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Marc Meyer

Marc R. Meyer is an archaeologist and anthropologist who is notable for his excavation of, and research into, the remains of fossil hominids such as Australopithecines and early genus Homo. He currently lectures at Chaffey College, Rancho Cucamonga, CA.

Publications

 * Araiza, I., Meyer, M.R., Williams, S.A., 2021. Is ulna curvature in the StW 573 (‘Little Foot’) Australopithecus natural or pathological? Journal of Human Evolution 151, 102927.
 * Hermes, T.R., Doumani Dupuy, P.N., Henry, E., Meyer, M.R., Mar’yashev, A.N., Frachetti, M.D. (2021) The multi-period settlement “Dali” in southeastern Kazakhstan: Bronze Age institutional dynamics along the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor. Asian Perspectives (in press).
 * Williams, S.A. Prang, T.C., Meyer, M.R., Russo, G.A., Shapiro, L.J. (2020) Reevaluating bipedalism in Danuvius. Nature 586, E1-E3.
 * García-Martínez, D., Bastir, M., Villa, C., García-Río, F., Torres-Sánchez, I., Recheis, W., Barash, A., Khonsari, R.H., O’Higgins, P., Meyer, M.R., Heuzé, Y. (2020) Late subadult ontogeny and adult aging of the human thorax reveals divergent growth trajectories between sexes.  Scientific Reports 10, 10737.
 * Meyer, M.R., Williams, S.A., Fong, M. (2020) Anatomic extremes of the postcranial axial skeleton of Australopithecus and Paranthropus robustus.  American Journal of Physical Anthropology 171(S69):186.
 * Jaye, S., Cortez, V., Meyer, M.R., Williams, S.A. (2020) Functional anatomy of the caudalmost sacrum in Australopithecus afarensis, Australopithecus sediba and Homo erectus. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 171(S69):132.
 * Meyer, M.R., & Williams, S.A. (2019). "The spine of early Pleistocene Homo". In E. Been, A. Gómez-Olivencia, & P. Kramer (Eds.), Spinal Evolution (pp. 153-183). Cham: Springer.
 * Williams, S.A., & Meyer, M.R. (2019). "The spine of Australopithecus". In E. Been, A. Gómez-Olivencia, & P. Kramer (Eds.), Spinal Evolution (pp. 125-151). Cham: Springer.
 * Meyer, M.R., & Williams, S.A. (2019). "Earliest axial fossils from the genus Australopithecus". Journal of Human Evolution, 132, 189-214.
 * Williams, S.A., Prang, T.C., Meyer, M.R., Ostrofsky, K., Nalley, T., et al. (2019). "A nearly complete lower back of Australopithecus sediba". American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 168, 269-270.
 * Meyer, M.R. & Williams, S.A. (2019). "4.2 Ma Australopithecus anamensis axial remains: the oldest australopith vertebrae in the fossil record". American Journal of Physical Anthropology 168: 165.
 * Meyer, M.R., Williams, S.A., García-Martínez, D., Bastir, M. (2018). "Toward Solving the Puzzle of Thorax Shape Variation Among Early Hominins." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 165: 176.
 * in
 * Meyer, M.R. (2012). "Functional anatomy of the thoracic vertebrae in early Homo." American Journal of Physical Anthropology S(52): 214.
 * Shearer, B.M. and Meyer, M.R. (2011) Sexual dimorphism in the geometry of the distal humeral condyle. American Journal of Physical Anthropology S(46): 201.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2008). "Skeletal indications for distance locomotion in early Homo erectus." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 135(S46): 155.
 * Chang, M.L. and Meyer, M.R. (2007). "Functional morphology of the Neandertal nose: tracing the evolution of putative adaptive characters in a phylogenetic context." American Journal of Physical Anthropology S(44): 86.
 * Meyer, M.R., D. Lordkipanidze, et al. (2006). "Language and empathy in Homo erectus: behaviors suggested by a modern spinal cord from Dmanisi, but not Nariokotome." PaleoAnthropology 2006(A): 20.
 * Meyer, M.R., D. Lordkipanidze, et al. (2006). "The anatomical capacity for spoken language in Homo erectus." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 129(S42): 130.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2005). "Functional Biology of the Homo erectus axial Skeleton from Dmanisi, Georgia. Doctoral Dissertation in Anthropology. Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania: 601.
 * Meyer, M.R., J. Blumenfeld, et al. (2004). "Geographic patterns of nasal morphology in Homo." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 123(S38): 146-147.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2003). "Vertebrae and language ability in early hominids." PaleoAnthropology 1: 20-21.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2003) "The evolution of human brain size". IRCS/CCN Brain and Language Series. Philadelphia Institute of Cognitive Science.
 * Monge, J.M. and Meyer, M.R. (2002) "A reassessment of human cranial volume using the 19th Century Morton Cranial Collection". IRCS/CCN Brain & Language Series, University of Pennsylvania, Institute for Research in Cognitive Science & Center for Cognitive Neuroscience.
 * in
 * Meyer, M.R. (2012). "Functional anatomy of the thoracic vertebrae in early Homo." American Journal of Physical Anthropology S(52): 214.
 * Shearer, B.M. and Meyer, M.R. (2011) Sexual dimorphism in the geometry of the distal humeral condyle. American Journal of Physical Anthropology S(46): 201.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2008). "Skeletal indications for distance locomotion in early Homo erectus." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 135(S46): 155.
 * Chang, M.L. and Meyer, M.R. (2007). "Functional morphology of the Neandertal nose: tracing the evolution of putative adaptive characters in a phylogenetic context." American Journal of Physical Anthropology S(44): 86.
 * Meyer, M.R., D. Lordkipanidze, et al. (2006). "Language and empathy in Homo erectus: behaviors suggested by a modern spinal cord from Dmanisi, but not Nariokotome." PaleoAnthropology 2006(A): 20.
 * Meyer, M.R., D. Lordkipanidze, et al. (2006). "The anatomical capacity for spoken language in Homo erectus." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 129(S42): 130.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2005). "Functional Biology of the Homo erectus axial Skeleton from Dmanisi, Georgia. Doctoral Dissertation in Anthropology. Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania: 601.
 * Meyer, M.R., J. Blumenfeld, et al. (2004). "Geographic patterns of nasal morphology in Homo." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 123(S38): 146-147.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2003). "Vertebrae and language ability in early hominids." PaleoAnthropology 1: 20-21.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2003) "The evolution of human brain size". IRCS/CCN Brain and Language Series. Philadelphia Institute of Cognitive Science.
 * Monge, J.M. and Meyer, M.R. (2002) "A reassessment of human cranial volume using the 19th Century Morton Cranial Collection". IRCS/CCN Brain & Language Series, University of Pennsylvania, Institute for Research in Cognitive Science & Center for Cognitive Neuroscience.
 * Meyer, M.R., J. Blumenfeld, et al. (2004). "Geographic patterns of nasal morphology in Homo." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 123(S38): 146-147.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2003). "Vertebrae and language ability in early hominids." PaleoAnthropology 1: 20-21.
 * Meyer, M.R. (2003) "The evolution of human brain size". IRCS/CCN Brain and Language Series. Philadelphia Institute of Cognitive Science.
 * Monge, J.M. and Meyer, M.R. (2002) "A reassessment of human cranial volume using the 19th Century Morton Cranial Collection". IRCS/CCN Brain & Language Series, University of Pennsylvania, Institute for Research in Cognitive Science & Center for Cognitive Neuroscience.

