text:
USS G-4

USS G-4 (SS-26) was a G-class submarine of the United States Navy. While the four G-boats were nominally all of a class, they differed enough in significant details that they are sometimes considered to be four unique boats, each in a class by herself.

G-4 was an attempt to introduce competition to the USN submarine acquisition process. Italian naval architect Cesare Laurenti had been campaigning for permission to build a submarine for the USN and he was granted a contract for one submarine in the Fiscal Year 1909 building program. The contract was approved with the proviso that the boat be built in the United States.

G-4 was built with a radically different hull design. She had a full double hull, with an inner elliptically shaped pressure hull wrapped by a flattened circle shaped outer hull. Electric Boat had built all of their designs up to that point with a circular single hull. The hull design was not entirely successful, as she suffered from stability problems throughout her service. She very nearly capsized during her launch from the building ways. This boat also was the first USN submarine (by date of full commission status) with stern torpedo tubes. G-4 had retractable bow and stern diving planes and two rudders, one ventral and one dorsal both at the stern.

G-4 was named Thrasher when her keel was laid down on 9 July 1910 by William Cramp & Sons in Philadelphia, making her the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the thresher shark, a shark with a long dorsal tail fin. Thrasher is an outdated spelling. She was renamed G-4 on 17 November 1911, launched on 15 August 1912 sponsored by Ms. Grace Anna Taussig, and commissioned in the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 22 January 1914.

Service history
After fitting out, G-4 proceeded to the New York Navy Yard on 25 April for service with Division Three, Submarine Flotilla, Atlantic Fleet. Based on plans purchased from Italian designer Cesare Laurenti, G-4 was an even keel boat, meaning the round pressure hull was flat on the bottom. When surrounded by a streamlined outer hull, the boat was theoretically more stable than the earlier Holland-type boats. The different equipment and operating procedures meant G-4 spent the next five months conducting trial runs and diving tests, many of which failed owing to engine machinery breakdown. Still, almost all of her preliminary trials were completed by the end of August, and the boat was conditionally accepted by the Navy on 21 September.

At the end of October, the boat shifted to New London, Connecticut, and from there she sailed on to Newport, Rhode Island in mid-November. Moving back to New York on 22 November, G-4 received post-shakedown repairs to her engines, which suffered from sea water damage owing to leaky exhaust lines and salt contamination of the oil system. After failing several engine trials that winter, the boat proceeded south to her builder's yard in Philadelphia on 9 March 1915. Following two months of repairs, G-4 departed Philadelphia on 12 May and sailed to New York for a Naval Review before President of the United States Woodrow Wilson. G-4 then conducted maneuvers with the submarine flotilla off Newport in late May and again in October, in addition to local training operations out of New York and the submarine base in New London.

On 14 January 1916, G-4 commenced a planned three-month overhaul at the New York Naval Shipyard. Workers installed a gyrocompass and repaired equipment in preparation for final acceptance trials on 7 March. Although successfully put through her paces, the boat returned to the yard for further alterations, including the installation of new diving rudders. Trouble with the Sperry gyrocompass rudder control mechanism — as well as continued modifications to engines and other machinery — kept the boat in the New York Navy Yard through the end of the year. Finally tested at sea in February 1917, the gyro stabilizer and diving rudders then failed in heavy weather. After G-4 returned to the yard, the broken rudders were repaired and the stabilizer mechanism removed by 10 March.

Sailing to New London on 24 April, G-4 was attached to Division Three, Submarine Flotilla. For the next year, she combined experimental work with new sound detection devices with training new student crews in submarine operations and torpedo firing, a period of time punctuated by her joining the submarine tender USS Fulton (AS-1) for harbor submarine net defense experiments. Later in the month, G-4 carried out sound experiments with USS Wacondah (SP-238) and USS Thetis (SP-391) in the Thames River and in Long Island Sound. In late July, she conducted battle exercises and submerged attack drills against SC-6. On 22 October, Thetis experimented with sound and magnetic detectors while G-4 lay on the bottom of Long Island Sound. Over the winter, she conducted numerous sound experiments with the newly established Submarine School in the area of Block Island Sound and Long Island Sound.

In March 1918, G-4 shifted from New London to Newport, where she conducted magnetic detector experiments with USS Owera (SP-167). The submarine also conducted practice approaches and torpedo instruction for officer and enlisted submarine students. On 21 May, G-4 commenced test firing the new Mark VII torpedo for installation in O and N-class submarines, evolutions that lasted through mid-July. The boat then returned to New London for a yard period, undergoing motor and electrical repairs through October. Although G-4 resumed training and instruction duties on 4 November, the boat was slated for inactivation on 24 February 1919.

G-4 continued her training and experimental duties until 1 March, when she was placed in ordinary for stripping and inactivation. She decommissioned on 5 September, was designated as a target for depth charge and ordnance tests on 6 December, and was sold for scrapping to Connecticut Iron and Metal Company of New London on 15 April 1920. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 13 August 1921.

title: USS G-4


text:
USS G-2

USS G-2 (SS-27) was a G-class submarine of the United States Navy. While the four G-boats were nominally all of a class, they differed enough in significant details that they are sometimes considered to be four unique boats, each in a class by herself. A Simon Lake design, G-2 was named Tuna when her keel was laid down on 20 October 1909 by Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News, Virginia (a contractor for Simon Lake). She was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the tuna, a large, vigorous, spiny-finned fish highly esteemed for sport and food. She was renamed G-2 on 17 November 1911, launched on 10 January 1912 sponsored by Ms. Marjorie F. Miller, towed to the New York Navy Yard after the termination of the Lake contract on 7 November 1913 where she was completed, and placed in reduced commission on 1 December 1913.

Service history
Departing New York City under tow of submarine tender Ozark (ex-Arkansas) the submersible torpedo boat arrived at the torpedo station, Newport, Rhode Island, on 28 February 1914. Attached to the Atlantic Submarine Flotilla, G-2 spent the next five months conducting dive training and engineering exercises with USS G-1 (SS-19½) in Long Island Sound and Narragansett Bay. During these trials the boat made six submerged runs to a maximum depth of 37 ft. Her engines proved troublesome, however, and after the port armature shaft failed on 31 March, the boat was towed to New York for repairs. While there, financial considerations led to G-2 being put in reserve commission on 15 June 1914.

G-2 was placed in full commission at New York City on 6 February 1915. Attached to Division Three, Submarine Flotilla, Atlantic Fleet, the boat joined G-1, tender USS Fulton (AS-1) and tug USS Sonoma (AT-12), for a cruise to Norfolk, Virginia on 25 March. Arriving there two days later, the submersible conducted maneuvers in Hampton Roads before proceeding to Charleston, South Carolina in April, arriving there on 17 April. Following a short yard period for repairs, the division proceeded back to New York, mooring alongside the 135th Street pier on 9 May.

On 18 May G-2 joined other warships and passed in review before President of the United States Woodrow Wilson, who looked on from the yacht USS Mayflower (PY-1). The boat then sailed to Nantucket, Massachusetts, to participate in a war problem off Block Island, before unloading her torpedoes at Newport on 25 May. Ordered back to New York for an overhaul, the submersible again transited the familiar waters of Long Island Sound before arriving at the mouth of the East River on 22 June. While standing down the river with USS G-4 (SS-26), however, the two boats collided with submarine K-2, in an unusual three-boat accident. Fortunately, none of the boats suffered any damage. G-2 entered the Navy Yard there for an extended overhaul later that day.

Escorted to Provincetown, Massachusetts, by Ozark and tug USS Iwana (YT-2), G-2 commenced final acceptance trials from 1–10 December. Following those successful evolutions, during which the Trial Board noted numerous items requiring modernization, the boat moved back to New York for an overhaul on 14 January 1916. Six months later, G-2 shifted to the Lake Torpedo Boat Company yard for completion, receiving new diving rudder gear, hydroplanes, electrical wiring and a new crankshaft. This yard work required extensive alterations and the boat did not return to service until convoyed to New London, Connecticut, by USS Sunbeam II (SP-42) on 28 June 1917.

On 21 August G-2 sailed to Boston, Massachusetts via the Cape Cod Canal to operate with the destroyer USS Aylwin (DD-47), submarine chaser SC-6, and steam yacht USS Margaret (SP-527). There, the boat helped a Navy Experimental Board embarked in Margaret carry out various sound detector tests in nearby waters. The submarine also conducted practice approaches and served as an instruction platform for officer and enlisted submarine students.

Shifting back to New London on 20 October, G-2 combined work on sound detection devices with training for the newly established Submarine School off Block Island and in Long Island Sound. During seven months of operations, she experimented with magnetic detectors and dragging devices and tried out new periscopes and other submarine equipment. The boat carried out these tests with section patrol boats USS Wacondah (SP-238) and USS Thetis (SP-391), as well as numerous subchasers. Learning of the possible proximity of German U-boats, she conducted four-day patrols off Block Island in late June 1918 and again in mid-July.

G-2 continued schoolship duty out of New London through the end of World War I, testing listening and flare signaling devices (including the Very System Signal) among other pieces of equipment. On 30 August, for example, her crew tested the strength of the pressure hull, and the reliability of electric equipment, against depth charge explosions. On 12 September, Thetis experimented with a magnetic detector while G-2 lay on the bottom in 86 ft of water and, in November, G-2 even conducted experimental work with patrol seaplanes. This duty ended in January 1919 when she was scheduled for inactivation.

