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Artemis Fowl (novel)

Artemis Fowl is a young adult fantasy novel written by Irish author Eoin Colfer. It is the first book in the Artemis Fowl series, the first cycle of The Fowl Adventures, followed by Artemis Fowl and the Arctic Incident. Pitched by its author as "Die Hard with fairies", the novel follows fairy LEP reconnaissance officer Holly Short (based on John McClane and Holly Gennero McClane) after she is kidnapped by twelve-year-old criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl II (based on Hans Gruber) for a large ransom of gold.

Throughout the book, the third-person narration switches from following the human characters to following the fairy characters to present underlying themes of greed and conflict. The book received a mostly favourable critical response and several awards. A film adaptation titled Artemis Fowl was released in the United Kingdom on 12 June 2020 and the United States on 10 September 2021 by Walt Disney Pictures.

Synopsis
Captain Holly Short, an elf in the Lower Elements Police (LEP), is tracking a rogue troll that has managed to reach the surface of the Earth from Haven City, thousands of feet underground. Assisted by the technically minded centaur Foaly and LEPrecon commander Julius Root, she incapacitates the troll before leaving for Tara to replenish her magic.

Meanwhile, Artemis Fowl II is a 12-year-old prodigy who has dedicated his life to criminal activities. He leads the Fowl criminal empire, which has existed in his family for generations. After significant research, Artemis believes that he has confirmed the existence of fairies. He identifies an alcoholic sprite living in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and travels there with his bodyguard Butler to obtain from her The Book of the People—the fairy holy book that is written in Gnommish. After decoding the book using translating software, Artemis learns the specifics of the ritual fairies use to replenish their magic: take an acorn from an ancient oak tree near a bend in a river under the full moon and plant it elsewhere. Artemis and Butler track down 129 possible nearby locations for the ritual and start a stakeout. They discover Holly performing the ritual, and Butler tranquillises her with a hypodermic dart gun.

After being led onto Fowl's ship by Holly's tracker, Artemis tells Commander Root his name so they can find him, and then blows the ship up. An LEP retrieval team is sent to scout Fowl Manor using their 'shielding' ability, which allows them to vibrate faster than the human eye can follow. The team enters the manor grounds, where Artemis has installed a camera with a high frames-per-second rate, allowing him to detect the threat. After Butler incapacitates the intruders, Root decides to lay siege to Fowl Manor using a time-stop and enter negotiations. Artemis states his ransom demand: one ton of 24-carat gold. Artemis also reveals his knowledge of the time-stop and claims that he can escape it. An analysis by LEP behaviour experts determines that Artemis believes he is telling the truth.

The attempts to gain entry to the manor continue as the LEP recruits an infamous criminal, the kleptomaniac dwarf Mulch Diggums, to break in. Fairies normally cannot enter human dwellings without permission, but Mulch has forfeited the magic preventing him from entering dwellings, causing him to be safe when burglarising. He tunnels underground to reach the house while Foaly feeds a loop to the manor surveillance system, allowing Mulch to freely explore. Mulch accidentally locates a safe containing Artemis' copy of the book, revealing to the fairies the source of Artemis' knowledge, which he had led them to believe he had acquired from a truth serum administered to Holly. The Fairy Council, deciding that nothing is working, promotes a lieutenant called Briar Cudgeon to acting commander, temporarily usurping Julius Root. Meanwhile, Holly cracks through the concrete of her cell, finding fresh dirt, and completes the ritual with a smuggled acorn. Having regained her magic, she escapes into the main house.

Cudgeon decides to release the troll Holly captured earlier, into the mansion, to force Artemis to allow the fairies to enter and subdue the troll. This backfires, as Butler, aided by Holly's healing powers, defeats the troll. The Fairy Council subsequently strips Cudgeon of his post.

Artemis is finally granted the ransom. The gold is sent in and Artemis asks Holly for a wish: to cure his mother's insanity—she has been living in her bedroom, driven mad by the loss of her husband. Holly grants the wish at the cost of half the gold. The LEP decides to send in a "blue rinse"—a biological bomb that kills all organic life—to eliminate Artemis and allow for the retrieval of the gold, but this fails when Artemis discovers how to escape the time field and escapes the time-stop by drugging himself and his comrades with sleeping pills.

As Artemis has survived until the end of the time-stop, the LEP is bound by law to leave the remaining gold and depart. In the end, Butler demands an explanation as to how Artemis came up with the idea of using sleeping pills. Artemis explains that he had gotten the idea from old fairy tales, in which human characters never wake up at an inopportune moment for the fairies and had guessed that time-stops were the reason. Concluding that the time-stop forces a being to stay in whichever state of consciousness they were in when the time-stop is started, Artemis uses sleeping pills to break out of the time-stop. Artemis finds his mother has fully recovered from her insanity thanks to Holly's magic.

Themes
Artemis Fowl has a number of underlying themes, but the most essential of these are greed and the conflict between good and evil.

Greed is the first main theme that is introduced into the book, and specifically the desire to obtain gold. In a similar manner to other themes in the book, it changes throughout, becoming less of a focus near to the end of the novel, where Artemis is (grudgingly) willing to part with a large sum of money to help someone else.

The idea of conflict between good and evil is one that is touched upon in the book in a light-hearted manner. Although Artemis sees himself as an evil genius at the beginning of the book, and is portrayed as such, the end of the story contradicts this image when he pays the fairy Holly to help his mother. Artemis's enemies, the fairies, would be "the good side", but their actions call this view into question—they are as determined as Artemis is to achieve their goals. While only some of them are willing to ruthlessly deploy a troll, regardless of the possible danger to life, all are willing to utilise a bio-bomb once Holly is out of the mansion, to eliminate Artemis.

Critical reception
In general, the book received a very positive critical response—in 2004 it received the Young Reader's Choice Award and Garden State Teen Book Award, among other awards.

The New York Post said "Artemis Fowl is great ... a new thriller fairy tale that will grab your interest, no matter your age." and the Library Journal said "Fun to read, full of action and humour, this is recommended for all public libraries and to readers of all ages." Time said, "Artemis Fowl is pacy, playful, and very funny, an inventive mix of myth and modernity, magic and crime", while The New York Times Book Review said that "Colfer has done enormously, explosively well."

Kate Kellaway of the Observer called the book "a smart, amusing one-off. It flashes with hi-tech invention—as if Colfer were as much an inspired boffin as a writer." The Amazon.com official review highly complimented the book, saying "Fantastic stuff from beginning to end, Artemis Fowl is a rip-roaring, 21st century romp of the highest order."

However, another Time magazine review criticised the "abysmal" writing and the characterisation, calling Artemis' character "repellent in almost every regard." It concluded that Artemis Fowl is "an awkward, calculated, humorless and mean-spirited book." USA Today review concluded: "All the familiar action-flick clichés are trotted out: the backstabbing, politically astute subordinate; the seemingly loony but loyal computer expert; the dabs of family loyalty; the requisite happy ending; the utterly unsubtle plugs for the sequel; the big action scenes. ... Resist the hype, parents, booksellers and librarians. This is not the new Harry Potter, nor is it a good children's book."

Film
In 2001, plans were announced for a film adaptation of the series. Miramax Films was named as purchasing the film rights, with Lawrence Guterman signed to direct. In 2003 Colfer stated that a screenplay had been finalised and that casting was due to start the same year, but expressed scepticism over whether or not this would come to pass. The film remained in development and was assumed to be in development hell until 2011, when it was reported that Jim Sheridan was interested in directing the film. In July 2013, it was announced that Disney was developing a project based on the first and second instalment of the Artemis Fowl series. Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal would be the executive producers and Kenneth Branagh would direct. The film was originally scheduled for a theatrical release on 9 August 2019 by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, but on 7 May 2019 the film was delayed to 29 May 2020. On 3 April the film's theatrical release was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and instead it debuted on Disney+ on 12 June 2020. The film was later removed from the streaming service on 26 May 2023 as part of a Disney+ and Hulu purge.

Graphic novel
Artemis Fowl: The Graphic Novel is a graphic novel based on the book. Written by Colfer and adapted by Andrew Donkin with the art by Giovanni Rigano, the graphic novel was released on 2 October 2007. The plot remains the same as the book's except some minor details. Some characters' appearances differed from their description in the book; Holly Short's hair is longer than described in the book and a darker brown, as opposed to the reddish brown described in the book, and her skin appears noticeably lighter than the nut-brown coffee-like complexion she had previously been described as possessing. Haven City's roof is stalactites and rock as opposed to the computer-generated sky described by the book. The graphic novel does not contain many word balloons, showing each character's story in first person. Graphic novels for subsequent books in the series were released in 2009, 2013 and 2014.

Later, in 2019, in promotion of the upcoming 2020 film, Disney released a new version of the graphic novel, this time adapted by Michael Moreci and drawn by Stephen Giplin. It skims over the therapist reports and cuts out the second scene of Artemis and his mother for pacing.

title: Artemis Fowl (novel)


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Laboratory robotics

Laboratory robotics is the act of using robots in biology, chemistry or engineering labs. For example, pharmaceutical companies employ robots to move biological or chemical samples around to synthesize novel chemical entities or to test pharmaceutical value of existing chemical matter. Advanced laboratory robotics can be used to completely automate the process of science, as in the Robot Scientist project.

Laboratory processes are suited for robotic automation as the processes are composed of repetitive movements (e.g., pick/place, liquid/solid additions, heating/cooling, mixing, shaking, and testing). Many laboratory robots are commonly referred as autosamplers, as their main task is to provide continuous samples for analytical devices.

History
The first compact computer controlled robotic arms appeared in the early 1980s, and have continuously been employed in laboratories since then. These robots can be programmed to perform many different tasks, including sample preparation and handling.

Yet in the early 1980s, a group led by Masahide Sasaki, from Kochi Medical School, introduced the first fully automated laboratory employing several robotic arms working together with conveyor belts and automated analyzers. The success of Sasaki's pioneer efforts made other groups around the world to adopt the approach of Total Laboratory Automation (TLA).

