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La Monte Young

La Monte Thornton Young (born October 14, 1935) is an American composer, musician, and performance artist recognized as one of the first American minimalist composers and a central figure in Fluxus and post-war avant-garde music. He is best known for his exploration of sustained tones, beginning with his 1958 composition Trio for Strings. His compositions have called into question the nature and definition of music, most prominently in the text scores of his Compositions 1960. While few of his recordings remain in print, his work has inspired prominent musicians across various genres, including avant-garde, rock, and ambient music.

Young played jazz saxophone and studied composition in California during the 1950s, and subsequently moved to New York in 1960, where he was a central figure in the downtown music and Fluxus art scenes. He then became known for his pioneering work in drone music (originally called dream music) with his Theatre of Eternal Music collective, alongside collaborators such as Tony Conrad, John Cale, and his wife, the multimedia artist Marian Zazeela.

Since 1962, he has worked extensively with Zazeela, with whom he developed the Dream House sound and light environment. In 1964, he began work on his unfinished improvisatory composition The Well-Tuned Piano, iterations of which he has performed throughout subsequent decades. Beginning in 1970, he and Zazeela studied under Hindustani singer Pandit Pran Nath. In 2002, Young and Zazeela formed the Just Alap Raga Ensemble with their disciple Jung Hee Choi.

1935–1959
Young was born in a log cabin in Bern, Idaho. As a child he was influenced by the droning sounds of the environment, such as blowing wind and electrical transformers. During his childhood, Young's family moved several times before settling in Los Angeles, as his father searched for work. He was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He graduated from John Marshall High School. Young began his music studies at Los Angeles City College, and transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he received a BA in 1958. In the jazz milieu of Los Angeles, Young played with notable musicians including Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Billy Higgins, and Eric Dolphy. He undertook additional studies at the University of California, Berkeley from 1958 to 1960. In 1959 he attended the Darmstadt International Summer Courses for New Music under Karlheinz Stockhausen, and in 1960 relocated to New York in order to study electronic music with Richard Maxfield at the New School for Social Research. His compositions during this period were influenced by Anton Webern, Gregorian chant, Indian classical music, Japanese Gagaku, and Indonesian gamelan music.

A number of Young's early works use the twelve-tone technique, which he studied under Leonard Stein at Los Angeles City College. (Stein had served as an assistant to Arnold Schoenberg when Schoenberg, the inventor of the twelve-tone method, taught at UCLA.) Young also studied composition with Robert Stevenson at UCLA and with Seymore Shifrin at UC Berkeley. In 1958, he developed the Trio for Strings, originally scored for violin, viola, and cello, and which presaged his later work. The Trio for Strings has been described as an "origin point for minimalism." When Young visited Darmstadt in 1959, he encountered the music and writings of John Cage. There he also met Cage's collaborator, pianist David Tudor, who subsequently would première some of Young's works. At Tudor's suggestion, Young engaged in a correspondence with Cage. Within a few months, Young was presenting some of Cage's music on the West Coast. In turn, Cage and Tudor included some of Young's works in performances throughout the U.S. and Europe. Influenced by Cage, Young at this time took a turn toward the conceptual, using principles of indeterminacy in his compositions and incorporating non-traditional sounds, noises, and actions.

1960–1969
Young moved to New York in 1960 and quickly developed an artistic relationship with Fluxus founder George Maciunas (who designed the book An Anthology of Chance Operations, which was edited by Young) and other members of the nascent Fluxus movement. Young curated and organized a series of concert-performances at the top floor loft of Yoko Ono at 112 Chambers Street in December 1960 involving visual artists, musicians, dancers and composers — mixing music, visual art and performance together. During this period, Young created short, haiku-like, conceptual but dreamlike scores-texts that have become associated with Fluxus. For example, Young's Compositions 1960 includes a number of unusual actions: some of them un-performable, and constituted an early form of poetic conceptual art. Most examine a certain presupposition about the nature of music and art by carrying absurd Dada-like concepts to an extreme. One, Composition 1960 #10 to Bob Morris instructs: "draw a straight line and follow it" (a directive which Young has said has guided his life and work since). Another instructs the performer to build a fire. Another states that "this piece is a little whirlpool out in the middle of the ocean." Another says the performer should release a butterfly into the room. Yet another challenges the performer to push a piano through a wall. Composition 1960 #7 proved especially pertinent to his future endeavors: it consisted of a B, an F#, a perfect fifth, and the instruction: "To be held for a long time."

In 1962, based on his dream chord, Young wrote The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer. One of The Four Dreams of China, the piece is based on four pitches, which he later gave as the frequency ratios: 36-35-32-24 (G, C, +C#, D), and limits as to which may be combined with any other. Most of his pieces after this point are based on select pitches, played continuously, and a group of long held pitches to be improvised upon. For The Four Dreams of China Young began to plan Dream House, a light and sound installation conceived as a dream chord "work that would be played continuously and ultimately exist as a 'living organism with a life and tradition of its own, where musicians would live and create music twenty-four hours a day. He formed the music collective Theatre of Eternal Music to realize Dream House and other pieces. The group initially included calligrapher and light artist Marian Zazeela (who married Young in 1963), Angus MacLise, and Billy Name. In 1964 the ensemble comprised Young and Zazeela, John Cale and Tony Conrad (a former Harvard mathematics major), and sometimes Terry Riley (voices). Since 1966 the group has seen many permutations and has included Garrett List, Jon Hassell, Alex Dea, and many others, including members of Young's 60s groups.

On September 25, 1965, the Fluxus FluxOrchestra was conducted by Young at Carnegie Recital Hall in New York City, with a program, designed by George Maciunas, folded into paper airplanes and launched during the evening into the audience.

Young and Zazeela's first continuous electronic sound environment was created in their loft on Church Street, New York City, in September 1966 with sine wave generators and light sources designed to produce a continuous installation of floating sculptures and color sources, and a series of slides entitled Ornamental Lightyears Tracery. This Dream House environment was maintained almost continuously from September 1966 to January 1970, being turned off only to listen to "other music" and to study the contrast between extended periods in it and periods of silence. Young and Zazeela worked, sang and lived in it and studied the effects on themselves and visitors. Performances were often extreme in length, conceived by Young as having no beginning and no end, existing before and after any particular performance. In their daily lives, too, Young and Zazeela practiced an artificial sleep–wake cycle—with "days" longer than twenty-four hours.

1970–present
Beginning in 1970, Young's interests in Asian classical music, and his wish to be able to find the intervals he had been using in his work, led Young to pursue studies with pandit Pran Nath. Fellow students included Zazeela, composers Terry Riley, Michael Harrison, Yoshi Wada, Henry Flynt and Catherine Christer Hennix.

Young considers The Well-Tuned Piano—a permutating composition of themes and improvisations for just-intoned solo piano—to be his masterpiece. Young gave the world premiere of The Well-Tuned Piano in Rome in 1974, ten years after the creation of the piece. Previously, he had presented it as a recorded work. In 1975, Young premiered the work in New York, with eleven live performances during the months of April and May. As of October 25, 1981, the date of the Gramavision recording of The Well-Tuned Piano, Young had performed the piece 55 times. In 1987, Young performed the piece again as part of a larger concert series that included many more of his works. This performance, on May 10, 1987, was videotaped and released on DVD in 2000 on Young's label, Just Dreams. Performances have exceeded six hours in length, and so far have only been documented several times. The Well-Tuned Piano is strongly influenced by mathematical composition as well as Hindustani classical music practice.

Since the 1970s, Young and Zazeela have realized a long series of semi-permanent Dream House installations, which combine Young's just-intoned sine waves in elaborate, symmetrical configurations with Zazeela's quasi-calligraphic light sculptures. In July 1970 a model short-term Dream House was displayed to the public at the gallery Friedrich & Dahlem in Munich, Germany. Later, model Dream House environments were presented in various locations in Europe and the United States. In 1974, the two released Dream House 78' 17". From January through April 19, 2009, Dream House was installed in the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York as part of The Third Mind exhibition. A Dream House installation exists today at the MELA Foundation on 275 Church Street, New York, above the couple's loft, and is open to the public.

In 2002, Young, with Zazeela and senior disciple Jung Hee Choi, founded the Just Alap Raga Ensemble. This ensemble, performing Indian classical music of the Kirana gharana, merges the traditions of Western and Hindustani classical music, with Young applying his own compositional approach to traditional raga performance, form, and technique.

Influences
Young's first musical influence came in early childhood in Bern. He relates that "the very first sound that I recall hearing was the sound of wind blowing under the eaves and around the log extensions at the corners of the log cabin". Continuous sounds—human-made as well as natural—fascinated him as a child. He described himself as fascinated from a young age by droning sounds, such as "the sound of the wind blowing", the "60 cycle per second drone [of] step-down transformers on telephone poles", the tanpura drone and the alap of Indian classical music, "certain static aspects of serialism, as in the Webern slow movement of the Symphony Opus 21", and Japanese gagaku "which has sustained tones in it in the instruments such as the Sho". The four pitches he later named the "Dream chord", on which he based many of his mature works, came from his early age appreciation of the continuous sound made by the telephone poles in Bern.

