title: Duke of Somerset

text: The 12th Duke died on 28 December 1885 aged 81 outliving both of his sons with no legitimate male heirs and the title passed to his aged unmarried brother Archibald Henry Algernon Seymour (1810–1891); when he died a few years later, the youngest brother Algernon Percy Banks St. Maur (1813–1894) became the 14th Duke. Three and a half years later he was dead. His son Algernon Seymour (1846–1923) became the 15th Duke.


title: Duke of Somerset

text: He died without children and the title passed to his distant cousin Edward Hamilton Seymour (1860–1931), great-great-grandson of Lord Francis Seymour, Dean of Wells (1726–1799), youngest son of the 8th Duke. He was succeeded by his son Evelyn Francis Seymour (1882–1954) who passed the title on to his son Percy Hamilton Seymour (1910–1984). The title is currently held by his son John Michael Edward Seymour who was born in 1952. The current heir to the title is Sebastian Seymour, Lord Seymour who was born in 1982.


title: Duke of Somerset

text: The heir apparent is the present holder's eldest son Sebastian Edward Seymour, Lord Seymour (b. 1982).


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach ( ) is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is located along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, just north of Fort Lauderdale. The nearby Hillsboro Inlet forms part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 112,046. Located north of Miami, it is a principal city in the Miami–Fort Lauderdale–West Palm Beach metropolitan area, which was home to an estimated 6,158,824 people in 2017.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach Airpark, located within the city, is the home of the Goodyear Blimp "Spirit of Innovation".


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Its name is derived from the Florida Pompano ("Trachinotus carolinus"), a fish found off the Atlantic coast.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: There had been scattered settlers in the area since at least the mid-1880s, but the first documented permanent residents of the Pompano area were George Butler and Frank Sheen and their families, who arrived in 1896 as railway employees. The first train arrived in the small Pompano settlement on February 22, 1896. It is said that Sheen gave the community its name after jotting down on his survey of the area the name of the fish he had for dinner. The coming of the railroad led to development farther west from the coast. In 1906, Pompano became the southernmost settlement in newly created Palm Beach County. That year, the Hillsboro Lighthouse was completed on the beach.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: On July 3, 1908, a new municipality was incorporated in what was then Dade County: the Town of Pompano. John R. Mizell was elected the first mayor. In 1915, Broward County was established, with a northern boundary at the Hillsboro Canal. Thus, within eight years, Pompano had been in three counties. Pompano Beach experienced significant growth during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. In 1940, the U.S. Supreme Court disallowed forced confessions in "Chambers v. Florida", a dispute stemming from a murder in Pompano Beach.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Following the population boom due to World War II, in 1947, the City of Pompano merged with the newly formed municipality on the beach and became the City of Pompano Beach. In 1950, the population of the city reached 5,682. Like most of southeast Florida, Pompano Beach experienced great growth in the late 20th century as many people moved there from northern parts of the United States. A substantial seasonal population also spends its winters in the area. The city of Pompano Beach celebrated its centennial in 2008.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 5.54%, is water.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach is in northeastern Broward County along the Atlantic Ocean. It includes about of beachfront, extending from the intersection of State Road A1A and Terra Mar Drive to the Hillsboro Inlet. The city is bounded by the following municipalities:


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: These are the neighborhoods and communities that are officially recognized by the City of Pompano Beach.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: As of the 2020 United States census, there were 112,046 people, 44,297 households, and 23,038 families residing in the city.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: As of 2010, there were 55,885 households, of which 24.5% were vacant. As of 2000, 17.4% of households had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.4% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.6% were non-families. 38.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.85.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: In 2000, the city the population was spread out, with 17.7% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 23.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.2 males.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $36,073, and the median income for a family was $44,195. Males had a median income of $31,162 versus $26,870 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,938. About 13.1% of families and 17.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.1% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: As of 2010, Italian-Americans made up 8.5% of the population, forming the second largest ancestry group in the city.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: As of 2010, before annexation of other areas, Pompano Beach has the highest concentration of residents of Haitian ancestry in the country, at 9.3% of the population. while it had the highest percentage of Brazilians in the US, at 2.67%,


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: As of 2000, before many of the unincorporated areas were annexed to the city, those who spoke only English were 76.4% of the population, while those who spoke Spanish as a mother tongue were 9.3%, while French Creole (Haitian Creole) was at 6.2%, French at 2.4%, Portuguese 1.5%, German was 1.0%, and Italian as a first language made up 0.9% of the population.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Although there are about 17 postsecondary schools within of downtown Pompano Beach, the majority of these are for-profit schools or schools that specialize in a specific field. Students may prefer postsecondary schools that offer programs in a wider variety of disciplines, especially if a student has yet to settle on a specific field of study. Pompano Beach is also the registered office for Augustine Graduate School, a post-secondary school, named for the North African theologian, philosopher, educator, and scholar Augustine, the graduate school offers graduate programs in the areas of psychology, philosophy, theology, education, and business; additionally the graduate school offers graduate certificates in various areas.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami operates the Saint Coleman K–8 school in Pompano Beach; it opened on September 9, 1958. The archdiocese formerly operated the St. Elizabeth of Hungary School. The church attempted to resolve its debt to the archdiocese by loaning $2.13 million from Bank of America, and the school had $337,000 in debt in 2009, and it ballooned to $1.3 million of debt in the 2009–2010 school year. It closed on June 15, 2010.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: In recent years, an effort to rejuvenate rundown areas near the city's beach has gained momentum and has stimulated a multibillion-dollar building boom. Community redevelopment agencies were established for the East Atlantic/Beach corridor, as well as for the old downtown and Hammondville/Martin Luther King Jr. corridor.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Companies based in Pompano Beach include Associated Grocers of Florida. Nonprofits include Cross International.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: According to the city's 2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the largest employers in the city are:


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach holds several annual cultural events including the Pompano Beach Seafood Festival, St. Patrick's Irish Festival, St. Coleman's Italian Festival, the Pompano Beach Holiday Boat Parade, The Holiday Yuletide Parade, The Annual Nautical Flea Market at Pompano Community Park & Amphitheater, and The Annual Blues and Sweet Potato Pie "Juneteenth" Festival.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: The Kester Cottages (the Pompano Beach Historical Museum), Blanche Ely House Museum, Meridian Gallery, The Historic Ali Cultural Arts Center, Bailey Contemporary Arts, and Pompano Beach Art Gallery are located in the city. Two theatres in the area include Curtain Call Playhouse and Poet Productions. There are two malls in Pompano Beach. The first is Festival Flea Market Mall, which houses booths and kiosks selling jewelry, electronics, and clothing. The other, Pompano Citi Centre, is an open-air mall.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: The city has been twinned since 2017 with Termoli, a coastal town in the province of Campobasso, Italy.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach Municipal Golf Course has two 18-hole courses, the Palms, and the Pines, which opened in 2013.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Parks include Pompano Beach Community Park, Kester Park, Cresthaven Park, Harbors Edge Park, and Scott Meyers Memorial Park. Fern Forest Nature Center is just across the Coconut Creek city boundary.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach Community Park features an aquatic center, pickleball courts, basketball courts, soccer fields, jogging paths, and baseball fields. Prior to 2008, this park was the location of the Pompano Beach Municipal Stadium, which served as the spring training camp for the Washington Senators from 1961 to 1971 and the Texas Rangers from 1972 through 1986.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: In 2004, John Rayson became the first elected mayor of Pompano Beach. Prior mayors had been selected by city commissioners from among themselves. The vice-mayor continues to be selected by city commissioners from among themselves. At the federal level, Pompano Beach is located in Florida's 20th congressional district, which is represented by Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. The current Mayor at Large is Rex Hardin.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: Pompano Beach is a part of the Miami–Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood media market, which is the twelfth-largest radio market and the seventeenth-largest television market in the United States. Its primary daily newspapers are the "South Florida Sun-Sentinel" and "The Miami Herald", and their Spanish-language counterparts "El Sentinel" and "El Nuevo Herald". Local Pompano-based media includes "The Pompano Pelican", the longtime local weekly newspaper; the Deerfield-Pompano Beach Forum, published by the Sun-Sentinel Company; "Pompano Post Community Newspaper" and PompanoFun.com, a website focusing on local entertainment and events; and television program "Today in Pompano".


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: The South Florida Regional Transportation Authority has its headquarters in Pompano Beach, located next to the Pompano Beach Tri-Rail station.


title: Pompano Beach, Florida

text: In addition to Tri-Rail, Pompano Beach is also served by several bus routes operated by Broward County Transit. Two major transfer points are the Northeast Transit Center and Pompano Citi Centre.


title: Pancit

text: Pancit ( ), also spelled pansít, is a general term referring to various traditional noodle dishes in Filipino cuisine. There are numerous types of pancit, often named based on the noodles used, method of cooking, place of origin, or the ingredients. Most pancit dishes are characteristically served with calamansi, as its freshly-squeezed juice may be used for additional seasoning.


title: Pancit

text: Noodles were introduced to the Philippines by Chinese immigrants over the centuries. They have been fully adopted and nativized into the local cuisine, even incorporating Spanish influences. There are numerous regional types of pancit throughout the Philippines, usually differing on the available indigenous ingredients of an area. Unique variants do not use noodles at all, but instead substitute it with strips of coconut, young papaya, mung bean sprouts, bamboo shoots, or seaweed.


title: Pancit

text: The term "pancit" (or the standardised but less common "pansít") is derived from either the Philippine Hokkien terms 扁食 () or 便的食 (). In the Filipino language, "pansít" is the generic word for noodles. Different kinds of noodles can be found in Filipino supermarkets which can then be cooked at home. Noodle dishes are also standard fare in local restaurants, with establishments specializing in them called "panciterias" or "pancitans".


