text:
User:Chrissy snow/Arts and crafts resources

Creative Arts & Crafts Resources -  Topic The topic of my choice for this wikipedia page was "Creative Arts & Craft Resources". ~ Currently this topic does not exist on wikipedia. URL Search: ---  'Relevant Information and Wikipedia Links --- ---
 * Search Results
 * Arts & Crafts
 * Collage
 * Origami
 * Papier Marche
 * Balloon Animals
 * Etching
 * Primary Education
 * Art
 * Cartoon
 * Philosophy of Education

Introduction:
Creative Arts and Crafts are an important aspect for children towards children growth up and becoming individuals. With their heightened curiosity, growing independence, and often impressive artistic skills, school elementary school children are ideal candidates for arts and crafts. It allows them to become creative and an individual without telling them that what they are doing is wrong. Add to that their rapidly growing understanding of the world around them, and you’re practically guaranteed kids who will be eager to undertake craft projects with teachers, classmates, and on their own. This information will be beneficial for teachers, student teachers, or anyone that is searching for information concerning Creative Arts & Crafts for elementary school-aged children. Other Wikipedia users can add useful information towards this topic and create numerous resources and annotated bibliographies that at one time were not even there.

Arts & Crafts Resources books:
'''Teach Me 2.com: The marketplace for teaching, learning and discovery. (2004). Retrieved October 27, 2004, from, http://www.teachme2.com/c/@axisQ.NufIGBE/Pages/elementary.html?nocache@5+subject@Creative_20Arts_2F_20Arts_20_26_20Crafts+step@1'''

This website is valuable towards teachers looking for lesson plans in the creative arts and other aspects of the teaching field. It starts off with a table that you can check off and then it searches throughout the website for related resources in the area choosen. For the creative arts and crafts section it finds resources and book books that will be values for the person looking it up. These resources not only help teachers but also parents of children that are having difficulties or students teachers like myself looking for resources to stock up on when becoming a teacher. Other areas that this website reflects to find resources are that of the following: [[Image:Art1.jpg|right]]
 * Active Learning
 * Creative Arts/ Arts & Crafts
 * Dramatic Play
 * Early Learning
 * Early Learning/Early Childhood
 * Enrichment
 * Fine Motor
 * Foreign Language & Cultural Studies
 * Furnishings
 * General Titles
 * LanguageArts
 * Mathematics
 * Multi-Cultural
 * Music
 * Reading
 * School To Work
 * Science
 * Social Studies
 * Teacher Essentials
 * Teaching Aids

Catologs:
'''Preschool Education.com. (2004). Retrieved October 27, 2004, from, http://www.preschooleducation.com''' This website informs parents about information about preschool programs and curriculum in the daycare centers. There is one area focused on the arts and crafts and different ideas that they can do at home with their child. Another areas that this website focuses on relates to the arts and crafts were Alphabet Ideas, Arts & Crafts, Books, Book Reviews, Bulletin Board, Calendar of Fun, Circle Time, Computer Related Reviews, Dramatic Play, Felt Board, Games, Incentives, Learning Letters, Math, Music Review, Music & Songs, Parent Corner, Science & Sensory, Snacks, Teachers Lounge, Theme Days, Theme Topics and Useful Recipes. This website would be especially important for parents that want to get involved in their child's education and programming. '''Guildcraft arts and craft. (2004). Retrieved October 27, 2004, from, http://www.guildcraftinc.com/''' This website is an online catolog for people interested in ordering materials for the arts and crafts. It has everything divided into groups for materials such as wood pieces, foam, sand, papers and scissors, and etc. The thing that is unique about this website is that parents can also order these materials for their children to take home and use on a regular basis. Some of the crafts featured on this website are more of an one on one craft, mainly for children to do at home with parents.

Informative Websites:
'''Glossary. (2004). Retrieved Octover 27, 2004, from, http://www.ackland.org/tours/classes/glossary.html'''

This website is informative toward teachers that wish to teach children about arts and crafts throughout the years of their childhood up until university level. Information that is shown in this website are that of a glossary of artistic terms from the most basic to that of terms used in the university arts program. Keeping this glossary would help create ideas about what should be done in the arts and craft curriculum in elementary school. When their are in middle school, students starting to learn these terms and being tested on them, because some of the students in the classroom might have a fine interest in the arts. Different terms that could be found are different types of arts, brush strokes, color tones, and etc.

Lesson Plan Resources:
'''FILES - YEAR PLAN - LESSONS. (2004). Retrieved Octover 27, 2004, from, http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/yearplan.htm''' This website is great for teachers that need lesson plans about arts and crafts in the school curriculum. It shows different templates that can be used throughout the school year for creating different arts and crafts ideas. This also means informative information for the students and the artistic side of it. This website also has numerous links to others areas that teachers and other people can look up for different lesson plans to control their classroom noise level. It also has test and quizes that can be given to students in a higher educational level. These quizes and tests are found in templates that can be used for different areas of the curriculum. With the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/acedemic acedemic] part it also has fun and creative activities that will excite students about the arts. '''Kinderstart: Search engine. (2004). Retrieved October 26, 2004, from, http://www.kinderstart.com/learningactivitiesandcrafts/artcrafts.html''' This website has numerous links that parents and teachers can look up for different ideas of creative arts and crafts that can be completed in the classroom or at home with the child. When clicking onto each of these links they either display an lesson plan such as Origami Jumping Frog's or takes you to other links that have different lesson plans that can be used throughout the child's developmental years. With some of these websites I noticed that their are registration fees to be paid or you just have to register for them. ''' Kidsdomain. (2004). Retrieved October 5, 2004, from, http://www.kidsdomain.com/craft/''' With this website it has creative arts and crafts dealing with every thing from different holidays, seasons, curriculum, and technology. Kidsdomain webiste has each area divided into the following catorgies:
 * Classroom Party Ideas
 * BINGO Games [[Image:Dofunlife.jpg|right]]
 * Craft Recipes
 * Games and Toys
 * Classic Crafts
 * Needle Crafts
 * Camp Crafts
 * Animal Crafts
 * Computer Crafts
 * Decorate Your Home
 * School Fun
 * Educational Crafts
 * Jewlry
 * Hair Fun
 * Wearable Crafts
 * Beanie Crafts
 * Pokémon Crafts
 * Bead Crafts
 * Travel Games
 * Veggie Crafts
 * Angel Crafts
 * Things to Grow
 * Make a Puppet
 * Crafts from Wood
 * Wizard Crafts
 * Plastic Canvas Crafts

When clicking on one of these links there are numerous ideas at the persons finger tips. It informs that person the materials need, time duration, the procedure uses for this activity and the steps that each child has to follow through with. The key thing that I find interesting about this website is that it has a section for creative arts and crafts with using technology suchs as computers. '''Kinderart. (2004). Retrieved October 26, 2004, from, http://www.kinderart.com''' This website has the same feel and display at kidsdomain except for it more with the school base curriculum. It has lesson plans that discuss what would be have to be done to achieve what is displayed in the grade levels arts and crafts goals for the semester. Such are that this website focuses on is that of the following: ''' Crayola: Lesson plans. (2004). Retrieved October 26, 2004, from, http://www.crayola.com/educators/lessons/index.cfm''' This website through Crayola allows the teacher or parent to use a data base to look up different lessons plans deals with arts and crafts but using every other curriuculum in the classroom. When clicking onto this website it takes you to a questionaire asking the following questions concerning what you are looking for in your lesson plan. These questions are the following; Any media, what curriculum, what grade level, timeframe and theme. With this website though in order to view the lesson plans found their is reigstration process that you have to go through filling out personal information. The good thing about this website it has over 7,000 lesson plans that are free just with signing up to the website. '''Lessonplanz.com. (2004). Retrieved October 26, 2004, from, http://lessonplanz.com/Lesson_Plans/The_Arts/Arts___Crafts/_Grades_K-2/index.shtml''' This website divided up their arts and crafts lesson plans through grade levels. The division of grade level goes are follows grade K to 2, 3 to 5, middle school and high school. All the lesson plans that are featured are in alphabetal order which can be difficult what searching for one central idea. But the usual thing about dividing them up into grade levels is that you know that children that are at that age range will be able to complete these activities with little or no assistance at all. With the lesson plans for each lesson they are given in full detail with the objectives, materials, plan, introduction, procedure and conclusion.
 * architecture
 * art book
 * artists/art history
 * bulletin boards
 * crafty ideas
 * cross curriculum
 * drama
 * drawing
 * folkart
 * multicultural
 * painting
 * printmaking
 * recycling
 * seasonal
 * sculpture
 * textiles

Other Useful Lesson Plan Websites
---
 * http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/lessons.cgi/Arts
 * http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/

