title: Roza Shanina

text: In 1944, a Canadian newspaper described Shanina as "the unseen terror of East Prussia". She became the first servicewoman of the 3rd Belorussian Front to receive the Order of Glory. Shanina was killed in action during the East Prussian Offensive while shielding the severely wounded commander of an artillery unit. Shanina's bravery received praise already during her lifetime, but conflicted with the Soviet policy of sparing snipers from heavy battles. Her combat diary was first published in 1965.


title: Roza Shanina

text: Roza Shanina was born on 3 April 1924 in the Russian village of Edma in Arkhangelsk Oblast to Anna Alexeyevna Shanina, a kolkhoz milkmaid, and Georgiy (Yegor) Mikhailovich Shanin, a logger who had been disabled by a wound received during World War I. Roza was reportedly named after the Marxist revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg and had six siblings: one sister Yuliya and five brothers: Mikhail, Fyodor, Sergei, Pavel, and Marat. The Shanins also raised three orphans. Roza was above average height, with light brown hair and blue eyes, and spoke in a Northern Russian dialect. After finishing four classes of elementary school in Yedma, Shanina continued her education in the village of Bereznik. As there was no school transport at the time, when she was in grades five through seven Roza had to walk to Bereznik to attend middle school. On Saturdays, Shanina again went to Bereznik to take care of her ill aunt Agnia Borisova.


title: Roza Shanina

text: At the age of fourteen, Shanina, against her parents' wishes, walked across the taiga to the rail station and travelled to Arkhangelsk to study at the college there. (The trek was later attested by Shanina's school teacher Alexander Makaryin.) Shanina left home with little money and almost no possessions; and before moving to the college dormitory she lived with her elder brother Fyodor. Later in her combat diary, Shanina would recall Arkhangelsk's stadium Dinamo, and the cinemas, Ars and Pobeda. Shanina's friend Anna Samsonova remembered that Roza sometimes returned from her friends in Ustyansky District to her college dormitory between 2:00 and 3:00 am. As the doors were locked by that time, the other students tied several bedsheets together to help Roza climb into her room. In 1938, Shanina became a member of the Soviet youth movement Komsomol.


title: Roza Shanina

text: Two years later, Soviet secondary education institutes introduced tuition fees, and the scholarship fund was cut. Shanina received little financial support from home and on 11 September 1941, she took a job in kindergarten No. 2 (lately known as Beryozka) in Arkhangelsk, with which she was offered a free apartment. She studied in the evenings and worked in the kindergarten during the daytime. The children liked Shanina and their parents appreciated her. Shanina graduated from college in the 1941–42 academic year, when the Soviet Union was in the grip of World War II.


title: Roza Shanina

text: Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Arkhangelsk was bombed by the "Luftwaffe", and Shanina and other townspeople were involved in firefighting and mounted voluntary vigils on rooftops to protect the kindergarten. Shanina's two elder brothers had volunteered for the military. In December 1941, a death notification was received for her 19-year-old brother Mikhail, who had died during the siege of Leningrad. In response, Shanina went to the military commissariat to ask for permission to serve. Two more of Shanina's brothers died in the war. At that time the Soviet Union had begun deploying female snipers because they had flexible limbs, and it was believed that they were patient, careful and cunning. In February 1942, Soviet women between the ages of 16 and 45 became eligible for the military draft, but Shanina was not drafted that month, as the local military commissariat wanted to spare her from the draft. She first learned to shoot at a shooting range. On 22 June 1942, while still living in the dormitory, Shanina was accepted into the Vsevobuch program for universal military training. After Shanina's several applications, the military commissariat finally allowed her to enroll in the Central Women’s Sniper Training School, where she met Aleksandra "Sasha" Yekimova and Kaleriya "Kalya" Petrova, who became her closest friends, with Shanina calling them "the vagrant three". Honed to a fine point, Shanina scored highly in training and graduated from the academy with honours. She was asked to stay as an instructor there, but refused due to a call of duty. In 1941–1945 a total of 2,484 Soviet female snipers were deployed for the war and their combined tally of kills is estimated to be at least 11,280.


title: Roza Shanina

text: After the momentous victory in the Battle of Stalingrad, the Soviets mounted nationwide counter-offensives and Shanina on 2 April 1944 joined the 184th Rifle Division, where a separate female sniper platoon had been formed. Shanina was appointed a commander of that platoon. Three days later, southeast of Vitebsk, Shanina killed her first German soldier. In Shanina's own words, recorded by an anonymous author, her legs gave way after that first encounter and she slid down into the trench, saying, "I've killed a man." Concerned, the other women ran up saying, "That was a fascist you finished off!" Seven months later, Shanina wrote in her diary that she was now killing the enemy in cold blood and saw the meaning of her life in her actions. She wrote that if she had to do everything over again, she would still strive to enter the sniper academy and go to the front again.


title: Roza Shanina

text: For her actions in the battle for the village of Kozyi Gory (Smolensk Oblast), Shanina was awarded her first military decoration, the Order of Glory 3rd Class, on 18 April 1944. She became the first servicewoman of the 3rd Belorussian Front to receive that order. According to the report of Major Degtyarev (the commander of the 1138th Rifle Regiment), she received the award for the corresponding commendation list, between 6 and 11 April Shanina killed 13 enemy soldiers while subjected to artillery and machine gun fire. By May 1944, her sniper tally increased to 17 confirmed enemy kills, and Shanina was praised as a precise and brave soldier. The same year, on 9 June, Shanina's portrait was featured on the front page of the Soviet newspaper "Unichtozhim Vraga".


title: Roza Shanina

text: When Operation Bagration commenced in the Vitebsk region on 22 June 1944, it was decided that female snipers would be withdrawn. They voluntarily continued to support the advancing infantry anyway, and despite the Soviet policy of sparing snipers, Shanina asked to be sent to the front line. Although her request was refused, she went anyway. Shanina was later sanctioned for going to the front line without permission, but did not face a court martial. She wanted to be attached to a battalion or a reconnaissance company, turning to the commander of the 5th Army, Nikolai Krylov. Shanina also wrote twice to Joseph Stalin with the same request.


title: Roza Shanina

text: From 26 to 28 June 1944, Shanina participated in the elimination of the encircled German troops near Vitebsk during the Vitebsk–Orsha Offensive. As the Soviet army advanced further westward, from 8 to 13 July of the same year, Shanina and her sisters-in-arms took part in the battle for Vilnius, which had been under German occupation since 24 June 1941. The Germans were finally driven out from Vilnius on 13 July 1944. During the Soviet summer offensives of that year Shanina managed to capture three Germans.


title: Roza Shanina

text: From her time at the military academy, Shanina became known for her ability to score doublets (two target hits made in quick succession). During one period she crawled through a muddy communications trench each day at dawn to a specially camouflaged pit which overlooked German-controlled territory. She wrote, "the unconditional requirementto outwit the enemy and kill himbecame an irrevocable law of my hunt". Shanina successfully used counter-sniper tactics against a German cuckoo sniper hidden in a tree, by waiting until dusk when the space between the tree branches would be backlit by sunlight and the sniper's nest became visible. On one occasion, Shanina also made use of selective fire from a submachine gun.


title: Roza Shanina

text: Shanina enjoyed writing and would often send letters to her home village and to her friends in Arkhangelsk. She started writing a combat diary; although diaries were strictly prohibited in the Soviet military, there were some furtive exceptions, such as "The Front Diary" of Izrael Kukuyev and "The Chronicle of War" of Muzagit Hayrutdinov. To preserve military secrecy, Shanina termed the killed and wounded "blacks" and "reds" respectively in her diary. Shanina kept the diary from 6 October 1944 to 24 January 1945.


title: Roza Shanina

text: After Shanina's death, the diary, consisting of three thick notebooks, was kept by the war correspondent Pyotr Molchanov for twenty years in Kyiv. An abridged version was published in the magazine "Yunost" in 1965, and the diary was transferred to the Regional Museum of Arkhangelsk Oblast. Several of Shanina's letters and some data from her sniper log have also been published.


title: Roza Shanina

text: In August 1944, advancing Soviet troops had reached the Soviet border with East Prussia and by 31 August of that year Shanina's battle count reached 42 kills. The following month the Šešupė River was crossed. Shanina's 184th Rifle Division became the first Soviet unit to enter East Prussia. At that time, two Canadian newspapers, the "Ottawa Citizen" and "Leader-Post", reported that according to an official dispatch from the Šešupė River front, Shanina killed five Germans in one day as she crouched in a sniper hideout. Later in September, her sniper tally had reached 46 kills, of which 15 were made on German soil and seven during an offensive. On 17 September, "Unichtozhim Vraga" credited Shanina with 51 hits. In the third quarter of 1944, Shanina was given a short furlough and visited Arkhangelsk. She returned to the front on 17 October for one day, and later received an honourable certificate from the Central Committee of Komsomol. On 16 September 1944, Shanina was awarded her second military distinction, the Order of Glory 2nd Class for intrepidity and bravery displayed in various battles against the Germans in that year.


title: Roza Shanina

text: On 26 October 1944 Shanina became eligible for the Order of Glory 1st Class for her actions in a battle near Schlossberg (now Dobrovolsk), but ultimately received the Medal for Courage instead. She was among the first female snipers to receive the Medal for Courage. Shanina was awarded the medal on 27 December for the gallant posture displayed during a German counter-offensive on 26 October. There Shanina fought together with Captain Igor Aseyev, a Hero of the Soviet Union, and witnessed his death on 26 October. Shanina, who served as an assistant platoon commander, was ordered to commit the female snipers to combat. Schlossberg was finally retaken from Germans by the troops of the 3rd Belorussian Front on 16 January 1945 during the Insterburg–Königsberg Operation.


title: Roza Shanina

text: On 12 December 1944, an enemy sniper shot Shanina in her right shoulder. She wrote in her diary that she had not felt the pain, "the shoulder was just scalded with something hot." Although the injury, which Shanina described as "two small holes", seemed minor to her, she needed an operation and was incapacitated for several days. She reported in her diary that the previous day she had a prophetic dream in which she was wounded in exactly the same place.