Despite the undeniable success of TLA, its multimillion-dollar cost prevented that most laboratories adopted it. Also, the lack of communication between different devices slowed down the development of automation solutions for different applications, while contributing to keeping costs high. Therefore, the industry attempted several times to develop standards that different vendors would follow in order to enable communication between their devices. However, the success of this approach has been only partial, as nowadays many laboratories still do not employ robots for many tasks due to their high costs.

Recently, a different solution for the problem became available, enabling the use of inexpensive devices, including open-source hardware, to perform many different tasks in the laboratory. This solution is the use of scripting languages that can control mouse clicks and keyboard inputs, like AutoIt. This way, it is possible to integrate any device by any manufacturer as long as they are controlled by a computer, which is often the case.

Another important development in robotics which has important potential implications for laboratories is the arrival of robots that do not demand special training for their programming, like Baxter, the robot.

Low-cost laboratory robotics
The high cost of many laboratory robots has inhibited their adoption. However, currently there are many robotic devices that have very low cost, and these could be employed to do some jobs in a laboratory. For example, a low-cost robotic arm was employed to perform several different kinds of water analysis, without loss of performance compared to much more expensive autosamplers. Alternatively, the autosampler of a device can be used with another device, thus avoiding the need for purchasing a different autosampler or hiring a technician for doing the job. The key aspects to achieve low-cost in laboratory robotics are 1) the use of low-cost robots, which become more and more common, and 2) the use of scripting, which enables compatibility between robots and other analytical equipment.

Robotic, mobile laboratory operators and remote-controlled laboratories
In July 2020 scientists reported the development of a mobile robot chemist and demonstrate that it can assist in experimental searches. According to the scientists their strategy was automating the researcher rather than the instruments – freeing up time for the human researchers to think creatively – and could identify photocatalyst mixtures for hydrogen production from water that were six times more active than initial formulations. The modular robot can operate laboratory instruments, work nearly around the clock, and autonomously make decisions on his next actions depending on experimental results.

There is ongoing development of "remote controlled laboratories" that automatically perform many life sciences experiments per day and can be operated, including in collaboration, from afar.

Pharmaceutical applications
One major area where automated synthesis has been applied is structure determination in pharmaceutical research. Processes such as NMR and HPLC-MS can now have sample preparation done by robotic arm. Additionally, structural protein analysis can be done automatically using a combination of NMR and X-ray crystallography. Crystallization often takes hundreds to thousands of experiments to create a protein crystal suitable for X-ray crystallography. An automated micropipet machine can allow nearly a million different crystals to be created at once, and analyzed via X-ray crystallography.

Diagnostic testing for pathogens
For example, there are robots that are used to analyze swabs from patients to diagnose COVID-19. Automated robotic liquid handling systems have been or are being built for lateral flow assays. It minimizes hands-on time, maximizes experiment size, and enables improved reproducibility.

Biological laboratory robotics
Biological and chemical samples, in either liquid or solid state, are stored in vials, plates or tubes. Often, they need to be frozen and/or sealed to avoid contamination or to retain their biological and/or chemical properties. Specifically, the life science industry has standardized on a plate format, known as the microtiter plate, to store such samples.

The microtiter plate standard was formalized by the Society for Biomolecular Screening in 1996. It typically has 96, 384 or even 1536 sample wells arranged in a 2:3 rectangular matrix. The standard governs well dimensions (e.g. diameter, spacing and depth) as well as plate properties (e.g. dimensions and rigidity).

A number of companies have developed robots to specifically handle SBS microplates. Such robots may be liquid handlers which aspirates or dispenses liquid samples from and to these plates, or "plate movers" which transport them between instruments.

Other companies have pushed integration even further: on top of interfacing to the specific consumables used in biology, some robots (Andrew by Andrew Alliance, see picture) have been designed with the capability of interfacing to volumetric pipettes used by biologists and technical staff. Essentially, all the manual activity of liquid handling can be performed automatically, allowing humans spending their time in more conceptual activities.

Instrument companies have designed plate readers which can carry out detect specific biological, chemical or physical events in samples stored in these plates. These readers typically use optical and/or computer vision techniques to evaluate the contents of the microtiter plate wells.

One of the first applications of robotics in biology was peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis. One early example is the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which is able to amplify DNA strands using a thermal cycler to micromanage DNA synthesis by adjusting temperature using a pre-made computer program. Since then, automated synthesis has been applied to organic chemistry and expanded into three categories: reaction-block systems, robot-arm systems, and non-robotic fluidic systems. The primary objective of any automated workbench is high-throughput processes and cost reduction. This allows a synthetic laboratory to operate with a fewer number of people working more efficiently.

Combinatorial library synthesis
Robotics have applications with combinatorial chemistry which has great impact on the pharmaceutical industry. The use of robotics has allowed for the use of much smaller reagent quantities and mass expansion of chemical libraries. The "parallel synthesis" method can be improved upon with automation. The main disadvantage to "parallel-synthesis" is the amount of time it takes to develop a library, automation is typically applied to make this process more efficient.

The main types of automation are classified by the type of solid-phase substrates, the methods for adding and removing reagents, and design of reaction chambers. Polymer resins may be used as a substrate for solid-phase. It is not a true combinatorial method in the sense that "split-mix" where a peptide compound is split into different groups and reacted with different compounds. This is then mixed back together split into more groups and each groups is reacted with a different compound. Instead the "parallel-synthesis" method does not mix, but reacts different groups of the same peptide with different compounds and allows for the identification of the individual compound on each solid support. A popular method implemented is the reaction block system due to its relative low cost and higher output of new compounds compared to other "parallel-synthesis" methods. Parallel-Synthesis was developed by Mario Geysen and his colleagues and is not a true type of combinatorial synthesis, but can be incorporated into a combinatorial synthesis. This group synthesized 96 peptides on plastic pins coated with a solid support for the solid phase peptide synthesis. This method uses a rectangular block moved by a robot so that reagents can be pipetted by a robotic pipetting system. This block is separated into wells which the individual reactions take place. These compounds are later cleaved from the solid-phase of the well for further analysis. Another method is the closed reactor system which uses a completely closed off reaction vessel with a series of fixed connections to dispense. Though the produce fewer number of compounds than other methods, its main advantage is the control over the reagents and reaction conditions. Early closed reaction systems were developed for peptide synthesis which required variations in temperature and a diverse range of reagents. Some closed reactor system robots have a temperature range of 200°C and over 150 reagents.

Purification
Simulated distillation, a type of gas chromatography testing method used in the petroleum, can be automated via robotics. An older method used a system called ORCA (Optimized Robot for Chemical Analysis) was used for the analysis of petroleum samples by simulated distillation (SIMDIS). ORCA has allowed for shorter analysis times and has reduced maximum temperature needed to elute compounds. One major advantage of automating purification is the scale at which separations can be done. Using microprocessors, ion-exchange separation can be conducted on a nanoliter scale in a short period of time.

Robotics have been implemented in liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) to streamline the process of preparing biological samples using 96-well plates. This is an alternative method to solid-phase extraction methods and protein precipitation, which has the advantage of being more reproducible and robotic assistance has made LLE comparable in speed to solid phase extraction. The robotics used for LLE can perform an entire extraction with quantities in the microliter scale and performing the extraction in as little as ten minutes.

Advantages
One of the advantages to automation is faster processing, but it is not necessarily faster than a human operator. Repeatability and reproducibility are improved as automated systems as less likely to have variances in reagent quantities and less likely to have variances in reaction conditions. Typically productivity is increased since human constraints, such as time constraints, are no longer a factor. Efficiency is generally improved as robots can work continuously and reduce the amount of reagents used to perform a reaction. Also there is a reduction in material waste. Automation can also establish safer working environments since hazardous compounds do not have to be handled. Additionally automation allows staff to focus on other tasks that are not repetitive.

Disadvantages
Typically the cost of a single synthesis or sample assessment are expensive to set up and start up cost for automation can be expensive (but see above "Low-cost laboratory robotics"). Many techniques have not been developed for automation yet. Additionally there is difficulty automating instances where visual analysis, recognition, or comparison is required such as color changes. This also leads to the analysis being limited by available sensory inputs. One potential disadvantage is an increases job shortages as automation may replace staff members who do tasks easily replicated by a robot. Some systems require the use of programming languages such as C++ or Visual Basic to run more complicated tasks.

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

title: Laboratory robotics


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Frits Clausen

Frits Clausen (12 November 1893 – 5 December 1947) was a far-right Danish politician and leader of the National Socialist Workers' Party of Denmark (DNSAP) before and during World War II.

Life
Born in Aabenraa, since 1864 a part of Prussia, Clausen served in the German Army during World War I. After the war, Clausen studied medicine in Heidelberg and became a doctor in 1924, after which he returned to Aabenraa, which had been voted back to Denmark in 1920, and set up a practice. Clausen initially became involved in politics as an advocate of Aabenraa once again becoming a part of Germany,. Still, he eventually turned to Danish politics, advocating causes favouring the German minority in southern Jutland.

Clausen initially became a conservative party member, but he eventually resigned and, in 1931, joined the DNSAP. Two years later, Clausen ousted the leadership committee of the party (whose members were Einar Jørgensen, C. C. Hansen, and Cay Lembcke) from power and became the party's sole leader.

Under Clausen's direction, the party essentially espoused nationalism and called for a stronger relationship between Denmark and Nazi Germany. At the height of its popularity, the DNSAP had about 20,000 members and 20,000 sympathizers. However, the party fared relatively poorly in the 1939 elections, winning only three seats in the Folketing. A year later, when Germany invaded Denmark, Clausen strongly supported the German occupation and took credit for the lenient way Germany governed the country.

The Germans attempted to reward Clausen for his services by persuading King Christian X to let Clausen and his followers have roles in the nation's government in 1940 and 1943, but the King opposed any such suggestions. The German government was unwilling to forcibly put him in charge of Denmark for fear of angering its people, although there were talks of doing so in 1940 and 1942. The Germans did hope, however, that Clausen would legally seize power over the nation in the 1943 elections. Still, the DNSAP performed just as poorly in the elections as it did in 1939, when they won only three seats in the Folketing.

