cahya/wikipedia-simple-en huggingface dataset:
Backmasking

Backmasking (also known wrongly as backward masking) is a recording technique. In backmasking, a sound or message is recorded backwards onto a track that is meant to be played forwards. It was made popular by The Beatles. Some people think that backmasking causes subliminal persuasion.

References

Other websites
Jeff Milner's Backmasking Page—a Flash player with forward and backward versions of songs claimed to contain backmasking; the focus of the Wall Street Journal article
Backmask Flash—flash clips of possible backmasked messages from Albino Blacksheep
TalkBackwards.com —allows uploaded music to be reversed
Hidden and Satanic Messages In Rock Music—1981 radio interview with Michael Mills
Excerpt with alleged backward messages by Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Queen
"Backwards Messages in Rock Music—Revealed! " podcast featuring The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Rush, Jefferson Starship, Wings, Queen, Phil Collins, Britney Spears, Judas Priest, Pink Floyd, Iron Maiden, Electric Light Orchestra, Prince, and Information Society

Music
Separation of powers

Separation of Powers means that the three branches of government are separated.

The three branches are as follows:
 the Legislative - the part that makes laws
 the Executive - the part that carries out (executes) the laws
 the Judicial Branch - the courts that decide if the law has been broken

Separation of Powers helps to protect freedom.  The executive branch carries out the laws but cannot make laws to make themselves powerful.  Also the judiciary is responsible for making sure that criminals are punished, so that members of the government or legislature cannot ignore the law as the judiciary can check on them.

Separation of powers is also called a system of checks and balances because the branches can check up on each other and if any of the branches get too strong, that branch will be balanced by the others. 

In the United States the three branches of government are completely separate except for the Vice President who is President of the Senate. In the United Kingdom the three branches of Government are mixed but the checks and balances are provided by history and custom (the rule that says something should happen because that is how it has been done for a long time).  The Queen is Head of State (the executive), but is also part of Parliament (the legislative branch) and is the Fountain of Justice (the head of the judicial branch). But by convention she does not do anything without the advice of Ministers and never refuses to pass an Act of Parliament. The Queen has a lot of power but the power is controlled and balanced by the need to act in certain ways or only use the power at certain times.

In some countries the leaders of the executive branch are members of the legislature. This system is called responsible government.
The first to talk about separation of powers in the modern age was Charles-Louis Montesquieu. Montesquieu published his book De l'esprit des lois (The Spirit of Laws) in 1748.

Related pages
 Constitution
Constitution of the United States
 Mixed government

Constitutions
Government
Politics
Exclusionary rule

The Exclusionary rule is a rule in United States constitutional law. It says that evidence from people who were forced to talk is not allowed in court. Also, evidence taken from an illegal search of property may not be used in court.

United States law
Criminal investigation
Chitin

Chitin is a semitransparent material that is the main component of the exoskeletons of arthropods, such as crustaceans (e.g. crab, lobster and shrimp) and insects (e.g. ants, beetles and butterflies), of the cell walls of fungi, the radula of molluscs and the beaks of cephalopods (e.g. squid, and octopuses). Chitin has also proven useful for several medical and industrial purposes.

References

Other websites 
 Chitin Product Information from China GreatVista Chemicals 
 Horseshoe Crab Chitin Research 

Carbohydrates
Macromolecules
Polymers
Natural materials
Radula

The radula is the toothed chitinous ribbon in the mouth  of most molluscs. It can be compared with the tongue of human beings but, unlike our tongue, it is used for cutting and chewing food before it enters the esophagus.  

The radula is present in all molluscs except bivalves, and only in molluscs.  For example, Gastropods use it to graze and scrape diatoms and other microscopic algae off rock surfaces and other substrata.  Squid use it for cutting up their prey.

References

Other websites 
 Molluscan buccal structures and radula
 A Comparison of the feeding behaviour and the functional morphology of radula structure in Nudibranchs 

Molluscs
Animal anatomy
Exoskeleton

An exoskeleton supports and protects an animal's body from outside and not like  the internal endoskeleton - of, for example human beings - from inside.  

Many invertebrate animals (such as shelled mollusks) have exoskeletons in the sense of external hard parts. But if one speaks of an exoskeleton one mostly means that of arthropods (i.e. insects, spiders, myriapods and crustaceans). 

Exoskeletons contain rigid and resistant components that fulfil a set of functional roles including protection, excretion, sensing, support, feeding and (for terrestrial organisms) acting as a barrier against desiccation. Exoskeletons first appeared in the fossil record about 550 million years ago, and their evolution has been seen as critical as a driving role in the Cambrian explosion of animals that took place subsequent to this time.

The exoskeleton ( exoskeleton suit) is a device intended to restore the lost motion functions of a person or other living being. The exoskeleton also serves to increase human muscle strength and range of motion by means of an external skeleton and drive elements.

Other websites

Biology
Geometry and Pattern in Nature 3: The holes in radiolarian and diatom tests

Modern technology
 Bionic Boots 
 PowerSkip 
 Berkeley Lower Extremity Exoskeleton (BLEEX) 
 University of Washington Exo Arm Project 

Animal anatomy
High Force

High Force is one of Britain's great waterfalls. It is in Teesdale, County Durham. It was created by erosion when a river went through the rock and did not erode the hard upper layer of igneous rock, but eroded the bottom layer of soft limestone, a sedimentary rock. It is one of the biggest waterfalls in the UK. 

