text:
Geri Halliwell

Geraldine Estelle Halliwell-Horner (née Halliwell; born 6 August 1972) is an English  singer, songwriter, television personality, author, and actress. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the pop group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Ginger Spice. With over 100 million records sold worldwide, the Spice Girls are the best-selling female group of all time. Their slogan "girl power" was most closely associated with Halliwell and her Union Jack dress from the 1997 Brit Awards also became an enduring symbol. Halliwell left the Spice Girls in 1998, citing exhaustion and creative differences, but rejoined when they reunited for a greatest hits album (2007) and two concert tours: the Return of the Spice Girls (2007–2008) and Spice World (2019).

After leaving the Spice Girls, Halliwell pursued a career as a solo artist, signing a recording contract with EMI. She released her debut solo studio album, Schizophonic (1999), which produced the UK number-one singles "Mi Chico Latino", "Lift Me Up" and "Bag It Up"; the lead single, "Look at Me", reached number two. Her second studio album, Scream If You Wanna Go Faster (2001), was preceded by the lead single, "It's Raining Men", which reached number one in the UK and earned her a Brit Award nomination. Her third studio album, Passion (2005), produced the UK top five single "Ride It". In 2013, Halliwell returned to the music industry in Australia with the release of her first solo single in eight years, "Half of Me".

Halliwell has served as a judge on television talent shows, including Popstars: The Rivals (2002), The X Factor UK, (2010, 2012), and Australia's Got Talent (2013). She has appeared in films, including Spice World (1997), Crank: High Voltage (2009), and Gran Turismo (2023). As an author, Halliwell has released two autobiographies: If Only (1999) and Just for the Record (2002); the children's book series Ugenia Lavender (2008), and the young adult novel Rosie Frost and the Falcon Queen (2023).

Early life
Geraldine Estelle Halliwell was born on 6 August 1972 at Watford General Hospital in Watford, Hertfordshire, the daughter of Ana María (née Hidalgo) and Laurence Francis Halliwell (1922–1993). Her mother is Spanish, hailing from Huesca, while her father was of Swedish, Finnish, English and a "bit of French" descent. Halliwell's paternal grandfather was a Swedish-speaking Finn Mathias Karlson Sjövik, born in Korsnäs, Finland, who emigrated to Sweden. Halliwell grew up on a council estate in North Watford. She was educated at Watford Grammar School for Girls and Camden School for Girls. Before starting her music career, Halliwell had worked as a nightclub dancer in Majorca, a presenter on the Turkish version of Let's Make a Deal, and a glamour model. At the age of 19, she appeared as a Page 3 girl in The Sun. Following her rise to fame, nude photos of Halliwell were republished in a number of magazines such as Playboy and Penthouse in 1998.

1994–1998: Spice Girls
In 1994, Halliwell, along with Melanie C, Mel B and Victoria Beckham, responded to an advertisement in The Stage magazine seeking members for a new all-girl pop group. Around 400 women responded and auditioned. After a couple of line-up changes, Halliwell, Melanie C, Mel B and Beckham became the members of the group called "Touch", and were later joined by Emma Bunton.

In March 1995, the group broke with their original management, Heart Management. In the months that followed, they teamed up with music manager Simon Fuller, signed a deal with Virgin Records, and changed the group name to Spice Girls. In 1996, the group released their debut album, Spice, which became a worldwide commercial success. The album peaked at number one in more than 17 countries and was certified multi-platinum in 27 countries. The group's massive and sudden popularity was compared to Beatlemania. The album sold 30 million copies worldwide, became the biggest-selling album in music history by a girl group, and is one of the most successful albums of all time. The album's first single, "Wannabe", reached number one in 37 countries and all of the subsequent singles from the album – "Say You'll Be There", "2 Become 1", "Who Do You Think You Are" and "Mama" – also peaked at number one in United Kingdom.

Shortly after the release of "Wannabe", each member of the group received a nickname from Top of the Pops magazine; the use of these nicknames later became widespread. Because of her red hair, Halliwell was named "Ginger Spice". Although regularly uttered by all five Spice Girls, the phrase "girl power" was most closely associated with Halliwell and was often accompanied with a V sign. In a Christmas 1996 interview with The Spectator magazine, Halliwell controversially spoke of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher as being an inspiration for their girl power ideology. In a 2019 interview with Harper's Bazaar, she said, "For me, if you look it up, it means equalisation between the sexes. It means everybody, whether you're a man, woman or something in between. Forget about labels, it's about embracing everyone's individuality and giving them the opportunity and gender equality and pushing that forward."

In 1997, the group released their second album, Spiceworld. The album's first two singles "Spice Up Your Life" and "Too Much" reached number one in the UK, marking seven consecutive number one singles, an all-time record for a musical group. The album was a global best seller, selling 20 million copies worldwide. The group also starred in their own film, Spiceworld: The Movie, which grossed $100 million worldwide. The third single from Spiceworld, "Stop", peaked at two, breaking the group's sequence of number ones.

On 31 May 1998, Halliwell announced through her solicitor that she had left the Spice Girls due to depression and differences between the group. Her action aroused controversy as her former group was due to embark on a North American tour, which they eventually completed without her. In the months that followed, Halliwell was featured on two more Spice Girls releases that were scheduled prior to her departure. On 1 June 1998, Halliwell alongside the other Spice Girls were featured in the song and video for "(How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World", the official theme of the England national football team for the 1998 World Cup. In July 1998, the Spice Girls released "Viva Forever" as the final single from Spiceworld. The animated music video for the song still features Halliwell's likeness, as it was in production months prior to her departure. The group is among the best-selling girl groups of all time, selling over 75 million albums.

1999–2003: Schizophonic and Scream If You Wanna Go Faster
In 1999, one year after leaving the group, Halliwell launched her solo career and released her debut album Schizophonic, with the lead single "Look at Me", produced by Absolute and Phil Bucknall. "Look at Me" was followed by further number ones at the UK Singles Chart, "Mi Chico Latino", "Lift Me Up" and "Bag It Up". The album itself reached a peak at number four in the United Kingdom and sold 600,000 copies there, making it double platinum. The album was preceded by a 90-minute documentary titled Geri, released in May 1999 for the British television channel Channel 4 by Molly Dineen. The documentary was a ratings success with 4.5 million viewers—almost one-fifth of available viewers—and Channel 4 aired it again one month later. Halliwell was nominated at BRIT Awards ceremony in 2000, for Best British Female Solo Artist and Best Pop Act, she also performed "Bag It Up" during the show, emerging between giant inflatable legs, ripping off her shirt and walking in stiletto heels over the backs of topless pink-haired men whilst performing the song. Schizophonic debuted at number 42 on the Billboard 200 before dropping out within the next month. The album was eventually certified gold, distributing over 500,000 copies. The album ended up selling around two million copies worldwide.

In October 1999, Halliwell released the autobiography If Only, in which she described her life as a Spice Girl. The book went on to top the best-seller lists and sold over a million copies in the UK alone. Halliwell donated the profits made from the sales of her autobiography to a Breast Cancer charity. In the following year, Halliwell was in a short-term relationship with the pop singer Robbie Williams.

In 2001, Halliwell followed up with her second album, Scream If You Wanna Go Faster, the album peaked at number five in the United Kingdom and sold 200,000 copies there and was certified gold. It included her cover version of the Weather Girls' 1983 hit, "It's Raining Men", was also used on the Bridget Jones's Diary film soundtrack and the video game DDRMAX2 Dance Dance Revolution 7thMix. The song was released as the lead single from the album. "Its Raining Men" became a major hit worldwide, it peaked at number one in the United Kingdom and peaked in the top 10 in over 27 countries, becoming Halliwell's biggest hit to date. The song won her the International Song of the Year award at the 2002 NRJ Music Awards. The singles that followed, "Scream If You Wanna Go Faster" and "Calling", reached number eight and number seven in the United Kingdom, respectively. Halliwell released a special French edition of "Calling", titled "Au Nom de L'amour". In 2001, Halliwell released the yoga DVD Geri Yoga with her yoga teacher Katy Appleton; this was followed by Geri Body Yoga the following year. In January 2002, she released her second autobiography, Just for the Record, detailing her rise to fame and her turbulent celebrity lifestyle. In 2002 Halliwell was once again nominated at the BRIT Awards, this time for Best British Female Solo Artist and Best British Single for "It's Raining Men".

In late 2002, Halliwell was featured alongside Pete Waterman and Louis Walsh as a judge on the television series Popstars: The Rivals, which created Girls Aloud. and as a guest reporter on celebrity-based series Extra in the US. In 2003, she made a guest appearance on the television series Sex and the City.

2004–2012: Passion, Ugenia Lavender, and Spice Girls reunion
In late 2004, Halliwell made a return to music with the single "Ride It", which reached number four in the United Kingdom and number one on the dance charts. However, several months elapsed before another single was released, during which time she was apparently instructed to record some new tracks for the as yet unreleased album by her record company, which was unhappy with the setlist. Halliwell planned her first solo tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland, but due to lack of ticket sales, compounded by the label's pressure on Halliwell to record additional songs, led to the cancellation of the tour. That year, Halliwell appeared in the 2004 film Fat Slags, based on characters from Viz magazine. She also appeared on Channel Five as one of the hosts of the Party in the Park event for the Prince's Trust, the presenter and main performer of the Tickled Pink Girls' night in Live! event.

Eventually, a new single, "Desire", was released on 30 May 2005, reaching number 22 in the UK Singles Chart and number one on the UK Dance Charts. Released shortly after, the source album, Passion, similarly received little attention from the public or critics and stalled at number 41 in the British charts.The album was preceded by the promotional documentary There's Something About Geri. Halliwell's recording contract with EMI was subsequently not renewed and she stated that she was not interested in recording another album at that time and was content with writing children's books and motherhood.

On 12 April 2007, it was announced that Halliwell had signed a six-book deal with Macmillan Children's Books. The series of children's novels, titled Ugenia Lavender, follow the adventures of nine-year-old Ugenia, a character based on Halliwell, alongside her friends Bronte, Rudy and Trevor. The character Princess Posh Vattoria, a caricature of Halliwell's bandmate Victoria Beckham, was featured in early drafts, but has not appeared in the book series. Other characters are said by Halliwell to be loosely based on Gordon Ramsay, George Michael, Marilyn Monroe, Vincent van Gogh, Wayne Rooney and the character Justin Suarez from the TV series Ugly Betty. According to the official site, the book sold more than 250,000 copies in its first 5 months, making Halliwell 2008's most successful female celebrity children's author.

