juno-labs/simple_wikipedia huggingface dataset:
Line dance

**Line dancing** is a form of group dancing that is done to either country or hip-hop music. The term line dance is derived from the idea that the group of people participating in the dance are all facing the same direction when conducting the series of moves in the line dance. A line dance can go from 32 beats upwards of up to 92 beats per minutes, and can also be either a 4 or 2 wall dance. When the dance starts off everyone is facing the front wall, after all of the counts of the dance are complete (let's say we were doing a 32 count dance) then everyone would finish the dance facing either the back wall or the left or right wall. One example of a line dance is the "Men In Black" line dance. This dance is usually done to a hip-hop song, such as "Yeah 3X", by Chris Brown. Once the first 32 counts of the dance are completed everyone will finish the dance facing the left wall, and would have turned one quarter to their left counter clockwise. Once the series of moves is completed 4 times the group will end up facing the front wall again.
Three Kingdoms of Korea

The **Three Kingdoms of Korea** were Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla. They existed between the 1st century BC and 7th century CE. There were some smaller kingdoms like Gaya, Dongye, Okjeo, Buyeo, Usan, Tamna, etc.

Baekje helped spread Chinese characters, Chinese culture, Han Buddhism, and other technology to Japan.

The Three Kingdoms period ended in 668: Silla allied with the Tang Dynasty to conquer Baekje and then Goguryeo. Korea unified under Later Silla. The Tang occupied the northern parts of Korea. After this Korea split during the North and South States period.

Besides Chinese records, the books _Samguk Sagi_ and _Samguk Yusa_ also record the history of the era_._ "Samguk" (Hangul: 삼국, Hanja: 三國) means "Three Kingdoms".

## Infobox (korean name)

- **img**: History of Korea-476.PNG
- **caption**: Map of the Three Kingdoms of Korea—Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla—in the fifth century, at the height of Goguryeo's territorial expansion
- **img2**: History of Korea-576.png
- **caption2**: Three kingdom of Korea in 576 when Gaya was merged into with Silla
- **rr**: Samguk-sidae
- **mr**: Samguk-sidae
- **context**: old
- **othername1**: Other name
- **rr1**: Samguk-sigi
- **mr1**: Samguk-sigi
Eckernförde

**Eckernförde** (, sometimes also _Egernfjord_, , sometimes also _Eckernföör_) is a German city in Schleswig-Holstein, Kreis Rendsburg-Eckernförde at the Baltic Sea near Kiel. The population was about 23,000 in 2023.

All 24 German submarines are stationed in Eckernförde.

Eckernförde is a well-known touristic centre in Northern Germany.

## History

- In 1302 Eckernförde is first mentioned as a city.
- The Count Saint-Germain is supposed to be buried in Eckernförde near the St.-Nicolai-Church. His grave was destroyed by the great storm tide on 13 November 1872.

## Twin towns

- , Macclesfield, (since 1953)
- , Hässleholm, (since 1958)
- , Tanga, (since 1963)
- , Nakskov, (since 1969)
- , Brzeg, (since 1989)
- , , Bützow, (since 1990)

## Other websites

- Official homepage of Eckernförde
- Official tourist information
- Local Newspaper _(Eckernförder Zeitung)_

## Infobox (german location)

- **art**: Stadt
- **wappen**: DEU Eckernfoerde COA.svg
- **lageplan**: Eckernfoerde in RD.png
- **bundesland**: Schleswig-Holstein
- **kreis**: Rendsburg-Eckernförde
- **höhe**: 0 - 42
- **fläche**: 17.97
- **einwohner**: 23144
- **stand**: 2005-12-31
- **plz**: 24340
- **vorwahl**: 04351
- **kfz**: RD
- **gemeindeschlüssel**: 01 0 58 043
- **bürgermeister**: Jörg Sibbel
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria

**Franz Ferdinand Karl Ludwig Josef of Austria**, or Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Este (Franz Ferdinand Karl Ludwig Josef; ) (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914), was an archduke (like a prince) of Austria and the heir presumptive of Austria-Hungary in 1896 until his assassination in 1914 before he would have become the emperor. That made Austria decide on war against Serbia, which started World War I.

## Death

On 28 June 1914, Franz Ferdinand went to Sarajevo in Bosnia for a trip. He traveled to the Town Hall at 10pm with his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, in the third car of a motorcade in a roofless limousine. Franz Ferdinand had jokingly mentioned that he would not be surprised if there was a few bombs waiting for him on his trip. On his way to the Town Hall, a man from the Black Hand tried to assassinate him, Trifun Grabež was standing in wait for Franz Ferdinand and tried to shoot him but froze and so let the car pass. He then went home and hid his gun and bomb but was later arrested.

On the same journey to the Town Hall, a man, also from the Black Hand, threw a bomb at the car and injured lots of Franz Ferdinand's staff, but Nedeljko Čabrinović failed to kill Franz Ferdinand and so tried to swallow cyanide. He jumped into the Miljacka River but failed to die and so he got arrested.

The Archduke was shocked but headed to the Town Hall anyway and did his speech. The paper was covered in the blood of an assistant, who had been injured in the bomb. After his speech he decided to go to the hospital to visit the 20 people injured in the bomb. As the driver took a turn to head to the hospital, Princip jumped out and shot Sophie in the abdomen.She collapsed and died instantly then shot the Archduke in his neck and in his leg. Franz Ferdinand died on the way to the hospital after his last last words: “Sophie! Sophie! Don’t die! For our children!