Journal Articles:
'''Visual Arts, Levels 7-12. Secondary Core Curriculum Standards. Retrieved October 27, 2004, from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/Home.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=RecordDetails&_urlType=action&objectId=0900000b80126143''' This journal just discusses about the importance of visual arts in grade levels of 7-12. There was a research study completed in the United States that searched at the importance of this program. Throughout the middle school and high school education students were required to take up to three visual arts courses may be taken at the 9-12th grades as fulfillment of the 1.5 core art units required. Core options include courses in ceramics, jewelry, general crafts, sculpture I, art history and criticism, photography I, architecture design, interior design, foundations II, painting I, printmaking, or commercial art. Throughout the journal is discussed the requirements of each grade level and each subject also. The importance of this is for parents to look at what their child may be able to take if they have an interest in the arts. Even though this is an United States journal article their are other resources found in [ttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada Canada] that parents and children can attend since not all of what is found in the article is found in a Canadian high school arts program. '''Sizemore, J. (1995). Education Reform Opportunities for Artists and Craftspeople. A Handbook. Retrieved October 27, 2004, from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/Home.portal?I_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=RecordDetails&_urlType=action&objectId=0900000b801411d1''' This journal article is from the United States once again. The information found in this article discusses 'The Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990', the champions of arts education as an integral component of a holistic curriculum and assessment process, encourages schools to made use of resources from the community, including arts and cultural organizations, artists, folklorists, and craftspeople. This document aims to inform artists and educators of education reform and become familiar with potential funding sources. The text is organized in six sections, including: (1) "Background"; (2) "An Overview of Education Reform"; (3) "Professional Artists and Craftspeople in the Classrooms"; (4) "Professional Artists and Craftspeople in Other Education Reform Programs"; (5) "Funding and Resources for Artists and Craftspeople"; and (6) "Keeping Informed about Special Opportunities and National Grants. Gary,C.L., & Foy, R. Ed. (1997). Transforming Ideas for Teaching and Learning the Arts. Retrieved October 27, 2004, from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/Home.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=RecordDetails&_urlType=action&objectId=0900000b801412b9 This journal article is about a booklet that is designed to give teachers some of the latest ideas about how arts principles and concepts can best be understood, taught, and used in the classroom to improve instruction in the arts and other disciplines. The booklet's major ideas, organized into one page sections, include the following: (1) make certain all students have daily arts experiences; (2) the arts offer the opportunity to practice decision making; (3) students need to know the elements of the various arts and need to develop the vocabularies with which to discuss them; (4) experiences in the arts provide opportunities for students to learn as much about themselves as they do about the subject matter; (5) provide students with opportunities to develop a craft while exploring originality and analytical thinking; (6) lead students to new ways of solving problems through unique challenges in the arts, both mental and physical; (7) employ modern technology to encourage imaginative use of artistic material; (8) arts specialists are educators who are also skilled in at least one arts discipline; (9) enriching the experiences of all children as they study literature, history, geography, foreign languages, math, or science is a gift arts specialists offer the school; and (10) a major asset of the arts in education is to make schools a more engaging learning environment. The importance of this article is that it gives parents and teachers a resource to look at to what is being taught or what you are going to be teacihng students in the classrrom about creative arts and crafts.


text: User talk:216.126.204.32

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

title: User talk:216.126.204.32


text: User talk:66.169.233.13

title: User talk:66.169.233.13


text:
Talk:Romney Marsh

Untitled
I felt that the article as it stood had many fairly basic misconceptions:
 * the Marsh covers both Kent & East Sussex
 * it is made up of several parts
 * its geophysical factors - ie the joint effects of the shingle build-up and man's intervention were not appreciated: flooding is NOT the chief cause of its coming into being as was hinted at, quite the opposite.

It also merely mentioned the importance of sheep; and the military presence.

I have also added a couple of new sections.

There may well be things that could now be added to some of the sections, which of course is anyone's prerogative!!!!

Peter Shearan 07:17, 8 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Windfarms
There are, obviously, two sides to this argument, it would be good if you could 'reference' any points e.g David Bellamys statement or DTI reports. I'm interested in where the Brenzett school report came from.

The arguments about windfarms are not unique to the Marsh, however I was concerned about the changes that had been made what I originally wrote on this subject, the changes misrepresent the factual position. I have redrafted this section with a link to a relevant website. There is a reference on this site to the cynical manipulation of school children by opponents of the windfarm.

I think that opponents of windfarms tend to misunderstand arguments in the environmental community about windfarms, 'environmentalists' are generally in favour of renewable energy and any difference of opinion is generally about siting. I have addded a reference to an interesting piece of Danish research on this issue. I have added a few links to news articles and other websites to add background to the wind farm issue. this is controversially locally, and as Polly Toynbee's article makes clear, may be influenced by the 4 old fashioned nuclear reactors on the Marsh, at Dungeness.

I am disappointed that a vandal has been let loose on this page and removed many of my referenced points from the article about the windfarm and the landscape. I guess he has not been to other parts of the UK or worked as a professional in landscape and conservation, otherwise he would not have posted some of his comments. There are two sides to an arguement but removing science - poor. he says that most people in the Uk are against windfarms on Romney Marsh, no evidence is given! in fact most people in the Uk are in favour. the problem with siteing is that due to the open nature of the UK planning process in the Uk un-representative 'local' groups hijack arguments and, in most cases, mis-represent the arguments.

In terms of landscape, Romney marsh is a working landscape, it always has been, its just that some who oppose are not landscape historians and only have the rosy glow of memory to support their 'argument'. __ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ REPLY to the above Comment:

The fallacy of the above is demonstrated in its very wording, by stating "most people in the UK are in favour" tacked onto the sentence about Romney Marsh, and also by suggestion his or her article is well referenced. Firstly, there is no evidence anywhere in his writing, let alone any references in support, that most people inthe UK are in favour of the Romney Marsh project. It is an obvious truism (and there has never been any suggestion against the proposition) that most people in the UK support windfarms and indeed it can be said it is a misnomer of him to suggest there is an anti-windfarm lobby. The argument is about the ''siting of the windfarm. This is the issue. The person making the amendments seems to avoid this and simply try to deal with whether windfarms are a good or bad thing, and to prevent argument and counter argument to be presented on this page as to the only issue, which is as to siting.

Of course Romney Marsh is a working environment as I am happy to agree. The problem with the previous person's commentary and amendments is that he uses that description to then imply it can be destroyed - does he suggest therefore that Fords Dagenham should therefore be implicity allowed to set up on Romney Marsh because its a working landscape ?. Of course not. He may simply not like the landscape of gentle and rare countryside, and certain other exceptional features of Romney Marsh - that's his right (his comparisions with bland features of Lincolnshire seem to  suggest his lack of knowledge of much of the Romney Marsh and its surrounding area - but that's his right). His use of terms such as "rosy glow of memory" "vandal" "some local" are as unhelpful in debate as his apparent arrogance in relying on the term "professional".

Sadly, the article on the siting of the windfarm on Romney Marsh has now been reduced to a bland formulaic pro-windfarm advert, with no insight into the issue as to its siting.

cb 24/8/06

comments on the above. I apologise about some of my comments, I had initially tried to be informational in the piece i added, but many of the changes were plain wrong.Given the type of changes that had been made, it was useful to ensure that the reader had adequate background to the issues.

I guess that the person above has not followed the references I have provided on public attitudes and to the nature of much of much of the oppostion. the siting issue was considered by the enquiry and the Government made, in my view, the right decision. The Marsh is flat and there is little in the way of obstruction to cause turbulence, ideal conditions for a windfarm. This is one of the reasons that offshore windfarms are are now being built. The only scientific grounds that were relevant was the the effect it might have on the SSSI through birdstrike, science from Denmark (another deleted link) has shown that this had been overstated as a risk to populations. Turbines are a threat to sea eagles and other long lived species that replenish population levels slowly. The other key wildlife interest on the Marsh are the plants and inverts that live in the ditches, hard to see how the windfarm will damage these! The real threat to Marshland ecology comes from vehicles and modern farming.

I am a Marsh resident and I love the landscape - its why I live here after all, but I have also lived elsewhere in the UK and have a realistic view about the impact this development will have on the landscape. I would object to siting this kind of development in the Weald AONB or parts of the Sussex or Kent Downs, for example. I have also lived in Lincolnshire, which in certainly not uniformly 'bland' and can be 'grand' and un-bland, anyone who has seen how impressive the Wolds look from the Rheatic cliffs near Gainsborough will agree, as will anyone who has enjoyed the seascapes of the Wash or the Wolds themselves. On the Marsh, I love the coast and the views back to Kent and the views from the Isle of Oxney, no one,apart from the owner, could say that they enjoy looking at the large arable fields full of wheat or potatoes and the large dust clouds they produce at harvest time or claim that they are unique ? Harvest Dust is also a problem in Lincolnshire!

Anyone who has studied landscape issues, as I have, will realise that peoples views are not scientific and very subjective. As an example, Ruskin railed against the Monsall vaiduct in the Peak district when they built the railway in the 19th century, this is now one of the main tourist attractions in the Peak park. I would certainly not advocate building a car factory here and a windfarm does not have the implications for land that such a development would. However, the closure of the Potato factory, due to the loss of the Tesco contract, was a body blow to many in New Romney and I am sure that the unemployed in the local towns (often from families that used to work on the land) could be persuaded to support any development that brought jobs to the area. I think that this is being exploited by the owner of the airport to hugely expand operations there, again, this is a real threat to the Marsh.

In my view, local politicians did zero research when they took up their position on the windfarm issue and listened to a few activists and certainly did not consult thoroughly with their electorate. Shepway (I think) ignored the advice of their planning officials. I do not recall being consulted by my local Town council (for which I pay a huge annual amount on my council tax) when they said 'we' opposed the development and would question how representative their views were of 'us'. I noted that local politicians are also supportive of the airport development, a real threat.

sheep
took out this paragraph (from Romney Marsh sheep) which seems to have nothing to do with sheep

 * If you cut a cake in half, it is no longer a cake but two halves. If you cut it again in quarters, it is only four quarters. The Marshes are unique, one of the few truely undeveloped areas left in the UK, of outstanding natural beauty.
 * By diminishing the its value by arguing for its future in terms of fair debate, you are trivialising it as an environment and an experience. It is being divided and quartered by the argument and imposition of these windmills, and what was one of the truly honest areas of undeveloped natural space has been violated by the vulgarity of commercial interests which are excessive in their presence, and demonstrate a lack of empathy with the environment. Sometimes lack of compromise is the most benificial contribution. My experience of this wonderful area has been devalued, and I feel abused by it. Place the windmills out in the sea - let the birds have their place unmolested. If you have to have these machines, place them in town centres, serving those who need the energy, and who have little interest in nature. Perhaps by the Tesco store in Ashford would be a more appropiate area.

09:30, 29 September 2006 (UTC)

iN MY HUMBLE OPINION
I am puzzled by wind farms on land, they seem ineffective when compared to wind at sea. the power generated tend's to be quite insignificant when compared with the expense to build the 300 feet windmills, 26 of then you know.

Appearence...Well they could be considered bland when compared to a wooden grain windmill but then romney marsh is bland, flat and also unique and exciting.

You get the idea that you could walk forever and still be no closer to your destination. Just as on land wind farms are apparently no closer to solving electricty problems. (PAUL Mcd pa1mcd@yahoo.co.uk)

Basic question
Why "the" Romney Marsh - I've known the area since I was a kid, and it's never been called "the" Romney Marsh, it has always had its own proper noun, "Romney Marsh". Maelli (talk) 11:27, 6 July 2011 (UTC)

Needs a map
I came here to see where Romney Marsh was, and had to go elsewhere to find a map. For any location article, a map should the the first thing on the list. MarkinBoston (talk) 04:52, 13 August 2012 (UTC)

I quite agree. An article about a geographic area with no map is fairly pointless. Incidentally, in the 'Reclamation' section there is a link to a map that sounds very interesting ("NB a map in the *Romney Marsh Gazetteer shows the stages clearly."), but this link goes to the Tesco broadband site! More pointless vandalism? I can't find any such Romney Marsh Gazetteer, so I have been unable to restore the link. I hope someone can do so soon as I'd very much like to see this map. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.31.182.192 (talk) 20:23, 11 July 2013 (UTC)

I've added a map. As you seem interested would you like to have a go at adding more info into the info box? Just click edit this page and look for  {{Infobox UK place --Aspro (talk) 22:46, 12 July 2013 (UTC)

title: Talk:Romney Marsh


text:
Bat falcon

The bat falcon (Falco rufigularis) is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Mexico, Central America, Trinidad, and every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.

Taxonomy and systematics
The bat falcon was long known as Falco albigularis; the names Falco fusco-coerulescens or Falco fuscocaerulescens, long used for the aplomado falcon (F. femoralis), are now believed to refer to the present species.

The bat falcon has these three subspecies:

 * F. r. petoensis Chubb, 1918
 * F. r. rufigularis Daudin, 1800
 * F. r. ophryophanes (Salvadori, 1895)

Some authors maintain that F. r. petoensis and F. r. ophryophanes are not subspecies but clinal variations in plumage. Others add a fourth subspecies F. r. petrophilus that is usually included in petoensis. Yet others assign only two subspecies, the nominate F. r. rufigularis and F. r. petrophilus.

The bat falcon and the orange-breasted falcon (F. deiroleucus) share plumage and vocal characteristics and may be sister species. Those two appear to be closely related to the aplomado falcon (F. femoralis).

Description
The bat falcon is 23 to 30 cm long. Males weigh 108 to 150 g and have a wingspan of 51 to 58 cm. Females weigh 177 to 242 g and have a wingspan of 65 to 67 cm. They have long wings and a longish tail with a square tip. The sexes have similar plumage. Adults have blue-black head and upperparts with grayish edges on the feathers from the upper back to the uppertail coverts. Their throat, upper breast, and sides of the neck are white to buff, sometimes with some cinnamon; the rest of their breast is black with fine white bars. Their belly, thighs, and undertail coverts are chestnut-rufous. Their tail is blackish with thin white or grayish bars and a white or buff tip. The underside of their wings is black with fine white bars. Their cere and bare skin around the eye are bright yellow, their iris black-brown, and their legs and feet orange-yellow. Juveniles are duller and browner than adults, with a buffier throat, a tawny tinge to the breast's barring, and black bars or spots on the undertail coverts. The three subspecies are similar, differing mainly in the tone of their plumage colors.

Distribution and habitat
The subspecies of the bat falcon are found thus:

 * F. r. petoensis, from northern Mexico south through all of Central America and west of the Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, and extreme northwestern Peru
 * F. r. rufigularis, Trinidad and from eastern Colombia east through Venezuela and the Guianas and south through eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, northern and eastern Bolivia, southern Brazil, and northern Argentina
 * F. r. ophryophanes, central Brazil and adjacent eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, and northeastern Argentina

A juvenile male of subspecies F. r. petoensis wandered to Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in Alamo, Texas, in December 2021, for the only U.S. record of the species. It stayed in the area into early March.

F. r. rufigularis is resident on Trinidad and has been recorded as a vagrant on Tobago.

The bat falcon inhabits tropical forest. It favors unbroken mature forest but also occurs at the forest edge, in gallery forest, on wooded savanna, on cleared land with some remaining trees, and even in suburban and urban areas. In elevation it mostly ranges from sea level to about 1700 m with a single record in Bolivia at about 3250 m.

Movement
The bat falcon is apparently mostly sedentary. However, the records in Texas, at high elevation in Bolivia, on Tobago, and on islands off the Yucatán Peninsula, Honduras, and Panama show a pattern of wandering.

Feeding
Bat falcons perch conspicuously on high, open snags, from which they launch aerial attacks on their prey. They also hunt in sustained flight. Most hunting is around dawn or dusk and often continues well past sunset. Their diet is eclectic; they hunt bats, birds (such as swifts, swallows, hummingbirds, parakeets, tanagers and small water birds), small rodents, snakes, lizards, frogs, and large insects such as dragonflies, butterflies, moths, grasshoppers, true bugs, beetles, and hymenopterans. In most areas vertebrates contribute the most to biomass consumed, varying from 66% to 96% in various studies, and birds made up between 32% and 85% of the vertebrates. Invertebrates dominate numerically, and young are fed large numbers of them. Bats generally contribute less than 14% of prey biomass but some pairs seem to specialize in them.

Breeding
The bat falcon's breeding season varies geographically. It spans from February to June in Mexico and northern Central America. It nests in February on Trinidad and probably between October and February in Argentina. Eggs have been noted in March in Venezuela, in April in Guyana, and in August near Manaus, Brazil. Most nests are in tree cavities, either natural or excavated by parrots, and between 10 and 50 m above the ground. Others have been noted in abandoned trogon nest cavities in arboreal termite nests, on cliffs, and on pre-Columbian ruins. The clutch size is two to four eggs. The incubation period is thought to be about 30 days, fledging occurs about 35 to 40 days after hatch, and young are dependent on the parents for at least 12 weeks after fledging. Both sexes incubate the eggs with the female doing at least 75% of the effort and in some areas all of it. Males provide food for incubating females and also most of the food for nestlings.

Vocalization
The bat falcon is vocal "in breeding season, especially near nest, in contacts with other raptors, and even when attacking prey." Its main call is a "rapid shrill screaming" kee-kee-kee.. or kew-kew-kew..; the male's is higher pitched than the female's. Other calls include "an even higher and thinner “tsee-tsee-tsee...”", a "low-intensity “chit” given in contact", and by the female, "a whining or high-pitched wailing call with a wavering quality".

Status
The IUCN has assessed the bat falcon as being of Least Concern. It has an extremely large range and an estimated population of at least a half million mature individuals, though the latter is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. It is "[w]idespread and generally not uncommon in appropriate habitat, it being one of the most widely distributed New World falcons." But it "no longer breeds in several areas where forest extensively transformed to agriculture" and "pesticides [have] unquestionably affected breeding success" in Mexico and Central America.

title: Bat falcon


text:
The Dixie Hummingbirds

The Dixie Hummingbirds are an influential American gospel music group, spanning more than 80 years from the jubilee quartet style of the 1920s, through the "hard gospel" quartet style of gospel's golden age in the 1940s and 1950s, to the eclectic pop-tinged songs of today. The Hummingbirds inspired a number of imitators, such as Jackie Wilson and James Brown, who adapted the shouting style and enthusiastic showmanship of hard gospel to secular themes to help create soul music in the 1960s.

1928–1938
The group was formed in 1928 in Greenville, South Carolina, by James B. Davis and his classmate Barney Parks under the name the Sterling High School Quartet. After seeing the success of other quartet groups and realizing that there was not much work for African Americans in the South outside of low-paying labor jobs, the quartet decided to leave school and pursue their dream of being professional spiritual entertainers. By making this move, they had to change the name of the group to cut ties with the school. Davis recalls how they changed their name to the Dixie Hummingbirds:

"I figured that was the only bird could fly both backwards and forwards. Since that was how our career seemed to be going [laughs], I figure that was a good name, and the guys went along with it"

The Hummingbirds traveled around the South singing spirituals. It was not until 1938 when James Bryant (formerly with the Heavenly Gospel Singers) joined the group that they start to sing Gospel. In September 1939 (Davis disputes the year as being 1938) the Hummingbirds drove to New York using contacts that Bryant had to record with Decca Records.

1938–1939
Bryant abruptly left the group after clashing with it following their return from recording in New York. With engagements picking up, they had to find a replacement and soon heard of Ira Tucker, a young singer from nearby Spartanburg, who became lead singer of the group at the age of 13.