title: Marc Meyer


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Donna (crater)

Donna is a tiny lunar crater on the near side of the Moon. Its name is an Italian female given name, and does not refer to a specific person. It is located in the eastern half of the Mare Tranquillitatis, at the summit of the lunar dome Omega (ω) Cauchy. As such domes are thought to be volcanic in nature, it appears likely that this crater was created by an eruption. This is in contrast to most lunar craters, which are now believed to be created by impacts. This crater is sufficiently small that it requires a large telescope to resolve. To the north of this crater is a fault line in the lunar mare designated Rupes Cauchy. It is named after the crater Cauchy, which lies farther to the north. To the west-northwest of Donna is a second lunar dome designated Tau (τ) Cauchy, which lacks a crater at the summit.

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

title: Donna (crater)


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Legislative history

Legislative history includes any of various materials generated in the course of creating legislation, such as committee reports, analysis by legislative counsel, committee hearings, floor debates, and histories of actions taken. Legislative history is used for discovering sources of information about a legislature's intent in enacting a law, although jurists disagree widely about the extent (if any) to which a statute's legislative history has bearing on the meaning of its text.

Sweden
Swedish courts frequently avail themselves of the legislative history (förarbeten, literally "travaux préparatoires") in interpreting the law. Valid documents of legislative history are often taken to be official government reports, the bills (proposition) presented by the Swedish government before the Riksdag, statements made by the responsible minister at the government session at which the bill was adopted (regeringssammanträde), the report on the bill by the relevant Riksdag committee (utskottsbetänkande), and statements made by the responsible minister during the debate in the Riksdag.

United Kingdom
Prior to 1993, looking into the parliamentary records to aid interpretation would have been perceived as a breach of parliamentary privilege, but that year, the House of Lords ruled in Pepper v Hart [1993] AC 593  that it could do so in specific circumstances.

United States
Whether and to what extent courts should use legislative history when deciding cases is disputed in the United States. Textualists reject any use of legislative history, but intentionalists and purposivists look to legislative history to determine the legislative intent or the goals of the law, respectively. Many legal scholars believe that consulting legislative history is acceptable only when the text of the law is ambiguous.

Judge Alex Kozinski summed up the concerns as follows:

 * The two Houses and the President agree on the text of statutes, not on committee reports or floor statements. To give substantive effect to this flotsam and jetsam of the legislative process is to short-circuit the constitutional scheme for making law.
 * Collective intent is an oxymoron. Congress is not a thinking entity; it is a group of individuals, each of whom may or may not have an "intent" as to any particular provision of the statute. But to look for congressional intent is to engage in anthropomorphism--to search for something that cannot be found because it does not exist.
 * Even if there were such a thing as congressional intent, and even if it could be divined, it wouldn't matter. What matters is what Congress does, not what it intends to do. So, in our hypothetical case, it matters not that Congress intended to delete section 666 from the crime bill; what matters is what it did, and what it did was to pass the bill with the section included.
 * Even if the other obstacles could be overcome, reliance on legislative history actually makes statutes more difficult to interpret by casting doubt on otherwise clear language. This makes it much more difficult for people to conform their conduct to the law, as no one can tell what the law is until a court has weighed the language, the legislative history, the policy considerations, and other relevant information. This increases litigation costs and undermines the rule of law.
 * Legislative history is often contradictory, giving courts a chance to pick and choose those bits which support the result the judges want to reach. In Judge Leventhal's immortal phrase, consulting legislative history is like "looking over a crowd of people and picking out your friends." n24 This shifts power from the Congress and the President--who, after all, are charged with writing the laws--to unelected judges. The more sources a court can consult in deciding how to interpret a statute, the more likely the interpretation will reflect the policy judgments of the judges and not that of the political branches.
 * Allowing legislative history to do work that should be done by statutory language leads to political unaccountability. Members of Congress who reach an impasse can agree on murky language, then salt the legislative record with clues and hints hoping to shift the process of interpretation their way. Elected officials can thus achieve substantive results without having to take the political responsibility that would come from passing clear-cut statutory language.
 * Shifting important policy judgments to the courts brings the judiciary into disrepute and undermines the notion that judges apply the law objectively. When the public comes to understand that judges are simply unelected, life-tenured bureaucrats dressed in black, making policy decisions just like other government officials, the moral authority of the courts will be seriously undermined and popular obeisance to the courts' constitutional judgments will be jeopardized.

