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SS City of Flint (1919)

The SS City of Flint was a cargo ship of a type known colloquially as a Hog Islander, due to it being built at the Hog Island Shipyard, Philadelphia by American International Shipbuilding for the United States Shipping Board (USSB), Emergency Fleet Corporation. City of Flint was named to honor the citizens of Flint, Michigan for their effort in Liberty Loan drives during World War I.

The ship was sold to the Southgate Nelson Co., American Hampton Roads Line in 1930, but reverted to the USSB by 1935. By 1940 the USSB had been replaced by the United States Maritime Commission as owner and the ship was being operated as a Maritime Commission cargo vessel. During World War II City of Flint was being operated by United States Lines allocated to Army cargo requirements.

City of Flint was the first American ship captured by Nazi Germany during World War II.

The Athenia
The City of Flint, under the command of Captain Joseph A. Gainard, first became involved in the war when she rescued 200 survivors of the torpedoed British passenger liner SS Athenia (1922) on 3 September 1939. Athenia had been torpedoed that afternoon by the GS U-30 (1936) commanded by Kapitanleutnant Fritz-Julius Lemp south of Rockall Bank (in the Atlantic Ocean west of Scotland and south of Iceland) and sent out a distress signal. City of Flint, the Norwegian freighter Knute Nelson, the Swedish yacht Southern Cross and the destroyers HMS Electra (H27) and HMS Escort (H66) responded to rescue survivors.

The Captain of HMS Electra, Lt Cdr Sammy A. Buss, took charge as senior officer present. He sent the destroyer HMS Fame (H78) on an anti-submarine sweep of the area, while Electra, Escort, Southern Cross, Knute Nelson and the City of Flint rescued the survivors. Between the ships, about 981 passengers and crew were rescued. City of Flint rescued more than 200 and the provisions for American passengers leaving Europe who had embarked at Glasgow contributed to the welfare of the survivors. One hundred and twelve people were killed, and Athenia sank the next morning.

Seizure
In October 1939, City of Flint was carrying a cargo of tractors, grain and fruit to Britain. On 9 October, the GERMAN POCKET BATTLESHIP Deutschland seized the City of Flint, declaring her cargo to be contraband and the ship a prize of war. A German prize crew was put on board the ship to sail her back to Germany.

To avoid ships of the Royal Navy and obtain water, the ship headed for Tromsø on the north coast of Norway, arriving on 20 October 1939. Norway, neutral at the time and disturbed by the sinking of the merchant ship SS Lorentz W. Hansen, refused entry to the Germans, giving them 24 hours to leave. The Norwegian destroyer HNOMS Sleipner (1936) escorted the City of Flint out of Norwegian territorial waters at 1620hrs the next day.

The prize crew then sailed for Murmansk in the Soviet Union, arriving on 23 October. Claiming havarie (the privilege of sanctuary for damage caused at sea), the ship lay in Murmansk harbor under the control of the German prize crew for several days and was eventually forced to leave by the Soviet Union, stating that if the Germans claimed havarie, the American crew could not be prisoners of war. The Soviets interned the German prize crew on 24 October but restored them to control on 27 October under the principle requiring a ship to leave in the same condition as on entry. On 28 October the ship sailed for Norway under German control without Captain Gainard, who was an inactive United States Naval Reserve officer, having been allowed to communicate with United States Embassy officials.

In the several weeks that elapsed, the United States ordered many US merchant ships to register with other countries, so as to continue supporting the Allies without violating the US's nominal neutrality. Meanwhile, the Royal Navy began closing on the captured ship.

The prize crew then tried Norway again, proceeding to the port of Haugesund. The Norwegian government again refused entry, describing the German crew as kidnappers. The approaching Royal Navy left the prize crew no choice, though; on 3 November the City of Flint entered the harbor.

The ship anchored in Norway, and no one could claim the crew was making her right for passage. In consequence the Norwegian Admiralty dispatched the minelayer HNOMS Olav Tryggvason and boarded the City of Flint with its second in command, captain Bernt T. Dingsør and thirty armed sailors, who on 6 November returned City of Flint to Captain Gainard's command. He unloaded his cargo in Bergen and set sail in ballast for the US. The German prize crew was interned at Kongsvinger Fortress.

City of Flint continued in service in the Atlantic until she was sunk on 23 January 1943 by the GS U-575.

title: SS City of Flint (1919)


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Cooking show

A cooking show, cookery show, or cooking program (also spelled cooking programme in British English) is a television genre that presents food preparation, often in a restaurant kitchen or on a studio set, or at the host's personal home. Typically the show's host, often a celebrity chef, prepares one or more dishes over the course of an episode, taking the viewing audience through the food's inspiration, preparation, and stages of cooking.

Cooking shows have been a popular staple of daytime TV programming since the earliest days of television. They are generally very inexpensive to produce, making them an economically easy way for a TV station to fill a half-hour (or sometimes 60-minute) time slot. A number of cooking shows have run for many seasons, especially when they are sponsored by local TV stations or by public broadcasting. Many of the more popular cooking shows have had flamboyant hosts whose unique personalities have made them into celebrities.

Production
Due to time and production constraints, most, if not all, cooking shows employ filming shortcuts such as video editing, food modeling and photography, and prepared ingredients to speed up the cooking process and ensure a smooth and seamless production.

Genres
Some cooking shows, such as Emeril Live, are oriented towards instructional material, and others, such as Trisha's Southern Kitchen, additionally focus on showcasing the personal lives of the hosts. Some, such as the Rachael Ray Show, blend the genre with a talk show format. There are also reality competitions within the genre such as Iron Chef, MasterChef and Top Chef, where contestants are given specific requirements and a time limit to prepare meals, which are then evaluated by a panel of judges, which can include celebrity chefs and other notable personalities. Travel cooking shows such as Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted and Salt Fat Acid Heat explore the culinary experiences of host chefs in various destinations. Chopped and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives are examples of reality cooking shows, and Chefs A' Field and Chef's Table represent some of the documentary cooking shows.

History
Until the 1940s, most cooking shows were performed on the radio. The first radio cooking show in the United States, The Betty Crocker Cooking School of the Air, debuted in 1924 and featured the fictional character Betty Crocker, voiced by Agnes White Tizard.

United Kingdom
One of the first television cooking shows, Cook's Night Out, aired on the BBC on 21 January 1937. Marcel Boulestin, who became famous in the English-speaking world for his cookery books on French cuisine, demonstrated the preparation of an omelet as part of the 15-minute program. Cookery, which was hosted by Philip Harben and aired from 1946 to 1951, is considered by Guinness World Records to be the first cooking show on television. On the show's debut, Harben demonstrated the preparation of lobster vols-au-vents.

United States
In 1940, Sunday Evening Supper was produced by Edward Padula for the NBC station W2XBS. I Love to Eat was a live television series hosted by James Beard that aired on NBC from 1946 to 1947. In 1963, The French Chef, one of the first cooking shows in the United States, was launched, and it was hosted by Julia Child, co-author of the cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking. In 1973, the cooking show Frugal Gourmet was launched on KTPS-TV, and was hosted by Jeff Smith, a chef from Seattle. In 1993, Food Network launched as a cable channel devoted primarily to cooking shows and other programming relating to food.

Australia
The Chef Presents, one of the first cooking shows in Australia, ran from 1957 to 1959 and was hosted by Willi Koeppen. The Jean Bowring Show, a cooking show aimed at women, aired from 1957 to 1960.

Brazil
The first cooking show on Brazilian television, Veja como se cozinha (English: "Watch How It's Cooked"), first aired from 1951 to 1958 with Marialice Prestes as its host, and then again from 1961 to 1963 featuring host Ofélia Anunciato. Helena Sangirardi hosted Sirva-se de bons pratos (English: "Help Yourself to Good Dishes") in 1956 and A Alegria de Cozinhar (English: "The Joy of Cooking") in 1957. Cozinha Maravilhosa da Ofélia (English: "Ofélia's Wonderful Cuisine" ) was hosted by Ofélia Anunciato and aired from 1968 to 1998, becoming the longest-running Brazilian cooking show.

France
In 1953, Jean d'Arcy, a French television director, was inspired by a cooking show in West Germany and brought the idea to France, resulting in the debut of the show Les Recettes de M. X (English: "The Recipes of Mr. X"). Hosted by comedian Georges Adet, it was the first cooking show to air in France, starting in 1953 and ending a year later. Art et magie de la cuisine (English: "Art and Magic of the Kitchen"), hosted by chef Raymond Oliver, was another one of the first cooking shows to air in France, running from 1954 to 1967.

Germany
On 20 February 1953, Clemens Wilmenrod bittet zu Tisch (English: "Clemens Wilmenrod Invites You to the Table"), the first cooking show in then-West Germany, was broadcast, with television chef Clemens Wilmenrod presenting recipes for foods such as Rumtopf and Toast Hawaii.

Japan
In 1953, Mikaku no Shiori (味覚のしおり), one of the first cooking shows in Japan, was broadcast, with Hatsuko Kuroda presenting chicken salad.

New Zealand
Graham Kerr was one of the first celebrity chefs to appear on New Zealand television, when the medium was introduced to the country in 1960. Kerr was later followed by Alison Holst, Des Britten, and Hudson and Halls.

Popular culture
Sue Ann Nivens, a character played by Betty White in The Mary Tyler Moore Show, is the host of WJM's The Happy Homemaker, a fictional cooking show. In the Family Guy episode "Pilling Them Softly", Quagmire starts his own cooking show called "Quagmire's Kitchen".

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

title: Cooking show


text: User talk:65.57.139.111

title: User talk:65.57.139.111


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Scafell Pike

Scafell Pike is a mountain in the Lake District region of Cumbria, England. It has an elevation of 978 m above sea level, making it the highest and the most prominent mountain in England. The mountain is part of the Scafell massif, an inactive volcano, and is one of the Southern Fells.

