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Talk:Quicksilver (novel)

Untitled
Have we decided not to give a plot overview? And apparently in the Confusion Dappa is said to have come from Nigeria, but there was a mention of Angolan ancestry somewhere in QUicksilver?

Why cant we have a plot summary? The first time i read this article I was a bit lost... Apart from a list of characters there is no indication of what the novel is actually about. The Nouv 17:48, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

The Metaweb (the Quicksilver Wiki mentioned in the article) is under the same license as the Wikipedia, namely the GNU Free Documentation License. This means that it is OK to copy text from the Metaweb to the Wikipedia (and vice versa). --Zippy

---

My edits of August 2004 are based on my impressions as I read through the book for the first time. I may be well off the mark in my interpretations, so if anyone has a higher insight as to what the book is about, please jump right in and correct me. Tim Shell, 12 Aug 2004

edit
revolving around characters, such as Isaac Newton, who are not distinguished in any obvious way from the corresponding historical figures.

I'm not sure what this means, so I expunged it. -- Tim Shell, 8 Aug 2004

 * Well Newton in the book is basically the same as Newton in real life except for his interaction with the ficitional characters. 218.103.132.85 09:12, 26 December 2005 (UTC)

not a trilogy
Neal Stephenson did not want his novels to be thought of as a trilogy. They shouldn't be called "Baroque Trilogy" as done in the article. Stephenson has titled the The Baroque Cycle. --Phoebus 00:03, 20 Mar 2004 (UTC)

 * Here is what Neal Stephenson had to say on the matter over on the Metaweb. Armaced 15:57, 13 Oct 2004 (UTC) "Why Baroque? Because it is set in the Baroque, and it IS baroque. Why Cycle? Because I am trying to avoid the T-word ("trilogy"). In my mind this work is something like 7 or 8 connected novels. These have been lumped together into three volumes because it is more convenient from a publishing standpoint, but they could just as well have been put all together in a single immense volume or separated into 7 or 8 separate volumes. So to slap the word "trilogy" on it would be to saddle it with a designation that is essentially bogus.

Having said that, I know everyone's going to call it a trilogy anyway. "

Paperback edition
When will the paperback edition of Quicksilver be published? - Bevo 20:51, 10 Jun 2004 (UTC)

 * October 2004 according to a website I just found. - Bevo 22:02, 10 Jun 2004 (UTC)

Jack Ketch
I gather from the book's appendix that no one of the "Jack Ketch"s referred to in the text is the historical Jack Ketch, but that the characters simply use the epithet as a synonym for "hangman," as we'd use "John Hancock" or "Davey Jones" today. Anyone with textual support is welcome to add it here and put "Jack Ketch" back in the list of historical figures. --Quuxplusone 23:36, 20 May 2005 (UTC)

"Ben" cannot be a young Ben Franklin
In the list of actual historical figures, there is a mention to a young Ben Franklin. The books are set during the English Civil War and the reign of Charles II and one of the James', say about 1677 to the 1680's. There is no possible way that this could be Ben Franklin.

I am new to wiki, so I didn't want to just edit the article without discussing it first.

Any reason why the reference to 'Ben' should not be removed? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 192.136.15.158 (talk) 20:15, 21 March 2007 (UTC).

 * The part in which Ben appears is set in 1713. —Andux␅ 02:10, 22 March 2007 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:NealStephenson Quicksilver.jpg
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A short peer review
Hi, an editor asked me for some suggestions on bringing this article toward GA status. So here's what I think:

1. The plot summary is by far the largest part of the article. A long one would be expected for such a long book, though it needs to be balanced with other material.

2. The lead discusses Quicksilver's relation to the later volumes in the series. This is important information, and there probably should be a section dealing with it. The lead however must summarise and introduce the article. Perhaps a "background" section?

3. Suggested section: Composition and publication. Given the length of the work and the scope of its ambition there must surely be interesting information to relate on the writing. Changing between discussing the "cycle", "volume" "novels" and "parts" and then further splits when printed for paperback is confusing to a reader unfamilar with the subject. Put this in a publication history sub-section.

4. Themes is very short and weak for such a long work of historical fiction. How does the author's treatment of historical events differ from the history books? What does he aim to teach the reader?

5. Style could again be longer and perhaps use better sources. More explanation of the literary methods used to develop the project.

6. Sources are insufficient. The complete review lists several reviews, more should be used here. I know it is hard writing articles about relatively new novels that have not been the subject to academic research yet.

7. Critical Reception poorly written and bitty.

I don't mean to sound overly negative, but these are the weaknesses of the article as I see it know. I congrulate all on taking on such an ambitous subject as this, again especially when there is relatively little published about it. Be sure to avoid using fan websites and other wikis.

Best of luck, believe me, --Ktlynch (talk) 20:15, 7 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Thanks.Sadads (talk) 05:24, 8 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Think I fixed most of these. Sadads (talk) 23:08, 30 March 2010 (UTC)

Suggestions for improvement
Moved from Sadads' user page:

Hi Sadads! -	Decided to respond here instead of the article talkpage. Hope that's okay. -	I've read most of the article (to be honest, it's been on my watchlist for months, but I got caught up with Hemingway instead) and am pleased to see the development. Some points to consider: plot could use some trimming (excruciatingly difficult in a work this size) so the reader isn't greeted with a wall of text. In my view, the best way to do this would be to present only the most important plot developments. On the other hand, the themes section could use some development. I haven't had a chance to see what's available critically, or whether scholarly sources exist, but by now I'd expect criticism to exist in more than the popular press. Trying to find a Publisher's Weekly review would be helpful. Finally, try to avoid falling into Stephenson's prose style by using 17th century capitalization rules (i.e. Science, Mathematics, etc.). Will return with more. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 20:00, 5 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Couldn't find anything in Publisher's Weekly and expanded criticism section and cut plot since. Sadads (talk) 23:45, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

 * If you have access to databases try a search on Baroque cycle. I see at least three entries from Publishers Weekly for Quicksilver and more than one from Kirkus. These publications are excellent for reviews and also in explaining the odd publishing history of separating a single volume into three. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 00:37, 7 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Also try google news archives. Here's a sample of one of three reviews from Slate. Apparently either Time or Newsweek also wrote about the Stephenson. Don't forget to check for scholarly articles as well. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 00:51, 7 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Already have those, and their aren't any articles in Muse or JSTOR, and Publisher's Weekly and Kirkus both reinforce already moot points from reviews. Sadads (talk) 01:05, 7 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Didn't realize you had the Salon piece already. Sorry about that. I do believe that WP:NOVSTY encourages industry sources if they are available, but will go check again. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 01:21, 7 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Sorry, meant already have one of the solon articles. I don't think the Leonard adds much, it just reinforces. That is the problem I am having with most reviews: the sound like the same thing over and over again. Sadads (talk) 01:33, 7 April 2010 (UTC)
 * That's most likely true with a work like this. The trick is to read carefully and pick out the bits that are different. Also, I noted that you have trade paperback as the separate editions. A trade paperback is larger in size (almost hardback size) than a mass market paperback. I have the first edition, so don't know whether the paperbacks are trade or mass market, but check to see whether you have it correct (this btw is the reason for industry journal sources). Truthkeeper88 (talk) 01:39, 7 April 2010 (UTC)

Copyedit findings & summary
I have taken on a copyedit of this article in response to Sadads' direct request to me. As of this morning I have made a first pass through the Quicksilver section under the Plot heading. Since I have not read Quicksilver and have no prior knowledge of the book, I have a very objective approach to the copyedit. That said, I have come across a few points that need to be clarified or developed in the Plot/Quicksilver section: I will resume the first pass copyedit in the next day or so as schedule permits. I will follow it with a second pass after the points I raise have been addressed. Thanks and happy to help! -- Dtgriffith (talk) 15:37, 11 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Drake dies atop his house when it is destroyed for the firebreak and in the next sentence Daniel is lecturing at Cambridge with Newton - it feels like there is a transition missing here.
 * A flashforward occurs regarding an attack by Blackbeard though the description immediately following returns to the past. It is not clear how the flashforward is connected with the past event.
 * Who is the Oldenburg character detained by the king? It is assumed the reader knows.
 * How does Daniel become secretary of the Royal Society and what is it? How is he suddenly a prominent actor within the Society?
 * in 1673 Daniel becomes an escort - what kind? Then what qualifies him to become an architect? He seems to take on various roles with no explanation.

 * Fixed these, sorry it took so long. Sadads (talk) 00:23, 18 April 2010 (UTC)
 * No problem, these fixes make a big difference and look good. I spent some time earlier today on this copy edit and plan to do some more tonight or tomorrow. Dtgriffith (talk) 02:34, 18 April 2010 (UTC)

New findings to be reviewed and clarified in the Odalisque section. There are some confusing details surrounding Eliza's return to Versaille. I will resume the copyedit in the next few days as my schedule permits. - Dtgriffith (talk) 03:39, 18 April 2010 (UTC)
 * She informs William of what troop movement?
 * What is the "flight" that is referred to when Eliza becomes pregnant? Is she fleeing from someone or somewhere?

I have finished my first pass of copy edits. I will return in the next few days to run through a second time, aiming to catch any details I might have missed or to revisit some awkward language/concepts with a fresh point-of-view. Dtgriffith (talk) 01:58, 22 April 2010 (UTC)

Need to check reference

 * During copyedit I went to check the reference for the second sentence under the Style heading: "The book is written in 'an omniscient modern presence occasionally given to wisecracks, with extensive use of the continuous present'." I did not find this quote in the referenced article: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/quicksilver-by-neal-stephenson-735267.html Please verify. -- Dtgriffith (talk) 15:14, 11 April 2010 (UTC)

 * Fixed URL, same reviewer, same book, different day. Sadads (talk) 15:55, 11 April 2010 (UTC)

Finished second pass of copy edit
Sadads, regarding the word "CABAL" showing in all-caps, please refer to MOS:ALLCAPS. Though Stephenson takes liberties in his writing style within his books, including the usage of capitalization as mentioned in this article, we need to conform Wikipedia's Manual of Style. I even did some further research for the Cabal Ministry on the web and did not find a precedent for displaying it in all-caps. Therefore, I am returning the word to the proper lowercase form.

