open-index/open-wikipedia-markdown huggingface dataset:
Moorland

]]

**Moorland** or **moor** is a type of habitat that one can find in upland areas, that are characterised by acidic soils. 

Moorland habitats are rather common in the neotropics and tropical Africa but one can find them also in small scattered places in northern and western Europe, northern Australia, North America, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. In the tiny areas of European moorlands tend to be  environments with only very few species. They are often dominated by heather. In the far more extensive moorlands of the tropics species diversity can be extremely high. 

Moorlands differ from typical heathland in being colder and much wetter, often with extensive bogs.

## Famous moorlands in the UK
Notable areas of upland moorland in Britain include the Dark Peak, the Forest of Bowland, the Lake District, the Pennines, Mid Wales, the Southern Uplands of Scotland, the Scottish Highlands and a few very small pockets in western Herefordshire.

*Bleaklow, Dark Peak, England
* Bodmin Moor, Cornwall
* Curry and Hay Moors, Somerset, England
* Dartmoor, and Dartmoor wildlife, Devon, England
* Emley Moor, West Yorkshire, England
* Exmoor, Devon and Somerset, England
* Ilkley Moor, West Yorkshire, England
* Marston Moor and North York Moors, North Yorkshire, England
* Rannoch Moor, Highland, Scotland
* Rombalds Moor, West Yorkshire, England
* Saddleworth Moor, Pennine hills, England
* Shropshire Hills, small pockets of moorland, England 
* Staffordshire Moorlands, England
* Ythan Estuary complex, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, largest coastal moorland in the United Kingdom, known for high biodiversity.

## Conservation
In Europe if the heather and other vegetation is left for too long, a large volume of dry and combustible material builds up. This may cause a fire which may burn out a large area. But generally moorland wildlife copes with even major fires and are easily able to recover if such intense burnings are not too frequent.

## Other websites
*Moorland
Sierre

**Sierre** is the capital of the Sierre district in the Valais canton in Switzerland.

.]]

It has a population of 14,355. It is at the language border of the German-speaking upper part of the "*Wallis*" and the French-speaking "*Valais*". This city counts as one of the three official bilingual towns in Switzerland. Sierre is starting point for the tourist sites of the Val d'Anniviers including the villages of Vercorin, Chandolin, St-Luc Vissoie, St-Jean Chandolin, Grimentz, Zinal and Ayer. Sierre is connected with Crans-Montana by a cable car.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Sierre became economically important as very early aluminium smelting was possible because of its access to hydroelectricity.

## References
## Other websites
* Official website
Brig, Switzerland

**Brig** is the capital of the district of Brig in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

## History 
The historic town of 5,000 people is part of the **Brig-Glis** municipality. The name 'Brig' comes from *Briva*, or "bridge."  Its medieval name was *Briga dives*. It is a small town in the Swiss canton of the Valais, at the foot of the northern slope of the Simplon Pass, on the right bank of the Saltine stream, and a little above its junction with the Rhone. Its older houses look very Italian. Its buildings were built during the 17th century, because of a single member of the local Stockalper family.

## Location 
Brig is close to the Swiss-Italian borders. The language used when talking between one another is a unique German dialect, used only in this canton. Brig is popular among winter sport athletes, since it is surrounded by many Alp summits. The town itself is close to Rhone river. Due to the height, the temperatures in winter often remain below zero, resulting in frost. During the summer season, heat can be intense.

The place of meeting in the town is the train station, which links it to other Swiss cities.

## Economy 
The wealth of Brig is because of the Simplon Pass.   The opening of the carriage road across the Simplon (1807) and of the tunnel beneath the pass (1906), as well as the fact that above Brig is the steeper and less fertile portion of the Upper Valais (then much frequented by tourists), greatly increased the importance and size of the town.

## References
## Other websites
* Brig-Glis municipal website
Pennine Alps

The **Pennine Alps** are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps. They are in Switzerland (Valais) and Italy (Piedmont and the Aosta Valley).

They include the following peaks:

## References
*
Bernese Alps

The **Bernese Alps** are a group of mountain ranges in the western part of the Alps, in Switzerland. Although the name notes that they are in the Bernese Oberland region of the canton of Bern, some of the Bernese Alps are found in the cantons of Vaud, Fribourg, Valais, Lucerne, Uri, and Nidwalden.

## List of peaks
The main peaks of the Bernese Alps are:

## References
*

## Other websites 
* Bernese Alps  at NASA Earth Observatory
Armenian National Committee of America

The **Armenian National Committee of America** (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian American advocacy organization in the United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the country and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

Beyond the Central offices of ANCA are in Washington DC, Boston and Los Angeles, ANCA has more than fifty local chapters and thousands of activists, it is cooperating with a large web of regional Armenian National Committees (or *Armenian Cause/Hay Tad* Offices) in Armenia, Russia, France, the Middle East, Canada and Australia.

The executive director of ANCA is Aram Hamparian.

## Other websites
* Armenian National Committee of America website.
* ANC of Central California Official site 
* An interview with ANCA executive director Aram Hamparian
Sion, Switzerland

**Sion** is the capital of the Swiss canton of Valais. In 2002, it had a population of 27,700.

Landmarks include the Basilique de Valère and Château de Tourbillon.

## Geography 
As of 31 December 2005, 28,013 people lived in Sion. It is in the center of the Rhône valley. Sion is the economic and commercial hub of the region and canton.