After the elections, Clausen joined the German Army and saw active service on the Eastern Front as a surgeon, although he did not resign his position as chief of the DNSAP. Clausen returned to Denmark in the spring of 1944, after which time his political career was terminated.

Clausen's failure in the elections and his unwillingness to actively assist in forming a Danish branch of the Schutzstaffel alienated his German supporters. As such, SS Obergruppenführer Dr. Werner Best, the Plenipotentiary of the German Reich for Denmark, convinced Clausen to step down as leader of the party and replaced him with a three-man committee shortly after his return to Denmark.

After Germany's occupation of Denmark ended in May 1945, Clausen was captured and sent to Frøslev Prison Camp. He was later given a formal trial, but he died of a heart attack in the Vestre Fængsel, a prison in Copenhagen before it could be completed.

title: Frits Clausen


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Plate reader

Plate readers, also known as microplate readers or microplate photometers, are instruments which are used to detect biological, chemical or physical events of samples in microtiter plates. They are widely used in research, drug discovery, bioassay validation, quality control and manufacturing processes in the pharmaceutical and biotechnological industry and academic organizations. Sample reactions can be assayed in 1-1536 well format microtiter plates. The most common microplate format used in academic research laboratories or clinical diagnostic laboratories is 96-well (8 by 12 matrix) with a typical reaction volume between 100 and 200 μL per well. Higher density microplates (384- or 1536-well microplates) are typically used for screening applications, when throughput (number of samples per day processed) and assay cost per sample become critical parameters, with a typical assay volume between 5 and 50 μL per well. Common detection modes for microplate assays are absorbance, fluorescence intensity, luminescence, time-resolved fluorescence, and fluorescence polarization.

Absorbance
Absorbance detection has been available in microplate readers for more than 3 decades and is used for assays such as ELISA assays, protein and nucleic acid quantification or enzyme activity assays (i.e. in the MTT assay for cell viability). A light source illuminates the sample using a specific wavelength (selected by an optical filter, or a monochromator), and a light detector located on the other side of the well measures how much of the initial (100%) light is transmitted through the sample: the amount of transmitted light will typically be related to the concentration of the molecule of interest. Several conventional colorimetric analyses have been miniaturized to function quantitatively in a plate reader, with performance suitable for research purposes. Examples of analyses converted to plate reader methods include several for ammonium, nitrate, nitrite, urea, iron(II), and orthophosphate. More recent colorimetric chemistries have been developed directly for use in plate readers.

Fluorescence
Fluorescence intensity detection has developed very broadly in the microplate format over the last two decades. The range of applications is much broader than when using absorbance detection, but the instrumentation is usually more expensive. In this type of instrumentation, a first optical system (excitation system) illuminates the sample using a specific wavelength (selected by an optical filter, or a monochromator). As a result of the illumination, the sample emits light (it fluoresces) and a second optical system (emission system) collects the emitted light, separates it from the excitation light (using a filter or monochromator system), and measures the signal using a light detector such as a photomultiplier tube (PMT). The advantages of fluorescence detection over absorbance detection are sensitivity, as well as application range, given the wide selection of fluorescent labels available today. For example, a technique known as calcium imaging measures the fluorescence intensity of calcium-sensitive dyes to assess intracellular calcium levels.

Luminescence
Luminescence is the result of a chemical or biochemical reaction. Luminescence detection is simpler optically than fluorescence detection because luminescence does not require a light source for excitation or optics for selecting discrete excitation wavelengths. A typical luminescence optical system consists of a light-tight reading chamber and a PMT detector. Some plate readers use an Analog PMT detector while others have a photon counting PMT detector. Photon Counting is widely accepted as the most sensitive means of detecting luminescence. Some plate readers offer filter wheel or tunable wavelength monochromator optical systems for selecting specific luminescent wavelengths. The ability to select multiple wavelengths, or even wavelength ranges, allows for detection of assays that contain multiple luminescent reporter enzymes, the development of new luminescence assays, as well as a means to optimize the signal to noise ratio.

Common applications include luciferase -based gene expression assays, as well as cell viability, cytotoxicity, and biorhythm assays based on the luminescent detection of ATP.

Time-resolved fluorescence (TRF)
Time-resolved fluorescence (TRF) measurement is very similar to fluorescence intensity (FI) measurement. The only difference is the timing of the excitation/measurement process. When measuring FI, the excitation and emission processes are simultaneous: the light emitted by the sample is measured while excitation is taking place. Even though emission systems are very efficient at removing excitation light before it reaches the detector, the amount of excitation light compared to emission light is such that FI measurements always exhibit fairly elevated background signals. TRF offers a solution to this issue. It relies on the use of very specific fluorescent molecules, called lanthanides, that have the unusual property of emitting over long periods of time (measured in milliseconds) after excitation, when most standard fluorescent dyes (e.g. fluorescein) emit within a few nanoseconds of being excited. As a result, it is possible to excite lanthanides using a pulsed light source (Xenon flash lamp or pulsed laser for example) and measure after the excitation pulse. This results in lower measurement backgrounds than in standard FI assays. The drawbacks are that the instrumentation and reagents are typically more expensive, and that the applications have to be compatible with the use of these very specific lanthanide dyes. The main use of TRF is found in drug screening applications, under a form called TR-FRET (time-resolved fluorescence energy transfer). TR-FRET assays are very robust (limited sensitivity to several types of assay interference) and are easily miniaturized. Robustness, the ability to automate and miniaturize are features that are highly attractive in a screening laboratory.

Fluorescence polarization
Fluorescence polarization measurement is also very close to FI detection. The difference is that the optical system includes polarizing filters on the light path: the samples in the microplate are excited using polarized light (instead of non-polarized light in FI and TRF modes). Depending on the mobility of the fluorescent molecules found in the wells, the light emitted will either be polarized or not. For example, large molecules (e.g. proteins) in solution, which rotate relatively slowly because of their size, will emit polarized light when excited with polarized light. On the other hand, the fast rotation of smaller molecules will result in a depolarization of the signal. The emission system of the plate reader uses polarizing filters to analyze the polarity of the emitted light. A low level of polarization indicates that small fluorescent molecules move freely in the sample. A high level of polarization indicates that fluorescent is attached to a larger molecular complex. As a result, one of the basic applications of FP detection is molecular binding assays, since they allow to detect if a small fluorescent molecule binds (or not) to a larger, non-fluorescent molecule: binding results in a slower rotation speed of the fluorescent molecule, and in an increase in the polarization of the signal.

Light scattering and nephelometry
Light scattering and nephelometry are methods for the determination of the cloudiness of a solution (i.e.: insoluble particles in a solution). A light beam passes through the sample and the light is scattered by the suspended particles. The measured forward scattered light indicates the amount of the insoluble particles present in solution. Common nephelometry/light scattering applications include automated HTS drug solubility screening, long-term microbial growth kinetics, flocculation, aggregation and the monitoring of polymerization and precipitation, including immunoprecipitation.

Instruments and assays
Many of the detection modes (absorbance, fluorescence intensity, luminescence, time-resolved fluorescence, and fluorescence polarization) are available stand-alone in dedicated plate readers, but are very often found today combined into one instrument (multi-mode plate reader). There are also instruments for measuring the dynamic or static light scattered from samples in a microplate. The range of applications for multi-mode plate readers is extremely large. Some of the most common assays are:
 * ELISAs
 * Protein and cell growth assays
 * Protein:protein interactions
 * Reporter assays
 * Nucleic acid quantitation
 * Molecular interactions
 * Enzyme activity
 * Cell toxicity, proliferation, and viability
 * ATP quantification
 * Immunoassays
 * High throughput screening of compounds and targets in drug discovery (Labeled Alpha Screen on most instruments)
 * Bead-Based Epitope Assay
 * Cellular Uptake of nanoparticles

While "plate reader" usually refers to the devices described above, many variations are available. Some examples of other devices working with the microplate format are:
 * ELISPOT plate readers, used to count the colored spots that are formed in the course of ELISPOT assays.
 * High throughput imagers that can measure all the wells of a microplate at once
 * High-content screening (HCS) systems that image each well with high resolution, to look at cell populations
 * Label-free instruments that use specialized microplates to measure binding events without the use of chemical markers

title: Plate reader


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Artemis Fowl and the Arctic Incident

Artemis Fowl and the Arctic Incident, known in America as Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident, is a young adult and fantasy novel written by Irish author Eoin Colfer, published in 2002. It is the second book in the Artemis Fowl series, preceded by Artemis Fowl and followed by Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code. It follows the adventures of the twelve-year-old criminal mastermind, Artemis Fowl II, as he thwarts a goblin rebellion and rescues his father, Artemis Fowl I. The third-person narration switches back and forth constantly, allowing the reader to understand more of what is going on. A New York Times bestseller, the novel was well received by critics, and reviews compared its quality and success to those of its predecessor.

Plot
The story opens at the Bay of Kola, just after the Russian Mafia have sunk the Fowl Star. Two low-ranking Mafia members discover the body of the former Irish crime lord Artemis Fowl I, who has survived despite losing a leg and the use of one eye. Three years later, his son and heir Artemis Fowl II, while at school talking to the guidance counselor, Dr. Po, receives a call from his manservant and bodyguard Butler. Butler shows Artemis a video of his father, showing that he is in the hands of the Mafia. Knowing that a ransom demand will soon be coming, and that payment will in no way guarantee his father's release or his own safety, Artemis prepares to devise a plan while Butler drives them back to Fowl Manor.

While Artemis Fowl's plight plays out above ground, the Lower Elements Police of the fairy realm are having their own problems. A routine stakeout group consisting of the disgraced Captain Holly Short and Private Chix Verbil is attacked by a group of heavily armed goblins carrying old outlawed Softnose weaponry powered by human batteries, a Class A contraband. Captain Short is quick to accuse young Artemis Fowl and against his own wishes, LEP Commander Julius Root sends Holly to apprehend Artemis Fowl and Butler for interrogation. However, Foaly's Retimager proves Artemis's innocence. Against Holly's instincts, Root decides to recruit Fowl and Butler to locate the supplier; Artemis agrees, on the condition that they help him rescue his father.