title: Pancit

text: Pancit has evolved in Filipino cuisine to combine both Chinese and Spanish techniques, as well as use local ingredients. Pancit is most commonly cooked by sautéing ("guisado" in Philippine Spanish) them with garlic, onions, vegetables (commonly carrots, green beans, cabbage, bell peppers, chayote, bottle gourd, "patola", oyster mushrooms, and cauliflower, among others), and meat (including different kinds of Philippine "longganisas") or seafood (including shrimp, fish, squid, crab, oysters, clams, and fish balls). Rarer ingredients include "kamias", coconut milk, banana blossoms, mustard greens, okra, calabaza, "tengang daga" mushrooms, and shitake mushrooms. The ingredients of the sauce varies by recipe. These ingredients include soy sauce (or salt), vinegar, fish sauce ("patis"), "bagoong alamang" (shrimp paste), "taba ng talangka" (crab fat), oyster sauce, bugnay wine, fermented soy bean paste, and various sweet sauces (including coconut aminos and "inihaw" sauces).


title: Pancit

text: They can also be cooked in a broth or braised. Almost all pancit dishes are also uniquely served with sliced halves of calamansi, meant to be squeezed over the noodles (at the consumer's discretion) as the juice adds a tangy sourness. The most common other garnishings and condiments are flaked smoked fish ("tinapa"), fried garlic, crumbled pork cracklings ("chicharon"), labuyo chilis, shallots, ground black pepper, glutinous rice "okoy", "kinchay", peanuts, and sliced hard-boiled eggs. Some regions may also add sliced bilimbi fruits ("kamias").


title: Pancit

text: Pancit dishes are generally named after the types of noodles used. The most commonly used noodles are "canton" (egg noodles, usually round), "bihon" (rice vermicelli), "lomi" (thick egg noodles), "miki" (soft yellow egg noodles, usually flat), "misua" or "miswa" (wheat vermicelli), "palabok" (yellow cornstarch noodles), "sotanghon" (glass noodles), and "odong" (yellow flour noodles). They can also be named after their method of cooking, their origin, and their main ingredients.


title: Pancit

text: Pancit is considered both an everyday staple and a comfort food. Pancit can be eaten alone, but they are also frequently eaten paired with white rice, bread (usually "pandesal"), and "puto" (steamed rice cakes). Pancit dishes are commonly served during gatherings, events festivals, and religious activities, due to the ease in which they can be cooked in large quantities. Nancy Reyes Lumen of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism writes that a belief originating from Chinese Filipinos holds that noodles should be eaten on one's birthday. They are therefore commonly served at birthday celebrations and Chinese restaurants nationwide often have "birthday noodles" listed on the menu.


title: Pancit

text: Commercial instant noodle versions of pancit are also available. They are popular due to their affordability. The most common flavors are "mami" and "pancit canton", but other Filipino-style noodles are also being adapted for the Philippine market.


title: Michael Kearney

text: Michael Kevin Kearney (born January 18, 1984) is an American college teaching assistant and game show contestant. He is known for setting several world records related to graduating at a young age, as well as teaching college students


title: Michael Kearney

text: while still a teenager. Additionally, as a game-show contestant, he has won over one million dollars.


title: Michael Kearney

text: Michael was homeschooled by his mother and father, especially his mother, a Japanese American. He was diagnosed with ADHD, but his parents declined to use the offered prescription of Ritalin. His younger sister, Maeghan, is also a child prodigy and graduated from college at the age of sixteen. According to psychology professor Huey H Miller III, Kearney was helped to adjust well to his surroundings by his parents' determination, and the "take-on-the-world" attitude they passed down to him.


title: Michael Kearney

text: Kearney attended San Marin High School in Novato, California, for one year, graduating at the age of six in 1990. In 1994, Kearney and his parents were on "The Tonight Show".


title: Michael Kearney

text: Kearney graduated from high school at age 6 and went to Santa Rosa Junior College in Sonoma County, California, where he obtained an Associate of Science in Geology at age 8. In 1993, his family moved to Alabama. Circa 1996, he was interviewed by Meredith Vieira on "Turning Point" (ABC News). As of 2019, Kearney remained the youngest person to have a high-school diploma and undergraduate degrees.


title: Michael Kearney

text: At the age of 8 he enrolled at The University of South Alabama, where he received in 1994 a bachelor's degree in anthropology and is listed in the Guinness Book as the world's youngest university graduate at the age of ten. At the age of 14 he obtained a master's degree in chemistry at Middle Tennessee State University. At age 18 he obtained his master's degree in computer science at Vanderbilt University.


title: Michael Kearney

text: Kearney graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with a master's degree in biochemistry at the age of fourteen. His 118-page thesis was entitled "Kinetic Isotope Effects of Thymidine Phosphorylase"; the research focused on the kinetics of a glycosyltransferase involved in nucleotide synthesis. At the time, Kearney was the world's youngest postgraduate (the master's degree record was since broken in 1999 by Tathagat Avatar Tulsi).


title: Michael Kearney

text: In 1996, the family moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and Kearney attended Vanderbilt University, taking classes and, by age sixteen, teaching as well (he was not yet legally able to drive). Kearney received his second master's degree, this one from Vanderbilt University, at age seventeen or eighteen, in computer science. Kearney received his doctorate in chemistry at age 22, having returned to Middle Tennessee State University as a teaching assistant (also in chemistry).


title: Michael Kearney

text: When young, Kearney attempted a career as a game-show host; he and his parents moved to Hollywood, to shoot a pilot episode, but the proposed game-show was not picked up.


title: Michael Kearney

text: In October 2006, Kearney became a finalist on the trivia-and-puzzle game "Gold Rush", winning $100,000. In November 2006, in front of a national audience on "Entertainment Tonight", he went on to win the grand prize of an additional $1 million.


title: Michael Kearney

text: Kearney was a contestant on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" which aired on April 25 & 28, 2008, winning twenty-five thousand dollars. He was also a contestant on "Million Dollar Password" which aired on June 14, 2009, but he did not pass the elimination round (losing the tiebreaker).


title: Kubotan

text: Kubotan is a genericized trademark for a self-defense keychain weapon developed by Sōke Takayuki Kubota in the late 1960s. It is typically no more than 5.5 inches (14 centimetres) long and about half an inch (1.25 centimetres) in diameter, slightly thicker or the same size as a marker pen. The material is usually a hard high-impact plastic such as Lexan. The body of the Kubotan is lined with six round grooves with a screw eye or swivel and split ring attachment at one end for keys.


title: Kubotan

text: The Kubotan keychain was originally based on a small bamboo weapon called the "hashi stick", an invention by Kubota's father Denjiro. Its popularity grew in 1969 to 1970s when Kubota, at the request of California State Senator Edward M. Davis then former Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, created the weapon and began training female officers in its application. It is often touted as extremely effective in breaking the will of unruly suspects with painful locks and pressure point strikes. Because of this, the Kubotan is also sometimes dubbed the 'instrument of attitude adjustment'.


title: Kubotan

text: Applied as a weapon, some of its usage can be similar to that of the yawara stick or koppo stick. The principal targets in self-defence include bony, fleshy and sensitive parts such as knuckles, forearms, the bridge of the nose, shins, stomach, solar plexus, spine, temple, ribs, groin, neck and eyes. It is 5-6 inches long, so it is easily concealable in your hand. The Kubotan is usually held in either an icepick grip (for hammerfist strikes) or forward grip (for stabbing, pressure point attacks and seizing). Common uses include hardening the fist (fistload) for punching, attacking vulnerable parts of an assailant's body, and gaining leverage on an assailant's wrist, fingers and joints. With keys attached, it can function as a flailing weapon. As a pressure point weapon it can attack any point a finger can, but with greater penetration because of the smaller surface area at the ends. For example, a law enforcement officer may wrap his arm around a suspect's neck while simultaneously digging the end of the Kubotan into the small of his back. The officer may also reach around the suspect's neck and underarm from behind and cause pain by stabbing the end of the Kubotan into the top of his pectoral muscle. In other locking and compliance applications, the body of the Kubotan can be used to create pain. A typical pain compliance technique involves seizing an attacker's wrist and sealing both hands around it with the length of the Kubotan laid across the radius bone. Downward squeezing pressure is then applied to the bone to take down the attacker.


title: Kubotan

text: The Kubotan may appear as an innocuous key fob to the untrained eye. In some cases however it may be recognized and considered an offensive weapon in some jurisdictions.


title: Kubotan

text: In the United States there are few legal restrictions on Kubotans, with the notable exception that they are prohibited as carry-on items for air travelers. Whether a non-spiked Kubotan (i.e. a rod) is classed as an offensive weapon in the United Kingdom depends upon the circumstances of the case and is for a jury to decide. In April 2010 actor and entertainer Darren Day was found guilty of possessing an offensive weapon, namely a kubotan-style keyring, by a court in Edinburgh.


title: Kubotan

text: Improvised versions of the Kubotan can be readily found and put to use. Because a Kubotan is just a rod of a hard material, any restrictive regulation would most likely be ambiguous and undefined due to the ability for any common item to be used in a kubotan-like fashion. In this respect, the Kubotan can be substituted by everyday items such as hairbrushes, pens, markers, flashlights, small wooden dowels and even electronic cigarettes. Metal pens (i.e. tactical pens) are also sometimes marketed as substitutes for the Kubotan.


title: Kubotan

text: Over time the registered name "Kubotan" (sometimes erroneously spelled or marketed as “Kubaton”) has been eroded and genericized to include many knockoffs and imitations of the original design. Some incorporate spikes, tapered ends, and other modifications that were not part of the original invention. "Ninja" keychain weapons often enhanced with blades, hidden darts, and tear gas have also been marketed and sold as Kubotans, though they are copycats and are more properly classified along lines of generic self-defense keychain sticks (SDKS) or generic self-defense pocket weapons. The term 'pocket stick' is also sometimes used to classify such hand weapons.