(A. Kozinski, Should Reading Legislative History Be an Impeachable Offense?,31 Suffolk U. L. Rev. 807 (1998) at 813-814)

title: Legislative history


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Honey extractor

A honey extractor is a mechanical device used in the extraction of honey from honeycombs. A honey extractor extracts the honey from the honey comb without destroying the comb. Extractors work by centrifugal force. A drum or container holds a frame basket which spins, flinging the honey out. With this method the wax comb stays intact within the frame and can be reused by the bees.

Bees cover the filled in cells with wax cap that must be removed (cut by knife, etc.) before centrifugation.

History
In 1838, Johann Dzierzon, a Polish Roman Catholic priest and beekeeper devised the first practical movable-comb beehive, allowing for the manipulation of individual honeycombs without destroying the structure of the hive. This idea was further developed by L. L. Langstroth, an American pastor and beekeeper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who patented his beehive design in 1852. These frames were a major improvement over the old method of beekeeping using hollowed tree trunks and skeps. However, no method had been found to easily extract the honey.

The extractor was invented in the summer of 1865, by Franz Hruschka, a former Officer in the Austrian Army who was by then a beekeeper in Italy. The exact date of the invention is not known but on July 1, 1865, he explained in an article in the Eichstraett Beekeeping News his old crushing method to extract honey. This article would have been written in May or June of that year. In September 1865, he makes the announcement at the Brno Beekeeper Conference of his new invention: the centrifuge extractor. The first model was built by Bollinger Manufacturer in Vienna, Austria.

The first version was a simple tin box attached to a wire cord with a funnel at the bottom to which a glass was fastened to collect the honey. The extraction was however slow and required a lot of effort from the beekeeper. The second version used the same design but attached to an arm at the top of a tripod. The final version resembled what we recognize today as an extractor with the familiar round tub.

Scale models of the three versions of the extractors were presented in August 1868 at the Exposition des Insectes (the Insect Exposition) in Paris, France. The idea was soon published in several beekeeping newspapers worldwide and extractors were manufactured by several vendors and sold worldwide based on his idea.

Types of extractors
Extractors can be one of two kinds depending on how the frames are oriented in the basket:
 * tangential: one side of the comb facing outward
 * radial: the top bar of the frame facing outward

Both rely on the use of centrifugal force to force the honey out of the cells. During the extraction process the honey is forced out of the uncapped wax cells, runs down the walls of the extractor and pools at the bottom. A tap or honey pump allows for the removal of honey from the extractor. Honey must be removed in time and always stay below the rotating frames as otherwise it prevents extractor from spinning with sufficient speed.

Extractors can vary in sizes from holding just a couple frames to large commercial ones holding up to sixty frames. The smaller ones can be powered manually while others (especially the commercial ones) will be powered by an electric motor. Most hand-cranked extractors will rely on a gearing system to increase the speed of the rotation of the frames.

Most large commercial extractors are radial and rely on the upward slope of the comb cells. When bees build their comb, the cells are sloped upward from the centre rib at an angle of 10 to 14 degrees. By leveraging this slope angle, it is easier to extract the honey. In addition, the amount of work during extraction is reduced in the radial type because the frames do not have to be turned over to extract the honey from the other side of the comb (however some extractors are capable of turning combs automatically).

Some portable honey extractors are driven by petrol or diesel small engines. Larger diesel engines are more expensive than a compact 2 stroke petrol ones and usually use the diesel fuel to operate at lower rpms with higher torque. Diesel-powered extractors are harder to start, especially in winter due to increased fuel viscosity under the ice and snow conditions.

Alternative methods
An extractor is not essential to get the honey out of comb. Alternative methods include:
 * Cut Comb: the comb is cut into round or square pieces and used as is.
 * Crush and Strain: the comb is cut out, crushed in a container and then strained through cheesecloth or another filtering system to separate the honey from the wax.
 * Chunk Honey: this is a hybrid between the two: the comb is cut and put in a container and then the rest of the space is filled with honey extracted by another method.
 * Flow Hive is a beehive brand that has a unique honey frame designed to allow honey extraction without needing to open the beehive.

title: Honey extractor


text: User talk:59.92.9.178

title: User talk:59.92.9.178


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Members of the Australian House of Representatives, 1969–1972

This is a list of members of the Australian House of Representatives from 1969 to 1972, as elected at the 1969 federal election.

 * Labor member Jim Fraser died on 1 April 1970; Labor candidate Kep Enderby won the resulting by-election on 30 May 1970.
 * Liberal member Sir Wilfrid Kent Hughes died on 30 July 1970; Liberal candidate Tony Staley won the resulting by-election on 19 September 1970.
 * Country Party member Sir John McEwen resigned on 1 February 1971; Country Party candidate Bruce Lloyd won the resulting by-election on 20 March 1971.


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/California bridge designs

 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. - Mailer Diablo 03:05, 16 Apr 2005 (UTC)

California bridge designs
Appears to be captions for photos, minus the photos, and thus not making very much sense. Also appears to be heavily based on and, which are included as external links. See also Bridge railing styles in the United States and its VfD page. —tregoweth 04:39, Apr 10, 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete unless photos can be added to make sense of the entries. If photos are added, it should be merged and redirected to California.  --Fuzzball! (talk) 05:04, 10 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete, original research, unencyclopedic, etc. --Coolcaesar 19:04, 15 Apr 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.


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Bruce Bartlett

Bruce Reeves Bartlett (born October 11, 1951) is an American historian and author. He served as a domestic policy adviser to Ronald Reagan and as a Treasury official under George H. W. Bush. Bartlett also writes for the New York Times Economix blog.

