title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: In "The Legacy of Time", a special six-part audio to celebrate Big Finish's twentieth anniversary of producing "Doctor Who"-related audios, the story "The Sacrifice of Jo Grant" sees Jo Grant and Kate Stewart of the present day being sent back to the 1970s by a series of temporal rifts, where they meet the Third Doctor as he investigates the anomalies in his time. While Kate attempts to avoid introducing herself to limit the risk of a paradox, the Doctor realizes her identity and convinces her to call her father, introducing herself as the commander of UNIT in the future without identifying herself by name, with the Brigadier (voiced by Jon Culshaw once again) telling her that he is assured that the future of UNIT is in good hands.


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: The character also appears briefly in a cameo role at the end of writer Paul Cornell's novelisation of the 1997 ITV science-fiction serial "The Uninvited". Although the character is not named in the book, the description is that of Lethbridge-Stewart and Cornell later admitted that this was indeed his intention.


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: Marvel Comics' "Excalibur" featured an organisation called W.H.O. (the Weird Happenings Organisation) run by a Brigadier Alysande Stuart. Her twin brother Alistaire was WHO's "scientific advisor" (the role the Doctor had in UNIT). A character named "Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart" had earlier appeared in three panels of "Uncanny X-Men" #218, supervising the arrest of the Juggernaut in Edinburgh, where he also calls out to a "Sergeant-Major Benton" at one point.


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: The Sherlock Holmes novel "Waters of Death" by Kel Richards features a naval commander called Ralph Lethbridge-Stewart, alongside Captain Harry Sullivan and Lieutenant Philip Benton. It is set in the same fictional location as the "Doctor Who" story "Terror of the Zygons".


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: An unnamed army brigadier, who looks and acts very similar to Lethbridge-Stewart, appears in the comic strip "Caballistics, Inc." He first appeared in the story "Going Underground", where he is in charge of the army's response following a demon invasion of the London Underground; a member of his SAS team refers to "bloody robot yetis" having been down there once. He shows up again in the story "Ashes", in charge of the military response to a devastating attack on Glasgow. This character is one of several references to both the "Doctor Who" universe and other sci-fi/horror properties in "Caballistics".


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: Although unnamed, two characters strongly resembling Lethbridge-Stewart and Sergeant Benton (who was specifically named) appear in the John M. Ford "Star Trek" novel "How Much for Just the Planet?" at a rather treacherous golf course on the planet Direidi.


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: Similarly to Alysande Stuart, the comic book "Jack Staff" includes Commander Liz Stewart of S.M.I.L.E. (Secret Military Intelligence Lethal Executive).


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: The Brigadier briefly appears in Kim Newman and Eugene Byrne's "Back in the USSA", supporting Britain's involvement in an alternate Vietnam War.


title: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart

text: The Brigadier was referenced in name in the ABC Family show "The Middleman". In the episode "The Clotharian Contamination Protocol", Wendy and The Middleman go to check out a returned Voyager probe. However, a nearby NASA listening station team also arrives. Using their random IDs, and due to the quick thinking of the Middleman, they are intimidated into leaving. As they go, the Middleman calls out the other team's lead, "Mr... Lethbridge-Stewart, if that is your real name!"


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The Turkish Abductions () were a series of slave raids by pirates from Northwest Africa that took place in Iceland in the summer of 1627.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: They raided Grindavík, the East Fjords, and Vestmannaeyjar. About 50 people were killed and close to 400 captured and sold into slavery. A ransom was eventually paid, 9 to 18 years later, for the return of 50 individuals.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The label "Turkish" does not refer to Turkey; at the time it was a general term for all Muslims in the Mediterranean region since the majority were a part of the Ottoman Empire. During the 17th century, the majority of those called "Turks" in Algeria, were European Christians that had converted to Islam.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The Barbary pirates came to Iceland in two groups: the first group was from Salé and the second one, which came a month later, was from Algiers.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The commander of the group from Salé was a Dutchman known as Murat Reis, who had himself turned to piracy after being taken captive by pirates.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The group from Salé raided the fishing village of Grindavík on 20 June 1627. They captured between 12 and 15 Icelanders and a similar number of Danish and Dutch sailors. Two people from Grindavík died. They captured two ships and looted a third one.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The ships then sailed to Bessastaðir (home of the Danish-Norwegian governor of Iceland) to raid but were unable to make a landing. It is said they were thwarted by cannon fire from the local fortifications ("Bessastaðaskans") and a quickly mustered group of lancers from the Southern Peninsula.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The second group of raiders, the ones from Algiers, looted in the East Fjords from 5–13 July 1627. They captured a Danish merchant ship and sank it.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: A total of 110 Icelanders were taken, mostly from Berufjörður and , along with the crew of the captured Danish merchant ship. They additionally took livestock, silver and other goods.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: North of Fáskrúðsfjörður, they hit strong winds and decided to turn around and sail along the south coast of Iceland.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: As there were no harbors or landing sites along the south coast, the three ships eventually came on 16 July to Vestmannaeyjar, a group of islands off the coast.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: They raided the village and Heimaey for three days, capturing 234 people and killing 34, including one of the ministers of the island.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: Those offering resistance were killed, as were some of the old and infirm people. The market houses and the church were burned down.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: Upon reaching Algiers, the captives were placed in a prison, where " ... crowds of people came to see us, for to them we were a rare type of people. Many of the heathen women there, both black and white, had pity on us, shaking their heads and shedding tears. Some of them gave the children bread; some gave small coins."


title: Turkish Abductions

text: Then, the commander of the city state selected several individuals for himself, the rest were sold on the slave market.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: Close to 100 individuals converted to Islam, mostly younger people. Eight years later there were 70 documented Icelanders who were still Christian.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: A few letters written by captives reached Iceland. Guttormur Hallsson, a captive from Eastern Region, said in a letter written in Barbary in 1631: "There is a great difference here between masters. Some captive slaves get good, gentle, or in-between masters, but some unfortunates find themselves with savage, cruel, hardhearted tyrants, who never stop treating them badly, and who force them to labour and toil with scanty clothing and little food, bound in iron fetters, from morning till night."


title: Turkish Abductions

text: Ólafur Egilsson, a minister from Vestmannaeyjar, was set free in Algiers so that he could go and raise money to pay the ransom. He eventually made it to Copenhagen. The fundraising was slow.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: On two occasions, those carrying the ransom to Algiers betrayed the captives, and used the money to purchase goods that they traded back in Europe. A letter describes the pain:


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The first major ransom was paid nine years after the abductions when 34 Icelanders were brought from Algiers. Six died on the way back, one was left behind in Glückstadt. A few others had made it back using other methods. In 1645, a ransom was paid for an additional 8 people, who made it back to Copenhagen. In total, 50 individuals got their freedom, but not all returned to Iceland.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: The most notable captive was Guðríður Símonardóttir. She returned to Iceland and later married Hallgrímur Pétursson, one of Iceland's most famous poets.


title: Turkish Abductions

text: In Iceland, the Turkish Abductions are viewed as a major event and one that is still often discussed, but outside of Iceland the event is practically unknown. Multiple detailed works were written about the event at the time, a major one was Ólafur Egilsson's narrative ("") (en: "Ólafur Egilsson's travelogue"). It was translated and published in English in 2008. The abductions were viewed at the time as a punishment from God for Iceland's "sinful" lifestyle. They are the only armed expedition against Iceland in modern times that has resulted in any casualties.


title: Military personnel

text: Military personnel are members of the state's armed forces. Their roles, pay, and obligations differ according to their military branch (army, navy, marines, air force, space force, and coast guard), rank (officer, non-commissioned officer, or enlisted recruit), and their military task when deployed on operations and on exercise.


title: Military personnel

text: Those who serve in a typical large ground or land force are soldiers, making up an army. Those who serve in seagoing forces are seamen or sailors, and their branch is a navy or coast guard. Naval infantry or marines serve in land and sea, and their branch is the marine corps. In the 20th century, the development of powered flight aircraft prompted the development of air forces, serviced by airmen. The United States Space Force service members are known as guardians.


title: Military personnel

text: Designated leaders of military personnel are officers. These include commissioned officers, warrant officers and non-commissioned officers. For naval forces, non-commissioned officers are referred to as petty officers.


title: Military personnel

text: Military personnel may be conscripted (recruited by compulsion under the law) or recruited by attracting civilians to join the armed forces.


title: Military personnel

text: Most personnel at the start of their military career are young adults. For example, in 2013 the average age of a United States Army soldier beginning initial training was 20.7 years.


title: Military personnel

text: Most personnel are male. The proportion of female personnel varies internationally; for example, it is approximately 3% in India, 10% in the UK, 13% in Sweden, 16% in the US, and 27% in South Africa. Many state armed forces that recruit women ban them from ground close combat roles (roles that would require them to kill at close quarters).


title: Military personnel

text: Personnel who join as officers tend to be upwardly mobile young adults from age 18. Most enlisted personnel have a childhood background of relative socio-economic deprivation. For example, after the US suspended conscription in 1973, "the military disproportionately attracted African American men, men from lower-status socioeconomic backgrounds, men who had been in nonacademic high school programs, and men whose high school grades tended to be low". However, a 2020 study suggests that US Armed Forces personnel's socio-economic status are at parity or slightly higher than the civilian population and that the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups are less likely to meet the requirements of the modern US military. As an indication of the socio-economic background of British Army personnel, in 2015 three-quarters of its youngest recruits had the literacy skills normally expected of an 11-year-old or younger, and 7% had a reading age of 5–7.


title: Military personnel

text: Military personnel must be prepared to perform tasks that in civilian life would be highly unusual or absent. In particular, they must be capable of injuring and killing other people, and of facing mortal danger without fleeing. This is achieved in initial training, a physically and psychologically intensive process which resocializes recruits for the unique nature of military demands.