Jazz is one of his main influences; prior to 1956, he planned to devote his career to it. At first, Lee Konitz and Warne Marsh influenced his alto saxophone playing style, and later John Coltrane shaped Young's use of the sopranino saxophone. Jazz was, together with Indian music, an important influence on the use of improvisation in his works post-1962. Young discovered Indian music in 1957 on the campus of UCLA. He cites Ali Akbar Khan (sarod) and Chatur Lal (tabla) as particularly significant. The discovery of the tanpura, which he learned to play with Pandit Pran Nath, was a decisive influence in his interest in long-sustained sounds. Young also acknowledges the influence of Japanese music, especially Gagaku, and Pygmy music.

Young discovered classical music relatively late in life, thanks to his teachers at university. He cites Béla Bartók, Igor Stravinsky, Pérotin, Léonin, Claude Debussy and Organum musical style as important influences. The serialism of Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern had the greatest impact.

Young was also keen to pursue his musical endeavors with the help of psychedelics. Cannabis, LSD and peyote played an important part in Young's life from mid-1950s onwards, when he was introduced to them by Terry Jennings and Billy Higgins. He said that "everybody [he] knew and worked with was very much into drugs as a creative tool as well as a consciousness-expanding tool". This was the case with the musicians of the Theatre of Eternal Music, with whom he "got high for every concert: the whole group". He considers that the cannabis experience helped him open up to where he went with Trio for Strings, though sometimes it proved a disadvantage when performing anything which required keeping track of the number of elapsed bars. He commented on the subject: "These tools can be used to your advantage if you're a master of [them]... If used wisely—the correct tool for the correct job—they can play an important role... It allows you to go within yourself and focus on certain frequency relationships and memory relationships in a very, very interesting way."

Legacy
Young's use of long tones and exceptionally high volume has been extremely influential within Young's group of associates: Tony Conrad, Jon Hassell, Rhys Chatham, Michael Harrison, Henry Flynt, Ben Neill, Charles Curtis, and Catherine Christer Hennix. It has also been notably influential on John Cale's contribution to The Velvet Underground's sound; Cale has been quoted as saying "LaMonte [Young] was perhaps the best part of my education and my introduction to musical discipline." His work has inspired prominent musicians across various genres, including fellow minimalist composer Terry Riley, experimental rock groups the Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth, and ambient music pioneer Brian Eno. Eno calls him "the daddy of us all". In 1981, Eno referred to X for Henry Flynt by saying, "It really is a cornerstone of everything I've done since."

Andy Warhol attended the 1962 première of the static composition by La Monte Young called Trio for Strings. Uwe Husslein cites film-maker Jonas Mekas, who accompanied Warhol to the Trio premiere, claiming that Warhol's static films were directly inspired by the performance. In 1963 Young had joined Warhol's musical group The Druds, a short-lived avant-garde noise music band, but, finding it ridiculous, quit after the second rehearsal. In 1964 Young provided a loud minimalist drone soundtrack to Warhol's static films Kiss, Eat, Haircut, and Sleep when shown as small TV-sized projections at the entrance lobby to the third New York Film Festival held at Lincoln Center.

Lou Reed's 1975 album Metal Machine Music notes, "Drone cognizance and harmonic possibilities vis a vis Lamont (sic) Young's Dream Music" among its "Specifications".

The album Dreamweapon: An Evening of Contemporary Sitar Music by the band Spacemen 3 is influenced by La Monte Young's concept of Dream Music, evidenced by their inclusion of his notes on the jacket. In 2018, Sonic Boom of Spacemen 3, along with Etienne Jaumet of Zombie Zombie and Indian dhrupad singer Céline Wadier, released Infinite Music: A Tribute to La Monte Young.

According to Seth Colter Walls, writing in The Guardian, while Young has released very little recorded material, with much of it currently out of print, he has had an "outsized influence on other artists."

Drone rock musician Dylan Carlson has described Young's work as being a major influence.

Studio recordings

 * Drift Study 4:37:40-5:09:50 PM 5 VIII 68 NYC (SMS 4 Limited Edition, 1968)
 * 31 VII 69 10:26-10:49 PM / 23 VIII 64 2:50:45-3:11 AM The Volga Delta [aka The Black Record] – La Monte Young & Marian Zazeela (Edition X, 1969)
 * Dream House 78' 17" – La Monte Young / Marian Zazeela / The Theatre of Eternal Music (Shandar, 1974)
 * The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer from the Four Dreams of China (Gramavision, 1991)
 * The Tamburas of Pandit Pran Nath – La Monte Young / Marian Zazeela (Just Dreams, 1999)
 * Inside the Dream Syndicate, Volume One: Day of Niagara (1965) – John Cale, Tony Conrad, Angus MacLise, La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela (Table of the Elements, 2000. Not authorized by La Monte Young.)

Live recordings

 * The Well-Tuned Piano 81 X 25 (6:17.50–11:18:59 pm NYC) (Gramavision, 1988)
 * Just Stompin': Live at The Kitchen – La Monte Young and the Forever Bad Blues Band (Gramavision, 1993)
 * Trio for Strings (1958) recorded live at the Dia:Chelsea Dream House, performed by Theatre of Eternal Music String Ensemble, four discs and a 32-page set of liner notes (Dia Art Foundation, 2022)

Compilation appearances

 * Small Pieces (5) for String Quartet ("On Remembering a Naiad") (1956) [included on Arditti String Quartet Edition, No. 15: U.S.A. (Disques Montaigne, 1993)]
 * Sarabande for any instruments (1959) [included on Just West Coast (Bridge, 1993)]
 * "89 VI 8 c. 1:45–1:52 am Paris Encore" from Poem for Tables, Chairs and Benches, etc. (1960) [included on Flux: Tellus Audio Cassette Magazine #24]
 * Excerpt "31 I 69 c. 12:17:33-12:24:33 pm NYC" [included on Aspen #8's flexi-disc (1970)] from Drift Study; "31 I 69 c. 12:17:33–12:49:58 pm NYC" from Map of 49's Dream The Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals (1969) [included on Ohm and Ohm+ (Ellipsis Arts, 2000 & 2005)]
 * 566 for Henry Flynt [included on Music in Germany 1950–2000: Experimental Music Theatre (Eurodisc 173675, 7-CD set, 2004)]