Princip was sentenced to 20 years in prison and was imprisoned at the Terezín Fortress and died in 1918. Čabrinović was also sentenced to 20 years in prison and died in 1916. Grabež was sentenced to 20 years and died in 1916. Their sentences were the maximum that their young age would allow.

## Infobox (royalty)

- **name**: Franz Ferdinand of Austria
- **image**: Franz ferdinand.jpg
- **image size**: 200px
- **birth place**: Graz, Austrian Empire
- **death place**: Sarajevo, Austria-Hungary
- **title**: Archduke of Austria-Este, Prince Imperial of Austria, Prince Royal of Hungary and Bohemia
- **spouse**: Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg
- **issue**: Princess Sophie von Hohenberg, Princess Sophie of Hohenberg
Maximilian von Hohenberg, Maximilian, Duke of Hohenberg
Prince Ernst von Hohenberg, Prince Ernst of Hohenberg
- **father**: Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria
- **mother**: Maria Annunciata of the Two Sicilies
- **caption**: Franz Ferdinand in the 1890’s-1910’s ?
Black Hand

**Black Hand** or **Crna Ruka**, officially **Ujedinjenje ili Smrt** ("Unification or Death")  was a secret group of Serbian nationalists (Pan-Serbians). It was founded in 1911 in Serbia.

Their aim was to create a country from other countries where Serbs lived, including Bosnia-Herzegovina which was a part of Austria-Hungary since 1908.

## Killing of Franz Ferdinand

Five members of The Black Hand were in Sarajevo, Serbia, on 28 June, 1914 where Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the throne in Austria-Hungary, visited with his wife. Ferdinand was driven through the city in a convertible car. The members of the Black Hand attempted to kill Ferdinand by throwing grenades at his car. One of the grenades bounced off his car and exploded under the car following Ferdinand's. One of the members swallowed cyanide and attempted to jump into the river, however the cyanide was old, and the river was shallow, so he was arrested. One of the men, a Bosnian student called Gavrilo Princip, went to a cafe after failing to kill Ferdinand.

The Archduke and his wife decided to go and visit the people who were injured in the explosion in hospital, however the driver took a wrong turn and stopped outside the cafe where Princip was eating. Princip saw this and went outside. He took out a gun and shot at Ferdinand; two bullets hit the archduke, one hit his wife, and the other hit the car. Both Ferdinand and his wife died shortly after.

Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia for the assassination. Austria-Hungary then declared war on Serbia, and Russia joined the war on Serbia's side because the people of Serbia were Slavic, like Russia, and the Slavic countries had agreed to help each other if they were attacked. Since Russia is a large country it had to move soldiers closer to the war, but Germany feared that Russia's soldiers would also attack Germany. Russia did not like Germany because of things Germany had done in the past to become stronger. Germany declared war on Russia, and used a plan to attack Russia that had been created before the war, but it also involved attacking France and Belgium. France and Great Britain joined the war because Great Britain had agreed to help Belgium if it were ever attacked by someone else.

This quickly led to a full-scale war. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Both country's allies became involved in the war, and soon most of Europe became involved.

The Black Hand also killed Alexander I of Serbia and Draga Mašin.
Edmonton

**Edmonton** is the capital, and second largest city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is the 5th largest city in Canada. In 2021, there were about 1,102,656 people in the city proper, and about 1,420,000 people in the Edmonton metropolitan area. However, Calgary has a slightly higher population.

The city sits in central Alberta, in the prairie part of the province, and makes up part of the Edmonton-Calgary corridor.

Starting as a trading post on the North Saskatchewan River. Edmonton turned into a city mostly over the last 100 years.

Edmonton has of one of the world's largest shopping malls, the West Edmonton Mall. It has over 800 stores, a hotel, an indoor water park, an indoor theme park, an ice skating rink, movie theatres, restaurants, bars, and other things to see. Many people visit it.

Edmonton also has more sun than all other cities in Canada, but other cities are warmer. Winter temperatures often are below -20 °C. It is common for it be even colder (below -30 °C) for a few days in January or February. However, summers can be hotter than 30 °C. The sun does not set until after 11 p.m. in June.

The city is also well known for its festivals. There are many popular events in both summer and winter such as Heritage Days, the Folk Festival, and the Fringe.

Edmonton has many interesting places to visit like the Francis Winspear Centre for Music, the Valley Zoo, Fort Edmonton Park, the Muttart Conservatory, and Telus World of Science.

Edmonton is known as the city of champions since it is home to the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League and the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League. The Edmonton Oilers have five Stanley Cup Championships,and the Elks have 23 Western Division Championships, and 13 Grey Cup Championships.

The Edmonton tornado, the second-deadliest tornado in Canada, struck the east side of the city on July 31, 1987.
Autarky

**Autarky** is an economy that does no trade with the outside world. It is called ** a self-sufficient economy** or a **closed economy** too. It does not need any other countries or regions helping.

Autarky is rare in the modern world. An example of a currently run autarky is North Korea, but even it makes a small amount trade between some countries, like China and Japan.
Chastity belt

A **chastity belt** is a device locked around the wearer's genitals to prevent sexual intercourse and/or masturbation. Chastity belts for women were introduced into Europe from Italy, and saw some limited degree of use during the Renaissance period.

