe's post-war drama "Orange Syrup" ("Miel de naranjas"), alongside Ángela Molina and Nora Navas.


title: Blanca Suárez

text: In 2013, Suárez appeared in "I'm So Excited!" ("Los amantes pasajeros"), an ensemble cast comedy film directed by Pedro Almodóvar. At the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, Suárez was awarded with the Trophée Chopard for Female Revelation of the Year for her work in acting; the award was presented to her by Colin Firth.


title: Blanca Suárez

text: In 2014, Suárez portrayed Snow White in the eponymous episode of the television series "Cuéntame un cuento" (English: "Tell Me a Story"). In 2015, she starred the miniseries "Los nuestros" (English: "The Ours") opposite Hugo Silva; the television series "Carlos, Rey Emperador" (English: "Charles, King Emperor") as Isabella of Portugal; and films "Perdiendo el Norte" (English: "Off Course"), opposite her "The Boarding School" co-star Yon González, "My Big Night" ("Mi gran noche") by Álex de la Iglesia, for which she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the III Premios Feroz. and also Álex de la Iglesia's next film "El bar" (2017).


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Suárez appeared in music videos for "Estoy prohibido" by Ladrones in 2010 and "Emocional" by Dani Martín in 2014.


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Also to modeled for various recognized magazines. In 2013, she became model for the Italian lingerie label Intimissimi.


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Suárez was named the Most Searched Performer on the Internet by the "Fotogramas" in 2011 and 2014, and was voted out as the best dressed celebrity at the 26th Goya Awards. In November of the same year, she was named the Woman of the Year by the Spanish edition of "GQ".


title: Blanca Suárez

text: Suárez was in a relationship with actor Javier Pereira from 2008 to 2010. She then dated and lived with her "Winning Streak" co-star Miguel Ángel Silvestre from 2011 to 2014. In 2014, Suárez briefly dated Spanish pop rock musician Dani Martín. From 2015 to 2017, she was in a relationship with actor Joel Bosqued. Later from March 2018 to October 2019, she was in another relationship with Mario Casas.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: A voivodeship (; ; plural: ) is the highest-level administrative division of Poland, corresponding to a province in many other countries. The term has been in use since the 14th century and is commonly translated into English as "province".


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The Polish local government reforms adopted in 1998, which went into effect on 1 January 1999, created sixteen new voivodeships. These replaced the 49 former voivodeships that had existed from 1 July 1975, and bear a greater resemblance (in territory, but not in name) to the voivodeships that existed between 1950 and 1975.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Today's voivodeships are mostly named after historical and geographical regions, while those prior to 1998 generally took their names from the cities on which they were centered. The new units range in area from under (Opole Voivodeship) to over (Masovian Voivodeship), and in population from nearly one million (Opole Voivodeship) to over five million (Masovian Voivodeship).


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Administrative authority at the voivodeship level is shared between a government-appointed governor called a voivode (), an elected assembly called a , and an executive board () chosen by that assembly, headed by a voivodeship marshal (). Voivodeships are further divided into ('counties') and ('communes' or 'municipalities'), the smallest administrative divisions of Poland.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Some English-language sources, in historic contexts, speak of "palatinate""s" rather than "voivodeships". The term "palatine" traces back to the Latin .


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: More commonly used now is "province" or "voivodeship". The latter is a loanword-calque hybrid formed on the Polish .


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Some writers argue against rendering in English as "province", on historic grounds. Before the third and last Partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, which occurred in 1795, each of the main constituent regions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth—Greater Poland, Lesser Poland, Lithuania, and Royal Prussia—was sometimes idiosyncratically referred to as a "Province" (). According to the argument, a "province" (such as Greater Poland) cannot consist of a number of subdivisions ("", the plural of "") that are likewise called "provinces". This is an antiquarian consideration, as " province" has not been used in this sense in Poland for over two centuries. The former larger political units, all now obsolete, can be referred to in English as they were, "regions".


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The Polish , designating a second-tier Polish or Polish–Lithuanian administrative unit, derives from , (etymologically, a 'warlord', 'war leader' or 'leader of warriors', but now simply the governor of a ) and the suffix (a "state or condition").


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The English "voivodeship", which is a hybrid of the loanword "voivode" and "-ship" (the latter a suffix that calques the Polish suffix ), has never been much used and is absent from many dictionaries. According to the "Oxford English Dictionary", it first appeared in 1792, spelled "woiwodship", in the sense of "the district or province governed by a voivode." The word subsequently appeared in 1886 also in the sense of "the office or dignity of a voivode."


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Poland's Commission on Standardization of Geographic Names outside the Republic of Poland, prefers the form which omits the 'e', recommending the spelling "", for use in English.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Competences and powers at voivodeship level are shared between the voivode (governor), the sejmik (regional assembly) and the marshal. In most cases these institutions are all based in one city, but in Kuyavian-Pomeranian and Lubusz Voivodeship the voivode's offices are in a different city from those of the executive and the sejmik. Voivodeship capitals are listed in the table below.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The "voivode" is appointed by the Prime Minister and is the regional representative of the central government. The voivode acts as the head of central government institutions at regional level (such as the police and fire services, passport offices, and various inspectorates), manages central government property in the region, oversees the functioning of local government, coordinates actions in the field of public safety and environment protection, and exercises special powers in emergencies. The voivode's offices collectively are known as the .


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The is elected every five years. (The first of the five-year terms began in 2018; previous terms lasted four years.)) Elections for the fall at the same time as that of local authorities at and level. The passes by-laws, including the voivodeship's development strategies and budget. It also elects the and other members of the executive, and holds them to account.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The "executive" (), headed by the drafts the budget and development strategies, implements the resolutions of the , manages the voivodeship's property, and deals with many aspects of regional policy, including management of European Union funding. The marshal's offices are collectively known as the .


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: According to 2017 Eurostat data, the GDP per capita of Polish voivodeships varies notably and there is a large gap between the richest per capita voivodeship (being the Masovian Voivodeship at 33,500 EUR) and the poorest per capita (being the Lublin Voivodeship at 14,400 EUR).


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The following is a list of the Voivodeships within Greater Poland at various points over the period from the mid-16th century until the late 18th century:


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The following is a list of the Voivodeships within Lesser Poland over the period of the mid-16th century until the late 18th century:


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Voivodeships of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth were based on the administrative structure that existed in the Duchy prior to the Commonwealth's formation, from at least the early-15th century. They were:


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: While the Duchy of Livonia was part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, approximately 1569–1772, in various periods it comprised the following voivodeships in varying combinations:


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: The administrative division of Poland in the interwar period included 16 voivodeships and Warsaw (with voivodeship rights). The voivodeships that remained in Poland after World War II as a result of Polish–Soviet border agreement of August 1945 were very similar to the current voivodeships.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: After World War II, the new administrative division of the country within the new national borders was based on the prewar one and included 14 (+2) voivodeships, then 17 (+5). The voivodeships in the east that had not been annexed by the Soviet Union had their borders left almost unchanged. The newly acquired territories in the west and north were organized into the new voivodeships of Szczecin, Wrocław and Olsztyn, and partly joined to Gdańsk, Katowice and Poznań voivodeships. Two cities were granted voivodeship status: Warsaw and Łódź.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: In 1950, new voivodeships were created: Koszalin (previously part of Szczecin), Opole (previously part of Katowice), and Zielona Góra (previously part of Poznań, Wrocław and Szczecin voivodeships). In 1957, three more cities were granted voivodeship status: Wrocław, Kraków and Poznań.


title: Voivodeships of Poland

text: Administrative division of Poland between 1979 and 1998 included 49 voivodeships upheld after the establishment of the Third Polish Republic in 1989 for another decade. This reorganization of administrative division of Poland was mainly a result of local government reform acts of 1973–1975. In place of the three-level administrative division (voivodeship, county, commune), a new two-level administrative division was introduced (49 small voivodeships, and communes). The three smallest voivodeships—Warsaw, Kraków and Łódź—had the special status of municipal voivodeship; the city president (mayor) was also provincial governor.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Alexander Dubček (; 27 November 1921 – 7 November 1992) was a Slovak politician who served as the First Secretary of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) ("de facto" leader of Czechoslovakia) from January 1968 to April 1969. He attempted to reform the communist government during the Prague Spring but was forced to resign following the Warsaw Pact invasion in August 1968.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: During his leadership under the slogan "Socialism with a human face", Czechoslovakia lifted censorship on the media and liberalized society, fueling the so-called New Wave in filmography and paving the way for a period that became known as the Prague Spring. However, Dubček was put under pressure by Stalinists inside the party, as well as the Soviet leadership, who opposed the direction the country was taking and feared that Czechoslovakia could loosen ties with the Soviet Union and become more westernized. As a result, the country was invaded by Soviet-led Warsaw Pact countries on 20–21 August 1968, effectively ending the Prague Spring. Dubček was forced to resign in April 1969 and succeeded by Gustáv Husák, who initiated normalization by clamping down on the liberalizing and pro-democracy movement. Dubček was expelled from the Communist Party in 1970.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: During the Velvet Revolution in 1989, Dubček served as the Chairman of the federal Czechoslovak parliament and contended for the presidency with Václav Havel. The European Parliament awarded Dubček the Sakharov Prize the same year.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Alexander Dubček was born in Uhrovec, Czechoslovakia (now in Slovakia), on 27 November 1921. When he was three years old, the family moved to the Soviet Union, in part to help build socialism and in part because jobs were scarce in Czechoslovakia; so that he was raised until 12 on a commune in Pishpek (now Bishkek), in the Kirghiz SSR of the Soviet Union (now Kyrgyzstan), as a member of the Esperantist and Idist industrial cooperative Interhelpo. In 1933, the family moved to Gorky, now Nizhny Novgorod, and in 1938 returned to Czechoslovakia.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: During the Second World War, Dubček joined the underground resistance against the wartime pro-German Slovak state headed by Jozef Tiso. In August 1944, Dubček fought in the Jan Žižka partisan brigade during the Slovak National Uprising and was wounded twice, while his brother, Július, was killed.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: During the war, Dubček joined the Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS), which had been created after the formation of the Slovak state and in 1948 was transformed into the Slovak branch of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ).