List of works

 * Scherzo in a minor (c. 1953), piano;
 * Rondo in d minor (c. 1953), piano;
 * Annod (1953–55), dance band or jazz ensemble;
 * Wind Quintet (1954);
 * Variations (1955), string quartet;
 * Young's Blues (c. 1955–59);
 * Fugue in d minor (c. 1956), violin, viola, cello;
 * Op. 4 (1956), brass, percussion;
 * Five Small Pieces for String Quartet, On Remembering A Naiad, 1. A Wisp, 2. A Gnarl, 3. A Leaf, 4. A Twig, 5. A Tooth (1956);
 * Canon (1957), any two instruments;
 * Fugue in a minor (1957), any four instruments;
 * Fugue in c minor (1957), organ or harpsichord;
 * Fugue in eb minor (1957), brass or other instruments;
 * Fugue in f minor (1957), two pianos;
 * Prelude in f minor (1957), piano;
 * Variations for Alto Flute, Bassoon, Harp and String Trio (1957);
 * for Brass (1957), brass octet;
 * for Guitar (1958), guitar;
 * Trio for Strings (1958), violin, viola, cello;
 * Study (c.1958–59), violin, viola (unfinished);
 * Sarabande (1959), keyboard, brass octet, string quartet, orchestra, others;
 * Studies I, II, and III (1959), piano;
 * Vision (1959), piano, 2 brass, recorder, 4 bassoons, violin, viola, cello, contrabass and making use of a random number book;
 * [Untitled] (1959–60), live friction sounds;
 * [Untitled] (1959–62), jazz-drone improvisations;
 * Poem for Chairs, Tables, Benches, etc. (1960), chairs, tables, benches and unspecified sound sources;
 * 2 Sounds (1960), recorded friction sounds;
 * Compositions 1960 #s 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13, 15 (1960), performance pieces;
 * Piano Pieces for David Tudor #s 1, 2, 3 (1960), performance pieces;
 * Invisible Poem Sent to Terry Jennings (1960), performance pieces;
 * Piano Pieces for Terry Riley #s 1, 2 (1960), performance pieces;
 * Target for Jasper Johns (1960), piano;
 * Arabic Numeral (Any Integer) to H.F. (1960), piano(s) or gong(s) or ensembles of at least 45 instruments of the same timbre, or combinations of the above, or orchestra;
 * Compositions 1961 #s 1–29 (1961), performance pieces;
 * Young's Dorian Blues in B♭ (c. 1960 or 1961);
 * Young's Dorian Blues in G (c. 1960/1961–present);
 * Young's Aeolian Blues in B♭ (Summer 1961);
 * Death Chant (1961), male voices, carillon or large bells;
 * Response to Henry Flynt Work Such That No One Knows What's Going On (c. 1962);
 * [Improvisations] (1962–64), sopranino saxophone, vocal drones, various instruments. Realizations include: Bb Dorian Blues, The Fifth/Fourth Piece, ABABA, EbDEAD, The Overday, Early Tuesday Morning Blues, and Sunday Morning Blues;
 * Poem on Dennis' Birthday (1962), unspecified instruments;
 * The Four Dreams of China (The Harmonic Versions) (1962), including The First Dream of China, The First Blossom of Spring, The First Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, The Second Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 4;
 * Studies in The Bowed Disc (1963), gong;
 * Pre-Tortoise Dream Music (1964), sopranino saxophone, soprano saxophone, vocal drone, violin, viola, sine waves;
 * The Tortoise, His Dreams and Journeys (1964–present), voices, various instruments, sine waves. Realizations include: Prelude to The Tortoise, The Tortoise Droning Selected Pitches from The Holy Numbers for The Two Black Tigers, The Green Tiger and The Hermit, The Tortoise Recalling The Drone of The Holy Numbers as They Were Revealed in The Dreams of The Whirlwind and The Obsidian Gong and Illuminated by The Sawmill, The Green Sawtooth Ocelot and The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer;
 * The Well-Tuned Piano (1964–73/81–present). Each realization is a separately titled and independent composition. Over 60 realizations to date. World première: Rome 1974. American première: New York 1975;
 * Sunday Morning Dreams (1965), tunable sustaining instruments and/or sine waves;
 * Composition 1965 $50 (1965), performance piece;
 * Map of 49's Dream The Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals Ornamental Lightyears Tracery (1966–present), voices, various instruments, sine waves;
 * Bowed Mortar Relays (1964) (realization of Composition 1960 # 9), Soundtracks for Andy Warhol Films Eat, Sleep, Kiss, "Haircut", tape;
 * The Two Systems of Eleven Categories (1966–present), theory work;
 * Chords from The Tortoise, His Dreams and Journeys (1967–present), sine waves. Realizations include: Intervals and Triads from Map of 49's Dream The Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals Ornamental Lightyears Tracery (1967), sound environment;
 * Robert C. Scull Commission (1967), sine waves;
 * Claes and Patty Oldenburg Commission (1967), sine waves;
 * Betty Freeman Commission (1967), sound and light box & sound environment;
 * Drift Studies (1967–present), sine waves;
 * for Guitar (Just Intonation Version) (1978), guitar;
 * for Guitar Prelude and Postlude (1980), one or more guitars;
 * The Subsequent Dreams of China (1980), tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 8;
 * The Gilbert B. Silverman Commission to Write, in Ten Words or Less, a Complete History of Fluxus Including Philosophy, Attitudes, Influences, Purposes (1981);
 * Chords from The Well-Tuned Piano (1981–present), sound environments. Includes: The Opening Chord (1981), The Magic Chord (1984), The Magic Opening Chord (1984);
 * Trio for Strings (1983) Versions for string quartet, string orchestra, and violin, viola, cello, bass;
 * Trio for Strings, trio basso version (1984), viola, cello, bass;
 * Trio for Strings, sextet version (1984);
 * Trio for Strings, String Octet Version (1984), 2 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos, 2 basses;
 * Trio for Strings Postlude from The Subsequent Dreams of China (c. 1984), bowed strings;
 * The Melodic Versions (1984) of The Four Dreams of China (1962), including The First Dream of China, The First Blossom of Spring, The First Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, The Second Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 4;
 * The Melodic Versions (1984) of The Subsequent Dreams of China, (1980) including The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer's Second Dream of The First Blossom of Spring, tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 8;
 * The Big Dream (1984), sound environment;
 * Orchestral Dreams (1985), orchestra;
 * The Big Dream Symmetries #s 1–6 (1988), sound environments;
 * The Symmetries in Prime Time from 144 to 112 with 119 (1989), including The Close Position Symmetry, The Symmetry Modeled on BDS # 1, The Symmetry Modeled on BDS # 4, The Symmetry Modeled on BDS # 7, The Romantic Symmetry, The Romantic Symmetry (over a 60 cycle base), The Great Romantic Symmetry, sound environments;
 * The Lower Map of The Eleven's Division in The Romantic Symmetry (over a 60 cycle base) in Prime Time from 144 to 112 with 119 (1989–1990), unspecified instruments and sound environment;
 * The Prime Time Twins (1989–90) including The Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 144 to 112; 72 to 56 and 38 to 28; Including The Special Primes 1 and 2 (1989);
 * The Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; with The Range Limits 576, 448, 288, 224, 144, 56 and 28 (1990), sound environments;
 * Chronos Kristalla (1990), string quartet;
 * The Young Prime Time Twins (1991), including The Young Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 2304 to 1792; 1152 to 896; 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; Including or Excluding The Range Limits 2304, 1792, 1152, 576, 448, 288, 224, 56 and 28 (1991),
 * The Young Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 2304 to 1792; 1152 to 896; 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; 18 to 14; Including or Excluding The Range Limits 2304, 1792, 1152, 576, 448, 288, 224, 56, 28 and 18; and Including The Special Young Prime Twins Straddling The Range Limits 1152, 72 and 18 (1991),
 * The Young Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 1152 to 896; 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; Including or Excluding The Range Limits 1152, 576, 448, 288, 224, 56 and 28; with One of The Inclusory Optional Bases: 7; 8; 14:8; 18:14:8; 18:16:14; 18:16:14:8; 9:7:4; or The Empty Base (1991), sound environments;
 * The Symmetries in Prime Time from 288 to 224 with 279, 261 and 2 X 119 with One of The Inclusory Optional Bases: 7; 8; 14:8; 18:14:8; 18:16:14; 18:16:14:8; 9:7:4; or The Empty Base (1991–present), including The Symmetries in Prime Time When Centered above and below The Lowest Term Primes in The Range 288 to 224 with The Addition of 279 and 261 in Which The Half of The Symmetric Division Mapped above and Including 288 Consists of The Powers of 2 Multiplied by The Primes within The Ranges of 144 to 128, 72 to 64 and 36 to 32 Which Are Symmetrical to Those Primes in Lowest Terms in The Half of The Symmetric Division Mapped below and Including 224 within The Ranges 126 to 112, 63 to 56 and 31.5 to 28 with The Addition of 119 and with One of The Inclusory Optional Bases: 7; 8; 14:8; 18:14:8; 18:16:14; 18:16:14:8; 9:7:4; or The Empty Base (1991), sound environments;
 * Annod (1953–55) 92 X 19 Version for Zeitgeist (1992), alto saxophone, vibraphone, piano, bass, drums, including 92 XII 22 Two-Part Harmony and The 1992 XII Annod Backup Riffs;
 * Just Charles & Cello in The Romantic Chord (2002–2003), cello, pre-recorded cello drones and light design;
 * Raga Sundara, vilampit khayal set in Raga Yaman Kalyan (2002–present), voices, various instruments, tambura drone;
 * Trio for Strings (1958) Just Intonation Version (1984-2001-2005), 2 cellos, 2 violins, 2 violas;

Interviews

 * Golden, Barbara. "Conversation with La Monte Young." eContact! 12.2—Interviews (2) (April 2010). Montréal: CEC.
 * (includes video)
 * La Monte Young and Marian Zazeela on WNYC’s New Sounds #449. Audio of a 1990 radio show featuring an interview and sound recordings.

title: La Monte Young


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SHRDLU

SHRDLU is an early natural-language understanding computer program that was developed by Terry Winograd at MIT in 1968–1970. In the program, the user carries on a conversation with the computer, moving objects, naming collections and querying the state of a simplified "blocks world", essentially a virtual box filled with different blocks.

SHRDLU was written in the Micro Planner and Lisp programming language on the DEC PDP-6 computer and a DEC graphics terminal. Later additions were made at the computer graphics labs at the University of Utah, adding a full 3D rendering of SHRDLU's "world".

The name SHRDLU was derived from ETAOIN SHRDLU, the arrangement of the letter keys on a Linotype machine, arranged in descending order of usage frequency in English.

Functionality
SHRDLU is primarily a language parser that allows user interaction using English terms. The user instructs SHRDLU to move various objects around in the "blocks world" containing various basic objects: blocks, cones, balls, etc. What made SHRDLU unique was the combination of four simple ideas that added up to make the simulation of "understanding" far more convincing.

One was that SHRDLU's world is so simple that the entire set of objects and locations could be described by including as few as perhaps 50 words: nouns like "block" and "cone", verbs like "place on" and "move to", and adjectives like "big" and "blue". The possible combinations of these basic language building blocks are quite simple, and the program is fairly adept at figuring out what the user means.

SHRDLU also includes a basic memory to supply context. One could ask SHRDLU to "put the green cone on the red block" and then "take the cone off"; "the cone" would be taken to mean the green cone one had just talked about. SHRDLU can search back further through the interactions to find the proper context in most cases when additional adjectives were supplied. One could also ask questions about the history, for instance one could ask "did you pick up anything before the cone?"

A side effect of this memory, and the original rules SHRDLU was supplied with, is that the program can answer questions about what was possible in the world and what was not. For instance, SHRDLU can deduce that blocks could be stacked by looking for examples, but also realize that triangles couldn't be stacked, after having tried it. The "world" contains basic physics to make blocks fall over, independent of the language parser.

Finally, SHRDLU can also remember names given to objects, or arrangements of them. For instance one could say "a steeple is a small triangle on top of a tall rectangle"; SHRDLU can then answer questions about steeples in the blocks world, and build new ones.

Here is a famous demonstration of SHRDLU:

 * Person: Pick up a big red block.
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Grasp the pyramid.
 * Computer: I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHICH PYRAMID YOU MEAN.
 * Person (changing their mind): Find a block which is taller than the one you are holding and put it into the box.
 * Computer: BY "IT", I ASSUME YOU MEAN THE BLOCK WHICH IS TALLER THAN THE ONE I AM HOLDING.
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: What does the box contain?
 * Computer: THE BLUE PYRAMID AND THE BLUE BLOCK.
 * Person: What is the pyramid supported by?
 * Computer: THE BOX.
 * Person: How many blocks are not in the box?
 * Computer: FOUR OF THEM.
 * Person: Is at least one of them narrower than the one which i told you to pick up?
 * Computer: YES, THE RED CUBE.
 * Person: Is it supported?
 * Computer: YES, BY THE TABLE.
 * Person: Can the table pick up blocks?
 * Computer: NO.
 * Person: Can a pyramid be supported by a block?
 * Computer: YES.
 * Person: Can a pyramid support a pyramid?
 * Computer: I DON'T KNOW.
 * Person: Stack up two pyramids.
 * Computer: I CAN'T.
 * Person: Will you please stack up both of the red blocks and either a green cube or a pyramid?
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Which cube is sitting on the table?
 * Computer: THE LARGE GREEN ONE WHICH SUPPORTS THE RED PYRAMID.
 * Person: Is there a large block behind a pyramid?
 * Computer: YES, THREE OF THEM: A LARGE RED ONE, A LARGE GREEN CUBE, AND THE BLUE ONE.
 * Person: Put a small one onto the green cube which supports a pyramid.
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Put the littlest pyramid on top of it.
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Does the shortest thing the tallest pyramid's support supports support anything green?
 * Computer: YES, THE GREEN PYRAMID.
 * Person: What color is it?
 * Computer: BY "IT", I ASSUME YOU MEAN THE SHORTEST THING THE TALLEST PYRAMID'S SUPPORT SUPPORTS.
 * Computer: RED
 * Person: How many things are on top of green cubes?
 * Computer: I'M NOT SURE WHAT YOU MEAN BY "ON TOP OF" IN THE PHRASE "ON TOP OF GREEN CUBES".
 * DO YOU MEAN:
 * 1 - DIRECTLY ON THE SURFACE
 * 2 - ANWHERE ON TOP OF ?
 * Person: 2
 * Computer: THREE OF THEM.
 * Person: Had you touched any pyramid before you put the green one on the little cube?
 * Computer: YES, THE GREEN ONE.
 * Person: When did you pick it up?
 * Computer: WHILE I WAS STACKING UP THE RED CUBE, A LARGE RED BLOCK AND A LARGE GREEN CUBE.
 * Person: Why?
 * Computer: TO GET RID OF IT.
 * Person: Why did you do that?
 * Computer: TO CLEAN OFF THE RED CUBE.
 * Person: Why did you clear off that cube?
 * Computer: TO PUT IT ON A LARGE GREEN CUBE.
 * Person: Why did you do that?
 * Computer: TO STACK UP THE RED CUBE, A LARGE RED BLOCK AND A LARGE GREEN CUBE.
 * Person: Why did you do that?
 * Computer: BECAUSE YOU ASKED ME TO.
 * Person: How did you do it?
 * Computer: BY PUTTING A LARGE RED BLOCK ON THE TABLE ; THEN LETTING GO OF IT ; THEN PUTTING A LARGE GREEN CUBE ON IT ; THEN LETTING GO OF THAT CUBE ; THEN PUTTING THE RED CUBE ON THAT CUBE; THEN LETTING GO OF THAT CUBE.
 * Person: How many objects did you touch while you were doing it?
 * Computer: FOUR OF THEM.
 * Person: What did the red cube support before you started to clean it off?
 * Computer: THE GREEN PYRAMID.
 * Person: There were five blocks to the left of the box then.
 * Computer: NO, ONLY FOUR OF THEM: THE RED CUBE, TWO LARGE GREEN CUBES AND A LARGE RED BLOCK.
 * Person: Put the blue pyramid on the block in the box.
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Is there anything which is bigger than every pyramid but is not as wide as the thing that supports it?
 * Computer: YES, THE BLUE BLOCK.
 * Person: Does a steeple
 * Computer (interrupting): SORRY, I DON'T KNOW THE WORD "STEEPLE".
 * Person: A "steeple" is a stack which contains two green cubes and a pyramid.
 * Computer: I UNDERSTAND.
 * Person: Are there any steeples now?
 * Computer: NO.
 * Person: Build one.
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Call the biggest block "superblock".
 * Computer: OK.
 * Person: Have you picked superblock up since we began?
 * Computer: YES.
 * Person: Why did you drop it?
 * Computer: BY "IT", I ASSUME YOU MEAN THE SUPERBLOCK.
 * I CAN'T EXPLAIN A NON-EXISTENT EVENT.
 * Person: Is there anything to the right of the red pyramid?
 * Computer: YES, FOUR THINGS: THE BOX, THE RED CUBE, THE BLUE PYRAMID AND THE BLOCK NAMED SUPERBLOCK
 * Person: Thank you.
 * Computer: YOU'RE WELCOME!
 * Person: Thank you.
 * Computer: YOU'RE WELCOME!

Consequences
SHRDLU was considered a tremendously successful demonstration of artificial intelligence (AI). This led other AI researchers to excessive optimism which was soon lost when later systems attempted to deal with situations with a more realistic level of ambiguity and complexity. Subsequent efforts of the SHRDLU type, such as Cyc, have tended to focus on providing the program with considerably more information from which it can draw conclusions.

In a 1991 interview, Winograd said about SHRDLU: "[...] the famous dialogue with SHRDLU where you could pick up a block, and so on, I very carefully worked through, line by line. If you sat down in front of it, and asked it a question that wasn't in the dialogue, there was some probability it would answer it. I mean, if it was reasonably close to one of the questions that was there in form and in content, it would probably get it. But there was no attempt to get it to the point where you could actually hand it to somebody and they could use it to move blocks around. And there was no pressure for that whatsoever. Pressure was for something you could demo. Take a recent example, Negroponte's Media Lab, where instead of 'perish or publish' it's 'demo or die.' I think that's a problem. I think AI suffered from that a lot, because it led to 'Potemkin villages', things which - for the things they actually did in the demo looked good, but when you looked behind that there wasn't enough structure to make it really work more generally."

Though not intentionally developed as such, SHRDLU is considered the first known formal example of interactive fiction, as the user interacts with simple commands to move objects around a virtual environment, though lacking the distinct story-telling normally present in the interactive fiction genre. The 1976-1977 game Colossal Cave Adventure is broadly considered to be the first true work of interactive fiction.

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

title: SHRDLU


text:
Talk:Sandman (folklore)

For what it's worth, I think the Sandman should more properly be identified as Sandman (folklore) or Sandman (popular culture). I wouldn't say he's "mythical" per se.

I've researched in Wikipedia and elsewhere, and cannot find out what the sand in your eyes actually is - dried mucous? Salts crystallized out of evaporated tears? Anyone? --John_Abbe 18:10, 23 July 2005 (UTC)

 * good question... I don't know what the scientific name for this is either...  I always thought it was called "sleep" as a substance, but I'm sure there is some technical word that is more helpful to people who speak English as a second langauge.Lisa 05:43, 8 August 2005 (UTC)

Sandman's origins
i was pretty certain that the sandman didn't start out as a helpful little pixie. after all, a guy who comes into your houseat night to drug you and put you to sleep???? sounds more like a boogieman story you tell little children than anything else. (think about the lyrics of that old rockabye baby lullibye, "rockabye baby on the tree top,when the wind blows the cradle will rock..."). however, i can't find the sources for this as most of the pages on google search are bogged down by that infernal sandman comic.

in any case, i at least was able to snag this site which apparently references a story about such a sandman dating back to 1817

at the very least, there's a bit more to the myth than on first look.

i have done a review on the sandman which i hope will be of interest to some people...

'The Sandman'

Certificate: not rated (approximation PG)

Straight away, a sense of unsettling atmosphere hit me as I watched the unusual and bizarre knack of fine art. It was hard to distinguish what was happening and almost impossible to predict what would happen next. I expected this nine-minute wonder to be cheerful and Disney-like, however the sudden mood was cold and chilling. The short, intense film, directed by Paul berry was cleverly based on Hoffman’s version “Der sandman” of the traditional theme of the sandman, which was a friendly character in children’s stories. But no, in this hair-raising hostile horror, the inhuman creature, the sandman is unpredictably vicious… The film is a 10-minuite colour, puppet animation, made on a small budget in 1991, with the intention of being a taster of berry’s expertise. The main plot is; in a quiet, cold town, a boy playing on his drum is sent to bed by his mother when the clock strikes eight. He is incredibly fearful, alone in the dark with only a single candlelight and is anxious at the slightest noise or movement. He climes what feels like an enormous staircase, curiously crooked and bloodcurdling. His imagination sees things in an unusual and fearful way until he finally reaches his bedroom, but is he safe in bed? .There is a significant difference between when the boy is alone and when he is in the presence of his mother. When he is alone, it is always dark, and frightening music is played. For example, when he is walking up the stairs trying to be as quiet as possible, but steps on a creaky step, a sharp, chilling chord is played. In comparison to the first scene when the boy is downstairs playing on his drum. In this scene he is happy, there are lights on and jolly music is played. Despite the fact that no one talks throughout, this is what I think makes the film so unique and superb There are a sufficient number of different camera angles used right the way through the film. For example a mid angle shot is used when it shows you the sandman in the boy’s room. Another example is a point of view shot, when the boy is looking at his door and it seems to get further away. The camera effects used were superior, again one of berry’s qualities. Well what can I say? Not quite what I was expecting from an animated film with the title “the sandman”. It left me feeling unusually poignant since the last scene is quite a shock!

My overall Summary of the film is a 3/5. it is an interesting film to watch, although some aspects are a bit poor. For example the fact that no one speaks and some of it is maybe a little too strange to make sense. But on the other hand the film is sure to leave you thinking. Recommended for anyone with 10 minutes on their hands who likes a bit of thriller/horror every now and again. Brilliant!

By Ross Hooper.

Sandmännchen
I had to revert Bensin´s changes on Sandmännchen, because it is misleading to say that Sandmännchen was created in DDR. There were two versions. Also, no information was deleted, just reformulated. After Bensin´s latest edit the political significance of the program appears twice in the same paragraph.--Fyrfatet 06:51, 31 July 2006 (UTC)

title: Talk:Sandman (folklore)


text:
René Farrait

Rene Farrait Nieves (born November 2, 1967) is a Puerto Rican singer, actor, and former member of the boy band Menudo.

After leaving the band, Farrait enjoyed a brief solo career.

In the 1980s, Rene Farrait reunited with former Menudo bandmates Xavier Serbiá, Ray Reyes and Johnny Lozada (Reyes and Farrait were not Menudo members at the same time) and formed a trio called Proyecto M. (Reyes replaced Serbiá as a member of Proyecto M).

In 1998, Farrait joined five other former band members (including Reyes and Lozada) for a comeback tour named El Reencuentro.

Following El Reencuentro's break up in 2015, Farrait, along with Reyes and fellow former Menudo members Miguel Cancel, Charlie Massó (who had substituted Farrait as member of Menudo) and Robert Avellanet returned to touring, this time being allowed to use the name Menudo again but using the name Menudomania Forever.

Acting
Farrait participated in a film named Menudo: La Pelicula along with his Menudo bandmates in 1981. When Una aventura llamada Menudo was shot in 1982, Farrait had already left the band; substituted by Charlie Massó; nevertheless, he appeared on the background during parts of the film as one of the film's main secondary characters, "Señora Mía", greatly enjoyed the band's last album with Rene on it and had a poster of Rene and his Menudo band-mates in her room.

In 2017, Farrait retook his film career, playing a priest on the Peruvian film La paisana Jacinta en búsqueda de Wasaberto.

Personal life
Farrait was married to Carol Maldonado, and later got divorced. He has three daughters and is currently single.

In pop culture
Farrait is played by Alejandro Bermúdez in the 2020 Amazon Prime Video series based on Menudo, "Súbete A Mi Moto".

With Menudo

 * Chiquitita (1979)
 * Felicidades (1979)
 * Mas Mucho Mas (1980)
 * Es Navidad (1980)
 * Fuego (1981)
 * Xanadu (1981)
 * Quiero Ser (1981)

With Proyecto M

 * Proyecto M (1987)
 * Proyecto M 2 (1989)
 * Arde que me quemas (1991)
 * Si esta no Conmigo (1993)

title: René Farrait


text:
Improv

Improv may refer to:

 * Improvisation, an act of spontaneous invention
 * Improvisational theatre (includes improvisational comedy)
 * Musical improvisation
 * The Improv, a chain of U.S. comedy clubs
 * The Improv (India), a comedy show in Bangalore
 * Lotus Improv, a spreadsheet program

title: Improv


text:
User:Kjartan

Kjartan Johansen of Wollongong, 🇦🇺

title: User:Kjartan


text:
Berga

Berga is the capital of the comarca (county) of Berguedà, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It is bordered by the municipalities of Cercs, Olvan, Avià, Capolat and Castellar del Riu.

History
Berga derives its name from the Bergistani, an Iberian tribe which lived in the area before the Roman conquest. The Bergistani were first subdued by Hannibal in 218 BC. They rebelled twice against the Romans and were twice defeated; after their second uprising, much of the tribe was sold into slavery. Livy mentions their principal town, Castrum Bergium, which was probably the precursor of the present-day town of Berga.

Berga was ruled by viscounts in the Early Middle Ages and had its own counts from 988.

Berga was sold to king Peter II of Aragon in 1199.

In May 2012, the town council passed a motion declaring King Juan Carlos 'persona non grata' following a series of scandals involving the royal family, most notably the king's recent elephant hunting trip to Africa in the middle of Spain's deepening recession.

La Patum
The Patum de Berga, or simply La Patum, is a popular and traditional festival that is celebrated each year in the city. Locals dress as mystical and symbolic figures, and are accompanied either by the rhythm of a drum (the tabal, whose sound gives the festival its name) or band music.

Free Software Street
On July 3, 2010 the world's first Free Software Street was inaugurated in Berga, during a ceremony attended by Richard Stallman.

Sister cities

 * 🇪🇸 Guernica, Basque Country, Spain
 * 🇫🇷 Tarascon-sur-Ariège, France
 * 🇸🇪 Högsby, Sweden

Notable people

 * Alfonsina Bueno
 * Antonio Comellas y Cluet
 * José Cunill Postius

title: Berga


text:
Flag of Djibouti

The national flag of Djibouti (Calanka Jabuuti, علم جيبوتي, Drapeau de Djibouti) is a horizontal flag bicolor with equal bands of light blue and light green, with a white, equilateral triangle at the hoist. In the center of the triangle is a red star. The flag combines the basic layout and colors from the flag of the Front de Libération de la Côte des Somalis. The light blue represents the sky and the sea, as well as the Somalis, green represents the everlasting green of the earth, as well as the Afars, white represents the colour of peace and the five point red star represents unity, the blood shed by the martyrs of independence, as well as Djibouti being one of the five regions inhabited by the Somali people.

History
Beginning in the mid-19th century before the establishment of the French Somaliland, other flags were used as the flag of the Ottoman Empire, Sultanate of Tajoura and as well religious flags. During the French Somaliland and French Territory of the Afars and the Issas, the only ensign used was the tricolor. The flag was created and designed by the Front for the Liberation of the Somali Coast (FLCS) as the party official flag in the 1960s, which was a guerrilla group who fought for the independence of Djibouti from France. With the help of Ligue Populaire Africaine pour l'Indépendance (LPAI) to independence in 1977. The Djiboutian flag was raised for the first time upon independence on 27 June 1977, by the head of police Yacine Yabeh Galab. It is today flown on many governmental buildings.

Characteristics
Specifically, this flag consists of two horizontal bands sky blue and green, and a white isosceles triangle located on the side of the pole. In the middle of the triangle, a red five-pointed star appears.

The meaning of this flag is also found in the national anthem of Djibouti, with some differences:
 * {{legend|#6AB2E7|Sky blue: "symbolizes Bab el-Mandeb and the Gulf of Tadjourah, however the national anthem references the blue of the sky."}}
 * {{legend|#12AD2B|Green: "symbolizes the earth, expressed by the eternal green of the earth."}}
 * {{legend|#D7141A|Red: "symbolizes the blood shed by the martyrs of independence."}}
 * {{legend|#FFFFFF|White: "symbolic white of peace"}}

In the middle of the triangle, a red five-pointed star symbolizes national unity.

Color
Note: as there is no official standard, the below are approximations.