Waterfalls
Bodies of water of Europe
Geography of England
County Durham
Adetokunbo Ademola

Omoba Sir Adetokunbo Adegboyega Ademola, KBE, GCON, PC, SAN (1 February 1906 – 29 January 1993) was a Nigerian judge and former Chief Justice of Nigeria (1958-1972). Before becoming the Chief Justice, he was Chief Justice of the Western Region of Nigeria. 

Although, Justice Ademola is known for his judicial duties, he was an important person in the Nigerian crisis of 1966. Then, a counter coup had challenged the unity of Nigeria. A few Northern Military officers had successfully executed a coup with a plan to secede from Nigeria. But the British High Commission, which gets intelligence briefings on Nigeria and Chief Justice Ademola persuaded the Northern leaders not to quit but to take power.

Life
Adetokunbo Ademola was born on February 1, 1906 to the family of a titled traditional ruler of Abeokuta, Oba Ladapo Ademola. He later married the daughter of a prominent Lagos lawyer, Kofo Moore.

He attended St Gregory's Grammar School and King's College, Lagos before proceeding to Selwyn College, Cambridge. He was then called to the bar in 1934 and started work as a crown counsel. In 1939, he was appointed a magistrate before becoming a junior high court judge in 1949. In 1955, he was made the Chief Judge of Western Nigeria and later became the Chief Justice of the country.

Chief Justice
As the Chief Justice, he was instrumental to the establishment of the Nigerian Law School, the first located in the country. He was also involved in a case: Lakanmi vs the Attorney General of Nigeria, where he ruled that a Nigerian court could review military decrees.

References

Nigerian people
Chief justices
1906 births
1993 deaths
Endoskeleton

An endoskeleton is a structure that holds an animal from inside. 

One can find endoskeletons in three phyla and one subclass of animals: in Chordata, Echinodermata, Porifera and Coleoidea. An endoskeleton allows the body to move and gives the body structure and shape. 

A true endoskeleton develops from mesodermal tissue. Such a skeleton is present in echinoderms and chordates. The Coleoidae do not have a true endoskeleton in the evolutionary sense; here, a mollusc exoskeleton developed into several sorts of internal structure, the "cuttlebone" of cuttlefish being the best-known version. An important advantage of an endoskeleton over an exoskeleton is that the endoskeleton provides more structural support.
Endoskeletons hold inner organs, tissues, and systems together easily.

Zoology
Animal anatomy
Skeletal system
Kayfabe

In professional wrestling, something that is "kayfabe" is not real, something that is "acted out" and not happening in real life. Many things in wrestling are kayfabe, that is, they appear to be real (such as the storylines), but are, in actuality, fake.

People who believe that kayfabe acts are real are called marks, as opposed to smarks. Those who know wrestling is scripted but still enjoy the storylines are known as smart-marks, or smarks.

It is unknown where the term came from; it is sometimes believed that the term "kayfabe" is a modification of the Pig latin word for "fake", "akefay".

Professional wrestling
Bruce Willis

Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955 in Germany) is an American actor and film producer. His mother was German; his father was American. He became famous in the late 1980s. He has remained one of Hollywood's biggest stars, mostly for his role as Lt. John McClane in the Die Hard series. 

Willis was married to actress Demi Moore and they had three daughters before their divorce in 2001. They were married for thirteen years. He has received many awards and honors in his career. Willis supports the United States armed forces and has been a spokesman several times.

Some of his best-known movies are Die Hard, The Player, Pulp Fiction and Sin City.

References

Other websites 

 
 
 
 Bruce Willis interview  on The Tavis Smiley Show

Actors from New Jersey
American movie actors
American movie producers
American television actors
American television producers
American voice actors
Emmy Award winning actors
Golden Globe Award winning actors
Independent (United States)
Musicians from New Jersey
1955 births
Living people
Zoospore

A zoospore is an asexual spore that uses a flagellum for moving around. It is also called a swarm spore. These spores are created by some algae and fungi to multiply themselves.

Flagella
There are two types of flagellated zoospores, whiplash and tinsel or "decorated".
 Whiplash flagella are straight, to power the zoospore through its medium. There is also the 'default' zoospore, which only has the propelling, 'whiplash' flagellum.
 Tinsellated flagella have lateral filaments perpendicular to the main axis, which allow for more surface area, and disturbance of the medium, giving it the property of a rudder, which it uses for steering.

Both tinsel and whiplash flagella beat in a sinusoidal wave pattern, but when both are present, the tinsel will beat in the opposite direction of the whiplash, to give 2 axes of control of motility.
 There can be many combinations for location of the flagella, such as posterior whiplash; posterior whiplash, anterior tinsel; and anterior whiplash.

Zoosporangium
A zoosporangium is the sexual structure in which the zoospores develop in a plant, fungi, or protists.

Related pages
 Flagellum
 Fern
 Angiosperm
 Chytridiomycota

References
 C.J. Alexopolous, Charles W. Mims, M. Blackwell et al., Introductory Mycology, 4th ed. (John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken NJ, 2004) 

Fungi
Gamete

A gamete is a specialized sex cell that fuses with another gamete during fertilization (conception) in organisms that reproduce sexually. Gametes are produced by germ cells.

