text:
Talk:J. P. Patches

Images
I changed the image on the front page to one that seemed more fitting. Still, I like the original one and will preserve it here until someone comes up with a mor fun way to display it. --24.17.217.219 16:56, 30 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Daryl Laub, and the timing of things
Googling around, I found some references saying that Daryl Laub created the J.P. Patches character and/or possibly played him for a few years before Chris Wedes did, possibly at WTCN-TV in the Twin Cities (today KARE). None of the dates and locations seem to mesh properly, though. It's somewhat unclear if both of the men worked in Minnesota as well as in Washington—Laub may have theoretically bounced from WTCN to KIRO and then back to MN to work at KSTP-TV in the space of a few years. Just a factoid to check on. —User:Mulad (talk) 07:17, Dec 30, 2004 (UTC)

 * Alright, I found a decent page with info on this: http://www.tvparty.com/losttwin.html A few bits from this stuff is incorporated in the article now.    —User:Mulad (talk) 00:52, Jan 21, 2005 (UTC)

I remember...
Watching JP Patches for years as a adolescent/pre-teen/teen. One was never too old to watch Julius Pierpont Patches. :) Such fond and wonderful memories! [-- 63.163.28.170 17:57, Nov 30, 2005 (UTC)]

Style
Summary: + txt, cit, so cl, rephrased; see Talk. Explication: See Talk:Seattle, Citing sources.

To reduce so much red in the article, non-existent internal links moved here to Talk. They can be moved back to the article as the pages are created: Sturdley the Bookworm, Esmerelda, Ketchikan the Animal Man, Boris S. Wort, Ggoorrsstt the Friendly Frpl, Gertrude. Bob Newman "Patches Pals", "ICU2TV"  Lunch with Casey  Better, add sub-headings to this article : ) as long as the article isn't too big.

A References section, which contains only citations, helps readers to see at a glance the quality of the references used. (WP: Citing sources # "References" section in addition to "Notes")

See Talk:Seattle, Citing sources. "External Links" -> "Further reading", per MoS. Further reading/external links. "Retrieved [date]", since on-line reference links can break, (per Embedded links).

--GoDot 01:03, 28 May 2006 (UTC)

Accuracy
+ from http://www.olyblog.net/evergroove37 (is there a more formal source, verifiable author and story?), per What sources to cite

Do any previous contributors have sources? --Re. Matt Groening?Citation needed Why. (Not internal : ) (Krusty the Clown seems rather too cynical and jaded for J. P. to've been anything but an antithesis. By today's (Krusty's) standards, J.P.'s girlfriend was a clown butch drag queen : )

Matt Groening states time and again in the DVD commentaries for The Simpsons that Krusty is largleybased on Rusty Nails (Portland's equivalent to JP). However, it should be obvious to the careful observer that many JP references have found their way onto The Simpsons. One example is on an episode featuring Bart's birthday. Bart eagerly awaits to see his name scroll by on the Krusty show. One of those names is none other than JP Patches (you have to watch it one frame at a time to catch it).Bgrin 14:08, 25 August 2007 (UTC)

'Put 'em in, or here in Talk, someone will format if you d'ruther not.

"Mayor of the City Dump" link should be renamed Union Bay Natural Area, where the real City Dump was actually located, 1926-1966.

I totally disagree about the city dump link. It is true that the Former dump was located at the current Union Bay Natural area, but let us not forget: J.P. was a Clown on a TV show. He was the mayor of the dump only in his fictional world - not the mayor of the actual dump. He was still the mayor of the dump after the Union Bay site was closed, after all... I'll give this a while to percolate, but then I'm going to edit this sillyness.Hrmph! 23:49, 18 January 2007 (UTC)

 * With accuracy a Wikipedia goal, the purported fiction of J. P. is by this article put to rest.

--GoDot 01:03, 28 May 2006 (UTC)

 * As a watcher of the program, I don't believe the "City Dump" was intended to represent any particular dump, but "the" city dump. I thought it was the dump in my town & am sure this view was shared by children in every town. rewinn 02:20, 16 February 2007 (UTC)

 * I agree - why not just have a link to the generic "landfill" which is more representative of the concept of "city dump". "...mayor of the city dump..."Gr8white

 * "The city dump was (conceptually if not in reality) the Montlake Landfill (since 1972 athletic fields, car park, and the Union Bay Natural Area of the University of Washington in the University District)." Huh?  This seems to be totally superfluous and has nothing to do with the program I remember.Gr8white

Copyedit
The main article had accumulated research notes that don't really fit in the main article; the TOC was half-way down the page, and the various Patches pals were scattered. I hope to have copyeditted this into a crisp condition. Here are the research notes :

''Research: Character name search of the Internet Movie Database  "The character 'j. p. patches' (using whole word searching) has been played by:  Nobody found with character name 'j. p. patches'".

Wonderful before school children's T.V. with cartoons, end time: 8:30 A.M. JP made appearances at regional schools and events.''

I'm somewhat new as a contributor to Wikipedia, but I question the redirect of Chris Wedes to J.P. Patches... he did other things, including the mad doctor on the late-night horror show in the early 1970s -- it either predated, or was contemporary with Nightmare Theater with Joe Towey. His muse was a skull he called "Pamela". But otherwise he did the same schtick. One was on Friday night, the other on Saturday night as I recall. I think Wedes' version was fairly short-lived, and the Count continued with Nightmare theater on his own?

None of this is mentioned on the Patches page or Nightmare Theater page. And this Wedes role doesn't seem related to the J.P Patches character, which is why it seems like it should have a separate link. Or maybe under Nightmare Theater? I don't remember if Wedes' show used the same or a different name as Towey's. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Professor Hosquith (talk • contribs) 23:43, 29 February 2012 (UTC)

Krusty and JP
You know, I don't mean to quibble, but someone added a citation to the article which supposely states that Krusty is based on JP, yet there is absolutley nothing in that article that references JP, Chirs Wedes or even Seattle. http://www.silverbox.com/krusty/debate1.html

In fact, there are perhaps a dozen theories in this article--some of them pretty wild--and yet no hint of JP anywhere. So, I ask, where is the grand proof in this citation that it was even rumored that Krusty is based even in part on JP?

I suggest this citation be removed for the balderdash that it so obviously is.

The one officially acknowleged JP reference in the Simpsons is in the episode Radio Bart where Bart watches his name (and JP's) name go by on the TV screen on his birthday.````

Christ on a crutch, I cannot believe that some nattering nabob of negativism is still questioning the link between Krusty and J.P.! I was the one who first cited, on Wikipedia, the obvious nods to J.P. on The Simpsons, and, yes, I cited a blurb I wrote myself outlining all the references. Technically, in the Wiki context I'm citing myself, but just follow the footnote to the write-up. Rusty Nails may be the main model for Krusty but the Northwest was a small place back in the early 70's and the culture of Seattle bled down to Stumptown (that's Portland to all you flat-landers), where Groenig grew up. Hell, there was also a character on The Simpsons who was unquestionably a satire on Brakeman Bill (another Seattle-area kid's show host back in the day), so there is no doubt that Groenig or some of the other Simpsons writers have consciously referenced Northwest children's show hosts. Krusty also uses an obvious clone of the ICU2TV gag, a J.P. staple, in one of the early Simpsons episodes.

Chris Wedes (AKA J.P.) worked with my dad at KIRO. I am, this moment, looking at a picture on my desk of me at 14 standing with Chris in J.P. costume on the set of the show. (You can see Esmerelda sitting on a crate at the back.) I watched the show practically every morning when I was a kid. When The Simpsons started running, it was immediately obvious to me--and many other Seattle natives--that J.P. was one of the main models for Krusty.

My dog in this fight is not to insist that I'm right but to note that, unlike Herschel Krustofsky, Chris Wedes was a sweet, nice man. I mean, I get the brutally hilarious satire that is Krusty. But Chris was the total opposite of the stereotype of twisted clowns: he was just a nice KIRO line producer with an odd morning gig. Wabobo3 (talk) 22:27, 23 April 2018 (UTC)

Christine Frost
Thanks 24.18.131.224, whoever you are, for catching my slip in calling Christine Frost Christine Wedes. --Haruo (talk) 12:38, 18 August 2008 (UTC)

Music
The opening theme to J.P.'s show was obviously a mash-up of (Spike Jones' versions of) the William Tell Overture and Dance of the Hours. Less obvious is that the closing theme was a cover version of Neal Hefti's "Tomatoes", from the Odd Couple soundtrack. Asat (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 10:27, 3 December 2011 (UTC).

Gertrude
The article seems to me to suffer from a tremendous undervaluing of Gertrude (Bob Newman). While s/he may not be notable enough to deserve a separate page (I am not sure where the line is to be drawn in such a case), if not then s/he certainly does merit more detailed treatment on the J. P. Patches page than is now found there. --70.57.74.50 (talk) 19:20, 23 July 2012 (UTC) Seriously, the press coverage routinely headlines "J. P. Patches, Gertrude", yet we are given lots of details of Chris Wedes' life and nothing (not even birth year) about Newman. Gross inequality of treatment. Mind you, I love J.P., I'm not saying he doesn't deserve every byte of space he gets. But Gertrude should not be so blithely passed over. --70.57.74.50 (talk) 19:24, 23 July 2012 (UTC)

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General cleanup
I just finished another general cleanup/reorganization, as I've done every couple of years for a decade. The article gets better... then it get cluttered with too many uncoordinated edits. The quality of information gradually, inexorably improves but the readability suffers. Hopefully there are no factual errors this time around, and some stability can be obtained. I agreed with an earlier editorial comment (from user 70.57.74.50) that the great Bob Newman needed some additional call-out, so I added a short section on him. Rock on Gertude! Rcarlberg (talk) 02:37, 24 December 2017 (UTC)

title: Talk:J. P. Patches


text:
Prime Directive (role-playing game)

Prime Directive is a role-playing game set in the Star Trek-derived Star Fleet Universe. The game has gone through two different incarnations.