Etymology
The name Scafell is believed by some to derive from the Old Norse skalli fjall, meaning either the fell with the shieling or the fell with the bald summit, and is first recorded in 1578 in the corrupted form Skallfield. An alternative derivation is from the Old Norse "skagi", meaning a cape, headland, promontory or peninsula, so giving an etymology that aligns with Skaw in Shetland.

See also Wiktionary:
 * 1) English skaw ..."A promontory".
 * 2) Icelandic skagi ..."peninsula, headland, cape".
 * 3) Old Norse skaga ..."to jut out”.
 * 4) English fell ..."a hill or mountain" — from Old Norse fjall ..."mountain”.
 * 5) English pike ..."a hill or mountain, particularly one with a sharp peak or summit".

Name history
The name originally referred to Scafell, which neighbours Scafell Pike. What are now known as Scafell Pike, Ill Crag, and Broad Crag were collectively called either the Pikes (peaks) or the Pikes of Scawfell (see below regarding spelling); from many angles Scafell seems to be the highest peak, and the others were thus considered subsidiary to it. The name Scawfell Pikes was adopted "by common consent" according to Jonathan Otley, shortly before the publication of the 4th edition of his guidebook in 1830. Up to this point, England's highest mountain (its status as such was not known until the early 1800s) did not have a name of its own; it was labelled Sca-Fell Higher Top by the Ordnance Survey in their initial work in Cumbria in the first decade of the 19th century. The newly developed name reported by Otley first appeared on a published Ordnance Survey map in 1865.

Formerly the name was spelled Scawfell, which better reflects local pronunciation. This spelling has declined due to the Ordnance Survey's use of Scafell on their 1865 map and thereafter.

Topography
Scafell Pike is one of a horseshoe of high fells, open to the south, surrounding the head of Eskdale, Cumbria. It stands on the western side of the cirque, with Scafell to the south and Great End to the north. This ridge forms the watershed between Eskdale and Wasdale, which lies to the west.

The narrowest definition of Scafell Pike begins at the col of Mickledore 831.6 m in the south, takes in the wide, stony summit area and ends at the next depression, Broad Crag Col, c. 877.6 m. A more inclusive view takes in two further tops: Broad Crag, 935.3 m and Ill Crag, 930.9 m, the two being separated by Ill Crag Col, 882.3 m. This is the position taken by most guidebooks. North of Ill Crag is the more definite depression of Calf Cove at 853.4 m, before the ridge climbs again to Great End, 909.5 m.

Scafell Pike also has outliers on either side of the ridge. Lingmell 807 m, to the north west, is invariably regarded as a separate fell, while Pen, 760 m, a shapely summit above the Esk, is normally taken as a satellite of the Pike. Middleboot Knotts is a further top lying on the Wasdale slopes of Broad Crag, which is listed as a Nuttall.

The rough summit plateau is fringed by crags on all sides with Pikes Crag and Dropping Crag above Wasdale and Rough Crag to the east. Below Rough Crag and Pen is a further tier, named Dow Crag and Central Pillar on Ordnance Survey maps, although known as Esk Buttress among climbers.

Broad Crag Col is the source of Little Narrowcove Beck in the east and of Piers Gill in the west. The latter works its way around Lingmell to Wast Water through a spectacular ravine, one of the most impressive in the Lake District. It is dangerous in rain and treacherous in winter, as when it freezes over it creates an icy patch, with lethal exposure should you slip. Several accidents and some deaths have occurred in Piers Gill.

Broad Crag is a small top with its principal face on the west and the smaller Green Crag looking down on Little Narrowcove. From Broad Crag, the ridge turns briefly east across Ill Crag Col and onto the shapely pyramidal summit of Ill Crag. Ill Crag and its associated crags overlook Eskdale.

Scafell Pike has a claim to the highest standing water body in England in Broad Crag Tarn, which (confusingly) is on Scafell Pike proper, rather than on Broad Crag. It lies at about 820 m, a quarter of a mile (400 m) south of the summit. Foxes Tarn on Scafell is of comparable height.

Mountain classification
Scafell Pike is a Marilyn summit which automatically makes it a HuMP and a TuMP. Scafell Pike is topologically unusual because the Marilyn qualification contour line (150 metres below the summit) passes around Scafell which is itself a HuMP.

Scafell Pike's Maquaco Line also encloses three other TuMP summits, Broad Crag, Ill Crag and Great End.

Summit
The summit was donated to the National Trust in 1919 by Lord Leconfield "in perpetual memory of the men of the Lake District who fell for God and King, for freedom peace and right in the Great War 1914–1918 ...". There is a better-known war memorial on Great Gable, commemorating the members of the Fell & Rock Climbing Club.

The actual height of Scafell Pike is a matter of definition or guesswork. The highest point is buried beneath a massive summit cairn over 3 metres high and it is not known how high the fabric of the mountain rises under the cairn. Traditionally the height was given as a very memorable 3210 feet. The rounded metric height of 978 metres converts to 3209 feet ±0.5 m.

Scafell Pike is one of three British peaks climbed as part of the National Three Peaks Challenge, and is the highest ground for over 90 mi.

Ordovician and volcanic activity
Scafell Pike consists of igneous rock, including breccia, andesite and rhyolite, as well as geothermal tufa, dating from the Ordovician; it is geologically part of the Borrowdale Volcanics and along with the other peaks of the Scafells, forms part of an extinct volcano which was active around 400-450 million years ago.

Pleistocene glacial activity
The rugged summit of Scafell Pike was shaped by glacial erosion of the Last Glacial Maximum (~20,000 YA), during which the Lake District was overlain by ice sheets with thicknesses of several kilometers.

Contemporary weathering
The summit plateau of Scafell Pike, and that of other neighbouring peaks, is covered with shattered rock debris which provides the highest-altitude example of a summit boulder field in England. The boulder field is thought to have been caused in part by weathering, such as frost action. Additional factors are also considered to be important; however, opinion varies as to what these may be. James Clifton Ward suggested that weathering with earthquakes as a secondary agent could be responsible, while John Edward Marr and Reginald Aldworth Daly believed that earthquakes were unnecessary and suggested that frost action with other unspecified agents was more likely. To the north of the summit are a number of high altitude gills which flow into Lingmell Beck. These are good examples in Cumbria for this type of gill and are also biologically important due to their species richness.

Tourism
Scafell Pike is a popular destination for walkers. There is open access to Scafell and the surrounding fells, with many walking and rock climbing routes. Paths connect the summit with Lingmell Col to the northwest, Mickledore to the southwest, and Esk Hause to the northeast, and these in turn connect with numerous other paths, giving access to walkers from many directions including Wasdale Head to the west, Seathwaite to the north, Langdale to the east, and Eskdale to the southwest. The shortest route is from Wasdale Head, about 80 metres above sea level, where there is a climbers' hotel, the Wasdale Head Inn, made popular in the Victorian period by Owen Glynne Jones and others. According to the National Trust, as of 2014 there were over 100,000 people per year climbing Scafell Pike from Wasdale Head, many as part of the National Three Peaks Challenge.

Survey point
Scafell Pike was used in 1826 as a station in the Principal Triangulation of Britain by the Ordnance Survey when they fixed the relative positions of Britain and Ireland. Angles between Slieve Donard in Northern Ireland and Scafell Pike were taken from Snowdon in Wales as were angles between Snowdon and Scafell Pike from Slieve Donard. Given the need for clear weather to achieve these very long-range observations (111 mile to Slieve Donard), the Ordnance surveyors spent much of the summer camped on the respective mountain tops. Scafell Pike was not used as a station in the earlier part of the Principal Triangulation of Britain, even though Sca-Fell formed one corner of a Principal Triangle. The Ordnance Survey's high precision theodolite was not taken to the summit until 1841.

Summer
(Scroll left or right)

List of summits visible
As the highest ground in England, Scafell Pike has a very extensive view, ranging from the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland to Snowdonia in Wales. On a clear day, the following prominent mountain tops (Marilyns) can be seen the summit.

 * Dun Rig, 77 mi, 2 degrees
 * Binsey, 18 mi, 2 degrees
 * Turner Cleuch Law, 71 mi, 4 degrees
 * Dale Head, 5 mi, 5 degrees
 * Wisp Hill, 58 mi, 11 degrees
 * Skiddaw, 14 mi, 12 degrees
 * Roan Fell, 55 mi, 15 degrees
 * Knott, 17 mi, 17 degrees
 * Peel Fell, 63 mi, 24 degrees
 * Blencathra, 14 mi, 28 degrees
 * The Cheviot, 83 mi, 31 degrees
 * Cold Fell, 39 mi, 39 degrees
 * Howgill Fells, 29 mi, 103 degrees
 * Bow Fell, 2 mi, 105 degrees
 * Yorkshire Three Peaks, 36 ,, 119 degrees
 * Boulsworth Hill, 63 mi, 135 degrees
 * Pendle Hill, 55 mi, 138 degrees
 * Ward's Stone, 38 mi, 142 degrees
 * The Old Man of Coniston, 7 mi, 149 degrees
 * Winter Hill, 64 mi, 154 degrees
 * Snaefell, 52 mi, 257 degrees
 * Slieve Donard, 111 mi, 262 degrees
 * Slieve Croob, 112 mi, 268 degrees
 * Beneraird, 80 mi, 303 degrees
 * Merrick, 69 mi, 315 degrees
 * Pillar, 4 mi, 318 degrees
 * Cairnsmore of Carsphairn, 68 mi, 326 degrees
 * High Stile, 6 mi, 328 degrees
 * Criffel, 37 mi, 334 degrees
 * Grasmoor, 8 mi, 342 degrees
 * Great Gable, 2 mi, 351 degrees

title: Scafell Pike


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Talk:Medieval philosophy

List
I think this list is worth having, if added to! But what order should it be in?