Now that I have finished two passes on the major copy edit please review the article and let me know if you feel it meets your satisfaction. Also, please refer to my earlier findings for Odalisque shown above that are still outstanding. I am happy to continue to watch and make further contributions to this article as it continues to develop to become a candidate for Featured Article. Thanks. – dtgriffith (talk) 01:41, 26 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Thank you, you are doing a very good job. I certainly will reexamine to make sure everything is what I meant. I have been giving myself a small break from the article. Next couple days I should relook at it.Sadads (talk) 04:06, 26 April 2010 (UTC)

 * I just wanted to add about the issue of CABAL: the two of you are both correct and incorrect. Dtgriffith is correct to move to lower-case per policy; and Sadads is correct that Stephenson wrote it in caps. Stephenson does this because in Quicksilver CABAL is an acronym. Once the meaning of the acronym is added to the term, then it should be changed back to caps. For now, however, I'd suggest leaving as is. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 20:53, 26 April 2010 (UTC)
 * The current meaning of cabal (see Cabal and the main article Cabal Ministry) derive from an acronym as well. WP:ALLCAPS does say that it's appropriate to keep acronyms as all uppercase except when "the acronym gains common usage as an ordinary, lowercase word (such as scuba and laser)".  I believe that is the case here, especially since all of our articles on cabals use lowercase throughout.  See Cabal (disambiguation), for example.  Wyatt Riot (talk) 22:47, 26 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Thank you both for the clarification on Cabal. All these years of seeing the word I had not realized it was originated as an acronym, which I had inadvertently missed on the main article. – dtgriffith (talk) 01:39, 27 April 2010 (UTC)
 * When I read it myself, I thought it was just another example of Stephenson's sometimes random sense of humor. :)  Wyatt Riot (talk) 01:53, 27 April 2010 (UTC)

 * Sorry but I think in this case Stephenson trumps MOS. When the term CABAL first originated back in C17 is had not entered the linguistic mainstream as a lowercase word in its own right. And since this book is set in (mainly) C17, it seems appropriate to keep the rendition of this term as Stephenson intended. He put it in caps for a reason - that reason was: at the time it had not entered common usage. --Matt Westwood 07:48, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

 * I agree. But the acronym should be defined with the names of the people who make up the CABAL. The CABAL is very important, not only to this book, but to the rest of the series. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 11:42, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I have seen similar discussions like this about style and the consensus has been that we are not writing from within the universe the piece of fiction is set, we are writing for the current day real world audience. I agree with Truthkeeper88, if you are defining the CABAL using it as an acronym, then by all means go with the uppercase. Look at Laser as a reference for how this has been handled, though the focus of defining CABAL already exists on its own article page which is linked from this article. – dtgriffith (talk) 14:20, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I think the page Cabal represents how the historical acronym changes to present meaning. So I think we can have all agreed that it is used as an Acronym?
 * And, Truthkeeper, I think that the CABAL, which mimics the actual CABAL ministry dies out in the first book after the death of Charles II, while the cabal which Jack is part of forms at the beginning of The Confusion. Stephenson is using wordplay methinks. Sadads (talk) 14:38, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I really don't want to have to wade through all 900 pages of the book, but he clearly mentions the names of the Cabal. Here is a source where he states his CABAL is based on Charles II's cabal (see paragraph 170). The one cabal leads to the next - and although I don't think he's using wordgames, I can see how it could be interpreted as such. The function of the cabal in the novel is to demonstrate how a small group of people can rule a nation, a group of pirates, etc. There's a message within the message.  Stephenson addresses important political, economic, and scientific issues not to be minimized in any article about this book for it to be considered a comprehensive article. As to the the spelling, on thinking about it, Dtgriffith's logic is good - we don't use upper-case for SCUBA though it's an acronym. Best to avoid Stephenson's Barocke Spellings. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 15:48, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I am not saying that the CABAL (Cabal ministry) is unimportant (though the reviews don't deal with it, it would make a very interesting academic study if anyone has the patience to work with it.). I am just saying that Jack's cabal (the ring of thieves who steal the Spanish gold) is distinctly different and is the one which effects later parts of the plot, and you may be confusing the two. Sadads (talk) 17:07, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * I think we should follow similar articles (like Laser and Scuba diving, for example) and mention that it originated as an acronym and explain the background (all very briefly because I don't remember it being tremendously important in the grand scheme of things) and then continue to use it in lowercase as suggested by WP:ALLCAPS. Like it or not, we have a Manual of Style that dictates how we write, and it is not trumped by the author's wishes or idiosyncrasies.  (See WP:MOSTM for more about that.)  Wyatt Riot (talk) 17:57, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

No, I'm not confusing the two - and the operative point here is that there are two cabals: the one in the Jack story-line and the one in the Daniel story-line. Which does this sentence refer to (I thought it meant the Daniel story-line cabal): However, details such as the members of the Cabal have been changed to facilitate the incorporation of his fictional characters. ? Truthkeeper88 (talk) 18:15, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

 * I think I fixed it, sorry Truthkeeper for misunderstanding. And I am really indifferent to the actual decision we make on the CABAL/Cabal thing. As Wyatt points out that is really insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Sadads (talk) 19:10, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

Last para of King Of The Vagabonds plot summary
The fact that Eliza blows off William is of minimal importance to the plot. The fact that Jack is off on a slaving mission is of critical importance (it significantly influences the motivations of Eliza from then on, and is contributes in a major way to the plot clincher in the final few chapters of the entire cycle) and so perhaps should perhaps be expanded on.--Matt Westwood 17:53, 27 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Your right. Now that I am thoroughly immersed in the plot of the rest of the series, I realized how minor that is. I will expand a bit, and you can go modify and so on until we have something good! Sadads (talk) 18:08, 27 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Thought of something else which might merit a mention: the man who kidnapped Eliza in the first place, the one who eats rotten fish. I'd need to re-read it to establish who he was again (one of the D'Arcachons?) because I'm fairly sure there's something important in there which I never actually got. --Matt Westwood 07:44, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Also the plot should explain that Eliza is not a member of a harem, but a slave. She's from Qwghlm and becomes/is (?) the Countess of Qwghlm. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 12:14, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Technically, she's a harem slave.--Matt Westwood 22:44, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * He was duc d'Arcachon, but she doesn't figure that out until Confusion. Modifying character description now.Sadads (talk) 14:27, 28 April 2010 (UTC)
 * This paragraph still needs work. I might have a go once I've worked out exactly what is relevant and what is mere padding. This part of the work is absolutely crucial for the understanding of the climax of the cycle.--Matt Westwood 14:35, 9 May 2010 (UTC)

Close paraphrasing
Per WP:Close paraphrasing I'm posting here. Yesterday I acquired a reading copy of Quicksilver with the intention of rereading the book. The edition includes a Stephenson interview as backmatter. The following sentence is included as caption to an image of Stephenson's manuscript: The manuscript of the Baroque Cycle was written on on 100 percent cotton paper using three fountain pens: a Waterman Gentleman, a Rotring and a Jorg Hysek. Later the manuscript was transcribed using eMacs and TeX. When it was totally finished a TeX version of the manuscript was converted to QuarkXPress using an eMac LISP program written by the author. ("P.S.: From Pen to Printed Page". Quicksilver. Perennial. 2004. p. 3)

I've commented out the following text from the article, and will rewrite it: Stephenson wrote the original manuscript on 100 percent cotton paper using three fountain pens: a Waterman Gentleman, a Rotring and a Jorg Hysek. Later the manuscript was transcribed using Emacs and TeX, then converted to QuarkXPress using a program written by Stephenson in LISP.

Truthkeeper88 (talk) 14:10, 9 May 2010 (UTC)
 * More fundamentally, I wonder whether such details are worth readers' time and attention. If they e.g. somehow reflect Stephenson's philosophy of writing etc., maybe they belong in the article about him, with an explanation of their significance.  Here they sound, to me, a lot like fancruft. But I'm just butting in. EEng (talk) 14:39, 9 May 2010 (UTC)

 * That's a good point. The source mentions the Baroque Cycle in general and not Quicksilver specifically, so perhaps it's worth adding this to an article there or about the author. I'll remove it altogether. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 14:57, 9 May 2010 (UTC)

 * Sorry the statement was a little to similar, I was trying to include information that editors suggested. But it is all factual, so is hard to paraphrase. Sadads (talk) 17:43, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

 * (Disclaimer: Truthkeeper88 asked me for input). Sadads, I'd suggest holding off for now - firstly, it sounds like it's more suitable for the article on The Baroque Cycle. Secondly, whereever it goes I'd strongly recommending posting your proposed wording on the talk page first - many heads being better than one, you're bound to get useful feedback from other editors. Most of us tend to end up as "specialists" in a relatively small area of Wikipedia life - getting input from other editors will bring in more ideas, and more awareness of the various rules and guidelines (no one, despite what they may tell you!, is familiar with every rule or guideline here). Cheers, TFOWRThis flag once was red 19:33, 10 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Oh, and another thing! This isn't really necessary: "orthography" is wikilinked, so even if a reader doesn't know what it means (and I suspect you may be overstating it when you say "noone knows what it means") they can simply click on it to find out. Cheers, TFOWRThis flag once was red 19:45, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Source verification
Given the comments on the thread above, I decided to the article could do with a spot-check of the sources. Quite a few errors have been found, and I've cleaned up as I've gone along. Based on the number of errors from the spot-check, all the sources should be checked and the text recast as necessary. Am almost done with that task. When I'm finished (hopefully in the morning) I'll swing through again to copyedit the changes I've made. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 02:25, 10 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Really, I don't see errors in many of the changes you have made. Many of the changes you have made are the choice between identifying the sources interpretative position through paraphrasing or quotation. Quotation, in many of those cases, seems excessive and unnessary. However, I do think that many of your changes have increased the quality of the language. However, you are losing some of the factually important information, such as the variety of narrative styles which the review did emphasize. Thus far, I don't see any "source" errors. Thank you so much for the help and quality support. Sadads (talk) 17:53, 10 May 2010 (UTC)
 * I added quotations in instances where the text is a verbatim copy of the source, in which case quotation marks must be used. There were a number of such instances (essentially everywhere I've added quotation marks). Also, in some cases a source was used to cite material that did not exist in the specific source. I've fixed those cases, which is the reason the errors are now gone. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 18:07, 10 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Just, some of the changes have obscured a more comprehensive approach to the literary analysis, such as the edit I just made which integrates factual statement with the interpretation present in the source. Sadads (talk) 18:34, 10 May 2010 (UTC)
 * I've reverted the edit because it's not what the source says. It's one thing to provide a comprehensive literary analysis and quite another to put words into the mouths of reviewers. It may be true that Stephenson uses period sentences structure, but to verify it you must find a source that discusses the sentence structure. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 19:31, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Confusion
Using the correct terminology for clarity seems important, but is also confusing. There are the three volumes of the Baroque Cycle, the three books in Quicksilver, and the book itself. For clarity, I've been changing "book" to Quicksilver where relevant, but I realized that two versions exist with the same title: the initial 900+ page edition, and the paperback edition that is Book One of the book titled Quicksilver. To add to the confusion, the three paperbacks are also referred to as the Baroque Cycle.

The second paragraph of the lead states: ''Stephenson organized the structure of Quicksilver such that chapters have been incorporated into three internal books titled "Quicksilver", "The King of the Vagabonds", and "Odalisque". In 2006 each internal book was released in paperback edition, to make the 900 pages more approachable for readers. These books were originally independent novels within the greater cycle during composition.''

Perhaps this should be moved to the last paragraph to reflect the structure of the article which has the publication history at the end. Also, should this article include reviews/criticism of the separate books (the short version of Quicksilver, The Vagabond, and The Odalisique, or separate articles be written for those? And is there a source that the 900 pages was broken up for approachability?

I'm too lazy for a search and wondered if anyone knows whether the three paperbacks were only published in the US?

Sorry, lots of questions, but important to the article. Thoughts? Input? Truthkeeper88 (talk) 14:01, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

 * I have been trying to deal with the confusion of book versus volume vs. books within. The problem is, Stephenson himself saw no clear way to distinguish amongst them. Critically, I have not found many articles that have focused on the shorter "novels." So it is largely safe to refer to the full volume as the only important "book." I trust in your judgement on the "Novel" and "book" use issues.
 * I do remember reading something about the publishers decision to split the book. I cannot find the source right now. I will look for them in the next couple of weeks. And yes the movement of the section about the publication is fine, reflecting on the article. Sadads (talk) 14:36, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

 * Okay, thanks. It's very confusing. I've been called away, and have work to do on another article, so I'll continue here tomorrow. Will see what I can find. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 15:57, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

Plot synopsis
Summarizing a plot such as Quicksilver is hard, but I think the plot section needs a trim and to have additions. I'm not sure whether to trim first and then add back in, or to add and then trim.

In my view, the plot should reflect the thematic elements of the theme section. Currently it doesn't seem to have enough information about early computing, networking, cryptography, mathematics, etc., but lets make a list of what's missing from the plot. I can't remember everything, and won't have re-read the book for a few weeks.

Comments welcome. Thanks. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 01:27, 15 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Good job. As you can see in the history, I have already tried to trim the plot alot, and everyone else who has come through has done so as well. The problem I found was that the themes tend to be secondary to the plot, so when trimming plot you lose themes, sometimes leaving out small parts of the details which make the themes obvious. Emphasizing themes would be ideal though, if you can figure out how to make it work, that would be great.

 * On the changes to the "Historical characters". Both Newton and Liebnez were far more than mathematicians, even though that is what we remember them for. I would think that they should be called Natural Philosophers, especially when we are dealing with all of their activities in Quicksilver such as Newtons alchemical and physical experiments and Liebnez's fascination with organization and mining. At that time, Mathematician and philosopher are one in the same because no one had been limited by their occupation to just mathematics yet, all of them had to partake in many philosophical endeavors. Modern perception of the two however warps our impression of their role, limiting them to a profession that is distinctly modern. It would be as wrong to call them mathematicians as to call their work science, in the modern sense anyway. Sadads (talk) 16:20, 16 May 2010 (UTC)

 * The plot has to be trimmed so that the thematic developments aren't lost. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is a good example of the balance between plot and theme. In fact it's a good article to emulate for Quicksilver, as they have some similarities.
 * Stephenson doesn't refer to Leibniz and Newton as natural philosophers in the Dramatis Personae at the end of the novel. I do understand your point, and maybe it's best not to describe those characters, as per the source. Once I've finished downloading the rest of the information I've found, reading it, taking notes, and reading some of the book, I'll get back here. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 17:15, 16 May 2010 (UTC)

Publishing campaign & plot
Truthkeeper, I agree that the exact specifics of the web campaign and the additional information about the signing tour are unneccessary. However the number for the initial publication run, and the use of an internet campaign say alot about the amount of effort being put into the first run of the novel. I think removing these would harm the comprehensiveness of the real world information in the article, Sadads (talk) 01:46, 12 November 2010 (UTC)

 * That's fine - agree. I just took it back to an earlier version before restructuring. I have some of the sources printed out and am trying to figure out what comes from where. Unfortunately the way the refs are formatted, if a sentence & a cite is deleted, the ref breaks. So, I just deleted. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 01:55, 12 November 2010 (UTC)
 * Yeah, that is a little frustrating. I am kindof regretting whoever came through and organized the refs like that (not to point any fingers), Sadads (talk) 02:07, 12 November 2010 (UTC)

 * Actually the original citation style of the article shouldn't have been changed, so if you wanted to, you'd be well in your rights to reestablish your original style. I find the original style easier to edit. I'm essentially done; just wanted to check the sections I'd worked on against the sources I printed. Everything looks fine, but the attributions and quotes are necessary. Unfortunately it's very choppy - I've recently lost a lot of confidence in my writing, so leave it you to fix. Am returning in a moment with a link to a page that I think is relevant to the plot. Sorry, this is off topic, but I thought this page was interesting; had never read it until this afternoon. I've unwatched the novel project pages, but am wondering if this is information that needs to be posted there?  Truthkeeper88 (talk) 02:27, 12 November 2010 (UTC)
 * I don't think I want to redo the whole referencing right now though. We can work with it, it isn't too bad. On the point of writing style, feel free to make changes. I am very overconfident in my own writing, no matter how many times my flaws get pointed out to me (at least I know I am right? and I do try to fix many problems, but some of them are pretty ingrained). As for the plot thing, that is interesting, I will go through and make sure there isn't too much detail. But I think condensing a 944 page plot into 1500 words is not too much detail, especially considering how important plot complexity is to the critics. We might want to bring that up on the novels page, though participation in it has died down since the last havoc I created :) Sadads (talk) 04:18, 12 November 2010 (UTC)
 * I'll go through the plot section and add inline comments. I'm thinking it probably should be presented in broad brush strokes and avoid specific scenes, but honestly I haven't read the section in almost six months, and I haven't read the book in years, so will take some thought. I'll also open a thread at wikiproject novels (once I find it again - became one of hundreds unwatched pages) re: writing plots and we can discuss there. I think adding to the guidelines for plot sections wouldn't be bad idea either. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 16:56, 12 November 2010 (UTC)

I started to work on the plot, but thought I'd add it here first. I think I'd the first paragraph down to something like this:

Can't remember if the calculus part is correct, but Newton was working on the Principia during that period. Anyway, I'd work through para by para and try to be more general. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 21:40, 12 November 2010 (UTC)
 * The frame story of the ship chase of Daniel is extremely important thus his decision to board the ship is really important, I would make sure we aren't ommiting it, Sadads (talk) 01:14, 13 November 2010 (UTC)

 * Yeah agreed. How about just mentioning that there is a frame story - I only remember the battle scene as they're leaving Boston and can't remember what happens at the second part of the frame. Maybe the best thing to do is to trim down a little at a time over an extended period. One of these days I'll get to the book too, but it's a long read. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 01:42, 13 November 2010 (UTC)

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title: Talk:Quicksilver (novel)


text:
Absence seizure

Absence seizures are one of several kinds of generalized seizures. In the past, absence epilepsy was referred to as "pyknolepsy," a term derived from the Greek word "pyknos," signifying "extremely frequent" or "grouped". These seizures are sometimes referred to as petit mal seizures (from the French for "little illness", a term dated to the late 18th century); however, usage of this terminology is no longer recommended. Absence seizures are characterized by a brief loss and return of consciousness, generally not followed by a period of lethargy (i.e. without a notable postictal state). Absence seizures are most common in children. They affect both sides of the brain.

Childhood absence epilepsy represents a significant portion, accounting for approximately 10 to 17%, of all cases of childhood-onset epilepsy, establishing it as the most common form of pediatric epilepsy. This syndrome is characterized by daily occurrences of frequent but brief episodes of staring spells. These episodes typically commence between the ages of 4 to 8 years and manifest in otherwise seemingly healthy children. On classic electroencephalograms (EEGs), distinct patterns emerge, featuring generalized spike-wave bursts occurring at a frequency of 3 Hz, accompanied by normal background brain activity. Despite sometimes being mistakenly perceived as a benign type of epilepsy, childhood absence epilepsy is associated with varying rates of remission. Children affected by this condition often experience cognitive deficits and encounter enduring psychosocial challenges in the long term.

Epidemiology
The incidence of absence seizures in the United States is 1.9–8 cases per 100,000 population. The morbidity from typical absence seizures is related to the frequency and duration of the seizures, as well as to the patient's activities; effective treatment ameliorates these factors. Educational and behavioral problems are sequelae of frequent, unrecognized seizures. No deaths result directly from absence seizures. However, if an individual suffers an absence seizure while driving or operating dangerous machinery, a fatal accident may occur.

Absence seizures affect between 0.7 and 4.6 per 100,000 in the general population and 6 to 8 per 100,000 in children younger than 15 years. Childhood absence seizures account for 10% to 17% of all absence seizures. Onset is between 4 and 10 years and peaks at 5 to 7 years. It is more common in girls than in boys.

Cause
An absence seizure is specifically caused by multifactorial inheritance. The voltage-gated T-type calcium channel is regulated by Gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor subunit gamma-2 (GABRG2), GABRG3, and CACNA1A2 genes. Inheritance of these genes is involved in the etiology (cause) of absence seizure. The commonly held belief is that the genetic factor is the primary cause of childhood absence epilepsy. Furthermore, patients with childhood absence epilepsy have also been reported to exhibit certain copy number variations (CNVs), such as 15q11.2, 15q13.3, and 16p13.11 microdeletions. Almost 25% of children suffering from absence seizure has a relative that suffers from seizures. Some specific anticonvulsant drugs such as phenytoin, carbamazepine, and vigabatrin have been identified to raise the chances of experiencing absence seizures.

Signs and symptoms
The clinical manifestations of absence seizures vary significantly among patients. Impairment of consciousness is the essential symptom, and may be the only clinical symptom, but this can be combined with other manifestations. The hallmark of the absence seizures is abrupt and sudden-onset impairment of consciousness, interruption of ongoing activities, a blank stare, possibly a brief upward rotation of the eyes. If the patient is speaking, speech is slowed or interrupted; if walking, they stand transfixed; if eating, the food will stop on its way to the mouth. Usually, the patient will be unresponsive when addressed. In some cases, attacks are aborted when the patient is called. The attack lasts from a few seconds to half a minute and evaporates as rapidly as it commenced. Absence seizures generally are not followed by a period of disorientation or lethargy (postictal state), in contrast to the majority of seizure disorders. If the patient has jerking gestures during the seizure this might be the indication of another type of seizure occurring onward with the absence seizure.

Mixed forms of absence frequently occur. These seizures can happen a few times a day or in some cases, hundreds of times a day, to the point that the person cannot concentrate in school or in other situations requiring sustained, concentrated attention.
 * 1) Absence with impairment of consciousness only as per the above description.
 * 2) Absence with mild clonic components.  Here the onset of the attack is indistinguishable from the above, but clonic components may occur in the eyelids, at the corner of the mouth, or in other muscle groups which may vary in severity from almost imperceptible movements to generalised myoclonic jerks. Objects held in the hand may be dropped.
 * 3) Absence with atonic components.  Here there may be a diminution in tone of muscles subserving posture as well as in the limbs leading to dropping of the head, occasionally slumping of the trunk, dropping of the arms, and relaxation of the grip.  Rarely tone is sufficiently diminished to cause this person to fall.
 * 4) Absence with tonic components.  Here during the attack tonic muscular contraction may occur, leading to increase in muscle tone which may affect the extensor muscles or the flexor muscles symmetrically or asymmetrically.  If the patient is standing, the head may be drawn backward and the trunk may arch. This may lead to retropulsion, which may cause eyelids to twitch rapidly; eyes may jerk upwards or the patients head may rock back and forth slowly, as if nodding.   The head may tonically draw to one or another side.
 * 5) Absence with automatisms.  Purposeful or quasi-purposeful movements occurring in the absence of awareness during an absence attack are frequent and may range from lip licking and swallowing to clothes fumbling or aimless walking.  If spoken to, the patient may grunt, and when touched or tickled may rub the site.  Automatisms are quite elaborate and may consist of combinations of the above described movements or may be so simple as to be missed by casual observation.
 * 6) Absence with autonomic components.  These may be pallor, and less frequently flushing, sweating, dilatation of pupils and incontinence of urine.

Risk factors
Typical absences are easily induced by hyperventilation in more than 90% of people with typical absences. This is a reliable test for the diagnosis of absence seizures: a patient suspected of typical absences should be asked to hyperventilate for three minutes, counting breaths. During hyperventilation, the oxygen and carbon dioxide level will become abnormal. This results in weakening of electrical signal which leads to a reduction in the seizure threshold. Intermittent photic stimulation may precipitate or facilitate absence seizures; eyelid myoclonia is a common clinical feature.

A specific mechanism difference exists in absence seizures in that T-type Ca++ channels are believed to be involved. Ethosuximide is specific for these channels and thus it is not effective for treating other types of seizures. Valproate and gabapentin (among others) have multiple mechanisms of action including blockade of T-type Ca++ channels, and are useful in treating multiple seizure types. Gabapentin can aggravate absence seizures.

Pathophysiology
The corticothalamic cortical circuit plays an important role in the pathophysiology of absence seizure. Some of the neurons are important in their occurrence. They are Abnormal oscillatory rhythms develop in the thalamic nucleus reticularis. This causes inhibition of GABAergic neurotransmission and excitation of glutamate neurotransmission. Abnormal oscillatory spikes are produced by the low threshold T-type calcium channel. This explains how inheritance of gene code for T-type calcium channel leads to an absence seizure. Antiepileptic drugs such as Gabapentin, Tiagabine and Vigabatrin cause inhibition of GABA resulting in exacerbation of absence seizures.
 * Cortical glutamatergic neurons
 * Thalamic relay neurons
 * Neurons of thalamic nucleus reticularis

Diagnosis
The primary diagnostic test for absence seizures is electroencephalography (EEG). However, brain scans such as by an MRI can help rule out other diseases, such as a stroke or a brain tumor.

During EEG, hyperventilation can be used to provoke these seizures. Ambulatory EEG monitoring over 24 hours can quantify the number of seizures per day and their most likely times of occurrence.

Absence seizures are brief (usually less than 20 seconds) generalized epileptic seizures of sudden onset and termination. When someone experiences an absence seizure they are often unaware of their episode. Those most susceptible to this are children, and the first episode usually occurs between 4–14 years old. In the case of JAE, the typical age at which it begins is traditionally within the range of 10 to 19 years, with the highest occurrence observed around the age of 15. Unlike CAE, seizures in JAE are not as frequent but tend to have a longer duration. It is very rare that someone older will experience their first absence seizure. Episodes of absence seizures can often be mistaken for inattentiveness when misdiagnosed, and can occur 50–100 times a day. They can be so difficult to detect that some people may go months or years before being given a proper diagnosis. The majority of children experiencing typical absence seizures have an overall normal health condition. However, these absence seizures can disrupt the learning process and hinder concentration in a school environment. This underscores the crucial significance of treatment There are no known before or after effects of absence seizures.

Absence seizures have two essential components:
 * Clinical – the impairment of consciousness (absence)
 * EEG – the EEG shows generalized spike-and-slow wave discharges

Absence seizures are broadly divided into typical and atypical types:
 * Typical absence seizures usually occur in the context of idiopathic generalised epilepsies and an EEG shows fast >2.5 Hz generalised spike-wave discharges. The prefix "typical" is to differentiate them from atypical absences rather than to characterise them as "classical" or characteristic of any particular syndrome.
 * Atypical absence seizures:
 * Occur only in the context of mainly severe symptomatic or cryptogenic epilepsies of children with learning difficulties who also have frequent seizures of other types, such as atonic, tonic and myoclonic.
 * Have slower onset and termination and changes in tone are more pronounced.
 * Have particular ictal characteristics: EEG is of slow (less than 2.5 Hz) spike and slow wave. The discharge is heterogeneous, often asymmetrical and may include irregular spike and slow wave complexes, fast and other paroxysmal activity. Background interictal EEG is usually abnormal.

Syndromes
Absence seizure syndromes are childhood absence epilepsy, epilepsy with myoclonic absences, juvenile absence epilepsy and juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. Other proposed syndromes are Jeavons syndrome (eyelid myoclonia with absences), and genetic generalised epilepsy with phantom absences.

Absence seizures are also known to occur to patients with porphyria and can be triggered by stress or other porphyrin-inducing factors.

Childhood Absence Epilepsy

Childhood absence epilepsy (CAE) is a type of idiopathic epilepsy characterized by its non-convulsive, generalized nature and a genetic origin influenced by multiple factors

Epilepsy with Myoclonic Absences

Myoclonic Absence Epilepsy is an infrequent type of childhood epilepsy characterized by a high occurrence of intellectual impairments and resistance to treatment.

Juvenile Absence Epilepsy

Juvenile Absence Epilepsy is considered an Idiopathic GED (Idiopathic Major Epilepsy) Syndrome and is officially categorized as Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy by the ILAE. This condition typically begins in adolescents during the puberty stage and is distinguished by the occurrence of absence seizures and Generalized Tonic-Clonic Seizures.

Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy

Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy (JME), also referred to as Janz Syndrome and Impulsive Petit Mal, is a form of epilepsy that is characterized by absence, Myoclonic, and Generalized Tonic-Clonic Seizures. This epilepsy variant is marked by its idiopathic and hereditary characteristics, as well as its generalization across seizures. The initial documentation of JME dates back to 1867 by Herpin, followed by Janz and Christian labeling it as 'Impulsive Petit Mal' in 1957, and Lund's 1975 designation of 'JME'.

Jeavons Syndrome

Reflex Epilepsy (JS) is a form of epilepsy usually categorized within the spectrum of genetically linked Generalized Epilepsy (GGE). While EM (Epileptic Myoclonus) is commonly acknowledged as a type of seizure, the formal recognition of JS as a separate medical entity by the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) has not yet occurred.

Treatment
Treatment of patients with absence seizures only is mainly with ethosuximide or valproic acid, which are of equal efficacy controlling absences in around 75% of patients. Lamotrigine monotherapy is less effective, controlling absences in around 50% of patients. This summary has been recently confirmed by Glauser et al. (2010), who studied the effects of ethosuximide, valproic acid, and lamotrigine in children with newly diagnosed childhood absence epilepsy. Drug dosages were incrementally increased until the child was free of seizures, the maximal allowable dose was reached, or a criterion indicating treatment failure was met. The primary outcome was freedom from treatment failure after 16 weeks of therapy; the secondary outcome was attentional dysfunction. After 16 weeks of therapy, the freedom-from-failure rates for ethosuximide and valproic acid were similar and were higher than the rate for lamotrigine. There were no significant differences between the three drugs with regard to discontinuation because of adverse events. Attentional dysfunction was more common with valproic acid than with ethosuximide. If monotherapy fails or unacceptable adverse reactions appear, replacement of one by another of the three antiepileptic drugs is the alternative. Adding small doses of lamotrigine to sodium valproate may be the best combination in resistant cases.

Although ethosuximide is effective in treating only absence seizures, valproic acid is effective in treating multiple seizure types including tonic-clonic seizure and partial seizure, suggesting it is a better choice if a patient is exhibiting multiple types of seizures. Similarly, lamotrigine treats multiple seizure types including partial seizures and generalized seizures, therefore it is also an option for patients with multiple seizure types. Clonazepam (Klonopin, Rivotril) is effective in the short term but is not generally recommended for treatment of absence seizure because of the rapid development of tolerance and high frequency of side effects.

Roughly 70% of children experiencing absence seizures will see these seizures naturally cease before they reach the age of 18. In such instances, the need for medications might no longer be relevant in adulthood. It is worth noting that children who develop absence seizures prior to turning 9 are more inclined to outgrow them compared to those whose absence seizures commence after the age of 10.

Prevention
Appropriate medication is the best way to manage absence seizures, but prevention can be considerably enhanced by life-style changes such as exercise, stress reduction, good sleep hygiene, and healthy diet. In particular, a therapeutic ketogenic diet can be very beneficial. In a review of studies of childhood and juvenile patients, this diet reduced seizure episodes in most patients by more than half; of those with clear outcomes, a quarter to a third became seizure free.

Medications that should not be used
Carbamazepine, vigabatrin, and tiagabine are contraindicated in the treatment of absence seizures, irrespective of cause and severity. This is based on clinical and experimental evidence. In particular, the GABA agonists vigabatrin and tiagabine are used to induce, not to treat, absence seizures and absence status epilepticus. Similarly, oxcarbazepine, phenytoin, phenobarbital, gabapentin, and pregabalin should not be used in the treatment of absence seizures because these medications may worsen absence seizures.

Data limitations
In the treatment of absence seizures there is often insufficient evidence for which of the available medications has the best combination of safety and efficacy for a particular patient. Nor is it easily known how long a medication must be continued before an off-medication trial should be conducted to determine whether the patient has outgrown the absence seizures, as is often the case in children. To date there have been no published results of any large, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies comparing the efficacy and safety of these or any other medications for absence seizures. A 2019 Cochrane review found that ethosuximide was the best mono-therapy for children and adolescents but noted that if absence seizures co-exist with tonic-clonic seizures then valproate should be preferred.

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

title: Absence seizure


text:
Arthur Treacher

Arthur Veary Treacher (23 July 1894 – 14 December 1975) was an English film and stage actor active from the 1920s to the 1960s, and known for playing English types, especially butler and manservant roles, such as the P.G. Wodehouse valet character Jeeves (Thank You, Jeeves!, 1936) and the kind butlers opposite Shirley Temple in Curly Top (1935) and Heidi (1937). In the 1960s, he became well known on American television as an announcer/sidekick to talk show host Merv Griffin, and as the support character Constable Jones in Disney's Mary Poppins (1964). He lent his name to the Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips chain of restaurants.

Personal life
Treacher was the son of Arthur Veary Treacher (1862–1924), a Sussex solicitor; his mother was Alice Mary Longhurst (1865–1946). He was educated at Uppingham School (Uppingham, Rutland). In 1940, he married Virginia Taylor (1898–1984).

Acting career
Treacher was a veteran of World War I, serving as an officer of the Royal Garrison Artillery; his father had served with the Sussex Volunteer Artillery before Treacher's birth. After the war, he established an acting career in England, and in March 1926 went to New York as part of a musical-comedy revue named Great Temptations. He was featured in the 1930 Billy Rose musical revue Sweet and Low.

He began his movie career during the 1930s, which included roles in four Shirley Temple movies: Curly Top (1935), Stowaway (1936), Heidi (1937), and The Little Princess (1939). The movie scenes were intentionally scripted to have the 6' 4" Treacher standing or dancing side by side with the tiny child actress; for example, in The Little Princess they sing and dance together to an old song "Knocked 'em in the Old Kent Road".

Treacher filled the role of the ideal butler, and he portrayed P. G. Wodehouse's valet character Jeeves in the movies Thank You, Jeeves! (1936) and Step Lively, Jeeves! (1937). (Wodehouse, however, was unhappy with the way his work had been adapted, and refused to authorize any further Jeeves movies. ) Treacher played a valet or butler in several other movies, including Personal Maid's Secret, Mr. Cinderella, and Bordertown. He was caricatured in the 1941 cartoon Hollywood Steps Out.

In 1950 Treacher had a program on WNBC Radio in New York City. As a disc jockey he played and commented on recordings of music by Gilbert and Sullivan on the show.

Later years
During 1961 and 1962, he and William Gaxton appeared in Guy Lombardo's production of the musical revue Paradise Island, which played at the Jones Beach Marine Theater. In 1962, he replaced Robert Coote as King Pellinore (with over-the-title name billing) in the original Broadway production of Lerner and Loewe's musical play Camelot, and he remained with the show through the Chicago engagement and post-Broadway tour that ended during August 1964.

From the mid-1950s on, Treacher became a familiar figure on American television as a guest on talk shows and panel games, including The Tonight Show and The Garry Moore Show. In early 1961, Treacher appeared in episode 463 of the TV game show I've Got a Secret in which he rode a horse on stage. In 1964, Treacher was cast in the role of Constable Jones in the hugely successful Walt Disney movie Mary Poppins. That same year, he played the role of stuffy English butler Arthur Pinckney in two episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies. Pinckney mistakenly believed the hillbillies were the domestic servants of the family by whom he was hired, while the hillbillies believed Pinckney was a boarder at their Beverly Hills mansion.

He became better known to American television audiences when talk-show host Merv Griffin made him announcer and occasional bantering partner on The Merv Griffin Show from 1965 to 1970 ("...and now, here's the dear boy himself, Merrr-vyn!"). In 1966 Treacher and Merv Griffin recorded an album together under the soubriquet 'Alf & 'Alf entitled Songs of the British Music Hall. When in 1969 Griffin switched from syndication to the CBS network, network executives insisted that Treacher was too old for the show, but Griffin fought to keep Treacher and eventually won. However, when Griffin relocated his show from New York to Los Angeles the next year, Treacher stayed behind, telling Griffin "at my age, I don't want to move, especially to someplace that shakes!"

During this period of latter-day popularity, Treacher capitalised on his name recognition through the use of his name and image for such franchised business concerns as the Call Arthur Treacher Service System (a household help agency) and Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips. The restaurants became very popular during the 1970s and increased to nearly 900 outlets, although in interviews Treacher would refuse to confirm or deny that he had any ownership stake in the company. (Only one free-standing Arthur Treacher's was still in existence by 2022, located in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Several attached Arthur Treacher's franchise locations are still operating out of Salvatore's Pizzeria locations in Rochester, New York and one continues to operate out of the Twin Oaks Convenience Store in Pomeroy, Ohio ).

Treacher died at the age of 81 from cardiovascular disease on 14 December 1975.

Filmography

 * The Battle of Paris (1929) – Harry
 * Fashions of 1934 (1934) – The Duchess' Butler (uncredited)
 * Gambling Lady (1934) – Pryor (uncredited)
 * Riptide (1934) – Reporter (uncredited)
 * Viva Villa! (1934) – English Reporter (scenes deleted)
 * Hollywood Party (1934) – Durante's Butler (uncredited)
 * The Key (1934) – Lt. Merriman, Furlong's Aide
 * Here Comes the Groom (1934) – Butler
 * Madame Du Barry (1934) – Andre, Master of the Bedroom
 * Student Tour (1934) – British Radio Announcer (uncredited)
 * Desirable (1934) – Butler (uncredited)
 * The Captain Hates the Sea (1934) – Major Warringforth
 * Forsaking All Others (1934) – Johnson – Dill's Butler (uncredited)
 * Bordertown (1935) – Roberts – Elwell's Butler (uncredited)
 * David Copperfield (1935) – Donkey Man (uncredited)
 * The Winning Ticket (1935) – Horse Race Announcer (uncredited)
 * The Woman in Red (1935) – Major Albert Casserly (uncredited)
 * Let's Live Tonight (1935) – Ozzy Featherstone
 * Cardinal Richelieu (1935) – Agitator
 * Go Into Your Dance (1935) – Latimer (uncredited)
 * The Nitwits (1935) – Man with Tennis Equipment (uncredited)
 * No More Ladies (1935) – Lord Knowleton
 * Going Highbrow (1935) – Waiter
 * The Daring Young Man (1935) – Col. Baggott
 * Curly Top (1935) – Butler
 * Bright Lights (1935) – Wilbur
 * Orchids to You (1935) – Roger Morton
 * I Live My Life (1935) – Gallup, Mrs. Gage's Butler
 * A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) – Epilogue
 * Personal Maid's Secret (1935) – Owen
 * Remember Last Night? (1935) – Phelps
 * Splendor (1935) – Major Ballinger
 * Hitch Hike Lady (1935) – Mortimer Wingate
 * Magnificent Obsession (1935) – Horace
 * Anything Goes (1936) – Sir Evelyn Oakleigh
 * Hearts Divided (1936) – Sir Harry
 * Satan Met a Lady (1936) – Anthony Travers
 * The Case Against Mrs. Ames (1936) – Griggsby
 * Thank You, Jeeves! (1936) – Jeeves
 * Mr. Cinderella (1936) – Watkins, Randolph's Butler
 * Under Your Spell (1936) – Botts
 * Stowaway (1936) – Atkins
 * Step Lively, Jeeves! (1937) – Jeeves
 * Thin Ice (1937) – Nottingham
 * She Had to Eat (1937) – Carter
 * You Can't Have Everything (1937) – Bevins
 * Heidi (1937) – Andrews
 * Mad About Music (1938) – Tripps
 * My Lucky Star (1938) – Whipple
 * Always in Trouble (1938) – Rogers
 * Up the River (1938) – Darby Randall
 * The Little Princess (1939) – Bertie Minchin
 * Bridal Suite (1939) – Lord Helfer
 * Barricade (1939) – Upton Ward
 * Brother Rat and a Baby (1940) – Snelling
 * Irene (1940) – Bretherton
 * Star Spangled Rhythm (1942) – 'Sweater, Sarong & Peekaboo Bang' Number
 * Forever and a Day (1943) – Second Air Raid Watcher
 * The Amazing Mrs. Holliday (1943) – Henderson
 * Chip Off the Old Block (1944) – Quentin
 * In Society (1944) – Pipps
 * National Velvet (1944) – Race Patron
 * Delightfully Dangerous (1945) – Jeffers
 * Swing Out, Sister (1945) – Chumley
 * That's the Spirit (1945) – Masters
 * Fun on a Weekend (1947) – Benjamin O. Moffatt
 * Slave Girl (1947) – Thomas 'Liverpool' Griswold
 * The Countess of Monte Cristo (1948) – Hotel Managing Director
 * That Midnight Kiss (1949) – Hutchins
 * Love That Brute (1950) – Quentin, Hanley's Butler
 * Mary Poppins (1964) – Constable Jones
 * Ready Player One (2018) – digital avatar known as 'The Curator' for Ogden Morrow.

title: Arthur Treacher


text:
Bitter orange

Bitter orange, sour orange, Seville orange, bigarade orange, or marmalade orange is in a narrow sense the citrus tree Citrus aurantium and its fruit. It is native to Southeast Asia and has been spread by humans to many parts of the world. It is probably a cross between the pomelo, Citrus maxima, and the mandarin orange, Citrus reticulata.

Citrus aurantium in the broadest sense
In some new systems, the species Citrus aurantium includes not only the bitter orange proper (Citrus aurantium), but also all other crosses between the pomelo (Citrus maxima) and the wild mandarin (Citrus reticulata sensu stricto, other name: Citrus daoxianensis), i.e. mainly:
 * the sweet orange (Citrus × aurantium Sweet Orange Group, other names: Citrus × aurantium var. sinensis, Citrus sinensis)
 * the grapefruit (Citrus × aurantium Grapefruit Group, other names: Citrus × aurantium var. paradisi, Citrus paradisi)
 * and all cultivated mandarins (Citrus × aurantium Mandarin Group and Tangerine Group and Satsuma Group etc., other names: Citrus × aurantium var. tangerina and var. deliciosa and var. nobilis and var. unshiu etc., Citrus × aurantium f. deliciosa, Citrus reticulata sensu lato [pro parte majore, i.e. excluding the wild mandarins]).

The following text of this article only deals with the bitter orange proper.

History
The bitter orange spread from Southeast Asia via India and Iran to the Islamic world as early as 700 AD.

The bitter orange was introduced to Spain in the 10th century by the Moors.

It was introduced to Florida and the Bahamas from Spain, and wild trees are found near small streams in generally secluded and wooded areas.

Identification
Citrus aurantium can be identified through its orange fruit with a distinctly bitter or sour taste. The tree has alternate simple leaves and thorns on its petiole.

Usage
Many varieties of bitter orange are used for their essential oil, and are found in perfume, used as a flavoring or as a solvent, and also for consumption. The Seville orange variety is used in the production of marmalade and also used to make French bigarade.

Bitter oranges are also employed in herbal medicine as a stimulant and appetite suppressant, due to its active ingredient, synephrine. Bitter orange supplements have been linked to a number of serious side effects and deaths, and consumer groups advocate that people avoid using the fruit medically. Whether bitter orange affects medical conditions of heart and cardiovascular organs, by itself or in formulae with other substances, is inconclusive. Standard reference materials are released concerning the properties in bitter orange by the National Institute of Standards and Technology for ground fruit, extract, and solid oral dosage form, along with those packaged together into one item.

Varieties

 * Citrus aurantium amara is a spiny evergreen tree native to southern Vietnam, and widely cultivated. It is used as grafting stock for citrus trees, in marmalade, and in liqueur such as triple sec, Grand Marnier, and Curaçao. It is also cultivated for the essential oil expressed from the fruit, and for neroli oil and orange flower water, which are distilled from the flowers.
 * Citrus aurantium myrtifolia is sometimes considered a separate species, Citrus myrtifolia, the myrtle-leaved orange. The 'Chinotto' cultivar is used to make the Italian soda beverage also called Chinotto.
 * Daidai bitter oranges'' are used used in Chinese medicine and Japanese New Year celebrations. The aromatic flowers are added to tea.
 * Citrus aurantium currassuviencis, laraha, grows on the Caribbean island of Curaçao. The dried peels are used in the creation of Curaçao liqueur.
 * Citrus bergamia, the Bergamot orange, is probably a bitter orange and limetta hybrid; it is cultivated in Italy for the production of bergamot oil, a component of many brands of perfume and tea, especially Earl Grey tea.

Cooking
While the raw pulp is not edible, bitter orange is widely used in cooking.

 * The Seville orange (the usual name in this context) is prized for making British orange marmalade, being higher in pectin than the sweet orange, and therefore giving a better set and a higher yield. Once a year, oranges of this variety are collected from trees in Seville and shipped to Britain to be used in marmalade. However, the fruit is rarely consumed locally in Andalusia. This reflects the historic Atlantic trading relationship with Portugal and Spain; the earliest recipe for 'marmelat of oranges' dates from 1677.

 * Bitter orange—bigarade—was used in all early recipes for duck à l'orange, originally called canard à la bigarade.

 * It is also used in compotes and for orange-flavored liqueurs. The peel can be used in the production of bitters. The unripe fruit, called narthangai, is commonly used in Southern Indian cuisine, especially in Tamil cuisine. It is pickled by cutting it into spirals or small wedges and stuffing it with salt. The pickle is usually consumed with yoghurt rice called thayir sadam. The fresh fruit is also used frequently in pachadis.

 * The Belgian Witbier (white beer) is often spiced with the peel of the bitter orange.

 * In Finland and Sweden, bitter orange peel is used in dried, ground form (called pomeranssi in Finnish, pomerans in Swedish) in gingerbread (pepparkakor), some Christmas bread, and mämmi. In Denmark, the candied peel (Danish pomeransskal) is used in various desserts and cakes like Christmas Cake (julekage) and Brown Cake (brunekager). It is also used in the Nordic glögi.

 * In Greece and Cyprus, the nerántzi or κιτρομηλο, respectively, is one of the most prized fruits used for spoon sweets, and the C. aurantium tree (nerantziá or kitromiliá) is a popular ornamental tree. In Albania as well, nerënxa or portokalli i hidhur is used commonly in spoon sweets.

 * In Malta, bitter oranges are known as larinġ tal-bakkaljaw, and are used for marmalade and as root-stock for other citrus trees. The Maltese soft drink Kinnie is also made from bitter oranges.

 * In Turkey, juice of the ripe fruits can be used as salad dressing, especially in Çukurova region. However, in Iraqi cuisine, a bitter orange or raranj in Iraqi is used to complement dishes such as charred fish (samak or simach maskouf, tomato stew morgat tamata, qeema, a dish that has the same ingredients as an Iraqi tomato stew with the addition of minced meat, boiled chickpeas lablabi, salads, as a dressing, and on essentially any dish one might desire to accompany bitter orange. Iraqis also consume it as a citrus fruit or juice it to make bitter orange juice 'aseer raranj. Throughout Iran (where the fruit is commonly known as narenj), the juice is popularly used as a salad dressing, souring agent in stews and pickles or as a marinade. The blossoms are collected fresh to make a prized sweet-smelling aromatic jam (bitter orange blossom jam, morabba bahar-narenj), or added to brewing tea.

 * In the Americas, the juice from the ripe fruit is used as a marinade for meat in Nicaraguan, Cuban, Dominican, and Haitian cooking, as it is in Peruvian ceviche. In the Yucatán Penninsula of Mexico, it is a main ingredient of the cochinita pibil. In Cuba, a traditional Christmastime dessert is made with the peel of the bitter orange cooked in syrup and eaten with cheese and buñuelos. In Suriname, its juice is also used in the well-known dish pom.

Herbal stimulant

The extract of bitter orange (and bitter orange peel) has been marketed as dietary supplement purported to act as a weight-loss aid and appetite suppressant. Bitter orange contains the tyramine metabolites N-methyltyramine, octopamine, and synephrine, substances similar to epinephrine, which act on the α1 adrenergic receptor to constrict blood vessels and increase blood pressure and heart rate. Several low-quality clinical trials have had results of p-synephrine (alone or in combination with caffeine or some other substances) increasing weight loss slightly.

Similarities to ephedra
Following bans on the herbal stimulant ephedra in the U.S., Canada, and elsewhere, bitter orange has been substituted into "ephedra-free" herbal weight-loss products by dietary supplement manufacturers. Like most dietary supplement ingredients, bitter orange has not undergone formal safety testing, but it is believed to cause the same spectrum of adverse events (harmful side effects) as ephedra. The U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health found, "currently little evidence [shows] that bitter orange is safer to use than ephedra."

Case reports have linked bitter orange supplements to strokes, angina, and ischemic colitis. Following an incident in which a healthy young man suffered a myocardial infarction linked to bitter orange, a case study found that dietary supplement manufacturers had replaced ephedra with its analogs from bitter orange.

Drug interactions
Bitter oranges may have serious interactions with drugs such as statin (to lower cholesterol), nifedipine (to lower blood pressure), some anti-anxiety drugs, some antihistamines, etc., in a similar way to grapefruit (see grapefruit–drug interactions).

Other uses
This orange is used as a rootstock in groves of sweet orange. The fruit and leaves make lather and can be used as soap. The hard, white or light-yellow wood is used in woodworking and made into baseball bats in Cuba.

title: Bitter orange


text:
Ghazni

Ghazni (, غزني), historically known as Ghaznayn (غزنين) or Ghazna (غزنه), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana, is a city in southeastern Afghanistan with a population of around 190,000 people. The city is strategically located along Highway 1, which has served as the main road between Kabul and Kandahar for thousands of years. Situated on a plateau at 2,219 metres (7,280 ft) above sea level, the city is 150 km south of Kabul and is the capital of Ghazni Province. The name Ghazni drives from the Persian word "ganj", meaning ‘treasure’.

Ghazni Citadel, the Minarets of Ghazni, the Palace of Sultan Mas'ud III, and several other cultural heritage sites have brought travelers and archeologists to the city for centuries. During the pre-Islamic period, the area was inhabited by various tribes who practiced different religions including Zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Hinduism. Arab Muslims introduced Islam to Ghazni in the 7th century and were followed in the 9th century by the Saffarids. Sabuktigin made Ghazni the capital of the Ghaznavid Empire in the 10th century. The city was destroyed by one of the Ghurid rulers but later rebuilt. It fell to several regional powers, including the Timurids and the Delhi Sultanate until it became part of the Hotaki dynasty, which was followed by the Durrani Empire or modern Afghanistan. During the First Anglo-Afghan War in the 19th century, the fortifications of Ghazni were partially demolished by British Indian forces.

In August 2018, the city became the site of the Battle of Ghazni with the Taliban briefly occupying it and taking control of most of the surrounding area. On 12 August 2021, the city was captured by the Taliban as part of the 2021 Taliban offensive.

In 2013, ISESCO declared Ghazni the year's Islamic Capital of Culture.

History

The city was founded some time in antiquity as a small market town. It may be the Gazaca (Gázaca or Gāzaca) mentioned by Ptolemy, although he may have conflated it and the town of Ganzak (or Gazaka) in Iran.

In the 6th century BCE, it was conquered by the Achaemenid king Cyrus II and incorporated into the Persian Empire. The city was subsequently incorporated into the empire of Alexander the Great in 329 BCE, and called Alexandria in Opiana. By the 7th century CE, the area was a major center of Buddhism. In 644, the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang visited a city named Jaguda—which was almost certainly the contemporary name of the later Ghazni.

In 683, Arab armies brought Islam to the region. Yaqub Saffari from Zaranj conquered the city in the late 9th century. The Saffarids reduced the formerly Lawik dynasty to tributary status. In 962, the Turkic slave commander of the Samanid Empire, Alp-Tegin, attacked the city and besieged the Citadel of Ghazni for four months, wresting the city from Abu Bakr Lawik. Around 965, Abu Bakr Lawik recaptured Ghazni from Alp-Tegin's son, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim, forcing him to flee to Bukhara. However, this was not to last long because Abu Ishaq Ibrahim shortly returned to the town with Samanid aid, and took control of the town once again. For nearly two hundred years (977–1163), the city was the dazzling capital of the Ghaznavid Empire, which encompassed much of what is today Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Eastern Iran and Rajasthan. The Ghaznavids took Islam to India and returned with fabulous riches looted from Hindu temples. Although the city was sacked in 1151 by the Ghorid Ala'uddin, it became their secondary capital in 1173, and subsequently flourished once again. Between 1215 and 1221, Ghazni was ruled by the Khwarezmid Empire, during which time it was destroyed by the Mongol armies of Genghis Khan's son Ögedei Khan.

In the first decades of the 11th century, Ghazni was the most important center of Persian literature. This was the result of the cultural policy of Sultan Mahmud (reigned 998–1030), who assembled a circle of scholars, philosophers, and poets around his throne in support of his claim to royal status in Iran.

The noted Moroccan travelling scholar, Ibn Battuta, visiting Ghazni in 1333, wrote:

"We travelled thence to Parwan, where I met the amir Buruntayh. He treated me well and wrote to his representatives at Ghazna enjoining them to show me honour. We went on to the village of Charkh [Charikar], it being now summer, and from there to the town of Ghazna. This is the town of the famous warrior-sultan Mahmud ibn Sabuktagin, one of the greatest of rulers, who made frequent raids into India and captured cities and fortresses there. His grave is in this city and is surmounted by a hospice. The greater part of the town is in ruins and nothing but a fraction of it remains, though it was once a large city. It has an exceedingly cold climate, and the inhabitants move from it in the cold season to Qandahar, a large and prosperous town three nights journey from Ghazna, but I did not visit it." Tamerlanes's grandson, Pir Muhammad bin Djinhangir, became the governor of Ghazni (along with Kabul and Kandahar) in 1401. Babur conquered the region in 1504 and personally thought that Ghazni was "a mean place" and pondered why any of the princes of the region would make it their seat of government. Ghazni stayed under Mughal control until 1738 when Iranian ruler Nader Shah invaded the area. After Nader Shah's death, Ghazni became part of the Durrani empire.

Ghazni City is famous for its Ghazni Minarets built on a stellar plan. They date from the middle of the twelfth century and are the surviving elements of the mosque of Bahramshah. Their sides are decorated with intricate geometric patterns. Some of the upper sections of the minarets have been damaged or destroyed. The most important mausoleum located in Ghazni City is that of Sultan Mahmud. Others include the Tombs of poets and scientists, such as the Tomb of Al Biruni. The only ruins in Old Ghazni retaining a semblance of architectural form are two towers, about 43 m (140 ft) high and 365 m (1,200 ft) apart. According to inscriptions, the towers were constructed by Mahmud of Ghazni and his son. For more than eight centuries the “Towers of Victory” monuments to Afghanistan's greatest empire have survived wars and invasions, the two toffee-colored minarets, adorned with terra-cotta tiles were raised in the early 12th century as monuments to the victories of the Afghan armies that built the empire. By the time the Ghurids had finalized the Ghaznavid removal from Ghazni, the city was a cultural center of the eastern Islamic world.

The Buddhist site at Ghazni is known as Tapar Sardar and consists of a stupa on a hilltop, surrounded by a row of smaller stupas. Nearby, an 18 m long Parinirvana (reclining) Buddha was excavated between the late 1960s and early 1970s. It is believed to have been built in the 8th century CE as part of a monastery complex. In the 1980s, a mud brick shelter was created to protect the sculpture, but the wood supports were stolen for firewood and the shelter partially collapsed. In 2001, the Taliban blew the Buddha up, believing it to be idolatrous.

During the First Anglo-Afghan War, the city was captured by British forces on 23 July 1839 in the Battle of Ghazni. The Civil war in Afghanistan and the continued conflict between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance during the 1990s put the relics of Ghazni in jeopardy. Ghazni's strategic position, both economically and militarily, assured its revival, albeit without its dazzling former grandeur. Through the centuries the city has figured prominently as the all-important key to the possession of Kabul.

After the 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the United States armed forces built a base in Ghazni. They have been involved in rebuilding projects and protecting the local population against Taliban insurgents. In the meantime, they are also training the Afghan Local Police (ALP) Afghan National Police (ANP) and Afghan National Army (ANA). In 2010, the United States established the Lincoln Learning Center in Ghazni. The Lincoln learning centers in Afghanistan serve as programming platforms offering English language classes, library facilities, programming venues, Internet connectivity, educational and other counseling services. A goal of the program is to reach at least 4,000 Afghan citizens per month per location.

On 10 August 2018, the city was attacked by the Taliban during the Battle of Ghazni. Dozens of airstrikes were carried out in support of Afghan police and government forces and hundreds of Afghan soldiers, police, and Taliban insurgents were killed as well as dozens of civilians. In addition to the destruction and human suffering caused by the fighting, the Taliban also set fire to many buildings in the city.

On 18 May 2020, a suicide Humvee bomber affiliated with the Taliban killed nine Afghan intelligence personnel and injured 40 others at the National Directorate of Security (NDS) unit in Ghazni, also damaging the nearby Islamic Cultural Centre.

Ghazni was the tenth provincial capital of Afghanistan to be captured by the Taliban as part of the 2021 Taliban offensive.

Land Use
Ghazni is a trading and transit hub in central Afghanistan. Agriculture is the dominant land use at 28%. In terms of built-up land area, vacant plots (33%) slightly outweigh residential area (31%). Districts 3 and 4 also have large institutional areas. The city has four police districts (nahia) and covers a total land area of 3,330 hectares. The total number of dwellings in Ghazni city is 15,931.

Climate
Ghazni's climate is transitional between a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk) and a hot-summer humid continental climate (Dsa). It has cold, snowy winters and warm, dry summers. Precipitation is low and mostly falls in winter (as snow) and spring (as rain). Winters are very cold, with a subzero January daily average temperature of −5.9 °C, mainly due to the high elevation of the city.

Demography

The city of Ghazni's population surged from 143,379 in 2015 to 270,000 in 2018 as refugees from violent areas fled to the city. In 2015, there were 15,931 dwellings in Ghazni city.

The population is multi-ethnic, with approximately 50% being Tajik, 25% Hazara and 25% Pashtun.

Transportation
In April 2012, Ghazni Governor Musa Khan Akbarzada laid the foundation stone of the Ghazni Airport. The work began later that year and was supervised by the managing director of the Ghazni province Engineer Ahmad Wali Tawakuli.

The city is next to Afghanistan's main highway that runs between Kabul and Kandahar in the south. There are roads leading to Gardez and in the east and other nearby villages as well as to towns in Hazarajat in the northwest.

Education
The city has a number of public schools. Jahan Maleeka School is an all-girls school with over 5,000 students and 150 teachers. Naswan Shaher Kohna School, another all-girls school, has over 3000 students. The Adult Literacy Rate as of 2012 accounted for 41.2% (2012).

Resources
Ghazni City is in an area of low rainfall. In 2007, one of the gates on a 50-year-old dam on the Jikhai River broke, bringing up concerns among the inhabitants of Ghazni city about the water supply. The dam serves as a good source of irrigation water to Ghazni City and the surrounding agricultural areas. Nearby rivers have a history of flooding and causing severe damage and death, though efforts have begun to remedy this.

Sports

 * Professional sports teams from Ghazni

 * Stadiums
 * Ghazni Cricket Ground
 * Ghazni Ground

Rulers and emperors

 * Abu Bakr Lawik, ruler of Ghazni from the Lawik dynasty
 * Abu Ali Lawik, son of Abu Bakr Lawik and ruler of the Lawik dynasty
 * Sabuktigin, founder of the Ghaznavid dynasty
 * Mahmud of Ghazni, son of Sabuktigin, first independent ruler of the dynasty of Ghaznavids in the 11th-century
 * Muhammad of Ghazni, son of Mahmud of Ghazni and Sultan of the Ghaznavid empire
 * Masʽud I of Ghazni, twin brother of Muhammad of Ghazni and Sultan of the Ghaznavid empire
 * Mawdud of Ghazni, nephew of Muhammad of Ghazni and Sultan of the Ghaznavid empire
 * Ibrahim of Ghazna, Sultan of the Ghaznavid empire
 * Khusrau Malik, Sultan of the Ghaznavid empire
 * Bahram-Shah of Ghazna, Sultan of the Ghaznavids empire
 * Muhammad Shah, thirteenth Mughal emperor in the 18th-century

Politicians and military leaders

 * Alp-Tegin Turkic slave commander of the Samanid Empire, became later the semi-independent governor of Ghazni til his death in Ghazni
 * Abu Ishaq Ibrahim of Ghazna, son of Alp-Tegin, Turkic officer and the Samanid governor of Ghazni
 * Böritigin of Ghazni, Turkic officer and the Samanid governor of Ghazni
 * Ismail of Ghazni, son of Sabuktigin and brother of Mahmud, emir of Ghazna
 * Ali ibn Ishak, financial minister of the Ghaznavids
 * Abd al-Razzaq Maymandi, vizier of the Ghaznavid Sultan Mawdud Ghaznavi and Abd al-Rashid
 * Toghrul of Ghazna, Turkish slave general and usurper of the Ghaznavid throne
 * Azad Khan Afghan, Pashtun military commander from the 18th-century
 * Nur Muhammad Taraki, former president of Afghanistan

 * Abdul Hakim Dalili, Ambassador of Afghanistan to Doha Qatar.

Poets and scientists

 * Abu Rayhan Al-Biruni, famous 10/11th-century Iranian scholar and polymath, worked and died in Ghazni
 * Abu'l-Fadl Bayhaqi, 10/11th-century Persian secretary, historian and author at the court of the Ghazanvids, also died in Ghazni
 * Asjadi, Persian royal poet at the court of the Ghaznavids in Ghazni
 * Farrukhi Sistani, Persian royal poet at the court of the Ghaznavids, spent most of his life in Ghazni and also died there
 * Manuchehri Dāmghānī, Persian royal poet at the court of the Ghaznavids in Ghazni, most probably died in Ghazni, too
 * Unsuri Balkhi, Persian royal poet at the court of the Ghaznavids in Ghazni
 * Hakim Sanai Ghaznavi, 11/12th-century Persian Sufi poet and mystic
 * Hassan Ghaznavi, 12th-century Persian poet
 * Faiz Mohammad Katib Hazara, 19/20th-century historian, writer and intellectual
 * Abdul Rahman Pazhwak Afghan poet and diplomat
 * Bhai Nand Lal Goya, court poet of the 10th Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh

Religious leaders

 * Shaykh Syed ʿAlī al-Hujwīrī, 11th-century Persian Sunni Muslim mystic, theologian, and preacher
 * Jamal al-Din al-Ghaznawi, 12th-century Sunni Hanafi jurist, theologian, and Kalam scholar of the Maturidi school
 * Pir Ghulam Mohiudin Ghaznavi (1902-1975), was an Islamic Sufi scholar. He was born in Ghazni and later went to Pakistan for business. He became a disciple of Pir Qasim Sadiq Mohrvi from Mohra Sharif and converted to Sufism and settled at Nerian Sharif Azad Kashmir Pakistan.
 * Gholam Mohammad Niazi, Political Islamic movement thinker, Dean of the faculty of theology at Kabul University

Others

 * Abdul Ahad Mohmand, first Afghan citizen and fourth Muslim to journey to outer space
 * (born June 21, 1947), Afghan-German choir director and composer, wrote the music for the National anthem of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

Points of interest

 * Citadel of Ghazni
 * Minarets of Ghazni
 * Palace of Sultan Mas'ud III
 * Tomb of Sebuktigin
 * Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud
 * Mausoleum of Sanai
 * Museum of Islamic Art
 * Tapa Sardar Excavations
 * Tomb of Al Biruni

Twin towns – sister cities

 * 🇺🇸 Hayward, California, US
 * 🇵🇱 Giżycko, Poland

title: Ghazni


text:
PowerPC 970

The PowerPC 970, PowerPC 970FX, and PowerPC 970MP are 64-bit PowerPC CPUs from IBM introduced in 2002. Apple branded the 970 as PowerPC G5 for its Power Mac G5.