Prime Directive RPG
The original release of Prime Directive was published by Task Force Games in 1993. Using an in-house design by Mark Costello and Timothy D. Olsen, it used a D6-style system similar to Shadowrun and Star Wars. Aspects of the game include a multi-tiered task resolution system, where characters can achieve 'Complete', 'Moderate', 'Minimal', 'Failure' or 'Botch' levels of success with their actions, and the Character Reputation and Background system that allows characters to “spontaneously” develop skills, abilities, and prior associations appropriate to the mission at hand.

The published books for the game included the core rulebook, a Federation sourcebook. and a few adventure books.

GURPS Prime Directive
After the folding of Task Force Games and the cancellation of the original Prime Directive line, Amarillo Design Bureau, Inc., the new publishers of Star Fleet Universe games, were left with the question of what to do with PD. They were primarily a wargame company, and the poor sales of the supplements were cause for a reexamination. Eventually, they approached Steve Jackson Games to utilize the Powered by GURPS format.

D20 Prime Directive and D20M Prime Directive
The core rulebook, D20 Klingons, D20 Romulans (no D20M as of Aug 2011), and D20 Federation are available for this system. Supplements for the Gorns, Tholians and other empires/races are in various writing stages.

Prime Teams
Prime Teams are a concept pioneered in the original Prime Directive game. The concept is a specialized landing party that can perform a variety of functions, including science, negotiations, and combat. While "Prime Teams" are a Federation designation, nearly every empire has their own equivalent.

Reception
Chris McCubbin reviewed Prime Directive for Pyramid #7 (May 1994) and stated that "My advice to Star Trek fans interested in Prime Directive is to play it, but play it on its own terms, as a good, solid outer space military adventure, without trying to squeeze it into the TV show's mold in every tiny detail. To tell you the truth, the universe of Prime Directive is much more playable than the Star Trek universe anyway, while preserving most of the elements that got trekkies interested in Star Trek in the first place."

Reviews

 * White Wolf #48 (Oct., 1994)
 * Valkyrie #1 (Sept., 1994)

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

title: Prime Directive (role-playing game)


text:
Talk:Relay

Sugestion for External Link
To whoever is "managing" this page, may I suggest an external link to the "Heath Robinson Rube Goldberg (HRRG) Mixed Technology Computer" project at http://www.diycalculator.com/sp-hrrgcomp.shtml. The idea is to create a computer out of a mixture of implementation technologies, including relays, vacuum tubes, transistors, simple integrated circuits, pneumatic logic, magnetic logic, and so forth. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Memyselfmax (talk • contribs) 21 February 2007 (UTC)
 * Just an FYI. No need to ask to add something. The person who is "managing" this page is you (well everyone that is). Good link idea so I am adding it. 69.72.2.72 01:48, 17 March 2007 (UTC)

Contact Rating
There seem to be two ratings for contact current: Carry current and Switching current. I think it would be useful to define these terms.

-JKoether

Italy
hello

I have a problem related to a special tipe of relay, used in Italian railway, called "disk relay".

This tipe of relay has two solenoids, with two SINUSOIDAL currents, I' and I", and the force on an aluminium disk depend on the current intensity and the phase of two currents. The force is proportional on this formula: C= K*I'*I"*sen(a)  (*), where a is the angle of phase between sinusoidal current I' and I".

The couple C must be more than a particolary minimum value: if this is not, the relay go "down", and this is an alarm. This tipe of relay is used to misure the returned current from the field in a circuit that control the free/not free state on a railway track: current I' is local, current I" is from the field.

Due to the presence of the angle a in the couple formula, the retourned current must have a phase angle strictly on a specific range, around 90°.

Well, this description is the antefact, the answer that I don't know is another: If I apply another type of current to the disk relay, for example, not sinusoidal, but for example rectangular pulses, how can I modelized the value of the force C on the disk?

With the Fourier transformer, I can divide the pulses on the disk with more sinusoidal pulse, with frequencies f, 2f, 3f, etc..

I can say that the force C must be C= C(f) + C(2f)+ C(3f)... where each C(f) is the part of the original pulse diveded with the Fourier Transformer, with the formula (*) value for every frequency, with angle a(f), a(2f), a(3f).. ?

This answer could be important to understand if the pulse is not sinusoidal how can I decide the couple.

If everyone knows ideas, could be sended to l.carlino@rfi.it

Thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.222.110.44 (talk • contribs) 30 March 2005 (UTC)

General
The description of the Italian railway relay above sounds like an AC Vane Relay.

These relays are used on electrified railways to detect the presence of trains and operated the signals. Because the power of the traction (1 MW) is so much greater than the power of the track circuit ( 1W ), special precautions must be taken to prevent the traction current swamping the track circuit current leading to a false green. In the AC Vane relay, the track circuit current at the relay has to be in the right phase compared to a reference current, and this provides the necessary immunity.

AC Vane relays are however fairly insensitive, and require undesirable insulared blockjoints and are being replaced by more modern electronic relays, some of which are jointless, such as the CSEE track circuit. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Tabletop (talk • contribs) 27 October 2006 (UTC)

SPDT, DPDT, ETC
Information should be added to the "Relay" article defining the meaning of "poles" and "throws" such as SPDT and DPDT. I would attempt to add it myself but I am fuzzy on it myself.
 * Added the information. Please see if its ok. Rohitbd 12:59, 1 March 2006 (UTC)

The switching information gets lost in the "Types of relay" section and ends up looking like it is a continuation of the types. Should it be broken out into another heading, or just better distinguished and stay here? Regardless, I think it needs something to keep it from being lost in the clutter. --Stangbat 18:33, 8 December 2006 (UTC

Irrelvant Entry
I removed "reed switch" but left reed relay. A reed switch that can detect the presence of a magnet is a sensor Commonly used in security systems to tell if a window has been opened. I also removed "vibrator". It doesn't relay a signal, it generates one. Once common in mobile radios. Bell was also removed.Seán 07:54, 12 March 2006 (UTC)

''Relays may also be operated by heat where a coil heats a bi-metal strip to open contacts, or where a solder pot melts, releasing a spring to operate contacts. Such heat-activated relays are commonly used for motor circuit protection.''

THis does not fit with headline defn and is therofore NOT a relay. How can we handle this one without deleting it I wonder. any suggestions??? Light current 22:48, 4 August 2005 (UTC)

 * Move it to sensor or switch, or both? --Heron 21:30, 5 August 2005 (UTC)

 * I have joined it with contactor. Bi-metallic relays were once common for time-delay circuits - another section. Meggar 02:03, 2005 August 6 (UTC)

 * Are you talking about a klixon? 19:04, 2005 October 25 (UTC)

 * I think Meggar is referring to "overloads". In any event, if it's bi-metallic, it's temperature sensitive and not time sensitive which is what's needed for a time delay.Seán 23:46, 5 March 2006 (UTC)

 * Bi-metallic time-delay relays had a heater that warmed up the strip over some time, after which it would open or close. They were common items once. The "overloads" also involve time to match the heating rate of the motor that they protect. Meggar 00:42, 6 March 2006 (UTC)
 * I've never seen one that I can think of. Could you help with an example? All of the overloads I've ever used required me to look at the data plate of the motor and find the FLA (full load amperage) and select the proper heater that will trip at that current. Electric motors have a short period during startup where they draw "inrush current" which can be ten times their rated current. The overloads are designed to ignore this. Seán 01:20, 6 March 2006 (UTC)
 * The "flasher" or "indicator" unit on Cars (Automobiles for those in the US of A!) certainly up to the 1990s if not beyond - they are made to provide a cyclic output by passing the current for the heating element through the Normally Closed contacts - with the intended side-effect that a reduced current (from one or more failed lamps) reduces the heating effect so that the time the contacts are closed (and the working lamps are lit) is longer and conversely the time they are open (and the driven lamps are NOT lit) is significantly reduced; This change in duty-cycle and "flashing rate" is used to indicate a bulb failure...! SlySven (talk) 11:55, 16 January 2016 (UTC)

My apologies - Meggar pointed out an example I hadn't seen since the sixties. I had forgotten thermal time delay Seán 02:02, 6 March 2006 (UTC)

Circuit symbol
The article does not contain the circuit or schematic symbol of a relay. Rohitbd 12:20, 1 March 2006 (UTC)

 * I will try to find one or draw it myself. Be patient, I just started. I have yet to play with the drawing utility Seán 23:46, 5 March 2006 (UTC)

Added the image showing circuit symbols of relays. Please check if it is ok. Rohitbd 12:59, 1 March 2006 (UTC)

 * It does indeed show the relationship of SPDT as compared to DPDT, however, a relay is usually depicted in the relaxed position. Seán 23:46, 5 March 2006 (UTC)
 * Hmm...although I am not sure what a "relaxed position" means...perhaps you could make that change...? If it is any help, I have used MS-Paintbrush to create the image. Rohitbd 11:20, 6 March 2006 (UTC)
 * The relaxed position is where the contacts would be if the coil is not enegized. In the case of DPDT (double pole - double throw) the NC (normally closed) contacts would be closed. The contacts in the picture are shown midway between energized and relaxed. In a high current application this would cause a lot of arcing. I just printed out the page on how to upload graphic files. Seán 00:20, 8 March 2006 (UTC)
 * Changed the image to reflect the relaxed position. Please see if it is ok. Also, please sign your posts with ~ . Rohitbd 19:38, 7 March 2006 (UTC)
 * There is a drawing somewhere on the relay itself. [] Seán 00:30, 8 March 2006 (UTC)
 * Notice how terminal 5 (common) is shown connected to terminal 1? This is the circuit when the coil is de-energized or relaxed. When the coil is energized or activated, terminal 5 will be connected to terminal 3. The coil is drawn as a zig-zag line. The symbol is similar to the symbol for a resistor. The drawing is simply trying to show a fixed load. The current draw of the coil is consistant no matter what current the contacts are carrying. Also notice how the coil is shown as a separate circuit? This is electrical isolation.Seán 03:01, 8 March 2006 (UTC)

Time Delay
Time delay is mentioned at least twice is this article. There are time delay devices attached to relays. There is "delay on" where the coil is energized and some mechanism holds the contacts completely open for a set time. After the set time, the mechanism lets go of the contacts and the magnetic force of the coil quickly takes the contacts from all the way open to all the way closed. In the delay off style, the coil is relaxed and some mechanism holds the contacts all the way closed for a set time. After the set time, the mechanism lets go of the contacts and the force of the spring carries the contacts from all the way closed to all the way open quickly. There are several different mechanisms. There are clocks and electric motors and dashpots which are small pistons that release fluid slowly. All of them incorporate a trigger that releases the contacts quickly. All of them are time sensitive not temperature sensitive. The copper disc is used on the solenoid/armature of an AC coil. AC current would relax its hold on the contacts 120 times a second as the alternating current passed through zero. The copper disk prevents that. Seán 00:58, 6 March 2006 (UTC)

 * Thermal time-delay relay
 * Yes the copper disk used on all AC relay coils to prevent buzzing, fits around part of the coil to delay the phase of the field and prevent zero flux trouble. There is also a DC dropout time delay done with a copper disk around the entire coil as described in the article. Meggar 01:13, 6 March 2006 (UTC)

Latching relays
Someone needs to do a better job of describing latching relays, especially the simple latching relays that factory machines use (with green start buttons that are recessed and red stop buttons that have to be pulled out to allow restart). Anthony717 23:10, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

What does it mean by "two darned relaxed states"?--24.57.106.78 (talk) 00:21, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

Images
Not that you need it, but here's another image. Fit it in if you want. — Omegatron 06:54, 10 June 2006 (UTC)

Unusual relay
Is there any major application for an unusual thermal (not bimetallic) relay with these properties: High current/low voltage (output) huge operating temperature range (0K - 700K or so; theoretically as high as 2500K with the right materials) operates better the smaller it is; power used is proportional to the cube of its size. Theoretically would use less power than a transistor if you made it with transistor-scale dimensions. As a macroscale device (millimeters across) uses milliwatts of power to switch and stay switched. requires precision manufacturing and/or assembly to .03% of one dimension on a relative scale between two parts. They can both be a little big, or both be a little small, but in the same proportion to .03% of that dimension.Cuberoot31 21:57, 26 October 2006 (UTC)

Transatlantic cable
Can this entry be clarified? Does it really even belong here? From reading the entry on the Transatlantic Cable page I can figure out where the author was headed, but without further explanation, this entry really makes no sense. --Stangbat 20:23, 27 October 2006 (UTC)

 * You're right, thank you. This very interesting receiver is basically a galvanometer; not a relay at all.  I have moved the relevant portion to the speed section of the atlantic cable article (without leaving a link) and deleted portions that would be redundant there.

 * This article also has an excessively long lead. The material about contact types would fit better in one of the sections.
 * Jim.henderson 18:03, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

Anybody help me with some info on timing relays? like the basics, would be helpfull. thanks. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.34.40.93 (talk • contribs)

Noise
You say Contactor relays can be extremely loud to operate, making them unfit for use where noise is a chief concern.

but you don't say if you are referring to the constant buzzing, or the kerchunk upon closing and opening of the circuit. Also see Talk:Contactor. Jidanni (talk) 01:19, 28 February 2008 (UTC)

Symbols
What about a gallery of different symbols to denote relays and their contacts? Tabletop (talk) 09:36, 2 April 2009 (UTC)

Fuel pump relay in the CAR
I have seen these autoelectricians normally removing the relays if there is a problem and making the direct connections. They say it can work without a relay. No problem. As I am not a engineer, I do not understand the consequences of this. Is it safe? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.207.47.60 (talk) 17:46, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Protective Relays
I think that it should be noted that protective relays are classically electromechanical, but more recently are microprocessor based. They compare digital values as opposed to analog current values. 205.162.225.4 (talk) 20:31, 14 May 2009 (UTC)kyle

Relay suppresion
To reduce arcing between the contacts, you can put a resistor in series with a capacitor across the contacts to reduce the arcing. I've used it quite a few times, but only under instruction.

I've never calculated the values myself. It would be good to include the equations to calculate the values of R and C for a given contact rating and voltage. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wouse101 (talk • contribs) 09:06, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

reverse voltage in normal relay
hi, i want to know what will happen if u change the voltage accross the DC relay. weather the relay is having permenent magent inside the relay as a moving part. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 123.236.220.190 (talk) 11:47, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

what is relay and how it can be used in simple way and for domestic use  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.164.28.201 (talk) 08:58, 14 December 2009 (UTC)

Glossary of terms used to describe relays on data sheets
I would really like to see definitions of terms used to describe relays. Of particular interest to me are the terms non-zero, zero, and random used to describe solid state relays (and possibly others). 70.127.202.34 (talk) 12:35, 2 July 2010 (UTC) Bill

Hans Sauer
Who knows more about Hans Sauer, the inventor of miniature high power relays with 309 patents worldwide? http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Sauer_(Erfinder) --Hyperboreer 18:07, 15 August 2010 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Hyperboreer (talk • contribs)

Make it blue!
instead using a semiconductor device to perform switching. I'm not sure how to do it I do not play in the sand box enough, however I suggest making semiconductor a link to the semiconductor page. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 149.152.34.59 (talk) 18:48, 13 November 2010 (UTC)

Perhaps add in : Mercury relay, Coaxial relay, Optical relay
There is a page Mercury relay that could be used to add in a new type easily.

Ther are a large range of coaxial relays used in RF and similar applications that have some interesting characteristics that make them unique. They are designed to have better transmission line characteristics to minimise impedance mismatches.

There are relays that use fibre bending, micro mirrors and perhaps even accousto Optics (if the last is a new idea it is now public domain) to route optical signals from one oprical fibre to another, not sure if these should be mentioned in this article.

Idyllic press (talk) 12:32, 15 March 2013 (UTC)

On reflection I would say Optical relay does not belong here. It is an optical routing device that is controlled by electricity and not by light, where as a relay is intended to amplify or invert a signal of the same type.

Undersea cable amplifiers are sometimes called relays but they are more properly a repeater as they provide more than a simple function. By the same token the thermal relays are valid if they use a heating coil to deflect the bimetallic strip and if they are resetting and not of a fusing type. A more elaborate temperature detection system that has remote sensing is not formally a relay but may often be called a motor starting relay as it usually incorporates the contactor and may have other over load protection though technically it is a 'motor starter' that incorporates a relay etc.

Idyllic press (talk) 11:49, 3 June 2013 (UTC)

using relays in place of plc's? (197.88.31.224 (talk) 09:16, 23 April 2015 (UTC))
i would like to get some advise on weather one would be able to use relays instead of a plc?
 * WP isn't the place for advice, but some of the links can be useful. The PLC article might give you a better start.
 * PLCs began as a substitute for relay-based ladder logic controllers. So for small PLCs, there's still overlap with relays. If you understand ladder logic, you can convert the programming from one to the other.
 * That said, I wouldn't convert a PLC to relays. You can do a lot of programming in a very small, very cheap PLC. With relays, that would cost far more. So for something needing only a few relays, this might be workable. Otherwise the PLC keeps the advantage. Building relay systems, changing them and future maintenance is also more awkward.
 * If you need reliable future maintenance, then relays might have an advantage. Especially if you have a simple problem with lots of outputs, rather than a complicated problem with only a few. Andy Dingley (talk) 09:26, 23 April 2015 (UTC)

Error: Basic design and operation
Existing text: "When the coil is energized with direct current, a diode is often placed across the coil to dissipate the energy from the collapsing magnetic field at deactivation, which would otherwise generate a voltage spike dangerous to semiconductor circuit components. Some automotive relays include a diode inside the relay case. Alternatively, a contact protection network consisting of a capacitor and resistor in series (snubber circuit) may absorb the surge."

Contrary to the existing wording, the snubber network is not an alternative to the diode across the coil. These deal with two separate issues in two separate parts of the circuit.Gwideman (talk) 07:04, 13 July 2015 (UTC)
 * Yes, I don't think I've ever seen an RC snubber across a coil anyway (they're placed across the contacts). Andy Dingley (talk) 08:16, 13 July 2015 (UTC)

 * I'm not so sure about there being a significant difference. I think engineers may distinguish different applications of the technology, but they do the same thing.
 * The snubber network across some mechanical contacts tries to prolong the life of the switching contacts by either suppressing glow and arc discharges/breakdowns or by limiting their duration. The problem is some stored energy in an inductive load, and that energy is dissipated in snubber network.
 * The catch diode across a solenoid tries to prolong the life of the switching transistor by preventing destructive breakdown. The energy is dissipated in the diode. I have seen applications where a resistor is put in series with the diode. The decay time constant is L/R, and with just a diode the value of R may be too small. If the solenoid/relay/inductor/whatever needs to release/deenergize quickly, R needs to be increased. Adding a series resistor increases the voltage across the transistor but reduces the decay time. (A series Zener could also be used to dissipate the energy.)
 * Topologically, if you believe the powersupply is a perfect short and ignore the DC bias issues, then placing an RC network across a coil is similar to placing it across the switch contacts. Likewise, placing the catch diode across the coil is similar to placing it across the switching transistor. And if you use an RCD network, then the DC bias issue goes away and the power supply can look like part of the capacitor.
 * Presumably, one can transfer the solenoid energy to a capacitor and slowly discharge it through a resistor. Like Andy Dingley, I have not seen a circuit where that is done, but that does not mean it hasn't been done. (A couple years ago a friend described a protection network for a switching power supply that used a 0.1 W dissipation resistor when the resistor dissipated 15 W; the resistor would burnout in a few hundred ms. I don't recall if a capacitor was involved.) I have seen switching power supply designs that employ a clamp winding and clamp diode that return the transformer's magnetizing energy to the switching power supply's storage capacitor.
 * Glrx (talk) 14:53, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
 * Both systems are there to control spikes from reactive loads. The difference is the impedance: in the relay coil, this is a high impedance circuit and so a high voltage at a low current. A forward-biased diode is appropriate, to protect the reverse-biased transistor. In the switched circuit, the current may be large (this is presumably why a relay was needed in the first place) and the impedance is low. The current would be excessive for any diode-based solution (and the direction may not be predictable, making a diode unworkable) and so a capacitor is used instead. If the current is really quite large, a series resistor is needed with the capacitor. Andy Dingley (talk) 15:27, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

Contact Materials
I am aware that different material are/have been used to form the contact surfaces of relays, including gold for low voltage/low current applications and some silver compounds for others - the latter having the undesirable side-effect of degrading if not enough current is passed through them. Can anyone provide more information on this? There is a little coverage for the specialised mercury-wetted case but what about others? SlySven (talk) 12:27, 16 January 2016 (UTC)

 * Just because somebody asks for something to be added doesn't mean you can ignore the verifiability policy. Every Wikipedia editing webpage clearly states, "Encyclopedic content must be verifiable." Please supply references before reintroducing this content again, per WP:BURDEN. I tagged this article Refimprove in 2009, and ever since then you have been adding uncited content—completely ignoring both the tag and the policy. You have been rude to me on this and other articles, reverting my maintenance tags with the unjustified excuse of "drive-by tagging", and reverting my efforts to minimize uncited claims. You have even called me incompetent, yet I am not the one ignoring policy. Clearly, you do not like these polices, and do not believe they apply to you (i.e. you are special). If your personal beef with our policies continues, I will have to report the issue to ANI. – void  xor  19:10, 7 January 2018 (UTC)
 * Or, we could grow the encyclopedia and identify that the paragraph needs a citation. Could we maybe find references instead of tagging? Or cutting out scary paragraphs that might frighten people who feel insecure if there isn't a little blue number following every sentence? --Wtshymanski (talk) 19:23, 7 January 2018 (UTC)
 * Exactly what part of WP:BURDEN don't you understand? The burden is on you to supply references at the time that you add content. The Citation needed tag is meant to mark existing uncited content, not as a way to circumvent verifiability policy. – void  xor  19:34, 7 January 2018 (UTC)
 * You know, without a threshold level of competence assumed in every editor, this whole system falls apart? Do we still have that essay about not needing to cite that the sky is blue? --Wtshymanski (talk) 20:00, 7 January 2018 (UTC)
 * You mean WP:BLUE? It is an essay not a policy. See also WP:NOTBLUE which says pretty well the exact opposite, but that is also an essay and not policy.  What is policy is WP:BURDEN. The burden is on any editor adding material to Wikipedia or re-adding material deleted as unreferenced to provide the required references in support of that material. Simply restoring the content without providing the supporting references is disruptive editing no matter how obvious you regard the content to be. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.149.141.199 (talk) 17:12, 8 January 2018 (UTC)
 * Agreed. The contempt, such as in, is unnecessary. And I really don't get "the sky is blue" argument; anybody who thinks that three-phase power is as universally understood as the as the sky color needs to get out more often. – void  xor  01:52, 26 January 2018 (UTC)

Potential Relays missing.
Plenty of sources online, if you google it. Surprised it's not here, given they are used on motors and compressors. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 175gw (talk • contribs) 15:23, 12 June 2020 (UTC)

Another use case?
Uses described in the lead are about one circuit controlling another. It seems obvious to me that it could just as well be a single circuit controlling itself.

Simple on/off switching is perhaps a typical example. It's very simple to implement on/off buttons with a relay. It is also a way in which an electronic device can power itself on and off. OK, so strictly speaking something can't power itself on, but I can imagine a device having a standby subcircuit for this.

Is this a use relays are put to to any significant extent? Or is there another method that is typically used for on/off switching of these kinds? — Smjg (talk) 16:40, 20 August 2023 (UTC)

title: Talk:Relay


text:
Labyrinthodontia

"Labyrinthodontia" (Greek, 'maze-toothed') is an informal grouping of extinct predatory amphibians which were major components of ecosystems in the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras (about 390 to 150 million years ago). Traditionally considered a subclass of the class Amphibia, modern classification systems recognize that labyrinthodonts are not a formal natural group (clade) exclusive of other tetrapods. Instead, they consistute an evolutionary grade (a paraphyletic group), ancestral to living tetrapods such as lissamphibians (modern amphibians) and amniotes (reptiles, mammals, and kin). "Labyrinthodont"-grade vertebrates evolved from lobe-finned fishes in the Devonian, though a formal boundary between fish and amphibian is difficult to define at this point in time.

"Labyrinthodont" generally refers to extinct four-limbed tetrapods with a large body size and a crocodile-like lifestyle. The name describes the pattern of infolding of the dentin and enamel of the teeth, which are often the only part of the creatures that fossilize. They are also distinguished by a broad, strongly-built skull roof composed of many small heavily-textured skull bones. "Labyrinthodonts" generally have complex multi-part vertebrae, and several classification schemes have utilized vertebrae to define subgroups.

Because labyrinthodonts do not form a monophyletic group, many modern researchers have abandoned the term. However, some have continued to use the group in their classifications, at least informally, pending more detailed study of their relationships. Many authors prefer to simply use the term tetrapod, while others have re-defined the previously obsolete term Stegocephalia ("roof heads") as a cladistic alternative to "Labyrinthodontia" or "Tetrapoda".

Labyrinthodont traits
The labyrinthodonts flourished for more than 200 million years. Particularly the early forms exhibited a lot of variation, yet there are still a few basic anatomical traits that make their fossils very distinct and easily recognizable in the field:
 * Strongly folded tooth surface, involving infolding of the dentin and enamel of the teeth. The cross section resembles a classical labyrinth (or maze), hence the name of the group.
 * Massive skull roof, with openings only for the nostrils, eyes and a parietal eye, similar to the structure of the "anapsid" reptiles. With the exception of the later more reptile-like forms, the skull was rather flat and strongly ornamented with presumably tough dermal covering, accounting for an older term for the group: "Stegocephalia".
 * Otic notch behind each eye at the back edge of the skull. In earlier fully aquatic forms such as Ichthyostega, it may have formed an open spiracle. In later terrestrial forms such as Seymouria, it may possibly have held a tympanic membrane (eardrum).
 * Complex vertebrae made of multiple components: an intercentrum (wedge-shaped front lower piece), two pleurocentra (upper rear piece), and a vertebral arch/spine (upper projection). The relative development and shape of the elements is highly variable.

General build
Labyrinthodonts were generally amphibian-like in build. They were short-legged and mostly large headed, with moderately short to long tails. Many groups, and all the early forms, were large animals. Primitive members of all labyrinthodont groups were probably true water predators, and various degrees of amphibious, semi-aquatic and semi terrestrial modes of living arose independently in different groups. Some lineages remained waterbound or became secondarily fully aquatic with reduced limbs and elongated, eel-like bodies.

Skull
With the exception of the snake-like aïstopods, the skulls of labyrinthodonts were massive. The broad head and short neck may have been a result of respiratory constraints. Their jaws were lined with small, sharp, conical teeth and the roof of the mouth bore larger tusk-like teeth. The teeth were replaced in waves that traveled from the front of the jaw to the back in such a way that every other tooth was mature, and the ones in between were young. All teeth were labyrinthodont. The sole exception were the chisel-like teeth of some of the advanced herbivorous diadectomorphs. The skull had prominent otic notches behind each eye and a parietal eye.

Post-cranial skeleton
The vertebrae were complex and not particularly strong, consisting of numerous, often poorly ossified elements. The long bones of the limbs were short and broad and the ankle had limited mobility and the toes lacked claws, limiting the amount of traction the feet could produce. This would have made most labyrinthodonts slow and clumsy on land. In adulthood, most of the larger species were likely confined to water. Some late Paleozoic groups, particularly microsaurs and seymouriamorphs, were small to medium-sized and appear to have been competent terrestrial animals. The advanced diadectomorphs from the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian were fully terrestrial with stout skeletons, and were the heaviest land animals of their time. The Mesozoic labyrinthodonts were primarily aquatic with increasingly cartilaginous skeleton.

Sensory apparatus
The eyes of most labyrinthodonts were situated at the top of the skull, offering good vision upwards, but very little lateral vision. The parietal eye was prominent, although there is uncertainty as to whether it was a true image producing organ or one that could only register light and dark, like that of the modern tuatara.

Most labyrinthodonts had special sense organs in the skin, forming a lateral line organ for perception of water flow and pressure, like those found in fish and a number of modern amphibians. This would enable them to pick up the vibration of their prey and other waterborne sounds while hunting in murky, weed filled waters. Early labyrinthodont groups had massive stapes, likely primarily anchoring the brain case to the skull roof. It is a question of some doubt whether early terrestrial labyrinthodonts had the stapes connected to a tympanum covering their otic notch, and if they had an aerial sense of hearing at all. The tympanum in anurans and amniotes appear to have evolved separately, indicating most, if not all, labyrinthodonts were unable to pick up airborne sound.

Respiration
The early labyrinthodonts possessed well developed internal gills as well as primitive lungs, derived from the swim bladders of their ancestors. They could breathe air, which would have been a great advantage for residents of warm shoals with low oxygen levels in the water. There was no diaphragma and the ribs in many forms were too short or spaced too closely to aid in expanding the lungs. Likely air was inflated into the lungs by contractions of a throat sac against the skull floor like in modern amphibians, which may be the reason for the retention of the very flat skull in later forms. Exhalation with the aid of the ribs probably evolved only in the line leading to amniotes. Many aquatic forms retained their larval gills in adulthood.

With the high atmospheric oxygen and carbon dioxide pressure, particularly during the Carboniferous, the primitive throat sac breathing would have been sufficient for obtaining oxygen even for the large forms. Getting rid of carbon dioxide would present a greater problem on land, and the larger labyrinthodonts probably combined a high tolerance for blood carbonic acid with returning to the water to dissipate the carbon dioxide through the skin. The loss of the armour of rhomboid scales of their piscine ancestors allowed for this as well as additional respiration through the skin as in modern amphibians.

Hunting and feeding
Like their sarcopterygian ancestors, the labyrinthodonts were carnivorous. The rather broad, flat skulls and hence short jaw muscle would however not allow them to open their mouth to any great extent. Likely the majority of them would employ a sit-and-wait strategy, similar to that of many modern amphibians. When suitable prey swam or walked within reach, the jaw would slam shut, the palatine tusks stabbing the hapless victim. The strain put on the teeth by this mode of feeding may have been the reason for the reinforcing labyrinthodont enamel typifying the group. Swallowing was done by tipping the head back, as seen in many modern amphibians and in crocodiles.

Evolution of a deeper skull, better jaw control and a reduction of the palatine tusks is only seen in the more advanced reptile-like forms, possibly in connection with the evolution of more effective breathing, allowing for a more refined hunting style.

Reproduction
The labyrinthodonts had an amphibious reproduction — they laid eggs in water, where they would hatch to tadpoles. They would remain in water throughout the larval stage until metamorphosis. Only the metamorphosed individuals would eventually venture onto land on occasion. Fossil tadpoles from several species are known, as are neotenic adults with feathery external gills similar to those found in modern lissamphibian tadpoles and in the fry of lungfish and bichirs. The existence of a larval stage as the primitive condition in all groups of labyrinthodonts can be fairly safely assumed, in that tadpoles of Discosauriscus, a close relative of the amniotes, are known.

Groups of labyrinthodonts
The systematic placement of groups within Labyrinthodontia is notoriously fickle. Several groups are identified, but there is no consensus of their phylogenetic relationship. Many key groups were small with moderately ossified skeletons, and there is a gap in the fossil record in the early Carboniferous (the "Romer's gap") when most of the groups appear to have evolved. Further complicating the picture is the amphibian larval-adult life cycle, with physical changes throughout life complicating phylogenetic analysis. The Labyrinthodontia appear to be composed of several nested clades. The two best understood groups, the Ichthyostegalia and the reptile-like amphibians have from the outset been known to be paraphyletic. Tellingly, labyrinthodont systematics was the subject of the inaugural meeting of International Society for Phylogenetic Nomenclature.

Ichthyostegalia
The early labyrinthodonts are known from the Devonian and possibly extending into the Romer's Gap of the early Carboniferous. These labyrinthodonts are often grouped together as the order Ichthyostegalia, though the group is an evolutionary grade rather than a clade. Ichthyostegalians were predominantly aquatic and most show evidence of functional internal gills throughout life, and probably only occasionally ventured onto land. Their polydactylous feet had more than the usual five digits for tetrapods and were paddle-like. The tail bore true fin rays like those found in fish. The vertebrae were complex and rather weak. At the close of the Devonian, forms with progressively stronger legs and vertebrae evolved, and the later groups lacked functional gills as adults. All were however predominantly aquatic and some spent all or nearly all their lives in water.

Reptile-like amphibians
An early branch was the terrestrial reptile-like amphibians, variously called Anthracosauria or Reptiliomorpha. Tulerpeton has been suggested as the earliest member of the line, indicating the split may have happened before the Devonian-Carboniferous transition. Their skulls were relatively deep and narrow compared to other labyrinthodonts. Front and hind feet bore five digits on most forms. Several of the early groups are known from brackish or even marine environments, having returned to a more or less fully aquatic mode of living.

With the exception of the diadectomorphs, the terrestrial forms were moderately sized creatures that appeared in the early Carboniferous. The vertebrae of the group foreshadowed that of primitive reptiles, with small pleurocentra, which grew and fused to become the true centrum in later vertebrates. The most well known genus is Seymouria. Some members of the most advanced group, the Diadectomorpha, were herbivorous and grew to several meters in length, with great, barrel-shaped bodies. Small relatives of the diadectomorphs gave rise to the first reptiles in the Late Carboniferous.

Temnospondyli
The most diverse group of labyrinthodonts was the Temnospondyli. Temnospondyls appeared in the early Carboniferous and came in all sizes, from small salamander-like Stereospondyli that scurried along the waters edge and undergrowth, to giant, well armoured Archegosauroidea that looked more like crocodiles. Prionosuchus was an exceptionally large member of the Archegosauridae, estimated to have been up to 9 meters long, it is the largest amphibian ever known to have lived. Temnospondyls typically had large heads and heavy shoulder girdles with moderately long tails. A fossil trackway from Lesotho shows larger forms dragged themselves by the front limbs over slippery surfaces with limited sideways movement of the body, very unlike modern salamanders. A temnospondyl's fore-foot had only four toes, and the hind-foot five, similar to the pattern seen in modern amphibians. Temnospondyls had a conservative vertebral column in which the pleurocentra remained small in primitive forms, vanishing entirely in the more advanced ones. The intercentra bore the weight of the animal, being large and forming a complete ring. All were more or less flat-headed with either strong or secondarily weak vertebrae and limbs. There were also fully aquatic forms, like the Dvinosauria, and even marine forms such as the Trematosauridae. The Temnospondyli may have given rise to the modern frogs and salamanders in the late Permian or early Triassic.

Lepospondyli
A small group of uncertain origin, the Lepospondyli evolved mostly small species that can be found in European and North American Carboniferous and early Permian strata. They are characterized by simple spool-shaped vertebrae formed from a single element, rather than the complex system found in other labyrinthodont groups. Most were aquatic and external gills are sometimes found preserved. The Leposondyli were generally salamander-like, but one group, the Aïstopoda, was snakelike with flexible, reduced skulls, though whether the families belong with the other lepospondyls is uncertain. Some microsaur lepospondyls were squat and short-tailed and appear to have been well adapted to terrestrial life. The best known genus is Diplocaulus, a nectridean with a boomerang-shaped head.

The position of Lepospondyli in relation to other labyrinthodont groups is uncertain, and it is sometimes classified as a separate subclass. The teeth were not labyrinthodont, and the group has classically been seen as separate from the Labyrinthodontia. There is some doubt as to whether the lepospondyls form a phylogenetic unit at all, or is a wastebin taxon containing the padamorphic forms and tadpoles of other labyrinthodonts, notably the reptile-like amphibians, or even very small primitive amniotes with reduced skulls.

Evolutionary history
The labyrinthodonts have their origin in the early middle Devonian (398–392 Mya) or possibly earlier. They evolved from a bony fish group: the fleshy-finned Rhipidistia. The only other living group of Rhipidistans alive today are the lungfish, the sister group of the landliving vertebrates. Earliest traces of the land-living forms are fossil trackways from Zachełmie quarry, Poland, dated to 395 million years ago, attributed to an animal with feet very similar to Ichthyostega.

Swamp predators
By the late Devonian, land plants had stabilized freshwater habitats, allowing the first wetland ecosystems to develop, with increasingly complex food webs that afforded new opportunities. The early labyrinthodonts were wholly aquatic, hunting in shallow water along tidal shores or weed filled tidal channels. From their piscine ancestors, they had inherited swim bladders that opened to the esophagus and were capable of functioning as lungs (a condition still found in lungfish and some physostome ray-finned fishes), allowing them to hunt in stagnant water or in waterways where rotting vegetation would have lowered oxygen content. The earliest forms, such as Acanthostega, had vertebrae and limbs quite unsuited to life on land. This is in contrast to the earlier view that fish had first invaded the land—either in search of prey like modern mudskippers, or to find water when the pond they lived in dried out. Early fossil tetrapods have been found in marine sediments, suggesting marine and brackish areas were their primary habitat. This is further corroborated by fossils of early labyrinthodonts being found scattered all around the world, indicating they must have spread by following the coastal lines rather than through freshwater only.

The first labyrinthodonts were all large to moderately large animals, and would have suffered considerable problems on land despite their members ending in toes rather than fin-rays. While they retained gills and fish-like skulls and tails with fin rays, the early forms can readily be separated from Rhipidistan fish by the cleithrum/scapula complex being separate from the skull to form a pectoral girdle able to carry the weight of the front end of the animals. They were all carnivorous, initially eating fish and possibly going ashore to feed off washed up carrion of sea animals caught in tidal ponds, only later turning into predators of the large invertebrates of the Devonian at the waters edge. The various early forms are for convenience grouped together as Ichthyostegalia.

While the body shape and proportions of the ichthyostegalians went largely unchanged throughout their evolutionary history, the limbs underwent a rapid evolution. The proto-tetrapods like from Elginerpeton and Tiktaalik had extremities ending in fin-rays with no clear fingers, primarily suited for movement in open water, but also capable of propelling the animal across sandbanks and through vegetation filled waterways. Ichthyostega and Acanthostega had paddle-like polydactyl feet with stout bony toes that also would have enabled them to drag themselves across land. The aquatic ichthyostegalians flourished in tidal channels and swampland through the remainder of the Devonian, only to disappear from the fossil record at the transition to the Carboniferous.

Onto land
The end of the Devonian saw the late Devonian extinction event, followed by a gap in the fossil record of some 15 million years at the start of the Carboniferous, called "Romer's gap". The gap marks the disappearance of the ichthyostegalian forms as well as the origin of the higher labyrinthodonts. Finds from this period found in East Kirkton Quarry includes the peculiar, probably secondarily aquatic Crassigyrinus, which may represent the sister group to later labyrinthodont groups.

Early Carboniferous saw the radiation of the family Loxommatidae, a distinct if mysterious group that may have been the ancestors or sister taxon of the higher groups, characterized by keyhole-shaped eye openings. By the Visean age of mid-Carboniferous times the labyrinthodonts had radiated into at least three main branches. Recognizable groups are representative of the temnospondyls, lepospondyls and reptile-like amphibians, the latter which were the relatives and ancestors of the Amniota.

While most labyrinthodonts remained aquatic or semi-aquatic, some of the reptile-like amphibians adapted to explore the terrestrial ecological niches as small or medium-sized predators. They evolved increasingly terrestrial adaptions during the Carboniferous, including stronger vertebrae and slender limbs, and a deeper skull with laterally placed eyes. They probably had watertight skin, possibly covered with a horny epidermis overlaying small bony nodules, forming scutes, similar to those found in modern caecilians. To the modern eye, these animals would appear like heavyset, lizards betraying their amphibious nature only by their lack of claws and by spawning aquatic eggs. In the middle or late Carboniferous, smaller forms gave rise to the first reptiles. In the late Carboniferous, a global rainforest collapse favoured the more terrestrially adapted reptiles, while the many of their amphibian relatives failed to reestablish. Some reptile-like amphibians did flourish in the new seasonal environment. The reptiliomorph family Diadectidae evolved herbivory, becoming the largest terrestrial animals of the day with barrel-shaped, heavy bodies. There were also a family of correspondingly large carnivores, the Limnoscelidae, that flourished briefly in the late Carboniferous.

Heyday of the labyrinthodonts
The herbivorous Diadectidae reached their maximum diversity in the late Carboniferous/early Permian, and then quickly declined, their role taken over by early reptilian herbivores like Pareiasaurs and Edaphosaurs. Unlike the reptile-like amphibians, the Temnospondyli remained mostly denizens of rivers and swampland, feeding on fish and perhaps other labyrinthodonts. They underwent a major diversification in the wake of the Carboniferous rainforest collapse and they too subsequently reached their greatest diversity in the late Carboniferous and early Permian, thriving in the rivers and brackish coal forests in continental shallow basins around equatorial Pangaea and around the Paleo-Tethys Ocean.

Several adaptations to piscivory evolved with some groups having crocodile-like skulls with slender snouts, and presumably had a similar life-style (Archegosauridae, Melosauridae, Cochleosauridae and Eryopidae, and the reptile-like suborder Embolomeri). Others evolved as aquatic ambush predators, with short, broad skulls that allowed for opening the mouth by tipping the skull back rather than dropping the jaw (Plagiosauridae and the Dvinosauria). In life they would have hunted rather like the modern day monkfish, and several groups are known to have retained the larval gills into adulthood, being fully aquatic. The Metoposauridae adapted to hunting in shallows and murky swamps, with ∩-shaped skull, much like their Devonian ancestors.

In Euramerica, the Lepospondyli, a host of small, mostly aquatic amphibians of uncertain phylogeny, appeared in the Carboniferous. They lived in the tropical forest undergrowth and in small ponds, in ecological niches similar to those of modern amphibians. In the Permian, the peculiar Nectridea found their way from Euramerica to Gondwanaland.

Decline
From the middle of the Permian, the climate dried up, making life difficult for the amphibians. The terrestrial reptiliomorphs disappeared, though aquatic crocodile-like Embolomeri continued to thrive until going extinct in the Triassic. The diverse lepospondyl inhabitants of the undergrowth disappear from the fossil record, among them the snake-like Aïstopoda.

With the close of the Paleozoic, most of the Permian groups disappeared, with the exceptions of the Mastodonsauroidea, Metoposauridae and Plagiosauridae, who continued into the Triassic. In the early Triassic these groups enjoyed a brief renaissance in the waterways of continental shallows, with large forms like Thoosuchus, Benthosuchus and Eryosuchus. Their ecological niches were probably similar to those of modern-day crocodiles, as fish hunters and riverside carnivores. All groups developed progressively weaker vertebrae, reduced limb ossification and flatter skulls with prominent lateral line organs, indicating the late Permian/early Triassic temnospondyls rarely if ever left the water. An extremely large brachyopid (likely a plagiosaur or a close relative) is estimated to have been 7 meters long, and probably just as heavy as the Permian Prionosuchus.

With the rise of the real crocodiles in the middle Triassic, even these Temnospondyli went into decline, though some hung on to at least early Cretaceous on the southern Gondwanaland, in regions too cold for crocodiles.

Origin of modern amphibians
There is today a general consensus that all modern amphibians, the Lissamphibia, have their origin in labyrinthodont stock, but this is where consensus ends. The fragile bones of the lissamphibians are extremely rare as fossils, and the modern amphibians are highly derived, making comparison with fossil labyrinthodonts difficult.

Traditionally, the Lepospondyli has been favored as lissamphibian ancestors. Like the modern amphibians, they were mostly small with simple vertebrae, resembling lissamphibians in many aspects of external anatomy and presumably ecological niches. At a subclass level, it was thought that labyrinthodonts gave rise to lepospondyls, and lepospondyls to lissamphibians. Several cladistic studies also favour the lepospondyl link, though placing Lepospondyli as close relatives or even derived from reptile-like amphibians. One problem with this position is the question of whether Lepospondyli actually is monophyletic in the first place.

Temnospondyl affinity for the Lissamphibia is suggested by other works. The temnospondyl family Amphibamidae has been considered a possible candidate for the ancestors of lissamphibians. The amphibamid Gerobatrachus, described in 2008, was proposed to be a transitional form between temnospondyls and anurans (frogs and toads) and caudatans (salamanders). It possessed a mixture of anuran and caudatan features, including a broad skull, short tail, and small pedicellate teeth.

Complicating the picture is the question of whether Lissamphibia itself may be polyphyletic. Though a minority view, several variants have been forwarded through history. The "Stockholm school" under Gunnar Säve-Söderbergh and Erik Jarvik argued during much of the 20th century that Amphibia as a whole is biphyletic, based on details of the nasal capsule and cranial nerves. In their view lepospondyls are ancestors of frogs, while salamanders and caecilians have evolved independently from porolepiform fish. Robert L. Carroll suggested the tailed amphibians (salamanders and caecilians) are derived from lepospondyl microsaurs and frogs from temnospondyls. The cladistic analysis of Gerobatrachus suggested salamanders and frogs evolved from temnospondyl stock and caecilians being the sister group of the reptile-like amphibians, rendering Lissamphibia itself an evolutionary grade relative to the remaining tetrapod classes. The cladistic analysis of Chinlestegophis by Pardo et al. (2017) does recover Lissamphibia as polyphyletic, but with all groups of lissamphibians falling within Temnospondyli; Batrachia is recovered in the analysis as part of Dissorophoidea, while Gymnophonia falls within Stereospondylomorpha.

Origin of the amniotes

The fossil sequence leading from the early Carboniferous labyrinthodonts to the amniotes has traditionally been seen as fairly well mapped out since the early 20th century, mainly leaving only the question of the demarcation line between the amphibian and reptilian grade of reproduction. Work by Carroll and Laurin around the turn of the millennium has greatly helped in pinpointing the transition.

The early reptile-like amphibians were mostly aquatic, the first highly terrestrially adapted groups being the Seymouriamorpha and the Diadectomorpha. The seymouriamorphs were small to medium-sized animals with stout limbs, their remains are sometimes found in what has been interpreted as dry environments, indicating their skin had a water-tight epidermal horny overlay or even scales as evident in Discosauriscus. Their skeletons are very similar to those of early reptiles, though finds of seymouriamorph tadpoles have shown they retained an amphibian reproduction. The diadectomorph families are generally considered to be the closest known relatives of modern amniotes. They too are thought to have been on the amphibian side of the divide, despite no known diadectomorph fossil tadpoles. Analysis of new finds and composition of larger trees do however indicate the phylogeny may not be as well understood as traditionally thought.

Several authors have suggested that terrestrial eggs evolved from amphibian eggs laid on land to avoid predation on the eggs and competition from other labyrinthodonts. The amniote egg would necessarily have had to evolve from one with an anamniote structure, as those found in fish and modern amphibians. In order for such an egg to excrete CO2 on land without the specialized membranes to aid in respiration, it would have to be very small, 1 cm in diameter or smaller. Such very small eggs with direct development would severely restrict the adult size, thus the amniotes would have evolved from very small animals. A number of small, fragmentary fossils of possibly diadectomorph affinity has been proposed as the first amniote, including Gephyrostegus, Solenodonsaurus, Westlothiana and Casineria. Fossilized footprints found in New Brunswick indicate the first reptiles were established by 315 million years ago.

History of classification
The term labyrinthodont was coined by Hermann Burmeister in reference to the tooth structure. Labyrinthodontia was first used as a systematic term by Richard Owen in 1860, and assigned to Amphibia the following year. It was ranked as an order under class Amphibia by Watson in 1920 and as a superorder by Romer in 1947. An alternative name, Stegocephalia was created in 1868 by American palaentologist Edward Drinker Cope, from Greek stego cephalia—"roofed head", and refer to anapsid skull and the copious amounts of dermal armour some of the larger forms evidently had. This term is widely used in 19th and early 20th century literature.

Classification of the earliest finds was attempted on the basis of the skull roof, often the only part of the specimen preserved. With the frequent convergent evolution of head shape in labyrinthodonts, this led to form taxa only. The relationship of the various groups to each other and to the lissamphibians (and to some degree the first reptiles) is still a matter of some debate. Several schemes have been forwarded, and at present there is no consensus among workers in the field.

Vertebral classification
A systematic approach based on the relative size and shape of the elements of the complex labyrinthodont vertebrae was favored in the early 20th century. This classification quickly fell into disuse as some forms of backbones appear to have appeared more than once and different types are found in close relatives, sometimes even in the same animal, and already by the middle of the 20th century several of the small-bodied groups were suspected of being larval or neotenic forms. The classification presented here is from Watson, 1920:

 * Order Stegocephalia (= Labyrinthodontia)
 * "Grade" Rachitomi (Primitive complex vertebrae, all Ichthyostegalia, most large Temnospondyli and some reptile-like amphibians)
 * "Grade" Embolomeri (Intercentrum and pleurocentrum cylinders of equal size, today considered a suborder of secondarily aquatic reptile-like amphibians)
 * "Grade" Stereospondyli (Simplified backbones with only intercentrum and vertebral arch, still recognized as a valid group)
 * Order Phyllospondyli (Small, flimsy vertebrae, today considered to represent tadpoles and paedomorphic forms)
 * Order Lepospondyli (Hourglass-shaped or cylindrical vertebrae, mid Carboniferous to mid Permian, phylogeny uncertain)
 * Order Adelospondyli (Cylindrical vertebrae with conical depressions at each end meeting in the middle, now considered a Lepospondyl group)
 * Order Gymnophiona (extant)
 * Order Urodela (extant)
 * Order Anura (extant)

Traditional classification
The traditional classification was initiated by Säve-Söderbergh in the 1930s. He believed that Amphibia was biphyletic, and that salamanders and caecilians had evolved independently from porolopiform fish. Few shared Säve-Söderbergh's view of a biphyletic Amphibia, but his scheme, either with the Lepospondyli as a separate subclass or sunk into Temnospondyli, was continued by Romer in his much used Vertebrate Paleontology of 1933 and later editions, and followed by several subsequent authors with minor variations: Colbert 1969, Daly 1973, Carroll 1988 and Hildebrand & Goslow 2001. The classification cited here is from Romer & Parson, 1985:

 * Subclass Labyrinthodontia
 * Order Ichthyostegalia (primitive ancestral forms, e.g., Ichthyostega—Middle to late Devonian only).
 * Order Temnospondyli (Late Devonian to Cretaceous, e.g., Eryops, possibly ancestral to modern amphibians)
 * Order Anthracosauria (Carboniferous and Permian, e.g., Seymouria, ancestral to early reptiles)
 * Subclass Lepospondyli (Carboniferous and Permian, e.g., Diplocaulus, small group, possibly ancestral to modern amphibians)
 * Subclass Lissamphibia (Permian to present)
 * Order Gymnophiona (extant)
 * Order Urodela (extant)
 * Order Anura (extant)

Phylogenetic classification
Labyrinthodontia has fallen out of favor in recent taxonomies because it is paraphyletic: the group does not include all the descendants of their most recent common ancestor. Various groups that have traditionally been placed within Labyrinthodontia are currently variously classified as stem tetrapods, basal tetrapods, non-amniote Reptiliomorpha and as a monophyletic or paraphyletic Temnospondyli, according to various cladistic analysis. This reflects the emphasis of ascertaining lineage and ancestral-descendant relatedness in modern-day cladistics. The name does however linger as a handy reference for the early amphibian tetrapods, and as an apt anatomical description of their distinct tooth pattern. Thus it remains in use as an informal term of convenience by some modern scientists.

The largely synonymous name Stegocephalia has been taken up by Michel Laurin and defined cladistically for all traditional labyrinthodonts (including their descendants), so that the name with the largely traditional meaning is still employed. An informal term with a broader meaning is stem tetrapod, a stem group consisting of all species more closely related to modern tetrapods than to lungfish, but excluding the crown group. This group includes both traditional "labyrinthodonts" as well as more basal tetrapodomorph fish, though its total content is a matter of some uncertainty, as the relationships of these animals are not well understood.

Below is a suggested evolutionary tree of Vertebrates including the Labyrinthodontia, from Colbert 1969 and Caroll 1997. Dashed lines indicate relationships that commonly vary between authors.

A good summary (with diagram) of characteristics and main evolutionary trends of the above three orders is given in Colbert 1969 pp. 102–103, but see Kent & Miller (1997) for an alternative tree.

title: Labyrinthodontia


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2005 Croatian presidential election

Presidential elections were held in Croatia in January 2005, the fourth such elections since independence in 1991. They were the first presidential elections held after the constitutional changes of November 2000, which replaced a semi-presidential system with an incomplete parliamentary system, greatly reducing the powers of the President in favor of the Prime Minister and their cabinet. Incumbent president Stjepan Mesić, who had been elected in 2000 as the candidate of the Croatian People's Party, was eligible to seek reelection to a second term and ran as an independent as the constitution prohibits the President from holding party membership while in office.

The elections resulted in the landslide re-election of Mesić for a second five-year term. They were also the first in which a woman, HDZ candidate Jadranka Kosor, took part in the runoff. The percentage of the vote received by Mesić in the second round – 65.93% – is the highest of any president to date. Mesić had received an absolute majority of the votes cast within Croatia itself in the first round, but the votes of Croatian citizens living abroad forced a run-off by reducing Mesić's overall percentage to just under the necessary 50% + 1 vote threshold needed to win in the first round. Voter turnout was 50.57% in the first round and 51.04% in the second round.

Mesić was sworn in for a second term on 18 February 2005 by the Chief justice of the Constitutional Court.

Background
The Croatian State Elections Committee published a list of potential candidates on 15 December 2004. President Stjepan Mesić stood for re-election, and the governing HDZ nominated cabinet minister Jadranka Kosor. A total of thirteen candidates were accepted, each after having submitted 10,000 citizen signatures, an endorsement required by law.

Mesić won a landslide victory gaining nearly 49% of the vote in the first round, held on 2 January 2005. He only narrowly missed the 50% target for an outright win, with Kosor trailing with 20% and a surprising independent candidate Boris Mikšić with 18% of the vote. The elections went to a second round held on 16 January 2005 in which Mesić and Kosor were the only candidates. This time, Mesić won an overwhelming majority with about 66% of the vote against Kosor's 34%.

Analysis
Most polls before the first round were predicting the incumbent president Stjepan Mesić would be reelected without a runoff, securing 50% + 1 vote. However, Jadranka Kosor benefited from the votes coming from the citizens living abroad, which narrowed the president's victory by only a couple of points, but enough to secure a second round. The greatest surprise of the election was the independent candidate Boris Mikšić, a Croatian businessman and entrepreneur living in the United States. His campaign was heavily based on the message of a 'Croatian dream', similar to the American dream he said he achieved during his career in the US. On the night of the election, the first exit polls indicated president Mesić might secure a second term without the need of a runoff, while Kosor and Mikšić were shown battling for second place. As the first results started coming in it was evident that Mesić was not going to secure 50% + 1 vote and that a runoff is inevitable. As votes from the citizens living abroad were tallied, Kosor overtook Mikšić, placing second and qualifying for the second round. The campaign began immediately the next day and during the two-week-long campaign, three presidential debates were held, one on each of Croatia's three major television networks. Despite most observers and post debate polls indicating Kosor won the debates, Mesić maintained his lead in the polls. As Election Day neared, the Kosor campaign exceeded all previous campaign spending records, trying to motivate the conservative base. On Election Day, as polls around the country closed at 7 pm, all television networks announced Mesić won a landslide victory based on the exit polls, which official results later confirmed. Kosor conceded and congratulated Mesić on his victory. After the elections, Boris Mikšić claimed the elections were fraud and that Mesić and Prime Minister Ivo Sanader made a deal of "bringing" Kosor in the second round. He claimed to have received 15,000 election ballots with serial numbers that were not evidented.

title: 2005 Croatian presidential election


text:
Talk:Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg)

The Pope
From Orange Order:
 * was seen as the first proper victory in battle for the League of Augsburg, the first ever alliance between Catholic & Protestant countries. William's victory was celebrated in Rome by Pope Innocent XI who ordered the singing of Te Deums in the city's major Catholic churches

Were the Papal States a part of the league?
 * No; the Pope just didn't care for Louis very much. Robinvp11 (talk) 18:06, 24 June 2020 (UTC)

Great Alliance
sorry for that, I just started an article of the thing at Great Alliance, that being the term I was more familiar with. please check and merge. Well, yes, I could say a couple of mor pages about the subject. --Olaf Simons 09:40, 13 March 2006 (UTC)

Members
If the Holy Roman Empire was a member, wouldn't that include all of its territories by default? If so, why are some of them listed individually in the first paragraph? Wikipeditor 22:40, 14 October 2006 (UTC)

 * No, it wouldn't. Lower princes were obliged to defend the Reichsfriede, but often didn't or even sided with the enemy. The Empire was not some modern unitary nation state; it was more like a supranational entity. You could compare it with a NATO operation; it would still be useful to list the actual participants.--MWAK 17:48, 21 May 2007 (UTC)

While I'm sure the original participants long since ceased caring :), for anyone else reading this, the point is valid but there were 88 separate members for the Swabian Circle - it is simply impractical to list all of them.

Robinvp11 (talk) 17:33, 5 July 2018 (UTC)

WW2
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER WORLD WAR TWO! I'm pretty sure that dosen't belong in this article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.143.155.253 (talk) 21:27, 28 March 2008 (UTC)

EU rewrite of history?
This topic reads as if it was sponsored by the EU.

After a quick look at the EB and other online sources, the whole 'European union' thing appears to be a rewrite of history.

I looked at the biographies of individual commanders of the forces of the grand alliance, and none mentioned that the commander became a 'hero of europe'.

And what is with the fashion stuff. It's a historical article on a military alliance in the modern era, not an article on rennaissance/modern era fashion. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.62.162.197 (talk) 16:29, 28 December 2009 (UTC)

After thoughts on Corona 2020
what's left of it? I mean, it would be a good advice - somehow... ! Wikistallion (talk) 15:58, 4 July 2020 (UTC)


text:
Artūras Zuokas

Artūras Zuokas (born 21 February 1968) is a Lithuanian journalist, businessman and politician who served as the mayor of the capital of Lithuania, Vilnius, from 2000 to 2007 and again from 2011 to 2015, and as member of Lithuania's unicameral parliament, Seimas, from 2008 to 2009. He was the leader of the Liberal and Centre Union, then YES - Homeland Revival and Perspective and the Lithuanian Freedom Union, and has been the chairman of Freedom and Justice since 3 February 2024.

Because of his numerous corruption scandals and eccentric behavior, Zuokas has become one of the most well-known and infamous politicians in Lithuanian politics. According to a poll organized by the national polling agency Vilmorus in 2007, Zuokas is seen as one of the three most corrupt Lithuanian politicians of all time, alongside Viktor Uspaskich and Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas.

Early life
Zuokas was born in Kaunas on 21 February 1968. With his parents, he moved to Jonava at an early age, where he graduated from the first secondary school. From 1986 to 1988, he was conscripted to the Soviet Army and served in Murmansk.

After returning to Lithuania, he became involved in Sąjūdis and youth political activity, and campaigned for Lithuania's independence. He was one of the delegates in the June 1989 national conference of the Lithuanian Komsomol in which the organization voted to break away from the All-Union Komsomol and establish the short-lived independent Young Communist League of Lithuania. He finished preparatory courses for journalism studies in Vilnius University in 1989 and then worked for Independent Television News as a war reporter in Iraq, where he taped the bombing of the Baghdad TV Tower during the First Gulf War.

Zuokas founded the news agency Baltijos naujienų agentūra in 1992, and worked in real estate and the advertising industry from 1992 to 1999. He invited the Benetton Group in Lithuania and led the negotiations for the establishment of the first McDonald's restaurant in Lithuania. Since 1997, he has participated in politics.

Political career
Zuokas participated in Valdas Adamkus's campaign during the 1997–98 presidential election as a member of its electoral committee, and joined the Liberal Union of Lithuania in 1999. He was an active supporter of the short-lived "New Politics" coalition between the Liberal Union and the New Union (Social Liberals), led by Artūras Paulauskas, until the coalition dissolved in 2001 and the New Union formed a coalition with the Social Democratic Party instead.

In 2000, he was elected Mayor of Vilnius. At 32 years old, he was the youngest mayor in the history of Vilnius. Zuokas held the position for two terms until 2007, when his party moved to the opposition in the city council. Before the municipal election of 2011, British actor Jeremy Irons expressed his support for Artūras Zuokas and invited people to vote for him in a short video about his experience in Vilnius. In 2011, he was elected mayor for a third term, and remained in the position until 2015. Since then, after the establishment of direct mayoral elections in Lithuania, he has participated in every single mayoral election in Vilnius.

In 2003, after the merger of the Liberal Union, the Modern Christian-Democratic Union and the Lithuanian Centre Union, Zuokas was elected as the first chairman of the new Liberal and Centre Union. He led the party to success in the 2004 parliamentary election, where it won 18 seats - however, he resigned from his seat in order to remain as Mayor of Vilnius. It entered into a coalition led by the Homeland Union after the elections in 2008. Zuokas remained chairman of the party until 2009, when he was embroiled in a corruption scandal regarding the organization of European Capital of Culture activities in Vilnius in 2009. He allowed his favorite Gintautas Babravičius to succeed him in the post.

In 2011, claiming to have been disappointed by existing Lithuanian parties, he left the Liberal and Centre Union and established YES - Homeland Revival and Perspective, which he stated would follow the ideology of "responsible liberalism". The party proved ineffective and failed to win a single seat in the 2012 parliamentary election. In 2014, his party merged back into the Liberal and Centre Union and formed the Lithuanian Freedom Union, which he also became the chairman of.

Zuokas ran for Mayor of Vilnius in the first direct mayoral election in 2015, but failed to get to the second round. In 2019, he challenged Mayor Remigijus Šimašius, representing the Liberal Movement, but was defeated in the second round and Šimašius was elected for a second term. Similarly, in 2023, he got to the second round of the Vilnius mayoral election with Valdas Benkunskas, the vice-mayor of Vilnius who represented the Homeland Union - but he was defeated with 47.27% of the vote.

Ahead of the 2020 parliamentary election, the Freedom Union merged with Order and Justice and the political movement "Forward, Lithuania!" led by Artūras Paulauskas, creating Freedom and Justice. On 3 February 2024, Zuokas was elected as its chairman after its previous leader, Remigijus Žemaitaitis, was expelled from the party due to his antisemitic comments. He endorsed Ignas Vėgėlė in the 2024 Lithuanian presidential election.

"Subscriber" ("Abonentas") scandal
An investigation into the "dark accounting" of the Vilnius public utilities company Rubicon Group revealed that the company regularly sent large premiums to an anonymous "subscriber" (Lithuanian: abonentas). Using money received from the company, the "subscriber" allegedly attempted to bribe member of the Liberal Union Vilmantas Drėma to vote in favor of Zuokas, and also threatened the politician that he may be found "swimming in the Neris with an engorged belly" if he refused. The Seimas, and later the courts, confirmed that the "subscriber" was Zuokas himself.

Zuokas accused Kęstutis Masiulis of defamation, and claimed in the accusation that Masiulis came up with the nickname "subscriber", which the media began to identify with Zuokas. On 30 June 2006, the Vilnius district court dismissed Zuokas' case. On 20 March 2008, Zuokas was fined 12,500 litas for attempting to bribe a city council member, and the verdict was upheld by the Supreme Court after an appeal.

Alleged street tile theft
During the reconstruction of Gediminas Avenue from 2002 to 2009, 9 thousand square meters (of a total of 16 thousand replaced) of old basalt tiles were reported to have disappeared. Zuokas accused the former vice-mayor of Vilnius, Stanislovas Šriūbėnas, of poorly managing the reconstruction of the avenue. However, tiles identified as "similar" to old Gediminas Avenue tiles were later discovered in the yard of Zuokas' house as well as at his neighbours, by the "Keturios sostinės" inn in Vievis and in the yard of businessman Kęstutis Kutkauskas.

Vilnius 2009 European Capital of Culture scandal
Vilnius was designated as European Capital of Culture in 2009, and Zuokas, as a member of the Vilnius City Council, was appointed as the chairman of the committee tasked to prepare the year's cultural events. Their final cost was nearly 300 million LTL, higher than any other European Capital of Culture to date. Zuokas' management of the committee was characterized by lack of transparency, inflated expenses and contract prices, and several members of the city council called for his removal.

Divorce and alleged art theft
In 2019, while clearing the family's house while in the process of divorcing her husband, Zuokas' wife Agnė discovered 100 boxes of art supposedly by the avantgarde filmmaker Jonas Mekas held in Zuokas' home. During his second term as Mayor of Vilnius, the city founded the Jonas Mekas Visual Arts Centre and purchased a collection of art by the Fluxus collective, which Mekas belonged to. An investigation was held on whether the art was stolen, however, the arts centre reported that the art in Zuokas' home belonged to the politician.

Republic of Užupis
Zuokas lives in Užupis, a neighbourhood in Vilnius known for its bohemian and laissez-faire atmosphere, which has been compared to Montmartre in Paris and to Freetown Christiania in Copenhagen. On 1 April 1997, the district declared independence, calling itself the Republic of Užupis, and adopted a flag, constitution, an anthem, and a self-declared president - Romas Lileikis, a poet, a musician, and a film director.

Zuokas was one of the initiators of the independence declaration. He selected 1 April as its day of independence and designed its national symbol.

2011 anti-illegal parking ad
In August 2011, Zuokas raised attention to illegal parking in bike lanes by staging the destruction of an illegally parked car with a BTR-60 armoured personnel carrier in a bike lane running along Gediminas Avenue in Vilnius. The stunt was performed in cooperation with a bucket-list show aired on Swedish TV6, and the hosts Erik Ekstrand and Mackan Edlund sat in the back of the armored vehicle. Later that year he was awarded an Ig Nobel Peace Prize for "demonstrating that the problem of illegally parked luxury cars can be solved by running over them with a tank".

This ad became one of Zuokas' most remembered stunts and brought attention to him outside Lithuania. In 2023, Zuokas claimed that he intends to sue Netflix after the airing of the Nobody Hits Like Netflix ad, in which Arnold Schwarzenegger runs over a car with a tank, claiming the idea was stolen from him.

Proposal to purchase a Greek island
In 2011, Zuokas proposed to purchase the island of Oxeia, owned by Greece, and turn it into a resort and investment zone. He proposed to name the island Dausuva, referring to the geopolitical concept of a "reserve Lithuania" created by interwar geographer and political thinker Kazys Pakštas. The idea was not developed further, and in April 2012, Oxeia was bought by Qatar Holdings.

Personal celebrity DNA collection
In 2023, Zuokas revealed that he has been collecting DNA samples of Lithuanian and worldwide celebrities for two decades - his collection includes samples of President of Lithuania Valdas Adamkus, John Malkovich, Daniel Libeskind, Steven Tyler, Violeta Urmana, Antanas Sutkus, Antanas Mockus and the Dalai Lama. He claimed that his collection would be used to clone said persons in the event of a global catastrophe.

Awards and honors
Zuokas is the recipient of numerous international and national awards and honors. He was decorated by President Jacques Chirac of France in 2001 with the National Order of Merit, and by President Vaira Vike-Freiberga of Latvia for his contribution to the betterment of bilateral relations.

He was twice elected vice-president of the Organization of World Heritage Cities. The Junior Chamber International recognized Zuokas for his administrative achievements by naming him one of the "Ten Outstanding Young Persons in the World" in 2002. The U.S. Baltic Foundation honored his achievements in 2003 and the Balzekas Museum in Chicago, Illinois named him "Man of the Year". Local awards have included "Friend of Architects". He is a three-time recipient of the popular Vilnius "Iron Wolf" award.

In 2003, Zuokas was bestowed with an honorary degree from the Gediminas Technical University.

title: Artūras Zuokas


text: File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg