title: Music of Star Wars

text: Over the long period in which the films were made, many of the themes changed their initial meaning: By the time of The Empire Strikes Back, the Luke Skywalker material and the theme of Old Ben were already rebranded as the "Star Wars Main theme" and "The Force Theme", respectively, by Williams. The Rebel Fanfare (initially, the fanfare of the Blockade Runner) eventually turned into the theme of the Millennium Falcon.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Listed below are about 67 leitmotives, based on primarily on Williams own notes and Frank Lehman's extensive catalogue, but also on Doug Adams "et al" analyses of the scores. Along with two themes Williams composed for "Solo" and two more for "Galaxy's Edge", his work of the series had accrued as many as 71 leitmotives. The main new theme of each entry is highlighted:


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Star Wars Theme, Star Wars Secondary Theme, Rebel Fanfare, The Force, Princess Leia, Rebel Victory"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Spaceship Dogfight Motif;" "Star Wars Theme, Secondary Star Wars Theme, Rebel Fanfare, The Force, Leia, the Imperial March, Han Solo and the Princess, Yoda"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Star Wars Theme, Stars Wars Secondary Theme, The Rebel Fanfare, The Force Theme, The Imperial March, Yoda's Theme, Jabba's Theme, The Emperor's Theme"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Shmi's Theme;" "Star Wars Theme, Star Wars Secondary Theme, The Rebel Fanfare, The Force Theme, The Imperial March, The Emperor's Theme, Young Anakin's Theme, Droid Invasion March, Duel of the Fates"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Jedi Funeral Theme," "Coruscant Fanfare;" "Star Wars Theme, Secondary Star Wars Theme, Leia's theme, The Rebel Fanfare, The Force Theme, The Imperial March, The Emperor's Theme, Young Anakin's Theme, Descent, Droid Invasion March, Duel of the Fates, Shmi, Across the Stars, Across the Stars (embryonic), Dark Side"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Star Wars Theme, Secondary Star Wars Theme, Millennium Falcon"", The Force theme, Leia's Theme, The Imperial March, Han Solo and the Princess"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Star Wars Theme, Secondary Star Wars Theme, Millennium Falcon, The Force Theme, Leia's Theme, Yoda's Theme, Luke and Leia, Han Solo and the Princess, The Imperial March, Spaceship Dogfight Motif, Death Star motif, The Emperor's Theme, Poe's Theme, Rey's Themes, Kylo Ren's themes, First Order, Tension figure, Snoke's Theme, Jedi Steps"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Star Wars Theme, Secondary Star Wars Theme, Millennium Falcon, The Force Theme, Leia's Theme, Han Solo and the Princess, The Imperial March, The Emperor's Theme, Poe's Theme, Rey's Themes, Kylo Ren's themes, March of the Resistance, Luke and Leia, Yoda's Theme, Dark Side, Tension figure"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Since neither Williams nor his office ever provided a full list of the leitmotifs used in every "Star Wars" film, there is some controversy around the exact number of themes, with some taking an inclusive approach that identifies various leitmotifs, even where the composer probably never intended for, and others taking an exclusive, reductive approach.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Some of the more inclusive analyses identify themes that don't actually recur either in discrete cues nor even strewn across one long stretch of music. This is the result of Williams' propensity (in these scores and otherwise) to write material that is either melodic, rhythmic, harmonic or timbral specifically to an individual setpiece or none-recurring plot-element in the film, such as The Battle of Hoth, the Chase through Coruscant, or The Battle of Crait. These individual pieces of music – whether they consist of a full melody, ostinati, diegetic pieces or a certain timbre – have sometimes been described as having thematic significance, occasionally (in fleeting comments) even by Williams himself, but since they do not recur in a different part of the narrative, nor are transformed from or into another motif, they do not comply with the definition of a leitmotif.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Even when some of these figures do recur, it is often unclear whether they are substantial enough to be assigned with thematic significance, as these instances often includes material that is incidental in nature, such as several figures used in the finale of "The Empire Strikes Back"; material that is purely rhythmic or timbral like various "bouncing" horn figures for Luke's landspeeder search in the original "Star Wars," material that is of a generic nature, such as his use of "mournful homophonic" choir in "The Last Jedi" for climactic moments; or material that is part of Williams' stylistic choices as a composer, more than a thematic statement unique to the series. For instance, his use of tritones often denotes mystery, a device he uses for the droids landing on Tatooine and again in the concert arrangement of "The Throne Room."


title: Music of Star Wars

text: In fact, sometimes the supposedly recurring material is similar, but not in fact identical. A good example would be the variety of gestures relating to the dark side, following a piece of music used in the opera-house scene. Lehamn however clarifies that those alleged following statements are "similar but inexact" to the earlier gesture.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Sometimes, the recurring material is question is not part of the original composition but is rather tracked after-the-fact, or at least lifted, from existing material into a different section of the film, or from material that is recapitulated in a concert piece or end-credits suite. This includes the Podracing fanfare and the ostinato accompaniment of the Rebel Fanfare, which otherwise does not appear isolated from the unabridged theme more than once; the mournful writing for French horn at Shmi's funeral, the Arena March from "Attack of the Clones" etc.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: The first "Star Wars Anthology" score for "Rogue One", written by Michael Giacchino, utilizes several themes (and recurring interstitial material) from John Williams, mostly for their Romantic sweep (such as The Force Theme and hints of the Main Theme). It has its own catalog of themes, independent from Williams' material, including a new, third theme for the Empire, although Giacchino also quotes both the original Imperial Motif and The Imperial March.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Luke's Theme; Rebel Fanfare; The Force Theme; Leia's Theme; Imperial Motif; Death Star Motif; The Imperial March"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: For "", John Williams wrote and recorded a concert arrangement for a new theme for Han Solo. In the process of composing the theme, Williams ended up using two separate ideas, each conveying a different aspect of the character, and went as far as to spot the film for places to use each motif; all other leitmotifs and other material were written and adapted by John Powell, the main composer for the film.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: "Returning: Spaceship Dogfight motif; Star Wars Theme; Millennium Falcon theme; Duel of the Fates; The Imperial March; The Imperial motif; Death Star Motif"; "The Asteroid Field"; "Imperial Cruiser Pursuit"; "Droids Motif"


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Instead of offering a full recording release of a particular film, Williams typically releases a condensed score on album, in which the music is arranged out of the film order and more within the veins of a concert program. These album releases typically include several concert suites, written purely for the end credits or the album itself, where a specific theme is developed continuously throughout the piece. Williams also re-edited some of his existing cues after the fact in order to "concertize" theme on the behest of conductors such as Charles Gerhardt. Five of the eight films also have unique credit suites that feature alternate concert arrangements of themes and/or a medley of the main themes of a particular film.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: Diegetic music is music "that occurs as part of the action (rather than as background), and can be heard by the film's characters". In addition to the orchestral scope that was brought on by John Williams' musical score, the "Star Wars" franchise also features many distinguishing diegetic songs that enrich the detail of the audio mise-en-scène. Some of this diegetic music was written by John Williams; some by his son, Joseph; and some by various other people.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: In 2005, the 1977 soundtrack for "Star Wars" was voted as the "most memorable film score of all time" by the American Film Institute in the list AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores, based on the assessment of a jury of over 500 artists, composers, musicians, critics and historians from the film industry.


title: Music of Star Wars

text: The soundtracks to both "Star Wars" and "" have been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of at least 1 million units, with the albums for "The Empire Strikes Back" and "" being certified Gold (500,000 units). The British Phonographic Industry certified "Star Wars" and "Episode I" as Gold for shipments of over 100,000 units in the UK.


title: Manasa

text: Manasa () is a Hindu goddess of snakes. She is worshipped mainly in Bihar, Bengal, Jharkhand, Lower Assam and other parts of northeastern India and in Uttarakhand, chiefly for the prevention and cure of snakebite, and also for fertility and prosperity. In Hindu mythology, Manasa is the sister of the first two naga kings, Shesha and Vasuki, and the wife of Sage Jaratkaru. She is the mother of the sage Astika. She is also known as "Vishahari" (the destroyer of poison), "Nityā" (eternal) and "Padmavati".


title: Manasa

text: In the Puranas, the sage Kashyapa is considered to be her father, one legend stating that she was created from his mind, and the other stating that she is his daughter from his wife, Kadru. In regional tradition, her myths emphasise her bad temper and unhappiness, due to rejection by her father, Shiva, and her husband, and the hate of her stepmother Chandi (Shiva's wife, identified with Parvati in this context). Manasa is depicted as kind to her devotees, but harsh toward people who refuse to worship her. Denied full godhead due to her mixed parentage, Manasa's aim was to fully establish her authority as a goddess, and to acquire steadfast human devotees.


title: Manasa

text: Bhattacharya and Sen suggest that Manasa originated in South India as a non-Vedic and non-Aryan goddess and is related to the Kannada folk snake-goddess Manchamma. Manasa was originally an Adivasi (tribal) goddess. She was accepted in the pantheon worshipped by Hindu lower caste groups. Later, Dimock suggests that though snake worship is found in the Vedas (the earliest Hindu scriptures), Manasa - a human goddess of snakes - has "little basis" in early Hinduism. Bhattacharya suggests another influence on Manasa being the Mahayana Buddhist goddess of poison-cure Janguli. Janguli shares his swan vehicle and her poison-destroyer epithet with Manasa. Manasa is also known as Janguli. A theory suggests that Janguli may have influenced by the Kirata-giri ("the conqueror of all poisons") of the "Atharvaveda". As per McDaniel, she was included in higher caste Hindu pantheon, where she is now regarded as a Hindu goddess rather than a tribal one.


title: Manasa

text: According to Tate, Manasa as Jaratkaru was initially recognized as a daughter of sage Kashyapa and Kadru, the mother of all nagas in the Hindu epic "Mahabharata". According to Bhattacharya, the Jaratkaru of the Mahabharata is not the Manasa popular in Bengal.


title: Manasa

text: By the 14th century, Manasa was identified as the goddess of fertility and marriage rites and was assimilated into the Shaiva pantheon, related to the god Shiva. Myths glorified her by describing that she saved Shiva after he drank the poison, and venerated her as the "remover of poison". Her popularity grew and spread to southern India, and her followers began to rival the earliest Shaivism (the cult of Shiva). As a consequence, stories attributing Manasa's birth to Shiva emerged and ultimately Shaivism adopted this indigenous goddess into the Brahmanical tradition of mainstream Hinduism. Alternatively, Vasudev suggests that the Bengali tale of Manasa reflects rivalry between Shaivism and the goddess-centric Shaktism.