Tucker introduced energetic showmanship – running through the aisles, jumping off stage, falling to his knees in prayer – copied by many quartets that followed. Tucker also took the lead in the stylistic innovations adopted by the group, combining gospel shouting and subtle melismas with the syncopated delivery made popular by the Golden Gate Quartet, as well as adventuresome harmonies, called "trickeration" by the group, in which another member of the group would pick up a note just as Tucker left it off.

1940–1944
As time progressed, the Hummingbirds decided to move up north as part of the Great Migration. The North provided better opportunities and was better in dealing with justice for African Americans. In 1941, the Hummingbirds moved to Washington, D.C., where Davis had an Aunt with whom they could stay. The group would eventually go to Philadelphia, where Barney Parks' father lived. Most importantly, they were promised work from Charlie Newsome, a booking agent they had met in Jacksonville, who had been managing a group called the Royal Harmony Singers.

In 1942, the Hummingbirds would make the move north with James Davis, Barney Parks, Ira Tucker, Wilson Baker and William Henry. Charlie Newsome arranged an audition for the Hummingbirds with John Hammond, an unofficial musical director for the Café Society in New York. Hammond was looking for a gospel act to work in the club. Impressed with the Hummingbirds, they were given the gig. Hammond did not like the "Dixie" in their name. They changed their name so that they would not convey a suggestion of slavery. At that time they were performing under three names: the Dixie Hummingbirds in churches, the Swanee Quintet in Philadelphia, and the Jericho Quintet at the Café Society. While performing at the Café Society, the Hummingbirds were often backed by Lester Young's sextet. William Henry was drafted into the military in 1943, when William Bobo replaced him. Hammond was fond of Henry and ended their contract with Café Society when he left the group.

1945–1951
Ira Tucker was asked to leave the Hummingbirds and join the Golden Gate Quartet. He told Davis, who urged him to try them out, which he did for a day and a half before deciding he could stay no longer. Barney Parks had to leave the group due to being drafted. Before he left, he helped find a replacement. He found Beachy Thompson of the Willing Four out of Baltimore, who at the time recently opened for the Hummingbirds at their anniversary program. The Hummingbirds signed to Regis Records, which changed its name to Manor Records, owned by Irving Berman, in 1945. In 1946, The Hummingbirds signed a record deal with Apollo Records, a growing New York Based label. Apollo Records also signed Mahalia Jackson.

1952–1959
The Hummingbirds had signed and recorded with Gotham and Okeh Records. They recorded for both labels and did not have any hits from either label. They continued to tour heavily. The Hummingbirds decided that they needed a new label. They went out to Texas the sign and record with Peacock Records under Don Robey.

These recordings proved successful and the Hummingbirds were back in the Billboard charts. Around this time, the Hummingbirds asked Howard Carroll to be a part of the group, replacing Paul Owens. Carroll did not do much singing; he preferred to play the guitar.

1960–1976
The group sang the backup vocals on Paul Simon's "Loves Me Like a Rock", and "Tenderness", from his album There Goes Rhymin' Simon. In 1973, Robey sold Peacock to ABC Records, which released a cover of "Loves Me Like a Rock," produced by Walter "Kandor" Kahn and the group's lead vocalist Ira Tucker, which reached #72 on Billboard Magazine's Top 100 R&B Singles chart. The single also won a Grammy for "Best Soul Gospel Performance." Kahn and Tucker produced an album for ABC entitled We Love You Like A Rock. The album contained Stevie Wonder's "Jesus Children", on which Wonder played keyboards.

William Bobo died On April 28, 1976 from Heart Disease.

1977–present
James Davis retired In 1984, with Joe Williams(Formerly of The Sons Of The Birds) replacing him.

Beachy Thompson died on June 28, 1994.

Guitarist Lyndon Baines Jones joined in 2000.

Carlton Lewis III joined in the 2003, and then sometime after he left but then returned when Ira Tucker got ill.

In 2003, the Hummingbirds were the subject of an award-winning book about their 75-year career span, ''Great God A'Mighty! The Dixie Hummingbirds: Celebrating the Rise of Soul Gospel Music'' by Jerry Zolten. The book was favorably reviewed in The New York Times on February 26, 2003. In February 2008, the first feature-length documentary/concert film featuring the life and history of the Dixie Hummingbirds was released in commemoration of their extraordinary eighty years as performers. The Dixie Hummingbirds: Eighty Years Young has been shown on the Gospel Music Channel and has played at numerous film festivals.

Produced and directed by award-winning filmmaker Jeff Scheftel, and executive produced by University of Hawaii musicologist Jay Junker, the film is now available on DVD, featuring extensive interviews with Ira Tucker Sr., Abraham Rice, Cornell McKnight, Lyndon Jones, Willie Coleman, Torrey Nettles, and William Bright with archival footage, and following the current group as they perform in numerous venues and rehearse under Mr. Tucker's spirited guidance, in their hometown of Philadelphia, and across the vast landscape of America.

Barney Parks died on February 24, 2007.

Ira Tucker Sr. died due to complications from heart disease on the morning of June 24, 2008, at the age of 83. The group continued with the lineup of William Bright, Lyndon Baines Jones, Carlton Lewis III, Torrey Nettles and Cornell McKnight, thereby preserving the legacy left by the original members.

Twin brothers Troy & Roy Smith joined in 2015/2016.

William Bright died on February 4, 2017.

Howard Carroll died on October 17, 2017, at age 92 at an assisted living center in Philadelphia.

Enoch Webster died on November 27, 2020.

Lyndon Baines Jones died on February 17, 2021.

Abraham Rice died on November 26, 2022.

Awards and honors
The Dixie Hummingbirds are recipients of a 2000 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which is the United States' highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.

Grammy Hall of Fame
Recordings inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, which is a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least twenty-five years old, and that have "qualitative or historical significance".

title: The Dixie Hummingbirds


text: Category:British politicians of then-British possessions


text:
Charles Lennox Richardson

Charles Lennox Richardson (16 April 1833 – 14 September 1862) was a British merchant based in Shanghai, Qing Empire who was killed in Japan during the Namamugi Incident. His middle name is spelled Lenox in the census and family documents.

Merchant
Richardson was born in London in 1833. He relocated to Shanghai in 1853 to seek his fortune in the China trade. In 1862, Richardson announced his retirement, and was en route back to England when he stopped over at the treaty port of Yokohama in September 1862.

Namamugi Incident
After Richardson met Woodthorpe Charles Clarke, an old friend from Shanghai, they joined fellow merchant William Marshall, and Marshall's sister-in-law Margaret Watson Borradaile to go on a sightseeing ride via nearby Kanagawa town towards the temple of Kawasaki Daishi. While travelling on the Tōkaidō road – the Imperial highway – through the village of Namamugi (now part of Tsurumi ward, Yokohama), the party encountered the retinue of Satsuma regent daimyō Shimazu Hisamitsu (otherwise Shimazu Saburō) heading in the opposite direction. When Richardson approached Shimazu's palanquin too closely, the daimyō's bodyguard attacked the Englishman. Marshall and Clarke were also severely wounded in the incident. Grievously wounded, Richardson fell from his horse a short distance from the attack and was killed with a coup de grâce on the orders of Shimazu.

The British government demanded reparations following the Namamugi Incident but when Shimazu refused to pay the reparations, a squadron of Royal Navy ships bombarded Kagoshima during the brief Anglo-Satsuma War the following year.

Burial
Following an autopsy conducted by William Willis, who had joined the British mission in Japan in 1861, Richardson was buried in a private plot near the Yokohama Foreign Cemetery between the later graves of Marshall and Clarke.

Reception
Several accounts exist regarding the cause of the altercation in which Richardson was killed. Louis G. Perez, Ph.D., Professor of Japanese History at Illinois State University,  in Japan at War: An Encyclopaedia (2013), presents the following: per one account, Lennox and his party were turning their horses around to yield the road when the Satsuma retainers attacked preemptively to maintain the order of the procession; this arose from "the language barrier and the retainers' anti-foreign zeal". Alternatively, it was claimed, Richardson and his cohort forced his way into the procession and were attacked by the retainers, outraged at the disrespect to their lord. In any case, the incident "reflects the widespread anti-foreign sentiment that had emerged among many Japanese people since the country was forced open in 1854." John W. Denney, in Respect and Consideration: Britain in Japan 1853-1868 and Beyond (2011), also emphasises the differing accounts, noting that "the incontestable points are that Shimazu Saburō's samurai killed Richardson and severely wounded Marshall and Clarke". The latter two men, at the official inquest, claimed that although they noticed samurai ahead, they did not know they were part of a daimyō's retinue; on turning a corner, they recognised they were "twelve men deep into the procession and close to the daimyō", but as "none of the party had shouted or gesticulated at the Japanese in front of them", they were "confident that no hostile moves would be made by the samurai." On attempting to turn around, a retainer struck Richardson with his sword, then inflicted a less severe wound on Marshall. Travelling at speed to escape the retinue, the men received further wounds.

The accounts of the men and Mrs Borradaile were the only ones given until 1875, when American E. H. House, a campaigning journalist and writer, published a pamphlet giving the Satsuma version of the incident. House stated that Richardson was "notorious for his violent dealings with Chinese people during his residency in Shanghai", and his reputation had preceded him. He also claimed that, on passing Japanese acquaintances, Richardson's party had asked why they had dismounted (this being customary for the passing of the daimyō), but not taken note of the response. In light of the "inexorable regulation" that "no casual passenger should continue to ride, either upon his horse or in any conveyance, during the occupancy of the road by a dignitary of high station", the Satsuma people felt that Lennox and his companions ought to have observed this. No Japanese would have been permitted to ride through the procession; had Lennox and his companions given no "offence other than that which might have proceeded from ignorance", they would have been unmolested; Richardson "had continued to push his horse in and out of the groups forming the cortége", but had the party advanced in single file (rather than two abreast), "they could have passed uninjured, as others had done before them, and others did after".