title: Roza Shanina

text: On 8 January 1945, Nikolai Krylov formally allowed Shanina to participate in front-line combat, albeit with great reluctance: previously Shanina was denied that permission by the commander of the 184th Rifle Division and the military council of the 5th Army as well. Five days later, the Soviets launched the East Prussian Offensive, which prompted heavy fighting in East Prussia. By 15 January, travelling with divisional logistics, Shanina reached the East Prussian town of Eydtkuhnen (now Chernyshevskoye), where she used white military camouflage. Several days later, she experienced friendly fire from a Katyusha rocket launcher and wrote in her diary, "Now I understand why the Germans are so afraid of Katyushas. What a fire!" At the border of East Prussia, Shanina killed 26 enemy soldiers. The last unit she served in was the 144th Rifle Division. According to the online Book of Memory of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Shanina served in the 205th Special Motorized Rifle Battalion of that division. Shanina had hoped to go to university after the war, or if that was not possible, to raise orphans.


title: Roza Shanina

text: In the course of her tour of duty Shanina was mentioned in despatches several times. Her final sniper tally reached fifty-nine confirmed kills (fifty-four, according to other sources), including twelve kills during the Battle of Vilnius, with sixty-two enemies knocked out of action. Domestically, her achievements were acknowledged particularly by the war correspondent Ilya Ehrenburg and in the newspaper "Krasnaya Zvezda", which said that Shanina was one of the best snipers in her unit and that even veteran soldiers were inferior to her in shooting accuracy. Shanina's exploits were also reported in the Western press, particularly in Canadian newspapers, where she was called "the unseen terror of East Prussia". She paid no special attention to the achieved renown, and once wrote that she had been overrated. On 16 January 1945, Shanina wrote in her combat diary: "What I've actually done? No more than I have to as a Soviet person, having stood up to defend the motherland." She also wrote, "The essence of my happiness is fighting for the happiness of others. It's strange, why is it that in grammar, the word "happiness" can only be singular? That is counter to its meaning, after all. ... If it turns necessary to die for the common happiness, then I'm braced to."


title: Roza Shanina

text: In the face of the East Prussian Offensive, the Germans tried to strengthen the localities they controlled against great odds. In a diary entry dated 16 January 1945, Shanina wrote that despite her wish to be in a safer place, some unknown force was drawing her to the front line. In the same entry, she wrote that she had no fear and that she had even agreed to go "to a melee combat." The next day, Shanina wrote in a letter that she might be on the verge of being killed because her battalion had lost 72 out of 78 people. Her last diary entry reports that German fire had become so intense that the Soviet troops, including herself, had sheltered inside self-propelled guns. On 27 January, Shanina was severely wounded and was later found by two soldiers disemboweled, with her chest torn open by a shell fragment. Despite attempts to save her, Shanina died the following day near the Richau estate (later a Soviet settlement of Telmanovka), northwest of the East Prussian village of Ilmsdorf (). Nurse Yekaterina Radkina remembered Shanina telling her that she regretted having done so little. By the day of Shanina's death, the Soviets had overtaken several major East Prussian localities, including Tilsit, Insterburg and Pillau, and approached Königsberg. Recalling the moment Shanina's mother received notification of her daughter's death, her brother Marat wrote: "I clearly remembered mother's eyes. They weren't teary anymore. ... 'That's all, that's all'—she repeated". Shanina was buried under a spreading pear tree on the shore of the Alle River—now called the Lava— and was later reinterred in the settlement of Wehlau.


title: Roza Shanina

text: In 1964–65 a renewed interest in Shanina arose in the Soviet press, largely due to the publication of her diary. The newspaper "Severny Komsomolets" asked Shanina's contemporaries to write what they knew about her. Streets in Arkhangelsk, Shangaly and Stroyevskoye were named after her, and the village of Yedma has a museum dedicated to Shanina. The local school where she studied in 1931–35 has a commemorative plate. In Arkhangelsk, regular shooting competitions were organized among members of the paramilitary DOSAAF sport organisation for the Roza Shanina Prize, while Novodvinsk organized an open shooting sports championship in her memory. The village of Malinovka in Ustyansky District started to hold annual cross-country ski races for the Roza Shanina Prize.


title: Roza Shanina

text: In 1985, the Council of Veterans of the Russian Central Women Sniper Academy unsuccessfully requested the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union to posthumously bestow the Order of Glory 1st Class on Shanina (which would have made her a Full Cavalier of that order). In the same year, Russian author Nikolai Zhuravlyov published the book "Posle boya vernulas" ("Returned After Battle"). Its title refers to Shanina's words, "I will return after the battle," which she uttered after receiving a note from her battalion commander urging her to return to the rear immediately. Verses have been composed about Shanina, such as those by writer Nikolai Nabitovich. A small memorial stele dedicated to Shanina (part of a three-piece monument) was erected in Bogdanovsky settlement, Ustyansky District.


title: Roza Shanina

text: In 2000, Shanina's name appeared on the war memorial stone of the Siberian State Technological University, although there is no evidence she had any affiliation with it during her life. Russian author Viktor Logvinov controversially wrote in the 1970s that Shanina had studied in the Siberian Forestry Institute and that she was the daughter of an "old Krasnoyarsk communist". The claim was continued by Krasnoyarsk publications in later years, particularly in 2005. In 2013, a wall of memory, featuring graffiti portraits of six Russian war honorees, including Roza Shanina, was opened in Arkhangelsk.


title: Roza Shanina

text: The war correspondent Pyotr Molchanov, who had frequently met Shanina at the front, described her as a person of unusual will with a genuine, bright nature. Shanina described herself as "boundlessly and recklessly talky" during her college years. She typified her own character as like that of the Romantic poet, painter and writer Mikhail Lermontov, deciding, like him, to act as she saw fit. Shanina dressed modestly and liked to play volleyball. According to Shanina's sister-in-arms Lidiya Vdovina, Roza used to sing her favourite war song "Oy tumany moi, rastumany" ("O My Mists") each time she cleaned her weapon. Shanina had a straightforward character and valued courage and the absence of egotism in people. She once told a story when "about half a hundred frenzied fascists with wild cries" attacked a trench accommodating twelve female snipers, including Shanina: "Some fell from our well-aimed bullets, some we finished with our bayonets, grenades, shovels, and some we took prisoners, having restrained their arms."


title: Roza Shanina

text: Shanina's personal life was thwarted by war. On 10 October 1944, she wrote in her diary, "I can't accept that Misha Panarin doesn't live anymore. What a good guy! [He] has been killed ... He loved me, I know, and so did I ... My heart is heavy, I'm twenty, but I have no close [male] friend". In November 1944, Shanina wrote that she "is flogging into her head that [she] loves" a man named Nikolai, although he "doesn't shine in upbringing and education". In the same entry, she wrote that she did not think about marriage because "it's not the time now". She later wrote that she "had it out" with Nikolai and "wrote him a note in the sense of 'but I'm given to the one and will love no other one". Ultimately in her last diary record, filled with grim tones, Shanina wrote that she "cannot find a solace" now and is "of no use to anyone".


title: John Hartson

text: John Hartson (born 5 April 1975) is a Welsh former professional footballer, coach and sports television pundit for S4C, Sky Sports, Premier Sports TV and BT Sport.


title: John Hartson

text: As a player he was a striker, notably for Scottish club Celtic where his time with the Hoops saw three Scottish Premier League titles. Hartson also played in the Premier League with Arsenal, West Ham United, Wimbledon, Coventry City and West Bromwich Albion, and in the Football League for Luton Town and Norwich City.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson earned 51 international caps for Wales, scoring 14 goals. He later held the position of head coach for Wales's strikers.


title: John Hartson

text: John Hartson was born on 5 April 1975 in Swansea, the third of four children to Cyril and Diana Hartson. Cyril had played football for local team Afan Lido. Hartson grew up in Talycoppa, Swansea, alongside his elder brother James, elder sister Hayley and younger sister Victoria. As a youngster Hartson represented Lonlas Boys' Club in Skewen, playing his first match aged six. He joined Luton Town's Youth Training Scheme at the age of sixteen but was suspended four months later for stealing a bank card from the son of a couple with whom he was lodging. He used the card to withdraw £50 in order to fund his gambling addiction. Hartson was suspended and sent home to Swansea but was reinstated by Luton shortly afterwards and allowed to resume his apprenticeship.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson turned professional in 1992 and made his Luton Town first team debut as a substitute in a 1–0 League Cup defeat to Cambridge United on 24 August 1993. In January 1995, at 19, he joined Arsenal for £2.5 million, a British record fee for a teenage player at the time.


title: John Hartson

text: Along with Chris Kiwomya, Hartson was one of George Graham's last signings before the manager's sacking in February 1995. He made his Arsenal debut on 14 January 1995, a 1–1 home draw with Everton, and scored his first goal for the club the following week, the only goal in a 1–0 away win at Coventry City. He was a regular for the remainder of his first season, a highlight of which was scoring Arsenal's 75th-minute equaliser in the 1995 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final against Real Zaragoza; however a last-minute goal from 40 yards by Nayim over David Seaman meant Arsenal lost the game 2–1. He was strike-partner to Ian Wright, being favoured ahead of Kevin Campbell to fill the gap left by the injured Alan Smith, who retired at the end of the season.


title: John Hartson

text: Following the signing of Dennis Bergkamp, who was preferred up front to partner Wright, Hartson went on to feature under Graham's successors Bruce Rioch and Arsène Wenger. With Wenger wanting him to stay at the


title: John Hartson

text: club, Hartson though in February 1997 linked up with West Ham United in a £3.2 million deal. At the time, he was the most expensive player to be signed by West Ham. The deal was initially reported to be worth £5 million.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson made his debut for West Ham on 15 February 1997 alongside another new signing, Paul Kitson. West Ham lost 1–0 to Derby County and Hartson was booked. His first West Ham goal came in his next following game on 24 February 1997, a 4–3 home win over Tottenham Hotspur. In his first season, he scored five league goals from eleven games and was instrumental in helping West Ham rise from 18th when he joined to a final league position for 1996–97 season of 14th. The next season saw Hartson finish, with 24 goals in 42 games in all competitions, as West Ham's top scorer. Hartson's goal tally was in all a considerable margin ahead of the next highest scorer, Eyal Berkovic with nine goals. He was also the second highest scorer, behind Andy Cole in the Premier League in that season. In the 1998 close season, Manchester United chairman Martin Edwards and assistant manager Brian Kidd expressed their desire for Hartson to sign for Manchester United to manager Alex Ferguson. However, Ferguson decided against making a bid for Hartson. In a training ground incident in September 1998, Hartson kicked West Ham teammate Eyal Berkovic in the face, after the Israeli midfielder had punched Hartson in the leg as he attempted to help Berkovic to his feet. The incident was captured on camera. Hartson was fined and admitted in his biography that it was an error of judgement. Berkovic said of the incident ""If my head had been a ball, it would have been in the top corner of the net"".


title: John Hartson

text: His form suffered and he managed only four goals from twenty games in season 1998–99. His final game on 13 January 1999, saw West Ham lose 1–0 in an FA Cup tie against his hometown club, Swansea City.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson joined Wimbledon in January 1999, becoming the club's most expensive signing ever at £7.5m. His time with the Dons was marred by injury, though he still managed a respectable goal tally, first in the Premier League, then the First Division following the club's relegation in 2000. Proposed moves to Rangers, Tottenham and Charlton fell through due to doubts over the player's fitness. Hartson instead joined Coventry City on a pay-for-play deal in February 2001.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson made his Coventry debut against former club West Ham on 12 February 2001. He went on to score six goals in twelve league games, including a brace in a defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford. However, despite his efforts Coventry were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the season.


title: John Hartson

text: In August 2001, Hartson joined Celtic in a £6m transfer. He made his debut on 4 August 2001, coming on as a substitute in a league match away at Kilmarnock. He scored his first goals for Celtic when he scored a hat-trick in a 5–1 win over Dundee United on 20 October 2001. At the end of his first season at Celtic he helped them win the Scottish Premier League title.


title: John Hartson

text: In December 2002, Hartson scored as Celtic were beaten 2–1 in the away leg of their third round UEFA Cup tie against Celta Vigo. However, with the aggregate score 2–2, Celtic progressed on the away goals rule. This was the first time that Celtic had remained in European competition after Christmas since 1980. In March 2003, Celtic faced Liverpool in the UEFA Cup at the quarter final stage, drawing 1–1 in Glasgow.


title: John Hartson

text: In the return leg at Anfield, Hartson fired the club's goal of the season with a strike past Jerzy Dudek into the top corner from over 25 yards out. Celtic won this match 2–0, progressing to the semi-final. After scoring the winning goal against Rangers at Ibrox in late April Hartson was plagued by a back injury which meant he missed the rest of the season, including the 2003 UEFA Cup Final. Nevertheless, he had played a major role in getting Celtic all the way through the tournament, with his goals in Liverpool and Vigo, as well as several assists. Celtic were defeated 3–2 in the final after extra time by José Mourinho's FC Porto.


title: John Hartson

text: In March 2004, he dropped out for the remainder of the football season for surgery to his back; however, he recovered in time for Wales' unsuccessful qualifying campaign for the 2006 World Cup. Celtic went on to win the 2003–04 Scottish Cup and the 2003-04 title in his absence.


title: John Hartson

text: In April 2005 he shared the Scottish PFA Players' Player of the Year award with Fernando Ricksen and in May he was voted the Scottish Football Writers' Association Player of the Year. He played as Celtic won the 2005 Scottish Cup Final.


title: John Hartson

text: On 6 November 2005 Hartson scored his 100th goal for Celtic against Falkirk. He missed Celtic's victory in the 2006 Scottish League Cup Final through suspension. He scored the only goal against Hearts, on 5 April 2006, his 31st birthday to clinch the title for Celtic.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson was sent off on a number of occasions, one being a notable dismissal towards the end of an Old Firm derby, when he was sent off for violent conduct along with Celtic teammate Johan Mjällby and Rangers player Fernando Ricksen. Hartson's dismissal was overturned on appeal.


title: John Hartson

text: Due to the close bond Hartson felt with both Celtic Football Club and their fans, he has a tattoo of a large Celtic crest on his upper arm with the words 'You'll Never Walk Alone' underneath in honour of the song which Celtic fans sing ahead of big games. After a picture of the tattoo appeared on the internet and many Celtic F.C. forums, Hartson tweeted that the tattoo was real and in honour of the support he had received from Celtic fans during his illness. The tweet read, "Yes my Celtic tattoo is real I had it done soon as I came out of hospital after the support I was given by the whole Celtic family."


title: John Hartson

text: On 26 June 2006, Hartson signed a two-year contract with English Football League Championship side West Bromwich Albion in a £500,000 move. Hartson scored twice on his Albion debut in a 2–0 Hawthorns win against Hull City on 5 August 2006.


title: John Hartson

text: On 31 August 2007, "The Times" said that Hartson had signed for League One club Nottingham Forest on a loan move. On 5 September 2007, the "Western Mail" reported that Hartson had rejected a firm approach from Forest and was on the verge of signing for his hometown club Swansea City on loan. However the club quickly issued a statement on its website denying the striker was set to sign.


title: John Hartson

text: In October 2007 Hartson joined Norwich City on a month's loan. Although Norwich had the option to extend the loan until 31 December, newly appointed manager Glenn Roeder decided to send Hartson back to the Midlands after the initial month period. He then rejected an offer to join Chester City on loan. In January 2008 Hartson was released by West Bromwich Albion, six months before the end of his contract.


title: John Hartson

text: On 7 February 2008, Hartson announced his retirement from football, citing his long-term struggles with weight and fitness as major reasons for finishing his career.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson won 51 first team caps for Wales, scoring 14 goals. He is currently the 11th highest scorer of all time for the Welsh.


title: John Hartson

text: He also holds a record for the Wales U21 team by being one of only four people to have scored a hat-trick at that level alongside Craig Davies, Lee Jones and Ched Evans.


title: John Hartson

text: Hartson retired from international football in February 2006 in order to concentrate on his career with Celtic but in August that year he stated that he would come out of retirement to play if John Toshack needed him.


title: John Hartson

text: Just a few weeks after his retirement from playing, East Stirlingshire in the Scottish Football League Third Division offered Hartson the chance to succeed Gordon Wylde as manager, but Hartson rejected the opportunity, saying that, "the timing is just not right for me at the moment." Hartson joined Setanta Sports as a pundit for the 2008–09 season, as part of the broadcaster's coverage of the Scottish Premier League. A Welsh speaker, Hartson appears regularly as a studio guest on S4C's "Sgorio". He was also a regular pundit on ITV's coverage of the FA Cup until ITV lost the rights to the competition at the end of the 2013/14 season, and often appears on BBC Radio 5 Live's coverage of both Premier League and Champions League games as a match summariser. In 2011 Hartson was appointed part-time coach with Newport County. In 2016, he joined BT Sport to provide analysis on the newly launched BT Sport Score.


title: John Hartson

text: In July 2009 Hartson received chemotherapy after being diagnosed with testicular cancer which had spread to his brain. It was later reported the cancer had spread to his lungs and that he remained in a "critical condition" following emergency surgery. The treatment was successful and by December of that year it was reported that the cancer had been virtually eradicated from Hartson's body although he would have more surgery and treatment to come. Hartson is a lifelong Swansea City supporter.


title: Pet (film)

text: Pet is a 2016 psychological thriller film written by Jeremy Slater, directed by Carles Torrens, and starring Dominic Monaghan, Ksenia Solo, Jennette McCurdy, and Nathan Parsons. The film premiered at South by Southwest on March 11, 2016 and was released to theaters on December 2, 2016 by Orion Pictures and Samuel Goldwyn Films.


title: Pet (film)

text: Seth is a severely introverted man who works at an animal control center. He has developed an obsession with Holly, a waitress and former high school classmate of his, after he saw her writing in her journal on the bus. Seth seeks advice from security guard Nate, who tells him to be confident and approach her. Seth extensively researches Holly's online profiles and tries to ask her out, but she rebuffs him. At home, Holly tells her friend Claire about Seth, and takes a drunken phone call from her ex-boyfriend Eric.


title: Pet (film)

text: Holly receives a bouquet at work the next day, and, assuming they are from Eric, goes to the bar where he works. Seth, who has been following her, confronts her, leading to a physical confrontation when he refuses to accept her rejection. Eric attacks Seth, but Seth is able to steal Holly's journal, which he spends the next several days reading. At work, Seth discovers a trapdoor to a room in an abandoned wing of the animal shelter, where he sets about constructing a steel cage. He follows Holly home, breaks into her apartment, and kidnaps her.


title: Pet (film)

text: After awakening in the cage, Holly vows to survive, speaking to an image of Claire. Seth informs Holly that he loves her and has imprisoned her to "save" her. Through reading Holly's journal, Seth has learned that Eric slept with Claire, which Holly confronted the latter about during a car ride. In her anger, Holly continued accelerating the car until they were hit by a truck. Although injured, Claire had survived, but Holly fatally stabbed her with a glass shard; Claire's death was attributed to the crash. Since then, Holly has committed a series of gruesome murders and written about them in her journal, leading to Seth finding a "purpose" in life by preventing Holly from hurting anyone else.


title: Pet (film)

text: Over the next several days, they engage in psychological mind games against each other as Holly begins to slip details to draw Seth in. Seth maintains that Holly committed the other murders out of guilt for not being caught over Claire, but Holly counters that she kills simply for pleasure. A suspicious Nate follows Seth and discovers Holly. She deliberately distracts Nate so that Seth has time to overpower him. At Holly's urging, he smashes Nate's skull with a cinder block, then follows her instructions to dispose of the body.


title: Pet (film)

text: The police become suspicious of Seth's role in Nate's disappearance. Holly convinces him that he can save her if he proves his love to her by cutting off his finger. He does, but this leads to Holly grabbing his knife and threatening to kill herself if he doesn't release her. She says she finally believes that he loves her before slitting his throat.


title: Pet (film)

text: Some time later, Holly is back together with Eric, and the "fictional" events from her journal are being published by a vanity press. Holly finds evidence that Eric has been cheating again, but declines to hurt him. Instead, she travels to a warehouse, where it is revealed that Seth is being kept in a cage, still alive but horribly mutilated and tortured; she thanks him for "saving" her by allowing her to take out all of her murderous impulses on him instead.


title: Pet (film)

text: It was announced in August 2015 that filming had begun with actors Dominic Monaghan, Ksenia Solo, Jennette McCurdy, and Nathan Parsons.


title: Pet (film)

text: Pet was released to nine theatres on December 2, 2016 with total gross of $8,004. It was set for a June 16, 2017 theatrical opening in Spain.


title: Pet (film)

text: Reviews for "Pet" have been mixed, with critics alternatively praising the subversive themes and strong leading performances, or lamenting the implausible twists. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 56% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 18 reviews, with an average rating of 5.16/10. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 48 out of 100 based on 8 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Reviews that have criticized the twists include "Screen Anarchy", which wrote "Without spoiling anything more, the twists push past the merely unlikely into a strange minefield of 'what in the world?'", and RogerEbert.com, which noted "The rank, idiotic implausibilities continue to mount..."


title: Pet (film)

text: "The Hollywood Reporter" gave the bottom line of "This graphically violent horror thriller features too many plot twists for its own good", but the review has also words of praise for the direction and cast: "Still, the film is engrossing, thanks to the director’s skill at delivering sustained tension, and the excellent performances."


title: Pet (film)

text: An entirely positive review came from "The A.V. Club"'s Alex McCown, who stated: "Part of the wicked fun of "Pet", a dark little exercise in sadism and black humor, is how it upends the traditional conventions of the 'wronged woman turns the tables on her abuser' narrative. (...) The films zigs where you expect a depraved zag, resulting in a smart and unsettling tale."


title: Pet (film)

text: Another overall positive review has been given by Katie Walsh of "Los Angeles Times", who wrote: "The constant power flipping allows for some interesting explorations of both the misogyny and misandry demonstrated by the main characters, and the way they justify their actions through the philosophical lens of love and sacrifice. 'Pet' is a modern-day fable of unchecked desire that descends quickly into a bloody, morbid cautionary tale."


title: Pet (film)

text: Francisco Marinero of "El Mundo" rated "Pet" 2 out 5 stars, writing that the film, which as usual in American independent pictures stars a "nondescript guy sadly alone in domestic routines", "is conceived as a function of the bombshells in its writing and characters", favouring gruesomeness over suspense.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) is an optical telescope for astronomy located on Mount Graham, in the Pinaleno Mountains of southeastern Arizona, United States. It is a part of the Mount Graham International Observatory.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: When using both 8.4 m (330 inch) wide mirrors, with centres 14.4 m apart, the LBT has the same light-gathering ability as a 11.8 m (464 inch) wide single circular telescope and the resolution of a 22.8 m (897 inch) wide one.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The LBT mirrors individually are the joint second-largest optical telescope in continental North America, next to the Hobby–Eberly Telescope in West Texas. It has the largest monolithic, or in an optical telescope.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: Strehl ratios of 60–90% in the infrared H band and 95% in the infrared M band have been achieved by the LBT.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The LBT was originally named the "Columbus Project." It is a joint project of these members: the Italian astronomical community represented by the Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica, the University of Arizona, University of Minnesota, University of Notre Dame, University of Virginia, the LBT Beteiligungsgesellschaft in Germany (Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Landessternwarte in Heidelberg, Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam (AIP), Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Munich and Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn); Ohio State University; and the Research Corporation for Science Advancement based in Tucson, AZ. The cost was around 100 million Euro.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The telescope design has two 8.4 m (330 inch) mirrors mounted on a common base, hence the name "binocular." LBT takes advantage of active and adaptive optics, provided by Arcetri Observatory. The collecting area is two 8.4 meter aperture mirrors, which works out to about 111 m combined. This area is equivalent to an circular aperture, which would be greater than any other single telescope, but it is not comparable in many respects since the light is collected at a lower diffraction limit and is not combined in the same way. Also, an interferometric mode will be available, with a maximum baseline of for aperture synthesis imaging observations and a baseline of for nulling interferometry. This feature is along one axis with the LBTI instrument at wavelengths of 2.9–13 micrometres, which is the near infrared.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The telescope was designed by a group of Italian firms, and assembled by Ansaldo in its Milanese plant.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The choice of location sparked considerable local controversy, both from the San Carlos Apache Tribe, who view the mountain as sacred, and from environmentalists who contended that the observatory would cause the demise of an endangered subspecies of the American red squirrel, the Mount Graham red squirrel. Environmentalists and members of the tribe filed some forty lawsuits – eight of which ended up before a federal appeals court – but the project ultimately prevailed after an act of the United States Congress.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The telescope and mountain observatory survived two major forest fires in thirteen years, the more recent in the summer of 2017. Likewise the squirrels continue to survive. Some experts now believe their numbers fluctuate dependent upon nut harvest without regard to the observatory.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The telescope was dedicated in October 2004 and saw first light with a single primary mirror on October 12, 2005 which viewed NGC 891. The second primary mirror was installed in January 2006 and became fully operational in January 2008. The first light with the second primary mirror was on September 18, 2006, and for the first and second together it was on January 11–12, 2008.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The first binocular light images show three false-color renditions of the spiral galaxy NGC 2770. The galaxy is 88 million light years from our Milky Way, a relatively close neighbor. The galaxy has a flat disk of stars and glowing gas tipped slightly toward our line of sight.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The first image taken combined ultraviolet and green light, and emphasizes the clumpy regions of newly formed hot stars in the spiral arms. The second image combined two deep red colors to highlight the smoother distribution of older, cooler stars. The third image was a composite of ultraviolet, green and deep red light and shows the detailed structure of hot, moderate and cool stars in the galaxy. The cameras and images were produced by the Large Binocular Camera team, led by Emanuele Giallongo at the Rome Astrophysical Observatory.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: In binocular aperture synthesis mode LBT has a light-collecting area of 111 m, equivalent to a single primary mirror in diameter, and will combine light to produce the image sharpness equivalent to a single telescope. However, this requires a beam combiner that was tested in 2008, but has not been a part of regular operations. It can take images with one side at 8.4 m aperture, or take two images of the same object using different instruments on each side of the telescope.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: In the summer of 2010, the "First Light Adaptive Optics" (FLAO) – an adaptive optics system with a deformable secondary mirror rather than correcting atmospheric distortion further downstream in the optics – was inaugurated. Using one 8.4 m side, it surpassed Hubble sharpness (at certain light wavelengths), achieving a Strehl ratio of 60–80% rather than the 20–30% of older adaptive optic systems, or the 1% typically achieved without adaptive optics for telescopes of this size. Adaptive optics at a telescope's secondary (M2) was previously tested at MMT Observatory by the Arcetri Observatory and University of Arizona team.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: The telescope has made appearances on an episode of the Discovery Channel TV show "Really Big Things", National Geographic Channel "Big, Bigger, Biggest", and the BBC program "The Sky At Night". The BBC Radio 4 radio documentary "The New Galileos" covered the LBT and the James Webb Space Telescope.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: LBT, with the XMM-Newton, was used to discover the galaxy cluster 2XMM J083026+524133 in 2008, over 7 billion light years away from Earth. In 2007 the LBT detected a 26th magnitude afterglow from the gamma ray burst GRB 070125.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: In 2017, LBT observed the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, an uncrewed asteroid sample return spacecraft, in space while it was en route.


title: Large Binocular Telescope

text: LUCI (originally LUCIFER: Large Binocular Telescope Near-infrared Spectroscopic Utility with Camera and Integral Field Unit for Extragalactic Research) is the near-infrared instrument for the LBT.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: A phytoestrogen is a plant-derived xenoestrogen (see estrogen) not generated within the endocrine system, but consumed by eating plants or manufactured foods. Also called a "dietary estrogen", it is a diverse group of naturally occurring nonsteroidal plant compounds that, because of its structural similarity with estradiol (17-β-estradiol), have the ability to cause estrogenic or antiestrogenic effects. Phytoestrogens are not essential nutrients because their absence from the diet does not cause a disease, nor are they known to participate in any normal biological function. Common foods containing phytoestrogens are soy protein, beans, oats, barley, rice, coffee, apples, carrots (see Food Sources section below for bigger list).


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Its name comes from the Greek "phyto" ("plant") and "estrogen", the hormone which gives fertility to female mammals. The word "estrus" - Greek οίστρος - means "sexual desire", and "gene" - Greek γόνο - is "to generate". It has been hypothesized that plants use a phytoestrogen as part of their natural defence against the overpopulation of herbivore animals by controlling female fertility.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: The similarities, at molecular level, of an estrogen and a phytoestrogen allow them to mildly mimic and sometimes act as an antagonist of estrogen. Phytoestrogens were first observed in 1926, but it was unknown if they could have any effect in human or animal metabolism. In the 1940s and early 1950s, it was noticed that some pastures of subterranean clover and red clover (phytoestrogen-rich plants) had adverse effects on the fecundity of grazing sheep.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Phytoestrogens mainly belong to a large group of substituted natural phenolic compounds: the coumestans, prenylflavonoids and isoflavones are three of the most active in estrogenic effects in this class. The best-researched are isoflavones, which are commonly found in soy and red clover. Lignans have also been identified as phytoestrogens, although they are not flavonoids. Mycoestrogens have similar structures and effects, but are not components of plants; these are mold metabolites of "Fusarium", especially common on cereal grains, but also occurring elsewhere, e.g. on various forages. Although mycoestrogens are rarely taken into account in discussions about phytoestrogens, these are the compounds that initially generated the interest on the topic.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Phytoestrogens exert their effects primarily through binding to estrogen receptors (ER). There are two variants of the estrogen receptor, alpha (ER-α) and beta (ER-β) and many phytoestrogens display somewhat higher affinity for ER-β compared to ER-α.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: The key structural elements that enable phytoestrogens to bind with high affinity to estrogen receptors and display estradiol-like effects are:


title: Phytoestrogen

text: In addition to interaction with ERs, phytoestrogens may also modulate the concentration of endogenous estrogens by binding or inactivating some enzymes, and may affect the bioavailability of sex hormones by depressing or stimulating the synthesis of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG).