title: Military personnel

text: According to an expert in military training methods, Lt Col. Dave Grossman, initial training uses four conditioning techniques: role modeling, classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and brutalization. For example, throughout initial training:


title: Military personnel

text: In conditions of continuous physical and psychological stress, the trainee group normally forms a bond of mutual loyalty, commonly experienced as an emotional commitment. It has been called a "we-feeling", and helps to commit recruits to their military organisation.


title: Military personnel

text: Throughout their initial training, recruits are repeatedly instructed to stand, march, and respond to orders in a ritual known as foot drill, which trains recruits to obey orders without hesitation or question. According to Finnish Army regulations, for example, the close-order drill:


title: Military personnel

text: In order to ensure that recruits will kill if ordered to do so, they are taught to objectify (dehumanize) their opponent as an "enemy target" to "be engaged", which will "fall when hit". They are also taught the basic skills of their profession, such as military tactics, first aid, managing their affairs in the field, and the use of weaponry and other equipment. Training is designed to test and improve the physical fitness of recruits, although the heavy strain on the body also leads to a rate of injury.


title: Military personnel

text: Recruits enter a binding contract of service, which may differ according to rank, military branch, and whether the employment is full-time or part-time.


title: Military personnel

text: Full-time military employment normally requires a minimum period of service of several years; between two and six years is typical of armed forces in Australia, the UK and the US, for example, depending on role, branch, and rank. The exception to this rule is a short discharge window, which opens after the first few weeks of training and closes a few months later, and allows recruits to leave the armed force as of right.


title: Military personnel

text: Part-time military employment, known as reserve service, allows a recruit to maintain a civilian job while training under military discipline for a minimum number of days per year in return for a financial bounty. Reserve recruits may be called out to deploy on operations to supplement the full-time personnel complement.


title: Military personnel

text: After leaving the armed forces, for a fixed period (between four and six years is normal in the UK and US, for example), former recruits may remain liable for compulsory return to full-time military employment in order to train or deploy on operations.


title: Military personnel

text: Military law introduces offenses not recognized by civilian courts, such as absence without leave (AWOL), desertion, political acts, malingering, behaving disrespectfully, and disobedience (see, for example, offences against military law in the United Kingdom). Penalties range from a summary reprimand to imprisonment for several years following a court martial. Certain fundamental rights are also restricted or suspended, including the freedom of association (e.g. union organizing) and freedom of speech (speaking to the media). Military personnel in some countries have a right of conscientious objection if they believe an order is immoral or unlawful, or cannot in good conscience carry it out.


title: Military personnel

text: Personnel may be posted to bases in their home country or overseas, according to operational need, and may be deployed from those bases on exercises or operations anywhere in the world. The length of postings and deployments are regulated. In the UK, for example, a soldier is expected to be on deployment for no more than six months in every 30 months. These regulations may be waived at times of high operational tempo, however.


title: Military personnel

text: Benefits and perks of military service typically include adventurous training, subsidised accommodation, meals and travel, and a pension. Some armed forces also subsidise recruits' education before, during and/or after military service; examples are the Royal Military College Saint-Jean in Canada, the Welbeck Defence Sixth Form College in the UK, and the GI Bill arrangements in the US Conditions for participation normally apply, including a minimum period of formal military employment.


title: Military personnel

text: While on duty, military personnel are normally required to wear a military uniform, normally showing their name, rank and military branch.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona (, ) is a town and "comune" in the province of Arezzo, in Tuscany, Italy. It is the main cultural and artistic centre of the Val di Chiana after Arezzo.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona is derived from Latin Cortōna, and from Etruscan 𐌂𐌖𐌓𐌕𐌖𐌍 (curtun). This may be related to Indo-European *ghortos meaning "enclosed place" and consequently walled city like Latin hortus, German Garten, Italian orto, English yard, and Slavic grad. The name may also be linked to the Phrygian town of Gordium in Anatolia, although the founding myth for the latter is that it was named after founder, King Gordias. However, the Etruscan language is probably a pre-Indo-European language, and therefore if it was named by the Etruscans, an Indo-European etymology is uncertain. The Umbrian language, by contrast, is an Italic language, so if it was named by them, a link to Indo-European roots would be more likely.


title: Cortona

text: George Dennis suggests that it was known by many names "Corytus, Croton, Crotona, Cyrtonion, Creston, Gotynaea, Cothernia, or Cortona. The latter name, if we may believe Dionysius (Dionysius Periegetes) (I. p21) was only given when the city was made a Roman colony, not long before his day, taking the place of the old appellation, Croton. Of Corythus, we have already spoken. Cyrtonios or Cyrtonion is the name used by Polybius (III.82) and Stephanus of Byzantium. Creston is found only in Herodotus, and will be further mentioned presently. Cortynaea is used by Lycophron (Cass. 806), and by Theopompus (ap. Tzetz. ad Lycoph. loc. cit.), who records a tradition that Ulysses, called by the Etruscans, Nanos (cf. Lycoph. 1244; Tzetzes in loc.), sailed to Etruria, took up his abode at Gortynaea, and there died. This says Müller is the Hellenised form of Cortona, for no other Etruscan city can be here intended. Etrusk. IV.4, 1.".


title: Cortona

text: An Etruscan presence is found archaeologically from the late Villanovan while there is no such evidence of an Umbrian origin of the city. Between the 8th and 7th centuries BC it became an important member of the Etruscan League or a "lucumonia". Most likely, Cortona became a very powerful city thanks to its strategic position, which allowed a wide control of nearby territory.


title: Cortona

text: In the 4th century BC the Etruscans built the imposing walls that surround the city for about 3 km, the "melon" tombs scattered around the city and the monumental funerary altar (Tumulus II of the Sodo) adorned with sphinxes, a unique example in Italy. The Tabula Cortonensis was also found here, a bronze sheet with one of the longest inscriptions in the Etruscan language.


title: Cortona

text: In 310 BC many Etruscan cities were subdued by Rome and Cortona made an alliance with Rome which however was not respected and led to a violent clash near Lake Trasimeno.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona eventually became a Roman colony under the name "Corito". Cortona lost much of its influence under Roman rule. The Via Cassia, the main Roman artery through central Etruria, led directly from Chiusi to Arezzo, bypassing Cortona.


title: Cortona

text: During the Second Punic War Hannibal besieged and attacked Cortona. The famous battle of Trasimeno took place not far away and the hamlet of Ossaia, not far from the battlefield, takes its name because the remains of the dead were amassed there, becoming an ossuary.


title: Cortona

text: Traces from the Roman period can also be found in the names of some local hamlets, in particular Metelliano, derived from the toponym of the patrician family Metelli, and Centoia on an ancient checkpoint near the via Cassia, seat of a Century, sub-unit of the Roman army.


title: Cortona

text: In 450 AD the Goths occupied Cortona. In the final stages of the Gothic War (535–554), Cortona was sacked and destroyed.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona became a Ghibellinian city state in the 13th century, with its own currency. From 1325 to 1409, the Ranieri-Casali family successfully ruled the town. After being conquered by Ladislaus of Naples in 1409, Cortona was sold to the Medici in 1411. In 1737, the senior branch of the Medici line became extinct and Cortona came under the authority of the House of Lorraine. Following the Italian Wars of Independence, Tuscany—Cortona included—became part of the Kingdom of Italy.


title: Cortona

text: The foundation of Cortona remains mixed in myths dating to classic times. These were later reworked especially in the late Renaissance period under Cosimo I de' Medici. The 17th-century Guide of Giacomo Lauro, reworked from writings of Annio da Viterbo, states that 108 years after the Great Flood, Noah entered the Valdichiana via the Tiber and Paglia rivers. He preferred this place to anywhere else in Italy, because it was so fertile, and dwelt there for thirty years. One of Noah's descendants was Crano, his son who came to the hilltop and, liking the high position, the fine countryside and the calm air, built the city of Cortona on it in 273 years after the Great Flood.


title: Cortona

text: The prevailing character of Cortona's architecture is medieval with steep narrow streets situated on a hillside at an elevation of that embraces a view of the whole of the Valdichiana. From the Piazza Garibaldi (still referred to by the local population by its older name, Piazza Carbonaia) is a fine prospect of Lake Trasimeno, scene of Hannibal's ambush of the Roman army in 217 BC (Battle of Lake Trasimene).


title: Cortona

text: Cortona Archaeological Park hosts interesting remains from the Etruscan city state, including ancient walls, buildings and ceremonial tombs. boasts a number of interesting remains from its past as an Etruscan city state. The surrounding countryside is dotted with sections of ancient walls, buildings and ceremonial tombs. Parts of the Etruscan city wall can still be seen today as the basis of the present wall. The main street, via Nazionale, is the only street in the town with no gradient, and is still usually referred to by locals by its older name of Ruga Piana. Outside Cortona are the Roman villa at Ossaia and the Roman roads in the hills nearby which can still be traveled today.


title: Cortona

text: Inside the "Palazzo Casali "is the "Museo dell'Accademia Etrusca", displaying items from Etruscan, Roman, and Egyptian civilizations, as well as art and artefacts from the Medieval and Renaissance eras. The distinguished Etruscan Academy Museum had its foundation in 1727 with the collections and library of Onofrio Baldelli. Among its most famous ancient artefacts is the bronze "lampadario" or Etruscan hanging lamp, found at Fratta near Cortona in 1840 and then acquired by the Academy for the large sum of 1600 Florentine scudi. Its iconography includes (under the 16 burners) alternating figures of Silenus playing panpipes or double flutes, and of sirens or harpies. Within zones representing waves, dolphins and fiercer sea-creatures is a gorgon-like face with protruding tongue. Between each burner is a modelled horned head of Achelous. It is supposed that the lampadario derived from some important north Etruscan religious shrine of around the second half of the 4th century BC. A later (2nd century BC) inscription shows it was rededicated for votive purposes (tinscvil) by the "Musni" family at that time. The Museum contains several other important Etruscan bronzes.