Historical flags
The following are the flags historically used in the territory of present-day Djibouti:

title: Flag of Djibouti


text:
Talk:Flag of Djibouti

In my flag book (the one with ratios in) says the ratio is 2:3. Altough this one is abit out of date has old flags in USSR etc and also its known as Jibuti. - fonzy

 * The FOTW page on Djibouti has multiple references to flagbooks stating it's 21:38 (or even 1:2). Even though they themselves have a 2:3 flag, I'd say the ratio is sufficiently odd as to not be made up, it has to have some validity, and the (small) Djiboutian website also features a tiny flag that seems more in line with a 21:38 flag than a 2:3 one, see here (at the bottom). Scipius 18:17 Oct 3, 2002 (UTC)

Whichever it is, the article should be consistent. The sidebar says the proportions are 4:7, but the flag depicted is 2:3. Ksn (talk) 23:38, 1 December 2010 (UTC)

Isosceles?
From the image, the white triangle looks equilateral. A•N•N•A   hi!  22:26, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

Indeed, if you look at the coordinates given in the flag's SVG code, it is precisely equilateral. Ksn (talk) 00:57, 12 December 2010 (UTC)

The page currently states it is equilateral in the introductory paragraph but isosceles in the summary box on the right and in the "Characteristics" section. https://www.fotw.info/flags/dj.html This page says "The triangle in this flag is isosceles, but definitely not equilateral in my source (and in many vexillological books). Armand du Payrat, 12 Feb 2003" — Preceding unsigned comment added by 14.202.28.36 (talk) 20:32, 27 July 2020 (UTC)

Stub?
Is this article to large to be a stub? What else could be added to it? I believe the stub template should be removed. --Randomperson2864 (talk) 17:08, 24 July 2013 (UTC)

A Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion
The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion: Participate in the deletion discussion at the. —Community Tech bot (talk) 22:39, 9 December 2022 (UTC)
 * Flag of Adal Sultanate.svg

title: Talk:Flag of Djibouti


text:
Cerdanya

Cerdanya (Cerdaña, ; Cerdagne, ) or often La Cerdanya is a natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it was one of the counties of Catalonia.

Cerdanya has a land area of 1086.07 km2, divided almost evenly between Spain (50.3%) and France (49.7%). In 2001 its population was approximately 26,500, of whom 53% lived on Spanish territory. Its population density is 24 residents per km² (63 per sq. mile). The only urban area in Cerdanya is the cross-border urban area of Puigcerdà-Bourg-Madame, which contained 10,900 inhabitants in 2001.

The area enjoys a high annual amount of sunshine – around 3,000 hours per year. For this reason, pioneering large-scale solar power projects have been built in several locations in French Cerdagne, including Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via, the Themis plant near Targassonne, and Mont-Louis Solar Furnace in Mont-Louis.

Antiquity
The first inhabitants of Cerdanya probably spoke a language related to the old Basque language and to Aquitanian. Many place names testify to this.

In the first millennium BC came the Iberians from the south. In Cerdanya they probably mixed with the native inhabitants, and the resulting people were known as the Kerretes, from the native word ker or kar, meaning rock, related to old Basque karri (modern Basque harri), stone.

The Kerretes were probably essentially of Basque and Aquitanian-related stock, as the Iberian clans who mixed with the native inhabitants can have comprised only small numbers of people. The Kerretes retained a language related to old Basque and Aquitanian, although some Iberian words may have entered the language, and Iberians probably occupied positions at the top of the Kerrete society.

The main oppidum of the Kerretes, commanding the whole country, was called Kere and was built on the hill above the modern-day village of Llívia (a Spanish exclave in French territory). Later the Kerretes came under Roman rule, and the Romans renamed the oppidum Julia Lybica, with a significant number of Roman citizens settling there. During the Roman Empire, the area of Cerdanya was a pagus known as pagus Liviensis (a name derived from its capital Julia Lybica), part of the province of Hispania Tarraconensis. The pagus Liviensis was itself divided in two: the eastern part around Julia Lybica was known as Cerretania Julia, while the western part was known as Cerretania Augusta. The name Cerdanya comes from Cerretania, itself coming from the old name of the inhabitants, the Kerretes. As for Julia Lybica, the name evolved into Julia Livia and then Llívia.

The Kerretes seem to have kept their old language until very late, probably as late as the 8th or 9th century. Romanization in the area was extremely slow, even though eventually the native language gave way, and the people in Cerdanya ended up speaking Catalan, a language derived from Latin. At the end of the Roman Empire, Julia Lybica entered a period of decadence, and lost much of its importance. It is around this time that the town of La Seu d'Urgell (in Catalonia, but outside of Cerdanya) started to replace Julia Lybica as the main center of population in that area of northern Catalonia, and in the 6th century when the diocese (bishopric) of Urgell was founded, Cerdanya was inside its limits.

Middle Ages
Devastated by the Vandals and other Germanic tribes, Cerdanya was part of the Visigothic kingdom of Toulouse and later Toledo, until eventually it was conquered by the Muslims. After Muslim expansion was halted by Odo the Great in the Battle of Toulouse (721), the Berber commander Uthman ibn Naissa established a small realm in Cerdanya and allied with Odo, so that the Aquitanian leader could secure his south-eastern borders. However, Uthman ibn Naissa came next under Umayyad attack and the Berber lord was defeated, opening the way to Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi's expedition into Aquitaine. During Abd al-Rahman I's military campaign across the Ebro region (781), the Cordovan commander received the submission of Ibn Belaskut, or Galindo Belascotenes, in Cerdanya. Under Carolingian pressure, Cerdanya became a Frankish vassal about 785.

 * County of Cerdanya

The county of Cerdanya has its origin in the Spanish Marches established by Charlemagne. In the 9th century, Cerdanya was one of the lordships united in the person of the counts of Barcelona, who were also counts of Girona, Narbonne, and Urgell. Wilfred the Hairy (count 870–897) had three sons and established the youngest, Miron (died 927), as Count of Cerdanya, a sovereign state.

The sovereign county of Cerdanya bordered the county of Urgell, the county of Barcelona, the county of Besalú, the county of Roussillon, and the county of Razès. The county of Cerdanya was made up of Cerdanya proper with the addition of other areas which it managed to acquire over time through inheritance, such as Capcir and Conflent. Thus, the county of Cerdanya was actually quite an important county. The counts of Cerdanya were great patrons of abbeys, most famously Saint-Michel de Cuxa (Catalan: Sant Miquel de Cuixà), dating back to the 10th century and located in Conflent, and Saint-Martin-du-Canigou (Catalan: Sant Martí del Canigó), dedicated by Count Guifred of Cerdanya in 1009.

However, the line of the counts died out in 1117 and the county was inherited by the counts of Barcelona, later to become kings of Aragon.

Modern times

Cerdanya proper was split between Spain and France by the Treaty of the Pyrenees of 1659, with the north of Cerdanya becoming French, while the south of Cerdanya remained Spanish. The counties of Rosselló, Capcir, and Conflent also became French at that time.

Today, the Spanish side of Cerdanya is a Catalan comarca known as Baixa Cerdanya (i.e. "Lower Cerdanya"), and whose capital is Puigcerdà. Puigcerdà was already the capital of Cerdanya before the division of 1659, having replaced Hix in 1178 as capital of Cerdanya. Hix, the place where the counts of Cerdanya resided, is now a village inside the commune of Bourg-Madame on the French side of the border. Hix had itself replaced Llívia, which was the ancient capital of Cerdanya in Antiquity. At the Treaty of the Pyrenees it was decided that Llívia would remain Spanish (allegedly because the treaty stipulated that only villages were to be ceded to France, and Llívia was considered a city and not a village, due to its status as the ancient capital of Cerdanya), so Llívia is now an exclave of Spain inside French territory.

The French side of Cerdanya is part of the département of Pyrénées-Orientales and has no particular status. People in France refer to it as Cerdagne française (that is, "French Cerdanya"), or just Cerdagne, while people on the Spanish side refer to it as Alta Cerdanya ("Upper Cerdanya"). Its main towns are Bourg-Madame and the ski resort of Font-Romeu.

Despite the split between France and Spain, ties remain between families on both sides of the border, with frequent travel from one country to the other. During World War I, Cerdanya has been the place of an important smuggling trade in which horses and mules went from French to Spanish Cerdanya, before being sold to the French army and going back to France through Le Perthus.

French side
Known as French Cerdagne (Catalan: Alta Cerdanya), it is part of the French department of Pyrénées-Orientales, this one itself part of the Occitanie region. It has no special administrative self-government status apart from that of the department, thus solely being a physiographic region within the department.