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Emerging evidence shows that some phytoestrogens bind to and transactivate peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs). In vitro studies show an activation of PPARs at concentrations above 1 μM, which is higher than the activation level of ERs. At the concentration below 1 μM, activation of ERs may play a dominant role. At higher concentrations (>1 μM), both ERs and PPARs are activated. Studies have shown that both ERs and PPARs influence each other and therefore induce differential effects in a dose-dependent way. The final biological effects of genistein are determined by the balance among these pleiotrophic actions.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Phytoestrogens are ancient naturally occurring substances, and as dietary phytochemicals they are considered as co-evolutive with mammals. In the human diet, phytoestrogens are not the only source of exogenous estrogens. Xenoestrogens (novel, man-made), are found as food additives and ingredients, and also in cosmetics, plastics, and insecticides. Environmentally, they have similar effects as phytoestrogens, making it difficult to clearly separate the action of these two kind of agents in studies done on populations.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: The consumption of plants with unusual content of phytoestrogens, under drought conditions, has been shown to decrease fertility in quail. Parrot food as available in nature has shown only weak estrogenic activity. Studies have been conducted on screening methods for environmental estrogens present in manufactured supplementary food, with the purpose of aiding reproduction of endangered species.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: According to one study of nine common phytoestrogens in a Western diet, foods with the highest relative phytoestrogen content were nuts and oilseeds, followed by soy products, cereals and breads, legumes, meat products, and other processed foods that may contain soy, vegetables, fruits, alcoholic, and nonalcoholic beverages. Flax seed and other oilseeds contained the highest total phytoestrogen content, followed by soybeans and tofu. The highest concentrations of isoflavones are found in soybeans and soybean products followed by legumes, whereas lignans are the primary source of phytoestrogens found in nuts and oilseeds (e.g. flax) and also found in cereals, legumes, fruits and vegetables. Phytoestrogen content varies in different foods, and may vary significantly within the same group of foods (e.g. soy beverages, tofu) depending on processing mechanisms and type of soybean used. Legumes (in particular soybeans), whole grain cereals, and some seeds are high in phytoestrogens.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Food content of phytoestrogens is very variable and accurate estimates of intake therefore difficult and depends on the databases used. Data from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition found intakes between 1 mg/d in Mediterranean Countries and more than 20 mg/d in the United Kingdom. The high intake in the UK is partly explained by the use of soy in the Chorleywood bread process. An epidemiological study of women in the United States found that the dietary intake of phytoestrogens in healthy post-menopausal Caucasian women is less than one milligram daily.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: In humans, phytoestrogens are readily absorbed into the circulatory system, circulate in plasma, and are excreted in the urine. Metabolic influence is different from that of grazing animals due to the differences between ruminant versus monogastric digestive systems.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: As of 2017, there is insufficient clinical evidence to determine if phytoestrogens have effects in humans.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: It is unclear if phytoestrogens have any effect on the cause or prevention of cancer in females. Some epidemiological studies have suggested a protective effect against breast cancer. Other epidemiological studies found that consumption of soy estrogens is safe for patients with breast cancer, and that it may decrease mortality and recurrence rates. It remains unclear if phytoestrogens can minimize some of the deleterious effects of low estrogen levels (hypoestrogenism) resulting from oophorectomy, menopause, or other causes. A Cochrane review of the use of phytoestrogens to relieve the vasomotor symptoms of menopause (hot flashes) stated that there was no conclusive evidence to suggest any benefit to their use, although genistein effects should be further investigated.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: It is unclear if phytoestrogens have any effect on male sexuality, with conflicting results about the potential effects of isoflavones originating from soy. Some studies showed that isoflavone supplementation had a positive effect on sperm concentration, count, or motility, and increased ejaculate volume. Sperm count decline and increasing rate of testicular cancers in the West may be linked to a higher presence of isoflavone phytoestrogens in the diet while in utero, but such a link has not been definitively proven. Furthermore, while there is some evidence that phytoestrogens may affect male fertility, more recent reviews of available studies found no link, and instead suggests that healthier diets such as the Mediterranean diet might have a positive effect on male fertility. Neither isoflavones nor soy have been shown to affect male reproductive hormones.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Some studies have found that some concentrations of isoflavones may have effects on intestinal cells. At low doses, genistein acted as a weak estrogen and stimulated cell growth; at high doses, it inhibited proliferation and altered cell cycle dynamics. This biphasic response correlates with how genistein is thought to exert its effects.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: Some reviews express the opinion that more research is needed to answer the question of what effect phytoestrogens may have on infants, but their authors did not find any adverse effects. Studies conclude there are no adverse effects in human growth, development, or reproduction as a result of the consumption of soy-based infant formula compared to conventional cow-milk formula. The American Academy of Pediatrics states: "although isolated soy protein-based formulas may be used to provide nutrition for normal growth and development, there are few indications for their use in place of cow milk-based formula. These indications include (a) for infants with galactosemia and hereditary lactase deficiency (rare) and (b) in situations in which a vegetarian diet is preferred."


title: Phytoestrogen

text: In some countries, phytoestrogenic plants have been used for centuries in the treatment of menstrual and menopausal problems, as well as for fertility problems. Plants used that have been shown to contain phytoestrogens include "Pueraria mirifica" and its close relative kudzu, Angelica, fennel, and anise.


title: Phytoestrogen

text: In a rigorous study, the use of one such source of phytoestrogen, red clover, has been shown to be safe, but ineffective in relieving menopausal symptoms (black cohosh is also used for menopausal symptoms, but does not contain phytoestrogens.)


title: John Urschel

text: John Cameron Urschel (born June 24, 1991) is a Canadian-American mathematician, former professional American football guard and center and chess player. He played college football at Penn State and was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Urschel played his entire NFL career with Baltimore before announcing his retirement on July 27, 2017, at 26 years old.


title: John Urschel

text: Urschel has bachelor's and master's degrees (both from Penn State) and a doctorate (from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology), all in mathematics. He has published peer-reviewed articles in mathematics. Urschel is also an advanced stats columnist for "The Players' Tribune". He is currently serving a three-year term on the College Football Playoff selection committee which began in the spring of 2020.


title: John Urschel

text: Urschel was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. His parents, John Urschel and Venita Parker, were a surgeon and attorney, respectively. He grew up in Buffalo, New York where he graduated from Canisius High School in 2009.


title: John Urschel

text: He earned bachelor's (2012) and master's (2013) degrees in mathematics at Pennsylvania State University. While at Penn State, he was awarded the William V. Campbell Trophy, known as the "academic Heisman".


title: John Urschel

text: Urschel was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL draft with the 175th overall pick. He played in 11 games, starting three, for the Ravens in 2014. He appeared in 16 games, starting seven, for the team in 2015.


title: John Urschel

text: On July 27, 2017, Urschel announced his retirement from the NFL after three seasons. "The Baltimore Sun" reported that the "JAMA" study on the prevalence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in deceased players was a factor in Urschel's decision.


title: John Urschel

text: His retirement as an active player was not the end of his participation in the sport. He was appointed to the College Football Playoff selection committee on January 22, 2020, serving a three-year term which began in the spring of that year.


title: John Urschel

text: While doing his master's at Penn State, Urschel was involved in teaching vector calculus, trigonometry and analytic geometry, and introduction to econometrics. In 2014, Urschel was named Arthur Ashe, Jr. Sports Scholar by "Diverse: Issues In Higher Education". In 2015, Urschel co-authored a paper in the "Journal of Computational Mathematics" titled "A Cascadic Multigrid Algorithm for Computing the Fiedler Vector of Graph Laplacians". It includes "a cascadic multigrid algorithm for fast computation of the Fiedler vector of a graph Laplacian, namely, the eigenvector corresponding to the second smallest eigenvalue."


title: John Urschel

text: Urschel began a Ph.D. in mathematics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2016, focusing on spectral graph theory, numerical linear algebra, and machine learning. MIT does not allow Ph.D. students to study part-time; while the Ravens knew that he was taking classes, Urschel admitted after retiring from the team that he did not disclose that he was a full-time graduate student, having taken correspondence classes in between games and practices. On January 4, 2017, Urschel was named to Forbes' "30 Under 30" list of outstanding young scientists and owns the following blurb: "Urschel has published six peer-reviewed mathematics papers to date and has three more ready for review. He's won academic awards for his math prowess. All this while playing guard for the Baltimore Ravens."


title: John Urschel

text: Since 2017, Urschel has had an Erdős number of 4. His PhD thesis on "Graphs, Principal Minors, and Eigenvalue Problems" was completed in 2021 under Michel Goemans at MIT. He is a member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.


title: John Urschel

text: Urschel competed in the 2015 Pittsburgh Open, finishing in 12th place (tied for 9th) with 3.0 points (+2-1=2) in the Under 1700 rating section. Urschel competes in competitive online chess on Chess.com, and he has commentated for Chess.com's BlitzChamps event, a rapid tournament for NFL players.


title: John Urschel

text: Urschel is married to writer Louisa Thomas, whom he met when she was profiling him for Grantland. In 2017, their daughter, Joanna, was born. Urschel's autobiography, "Mind and Matter: A Life in Math and Football", was co-written by Thomas and published in 2019.


title: Shrub (drink)

text: In terms of mixed drinks, shrub is the name of two different, but related, acidulated beverages. One type of shrub is a fruit liqueur that was popular in 17th and 18th century England, typically made with rum or brandy, and mixed with sugar and the juice or rinds of citrus fruit.