The older area of the city still stays and is well preserved. As well as the two Château's, a number of other important buildings are there, such as the *Château de la Majorie*, the *Hôtel de Ville* and the *Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Sion*.

## History 
Sion started to develop during the time of the Celts.

It takes its name from the Latin word *Sedunum*. It housed the Romans with the rest of the surrounding area in the first century BCE.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sion is the oldest bishopric in Switzerland. It is one of the oldest north of the Alps.

On 1 January 2013, the former municipality of Salins merged into the municipality of Sion.

In 2017, Les Agettes became part of the municipality.

## Economy 
The tertiary sector is the main economic sector in Sion. Tourism is also an important sector due to its historic ''château's* and museums.

Sion is the third largest wine making region in Switzerland, however, the valuable agricultural land and vineyards are undergoing constant regression due to the process of urbanisation.

Sion has also become an important medical site. The Sion-Region hospital is here next to the central institute of Valaisan hospitals and the *Romande'' clinic for physical rehabilitation (SUVA).

Finally, the commune has a waste incinerator which disposes of the waste from 44 surrounding communes. This incinerator has a catalytic converter, something that reduces harmful gases to acceptable levels. The heat created from the burning is converted into electrical energy that is then provided to local communes.

## Airshows 
Public airshows have been held at the airfield of Sion. Participating aerobatic teams have included the Frecce Tricolori from Italy was well as the Patrouille de France.

## Transport 
Sion is on the main railway line and the motorway. It also has an airport (Sion Airport).

## References 
## Other websites 
* Official website 
* Tourism guide
Conthey District

**Conthey** is a district in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. It contains the following municipalities:
Mattertal

**Mattertal** is a valley in the Alps of Switzerland which begins on the side of the Matterhorn. The *Matterhorn* is one of the most famous mountains in the world because of its beauty, and because it is hard to climb. 

The *Mattertal* is a valley that was made by a glacier (a slowly-moving river of ice) moving down from the mountain. This can be seen from the deep U shape of the valley. (Valleys made by a fast-running stream are V-shaped). Because the sides of the valley are very steep, there are often landslides. One can be seen in the photo taken near Randa village. Many houses in the villages are called chalets. These can be seen in the picture of Täsch village.

In the Mattertal are villages which include Zermatt, Täsch, Randa, Grächen, and St. Niklaus. Many tourists like to stay in the villages to see the view, to go walking, skiing or mountain climbing. The traditional work of the people is dairy farming, but many people work in the tourist industry. 

 

 
Image:Zermatt and Matterhorn.jpg|The Matterhorn can be seen from Zermatt village. 
Image:Täsch.jpg|This picture of the village of Täsch shows the flat valley floor.
Ajax the Lesser

**Ajax the Lesser** (Ancient Greek: Αἴας) was a Greek hero from the Trojan War, who was the son of Oïleus.

## Related pages
* Ajax the Great

## References
Post-nominal letters

**Post-nominal letters** are letters after a person's name. They are used most in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms to show that the person has a certain:
* job (e.g. JP for a magistrate (Justice of the Peace), or 
* title (Kt for a Knight Bachelor or Bt for a Baronet, QC for a Queen's Counselor
* is a member of an order of chivalry e.g. OBE.

Academic degrees (qualifications from a university) can also be shown as postnominal letters, as can military awards (medals and decorations)
Zermatt

**Zermatt** is a municipality in the district of Visp in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

It is found to the north of the Matterhorn in the German-speaking and mostly Roman Catholic section of the canton, near the Italian border.

Zermatt has a local population of 5,500 people, but the actual population changes through the seasons as tourists come and go.

## Tourism
Zermatt is a famed ski resort and is a tourist destination. Until the mid-1800s, it was mostly a farming community; its name, as well as that of the Matterhorn itself, derives from the alpine meadows, or *matten*, in the valley. In the German language, the town is "Zur Matte", or "in the meadow."

The town was "discovered" mid-century by British mountaineers, most notably Edward Whymper, whose conquest of the Matterhorn made the village famous worldwide.

Zermatt is a closed village, which means that non-Swiss nationals are not permitted to buy property within the area.  May is the worst time to visit this city, as most of the streets are muddy.

## Hiking
Zermatt is a good place to start many hikes into the surrounding mountains, such as the Haute Route that ultimately leads to Chamonix in France.  A complex of cable cars and chair lifts carry skiers in the winter and hikers in the summer; the highest of them leads to the Klein Matterhorn, a small outcropping on the ridge between Breithorn and Matterhorn that offers cool views in all directions. It is possible to cross into Italy via the Cervinia cable car station.

## Transportation
Any automobile that uses an engine is not allowed in Zermatt because of concerns for air pollution.  Electric vehicles are allowed for local commerces. The Cantonal police allow some people to park in the northern section of this city.  Some emergency vehicles (firetrucks, ambulance,..) are also allowed to use combustion engines.

Most people reach Zermatt by train or cable car.  Trains also leave for Zermatt from Visp and Brig.

## Skiing
Zermatt is well known throughout the world for its great skiing, especially Triftji for its moguls. The high altitude results in consistent skiing continuously up until the summer.
Skiing in Zermatt is split up into four distinct areas; Sunnegga, Gornegrat, Klein Matterhorn and Schwarzsee. There is also a connection to Cervinia and Valtournenche in Italy. 
Trail Map.

## Other websites
*Zermatt.ch official website
*Air Zermatt website 
*Municipality of Zermatt 
*Burgergemeinde Zermatt  
*Photo gallery dedicated to Zermatt and surrounding nature 
*Webcams in Zermatt 
*Images from Zermatt 
*Scenic Zermatt Photos
Visp

**Visp** is the capital city of the district of Visp in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

It has a population of about 7,000 people.  The two valleys are Mattertal and Saastal. It borders Brig-Glis.

Most of the people speak German.

## Economy
It has a chemical business named LONZA AG.  There are also several smaller businesses.

## Transportation
In 2007, Visp will become a junction of the Neue Eisenbahn-Alpentransversale or NEAT, connecting with many other rail-lines.

The bus and the train station of Visp and Brig is the starting point for many outdoor activities, trips, and tours in the surrounding mountain resorts of Zermatt and Saas-Fee.

## References
## Other websites
* Official website
Saint-Maurice, Switzerland

**Saint-Maurice** is the capital of the district of Saint-Maurice in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

On 1 January 2013, the former municipality of Mex (VS) merged into the municipality of Saint-Maurice.

It is the site of the Roman outpost of Agaunum and the old Abby of Saint-Maurice, which has become a famous high school in Switzerland (*Collège de Saint-Maurice*).

It is not St. Moritz, a ski resort in the east part of Switzerland.

## References 
## Other websites 
* Official website
Entremont District

**Entremont** is a district in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

It has the following cities:

* Bagnes 
* Bourg-Saint-Pierre 
* Liddes 
* Orsières 
* Sembrancher 
* Vollèges
Santeri Palin

**Santeri Palin** (also known as **Incánus**) (born September 15, 1983, Nokia, Finland.) is a Finnish poet who writes poems in Finnish and English. His first book *Elämän kolmio kuoleman syklissä – ajatuksia reunalta* (*The Triangle of Life in the Cycle of Death – Thoughts from the Edge*) came out in 2006.

Palin is a fan of J. R. R. Tolkien and currently he is the president of *Kontu Internet Community* (or *Verkkoyhteisö Kontu ry* in Finnish) and the vice president of the *Finnish Tolkien Society*, which are Finnish Tolkien related communities.

## Bibliography
**Elämän kolmio kuoleman syklissä* (Pilot, 2006)

## References
Manor house

.]]
A **manor house** or **fortified manor-house** is a country house, which has historically formed the centre of a **manor** (see Manorialism).  The term is sometimes used for relatively small country houses which belonged to gentry families, as well as to grand stately homes, particularly as a technical term for minor late medieval castles more intended for show than for defence.

In general terms, the manor house was the house of a feudal lord of a manor, which he occupied only on occasional visits if he held many manors. Although not built with strong fortifications as castles were, many manor houses were partly fortified: they were enclosed within walls or ditches. Often the farm buildings were within these walls as well. Many manor houses had small gatehouses and watchtowers. 

The main feature of the manor house was its great hall. By the beginning of the 16th century, manor houses as well as small castles began to acquire the character and amenities of the residences of country gentlemen. This late 16th century transformation produced many of the smaller Renaissance châteaux of France and the many country mansions of the Elizabethan and Jacobean styles in England.  

In France, the terms *château* or *manoir* are often used to describe a French manor house. *Maison-forte* is another French word to describe a strongly fortified manor house.  In the western France provinces of Brittany and Normandy, certain large manors enjoyed real means of protection. 

In modern usage, the term *manor* or *manor house* is often used, especially outside Europe, to mean simply either a country house or indeed any other house considered to resemble one, without any reference to age or to the historical sense of the term.

## Related pages
* Mansion
* Reality TV show recreating life in an Edwardian manor house.

## Other websites
*  Estonian Manors Portal - the English version gives the brief overview of 438 best preserved manor houses in Estonia.
Sembrancher

**Sembrancher** is the capital of the district of Entremont in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

A small scenic village of around 500 residents in the Bagnes Valley, it is close to the Verbier ski resort.

## References
## Other websites
* Official webpage
Corvidae

]]

The **Corvidae** are the crow family.  They are all passerines, but unusually they do not have musical voices. They are intelligent. 

There are over 120 species in the family. The word 'crow' is also used to describe birds in the genus *Corvus*. This genus includes the crows, jackdaws and ravens.

Crows are found on every continent except for the southern area of South America and Antarctica. Most crows are found in South America, Central America, Europe and Asia. There are 10 species each in Africa, Australia and North America.

A group of crows is called a *murder* and, indeed, they are distinctly carnivorous.

## Description 
Most members of the crow family are black, such as crows, rooks, choughs, ravens and jackdaws. However, not all crows are black. Magpies and treepies can be black and white, or blue and green, or brown. Jays are often blue and white.

Crows are some of the most intelligent birds in the world. Crows and rooks are good at using tools, for example sticks or twigs. Magpies can see themselves in a mirror and they understand that it is a reflection. Many crows live near to humans in towns and cities. Some crows (such as treepies) live in forests. They are more shy than the crows that live in cities.

Some crows in North America, Europe and northern Asia migrate. This means they travel to different places in summer or winter. Most crows are resident birds. This means they live in the same place all year round.

Many crows live in large groups. For example, many rooks nest together in large groups at the top of trees. This is called a rookery. Crows in big groups are often noisy. However, when it is the breeding season (this means when birds nest and have babies), crows can become angry and will scare off other crows.