 * Angoustrine-Villeneuve-des-Escaldes (Catalan: Angostrina)
 * Bolquère (Catalan: Bolquera)
 * Bourg-Madame (Catalan: La Guingueta d’Ix)
 * Dorres
 * Égat (Catalan Èguet)
 * Enveitg (Catalan Enveig)
 * Err (Catalan Er)
 * Estavar
 * Eyne (Catalan Eina)
 * Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via (Catalan Font-Romeu or Odelló i Vià)
 * La Cabanasse (Catalan La Cabanassa)
 * Latour-de-Carol (Catalan La Tor de Querol)
 * Llo
 * Mont-Louis (Catalan Montlluís)
 * Nahuja (Catalan Naüja)
 * Osséja (Catalan Osseja)
 * Palau-de-Cerdagne (Catalan Palau de Cerdanya)
 * Planès (Catalan Planès)
 * Porta
 * Porté-Puymorens (Catalan Portè)
 * Saillagouse (Catalan Sallagosa)
 * Saint-Pierre-dels-Forcats (Catalan Sant Pere dels Forcats)
 * Sainte-Léocadie (Catalan Santa Llocaia)
 * Targassonne (Catalan Targasona)
 * Ur
 * Valcebollère (Catalan: Vallsabollera)

Spanish side
Known as Baixa Cerdanya. Unlike its French counterpart, it does constitute its own administrative division inside the autonomous community of Catalonia as a comarca or county, with its own self-ruling institutions known as the Comarcal Council of Cerdanya, inside the already self-ruling autonomous Catalonia. All municipalities of Baixa Cerdanya are part of the Catalan region of Alt Pirineu, this one itself divided between the Spanish provinces of Lleida and Girona.

Economy
Like neighboring areas of the Pyrenees, Cerdanya relies on tourism to provide strong support for the economy. Spas, skiing, and hiking are long-established attractions. In addition the Yellow Train is a major tourist attraction.

La Cerdanya is best known amongst Barcelona locals and tourists for its skiing. "Masella" ski resort, located close to Urus and Alp, opened on January 3 and, due to the mountain's orientation to the North, offers one the longest skiing season in the Pyrenees. The ski station today boasts of 62 slopes with 15 ski lifts, and since 2013, has nocturnal skiing. Physically adjacent to Masella, though requiring a different ski pass, is "La Molina" with 68 ski slopes. Due to La Cerdanya's close proximity to Andorra and France, its residents also enjoy skiing in "Font Romeu," "Formigueres," "Les Angles," and "Grandvalira."

Notable people

 * Dr. José Baselga, oncologist

title: Cerdanya


text:
Hurricane Lili

Hurricane Lili was the second costliest, deadliest, and strongest hurricane of the 2002 Atlantic hurricane season, only surpassed by Hurricane Isidore, which affected the same areas around a week before Lili. Lili was the twelfth named storm, fourth hurricane, and second major hurricane of the 2002 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm developed from a tropical disturbance in the open Atlantic on September 21. It continued westward, affecting the Lesser Antilles as a tropical storm, then entered the Caribbean. As it moved west, the storm dissipated while being affected by wind shear south of Cuba, and regenerated when the vertical wind shear weakened. It turned to the northwest and strengthened up to category 2 strength on October 1. Lili made two landfalls in western Cuba later that day, and then entered the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane rapidly strengthened on October 2, reaching Category 4 strength that afternoon. It weakened rapidly thereafter, and hit Louisiana as a Category 1 hurricane on October 3. It moved inland and dissipated on October 6.

Lili caused extensive damage through the Caribbean, particularly to crops and poorly built homes. Mudslides were common on the more mountainous islands, particularly Haiti and Jamaica. In the United States, the storm cut off the production of oil within the Gulf of Mexico, and caused severe damage in parts of Louisiana. Lili was also responsible for severe damage to the barrier islands and marshes in the southern portion of the state. Total damage amounted to $925 million (2002 USD), and the storm killed 15 people during its existence.

Meteorological history
A tropical wave moved off the west coast of Africa on September 16. A low level center of circulation developed from a tropical disturbance spawned by this tropical wave midway between the African coast and the Caribbean on September 20. The next day, the system gained sufficient organization to become a tropical depression. The depression moved westward in excess of 20 mph, and reached tropical storm strength-becoming Tropical Storm Lili as it passed through the Windward Islands. The cyclone continued to intensify as it moved west through the Caribbean Sea, reaching an initial peak strength of 70 mph on the morning of September 24. This was immediately followed by an abrupt weakening, and the storm's maximum sustained winds dropped to 40 mph later that day. The sudden weakening was attributed to strong southerly vertical shear. The system degenerated into an open tropical wave the next morning, and remained in that state for nearly two days.

Lili regenerated near Jamaica on the evening of September 26 and gradually turned more to the west-northwest while strengthening. The system became a hurricane on September 30, just after passing through the Cayman Islands. The storm continued on its course while continuing to intensify, and made landfall twice the next day, on the Isle of Youth and near Pinar del Río as a Category 2 hurricane. Lili emerged over the Gulf of Mexico later that day, having lost little strength during its overland passage.

The system turned to the northwest and sped up, becoming a major hurricane on October 2 while 365 mi south-southeast of New Orleans. This intensification continued, aided by warm sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico and good outflow. The system reached its peak strength of category 4 intensity, with winds of 145 mph, during that afternoon.

This strength was not maintained for long. The storm began to quickly weaken in the early morning hours of October 3, and this rapid weakening continued until the hurricane's final landfall near Intracoastal City, Louisiana, due to a combination of vertical wind shear, cool waters just offshore Louisiana, and slowly encroaching dry air within its southwest quadrant. By the time of landfall, maximum sustained winds had dropped to 90 mph. The weakening was accompanied by a collapse of the inner eyewall before landfall. The system continued inland, curving to the north-northeast, and dissipated when absorbed by an extratropical low near the Arkansas/Tennessee border on October 6.

Preparations
Tropical storm watches were issued in parts of the Lesser Antilles on September 22. These were upgraded to warnings the next afternoon, and all advisories were dropped late on September 23 once the storm had passed. Over the next week, the islands of Hispaniola, Jamaica, Cuba, the Caymans, and the Yucatán Peninsula were all under advisories of some kind at different times. Hurricane and tropical storm watches were issued for the Gulf Coast on October 1, and were upgraded to warnings the next morning. They were discontinued after the storm moved past the following day.

Preparations in most of the Lesser Antilles were minimal as the storm only hit as a tropical storm. Two hundred people evacuated their homes in advance of the storm on the islands of St. Vincent and Grenadine. In Jamaica, all schools and universities were closed in advance of the storm, and 17 public shelters were opened on the island.

Preparations were extensive in Cuba. Military officials at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp prepared for the possibility of evacuating their Al Qaeda and Taliban prisoners. A total of 130,000 Cuban citizens, mainly in western portions of the island, evacuated their homes prior to the storm.

Significant action was taken along the Gulf Coast as the threat the storm posed, predicted to come ashore at Category Four strength, became more urgent. Over a half million people evacuated their homes in Texas and Louisiana, including everyone in Iberia Parish. A total of 200,000 people evacuated in Louisiana. At least 2,000 volunteers staffed 115 Red Cross shelters in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, and Alabama. More than 20,000 people stayed in those shelters. The Red Cross also sent over 160,000 meals to the area. A total of 3,000 prison inmates in Texas were evacuated to safer inland locations. The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis was delayed for five days when the Kennedy Space Center was threatened by the storm, the first time a launch in Florida had been delayed because of weather in Houston. Stores across the warning area were very busy in advance of the storm. In New Iberia, Louisiana, hardware stores ran out of stock, and businesses in Lafayette, Louisiana reported similar shortages.

Collegiate activities were also affected by the storm. Southern University canceled four days of classes because of Lili, and 20 Texas A&M University Galveston, Texas students evacuated to the school's College Station location. The University of South Alabama canceled two athletic events in advance of the storm.

Impact

Hurricane Lili was both the second deadliest and the second most devastating hurricane of the 2002 Atlantic hurricane season (Isidore killed 22 people and damaged $1.28 billion worth of property). A total of 13 people died in the Caribbean Islands, and 2 more were killed in the United States. Severe damage to crops and livestock occurred through the Lesser Antilles, and damage to buildings and other infrastructure was reported in other Caribbean nations and the United States.

Lesser Antilles
Lili affected the islands as a tropical storm. Winds in the area were generally below hurricane force, although some gusts exceeded 74 mph. Rainfall of up to 4 in caused deadly mudslides. The winds, combined with poor construction, tore the roofs off numerous homes and businesses. The majority of the damage was dealt to primarily to the banana crop.

St. Lucia lost at least 75 percent of its banana crop, and hundreds of homes were damaged by the strong winds. Near total loss of electricity, water, and telephone services occurred, and utility systems were heavily damaged. Four people were killed on the island, and total damage was estimated at $20 million (2002 USD)

Over 400 homes were damaged in Barbados, and nearly 50 trees were downed by the high gusts. Similar to in St. Lucia, there was significant damage to the nation's banana crop. Extensive loss of electricity and telephone service also occurred. Damage totaled at nearly $200,000 (2002 USD).

Grenada also experienced moderate damage. A total of 14 homes' roofs were damaged, and one was completely destroyed. The island Medical Centre's roof was also damaged, and 12 landslides were reported. There was also mild damage to infrastructure, particularly in St. Patrick's Parish; three bridges were damaged or destroyed, along with seven utility poles and a water main. The entire island was without power at some point, but it was quickly restored in the southern part of the island where damage to the poles themselves was less significant.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines were heavily damaged, especially compared to other islands in the area. Several hundred homes and two schools were damaged, and the Rose Hall Police Station's roof was lost. Still, the majority of damage was dealt to the agricultural industry. In all, damage to the islands totaled $40 million (2002 USD).