On 29 June 2007, the Spice Girls regrouped and announced plans for a reunion tour, from which they were said to have earned £10 million each (about US$20 million). The group toured as a quintet and released their first compilation album, Greatest Hits. This album was released in early November 2007 and the tour began on 2 December 2007. On 31 December 2007, the Spice Girls documentary Spice Girls: Giving You Everything was released. In addition to their sell-out tour, the Spice Girls appeared in Tesco advertisements for which they were paid £1 million each.

In 2009, Halliwell appeared in the film Crank: High Voltage and on the BBC One's The One Show on 7 May 2009. In 2010, Halliwell stood in for Dannii Minogue as a guest judge on The X Factor at the Glasgow auditions alongside Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and Cheryl. In March 2010, vocal coach and singer Carrie Grant announced on ITV1's The Alan Titchmarsh Show that Halliwell would be making a return to music. In April 2010, Halliwell posted a message on her website, saying she was back in the studio. On 31 July 2011, Halliwell confirmed she had been working on her fourth album and remarked that it was "pretty much finished." In February 2012, Halliwell announced that her fourth album was being mastered.

2012–2019: Return to music and second Spice Girls reunion
In 2012, Halliwell returned as a guest judge on The X Factor at the Liverpool auditions, standing in for Kelly Rowland. In April 2013, the Nine Network announced that she would become the fourth judge on season seven of Australia's Got Talent replacing Minogue. In August 2012, Halliwell reunited with the Spice Girls to perform as a quintet at the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games in London. The group also teamed up with Jennifer Saunders and Judy Craymer to develop a musical based on the songs of the Spice Girls titled Viva Forever!, which opened on 11 December 2012. In October 2012, Halliwell made her first solo performance in seven years at the Breast Cancer Care, debuting a new track called "Phenomenal Woman".

On 3 October 2013, Halliwell premiered her first solo single in nearly eight years, "Half of Me", with a performance on Channel 9's NRL Footy Show grand final show in Australia. On 12 September 2013, it was announced that the song would be released exclusively in Australia as part of a new deal with Sony Music Australia. The single was released on 25 October 2013 and reached number 281 in the Australian charts. On the grand final of Australia's Got Talent, she performed an acoustic version of the Spice Girls' hit single "Wannabe".

In 2015, Halliwell continued to work on new material for a fourth studio album. She guest presented an episode of The One Show in October 2015. In November 2016, 13 new songs by Halliwell which were reportedly recorded for an album titled Man on the Mountain were leaked onto the internet.

In July 2016, Halliwell, Mel B and Bunton released a video celebrating the 20th anniversary of Spice Girls' debut single "Wannabe" and teased news from them as a three-piece; Beckham and Melanie C opted not to take part in a reunion project, with Mel B saying that both members gave the three-piece their blessing to continue with the project. However, following Halliwell's announcement of her pregnancy, the project was cancelled. That year, Halliwell appeared on episode three of the 2016 series of Sport Relief Bake Off.

In March 2017, Halliwell presented the BBC Two documentary Geri's 90s: My Drive to Freedom as part of the BBC Music: My Generation series. In June 2017, Halliwell released a charity single, "Angels in Chains", a tribute to George Michael, to raise money for Childline. The single peaked at number 63 on the Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100. She sat in for Zoë Ball on BBC Radio 2 in July 2017. She guest presented an episode of This Morning in August 2017 with Rylan Clark-Neal. In 2018, she was a judge on the Saturday night BBC One talent show All Together Now.

On 5 November 2018, the Spice Girls announced their reunion Spice World – 2019 Tour; Beckham declined to join due to commitments regarding her fashion business.

2020–present: Rainbow Woman and Rosie Frost
In November 2020, Halliwell debuted the original YouTube series Rainbow Woman for which she wrote, directed, and served as an executive producer. The series features Halliwell taking part in series of vignettes that follow her on different adventures. In August 2021, she had a voice role in the short animated movie The Crown with a Shadow, directed by J.B. Ghuman Jr.

Halliwell was in the cast of the 2023 film Gran Turismo, playing the wife of Djimon Hounsou. Gran Turismo premiered at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium on July 30, 2023, and was theatrically released in the United States on August 25, 2023, by Sony Pictures Releasing. It has grossed $122 million worldwide against its $60 million budget.

In October 2022, Halliwell announced a new book deal with the UK branch of Scholastic. The first book announced is a young adult novel titled Rosie Frost and the Falcon Queen. The story is about an orphan who travels to Bloodstone Island — an island that is home to a school for extraordinary teens and a refuge for animals, where she uncovers a dark family secret. Halliwell said in a statement: “Rosie Frost has lived in my heart for a long time – and this feels just the right moment to introduce her to the world." The book was released on 3 October 2023. Alongside its release, Halliwell released the original songs "Ghost in My House" and "Beautiful Life" to promote the book. That same month, Halliwell went to the United States on a book tour. On 6 October 2023, Halliwell appeared on an episode of CBeebies Bedtime Stories, reading "I Love You Because I Love You" by Muợn Thị Văn.

Fashion
In 2010, Halliwell partnered with British retailer Next to create a swimwear collection named "Geri by Next". This was followed by a Union Jack-motif clothing range in 2012, inspired by Halliwell's famous 1997 Union Jack dress.

Philanthropy
In 1998, Halliwell became a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). In 2000 Halliwell appeared in the two-part documentary series Geri's World Walkabout for the BBC, which followed her work with the UN and other travels. That same year, she gave the opening address at the UN Youth Summit. Halliwell picked up further UN work in 2006, by visiting Zambia from 14 to 16 November, to promote greater international awareness of the urgent need to reduce maternal death and halt the spread of HIV/AIDS. In September 2009, Halliwell, in her role as a Goodwill Ambassador of UNFPA, visited Nepal to help launch a national campaign to stop violence against women.

On 25 October 2015, the Mail on Sunday reported that Halliwell had been in talks with the Department for Education with a view to establishing a free school in north London, scheduled to open in 2018 and specialising in the arts and business. Halliwell told the newspaper: "I believe in education. It's an empowering fundamental human right that everyone deserves. Education is a foundation for life." The Department subsequently confirmed that it had spoken with Halliwell, but that discussions were at an early stage.

Politics
In the run-up to the 1997 general election, Halliwell declared: "I saw a lot of what Mrs. Thatcher did. She was definitely the original Spice Girl rising from the greengrocer's daughter to Prime Minister." She said her background was deeply rooted in support for the Conservative Party and that Thatcher was the pioneer of "Girl Power" and the spiritual sixth member of the Spice Girls. She said in 1996 that Tony Blair was "not a safe pair of hands for the economy". By the 2001 general election, Halliwell had switched her support to Tony Blair and the Labour Party, making a cameo appearance in one of their party election broadcasts.

In a 2007 interview with The Guardian, Halliwell said she was a feminist, but took issue with its image, explaining: "It's about branding. For me, feminism is bra-burning lesbianism. It's very unglamorous. I'd like to see it rebranded. We need to see a celebration of our femininity and softness."

Personal life
Halliwell gave birth to her daughter in May 2006. The child's father is screenwriter Sacha Gervasi with whom Halliwell was in a relationship in 2005; Victoria Beckham and Emma Bunton are godmothers.

Halliwell began dating Christian Horner, the team principal of the Red Bull Racing Formula One team, in February 2014. They announced their engagement on 11 November 2014 and the couple were married on 15 May 2015 at St Mary's Church in Woburn, Bedfordshire. In October 2016, Halliwell said that Horner and she were expecting their first child together. Halliwell gave birth to a son on 21 January 2017.

In a 2019 interview with Piers Morgan, Melanie Brown was asked if she had slept with Halliwell in an intimate manner and she nodded yes. Halliwell released a statement saying that the press reports following the interview had been "hurtful to her family". Brown responded: "I just said it was like a little thing and we giggled about it the next day and that’s that. It’s the press [who] have taken it onto a whole new level."

Halliwell's first dog, Harry, came from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home. She later adopted Daisy, who survived life-saving liver surgery at just six months old, as seen on Paul O'Grady: For the Love of Dogs.

Halliwell has spoken out about her experiences of bulimia, saying that she came close to death, weighing just 7 st, and was advised by Robbie Williams to seek medical help. In 2011, she spoke of being comfortable with her body and credits her newly healthy relationship with food to motherhood. After having previously been agnostic, Halliwell became a Christian after taking the Alpha Course evangelical program.

Halliwell's brother, Max, died on 17 November 2021, at age 54.

In 2022, Halliwell was awarded an honorary doctorate from Sheffield Hallam University.

Discography

 * Schizophonic (1999)
 * Scream If You Wanna Go Faster (2001)
 * Passion (2005)

title: Geri Halliwell


text:
Cannibal squeeze

Cannibal squeeze or suicide squeeze is a type of squeeze in bridge or whist, in which a defender is squeezed by a card played by his partner. Normally, this occurs with less-than-perfect defense, but there are also legitimate positions where the defense could not have prevailed.

Examples
West is on lead. If he cashes the high heart, a club is thrown from the dummy, and East is squeezed. Whichever card East discards, the declarer will take two tricks in that suit. Instead, West must lead a diamond to protect the partner from subsequent endplay (if he returns a club, the declarer will take the King and put East in with another club, forcing him to lead into AQ).

The most common position for a legitimate suicide squeeze occurs when a side suit is "tangled" (neither side can lead it without giving up a trick), and another suit is protected by the partner of the player on lead, as in the following diagram: West is to lead; if he leads a diamond, it will "untangle" the suit for the declarer, who will take two diamond tricks. However, when he leads the high heart, he induces a simple squeeze on his partner, who must either discard the high 7 or unguard the diamond king. (Dummy has an idle card, and East is to play before the declarer.) Again declarer will take two tricks.

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

title: Cannibal squeeze


text:
Hamilton Jordan

William Hamilton McWhorter Jordan (September 21, 1944 – May 20, 2008)  was an American politician who served as Chief of Staff to President of the United States Jimmy Carter.