title: Cortona

text: Etruscan chamber-tombs nearby include the "Tanella di Pitagora" (halfway up the hill from Camucia): the fine masonry of the tomb stands exposed, but was formerly covered by an earth mound. Two at the foot of the hillside at Il Sodo, and a complex in Camucia itself. Il Sodo I, the 'Grotta Sergardi' commonly known as 'Il Melone', contains a passage, opening into parallel passages leading to square inner chambers, within a mound about in circumference. Although the chambers are paved with slabs of masonry the walls are constructed of pieces of rock roughly-formed into bricks. This tomb can be visited. Il Sodo II contained a large stone-stepped altar platform with carved sphinxes devouring warriors.


title: Cortona

text: The town's chief artistic treasures are two panels by Fra Angelico in the Diocesan Museum, an "Annunciation" and a "Madonna and Child with Saints". A third surviving work by the same artist is the fresco above the entrance to the church of "San Domenico", likewise painted during his stay at Cortona in 1436. The Diocesan Museum houses also a group of work by Giuseppe Maria Crespi, known as Lo Spagnuolo, called "Ecstasy of Saint Margaret". The Academy Museum includes the very well known painting "Maternità" of 1916 by the Cortonese artist Gino Severini. There are also examples of the works of Pietro da Cortona.


title: Cortona

text: The villa "Bramasole", built in 1504, was used as the location for the 2003 film "Under the Tuscan Sun".


title: Cortona

text: The Imperial villa was inhabited from the 1st century BC until the 6th century AD. The large, luxurious, elongated terraced villa was owned first by the consular family Vibii Pansae, followed by Gaius Caesar and Lucius Caesar, grandsons and heirs to the throne of emperor Augustus.


title: Cortona

text: The archaeological park of Cortona has 11 sites, among which is the second tumulus of the Sodo, an imposing 6th century BC tomb with a monumental staircase decorated by large sculptural groups.


title: Cortona

text: "Santa Maria Nuova", built by Giorgio Vasari in 1554, is a domed church with a centralized Greek cross layout. Inside are four large columns which supports the lantern of the cupola. At the sides the four arms of the cross branch out covered with barrel-vaults, while four small cupolas arise in the spaces of the angles. The interior contains paintings depicting a "Nativity" by Alessandro Allori, "San Carlo Borromeo administers communion to those afflicted by Plague" by Baccio Ciarpi, and an "Annunciation" by Empoli. The church is in poor condition, and the interior is not open for visitors.


title: Cortona

text: "" was built in 1484–1515 by Francesco di Giorgio Martini to shelter a putatively miraculous icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the "Madonna del Calcinaio". This image was originally painted on the timbers of a lime-vat, a "calcinaio", hence the name. A centralized Renaissance design was applied to the design of the nave: the eastern part of the building was generally developed into a centralized form, which would then be crowned with a large cupola, foreshadowing the cathedral at Florence. The restored interior has unusually high arches.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona may be accessed by rail: the closest station is Camucia-Cortona, away. In addition Terontola-Cortona station lies in the district of Terontola. Both stations lie on the Florence–Rome railway, while Terontola-Cortona station is also at the junction with the line to Foligno, via . There are direct trains from Florence, Rome, and Foligno (via Perugia).


title: Cortona

text: In 2000, Cortona established Cortona DOC ("Denominazione di Origine Controllata"), which has 29 members that produce and control 14 different types of wines.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona was featured as one of the destinations in a travel episode of "Conan", where Conan O'Brien and Jordan Schlansky (one of the show's associate producers) visits Italy. Schlansky, being a recurring visitor of Cortona, is awarded a parking space by the city's mayor and introduces O' Brien to his favourite restaurant, where he, with questionable success, explains the food, wine, and the surrounding area, to his travel companion.


title: Cortona

text: Cortona was also featured in Frances Mayes' book "Under the Tuscan Sun", basis for the eponymous movie starring Diane Lane. She visits Cortona on a tour and buys a villa on the outskirts.


title: Survey (human research)

text: In research of human subjects, a survey is a list of questions aimed for extracting specific data from a particular group of people. Surveys may be conducted by phone, mail, via the internet, and also at street corners or in malls. Surveys are used to gather or gain knowledge in fields such as social research and demography.


title: Survey (human research)

text: Survey research is often used to assess thoughts, opinions and feelings. Surveys can be specific and limited, or they can have more global, widespread goals. Psychologists and sociologists often use surveys to analyze behavior, while it is also used to meet the more pragmatic needs of the media, such as, in evaluating political candidates, public health officials, professional organizations, and advertising and marketing directors. Survey research has also been employed in various medical and surgical fields to gather information about healthcare personnel’s practice patterns and professional attitudes toward various clinical problems and diseases. Healthcare professionals that may be enrolled in survey studies in include physicians, nurses, and physical therapists among others. A survey consists of a predetermined set of questions that is given to a sample. With a representative sample, that is, one that is representative of the larger population of interest, one can describe the attitudes of the population from which the sample was drawn. Further, one can compare the attitudes of different populations as well as look for changes in attitudes over time. A good sample selection is key as it allows one to generalize the findings from the sample to the population, which is the whole purpose of survey research. In addition to this, it is important to ensure that survey questions are not biased such as using suggestive words. This prevents inaccurate results in a survey.


title: Survey (human research)

text: A "census" is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a specific given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses include agriculture, business, and traffic censuses. The United Nations defines the essential features of population and housing censuses as "individual enumeration, universality within a defined territory, simultaneity and defined periodicity", and recommends that population censuses be taken at least every 10 years


title: Survey (human research)

text: Other surveys than the census may explore characteristics in households, such as fertility, family structure, and demographics.


title: Survey (human research)

text: An "opinion poll" is a survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence intervals.


title: Survey (human research)

text: Medical or health-related survey research is particularly concerned with uncovering knowledge-practice gaps. That is to say to reveal any inconsistencies between the established international recommended guidelines and the real time medical practice regarding a certain disease or clinical problem. In other words, some medical surveys aim at exploring the difference between the proper practice and the actual practice reported by the healthcare professionals. Medical survey research has also been used to collect information from the patients, caregivers and even the public on relevant health issues. In turn the information gathered from survey results can be used to upgrade the professional performance of healthcare personnel including physicians, develop the quality of healthcare delivered to patients, mend existing deficiencies of the healthcare delivery system and professional health education. Furthermore, the results of survey research can inform the public health domain and help conduct health awareness campaigns in vulnerable populations and guide healthcare policy-makers. This is especially true when survey research deals with a wide spread disease that constitutes a nationwide or global health challenge.


title: Survey (human research)

text: A single survey is made of at least a sample (or full population in the case of a census), a method of data collection (e.g., a questionnaire) and individual questions or items that become data that can be analyzed statistically. A single survey may focus on different types of topics such as preferences (e.g., for a presidential candidate), opinions (e.g., should abortion be legal?), behavior (smoking and alcohol use), or factual information (e.g., income), depending on its purpose. Since survey research is almost always based on a sample of the population, the success of the research is dependent on the representativeness of the sample with respect to a target population of interest to the researcher. That target population can range from the general population of a given country to specific groups of people within that country, to a membership list of a professional organization, or list of students enrolled in a school system (see also sampling (statistics) and survey sampling).


title: Survey (human research)

text: When two variables are related, or correlated, one can make predictions for these two variables. However, it is important to note that this does not mean causality. At this point, it is not possible to determine a causal relationship between the two variables; correlation does not imply causality. However, correlation evidence is significant because it can help identify potential causes of behavior. Path analysis is a statistical technique that can be used with correlational data. This involves the identification of mediator and moderator variables. A mediator variable is used to explain the correlation between two variables. A moderator variable affects the direction or strength of the correlation between two variables. A spurious relationship is a relationship in which the relation between two variables can be explained by a third variable.


title: Survey (human research)

text: Moreover, in survey research, correlation coefficients between two variables might be affected by measurement error, what can lead to wrongly estimated coefficients and biased substantive conclusions. Therefore, when using survey data, we need to correct correlation coefficients for measurement error.


title: Survey (human research)

text: The value of collected data completely depends upon how truthful respondents are in their answers on questionnaires. In general, survey researchers accept respondents’ answers as true. Survey researchers avoid reactive measurement by examining the accuracy of verbal reports, and directly observing respondents’ behavior in comparison with their verbal reports to determine what behaviors they really engage in or what attitudes they really uphold. Studies examining the association between self-reports (attitudes, intentions) and actual behavior show that the link between them—through positive—is not always strong—thus caution is needed when extrapolating self-reports to actual behaviors, Dishonesty is pronounced in some sex-related queries, with men often amplifying their number of sex partners, while women tend to downplay and slash their true number.


title: Survey (human research)

text: The Statistical Society of London pioneered the questionnaire in 1838. "Among the earliest acts of the Statistical Society of London ... was the appointment of committees to enquire into industrial and social conditions. One of these committees, in 1838, used the first written questionnaire of which I have any record. The committee-men prepared and printed a list of questions 'designed to elicit the complete and impartial history of strikes.'"


title: Survey (human research)

text: The most famous public survey in the United States of America is the national census. Held every ten years since 1790, the census attempts to count all persons, and also to obtain demographic data about factors such as age, ethnicity, and relationships within households.


title: Survey (human research)

text: Nielsen ratings (carried out since 1947) provide another example of public surveys in the United States. Nielsen rating track media-viewing habits (radio, television, internet, print) the results of which are used to make commissioning decisions. Some Nielsen ratings localize the data points to give marketing firms more specific information with which to target customers. Demographic data is also used to understand what influences work best to market consumer products, political campaigns, etc.


