ejaasaari/simplewiki-2025-04-01 huggingface dataset:
Schmallenberg is a town in the German state North Rhine-Westphalia. About 24,965 people live there. Geography. Schmallenberg is in the middle of the Sauerland (Rothaargebirge). It is about south of Meschede, and from Köln (Cologne). Neighbouring communities. Lennestadt borders in the north on the communities of Bestwig and Meschede, in the east on Winterberg, in the south on Bad Berleburg, and in the west on the towns of Eslohe and Lennestadt. Town twinning. Schmallenberg is twinned with History. The Benedictine monastery began in 1072 near Schmallenberg on a site at the foot of the Wilzenberg mountain, by Saint Anno, Archbishop of Cologne. "Alexander de Smalenburg" is said to have given his name to the city of Schmallenberg. The origins of the narrow castle lie in a castle complex that belonged to Cologne, and in 1244 the curtain-walled settlement was officially elevated to city status by Konrad von Hochstaden, Archbishop of Cologne. During the Middle Ages, textile and ironmongery trades were the main industries in Schmallenberg. Around 1350 there were about 800 living in the town. After an economically quiet period during the 16th century, the new iron hammer technology put the city back on the map. At that time, Schmallenberg’s ironmongery trade was considered the most important one in Westphalia. In parts of the town like in Oberkirchen there were many witchcraft trials. In 1630 there were 7 processes, from April to June. During these, 58 people were convicted to burn at the stake, for alleged witchcraft. One of the victims was Christine Teipel, a 9-year-old child. After a big fire in 1822, the town was rebuilt using a classical ground plan. This can still be seen today. Ten years before that, the city wall and gates had been torn down. Today, Schmallenberg’s typical features are its half-timbered houses with slated roofs and carved doors
The French and Indian War was fought between 1754 and 1763 in British North America and French North America. They fought over land which is now in the United States and Canada. The French had some Native American allies and the British had other allies.  The conflict was a part of the Seven Years' War among the European great powers which took place in various parts of the world. France was already fighting Prussia and so did not send many troops to Canada. Battles. The French built a new fort in the disputed territory, and the British decided to expel them. After failing in a small battle in 1754 they tried again with the Battle of Monongahela in 1755. The British commander, General Edward Braddock, died with many of his men in a failed attack against the French in what later became Pittsburgh. A militia officer, George Washington, led the defeated survivors home. At the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, the British conquered Canada.  Outcome. The fighting in North America stopped on September 8, 1760, with the French surrender of Montreal and the rest of Canada to the British. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on February 10, 1763. France lost all of its North American lands east of the Mississippi River to Britain except the small islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, near Newfoundland. Britain offered France the choice to give up its Canadian land or the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique, which British troops had taken during the war. France chose to keep the islands, which were valuable for their sugar plantations.  With the Royal Proclamation of 1763, colonists in British North America became unhappy over their share of the winnings. That became a cause for the American Revolution.
Sif is a goddess in Norse mythology. She is the wife of Thor and mother of Thrud and Ull. Sif has hair made of gold. It grows just like normal hair. Her original hair's color looked like wheat. Loki cut off Sif's hair as a prank. When Thor found out he made Loki have golden hair made for her by the Dwarves. It is believed that Sif was a goddess of the home, of field and of the crop. It is also said that she had some control of destiny.  Thrud is the only daughter of Thor and Sif. Ull is her son with another man. Thor also has two sons with a giantess. In two different poems in Poetic Edda, Sif is said to have a mysterious lover, but no one knows who he is. A volcano on the planet Venus is named after Sif. Sif is also a character in the comic book The Mighty Thor from Marvel Comics.  She is one of the most famous vikings around.
