The Israel Meteorological Service is the central service for weather forecasting and climate research in Israel. It includes 30 weather stations. The Israel Meteorological Service is located in Rishon LeZion. The Israel Meteorological Service is also a unit in the Israeli Ministry of Transport.
Burning Man
Burning Man is a festival that happens every year at Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, in the United States. It lasts a week, and it starts on the last Monday in August, and ends on the first Monday in September (which is also Labor Day in the U.S.). The festival is called Burning Man because a large wood sculpture of a man is set on fire on Saturday. The festival has been happening every year since 1990. Many people go to Burning Man; in 2012, over 55,000 people were there. The Black Rock desert is far from any cities or towns, and is very dry, so people who go to Burning Man have to bring their own water, food, and shelter.
Burning Man started in 1986 in San Francisco. An artist named Larry Harvey made a wooden sculpture of a man, and decided to burn it at a nearby beach as a bonfire for Summer Solstice. It was a success, so he did it again at the beach the next year, and then again a couple years after that. Each year the sculpture was made bigger. In 1987 “the Man” was almost tall, and in 1989 it was almost tall.
In 1990, the police stopped Harvey from burning the Man because Harvey did not have a permit.
Around the same time, two people named Kevin Evans and John Law were planning a group trip to a dry lake, called The Playa, in the Black Rock Desert. They were members of a group of Dadaists named the Cacophony Society. Harvey decided to take the sculpture, which had been taken apart, to the desert to be burned. Since that time the festival has happened in the desert.
John Law knew how to make neon signs, so starting in 1991 neon lights have been added to the Man.
One of the members of the Cacophony Society is named Michael Mikel, who uses the name “Danger Ranger”. He was worried about people getting lost in the desert, which can be very dangerous. He started a group named the Black Rock Rangers to help keep people safe, and to help break up conflicts.
Starting in 1991, Harvey got a permit from the Bureau of Land Management (who take care of land owned by the US government) to hold the festival. The festival was becoming more popular every year. In 1991 about 250 people were there. In 1995 about 4,000 people were there, and in 1997 it was about 10,000. In 2000 attendance was about 25,000, and by 2010 it had reached over 50,000 people. The festival has become so large, sometimes it is called "Black Rock City" because it is like a small city.
Harvey wrote 10 principles to suggest how he thought people at Burning Man behave. These principles are:
Everyone who goes to Burning Man must have a ticket. Tickets must be bought before the festival starts.
Burning Man is designed for pedestrians and people on bicycles. Most cars can only be used for entering or leaving the festival. Because there have been many car accidents in the past, cars are only allowed to go 5 miles per hour.
Money is only allowed for a few things at Burning Man. It can only be used to buy ice, to buy coffee and other drinks, to pay for recreational vehicle services, to pay for emergency services like an auto mechanic or a locksmith, and a few other things.
Guns, fireworks, and dogs, are not allowed.
Many artists choose to show their art at Burning Man. Because the dry lake where the festival happens is so empty, it is like a white canvas.
Every year since 1996 Harvey has chosen a theme, which is a word or idea that some of the artists use as part of their artwork. For example, in 2011 the theme was “Rites of Passage”, while in 2013 the theme was "Cargo Cults".
People who want to bring motor vehicles to drive around while at Burning Man must get permission before they arrive. The group that gives permission is called the "Department of Mutant Vehicles”, or DMV. The cars, trucks, and buses must be changed to look very different from normal. These are called "Mutant vehicles". Mutant vehicles often have complicated lights. Some mutant vehicles have loudspeakers for playing music, and some have flames and other pyrotechnics.
The city that is built for the festival is named "Black Rock City", or "BRC" for short. Because it is so big, some volunteers start building about 3 weeks before the festival starts. Some people also stay as long as 4 weeks after to clean-up and take everything apart.
The city has streets which are planned in the shape of a clock. There are streets that go towards the Man, which are named after times on a clock (12:00, 12:30, 1:00, and so on). There are also streets that curve in a circle around the Man. These streets are given new names every year. The area closest to the Man doesn't have any buildings or tents. This area only has different works of art. The street that runs along the inside of the circle surrounding the Man is called the Esplanade.
A small airport is also built every year, away from the rest of the city.
The Sierra Club has said that all of the cars and trucks coming and going to the desert produces too much carbon dioxide gas, which causes global warming. A group of people at Burning Man started a group called Black Rock Solar. This group built solar panels for schools in a nearby town, so that less carbon dioxide needs to be produced.
Tyre, Lebanon
Tyre is a city in the south of Lebanon. About 120,000 people lived there in 2003. The Phoenicians originally built the city. It is known as "Tyrus" in Latin, and "Tyros" in Greek. Its name in Arabic and Turkish is "Suur".
Norodom Sihanouk
Norodom Sihanouk (October 31, 1922 – October 15, 2012) was the King of Cambodia from 1941 to 1955 and again from 1993 to 2004. He was in the Guinness Book of Records because he had had the most political duties in the world. He served as the 1st, 12th, 16th, 20th, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 35th, and 37th Prime Minister of Cambodia. He was exiled in 2004 and later left his throne in the same year.
Sihanouk was born on October 31, 1922 in Phnom Penh, French Indochina. He studied at the Cavalry Military School. Sihanouk was married six times. His last wife was Norodom Monineath from 1952 until his death in 2012. Sihanouk had 14 children. He had suffered prostate cancer. Sihanouk died on October 15, 2012 while on a trip to Beijing, China from a heart attack, aged 89.
David Dinkins
David Norman Dinkins (July 10, 1927 – November 23, 2020) was an American politician and activist. He served as the 106th Mayor of New York City from January 1, 1990 through December 31, 1993. He lost reelection in 1993 to Rudy Giuliani. He was the first African American mayor of New York City.
Dinkins was born on July 10, 1927 in Trenton, New Jersey. He studied at Harvard University and at the Brooklyn Law School. Dinkins was married to Joyce Burrows until her death in 2020. They had two children.
Dinkins died on November 23, 2020 at his home in New York City from respiratory failure, aged 93.
Thomas E. Dewey
Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American politician. He served as the 47th Governor of New York from January 1, 1943 through December 31, 1954. He ran for President two times, he lost both of them. He was mostly known for losing to Harry S. Truman when the "Chicago Tribune" mistakenly printed newspapers that said Dewey Defeats Truman.
Dewey was born on March 24, 1902 in Owosso, Michigan. He studied at the University of Michigan and at the Columbian Law School. Dewey was married to Frances Hutt from 1928 until her death 1970. Dewey died while on a trip to Miami, Florida from a heart attack on March 16, 1971, aged 68.
Robert M. La Follette