Bartlett has written several books and magazine articles critical of the George W. Bush administration, asserting that its economic policies significantly departed from traditional conservative principles.

Early life and education
Bartlett was born October 11, 1951, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the son of Marjorie (Stern) and Frank Bartlett. He attended Rutgers University, where he received a B.A. in 1973, and Georgetown University, where he received an M.A. in 1976. He originally studied American diplomatic history under Lloyd Gardner at Rutgers and Jules Davids at Georgetown. He did a master's thesis on the origins of the Pearl Harbor attack at Georgetown, the substance of which was later published as Coverup: The Politics of Pearl Harbor, 1941–1946. He was closely advised by Percy Greaves, Republican counsel to the U.S. Congressional Joint Committee on the Investigation of the Pearl Harbor Attack.

Political career
In 1976, Bartlett began working for U.S. Congressman Ron Paul (R-Texas). Paul was defeated when he ran for re-election in November 1976.

In January 1977, Bartlett went to work for U.S. Congressman Jack Kemp (R-New York) as a staff economist. Bartlett spent much of his time on tax issues, helping to draft the Kemp-Roth tax bill, which ultimately formed the basis of Ronald Reagan's 1981 tax cut. Bartlett's book, Reaganomics: Supply-Side Economics in Action, appeared in 1981 (New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House Publishers). He also co-edited the book The Supply-Side Solution (Chatham, NJ: Chatham House Publishers, 1983).

In 1978, Bartlett went to work for Perry Duryea, who was the Republican candidate for governor of New York. Duryea was defeated in November and Bartlett returned to Washington, where he joined the staff of newly elected Senator Roger Jepsen (R-Iowa).

Reagan administration
In 1981, Jepsen became Vice chairman of the Joint Economic Committee of Congress and Bartlett became deputy director of the committee's staff. Jepsen became chairman in 1983 and Bartlett became executive director of the JEC. During this period, the committee was very active in promoting Ronald Reagan's economic policies.

In late 1984, Bartlett became vice president of Polyconomics, a New Jersey-based consulting company founded by Jude Wanniski, a former editorial writer with The Wall Street Journal, that advised Wall Street clients on economic and investment policy. Bartlett left in 1985 to become a senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., where he specialized in tax policy and was involved in the debate around the Tax Reform Act of 1986.

George H. W. Bush administration
In 1987, Bartlett became a senior policy analyst in the White House Office of Policy Development, then headed by Gary Bauer. He left in 1988 to become the deputy assistant secretary for economic policy at the Treasury Department, where he served until the end of the George H. W. Bush administration.

Afterwards, Bartlett worked briefly at the Cato Institute in 1993. From 1993 to 2005, Bartlett was affiliated with the National Center for Policy Analysis, a free-market think tank based in Dallas, Texas.

Since 1995, he has written a newspaper column for Creators Syndicate, based in Los Angeles, and written extensively for many newspapers and magazines, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Fortune magazine, and Commentary magazine.

Criticism of George W. Bush administration economic policy
In 2005, the National Center for Policy Analysis fired Bartlett for his criticism of President George W. Bush.

In 2006, he published Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy, which is critical of the George W. Bush administration's economic policies as departing from traditional conservative principles. He described Bush and Richard M. Nixon as "two superficially conservative presidents who enacted liberal programs to buy votes for reelection."

In his 2009 book, The New American Economy: The Failure of Reaganomics and a New Way Forward, Bartlett defended Keynesian economic policies, stating that while supply-side economics had been appropriate for the 1970s and 1980s, supply-side arguments did not fit contemporary conditions.

During an interview on CNN on August 19, 2011, Bartlett stated that presidential candidate Rick Perry "is an idiot, and I don't think anybody would disagree with that." The comment was in reference to Perry's earlier assertion that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's actions would be "almost treasonous" if the Federal Reserve were to engage in expansionary monetary policy before the 2012 election in order to stimulate the economy.

In a 2013 article for The American Conservative, Bartlett explained that after conducting research for the book, he "came to the annoying conclusion that Keynes had been 100 percent right in the 1930s", that "we needed Keynesian policies again", and that "no one has been more correct in his analysis and prescriptions for the economy's problems than Paul Krugman", a prominent Keynesian economist.

Criticism of "Fair Tax" proposal
In an August 2007 The Wall Street Journal op-ed, Bartlett criticized the FairTax proposal as misleading and unlikely to simplify taxpaying. Bartlett was especially critical of what he states are FairTax's accounting tricks in rate calculation and proponent claims that "real investment spending would rise 76%" if their plan were adopted. Supporters of the FairTax proposal accused him of falsely conflating their campaign with a national sales tax proposal by an organization affiliated with the Church of Scientology. In a September 2007 article for The New Republic, Bartlett stated that the FairTax proposal was "nearly identical" to a Scientologist proposal.

Personal life
Bartlett lives in Great Falls, Virginia. He is a member of the American Economic Association and the Committee for Monetary Research and Education.

