Kosovo (/ˈkɒsəvoʊ, ˈkoʊ-/; Albanian: "Kosova" or "Kosovë", [kɔˈsɔva] or [kɔˈsɔvə]; Serbian Cyrillic: Косово, [kôsoʋo]), officially the Republic of Kosovo (Albanian: "Republika e Kosovës"; Serbian: Република Косово / "Republika Kosovo"), is a partially-recognised state and disputed territory in Southeastern Europe. On 17 February 2008, Kosovo unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia. It has since gained diplomatic recognition as a sovereign state by 95 UN member states.
Geographically defined in an area of 10,887 km (4,203 sq mi), Kosovo is landlocked in the center of the Balkans and bordered by the uncontested territory of Serbia to the north and east, North Macedonia to the southeast, Albania to the southwest and Montenegro to the west. It possesses remarkable varied and diverse landscapes for its size by climate along with geology and hydrology. Most of central Kosovo is dominated by the vast plains and fields of Metohija and Kosovo. The rugged Prokletije and Šar Mountains rise in the southwest and southeast, respectively.
The official results of the censuses in Kosovo about ethnic groups and nationality from after World War II to 1991 are below. The numbers of Albanians in the 1991 census were only guesses based on censuses in the past. Most Albanians did not do the 1991 census. Today, Kosovo is mainly Albanian.
Kosovo is divided into 7 districts. These districts include 38 municipalities:
Lip
The lips are a body part around the mouth. There is a (usually larger) lower lip, and a smaller upper lip. They help us to eat, touch and speak.
Lips also show emotions.
There are diseases that can affect the lips, for example herpes simplex. Someone can get this disease by kissing or having oral sex.
Allergy
An allergy is something which triggers an allergic reaction. This is the immune system defending the body against attack by bacteria and viruses.
Sometimes the systems goes wrong, and is triggered by some quite normal food, or flares up when the family pet comes into the room. That is what the ordinary person calls an 'allergy'.
When people come in contact with something they are allergic to, there can be many different reactions. Their eyes may become very itchy, and their noses may become drippy or stuffy. They may cough and sneeze. They may develop a rash called hives. Their faces may swell up. If it is a food allergy, the person may get an upset stomach.
Sometimes a person's oesophagus, or throat, may swell up so much that the person can no longer breathe. This is called anaphylaxis. When this happens, a doctor must give the person a medicine called epinephrine to make the swelling go down. Some people with allergies to very common things, like bee stings or fish, carry this medicine with them so it can be used quickly in an emergency. The device they use to inject the medicine is called an epinephrine autoinjector.
Some common food allergies are:
Some common environmental allergies are:
Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus (1859 - 1935) was a French officer of Jewish descent.
He was wrongly accused of treason against the French military. This scandal was known as the Dreyfus affair.
He was imprisoned on Devil's Island in French Guiana.
His highest rank was lieutenant colonel.
Dreyfus was born in Mulhouse and died in Paris.
Nucleic acid
Nucleic acids are large molecules where genetic information is stored. There are two types of nucleic acids: deoxyribonucleic acid, better known as DNA and ribonucleic acid, better known as RNA.
The nucleic acids are made of nucleotides. A nucleotide is made of a nitrogenous base, sugar with five carbon atoms and a phosphate group.
Nucleic acids allow organisms to transfer genetic information from one generation to the next. When a cell divides, its DNA is copied and passed from one cell generation to the next generation.
DNA is organized into chromosomes and found within the nucleus of our cells. Its function in any cell is to carry the sequence of bases which will be transcribed into RNA. The function of RNA is much more difficult to explain. One well-known function is for messenger RNA to be translated into proteins, mainly enzymes. But there are other types of RNA, and these are called non-coding RNAs.
Adam Elliot
Adam Elliot (born January 2, 1972) is an Australian animator. He is from Melbourne, Australia. His short movie called "Harvey Krumpet" won the 2003 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. He uses claymation and has won five Australian Film Institute Awards because of his work.
Elliot was brought up on a prawn farm run by his father who had once been a circus clown, and his mother who had been a hairdresser. The family later moved to Melbourne, where Elliot made money selling hand painted T-shirts at local markets. After finishing school he went to the Victorian College of the Arts to study animation.
Phenylketonuria
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a genetic disorder (a disease a person is born with) where a person's body cannot break down an amino acid called phenylalanine. Amino acids are necessary to make proteins, an important part of the human body. Phenylalanine only comes from the food we eat; our bodies do not make any by themselves.
Average people produce an enzyme called phenylalanine hydroxylase in their bodies. When they ingest phenylalanine, the body cannot use it, so this enzyme changes phenylalanine into tyrosine, which the body can use. In people with PKU, very little or no enzyme is made. Since the phenylalanine they eat is not being changed into tyrosine, it builds up in their bodies. This can cause problems with the way their bodies work.
Symptoms vary from person to person. Because of the rarity of PKU, many symptoms go undiagnosed or unrecognized. In addition, there are variations in the categories of PKU individuals. There are untreated, early treated, late treated, those returning to diet, Hyperphe, Classical PKU, uncontrolled, and highly controlled. For your average infant a doctor will diagnose PKU with a quick blood test. Their symptom will be high PHE levels. If that infant goes undiagnosed for weeks or months, he/she may start to exhibit some or all of the following symptoms for uncontrolled PKU. The symptoms include:
Today, scientists know what foods have phenylalanine in them, and they have created a special diet for people with PKU. Since they cannot use it, people with PKU cannot eat foods that have a lot of phenylalanine, like eggs, meat and milk. An artificial sweetener called aspartame is also a source of phenylalanine. People with PKU take a lot of vitamins to make up for the foods they cannot eat, especially vitamins B6 and B12.
Babies with PKU are fed a special formula. It has everything babies need to stay healthy, but with very little phenylalanine. There are also low protein foods like breads and flour (Made from corn and starch instead of regular wheat).
Women with PKU who are pregnant or trying to get pregnant have to be especially careful to follow this diet. If they do not follow the diet, their babies could be born with severe birth defects and mental retardation. Babies born to women with PKU who have followed the PKU diet throughout their pregnancy are usually healthy and do not necessarily but may develop PKU. Whether or not they have PKU themselves depends on the mother and father's genes. In fact there are people who are Carriers (Dormant Genes) that can be passed on until they resurface in the future generations. These are so far undetectable, However, since PKU is genetically recessive it takes PKU genes from both parents to cause PKU.
PKU kids usually have light hair and eyes due to the effect of phenylalanine in the production of melanin. They also tend to have very fair skin which can cause them to burn easily. Solar protection is a must for those who wish to work, play, or engage in activities outdoors.