title: Survey (human research)

text: Following the invention of the telephone survey (used at least as early as the 1940s), the development of the Internet in the late-20th century fostered online surveys and web surveys.


title: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

text: "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the second single from his fourth studio album, "Still Crazy After All These Years" (1975), released on Columbia Records. Backing vocals on the single were performed by Patti Austin, Valerie Simpson, and Phoebe Snow. The song features a recognizable repeated drum riff performed by drummer Steve Gadd.


title: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

text: One of his most popular singles, "50 Ways" was released in December 1975 and began to see chart success within the new year. It became Simon's sole number-one hit as a solo artist on the "Billboard" Hot 100 in the United States, and was his highest position in France, where it peaked at number two. Elsewhere, the song was a top 20 hit in Canada and New Zealand. The single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting sales of over one million copies.


title: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

text: Following Simon's divorce from first wife Peggy Harper, Simon opted to take a more humorous approach to document the event. He recorded the song in a small New York City studio on Broadway, and built the song around the drums in order to "avoid clutter".


title: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

text: Like in "American Tune" three years earlier, Simon found inspiration in classical music. The melody of the tune is based on "Tit er jeg glad" (Danish: Often I am happy), a 1917 love song by the Danish composer Carl Nielsen.


title: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

text: "Billboard" called it an "excellent song" that has "very clever lyrics" and an "easy to listen to melody." "Cash Box" said that it is "a clever, commercial song about the elasticity of love, how easy it is to pull away and equally easy to snap back with it."


title: 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

text: "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" was Paul Simon's biggest solo hit and broke in the US in late 1975. It hit number one on the US "Billboard" Hot 100 on February 7, 1976 (his only number one on that chart as a solo act), soaring from number ten the previous week, and remained there for three weeks; it topped the adult contemporary chart for two weeks. Overseas, on the UK Singles Chart, the song reached number 23 in January 1976. It was certified gold on March 11, 1976, and remained a best seller for nearly five months. "Billboard" ranked it as the No. 8 song of 1976.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy Corporation was an American family-owned leather goods company based in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. Tandy Leather was founded in 1919 as a leather supply store. By the end of the 1950s, under the tutelage of then-CEO Charles Tandy, the company expanded into the hobby market, making leather moccasins and coin purses, making huge sales among Scouts, leading to a fast growth in sales.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Entering the 1960s, aiming to broaden the company horizon, Charles Tandy acquired a number of craft retail companies, including RadioShack in 1963, then an almost bankrupt chain of electronics stores in Boston.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In the 1980s, now led by John Roach as CEO, the corporation started to invest into the personal computer market, being one of the pioneers in the personal computer race, being lauded by the magazine "Financial World" as "the driving force at the front-running company in the red-hot personal computer race."


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy began in 1919 when two friends, Norton Hinckley and Dave L. Tandy, decided to start the Hinckley-Tandy Leather Company and concentrated their efforts on selling sole leather and other supplies to shoe repair dealers in Texas. Hinckley and Tandy opened their first branch store in 1927 in Beaumont, Texas and in 1932, Dave Tandy moved the store from Beaumont to Houston, Texas. Tandy's business survived the economic storms of the Depression, gathered strength and developed a firm presence in the shoe findings (i.e. shoemakers' tools and supplies) business.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Dave Tandy had a son, Charles David Tandy, who was drafted into the business during his early twenties. Charles obtained a B.A degree at Texas Christian University then began attending the Harvard Business School to further expand his education. As World War II escalated Charles was called to serve his country in the military and relocated to Hawaii. He wrote to his father from overseas suggesting that leathercraft might offer new possibilities for growing the shoe finding business since the same supplies were used widely in Navy and Army hospitals and recreation centers. Leathercraft gave the men something useful to do and their handiwork, in addition to being therapeutic, had genuine value.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Charles Tandy returned home from the service as a lieutenant commander in 1948 and negotiated to operate the fledgling leathercraft division himself. He had encouraged and followed the development of that venture through correspondence with his father. Within a short time Charles succeeded in opening the first of two retail stores in 1950 that specialized exclusively in leathercraft.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Mr. Hinckley did not share the enthusiasm of Dave and Charles Tandy for the new leathercraft division. As a result, the two original founders came to an agreement in 1950 that Hinckley would continue to pursue the shoe findings business and the Tandy partners would specialize in promoting leathercrafts.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: The first Tandy Catalog, only 8 pages long, was mailed to readers of Popular Science magazine who had responded to two-inch test ads that were placed by Tandy. From 1950 forward Tandy operated retail mail order stores supported by direct mail advertising. This successful formula helped the company expand into a chain of some 150 leathercraft stores. A growing 'do-it-yourself movement' prompted by a shortage of consumer goods and high labor costs continued to gather momentum. The fifteen leathercraft stores opened during this division's first two years of operation became quite successful. Tandy began expanding by gaining new product lines; the first acquisition was with the American Handicrafts Company which featured a broad line of do-it-yourself handicraft products, two established retail stores in the New York market, and useful knowledge of school and institutional markets. Sixteen additional retail stores were opened in 1953, and by 1955 Tandy Leather was a thriving company with leased sales sites in 75 cities across the United States.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy Leather became an attractive commodity and was purchased in 1955 by the American Hide and Leather Company of Boston (name change in 1956 to General American Industries). Charles continued to maintain control of managing the Tandy Leather division while owned by GAI. During 1956, General American Industries acquired three other companies unrelated to the leather industry and a struggle for control of the parent company began. Charles saw the need to emancipate the company from continuing in the direction initiated by GAI. He used all his resources, raised additional money, and exercised his right to purchase the 500,000 shares of stock that were included in the original settlement. When the votes were counted on the day of that pivotal stockholders meeting, the Tandy group took management control of General American Industries.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1961, the company name was changed to Tandy Corporation. The corporate headquarters were also moved to Fort Worth, Texas, where Charles D. Tandy became the president and chairman of the board. Tandy Leather was operating 125 stores in 105 cities of the United States and Canada and expansion was the name of the game. Tandy acquired the assets of Merribee Art Embroidery Co., manufacturer and retailer of needlecraft items, as well as give other companies, including Cleveland Crafts Inc. and brought on the owner, Werner Magnus, to help run the newly acquired Merribee division.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: The first Tandy Mart had twenty-eight different shops all devoted to craft and hobby merchandise and included American Handicraft, Tandy Leather, Electronics Crafts and Merribee in an area of about 40,000 square feet. Charles Tandy became intrigued with the potential for rapid growth that he saw in the electronics retail industry during 1962. He found RadioShack in Boston, a mail order company that had started in the twenties selling to ham operators and electronics buffs. By April 1963, the Tandy Corporation acquired management control of RadioShack Corporation and within two years, RadioShack's $4 million loss was turned into a profit under the leadership of Charles Tandy.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Sales were going well for Tandy during this time. Under the leadership of Lloyd Redd (president) and Al Patten (VP of Operations), the company prospered. The number of Tandy store-fronts skyrocketed over the next five to six years by growing from 132 sites in 1969 to 269 sites in 1975. Ground broke in downtown Fort Worth for the construction of the Tandy Towers in 1975. The 18-story office building was initiated as Phase I of a massive downtown development with plans to cover eight city blocks and become the new headquarters of the Tandy Corp. It contained an upscale retail shopping center with an indoor ice skating rink and had its own privately owned subway system.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: The company's board of directors then announced a plan to separate Tandy's businesses into three distinct publicly held companies. The two new companies were named Tandycrafts, Inc. and Tex Tan-Hickok, Inc. This plan was publicized as a strategy to provide intensive leadership and tailored management of the three distinct and diverse businesses of the company, each of which recently had reached a substantial size. With this transition, RadioShack and Tandy Leather Company were no longer under the same corporate umbrella. Wray Thompson was promoted to president of Tandy Leather Company in 1976 and Dave Ferrill was promoted to the position of National Sales Manager; they oversaw 288 stores. Although they opened their 300th store that year, the popularity of Nature-Tand's products had begun to slide.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Charles Tandy died on November 4, 1978, at the age of 60. Concurrently, key stakeholders began to question the direction of the company. Wray Thompson subsequently resigned from his position as president and later started The Leather Factory with Ron Morgan, which eventually purchased Tandy Leather Corporation in 2000.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy was one of three companies (along with Commodore International and Apple) that started the personal computer revolution in 1977 by introducing complete pre-assembled microcomputers instead of a kit. Their TRS-80 (1977) and TRS-80 Color Computer ("CoCo") (1980) line of home computers were popular in the years before the IBM PC became commonplace, and had wide distribution in Radio Shack stores at a time when there were few computer stores.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: By 1981, computers were the most important part of Tandy's sales. The company attempted to monopolize software and peripheral sales by keeping technical information secret and not selling third-party products in Tandy-owned stores. An experimental Tandy computer store at company headquarters sold non-Tandy products until the company banned doing so. A market research company reported in 1981 that not selling others' products slowed Tandy's growth, and predicted that competitors would benefit.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Discussing the report, Wayne Green, publisher of "80 Microcomputing", warned that the company might have become overconfident from defeating "poorly financed and inadequately managed competitors", and that IBM and others would not likely be "as myopic and hidebound as Radio Shack". He wrote that had Tandy continued its experiment, "they might have a couple of thousand Tandy Computer Centers around the country, instead of the Byte Shops and Computerlands we now see. And Tandy would have had a lot more control over Apple and other upstarts". In 1982 he wrote that while its thousands of stores were once a "considerable advantage" over competitors, "The Shack is falling way behind in sales outlets and thus in sales ... we've seen the Apple come along and, with fewer outlets, pass the TRS-80 by in sales". Green warned that the company needed to make "soul-searching, perhaps painful, decisions".