Works

 * Books
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, The Keynesian Revolution Revisited, Committee for Monetary Research and Education, 1977.
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, Cover-Up: The Politics of Pearl Harbor, 1941–1946, Arlington House Productions (1978) ISBN 978-0-87000-423-0
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, Reagonomics: Supply-side economics in action, Arlington House (1981) ISBN 978-0-87000-505-3, Random House Value Publishing (1982) ISBN 978-0-517-54817-2
 * Bruce R. Bartlett and Timothy Roth, The Supply Side Solution, Chatham House (1983) ISBN 978-0-934540-18-6, Palgrave Macmillan (1984) ISBN 978-0-333-37364-4
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy, Doubleday (2006) ISBN 978-0-385-51827-7
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, Wrong on Race: The Democratic Party's Buried Past, Palgrave Macmillan (2008) ISBN 978-0-230-60062-1, Palgrave Macmillan (2009) ISBN 978-0-230-61099-6
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, The New American Economy: The Failure of Reaganomics and a New Way Forward, Palgrave Macmillan (2009) ISBN 978-0-230-61587-8
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, The Benefit and the Burden: Tax Reform – Why We Need It and What It Will Take, Simon & Schuster (2012) ISBN 978-1-4516-4619-1
 * Bruce R. Bartlett, The Truth Matters: A Citizen's Guide to Separating Facts from Lies and Stopping Fake News in Its Tracks, Ten Speed Press (2017) ISBN 978-0-399-58116-8
 * Contributor to
 * The First Year: A Mandate for Leadership Report, Heritage Foundation, 1982.
 * Supply Side Economics, Aletheia Books, 1982.
 * Agenda '83: A Mandate for Leadership Report, Heritage Foundation, 1983.
 * The Federal Debt: On-Budget, Off-Budget, and Contingent Liabilities: A Staff Study, U.S. G.P.O., 1983.
 * The Industrial Policy Debate, Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1984.
 * Beyond the Status Quo, Cato Institute, 1985.
 * Articles in National Review, Human Events, Conservative Digest, and Modern Age, and to newspapers. Contributing editor of Libertarian Review.

title: Bruce Bartlett


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/United States bridge designs

 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 speedy delete as recreation of Bridge railing styles in the United States. – ABCD 16:04, 12 Apr 2005 (UTC)

United States bridge designs
Appears to be captions for photos, minus the photos, and thus not making very much sense. Also appears to be heavily based on and, which are included as external links. See also Bridge railing styles in the United States and its VfD page. —tregoweth 04:40, Apr 10, 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete unless pictures are added, then merge and redirect with United States. --Fuzzball! (talk) 05:06, 10 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete, for same reasons I put forth when I voted onBridge railing styles in the United States may I remind that railing is a red link? --Halidecyphon 07:23, 10 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete. Copied content, not encyclopedic and not really informative at all.  --Randy 21:33, 10 Apr 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:
Elephunk

Elephunk is the third studio album by American group the Black Eyed Peas. It was released on June 24, 2003, by A&M Records, Interscope Records and will.i.am Music Group.

The production of Elephunk commenced in August 2001, and was affected by the September 11 attacks, which both caused anxiety to the group members and inspired the songwriting. During the process, Fergie joined the group as the female vocalist, replacing Kim Hill, who departed the group in 2000. The recording sessions went on to be extended until May 2003, which caused its release to be postponed multiple times. The first album to have the group credited as The Black Eyed Peas, Elephunk is a hip hop and pop record incorporating an array of genres, such as R&B, Latin, funk, dancehall, rock and dance. It explores lyrical themes such as relationships, partying and social issues.

Elephunk was met with critical polarity upon its release, directed towards its variety of genres and lyrical content. The Black Eyed Peas' breakthrough album, it was a sleeper hit, debuting at number 33 on the US Billboard 200 and peaking at number 14 after its 2004 reissue. It was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling over three million units in the United States. Internationally, it peaked atop the charts in Australia and Switzerland, reaching the top ten in nearly every other country. One of the best-selling albums of 2004, the album has sold over nine million copies worldwide. Despite a mixed critical reception, several of the songs were received favorably garnered the album six Grammy Award nominations and one win.

Elephunk produced four singles. "Where Is the Love?" became the group's first top-ten single on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number eight, and reached number one in 15 countries. Its follow-up singles "Shut Up" and "Hey Mama" achieved widespread international success but failed to duplicate the US success of "Where Is the Love?". Regardless, the former topped the charts in 14 countries, while the latter won an MTV Video Music Award. The final single "Let's Get It Started", a censored re-recording of the track "Let's Get Retarded", peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won the group their first Grammy Award. The album was further promoted globally with the Elephunk Tour (2004).

Background and development
After signing a record deal with Interscope Records, the Black Eyed Peas released two critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful studio albums–Behind the Front (1998) and Bridging the Gap (2000). The latter produced the single "Request + Line", featuring Macy Gray, which was their first to enter the US Billboard Hot 100 and numerous international charts, but peaked only at number 63 on the Billboard Hot 100. Following the commercial failures, it was unsure whether the group would continue recording together. will.i.am met Ron Fair, then-president of A&M Records, when he recruited the group for the Legally Blonde (2001) soundtrack, for which they recorded the song "Magic" featuring Terry Dexter. Fair offered the group to move to A&M, which they accepted. In order to make them more commercially successful, Fair suggested a musical direction change: "I asked them, 'How would you feel about taking a leap and going more into the pop world?' They replied, 'We don't want to lose our credibility or our fanbase.' I said, 'Well, if you don't take a shot at it, it's gonna get worse, because the backpack crowd are the people who will download the records for free.'" The group was initially reluctant; however, after discussions and several songwriting sessions, the idea was pursued. Taboo would later claim if he was going to sell out, he'd "rather be selling out arenas than selling out of my trunk on the corner of my block."

Recording and production
The recording for Elephunk commenced on August 23, 2001, with "Smells Like Funk", which wouldn't be finished until July 2, 2002. Sessions took place at various recording studios across California. Most of the tracks were recorded at The Stewchia in Los Feliz, Los Angeles. Other locations included the Glenwood Studio in Burbank, California and Record Plant in Los Angeles. Music for "Smells Like Funk" was recorded at a house in Bodega Bay, California. "Anxiety" was the sole song recorded at Velvet Tone in Sacramento, California, and was recorded from March 24 until July 23, 2002. The final song recorded for the album was "The Boogie That Be", which was finished on May 11, 2003, only a day prior to "Where Is the Love?" being serviced to radio as the lead single. will.i.am wrote "Don't Knock It", a song "about how everybody got their opinion. Just because you don't like it doesn't mean somebody else ain't going to love it", which ultimately failed to make the final cut, much like the mid-tempo "Thanks" and the Rockwilder-produced "Fire".