title: Manasa

text: Manasa is depicted as a woman covered with snakes, sitting on a lotus platform or standing upon a snake. She is sheltered by the canopy of the hoods of seven cobras. Sometimes, she is depicted with a child on her lap. The child is assumed to be her son, Astika.


title: Manasa

text: The "Mahabharata" tells the story of Manasa's marriage. Sage Jaratkaru practised severe austerities and had decided to abstain from marriage. Once, he came across a group of men hanging from a tree upside down. These men were his ancestors, who were doomed to misery as their children had not performed their last rites. So, they advised Jaratkaru to marry and have a son who could free them of those miseries by performing the ceremonies. Vasuki offered his sister Manasa's hand to Jaratkaru. Manasa gave birth to a son, Astika, who freed his ancestors. Astika also helped in saving the naga race from destruction when King Janamejaya decided to exterminate them by sacrificing them in his yajna, called the sarpa satra.


title: Manasa

text: The "Purana"s are the first scriptures to speak about her birth. They declare that sage Kashyapa is her father, not Shiva as described in the later "Mangalkavya"s. Once, when serpents and reptiles had created chaos on the Earth, Kashyapa created the goddess Manasa from his mind ("mana"). The creator god Brahma made her the presiding deity of snakes and reptiles. Manasa gained control over the earth, by the power of mantras she chanted. Manasa then propitiated the god Shiva, who told her to please the god Krishna. Upon being pleased, Krishna granted her divine Siddhi powers and ritually worshiped her, making her an established goddess.


title: Manasa

text: Kashyapa married Manasa to sage Jaratkaru, who agreed to marry her on the condition that he would leave her if she disobeyed him. Once, when Jaratkaru was awakened by Manasa, he became upset with her because she awakened him too late for worship, and so he left her temporarily.


title: Manasa

text: The "Mangalkavya"s were devotional paeans to local deities such as Manasa, composed in Bengal between the 13th and the 18th centuries. The "Manasa Mangalkavya" by Vijay Gupta and "Manasa Vijaya" (1495) by Bipradas Pipilai trace the origin and myths of the goddess. However these stray further from Puranaic references probably due to creative licenses exercised.


title: Manasa

text: At least fifteen Mangalkavyas dedicated to Manasa are known. Scholar D. C. Sen traced fifty-one versions of her tale.


title: Manasa

text: According to "Manasa Vijaya", Manasa was born when a statue of a girl that had been sculpted by Vasuki's mother which was touched by Shiva's seed. Vasuki accepted Manasa as his sister, and granted her the charge of poison that was produced when King Prithu milked the Earth as a cow. When Shiva saw Manasa, he was attracted to her, but she proved to him that he was her father. Shiva took Manasa to his home where his wife, Chandi, suspected Manasa of being Shiva's concubine or co-wife, and insulted Manasa and burnt one of her eyes, leaving Manasa half-blind. Later, when Shiva was dying of poison, Manasa cured him. On one occasion, when Chandi kicked her, Manasa rendered her senseless with a glance of her poison eye. Finally, tired of quarrels between Manasa and Chandi, Shiva deserted Manasa under a tree, but created a companion for her from his tears of remorse, called Neto or Netā.


title: Manasa

text: Later, the sage Jaratkaru married Manasa, but Chandi ruined Manasa's wedding night. Chandi advised Manasa to wear snake ornaments and then threw a frog in the bridal chamber which caused the snakes to run around the chamber. As a consequence, the terrified Jaratkaru ran away from the house. After few days, he returned and Astika, their son, was born.


title: Manasa

text: Accompanied by her adviser, Neto, Manasa descended to earth to see human devotees. She was initially mocked by the people but then Manasa forced them to worship her by raining calamity on those who denied her power. She managed to convert people from different walks of life, including the Muslim ruler Hasan, but failed to convert Chand Sadagar. Manasa wanted to become a goddess like Lakshmi or Saraswati. To get there, she had to achieve the worship of Chand Sadagar who was extremely adamant and took oath not to worship Manasa. Thus to gain his fear and insecurity, Manasa one by one killed his six sons. At last Manasa conspired against two dancers of Indras Court who loved each other, Anirudha and Usha. Anirudh had to take birth as Lakhinder, Chand and Sanaka's seventh son. Usha took birth as Behula and married him. Manasa killed him but Behula floated on water for nine months with the dead body of her husband and finally brought back the lives of the seven sons and the lost prosperity of Chand. At last, he yielded by offering a flower to the goddess with his left hand without even looking at her. This gesture made Manasa so happy that she resurrected all of Chand's sons and restored his fame and fortunes. The "Mangal kavyas" say that after this, the worship of Manasa was popular forever.


title: Manasa

text: "Manasa Mangalkavya" attributes Manasa's difficulty in attracting devotees to an unjust curse she gave to Chand in his previous life. Chand then retaliated with a counter-curse that worshiping her would not be popular on earth unless he worshiped her also.


title: Manasa

text: Ananda K. Coomaraswamy and Sister Nivedita say, "[The] legend of [Chand Sadagar and] Manasā Devī, [...] who must be as old as the Mykenean stratum in Asiatic society, reflects the conflict between the religion of Shiva and that of female local deities in Bengal. Afterwards Manasā or Padmā was recognized as a form of "Shakti", [...] and her worship accepted by Shaivas. She is a phase of the mother-divinity who for so many worshipers is nearer and dearer than the far-off and impersonal Shiva...".


title: Manasa

text: Generally, Manasa is worshiped without an image. A branch of a tree, an earthen pot or an earthen snake image is worshiped as the goddess, though images of Manasa are worshipped too. She is worshiped for protection from and cure of snake bites and infectious diseases like smallpox and chicken pox.


title: Manasa

text: The following of Manasa is most widespread in Bengal, where she is ritually worshiped in temples. The goddess is widely worshiped in the rainy season, when the snakes are most active. Manasa is also a very important fertility deity, especially among the lower castes, and her blessings are invoked during marriage or for childlessness. She is usually worshiped and mentioned along with Neto, who is called Neta, Netidhopani, Netalasundori, etc. in various parts of Bengal.


title: Manasa

text: In North Bengal, among the Rajbanshis, Manasa (called Bishohora, Bishohori or Padmavati) is one of the most important goddesses, and her "thaan" (shrine) may be found in the courtyard of almost every agrarian household. Among the lower-caste Hindus of East Bengal (present-day Bangladesh)too, she is worshiped with great pomp.


title: Manasa

text: Manasa is an especially important deity in Bengal for the mercantile castes. This is because Chando of the "Manasamangal" was the first to initiate her worship, and Behula, the heroine of the "Manasamangal" was a daughter of the Saha clan (a powerful trading community).


title: Manasa

text: Manasa is the prime deity of Anga Region, specially in Anga's capital, Champa (now Bhagalpur). It is believed that the story of Chand Saudagar and Behula started from this very place. In the old quarters of Champanagar in the city, stands an enormous temple of Manasa. Several artefacts and sculptures found in and around the place made locals believed that it was where Chand Saudagar had his Rajbari. A recent excavation has also found "Loha- Bashor ghor" or "Bashor ghor", the building made specifically for the wedding night of Lakhendar and Behula. The Angika lokgatha, "Behula Bishari Lokgatha" and the regional art, Manjusha Chitrakatha is full flegedly based on the chronicles of Manasa and the hardships of Behula. Every year, from 16 to 19 August, Bhagalpur springs up like a scented flower to worship the local guardian Manasa and commemorate the wedding of Behula


title: Manasa

text: Manasa is also worshiped extensively in Assam and Tripura, and a kind of Oja-Pali (musical folk theatre) is dedicated entirely to her myth.


title: Manasa

text: Manasa is ceremonially worshiped on Nag Panchami - a festival of snake worship in the Hindu month of Shravan (July–August). Bengali women observe a fast (vrata) on this day and offer milk at snake holes.


title: Ik Onkar

text: , also spelled (Gurmukhi: or ; ); literally, "There is only one God or One creator or one Om-maker") is a phrase in Sikhism that denotes the one supreme reality. It is a central tenet of Sikh religious philosophy.


title: Ik Onkar

text: is also the opening phrase of the Mul Mantar, present as opening phrase in the Guru Granth Sahib, and the first composition of Guru Nanak and the final salok is by Guru Angad. Further, the Mul Mantar is also at the beginning of the Japji Sahib, followed by 38 hymns and a final Salok by Guru Angad at the end of this composition.


title: Ik Onkar

text: According to Wendy Doniger, the phrase is a compound of ("one" in Punjabi) and , canonically understood in Sikhism to refer to "absolute monotheistic unity of God". Etymologically, the word denotes the sacred sound "om" or the absolute in a number of Indian religions. Nevertheless, Sikhs give it an entirely different meaning. Pashaura Singh writes that "the meaning of Oankar in the Sikh tradition is quite different in certain respects from the various interpretations of this word in the Indian philosophical traditions", and the Sikhs "rather view Oankar as pointing to the distinctively Sikh theological emphasis on the ineffable quality of God, who is described as 'the Person beyond time,' the Eternal One, or 'the One without form'." is, according to Wazir Singh, a "variation of Om (Aum) of the ancient Indian scriptures (with a slight change in its orthography), implying the seed-force that evolves as the universe." Guru Nanak wrote a poem entitled Oankar in which, states Doniger, he "attributed the origin and sense of speech to the Divinity, who is thus the Om-maker".


title: Ik Onkar

text: He also considers the process of reification of the concept of as having begun with the writings of Guru Nanak and Guru Arjan themselves, with the numeral ੧ (one) as emphasizing the unity of Akal Purakh in monotheistic terms.


title: Ik Onkar

text: Other common terms for the one supreme reality alongside , dating from the Gurus' time include the most commonly used term, "Akal Purakh", "Eternal One," in the sense of "Nirankar", "the One without form," and "Waheguru" ("Wonderful Sovereign").


