(CNN) -- Cuba will pardon more than 2,900 prisoners, the government said Friday, though U.S. subcontractor Alan Gross is not among those who will be freed. The decision to release the prisoners follows "numerous requests" from their family members and religious institutions, and is a humanitarian gesture, said Cuban President Raul Castro. Among those who might be freed are prisoners over the age of 60, along with those who are sick, female or young with no previous criminal record. With some exceptions, prisoners convicted of spying, terrorism, murder and drug trafficking will not be released. Those who will be freed have already served a "important" part of their sentences and exhibited good behavior, according to an official statement published on the state-run website Cubadebate. The jailed American, Gross, will not be among those pardoned, the Cuban Interests Section in Washington said. Gross was jailed in December 2009, when he was working as a subcontractor on a U.S. Agency for International Development project aimed at spreading democracy. Castro has accused him of importing satellite equipment to connect dissidents to the Internet, and this year Cuba's highest court upheld the 15-year sentence imposed on Gross for committing crimes against the security of the state. He has maintained his innocence and said he was trying to help connect the Jewish community to the Internet. Castro, speaking to the National Assembly, said that 86 prisoners from 25 countries would be among those released in coming days. He cited the upcoming visit of Pope Benedict XVI as one of the motivations behind the move, which he said showed the "generosity and strength of the revolution." The pope has said he plans to visit Mexico and Cuba before Easter.

How many people are being freed?

Callimaco is taken by the beauty of Lucrezia , but she is the loyal wife of Nicia , a rich and foolish lawyer . Callimaco hires the service of a shady ' fixer ' named Ligurio to aid in his quest to sleep with her . Lgurio informs Callimaco that Nicia and Lucrezia are anxious to have a child . With the fixer's help , . Callimaco masquerades as a doctor and convinces Nicia that the best way for Lucrezia to conceive a child is by her taking a potion made from the Mandrake Root . He lies and warns Nicia that the first man to sleep with Lucrezia after she has taken the potion will die within eight days . Together they devise a plan to kidnap a stranger to sleep with Lucrezia and draw out the poison . Callimaco then disguises himself and arranges to be the one who is kidnapped . Lucrezia is an honorable woman and does not at first agree to meet with the stranger . Nicia gets both Lucrezia's mother , a woman of ill repute , and her confessor Brother Timoteo , a priest of low morals , to aid in convincing Lucrezia of the necessity of the plan . After finally sleeping with Lucrezia , Callimaco confesses everything . Lucrezia gives thought to the duplicity of her husband , her mother , and her confessor , and decides that she now wants Callimaco as a lover forever . Callimaco gets what he had desired and everyone else continues to believe that each had outwitted the others .

Why does Lucrezia want Callimaco to be her lover forever?

Our sun and other stars release light energy. At least this is what we see. Our Sun and stars also emit more than just light. Scientists call the type of energy that our Sun and stars release electromagnetic energy. This form of energy travels through space. Electromagnetic energy includes the light we see. It also includes much more. Many of these things we know about, but dont always think about. Electromagnetic energy includes radio waves, microwaves, and X rays. We now have devices in our homes and offices that release these same forms of energy. We use electromagnetic energy to make our lives better.
Why do we use radio waves, microwaves, and X rays?