September 11 attacks greatly affected the group, both by causing them anxiety and by influencing their songwriting. will.i.am stated in 2018: "On our last day [of recording sessions in San Francisco], as I was packing my equipment, I saw the first plane fly through the World Trade Center. I thought it was a film. The fear of driving back home, y'know going over San Francisco bridge. That 10 minute drive across the bridge felt like an hour." In December, will.i.am created a loop and a guitar part he liked; apl.de.ap and Taboo also heard the track and were able to write similar lyrics over it. Justin Timberlake was introduced to the group by Taboo, and got a chance to hear the track. Impressed with the music, Timberlake helped write and sing the chorus. The production of "Where Is the Love?" was temporarily halted in early 2002 as the band burned out over what will.i.am claimed was September 11 attacks-induced anxiety. Its recording later resumed and finished on March 3, 2003.

The Black Eyed Peas begun recording Elephunk as a trio; original member Kim Hill departed the group in 2000. As a female vocalist was needed for some of the tracks, various singers were brought in to record. Terry Dexter provided backing vocals for "Smells Like Funk", Noelle Scaggs for "Let's Get Retarded" and "Smells Like Funk", and Debi Nova for "Latin Girls". In early 2002, during the recording of "Shut Up", will.i.am once again sought a female vocalist needed for the song. His original choice was Nicole Scherzinger, who was a member of Eden's Crush at the time. He asked Scherzinger's then-fiancé Nick Hexum from 311, who rejected the offer for her. will.i.am then asked Fergie, whom he met in 2001 on a radio show where both the Black Eyed Peas and Wild Orchid, of which Fergie was a member at the time, performed. She accepted the offer and was soon made a permanent member of the Black Eyed Peas, recording remainder of the album with the group.

Music and lyrics
Elephunk is a hip hop and pop album which incorporates an array of genres, such as R&B, Latin, funk, dancehall, rock and dance. It explores lyrical themes such as partying, sex, infatuation and, to a lesser extent, social issues. The album opens with the horn-infused "Southern-fried rapid rap" song "Hands Up". The trumpet-driven "Labor Day (It's a Holiday)" lyrically celebrates an alcohol and sex-filled three-day weekend. "Let's Get Retarded" encourages its listeners to party with lines such as "Lose your mind, this is the time / Y'all can't stand still, twist and bang your spine / Bob your head like epilepsy / Up inside the club or in your Bentley". Its censored version "Let's Get It Started" replaces the terms "retarded" and "epilepsy", and replaces the original track on the 2022 reissue. The dancehall track "Hey Mama" features a male protagonist expressing his attraction to a woman. "Shut Up" details an argument between two lovers leading up to the end of their relationship. The sixth track "Smells Like Funk" describes an odor-filled environment and insinuates cannabis consumption. "Latin Girls" is a guitar riff-laced song incorporating Latin piano and percussion, and lyrically celebrates Hispanic women. Jazz-influenced "Sexy" sees the male protagonist express his love and admiration towards his female love interest prior to having sex with her.

"Fly Away" is a rock-influenced hip hop track which encourages a former lover to leave, while "The Boogie That Be" is a "vintage early 1980's electro-funk" song. Electric guitar-driven ballad "The Apl Song" features apl.de.ap rapping–partly in Filipino–about a ghetto in the Philippines where he once lived. "Anxiety", featuring Papa Roach, is a rap metal track in which the protagonist seeks "self-control amidst stressful paranoia". Elephunk closes with its lead single "Where Is the Love?", featuring Justin Timberlake. Although initially intended as a vessel to post-September 11 attacks anxiety, the song discusses many issues, including terrorism, US government hypocrisy, racism, gang crime, pollution, war and intolerance, with the call for love in the chorus as the element tying these together. The lines "Overseas, yeah, we try'na stop terrorism / But we still got terrorists here living / In the USA, the big CIA / The Bloods and the Crips and the KKK" suggests those organizations being terrorists as well. It also alludes to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and its casus belli with the lyric "A war's going on but the reason's undercover" in the bridge. will.i.am laid the track's main rhythm over the chord progression, which he claimed to be inspired by human heartbeat: "I was like, 'this song needs a heartbeat.' I just liked the pull and the call of response of the human heart – a beat, a rhythm that we hear everyday subconsciously, without paying attention to it."

Title and artwork
will.i.am revealed the title of the Black Eyed Peas' third studio album to be Elephunk on June 11, 2002, explaining:

"An elephant ain't the fastest, swiftest animal, but it walks smoothly. It's fat. It's heavy. Thump, thump. You can just picture an elephant's movement. That's the sound of the album. We have a lot of trombones, fat basslines, fat grooves, and nice, thick horn layers and arrangements. Just fat funk."

The album cover for Elephunk was designed by [BLK/MRKT Design Studio, Los Angeles] and uses images of the group members photographed by Markus Klinko. It features each member in a corner and an artwork of an elephant's head in the center against a light blue background. The cover marked the first time the group was credited as The Black Eyed Peas, the name they would retire in 2018, when they removed the prefix. It was also inspired by the cover of Goodie Mob's Still Standing.

Release and promotion
Originally set for an October 2002 release, Elephunk was released on June 24, 2003, by A&M Records, Interscope Records and will.i.am Music Group. On June 4, the Black Eyed Peas embarked on Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera's The Justified & Stripped Tour as a supporting act, touring North America until September 2. Interspersed with the tour, the group headlined a club tour from May 30 until August 31. They performed "Where Is the Love?" at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards pre-show on August 28. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, they promoted the album by being a supporting act for The Stripped Tour, Aguilera's solo extension of The Justified & Stripped Tour, from October to November, as well as performing "Where Is the Love?" at the 2003 MTV Europe Music Awards and, with "Shut Up", on Top of the Pops on November 28. In the United States, they performed "Where Is the Love?" and "Hey Mama" on Saturday Night Live on January 10, 2004. The group performed "Where Is the Love?" again at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards on February 8, where they received two nominations for the song. Internationally, the group promoted the album by performing at the Big Day Out in Australia and New Zealand from January to February, at the MTV Asia Awards 2004 in Singapore on February 14, at the Sanremo Music Festival 2004 in Italy on March 2, and on the Bravo Super Show in Germany on March 13.

