title: Transdermal patch

text: Obesity is one of the most popular topics in developed countries nowadays. Researchers have tried to reduce obesity rate using certain drugs, one in particular known as browning compound. In order to target a certain group of fat tissue, MNPs is utilized and shows that the patch can deliver browning nano particles to a certain group of fat tissue. By doing so, the drug's side effects can be reduced as MNPs are localized. The result shows that in mice experiments in a four weeks period, the white fat of the mice shrunk. Furthermore, an improved metabolism in the mice also signifies that the experiment to reduce obesity using MNPs might be worth testing in the future. If the research has been proved successful, MNPs treatment might be a great choice, as direct injection obesity drugs need medical professional assistance. While here, MNPs can be done by the patient without special skills.


title: Transdermal patch

text: Skin treatment including face whitening agent and dark eye circles serum can also incorporated in MNPs. Its localized property enhance skin whitening delivery to the face area. Even a very specific spot like dark eye circles. By measuring the melanin (dark or black pigment found on the skin) index, subjects that are treated with whitening agents coated in MNPs show lower melanin index, compared to the whitening essence (topical) group. The treatment lasts for eight weeks, and the result shows MNPs might be a promising cosmetic vector because MNPs does not introduce skin irritation and can be engineered to localize or specific parts of the body.


title: Transdermal patch

text: Micro Needle Patch (MNPs) might be another choice of safety compared to direct injection using candlestick. Not only safety in handling, MNPs also promote better disposal and prevent pathogen transmission. Under extraordinary circumstances, MNPs may cause complication mentioned below.


title: Transdermal patch

text: Under rare circumstances, MNPs may cause skin irritation on people with sensitive skin. Majority of studies show that MNPs do not irritate the skin, but does not close the possibility for sensitive skin group of people.


title: Transdermal patch

text: Especially for hollow MNPs, the not so stiff needles may cause unnecessary puncture to the skin outer layer. Thus may cause trauma to the skin and restricting the performance and flow of the drugs to the body.


title: Transdermal patch

text: Because most of MNPs applications are still under development, it is important to note the long effect of the efficiency of the drug deliveries. Furthermore, more research is needed to get information of what molecule can be delivered using MNPs. Disposal is also an important topic, as the small plastic backing may contribute to water pollution remembering the compact size can be easily carried away by wind and water without proper disposal.


title: Transdermal patch

text: A transdermal patch is classified by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a "combination product", consisting of a medical device combined with a drug or biological product that the device is designed to deliver. Prior to sale in the United States, any transdermal patch product must apply for and receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration, demonstrating safety and efficacy for its intended use.


title: Transdermal patch

text: Ita K. Chapter 1 - Transcutaneous drug administration. In: Ita K, editor. Transdermal Drug Delivery: Academic Press; 2020. p. 1-7.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: Wildflower was a 2017 Philippine revenge drama television series starring Maja Salvador, together with an ensemble cast. The show originally aired on ABS-CBN, and worldwide on The Filipino Channel, on network's "Primetime Bida" evening block from February 13, 2017, to February 9, 2018, replacing "" and was replaced by "The Blood Sisters".


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: The story revolves around Lily Cruz who (along with her family) falls victim to the ruthless Ardiente family. Emilia Torillo, the matriarch of the Ardiente family, orders an assassin to murder Camia Cruz and Dante Cruz, Lily's parents. Unbeknownst to Emilia, Lily survives the massacre and is adopted by Prianka Aguas, a billionaire businesswoman. Lily changes her identity to become Ivy Aguas, a strong-willed woman. She returns to Poblacion Ardiente as Ivy to avenge her parents and everyone else who were victimized by the evil Ardiente family.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: The story follows Lily Cruz, a beautiful heiress who wants justice for her father Dante's death and mother Camia's assault and resulting insanity, by seeking revenge against the evil Ardiente family, a powerful political dynasty in the fictional province that bears their name. The Ardiente family is the most powerful political force in the province under the jurisdiction of the governor, Julio Ardiente, and his daughter, Emilia, the mayor of the municipality (Poblacion Ardiente). Emilia's philanderous husband Raul assaults Camia prompting Dante to file rape charges against him. Lily's world crumbles when Dante suspiciously dies from a heart attack and she witnesses her mother's rape. Though targeted to be killed herself, the assassins feel pity for the 9-year old and frees her instead.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: Prianka Aguas legally adopts Lily and raises her to become tough, providing her with the resources to seek justice for her parents. With a billion dollar conglomerate behind her, Ivy is a magnet for the Ardientes who are preparing their campaign for the gubernatorial and congressional elections.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: Ivy seduces the Ardientes' weakest link, Arnaldo. He becomes obsessed with her and drives him near crazy. After several retaliatory attempts by Emilia against Ivy fails, Emilia is committed to a psychiatric facility. Ivy then instigates the removal of Julio Ardiente from office, weakens his hold on the province and then robs him of the only person he loves, his grandson, Arnaldo. However, throughout the sequence of events, the Ardientes have determined that Ivy is an adversary. Thus, they have her disposed of, by being buried alive in a wooden-coffin. She miraculously escapes death and returns with a vengeance.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: In a carefully orchestrated hijacking, Ivy gatecrashes a celebration being held by the Ardientes and reveals her real identity as Lily Cruz, to the shock of the Ardientes who supervised her "burial" in the cemetery. Through a series of activities, she cripples Ardientes' powerful influence but a new hidden enemy suddenly surfaces. It is later on revealed that this is Helena Montoya, the real mother of Emilia Ardiente. Also, known in the criminal world as "Red Dragon", she controls the country's largest crime syndicate. Notwithstanding the sinister résumé, Helena is no match to Lily's superior skills, and after several conflicts, Lily brings Red Dragon's operations to a halt.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: Diego and Lily get married and go off on their honeymoon. Arnaldo interrupts their celebration and commits suicide in front of them after being angrily rejected by Lily. In the mental asylum, Emilia is haunted by the evil ghosts of Helena and Arnaldo who exhort her to kill Diego and Lily to avenge their deaths. She unexpectedly regains her sanity, is released and obtains the support of the Asian syndicate using the password her mother gives her before she dies. Lily undermines Emilia’s ascent into power when she notifies the syndicate leader that Julio Ardiente had ordered the "Red Dragon"’s murder. Meanwhile, Lily discovers valuable information about a mass grave the Ardientes begin to use in the mid-50s when the family first seized power. Lily orchestrates a leak, instructing Jepoy and Ana to contact local media about the mass grave and stir up the citizens of Poblacion Ardiente to do the same. The media frenzy covering the atrocities committed by the Ardientes embolden whistleblowers and other victims to speak up, including former accomplices and political supporters like Natalie, ex-bodyguards, former assassins, and Judge Lustre.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: A popular uprising topples the Ardiente family. With solid evidence and witnesses no longer afraid to speak out, the people of Ardiente file cases of multiple murders, frustrated homicides, Estafa, plunder charges that would send them to prison for a long time, but Julio and Emilia escape capture. Their joy does not last long when Julio assassinates Diego with a sniper rifle, escaping once again to a Triad safe house.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: Emilia realizes her father's direct hand in the murders of her Aunt Claire and mother Helena; and that he never respected her as an equal. As Lily tries to stop Julio from escaping, Emilia comes face-to-face with her father, who shoots him several times and in turn, shoots Emilia in the spine. Later, Emilia, now a paraplegic is serving her time in prison. Lily visits extending an Olive branch and forgives her. The story ends with an epilogue showing Venus (Helena Montoya’s adopted daughter) torturing Julio to death with a blowtorch.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: Danita Paner was the first choice to play the role of Natalie. However, she refused because the role would require cutting her hair short. The role eventually went to Roxanne Barcelo.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: "Wildflower" aired on ABS-CBN's "Primetime Bida" evening block at 5:45 PM PST, before "TV Patrol" and worldwide via TFC.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: "Wildflower" was originally planned to replace the long running drama "Doble Kara" as part of "Kapamilya Gold" afternoon block. However, due to the longing request of the fans, the management eventually decided to air the series in the evening block. Two days before the premiere, the timeslot was announced on February 10, 2017.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: The first 30 episodes of "Wildflower" were once made available to watch on YouTube, however at an unknown date, presumably within 2021, they have been made private along with the show's highlights.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: On March 18, 2020, ABS-CBN announced that "Wildflower" will also rerun its episodes beginning March 23, 2020, via the network's "Primetime Bida" evening block, replacing "A Soldier's Heart", as part of ABS-CBN's temporary programming changes due to the community quarantine done to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic This rerun was abruptly cut due to the temporary closure of ABS-CBN following the cease and desist order issued by the National Telecommunications Commission on account of its franchise expiration. As of June 15, 2020, "Wildflower", no longer a replacement of "A Soldier's Heart", the show returned on June 15, 2020. "Wildflower" is currently airing episodes in a different airtime.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: The show became available on Netflix on September 9, 2022, in a condensed format consisting of 2 seasons and 133 episodes.