title: Noah Ringer

text: Noah Andrew Ringer (born November 18, 1996) is an American actor and martial artist. He starred as Aang in the 2010 film "The Last Airbender" and played Emmett in "Cowboys & Aliens".


title: Noah Ringer

text: Ringer was born in Dallas, Texas. When he was ten, his mother enrolled him at ATA Martial Arts in Carrollton, Texas, part of the American Taekwondo Association, or ATA. He showed early promise and soon began competing in tournaments. In December 2008, at age twelve, Ringer earned his first degree black belt.


title: Noah Ringer

text: Ringer kept his head shaved, and fellow students nicknamed him "Avatar", after the character Aang in the animated television series "". Ringer's taekwondo instructor, Master Eric Pechacek, started watching the show and also noticed the resemblance of Ringer to Aang, in both appearance and personality. He introduced the show to Ringer, who became an immediate fan.


title: Noah Ringer

text: In July 2008, Pechacek received an email from the ATA, inviting any interested students to audition for the role of Aang in "The Last Airbender". Pechacek urged Ringer to try out for the part. For the audition video, Ringer dressed in Aang's attire, using his Halloween costume from the previous year. He performed an XMA Jahng Bong routine and recited a few lines. A month after sending in the video, Ringer was called to Philadelphia to meet with director M. Night Shyamalan. A month after that, he was offered the part. Ringer had one month to prepare for the film. He did an intense study with director Linda Seto at the Dallas Young Actors Studio, where he still attends classes today. He also began training in different types of martial arts, which continued during the filming process.


title: Noah Ringer

text: In March 2011, Ringer was nominated for Best Performance In A Feature Film By A Leading Young Actor for the 32nd Annual Young Artist Awards. In May 2011, Ringer won the 3rd Annual TheSkyKid.Com "Coming of Age" Best Actor movie award for his performance in "The Last Airbender".


title: Noah Ringer

text: Ringer played the role of Emmett Taggart in "Cowboys & Aliens", a sci-fi western film directed by Jon Favreau.


title: Noah Ringer

text: In May 2013, it was announced that Ringer would be starring in "The Peppercorn Chronicles". The project is loosely based on "Mrs Peppercorn's Magical Reading Room", a 24-minute fantasy short that won Best Short Film at the HollyShorts Film Festival in Los Angeles in 2011.


title: Noah Ringer

text: Ringer's first ATA tournament was the World Championships in Arkansas. He won first place in every category he competed in. After watching the "extreme" routines at that tournament, Ringer decided to start training in Extreme Martial Arts, or XMA, which involved him choreographing his own moves and choosing his own music. He became proficient with a variety of Eastern weapons, including the bō staff, which his character Aang uses. During his first two years with the ATA, Ringer competed in 25 tournaments, winning 100 medals, 80 of them gold. He was given "The Competitor of the Year" award for the Texas region in February 2008. Ringer won the 2008-2009 title of Texas State Champion in five categories: Traditional Forms, Traditional Weapons, Sparring, X-Treme Forms, and X-Treme Weapons.


title: Noah Ringer

text: For "The Last Airbender", Ringer learned Baguazhang, T'ai Chi, and Wushu. These styles are "soft", compared to Taekwondo, which is a "hard" style. Ringer continues to train in American taekwondo. In October 2010, he earned his second degree black belt. Ringer teaches other students in the ATA, as part of the Leadership Program. He also does gymnastics and has started to learn Choy Li Fut Kung Fu.


title: Arte Moreno

text: Arturo "Arte" Moreno (born August 14, 1946) is an American businessman. On May 15, 2003, he became the first Mexican-American to own a major sports team in the United States when he purchased the Anaheim Angels baseball team from the Walt Disney Company. In August 2022, he announced that he would explore a possible sale of the franchise.


title: Arte Moreno

text: Moreno was born to a Mexican American family in Tucson, Arizona, the oldest of 11 children of Maria and Arturo Moreno, who immigrated from Mexico. His father ran a small print shop; his grandfather owned Tucson's first Spanish-language newspaper. In 1965, graduated from high school and in 1966, he was drafted into the United States Army and fought in the Vietnam War. After returning to civilian life in 1968, he enrolled at the University of Arizona where he graduated in 1973 with a degree in marketing.


title: Arte Moreno

text: After school, he was hired to work at Eller Outdoor, an advertising company. He traveled across the country for the next seven years, relocating several times and in 1984, he moved back to Arizona, settling in Phoenix, where he was hired by billboard company Outdoor Systems. In 1984, Moreno and his friend Wally Kelly attempted unsuccessfully to buy the firm from owner William S. Levine. Moreno and Kelly entered into a partnership with Levine, and Moreno later became its president and chief executive officer.


title: Arte Moreno

text: In 1996, Moreno took Outdoor Systems public. The company's stock soared, and in 1998 Outdoor Systems was purchased by Infinity Broadcasting for $8 billion.


title: Arte Moreno

text: With baseball being Moreno's favorite pastime, he purchased the Salt Lake Trappers minor league team alongside 17 other investors in 1986. The group owned the team until 1992, and the venture proved to be a resounding financial success.


title: Arte Moreno

text: By 2001, Moreno wished to own a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. He attempted to buy controlling interest in his home state's Arizona Diamondbacks, but no deal could be reached. He nonetheless remained determined to own a Major League team, and soon set his sights on the 2002 World Series champion Anaheim Angels.


title: Arte Moreno

text: It was announced in April 2003 that Moreno had agreed with The Walt Disney Company to purchase the team for $180 million. On May 15, 2003, MLB commissioner Bud Selig announced that the sale of the Angels to Moreno had been approved. One of the first people to congratulate Moreno after the news was Diamondbacks' owner Jerry Colangelo, a personal friend who declared it a good opportunity for Moreno.


title: Arte Moreno

text: Moreno soon demonstrated a willingness to spend the money necessary to sign premium players, including star outfielder Vladimir Guerrero. He also took a hands-on approach, becoming a regular attendee of the team's home games and periodically leaving his owner's box during games to mingle with fans in the regular stadium seating areas and concourses. All of these moves proved very popular with fans. In the first year of his ownership, the Angels drew more than three million fans, 750,000 more than their championship season.


title: Arte Moreno

text: However, Moreno encountered a substantial backlash from fans of the team, and in particular, from the city leadership of Anaheim, California, over his decision in 2005 to change the name of the team from the "Anaheim Angels" to the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim". Moreno saw the change as part of an overall strategy to increase the team's revenue by actively marketing it to, and associating it with, the entire Los Angeles metropolitan area, rather than restricting the team's identity to the city of Anaheim and to Orange County. In recent years, the San Diego Zoo and "Los Angeles Times" have been notable club sponsors, while all baseball TV rightsholders also use some variation of the team's new name, indicating the effect of Moreno's plan. But the move outraged Anaheim city officials, who responded by suing the team. It also angered a substantial segment of the Angels' fan base in Orange County, who took pride in the team's identity being distinct from Los Angeles. The awkwardness of the "of Anaheim" suffix, appended to satisfy a contractual requirement for "Anaheim" to be included in the team's name, also caused the new name to become the subject of national ridicule. Eventually, the team won the lawsuit filed by the city. Whatever displeasure fans felt over the name change has not translated into diminished support for the team, as attendance levels have remained well above 2002 numbers.


title: Arte Moreno

text: Aside from the name controversy, Moreno's first few seasons as owner of the Angels were largely successful. The team posted three consecutive winning seasons for the first time in club history (2007–2009), including winning the American League Western Division championship in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2014 when they finished with a league leading 98 regular season wins. However, the Angels, even with Albert Pujols and Mike Trout at the helm for the team, could not lead them back to the postseason or win a postseason game. From 2010 to 2022, the Angels failed to win a postseason game (the longest gap since their drought from 1987 to 2001) despite a massive deal for Trout for over $400 million and high priced signings of players such as Pujols, Anthony Rendon, Josh Hamilton, and Shohei Ohtani that totaled over $500 million. A losing season in 2022 would be the seventh straight losing season for the team, which would match the record for most ever in franchise history after the 1971-77 era.


title: Arte Moreno

text: Just prior to the start of the 2006 Major League season, Moreno scored another success in signing a lucrative contract with Fox Sports Net for the television broadcast rights for the Angels' regular season games. The ten-year deal significantly increased the team's television revenue. In April 2006, "Forbes" magazine estimated the team to be worth $368 million—twice the amount Moreno paid for the club only three years earlier; in January 2018 "Forbes" estimated the franchise value at $1.75 billion.


title: Arte Moreno

text: "[Moreno] has really done an amazing job with the franchise. To double the value in three years without getting a new stadium is an incredible feat."


title: Arte Moreno

text: In October 2020, Moreno, through his company SRB Management, agreed to purchase Angel Stadium and the surrounding parking lots from the City of Anaheim for $320 million. In May 2022, it was reported that an FBI had conducted a corruption investigation into the dealings of the city and the stadium sale, which led to the resignation of Anaheim mayor Harry Sidhu on May 24. In light of the scandal, the Anaheim City Council voted to cancel the sale later that day.


title: Arte Moreno

text: On August 23, 2022, Moreno officially announced that he would explore a possible sale of the Angels franchise. In a public statement, Moreno said that he and his family decided "now is the time" after a "a great deal of thoughtful consideration". The franchise was estimated to be worth $2.2 billion by "Forbes" in an analysis from March 2022.