Crows eat a variety of food. They will eat fledglings (baby birds) and eggs from nests, small animals (mice and rats), carrion (dead animals), vegetables and garbage. for much of the year, crows and rooks dig into grassland with their strong beaks, and eat various kinds of insect grubs and worms. Because they may attack the nest of other birds, crows may get mobbed by other species. This is when the defending birds group together to chase off the crow. Also, on farms, crows will eat vegetables and seeds. Farmers do not want this to happen so they make a scarecrow. This is an object made of straw and old clothes. It looks like a man and it may scare the crows away.

Crows make their nests in tall trees. They make the nest from large sticks. They usually lay 3&ndash;8 eggs. Both parents look after the fledglings.

## Main species 
The family includes:
* crows
* rooks
* jackdaws
* ravens
* jays
* magpies
* treepies
* choughs
* nutcrackers.
Münster-Geschinen

**Münster-Geschinen** is the capital city of the district of Goms in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. On 1 January 2004, the former municipalities of Münster and Geschinen merged into the new municipality of Münster-Geschinen and On 1 January 2017, the former municipalities of Münster-Geschinen, Blitzingen, Grafschaft, Niederwald and Reckingen-Gluringen merged into the new municipality of Goms.

## References
## Other websites
* Official website
Microbiotheria

**Microbiotheria** are a small order of marsupial mammals with only one living species, the **Monito del Monte** (Spanish for 'little mountain monkey').

It is the only New World representative of the superorder Australidelphia; all other New World marsupials are part of the Ameridelphia.

The species is nocturnal and arboreal, and lives in thickets of Chilean bamboo in the temperate rain forests of the southern Andes. It eats mainly insects and other small invertebrates, supplemented with fruit.

In 2010, analysis of retrotransposon insertion sites in the nuclear DNA of marsupials confirmed the placement of the Monito del Monte in Australidelphia. It also showed its position as the most basal of that superorder.

The study also confirmed that the most basal of all marsupial orders are the other two South American lineages (Didelphimorphia and Paucituberculata, with the former probably branching first). This indicates that Australidelphia arose in South America (with the ancestors of all other living marsupials), and probably reached Australia in a single dispersal event after Microbiotheria split off (originated).

## References
Dasyuromorphia

**Dasyuromorphia** are a fair-sized order of some of the more unusual carnivorous or insectivorous marsupials. They vary in appearance, from rodent-like to shrew-like to cat-like to dog-like. This order includes the ever-famous Tasmanian devil. In this order, most of the marsupials have a pouch on the belly. However, some of the broad-footed marsupial mice have only folds of skin instead of true pouches, and the numbat lacks a pouch entirely. There are 63 species in 3 families, although one of the families is probably extinct:

* **Dasyuridae** (quolls, native cats, marsupial mice, Tasmanian devils) 61 species
* **Myrmecobiidae** (numbats) 1 species
* **Thylacinidae** (Tasmanian wolf or thylacine - probably extinct) 1 species
Sea lion

**Sea lions** are several pinnipeds from the family Otariidae (eared seals). They live all around the world, except in the Atlantic Ocean.

Male sea lions have thick fur around the face and neck, which sometimes looks like a lion's mane. This is how they got the name "sea lion". Some, like the Steller sea lion, can roar. Sea lions are mammals, meaning they have fur, breathe air, give birth to live young, and feed milk to their young. Sea lions also eat meat, such as fish, squids, and sea birds. Sea lions are also fierce fighters.

## Species
The pinniped species called "sea lion" are: 
*Steller sea lion or northern sea lion (*Eumetopias jubatus*)
*Australian sea lion (*Neophoca cinerea*)
*South American sea lion or southern sea ion (*Otaria flavescens*)
*New Zealand sea lion (*Phocarctos hookeri*)
*California sea lion (*Zalophus californianus*)

## References
Greywacke

**Greywacke**  is a type of sandstone. It is hard, and dark in color. It has different sized grains of quartz, feldspar, and small rock fragments set in a compact, fine clay matrix. It is mostly found in Palaeozoic strata. The larger grains can be sand-to-gravel-sized, and matrix materials make up more than 15% of the rock by volume. 

The origin of greywacke was a problem. Gravel, sand and mud should not be laid down together, because river outflow drops heavier grains first. Now geologists think greywacke is formed by submarine avalanches or strong turbidity currents. These actions churn sediment and cause mixed-sediment  to occur. When this happens, the resulting rocks show various sedimentary features. Support for the turbidity current origin is the fact that deposits of greywacke are found on the edges of the continental shelves, at the bottoms of oceanic trenches, and at the bases of mountain formational areas. It also occurs in association with black shales of deep sea origin.

## References
Dasyuridae

**Dasyuridae** is a family of marsupial carnivores. It has nearly all non-extinct members of the order *Dasyuromorphia*. This means the quolls, phascogales, antechinuses, dunnarts, planigales, and Tasmanian devil (about 55 species in all).

## Classification 
* Famliy **Dasyuridae**
**Subfamily *Dasyurinae*: quolls and allies
** Subfamily *Phascogalinae*: phascogales and antechinuses
** Subfamily *Sminthopsinae*: dunnarts and allies
** Subfamily *Planigalinae*: planigales and ningauis
Carmina Burana

**Carmina Burana** is the name given to a collection of texts from the 11th and 12th century. There are over 240 texts in the collection, most of them written in Latin, some in Middle High German. Most of the texts are moral or satirical in nature. There are also texts about spring, or about love. Some of them are drinking songs, some of them were used as Minnesang.  Some of the songs contain hints for the melodies. For some, the melodies can be reconstructed.

The texts were written down around 1230. This happened either in an abbey in Styria, or near Brixen. They were discovered by Johann Christoph von Aretin in Benediktbeuern Abbey in 1803. Today, they are in the Bavarian State Library in Munich. There they can be found there as **Codex Buranus**, with the signature clm 4660/4660a.

Johann Andreas Schmeller edited them and published them as *Carmina Burana – Lieder aus Benediktbeuern*. 

Carl Orff took 24 of them as *Carmina Burana*. He wrote the music for them. The work was first performed in 1937 in the Opera house in Frankfurt am Main. Together with his works *Catulli Carmina* and *Trionfo di Afrodite* he made a work containing all three, called *Trionfi*. Trionfi is performed much less than the Carmina Burana alone, though.

## Other websites
* Complete original text (without translation) from Biblioteca Augustana
* Text with translations from Teach Yourself Latin 
* Athena Review 
* Carmina Burana: An Analysis of Perfection , 1996.

* Carmina Vulgata  in linguam Ruthenicam versa
Mohammed Zahir Shah

**Mohammed Zahir Shah** (16 October 1914 – 23 July 2007) was the last King (*Shah*) of Afghanistan. He ruled for four decades, from 1933 to 1973.

Mohammed Zahir Shah became king of Afghanistan at the age of nineteen after the assassination of his father in November 1933. Since he was so young, his uncle, *Shah Mahmood Khan* ran the government. Mohammed Zahir Shah took control and was able to keep Afghanistan’s neutral position in international politics.

In July 17, 1973, Mohammed Zahir Shah was no longer king after a bloodless coup. He died on .
Thurgau

**Thurgau** is a northeast canton of Switzerland. The population is 228,200 (2003). The capital is Frauenfeld.

## Geography 
To the north of Thurgau is Lake Constance, across which are Germany and Austria. The river Rhine makes the border in the northwest. To the south is the Canton of St. Gallen; to the west are the cantons of Zürich and Schaffhausen.

The area of the canton is 991&nbsp;km2 and is usually divided into three hilly areas. One of these is along Lake Constance to the north. Another is inland between the rivers Thur and Murg. The third one makes the southern border of the canton and comes together with the Hörnli mountain in the pre-Alps.

## History 
In prehistoric times the lands of the canton were inhabited by people of the Pfyn culture along the lake. During Roman times the canton was part of the province *Raetia* until in 450 the lands were settled by the Alamanni. It was only in the 8th century that the canton became a political unit similar to what it is known today, as a Gau of the Frankish Empire. At the time, however, the area was not so clearly defined and changed frequently. Overall, the size of the Thurgau was larger, but during the Middle Ages the canton became smaller in size. The dukes of Zähringen and the counts of Kyburg took over much of the land.
The town of Zürich was part of the Thurgau until it became *reichsunmittelbar* in 1218. When the Kyburg dynasty became extinct in 1264 the Habsburgs took over that land. The Swiss confederation allied with ten freed bailiwicks of the former Toggenburg seized the lands of the Thurgau from the Habsburgs in 1460, and it became subject territory of Zürich.

In 1798 the land became a canton for the first time as part of the Helvetic Republic. In 1803 the canton of Thurgau became a member of the Swiss confederation. The current cantonal constitution dates from 1987.

## Economy 
The canton of Thurgau is known for farm produce such as apples, pears, and other fruits and vegetables. The many orchards in the canton are used for the making of cider. Wine is produced in the Thur valley.

There is also industry in the canton of Thurgau. The main industries are printing, clothing and arts and crafts. Small and middle-sized businesses are important for the economy. Many of these are concentrated around the capital.

## Demographics 
The population is mostly German speaking. Most of the population are Protestants with the rest being Roman Catholics.

## Districts 
The Canton of Thurgau is divided into eight districts, and each is named after its capital:

* Steckborn with capital **Steckborn**.
* Frauenfeld with capital **Frauenfeld**.
* Kreuzlingen with capital **Kreuzlingen**. 
* Weinfelden with capital **Weinfelden**. 
* Bischofszell with capital **Bischofszell**. 
* Diessenhofen with capital **Diessenhofen**.
* Münchwilen with capital **Münchwilen**.
* Arbon with capital **Arbon**.

## Municipalities 
There are 80 municipalities in the canton (as of April 2004):

## References 
## Other websites 
* Official site 
* Official statistics
Obwalden

**Obwalden** is a canton of Switzerland. It is in the centre of Switzerland. As of 2004, 33,300 people lived there. Its capital is Sarnen.

## Geography 
Lakes in the canton include: parts of Lake Lucerne, Lake Sarnen, Lungerersee, Wichelsee, Tannensee and Melchsee.

## Municipalities 
There are seven municipalities: Sarnen, Kerns, Sachseln, Alpnach, Giswil, Lungern and Engelberg.

## Other websites 
* Official site 
* Obwalden.net  Official statistics
* Pilatus
* Titlis
* Obwalden map
Schaffhausen

**Schaffhausen** is a town in northern Switzerland and the capital of the canton of the same name. It has a population of about 36,000 as 2016.

The old portion of the town has many fine Renaissance era buildings decorated with exterior frescos and sculpture, as well as the impressive old canton fortress, the *Munot*. A train runs out of town to the nearby Rhine Falls in Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Europe's largest waterfall, a tourist attraction.

## History 
Schaffhausen was a city state in the Middle Ages, documented to have struck its own coins starting in 1045. For a time it was under Habsburg domination, but regained its independence in 1415. It allied itself with Zürich in 1457, and became a full member of the Swiss Confederation in 1501. The first railroad came to Schaffhausen in 1857.

Schaffhausen is in a finger of Swiss land surrounded on three sides by Germany. On April 1, 1944, Schaffhausen suffered a bombing raid by United States Army Air Forces aircraft which strayed from German airspace into neutral Switzerland. While the United States immediately offered four million dollars in reparations, the raid occurred only a month after the Swiss Air Force had shot down an American bomber.

In 1947 it merged with the former municipality of Buchthalen. In 1964 it merged with the former municipality of Herblingen. Since 2009, Hemmental has been part of the town.

## Industry 
Schaffhausen has some well-known industrial companies (Georg Fischer) in piping systems, machine tools and automotives, one internationally-reputed watches manufacturer (IWC), and drug industry (Cilag, founded by Bernhard Joos).

## References
## Other websites 
* City of Schaffhausen  
* Schaffhausen Tourism 
* City archives  
* U.S. Bombings of Switzerland during World War II
Usury

]]
**Usury** is lending money for interest. Nowadays it usually means lending at a high, often extortionate rate of interest on a loan.

Usury is illegal in many parts of the world.  In muslim countries charging any interest at all is strictly illegal.

Some people argue that this is against the Old Testament, especially Exodus and Deuteronomy which states that those who lend to someone in need will be blessed, but the point about usury is the high levels of interest, not the act of lending in itself.

Aristotle also condemned usury as "contrary to nature" in his book on Politics, because it increases by itself and makes money without labour.

## Notes
John Bates

**John Lewis Bates** (September 18, 1859 – June 8, 1946) was born in  Massachusetts.

He was a Republican, and was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1894 to 1899; from 1897 to 1899 he was Speaker of the House. From 1900 to 1903 he was Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.

In 1902, Bates was elected Governor, holding office from 1903 to 1905. Bates then retired to his private law practice in Boston. From 1917 to 1919 Bates was a delegate to the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention.

Bates was a member of the American Bar Association, the Freemasons, the Odd Fellows, and Beta Theta Pi.

## Other websites
*Official Commonwealth of Massachusetts Governor Biography
Acoustic music

.]]
**Acoustic music** is music which is played by using acoustic musical instruments, i.e. instruments in which the sound is not made louder by electronic amplification. Before electronic musical instruments were created in the 20th century all instruments were acoustic.

Classical music is usually played using only acoustic musical instruments, although some 20th-century composers such as Karlheinz Stockhausen used electronic instruments, sometimes together with acoustic instruments.

## References
French Community

The **French Community** () was the body which replaced  the French Union in 1958.   Under the 1958 Constitution, member territories, former French colonies, had a lot of independence, but France controlled the currency, defence, foreign affairs and national security.

When the Community was established, French President de Gaulle said that any country in the French Community could move to complete independence. Apart from Guinea, which chose by referendum in 1958 not to join the Community, all French-ruled territories in sub-Saharan Africa joined the French Community. They obtained independence in 1960.

## Related pages
*Colonialism
*Decolonization

## Other websites
* Communauté française
Bluegrass music

**Bluegrass music** is a form of American roots music. It has its own roots in Irish, Scottish and English traditional music. It is usually played using acoustic musical instruments, and electronic musical instruments are rarely used in bluegrass music. Traditional instruments used include the banjo, mandolin, fiddle, guitar and bass. Other instruments such as the dobro are also used.

There are many accomplished bluegrass artists including Bela Fleck, Tony Rice, Alison Krauss, Laurie Lewis, Sam Bush, Bill Monroe, and Earl Scruggs. There are many organizations devoted to this music such as the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA).

Many festivals are held around the country where professionals perform, amateurs gather to play, and workshops are given.

## References
Raron

**Raron** is the capital city of the district of Raron in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

## References
## Other websites
* Official website
Goms District

**Goms** is a district of the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

It includes the following municipalities:

* Bellwald 
* Binn 
* Blitzingen 
* Ernen 
* Fiesch 
* Fieschertal 
* Grafschaft 
* Lax 
* Münster-Geschinen 
* Niederwald 
* Obergesteln 
* Oberwald 
* Reckingen-Gluringen 
* Ulrichen
Aspartame

**Aspartame** (also known as **E951** or **NutraSweet**) is an artificial sweetener. It was discovered in 1965 by James M. Schlatter.  It can be used to replace some kinds of sugar. It is not based on sugars. It is not like saccharin. 

## Problems
*People with phenylketonuria cannot take Aspartame
*Aspartame may cause problems with the skin, such as , or dermatitis
*It may cause  headache or migraine.

## References
Saccharin

**Saccharin** is the oldest artificial sweetener that exists. It can be used to replace certain kinds of sugar. It was discovered in 1878 by Constantin Fahlberg. It is also known as **E954**.

Saccharin has no calories and no nutritional value.  It is safe to take for people with diabetes.

## References
Shavo Odadjian

**Shavo Odadjian** () (born April 22, 1974, Yerevan, Armenia as **Shavarsh Odadjian**) is the bassist for the Armenian American-based alternative metal band, System of a Down. He also scored summer blockbuster hit, "Babylon, A.D." alongside with The Rza and Hans Zimmer. He is a multi-instrumentalist, painter, DJ, and director.

## Biography 
In his youth, Shavo used to spend his time skateboarding and listening to punk rock and heavy metal music. He started managing the band *Soil* with Malakian and Tankian in 1993 after meeting them in a recording studio. In 1995, Shavo became the permanent bassist of the band. They then named themselves "System of a Down" after a poem titled "Victims of a Down" authored by bandmate Daron Malakian.

Odadjian is a popular DJ in the LA area met by "Dj Tatic", taking part in such events as the "Rock/DJ Explosion" on March 2, 2001 at The Roxy in Hollywood and collaborating with bandmate Tankian on SerArt, the singer's side project with Armenian musician Arto Tunçboyacıyan.

## Discography
### System of a Down
* 1998: *System of a Down*
* 2001: *Toxicity*
*2002: *Steal This Album!*
* 2005: *Mezmerize*
* 2005: *Hypnotize*

### Achozen
* 2008: Untitled

## Awards
* In 2006, System of a Down won their first Grammy for Best hard rock performance for B.Y.O.B.
* In 2006, they won the "MTV Good Woodie Award" for their song "Question!"
* In 2006, they were #14 on the VH1 Top 40 Metal Songs with "Toxicity"
* In 2007, they were nominated for a Grammy Award in Best Hard rock performance for their song Lonely Day

## Other websites
* Shavo's MySpace page
* The Official System of a Down Site
* Shavo's page at SOADFans 
* Shavo's page at SOADTalk 
* Achozen's Myspace page
Billboard charts

'''*Billboard* charts'* are charts published by *Billboard* magazine. They have information about the popularity of music songs, bands and singers. The *Billboard* Hot 100 and *Billboard'' 200 are the most important charts. They show the popularity of songs and albums for each week respectively.

## Songs
### All-genre
### R&B/Hip-Hop
### Adult/Pop
### Country
### Rock
### Dance
### Latin
### Christian
### Jazz
### Ringtones
### Canadian charts
### International charts
### Discontinued charts
## Albums
## References
Jura

Places named **Jura** include:

*Jura, Scotland, Scottish island, in the Inner Hebrides
*Jura Mountains, on the French-Swiss-German border
**Franconian Jura, the part of the Jura mountains in South Eastern Germany
*Jura (department), France
*Jura (canton), Switzerland
*Jura, Afghanistan
*Jura, Transnistria, a village in Transnistria, Moldova
*Al-Jura, a former village in pre-1948 Palestine near Ashkelon.

Rivers named **Jura** include:
* Jūra, river in Lithuania
* Jura River (Papua New Guinea), river near Agaun
* Jura River (California), now dry river, formerly contained gold
* Jura River (Paris), mythological river

## Other
*Jura federation, a late nineteenth century anarchist collective based in the Jura Mountains.
*Isle of Jura Single Malt
Sloth

**Sloths** are Xenarthran mammals from Central and South America. They are part of the order Pilosa. There are two families of sloths: two-toed sloth and three-toed sloth. Most scientists call these two families the **Folivora**, while some call them the **Phyllophaga**. They live in trees, but in the past there were giant ground sloths.

The biogeographic origins of the Pilosa is still unclear, but they can be traced back in South America as far as the early Tertiary, about 60 million years ago. The presence of these animals in Central America is explained by the Great American Interchange.

## Physical description 
Sloths are active at night, and sleep curled up with their head placed between the arms and the feet drawn close together, or hanging upside down with the help of their hook- like claws. This disguises them as part of a tree so that its enemies like the jaguar do not see them. Sloths rarely climb down from the trees, and when they are on the ground, they can only crawl awkwardly.

Sloths can live for up to 30 years. They mostly just eat leaves and flowers, which take a very long time to digest. Sloths move slowly; their name comes from the word "slow".

## Related pages
* Megatherium
* Ground sloth

## References
Oberon (moon)

**Oberon** is the farthest big moon of the planet Uranus. It is made of about half ice and half rock.
With a mean radius of about 760&nbsp;km, Oberon is the second biggest moon of Uranus's 27 moons. It orbits Uranus about every 13.4 days.

It was found on January 11, 1787 by William Herschel, in the same year he found Titania. It was named after a Oberon, King of the Fairies, a character in William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Oberon has several large impact craters where it has been hit by meteorites. These were photographed by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1986 as it flew passed.

## Surface features
Craters on Oberon are named after characters in the plays of William Shakespeare.

## Other websites
*Information and photos of Oberon
* USGS: Oberon nomenclature

## References
Delémont District

The **district of Delémont** is one of three districts in Jura, Switzerland. Its capital is the city of Delémont. The district is nearly all French-speaking and is home to a population of 35,175 (end of 2005).

Delémont is divided into 28 municipalities:
Xavier Rudd

**Xavier Rudd** (born 1978) is an Australian musician. He grew up in the small town of Torquay, Victoria, Australia. When Rudd was young, he learned to play the didgeridoo on a vacuum cleaner hose. 

Rudd is known for playing at music festivals and concerts in Australia and in North America. He has many  in Australia, his home, as well as Canada, where he has recorded a few live albums. 

Some of his songs have political themes that deal with the father of 2 sons environment and the rights of Aboriginal Australians.

## Personal life
Rudd also describes himself as a full-time "barefooter", which means that he does not own any shoes or other footwear. Rudd is also a vegetarian.
## Discography
### Studio albums
* *To Let* (2002)
* *Solace* (2004)
* *Food in the Belly* (2005)
* *White Moth* (2007)
* *Dark Shades of Blue* (2008)
* *Koonyum Sun* *with Izintaba (2010)
* *Spirit bird* (2012)

### Live albums
* *Live in Canada* (2001)
* *Live at the Grid* (2003)
* *Good Spirit* (2005)

## References
## Other websites
* Xavier Rudd web site
* Xavier Rudd Tour Dates and Gossip 
* Live Shows on archive.org
* Live concert from Amsterdam on Fabchannel
* Undercover news story 
* Xavier Rudd Article 
* Xavier Rudd interview at Bonnaroo 2007
Abelsonite

**Abelsonite** (nickel porphyrin) is a mineral that can be pinkish-brown, purple, or reddish-brown in color and is formed from porphyrin crystals. It is found in plates like mica and . 

Porphyrins are organic ring compounds like haeme, the pigment in red blood cells.

It is found in the Green River Formation of Utah, in the United States.

## Sources
Abenakiite-(Ce)

**Abenakiite-(Ce)** is a pale brown mineral and made from crystals. It was named for the Abenaki Indian Tribe, the people that lived in the area where this mineral was found. It is somewhat radioactive and it is easily scratched with fluorite. It was found in a quarry in Canada.

## References
Abernathyite

**Abernathyite** is a pale, yellow-colored mineral that forms crystals.  It was named for Jess Abernathy, the person who found the first samples of this mineral.  It is found in a mine in Emery County, in the United States.  It is highly radioactive.

Chemically, it is a hydrate of potassium uranyl arsenate. It has the chemical formula .

## References
Nicolás de Ovando

**Nicolás de Ovando** (Brozas, 1460 – Seville, 1511) was a Spanish soldier from a noble family and a knight of the Order of Alcántara. He was governor of Hispaniola from 1502 until 1509.                                                                                                  
## Early life
Nicolas de Ovando was born in 1460 in the town of Brozas, in Extremadura, Spain. His family was very religious and, when young, he joined the military religious *Order of Alcantara* where, in 1478, he was named *Comendador de Lares* (*Commander of Lares*), a very important position in the Order.

## Governor of Hispaniola
As *Commander of Lares*, he was very appreciated by the Spanish Catholic Kings and, in particular, by Queen Isabella. On 3 September 1501 (Oviedo said in 1502), he was named as Governor of Hispaniola and of all lands discovered in America.

On 13 February, 1502 he went out of the port of Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain to go to the Hispaniola island with a fleet of 32 ships. On the fleet, there were 2,500 people, including priests, soldiers and colonists (some of them with their families), who were going to live in the Hispaniola. Among those colonists was Bartolomé de las Casas, later known as the *Protector of the Indians*, and also Francisco Pizarro, who conquered the Inca Empire.

The plan of Ovando was to develop the West Indies economically and expand the Spanish influence in the region.

Ovando got in Santo Domingo on 15 April 1502.

## Administration
The administration of Ovando in Hispaniola was one of great cruelty toward the Taíno Indians. When the Spaniards came to the island in 1492, the native population was 400,000 (estimated) but in 1508 there were only 60,000 Indians.

Because the new colonists needed more workers for the gold mines and farms, they brought, as slaves, Indians from the *Lucayas* (now, the Bahamas) islands. Then they brought slaves from Spain (*Ladinos*, that is, of Africa origin but born in Spain); those were the first African slaves brought to America.

Ovando founded several cities (or ordered their foundations) on Hispaniola, among them: Compostela de Azua (or Azua de Compostela), Santa María de la Vera Paz, Bayajá (today, Fort Liberté, in Haiti), Salvatierra de la Sabana (today, Les Cayes, in Haiti), Salvaleón de Higüey, Cotuí, Puerto Plata, Santa Cruz de Hicayagua (today, Santa Cruz del Seibo, Dominican Republic). Sebastián de Ocampo was sent to find out if Cuba was an island or part of the continent; after 8 or 10 months, Ocampo came back with the information that Cuba was an island. In 1508, Juan Ponce de León was sent with 50 men to conquer the island of San Juan (now the island of Puerto Rico).

In 1509, Ovando went back to Spain where he was made *Comendador Mayor* ("Head Commander") of the Order of Alcantara. During a meeting of the Order in Seville, Spain, he died on 29 May 1511 (Oviedo said in 1518). He was buried in the Church of San Benito, in the city of Alcántara, Extremadura, Spain.

## References
Abhurite

**Abhurite** is a colorless crystalline mineral that forms on ship-wrecked tin ingots (nuggets).  It is named for where it is found.  It is found in a cove in the Red Sea.  It is not radioactive.

## References
Internet meme

, once a common type of Internet meme.]]
An **internet meme** is a phrase, video, or picture that is shared across the Internet.
## Traits
Internet memes are based on the concept of a *meme*. A meme is a piece of information that is spread between groups, often changing when it is spread. 

## References
Animal Liberation Orchestra

**Animal Liberation Orchestra** (also known as **ALO**) is an American rock and jam band from Southern California. They first formed several years ago as a group calling themselves **Django**. Over the years, they changed their name to Animal Liberation Orchestra and were signed to Jack Johnson's record label Brushfire Records.

## Discography 
### Albums 
## Other websites
*Animal Liberation Orchestra's official website
*ALO at YahooGroups - discussion 
*ALO on archive.org's Live Music Archive
*ALO at MySpace
*Brushfire Records
*ALO at Tribe - discussion
Leftover Salmon

**Leftover Salmon** is an American Rock and jam band from Boulder, Colorado.

## Discography
### Albums
#### Leftover Salmon
#### Other
*''O' Cracker Where Art Thou?* (Pitch A Tent), 2003 (with Cracker)

### Videos
**Years In Your Ears ...a Story of Leftover Salmon'' (2006, DVD)