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: ABS-CBN has announced that "Wildflower" will be extended until February 9, 2018. The series was said to be extended until March 2018 for Book 5 as announced by Vice Ganda in her late night show "Gandang Gabi Vice", but it was pulled out to give way for "The Blood Sisters".


title: Wildflower (TV series)

text: "Wildflower" became a very controversial series during its run, with its unconventional depiction of Philippine politics, political dynasties, nepotism, political violence, organized crime, schizophrenia and human rights violations, as well as its allusion of events in modern Philippine history on primetime programming, and it even trended on social media. Its pilot episode in 2017 got 20.1%, 5.7% higher than rival show "Wowowin". The show peaked in its October 10, 2017, episode with a 35.2% nationwide rating, placing it only behind ABS-CBN's "TV Patrol" and "FPJ's Ang Probinsyano" that same night as the country's most watched TV broadcast. The same figure also ranked "Wildflower" as the country's highest-rated TV show on the pre-primetime slot since the Philippines switched to nationwide TV ratings system in 2009.


title: 'Til Death

text: Til Death is an American sitcom which aired on the Fox network from September 7, 2006, to June 20, 2010. The series was created by husband and wife team Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa, who were also the writers and executive producers. The show focuses on Eddie and Joy Stark (Brad Garrett and Joely Fisher), a couple married for 23 years who live in a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.


title: 'Til Death

text: "Til Death" centers on Eddie and Joy Stark, and their life, relationship and behavior after 23 years of marriage. The first two seasons often focus on the conflict between the Starks and their newlywed neighbors, Jeff and Steph Woodcock (Eddie Kaye Thomas and Kat Foster). The second season introduces a new character named Kenny Westchester (J. B. Smoove) who is Eddie's friend from the Big Brothers Organization.


title: 'Til Death

text: The third season focuses primarily on Eddie and Joy's relationship with Kenny after he moves in with them.


title: 'Til Death

text: The fourth and final season focuses on the Starks coping with life with their daughter Ally (Lindsey Broad, then Kate Micucci) and new son-in-law Doug (Timm Sharp), who live in a biodiesel-powered Airstream motorhome in the Starks' back yard. The series takes place in suburban Philadelphia in Cheltenham Township.


title: 'Til Death

text: The first season of "Til Death" ran from September 7, 2006, to April 11, 2007, and contained 22 episodes. The series initially aired Thursdays at 8/7c alongside fellow freshman sitcom "Happy Hour". In November, the series was given a full season order and then later paired with "The War at Home". Beginning in March 2007, the show was given the coveted time slot directly following "American Idol" results show, which led to an improvement in its ratings. In May, "Til Death" was renewed for a second season.


title: 'Til Death

text: The second season ran from September 2007 to May 2008 and consisted of 15 episodes, during which it aired on Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m. following a new comedy "Back to You". Late in 2007, production was halted because of the 2007–2008 writers' strike; only 19 episodes were produced. The series went on hiatus beginning November 28, but returned with a new episode on a special night in March 2008 at 9:30 p.m. Then in April, "Til Death" moved again to Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. leading into "Back to You". In May, the series was given an 18-episode order for its third season, while comedy companion "Back to You" was canceled.


title: 'Til Death

text: The third season consisted of 22 episodes (four of which were produced during the second season) and initially ran from September to October 2008. During this brief run of seven episodes, "Til Death" aired Wednesdays at 9/8c alongside a new comedy "Do Not Disturb". The ratings for both shows were low, and as a result, the network pulled the sitcom from its November schedule. Despite not airing all of season three and low ratings, "Til Death" was renewed for a fourth season in January 2009. Fox confirmed at its upfront presentation in May that the new season would air on Friday nights in the fall. The surprise renewal was attributed to a significant licensing discount offered to Fox by the production company of "'Til Death" (Sony Pictures Television), because it needed one more season to make the program viable for syndication.


title: 'Til Death

text: The fourth and final season premiered in October 2009 at a new time, Fridays at 8:30/7:30c, following a new sitcom, "Brothers", starring former NFL player Michael Strahan. This season is notable in that a large number of episodes produced for the third season, but previously unaired by Fox, were shown alongside new episodes produced for season four. Four new episodes of "Til Death" aired sequentially on Christmas Day from 8/7c until 10/9c. The schedule changed again, when "Til Death" moved to Sundays at 7/6c and 7:30/6:30c on January 31, 2010, with these first two episodes airing against Super Bowl XLIV. Eventually, it was paired for three episodes with the soon-to-be-canceled comedy "Sons of Tucson". The fourth season (and series) finale aired on May 23, 2010, although three unaired episodes formerly consigned for season three were burned off in June. Two months prior, Fox finally canceled production of "Til Death" after years of below-average ratings.


title: 'Til Death

text: On July 26, 2011, it was announced that the show was picked up for syndication by affiliates The CW Plus, and WGN America, which debuted the program on September 12, 2011. It was also announced on July 28, 2011 that Spike had picked up the show for syndication, which debuted on October 3, 2011. In June 2013, TV Land brought the show, but was removed later on.


title: 'Til Death

text: The first season DVDs include all 22 episodes from Season one. The second season DVDs include 18 out of the 19 episodes produced for Season two in airdate order.


title: Jane Henson

text: Jane Ann Henson (née Nebel; June 16, 1934 – April 2, 2013) was an American puppeteer and the wife of Jim Henson.


title: Jane Henson

text: Jane Ann Nebel was born and raised in St. Albans, Queens, she met Henson when she was a senior and he a freshman at the University of Maryland, College Park.


title: Jane Henson

text: Jane Nebel and Jim Henson worked together on the live 1950s television show "Sam and Friends", where Jane collaborated with Jim in performing Muppets and devising several of the show's technical innovations, including the use of television monitors to watch their performances in real time. When, in the late 1950s, Jim took a year off from "Sam and Friends" to travel in Europe, Jane ran the show, with the help of a UMD classmate.


title: Jane Henson

text: "Among the first of his assignments at WRC was "Afternoon", a magazine show aimed at housewives. This marked his first collaboration with Jane Nebel – the woman who later became his wife" They did not begin dating until Jim returned from Europe where he traveled for several months, to be inspired by European puppeteers who look on their work as an art form. They were married on May 28,1959 at Jane's family home in Salisbury, Maryland.


title: Jane Henson

text: When she quit full-time puppeteering in the early 1960s to raise their children, Jim hired Jerry Juhl and Frank Oz to replace her. She helped Oz learn how to lip sync, and continued to perform non-speaking muppets on "Sesame Street" from time to time through at least the eighties. She was also responsible for the hiring of puppeteer Steve Whitmire (who would later take over performing Kermit the Frog and Ernie of "Sesame Street" after the death of Jim Henson in 1990) in 1978 after he gave her an impromptu audition in an Atlanta, Georgia airport restaurant.


title: Jane Henson

text: In 1990, the Henson Company went into an agreement with Disney to present a live stage show: "Here Come The Muppets", at Disney/MGM Studio. Jane was the main developer in the training of performers and profile creation for the walk-around versions of the Muppets. She was able to share the Henson spirit of the ten characters that joined Disney at the time: Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo the Great, Bean Bunny, as well as five members of the Electric Mayhem Band.


title: Jane Henson

text: Towards the end of her life, Jane conceived the idea of a stylized puppet show based on the Gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus. Together with a small group of collaborators, she created a live theatre piece featuring tabletop manger figure puppets built by the Jim Henson Creature Shop. Jane Henson's Nativity Story premiered at the 2010 Orlando Puppet Festival. After Henson's death in 2013, vignettes from the stage show were used in the CBS television special "A New York Christmas to Remember", narrated by Regis Philbin. A tribute to Henson from family and friends was part of the national broadcast.


title: Jane Henson

text: Jane and Jim Henson married in 1959; together they had five children: Lisa (born 1960), Cheryl (born 1961), Brian (born 1963), John (1965–2014), and Heather Henson (born 1970). Jane and Jim separated in 1986, although they remained close until his death in 1990. In 1992, she established The Jim Henson Legacy to preserve and perpetuate the work of her husband. She served on the boards of the Jim Henson Foundation and the American Center for Children's Television.


title: Jane Henson

text: On March 20, 2013, her daughter Cheryl revealed that her mother had cancer and was paralyzed; she asked fans to keep Jane in their prayers. Jane Henson died from the disease at the family home in Greenwich, Connecticut, on April 2, 2013, at the age of 78. She was cremated and her ashes were interred at Saint Bridge Cemetery, Connecticut. The film "Muppets Most Wanted" was dedicated to her and Jerry Nelson (who also died aged 78).


title: Lee Mu-jin

text: Lee Mu-jin (; born December 28, 2000) is a South Korean singer-songwriter. He rose to fame after appearing on the music audition show "Sing Again" in 2020, in which he finished in 3rd place. His 2021 single, "Traffic Light", spent three weeks at number one on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart. Since 2022, he is the main host on KBS music web show, "LeeMujin Service".


title: Lee Mu-jin

text: Lee was born in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. He is a student at Seoul Institute of the Arts.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: Goto, who has been convicted at least nine times, was a prominent yakuza and at one point the most powerful crime boss in Tokyo, even being dubbed the "John Gotti of Japan". Goto was once claimed to have been the largest shareholder in Japan Airlines, but this was disputed by stock exchange filings.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: He had been barred from entering the United States until 2001 when he got a special visa deal from the FBI for a life-saving liver transplant at a time of pronounced organ scarcity.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: According to his autobiography, Goto was born in Ebara, Tokyo, as the youngest of four brothers. After the beginning of the Pacific War, of World War II, he moved to his father's hometown Fujinomiya, Shizuoka at age two when his mother died. He was raised by his grandmother and grew up in poverty.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: After a period as a street thug in Fujinomiya, his yakuza career officially began in 1972, at age 28, when he joined a tertiary Yamaguchi-affiliate based in Fujinomiya. Goto was rapidly promoted, and in 1985 he formed his own yakuza group, the Goto-gumi, in Fujinomiya as a secondary affiliate of the Yamaguchi-gumi. He entered the Kobe headquarters of the Yamaguchi-gumi in its 4th era (1984–1985), and had been in the headquarters until 2008 when he was expelled.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: In 2001, after dealing with the FBI, he entered the United States to receive a liver transplant, and gave a $100,000 donation to the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. Goto got his new liver, from a queue-jumping transplant, in the year when 186 people in the Los Angeles region died waiting for a liver.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: The Los Angeles hospital provided altogether four Japanese gang figures with liver transplants over a period when several hundred local patients died while awaiting transplants. Goto continued to receive medical care from his world-renowned liver surgeon Dr. Ronald Busuttil in Japan. Busuttil flew to Japan and examined Goto on more than one occasion, said Goto’s Tokyo-based lawyer, Yoshiyuki Maki - and evaluated Goto while he was in custody in 2006.


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: Although the FBI would want some crucial information about the Yamaguchi-gumi's activities in the United States, Goto provided little useful information, according to a retired chief of the FBI's Asian criminal enterprise unit in Washington, however it included a clue about some activities of Susumu Kajiyama the "Emperor of Loan Sharks".


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: Goto began disappearing from the yakuza scene in 2008 after allegedly being forced into retirement by the Kobe headquarters' ruling faction led by Kiyoshi Takayama of the Kodo-kai. His expulsion from the Yamaguchi-gumi was officially confirmed by the headquarters in October 2008. After retirement, he became a Buddhist priest, with his Buddhist name "Chuei" (忠叡).


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: Goto released his autobiography, "Habakarinagara" (lit. "while hesitating", roughly analogous to the western phrase "with all due respect" ), in May 2010. "Habakarinagara" had sold over 225,000 copies and went to number one in sales on various book-sales charts in Japan, by early 2011. All book royalties were donated to charity, Cambodia's "Angkor Association for the Disabled" and Myanmar's two Buddhist temples including "Mogok Vipassana Temple".


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: Angkor Association for the Disabled's official website has listed Goto as a major donor, with his Buddhist name "The Venerable Chyuei [Gotou]".


title: Tadamasa Goto

text: In December 2015, Goto was named by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control as an individual with ongoing associations with the Japanese yakuza. Sanctions were imposed to effectively freeze all known assets held by Goto in the United States and to prohibit all U.S. persons from engaging in transactions with him.


title: Dream High 2

text: Dream High 2 () is a 2012 South Korean television series starring Kang So-ra, Jay B, Jeong Jin-woon, Park Ji-yeon, Hyolyn, and Park Seo-joon. It aired on KBS2 from January 30 to March 20, 2012, on Mondays and Tuesdays at 22:00 (KST). Like its prequel, it has 16 episodes but was less successful, only averaging single-digit audience ratings.


title: Dream High 2

text: Like its predecessor "Dream High", it follows a group of students at the Kirin High School of Art stars who pursue their dream of becoming K-pop stars. However, it has a slight difference in terms of plot with new set of student casts.


title: Dream High 2

text: After going into financial bankruptcy, Kirin High School is taken over by Oz Entertainment. The company then transfers its own young trainees to circumvent a law requiring underage entertainers to study for a set amount of time. Then, competition brews between the troubled students at Kirin High and the newly transferred Oz Entertainment trainees.


title: Dream High 2

text: Although Shin Hae-sung (Kang So-ra) enters Kirin High School with a high exam score, she has no talent in singing. She meets and befriends fellow students, Jin Yoo-jin (Jung Jin-woon) and JB. Yoo-jin, who originally got into the entertainment industry as a child actor, is now troubled by his dreams of becoming a rock star as he tries to cope with the pain of his parents' divorce. JB, a member of a famous group I:dn (Eden), develops feelings for Hae-sung and dates her later on.


title: Dream High 2

text: Ri-an (Jiyeon), a member of a famous girl group called HershE, chases after JB, who was once her boyfriend. Meanwhile, Yoo-jin, who also likes Hae-sung, tries to separate the couple with Ri-an. Later on, Ri-an and Yoo-jin give up and remain close friends.


title: Dream High 2

text: Hae-sung leaves for the US and 8 years after the graduation it is revealed that now she is a famous composer and director, JB, due to his leg injury, gives up on his dream of being a dancer and ends up as a music producer, Ri-an becomes a Hallyu idol, and Yoo-jin becomes a rock music teacher at Kirin High School by day and a rocker by night.


title: Dream High 2

text: "Falling" is the first part of the drama's soundtrack and was featured in the first episode of the drama. Park Jin-young was once again involved in composing, writing and interpreting the soundtrack of the drama.


title: Dream High 2

text: The track "Falling" is slow tempo with beautiful guitar melody. It has gained a lot of popular response sweeping music charts since its release. Ranking first, second and third on real time charts. The song is available on digital music portals such as Melon, Soribada, Bugs and Mnet. The rest of the soundtrack will include more beautiful melodies reflecting character stories, struggles and dreams in the drama.


title: Beelzebufo

text: Beelzebufo ampinga ( or ) was a particularly large species of prehistoric frog described in 2008. Common names assigned by the popular media include devil frog, devil toad, and the frog from hell.


title: Beelzebufo

text: Fossils of "Beelzebufo" have been recovered from strata of the Maevarano Formation in Madagascar, dating to the late Cretaceous period, some 70 million years ago (Mya). It is considered to be closely related to "Baurubatrachus" from the Late Cretaceous of Brazil, with both possibly being close relatives, though not members of, the extant South American frog family Ceratophryidae.


title: Beelzebufo

text: The first fossil bones were found in 1993 by David W. Krause of New York's Stony Brook University, but it took 14 years for scientists Susan E. Evans, Marc E. H. Jones, and Krause to assemble enough data for publication in the "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences," the journal of the United States National Academy of Sciences. The generic name "Beelzebufo" is a portmanteau of "Beelzebub" (a Semitic deity whose name may be translated as "Lord of the Flies", sometimes identified either as one of the chief lieutenants, or alter ego of the Christian Devil) and "bufo" (Latin for "toad"). The specific name "ampinga" means "shield" in Malagasy.


title: Beelzebufo

text: Some 75 fossil isolated partial bones have been found. Some portions of articulated skull are also known: specimen FMNH PR 2512 (which preserves most of the braincase, part of the palate, and part of the skull roof) and specimen FMNH PR 2512 (which preserves one of the posterior flanges). Researchers have been able to reconstruct parts of the frog's skeleton, including nearly the entire skull.


title: Beelzebufo

text: In early studies, it is suggested that snout-vent lengths of up to 42.5 cm (16.7 in). But in later studies, animals of this species estimated to have grown to at least (snout-vent length), which is around the size a modern African bullfrog can reach. The head of "Beelzebufo" was very big, and bones of the skull roof show a rugous external surface, indicating at least parts of the head may have borne bony scales, called scutes.


title: Beelzebufo

text: The skull sutures are open in even the largest specimens of "Beelzebufo", showing that it might have grown even bigger.


title: Beelzebufo

text: "Beelzebufo" most likely was a predator whose expansive mouth allowed it to eat relatively large prey, perhaps even juvenile dinosaurs. Bite force measurements from a growth series of Cranwell's horned frog ("Ceratophrys cranwelli"), suggest that the bite force of a large "Beelzebufo" — skull width — may have been between .


title: Beelzebufo

text: The fossils of "Beelzebufo" are from Madagascar, which, while still attached to India, separated from the coast of Somalia in the earliest stage of the Late Jurassic. "Beelzebufo" resembles horned frogs (Ceratophryidae) of South America, which raised the possibility of a close biogeographic link between Madagascar and South America during the Cretaceous. The initial description of "Beelzebufo" hypothesis reignited interest and research into skeletal variation among living members of the Ceratophyridae. These investigations suggest several of the similarities between "Beelzebufo" and horned frogs may have evolved by convergence; a possibility certainly acknowledged in the descriptions of "Beelzebufo".


title: Beelzebufo

text: A study from 2018 suggested that "Beelzebufo", and other extinct frogs with ceratophryid-like traits, such as "Baurubatrachus", were instead part of a more ancient group of Neobatrachia, distantly related to horned frogs. However, a 2022 study recovered "Baurubatrachus" and "Beelzebufo" as sister species, with the clade formed by the two genera in turn being the sister clade to extant Ceratophyridae. Thus, "Beelzebufo" could represent a taxon on the stem of crown group Ceratophryidae as previously suggested.


title: Malaysian names

text: Personal names in Malaysia vary greatly according to ethno-cultural group. Personal names are, to a certain degree, regulated by the national registration department, especially since the introduction of the National Registration Identity Card (NRIC).


title: Malaysian names

text: The Malaysian Chinese are generally the only major ethnic group in Malaysia to use family names, though some Malay families use surnames as well. Most other groups, including the ethnic Malays, Orang Asli and the Bumiputera of Sabah and Sarawak, generally share a naming custom that includes the use of a personal name followed by a patronym name.


title: Malaysian names

text: Traditional Malay names were taken from one of a number of languages, or even a combination of two or more elements from these languages:


title: Malaysian names

text: Malay names are not to be confused with Malaysian names. Malay names also exist in various countries other than Malaysia, including among the ethnic Malay communities in Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore, South Africa (Cape Malays) and Thailand.


title: Malaysian names

text: Arabic names were introduced later along with Islam names but did not become dominant among commoners until the colonial era. Although traditional Malay names were still widely used for centuries afterward, they are now primarily confined to rural areas. Malaysia's National Registration Department doesn't allow names which they deem to have negative or obscene meanings, such as Pendek which means short. The Department additionally bans names with the meaning of colors, animals and natural phenomena. This effectively renders many traditional names illegal including Puteh or Putih (white), Bulan (moon), Suria (sun), Rimau (tiger) and Awan (cloud). Because of these restrictions, the vast majority of Malays today tend to favour Arabic names. However, names from the following languages are common as well:


title: Malaysian names

text: Names of Arabo-Hebrew origins are also common, for example Adam, Yaakob, Ishak, Bunyamin and Danial and Sarah. In addition, names of Arabo-Hebrew origins that seldom used by Muslim Arabs are widespread among Malays, such as the female names of Saloma and Rohana.


title: Malaysian names

text: In pre-modern times, words and names of Arabic derivation were adapted to suit the Classical Malay language. This is still reflected in the rural pronunciation of certain Middle Eastern names. Thus, Sharif would be Sarip and Aziz would become Ajis.


title: Malaysian names

text: A Malay's name consists of a personal name, which is used to address them in all circumstances, almost always followed by a patronym. Thus, most Malays do not use family names or surnames. In this respect, Malay names are similar to Icelandic naming conventions. For men, the patronym consists of the title "bin" (from the Arabic , meaning 'son of') followed by his father's personal name. If Osman has a son called Musa, Musa will be known as Musa bin Osman. For women, the patronym consists of the title "binti" (from the Arabic , meaning 'daughter of') followed by her father's name. Thus, if Musa has a daughter called Aisyah, Aisyah will be known as Aisyah binti Musa. Upon marriage, a woman does not change her name, as is done in many cultures.


title: Malaysian names

text: In the past it was uncommon for a Malay to have more than one personal name, but in modern times Malay names may consist of two and sometimes three personal names.


title: Malaysian names

text: In October 2018, the longest recorded name for a Malaysian is 'Princess Aura Nurr Ermily Amara Auliya Bidadari Nawal El-Zendra', comprising 78 letters, 2 letters short of the allowed 80 letters.


title: Malaysian names

text: Some are taken from public figures around the world, such as Mohammad Rifae Zidane, whose third personal name is taken from the famous footballer. Some people have names from other languages that have a different Malay meaning. For example, the daughter of actor Scha Alyahya and Awal Ashaari, named Lara Alana, faced criticism from Malaysians because "Lara" means "painful", although it means "protector" in Latin.


title: Malaysian names

text: The patronymic is employed by almost all Malays in accordance with local customs as well as ones adopted from the Arabs, Hebrews and others. Sometimes the title part of the patronymic, "Bin" or "Binti", is reduced to "B." for men, or to "Bt.", "Bte." or "Bint." for women. Foreigners sometimes take this abbreviation erroneously for a middle initial. In general practice, most Malays omit the title "Bin" or "Binti" from their names. Therefore, the two examples from the paragraph above would be known as Musa Osman and Aisyah Musa. When presented in this way, the second part of the name is often mistaken by foreigners for a family name.


title: Malaysian names

text: When someone is referred to using only one name, the first name is always used, never the second (because it would be rude to call someone by his or her father's name). Thus, Musa Osman is Mr Musa (or Encik Musa in Malay), and Aisyah Musa is Mrs/Ms/Miss Aisyah (or Puan/Cik Aisyah in Malay). Occasionally, however, a man's personal name comes after the Islamic prophet Mohammed's name, or the word Abdul. In such a case, the man will usually be referred to by his second name, if the third name is the patronymic. For example, Mohammed Hisyam bin Ariffin would be referred by the name Mr Hisyam, or Abdul Rahman bin Rasyid would be referred to as Mr Abdul Rahman.


title: Malaysian names

text: It is argued that the Mr or Mrs form of address is not compatible with the Malay naming system, probably due to the lack of family or surnames. It is therefore customary to address Malays using the Malay forms of address (Encik or Puan/Cik).


title: Malaysian names

text: A few Malay families do use surnames, such as Abang, Awang, Tengku, Megat, Nik, Wan, Raja and Che, which are passed down patrilineally, while others such as "Merican", "Khan" and "Munsi" indicate an Indian Muslim ancestry (since these names are Indian Muslim in origin). Other common surnames includes "Sayid" or "Syed" (of Arab ancestry), "Teuku" (of Aceh), "Daeng" (of Bugis origin), etc.


title: Malaysian names

text: In olden times, the first group of Chinese people in Malaysia used to be held in high regard by Malays. Some Malays in the past may have taken the word "Baba", referring to Chinese males, and put it into their name, when this used to be the case. This is not followed by the younger generation, and the current Chinese Malaysians do not have the same status as they previously had.


title: Malaysian names

text: Another feature in Malay names, which is very common, is the existence of second personal names or double names. This seems to have been developed in response to the use of very popular Muslim names, like Muhammad and Ahmad for men, and Nur and Siti for women. Bearers of these names, and their variants, often add a more distinctive second name, like Muhammad Osman or Nur Mawar. The patronym is then added after these.


title: Malaysian names

text: A special case of double names for men is the use of Abdul. Following Arabic naming practices, "Abdul" simply means 'servant of' and must be followed by one of the names of God in the Qur'an; for example Abdul Haqq means 'servant of the Truth'.


title: Malaysian names

text: Thus, Osman may have another son called Abdul Haqq, who is known as Abdul Haqq bin Osman, or Abdul Haqq Osman. Then he, in turn, may have a daughter called Nur Mawar, who is known as Nur Mawar binte Abdul Haqq, or Nor Mawar Abdul Haqq. It is often common to drop the first element in these double names, even if it is Abdul, and so the examples could be known as Haqq Osman and Mawar Haqq.


title: Malaysian names

text: In different parts of Malaysia, traditionally inherited (patrilineally) Malay titles and sometimes matrilineally, are used and often incorporated into the naming system as the first part of double names. Most of those with these titles are descended from royalty or nobility.


title: Malaysian names

text: All hereditary titles are controlled and regulated as well as registered by the Malaysian National Registration Department and must appear in the National Registration Identity Cards (NRIC), passports as well as all official documents. A person may not in any circumstances be denied or stripped of his or her hereditary titles and persons with no evidence of inheritance are not allowed to carry these titles in accordance to local customs as well as the national registration naming regulations.


title: Malaysian names

text: The titles above should not be confused with those given by special award which are non-hereditary, like 'Datuk', 'Tan Sri' and 'Tun'.


title: Malaysian names

text: These titles are usually awarded by the Sultans of the recipients' respective states as well as the Yang Dipertuan Agong and the state Yang Dipertua as recognition for their contributions and services to the nation and the respective states. For example, the title 'Datuk' is given to Malaysians of all races as an honorary title. An example is Datuk Lee Chong Wei, a famous badminton player who was awarded the title as recognition to his achievement in becoming the third Malaysian to win a silver Olympic medal 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. If the recipient is a man, his wife is automatically bestowed with the title 'Datin' but not in reverse.


title: Malaysian names

text: The title 'Tun' is reserved for nationally important persons, like the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia Tun Mahathir bin Mohamad. He was given the title after his resignation at 2003.


title: Malaysian names

text: For an example of a complex name, one former Prime Minister of Malaysia has the full name Dato' Seri Mohd Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak, where 'Dato' Seri' is a Malay title of honour, 'Mohd Najib' is his personal name (often further abbreviated to 'Najib'), 'bin' introduces his father's titles and names, "Tun" is a higher honour, 'Haji' denotes his father as a pilgrim to Mecca, and 'Abdul Razak' is his father's personal name (often abbreviated to "Razak"). The entire name has various shorter forms, like 'Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak', 'Najib Tun Razak' and 'Najib Razak').


title: Malaysian names

text: If someone has been on the Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca, they may be called Haji for men or Hajjah for women. Thus, if Musa Bin Osman went on the Hajj, he could be called Haji Musa Bin Osman, and his daughter Aisyah might be called Aisyah Binti Haji Musa. If Aisyah herself have gone for the hajj, her name would be Hajjah Aisyah Binti Haji Musa. The titles can also be shortened in writing to 'Hj.' for Haji and 'Hjh' for Hajjah.


title: Malaysian names

text: Traditional Chinese names are used among the Malaysian Chinese. These names are usually represented as three words, for example "Foo Li Leen" or "Tan Ai Lin". The first is the Chinese family name, which is passed down from a father to all his children. The two other parts of the name form an indivisible Chinese given name, which may contain a generation name. In other cultures, the family name is sometimes shifted to the end of the name (for example, "Li Leen Foo").


title: Malaysian names

text: Some Chinese use a Western personal name (for example, "Denise Foo"), and some use this in preference to a Chinese given name. Most of these are used by Chinese Malaysian Christians, or Chinese who primarily speak English. On official documents, this name is either written in the order "Western given name - surname - Chinese given name" (e.g., Denise Foo Li Leen) or "surname - Chinese given name - Western given name" (e.g., Foo Li Leen Denise), "or Western given name - Chinese given name - surname" (e.g., Denise Li Leen Foo). In general practice, only one of the given names (the Western or Chinese name) is used. Chinese Malaysian Muslims may use Arabic given names while some use Arabic-derived Chinese names, e.g., Firdaus Fong Siew Chong.


title: Malaysian names

text: As no formal system of romanisation is imposed on Chinese names in Malaysia at the time of birth registration, names are often romanised according to the judgment of the registration clerk or according to the preference of the proposer. Hence, romanisation errors are not uncommon resulting in unusual names. Since the 1980s, Pinyin names are becoming more common, although one would not say popular. The Pinyin form is based on Mandarin or Putonghua, whereas most existing romanised surnames are based on dialects. For example, a Tan (Fujian dialect) is Chen in the Pinyin form. In Fuzhou, the existing romanised form is Ding, both Tan and Ding are correct depending which sound they prefer as Chinese character have more than one pronunciation. As parents prefer their children to have the same romanised surname as their father, names such as Tan Jia Ling where Tan is in Hokkien and Jia Ling in Mandarin are becoming common.


title: Malaysian names

text: Officially, Malaysian Indians use a patronymic naming system combining their traditional Indian names with some Malay words, while others use Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, or Sanskrit names. A man's name would consist of his personal name followed by the Malay phrase "anak lelaki", meaning 'son of', and then his father's name. A woman's name would consist of her personal name followed by the Malay phrase "anak perempuan", meaning 'daughter of', and then her father's name. The Malay patronymic phrase is often abbreviated to "a/l" ('son of') or "a/p" ('daughter of') and then their father's name. In many circumstances, the intervening Malay is omitted, and the father's name follows immediately after a person's given name.


title: Malaysian names

text: Following traditional practice from South India, the father's name is sometimes abbreviated to an initial and placed before the personal name. Thus, a man called Anbuselvan whose father is called Ramanan may be called Anbuselvan anak lelaki Ramanan (formal), Anbuselvan a/l Ramanan (as on his government identification card), Anbuselvan Ramanan or R. Anbuselvan. Whereas, his daughter Mathuram would be called Mathuram anak perempuan Anbuselvan (formal), Mathuram a/p Anbuselvan (as on her government identification card), Mathuram Anbuselvan or A. Mathuram. Although not recorded officially, an Indian woman may use her husband's personal name instead of her father's name after marriage.


title: Malaysian names

text: Indian Malaysian Muslims, like ethnic Malays, use Arabic names or names of their own languages, while Arabic-derived Christian names may also be used by Indian Malaysian Christians.


title: Malaysian names

text: Sikh Malaysian usage follows either the western fashion of personal names followed by the family name or more commonly the South Indian pattern with the personal name followed with the phrase "anak lelaki" (son of) for males and "anak perempuan (daughter of) for females. Examples of Sikh western-style usage where their full personal names followed by their family (or clan) name are: Harjit Singh Gill (for a male) or Harjit Kaur Gill (for a female). Examples of usage in the South Indian fashion would be: Harjit Singh a/l Jit Singh (for a male) and Harjit Kaur a/p Jit Singh.


title: Malaysian names

text: Peninsular Orang Asli and Sarawakian Bumiputra use the Malay word "anak" ('child of') to form their patronymics regardless of an individual's sex, for example, "Sagong anak Tasi". However, most of the new generation indigenous people in Sabah and Sarawak who live in town areas and who practice Christianity as a religion, tend to have a Christian first name, for example Melissa Melanie Raweng (Raweng being the father's name).


title: Malaysian names

text: Some Sabah and Sarawak Bumiputra have patronymics in the same fashion as Malays, using "bin" or "binti", while others have patrilineal surnames which are handed down unchanged from generation to generation.


title: Malaysian names

text: Kristang people usually have Portuguese, or, at least, more European-sounding names, including inherited family names. In fact, Arabs and Portuguese have common denominator in influence in names: Fatima, Omar, and Soraya. These names are common in Portugal given by Arab influence.


title: Save the Cinema

text: Save the Cinema is a British drama film written by Piers Ashworth and directed by Sara Sugarman, based on the true story of Liz Evans, a hairdresser and leader of a youth theatre in Carmarthen, Wales, who began a campaign in 1993 to save the "Lyric" theatre from closure. The film stars Jonathan Pryce, Samantha Morton, Tom Felton, Adeel Akhtar and Susan Wokoma.


title: Save the Cinema

text: Liz Evans was the mother of Wynne Evans, a principal of the Welsh National Opera who, since 2009, has appeared as a fictional Italian tenor called 'Gio Compario' in the advertising campaign for GoCompare; and Mark Llewellyn Evans, a member of the English National Opera and founder of "ABC of Opera". They both appear in the film in minor cameo roles.


title: Save the Cinema

text: Liz Evans is a hairdresser and leader of a youth theatre in Carmarthen, Wales, who started a campaign in 1993 to save the Lyric theatre from closure. She and a local councilor will enlist the help of Steven Spielberg, securing a special premiere for "Jurassic Park".


title: Save the Cinema

text: Filming began in January 2021, under strict health protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Filming took place throughout Carmarthenshire, Wales. Among the locations were the Lyric theatre, the Ammanford town hall, and the towns of Laugharne and Llandeilo.


title: Save the Cinema

text: "Save the Cinema" was released in the United Kingdom on 14 January 2022. The film earned $12,864 from 40 theaters in its opening weekend.


title: 46th Academy Awards

text: The 46th Academy Awards were presented on Tuesday, April 2, 1974, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. The ceremonies were presided over by Burt Reynolds, Diana Ross, John Huston, and David Niven.


title: 46th Academy Awards

text: "The Sting" won 7 awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for George Roy Hill. "The Exorcist" and "The Way We Were" were the only other films to win multiple awards. Marvin Hamlisch won 3 awards, the third person to achieve this feat and, to date, the only person who has won 3 Oscars in one year without winning Best Picture.


title: 46th Academy Awards

text: Nominations announced on February 19, 1974. Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface and indicated with a double dagger ().


title: 46th Academy Awards

text: The 46th Academy Awards ceremony is perhaps best remembered as the ceremony in which a streaker named Robert Opel ran across the stage naked while flashing a peace sign with his hand. In response, host David Niven jokingly quipped, "Isn't it fascinating to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings?"


title: 46th Academy Awards

text: The following individuals, listed in order of appearance, presented awards or performed musical numbers.


title: Amol Parashar

text: Amol Parashar is an Indian actor, best known for his versatile portrayals of popular characters across web shows and films. His most famous character is of Chitvan Sharma in the web series "TVF Tripling" and playing the legendary Indian Freedom Revolutionary Bhagat Singh in Shoojit Sircar's acclaimed "Sardar Udham".


title: Amol Parashar

text: He has also starred in films like "Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare" opposite Konkona Sen Sharma, and "Traffic" opposite Manoj Bajpayee, Hindi remake of a Malayalam thriller film. Parashar was last seen in the comedy caper "Cash" in his first lead role, produced by Vishesh Bhatt.


title: Amol Parashar

text: Parashar graduated from Indian Institute of Technology Delhi as a Mechanical engineer and later quit his job at ZS Associates to join the arts.


title: Amol Parashar

text: Parashar's performance in "Babloo Happy Hai" was appreciated by the critics. "The Times of India" stated "Amol Parashar looks promising". The Sunday Indian said "Amol Parashar stands out". Boxofficeindia.com said "Amol Parashar brings out the sensitivity in his character and plays his part with doggedness".


title: Amol Parashar

text: Throughout his acting career, Parashar has been the face of many national and international brands. Some of those brands include Pepsi, Cadbury, Tanishq, Mentos, Wild Stone amongst many others.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County is a county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 921,130, up from 795,225 in 2010, making it the second-most populous county in Washington, behind King County, and the 60th-most populous in the United States. The county seat and largest city is Tacoma. Formed out of Thurston County on December 22, 1852, by the legislature of Oregon Territory, it was named for U.S. President Franklin Pierce. Pierce County is in the Seattle metropolitan area (formally the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, metropolitan statistical area).


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County is home to Mount Rainier, the tallest mountain and a volcano in the Cascade Range. Its most recent recorded eruption was between 1820 and 1854. There is no imminent risk of eruption, but geologists expect that the volcano will erupt again. If this should happen, parts of Pierce County and the Puyallup Valley would be at risk from lahars, lava, or pyroclastic flows. The Mount Rainier Volcano Lahar Warning System was established in 1998 to assist in the evacuation of the Puyallup River valley in case of eruption.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (7.6%) is water. The highest natural point in Washington, Mount Rainier, at 14,410 feet (4,392 m), is located in Pierce County. Rainier is locally called Tahoma or Takhoma, both native names for the mountain.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: As of the census of 2000, there were 700,820 people, 260,800 households, and 180,212 families residing in the county. The population density was 417 people per square mile (161/km). There were 277,060 housing units at an average density of 165 per square mile (64/km). The racial makeup of the county was 78.39% White, 6.95% Black or African American, 1.42% Native American, 5.08% Asian, 0.85% Pacific Islander, 2.20% from other races, and 5.11% from two or more races. 5.51% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.1% were of German, 8.6% Irish, 8.2% English, 6.3% American, and 6.2% Norwegian ancestry.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: There were 260,800 households, out of which 35.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.80% were married couples living together, 11.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% were non-families. 24.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.10.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.20% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 31.30% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 10.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.70 males.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The median income for a household in the county was $45,204, and the median income for a family was $52,098. Males had a median income of $38,510 versus $28,580 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,948. About 7.50% of families and 10.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.20% of those under age 18 and 7.20% of those age 65 or over.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: As of the 2010 census, there were 795,225 people, 299,918 households, and 202,174 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 325,375 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 74.2% white, 6.8% black or African American, 6.0% Asian, 1.4% Native American, 1.3% Pacific islander, 3.5% from other races, and 6.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 9.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 20.5% were German, 13.1% were Irish, 10.7% were English, 6.3% were Norwegian, and 4.2% were American.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Of the 299,918 households, 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.6% were non-families, and 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.09. The median age was 35.9 years.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The median income for a household in the county was $57,869 and the median income for a family was $68,462. Males had a median income of $50,084 versus $38,696 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,446. About 8.1% of families and 11.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those age 65 or over.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The area was originally home to the present day Nisqually, Puyallup, Squaxin, Steilacoom, and Muckleshoot tribes. Puyallup villages were predominately near what would later become Tacoma and Nisqually settlements were in what would become southern Pierce County. Two major trails of the tribes were a northern route through Naches Pass and a southern route along the Mashel River linking with Eastern Washington tribes. Trade networks among the region’s indigenous peoples were well established long before the coming of white settlers.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1792 British Captain George Vancouver and his party of explorers came via ship to the shores of the region, and named a number of sites in what would become Pierce County, i.e. Mt. Rainier.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1832 Fort Nisqually was sited by the British Hudson's Bay Company's chief trader, Archibald McDonald. It was the first permanent European settlement on the Salish Sea. In cooperation with the local indigenous people, a storehouse for blankets, seeds, and potatoes was built at the mouth of Sequalitchew Creek.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1839 the Nisqually Methodist Episcopal Mission was established, bringing the first U.S. citizens to settle in the Puget Sound region, near the Sequalitchew Creek canyon.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1841 the United States Exploring Expedition set up an observatory on the bluff near the creek to survey, map and chart the waters of Puget Sound.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1843 the Second Fort Nisqually was erected. Business became mainly agricultural, and the fort was relocated on a flat-plains area near the banks of Sequalitchew Creek for cattle.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1846 the Oregon Treaty established the 49th Parallel as the boundary between British Canada and the United States, which left what was to become Pierce County on U.S. territory. In response to increasing tensions between Indians and settlers, the United States Army established Fort Steilacoom in 1849 at the site of the traditional home of the Steilacoom Tribe.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1850, Captain Lafayette Balch sited his land claim next to the fort and founded Port Steilacoom. In 1854 the town of Steilacoom became Washington Territory's first incorporated town.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: In 1854 the Treaty of Medicine Creek was enacted between the United States and the local tribes occupying the lands of the Salish Sea. The tribes listed on the Treaty of Medicine Creek are Nisqually, Puyallup, Steilacoom, Squawskin (Squaxin Island), S'Homamish, Stehchass, T'Peeksin, Squi-aitl, and Sa-heh-wamish. The treaty was signed on December 26, 1854, by Isaac I. Stevens, governor and superintendent of Indian Affairs of Washington territory at the time. The native tribes were told the treaty would help them by paying them for some of the land. It ended up taking prime farmland and relocating the tribes onto rough reservations. Chief Leschi of the Nisqually tribe protested the treaty. He and his people marched to Olympia to have their voices heard but Isaac Stevens ordered them away. When the natives refused to leave, Isaac Stevens would eventually call martial law and - after the beginning of the Puget Sound War in 1855 - initiate a search for Chief Leschi in order to arrest him. Chief Leschi was eventually captured and put on trial. The first jury couldn’t come to a verdict, so Isaac Stevens had the trial done a second time. This time Leschi was found guilty. Chief Leschi was hanged on February 19, 1858. On December 10, 2004 a historical court convened in Pierce County ruled "as a legal combatant of the Indian War Leschi should not have been held accountable under law for the death of an enemy soldier," thereby exonerating him of any wrongdoing.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County has adopted and is governed by a Charter. This is allowed by section 4 of Article XI of the Washington State Constitution. The Pierce County Executive, currently Bruce Dammeier (R), heads the county's executive branch. The Assessor-Treasurer Mike Lonergan, auditor Julie Anderson, Prosecuting Attorney Mary Robnett, and Sheriff Ed Troyer.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The Pierce County Council is the elected legislative body for Pierce County and consists of seven members elected by district. The council is vested with all law-making power granted by its charter and by the State of Washington, sets county policy through the adoption of ordinances and resolutions, approves the annual budget and directs the use of county funds. The seven members of the County Council are elected from each of seven contiguous and equally populated districts, with each councilmember representing approximately 114,000 county residents. Each county councilmember is elected to serve a four-year term.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Beneath the Washington Supreme Court and the Washington Court of Appeals, judicial power rests first in the Pierce County Superior Court, which is divided into 22 departments - each headed by an elected judge, as well as a clerk of the superior court and eight superior court commissioners. Below that is the Pierce County District Court - with eight elected judges, the Tacoma Municipal Court - with three elected judges, and the Pierce County Juvenile Court. Tacoma houses the Pierce County Courthouse.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The people of Pierce County voted on November 5, 1918, to create a Port District. The Port of Tacoma is Pierce County's only Port District. It is governed Port of Tacoma Commission - five Port Commissioners, who are elected at-large countywide and serve four-year terms. The Port of Tacoma owns six container terminals, one grain terminal and an auto import terminal; all of which are leased out to foreign and domestic corporations to operate. In addition, the port owns and operates two breakbulk cargo terminals.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Many charter amendments have been on the ballot in the last five years, but sequential numbering does not carry over from year-to-year.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The largest public employer in Piece County is Joint Base Lewis–McChord, which contributes about 60,000 military and civilian jobs. The largest private employers are MultiCare Health System and CHI Franciscan Health, which operate the two largest hospitals in the county.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County agriculture has been an instrumental part of the local economy for almost 150 years. However, in the last half century much of the county's farmland has been transformed into residential areas. Pierce County has taken aggressive steps to reverse this trend; the county recently created the Pierce County Farm Advisory Commission. This advisory board helps local farmers with the interpretation of land use regulations as well as the promotion of local produce. The creation of the Pierce County Farm Advisory Commission will attempt to save the remaining 48,000 acres of Pierce County farmland. Despite the loss of farmland, Pierce County continues to produce about 50% of the United States' rhubarb.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The following is a list of the public school districts with territory, no matter how small, in Pierce County (even if their schools and/or district administrations are in other counties):


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Private schools include the Cascade Christian Schools group, Life Christian School and Academy, Bellarmine, Annie Wright Schools and Charles Wright Academy. Libraries include the Pierce County Library System, the Tacoma Library System, and the Puyallup Public Library.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The largest institutions of higher education are University of Puget Sound in Tacoma and Pacific Lutheran University in Parkland. Both are religiously-affiliated private universities.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Tacoma Community College in Tacoma and Pierce College in Steilacoom are public community colleges. Bates Technical College and Clover Park Technical College are public technical colleges.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Central Washington University has a branch campus in Steilacoom. University of Washington Tacoma is a branch campus of University of Washington.The Evergreen State College also has a campus in Tacoma.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The Pierce County Library is the fourth largest library system in the state. There are currently 20 branches, including:


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The Pierce County Library System currently employs 394 people, and serves 579,970 citizens throughout 1,773 square miles. Established in 1944, the library system serves all of unincorporated Pierce County, as well as annexed cities and towns of: Bonney Lake, Buckley, DuPont, Eatonville, Edgewood, Fife, Gig Harbor, Lakewood, Milton, Orting, South Prairie, Steilacoom, Sumner, University Place and Wilkeson. There are currently more than 1 million physical materials (books, videos, etc.) in the system, and more than 480,000 online or downloadable media items. Total 2016 general fund revenue is estimated at $29,709,541.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The Port of Tacoma is the sixth busiest container port in North America and one of the 25 busiest in the world, playing an important part in the local economy. This deep-water port covers 2,400 acres (9.7 km) and offers a combination of facilities and services including 34 deepwater berths, two million square feet (190,000 m) of warehouse and office space, and 131 acres (530,000 m) of industrial yard. An economic impact study showed that more the 28,000 jobs in Pierce County are related to the Port activities.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County is home to Pierce County Airport and Tacoma Narrows Airport, both are general aviation airports.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County's official transportation provider is Pierce Transit. It provides buses, paratransit, and rideshare vehicles. The regional Sound Transit runs the Tacoma Link light rail line through downtown Tacoma, and provides several regional express buses. Sound Transit also runs Sounder, the regional commuter railroad through Pierce County that stops in the following places: Sumner, Puyallup, Tacoma, South Tacoma, and Lakewood. Amtrak also travels through the county with a stop in Tacoma. Also, Intercity Transit provides transportation between Tacoma, Lakewood, and Thurston County.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: On December 18, 2017, an Amtrak train derailed in the county, at an overpass over southbound Interstate 5, hitting several vehicles. Thirteen of 14 rail cars derailed, killing three on board the train, and injuring dozens more on board and on the highway.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Arts organizations within Pierce County include: the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts, Grand Cinema, Lakewood Playhouse, Museum of Glass, Northwest Sinfonietta, Speakeasy Arts Cooperative, Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma Little Theater, Tacoma Concert Band, Tacoma Musical Playhouse, Tacoma Opera, Symphony Tacoma, Dance Theater Northwest, Washington State History Museum and others. The City of Tacoma celebrates "Art at Work" month every November to encourage participation and support for the arts community in that city. ArtsFund, a regional United Arts Fund, has been supporting the arts community in Pierce County since 1969. LeMay-America’s Car Museum opened in 2012 in Tacoma. The Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, founded in 1983 in Tacoma, houses the world's largest private collection of original manuscripts and documents.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The Pierce County Daffodil Festival and Parade was established in 1934 and is held annually in April. The Washington State Fair is held every September in Puyallup.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: The Pierce County Sheriff's Department was founded in 1853, shortly after incorporation of the county.


title: Pierce County, Washington

text: Pierce County was noted for gangs, drugs, and criminal activity starting in the mid to late 1980s. Tacoma's Hilltop neighborhood had gangs that were selling crack cocaine and gang violence. Increased police patrols and community watch programs led to reduced crime in the mid to late 2000s. As of 2006, 38% of the methamphetamine labs (138 sites) cleaned up by the Washington Department of Ecology were in Pierce County. This reduction from a high of 589 labs in 2001 comes in part to a new law restricting the sale of pseudoephedrine and in part due to tougher prison sentences for methamphetamine producers.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Edward Ryon Makuahanai Aikau (Kahului, Hawaii, May 5, 1946 – March 17, 1978) was a Hawaiian lifeguard and surfer. As the first lifeguard at Waimea Bay on the island of Oahu, he saved over 500 people and became famous for surfing the big Hawaiian surf, winning several awards including the 1977 Duke Kahanamoku Invitational Surfing Championship. He was also a crew member on the Polynesian voyaging canoe "Hōkūleʻa".


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Born in Kahului, Maui, Aikau was the second child of Solomon and Henrietta Aikau. The words "Makua Hanai" in Eddie Aikau's full name means "feeding parent", an adoptive, nurturing, fostering parent, in the Hawaiian language. He was a descendant of Hewahewa, the "kahuna nui" (high priest) of King Kamehameha I and his successor Kamehameha II. Aikau first learned how to surf at Kahului Harbor on its shorebreak. He moved to Oahu with his family in 1959, and at the age of 16 left school and started working at the Dole pineapple cannery; the paycheck allowed Aikau to buy his first surfboard. In 1968, he became the first lifeguard hired by the City & County of Honolulu to work on the North Shore. The City & County of Honolulu gave Aikau the task of covering all of the beaches between Sunset and Haleiwa. Not one life was lost while he served as lifeguard of Waimea Bay, as he braved waves that often reached high or more, and saved the lives of more than 500 swimmers. In 1971, Aikau was named Lifeguard of the Year. In 1977 Aikau won the Duke Kahanamoku Invitational Surfing Championship.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: In 1978, the Polynesian Voyaging Society was seeking volunteers for a 30-day, journey to re-enact the ancient route of the Polynesian migration between the Hawaiian and Tahitian island chains. Aikau joined the voyage as a crew member. The double-hulled voyaging canoe "Hōkūleʻa" left the Hawaiian islands on March 16, 1978. It developed a leak in one of its hulls and later capsized about twelve miles (19 km) south of the island of Molokaʻi. In an attempt to get help, Aikau paddled toward Lānaʻi on his surfboard. Although the rest of the crew were later rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter "Cape Corwin", Aikau's body was never found. He removed his life jacket since it was hindering his paddling of the surfboard. The ensuing search for Aikau was the largest air-sea search in Hawaiian history.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: In Aikau's honor, the surfwear company Quiksilver sponsored “The Eddie” until 2016. The event was cancelled for 2017 but the AiKau has brought it back with largely local sponsors for 2018-19  – the Quiksilver Big Wave Invitational in Memory of Eddie Aikau at Waimea Bay.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Since its inception in 1985 the tournament has only been held nine times, due to a precondition that open-ocean swells reach a minimum of 20 feet (this translates to a wave face height of over 30 feet). The first Eddie was held at Sunset Beach in 1985; in 1987 Eddie Aikau's younger brother Clyde Aikau won the Eddie after it moved to Waimea Bay), The most recent tournament was in February 2016, when waves in the bay reached 30 to high. The contest invites only 28 big-wave riders to participate in two rounds of competition. The event does not allow the use of jet skis to tow surfers into the waves.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: In the 1980s, bumper stickers and T-shirts with the phrase "Eddie Would Go" spread around the Hawaiian Islands and to the rest of the world. According to maritime historian Mac Simpson, "Aikau was a legend on the North Shore, pulling people out of waves that no one else would dare to. That's where the saying came from – Eddie would go, when no one else would or could. Only Eddie dared."