Decommissioned on 2 April, the boat was designated as a target for testing depth charges and ordnance nets in Niantic Bay, Connecticut. During inspection by a six-man maintenance crew on 30 July, the boat suddenly flooded and sank at her moorings in Two Tree Channel near Niantic Bay. She went down in 81 ft, drowning three of the inspection crew. Too deep and too old to salvage, the submarine was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 11 September.

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

title: USS G-2


text:
User talk:Adrian.benko

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

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Feel free to contact me personally with any questions you might have. About, Help desk, and Village pump are also a place to go for answers to general questions. You can sign your name by typing 4 tildes, like this: ~.

Be Bold!

21:11, 1 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Hopman Cup
Kde jste prosím zjistil, jaký den se hrál určitý zápas? Kedarus 09:17, 24 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Pre rok 2005 z reportov na stránke http://www.itftennis.com/abouttheitf/worldwide/hopman2005.asp --Adrian.benko 11:35, 24 June 2007 (UTC)

Input requested at Sunset
Hi Adrian.benko,

After a quick browse through the history of Sunset I've noticed you've previously edited the page. Your input is now requested in choosing a new lead picture here. Thanks for your time, --Fir0002 00:33, 15 January 2009 (UTC)
 * My onnly edit on Sunset page was sk interwiki. --Adrian.benko (talk) 05:52, 15 January 2009 (UTC)

Re: rename
Thank you very much for doing it so quickly :) --Joy-temporary (talk) 14:54, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

ArbCom elections are now open!
MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 12:55, 23 November 2015 (UTC)

title: User talk:Adrian.benko


text:
USS G-3

USS G-3 (SS-31) was a G-class submarine of the United States Navy. While the four G-boats were nominally all of a class, they differed enough in significant details that they are sometimes considered to be four unique boats, each in a class by herself. G-3 was named Turbot when her keel was laid down on 30 March 1911 by the Lake Torpedo Boat Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut, making her the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the turbot, a large, brown and white flatfish, valued as a food. She was renamed G-3 on 17 November 1911, transferred to the New York Navy Yard for completion on 17 November 1913 following the cancellation of the Lake contract, launched on 27 December 1913, and commissioned on 22 March 1915. Unlike the other three boats of the G-class, G-3 had diesel engines.

Service history
After fitting out, G-3 proceeded to Bridgeport, Connecticut on 1 July to have sponsons fitted to the boat to increase stability. During submerged test runs off Port Jefferson in Long Island Sound two weeks later, however, her crew discovered several leaks and the submersible docked at the Lake Company's marine railway for repairs and alterations. These modifications – which included work on the main engine oiling system as well as sponson installation – lasted until 8 January 1916. On that date, she sailed back to the New York Navy Yard to be inclined and undergo a deep submergence test. The latter took place off Eaton's Point, Long Island, on 8 February, with Simon Lake – owner of the Lake Torpedo Boat Company – embarked. The boat successfully completed a test dive to 198 ft and was preliminarily accepted by the Navy that same day.

On 11 February, G-3 proceeded to New London, Connecticut, for initial shakedown operations. Aside from a brief period alongside submarine tender Tonopah (ex-Nevada) to repair damaged screws in March, she spent the next five months conducting trial runs, dive tests and training operations out of New London. Following another yard period at Bridgeport in mid-July to replace defective lube pumps, the boat moved to New York City on 30 August for final acceptance trials. Unfortunately, the breakdown of G-3's port engine disrupted her standardization trials in late September, prompting her move into the Navy Yard for repairs on 3 October. Difficulties in working in tight engine room spaces necessitated removing the port engine for repair and the boat remained immobile through the following spring. She finally put to sea on 1 June 1917 and returned to New London that same day.

Assigned to Division Two (Training and Experimental Division), Submarine Flotilla, Atlantic Fleet, G-3 combined the training of new student crews in submarine operations and torpedo firing with experimental work as needed. The latter included harbor net defense deployment drills with tender USS Fulton (AS-1) in June and stationary dives with a submarine rescue bell in the Thames River in September. In late October, G-3 carried out instructional sound work with USS Parthenia (SP-671), a task resumed in early 1918 in company with a succession of submarine chasers and patrol boats.

On 26 April 1918 she ran aground on Eel Grass Shoal near Fishers Island, New York. Refloated and returned to service. In May 1918, G-3 participated in submarine division maneuvers in Great Salt Pond Bay, including several two to five-day cruises at sea. In early June, following warnings of German U-boats off the East Coast, G-3 conducted a number of periscope and listening patrols in the region. These operations came to a sudden end on 13 June, when engine and battery trouble forced the boat to sail to New York for spare parts. Returning to New London on 18 June, G-3 underwent an availability at the Thames Shipyard through mid-July.

Resuming school duties on 17 July, G-3 spent the next three months conducting torpedo instruction, listening and radio training for officer and enlisted submarine students. Following an engineering performance cruise to Boston, Massachusetts, in September, the boat conducted training operations through October. On 10 November, G-3 began preparations for an overhaul at the Submarine Base, New London, which lasted through April 1920. Although she returned to her familiar training and instruction duties in May, the boat was tapped for inactivation on 6 December.

G-3 was decommissioned at New London on 5 May 1921 and towed to the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 17 August. Having been stripped of machinery and fittings, the hulk was sold for scrap to Joseph G. Hitner on 19 April 1922 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register that same day.

title: USS G-3


text: Template:United States G class submarine


text: User talk:208.183.225.11

title: User talk:208.183.225.11


text:
Tuskegee (Cherokee town)

Tuskegee (also spelled Toskegee, Taskigi, and similar variations) was an Overhill Cherokee town located along the lower Little Tennessee River in what is now Monroe County, Tennessee, United States. The town developed in the late 1750s alongside Fort Loudoun, and was inhabited until the late 1770s. It was forcibly evacuated and probably burned during the Cherokee–American wars.

Tuskegee is perhaps best known as the birthplace of Sequoyah (Cherokee, c.1770-1843), a craftsman and polymath who independently created the Cherokee syllabary as an effective writing system for his language. He is one of the few people from a pre-literate society known in recorded history for such an achievement.

The Tuskegee town site was investigated by archaeologists in the 1970s, as part of a survey and excavations of known sites prior to inundation of the valley after completion of the Tellico Dam in 1979.

History
Early explorers made several maps and wrote accounts of the Overhill country, but Tuskegee is not mentioned or noted before 1757. But a map by William G. De Brahm, the engineer who designed the fort, notes a place called "Taskigee old Town" near one of the proposed sites for the fort (the term "old town" often denoted a cleared or previously inhabited area, and this area is known to have been inhabited for thousands of years by indigenous peoples).

Historians generally believe that the Cherokee town of Tuskegee (also spelled Toskegee) developed here following the construction of Fort Loudoun (1756–1757) by the British colony of South Carolina. A map of the area drawn in either 1756 or early 1757 by John Stuart, an officer in Fort Loudoun's garrison, does not note Tuskegee.

Similarly, early correspondence of Fort Loudoun's garrison does not mention Tuskegee and typically uses Tomotley, a Cherokee town located further upriver to the south, as a reference point. Tuskegee is first mentioned in a letter from the fort dated January 11, 1757. The town is frequently mentioned thereafter as having the same location as Fort Loudoun.

After the Cherokee forced the fall of Fort Loudoun, were invaded, and subsequently signed a peace treaty with South Carolina, Virginia sent a peace delegation led by Henry Timberlake to visit the Overhill country in late 1761 and early 1762. Timberlake's map, entitled "Draught of the Cherokee Country," gives detailed information on several Overhill towns, including Tuskegee. On the map, Tuskegee (spelled "Toskegee") is indicated by seventeen structures (probably houses) scattered across the area just south of Fort Loudoun, including three which stand in a line immediately south of the fort. Tuskegee is one of three towns on Timberlake's map that lacks a communal townhouse (the other two being Tanasi and Mialoquo), suggesting that it was a smaller settlement. Timberlake noted that Attakullakulla was the head-man of both Tuskegee and Mialoquo, and that Tuskegee was home to 55 fighters.

In response to a Cherokee attack against the Watauga settlements in the summer of 1776, Colonel William Christian led an invasion force to the Little Tennessee Valley in October of that year. Finding the Overhill towns deserted, Christian burned five, including Tuskegee. This was targeted for retaliation because the Cherokee had killed a settler boy whom they captured during the Watauga attack. Tuskegee was not likely rebuilt or reinhabited after this Anglo-American attack. Subsequent travelers to the area, including those visiting the ruins of Fort Loudoun from the American Tellico Blockhouse in the 1790s, make no mention of the town.

The Cherokee scholar Sequoyah (c.1770-1843), the creator of the Cherokee syllabary, was born at Tuskegee and lived in this area until the early 19th century. He was the son of a Cherokee woman named Wurtah and Nathaniel Gist, a fur trader. He grew up with his mother and her people, speaking only Cherokee for years. He is one of the few people from a pre-literate society known to have independently created an effective writing system. His syllabary inspired the development of 21 other scripts, used in a total of 65 languages across the world.

In the late 20th century, the Tennessee Valley Authority planned the Tellico Dam on the Little Tennessee River, with an accompanying lake that would flood many Cherokee and older indigenous sites along the river. The historic Tuskegee site was among those flooded after completion of Tellico Dam in 1979. The adjacent Fort Loudoun site was raised above lake operating levels, and the fort was reconstructed. Two Cherokee dwellings, a "summer" house and "winter" house, have been reconstructed just south of the fort to represent Tuskegee. The Sequoyah Birthplace Museum, dedicated to the Cherokee scholar, stands along Highway 360, opposite Fort Loudoun State Park.