In species which produce two morphologically distinct types of gametes, and in which each individual produces only one type, a female is any individual which produces the larger type of gamete—called an ovum (or egg)—and a male produces the smaller type—called a spermatozoon (or sperm cell).

The name gamete was introduced by the Austrian biologist Gregor Mendel.

Gametogenesis
Gametogenesis is the development of diploid germ cells into haploid eggs or sperm, (respectively oogenesis and spermatogenesis). It is different for each species but the general stages are similar. The development of eggs (oogenesis) and sperm (spermatogenesis) have many features in common. They both involve:
 Meiosis
 Extensive morphological cell differentiation
 Unable to survive for very long if fertilization does not occur

They also have major differences, especially
 Different timing of maturation: oogenic meiosis is interrupted at one or more stages (for a long time) while spermatogenic meiosis is rapid and uninterrupted.

References 

Reproductive system
Morphology

Morphology may mean:
Morphology (general), the study of the shape and form of things in general.
Morphology (linguistics), the study of the structure of word forms.
Morphology (biology) is the study of the external features [phenotype] comprising how the organisation of body of living organisms is formed
Morphology (astronomy) is the shape of an astronomical object, like nebulae, galaxies, or other extended objects.
Morphology (folkloristics), the structure of narratives such as folk tales.
Morphology (architecture), the study of the shape and form of buildings.
Morphology (metallurgy), the study of the microstructure of metals.

Geomorphology, the study of landforms.
Mathematical morphology, theoretical model based on Lattice theory, used for digital image processing.
River morphology, the field of science dealing with changes of river planform.

Morphological analysis, a general method for non-quantified modelling.
Morphology (biology)

For other uses, see Morphology (disambiguation).

Morphology is the study of animal or human form or body shape. It is the branch of biology dealing with the study of the form of organisms and their specific structural features. 

The concept of morphology was developed by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1790) and independently by the German anatomist and physiologist Karl Friedrich Burdach (1800).

In general use, the word morphology refers to the form and structure of an organism as a whole, including all internal and external structures. This includes aspects of the outward appearance (shape, structure, colour, pattern) as well as the form and structure of the internal parts like bones and organs. Morphology is contrasted to physiology, which deals primarily with function.

Branches of morphology 
 Comparative morphology is analysis of the patterns of structures within the body plan of an organism.
 Functional morphology is the study of the relationship between the structure and function of morphological features.
 Experimental morphology is the study of the effects of external factors upon the morphology of organisms under experimental conditions, such as the effect of genetic mutation.
 Anatomy is the study of the form and structure of internal features of an organism.

In English-speaking countries, the term "molecular morphology" has been used for some time for describing the structure of compound molecules, such as polymers
 and RNA. The term "gross morphology" refers to the collective structures or an organism as a whole as a general description of the form and structure of an organism, taking into account all of its structures without specifying an individual structure.

References 

Anatomy
Branches of zoology
Taxon

A taxon (plural taxa) is a taxonomic group or taxonomic unit. It is a group of organisms which a taxonomist decides belong together.

Taxa can be big or small, a fairly small taxon is the giraffes, a very big one is the beetles.

A taxonomist can assign a scientific name and rank to a taxon; this places it at a particular level in a hierarchy. It is not strictly necessary to assign either a name or a rank to a taxon, but doing so makes it much easier to refer to the taxon. However, many taxa have to wait for years before getting a name.

Ranks
There is no limit to the number of ranks that may exist, but the most important ranks are, in hierarchical order:
Domain
Kingdom
Phylum or Division 
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Subspecies

Note: "Phylum" applies formally to any biologial domain but traditionally it was always used of animals whereas "Division" was traditionally often used of plants, fungi etc.

A simple phrase to remember the order is
"Dignified Kings Play Chess On Fine Green Silk" (there are many other such phrases).

Taxonomy

A distinction is made between taxonomy and systematics. Systematics deals with how groups relate to each other. Taxonomy deals with making groups (taxa), deciding what belongs together. Taxonomy is also known as classification.

A special part of taxonomy is nomenclature. This consists of rules on what names to use. So a taxonomist first decides what does and does not belong in a group, and then uses nomenclature to decide what name this group should have. If a group is made larger or bigger it may get a different name. On the other hand, the same name may refer to a bigger taxon (according to one particular taxonomist) or a smaller taxon (according to some other taxonomist). This means that scientific names are not guaranteed to be stable. Most names are stable, but for some taxa there is no agreement on its name, because taxonomists do not agree what does belong together and what does not belong together.

A taxonomist can decide for himself what scientific reasons he adopts for making a group (a taxon). If he is not convincing in his choice, other taxonomists will not agree with him, and they will then make other arrangements. These days biological classification is mostly supposed be done according to evolutionary (phylogenetic) relationships, so far as these are known.

Taxonomy
Domain (biology)

In biological taxonomy, a domain (also superregnum, superkingdom, or empire) is a taxon in the highest rank of organisms, higher than a kingdom.