title: Eddie Aikau

text: The phrase originated during the first Eddie contest. The waves were huge and the conditions were extremely dangerous. While the contest organizers were discussing whether to put it on, Mark Foo looked at the conditions and said "Eddie would go." The phrase stuck and then Eddie went.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Another variation of the aforementioned popular phrase is "Eddie wouldn't tow." This phrase is in reference to the method of big wave surfing in which one surfer must accelerate another surfer (the former on a jet ski, the latter towed on a surfboard) to the speed of a large, fast wave. It is also partially in response to the controversy over the "unnaturalness" of tow-in surfing; many surfers feel that being towed in to a wave, as opposed to paddling, is against the spirit of the sport.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Other variations of the phrase include "Eddie would throw" (in support of the University of Hawaii's passing attack by Colt Brennan and Timmy Chang under head coach June Jones), "Eddie wouldn't crow" (in opposition to boastful and egotistical surfers), and "Eddie would hoe" (in support of Native Hawaiian agricultural outreach programs). Another variation used recently during the 2008 election campaign for Honolulu rail transit was the slogan, "Eddie would ride."


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Kailua-Kona, Hawaii musician Lopaka Rootz released a reggae single honoring Eddie Aikau called "Eddie." It debuted on Kapa Radio in December 2019. Rootzʻ music is played on Hawaiian radio station KWXX FM.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Austin, Texas, band Full Service recorded a song about Eddie Aikau called "In A Rescue," found on their 2006 album "Recess." They performed the song at the Full Service Circus in May 2013.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Sam George, an ex-professional surfer, directed a "30 for 30" documentary about Aikau called "Hawaiian: The Legend of Eddie Aikau". Produced by filmmaker Agi Orsi, the documentary premiered on ESPN on October 1, 2013. The documentary produced for television details Aikau's life from childhood to his death and won an Emmy for Best Sports Documentary Series, making it one of the few surf-related films to ever receive such recognition.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Eddie's story was humorously (and respectfully) told by comedian Kurt Braunohler in a second-season episode of "Drunk History" that was dedicated to Hawaiian history, which aired on August 12, 2014.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: Eddie's story was told by Karen Kilgariff on episode 160 of the podcast "My Favorite Murder", which aired February 14, 2019.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: The character of Z in the animated movie "Surf's Up" is loosely based on Eddie's life and mysterious death.


title: Eddie Aikau

text: In 2022, Aikau was featured in Naomi Hirahara's anthology "We Are Here: 30 Inspiring Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Who Have Shaped the United States" that was published by the Smithsonian Institution and Running Press Kids.


title: Cade Foehner

text: Cade Foehner (born July 24, 1996) is an American singer and musician from Shelbyville, Texas. He was eliminated during top 5 on the 16th season of "American Idol".


title: Cade Foehner

text: In 2013, Foehner was in a band called Johnson's Lost Crowes. He then auditioned for season 16 of "American Idol" and is now doing music as a solo artist.


title: Cade Foehner

text: Foehner and fellow Idol contestant Gabby Barrett married on October 5, 2019, with Jeremy Vuolo from "Counting On" officiating. On August 16, 2020, the couple announced that they are expecting their first child together, a girl, due early 2021. Barrett gave birth to their daughter on January 18, 2021. On October 27, 2022, they welcomed a second child, a son.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: Clas Håkan Jesper Strömblad (born 28 November 1972) is a Swedish musician who is the guitarist of the bands The Halo Effect, Dimension Zero and Cyhra, and formerly of In Flames and The Resistance. He is best known as the founder and former guitarist/drummer/keyboardist of the pioneering melodic death metal band In Flames, guitarist of the band Sinergy, bassist of Ceremonial Oath and drummer of HammerFall. In 2013, he joined MDM band Nightrage as a session guitarist.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: In 2004, Strömblad (along with Björn Gelotte) was ranked No. 70 out of 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists of all time by "Guitar World".


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: Strömblad began playing music at age four, with a violin he played until age 12, when he no longer considered the violin a "cool" instrument to play and began playing guitar instead. Despite being left-handed, he learned to play the guitar with his right hand.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: In 1990, Strömblad became the new bass player of the band once known as "Striker" (although he was not in the band under that name), then "Desecrator" and finally Ceremonial Oath where he quit by 1993 after not being able to have at least some control in the band. The band disbanded in 1996, but in 2012, it was announced the band reunited for an appearance at the inaugural edition of The Gothenburg Sound festival, that took place 5–6 January 2013 at Trädgår'n in Gothenburg, Sweden, with Strömblad back in the band.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: Oscar Dronjak also of Ceremonial Oath, formed a new band being "HammerFall" inviting Strömblad as the drummer in 1993. He is falsely listed as the drummer on their album "Glory to the Brave" for an unknown reason when the real drummer on the album was Patrik Räfling; the album was released in 1997 when Strömblad left, although he still helped the band write songs later on.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: In 1995, Strömblad formed his second side project which he started with former In Flames guitarist Glenn Ljungström, first being known as "Agent Orange" then Dimension Zero, which he is the guitarist (formerly bassist) of the band, but the band has been on hiatus since 2008. In May 2014, Dimension Zero was confirmed for the 2015 edition of the Gothenburg Sound Festival, at Trädgårn.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: In 1997, when Kimberly Goss was in Dimmu Borgir they did a joint tour with In Flames. Goss spoke to Strömblad about forming a female fronted band, but due to time constraints, they were unable to get together. When Goss quit Dimmu Borgir and moved to Sweden, the duo recorded the album "Beware the Heavens".


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: In 2003, Strömblad and his then In Flames bandmate Björn Gelotte formed another side project called All Ends, for which they both wrote the music. They recorded a demo although neither had intended to be part of the group, due to In Flames' demanding schedule.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: During 1993, his last year in Ceremonial Oath, he wanted to write music and combine melodies inspired by Iron Maiden, with the brutality of death metal; something which Jesper stated he had never heard any band do. Now free to control a band, he formed his first one, In Flames, which was considered a side project. The first demo he made with the band was shipped off to the owner of Wrong Again Records, who liked it so much that the owner spoke to the members of In Flames and with the pressure of being signed, the band lied stating they had 13 songs done; intrigued, the band got the deal over the phone. He started in the band as the drummer but switched to guitar by the next year.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: On 3 February 2009, the band's website inflames.com announced that Jesper would not be participating in the Australia/South America/Japan tour in order to get treatment for his alcohol abuse problems. Niclas Engelin was announced as his replacement for the tour. On 12 February 2010, the same problem that he had in 2009, he announced that he was leaving In Flames permanently for personal problems and health issues.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: After playing Call of Duty online with Marco Aro from The Haunted, Strömblad discussed with Aro about forming a new band in which Aro joined; that band is "The Resistance", alongside fellow former In Flames guitarist Glenn Ljungström, Alex Losbäck Holstad of Despite, and Chris Barkensjö of Carnal Forge, forming in 2011. Strömblad left the resistance on 1 March 2016.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: Strömblad was working on another side project together with Roland Johansson, former singer of the Swedish metal band Sonic Syndicate.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: In 2012, the Swedish movie "Isdraken", directed by Martin Högdahl and for which Strömblad composed the original music was released in theatres.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: Strömblad currently uses ESP Guitars guitars, and used them extensively before the release of "Reroute to Remain". Jesper used his signature variant of the EX series, until he switched to Gibson guitars with his bandmate Björn Gelotte. He switched to Gibson for the release of Reroute To Remain, but returned to ESP for the recording of Soundtrack To Your Escape. Strömblad returned to Gibson after the release of Come Clarity. Jesper used the Gibson Flying V and Explorer Voodoo models, as well as some Gibson Gothic Explorer II's. Since his departure from In Flames and his subsequent formation of The Resistance Strömblad has been playing the Cort Z-Custom 2. After joining Cyhra in 2017, Jesper began using ESP Guitars again, alongside bandmate Euge Valovirta. His main guitar is currently a snow white ESP Snakebyte.


title: Jesper Strömblad

text: Jesper is known for using the Peavey 5150/6505 amp. Strömblad also uses a Line 6 rack-mounted POD just like Gelotte.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The 1999 Rugby World Cup was the fourth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial international rugby union championship. It was principally hosted by Wales, and was won by Australia. This was the first Rugby World Cup to be held in the sport's professional era.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: Although the majority of matches were played outside Wales (shared between England, France, Scotland and Ireland) the opening ceremony, the first match and the final were held in Cardiff.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: Four automatic qualification places were available for the 1999 tournament; Wales qualified automatically as hosts, and the other three places went to the top three teams from the previous World Cup in 1995: champions South Africa, runners-up New Zealand and third-placed France. Qualification for the final 16 places took place between 63 other nations.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The tournament was expanded to 20 teams (from 16), divided into five pools of four teams, a scenario that necessitated a quarter-final play-off round involving the five runners-up and best third-placed team to decide who would join the pool winners in the last eight. The 1999 tournament saw the introduction of a repechage, effectively a second chance for teams that had finished runners-up in each qualifying zone. Uruguay and Tonga were the first nations to profit from the repechage, and took their places alongside fellow qualifiers Australia, England, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, Argentina, Fiji, Samoa, Romania, Canada, Namibia, Japan, Spain and the United States.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The tournament began with the opening ceremony in the newly built Millennium Stadium, with Wales beating Argentina 23–18, and Colin Charvis scoring the first try of the tournament. Australia won the tournament, becoming the first nation to do so twice and also to date the only team ever to win after having to qualify for the tournament, with a 35–12 triumph over France, who were unable to repeat their semi-final victory over pre-tournament favourites New Zealand.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The following 20 teams, shown by region, qualified for the 1999 Rugby World Cup. Of the 20 teams, only four of those places were automatically allocated and did not have to play any qualification matches. These went to the champions, runners-up and the third-placed nations at the 1995 and the tournament host, Wales. A record 65 nations from five continents were therefore involved in the qualification process designed to fill the remaining 16 spots.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: Wales won the right to host the World Cup in 1999. The centrepiece venue for the tournament was the Millennium Stadium, built on the site of the old National Stadium at Cardiff Arms Park at a cost of £126 million from Lottery money and private investment. Other venues in Wales were the Racecourse Ground and Stradey Park. An agreement was reached so that the other unions in the Five Nations Championship (England, France, Ireland and Scotland) also hosted matches.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: Venues in England included Twickenham and Welford Road, rugby union venues, as well as Ashton Gate in Bristol and the McAlpine Stadium in Huddersfield, which normally host football. Scottish venues included Murrayfield Stadium, the home of the Scottish Rugby Union; Hampden Park, the home of the Scottish Football Association; and the smallest venue in the 1999 tournament, Netherdale, in Galashiels, in the Scottish Borders. Venues in Ireland included Lansdowne Road, the traditional home of the Irish Rugby Football Union; Ravenhill; and Thomond Park. France used five venues, the most of any nation, including the French national stadium, Stade de France, which hosted the final of both the 1998 FIFA World Cup and the 2007 Rugby World Cup.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: With the expansion of the Rugby World Cup from 16 to 20 teams an unusual and complex format was used with the teams split into five pools of four teams with each team playing each other in their pool once.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The five pool winners qualified automatically to the quarter-finals. The five pool runners-up and the best third-placed side qualified for the quarter-final play-offs.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The five pool runners-up and the best third-placed team from the pool stage (which was Argentina) contested the quarter-final play-offs in three one-off matches that decided the remaining three places in the quarter-finals, with the losers being eliminated. The unusual format meant that two pool winners in the quarter-finals would have to play each other. From the quarter-final stage it became a simple knockout tournament. The semi-final losers played off for third place. The draw and format for the knock-out stage was set as follows.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: A total of 41 matches (30 pool stage and 11 knock-out) were played throughout the tournament over 35 days from 1 October 1999 to 6 November 1999.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The tournament began on 1 October 1999 in the newly built Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, with Wales beating Argentina in a hard-fought game 23–18 to get their campaign off to a positive start. The Pool stage of the tournament played out as was widely expected with the Tri Nations teams of New Zealand (who inflected a massive 101–3 win against Italy at the McAlpine Stadium in Huddersfield), South Africa and Australia all winning their pools easily without losing a single game. For the then Five Nations Championship teams who all played their pool matches in their own countries it was a case of mixed fortunes with France winning their pool without losing a game. Host Wales also won their pool, though they suffered 31–38 defeat at the hands of Samoa in front of a home crowd at the Millennium Stadium. However, as expected England, Ireland and Scotland all finished second in their pools and were forced to try to qualify for the quarter-finals via the play-offs alongside fellow runners-up Samoa and Fiji, and Argentina as the best third placed side from all five pools, having been the only third-placed side to win two matches (against Samoa and Japan). Indeed, Argentina had finished level with Wales and Samoa on 7 points each in the group stages, and could only be separated by "total points scored": playing and winning their final match against Japan, they had the chance to overtake either of Samoa or Wales, but were 14 points short of overtaking Samoa's total score and a further 18 points short of Wales.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The quarter-final play-offs were three one-off knock-out matches between the runners-up of each pool and the best third-placed side from all five pools to decide the remaining three places in the quarter-finals. The matches were played in mid-week between the completion of the pool stage and the start of the quarter-finals. The matches produced fairly easy wins for England, beating Fiji 45–24, and also for Scotland, beating Samoa 35–20. However, the final match produced the shock of the round where Argentina upset Ireland 28–24 in Lens.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The winners from the quarter-final play-offs, who had played in mid-week, joined the pool winners, who had enjoyed a week long rest, in the quarter-finals. England, hosts Wales and Scotland were all knocked out, and France, who beat Argentina, were the only team left from the Northern Hemisphere.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The semi-finals, which were both played at Twickenham, produced two of the most dramatic matches of the tournament, with Australia beating South Africa 27–21 in extra-time after normal time ended with the scores locked at 18-18. The second semi-final between favourites New Zealand and underdogs France was an all-time classic, as France overturned a 24–10 half-time deficit to win 43–31 and reach their second World Cup final. France and Australia met at the Millennium Stadium on 6 November 1999, with Australia winning 35–12 to become the first team to win the Webb Ellis Cup twice. The cup was presented by Queen Elizabeth II to Australian captain John Eales.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: The tournament's top point scorer was Argentina's Gonzalo Quesada, who scored 102 points. Jonah Lomu scored the most tries, eight in total, a rugby world cup record.


title: 1999 Rugby World Cup

text: British television rights holders ITV acted as the host broadcaster for the tournament, with coverage shown in 209 countries, to an audience of 3.1 billion viewers. In Australia, the event was broadcast by Seven Network.


title: Ebla

text: Ebla (Sumerian: "eb₂-la", , modern: , Tell Mardikh) was one of the earliest kingdoms in Syria. Its remains constitute a tell located about southwest of Aleppo near the village of Mardikh. Ebla was an important center throughout the and in the first half of the Its discovery proved the Levant was a center of ancient, centralized civilization equal to Egypt and Mesopotamia and ruled out the view that the latter two were the only important centers in the Near East during the Early Bronze Age. The first Eblaite kingdom has been described as the first recorded world power.


title: Ebla

text: Starting as a small settlement in the Early Bronze Age ( ), Ebla developed into a trading empire and later into an expansionist power that imposed its hegemony over much of northern and eastern Syria. Ebla was destroyed during the It was then rebuilt and was mentioned in the records of the Third Dynasty of Ur. The second Ebla was a continuation of the first, ruled by a new royal dynasty. It was destroyed at the end of the which paved the way for the Amorite tribes to settle in the city, forming the third Ebla. The third kingdom also flourished as a trade center; it became a subject and an ally of Yamhad (modern-day Aleppo) until its final destruction by the Hittite king in  .


title: Ebla

text: Ebla maintained its prosperity through a vast trading network. Artifacts from Sumer, Cyprus, Egypt and as far as Afghanistan were recovered from the city's palaces. The kingdom had its own language, Eblaite, and the political organization of Ebla had features different from the Sumerian model. Women enjoyed a special status, and the queen had major influence in the state and religious affairs. The pantheon of gods was mainly north Semitic and included deities exclusive to Ebla. The city was excavated from 1964 and became famous for the Ebla tablets, an archive of about 20,000 cuneiform tablets found there, dated to around 2350 . Written in both Sumerian and Eblaite and using the cuneiform, the archive has allowed a better understanding of the Sumerian language and provided important information over the political organization and social customs of the mid-3rd millennium 's Levant.


title: Ebla

text: A possible meaning of the word "Ebla" is "white rock", referring to the limestone outcrop on which the city was built. Ebla was first settled around 3500 ; its growth was supported by many satellite agricultural settlements. The city benefited from its role as an entrepôt of growing international trade, which probably began with an increased demand for wool in Sumer. Archaeologists designate this early habitation period "Mardikh I"; it ended around 3000 . Mardikh I is followed by the first and second kingdoms era between about 3000 and 2000 , designated "Mardikh II". I. J. Gelb considered Ebla as part of the Kish civilization, which was a cultural entity of East Semitic-speaking populations that stretched from the center of Mesopotamia to the western Levant.


title: Ebla

text: During the first kingdom period between about 3000 and 2300 , Ebla was the most prominent kingdom among the Syrian states, especially during the second half of the 3rd millennium , which is known as "the age of the archives" after the Ebla tablets.


title: Ebla

text: The early period between 3000 and 2400  is designated "Mardikh IIA". General knowledge about the city's history prior to the written archives is obtained through excavations. The first stages of Mardikh IIA is identified with building "CC", and structures that form a part of building "G2", which was apparently a royal palace built  . Toward the end of this period, a hundred years' war with Mari started. Mari gained the upper hand through the actions of its king Saʿumu, who conquered many of Ebla's cities. In the mid-25th century , king Kun-Damu defeated Mari, but the state's power declined following his reign.


title: Ebla

text: The archive period, which is designated "Mardikh IIB1", lasted from   until  . The end of the period is known as the "first destruction", mainly referring to the destruction of the royal palace (called palace "G" and built over the earlier "G2"), and much of the acropolis. During the archive period, Ebla had political and military dominance over the other Syrian city-states of northern and eastern Syria, which are mentioned in the archives. Most of the tablets, which date from that period, are about economic matters but also include royal letters and diplomatic documents.


title: Ebla

text: The written archives do not date from before Igrish-Halam's reign, which saw Ebla paying tribute to Mari, and an extensive invasion of Eblaite cities in the middle Euphrates region led by the Mariote king Iblul-Il. Ebla recovered under King Irkab-Damu in about 2340 ; becoming prosperous and launching a successful counter-offensive against Mari. Irkab-Damu concluded a peace and trading treaty with Abarsal; it is one of the earliest-recorded treaties in history.


title: Ebla

text: At its greatest extent, Ebla controlled an area roughly half the size of modern Syria, from Ursa'um in the north, to the area around Damascus in the south, and from Phoenicia and the coastal mountains in the west, to Haddu in the east. Large parts of the kingdom were under the direct control of the king and was administered by governors; the rest consisted of vassal kingdoms. One of the most important of these vassals was Armi, which is the city most often mentioned in the Ebla tablets. Ebla had more than sixty vassal kingdoms and city-states, including Hazuwan, Burman, Emar, Halabitu and Salbatu.