The first mint was perhaps in Lydia in the 7th century BC, for coining gold, silver and electrum. The Lydian innovation spread to neighboring Greece, where several city-states operated their own mints. Some of the earliest Greek mints were in city-states on Greek islands such as Crete. A mint existed at the ancient city of Cydonia on Crete at least as early as the fifth century BC.
Vlissingen
Vlissingen, Zeelandic: "Vlissienge", English: "Flushing", is a city, municipality and seaport in the province of Zeeland, the Netherlands.
The city has about 33,000 people. The municipality has about 44,000 (2016). It has been an important harbor for centuries. Most of the Royal Netherlands Navy ships are built in Vlissingen.
BOAC Flight 911
British Overseas Airways Corporation Flight 911, was a Boeing 707 that was flying from San Francisco to Hong Kong, with stopovers at, Honolulu, Fukuoka, and Tokyo. On the 5th of March, 1966 the aircraft broke up in mid-air and crashed into Mount Fuji due to faulty maintenance to the vertical stabiliser. All 113 passengers and 11 crew members on board the plane were killed, in the 6th worst aviation accident on Japanese soil.
Jerusalem Delivered
Jerusalem Delivered ( ) is an epic poem by the Italian poet Torquato Tasso, first published in 1581. It tells a largely fictional version of the First Crusade in which Christian knights, led by Godfrey of Bouillon, battle Muslims in order to take Jerusalem. The poem is composed of eight-line stanzas grouped into 20 cantos of varying length.
The work belongs to the Italian Renaissance tradition of the romantic epic poem. The poet frequently borrows plot elements and character types directly from "Orlando furioso" ("The Frenzy of Roland"), written in 1516 by Ludovico Aristo (1474-1533). Tasso's poem also has elements inspired by the classical epics of Homer and Virgil, especially in those sections of their works that tell of sieges and warfare. One of the most typical literary devices in Tasso's poem is the emotional conflict suffered by characters torn between their heart and their duty; the depiction of love at odds with martial courage or honor is a central source of lyrical passion in the poem.
Goffred albo Jeruzalem wyzwolona is a Polish translation of Torquato Tasso's "Gerusalemme liberata" ("Jerusalem Delivered") (by Piotr Kochanowski. It was first printed in Cracow (Kraków) in 1618.
In the 16th century Polish literature flourished. One thing, however, lacked. There was no long epic poem in Poland. Jan Kochanowski, the greatest poet of the Renaissance in Kingdom of Poland, wrote many lyrical pieces and some stories in verse. His nephew, Piotr Kochanowski was the first poet to give an epic poem to the Poles. He did not write a poem on his own. He translated two epic masterpieces from the Italian. They were "Jerusalem Delivered" by Torquato Tasso and "Orlando Furioso" by Ludovico Ariosto.
The historical importance of Piotr Kochanowski's translation lies in its form. The poet used exactly the same form, ottava rima. It is an Italian strophe of eight lines. It is built of 11-syllable lines (endecasillabo in Italian). It rhymes abababcc. The strophe was used by Italian poets from 14th century. There are many long poems in ottava rima in Italian literature of 15th and 16th centuries. There were not any in Polish literature of the time. Piotr Kochanowski introduced the strophe into Polish poetry. There was another poet, Sebastian Grabowiecki, who used it earlier in Poland. He dit it, however, in one short poem. Into English poetry ottava rima was introduced many years before by Thomas Wyatt. In 17th century ottava rima became one of the most important verse forms in Poland.
Piotr Kochanowski's version of "Jerusalem Delivered" is still widely read. There are many new editions. His translation is used at school.
Bermuda rig
A Bermuda rig, also called a Marconi rig, is a fore-and-aft rig that uses a triangular mainsail. The sail is usually attached to a boom at its foot. It has a number of variations. Due to the physics of the wind, the tall thin sails of the Bermudian rigs have more power sailing into the wind than other types. This is why it is such a popular rig with modern sailboats. It was called a Marconi rig after the inventor Guglielmo Marconi because its system of mast stays that looked like the early wireless masts. However, the name Bermuda rig was in use two centuries earlier. It came from the late 1600s when European sailors noticed how well the small sloops in Bermuda worked.
It was developed in Bermuda in the 17th century. It was based on the leg-of-mutton sail. The strong gusty winds around the Bermuda islands made sailing around the waters difficult to navigate. The prevailing winds came out of the west which lined up with the islands. In addition, the number of reefs around the islands required caution. Most other sail designs did not address these issues.
It is widely thought the first of these designs was a fore-and-aft rig built by in the 17th century by a Dutch-born Bermudan. While his name is not remembered, he may have seen the Moorish lateen rigs that were widely used during the time Spain ruled Holland. The Dutch modified early lateen rigs turning the yards into angled masts. This design was called "bezaanjacht" in Dutch (in English this meant "leg of mutton"). By the 19th century the design had evolved into using tall triangular sails and jibs. They also used Bermuda cedar for the hulls which is much lighter than oak. This made the Bermuda sailboats very fast and easily maneuverable. They could travel into the wind with ease and were especially fast when heading downwind. Very soon they were being raced.
The name Marconi rig came from the 1899 America's Cup yacht race held in New York City. Guglielmo Marconi demonstrated his new wireless radio by reporting on the race. The masts of the Bermudan rigged vessels with their supporting cables looked like the wireless mast of Marconi's radio. This is how they came to be named Marconi rigs.
Agricultural fencing
Agricultural fencing is a type of fence that is often used in agriculture. Fencing is often used to help control livestock on farms. The fence can make sure they do not leave the farm. On farms that grow produce, fencing can be used to keep out wildlife that may eat or damage the crops.
Robotics
Robotics is a part of engineering and science. It is the work of creating and building robots. It is interdisciplinary, involving people who have studied mechanical engineering, electrical engineering or computer programming. It also needs people who understand the work of the robot. As an example, geologists need to be involved in making a robot that will take soil samples on another planet.
Robots are sometimes used to do things that humans cannot, like finding and destroying bombs, or going places that are too hot, small, dangerous or distant for humans. Some robots look like humans, but most just look like machines. Some robots can move by themselves, others need to be partly or completely controlled by a human.
Robotics comes from the word robot, which in turn comes from the Slavic word "robota". "Robota" means labor, or work. Karel Čapek invented the word "robot" to use in a play. This play was called "R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots)". The word "robotics" was first used by Isaac Asimov in his story "Liar!" published in 1941.
Outsourcing
Outsourcing is a term from economics: Sometimes a company decides to change its structure, in such a way, that it no longer performs certain tasks which are not its core business. Instead, the company hires or collaborates with other companies which can then perform these functions.