Political correctness (or PC for short) means using words that will not offend any group of people. Some offensive words have been used for a long time. Some of these words have now been replaced by other words that are not offensive. These new words are described as politically correct. The term is often used in a mocking sense when attempts at avoiding offense are seen to go too far. History. This term has been used since the early 1970s. It started being used in the modern negative sense in the late 80s in America. Examples. Politically correct words or terms are used to show differences between people or groups in a non-offensive way. This difference may be because of race, gender, beliefs, religion, or sexual orientation, or because they have a mental or physical disability, or because of any difference from what some people believe is normal. Political correctness with gender. Throughout the 20th century, feminists fought for women to have the same rights as men. In PC language this is seen in changes to job titles such as "policeman", "postman", and "chairman" which now commonly go by the gender-neutral titles "police officer", "letter carrier" and "chairperson" or "chair" as well as with terms having broader application, such as "humankind" replacing "mankind". Political correctness in medicine. People who are mentally disabled are now rarely described as "mentally retarded" (sometimes called "M.R.") but may be said to have "special needs". M.R. has been changed to I.D.; Intellectual Disabilities. People with significant vision loss are called low vision or blind. People with significant hearing loss are called deaf and/or hard of hearing. People who cannot speak are no longer called "dumb", they are non vocal. Those who are vocal but cannot communicate fluently are called non verbal. The overall terms 'handicapped” or 'challenged' are not considered appropriate (there is no distinction between physical or mental, acquired or inborn, because unless you're the disabled person, it's your choice to disclose and confirm whether this matters). Person first language is “Sarah has physical disabilities”. This is part of the
In Norse mythology, Mjölnir (Old Norse: "Mjǫllnir" - “Lightning” or “That which smashes”) is the hammer of Thor, the god of thunder and lightning. Forged by the dwarven brothers Brokk and Sindre, Mjölnir is the most feared weapon in the Nine Realms, capable of leveling entire mountains with only one hit. Mjölnir was also a symbol of both fertility and destruction, and was thought to possess regenerative healing powers.  When thrown, Mjölnir would return to Thor's after hitting its target.  "... He [Thor] would be able to strike as firmly as he wanted, whatever his aim, and the hammer would never fail, and if he threw it at something, it would never miss and never fly so far from his hand that it would not find its way back, and when he wanted, it would be so small that it could be carried inside his tunic."
An orphan is a child who has lost both parents. Their parents are either dead or didn't want the child. Some orphans end up in a house called an orphanage. This is where children with no parents live. Many children that live in an orphanage get fostered or adopted by a person or a couple. Some people are called other names as in todays day and age it may be offensive. Causes. Sometimes parents get sick and die while their child or children are still young, and if no close relatives take care of them, if they cannot or will not do so, they are normally raised in an orphanage. When several children, brothers or sisters are left orphaned they are sometimes split up; one child going to one family or one child going to a foster family while another may stay in the orphanage or foster home. Sometimes parents may not have jobs or money and abandon their children because they cannot afford to bring them up. The parents may feel that if someone else brings them up they may have a better future in the long run. Orphan care. In many developing countries orphans are often seen wandering about begging for money and food; many may not be going to school. Not much organised help exists for them in poor countries. But in richer countries many orphanage, organisations and institutions help the orphans and work to help parents when they are sick or very poor so they do not abandon their children. Organisations such as churches and community services sometimes will assist them. In many countries, foster care has replaced orphanages. Orphans in fiction. Many characters of books and movies have been orphans, such as Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Annie, Heidi, Batman, and Harry Potter.
Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District () is an opera by the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich. It is one of the most important Russian operas of the 20th century. The words for the opera (the “libretto”) were written by Alexander Preis who based them on a story by the Russian writer Nikolai Leskov. The opera has nothing to do with Shakespeare’s play Macbeth except for the fact that it is about a woman like Lady Macbeth who is tempted to commit a murder. History of the opera. "Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District" was the second opera that Shostakovich wrote. It was first performed on 22 January 1934 at the Leningrad Maly Theatre. It was very successful and lots of people came to hear it. However, Shostakovich lived in difficult times. The dictator Josef Stalin was making life very difficult for creative people. He thought that music and all the other arts should praise and glorify their country (the Soviet Union). He did not allow people to express their own personal feelings. Anything that he did not like was called “formalist”. If Stalin did not like someone that person would not be allowed to work. They might even get sent to prison in Siberia where they were treated very badly. Many of them died. Stalin came to hear a performance of "Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District". However, he did not like it, and he left during the performance. A few days later an article was written in the newspaper "Pravda" about the opera. The article heading was: “Chaos instead of music”. It said that the opera was full of horrible music and noisy chords. The opera was not allowed to be performed again in the Soviet Union for almost thirty years. Shostakovich had to be very careful what he said otherwise he could have been in big trouble. He never spoke in public about music and culture. In 1937 he wrote his Symphony no 5. The music in this symphony was easier to understand than the music he had been writing before which had a lot of atonal music. Shostakovich said
In English, adopt may mean 1) to take something up, such as an opinion ('we adopt the view that ...'), or 2) for a grown person to care for another person's child as if it was their own. This article is about the adoption of children. Overview. Before adoption laws existed, there was trouble when people gave their children away, and later wanted them back again. These days, children may be put in foster care for a short time, and after, the child may go back to the parents again. However, legal adoption lasts for ever. After legal adoption the adoptive parent(s) have all rights and responsibilities to the child. The biological parents have no legal rights or responsibilities to the child at all. Legal adoptions may only be cancelled if they were not done as the law says. Public opinion. In the West, till not long ago, public opinion was that people should only have children if they were married. Everything else meant shame, not only for the parents, but also for a child whose parents were not married. Many children of unmarried parents were given for adoption, and adoptive parents would make out they were biological parents and try to keep secret that their child was adopted. Today there is still secrecy about adoption. General opinion is that all adoptions are good, but even so, experts know that adoption can be trouble. Some ask questions about the family love for an adopted child.  Almost one out of three people asked say that adopted children have trouble behaving, have more illness, and are more easily addicted to drugs and alcohol. But adoptive parents were described by almost 90 percent as “lucky, advantaged, and unselfish”  In many countries, there are strong opinions on adoption. In some places single women may adopt a child, but single men may not. Some people say men are more likely to abuse children than women Opinions are changing fast, and many places these days homosexual couples may adopt children. Self-perception of the adopted. Many adopted people are pleased with their adoption. But many others are not. For example, experts have looked into adopted people's identity problems - their idea of self.  Though the law says adoption lasts for
A border dispute is when two governments or more do not agree on the location of the border between their lands. An example is Pakistan and India over the territory of Kashmir. Another example is Kosovo which Serbia believe is theirs. An historical example is the Honey War between Iowa and Missouri. Wars are sometimes fought over border disputes. Irredentism is often a border dispute.