Unknown to all, the attacks are being organised by Briar Cudgeon, a former LEP Lieutenant disgraced, deformed and demoted following his disastrous involvement in the Artemis Fowl affair. Briar is working alongside Foaly's biggest technology rival, the megalomanic pixie Opal Koboi, who is above suspicion thanks to the fact the goblins have been staging attacks on Koboi property. Neither are concerned by Root's attempts to find out the truth, and choose to bide their time so they can kill him, and begin their plan to take over Haven once he is out of the way.

Foaly's investigation points to French personal investigator Luc Carrére. Holly leads a squad consisting of Root, Artemis and Butler, and herself above ground to France to interrogate Luc. Butler breaks into his apartment in Paris, but finds only a heavily mesmerized Luc, counterfeit Euros, and a fairy handgun. Butler neutralises Luc, ensures the Parisian knows nothing of the goblin use of batteries, and leaves the private eye to be arrested. Although Artemis is concerned by the ease of the operation, he puts aside his concerns to travel to Murmansk with Butler, Root and Holly to attempt a rescue for Artemis Fowl I. Cudgeon sees this as the perfect opportunity to kill Root, and sends a goblin hit squad to ambush the party. The goblins nearly succeed in killing the four as all fairy weapons currently in use by the force have just been disabled by Koboi. The resulting attack leaves Butler unconscious and trapped under rubble from an overhang with Commander Root. Holly and Artemis use a nuclear train to free Root and Butler, but the group is then forced to perform an emergency healing when the train door cuts off Holly's trigger finger. Holly questions Artemis about his father and how he came to be so ruthless in the events of the previous book, and, in a rare moment of sincerity, Artemis admits he made a mistake, a sign of his moral development that continues through the series.

Below ground, Briar Cudgeon ambushes and locks Foaly in his Operations Booth, while Opal disables LEP weapons, framing him as the mastermind behind the rebellion against the LEP and leaving the rescue group powerless to stop the goblins as they begin their attack on Haven city. The situation becomes increasingly desperate for the LEP in Haven, as Foaly uses Artemis's laptop to send a text message to the boy's phone, alerting the rescue group that all fairy weapons and communications are controlled by Opal Koboi.

Having received the secret message, Artemis decides the only option is to break into Koboi Laboratories and return all weapon control to the LEP, interrupting the rescue mission. Root bitterly acknowledges the only fairy who ever succeeded in doing so was the kleptomaniac dwarf Mulch Diggums, who had worked as a builder of the facility, but was presumed dead following his break-in to Fowl Manor. Holly then reveals that Foaly had a hunch that Mulch had survived by placing the iris cam that scanned his vitals into local wildlife. Foaly realized that some of the gold returned by Artemis to the fairies was missing, and then traced several bars to Los Angeles, where Mulch was living as diminutive millionaire and legendary Oscar thief. The group then head to Los Angeles and apprehend Mulch once again.

Root threatens Mulch with imprisonment in the goblin prison Howler's Peak, and offers the dwarf a two-day head start if he assists in the break-in. The team use Mulch's original strategy to enter through one of the titanium foundation rods. One rod was not actually solid as Mulch and his cousin had diverted sewage into the shaft instead. After reaching the bottom of the foundation rod, and climbing through Mulch's recyclings, Butler, Root and Holly mount a desperate charge to the communications centre. While the three soldiers battle through an army of goblins, Artemis enters the network of deactivated plasma cannons to reach the centre by another route. Artemis manages to sneak into the hub long enough to communicate with Foaly, who uses Artemis's laptop to play back Cudgeon's own voice, revealing that Cudgeon planned to betray the goblins. Cudgeon is unfazed, and reactivates the plasma cannons to knock out all the goblins in Koboi Labs. Butler, Root and Holly smash their way into the centre, where Cudgeon holds Artemis at gunpoint. However, Foaly calls Artemis' mobile phone, and Artemis hands it to Koboi, who is then enraged to find that Cudgeon planned to betray her too. The two masterminds grapple with each other on Opal's hoverchair, and Cudgeon is killed when he is thrown into the open DNA cannon plasma feed, while the crash causes Opal to blackout, and destroys the remote control used by Opal to control LEP weaponry. Foaly uses the restored power to activate DNA cannons in Police Plaza, neutralizing most of the goblins involved in the revolt. Foaly remains in the Operations Booth, as the LEP outside, commanded by Captain Trouble Kelp, still think he is to blame for the revolt.

Artemis, Holly, Butler and Root then head to Murmansk and rescue Artemis Fowl I. Artemis's plan to fake the shooting of his father nearly ends in disaster when the Russians throw the man overboard, but Holly manages to rescue Artemis Senior and heal his most severe injuries, apart from his lost leg. The Russian Mafia are foiled in their attempt to take the money, as Artemis has Foaly run up some fake notes that will dissolve upon being delivered to their boss. The group return to Europe where Holly deposits Artemis Fowl I on the steps of a hospital in Helsinki. The story closes with Dr. Po asking Artemis if he has learned anything and found a person he admires. Artemis, thinking of his father and the many who helped to rescue him, then answers "Yes, I believe I have."

Critical reception
Critical reception was generally positive. January Magazine noted that after the success of the novel's predecessor, Arctic Incident had "a lot to live up to". The review said the novel was "refreshing and innovative". It lauded Colfer's continual expansion of characters. Kirkus Reviews praised the novel's "puns, word plays, and inventive new concepts about the fairy realm" and called the book an "exhilarating Celtic caper" that would "delight fans and make converts of new readers". The reviews, however, were not all positive. While Publishers Weekly described the novel as a "cracking good read," the review cautioned that Colfer "ratchets up the body count...perhaps too steeply for some tastes" and that "the high-concept premise may be a tad slick for others". Goodtoread.org did not receive the book as positively, citing Butler and Artemis' awkward relationship and Artemis as "an unconvincing 13-year-old genius". However, the reviews concluded that the book was "interesting enough".

title: Artemis Fowl and the Arctic Incident


text: Template:Canadian federal political parties


text:
User talk:Ol cole

Welcome to the Wikipedia
Here are some links I thought useful:

 * Tutorial
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Feel free to ask me anything the links and talk pages don't answer. You can sign your name by typing 4 tildes, like this: ~.

Be Bold!

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title: User talk:Ol cole


text: Category:Bridges in Italy

title: Category:Bridges in Italy


text: Category:Bridges in New Jersey

title: Category:Bridges in New Jersey


text:
Microplate

A microplate, also known as a microtiter plate, microwell plate or multiwell, is a flat plate with multiple "wells" used as small test tubes. The microplate has become a standard tool in analytical research and clinical diagnostic testing laboratories. A very common usage is in the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), the basis of most modern medical diagnostic testing in humans and animals.

A microplate typically has 6, 12, 24, 48, 96, 384 or 1536 sample wells arranged in a 2:3 rectangular matrix. Some microplates have been manufactured with 3456 or 9600 wells, and an "array tape" product has been developed that provides a continuous strip of microplates embossed on a flexible plastic tape.

Each well of a microplate typically holds somewhere between tens of nanolitres   to several millilitres of liquid. They can also be used to store dry powder or as racks to support glass tube inserts. Wells can be either circular or square. For compound storage applications, square wells with close fitting silicone cap-mats are preferred. Microplates can be stored at low temperatures for long periods, may be heated to increase the rate of solvent evaporation from their wells and can even be heat-sealed with foil or clear film. Microplates with an embedded layer of filter material were developed in the early 1980s by several companies, and today, there are microplates for just about every application in life science research which involves filtration, separation, optical detection, storage, reaction mixing, cell culture and detection of antimicrobial activity.

The enormous growth in studies of whole live cells has led to an entirely new range of microplate products which are "tissue culture treated" especially for this work. The surfaces of these products are modified using an oxygen plasma discharge to make their surfaces more hydrophilic so that it becomes easier for adherent cells to grow on the surface which would otherwise be strongly hydrophobic.

A number of companies have developed robots to specifically handle microplates. These robots may be liquid handlers which aspirate or dispense liquid samples from and to these plates, or "plate movers" which transport them between instruments, plate stackers which store microplates during these processes, plate hotels for longer-term storage, plate washers for processing plates, plate thermal sealers for applying heat seals, de-sealers for removing heat seals, or microplate incubators to ensure constant temperature during testing. Instrument companies have designed plate readers which can detect specific biological, chemical or physical events in samples stored in these plates. A specialized plate reader has also been developed which can perform quality control of microplate well contents, capable of identifying empty wells, filled wells and precipitate.

Manufacture and composition
The most common manufacturing process is injection molding, using materials such as polystyrene, polypropylene and cyclo-olefin for different temperature and chemical resistance needs. Glass is also a possible material, and vacuum forming can be used with many other plastics such as polycarbonate.

Microplates are manufactured from a variety of materials:
 * Polystyrene (PS) is the most common, and is used for high-clarity optical detection microplates. It can be coloured white by the addition of titanium dioxide for optical absorbance or luminescence detection or black by the addition of carbon for fluorescent biological assays. But, it has poor resistance to organic solvents.
 * Polypropylene (PP) is used for the construction of plates subject to wide changes in temperature, such as storage at −80 °C and thermal cycling. It has excellent properties for the long-term storage of novel chemical compounds and high resistance to organic solvents.
 * Cyclo-olefins (COC) are now being used to construct microplates which transmit near-ultraviolet light, allowing applications like protein assays via absorbance measurements at 280 nm. But, COC has a poor resistance to organic solvents & is incompatible with high temperatures.
 * Polycarbonate (PC) is cheap and easy to mould and has been used for disposable microplates for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method of DNA amplification.
 * Glass or quartz is also, albeit less commonly & rather expensively, used to construct microplates for special applications that require extreme resistance to organic solvents and/or the surface properties of glass, or the ultraviolet C transmission capability of quartz.