They were not used until the 16th century, and then only rather rarely. They first became widely available as 19th-century anti-masturbation medical devices. Many of the belts on public display in museums have now been tested to determine their correct age, with the earliest found to originate in the early 1800s.

In modern times, belts for both men and women are used in BDSM.
Mount Arafat

**Mount Arafat** or **Mount Arafah** ( transliterated _Jabal ‘Arafāt_) is a granite hill east of Mecca in the plain of Arafat. Arafat is a plain about  southeast of Mecca. Mount Arafat reaches about  in height and is also known as the **Mount of Mercy** (_Jabal ar-Rahmah_). According to Islamic tradition, the hill is the place where the Islamic prophet Muhammad stood and delivered the Farewell Sermon to the Muslims who had accompanied him for the Hajj towards the end of his life.

On the 9th of the month of Dhu al-Hijjah pilgrims go to Arafat from Mina, for the most important part of the Hajj. The Khutbah of Hajj is narrated and Zuhr prayer and Asr prayer are prayed together. The pilgrims spend the whole day on the mountain to supplicate to Allah to forgive their sins and to pray for personal strength in the future.

## Hajj

Arafah rituals end at sunset and pilgrims then move to Muzdalifah for a shortened Maghrib Prayer and Isha prayer and for a short rest.

The level area surrounding the hill is called the **Plain of Arafat**. The term Mount Arafah is sometimes applied to this entire area. It is an important place in Islam because during the Hajj, pilgrims spend the afternoon there on the ninth day of Dhul Hijjah (ذو الحجة). Failure to be present in the plain of Arafat on the required day invalidates the pilgrimage.

Since late 2010, this place is served by Mecca Metro. On a normal Hajj, it would be around  to walk.
Jameson

**Jameson** is a famous brand of Irish whiskey.  It is amber in color and has quite a  strong smell. It is an alcoholic beverage.

In Ireland, people refer to it as _Jemmie_.
Synonym

A **synonym** is a word with the same meaning as another word.

## Examples

- _sick_ and _ill_
- _child_ and _kid_
- _baby_ and _infant_
- _rich_ and _wealthy_
- _make_ and _create_
- _student_ and _pupil_
- _car_ and _automobile_
- _scared_ and _frightened_

## Nature

Synonyms can be nouns, verbs, adverbs or adjectives, but both words must be of the same part of speech. That means, only a noun can be a synonym of another noun, only a verb can be a synonym of another verb, and so on. One can find sets of synonyms in a thesaurus, which is a book listing groups of related words.

Some words are near-synonyms, which have similar but not exactly the same meaning. Examples of proper nouns, such as names of these languages, having synonyms or near-synonyms include:

- _Siamese_ also known as _Thai_
- _Ute_ also known as _Noochew_
- _Urdu_ also known as _Lashkari_
- _Ghurkhali_ also known as _Nepali_
- _Euskara_ also known as _Basque_
- _Myanmar_ also known as _Burmese_
- _Persian_ also known as _Farsi_ or _Parsi_

## History

The word _synonym_ dates back over 500 years, to late Middle English. The word is derived from Latin from the Greek word _sunōnumon_, neuter form of the adjective _sunōnumos_, from _sun-_ meaning 'with' + _onoma_ meaning 'name' in the Greek language. The meaning of the word has remained unchanged for all these centuries. There is even a saying, dating to 1892, _Once a synonym, always a synonym_.
The word has been taught to generations of English-language students and is commonly known by the public. Many other languages have a similar word for _synonym_ with the same or similar spelling.

## Related pages

- Antonym
- Homonym
- Homophone
Yosa Buson

was a Japanese Haiku poet and painter, usually referred to simply as "Buson". He is one of the greatest poets of the Edo period, comparable with Matsuo Basho and Kobayashi Issa.

He was born in Osaka, his real family name was **Taniguchi** (). From 1758, he began to live in Kyoto, and he stayed there for rest of his life. He got married when he was 45 years old, and became a father of his daughter **Kuno** ().
Sandbox

**Sandbox** could mean:

## Arts, entertainment, and media

- Sandbox (band), a Canadian rock music group
- _Sandbox_ (Guided by Voices album), 1987
- _Sandbox_ (Michael Houser album), 2006, or the title track
- Sandbox Theatre, an experimental theatre group in Minneapolis, Minnesota
- _The Sandbox_ (play), a 1960 one-act play by Edward Albee

### Video gaming

- Sandbox game, a genre or _mode_ of some video games for open-ended, nonlinear play
- _The Sandbox_ (2012 video game), a 2012 game for mobile phones
- S&box (game engine), an in-development game engine by Facepunch Studios
- Sandbox Studios, a computer- and video-game developer
- The Sandbox (company), a metaverse platform developer
- Sandbox (video game editor), a game level editor for _Far Cry_

## Computing

- Sandbox (computer security), a virtual container in which untrusted programs can be safely run
- Sandbox (software development), an environment in which code or content changes can be tested without affecting the original system
- Sandbox effect, in Google Internet search rankings

## Other uses

- Sand box (civil engineering), a device to remove centring
- Sandbox (locomotive), a container that holds sand for use in improving rail adhesion in slippery conditions
- Sandbox (missile) or SS-N-12, a Soviet anti-ship missile
- Sandbox, a container for pounce (calligraphy), used before the invention of blotting paper
- Sandbox therapy, a tool used by child psychologists
- Sandbox tree, the evergreen species _Hura crepitans_ of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae), also known as possumwood and jabillo, native to tropical regions in the Americas

## Related pages

- Litter box, an indoor sandbox, usually filled with kitty litter, in which house pets are trained to relieve themselves
Telephone

A **telephone**, also known as a **phone**, is a communication tool. People use it to talk with people far away. Originally, it was an electric tool sending analogue speech through wires. Many telephones in the 21st century are electronic tools sending digital signals on wires or radio transmission. Using a telephone, two people who are in different places can talk to each other. Early telephones needed to be connected with wires which are called fixed or landline telephones. Modern mobile phones use radio waves.

## History

Alexander Graham Bell was the first person to patent the telephone, in 1876. Early telephones were wired directly to each other and could only talk to the phone that they were connected to. Later, telephone exchange<nowiki/>s allowed connecting to other telephones. During the 20th century the machines that made the connections were automated.

## Types of telephones

There are many different types of telephones. A telephone that can be carried around is called a mobile phone or cell phone. These became popular in the  1980s. It has become common for people to carry mobile phones and in many places it is unusual to not have one. The majority are smartphones, which can be used as computers. Some mobile phones can make telephone calls using communications satellites instead of masts on the ground, which means people can make calls from anywhere in the world.

In most countries there were public payphones.  To use one, people paid with coins, a credit card or a prepaid card.

Computers can use a machine called a modem or a Digital subscriber line router to talk to other computers over a telephone line. This allows a computer to connect to other computer networks including the Internet.

Most countries have a telephone network. The telephones in one place are connected to a telephone exchange. The exchanges are connected together in a world-wide network. In developing countries cell phones are used as a cheaper and faster way to connect the countryside to the network.

## Telephone number

Most telephones have their own number. Today, telephone numbers are about seven to ten digits long. In many countries, part of the telephone number is called the _area code_. Area codes are used to make sure the numbers are not the same in two different places. Areas have their own area code, and countries have their own country code.

## Usage

By the end of 2009, there were nearly 6 billion mobile and fixed-line telephone subscribers worldwide. This included 1.26 billion fixed-line subscribers and 4.6 billion mobile subscribers.
Kobe, Hyōgo

- _For the basketball player, see Kobe Bryant._

**Kobe** (Japanese: 神戸市; -shi) is a city in the Kansai region of Japan on the island of Honshu. It is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture.

Kobe is an important port city in the Kansai district of Western Japan. It is near the cities of Osaka and Kyoto. Its population is around 1.53 million people as of 2008.

Kobe is next to the Seto Inland Sea. Its northern part, including the Rokko mountain, is hilly. A ropeway runs from the Rokko district in its southern area through Rokko mountain to the Arima Spa. Transportation includes, the Shinkansen train service, highways and roads along the coast. Many cargo trucks and tankers use the port. There is a ferry between Shanghai and Kobe periodically.

### Early history

Already in the late 12th century powerful leader Taira no Kiyomori moved the capital of Japan from Kyoto to Fukuwara, nowadays the Fukuwara district of Japan. He planned for it to serve as a trade and political center of Japan. Kiyomori relied his political influence on the trade between Japan and China. But his plan failed and Kobe stayed a small village during a long time.

### Later history

The area of Kobe was expanded and today it includes Mount Maya, Sumaura Park, Sumaike park with a good spa and the famous Arima spa. Arima spa is one of oldest spas in Japan, whose earliest record is found already in _Nihonshoki_. Kobe is also famous for its Kobe beef, a very expensive meat delicacy.

### Modern foundation

Kobe was founded in 1868 as a port for serving foreign ships. In those days most ports in Japan were closed to foreigners. Many foreigners lived in Kobe, including: westerners, Chinese, Jews, and Indians. Kobe has one of the more important Chinatowns in Japan. People can find a synagogue and many Christian churches, too. Kobe is similar to Yokohama as a place from where modern international culture was introduced into Japan.

### Earthquake

On January 17, 1995 a very powerful earthquake hit the city. Earthquakes are more common in other parts of Japan, but not in Kansai so this earthquake was a surprise for everyone. 6,434 people were killed in Kobe and its neighboring cities, and many more were injured. Many of the buildings were destroyed.

## Industry

The northern area of Kobe is an industrial area. There are many factories. Sake production in Nada district has been known from the Edo period. Nagata district in the southwest area of Kobe was a center of shoe production in Japan but production suffered because of destruction caused by the Earthquake.

## Related pages

- Vissel Kobe

## Infobox (chinese)

- **pic**: Kobe (Chinese characters).svg
- **piccap**: "Kobe" in new-style (_shinjitai_) _kanji_
- **picupright**: 0.425
- **shinjitai**: 神戸
- **kyujitai**: 神戶
- **hiragana**: こうべ
- **katakana**: コーベ
- **romaji**: Kōbe
Genghis Khan

**Genghis Khan** (born **Temüjin**; August 1227), also known as **Chinggis Khan**, was the first ruler of the Mongol Empire, which he created in 1206 in his fatherland in what is now Mongolia.

After the death of his father when Temüjin was eight, his family was left behind by the Mongols. They became very poor but did not die. Temüjin was very clever, and people who liked him came to be his soldiers. He made friends with two rulers, Jamukha and Toghrul, and they helped him find his wife Börte, who had been made a prisoner. However, they Temüjin and Jamukha started to dislike each other, and they began a war. Temüjin lost at the start and may have had to run away for years. By 1196, he was back in Mongolia, and many soldiers came to fight for him. Soon, Toghrul started to dislike Temüjin and attacked him in 1203. Temüjin won the war, and both Toghrul and Jamukha died.

## Infobox (royalty)

- **name**: Genghis Khan
- **image**: YuanEmperorAlbumGenghisPortrait.jpg
- **alt**: Portrait of an old, bearded Genghis dressed in white clothing
- **caption**: A 1278 painting of Genghis Khan
- **succession**: Mongol Empire, Khan of the Mongol Empire
- **reign**: 1206 – August 1227
- **birth name**: Temüjin
- **birth place**: Khentii Mountains
- **death date**: August 1227 (aged around 65)
- **death place**: Xingqing Prefecture, Xingqing, Western Xia
- **burial place**: Burial place of Genghis Khan, Unknown
- **full name**: Temüjin ()
- **regnal name**: Chinggis Khaan (; )
- **house**: Borjigin
- **father**: Yesugei
- **mother**: Hö'elün
Philippe's

**Philippe's** is a sit-down restaurant in downtown Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.. It is at 1001 North Alameda Street, near Olvera Street. Phillippe's is famous for inventing the French dip sandwich (though another restaurant called _Cole's_ claims to have invented it, too). It has been in business since 1908, and is the oldest operating restaurant in Los Angeles. The traditional meal served at Phillippe's is a French dip sandwich, a bag of potato chips, a soft-drink (preferably root beer or cola), and a tapioca pudding cup for dessert.
Orbit

- _Orbit is also a word for an eye socket._

An **orbit** is the path that an object takes in space when it goes around a star, a planet, or a moon. It can also be used as a verb. For instance: “The earth _orbits_ around the Sun.” The word ‘revolves’ has the same meaning, but 'rotates' is the spin of the object.

Many years ago, people thought that the Sun orbits in a circle around the Earth. Every morning the Sun came up in the East and went down in the West. It just seemed to make sense that it was going around the Earth. But now, thanks to people like Copernicus and Galileo Galilei, we know that the Sun is the center of the Solar System, and the Earth orbits around it.  Isaac Newton discovered that gravity controls the orbit of the planets and moons.  Since a satellite is an object in space that revolves around another object, the Earth is a satellite of the Sun, just like the moon is a satellite of the Earth. The Sun has lots of satellites orbiting around it, like the planets, and asteroids, comets, and meteoroids. The Earth just has one natural satellite (the Moon), but there are many artificial satellites orbiting the earth.

When people first began to think about orbits, they thought that all orbits had to be perfect circles, and they thought that the circle was a "perfect" shape. Copernicus and Galileo, for example, thought so. But when people began to study the motions of planets carefully, they saw that the planets were not moving in perfect circles.

In a planetary system, planets, dwarf planets, asteroids and other minor planets, comets, and space debris orbit the system's barycenter in elliptical orbits.

## Orbital period

An _orbital period_ is the time that it takes for one object - that is, satellite - to orbit around another object. For instance, the Earth's orbital period is one year: 365.25 days. (The extra ".25" is why we have a leap day once every four years).

The Moon takes 27 days (29.53 days as seen from Earth) to go around the Earth and also to rotate around its own axis. This is why only one side always faces the Earth and the "dark side of the Moon" faces away (it is called dark because we cannot see it, though all sides of the moon get light). One lunar year and one lunar day take the same amount of time.

## Elliptical and eccentric orbits

Johannes Kepler (lived 15711630) wrote mathematical "laws of planetary motion", which gave a good idea of the movements of the planets because he found that the orbits of the planets in our Solar System are not really circles, but are really ellipses (a shape like a "flattened circle"). That is why orbits are described as elliptical.

The more elliptical an orbit is, the more eccentric the orbit is. This is called orbital eccentricity. Other numbers that describe an elliptical orbit include semi-major axis and orbital inclination.

Isaac Newton (lived 1642–1727) used his own ideas about gravity to show why Kepler's laws worked the way they did. Joseph-Louis Lagrange further advanced the study of orbital mechanics, using Newton's theory to predict perturbations which change the shapes of orbits.
Georgian uprising on Texel

The **Georgian Uprising of Texel** (5 April 1945 – 20 May 1945) was an insurrection (a rebellion, or mutiny, when soldiers disobey their orders) by Soviet Georgian soldiers on the island of Texel. The uprising was against the Germans army who had taken over the Dutch island during the Second World War. The event  is sometimes described as _Europe's last battlefield_.

The island was very important in the German Atlantic Wall – the line of defences along the Atlantic coast. It was strong and had many defences. The Georgians were soldiers from the Soviet Republic of Georgia who had been captured (taken prisoner) on the Eastern front. They were now fighting for the Germans so that they did not have to stay in camps for prisoners. Their job was to help the German troops.

On the night of 5–6 April 1945 they thought that the Allies would land soon. They took over the island and killed 400 German soldiers. Some parts of the island stayed under German control and the Georgian soldiers could not capture them. More Germans were able to come to the island to help defeat the Georgians. After a few weeks of very tough fighting the Germans took control of the island again.

Unfortunately the British and Canadians, who were warned of the events on Texel by escapees who fled by boat to England, did not believe them, and did not take any action in order to stop the fighting.

On Texel this is called the _Russian war_. Approximately 800 Germans, 500 Georgians, and 120 Tesselans (people from the island) were killed. Lots of farms were burned. Even after the Germans surrendered (gave up) in the Netherlands and Denmark on 5 May 1945, and after the full German surrender on 8 May, the fighting continued. Canadian soldiers stopped the fighting on 20 May.

The Georgian survivors did not have a happy ending. They were sent back to the Soviet Union. Stalin said that because the soldiers had been captured by the Germans, they had not fought until they died, so they were traitors. Some of the two million Soviet prisoners who were sent back to the Soviet Union by the Allied forces after the end of the war were executed (killed) when they got there.

A museum at the airport on the island tells the story of this event.
Play (theatre)

A **play** is a piece of writing (literature) which can be seen at a theatre or on television, or heard on the radio. Plays often show conversations between people. A play is usually watched, rather than being read.

The people who appear in a play are actors; in a theatre they stand on a stage so the people watching (the audience) can see them better. A director helps the actors to work better, or tells them how he wants the play to be.

Plays can be very interesting because they can be understood in many different ways. When the writer - the playwright - makes the play, he can not say how the actors or director will use it. Sometimes the playwright is also the director or an actor: Molière, for example, was often an actor in his plays. But the director can change the play in different ways: the actors' costume, the music, how people say things, how they move or what they hold. Modern directors can direct plays by Shakespeare, and these old plays seem modern now, too.

There are many sorts of plays, but there are six important sorts:

1. Tragedy - the end is sad, because of bad luck, because the hero is not perfect, or because of the gods.
1. Comedy - the end is happy. Some things in this sort of play are funny; it makes us laugh.
1. Domestic drama - the play is about normal life, family and friends.
1. Tragicomedy - this play is both a tragedy and a comedy.
1. Melodrama - this sort of play often has a happy ending. In it there is a villain - a bad person - but the hero (and often a heroine) win. The emotions are very strong.
1. Symbolic - this sort of play is about ideas. The people in the play are not so important.
Symbolic can also be called expressionistic. Its all about how the writer or director presents ideas in a very different point of view.
1. (Experimental) - this is a play in which the director and actors can try out new ideas.  Anything can be tried out.  It is an experiment.

## Related pages

- Drama
- Intermission
- Improvisation
Phrasal verb

**Phrasal verb** is the name given to an English verb which is composed of two or three words. One verb is combined with a preposition (like _on, in, under)_ or an adverb (like _up, down, away_). Sometimes a phrasal verb can have a meaning that is very different from the meaning of at least one of those two or three words separately. Some textbooks call these verbs **multi-word verbs**. Phrasal verbs are used more frequently in everyday speech than in formal, official writing or speaking.

Here are some examples:

_Maria didn't know the word, so she_ **looked it up** _in the dictionary._

_Oh no, we've_ **run out of** _milk! I'll have to buy some more._

_Farmers have to_ **get up** _early in the morning._

_The rocket_ **took off** _with a loud roar._

Often these phrasal verbs have a one-word equivalent in other languages.
In Spanish, **to get up** can be translated as _levantarse_, in French as _se lever_ etc.

## Types of phrasal verbs

There are **four** different types of phrasal verbs.
These are:
- **Phrasal verbs which take objects and are separable **
- **Phrasal verbs which take objects and are inseparable**
- **Phrasal verbs which do not take objects ** (these are always inseparable)
- **Three-word phrasal verbs**

Instead of "separate" or "separable", some text books use the word "split" or "splittable".

A useful piece of advice to confused students of English is this:

**If you do not know if a phrasal verb is separable or inseparable ALWAYS use a noun or noun phrase and do not try to separate the verb.**
Carisbrooke Castle

**Carisbrooke Castle** is the Isle of Wight's only remaining medieval castle. It was built on a Roman site. The castle earthworks were begun in 1070.
The shell keep was built on the site some 70 years later.  None of the Norman domestic buildings now remain.  The gatehouse with its drum towers dates from the 14th and 15th centuries.

In 1377, the French landed on the island but the castle was not attacked.

During Elizabethan times the threat of a Spanish invasion was avoided when the Spanish Armada was turned away at a nearby battle.  However, the castle was considerably altered to resist the new artillery.  Outer lines of defence were built enclosing the old castle.  The curtain walls, bastions, and bulwarks remain in good condition to this day.

Charles I was held as prisoner at the castle in 1647. An attempt to escape failed, when he got stuck in the bars.

Later the castle was the occasional residence of the governor of the Isle of Wight and it became home to Princess Beatrice, youngest daughter of Queen Victoria, when she was governor.
Atlantis

**Atlantis** is a name for a fictional, large island or small continent that was in the Atlantic Ocean many years before it sank into the depth of the sea.

The name Atlantis first appears in the writings of Herodotus - he describes the western ocean as "Sea of Atlantis." Then, one generation later, Atlantis is described in detail in the stories Timaeus and Critias by the Greek philosopher Plato.  He used this story to help explain his ideas about government and philosophy. Plato was the only ancient writer who wrote specific things about Atlantis.

According to Plato, the Atlanteans lived 9000 years before his own time and were half human and half god.  They created a very good human society.  When they stopped being good people and did bad things, the gods sent earthquakes and fire to destroy Atlantis.

Many scholars think that Plato could mean a real place when he was writing about Atlantis. For example, there was a Minoan kingdom on the island of Santorini.  The Minoan kingdom was very powerful thousands of years before Plato, and their society was damaged when a volcano erupted on their island. According to Plato, Atlantis was very large, as big as North Africa, so it should not have been hard to find.

After the discovery of the Americas, some people in Europe thought they might be Atlantis. However, after Plato, the idea of Atlantis was mostly forgotten until 1882, when a writer named Ignatius Donnelly wrote a book saying that Atlantis was real and that the culture of Atlantis had started many other ancient cultures, such as the Egyptian and Mayan.  Then other people became interested in Atlantis.

Atlantis has appeared in many works of fiction.  In Marvel Comics, Atlantis is at the bottom of the ocean and exists in modern times, with people who breathe water.  Other works of fiction use Atlantis as background.  For example, Robert E. Howard set his Conan the Barbarian stories in a fictional time called the Hyborian Age, which began with the destruction of Atlantis and ended when real written history started.
Comparative

Adjectives and Adverbs can be **comparative** in English and some other languages. When people are talking about two or more nouns, they can compare them (say the differences between them). The word which explains how they compare is called the **comparative**. They can also compare actions using adverbs.

Examples: (The comparative is in **bold**).
- John is tall, but Mark is **taller**
- An hour is **longer** than a minute.

Many words can be made into a comparative by adding _er_ to the end of the word.
- cool - cooler
- big - bigger
- wet - wetter
- dark - darker

Words that end with the letter 'Y' can still be made into a comparative, but people change the 'Y' to an 'I' and then add 'ER'.
- happy - happier
- fluffy - fluffier
- angry - angrier
- costly - costlier

Some words cannot be made into a comparative by adding 'ER' Instead we use the word **more** in front. Most of these words have three or more syllables, such as _beautiful_, _reliable_.

If people are not sure about a word, it is always acceptable to say "more" (something), such as "more beautiful", "more expensive".

Warning:  The 'ER' ending and the word "more" together cannot be used.
- I am happier than you. - Correct.
- I am more happy than you. - Correct.
- I am more happier - WRONG. (Double comparative)

## Related pages

- As
- Like
Asbestos

**Asbestos** is a set of six silicate minerals which occur naturally. White asbestos makes up 95% of the asbestos found in buildings. It occurs in all parts of the world. It is fibrous, heat resistant and non flammable. These properties made it very attractive as a component in building materials and other products such as insulation and automobile brake pads. People have used asbestos throughout history. Ancient Egyptian people used asbestos. Asbestos is extremely dangerous for human health, as it can cause lung diseases such as asbestosis, emphysema and mesothelioma if the fibres get loose in the air and are breathed in. It can also harm animals such as livestock or pets.

The word "asbestos" comes from Greek, and means "inextinguishable". This refers to its use for wicks that would not burn.

Asbestos was linked to lung cancer in the early 1970s, and was replaced by other materials in most applications by 1980.

## Types of asbestos

There are six types of asbestos:

- Chrysotile (white asbestos)
- Crocidolite (blue asbestos)
- Amosite (brown asbestos)
- Anthophyllite asbestos
- Tremolite asbestos
- Actinolite asbestos

All of these except chrysotile are part of the amphibole group of minerals.

## Substitutes

- Fiberglass - This is the most popular substitute. Fiberglass is physically similar to asbestos and its safety is also being questioned. Fiberglass has been called "man-made asbestos".
- Carbon fiber - Lighter weight than fiberglass or asbestos, but not heat resistant
- Wood fiber mixed with cement (in non-heat applications)
- Various polymer and plastic fibers
- Asbestos rope can be replaced with synthetic or fiberglass rope.
- Vermiculite insulation is a common substitute, although vermiculite itself can be contaminated with asbestos
- Basalt fiber is a mineral fiber with properties similar to asbestos. It is suitable for high-heat applications.
- Mineral wool is a common substitute that is popular in Europe
- Silica aerogel is the best insulator available. It is non-fibrous and is not believed to cause cancer if inhaled into the lungs.
- Asbestos siding or roofing can be replaced with aluminum or steel siding or roofing.

## Disposal

Since asbestos is so resistant to heat, water, and chemicals, it is very difficult to destroy. It can be melted in a furnace to make a non-hazardous glass-like substance. This requires very high temperatures (1200°C or more) and consumes a lot of energy.

## Lawsuits

Many companies that use or used to use asbestos have been sued by current or former employees who got sick with mesothelioma or asbestosis. Asbestos, especially tremolite, is also a contaminant in many other mineral products, such as talc and vermiculite. These contaminated products have also been the subject of lawsuits and product recalls.

Many lawyers specialize in asbestos-related lawsuits.

## Other websites

- Cancer Resource Center
- Asbestos Institute
Syllable

A **syllable** is a unit of pronunciation uttered without interruption, loosely, a single sound. All words are made from at least one syllable.

_Monosyllables_ are words that have only one vowel sound; _polysyllables_ have more than one. If a syllable ends with a consonant, it is called a _closed syllable_. If a syllable ends with a vowel, it is called an _open syllable_. Patterns of syllables can be shown with C and V (C for 'consonant', V for 'vowel'). Closed syllables are often shown as _CVC_ (such as _got_), and open syllables as _CV_ (such as _go_). Some languages like English have many kinds of closed syllables. Other languages, like Japanese, have few kinds of closed syllables. Other languages still, like Hawaiian and Swahili, have no closed syllables.

Notice that the consonant (C) and vowel (V) notation does NOT match the letters of English spelling in a one-to-one relationship (e.g. 'th' is one sound), but rather individual sounds.

There are many words in English that have only one syllable.

IPA has been added in slashes.
- He /hi/ (CV) - open
- The /ði/ /ðə/ CV) - open
- Like /laɪk (CVC) - closed
- Run /ɹʌn/ (CVC) - closed
- Cat /kæt/ (CVC) - closed
- House /haʊs/ (CVC) - closed
- It (VC) /ɪt/ - closed
- On (VC) /ɑn/ - closed

However, in several languages, such as English, syllables can have consonant clusters (having multiple consonants next to each other), which easily allow for words to have much more complicated syllables, such as:
- Crow /cɹoʊ/ (CCV) - open
- Through /θru/ (CCV) - open
- Spray /spɹeɪ/ (CCCV) - open
- Ports /pɔɹts/ (CVCCC) - closed
- Sports /spɔɹts/ (CCVCCC) - closed
- Trip /tɹɪp/ (CCVC) - closed
- Dent /dεnt/ (CVCC) - closed
- Plant /plænt/ (CCVCC) - closed
- Sprint /spɹɪnt/ (CCCVCC) - closed
- Splints /splɪnts/ (CCCVCCC) - closed
- Strengths /stɹeŋθs/ (CCCVCCC) - closed
- Angsts /eɪŋsts/ (VCCCC) - closed
There are many more words that have two or more syllables.
- Basket /bæs.kεt/ (2 Bas-ket; CVC-CVC)
- Doctor /dɔc.tɔr/ (2 Doc-tor; CVC-CVC)
- Happy /ha.pi/ (2 Ha-ppy; CV-CV)
- Friendly /frεnd.li/ (2 Friend-ly; CCVCC-CV)
- Greenland /grin.lænd/ (2 Green-land; CCVC-CVCC)
- Computer /cəm.pju.tər/ (3 Com-pu-ter; CVC-CCV-CVC) [-pu- is pronounced "pyuu' or CCV]
- Merciful /mər.ci.fəl/ (3 Mer-ci-ful; CVC-CV-CVC)
- Pronunciation /prə.nən.ci.eɪ.ʃən/ (5 Pro-nun-ci-a-tion; CCV-CVC-CV-V-CVC)

Some languages do not use an alphabet with letters. Instead, each sign may stand for a syllable. For example: Japanese can be written using Kana. A writing system based on syllables is called a syllabary. Since words in languages like English can have many different complex syllables (well over 10,000 can be produced in English), writing such languages using a syllabary would be completely impractical, thus alphabets are much better suited to write languages with complex syllable structures. However, since words in Japanese can be made with just a few simple syllables (around 90), writing such languages are well suited for the type of language.
Usenet

**Usenet** () is a type of discussion system on computers. It was created from the Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis began the idea in 1979. The system was created in 1980. People read and post messages (called _articles_, _posts_ or _news_) to one or more categories. These categories are called newsgroups. Usenet is similar to a bulletin board system (BBS) in many ways. It is the precursor to Internet forums. Discussions are threaded but posts are stored in order of when they were posted.

A main difference between a BBS and Usenet is that usenet has no administrator. Also, the network used to share the messages is not constant.  Usenet is spread over a large, constantly changing group of news servers. The servers store and forward messages to one another. Each user reads messages from and posts messages to a local server. The local server can be operated by anyone.

Usenet is important in the networked world. Many well known ideas and terms were either created on usenet or made popular there. These include "FAQ", "flame", sockpuppet, and "spam".  In the early 1990s,  Usenet connections via Fidonet's dial-up BBS networks made it more common for people to discus things worldwide. They did not need a server, just (local) telephone service.
Diagonal

**Diagonal** is a kind of straight line.  A diagonal line does not go straight up and down, or across left and right. It is a line that connects two corners of a shape.

In mathematics, "diagonal" has different meanings.  For example, in geometry a diagonal is any line that goes between the corners of a polygon. So a square has two diagonals, and a five-sided shape has five diagonals. In general the count of diagonal can be identified by a formula [n(n-3)]/2 where n is the total number of sides of shapes.
Kwashiorkor

**Kwashiorkor** is a health condition of poor nutrition from not having enough protein in the diet.  If a person uses up energy from carbohydrates (starches) and lipids (fats), their body may begin to use protein for energy.

The body breaks down protein into energy that can be used. They then do not have enough protein for other needed bodily functions such as growth and building tissues like bones. Usually this is a condition of children from aged 1 to 5 years, but rarely adults and older children get it. It is common in poor places in Africa. Symptoms include having a pot belly, swollen face, and hair that is dark then light then dark. This can be cured by having a protein- rich diet.

Kwashiorkor comes from a protein deficiency (lack) in the diet. Body parts becomes swollen due to an accumulation of water in the spaces between the body's cells. Other symptoms are poor muscle development, swollen legs, puffy face, difficulty in eating, diarrhea, and dry skin are the symptoms of this disease.

## References

Kwashiorkor - The New Oxford Dictionary of English, OUP 1998