Haiti
Lili passed offshore of Haiti as a weakening tropical storm. The storm's major impact was extremely heavy rainfall, in excess of 16 in near the settlement of Camp-Perrin, Haiti. This caused the Ravine du Sud River to overflow, and submerge buildings in the town. Two people died in the mudslides these rains triggered, and two more drowned in the flooding around Camp-Perrin. The floods also seriously damaged crops and infrastructure; over 1700 homes were damaged and 240 were destroyed. Haiti was affected dramatically and many towns and villages submerged into rivers exceeding their bankfull discharge

Jamaica
Lili affected Jamaica as a strengthening tropical storm. Wind gusts in excess of 70 mph and rainfall over 2 ft resulted in damage to homes, crops, and utility systems.

Extremely heavy rainfall inundated the island. Cedar Valley recorded the most rainfall, with 23.1 in measured. This led to prolific flooding that triggered mudslides across the island and killed four people. These floods decimated the island's sugar cane crop, one of the island's principal exports. The resultant flooding caused widespread problems with the infrastructure of the island. All of the island's hospitals had flood damage, and three were also dealt structural damage by the strong winds. The flooding caused latrines and other sewage sources to overflow into the intake sources for the water supply, leading to fear of disease.

Cuba
Lili made landfall as a category two hurricane twice in Cuba, on the Isle of Youth and in the Pinar del Río Province, on October 1. Wind gusts up to 112 mph and rainfall amounts reaching 6 in in some places caused damage to homes, businesses and crops. One person was killed.

Damage to buildings and other infrastructure was significant. The most severely affected provinces were Pinar del Río and La Habana. A total of 48,000 homes were damaged, 16,000 of them lost their roofs. The province Sancti Spiritus was not affected as severely, as only 945 homes were damaged, with 500 losing their roofs. The provinces in Eastern Cuba, including Guantanamo, suffered similar damage. Electricity outages for whole towns lasted weeks in parts of the western provinces. This led to loss of running water due to unpowered pumps, and deliveries of fresh water had to be made to remote villages. The tobacco and rice crops were badly depleted, but it was difficult to differentiate how much damage was caused by Lili, since Isidore had struck the region just a week earlier.

Louisiana
Lili made landfall on the morning of October 3 near Intracoastal City, as a weakening category one hurricane. Wind gusts reaching 120 mph, coupled with over 6 in of rainfall and a storm surge of 12 ft caused over $790 million (2002 USD) in damage to Louisiana. A total of 237,000 people lost power, and oil rigs offshore were shut down for up to a week. Crops were badly affected, particularly the sugar cane, damage totaled nearly $175 million (2002 USD). No direct deaths were reported as early warnings and the compact nature of the storm circumvented major loss of life.

Vermillion Parish, the point of landfall, was hardest hit. Wind gusts in excess of 120 mph, along with a storm surge of 12 ft dealt major damage to nearly 4000 homes. The worst storm surge flooding occurred in Intracoastal City, destroying 20 buildings owned by a helicopter company. One person died after the storm, and 20 were hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning.

Acadia Parish was also hard hit, recording wind gusts exceeding 110 mph, and 5 tornadoes touched down in the parish. Thousands of homes were damaged with over 2,500 suffering severe damage. Power across the parish was knocked out, 2 people were injured and one was killed after the storm. Schools in the parish also sustained $1.6 million (2002 USD) in damage.

Mississippi
Lili's outer rainbands dumped large amounts of rain and brought tropical storm force wind gusts to Mississippi. Pascagoula, Mississippi, recorded wind gusts of 41 mph, and Picayune, Mississippi, received 4.14 in of rainfall. Minor power outages occurred, mainly in southern Mississippi, and combined with the flooding of roads and buildings caused $30 million (2002 USD) in damage. No deaths occurred in Mississippi.

Other areas in the United States
Hurricane Lili's remnants brought heavy rainfall, peaking at four inches in Arkansas, to the Southeast, before dissipating near the Arkansas-Tennessee border. Lili's remnants also caused minimal rainfall in the Lower Tennessee Valley. No major damage was reported.

Aftermath
President Bush declared Louisiana a federal disaster area after the storm, making it eligible for assistance. FEMA set up three locations to apply in Mississippi and Louisiana. Applications began pouring in, 153,000 by the time of the deadline. Over $311 million in aid was granted to Louisiana. A total of $50 million of that money was in the form of low interest loans, and not actual grants.

Over 1,000 power workers from eight different states went to the worst hit areas to help restore power. Seven states sent tree trimmers to help clear debris from power lines and roads to speed the recovery process. In addition, FEMA gave SLEMCO, the state's power company, an $8.6 million grant, which paid for 75% of the damage to the electrical grid there. It took up to four weeks to restore power to all customers.

Hurricane Lili caused great environmental damage to the marshes and barrier islands in Louisiana. Huge fish kills were observed in marshes near the landfall point, and in the Atchafalaya Swamp. The barrier islands to the east of the landfall point, those subjected to the highest surge, were severely eroded. Sand was also deposited behind them into the brackish marshes, burying vegetation. The freshwater marshes were severely damaged by the wind and surge, some of them completely destroyed. The severe erosion created new waterways connecting inland bodies of water with the Gulf of Mexico, which eventually led to further erosion of inland lagoons.

Retirement
Due to the widespread and heavy damage caused by the hurricane, the World Meteorological Organization retired the name Lili in the spring of 2004. It was replaced with Laura for the 2008 season.

title: Hurricane Lili


text:
Talk:Nomentum

What does (mod. Menlana) mean? First I thought that maybe Menlana is the modern name of the town, but there doesn't seem to exist a town by that name. The current EB does not contain the word, and even Google returns only a few meaningless links. AxelBoldt 18:40 Oct 3, 2002 (UTC)

That was a typo. The modern name is of course Mentana (see the Italian and Polish interwiki links).--Proofreader 21:10, 9 December 2005 (UTC)

title: Talk:Nomentum


text:
Bruce Paltrow

Bruce Weigert Paltrow (November 26, 1943 – October 3, 2002) was an American television and film director and producer. He was the husband of actress Blythe Danner, and the father of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and screenwriter/director Jake Paltrow.

Life and career
Paltrow was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Dorothy (née Weigert) and Arnold Paltrow (né Paltrowitz). He had a brother, Robert. He was a first cousin of Spencer J. Giffords, father of Gabby Giffords, who became an American politician and member of the United States House of Representatives. His family was of Eastern European Jewish descent with roots in Minsk. His paternal great-grandfather, whose surname was Paltrowicz, was a Rabbi in Nowogródok, Belarus. His father and mother owned Paltrow Steel Company and a home in Palm Beach, Florida.

Paltrow studied painting at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. In the late 1960s, he began directing stage productions in New York City, where he met actress Blythe Danner. They were married from December 14, 1969, until his death.

He was the producer of the television series The White Shadow and St. Elsewhere. His last production was the film Duets, which starred his daughter, Gwyneth.

He also owned a restaurant in Aspen called Gordon's.

Paltrow was a Democrat. He reportedly refused to cast Dwight Schultz for a role on St. Elsewhere because the actor, a political conservative, supported Ronald Reagan.

Work in film and television
2003 – Fargo (first TV pilot spin-off, never aired) 2001-2002 – The Mind of the Married Man (TV series) 2000 – Duets 1995 – Ed McBain's 87th Precinct: Lightning (TV movie) 1994 – The Road Home (TV series) 1993 – Homicide: Life on the Street (TV series) 1992 – Home Fires (TV series) 1988 – Tattinger's (TV series) 1983-1987 – St. Elsewhere (TV series) 1982 – A Little Sex 1978-1980 The White Shadow (TV series) 1980 – Paris (TV series)
 * writer (story) and executive producer
 * director (2 episodes)
 * director and producer
 * director
 * director (1 episode)
 * director (1 episode)
 * writer (6 episodes) and director (3 episodes)
 * writer (13 episodes) and director (2 episodes) and executive producer (9 episodes)
 * writer (3 episodes) and director (14 episodes) and executive producer (130 episodes)
 * director and producer
 * writer (54 episodes) and director (8 episodes) and executive producer (54 episodes)
 * director (1 episode)

Death and legacy
Paltrow died on October 3, 2002, aged 58, while vacationing in Rome, Italy, to celebrate his daughter's 30th birthday. He had been diagnosed with oral cancer in 1999; his death was due to complications from oral cancer and pneumonia.

In 2007, his widow Blythe Danner, in co-operation with The Oral Cancer Foundation, set up a fund in his name to address oral cancer issues in the United States. The foundation works primarily in the areas of public awareness, early detection, patient support functions and research.

In 2002, three weeks after Paltrow's death, his daughter Gwyneth met Coldplay singer Chris Martin, whom she married in 2003. The 2005 Coldplay album X&Y carried a dedication to Bruce Paltrow, and the song "Fix You" was written to help Gwyneth through her grief.

title: Bruce Paltrow