Domain (or its synonyms) is the most inclusive of these biological groupings. The arrangement of taxa reflects the fundamental evolutionary differences in the genomes. There are several modern alternative domain classifications of life. Among them are:
 The 'two-empire' system, with top-level groupings of Prokaryota (or Monera) and Eukaryota empires.
 The six-kingdom system with top-level groupings of Protista, Archaebacteria, Eubacteria, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia.
 The three-domain system of Carl Woese, introduced in 1990, with top-level groupings of Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukaryota domains.
After defining Archaea as a new domain, Woese redrew the taxonomic tree. His three-domain system is based upon genetic relationships. It divides life into 23 main divisions in three domains: Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya. Archaea are neither bacteria nor eukaryotes. Looked at another way, they are prokaryotes that are not bacteria.

Related pages
 Phylogenetics
 Taxonomy

Taxonomy
Keratin

Keratin is one of a family of fibrous proteins. Keratin is what makes up hair in animals, as well as horns, nails, hooves, shells, beaks, and feathers. The name comes from Greek word keras meaning "horn".

Keratins are tough and insoluble. They form the hard but non-mineral structures in reptiles, birds, amphibians and mammals. A similar biological toughness is found in chitin.

Variety of animal uses 
Keratins are the main constituent of structures that grow from the skin: 

 the α-keratins in the hair (including wool), horns, nails, claws and hooves of mammals 
 the harder β-keratins in the scales and claws of reptiles, their shells (chelonia, such as tortoise, turtle, terrapin), and in the feathers, beaks, and claws of birds. These keratins are formed mainly in beta sheets. However, beta sheets are also found in α-keratins.

Arthropods such as crustaceans often have parts of their exoskeleton made of keratin, sometimes in combination with chitin.

Keratins are also found in the gastrointestinal tracts of many animals, including roundworms (who also have an outer layer made of keratin). 

Although it is now difficult to be certain, the scales, claws, some protective armour and the beaks of dinosaurs would, almost certainly, have been composed of a type of keratin.

Silk 
The silk fibroins produced by insects and spiders are often classified as keratins, though it is unclear whether they are phylogenetically related to vertebrate keratins.

Silk found in insect pupae, and in spider webs and egg casings, also has twisted β-pleated sheets incorporated into fibers wound into larger supermolecular aggregates.

References

Other websites
Composition and β-sheet structure of silk
Spider silk fiber structure
Hair-Science.com's entry on the miroscopic elements of hair 
keratin antibody review 

Organic compounds
Proteins
Fibrous protein

A fibrous protein or scleroprotein  is one of the three main types of proteins. The others are globular and membrane proteins). 

There are many types of scleroprotein, such as  keratin, collagen, elastin, and fibroin. Such proteins protect and support. They form connective tissue, tendons, bone matrices, and muscle fibre.

References 

Proteins
Protein filament

In biology, a filament is a long chain of proteins, such as those found in hair, muscle, or in flagella.

Other websites
 http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss4cell.html

Molecular biology
Proteins
Lantern

A lantern is a device that can be moved from one place to another, used to create light and to light up open areas. Lanterns may be used for giving signals, or as general light sources for camping. They can have candles inside, or use other things as fuel, like alcohol or kerosene. Lanterns that give dim light are generally used as decoration. Lanterns are also used in festivals like the Obon festival in Japan.

Related pages

 Lamp
 Candle

Lamps
Cherry blossom

Japanese Cherry blossom or sakura (Japanese kanji and Chinese character: 桜 or 櫻; katakana: サクラ) are cherry trees, Prunus serrulata, and their blossoms. The fruit comes from a different species. Cherry trees are a symbol of spring for Japanese people. The word Sakura can also be used as a name for women.
The traditional custom of Hanami or Flower viewing involves visiting places where sakura are blooming. Japanese people love cherry blossoms, but they are not the national flower in Japan. Someiyoshino is the most famous type of sakura.

There are approximately 400 different types of cherry trees. They mutate easily.

Most of the flowers are white or pink with five petals, but there are some flowers with almost a hundred petals.

Related terms 
 Hanahubuki means a scene when the cherry petals are scattered like snow.
 Cosmos flowers are called Akizakura (autumn cherry blossoms) because the flower's shape is similar to a cherry blossom.

Related pages
 Hanami
 Ume

References

Other websites 
 Vancouver Sakura Diary, photos of different Sakura varieties.
 Yeuoido Spring Flower Festival in Seoul
 Sakura in Kyoto 
 Subaru Cherry Blossom Festival of Greater Philadelphia  Information about cherry trees and Philadelphia's Cherry Blossom Festival.
 Sakura Gallery From Tokyo & Kyoto.
 Photo Gallery of Cherry Blossoms  Sakura from Kyoto, Tokyo, Miyajima and other places around Japan.
 Photo Gallery of Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC
 Cherry Blossom Spots in Japan
 Cherry Blossom in Toronto, Canada, High Park

Japan
Trees
Rosaceae
Filamentation

For other uses see "Filament".

Filamentation is the anomalous (not normal) growth of certain bacteria, such as E. coli, in which cells continue to elongate but do not divide (no septa formation). Bacterial filamentation is a defect in completing replication and is observed in bacteria responding to a various stresses. This may happen, for example, when there is extensive DNA damage through the SOS response system. Nutritional change may also cause bacterial filamentation.