title: Arte Moreno

text: On February 26, 2006, Moreno led a partnership of buyers to purchase Radio 830 KMXE, the nation's largest Spanish-language AM radio station. For the 2006 and 2007 seasons Radio 830 KMXE served as the Spanish-language radio broadcast outlet for the Angels. On July 17, 2007, the station began broadcasting from new studios located in Angel Stadium. Just before the 2008 season the station became AM830 KLAA (AM) and went all English language, including the Angels game broadcasts. The station has since added morning and afternoon sports talk shows to its lineup.


title: Arte Moreno

text: While it seems a new trend for sports teams to buy their own radio stations (see the St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Commanders), for the Angels it is a tradition started by team founder Gene Autry, who owned 710 KMPC and broadcast the games for years.


title: Arte Moreno

text: In 1997, Moreno and his wife established the Moreno Family Foundation, which supports non-profit organizations focusing on youth and education. It also has provided support to the athletic programs at the University of Arizona.


title: Arte Moreno

text: Aside from this, Moreno is vigilant about maintaining his privacy. He refuses most interview requests, and does not discuss his personal life publicly. His family and friends also avoid commenting on his personal life publicly, though off the record, those who know him describe him as "unabashed in his support of Republican politics" and as particularly dedicated to his family.


title: Arte Moreno

text: In September 2020 he endorsed Donald Trump for president, saying "it’s very necessary to vote for President Trump".


title: Cyprinidae

text: Cyprinidae is a family of freshwater fish commonly called the carp or minnow family. It includes the carps, the true minnows, and relatives like the barbs and barbels. Cyprinidae is the largest and most diverse fish family and the largest vertebrate animal family in general with about 3,000 species, of which only 1,270 remain extant, divided into about 370 genera. Cyprinids range from about 12 mm in size to the giant barb ("Catlocarpio siamensis"). By genus and species count, the family makes up more than two-thirds of the ostariophysian order Cypriniformes. The family name is derived from the Greek word ( 'carp').


title: Cyprinidae

text: Cyprinids are stomachless fish with toothless jaws. Even so, food can be effectively chewed by the gill rakers of the specialized last gill bow. These pharyngeal teeth allow the fish to make chewing motions against a chewing plate formed by a bony process of the skull. The pharyngeal teeth are unique to each species and are used by scientists to identify species. Strong pharyngeal teeth allow fish such as the common carp and ide to eat hard baits such as snails and bivalves.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Hearing is a well-developed sense in the cyprinids since they have the Weberian organ, three specialized vertebral processes that transfer motion of the gas bladder to the inner ear. The vertebral processes of the Weberian organ also permit a cyprinid to detect changes in motion of the gas bladder due to atmospheric conditions or depth changes. The cyprinids are considered physostomes because the pneumatic duct is retained in adult stages and the fish are able to gulp air to fill the gas bladder, or they can dispose of excess gas to the gut.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Cyprinids are native to North America, Africa, and Eurasia. The largest known cyprinid is the giant barb ("Catlocarpio siamensis"), which may grow up to in length and in weight. Other very large species that can surpass are the golden mahseer ("Tor putitora") and mangar ("Luciobarbus esocinus"). The largest North American species is the Colorado pikeminnow ("Ptychocheilus lucius"), which can reach up to in length. Conversely, many species are smaller than . The smallest known fish is "Paedocypris progenetica", reaching at the longest.


title: Cyprinidae

text: All fish in this family are egg-layers and most do not guard their eggs; however, a few species build nests and/or guard the eggs. The bitterlings of subfamily Acheilognathinae are notable for depositing their eggs in bivalve molluscs, where the young develop until able to fend for themselves.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Cyprinids contain the first and only known example of androgenesis in a vertebrate, in the Squalius alburnoides allopolyploid complex.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Most cyprinids feed mainly on invertebrates and vegetation, probably due to the lack of teeth and stomach; however, some species, like the asp, are predators that specialize in fish. Many species, such as the ide and the common rudd, prey on small fish when individuals become large enough. Even small species, such as the moderlieschen, are opportunistic predators that will eat larvae of the common frog in artificial circumstances.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Some cyprinids, such as the grass carp, are specialized herbivores; others, such as the common nase, eat algae and biofilms, while others, such as the black carp, specialize in snails, and some, such as the silver carp, are specialized filter feeders. For this reason, cyprinids are often introduced as a management tool to control various factors in the aquatic environment, such as aquatic vegetation and diseases transmitted by snails.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Unlike most fish species, cyprinids generally increase in abundance in eutrophic lakes. Here, they contribute towards positive feedback as they are efficient at eating the zooplankton that would otherwise graze on the algae, reducing its abundance.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Cyprinids are highly important food fish; they are fished and farmed across Eurasia. In land-locked countries in particular, cyprinids are often the major species of fish eaten because they make the largest part of biomass in most water types except for fast-flowing rivers. In Eastern Europe, they are often prepared with traditional methods such as drying and salting. The prevalence of inexpensive frozen fish products made this less important now than it was in earlier times. Nonetheless, in certain places, they remain popular for food, as well as recreational fishing, for ornamental use, and have been deliberately stocked in ponds and lakes for centuries for this reason.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Cyprinids are popular for angling especially for match fishing (due to their dominance in biomass and numbers) and fishing for common carp because of its size and strength.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Several cyprinids have been introduced to waters outside their natural ranges to provide food, sport, or biological control for some pest species. The common carp ("Cyprinus carpio") and the grass carp ("Ctenopharyngodon idella") are the most important of these, for example in Florida.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Carp in particular can stir up sediment, reducing the clarity of the water and making plant growth difficult.


title: Cyprinidae

text: In America and Australia, such as the Asian carp in the Mississippi Basin, they have become invasive species that compete with native fishes or disrupt the environment.


title: Cyprinidae

text: "Cyprinus carpio" is a major pest species in Australia impacting freshwater environments, amenity, and the agricultural economy, devastating biodiversity by decimating native fish populations where they first became established as a major pest in the wild in the 1960s. In the major river system of eastern Australia, the Murray-Darling Basin, they constitute 80-90 per cent of fish biomass.


title: Cyprinidae

text: In 2016 the federal government announced A$15.2 million to fund the National Carp Control Plan to investigate using Cyprinid herpesvirus 3 (carp virus) as a biological control agent while minimising impacts on industry and environment should a carp virus release go ahead. Despite initial, favourable assessment, in 2020 this plan was found to be unlikely to work due to the high fecundity of the fish.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Numerous cyprinids have become important in the aquarium and fishpond hobbies, most famously the goldfish, which was bred in China from the Prussian carp ("Carassius (auratus) gibelio"). First imported into Europe around 1728, it was much fancied by Chinese nobility as early as 1150AD and after it arrived there in 1502, also in Japan. In the latter country, from the 18th century onwards, the common carp was bred into the ornamental variety known as koi – or more accurately , as simply means "common carp" in Japanese.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Other popular aquarium cyprinids include danionins, rasborines, and true barbs. Larger species are bred by the thousands in outdoor ponds, particularly in Southeast Asia, and trade in these aquarium fishes is of considerable commercial importance. The small rasborines and danionines are perhaps only rivalled by characids and poecilid livebearers in their popularity for community aquaria.


title: Cyprinidae

text: One particular species of these small and undemanding danionines is the zebrafish ("Danio rerio"). It has become the standard model species for studying developmental genetics of vertebrates, in particular fish.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Habitat destruction and other causes have reduced the wild stocks of several cyprinids to dangerously low levels; some are already entirely extinct. In particular, the cyprinids of the subfamily Leuciscinae from southwestern North America have been hit hard by pollution and unsustainable water use in the early to mid-20th century; most globally extinct cypriniform species are in fact leuciscinid cyprinids from the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.


title: Cyprinidae

text: The massive diversity of cyprinids has so far made it difficult to resolve their phylogeny in sufficient detail to make assignment to subfamilies more than tentative in many cases. Some distinct lineages obviously exist – for example, the Cultrinae and Leuciscinae, regardless of their exact delimitation, are rather close relatives and stand apart from Cyprininaebut the overall systematics and taxonomy of the Cyprinidae remain a subject of considerable debate. A large number of genera are "incertae sedis", too equivocal in their traits and/or too little-studied to permit assignment to a particular subfamily with any certainty.


title: Cyprinidae

text: Part of the solution seems that the delicate rasborines are the core group, consisting of minor lineages that have not shifted far from their evolutionary niche, or have coevolved for millions of years. These are among the most basal lineages of living cyprinids. Other "rasborines" are apparently distributed across the diverse lineages of the family.


title: Cyprinidae

text: The validity and circumscription of proposed subfamilies like the Labeoninae or Squaliobarbinae also remain doubtful, although the latter do appear to correspond to a distinct lineage. The sometimes-seen grouping of the large-headed carps (Hypophthalmichthyinae) with "Xenocypris", though, seems quite in error. More likely, the latter are part of the Cultrinae.


title: Cyprinidae

text: The entirely paraphyletic "Barbinae" and the disputed Labeoninae might be better treated as part of the Cyprininae, forming a close-knit group whose internal relationships are still little known. The small African "barbs" do not belong in "Barbus" "sensu stricto" – indeed, they are as distant from the typical barbels and the typical carps ("Cyprinus") as these are from "Garra" (which is placed in the Labeoninae by most who accept the latter as distinct) and thus might form another as yet unnamed subfamily. However, as noted above, how various minor lineages tie into this has not yet been resolved; therefore, such a radical move, though reasonable, is probably premature.


title: Cyprinidae

text: The tench ("Tinca tinca"), a significant food species farmed in western Eurasia in large numbers, is unusual. It is most often grouped with the Leuciscinae, but even when these were rather loosely circumscribed, it always stood apart. A cladistic analysis of DNA sequence data of the S7 ribosomal protein intron1 supports the view that it is distinct enough to constitute a monotypic subfamily. It also suggests it may be closer to the small East Asian "Aphyocypris", "Hemigrammocypris", and "Yaoshanicus". They would have diverged roughly at the same time from cyprinids of east-central Asia, perhaps as a result of the Alpide orogeny that vastly changed the topography of that region in the late Paleogene, when their divergence presumably occurred.


title: Cyprinidae

text: A DNA-based analysis of these fish places the Rasborinae as the basal lineage with the Cyprininae as a sister clade to the Leuciscinae. The subfamilies Acheilognathinae, Gobioninae, and Leuciscinae are monophyletic.


title: Cyprinidae

text: With such a large and diverse family the taxonomy and phylogenies are always being worked on so alternative classifications are being created as new information is discovered, for example:


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy, also called phototherapy or bright light therapy is intentional daily exposure to direct sunlight or similar-intensity artificial light in order to treat medical disorders, especially seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorders. Treating skin conditions such as neurodermatitis, psoriasis, acne vulgaris, and eczema with ultraviolet light is called ultraviolet light therapy.


title: Light therapy

text: Exposure to light at specific wavelengths of Ultraviolet B (abbreviated as UV-B or UVB) enables the body to produce vitamin D to treat vitamin D deficiency.


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy treatments for the skin usually involve exposure to ultraviolet light. The exposures can be to a small area of the skin or over the whole body surface, as in a tanning bed. The most common treatment is with narrowband UVB, which has a wavelength of approximately 311–313 nanometers. Full body phototherapy can be delivered at a doctor's office or at home using a large high-power UVB booth. Tanning beds, however, generate mostly UVA light, and only 4% to 10% of tanning-bed light is in the UVB spectrum.


title: Light therapy

text: evidence for light therapy and lasers in the treatment of acne vulgaris was not sufficient to recommend them. There is moderate evidence for the efficacy of blue and blue-red light therapies in treating mild acne, but most studies are of low quality. While light therapy appears to provide short-term benefit, there is a lack of long-term outcome data or data in those with severe acne.


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy is considered one of the best monotherapy treatments for atopic dermatitis (AD) when applied to patients who have not responded to traditional topical treatments. The therapy offers a wide range of options: UVA1 for acute AD, NB-UVB for chronic AD, and balneophototherapy have proven their efficacy. Patients tolerate the therapy safely but, as in any therapy, there are potential adverse effects and care must be taken in its application, particularly to children.


title: Light therapy

text: According to the American Cancer Society, there is some evidence that ultraviolet light therapy may be effective in helping treat certain kinds of skin cancer, and ultraviolet blood irradiation therapy is established for this application. However, alternative uses of light for cancer treatment – light box therapy and colored light therapy – are not supported by evidence. Photodynamic therapy (often with red light) is used to treat certain superficial non-melanoma skin cancers.


title: Light therapy

text: For psoriasis, UVB phototherapy has been shown to be effective. A feature of psoriasis is localized inflammation mediated by the immune system. Ultraviolet radiation is known to suppress the immune system and reduce inflammatory responses. Light therapy for skin conditions like psoriasis usually use 313 nanometer UVB though it may use UVA (315–400 nm wavelength) or a broader spectrum UVB (280–315 nm wavelength). UVA combined with psoralen, a drug taken orally, is known as PUVA treatment. In UVB phototherapy the exposure time is very short, seconds to minutes depending on intensity of lamps and the person's skin pigment and sensitivity.


title: Light therapy

text: About 1% of the human population has vitiligo which causes painless distinct light-colored patches of the skin on the face, hands, and legs. Phototherapy is an effective treatment because it forces skin cells to manufacture melanin to protect the body from UV damage. Prescribed treatment is generally 3 times a week in a clinic or daily at home. About 1 month usually results in re-pigmentation in the face and neck, and 2–4 months in the hands and legs. Narrowband UVB is more suitable to the face and neck and PUVA is more effective at the hands and legs.


title: Light therapy

text: Low level laser therapy has been studied as a potential treatment for chronic wounds, and higher-power lasers have sometimes been successfully used to close acute wounds as an alternative to stitching. However, and due to inconsistent results and the low quality of extant research, reviews in the scientific literature have not supported its widespread application.


title: Light therapy

text: Some types of phototherapy may be effective in the treatment of polymorphous light eruption, cutaneous T-cell lymphoma and lichen planus. Narrowband UVB between 311 and 313 nanometers is the most common treatment.


title: Light therapy

text: There is preliminary evidence that light therapy is an effective treatment for diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular oedema.


title: Light therapy

text: The effectiveness of light therapy for treating seasonal affective disorder (SAD) may be linked to the fact that light therapy makes up for lost sunlight exposure and resets the body's internal clock. Studies show that light therapy helps reduce the debilitating and depressive behaviors of SAD, such as excessive sleepiness and fatigue, with results lasting for at least 1 month. Light therapy is preferred over antidepressants in the treatment of SAD because it is a relatively safe and easy therapy. Two methods of light therapy, bright light and dawn simulation, have similar success rates in the treatment of SAD.


title: Light therapy

text: It is possible that response to light therapy for SAD could be season dependent. Morning therapy has provided the best results because light in the early morning aids in regulating the circadian rhythm. People affected by SAD have low levels of energy and have difficulty concentrating. They usually have a change in appetite and experience trouble sleeping.


title: Light therapy

text: A 2007 systematic review by the Swedish agency SBU found insufficient evidence that light therapy was able to alleviate symptoms of depression or seasonal affective disorder. The report recommended that: "Approximately 100 participants are required to establish whether the therapy is moderately more effective than placebo". Although treatment in light therapy rooms was well established in Sweden, no satisfactory, controlled studies had been published on the subject. This led to the closure of a number of clinics offering light therapy in Sweden.


title: Light therapy

text: A Cochrane review conducted in 2019 states the evidence that light therapy's effectiveness as a treatment for the "prevention" of seasonal affective disorder is limited, although the risk of adverse effects are minimal. Therefore, the decision to use light therapy should be based on a person's preference of treatment.


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy has also been suggested in the treatment of non-seasonal depression and other psychiatric mood disturbances, including major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder and postpartum depression. A meta-analysis by the Cochrane Collaboration concluded that "for patients suffering from non-seasonal depression, light therapy offers modest though promising antidepressive efficacy." A 2008 systematic review concluded that "overall, bright light therapy is an excellent candidate for inclusion into the therapeutic inventory available for the treatment of nonseasonal depression today, as adjuvant therapy to antidepressant medication, or eventually as stand-alone treatment for specific subgroups of depressed patients." A 2015 review found that supporting evidence for light therapy was limited due to serious methodological flaws.


title: Light therapy

text: A 2016 meta-analysis showed that bright light therapy appeared to be efficacious, particularly when administered for 2–5 weeks' duration and as monotherapy.


title: Light therapy

text: In the management of circadian rhythm disorders such as delayed sleep phase disorder (DSPD), the timing of light exposure is critical. Light exposure administered to the eyes before or after the nadir of the core body temperature rhythm can affect the phase response curve. Use upon awakening may also be effective for non-24-hour sleep–wake disorder. Some users have reported success with lights that turn on shortly "before" awakening (dawn simulation). Evening use is recommended for people with advanced sleep phase disorder. Some, but not all, totally blind people whose retinae are intact, may benefit from light therapy.


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy has been trialed in treating sleep disorders experienced by patients with Parkinson's disease.


title: Light therapy

text: Studies have shown that daytime and evening light therapy for nursing home patients with Alzheimer's disease, who often struggle with agitation and fragmented wake/rest cycles effectively led to more consolidated sleep and an increase in circadian rhythm stability.


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy is used to treat cases of neonatal jaundice. Bilirubin, a yellow pigment normally formed in the liver during the breakdown of old red blood cells, cannot always be effectively cleared by a neonate's liver causing neonatal jaundice. Accumulation of excess bilirubin can cause central nervous system damage, and so this buildup of bilirubin must be treated. Phototherapy uses the energy from light to isomerize the bilirubin and consequently transform it into compounds that the newborn can excrete via urine and stools. Bilirubin is most successful absorbing light in the blue region of the visible light spectrum, which falls between 460 and 490 nm. Therefore, light therapy technologies that utilize these blue wavelengths are the most successful at isomerizing bilirubin.


title: Light therapy

text: Photodynamic therapy is a form of phototherapy using nontoxic light-sensitive compounds that are exposed selectively to light, whereupon they become toxic to targeted malignant and other diseased cells.


title: Light therapy

text: One of the treatments is using blue light with aminolevulinic acid for the treatment of actinic keratosis. This is not a U.S. FDA-approved treatment for acne vulgaris.


title: Light therapy

text: The production of the hormone melatonin, a sleep regulator, is inhibited by light and permitted by darkness as registered by photosensitive ganglion cells in the retina. To some degree, the reverse is true for serotonin, which has been linked to mood disorders. Hence, for the purpose of manipulating melatonin levels or timing, light boxes providing very specific types of artificial illumination to the retina of the eye are effective.


title: Light therapy

text: Light therapy uses either a light box which emits up to 10,000 lux of light at a specified distance, much brighter than a customary lamp, or a lower intensity of specific wavelengths of light from the blue (460 nm) to the green (525 nm) areas of the visible spectrum. A 1995 study showed that green light therapy at doses of 350 lux produces melatonin suppression and phase shifts equivalent to 10,000 lux white light therapy, but another study published in May 2010 suggests that the blue light often used for SAD treatment should perhaps be replaced by green or white illumination, because of a possible involvement of the cones in melatonin suppression.