Ambiguity means that what a thing is, is not clear. Literally, the word refers to a choice between two different things. In the proper sense it should mean "two different meanings" because "ambi-" comes from the Greek word for "two". Overview. We see things happen, and then we decide what they mean. If we cannot decide what is going on, the event is ambiguous. This is an extension of the original use of the word. Words or sentences that are ambiguous can lead to misunderstandings – people get the wrong meaning. This can sometimes be serious, but it can also be funny. Jokes often rely on ambiguity. Examples. The sentence  is ambiguous because it could mean: The British comedian Ronnie Barker said that he loved the English language because there are so many jokes you can make using ambiguity. He gave the following example: The mother meant “old” in a friendly way ("dear old Mrs Jones"), but the sentence could also mean:  This is obviously how Johnny understood his mother's instruction. The antonym, or opposite word, of ambiguous is unambiguous, meaning that something is perfectly clear and can only have one meaning. Ambiguity is not the same as vagueness, which means that there is so little detail given that a statement can mean almost anything.
Qantas is the flag carrier airline of Australia. Its headquarters is near Kingsford Smith Airport in Sydney. It is the second oldest continuously operating airline in the world. Qantas is commonly known as the "Flying Kangaroo". This is because of its logo, which is a white kangaroo on a red triangle. Qantas is a founding member of oneworld alongside American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines (until 2000) and Cathay Pacific. History. Qantas began in Winton, Queensland on 16 November 1920 as "Queensland and Northern Territorial Aerial Service Limited". It flew air mail services for the Australian government. In 1934, QANTAS Limited and Britain's Imperial Airways formed a new company, Qantas Empire Airways Limited. Qantas Empire Airways started services between Brisbane and Singapore using de Havilland DH-86 Commonwealth airplanes. In June 1959, Qantas' first jet airliner was delivered. It was a Boeing 707-138. Destinations. Qantas flies to 18 places in Australia and 23 place in 15 other countries. In Australia Worldwide Fleet. The table below shows how many different types of aircraft Qantas have operating and on order as of December 2019.
Heavy metal is a loud, aggressive style of rock music. The bands who play heavy metal music usually have one or two guitars, a bass guitar and drums. In some bands, electronic keyboards, organs, or other instruments are used. Heavy metal songs are loud and powerful-sounding, and have strong rhythms that are repeated. There are many different types of heavy metal, some of which are described below. Common features of heavy metal include slackened (downtuned) instruments and unusual key changes and time signatures (metre). Heavy metal bands sometimes dress in jeans, leather jackets, and leather boots, and have long hair. Heavy metal bands sometimes behave in a dramatic way when they play their instruments or sing. However, many heavy metal bands do not like to do this. History. 1960s and 1970s. In the very late 1960s and 1970s, rock and roll turned into a harder, louder form of music called rock. In the 1970s, rock music bands played huge, loud concerts in outdoor stadiums. In the early 1970s, many rock bands played psychedelic rock, a type of rock music with lyrics and sounds that were intended to give the listener some idea of what it felt like to be on so-called "mind-expanding" (and usually illegal) drugs, and which some believe even enhanced the experience of being on the drugs themselves. Many bands from Britain played blues music mixed with rock music, such as The Animals, The Kinks, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, and Jeff Beck. In the late 1960s, a harder and heavier form of rock music called "heavy metal" was first played. The first use of the term was in a 1968 song by Steppenwolf, "Born to be Wild", and other early heavy metal bands appeared in the same year. Many historians believe that Black Sabbath invented heavy metal music in the late 1960s. The band played loud, hard rock music based on blues music. Heavy metal music was mostly based on the sounds of the electric guitar. The electric guitar in heavy metal is always amplified through powerful amplifiers so that it has a loud, distorted,
Gesualdo is an Italian commune of the region of the Campania, province of Avellino, with about 3.800 inhabitants.  It shares border with Sturno, Villamaina, Frigento, Fontanarosa, Grottaminarda. Carlo Gesualdo, the Renaissance composer and murderer lived in a castle in Gesualdo.
Ben Jonson (11 June 1572 – 6 August 1637) was a major poet and playwright in English Renaissance drama. Many critics consider Jonson to be among the best playwrights of his time, a time when William Shakespeare also lived.  Jonson was classically educated. He was a well-read and cultured man of the English Renaissance with an appetite for controversy of all kinds.  He is best known for satirical plays "Every Man in His Humour" (1598), "Volpone, or The Fox" (c. 1606), "The Alchemist" (1610) and "Bartholomew Fair" (1614); also his lyric and epigrammatic poetry'
Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright of Victorian era. He was born in Camberwell, London. He was married to the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning. They both moved to Italy and lived in Florence. He had one son. Browning died in Venice, Italy. He was buried in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. He wrote a poem called The Laboratory which was about a woman using poison to kill her lover's girlfriend. Browning's longest work was the poem "The Ring and the Book". It consists of more than twenty thousand lines. It is based on a true story. It tells about a real crime committed in Italy at the end of 17th century. Its main hero is Pompilia Comparini, a young woman stabbed to death by her husband, count Guido Franceschini. Poet's best work is probably the book "Men and Woman". It was published in 1855. It is a collection of monologues. Browning's last book is "Asolando" which was published in 1889. Gilbert Keith Chesterton wrote a book about Robert Browning; it was called "Robert Browning" and was published by Macmillan &amp; Co. in 1903.
The Unknown Warrior is a tomb of an unknown British soldier who was killed on the battlefield during World War I.  Burial. The unknown warrior was buried in Westminster Abbey on November 11, 1920. The tomb is covered by a slab of black Belgian marble and is the only tomb in Westminster Abbey that people may not walk on. It has an inscription on it that is written by Herbert Ryle, Dean of Westminster. Medal of Honor. The unknown warrior was awarded the United States Medal of Honor on October 17, 1921. This hangs on a pillar near his burial. The handles of the unknown warrior's tomb were lost, then found by a man in East London whilst digging up weeds.
Ipiaú is a city in Bahia, Brazil. Location. The city is in the meeting point of the "Contas River" and the "Água-Branca River" (White-water River). Ipiaú is bordered by Ibirataia and Jequié to the north, Aiquara and Jitaúna to the west, Ibirataia and Barra do Rocha to the east and Itagibá to the south. Economy. The city is an important producer and exporter of cacao in Brazil. Important people. Ipiaú is the birthplace of many noted Brazilian writers and musicians such as Euclides Neto and Luiz Caldas.
The German Empire (), also referred to as Imperial Germany, the Second Reich or simply Germany, was a country in Europe during the period of the German Reich from 1871 to its dissolution in November 1918. When the German Empire collapsed, it became the Weimar Republic, a republic.
Anthony Dymoke Powell CH, CBE (December 21, 1905 – March 28, 2000) was a British novelist. He is best known for his "A Dance to the Music of Time" series of books published between 1951 and 1975.  Childhood. Powell was born in Westminster, England, to Philip Powell and Maud (née Wells-Dymoke). His father was an officer in the Welsh Regiment. His mother came from a wealthy family in Lincolnshire. Powell's early childhood was spent in a flat in Kensington. It overlooked the Gardens where he often played. In 1913, the family moved to Aldershot and into Stonehurst. Stonehurst was a large bungalow on top of a hill. On the start of World War I in August 1914, his father went to France and took part in the early fighting. Powell moved with his mother to London. He went to a private school for a short time. Powell was later sent to a boarding school in Kent. In early 1919 Powell passed the Common Entrance Examination for Eton where he started that autumn. Powell went to Balliol College at the University of Oxford to study history in the autumn of 1923. During his third year Powell lived out of college, sharing a place with Henry Yorke. Powell travelled on the Continent during his holidays. Powell came to work in London in the autumn of 1926. He got a job as an apprentice at the publishers, Duckworth and Company in Covent Garden. Powell in the 1930s. Powells first novel, "Afternoon Men", was published in 1931. A second novel, "Venusberg", followed in 1932. Powell’s third novel, "From a View to a Death", was published in 1934. All three of Powell’s novels were liked in the London literary world. His next work was a part of a collection of works in which various authors wrote about their schooldays. Powell’s memories of Eton appeared under the title of "The Wat’ry Glade". In the autumn of 1936, he left Duckworth’s and took a job as