The Russian Academy of Sciences (, shortened to , "RAN") consists of the national academy of Russia and a network of scientific research institutes from across the country. It also includes other scientific and social groups like libraries, publishing units and hospitals.
Like the French Academy of Sciences and unlike The Royal Society in Britain, the Russian Academy of Sciences has two types of membership. The top-level members are academicians (844 scientists, as of April 2021). The next-level members are corresponding members (1079 scientists). There are also professors of the RAN (604 scientists). 3 professors became academicians and 137 professors became corresponding members. These are now counted twice: as professors and as members. The last elections were organized in November 2019. To be elected to the Academy is a great honor for any researcher.
Big Business (1988 movie)
Big Business is a 1988 American comedy movie set in Two pairs of identical twin girls are switched at birth in West Virginia and go into two different settings in New York City. Bette Midler acts as Sadie, Lily Tomlin plays Rose. This movie was released in June 1988. It received lukewarm reviews by critics, although it performed quite well at the box office.
Solar car
Solar cars (or solar vehicles) are a special type of electric vehicle that only get their power from the sun. They use solar cells on the surface of the car to produce electricity and the electricity makes a motor turn, and that turns the wheels. They are not useful for normal driving, but once built, they can drive all day and not make any pollution. There are also some solar-powered vehicles for unusual cases, like the first rovers on Mars.
Also, there are electric vehicles that can be charged from separate solar panels, and those panels can be as big as needed. This can work to power an electric car for most daily needs. But this is not called a solar car, since it doesn't have the solar panels right on the car.
The first competition was a trip from Sydney, Australia to Perth in 1983.
There are now several competitions to see who can build the best solar-powered car. Some of these are for college students, some are open to anybody. It is not easy to build a good solar car. This is a good test of engineering skills, and helps improve the efficiency of cars and test solar equipment.
Laws of Attraction
Laws of Attraction is a 2004 Irish-British-German romantic comedy-drama movie. It is about two high-profile divorce lawyers in New York City. It stars Julianne Moore, Pierce Brosnan and Parker Posey. The movie got bad reviews from critics when it was released, but it earned back its budget revenue.
Don Keefer
Donald H. "Don" Keefer (August 18, 1916 – September 7, 2014) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in "Death of a Salesman", "Creepshow", "The Twilight Zone", "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "Gunsmoke", and in "Liar Liar".
Keefer was born on August 18, 1916 in Highspire, Pennsylvania. He studied at The Actors Studio. Keefer was married to Catherine McLeod from 1950 until her death in 1997. They had three children: Donald, John and Thomas.
Keefer died from natural causes on September 7, 2014 in Sherman Oaks, California. He was 98.
Fritz Weaver
Fritz William Weaver (January 19, 1926 – November 26, 2016) was an American actor. He was known for his guest-star roles in "The Twilight Zone", "Night Gallery", "The X-Files", "Matlock", and "Demon Seed". He was also known for his role as Dexter in "Creepshow". He won a Tony Award in 1970.
Weaver was born on January 19, 1926 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Weaver studied at Peabody High School. He was married to Sylvia Short from 1953 until they divorced in 1979. Then he married Rochelle Oliver in 1997. Weaver had two children with Short.
From 1995 until his death, Weaver has worked primarily as a voice actor, providing narration for programs on the History Channel.
Weaver died at his home in Manhattan on November 26, 2016, aged 90. No cause of death was immediately available.
Hans Schnitger
Henri Carel Willem "Hans" Schnitger (August 5, 1915 – March 2, 2013) was a Dutch field hockey player who competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics. Schnitger was a member of the Dutch field hockey team, which won the bronze medal. He played all five matches as forward.
Schnitger was born in Enschede, where he lived until his death on March 2, 2013 from natural causes, aged 97.
Chemtrail conspiracy theory
A chemtrail is a trail of chemicals left by an airplane at a high altitude. According to a conspiracy theory, the chemicals are said to be deliberately sprayed for reasons that are kept secret by the government. Most scientists and workers in the aviation industry say that the trails left by planes are just a form of condensation. These are called contrails (condensation trails).
People who believe the theory have speculated about what purpose chemtrails may serve. Some say it is to change the weather or stop global warming. Others say that it is to control the population by spreading chemicals that are harmful to the human reproductive system. Some more recent versions of the theory say that chemtrails are being spread by companies that make genetically-modified (GMO) crops. The chemtrails supposedly contain herbicides that will only kill normal (organic) crops and will not affect the genetically-modified crops.
Some claim that specially modified planes, supposedly owned and operated by the government, are necessary to create a chemtrail. The chemicals are said to either come from the engine or from special nozzles on the plane. In some versions of the theory, the chemical is said to be barium or a barium compound, but in other versions it is aluminum oxide, or a mixture of barium compounds and aluminum oxide.
Chemtrails are not to be confused with the spraying of chemicals over short distances at a low altitude, such as aerial firefighting or crop-dusting.
Several photographs on the Internet have been claimed to show the inside of planes that spread chemtrails. They show ballast barrels installed on the inside of the plane. In reality, these are photographs of test planes or firefighting planes. The real purpose of the barrels is to simulate the weight of passengers or cargo. The barrels are filled with water, and the water can be pumped from barrel to barrel to test different weight distributions while the aircraft is in flight.
Robert Conquest
George Robert Acworth Conquest, CMG (July 15, 1917 – August 3, 2015) or Robert Conquest was an English-American historian and poet. He was best known for his influential works of Soviet history. They include "The Great Terror: Stalin’s Purges of the 1930s". He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in November 2005.
Conquest was born on July 15, 1917 in Great Malvern, Worcestershire, England. He studied at Magdalen College, Oxford.
He was married to Joan Watkins from 1942 until they divorced in 1948. Then he was married to Tatiana Mihailova from 1948 until they divorced 1962. Then he was married to Caroleen MacFarlane from 1964 until they divorced in 1978. Then he was married to Elizabeth Neece Wingate from 1979 until his death in 2015. He had two sons from Watkins and one step-daughter from Wingate.
Conquest died in Stanford, California from respiratory failure caused by Parkinson's disease at the age of 98.
Alan Greenspan
Alan Greenspan (born March 6, 1926) is an American economist.
Greenspan was born on March 6, 1926 in New York City, New York to a Romanian-Hungarian-Jewish family. He studied at George Washington High School and at New York University.
He was the Chairman of the Federal Reserve of the United States from 1987 to 2006. He currently works as a private adviser and provides consulting for firms through his company, Greenspan Associates LLC. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in November 2005.