Early life
Jordan was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, the son of Adelaide (McWhorter) and Richard Lawton Jordan. He grew up in Albany, Georgia. He attended the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, where he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Jordan graduated with an A.B. in political science in 1967. After being disqualified from military service due to leg problems, he worked as a civilian volunteer in Vietnam during the war there, assisting refugees.

Political career
In 1970, at the age of 26, Jordan ran Jimmy Carter's successful gubernatorial campaign, which included a Democratic primary election fight against former Governor Carl Sanders and a less eventful general election against the Republican Hal Suit. While serving as Governor Carter's executive assistant, Jordan wrote a lengthy memorandum detailing a strategy for winning the 1976 Democratic Primary. Years later, Jordan's memo served as the "game plan" for Carter's 1976 presidential bid.

Jordan was a key advisor and strategist for Carter during the 1976 presidential campaign and during Carter's administration, serving as White House Chief of Staff in 1979–1980 (Carter, who took office in 1977, had previously not seen the need formally to appoint an aide to such a post). Jordan played a powerful role in the formulation of election strategies and government policies. In 1976 Jordan's youth and casual style gave him a media reputation as a fun-loving, partying, unsophisticated "good ole boy." This turned into a problem during the last year of the Carter administration, when Jordan became a lightning rod for critics of the president across the political spectrum. The media repeated rumors of coarse and even criminal behavior by Jordan, including supposed cocaine usage and anonymous sex at the infamous Studio 54 disco in New York City. Though extensive legal investigations failed to substantiate any of the rumors, Jordan later recalled this as a particularly painful time in his life.

According to one often repeated story from this period, Jordan stared at the breasts of the Egyptian ambassador's wife at a Washington reception and remarked, "I have always wanted to see the pyramids". The story was told in various versions, all based on anonymous sources. Jordan denied it ever took place in his memoir No Such Thing as a Bad Day. CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite later recalled that the network's coverage of the cocaine allegations against Jordan was the "worst story he had ever broadcast."

(Jordan's associate, Timothy Kraft, the 1980 Carter campaign manager, was accused of cocaine use at a party in New Orleans and left the campaign some five weeks before the general election. He was cleared in 1981 by special prosecutor Gerald J. Gallinghouse, a Republican former U.S. Attorney who had earlier prosecuted corruption in the Louisiana state government. ) In 1986, Jordan ran for the Democratic nomination for one of Georgia's seats in the United States Senate. He lost the primary to Representative Wyche Fowler, who went on to win the general election against the Republican incumbent Mack Mattingly. In 1992, he became a high-level staffer on the presidential campaign of independent candidate Ross Perot. In later years he served both as a member of the founders council and as an important public advocate for Unity08, a political movement focused on reforming the American two party system.

Jordan was portrayed by Kyle Chandler in the 2012 film Argo.

Later life
Jordan was chief executive of the Association of Tennis Professionals when they took control of the professional men's world tennis tour in 1990, replacing the Men's Tennis Council. His nephew, R. Lawton Jordan, served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs during Bill Clinton's administration. Jordan authored the book No Such Thing as a Bad Day in 2000.

Personal
He and his wife Dorothy, a pediatric oncology nurse, founded a camp for children with cancer – Camp Sunshine – and a camp for children with diabetes – Camp Kudzu – in Georgia. He was an honorary board member of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation. An earlier marriage, to Nancy Konigsmark, ended in divorce.

His son, Hamilton Jordan Jr., is a member of the experimental metal band Genghis Tron. His two other children, Kathleen and Alex, both attended Kenyon College. Alex, Kathleen and Hamilton Jr. helped to complete their father's memoir about growing up in the 1950s South, A Boy From Georgia. Jordan wrote about 90% of the work, with Kathleen, a TV/film comedy executive, penning the balance. Jordan's original title for the memoir was Meet the Gottheimers, a reference to the fact that he had discovered, not until he was in college, that his maternal grandmother had been Jewish. The memoir was submitted to possible publishers, with the University of Georgia Press announcing in 2015 that it would publish the book that fall.

Death
Jordan died on May 20, 2008, aged 63, from peritoneal mesothelioma, which he believed resulted from his exposure to asbestos during his volunteer service in Vietnam. He had survived several other forms of cancer earlier in his life, including diffuse histiocytic non-Hodgkin lymphoma, melanoma, and prostate cancer.

title: Hamilton Jordan


text:
Talk:Cannibal squeeze

Baseball link
Just wanted to agree with what the anon user added back. Yes, it's bad form to have two disambigs on a page normally... but the main alternative would be to make THIS a disambig page itself, since both disambigs are probably referenced far more often than the content of the actual article (which would normally be Suicide squeeze (bridge)). So this is the best compromise. SnowFire 16:29, 5 May 2006 (UTC)
 * This is about equally known as "cannibal squeeze", and it occurs fairly rare. I can move it there, and make this article a pure disambig. Duja 16:39, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

title: Talk:Cannibal squeeze


text:
Talk:Perse

Untitled
I won't say in the article proper, what "perse" is in the Finnish language >;-)
 * Why? You can describe it very simply: It's the part of your body you sit on. :)  But I simply don't get the "Perse School"!! I could laugh tears.. -- sorry.
 * You Finns, you really crack us up!

I recall Perse is also a small river and a waterfall in Latvia, near Koknese. Perhaps someone from Latvia can help out here.

Btw, meaning is the same in Estonian as it is in Finnish :)

isn't this a dark purple color?
sorry i'm not logged in (Twitterpated. is my username), but isn't "perse" a purplish black color? wiktionary says this. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.200.210.51 (talk) 19:42, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

title: Talk:Perse


text:
Gwenda Thomas

Gwenda Thomas (born 22 January 1942 in Neath) is a Welsh Labour politician who served as Member of the Welsh Assembly for Neath from the Assembly's start in 1999 to 2016. Thomas was first elected to the National Assembly for Wales in 1999 and re-elected in 2003, having almost doubled her majority.

Background
Thomas was educated at Pontardawe Grammar School, she lives in Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen. Thomas was married to her late husband Morgan (1939-2013) for nearly 50 years, and they have one son, Geraint and a granddaughter, Charlotte.

She is a fluent Welsh speaker. She is a member of the GMB Union. She worked in the County Courts Division of the Lord Chancellor's Department and at the Benefits Agency as an executive officer for many years.

On 10 January 2017 she received an honorary doctorate from Swansea University.

Mrs Thomas is a campaigner for carers' rights and a past member of the Lord Chancellor's advisory committee. Her interests include health, social services, children's issues, local government and the voluntary sector.

Local Government
Mrs Thomas served on West Glamorgan County Council as chair of the Social Services Committee - the first female councillor to chair such a major committee. She later served in the same position on Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council following local government reorganisation in 1995.

National Assembly for Wales
Thomas was selected to contest the Neath constituency for the new National Assembly for Wales in January of 1999. She was elected in the first Welsh Assembly elections later that year with a majority of 2,618 votes, with Plaid Cymru significantly outperforming prior Westminster election results to limit her majority to that. She was re-elected again at the 2003 elections with a majority of 4,946, 2007 elections with a reduced majority of 1,944 and 2011 elections with her largest majority of 6,390. In 2016, she stood down from the role, and Jeremy Miles was selected to replace her as AM for Neath.

Thomas chaired the First Assembly's Local Government and Housing committee. In the second assembly, she chaired the Equality of Opportunity Committee and sat on the Assembly's Standards Committee. She was also appointed in December 2003 by the First Minister Rhodri Morgan, to chair a review into safeguarding vulnerable children in Wales. The review's report - Keeping Us Safe - was published on 3 May 2006.

Shortly after being re-elected to the Third Assembly, she was appointed as a Deputy Minister under the Minister for Health and Social Services, with responsibility for Social Services. She retained the role of Deputy Minister for Social Services after the coalition between Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru was formed a month later, and when Rhodri Morgan was replaced as First Minister by Carwyn Jones.

In the Fourth Assembly, she held the position of Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services, with her responsibilities amongst others being childcare, child trust funds and parenting programmes. She was removed from the cabinet in a September 2014 reshuffle.

In 2015, Thomas confirmed that she was intending to stand down at the 2016 Welsh Assembly election. Jeremy Miles was selected to replace her and contest the Neath constituency in October 2015.

title: Gwenda Thomas


text:
Galați

Galați (, ,   ; also known by other alternative names) is the capital city of Galați County in the historical region of Western Moldavia, in eastern Romania. Galați is a port town on the Danube River. and the sixth largest of all cities on the Danube river. According to the 2021 census it is the 8th most populous city in Romania. Galați is an economic centre based around the port of Galați, the naval shipyard, and the largest steel factory in Romania, Galați steel works.

Etymology and names
The name Galați is derived from the Cuman word galat. This word is ultimately borrowed from the Persian word کلات kalat, "fortress". Other etymologies have been suggested, such as the Serbian galac. However, the galat root appears in nearby toponyms, some of which show clearly a Cuman origin, for example Gălățui Lake, which has the typical Cuman -ui suffix for "water". Another toponym in the region is Galicia, with its town of Halych, locally associated with the jackdaw (Kawka, Halka). Before the Mongol invasion of Rus, Galați was known as Malyi Halych (Little Halych) as part of the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia. Other similar place names are Galich, Russia and Galatia in Turkey. Galați has several exonyms: Γαλάτσι; Galatz (also an archaic English term); Galac; Gałacz; Kalas; Галац; Галац; and Галац.

Ancient origins
Archeological evidence points to occupation of the region in the neolithic period. For example, north west of the town of Galați, on the eastern shores of the Malina marshes, fragments of ceramic-type Stoicani Aldeni, stilex and tools made of bone have been found. A stone sceptre, from the late Bronze Age, belonging to the Coslogeni culture was found on the marshes' southern bank. Galați town itself developed from an ancient Dacian settlement of the sixth and fifth centuries BCE where there was a ford across the Danube river. In 101 to 102 and 105 to 106, the Dacians fought wars against the Romans and the area became part of the Roman empire. A strong Roman fortress was built at Barboși to defend the ford across Danube. From the 300s a Daco-Roman settlement developed at a ford south of the site of the Church of the Virgin.