Having created the PowerPC architecture in the early 1990s via the AIM alliance, the 970 family was created through a further collaboration between IBM and Apple. The project was codenamed GP-UL or Giga Processor Ultra Light, where Giga Processor is the codename for the POWER4 from which the core was derived. When Apple introduced the Power Mac G5, it stated that this was a five-year collaborative effort, with multi-generation roadmap. This forecast however was short-lived when Apple later had to retract its promise to deliver a 3 GHz processor only one year after its introduction. IBM was also unable to reduce power consumption to levels necessary for laptop computers. Ultimately, Apple only used three variants of the processor.

IBM's JS20/JS21 blade modules and some low-end workstations and System p servers are based on the PowerPC 970. It is also used in some high end embedded systems like Mercury's Momentum XSA-200. IBM is also licensing the PowerPC 970 core for use in custom applications.

Design
The PowerPC 970 is a single core derivative of the POWER4 and can process both 32-bit and 64-bit PowerPC instructions natively. It has a hardware prefetch unit and a three way branch prediction unit.

Like the POWER4, the front-end is nine stages long. The PowerPC 970 can fetch and decode up to eight instructions, dispatch up to five to reserve stations, issue up to eight to the execution units and retire up to five per cycle. The execution pipelines were lengthened compared to the POWER4 to achieve higher IPC. It has eight execution units: two arithmetic logic units (ALUs), two double-precision floating-point units, two load/store units and two AltiVec units.

One of the AltiVec units executes integer and floating-point instructions, and the other only permute instructions. The latter has three subunits for simple integer, complex integer and floating-point instructions. These units have pipelines of varying lengths: 10 stages for simple integer and permute instructions, 13 stages for complex integer instructions and 16 stage for floating-point instructions.

The processor has two unidirectional 32-bit double data rate (DDR) buses (one for reads, the other for writes) to the system controller chip (northbridge) running at one quarter of the processor core speed. The buses also carry addresses and control signals in addition to data so only a percentage of the peak bandwidth can be realized (6.4 GB/s at 450 MHz). As the buses are unidirectional, each direction can realize only half the aggregate bandwidth, or 3.2 GB/s.

Generations
All generations of 970 processors were manufactured in IBM's East Fishkill plant in New York on a white ceramic substrate that was typical for IBM's high end processors of the era.

PowerPC 970
The PowerPC 970 was announced by IBM in October 2002. It was released in Apple Computer's Power Mac G5 in June 2003. Like its naming convention of G3 and G4, Apple branded the PowerPC 970 based products as G5, for the fifth generation of PowerPC. IBM released its first PowerPC 970 blade servers, the BladeCenter JS20, in November 2003.

The PowerPC 970 has 512 KB of full-speed L2 cache and clock speeds from 1.6 to 2.0 GHz. The front side bus runs at half the processor's clock speed.

PowerPC 970FX
The PowerPC 970FX has a 90 nm manufacturing process and has a maximum power rating of 11 watts at 149 degrees Fahrenheit (65 °C) while clocked at 1 GHz and a maximum of 48 watts at 2 GHz.

It has 10 functional units – 2 Fixed-Point Units, 2 Load/Store Units, 2 Floating Point Units, 1 Branch Unit, 1 SIMD ALU unit, 1 SIMD Permute unit, and 1 Condition Register. It supports up to 215 instructions in-flight: 16 in the Instruction Fetch Unit, 67 in the Instruction Decode Unit, 100 in the Functional Units, and 32 in the Store Queue. It has 64 KBs of directly mapped Instruction Cache and 32 KBs of D-Cache.

Apple released 970FX-powered machines throughout 2004: the Xserve G5 in January, the Power Mac G5 in June, and the iMac G5 in August. The Power Mac introduced a top clock speed of 2.5 GHz while liquid-cooled (eventually reaching as high as 2.7 GHz in April 2005). The iMac ran the front side bus at a third of the clock speed.

Market demand was intense for a faster laptop CPU than the G4, but Apple never delivered a G5 series CPU in PowerBook laptops. The original 970 uses far too much power and was never seriously viewed as a candidate for a portable computer. The 970FX reduced thermal design power (TDP) to about 30 W at 1.5 GHz, which led many users to believe a PowerBook G5 might be possible. However, several obstacles prevented even the 970FX from being used in this application. At 1.5 GHz, the G5 was not substantially faster than the 1.5 and 1.67 GHz G4 processors, which Apple used in PowerBooks instead. Furthermore, the northbridge chips available to interface the 970FX to memory and other devices were not designed for portable computers, and consumed too much power. Finally, the 970FX had inadequate power saving features for a portable CPU. Its minimum (idle) power was much too high, which would have led to poor battery life figures in a notebook computer.

PowerPC 970MP
IBM announced the PowerPC 970MP, codenamed "Antares", on July 7, 2005, at the Power Everywhere forum in Tokyo. The 970MP is a dual-core derivative of the 970FX with clock speeds between 1.2 and 2.5 GHz, and a maximum power usage of 75 W at 1.8 GHz and 100 W at 2.0 GHz. Each core has 1 MB of L2 cache, twice that of the 970FX. Like the 970FX, this chip was produced at the 90 nm process. When one of the cores is idle, it will enter a "doze" state and shut down. The 970MP also includes partitioning and virtualization features.

The PowerPC 970MP replaced the PowerPC 970FX in Apple's high-end Power Mac G5 computers, while the iMac G5 and the legacy PCI-X Power Mac G5 continued to use the PowerPC 970FX processor. The PowerPC 970MP is used in IBM's JS21 blade modules, IBM Intellistation POWER 185 workstation and YDL PowerStation by Fixstars Solutions (Yellow Dog Linux (YDL) PowerStation).

Due to high power requirements, IBM discontinued units above 2.0 GHz.

Northbridges
Two dedicated northbridges for PowerPC 970-based computers were manufactured by IBM:

 * CPC925 – Designed by Apple and called the U3 or the U3H (which supports ECC memory). It is capable of supporting up to two PowerPC 970s or PowerPC 970FXs and has two 550 MHz unidirectional processor buses, a 400 MHz DDR memory controller, x8 AGP and a 400 MHz 16-bit HyperTransport tunnel. It fabricated on a 130 nm process. Additionally, there was an unreleased U3Lite northbridge in development for the PowerBook G5, which never made it to market.
 * CPC945 – Designed by IBM and called U4 by Apple, it is capable of supporting two PowerPC 970MPs and has two 625 MHz unidirectional processor buses, two memory controllers that support up to 64 GB of 533 MHz DDR2 SDRAM with ECC capability and has a x16 PCIe lane and an 800 MHz 16-bit HyperTransport tunnel. It is fabricated on a 90 nm process.

A CPC965 northbridge was canceled. Slated for release in 2007, it was to be a uniprocessor-only northbridge. Its features were a 533 MHz DDR2 controller that supported up to 8 GB ECC memory, a 8x PCIe bus, integrated four-port Gigabit Ethernet with IPv4 TCP/UDP offloading, USB 2.0 ports, a Flash-interface. The northbridge contains an integrated PowerPC 405 core to provide system management and configuration capabilities.

Buses
IBM uses its proprietary Elastic Interface (EI) bus in the modules.

title: PowerPC 970


text:
Borough tube station

Borough is a London Underground station in the Borough area of the London Borough of Southwark in central London. It is on the Bank branch of the Northern line between London Bridge and Elephant & Castle stations. It is in Travelcard Zone 1.

The station entrance is in Borough High Street (part of the A3), on the corner of Marshalsea Road. The A2 terminates opposite it.

History
The station was opened on 18 December 1890 as part of the first successful deep-level tube railway, the City and South London Railway (C&SLR), and was rebuilt in 1922 when the tunnels were enlarged. Although little of the original surface building remains at Borough, it originally bore a close resemblance to Kennington station. These similarities extended to the layout below ground, although here it is Kennington that no longer retains the original design. Borough station has level access to the northbound platform from the lifts, making this platform accessible to those with mobility restrictions. The southbound platform is a floor lower down, accessible only by narrow stairs; the original architectural finishes to this have been obscured by modern station infrastructure, but the original appearance would have been comparable with those still visible on the southbound platform at Kennington.

Borough is the most northerly of the original remaining C&SLR stations. North of here the railway initially followed a different route from the present one, with the tunnels running to the original terminus at King William Street. This route was abandoned in 1900 when new tunnels on a different alignment to London Bridge and Moorgate were opened. Nevertheless, the original tunnels passed close enough to the location of London Bridge station for them to still be visible through a vent, immediately above the middle of the southbound platform there.

During the Second World War, parts of the disused tunnels between Borough and the south side of the River Thames were adapted into a large public air-raid shelter by Southwark Borough Council. The shelter had six entrances along Borough High Street; it opened on 24 June 1940 and closed on 7 May 1945. A plaque at the station records this.

The lifts from the 1922 reconstruction were replaced in 1985, during which time the spiral staircase was the only way in and out of the station.

On 15 January 2022, Borough tube station closed temporarily until mid-May 2022, to allow major upgrade works at Bank station to be finished. During the closure, refurbishment works were carried out at Borough. It reopened on 15 May 2022 although the official opening was on 16 May 2022.

Connections
London Buses routes 21, 35, 133, 343, C10 and night routes N21, N133 and N343 serve the station.

title: Borough tube station