title: Prefect

text: In Paris, the Prefect of Police ("Préfet de police)" is the officer in charge of co-ordinating the city's police forces (see above under "France"). The local police in Japan are divided among prefectures too.


title: Prefect

text: Also, in several countries of Latin America, the rank of prefect is still in use. In the Investigations Police of Chile (Policia de Investigaciones de Chile) the rank of prefect is reserved for the highest-ranking officers. On the other hand, in Argentina the Argentine Federal Penitentiary Service (Servicio Penitenciario Argentino) also use the rank of prefect as a high-ranking officer.


title: Prefect

text: Several countries of Latin America use the term "prefecture" (prefectura) to denominate a Coast Guard service, whether these are independent organizations or as a part of a navy. The Argentine Naval Prefecture it is a federal Coast Guard service of Argentina independent from the Argentine Navy. On the other hand, the National Naval Prefecture of Uruguay has similar duties to the ones of a regular Coast Guard but it is subordinated to the National Navy of Uruguay.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: Kristian-Joy Alfonso (born September 5, 1963) is an American actress, former figure skater and fashion model. She is recognized for her portrayal of Hope Williams Brady on the NBC soap opera "Days of Our Lives".


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: Alfonso was born on September 5, 1963, in Brockton, Massachusetts, United States, as Kristian-Joy Alfonso. She is Italian-American; her grandparents hail from Sicily and Calabria. Kristian Alfonso was born to her parents Gino and Joanne. She has an older sister, Lisa.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: She began her career as a figure skater and gold medal champion at the Junior Olympic Figure Skating Championships. At the age of 13, a tobogganing accident ended her skating career and Alfonso began modeling. By the time she was 15, she had appeared on the cover of over 30 magazines, including "Vogue" and "Harper's Bazaar". She was first seen on TV playing opposite Rock Hudson in the TV movie "The Starmaker" in 1981.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: Alfonso's career took off in April 1983, when she landed the contract role of Hope Williams on the soap opera "Days of Our Lives". The character of Hope become involved in a popular pairing with the character of Bo Brady (played by Peter Reckell). She received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series in 1985.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: Alfonso left in 1987, returning in 1990 for a brief stint, and full-time in 1994. In November 2019, it was announced the entire cast of "Days of Our Lives" were released from their contracts. Alfonso returned to the soap in February 2020. Five months later, she announced she had quit the role of Hope, and would not be returning when the soap resumed production after it shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: While part of the show, she also appeared in Season 6 of "Friends" in an episode titled "The One That Could Have Been, Part 1" as Hope.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: After Alfonso exited "Days of Our Lives" in April 1987, she was cast as Pilar Ortega on "Falcon Crest" for its last two seasons. In 1993, she starred alongside Dolph Lundgren in the film "Joshua Tree", in which she played a cop abducted by an innocent convict on the run.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: Alfonso's other film and television credits include "MacGyver ("The Negotiator" and "Unfinished Business")", "", "Full House", "Burke's Law", "Murder, She Wrote", "Melrose Place", "Baywatch", "Amazing Stories", “Out of Time” (1988 TV movie with Bill Maher), "Love Stories" and "Who's the Boss?". She also co-starred with Kate Jackson in the CBS movie ""Whatever Happened to Bobby Earl".


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: Alfonso was married to Simon Macauley from 1987 to 1991. They have a son, born in October 1990. She married Danny Daggenhurst on October 6, 2001. The couple have two children.


title: Kristian Alfonso

text: In November 2006, Alfonso created her own jewelry line called Hope Faith Miracles and a fashion line, Hope by Kristian Alfonso. Ten years later, she announced the company had been purchased, and she was no longer involved.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: The Secret Garden is a 2020 British fantasy drama film based on the 1911 novel of the same name by Frances Hodgson Burnett, the fourth film adaptation of the novel. Directed by Marc Munden and produced by David Heyman, it stars Dixie Egerickx, Colin Firth, and Julie Walters. Set in 1947 England, the plot follows a young orphan who is sent to live with her uncle, only to discover a magical garden at his estate.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: "The Secret Garden" was released via premium video on demand in the United States on 7 August 2020 by STXfilms, and opened in theatres in the United Kingdom on 23 October by Sky, who also released the film on the Sky Cinema channels on the same day.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: In 1947, Mary Lennox is found abandoned in her home in British India, her parents having died from cholera and her having been forgotten in the turmoil of Partition. Mary is sent to her uncle, Lord Archibald Craven's Misselthwaite Manor in Yorkshire, England. She is an unpleasant, unkind young girl who has had to repress her own emotions whilst growing up in the Raj.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: Upon arriving, she meets Mrs Medlock, a strict and firm lady who is Lord Craven's housekeeper and servant. Mary is instructed to not explore the house and is confined to her room at night. There, she meets Martha, a servant who is unsettled by her demands.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: Mary is allowed to leave the house to explore the estate and woods nearby and stumbles upon a stray dog whom she names Jemima. Later that night, she hears tiny screams and wailings throughout the corridors only to find Lord Craven's bedridden son, Colin Craven.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: The next day, Mary meets Lord Craven in his study and he tells her to not cause any trouble. Mary continues exploring through the forest and finds a hidden garden by climbing a wall. Later, on the way home, she calls out to Martha's brother Dickon who fades within the mist of the moors. Later she finds Jemima's leg caught in a trap. She helps Jemima, freeing her from the trap but the dog runs away into the garden. So, Mary continues to explore.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: Mary is then guided by a Robin to a stone statue within the garden which has a key to the garden within it. She leaves the garden as Mrs Medlock calls out for her. Back at the estate, Mary meets with Colin again as he talks about having a hunchback and not being able to walk. She tells him about the garden on the estate but Colin is uninterested. Snooping around later, she finds a room with pictures of both Mary's mother and Grace Craven, and she grabs a souvenir, a pearl necklace.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: The next day, Mary returns to the garden to find Dickon, who offers to help heal Jemima. Mary then brings Colin in his wheelchair for the first time to the same room with his mother's pictures and dresses. Both Mary and Dickon hatch a plan to bring Colin to the garden, hoping to heal his immobility, but upon returning, Mrs Medlock confronts Mary for stealing the pearl necklace and she is punished by being signed up for a boarding school. Later, confined and locked in her room, Mary finds letters between her mother and aunt in a rocking horse. She persuades Colin to read them and the three continue reading letters in the garden.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: A depressed and distracted Lord Craven, while lighting a candle, sets the desk on fire. The next morning, Mary, Dickon and Colin are in the garden when they see black smoke coming from the house. Colin persuades Mary and Dickon to run to check it out. Mary enters the burning house to find Lord Craven frantically looking for his son in the fire. She tries in vain to convince him to escape as his son is safe outside, but he resists until the ghost of his wife guides them out safely as the fire brigade arrives. An anxious Lord Craven and Mrs Medlock go with Mary and Dickon to Colin in the secret garden. Lord Craven gazes in awe at his son's mobility as they rekindle their relationship.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: The film ends with Lord Craven rebuilding the estate and Mary, Dickon and Colin having fun in the secret garden.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: In 2016, Heyday Films and StudioCanal teamed up to adapt the book into a new movie version, hiring Jack Thorne to write the screenplay.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: In 2018, Marc Munden was set to direct. Colin Firth and Julie Walters were cast in April as filming commenced at the end of that month.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: The main front facade of the estate house was filmed at Harlaxton manor in Lincolnshire. Some of the film was filmed in Yorkshire. Filming has also taken place within Iford Manor Gardens, near Bath and the National Trust site of Bodnant Garden, near Conwy, North Wales. Filming locations also included: Woodhall Estate, Hertfordshire; Trebah Gardens, Cornwall, Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens, Dorset; Puzzlewood, Forest of Dean; Helmsley Walled Garden in North Yorkshire; and Pinewood Studios.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: This is the second time Colin Firth has acted in a film adaptation of "The Secret Garden". The other version was released 33 years earlier, and was one of Firth's earliest films.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: "The Secret Garden" was originally set to be released by StudioCanal UK on 3 April 2020, but two weeks before the release the date was pushed back to 14 August because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In August, Sky purchased the British distribution rights to the film, and released it in the United Kingdom theatrically and on the Sky Cinema channels on 23 October. STX Entertainment handled the American release, distributing it via Premium VOD on 7 August. Global Road Entertainment had initially acquired the North American distribution rights in May 2018, but sold them to STXfilms the following year in March. "The Secret Garden" was then released on DVD and Blu-Ray by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on 6 October 2020.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: In its debut weekend in the U.S., the film was the top-rented on Amazon Prime and fifth on FandangoNow. In its second weekend the film fell to seventh on Fandango's charts.


title: The Secret Garden (2020 film)

text: Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that of reviews of the film were positive, with an average rating of . The website's critics consensus reads: "Faithful in spirit while putting its own spin on the source material, "The Secret Garden" adds a charming entry to the long list of this beloved book's adaptations". On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 59 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".


title: Keye Luke

text: Keye Luke (, Cantonese: Luk Shek Kee; June 18, 1904 – January 12, 1991) was a Chinese-born American film and television actor, technical advisor and artist and a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild.


title: Keye Luke

text: He was known for playing Lee Chan, the "Number One Son" in the Charlie Chan films, the original Kato in the 1939–1941 Green Hornet film serials, Brak in the 1960s "Space Ghost" cartoons, Master Po in the television series "Kung Fu", and Mr. Wing in the "Gremlins" films.


title: Keye Luke

text: He was the first Chinese-American contract player signed by RKO, Universal Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and was one of the most prominent Asian actors of American cinema in the mid-20th century.


title: Keye Luke

text: Luke was born in Guangzhou, China, to a father who owned an art shop, but he was raised in Seattle. He was part of the Luke family, a relative of Washington assistant attorney-general Wing Luke, for whom Seattle's Wing Luke Asian Museum was named. He had four siblings who all emigrated from China to California during the Great Depression. His younger brother Edwin Luke also became an actor in the Charlie Chan series.


title: Keye Luke

text: In Seattle, Luke attended Franklin High School, where he contributed cartoons and illustrations to school publications. Keye Luke became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1944.


title: Keye Luke

text: Before becoming an actor, he was an artist in Seattle and, later, Hollywood. Luke worked on several of the murals inside Grauman's Chinese Theatre. He did some of the original artwork for the pressbook of the original "King Kong" (1933). Luke also painted a mural for the casino set in "The Shanghai Gesture" (1941).


title: Keye Luke

text: He published a limited edition set of pen and ink drawings of the "Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam" in the 1950s. He also created illustrations for the books "The Unfinished Song of Achmed Mohammed" by Earle Liederman, "Blessed Mother Goose" by Frank Scully and an edition of "Messer Marco Polo" by Brian Oswald Donn-Byrne (unpublished). Other artwork completed by Luke included the dust jackets for books published in the 1950s and 1960s. It was through his studio art work that he was recruited for his earliest movie roles.


title: Keye Luke

text: Luke made his film debut in "The Painted Veil" (1934), and the following year gained his first big role, as Charlie Chan's eldest son, Lee Chan, in "Charlie Chan in Paris" (1935). He worked so well with Warner Oland, the actor playing Chan, that "Number One Son" became a regular character in the series, alternately helping and distracting 'Pop' Chan in each of his murder cases. Regardless, Lee is depicted as an enthusiastic American youth of some accomplishment, including becoming an Olympic Gold Medalist in 100-metre swimming in "Charlie Chan at the Olympics" (1937). Luke appeared seven times as Lee Chan opposite Oland's Chan. Keye Luke left the Charlie Chan series in 1938, shortly after Oland died. The unfinished Oland-Luke film "Charlie Chan at the Ringside" was completed as "Mr. Moto's Gamble" (1938), with Luke now opposite Peter Lorre.


title: Keye Luke

text: Unlike some performers who failed to establish themselves beyond a single role, Keye Luke continued to work prolifically in Hollywood, at several studios. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cast him in a recurring role in its "Dr. Kildare" film series, and Monogram Pictures featured him in its Frankie Darro comedies and starred him as Mr. Wong in "Phantom of Chinatown". Unlike Boris Karloff, who had preceded him in the Mr. Wong role, Luke played the detective without any exotic touches. Though his Mr. Wong was of Chinese descent and able to speak Chinese, he was otherwise an ordinary American gumshoe, with no trace of a foreign accent, though he was just at home with Chinatown residents or those from China.


title: Keye Luke

text: RKO Radio Pictures used Luke in its "The Falcon" series and "Mexican Spitfire". Luke also worked at Universal Pictures, where he played two-fisted valet/chauffeur Kato in its "Green Hornet" serials. Universal mounted a low-budget serial consisting largely of action footage from older films; Keye Luke was hired to match old footage of Sabu in the serial "Lost City of the Jungle" (1946).


title: Keye Luke

text: Keye Luke returned to the Chan mysteries, which were now being produced by Monogram and starred Roland Winters as Chan. "Number One Son" appeared in the last two Chan features, "The Feathered Serpent" (1948), along with "Number Two Son" Tommy Chan (Victor Sen Yung) in their only appearance together, and "Sky Dragon" (1949). In both of these films, Luke was older than the actor playing his father. Luke had a featured Broadway role in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "Flower Drum Song", directed by Gene Kelly in 1958. The original cast album captures his singing of the part of Mr. Wang, the family patriarch.


title: Keye Luke

text: Luke continued to play character parts in motion pictures. He had a featured role in "The Chairman" (1969) starring Gregory Peck. He dubbed the voice of the evil Mr. Han (played by Shih Kien) in "Enter the Dragon" (1973) starring Bruce Lee. Luke played the mysterious old Chinatown shopowner Mr. Wing in the two "Gremlins" movies and he had a significant role in Woody Allen's movie "Alice" (1990).


title: Keye Luke

text: Keye Luke also worked extensively in television, making numerous guest appearances, including four on "The F.B.I." and seven TV movies. He was a regular cast member in two short lived sitcoms, "Anna and the King" (1972) starring Yul Brynner and "Sidekicks" (TV 1986–87). He appeared as Lin Fong (a jade merchant) in an episode of "Dragnet 1967".


title: Keye Luke

text: In 1972, the "Number One Son" ascended to the role of Charlie Chan himself, thus becoming the first actor of Chinese descent to play the role; Luke supplied the voice of the lead role in the animated television series "The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan".


title: Keye Luke

text: He was also known for his role of Master Po in the television series "Kung Fu" (1972–1975). In 1985, Luke played 'The Ancient One' on the soap opera "General Hospital", for the Asian Quarter storyline, which showcased strong chemistry between Luke and young actress Kimberly McCullough, whom he mentored. In 1986, Luke appeared in season two of "The Golden Girls" as Sophia's love interest. Additionally Luke voiced many animated series including Brak in Space Ghost, the aforementioned Charlie Chan, and Zoltar/The Great Spirit/Colonel Cronus in "Battle of the Planets".


title: Keye Luke

text: Luke played Governor Donald Cory in an episode of the original "" entitled "" (1969), and was going to play Doctor Noonien Soong in the "" episode "" but illness prevented him from doing so; Brent Spiner ultimately took over the role.


title: Keye Luke

text: In the "Fractured Fairy Tales" episode "The Enchanted Fly," one of the rewards offered to the man who would rescue and marry the princess is "an autographed picture of Keye Luke."


title: Keye Luke

text: He was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by Asian/Pacific American Artists in 1986. For his contribution to show business, Luke was also honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on the sidewalk in front of 7000 Hollywood Blvd.


title: Keye Luke

text: Luke died of a stroke on January 12, 1991, at the age of 86. He is buried at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier, California.


title: Keye Luke

text: Writer and filmmaker Timothy Tau wrote, directed and produced a short film about Keye Luke's earlier life and work, entitled "Keye Luke", which premiered at the 2012 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival as a Visual Communications Armed with a Camera Fellowship film. The film was also the Closing Night choice of the inaugural 2013 Seattle Asian American Film Festival. Feodor Chin starred as Keye Luke. Archie Kao starred as Edwin Luke, Keye Luke's brother. Kelvin Han Yee starred as Lee Luke, Keye Luke's father.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: The 2017 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the 2016-17 NBA season, which began on April 15, 2017 and concluded on June 12, 2017. It concluded with the Golden State Warriors defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals, their third consecutive meeting in the Finals. Kevin Durant was named the NBA Finals MVP in his first year on the team.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: The Warriors set the record for the longest playoff winning streak (15) and the best record (16–1) in NBA playoff history.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: The Golden State Warriors began the finals with a playoff record of 12–0. The first two finals' games were blowouts by Golden State, game three was closer, but the Warriors still came out victors, going up 3–0 bringing them to 15–0 in the playoffs, the best ever start in NBA playoff history. The Cavs countered beating the Warriors 137–116 in Game four, with 86 points in the first half, setting an NBA Finals' record. On June 12, the Warriors bounced back and won game five at home 129-120, clinching the organization's fifth championship. Golden State's 16–1 record is an NBA playoff record since 2003 for fewest games attempted to achieve an NBA championship. The title was all-star forward Kevin Durant's first and all-stars Stephen Curry's, Klay Thompson's, and Draymond Green's second in three years. Durant, who scored over 30 points in each of five games (the first player to do so since Shaquille O'Neal in 2000 with Los Angeles), was the recipient of the 2017 Bill Russell NBA Finals' MVP award.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: Within each conference, the eight teams with the most wins qualify for the playoffs. The seedings are based on each team's record.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: Each conference's bracket is fixed; there is no reseeding. All rounds are best-of-seven series; the team that has four wins advances to the next round. As stated above, all rounds, including the NBA Finals, are in a 2–2–1–1–1 format. Home court advantage in any round belongs to the higher-seeded team, who has the better regular season record. If two teams with the same record meet in a round, standard tiebreaker rules are used. The rule for determining home court advantage in the NBA Finals is winning percentage, then head-to-head record, followed by record vs. opposite conference.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: The Cleveland Cavaliers became the first Eastern Conference team to clinch a playoff spot on March 19, 2017.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Teams with home court advantage are shown in Italics.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: After trailing 2-0 in the series, the Celtics came back to tie the series as Rajon Rondo was ruled out indefinitely after breaking his right thumb in Game 2, and Al Horford scored 18 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in Game 3, and Isaiah Thomas scorched the Bulls for 33 points in Game 4. The Celtics' win in Game 5 would be the only home game victory of the series, and Avery Bradley scored 23 points in Game 6 as the Celtics eliminated the Bulls. Notably, this series began one day following the death of Chyna Thomas, younger sister of Isaiah, in a one-car accident. Thomas played all six games of the series, before returning to the state of Washington for her funeral on April 29. Game 6 also marked the final game of Jimmy Butler's tenure as a Bull.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning the first four meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: In Game 1, LeBron James scored 32 points in a close battle; the Pacers came back in the 4th quarter, but C.J. Miles missed a game-winning three, giving the Cavaliers the win. But after winning Game 2, the Cavs were down by as many as 26 points in the first half of Game 3. The Pacers were in control until the Cavs led by James' triple-double of 41 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists came roaring back in the second half and took the lead late in the fourth quarter. They would end up winning Game 3, 119-114, as they made it one of the largest comebacks in NBA playoff history. With the Pacers holding a 2-point lead with over a minute left in Game 4, James hits the three over Myles Turner, giving the Cavs a one-point lead. Later, Kyle Korver's free throws increases the lead to three. The Pacers had a chance to extend the game, but Paul George missed the three, and James gets the rebound. He would make 1 of the 2 free throws to seal the Cavs' 4-game sweep over the Pacers. Game 4 would be George's final game as a Pacer.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Pacers winning the first meeting.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Wizards/Bullets winning three of the first five meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with Golden State winning the first meeting in 2016.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with San Antonio winning three of the four meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the eighth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Thunder/SuperSonics winning six of the first seven meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Jazz winning the previous two meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning two of the first three meetings. Memorably, during the first quarter of Game 1, Isaiah Thomas was struck in the mouth by the elbow of Otto Porter, immediately knocking out one tooth, and causing further damage to his mouth. As Porter prepared to shoot a pair of free throws, Thomas calmly retrieved and pocketed his fallen tooth, then hit two three-point field goals in the following two minutes, before being pulled from the game for medical attention. Thomas went on to play the entire seven-game series, including a 53-point effort to lead his team to an overtime victory in game 2, all while wearing temporary protection in his mouth. He underwent extensive oral surgery after the playoffs to mitigate the damage.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with Cleveland winning the first meeting in 2016.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Warriors winning two of the first three meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Rockets winning the first three meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the seventh playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning four of the first six meetings.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning one series. San Antonio led by as many as 25 points in Game 1 before Kawhi Leonard had to leave the game and the series after he landed on Zaza Pachulia's foot, re-aggravating his existing ankle injury.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: This was the third meeting in the NBA Finals between the Warriors and Cavaliers with each team winning one series.


title: 2017 NBA playoffs

text: ESPN, TNT, ABC, ESPN2 and NBA TV broadcast the playoffs nationally in the United States. In the first round, regional sports networks affiliated with the teams can also broadcast the games, except for games televised on ABC. Throughout the first two rounds, TNT televised games Saturday through Thursday, ESPN televised games Friday and Saturday, and ABC televised selected games on Saturday and Sunday, usually in the afternoon. NBA TV and ESPN2 has aired select weekday games in the first round. TNT televised the Eastern Conference Finals. Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals was televised on ABC, while Games 2 through 4 were televised on ESPN. ABC had exclusive television rights to the NBA Finals for the 15th consecutive year.


title: Hypocorism

text: A hypocorism ( or ; from Ancient Greek: (), from (), 'to call by pet names', sometimes also "hypocoristic") or pet name is a name used to show affection for a person. It may be a diminutive form of a person's name, such as "Izzy" for Isabel or "Bob" for Robert, or it may be unrelated.


title: Hypocorism

text: In linguistics, the term can be used more specifically to refer to the morphological process by which the standard form of the word is transformed into a form denoting affection, or to words resulting from this process. In English, a word is often clipped down to a closed monosyllable and then suffixed with "-y/-ie" (phonologically /i/). Sometimes the suffix "-o" is included as well as other forms or templates.


title: Hypocorism

text: Hypocoristics are often affective in meaning and are particularly common in Australian English, but can be used for various purposes in different semantic fields, including personal names, place names and nouns. Hypocorisms are usually considered distinct from diminutives, but they can also overlap.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: The Mk 2 grenade (initially known as the Mk II) is a fragmentation-type anti-personnel hand grenade introduced by the U.S. armed forces in 1918. It was the standard issue anti-personnel grenade used during World War II, and also saw limited service in later conflicts, including the Korean War and Vietnam War. Replacing the failed Mk 1 grenade of 1917, it was standardized in 1920 as the Mk II, and redesignated the Mk 2 on April 2, 1945.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: The Mk 2 was gradually phased out of service as the M26-series (M26/M61/M57) grenade was introduced during the Korean War. Due to the tremendous quantity manufactured during World War II the Mk 2 was still in limited issue with the US Army and US Marine Corps throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The U.S. Navy was one of the last users of the Mk 2 when it was finally withdrawn from U.S. military service in 1969, replaced with the M33 series (M33/M67).


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: The Mk 2 grenade did not widely replace the failed Mk 1 grenade used by the U.S. military during World War I. Although 44 million were ordered and more than 21 million were completed (it was possible to convert Mk 1 grenade bodies to the Mk 2 configuration) before the war ended, few reached American troops overseas. It was formally standardized in 1920. The Mk 2, like the Mk 1, was manufactured of cast iron with a grooved surface divided into 40 knobs in 5 rows of 8 columns. This was intended to enhance fragmentation (in practice, it was found that the grooves did not enhance fragmentation as much as desired) and provide a better grip when handling and throwing the grenade. The grooves and knobs gave it the appearance of a pineapple, and are the origin of the nickname. It was also commonly referred to as a "frag" grenade, in contrast to other types of grenades such as the Mk 3 concussion grenade also developed during World War I.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: The Mk 2 used the M5, M6, M10, M11, or M204 series fuses. The early M5, and the later M6 and M204 series detonating fuses, were used on high explosive-filled grenades. The M10 and M11 series igniting fuses were used on low explosive-filled ones. The early fuses had many problems. In the M5, moisture could get in under the foil fuse cap, causing the weapon to fail to detonate. The early fuses were not completely silent and made a loud "bang" and produced sparks when activated. They also made a faint "hissing" sound while burning, potentially alerting the enemy of their presence. The M10, used during the interwar period, and the M10A1, used early in WWII, sometimes prematurely detonated when the flash from the primer hit the explosive charge rather than the delay fuse. They were replaced by the M10A2 and M10A3. A less common type of igniting fuse was the M11.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: The M6A4C had a delay of 4 seconds. The M5 and M11, like the M10, M10A1 and M10A2, had a delay of 4 to 5 seconds. The later M10A3 had a delay of 4.5 to 5.3 seconds. In 1944, the M6A4C was replaced by the silent and more reliable 4 to 5-second delay M204 or M204A1 fuse. Due to the large number of grenades already issued, few grenades with the new fuses were used in combat during WWII.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: The original Mk 2 grenade had a threaded plug in its base, which covered the opening used to place the explosive filling, either of TNT, of Trojan explosive (a mixture of 40% nitrostarch, ammonium nitrate, and sodium nitrate), of a 50/50 amatol/nitrostarch mixture, or of Grenite (a mixture of 95% nitrostarch and binders). Some early Mk 2 grenades were filled with of smokeless EC powder. The improved "Mk 2A1" (a designation used informally by armorers, historians, and collectors, but never by the US military) introduced in 1942 was filled through the fuse well instead. The Mk 2A1 was initially filled with of EC powder. In 1944, the EC powder filling was replaced with of TNT.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: Low explosive-filled Mk 2s had their cast iron bodies painted gray or black to prevent rust. Pre-WWII high explosive-filled Mk 2s were painted bright yellow. During wartime (from about 1943 onwards), grenades were overpainted in olive drab, leaving a narrow yellow ring remaining at the top. Not all were overpainted, however, as D-Day film footage shows. Mk 2 practice grenades were painted red (a practice copied from the French military). M21 practice grenades were painted light blue (a practice copied from the British military) and had blue-painted fuse levers, often with the end painted light brown indicating a "low explosive" marking charge.


title: Mk 2 grenade

text: Mk 2 grenades came 25 to a wooden crate and were shipped in small fiberboard packing tubes. High explosive-filled Mk 2s were shipped unfused to prevent accidental detonation. Their fuses were shipped separately and came in flat cardboard boxes of 25. EC powder-filled grenades were shipped with their fuses attached.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: Rashtriya Lok Dal (abbreviated as RLD) (translation: National People's Party) is a political party in India founded by Chaudhary Ajit Singh. He was carrying on the political legacy of his father and former Prime Minister of India, Chaudhary Charan Singh and the original Lok Dal. Chaudhary Ajit Singh was infected with COVID-19 and died during treatment at Medanta Hospital, Gurgaon.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: The party has one MLA in Rajasthan Legislative Assembly Dr. Subhash Garg, who is also serving as MoS (I/C) in the Ashok Gehlot led govt. RLD is considered influential in the western region of Uttar Pradesh.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In 2002, party had two cabinet ministers in chief minister Mayawati's cabinet. From 2003 to 2007, the party had six ministers in the Uttar Pradesh government. The party's official electoral symbol is a hand pump.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In 2004 Lok Sabha elections, RLD contested in alliance with the Samajwadi Party. RLD contested only in the western part of Uttar Pradesh, where they won three seats.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, RLD contested seven seats in western Uttar Pradesh, in an alliance with the Bhartiya Janata Party, and won five seats.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: On 12 December 2011, RLD joined the United Progressive Alliance led by Indian National Congress. The party contested on eight constituencies in Uttar Pradesh in 2014 Indian general election as per an arrangement with UPA but lost on all of them. Party chief Ajit Singh who was six term holder from Baghpat seat, lost to BJP candidate Satya Pal Singh. His son Jayant Chaudhary, the incumbent MP from Mathura, lost to BJP candidate Hema Malini too.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In January 2015 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council elections, RLD supported Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidates.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In 2017 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election, it could win only one seat. Later, its lone MLA was expelled from the party.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In 2018 Rajasthan Legislative Assembly election the RLD won one seat from Bharatpur Legislative Assembly Constituency. The Party candidate Dr. Subhash Garg won by beating BJP candidate by a margin of over 15500 votes.


title: Rashtriya Lok Dal

text: In 2019, RLD joined the Grand Alliance made by BSP and SP in Uttar Pradesh for the General Elections 2019. As per the seat-sharing arrangement, RLD got 3 seats Baghpat, Mathura and Muzaffarnagar but lost all of these. Sanjeev Balyan defeated Ajit Singh from Muzaffarnagar constituency and Satyapal Singh defeated Jayant Choudhary from Baghpat constituency while actress Hema Malini defeated Kunwar Singh from Mathura constituency.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Trevor John Francis (born 19 April 1954) is an English former footballer who played as a forward for a number of clubs in England, the United States, Italy, Scotland and Australia. In 1979 he became Britain's first £1 million player following his transfer from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest. He scored the winning goal for Forest in the 1979 European Cup final against Malmö. He won the European Cup again with the club the following year. At international level, he played for England 52 times between 1976 and 1986, scoring 12 goals, and played at the 1982 FIFA World Cup.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Between 1988 and 2003 he was a football manager, most notably with Sheffield Wednesday and Birmingham City. His final managerial post was at Crystal Palace, whom he left in 2003.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis was born in Plymouth, Devon, and educated at Plymouth's Public Secondary School for Boys. He was an agile and skilful forward and joined Birmingham City as a schoolboy.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis quickly rose in status, making his debut for Birmingham City's first team in 1970, aged just 16. His talent was noted when, before his 17th birthday, he scored four goals in a match against Bolton Wanderers. He ended his first season with 15 goals from just 22 games.


title: Trevor Francis

text: In the 1970s, Birmingham City reached the occasional domestic semi-final but failed to make a great impact in the First Division championship, so the ability and achievements of Francis were made more noticeable as a result.


title: Trevor Francis

text: On 30 October 1976, he scored one of Birmingham's most famous goals, when he turned away from the touchline and cut inside two Queens Park Rangers defenders, constantly being forced backwards, before suddenly unleashing a 25-yard shot which caught the goalkeeper off guard.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis negotiated a secondment from Birmingham in 1978 to play for the Detroit Express in the North American Soccer League (NASL), where he scored 22 goals in 19 league matches and was named to the NASL first XI alongside Franz Beckenbauer and Giorgio Chinaglia before returning home to the Midlands. However, in February 1979 came the moment which would define his career and leave his name permanently in football folklore.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Nottingham Forest, the reigning First Division champions and League Cup holders managed by Brian Clough, put in a bid for Francis which totalled just over £1 million. No player had ever been sold between English clubs for a seven-figure fee before (the erstwhile record was less than half), and the deal was sealed, with Francis famously being introduced to the media by a manager impatient to play squash; Clough was in his red gym kit and carrying a racquet as he addressed the press conference.


title: Trevor Francis

text: While recognised as the first British million-pound player, the actual transfer fee for the player was £1,150,000, including 15% commission to the Football League. Clough wrote in his autobiography that the fee was £999,999, as he wanted to ensure the million-pound milestone did not go to the player's head, although Francis says that was a tongue-in-cheek remark by Clough.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Nottingham Forest retained the League Cup shortly afterwards (though Francis was ineligible), and made progress in the European Cup to the extent that they reached the semi-finals, at which point Francis was permitted by registration rules to take part. They won their semi-final, and in May 1979 Forest took on Swedish club Malmö in the final in Munich, and a major instalment of the huge investment money was repaid just before half time.


title: Trevor Francis

text: The ball was spread to Forest's winger John Robertson wide on the left and he took on two defenders at once to reach the byline and curl an awkward, outswinging cross towards the far post. Francis had already begun to sprint into position, but even so he had to increase his pace in order to reach the cross as it dropped, and ended up throwing himself low at the ball. He connected with his head and the ball diverted powerfully into the roof of the net. Forest won the match 1–0 and footage of the goal was used in the opening titles to "Match of the Day" for some years afterwards. A giant picture of Francis stooping to head the ball remains on display in the main entrance and reception area of Forest's City Ground stadium.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Even though the season ended there, Francis duly headed back to Detroit for another summer playing in the NASL, where once again he was named to the first XI alongside Johan Cruyff (LA) and Giorgio Chinaglia (NY), despite playing only half the season. In his brief NASL career, Francis scored 36 goals in 33 regular season matches and had 18 assists, placing him one spot ahead of Pelé on the all-time scoring list, despite playing 23 fewer games.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis arguably did not achieve his full potential as a Forest player. This may partly be due to Clough frequently playing Francis on the right wing, rather than in his preferred position as a central attacker. He was in the side which lost the 1980 League Cup Final to Wolverhampton Wanderers, but missed the European Cup Final against Hamburg due to an injury to his Achilles tendon. Somehow the success of his Forest career never quite reflected his huge fee: he scored only 14 league goals in the 1979–80 season and 6 in the next 18 games that he played for Forest. Although still a regular for England, his Achilles injury prevented him being in the squad for the 1980 European Championships, his scoring record in club football was not spectacular.


title: Trevor Francis

text: The injury kept Francis out of the game for over six months. He was sold to Manchester City in September 1981, this time for £1.2 million. The deal caused behind-the-scenes friction at Manchester City. During negotiations City chairman Peter Swales informed manager John Bond that the club could not afford the transfer fee. Bond then issued an ultimatum: if Francis did not sign, Bond would resign. Francis made a promising start at the club, scoring two goals against Stoke City on his debut, but over the course of the season he was frequently injured. In total he scored 12 goals in 26 games and made the England squad for the 1982 World Cup.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Back at his club, financial problems were again an issue. Francis' contract gave him a salary of £100,000 plus bonuses, which the club could no longer afford to pay to a player who regularly sustained injuries. As a result, Francis was sold to Italian club Sampdoria.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Later that summer, Francis was approached by Italian giants Sampdoria, who paid Manchester City £700,000 for his services. He helped win the 1984–85 Coppa Italia, in the same team as Scotland midfielder Graeme Souness. It was the first time that Sampdoria had won the competition.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis returned to Britain in September 1987 to join Rangers under Graeme Souness, as part of his self-styled "English invasion" at Ibrox. Francis cost just £75,000 and won the 1987–88 Scottish League Cup, scoring a penalty in the shootout.


title: Trevor Francis

text: He signed as a player for Queens Park Rangers in March 1988 and took over as player-manager in November 1988 when Jim Smith moved to Newcastle United. He was replaced as manager by Don Howe in November 1989 after a year in charge, with the club in danger of relegation.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis left QPR in February 1990 to play for Sheffield Wednesday; despite gaining a good reputation amongst supporters, he could not help the club avoid relegation to the second tier for the 1990–91 season. However, that season he helped Wednesday win the League Cup, although he was a non-playing substitute in the final, and also gain promotion back to the top flight.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis played for England 52 times between 1977 and 1986 and scored 12 goals. In 1977, he was given his first England cap by Don Revie, in a 2–0 loss against the Netherlands. After missing out on Euro 1980 due to an Achilles injury, Francis was named in the England squad for the 1982 World Cup in Spain. In the first round of the tournament, he scored in the group games against Czechoslovakia and Kuwait. England were eliminated after two goalless draws against both the host nation and West Germany. In spring 1986, he made his 52nd and final appearance for England in a victory over Scotland, and was subsequently not selected for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.


title: Trevor Francis

text: After the departure of Ron Atkinson, Francis took over as manager of Sheffield Wednesday with popular support from club and supporters. He guided Wednesday to an excellent third-place finish in 1992. The following year, Wednesday reached the FA Cup and League Cup finals, losing both to Arsenal, the former after a replay. In 1994, Francis finally retired as a player, shortly before his 40th birthday. He was sacked as manager a year later after Wednesday finished 13th in the Premiership.


title: Trevor Francis

text: In February 1992, Francis brought former French international Eric Cantona back from the wilderness by inviting him for a trial at Sheffield Wednesday. However, as the snowy conditions meant that he could only evaluate Cantona on astroturf, Francis requested an extension to the trial to see whether Cantona could play on grass. An outraged Cantona walked out on The Owls and was signed (without a trial) by Leeds United, inspiring first them and then Manchester United to success. In a 2012 interview Francis said that he had agreed to take Cantona on as a favour to Francis' former agent, Dennis Roach, and Michel Platini, who he knew from his time playing in Italy, when they approached him about taking on Cantona, and that it was intended as an opportunity for Cantona to put himself in the "shop window": Wednesday had only recently been promoted back to the top flight, with most of the squad still being on Second Division-level wages, and the club could not afford to sign him.


title: Trevor Francis

text: After leaving Wednesday, Francis spent time working as a television pundit (something which he had done throughout his career) before going back to his spiritual home of Birmingham City as manager in 1996, aiming to regain their position as a top team. They continued to reach the play-offs but failed to be promoted. They also lost the 2001 League Cup Final to Liverpool. Francis left later that year.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis had a spell in charge of Crystal Palace, from November 2001 to April 2003. Under his managership, Palace defeated Liverpool in an FA Cup fourth round replay at Anfield in February 2003 and beat Palace's main rivals Brighton 5–0 in October 2002.


title: Trevor Francis

text: Francis married Helen in 1974. The couple had two children together. On 5 April 2017, it was reported that Helen Francis had died.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The respiratory tract is the subdivision of the respiratory system involved with the process of respiration in mammals. The respiratory tract is lined with respiratory epithelium as respiratory mucosa.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Air is breathed in through the nose to the nasal cavity, where a layer of nasal mucosa acts as a filter and traps pollutants and other harmful substances found in the air. Next, air moves into the pharynx, a passage that contains the intersection between the oesophagus and the larynx. The opening of the larynx has a special flap of cartilage, the epiglottis, that opens to allow air to pass through but closes to prevent food from moving into the airway.


title: Respiratory tract

text: From the larynx, air moves into the trachea and down to the intersection known as the carina that branches to form the right and left primary (main) bronchi. Each of these bronchi branches into a secondary (lobar) bronchus that branches into tertiary (segmental) bronchi, that branch into smaller airways called bronchioles that eventually connect with tiny specialized structures called alveoli that function in gas exchange.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The lungs which are located in the thoracic cavity, are protected from physical damage by the rib cage. At the base of the lungs is a sheet of skeletal muscle called the diaphragm. The diaphragm separates the lungs from the stomach and intestines. The diaphragm is also the main muscle of respiration involved in breathing, and is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The lungs are encased in a serous membrane that folds in on itself to form the pleurae – a two-layered protective barrier. The inner visceral pleura covers the surface of the lungs, and the outer parietal pleura is attached to the inner surface of the thoracic cavity. The pleurae enclose a cavity called the pleural cavity that contains pleural fluid. This fluid is used to decrease the amount of friction that lungs experience during breathing.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The respiratory tract is divided into the upper airways and lower airways. The upper airways or upper respiratory tract includes the nose and nasal passages, paranasal sinuses, the pharynx, and the portion of the larynx above the vocal folds (cords). The lower airways or lower respiratory tract includes the portion of the larynx below the vocal folds, trachea, bronchi and bronchioles. The lungs can be included in the lower respiratory tract or as separate entity and include the respiratory bronchioles, alveolar ducts, alveolar sacs, and alveoli.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The respiratory tract can also be divided into a conducting zone and a respiratory zone, based on the distinction of transporting gases or exchanging them.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The conducting zone includes structures outside of the lungs – the nose, pharynx, larynx, and trachea, and structures inside the lungs – the bronchi, bronchioles, and terminal bronchioles. The conduction zone conducts air breathed in that is filtered, warmed, and moistened, into the lungs. It represents the 1st through the 16th division of the respiratory tract. The conducting zone is most of the respiratory tract that conducts gases into and out of the lungs but excludes the respiratory zone that exchanges gases. The conducting zone also functions to offer a low resistance pathway for airflow. It provides a major defense role in its filtering abilities.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The respiratory zone includes the respiratory bronchioles, alveolar ducts, and alveoli, and is the site of oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange with the blood. The respiratory bronchioles and the alveolar ducts are responsible for 10% of the gas exchange. The alveoli are responsible for the other 90%. The respiratory zone represents the 16th through the 23rd division of the respiratory tract.


title: Respiratory tract

text: From the bronchi, the dividing tubes become progressively smaller with an estimated 20 to 23 divisions before ending at an alveolus.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The upper respiratory tract can refer to the parts of the respiratory system lying above the sternal angle (outside of the thorax), above the vocal folds, or above the cricoid cartilage. The larynx is sometimes included in both the upper and lower airways. The larynx is also called the voice box and has the associated cartilage that produces sound. The tract consists of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, the pharynx (nasopharynx, oropharynx and laryngopharynx) and sometimes includes the larynx.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The lower respiratory tract or lower airway is derived from the developing foregut and consists of the trachea, bronchi (primary, secondary and tertiary), bronchioles (including terminal and respiratory), and lungs (including alveoli). It also sometimes includes the larynx.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The lower respiratory tract is also called the respiratory tree or tracheobronchial tree, to describe the branching structure of airways supplying air to the lungs, and includes the trachea, bronchi and bronchioles.


title: Respiratory tract

text: At each division point or generation, one airway branches into two or smaller airways. The human respiratory tree may consist on average of 23 generations, while the respiratory tree of the mouse has up to 13 generations. Proximal divisions (those closest to the top of the tree, such as the bronchi) mainly function to transmit air to the lower airways. Later divisions including the respiratory bronchiole, alveolar ducts, and alveoli, are specialized for gas exchange.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The trachea is the largest tube in the respiratory tract and consists of tracheal rings of hyaline cartilage. It branches off into two bronchial tubes, a left and a right main bronchus. The bronchi branch off into smaller sections inside the lungs, called bronchioles. These bronchioles give rise to the air sacs in the lungs called the alveoli.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The lungs are the largest organs in the lower respiratory tract. The lungs are suspended within the pleural cavity of the thorax. The pleurae are two thin membranes, one cell layer thick, which surround the lungs. The inner (visceral pleura) covers the lungs and the outer (parietal pleura) lines the inner surface of the chest wall. This membrane secretes a small amount of fluid, allowing the lungs to move freely within the pleural cavity while expanding and contracting during breathing. The lungs are divided into different lobes. The right lung is larger in size than the left, because of the heart's being situated to the left of the midline. The right lung has three lobes – upper, middle, and lower (or superior, middle, and inferior), and the left lung has two – upper and lower (or superior and inferior), plus a small tongue-shaped portion of the upper lobe known as the lingula. Each lobe is further divided up into segments called bronchopulmonary segments. Each lung has a costal surface, which is adjacent to the ribcage; a diaphragmatic surface, which faces downward toward the diaphragm; and a mediastinal surface, which faces toward the center of the chest, and lies against the heart, great vessels, and the carina where the two mainstem bronchi branch off from the base of the trachea.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The alveoli are tiny air sacs in the lungs where gas exchange takes place. The mean number of alveoli in a human lung is 480 million. When the diaphragm contracts, a negative pressure is generated in the thorax and air rushes in to fill the cavity. When that happens, these sacs fill with air, making the lung expand. The alveoli are rich with capillaries, called alveolar capillaries. Here the red blood cells absorb oxygen from the air and then carry it back in the form of oxyhaemaglobin, to nourish the cells. The red blood cells also carry carbon dioxide () away from the cells in the form of carbaminohemoglobin and release it into the alveoli through the alveolar capillaries. When the diaphragm relaxes, a positive pressure is generated in the thorax and air rushes out of the alveoli expelling the carbon dioxide.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The respiratory tract is covered in epithelium, which varies down the tract. There are glands and mucus produced by goblet cells in parts, as well as smooth muscle, elastin or cartilage. The epithelium from the nose to the bronchioles is covered in ciliated pseudostratified columnar epithelium, commonly called respiratory epithelium. The cilia beat in one direction, moving mucus towards the throat where it is swallowed. Moving down the bronchioles, the cells get more cuboidal in shape but are still ciliated.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Glands are abundant in the upper respiratory tract, but there are fewer lower down and they are absent starting at the bronchioles. The same goes for goblet cells, although there are scattered ones in the first bronchioles.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Cartilage is present until the small bronchi. In the trachea, they are C-shaped rings of hyaline cartilage, whereas in the bronchi the cartilage takes the form of interspersed plates. Smooth muscle starts in the trachea, where it joins the C-shaped rings of cartilage. It continues down the bronchi and bronchioles, which it completely encircles. Instead of hard cartilage, the bronchi and bronchioles are composed of elastic tissue.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The lungs are made up of thirteen different kinds of cells, eleven types of epithelial cell and two types of mesenchymal cell. The epithelial cells form the lining of the tracheal, and bronchial tubes, while the mesenchymal cells line the lungs.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Most of the respiratory tract exists merely as a piping system for air to travel in the lungs, and alveoli are the only part of the lung that exchanges oxygen and carbon dioxide with the blood.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Respiration is the rhythmical process of breathing, in which air is drawn into the alveoli of the lungs via inhalation and subsequently expelled via exhalation. When a human being inhales, air travels down the trachea, through the bronchial tubes, and into the lungs. The entire tract is protected by the rib cage, spine, and sternum. In the lungs, oxygen from the inhaled air is transferred into the blood and circulated throughout the body. Carbon dioxide (CO) is transferred from returning blood back into gaseous form in the lungs and exhaled through the lower respiratory tract and then the upper, to complete the process of breathing.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Unlike the trachea and bronchi, the upper airway is a collapsible, compliant tube. As such, it has to be able to withstand suction pressures generated by the rhythmic contraction of the diaphragm that sucks air into the lungs. This is accomplished by the rhythmic contraction of upper airway muscles, such as the genioglossus (tongue) and the hyoid muscles. In addition to rhythmic innervation from the respiratory center in the medulla oblongata, the motor neurons controlling the muscles also receive tonic innervation that sets a baseline level of stiffness and size.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The diaphragm is the primary muscle that allows for lung expansion and contraction. Smaller muscles between the ribs, the external intercostals, assist with this process.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The epithelial lining of the upper respiratory tract is interspersed with goblet cells that secrete a protective mucus. This helps to filter waste, which is eventually either swallowed into the highly acidic stomach environment or expelled via spitting. The epithelium lining the respiratory tract is covered in small hairs called cilia. These beat rhythmically out from the lungs, moving secreted mucus foreign particles toward the laryngopharynx upwards and outwards, in a process called mucociliary clearance, they prevent mucus accumulation in the lungs. Macrophages in the alveoli are part of the immune system which engulf and digest any inhaled harmful agents.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Hair in the nostrils plays a protective role, trapping particulate matter such as dust. The cough reflex expels all irritants within the mucous membrane to the outside. The airways of the lungs contain rings of muscle. When the passageways are irritated by some allergen, these muscles can constrict.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The respiratory system is very prone to developing infections in the lungs. Infants and older adults are more likely to develop infections in their lungs because their lungs are not as strong in fighting off these infections. Most of these infections used to be fatal, but with new research and medicine, they are now treatable. With bacterial infections, antibiotics are prescribed, while viral infections are harder to treat but still curable.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The common cold, and flu are the most common causes of an upper respiratory tract infection, which can cause more serious illness that can develop in the lower respiratory


title: Respiratory tract

text: Pneumonia is the most common, and frequent lower respiratory tract infection. This can be either viral, bacterial, or fungal. This infection is very common because pneumonia can be airborne, and when you inhale this infection in the air, the particles enter the lungs and move into the air sacs. This infection quickly develops in the lower part of the lung and fills the lung with fluid, and excess mucus. This causes difficulty in breathing and coughing as the lower respiratory tract tries to get rid of the fluid in the lungs. You can be more prone to developing this infection if you have asthma, flu, heart disease, or cancer


title: Respiratory tract

text: Some of these cancers have environmental causes such as smoking. When a tobacco product is inhaled, the smoke paralyzes the cilia, causing mucus to enter the lungs. Frequent smoking, over time, causes the cilia hairs to die and can no longer filter mucus. Tar from the smoke inhaled enters the lungs, turning the pink-coloured lungs black. The accumulation of this tar could eventually lead to lung cancer, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.


title: Respiratory tract

text: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common lower respiratory disease that can be caused by exposure to harmful chemicals, or prolonged use of tobacco. This disease is chronic and progressive, the damage to the lungs is irreversible and eventually fatal. COPD destroys the alveoli, and lung tissue which makes breathing very difficult, causing shortness of breath, hyperventilation, and raised chest. The decreased number of alveoli causes loss of oxygen supply to the lungs and an increased accumulation of carbon dioxide. There are two types of COPD: primary and secondary. Primary COPD can be found in younger adults. This type of COPD deteriorates the air sacs, and lung mass. Secondary COPD can be found in older adults who smoke or have smoked and have a history of bronchitis. COPD includes symptoms of emphysema and chronic bronchitis.


title: Respiratory tract

text: The bronchi are the main passages to the right and left lungs. These airways carry oxygen to the bronchioles inside the lungs. Inflammation of the bronchii and bronchioles can cause them to swell up, which could lead to an asthma attack. This results in wheezing, tightness of the chest, and severe difficulty in breathing. There are different types of asthma that affect the functions of the bronchial tubes. Allergies can also set off an allergic reaction, causing swelling of the bronchial tubes; as a result, the air passage will swell up, or close up completely.


title: Respiratory tract

text: In general, air is inhaled through the nose. It can be inhaled through the mouth if it is not possible to breathe through the nose. However, chronic mouth breathing can cause a dry mouth and lead to infections.


title: Semele

text: Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths.


title: Semele

text: Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came from the Phrygians. These were modified, expanded, and elaborated by the Ionian Greek invaders and colonists. Doric Greek historian Herodotus (c. 484–425 BC), born in the city of Halicarnassus under the Achaemenid Empire, who gives the account of Cadmus, estimates that Semele lived either 1,000 or 1,600 years prior to his visit to Tyre in 450 BC at the end of the Greco-Persian Wars (499–449 BC) or around 2050 or 1450 BC. In Rome, the goddess Stimula was identified as Semele.


title: Semele

text: According to some linguists the name Semele is Thraco-Phrygian, derived from a PIE root meaning 'earth' ("*Dʰéǵʰōm"). Julius Pokorny reconstructs her name from the PIE root "*" meaning 'earth' and relates it with Thracian , 'mother earth'. However, Burkert says that while Semele is "manifestly non-Greek", he also says that "it is no more possible to confirm that Semele is a Thraco-Phrygian word for earth than it is to prove the priority of the Lydian over Bacchus as a name for Dionysos".


title: Semele

text: Balto-Slavic earth deities have been noted, since an alternate name for Baltic Zemyna is , and in Slavic languages, the word (Semele) means 'seed', and (Zemele) means 'earth'. Thus, according to Borissoff, "she could be an important link bridging the ancient Thracian and Slavonic cults (...)".


title: Semele

text: In one version of the myth, Semele was a priestess of Zeus, and on one occasion was observed by Zeus as she slaughtered a bull at his altar and afterwards swam in the river Asopus to cleanse herself of the blood. Flying over the scene in the guise of an eagle, Zeus fell in love with Semele and repeatedly visited her secretly.


title: Semele

text: Zeus' wife, Hera, a goddess jealous of usurpers, discovered his affair with Semele when she later became pregnant. Appearing as an old crone, Hera befriended Semele, who confided in her that her lover was actually Zeus. Hera pretended not to believe her, and planted seeds of doubt in Semele's mind. Curious, Semele asked Zeus to grant her a boon. Zeus, eager to please his beloved, promised on the River Styx to grant her anything she wanted. She then demanded that Zeus reveal himself in all his glory as proof of his divinity. Though Zeus begged her not to ask this, she persisted and he was forced by his oath to comply. Zeus tried to spare her by showing her the smallest of his bolts and the sparsest thunderstorm clouds he could find. Mortals, however, cannot look upon the gods without incinerating, and she perished, consumed in a lightning-ignited flame.


title: Semele

text: Zeus rescued the fetal Dionysus, however, by sewing him into his thigh (whence the epithet Eiraphiotes, 'insewn', of the Homeric Hymn). A few months later, Dionysus was born. This leads to his being called "the twice-born".


title: Semele

text: When he grew up, Dionysus rescued his mother from Hades, and she became a goddess on Mount Olympus, with the new name "Thyone", presiding over the frenzy inspired by her son Dionysus. At a later point in "Dionysiaca", Semele, now resurrected, boasts to her sister Ino how Cronida ('Kronos's son', that is, Zeus), "the plower of her field", carried on the gestation of Dionysus and now her son gets to join the heavenly deities in Olympus, while Ino languishes with a murderous husband (since Athamas tried to kill Ino and her son), and a son that lives with maritime deities.


title: Semele

text: There is a story in the "Fabulae" 167 of Gaius Julius Hyginus, or a later author whose work has been attributed to Hyginus. In this, Dionysus (called Liber) is the son of Jupiter and Proserpina, and was killed by the Titans. Jupiter gave his torn up heart in a drink to Semele, who became pregnant this way. But in another account, Zeus swallows the heart himself, in order to beget his seed on Semele. Hera then convinces Semele to ask Zeus to come to her as a god, and on doing so she dies, and Zeus seals the unborn baby up in his thigh.


title: Semele

text: As a result of this Dionysus "was also called Dimetor [of two mothers]... because the two "Dionysoi" were born of one father, but of two mothers"


title: Semele

text: Still another variant of the narrative is found in Callimachus and the 5th century CE Greek writer Nonnus. In this version, the first Dionysus is called Zagreus. Nonnus does not present the conception as virginal; rather, the editor's notes say that Zeus swallowed Zagreus' heart, and visited the mortal woman Semele, whom he seduced and made pregnant. Nonnus classifies Zeus's affair with Semele as one in a set of twelve, the other eleven women on whom he begot children being Io, Europa, Plouto, Danaë, Aigina, Antiope, Leda, Dia, Alcmene, Laodameia, the mother of Sarpedon, and Olympias.


title: Semele

text: The most usual setting for the story of Semele is the palace that occupied the acropolis of Thebes, called the "Cadmeia". When Pausanias visited Thebes in the 2nd century CE, he was shown the very bridal chamber where Zeus visited her and begat Dionysus. Since an Oriental inscribed cylindrical seal found at the palace can be dated 14th-13th centuries, the myth of Semele must be Mycenaean or earlier in origin. At the Alcyonian Lake near the prehistoric site of Lerna, Dionysus, guided by Prosymnus or Polymnus, descended to Tartarus to free his once-mortal mother. Annual rites took place there in classical times; Pausanias refuses to describe them.


title: Semele

text: Though the Greek myth of Semele was localized in Thebes, the fragmentary Homeric Hymn to Dionysus makes the place where Zeus gave a second birth to the god a distant one, and mythically vague:


title: Semele

text: Semele was worshipped at Athens at the Lenaia, when a yearling bull, emblematic of Dionysus, was sacrificed to her. One-ninth was burnt on the altar in the Hellenic way; the rest was torn and eaten raw by the votaries.


title: Semele

text: A unique tale, "found nowhere else in Greece" and considered to be a local version of her legend, is narrated by geographer Pausanias in his "Description of Greece": after giving birth to her semi-divine son, Dionysus, fathered by Zeus, Semele was banished from the realm by her father Cadmus. Their sentence was to be put into a chest or a box () and cast in the sea. Luckily, the casket they were in washed up by the waves at Prasiae. However, it has been suggested that this tale might have been a borrowing from the story of Danaë and Perseus.


title: Semele

text: "Semele" was a tragedy by Aeschylus; it has been lost, save a few lines quoted by other writers, and a papyrus fragment from Oxyrhynchus, P. Oxy. 2164.


title: Semele

text: Semele is attested with the Etruscan name form Semla, depicted on the back of a bronze mirror from the fourth century BC.


title: Semele

text: In ancient Rome, a grove "(lucus)" near Ostia, situated between the Aventine Hill and the mouth of the Tiber River, was dedicated to a goddess named Stimula. W.H. Roscher includes the name "Stimula" among the "indigitamenta", the lists of Roman deities maintained by priests to assure that the correct divinity was invoked in public rituals. In his poem on the Roman calendar, Ovid (d. 17 CE) identifies this goddess with Semele:


title: Semele

text: Augustine notes that the goddess is named after , 'goads, whips,' by means of which a person is driven to excessive actions. The goddess's grove was the site of the Dionysian scandal that led to official attempts to suppress the cult. The Romans viewed the Bacchanals with suspicion, based on reports of ecstatic behaviors contrary to Roman social norms and the secrecy of initiatory rite. In 186 BC, the Roman senate took severe actions to limit the cult, without banning it. Religious beliefs and myths associated with Dionysus were successfully adapted and remained pervasive in Roman culture, as evidenced for instance by the Dionysian scenes of Roman wall painting and on sarcophagi from the 1st to the 4th centuries AD.


title: Semele

text: The Greek cult of Dionysus had flourished among the Etruscans in the archaic period, and had been made compatible with Etruscan religious beliefs. One of the main principles of the Dionysian mysteries that spread to Latium and Rome was the concept of rebirth, to which the complex myths surrounding the god's own birth were central. Birth and childhood deities were important to Roman religion; Ovid identifies Semele's sister Ino as the nurturing goddess Mater Matuta. This goddess had a major cult center at Satricum that was built 500–490 BC. The female consort who appears with Bacchus in the acroterial statues there may be either Semele or Ariadne. The pair were part of the Aventine Triad in Rome as Liber and Libera, along with Ceres. The temple of the triad is located near the Grove of Stimula, and the grove and its shrine "(sacrarium)" were located outside Rome's sacred boundary "(pomerium)", perhaps as the "dark side" of the Aventine Triad.


title: Semele

text: In the later mythological tradition of the Christian era, ancient deities and their narratives were often interpreted allegorically. In the Neoplatonic philosophy of Henry More (1614–1687), for instance, Semele was thought to embody "intellectual imagination", and was construed as the opposite of Arachne, "sense perception".


title: Semele

text: In the 18th century, the story of Semele formed the basis for three operas of the same name, the first by John Eccles (1707, to a libretto by William Congreve), another by Marin Marais (1709), and a third by George Frideric Handel (1742). Handel's work, based on Congreve's libretto but with additions, while an opera to its marrow, was originally given as an oratorio so that it could be performed in a Lenten concert series; it premiered on February 10, 1744. The German dramatist Schiller produced a singspiel entitled "Semele" in 1782. Victorian poet Constance Naden wrote a sonnet in the voice of Semele, first published in her 1881 collection "Songs and Sonnets of Springtime". Paul Dukas composed a cantata, "Sémélé".


title: Pays de la Loire

text: Pays de la Loire (; ; ) is one of the 18 regions of France, in the west of the mainland. It was created in the 1950s to serve as a zone of influence for its capital, Nantes, one of a handful of "balancing metropolises" ().


title: Pays de la Loire

text: Pays de la Loire is in western France, bordered by Brittany on the northwest, Normandy on the north, Centre-Val de Loire on the east, Nouvelle-Aquitaine on the south, and the Bay of Biscay of the North Atlantic Ocean on the southwest.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: Pays de la Loire comprises five departments: Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire, Mayenne, Sarthe, Vendée.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: Thus the name of the region, chosen by the French central government, was not based on history, but a postwar creation of purely geographical reference: ("lands") ("of the Loire").


title: Pays de la Loire

text: The Loire Valley, which is a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site since 2000, is located both in the administrative regions of Pays de la Loire and Centre-Val de Loire. The majority of the châteaux of the Loire Valley such as Montsoreau, Angers, Saumur or Brézé in Pays de la Loire are located in the "Maine-et-Loire" department, "Pays de la Loire" has numerous prominent monuments, such as the castles of Laval, and the Nantes Château des Ducs de Bretagne, the Royal Fontevraud Abbey (the widest monastic ensemble in Europe), and the old city of Le Mans. It also has many natural parks such as the Brière and the Marsh of Poitou.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: A steep increase in the population was seen particularly as people migrated from all over France to the Loire region due to the rise of Nantes to prominence.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: The gross domestic product (GDP) of the region was €119.1 billion in 2018, accounting for 5.1% of French economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was €28,200 or 94% of the EU27 average in the same year. The GDP per employee was 102% of the EU average.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: The biggest city in Pays de la Loire is Nantes, which is the sixth most populated city in France with over 319,000 people (city proper) and a metropolitan population of almost 1,000,000.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: Angers is another metropolis of the region. It has a metropolitan population of about 400,000 and is the third biggest job provider in north-western France, just behind Nantes and Rennes. Saint-Nazaire is a major harbour town downstream from Nantes on the mouth of the Loire river.


title: Pays de la Loire

text: Le Mans is another city in Pays de la Loire. Situated in north-east Pays de la Loire, Le Mans area is home to over 300,000 (metropolitan population).


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters lived communally at Kesey's homes in California and Oregon, and are noted for the sociological significance of a lengthy road trip they took in the summer of 1964, traveling across the United States in a psychedelic painted school bus called "Furthur", organizing parties, and giving out LSD. During this time they met many of the guiding lights of the 1960s cultural movement and presaged what are commonly thought of as hippies with odd behavior, tie-dyed and red, white, and blue clothing, and renunciation of normal society, which they ironically dubbed The Establishment. Tom Wolfe chronicled their early escapades in his 1968 book "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test", and documents a notorious 1966 trip on "Furthur" from Mexico through Houston, stopping to visit Kesey's friend, novelist Larry McMurtry. Kesey was in flight from a drug charge at the time.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Notable members of the group include Kesey's best friend Ken Babbs, Carolyn "Mountain Girl" Garcia, Lee Quarnstrom, and Neal Cassady. Stewart Brand, Dorothy Fadiman, Paul Foster, George Walker, the Warlocks (later known as the Grateful Dead), Del Close (then a lighting designer for the Grateful Dead), Wavy Gravy, Paul Krassner, and Kentucky Fab Five writers Ed McClanahan and Gurney Norman (who overlapped with Kesey and Babbs as creative writing graduate students at Stanford University) were associated with the group to varying degrees.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: These events are also documented by one of the original pranksters, Lee Quarnstrom, in his memoir, "When I Was a Dynamiter".


title: Merry Pranksters

text: In an interview on BBC World Service in August 2014, Ken Babbs suggested that the name "The Merry Pranksters" was his idea:


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Although a great many friends and associates spent time with Kesey at his La Honda, California ranch in the Santa Cruz Mountains south of San Francisco, the core group of 14 people who became the 'Merry Band of Pranksters' that drove across the country in 1964 were:


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Other on-again, off-again Pranksters (all of whom did not participate in the first cross-country journey, but may have the later trips) include, but are not limited to, the following:


title: Merry Pranksters

text: On June 17, 1964, Kesey and 13 Merry Pranksters boarded "Furthur" at Kesey's ranch in La Honda, California, and set off eastward. Kesey wanted to see what would happen when hallucinogenic-inspired spontaneity confronted what he saw as the banality and conformity of American society. Ken Babbs has suggested that the bus trip reversed the historic American westward movement.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: The trip's original purpose was to celebrate the publication of Kesey's novel "Sometimes a Great Notion" (1964) and to visit the 1964 World's Fair in New York City. The Pranksters were enthusiastic users of marijuana, amphetamines, and LSD, and in the process of their journey are said to have "turned on" many people by introducing them to these drugs.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: The psychedelically painted bus's stated destination — "further" — was the Merry Pranksters' goal: a destination that could be reached only through the expansion of one's own perception of reality.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Novelist Robert Stone, who met the bus on its arrival in New York, wrote in his memoir "" (2007) that those accompanying Kesey on the trip were Neal Cassady (described by Stone as "the world's greatest driver, who could roll a joint while backing a 1937 Packard onto the lip of the Grand Canyon"), Ken Babbs ("fresh from the Nam, full of radio nomenclature, and with a command voice that put cops to flight"), Jane Burton ("a pregnant young philosophy professor who declined no challenges"), George Walker, Sandy Lehmann-Haupt (dis-MOUNT), Mike Hagen (Mal Function), Ron Bevirt (Hassler), Chuck Kesey, Dale Kesey, John Babbs, Steve Lambrecht and Paula Sundstren (aka Gretchin Fetchin, Slime Queen).


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Zane Kesey and Simon Babbs edited the video and audio clips made by the Pranksters on the trip to produce a DVD (1999) called simply "The Acid Test", which is distributed by Key-z Productions.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Kesey and the Pranksters also had a relationship with the outlaw motorcycle gang the Hells Angels, whom Kesey introduced to LSD. The details of their relationship are documented in Wolfe's above-mentioned book, in Hunter S. Thompson's book, "" (1966), and in Allen Ginsberg's poem about the Kesey/Angels relationship, titled "First Party at Ken Kesey's with Hell's Angels" (December 1965).


title: Merry Pranksters

text: In 1969, "Further" and the Pranksters (minus Kesey) attended the Woodstock rock festival. In the same year, they attended the Texas Pop Festival at Lewisville, Texas.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Kesey's "Demon Box" (1986), a collection of short pieces, several about the Merry Pranksters, was a critical success. A subsequent novel, "Sailor Song" (1992), was not, with critics complaining it was too spacey for comprehension. In 1994, Kesey toured with the Pranksters, performing "Twister: A Ritual Reality in Three Quarters Plus Overtime if Necessary", a play he wrote in 1989 about the millennium, influenced by L. Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz works.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: The Merry Pranksters filmed and audiotaped much of what they did on their bus trips. Some of this material has surfaced in documentaries, including the BBC's Dancing In the Street. Some Pranksters have released footage on their own, and a version of the film edited by Kesey is available through his son Zane's website. On August 14, 1997, Kesey appeared with the Merry Pranksters at a Phish concert during a performance of the song "Colonel Forbin's Ascent" from the album "The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday" (1987).


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Kesey and the Pranksters also helped stage The Enit Festival, held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on November 22, 1997, with Jane's Addiction, Funky Tekno Tribe, Goldie, and Res Fest rounding out the bill.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: The original Prankster bus is at Kesey's farm in Oregon. In November 2005, it was pulled out of the swamp by Zane Kesey and family and a group of the original Merry Pranksters with the intent of restoring it. The Smithsonian Institution sought to acquire the bus, which is no longer operable, but Kesey refused, and attempted, unsuccessfully, to prank the Smithsonian by passing off a phony bus.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: On December 10, 2003, Ken Babbs hosted a memorial to Kesey with String Cheese Incident and various other old and new Pranksters. It was held at the McDonald Theatre in Eugene, Oregon. The proceeds helped to raise money for the "Ken Kesey Memorial" sculpture designed by Peter Helzer. The bronze sculpture depicted a life-size Kesey reading to three children while seated on a curved granite bench covered with quotations from Kesey's novels "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1962) and "Sometimes a Great Notion" (1964). (Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Brian Lanker supplied the image.) Other benefactors for the project include Bob Weir, Paul Newman (who starred in the 1971 film adaptation of "Sometimes a Great Notion") and Michael Douglas (who produced the 1975 film version of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest").


title: Merry Pranksters

text: Alex Gibney and Alison Ellwood directed a documentary film "Magic Trip" (2011) about the Merry Pranksters, which was released on August 5, 2011.


title: Merry Pranksters

text: In April 2014, Zane, along with friend Derek Stevens, announced a Kickstarter to fund a 50th anniversary Furthur Bus Trip, offering donors a chance to ride "Furthur". The fundraiser was successful, and the trip took place between June and September 2014. Over 100 participants were invited to ride on legs of the trip as a new batch of Merry Pranksters. The 2014 journey was over 15,000 miles, 53 different events, took place in 29 different states and was 75 days of Merry Prankster mayhem and fun on the road. A group of filmmakers documented the journey, releasing a film titled "Going Furthur".


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The Kosovo Security Force (KSF; , ) is a civilian emergency services organisation of Kosovo under the control and command of KFOR. KSF is tasked with defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kosovo, military support for civil authorities, and participation in international peacekeeping missions and operations. Since 2018, it is in the process of transforming into the Kosovo Armed Forces, a process that is expected to take 10 years.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The President of Kosovo is the Supreme Commander of the Kosovo Security Force and has the competence for mobilizing the Kosovo Security Force in cases of the state of emergency. In peace times, the President's powers as Commander-in-Chief are executed through the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The Kosovo Security Force was founded in January 2009, after the dissolution of the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC), which until then was a civilian emergency service organization and a descendant of the Kosovo Liberation Army. In March 2008, the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) and the KPC started preparations for the formation of the Kosovo Security Force. According to guidelines laid out in the Ahtisaari Plan, the Kosovo Security Force was initially permitted to carry light weapons. The admission and the training of personnel began in early June 2008, when NATO experts arrived in Kosovo to guide the process, and from early December 2008, enlisting of candidates between 18 and 30 years old began. The Kosovo Security Force was officially founded on January 1, 2009.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: With the aim to upgrade its military competencies and to make it able to join NATO, in December 2018, the Assembly of Kosovo passed legislation to redefine the KSF as a "professional military force" and to establish a defence ministry. The KSF is additionally in a process of transforming into the Kosovo Armed Forces. The transformation is expected to be finished in 2028 and is overseen by NATO experts. The KSF's personnel trains in NATO military academies in Turkey, the US, and the UK, including School of Army Aviation in Isparta, West Point, and Sandhurst. Its current transformation is actively supported by NATO members and its closest cooperation is with the Iowa National Guard. After the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Assembly of Kosovo passed a resolution, urging the government to start NATO membership bid.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Following the Kosovo War in 1999, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 placed Kosovo under the authority of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), with security provided by the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR). KFOR entered Kosovo on June 12, 1999 under a United Nations mandate, two days after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1244.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Kosovo declared independence in February 2008. On 19 March 2008, United States President George W. Bush authorised military aid to Kosovo Security Force in another step to establish formal relations with Kosovo.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 20 January 2009, the names of those who were to be selected for the KSF from the KPC were announced. After being vetted by NATO, roughly 1,400 former members of the KPC were selected to serve as officers and rank and file members of the KSF.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 21 January 2009, the Kosovo Security Force was officially launched. The KSF did not replace the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) which was disbanded several months later. KFOR was charged with mentoring the KSF and bringing the force to Full Operational Capability. As part of this effort, various nations that are part of KFOR have provided assistance to the force on a bilateral basis including uniforms which were supplied by the United States and vehicles which were donated by Germany. Mentoring efforts were meant to develop the KSF in line with NATO standards. Additionally Italy, Portugal and other NATO members are to help the KSF by donations and training. Slovenia donated €30,000 towards the establishment of the KSF.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 15 September 2009 the Kosovo Security Force officially began the work, with its initial operational capacities after an eight-month training with NATO instructors.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: In 2010, the KSF deployed to northern Albania on two separate occasions to perform flood relief operations in support of the Albanian domestic response.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 22 November 2011, Lieutenant General Sylejman Selimi retired from the KSF and President Atifete Jahjaga appointed the former Director of Operations Major General Kadri Kastrati to succeed him as Commander of the force. President Jahjaga also promoted Kastrati to the rank of lieutenant general.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 9 July 2013 the Kosovo Security Forces reached Full Operational Capability (FOC) as determined by NATO. While the general security situation has been improving on the ground, this lightly armed force responsible for civil protection operations and assisting civil authorities in responding to natural disasters and other emergencies has now trained to standards designated by NATO. The declaration of full operational capability on 9 July 2013 by the North Atlantic Council means that the KSF is fully capable of performing the tasks assigned to it within its mandate. The KSF will conduct non-military security functions that are not appropriate for the police. In more concrete terms, this force of approximately 2200 personnel will deal with search and rescue operations, explosive ordnance disposal, control and clearance of hazardous materials, fire-fighting and other humanitarian assistance tasks.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Recruitment for the Kosovo Security Force started early 2009, once NATO had agreed (June 2008) to implement new tasks in addition to those agreed under UNSCR 1244. These new tasks included the standing down of the Kosovo Protection Corps, and the creation of the KSF and of a civilian structure to oversee it.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: NATO's role in the creation of KSF has therefore been two-fold: helping with its formation – standing up, recruitment and training; and the establishment of a civilian-led organisation to supervise and control the KSF. One of the principal aims was to encourage all minorities to enroll, so special attention was given to carrying out the recruitment process in two languages – Albanian and Serbian. The result has been a professional, multi-ethnic, all-volunteer force, which should continue to remain a source of regional stability. Following the declaration of full operational capability, NATO will continue to support the development of the KSF through the NATO Liaison and Advisory Team (NLAT), consisting of a mix of approximately 30 military and civilian personnel that will help with the professional development of the KSF, providing advice and support in a variety of areas such as capacity-building and training and leadership.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 5 March 2014, Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi declared that the Kosovan government had decided to establish a Defence Ministry and by 2019, officially transform the Kosovo Security Forces into the Kosovo Armed Forces (, FAK) which will meet all the standards of NATO states with the aim of joining the alliance in the future. The new army will have a €98 million annual budget and will be 5,000 strong with another 3,000 reservists, composed of land forces, a national guard, logistics and training commands. Kosovo's Security Forces Minister Agim Çeku stated that the Kosovo Armed Forces' mission will be "to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kosovo, its people and their property and protect the interests of the Kosovo Republic". Kosovo's ambassador to Turkey, Avni Spahiu, stated that the "decision to establish an army has been taken in consultation with NATO and our partners... [and] the army will have a defensive character as Kosovo has no territorial aspirations".


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 28 May 2014, President Atifete Jahjaga told the United Nations Security Council that the creation of the Kosovan Armed Forces would be a long process, requiring the support and participation of all ethnic communities in Kosovo; she added that its purpose would be to contribute to overall security in the Balkans and called on all ethnic communities to take part in the process. In November 2014, Agim Çeku stated that the Kosovo Army was running behind schedule "because of the delay in the constitution of the Kosovo parliament" but the decision to transform the Kosovo Security Force into an Army will be confirmed "at one of the first sessions upon its constitution"; he also noted that this transformation enjoys nationwide support and he doesn't expect any complaints from the political opposition.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 18 October 2018, the Kosovo Assembly approved to transform the Kosovo Security Force into the Kosovo Armed Forces within 10 years after 98 of the 120 deputies voted in favor, and the remaining 22 remained absent from the vote, including 11 representatives from the Serb minority who boycotted the vote.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On 14 December 2018, the Kosovo parliament approved the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force into the Kosovo Armed Forces effective immediately The transformation is supposed to be finished in 2028. The Iowa National Guard is one of Kosovo Security Force's main partners and supporters in its transformation.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Reactions to the transformation of KSF to KAF have been mixed. The move has been seen with scepticism by Serbia and by NATO, European Union and United Nations officials, but it has been endorsed by the United States, as well as the governments of Germany, United Kingdom and France.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The Serbian authorities have repeatedly said that according to all international documents, and especially UN Resolution 1244, NATO-led KFOR is the only legal military formation in Kosovo alongside 999 Serbian military personnel guaranteed by Resolution 1244. Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of NATO, said he regrets that the Kosovo Assembly has decided to transform KSF despite concerns from the alliance, adding that "this move comes at the wrong time". Also, Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs has expressed regret over Kosovo's move to form a new army. Furthermore, António Guterres, UN Secretary-General, expressed deep concern over the decision of Kosovo authorities, urging "all parties concerned" to exercise restraint.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: On the other hand, the United States fully supports and endorses the move. In a statement, the US Embassy in Kosovo stated that Kosovo is a sovereign nation, and as such, it is allowed to have a force to defend its territory. They confirmed that the United States will continue to support the development of KAF, and that they expect the cooperation of the KAF and NATO to continue. The US. Ambassador in Kosovo, Philip S. Kosnett called the transformation a historical move.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Such duties will include search and rescue operations; explosive ordnance disposal (de-mining and UXO removal); the control and clearance of hazardous materials; fire-fighting; and other humanitarian assistance tasks.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The Ministry for the Kosovo Security Force (MKSF) is responsible for exercising civilian control over the Force, including management and administration. It comprises a mixture of civilian and KSF personnel and is accountable, through the Prime Minister, to the Kosovo Assembly.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The mission of the MKSF, which is also the highest level KSF Headquarters, is to formulate, implement, evaluate and develop the policies and activities of the KSF within a framework of democratic governance and in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Kosovo.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Any citizen of Kosovo over the age of 18 is eligible to serve in the Kosovo Security Force. Active members of the Kosovo Security Force are not legally allowed to run for, or serve in the Assembly of Kosovo. The membership of the Kosovo Security Force is required to reflect the ethnic composition of the country. Members of the Security Force are protected from discrimination on the basis of gender or ethnicity.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: The Ministry for the Kosovo Security Force has taken active steps to recruit women into the Security Force. As of 2015, women make up 8.52% of the uniformed service members of the Security Force and 32% of the Ministry as a whole. Of the 203 women in uniform in the Security Force, 21 are officers; the highest ranking woman in the Security Force is a Major-general Irfete Spahiu.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: A new law or constitutional amendment for Kosovo Security Force provides a larger number of personnel for the KSF, around 5,000 active soldiers and over 3,000 in reserve.


title: Kosovo Security Force

text: Ethnic minorities of Kosovo are encouraged to enroll in the Kosovo Security Force with Kosovo's constitution requiring the integration of ethnic-minority communities into the Kosovo Security Force. In April 2013, 179 (8.2%) of the Kosovo Security Force's military personnel came from minority backgrounds, the remainder being ethnic Albanians. In May 2014, Kosovar President Atifete Jahjaga noted to the United Nations Security Council that 9% of the KSF were from minority communities. In July 2018 40 out of 137 Serbs tendered their resignations from the KSF. Minister of the KSF, Rustem Berisha stated that the personnel in question were pressured by Belgrade and had received "blackmail and threats" violating their basic human rights.