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy's market share—as high as 60% at one time—indeed declined by 1983 because of competition from the IBM PC and lack of third-party products. Tandy adopted the IBM PC compatible architecture with the Tandy 1000 and Tandy 2000 (1983–1984). The 1000 helped Tandy achieve a 25% personal-computer market share in 1986, tied with Apple and in second place behind IBM.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1982, Tandy Corporation entered into a development contract with Oklahoma-based software company, Dorsett Educational Systems, Inc, known for its 25 years pioneering educational technology. The deal resulted in dozens of titles being released for the TRS-80 Color Computer.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Radio Shack stores sold TRS-80 computers with other products, while Radio Shack Computer Centers only sold computers. Non-company-owned franchises sold Radio Shack products, including computers, and non-Radio Shack items. Value-added resellers distributed relabelled versions of Tandy computers. Despite selling computers through old-fashioned, department-store-like Sunday-newspaper inserts that emphasized price instead of technology and functionality, by 1980 "InfoWorld" described Radio Shack as "the dominant supplier of small computers". and in 1981 "one of the best marketers in the computer industry". Adam Osborne that year described Tandy as "one of the great enigmas of the industry." He wrote of his amazement that a company "with so few roots in microcomputing" was the "number-one microcomputer manufacturer" while "selling computers out of Radio Shack stores, no less?" Green suggested in 1982 that stores separate computers from toys to convince "middle-income (-class) customers that Radio Shack stores are not primarily dealers in schlock for the unwary lower-income people". A "BYTE" reviewer admitted in 1983 that he at first dismissed the Model 100 "as a toy" because he saw it in a store next to a radio-controlled car, stating that "it's too bad that Radio Shack is associated with toys and CB radio" when the computer "shows tremendous planning and foresight".


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1984, a sell-side analyst stated that Tandy had an "Impressive product line, magnificent distribution capability, control of the whole process from manufacturing through distribution, and a reasonably nimble management that is willing to move with the product cycle". That year, Tandy was the leading Unix vendor by volume, selling almost 40,000 units of the 68000-based, multiuser Tandy Model 16 with Xenix, and began selling all computers using the Tandy brand because, an executive admitted, "we were told by customers that the Radio Shack name was a problem in the office". In the mid-1980s, it began selling peripherals compatible with non-Tandy products such as the IBM PC. The company also mandated in 1986 an IBM-like dress code for store employees. In 1987, "BYTE" wrote that "Tandy might now be offering the most extensive lines of computer products in the world", including the $99 Color Computer 2, $499 Model 102 notebook, various PC compatibles, and the $3,499 Tandy 6000 Xenix system. The company acquired GRiD Systems in March 1988. Grid Systems was a laptop manufacturer whose products included the GRiD Compass (1982), GRiDCase (1985), GRiDLite (1987), and GRiDPad (1989) tablet computer.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy also produced the short-lived Tandy 1100FD and Tandy 1100HD notebooks. Released in 1989, the 1100 Series was based on the popular NEC V20 processor clocked at 8 MHz. Tandy also produced software for its computers running DOS, in the form of Tandy Deskmate. That same year, Tandy introduced the WP-2, a solid-state notebook computer that was a rebadged Citizen CBM-10WP. Eventually, in the early 1990s, Tandy Corporation sold its computer-manufacturing business to AST Computers, and all Tandy computer lines were terminated. When that occurred, Radio Shack stores began selling computers made by other manufacturers, such as Compaq. In 1992, the company introduced the Tandy Zoomer, a predecessor to the Palm Pilot, designed by Jeff Hawkins. Also that year, the company produced an interactive, multimedia CD-ROM player called the Tandy Video Information System (VIS). Like the Tandy computers, it was based on the IBM PC architecture and used a version of Microsoft Windows. Tandy even produced a line of floppy disks, and continued producing IBM PC compatibles until the end of the Intel 486 era.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1973, Tandy Corporation began an expansion program outside their home market of the US, opening a chain of RadioShack-style stores in Europe and Australia under the Tandy name. The first store to open was in Aartselaar, Belgium on August 9, 1973. The first UK store opened October 11, 1973, in Hall Green, Birmingham. Initially, these new stores were under direct ownership of Tandy Corporation. In 1986, Tandy Corporation formed its subsidiary InterTAN as separate entity though connections between them were still visible. For example, catalogue number compatibility was maintained so that the same catalogue number in both companies would refer to the same item.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Tandy stores in the UK sold mainly own-brand goods under the 'Realistic' label and the shops were distinguished on the high street by continuing to use written sales receipts and a cash drawer instead of a till as late as the early 1990s. Staff were required to take the name and address of any customer who made a purchase, however small, in order to put them on the company's brochure mailing list, which often caused disgruntlement. A popular feature of Tandy stores was the free battery club, in which customers were allowed to claim a certain number of free batteries per year. In the early 1990s, the chain ran the 'Tandy Card' store credit card scheme and the 'Tandy Care' extended warranty policies which were heavily marketed by staff.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1999, the UK stores were acquired by Carphone Warehouse, as a part of an expansion strategy that saw the majority of the Tandy stores converted either to Carphone Warehouse or Tecno photographic stores. In May 2000, the Tandy name was dropped and the official name became RadioShack Corporation. By 2001, all former Tandy stores had been converted or closed. A small number of the stores were sold to a new company called T2 Retail Ltd formed by former Tandy (Intertan UK) employees, Dave Johnson, Neil Duggins and Philip Butcher who continued the RadioShack-style theme for a while, but these stores also closed in 2005. A new company called T2 Enterprises now continues using the old T2 Retail web presence as an exclusively on-line retailer stocking a range of RadioShack products and other electronics. In 2012, Tandy Corporation Ltd, a UK company, acquired the UK rights to the Tandy brand from RadioShack. It now operates as an on-line retailer of electronic components and kits at tandyonline.com.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In Canada, the InterTAN stores were sold to rival Circuit City Inc. The stores were branded as RadioShack, however, because Circuit City lost the naming rights. Later, all of these RadioShacks were re-branded as "The Source by Circuit City" (now called just The Source). Some of these stores have since closed. In 2009, Circuit City sold The Source to Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE).


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1975, Tandy spun off Color Tile, a chain of tile and flooring stores, along with its other non-electronic businesses in 1975 to TandyCrafts.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1985, Tandy acquired two chains, McDuff Electronics and VideoConcepts; the latter was previously owned by Eckerd Corporation. Most of these stores were closed as part of a 1994 restructuring plan, with 33 converted to RadioShack or Computer City Express stores. Remaining McDuff stores were closed in 1996.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: The Edge in Electronics, a now-defunct chain of boutique stores geared toward mall customers interested in fashionable personal and portable name brand electronics, debuted in 1990 and had 16 stores as of December 1993. One of the last stores open closed in San Antonio, Texas in 2001.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: The Incredible Universe concept was Tandy's attempt to compete with other electronics giants such as Best Buy, Circuit City, and Lechmere. A joint venture between Tandy Corporation and Trans World Entertainment, the first two stores, located in Arlington, Texas and Wilsonville, Oregon, opened in 1992. Each Incredible Universe store stocked more than 85,000 items, and the stores' sales personnel did not work on commission. Sales were below average compared to Tandy's profitable RadioShack line, and by late 1996, the company had decided to sell or close all 17 Incredible Universe stores. Many Incredible Universe stores were acquired by Fry's Electronics.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: Computer City was a supercenter concept featuring name-brand and private label computers, software and related products; acquired in 1991, these supplanted the original Radio Shack Computer Center chain, which closed that year. Computer City became the first International Computer Superstore with over 100 locations in six countries. In 1995, Computer City was recognized as the 2nd fastest retailer to hit $1 Billion in sales. In 1996, it was recognized as the 2nd fastest retailer to hit $2 Billion in sales. (Sam's Club was the fastest retailer to hit $1 Billion.) Alan Bush, former EVP of RadioShack and Jim Hamilton, known as the "Father of Computer Retailing," were the strategists behind the rapid growth and success. The Computer City stores were later sold to CompUSA.


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1983, Conroy sold O'Sullivan Industries to Tandy Corporation. In 1994, Tandy Corporation offered O'Sullivan as a public company. In 1999, O'Sullivan was purchased for about $350 million by investment group OSI Acquisition, an affiliate of Brockman, Rosser, Sherrill & Co., L.P. (BRS).


title: Tandy Corporation

text: In 1973, Tandy launched a subsidiary company called Coppercraft Guild, which sold solid copper knickknacks and housewares through a network marketing channel. Most notable were the "Franklin Cups" which were based on a design by Benjamin Franklin, sold in packs of six. The product line folded after about five years. Coppercraft Guild items are still popular with collectors on eBay.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Yacine Nasreddine Brahimi (born 8 February 1990) is a professional footballer who plays for and captains the Qatari club Al-Gharafa and the Algeria national team. He plays as an attacking midfielder and a winger and is described as "technically gifted" . Yacine is also known for his "Brahimi Moments" (in Portuguese, "Momentos Brahimi").


