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Lateral medullary syndrome

Lateral medullary syndrome is a neurological disorder causing a range of symptoms due to ischemia in the lateral part of the medulla oblongata in the brainstem. The ischemia is a result of a blockage most commonly in the vertebral artery or the posterior inferior cerebellar artery. Lateral medullary syndrome is also called Wallenberg's syndrome, posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) syndrome and vertebral artery syndrome.

Signs and symptoms
This syndrome is characterized by sensory deficits that affect the trunk and extremities contralaterally (opposite to the lesion), and sensory deficits of the face and cranial nerves ipsilaterally (same side as the lesion). Specifically a loss of pain and temperature sensation if the lateral spinothalamic tract is involved. The cross body finding is a highly suggestive symptom from which the diagnosis may be considered (however, this a symptom common to all brainstem pathology).

Patients often have difficulty walking or maintaining balance (ataxia), or difference in temperature of an object based on which side of the body the object of varying temperature is touching. Some patients may walk with a slant or experience skew deviation and illusions of room tilt. The nystagmus is commonly associated with vertigo spells. These vertigo spells can result in falling, caused from the involvement of the region of Deiters' nucleus.

Common symptoms with lateral medullary syndrome may include difficulty swallowing, or dysphagia. This can be caused by the involvement of the nucleus, as it supplies the vagus and glossopharyngeal nerves. Slurred speech (dysarthria), and disordered vocal quality (dysphonia) are also common. The damage to the cerebellum or the inferior cerebellar peduncle can cause ataxia. Damage to the hypothalamospinal fibers disrupts sympathetic nervous system relay and gives symptoms that are similar to the symptoms caused by Horner's syndrome – such as miosis, anhidrosis and partial ptosis.

Palatal myoclonus, the twitching of the muscles of the mouth, may be observed due to disruption of the central tegmental tract. Other symptoms include: hoarseness, nausea, vomiting, a decrease in sweating, problems with body temperature sensation, dizziness, difficulty walking, and difficulty maintaining balance. Lateral medullary syndrome can also cause bradycardia, a slow heart rate, and increases or decreases in the patients average blood pressure.

Cause
It is the clinical manifestation resulting from occlusion of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) or one of its branches or of the vertebral artery, in which the lateral part of the medulla oblongata infarcts, resulting in a typical pattern. The most commonly affected artery is PICA, specifically the lateral medullary segment.

Diagnosis
Since lateral medullary syndrome is often caused by a stroke, diagnosis is time dependent. Diagnosis is usually done by assessing vestibular-related symptoms in order to determine where in the medulla that the infarction has occurred. Head Impulsive Nystagmus Test of Skew (HINTS) examination of oculomotor function is often performed, along with computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to assist in stroke detection. Standard stroke assessment must be done to rule out a concussion or other head trauma.

Treatment
Treatment for lateral medullary syndrome is dependent on how quickly it is identified. Treatment for lateral medullary syndrome involves focusing on relief of symptoms and active rehabilitation to help patients return to their daily activities. Many patients undergo speech therapy. Depressed mood and withdrawal from society can be seen in patients following the initial onslaught of symptoms.

In more severe cases, a feeding tube may need to be inserted through the mouth or a gastrostomy may be necessary if swallowing is impaired. In some cases, medication may be used to reduce or eliminate residual pain. Some studies have reported success in mitigating the chronic neuropathic pain associated with the syndrome with anti-epileptics such as gabapentin. Long-term treatment generally involves the use of antiplatelets like aspirin or clopidogrel and statin regimen for the rest of their lives in order to minimize the risk of another stroke. Warfarin is used if atrial fibrillation is present. Other medications may be necessary in order to suppress high blood pressure and risk factors associated with strokes. A blood thinner may be prescribed to a patient in order to break up the infarction and reestablish blood flow and to try to prevent future infarctions.

One of the most unusual and difficult to treat symptoms that occur due to Wallenberg syndrome are interminable, violent hiccups. The hiccups can be so severe that patients often struggle to eat, sleep and carry on conversations. Depending on the severity of the blockage caused by the stroke, the hiccups can last for weeks. Unfortunately there are very few successful medications available to mediate the inconvenience of constant hiccups.

For dysphagia symptoms, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation has been shown to assist in rehabilitation. Overall, traditional stroke assessment and outcomes are used to treat patients, since lateral medullary syndrome is often caused by a stroke in the lateral medulla.

Prognosis
The outlook for someone with lateral medullary syndrome depends upon the size and location of the area of the brain stem damaged by the stroke. Some individuals may see a decrease in their symptoms within weeks or months. Others may be left with significant neurological disabilities for years after the initial symptoms appeared. However, more than 85% of patients have seen minimal symptoms present at six months from the time of the original stroke, and have been able to independently accomplish average daily within a year.

Epidemiology
The lateral medullary syndrome is the most common form of posterior ischemic stroke syndrome. It is estimated that there are around 600,000 new cases of this syndrome in the United States alone. Those at the overall highest risk for lateral medullary syndrome are men at an average age of 55.06. Having a history of hypertension, diabetes and smoking all increase the risk of large artery atherosclerosis. Large artery atherosclerosis is thought to be the greatest risk factor for lateral medullary syndrome due to the deposits of cholesterol, fatty substances, cellular waste products, calcium and fibrin. Otherwise known as plaque build up in the arteries.

History
The earliest description of lateral medullary syndrome was first written by Gaspard Vieusseux at the Medical and Chirurgical Society of London describing the symptoms observed at the time. Adolf Wallenberg further reinforced these signs after completing his first case report in 1895. He was able to make an accurate localization of the lesion and soon after proved it following a postmortem examination. Wallenberg accomplished three more published articles about lateral medullary syndrome.

Adolf Wallenberg
Adolf Wallenberg was a renowned neurologist and neuroanatomist most widely known for his clinical descriptions of Lateral Medullary Syndrome. He completed his doctorate at Leipzig University in 1886. By 1928 he had spent 2 years (1886-1888) as an assistant at the city hospital in Danzig, 21 years (1907-1928) as the director of internal and psychiatric departments and 18 years (1910-1928) as a titular professor. In 1929, Wallenberg received the Erb Commemorative Medal for his work in the field of anatomy, physiology and pathology of the nervous system.

Wallenberg's first patient in 1885 was a 38-year-old male with symptoms of vertigo, numbness, loss of pain and temperature sensitivity, paralysis of multiple locations, ataxia and more. His background in neuroanatomy helped him in correctly locating the patient's lesion to the lateral medulla and connected it to a blockage of the ipsilateral posterior inferior cerebral artery. After the death of his patient in 1899, he was able to prove his findings after a postmortem examination. He continued his work with many patients and by 1922 he had reported his 15th patient with clinicopathological correlations. In 1938, Adolf Wallenberg was forced to end his career as a physician by the German occupation. When the Nazis came to power, he was stripped of his research laboratory and forced to stop working because he was Jewish. He emigrated to Great Britain in 1938, then relocated to the United States in 1943.

title: Lateral medullary syndrome


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Boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion

A boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE, ) is an explosion caused by the rupture of a vessel containing a pressurized liquid that is or has reached a temperature sufficiently higher than its boiling point at atmospheric pressure. Because the boiling point of a liquid rises with pressure, the contents of the pressurized vessel can remain a liquid as long as the vessel is intact. If the vessel's integrity is compromised, the loss of pressure drops the boiling point, which can cause the liquid to convert to gas expanding rapidly. BLEVEs are manifestations of explosive boiling.

If the gas is flammable, as is the case with e.g., hydrocarbons and alcohols, further damage can be caused by the ensuing fire. However, BLEVEs do not necessarily involve fire.

Name
On 24 April 1957, a process reactor at a Factory Mutual (FM) facility underwent a powerful explosion as a consequence of a rapid depressurization. It contained formalin mixed with phenol. The burst damaged the plant. However, no fire developed, as the mixture was not flammable. In the wake of the accident, researchers James B. Smith, William S. Marsh, and Wilbur L. Walls, who were employed with FM, came up with the terms "boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion" and its acronym "BLEVE". The expressions did not become of common use until the early 1970s, when the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) Fire Command and Fire Journal magazines started publishing articles using them.

Mechanism
There are three key elements in the formation of a BLEVE:

 * 1) A material in liquid form at a temperature sufficiently above its normal atmospheric pressure boiling point.
 * 2) A containment vessel maintaining the pressure that keeps the substance in liquid form.
 * 3) A sudden loss of containment that rapidly drops the pressure.

Typically, a BLEVE starts with a vessel containing liquid held above its atmospheric-pressure boiling temperature. Many substances normally stored as liquids, such as carbon dioxide, propane, and other industrial gases have boiling temperatures below room temperature when at atmospheric pressure. In the case of water, a BLEVE could occur if a pressure vessel is heated beyond 100 C. That container, because the boiling water pressurizes it, must be capable of holding liquid water at very high temperatures.If the pressurized vessel ruptures, the pressure which prevents the liquid from boiling is lost. If the rupture is catastrophic, i.e., the vessel becomes suddenly no longer capable of holding any pressure, then the liquid will find itself at a temperature far above its boiling point. This causes a portion of the liquid to instantaneously vaporize with extremely rapid expansion. Depending on temperatures, pressures and the material involved, the expansion may be so rapid that it can be classified as an explosion, fully capable of inflicting severe damage on its surroundings.

For example, a tank of pressurized liquid water held at 350 C might be pressurized to 10 MPa above atmospheric (or gauge) pressure. If the tank containing the water were to rupture, there would for a brief moment exist a volume of liquid water which would be at: At atmospheric pressure the boiling point of water is 100 C. Liquid water at atmospheric pressure does not exist at temperatures higher than 100 C. At that moment, the water would boil and turn to vapor explosively, and the 350 C liquid water turned to gas would take up significantly more volume (≈ 1,600-fold) than it did as liquid, causing a vapor explosion. Such explosions can happen when the superheated water of a boiler escapes through a crack in a boiler, causing a boiler explosion.
 * Atmospheric pressure
 * Temperature of 350 C.

The vaporization of liquid resulting in a BLEVE typically occurs within 1 millisecond after a catastrophic loss of containment.

Superheat limit theory
For a BLEVE to occur, the boiling liquid must be sufficiently superheated upon loss of containment. For example, at a pressure of approximately 1 MPa, water boils at 177 C. Superheated water released from a closed container at these conditions will not generate a BLEVE, as homogeneous nucleation of vapor bubbles is not possible. There is no consensus about the minimal temperature above which a BLEVE will occur. A formula proposed by Robert Reid to predict it is:

$$T_{\text{min,BLEVE}}=0.895\ T_\text{C}$$

where TC is the critical temperature of the fluid (expressed in kelvin). The minimum BLEVE temperatures of some fluids, based on this formula, are as follows:

According to Reid, BLEVE will occur, more in general, if the expansion crosses a "superheat-limit locus". In Reid's model, this curve is essentially the fluid's spinodal curve as represented in a pressure–temperature diagram, and the BLEVE onset is a manifestation of explosive boiling, where the spinodal is crossed "from above", i.e., via sudden depressurization. However, direct correspondence between the superheat limit and the spinodal has not been proven experimentally. In practical BLEVEs, the way the pressure vessel fails may influence decisively the way the expansion takes place, for example causing pressure waves and non-uniformities. Additionally, there may be stratification in the liquid, due to local temperature variations. Because of this, it is possible for BLEVEs to occur at temperatures less than those predicted with Reid's formula.

Physical BLEVEs
The term BLEVE is often associated to explosive fires from pressure vessels containing a flammable liquid. However, a BLEVE can occur even with a non-flammable substance such as water, liquid nitrogen, liquid helium or other refrigerants or cryogenics. Such materials can go through purely physical BLEVEs, not entailing flames or other chemical reactions. In the case of unignited BLEVEs of liquefied gases, rapid cooling due to the absorption of the enthalpy of vaporization is a hazard that can cause frostbite. Asphyxiation from the expanding vapors is also possible, if the vapor cloud is not rapidly dispersed, as can be the case inside a building, or in a trough in the case of heavier-than-air gasses. The vapors can also be toxic, in which case harm and possibly death can occur at relatively low concentrations and, therefore, even far from the source.

BLEVE–fireball
If a flammable substance, however, is subject to a BLEVE, it can ignite upon release, either due to friction, mechanical spark or other point sources, or from a pre-existing fire that had engulfed the pressure vessel and caused it to fail in the first place. In such a case, the burning vapors will further expand, adding to the force of the explosion. Furthermore, a very significant amount of the escaped fluid will burn in a matter of seconds in a raising fireball, which will generate extremely high levels of thermal radiation. While the blast effects can be devastating, a flammable substance BLEVE typically causes more damage due to the fireball thermal radiation than the blast overpressure.

Effect of impinging fires
BLEVEs are often caused by an external fire near the storage vessel causing heating of the contents and pressure build-up. While tanks are often designed to withstand great pressure, constant heating can cause the metal to weaken and eventually fail. If the tank is being heated in an area where there is no liquid (such as near its top), it may rupture faster because the boiling liquid does not afford cooling in that area. Pressure vessels are usually equipped with relief valves that vent off excess pressure, but the tank can still fail if the pressure is not released quickly enough. A pressure vessel is designed to withstand the set pressure of its relief valves, but only if its mechanical integrity is not weakened as it can be in the case of an impinging fire. In an impinging fire scenario, flammable vapors released in the BLEVE will ignite upon release, forming a fireball. The origin of the impinging fire may be from a release of flammable fluid from the vessel itself, or from an external source, including releases from nearby tanks and equipment. For example, rail tank cars have BLEVEd under the effect of a jet fire from the open relief valve of another derailed tank car.

Hazards
The main damaging effects of a BLEVE are three: the blast wave from the explosion; the projection of fragments, or missiles, from the pressure vessel; and the thermal radiation from the fireball, where one occurs.

Horizontal cylindrical ("bullet") tanks tend to rupture longitudinally. This causes the failed tank and its fragments to get propelled like rockets and travel long distances. At Feyzin, three of the propelled fragments weighed in excess of 100 tons and were thrown 150–350 meters (490–1150 ft) from the source of the explosion. One bullet tank at San Juanico travelled 1200 m in the air before landing, possibly the farthest ever for a BLEVE missile. Fragments can impact on other tanks or equipment, which may result in a domino effect propagation of the accidental sequence.

Fireballs can rise to significant heights above ground. They are spheroidal when developed and rise from the ground in a mushroom shape. The diameter of fireballs at San Juanico was estimated at 200–300 meters (660–980 ft), with a duration of around 20 seconds. Such massive fires can injure people at distances of hundreds of meters (e.g., 300 m (980 ft) at Feyzin and 400 m (1310 ft) at San Juanico).

An additional hazard from BLEVE-fireball events is the formation of secondary fires, by direct exposure to the fireball thermal radiation, as pool fires from fuel that does not get combusted in the fireball, or from the scattering of blazing tank fragments. Another secondary effect of importance is the dispersion of a toxic gas cloud, if the vapors involved are toxic and do not catch fire upon release. Chlorine, ammonia and phosgene are example of toxic gases that underwent BLEVE in past accidents and produced toxic clouds as a consequence.

Safety measures

 * Maintenance of pressure tanks to avoid damage or corrosion
 * Emergency depressurization
 * Pressure relief valves
 * Passive fire protection
 * Water spray cooling

Notable accidents
Notable BLEVE accidents include:

 * 13 December 1926, Saint-Auban, France – A 25 ton chlorine BLEVE killed 19 in the first accident recognized as a boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion.
 * 24 December 1939, Zărnești, Romania – A rail tank car containing a butadiene (80%) and butene (20%) mixture BLEVEd and caused a fireball. It killed 60 people.
 * 29 July 1943, Ludwigshafen, Germany – A chlorine tank car exploded at a BASF plant, killing 57.
 * 28 July 1948, Ludwigshafen, Germany – Another tank car in the same plant, this time containing diethyl ether, exploded killing 209.
 * 7 July 1951, Newark, New Jersey, U.S. – Seventy tanks of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), for a total of 2600 tons, exploded at Port Newark. There were no fatalities.
 * 8 January 1957, Montreal, Quebec, Canada – At a Shell refinery, 5100 tons of LPG stored in several tanks exploded, causing one fatality.
 * 28 June 1959, Meldrim, Georgia, U.S. – The Meldrim Trestle Disaster: An LPG rail tank car disaster killed 23.
 * 28 March 1960, Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom – The Cheapside Street whisky bond fire: A warehouse storing 3900 tons of whisky experienced a fire in which several casks underwent BLEVEs. There were 19 fatalities.
 * 4 January 1966, Feyzin, France – The Feyzin disaster: 1000 tons of LPG exploded at an Elf refinery, causing 18 fatalities.
 * 30 March 1972, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – : 1000 tons of LPG exploded at a refinery, killing 28.
 * 5 July 1973, Kingman, Arizona, U.S. – The Kingman explosion: An LPG-laden tank car BLEVEd, causing 13 fatalities.
 * 8 December 1977, Cartagena, Colombia – A process reactor burst in an ammonia BLEVE that killed 30.
 * 23 February 1978, Waverly, Tennessee, U.S. – The Waverly tank car explosion: An LPG tank car exploded, killing 16.
 * 11 July 1978, Alcanar, Spain – The Los Alfaques disaster: In the worst ever tank truck BLEVE and road accident involving hazardous materials, a vehicle laden with 25 tons of propylene suffered a mechanical failure next to a crowded camping site. The BLEVE killed 216 people.
 * 30 May 1978, Texas City, Texas, U.S. – Multiple storage tanks holding 1500 tons of LPG exploded, killing seven people.
 * 30 August 1972, Good Hope, Louisiana, U.S. – A BLEVE developed after a ship collision between MV Inca Tupac Yupanqui and butane-laden barge TB Panama City. There were 12 fatalities.
 * 1 August 1981, Cerritos, San Luis Potosí, Mexico – A rail tank car carrying chlorine exploded, causing 29 fatalities.
 * 23 July 1984, Romeoville, Illinois, U.S. – The Romeoville petroleum refinery disaster killed 15 people.
 * 19 November 1984, San Juan Ixhuatepec, Mexico – The San Juanico disaster: In the worst ever BLEVE accident, as well as one the deadliest industrial disasters ever occurred, more than 500 people died when a series of BLEVEs hit a Pemex LPG storage terminal.
 * 28 January 1986, above Merritt Island, Florida, U.S. – The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster: The disintegration of the spacecraft was caused by the BLEVE of the liquid hydrogen and oxygen external tank compartments.
 * 23 December 1988, Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. – The Memphis LPG tank truck disaster killed nine people.
 * 19 April 1993, Waco, Texas, U.S. – A contributor to the aftermath of the Waco siege was the BLEVE of an LPG tank caused by the intervention of the military.
 * 4 March 1994, Weyauwega, Wisconsin, U.S. – The Weyauwega derailment, no fatalities.
 * 22 June 2002, Tivissa, Spain – In the first ever reported liquefied natural gas (LNG) BLEVE, a tank truck exploded. Only the driver perished.
 * 10 August 2008, Toronto, Ontario, Canada – The Toronto propane explosion at the Sunrise Propane Industrial Gases killed two people.
 * 27 August 2012, Chala, India – The Chala LPG tank truck disaster: An LPG tank truck road accident in the state of Kerala caused 20 fatalities among the bystanders.
 * 13 June 2013, Geismar, Louisiana, U.S. – The Williams Olefins explosion killed two plant operators when a propane heat exchanger burst open.
 * 21 July 2014, Lice, Turkey – An LPG tank truck explosion caused the death of 34 people.
 * 6 August 2018, Bologna, Italy – Two people perished in the Borgo Panigale explosion, an LPG tank truck blast caused by a road accident.
 * 21 June 2019, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. – The 2019 Philadelphia refinery explosion: Following a fire, a process vessel containing a butene, isobutane and n-butane suffered a massive BLEVE.
 * 24 December 2022, Boksburg, South Africa – The Boksburg explosion, an LPG tank truck BLEVE that killed 41.

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


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Mediterranean States

The Mediterranean States is a geopolitical term referring to the countries of Cyprus and Malta. They are the only two island countries in the Mediterranean Sea. Northern Cyprus would be a third, but no nation besides Turkey recognises it as independent. The Mediterranean States are not to be confused with the Mediterranean-bordering countries of Southern Europe such as Italy, Greece and Turkey.

title: Mediterranean States


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Haraldr Óláfsson

Haraldr Óláfsson (born 1223 or 1224; died 1248) was a thirteenth-century King of Mann and the Isles, and a member of the Crovan dynasty. He was one of several sons of Óláfr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles, although the identity of his mother is uncertain. When his father died in 1237, Haraldr succeeded to the kingship as a fourteen-year-old, and held the kingship for about a decade afterwards.

Early in his reign, Haraldr was forced to contend with an apparent coup perpetrated by a kinsman and perhaps an otherwise unknown younger brother. Following this, Haraldr was then ejected from Mann by envoys of his father's overlord, Hákon Hákonarson, King of Norway, who probably took action against Haraldr because the former had refused to render him homage. Unable to overcome Hákon's supporters in the Isles, Haraldr eventually submitted to Hákon in Norway, and remained there for about two or three years before being restored in the Isles.

Unlike his immediate royal predecessors, who appear to have favoured the title rex insularum, Haraldr appears to have preferred rex mannie et insularum. Three charters from Haraldr's reign are known, two of which are recorded to have borne a waxen seal, depicting a galley on one side and a lion on the other. Haraldr reigned during a period of competing claims to overlordship of the Isles by the English, Norwegian, and Scottish Crowns. Like his father before him, and a younger brother after him, Haraldr was knighted by Henry III, King of England. The act itself brought Haraldr closer within the orbit of the English Crown. Late in 1247, however, Haraldr returned to Norway and married Hákon's daughter, Cecilía, and thereby bound himself closer to the Norwegian Crown. Whilst attempting to return to the Isles in the autumn of 1248, the newly-wed's ship was lost at sea south of Shetland in a tidal race known as Sumburgh Roost. News of Haraldr's demise appears to have reached Mann by the spring of 1249, whereupon his younger brother, Rǫgnvaldr, succeeded to the kingship.

Haraldr was evidently a popular and capable king who appears to have garnered much of his support from the Hebridean portion of his realm. His untimely death, however, led to the continuation of the vicious kin-strife which had wracked the Crovan dynasty during his father's floruit. The chaos brought about by Haraldr's demise appears to have contributed to the invasion of Argyll, and near conquest of the Hebrides, by Alexander II, King of Scotland.

Background

Haraldr was a son of Óláfr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles, and a member of the Crovan dynasty. The identity of Haraldr's mother is less certain. Óláfr is known to have had two wives. His first marriage was to "Lauon", a woman who was likely a member of Clann Somhairle, possibly a daughter of either Ruaidhrí mac Raghnaill or Domhnall mac Raghnaill, or else a daughter of their father, Raghnall mac Somhairle. Óláfr's second wife was Cairistíona, daughter of Fearchar mac an tSagairt. Although no contemporaneous source names Haraldr's mother, the thirteenth- to fourteenth-century Chronicle of Mann states that Óláfr died in 1237, and specifies that Haraldr was fourteen-years-old at the time. This would place his birth in about 1222 or 1223, at about the time that Óláfr married his second wife, indicating that either woman could have been Haraldr's mother.

Haraldr reigned during an apparent lull in an ongoing and vicious struggle over the kingship fought between two rival branches of the Crovan dynasty. This kin-strife had its origins in the late twelfth century, on the death of Haraldr's paternal grandfather, Guðrøðr Óláfsson, King of Dublin and the Isles, after which the king was succeeded by Rǫgnvaldr Guðrøðarson. Although the latter was Guðrøðr Óláfsson's eldest son, and had the support of the Islesmen, Rǫgnvaldr Guðrøðarson's mother was an uncanonical wife or concubine. Haraldr's father, on the other hand, was the product of canonically recognised marriage, and may well have been Guðrøðr Óláfsson's chosen successor. After a period of imprisonment, Rǫgnvaldr had Óláfr marry Lauon, the sister of his own wife. Óláfr, however, managed to have the union nullified, and married Cairistíona. Tensions between the half-brothers turned to outright warfare in the 1220s, in which Rǫgnvaldr's son, Guðrøðr Dond, was captured and mutilated by Óláfr. Rǫgnvaldr was slain battling Óláfr in 1229, after which the latter gained complete control of the kingdom. In the 1230s, during a period of heightened tensions between the Norwegian and Scottish realms, Óláfr and Guðrøðr Dond temporarily shared control of the Crovan dynasty's partitioned realm. When the latter was killed in 1231, Óláfr assumed control of the entire kingdom, and ruled it peacefully until his own death.

Haraldr also ruled during a period of competing claims to the overlordship of the Isles, a region comprising the Hebrides and Mann, known in the Norse world as Suðreyjar (the "Southern Islands") due to its geographical position in relation to Norway itself. Since the reign of Magnús berfœttr, King of Norway, a king who conquered Orkney, the Isles, and possibly Dublin before his death in 1103, the Norwegian Crown appears to have claimed ultimate authority in the Isles. In fact, on several occasions during the reigns of Haraldr's royal predecessors, leading Islesmen sought recognition and protection from Norwegian monarchs. The ruler of Norway during Haraldr's floruit was Hákon Hákonarson, King of Norway, a formidable ruler who spent the latter part of his reign focused on foreign policy and strengthening royal authority throughout far-flung Norse colonies such as the Isles. At the same time the Scottish Crown, in the person of Alexander II, King of Scotland, consolidated control over Scotland's western seaboard, and moved to extend Scottish influence further into the Isles. Meanwhile, Henry III, King of England also had an interest in the Isles, and worked to bring the Crovan dynasty closer under the orbit of the English Crown.

Accession and overlordship
After his father's death, Haraldr succeeded to the kingship. Unlike the reign of his father, who temporarily ruled a partitioned kingdom, and endured years of near catastrophic kin-strife, Haraldr appears to have ruled a whole kingdom, and his kingship does not seem to have suffered from serious dynastic discord. Haraldr's young age at the time of his accession, and the fact that he had a potential rival in the person of Haraldr Guðrøðarson, suggests that Haraldr had been designated successor during his father's lifetime. Not long after his accession, the Chronicle of Mann records that he sailed into the Hebridean portion of the kingdom, and left a kinsman named Lochlann as governor on Mann. Lochlann's tenure on the island led to factional strife, and when Haraldr made his return the following spring, the chronicle states that Lochlann fled the island for Wales, taking with him his foster-son, Guðrøðr Óláfsson. There, somewhere along the northern Welsh coast, the chronicle claims that their ship was lost, with Lochlann and his foster-son amongst the dead. Quite why Lochlann was compelled to flee his sovereign is uncertain. The chronicle states that a friend of Haraldr had been slain in the uprising quelled by Lochlann, possibly indicate that the latter fled in fear of the king. Another possibility, is that Lochlann led a coalition opposed to Haraldr. Quite why Lochlann chose to Wales as his destination is also unknown, although the Crovan dynasty certainly had diplomatic and familial connections with the Welsh. In fact, a transaction between Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and Ralph de Mortimer that concerns the lands of Maelienydd and Gwerthrynion, and appears to date to 1241, makes note of a witness named "Godredo filio regis Mannie". The precise identity of this man is uncertain. One possibility is that he is identical to Lochlann's foster-son. If the chronicle is in error in its account of the maritime demise of Guðrøðr Óláfsson, and he is indeed identical to the like-named Manx prince on record in Wales, his activities outside the kingdom of his forefathers may have been a consequence of the troubles following the Haraldr's accession. The chronicle's account of the flight to Wales may, therefore, reveal that Lochlann tried and failed to replace Haraldr with an otherwise unknown younger son of Óláfr. If so, the episode would appear to be yet another example of the Crovan dynasty enduring internal strife.

Later in 1238, the chronicle reveals that envoys of Hákon expelled Haraldr from Mann because the latter had refused to render homage to his overlord in Norway. Hákon's delegates in the Isles—a certain Gospatric, and Giolla Críost mac Muircheartaigh—are described by the chronicle to have seized control of the island, and taken tribute which was due to the Norwegian king. By sending such emissaries—men apparently without any hereditary claim to the kingdom—Hákon ignored other potential claimants, such as other members of the Crovan dynasty and members of Clann Somhairle. About a decade before, when Haraldr's father first gained complete control of the kingdom, Óláfr journeyed to Norway and may have rendered homage to Hákon. Later in 1235 Óláfr rendered homage to Henry, before being called back to Norway the following year. The episode concerning the ejection of Haraldr may well be related to his father's fealty to the English Crown, and appears to indicate that the latter was deposed for not fulfilling his duties as a Norwegian vassal; and that upon his subsequent removal, Haraldr's rights of vassalage passed to Hákon himself.

Although Haraldr attempted to oust Hákon's representatives on several occasions, his successive invasions of Mann from the Hebrides ultimately proved unsuccessful, and the chronicle indicates that he finally journeyed to Norway to render his submission. After a stay of about two or three years in Scandinavia, the chronicle reports that Haraldr became reconciled with Hákon, who restored him to the kingship. The source reveals that the boundaries of his kingdom were carefully defined by Hákon as the islands which had been previously ruled by Haraldr's father, his uncle (Rǫgnvaldr Guðrøðarson), and his paternal grandfather. The Norwegian king, therefore, not only deliberately excluded the island territories ruled by Clann Somhairle, but limited the possibility of Haraldr becoming in drawn into alignment with Scottish interests like some leading members of Clann Somhairle had been. Upon his return to the Isles, the chronicle states that the Manxmen rejoiced at his arrival; and declares that he afterwards reigned quietly and peacefully, enjoying an alliance of friendship with both the English and Scottish Crowns.

Acta and honours

The earliest member of the Crovan dynasty known to have utilised a seal is Haraldr's paternal grandfather, who attached such a device to a confirmation charter granted in about 1154. Although none of the original seals borne by the Crovan dynasty have survived, several were documented by sixteenth- and seventeenth-century antiquarians. In regards to Haraldr himself, one such antiquarian named Christopher Hatton not only transcribed two of Haraldr's charters, but made drawings of the seals which were attached to them. The devices themselves were in poor condition by Hatton's time, as his illustrations show portions of them broken away. It is clear, however, that the seals bore a lion on one side, and a clinker-built galley with sails furled on the other side. About a century later, the charters and seals, along with other priceless documents of the Cottonian Library, were destroyed by fire at Ashburnham House in 1731. Waxen seals affixed to acta not only served to authenticate the written documents, but also physically symbolise the authority and significance of them. For example, when Hákon formally confirmed the kingship of Magnús Óláfsson, King of Mann and the Isles, Haraldr's younger brother and eventual royal successor, the Norwegian king is said by the Chronicle of Mann to have done so "by the protection of his seal". To the kings of the Crovan dynasty, whose military strength laid in the power of armed galley-fleets, the symbol of such a vessel upon their seals represented the strength and authority they held in the Isles.

One of Haraldr's charters to which a seal was attached was a grant to the monks of Furness Abbey concerning mining rights on Mann, the use of a depot at "Bakenaldwath" (probably Ronaldsway), and the freedom from tolls and customs. The record of this document is the earliest evidence for mineral exploitation on the island, an industry that expanded throughout the island by the century's end. In another charter, Haraldr pledged the protection of the abbey's ships and goods. His amiable interactions with the English abbey contrasted the apparent aggression of his father, who was warned by the English king not to harm the monks or their property. In a further charter, evidenced from a sixteenth-century copy, Haraldr confirmed his father's earlier grant of the lands of "Balhamer" (probably Ballaharry), and the churches of St Ninian of "Ballacgniba" and St Runius (all located in the Manx parish of Marown), to Whithorn Priory in Galloway. Of the twenty royal charters known to have been issued by the Crovan dynasty, only three can be assigned to Haraldr's reign.

Like his father before him, and his brother Magnús after him, Haraldr was knighted by Henry. The chronicle claims that the event took place in 1247, and elaborates that Haraldr returned home with "much honour, and great gifts". Contemporary English administrative records, however, reveal that the deed took place early in 1246. Specifically, a letter of safe-conduct, issued by the English king on 9 January 1246, orders that Haraldr was to be given safe-passage through England until Pentecost (27 May 1246). Similarly, the thirteenth-century Chronica majora reports that Henry confirmed the honour of knighthood upon Haraldr on Easter day that year. Numerous titles were accorded to the kings of the Crovan dynasty. The style apparently preferred by Haraldr's father was rex insularum. As for Haraldr and Magnús, they appear to have favoured the variant form rex mannie et insularum. According to the seventeenth-century antiquarians William Camden and John Selden, this title appeared on the legend of seals borne by the dynasty. It is unknown whose emblems these men were referring to, although they may well have been those of Haraldr. These titles are an equivalent of the Gaelic title rí Innsi Gall ("king of the islands of the foreigners") first recorded in 989, a style almost certainly referring to Mann and the Hebrides. Other sources accord Haraldr similar titles. The Icelandic annals, for example, style him "Svðréyiakonvngs" ("king of the Hebrides").

Dynastic alliance

In the autumn of 1247, Haraldr again voyaged to Norway, as evidenced by the Chronicle of Mann and the thirteenth-century Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar. After Haraldr removed from Oslo to Bergen, these sources reveal that Hákon gave the hand of his widowed daughter, Cecilía, in marriage to Haraldr. Throughout his long reign, Hákon endeavoured to strengthen his far-flung Norwegian realm. In regard to the Isles, his bestowal of Cecilía in matrimony to Haraldr brought relations between the rulers of the realms to its climax. The compilers of the chronicle clearly considered the union to have elevated Haraldr's prestige above that of his predecessors, as this source claims that Hákon had declared he would hold his new son-in-law "in great glory and exalt the throne of his kingdom above all who ruled before him in the Isles".

Whilst Haraldr was still in Norway, the saga states that two leading members of Clann Somhairle arrived at Hákon's court, with each seeking the kingship of the Isles: Eóghan Mac Dubhghaill, Lord of Argyll and Dubhghall mac Ruaidhrí. Although 1247 was also the year of Hákon's royal coronation, and it is possible that the arrival of the Clann Somhairle dynasts was a result of the reimposition of Norwegian overlordship (as appears to have been the case with Haraldr), there may have been other reasons for the arrival of Eóghan and Dubhghall. For example, 1247 was also the year that a prominent member of Clann Somhairle, called "Mac Somhairle" in Irish sources, was slain in Ireland battling the English. The knighting of Haraldr the year previous may well have entailed some act of submission to the Henry, and it is possible that Hákon had consequently recognised Mac Somhairle's kingship in the Isles in response to Haraldr's acceptance of English overtures. An alliance with a ruler of the Isles would have certainly benefited Henry's ongoing military operations in Ireland, and it is possible that it was such a pact that had prompted Mac Somhairle's involvement against the English. Haraldr's subsequent marriage to Cecilía, therefore, may have been a successful attempt by Hákon to lure Haraldr back to his side.