title: Shrub (drink)

text: The word "shrub" can also refer to a cocktail or soft drink that was popular during America's colonial era, made by mixing a vinegared syrup with spirits, water, or carbonated water. The term can also be applied to the base, a sweetened vinegar-based syrup from which the cocktail is made; that syrup is also known as drinking vinegar. Drinking vinegar is often infused with fruit juice, herbs and spices, for use in mixed drinks.


title: Shrub (drink)

text: The early English version of the shrub arose from the medicinal cordials of the 15th century. The drink gained popularity among smugglers in the 1680s trying to avoid paying import taxes for goods shipped from mainland Europe: To avoid detection, smugglers would sometimes sink barrels of spirits off-shore to be retrieved later; the addition of fruit flavours aided in masking the taste of alcohol fouled by sea water. An early Rum Shrub recipe from The English and Australian Cookery Book called for almonds, cloves, cassia, and the peel of oranges, "infused in the best rum," with the addition of a thread of ambergris and vanilla. "Good shrub is very delicious, and were it fashionable it would obtain rank as a liqueur."


title: Shrub (drink)

text: As a mixture of fruit and alcohol, the shrub is related to the punch, however punches were normally served immediately after mixing the ingredients, whereas shrubs tended to have a higher concentration of flavour and sugar and could be stored for later use, much like a pre-made drink mixer. The shrub was itself a common ingredient in punches, either on its own or as a simple mix with brandy or rum. It was also served during the Christmas season mixed with raisins, honey, lemon, sherry, rum and other spirits. The shrub was sold in most public houses throughout England in the 17th and 18th centuries, although the drink fell out of fashion by the late 1800s.


title: Shrub (drink)

text: A proprietary cordial known as Shrub was developed by J. R. Phillips of Bristol. "Rum and Shrub" was a popular drink in Bristol and the west of England in the 20th century long after the convention had died out elsewhere. It is still sold today.


title: Shrub (drink)

text: The American version of the shrub has its origins in 17th century England where vinegar was used as an alternative to citrus juices in the preservation of berries and other fruits for the off-season. Fruit preserves made in this fashion were themselves known as shrubs and the practice carried over to colonial America. By the 19th century, typical American recipes for shrubs used vinegar poured over fruit—traditionally berries—which was left to infuse anywhere from overnight up to several days; afterwards, the fruit would be strained out and the remaining liquid would be mixed with a sweetener such as sugar or honey and then reduced to make a syrup. The sweet-and-sour syrup could be mixed with either water or soda water and served as a soft drink, or it could be used as a mixer in alcoholic cocktails. Shrubs eventually fell out of popularity with the advent of home refrigeration.


title: Shrub (drink)

text: The serving of vinegar-based shrub drinks became popular again in 2011 in American restaurants and bars. The trend has also been noted in bars in Canada as well as London. The acidity of the shrub makes it well suited as an apéritif or used as an alternative to bitters in cocktails. Unlike cocktails acidulated with citrus, vinegar-based drinks will remain clear when shaken.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The prehistory of Ireland has been pieced together from archaeological evidence, which has grown at an increasing rate over the last decades. It begins with the first evidence of permanent human residence in Ireland around 10,500 BC (although there is evidence of human presence as early as 31,000 BC) and finishes with the start of the historical record around 400 AD. Both the beginning and end dates of the period are later than for much of Europe and all of the Near East. The prehistoric period covers the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age societies of Ireland. For much of Europe, the historical record begins when the Romans invaded; as Ireland was not invaded by the Romans its historical record starts later, with the coming of Christianity.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The two periods that have left the most spectacular groups of remains are the Neolithic, with its megalithic tombs, and the gold jewellery of the Bronze Age, when Ireland was a major centre of gold mining.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Ireland has many areas of bogland, and a great number of archaeological finds have been recovered from these. The anaerobic conditions sometimes preserve organic materials exceptionally well, as with a number of bog bodies, a Mesolithic wicker fish-trap, and a Bronze Age textile with delicate tassels of horse hair.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: During the Last Glacial Maximum, ice sheets more than thick scoured the landscape of Ireland, by 24,000 years ago they extended beyond the southern coast of Ireland, by 16,000 years ago they had retreated so that only an ice bridge existed between Northern Ireland and Scotland, by 14,000 years ago Ireland was completely isolated from Britain and by 11,700 years ago this Glacial period is recognized as having ended with no more glaciers present, but leaving Ireland as an arctic tundra. This period's effects on Ireland are referred to as the Midlandian glaciation.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: During the period between 17,500 and 12,000 years ago, a warmer period referred to as the Bølling-Allerød allowed for the rehabitation of northern areas of Europe by roaming hunter-gatherers. Genetic evidence suggests this reoccupation began in southwestern Europe and faunal remains suggest the existence of a refugium in Iberia that extended up into southern France. Those originally attracted to the north during the pre-boreal period would be species like reindeer and aurochs. Some sites as far north as Sweden inhabited earlier than 10,000 years ago suggest that humans might have used glacial termini as places from which they hunted migratory game.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: These factors and ecological changes brought humans to the edge of the northernmost ice-free zones of continental Europe by the onset of the Holocene and this included regions close to Ireland. However, during the early part of the Holocene Ireland itself had a climate that was inhospitable to most European animals and plants. Human occupation was unlikely, although fishing was possible.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Britain and Ireland may have been joined by a land bridge, but because this hypothetical link would have been cut by rising sea levels so early into the warm period, perhaps by 14,000 BC, few temperate terrestrial flora or fauna would have crossed into Ireland. Snakes and most other reptiles could not repopulate Ireland because any land bridge disappeared before temperatures became warm enough for them. The lowered sea level also joined Britain to continental Europe; this persisted much longer, probably until around 5600 BC.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The earliest known modern humans in Ireland date back to the late Palaeolithic Age (Old Stone Age). This date was pushed back some 2,500 years by a radiocarbon dating performed in 2016 on a bear bone excavated in 1903 in the "Alice and Gwendoline Cave", County Clare. The bone has cut marks showing it was butchered when fresh and gave a date of around 10,500 BC, showing humans were in Ireland at that time. In contrast, a flint worked by a human found in 1968 at Mell, Drogheda, that is much older, probably well pre-dating 70,000 BC, is normally regarded as having been carried to Ireland on an ice sheet, probably from what is now the bottom of the Irish Sea. In 2021, a reindeer bone fragment discovered in Castlepook Cave near Doneraile, Co. Cork in 1972 was dated to 33,000 years ago, establishing human activity in Ireland more than 20,000 years earlier than previously thought.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: A British site on the eastern coast of the Irish Sea, dated to 11,000 BC, indicated people were in the area eating a marine diet including shellfish. These modern humans may have also colonised Ireland after crossing a southern, now ice-free, land bridge that linked south-east Ireland and Cornwall, if it existed, or more likely, by boat. In the south, the Irish Sea facing South Wales was at the least a good deal narrower than today until 12,000 BC; in the north, the sea-crossing to Kintyre in Scotland, though much too deep to have ever been a land bridge, is even today only twelve miles at its shortest point and would then have been less. These people may have found few resources outside of coastal shellfishing and acorns, and so may not have continually occupied the region. The early coastline of Ireland is now almost entirely under the sea, so evidence of coastal populations is lost, though ways of investigating undersea sites are being explored.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The return of freezing conditions in the Younger Dryas, which lasted from 10,900 BC to 9700 BC, may have depopulated Ireland. During the Younger Dryas, sea levels continued to rise and no ice-free land bridge between Great Britain and Ireland ever returned.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The last ice age fully came to an end in Ireland about 8000 BC. Until the single 2016 Palaeolithic dating described above, the earliest evidence of human occupation after the retreat of the ice was dated to the Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age), around 7000 BC. Although sea levels were still lower than they are today, Ireland was very probably already an island by the time the first settlers arrived by boat, very likely from Britain. The earliest inhabitants of the island were seafarers who depended for much of their livelihood upon the sea, and later inland settlements or camps were usually close to water. Although archaeologists believe Mesolithic people heavily relied on riverine and coastal environments, ancient DNA indicates they had probably ceased contact with Mesolithic societies on the island of Britain and further afield.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Evidence for Mesolithic hunter-gatherers has been found throughout the island: a number of the key early Mesolithic excavations are the settlement site at Mount Sandel in Coleraine, County Londonderry; the cremations at Hermitage, County Limerick on the bank of the River Shannon; and the campsite at Lough Boora in County Offaly. As well as these, early Mesolithic lithic scatters have been noted around the island, from the north in County Donegal to the south in County Cork. The population has been tentatively estimated at around 8,000.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The hunter-gatherers of the Mesolithic era lived on a varied diet of seafood, birds, wild boar and hazelnuts. There is no evidence for deer in the Irish Mesolithic and it is likely that the first red deer were introduced in the early stages of the Neolithic. The human population hunted with spears, arrows and harpoons tipped with small stone blades called microliths, while supplementing their diet with gathered nuts, fruit and berries. They lived in seasonal shelters, which they constructed by stretching animal skins or thatch over wooden frames. They had outdoor hearths for cooking their food. During the Mesolithic the population of Ireland was probably never more than a few thousand. Surviving artefacts include small microlith blades and points, and later larger stone tools and weapons, in particular the versatile Bann flake.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Many areas of Europe entered the Neolithic (New Stone Age) with a 'package' of cereal cultivars, pastoral animals (domesticated oxen/cattle, sheep, goats), pottery, weaving, housing and burial cultures, which arrived simultaneously, a process that began in central Europe as LBK (Linear Pottery culture) about 6000 BC. Within several hundred years this culture was present in northern France. An alternative Neolithic culture, La Hoguette culture, that arrived in France's northwestern region appears to be a derivative of the Ibero Italian-Eastern Adriatic Impressed Cardial Ware culture (Cardium pottery). The La Hoguette culture, like the western Cardial culture, raised sheep and goats more intensely. By 5100 BC there is evidence of dairy practices in southern England, and modern English cattle appear to be derived from "T1 Taurids" that were domesticated in the Aegean region shortly after the onset of the Holocene. These animals were probably derived from cattle from the Linear Pottery culture. Around 4300 BC cattle arrived in northern Ireland during the late Mesolithic period. The red deer was introduced from Britain about this time.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: From around 4500 BC a Neolithic package that included cereal cultivars, housing culture (similar to those of the same period in Scotland) and stone monuments arrived in Ireland. Sheep, goats, cattle and cereals were imported from southwestern continental Europe, after which the population rose significantly. The earliest clear proof of farmers in Ireland or Great Britain is from Ferriter's Cove on the Dingle Peninsula, where a flint knife, cattle bones and a sheep's tooth were found and dated to c. 4350 BC. At the Céide Fields in County Mayo, an extensive Neolithic field system (arguably the oldest known in the world) has been preserved beneath a blanket of peat. Consisting of small fields separated from one another by dry-stone walls, the Céide Fields were farmed for several centuries between 3500 and 3000 BC. Wheat and barley were the principal crops cultivated. Pottery made its appearance around the same time as agriculture. Ware similar to that found in northern Great Britain has been excavated in Ulster (Lyle's Hill pottery) and in Limerick. Typical of this ware are wide-mouthed, round-bottomed bowls.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: This follows a pattern similar to western Europe or gradual onset of Neolithic, such as seen in La Hoguette Culture of France and Iberia's Impressed Cardial Ware Culture. Cereal culture advance markedly slows north of France; certain cereal strains such as wheat were difficult to grow in cold climates—however, barley and German rye were suitable replacements. It can be speculated that the DQ2.5 aspect of the AH8.1 haplotype may have been involved in the slowing of cereal culture into Ireland, Scotland and Scandinavia since this haplotype confers susceptibility to a Triticeae protein induced disease as well as Type I diabetes and other autoimmune diseases that may have arisen as an indirect result of Neolithisation.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Some regions of Ireland showed patterns of pastoralism that indicated that some Neolithic peoples continued to move and indicates that pastoral activities dominated agrarian activities in many regions or that there was a division of labour between pastoral and agrarian aspects of the Neolithic. At the height of the Neolithic the population of the island was probably in excess of 100,000, and perhaps as high as 200,000. But there appears to have been an economic collapse around 2500 BC, and the population declined for a while.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The most striking characteristic of the Neolithic in Ireland was the sudden appearance and dramatic proliferation of megalithic monuments. The largest of these tombs were clearly places of religious and ceremonial importance to the Neolithic population, and were probably communal graves used over a long period. In most of the tombs that have been excavated, human remains—usually, but not always, cremated—have been found. Grave goods—pottery, arrowheads, beads, pendants, axes, etc.—have also been uncovered. These megalithic tombs, more than 1,200 of which are now known, can be divided for the most part into four broad groups, all of which would originally have been covered with earth, that in many cases has been eroded away to leave the impressive stone frameworks:


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The theory that these four groups of monuments were associated with four separate waves of invading colonists still has its adherents today, but the growth in population that made them possible need not have been the result of colonisation: it may simply have been the natural consequence of the introduction of agriculture.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The stone axe was the primary and essential tool for farming, carefully made in a variety of styles, and often polished. The products of axe factories next to sources of porcellanite, an especially good stone, were traded across Ireland; the main ones were Tievebulliagh and Rathlin Island, both in County Antrim. There were also imports from Britain, including products of the Langdale axe industry of the English Lake District.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: There was a much rarer class of imported prestige axe head made from jadeite from north Italy; these may have been slowly traded across Europe to reach Ireland over a period reaching into centuries, and show no signs of use. Miniature axes, too small to be useful, were made, and a "tiny porcellanite axe" has been found in a passage tomb; another example has a hole for a cord, and may have been worn as jewellery or an amulet. Other stone shapes made were chisels, adzes, maces and spearheads. Only one decorated macehead has been found, in one of the tombs at Knowth, but it is extremely fine. Some finds may also be miniature maceheads.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Pierced beads and pendants are found, and two necklaces of shells (from Phoenix Park in Dublin) are very carefully made, with graded periwinkle shells; these were on the remains of two males. As an example of the exceptional preservation sometimes possible in items found in anaerobic bogs, part of a finely woven bag with circular handles has survived; it used reedy plant material wound round thin strips of wood. Decorated pottery, apparently made for funerary rather than domestic use, appears to imitate basketry patterns.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Open-air rock art is another monument type that dates to the Late Neolithic or Early Bronze Age. These carvings are found on open-air boulders and outcrops and the most common motifs are cup and ring marks and radial grooves. This art is often referred to as Atlantic rock art due its similarity to other carvings across Atlantic Europe. In Ireland, the art appears in clusters with the most significant concentrations in County Fermanagh and County Donegal, County Wicklow and County Carlow, County Louth and County Monaghan, Cork, and Kerry. The densest clusters are on the Iveragh and Dingle peninsulas in Kerry.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Metallurgy arrived in Ireland with new people, generally known as the Bell Beaker People from their characteristic pottery, in the shape of an inverted bell. This was quite different from the finely made, round-bottomed pottery of the Neolithic. It is found, for example, at Ross Island, and associated with copper mining there, which had begun by at least 2,400 BC. There is some disagreement about when speakers of a Celtic language first arrived in Ireland. It is thought by some scholars to be associated with the Beaker People of the Bronze Age, but the more mainstream view is, or at least used to be, that "Celts" arrived much later at the beginning of the Iron Age.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The Bronze Age began once copper was alloyed with tin to produce true bronze artefacts, and this took place around 2000 BC, when some "Ballybeg-type" flat axes and associated metalwork were produced. The tin needed to be imported, normally from Cornwall. The period preceding this, in which Lough Ravel and most Ballybeg axes were produced, and which is known as the Copper Age or Chalcolithic, commenced about 2500 BC.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Bronze was used for the manufacture of both weapons and tools. Swords, axes, daggers, hatchets, halberds, awls, drinking utensils and horn-shaped trumpets are just some of the items that have been unearthed at Bronze Age sites. Irish craftsmen became particularly noted for the horn-shaped trumpet, which was made by the "cire perdue", or lost wax, process.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Copper used in the manufacture of bronze was mined in Ireland, chiefly in the southwest of the island, while the tin was imported from Cornwall in Britain. The earliest known copper mine in these islands was located at "Ross Island", at the Lakes of Killarney in County Kerry; mining and metalworking took place there between 2400 and 1800 BC. Another of Europe's best-preserved copper mines has been discovered at Mount Gabriel in County Cork, which was worked for several centuries in the middle of the second millennium. Mines in Cork and Kerry are believed to have produced as much as 370 tonnes of copper during the Bronze Age.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Ireland was also rich in native gold, and the Bronze Age saw the first extensive working of this precious metal by Irish craftsmen. More Bronze Age gold hoards have been discovered in Ireland than anywhere else in Europe. Irish gold ornaments have been found as far afield as Germany and Scandinavia, and gold-related trade was very possibly a major factor in the Bronze Age Irish economy.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: In the early stages of the Bronze Age the gold ornaments included simple but finely decorated gold lunulae, a distinctively Irish type of object later made in Britain and continental Europe, and disks of thin gold sheet. Many of these seem to have been long in use before they were deposited. Later the thin twisted torc made its appearance; this was a collar consisting of a bar or ribbon of metal, twisted into a spiral. Other types of gold jewellery made in Ireland during the Bronze Age, most shared with Britain, include earrings, sun disks, bracelets, clothes fasteners, and in the Late Bronze Age, the distinctively Irish large "gorgets", and "bullae" amulets. After the Bronze Age goldwork almost ceased to be produced in Ireland; the Irish deposits may well have been essentially exhausted.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Construction of wedge tombs tailed off from about 2,200 BC, and while the previous tradition of large scale monument building was much reduced, existing earlier megalithic monuments continued in use in the form of secondary insertions of funerary and ritual artefacts. Towards the end of the Bronze Age the single-grave cist made its appearance. This consisted of a small rectangular stone chest, covered with a stone slab and buried a short distance below the surface. The body might be cremated, or not. Decorated pots often accompanied the remains, and later cremated remains were placed inside the urn, which was turned upside-down, and might also have grave goods of various sorts. Numerous stone circles were also erected at this time, chiefly in Ulster and Munster.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Crannogs are timber homes built in shallow lakes for security, often with a narrow walkway to the shore. Some use or extend natural islets, and the largest probably housed a number of families, and animals. It is thought that most of the 1,200-odd crannogs in Ireland were begun in the Bronze Age, although many sites seem to have been used, continuously or intermittently, over very long periods, even into medieval times.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The large Dowris Hoard, originally of over 200 items, mostly in bronze, has given its name to the Dowris Phase or period, as a term for the final phase of the Irish Bronze Age, about 900-600 BC. With 48 examples, the hoard contained all but two of the known examples of the distinctive "crotals", bronze rattles in the shape of a bull's testicle, as well as 26 horns or trumpets, weapons, and vessels. The rather earlier Dunaverney flesh-hook (perhaps 1050–900 BC) is suggestive of a culture where elite feasting was important, and reflects influence from continental Europe; very large riveted bronze cauldrons were also made. Large numbers of bronze weapons were produced, and typical sword shapes changed from shorter ones for stabbing and thrusting on foot, to longer ones, perhaps for a mounted warrior to slash with. This is one example of a Dowris Phase design type originating in the Hallstatt culture of continental Europe, probably transmitted via southern Britain; chapes for scabbards is another.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: During the Bronze Age, the climate of Ireland deteriorated and extensive deforestation took place. The population of Ireland at the end of the Bronze Age was probably in excess of 100,000, and may have been as high as 200,000. It is possible that it was not much greater than it had been at the height of the Neolithic. In Ireland the Bronze Age lasted until c. 500 BC, later than continental Europe and also Britain.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The Irish Iron Age has long been thought to begin around 500 BC and then continue until the Christian era in Ireland, which brought some written records and therefore the end of prehistoric Ireland. This view has been somewhat upset by the recent carbon-dating of the wood shaft of a very elegant iron spearhead found in the River Inny near Lackan, which gave a date of between 811 and 673 BC. This may further erode the belief, still held by some, that the arrival of iron-working marked the beginning of the arrival of the Celts (i.e. speakers of the Proto-Celtic language) and thus Indo-European speakers, to the island.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Alternatively, many hold the view that this happened with the bearers of the Bell Beaker culture, probably Indo-European speaking, reaching Ireland during the earlier stage of the Bronze Age. The Celtic languages of Britain and Ireland, also known as Insular Celtic, can be divided into two groups, Goidelic and Brittonic. When primary written records of Celtic first appear in about the fifth century, Gaelic or Goidelic, in the form of Primitive Irish, is found in Ireland, while Brittonic, in the form of Common Brittonic, is found in Britain.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The Iron Age includes the period in which the Romans ruled most of the neighbouring island of Great Britain. Roman interest in the area led to some of the earliest written evidence about Ireland. The names of its tribes were recorded by the geographer Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The recorded tribes of Ireland included at least three with names identical or similar to British or Gaulish tribes: the Brigantes (also the name of the largest tribe in northern and midland Britain), the Manapii (possibly the same people as the Menapii, a Belgic tribe of northern Gaul) and the Coriondi (a name similar to that of Corinion, later Cirencester and the Corionototae of northern Britain).