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi began his career throughout various clubs in the Île-de-France region, having trained at ASB Montreuil and CO Vincennois. In 2003, he was selected to attend the Clairefontaine academy. Brahimi spent three years at the academy and, upon leaving, signed with Rennes. While in the club's youth academy, he achieved several club honours. After turning professional, Brahimi was loaned out to second division club Clermont Foot. While at Clermont, he had a successful individual 2009–10 season. After spending the previous season there on loan, he moved to the La Liga club Granada CF in 2013, and then to Porto for €6.5 million one year later.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: An Algerian international, Brahimi is a former France youth international having represented the country at all youth levels. In 2009, he played on the under-19 team that reached the semi-finals at the 2009 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. In February 2013, Brahimi switched his international allegiance to Algeria and made his debut for them a month later, also playing at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, winning the 2019 tournament.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi was born in Paris to Algerian parents and grew up in the eastern suburbs of Paris in Montreuil in Seine-Saint-Denis. While growing up, he often emulated Zinedine Zidane while playing street football with friends. Brahimi began his football career playing for his local club ASB Montreuil. After a four-year stint there, he joined CO Vincennois, known for producing Ligue 1 player Blaise Matuidi, in nearby Vincennes. Two years later, Brahimi was selected to attend the renowned Clairefontaine academy in 2003 in order to further his development. While training at Clairefontaine during the week, he regularly played for Vincennois on the weekends. In his final year at Clairefontaine, Brahimi spent a year at the Camp des Loges, the youth training centre of Paris Saint-Germain, training alongside youth international teammate Mamadou Sakho. Despite being courted by several French and European clubs, following his stint at Clairefontaine, he signed an "aspirant" (youth) contract with Rennes. In October 2010, Brahimi cited choosing Rennes as his destination because of the club's educational value, stating, "In Rennes, the academy gives much importance to the schoolwork", and, "It was a warranty for my parents. They advised me to choose Stade Rennes. That way, I could continue my football training while preparing my Baccalauréat."


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi joined Rennes and quickly became a part of a slew of talent in the club's youth academy. He joined Damien Le Tallec (the younger brother of Anthony Le Tallec), Yann M'Vila, Yohann Lasimant, Kévin Théophile-Catherine and Samuel Souprayen as the club's most sought after prospects. The combination of M'Vila, Brahimi, Camara and Le Tallec (all four being members of the class of 1990) were particularly instrumental in their youth team's successes. With the under-16 team, the foursome won the Tournoi Carisport, a national tournament that regularly pits the top academies in France against each other. Two seasons later with the under-18 team, Brahimi won the under-18 league championship for the 2006–07 season. In 2008, the youth academy achieved its biggest honour after winning the Coupe Gambardella. The title was Rennes' third Gambardella Cup and its first since 2003 when the likes of Yoann Gourcuff and Sylvain Marveaux were playing in the competition. Following the 2007–08 season, on 23 June, Brahimi signed his first professional contract agreeing to a three-year deal until June 2011. Though on a professional contract, Brahimi was not assigned a number on the senior team and instead played on the club's Championnat de France amateur team in the fourth division appearing in 22 matches and scoring three goals helping the side finish 1st among professional clubs in their group, thus qualifying for the competition's playoffs, where they lost to Lyon in the semi-finals.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Following a successful international season with France, Rennes decided it would be best to send the young player on loan to receive some much needed playing time. On 3 July 2009, the club announced that Brahimi would join Ligue 2 club Clermont Foot on loan for the entire 2009–10 season. Brahimi arrived at the club following the 2009 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship, alongside fellow loanee from Juventus Carlo Vecchione, and was assigned the number 28 shirt. He made his professional debut on the opening match day of the season appearing as a substitute in a 2–1 defeat to Arles-Avignon. He scored his first goal for the club on 25 September converting a penalty in the club's 3–2 win over Angers. Brahimi's first goal in open play occurred on 4 December in Clermont's 3–1 win away to Bastia. Two weeks later, he scored again, converting another penalty in a 1–1 draw with Guingamp.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 23 March 2010, Brahimi scored the opening goal in Clermont's 3–0 win over Ajaccio. Three days later, he scored a goal and provided an assist in a 3–1 away victory over Istres. A month later, Brahimi converted his third penalty of the season in a 3–2 victory over Dijon. The win moved Clermont up to 4th position in the league standings and just three points off a promotion place. The following week, Brahimi continued to display his offensive prowess scoring against Le Havre. However, the match ended in a 2–1 defeat for Clermont. It was the club's first defeat in a match where Brahimi had scored a goal. Three days later, Brahimi scored his eight goal of the campaign in a 3–1 victory against Guingamp. The victory established a "promotion playoff" match on the final match day of the season as fourth-placed Clermont faced third-placed Arles-Avignon with the victory earning promotion to Ligue 1. Unfortunately for Clermont, the club failed to earn promotion to Ligue 1 for the first time in club history as it lost the match 1–0. Brahimi played 89 minutes in the match receiving a yellow card in the process.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Following the season, on 15 May 2010, Rennes manager Frédéric Antonetti confirmed that Brahimi would return to the team, despite interest from Arsenal and Real Madrid, and that he would be heavily relied upon for the 2010–11 season possibly serving as the playmaker replacing the aging Jérôme Leroy. On 7 August 2010, Brahimi made his club debut for Rennes in the club's opening league match against Lille. He started the match and played 71 minutes in a 1–1 draw. The following day, Rennes announced that Brahimi had signed a four-year contract extension with the club. The new deal was to keep him at the club until June 2014.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 14 August 2010, Brahimi scored his first career goal for the club in a 3–0 victory over Nancy. For a portion of the fall season, the play-maker underwent a dry spell not scoring a goal or providing an assist. As a result, Brahimi began rotating in and out of the starting lineup. After the winter break, Brahimi returned to form scoring and providing an assist in the team's 7–0 hammering of Championnat National club Cannes in the Coupe de France. One week later, he scored a double in a 4–0 league win over Arles-Avignon. On 5 February 2011, Brahimi scored a goal against his former youth club Paris Saint-Germain. The long-range driven goal was the only goal of the match as the victory moved Rennes equal on points with PSG for second place.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 30 August 2012, Brahimi signed on loan for Granada CF of the Spanish La Liga for €700,000, with the option to sign for €4 million afterwards. This option was taken on 4 June 2013, when he signed a four-year deal at the club. At the LFP Awards, he was voted the best African player of the 2013–14 season.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 22 July 2014, FC Porto announced the signing of Brahimi from Granada for a €6.5 million transfer fee and on a five-year contract. On 24 July 2014 Porto sold 80% of his economic rights to Doyen Sports for €5 million. The deals effectively made Porto acquired 20% economic rights of the player for €1.5 million.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi's first goal for the club came in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League play-off against Lille, scoring directly from a free-kick as Porto advanced to the group stage with a 3–0 aggregate victory. He scored his first hat-trick for the club in Porto's first match of the Champions League group stage, a 6–0 home win over BATE Borisov on 17 September. In their next European fixture, he had his penalty saved by goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov with the game goalless at Shakhtar Donetsk. He scored his first league goal against C.D. Nacional in a 2–0 win on 1 November. On 5 November, Brahimi scored one goal and assisted another as Porto defeated Athletic Bilbao 2–0 to secure qualification to the knockout stage of the Champions League.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi scored one goal as Porto defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv 2–0 in the group stage of the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 22 July 2019, Brahimi joined Qatar Stars League side Al-Rayyan. In his first season, he scored 15 goals and assisted 5 times in 22 appearances in league. The club finished second without to win any trophies, also the team was eliminated in the AFC Champions League playoff round. In his second season, after the team’s faltering start, Brahimi was linked with a move to QSL champions Al-Duhail in January 2021.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: As early as age 13, Brahimi began featuring with regional youth teams playing for Île-de-France alongside future youth international teammates Mamadou Sakho, Tripy Makonda, Maxime Partouche and Sébastien Corchia. Brahimi made his debut for the under-16 team on 21 March 2006 converting a penalty in a 3–1 victory over Germany. He played with the under-16 team at the 2006 edition of the Montaigu Tournament playing in all four matches the team contested as France were crowned champions defeating Italy 2–1 in the final. With the under-17 team, Brahimi made his debut on 25 September in a qualification match for the 2007 UEFA European Under-17 Championship against Lithuania. France won the match 4–2 with Brahimi making a substitute appearance. Despite appearing in the first round of qualification, Brahimi was absent from the tournament itself, due to the player struggling to adapt at his new club domestically. He later failed to make the team that qualified for the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup, which was achieved by virtue of their semi-final appearance in the UEFA-sanctioned tournament. Brahimi made his debut with the under-18 team on 18 December 2007 in a friendly match against Portugal in a 1–0 loss and later featured in two friendly matches against Germany, one of which was played at the GAZi-Stadion auf der Waldau in Stuttgart.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: With the under-19 team, Brahimi appeared in all 19 matches scoring 12 goals. He was immense during the 2009 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification scoring a team-leading five goals against Liechtenstein, Malta and the Republic of Ireland, scoring two goals each against the Liechtenstein and the hosts. Brahimi also scored several goals in friendly matches. On 30 March 2009, he scored a goal against the Ukraine and, the following month, scored a brace against Finland in a 7–0 rout. At the 2009 UEFA European Under-19 Championship, Brahimi scored two goals, one against Serbia and another against Spain. The match-winning goal against Spain assured France's progression to the semi-finals, where they lost to England.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi is also eligible to represent Algeria at international level. Following a successful season with Clermont, he was contacted by the Algerian Football Federation, which offered the player an opportunity to play on the team at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Brahimi was set to be named to manager Rabah Saadane's preliminary squad list for the competition, but turned down the opportunity with his preference being to continue his international career with France. On 12 May 2010, after almost a year not representing France internationally, Brahimi was called up to the under-20 team by coach Patrick Gonfalone to participate in the 2010 Toulon Tournament. In the team's second group stage match against Japan, Brahimi scored the final goal in the team's 4–1 victory. He played in all five of the team's matches as France finished in third place.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 26 August 2010, Brahimi was called up to the under-21 team by coach Erick Mombaerts for the first time for 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification matches against the Ukraine and Malta. He made his under-21 debut in the match against Malta. Brahimi played the entire match in a 2–0 victory. He subsequently featured in the team's three matches before dropping out of the selection for the team's friendly match against Slovakia in February 2011 due to injury.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: In February 2013, it was announced Brahimi had decided to switch his FIFA national allegiance to represent Algeria. He made his debut a month later as a starter in the 3–1 win over Benin in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: On 22 June 2014, Brahimi scored his first international goal, the fourth for Algeria as they won 4–2 against South Korea in the group stage of the 2014 World Cup. He started all of Algeria's group matches, and was a substitute in the round of 16 as they lost in extra time to eventual champions Germany.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Brahimi was also in Algeria's squad for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations. In their first group match, against South Africa, his cross was headed-in for an equaliser as an own goal for Thulani Hlatshwayo as Algeria came from behind to win 3–1. In their next match, he was chosen as Man of the Match, although the team lost 1–0 to Ghana. Brahimi featured in their next two matches as well, ending with defeat in the quarter-finals against eventual champions Ivory Coast.


title: Yacine Brahimi

text: Described as "technically gifted player", Brahimi is known for his great dribbling abilities and ability to take on players. Described by many coaches and journalists as a "Versatile winger that is unpredictable," Brahimi has earned himself the name as a great dribbler and a winger with pace and skill, earning himself the 2014 BBC African player of the year.


The Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge is an arch bridge in the United States that spans the Colorado River between the states of Arizona and Nevada. The bridge is located within the Lake Mead National Recreation Area approximately southeast of Las Vegas, and carries Interstate 11 and U.S. Route 93 over the Colorado River. Opened in 2010, it was the key component of the Hoover Dam Bypass project, which rerouted US 93 from its previous routing along the top of Hoover Dam and removed several hairpin turns and blind curves from the route. It is jointly named for Mike O'Callaghan, Governor of Nevada from 1971 to 1979, and Pat Tillman, an American football player who left his career with the Arizona Cardinals to enlist in the United States Army and was killed in Afghanistan in 2004 by friendly fire.


title: Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge

text: As early as the 1960s, officials identified the US 93 route over Hoover Dam to be dangerous and inadequate for projected traffic volumes. From 1998 to 2001, officials from Arizona, Nevada, and several federal government agencies collaborated to determine the best routing for an alternative river crossing. In March 2001, the Federal Highway Administration selected the route, which crosses the Colorado River approximately downstream of Hoover Dam. Construction of the bridge approaches began in 2003, and construction of the bridge itself began in February 2005. The bridge was completed in 2010 and the entire bypass route opened to vehicle traffic on October 19, 2010. The Hoover Dam Bypass project was completed within budget at a cost of $240 million; the bridge portion cost $114 million.


text: The bridge was the first concrete-steel composite deck arch bridge built in the United States, and incorporates the widest concrete arch in the Western Hemisphere. At above the Colorado River, it is the second highest bridge in the United States after the Royal Gorge Bridge near Cañon City, Colorado, and is the world's highest concrete arch bridge.


text: In 1935, the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO, later AASHTO) authorized a southward extension of U.S. Route 93 from its previous southern terminus in Glendale, Nevada to Kingman, Arizona via Las Vegas, Boulder City, and a crossing of the Colorado River on the newly-constructed Hoover Dam (then known as Boulder Dam). Clark County was sparsely populated at the time, with a population of less than 9,000 at the 1930 U.S. Census (compared to an estimated 2 million in 2013). Development in and around Las Vegas in the latter half of the 20th century made Las Vegas and its surrounding area a tourist attraction, and US 93 became an important transportation corridor for passenger and commercial traffic between Las Vegas and Phoenix. In 1995, the portion of US 93 over Hoover Dam was included as part of the CANAMEX Corridor, a high-priority transportation corridor established under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This bridge is a key component of the proposed Interstate 11 project.


text: Through traffic on US 93 combined with pedestrian and tourist traffic at Hoover Dam itself led to major traffic congestion on the dam and on the approaches to the dam. The approaches featured hairpin turns on both the Nevada and Arizona sides of the dam, and the terrain caused limited sight distances around curves. In addition to traffic safety considerations, officials were also concerned about the safety and security of Hoover Dam, specifically the impact a vehicle accident could have on the dam's operation and the waters of Lake Mead. Officials first discussed the need for a new Colorado River crossing that would bypass the dam in the 1960s. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which operates the dam, began work on the "Colorado River Bridge Project" in 1989, but the project was put on hold in 1995. In 1997 the Federal Highway Administration took over the project and released a draft environmental impact statement in 1998. From 1998 to 2001 state officials from Arizona and Nevada as well as several federal government agencies studied the feasibility of several alternative routes and river crossings, as well as the feasibility of modifying the roadway over the dam, restricting traffic over the dam, or doing nothing.


text: In March 2001, the Federal Highway Administration issued a Record of Decision indicating its selection of the "Sugarloaf Mountain Alternative" routing. The project called for approximately of highway in Nevada, of highway in Arizona, and a bridge length of that would cross the river downstream (south) of Hoover Dam. Design work began in July 2001.


text: Security measures implemented following the September 11 attacks prohibited commercial truck traffic from driving across Hoover Dam. Prior to the completion of the bridge, commercial vehicles were required to follow a detour between Boulder City and Kingman via US 95, Nevada State Route 163, the Colorado River crossing between Laughlin, Nevada and Bullhead City, Arizona, and Arizona State Route 68. The detour was long, but only added to the normal journey on US 93.


text: Project design was by the Hoover Support team, led by HDR, Inc. and including T.Y. Lin International, Sverdrup Civil, Inc., and other specialist contributors.


text: The bridge has a length of and a span. The roadway is above the Colorado River and four lanes wide. This is the first concrete-and-steel composite arch bridge built in the United States. It includes the widest concrete arch in the Western Hemisphere and is also the second highest bridge in the nation, with the arch above the river. The twin arch ribs are connected by steel struts.


text: The composite design, using concrete for the arch and columns with steel construction for the roadway deck, was selected for schedule and cost control while being aesthetically compatible with the Hoover Dam. Sean Holstege in "The Arizona Republic" has called the bridge "an American triumph". "USA Today" called it "America's Newest Wonder" on October 18, 2010.


text: Pedestrian access is provided over the bridge to tourists who wish to take in a different view of the nearby dam and river below, but the dam is not visible for those driving across it. A parking area is provided near the bridge on the Nevada side at what was a staging area during construction. A set of stairs and disabled access ramps lead to the sidewalk across the bridge.


text: Work began in 2003 on the approaches in both states and the construction contract for the arch bridge was awarded in October 2004. The largest obstacle to the project was the river crossing. The bridge and the bypass were constructed by a consortium of different government agencies and contractors, among them the Federal Highway Administration, the Arizona Department of Transportation, and Nevada Department of Transportation, with RE Monks Construction and Vastco, Inc, constructing the Arizona Approach, Edward Kraemer & Sons, Inc, the Nevada Approach and Las Vegas Paving Corporation undertaking the roadway surfacing on both approaches. The bridge itself was built by Obayashi Corporation and PSM Construction USA, Inc., while Frehner Construction Company, Inc. was responsible for completing the final roadway installations. A permit problem between Clark County and the subcontractor Casino Ready Mix arose in May 2006 over the operation of a concrete-batch plant for the project, and this caused a four-month delay.


text: Construction required hoisting workers and up to of materials above the Colorado River using -long steel cables held aloft by a "high-line" crane system. High winds caused a cableway failure in September 2006, resulting in a further two-year delay. The approach spans, consisting of seven pairs of concrete columns—five on the Nevada side and two on the Arizona side—were completed in March 2008. In November 2008, construction worker Sherman Jones died in an accident.


text: The arches are made of 106 pieces—53 per arch—mostly cast in place sections. The arch was constructed from both sides of the bridge concurrently, supported by diagonal cable stays strung from temporary towers. The twin arch spans were completed with the casting of the center segments in August 2009. That same month, the two halves of the arch were completed, and were apart; the gap was filled with a block of reinforced concrete. The temporary cable stays were removed, leaving the arch self-supporting. By December, all eight of the vertical piers on the arch had been set and capped, and at the end of the month the first two of thirty-six steel girders had been set into place.


text: By mid-April 2010, all of the girders were set in place, and for the first time construction crews could walk across the structure from Arizona to Nevada. Shortly thereafter, the pouring of the bridge deck began. The bridge deck was fully paved in July, and the high-line cranes were removed from the site as the overall project neared completion. The bridge was completed with a dedication ceremony on October 14, 2010. and a grand opening party on October 16. It was opened to bicycle and pedestrian traffic on October 18 and to vehicular traffic on October 19, a few weeks earlier than estimated. The building of the bridge was featured in episode 5x02 of the TV series "Extreme Engineering". The filming of this episode took place before the start of work on the arch.


text: When the bridge opened to traffic, the roadway over Hoover Dam was closed to through traffic, and all visitor access to the dam was routed to the Nevada side; vehicles are still allowed to drive across the dam to the Arizona side following a security inspection, but must return to the Nevada side to return to US 93. The former US 93 route between the dam and its junction with the present US 93 route has been re-designated as Nevada State Route 172. The highway using the bridge was given the added designation of Interstate 11 in 2018, after the completion of the Boulder City freeway bypass.


text: In late 2004, the proposed bridge name honoring Mike O'Callaghan and Pat Tillman was announced at a ceremony by the Governor of Nevada, Kenny Guinn, and the Governor of Arizona, Janet Napolitano. O’Callaghan, a decorated Korean War veteran, was the Governor of Nevada from 1971 through 1979, and he was the executive editor at the "Las Vegas Sun" newspaper for many years until his death on March 5, 2004. Tillman had been a football player for Arizona State University and for the Arizona Cardinals. He gave up his multimillion-dollar career in the National Football League to enlist as an infantryman in the U.S. Army, but he was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan on April 22, 2004.


text: Strong winds gusting across the Black Canyon on September 15, 2006, appear to have been the cause for the collapse of the "high-line" crane system that was used to carry workmen and materials at the bridge site. No injuries or fatalities occurred because of this accident. Limited construction work resumed in October 2006, but this accident caused a two-year delay in construction.


