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Marc Overmars

Marc Overmars (born 29 March 1973) is a Dutch former professional footballer and former director of football at Belgian Pro League side Royal Antwerp F.C.. He was previously director of football at Ajax. During his football career, he played as a winger and was renowned for his speed and technical skills.

Overmars was born in Emst and was passionate about football from an early age. He began his playing career at SV Epe before joining Go Ahead Eagles' youth team in 1987. He secured a place in the first team by the 1990–91 season, but joined Willem II in time for the following season. His stay at the club was short; after 31 appearances he signed for Ajax in 1992. He established himself as an important member of the team that won three Eredivisie titles from 1994 and 1996 and the UEFA Champions League in 1995. In December 1995, Overmars sustained a cruciate ligament injury which ruled him out of playing for eight months.

In 1997, he joined Arsenal; his performances at the club were indifferent to begin with and attracted criticism from football pundits and fans. By the end of his first season, Overmars became a focal point of Arsenal's league and cup double success. He scored the winning goal against league rivals Manchester United which set his team on their way to securing the Premier League title and opened the scoring against Newcastle United in the 1998 FA Cup final. In 2000, he moved to Barcelona in a deal worth £25 million and became the most expensive player in Dutch football history. The club failed to win silverware during his stay and numerous managerial changes made him a peripheral player. A persistent knee injury prompted Overmars to announce his retirement in 2004, but he reversed his decision in 2008 and went on to play one season for Go Ahead Eagles before retiring again.

In 2012, Overmars was named as Ajax's director of football. In February 2022, he left the role after a "series of inappropriate messages to several female colleagues", according to a formal statement by the club. Among other things, he had sent photos of his genitals to at least one employee. In March 2022, he was presented as director of football by Royal Antwerp F.C., causing the withdrawal of four sponsors of the club the same week.

Overmars represented the Netherlands national team for 11 years. He scored on his international debut in 1993 against Turkey, and was a member of the Dutch squad for four major tournaments: the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cups, and 2000 and 2004 European Championships.

Early life
Overmars was born in Emst, Gelderland, growing up on a family farm with his parents and assisting his grandfather with the potato harvest each year. There were no machines or tractors, so when the time came to extract the potatoes, his family tied a rope around Overmars' waist, connected it to a cart and made him run while they pulled the crop out.

His father Ben described him as a "clumsy" child, whose main interest was playing football: "He used to come down 24 stairs to breakfast bouncing a ball on his head." This had an effect on his schoolwork; Overmars was uninterested in school, but did pass "a couple of GCEs". Ben did not know whether he made the effort to take his exams just to please him. As a teenager, Overmars did weight-training which improved his speed. He also attributed his pace to his mother who was quick, but "had no time for sports".

Early career
Overmars began his playing career at local club SV Epe. In 1987, he joined Go Ahead Eagles at the age of 14. After making his breakthrough into the first team, he joined Willem II for ƒ500,000.

Ajax

After one season at Willem II, Overmars signed for Ajax in July 1992. Both clubs settled on a transfer fee of ƒ2.5 million, after Ajax's initial bid of ƒ1.5 million was rejected. Manager Louis van Gaal was very fond of Overmars beforehand and described him as a "multi-functional player". Overmars' debut came in a 3–0 win against Dordrecht on 16 August 1992. His first goal for Ajax was away to RKC Waalwijk in October and he scored a further seven goals in the 1992–93 season. Several teams chose to combat Overmars' threat with heavy tackles; he detested this, adding, "I do not fall on purpose, but if they keep kicking, I would sometimes give something back in return." Ajax finished the campaign third in the league; their form in the final few months was described as "maddening" by football writer David Winner, as they defeated eventual champions Feyenoord by five goals, but dropped points to "minnows like MVV Maastricht". The team lost to Auxerre in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup, but did not end the season trophyless – they beat Heerenveen 6–2 to win the KNVB Cup. Overmars scored two goals in the final.

Ajax began the 1993–94 season with a 4–0 defeat of Feyenoord to lift the Dutch Supercup; Overmars scored the team's fourth goal. In August 1993, he was awarded the Dutch Golden Shoe, as voted for by Dutch journalists. Overmars was happy with how his career progressed and said it was a "dream" to play for Ajax. Although he featured in 42 matches – five fewer matches than in the previous season – his goal count was much improved: he scored 12 goals in total, all of which came in the Eredivisie. His goals helped Ajax win the league; the team ended the campaign 25 points clear of second place Feyenoord.

Overmars enjoyed further success in the 1994–95 season. Ajax retained the league and won the UEFA Champions League, beating Milan in the final. He scored against Bayern Munich at the semi-final stage of the latter competition. In later years, Overmars criticised the expansion of the Champions League to include non league champions: "When I won it with Ajax it was only the teams who finished first who took part. It's not special any more. I think the Champions' League is just a starter for what they want to do in the future, create a European League." Overmars's exposure to European football had prompted him to be a sought-after player in England. He knew of Arsenal's interest, but was puzzled as to why a move "didn't work out." In the summer of 1995 he was linked with a move to Manchester United, but said: "No thanks I want to stay with Ajax for two more seasons."

In December 1995, Overmars injured himself during Ajax's match against De Graafschap. Close examination showed the player had torn ligaments on his left knee, which was "completely severed". He therefore missed the remainder of the 1995–96 season and advised Ajax to purchase a new striker to make up their loss. The club however signed left winger Peter Hoekstra in January 1996. Ajax played a second consecutive Champions League final in May 1996, but lost to Juventus by a penalty shoot-out. They did however retain the league for a third season.

The introduction of the Bosman ruling in 1995 had negative consequences for Ajax in the 1996–97 season. The club lost several players, and reinvested poorly according to Winner. Injuries also affected their challenge for honours; many players were exhausted as a result of UEFA Euro 1996 and the short summer break that came with it. Chairman Michael van Praag was determined to keep the club's players and said that Overmars had signed a four-year contract in 1996. He added, "We are not going to allow them to break their contracts so they are not leaving." On the pitch, Overmars made his return from injury against AZ on 28 August 1996. He had his least productive season for Ajax, scoring two goals. The club finished the season in fourth position.

Arsenal
Overmars signed for Arsenal in June 1997. The fee was reported to be between £5 million and £7 million, with the player on a five-year contract, paid £18,000 per week. Overmars relished the challenge of playing in England: "I like English football because there is more pace. With my speed and quality I think it will be good for me here." Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger believed Overmars had his "best years ahead of him" and met his criteria of a player "used to the pressures of playing for a big club and everything that goes with it". He opined that Arsenal lost the Premier League at home the previous season – "we were maybe the best away team," and commented on their inability to play expansive football. Wenger felt the signing of Overmars would rectify that problem.

Overmars made his competitive debut for Arsenal against Leeds United in a 1–1 draw on 9 August 1997. Two weeks later, he scored his first goal for the club, away to Southampton. Arsenal went to the top of the league table on goal difference in September 1997, after a 4–0 win against West Ham United. Overmars, who scored two goals in the match, had now "run into devastating form" according to Brian Glanville. His impact however waned in the subsequent months and so did Arsenal's form; a 3–1 defeat to Blackburn Rovers on 13 December 1997 meant the club dropped to fifth place. The turn of the year saw improvement to Overmars' game, which coincided with "the more general rejuvenation of the whole team". He scored both of Arsenal's goals in their win over Leeds United on 11 January 1998. Overmars up until this point was subject to criticism from commentators and fans. Wenger emphasised that this was his first year in England and there was more to come from him. He said Overmars was a "positive buy" and pointed out that his goalscoring record was "not bad for a winger".

Arsenal caught up with league leaders Manchester United by the time both clubs played each other at Old Trafford in March 1998. Overmars was a constant threat in the match and scored in the 80th minute. He received the ball from Nicolas Anelka and ran with it, before managing to flick it beyond the goalkeeper, Peter Schmeichel. Arsenal went on to win, which put them six points behind Manchester United, with three games in hand. Overmars afterwards said, "This was a great result for us. But you don't win the Premier League against Manchester United; you have to beat the other clubs." Arsenal overtook Manchester United in April 1998, and won the league after beating Everton on 3 May 1998; Overmars scored two goals in the match. The team later faced Newcastle United in the 1998 FA Cup Final and it was Overmars who scored the opening goal, in the 23rd minute. Anelka's goal in the second half ensured victory and completed a league and cup double for Arsenal. Wenger praised Overmars after the final:

"All Europe thought Overmars was dead because of his damaged knee, but in every important game we have had this season, he has scored. He has got great mental strength. He is a world-class player."

Overmars began the 1998–99 season for Arsenal in good form; scoring the opening goal in a 3–0 win against Manchester United, thus being named as the man of the match of the 1998 FA Charity Shield. He also found himself on the scoresheet at home to Nottingham Forest in the opening game of the league campaign. Arsenal participated in the Champions League, but their time in the competition was brief. The team did not make it past the group stage, and in the decisive game against Dynamo Kyiv which they lost, Overmars was ruled out with an abdominal injury. In February 1999, he scored a "controversial" winning goal against Sheffield United in the FA Cup fifth round. Nwankwo Kanu failed to return the ball to the opposition, in order to allow one of their players to receive treatment for an injury. Due to the controversial circumstances in which the game was won, Wenger immediately offered a replay. His proposal was accepted by The Football Association (FA) and Arsenal went on to win the replayed match 2–1, where the opening goal was scored by Overmars. Arsenal exited the competition in the semi-final stage against Manchester United, who went on to win the league.

In November 1999, Overmars scored his first hat-trick for Arsenal, at home to Middlesbrough. His performance was lauded by journalist Lynne Truss, who wrote in The Times, "Overmars was in top Jack Russell form, bounding after the ball and prepared to savage anybody who tried to take it away from him." He twisted his ankle in action for Arsenal against Sheffield Wednesday in January 2000 and was out of action for six weeks. Unlike the previous two seasons, Arsenal never did pose a serious threat to Manchester United, who went on to retain the league in 1999–2000. Overmars had suggested before the campaign that Arsenal were as strong as their rivals, "especially in attack where we now have so many more options". Arsenal ended the league season strongly, winning eight games in a row between March and May to move from fifth to second place. In April 2000, Overmars scored the winning goal against Everton and was the standout performer in the game. His final game for Arsenal was the 2000 UEFA Cup Final against Galatasaray, which they lost 4–1 on penalties after a goalless draw.

In 2008, Overmars was voted as the 12th-greatest player in Arsenal's history by the club's supporters.

Barcelona

After the Netherlands' exit at Euro 2000, Lazio and Barcelona were reportedly interested in signing Overmars; the latter club hastened their efforts once Joan Gaspart was elected as president. Overmars was "flattered" by Barcelona's interest and said moving to such a club would "excite any player". Gaspart travelled to London to open negotiations with Arsenal and eventually reached an agreement to sign Overmars and his teammate Emmanuel Petit for a combined fee of around £32 million in July 2000. Overmars cost £25 million, making him the most expensive player in Dutch football history. The announcement of his transfer was unconventional; he publicised it on his personal website before informing the media. His site garnered 250,000 hits in one day, highlighting the internet's "potential for exponential growth" in regards to football. Overmars was delighted with the move, saying, "I can't wait to pull on the famous shirt and play my first game."

Overmars made his debut for Barcelona against Arsenal in the Amsterdam Tournament in August 2000. He lasted 45 minutes and was substituted after sustaining an ankle injury. His first competitive start came at home to Málaga on 8 September 2000. His performance in the match started off well, then faded before coming back in the second half, opined Andrés Astruells in El Mundo Deportivo. He scored his first goal for the club at home to Racing de Santander on 23 September 2000; it involved him dribbling the ball around the goalkeeper. Barcelona made an indifferent start to the 2000–01 season and by February 2001, journalist Sid Lowe commented it looked improbable that Lorenzo Serra Ferrer would remain as manager of the club. Wenger was touted as his replacement after reportedly meeting with Gaspart. Overmars believed his former manager was going to leave Arsenal and revealed that, "Barcelona have asked for lots of information about Wenger. I think something could happen soon." In La Liga, Overmars scored the team's seventh goal in their 7–0 win against Athletic Bilbao in February 2001; his performance was rated four stars out of five by El Mundo Deportivo.

Barcelona exited the semi-final stage of the UEFA Cup to Liverpool in April 2001. Serra Ferrer was sacked a week later and replaced by Carles Rexach. As the season drew to a close, Overmars turned into an influential player for Barcelona. Lowe labelled him as "Barça's only decent player in recent weeks" and was surprised he started on the bench against Real Valladolid in June 2001. When Overmars came on, he scored the equaliser to earn Barcelona a 2–2 draw. The team ended the campaign in fourth place after a dramatic 3–2 win against Valencia.

In the 2001–02 season, Barcelona once more finished fourth in the league. Petit left the club to join Chelsea before the season commenced, as he had found his first team opportunities limited. While on international duty with the Netherlands in September 2001, Overmars suffered a bruised knee and as a result did not play for Barcelona for a month. In November 2001, he scored Barcelona's third goal against Liverpool in the Champions League, which came after 29 uninterrupted passes. It was described by the Daily Mirror as "arguably the greatest team goal ever scored". Compared to the previous season, Overmars was used more sparingly in matches. Rexach had changed the team's formation to accommodate new signing Javier Saviola and promoted Xavi as a first-team regular. Overmars made an impact as a substitute against Galatasaray in December 2001; he set up Saviola twice to earn Barcelona a 2–2 draw. Mircea Lucescu, the manager of Galatasaray, complimented Overmars afterwards: "When we were 2–0 up I told my players at half-time to maintain the result, but Overmars is a great player. We did not have a solution to him and it threw our game off balance."

Overmars was subject to transfer speculation in early 2002 because of his limited role in the first team, but he revealed he was happy to stay at Barcelona: "My priority now is that the team wins. Personal issues are not important. I'm here for whatever you need me." In the Champions League, he started in the semi-final first leg against Real Madrid; the team lost 2–0 and were defeated 3–1 on aggregate. In May 2002, Rexach was dismissed and replaced by Louis van Gaal, who was managing the club for a second time. Overmars was wary of the appointment beforehand, saying, "Van Gaal is a good manager, but I do not know if his return would be good for Barcelona." He underwent surgery on his right knee at the end of the season and was out of action for six months.

The 2002–03 season saw Barcelona make their worst ever start to a league season; the club was two points off a relegation spot after defeat to Sevilla in December 2002. Van Gaal departed the club in January 2003 and following a board meeting, Gaspart resigned as president a month later. Radomir Antić presided as manager for the remainder of the season. He encouraged the team to play with more width and made minimal changes; for instance, he switched Overmars from a left winger to a right one. Overmars tore a muscle in his thigh during a Copa del Rey match against Terrassa in May 2003 and was sidelined for a month. In his final season for Barcelona, the club appointed Frank Rijkaard as manager and elected Joan Laporta as president. The club finished second in La Liga and were knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Celtic in the fourth round. Overmars made 29 appearances in the first team, three fewer than in the previous campaign. He was prolific in the Copa del Rey, a competition he scored twice in three matches. His performance against Ciudad de Murcia earned him recognition in El Mundo Deportivo, who wrote "frequent injuries have prevented him from consolidating his [position] as indisputable". Due to a persistent knee injury, he announced his retirement from football in July 2004 and left Barcelona without compensation.

Go Ahead Eagles
In July 2008, Overmars played in Jaap Stam's testimonial match in a team of "former Stam-mates" against Ajax. His performance, which saw him trouble defender George Ogăraru, earned him invitations from Dutch and German clubs to make his professional comeback. He declined the offers at first, but in August 2008 announced he was to come out of retirement to play again for Go Ahead Eagles. Overmars' comeback lasted only one season as his knee continued to give him discomfort.

International career
Overmars' first call-up to the Netherlands senior national squad came in February 1993 for a 1994 World Cup qualifier against Turkey. He scored five minutes into his debut, after good play from Wim Jonk. The team went on to win 3–1 and Overmars said the goal was good for his confidence. Dick Advocaat, the manager of the Netherlands, was complimentary of the debutant's performance. In April 1993, Overmars earned the national team a penalty against England after Des Walker fouled him. Peter van Vossen converted the spot kick to complete a comeback for the Netherlands, who had been 2–0 down after 24 minutes.

The national team qualified for the 1994 FIFA World Cup in November 1993. Advocaat selected Overmars for the tournament and he featured in all of the Netherlands' five matches. Against the Republic of Ireland in the round of 16, he took advantage of Terry Phelan's header intended for goalkeeper Packie Bonner and sprinted away to set up Dennis Bergkamp to score. The Netherlands were eliminated in the quarter-finals against Brazil; Advocaat deployed Overmars as an extra attacker, but for much of the match he played as one of five in midfield. His corner in the 76th minute was met by Aron Winter and levelled the scores at 2–2 for a brief period – a goal from Branco resolved the match in favour of Brazil. Overmars' performances in the competition led him to be named the best young player of the 1994 World Cup. In October 1995, he scored a hat-trick for the Netherlands in their Euro 1996 qualifier away to Malta. He was pleased with his performance – "things are getting better," and felt he needed to practise his shooting and inward running technique. Overmars did not participate in the tournament finals as he was recuperating from his knee ligament injury. Sports writer Rob Hughes said the Netherlands draw against Scotland showed why "they sorely miss the speed and balance of Marc Overmars". The player returned to international action for the 1998 World Cup qualifier against Wales in November 1996. He believed his best position for the national team was up front, but manager Guus Hiddink wanted him to remain as a winger.

Overmars was selected in the squad for the 1998 World Cup, staged in France. Before the tournament began, he scored two goals in a friendly against Paraguay. He was on the scoresheet in the national team's 5–0 win against South Korea in the group stage. While training before the quarter-final match against Argentina, he sustained an injury which seemingly ruled him out of contention. He did feature late into the game as a substitute, but aggravated his injury. He was subsequently forced to sit out the entire semi-final against Brazil, which the Netherlands lost on penalties.

Overmars suffered a minor setback prior to Euro 2000 with a sore thigh muscle. However, he resumed training and was declared fit for the Netherlands opening match against Czech Republic, where he started on the bench. His introduction brought about the only goal of the match – a penalty scored the 89th minute. Ronald de Boer was adjudged to have had his shirt pulled whilst jumping to meet Overmars' cross. In the quarter-finals, he scored twice in the team's 6–1 win against Yugoslavia. The Netherlands went on to lose their semi-final to Italy on penalties. Overmars played in eight of the national team's ten 2002 World Cup qualifiers, but it was an unsuccessful campaign as they failed to qualify for the finals.

After a year's absence from international football due to injury, Overmars was recalled to the Netherlands squad for their friendly against Portugal in April 2003. Two months later, he came on as a substitute against Belarus in a Euro 2004 qualifier and scored the opening goal of the game. He was selected for the tournament held in Portugal, and was advised by Advocaat not to train more than once a day, so that his body would resist burn out. Overmars only started three matches in Euro 2004, his final game was the Netherlands loss to Portugal in the semi-final. In all, he played in 86 games for his national side, scoring 17 goals.

Style of play
A diminutive footballer, Overmars in his prime was described as "the archetypal winger", whose speed, vision, two-footedness and dribbling ability meant he was able to get the better of most defenders and either score or assist goals. Indeed, pace and acceleration was an important part of his game and reflective of his nicknames "TGV" and "Roadrunner". Former teammate Petit said his strength lay "... in pushing the ball beyond his marker and darting past him into space to deliver crosses". Former defender Gary Neville opined that Overmars was the best winger he came up against in his time at Manchester United, not least because of his versatility, which was exemplified by Overmars's ability to play on both the left and the right wing, despite being naturally right footed.

Football pundit Alan Hansen believed Overmars benefited from a "strange feature of the modern English game" – defenders backing off and allowing him to run until he was in a shooting position. Despite his talent, Overmars was also known to be injury-prone throughout his career.

Post-football career
In February 2005, Overmars became a shareholder of Go Ahead Eagles. Two months later, he joined the club's supervisory board to deal with technical matters. Hans de Vroome, chairman of Go Ahead Eagles, said he was "more than satisfied" with Overmars' arrival, adding, "The board needs someone with a solid football background."

In 2011, Overmars took up a position as youth coach of Ajax for one day per week. At the end of the 2011–12 season, Overmars left his post at Go Ahead Eagles. He said, "I have been active on a voluntary basis at the club for seven years. That's a big time in my life." The club's disappointing league form "accelerated" his decision.

Overmars became director of football at Ajax in July 2012. He resigned from his position at Ajax on 6 February 2022 after admitting to sending a series of inappropriate messages to female colleagues. Among other things, he had sent photos of his genitals to at least one employee.

On 21 March 2022 he was presented as Director of Football by Royal Antwerp, causing the withdrawal of four sponsors of the club the same week.

On 10 January 2024 Overmars was banned by FIFA from world football for his inappropriate behaviour.

Personal life
Overmars married his long-term partner Chantal van Woensel in May 2013. Prior to the wedding, the couple had two sons, Frenkie and Nick, both of whom are footballers. He is a co-owner of a restaurant in Epe, in the province of Gelderland, where he resides. The family business, Overmars Vastgoed bv, was founded in the 1990s and continues to invest in, amongst other things, commercial and residential buildings. With his father Ben and brother Edwin, he also runs a car restoration service named Overmars Classic Cars. In 2002, Overmars appeared in the Quote 500 richest Dutch people list for the first time, at number 441.

In December 2022, Overmars was admitted to hospital after suffering a "mild stroke". In reality, it was later revealed that he had suffered a cardiac arrest, and will need a year to recover as his heart presently is only able to pump blood at 30% efficiency.

International

 * Scores and results list the Netherlands' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Overmars goal.

Honours
Ajax
 * Eredivisie: 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96
 * KNVB Cup: 1992–93
 * Dutch Supercup: 1993
 * UEFA Champions League: 1994–95
 * Intercontinental Cup: 1995

Arsenal
 * Premier League: 1997–98
 * FA Cup: 1997–98
 * FA Charity Shield: 1998

Individual
 * Dutch Football Talent of the Year: 1992
 * Dutch Golden Shoe Winner:1993
 * FIFA World Cup Best Young Player: 1994
 * AFC Ajax Player of the Year: 1996

title: Marc Overmars


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Länder

Länder (singular Land) or Bundesländer (singular Bundesland) is the name for (federal) states in two German-speaking countries. It may more specifically refer to:
 * States of Austria, the nine federal subdivisions of Austria
 * States of Germany, the 16 federal subdivisions of Germany

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

title: Länder


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User:SatyrEyes

My name's Satyr Eyes. I'm a recent graduate of the University of Chicago, majoring in linguistics and economics. My interests, however, range far and wide, and my contributions to Wikipedia will span subjects a very long way from my areas of study.

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title: User:SatyrEyes


text:
Spanish match

The Spanish match was a proposed marriage between Prince Charles, the son of King James I of England, and Infanta Maria Anna of Spain, the daughter of Philip III of Spain. Negotiations took place over the period 1614 to 1623, and during this time became closely related to aspects of British foreign and religious policy, before breaking down completely.

The policy, unpopular with England's Protestant House of Commons, where the recent Anglo-Spanish War had not been forgotten, was initiated during the embassy to England of Gondomar, who arrived in London in 1614 with the offer that Spain would not interfere with James's troubled rule in Ireland if James would restrain the English "privateers" in Spanish American waters. Further, he proposed a marriage alliance, offering a dowry of £500,000 (later increased to £600,000), which seemed especially attractive to James after the failure of the Parliament of 1614 to provide him with the financial subsidies he requested.

The climax of the ensuing decade of high-level negotiation to secure a marriage between the leading Protestant and Catholic royal families of Europe occurred in 1623 in Madrid, with the embassy of the Prince Charles and James's favourite, George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham. The wedding never took place despite the signing of a marriage contract by King James; criticism instead led to the dissolution of Parliament.

Background

A Spanish marriage for Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, Charles's elder brother who had died in 1612, had been proposed by his mother Anne of Denmark. After his death she supported the idea of a Spanish marriage for her daughter Elizabeth, but in 1613 Elizabeth married a prominent Protestant prince. For her second son Charles, there were candidate marriages mooted from Savoy and Tuscany, as well as Spain and France. From 1614 to her own death in 1619, Queen Anne gave some support to a Spanish match, preferring at times a French marriage, and recognising that the Spanish proposals were entirely based on self-interest. A point brought up against it in 1620 was that the previous "Spanish matches", those that had brought Catherine of Aragon to England, and Philip II of Spain to marry Queen Mary, had in the popular memory turned out badly.

James I's policy
At the beginning of 1618 James I and VI was in a strong diplomatic position. His efforts against wars in Europe had been largely effective, and his own status as a Protestant ruler who was on good terms with Catholic powers was high. Success in reducing the religious factor in international relations then deteriorated for James, in parallel with the failure of the Spanish Match, with the onset of the Thirty Years' War. In 1618 he was still concerned with detailed moves to improve his relationship with Spain, such as the translation of the anti-Calvinist Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, and the execution of the buccaneering Sir Walter Raleigh.

On the domestic front, the prospect of a Spanish dowry from a marriage between his heir Charles, Prince of Wales from 1616, and Infanta Maria Anna of Spain, was a potential source of income for James, who sought ways to rule without depending on the Commons for subsidies. The policy of the Spanish Match was supported by the Howards and other Catholic-leaning ministers and diplomats—together known as the "Spanish Party"—but deeply distrusted by some Protestant groups in England. Sentiment was voiced vociferously in the Commons when James called his first parliament for seven years in 1621 to raise funds for a military expedition in support of Frederick V, Elector Palatine, his son-in-law.

There was in fact no chance that Pope Paul V would have issued the required dispensation for the Infanta to marry a Protestant. This fact was known to the Spanish king, but apparently Gondomar was kept in ignorance of the correspondence. Paul V died early in 1621, and his successor Pope Gregory XV was thought amenable to the idea of the match. James sent George Gage to Rome to lobby, putting the case on behalf of English Catholics. The matter was passed to a small group of cardinals, who emphasised that improved treatment for English Catholics was a prerequisite.

Political opposition
By the 1620s, events on the continent had stirred up anti-Catholic feeling to a new pitch. A conflict had broken out between the Catholic Holy Roman Empire and the Protestant Palatinate, when the Bohemians deposed the Emperor as their king and elected James's son-in-law, Frederick V, Elector Palatine, in his place, triggering the Thirty Years' War. James reluctantly summoned parliament as the only means to raise the funds necessary to assist his daughter Elizabeth and Frederick, who had been ousted from Prague by Emperor Ferdinand II in 1620. The Commons on the one hand granted subsidies inadequate to finance serious military operations in aid of Frederick, and on the other called for a war directly against Spain.

In November 1621, led by Sir Edward Coke, the Commons framed a petition asking not only for a war with Spain but for Prince Charles to marry a Protestant, and for enforcement of the anti-Catholic laws. When James heard of the petition, he is said to have cried, "God give me patience". James flatly told them not to interfere in matters of royal prerogative or they would risk punishment; to which provocation they reacted by issuing a statement protesting their rights, including freedom of speech. James wrote: "We cannot with patience endure our subjects to use such anti-monarchical words to us concerning their liberties, except they had subjoined that they were granted unto them by the grace and favour of our predecessors." Urged on by Buckingham and the Spanish ambassador Gondomar, James ripped the protest out of the record book and dissolved Parliament.

Opposition literature, censorship and imprisonment
Outside the political process, feelings that were both anti-Spanish and anti-Catholic ran high. Pamphleteering attacks aimed at the Spanish Match through the court, deploying "defamation, forgery and partisan distortion". Smears in the form of fabricated personal details about figures associated with the Spanish Party were published, especially by the Puritan faction. Thomas Scott is particularly noted for his part in this campaign, from 1619.

In 1620, and again in 1621, James issued decrees against writing or speaking on state affairs. John Everard preached against the match in February 1621, at St Martin-in-the-Fields, and spent about half a year in the Gatehouse Prison. When Robert Mason wrote in 1622 to his friend Thomas Hobbes about public opinion on the match, criticising James's policy and noting Gondomar's skill in gaining support for it by holding out the prospect of the Palatine being returned to Frederick V, he hedged his comments with pleas for secrecy.

Thomas Middleton's 1624 play A Game at Chess allegorized the events surrounding the Spanish Match. It was particularly harsh on Gondomar, represented by the Black Knight. Plays were in any case censored, and Henry Herbert as Master of the Revels passed it for performance; it was a short-lived succès de scandale in August 1624. It has been suggested that Herbert connived at the unheard-of dramatic liberties taken in portraying members of the royal family, in a court now dominated by the anti-Spanish party. Plays of the previous two years that had Spanish settings, Middleton and Rowley's The Changeling and Thomas Dekker's Match Me in London, have been given readings that set them against the match, necessarily more covertly.

Charles in Spain
Denied the military option, James ignored public opinion and returned to the Spanish match as his only hope of restoring the possessions of Elizabeth and Frederick. The position was altered, however, by the death of Philip III of Spain, in 1621. With the accession of Philip IV of Spain the Spanish proponent of the marriage, Gondomar, lost influence to Olivares.

When negotiations began to drag, Prince Charles, now 22, and Buckingham decided to seize the initiative and travel to Castile incognito, to win the Infanta directly. Travelling under the names Thomas and John Smith, they arrived in Madrid on 7 March 1623 (OS) to the astonishment of Philip IV, and of the English Ambassador, John Digby, 1st Earl of Bristol, who had been given no warning of the Prince's intentions. Charles and Buckingham were ignorant of the key facts, that Maria Anna was strongly averse to marrying a non-Catholic, and that the Spanish, who had been protracting the marriage negotiations to keep English troops out of the war, would never agree to such a match unless James and Charles pledged to repeal the anti-Catholic Penal Laws.

They were welcomed at the Royal Alcázar of Madrid. The reception at court and the journey was described by the author Andrés de Almansa y Mendoza. Richard Wynn, a Gentleman of the Bedchamber, sailed with other members of the royal household in the Adventure from Portsmouth to join the Prince. Wynn's account of the journey describes the costumes of Spanish country people and aristocrats, and the difficulties and uncertainties of the journey.

During the visit, Spanish national poet Pedro Calderón de la Barca made his debut as a playwright with Amor, honor y poder ("Love, honor, and power"), a verse drama about the life of King Edward III of England, which was performed before the Prince at the Royal Alcázar of Madrid on 29 June 1623.

Francis Stuart sailed to Castile in the St George bringing the patent creating the titles Duke of Buckingham and Earl of Coventry. He also brought a parcel of jewels for Prince Charles, many of which had belonged to Anne of Denmark. These included; the jewelled sword given to Prince Henry during the masque Tethys' Festival; the "Portugal diamond"; the "Cobham pearl"; jewelled head attires; and a ring with a diamond frog and a ruby set in its head.

Though a secret treaty was signed, the Prince and Duke returned to England in October without the Infanta. On their way to Santander they visited El Escorial, the Palace of Valsain, the Alcázar of Segovia, Valladolid, Palencia, and Frómista. There was open delight shown by sections of the British people.

The Privy Council
From 1617 the negotiations for the match had been handled by the Privy Council. In fact it was considered that there was a need for confidential dealings with Spanish counterparts, and a subcommittee of the council was set up for that reason; which later became a vehicle for discussion of foreign policy more generally, and persisted into the next reign. The last word on the Spanish Match was the vote in the Privy Council to reject the Spanish terms, taking place in January 1624.

Aftermath
Affronted by their treatment in Spain, Charles and Buckingham now turned James's Spanish policy on its head: they called for a French match and a war against the Habsburg Spanish empire. To raise the necessary finance, they prevailed upon James to call another Parliament, which met in February 1624. For once, the outpouring of anti-Catholic sentiment in the Commons was echoed in court, where control of policy had shifted from James to Charles and Buckingham, who pressured the king to declare war and engineered the impeachment and imprisonment of the Lord Treasurer, Lionel Cranfield, 1st Earl of Middlesex, when he opposed the idea on grounds of cost.

Lord Bristol, though entirely blameless, was made the scapegoat for the failure of the match: he was recalled in disgrace,  ordered to remain on his estates and later imprisoned for a time in the Tower of London. Charles thus antagonised one of his most gifted and trustworthy public servants, and they were not fully reconciled until the outbreak of the English Civil War.

The outcome of the Parliament of 1624 was ambiguous: James still refused to declare war, but Charles believed the Commons had committed themselves to financing a war against Spain, a stance which was to contribute to his problems with Parliament in his own reign. Charles eventually married Henrietta Maria of France.

Gifts of jewels
Charles was supplied with various jewels from the English royal collection to give as gifts. King James sent advice on this gift giving to his son in Spain. When Charles gave his farewells to the Spanish court, his presents included; to the King, a sword set with diamonds; to the Queen, two large diamonds, and a pair of earrings including diamonds as big as a bean; to the Infanta, a string of 250 pear shaped pearls; to Don Carlos, a pointed diamond; to the Cardinal, a pectoral of topazes, diamonds, and pearls; to Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares, the "Portugal diamond" set with a pendant pearl, as a substitute for the famous La Peregrina pearl; to the Countess of Olivares, a diamond cross; to her daughter, Lady Maria de Guzman, a ring; four jewels each to the Duke of Híjar, the Marquis of Mondéjar, the King's Confessor, and the Bishop of Segovia; diamond rings for the gentlemen of the King's chamber; chains of gold for 14 pages, gold rings for the royal archers; to the Conde de la Puebla Maestre a chain of diamonds and a miniature of portrait of himself set with diamonds.

A ship, the Mary Rose, was sent to Spain to collect jewels returned to the English ambassador in July 1624. The ship was threatened by a storm during the return voyage.

In popular fiction
William Harrison Ainsworth's 1865 novel The Spanish Match concerns itself with the journey to Spain and the negotiations. The visit of Prince Charles is the background of the novel El capitán Alatriste (1996) by Arturo Pérez-Reverte and its film adaptation.

In 2011, Sophia Institute Press released a novel based on historical events entitled The Spanish Match.

The Spanish Match is a large part of the plot in episode 7 of the Starz miniseries Mary and George.

title: Spanish match


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Leeuwenhoek (disambiguation)

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was a Dutch businessman and scientist in the Golden Age of Dutch science and technology.

Leeuwenhoek may also refer to:
 * Leeuwenhoek (crater), a lunar impact crater
 * Leeuwenhoek Lecture, a prize lecture of the Royal Society
 * Leeuwenhoek Medal, an award of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences

title: Leeuwenhoek (disambiguation)


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/JoshMirmanStubbleComic

This page is an archive of the discussion surrounding the proposed deletion of the pages entitled Josh Mirman and Stubble comic.

This page is kept as an historic record.

The result of the debate was deletion.

Vanity page and non-famous web comic. --Stormie 05:54, May 10, 2004 (UTC)

actually its quite a "famous" comic in NYC. Ive been directed to the site by multiple people in many different situations.
 * Note that this anonymous comment is from an IP address whose only previous edit was to contribute to Mike Krol, one of the articles in this bunch whose deletion is being discussed. --Stormie 09:24, May 10, 2004 (UTC)

 * That's enough to make me want to kick in another delete vote as non-famous. - Lucky 6.9 15:03, 10 May 2004 (UTC)

Hi there. If it's a problem, then by all means delete it. I didn't think it would've been a big deal to write some tidbits on one of my favorite comics and the artist. Sorry if this is a problem!
 * Also there's a problem with the originator of the article removing the notice. I replaced it with the correct one. I vote for deleting both. Alcarillo 19:43, 10 May 2004 (UTC)

I'm sorry. I removed the information to be polite. I didn't know that part was something to be left up. I didn't mean anything from it. Sorry again! Take care.

 * Delete both: nonnotable, vanity. Wile E. Heresiarch 04:46, 12 May 2004 (UTC)

This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate up to the point of deletion and is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue, the deletion or on the new method of assessing voting, should be placed on other relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.


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Binary Research

Binary Research Ltd was a company founded in Auckland, New Zealand by Murray Haszard in 1991 after the sale of his previous company, B32 Software.

Binary Research initially considered developing competitors to the file transfer programs Blast and Laplink. The product to compete with Blast was dropped at an early stage, but a program to transfer files over parallel or serial cables was developed and marketed from 1994 to 1996 under several names, including Beam, UniBeam and LinkWiz. This program was available in DOS, Windows 3.x, OS/2 2.0 and SCO Unix versions, and claimed to transfer files more rapidly than Laplink at that time. Later versions of the program could also transfer files using a network cable.

Beam was not a financial success, as Laplink was the dominant product in that marketplace.

Binary Research's next product, arising from the file transfer and parallel port technologies of Beam, was Ghost, first sold in 1996. Ghost pioneered the field of disk cloning software. A network of agents was set up around the world, and a branch of Binary Research Ltd, Binary Research International Inc, was established in Glendale, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin as a sales and support centre.

Ghost was a very successful product, but Binary Research was a small company and was unable to drive the global sales force which Ghost needed. In 1998, Murray Haszard looked for a company which could acquire and develop Ghost further. Symantec expressed an interest, and after a unanimous vote of approval by Binary Research's New Zealand employees, Ghost was purchased by Symantec for US$27.5 million in July 1998. Almost all New Zealand employees of Binary Research became Symantec employees, and Ghost continued to be developed in Auckland for over ten years.

Binary Research Ltd was closed down after the acquisition, but Binary Research International Inc. continues as a reseller of Ghost, and has expanded into other software products. One of the most significant products BRI distributed was the UIU (Universal Imaging Utility) which facilitates the creation of an image that can be deployed to a vast range of hardware, irrespective of brand, components and drivers.

title: Binary Research


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Happy families

Happy families is a traditional British card game usually with a specially made set of picture cards, featuring illustrations of fictional families of four, most often based on occupation types. The object of the game is to collect complete families, and the game is similar to Go Fish and Quartets.

In Germany and Austria, the game is known as Quartett or Ablegspiel (in Upper Austria and Styria) and is not restricted to sets of four people, but covers other topics such as farm animals or tractors. The game can also be adapted for use with an ordinary set of playing cards.

Gameplay

The player whose turn it is asks another player for a specific card: the asking player must hold a card of the same family. If the asked player has the card, they must give it to the requester, and the requester then takes another turn. If the asked player does not have the card, they say "not at home" and it becomes the asked player's turn.

When a player completes a family they place it face-down in front of them. Play continues in this way until no families are separated among different players. The player with the most completed families wins.

Development
The game was devised by John Jaques Jr. who is also credited with popularizing tiddlywinks, ludo and snakes and ladders, and first published before the Great Exhibition of 1851. Cards following Jaques's original designs, with grotesque illustrations possibly by Sir John Tenniel (there was no official credit), are still being made.

Family members
The names of the family members are structured as follows, where X stands for a surname and Y for an occupation.
 * Mr X the Y
 * Mrs X the Y's wife
 * Master X the Y's son
 * Miss X the Y's daughter

The eleven families in Jaques' original edition were: • Block, the barber

• Bones, the butcher

• Bun, the baker

• Bung, the brewer

• Chip, the carpenter

• Dip, the dyer

• Dose, the doctor

• Grits, the grocer

• Pots, the painter

• Soot, the sweep

• Tape, the tailor

title: Happy families


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Vallès Occidental

Vallès Occidental is a comarca (county) in the Barcelona region in Catalonia (Spain). It has two capitals, Sabadell and Terrassa. Along with Vallès Oriental, it forms the historical Vallès region.

Physical geography
Vallès Occidental borders the comarques of Bages (to the north), Vallès Oriental (to the north and east), Baix Llobregat (to the west), and Barcelonès (to the south). It centers on the Catalan prelittoral depression, limited to the west by the River Llobregat and to the east by the River Caldes. The northern part of the comarca is mountainous. From west to east, it contains part of the Obac range (924m altitude at Castellsapera); the massifs of Sant Llorenç de Munt (1095m at La Mola and 1053m at Montcau) and Puig de la Creu (664m); and the Sant Sadurní (954m) and Farell cliffs (789m). At the south of the comarca is the Collserola range (512m), which forms part of the Catalan Littoral. Between these various ranges is the valley that gives its name to the comarca. The valley actually composes two separate watersheds, the basins of the Llobregat and Besòs.

The Llobregat watershed lies to the west of the axis that runs from Obac to Tibidabo (culminating point of the Collserola range), passing through Matadepera, Sant Quirze del Vallès, Bellaterra, and Sant Cugat del Vallès. Tributaries of the Llobregat include the Canyamssos, the Rubí and the Vallvidrera. East of that axis, the watershed of the Besòs includes the rivers Ripoll and Caldes, (the latter forming the eastern border of the comarca).

Major natural parks

 * Parc Natural de Sant Llorenç de Munt i Serra de l'Obac
 * Parc de Collserola

Hiking trails
Vallès Occidental has several notable official hiking trails, known as "senders de gran recorregut".

 * GR-6: Barcelona – Montserrat (Classic route to Montserrat).
 * GR-96: Barcelona – Montserrat (Roman road to Montserrat).
 * GR-97: Abrera – Sant Celoni (From the Llobregat to the Tordera).
 * GR-173: Circumnavigation of Vallès Occidental.

Human and economic geography
Industry is concentrated in the south, coinciding with the flattest land in the comarca. The principal industrial cities are the co-capitals Sabadell and Terrassa, as well as Rubí and Cerdanyola del Vallès. The most important industries are textiles, mechanical engineering, metallurgy, machinery, electrical equipment, construction, chemicals, paper, and the processing of food products. An industrial crisis at the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s led to a greater importance for the commercial and service sectors, especially computer-related work.

The north remains primarily rural. Many of the residences there now function as second homes.

Transportation
Much of Catalonia's transportation network passes through Vallès Occidental, with roads, railroads, etc. crossing the valley in various directions.

Motorways

 * AP-7 crosses Vallès in an east-west direction. Heading west, it connects Vallès with Tarragona, València and the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula, similarly to the A-2/AP-2 (which connects Barcelona, Lleida, and Zaragoza). Heading east, it connects Vallès with the province of Girona and with France.
 * C-58 crosses the comarca south to north, connecting Barcelona with Manresa by wy of Montcada i Reixac, Ripollet, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Sabadell, and Terrassa.
 * Manresa, Terrassa, and Barcelona are also connected by C-16 or the Vallvidrera Tunnels, by way of Sant Cugat del Vallès and Rubí.
 * C-33 connects Montcada i Reixac and Mollet del Vallès, connecting the northern part of Barcelona with autopista AP-7 to the northeast.

Highways

 * N-150, the principal highway of the comarca, crosses south to north, connecting Barcelona to Terrassa by way of Montcada i Reixac, Ripollet, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barberà del Vallès, and Sabadell. Beyond Terrassa, various carreteres comarcals complete the comarca's network:
 * C-1413 starts at Molins de Rei, connects to the N-II and N-340 and the motorway A-2, and passes through Rubí, Sabadell, and Sentmenat before connecting finally to the N-152 at the heights of Centelles.
 * C-1415 connects Vilafranca del Penedès (N-340), Sant Sadurní d'Anoia, and Martorell (A-7, N-II) to Granollers and Mataró (N-II, A-19) passing through Terrassa, Matadepera, Castellar del Vallès, and Sentmenat.
 * C-155 connects Sabadell to Granollers, passing through Polinyà and Palau de Plegamans.

Railroads
Both railroad companies that operate in Catalonia have lines in Vallès Occidental. Renfe's Barcelona-Lleida line passes through Manresa. The Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya have the "Metro del Vallès", connecting Barcelona to Sabadell and Terrassa.

Airports
Most air traffic for Vallès Occidental comes through Prat airport in neighboring Baix Llobregat. Sabadell Airport is used for sport flying, as a base for firemen, and for air freight.

title: Vallès Occidental


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Big things (Australia)

The big things of Australia are large structures, some of which are novelty architecture and some sculptures. In Australia, big things have come to be seen as a uniquely Australian phenomenon, although they emerged at the same time as the so-called Roadside Giants (fibreglass sculptures of things) of the United States. These structures have become affectionately known landmarks scattered throughout the country. In 2022, there were about 230 big things in Australia. There are big things in each state and some territories in continental Australia.

History and importance
Originally, many of these big things were conceived as tourist traps strategically placed along major roads, enticing travelers to make a stop and explore the surrounding areas. They served as eye-catching attractions, drawing attention to local businesses and promoting tourism in the region. Over time, these structures have evolved beyond their initial purpose and have acquired a special place in Australian culture.

The big things have garnered significant attention from locals and visitors, becoming something of a cult phenomenon. Travelling to visit and photograph these structures has become a popular activity, inspiring road trips where enthusiasts aim to see as many big things as possible. These journeys often culminate in group photographs, using the larger-than-life structures as unique backdrops and symbols of shared experiences.

Many of the big things have been recognised as works of folk art. Their whimsical and often exaggerated designs reflect the creativity and ingenuity of their creators. Several big things have been heritage-listed, ensuring their preservation and contributing to the country's cultural heritage. These listed structures serve as reminders of the unique character and history of the regions they are located in.

Despite their popularity, some Big Things have faced controversies and potential demolition threats. Factors such as maintenance costs, changing priorities, or debates over their aesthetic value have ignited discussions regarding the delicate balance between preserving cultural icons and allocating resources for alternative purposes.

The influence of Australia's big things extends beyond the country's borders. These unique structures have inspired the creation of oversized sculptures and replicas in other parts of the world, highlighting the impact of Australian creativity and cultural exports.

In popular culture

 * The London production of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: the Musical references the Big Prawn, Big Merino, Big Pineapple and the Big Banana.
 * The ABC produced a documentary titled Big Things as part of its program The Big Picture.
 * The National Museum in Canberra has a comprehensive multimedia exhibit displaying many big things.
 * In 2007 Australia Post issued a set of 50c postage stamps by Reg Mombassa, commemorating five of the most iconic big things:
 * The Big Banana at Coffs Harbour (NSW)
 * The Big Golden Guitar at Tamworth (NSW)
 * The Big Lobster at Kingston SE (SA)
 * The Big Merino at Goulburn (NSW)
 * The Big Pineapple at Nambour (QLD)
 * Danny Wallace mentions Australia's big things in his book Yes Man.
 * Travel writer Bill Bryson details his visit to the Big Lobster and the Big Bull in his book Down Under / In a Sunburned Country
 * In the Australian comedy film Young Einstein, when the titular character books into a hotel, the desk clerk asks if he's "Here to see the Big Bed?"
 * English stand-up comedian Ross Noble visited many of Australia's big things during his 2009 tour Ross Noble's Australian Trip.
 * Australian comedians the Listies categorise Australia's big things in their comedy dictionary, Ickypedia, as "Enbigenating".
 * The Big Pineapple appears in TY the Tasmanian Tiger 2: Bush Rescue.
 * In 2004, the Foxtel channel TV1 featured Magda's Big Things hosted by Magda Szubanski between commercial programming. Szubanski would visit a "Big Thing" and provide amusing, but often fictional, commentary. Magda's Big Things was the winner of the 2004 ASTRA Award for Most Outstanding Australian Production Short Form.
 * In 2022, Australian confectionary brand Allen's released a gummy lolly mix called Big Aussie Road Trip containing 5 gummy sweets inspired by the Big Things.
 * In 2023, Melbourne punk band Private Function released their third album 370HSSV 0773H. The album cover included a scratchcard competition to win $2999, a test pressing of the album and the winner's face on all future pressings of the album if all three scratchcard pictures matched. The scratchcard pictures included photos of the Big Banana and the Big Koala.
 * In 2023, the Royal Australian Mint released a set of commemorative $1 coins featuring ten of the "big things".
 * In 2023, five of the sculptures were used to illustrate Australian $1.20 stamps.

General references

 * Scutt, Craig. The Little Book of Big Aussie Icons. Five Mile Press. ISBN 9781741786002.
 * Clarke, Amy (2017). "Australia's 'Big' problem – what to do with our ageing super-sized statues?" The Conversation (Australia). 19 September 2017.
 * Clarke, Amy (2017). "Australia's Big Dilemma: Regional/National Identities, Heritage Listing and Big Things." Quotation: Proceedings of the 34th Annual Conference of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, edited by Gervork Hartoonian and John Ting, p. 46–56. University of Canberra. ISBN 9780646981659.
 * Clarke, Amy (2017). "Australia's Big Dilemma: Regional/National Identities, Heritage Listing and Big Things." Quotation: Proceedings of the 34th Annual Conference of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, edited by Gervork Hartoonian and John Ting, p. 46–56. University of Canberra. ISBN 9780646981659.

title: Big things (Australia)


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This England (magazine)

This England is a quarterly magazine published in England. It has a large readership among expatriates. It concentrates on the traditional values and customs of the English people, particularly those of rural and small-town England.

History
The magazine was started in 1968 by Roy Faiers of Lincolnshire, who held it as a private company (This England International Ltd.). Faiers remained editor-in-chief until 2009, when he sold the company to DC Thomson, owners of the Sunday Post, Beano, Dandy, The People's Friend, My Weekly and other publications. Faiers was succeeded as editor by his former deputy editor, Stephen Garnett, who in turn was succeeded by current editor, Angela Linforth.

The name This England comes from the declamations of John of Gaunt in Act II, Scene I of Shakespeare's King Richard II: "This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle... This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England."

Content
The magazine started with the slogan "As refreshing as a cup of tea!" Current issues describe themselves as "For all who love our green and pleasant land".

This England is an apolitical celebration of England's people, places, art and culture. Content focuses on England's past and present, with regular feature strands including “Historic Homes of England”; “The Prime Ministers” which looks back on Britain's former PMs and“Explore England” which provides a travel itinerary for pockets of the country in each issue. “Great Britons” focuses on England's exceptional characters past and present; “Made in England” celebrates current English makers and “Heritage Church” features a range of English churches.

Although Jeremy Paxman once remarked in his The English, p. 79, that the magazine's greatest enemy was "the march of time", claiming that "not one article in the magazine looks forward to the future”, that has changed more recently.

As well as its regulars, it also has plenty of quirky one-off features on anything from the birth of aviation to highway women to England's first tea plantation.

title: This England (magazine)


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State of Play (TV series)

State of Play is a British television drama series, written by Paul Abbott and directed by David Yates, that was first broadcast on BBC One in 2003. The series tells the story of a newspaper's investigation into the death of a political researcher, and centres on the relationship between the leading journalist, Cal McCaffrey, and his old friend, Stephen Collins, who is a Member of Parliament and the murdered woman's employer. The series is primarily set in London and was produced in-house by the BBC in association with the independent production company Endor Productions. The series stars David Morrissey, John Simm, Kelly Macdonald, Polly Walker, Bill Nighy, and James McAvoy in the main roles.

The series was Abbott's first attempt to write a political thriller, and he initially made the majority of the plot up as he went along. He was prompted to write the series after BBC Head of Drama Jane Tranter asked him whether he would consider writing a piece "bigger" than anything he had written so far in his career. The serial was Abbott's third major writing project for the channel, following Clocking Off and Linda Green. The series was also a major turning point in David Yates' directorial career, as he began to direct various high-profile television projects following his work on the series.

The six-part series was broadcast on BBC One on Sunday evenings at 9:00pm from 18 May to 22 June 2003. Episodes two to five were initially premiered on the digital television station BBC Four at 10:00pm on the nights of the preceding episodes' BBC One broadcast; however episode six was held back for a premiere on BBC One, so as not to allow the final twists to be spoiled for those who did not have access to digital television. In 2004, the series ran in the United States on the BBC's BBC America cable channel. In 2005, the series was released on DVD by BBC Worldwide, in a two-disc set. Episode one features an audio commentary from Abbott and Yates, and episode six a commentary from Yates, producer Hilary Bevan-Jones and editor Mark Day.

The success of the series and its favourable impression on BBC executives led to Abbott being commissioned to write a sequel, before the first series had even been aired. In 2006, however, a second series appeared to have been abandoned, with Abbott telling Mark Lawson on BBC Radio 4's Front Row in November that he "couldn't find a way to make the story work".

Synopsis
While investigating the murder of fifteen-year-old teenager Kelvin Stagg in what appears to be a drug-related killing, journalist Cal McCaffrey of The Herald (John Simm) and his colleagues Della Smith (Kelly Macdonald) and Cameron Foster (Bill Nighy) find a connection with the coincidental death of Sonia Baker (Shauna Macdonald), a young researcher for MP Stephen Collins (David Morrissey). As their investigation progresses, they uncover not only a connection between the deaths, but a conspiracy with links to oil industry-backed corruption of high-ranking British government ministers.

Cast

 * John Simm as Cal McCaffrey
 * David Morrissey as Stephen Collins MP
 * Kelly Macdonald as Della Smith
 * Bill Nighy as Cameron Foster
 * James McAvoy as Dan Foster
 * Polly Walker as Anne Collins
 * Philip Glenister as DCI William Bell
 * Marc Warren as Dominic Foy
 * James Laurenson as George Fergus MP
 * Benedict Wong as Pete Cheng
 * Amelia Bullmore as Helen Preger
 * Deborah Findlay as Greer Thornton
 * Tom Burke as Syd Hardy
 * Rebecca Ryan as Karen Collins
 * Sean Gilder as DS Mark 'Chewy' Cheweski
 * Rory McCann as DI Stuart Brown
 * Michael Feast as Andrew Wilson
 * Rebekah Staton as Liz Dixon
 * Johann Myers as Sonny Stagg
 * Maureen Hibbert as Olicia Stagg
 * Shauna Macdonald as Sonia Baker
 * Christopher Simpson as Adam Greene
 * Susie Porter as Susan Sagattchean

Reception
Reviewing the first episode for The Guardian newspaper the day after it had aired, Gareth McLean wrote that "...it's bloody magic. The story is gripping, the acting is ace and Paul Abbott's script is outstanding. His ear for dialogue, and for different voices, is exceptional. The exposition is swift, nifty and joyously unclunky. The characters are credible and rounded. If you can count the best dramas of recent years on the fingers of both hands, it's time to grow a new finger." Other newspaper critics were similarly impressed with the opening instalment. In The Times, Paul Hoggart wrote that "Two excellent performances [from Morrissey and Simm] ensure that the relationship has a turbulent dynamism that is credible and engaging." James Walton in The Daily Telegraph was more cautious, feeling that the opening episode had been promising but the serial as a whole still had the potential to go wrong. "At this stage however, the programme is certainly good enough to make me hope not and to ensure that I'll be back next week to find out."

The consensus appeared to be that the serial maintained its quality to the end. Previewing episode four, Jonathan Wright of "The Guide" section in The Guardian described it as "a political conspiracy thriller that's as buttock-clenchingly tense as Edge of Darkness, as cynical about the British political system as House of Cards, and stands comparisons to both." The television critic of The Independent, Tom Sutcliffe, wrote of the final episode: "I'm not sure that a thriller can end in anything other than anti-climax. If it has been good you're sad it's over, and if it ends badly you're quite likely to feel that you've been duped. Paul Abbott's State of Play, which has had me swallowing double doses on a Sunday evening whenever the schedules allowed, left us with the first kind of let-down rather than the second."

Bill Nighy won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his role. The series also won a Peabody Award in 2004 and won BAFTAs for Best Sound (Fiction/Entertainment) and Best Editing (Fiction/Entertainment). It was nominated, but did not win, in the Best Actor category again, for Morrissey; in the Best Drama Serial category; Best Original Television Music and Best Photography and Lighting. It also won major awards from the Royal Television Society, Banff Television Festival, Broadcasting Press Guild, Cologne Conference, Directors Guild of Great Britain, Edgar Awards, and the Monte Carlo TV Festival.

Adaptation
State of Play was adapted into an Americanized feature film that was released in the United States in April 2009. The plot retained substantial similarities to the original six-hour series, retaining the main characters, but with its location changed to Washington, D.C., and with certain aspects condensed and changed in order to fit the two-hour format.

The film was directed by Kevin Macdonald from a screenplay written by Matthew Michael Carnahan, Tony Gilroy, Peter Morgan, and Billy Ray. Ben Affleck, Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams and Helen Mirren appear in the lead roles. In an April 2009 interview to promote the film, Affleck, who plays Congressman Stephen Collins, said he drew on the experiences of Gary Condit, Eliot Spitzer, and John Edwards while preparing for the role. The film was generally well received, but not as lauded as the series.

Television

 * Abbott, Paul. The South Bank Show – Paul Abbott. ITV. Sunday 15 May 2005.

title: State of Play (TV series)


text:
Charles Devens

Charles Devens Jr. (April 4, 1820 – January 7, 1891) was an American lawyer, jurist and statesman. He also served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Early life and career
Born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, Devens graduated from Boston Latin School and eventually Harvard College in 1838, and from the Harvard Law School in 1840. He was admitted to the bar in Franklin County, Massachusetts, where he practiced law from 1841 to 1849.

In 1848, he was a Whig member of the Massachusetts Senate. From 1849 to 1853, Devens was United States Marshal for Massachusetts, in which capacity he was called upon in 1851 to remand the fugitive slave, Thomas Sims, to slavery. This he felt constrained to do, much against his personal desire; subsequently, he attempted in vain to purchase Sims's freedom, and many years later appointed him to a position in the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.

Devens practiced law at Worcester, Massachusetts, from 1853 until 1861.

Civil War
On April 16, 1861, Devens gave an impassioned speech at Mechanics Hall in Worcester. To a large crowd he called upon the young men of Worcester to "rise and go with" him to the "rescue of Washington". Three days later, he was appointed major of the 3rd Massachusetts Rifle Battalion. He was appointed as colonel of the 15th Massachusetts Infantry in July 1861 and wounded at the Battle of Ball's Bluff in Virginia in October.

Although still recovering, Devens was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers in April 1862 and assigned command of the 1st Brigade/1st Division. He was wounded a second time at the Battle of Seven Pines and spent most of the summer recovering. His brigade was not heavily involved in the Maryland Campaign. Shortly afterwards, it was reassigned to the VI Corps. Devens commanded the 2nd Brigade/3rd Division/VI Corps during the Battle of Fredericksburg.

In January 1863, Devens was given command of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, VI Corps. After Maj. Gen Oliver O. Howard took command of the XI Corps, he appointed Devens as a division commander, and at Chancellorsville he was wounded a third time. According to a report by Gen. Steward L. Woodford, who served with him, Devens remounted his horse, stayed with his men and did not go to the hospital until his men had bivouacked (set up camp).

Devens distinguished himself at the Battle of Cold Harbor, while commanding the 3rd Division/XVIII Corps in Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign. During the final stages of the Siege of Petersburg, he commanded the 3rd Division of the XXIV Corps.

Devens's troops were the first to occupy Richmond after its fall in April 1865.

After the war, Devens became a companion of the Massachusetts Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States.

Postbellum
On January 13, 1866, President Andrew Johnson nominated Devens for the award of the honorary grade of brevet major general, United States Volunteers, to rank from April 3, 1865, for services during the Richmond campaign, and the U.S. Senate confirmed the award on March 12, 1866. Devens remained in the army for a year as commander of the military district of Charleston, South Carolina, before mustering out and returning home. He later served as the fifth Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic from 1873 to 1875 and was also a veteran companion of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States.

Devens was also a key figure in the investigation into the unlawful execution of Confederate veteran Calvin Crozier by soldiers of the 33rd Regiment, U.S. Colored Troops, at Newberry, South Carolina in September 1865 following an altercation. Over Devens's strong objections the officer who took responsibility for the lynching was exonerated and returned to duty.

He was a judge of the Massachusetts superior court, from 1867 to 1873, and was an associate justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court from 1873 to 1877, and again from 1881 to 1891. From 1877 to 1881, he was Attorney General of the United States in the Cabinet of President Rutherford B. Hayes. Devens was a close friend to President Hayes and his family, and was a favorite of Washington society during his time in office.

He was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society in 1878.

Charles Devens died of heart failure in Boston, Massachusetts in 1891, and is buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Memorials
In 1906, the city of Worcester, Massachusetts, erected an equestrian statue of Charles Devens in front of the former Worcester Court House, located on Court Hill. The statue was originally located on the front middle of the Courthouse area, it was later relocated to the front side.

Camp Devens, later Fort Devens, was established in 1917 in the Massachusetts towns of Ayer, Harvard, Lancaster and Shirley, and named after the general.

title: Charles Devens


text:
Oriental magpie-robin

The Oriental magpie-robin (Copsychus saularis) is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but now considered an Old World flycatcher. They are distinctive black and white birds with a long tail that is held upright as they forage on the ground or perch conspicuously. Occurring across most of the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia, they are common birds in urban gardens as well as forests. They are particularly well known for their songs and were once popular as cagebirds.

The oriental magpie-robin is considered the national bird of Bangladesh.

Description
This species is 19 cm long, including the long tail, which is usually held cocked upright when hopping on the ground. When they are singing a song the tail is normal like other birds. It is similar in shape to the smaller European robin, but is longer-tailed. The male has black upperparts, head and throat apart from a white shoulder patch. The underparts and the sides of the long tail are white. Females are greyish black above and greyish white under. Young birds have scaly brown upperparts and head.

The nominate race is found on the Indian subcontinent and the females of this race are the palest. The females of the Andaman Islands race andamanensis are darker, heavier-billed and shorter-tailed. The Sri Lankan race ceylonensis (formerly included with the peninsular Indian populations south of the Kaveri River) and southern nominate individuals have the females nearly identical to the males in shade. The eastern populations, the ones in Bangladesh and Bhutan, have more black on the tail and were formerly named erimelas. The populations in Myanmar (Burma) and further south are named as the race musicus. A number of other races have been named across the range, including prosthopellus (Hong Kong), nesiotes, zacnecus, nesiarchus, masculus, pagiensis, javensis, problematicus, amoenus, adamsi, pluto, deuteronymus and mindanensis. However, many of these are not well-marked and the status of some of them is disputed. Some, like mindanensis, have now been usually recognized as full species (the Philippine magpie-robin). There is more geographic variation in the plumage of females than in that of the males.

It is mostly seen close to the ground, hopping along branches or foraging in leaf-litter on the ground with a cocked tail. Males sing loudly from the top of trees or other high perches during the breeding season.

Etymology
The Indian name of dhyal or dhayal has led to many confusions. It was first used by Eleazar Albin ("dialbird") in 1737 (Suppl. N. H. Birds, i. p. 17, pls. xvii. xviii.), and Levaillant (Ois. d'Afr. iii. p. 50) thought it referred to a sun dial and he called it Cadran. Thomas C. Jerdon wrote (B. India, ii. p. 116) that Linnaeus, thinking it had some connection with a sun-dial, called it solaris, by lapsus pennae, saularis. This was, however, identified by Edward Blyth as an incorrect interpretation and that it was a Latinization of the Hindi word which means a "hundred songs". A male bird was sent with this Hindi name from Madras by surgeon Edward Bulkley to James Petiver, who first described the species (Ray, Synops. Meth. Avium, p. 197).

Distribution and habitat
This magpie-robin is a resident breeder in tropical southern Asia from Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and eastern Pakistan, eastern Indonesia, Thailand, south China, Malaysia, and Singapore.

The Oriental magpie-robin is found in open woodland and cultivated areas often close to human habitations.

Behaviour and ecology

Magpie-robins breed mainly from March to July in India and January to June in south-east Asia. Males sing from high perches during courtship. The display of the male involves puffing up the feathers, raising the bill, fanning the tail and strutting. They nest in tree hollows or niches in walls or building, often adopting nest boxes. They line the cavity with grass. The female is involved in most of the nest building, which happens about a week before the eggs are laid. Four or five eggs are laid at intervals of 24 hours and these are oval and usually pale blue green with brownish speckles that match the color of hay. The eggs are incubated by the female alone for 8 to 14 days. The nests are said to have a characteristic odour. Females spend more effort on feeding the young than males. Males are quite aggressive in the breeding season and will defend their territory. They respond to the singing of intruders and even their reflections. Males spend more time on nest defense. Studies of the bird song show dialects with neighbours varying in their songs. The calls of many other species may be imitated as part of their song. This may indicate that birds disperse and are not philopatric. Females may sing briefly in the presence of a male. Apart from their song, they use a range of calls including territorial calls, emergence and roosting calls, threat calls, submissive calls, begging calls and distress calls. The typical mobbing calls is a harsh hissing krshhh.

The diet of magpie-robins includes mainly insects and other invertebrates. Although mainly insectivorous, they are known to occasionally take flower nectar, geckos, leeches, centipedes and even fish.

They are often active late at dusk. They sometimes bathe in rainwater collected on the leaves of a tree.

Status
This species is considered one of "least concern" globally, but in some areas it is declining.

In Singapore they were common in the 1920s, but declined in the 1970s, presumably due to competition from introduced common mynas. Poaching for the pet bird trade and habitat changes have also affected them and they are locally protected by law.

This species has few avian predators. Several pathogens and parasites have been reported. Avian malaria parasites have been isolated from the species, while H4N3 and H5N1 infection has been noted in a few cases. Parasitic nematodes of the eye have been described.

In culture

Oriental magpie-robins were widely kept as cage birds for their singing abilities and for fighting in India in the past. They continue to be sold in the pet trade in parts of Southeast Asia.

Aside from being recognized as the national bird of the country, in Bangladesh, the oriental magpie-robin is common and known as the doyel or doel (দোয়েল). Professor Kazi Zakir Hossain of Dhaka University proposed to consider the magpie robin as the national bird of Bangladesh. The reasoning behind this is the magpie robin can be seen everywhere in towns and villages across the country. In that context, the magpie robin was declared as the national bird of Bangladesh. It is a widely used symbol in Bangladesh, appearing on a currency note, and a landmark in the city of Dhaka is named as the Doel Chattar (meaning: Doel Square).

In Sri Lanka, this bird is called Polkichcha.

In southern Thailand, this bird is known locally as Binlha (บินหลา — with another related bird, the white-rumped shama). They are frequently mentioned in contemporary songs.

Other sources

 * Mehrotra, P. N. 1982. Morphophysiology of the cloacal protuberance in the male Copsychus saularis (L.) (Aves, Passeriformes). Science and Culture 48:244–246.

title: Oriental magpie-robin


text:
Talk:Vallès Occidental

[Untitled]
The Catalan-language article gives two of the principal industries as mecànica and material elèctric, respectively. I would normally think I understand these words, but I don't understand how to render them in this context. I've left them, italicized, in the article. If anyone knows how best to translate them, have at it! -- Jmabel 06:42, 10 May 2004 (UTC)

Population
This edit dramatically increased populations with no new citation, so at the moment I would not trust this article. - Jmabel | Talk 21:28, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

title: Talk:Vallès Occidental


text:
Flow network

In graph theory, a flow network (also known as a transportation network) is a directed graph where each edge has a capacity and each edge receives a flow. The amount of flow on an edge cannot exceed the capacity of the edge. Often in operations research, a directed graph is called a network, the vertices are called nodes and the edges are called arcs. A flow must satisfy the restriction that the amount of flow into a node equals the amount of flow out of it, unless it is a source, which has only outgoing flow, or sink, which has only incoming flow. A network can be used to model traffic in a computer network, circulation with demands, fluids in pipes, currents in an electrical circuit, or anything similar in which something travels through a network of nodes.

Definition
A network is a directed graph $G = (V, E)$ with a non-negative capacity function $c$ for each edge, and without multiple arcs (i.e. edges with the same source and target nodes). Without loss of generality, we may assume that if $(u, v) ∈ E$, then $(v, u)$ is also a member of $E$. Additionally, if $(v, u) ∉ E$ then we may add $(v, u)$ to E and then set the $c(v, u) = 0$.

If two nodes in $G$ are distinguished – one as the source $s$ and the other as the sink $t$ – then $(G, c, s, t)$ is called a flow network.

Flows
Flow functions model the net flow of units between pairs of nodes, and are useful when asking questions such as what is the maximum number of units that can be transferred from the source node s to the sink node t? The amount of flow between two nodes is used to represent the net amount of units being transferred from one node to the other.

The excess function $x_{f} : V → $\mathbb{R}$$ represents the net flow entering a given node $u$ (i.e. the sum of the flows entering $u$) and is defined by$$x_f(u)=\sum_{w \in V} f(w,u).$$A node $u$ is said to be active if $x_{f} (u) > 0$ (i.e. the node $u$ consumes flow), deficient if $x_{f} (u) < 0$ (i.e. the node $u$ produces flow), or conserving if $x_{f} (u) = 0$. In flow networks, the source $s$ is deficient, and the sink $t$ is active. Pseudo-flows, feasible flows, and pre-flows are all examples of flow functions.

 * A pseudo-flow is a function $f$ of each edge in the network that satisfies the following two constraints for all nodes $u$ and $v$:
 * Skew symmetry constraint: The flow on an arc from $u$ to $v$ is equivalent to the negation of the flow on the arc from $v$ to $u$, that is: $f (u, v) = −f (v, u)$. The sign of the flow indicates the flow's direction.
 * Capacity constraint: An arc's flow cannot exceed its capacity, that is: $f (u, v) ≤ c(u, v)$.
 * A pre-flow is a pseudo-flow that, for all $v ∈ V \{s}$, satisfies the additional constraint:
 * Non-deficient flows: The net flow entering the node $v$ is non-negative, except for the source, which "produces" flow. That is: $x_{f} (v) ≥ 0$ for all $v ∈ V \{s}$.
 * A feasible flow, or just a flow, is a pseudo-flow that, for all $v ∈ V \{s, t}$, satisfies the additional constraint:
 * Flow conservation constraint: The total net flow entering a node $v$ is zero for all nodes in the network except the source $$s$$ and the sink $$t$$, that is: $x_{f} (v) = 0$ for all $v ∈ V \{s, t }$. In other words, for all nodes in the network except the source $$s$$ and the sink $$t$$, the total sum of the incoming flow of a node is equal to its outgoing flow (i.e. $$\sum_{(u,v) \in E} f(u,v) = \sum_{(v,z) \in E} f(v,z) $$, for each vertex $v ∈ V \{s, t }$).

The value $| f |$ of a feasible flow $f$ for a network, is the net flow into the sink $t$ of the flow network, that is: $| f | = x_{f} (t)$. Note, the flow value in a network is also equal to the total outgoing flow of source $s$, that is: $| f | = -x_{f} (s)$. Also, if we define $A$ as a set of nodes in $G$ such that $s ∈ A$ and $t ∉ A$, the flow value is equal to the total net flow going out of A (i.e. $| f | = f^{ out}(A) - f^{ in}(A)$). The flow value in a network is the total amount of flow from $s$ to $t$.

Flow decomposition
Flow decomposition is a process of breaking down a given flow into a collection of path flows and cycle flows. Every flow through a network can be decomposed into one or more paths and corresponding quantities, such that each edge in the flow equals the sum of all quantities of paths that pass through it. Flow decomposition is a powerful tool in optimization problems to maximize or minimize specific flow parameters.

Adding arcs and flows
We do not use multiple arcs within a network because we can combine those arcs into a single arc. To combine two arcs into a single arc, we add their capacities and their flow values, and assign those to the new arc: Along with the other constraints, the skew symmetry constraint must be remembered during this step to maintain the direction of the original pseudo-flow arc. Adding flow to an arc is the same as adding an arc with the capacity of zero.
 * Given any two nodes $u$ and $v$, having two arcs from $u$ to $v$ with capacities $c_{1}(u,v)$ and $c_{2}(u,v)$ respectively is equivalent to considering only a single arc from $u$ to $v$ with a capacity equal to $c_{1}(u,v)+c_{2}(u,v)$.
 * Given any two nodes $u$ and $v$, having two arcs from $u$ to $v$ with pseudo-flows $f_{1}(u,v)$ and $f_{2}(u,v)$ respectively is equivalent to considering only a single arc from $u$ to $v$ with a pseudo-flow equal to $f_{1}(u,v)+f_{2}(u,v)$.

Residuals
The residual capacity of an arc $e$ with respect to a pseudo-flow $f$ is denoted $c_{f}$, and it is the difference between the arc's capacity and its flow. That is, $c_{f} (e) = c(e) - f(e)$. From this we can construct a residual network, denoted $G_{f} (V, E_{f})$, with a capacity function $c_{f}$ which models the amount of available capacity on the set of arcs in $G = (V, E)$. More specifically, capacity function $c_{f}$ of each arc $(u, v)$ in the residual network represents the amount of flow which can be transferred from $u$ to $v$ given the current state of the flow within the network.

This concept is used in Ford–Fulkerson algorithm which computes the maximum flow in a flow network.

Note that there can be an unsaturated path (a path with available capacity) from $u$ to $v$ in the residual network, even though there is no such path from $u$ to $v$ in the original network. Since flows in opposite directions cancel out, decreasing the flow from $v$ to $u$ is the same as increasing the flow from $u$ to $v$.

Augmenting paths
An augmenting path is a path $(u_{1}, u_{2}, ..., u_{k})$ in the residual network, where $u_{1} = s$, $u_{k} = t$, and $for all u_{i}, u_{i + 1} (c_{f} (u_{i}, u_{i + 1}) > 0) (1 ≤ i < k)$. More simply, an augmenting path is an available flow path from the source to the sink. A network is at maximum flow if and only if there is no augmenting path in the residual network $G_{f}$.

The bottleneck is the minimum residual capacity of all the edges in a given augmenting path. See example explained in the "Example" section of this article. The flow network is at maximum flow if and only if it has a bottleneck with a value equal to zero. If any augmenting path exists, its bottleneck weight will be greater than 0. In other words, if there is a bottleneck value greater than 0, then there is an augmenting path from the source to the sink. However, we know that if there is any augmenting path, then the network is not at maximum flow, which in turn means that, if there is a bottleneck value greater than 0, then the network is not at maximum flow.

The term "augmenting the flow" for an augmenting path means updating the flow $f$ of each arc in this augmenting path to equal the capacity $c$ of the bottleneck. Augmenting the flow corresponds to pushing additional flow along the augmenting path until there is no remaining available residual capacity in the bottleneck.

Multiple sources and/or sinks
Sometimes, when modeling a network with more than one source, a supersource is introduced to the graph. This consists of a vertex connected to each of the sources with edges of infinite capacity, so as to act as a global source. A similar construct for sinks is called a supersink.

Example
In Figure 1 you see a flow network with source labeled $s$, sink $t$, and four additional nodes. The flow and capacity is denoted $$f/c$$. Notice how the network upholds the capacity constraint and flow conservation constraint. The total amount of flow from $s$ to $t$ is 5, which can be easily seen from the fact that the total outgoing flow from $s$ is 5, which is also the incoming flow to $t$. By the skew symmetry constraint, from $c$ to $a$ is -2 because the flow from $a$ to $c$ is 2. In Figure 2 you see the residual network for the same given flow. Notice how there is positive residual capacity on some edges where the original capacity is zero in Figure 1, for example for the edge $$(d,c)$$. This network is not at maximum flow. There is available capacity along the paths $$(s,a,c,t)$$, $$(s,a,b,d,t)$$ and $$(s,a,b,d,c,t)$$, which are then the augmenting paths.

The bottleneck of the $$(s,a,c,t)$$ path is equal to $$\min(c(s,a)-f(s,a), c(a,c)-f(a,c), c(c,t)-f(c,t))$$ $$=\min(c_f(s,a), c_f(a,c), c_f(c,t))$$ $$= \min(5-3, 3-2, 2-1)$$ $$= \min(2, 1, 1) = 1$$.

Applications
Picture a series of water pipes, fitting into a network. Each pipe is of a certain diameter, so it can only maintain a flow of a certain amount of water. Anywhere that pipes meet, the total amount of water coming into that junction must be equal to the amount going out, otherwise we would quickly run out of water, or we would have a buildup of water. We have a water inlet, which is the source, and an outlet, the sink. A flow would then be one possible way for water to get from source to sink so that the total amount of water coming out of the outlet is consistent. Intuitively, the total flow of a network is the rate at which water comes out of the outlet.

Flows can pertain to people or material over transportation networks, or to electricity over electrical distribution systems. For any such physical network, the flow coming into any intermediate node needs to equal the flow going out of that node. This conservation constraint is equivalent to Kirchhoff's current law.

Flow networks also find applications in ecology: flow networks arise naturally when considering the flow of nutrients and energy between different organisms in a food web. The mathematical problems associated with such networks are quite different from those that arise in networks of fluid or traffic flow. The field of ecosystem network analysis, developed by Robert Ulanowicz and others, involves using concepts from information theory and thermodynamics to study the evolution of these networks over time.

Classifying flow problems
The simplest and most common problem using flow networks is to find what is called the maximum flow, which provides the largest possible total flow from the source to the sink in a given graph. There are many other problems which can be solved using max flow algorithms, if they are appropriately modeled as flow networks, such as bipartite matching, the assignment problem and the transportation problem. Maximum flow problems can be solved in polynomial time with various algorithms (see table). The max-flow min-cut theorem states that finding a maximal network flow is equivalent to finding a cut of minimum capacity that separates the source and the sink, where a cut is the division of vertices such that the source is in one division and the sink is in another.

In a multi-commodity flow problem, you have multiple sources and sinks, and various "commodities" which are to flow from a given source to a given sink. This could be for example various goods that are produced at various factories, and are to be delivered to various given customers through the same transportation network.

In a minimum cost flow problem, each edge $$u,v$$ has a given cost $$k(u,v)$$, and the cost of sending the flow $$f(u,v)$$ across the edge is $$f(u,v) \cdot k(u,v)$$. The objective is to send a given amount of flow from the source to the sink, at the lowest possible price.

In a circulation problem, you have a lower bound $$\ell(u,v)$$ on the edges, in addition to the upper bound $$c(u,v)$$. Each edge also has a cost. Often, flow conservation holds for all nodes in a circulation problem, and there is a connection from the sink back to the source. In this way, you can dictate the total flow with $$\ell(t,s)$$ and $$c(t,s)$$. The flow circulates through the network, hence the name of the problem.

In a network with gains or generalized network each edge has a gain, a real number (not zero) such that, if the edge has gain g, and an amount x flows into the edge at its tail, then an amount gx flows out at the head.

In a source localization problem, an algorithm tries to identify the most likely source node of information diffusion through a partially observed network. This can be done in linear time for trees and cubic time for arbitrary networks and has applications ranging from tracking mobile phone users to identifying the originating source of disease outbreaks.

title: Flow network