Much more imporantly, what's it's geographic and cultural scope? Do you mean Medieval European philosophy, or Early Christian philosophy, or Medieval Christian philosophy, or what? BTW no philosophers coudl be non-Christians in this era in Europe or they would have been burned at the stake. ;-0)

Then please do explain Maimonides (Jewish) and Averroes (Muslim).

Islamic influences!
It is too Europe-centric to claim ownership of an entire era - there was much interaction between people like Aquinas and the important Muslims like the Mutazilite - but also the Asharite and the disciplines of isnah and fiqh. For this history see Early Muslim philosophy (historical and political perspective) and Islamic philosophy (the actual arguments mostly re: Aristotle, discussing the chain of influences from ancient Greek and Rome via Islam to medieval Islam and Europe). Having two such treatments for Early Christian philosophy and Christian theology <-- what Christians did was not 'philosophy' by The Renaissance - philosophy itself had to be revived by inputs from Islam, mostly methodological. Then of course as Christianity woke up and got scientific, Islam went to sleep and forgot that it invented science... Is it really correct to talk about these strains geographically or within faiths? Or is it just that all "Western" Judeo-Christian-Islamic thought is one thing? In which case the Islamics must be in the 'medieval' list too.

Yes, of course. I have no bias against Islamic influences but European medieval philosophy is a reasonably defied area. I am happy to move the list down a level and link it from this page, allowing futre links to Islamic and other areas.

My only reservation is that "medieval" makes sense in a European context and, to some extent, Islamic. But makes little sense in Indian or Chinese contexts.

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Garsonides: Only Christians, or others too?
I don't think that Garsonides should be in this list, which is of chritian philosophers. He should be start of another list of Jewish philosophers. UNless a strong case is made to merge these two categoroes, I should like to remove him.

 * I don't understand why this entry is titled medieval philosophy, if it means to exclude all Jewish and Islamic medieval philosophers. I thoguht that the idea of a medieval era includes not only Christian Europe, but also Muslim Europe, and Europe-influenced North Africa. This would include many Jewish and Islamic philsophers, including Gersonides and Maimonides. I agree with the above unsigned statement, "It is too Europe-centric to claim ownership of an entire era - there was much interaction between people like Aquinas and the important Muslims like the Mutazilite - but also the Asharite and the disciplines of isnah and fiqh." Perhaps this article (given its title) should deal with the topic in general, and include Christian, Jewish amd Muslim medieval philosphers, and mention the interlectual cross-fertilization between them. If someone wants to focus exclusively on Christian, Jewish or Muslim medieval philosophy, they could then follow the links to the appropriare more specialized articles. RK

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You don't seem to have read the opening disclaimer above the list. I know that there are important names outside the scholastic tradition and would be only too happy to see them listed. Would you be satisfied if I push this whole page down a level and leave a niche for someone to deal with other medieval philosophies? BevRowe

I, for one, disagree. Citing only Christian philosophers is misleading and exclusionary. How can we discuss the philosophy of the time without mentioning Avicenna, Averroes, and Maimondides? Yet, they were Muslims and Jews. Danny

The opening disclaimer means little. If you want an exclusive list for Christian medieval philosophy it is very easy.make a page. User:Two16

In agreement with Two16 and Danny, I note that many U.S. College courses on medieval philosophy mention both Islamic and Jewish philosophers, as well as Christian ones. Consider this book: "Readings in Medieval Philosophy" Edited by Andrew B. Schoedinger. "The most comprehensive collection of its kind, this unique anthology presents fifty-four readings--many of them not widely available--by the most important and influential Christian, Jewish, and Muslim philosophers of the Middle Ages." RK Readings in Medieval Philosophy

 * I don't believe any of you are bothering to read what I am actually writing. YES, YES, YES, Islamic and Jewish philosophers of this period are immensely important and had a huge affect on philosophy in NW Europe. But that's not the point. Medieval is esentially a term relating to Western Europe. It doesn't make a lot of sense for other culture areas as it is not between anything significant. However, I have offered to move this whole list down a level. The scholastic philosophers form a relatively coherent group and it is worth keeping them together. Let us by all means have lists of philosophers from other cultural areas but there is some point in keeping them separate.BevRowe

 * I agree with you. However, it was my understanding that the term medieval does not always restrict itself to northwest Europe. My understanding was that it includes those thinkers in North Africa who were part of the same intellectual exchange and dynamic. Given the title of this entry, I think we are just saying that it makes sense to redefine the content of this article to include the intellectual cross-fertilization that was centered in, but not exclusive to, NW Europe, during the medieval era. I agree with you that the scholastic philosophers form a relatively coherent group and it is worth keeping them together! As such, it is appropriate that the current entry on scholastic philosophy has this list! However, it needs some content, an introduction at least!  RK

 * I am not a medieval historian, so I grant from the outset I may be wrong, but Like RK I diagree with BevRow when s/he claims that "Medieval is esentially a term relating to Western Europe. It doesn't make a lot of sense for other culture areas as it is not between anything significant," for two reasons. The first reason has to do with Jewish history.  When I was in college and studied Jewish history, it was broken into four segments: Biblical, Rabbinic (meaning really Amoraim and Tanaim), Medieval, and Modern.  In one sense, "medieval" was "inbetween" the period that ended with the codification of the Talmud, and the period that began with the Haskala.  But I do not believe it is just a coincidence that both Jews and Christians had a "middle" period -- Jews lived within both Alexander's empire and the Roman Empire, and the collapse of the Roman Empire and the decline of Hellenic or Classical civilization (as it were) was as important event for Jews as it was for Christians -- and as important for non-Europeans as for Europeans.  Similarly, the Enlightenment (and its antecedents in the Baroque period) was also a turning point in Jewish history and culture.  My second point is that in many ways the notion of "European" anything is a Eurocentric construction.  Greek civilization and the Roman empire were as oriented towards Africa Persia, and India  as they were towards Western Europe, and those empires created commercial and intellectual routes that do not easily correspond to Cold War boundaries.

 * I think that "medieval" may not be appropriate to Mongol and Islamic civilizations, although I think even this is arguable. But certainly, the term is meaningful to Jewish history and not because of some parallel history or coincidence.  Jews were in Europe long before the Visigoths; Maimonides lived in Europe, as did Spinoza and Mendlesohn.  It is a mistake to say that Jews had an impact, even a tremendous impact, on Western European history as if "Jews" were somehow outside of or separate from Europe.  There is no European history without Jews; Jews were also Europeans and if the fact that Jews (and Arabs) kept links between Western Europe, Africa, and Asia alive after the fall of Rome, then what we need is an expanded notion of European culture and history.  A thoughtful study of this history does not reveal that Jews had their "own" culture area; it reveals that the "culture area" of "Western Europe" was bigger, more fluid, and not quite as European, as some might have thoughtSlrubenstein

 * I am abit of an entry level Medieval Historian. It is inaccurate to separate Islamic (or the Middle East) from the Medieval period.  However, even if you define Medieval as being limited to Europe (which by the way is just Western Asia) then it is ridiculous to remove Jews who lived in and participated in Europe.  Further, as other users have pointed out, there was such a great deal of interaction between Europe and the Middle East in the field of Philosophy that they should be considered together.

 * In general scholarly use of the term Medieval, it is often applied to the same period of time in the Middle east as well as parts of Central Asia. In Central Asian scholarship Latin is still one of the main languages of use.

 * The Roman Empire was, by and large, a Mediterranean Empire. It contained much of Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East.  The Medieval Period follows from the fall of Rome and the end of the "Classical period" in which they all participated.  The Byzantine Empire (or the Eastern Roman Empire) existed in both Europe and the Middle East.  During the Crusades, the Crusaders set up states (referred to some as European Colonies) in the Middle East.  Surely you would not maintain that the Crusades are not proper medieval history whenever they cross into the Middle East.

 * The Medieval period of history intertwines Europe, the Mid-East, and much of Central Asia. It is impossible to study if you attempt to construe Medieval History as being solely European, and even more ridiculous to say it is only Christian.

 * Also, it is not just the Scholastic period. Not all medieval Philosophers (as others have pointed out) were scholastic.  Further, scholasticism continued outside of the medieval period.