text: The bridge-construction companies Obayashi Corp. and PSM Construction, USA, Inc. absorbed the cost of the debris removal and the rebuilding of the cranes. The reconstruction contract for the cranes was awarded to Cincinnati's F&M Mafco Inc.


text: Work was halted when a Las Vegas construction worker, 48-year-old Sherman Jones, was killed. A jack punctured his chest during construction while adjusting a cable used to align temporary concrete towers.


text: The first known suicide at the bridge took place on April 7, 2012. Federal officials were unable to persuade the victim not to jump from the pedestrian walkway overlooking the dam. Others have happened since. Representatives of the Nevada Department of Transportation "are constantly monitoring the situation," and were "planning to discuss potential preventative measures on the bypass bridge" at their August or September 2012 meeting.


title: Blue Bayou

text: "Blue Bayou" is a song written by Roy Orbison and Joe Melson. It was originally sung and recorded by Orbison, who had an international hit with his version in 1963. It later became Linda Ronstadt's signature song, with which she scored a Top 5 hit with her cover in 1977. The song has since been recorded by many others.


title: Blue Bayou

text: "Blue Bayou" was originally recorded by Roy Orbison at the end of 1961. In the UK, it was released by London Monument as the double A-side track with "Mean Woman Blues" on a Monument Records single (HLU 9777), where both sides peaked at number 3. In the US, it was issued as a B-side single, peaking at number 29; the A-side, "Mean Woman Blues", peaked at number 5. The song also appeared on Orbison's 1963 full-length album "In Dreams". According to the authorised biography of Roy Orbison, a rare different version of "Blue Bayou" was released only in Italy (London 45-HL 1499).


title: Blue Bayou

text: "Blue Bayou" reappeared on his 1989 posthumous album "A Black & White Night Live", from the 1988 television special on Cinemax.


title: Blue Bayou

text: Jacques Cousteau included an abridged version of the song during a "River Explorations" episode which details environmental changes on the Mississippi River.


title: Blue Bayou

text: Linda Ronstadt took the song to #3 on the "Billboard Hot 100" in late 1977, where it held for four weeks, as well as #2 Country and #3 Easy Listening. It also reached #2, holding there for four weeks, on the "Cash Box" Top 100 chart.


title: Blue Bayou

text: The single was RIAA certified Gold (for sales of over 1 million US copies) in January 1978. It was the first of Ronstadt's three Gold singles. Don Henley of the Eagles sang backup on the recording. "Blue Bayou" was later certified Platinum (for over 2 million copies sold in the United States). It was a worldwide smash, charting in countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and specially in Mexico, where it topped the singles charts.


title: Blue Bayou

text: Ronstadt's version was nominated for the Grammy Award for Record of the Year and for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.


title: Blue Bayou

text: Ronstadt also recorded a Spanish-language version of the song, titled "Lago Azul (Blue Bayou)", which was released in 1978 on the single Asylum E-45464, backed by "Lo Siento Mi Vida", a previously released Spanish song that Ronstadt herself co-wrote. This version has never been included on any reissues of "Simple Dreams".


title: Blue Bayou

text: Ronstadt later performed the song on the episode 523 of "The Muppet Show", first aired October 26, 1980 on UK, and May 16, 1981 on United States.


title: Blue Bayou

text: Because of this song, "Dickson's Baseball Dictionary" records that a "Linda Ronstadt" is a synonym for a fastball, a pitch that "blew by you". That phrase was coined by Mets broadcaster Tim McCarver, during a Mets telecast in the 1980s.


title: Blue Bayou

text: Ronstadt's version appears, in edited form, in the 2017 film "American Made" and in Tony Scott's 2004 film "Man on Fire".


title: Blue Bayou

text: Besides Orbison and Ronstadt, many other artists have covered "Blue Bayou" in English; among the notable versions are:


title: Keith Vaz

text: Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz (born 26 November 1956) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester East for 32 years, from 1987 to 2019. He was the British Parliament's longest-serving British Asian MP.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz served as the Minister for Europe between October 1999 and June 2001. He was appointed a member of the Privy Council in June 2006. He was Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee from July 2007, but resigned from this role on 6 September 2016 after the "Sunday Mirror" revealed he had engaged in unprotected sexual activity with male prostitutes and had said he would pay for cocaine if they wished to use it.


title: Keith Vaz

text: At the end of October 2016, Vaz was appointed to the Justice Select Committee; a parliamentary vote to block his appointment was defeated. On 10 November 2019, he said in a statement that he was retiring from Parliament and would not be standing for re-election at the general election the following month.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Keith Vaz was born in the British crown colony of Aden, on 26 November 1956, to Anthony Xavier and Merlyn Verona Vaz. The Vaz family hailed from Goa, now an Indian state, which accounts for his Goan-Portuguese surname. Vaz is a distant relative of Saint Joseph Vaz, a 17th-century missionary. He moved to England with his family in 1965, settling in Twickenham.


title: Keith Vaz

text: His father, previously a correspondent for "The Times of India", worked in the airline industry, while his mother held jobs both as a teacher and simultaneously part-time in Marks & Spencer. Vaz's father took his own life when Vaz was 14. Merlyn Vaz moved to Leicester when her son was selected as prospective parliamentary candidate for the Leicester East constituency. She was elected to Leicester City Council as a Labour councillor and served on the council for 14 years.


title: Keith Vaz

text: While in Aden, Vaz was educated at St Joseph's Convent. In England, he attended Latymer Upper School, Hammersmith, followed by Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he read Law. He graduated from Cambridge University with a BA first-class Honours degree (1979), later promoted to MA (1987).


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz has two sisters, Valerie (b. 1954), who has been the MP for Walsall South since 2010, and Penny McConnell, who is a solicitor. He lives in London with his wife, Maria Fernandes, and their two children, a son and a daughter.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Before his political career, Vaz was a practising solicitor. In 1982, he was employed as a solicitor to Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council; and later as a senior solicitor to the London Borough of Islington. He was selected as the prospective Labour candidate for the Leicester East constituency in 1985. At that time, he found a job in Leicester as a solicitor at the City Council-funded Highfields and Belgrave Law Centre. He remained in this role until his election to Parliament in 1987.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz has been a Labour party member since 1982. In 1983, Vaz stood in the general election as the Labour candidate in the Conservative-Liberal marginal Richmond and Barnes constituency, coming third with a swing away from Labour of 4.3% compared with a national average swing away of 9.3%. He stood as the Labour candidate in the European Parliament election in 1984 for Surrey West, coming third.


title: Keith Vaz

text: On 11 June 1987, Vaz was elected as the Member of Parliament for Leicester East by defeating the sitting Tory MP Peter Bruinvels with a majority of 1,924. Three other Labour Party Black Sections members, Diane Abbott, Paul Boateng and Bernie Grant, entered the House of Commons at the same election.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz was re-elected in 1992 (majority of 11,316), 1997 (majority of 18,422), 2001 (majority of 13,442), 2005 (majority of 15,867), 2010 (majority of 14,082), 2015 (majority of 18,352) and 2017 (majority of 22,428).


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz has held a variety of parliamentary posts. Between 1987 and 1992, he was a member of the Home Affairs Select Committee, of which he was the Chair from July 2007 to September 2016. Between 1993 and 1994, he was a member of the Executive Committee Inter-Parliamentary Union. Finally, between December 2002 and July 2007, Vaz acted as a senior Labour Member of the Select Committee for Constitutional Affairs.


title: Keith Vaz

text: In 1992, Vaz was given the role of Shadow Junior Environment Minister with responsibility for planning and regeneration, his first frontbench role. He remained in this position until 1997, when he was given his first Government post as the Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Attorney General and Solicitor General. Vaz then served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Lord Chancellor's Department between May and October 1999. This was quickly followed by his appointment as the Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He served in this position from October 1999 and June 2001.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Other positions he held included as an elected member of the National Executive Committee and as the Vice-Chair of Women, Race and Equality Committee of the Labour Party. He held both of these positions since March 2007. Since 2000, he has been a patron of the Labour Party Race Action Group and in 2006 he was appointed the Chairman of the Ethnic Minority Taskforce.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz was also appointed to a public bill committee, which held its first meeting on 15 November 2016, looking at the Criminal Finances Bill which aimed to tackle money laundering and corruption.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz signed several early day motions sponsored by David Tredinnick MP supporting the continued funding of homoeopathy on the National Health Service.


title: Keith Vaz

text: Vaz supported Owen Smith in the 2016 Labour leadership election. He is a member of Labour Friends of Israel.


title: Keith Vaz

text: In March 1989, Vaz, a Catholic, led a march of several thousand Muslims in Leicester calling for Salman Rushdie's book "The Satanic Verses" to be banned, describing the march as "one of the great days in the history of Islam and Great Britain". According to Rushdie's autobiography "", Vaz had a few weeks earlier promised his "full support" to Rushdie, describing the "fatwa" against him as "absolutely appalling".


title: Keith Vaz

text: In February 1990, after a bombing attack by the Provisional Irish Republican Army against a British Army recruiting centre in Leicester, Vaz publicly suggested that the Army might have planted the bomb.


title: Keith Vaz

text: In February 2000, the Parliamentary standards watchdog Elizabeth Filkin began an investigation after allegations that Vaz had accepted several thousand pounds from a solicitor, Sarosh Zaiwalla, which he had failed to declare. The allegations were made by Andrew Milne, a former partner of Zaiwalla, and were denied by both Vaz and Zaiwalla. He was censured for a single allegation – that he had failed to register two payments worth £4,500 in total from Zaiwalla. Vaz was accused of blocking Filkin's investigation into the allegations.


title: Keith Vaz

text: In January 2001, immigration minister Barbara Roche revealed in a written Commons reply that Vaz, along with Peter Mandelson and other MPs, had contacted the Home Office about the Hinduja brothers. She said that Vaz had made inquiries about when a decision on their application for citizenship could be expected.