text:
Candle

A candle is an ignitable wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. Candles have been used for over two millennia around the world, and were a significant form of indoor lighting until the invention of other types of light sources. Although electric light has largely made candle use nonessential for illumination, candles are still commonly used for functional, symbolic and aesthetic purposes and in specific cultural and religious settings.

Early candles may be made of beeswax, but these candles were expensive and their use was limited to the elite and the churches. Tallow was a cheaper but a less aesthetically pleasing alternative. A variety of different materials have been developed in the modern era for making candles, including paraffin wax, which together with efficient production techniques, made candles affordable for the masses. Various devices can be used to hold candles, such as candlesticks, or candelabras, chandeliers, lanterns and sconces. A person who makes candles is traditionally known as a chandler. The combustion of the candle proceeds in self-sustaining manner. As the wick of candle is lit, the heat melts and ignites a small amount of solid fuel (the wax), which vaporizes and combines with oxygen in the air to form a flame. The flame then melts the top of the mass of solid fuel, which moves upward through the wick via capillary action to be continually burnt, thereby maintaining a constant flame. The candle shortens as the solid fuel is consumed, so does the wick. Wicks of pre-19th century candles required regular trimming with scissors or "snuffers" to promote steady burning and prevent smoking. In modern candles, the wick is constructed so that it curves over as it burns, and the end of the wick gets trimmed by itself through incineration by fire.

Etymology
The word candle comes from Middle English candel, from Old English and from Anglo-Norman candele, both from Latin candēla, from candēre 'to shine'.

History
Prior to the invention of candles, ancient people used open fire, torches, splinters of resinous wood, and lamps to provide artificial illumination at night. Primitive oil lamps in which a lit wick rested in a pool of oil or fat were used from the Paleolithic period, and pottery and stone lamps from the Neolithic period have been found. Because candle making requires a reliable supply of animal or vegetable fats, it is certain that candles could not have developed before the early Bronze Age; however, it is unclear when and where candles were first used. Objects that could be candlesticks have been found in Babylonian and middle Minoan cultures, as well in the tomb of Tutankhamun. The "candles" used in these early periods would not have resembled the current forms; more likely they were made of plant materials dipped in animal fat.

Early evidence of candle use may be found in Italy, where depiction of a candlestick exists in an Etruscan tomb at Orvieto, and the earliest excavated Etruscan candlestick dates from the 7th century BC. Candles may have evolved from taper with wick of oakum and other plant fibre soaked in fat, pitch or oil and burned in lamps or pots. Candles of antiquity were made from various forms of natural fat, tallow, and wax, and Romans made true dipped candles from tallow and beeswax. Beeswax candles were expensive and their use was limited to the wealthy, instead oil lamps were the more commonly used lighting devices in Roman times. Ancient Greece used torches and oil lamps, and likely adopted candle use in a later period from Rome. Early record in China suggests that candle was used in the Qin dynasty before 200 BC. These early Chinese candles may have been made from whale fat.

In Christianity, candles gained significance in their decorative, symbolic and ceremonial uses in churches. Wax candles, or candela cerea recorded at the end of the 3rd century, were documented as Easter candles in Spain and Italy in the fourth century, the Christian festival Candlemas was named after it, and Pope Sergius I instituted the procession of lighted candles. Papal bulls decreed that tallow be excluded for use in altar candles, and a high beeswax content is necessary for candles of the high altar.

In medieval Europe, candles were initially used primarily in Christian churches. Its use spread later to the households of the wealthy as a luxury item. In northern Europe, rushlight made of greased rushes were commonly used especially in England, but tallow candles were used during the Middle Ages, with a mention of tallow candles in English appearing in 1154. Beeswax was widely used in church ceremonies, and compared to animal-based tallow, it burns cleanly without smoky flame, and does not release an unpleasant smell like tallow. Beeswax candles were expensive, and relatively few people could afford to burn them in their homes in medieval Europe.

The candles were produced using a number of methods: dipping the wick in molten fat or wax, rolling the candle by hand around a wick, or pouring fat or wax onto a wick to build up the candle. In the 14th century Sieur de Brez introduced the technique of using a mould, but real improvement for the efficient production of candles with mould was only achieved in the 19th century. Wax and tallow candles were made in monasteries in the medieval period, and in rural households, tallow candles may be made at home. By the 13th century, candle making had become a guild craft in England and France, with a French guild documented as early as 1061. The candle makers (chandlers) went from house to house making candles from the kitchen fats saved for that purpose, or made and sold their own candles from small candle shops.

By the 16th century, beeswax candles were appearing as luxury household items among the wealthy. Candles were widely used in the 17th and 18th centuries, and a party in Dresden was said to have been lit by 14,000 candles in 1779.

In the Middle East, during the Abbasid and Fatimid Caliphates, beeswax was the dominant material used for candle making. Beeswax was often imported from long distances; for example, candle makers from Egypt used beeswax from Tunis. As in Europe, these candles were expensive and limited to the elite, and most commoners used oil lamps instead. According to legend, the practice of using lamps and candles in mosque started with Tamim al-Dari who lit a lamp he brought from Syria in the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. The Umayyad caliph Al-Walid II was known to have used candles in the court in Damascus, while the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil was said to have spent 1.2 million silver dirhams annually on candles for his royal palaces.

In early modern Syria, candles were in high demand by all socioeconomic classes because they were customarily lit during marriage ceremonies. There were candle makers' guilds in the Safavid capital of Isfahan during the 1500s and 1600s. However, candle makers had a relatively low social position in Safavid Iran, comparable to barbers, bathhouse workers, fortune tellers, bricklayers, and porters.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, spermaceti, a waxy substance produced by the sperm whale, was used to produce a superior candle that burned longer, brighter and gave off no offensive smell. Later in the 18th century, colza oil and rapeseed oil came into use as much cheaper substitutes.

Modern era

A number of improvements were made to candle in the 19th century. In older candles, the wick of a burning candle was not in direct contact with air, so it charred instead of being burnt. The charred wick inhibited further burning and produced black smoke, so the wick needed to be constantly trimmed or "snuffed". In 1825, a French man M. Cambacérès introduced the plaited wick soaked with mineral salts, which when burnt, curled towards the outer edge of the flame and become incinerated by it, thereby trimming itself. These are referred to as "self-trimming" or "self-consuming" wicks. In 1823, Michel Eugène Chevreul and Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac separate out stearin in animal fats, and obtained a patent in 1825 to produce candles that are harder and can burn brighter.

The manufacture of candles became an industrialized mass market in the mid 19th century. In 1834, Joseph Morgan, a pewterer from Manchester, England, patented a machine that revolutionised candle making. It allowed for continuous production of molded candles by using a cylinder with a moveable piston to eject candles as they solidified. This more efficient mechanized production produced about 1,500 candles per hour. This allowed candles to be an affordable commodity for the masses.

In the mid-1850s, James Young succeeded in distilling paraffin wax from coal and oil shales at Bathgate in West Lothian and developed a commercially viable method of production. Paraffin could be used to make inexpensive candles of high quality. It was a bluish-white wax, which burned cleanly and left no unpleasant odor, unlike tallow candles. By the end of the 19th century, candles were made from paraffin wax and stearic acid.

By the late 19th century, Price's Candles, based in London, was the largest candle manufacturer in the world. Founded by William Wilson in 1830, the company pioneered the implementation of the technique of steam distillation, and was thus able to manufacture candles from a wide range of raw materials, including skin fat, bone fat, fish oil and industrial greases.

Despite advances in candle making, the candle industry declined rapidly upon the introduction of superior methods of lighting, including kerosene and lamps and the 1879 invention of the incandescent light bulb. From this point on, candles came to be marketed as more of a decorative item.

Use

Before the invention of electric lighting, candles and oil lamps were commonly used for illumination. In areas without electricity, they are still used routinely. Until the 20th century, candles were more common in northern Europe. In southern Europe and the Mediterranean, oil lamps predominated.

In the developed world today, candles are used mainly for their aesthetic value and scent, particularly to set a soft, warm, or romantic ambiance, for emergency lighting during electrical power failures, and for religious or ritual purposes.

In the 21st century, there has been a huge spike in sales of scented candles in recent years. The COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns led to a dramatic increase in the sales of scented candles, diffusers and room sprays.

Other uses
With the fairly consistent and measurable burning of a candle, a common use of candles was to tell the time. The candle designed for this purpose might have time measurements, usually in hours, marked along the wax. The Song dynasty in China (960–1279) used candle clocks.

By the 18th century, candle clocks were being made with weights set into the sides of the candle. As the candle melted, the weights fell off and made a noise as they fell into a bowl.

In the days leading to Christmas, some people burn a candle a set amount to represent each day, as marked on the candle. The type of candle used in this way is called the Advent candle, although this term is also used to refer to a candle that are used in an Advent wreath.

Wax

For most of recorded history candles were made from tallow (rendered from beef or mutton-fat) or beeswax. From the mid-1800s, they were also made from spermaceti, a waxy substance derived from the Sperm whale, which in turn spurred demand for the substance. Candles were also made from stearin (initially manufactured from animal fats but now produced almost exclusively from palm waxes). Today, most candles are made from paraffin wax, a byproduct of petroleum refining.

Candles can also be made from microcrystalline wax, beeswax (a byproduct of honey collection), gel (a mixture of polymer and mineral oil), or some plant waxes (generally palm, carnauba, bayberry, or soybean wax).

The size of the flame and corresponding rate of burning is controlled largely by the candle wick. The kind of wax also affects the burn rate, with beeswax and coconut wax burning longer than paraffin or soy wax.

Production methods utilize extrusion moulding. More traditional production methods entail melting the solid fuel by the controlled application of heat. The liquid is then poured into a mould, or a wick is repeatedly immersed in the liquid to create a dipped tapered candle. Often fragrance oils, essential oils or aniline-based dye is added.

Wick

A candle wick works by capillary action, drawing ("wicking") the melted wax or fuel up to the flame. When the liquid fuel reaches the flame, it vaporizes and combusts. The candle wick influences how the candle burns. Important characteristics of the wick include diameter, stiffness, fire resistance, and tethering.

A candle wick is a piece of string or cord that holds the flame of a candle. Commercial wicks are made from braided cotton. The wick's capillarity determines the rate at which the melted hydrocarbon is conveyed to the flame. If the capillarity is too great, the molten wax streams down the side of the candle. Wicks are often infused with a variety of chemicals to modify their burning characteristics. For example, it is usually desirable that the wick not glow after the flame is extinguished. Typical agents are ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulfate.

Light

Based on measurements of a taper-type, paraffin wax candle, a modern candle typically burns at a steady rate of about 0.1 g/min, releasing heat at roughly 80 W. The light produced is about 13 lumens, for a luminous efficacy of about 0.16 lumens per watt (luminous efficacy of a source) – almost a hundred times lower than an incandescent light bulb. If a 1 candela source emitted uniformly in all directions, the total radiant flux would be only about 18.40 mW.

The luminous intensity of a typical candle is approximately one candela. The SI unit, candela, was in fact based on an older unit called the candlepower, which represented the luminous intensity emitted by a candle made to particular specifications (a "standard candle"). The modern unit is defined in a more precise and repeatable way, but was chosen such that a candle's luminous intensity is still about one candela.

Temperature
The hottest part of a candle flame is just above the very dull blue part to one side of the flame, at the base. At this point, the flame is about 1400 C. However, this part of the flame is very small and releases little heat energy. The blue color is due to chemiluminescence, while the visible yellow color is due to radiative emission from hot soot particles. The soot is formed through a series of complex chemical reactions, leading from the fuel molecule through molecular growth, until multi-carbon ring compounds are formed. The thermal structure of a flame is complex, hundreds of degrees over very short distances leading to extremely steep temperature gradients. On average, the flame temperature is about 1000 C. The color temperature is approximately 1,000 K.

Combustion
For a candle to burn, a heat source (commonly a naked flame from a match or lighter) is used to light the candle's wick, which melts and vaporizes a small amount of fuel (the wax). Once vaporized, the fuel combines with oxygen in the atmosphere to ignite and form a constant flame. This flame provides sufficient heat to keep the candle burning via a self-sustaining chain of events: the heat of the flame melts the top of the mass of solid fuel; the liquefied fuel then moves upward through the wick via capillary action; the liquefied fuel finally vaporizes to burn within the candle's flame.

As the fuel (wax) is melted and burned, the candle becomes shorter. The end of the plaited wick bends and get consumed in the flame. The incineration of the wick limits the length of the exposed portion of the wick, thus maintaining a constant burning temperature and rate of fuel consumption. Pre-19th century wicks required regular trimming with scissors (or a specialized wick trimmer), usually to about one-quarter inch (~0.7 cm), to promote steady burning and to prevent it from releasing black smoke. Special candle scissors called "snuffers" were produced for this purpose in the 20th century and were often combined with an extinguisher. In modern candles, the wick is made in such a way that it curves over as it burns, which ensures that the end of the wick gets incinerated by fire, thereby trimming itself.

Candle flame

A candle flame is formed because wax vaporizes on burning. A candle flame is widely recognized as having between three and five regions or "zones":
 * Zone I – this is the non-luminous, lowest, and coolest part of the candle flame. It is located around the base of the wick where there is insufficient oxygen for fuel to burn. Temperatures are around 600 C.
 * Zone II – this is the blue zone, which surrounds the base of the flame. Here the supply of oxygen is plentiful, and the fuel burns clean and blue. It is heat from this zone which causes the wax to melt. Temperatures are around 800 C.
 * Zone III – the dark zone is a region directly above the wick containing unburnt wax. Pyrolysis takes place here. Temperature is around 1000 C.
 * Zone IV – the middle or luminous zone is yellow/white and is located above the dark zone. It is the brightest zone, but not the hottest. It is an oxygen-depleted zone with insufficient oxygen to burn all of the wax vapor rising from below it, resulting in only partial combustion. The zone also contains unburnt carbon particles. Temperature is around 1200 C.
 * Zone V – The non-luminous outer zone or veil surrounds Zone IV. Here, the flame is at its hottest, at around 1400 C, and complete combustion occurs. It is light blue in color, though most of it is invisible.

The main determinant of the height of a candle flame is the diameter of the wick. This is evidenced in tealights where the wick is very thin and the flame is very small. Candles whose main purpose is illumination use a much thicker wick.

History of study
One of Michael Faraday's significant works was The Chemical History of a Candle, where he gives an in-depth analysis of the evolutionary development, workings and science of candles.

Hazards
According to the National Fire Protection Association, candles are a leading source of residential fires in the United States with almost 10% of civilian injuries and 6% of fatalities from fire attributed to candles.

A candle flame that is longer than its laminar smoke point will emit soot. Proper wick trimming will reduce soot emissions from most candles.

The liquid wax is hot and can cause skin burns, but the amount and temperature are generally rather limited and the burns are seldom serious. The best way to avoid getting burned from splashed wax is to use a candle snuffer instead of blowing on the flame. A candle snuffer is usually a small metal cup on the end of a long handle. Placing the snuffer over the flame cuts off the oxygen supply. Snuffers were common in the home when candles were the main source of lighting before electric lights were available. Ornate snuffers, often combined with a taper for lighting, are still found in those churches which regularly use large candles.

Glass candle-holders are sometimes cracked by thermal shock from the candle flame, particularly when the candle burns down to the end. When burning candles in glass holders or jars, users should avoid lighting candles with chipped or cracked containers, and stop use once a half-inch or less of wax remains.

A former worry regarding the safety of candles was that a lead core was used in the wicks to keep them upright in container candles. Without a stiff core, the wicks of a container candle could sag and drown in the deep wax pool. Concerns rose that the lead in these wicks would vaporize during the burning process, releasing lead vapors – a known health and developmental hazard. Lead core wicks have not been common since the 1970s. Today, most metal-cored wicks use zinc or a zinc alloy, which has become the industry standard. Wicks made from specially treated paper and cotton are also available.

Candles emit volatile organic compounds into the environment, which releases carbon into the air. The combustion process of lighting a candle includes the release of light, heat, carbon dioxide and water vapor, to fuel the flame. Candle use can be unsafe if fragrances are inhaled at high doses Non-toxic candles have been created as an alternative to prevent these volatile organic compounds from being released into the environment. Candle companies such as "The Plant Project" have created candles that are more environmentally sustainable and better for lung health. These alternatives include non-toxic wax blends, safe fragrances and eco-friendly packaging. Safer candles include candles made from coconut, soy, vegetable, and beeswax.

Users who seek the aesthetics of a candle sometimes install an electric flameless candle to avoid the hazards.

Regulation
International markets have developed a range of standards and regulations to ensure compliance, while maintaining and improving safety, including:
 * Europe: GPSD, EN 15493, EN 15494, EN 15426, EN 14059, REACH, RAL-GZ 041 Candles (Germany), French Decree 91-1175
 * United States: ASTM F2058, ASTM F2179, ASTM F2417, ASTM F2601, ASTM F2326 (all are federal and applies in all 50 states), California Proposition 65 (California only), CONEG (New England and New York states only)
 * China: QB/T 2119 Basic Candle, QB/T 2902 Art Candle, QB/T 2903 Jar Candle, GB/T 22256 Jelly Candle

Candle holders
Decorative candleholders, especially those shaped as a pedestal, are called candlesticks; if multiple candle tapers are held, the term candelabrum is also used. The root form of chandelier is from the word for candle, but now usually refers to an electric fixture. The word chandelier is sometimes now used to describe a hanging fixture designed to hold multiple tapers.

Many candle holders use a friction-tight socket to keep the candle upright. In this case, a candle that is slightly too wide will not fit in the holder, and a candle that is slightly too narrow will wobble. Candles that are too big can be trimmed to fit with a knife; candles that are too small can be fitted with aluminium foil. Traditionally, the candle and candle holders were made in the same place, so they were appropriately sized, but international trade has combined the modern candle with existing holders, which makes the ill-fitting candle more common. This friction-tight socket is only needed for the federals and the tapers. For tea light candles, there is a variety of candle holders, including small glass holders and elaborate multi-candle stands. The same is true for votives. Wall sconces are available for tea light and votive candles. For pillar-type candles, the assortment of candle holders is broad. A fireproof plate, such as a glass plate or small mirror, can be a candle holder for a pillar-style candle. A pedestal of any kind, with the appropriate-sized fireproof top, is another option. A large glass bowl with a large flat bottom and tall mostly vertical curved sides is called a hurricane. The pillar-style candle is placed at the bottom center of the hurricane. A hurricane on a pedestal is sometimes sold as a unit.

A bobèche is a drip-catching ring, which may also be affixed to a candle holder, or used independently of one. Bobèches can range from ornate metal or glass to simple plastic, cardboard, or wax paper. Use of paper or plastic bobèches is common at events where candles are distributed to a crowd or audience, such as Christmas carolers or people at other concerts or festivals.

Candle snuffers
Candle snuffers are instruments used to extinguish burning candles by smothering the flame with a small metal cup that is suspended from a long handle, and thus depriving it of oxygen. An older meaning refers to a scissor-like tool used to trim the wick of a candle. With skill, this could be done without extinguishing the flame. The instrument now known as a candle snuffer was formerly called an "extinguisher" or "douter".

Candle followers
These are glass or metal tubes with an internal stricture partway along, which sit around the top of a lit candle. As the candle burns, the wax melts and the follower holds the melted wax in, whilst the stricture rests on the topmost solid portion of wax. Candle followers are often deliberately heavy or weighted to ensure they move down as the candle burns lower, maintaining a seal and preventing wax escape. The purpose of a candle follower is threefold:
 * To contain the melted wax, making the candle more efficient, avoiding mess, and producing a more even burn.
 * As a decoration, either due to the ornate nature of the device, or (in the case of a glass follower) through light dispersion or colouration.
 * If necessary, to shield the flame from wind.

Candle followers are often found in churches on altar candles.

title: Candle


text:
205

Year 205 (CCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Geta (or, less frequently, year 958 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 205 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Roman Empire

 * Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus and his brother Publius Septimius Geta Caesar become Roman Consuls.
 * Hadrian's Wall is restored, after heavy raids by Caledonian tribes had overrun much of northern Britain.
 * January 22 – Gaius Fulvius Plautianus, a praetorian prefect and father-in-law of Caracalla, is assassinated.
 * Aemilius Papinianus becomes praetorian prefect, after the death of Gaius Fulvius Plautianus.

China

 * Battle of Nanpi: Warlord Cao Cao defeats and kills Yuan Tan, the eldest son of his rival Yuan Shao.

Births

 * Cao Rui, Chinese emperor of Cao Wei (d. 239)
 * Gu Tan, Chinese official and politician (d. 246)
 * Plotinus, Greek philosopher and writer (d. 270)
 * Shan Tao, Chinese Taoist scholar and official (d. 283)
 * Sima Wang, Chinese prince and general (d. 271)
 * Zhang Xiu (or Shusi), Chinese general (d. 245)

Deaths

 * January 22 – Gaius Fulvius Plautianus, Roman consul
 * Guo Tu (or Gongze), Chinese official and politician
 * Marcus Peducaeus Plautius Quintillus, Roman consul
 * Popilius Pedo Apronianus, Roman politician
 * Yuan Tan, Chinese general and warlord

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: 205


text:
DSP

DSP may refer to:

Computing

 * Digital signal processing, the mathematical manipulation of an information signal
 * Digital signal processor, a microprocessor designed for digital signal processing
 * Dynamic Reconfiguration port
 * Yamaha DSP-1, a proprietary digital signal processor
 * Demand-side platform, a system to facilitate the buying of online advertising

Education

 * Developmental social-pragmatic model, a developmental intervention for autistic spectrum disorders
 * Direct support professional, a specialist in education of the mentally disabled
 * Deutsche Schule Prag, a German international school in Prague, Czech Republic
 * Deutsche Schule Paris, now the Internationale Deutsche Schule Paris, a German international school in France
 * Deutsche Schule Pretoria, a German international school in Pretoria, South Africa

Military and police

 * Deputy Superintendent of Police, also DySP
 * Defense Standardization Program, in the U.S. military
 * Defense Support Program, operators of the U.S. Air Force's early-warning satellites
 * Delaware State Police
 * Disruptive solutions process in the U.S. Air National Guard
 * Special Presidential Division, a Zairean military unit

Music

 * Dark Sky Paradise, an album by Big Sean
 * Devi Sri Prasad (born 1979), south Indian film composer, lyricist, singer, and performer
 * Deathlike Silence Productions, a record label in Norway
 * DSP Media, a Korean entertainment company

Politics

 * Democratic Left Party (Turkey) (Demokratik Sol Parti)
 * Democratic Socialist Party (Japan)
 * Democratic Socialist Party (Prabodh Chandra), India
 * Democratic Socialist Perspective (formerly Democratic Socialist Party), Australia
 * German State Party (Deutsche Staatspartei), a political party of the Weimar Republic period
 * German Socialist Party (Deutschsozialistische Partei), a far-right party founded after World War I

Other

 * Delta Sigma Phi, a social fraternity
 * Delta Sigma Pi, a co-ed business fraternity

Science and technology

 * Disodium phosphate
 * Dairy Science Park, a scientific organization in Peshawar, Pakistan
 * Desmoplakin, a human gene
 * Dynamin Superfamily Protein, a protein superfamily
 * Diarrhetic shellfish poisoning
 * Dual-specificity phosphatase
 * Downstream processing

Other uses

 * Decessit sine prole, in genealogy, a person who died without having children
 * Designated Suppliers Program, an anti-sweatshop standard used in some US universities
 * Deutscher Spiele Preis, a board games award in Germany
 * DSP (film), a 2022 Indian Tamil-language film
 * Durgapur Steel Plant, in India

title: DSP


text:
Utopian and dystopian fiction

Utopian and dystopian fiction are subgenres of science fiction that explore social and political structures. Utopian fiction portrays a setting that agrees with the author's ethos, having various attributes of another reality intended to appeal to readers. Dystopian fiction offers the opposite: the portrayal of a setting that completely disagrees with the author's ethos. Some novels combine both genres, often as a metaphor for the different directions humanity can take depending on its choices, ending up with one of two possible futures. Both utopias and dystopias are commonly found in science fiction and other types of speculative fiction.

More than 400 utopian works in the English language were published prior to the year 1900, with more than a thousand others appearing during the 20th century. This increase is partially associated with the rise in popularity of science fiction and young adult fiction more generally, but also larger scale social change that brought awareness of larger societal or global issues, such as technology, climate change, and growing human population. Some of these trends have created distinct subgenres such as ecotopian fiction, climate fiction, young adult dystopian novels, and feminist dystopian novels.

Utopian fiction
The word utopia was first used in direct context by Sir Thomas More in his 1516 work Utopia. The word utopia resembles both the Greek words outopos ("no place"), and eutopos ("good place"). More's book, written in Latin, sets out a vision of an ideal society. As the title suggests, the work presents an ambiguous and ironic projection of the ideal state. The whimsical nature of the text can be confirmed by the narrator of Utopia's second book, Raphael Hythloday. The Greek root of the name "Hythloday" suggests an 'expert in nonsense'.

An earlier example of a Utopian work from classical antiquity is Plato's The Republic, in which he outlines what he sees as the ideal society and its political system. Later, Tommaso Campanella was influenced by Plato's work and wrote The City of the Sun (1623), which describes a modern utopian society built on equality. Other examples include Samuel Johnson's The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia (1759) and Samuel Butler's Erewhon (1872), which uses an anagram of "nowhere" as its title. This, like much of utopian literature, can be seen as satire; Butler inverts illness and crime, with punishment for the former and treatment for the latter.

One example of the utopian genre's meaning and purpose is described in Fredric Jameson's Archeologies of the Future (2005), which addresses many utopian varieties defined by their program or impulse.

Dystopian fiction
A dystopia is a society characterized by a focus on that which is contrary to the author's ethos, such as mass poverty, public mistrust and suspicion, a police state or oppression. Most authors of dystopian fiction explore at least one reason why things are that way, often as an analogy for similar issues in the real world. Dystopian literature serves to "provide fresh perspectives on problematic social and political practices that might otherwise be taken for granted or considered natural and inevitable". Some dystopias claim to be utopias. Samuel Butler's Erewhon can be seen as a dystopia because of the way sick people are punished as criminals while thieves are "cured" in hospitals, which the inhabitants of Erewhon see as natural and right, i.e., utopian (as mocked in Voltaire's Candide).

Dystopias usually extrapolate elements of contemporary society, and thus can be read as political warnings.

Eschatological literature may portray dystopias.

Examples
The 1921 novel We by Yevgeny Zamyatin portrays a post-apocalyptic future in which society is entirely based on logic and modeled after mechanical systems. George Orwell was influenced by We when he wrote Nineteen Eighty-Four (published in 1949), a novel about Oceania, a state at perpetual war, its population controlled through propaganda. Big Brother and the daily Two Minutes Hate set the tone for an all-pervasive self-censorship. Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel Brave New World started as a parody of utopian fiction, and projected into the year 2540 industrial and social changes he perceived in 1931, leading to industrial success by a coercively persuaded population divided into five castes; the World State kills everyone 60 years old or older. Karin Boye's 1940 novel Kallocain is set in a totalitarian world state where a drug is used to control the individual's thoughts.

Anthony Burgess' 1962 novel A Clockwork Orange is set in a future England that has a subculture of extreme youth violence, and details the protagonist's experiences with the state intent on changing his character at their whim. Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale (1985) describes a future United States governed by a totalitarian theocracy, where women have no rights, and Stephen King's The Long Walk (1979) describes a similar totalitarian scenario, but depicting the participation of teenage boys in a deadly contest. Examples of young-adult dystopian fiction include (notably all published after 2000) The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, The Power of Five series by Anthony Horowitz, The Maze Runner series by James Dashner, and the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld. Video games often include dystopias as well; notable examples include the Fallout series, BioShock, and the later games of the Half-Life series.

History of dystopian fiction
The history of dystopian literature can be traced back to the reaction to the French Revolution of 1789 and the prospect that mob rule would produce dictatorship. Until the late 20th century, it was usually anti-collectivist. Dystopian fiction emerged as a response to the utopian. Its early history is traced in Gregory Claeys' Dystopia: A Natural History (Oxford University Press, 2017).

The beginning of technological dystopian fiction can be traced back to E. M. Forster's (1879–1970) "The Machine Stops." M Keith Booker states that "The Machine Stops," We and Brave New World are "the great defining texts of the genre of dystopian fiction, both in [the] vividness of their engagement with real-world social and political issues and in the scope of their critique of the societies on which they focus."

Another important figure in dystopian literature is H.G. Wells, whose work The Time Machine (1895) is also widely seen as a prototype of dystopian literature. Wells' work draws on the social structure of the 19th century, providing a critique of the British class structure at the time. Post World War II, even more dystopian fiction was produced. These works of fiction were interwoven with political commentary: the end of World War II brought about fears of an impending Third World War and a consequent apocalypse.

Modern dystopian fiction draws not only on topics such as totalitarian governments and anarchism, but also pollution, global warming, climate change, health, the economy and technology. Modern dystopian themes are common in the young adult (YA) genre of literature.

Combinations
Many works combine elements of both utopias and dystopias. Typically, an observer from our world will journey to another place or time and see one society the author considers ideal and another representing the worst possible outcome. Usually, the point is that our choices may lead to a better or worse potential future world. Ursula K. Le Guin's Always Coming Home fulfills this model, as does Marge Piercy's Woman on the Edge of Time. In Starhawk's The Fifth Sacred Thing there is no time-travelling observer. However, her ideal society is invaded by a neighbouring power embodying evil repression. In Aldous Huxley's Island, in many ways a counterpoint to his better-known Brave New World, the fusion of the best parts of Buddhist philosophy and Western technology is threatened by the "invasion" of oil companies. As another example, in the "Unwanteds" series by Lisa McMann, a paradox occurs where the outcasts from a complete dystopia are treated to absolute utopia. They believe that those who were privileged in said dystopia were the unlucky ones.

In another literary model, the imagined society journeys between elements of utopia and dystopia over the course of the novel or film. At the beginning of The Giver by Lois Lowry, the world is described as a utopia. However, as the book progresses, the world's dystopian aspects are revealed.

Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels is also sometimes linked with both utopian and dystopian literatures, because it shares the general preoccupation with ideas of good and bad societies. Of the countries Lemuel Gulliver visits, Brobdingnag and Country of the Houyhnhnms approach a utopia; the others have significant dystopian aspects.

Ecotopian fiction
In ecotopian fiction, the author posits either a utopian or dystopian world revolving around environmental conservation or destruction. Danny Bloom coined the term "cli-fi" in 2006, with a Twitter boost from Margaret Atwood in 2011, to cover climate change-related fiction, but the theme has existed for decades. Novels dealing with overpopulation, such as Harry Harrison's Make Room! Make Room! (made into movie Soylent Green), were popular in the 1970s, reflecting the widespread concern with the effects of overpopulation on the environment. The novel Nature's End by Whitley Strieber and James Kunetka (1986) posits a future in which overpopulation, pollution, climate change, and resulting superstorms, have led to a popular mass-suicide political movement. Some other examples of ecological dystopias are depictions of Earth in the films Wall-E and Avatar.

While eco-dystopias are more common, a small number of works depicting what might be called eco-utopia, or eco-utopian trends, have also been influential. These include Ernest Callenbach's Ecotopia, an important 20th century example of this genre. Kim Stanley Robinson has written several books dealing with environmental themes, including the Mars trilogy. Most notably, however, his Three Californias Trilogy contrasted an eco-dystopia with an eco-utopia and a sort of middling-future. Robinson has also edited an anthology of short ecotopian fiction, called Future Primitive: The New Ecotopias. Another impactful piece of Robinson's is New York 2140 which focuses on the aftermath of society after a major flooding event, and can be seen through both a utopian and dystopian lens.

There are a few dystopias that have an "anti-ecological" theme. These are often characterized by a government that is overprotective of nature or a society that has lost most modern technology and struggles for survival. A fine example of this is the novel Riddley Walker.

Feminist utopias
Another subgenre is feminist utopias and the overlapping category of feminist science fiction. According to the author Sally Miller Gearhart, "A feminist utopian novel is one which a. contrasts the present with an envisioned idealized society (separated from the present by time or space), b. offers a comprehensive critique of present values/conditions, c. sees men or male institutions as a major cause of present social ills, d. presents women as not only at least the equals of men but also as the sole arbiters of their reproductive functions."

Utopias have explored the ramification of gender being either a societal construct or a hard-wired imperative. In Mary Gentle's Golden Witchbreed, gender is not chosen until maturity, and gender has no bearing on social roles. In contrast, Doris Lessing's The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five (1980) suggests that men's and women's values are inherent to the sexes and cannot be changed, making a compromise between them essential. In My Own Utopia (1961) by Elisabeth Mann Borgese, gender exists but is dependent upon age rather than sex — genderless children mature into women, some of whom eventually become men. Marge Piercy's novel Woman on the Edge of Time keeps human biology, but removes pregnancy and childbirth from the gender equation by resorting to assisted reproductive technology while allowing both women and men the nurturing experience of breastfeeding.

Utopic single-gender worlds or single-sex societies have long been one of the primary ways to explore implications of gender and gender-differences. One solution to gender oppression or social issues in feminist utopian fiction is to remove men, either showing isolated all-female societies as in Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Herland, or societies where men have died out or been replaced, as in Joanna Russ's A Few Things I Know About Whileaway, where "the poisonous binary gender" has died off. In speculative fiction, female-only worlds have been imagined to come about by the action of disease that wipes out men, along with the development of a technological or mystical method that allows female parthenogenetic reproduction. The resulting society is often shown to be utopian by feminist writers. Many influential feminist utopias of this sort were written in the 1970s; the most often studied examples include Joanna Russ's The Female Man and Suzy McKee Charnas's The Holdfast Chronicles. Such worlds have been portrayed most often by lesbian or feminist authors; their use of female-only worlds allows the exploration of female independence and freedom from patriarchy. The societies may not necessarily be lesbian, or sexual at all — Herland (1915) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a famous early example of a sexless society. Charlene Ball writes in Women's Studies Encyclopedia that use of speculative fiction to explore gender roles has been more common in the United States than in Europe and elsewhere.

Utopias imagined by male authors have generally included equality between sexes rather than separation.

Cultural impact
Étienne Cabet's work Travels in Icaria caused a group of followers, the Icarians, to leave France in 1848, and travel to the United States to start a series of utopian settlements in Texas, Illinois, Iowa, California, and elsewhere. These groups lived in communal settings and lasted until 1898.

Among the first decades of the 20th century in Russia, utopian science fiction literature popularity rose extremely due to the fact that the citizens wanted to fantasize about the future instead of just the fact that it was a new, up and coming genre of literature. During the Cold War, however, utopian science fiction became exceptionally prominent among Soviet leaders. Many citizens of the Soviet Russia became dependent on this type of literature because it represented an escape from the real world which was not ideal at the time. Utopian science fiction allowed them to fantasize about how satisfactory it would be to live in a "perfect" world.

title: Utopian and dystopian fiction


text:
206

Year 206 (CCVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Umbrius and Gavius (or, less frequently, year 959 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 206 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Roman Empire

 * Hadrian's Wall is retaken for the first time, since the Pictish uprising of 180.
 * Emperor Septimius Severus comes to Britain, with his sons Caracalla and Geta.

Births

 * Trebonianus Gallus, Roman emperor (d. 253)
 * Wang Jun (or Shizhi), Chinese general (d. 286)

Deaths

 * Gao Gan, Chinese warlord, politician
 * Taishi Ci (or Ziyi), Chinese general (b. 166)
 * Ying Shao, Chinese politician, writer (b. 140)

title: 206


text:
207

Year 207 (CCVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known in Rome as the Year of the Consulship of Maximus and Severus (or, less frequently, year 960 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 207 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

China

 * Battle of White Wolf Mountain: Warlord Cao Cao defeats the Wuhuan tribes, sending the Wuhuan into decline.

Births

 * Liu Shan (or Gongsi), Chinese emperor (d. 271)

Deaths

 * Guo Jia, Chinese adviser and official (b. 170)
 * Tadun, Chinese chieftain of the Wuhuan tribe
 * Yuan Shang, Chinese warlord and governor
 * Yuan Xi (or Xianyong), Chinese warlord
 * Zhang Xiu, Chinese general and warlord

title: 207


text:
208

Year 208 (CCVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Geta (or, less frequently, year 961 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 208 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

China

 * Spring – Battle of Jiangxia: Sun Quan defeats Huang Zu.
 * October
 * Warlord Cao Cao marches south with his army, and captures the enemy fleet at Jiangling.
 * Battle of Changban: Warlord Liu Bei escapes from Cao Cao.
 * December 10 – Cao Cao writes Duǎn Ge Xíng.
 * Winter – Zhou Yu and Liu Bei defeat Cao Cao at the Battle of Red Cliffs; along with the Battle of Yamen and Battle of Lake Poyang. This is one of the largest naval battles in China's history.

Parthia

 * King Vologases VI succeeds his father Vologases V to the throne. His brother Artabanus V begins a rebellion against him in the Parthian Empire.
 * Ardashir I, ruler of Istakhr (Persia), revolts against his brother and founds the Sassanid Dynasty.

Roman Empire

 * Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus and his brother Publius Septimius Geta Caesar become Roman Consuls.
 * Emperor Septimius Severus leads an expedition (20,000 men) into Britannia, crosses Hadrian's Wall and moves through eastern Scotland. The Roman army pushes the Caledonians back to the River Tay and Severus signs a peace treaty. He repairs the Antonine Wall (his repairs are sometimes called the Severan Wall).
 * Britain is divided: in the north, Lower Britain (Britannia Inferior) is administered from the fortress at Eburacum (modern York), and in the south, Upper Britain (Britannia Superior) is controlled by the legions at Deva Victrix (Chester) and Isca Augusta (Caerleon) with its capital at Londinium (London).

Births

 * Cao Li, Chinese imperial prince (d. 229)
 * Diadumenian, Roman emperor (d. 218)
 * Sima Shi, Chinese general and regent (d. 255)
 * Severus Alexander, Roman emperor (d. 235)

Deaths

 * Cao Chong (or Cangshu), Chinese warlord (b. 196)
 * Huang Zu, Chinese general and administrator
 * Hua Tuo, Chinese physician and surgeon (b. 140)
 * Kong Rong, Chinese warlord and politician (b. 153)
 * Liu Biao, Chinese governor and warlord (b. 142)
 * Liu Fu, Chinese governor and politician
 * Vologases V, king of the Parthian Empire

title: 208


text:
United States National Security Council

The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the principal forum used by the president of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and foreign policy matters. Based in the White House, it is part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, and composed of senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials.

Since its inception in 1947 by President Harry S. Truman, the function of the Council has been to advise and assist the president on national security and foreign policies. It also serves as the president's principal arm for coordinating these policies among various government agencies. The Council has subsequently played a key role in most major events in U.S. foreign policy, from the Korean War to the War on Terror.

The NSC has counterparts in the national security councils of many other nations.

History
The immediate predecessor to the National Security Council was the National Intelligence Authority (NIA), which was established by President Harry S. Truman's Executive Letter of January 22, 1946, to oversee the Central Intelligence Group, the CIA's predecessor. The NIA was composed of the Secretary of State, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, and the chief of staff to the commander in chief.

The National Security Council was created in 1947 by the National Security Act. It was created because policymakers felt that the diplomacy of the State Department was no longer adequate to contain the Soviet Union in light of the tension between the Soviet Union and the United States. The intent was to ensure coordination and concurrence among the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and other instruments of national security policy such as the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), also created in the National Security Act. In 2004, the position of Director of National Intelligence (DNI) was created, taking over the responsibilities previously held by the head of the CIA, the Director of Central Intelligence, as a cabinet-level position to oversee and coordinate activities of the Intelligence Community

On May 26, 2009, President Barack Obama merged the White House staff supporting the Homeland Security Council (HSC) and the National Security Council into one National Security Staff (NSS). The HSC and NSC each continue to exist by statute as bodies supporting the president. The name of the staff organization was changed back to National Security Council Staff in 2014.

The Directorate of Global Health Security and Biodefense was formed in 2016 under the Obama administration, disbanded in 2018 under the Trump Administration, and reinstated in January 2021 during the presidency of Joe Biden. On January 29, 2017, President Donald Trump restructured the Principals Committee (a subset of the full National Security Council), while at the same time altering the attendance of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Director of National Intelligence.

According to "National Security Presidential Memorandum 2", the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Director of National Intelligence were to only sit on the Principals Committee as and when matters pertaining to them arise, but will remain part of the full National Security Council. However, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus clarified the next day that they still are invited to attend meetings. With "National Security Presidential Memorandum 4" in April 2017, the Director of National Intelligence and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff "shall" attend Principals Committee meetings and the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency was included as a regular attendee. The reorganization also placed the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development as a permanent member of the Deputies Committee, while the White House chief strategist was removed.

According to a report by Reuters, the United States military ran a propaganda campaign to spread disinformation about the Sinovac Chinese COVID-19 vaccine, including using fake social media accounts to spread the disinformation that the Sinovac vaccine contained pork-derived ingredients and was therefore haram under Islamic law. The campaign was described as "payback" for COVID-19 disinformation by China directed against the U.S. The disinformation campaign began in 2020. In spring 2021, the NSC ordered the military to stop spreading anti-vaccine messages. The campaign continued until summer 2021 before terminating.

Authority and powers
The National Security Council was established by the National Security Act of 1947 (PL 235 – 61 Stat. 496; U.S.C. 402), amended by the National Security Act Amendments of 1949 (63 Stat. 579; 50 U.S.C. 401 et seq.). Later in 1949, as part of the Reorganization Plan, the Council was placed in the Executive Office of the President.

The High Value Detainee Interrogation Group also reports to the NSC.

Kill authorizations
One of the tasks of the National Security Council is to determine and identify people, including United States citizens who are deemed to be threats to national security and add them to a "kill list". In this case, no public record of this decision or any operation to kill the suspect will be made available. The panel's actions are justified by "two principal legal theories": They "were permitted by Congress when it authorized the use of military forces against militants in the wake of the attacks of September 11, 2001; and they are permitted under international law if a country is defending itself."

Homeland Security Advisor John O. Brennan, who helped codify targeted killing criteria by creating the Disposition Matrix database, has described the Obama Administration targeted killing policy by stating that "in order to ensure that our counterterrorism operations involving the use of lethal force are legal, ethical, and wise, President Obama has demanded that we hold ourselves to the highest possible standards and processes".

Reuters reported that Anwar al-Awlaki, an American citizen, was on such a kill list and was killed accordingly.

On February 4, 2013, NBC published a leaked Department of Justice memo providing a summary of the rationale used to justify targeted killing of US citizens who are senior operational leaders of Al-Qa'ida or associated forces.

Membership
The National Security Council, as of 2021 and as per statute and National Security Memorandum–2, is chaired by the president. Its members are the vice president (statutory), the secretary of state (statutory), the secretary of the treasury (statutory), the secretary of defense (statutory), the secretary of energy (statutory), the assistant to the president for national security affairs (non-statutory), the assistant to the president and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (non-statutory), the attorney general (non-statutory), the secretary of homeland security (non-statutory), and the representative of the United States to the United Nations (non-statutory).

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the military advisor to the Council, the director of national intelligence is the intelligence advisor, and the director of national drug control policy is the drug control policy advisor. The chief of staff to the president, White House counsel, and the assistant to the president for economic policy are also regularly invited to attend NSC meetings. The attorney general, the director of the Office of Management and Budget and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency are invited to attend meetings pertaining to their responsibilities. The heads of other executive departments and agencies, as well as other senior officials, are invited to attend meetings of the NSC when appropriate.

Principals Committee
The Principals Committee of the National Security Council is the Cabinet-level senior interagency forum for consideration of national security policy issues. The Principals Committee is convened and chaired by the National Security Advisor. The regular attendees of the Principals Committee are the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the White House Chief of Staff, the Director of National Intelligence, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, the Homeland Security Advisor, and the United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

The White House Counsel, the Deputy Counsel to the President for National Security Affairs, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the Deputy National Security Advisor, the Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategy, the National Security Advisor to the Vice President, and the NSC Executive Secretary may also attend all meetings of the Principals Committee. When considering international economic issues, the Principals Committee's regular attendees will include the Secretary of Commerce, the United States Trade Representative, and the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy.

Deputies Committee
The National Security Council Deputies Committee is the senior sub-Cabinet interagency forum for consideration of national security policy issues. The Deputies Committee is also responsible for reviewing and monitoring the interagency national security process including for establishing and directing the Policy Coordination Committees. The Deputies Committee is convened and chaired by the Deputy National Security Advisor or the Deputy Homeland Security Advisor.

Regular members of the Deputies Committee are the Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategy, the Deputy Secretary of State, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, the Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Deputy Attorney General, the Deputy Secretary of Energy, the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, the Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the Deputy Director of National Intelligence, the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the National Security Advisor to the Vice President, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Invitations to participate in or attend specific meetings are extended to Deputy or Under Secretary level of executive departments and agencies and to other senior officials when relevant issues are discussed. The Executive Secretary and the Deputy White House Counsel also attend. The relevant Senior Director on the National Security Council staff is also invited to attend when relevant.

Policy Coordination Committees
The Policy Coordination Committees of the National Security Council, established and directed by the Deputies Committee, are responsible for the management of the development and implementation of national security policies through interagency coordination. Policy Coordination Committees are the main day-to-day for interagency coordination of national security policy development, implementation and analysis in aide of the Deputies Committee and the Principals Committee. Policy Coordination Committees are chaired by Senior Directors on the National Security Council staff, or sometimes National Economic Council staff, with Assistant Secretary-level officials from the relevant executive department or agency acting as co-chairs.

Directorate of Global Health Security and Biodefense
The Directorate of Global Health Security and Biodefense was created by Barack Obama in 2016 in response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak. Its goal was "to prepare for the next disease outbreak and prevent it from becoming an epidemic or pandemic." The directorate was disbanded when a May 2018 change in organizational structure by John Bolton, Trump's recently appointed head of the National Security Council, resulted in the effective elimination of the office then led by Rear Admiral Tim Ziemer, Sr. Director for Global Health Security and Biothreats. Remaining staff were moved to other NSC departments, prompting Ziemer's resignation, thus completing the elimination of the office.

The responsibilities that formerly belonged to the directorate, along with those of arms control and nonproliferation, and of weapons of mass destruction terrorism, were absorbed into a single new directorate, counterproliferation and biodefense, and assigned to Tim Morrison in July 2018 as director. Morrison characterized the consolidation as part of an overall NSC "reduction of force" and called it "specious" to say the office was "dissolved," describing the previous size of the organization as "bloat," and stating "That is why Trump began streamlining the NSC staff in 2017." Trump defended the 2018 cuts, describing the financial motivation, when questioned in a February 2020 press conference, suggesting that people on a pandemic response team are unnecessary between pandemics, saying "Some of the people we cut, they haven't been used for many, many years." No source of information could be found to support the president's statement, likely because the team was created in 2016 and disbanded in 2018. He continued: "And rather than spending the money—and I'm a business person—I don't like having thousands of people around when you don't need them." The size of the team before cuts was estimated at 430 people, but the "thousands" referenced by the president also included reduction in the staff numbers of the CDC.

In January 2021, the directorate was reinstated by President Joe Biden, who appointed Elizabeth Cameron as Senior Director for Global Health Security and Biodefense, a position she had previously held under the Obama administration and briefly under the Trump administration.

New members
During his presidential transition, President-elect Joe Biden announced the creation of the position of U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, the occupant of which will be a member of the National Security Council.

Key staff

 * Assistant to the President and National Security Advisor: Jake Sullivan
 * Senior Advisor to the National Security Advisor: Ariana Berengaut
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Chief of Staff and Executive Secretary for the National Security Council: Curtis Ried
 * Advisor to the Chief of Staff and Executive Secretary for the National Security Council: Medha Raj
 * Deputy Chief of Staff and Deputy Executive Secretary: Ryan Harper
 * Deputy Director for Visits and Diplomatic Affairs: Darius Edgerton
 * Associate Director for Visits and Diplomatic Affairs: Nicole Fasano
 * Director of Operations Ryan Abdelnabi
 * Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor: Jonathan Finer
 * Senior Advisor to the Principal Deputy National Security Advisor: Ella Lipin
 * Assistant to the President and Homeland Security Advisor and Deputy National Security Advisor: Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall
 * Senior Advisor to the Homeland Security Advisor: Hilary Hurd
 * Senior Advisor to the Homeland Security Advisor: John MacWilliams
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Deputy Homeland Security Advisor: Joshua Geltzer
 * Senior Director for Counter-terrorism: Clare Linkins
 * Director for Counter-terrorism: Caitlin Conley
 * Director for Counter-terrorism: Alexandra Miller
 * Director for Counter-terrorism: Annie Rohrhoff
 * Director for Counter-terrorism - Global Threats / Embassy Security: Derek Dela-Cruz
 * Director for Counter-terrorism - Homeland Threats: Michael Massetti
 * Director for Threat Finance & Sanctions: Samantha Sultoon
 * Director for Counternarcotics: Coqui Baez Gonzalez
 * Senior Director for Resilience and Response: Caitlin Durkovich
 * Director for Resilience and Response: Nabeela Barbari
 * Director for Resilience and Response: Capt. Jason Tama (US Coast Guard)
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology: Anne Neuberger
 * Senior Advisor to the Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology: Sezaneh Seymour
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Co-ordinator for Technology and National Security: Jason Matheny
 * Senior Director for Technology and National Security: Tarun Chhabra
 * Director for Technology and National Security: Saif M. Khan
 * Director for Technology and National Security: Michelle Rozo
 * Director for Technology and National Security: Sarah Stalker-Lehoux
 * Director for Technology and Democracy: Chanan Weissman
 * Senior Director for Cyber: Andrew Scott
 * Director for International Cyber Policy: Teddy Nemeroff
 * Senior Director for Cybersecurity and Policy: Steven Kelly
 * Director for Cybersecurity and Emerging Technology Policy: Jonah Force Hill
 * Director for Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity: Elke Sobieraj
 * Director for Cybersecurity Policy and Cyber Incident Response: Travis Berent
 * Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics: Daleep Singh
 * Senior Director for International Economics and Competitiveness: Peter Harrell
 * Director for International Economics and Competitiveness: Adam Deutsch
 * Director for International Economics and Competitiveness: Jessica McBroom
 * Director for Digital Technology Policy and International Economics: Ruth Berry
 * Senior Director for International Economics and Labor: Jennifer M. Harris
 * Director for International Economics: Brian Janovitz
 * Director for International Economics: Mimi Wang
 * Director for Strategic Workforce Planning: Leila Elmergawi
 * Assistant to the President, Deputy Counsel to the President and National Security Council Legal Advisor: John R. Phillips III
 * Associate Counsel and Deputy Legal Advisor to the NSC: Ashley Deeks
 * Deputy Legal Advisor to the NSC: Capt. Florencio Yuzon (US Navy)
 * Director for Global Criminal Justice: Steven Hill
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Co-ordinator for Defense Policy and Arms Control: Cara Abercrombie
 * Senior Director for Defense:
 * Director for Defense Innovation and Cyber Policy: Lt. Col. Nadine Nally (US Army)
 * Director for Space Policy: Audrey Schaffer
 * Director for Strategic Capabilities: Brigadier General John Edwards (US Air Force)
 * Director for Military Personnel & Readiness/ Senior Advisor, Gender Policy Council: Cailin Crockett
 * Senior Director for Arms Control, Disarmament & Non-Proliferation: Pranay Vaddi
 * Senior Director for Strategic Planning: Thomas J. Wright
 * Director for Strategic Planning: Alexander Bick
 * Director for Strategic Planning: Rebecca Lissner
 * Director for Strategic Planning: Brett Rosenberg
 * Senior Director for Partnerships and Global Engagement: Amanda Mansour
 * Director for Partnerships: Jim Thompson
 * Senior Director for Legislative Affairs: Casey Redmon
 * Director for Legislative Affairs: Amanda Lorman
 * Director for Legislative Affairs: Nicole Tisdale
 * Chief of Staff & Policy Advisor for Legislative Affairs: Gershom Sacks
 * Senior Director for Global Health Security and Biodefense: Raj Panjabi
 * Director for Biodefense: Daniel Gastfriend
 * Director for Biotechnology Risks and Biological Weapon Nonproliferation: Megan Frisk
 * Director for Countering Biological Threats & Global Health Security: Mark Lucera
 * Director for Medical and Biodefense Preparedness/ Director for International COVID Response: Hilary Marston
 * Senior Advisor and Director for Emerging Biological Threats: Maureen Bartee
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Co-ordinator for the Indo-Pacific: Kurt M. Campbell
 * Senior Director for East Asia and Oceania: Edgard Kagan
 * Director for East Asia: Christopher Johnstone
 * Director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands: Kathryn Paik
 * Senior Director for South Asia: Sumona Guha
 * Deputy Senior Director for China and Taiwan: Rush Doshi
 * Special Assistant, National Security Council Indo-Pacific Directorate: Sarah Donilon
 * Senior Director for Intelligence Programs: Maher Bitar
 * Director for Information Sharing and Identity Intelligence: Lauren Hartje
 * Senior Director for Development, Global Health & Humanitarian Response: Linda Etim
 * Director for Global Health: Ladan Fakory
 * Director for Global Health Response: Nidhi Bouri
 * Director for Humanitarian Coordination: Rachel Grant
 * Director for Refugees: Jacqui Pilch
 * Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs: Juan Gonzalez
 * Special Assistant to the Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs: Alejandra Gonzalez
 * Director for the Caribbean and Summit of the Americas: Neda Brown
 * Director for Central America and Haiti: Megan Oates
 * Director for North America: Isabel Rioja-Scott
 * Director for Regional Protection and Migration Management: Eric Sigmon
 * Assistant to the President & White House National Security Communications Advisor: John Kirby
 * Senior Director for Press & NSC Spokesperson: Adrienne Watson
 * Director of Strategic Communications/ Assistant Press Secretary: Patrick Evans
 * Director of Strategic Communications/ Assistant Press Secretary: Dean Lieberman
 * Director of Strategic Communications/ Assistant Press Secretary: Kedenard Raymond
 * Director of Strategic Communications/ Assistant Press Secretary: Sean Savett
 * Policy Advisor, Office of the Spokesperson and Senior Director for Press/ Strategic Communications: Jasmine Williams
 * Senior Director for Africa: Dana L. Banks
 * Director for African Affairs: F. David Diaz
 * Director for African Affairs: Peter Quaranto
 * Director for Africa: Deniece Laurent-Mantey
 * Special Advisor for Africa Strategy: Judd Devermont
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Coordinator for Democracy and Human Rights: Shanthi Kalathil
 * Senior Director for Democracy and Human Rights: Robert G. Berschinski
 * Director for Democracy and Human Rights: Tess McEnery
 * Director for Democracy and Human Rights: Brian Vogt
 * Director for Human Rights and Civil Society: Jesse Bernstein
 * Director for Anticorruption: Chandana Ravi
 * Senior Director for Russia and Central Asia: Eric Green
 * Director for Afghanistan: Allison Varricchio
 * Director for Russia: Katrina Elledge
 * Senior Director for Europe: Amanda Sloat
 * Director for Balkans and Central Europe: Robin Brooks
 * Deputy Assistant to the President & Co-ordinator for Middle East and North Africa: Brett McGurk
 * Senior Director for Middle East and North Africa: Stephanie Hallett (acting)
 * Director for Gulf Affairs: Stephanie Hallett
 * Director for the Arabian Peninsula: Evyenia Sidereas
 * Director for Iran: Sam Martin
 * Director for Iraq and Syria: Zehra Bell
 * Director for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs: Julie Sawyer
 * Director for Jordan and Lebanon: Maxwell Martin
 * Director for North African Affairs: Josh Harris
 * Director for Political-Military Affairs and Yemen: K.C. Evans
 * Director for Political-Military Affairs: Col. Daniel Mouton (US Army)
 * Senior Director for Energy & Climate Change: Melanie Nakagawa
 * Director for Climate Diplomacy and Energy Transformation: Helaina Matza
 * Director for Climate Investment, Trade, and Environment: Victoria Orero
 * Director for Climate Security and Resilience: Jennifer DeCesaro
 * Senior Director for Speechwriting and Strategic Initiatives: Carlyn Reichel
 * Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs: Josh Black
 * Director for Multilateral Affairs: Robert E. Kris
 * Director for Global Engagement and Multilateral Diplomacy at the NSC and NEC: Andy Rabens
 * Senior Director for Trans-border: Katie Tobin
 * Director for Trans-border Security: Ashley Feasley

title: United States National Security Council