In a 2013 article, Historian Folker Reichert claimed that according to Japanese reports at the time, he disrespectfully rode in the middle of the road and even tried to get between the regent's litter and his bodyguards. Per Reichert, just before the incident, after Mrs Borradaile, concerned by signs of hostility from the retinue, begged him not to provoke them, Richardson allegedly said, "I have lived for fourteen years in China. I know how to manage these people." (per Denney, this must have been "four years", as fourteen was not possible) Richardson's uncle was reportedly not surprised about his nephew's demise and blamed him for being reckless and stubborn. Frederick Wright-Bruce, the British envoy to China, remembered Richardson as an "arrogant adventurer".

title: Charles Lennox Richardson


text:
User:Waltholmes

John Paul Goode

Biography

John Paul Goode was one the key geographers in American Geography’s Incipient Period from 1900-1940 (McMaster and McMaster 306). John Paul Goode was born in Stewartville, Minnesota on November 21, 1862. Goode received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota 1889 and his doctorate in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1903. Later on in 1903, he was offered a position as a professor in the Geography Department at the University of Chicago (Haas and Ward 241, 243). Evil Mercator

In 1908, Goode spoke at an American Association of Geographers meeting in Baltimore about the creating an alternative to the “Evil Mercator” (Hass and Ward 244). The Mercator projection has severe distortion at the poles and northern latitudes. Goode merged the Homolographic and Sinusoidal projections at 40°N 44’ 11.8” and S to make the Goode Interrupted Homolosine projection (Stienwand 1). The “homolo” coming from homolographic, and the “sine” originating from sinusoidal. He calculated the latitude where the two projections had the same scale and therefore should be merged by overlaying the two projections on each other. Above and below 40°N 44’ 11.8” and S respectively, the Homolographic projection is used. Between those two latitudes the Sinusoidal projection is inserted. The Interrupted Homolosine projection is a pseudo-cylindrical, equal area projection. Initially, Goode’s Homolosine projection did not have universal appeal. The United States not being at the center of the map challenged the cartographic culture of the time (Schulten 187). Goode's Atlas

Two of Goode’s former students (Leppard and Espenshade), help him create the Goode’s World Atlas. Goode claimed that “[E]very square inch in the map represents the same number of square miles of the earth’s surface as any other square inch in the map”(Schulten 187). By 1928, under failing health and 66 years old, Goode had a heart attack. Sadly, on August 5, 1932, John Paul Goode died at age 69 (Hass and Ward246).

Bibliography

Haas, William H., Ward Harold B. "J. Paul Goode". Annals of the Association of American Geographers 23.4 (1932): 21-246.

McMaster, Robert, McMaster Susanna. "A History of Twentieth-Century American Academic Cartography." Cartography and Geographic Information Science 29.3 (2002): 305-321.

Schulten, Susan. The Geographical Imagination in America, 1880-1950. Chicago & London: The University of Chicago Press, (2001):

Steinwand D.R. Mapping Raster Imagery to the Interrupted Goode Homolosine Projection. USGS 1 Dec. 2003

title: User:Waltholmes


text:
Jay Van Andel

Jay Van Andel (June 3, 1924 – December 7, 2004) was an American billionaire businessman, best known as co-founder of the Amway Corporation, along with Richard DeVos.

He also served as chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce from 1979 to 1980.

Early life
Jay Van Andel was born on June 3, 1924, to James and Petronilla (Van der Woude) Van Andel in Grand Rapids, Michigan. His grandparents, Christian and Elizabeth had immigrated to America from the Netherlands in 1909.

Van Andel's parents were devout Christians and members of the Christian Reformed Church. Jay credits his Christian background as being foundational for the rest of his life as a Christian. He once wrote, "Christianity involved the living out of Biblical values of honesty, generosity, and respect for others in our everyday life."

Jay attended Grand Rapids Christian High School. Later, Van Andel attended Calvin College and Pratt Business School in Kansas.

When World War II broke out, Jay served as a United States Army Air Force officer. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant and trained crews for B-17 and B-29 bombers that reached the Japanese mainland.

Jay met his wife Betty Jean Hoekstra while on a direct selling house call in the spring of 1951. They married on August 16, 1952.

Amway
While attending the Grand Rapids Christian High School before World War II, Jay Van Andel met Rich DeVos. In 1949, Van Andel and DeVos became distributors of Nutrilite dietary supplements. They added cleaning products including Liquid Organic Cleaner, to their core line of products in 1958. In 1959, the "American Way Association" began in the basements of the Van Andel and DeVos homes, and later that year "Amway Sales Corporation" was formed. A converted service station became Amway's first outside office building in 1960.

Today, Amway is a direct selling multinational company that sells a variety of health, beauty, and home care products. Amway went on to become the largest direct selling company in the world. Amway corporate reports that in 2019, they have over 3 million independent business owners (IBO's) in over 100 countries.

Van Andel Institute
In 1996, Van Andel founded Van Andel Institute with his wife Betty. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and focuses on disease research and science education. Researchers look for ways to better diagnose and treat diseases, primarily cancer and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's. Education programs seek to inspire and prepare students to become the next generation of researchers.

Since 1996, the Van Andel Institute is led by Jay's son, David Van Andel, as Chairman and CEO.

Political activity and philanthropy
A strong supporter of the Republican Party, Van Andel contributed $2 million to the re-election campaign of President George W. Bush, and $475,000 to the Michigan State Republican Party (mostly for state legislature candidates) in 2004 alone. He was noted for his friendship with former President Gerald R. Ford, a native of Grand Rapids, who lamented his death and called him "a great family man and a worldwide leader in the business arena". Steve Forbes wrote, "Whether in business or philanthropy, Van Andel understood that the primary goal was to serve the needs and wants of other people. He exemplified the best of America".

Awards
In 1981, Van Andel received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.

In 1993, Jay Van Andel was honored with an Edison Achievement Award for his commitment to innovation throughout his career.

Death
Van Andel and his wife Betty both died in 2004; Betty had Alzheimer's disease, and Jay had Parkinson's.

title: Jay Van Andel


text:
Talk:Jyesthadevan

Untitled
how could he have been the author of a book written the year after he was born?

 * Having reviewed the source from which that bizarre claim was made - it appears that actually he wrote a commentary on the 1501 work, some 50 years later! The source is badly worded VivaEmilyDavies 22:03, 9 Apr 2005 (UTC)

I agree. I have placed a 'disputed' tag on the page Radagast1 02:48, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

Yuktibhasa was written in 1550 and is a commentary on Tantra-samgraha (1501). Compare in: http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Nilakantha.html

title: Talk:Jyesthadevan


text:
Geography of Tasmania

Tasmania, the largest island of Australia, has a landmass of 68401 km2 and is located directly in the pathway of the notorious "Roaring Forties" wind that encircles the globe. To its north, it is separated from mainland Australia by Bass Strait. Tasmania is the only Australian state that is not located on the Australian mainland. About 2500 km south of Tasmania island lies the George V Coast of Antarctica. Depending on which borders of the oceans are used, the island can be said to be either surrounded by the Southern Ocean, or to have the Pacific on its east and the Indian to its west. Still other definitions of the ocean boundaries would have Tasmania with the Great Australian Bight to the west, and the Tasman Sea to the east. The southernmost point on mainland Tasmania is approximately -43.64361°N, 146.82722°W at South East Cape, and the northernmost point on mainland Tasmania is approximately -40.64056°N, 144.72583°W in Woolnorth / Temdudheker near Cape Grim / Kennaook. Tasmania lies at similar latitudes to Te Waipounamu / South Island of New Zealand, and parts of Patagonia in South America, and relative to the Northern Hemisphere, it lies at similar latitudes to Hokkaido in Japan, Northeast China (Manchuria), the north Mediterranean in Europe, and the Canada-United States border. The most mountainous region is the Central Highlands area, which covers most of the central western parts of the state. The Midlands located in the central east, is fairly flat, and is predominantly used for agriculture, although farming activity is scattered throughout the state. Tasmania's tallest mountain is Mount Ossa at 1617 m. Much of Tasmania is still densely forested, with the Southwest National Park and neighbouring areas holding some of the last temperate rain forests in the Southern Hemisphere. The Tarkine, containing Savage River National Park located in the island's far north west, is the largest temperate rainforest area in Australia covering about 3800 km2. With its rugged topography, Tasmania has a great number of rivers. Several of Tasmania's largest rivers have been dammed at some point to provide hydroelectricity. Many rivers begin in the Central Highlands and flow out to the coast. Tasmania's major population centres are mainly situated around estuaries (some of which are named rivers).