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Up to about 150 BC there are many finds that show stylistic influence from continental Europe (as in the preceding Dowris Phase), and some direct imports. After that date relationships with British styles predominate, perhaps reflecting some movement of people. The Keshcarrigan Bowl, possibly made in Britain, is an example of this. Another cup found in Fore, County Westmeath does seem to be an import.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Examples from Iron Age Ireland of La Tène style, the term for Iron Age Celtic art, are very few, to a "puzzling" extent, although some of these are of very high quality, such as a number of scabbards from Ulster and the Petrie Crown, apparently dating to the 2nd century AD. This was well after Celtic art elsewhere had been subsumed into Gallo-Roman art and its British equivalent. Despite this it was in Ireland that the style seemed to revive in the early Christian period, to form the Insular art of the Book of Kells and other well-known masterpieces, perhaps under influence from Late Roman and post-Roman Romano-British styles. The 1st century BC Broighter Gold hoard, from Ulster, includes a small model boat, a spectacular torc with relief decoration influenced by classical style, and other gold jewellery probably imported from the Roman world, perhaps as far away as Alexandria.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The headland of Drumanagh, near Dublin and not yet fully excavated, may have represented a centre for trade with Roman Britain. Drumanagh is an example of the coastal promontory fort, using cliff headlands with a narrow neck to reduce the extent of fortification necessary. In Ireland these seem to be mainly a feature of the Iron Age, with some perhaps dating to the Bronze Age, and also continuing to be used into the Early Medieval period. Although today seen as mostly dating from the early historic period, some of the perhaps 60,000 ringforts or raths in Ireland date back to the Late Iron Age. These vary greatly in size and function, with smaller ones a single-family farmstead (with slaves), or merely an enclosure for animals, and larger ones clearly having a wider political and military significance.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: There are several ringforts in the complex topping the Hill of Tara, which seems to have its origins in the late Iron Age, although the site also includes a Neolithic passage grave and other earlier tombs. This is one of a number of major sites connected in later literature and mythology with kingship, and probably had a ritual and religious significance, though it is now impossible to be clear as to what this was. Navan Fort ("Emain Macha"), another major hilltop site, had a very large circular building constructed on it about 100 BC. It was forty metres across, with 275 tree-posts in rings. The largest was the central post, a tree felled about 95 BC. Within the century following the whole building was destroyed, apparently in a ritual fashion.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Other large-scale constructions, requiring a good degree of social organization, include linear earthworks such as the Black Pig's Dyke and Cliadh Dubh, probably representing boundaries, and acting as hindrances to cattle-raids, and "toghers" or wooden trackways across boggy areas, of which the best-known is the Corlea Trackway, a corduroy road dated to 148-147 BC, and about a kilometre long and some three metres wide.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The late Iron Age saw sizeable changes in human activity. Thomas Charles-Edwards coined the phrase "Irish Dark Age" to refer to a period of apparent economic and cultural stagnation in late prehistoric Ireland, lasting from c. 100 BC to c. AD 300. He used the phrase to describe a gap in the archaeological record coinciding with the Roman Empire in Britain and continental Europe. Charles-Edwards notes the lack of continuity between Ptolemy's writings on the peoples of second-century Ireland and writings in ogham in the fifth century. He suggested that the decrease in agricultural productivity might be due to a large-scale export of slaves to Roman Britain.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Others such as Joseph Raftery, Barry Raftery, and Donnchadh Ó Corráin have drawn attention to a decline in human settlement and activity in Ireland, starting from around the first century BC. Pollen data extracted from Irish bogs indicate a decrease in human impact on plant life in the bogs in the third century, and specifically that "the impact of human activity upon the flora around the bogs from which the pollen came was less between c. 200 BC and c. AD 300 than either before or after." The third and fourth centuries saw a rapid recovery.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The reasons for the decline and recovery are uncertain, but it has been suggested that recovery may be linked to the "Golden Age" of Roman Britain in the third and fourth centuries. The archaeological evidence for trade with, or raids on, Roman Britain is strongest in northern Leinster, centred on modern County Dublin, followed by the coast of County Antrim, with lesser concentrations in the Rosses on the north coast of County Donegal and around Carlingford Lough. As Roman Britain collapsed politically, there was even settlement by Irish people, and leaders, in Wales and western Britain. Inhumation burials may also have spread from Roman Britain, and had become common in Ireland by the fourth and fifth centuries.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Some protohistoric records begin to appear during this period. Early Irish literature was not written down until the Early Medieval period, but many scholars accept that the saga cycles preserve in some form elements from much earlier, that give some insights into the world of the last elites of prehistoric Ireland.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: The large areas of bog in Ireland have produced over a dozen ancient bog bodies, mostly from the Iron Age. Some were found and reburied before archaeological and scientific investigation was possible. Some survive as skeletons only, but the best-preserved have retained their flesh, hair, and clothing. The oldest appears to be the Neolithic Stoneyisland Man, perhaps the victim of a canoeing accident around 3320–3220 BC.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Cashel Man died violently about 2500-2000 BC in the early Bronze Age, and is one of the possible ritual killings; it is now thought these were deposed kings sacrificed after being seen to fail in their rule, perhaps after crop failures. Two Iron Age examples of apparent elite victims of ritual killing are Old Croghan Man and Clonycavan Man, both from approximately 400 to 175 BC. Earlier bodies appear to have been normal burials.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: Almost all prehistoric Irish finds remain in the British Isles. Some are in local museums, but much the most significant collections are in Dublin, Belfast and London. The first "national" collection for Irish antiquities was the British Museum in London, where many finds from before and after it was established in 1753 have ended up. However, from the foundation of the Dublin Royal Irish Academy in 1785 there was a local rival, which became the main destination of objects that were newly-found, or appeared on the market. The Dublin Society also formed a collection, though this was less important for antiquities. The society was founded in 1731, and by 1733 had opened a museum. Both these collections were transferred to the new "Museum of Science and Art", now the National Museum of Ireland, by 1890.


title: Prehistoric Ireland

text: A legal dispute in which the Crown challenged the British Museum's purchase of the Broighter Hoard was won in 1903, and marked the acceptance on all sides of the Dublin museum as the Irish national collection. This was a hoard found in what became Northern Ireland after Irish independence. Northern Ireland had seen its many important finds of antiquities passing to first London and then Dublin, and the Ulster Museum was only recognized as a national museum for antiquities in 1961. This had developed out of the collections of the Belfast Natural History Society, later renamed the Belfast Municipal Museum and Art Gallery, and was renamed again in 1961. Despite this, the pace of new finds has meant that it has an important collection.


title: Carlos Fuentes

text: Carlos Fuentes Macías (; ; November 11, 1928 – May 15, 2012) was a Mexican novelist and essayist. Among his works are "The Death of Artemio Cruz" (1962), "Aura" (1962), "Terra Nostra" (1975), "The Old Gringo" (1985) and "Christopher Unborn" (1987). In his obituary, "The New York Times" described Fuentes as "one of the most admired writers in the Spanish-speaking world" and an important influence on the Latin American Boom, the "explosion of Latin American literature in the 1960s and '70s", while "The Guardian" called him "Mexico's most celebrated novelist". His many literary honors include the Miguel de Cervantes Prize as well as Mexico's highest award, the Belisario Domínguez Medal of Honor (1999). He was often named as a likely candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature, though he never won. His parents were both Mexicans.


title: Carlos Fuentes

text: Fuentes was born in Panama City, the son of Berta Macías and Rafael Fuentes, the latter of whom was a Mexican diplomat. As the family moved for his father's career, Fuentes spent his childhood in various Latin American capital cities, an experience he later described as giving him the ability to view Latin America as a critical outsider. From 1934 to 1940, Fuentes' father was posted to the Mexican Embassy in Washington, D.C., where Carlos attended English-language school, eventually becoming fluent. He also began to write during this time, creating his own magazine, which he shared with apartments on his block.


title: Carlos Fuentes

text: In 1938, Mexico nationalized foreign oil holdings, leading to a national outcry in the U.S.; he later pointed to the event as the moment in which he began to understand himself as Mexican. In 1940, the Fuentes family was transferred to Santiago, Chile. There, he first became interested in socialism, which would become one of his lifelong passions, in part through his interest in the poetry of Pablo Neruda. He lived in Mexico for the first time at the age of 16, when he went to study law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in Mexico City with an eye toward a diplomatic career. During this time, he also began working at the daily newspaper "Hoy" and writing short stories. He later attended the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva.


title: Carlos Fuentes

text: In 1957, Fuentes was named head of cultural relations at the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs. The following year, he published "Where the Air Is Clear", which immediately made him a "national celebrity" and allowed him to leave his diplomatic post to write full-time. In 1959, he moved to Havana in the wake of the Cuban Revolution, where he wrote pro-Castro articles and essays. The same year, he married Mexican actress Rita Macedo. Considered "dashingly handsome", Fuentes also had high-profile affairs with actresses Jeanne Moreau and Jean Seberg, who inspired his novel "". His second marriage, to journalist Silvia Lemus, lasted until his death.