The fancy rat or pet rat is a type of the brown rat ("Rattus norvegicus") that is bred to be a pet. The name "fancy rat" has nothing to do with the "fanciness" of how they look. It comes from the phrase "animal fancy". A person who keeps pet rats is said to be involved in "rat fancy." Some people domesticate black rats ("Rattus rattus"), and Gambian pouched rats ("Cricetomys gambianus"). These types of rats are not usually called fancy rats because the hobby does not center around them.
Fancy rats have been bred as pets at least since the late 19th century. They can have many different colors and coat types. They are sociable, intelligent animals. They can learn to come when called, use a litter box, and do many different tricks. Pet rats act differently from rats found in nature. The number of generations since they have been removed from the wild and how they were bred has an effect on how much they act differently. They are not any more of a health risk than other common pets.
In the 19th century france, Fancy Rats were quite a popular attraction of entertainment, they could be taughtt a handfull of tricks.
Fancy rats do not have the diseases and illness as a wild rat would have.
Fancy rats can have ears on the top of their head (standard) or at the side (dumbo)
Gymnasium (ancient Greece)
In Ancient Greece the Gymnasion (or Gymnasium, romanized name) was a place where athletes could train for the competitions in public games, such as the Olympic Games. "Gymnos" means naked. Only men were allowed to enter, and train; they did so fully naked (as the name implies). Athletes also competed in the nude. This was said to encourage aesthetic appreciation of the male body. It was believed to be a tribute to the Gods. Gymnasia and palestrae were under the protection and patronage of Heracles, Hermes and, in Athens, Theseus.
The picture above shows the Pompeii gymnasium from the top of the stadium wall. The depression in the center-left of the picture was filled with water and used for swimming practice as well. Mock sea battles (naumachiae) took place in the flooded arena floor or a specially dug pool in the arena. According to Oscar Brockett in his History of the Theatre, 5th Ed. (1987), p. 70, "Perhaps the most spectacular of all entertainments were the naumachiae, or sea battles. The first was given in 46 B.C. by Julius Caesar on a lake dug for the occasion; it featured a battle involving 2,000 marines and 6,000 oarsmen. Later the amphitheatres were sometimes flooded for such events. By far the most ambitious of all the naumachiae was given in 52 A.D. on the Fucine Lake east of Rome to celebrate the completion of a water conduit. On that occasion, 19,000 participants fought and many died. To the right of the picture (partially behind a tree trunk) is a line of carbonized tree stumps. These are the remains of trees (each hundreds of years old) that were part of the palaistra. They were burned in the volcanic eruption of 79. Between these and the colonnade is a line of saplings recently planted as a replacement.
Arnold Rikli
Arnold Rikli (1823-1906) was a healer. He proposed various therapies, mostly based on exposing the body to sun and air (called Sun tanning, preferably done while naked). He is one of the forefathers of a movement called naturism today.
Eastern White Pine
The eastern white pine ("Pinus strobus"), also known as the white pine, Weymouth pine (British), and soft pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the extreme south of Georgia.
It's the state tree of Maine and Michigan.
Forget-me-not
Myosotis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Boraginaceae that are commonly called Forget-me-nots. Similar names and variations are found in many different languages.
Willow Grouse
The willow grouse (Europe) or willow ptarmigan (North America) ("Lagopus lagopus") is a medium-sized gamebird in the grouse family. It is a sedentary species, breeding in birch and other forests and tundra across northern Eurasia, and in Alaska and northern Canada. It is the state bird of Alaska. During the last ice age, the species occurred in continental Europe (Tomek & Bocheński 2005).
Watershed (television)
Today, television can show a number of programmes. Usually the content of these programmes is rated, by a number of people (usually called "advisory board"). Some of the programmes may be suitable for children (of different ages), other content may not be suitable for children. The watershed is the time of the day where content not suitable for children may be shown. This is usually during the night (starting in the later evening, and ending in the early morning)
The content that is not suitable for children to see usually includes sex or nudity outside a functional context. People bathing naked in a lake may be ok, people doing a striptease in a night club or cabaret may not be. Other content generally not suitable includes various levels of violence or the use of illegal drugs. Sometimes "strong language" (full of expletives) is also seen as unfit for children.
Spot-billed pelican
The spot-billed pelican ("Pelecanus philippensis") is a member of the pelican family. It breeds in southern Asia from southern Pakistan. It is a bird of large inland and coastal waters, especially shallow lakes. The nest is a heap of vegetation in a tree. Three to four eggs is the usual clutch size.
Lake Manasarovar
Lake Manasarovar or Lake Manasa Sarovar (, Mapham Yutso; ) is a fresh-water lake. It is in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, from Lhasa. Lake Manasarovar is the source of the Pakistani river Sindhu. Sindhu flows west to the Arabian Sea.
Bathing
Bathing is putting the body into a fluid, most often water, or a solution with water. Usually it is done for hygiene or for religious purposes, or for fun. Sometimes bathing is also done as a form of therapy.
When people talk about bathing, they most often mean being immersed in water. But people have also "bathed" in other substances. Some therapies involve bathing in mud. People have also bathed in other substances, like Champagne, beans, or chocolate. A form of bathing quite common is bathing in sunlight.
Bathing serves several purposes:
1857 War of Independence in Murree
The 1857 War of Independence in Murree, part of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 (better known as the Indian Mutiny), was a minor conflict between the tribes surrounding the hill station of Murree (now Pakistan) and the colonial government of British India The local tribes had become angry with the British ever since the British had started their colonial rule in the area.
Today Murree is part of Pakistan but in 1857 it was part of British India, ever since the British rule began in India there had been rebellions and wars against the British. However, in 1857 rebellions broke out in many different places, Murree being one of these places. People thought the rule of the British was about to be overthrown. In the Murree hills it was the Dhund Abbasi and Karlal tribes who rose up against the British.
Although the tribes of Murree had risen against the British, not everyone had been against British rule. Before British rule had been established in the area, the tribes had fought against the Sikhs. Under the command of Mohammed Ali Shah (also known as the Pir of Plasi), they had fought against the Sikh Army in Balakot - the troops here were commanded by Syed Shah Ismail Shahid and Syed Ahmad Shaheed (known as "The Martyrs")