Tasmania is in the shape of a downward-facing triangle, likened to a shield, heart, or face. It consists of the main island as well as at least a thousand neighbouring islands within the state's jurisdiction. The largest of these are Flinders Island in the Furneaux Group of Bass Strait, King Island in the west of Bass Strait, Cape Barren Island south of Flinders Island, Bruny Island separated from Tasmania by the D'Entrecasteaux Channel, Macquarie Island 1,500 km from Tasmania, and Maria Island off the east coast. Tasmania features a number of separated and continuous mountain ranges. The majority of the state is defined by a significant dolerite exposure, though the western half of the state is older and more rugged, featuring buttongrass plains, temperate rainforests, and quartzite ranges, notably Federation Peak and Frenchmans Cap. The presence of these mountain ranges is a primary factor in the rain shadow effect, where the western half receives the majority of rainfall, which also influences the types of vegetation that can grow. The Central Highlands feature a large plateau which forms a number of ranges and escarpments on its north side, tapering off along the south, and radiating into the highest mountain ranges in the west. At the north-west of this, another plateau radiates into a system of hills where takayna / Tarkine is located.

The Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA) divides Tasmania into 9 bioregions: Ben Lomond, Furneaux, King, Central Highlands, Northern Midlands, Northern Slopes, Southern Ranges, South East, and West.

Environment
Tasmania's environment consists of many different biomes or communities across its different regions. It is the most forested state in Australia, and preserves the country's largest areas of temperate rainforest. A distinctive type of moorland found across the west, and particularly south-west of Tasmania, are buttongrass plains, which are speculated to have been expanded by Tasmanian Aboriginal burning practices. Tasmania also features a diverse alpine garden environment, such as cushion plant. Highland areas receive consistent snowfall above ~1,000 metres every year, and due to cold air from Antarctica, this level often reaches 800 m, and more occasionally 600 or 400 metres. Every five or so years, snow can form at sea level. This environment gives rise to the cypress forests of the Central Plateau and mountainous highlands. In particular, the Walls of Jerusalem with large areas of rare pencil pine, and its closest relative King Billy pine. On the West Coast Range and partially on Mount Field, Australia's only winter-deciduous plant, deciduous beech is found, which forms a carpet or krummholz, or very rarely a 4-metre tree.

Tasmania features a high concentration of waterfalls. These can be found in small creeks, alpine streams, rapid rivers, or off precipitous plunges. Some of the tallest waterfalls are found on mountain massifs, sometimes at a 200-metre cascade. The most famous and most visited waterfall in Tasmania is Russell Falls in Mount Field due to its proximity to Hobart and stepped falls at a total height of 58 metres. Tasmania also has a large number of beaches, the longest of which is Ocean Beach on the West Coast at about 40 kilometres. Wineglass Bay in Freycinet on the east coast is a well-known landmark of the state.

The Tasmanian temperate rainforests cover a few different types. These are also considered distinct from the more common wet sclerophyll forests, though these eucalypt forests often form with rainforest understorey and ferns (such as tree-ferns) are usually never absent. Rainforest found in deep gullies are usually difficult to traverse due to dense understorey growth, such as from horizontal (Anodopetalum biglandulosum). Higher-elevation forests (~500 to 800 m) have smaller ground vegetation and are thus easier to walk in. The most common rainforests usually have a 50-metre canopy and are varied by environmental factors. Emergent growth usually comes from eucalyptus, which can tower another 50 metres higher (usually less), providing the most common choice of nesting for giant wedge-tailed eagles.

The human environment ranges from urban or industrial development, to farming or grazing land. The most cultivated area is the Midlands, where it has suitable soil but is also the driest part of the state.

Insularity
Tasmania's insularity was possibly detected by Captain Abel Tasman when he charted Tasmania's coast in 1642. On 5 December, Tasman was following the east coast northward to see how far it went. When the land veered to the north-west at Eddystone Point, he tried to keep in with it but his ships were suddenly hit by the Roaring Forties howling through Bass Strait. Tasman was on a mission to find the Southern Continent, not more islands, so he abruptly turned away to the east and continued his continent-hunting.

The next European to enter the strait was Captain James Cook on HMS Endeavour in April 1770. However, after sailing for two hours westward into the strait against the wind, he turned back east and noted in his journal that he was "doubtful whether they [i.e. Van Diemen's Land and New Holland] are one land or no".

The strait was named after George Bass, after he and Matthew Flinders passed through it while circumnavigating Van Diemen's Land in the Norfolk in 1798–99. At Flinders' recommendation, the Governor of New South Wales, John Hunter, in 1800 named the stretch of water between the mainland and Van Diemen's Land "Bass's Straits". Later it became known as Bass Strait.

The existence of the strait had been suggested in 1797 by the master of Sydney Cove when he reached Sydney after deliberately grounding his foundering ship and being stranded on Preservation Island (at the eastern end of the strait). He reported that the strong south westerly swell and the tides and currents suggested that the island was in a channel linking the Pacific and southern Indian Ocean. Governor Hunter thus wrote to Joseph Banks in August 1797 that it seemed certain a strait existed.

Climate

Tasmania has a relatively cool temperate climate compared to the rest of Australia, spared from the hot summers of the mainland and experiencing four distinct seasons. Summer is from December to February when the average maximum sea temperature is 21 °C and inland areas around Launceston reach 24 °C. Other inland areas are much cooler, with Liawenee, located on the Central Plateau, one of the coldest places in Australia, ranging between 4 °C and 17 °C in February. Autumn is from March to May, with mostly settled weather, as summer patterns gradually take on the shape of winter patterns. The winter months are from June to August, and are generally the wettest and coldest months in the state, with most high lying areas receiving considerable snowfall. Winter maximums are 12 °C on average along coastal areas and 3 °C on the central plateau, as a result of a series of cold fronts from the Southern Ocean. Inland areas receive regular freezes throughout the winter months. Spring is from September to November, and is an unsettled season of transition, where winter weather patterns begin to take the shape of summer patterns, although snowfall is still common up until October. Spring is generally the windiest time of the year with afternoon sea breezes starting to take effect on the coast.

Soil

Despite the presence of some Quaternary glaciation, Tasmania's soils are not more fertile than those of mainland Australia, largely because most are severely leached and the areas with driest climates (least leaching) were unaffected by glaciation or alluvia derived therefrom. Most soils on the Bass Strait Islands, the east coast and western Tasmania are very infertile spodosols or psamments, with some even less fertile "lateritic podzolic soils" in the latter region. Most of these lands are thus not used for agriculture, but there is much productive forestry in Tasmania—which remains one of the state's major industries.

On the north coast, apart from some relatively fertile alluvial soils used for fruit-growing, there are also deep red, easily workable soils known as "krasnozems" ("red land"). These soils are highly acidic and fix phosphate very effectively, but their extremely favourable physical properties make them extensively used for dairying, beef cattle and fodder crops.

The Midlands and the Lower Derwent present a different story from the rest of the state. Owing to a relatively dry climate and alkaline (mostly dolerite) parent material, these soils are relatively unleached and contain lime in the deeper subsoil. They are mostly classified as "prairie soils" or "brown earths" and bear some resemblance to the chernozems of Russia and North America, although they are much lower in available phosphorus and somewhat acidic in the surface levels. Their higher nutrient levels, however, allow them to support productive pasture, and large numbers of sheep are grazed in these regions. Some grain crops are also grown in the driest areas. In the alluvial areas of southeastern Tasmania, rich alluvial soils permit apples to be grown.

Tasmania became known as the "Apple Isle" because for many years it was one of the world's major apple producers. Apples are still grown in large numbers, particularly in southern Tasmania.

Flora and fauna
Tasmania has extremely diverse vegetation, from the heavily grazed grassland of the dry Midlands to the tall evergreen eucalypt forest, alpine heathlands and large areas of cool temperate rainforests and moorlands in the rest of the state. Many species are unique to Tasmania and some are related to species in South America and New Zealand through ancestors which grew on the supercontinent of Gondwana, 50 million years ago. Nothofagus gunnii, commonly known as Australian beech, is Australia's only temperate native deciduous tree and is found exclusively in Tasmania. Eucalyptus regnans (mountain ash) is the tallest flowering plant and hardwood in the world, reaching 100 m (328 ft).

Tasmania also has a number of native edibles, known as bush tucker in Australia.

Tasmania has many endemic species. Some, such as the platypus are larger than their mainland relatives. The island of Tasmania was home to the thylacine, a marsupial which resembled a fossa or some say a wild dog. Known colloquially as the Tasmanian tiger for the distinctive striping across its back, it became extinct in mainland Australia much earlier because of competition by the dingo, introduced in prehistoric times. Owing to persecution by farmers, government-funded bounty hunters and, in the final years, collectors for overseas museums, it appears to have been exterminated in Tasmania. The Tasmanian devil became the largest carnivorous marsupial in the world following the extinction of the thylacine in 1936, and is now found in the wild only in Tasmania. Tasmania was one of the last regions of Australia to be introduced to domesticated dogs. Dogs were brought from Britain in 1803 for hunting kangaroos and emus. This introduction completely transformed Aboriginal society, as it helped them to successfully compete with European hunters, and was more important than the introduction of guns for the Aboriginal people.

Tasmania is a hotspot for giant habitat trees and the large animal species that occupy them, notably the endangered Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle (Aquila audax fleayi), the Tasmanian masked owl (Tyto novaehollandiae castanops), the Tasmanian giant freshwater crayfish (Astacopsis gouldi), the yellow wattlebird (Anthochaera paradoxa), the green rosella (Platycercus caledonicus) and others. Tasmania is also home to the world's only three migratory parrots, the critically endangered Orange-bellied parrot (Neophema chrysogaster), the Blue-winged parrot (Neophema chrysostoma), and the fastest parrot in the world, the swift parrot (Lathamus discolor). Tasmania has 12 endemic species of bird in total.