title: Alexander Dubček

text: After the war, he steadily rose through the ranks in Communist Czechoslovakia. From 1951 to 1955 he was a member of the National Assembly, the parliament of Czechoslovakia. In 1953, he was sent to the Moscow Political College, where he graduated in 1958. In 1955, he joined the Central Committee of the Slovak branch and in 1962 became a member of the presidium. In 1958 he also joined the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, which he served as a secretary from 1960 to 1962 and as a member of the presidium after 1962. From 1960 to 1968 he once more was a member of the federal parliament.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: In 1963, a power struggle in the leadership of the Slovak branch unseated Karol Bacílek and Pavol David, hard-line allies of Antonín Novotný, First Secretary of the KSČ and President of Czechoslovakia. In their place, a new generation of Slovak Communists took control of party and state organs in Slovakia, led by Dubček, who became First Secretary of the Slovak branch of the party.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Under Dubček's leadership, Slovakia began to evolve toward political liberalization. Because Novotný and his Stalinist predecessors had denigrated Slovak "bourgeois nationalists", most notably Gustáv Husák and Vladimír Clementis, in the 1950s, the Slovak branch worked to promote Slovak identity. This mainly took the form of celebrations and commemorations, such as the 150th birthdays of 19th century leaders of the Slovak National Revival Ľudovít Štúr and Jozef Miloslav Hurban, the centenary of the Matica slovenská in 1963, and the twentieth anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising. At the same time, the political and intellectual climate in Slovakia became freer than that in the Czech lands. This was exemplified by the rising readership of "Kultúrny život", the weekly newspaper of the Union of Slovak Writers, which published frank discussions of liberalization, federalization and democratization, written by the most progressive or controversial writers – both Slovak and Czech. "Kultúrny život" consequently became the first Slovak publication to gain a wide following among Czechs.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: The Czechoslovak planned economy in the 1960s was in serious decline and the imposition of central control from Prague disappointed local Communists, while the de-Stalinization program caused further disquiet. In October 1967, a number of reformers, most notably Ota Šik and Alexander Dubček, took action: they challenged First Secretary Antonín Novotný at a Central Committee meeting. Novotný faced a mutiny in the Central Committee, so he secretly invited Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leader, to make a whirlwind visit to Prague in December 1967 in order to shore up his own position. When Brezhnev arrived in Prague and met with the Central Committee members, he was stunned to learn of the extent of the opposition to Novotný, leading Brezhnev to opt for non-interference, and paving the way for the Central Committee to force Novotný's resignation. Dubček, with his background and training in Russia, was seen by the USSR as a safe pair of hands. "Our Sasha", as Brezhnev called him, became the new First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia on 5 January 1968.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: The period following Novotný's downfall became known as the Prague Spring. During this time, Dubček and other reformers sought to liberalize the Communist government—creating "socialism with a human face". Though this loosened the party's influence on the country, Dubček remained a devoted Communist and intended to preserve the party's rule. However, during the Prague Spring, he and other reform-minded Communists sought to win popular support for the Communist government by eliminating its most repressive features, allowing greater freedom of expression and tolerating political and social organizations not under Communist control. "Dubček! Svoboda!" became the popular refrain of student demonstrations during this period, while a poll gave him 78-percent public support. Yet Dubček found himself in an increasingly untenable position. The program of reform gained momentum, leading to pressures for further liberalization and democratization. At the same time, hard-line Communists in Czechoslovakia and the leaders of other Warsaw Pact countries pressured Dubček to rein in the Prague Spring. Though Dubček wanted to rein in the reform movement, he refused to resort to any draconian measures to do so, while still stressing the leading role of the Party and the centrality of the Warsaw Pact.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: The Soviet leadership tried to slow down or stop the changes in Czechoslovakia through a series of negotiations. The Soviet Union agreed to bilateral talks with Czechoslovakia in July at Čierna nad Tisou, near the Slovak-Soviet border. At the meeting, Dubček tried to reassure the Soviets and the Warsaw Pact leaders that he was still friendly to Moscow, arguing that the reforms were an internal matter. He thought he had learned an important lesson from the failing of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, in which the leaders had gone as far as withdrawing from the Warsaw Pact. Dubček believed that the Kremlin would allow him a free hand in pursuing domestic reform as long as Czechoslovakia remained a faithful member of the Soviet bloc. Despite Dubček's continuing efforts to stress these commitments, Brezhnev and other Warsaw Pact leaders remained frightened, seeing even a partly free press as threatening an end to one-party rule in Czechoslovakia, and (by extension) elsewhere in Eastern Europe.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: On the night of 20–21 August 1968, military forces from several Warsaw Pact member states (Albania, Romania and East Germany did not participate) invaded Czechoslovakia. The occupying armies quickly seized control of Prague and the Central Committee's building, taking Dubček and other reformers into Soviet custody. But, before they were arrested, Dubček urged the people not to resist militarily, on the grounds that "presenting a military defense would have meant exposing the Czech and Slovak peoples to a senseless bloodbath". Later in the day, Dubček and the others were taken to Moscow on a Soviet military transport aircraft.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: The non-violent resistance of the Czech and Slovak population, which delayed total loss of control to the Warsaw Pact forces for a full eight months (in contrast to the Soviet military's estimate of four days), became a prime example of civilian-based defense. A latter-day "The Good Soldier Švejk" (referring to an early-20th-century Czech satirical novel) wrote of "the comradely pranks of changing street names and road signs, of pretending not to understand Russian, and of putting out a great variety of humorous welcoming posters". Meanwhile, radio stations called for the invaders to return home: "Long live freedom, Svoboda, Dubček". Nevertheless, the reformers were forced to accede to Soviet demands, signing the Moscow Protocol (which only František Kriegel refused to sign) and ending Dubček's Prague Spring.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Dubček and most of the reformers were returned to Prague on 27 August, and Dubček retained his post as the party's first secretary until April 1969. The achievements of the Prague Spring were not reversed immediately, but over a period of several months.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: In January 1969, Dubček was hospitalized in Bratislava complaining of a cold and had to cancel a speech. Rumors sprang up that his illness was radiation sickness and that it was caused by radioactive strontium being placed in his soup during his stay in Moscow in an attempt to kill him. However, a U.S. intelligence report discounted this for lack of evidence.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Dubček was forced to resign as First Secretary in April 1969, following the Czechoslovak Hockey Riots. He was re-elected to the Federal Assembly (as the federal parliament was now called) and became its chairman. He was later sent as ambassador to Turkey (1969–70), allegedly in the hope that he would defect to the West, which however did not occur. In 1970, he was expelled from the Communist party and lost his seat in the Slovak parliament (which he had held continuously since 1964) and the Federal Assembly.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: After his expulsion from the party, Dubček worked in the Forestry Service in Slovakia. He remained a popular figure among the Slovaks and Czechs he encountered on the job, using this reverence to procure scarce and hard-to-find materials for his workplace. Dubček and his wife, Anna, continued to live in a comfortable villa in a nice neighborhood in Bratislava. In 1988, Dubček was allowed to travel to Italy to accept an honorary doctorate from University of Bologna, and, while there, he gave an interview with Italian Communist Party daily newspaper "L'Unità", his first public remarks to the press since 1970. Dubček's appearance and interview helped to return him to international prominence.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: During the Velvet Revolution of 1989, he supported the Public Against Violence (VPN) and the Civic Forum. On the night of 24 November, Dubček appeared with Václav Havel on a balcony overlooking Wenceslas Square, where he was greeted with tremendous applause from the throngs of protesters below and embraced as a symbol of democratic freedom. Several onlookers even chanted, ""Dubček na hrad!"" ("Dubček to the Castle"—i.e., Dubček for President). He disappointed the crowd somewhat by calling the revolution a chance to continue the work he had started 20 years earlier to prune out what was wrong with Communism. By that time, the demonstrators in Prague wanted nothing to do with Communism of any sort, even Dubček's humane version. Later that night, Dubček was on stage with Havel at the Laterna Magika theatre, the headquarters of Civic Forum, when the entire leadership of the Communist Party resigned, in effect ending Communist rule in Czechoslovakia.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Dubček was elected Chairman of the Federal Assembly (the Czechoslovak Parliament) on 28 December 1989, and re-elected in 1990 and 1992.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: At the time of the dismantling of Communist party rule, Dubček described the Velvet Revolution as a victory for his humanistic socialist outlook. In 1990, he received the International Humanist Award from the International Humanist and Ethical Union. He also gave the commencement address to the graduates of the Class of 1990 at The American University in Washington, D.C.; it was his first trip to the United States.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: In 1992, he became leader of the Social Democratic Party of Slovakia and represented that party in the Federal Assembly. At that time, Dubček passively supported the union between Czechs and Slovaks in a single Czecho-Slovak federation against the ultimately successful push towards an independent Slovak state.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: Dubček died on 7 November 1992, as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash that took place on 1 September on the Czech D1 highway, near Humpolec, 20 days short of his 71st birthday. He was buried in Slávičie údolie cemetery in Bratislava, Slovakia. His death remained a question of social and political theories alleging involvement by either then–Prime Minister of Slovakia Vladimír Mečiar or KGB. None of the theories were confirmed by subsequent investigation.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: In 1984, French singer and songwriter Alice Dona had released a song named "Le Jardinier de Bratislava" with the lyrics written by , as an apolitical song about love and longing for freedom. The song was inspired by a trip of a French television crew to visit Dubček in his villa near Slavín, Bratislava. They were denied the access by the ŠtB secret police. The sole footage collected of Dubček was of him attending to his garden.


title: Alexander Dubček

text: The movie titled "Dubček", released in 2018, is the first film based on the life of Alexander Dubček. It is a Slovak historical movie whose main plot revolves around events related to the Warsaw Pact invasion.


title: Abitur

text: Abitur (), often shortened colloquially to "Abi", is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen years of schooling (see also, for Germany, "Abitur" after twelve years). In German, the term has roots in the archaic word , which in turn was derived from the Latin (future active participle of , thus "someone who is going to leave").


title: Abitur

text: As a matriculation examination, "Abitur" can be compared to A levels, the "Matura" or the International Baccalaureate Diploma, which are all ranked as level 4 in the European Qualifications Framework.


title: Abitur

text: The ("certificate of general qualification for university entrance"), often referred to as (""Abitur" certificate"), issued after candidates have passed their final exams and have had appropriate grades in both the last and second last school year, is the document which contains their grades and formally enables them to attend university. Thus, it encompasses the functions of both a school graduation certificate and a college entrance exam.


title: Abitur

text: The official term in Germany for this certificate of education is ; the contraction "Abi" is common in colloquial usage. In 2005, a total of 231,465 students passed the "Abitur" exam in Germany. The numbers have risen steadily and in 2012, a total of 305,172 students obtained the "Allgemeine Hochschulreife". This number reflects those who pass the traditional "Abitur" at their high school. Adding (for 2012) the 51,912 students who obtained the "Hochschulreife" at vocational training schools, that total number increases to 357,084. If those who obtain the "Fachhochschulreife" (144,399 in 2012) are also added, then the total of those who obtained the right to study at a university or a "Fachhochschule" is 501,483 (2012).


title: Abitur

text: Until the eighteenth century, every German university had its own entrance examination. In 1788 Prussia introduced the , a law, for the first time within Germany, establishing the "Abitur" as an official qualification. It was later also established in the other German states. In 1834, it became the only university entrance exam in Prussia, and it remained so in all states of Germany until 2004. Since then, the German state of Hesse allows students with "Fachhochschulreife" (see below) to study at the universities within that state.


title: Abitur

text: The academic level of the "Abitur" is comparable to the International Baccalaureate, the GCE Advanced Level and the Advanced Placement tests. Indeed, the study requirements for the International Baccalaureate differ little from the German exam requirements. It is the only school-leaving certificate in all states of Germany that allows the graduate (or "Abiturient") to move directly to university. The other school leaving certificates, the "Hauptschulabschluss" and the "Realschulabschluss", do not allow their holders to matriculate at a university. Those granted certificates of "Hauptschulabschluss" or "Realschulabschluss" can gain a specialized "Fachhochschulreife" or an "Abitur" if they graduate from a "Berufsschule" and then attend "Berufsoberschule" or graduate from a "Fachoberschule".


title: Abitur

text: However, the "Abitur" is not the only path to university studies, as some universities set up their own entrance examinations. Students who successfully passed a "Begabtenprüfung" ("test of aptitude") are also eligible. Students from other countries who hold a high school leaving certificate that is not counted as being equivalent to the "Abitur" (such as the American high school diploma) and who do well enough on the ACT or SAT test, may also enter German universities. A person who does not hold the "Abitur" and did not take an aptitude test may still be admitted to university by completing at least the 10th grade and doing well on an IQ test (see: Hochbegabtenstudium).


title: Abitur

text: In German, the European Baccalaureate is called "europäisches Abitur," the French-German Baccalaureate is called "deutsch-französisches Abitur", and the International Baccalaureate is called "internationales Abitur," neither to be confused with the German "Abitur".


title: Abitur

text: The term "Fachabitur" was used in all of Western Germany for a variation of the "Abitur" until the 1990s; the official term for the German qualification is "fachgebundene Hochschulreife". This qualification includes only one foreign language (usually, English). The "Abitur", in contrast, usually requires two foreign languages. The "Fachabitur" also allows the graduate to start studying at a university but is limited to a specified range of majors, depending on the specific subjects covered in his "Fachabitur" examinations. But the graduate is allowed to study for all majors at a "Fachhochschule" (University of Applied Sciences, in some ways comparable to polytechnics). Today, the school leaving certificate is called "fachgebundenes Abitur" ('restricted subject "Abitur')".


title: Abitur

text: Now the term "Fachabitur" is used in most parts of Germany for the "Fachhochschulreife (FHR)". It was introduced in West Germany in the 1970s together with the "Fachhochschulen". It enables the graduate to start studying at a "Fachhochschule" and, in Hesse, also at a university within that state. In the Gymnasiums of some states it is awarded in the year before the "Abitur" is reached. However, the normal way to obtain "Fachhochschulreife" is graduation from a German "Fachoberschule", a vocational high school, also introduced in the 1970s.


title: Abitur

text: The term "Notabitur" ('emergency "Abitur"') describes a qualification used only during World War I and World War II. It was granted to male German "Gymnasium" students who voluntarily enlisted for military service before graduation as well as young women who were evacuated from the major cities before they could complete their "Gymnasium" education as planned (approximately three to five million children and teenagers had to be evacuated during the war). The "Notabitur" during World War I included an examination, roughly equivalent to the "Abitur" exam. The World War II "Notabitur", in contrast, was granted without an examination. After the war this was a major disadvantage for the students concerned since, unlike its World War I counterpart, the certificate was generally not recognised in West Germany and never recognised in East Germany. Universities requested the "Abitur" to consist of written exams including at least two foreign languages (almost always Latin and French, the latter sometimes replaced by English). Students, who received the "Notabitur" during World War II were offered to re-enter school to prepare for and take the exam after the war had ended. Those special "Abitur" preparation classes were made up of young adults of different age and sex, which was very unusual at the time.


title: Abitur

text: The equivalent graduation certificate in the Czech Republic, Austria, Poland, Italy and other countries of continental Europe is the "Matura"; while in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the West Indies, it is A-levels; in Scotland it is Higher Grade; in the Republic of Ireland it is the Leaving Certificate; in Greece and Cyprus it is the "apolytirion" (a kind of high school diploma); in Malta it is the Matriculation Certificate (MATSEC), in Hungary it is called "érettségi bizonyítvány" roughly equivalent with the German phrase "Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife" as it originates from the Austrian-Hungarian Monarchy.


title: Abitur

text: In Australia, the graduation certificate awarded to high school students is the Senior Secondary Certificate of Education (SSCE). However, the name of the SSCE varies from state to state. In Victoria, it is called the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE); in New South Wales it is called the Higher Schools Certificate (HSC).


title: Abitur

text: In India various states name it differently. Each Indian state has its own examination board, some individual states having their own entrance test system. Passing the specified examination qualifies the student to enter into undergraduate program in a university. For example, in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana this is known as Board of Intermediate Examination (BIE).


title: Abitur

text: For professional, specialist programs and well reputed institutions there are entrance tests. For engineering there is a Joint Engineering Entrance Joint Entrance Examination conducted at all India level. For medical undergraduate MBBS programs there is a national eligibility and entrance test known as NEET-UG National Eligibility and Entrance Test conducted at all of India. There is also an all India level examination conducted by Central Board of Secondary education CBSE the certification is known as Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC).


title: Abitur

text: During the final examinations ("Abiturprüfungen"), students are tested in four or five subjects (at least one of which is oral). Procedures vary by state.


title: Abitur

text: Occasionally, schools (especially "") offer vocational subjects such as pedagogy, business informatics, biotechnology and mechanical engineering.


title: Abitur

text: Final exams are usually taken from March to May or June. Each written basic-level examination takes about three hours; advanced-level examinations take four-and-a-half hours, and written exams are in essay format. Oral examinations last about 20 min. Papers are graded by at least two teachers at the school. In some parts of Germany students may prepare a presentation, research paper or participate in a competition, and may take additional oral exams to pass the "Abitur" if the written exam is poor.


title: Abitur

text: Before reunification, "Abitur" exams were given locally in West Germany, but Bavaria has conducted centralized exams ("") since 1854. After reunification, most states of the former East Germany continued centralized exams, and at the beginning of the 21st century, many states adopted centralized exams. In 2013, all other states except Rheinland-Pfalz also introduced centralized written exams at least in the core subjects (German, mathematics and the first foreign language, usually English). The exams are structured as follows:


title: Abitur

text: The "Kultusministerkonferenz" (KMK) of several states expanded the exams to scientific subjects and the social sciences. The physics and chemistry exams include an experiment that must be performed and analyzed.


title: Abitur

text: Each semester of a subject studied in the final two years yields up to 15 points for a student, where advanced courses count double. The final examinations each count quadruple.


title: Abitur

text: The exact scoring system depends on the Bundesland in which one takes Abitur. Passing the "Abitur" usually requires a composite score of at least 50%. Students with a score below that minimum fail and do not receive an "Abitur". There are some other conditions that the student also has to meet in order to receive the "Abitur": taking mandatory courses in selected subject areas, and limits to the number of failing grades in core subjects. Finally, students often have the option of omitting some courses from their composite score if they have taken more courses than the minimum required.


title: Abitur

text: The best possible grade of 1.0 can be achieved if the score ranges between 823 and 900 points; the fraction of students achieving this score is normally only around 0.2%–3% even among the already selective population of "Abitur" candidates. Around 12%–30% of "Abitur" candidates achieve grades between 1.0 and 1.9.


title: Abitur

text: Historically, very few people received their "Abitur" in Germany because many attractive jobs did not require one. The number of persons holding the "Abitur" has steadily increased since the 1970s, and younger jobholders are more likely to hold the "Abitur" than older ones. The percentage of students qualified for tertiary education is still lower than the OECD average.


title: Abitur

text: Percentage of 'jobholders' holding "Hauptschulabschluss", "Realschulabschluss" or "Abitur" in Germany:"


title: Abitur

text: The International Abitur is offered at schools outside Germany that are accredited by the German government. The five Abitur exams (three written exams and two oral exams) are in the following subjects: German literature, European history or economics or mathematics or a natural science or a language. In February of senior year (grade 12), all students take the written examinations for the German International Abitur in three subjects including German. In late spring, students have mandatory oral examinations in two subjects, which are overseen by a German educational official. The final GPA includes grades from both junior and senior years, as well as for the five Abitur exams. The final diploma that students receive after successful completion of these exams allows them to qualify for admission to universities in Germany.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Laurent Koscielny (born 10 September 1985) is a French former professional footballer who played as a centre back.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Born in Tulle, Koscielny began his football career playing for a host of youth clubs before moving to Guingamp in 2003, where he quickly progressed through the youth ranks, making his professional debut the following season. After becoming frustrated at being played out of position as a right back, he joined Tours for an undisclosed fee, quickly establishing himself as the team's star player in his desired position, ultimately aiding in the club's promotion into Ligue 1, while also being named in the Ligue 2 Team of the Season. Koscielny continued his impressive performances following a €1.7 million transfer to fellow French outfit Lorient in 2009, receiving multiple plaudits for his performances, largely cultivating a reputation as a clever, agile, ball-playing defender. His achievements and footballing potential attracted Arsenal, ultimately moving to the Premier League side for a fee of £8.45 million the following season.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Following his arrival in England, Koscielny was regarded as one of the best players in his position in the Premier League. He had established himself as a core component in the Arsenal first team, as well as contributing with a host of individual performances, including aiding in ending the club's nine-year trophy drought, scoring a crucial equalizer en route to winning the FA Cup in 2014. He was also crucial in further club successes that followed, winning another FA Cup and the FA Community Shield twice.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Despite qualifying to represent Poland, Koscielny instead decided to represent France, and first appeared up for the national team against Brazil in February 2011. Koscielny became a regular starter for the nation in every major tournament that they have appeared in, including UEFA Euro 2012 and the 2014 FIFA World Cup, while also leading France to the final of UEFA Euro 2016, which they lost to Portugal. He scored his first international goal in a friendly match against Scotland in 2016, and amassed fifty-one appearances for the national side. He retired from international football in 2018.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Koscielny was born in Tulle, Corrèze. He began his career at Guingamp in 2004, a team that had produced such talents as Didier Drogba and Florent Malouda. Three years later, Koscielny was forced to drop down to the French third tier. He made 47 appearances for Guingamp, between 2004 and 2007, mostly as a right fullback.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: In 2007, Koscielny joined Tours FC, deciding that he wanted a chance at centre back. He showed remarkable improvement in aerial ability and positional awareness that limited him to just three yellow cards. During the 2008–09 season, Koscielny made 34 Ligue 2 appearances, scoring 5 goals from defence, and was named in the division's best XI at the end of the season.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 16 June 2009, newly promoted Ligue 1 side FC Lorient signed Koscielny on a four-year contract for around €1.7 million. He established himself as a starter and played in his preferred centre-back position. Over one season at the club, he scored 3 goals in 35 appearances. On 7 March 2010 Koscielny tapped in his first Ligue 1 goal against Olympique Marseille at Stade Vélodrome in the 65th minute in a 1–1 draw. Koscielny became a fan favourite when he scored his second goal with a header deep in injury time against Montpellier in a 2–2 draw after a cross from Olivier Monterrubio.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: He scored another against Bordeaux after 11 minutes. However, he received a red card 15 minutes later for a foul in the penalty area against his future Arsenal teammate Marouane Chamakh. Koscielny helped Lorient to finish the campaign in 7th place; its best finish in Ligue 1. An impressive season culminated in reports from French daily "Ouest-France" that the defender was training with the Arsenal reserves ahead of an official announcement. On 6 July 2010, Koscielny agreed personal terms with Arsenal. Arsenal's initial offer for Koscielny was believed to be in the region of £4 million, while they were then prepared to do a deal that would also involve youngster Francis Coquelin moving on loan in the opposite direction, which Lorient rejected. During the summer transfer window of 2010 reports began to emerge in late June that a deal had been reached to bring Koscielny to Arsenal for a reported sum of £8.45 million.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Arsenal confirmed the signing on 7 July 2010 and Koscielny was handed the club's number 6 shirt, previously worn by Philippe Senderos, who had moved to Fulham earlier in the summer. Wenger explained he bought Koscielny due to the fact he added height to the team and Arsenal were low on centre backs. Koscielny made his debut against Barnet in a pre-season friendly in July 2010. One month later in his competitive debut against Liverpool at Anfield, he was sent off in the 94th minute for a second bookable offence. Both of his yellow cards were shown beyond 90 minutes. The game ended in a 1–1 draw with both teams having debut players sent off. He scored his first goal for Arsenal on 11 September 2010, in a 4–1 win against Bolton Wanderers.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Koscielny made his debut in European competition on 15 September 2010, when he partnered Sébastien Squillaci in a 6–0 win over Braga at the Emirates Stadium. Koscielny was praised for performances against Sunderland and made a brilliant tackle against Tottenham Hotspur to stop Aaron Lennon from scoring during their Football League Cup tie. On 27 October, he blocked a shot off the line and provided an assist to Theo Walcott against Newcastle United in the fourth round of the League Cup, where Arsenal went on to win the match 4–0 at St James' Park. Koscielny was given a straight red card in Arsenal's 0–1 loss at home against Newcastle United on 7 November 2010. This was his second sending off of the season.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 25 January 2011, Koscielny scored the second goal in the 3–0 win over Ipswich Town in the League Cup semi-final second leg win at the Emirates Stadium. Throughout January 2011, Koscielny and Johan Djourou were a part of a defence that did not concede a goal in the Premier League. On 1 February, he scored his third goal of the season, which proved to be the winner in a 2–1 turn around victory over Everton. Koscielny had arguably his best performance to date for Arsenal in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 match against Barcelona. The match ended in a 2–1 home win for Arsenal. Koscielny's performances were applauded and praised in many media reports of the game. Former Arsenal defender, Martin Keown, said his performance was "impressive" and "magnificent throughout". On 27 February, in the last minute of the 2011 Football League Cup Final, Koscielny was involved in a mix-up with his goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny, which resulted in Birmingham City striker Obafemi Martins scoring the winning goal.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Koscielny started the 2011–12 season alongside Thomas Vermaelen in central defence. Koscielny was injured and taken off the pitch 10 minutes into a 2–0 home loss to Liverpool on 20 August 2011. However, he returned to the starting line-up Arsenal's biggest ever Premier League defeat, losing 8–2 to Manchester United at Old Trafford. On 17 September, Koscielny scored an own goal as Arsenal lost 4–3 to Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League. He went on to be named man of the match away at Olympique Marseille in the Champions League, where Arsenal won 1–0 at the Stade Vélodrome, keeping their first clean sheet in a Champions League away game since 18 August 2009 against Celtic, where the Gunners had won 2–0.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 29 October, Koscielny received praise for his solid performance in Arsenal's 5–3 away win against Chelsea. He scored his first goal of the season on 2 January 2012 in a 2–1 away defeat against Fulham. He scored his first Champions League goal against A.C. Milan in a 3–0 victory in the round of 16 second leg. On 13 May 2012, he scored the winning goal in a 3–2 victory against West Bromwich Albion to ensure that Arsenal finished third in the Premier League. He was voted as the team's fourth most important player by the fans in Arsenal's Player of the Season poll for his performances throughout the 2011–12 season.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 24 July 2012, Koscielny signed a new long term contract with Arsenal. His first goal of the season was a late equaliser against champions Manchester City on 23 September 2012 in a match which ended 1–1. On 30 October, he scored a header from a corner in the 88th minute against Reading in the Football League Cup, helping Arsenal come back from 4–0 down to eventually win the game 7–5.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 13 March 2013, Koscielny scored against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in the UEFA Champions League Last 16. His goal put Arsenal 2–0 ahead on the night and level at 3–3 on aggregate, but they still exited the competition on the away goals rule.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 19 May, Koscielny scored the winning goal as Arsenal beat Newcastle United 1–0 at St James' Park in their final Premier League fixture of the season to secure a fourth-placed finish and qualification to the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League play-off round.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: Koscielny started the 2013–14 season by conceding a penalty and getting sent off in Arsenal's 3–1 Premier League opening day defeat at home to Aston Villa. However, his partnership with Per Mertesacker saw the Gunners achieve the joint-best defensive record in the Premier League at the halfway point of the season, as the team topped the table.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 22 February 2014, Koscielny scored his first goal of the season in a 4–1 defeat of Sunderland. In the team's penultimate home match, Koscielny scored his second goal of the season in a 3–0 win against Newcastle United.


title: Laurent Koscielny

text: On 17 May, Koscielny scored Arsenal's equalising goal as the team came from 2–0 down to defeat Hull City 3–2 in the 2014 FA Cup Final, winning his first piece of silverware with the club.