Medieval period
There is evidence of continuous inhabitation of Galați since the 600s. A treasure hoard consisting of 12 silver coins issued between 613 and 685 was found in a Byzantine tomb near the Church of the Virgin. Western and Byzantine coins from the time of Emperor Michael IV (1034–1041) were also found. At one time, the city became part of the Republic of Genoa Territories and was called "Caladda". In 1445, a document signed by Stephen II of Moldavia mentions Galați. In 1484, Chilia was conquered by Ottomans. Galați township remained Moldova's only port, not only for domestic trade but also for trade with Turkey and Poland. In 1590, the Galați Jewish cemetery was opened.

Burial of Hetman Mazeppa
The Ukrainian folk hero, Ivan Stepanovich Mazeppa was a Hetman who died on 1709 in Varniţa, Bessarabia, and was buried in Galați. Hetman Mazeppa was buried in a brick tomb.

Battle of Stănilești
In 1710, Tatars plundered Galați after the Battle of Stănilești.

Russo-Turkish war
In 1775, Russia established a consulate in Galați. However, in 1789, during the Russo-Turkish war of 1787–92, Galați was burned by the armies of the Russian general Mikhail Kamensky.

19th century
In 1812, following the annexation by Russia of half of the principality, including all of the sea shore and almost all of Danube, Galati ended up as the principality's only port.

Due to unrest in this part of Europe, Galați port became a site for the construction of large warships. Abbot Boskov, a Romanian traveller, stated:
 * "I saw a large boat, the way those who say Turks caravels, which is on site, ready to be launched into the water. He was commissioned by Isaac-aga, big tax collector of Constantinople. The ship was huge, seventeen seventy steps, and loaded with eighty-four bronze cannons."

Massacre of 1821
In the Greek–Turkish war of 1821, Ottoman subjects were killed in Galați (and in other towns). This was the result of a series of rebellions by members of the port workers' association and city clerks.

Growth through trade
Despite the wars and unrest, Galați developed based on trade (especially grain exports). In 1805, France and England established vice-consulates. In 1832, the School of the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel is founded. Two years later, in 1834, Austrian ships were having scheduled arrivals and in 1837, Galați was declared a free port (this was revoked in 1882). In 1850, James Buchanan, the U.S. president, sent a vice-consul to Galați and the U.S. opened a consulate in 1858. Galați was also a trading port for German lands. When the Crimean War (1854–1856) finished, Galați became a seat of the Danube European Commission. In 1869, the Mihai Eminescu municipal park opened and by 1870, factories were opening. By, 1908 they numbered 41. On 13 September 1872, the King Charles I railway station and northern city rail tunnel opened. The River station opened shortly after on 24 September 1880. In 1889, the V. A. Urechia library opened.

Growth through unity
After the union of the Romanian principalities in 1859, with Alexandru Ioan Cuza as leader, development in Galați increased. Zeletin wrote,
 * "The birth of the modern Romanian state must distinguish two main currents – one exuberant but superficial, based on liberal ideas which depart from Paris to Bucharest and Iași. The other is quieter but deep, leaving from London to Galați and Brăila: English is the current capitalist economy." (Romanian Bourgeoisie, Zeletin, Stephen.)

1900–1947
Between 1900 and the beginning of World War I, Galați continued its trade in grain and timber with sixteen consulates. Galați was part of Covurlui County.

In 1907, social unrest among the peasant classes precipitated intervention by the Romanian army. In 1911, a statue of the poet Mihai Eminescu was erected.

World War I
Galați remained under Romanian control during World War I. Romanian soldiers fought alongside those of Russia against the army of the Central Powers. Galați was bombed by retreating Russian troops in January 1918.

Interwar period
In 1919, a high school for Jewish students opened. A first air race between Galați and Bucharest was held in 1926 following the end of the construction of the Galați Airport. The 1930 Romanian census recorded 100,000 residents in Galați. After Bucharest, Chișinău, Iași and Cernăuți, Galați was Romania's fifth city. In 1938, the Ținutul Dunării de Jos (Lower Danube Land) was established.

World war II
During World War II, Galați was bombed by the Soviet Air Forces and Luftwaffe. The railway station, inaugurated on 13 September 1872, was destroyed as were many other historic buildings and most of the old town. On 27 August 1944, Galați was captured by Soviet troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front in the course of the Jassy–Kishinev Offensive.

Jewish community
Before World War II Galați hosted 22 synagogues and in 1926, it was the base for the Zionist Revisionist Organization of Romania. Although Galați's Jewish community suffered persecution by the pro-Nazi authorities during World War II, the community was not destroyed in the Holocaust. Since the 1940s the community has gradually diminished through emigration.

Post war rebuilding
After World War II, Galați was rebuilt along communist lines. The town's population was about 80,000. In 1956, a proposal to join Brăila and Galați was made and the building of a speed tram pier was proposed with a Swiss company. The plans never materialized. In 1958, the Galați Airport was abolished. Construction of the Galați steel works began in 1960 and the plant opened in 1966. The population at this time was 151,000. In 1971, the Făurei – Galați railway capacity was increased, and, in 1982, it was electrified.

Mogoșoaia boating tragedy
On September 11, 1989, a Bulgarian ship collided with a cruise ship near Galați. 151 passengers and crew died (all but sixteen).

Contemporary period
In 2004, Romania's first information technology park opened in Galați.

2005 flood
On 14 July 2005, Galați was affected by widespread flooding. The Siret river reached record levels and across Romania, the death toll reached 21. In 2010, broken flood barriers caused flooding of the Valley City area of Galați.

Topography
Galați is located in southeastern Romania. Its coordinates are latitude 45 ° 27 'north and longitude 28 ° 02' east. Its area is 246.4 km2. Galați lies in the southern part of the Moldavian Plateau on the left (west) bank of the Danube river at the junction of the Siret River (west) and the Prut River (east), near Lake Brates. It is 80 km from the Black Sea. The nearest town is Brăila, 15 km to the south. Galați is built on three geological terraces. One lies beneath "Valley City", with elevations between 5 and 7 m. The other two, which make a fan shape, have elevations of 20 – (the site of the old town, now the city centre) and 40 m (the site of the modern city) respectively. The Danube river is considered the "life-blood" of Galați. The Danube is the second longest river in Europe 2850 km), with an average flow of 6199 m3 per second in the Galați section. After the Siret River, the largest tributary in Romania, joins the Danube, the flow is 210 m3/s. After the Prut River joins the Danube, the flow becomes 86 m3/s. The Danube river flows have significant seasonal variation. The maximum flows occur in May; 18000 –. The minimum flows occur during the summer; 2000 –.

Climate
Under the Köppen climate classification, Galați falls within either a hot-summer humid continental climate (Dfa) if the 0 °C isotherm is used or a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) if the -3 °C isotherm is used. Galați experiences four distinct seasons.

Summers are very warm with temperatures sometimes exceeding 35 °C while winters are cold and dry with temperatures at night sometimes dropping below -10 °C. Average monthly precipitation ranges from about 28 to 68.6 mm in June.

Military importance
Galați is part of the strategic Focșani Gate. The city was also part of the important defensive Focșani–Nămoloasa–Galați line built in the 19th century.

Urban planning
In 2005, Galați ranked in the top two cities in Romania for green space per capita. Urban planning and maintenance activities are governed by the "Public Administration Public Domain Galați" (SPADP) Ecosal Prest, SC RER Ecological Service SRL, SC Citadine 98 SA.

Roman camp at Tirighina-Barbosi
From 1959 to 1962, archeological excavations were carried out at the Roman castellum in Barbosi. The site lies north of the Danube, near the mouth of the Siret. A comparison can be made to the fortress at Dinogetia. The archeologists found clear stratigraphy in the excavation. They located the Tirighina Dacian fortress, reinforced by an earthen bank. Finds included Dacian pottery from an import business. Also found was a silver coin dating the Dacian fortress to the first century BCE. A burning layer suggested damage to the fortress by fire. Also found were coins dating from the rule of Augustus(63 BCE – 14 AD) through to Nero (37AD – 68AD).

Lambrinidi House
The Lambrinidi House is located near the university, at 51 Royal Street. It was built by Lambrinidi Epaminonda, a Greek mill owner. He owned a machine shop to repair ships. The Prince Charles stayed at the house on a visit to Galați, in April 1879. It has served as the seat of the Court of Appeals; the Mihail Kogalniceanu High School and, after the earthquake of November 9, 1940, the city hall.

Robescu House
The Robescu House was built about 1896. The architect was Ion Mincu. A Romanian tourist website describes the building: :"Robescu House has an elevated basement, two levels with two turret-balcony on the first floor and another balcony at the ground floor, to the street. The exterior decorations are made in Brancoveanu style, glossy ceramic plates. The glossy ceramic is used to decorate the floral upper register. Today it serves as the "Children's Palace".

Palace of Navigation (River Station)
The Galați Palace of Navigation was designed by Petre Antonescu. It dates to the late 19th century. It is the office of "Maritime Danube Ports Administration" and Navrom, which controls Romania's navigable waterways.

University Palace
The former "Palace of Justice" is a prominent architectural monument in the Galați old town. It was built between 1911 and 1913. Now, it is the University of Galați headquarters.

Lupa Capitolina
Meaning "Capitoline Wolf", this statue was erected in 1995 and reflects Roman influence in Galați.

Administrative Palace
This building was erected in 1904 and 1905 and opened on 27 April 1906. Like Robescu House, it was designed by Ion Mincu. Frederick Storck contributed white marble sculptures of "industry" and "agriculture" at the top of the main façade. Other features are two bronze flags and a large clock which plays the waltz, "Danube Waves" by Joseph Ivanovich (1845–1902).

Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Lower Danube
The cornerstone of the Galați Orthodox Cathedral was placed on 27 April 1906 by the Crown Prince Ferdinand and Princess Marie. Also present was the Bishop of the Lower Danube, Pimen Georgescu. Construction continued from 1906 to 1917. The architects were Petre Antonescu and Ștefan Burcuș. The church has one dome and no side isles. From 1989, restoration work has been underway at the church. This includes cleaning of the 1957 paint work, paving around the cathedral and the construction of the St John Cassian centre, a building for cultural, pastoral and missionary work. At the church's centennial in 2006, the relics of St. Nectarios of Aegina were brought to Galați.

