ejaasaari/simplewiki-2025-04-01 huggingface dataset:
A leitmotif (pronounced , “LITE-mow-teef”) (also spelled leitmotiv), is a German word meaning leading motif. It is a little musical theme that is often repeated in a piece of music, very often in opera. The leitmotif is linked in the musical story with a person or a thing or an idea. The leitmotif might be a short tune, but it can also be a rhythm or just a chord. The word “leitmotif” is sometimes used in other things such as literature. In a book it might be an idea that keeps coming during the story. It can also be used in movies or video games. The word “leitmotif” is particularly associated with the operas of Richard Wagner. The leitmotif helps to make the story dramatic and bind it together, because it makes the music easier to understand. Sometimes a leitmotif will change during an opera as the character changes. Various dramatic effects can be made with leitmotifs. For example, a leitmotif might be played before a character comes onstage, so the audience will know who is coming before the actor can be seen. Three examples of leitmotifs from Wagner's Ring Cycle "Der Ring des Nibelungen " are: the leitmotif for the chief god Wotan (a person), the leitmotif for the Tarnhelm, the invisibility helmet, (a thing), and the leitmotif for the Renunciation of Love (an idea). The use of leitmotif was not completely new in the 19th century. For example: the first four notes of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony are used like a leitmotif during the whole symphony. It was, however, Carl Maria von Weber who first used it a lot in his operas. A music critic called F. W. Jähns used the word to describe Weber’s work. Hector Berlioz wrote a symphony called "Symphonie Fantastique" which has a tune which he called idée fixe (“fixed idea”) to represent the love between the two characters. Wagner did
Pointe shoes are special shoes worn by ballerinas. They are made with a wide, flat, reinforced front end. This lets the dancer stand on tiptoe.  In normal flat ballet shoes, the toe construction does not provide this support for the dancer's body weight. So they cannot stand or dance "en pointe". History. Mid-18th century dancer Marie Camargo of the Paris Opéra Ballet was the first to wear a non-heeled shoe, enabling her to perform leaps that would have been difficult, if not impossible, in the old shoes. The first dancers to rise up on their toes did so with the help of an invention by Charles Didelot in 1795. His 'flying machine' lifted dancers upward, allowing them to stand on their toes before leaving the ground. This lightness and ethereal quality was well received by audiences and, as a result, choreographers began put more pointework into their pieces. As dance progressed into the 1800s, the desire grew to dance en pointe without the aid of wires. When Marie Taglioni first danced "La Sylphide" en pointe, her shoes were nothing more than modified satin slippers. Because the shoes of this period offered no support, dancers would pad their toes for comfort and rely on the strength of their feet and ankles for support. The birth of the modern pointe shoe may be due to the early 20th century Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who was one of the most famous and influential dancers of her time. Pavlova's feet had particularly high arches, which left her vulnerable to injury when dancing en pointe. To help this problem, she would put tough leather soles into her shoes for extra support, and would flatten and harden the toe area to form a box. While this practice made dancing en pointe easier for her, it was regarded by her rivals as 'cheating'. Health concerns. Girls will usually start en pointe between the ages of 10 and 13. Starting too early may be bad for the feet of the dancer. Dance teachers' societies give their members information and advice on this subject. Some girls will never
Kirkuk Governorate ( , "Parêzgay Kerkûk", , ) or Kirkuk Province is a governorate in northern Iraq, with an area of .  The capital is also called Kirkuk, and 1,597,876 people live in the Governorate.
Brussels-Capital Region is one of the three regions of Belgium. Its official name in the three official languages of Belgium: It has a population of 1,222,637 (1 January 2022) on an area of 162 km². Language. Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual: Dutch and French, but most people speak French. In earlier times, they spoke Brabantian, which is a Dutch dialect.  History. The area of Brussels-Capital Region belonged to the Duchy of Brabant until 1795. After the French occupation it became part of the newly formed province of South Brabant during the United Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1815 until 1831. After the Belgian separation in 1831, it became part of the newly formed province of Brabant. On 1 January 1995, Brabant province was divided into the provinces of Flemish Brabant (Dutch-speaking) and Walloon Brabant (French-speaking), and into the bilingual Brussels region. Municipalities. Brussels-Capital Region has 19 municipalities: ¹ Capital, English name "Brussels". Related pages. There are two other regions:
Licchavi (also "Lichchhavi", "Lichavi") was an ancient republic that existed in what is now Bihar state of India before the birth of Mahavira (born 599 BC). Its capital was Vaishali. From about 400 to 750, a kingdom in Nepal in the Kathmandu Valley had the same name, Licchavi. Origins. Early Buddhist legends tell that Licchavi was a ruling family during Gautama Buddha's time in India, but links to the Nepalese kingdom are speculative. The language of Licchavi inscriptions is Sanskrit, and the particular script used is closely related to official Gupta scripts. That means that India was a significant cultural influence. That was likely through Mithila, now the north of Bihar, India.
Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic with an emphasis on liberty and the civic virtue practiced by citizens. Republicanism always stands in opposition to aristocracy, oligarchy, monarchy, and dictatorship. More broadly, it refers to a political system that protects liberty, especially by incorporating a rule of law that cannot be arbitrarily ignored by the government. United States. According to John Adams, “They define a republic to be a government of laws, and not of men.” Much of the literature deals with the issue of what sort of values and behavior by the citizens is necessary if the republic is to survive and flourish; the emphasis has been on widespread citizen participation, civic virtue, and opposition to corruption. Commonwealth realms. Many Commonwealth realms (countries which have the British Monarch as their head of state) have political movements to become republics. For example, the Prime Minister of Jamaica said that it will become a republic by 2025. In 1999, Australia had a vote to decide whether or not to keep the monarchy. The result was a majority supporting the monarchy.
The sabertoothed cats or sabretooth cats are some of the best known and most popular extinct animals. They are among the most impressive carnivores that ever have lived. These cats had long canines and jaws which opened wider than modern cats. This suggests a different style of killing from modern felines. The sabre-tooth style of life evolved at least five times amongst carnivorous mammals. This is one of the best-known examples of convergent evolution. The saber tooths were ambush predators, and probably lived in open forests. This would explain their widespread occurrence in the Miocene, when much of the land was covered with woodland. Apart from the canine teeth, their adaptations included strength in the forelimbs (more so than present-day large cats). Their robust (heavy, tough) bodies speak of strength rather than speed. An idea of how they killed is as follows. They hid in wait, and pounced. They hung on round the prey's neck, gripping and slashing the underside of the throat with their canine teeth. This would cause death by blood loss and loss of the air supply. The fact that their teeth vary is interesting. Some have larger teeth, some had smaller dagger-like teeth, some had smooth thick teeth, others had blade-like teeth, sometimes with serrated edges. Some had flanges on the lower jaw, most did not. Ewer remarks that this must show that there were variations in killing method, and in the type of prey, but we know little about this. There are none living today: they are extinct. The extinctions followed climate change, as the world cooled and grassland took over from woodland in the Pliocene and Pleistocene.
Jerry Hsu (born December 17, 1981) is an American professional skateboarder. He was born in, and currently lives in, San Jose, California. Hsu is a member of the San Jose Tilt Mode Army crew. He has several pro model skateboard decks with Enjoi Skateboards. Hsu was featured in the skateboard videos "Bag of Suck" by Enjoi. He won an award for best video part by Transworld Skateboarding Magazine and a reader's choice award for his work in the video.
Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. is the largest bookseller in the United States. It operates mostly through its "Barnes &amp; Noble Booksellers" chain of bookstores which is based in lower Fifth Avenue in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Barnes &amp; Noble also operated the chain of small B. Dalton Booksellers stores in malls until they announced the liquidation of the chain. The company is known for large, upscale retail stores. Many of them contain a café serving Starbucks Coffee. Most stores also sell magazines, newspapers, DVDs, graphic novels, gifts, games, and music. Video games and related items were sold in the company's GameStop retail outlets until October 2004. Then, the division was made into its own company. As of October 2009, the company operates 777 stores in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. It also has 636 college bookstores, which serves nearly 4 million students and 250,000 faculty members across the country. History. Barnes &amp; Noble began in 1873 when Charles Barnes opened a book-printing business in Wheaton, Illinois. Their first true bookstore was set up by his son, William, with G. Clifford Noble, in 1917 in New York City. The original bookstore was at 31 West 15th St., and opened during World War I. In 1932, at the height of the Great Depression, the bookstore was moved to its current location on 18th Street and Fifth Avenue. The business was bought in 1971 by Leonard Riggio. He oversaw the growth of the business. In 1974, Barnes &amp; Noble became the first bookstore to advertise on television. A year later, the company became the first bookseller in America to discount books. It sold "New York Times" best-selling titles at 40% off the publishers’ list price. During the 1970s and 1980s, Barnes &amp; Noble opened smaller discount stores. These were eventually phased out in favor of larger stores. They also began to publish their own books to be sold to mail-order customers. These titles were
A birth defect (or congenital disorder) is a defect in a baby at birth, or which develops in the first month of life.  The term is "neutral" as to whether the cause is genetic (inherited birth defect) or environmental (causes in the environment, that is, "outside the foetus"). If a condition is said to be "congenital", that is neutral language. Often it is not known what causes a condition found at birth. In common use, it is often redirected to "birth defect". That term is also neutral as to cause.  There are two main types of congenital defect. The first is caused by genetic abnormalities, which are hereditary. The second may be caused by conditions (such as infectious diseases) which a baby may get. However, we may not know what caused the condition. Sometimes doctors may find out that a baby has a congenital disorder before its birth. They use prenatal diagnosis and screening tests, such as amniocentesis. Genetic defects. Lethal or damaging genes. Some gene alleles (versions of a gene) can damage the baby. Conditions like dwarfism are nearly always genetic in origin. One type, achondroplasia, happens when a child's bones does not grow correctly. Another type is caused by pituitary malfunction, where the pituitary gland, which puts out growth hormones, does not work properly. Many genetic disorders are caused by mutations (or changes) in gene alleles. Mutations can cause development to go wrong, or a simple biochemical deficiency (the body does not have enough of an important chemical). In the case of a chemical deficiency, the problem may be curable. For example, phenylketonuria was a cause of mental retardation. Doctors came up with a simple test to find which babies have this condition. They found that if these children got treated and followed a strict diet, they could get enough of the chemical they needed. Phenylketonuria now causes few cases of mental retardation. Chromosome defects. Cells divide and copy themselves to produce gametes. Sometimes, errors happen in the way that chromosomes are copied during this process. These errors are then copied again
Scrambled eggs is a dish made from beaten whites and yolks of eggs (usually chicken). The dish often contains other ingredients. Cream, butter, milk, water or oil (used in China) will dilute the egg proteins to create a softer texture. Sample recipe. The eggs and a large piece of butter are put into a saucepan over a low heat. The egg whites and egg yolks are then "scrambled" or mixed together. The mixture should be mixed together all the time they are being cooked. When cooked a little créme frâiche is added. This is because the eggs will be hot enough to carry on cooking themselves. Adding a cool liquid will stop the eggs from overcooking. Some salt and pepper or other seasoning can be added to taste as well. In the home the eggs can be mixed together first and then poured into a pan. The créme frâiche does not need to be added if the eggs will be eaten almost immediately. Properly made, the eggs should be moist and creamy consistency. If any liquid is coming from the eggs, it means the eggs have been overcooked or that the add the vegetables were undercooked. Other methods of preparation. Using a double boiler or "bain-marie" means that the heat is constant, and does not to be adjusted to make sure the eggs do not brown or burn. The baine marie method is slower than cooking directly in a pan over a heat but makes it easier to cook the eggs perfectly. The eggs must be taken out of the bain marie when cooked, otherwise they will carry on cooking and spoil. Scrambled eggs may also be made in a microwave oven by put the ingredients in a glass bowl and cooking for 30 seconds then whisking, then cooking and whisking again until the desired consistency is achieved. Variations of Scrambled Egg Dishes. Many things can be added to scrambled eggs. Often the end result can have a different name, for example:
Elizabeth of Bohemia (born Elizabeth Stuart, 19 August 1596 – 13 February 1662) was a Scottish born Queen of Bohemia. As well as being Queen of Bohemia, she was also titled Electress of Palatine and Princess Elizabeth Stuart of Scotland Elizabeth was the oldest daughter of King James VI of Scotland (later, James I of England) and his wife, Anne of Denmark. Her brother was Charles I. She was Queen of Bohemia only for a few months so she is sometimes called "The Winter Queen". Childhood. Elizabeth was born at Falkland Palace in Fife, Scotland. Her father gave her the name Elizabeth to make Queen Elizabeth I of England happy. The Queen had no children. James wanted her to choose him to be King of England when she died. She later agreed and James VI became King James I of England (as well as Wales and Ireland) in 1603. Elizabeth Stuart now had a higher status. This meant meant that more important men would want to marry her. The gunpowder plot. At this time, there was strong fighting between Catholics and Protestants in England. King James was a devout Protestant, and many Catholics did not like him because he persecuted many papists by levying taxes against them, banning Mass, and even executing people for being heretics and witches if they didn’t denounce Catholicism. In 1605, a group decided to try to blow up the English Parliament with gunpowder when King James was there. This is called The Gunpowder Plot. The group planned to kidnap Princess Elizabeth from Coombe Abbey, in Warwickshire. They wanted to make her the Queen. Because she was only nine years old, important Catholics would have the real power over her kingdoms. In the end, the group were found before they could kill King James. Marriage. On February 14, 1613, Elizabeth married Frederick V. He was the Elector of the Palatinate. She moved to his court at Heidelberg. Frederick was the leader of an important group of Protestant princes, called the Evangelical Union. James wanted Elizabeth to marry someone from this group so he could have a stronger friendship with them.
LATAM Airlines Brazil () is Brazilian airline. LATAM was founded in 1961, but since 2000 it has grown fast. It's now the biggest airline in Brazil and all of Latin America. History. TAM Airlines began in 1961, with the name "Taxi Aereo Marília" (Marília Air Taxi). In 1971, one of the airline's pilots buys 33% of the airline's shares. In 1976, the pilot founds an airline with the name "Transportes Aereos Regionais" (Regional Air Transport). Both "TAM" and "TAR" Airlines were combined in 2000. This formed the TAM Airlines. In 2010, LAN Airlines and TAM Airlines were also combined. They formed the LATAM Airlines Group.
Al-Qādisiyyah () is a Governorate in south of Iraq. The capital is Al Diwaniyah.
A limb is a part of the body of a living creature, which extends from its trunk. Examples are the branches of a tree, and the legs of a man. In normal human body, there are four limbs: two "upper limbs" (arms) and two "lower limbs" (legs). Each limb has several joints.
Natalee Holloway (born October 21, 1986), from Mountain Brook, Alabama, United States, disappeared on May 30, 2005 during a graduation trip in Aruba. Holloway remains officially missing to this day, although according to Aruban authorities, she is most likely dead. The disappearance generated a media sensation in both the U.S. and Aruba and sparked considerable interest in the Netherlands. Holloway was scheduled to fly home later on May 30, but failed to appear for her flight. She was last seen by her classmates outside Carlos'n Charlie's, a Caribbean chain restaurant and nightclub in Oranjestad, in a car with locals Joran van der Sloot and brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe. When questioned, the three men said they dropped her off at her hotel and denied knowing what became of Holloway. Upon further investigation by authorities, Van der Sloot was arrested twice on suspicion of involvement in her disappearance and the Kalpoes were each arrested three times. Due to lack of evidence the three men were released without charge after each arrest. Holloway background. Natalee Ann Holloway was born October 21, 1986, in Clinton, Mississippi, the daughter of David Edward Holloway and Elizabeth Ann ("Beth") Holloway. Her parents divorced in 1993, and she and her younger brother Matthew were raised by their mother. In 2000, Elizabeth Holloway married George "Jug" Twitty, a prominent Alabama businessman, and Natalee moved with her family to Mountain Brook, Alabama. Holloway graduated with honors from Mountain Brook High School. She was also a member of the National Honor Society, her school Dance squad, and was a participant in other extracurricular activities. Disappearance. On Thursday, May 26, 2005, Holloway and 124 fellow graduates of Mountain Brook High School, located in a wealthy suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, arrived in Aruba for a five-day, unofficial graduation trip. The graduates were accompanied by seven chaperones. According to teacher and chaperone Bob Plummer, the chaperones met with the students each day to ensure nothing was wrong
Australophenida are a clade of mammals which has nearly entirely died out. Today, living specimen exist only in Australia and New Guinea with only five surviving species species, but fossils have been in Madagascar and Argentina. Species consist of the platypus and echidnas. This grouping includes the following animals:
The Flying Tigers was a group of American fighter pilots from the United States Army Air Force, the United States Navy, and the United States Marine Corps. Claire Lee Chennault commanded it. History. During 1937, Claire Lee Chennault retired from the American military and became the military advisor to China. He to looked at their air force. It was bad, and could not fight their enemy, Japan. In 1938, Chennault was going to make the Flying Tigers. In late 1941, after Pearl Harbor, the Flying Tigers started fighting the Japanese. The airplane they used was the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk. There were about 100 of the fighter aircraft. They could not turn with the Japanese fighters, such as the A6M Zero, Ki-43 Oscar, and Ki-27 Nate, but the P-40 was tough, had more guns, and was faster in a dive. The Flying Tigers stayed in World War II for the whole time. Things the Flying Tigers were famous for. The Flying Tigers are well known for things. One thing was their airplane paint, which had a shark face on the sides. They were also known for fighting hard during the war. Franklin D. Roosevelt had said they were good. List of aces. The following are flying aces from the Flying Tigers, with their air-to-air victory credits: (In alphabetical order).
Shusha is a city in Azerbaijan. The city is a major centre of Azerbaijani culture and music. History. Shusha was founded in 1750-1752 by Panah-Ali khan Javanshir (r. 1748-1763), the founder and the first ruler of the Karabakh Khanate (Qarabağ xanlığı - in Azerbaijani). The first capital of the Karabakh khanate was the castle of Bayat, built in 1748 in the district of Kebirli. However, soon afterwards Panah Ali khan realized that in order to secure himself and his newly established khanate from external threats, he needed to build a new more reliable castle. Shusha was turned into the capital of the Karabakh khanate. Shusha was a popular mountainous-climatic recreation resort in Azerbaijan. On May 8, 1992, the city was captured by the Armenian forces and all of the city's predominantly Azerbaijani population was either expelled or killed. It was recaptured by Azerbaijan on 8 November, 2020 during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, with the city's Armenian population fleeing beforehand.
Doritos (), is a brand of flavored corn (maize) tortilla chip snack. They have been made by the American food company Frito-Lay since 1966. They come in different flavors, including Nacho Cheese and Cool Ranch. They may be eaten with a dip such as salsa. They are made with a few different vegetables and are not fruit products.
The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a short-range air-to-air missile, which means it is shot from an aircraft to hit another aircraft. It is a heat seeking infrared missile, which locks on to something that gives out a large heat signature. It first flew in 1953, and went into air forces in 1956. It was used during the Vietnam War along with the AIM-7 Sparrow. The AIM-9 of that time was made for shooting at an enemy from behind and homing in on the engine. In Vietnam it hit only 10-20% of the time, and could be fooled. Sometimes it could lock on to the sun or other bogus heat source and not an enemy airplane. Later versions are better. They can see the enemy aircraft from all directions, not just from behind. They have a good hitting rate and can hit from 11 miles. Sidewinders are carried on many different aircraft around the world.