Archaeological work and findings
The Tennessee Division of Archaeology conducted excavations at the Tuskegee site (40MR4, 40MR24 and 40MR64) in the summer of 1976 in anticipation of the completion of Tellico Dam. Since TVA used the soil around the Tuskegee site for fill dirt to raise adjacent Fort Loudoun above lake operating levels, archaeologists were able to examine a relatively large area around the site (approximately 2.5 acres). These excavations found evidence of twelve structures from various periods dating to the Southern Appalachia Mississippian period, and artifacts from as early as the Archaic period, approximately 7500 BC. (The Tuskegee site lies roughly adjacent to Icehouse Bottom, a key Archaic period site).

Researchers determined that three of the twelve structures discovered during the excavations were Cherokee and appeared to correspond to the three houses just south of Fort Loudoun, as indicated on Timberlake's map. Two of these structures were rectangular, with one measuring 42.6 ft by 14.7 ft and the other 43.9 ft by 21.3 ft. These appear to have been Cherokee "summer" houses (houses with open walls used during warmer months). The third structure was rectangular in shape, but with rounded corners, and measured 25.9 ft by 20.3 ft.

Several refuse pits uncovered by excavators contained Cherokee artifacts. These included several thousand pottery sherds (primarily of the "Overhill Plain" variety), nails, musket balls, tools and jewelry.

title: Tuskegee (Cherokee town)


text: Category:Schools in Buckinghamshire

title: Category:Schools in Buckinghamshire


text:
File:Triplanetary rulesbook.jpg

 * Description: This image was produced with a flatbed scan of the Triplanetary rulesbook cover. It was reduced in size and a drop shadow added using Paint Shop Pro.
 * Width: 185px
 * Height: 263px

title: File:Triplanetary rulesbook.jpg


text:
Small-world network

A small-world network is a graph characterized by a high clustering coefficient and low distances. On an example of social network, high clustering implies the high probability that two friends of one person are friends themselves. The low distances, on the other hand, mean that there is a short chain of social connections between any two people (this effect is known as six degrees of separation). Specifically, a small-world network is defined to be a network where the typical distance L between two randomly chosen nodes (the number of steps required) grows proportionally to the logarithm of the number of nodes N in the network, that is:

 * $$L \propto \log N$$

while the global clustering coefficient is not small.

In the context of a social network, this results in the small world phenomenon of strangers being linked by a short chain of acquaintances. Many empirical graphs show the small-world effect, including social networks, wikis such as Wikipedia, gene networks, and even the underlying architecture of the Internet. It is the inspiration for many network-on-chip architectures in contemporary computer hardware.

A certain category of small-world networks were identified as a class of random graphs by Duncan Watts and Steven Strogatz in 1998. They noted that graphs could be classified according to two independent structural features, namely the clustering coefficient, and average node-to-node distance (also known as average shortest path length). Purely random graphs, built according to the Erdős–Rényi (ER) model, exhibit a small average shortest path length (varying typically as the logarithm of the number of nodes) along with a small clustering coefficient. Watts and Strogatz measured that in fact many real-world networks have a small average shortest path length, but also a clustering coefficient significantly higher than expected by random chance. Watts and Strogatz then proposed a novel graph model, currently named the Watts and Strogatz model, with (i) a small average shortest path length, and (ii) a large clustering coefficient. The crossover in the Watts–Strogatz model between a "large world" (such as a lattice) and a small world was first described by Barthelemy and Amaral in 1999. This work was followed by many studies, including exact results (Barrat and Weigt, 1999; Dorogovtsev and Mendes; Barmpoutis and Murray, 2010).

Properties of small-world networks
Small-world networks tend to contain cliques, and near-cliques, meaning sub-networks which have connections between almost any two nodes within them. This follows from the defining property of a high clustering coefficient. Secondly, most pairs of nodes will be connected by at least one short path. This follows from the defining property that the mean-shortest path length be small. Several other properties are often associated with small-world networks. Typically there is an over-abundance of hubs – nodes in the network with a high number of connections (known as high degree nodes). These hubs serve as the common connections mediating the short path lengths between other edges. By analogy, the small-world network of airline flights has a small mean-path length (i.e. between any two cities you are likely to have to take three or fewer flights) because many flights are routed through hub cities. This property is often analyzed by considering the fraction of nodes in the network that have a particular number of connections going into them (the degree distribution of the network). Networks with a greater than expected number of hubs will have a greater fraction of nodes with high degree, and consequently the degree distribution will be enriched at high degree values. This is known colloquially as a fat-tailed distribution. Graphs of very different topology qualify as small-world networks as long as they satisfy the two definitional requirements above.

Network small-worldness has been quantified by a small-coefficient, $$\sigma$$, calculated by comparing clustering and path length of a given network to an Erdős–Rényi model with same degree on average.

 * $$\sigma = \frac \frac C {C_r} \frac L {L_r}$$
 * if $$\sigma > 1$$ ($C \gg C_r$ and $L \approx {L_r}$ ), network is small-world. However, this metric is known to perform poorly because it is heavily influenced by the network's size.

Another method for quantifying network small-worldness utilizes the original definition of the small-world network comparing the clustering of a given network to an equivalent lattice network and its path length to an equivalent random network. The small-world measure ($$\omega$$) is defined as

 * $$\omega = \frac{L_r} L - \frac C {C_\ell}$$

Where the characteristic path length L and clustering coefficient C are calculated from the network you are testing, Cℓ is the clustering coefficient for an equivalent lattice network and Lr is the characteristic path length for an equivalent random network.

Still another method for quantifying small-worldness normalizes both the network's clustering and path length relative to these characteristics in equivalent lattice and random networks. The Small World Index (SWI) is defined as

 * $$ \text{SWI} = \frac{L-L_\ell}{L_r-L_\ell}\times\frac{C-C_r}{C_\ell-C_r}$$

Both ω′ and SWI range between 0 and 1, and have been shown to capture aspects of small-worldness. However, they adopt slightly different conceptions of ideal small-worldness. For a given set of constraints (e.g. size, density, degree distribution), there exists a network for which ω′ = 1, and thus ω aims to capture the extent to which a network with given constraints as small worldly as possible. In contrast, there may not exist a network for which SWI = 1, the thus SWI aims to capture the extent to which a network with given constraints approaches the theoretical small world ideal of a network where C ≈ Cℓ and L ≈ Lr.

Examples of small-world networks
Small-world properties are found in many real-world phenomena, including websites with navigation menus, food webs, electric power grids, metabolite processing networks, networks of brain neurons, voter networks, telephone call graphs, and airport networks. Cultural networks and word co-occurrence networks have also been shown to be small-world networks.

Networks of connected proteins have small world properties such as power-law obeying degree distributions. Similarly transcriptional networks, in which the nodes are genes, and they are linked if one gene has an up or down-regulatory genetic influence on the other, have small world network properties.

Examples of non-small-world networks
In another example, the famous theory of "six degrees of separation" between people tacitly presumes that the domain of discourse is the set of people alive at any one time. The number of degrees of separation between Albert Einstein and Alexander the Great is almost certainly greater than 30 and this network does not have small-world properties. A similarly constrained network would be the "went to school with" network: if two people went to the same college ten years apart from one another, it is unlikely that they have acquaintances in common amongst the student body.

Similarly, the number of relay stations through which a message must pass was not always small. In the days when the post was carried by hand or on horseback, the number of times a letter changed hands between its source and destination would have been much greater than it is today. The number of times a message changed hands in the days of the visual telegraph (circa 1800–1850) was determined by the requirement that two stations be connected by line-of-sight.

Tacit assumptions, if not examined, can cause a bias in the literature on graphs in favor of finding small-world networks (an example of the file drawer effect resulting from the publication bias).

Network robustness
It is hypothesized by some researchers, such as Albert-László Barabási, that the prevalence of small world networks in biological systems may reflect an evolutionary advantage of such an architecture. One possibility is that small-world networks are more robust to perturbations than other network architectures. If this were the case, it would provide an advantage to biological systems that are subject to damage by mutation or viral infection.

In a small world network with a degree distribution following a power-law, deletion of a random node rarely causes a dramatic increase in mean-shortest path length (or a dramatic decrease in the clustering coefficient). This follows from the fact that most shortest paths between nodes flow through hubs, and if a peripheral node is deleted it is unlikely to interfere with passage between other peripheral nodes. As the fraction of peripheral nodes in a small world network is much higher than the fraction of hubs, the probability of deleting an important node is very low. For example, if the small airport in Sun Valley, Idaho was shut down, it would not increase the average number of flights that other passengers traveling in the United States would have to take to arrive at their respective destinations. However, if random deletion of a node hits a hub by chance, the average path length can increase dramatically. This can be observed annually when northern hub airports, such as Chicago's O'Hare airport, are shut down because of snow; many people have to take additional flights.

By contrast, in a random network, in which all nodes have roughly the same number of connections, deleting a random node is likely to increase the mean-shortest path length slightly but significantly for almost any node deleted. In this sense, random networks are vulnerable to random perturbations, whereas small-world networks are robust. However, small-world networks are vulnerable to targeted attack of hubs, whereas random networks cannot be targeted for catastrophic failure.

Construction of small-world networks
The main mechanism to construct small-world networks is the Watts–Strogatz mechanism.

Small-world networks can also be introduced with time-delay, which will not only produce fractals but also chaos under the right conditions, or transition to chaos in dynamics networks.

Soon after the publication of Watts–Strogatz mechanism, approaches have been developed by Mashaghi and co-workers to generate network models that exhibit high degree correlations, while preserving the desired degree distribution and small-world properties. These approaches are based on edge-dual transformation and can be used to generate analytically solvable small-world network models for research into these systems.

Degree–diameter graphs are constructed such that the number of neighbors each vertex in the network has is bounded, while the distance from any given vertex in the network to any other vertex (the diameter of the network) is minimized. Constructing such small-world networks is done as part of the effort to find graphs of order close to the Moore bound.

Another way to construct a small world network from scratch is given in Barmpoutis et al., where a network with very small average distance and very large average clustering is constructed. A fast algorithm of constant complexity is given, along with measurements of the robustness of the resulting graphs. Depending on the application of each network, one can start with one such "ultra small-world" network, and then rewire some edges, or use several small such networks as subgraphs to a larger graph.

Small-world properties can arise naturally in social networks and other real-world systems via the process of dual-phase evolution. This is particularly common where time or spatial constraints limit the addition of connections between vertices The mechanism generally involves periodic shifts between phases, with connections being added during a "global" phase and being reinforced or removed during a "local" phase.

Small-world networks can change from scale-free class to broad-scale class whose connectivity distribution has a sharp cutoff following a power law regime due to constraints limiting the addition of new links. For strong enough constraints, scale-free networks can even become single-scale networks whose connectivity distribution is characterized as fast decaying. It was also shown analytically that scale-free networks are ultra-small, meaning that the distance scales according to $$L \propto \log \log N$$.

Applications to sociology
The advantages to small world networking for social movement groups are their resistance to change due to the filtering apparatus of using highly connected nodes, and its better effectiveness in relaying information while keeping the number of links required to connect a network to a minimum.

The small world network model is directly applicable to affinity group theory represented in sociological arguments by William Finnegan. Affinity groups are social movement groups that are small and semi-independent pledged to a larger goal or function. Though largely unaffiliated at the node level, a few members of high connectivity function as connectivity nodes, linking the different groups through networking. This small world model has proven an extremely effective protest organization tactic against police action. Clay Shirky argues that the larger the social network created through small world networking, the more valuable the nodes of high connectivity within the network. The same can be said for the affinity group model, where the few people within each group connected to outside groups allowed for a large amount of mobilization and adaptation. A practical example of this is small world networking through affinity groups that William Finnegan outlines in reference to the 1999 Seattle WTO protests.

Applications to earth sciences
Many networks studied in geology and geophysics have been shown to have characteristics of small-world networks. Networks defined in fracture systems and porous substances have demonstrated these characteristics. The seismic network in the Southern California region may be a small-world network. The examples above occur on very different spatial scales, demonstrating the scale invariance of the phenomenon in the earth sciences.

Applications to computing
Small-world networks have been used to estimate the usability of information stored in large databases. The measure is termed the Small World Data Transformation Measure. The greater the database links align to a small-world network the more likely a user is going to be able to extract information in the future. This usability typically comes at the cost of the amount of information that can be stored in the same repository.

The Freenet peer-to-peer network has been shown to form a small-world network in simulation, allowing information to be stored and retrieved in a manner that scales efficiency as the network grows.

Nearest Neighbor Search solutions like HNSW use small-world networks to efficiently find the information in large item corpuses.

Small-world neural networks in the brain
Both anatomical connections in the brain and the synchronization networks of cortical neurons exhibit small-world topology.

Structural and functional connectivity in the brain has also been found to reflect the small-world topology of short path length and high clustering. The network structure has been found in the mammalian cortex across species as well as in large scale imaging studies in humans. Advances in connectomics and network neuroscience, have found the small-worldness of neural networks to be associated with efficient communication.

In neural networks, short pathlength between nodes and high clustering at network hubs supports efficient communication between brain regions at the lowest energetic cost. The brain is constantly processing and adapting to new information and small-world network model supports the intense communication demands of neural networks. High clustering of nodes forms local networks which are often functionally related. Short path length between these hubs supports efficient global communication. This balance enables the efficiency of the global network while simultaneously equipping the brain to handle disruptions and maintain homeostasis, due to local subsystems being isolated from the global network. Loss of small-world network structure has been found to indicate changes in cognition and increased risk of psychological disorders.

In addition to characterizing whole-brain functional and structural connectivity, specific neural systems, such as the visual system, exhibit small-world network properties.

A small-world network of neurons can exhibit short-term memory. A computer model developed by Sara Solla had two stable states, a property (called bistability) thought to be important in memory storage. An activating pulse generated self-sustaining loops of communication activity among the neurons. A second pulse ended this activity. The pulses switched the system between stable states: flow (recording a "memory"), and stasis (holding it). Small world neuronal networks have also been used as models to understand seizures.

Journal articles

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title: Small-world network


text:
Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/History of Ambazonia

 This page is an archive of the discussion about the proposed deletion of the article below. This page is no longer live. Further comments should be made on the article's talk page rather than here so that this page is preserved as an historic record. The result of the debate was delete. Rossami (talk) 03:55, 11 Feb 2005 (UTC)

History of Ambazonia
An original-research manifesto or essay, perhaps even a hoax (even if Ambazonia may be real). Even if this was a genuine historical document it would belong in Wikisource, not here, so delete. This same anon vandalized History of Cameroon (not edit war, just blanking). -- Curps 21:15, 1 Feb 2005 (UTC)
 * The Ambazonia Liberation Party is real and makes the news in Cameroon. The "Proposed Manifesto for the First Congress of the Ambazonia Liberation Party" is definitely not a History of Ambazonia. Inclusion of a test image shows someone is just getting used to Wikipedia. This manifesto doesn't yet seem to exist elsewhere on the web but is very likely legitimate. Delete the article (unless replaced, and not duplicative of Ambazonia) and transwiki the manifesto to Wikisource. Samaritan 22:05, 1 Feb 2005 (UTC)
 * delete or transwiki to wikisourse Ambazonia is a real place, although seemingly not internationally recognised by anyone. This manifesto doesn't belong on Wikipedia, I don't know enough about wikisource to know if it would meet their inclusion criteria. Thryduulf 22:14, 1 Feb 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete, article as it stands in un-encyclopaedic. Megan1967 02:29, 2 Feb 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete. I doubt Wikisource wants this.  dbenbenn | talk 02:18, 7 Feb 2005 (UTC)

This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and, like some other VfD subpages, is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue, the deletion, or the decision-making process should be placed on the relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.


text:
Toyen

Toyen (born Marie Čermínová; 21 September 1902 – 9 November 1980), was a Czech painter, drafter, and illustrator and a member of the surrealist movement.

In 1923, the artist adopted the professional pseudonym Toyen. The name Toyen has been suggested to be derived from the French word 'citoyen,' meaning citizen, but it has also been proposed to be a play on the Czech expression ‘to je on’ (‘it is he’). Toyen favored this gender-neutral mononym (in Czech the family name is gendered, with women's names ending in "ová") and would speak the language in the masculine singular form. Vítězslav Nezval wrote that Toyen "refused... to use the feminine endings" when speaking in the first person.

Biography
Toyen left the family home at sixteen, and it has been speculated it was due to sympathy towards anarchism.

In the early 1920s, Toyen resided in Smichov with their older sister, Zdena Svobodova, whose husband worked for the railroad. Though the artist presented themself as a lone wolf, family was located nearby and they could visit with their mother whenever they wished, though visits were scarce. In 1940, Toyen and their sister each inherited split custody of their mother’s home until Zdena’s death in 1945, then the property became divided between Toyen and the widower.

From 1919 to 1920, Toyen attended UMPRUM (Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design) in Prague to study the decorative arts. They worked closely with fellow Surrealist poet and artist Jindřich Štyrský until Štyrský's death.

Toyen joined the Czech avant-garde Devětsil group in 1923 and exhibited with them. The group had strong international connections, especially but not only to French culture. Some of the other members of this very large group included: artist and writer Jindřich Štyrský, future Nobel prizewinning poet Jaroslav Seifert, the constructivist architectural theorist Karel Teige, and the poet František Halas. In the early 1920s Toyen traveled to Paris, and soon returned there with Štyrský to live. While living in Paris, the two founded an artistic alternative to Abstraction and Surrealism, which they dubbed Artificialism. Artificialism was defined by Toyen and Štyrský in a leaflet for an exhibition as "The identification of the painter with the poet," where the artist creates poetry without using language. The two would return to Prague in 1928.

Toyen's sketches, book illustrations, and paintings were frequently erotic. They had an interest in erotic humor, combining themes of both pleasure and pain. Their imagery often featured disembodied female figures as well as parts of male bodies like genitalia. Their book illustrations often featured female faces.

Toyen contributed erotic sketches for Štyrský's Erotická Revue (1930–33). This journal was published on strict subscription terms based on a circulation of 150 copies. Štyrský also published books under the imprint Edice 69, some of which Toyen illustrated. For example, Toyen illustrated the Marquis de Sade's Justine. Also of note, they contributed pieces in Die Frau als Künstlerin, Woman as an Artist, the prestigious 1928 survey of women artists in Western civilization.

Toyen's output of over 500 illustrated books includes, for example, The Purple Land by W. H. Hudson and Charles Vildrac's L'lle rose, both from 1930.

After their associates Vítězslav Nezval and Jindřich Honzl met André Breton in Paris, in March 1934 Toyen and Štyrský joined them in founding the Czech Surrealist Group along with other artists, writers, and the composer Jaroslav Ježek.

Forced underground during the Nazi occupation and Second World War, Toyen sheltered their second artistic partner, Jindřich Heisler, a poet of Jewish descent who had joined the Czech Surrealist Group in 1938. The two permanently relocated to Paris in 1947, before the Communist takeover of Czechoslovakia in 1948, and joined the Parisian Surrealists. In Paris, Toyen worked with André Breton, Benjamin Péret and other surrealists such as Annie Le Brun. Toyen would continue to collaborate with surrealist-affiliated poets and other writers but soon ceased working for commercial publishers in Czechoslovakia.

Exploring sexuality and gender in surrealism
Toyen's artistic identity involved significant attention to gender issues and sexual politics. It has been suggested that this would have been difficult considering the surrealist movement was male-dominated and is often regarded as sexist. However, surrealism began to attract many women in the 1930s and became much more gender-balanced as time went by. Breton in particular admired Toyen and the artist was close to both Breton and his third wife, Elisa.

Toyen was assigned female at birth, but appears to have preferred a less-gendered identification. Some people compare Toyen with "other Surrealist women" (Claude Cahun, Leonora Carrington, and a handful of others ). Cahun examined the fluidity of gender roles, which was also true of Toyen. Toyen often dressed in masculine-style clothing and preferred masculine signifiers, choosing a non-conformist position when it came to gender and sexuality, themes heavily mined in Surrealist art. The act of cross-dressing was a tool used by Toyen and woman artists at the time to overcome institutionalized and cultural sexism. By doing so, they embodied the role of the active protagonist, a role reserved traditionally for men. Toyen, along with women of the avant-garde movement such as Natalia Goncharova and Zinaida Gippius called these boundaries to light, then actively transcended them by adopting masculine attributes.

The artist often addressed gender and sexuality in humorous and fantasy-erotic illustrations. Toyen has been theorized by Malynne Sternstein as "hypersexualized."

The surrealists believed that humans are sexual beings, and many surrealists linked sexuality to artistic creativity. Some surrealists deemed sexuality to be central, with genitalia as the center of vitality.

Toyen expressed interest in lesbian sexuality along with many other forms of sexual expression, but it is unknown what the artist's personal sexual activity actually included. Toyen's two major artistic partnerships were with men, but it is not known whether these included sexual contact. According to Huebner, it is best to see Toyen as queer and not attempt to categorize the artist's sexuality or gender.

Toyen has been described as presenting in an "ambiguously gendered" manner due to alternately wearing skirts and more masculine-styled attire. Toyen's contemporaries reported Toyen as walking in an unfeminine way and asserting that they were attracted to women.

Posthumous recognition
Asteroid (4691) Toyen is named in their honor.

title: Toyen


text:
Tsuga heterophylla

Tsuga heterophylla, the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonoma County, California. The Latin species name means 'variable leaves'.

Description
Western hemlock is a large evergreen conifer growing to 165 – tall, exceptionally 273 ft, and with a trunk diameter of up to 9 ft. It is the largest species of hemlock, with the next largest (mountain hemlock) reaching a maximum height of 194 ft. The bark is brown, thin, and furrowed (outwardly appearing similar to that of Douglas-fir). The crown is a very neat broad conic shape in young trees with a strongly drooping lead shoot, becoming cylindrical in older trees, which may have no branches in the lowest 100 –. At all ages, it is readily distinguished by the pendulous branchlet tips. The shoots are very pale buff-brown, almost white, with pale pubescence about 1 mm long.

The leaves are needle-like, 5 – long and 1.5 – broad, strongly flattened in cross-section, with a finely serrated margin and a bluntly acute apex. They are mid to dark green above; the underside has two distinctive white bands of stomata with only a narrow green midrib between the bands. They are arranged spirally on the shoots but are twisted at the base to lie in two ranks on either side of the shoot. The cones appear on trees over about 25 years old; they are small, pendulous, slenderly cylindrical, 14 – long and 7 – broad when closed, opening to 18 – broad. They have 15–25 thin, flexible scales 7 – long. The immature cones are green, maturing gray-brown 5–7 months after pollination. They are usually plentiful enough to cover the ground beneath the tree. The abundant seeds are brown, 2 – long, with a slender, pale-brown wing measuring 7 – long.

Initial growth is slow; one-year-old seedlings are commonly only 3 – tall, and two-year-old seedlings 10 – tall. Once established, saplings in full light may have an average growth rate of 50 – (rarely 140 cm) annually until they are 20 – tall, and in good conditions still 30 – annually when 40 – tall. The tallest specimen, 82.83 m tall, is in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, California (United States). The species is long-lived, especially at higher elevations, with trees over 1,200 years old known.

Distribution and habitat

T. heterophylla is an integral component of Pacific Northwest forests west of the Coast Ranges, where it is a climax species. It is also an important timber tree throughout the region, along with many of its large coniferous associates. The species is closely associated with temperate rainforests, and most of its range is less than 100 km from the Pacific Ocean. Valleys it can be found in usually receive at least 80 cm of rain annually. It mostly grows at low altitudes, from sea level to 600 m. In western Washington, it can be found up to elevations of 1070 m. The species can also be found in humid areas of mountains further inland, where western white pine is normally dominant. For example, in the Columbia Mountains in and around southeastern British Columbia and northern Idaho, it grows up to 1500 m, particularly on north-facing slopes. In the interior part of its range in Idaho, it can be found up to 1800 m.

Ecology
Western hemlock is a very shade-tolerant tree; among associated species in the Pacific Northwest, it is matched or exceeded in shade tolerance only by Pacific yew and Pacific silver fir. Young plants typically grow up under the canopy of other conifers such as Sitka spruce or Douglas-fir, where they can persist for decades waiting to exploit a gap in the canopy. They eventually replace these conifers, which are relatively shade-intolerant, in climax forest. However, storms and wildfires will create larger openings in the forest where these other species can then regenerate. Its thin bark and shallow roots makes it susceptible to fire. At higher elevations, the species can be found mingling with T. mertensiana (mountain hemlock), seeming to take on some of its characteristics although there is no hard evidence of hybridization.

Western hemlock forms ectomycorrhizal associations with some well-known edible fungi such as chanterelles (Cantharellus formosus, C. subalbidus, and Craterellus tubaeformis). It is capable of associating with wood-decay fungi in addition to soil fungi; this enables its seedlings to survive on rotting stumps and logs. Older forests are damaged by rot-causing fungi, dwarf mistletoe, and leaf-consuming insects such as Acleris gloverana and Lambdina fiscellaria.

Uses
The bark has long served as a source of tannin for tanning leather.

Cultivation
Western hemlock is cultivated as an ornamental tree in gardens in its native habitats and along the U.S. Pacific Coast, where its best reliability is seen in wetter regions. In relatively dry areas, as at Victoria, British Columbia, it is exacting about soil conditions. It needs a high level of organic matter (well-rotted wood from an old log or stump is best; animal manures may have too much nitrogen and salt), in a moist, acidic soil. It is also cultivated in temperate regions worldwide. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

It can also be found in large gardens in northwest Europe and southern New Zealand.

Forestry
When planted on the banks of a river, western hemlock can help reduce erosion. Outside of its natural range, the tree is of importance in forestry.

Until the early 1920s, the tree was largely ignored for use as lumber due to its presumed similarity to the poor-quality eastern hemlock. Since then, it has been greatly utilized for timber (as a softwood) and paper production; it is used for making doors, joinery, and furniture. Its fiber is used to make rayon and various plastics.

It has naturalised in some parts of Great Britain and New Zealand—not so extensively as to be considered an invasive species, but as an introduced one.

Food and medicine
The edible cambium can be collected by scraping slabs of removed bark. The resulting shavings can be eaten immediately, or can be dried and pressed into bread, as was done by the natives of Southeast Alaska. The inner bark was eaten by some Native American tribes as an emergency food, and the bark was cooked to make medicinal extracts for tuberculosis, rheumatic fever, and hemorrhage. The bark could also be boiled to make dark red dyes to make fishing nets and lines less visible to fish.

Western hemlocks have been submerged to collect herring eggs during the spring spawn in southeast Alaska. The boughs provide an easily collectible surface for the eggs to attach to as well as providing a distinctive taste. This practice originates from traditional gathering methods used by Native Alaskans from southeast Alaska, specifically the Tlingit people.

Tender new-growth needles can be chewed directly or made into a bitter tea, rich in vitamin C (similar to some other hemlock and pine species).

Culture
Western hemlock is the state tree of Washington.

title: Tsuga heterophylla


text: User:James Brown

title: User:James Brown


text:
Category:Schools in Derbyshire

This lists the schools located in the county of Derbyshire.

title: Category:Schools in Derbyshire


text:
Chanakyapuri

Chanakyapuri (चाणक्यपुरी) is a neighbourhood and diplomatic enclave established in the 1950s in New Delhi, India. It is also a sub-division of the New Delhi district and plays host to the majority of foreign embassies in New Delhi. Chanakyapuri, meaning "city of Chanakya", is named after Chanakya, an ancient Indian diplomat, philosopher, politician, military strategist and advisor to Maurya Emperor Chandragupta Maurya.

History
Chanakyapuri was the first major extension of New Delhi beyond Lutyens' Delhi. The Central Public Works Department (CPWD) developed a large area of land to create this diplomatic enclave in the 1950s. Subsequently, this land was allotted to embassies, chanceries, high commissions and ambassador residences. The enclave is built around a wide central vista, known as Shanti Path (Peace Road), with wide green areas. A large landscaped park spread over an area of 80 acres, known as Nehru Park, was developed in 1969 for the families of the diplomatic personnel. In time, two markets, two colleges and schools run by diplomatic missions (including The British School and the American Embassy School) were established in the neighbourhood.

The Akbar Hotel was constructed 1965-69 for the India Tourism Development Corporation by Shiv Nath Prasad. Around it Yashwant Place was constructed for shopping and eating. A movie theatre Chanakya Cinema was added in 1969, built in the Brutalist architecture style. The cinema was later torn down and the plot redeveloped into a shopping mall with a new cinema in 2017.

Accessibility
Major roads in Chanakyapuri include Shanti Path, Nyaya Marg, Niti Marg, Chandragupta Marg and Panchsheel Marg. In addition to these, the Ring Road traverses the southern expanse of the neighbourhood and intersects National Highway 8 on the border with neighbouring Dhaula Kuan. Sardar Patel Marg marks the Western periphery, while the Chanakya Cinema complex, which lies beyond Nehru Park, forms the south-western perimeter. The Delhi Ring Railway stops at Chanakyapuri, while Lok Kalyan Marg metro station and Jor Bagh metro station are the nearest stations of Delhi Metro.

Primary and secondary schools

 * The American Embassy School, New Delhi, for expatriates from the US and other countries.
 * The British School offers the British National Curriculum, the IGCSE and IB. It primarily serves the international community
 * German School New Delhi
 * Russian Embassy School in Delhi
 * Sanskriti School, a renowned education institution, which mainly serves the children of civil servants.
 * Navy Children School, Delhi which mainly serves the children of Naval staff.
 * Carmel Convent School - a K to 12 convent school for girls located in Malcha Marg. Follows the CBSE curriculum

Universities

 * Jesus and Mary College, a constituent college of the University of Delhi.
 * Maitreyi College, another constituent college of the University of Delhi.
 * South Asian University, an international university established by the SAARC.

title: Chanakyapuri


text:
Talk:Philip Emeagwali

What happened (reply)
@YesI'mOnFire, in response to your edit summary: notice how at the bottom of the "References" there's some big, bold, red text that says Cite error: A list-defined reference named "Move African Americans toward involvement in Mars missions" is not used in the content (see the help page). That is what I fixed in of the page (notice the lack of big, bold, red text). If you want to keep that there, fine. It won't be my fault if someone else tries to fix it. Otherwise, please restore (or tell me to restore) my edit. Thanks! – Daℤyzzos (✉ • 📤) 13:51, 22 June 2024 (UTC)

 * @DaZyzzogetonsGotDaLastWord Thank you for pointing out that for me, but when you tried to fix it, the ref list went haywire. That is why I reverted back to the latest good version and noticed that red bold text. I tried to remove it as it was not relecant to the article, but the ref list still has problems just like when you tried to fix it. Then I found out a really simple solution: closing the ref list with }}. It's all good now, so don't worry. 🔥 Yes I'mOnFire 🔥( ContainThis Ember? ) 14:59, 22 June 2024 (UTC)
 * . That's funny, though. It looked perfectly normal on my end, but maybe that's just because I have the Vector 2010 skin (or you have a certain one). – Daℤyzzos (✉ • 📤) 12:50, 23 June 2024 (UTC)

7 July 2024
I removed tautology on the Lead on the article. You are welcomed to review. Removed Redundant Phrase: I eliminated the repetition of "claims" by removing "claims such as" and using "statements" instead.

Original: "claims such as he invented the Internet and created the world's fastest computer" Revised: "statements about his achievements, such as inventing the Internet and creating the world's fastest computer" Reordered for Clarity: I rearranged the sentence slightly for better flow and clarity.

Original: "making controversial claims about his achievements that are disputed by the scientific community, claims such as he invented the Internet and created the world's fastest computer." Revised: "making controversial statements about his achievements, such as inventing the Internet and creating the world's fastest computer, which are disputed by the scientific community." Minor Edits for Conciseness: Changed "claims about his achievements" to "statements about his achievements" to avoid repetition and streamline the sentence. Wår (talk) 17:52, 7 July 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:Philip Emeagwali


text:
User:Jrcagle

I'm a high school teacher in Maryland. I teach math, Bible, and science.

Interests:

 * Philosophy (epistemology, language, ethics)
 * Mathematics (analysis)
 * Programming and IT (C, Atmel controllers)
 * Music (composition, recording)
 * Theology (evangelical, historical)
 * Church History (Fathers, Reformation)

I'm a member of a Presbyterian (PCA) church in central Maryland, together with my wife and daughters.

Thanks for visiting! Lord bless,

Jeff Cagle

title: User:Jrcagle


text:
Mortgage broker

A mortgage broker acts as an intermediary who brokers mortgage loans on behalf of individuals or businesses. Traditionally, banks and other lending institutions have sold their own products. As markets for mortgages have become more competitive, however, the role of the mortgage broker has become more popular. In many developed mortgage markets today, (especially in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Spain), mortgage brokers are the largest sellers of mortgage products for lenders. Mortgage brokers exist to find a bank or a direct lender that will be willing to make a specific loan an individual is seeking. Mortgage brokers in Canada are paid by the lender and do not charge fees for good credit applications. In the US, many mortgage brokers are regulated by their state and by the CFPB to assure compliance with banking and finance laws in the jurisdiction of the consumer. The extent of the regulation depends on the jurisdiction.

Duties of a mortgage broker
The nature and scope of a mortgage broker's activities vary with jurisdiction. For example, anyone offering mortgage brokerage in the United Kingdom is offering a regulated financial activity; the broker is responsible for ensuring the advice is appropriate for the borrowers' circumstances and is held financially liable if the advice is later shown to be defective. In other jurisdictions, the transaction undertaken by the broker may be limited to a sales job: pointing the borrower in the direction of an appropriate lender, with no advice given, and with a commission collected for the sale.

The work undertaken by the broker will depend on the depth of the broker's service and liabilities. Typically the following tasks are undertaken:

 * marketing to attract clients
 * assessment of the borrower's circumstances (Mortgage fact find forms interview) – this may include assessment of credit history (normally obtained via a credit report) and affordability (verified by income documentation)
 * assessing the market to find a mortgage product that fits the client's needs. (Mortgage presentation/recommendations)
 * applying for a lenders agreement in principle (pre-approval)
 * gathering all needed documents (paystubs/payslips, bank statements, etc.)
 * completing a lender application form
 * explaining the legal disclosures
 * submitting all material to the lender
 * upholding their duty by saving their clients as much money as possible by offering best advice for the clients circumstances

Mortgage brokerage in the United States
According to a 2004 study by Wholesale Access Mortgage Research & Consulting, Inc., there are approximately 53,000 mortgage brokerage companies that employ an estimated 418,700 employees and that originate 68% of all residential loans in the United States. The remaining 32% of loans is retail done through the lender's retail channel, which means the lender does not go through a broker.

The banks have used brokers to outsource the job of finding and qualifying borrowers, and to outsource some of the liabilities for fraud and foreclosure onto the originators through legal agreements.

During the process of loan origination, the broker gathers and processes paperwork associated with mortgaging real estate.

Difference between a mortgage broker and a loan officer
A mortgage broker works as a conduit between the buyer (borrower) and the lender (banks and non-bank lenders), whereas a loan officer typically works directly for the lender. Many states require the mortgage broker to be licensed. States regulate lending practice and licensing, and the rules vary from state to state. Most states require a license for those persons who wish to be a "Broker Associate", a "Brokerage Business", and a "Direct Lender".

A mortgage broker is normally registered with the state, and is personally liable (punishable by revocation or prison) for fraud for the life of a loan. A loan officer works under the umbrella license of an institution, typically a bank or direct lender. Both positions have legal, moral, and professional responsibilities and obligations to prevent fraud and to fully disclose loan terms to both consumer and lender. Agents of mortgage brokers may refer to themselves as "loan officers".

Mortgage brokers must also hold individual and company licenses through the Nationwide Multi-State Licensing System and Registry (NMLS). The goal of NMLS is to employ the benefits of local, state-based financial services regulation on a nationwide platform that provides for improved coordination and information sharing among regulators, increased efficiencies for industry, and enhanced consumer protection. Loan officers who work for a depository institution are required to be registered with the NMLS, but not licensed.

Typically, a mortgage broker will make more money per loan than a loan officer, but a loan officer can use the referral network available from the lending institution to sell more loans. There are mortgage brokers and loan officers at all levels of experience.

Industry competitiveness
A large segment of the mortgage finance industry is commission-based. Potential clients can compare a lender's loan terms to those of others through advertisements or internet quotes.

Mortgage brokers can obtain loan approvals from the largest secondary wholesale market lenders in the country. For example, Fannie Mae may issue a loan approval to a client through its mortgage broker, which can then be assigned to any of a number of mortgage bankers on the approved list. The broker will often compare rates for that day. The broker will then assign the loan to a designated licensed lender based on their pricing and closing speed. The lender may close the loan and service the loan. They may either fund it permanently or temporarily with a warehouse line of credit prior to selling it into a larger lending pool.

The difference between the "Broker" and "Banker" is the banker's ability to use a short term credit line (known as a warehouse line) to fund the loan until they can sell the loan to the secondary market. Then they repay their warehouse lender, and obtain a profit on the sale of the loan. The borrower will often get a letter notifying them their lender has sold or transferred the loan. Bankers who sell most of their loans and do not actually service them are in some jurisdictions required to notify the client in writing. For example, New York State regulations require a non servicing "banker" to disclose the exact percentage of loans actually funded and serviced as opposed to sold/brokered.

Brokers must also disclose Yield spread premium while Bankers do not. This has created an ambiguous and difficult identification of the true cost to obtain a mortgage. The government created a new Good Faith Estimate (2010 version) to allow consumers to compare apples to apples in all fees related to a mortgage whether you are shopping a mortgage broker or a direct lender. The government's reason for this was some mortgage brokers were utilizing bait and switch tactics to quote one rate and fees only to change before the loan documents were created. Although ambiguous for the mortgage brokers to disclose this, they decide what fees to charge upfront whereas the direct lender won't know what they make overall until the loan is sold.

Also See: Predatory lending & Mortgage fraud

Sometimes they will sell the loan, but continue to service the loan. Other times, the lender will maintain ownership and sell the rights to service the loan to an outside mortgage service bureau. Many lenders follow an "originate to sell" business model, where virtually all of the loans they originate are sold on the secondary market. The lender earns fees at the closing, and a Service Release Premium, or SRP. The amount of the SRP is directly related to the terms of the loan. Generally, the less favorable the loan terms for the borrower, the more SRP is earned. Lender's loan officers are often financially incentivized to sell higher-priced loans in order to earn higher commissions.

Secondary market influence
Even large companies with lending licenses sell, or broker, the mortgage loan transactions they originate and close. A smaller percentage of bankers service and keep their loans than those in past decades. Banks act as a broker due to the increasing size of the loans because few can use depositor's money on mortgage loans. A depositor may request their money back and the lender would need large reserves to refund that money on request. Mortgage bankers do not take deposits and do not find it practical to make loans without a wholesaler in place to purchase them. The required cash of a mortgage banker is only $500,000 in New York. The remainder may be in the form of property assets (an additional $2.00), an additional credit line from another source (an additional $10,000,000). That amount is sufficient to make only two median price home loans. Therefore, mortgage lending is dependent on the secondary market, which includes securitization on Wall Street and other large funds.

The largest secondary market by mortgage volume are Federal National Mortgage Association, and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, commonly referred to as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, respectively. Loans must comply with their jointly derived standard application form guidelines so they may become eligible for sale to larger loan servicers or investors. These larger investors could then sell them to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to replenish warehouse funds. The goal is to package loan portfolios in conformance with the secondary market to maintain the ability to sell loans for capital. If interest rates drop and the portfolio has a higher average interest rate, the banker can sell the loans at a larger profit based on the difference in the current market rate. Some large lenders will hold their loans until such a gain is possible.

The selling of mortgage loans in the wholesale or secondary market is more common. They provide permanent capital to the borrowers. A "direct lender" may lend directly to a borrower, but can have the loan pre-sold prior to the closing.

Few lenders are comprehensive or "portfolio lenders". That is, few close, keep, and service the mortgage loan. The term is known as portfolio lending, indicating that a loan has been made from funds on deposit or a trust. That type of direct lending is uncommon, and has been declining in usage. An example of a portfolio lender in the US is ING Direct.

Improved consumer laws
The laws have improved considerably in favor of consumers. A mortgage broker must comply with standards set by law in order to charge a fee to a borrower. The fees must meet an additional threshold, that the combined rate and costs may not exceed a lower percentage, without being deemed a "High Cost Mortgage". An excess would trigger additional disclosures and warnings of risk to a borrower. Further, the mortgage broker would have to be more compliant with regulators. Costs are likely lower due to this regulation.

Mortgage bankers and banks are not subject to this cost reduction act. Because the selling of loans generates most lender fees, servicing the total in most cases exceeds the high cost act. Whereas mortgage brokers now must reduce their fees, a licensed lender is unaffected by the second portion of fee generation. This is due to the delay of selling the servicing until after closing. Therefore, it is considered a secondary market transaction and not subject to the same regulation.

Brokers and client's interests
As of 2007, in the United States the federal law and most state laws do not assign a fiduciary duty on mortgage brokers to act in best interests of their customers. An exception is California, where a 1979 ruling of the Supreme Court of California did establish fiduciary duties of mortgage brokers. This means that consumers, in states other than California, may be charged excessive rates and fees and are encouraged to do some shopping around prior to any agreement.

Predatory mortgage lending and mortgage fraud
Mortgage fraud is when one or more individuals defraud a financial institution by submitting false information willfully. Some mortgage brokers have been involved in mortgage fraud according to the FBI.

Predatory mortgage lending is when a dishonest financial institution willfully misleads or deceives the consumer. Some mortgage consultants, processors and executives of mortgage companies have been involved in predatory lending.

Some signs of predatory lending include:
 * Falsifying income/asset and other documentation.
 * Not disclosing Yield spread premium or other hidden fees BEFORE the settlement/closing.
 * Failing to provide all RESPA documentation, i.e. Good Faith Estimate, Special Information Booklet, Truth in Lending, etc. so the borrower may clearly understand the mortgage terms and lender policies.
 * Convincing borrowers to refinance a loan without any true benefit.
 * Influencing a higher Loan Amount and inflated appraisals (usually in tandem with an appraiser).
 * Unjustly capitalizing on a borrower's relative ignorance about mortgage acquisition.

Another unethical practice involves inserting hidden clauses in contracts in which a borrower will unknowingly promise to pay the broker or lender to find him or her a mortgage whether or not the mortgage is closed. Though regarded as unethical by the National Association of Mortgage Brokers, this practice is legal in most states. Often a dishonest lender will convince the consumer that he or she is signing an application and nothing else. Often the consumer will not hear again from the lender until after the time expires and then they are forced to pay all costs. Potential borrowers may even be sued without having legal defense.

Mortgage brokerage in Canada
The laws governing mortgage brokerage in Canada are determined by provincial governments. Most provinces require mortgage brokerage companies to carry a provincial license.

Nova Scotia
Mortgage Brokers in Nova Scotia are licensed by Service Nova Scotia and are regulated under the Mortgage Brokers and Lenders Registration Act. Many brokers in Nova Scotia are members of the Mortgage Brokers Association of Atlantic Canada. More information about the various mortgage programs that are available to consumers can be found at Mortgage Managers.

Ontario
In Ontario, mortgage brokers are licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA), an arms length agency of the Ministry of Finance. To become licensed an individual must meet specific licensing requirements, including passing an approved course. That course is offered by the Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada Inc. (REMIC) and the Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals(CAAMP). CAAMP provides Canadian mortgage professionals with the Accredited Mortgage Professional (AMP) designation – the national designation for professionals in Canada’s mortgage industry.

In Ontario there is a difference between a Mortgage Broker and a Mortgage Agent, although they perform much of the same tasks.

While the terms Mortgage Broker and Mortgage Agent are similar, and Mortgage Brokers and Mortgage Agents fulfill many of the same functions, it is important note that there is in fact a difference.

According to Canadian Mortgage Trends the main difference between a Mortgage Broker is that, "...a mortgage broker is a firm or person licensed to deal in mortgages and employ mortgage agents" while "A mortgage agent is an individual authorized to deal in mortgages on behalf of a mortgage broker.

While many attribute these functions to a Mortgage Broker, "A mortgage agent is generally someone who finds the best mortgage for each client based on that client’s income, credit, and property profiles."

British Columbia
In British Columbia mortgage brokers are licensed by the Financial Institutions Commission (FICOM)

Default insurance
Throughout Canada, high ratio loans are insured by either the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Genworth Financial or Canada Guaranty.

Online mortgage lending in Canada
As of 2017, Canada has seen a move towards mobile and online technology in the mortgage industry. CIBC has created a mobile app that is presently in beta testing. Companies are incorporating digital technology with a strong aim towards consumer awareness against bank products.

Mortgage brokerage in the United Kingdom
Mortgage brokers in the UK are split between the regulated mortgage market, which lends to private individuals, and the unregulated mortgage market, which lends to businesses and investors. Many UK brokerages mediate both types of business.

The role of a mortgage broker is to mediate business between clients and lending institutions, which include banks, building societies and credit unions.

Tied or multi-tied
Tied mortgage brokers offer products from a single lender, while multi-tied brokers offer products from a small panel of lenders. Many tied brokers are linked to estate agents and will refer the agency’s customers to one of a handful of lenders in exchange for a commission. Mortgage specialists in banks and building societies can also be considered to be ‘tied’ brokers, insofar as they may only offer products sold by that lender.

Whole of market
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) requires that a mortgage broker describes its range accurately to consumers, and stipulates that one of the following disclosures be used to describe the service offered (as appropriate):

 * "We are not limited in the range of mortgages we will consider for you."
 * "We offer a comprehensive range of mortgages from across the market, but not deals that you can only obtain by going direct to a lender."
 * "We only offer mortgages from [number] lender(s). We can provide you with a list of these."
 * "We only offer mortgages from [name of lender(s)]."
 * "We only offer some, but not all, of the mortgages from [number] lender(s). We can provide you with a list of these."
 * "We only offer some, but not all, of the mortgages from [name of lender(s)]."
 * "We only sell bridging finance products from [name of lender(s)]. We do not offer products from across the mortgage market."

How mortgage brokers make money
A mortgage broker can be either compensated by the Lender (Lender Paid Compensation) or the Borrower (Borrower Paid Compensation), but can never be compensated by both. The maximum amount a mortgage broker can be compensated by either the Lender or the Borrower, is 2.75% of the loan amount. The less that percentage is, the lower the interest rate the broker can get for the borrower. Lender Paid Compensation is a fixed percentage amount set by the Broker with the Lenders that they submit loan applications to. Borrower Paid Compensation is a percentage agreed upon between the Broker and the Borrower, however, some Lenders do not allow the Broker to make less than the fixed percentage amount outlined in the Lender Paid Compensation agreement, therefore, negating any benefit to Borrower Paid Compensation. The fees charged vary from broker to broker, but fees can be justified if the broker can expedite the application process, provide support to vulnerable clients and/or search a wide range of mortgages to find the most suitable deal based on the client's circumstances or the chosen property. The FCA's Consumer Duty regulation requires brokers to consider whether their fees represent 'fair value' to the consumer.

Mortgage regulation
Owner-occupier mortgage products, and by extension brokers of these products, are regulated by the FCA. A regulated mortgage contract is defined in the Mortgages and Home Finance: Code of Business (MCOB) as one which:

 * Involves the provision of credit to an individual or trustees;
 * Pertains to a first legal charge on land (excluding timeshare accommodation) of which at least 40% will be occupied by the borrower, trustee or trust beneficiary, or a close relative of any such individual; and
 * Is not a home purchase plan

The Mortgage Credit Directive (MCD)
Mortgage brokers in the UK are also bound by pan-European legislation, such as the EU Mortgage Credit Directive. It is the role of UK legislators to incorporate the directive into the existing UK framework.

The broader distinction between consumers and businesses adopted within the MCD is, in some respects, contrary to the current UK framework, and as a result some exemptions previously enjoyed in the UK will be phased out. One example is where borrowers or relatives of borrowers will occupy less than 40% of a property, which is currently not considered regulated business; by 2016, such borrowers will be considered consumers. These transactions will therefore come to be regulated.

The Mortgage Market Review (MMR)
The Mortgage Market Review (MMR), a comprehensive review of the UK mortgage market which ran from 2009 to 2012 and came into force on 26 April 2014, resulted in some dramatic changes to the regulated lending environment, most centring on new, stricter affordability requirements and income and expenditure checks. There is also anecdotal evidence to suggest that the amount of time it takes to get a mortgage has significantly increased as a result of the changes. Some mortgage brokers whose in-house underwriting already matches borrowers to appropriate lenders are able to circumvent these delays, making their services more attractive.

It is speculated that, because borrowers’ applications are stress-tested on the strength of their ability to make the monthly repayments, increasing numbers of borrowers are opting for mortgage terms exceeding the traditional 25 years. This results in lower repayments but a higher overall interest bill, as well as a longer period servicing debt.

According to official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the percentage of mortgages under 25 years in length fell from 95% to 68% between 2002 and 2012.

Mortgage brokerage in Australia
Mortgage brokers have been active in Australia since the early 1980s, however they only became a dominant force in the mortgage industry during the late 1990s on the back of aggressive marketing by Aussie Home Loans and Wizard Home Loans. Approximately 35% of all loans secured by a mortgage in Australia were introduced by mortgage brokers in 2008. In March 2012, the share of loans introduced by Mortgage Brokers had risen to 43%. In 2016–2017, mortgage brokers had contributed to $2.9 billion to Australian economy.

In 2019, the Mortgage Broker market share has grown to 59% of the mortgage market, however, the future viability of the sector has been cast into doubt due to recommendations of the Hayne Royal Commission. Commissioner Hayne has recommended that lenders cease paying upfront and trailing commission to Brokers and instead, that the consumer pays a yet-to-be determined upfront fee for service. The industry (led by the FBAA and MFAA) leveraged the 2019 Federal Election campaign to convince the Liberal Government to back down from introducing an upfront fee-for-service model. These efforts have been described as a 'textbook case of successful grassroots lobbying'.

Mortgage brokers are now regulated by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission. The new national consumer credit protection legislation includes a licensing regime and responsible lending obligations. Mortgage brokers are also required to be a member of an external dispute resolution provider such as the Credit ombudsman service Limited (COSL). Furthermore, some lenders require accredited brokers to be a member of an industry body such as the Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA) or Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA). These industry associations demand that brokers complete at least 25-30 of continued professional development each year to maintain their skills and knowledge.

Fees
Australian and New Zealand mortgage brokers do not usually charge a fee for their services as they are paid by the lenders for introducing loans. They are paid an up front commission that is on average 0.66% of the loan amount and an ongoing trail commission that is on average 0.165% of the loan amount per annum paid monthly. These commissions can vary significantly between different lenders and loan products, especially since the commission re-alignments introduced by Australian banks during June to August, 2008 in reaction to the Subprime mortgage crisis.

Although mortgage brokers are paid commissions by the lenders this does not alter the final rate or fees paid by the customer as it may in other countries. Mortgage brokers do not have the ability to charge the customer a higher or lower rate and in return obtain a higher or lower commission.

In the event that the loan is paid back by the borrower within 24 months of the loan settlement, mortgage brokers are charged a "clawback" fee by the lenders since the loan is considered "unprofitable". The amount is usually 0.66% of the loan amount for loans paid back in the first 12 months and 0.33% for loans paid back in the next 12 months. When this happens the mortgage brokers are sometimes able to charge the customer the amount if they hold written authority to do this. Mortgage brokers don't like to be liable for the fee, but in some case it is unrecoverable. Keep in mind that a standard home loan in Australia is contracted over a 30-year term, with the average loan life being approximately 4–5 years.

Best Interests Duty
Mortgage brokers in Australia are required to put their clients' interests ahead of their own, even if it means their own profit suffers. This is an important element when it comes to choosing a mortgage broker because it ensures the clients' financial objectives and needs are considered.

Mortgage brokerage in Singapore
The mortgage brokerage industry is still new compared to the situation in the US and the UK Not all of the banks in Singapore are tied up with the mortgage brokerage firms. The mortgage brokers are mostly regulated by the Singapore Law of Agency.

A study undertaken by Chan & Partners Consulting Group (CPCG) shows that the mortgage brokering industry is still largely a new concept to the Singapore financial consumers. However this will set to change as more consumers realize that taking up a housing loan with the mortgage broker does not increase the consumer's cost at all, and can in fact aid them in making a more informed decision.

Mortgage brokers in the country do not charge borrowers any fee, rather profits are made when the financial institutions pay the broker a commission upon successful loan disbursement via the broker's referral.

title: Mortgage broker


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Province of Agrigento

The province of Agrigento (provincia di Agrigento; pruvincia di Girgenti) is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, Italy, situated on its south-western coast. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by the free municipal consortium of Agrigento (Italian: libero consorzio comunale di Agrigento). It has an area of 3041.90 km2, and a total population of 474,493. There are 43 comuni (: comune) in the province.

History and location
It is surrounded by province of Palermo in the north, Trapani in the west, Mediterranean Sea in the south, and Caltanissetta in the east. Gela inhabitants founded the province in the 6th century BC as Akragas. Carthage destroyed the province in 406 BC, but it was later ruled by the Romans, Goths, Byzantines, and Arabs. The Arabs rebuilt several parts of the province. Several ancient Doric temples were constructed during the 6th and 5th century BC to worship Hercules, Jupiter, Juno, Castor, Pollux, and Demeter. They are located in the Valley of Temples (Italian: Valle dei Templi). The ancient temples and other architectural structures were built using the stones of the hills near Capo San Marco.

Places
Here below are listed the towns of the province with more than 10,000 inhabitants:

 * Agrigento (58,273);
 * Sciacca (40,068);
 * Licata (36,113);
 * Canicattì (35,530);
 * Favara (31,751);
 * Palma di Montechiaro (22,262);
 * Ribera (18,492);
 * Porto Empedocle (16,300);
 * Raffadali (12,550);
 * Menfi (12,262);
 * Ravanusa (11,108).

Agrigento is the birthplace of the noted writer Luigi Pirandello and the philosopher Empedocles. According to the government records the number of unemployed people is about 17% of the total labour force. The province faces the Channel of Sicily in the south and is known for its beaches. Torre Salsa's beaches have been designated natural reserves and are protected due to their environmental importance.

Wine production
The province is well known for its vineyards and wines. The total area covered by vineyards in 1984 was almost triple to that in 1949. During this period Marsala based wine merchants used the grapes produced in the province to produce Marsala wine. In 1984 the local government passed a law that regulated this practice. Around three-quarters of the Sicilian land devoted to growing Fiano grapes is in the province. Some of the important municipalities known for their vineyards include Sambuca di Sicilia, Menfi, and Santa Margherita di Belice.

Transportation
The road network in the province comprises 540 km. of street roads, 1,000 km. of provincial roads, 260 km. of communal roads and 56 km. of regional roads. 55% of the total rail network is suitable for electric trains.

title: Province of Agrigento