title: Light therapy

text: Ultraviolet light causes progressive damage to human skin and erythema even from small doses. This is mediated by genetic damage, collagen damage, as well as destruction of vitamin A and vitamin C in the skin and free radical generation. Ultraviolet light is also known to be a factor in formation of cataracts. Ultraviolet radiation exposure is strongly linked to incidence of skin cancer.


title: Light therapy

text: Optical radiation of any kind with enough intensity can cause damage to the eyes and skin including photoconjunctivitis and photokeratitis. Researchers have questioned whether limiting blue light exposure could reduce the risk of age-related macular degeneration. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, there is no scientific evidence showing that exposure to blue light emitting devices result in eye damage. According to Harriet Hall, blue light exposure is reported to suppress the production of melatonin, which affects our body's circadian rhythm and can decrease sleep quality. It is reported that bright light therapy may activate the production of reproductive hormones, such as testosterone, luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and estradiol.


title: Light therapy

text: Modern phototherapy lamps used in the treatment of seasonal affective disorder and sleep disorders either filter out or do not emit ultraviolet light and are considered safe and effective for the intended purpose, as long as photosensitizing drugs are not being taken at the same time and in the absence of any existing eye conditions. Light therapy is a mood altering treatment, and just as with drug treatments, there is a possibility of triggering a manic state from a depressive state, causing anxiety and other side effects. While these side effects are usually controllable, it is recommended that patients undertake light therapy under the supervision of an experienced clinician, rather than attempting to self-medicate.


title: Light therapy

text: Contraindications to light therapy for seasonal affective disorder include conditions that might render the eyes more vulnerable to phototoxicity, tendency toward mania, photosensitive skin conditions, or use of a photosensitizing herb (such as St. John's wort) or medication. Patients with porphyria should avoid most forms of light therapy. Patients on certain drugs such as methotrexate or chloroquine should use caution with light therapy as there is a chance that these drugs could cause porphyria.


title: Light therapy

text: Side effects of light therapy for sleep phase disorders include jumpiness or jitteriness, headache, eye irritation and nausea. Some non-depressive physical complaints, such as poor vision and skin rash or irritation, may improve with light therapy.


title: Light therapy

text: Many ancient cultures practiced various forms of heliotherapy, including people of Ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt, and Ancient Rome. The Inca, Assyrian and early Germanic peoples also worshipped the sun as a health bringing deity. Indian medical literature dating to 1500 BCE describes a treatment combining herbs with natural sunlight to treat non-pigmented skin areas. Buddhist literature from about 200 CE and 10th-century Chinese documents make similar references.


title: Light therapy

text: The Faroese physician Niels Finsen is believed to be the father of modern phototherapy. He developed the first artificial light source for this purpose. Finsen used short wavelength light to treat lupus vulgaris, a skin infection caused by "Mycobacterium tuberculosis". He thought that the beneficial effect was due to ultraviolet light killing the bacteria, but recent studies showed that his lens and filter system did not allow such short wavelengths to pass through, leading instead to the conclusion that light of approximately 400 nanometers generated reactive oxygen that would kill the bacteria. Finsen also used red light to treat smallpox lesions. He received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1903. Scientific evidence for some of his treatments is lacking, and later eradication of smallpox and development of antibiotics for tuberculosis rendered light therapy obsolete for these diseases. In the early 20th-century light therapy was promoted by Auguste Rollier and John Harvey Kellogg. In 1924, Caleb Saleeby founded The Sunlight League.


title: Light therapy

text: From the late nineteenth century until the early 1930s, light therapy was considered an effective and mainstream medical therapy in the UK for conditions such as varicose ulcer, 'sickly children' and a wide range of other conditions. Controlled trials by the medical scientist Dora Colebrook, supported by the Medical Research Council, indicated that light therapy was not effective for such a wide range of conditions.


title: Virtual world

text: A virtual world (also called a virtual space) is a computer-simulated environment which may be populated by many users who can create a personal avatar, and simultaneously and independently explore the virtual world, participate in its activities and communicate with others. These avatars can be textual, graphical representations, or live video avatars with auditory and touch sensations. Virtual worlds are closely related to mirror worlds.


title: Virtual world

text: In a virtual world, the user accesses a computer-simulated world which presents perceptual stimuli to the user, who in turn can manipulate elements of the modeled world and thus experience a degree of presence.


title: Virtual world

text: Such modeled worlds and their rules may draw from reality or fantasy worlds. Example rules are gravity, topography, locomotion, real-time actions, and communication. Communication between users can range from text, graphical icons, visual gesture, sound, and rarely, forms using touch, voice command, and balance senses.


title: Virtual world

text: Massively multiplayer online games depict a wide range of worlds, including those based on the real world, science fiction, super heroes, sports, horror, and historical milieus. Most MMORPGs have real-time actions and communication. Players create a character who travels between buildings, towns, and worlds to carry out business or leisure activities. Communication is usually textual, but real-time voice communication is also possible. The form of communication used can substantially affect the experience of players in the game. Media studies professor Edward Castronova used the term "synthetic worlds" to discuss individual virtual worlds, but this term has not been widely adopted.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds are not limited to games but, depending on the degree of immediacy presented, can encompass computer conferencing and text-based chatrooms.


title: Virtual world

text: The concept of virtual worlds significantly predates computers. The Roman naturalist, Pliny the Elder, expressed an interest in perceptual illusion. In the twentieth century, the cinematographer Morton Heilig explored the creation of the Sensorama, a theatre experience designed to stimulate the senses of the audience—vision, sound, balance, smell, even touch (via wind)—and so draw them more effectively into the productions


title: Virtual world

text: Among the earliest virtual worlds implemented by computers were virtual reality simulators, such as the work of Ivan Sutherland. Such devices are characterized by bulky headsets and other types of sensory input simulation. Contemporary virtual worlds, in particular the multi-user online environments, emerged mostly independently of this research, fueled instead by the gaming industry but drawing on similar inspiration. While classic sensory-imitating virtual reality relies on tricking the perceptual system into experiencing an immersive environment, virtual worlds typically rely on mentally and emotionally engaging content which gives rise to an immersive experience.


title: Virtual world

text: Maze War was the first networked, 3D multi-user first person shooter game. Maze introduced the concept of online players in 1973–1974 as "eyeball 'avatars' chasing each other around in a maze." It was played on ARPANET, or Advanced Research Projects Agency Network, a precursor to the Internet funded by the United States Department of Defense for use in university and research laboratories. The initial game could only be played on an Imlac, as it was specifically designed for this type of computer.


title: Virtual world

text: The first virtual worlds presented on the Internet were communities and chat rooms, some of which evolved into MUDs and MUSHes. The first MUD, known as MUD1, was released in 1978. The acronym originally stood for Multi-User Dungeon, but later also came to mean Multi-User Dimension and Multi-User Domain. A MUD is a virtual world with many players interacting in real time. The early versions were text-based, offering only limited graphical representation and often using a Command Line Interface. Users interact in role-playing or competitive games by typing commands and can read or view descriptions of the world and other players. Such early worlds began the MUD heritage that eventually led to massively multiplayer online role-playing games, more commonly known as MMORPGs, a genre of role-playing games in which a large number of players interact within a virtual world.


title: Virtual world

text: Some prototype virtual worlds were "WorldsAway", a two-dimensional chat environment where users designed their own avatars; "Dreamscape," an interactive community featuring a virtual world by CompuServe; Cityspace, an educational networking and 3D computer graphics project for children; and "The Palace", a 2-dimensional community driven virtual world. However, credit for the first online virtual world usually goes to "Habitat", developed in 1987 by LucasFilm Games for the Commodore 64 computer, and running on the Quantum Link service (the precursor to America Online).


title: Virtual world

text: In 1996, the city of Helsinki, Finland with Helsinki Telephone Company (since Elisa Group) launched what was called the first online virtual 3D depiction intended to map an entire city. The Virtual Helsinki project was eventually renamed Helsinki Arena 2000 project and parts of the city in modern and historical context were rendered in 3D.


title: Virtual world

text: In 1999, Whyville.net the first virtual world specifically for children was launched with a base in game-based learning and one of the earliest virtual currency-based economies. Shortly after, in 2000, Habbo launched and grew to become one of the most popular and longest running virtual worlds with millions of users around the world.


title: Virtual world

text: There is no generally accepted definition of virtual world, but they do require that the world be persistent; in other words, the world must continue to exist even after a user exits the world, and user-made changes to the world should be preserved.


title: Virtual world

text: While the interaction with other participants is done in real-time, time consistency is not always maintained in online virtual worlds. For example, "EverQuest" time passes faster than real-time despite using the same calendar and time units to present game time.


title: Virtual world

text: As "virtual world" is a general term, the virtual environment supports varying degrees of play and gaming. Some uses of the term include


title: Virtual world

text: A virtual economy is the emergent property of the interaction between participants in a virtual world. While the designers have a great deal of control over the economy by the encoded mechanics of trade, it is nonetheless the actions of players that define the economic conditions of a virtual world. The economy arises as a result of the choices that players make under the scarcity of real and virtual resources such as time or currency. Participants have a limited time in the virtual world, as in the real world, which they must divide between task such as collecting resources, practicing trade skills, or engaging in less productive fun play. The choices they make in their interaction with the virtual world, along with the mechanics of trade and wealth acquisition, dictate the relative values of items in the economy. The economy in virtual worlds is typically driven by in-game needs such as equipment, food, or trade goods. Virtual economies like that of Second Life, however, are almost entirely player-produced with very little link to in-game needs. While the relevance of virtual world economics to physical world economics has been questioned, it has been shown the users of virtual worlds respond to economic stimuli (such as the law of supply and demand) in the same way that people do in the physical world. In fact, there are often very direct corollaries between physical world economic decisions and virtual world economic decisions, such as the decision by prisoners of war in World War II to adopt cigarettes as currency and the adoption of Stones of Jordan as currency in "Diablo II".


title: Virtual world

text: The value of objects in a virtual economy is usually linked to their usefulness and the difficulty of obtaining them. The investment of real world resources (time, membership fees, etc.) in acquisition of wealth in a virtual economy may contribute to the real world value of virtual objects. This real world value is made obvious by the (mostly illegal) trade of virtual items on online market sites like eBay, PlayerUp, IGE for real world money. Recent legal disputes also acknowledge the value of virtual property, even overriding the mandatory EULA which many software companies use to establish that virtual property has no value and/or that users of the virtual world have no legal claim to property therein.


title: Virtual world

text: Some industry analysts have moreover observed that there is a secondary industry growing behind the virtual worlds, made up by social networks, websites and other projects completely devoted to virtual worlds communities and gamers. Special websites such as GamerDNA, Koinup and others which serve as social networks for virtual worlds users are facing some crucial issues as the DataPortability of avatars across many virtual worlds and MMORPGs.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds offer advertisers the potential for virtual advertisements, such as the in-game advertising already found in a number of video games.


title: Virtual world

text: The geography of virtual worlds can vary widely because the role of geography and space is an important design component over which the developers of virtual worlds have control and may choose to alter. Virtual worlds are, at least superficially, digital instantiations of three-dimensional space. As a result, considerations of geography in virtual worlds (such as World of Warcraft) often revolve around “spatial narratives” in which players act out a nomadic hero's journey along the lines of that present in "The Odyssey". The creation of fantastic places is also a reoccurring theme in the geographic study of virtual worlds, although, perhaps counterintuitively, the heaviest users of virtual worlds often downgrade the sensory stimuli of the world's fantastic places in order to make themselves more efficient at core tasks in the world, such as killing monsters. However, the geographic component of some worlds may only be a geographic veneer atop an otherwise nonspatial core structure. For instance, while imposing geographic constraints upon users when they quest for items, these constraints may be removed when they sell items in a geographically unconstrained auction house. In this way, virtual worlds may provide a glimpse into what the future economic geography of the physical world may be like as more and more goods become digital.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual spaces can serve a variety of research and educational goals and may be useful for examining human behaviour. Offline- and virtual-world personalities differ from each other but are nevertheless significantly related which has a number of implications for self-verification, self-enhancement and other personality theories. Panic and agoraphobia have also been studied in a virtual world.


title: Virtual world

text: Given the large engagement, especially of young children in virtual worlds, there has been a steady growth in research studies involving the social, educational and even emotional impact of virtual worlds on children. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation for example have funded research into virtual worlds including, for example, how preteens explore and share information about reproductive health. A larger set of studies on children's social and political use of the virtual world Whyville.net has also been published in the book "Connected Play: Tweens in a Virtual World" Authored by Yasmin B. Kafai, Deborah A. Fields, and Mizuko Ito. Several other research publications now specifically address the use of virtual worlds for education.


title: Virtual world

text: Other research focused more on adults explores the reasons for indulging and the emotions of virtual world users. Many users seek an escape or a comfort zone in entering these virtual worlds, as well as a sense of acceptance and freedom. Virtual worlds allow users to freely explore many facets of their personalities in ways that are not easily available to them in real life. However, users may not be able to apply this new information outside of the virtual world. Thus, virtual worlds allow for users to flourish within the world and possibly become addicted to their new virtual life which may create a challenge as far as dealing with others and in emotionally surviving within their real lives. One reason for this freedom of exploration can be attributed to the anonymity that virtual worlds provide. It gives the individual the ability to be free from social norms, family pressures or expectations they may face in their personal real world lives. The avatar persona experiences an experience similar to an escape from reality like drug or alcohol usage for numbing pain or hiding behind it. The avatar no longer represents a simple tool or mechanism manipulated in cyberspace. Instead, it has become the individual's bridge between the physical and virtual world, a conduit through which to express oneself among other social actors. The avatar becomes the person's alter ego; the vehicle to which one utilizes to exist among others who are all seeking the same satisfaction.


title: Virtual world

text: While greatly facilitating ease of interaction across time and geographic boundaries, the virtual world presents an unreal environment with instant connection and gratification. Online encounters are employed as seemingly fulfilling alternatives to “live person” relationships (Toronto, 2009). When one is ashamed, insecure, lost or just looking for something different and stimulating to engage in, virtual worlds are the perfect environment for its users. A person has unlimited access to an infinite array of opportunities to fulfill every fantasy, grant every wish, or satisfy every desire. He or she can face any fear or conquer any enemy, all at the click of a mouse (Toronto, 2009). Ultimately, virtual worlds are the place to go when real life becomes overbearing or boring. While in real life individuals hesitate to communicate their true opinions, it is easier to do so online because they don't ever have to meet the people they are talking with (Toronto, 2009). Thus, virtual worlds are basically a psychological escape.


title: Virtual world

text: Another area of research related to virtual worlds is the field of navigation. Specifically, this research investigates whether or not virtual environments are adequate learning tools in regards to real-world navigation. Psychologists at Saint Michael's College found that video game experience corresponded with ability to navigate virtual environments and complete objectives; however, that experience did not correlate with an increased ability to navigate real, physical environments. An extensive study at the University of Washington conducted multiple experiments involving virtual navigation. One experiment had two groups of subjects, the first of which examined maps of a virtual environment, and the second of which navigated the virtual environment. The groups of subjects then completed an objective in the virtual environment. There was little difference between the two groups’ performances, and what difference there was, it was in favor of the map-users. The test subjects, though, were generally unfamiliar with the virtual world interface, likely leading to some impaired navigation, and thus bias in the yielded analysis of the experiments. The study concluded that the interface objects made natural navigation movements impossible, and perhaps less intrusive controls for the virtual environment would reduce the effect of the impairment.


title: Virtual world

text: Unlike most video games, which are usually navigated using various free-ranging human interface devices (HIDs), virtual worlds are usually navigated (as of 2009) using HIDs which are designed and oriented around flat, 2-dimensional graphical user interfaces; as most comparatively inexpensive computer mice are manufactured and distributed for 2-dimensional UI navigation, the lack of 3D-capable HID usage among most virtual world users is likely due to both the lack of penetration of 3D-capable devices into non-niche, non-gaming markets as well as the generally higher pricing of such devices compared to 2-dimensional HIDs. Even those users who do make use of HIDs which provide such features as six degrees of freedom often have to switch between separate 3D and 2D devices in order to navigate their respectively designed interfaces.


title: Virtual world

text: Like video gamers, some users of virtual world clients may also have a difficult experience with the necessity of proper graphics hardware (such as the more advanced graphics processing units distributed by Nvidia and AMD) for the sake of reducing the frequency of less-than-fluid graphics instances in the navigation of virtual worlds. However, in part for this reason, a growing number of virtual world engines, especially serving children, are entirely browser-based requiring no software down loads or specialized computer hardware. The first virtual world of this kind was Whyville.net, launched in 1999, built by Numedeon inc. which obtained an early patent for its browser-based implementation.


title: Virtual world

text: Although the social interactions of participants in virtual worlds are often viewed in the context of 3D Games, other forms of interaction are common as well, including forums, blogs, wikis, chatrooms, instant messaging, and video-conferences. Communities are born in places which have their own rules, topics, jokes, and even language. Members of such communities can find like-minded people to interact with, whether this be through a shared passion, the wish to share information, or a desire to meet new people and experience new things. Users may develop personalities within the community adapted to the particular world they are interacting with, which can impact the way they think and act. Internet friendships and participation online communities tend to complement existing friendships and civic participation rather than replacing or diminishing such interactions.


title: Virtual world

text: Disabled or chronically invalided people of any age can benefit enormously from experiencing the mental and emotional freedom gained by temporarily leaving their disabilities behind and doing, through the medium of their avatars, things as simple and potentially accessible to able, healthy people as walking, running, dancing, sailing, fishing, swimming, surfing, flying, skiing, gardening, exploring and other physical activities which their illnesses or disabilities prevent them from doing in real life. They may also be able to socialize, form friendships and relationships much more easily and avoid the stigma and other obstacles which would normally be attached to their disabilities. This can be much more constructive, emotionally satisfying and mentally fulfilling than passive pastimes such as television watching, playing computer games, reading or more conventional types of internet use.


title: Virtual world

text: The Starlight Children's Foundation helps hospitalized children (suffering from painful diseases or autism for example) to create a comfortable and safe environment which can expand their situation, experience interactions (when the involvement of a multiple cultures and players from around the world is factored in) they may not have been able to experience without a virtual world, healthy or sick. Virtual worlds also enable them to experience and act beyond the restrictions of their illness and help to relieve stress.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds can help players become more familiar and comfortable with actions they may in real-life feel reluctant or embarrassed. For example, in World of Warcraft, /dance is the emote for a dance move which a player in the virtual world can "emote" quite simply. And a familiarization with said or similar "emotes" or social skills (such as, encouragement, gratitude, problem-solving, and even kissing) in the virtual world via avatar can make the assimilation to similar forms of expression, socialization, interaction in real life smooth. Interaction with humans through avatars in the virtual world has potential to seriously expand the mechanics of one's interaction with real-life interactions.


title: Virtual world

text: As businesses compete in the real world, they also compete in virtual worlds. As there has been an increase in the buying and selling of products online (e-commerce) this twinned with the rise in the popularity of the internet, has forced businesses to adjust to accommodate the new market.


title: Virtual world

text: Many companies and organizations now incorporate virtual worlds as a new form of advertising. There are many advantages to using these methods of commercialization. An example of this would be Apple creating an online store within Second Life. This allows the users to browse the latest and innovative products. Players cannot actually purchase a product but having these “virtual stores” is a way of accessing a different clientele and customer demographic. The use of advertising within "virtual worlds" is a relatively new idea. This is because Virtual Worlds is a relatively new technology. Before companies would use an advertising company to promote their products. With the introduction of the prospect of commercial success within a Virtual World, companies can reduce cost and time constraints by keeping this "in-house". An obvious advantage is that it will reduce any costs and restrictions that could come into play in the real world.