Fortified Monastery of the Holy Virgin
This is the oldest building in Galați. It was consecrated as a place of worship in September 1647 during the reign of Vasile Lupu. The church was dedicated to the Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos. It was built from local materials including stone, forest wood, brick and lime, sand from the beaches of the Danube and so on. As well as its typical Romanian church architecture, the monastery has some specific elements of interest such as a bell tower with battlements for observation of the Danube valley and for defense. The tower has two levels and a room to hide assets. There are two ramparts and a door to a balcony. The second floor is fitted with windows and battlements. Another of the church's defences is a reinforced bridge consisting of two parts, one above the nave and one above the altar. The bridge has 28 battlements. The church survived the turbulent periods of Galați's history and was rebuilt and restored in 1829 and again in 1859. From 1953 to 1957, the church was used as a museum. It was restored in the period 1991–1994. There may be a tunnel from the church beneath the Danube.

Bulgarian Church
Construction of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church of Saint Pantaleon began in 1861 under the guidance of Bulgarian National Revival figure Archimandrite Maxim Raykovich (1801–1874) of Dryanovo. However, the lack of funds prolonged the construction works and the church was only consecrated in 1887. The Bulgarian Church of Saint Pantaleon features a Neo-Byzantine design with Slavic influences.

Along with the church, Raykovich also founded a Bulgarian school which occupied an adjacent house. The same house would become a hub for Bulgarian revolutionaries persecuted by the Ottoman authorities. In 1871–72, Bulgaria's national poet Hristo Botev lived in the house during a part of his exile, as a commemorative plaque still reminds.

Raykovich died in Galați in 1874 and was buried in the courtyard of the Bulgarian Church, where his tombstone still stands.

Greek Church
The cornerstone of the Greek Church was laid on 6 August 1866. The church was dedicated to the "Transfiguration" on 17 September 1872 by the Bishop Melchizedek and the Archimandrite Eughenie Xiropotamo. In the nave is a marble plaque with the names of the founders and two marble plates with the names of the founders and major benefactors. The church is a cruciform tower with two bell towers on the west side. Papadopoulos of Adrianople was the artist. There are large icons representing the holy virgin Mary with child, the resurrection, St. Gerasimos, St. Sophia, St. Gregory and St. Basil the great. There are eight stained glass church windows containing the holy apostles Peter, Andrew, Mark, Thomas, Bartholomew and Luke on the northern side and Paul Simon, John, James, Philip, on the southern side.

St. Paraskeva Cathedral
This church is located together with the Cătușa cemetery in the southern part of Galați. Its general construction was completed but the interior layout is not. The basement of the cathedral is a very small space, which will serve as a mortuary chapel. The official opening of the interior was planned for 2012.

Church Mavromol
Mavromol is a former monastery. Its name means "black rock" in Greek. It was built in 1669 and dedicated to the Assumption by George Ducas (died 1685) and his son. There was rebuilding between 1700 and 1703. During the revolution of 1821 the church was burned by the Turks. The current building dates from 1858 to 1861 and respects the original plan. Interior murals and other valuable elements were restored between 1973 and 1975. The monks of the church taught at Galați's first school in 1765. They taught in Greek. (In 1803, teaching was conducted in Romanian under the orders of Constantin Moruz). During the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774), and the Russo-Austrian-Turkish War (1787–1792), Mavromol church was damaged and teaching ceased until 1803. The church is constructed in the style of a basilica with apses beyond the main walls. The church has a carved wooden icon of the "Virgin Mary" from the church of St. Sava Monastery in Bucharest. The ceiling is composed of three parts separated by double arches. The entrance is on the south side through a door marked by an icon and heraldic symbols: a bull's head and two lions. Also on the south side is the coat of arms of Moldova, carved in a stone medallion. During communist rule, the church, as a sacred place, was improperly appropriated.

The Church of St. Spyridon
Built in 1817, this church has four buttresses, three towers and a dome supported by crossed arches. Although its murals are not maintained, it contains valuable icons.

Synagogue of Galați
There is only one remaining synagogue in Galați (near the Museum of History on Domnească street).

Masonic Temple
The temple was built in 1896 on the site of a synagogue dating from 1806.

Schitul Vovidenia
This church was built in 1790. It is the site of the burial tomb of Smaranda Cuza, the mother of Alexandru Ioan Cuza. The original church was burned in the unrest of 1821 then renovated in 1851. Above the nave, a dome is supported by arches crossed in the traditional Moldovan style. There is a bell tower above the main dome, a smaller one above the altar and another above the porch added in 1901.

Roman Catholic Church
Galați's Roman Catholic church was built in 1844 and expanded in 1873. It contains objects of artistic as well as sacred value including a high altar made of marble; a painting of "St. John the Baptist preaching"; a "Most Holy Heart" statue of Jesus Christ; Pietà statues and a statue of Saint Francis of Assisi. The church was strengthened and renovated to its current state between 1985 and 1988.

Mihai Eminescu Municipal Park
This park was designed in 1869 in honour of Mihai Eminescu, who visited the area, particularly in his later life. some of the trees are from the time of Eminescu. There is a small lake and a place for recitals once used, for example, by military bands. People visit the park to see a statue of Eminescu.

Galați Public Gardens
This park is located near the student complex. It looks over Lake Brates, the railway station and train depot.

C.F.R. (Romanian State Railways) Park
The railway park is located north of the railway, near the railway tunnel, the terminus of the local public transport lines (102 and 104) and a nursing home.

Botanical Garden
The Botanical Garden dominates the left bank of the Danube at Galați. Its southern slope is the site of the Museum of Natural History in Galați. The museum has collections of tropical and subtropical plants (cactuses, euphorbias, palms, crotons, geraniums, begonias, etc.) rosary chic, over 200 varieties of roses, flora and vegetation. There are over 3000 specimens of tree species and shrubs, an oak area with more than 50 examples of birch and conifers, and a replica Japanese garden.

Garboavele Zoo and Reserve
Both are located at the northern exit of town. Garboavele Forest Zoo is included in the Natural Sciences Museum Complex. The zoo keeps various exotic species. Riding enthusiasts can practice their sport at the zoo. The zoo theme was developed together with experts from European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, and aims to preserve rare animals and provide conservation education.

Hunters Lake
Hunters Lake is located in Galați's far north-east. It covers 28 hectares of land including an 11 hectare natural lake; a 10 hectare forest of acacia; and 10 hectares of developed parkland for recreation.

Danube leisure complex
This park is located outside Galați proper on the road to Brăila. The complex has three swimming pools, houses, camping sites and a restaurant. There is also a western club that is equipped with a pool, restaurant, bar and cafe.

Waterfront
The waterfront is a green recreational area for walking, sports competitions and recitals. Boats moored on the shores of the Danube are converted into restaurants. Also, there are many original iron relics and a statue of Nicolae Balcescu.

Danube Waves Beach
The beach is located in south-west Galați. Popular in the summer, it has two large pools and three smaller pools for children, each with a slide. There is a beach, some restaurants and shower facilities.

Brateș beach
This is a private beach with clean sand situated on the left bank of Lake Brates. Nearby is the Galați–Bereștiul Barlad railway line.

Neighborhoods

 * Port
 * Centru
 * Gară
 * Parc Rizer
 * Campus Universitar
 * Mazepa 1
 * Mazepa 2
 * Țiglina 1
 * Țiglina 2
 * Țiglina 3 (Micro 16)
 * Țiglina 4 (Micro 17 and Micro 18)
 * Bariera Traian
 * Traian Nord

 * Barboși
 * I.C. Frimu
 * Siderurgiștilor Est
 * Siderurgiștilor Vest
 * Danube
 * Micro 13a
 * Micro 13b
 * Micro 14
 * Micro 19
 * Micro 20
 * Micro 21

 * Patinoar
 * Aviației
 * Micro 38
 * Micro 39a
 * Micro 39b
 * Micro 39c
 * Micro 40
 * Filești
 * Bădălan
 * Lozoveni
 * Dimitrie Cantemir

Fani Tardini Drama Theatre
This theatre was opened in 1955. It is named after the actress Fani Tardini (1823–1908). The theatre supports a yearly comedy festival, "Festingal".

Nae Leonard National Theatre of Opera and Operetta
Nae Leonard was known locally as "the prince of the operetta". Opened in 1956, the Nae Leonard National Theatre of Opera and Operetta was originally called "The Theatre of Operetta and Variety Art of Galați County".

Gulliver Theatre
The Gulliver Theatre was opened on 1 October 1952. It is devoted to children's theatre such as puppetry, for example.

Natural Sciences Museum Complex
The Botanical Gardens on the south bank, hosts a 7 m planetarium. There is also an aquarium displaying rare species of the Danube basin and the Mediterranean Sea as well as exotic fish.

Galați History Museum
The museum was inaugurated on 24 January 1939. This was the 80th anniversary of the union of the Romanian principalities. It is housed in the residence of Cuza, Galați's chief magistrate. In 1951, after World War II, scientific activity resumed at the museum. In 1956, some items were donated to the Natural History museum and the museum of art. The finds from Tirighina-Bărboși are housed in this museum.

Alexandru Ioan Cuza Memorial House
Cuza's former residence houses a retrospective display of his life.

Visual Arts Museum
When the Galați visual arts museum opened in 1967, it was the first contemporary arts museum in Romania. It has halls and outdoor exhibit spaces. There are also spaces for artists' workshops. The heritage section exhibits Romanian art in the second half of the nineteenth and avant-garde art from the twentieth century.

Galați Village Museum
This museum at the entrance to the Garboavele forest has small village buildings to display the traditional Romanian life in the Lower Danube.

House of Collections
This museum has philatelic and numismatic collections. It is situated near the Memorial House of Alexandru Ioan Cuza.

Rivalry with Brăila
Galați has a deep rivalry with neighbouring Brăila. This conflict has a long history and has reached the point of being studied by academics. In fact, a group of Romanian researchers have already published the book ''Galați - Brăila. Trecut. Actualitate. Perspective'' ("Galați - Brăila. Past. Present. Perspectives").

Economy
Galați has the largest iron and steel plant in Romania, the Galați steel works, which was state-owned until 2001, now owned by Liberty House Group. It is still commonly referred to as "Sidex", its old name.

Romania's largest shipyard is located in Galați. It benefits from easy access to the Black Sea and from its co-location with the Liberty Galați steel works.

Galați is also a border checkpoint to Moldova.

City proper
As of 2021 census data, 217,851 inhabitants live within the city limits, a decrease from the figure recorded at the 2011 census.