 * I hope this is helpful. (I am a longtime user, but a new editor to Wikipedia)Catholic Crypt

Medieval and Islamic thought
I'd say that the scope of medieval extends only to Christian-ruled Europe, and so thinkers like Maimonides are not Medieval thinkers, but it is impossible to understand medieval philosophy without the impact of thinkers within Muslim-ruled areas. I suggest that we have a section Influences from outside Christian Europe, and include a list of the key contemporary figures; I guess I would have: Thoughts? While I'm on the subject, I know of Al-Ghazali's influence on medieval thought, but almost nothing of what it consists of. Who read him? --- Charles Stewart 18:35, 10 Jun 2005 (UTC)
 * Al-Kindi
 * Al-Farabi
 * Avicenna
 * Averroes
 * Maimonides
 * Al-Ghazali

 * Eeek, what have I stumbled into here :).  In my understanding of it, you are complete correct.  Far from being burned at the stake, there was some good academic discussion between Christians and Jews (Solomon Ibn Gabirol for instance, who was apparently supported by Duns Scotus).  And there was definitely interaction between Christians and Muslims.  For instance, how could Thomas Aquinas write the Summa Contra Gentiles if there were no Gentiles (i.e. Arabic philosophers primarily) to write Contra??  Sorry for my bad philosophy humor  :P FranksValli 06:31, 27 August 2005 (UTC)

Medieval Philosophy template
It seems that there has already been some attempt to bridge the gap in Medieval philosophy (Christian-Jewish-Muslim/Arabic philosphy) on Wikipedia. I think what we need is a Medieval philosophy template. This, or something similar, can be added to the template: Christian philosophy, early Muslim philosophy, Jewish philosophy, Scholastic philosophy Someone put those links at the bottom of the "list of philosophers", which IMHO should be turned into "notable philosophers" and perhaps divided into "Christian scholastics", "Jewish philosophers", and "Arabic/Muslim philosophers" just for that short list that appears on the "Medival philsophy" main page ("complete" lists like List of scholastic philosophers can be added for the latter two at a later date). Sorry for the vagueness and lack of clarity in writing - it is late and I somehow got myself into Medieval Philosophy on a Friday night... And now that I think of it, there is always the inevitable Western/Eastern philosophy contract. Since Wikipedia is supposed to be a compendium of everything worldwide, Eastern philosophy during the Middle Ages should at least be linked to from this page. FranksValli 06:31, 27 August 2005 (UTC)

Cleanup
This article needs some love! The tone just seems off, the section on trends and concepts seems only tangentally related to trends and concepts, and there's almost no detail on what, aside from a focus on theology, distinguished medieval philosophy. Mostly, I think, it just needs content, but the content that is here needs to be cleaned up a little, too. -Seth Mahoney 21:27, 12 November 2005 (UTC)

Scholasticism
I'm still pondering the wisdom of having a medieval philosophy page distinct from a scholastic philosophy page.

A technique of arguing, a style of writing, and a world view (Catholic and Aristotelian), and lots of Latin.

Is there any medieval philosophy which is not also scholastic?

Early and middle periods of scholasticism are of course medieval. The late or "second Scholasticism" of the 16C, which still awaits an article, is not. There is also "Baroque Scholasticism" which was German. There are also the Paduan and Iberian scholasticism. Then there is neo-scholasticism and neo-Thomism. Dean.

There is also the question of whether scholastic logic is any different from scholastic philosophy. I'll pass on that one. Dbuckner 17:22, 3 December 2005 (UTC)

 * There is also medieval philosophy which is pre-scholastic. Dsmdgold 17:35, 3 December 2005 (UTC)

 * Which? What medieval philosophy is pre-scholastic?  Define "scholastic".  dbuckner
 * Scholastic is an adjective meaning having to do with Scholasticism. Scholasticism was a school of philosophy which attemptd to reconcile ancient Greek philosophy with Christian revelation.  Its earliest practicioner was Anselm of Canterbury.  Philosophy prior to Anselm is pre-scholastic.  The most prominent pre-scholastic philosopher was Johannes Scotus Eriugena, who was clearly medieval and equally clearly not a scholastic philosopher. There are also several notable philosophers that fall in the grey area between Classical and Medieval, but very influential in the early Middle Ages. These include Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, Augustine of Hippo, and Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. Dsmdgold 21:19, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

 * "The word "Scholastic" is often used also, to designate a chronological division intervening between the end of the Patristic era in the fifth century and the beginning of the modern era, about 1450. " (Catholic Encyclopedia) Much disagreement about this, obviously.  Other sources agree more closely with what you are saying.  user:dbuckner

 * I've also checked with Costelloe, who is an authority on the period, who locates the beginning of s. around 800 AD user:dbuckner

 * Weinberg: A Short History of Medieval Philosophy uses Anselm as a the beginning of Scholasticism, as does Knowles The Evolution of Medieval Thought. To me, the term Scholasticism implies, among other things, methods which just are not present in John Scotus, much less Pseudo-Dionysius. Dsmdgold 01:32, 8 December 2005 (UTC)

Scope of article
Is this article specifically about European philosophy? deeptrivia (talk) 04:09, 4 July 2006 (UTC)

 * That's generally what Medieval means. --Stbalbach 13:17, 4 July 2006 (UTC)

 * Perhaps you mean Dark age, or Middle age. Medieval is quite a general term. It's just related to feudalism, isn't it? deeptrivia (talk) 13:45, 4 July 2006 (UTC)

 * Not really, but feudalism, so far as it exists, is also European. Both of them have been applied to other locations and eras (you can talk about "medieval China" or "Japanese feudalism") but both terms are specific to European developments. Adam Bishop 16:22, 4 July 2006 (UTC)

 * From Middle Ages:
 * The term "medieval" (traditionally spelled "mediaeval") was first contracted from the Latin medium ævum, or more precisely "middle epoch", by Enlightenment thinkers as a pejorative descriptor of the Middle Ages.
 * As Adam says it's been applied in some specific cases elsewhere, but usually informally or analogy. -- Stbalbach 03:36, 5 July 2006 (UTC)

Francisco Suárez
Shouldn't Francisco Suárez (1548–1617) be added to the list? Admittedly if he's considered Medieval at all, he's one of the last of the Medievals. However, he's not a Modernist... he predates Descartes (or rather, overlaps Descartes), however I think he can be very much considered a Medieval, especially since his writings are in the scholastic method. But if he's not a Medievalist, where does he fit in our History of Western philosophy? Surely he's not to be considered a part of Renaissance philosophy, even though he's writing in the same time period? I think this is somewhat important - Suarez should at least be mentioned in History of Western philosophy or some sub-page like this one (Medieval philosophy). I think he's underrated but important. For instance, before reading Descartes, it's useful to read Suarez to understand the Medieval view of types of distinctions, likes modes. Descartes's "I think, therefore I am" relies on this understanding of modes (see Instantiation principle)... FranksValli 08:30, 4 October 2006 (UTC)

 * Oops.. maybe I spoke too soon. I found Suarez listed in the Scholasticism article.  That's probably the most appropriate place for him to be listed anyhow.  FranksValli 08:32, 4 October 2006 (UTC)

That Many ?
Many medieval thinkers such as Spinoza, Leibniz...

That's not many, that is a lot !

(Lunarian 11:45, 7 October 2006 (UTC))

 * That's "none" since neither of them are medieval thinkers! Adam Bishop 15:27, 7 October 2006 (UTC)

Bull's-eye ! :-D !
 * (Lunarian 10:53, 8 October 2006 (UTC))

 * Thanks for the notes. It was quite the opposite and don't know how that could happen. I remember that the article didn't mention any link between the medieval philosophy and the new thoughts that appeared later. It was a mistake made in good faith. Again thanks for noting it. -- Szvest 20:31, 10 October 2006 (UTC)

Early Christian Philosophy
What to put in this section? Assume it ends before Anselm, who is the first scholastic. Then that gives about the same as the length of the Islamic section to develop all of the period 400 – 1050.

Augustine over Boethius, probably, but perhaps space for both, given there aren't that many philosophers in between. Then

 * What to say about Augustine?
 * That he is the most quoted of all medieval writers?
 * That he is not in fact medieval, being at the end of the classical period?
 * Phrases like 'casts a long shadow', 'dominates all medieval thought', "He shaped medieval thought as no one else did" bla bla.
 * As well as one of most influential philosophers of any time (Wittgenstein and Heidegger)
 * The influence of Plato, whose writings were lost during early middle ages, was mainly through Augustine
 * His approach to the problem of evil & human free will was of great importance in the middle ages, and his doctrine of grace underpinned the Reformation
 * About Boethius
 * His importance in translations and commentaries – one of the main sources of the transmission of Greek philosophy in the Early Middle Ages
 * He translated Aristotle's Categories and On Interpretation, plus two commentaries each on 'On Interpretation' and Porphry's Isagoge, and one on the Categories. Everything that was known about logic in the early Middle Ages is contained in these books.  In his commentary on the Isagoge he formulates the Problem of universals in the way that it was widely discussed in the later Middle Ages.

 * Would the patristic period be mentioned, given that this gives us many of the problems that later theologians struggled with?
 * the dark ages were very dark.
 * the monasteries and the preservation of learning
 * that it was only some learning – few Aristotelian texts, e.g.
 * The importance of Boethius and Porphyry, in giving them the problem of universals, and the Perihermaneias.
 * John Scotus Eriugena – major figure of 500 year period, Irish, fused Christian and Neoplatonic thinking.
 * The Carolongian renaissance
 * Other influences such as Dionysus, St John Damascene, Philoponus

edward (buckner) 15:42, 18 February 2007 (UTC)

Also wise to engage with some of the other articles that verge on this topic, e.g. Christian theology, History of Christianity esp. Church of the Early Middle Ages (476 – 800) section, and Carolingian Renaissance.

Already realised I've been using 'High Middle Ages' wrongly. It refers to the period beginning 800 AD, whereas it is the High Scholastic period of the 13th and 14th century I was thinking of.

Except the High Middle Ages article itself says it begins in 1000, which is what I thought. Contains the splendidly 1066 sentence "The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages".