title: Virtual world

text: Using virtual worlds gives companies the opportunity to gauge customer reaction and receive feedback. Feedback can be crucial to the development of a project as it will inform the creators exactly what users want.


title: Virtual world

text: Using virtual worlds as a tool allows companies to test user reaction and give them feedback on products. This can be crucial as it will give the companies an insight as to what the market and customers want from new products, which can give them a competitive edge. Competitive edge is crucial in the ruthless world that is today's business.


title: Virtual world

text: Another use of virtual worlds business is where players can create a gathering place. Many businesses can now be involved in business-to-business commercial activity and will create a specific area within a virtual world to carry out their business. Within this space all relevant information can be held. This can be useful for a variety of reasons. Players can conduct business with companies on the other side of the world, so there are no geographical limitations, it can increase company productivity. Knowing that there is an area where help is on hand can aid the employees. Sun Microsystems have created an island in Second Life dedicated for the sole use of their employees. This is a place where people can go and seek help, exchange new ideas or to advertise a new product.


title: Virtual world

text: According to trade media company Virtual Worlds Management, commercial investments in the "virtual worlds" sector were in excess of US$425 million in Q4 2007, and totaled US$184 million in Q1 2008. However, the selection process for defining a "virtual worlds" company in this context has been challenged by one industry blog.


title: Virtual world

text: A number of virtual worlds have incorporated systems for sale of goods through virtual interfaces and using virtual currencies. Transfers of in-world credits typically are not bound by laws governing commerce. Such transactions may lack the oversight and protections associated with real-world commerce, and there is potential for fraudulent transactions. One example is that of Ginko Financial, a bank system featured in Second Life where avatars could deposit their real life currency after converted to Linden Dollars for a profit. In July 2007, residents of Second Life crowded around the ATM's in an unsuccessful attempt to withdraw their money. After a few days the ATM's along with the banks disappeared altogether. Around $700,000 in real world money was reported missing from residents in Second Life. An investigation was launched but nothing substantial ever came of finding and punishing the avatar known as Nicholas Portocarrero who was the head of Ginko Financial.


title: Virtual world

text: Civil and criminal laws exist in the real world and are put in place to govern people's behavior. Virtual Worlds such as "Eve Online" and "Second Life" also have people and systems that govern them.


title: Virtual world

text: Providers of online virtual spaces have more than one approach to the governing of their environments. "Second Life" for instance was designed with the expectation being on the residents to establish their own community rules for appropriate behaviour. On the other hand, some virtual worlds such as "Habbo" enforce clear rules for behaviour, as seen in their terms and conditions.


title: Virtual world

text: In some instances virtual worlds don't need established rules of conduct because actions such as ‘killing’ another avatar is impossible. However, if needed to, rule breakers can be punished with fines being payable through their virtual bank account, alternatively a players suspension may be put into effect.


title: Virtual world

text: Instances of real world theft from a virtual world do exist, Eve Online had an incident where a bank controller stole around 200bn credits and exchanged them for real world cash amounting to £3,115. The player in question has now been suspended as trading in-game cash for real money is against Eve Online's terms and conditions.


title: Virtual world

text: There are many MMORPG virtual worlds out on many platforms. Most notable are IMVU for Windows, PlayStation Home for PlayStation 3, and Second Life for Windows.


title: Virtual world

text: Many Virtual worlds have shut down since launch however. Notable shutdowns are The Sims Online, The Sims Bustin Out Online Weekend Mode, PlayStation Home, and Club Penguin.


title: Virtual world

text: Some single-player video games contain virtual worlds populated by non-player characters (NPC). Many of these allow players to save the current state of this world instance to allow stopping and restarting the virtual world at a later date. (This can be done with some multiplayer environments as well.)


title: Virtual world

text: Single-player games such as "Minecraft" have semi-infinite procedurally generated worlds that allow players to optionally create their own world without other players, and then combine skills from the game to work together with other players and create bigger and more intricate environments. These environments can then be accessed by other players, if the server is available to other players then they may be able to modify parts of it, such as the structure of the environment.


title: Virtual world

text: At one level, a more or less realistic rendered 3D space like the game world of "Halo 3" or "Grand Theft Auto V" is just as much a big database as Microsoft's Encarta encyclopedia.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds represent a powerful new medium for instruction and education that presents many opportunities but also some challenges. Persistence allows for continuing and growing social interactions, which themselves can serve as a basis for collaborative education. The use of virtual worlds can give teachers the opportunity to have a greater level of student participation. It allows users to be able to carry out tasks that could be difficult in the real world due to constraints and restrictions, such as cost, scheduling or location. Virtual worlds have the capability to adapt and grow to different user needs, for example, classroom teachers are able to use virtual worlds in their classroom leveraging their interactive whiteboard with the open-source project Edusim. They can be a good source of user feedback, the typical paper-based resources have limitations that Virtual Worlds can overcome.


title: Virtual world

text: Multi-user virtual worlds with easy-to-use affordances for building are useful in project-based learning. For example, Active Worlds is used to support classroom teachers in Virginia Beach City Public Schools, the out-of-school NASA RealWorld-InWorld Engineering Design Challenge, and many after school and in school programs in EDUni-NY. Projects range from tightly scaffolded reflection spaces to open building based on student-centered designs. New York Museums AMNH and NYSci have used the medium to support STEM learning experiences for their program participants.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds can also be used with virtual learning environments, as in the case of what is done in the Sloodle project, which aims to merge Second Life with Moodle.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds allow users with specific needs and requirements to access and use the same learning materials from home as they would receive if they were physically present. Virtual worlds can help users stay up to date with relevant information and needs while also feeling as they are involved. Having the option to be able to attend a presentation via a virtual world from home or from their workplace, can help the user to be more at ease and comfortable. Although virtual worlds are used as an alternative method of communicating and interacting with students and teachers, a sense of isolation can occur such as losing certain body language cues and other more personal aspects that one would achieve if they were face to face.


title: Virtual world

text: Some virtual worlds also offer an environment where simulation-based activities and games allow users to experiment various phenomenon and learn the underlying physics and principles. An example is Whyville launched in 1999, which targets kids and teenagers, offering them many opportunities to experiment, understand and learn. Topics covered in Whyville vary from physics to nutrition to ecology. Whyville also has a strong entrepreneurial structure based on user created virtual content sold in the internal virtual economy.


title: Virtual world

text: Some multi-user virtual worlds have become used for educational purposes and are thus called Multi-User Virtual Learning Environments (MUVLEs). Examples have included the use of Second Life for teaching English as a foreign languages (EFL) Many specialist types of MUVLE have particular pedagogies associated with them. For instance, George Siemens, Stephen Downes continue to promote the use of a type of MUVLE Dave Cormier coined called a 'MOOC'. Even though MOOCs were once seen as "next big thing" by universities and online education service providers such as Blackboard Inc, this was in fact what has been called a "stampede." By early 2013, serious questions emerged about whether MOOCs were simply part of a hype cycle and indeed following that hype whether academia was thus "MOOC'd out."


title: Virtual world

text: Online training overcomes constraints such as distance, infrastructure, accommodation costs and tight scheduling. Although video conferencing may be the most common tool, virtual worlds have been adopted by the business environment for training employees.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual training content resembles traditional tutorials and testing of user knowledge. Despite the lack of face to face contact and impaired social linking, learning efficiency may not be adversely affected as adults need autonomy in learning and are more self-directed than younger students.


title: Virtual world

text: Some companies and public places allow free virtual access to their facilities as an alternative to a video or picture.


title: Virtual world

text: Virtual worlds, virtual reality, and cyberspace are popular fictional motifs. The first was probably John M. Ford's 1980 novel "Web of Angels", and a prominent early example is the work of William Gibson. Virtual worlds are integral to works such as "Tron", "Neuromancer", "Ghost in the Shell", "Snow Crash", "The Lawnmower Man", "", "ReBoot", "Digimon", "The Matrix", "MegaMan NT Warrior", "Epic", "Code Lyoko" and "Real Drive".


title: Virtual world

text: In A.K. Dewdney's novel, "the Planiverse" (1984), college students create a virtual world called 2DWorld, leading to contact with Arde, a two-dimensional parallel universe.


title: Virtual world

text: The main focus of the Japanese cyberpunk, psychological, 13-episode anime titled "Serial Experiments Lain" (1998) is the Wired, a virtual reality world that governs the sum of all electronic communication and machines; outer receptors are used to mentally transport a person "into" the Wired itself as a uniquely different virtual avatar.


title: Virtual world

text: Yasutaka Tsutsui's novel, "Gaspard in the Morning" (1992), is the story of an individual immersed in the virtual world of a massively multiplayer online game. The plots of isekai works such as "" (1997), "Digimon Adventure" (1999), ".hack" (2002), "Sword Art Online" (2002), "Summer Wars" (2009), "Accel World" (2009), "Ready Player One" (2011), "Jumanji" (2017), "" (2021) and "Belle" (2021) also involve the virtual worlds of video games.


title: Virtual world

text: The fourth series of the New Zealand TV series "The Tribe" features the birth of Reality Space and the Virtual World that was created by Ram, the computer genius-wizard leader of The Technos.


title: Virtual world

text: In 2009, BBC Radio 7 commissioned "Planet B", set in a virtual world in which a man searches for his girlfriend, believed to be dead, but in fact still alive within the world called "Planet B". The series is the biggest-ever commission for an original drama series.