Ethnography
The largest ethnic group in Galați are Romanians (98.54%). The second largest but less than 1% of the total are the Roma (0.78%). In smaller numbers are Lipovans (0.07%), Greeks (0.07%) and Hungarians (0.09%). Other groups number 0.27% in all.

Metropolitan area
The metropolitan area is proposed to be formed from the cities of Galați and Brăila.

Education
Galați has educational facilities catering to all ages and scholastic levels. School Nr. 24 (Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel) is the oldest school in the county. It was founded in 1832. In 1896 it was located inside the Mitoc Monastery. On 26 October 1896 the current school building was inaugurated.

The University of Galați, founded in 1974, includes 11 faculties (with two unique faculties in Romania: The Faculty of Naval Architecture and Department of Food Science and Engineering) and 3 colleges.

The "Danubius University" is a private institution with departments in legal, economic and social studies fields.

Galați also hosts several specialized research institutes. Four are unique within Romania: Icepronav (Research and Design Institute for Shipbuilding), Uzinsider Engineering (Institute for Research and Design for flat metal products), the Research Institute of Fish and the Wine Research Station Targu Bujor.

In February 2013, Galați was the host city of the general meeting of the National Student Association, a forum of the Romanian Ministry of Education.

V. A. Urechia Library
In 1889, the V. A. Urechia Library was founded through the benevolence of Vasile Alexandrescu Urechia. In 1991, the library moved to a new purpose-built site. The library maintains its own local history collection as well as a rare book collection.

LCMHF
This library was established in 1939. It is associated with teacher training and hosts an active literary circle.

Public transport
Public transport in Galați is provided by a combination of trams, trolleybuses and buses (all of which are operated by Transurb, an agency of the municipality).

Rail
Galați railway station has direct train services to cities such as Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Brașov and Iași all year and in the summer to Constanța.

Explosion
Explosion (1973) is a communist film made entirely in Galați. It is based on a true incident involving a Panamanian vessel, loaded with ammonium nitrate, which threatened to explode and destroy Galați and Brăila.

Dracula
In Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, Galați ("Galatz") is the port at which Count Dracula disembarked from the Czarina Catherine on his way back to Transylvania.

Meta Tempesta
This is a film about tunnels built in the ruins of Tirighina being used to protect Germans in World War II. It was based on a play called The road to Constanta.

Danube Waves
This is a film made in Bucharest, in the "Film Production Center", Buftea. It was directed by Liviu Ciulei, from a screenplay by Dumitru Munteanu Caraba and Francis. It stars Irina Petrescu, who makes her debut as the wife of a barge driver. Lazarus Vrabie plays an undercover officer. Ciulei is the barge driver. Lucian Pintilie played the part of a German soldier.

Other
Video of Galați is seen in tourist documentaries, documentaries about World War II and clips of Lautars singers.

Twin towns – Sister cities
Galați has a number of Twin towns and sister cities:

title: Galați


text:
Plant hormone

Plant hormones (or phytohormones) are signal molecules, produced within plants, that occur in extremely low concentrations. Plant hormones control all aspects of plant growth and development, including embryogenesis, the regulation of organ size, pathogen defense, stress tolerance  and reproductive development. Unlike in animals (in which hormone production is restricted to specialized glands) each plant cell is capable of producing hormones. Went and Thimann coined the term "phytohormone" and used it in the title of their 1937 book.

Phytohormones occur across the plant kingdom, and even in algae, where they have similar functions to those seen in vascular plants ("higher plants"). Some phytohormones also occur in microorganisms, such as unicellular fungi and bacteria, however in these cases they do not play a hormonal role and can better be regarded as secondary metabolites.

Characteristics
The word hormone is derived from Greek, meaning set in motion. Plant hormones affect gene expression and transcription levels, cellular division, and growth. They are naturally produced within plants, though very similar chemicals are produced by fungi and bacteria that can also affect plant growth. A large number of related chemical compounds are synthesized by humans. They are used to regulate the growth of cultivated plants, weeds, and in vitro-grown plants and plant cells; these manmade compounds are called plant growth regulators (PGRs). Early in the study of plant hormones, "phytohormone" was the commonly used term, but its use is less widely applied now.

Plant hormones are not nutrients, but chemicals that in small amounts promote and influence the growth, development, and differentiation of cells and tissues. The biosynthesis of plant hormones within plant tissues is often diffuse and not always localized. Plants lack glands to produce and store hormones, because, unlike animals—which have two circulatory systems (lymphatic and cardiovascular) powered by a heart that moves fluids around the body—plants use more passive means to move chemicals around their bodies. Plants utilize simple chemicals as hormones, which move more easily through their tissues. They are often produced and used on a local basis within the plant body. Plant cells produce hormones that affect even different regions of the cell producing the hormone.

Hormones are transported within the plant by utilizing four types of movements. For localized movement, cytoplasmic streaming within cells and slow diffusion of ions and molecules between cells are utilized. Vascular tissues are used to move hormones from one part of the plant to another; these include sieve tubes or phloem that move sugars from the leaves to the roots and flowers, and xylem that moves water and mineral solutes from the roots to the foliage.

Not all plant cells respond to hormones, but those cells that do are programmed to respond at specific points in their growth cycle. The greatest effects occur at specific stages during the cell's life, with diminished effects occurring before or after this period. Plants need hormones at very specific times during plant growth and at specific locations. They also need to disengage the effects that hormones have when they are no longer needed. The production of hormones occurs very often at sites of active growth within the meristems, before cells have fully differentiated. After production, they are sometimes moved to other parts of the plant, where they cause an immediate effect; or they can be stored in cells to be released later. Plants use different pathways to regulate internal hormone quantities and moderate their effects; they can regulate the amount of chemicals used to biosynthesize hormones. They can store them in cells, inactivate them, or cannibalise already-formed hormones by conjugating them with carbohydrates, amino acids, or peptides. Plants can also break down hormones chemically, effectively destroying them. Plant hormones frequently regulate the concentrations of other plant hormones. Plants also move hormones around the plant diluting their concentrations.

The concentration of hormones required for plant responses are very low (10−6 to 10−5 mol/L). Because of these low concentrations, it has been very difficult to study plant hormones, and only since the late 1970s have scientists been able to start piecing together their effects and relationships to plant physiology. Much of the early work on plant hormones involved studying plants that were genetically deficient in one or involved the use of tissue-cultured plants grown in vitro that were subjected to differing ratios of hormones, and the resultant growth compared. The earliest scientific observation and study dates to the 1880s; the determination and observation of plant hormones and their identification was spread out over the next 70 years.

Synergism in plant hormones refers to the how of two or more hormones result in an effect that is more than the individual effects. For example, auxins and cytokinins often act in cooperation during cellular division and differentiation. Both hormones are key to cell cycle regulation, but when they come together, their synergistic interactions can enhance cell proliferation and organogenesis more effectively than either could in isolation.

Classes
Different hormones can be sorted into different classes, depending on their chemical structures. Within each class of hormone, chemical structures can vary, but all members of the same class have similar physiological effects. Initial research into plant hormones identified five major classes: abscisic acid, auxins, brassinosteroids, cytokinins and ethylene. This list was later expanded, and brassinosteroids, jasmonates, salicylic acid, and strigolactones are now also considered major plant hormones. Additionally there are several other compounds that serve functions similar to the major hormones, but their status as bona fide hormones is still debated.

Abscisic acid
Abscisic acid (also called ABA) is one of the most important plant growth inhibitors. It was discovered and researched under two different names, dormin and abscicin II, before its chemical properties were fully known. Once it was determined that the two compounds are the same, it was named abscisic acid. The name refers to the fact that it is found in high concentrations in newly abscissed or freshly fallen leaves.

This class of PGR is composed of one chemical compound normally produced in the leaves of plants, originating from chloroplasts, especially when plants are under stress. In general, it acts as an inhibitory chemical compound that affects bud growth, and seed and bud dormancy. It mediates changes within the apical meristem, causing bud dormancy and the alteration of the last set of leaves into protective bud covers. Since it was found in freshly abscissed leaves, it was initially thought to play a role in the processes of natural leaf drop, but further research has disproven this. In plant species from temperate parts of the world, abscisic acid plays a role in leaf and seed dormancy by inhibiting growth, but, as it is dissipated from seeds or buds, growth begins. In other plants, as ABA levels decrease, growth then commences as gibberellin levels increase. Without ABA, buds and seeds would start to grow during warm periods in winter and would be killed when it froze again. Since ABA dissipates slowly from the tissues and its effects take time to be offset by other plant hormones, there is a delay in physiological pathways that provides some protection from premature growth. Abscisic acid accumulates within seeds during fruit maturation, preventing seed germination within the fruit or before winter. Abscisic acid's effects are degraded within plant tissues during cold temperatures or by its removal by water washing in and out of the tissues, releasing the seeds and buds from dormancy.

ABA exists in all parts of the plant, and its concentration within any tissue seems to mediate its effects and function as a hormone; its degradation, or more properly catabolism, within the plant affects metabolic reactions and cellular growth and production of other hormones. Plants start life as a seed with high ABA levels. Just before the seed germinates, ABA levels decrease; during germination and early growth of the seedling, ABA levels decrease even more. As plants begin to produce shoots with fully functional leaves, ABA levels begin to increase again, slowing down cellular growth in more "mature" areas of the plant. Stress from water or predation affects ABA production and catabolism rates, mediating another cascade of effects that trigger specific responses from targeted cells. Scientists are still piecing together the complex interactions and effects of this and other phytohormones.

In plants under water stress, ABA plays a role in closing the stomata. Soon after plants are water-stressed and the roots are deficient in water, a signal moves up to the leaves, causing the formation of ABA precursors there, which then move to the roots. The roots then release ABA, which is translocated to the foliage through the vascular system and modulates potassium and sodium uptake within the guard cells, which then lose turgidity, closing the stomata.

Auxins
Auxins are compounds that positively influence cell enlargement, bud formation, and root initiation. They also promote the production of other hormones and, in conjunction with cytokinins, control the growth of stems, roots, and fruits, and convert stems into flowers. Auxins were the first class of growth regulators discovered. A Dutch Biologist Frits Warmolt Went first described auxins. They affect cell elongation by altering cell wall plasticity. They stimulate cambium, a subtype of meristem cells, to divide, and in stems cause secondary xylem to differentiate.

Auxins act to inhibit the growth of buds lower down the stems in a phenomenon known as apical dominance, and also to promote lateral and adventitious root development and growth. Leaf abscission is initiated by the growing point of a plant ceasing to produce auxins. Auxins in seeds regulate specific protein synthesis, as they develop within the flower after pollination, causing the flower to develop a fruit to contain the developing seeds.

In large concentrations, auxins are often toxic to plants; they are most toxic to dicots and less so to monocots. Because of this property, synthetic auxin herbicides including 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T) have been developed and used for weed control by defoliation. Auxins, especially 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) and indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), are also commonly applied to stimulate root growth when taking cuttings of plants. The most common auxin found in plants is indole-3-acetic acid (IAA).

Brassinosteroids
Brassinosteroids (BRs) are a class of polyhydroxysteroids, the only example of steroid-based hormones in plants. Brassinosteroids control cell elongation and division, gravitropism, resistance to stress, and xylem differentiation. They inhibit root growth and leaf abscission. Brassinolide was the first brassinosteroid to be identified and was isolated from extracts of rapeseed (Brassica napus) pollen in 1979. Brassinosteroids are a class of steroidal phytohormones in plants that regulate numerous physiological processes. This plant hormone was identified by Mitchell et al. who extracted ingredients from Brassica pollen only to find that the extracted ingredients’ main active component was Brassinolide. This finding meant the discovery of a new class of plant hormones called Brassinosteroids. These hormones act very similarly to animal steroidal hormones by promoting growth and development.

In plants these steroidal hormones play an important role in cell elongation via BR signaling. The brassinosteroids receptor brassinosteroid insensitive 1 (BRI1) is the main receptor for this signaling pathway. This BRI1 receptor was found by Clouse et al. who made the discovery by inhibiting BR and comparing it to the wildtype in Arabidopsis. The BRI1 mutant displayed several problems associated with growth and development such as dwarfism, reduced cell elongation and other physical alterations. These findings mean that plants properly expressing brassinosteroids grow more than their mutant counterparts. Brassinosteroids bind to BRI1 localized at the plasma membrane which leads to a signal cascade that further regulates cell elongation. This signal cascade however is not entirely understood at this time. What is believed to be happening is that BR binds to the BAK1 complex which leads to a phosphorylation cascade. This phosphorylation cascade then causes BIN2 to be deactivated which causes the release of transcription factors. These released transcription factors then bind to DNA that leads to growth and developmental processes and allows plants to respond to abiotic stressors.

Cytokinins
Cytokinins (CKs) are a group of chemicals that influence cell division and shoot formation. They also help delay senescence of tissues, are responsible for mediating auxin transport throughout the plant, and affect internodal length and leaf growth. They were called kinins in the past when they were first isolated from yeast cells. Cytokinins and auxins often work together, and the ratios of these two groups of plant hormones affect most major growth periods during a plant's lifetime. Cytokinins counter the apical dominance induced by auxins; in conjunction with ethylene, they promote abscission of leaves, flower parts, and fruits.

Among the plant hormones, the three that are known to help with immunological interactions are ethylene (ET), salicylates (SA), and jasmonates (JA), however more research has gone into identifying the role that cytokinins play in this. Evidence suggests that cytokinins delay the interactions with pathogens, showing signs that they could induce resistance toward these pathogenic bacteria. Accordingly, there are higher CK levels in plants that have increased resistance to pathogens compared to those which are more susceptible. For example, pathogen resistance involving cytokinins was tested using the Arabidopsis species by treating them with naturally occurring CK (trans-zeatin) to see their response to the bacteria Pseudomonas syringa. Tobacco studies reveal that over expression of CK inducing IPT genes yields increased resistance whereas over expression of CK oxidase yields increased susceptibility to pathogen, namely P. syringae.

While there’s not much of a relationship between this hormone and physical plant behavior, there are behavioral changes that go on inside the plant in response to it. Cytokinin defense effects can include the establishment and growth of microbes (delay leaf senescence), reconfiguration of secondary metabolism or even induce the production of new organs such as galls or nodules. These organs and their corresponding processes are all used to protect the plants against biotic/abiotic factors.

Ethylene
Unlike the other major plant hormones, ethylene is a gas and a very simple organic compound, consisting of just six atoms. It forms through the breakdown of methionine, an amino acid which is in all cells. Ethylene has very limited solubility in water and therefore does not accumulate within the cell, typically diffusing out of the cell and escaping the plant. Its effectiveness as a plant hormone is dependent on its rate of production versus its rate of escaping into the atmosphere. Ethylene is produced at a faster rate in rapidly growing and dividing cells, especially in darkness. New growth and newly germinated seedlings produce more ethylene than can escape the plant, which leads to elevated amounts of ethylene, inhibiting leaf expansion (see hyponastic response).

As the new shoot is exposed to light, reactions mediated by phytochrome in the plant's cells produce a signal for ethylene production to decrease, allowing leaf expansion. Ethylene affects cell growth and cell shape; when a growing shoot or root hits an obstacle while underground, ethylene production greatly increases, preventing cell elongation and causing the stem to swell. The resulting thicker stem is stronger and less likely to buckle under pressure as it presses against the object impeding its path to the surface. If the shoot does not reach the surface and the ethylene stimulus becomes prolonged, it affects the stem's natural geotropic response, which is to grow upright, allowing it to grow around an object. Studies seem to indicate that ethylene affects stem diameter and height: when stems of trees are subjected to wind, causing lateral stress, greater ethylene production occurs, resulting in thicker, sturdier tree trunks and branches.

Ethylene also affects fruit ripening. Normally, when the seeds are mature, ethylene production increases and builds up within the fruit, resulting in a climacteric event just before seed dispersal. The nuclear protein Ethylene Insensitive2 (EIN2) is regulated by ethylene production, and, in turn, regulates other hormones including ABA and stress hormones. Ethylene diffusion out of plants is strongly inhibited underwater. This increases internal concentrations of the gas. In numerous aquatic and semi-aquatic species (e.g. Callitriche platycarpus, rice, and Rumex palustris), the accumulated ethylene strongly stimulates upward elongation. This response is an important mechanism for the adaptive escape from submergence that avoids asphyxiation by returning the shoot and leaves to contact with the air whilst allowing the release of entrapped ethylene. At least one species (Potamogeton pectinatus) has been found to be incapable of making ethylene while retaining a conventional morphology. This suggests ethylene is a true regulator rather than being a requirement for building a plant's basic body plan.

Gibberellins
Gibberellins (GAs) include a large range of chemicals that are produced naturally within plants and by fungi. They were first discovered when Japanese researchers, including Eiichi Kurosawa, noticed a chemical produced by a fungus called Gibberella fujikuroi that produced abnormal growth in rice plants. It was later discovered that GAs are also produced by the plants themselves and control multiple aspects of development across the life cycle. The synthesis of GA is strongly upregulated in seeds at germination and its presence is required for germination to occur. In seedlings and adults, GAs strongly promote cell elongation. GAs also promote the transition between vegetative and reproductive growth and are also required for pollen function during fertilization.

Gibberellins breaks the dormancy (in active stage) in seeds and buds and helps increasing the height of the plant. It helps in the growth of the stem

Jasmonates
Jasmonates (JAs) are lipid-based hormones that were originally isolated from jasmine oil. JAs are especially important in the plant response to attack from herbivores and necrotrophic pathogens. The most active JA in plants is jasmonic acid. Jasmonic acid can be further metabolized into methyl jasmonate (MeJA), which is a volatile organic compound. This unusual property means that MeJA can act as an airborne signal to communicate herbivore attack to other distant leaves within one plant and even as a signal to neighboring plants. In addition to their role in defense, JAs are also believed to play roles in seed germination, the storage of protein in seeds, and root growth.

JAs have been shown to interact in the signalling pathway of other hormones in a mechanism described as “crosstalk.” The hormone classes can have both negative and positive effects on each other's signal processes.

Jasmonic acid methyl ester (JAME) has been shown to regulate genetic expression in plants. They act in signalling pathways in response to herbivory, and upregulate expression of defense genes. Jasmonyl-isoleucine (JA-Ile) accumulates in response to herbivory, which causes an upregulation in defense gene expression by freeing up transcription factors.

Jasmonate mutants are more readily consumed by herbivores than wild type plants, indicating that JAs play an important role in the execution of plant defense. When herbivores are moved around leaves of wild type plants, they reach similar masses to herbivores that consume only mutant plants, implying the effects of JAs are localized to sites of herbivory. Studies have shown that there is significant crosstalk between defense pathways.

Salicylic acid
Salicylic acid (SA) is a hormone with a structure related to benzoic acid and phenol. It was originally isolated from an extract of white willow bark (Salix alba) and is of great interest to human medicine, as it is the precursor of the painkiller aspirin. In plants, SA plays a critical role in the defense against biotrophic pathogens. In a similar manner to JA, SA can also become methylated. Like MeJA, methyl salicylate is volatile and can act as a long-distance signal to neighboring plants to warn of pathogen attack. In addition to its role in defense, SA is also involved in the response of plants to abiotic stress, particularly from drought, extreme temperatures, heavy metals, and osmotic stress.

Salicylic acid (SA) serves as a key hormone in plant innate immunity, including resistance in both local and systemic tissue upon biotic attacks, hypersensitive responses, and cell death. Some of the SA influences on plants include seed germination, cell growth, respiration, stomatal closure, senescence-associated gene expression, responses to abiotic and biotic stresses, basal thermo tolerance and fruit yield. A possible role of salicylic acid in signaling disease resistance was first demonstrated by injecting leaves of resistant tobacco with SA. The result was that injecting SA stimulated pathogenesis related (PR) protein accumulation and enhanced resistance to tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) infection. Exposure to pathogens causes a cascade of reactions in the plant cells. SA biosynthesis is increased via isochorismate synthase (ICS) and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) pathway in plastids. It was observed that during plant-microbe interactions, as part of the defense mechanisms, SA is initially accumulated at the local infected tissue and then spread all over the plant to induce systemic acquired resistance at non-infected distal parts of the plant. Therefore with increased internal concentration of  SA, plants were able to build resistant barriers for pathogens and other adverse environmental conditions

Strigolactones
Strigolactones (SLs) were originally discovered through studies of the germination of the parasitic weed Striga lutea. It was found that the germination of Striga species was stimulated by the presence of a compound exuded by the roots of its host plant. It was later shown that SLs that are exuded into the soil also promote the growth of symbiotic arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. More recently, another role of SLs was identified in the inhibition of shoot branching. This discovery of the role of SLs in shoot branching led to a dramatic increase in the interest in these hormones, and it has since been shown that SLs play important roles in leaf senescence, phosphate starvation response, salt tolerance, and light signalling.

Other known hormones
Other identified plant growth regulators include:
 * Plant peptide hormones – encompasses all small secreted peptides that are involved in cell-to-cell signaling. These small peptide hormones play crucial roles in plant growth and development, including defense mechanisms, the control of cell division and expansion, and pollen self-incompatibility. The small peptide CLE25 is known to act as a long-distance signal to communicate water stress sensed in the roots to the stomata in the leaves.
 * Polyamines – are strongly basic molecules with low molecular weight that have been found in all organisms studied thus far. They are essential for plant growth and development and affect the process of mitosis and meiosis. In plants, polyamines have been linked to the control of senescence and programmed cell death.
 * Nitric oxide (NO) – serves as signal in hormonal and defense responses (e.g. stomatal closure, root development, germination, nitrogen fixation, cell death, stress response). NO can be produced by a yet undefined NO synthase, a special type of nitrite reductase, nitrate reductase, mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase or non enzymatic processes and regulate plant cell organelle functions (e.g. ATP synthesis in chloroplasts and mitochondria).
 * Karrikins – are not plant hormones as they are not produced by plants themselves but are rather found in the smoke of burning plant material. Karrikins can promote seed germination in many species. The finding that plants which lack the receptor of karrikin receptor show several developmental phenotypes (enhanced biomass accumulation and increased sensitivity to drought) have led some to speculate on the existence of an as yet unidentified karrikin-like endogenous hormone in plants. The cellular karrikin signalling pathway shares many components with the strigolactone signalling pathway.
 * Triacontanol – a fatty alcohol that acts as a growth stimulant, especially initiating new basal breaks in the rose family. It is found in alfalfa (lucerne), bee's wax, and some waxy leaf cuticles.

Use in horticulture
Synthetic plant hormones or PGRs are used in a number of different techniques involving plant propagation from cuttings, grafting, micropropagation and tissue culture. Most commonly they are commercially available as "rooting hormone powder".

The propagation of plants by cuttings of fully developed leaves, stems, or roots is performed by gardeners utilizing auxin as a rooting compound applied to the cut surface; the auxins are taken into the plant and promote root initiation. In grafting, auxin promotes callus tissue formation, which joins the surfaces of the graft together. In micropropagation, different PGRs are used to promote multiplication and then rooting of new plantlets. In the tissue-culturing of plant cells, PGRs are used to produce callus growth, multiplication, and rooting.

When used in field conditions, plant hormones or mixtures that include them can be applied as biostimulants.

Seed dormancy
Plant hormones affect seed germination and dormancy by acting on different parts of the seed.

Embryo dormancy is characterized by a high ABA:GA ratio, whereas the seed has high abscisic acid sensitivity and low GA sensitivity. In order to release the seed from this type of dormancy and initiate seed germination, an alteration in hormone biosynthesis and degradation toward a low ABA/GA ratio, along with a decrease in ABA sensitivity and an increase in GA sensitivity, must occur.

ABA controls embryo dormancy, and GA embryo germination. Seed coat dormancy involves the mechanical restriction of the seed coat. This, along with a low embryo growth potential, effectively produces seed dormancy. GA releases this dormancy by increasing the embryo growth potential, and/or weakening the seed coat so the radical of the seedling can break through the seed coat. Different types of seed coats can be made up of living or dead cells, and both types can be influenced by hormones; those composed of living cells are acted upon after seed formation, whereas the seed coats composed of dead cells can be influenced by hormones during the formation of the seed coat. ABA affects testa or seed coat growth characteristics, including thickness, and effects the GA-mediated embryo growth potential. These conditions and effects occur during the formation of the seed, often in response to environmental conditions. Hormones also mediate endosperm dormancy: Endosperm in most seeds is composed of living tissue that can actively respond to hormones generated by the embryo. The endosperm often acts as a barrier to seed germination, playing a part in seed coat dormancy or in the germination process. Living cells respond to and also affect the ABA:GA ratio, and mediate cellular sensitivity; GA thus increases the embryo growth potential and can promote endosperm weakening. GA also affects both ABA-independent and ABA-inhibiting processes within the endosperm.

Salicylic acid
Willow bark has been used for centuries as a painkiller. The active ingredient in willow bark that provides these effects is the hormone salicylic acid (SA). In 1899, the pharmaceutical company Bayer began marketing a derivative of SA as the drug aspirin. In addition to its use as a painkiller, SA is also used in topical treatments of several skin conditions, including acne, warts and psoriasis. Another derivative of SA, sodium salicylate has been found to suppress proliferation of lymphoblastic leukemia, prostate, breast, and melanoma human cancer cells.

Jasmonic acid
Jasmonic acid (JA) can induce death in lymphoblastic leukemia cells. Methyl jasmonate (a derivative of JA, also found in plants) has been shown to inhibit proliferation in a number of cancer cell lines, although there is still debate over its use as an anti-cancer drug, due to its potential negative effects on healthy cells.

title: Plant hormone


text:
Sizaire-Naudin

Sizaire et Naudin was a French automobile manufacturer located on the northern side of central Paris, at 52 rue Victor-Hugo in Courbevoie, between 1903 and 1921.

The company
Sizaire-Naudin was founded by two brothers called Maurice (1877–1969) and Georges Sizaire (1880–1924), in partnership with a family friend, Louis Naudin (1876–1913) in 1903. The partners had already experimented with a car in 1902 or 1903 but it was not until 1905 that the light "voiturette-style" cars were offered for sale, and shown at the Paris Salon in October of that year.

In 1912 the Sizaire brothers left the company following disagreement with an investor. Their participation in the automotive business was far from ended, however, and in 1913, with the help of F. Berwick, the London-based UK importer of Corre La Licorne cars, they obtained finance in London for the launch of a new automobile manufacturing company called Sizaire-Berwick. Sizaire-Naudin continued for a further decade without them.

The cars
The first cars were basic single cylinder vehicles with independent front suspension by sliding pillars and a transverse leaf spring, identical to earlier Decauvilles. A unique gearbox used an integral 3-speed differential – 3 straight cut pinions brought to bear in turn on a single large straight-cut crown wheel.

Orders were good and the company received backing to move to larger premises from bicycle importers Hammond et Monnier who soon afterwards sold the firm to the Duc d'Uzes and from 1907 the family crest appeared on the radiator surround.

By 1911, the single-cylinder format was regarded as outmoded. After the departure of the Sizaire brothers the technicians at the business switched to a four-cylinder engine, initially using a bought-in 1847 cm3 Ballot unit, but did not result in significantly increased sales.

After the war, production restarted with a new company, Société des Nouveaux Établissements Sizaire et Naudin, making Ballot-engined cars based on prewar designs. The manufacturer took a stand at the Motor Show in October 1919 to exhibit a four-seater torpedo" bodied Type D car with a 2820 mm wheelbase, and powered by a four-cylinder 2292 cm3 engine. This was listed by the manufacturer at 24,000 francs.

In spite of an attempt to re-enter racing at the International Voiturette Cup of 1921, the directors called in the liquidators later that year.

Racing
Sizaire et Naudin enjoyed great success in early voiturette races with rules which limited cylinder bore but did not specify stroke length. This success lasted from 1906 to 1909, with some presence in racing until 1911.

title: Sizaire-Naudin


text:
Peaches (The Stranglers song)

"Peaches" is the second single by the Stranglers, taken from their debut studio album Rattus Norvegicus (1977). Notable for its distinctive bassline, the track peaked at No. 8 in the UK Singles Chart.

Song information
The lyrics to "Peaches" featured coarse sexual language and innuendo to a degree that was unusual for the time. The song's narrator is girl-watching on a crowded beach one hot summer day. It is never made clear if his lascivious thoughts (such as "there goes a girl and a half") are an interior monologue, comments to his companions, or come-on lines to the attractive women in question. The critic Tom Maginnis wrote that Hugh Cornwell sings with "a lecherous sneer...spill[ing] into macho parody or even censor-baiting territory".

The single was a double A-side with "Go Buddy Go". The latter was played on UK radio at the time and also was performed on the band's first BBC TV Top of the Pops appearance, because the sexual nature of the lyrics of "Peaches" caused the BBC to censor it. Still, "Peaches" was ranked at No. 18 among the top "Tracks of the Year" for 1977 by NME, and it reached No. 8 in the UK Singles Chart. The radio cut was re-recorded with less explicit lyrics: "clitoris" was replaced with "bikini", "oh shit" with "oh no" and "what a bummer" with "what a summer". The catalogue number of the radio version was FREE 4.

Legacy
In a 2022 feature, Guitar World named "Peaches" as having the 4th best bassline of all time.

"Peaches" plays over the opening credits of Jonathan Glazer's 2000 film Sexy Beast.

An edited version of "Peaches", minus the lyrics, was used as the closing theme tune to many of the TV chef Keith Floyd's Floyd on... television shows and during a party scene in the 1997 film Metroland. The song is also on the soundtrack of the video game Driver: Parallel Lines (2006). It was used by Adidas in advertising in the Netherlands in 2002.

The song is heard in episode nine of series two of the TV series Gotham, the opening sequence of a 2006 Hollyoaks episode, and the 2011 film Killer Elite.

Dub Pistols covered the song on their 2007 album, Speakers and Tweeters, with Rodney P on guest MC vocals and Terry Hall of the Specials singing the chorus.

The song is used in episode 16 (2011) of the BBC series Being Human, when the hungry "teenage" vampire Adam stalks three teenage girls into a game arcade.

The song was featured twice in the Back to Mine series of "after hours grooving" DJ mix albums, with Liam Howlett and Audio Bullys both including it. Simon Franks of the latter referred to it as "raw UK old school".

The single was re-issued, with "Go Buddy Go", on green vinyl and with a new sleeve for the 2014 Record Store Day.

Personnel
The Stranglers
 * Hugh Cornwell – lead vocals, electric guitar
 * Jet Black – drums
 * Jean-Jacques Burnel – bass guitar, backing vocals
 * Dave Greenfield – organ, synthesizer, backing vocals

title: Peaches (The Stranglers song)