Conservation
Like the rest of Australia, Tasmania suffers from an endangered species problem. In particular, many important Tasmanian subspecies and world-significant species of animal are classified as at risk in some way. A famous example is the Tasmanian devil, which is endangered due to devil facial tumour disease. Some species have already gone extinct, primarily due to human interference, such as in the case of the thylacine or the Tasmanian emu. In Tasmania, there are about 90 endangered, vulnerable, or threatened vertebrate species classified by the state or Commonwealth governments. Because of a reliance on roads and private vehicle transport, and a high concentration of animal populations divided by this development, Tasmania has the worst (per kilometre) roadkill rate in the world, with 32 animals killed per hour and at least 300,000 per year.

Protected areas of Tasmania cover 21% of the island's land area in the form of national parks. The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) was inscribed by UNESCO in 1982, where it is globally significant because "most UNESCO World Heritage sites meet only one or two of the ten criteria for that status. The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) meets 7 out of 10 criteria. Only one other place on earth—China’s Mount Taishan—meets that many criteria". Controversy surrounds the decision in 2014 by the Abbott federal Liberal government to request the area's delisting and opening for resource exploration (before it was rejected by the UN Committee at Doha), and the current mining and deforestation in the state's Tarkine region, the largest single temperate rainforest in Australia.

title: Geography of Tasmania


text:
Talk:Topsail

Words fail me that anybody would think this is a reasonable Wiktionary definition. Why not just transwiki the whole encyclopedia? They're all just "definitions", right? Geez... Stan 07:32, 8 Dec 2004 (UTC)

"double topsail" = 4 square sails on each mast?
Am I getting this right? A mast with split topsails has at least 4 square sails? Because if they are only 3, they are the course sail, a single topsail, and a topgallant sail? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Abu ari (talk • contribs) 09:20, 1 May 2007 (UTC).

title: Talk:Topsail


text:
Josh Kelley

Joshua Bishop Kelley (born January 30, 1980) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. Kelley has recorded for Hollywood Records, Threshold Records and DNK Records as a pop rock artist. His songs "Amazing" and "Only You" reached the top ten on the Billboard Adult Top 40 chart.

In 2010, Kelley signed to MCA Nashville and began a country music career. His debut country single, "Georgia Clay", reached the top 20 on the Hot Country Songs charts.

Kelley is married to actress and model Katherine Heigl.

Early life
Kelley was born in Augusta, Georgia to Dr. John W. Kelley, a cardiologist, and Gayle Kelley. Kelley began his musical career at the age of 11. His younger brother, Charles Kelley, is a musician and singer in the country trio Lady A. When he was a teenager, Kelley and his brother Charles formed a band called Inside Blue. By the time he was 14, the band released a CD with five songs on it, which led to a meeting with James Brown. Kelley played the guitar in the high school jazz band alongside Charles (drums) and Dave Haywood (guitar) from Lady A.

Kelley attended the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi, and is a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity.

Music career
Kelley released his independent album, Changing Faces, in 2001 and signed with Hollywood Records in 2002. Working with John Alagia as his record producer, Kelley released the album, For the Ride Home, on June 3, 2003.

Even though Kelley has stated that the lyrics from his song "Angeles" were fabricated, he moved to Los Angeles from Georgia and recorded the majority of his second album, Almost Honest, in the studio of his home. Almost Honest was released on August 23, 2005, and featured the hit single, "Only You."

After asking to be released from his contract with Hollywood Records, Kelley released his third album, Just Say The Word under his own label, Threshold. The digital version of the album was released through iTunes on June 6, 2006, while the physical album was released in stores in the United States on July 25, 2006. "The Pop Game" was the first single from his self-produced album and was accompanied by a cartoon video.

Kelley's next album, Special Company, was released in the United States on January 14, 2008. His label, Threshold, was renamed DNK Records so as to avoid confusion with another record label by the same name. Kelley also released a digital album that summer titled Backwoods on July 7. On September 23 of that year, Kelley released the album To Remember exclusively through Target stores. The title track was also included on the AT&T Team USA Soundtrack.

Kelley is a supporter of file sharing applications for independent artists who have a difficult time receiving an audience. In fact, Kelley was "found" after targeting Eric Clinger at Hollywood Records with private spam, "If you like James Taylor, Try Josh Kelley," messages using the Napster program.

In November 2009, Kelley signed with MCA Nashville and began recording his first country album in 2010. The album's first single, "Georgia Clay", was released to country radio in August 2010. The single became a Top 20 hit on the Hot Country Songs chart. The album, also entitled Georgia Clay, was released in March 2011.

Kelley released the album New Lane Road in 2016.

Concert tours

 * Supporting
 * Revolution Tour  with Miranda Lambert (2011)
 * Own the Night Tour  with Lady A (2011)
 * The Driver Tour  with Charles Kelley (2016)

Personal life
Kelley met actress Katherine Heigl in spring 2005 when she appeared in his music video "Only You". One year later, in June 2006, they became engaged. He wrote the song "Hey Katie" for Heigl. The Heigl-Kelley wedding took place on December 23, 2007, at the Stein Eriksen Lodge in Park City, Utah. Heigl's Grey's Anatomy co-stars T.R. Knight, Sandra Oh, Ellen Pompeo and Justin Chambers attended the ceremony, as well as Grey's Anatomy spinoff series Private Practice star Kate Walsh. The ceremony was officiated by Unitarian minister Tom Goldsmith. Heigl walked down the aisle to an acoustic song written by Kelley and performed by a cello and guitar players. The couple wrote their own vows.

During a taping of Live With Regis and Kelly, Heigl stated that she and Kelley chose not to live together before they were married, saying, "I think I just wanted to save something for the actual marriage... I wanted there to be something to make the actual marriage different than the dating or the courtship."

In 2009, the couple adopted a South Korean baby girl, naming her Nancy Leigh, after Heigl's mother and her adopted, Korean-born older sister, respectively. Nancy Leigh's nickname is Naleigh. Nancy Leigh was born with a congenital heart defect that was repaired with open heart surgery before she left South Korea. Kelley and Heigl adopted a second daughter, Adalaide Marie Hope, in April 2012.

In addition to their two daughters, Josh Kelley and Katherine Heigl have a son, Joshua Bishop Kelley Jr., born December 20, 2016.

Kelley, Heigl, and their children live in Oakley, Utah.

title: Josh Kelley


text:
John Paul Goode

John Paul Goode (21 November 1862 – 5 August 1932), a geographer and cartographer, was one of the key geographers in American geography's Incipient Period from 1900 to 1940 (McMaster and McMaster 306). Goode was born in Stewartville, Minnesota on November 21, 1862. Goode received his bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota 1889 and his doctorate in economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1903. Goode got his first teaching job at Moorhead Normal School in 1889 where he taught geology, chemistry, physics, anatomy, botany and physiology. He married Ida Katherine Hancock, a physiology and arithmetic instructor at the school since 1897, in 1901 in Crookston, MN. By late 1901, Goode and Ida moved to Charleston, IL as a member of the faculty at Eastern Illinois State Normal School (now Eastern Illinois University), where he taught physics and geography (Eastern Illinois University iv). Later on in 1903, he was offered a position as a professor in the Geography Department at the University of Chicago (Haas and Ward 241, 243).

Evil Mercator
In 1908, Goode spoke at an American Association of Geographers meeting in Baltimore, USA about the creating an alternative to the “Evil Mercator” (Hass and Ward 244). The Mercator projection has severe distortion at the poles and northern latitudes. Goode merged the homolographic and sinusoidal projections at 40° 44’ 11.8” N and S to make the Goode Interrupted Homolosine projection (Stienwand 1). The “homolo” coming from homolographic, and the “sine” originating from sinusoidal. He calculated the latitude where the two projections had the same scale and therefore should be merged by overlaying the two projections on each other. Above and below 40° 44’ 11.8” N and S respectively, the homolographic projection is used. Between those two latitudes the sinusoidal projection is inserted. The Interrupted Homolosine projection is a pseudo-cylindrical, equal area projection. Initially, Goode's Homolosine projection did not have universal appeal. The United States not being at the center of the map challenged the cartographic culture of the time (Schulten 187).

Goode's Atlas
Two of Goode's former students (Leppard and Espenshade) helped him create Goode's School Atlas (later retitled Goode's World Atlas), first published in 1923 by Rand McNally. Goode claimed that “[E]very square inch in the map represents the same number of square miles of the earth's surface as any other square inch in the map” (Schulten p187). The atlas is still published today, now in its 23rd edition.

By 1928, under failing health and 66 years old, Goode had a heart attack.

In 1930, seeing that technology had made the political framework of the United States redundant (a framework laid down when it took a courier on horseback one full day to traverse a county), Goode presented a plan for a new 50 state union to replace the then 48 states. 31 of the existing states were to be retained, 17 would be converted to 8 and to these would be added 11 city-states comprising the largest metropolitan areas of the time. (Chase 256).

On August 5, 1932, John Paul Goode died at age 69 (Hass and Ward p. 246).

title: John Paul Goode


text:
Frank Bell (governor)

Francis Jardine Bell (January 28, 1840 –February 13, 1927) was a British North America-born American politician who was the sixth governor of Nevada. He was a member of the Republican Party.

Biography
Bell was born on January 28, 1840, in Toronto, in the province of Upper Canada (a British colony at the time; Confederation would not be achieved until another 27 years after his birth). He was educated in the common schools of his native country. He was a distant cousin to Alexander Graham Bell. He married Mary Poore on July 9, 1872, in Reno, Nevada and they had two children.

Career
Bell came to Nevada in 1858, to supervise the construction of a transcontinental telegraph line though the state from Utah to California. He worked on this project until 1860. Later, Bell became a telegraph operator and was one of operators who telegraphed Nevada's Constitution to Washington D.C. in 1864.

Bell served as warden of the Nevada State Prison from 1883 to 1887. In 1889, he was appointed the eighth lieutenant governor by Charles C. Stevenson. He became acting governor when Governor Stevenson signed a disability certificate on September 1, 1890, making him Nevada's first foreign-born governor. During his tenure, he continued to carry out the policies of the Stevenson administration.

Bell did not seek a full term, serving until the inauguration of Roswell K. Colcord in 1891. He then returned to his work in the telephone and telegraph field. He continued to be politically active. He served as Warden of the Nevada State Prison from 1893 to 1895 and as justice of the peace from 1905 to 1909.

Death
Bell died on February 13, 1927, in his daughter's home in Oakland, California, at the age of 87. He is interred at Masonic Memorial Gardens in Reno, Nevada.

title: Frank Bell (governor)


text:
Hayashi Tadasu

Count Hayashi Tadasu, GCVO (林 董) was a Japanese career diplomat and cabinet minister of Meiji-era Japan.

Early life
He was born Satō Shingoro in Sakura city, Shimōsa Province (present-day Chiba prefecture), as the son of Satō Taizen, a physician practising "Dutch medicine" for the Sakura Domain. He sometimes referred to himself as "Satō Tosaburō". He was adopted as a child by Hayashi Dokai, a physician in the service of the Tokugawa shogunate, from whom he received the name Hayashi Tadasu. He learned English at the Hepburn Academy (the forerunner of Meiji Gakuin University) in Yokohama.

From 1866 to 1868, Hayashi studied in Great Britain at University College School and King's College London as one of fourteen young Japanese students (including Kikuchi Dairoku) sent by the Tokugawa government on the advice of the then British foreign minister Edward Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby.

Hayashi returned home in the midst of the Boshin War of the Meiji Restoration, and joined with Tokugawa loyalists led by Enomoto Takeaki, whom he accompanied to Hokkaidō with the remnants of the Shogunate Army and its Navy. He was captured by the Imperial forces after the final defeat of the Republic of Ezo at the Battle of Hakodate and imprisoned in Yokohama.

Released in 1871 by Kanagawa governor Mutsu Munemitsu, he was recruited to work for the Meiji government in 1871, and because of his language abilities and previous overseas experience was selected to accompany the Iwakura Mission to Europe and the United States in 1871–1873.

Government officer
Being a member of the Iwakura Mission in the Britain, he was instructed by Yamao Yozo to arrange appointment of the teaching staff for the Engineering Institution (Japan) in the end of 1872. He returned home with the staff led by Henry Dyer as the principal, and endeavoured to set up the Imperial College of Engineering, Tokyo as an officer of the Engineering Institution of the Ministry of Public Works.

Personal life
In 1875, he married Gamo Misao (1858 – 1942). They had a daughter and a son, Kiku and Masanosuke.

Hayashi became a master mason in 1904, initiated in 1903 in Empire Lodge No. 2108, in London. He resigned from the lodge in 1907.

Political career
After the Ministry of Public Works was abolished, he moved to the Ministry of Post and Telecommunication, then was appointed governor of Kagawa Prefecture, and then of Hyōgo Prefecture. In 1891, he was appointed Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs. He was elevated to the title of baron (danshaku) in the kazoku peerage in 1895.

Hayashi was appointed as resident minister to the court of Qing dynasty China at the Japanese legation in Beijing, then resident minister to Russia in St Petersburg, and finally resident minister to Great Britain. While serving in London from 1900, he worked to successfully conclude the Anglo-Japanese Alliance and signed on behalf of the government of Japan on 30 January 1902. He was elevated to the title of viscount (shishaku) in February 1902. On 2 December 1905 Hayashi became the first Japanese ambassador to the Court of St James's, as diplomatic relations were upgraded between the Empire of Japan and the British Empire. He was accompanied by his wife. At that time Sir Claude MacDonald was Hayashi's opposite number in Tokyo.

On becoming Foreign Minister in the first Saionji cabinet in 1906, Hayashi concluded agreements with France (the Franco-Japanese Agreement of 1907) and Russia (the Russo-Japanese Agreement of 1907 and Russo-Japanese Agreement of 1910). He served as Minister of Communications in the second Saionji cabinet and as interim Foreign Minister (1911–12). He was elevated to the title of count (hakushaku) in 1907.

On contracting diabetes, Hayashi retired in 1912, and in June 1913 he fractured his thigh in an accident, resulting in an amputation. Hayashi died a month later, and his grave is at Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo.

Titles

 * Baron (31 October 1895)
 * Viscount (27 February 1902)
 * Count (14 September 1907)

Decorations

 * Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure (31 October 1895)
 * Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (27 December 1899)
 * Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers (1 April 1906)
 * Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) (4 July 1905)

Honorary degrees

 * LL.D. (honorary) University of Cambridge – May 1902
 * D.C.L. (honorary) University of Oxford – June 1902

Order of precedence

 * Third rank (21 July 1901)
 * Senior third rank (May 1910)

title: Hayashi Tadasu


text:
Vladimir Kokovtsov

Count Vladimir Nikolayevich Kokovtsov (Влади́мир Никола́евич Коко́вцов; 18 April 1853 – 29 January 1943) was a Russian politician who served as the fourth prime minister of Russia from 1911 to 1914, during the reign of Emperor Nicholas II.

Early life
He was born in Borovichi, Borovichsky Uyezd, in the Novgorod Governorate on 18 April 1853.

Following graduation from the Imperial Alexander Lyceum in December 1872 Kokovtsov applied for admittance to Saint Petersburg State University to study law on the recommendation of Aleksandr Gradovsky, Nikolai Tagantsev and S. Pakhman, all notable legal authorities of the time. However, his father, who had promised to pay for his education suddenly died leaving the family in strained financial circumstances. As a result, instead of attending university he entered the civil service to provide him and his family an additional income.

Civil service
Kokovtsov was admitted as a candidate for a civil service position in the Imperial Ministry of Justice serving first in the statistical, then the legislative and finally in the criminal office. From 1879 to 1890 he served as Senior Inspector and Assistant Head of the Central Administration of Prisons. This period is noted for its prison reforms formulated by State Secretary K.K. Grot, a senior member of the Imperial State Council. From 1890 to 1896, he served in the State Council as Assistant State Secretary, State Secretary and finally as Assistant Imperial Secretary where he worked primarily on matters reviewed by the Russian Imperial State Council's Department of State Economy.

From 1896 to 1902 he served in one of the three Assistant Minister of Finance positions under Sergei Witte.

After resigning from the position, he served as Imperial Secretary until his appointment as Minister of Finance in 1904.

He resigned the next year when his former superior in the Finance Ministry, Witte, assumed the Chairmanship of the Council of Ministers. Although not a minister, he then played a substantial role in securing a loan that did nothing less than keep the imperial government from having to devalue its currency and leave the gold standard, then the basis of almost all financially stable, secure and modern countries. Kokovtsov returned as Minister of Finance in the cabinets of Ivan Goremykin (1906) and Peter Stolypin (1906–11). Kokovstov was an anti-Semite who believed the problem with Jews was not their 'backwardness' but the fact that they were 'so clever'.

Kokovtsov succeeded Stolypin as Chairman of the Council of Ministers after Stolypin's assassination in 1911, while also maintaining his post as Minister of Finance, and held both offices until his retirement in 1914. Kokovtsov opposed to the appointment of Alexei Khvostov.

In 1912 Kokovtsov asked the tsar to authorize Grigori Rasputin's exile to Tobolsk. Nicholas refused: "I know Rasputin too well to believe all the tittle-tattle about him." Kokovtsov had offered Rasputin a substantial amount of money to leave for Siberia and ordered the newspapers not to mention his name in connection with the Empress. The tsar dismissed Kokovtsov on 29 January 1914 for a "lack of control over the press" . In domestic policy, Kokovtsov's time as prime minister saw the passage of two laws in 1912 that provided accident and sickness insurance to about 20% of workers.

Retirement and later life
Upon retiring, Kokovstov was invested with the title and rank of count. After the February Revolution, he moved to Kislovodsk. After the October Revolution of 1917, he was investigated by the Cheka but escaped with his family to Finland and eventually settled in Paris. He was a leading figure in Russian émigré society until his death on 29 January 1943. In 1933, he published his memoirs, which describe his childhood and education as well as his early years in government service from 1903 to 1919.

Relationship with Sergei Witte
Witte states in his autobiography that while Kokovtsov was serving as one of his assistants, he was left alone to do the business he knew so well and that Kokovtsov was the source of several small but meaningful reforms in the finances of the Russian Empire.

Much was made of Kokovtsov's differences with Witte which resulted in the two refusing to work with one another after 1905–06. The apparent cause of these differences were conflicts over courses of action in the preparation for peace talks with Japan, following the Russo-Japanese War; the changing of the government structure in the wake of widespread political unrest; Witte's opposition to several of Kokovtsov's policies as Minister of Finance during the Russo-Japanese War, and in an important loan negotiation that occurred in 1905–06. The differences were made public in the Council of State when one or the other would make comments in opposition to the other's viewpoint on various issues.

He was awarded Order of the White Eagle, Order of Prince Danilo I. and the Grandcross of Royal Swedish Order of the Pole Star (1897).

title: Vladimir Kokovtsov