title: Ik Onkar

text: In 2019, Air India launched a direct flight from London to Amritsar with the phrase printed in golden colour with a red background, on the tail of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The plane was launched ahead of and in honour of the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak’s birth.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Xiu Xiu ( ) is an American experimental band, formed in 2002 by singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart in San Jose, California. Currently, the line-up consists of Stewart (the only constant member since formation) and Angela Seo. The band's name comes from the film "", which has influenced the sound of their music, according to Stewart.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Xiu Xiu released their first two albums, "Knife Play" (2002) and "A Promise" (2003) on 5 Rue Christine to positive critical reception. In-between the two, the EP "Chapel of the Chimes" was released via Absolutely Kosher. The compilation album "Fag Patrol" was released shortly after, and their third studio album "Fabulous Muscles" was released in 2004. "La Forêt" was released in 2005 after Caralee McElroy joined the group, and "The Air Force" followed in 2006. 2008's "Women as Lovers" was released via the main Kill Rock Stars label in 2008, and McElroy departed the group shortly afterwards.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: "Dear God, I Hate Myself" was released in 2010 and was the first Xiu Xiu album to feature longtime member Angela Seo. Following a signing to Polyvinyl and Bella Union, Xiu Xiu released "Always" (2012) and (2014). In between those two projects, the group released a Nina Simone tribute project, "Nina", in late 2013 via Graveface Records.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: "Plays the Music of Twin Peaks" (2016) followed, an album consisting of covers from the "Twin Peaks" soundtracks originally as a Record Store Day exclusive release but re-released by Polyvinyl later that year. "Forget" (2017) and "Girl with Basket of Fruit" (2019) were released afterwards, and Xiu Xiu released their latest and twelfth album "Oh No" in 2021. Xiu Xiu has confirmed their thirteenth studio album has been sent off to mixing and mastering via their Instagram profile.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Jamie Stewart formed Xiu Xiu in 2002 after his previous band, Ten in the Swear Jar, disbanded. Stewart and Cory McCulloch continued from the previous group, and were joined by Yvonne Chen and Lauren Andrews. The band's sound was characterized by its use of indigenous instruments and programmed drums in place of traditional rock instruments: harmonium, mandolin, brass bells, gongs, keyboards, and a cross between a guitarrón mexicano and a cello for bass, etc.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Xiu Xiu would tour their first LP "Knife Play", and its successor EP, "Chapel of the Chimes", in 2002, blending both melody and cacophony with a heavy reliance on percussive instrumentation and brass instrumentation.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Following 2002, the group would shrink in membership as Yvonne Chen left to focus on her vegan boutique "Otsu" and self-published magazine "Zum", while Cory McCulloch also stopped touring, focusing instead on producing the band's next two LPs. A personal loss would affect Xiu Xiu as well, as Jamie Stewart's father, musician and record producer Michael Stewart was found dead after an apparent suicide. Coping with these losses, Stewart would record the group's follow-up to "Knife Play", 2003's "A Promise".


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Continuing to focus on the subject matter of Jamie Stewart's personal life – as witnessed previously by "Knife Play" – "A Promise" acts like a concept record of internal despair. Consisting of ten tracks, the record was oriented towards a more or less acoustic presentation, rather than relying on the booming brass and percussion which had worked to make "Knife Play". However, the record did not veer from the formulated programming for which Stewart and McCulloch would be praised by fans and critics alike. "A Promise" also contains a cover of Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car", a version that has been praised for its stripped sound and Stewart's distressing vocals.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: During this time, Stewart recorded "Fag Patrol", a collection of previous recorded material as well as covers of songs by The Smiths and his previous group with McCulloch, Ten in the Swear Jar. Released as a handmade CD by Rob Fisk's and Kelly Goodefisk's Free Porcupine Society, "Fag Patrol" was limited to only a few hundred copies (however saw a CD repress in 2005, and a vinyl reissue by Improved Sequence in 2021). In the spring of 2004, Stewart and McCulloch released what is considered by many to be the group's most accessible album, "Fabulous Muscles". More pop-friendly in its sound than previous releases, "Fabulous Muscles" boosted Xiu Xiu to new heights in terms of popularity, largely thanks to its single "I Luv the Valley OH!". The tone of the album reflected an "incredibly, incredibly violent, incredibly jarring, and difficult to take" string of events in Stewart's life. Stewart described his lyrics as "never fictional". He told "Pitchfork" that Xiu Xiu songs are based around five topics: family, politics, sex, love and lovelessness, suicide, and how they are connected.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: With the departure of Lauren Andrews in 2003 – who wished to focus on her academic studies – Stewart was joined on stage by his "long-lost" cousin, Caralee McElroy in 2004. The two would tour relentlessly throughout that year, releasing not only the group's third LP, but also split recordings with This Song Is a Mess But So Am I and Bunkbed, along with the "Fleshettes" single – which featured a rendition of the Ten in the Swear Jar track "Helsabot" by McElroy.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Seen as a return to Stewart's more dark and crabby demeanor, Xiu Xiu's fourth album "La Forêt" alluded to a frustration which Stewart had felt throughout the process of recording the 2004 record. Centered around the topic of "horrible times in horrible lives" as well as Stewart's personal frustrations with then-U.S. President George W. Bush, "La Forêt" is characterized by an altogether different sound – layered by mandolin, harmonium, clarinet, cello, autoharp, and tuba. In addition to "La Forêt", Xiu Xiu would join Italian experimental group Larsen in forming XXL, which released its first LP, "¡Ciaütistico!", in 2005, followed later by its successor "¿Spicchiology?", in 2007. Stewart also issued formative splits throughout 2005, working with artists such as The Paper Chase, Kill Me Tomorrow, and Devendra Banhart.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In 2006, Stewart would break from tradition by ending his professional relationship with McCulloch. He then started recording with San Francisco-based band Deerhoof's drummer Greg Saunier as producer for Xiu Xiu's fifth LP entitled "The Air Force". Saunier, who had previously worked with Stewart on "Knife Play", created for the record a greater wall of sound – a stark contrast to that of McCulloch's discordant attitude towards production. "The Air Force" would be supported throughout 2006 by a three piece ensemble, as Stewart and McElroy were joined by drummer/percussionist Ches Smith, who himself had previously worked with the group on "Knife Play". Produced by Greg Saunier, Stewart said that the album is about "making other people feel bad" instead of feeling bad oneself and the year it was released was "one of the first not dominated by personal tragedies" Its major themes are "guilt and sex as opposed to sorrow and sex". Stewart considered it their best and most consciously pop album yet. He said that the band was obsessed with Weezer's "Blue Album" and The Smiths's "The Queen Is Dead" while on tour, though the album does not reflect those albums particularly. "The Air Force" also contained the band's first album-based songs without vocals by Stewart – with McElroy singing "Hello From Eau Claire", as well as the instrumental piece "Saint Pedro Glue Stick".


title: Xiu Xiu

text: A third EP – "Tu Mi Piaci" ("I like you") – of songs originally recorded by acts such as Bauhaus, Nedelle, Big Star, The Pussycat Dolls, and Nina Simone was released in 2006, along with a collaboration with ambient artist Grouper, entitled "Creepshow". Shortly thereafter, Xiu Xiu would record their sixth album, 2008's "Women as Lovers". Their longest LP to date, "Women as Lovers" attempts to hone the synth-pop influences of the group's sound. Stewart's and McElroy's duet with Michael Gira of Swans on a cover of David Bowie and Queen's "Under Pressure" is representative of this. Touring that year alongside Xiu Xiu aluminist Devin Hoff on bass, the band's second four-piece incarnation would not last long, as Hoff abruptly left the group soon after touring began.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In May 2009, it was revealed that Caralee McElroy would no longer work with Xiu Xiu. Speculations ran as to what reasons McElroy had for leaving the group after five years of recording and touring, though no explanation was given other than her subsequent membership in Manhattan-based darkwave group Cold Cave, which she soon after departed from in 2010. With the vacancies left by both Hoff and McElroy, Stewart and Smith recruited Angela Seo in late 2009. Thereafter, the group would begin work on its seventh LP "Dear God, I Hate Myself", recording in both Oakland, California as well as Durham, North Carolina. Once again shifting motifs, Xiu Xiu would this time choose to experiment with video game-based programming, using the Nintendo DS to write many of the songs which appear on their 2010 release. The music video for the song "Dear God, I Hate Myself" received attention online in 2010. The video consists of Seo inducing vomiting over the course of the three-minute song, culminating with her vomiting on Stewart, who has been eating a chocolate bar during the entire video. Seo and Stewart have defended the video online and in interviews, stating that the video illustrates the subject of the song in an extreme and visceral fashion.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In 2010, Xiu Xiu left Kill Rock Stars and signed with Bella Union and Polyvinyl. Xiu Xiu released "Always" on these new labels in 2012. It was called "magnificent" and given 5 stars by The Independent and given a 9/10 by Drowned in Sound.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In April 2013, Stewart and Eugene Robinson of Oxbow released the collaborative album "Xiu Xiu & Eugene S. Robinson Present: Sal Mineo" on Important Records after having toured Europe together in February to promote the project.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In an email sent to fans on January 28, 2013, Xiu Xiu announced that "Ches Smith, Mary Halvorson, Tim Berne, Tony Malaby, Andrea Parkins and Jamie Stewart just finished recording an album in NYC of free jazz and art song versions of all Nina Simone songs." The album, "Nina", was released on Graveface Records on December 3, 2013.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In the same email, Xiu Xiu also announced that a new Xiu Xiu album was being made. Xiu Xiu said that it is possible that it will be named "" and that "it will be a mean, tight hearted, blackness of Neubauten vs Suicide vs Nico." Angel Guts: Red Classroom was released February 2014. It was given an 8 out of 10 by Drowned in Sound and Mojo. David Hartley of the band War on Drugs praised the album, calling it an "Stereoscopic assault."


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In June 2015, Xiu Xiu started a new Bandcamp page under the title "xiuxiu69". Since its creation, they have self-described the page as an "ephemera shoppe specializing in exclusive, obscure, out of print, experimental & overlooked zonk." The page is used to host projects such as non-studio Xiu Xiu releases, solo Jamie Stewart albums, ambient projects, out of print Xiu Xiu collaborations and recordings from Jamie Stewart's former band Ten In The Swear Jar. Xiuxiu69 also hosts sales of physical music and merchandise, including LPs of Xiu Xiu material and material loosely related to Xiu Xiu such as Jamie Stewart and Lawrence English's band HEXA.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: On November 16, 2016, the band announced their next album "FORGET", set for release on February 24, 2017. The announcement was accompanied with lead single "Wondering", signifying a return to more pop-oriented songwriting.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Xiu Xiu performed a long piece "Deforms the Unborn" based on the demonic possession of children at the Guggenheim Museum in May 2018.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Xiu Xiu released their eleventh new album titled "Girl with Basket of Fruit" on February 8, 2019, via Polyvinyl.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In April 2020, Xiu Xiu started a Bandcamp subscription service titled "XIU MUTHA FUCKIN XIU". At its basic tier, it grants access to a monthly "XIU MUTHA FUCKIN XIU" digital audio package, consisting of a new fully produced cover (notable examples being Xiu Xiu renditions of "Dancing On My Own", "In The Garage" and "Dancing with a Stranger"), an exclusive solo Xiu Xiu song, and an edition of the 12 chapter 120 part experimental piece "Lamentation". So far, two chapters of "Lamentation" have been revealed, chapter one being Spider Lamentation and chapter two being Woodpecker Lamentation. Tier two grants all the above and "30 to 50 license free samples, full stems of one Xiu Xiu song for non commercial exploration". Tier three includes the benefits from tiers one and two and a unique hand-made postcard illustrated by Angela Seo or Jamie Stewart with a haiku written to you and posted on the Xiuxiu69 Bandcamp page.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Their twelfth album, "Oh No", was released on March 26, 2021. Its lead single, "A Bottle of Rum" featuring Liz Harris, was released along with the album's announcement on January 27, 2021. Its second single, "Rumpus Room" featuring Liars, was released on March 4, 2021.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: The band's name comes from the film "". The band found its first tracks to match the "rotten realness" spirit of the film, "that sometimes life turns out with a worst possible case scenario". Stewart said Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car", which Xiu Xiu covered on "A Promise", had a similar theme.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Stewart has added that the band was a product of San Jose pirate radio stations that played house, hi-NRG, freestyle, and techno, which Stewart considered unpretentious, plain, heartbroken, clear, and based around dancing away sadness. He said he wrote his first Xiu Xiu song after leaving a San Jose dance club alone on a Christmas night: "Xiu Xiu came from feeling stupid and lonely and then wanting to dance it away, but having the club and its music only magnify that stupid and lonely feeling." At the time of "A Promise", Stewart said that he was influenced by gamelan and Japanese and Korean folk music, and had been listening to contemporary classical and "gay dance music".


title: Xiu Xiu

text: In 2003, Stewart told Pitchfork that the band's live shows were starkly different from the recorded material. He said this was largely due to the technical limitations of being able to reproduce the way it was recorded. In their live shows, the band increased the intensity of their loud rock parts, though Stewart reported their set to be half "louder, more dance-y stuff" and half "really quiet stuff". He said the latter was sometimes at odds with the type of venues they played.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: "Metro Silicon Valley"s David Espinoza likened Stewart to an explorer charting new territories of sound in 2001 as he started Xiu Xiu. He compared Stewart's voice to a combination of Robert Smith's fragility and "The Downward Spiral"-era Trent Reznor's anger, and noted Stewart's deliberate and considered choices towards developing the band's tone in light of the disparate wackiness of the individual instruments.


title: Xiu Xiu

text: Brandon Stosuy of "Pitchfork" noted a "continual poetic and romantic beauty" behind "the violence" in Stewart's lyrics. He wrote that the band inspired fandom of the kind where teenage girls ask for Stewart's autograph.


title: David Walton (actor)

text: David B. Walton (born October 27, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for his role in the television sitcom "Cracking Up" (2004), as Liam Connor. He has starred in several television programs, including the drama series "Heist" (2006), comedy series "New Girl" (2012–2018), and on the NBC comedies "Perfect Couples" (2010–2011), "Bent" (2012), and "About a Boy" (2014–2015). He played Dr. Rick in the comedy film "Fired Up!" (2009).


title: David Walton (actor)

text: Born in Boston, Massachusetts, to John Hunter Walton Jr. and his wife, Carolyn K. Walton, he is one of seven siblings.


title: David Walton (actor)

text: Walton graduated from St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire in 1997. He is a 2001 graduate of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.


title: David Walton (actor)

text: On March 18, 2011, Walton married actress Majandra Delfino in Miami, Florida. They have two children, daughter Cecilia Delphine Walton (born June 14, 2012) and son Louis Augustus Walton (born November 10, 2013).


title: Camellia japonica

text: Camellia japonica, known as common camellia, or Japanese camellia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Theaceae. There are thousands of cultivars of "C. japonica" in cultivation, with many colors and forms of flowers. In the U.S. it is sometimes called japonica.


title: Camellia japonica

text: In the wild, it is found in mainland China (Shandong, east Zhejiang), Taiwan, southern Korea and southwestern Japan. It grows in forests, at altitudes of around . Camellias are famous throughout East Asia; they are known as "tsaa4 faa1" (, lit. "tea flower") in Cantonese, "cháhuā" () in Mandarin Chinese, "tsubaki" () in Japanese, "dongbaek-kkot" () in Korean, and as "hoa trà" or "hoa chè" in Vietnamese.


title: Camellia japonica

text: "Camellia japonica" is a flowering tree or shrub, usually tall, but occasionally up to tall. Some cultivated varieties achieve a size of 72 m or more. The youngest branches are purplish brown, becoming grayish brown as they age. The alternately arranged leathery leaves are dark green on the top side, paler on the underside, usually long by wide with a stalk (petiole) about long. The base of the leaf is pointed (cuneate), the margins are very finely toothed (serrulate) and the tip somewhat pointed.


title: Camellia japonica

text: In the wild, flowering is between January and March. The flowers appear along the branches, particularly towards the ends, and have very short stems. They occur either alone or in pairs, and are across. There are about nine greenish bracteoles and sepals. Flowers of the wild species have six or seven rose or white petals, each long by wide; the innermost petals are joined at the base for up to a third of their length. (Cultivated forms often have more petals.) The numerous stamens are long, the outer whorl being joined at the base for up to . The three-lobed style is about long.


title: Camellia japonica

text: The fruit consists of a globe-shaped capsule with three compartments (locules), each with one or two large brown seeds with a diameter of . Fruiting occurs in September to October in the wild.


title: Camellia japonica

text: "C. japonica" leaves are eaten by the caterpillars of some Lepidoptera, such as the engrailed ("Ectropis crepuscularia"). The Japanese white eye bird ("Zosterops japonica") pollinates "Camellia japonica".


title: Camellia japonica

text: The genus "Camellia" was named after a Jesuit priest and botanist named Georg Kamel. The specific epithet "japonica" was given to the species by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 because Engelbert Kaempfer was the first to give a description of the plant while in Japan.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Two varieties are distinguished in the "Flora of China": "C. japonica" var. "japonica" and "C. japonica" var. "rusticana"


title: Camellia japonica

text: "C. japonica" var. "japonica" is the form named by Linnaeus, and naturally occurs in forests at altitudes of in Shandong, eastern Zhejiang in mainland China and in Taiwan, south Japan, and South Korea. The leaf has a glabrous stem (petiole) about long. The bracteoles and sepals are velutinous (velvety). It flowers between January and March, and fruits in between September and October. It is grown as a garden plant in the form of many cultivars throughout the world.


title: Camellia japonica

text: "Camellia japonica" var. "rusticana" naturally occurs in forests in Zhejiang (island of Zhoushan Qundao) in mainland China and in Honshu, Japan. The leaf has a shorter petiole, about long, with fine hairs (pubescent) at the base. The bracteoles and sepals are smooth (glabrous) on the outside. The color of the flowers ranges from red through rose to pink, flowering in April to May. This variety is regarded by some botanical authorities to be a separate species: "Camellia rusticana".


title: Camellia japonica

text: In Japan it is known by the common name "yuki-tsubaki" (snow camellia) as it naturally occurs in areas of heavy snowfall at altitudes ranging from down to on sloping land under deciduous beech trees in the mountain regions to the north of the main island of Honshu and facing the Sea of Japan. In December heavy drifts of snow come in from the north, covering the plants to a depth of up to . The bushes remain covered by snow from December till the end of March when the snow melts in early Spring and the camellias start flowering.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Cultivars of "C. japonica" var. "rusticana" include: 'Nishiki-kirin', 'Nishiki-no-mine', 'Toyo-no-hikari' and 'Otome'.


title: Camellia japonica

text: "Camellia japonica" has appeared in paintings and porcelain in China since the 11th century. Early paintings of the plant are usually of the single red flowering type. However, a single white flowering plant is shown in the scroll of the "Four Magpies" of the Song Dynasty.


title: Camellia japonica

text: The first records of camellias in Australia pertain to a consignment to Alexander Macleay of Sydney that arrived in 1826 and were planted in Sydney at Elizabeth Bay House.


title: Camellia japonica

text: In 1838 six "C. japonica" plants were imported by the botanist, horticulturist and agriculturist William Macarthur. During the years that followed he brought in several hundred varieties and grew them at Camden Park Estate. For many years Macarthur's nursery was one of the main sources of supply to the colony in Australia of ornamental plants, as well as fruit trees and vines.


title: Camellia japonica

text: In 1845, William Macarthur wrote to the London nurseryman Conrad Loddiges, acknowledging receipt of camellias and mentioning: "I have raised four or five hundred seedlings of camellia, chiefly from seeds produced by 'Anemoniflora'. As this variety never has anthers of its own, I fertilised its blossoms with pollen of "C. reticulata" and Sp. "maliflora"." Although most of Macarthur's seedling varieties have been lost to cultivation, some are still popular today, including 'Aspasia Macarthur' (named after him).


title: Camellia japonica

text: A well-known camellia nursery in Sydney was "Camellia Grove", set up in 1852 by Silas Sheather who leased land adjoining the Parramatta River on what was originally part of Elizabeth Farm. "Fuller's Sydney Handbook" of 1877 describes his nursery as having 59 varieties of camellias. Camellia and other flowers from Sheather's nursery were sent by steamship downriver to florists at Sydney Markets, tied in bunches and suspended from long pieces of wood which were hung up about the decks. Silas Sheather developed a number of camellia cultivars, the most popular (and still commercially grown) were "C. japonica" 'Prince Frederick William' and "C. japonica" 'Harriet Beecher Sheather', named after his daughter. The area in the vicinity of Sheather's nursery was eventually made a suburb and named Camellia, in honor of Camellia Grove nursery.


title: Camellia japonica

text: By 1883, Shepherd and Company, the leading nurserymen in Australia at the time, listed 160 varieties of "Camellia japonica".


title: Camellia japonica

text: Associate Professor Eben Gowrie Waterhouse was a scholar, linguist, garden designer and camellia expert who brought about a worldwide revival of interest in the genus in the first half of the twentieth century. The E.G. Waterhouse National Camellia Garden in Sydney, Australia is named after him.


title: Camellia japonica

text: According to a research conducted in 1959, by Dr. Frederick Meyer, of the United States Department of Agriculture, the camellias of Campo Bello (Portugal) are the oldest known specimens in Europe, which would have been planted around 1550, that is to say, these trees are nowadays approximately 460 years old. However it is said that the camellia was first brought to the West in 1692 by Engelbert Kaempfer, Chief Surgeon to the Dutch East India Company. He brought details of over 30 varieties back from Asia. Camellias were introduced into Europe during the 18th century and had already been cultivated in the Orient for thousands of years. Robert James of Essex, England, is thought to have brought back the first live camellia to England in 1739. On his return from Dejima, Carl Peter Thunberg made a short trip to London where he made the acquaintance of Sir Joseph Banks. Thunberg donated to Kew Botanic Gardens four specimens of "Camellia japonica". One of these was supposedly given in 1780 to the botanical garden of Pillnitz Castle near Dresden in Germany where it currently measures in height and in diameter.


title: Camellia japonica

text: The oldest trees of "Camellia japonica" in Europe can be found in Campobello (Portugal), Caserta (Italy) and Pillnitz (Germany). These were probably planted at the end of the 16th century.


title: Camellia japonica

text: In the U.S., camellias were first sold in 1807 as greenhouse plants, but were soon distributed to be grown outdoors in the south.


title: Camellia japonica

text: In Charleston, South Carolina, the estate garden of Magnolia-on-the-Ashley introduced hundreds of new "Camellia japonica" cultivars from the 19th century onwards, and its recently restored collection has been designated an International Camellia Garden of Excellence. "Debutante", a popular variety, was originally introduced by Magnolia as "Sarah C. Hastie". The name was changed to give it more marketing appeal.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Cross-breeding of camellias has produced many cultivars which are tolerant of hardiness zone 6 winters. These camellia varieties can grow in the milder parts of the lower Midwest (St. Louis, for example), Pacific Northwest, NYC area (NYC/NJ/CT), and even Ontario, Canada (near edge of the Great Lakes).


title: Camellia japonica

text: "Camellia japonica" is valued for its flowers, which can be single, semi-double or double flowered. There are more than 2,000 cultivars developed from "C. japonica". The shade of the flowers can vary from red to pink to white; they sometimes have multi-coloured stripes or specks. Cultivars include 'Elegans' with large pink flowers which often have white streaks, 'Giulio Nuccio' with red to pinkish petals and yellow stamens, 'Mathotiana Alba' with pure white flowers, and the light crimson semi-double-flowered 'The Czar'.


title: Camellia japonica

text: "C. japonica" 'Alba Plena' is nicknamed the "Bourbon Camellia". Captain Connor of the East Indiaman , brought the flower to England in 1792. The flowers are pure white and about 3 to 4 inches across. It blooms earlier than most cultivated camellias, in the early winter or spring, and can flower for 4 to 5 months.


title: Camellia japonica

text: The zig-zag camellia or "C. japonica" 'Unryu' has different zig-zag branching patterns. "Unryu" means "dragon in the clouds" in Japanese; the Japanese believe it looks like a dragon climbing up to the sky. Another type of rare camellia is called the fishtail camellia or "C. japonica" 'Kingyo-tsubaki'. The tips of the leaves of this plant resemble a fish's tail.


title: Camellia japonica

text: The following is a selection of cultivars that have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:


title: Camellia japonica

text: Camellia flower forms are quite varied but the main types are single, semi-double, formal double, informal double and elegans (or anemone) form.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Single flowers have five to a maximum of eight petals in one row, petals loose, regular or irregular. May include petaloids; prominent display of stamens & pistils.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Two or more rows of large regular, irregular or loose outer petals (nine or more) with an uninterrupted cluster of stamens. May include petaloids; petals may overlap or be set in rows for 'hose in hose' effect.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Many rows and number of petals (sometimes more than a hundred), regularly disposed, tiered or imbricated, but no visible stamens. Usually with a central cone of tightly furled petals.


title: Camellia japonica

text: One or more rows of large outer petals lying flat or undulating, with a mass of intermingled petaloids and stamens in the center. Also called "Anemone Form".


title: Camellia japonica

text: A mass of raised petals with petaloids (parts of the flower that have assumed the appearance of small, narrow or twisted petals). Stamens may or may not be visible. Also called "Peony Form".


title: Camellia japonica

text: Camellias should be planted in the shade in organic, somewhat acidic, semi-moist but well drained soil. If the soil is not well drained, it can cause the roots to rot.


title: Camellia japonica

text: As a "Camellia" species, "C. japonica" can be used to make tea. Its processed leaves show aromatic fragrance. It contains caffeine and catechins of the same kind as "C. sinensis".


title: Camellia japonica

text: Some fungal and algal diseases include: Spot Disease, which gives the upper side of leaves a silver color and round spots, and can cause loss of leaves; Black Mold; Leaf Spot; Leaf Gall; Flower Blight, which causes flowers to become brown and fall; Root Rot; and Canker caused by the fungus "Glomerella cingulata", which penetrates plants through wounds.


title: Camellia japonica

text: Some insects and pests of "C. japonica" are the Fuller Rose Beetle "Pantomorus cervinus", the mealybugs "Planococcus citri" and "Pseudococcus longispinus", the weevils "Otiorhyncus salcatus" and "Otiorhyncus ovatus", and the tea scale "Fiorinia theae".


title: Camellia japonica

text: Some physiological diseases include salt injury which results from high levels of salt in soil; chlorosis which is thought to be caused lack of certain elements in the soil or insufficient acidity preventing their absorption by the roots; bud drop which causes loss or decay of buds, and can be caused by over-watering, high temperatures, or pot-bound roots. Other diseases are oedema and sunburn. Not much is known about viral diseases in "C. japonica".


title: Camellia japonica

text: Camellias are seen as lucky symbols for the Chinese New Year and spring and were even used as offerings to the gods during the Chinese New Year. It is also thought that Chinese women would never wear a Camellia in their hair because it opened much later after the bud formed. This was thought to signify that she would not have a son for a long time.


title: Camellia japonica

text: The following is a poem written by English evangelical Protestant writer Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna in 1834:


title: Leonard Chess

text: Lejzor Szmuel Czyż (March 12, 1917 – October 16, 1969), best known as Leonard Sam Chess, was a Polish-American record company executive and the co-founder of Chess Records. He was influential in the development of electric blues, Chicago blues, and rock and roll.


title: Leonard Chess

text: Chess was born to Polish-Jewish parents in Motal, now in Belarus. He and his brother, Fiszel, sister, Malka, and mother arrived in New York in 1928 from Poland. They quickly went to Chicago to join their father, Joseph, who was already engaged in the liquor business, which was illegal at the height of Prohibition and controlled in Chicago by Al Capone. The family name was changed to Chess, with Lejzor becoming Leonard and Fiszel becoming Philip.


title: Leonard Chess

text: Leonard and his brother Phil became involved in the black nightclub scene on the South Side of Chicago in 1938 running a series of jazz clubs, culminating in the Macomba Lounge. In 1947, Leonard became associated with Aristocrat Records, increasing his share in the company over time; eventually he and Phil would acquire complete control. The Chess brothers moved the company away from black pop and jazz and other genres into down home blues music with artists such as Muddy Waters. In 1950, the Chess brothers renamed the company Chess Records. "My Foolish Heart" (Gene Ammons), "Rollin' Stone" (Muddy Waters), and "That's All Right" (Jimmy Rogers) were among the first releases on the new label. Leonard Chess played bass drum on one of Muddy Waters' sessions in 1951, specifically on the tracks "She Moves Me" and "Still A Fool".


title: Leonard Chess

text: Chess contacted Sam Phillips (of Sun Records) to help find and record new artists from the South. Phillips supplied Chess with recordings by Howlin' Wolf, Rufus Thomas, and Doctor Ross among others. Of these, Howlin' Wolf in particular became very popular, and Chess Records had to vie for him with other companies which had also been supplied with Wolf recordings by Phillips. In time, other important artists signed with Chess Records, including Bo Diddley and Sonny Boy Williamson, while Willie Dixon and Robert Lockwood Jr. took on a significant role behind the scenes. In the 1950s, Chess Records' commercial success grew with artists such as Little Walter, The Moonglows, The Flamingos, and Chuck Berry, and in the '60s with Etta James, Fontella Bass, Koko Taylor, Little Milton, Laura Lee, and Tommy Tucker, as well as with the subsidiary labels Checker, Argo, and Cadet. As the 1960s progressed, Chess's recording enterprise branched out into other genres including gospel, traditional jazz, spoken word, comedy, and more. In the early 1960s, Chess became involved in the broadcasting business as part owner of WVON-AM radio and later acquired WSDM-FM, both in Chicago.


title: Leonard Chess

text: In 1941, he married Revetta Sloan, who was also Jewish; they had three children: son Marshall and two daughters, Elaine and Susie. On October 16, 1969, a few months after selling his namesake label to General Recorded Tape, Leonard Chess died of a heart attack. He was buried at Westlawn Cemetery in Norridge, Illinois.


title: Leonard Chess

text: Music industry historian John Broven has written that "Leonard Chess was the dynamo behind Chess Records, the label that, along with Atlantic and Sun, has come to epitomize the independent record business. ... Leonard Chess set new standards for the industry in artist development, deal making, networking, and marketing and promotion…" He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, posthumously, in the non-performer category.


title: Leonard Chess

text: Chess was the focus of 2008 movies "Cadillac Records" (portrayed by Adrien Brody) and "Who Do You Love?" (portrayed by Alessandro Nivola) which are also fictional accounts of the ascent (and descent) of the label itself and the personnel who were involved or recorded at Chess Records.


title: Wet season

text: The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the season lasts at least a month. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the tropics and subtropics.


title: Wet season

text: Under the Köppen climate classification, for tropical climates, a wet season month is defined as a month where average precipitation is or more. In contrast to areas with savanna climates and monsoon regimes, Mediterranean climates have wet winters and dry summers. Dry and rainy months are characteristic of tropical seasonal forests: in contrast to tropical rainforests, which do not have dry or wet seasons, since their rainfall is equally distributed throughout the year. Some areas with pronounced rainy seasons will see a break in rainfall mid-season, when the intertropical convergence zone or monsoon trough moves to higher latitudes in the middle of the warm season.


title: Wet season

text: When the wet season occurs during a warm season, or summer, precipitation falls mainly during the late afternoon and early evening. In the wet season, air quality improves, fresh water quality improves, and vegetation grows substantially, leading to crop yields late in the season. Rivers overflow their banks, and some animals retreat to higher ground. Soil nutrients diminish and erosion increases. The incidence of malaria and dengue increases in areas where the rainy season coincides with high temperatures, particularly in tropical areas. Some animals have adaptation and survival strategies for the wet season. Often, the previous dry season leads to food shortages in the wet season, as the crops have yet to mature. Crops which can be successfully planted during the wet or rainy season are cassava, maize, groundnut, millet, rice and yam.


title: Wet season

text: In areas where the heavy rainfall is associated with a wind shift, the wet season is known as the monsoon season. Many tropical and subtropical climates experience monsoon rainfall patterns. Rainfall in the wet season is mainly due to daytime heating, which leads to diurnal thunderstorm activity within a pre-existing moist airmass , so the rain mainly falls in late afternoon and early evening in savannah and monsoon regions.


title: Wet season

text: Much of the total rainfall each day occurs in the first minutes of the downpour, before the storms mature into their stratiform stage. Most places have only one wet season, but areas of the tropics can have two wet seasons, because the monsoon trough, or Intertropical Convergence Zone, can pass over locations in the tropics twice per year. However, since rain forests have rainfall spread evenly through the year, they do not have a wet season.


title: Wet season

text: Areas with a savanna climate in Sub-Saharan Africa, such as Ghana, Burkina Faso, Darfur, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Botswana have a distinct rainy season. Also subtropical areas like Florida, South and Southeast Texas, and southern Louisiana have a rainy season. Monsoon regions include the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia (including Indonesia and Philippines), northern sections of Australia, Polynesia, Central America, western and southern Mexico, the Desert Southwest of the United States, southern Guyana, and northeast Brazil.


title: Wet season

text: Northern Guyana has two wet seasons: one in early spring and the other in early winter. In western Africa, there are two rainy seasons across southern sections, but only one across the north. Within the Mediterranean climate regime, the west coast of the United States, the southwest coast of Australia and South Africa, the Mediterranean coastline of Italy, Spain, Greece, Lebanon, Syria, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Turkey, as well as areas further inland in Western Asia which include Jordan, Northern Iraq and most parts of Iran, experience a wet season in the winter months. Similarly, the wet season in the Negev desert of Israel extends from October through May. At the boundary between the Mediterranean and monsoon climates lies the Sonoran desert, which receives the two rainy seasons associated with each climate regime.


title: Wet season

text: The wet season is known by many different local names throughout the world. For example, in Mexico it is known as "storm season". Different names are given to the various short "seasons" of the year by the Aboriginal tribes of Northern Australia: the wet season typically experienced there from December to March is called "Gudjewg". The precise meaning of the word is disputed, although it is widely accepted to relate to the severe thunderstorms, flooding, and abundant vegetation growth commonly experienced at this time.


title: Wet season

text: In tropical areas, when the monsoon arrives, high daytime high temperatures drop and overnight low temperatures increase, thus reducing diurnal temperature variation. During the wet season, a combination of heavy rainfall and, in some places such as Hong Kong, an onshore wind, improve air quality.


title: Wet season

text: In Brazil, the wet season is correlated with weaker trade winds off the ocean. The pH level of water becomes more balanced due to the charging of local aquifers during the wet season. Water also softens, as the concentration of dissolved materials reduces during the rainy season. Erosion is also increased during rainy periods.


title: Wet season

text: Arroyos that are dry at other times of the year fill with runoff, in some cases with water as deep as . Leaching of soils during periods of heavy rainfall depletes nutrients. The higher runoff from land masses affects nearby ocean areas, which are more stratified, or less mixed, due to stronger surface currents forced by the heavy rainfall runoff.


title: Wet season

text: High rainfall can cause widespread flooding, which can lead to landslides and mudflows in mountainous areas. Such floods cause rivers to burst their banks and submerge homes. The Ghaggar-Hakra River, which only flows during India's monsoon season, can flood and severely damage local crops. Floods can be exacerbated by fires that occurred during the previous dry season, which cause soils which are sandy or composed of loam to become hydrophobic, or water repellent. In various ways governments may help people deal with wet season floods. Flood plain mapping identifies which areas are more prone to flooding. Instructions on controlling erosion through outreach are also provided by telephone or the internet.


title: Wet season

text: The wet season is the main period of vegetation growth within the Savanna climate regime. However, this also means that wet season is a time for food shortages before crops reach their full maturity. This causes seasonal weight changes for people in developing countries, with a drop occurring during the wet season until the time of the first harvest, when weights rebound. Malaria incidence increases during periods of high temperature and heavy rainfall.


title: Wet season

text: Cows calve, or give birth, at the beginning of the wet season. The onset of the rainy season signals the departure of the monarch butterfly from Mexico. Tropical species of butterflies show larger dot markings on their wings to fend off possible predators and are more active during the wet season than the dry season. Within the tropics and warmer areas of the subtropics, decreased salinity of near shore wetlands due to the rains causes an increase in crocodile nesting. Other species, such as the arroyo toad, spawn within the couple of months after the seasonal rains. Armadillos and rattlesnakes seek higher ground.


title: Sadness

text: Sadness is an emotional pain associated with, or characterized by, feelings of disadvantage, loss, despair, grief, helplessness, disappointment and sorrow. An individual experiencing sadness may become quiet or lethargic, and withdraw themselves from others. An example of severe sadness is depression, a mood which can be brought on by major depressive disorder or persistent depressive disorder. Crying can be an indication of sadness.


title: Sadness

text: Sadness is one of the six basic emotions described by Paul Ekman, along with happiness, anger, surprise, fear, and disgust.


title: Sadness

text: Sadness is a common experience in childhood. Sometimes, sadness can lead to depression. Some families may have a (conscious or unconscious) rule that sadness is "not allowed", but Robin Skynner has suggested that this may cause problems, arguing that with sadness "screened off", people can become shallow and manic. Pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton suggests that acknowledging sadness can make it easier for families to address more serious emotional problems.


title: Sadness

text: Sadness is part of the normal process of the child separating from an early symbiosis with the mother and becoming more independent. Every time a child separates a little more, he or she will have to cope with a small loss. If the mother cannot allow the minor distress involved, the child may never learn how to deal with sadness by themselves. Brazelton argues that too much cheering a child up devalues the emotion of sadness for them; and Selma Fraiberg suggests that it is important to respect a child's right to experience a loss fully and deeply.


title: Sadness

text: Margaret Mahler also saw the ability to feel sadness as an emotional achievement, as opposed for example to warding it off through restless hyperactivity. D. W. Winnicott similarly saw in sad crying the psychological root of valuable musical experiences in later life.


title: Sadness

text: A large amount of research has been conducted on the neuroscience of sadness. According to the "American Journal of Psychiatry", sadness has been found to be associated with "increases in bilateral activity within the vicinity of the middle and posterior temporal cortex, lateral cerebellum, cerebellar vermis, midbrain, putamen, and caudate." Jose V. Pardo has his M.D and Ph.D and leads a research program in cognitive neuroscience. Using positron emission tomography (PET) Pardo and his colleagues were able to provoke sadness among seven normal men and women by asking them to think about sad things. They observed increased brain activity in the bilateral inferior and orbitofrontal cortex. In a study that induced sadness in subjects by showing emotional film clips, the feeling was correlated with significant increases in regional brain activity, especially in the prefrontal cortex, in the region called Brodmann's area 9, and the thalamus. A significant increase in activity was also observed in the bilateral anterior temporal structures.


title: Sadness

text: People deal with sadness in different ways, and it is an important emotion because it helps to motivate people to deal with their situation. Some coping mechanisms include: getting social support and/or spending time with a pet, creating a list, or engaging in some activity to express sadness. Some individuals, when feeling sad, may exclude themselves from a social setting, so as to take the time to recover from the feeling.


title: Sadness

text: While being one of the moods people most want to shake, sadness can sometimes be perpetuated by the very coping strategies chosen, such as ruminating, "drowning one's sorrows", or permanently isolating oneself. As alternative ways of coping with sadness to the above, cognitive behavioral therapy suggests instead either challenging one's negative thoughts, or scheduling some positive event as a distraction.


title: Sadness

text: Being attentive to, and patient with, one's sadness may also be a way for people to learn through solitude; while emotional support to help people stay with their sadness can be further helpful. Such an approach is fueled by the underlying belief that loss (when felt wholeheartedly) can lead to a new sense of aliveness, and to a re-engagement with the outside world.


title: Sadness

text: Pupil size may be an indicator of sadness. A sad facial expression with small pupils is judged to be more intensely sad as the pupil size decreases. A person's own pupil size also mirrors this and becomes smaller when viewing sad faces with small pupils. No parallel effect exists when people look at neutral, happy or angry expressions. The greater degree to which a person's pupils mirror another predicts a person's greater score on empathy. In disorders such as autism and psychopathy, facial expressions that represent sadness may be subtle, which may show a need for a more non-linguistic situation to affect their level of empathy.


title: Sadness

text: According to DIPR scientist Swati Johar, sadness is an emotion "identified by current speech dialogue and processing systems". Measurements to distinguish sadness from other emotions in the human voice include root mean square (RMS) energy, inter-word silence and speaking rate. It is communicated mostly by lowering the mean and variability of the fundamental frequency ("f"), besides being associated with lower vocal intensity, and with decreases in "f" over time. Johar argues that, "when someone is sad, slow, low pitched speech with weak high audio frequency energy is produced". Likewise, "low energy state of sadness attributes to slow tempo, lower speech rate and mean pitch".


title: Sadness

text: Sadness is, as stated by Klaus Scherer, one of the "best-recognized emotions in the human voice", although it's "generally somewhat lower than that of facial expression". In a study by Scherer, it was found that in Western countries sadness had 79% of accuracy for facial recognition and 71% for vocal, while in Non-Western countries the results were of 74% and 58%, respectively.


title: Sadness

text: During the Renaissance, Edmund Spenser in "The Faerie Queene" endorsed sadness as a marker of spiritual commitment.


title: Sadness

text: In "The Lord of the Rings", sadness is distinguished from unhappiness, to exemplify J. R. R. Tolkien's preference for a sad, but settled determination, as opposed to what he saw as the shallower temptations of either despair or hope.


title: Sadness

text: Julia Kristeva considered that "a diversification of moods, variety in sadness, refinement in sorrow or mourning are the imprint of a humanity that is surely not triumphant but subtle, ready to fight and creative".


title: Gardasil

text: Gardasil is an HPV vaccine for use in the prevention of certain strains of human papillomavirus (HPV). It was developed by Merck & Co. High-risk human papilloma virus (hr-HPV) genital infection is the most common sexually transmitted infection among women. The HPV strains that Gardasil protects against are sexually transmitted, specifically HPV types 6, 11, 16 and 18. HPV types 16 and 18 cause an estimated 70% of cervical cancers, and are responsible for most HPV-induced anal, vulvar, vaginal, and penile cancer cases. HPV types 6 and 11 cause an estimated 90% of genital warts cases. HPV type 16 is responsible for almost 90% of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancers, and the prevalence is higher in males than females. Though Gardasil does not treat existing infection, vaccination is still recommended for HPV-positive individuals, as it may protect against one or more different strains of the disease.


title: Gardasil

text: The vaccine was approved for medical use in the United States in 2006, initially for use in females aged 9–26. In 2007, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended Gardasil for routine vaccination of girls aged 11 and 12 years. As of August 2009, vaccination was recommended for both males and females before adolescence and the beginning of potential sexual activity. By 2011, the vaccine had been approved in 120 other countries.


title: Gardasil

text: In 2014, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a nine-valent version, Gardasil 9, to protect against infection with the strains covered by the first generation of Gardasil as well as five other HPV strains responsible for 20% of cervical cancers (types 31, 33, 45, 52, and 58). In 2018, the FDA approved expanded use of Gardasil 9 for individuals aged 27 through 45 years old.


title: Gardasil

text: Gardasil is available as Gardasil which protects against 4-types of HPV (6, 11, 16, 18) and Gardasil 9 which protects against an additional 5-types (31, 33, 45, 52, 58).


title: Gardasil

text: In the European Union, Gardasil is indicated for active immunization of individuals from the age of nine years against the following HPV diseases:


title: Gardasil

text: Gardasil is a vaccine to prevent HPV, that, for maximum effect, is recommended for individuals prior to their becoming sexually active. Moreover, evidence supports the conclusion that women who were already infected with one or more of the four HPV types targeted by the vaccine (HPV types 6, 11, 16, or 18) were protected from clinical disease caused by the remaining HPV types in the vaccine. HPV types 16 and 18 cause an estimated 70% of cervical cancers, and are responsible for most HPV-induced anal cancers. Gardasil also protects against vulvar and vaginal cancers caused by HPV types 16 and 18, as well as most penile cancers caused by these two HPV types.


title: Gardasil

text: In addition, protection against HPV types 6 and 11 may eliminate up to 90% of the cases of genital warts. Common plantar warts—e.g., caused by HPV types 1, 2, and 4—are not prevented by this vaccine.


title: Gardasil

text: In 2010, Gardasil was approved by the FDA for prevention of anal cancer and associated precancerous lesions due to HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18 in people aged 9 through 26 years.


title: Gardasil

text: HPV infections, especially HPV 16, contribute to some head and neck cancer (HPV is found in an estimated 26–35% of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma).<ref name="doi:10.1186/1758-3284-1-36"></ref> In principle, HPV vaccines may help reduce incidence of such cancers caused by HPV, but this has not been demonstrated. In June 2020, the FDA approved the use of Gardasil for the prevention of head and neck cancers.


title: Gardasil

text: The FDA approved Gardasil 9 for women and men aged 27 to 45 based on the vaccine being 88% effective against persistent HPV infections that cause certain types genital warts and cancers in females. Vaccine efficacy in males in this age group was inferred.


title: Gardasil

text: A 2020 longitudinal study tracking over 1.6 million Swedish girls and women over an eleven-year period found half as many cervical cancer cases in all women who had been vaccinated, and amongst women who had been vaccinated before the age of 17 a 78% reduction in cervical cancer, "a substantially reduced risk of invasive cervical cancer at the population level."


title: Gardasil

text: The National Cancer Institute says, "To date, protection against the targeted HPV types has been found to last for at least 10 years with Gardasil, at least 9 years with Cervarix, and at least 6 years with Gardasil 9. Long-term studies of vaccine efficacy that are still in progress will help scientists better understand the total duration of protection."


title: Gardasil

text: Gardasil has been shown to be partially effective (approximately 38%) in preventing cervical cancer caused by ten other high-risk HPV types.


title: Gardasil

text: Antibody levels at month 3 (one month post-dose number two) are substantially higher than at month 24 (18 months post-dose number three), suggesting that protection is achieved by month 3 and perhaps earlier. In 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended that countries offer the vaccine in a two dose schedule to girls aged under 15, with each dose at least six months apart. The United Kingdom, Switzerland, Mexico, and Quebec province of Canada are among the countries or territories that have implemented this . The CDC recommended the vaccines be delivered in two shots over six months.


title: Gardasil

text: Gardasil is also effective in males, providing protection against genital warts, anal warts, anal cancer, and some potentially precancerous lesions caused by some HPV types. Gardasil vaccine has been shown to decrease the risk of young men contracting genital warts. In the United States, the FDA approved administration of the Gardasil vaccine to males between ages 9 and 26 in 2009. The FDA approved administration of the Gardasil 9 vaccine to males between ages 9 and 15 in 2014, and extended the age indication, by including males between ages 16 and 26, in 2015. In the UK, HPV vaccines are licensed for males aged 9 to 15 and for females aged 9 to 26.


title: Gardasil

text: Men who have sex with men (MSM) are particularly at risk for conditions associated with HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18; diseases and cancers that have a higher incidence among MSM include anal intraepithelial neoplasias, anal cancers, and genital warts. HPV type 16 is also responsible for almost 90% of HPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous-cell carcinoma (OPSCC), a form of cancer that affects the mouth, tonsils, and throat; the prevalence of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancers is higher in males than females. A 2005 study found that 95% of HIV-infected gay men also had anal HPV infection, of whom 50% had precancerous HPV-caused lesions.


title: Gardasil

text: Gardasil is given in three injections over six months. The second injection is two months after the first, and the third injection is six months after the first shot was administered. Alternatively, in some countries it is given as two injections with at least six months between them, for individuals aged 9 years up to and including 13 years.


title: Gardasil

text: , more than 170 million doses of Gardasil had been distributed worldwide. The vaccine was tested in thousands of females (ages 9 to 26). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) consider the vaccine to be safe. It does not contain mercury, thiomersal, live viruses or dead viruses, but virus-like particles, which cannot reproduce in the human body.


title: Gardasil

text: The vaccine has mostly minor side effects, such as pain around the injection area. Fainting is more common among adolescents receiving the Gardasil vaccine than in other kinds of vaccinations. Patients should remain seated for 15 minutes after they receive the HPV vaccine. There have been reports that the shot is more painful than other common vaccines, and the manufacturer Merck partly attributes this to the virus-like particles within the vaccine. General side effects of the shot may include joint and muscle pain, fatigue, physical weakness and general malaise.


title: Gardasil

text: The FDA and the CDC said that with millions of vaccinations "by chance alone some serious adverse effects and deaths" will occur in the time period following vaccination, but they have nothing to do with the vaccine. More than twenty women who received the Gardasil vaccine have died, but these deaths have not been causally connected to the shot, as correlation does not imply causation. Where information has been available, the cause of death was explained by other factors. Likewise, a small number of cases of Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) have been reported following vaccination with Gardasil, though there is no evidence linking GBS to the vaccine. It is unknown why a person develops GBS, or what initiates the disease.


title: Gardasil

text: The FDA and the CDC monitor events to see if there are patterns, or more serious events than would be expected from chance alone. The majority (68%) of side effects data were reported by the manufacturer, but in about 90% of the manufacturer reported events, no follow-up information was given that would be useful to investigate the event further. In February 2009, the Spanish Ministry of Health suspended use of one batch of Gardasil after health authorities in the Valencia region reported that two girls had become ill after receiving the injection. Merck has stated that there was no evidence Gardasil was responsible for the two illnesses.


title: Gardasil

text: The HPV major capsid protein, L1, can spontaneously self-assemble into virus-like particles (VLPs) that resemble authentic HPV virions. Gardasil contains recombinant VLPs assembled from the L1 proteins of HPV types 6, 11, 16 and 18. Since VLPs lack the viral DNA, they cannot induce cancer. They do, however, trigger an antibody response that protects vaccine recipients from becoming infected with the HPV types represented in the vaccine. The L1 proteins are produced by separate fermentations in recombinant "Saccharomyces cerevisiae" and self-assembled into VLPs.


title: Gardasil

text: Whether the effects are temporary or lifelong, widespread vaccination could have a substantial public health impact. As of 2018, studies have proven that cervical cancer rates have dropped significantly since the introduction of Gardasil. Before Gardasil was introduced in 2006, 270,000 women died of cervical cancer worldwide in 2002. As of 2014, the mortality rate from cervical cancer has dropped 50% from 1975 which is due to the Gardasil vaccination along with increased focus on cervical screening. Acting FDA administrator Andrew von Eschenbach said the


title: Gardasil

text: vaccine will have "a dramatic effect" on the health of women around the world. Gardasil is an important tool in reducing cervical cancer rates even in countries where screening programs are routine. The National Cancer Institute estimated that 9,700 women would develop cervical cancer in 2006, and 3,700 would die.


title: Gardasil

text: Merck and CSL Limited are expected to market Gardasil as a cancer vaccine, rather than an STD vaccine. In the early years of Gardasil's introduction it was unclear how widespread the use of the three-shot series would be, in part because of its $525 list price ($175 each for three shots). But as of 2013, vaccine coverage has been rising. In 2013, about 55% of girls ages 13–17 years had at least one dose of the vaccination covered, up from 29% in 2007. Coverage for women ages 18–34 also has increased significantly since 2007.


title: Gardasil

text: Studies using different pharmacoeconomic models predict that vaccinating young women with Gardasil in combination with screening programs may be more cost effective than screening alone. These results have been important in decisions by many countries to start vaccination programs. For example, the Canadian government approved $300 million to buy the HPV vaccine in 2008 after deciding from studies that the vaccine would be cost-effective especially by immunizing young women. Marc Steben, an investigator for the vaccine, wrote that the financial burden of HPV related cancers on the Canadian people was already $300 million per year in 2005, so the vaccine could reduce this burden and be cost-effective.


title: Gardasil

text: Since penile and anal cancers are much less common than cervical cancer, HPV vaccination of young men is likely to be much less cost-effective than for young women yet is still recommended due to the existent risk (including oral cancer).


title: Gardasil

text: The August 2009 issue of the "Journal of the American Medical Association" had an article reiterating the safety of Gardasil and another questioning the way it was presented to doctors and parents.


title: Gardasil

text: According to the CDC, as of 2012, use of the HPV vaccine had cut rates of infection with HPV-6, -11, -16 and -18 in half in American teenagers (from 11.5% to 4.3%) and by one third in American women in their early twenties (from 18.5% to 12.1%).


title: Gardasil

text: Research findings that pioneered the development of the vaccine began in 1991 by investigators Jian Zhou and Ian Frazer in The University of Queensland, Australia. Researchers at UQ found a way to form non-infectious virus-like particles (VLP), which could also strongly activate the immune system. Subsequently, the final form of the vaccine was developed in parallel, by researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center, the University of Rochester, the University of Queensland in Australia, and the US National Cancer Institute.


title: Gardasil

text: A few conservative groups, such as the Family Research Council (FRC), have expressed their fears that vaccination with Gardasil might give girls a false sense of security regarding sex and lead to promiscuity, but no evidence exists to suggest that girls who were vaccinated went on to engage in more sexual activity than unvaccinated girls. Merck, the manufacturer of the vaccine, has lobbied that state governments make vaccination with Gardasil mandatory for school attendance, which has upset some conservative and libertarian groups.


title: Gardasil

text: The governor of Texas, Rick Perry, issued an executive order adding Gardasil to the state's required vaccination list, which was later overturned by the Texas legislature. Even though Perry also allowed parents to opt out of the program more easily, Perry's order was criticized, by fellow presidential candidates Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann during the 2012 Republican Party presidential debate as being an overreach of state power in a decision properly left to parents.


title: Gardasil

text: In June 2013, the Japanese government issued a notice that "cervical cancer vaccinations should no longer be recommended for girls aged 12 to 16" while an investigation is conducted into certain adverse events including pain and numbness in 38 girls. The vaccines sold in Japan are Cervarix, made by GlaxoSmithKline of the United Kingdom, and Gardasil, made by Merck Sharp & Dohme. An estimated 3.28 million people have received the vaccination; 1,968 cases of possible side effects have been reported. In January 2014, the Vaccine Adverse Reactions Review Committee concluded that there was no evidence to suggest a causal association between the HPV vaccine and the reported adverse events, but did not reinstate proactive recommendations for its use. A study on girls in Sapporo showed that since the Japanese government's suspension of recommending the vaccine, completion rates for the full course of vaccination have dropped to 0.6%. On 26 November 2021, the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare of Japan officially issued an announcement to resume active recommendations of the HPV vaccine after 8.5 years of suspension and municipalities are expected to restart such active recommendations from April 2022.


title: Triptan

text: Triptans are a family of tryptamine-based drugs used as abortive medication in the treatment of migraines and cluster headaches. This drug class was first commercially introduced in the 1990s. While effective at treating individual headaches, they do not provide preventive treatment and are not considered a cure. They are not effective for the treatment of tension–type headache, except in persons who also experience migraines. Triptans do not relieve other kinds of pain.


title: Triptan

text: The drugs of this class act as agonists for serotonin 5-HT and 5-HT receptors at blood vessels and nerve endings in the brain. The first clinically available triptan was sumatriptan, which has been marketed since 1991. Triptans have largely replaced ergotamines, an older class of medications used to relieve migraine and cluster headaches.


title: Triptan

text: Triptans are used for the treatment of severe migraine attacks or those that do not respond to NSAIDs or other over-the-counter drugs. Triptans are a mid-line treatment suitable for many migraineurs with typical attacks. They may not work for atypical or unusually severe migraine attacks, transformed migraine, or status migrainosus (continuous migraine).


title: Triptan

text: Triptans are highly effective, reducing the symptoms or aborting the attack within 30 to 90 minutes in 70–80% of patients.


title: Triptan

text: A test measuring a person's skin sensitivity during a migraine may indicate whether the individual will respond to treatment with triptans. Triptans are most effective in those with no skin sensitivity; with skin sensitivity, it is best to take triptans within twenty minutes of the headache's onset.


title: Triptan

text: Triptans should be taken as soon as possible after the onset of pain. In case of migraine with aura they are to be taken after the aura and with the onset of pain. If taken too early, they may not have the full effect on symptom reduction, and in case of an aura, they can worsen the aura. It is assumed that blood vessels are constricted during the aura phase and dilated during the pain phase, so a constrictive medication like a triptan is not recommended during the aura.


title: Triptan

text: Triptans are effective for the treatment of cluster headache. This has been demonstrated for subcutaneous sumatriptan and intranasal zolmitriptan, the former of which is more effective according to a 2013 Cochrane review. Tablets were not considered appropriate in this review.


title: Triptan

text: A single randomized controlled trial found that sumatriptan may be able to prevent altitude sickness.


title: Triptan

text: All marketed triptans are available in oral form; some in form of sublingual tablets. Sumatriptan and zolmitriptan are also available as nasal sprays. For sumatriptan, a number of other application forms are marketed: suppositories, a subcutaneous injection, an iontophoretic transdermal patch, which uses low voltage controlled by a pre-programmed microchip to deliver a single dose of sumatriptan through the skin within 30 minutes; a drug-device combination containing sumatriptan powder that is "breath powered" allowing the user to blow sumatriptan powder in to their nostrils; as well as a needle-free injection system that works with air pressure.


title: Triptan

text: All triptans are contraindicated in patients with cardiovascular diseases (coronary spasms, symptomatic coronary artery disease, after a heart attack or stroke, uncontrolled hypertension, Raynaud's disease, peripheral artery disease). Most triptans are also contraindicated during pregnancy and breastfeeding and for patients younger than 18; but sumatriptan and zolmitriptan nasal sprays are also approved for youths over 12. In spite of expert opinion and evidence to the contrary, the FDA and some other drug governance bodies have stated that monoamine oxidase inhibitors are contraindicated for sumatriptan, zolmitriptan and rizatriptan, and combination with ergot alkaloids such as ergotamine for all substances.


title: Triptan

text: At least two triptans (sumatriptan and rizatriptan) have been listed under the unacceptable medication by the Canadian Blood Services as a potential risk to the recipient; hence, donors are required not to have taken the medication for the last 72 hours.


title: Triptan

text: Triptans have few side effects if used in correct dosage and frequency. The most common adverse effect is recurrence of migraine. A systematic review found that "rizatriptan 10 mg was the only triptan with a recurrence rate greater than that of placebo".


title: Triptan

text: There is a theoretical risk of coronary spasm in patients with established heart disease, and cardiac events after taking triptans may rarely occur.


title: Triptan

text: Combination of triptans with other serotonergic drugs such as ergot alkaloids, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) or St John's wort has been alleged to induce symptoms of a serotonin syndrome (a syndrome of changes in mental status, autonomic instability, neuromuscular abnormalities, and gastrointestinal symptoms), whereas scientific studies indicate there is no potential for life-threatening serotonin syndrome in patients taking triptans and SSRI or SNRIs at the same time, although the FDA has officially stated otherwise.<ref name="FDA ALERT [7/2006]:"></ref> Combining triptans with ergot alkaloids is contraindicated because of the danger of coronary spasms.


title: Triptan

text: In a study from Harvard Medical School and the University of Florida College of Medicine involving 47,968 patients and published on 26 February 2018, concomitant use of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor or selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor for depression with a triptan for migraine did not demonstrate an increased risk of the serotonin syndrome.


title: Triptan

text: Pharmacokinetic interactions (for example, mediated by CYP liver enzymes or transporter proteins) are different for the individual substances; for most triptans, they are mild to absent. Eletriptan blood plasma levels are increased by strong inhibitors of CYP3A4, and frovatriptan levels by CYP1A2 inhibitors such as fluvoxamine.


title: Triptan

text: Their action is attributed to their agonist effects on serotonin 5-HT and 5-HT receptors in blood vessels (causing their constriction) and nerve endings in the brain, and subsequent inhibition of pro-inflammatory neuropeptide release, including CGRP and substance P. Triptans are selective agents for 5-HT and 5-HT and have low or even no affinity for other types of 5-HT receptors.


title: Triptan

text: 5-HT receptors are classified into seven different families named 5-HT to 5-HT. All receptors are G protein coupled receptors with seven transmembrane domains with the one exception of 5-HT receptor which is a ligand gated ion channel. There is a high homology in the amino acid sequence within each family. Each family couples to the same second messenger systems. Subtypes of 5-HT are the 5-HT, 5-HT, 5-HT, 5-HT and 5-HT receptors. All 5-HT receptors are coupled to inhibition of adenylate cyclase. 5-HT and 5-HT receptors have been difficult to distinguish on a pharmacological basis. After cloning two distinct genes for 5-HT and 5-HT receptors, a better insight into distribution and expression in different tissues was gained, except in brain tissue where they are overlapping in several areas.


title: Triptan

text: Most mammalian species, including humans, have 5-HT binding sites widely distributed throughout the central nervous system. 5-HT receptors are found in all areas of the brain but they differ in quantity at each area.


title: Triptan

text: An important initiator of head pain is suggested to be the activation of trigeminovascular afferent nerves which upon activation releases neuropeptides such as CGRP, substance P and neurokinin A. Also they are thought to promote neurogenic inflammatory response important for sensitization of sensory afferents, and also transmission and generation of head pain centrally. 5-HT has been found responsible for inhibition of neurogenic inflammation upon administration with sumatriptan and other related compounds that act on prejunctional 5-HT receptors.


title: Triptan

text: All triptans, like the older drug dihydroergotamine, have agonistic effects on the 5-HT receptor. Comparison of sumatriptan and dihydroergotamine showed that dihydroergotamine has high affinity and sumatriptan has medium affinity for 5-HT. Triptans have at least three modes of action. These antimigraine mechanisms are:


title: Triptan

text: Other possibilities of triptans in antimigraine effects are modulation of nitric oxide dependent signal transduction pathways, nitric oxide scavenging in the brain, and sodium dependent cell metabolic activity.


title: Triptan

text: Triptans have a wide variety of pharmacokinetic properties. Bioavailability is between 14% and 70%, biological half-life (T) is between 2 and 26 hours. Their good ability to cross the blood–brain barrier and the rather long half life of some triptans may result in lower frequencies of migraine recurrence.


title: Triptan

text: Zolmitriptan is different from the other triptans because it is converted to an active N-desmethyl metabolite which has higher affinity for the 5-HT and 5-HT receptors; both substances have a biological half-life of 2 to 3 hours. In studies, newer triptans are mostly compared to sumatriptan. They are better than sumatriptan for their longer half-life in plasma and higher oral bioavailability, but have a higher potential for central nervous side effects.