Death and after-effects

In 1248, the Chronicle of Mann, Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar, and the Icelandic annals indicate that Haraldr and Cecilía drowned whilst voyaging from Norway to the Isles. Whilst the former source laments that Harald's death "a cause of grief to all who had known him", the latter states that his death was the "greatest harm and ill-luck" to the Islsemen who "lost so suddenly such a prince, when his voyage to Norway had been so lucky". Since the wreckage of their vessel washed ashore from the south, the saga specifically states that the ship was thought to have been lost south of Shetland in Dynröst, a treacherous tidal race otherwise known in more modern times as Sumburgh Roost and Da Roost, lying between Sumburgh Head and Fair Isle. Amongst those drowned was Laurence, Archdeacon of Mann, a man who had recently been elected Bishop of the Isles by the chapter of Mann. Although Laurence had presented himself in Norway to Haraldr and Sigurðr tapsi Indriðason, Archbishop of Niðaróss, the chronicle reveals that Haraldr had postponed his consecration until the former could be publicly elected in the Isles before king, clergy, and people.

Haraldr's death led to what was the final stage of inter-dynastic strife amongst his family. News of Haraldr and Cecilía's death does not appear to have reached Mann until the spring of 1249. According to the chronicle, Haraldr's younger brother, Rǫgnvaldr, succeeded to the kingship on 6 May 1249, only to be slain on 30 May by a man who appears to have been an accomplice of Rǫgnvaldr and Haraldr's cousin, Haraldr Guðrøðarson. With Rǫgnvaldr out of the way, Haraldr Guðrøðarson successfully seized the throne, and replaced Haraldr's former supporters with proponents of his own. According to the chronicle, one of the men who suffered under Haraldr Guðrøðarson's regime was a certain chieftain called "Dofnaldus". This man is stated to have been held in high esteem by Haraldr, but held a prisoner by Haraldr Guðrøðarson. Although the identity of this man is uncertain, he could be identical to Domhnall, the eponym of Clann Domhnaill. If such an identification is correct, and if Haraldr's mother was indeed Lauon of Clann Somhairle, the captive Dofnaldus would have been a close kinsman of Haraldr (perhaps a maternal uncle or maternal grandfather). In fact, Haraldr seems to have relied upon Hebridean support as opposed to Manx support during his reign. For example, the chronicle makes note of three sons of a certain Niall who supported Haraldr's cause early in his reign. It is possible that these men were related to a certain Domhnall mac Néill, an obscure figure who faced the brunt of a Scottish royal army in 1221. The latter's patronym suggests that he may have had Hebridean or Ulster connections.

The maritime disaster in which Haraldr and Cecilía lost their lives demonstrates some of the difficulties faced by the Norwegian Crown in maintaining control of the far-flung Norse colonies west over sea. Not only did the calamity deprive the Islesmen of a capable king, but cost the Norwegian Crown a closely connected advocate in the region. Upon learning of the catastrophe, Hákon quickly sent Eóghan west over sea to temporarily take up the kingship of the Isles on his behalf. Eóghan, however, was not only a Norwegian dependant in the Isles, but an immanent Scottish magnate on the mainland. For several years the Scottish Crown appears to have attempted to acquire the Hebrides from Norwegian overlordsip, and expand its authority in Argyll. The apparent cooling of relations between Eóghan and Alexander, along with Haraldr's later demise, the resulting kin-strife concerning his succession, and Eóghan's subsequent acceptance of royal powers on Hákon's behalf, could all have contributed to the massed invasion into Argyll by Scottish royal forces within the year. After Alexander demanded Eóghan renounce his allegiance to Hákon, and ordered him to hand over certain mainland and island fortresses, Eóghan apparently withdrew into the northern Hebrides. The unfolding crisis only ended with the Scottish king's untimely death soon afterwards in July. According to Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar, Alexander had made it clear that he had no intention of turning back until he had acquired control of the western Norwegian dominions within his sights. Within about two decades, such desires would be fully realised by his successor-son, with the final eclipse of Norwegian overlordship in the Isles and the extinction of the Crovan dynasty itself.

title: Haraldr Óláfsson


text:
Westhill, Aberdeenshire

Westhill is a suburban town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, located 7 mi west of the city of Aberdeen.

Size of Westhill
The town of Westhill covers the area that was the Western Kinmundy and Blackhills Farming areas.

Demographics
The population in 2006 was 10,392. As of June 2016, the population grew to an estimated 12,040 people, 65.3% being aged from 18-64.

Origin
The creation of Westhill just outside Aberdeen was the idea of local solicitor Ronald Fraser Dean in 1963. With the backing of the former Aberdeen District Council (see Aberdeen City Council), the Secretary of State for Scotland and supported financially by Ashdale Land and Property Company Ltd., the new settlement of Westhill was created upon the old farming land. Since construction of the first houses in 1968, Westhill has undergone a gradual expansion, much of which is tied to the North East's oil and gas economy. In 2007/8 a major expansion of the industrial estate brought several thousand workers to the area. Most of these are in specialist sub-sea engineering oil service companies, making Westhill a world centre in sub-sea engineering.

The name Westhill was created in 1859 when John Anderson from Strichen bought the adjoining small estates of Wester Kinmundy and Blackhills. Both of these names were very old, dating back to at least the 16th Century, but Anderson seems not to have liked them. He therefore created the name Westhill from the other two names. This is recorded in the Register of Sasines 2 December 1859.

Wester Kinmundy and Blackhills were established either side of a geographical area known as 'The Clash', this was a marshy bog, historically listed as being sited between Brodiach/Borrow(ed)stone area and (Now Kirkton of) Skene. It is commonly thought the remnants of this area is still apparent but nowadays named Denman Park.

Growth of the town
Major housing expansions are under way at Elrick and to the west of Westhill. Many new housing estates are being built, primarily from well known companies such as Stewart Milne and Bett Homes.

Westhill Business Park is also growing, with an increasing number of companies creating offices in the park. Due to the demand for offices, many planning permission applications for using the unused land to the South-West have been submitted. The growth has been such that the Postal Area formerly known as Skene has been renamed Westhill, so that for postal purposes, the once two-horse-hamlet of Westhill now covers many square miles.

During the 1980s the local authority boundaries were to be moved such that Westhill would fall within the City of Aberdeen. This was seen as a cost-cutting venture, however the community set up a "Don't Move Westhill" campaign, and successfully stopped the town's absorption into Aberdeen. No new attempt to move the boundaries to include Westhill have been made since.

Education
Westhill has three primary schools; Crombie Primary, Elrick Primary, and Westhill Primary (opened 1974).

Westhill also has a secondary school, Westhill Academy. The academy services Westhill, Skene and pupils in the surrounding area. It was opened in 1979, and since then many improvements and extensions have been made to increase the capacity of the Academy. Currently the number of pupils is roughly 1,000, however this figure is expected to rise. In 2010 the school came 27th in the league tables for all independent schools in Scotland.

All the schools in Westhill are run by Aberdeenshire Council.

Notable residents
Olympic canoeist Tim Baillie has a gold post box on Westhill Drive in commemoration of his gold medal in the canoe slalom C-2 event in the 2012 Olympics.

In part of the Grampian Regional Council Brotherfield Nursery, is the 2.5 acre home of The Beechgrove Garden, a gardening based television programme broadcast since 1978 on BBC Scotland. Episodes have broadcast from the site since 1996.

Road
The A944 runs straight through Westhill, and this connects Westhill with Kingswells and Aberdeen to the east, and as far as Mossat to the west. The B9119 branches off from the A944 just before Westhill and this route continues on towards Echt, eventually connecting to the A93.

The Aberdeen Bypass passes due east of the town, linking it to Aberdeen Airport, the A96 and Aberdeen’s northern and southern suburbs, among other destinations further afield.

Bus
Westhill is served by Stagecoach Bluebird services 5, 6, 6A and 218.

The new routings from 19 April 2021:

Service 5 Aberdeen to Elrick via Union Street, Albyn Place, Queens Road, Skene Road, Kingswells Park & Ride, Westhill Drive, Hays Way, Wellgrove Road, Straik Road & Carnie Crescent loop same in reverse.

Service 6 Aberdeen to Westhill (Berryhill) via Union Street, Albyn Place, Queens Road, Skene Road, Kingswells Park & Ride, Westhill Drive, Hays Way, Old Skene Road, Broadshade Road & Broadshade Avenue same in reverse.

Service 6A universal route (early mornings, evenings & Sundays) via Union Street, Albyn Place, Queens Road, Skene Road, Kingswells Park & Ride, Westhill Drive, Hays Way, Anti-clockwise loop Old Skene Road, Broadshade Road, Broadshade Avenue, Broadshade Road, Broadstraik Road, Carnie Crescent, Straik Road, Wellgrove Road, Hays Way back to Aberdeen.

Primefour and Arnhall business park / Total is served at peak times.

In the near future the service N6 will be night version of the 6A route, operating via Queens Road to Aberdeen every hour from 0020 to 0415.

Service 218 Alford, Sauchen, Dunecht, Skene connects Westhill & Elrick to Aberdeen Union Square via Kingswells Park and Ride, Lang Stracht and Aberdeen Royal Infirmary every 3 hours Monday to Saturday, with no service running on Sundays.

Religion
Westhill has several active church congregations. Trinity Church is an ecumenical project that involved the Church of Scotland, the Scottish Episcopal Church and the Roman Catholic Church. The Episcopal Church have moved to a new larger church to the west

In addition, evangelical services are also held by the Westhill Baptist Church located at the Westdyke Leisure Centre. In 2016, a Buddhist centre established at Kinmundy, Varapunya Meditation Centre offering Buddhist practice and meditation.

title: Westhill, Aberdeenshire


text:
Hong Kong Supplementary Character Set

The Hong Kong Supplementary Character Set (香港增補字符集; commonly abbreviated to HKSCS) is a set of Chinese characters – 4,702 in total in the initial release—used in Cantonese, as well as when writing the names of some places in Hong Kong (whether in written Cantonese or standard written Chinese sentences).

It evolved from the preceding Government Chinese Character Set (政府通用字庫) or GCCS. GCCS is a set of supplementary Chinese characters coded in the user-defined areas of the Big5 character set. It was originally used within the Hong Kong Government and later used by the public. It later evolved into Hong Kong Supplementary Character Set when the characters in the set were submitted to ISO-10646 for coding.

History
Due to the inherent differences between standard written Chinese and written Cantonese, the Government of Hong Kong recognised the need for a standardised set of proprietary characters that would allow for the streamlining of electronic communication; at the time, the Big5 Chinese encoding scheme did not contain a vast majority of these characters (some were erroneously cross-listed with similar characters).

The Government Chinese Character Set (政府通用字庫) or GCCS was thus developed by the government. The character set consists of Chinese characters commonly used in Hong Kong. Some characters are Cantonese-specific, while some are alternative forms of characters. The set is not well-organised and the characters are not closely examined.

Subsequently, the HKSCS-1999 (HKSCS 1999 specification) was developed. Following its acceptance, newer revisions were released in 2001 (adding 116 new characters) and in 2004 (adding 123 new characters), totalling 4,941 characters. 106 GCCS characters were removed in HKSCS-1999 as a result of unification, and their Big5 code points are reserved for compatibility. Retired "not verifiable" GCCS characters are found in UTC Sources (UTC-00877–UTC-00898), where they are sourced from Adobe-CNS1-1, an Adobe-CNS1 supplement implemented to support GCCS.

The HKSCS is encoded in Big5 (Big5-HKSCS, big5hk ) and ISO 10646 (Unicode). Starting from HKSCS-2004, all characters previously using the Private Use Area section of Unicode are remapped, with many of them reassigned to Extension B Block or Supplementary Ideographic Plane Compatibility Block. However, to preserve compatibility with programs that generated PUA code points, the allocated code points are reserved, and no new characters will be mapped to PUA.