OK a check on a few more reputable sites confirms that the high middle ages were 1000 to 1300. So History of Christianity has got it dead wrong. The trouble is now that if you Google anything these days, up pops Wiki like a bad penny. edward (buckner) 16:15, 18 February 2007 (UTC)

Worldwide view and POV tag
Medieval is not a correct attribute for the middle east. As Henry Corbin describes in his book, History of Islamic Philosophy, philosophy in the Muslim worlds including Middle East, Central Asia, Indian sub-continent, North Africa and Andulusia have different stages. He says ''Needless to say, the epochs in the history of Islamic philosophy cannot, save by a verbal artifice, be subjected to our usual system of dividing the history of philosophy—and history in general—into three periods which we call Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. It would be equally inappropriate to say that the Middle Ages have continued down to our day, for the very notion of the Middle Ages presupposes a vision of history thematized according to a particular perspective... And we in our turn cannot impose upon them a chronological schema imported from a foreign world. Thus I suggest changing the lead and substituting Islamic philosophy in the Middle Ages'' with Early Islamic philosophy. Some part of the article does not fit to Mulim world at that age. For example it's written Medieval philosophy is characteristically theological: with the possible exceptions of Avicenna and Averroes, medieval thinkers did not consider themselves philosophers at all. While Corbin says The clear-cut distinction which exists in the West between 'philosophy' and 'theology' goes back to medieval scholasticism, and it presupposes a process of 'secularization' the idea of which could not exist in Islam, primarily because Islam has never experienced the phenomenon of the Church, with all its implications and consequences. There were several renowned philosophers at that time among Muslims and later philosophy overcome theology in the eastern part of Muslim world and both of them are affected by Sufism.-- Seyyed(t-c) 11:02, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * Well Kretzmann includes all the Middle Eastern philosophers in his magisterial work on Medieval Philosophy, so what's the problem? I worked very hard (after someone criticised a much earlier version of this for being Latin West-centric) to get a balanced version of this article.  What's the problem?  Suggest something.  Peter Damian (talk) 20:48, 17 June 2008 (UTC)
 * The sentence you cite "with the possible exceptions of Avicenna and Averroes, medieval thinkers did not consider themselves philosophers at all" is from Noone. Peter Damian (talk) 20:48, 17 June 2008 (UTC)
 * And didn't Al-Ghazali accept a 'clear-cut' distinction between philosophy and theology? Peter Damian (talk) 20:55, 17 June 2008 (UTC)
 * Isn't the tag in the main article "History of Western Philosophy"? Of course the article is "biased": there is a warning in the very TOC. The chronological order is based in Western History, and Eastern philosophers related to the West are ordered according to that criterion. You may start another article on "Philosophy in Islam" and make a completely different arrangement, and that would be fine. There is no problem here, only creative misreading. Louie (talk) 18:00, 18 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I have removed the tag. There were some other points made, such as there being no clear-cut distinction between philosophy and theology, but this has no basis in fact, as far as I can see.  Peter Damian (talk) 20:12, 18 June 2008 (UTC)

Development?
I'm not an expert but I find the sentence "Yet this period of nearly a thousand years was the longest period of philosophical development in Europe, and possibly the richest." in the lead part of the article to be utterly unbelievable. Much of it wasn't development it was regress and apart from the final part the only contributions were in theology not philosophy.

It might have had some relevance a year ago when the article included a reasonable section on Islamic philosophy, which was about the only place where thinking was going on, but that's been removed. Could someone rephrase please. Chris55 (talk) 19:01, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Go ahead. However, by the time of Thomas Aquinas, medieval philosophy had clearly become creative, not merely imitative, again. Gun Powder Ma (talk) 10:26, 28 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Thanks Ma for your latest compromise. I don't know what is now recognized as the scope of the term. But all the recent additions have been made from a book (ed Garcia, Noone) which uses the word Middle Ages and which Amazon describes as "An unparalleled source of information on the lives and thought of no fewer than 138 medieval Christian, Islamic, and Jewish philosophers". The judgements made in the first paragraph reflected this perspective, not the narrower use of the term which has been traditional in western universities. Both of the latter cultures were making progress at a time when Christendom was forgetting most of what it knew. Chris55 (talk) 09:58, 29 July 2010 (UTC)
 * I am thinking here more along Wikipedia-specific lines, from a horizontal perspective: Most articles of the Template:Middle Ages wide 2 only deal with medieval topics in the common, more narrow sense (that is [Western] Europe), so we should hold on this editorial line. Then, Islamic philosophy already has an article of its own, so if we start to go into depth on Muslim developments here, we only duplicate the material and end up with more than one full article for IP and less than one full for MP. Hardly ideal. Therefore, I believe we should stick here to WP:Scope. Finally, Latin translations of the 12th century and Transmission of the Classics already deal at length with the subject. Gun Powder Ma (talk) 12:33, 29 July 2010 (UTC)

Formatting problem under "See also"
It took me a moment to realise that the bar chart under "See also" refers to lines of Jewish philosophy. Can someone perhaps move it to go under that bullet, or at least give it a caption? (I don't have the formatting skill.) Herbgold (talk) 09:50, 29 July 2016 (UTC)

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Add a "Popular Culture" section?
Thought of the Middle ages has a reputation. The term "dark ages" is already mentioned, but there is more to it than that. The word Gothic is used commonly to refer to dark things such as the poetry and stories of Edgar Allen Poe.

The only good example I can think of is from Robert Crumb, who introduced Zap Comix No. 1 (1967, Apex Novelties) by ridiculously claiming to be "one of the world's last great Medieval thinkers" along with "From the bedroom closet, I operate a huge network of radios, sending out incantations, curses voodoo hoodoo." There must be other examples that could be listed. That might even make this article a bit more comprehensible to a wider audience. David R. Ingham 02:02, 28 February 2020 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by David Ransford Ingham (talk • contribs)  (Edited 3/14/20)

A, perhaps even better, example is the false but common statement that a subject of medieval philosophy was "How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?" David R. Ingham 04:06, 6 April 2020 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by David Ransford Ingham (talk • contribs)

Needs coverage of non-european medieval philosophers
I'm marking this down from "B" to "C" due to the lack of coverage of Medieval philosophers in Islamic philosophy, Jewish philosophy, Byzantine philosophy etc. It looks like this has been mentioned on this talk page above, but the tradition is fairly continuous here between Avicenna, Averroes, Maimonides, etc. and Latin philosophers like Aquinas so it makes sense to cover them all on the same page.  - car chasm (talk) 18:24, 22 August 2022 (UTC)

Article issues and classification
I reassessed the Vital Articles assessment to C-class. The article fails the B-class criteria. Also, I am going to chop all but three of the "External links". A discussion may change this around but I am just picking all after the first three. Three seems to be an acceptable number and of course, everyone has their favorite to add for four. The problem is that none is needed for article promotion.
 * ELpoints #3) states: Links in the "External links" section should be kept to a minimum. A lack of external links or a small number of external links is not a reason to add external links.
 * LINKFARM states: There is nothing wrong with adding one or more useful content-relevant links to the external links section of an article; however, excessive lists can dwarf articles and detract from the purpose of Wikipedia. On articles about topics with many fansites, for example, including a link to one major fansite may be appropriate.
 * WP:ELMIN: Minimize the number of links. -- Otr500 (talk) 07:05, 14 February 2023 (UTC)

title: Talk:Medieval philosophy


text:
Mark Phillips

Mark Anthony Peter Phillips  (born 22 September 1948) is an English Olympic gold medal-winning horseman for Great Britain and the first husband of Anne, Princess Royal, with whom he has two children. He remains a leading figure in British equestrian circles, a noted eventing course designer, and a columnist for Horse & Hound magazine.

Family background and early life
Mark Anthony Peter Phillips was born on 22 September 1948. He is the son of Major Peter William Garside Phillips, MC (1920–1998) and Anne Patricia Phillips (née Tiarks; 1926–1988); they married in 1946. Anne was educated at Downe House and served in the Women's Royal Naval Service during the Second World War. Her father John Gerhard Edward Tiarks (1896–1962), who served in the First and Second World Wars, attained the rank of Brigadier. John Tiarks was aide-de-camp to King George VI from 1947 to 1950. Mark had a younger sister, Sarah Anne Staples (née Phillips; 1951–2014).

Phillips was educated at Stouts Hill Preparatory School near Uley, Gloucestershire, then at Marlborough College, then the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

Military career
Upon passing out from Sandhurst, Phillips was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards in July 1969, he was promoted to Lieutenant in January 1971. By the time of his wedding to Princess Anne in November 1973, Phillips was an acting Captain. In January 1974, he was appointed a Personal aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II. Phillips was substantively promoted to captain in July 1975, and retired from the Army on 30 March 1978.

Phillips continued to style himself Captain Mark Phillips, as it is usual for retired cavalry captains to keep using their rank if their civilian job involves working with horses in racing or equestrian sports.

Equestrian career
Phillips was a reserve member of the British equestrian team for the 1968 Olympics. He was part of the British three-day event teams that won a world title in 1970, a European title in 1971, and Olympic gold medals in 1972; individually, he finished in 35th place in 1972. At the 1988 Olympics, his horse sustained a pulled muscle and could not complete the individual three-day event, but Phillips won a silver medal with the British team. Phillips was a four-time champion at the Badminton Horse Trials, in 1971 and 1972 on Great Ovation, in 1974 on Colombus, and in 1981 on Lincoln. It was through his equestrian activities that he met Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, whom he married. Their own daughter Zara later won a silver medal in the three-day event with the British team at the 2012 Olympics.

In 1998 Phillips designed the cross-country venue for the Red Hills Horse Trials, a qualifying event for the Olympics located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. He is now a regular columnist for Horse & Hound magazine. He also remains a leading figure in British equestrian circles and serves as Chef d'Equipe of the United States Eventing Team.

Personal life
Phillips first met his future wife Princess Anne at a party for horse lovers in 1968. They married on 14 November 1973, at Westminster Abbey. They have two children: Peter (born 1977) and Zara (born 1981). The Queen bought Gatcombe Park, near Minchinhampton, for the couple as a wedding present.

In August 1989 the Princess Royal and Phillips announced their intention to separate, as the marriage had been under strain for a number of years. The couple had rarely been seen in public together, and both were romantically linked with other people. They continued to share the custody of their children, and initially announced that "there were no plans for divorce." Meanwhile, Phillips continued to work at the couple's estate at Gatcombe Park. In 1991, a DNA test confirmed that Phillips had fathered a girl, Felicity Tonkin, born in August 1985 in New Zealand to art teacher Heather Tonkin. Phillips and Princess Anne divorced on 23 April 1992.

