The opera is set in Naples in the 18th century. Don Alfonso wagers two young soldiers that their sweethearts will prove unfaithful if given the chance. The men accept the bet. They tell their sweethearts that they have been called to the front and leave Naples.
They return however as turban-clad, moustache-wearing "Albanians" to woo each other's sweetheart. With the conniving of Despina, the two sisters consent to marry the foreigners. At the last moment, the men remove their disguises, and rebuke their faithless sweethearts.
Revolver (magazine)
Revolver is a monthly hard rock and heavy metal magazine published by Future US. It started as a magazine that was about more popular styles of music, but then changed to what it is now. The magazine is put together a lot like "Spin", and also writes about the heavy metal and punk subcultures. It has cover stories (usually centering on a band's new album, song, or upcoming tour), album reviews, instrument reviews, and a section for readers to get advice from a celebrity.
Another notable feature of the magazine is its coverage of underground and up-and-coming bands from all over the world. Instead of focusing only on the most popular bands, "Revolver" introduces a lot that are not played on the radio or on MTV.
Its slogan is: "The World's Loudest Rock Magazine!"
University of York
The University of York is a research-intensive university in the city of York, England. York University began in 1963, and has more than 30 departments and centres, covering many subjects.
Despite its relatively young age, the university has a big reputation. York has been named the 8th best "young university" in the world, and first in the UK, building a "reputation to rival Oxford and Cambridge".
The university is among the top 10 in the country, top 20 universities in Europe, and ranked 96th in the world, according to the 2011 QS World University Rankings. This places York in the top 1% of all higher education institutions across the globe.
In the last Research Assessment Exercise in 2008, York was also named as the 8th best research institution in the United Kingdom. The university was named Sunday Times university of the year in 2003 and Times Higher Education university of the year in 2010. In 2012, The University of York was invited to join the Russell Group in recognition of the institution's world-leading research and outstanding teaching.
Magazine circulation
A magazine's circulation is the number of copies it usually distributes for each issue. It is one of the main factors used to determine how much money they will charge businesses to advertise in the magazine. Circulation is not always the same as copies sold, which is usually called paid circulation, because many magazines are distributed to readers without making them pay anything. This is more true for magazines dealing with business and professional topics. When determining readership figures, which is how many people read an issue, the number is usually considered to be higher than the circulation figures because of the assumption that most copies of the magazine are read by more than one person. In many countries, circulation figures are checked by companies that do not work for the magazine, such as the Audit Bureau of Circulations, to make sure that the numbers a publisher gives to advertisers is accurate.
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim (14 September 1486 – 18 February 1535) was a German occult writer, astrologer, and alchemist.
Agrippa was born in Cologne in 1486. In 1512, he taught at the University of Dole in France.
In 1510, he studied briefly with Johannes Trithemius.
During this part of his life in Germany, France and Italy, he worked as a theologian, physician, legal expert and soldier.
He was for some time in the service of Maximilian I.
According to his student Johann Weyer, in the book "De praestigiis daemonum", Agrippa died in Grenoble, in 1535.
Paracelsus
Paracelsus (11 November or 17 December 1493 in Einsiedeln, Switzerland – 24 September 1541 in Salzburg, Austria) was a Swiss-Austrian alchemist, physician, astrologer, and general occultist. The name "Paracelsus" was a nickname: it means "equal to or greater than Celsus", and refers to his medical skill. He was born Phillip von Hohenheim.
He gained his doctorate degree from the University of Ferrara in 1515 or 1516.
He gave zinc its name (in Latin as "zincum"). He also named the cyanobacterium "Nostoc", which is a long-chain colonial bacterium. The adjective "bombastic" comes from his family name. It refers to his arrogance.
Paracelsus was responsible for the creation of laudanum, an alcoholic herbal opium preparation. It was in common use up to the 19th century. Like most of the alchemists, he was a notable botanist. He wrote various books, but especially his major work (title translated as: "On the miners' sickness and other diseases of miners"). This listed the occupational hazards of metalworking, including treatment and prevention strategies. He also wrote a book on the human body which contradicted Galen's ideas. He disagreed with Galen's idea of four humours, and instead believed that disease could come from an external source.
Morris
Maurice de Bevere (December 1, 1923 - July 16, 2001), better known as Morris, was a Belgian cartoonist and the creator of "Lucky Luke".
He was born in Kortrijk, Belgium and started drawing in the Compagnie Belge d'Actualités (CBA) animations studios, a small and short-lived animation studio in Belgium where he met Peyo and André Franquin.
After a war, the company went bankrupt and Morris worked as an illustrator for "Het Laatste Nieuws", a Flemish newspaper, and "Le Moustique", a weekly magazine published by Dupuis, for which he made some 250 covers and numerous other illustrations, mainly caricatures of movie stars.
He died in 2001 by an accidental fall.
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Palos Verdes blue
The Palos Verdes blue butterfly is a small endangered butterfly that can be seen near the Palos Verdes Peninsula in southwest Los Angeles County, California. So far, it can only be seen here and might be one of the rarest butterflies in the world.
This butterfly has a wingspan of only 25–30 mm. The male has a bright silvery-blue dorsal wing outlined in a narrow line of black, while the female’s dorsal wing is a more brownish-gray color. Both males and females have gray ventral wings with dark spots surrounded by white rings.
"G. lygdamus palosverdesensis" was listed as an endangered species by the Fish and Wildlife Service on July 2, 1980. Insects are not currently protected by California law.
The main threat to the Palos Verdes blue has been the destruction of their living space by weeds, which has negative effects on the larval foodplants needed.
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird is the distance from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other. The wingspan of an aircraft is always measured in a straight line, from wingtip to wingtip, independently of wing shape or sweep.
To measure the wingspan of a bird, a live or freshly dead specimen is placed flat on its back, the wings are grasped at the wrist joints and ankles, and then the distance is measured between the tips of the longest primary feathers on each wing.
Talent agent
A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, musicians, models, and other people in different entertainment businesses. Agents make their money by taking a percentage of the money that their client is paid.
Félix Houphouët-Boigny
Félix Houphouët-Boigny (; 18 October 1905 – 7 December 1993) was the first President of Côte d'Ivoire. He was president until he died in 1993.
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge (also called Cambridge University) is in Cambridge, England. It is the second-oldest university in all English-speaking countries. It is one of the world's leading places of learning.