Similarly to Hong Kong's situation, there are also characters that are needed by Macao but included in neither Big5 nor HKSCS, hence, the Macao Supplementary Character Set was developed, building on HKSCS with additional Unicode-mapped characters. The first batch of 121 MSCS characters were submitted for addition to or horizontal extension in Unicode (as appropriate) in 2009, and the first final version of MSCS was established in 2020.

Versions
The HKSCS has gone through a few iterations.

The last edition of HKSCS to encode all of its characters in Big5 was HKSCS-2008, while the characters added in HKSCS-2016 are mapped to Unicode only (as a CJK Unified Ideographs horizontal glyph extension where appropriate).

Operating systems
In Microsoft Windows 98, NT 4.0, 2000, XP, HKSCS support can be enabled using Microsoft's patch. In Microsoft's implementation, application using code page 950 automatically uses a hidden code page 951 table for the Big5 encoding of the HKSCS extensions. The table supports all code points in HKSCS-2001, except for the compatibility code points specified by the standard. In addition, the MingLiU font is altered using Microsoft's patch. This patch is known to create conflicts in applications such as Microsoft Office, or any application using fonts supporting simplified Chinese characters (e.g.: SimSun). If the target environment contains custom font mapped to the code points affected by Microsoft's patch, the custom fonts can undo Microsoft's patch. Furthermore, the patch breaks EUDC Editor supplied with the affected versions of Windows. Starting with Windows Vista, HKSCS-2004 characters are only supported as Unicode 4.1 or later. All characters are assigned standard, non-PUA codepoints. The characters are displayed with the MingLiU font, and these characters can be entered via the keyboard. The patch that provides Big5 encoding of HKSCS is unsupported in Windows Vista and later. A utility provided by Microsoft is available to convert HKSCS and Unicode PUA-encoded characters to Unicode 4.1 version. In 2010, Microsoft published a HKSCS-2004 patch for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. It replaces Windows XP version of MingLiu, PMingLiu, and MingLiu_HKSCS (if HKSCS-2001 patch was applied) with Windows 7 version of MingLiu, PMingLiu and MingLiu_HKSCS. In addition, MingLiU-ExtB, MingLiU_HKSCS-ExtB and PMingLiU-ExtB fonts will be added onto target system. However, IME is not updated as it was in the case of HKSCS-2001 patch, and the fonts are from pre-release of Windows 7. For earlier versions of the OS, HKSCS support requires the use of Microsoft's patch, or the Hong Kong government's Digital 21's utilities.

IBM assigns CCSID 5471 to the HKSCS-2001 Big5 code page (with CPGID 1374 as CCSID 5470 as the double byte component), CCSID 9567 to the HKSCS-2004 code page (with CPGID 1374 as CCSID 9566 as the double byte component), and CCSID 13663 to the HKSCS-2008 code page (with CPGID 1374 as CCSID 13662 as the double byte component), while CCSID 1375 (with CPGID 1374 as CCSID 1374 as its double byte component) is assigned to a growing HKSCS code page, currently equivalent to CCSID 13663.

HKSCS support was added to glibc in 2000, but it has not been updated since then. HKSCS-2004 support is handled as Unicode 4.1 and later. For freedesktop.org setup, AR PL ShanHeiSun Uni font fully supports HKSCS-2004 since 0.1-0.dot.1, with latest revision of HKSCS-2004 supported in version 0.1.20060903-1. Modern desktop distributions (e.g. Ubuntu) include Arphic Technology's HKSCS-compliant UKai and UMing fonts out of the box when Traditional Chinese Language support is selected during installation. They can also be installed manually at a later time.

Mac OS X 10.0–10.2 supports HKSCS-1999. 10.3–10.4 supports HKSCS-2001. Some of the letters added to HKSCS-2004 is supported via Unicode PUA in OS X 10.4. Starting with OS X 10.5, all the HKSCS-2004 characters are supported via standard Unicode 4.1 code points.

Applications and the Web
Mozilla 1.5 and above supports HKSCS, with HKSCS-2004 support added into Gecko 1.8.1 code base. Unlike the above-mentioned patch, Mozilla uses its own code page table. However, the fix for bug 343129 does not support characters mapped to code points above Basic Multilingual Plane.

QT 3.x-based applications (e.g.: KDE) only support characters mapped to code points FFFF or lower. In QT4, characters outside BMP are supported via surrogates. Big5-HKSCS Text Codec supports HKSCS-1999 back in Qt-2.3.x, but it was too late in Qt development schedule to be officially included in the Qt-2.3.x series, so it was officially supported in Qt-3.0.1. HKSCS-2001 support was added in Qt-3.0.5.

GNOME supports HKSCS characters in Unicode ranges, except those mapped to the Basic Multilingual Plane compatibility block. Patches to support characters mapped to above Basic Multilingual Plane was introduced during Pango 1.1.

The WHATWG Encoding Standard (used by HTML5) includes HKSCS in its definition of Big5 (used even with the plain Big5 label). However, only its decoder uses all HKSCS extensions, while its encoder explicitly excludes those with lead bytes below 0xA1 (thus excluding most of the HKSCS extensions but including, for example, those inherited from Big5 ETEN). Newer browsers follow this standard, including Firefox.

title: Hong Kong Supplementary Character Set


text:
Zach Galligan

Zachary Wolfe Galligan (born February 14, 1964) is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Billy Peltzer in the comedy-horror films Gremlins (1984) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990).

Early life and education
Galligan was born on February 14, 1964, in New York City, the son of Carol Jean (née Wolfe), a psychologist, and Arthur John Galligan, a lawyer who was a founding partner of the law firm of Dickstein Shapiro. He is mostly of Irish descent, and he has Jewish ancestry through his mother’s side. He has a sister, Jessica, and graduated from Columbia University.

Career
Galligan's first major and most widely seen role was as Billy Peltzer in the 1984 film Gremlins. Prior to being cast in Gremlins, he filmed Nothing Lasts Forever, which had its theatrical release cancelled and went unreleased in any form for years. In 1988, he starred as Mark Loftmore in the horror comedy Waxwork. He reprised his role as Billy in the 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch, and returned to the role of Mark for Waxwork II: Lost in Time.

In 2016, UK progressive rock band Gandalf's Fist announced that Galligan would voice a character on their album The Clockwork Fable.

In early 2021, Galligan appeared in a Mountain Dew commercial in which his Gremlins character, Billy, gives Gizmo a drink of his Mountain Dew. Galligan is set to return to the Gremlins franchise again in the upcoming animated series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai.

Personal life
Galligan married Ling-Ling Hu Ingerick at the Yale Club in New York on September 25, 2005; they divorced in 2010.

title: Zach Galligan


text:
Games in relief

In baseball statistics, games in relief (denoted by GIR) are the number of games in which a pitcher appears but is not the starting pitcher.

title: Games in relief


text:
Innerspace

Innerspace is a 1987 American science fiction comedy film directed by Joe Dante and produced by Michael Finnell. Steven Spielberg served as executive producer. It was inspired by the 1966 science fiction film Fantastic Voyage. It stars Dennis Quaid, Martin Short and Meg Ryan, with Robert Picardo and Kevin McCarthy, with music composed by Jerry Goldsmith. It earned $25.9 million in worldwide theatrical rentals and won an Oscar for Best Visual Effects, the only film directed by Dante to do so.

Plot
In San Francisco, down-on-his-luck U.S. Navy aviator Lt. Tuck Pendleton resigns his commission and volunteers for a secret miniaturization experiment. He is placed in a submersible pod and both are shrunk to microscopic size. They are transferred into a syringe to be injected into a rabbit, but the lab is attacked by a rival organization, led by scientist Dr. Margaret Canker, that plans to seize the experiment and steal the miniaturization technology.

Experiment supervisor Ozzie Wexler, knowing their intentions, escapes with the syringe. A chase ensues with one of Canker's henchmen, Mr. Igoe, which ends at a nearby shopping mall with Igoe shooting Ozzie. In a last-ditch effort to stop the experiment from falling into the rivals' hands, the wounded Ozzie injects Tuck and the pod into an unsuspecting passerby - Jack Putter, a hypochondriac Safeway grocery clerk who is exploited by his boss and belittled by Wendy, a superficial co-worker he has a crush on.

On regaining consciousness, Tuck is unaware of what has happened and believes he has been injected into the rabbit. After attempts to radio the lab are unsuccessful, he navigates the pod to the optic nerve and implants a camera so he is able to see what the "host" sees. Realizing he is inside a human, he makes contact by attaching another device to Jack's inner ear, enabling him to talk to Jack. He explains that the pod has only a few hours' supply of oxygen and needs his help in order to extract him by going back to the lab.

At the lab, the scientists explain to Tuck and Jack that the other group stole one of two computer chips that are vital to the process. Their mastermind is Victor Scrimshaw. His henchmen include Canker, Igoe, and "The Cowboy".

Jack contacts Tuck's estranged girlfriend, Lydia Maxwell, a reporter who has had dealings with The Cowboy. They learn that he plans to buy the computer chip from Scrimshaw and stake out his hotel. After following him to a local nightclub Lydia allows him to pick her up as Jack encounters Wendy, who, thinking he's been living a double life, shows an interest in him. Jack follows The Cowboy and Lydia back to the hotel, where he knocks The Cowboy unconscious and Tuck uses the pod's equipment to control Jack's face muscles, altering his features so he looks like The Cowboy. Lydia and Jack, posing as The Cowboy, meet with Scrimshaw to steal the chip from him. However, as they are about to take possession of it, Jack's nervousness overrides the transformation of his face, exposing the scam. Igoe captures him and Lydia and takes them to their laboratory. While imprisoned, Jack and Lydia share a kiss, which, unknown to them, transfers Tuck into Lydia's body through their saliva. Once taken to the laboratory, the criminals shrink Igoe and inject him into Jack to locate Tuck, kill him, and obtain the other chip that is attached to the pod.

After Igoe has been injected, Jack and Lydia free themselves and order everyone in the laboratory, including Scrimshaw and Canker, into the miniaturization device at gunpoint. However, not knowing how to operate it, they accidentally and unknowingly shrink everyone to half their original size while trying to retrieve the chip. Tuck, now inside Lydia, finds a growing baby and realizes that she is pregnant with his child. By going to her eardrum and playing their song (Sam Cooke's "Cupid"), he is able to alert them what has happened. Jack and Lydia kiss again to transfer him back. They frantically drive back to the lab in order to enlarge him, not realizing that the shrunken Scrimshaw and Canker have escaped and are hiding in the back seat. While they attempt to subdue Jack and Lydia, Igoe locates Tuck in Jack's esophagus and attacks him. Tuck disables Igoe's craft and the latter is killed when Tuck drops him into Jack's stomach after agitating Jack's anxiety to increase his stomach acid.

Back at the lab, with only minutes of supplemental oxygen left in the pod, Jack follows Tuck's instructions to eject it from his lungs by making himself sneeze due to his hairspray allergy. Tuck and the pod are successfully enlarged, and he is reunited with Lydia and finally gets to meet Jack in person. At Tuck and Lydia's wedding, held at Wayfarers Chapel, Jack is Tuck's best man. Tuck is seen wearing the chips from the experiment as cufflinks. When they climb into the limousine, it is revealed that The Cowboy is the driver and the shrunken Scrimshaw and Canker are hiding inside a suitcase in the trunk. Now confident and in control of his life, Jack recognizes The Cowboy and tells his doctor that he's cured, tells Wendy she has no chance with him, and informs his manager that he quits; he then jumps into Tuck's vintage 1967 Mustang, pursuing the limousine to rescue the newlyweds.

Cast
In addition, the film's director, Joe Dante, has an uncredited cameo as a Vectorscope employee, while Short's SCTV cast mates Joe Flaherty and Andrea Martin have cameos as waiting room patients. Chuck Jones and Rance Howard appear briefly as grocery shoppers in one scene.

Production
The film began as an original script by Chip Proser, who called it "basically a rip off of Fantastic Voyage. My idea was that the big guy was up and moving around and could react to what was going on inside." The script was optioned by Peter Guber at Warner Bros. in 1984. Guber offered the script to Joe Dante who turned it down. Guber then had the script rewritten by Jeffrey Boam as a comedy. Boam says "The idea was kind of ridiculous, which was a person miniaturized and put into someone else's body. That's all I kept from the original script. They originally thought it might be Michael J. Fox inside Arnold Schwarzenegger's body. I actually kept turning it down, and they were persistent and kept coming back to me."

According to Dante, Boam "approached it ... from the concept of what would happen if we shrank Dean Martin down and injected him inside Jerry Lewis." Dante says that Steven Spielberg had become involved on the project as an executive producer and he may have been responsible for the comedy. "It was such a goofy idea that there were no limits to it," said Boam. "I felt I could do anything, and so the script I wrote was very loony and far out there but everybody loved it. Dick Donner, Joe Dante, John Carpenter and even Steven Spielberg wanted to do it. So when Steven wanted to do it, Warners thought I was a God and any amount of money it would take to do the movie they would spend. Steve ultimately decided he only wanted to produce so Joe came along and really latched on to the idea."

Quaid's role was originally envisioned to be played by an older actor but then they decided to make the character younger. Dante recalled during filming scenes where Quaid and Short's characters interacted, "Dennis would be on the set in a booth, so the interaction was really happening. Dennis would hew to the script a little more than Marty. After you got a scene in the can, he'd beg for more takes, in the voice of Katharine Hepburn, which was hard to resist."

Dante says Spielberg would "protect you from the studio and sometimes from the other producers. It was a very filmmaker-friendly atmosphere over there [at Amblin]. You got all the best equipment and all the best people and all the toys you wanted to play with. Plus you had somebody on your side who was also a filmmaker and they knew exactly what you were talking about when you had a problem or you had a question."

"It's a dumb, stupid comedy, which is exactly what people need in the summertime," said Quaid. "It's very idiotic and I love it. We encounter every dumb, stupid cliché in the book. Leave your brain at home and you'll have a good time."

Meg Ryan met Quaid on set and they later married.

Awards

 * 1988 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Won (Bill George, Dennis Muren, Harley Jessup and Kenneth F. Smith)
 * 1988 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Best Director, Best Science Fiction Film, Best Special Effects, nominated

Box office
The film grossed $25.9 million in the United States and Canada, adding $28 million internationally, for a worldwide total of $42 million against a budget of $27 million.

Critical response
The film had a positive reception from critics.

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3 stars out of 4, stating "Here is an absurd, unwieldy, overplotted movie that nevertheless is entertaining - and some of the fun comes from the way the plot keeps laying it on". Proser later said, "I never actually have been able to sit through it all at once. They don't pay me to watch this crap. Like H. L. Hughgly, I wear a mask to cash the check."

Joe Dante later said the film "was a hit on video. It was one of the first big videos, and it was discovered on video, basically. Although audiences liked it in theaters—when I went, they were in stitches—the ad campaign was so terrible for that movie. It was just a giant thumb with a little tiny pod on it. You couldn't tell that it was a comedy—you couldn't tell anything—and it had a terrible title, because we could never figure out a better one. And the studio botched the selling of it. I mean, they liked the movie, and they tried to reissue it, even, with a different campaign, and it still bombed."

"It's been looked back on as if it was some great success whereas, in fact, it was pretty much a disappointment in its day," he said. Dante later called the film "probably the movie that I had made up to then that was the closest to my intention. As a result, I was very happy with it. When I look at it today I still think it's a tremendous amount of fun."

title: Innerspace


text:
Games pitched

In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher. The statistic is also referred to as appearances, especially to refer to the number of games a relief pitcher has pitched in.

Normally, a pitcher must face at least one batter (or three batters in some relief situations), but exceptions are made in the case of injury. A notable example was Larry Yount, who suffered an injury while throwing warmup pitches after being summoned as a reliever in a Major League Baseball (MLB) game on September 15, 1971. He did not face a batter, but was credited with an appearance because he had been announced as a substitute. Yount never appeared in (or actually played in) any other MLB game.

Major League Baseball career leaders
Listed below are all MLB players with at least 1,000 games pitched. The first player to reach the mark was Hoyt Wilhelm, in May 1970. LaTroy Hawkins is the most recent player to reach the mark, having achieved it in September 2014. , no active player has reached the milestone; Kenley Jansen leads active players, with over 770 games pitched.

title: Games pitched


text:
Volkswagen Sharan

The Volkswagen Sharan is a seven-seater minivan that was produced by the German Volkswagen Group and built at the AutoEuropa plant in Palmela, Portugal, with a front-wheel-drive version across two generations, from 1995 to 2022. Through badge engineering, the Volkswagen Sharan shares the same platform with the SEAT Alhambra, and the first generation was also in most respects identical to the Ford Galaxy. From 2010 to 2023 the Sharan was in its second generation. It is described in the motor industry as a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV).

First generation (Typ 7M; 1995)

The Sharan was the Volkswagen-badged product from a joint venture between Volkswagen and Ford Motor Company to produce vehicles in the increasingly important MPV market, which was filled at the time by Renault's Espace and Chrysler's Voyager. The resulting Volkswagen Sharan concept (and Ford Galaxy) was shown at the 1994 Paris Auto Show, and production started in May 1995. The name Sharan was said to be derived from the Persian word 'Shahran' meaning "Carrier of Kings". However, according to Volkswagen, it is a made-up word, like 'Touran'.

Development began in top-secret in 1987, known only to the highest level members of the respective companies, with a team consisting of Ford's Steve Harper, Paul Coucill, and Volkswagen's Peter Knapp. Harper's design was chosen at the first review that September. It originally had a very different boxier design, and used a conventional minivan layout with a single sliding-door.

The Volkswagen Group subsequently rebadged the Sharan and sold it as the SEAT Alhambra alongside the Sharan. All variants were produced at the joint venture's plant AutoEuropa in Portugal, alongside the closely related Ford Galaxy. The Sharan was on sale from 1995 to 2010, accompanied with facelifts in 2000 and 2004.

As of 2007, the annual production for the Sharan is in the 50,000 unit range; it is sold in Europe, South Africa and some Asia Pacific and Latin American countries. In Mexico, it was available with the 1.8L Turbo 4 cil 150 hp with five speed Tiptronic automatic gearbox in Comfortline trim only, while in Argentina it is available with the 1.8L Turbo and the 1.9L TDI 115 hp four cylinder engines, in both five speed manual and five speed Tiptronic transmissions in Trendline trim only.

The cooperation between Volkswagen and Ford ended in 2006, with the latter going alone in building the second generation Galaxy.

The Sharan was not sold in the United States and Canada. Originally, this was due to an agreement between Ford and Volkswagen, leaving the market free from competition for Ford's Aerostar minivan. Volkswagen later decided not to introduce the Sharan in North America, ceased developing the Microbus concept, and instead introduced a badge-engineered variant of the Chrysler minivans as the Routan. This was launched in 2009, and replaced the Sharan in Mexico which was the only North American country where the Sharan was sold.

Scoring 200 points on the United Kingdom Reliability Index, the Sharan is considered very unreliable when compared to the average vehicle score of 100, while a very reliable vehicle scores 60 or below. The average age and repair cost of the tested Sharan was 5,3 years and covered 63,546 miles. It has been noted that, despite enjoying high popularity, the Sharan has consistently performed poorly in UK customer satisfaction surveys, including a last place 138th in a 2003 survey. Although quality problems existed in the original version, the Sharan quickly became the best selling MPV in Germany. It also sold better there than the technically identical SEAT Alhambra and Ford Galaxy despite costing up to 2500 euros more.

The first generation Volkswagen Sharan was on sale for over 15 years having been built almost unchanged during the time. By the time it was replaced in 2010 it was one of the longest running car models in Europe. Despite its age, nearly 24,000 Sharans were still being sold annually as of 2008. In total, Volkswagen sold almost 670,000 units of its Sharan.

Mark 1/Phase 1 (1995–2000)
The original Sharan was launched in August 1995, and was available with five engine choices:

*The 2.8 VR6 model had the option of Syncro all-wheel drive.

The design and technology of the Sharan (including Alhambra and Galaxy) was a mix between both Volkswagen and Ford. The design was a compromise solution, with the front looking similar to a Ford Mondeo Mk1 and the rear like Volkswagen Passat (B4). Each of the three MPV models had its own subtle differences in exterior, and, for the Galaxy, in interior design. The first generation's initial design was completed under Greg M Greeson, an American designer employed in Volkswagen's Advanced Design Studio in Düsseldorf, West Germany from 1989 to 1990.

Some small visual changes in 1998 included new door wings derived from the Volkswagen Golf Mk4 and some changes in the dashboard.

The Sharan received a Euro NCAP three star safety rating when it was tested in 1999.

Awards
 * 1999 Auto Express New Car Honours – Best MPV
 * 1998 Top Gear Magazine Top Cars – Best People Carrier (Joint Winner)
 * 1996 What Car Awards – Best People Carrier (Joint Winner)
 * 1996 Auto Express Awards – Best People Carrier (Joint Winner)

Mark 1A/Phase 1.5 (2000–2004)
The Sharan and its stablemates received a major facelift in May 2000. At this time, Volkswagen also extended the wheelbase by 6 mm, increased the front and rear track, and gave it the "Volkswagen family" look of the time including a brand new dashboard no longer sourced from Ford. Seven seats came as standard.

Awards
 * 2000 Auto Express New Car Honours – Best MPV

Engines
* Available option - 4motion AWD with 6 speed manual transmission

Mark 1B/Phase 1.75 (2004–2010)
A further minor cosmetic facelift was implemented in September 2003 at Frankfurt Motor Show for the model year of 2004. This changed, primarily, the grille, and tail lights (round). Also, more standard equipment was added, including air conditioning and curtain side air bags. In 2006, Ford independently introduced a new Galaxy which was not based on the Sharan and Alhambra designs from the Volkswagen Group.

The new Galaxy was built at a dedicated Ford plant in Limburg, Belgium. The last first generation Ford Galaxy rolled off the AutoEuropa line at the end of 2005, while the first generation Sharan and SEAT Alhambra continued in production, alongside the Volkswagen Eos and the new Scirocco, until August 2010.

A BlueMotion variant was introduced in 2008 and went on sale in Germany in May 2008, with lower (159g/km) CO2 emissions and average fuel consumption of 38 mpg U.S. In the UK only 60 BlueMotions were expected to shift per year, and it was on sale there until February 2011.

LPG version
In June 2006, PrinceGas and Volkswagen launched the Sharan with a 2.0 L 85 kW flexible fuel engine, which could work with either petrol or autogas (liquified petroleum gas), providing an additional 450 km range over the regular 2.0L petrol engine. Both fuel tanks, the 70L (18 US gallon) petrol tank and the 60L liquid gas tank combined, give the Sharan enough fuel to cover 730 km between refuels at an average fuel consumption of 9.6 L/100 km.

The liquid gas tank is built into the spare wheel well so it does not compromise on passenger and loading space of the Sharan's interior, although it does eliminate the spare tyre.

Second generation (Typ 7N; 2010)
The second generation Sharan, based on the Volkswagen Passat (B7), was launched at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show and a month later, the second generation of its sibling model, the SEAT Alhambra, was officially announced. Sales commenced in September 2010.

Although still built at the AutoEuropa factory in Portugal, the new model inherits only its name from the previous Sharan, compared to which it is 220 mm longer, 92 mm wider and 12 mm lower, with the wheelbase lengthened by 75 mm.

Weight has been reduced by 30 kg. The initial engine range comprises 1.4-litre TSI (148 bhp) and 2.0-litre (197 bhp) petrol options, plus two 2.0-litre TDI diesel engines, rated at 140 PS and 168 bhp. The rear doors now slide open rather than being hinged.

In March 2020, Volkswagen ceased production of the Sharan MPV for the Chinese market in favor of the brand new model, China-only Volkswagen Viloran. The car remained in available in Europe after more than 12 years' presence.

The VW Sharan was discontinued in the UK in 2021 but continued to be available elsewhere in Europe. However, in October 2022, the VW Sharan finally ended production in Portugal after more than a decade of production of the second generation model. No replacement is planned as the market has shifted away from large MPVs to crossovers and SUVs.

Facelift
At the 2015 Geneva Motor Show, a facelifted Sharan was unveiled to the public. It has new electronic systems and engines with reduced fuel consumption. Its 2.0 litre TSi engine (220 PS, 350 Nm) and six speed direct-shift gearbox are the same as in the 2016 Golf GTi.

Euro NCAP
The Sharan in its standard European market configuration received 4 stars from Euro NCAP in 2019.

title: Volkswagen Sharan


text:
Moscow Zoo

The Moscow Zoo or Moskovsky Zoopark (Московский зоопарк) is a 21.5 ha zoo, the largest in Russia.

History
The Moscow Zoo was founded in 1864 by professor-biologists, K.F. Rulje, S.A. Usov and A.P. Bogdanov, from the Moscow State University. In 1919, the zoo was nationalized. In 1922, the ownership was transferred to the Government of Moscow and has remained under Moscow's control ever since.

The zoo had an area of 10 ha when it first opened, with 286 animals. In 1926, the zoo was expanded to adjacent lands, increasing the area to 18 ha.

In 1933 Vera Chaplina, a naturalist and future writer, created the "green platform", a special enclosure for young animals where different cubs that their mothers refused to feed were not only raised, but also taught to live peacefully together. This experiment aroused great interest among visitors, and for many years the "green platform" remained one of the Moscow Zoo's main attractions.

In 1990, the zoo was renovated. Notable additions include a new main entrance in the shape of a large rock castle, and a footbridge that connected the old (1864) and new (1926) properties of the zoo.

In addition, the zoo was expanded once more. New exhibits were opened including a sea aquarium, an aviary, a creatures of the night exhibit, a sea lion exhibit and a section aimed at children.

The Moscow zoo has over 7,500 animals representing about 1,000 species and covers an area of about 21.5 ha.

Moscow Zoo Museum
Founded in 2008 in a two-storey building of the 19th century, built in the late XIX - early XX centuries, located on the territory of the zoo. Since 2015, the museum has been open to the public and everyone. In the central and side halls there is an exposition devoted to the history of the Moscow Zoo and a natural science permanent exposition. The collection of the museum includes more than 10,000 zoo coat of arms from all over the world, hundreds of paintings, sculptures and drawings by the masters of Russian animalistics, such as Vasily Vatagin, Alexei Komarov, Vadim Trofimov, Andrei Marts and Alexei Tsvetkov.

Research & Educational Center
The Moscow Zoo has her own educational institute and research center. In addition to full-training for zoo staff and teachers, there is a continuing education program for zoo and aquarium staff, veterinarians, teachers and volunteers, as well as courses in zoo psychology. Since the Moscow Zoo has been chairman of all zoos in Russia since the Soviet period, it is a national training center. This was founded in 2017 by the current director Svetlana Akulova and Björn Stenvers.

Flamingo Pond

 * Greater flamingo
 * American flamingo

Giraffe House

 * Reticulated giraffe

Fauna of China

 * Giant panda

Bird World
Some birds at Moscow zoo bird world include:

 * Scarlet Macaw

 * Green-winged Macaw

 * Military Macaw

 * Blue-and-Yellow Macaw

 * Blue-throated Macaw

 * Yellow-faced Amazon

 * Umbrella Cockatoo

 * Sulphur-crested Cockatoo

 * Cockatiel

 * Budgerigar

 * Eclectus Parrot

 * Kea

Elephant Museum

 * Indian elephant
 * Rock hyrax

Animal Island
Outdoors:

 * Asiatic lion
 * Asian black bear
 * Kamchatka brown bear
 * Golden jackal
 * Tundra wolf
 * Striped hyena
 * Siberian tiger

Indoors (Exotarium):

Polar World

 * Polar bear

Tur Hill

 * East Caucasian tur

Animals of Africa
OTHER ANIMALS:
 * South African giraffe
 * Grévy's zebra
 * Common ostrich
 * Slender-tailed meerkat
 * Sable antelope
 * Kirk's dik-dik
 * Silver dik-dik

.Golden eagle

.Bald eagle

.Griffin vulture

Dolphinarium
From 2001 to 2014, the operated on the grounds of the zoo's old territory. The exhibit was dismantled following unsanitary conditions and improper husbandry procedures.
 * Beluga whale
 * Common bottlenose dolphin

Directors
Directors of the zoo have included:
 * Yakov Kalinovsky (1864–1867)
 * Sergey Alekseyevich Usov (1867–1873)
 * Alexandr Maklakov (1878–1880)
 * Vladimir Popov (zoologist) (1878–1881)
 * Alexandr Chelyukanov (1881–1883)
 * Vladimir Wagner (1883–1886)
 * Nikolai Kulagin (1889–1894)
 * Alexandr Walter (1894–1895)
 * Ippolit Antushevich (1895–1904)
 * Vladislav Pogorzhelsky (1904–1917)
 * Yury Belogolovy (1917–1919)
 * Aleksandr Kots (1919–1924)
 * Mikhail Zavadovsky (1924–1928)
 * Sergey Novikov (1928–1932)
 * Yevgeny Klimek (1932–1936)
 * Lev Ostrovsky (1936–1940)
 * Trofim Burdelev (1940–1950)
 * Sergey Butygin (1950–1951)
 * Igor Sosnovsky (1951–1977)
 * Vladimir Vladimirovich Spitsin (1977–2013)
 * Natalya Kolobova (2013–2016)
 * Svetlana Akulova (2016–)

title: Moscow Zoo


text:
List of low-cost airlines

The following is a list of low-cost carriers organised by home country. A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (also known as a no-frills, discount or budget carrier or airline) is an airline that offers generally low fares in exchange for eliminating many traditional passenger services.

Africa

 * Air Arabia Egypt
 * Air Cairo
 * FlyEgypt
 * FlyEgypt

 * Jambojet
 * Fly540
 * Fly540

 * Air Arabia Maroc
 * Air Arabia Maroc

 * Green Africa Airways
 * Green Africa Airways

 * FlySafair
 * Fastjet
 * Fastjet

 * Fastjet Zimbabwe
 * Fastjet Zimbabwe

Americas

 * Aerolíneas
 * Flybondi
 * JetSmart
 * JetSmart

 * Gol Transportes Aéreos
 * Gol Transportes Aéreos

 * Air Canada Rouge
 * Canada Jetlines
 * Flair Airlines
 * Flair Airlines

 * Sky Airline
 * JetSmart
 * JetSmart

 * Wingo
 * Clic Air
 * Clic Air

 * Volaris Costa Rica
 * Volaris Costa Rica

 * AraJet
 * RED Air
 * RED Air

 * Volaris El Salvador
 * Volaris El Salvador

 * EasySky
 * EasySky

 * Calafia Airlines
 * Mexicana de Aviación
 * VivaAerobús
 * Volaris
 * Volaris

 * Paranair
 * Paranair

 * JetSmart Perú
 * Sky Airline Peru
 * Sky Airline Peru

 * Turks and Caicos
 * InterCaribbean Airways

 * Allegiant Air
 * Avelo Airlines
 * Breeze Airways
 * Frontier Airlines
 * Southwest Airlines
 * Spirit Airlines
 * Sun Country Airlines
 * Sun Country Airlines

Asia

 * Fly Arna
 * FlyOne Armenia
 * FlyOne Armenia

 * Buta Airways
 * Buta Airways

 * AirAsia Cambodia
 * AirAsia Cambodia

 * 9 Air
 * Beijing Capital Airlines
 * Chengdu Airlines
 * Colorful Guizhou Airlines
 * China United Airlines
 * Jiangxi Air
 * Lucky Air
 * Ruili Airlines
 * Spring Airlines
 * Urumqi Air
 * West Air
 * West Air

 * Greater Bay Airlines
 * HK Express
 * HK Express

 * Air India Express
 * AIX Connect
 * Akasa Air
 * IndiGo
 * SpiceJet
 * SpiceJet

 * Citilink
 * Indonesia AirAsia
 * Lion Air
 * Super Air Jet
 * TransNusa
 * Wings Air
 * Wings Air

 * Air Japan
 * Jetstar Japan
 * Peach Aviation
 * Skymark Airlines
 * Spring Airlines Japan
 * Zipair Tokyo
 * Zipair Tokyo

 * FlyArystan
 * FlyArystan

 * Air Manas
 * Air Manas

 * Jazeera Airways
 * Jazeera Airways

 * AirAsia
 * AirAsia X
 * Firefly
 * Firefly

 * Salam Air
 * Salam Air

 * Airblue
 * Fly Jinnah
 * Serene Air
 * Air Sial
 * Air Sial

 * Cebu Pacific
 * Cebgo
 * PAL Express
 * Philippines AirAsia
 * Royal Air Philippines
 * SkyJet Airlines
 * Sky Pasada
 * Sky Pasada

 * Flynas
 * Flyadeal
 * Flyadeal

 * Jetstar Asia
 * Scoot
 * Scoot

 * Air Busan
 * Air Premia
 * Air Seoul
 * Eastar Jet
 * Jeju Air
 * Jin Air
 * T'way Air
 * Aero K
 * Aero K

 * Tigerair Taiwan
 * Tigerair Taiwan

 * AJet
 * Pegasus Airlines
 * Pegasus Airlines

 * Nok Air
 * Thai AirAsia
 * Thai AirAsia X
 * Thai Lion Air
 * Thai Summer Airways
 * Thai VietJet Air
 * Thai VietJet Air

 * Air Arabia
 * Air Arabia Abu Dhabi
 * flydubai
 * Wizz Air Abu Dhabi
 * Wizz Air Abu Dhabi

 * Centrum Air
 * HumoAir
 * HumoAir

 * Pacific Airlines
 * VietJet Air
 * VietJet Air

Europe

 * EasyJet Europe
 * Eurowings Europe
 * Eurowings Europe

 * Smartwings
 * Smartwings

 * French Bee
 * Transavia France
 * Transavia France

 * Eurowings
 * Eurowings

 * Wizz Air
 * Wizz Air

 * 🇮🇸 Iceland
 * Play

 * Ryanair
 * Ryanair

 * 🇮🇹 Italy
 * Aeroitalia

 * 🇲🇹 Malta
 * Malta Air
 * Lauda Europe
 * Wizz Air Malta

 * FlyOne
 * HiSky
 * HiSky

 * Transavia
 * Transavia

 * Norse Atlantic Airways
 * Norwegian Air Norway
 * Norwegian Air Shuttle
 * Norwegian Air Shuttle

 * Buzz
 * Buzz

 * Air Connect
 * Dan Air
 * Fly Lili
 * Fly Lili

 * Citrus
 * Pobeda
 * Smartavia
 * Smartavia

 * Air Europa Express
 * Iberia Express
 * Iberojet
 * Level
 * Volotea
 * Vueling
 * Vueling

 * Norwegian Air Sweden
 * Norwegian Air Sweden

 * EasyJet Switzerland
 * EasyJet Switzerland

 * SkyUp
 * SkyUp

 * EasyJet
 * Flypop
 * Jet2.com
 * Norse Atlantic UK
 * Ryanair UK
 * Wizz Air UK
 * Wizz Air UK

Oceania

 * Jetstar
 * Jetstar

Largest low-cost carriers
This is a list of largest low-cost carriers in the world, ranked by number of transported passengers, shown below in millions.

 * Notes
 * Includes EasyJet Switzerland.
 * Includes AirAsia India, Airasia X, Indonesia Airasia, Philippines AirAsia, Thai AirAsia and Thai AirAsia X.
 * Includes Batik Air, Wings Air, Batik Air Malaysia, Thai Lion Air, Super Air Jet, Lion BizJet (charter airline division) and Lion Parcel (cargo airline division).
 * Includes Wizz Air Abu Dhabi and Wizz Air UK.
 * Includes Jetstar Asia, Jetstar Japan and Jetstar Pacific.
 * Includes Cebgo.
 * Includes Transavia France.
 * Includes Thai Vietjet Air.
 * Includes Air Arabia Maroc, Air Arabia Egypt and Air Arabia Jordan.
 * Includes Fastjet Tanzania and Fastjet Zimbabwe.

Africa

 * 🇩🇿 Algeria
 * Antinea Airlines
 * Ecoair International

 * 🇲🇦 Morocco
 * Atlas Blue
 * Jet4you

 * 🇲🇿 Mozambique
 * Fastjet Mozambique

 * 1time
 * Mango
 * Velvet Sky
 * Kulula
 * Skywise Airlines
 * SA Express
 * SA Express

 * 🇹🇿 Tanzania
 * Fastjet Tanzania

 * 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
 * Zimbabwe flyafrica.com

America

 * 🇦🇷 Argentina
 * LASA Líneas Aéreas
 * Norwegian Air Argentina
 * Sol Líneas Aéreas

 * 🇧🇧 Barbados
 * REDjet

 * 🇧🇷 Brazil
 * BRA Transportes Aéreos
 * OceanAir
 * WebJet Linhas Aéreas

 * 🇨🇦 Canada
 * Air Canada Tango
 * Canada 3000
 * CanJet
 * Canada Jetlines
 * Greyhound Air
 * Harmony Airways
 * Jetsgo
 * Lynx Air
 * Swoop (re-integrated into WestJet)
 * Vistajet
 * Wardair
 * WestJet (transitioned to full-service carrier)
 * Zip
 * Zoom Airlines

 * 🇨🇱 Chile
 * Latin American Wings

 * 🇨🇴 Colombia
 * AIRES
 * Intercontinental de Aviación
 * Viva Air Colombia

 * 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
 * Aeropostal Alas de Centroamerica

 * 🇪🇨 Ecuador
 * Icaro Air

 * 🇲🇽 Mexico
 * Aero California
 * Aladia
 * Aviacsa
 * Avolar
 * Click Mexicana (until 2008; Click was rebranded MexicanaClick and was no longer a low-cost airline)
 * Interjet
 * Líneas Aéreas Azteca
 * SARO
 * TAESA Lineas Aéreas

 * 🇵🇪 Peru
 * Viva Air Perú

 * 🇺🇸 United States
 * Air Florida
 * AirTran Airways (acquired by Southwest Airlines)
 * America West Airlines (merged into US Airways
 * ATA Airlines
 * Braniff (1991–1992)
 * Eastern Air Lines (2015)
 * Hooters Air
 * Independence Air
 * MetroJet
 * Midway Airlines
 * National Airlines
 * Pacific Southwest Airlines
 * People Express
 * Safe Air
 * Skybus Airlines
 * SkyValue
 * Song (operations folded into Delta Air Lines)
 * Southeast Airlines
 * Streamline Air
 * Ted (operations folded into United Airlines)
 * Tower Air
 * ValuJet Airlines
 * Vanguard Airlines
 * Virgin America (merged with Alaska Airlines)
 * Western Pacific Airlines

 * 🇺🇾 Uruguay
 * U Air

Asia

 * 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan
 * AZALJet

 * 🇧🇭 Bahrain
 * Bahrain Air

 * Georgia
 * Flyvista

 * 🇭🇰 Hong Kong
 * Oasis Hong Kong Airlines

 * 🇮🇳 India
 * Go First
 * JetKonnect (merged with Jet Airways)
 * Jetlite (merged with Jet Airways)
 * Kingfisher Red
 * Paramount Airways
 * Simplifly Deccan
 * Air Asia India (merged with Air India Express)

 * 🇮🇩 Indonesia
 * Adam Air
 * Bali Air
 * Batavia Air
 * Indonesia AirAsia X

 * 🇮🇱 Israel
 * Up

 * 🇯🇵 Japan
 * AirAsia Japan
 * Air Next
 * Link Airs
 * Vanilla Air (merged with Peach Aviation)

 * 🇯🇴 Jordan
 * Air Arabia Jordan

 * 🇰🇼 Kuwait
 * Wataniya Airways

 * Macau
 * Viva Macau

 * Rayani Air
 * MYAirline
 * MYAirline

 * 🇳🇵 Nepal
 * Cosmic Air
 * Fly Yeti

 * 🇵🇰 Pakistan
 * Rayyan Air
 * Bhoja Air
 * Shaheen Air

 * 🇵🇭 Philippines
 * Spirit of Manila Airlines
 * Zest Airways (merged into Philippines AirAsia)

 * 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
 * Sama

 * 🇸🇬 Singapore
 * Tigerair (merged with Scoot)
 * Valuair (acquired in 2005 by Jetstar Asia; dissolved in 2014)

 * Air Pohang
 * Air Pohang

 * 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
 * Mihin Lanka (merged with SriLankan Airlines)

 * 🇹🇼 Taiwan
 * U-Land Airlines
 * V Air

 * 🇹🇭 Thailand
 * NokScoot
 * One-Two-GO Airlines
 * Solar Air

 * 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
 * Kang Pacific Airlines

Europe

 * 🇦🇱 Albania
 * Albatros Airways
 * Belle Air

 * Laudamotion
 * Level Europe
 * Niki
 * Niki

 * 🇧🇪 Belgium
 * Virgin Express (merged with SN Brussels Airlines to form Brussels Airlines)

 * 🇧🇬 Bulgaria
 * Wizz Air Bulgaria

 * 🇨🇾 Cyprus
 * Eurocypria
 * Helios Airways

 * 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
 * Blue Air Moravia

 * 🇩🇰 Denmark
 * Sterling Airlines
 * Transavia Denmark

 * 🇫🇴 Faroe Islands
 * FaroeJet

 * 🇫🇮 Finland
 * Flying Finn

 * 🇫🇷 France
 * Air Turquoise
 * Flywest

 * 🇩🇪 Germany
 * Air Berlin (became a full-service airline in 2010 and collapsed in 2017)
 * DBA
 * Germanwings (merged with Eurowings)
 * HLX (merged with Hapagfly to Tuifly, city routes then sold to Air Berlin)
 * OLT Express Germany

 * 🇬🇷 Greece
 * Ellinair
 * Hellas Jet
 * Macedonian Airlines

 * 🇮🇸 Iceland
 * Iceland Express
 * Loftleiðir
 * WOW Air

 * 🇮🇪 Ireland
 * Norwegian Air International

 * 🇮🇹 Italy
 * Air One
 * Air Service Plus
 * Alpieagles
 * Blu-express
 * Club Air
 * MyAir
 * Volare Airlines

 * 🇳🇱 Netherlands
 * V Bird

 * 🇳🇴 Norway
 * Color Air
 * Feel Air
 * Flyr
 * Norwegian Long Haul

 * 🇵🇱 Poland
 * Air Polonia
 * Centralwings
 * Direct Fly
 * GetJet
 * OLT Express Poland

 * 🇷🇴 Romania
 * Blue Air (suspended)
 * Carpatair (now operates as a regional airline)
 * Fly Romania

 * 🇷🇺 Russia
 * Avianova
 * Dobrolet
 * Sky Express

 * 🇷🇸 Serbia
 * Centavia

 * 🇸🇰 Slovakia
 * SkyEurope

 * 🇪🇸 Spain
 * Spanair

 * 🇸🇪 Sweden
 * Flyme
 * FlyNordic
 * Snowflake

 * 🇺🇦 Ukraine
 * Bees Airline
 * Wizz Air Ukraine

 * 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
 * AB Airlines
 * Air Scotland
 * bmibaby
 * Court Line
 * Debonair
 * Duo Airways
 * Flybe
 * flyglobespan
 * Go
 * Laker Airways
 * Monarch Airlines
 * Norwegian Air UK

Oceania

 * 🇦🇺 Australia
 * Air Australia
 * Bonza
 * Compass Airlines
 * East-West Airlines
 * Impulse Airlines (acquired by Qantas and rebranded as Jetstar and QantasLink)
 * Tigerair Australia
 * Virgin Blue (transitioned into a full-service airline in 2011 and renamed Virgin Australia)

 * 🇳🇿 New Zealand
 * Freedom Air
 * Kiwi Airlines
 * Pacific Blue Airlines (now codeshares with Air New Zealand and is a full service brand — Virgin Australia)

title: List of low-cost airlines


text:
Ground ball/fly ball ratio

In baseball statistics, ground ball-fly ball ratio (denoted by G/F or GB/FB) is a measure of: The related statistic of ground outs-fly outs ratio (denoted by GO/AO), is a measure of:
 * Frequency of batted ground balls in play versus fly balls in play to denote what kind of contact a batter makes more frequently. Calculated as (total ground balls in play) / (total fly balls in play); and
 * Frequency of ground balls allowed in play versus fly balls allowed in play to denote what kind of contact a pitcher surrenders more frequently to opposing batters. Calculated as (total ground balls in play surrendered) / (total fly balls in play surrendered).
 * Frequency of batted ground ball outs versus fly ball outs hit by the batter, calculated as (number of ground ball outs) / (number of fly ball outs).
 * Frequency of batted ground ball outs versus fly ball outs thrown by the pitcher, calculated as (number of ground ball outs) / (number of fly ball outs).

A statistic in baseball that compares the number of ground outs (ground ball hits that lead to an out for the batter) to air outs (fly balls that lead to an out for the batter), which determines the mix of fielded out types for both batters and pitchers. For each ground out (GO) and air out (AO), both the batter put out and the pitcher on the play receive either a GO or AO on their stat line, which is used in the calculation of the ratio.

The St. Louis Cardinals have led Major League Baseball in team ground ball/fly ball ratio since 2006. Sinker, cutter, and curveball pitchers tend to produce more ground balls, while pitchers who rely on fastballs, sliders, and split-fingered fastballs tend to produce more fly balls. Roughly 10% of fly balls are home runs. Fly ball pitchers in large parks however, tend to allow less than 7%.

title: Ground ball/fly ball ratio


text:
Hits per nine innings

In baseball statistics, hits per nine innings (denoted by H/9) is the average number of hits allowed by a pitcher in a nine inning period; calculated as: (hits allowed x 9) / innings pitched. This is a measure of a pitcher's success based on the number of all outs he records.

Compared to a pitcher's batting average against, a pitcher's H/9 benefits from sacrifice bunts, double plays, runners caught stealing, and outfield assist, but it is hurt by some errors. Unlike batting average against, a pitcher's H/9 benefits from outs that are not related to official at bats, as they are recorded on runners after they have reached base.

, Nolan Ryan is the career leader (6.5553), Sandy Koufax is #2 (6.7916), Clayton Kershaw is #3 (6.8160).

title: Hits per nine innings


text:
North Hudson

North Hudson is the name of the following places in the United States of America:
 * North Hudson, New Jersey
 * North Hudson, New York
 * North Hudson, Wisconsin

title: North Hudson