Microbiology
Septum

A septum (Latin: something that encloses; plural Septa) is a partition separating two cavities or spaces. Examples include:
Nasal Septum: the cartilage wall separating the nostrils of the human nose.Often deviated or perforated through physical injury or cocaine abuse.
Cephalopod Septa: walls between each chamber, or siphuncle, in shells of nautiloids, ammonites, and belemnites; i.e. cephalopods that retain an external shell.
The wall dividing the right side of the heart from the left side.
Fungi produce septa to partition filamentous hyphae into discrete cells.

Anatomy
National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain

The National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain (NYO) is an orchestra for young musicians in the United Kingdom.  The members of the orchestra are all aged between 13 and 19 years.  It is a very large orchestra with about 150 players. Children who want to play in the National Youth Orchestra have to be able to play their instrument very well.  They need to be at least Grade 8 Distinction standard and they need to be very good at sightreading so that they can learn very quickly.  They have to pass an audition to get a place in the orchestra.  These auditions take place in the autumn in several towns in Britain.

The National Youth Orchestra was started in 1947 by Ruth Railton (later Dame Ruth King).  The current director is Sarah Alexander.

The orchestra meet three times a year during the school holidays at New Year, Easter and Summer for about two weeks.  They rehearse very hard together and then give one or two concerts in famous concert halls in Britain such as Barbican Hall in London, Symphony Hall in Birmingham, Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, St David's Hall in Cardiff and Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow.  Every year they play in a Promenade Concert in the Royal Albert Hall.  In 2007 they played the Leningrad Symphony by Shostakovich at the Proms.  In June that year they played at the Glastonbury Festival.  The trumpeters and drummers  woke people up with Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man  In April 2008 the NYO played Stravinsky's Rite of Spring in Birmingham Symphony Hall, and in August they will play at the Snape Maltings and at the BBC Proms conducted by Antonio Pappano with the pianist Boris Berezovsky as soloist.

The concerts are always conducted by famous conductors.  Usually the famous conductor will come to rehearse the orchestra for the last few days of the course.  

During their courses they also have time to play chamber music together.  They are taught by teachers who are famous musicians.  Some of them are young composers who are learning to compose music.  They are taught by the composer Paul Patterson. The musicians also have time to explore music from other cultures.

The NYO also has Open Days for slightly younger children to explore music.

Other websites
 National Youth Orchestra Official website

Youth orchestras
Flag of Canada

The Maple Leaf flag became Canada's flag on 15 February 1965.

Before this, Canada used the British Red Ensign with Canada's coat of arms on it. Flag experts say that the Red Ensign was defaced by the coat of arms.

Flag and heraldry experts also call the design of the flag a Canadian Pale. This is because the white stripe in the middle (called a pale in heraldry) was not the usual narrow stripe but was half the width of the flag. This was the first time a design like this was used.

On some days the Canadian government flies the Royal Union Flag next to the Maple Leaf Flag. The Royal Union Flag is the British Union Jack, and is a symbol that Canada is a member of the Commonwealth, and that Canada and Britain share a history and a monarch.

The Queen of Great Britain, had some say in what the flag was to be. She thought that the maple leaf greatly represents the country of Canada.

Other websites
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTMdH9-kmDk The real story behind the Canadian flag CBC

Canada
Canada
OBE (disambiguation)

OBE can mean:

Order of the British Empire (an award)
Out of body experience (a strange feeling)
The Wee Free Men

The Wee Free Men is the 30th in the Discworld book series by Terry Pratchett. It was published in 2003. It is the second Discworld book written for children, but it's still liked by many adults.

Plot 

The Queen of the Elves tries to invade the Discworld again by stealing children and invading dreams.
Tiffany Aching, a 9-year-old girl discovers that her grandmother used to be a witch. Tiffany also discovered that she has a talent for magic, too.
When Tiffany's baby brother is stolen by the evil queen, Tiffany enters the elves' world to save him with the help of "The Wee Free Men" and Miss Tick. "The Wee Free Men" are small blue fairies and they speak with a Scottish accent.

2003 books
Fantasy books
Children's books
Vandals

The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe. They entered the late Roman Empire during the 5th century. The Vandals may have given their name to the region of Andalusia, which according to one of several theories of its etymology was originally called Vandalusia or land of the Vandals. This would be the source of Al-Andalus — the Arabic name of Iberian Peninsula, in the south of present-day Spain, where they settled before pushing on to create a Vandal Kingdom in North Africa. 

The Goth Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths and regent of the Visigoths, was allied by marriage with the Vandals, as well as with the Burgundians and the Franks under Clovis I. 

Byzantine Empire forces under Justinian I conquered the Vandalic African kingdom in 534.

References

Germanic tribes
Nasal septum

The nasal septum separates the left and right airways in the nose and divides the two nostrils.

Composition
The fleshy external end of the nasal septum is sometimes also called columella.

The nasal septum is composed of three structures:
 ethmoid bone
 vomer bone
 quadrangular cartilage

Clinical significance
The nasal septum can depart from the centreline of the nose; this condition is known as a deviated septum. Injury, excessive nose-picking and cocaine usage can cause septum perforations, or holes developing in the septum.

An operation to the nasal septum is known as a septoplasty.

Additional images

Other websites
 Diagram at evmsent.org 

Nose
Nostril

A nostril (or naris, pl. nares) is one of the two channels of the nose, from the point where they  to the external opening. 

In birds and mammals, they contain branched bones or cartilages called turbinates, whose function is to warm air on inhalation and remove moisture on exhalation. Fish do not breathe through their noses, but they do have two small holes used for smelling which may be called nostrils.

In humans, the nasal cycle means that during the course of a day, the nostrils will switch over approximately every four hours or so, meaning that only one nostril is used at any one time.

References 

Nose
Ethmoid bone

The ethmoid bone (from Greek ethmos, "sieve") is a bone in the skull that separates the nasal cavity from the brain. As such, it is located at the roof of the nose, between the two orbits. The cubical bone is lightweight due to a spongy construction.

Parts 
The ethmoid bone consists of four parts:
 the horizontal Cribriform plate (lamina cribrosa), part of the cranial base
 the vertical Perpendicular plate (lamina perpendicularis), which is part of the nasal septum
 the two lateral masses or labyrinths.

Blows to the head can shear off the olfactory nerves that pass though the ethmoid bone and cause anosmia, an irreversible loss of the sense of smell and a great reduction in the sense of taste (most of which depends on smell). This not only deprives life of some of its pleasures, but can also be dangerous, as when a person fails to smell smoke, gas, or spoiled food.

Additional images

Related pages
 Bone terminology

Other websites 
 http://www.theregister.com/2006/11/17/the_odd_body_nose_compass/

Bones of the skull
Bundesverdienstkreuz

The Bundesverdienstkreuz (Federal Cross of Merit) is Germany's only general decoration (award). It is officially called the Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany). This Federal Order of Merit was created on 7 September 1951. Germany gives between 3,000 and 5,200 awards every year, in all classes.

Most of the Länder have their own orders of merit. There are up to three ranks (member, officer, commander). The Cities of Bremen and Hamburg do not have an order, and by old tradition its citizens will refuse any decoration in form of an order.

Classes 
The Bundesverdienstkreuz has eight classes, in ascending order:
 Verdienstmedaille (Medal of Merit)
 Verdienstkreuz am Bande (Cross of Merit on ribbon)
 international: Ritterkreuz (Knight's Cross)
 Verdienstkreuz 1. Klasse (Cross of Merit, First class)
 international: Offizierkreuz (Officer's Cross)
 Großes Verdienstkreuz (Halskreuz) (Great Cross of Merit, neck cross)
 international: Komturkreuz (Commander's Cross)
 Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern (Great Cross of Merit with star)
 international: Großoffizierkreuz (Great Officer's Cross)
 Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern und Schulterband (Great Cross of Merit with Star and shoulder ribbon)
 international: Großkreuz 2. Klasse (Grand Cross of Merit, Second class) oder Großkomturkreuz (Grand Commander's Cross)
 Großkreuz (Grand Cross)
 Sonderstufe des Großkreuzes (Special class of the Grand Cross)

The President of the Federal Republic holds the Sonderstufe des Großkreuzes ex officio. It is awarded to him in a ceremony by the President of the Bundestag. The Chancellor, the President of the Bundesrat and the President of the Bundesverfassungsgericht attend this ceremony. Other than the President of the Federal Republic, only a foreign head of state can receive the highest class award. People can also receive the Großkreuze in a special rare design. Only two people have had this award, Konrad Adenauer and Helmut Kohl.

Insignia 

Except for the lowest class, the badge is the same for all classes. However, the badge and ribbon for women is a little smaller. The badge is a golden Maltese Cross enamelled in red. It has a central disc with a black eagle. The star is golden. It has straight rays and its size and points vary according to class. The badge is on top of it. The ribbon is red with gold-black-gold stripes.

 
1951 establishments in Europe
1950s establishments in Germany
Austin Lightning

The Austin Lightning is an amateur soccer team in Austin, Texas. It is in the Mid South division of the South Conference of the Premier Development League of the United Soccer Leagues.

The club was founded in 2003, when it was moved from Lafayette, Louisiana. The team finished last in the division in the 2007 season, due in part to scheduling difficulties caused by record amounts of rain in Austin, which cause fields to be closed on match days. The Austin Lightning are coached by Jaime Mimbela. Their colors are red and white.

Other websites
 Austin Lightning Official Site 
 Austin Lightning fan blog

American soccer teams
Sports in Texas
2002 establishments in the United States
2007 disestablishments in the United States
BBC Symphony Orchestra

The BBC Symphony Orchestra is the main orchestra of the British Broadcasting Corporation. It is one of the best orchestras in Britain.

History 
The orchestra started in 1930. Sir Adrian Boult was the main conductor until 1950, when Sir Malcolm Sargent took over until 1957. Since then there have been several conductors. Now the orchestra is conducted by Jiří Bělohlávek.

As well as these principal conductors there have been others, including the famous Arturo Toscanini, who made a series of recordings with the orchestra in the Queen's Hall from 1937 to 1939.

The BBC often ask composers of today to write music for the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Composers whose new works they have performed include Sally Beamish, Harrison Birtwistle Elliott Carter, James MacMillan, John Tavener and Mark-Anthony Turnage. 

The orchestra plays a big part in the BBC Proms, the season of concerts played every summer at the Royal Albert Hall. It plays on both the first and last nights of the prom season. It also plays several concerts in the Barbican during the year. They often make recordings in the BBC studios. They can often be seen on BBC Television. Sometimes they go on tour to other countries. They also play concerts for young people as part of an education programme.

There are other professional BBC orchestras and groups: the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Concert Orchestra, the BBC Big Band and the BBC Singers. There are also two amateur choruses: the BBC Symphony Chorus and the BBC National Chorus of Wales.

Chief conductors of the BBC Symphony Orchestra 
Adrian Boult (1930-1950)
Malcolm Sargent (1950-1957)
Rudolf Schwarz (1957-1963)
Antal Doráti (1962-1966)
Colin Davis (1967-1971)
Pierre Boulez (1971-1975)
Rudolf Kempe (1976)
Gennady Rozhdestvensky (1978-1981)
John Pritchard (1982-1989)
Andrew Davis (1989-2000)
Leonard Slatkin (2000-2004)
Jiří Bělohlávek (2006-2013)
Sakari Oramo (2013-present)

Other websites 
 The 

BBC
British orchestras
Jiří Bělohlávek

Jiří Bělohlávek (24 February 1946 – 31 May 2017) was a Czech conductor. He was the principal (main) conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. His name "Bělohlávek" means "Whitehead". It is pronounced "Bye-lo-hla-vek". He was born in Prague.

Bělohlávek studied conducting with Sergiu Celibidache. He went to the Prague Conservatory and Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. He won the 1970 Czech National Conducting Competition and soon became famous in his country and abroad.

Bělohlávek was chief conductor of the Prague Symphony Orchestra from 1977-1989. He became principal conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1990 for a short time. Then he founded the Prague Philharmonia (Pražskou komorní filharmonii) in 1994, They gave concerts all over the world together and made many recordings. He is still their conductor laureate (honorary conductor).

From 1995-2000, Bělohlávek was principal guest conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. In 2006 he became their principal conductor. He conducted them at the Proms that year. In 2007 he conducted at the Last Night of the Proms.

Bělohlávek also conducts in the United States. He first conducted at the Metropolitan Opera (Met) in  December 2004, conducting Leoš Janáček's "Káťa Kabanová" with Karita Mattila in the title role. He returned to the Met in January and February of 2007 for the same composer's "Jenůfa", once again with Mattila, and with Anja Silja as the Kostelnička. Other guest conducting appearances in the US have been with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra.

Bělohlávek died on 31 May 2017 in Prague from cancer at the age of 71.

References

1946 births
Czech people
2017 deaths
Deaths from cancer
Conductors
Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a NASA research center in Pasadena, California.

United States government agencies
Astronomical organizations
Pasadena, California
Mapudungun

Mapudungun is a language isolate  spoken by Mapuche people, in Chile and Argentina. Even after the arrival of the Spaniards, ethnic groups in Argentina adopted Mapudungun, for instance Patagonians or Tehuelche. This process is named araucanization. Today, its speakers number 260,000, with 250,000 in the Central Valley of Chile and 10,000 in the Argentinian region of Patagonia.

The name of the boldo tree comes from the Mapudungun word foldo. The word "Poncho" was adopted by Spanish and many other languages. It may have come from the Mapudungun word pontro or from the Quechua word punchu.

References

Language isolates
Languages of South America
Impurity

Something that has impurity is not pure. For example, water that is clean would be called pure water. Water that is dirty would be called impure water. This may result in a change in melting point or boiling point.

Harmful impurity
Impurities may be harmful. For example, an engine works bad when its fuel is not pure.

Useful impurity
Impure materials are useful sometimes. Alloys are metals with impurities. Solar cells are made of silicon crystals, but a very small amount of impurity (0.001% to 0.01%) is needed in them to work.

Removing impurities 
 Removed by distillation for liquids
 Removed by recrystallization for solids

Chemistry
Queen's Hall

The Queen's Hall was a concert hall in Central London, England.  It opened in 1893.  It is best known for being where the Promenade Concerts were started by Robert Newman in 1895.

The Queen's Hall was built because London needed a new concert hall in the centre of the town.  It stood in Langham Place, just next to where BBC Broadcasting House stands today.  The Queen's Hall had seating for up to 3,000 people (including the orchestra).  The arena (downstairs) had removable seating.  The polished floor could be used for dancing.  The acoustics of the hall were excellent.  There was also a smaller hall, The Queen's Small Hall, which seated 500 people.  This was used for chamber music.  In later years it was used as a recording studio.  The architect who designed the hall was Thomas Edward Knightley.

The first time The Queen's Hall was used was on 25 November 1893 when Newman gave a children's party in the afternoon.  In the evening about 2000 ladies and gentlemen came to a concert given by the Band of the Coldstream Guards, which included vocal music, piano and organ solos.  At 11.00pm the seats in the arena were removed and the dancing began.  The official opening of the hall took place on 2 December.  On 10 August 1895 the first Promenade concert was given with Henry Wood conducting.

On January 14, 1896, the first public movie show was given at the Queen's Hall to members and wives of the Royal Photographic Society.

The seats were uncomfortable because there was not enough leg room, so in 1913 and 1919 some changes were made, after which the hall could seat 2400 people. 

From 1930 to 1941, the BBC Symphony Orchestra regularly gave broadcast concerts in the hall.  Arturo Toscanini, who guest conducted the orchestra during the 1930s, made  some famous recordings in the Queen's Hall in the late 1930s.

On 10 May 1941 (during the World War II)  the Royal Choral Society gave a concert in the Queen's Hall with the London Symphony Orchestra.  They performed Elgar's oratorio Dream of Gerontius under the conductor Sir Malcolm Sargent.  It was the last concert ever given there because, later that night, the hall was completely destroyed by bombs. 

After the destruction of Queen's Hall, the BBC Symphony Orchestra moved its broadcast concerts and recording sessions to Bedford School.  Among the great recordings made at the school was Sir Adrian Boult's recording of Elgar's second symphony.  The Proms continued in the Royal Albert Hall.  They also took place in Bristol and Bedford, but after the war they settled in the Royal Albert Hall where they continue today.

Concert halls in London
Avesta

Avesta is the holy book of Zoroastrianism. It is written in the Avestan language, an Iranian language. The Avesta has also been translated into other languages including Farsi and English. The oldest portion, the Ghathas, are the religious songs composed by Zoroaster himself. Other parts of Avesta are named Yasna, Yashts, Visperad, Vendidad and Khordeh Avesta. There are two other religious texts in Zoroastrianism which are named Denkard and Ardaviraf Namak.

Religious texts
Zoroastrianism
Darius I of Persia

Darius the Great (c. 549 BC– 486/485 BC) was the son of Hystaspes and Shah of Iran from 522 BC to 485 BC. After Darius became Shah of Iran, he divided the Persian Empire into twenty provinces, and appointed a governor for each province. He introduced golden coins and developed commerce within the empire and trade without. Darius allowed Jews to rebuild the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. He also built many temples in Egypt. The largest building that was built by Darius, is the new capital of Persepolis, near Pasargadae. Darius died in Persepolis. His tomb was cut into a rock face near Persepolis. After his death, Xerxes became the Shah of Iran.

Iranian people
Shahs of Iran
Pasargadae

Pasargadae was a city in ancient Persia, and is today a historical site in Fars,Iran. Pasargadae was the first capital of the Persian Empire. The building of the capital city by Cyrus the Great, begun in 546 BCE, but was left unfinished, for Cyrus died in 530 BCE. Pasargade remained the Persian capital unti Darius I built the Persepolis. The tomb of Cyrus the Great is in this city.

Pasargadae is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

History of Iran
World Heritage Sites in Iran
American Staffordshire Terrier

The American Staffordshire terrier is a breed of dog. 

It was first bred in British colonies of North America in the nineteenth century. Its early ancestors are the bulldog and the terrier, and used to be called the Blue Paul terrier. In the 1930s, dogbreeders bred it with the Pit bull terrier. Its name was changed to the American Staffordshire Terrier in 1972.

Terriers
Persepolis

Persepolis (Old Persian: 'Pars', New Persian: , Takht-e Jamshid) was an ancient capital of the second Iranian dynasty, the Achaemenid Empire. Ancient Persians called it Parsa, meaning the city of Persians. Persepolis () is the Greek translation of the name. In modern Iran, the city is known as Takht-e-Jamshid (Throne of Jamshid). The largest building in Persepolis is the Apadana Hall with 72 columns. The Tachara palace built by Darius I is also an important building. The Hadish palace in Persepolis was started by Xerxes and finished by his son Artaxerxes.

Persepolis has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979.

History of Iran
World Heritage Sites in Iran
Xerxes

Xerxes the Great was a Shah of Iran (485–465 BC) of Achaemenid Empire. Xerxes was son of Darius I and Atossa, the daughter of Cyrus the Great. After Darius died, Xerxes became the Shah of Iran. At the Battle of Thermopylae, Xerxes defeated Greek warriors. After winning at Thermopylae, Xerxes then took control of Athens with his army. Finally, Greek warriors won the Battle of Salamis against Xerxes in 480 BC.

The movie 300 is based on Xerxes.

References

Ancient sources

Other websites

Shahs of Iran
Shell (zoology)

A shell is a hard outer layer, which has evolved in a very wide variety of different animals, including molluscs, sea urchins, crustaceans, turtles and tortoises, armadillos, etc.

Seashells 

Seashells are perhaps the most familiar and most common shells, both in the wild and for sale as decorative objects. They are usually composed of calcium carbonate, in the form of calcite or aragonite. This can have different forms, one is nacre or mother of pearl.  Other kinds of animal shells are made from chitin, bone and cartilage, or silica.

Use of Shells 

Shells of many types were popular as human decorations, either used whole or cut into pieces. One  used them for all kinds of pendants, beads, buttons, brooches, rings, and hair combs.

Small pieces of colored shell and iridescent shell have been used to create mosaics and inlays which have been used to decorate larger items such as boxes and furniture. Large numbers of whole seashells, arranged to form patterns, have been used to decorate man-made grottos.

Several kinds of sea animals have exoskeletons which one can find after their death in beach drift. Often beachcombers pick them. But usually only those of molluscs (also spelled "mollusks") are known as seashells.

Classes 

The majority of shell-forming molluscs belong to two classes: Gastropoda (univalves, or snails) and Bivalvia (bivalves or clams, oysters, scallops, etc.).

Gallery

References

Other websites 
 Shell Hair Pipes used in Indian Adornment
 110 Photos of various seashells
 Conchologists of America 

Zoology
Animal anatomy