On 1 February 1997, Phillips married Sandy Pflueger, an American Olympic dressage rider. Their daughter Stephanie was born on 2 October 1997. She grew up at Aston Farm, Gatcombe Park, close to the family of Princess Anne, and served as a bridesmaid at the wedding of her half-sister Zara Tindall. In 2000, Phillips was appointed an Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Farmers.

On 3 May 2012, it was confirmed by Phillips' solicitors that Phillips and Pflueger had separated, intending to divorce, with Phillips becoming involved with American equestrian Lauren Hough.

Phillips' personal wealth is thought to be around £15–20 million. The settlement he received when his marriage to Princess Anne ended was described as "modest" and reported to be around "$3 million".

On 19 September 2022, Philips was present at the committal service at St George's Chapel for his former mother in law Elizabeth II.

Military ranks

 * 🇬🇧 Captain (Retired), late Queen's Dragoon Guards

British honours

 * UK Royal Victorian Order ribbon.svg 15 August 1974: Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO)
 * UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg 6 February 1977: Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal
 * UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg 6 February 2002: Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
 * QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.png 6 February 2012: Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
 * Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal.png 6 February 2022: Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
 * Coronation of Charles III Medal ribbon.png 6 May 2023: King Charles III Coronation Medal

Honorary military appointments

 * 1 January 1974: Personal Aide-de-Camp to the Queen (ADC)

Foreign honours

 * 🇳🇴 Norway: Commander with Star of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav, 13 April 1988.

Issue

 * By Princess Anne

 * By Heather Tonkin

 * By Sandy Pflueger

title: Mark Phillips


text:
Talk:American history

Untitled
There's already a history of the United States. This could be useful though -- I vote it should be moved to Timeline of history of the United States. Tokerboy

See User talk:65.57.139.111 --mav

 * I didn't realize when I created it that there was already a U.S. history narrative. I agree that the title should be changed. The information, though, is useful enough so that it can possibly be weaved into the other article or linked in somehow. -- Gregory Pietsch

America != United States. They are different topics. Tannin 22:55 Feb 5, 2003 (UTC)

title: Talk:American history


text:
List of aircraft

The lists of aircraft are sorted in alphabetical order and is broken down into multiple pages:

0–9, A

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B

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C

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T

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title: List of aircraft


text:
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA, pronounced ), formerly known as the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, is a trade group representing companies in the pharmaceutical industry in the United States. Founded in 1958, PhRMA lobbies on behalf of pharmaceutical companies. PhRMA is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

The organization has lobbied fiercely against allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices for Medicare recipients, and filed lawsuits against the drug price provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act. At the state level, the organization has lobbied to prevent price limits and greater price transparency for drugs.

PhRMA has given substantial dark money donations to right-wing advocacy groups such as the American Action Network, which lobbied heavily against the Affordable Care Act, Americans for Prosperity, and Americans for Tax Reform.

Leadership
Ramona Sequeira, President of Takeda’s Global Portfolio Division, is chairman of the PhRMA board. Vasant (Vas) Narasimhan, M.D., CEO of Novartis, is chairman and Daniel O'Day, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Gilead Sciences, is board treasurer.

Since 2015, the president of the organization has been Stephen J. Ubl. Previous leadership includes: John J. Castellani, formerly head of the Business Roundtable, a U.S. advocacy and lobbying group, Billy Tauzin, a former Republican congressman from Louisiana, and John J. Horan, former CEO and chairman of Merck & Co.

Members
Current member companies include Alkermes, Amgen, Astellas Pharma, Bayer, Biogen, BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, CSL Behring, Daiichi Sankyo, Eisai, Eli Lilly and Company, EMD Serono, Genentech, Gilead Sciences, GlaxoSmithKline, Incyte, Ipsen, Johnson & Johnson, Lundbeck, Merck & Co., Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, Pfizer, Sanofi, Sunovion, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company, Teva Pharmaceutical Company and UCB.

Programs
SMARxT Disposal is a joint program run by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the American Pharmacists Association, and PhRMA to encourage consumers to properly dispose of unused medicines to avoid harm to the environment.

The Partnership for Prescription Assistance is a program by PhRMA and its member companies that connects patients in-need with information on low-cost and free prescription medication. PhRMA has in 2017 raised concerns over price increases for generic drugs out of patent by the company Marathon Pharmaceuticals over Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment.

The company has advocated abroad in South Africa regarding pharmaceutical drug intellectual property rules.

In 2017, the organization had revenue of $455 million, $128 million of which was spent on lobbying activities.

The organization has notably opposed market pricing strategies of Valeant Pharmaceuticals, deriding the firm as having a strategy "reflective of a hedge fund".

In January 2018, the organization introduced the "Let's Talk About Cost" website, which makes the argument that much of the cost of medication goes to middlemen unassociated with pharmaceutical companies.


text:
Billy J. Kramer

William Howard Ashton (born 19 August 1943), known professionally as Billy J. Kramer, is an English pop singer. With The Dakotas, Kramer was managed by Brian Epstein during the 1960s and scored hits with several Lennon–McCartney compositions never recorded by the Beatles, among them the UK number one "Bad to Me" (1963). Kramer and the Dakotas had a further UK chart-topper in 1964 with "Little Children" and achieved U.S. success as part of the British Invasion. Since the end of the beat boom, Kramer has continued to record and perform. His autobiography, Do You Want to Know a Secret, was published in 2016.

Early life and career
Kramer grew up as the youngest of seven siblings and attended the St George of England Secondary School, Bootle. He then took up an engineering apprenticeship with British Railways and in his spare time played rhythm guitar in a group he had formed himself, before switching to become a vocalist. The performing name Kramer was chosen at random from a telephone directory. John Lennon suggested that the "J" be added to the name further to distinguish him by adding a "tougher edge". Kramer soon came to the attention of Brian Epstein, ever on the look-out for new talent to add to his expanding roster of local artists. Kramer turned professional but his then backing group, the Coasters, were less keen, so Epstein sought out the services of a Manchester-based group, the Dakotas, a combo then backing Pete MacLaine.

Even then, the Dakotas would not join Kramer without a recording contract of their own. Once in place, the deal was set and both acts signed to Parlophone under George Martin. Collectively, they were named Billy J. Kramer with the Dakotas to keep their own identities within the act. Once the Beatles broke through, the way was paved for a tide of Merseybeat and Kramer was offered the chance to cover "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" first released by the Beatles on their own debut album, Please Please Me. The track had been turned down by Shane Fenton (later known as Alvin Stardust) who was looking for a career-reviving hit.

Success
With record producer George Martin, the song "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" was a number two UK Singles Chart hit in 1963, (but number one in some charts), and was backed by another tune otherwise unreleased by the Beatles, "I'll Be on My Way". After this impressive breakthrough another Lennon/McCartney pairing, "Bad to Me" c/w "I Call Your Name", reached number one. It sold over a million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. "I'll Keep You Satisfied" ended the year with a respectable number four placing.

Kramer was given a series of songs specially written for him by Lennon and McCartney which launched him into stardom. "I'll Keep You Satisfied", "From a Window", "I Call Your Name" (recorded by The Beatles themselves) and "Bad to Me" earned him appearances on the television programmes, Shindig!, Hullabaloo (hosted by Beatles manager Epstein) and The Ed Sullivan Show. (Kramer had also been offered Lennon/McCartney's "I'm in Love", and recorded a version in October 1963. In the end, it was shelved and the song was instead given to the Fourmost. In the 1990s, a Kramer compilation album included his version, as well as some recording studio banter on which Lennon's voice could be heard).

The Dakotas enjoyed Top 20 success in 1963 on their own with the Mike Maxfield composition "The Cruel Sea", an instrumental retitled "The Cruel Surf" in the US, which was subsequently covered by The Ventures as The Cruel Sea. This was followed by a George Martin creation, "Magic Carpet", in which an echo-laden piano played the melody alongside Maxfield's guitar. But it missed out altogether, and it was a year before their next release. All four tracks appeared on an EP later that year.

The three hits penned by Lennon and McCartney suggested that Kramer would always remain in the Beatles' shadow, unless he tried something different. Despite being advised against it, he turned down the offer of another Lennon/McCartney song, "One and One Is Two", and insisted on recording the Stateside chart hit "Little Children". It became his second chart topper and biggest hit. In the United States, "Little Children" was backed with "Bad to Me". This was the only debut single of an act on the Hot 100, each of whose sides separately reached that chart's The Top 10 (No. 7 and No. 9, respectively). "From a Window", a Lennon/McCartney composition, was his second and last UK single of 1964, and became a Top Ten hit.

After the peak
The 1965 Kramer single "It's Gotta Last Forever" signified a shift to a ballad approach. It failed to chart, though Kramer's cover version of Bacharach and David's "Trains and Boats and Planes" eclipsed Anita Harris' version in the UK, reaching number 12. All subsequent releases failed to chart.

The Dakotas' ranks were then strengthened by the inclusion of Mick Green, formerly a guitarist with the London band the Pirates who backed Johnny Kidd. This line-up cut a few tracks which were at odds with the balladeer's usual fare. These included a take on "When You Walk in the Room" and "Sneakin' Around". The Dakotas' final outing whilst with Kramer was the blues-driven "Oyeh!", but this also flopped.

Latterly
After releasing "We're Doing Fine", which also missed the charts, the singer and group parted company. Kramer, then lived in Rugby, Warwickshire, after marrying a local woman Ann Ginn there in 1968. He had a solo career over the next ten to fifteen years or so, working in cabaret and television with his new band, again from the Manchester area, consisting of Pete Heaton (bass), John Miller (drums) and Tim Randles (guitar) - this later saw changes with Bob Price now on bass, and Roger Bell on guitar. In the late 1970s, Kramer teamed up with Bedford musicians Mike Austin (bass), Max Milligan (guitar) and John Dillon (percussion), and the one constant member throughout the changes in musicians at this time was his sound engineer Stewart Oakes, performing cabaret in the UK and Europe, whilst also recording "San Diego" and "Ships that Pass in the Night" – after which Kramer eventually went to live in the United States.

The Dakotas re-formed in the late 1980s and recruited vocalist Eddie Mooney and session musician Toni Baker. They still tour and record. Other latter-day members are drummer Pete Hilton and guitarist Alan Clare.

In 1983, Kramer released a solo single on the RAK label, "You Can't Live on Memories" / "Stood Up", which failed to chart. The following year, 1984, he released "Shootin' the Breeze" / "Doris Day Movie" on 'Mean Records'. Again, this failed to chart.

In 2005, Kramer recorded the song "Cow Planet" for Dog Train, the children's album by Sandra Boynton. A long-term fan of Kramer, Boynton had sought him out for her project: in 1964, at the age of 11, Little Children became the first album she ever bought.

In late 2012, Kramer went back into the studio for the first time in years to record a new CD, I Won the Fight, which was released in 2013. The CD features some new songs written by Kramer, as well as some covers.

In 2013, Kramer provided the introduction to the graphic novel The Fifth Beatle by Vivek Tiwary. The book was released in November and spent several weeks on the New York Times best-seller list, reaching No. 1 in its third week of release. He also released a new album, entitled I Won the Fight.

In 2015, Kramer was part of the British Invasion 50th Anniversary tour, performing in the US and the UK. The following year saw the publication of his autobiography Do You Want to Know A Secret, co-written with Alyn Shipton. In February 2024 Billy J released a single “Are you with me” which charted on The Heritage Chart

title: Billy J. Kramer


text:
The Fourmost

The Fourmost are an English Merseybeat band that recorded in the 1960s. Their biggest UK hit single was "A Little Loving" in 1964.

Biography
Guitarist/vocalist Brian O'Hara and best friend guitarist/vocalist Joey Bower (born Joseph Bower, 17 November 1939, Dingle, Liverpool, Lancashire) formed the Two Jays in 1957. The group changed its name to the Four Jays in September 1959 when bass guitarist/singer Billy Hatton and drummer Brian Redman (born 21 June 1941, Huyton, Liverpool, Lancashire) joined the group. The Four Jays played at the Cavern Club on 1 March 1961. Rhythm guitarist/singer Mike Millward (ex-the Undertakers) joined the Four Jays in November 1961, followed by drummer/singer Dave Lovelady in September 1962. The band changed its name to the Fourmost in October 1962. On 30 June 1963, the group signed a management contract with Brian Epstein. This led to their being auditioned by George Martin and signed to EMI's Parlophone record label.

With Epstein as their manager, the Fourmost had access to early Lennon–McCartney compositions. The Fourmost's first two singles were written by John Lennon. "Hello Little Girl", one of the earliest Lennon songs, was released on 30 August 1963 and reached No. 9 in the UK Singles Chart. Their follow-up single, "I'm in Love" (Lennon–McCartney), was released on 15 November 1963 and reached No. 17 in the UK. It was also notable as one of the earliest Beatles-penned songs to be released in the United States but, as with the Fourmost's other singles, it failed to chart there.

Their biggest hit followed. "A Little Loving", written by Russ Alquist, reached No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart in mid-1964. From then on, none of the group's singles cracked the Top 20 in the UK. "How Can I Tell Her" was followed by a cover version of the Four Tops' "Baby I Need Your Loving", sung by Millward, while Hatton took lead vocal on "Everything in the Garden" and "Girls Girls Girls" (first recorded by the Coasters and a hit for Elvis Presley). O'Hara composed most of their songs, which were used as B-sides including "Waitin' for You", "That's Only What They Say", "He Could Never", and "You Got That Way".

On the group's only 1960s album, First and Fourmost, from September 1965, they covered Jackie DeShannon's, "Till You Say You'll Be Mine". Other tracks included "My Block" sung by Hatton and written by Jimmy Radcliffe, Carl Spencer and Bert Berns (originally a hit for the Chiffons in 1963), Millward sang a re-make of "The In Crowd", which featured the brass section from Sounds Incorporated, and Hatton sang cover versions of Little Richard's "The Girl Can't Help It" and "Heebie-Jeebies". The band appeared in the 1965 film Ferry Cross the Mersey and on the soundtrack album of the same name singing "I Love You Too" (which appeared in two differing versions from mono to stereo).

In early 1966, the band was rocked by the sudden death of rhythm guitarist/vocalist Mike Millward from leukaemia. They recruited George Peckham as replacement. In August 1966, the Fourmost covered another Beatles song, "Here, There and Everywhere", followed by a cover of George Formby's "Auntie Maggie's Remedy" in November 1966. The latter song was representative of a comedic element to some of the group's recordings. Peckham wrote and sang the country-influenced "Turn the Lights Down Low" (the B-side of "Auntie Maggie's Remedy"), a short-lived effort to branch out to less pop-oriented fare.

In 1968, now on the CBS record label, they recorded "Apples, Peaches And Pumpkin Pie", an R&B hit by Jay & the Techniques, followed by "Rosetta" (suggested by Paul McCartney, who played piano on it), and "Easy Squeezy". The group soon stopped recording, and became popular on the cabaret circuit. Peckham left the band in 1969 to run a recording studio. Joey Bower returned to the band as replacement. A later private pressing album, The Fourmost – featuring O'Hara, Hatton, Lovelady and Bower – included covers such as "Without You", "I've Got You Under My Skin", "Rag Doll" and "Save the Last Dance for Me"; it was sold at their shows in 1975.

Hatton, Lovelady and Bower all left in 1980 while O'Hara continued the group with new members, although a version of the band featuring O'Hara with Hatton and Lovelady did once perform at the new Cavern Club. O'Hara eventually dropped out, selling the band's name. A later line-up featuring longtime bassist/singer Bill Haisman (who had been in the later group alongside O'Hara) plus John Richards (lead guitar, vocals), Gary Pearson (guitar, vocals) and Kevin Clarkson (drums, vocals) released a DVD and CD titled The Fourmost Live at The Club Tropicana, featuring a recording of a show in Skegness on 7 April 2007. They performed both "Hello Little Girl" and "A Little Loving" among other covers of 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s hit songs. Charley Records later issued a 20-track compilation album also titled First and Fourmost, while EMI Records later released a CD stereo/mono version of the original 1965 album in 1999. Brian O'Hara took his own life the same year. In 2005, they also released a 33-track CD compilation The Best of The Fourmost, which included the stereo version of "I Love You Too", and four previously unreleased songs with booklet notes written by Hatton.

In 2008, Hatton and Lovelady lost a court case to own the trademark on "The Fourmost" name, to the iteration of the band dating back to when they both left in 1978. In the following years afterwards, the two toured as "The Original Fourmost".

Hatton died in 2017.

In 2018, the Fourmost completed a 59-date theatre tour on the Sensational 60s Experience Tour along with other acts from that period.

Original band members

 * Brian O'Hara, born 12 March 1941, Dingle, Liverpool; died 27 June 1999, Wavertree, Liverpool (suicide), vocalist/lead guitarist
 * Mike Millward, born Michael Millward, 9 May 1942, Bromborough, Cheshire; died 7 March 1966, at Clatterbridge Hospital, Bebington, Cheshire (leukemia) rhythm guitarist/vocalist
 * Billy Hatton, born William Henry Hatton, 9 June 1941, Dingle, Liverpool; bassist/vocalist died 19 September 2017, Liverpool
 * Dave Lovelady, born David Lovelady, 16 October 1942, Litherland, Liverpool, drummer/vocalist

title: The Fourmost


text:
Floater

Floaters or eye floaters are sometimes visible deposits (e.g., the shadows of tiny structures of protein or other cell debris projected onto the retina) within the eye's vitreous humour ("the vitreous"), which is normally transparent, or between the vitreous and retina. They can become particularly noticeable when looking at a blank surface or an open monochromatic space, such as blue sky. Each floater can be measured by its size, shape, consistency, refractive index, and motility. They are also called muscae volitantes (Latin for 'flying flies'), or mouches volantes (from the same phrase in French). The vitreous usually starts out transparent, but imperfections may gradually develop as one ages. The common type of floater, present in most people's eyes, is due to these degenerative changes of the vitreous. The perception of floaters, which may be annoying or problematic to some people, is known as myodesopsia, or, less commonly, as myodaeopsia, myiodeopsia, or myiodesopsia. It is not often treated, except in severe cases, where vitrectomy (surgery), laser vitreolysis, and medication may be effective.

Floaters are visible either because of the shadows that imperfections cast on the retina, or because of the refraction of light that passes through them, and can appear alone or together with several others as a clump in one's visual field. They may appear as spots, threads, or fragments of "cobwebs", which float slowly before the observer's eyes, and move especially in the direction the eyes move. As these objects exist within the eye itself, they are not optical illusions but are entoptic phenomena (caused by the eye itself). They are not to be confused with visual snow, which is similar to the static on a television screen, although these two conditions may co-exist as part of a number of visual disturbances which include starbursts, trails, and afterimages.

Signs and symptoms

Floaters are from objects in pockets of liquid within the vitreous humour, the thick fluid or gel that fills the eye, or between the vitreous and the retina. The vitreous humour, or vitreous body, is a jelly-like, transparent substance that fills the majority of the eye. It lies within the vitreous chamber behind the lens, and is one of the four optical components of the eye. Thus, floaters follow the rapid motions of the eye, while drifting slowly within the pocket of liquid. When they are first noticed, the natural reaction is to attempt to look directly at them. However, attempting to shift one's gaze toward them can be difficult because floaters follow the motion of the eye, remaining to the side of the direction of gaze. Floaters are, in fact, visible only because they do not remain perfectly fixed within the eye. Although the blood vessels of the eye also obstruct light, they are invisible under normal circumstances because they are fixed in location relative to the retina, and the brain "tunes out" stabilized images through neural adaptation.

Floaters are particularly noticeable when looking at a blank surface or an open monochromatic space, such as blue sky. Despite the name "floaters", many of these specks have a tendency to sink toward the bottom of the eyeball, in whichever way the eyeball is oriented; the supine position (looking up or lying back) tends to concentrate them near the fovea, which is the center of gaze, while the textureless and evenly lit sky forms an ideal background against which to view them. The brightness of the daytime sky also causes the eyes' pupils to contract, reducing the aperture, which makes floaters less blurry and easier to see.

Floaters present at birth usually remain lifelong, while those that appear later may disappear within weeks or months. They are not uncommon, and do not cause serious problems for most people. A survey of optometrists in 2002 suggested that an average of 14 patients per month per optometrist presented with symptoms of floaters in the UK. However, floaters are more than a nuisance and a distraction to those with severe cases, especially if the spots seem constantly to drift through the field of vision. The shapes are shadows projected onto the retina by tiny structures of protein or other cell debris discarded over the years and trapped in the vitreous humour or between the vitreous and retina. Floaters can even be seen when the eyes are closed on especially bright days, when sufficient light penetrates the eyelids to cast the shadows. It is not, however, only elderly persons who are troubled by floaters; they can also become a problem to younger people, especially if they are myopic. They are also common after cataract or clear lens extraction operations or after trauma.

Floaters are able to catch and refract light in ways that somewhat blur vision temporarily until the floater moves to a different area. Often they trick persons who are troubled by floaters into thinking they see something out of the corner of their eye that really is not there. Most people come to terms with the problem, after a time, and learn to ignore their floaters. For persons with severe floaters it is nearly impossible to ignore completely the large masses that constantly stay within almost direct view.

In the case of young people, particularly those under 35, symptomatic floaters are likely suspended within a posterior region of the eye known as the pre-macular bursa. Such floaters appear well-defined and usually bear the appearance of a 'crystal worm' or cobweb. Due to their proximity to the retina, the floaters have a significant effect on the visual field for patients. In addition, such floaters are often in the central visual axis as it moves with the intravitreal currents of the eye. Research on floaters of the pre-macular bursa is minimal, and safe treatment for patients with this disturbance that does not warrant major vitrectomy has yet to be discovered. Moreover, the cause and prognosis for such floaters also remains to be found. Some doctors suggest such floaters may resolve over time, should the floaters move away from the retina.

Causes
There are various causes for the appearance of floaters, of which the most common are described here.

Floaters can occur when eyes age; in rare cases, floaters may be a sign of retinal detachment or a retinal tear.

Vitreous syneresis
Vitreous syneresis (liquefaction) and contraction with age can cause vitreous floaters. Additionally, trauma or injury to the globe can cause them.

Vitreous detachments and retinal detachments
In time, the liquefied vitreous body loses support and its framework contracts. This leads to posterior vitreous detachment, in which the vitreous membrane is released from the sensory retina. During this detachment, the shrinking vitreous can stimulate the retina mechanically, causing the patient to see random flashes across the visual field, sometimes referred to as "flashers", a symptom more formally referred to as photopsia. The ultimate release of the vitreous around the optic nerve head sometimes makes a large floater appear, usually in the shape of a ring ("Weiss ring"). As a complication, part of the retina might be torn off by the departing vitreous membrane, in a process known as retinal detachment. This will often leak blood into the vitreous, which is seen by the patient as a sudden appearance of numerous small dots, moving across the whole field of vision. Retinal detachment requires immediate medical attention, as it can easily cause blindness. Consequently, both the appearance of flashes and the sudden onset of numerous small floaters should be rapidly investigated by an eye care provider.

Posterior vitreous detachment is more common in people who:
 * are nearsighted;
 * have undergone cataract surgery or clear lens extraction;
 * have had YAG laser surgery of the eye;
 * have had inflammation inside the eye.

Regression of the hyaloid artery
The hyaloid artery, an artery running through the vitreous humour during the fetal stage of development, regresses in the third trimester of pregnancy. Its disintegration can sometimes leave cell matter.

Other common causes
Patients with retinal tears may experience floaters if red blood cells are released from leaky blood vessels, and those with uveitis or vitritis, as in toxoplasmosis, may experience multiple floaters and decreased vision due to the accumulation of white blood cells in the vitreous humour.

Other causes for floaters include cystoid macular edema and asteroid hyalosis. The latter is an anomaly of the vitreous humour, whereby calcium clumps attach themselves to the collagen network. The bodies that are formed in this way move slightly with eye movement, but then return to their fixed position.

Diagnosis
Floaters are often readily observed by an ophthalmologist or an optometrist with the use of an ophthalmoscope or slit lamp. However, if the floater is near the retina, it may not be visible to the observer even if it appears large to the patient.

Increasing background illumination or using a pinhole to effectively decrease pupil diameter may allow a person to obtain a better view of his or her own floaters. The head may be tilted in such a way that one of the floaters drifts towards the central axis of the eye. In the sharpened image the fibrous elements are more conspicuous.

The presence of retinal tears with new onset of floaters was surprisingly high (14%; 95% confidence interval, 12–16%) as reported in a meta-analysis published as part of the Rational Clinical Examination Series in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Patients with new onset flashes and/or floaters, especially when associated with visual loss or restriction in the visual field, should seek more urgent ophthalmologic evaluation.

Treatment
While surgeries do exist to correct for severe cases of floaters, there are no medications (including eye drops) that can correct for this vitreous deterioration. Floaters are often caused by the normal aging process and will usually become less bothersome as a person learns to ignore them. Looking up/down and left/right will cause the floaters to leave the direct field of vision as the vitreous humour swirls around due to the sudden movement. If floaters significantly increase in numbers and/or severely affect vision, then one of the treatments below may be necessary.

, insufficient evidence is available to compare the safety and efficacy of surgical vitrectomy with laser vitreolysis for the treatment of floaters. A 2017 Cochrane Review did not find any relevant studies that compared the two treatments.

Aggressive marketing campaigns have promoted the use of laser vitreolysis for the treatment of floaters. No strong evidence currently exists for the treatment of floaters with laser vitreolysis. The strongest available evidence comparing these two treatment modalities are retrospective case series.

Surgery
Vitrectomy may be successful in treating more severe cases. The technique usually involves making three openings through the part of the sclera known as the pars plana. Of these small gauge instruments, one is an infusion port to resupply a saline solution and maintain the pressure of the eye, the second is a fiber optic light source, and the third is a vitrector. The vitrector has a reciprocating cutting tip attached to a suction device. This design reduces traction on the retina via the vitreous material. A variant sutureless, self-sealing technique is sometimes used.

Like most invasive surgical procedures, however, vitrectomy carries a risk of complications, including: retinal detachment, anterior vitreous detachment and macular edema – which can threaten vision or worsen existing floaters (in the case of retinal detachment).

Laser vitreolysis
Laser vitreolysis is a possible treatment option for the removal of vitreous strands and opacities (floaters). In this procedure an ophthalmic laser (usually a yttrium aluminium garnet (YAG) laser) applies a series of nanosecond pulses of low-energy laser light to evaporate the vitreous opacities and to sever the vitreous strands. When performed with a YAG laser designed specifically for vitreolysis, reported side effects and complications associated with vitreolysis are rare. However, YAG lasers have traditionally been designed for use in the anterior portion of the eye, i.e. posterior capsulotomy and iridotomy treatments. As a result, they often provide a limited view of the vitreous, which can make it difficult to identify the targeted floaters and membranes. They also carry a high risk of damage to surrounding ocular tissue. Accordingly, vitreolysis is not widely practised, being performed by very few specialists. One of them, John Karickhoff, has performed the procedure more than 1,400 times and claims a 90 percent success rate. However, the MedicineNet web site states that "there is no evidence that this [laser treatment] is effective. The use of a laser also poses significant risks to the vision in what is otherwise a healthy eye."

Medication
Enzymatic vitreolysis has been trialed to treat vitreomacular adhesion (VMA) and anomalous posterior vitreous detachment. Although the mechanism of action may have an effect on clinically significant floaters, there are no clinical trials being undertaken to determine whether this may be a therapeutic alternative to either conservative management or vitrectomy.

Atropine
Dropping low doses of atropine onto the eye dilates the pupil, thus reducing shadow formation on the retina by floaters.

Research
The VDM project aims to find an effective, low-risk treatment for floaters. So far, there have been studies using colloidal gold or indocyanine green (ICG) injected into the eye followed by a low-energy laser to target problematic floaters, and this has shown to be successful on vitreous opacities obtained during vitrectomy and in rabbits.

Epidemiology
A vitreous detachment typically affects patients older than the age of 50 and increases in prevalence by age 80. Individuals who are myopic or nearsighted have an increased risk of vitreous floaters. Additionally, eyes with an inflammatory disease after direct trauma to the globe or have recently undergone eye surgery have an increased chance of developing a vitreous floater. Men and women appear to be affected equally.

In other animals
It has been theorized that non-human animals are capable of seeing floaters, as most mammals have anatomically similar eye structures to humans. However, floaters in animals are capable of damaging their vision. Animals with synchysis have an increased risk for retinal detachment and may also require surgery.

title: Floater