Composite microplates, including filter bottom plates, solid phase extraction (SPE) plates, and even some advanced PCR plate designs, use multiple components and/or materials which are moulded separately and later assembled into a finished product. ELISA plates may now be assembled from twelve separate strips of eight wells, making it easier to only partially use a plate.

Formats and Standardization efforts
Microplates are produced with the same standardized footprint, but using a variety of formats (see table below), materials (see above section), plate heights, numbers of wells, well shapes, and well bottom heights, with some of these characteristics being more varied between manufacturers than others (see below section).

There are also less common 192- and 768-well plates.

Standardization efforts
An attempt at standardizing microplates was made by the Society for Biomolecular Sciences with the ANSI-Standards (ANSI/SBS 1-2004, ANSI/SBS 2-2004, ANSI/SBS 3-2004, ANSI/SBS 4-2004). These standards have been updated to and are now known as the ANSI SLAS standards.

Footprint & flange (standardized)
The ANSI SLAS microplate standards define a footprint, and a bottom flange geometry. These footprints & flanges are generally rigorously followed by all microplate manufacterers:
 * Footprint standard (127.76 mm × 85.48 mm ± 0.5 mm)
 * Flange standard

Corner notch
Although a corner notch (aka chamfer) is shown at the A1 (top-left) corner in the ANSI SLAS drawings, and many microplates do implement this A1 corner notch, in actuality the "quantity and location of chamfers(s) is optional", so in practice the presence or absence of corner notches at additional corners (i.e. the bottom-left) is a proprietary implementation which causes difficulties with accessory cross-compatibility such as with microplate lids that may also implement the matching corner notch.

Well position (standardized)
The well position is also standardized, but only for 96-, 384-, and 1536-well plates. These are generally well followed by manufacturers:
 * Well Positions

96-well plates have a 9 mm well-to-well spacing, 384-wells a 4.5 mm spacing, and 1536-wells a 2.25 mm spacing. An notable characteristic is that the well array is symmetrical when the plate is rotated 180˚ around its Z-axis (height axis). Therefore, scientific instruments which use microplates, can accept the plate in one of two rotated orientations - either "correct" or 180˚ rotated.

Other variants like 24-well plates, are not considered in the standard, but there is a de facto standard to implement to 24-wells by apply the same scaling factor as the 384- to 96-well transition, i.e. 24-wells have an 18 mm spacing.

Well shape
Notably, the shape and diameter of the well is not standardized, and has several proprietary implementations. This causes difficulties with accessory cross-compatibility such as with microplate cap mats.

Wells within the microplate are available in different shapes:
 * Round well
 * Square well

Wells also have different geometries at the bottom of the well:
 * F-Bottom: flat bottom (compatible with through-well optical plate reader measurements)
 * V-Bottom: V-shaped bottom (conical for round wells, square pyramid for square wells; improves aspiration of low liquid volumes)
 * U-Bottom: U-shaped bottom (half sphere; improves aspiration of low liquid volumes)
 * C-Bottom: bottom with minimal rounded edges

Round wells in particular often come in a few diameters:
 * 6.96 mm
 * 8.3 mm

Well Bottom Elevation
The most recent addition to the ANSI SLAS microplate standards was the inclusion of a well bottom standard. The standard however specifies definitions and test methods only, for the "Microplate Well Bottom Elevation (WBE)", "Well Bottom Elevation Variation (WBEV)", and "Intra-Well Bottom Elevation Variation (IWBEV)", but it does not state a preferred value or limits for those dimensional definitions. Therefore all well bottom heights are currently proprietary implementations without a clear de facto standard. This lack of standardization can cause difficulties with applications such as automated autosampler needle injection.
 * Well Bottom Elevation

Standard microplate height
The height of a standard microplate is also defined, however this is sometimes not followed by manufacturers, even if they follow the footprint and flange standards.
 * Height (14.35 mm ± 0.76 mm)

Microplate variants with increased heights
There are also deep well microplates sometimes called "blocks". Unlike plates of normal height, the ANSI SLAS 2-2004 height standard, does not define a standard height for deep well plates (blocks). Deepwell plates do typically follow a de facto standard height of 44 mm.

Reservoir plates are also commercially available. Reservoir plates have columns of wells (as in 96-well, 24-well, etc. plates) that are fused into single wells, so that they provide additional volume for multichannel pipettes. Like deepwell plates or blocks, they often follow a de facto standard height of 44 mm.

Skirts
Microplates used for PCR are designed to have a notably thinner wall thickness than standard ANSI/SLAS microplates (to allow for better thermal conduction), and to come in a few different "skirt" types: full-skirt, half-skirt or semi-skirted, and unskirted or no-skirted. The skirt is analogous to the footprint & flange of the ANSI/SLAS standards, so while most full-skirt PCR microplates may be ANSI/SLAS compliant, other deviations such as semi-skirted or others, are not compliant ANSI/SLAS standards.

History

The earliest microplate was created in 1951 by a Hungarian, Dr. Gyula Takátsy, who machined six rows of 12 "wells" in Lucite. Subsequently, Dr. John Louis Sever modified the Hungarian design into a 96-well plate, which he published in 1962. However, common usage of the microplate began in the late 1980s when John Liner introduced a molded version. By 1990 there were more than 15 companies producing a wide range of microplates with different features. It was estimated that 125 million microplates were used in 2000 alone. The word "Microtiter" is a registered trademark of Thermo Electron OY (.)

Other trade names for microplates include Viewplate and Unifilter (introduced in the early 1990s by Polyfiltronics and sold by Packard Instrument, which is now part of PerkinElmer).

In 1996, the Society for Biomolecular Screening (SBS), later known as Society for Biomolecular Sciences, began an initiative to create a standard definition of a microplate. A series of standards was proposed in 2003 and published by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) on behalf of the SBS. The standards govern various characteristics of a microplate including well positioning (but not shape, depth, and diameter) as well as plate properties, which allows interoperability between microplates, instrumentation and equipment from different suppliers, and is particularly important in laboratory automation. In 2010, the Society for Biomolecular Sciences merged with the Association for Laboratory Automation (ALA) to form a new organisation, the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS). Henceforth, the microplate standards are known as ANSI SLAS standards.

title: Microplate


text: Category:Bridges in Delaware

title: Category:Bridges in Delaware


text:
Category:Architecture in Denmark

 * Architecture of Denmark — in Scandinavia.

title: Category:Architecture in Denmark


text: Category:Bridges in Hong Kong

title: Category:Bridges in Hong Kong


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Kismet (musical)

Kismet is a musical adapted by Charles Lederer and Luther Davis from the 1911 play of the same name by Edward Knoblock, with lyrics and musical adaptation (as well as some original music) by Robert Wright and George Forrest. The music was mostly adapted from several pieces composed by Alexander Borodin. The story concerns a wily poet who talks his way out of trouble several times; meanwhile, his beautiful daughter meets and falls in love with the young caliph.

The musical was first produced on Broadway in 1953 and won the Tony Award for best musical in 1954. It was also successful in London's West End and has been given several revivals. A 1955 film version was produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Background
The musical was commissioned by Edwin Lester, founder and director of the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera, who conceived of a musical based on the 1911 play Kismet by Edward Knoblock. Lester had previously produced Song of Norway, with the same composing team, adapting the melodies of Edvard Grieg. For Kismet, the writers seized upon the music of Alexander Borodin, which they felt had a suitable exotic flavor and lush melodies.

Synopsis
Kismet is set in a fictional Baghdad in the times of The Arabian Nights.

Act 1
At a mosque, an imam prays as the sun rises ("The Sands of Time"). Three beggars sit outside the temple, but the fourth, Hajj, has gone to Mecca. Crying "Rhymes! Fine Rhymes!", a poet enters to sell his verses. His beautiful daughter Marsinah joins in the sales pitch, but they have no success ("Rhymes Have I"). Marsinah is sent to steal oranges in the Bazaar for their breakfast, while her father sits down to beg. When the beggars object to the poet's taking Hajj's place, he claims to be a cousin of Hajj. The poet threatens to curse those who do not give him money and soon earns a few coins ("Fate"). Hassen-Ben, a huge man from the desert, mistakes him for Hajj and kidnaps him. The poet (who is referred to as Hajj thereafter) is taken to Jawan, a notorious brigand. Fifteen years ago, the real Hajj had placed a curse on Jawan that resulted in the disappearance of the brigand's little son. Now he wants the curse removed. The new Hajj, seeing an opportunity to make some money, promises to do so for 100 gold pieces. Jawan leaves for Baghdad to search for his son, and Hajj rejoices in his new-found riches ("Fate" (reprise)).

Back in the city, the wazir of police comes through the busy bazaar ("Bazaar of the Caravans"). The evil wazir and his seductive, beautiful wife-of-wives, Lalume, discuss a loan he desperately needs. In return for the money lent from the king of Ababu, the wazir must arrange for the caliph to marry one (or all three) of the princesses of Ababu, who perform a sexy dance. Through their amah, the princesses tell Lalume that they wish to return home. Lalume convinces them that Baghdad is much more exciting than any other place on earth ("Not Since Nineveh").

Marsinah is being pursued by a fruit merchant whose wares she has stolen. Her father arrives to rescue her, giving the man money. Hajj gives his daughter half of the money and leaves. The merchants set out their finest "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" for the young lady. The young caliph and his advisor, Omar Khayyam, have been traveling incognito. He is struck by Marsinah's beauty and follows her. Elsewhere, Hajj is basking in the glow of some scantily-dressed slave girls he has just bought, when he is stopped by the police, who are checking identities because they are looking for Jawan. The Chief recognizes, on the coins, the crest of a family Jawan has robbed and arrests Hajj as a thief. Meanwhile, Marsinah has found a quaint little house with a beautiful garden to buy for her father and herself. She is admiring the garden when the Caliph slips in and, pretending to be a gardener, introduces himself to her. They fall in love on the spot ("Stranger in Paradise"). They promise to meet again in the garden at moonrise. The Caliph tells Omar that he has fallen in love, which is overheard by the princesses of Ababu; they are furious that he seems to ignore them, but the Chief Policeman reassures them that "He's in Love".

At the wazir's palace, Hajj is on trial for the theft of 100 pieces of gold. The wazir has no need for evidence; he sentences Hajj to 20 lashes, and his right hand is to be cut off. The poet pleads that, as a poet and storyteller, the loss of a hand would cripple his career; it is the gesture that tells the story ("Gesticulate"). The lovely Lalume, attracted to the handsome poet, begs her husband for forgiveness, but the Wazir is not convinced and orders his guards to drag Hajj off to punishment. As Hajj curses the wazir, a guard bursts in with news that they have captured Jawan. The old brigand is brought in and asks Hajj where his son is. He sees, around the wazir's neck, a medallion that his son was wearing when he was captured. The wazir is his son! Jawan praises the power of the great magician, Hajj, a man who has the power to curse and uncurse. Jawan is thrilled to see his son, but the Wazir sentences his own father to death. "For the leading judge of Mesopotamia to have as a father the leading criminal of Mesopotamia," he says, is "a disturbing thought."

As Jawan is led to his execution, the wazir realizes that the "powerful magician" has cursed him. Just when he is about to murder Hajj, the caliph enters with news that he has found a bride, a commoner, and that he will marry her tonight. The wazir is distraught: if the caliph does not marry a princess of Ababu, the wazir will be ruined. He concludes that this is a result of Hajj's curse and begs Hajj to reverse the situation, promising him a reprieve and the title of Emir. Hajj agrees. Lalume knows that the poet is no wizard, but she decides that he may be her chance out of a dull life ("Bored") and is falling in love with him; she promises to help. When the wazir returns, Hajj sings a mystic-sounding invocation to fate as the slave-girls dance wildly, distracting the wazir. Hajj jumps out of a window, leaving his coat behind him. When the wazir sees he is gone, he clutches the cloak in amazement and faints.

Act 2
The caliph and his wedding procession approach the house of his beloved ("Night of my Nights"). Inside, Marsinah thinks only of her gardener ("Stranger in Paradise" (reprise)). Hajj enters and tells her of his situation and says that they must flee immediately to Damascus, but Marsinah refuses to go. They argue, and he nearly strikes her before he runs off, ashamed. She departs in the opposite direction. When the caliph enters the garden, his love is not there.

The wazir is informed by his spies that the caliph's bride has disappeared. He rejoices at the power he wields, by having a magician as Emir ("Was I Wazir?"). He instructs Lalume to keep his new Emir happy, and she is eager to comply ("Rahadlakum"). Hajj and Lalume are discussing a trip to a "small oasis, a week's travel by camel" when Marsinah enters the Harem. Father and daughter reconcile, and she tells him of her lover and asks him to find him. At the same time, the caliph, in the next room, orders the wazir to find his love ("And This Is My Beloved"). Hajj and Omar encounter each other and engage in a battle of wits ("The Olive Tree").

The wazir, hoping to convince the caliph that only wanting one wife is just a phase, shows him his harem through a peephole where he sees Marsinah. The caliph is horrified that his love is a member of the wazir's Harem, and the wazir, sure that Hajj has arranged the whole thing, claims that she is one of his wives. The caliph, heartbroken, agrees to choose his wife-of-wives that night during his diwan. So as not to have lied to his prince, the wazir immediately marries Marsinah, promising to visit her that night. She vows to kill herself if he does.

That night, at the caliph's diwan, the candidates for his hand dance for him: Princess Zubbediya of Damascus, Princess Samaris of Bangalore, and the three Ababu princesses. The caliph is unmoved. Hajj is searching for Marsinah; the wazir thanks the "wizard" for placing the caliph's beloved in his own harem. Laughing, he tells him that he has married the pretty little Marsinah. Realizing what has happened, Hajj pulls a knife, but has a better idea. He takes a blank plaque and throws it in a pool, proclaiming that when it is retrieved, it will read the name of the caliph's fated bride. He secretly gives the wazir another tablet, this one with the name Ababu written on it, and tells him to substitute it for the tablet from the pool. When the wazir enters the pool, Hajj trips him and holds him underwater until he drowns.

Hajj explains all to the caliph, who is joyfully reunited with Marsinah. The caliph is ready to pardon Hajj for his murder of a public official, but the poet requests, as his punishment, to be "banished to some dreadful oasis ... at least a week's journey away by camel," and to be made to comfort the wazir's widow in her "grief". As the two couples unite, the poet reflects on the fleetingness of "The Sands of Time".

Roles and original Broadway cast

 * Hajj – Alfred Drake
 * The Wazir of Police – Henry Calvin
 * Lalume – Joan Diener
 * The Caliph – Richard Kiley
 * Marsinah (Hajj's Daughter) – Doretta Morrow
 * Chief Policeman – Tom Charlesworth
 * Omar – Philip Coolidge
 * Jawan – Truman Gaige
 * Princess Samaris of Bangalore – Beatrice Kraft
 * Ayah to Samaris – Thelma Dare
 * Princess Zubbediya of Damascus – Florence Lessing
 * Ayah to Zubbediya – Lucy Andonian

Musical numbers

 * Act 1
 * "Sands of Time" – Imam of the Mosque
 * "Rhymes Have I" – Hajj and Marsinah
 * "My Magic Lamp" - Marsinah†
 * "Fate" – Hajj
 * "Bazaar of the Caravans" – Street Dancer, Akbar, Assiz, Merchants and Shoppers
 * "Not Since Nineveh" – Lalume, The Wazir of Police, Three Princesses of Ababu, Akbar, Assiz, Merchants and Shoppers
 * "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" – Marsinah
 * "Stranger in Paradise"* – Caliph and Marsinah
 * "He's in Love!" – Chief Policeman, Second Policeman, Prosecutor, Three Princesses of Ababu, Akbar, Assiz, Caliph and Omar
 * "Gesticulate" – Hajj and Wazir's Council
 * "Bored"† – Lalume
 * "Fate" (Reprise) – Hajj and Ladies of the Wazir's Harem

 * Act 2
 * "Night of My Nights" – Caliph and Entourage
 * "Stranger in Paradise" (Reprise) – Marsinah
 * "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads" (Reprise) – The Caliph
 * "He's in Love!" (Reprise) – Entourage
 * "Was I Wazir?" – The Wazir of Police, Policemen and Guards
 * "Rahadlakum"* – Hajj, Lalume, Princess Zubbediya of Damascus, Princess Samaris of Bangalore, Three Princesses and Wazir's Harem
 * "And This Is My Beloved" – Marsinah, Caliph, Hajj and The Wazir of Police
 * "The Olive Tree" – Hajj
 * "Ceremonial of the Caliph's Diwan" – Diwan Dancers
 * "Presentation of Princesses" – Princess Zubbediya of Damascus, Ayah, Princess Samaris of Bangalore and Three Princesses of Ababu
 * "Finale" – Ensemble and Hajj

† Wright and Forrest composed the music for the bridge in "Stranger in Paradise" as well as the music for "Rahadlakum." The music for the latter was originally used in the Wright and Forrest song "I'm Going Moroccan for Johnny."

Borodin source material
According to Richard E. Rodda in his 2008 liner notes to recordings of Borodin works, Robert Wright and George Forrest specialized in "turning melodies from classical music into film scores and popular songs". The following Borodin works were used as musical sources for Kismet:
 * In the Steppes of Central Asia ("Sands of Time")
 * Symphony No. 2, Movement 1 ("Fate")
 * "Polovtsian Dances" from Prince Igor ("Bazaar of Caravans", "Not Since Nineveh", "Stranger in Paradise", "He's in Love", "Samaris' Dance")
 * String Quartet No. 2, Movement 2 ("Baubles, Bangles and Beads"), Movement 3 ("And This Is My Beloved")
 * , Movement 4 ("Was I Wazir?")
 * , Movement 4 ("Gesticulate")
 * "Serenade" from the Petite Suite ("Night of My Nights")
 * Act III trio from Prince Igor ("The Olive Tree")
 * "Aria of Khan Konchak" from Prince Igor (Introduction to "Gesticulate")
 * "Aria of Vladimir Galitsky" from Prince Igor ("Zubbediya")
 * Act II scene with Ovlur from Prince Igor ("My Magic Lamp")

Original production
Kismet premiered in Los Angeles and then moved to San Francisco in the summer and autumn of 1953. A successful change during the tryouts was to transform the character of Hajj from being merely a beggar to also being a poet. Charles Lederer became producer as well as book writer. The production moved to Broadway on December 3, 1953, playing at the Ziegfeld Theatre. The director was Albert Marre, with choreography by Jack Cole and sumptuous settings and costumes by Lemuel Ayers. The original cast starred Alfred Drake as the poet Hajj, Doretta Morrow as his daughter Marsinah, Richard Kiley as the young Caliph of Baghdad, Henry Calvin as the Wazir and Joan Diener as Lalume, the vampy wife of the evil Wazir. Bodybuilder Steve Reeves played the wizard's guard, a mute role. Bill Johnson later took over the role of Hajj, and Elaine Malbin the role of Marsinah.

The show opened on Broadway in the midst of a newspaper strike, and since newspaper reviews were unavailable, the producers used television advertising to promote the show. The musical caught the popular attention and ran for a successful 583 performances, winning the 1954 Tony Award for Best Musical. The strike may have ultimately assisted the popularity of the show, since the reviews, arriving a few weeks after the opening, were not all favorable. The critic of Time magazine, punning on the name of the composer Borodin, disparaged the score as "a lot of borrowed din." Walter Kerr wrote that "It's the sort of show that would sell its soul for a joke, and the jokes should be better at the price." William Hawkins, however, wrote that it was "noisy, spectacular, and vigorous. ... It is melodic and gay". Bloom and Vlastnik noted that it was the score that made the show successful, as the songs "Stranger in Paradise" and "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" were "huge hits on radio, television and records."

West End and Australian premieres
Kismet was even more successful in London's West End, enjoying a 648 performance run at the Stoll Theatre commencing in April 1955. The London production opened with the three stars of the Broadway cast, Drake, Morrow and Diener. They were subsequently replaced by Tudor Evans, Elizabeth Larner and Sheila Bradley, respectively.

The first Australian production opened at the Princess Theatre, Melbourne in November 1955, featuring Hayes Gordon and directed by American Burry Fredrik. It played over a year in Melbourne and Sydney.

Subsequent productions
The musical was revived at Lincoln Center's New York State Theater, starting on June 22, 1965, for 39 performances and starring Drake, Lee Venora, Anne Jeffreys, and Henry Calvin.

The New York City Opera presented the musical in October 1985, featuring George Hearn (Hajj), Susanne Marsee (Lalume) and Maryanne Telese (Marsinah) with direction by Frank Corsaro. In 1994, BBC Radio 2 broadcast a complete production starring Ethan Freeman as Hajj, Julia Migenes as Lalume, Stephen Hill as the Caliph, Katrina Murphy as Marsinah, Frank Middlemass as Omar Kayyam and David Adler as the Wazir, with the BBC Concert Orchestra, conducted by Kenneth Alwyn. The production was re-broadcast on 13 August 2016.

Jettisoning the lush oriental context and physical production of the original, a restaging re-titled as Timbuktu! opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on March 1, 1978, and ran for 243 performances. This version, with a new book by Luther Davis, set the story in Africa, with minimalist settings and an all-Black cast. Plot emphasis was shifted, with increased emphasis given to Lalume (renamed Shaleem-La-Lume), played by Eartha Kitt opposite William Marshall and Melba Moore. Two new songs were written for the production: "Since the Beginning, Women" and "Golden Land, Golden Life."

The New York City Center Encores! series presented a staged concert in February 2006, starring Brian Stokes Mitchell and Marin Mazzie. The musical was revived in 2007 by the English National Opera at the London Coliseum and starred Michael Ball, Faith Prince and Alfie Boe.

Films and television
The musical was made into a Cinemascope film in 1955 by MGM, directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Howard Keel as Hajj, Ann Blyth as Marsinah, Dolores Gray as Lalume, and Vic Damone as the Caliph. The quartet "This is My Beloved" was changed to a trio, because Sebastian Cabot, who played the Wazir, could not sing.

An Armstrong Theater television version was broadcast in 1967 starring Barbara Eden as Lalume, José Ferrer as Hajj, Anna Maria Alberghetti as Marsinah, and George Chakiris as the Caliph. The script was edited down to a 90-minute broadcast, but it cut few musical numbers despite the shorter run time.

Recordings
Columbia Masterworks Records recorded the original Broadway cast in late 1953; the recording was later reissued on CD by Masterworks Broadway Records.

Other recordings of the musical include a 1961 London studio recording by World Record Club conducted by Kenneth Alwyn with Graham Laver (Hajj), Elizabeth Harwood (Marsinah), Peter Grant (Caliph), Diana Landor (Lalume), Paul Whitsun-Jones (Wazir) and Hazel Holt. A 1964 Decca recording was conducted by Mantovani with Robert Merrill (Hajj), Adele Leigh (Marsinah), Kenneth McKellar (Caliph), Regina Resnik (Lalume), Ian Wallace (Wazir) and The Mike Sammes Singers. An abridged 1964 Capitol version was conducted by Van Alexander with Gordon MacRae as Hajj and the Caliph, Dorothy Kirsten (Marsinah), Bunny Bishop (Lalume), Johnny Guarnieri, Richard Levitt, Salli Terri and the Roger Wagner Chorale.

A 1989 recording on Jay Records that includes some songs from the film version and Timbuktu! as bonus tracks was conducted by John Owen Edwards with Donald Maxwell (Hajj), Valerie Masterson (Marsinah), David Rendall (Caliph), Judy Kaye (Lalume), Richard Van Allan (Wazir), Bonaventura Bottone and Rosemary Ashe. A 1991 Sony Broadway version with new orchestrations by conductor Paul Gemignani stars Samuel Ramey (Hajj), Ruth Ann Swenson (Marsinah), Jerry Hadley (Caliph), Julia Migenes (Lalume), Dom DeLuise (Wazir) and Mandy Patinkin (Marriage arranger).

title: Kismet (musical)


text: Category:Transportation in Hong Kong

title: Category:Transportation in Hong Kong


text: Category:Bridges in Massachusetts

title: Category:Bridges in Massachusetts


text:
Soren

Soren may refer to:

 * Søren, a given name of Scandinavian origin, also spelled Sören
 * Suren (disambiguation), a Persian name also rendered as Soren
 * 3864 Søren, main belt asteroid
 * Sōren, also known as Chongryon and Zai-Nihon Chōsenjin Sōrengōka, an organisation of Koreans in Japan
 * Sören, a village in Germany
 * Soren, a barn owl who is the protagonist in the Guardians of Ga'Hoole children's fantasy book series
 * Soren, a fictional character and member of the Skrull alien species
 * Soren the Architect, the leader of The Order of the Stone in Minecraft: Story Mode
 * Soren, a member of the Greil Mercenaries in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
 * Søren (band), an Italian darkfolk/new wave band

People with the name

 * Søren Kierkegaard (born 1813), Danish philosopher
 * Durga Soren, Indian politician
 * Shibu Soren (born 1944), Indian politician
 * Hemant Soren (born 1975) formar chief minister of Jharkhand

title: Soren


text:
Wikipedia talk:Articles for deletion/Vosem Chart

Test results
It said I am

Rank 	 Item 	 Percent 1: Totalitarian (100%) 2: Authoritarian (89%) 3: Liberal (80%) 4: New Labour (72%) 5: Traditional Societies (66%) 6: Anarcho-syndicalist (58%) 7: Conservative (58%) 8: Libertarian (46%)

Sam [Spade] 22:20, 1 Aug 2004 (UTC)


text:
George L. Kelling

George Lee Kelling (August 21, 1935 – May 15, 2019) was an American criminologist, a professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Rutgers University–Newark, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, and a fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He previously taught at Northeastern University.

Biography
Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Kelling attended Northwestern Lutheran Theological Seminary to study theology for two years, but earned no degree. He received a B.A. in philosophy from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, an M.S.W. from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and a Ph.D. in social welfare from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1973, under Alfred Kadushin.

Early in his career, he was a child care counselor and a probation officer, but his later career was spent in academia. The author of numerous articles, he developed the broken windows theory with James Q. Wilson and Kelling's wife, Catherine M. Coles that led to the mass incarceration of African-Americans in impoverished U.S. cities beginning in the mid-1980s. Kelling died in Hanover, New Hampshire on May 15, 2019 from complications of cancer at the age of 83.

Personal life
Kelling was married twice, first to Sally Jean Mosiman, from whom he became divorced, and then to Catherine M. Coles, an attorney and a lawyer and anthropologist studying urban issues and criminal prosecution, whom Kelling married in 1982.

title: George L. Kelling


text: Category:Suspension bridges

title: Category:Suspension bridges


text:
Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton

Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton, (25 October 1683 – 6 May 1757) was a British peer and politician.

Early life
He was the only child and heir of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton (1663–1690) (an illegitimate son of King Charles II by his mistress Barbara Villiers) by his wife Isabella Bennet, 2nd Countess of Arlington, a great-granddaughter of William the Silent. He succeeded to his father's titles on 9 October 1690.

Career
Grafton was one of the members of the Hanoverian-supporting Kit-Cat Club portrayed by Godfrey Kneller. He served as Lord High Steward at King George I's coronation, becoming a Privy Counsellor in 1715 and a Knight of the Garter in 1721. He also served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland from 1720 to 1724 and Lord Chamberlain from 1724 until his death. In 1719 he was one of the main subscribers to the Royal Academy of Music, a corporation that produced baroque opera on the stage. In 1739 he supported the creation of what was to become one of London's most notable charities, the Foundling Hospital. He sat on that charity's original Court of Governors with such fellow Governors as John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford, Vere Beauclerk, 1st Baron Vere of Hanworth, and Micajah Perry, a Lord Mayor of London. He was affectionately known to the Royal court as 'Booby Grafton'. For a number of years he and Princess Emily, one of George II's daughters, enjoyed a semi-flirtatious relationship.

Marriage and children
On 30 April 1713, he married Lady Henrietta Somerset (27 August 1690 – 7 August 1726), daughter of Charles Somerset, Marquess of Worcester and Rebecca Child. They had seven children:
 * Charles Henry FitzRoy, Earl of Euston (13 April 1714 – 18 December 1715)
 * George FitzRoy, Earl of Euston (24 August 1715 – 7 July 1747). He was married on 10 October 1741 to Lady Dorothy Boyle (14 May 1724 – 2 May 1742) elder daughter of Richard Boyle, 4th Earl of Cork, 3rd Earl of Burlington, and his wife Lady Dorothy Savile, daughter of William Savile, 2nd Marquess of Halifax. The Earl was notorious for mistreating his wife—who died seven months after their marriage—and died childless.
 * Lord Augustus FitzRoy (16 October 1716 – 24 May 1741). He was married to Elizabeth Cosby, daughter of Colonel William Cosby, who served as a colonial Governor of New York. They were parents to two sons, who founded branches of the family that still continue today:
 * Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton
 * Charles FitzRoy, 1st Baron Southampton
 * Lord Charles FitzRoy (23 April 1718 – 29 July 1739)
 * Lady Caroline FitzRoy (8 April 1722 – 26 June 1784). She married William Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Harrington. They were parents to Isabella Molyneux, Countess of Sefton, Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington and five other children.
 * Lady Harriet FitzRoy (8 June 1723 – August 1735)
 * Lady Isabella FitzRoy (1726 – 10 November 1782). She married Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford. They were parents to Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford and eleven other children.

The Duke also fathered an illegitimate son, Charles FitzRoy-Scudamore.

Legacy
Grafton Street in Dublin is named after him. He owned property in the area. Grafton, Massachusetts, is named after him.

Winchester, New Hampshire was originally named "Arlington" in his honour (as in, the Earl of Arlington).

title: Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton


text:
Haga District, Tochigi

Haga (芳賀郡) is a district located in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

As of 2011, the district has an estimated population of 66,852 and a density of 169 persons per km2. The total area is 396,72 km2.

Towns and villages

 * Haga
 * Ichikai
 * Mashiko
 * Motegi

Merger

 * On March 23, 2009, the town of Ninomiya was merged into the city of Mōka.

title: Haga District, Tochigi


text:
Kaminokawa, Tochigi

Kaminokawa (上三川町) is a town located in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 31,243 in 12,061 households, and a population density of 570 persons per km². The total area of the town is 54.39 sqkm.

Geography
Kaminokawa is located in the southeastern Tochigi Prefecture, approximately 90 kilometers north of Tokyo metropolis. The town area consists of flat areas and rivers, with no mountains and is a northern extension of the Kanto plain. The town is bordered by the prefectural capital of Utsunomiya to the north. The Kinugawa River flows through the town.

Surrounding municipalities
Tochigi Prefecture
 * Utsunomiya
 * Mooka
 * Shimotsuke

Climate
Kaminokawa has a Humid continental climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kaminokawa is 13.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1378 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.1 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.4 °C.

Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Kaminokawa has recently plateaued after a long period of growth.

History
The villages of Kaminokawa, Hongo and Tako were created within Haga District on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. On December 26, 1891 Tako Village was renamed Meiji Village. Kaminokawa was elevated to town status on July 1, 1893. On April 29, 1955 Kaminokawa annexed Meiji and Hongo.

Government
Kaminokawa has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of 14 members. Kaminokawa, together with the city of Utsunomiya collectively contributes 13 members to the Tochigi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Tochigi 1st district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy
The Nissan Tochigi plant is located within Kaminokawa and is a major local employer.

Education
Kaminokawa has seven public primary schools and three public middle schools operated by the town government. The town has one public high school operated by the Tochigi Prefectural Board of Education.

Railway
Kaminokawa does not have any passenger train services.

Highway

 * – Utsunomiya-Kaminokawa IC

title: Kaminokawa, Tochigi


text:
Minamikawachi, Tochigi

Minamikawachi (南河内町) was a town located in Kawachi District, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 21,178 and a density of 675.53 persons per km2. The total area was 31.35 km2.

On January 10, 2006, Minamikawachi, along with the towns of Ishibashi and Kokubunji (both from Shimotsuga District), was merged to create the new city of Shimotsuke.

title: Minamikawachi, Tochigi


text: Category:Bridges in New York (state)

title: Category:Bridges in New York (state)


text:
Kamikawachi, Tochigi

Kamikawachi (上河内町) was a town located in Kawachi District, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 9,510 and a density of 166.96 persons per km2. The total area was 56.96 km2.

On March 31, 2007, Kamikawachi, along with the town of Kawachi (also from Kawachi District), was merged into the expanded city of Utsunomiya.

title: Kamikawachi, Tochigi


text:
Kawachi, Tochigi

Kawachi (河内町) was a town located in Kawachi District, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 35,247 and a density of 738.62 persons per km2. The total area was 47.72 km2.

On March 31, 2007, Kawachi, along with the town of Kamikawachi (also from Kawachi District), was merged into the expanded city of Utsunomiya.

title: Kawachi, Tochigi


text:
User:V79

Short info:

Name: Geir Ove Myhr, Main interest: Physics, Nationality: Norwegian

First impression annoyances: (1) A where-did-it-come-from report ala webcvs. (2) Preview in diff-form to see than one has not edited something else unintentionally.

title: User:V79


text:
Kawachi District, Tochigi

Kawachi (河内郡) is a district located in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.

As of 2005, the district has an estimated population of 76,471 and a density of 480.35 persons per km2. The total area is 159.20 km2.

The district has one town.
 * Kaminokawa

Timeline (1960s to present)

 * April 1, 1966 - The village of Kawachi gained town status.
 * April 1, 1971 - The village of Minamikawachi gained town status.
 * July 1, 1994 - The village of Kamikawachi gained town status.
 * January 10, 2006 - The town of Minamikawachi merged with the towns of Ishibashi and Kokubunji, both from Shimotsuga District to form the city of Shimotsuke.
 * March 31, 2007 - The towns of Kamikawachi and Kawachi merged into the city of Utsunomiya.

title: Kawachi District, Tochigi


text:
Gask Ridge

The Gask Ridge is the modern name given to an early series of fortifications, built by the Romans in Scotland, close to the Highland Line. Modern excavation and interpretation has been pioneered by the Roman Gask Project, with Birgitta Hoffmann and David Woolliscroft. The ridge fortifications: forts, fortlets and watchtowers were only in operation for a few years, probably fewer than ten.

Name
The name "Gask Ridge" refers to the 10 mi ridge of land to the north of the River Earn in Perthshire. In Scottish Gaelic, a gasg is a projecting tail or strip of land. In the early 20th century, a line of Roman signal-towers (or watch-towers) was discovered along this ridge between the Roman forts of Strageath and Bertha.

History
The Gask Ridge system was constructed sometime between 70 and 80 AD. Construction on Hadrian's Wall was started 42 years after completion of the Gask Ridge (from 122 to 130 AD), and the Antonine Wall was started 12 years after completion of Hadrian's Wall (from 142 to 144 AD). Although the Gask Ridge was not a wall, it may be Rome's earliest fortified land frontier. The fortifications approximately follow the boundary between Scotland's fertile Lowlands and mountainous Highlands, in Perth and Kinross and Angus. The later Hadrian's Wall and Antonine Wall were further south and considerably shorter.

The principal forts of the Gask Ridge frontier system were (from south to north): Camelon, Drumquhassle, Malling, Doune, Glenbank (fortlet), Bochastle, Ardoch, Kaims Castle (fortlet), Strageath, Dalginross, Bertha, Fendoch, Cargill (fort and fortlet), Inchtuthil (Legionary fortress), Cardean, Inverquharity (fortlet) and Stracathro.

Glenblocker forts
The forts of Drumquhassle, Menteith/Malling, Bochastle, Doune, Dalginross and Fendoch in the south-west were collectively referred to as glenblocker forts in the older literature; they are also called the Highland line forts. Glenblocker describes their location at the exit of some of the glens.

All of the forts were originally built during the Flavian occupation in Scotland. A broader group consists of
 * Drumquhassle (near Drymen, overlooking the southern end of Loch Lomond and the road back to the Clyde)
 * Malling (on the Lake of Menteith, overlooking the access to the Duke's Pass and a narrow point between the mountains and the Forth Mosses)
 * Bochastle (near Callander), overlooking the road to Loch Katrine and the Pass of Leny
 * Dalginross (near Comrie) overlooking the Eastern end of Loch Earn
 * Fendoch (north of Crieff) overlooking the Sma' Glen
 * Inchtuthil (below Dunkeld) The legionary fortress at the mouth of Strath Tay, guarding the main roads to Inverness
 * Inverquharity (near Kirriemuir) a fortlet-sized station at the east end of Glen Clova

Cardean, Stracathro and Doune are sited further away from their respective traffic corridors, although fulfilling the same function.

Role
It has traditionally been thought that these forts were meant to prevent invasions out of the Scottish Highlands into Roman-held territory. This may have been the intention, in cooperation with the other forts on the Gask Ridge and along Strathmore, as only the legionary fortress of Inchtuthil with 5,000–6,000 soldiers would have been strong enough to deal with a major incursion. The smaller forts were more likely to serve as a disincentive to small-scale raiding parties.

The relationship between the Glenblocker forts and the Gask Ridge has in the past been seen as a staged withdrawal. Recent research suggests that the three elements are part of the same frontier system, stretching roughly from Loch Lomond to Montrose. In this hypothesis, the Glenblocker forts controlled access to valleys in the frontier area, which loop back into the frontier, rather than link with the Iron Age settlements further north. Their value as a block to invasion is doubtful, as their situation would have allowed supervision but they lacked the manpower to deter anything but cattle rustling.

Only the legionary fortress at Inchtuthil, conveniently situated for access into Braemar and its hinterland, is large enough to have functioned as a defensive fortification or a jumping-off point for an invasion. The Gask Road and the towers alongside it in this hypothesis guarded the strategically important link to the harbours at the Firths of Tay and Forth and the southern part of the province.

Tacitus writes in De vita Iulii Agricolae that Agricola was fighting in the area in around 80 AD; the latest coinage dates from 86 AD. This would suggest that the forts were occupied for six years at most. Recent archaeology has shown that many of the forts on the Gask Ridge were rebuilt, sometimes twice, without evidence of destruction through warfare. Further digs may cast some light on this apparent contradiction.

The forts of Ardoch, Strageath and Bertha on the Gask Road, as well as the forts of Cargill in Strathmore and the glenblocker fort of Dalginross have also produced Antonine material attesting to a reuse of the sites contemporary with the Antonine Wall. In the Severan period the army passed through the area, and several camps across Scotland are dated to this period (for example, Kair House in Aberdeenshire and the fort at Carpow Roman Fort which is on the Firth of Tay.

North of the Gask Ridge
The permanent sites are complemented by a series of large marching camps (large camps date to the 3rd century) from the Scottish Lowlands into Aberdeenshire and Moray. The Roman legions in the 1st century established a chain of forts at Ardoch, Strageath, Inchtuthil, Battledykes (which is unlikely to date from the same period as the Gask sites), Stracathro and Raedykes, taking the Elsick Mounth on the way to Normandykes, before going north to Glenmaillen and Auchinhove. Unconfirmed sites of possible Roman forts have also been found at Bellie, Balnageith and Cawdor.

In the 1990s researchers discovered new possible Roman fortifications north of Inverness and the Moray Firth. The most important are Tarradale and Portmahomack. These are being studied by Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland to verify that they are Roman. Several chronological reconstructions of their role have been made.

title: Gask Ridge


text:
Talk:Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad

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Delete all ISIS associations
Delete everything go do with ISIS as people can review this and find it glamourising. Mystery97 (talk) 09:05, 11 May 2019 (UTC)

Relations to Ansar al-Islam
The article doesn’t make it as clear, is Tawhid al-Jihad an associate of Ansar al-Islam? Is it a part of it? Did they pledge allegiance to them? Did they ever separate themselves?

title: Talk:Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad