ejaasaari/simplewiki-2025-04-01 huggingface dataset:
The Junior Certificate is earned by passing a required exam that takes place in secondary schools in the Republic of Ireland. The exams take place every June, with English always the first exam. For example, the English exam took place on June 8 this year (2005). Exams usually end with the subjects that the fewest people take. For example, Italian took place on June 24 this year (2005). Three exams must be passed in order to receive a certificate: They are English, Mathematics, and Irish. If a student has not lived in Ireland for at least seven years before the exam, he is not required to sit for the Irish exam. A student may then take 3-6 other subjects to get his certifcate. The results of the exams are given in mid-September.
The Leaving Certificate is the final exam in the Republic of Ireland secondary school education system. Students have to do the Junior Certificate before they can take the Leaving Certificate. Students also have to take Maths and English. If they took Irish during the Junior Certificate, they also have to take Irish. Students have to take exams on at least six subjects. They can take either High or Ordinary level tests. In Irish and Maths, there is also a Foundation level. This is for people who have trouble with that subject. The results are given out in the middle of August. A leaving certificate is required in order to go on to college or university.
An empire is a political unit which exercises control over territory of great extent or a number of territories or peoples through formal annexations or various forms of informal domination.  Well-known empires include the Persian Empire, founded by Cyrus the Great, the Roman Empire, Arab Muslim empires such as the Rashidun Caliphate and the Umayyad Caliphate, Berber empires such as the Almohads and the Almoravids, the Russian Empire, the Greek Macedonian Empire, the Holy Roman Empire and the British Empire. The oldest empire was the Akkadian Empire, whose founder was Sargon of Akkad. Empires that are known for conquering much territory with speed include the Greek Macedonian Empire (during the time of Alexander the Great) and the Arab Empire. According to Scottish historian James Buchan: "In speed and extent, the first Arab conquests were matched only by those of Alexander the Great, and they were more lasting."  Sea empires grew mostly by sailing to distant places and conquering them. Mediterranean sea empires were the Phoenician states of Tyre, Sidon and Carthage; the Italian maritime republics of Venice and Genoa. Others were the Chola dynasty of Tamil Nadu in India; the Omani Empire of Arabia; and the Austronesian empires of Srivijaya and Majapahit in Maritime Southeast Asia. The Aztec Empire and the Mongol Empire were land empires. Before Christopher Columbus, there were several empires in America including the Aztec Empire, and the Inca Empire. The Spanish and the Portuguese were the first Europeans to discover America. Later came the English, later to be called the British Empire which controlled most of North America, and the Spanish Empire controlled most of South America and Latin America. Modern empires. The newest created empire was The Soviet Union created in 1922, which included Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. Today, the only monarch to use the title "emperor" is the Emperor of Japan although his power is mostly ceremonial and the "de facto" head of government is the Prime Minister of Japan.
A writer can mean anyone who makes a written work or who writes, but the word more usually means people who write creatively or as a job, or those who have written in many different forms.  Overview. A "person who writes books or articles to be published"; That is one of the ways that media explains what a writer does. l Skilled writers demonstrate skills in using language to portray certain ideas and images, whether in fiction or non-fiction. Types. This list consists of merely a few examples of the many types of writing. Types of writers. Writers often specialize in one of the following categories:
An inventor is a person who makes new inventions, devices that perform some kind of function. The devices are mostly electrical or mechanical. Someone that invents new ideas or methods on how to do things may also be called an inventor. Inventors can receive a patent. Many inventors make small changes to old inventions. For example, people have invented new ways to make clocks over history. Early clocks were sundials, later clocks used water, and pendulums. Modern clocks are often electronic. Other machines such as vehicles are made of many inventions.
Bear are a group of large mammals found all over the world in many different habitats. They form the family Ursidae, in the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora. There are 8 living bear species. Appearance. Bears usually have a big body with short and thick legs. They have a broad head and a very short tail. They have small eyes and round ears. They usually have longer, shaggy fur. On each foot they have five claws, which they cannot pull back. They use their claws for digging, climbing, and hunting. They can stand up on their back legs and their front paws are flexible. Usually bears can climb and swim very well. Males are usually bigger than females. Most bears except the giant panda are only one color. Most bears are russet, brown, or black. Bears do not have good hearing. They have powerful senses of smell and sight. They have good sight and can see colors, which is different from other carnivores. Bears mostly use their sense of smell to know what is around them. They can smell better than dogs. Bears also have good memory, which lets them remember where they can find food. Life. They are mostly active at night, except for the Polar Bear. Some bears hibernate, meaning they sleep during the winter to save energy. Bears are usually omnivorous, which means that they eat plants and meat. They eat berries, grass, and fish. An exception is the polar bear, which eats mostly meat. Bears usually live alone, except when they are mating season or if they have cubs. The father does not raise the cubs. The mother raises the cubs for months or a few years depending on how much food there is. The mother protects her young, even at the cost of her life. Distribution. Bears live all over the world, mostly in the Northern hemisphere. They are found in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. There used to be bears in northern Africa but they are now extinct. In popular culture. Some fictional bears include, Yogi Bear, The Berenstain Bears, and Winnie the Pooh.
Meteorology is the science that focuses on the Earth's atmosphere. People who study meteorology are called meteorologists. Meteorologists record air pressure, wind speed and direction, temperature, humidity, weather patterns, and other information. Meteorologists use this data to understand weather and to predict it. Meteorology is a major branch of earth science. Meteorologists study the causes of particular weather conditions using information obtained from the land, sea and upper atmosphere. They use computerized and mathematical models to make short and long-range forecasts concerning weather and climate patterns. A variety of organizations use meteorological forecasts including: In addition to forecasting, meteorologists study the impact of weather on the environment and conduct research into weather patterns, climate change and models of weather prediction.
Technology is the skills, methods, and processes used to achieve goals. The word has been in use since the 17th century.  People can use technology to: Technology can be knowledge of how to do things. Some machiness have automatic controls. This lets others use the machines without knowing how they work. Technological systems use technology by taking something, changing it, then producing a result. They are also known as technology systems. The most simple form of technology is the development and use of basic tools. The discovery of fire and the Neolithic Revolution made food easier to get. Other inventions, such as the wheel and the ship, helped people to transport goods and themselves. This, along with information technology such as the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, has led to globalization.  People have used technology for millions of years. Without food technology, most people would die. Etymology. The word "technology" comes from two Greek words:
The Seven Wonders of the World (or the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World) is a widely-known list of seven great buildings or structures from the classical time period. Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. This is a list put together in the 2nd century BC by  Antipater of Sidon and Philon of Byzantium. This explains why it only lists monuments of the Mediterranean world. There are other slightly different versions: this is the most usual one. Out of those structures only the Great Pyramid still exists in the 21st century. Most of the wonders were built by the Greeks. Earlier versions listed the Walls of Babylon and the Palace of Cyrus the Great. Seven wonders of the modern world. This version was decided by the American Society of Civil Engineers.  Seven natural wonders of the world. There is no single list of seven natural wonders of the world. One of the many lists was compiled by CNN: New7Wonders of the World was an idea to choose new wonders of the world from a selection of 200 existing monuments. The mission began in 2001 and ended in 2007 with the announcement of the winners. The popularity poll was led by Canadian-Swiss Bernard Weber and organized by the New7Wonders Foundation in Zürich, Switzerland. Voting took place through the Internet or by telephone.  The program caused different reactions from countries and organisations. Some countries praised their finalist and tried to get more people to vote for it. Others criticized the contest or did not think it was very important.  Among the strongest criticism was from UNESCO, who said in a press release in 2007: Winners: Other modern lists. From a variety of modern lists of wonders made by man, some items occur several times:
William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American movie director, producer, writer and actor. He was born in New York City and raised in Manhattan and Stamford, Connecticut. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and early 1990s, for directing a series of movies about the Vietnam War. He was in the war as an infantry soldier. Stone's movies are often about political and cultural issues.
The whale shark ("Rhincodon typus"), is a filter feeding shark. It is the largest living fish. It grows up to 12 metres long, and may weigh as much as 47,000 pounds. The whale shark has a very wide distribution. It is found in all tropical and warm temperate seas, except in the Mediterranean. It has a huge mouth which sweeps up krill and plankton. This large fish eats the smallest sea life. Description. The whale shark has a streamlined body and a wide, flattened head. The mouth is transverse, very large and is nearly at the tip of the snout. The gill slits are also very large, and are designed as filtering screens. The first dorsal fin is much larger than the second dorsal fin, and is located at the back of the body. The caudal fin is semi-lunate (crescent-shaped) in adults, and with the young, the upper lobe is quite longer than the lower lobe. The whale shark has a unique "checkerboard" colour pattern of light spots and stripes on a dark background. Whale sharks are grey, blue or brown above, with a surface pattern of creamy white spots between pale, vertical and horizontal stripes. The belly is white. These markings are camouflage against their backgrounds. They can be as long as 41 feet (12.3 metres) in length, and weigh as much as 47,000 pounds (21.5 tonnes). However, it is believed that there are some whale sharks which can reach lengths of up to 67 feet (20 metres). The smallest free-living individuals are around 55 cm (21.7 inches) long. Whale sharks reach maturity at lengths of about 8–9 metres. They are the largest species of fish, and the largest animal that is not a whale. Distribution. The whale shark has a very widespread distribution, found in all tropical and warm temperate seas, except in the Mediterranean. It is found throughout the Atlantic Ocean, from New York, through the Caribbean, to central Brazil, and from Senegal to the Gulf of
Qatar (, , or ; ' ; local dialect: ), officially the State of Qatar ( '), is a sovereign country in Western Asia. It is on the small Qatari-Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Its only land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of it's territory surrounded by the Persian Gulf. A strait in the Persian Gulf separates Qatar from the nearby island country of Bahrain, as well as sharing maritime borders with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran. Following Ottoman rule, Qatar became a British protectorate in the early 20th century until gaining independence in 1971. Qatar has been ruled by the House of Thani since the early 19th century. Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani was the founder of the State of Qatar. Qatar is a hereditary monarchy and its head of state is Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. Whether it should be called a constitutional or an absolute monarchy is a matter of opinion. In 2003, the constitution was overwhelmingly approved in a referendum, with 100% in favour. As of early 2017, Qatar's total population was around 2.6 million: 313,000 Qatari citizens and 2.3 million expatriates. Qatar is a high income economy and is a developed country, with the world's third largest natural gas reserves and oil reserves. The country has the highest per capita income in the world. Qatar is classified by the UN as a country of very high human development and is the most advanced Arab state for human development. Qatar is a significant power in the Arab world, supporting several rebel groups during the Arab Spring both financially and through its globally expanding media group, Al Jazeera Media Network. For its small size, Qatar has a lot of influence in the world, and has been identified as a middle power. Qatar hosted the 2022 FIFA World Cup, becoming the first Arab country to do so. Qatar is either a constitutional or an absolute monarchy ruled by the Al Thani family. The Al Thani dynasty has been ruling Qatar since the family house was established in 1825. In 2003,
Salt water (or saline water) is water with a large amount of salt in it. It usually means the water from the seas and oceans (sea water). Almost all the water on Earth is saline. River water, however, is usually not saline. Salt water used for making or preserving food, is usually saltier than sea water and is called brine. Drinking sea water alone is dangerous. A summary of 163 life raft voyages showed the risk of death at 39% for those who drank seawater, compared to 3% for those who did not. Experiments on rats showed the danger. When scientists measure salt in water, they are testing the salinity of the water. Salinity is measured in "parts per thousand" or "ppt". Most sea water is about 35 ppt salt. Salt lakes can be up to ten times as salty. Above that level precipitation creates a salt plain. Brackish water, in contrast, is less salty than seawater. Salt water is more dense than fresh water. Fresh water has a density of 1 g/ml, while salty seawater has an average density of about 1.025 g/ml.
Oceanography (also called oceanology or marine science) is the study of the ocean, its properties and its characteristics. This can include, and is not limited to, studying the marine life, the geography of the ocean floor, and the water itself. Many sciences are useful in oceanography, so it is a multidisciplinary field. Oceanographers spend much time on boats.  Sub-Categories. The study of oceanography may be divide branches:
Diamanto Manolakou (born 1 March 1959,) is a Greek politician and member of the European Parliament for the Communist Party of Greece; part of the European United Left–Nordic Green Left.
Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (Minehead, Somerset, 6 December 1917 – Colombo, Sri Lanka, 19 March 2008) was a British writer and inventor. He was most famous for his science fiction novel "", and for working with director Stanley Kubrick on the movie of the same name. Clarke and Isaac Asimov were probably the two best-known science fiction writers of their day. Some of Clarke's novels include "Childhood's End", "A Fall of Moondust", "The Songs of Distant Earth", "The Sands of Mars", and "Meeting with Medusa". He also wrote many short stories, and several serious works on science. Clarke served in the Royal Air Force as a radar instructor and technician from 1941 to 1946. He proposed a satellite communication system in 1945 which won him the Franklin Institute Gold Medal in 1963. He was the chairman of the British Interplanetary Society from 1947 to 1950 and again from 1951 to 1953. Clarke emigrated to Sri Lanka in 1956 largely to pursue his interest in scuba diving; That year, he discovered the underwater ruins of the ancient Koneswaram temple in Trincomalee. He lived in Sri Lanka until his death. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998, and was awarded Sri Lanka's highest civil honour, Sri Lankabhimanya, in 2005. Clarke died from heart and respiratory failure at the age of 90.
Anthony Burgess (25 February 1917 – 22 November 1993) was an English author. One of these was named "A Clockwork Orange". It was about evil. He had the idea for the story after a group of bad young men raped and beat his wife for no reason. Burgess also made songs and music. And he wrote a lot about writers he loved, such as James Joyce, a novelist, and Gerard Manley Hopkins, a poet. Burgess was born in Harpurhey, Manchester, in the north of England. Before he became a writer, he was a soldier, then a teacher. When he was 37 years old, he left his home country to work in Malaysia and Brunei. Later, he lived in the USA, Italy, and France. He was born very poor, the son of a man who made a meagre living out of selling cigarettes to workmen. But when Burgess died, he had grown rich. This was because he worked so hard at his art, which is the art of literature. He wrote at least 1,000 words every day of his life. But he always found time to be kind to other writers. He was friendly to the many people who came to visit with him at his seaside home in Monaco. Burgess died of lung cancer aged 76, in St John's Wood, London. The books by Burgess that people say they like the most are called "Earthly Powers", about the Pope; "Enderby", about a poet; and "Nothing Like the Sun", about William Shakespeare.
Rape is usually defined as having sexual intercourse with a person who does not want to, or cannot consent. Consent is when someone agrees of their own choice without being forced to. In France it is more widely defined as 'unwanted sexual penetration'. Rape is a form of sexual assault. In most countries, rape is one of the most serious crimes. The International Criminal Court can also condemn it as a "crime against humanity", if done by a group. A person who rapes someone is a rapist. Rapists may use violence, drugs, or threats to get their way. People of any gender can be raped. This was not recognized by the United States law until 2011. People often stay quiet about a rape because they feel ashamed about it.  How common it is. According to a study done in the European Union, of 2011, two percent of the women taking part said that they had been victims of sexual violence, in the preceding year. A representative U.S. study found that between 15 and 25 percent of women were raped at least once during their lifetime. According to a study by the United Nations, of 2013, about 25 percent of the men in the Asia Pacific region said that they had raped at least one woman, ten percent said they have forced a women to have sex with them who wasn't their partner. After being raped. People who have been raped, should do a number of things. These things have to be done rather quickly: People who cannot consent. A person may be unable to consent (say yes to) to sexual intercourse or other sexual activity. Having sex with a person who cannot consent is rape. Adults who cannot consent. Some adults are unable to consent to sex. Forms of rape. There are different forms: Marital rape. Marital rape is where the victim of rape is married to the person committing the rape. Non-consensual sex with a married partner is thought to be rape under the laws of some countries but not others. In the United Kingdom, marital rape was determined to be a crime in the case of "R v. R" (1991). Marital rape being illegal does not mean that the law is enforced.
Emmet Derby Boyle (July 26, 1879 - January 3, 1926) was a Governor of Nevada. He was a Democrat. Boyle was born in Virginia City, Nevada in 1879. He was a mining engineer, and was the Governor between 1915 and 1923. While serving as governor, numerous reforms were carried out such as increases in workmen's compensation, as well as increases in retirement benefits for the states's schoolteachers. A number of other labor laws were also introduced. He died in 1926 at the age of 46.
A carp (plural: carp or carps) is a fish that lives in fresh water, such as rivers and lakes. In Europe and Asia carp are loved as a fishing and eating fish. However, carp are a really big problem in countries such as the U.S. and Australia. They make the water dirty by causing the mud at the bottom to move and in these countries people hate them. Some popular ornamental fishes like the koi and goldfish are also carp.
Ronald Walken (born March 31, 1943), simply known as Christopher Walken, is an American movie, television, and theatre actor. He is best known for playing evil or mentally damaged characters. He has sometimes used that image for comedic effect. He was born in Queens, New York to a German father and Scottish-born mother. Walken has been married to casting director Georgianne Walken since 1969. Walken is a skilled dancer who in many of his movies dances, because he requests it. He has been in nearly one hundred movies and television shows since 1953, including "The Dead Zone" (1983), "Brainstorm" (1983), "A View to a Kill" (1985), "Batman Returns" (1992) "True Romance" (1993), "Pulp Fiction" (1994), "Nick of Time" (1995), "Mousehunt", (1997), Catch Me If You Can" (2002), "Around the Bend" (2004) and "The Jungle Book" (2016). He was George Lucas' second choice for Han Solo after Harrison Ford. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in "The Deer Hunter" (1978) where he played a disturbed Vietnam veteran with Robert De Niro. He was nominated again in 2002 for "Catch Me if You Can".  Walken has been guest host on Saturday Night Live many times. He has played many well known characters on that show.
Eugene Allen Hackman (January 30, 1930 – February 18, 2025) was an American actor. Early life. Hackman was born in San Bernardino, California. His parents divorced while he was a child, and he moved from one place to another until he settled finally in Danville, Illinois, where he lived with his English-born grandmother. He left home at 16 years old to join the Marines, where he served three years as a radio operator.  Having finished his service, he moved to New York, where he worked in several minor jobs. He then studied television (TV) production and journalism at the University of Illinois. Career. Already over 30 years old, Hackman decided to become an actor, and joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California. It was in that school that Hackman became friends with another man named Dustin Hoffman, who also wanted to be an actor. After working hard in many roles he became a well-respected actor. He won two Academic Awards, and has played many well-known roles. Death. Hackman was found dead, along with his wife and their dog, at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on February 26, 2025. He was 95. The Santa Fe police department said there were no signs of foul play.