In March, the Black Eyed Peas embarked on their third headlining tour, titled Elephunk Tour, and toured North America, Asia, Europe and Oceania until December. On May 24, Elephunk was reissued to include "Let's Get It Started", the re-recorded version of "Let's Get Retarded" used to promote the 2004 NBA playoffs. A video album titled Behind the Bridge to Elephunk was released outside North America on May 26 and included music videos, behind-the-scenes footage and live performances. In August, Electronic Arts (EA) announced that the Black Eyed Peas would re-record some of their songs in Simlish and record new tracks for the soundtrack of the 2004 video game The Urbz: Sims in the City, and would also appear in the game as playable characters. The group continued promoting Elephunk by performing "Let's Get It Started" at Fashion Rocks on September 8, at the MTV Video Music Awards Latinoamérica 2004 on October 21, at the VH1 Big in '04 Awards on December 1, and at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards on February 13, 2005, where the song won the group their first Grammy Award, for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. 13 years after its release, the album was made available on vinyl for the first time on September 30, 2016. On April 1, 2022, it was re-released for digital download and streaming worldwide to exclude "Let's Get Retarded", which was replaced by "Let's Get It Started", and to include the hidden track "Third Eye" and the previously UK-only bonus tracks "Rock My Shit" and "What's Goin' Down".

Singles
"Where Is the Love?" was released as the lead single from Elephunk on May 12, 2003. It became the group's breakthrough hit and their first top-ten single on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number eight. The song peaked atop the charts in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, as well as the European Hot 100 Singles and the US Mainstream Top 40. It was the best-selling single of 2003 in the UK. The digital single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 25, 2004, for sales of 500,000 units in the United States. Despite the initial mixed reception from music critics, the song was nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards (2004). The song's accompanying music video was filmed in East Los Angeles and features will.i.am and Taboo act as a soul music road duo who use music to tell people what is wrong with the world, Fergie as a peacemaker who places stickers with question marks on them all over the place to ask people where the love is, and apl.de.ap as a criminal who is arrested for using criminal offences to tell people the truth.

"Shut Up" was released as the second single from Elephunk on September 8, 2003. It wasn't as successful as its predecessor in the US as it failed to enter the US Billboard Hot 100. However, it duplicated the international commercial success of "Where Is the Love?", peaking atop the charts in Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland, and the European Hot 100 Singles. The digital single was certified gold by the RIAA on May 19, 2005, for sales of 500,000 units in the US. The song's accompanying music video was directed by The Malloys and features an opera themed around a battle of the sexes, in which will.i.am and Taboo play Fergie's suitors, and apl.de.ap is the conductor. It features cameos by Kimberly Wyatt and Carmit Bachar from the Pussycat Dolls, Travis Barker from Blink-182, Shifty Shellshock from Crazy Town, and French singer Afida Turner.

"Hey Mama" was released as the third single from Elephunk on January 12, 2004. It was an improvement from its predecessor on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 23, as well as peaking at number eight on the Mainstream Top 40. Internationally, it reached the top ten in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the UK, and on the European Hot 100 Singles. The digital single was certified gold by the RIAA on October 25, 2004, for sales of 500,000 units in the US. Critically acclaimed, the song was nominated for Best Rap Song at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards (2005). Its accompanying music video features the group performing in a psychedelic limbo, a black-and-white striped room, and a nightclub. At the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards, it won Best Choreography in a Video, while receiving nominations for Best Dance Video and Best Hip-Hop Video.

In April 2004, "Let's Get Retarded" was announced to have been re-recorded and retitled "Let's Get It Started" for its use in promotion of the 2004 NBA playoffs. Initially unplanned as a single, the new version was so well-received it was released as the fourth and final single from Elephunk on June 1, 2004. The song peaked at number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and reached the top ten in Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, France and New Zealand. The digital single was certified triple platinum by the RIAA on June 29, 2012, for sales of three million units in the US. Critically acclaimed, the song won the group their first Grammy Award, for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards, and was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Rap Song. The song's accompanying music video features the group energetically performing in a nighttime Los Angeles setting.

Critical reception
Elephunk received mixed to positive reviews from music critics upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 66, based on 15 reviews, indicating generally positive reviews. John Bush from AllMusic wrote that Elephunk "possesses some of the most boundary-pushing productions in contemporary, (mostly) uncommercial hip-hop". Chris Nettleton from Drowned in Sound complimented the album, writing: "This record is full of first rate rapping, first rate tunes, first rate instrumentation. Look on the surface, and you've got an album full of memorable songs, hooks that lodge in your mind... but look in depth, and it's quality from the top down." In his consumer guide for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau called the album "the brightest actual pop album of 2003" and commented that the group "remain unbelievable, but in pop that's just one more aesthetic nuance". K.B. Tindal from HipHopDX described the album as "a collaboration of riffs, funk, rhymes, vocals and beats and looses steam at some points with all the originality that just seems to be all over the place, but it's still a solid outing none the less". Terry Sawyer from PopMatters called the album "one of the essential hip-hop records of the year", adding that it "drops non-stop hook and hump, an album with almost no missteps and more than its share of undeniable, thumping joy." Bill Lehane from musicOMH also praised the album, writing: "With Elephunk, this alternative rap crew have proved again that they are just that, offering a different style of hip-hop to contrast with the gangsta style. Whoever digs that vibe, get your hands up."

Evan Serpick Entertainment Weekly gave Elephunk a less favorable review, stating: "They try dancehall ('Hey Mama'), salsa ('Latin Girls'), even nu-metal ('Anxiety' with Papa Roach), but the biggest offense for a once smart-sounding rap collective is 'Where Is the Love?', the horrifyingly trite single. It's enough to make longtime fans wonder, 'Where are the Peas?'". Ernest Hardy criticized the album's final two tracks, "in which cliched observations, preachy lyrics and MTV-ready posturing float atop meticulously detailed production". Writing for Blender, Joseph Patel labeled the album "too simple for its own good", criticizing its repetitive refrains. Nathan Rabin from The A.V. Club said the album "gets off to a discouraging start, with non-starting dance tracks like "Hands Up," "Labor Day (It's A Holiday)," and the dancehall-flavored "Hey Mama," which sound busy and cluttered without being infectious or catchy. It picks up around its halfway point, though, as the pace gets less frantic and the production becomes smoother, subtler, and more refreshingly sophisticated." Writing for the Canadian publication Exclaim!, Del F. Cowie criticized the album by saying: "With the breadth of music the group attempts to cover, the dumbed-down lyrics now merely function as a means to get from one catchy chorus to another." Bob Waliszewski from the fundamentalist Protestant publication Plugged In objected to the album's sexual themes and profanity.

Accolades
! scope="row"| 2003 ! scope="row" rowspan="2"| 2004 ! scope="row"| 2004 ! scope="row" rowspan="2"| 2004 ! scope="row"| 2004 ! scope="row" rowspan="3"| 2004 ! scope="row"| 2004 ! scope="row"| 2004 ! scope="row" rowspan="4"| 2005 ! scope="row" rowspan="2"| 2005 ! scope="row"| 2005 ! scope="row" rowspan="2"| 2005
 * Billboard Music Award
 * Mainstream Top 40 Track of the Year
 * rowspan="7"| "Where Is the Love?"
 * Won
 * rowspan="2"| Grammy Award
 * Record of the Year
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"|
 * Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
 * Nominated
 * Nominated
 * Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards
 * Favorite Song
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"| MTV Video Music Awards Japan
 * Best Group Video
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"|
 * Breakthrough Video
 * Nominated
 * Nominated
 * Teen Choice Awards
 * Choice Music – Hip-Hop/Rap Track
 * Won
 * rowspan="3"| MTV Video Music Award
 * Best Dance Video
 * rowspan="3"| "Hey Mama"
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"|
 * Best Hip-Hop Video
 * Nominated
 * Best Choreography in a Video
 * Won
 * Best Choreography in a Video
 * Won
 * MTV Europe Music Award
 * Best Album
 * Elephunk
 * Nominated
 * Billboard Music Award
 * Digital Track of the Year
 * rowspan="4"| "Let's Get It Started"
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="4"| Grammy Award
 * Record of the Year
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="4"|
 * Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
 * Won
 * rowspan="2"| Best Rap Song
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="3"| "Hey Mama"
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="3"| "Hey Mama"
 * Nominated
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"| MTV Australia Video Music Award
 * Best R&B Video
 * Won
 * rowspan="2"|
 * Sexiest Video
 * Won
 * Won
 * MTV Video Music Award Japan
 * Best Hip-Hop Video
 * rowspan="3"| "Let's Get It Started"
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"| MuchMusic Video Award
 * Best International Group Video
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2"|
 * People's Choice: Favorite International Group
 * Nominated
 * }
 * }

Commercial performance
Elephunk was a sleeper hit, both domestically and internationally. In the US, it debuted at number 33 on the Billboard 200 chart dated July 12, 2003, with first-week sales of 31,000 copies, originally peaking at number 26 in its seventh week. After a year of fluctuating within the chart, the album's sales were boosted by its reissue, and it consequently reached a new peak at number 14 on June 26, 2004. As of 2022, it has spent a total of 106 weeks on the Billboard 200. The album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 3, 2004, for shipments of two million units in the US. By 2011, it had sold over three million copies in the country. In Canada, the album debuted at number eight on January 14, 2004, peaking at number two in its eleventh week. It was certified septuple platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) on December 15, 2005.

In the United Kingdom, Elephunk debuted at number 94 on the UK Albums Chart dated August 23, 2003, entering the top ten in its sixth week. On January 17, 2004, the album reached its peak of number three, at which it spent four consecutive weeks. Meanwhile, it peaked atop the UK R&B Albums Chart dated December 6, 2003. On July 22, 2013, it was certified quintuple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI); it has sold 1.6 million copies in the UK. The album reached number one in Switzerland, after debuting at number 60 and climbing the chart for five months. In France, it debuted at number 115 in July 2003 and originally peaked at number three six months later. Following the August 2004 reissue, it reached a new peak at number two and was certified platinum soon after. Elsewhere in Europe, the album peaked within the top ten in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain and Sweden, as well as peaking at number two on the European Top 100 Albums. It has been certified triple platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for sales of three million copies in Europe.

Elephunk was a commercial success in Oceania as well. In Australia, it debuted at number 50 and went on to peak atop the chart after a year of charting, on August 29, 2004, spending a total of 70 weeks on the chart. The album has been certified quadruple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). In New Zealand, it debuted at number 11, and after months of fluctuating within the top 30, peaked at number two on April 19, 2004. The album has been certified quadruple platinum by the Recorded Music NZ (RMNZ). As of September 2013, it has sold over nine million copies worldwide.

Impact and legacy
Elephunk and its singles are credited for pushing the Black Eyed Peas into stardom and cementing them as pop culture icons. The group's breakthrough record, it became their first charting album in numerous countries, as well as their first album to be certified by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Specifically, lead single "Where Is the Love?" is credited for establishing the group as a viable act worldwide. According to Katie Sharp from Mic, "it brought an oddball rap group from L.A. right into the public eye. Suddenly, there was a powerful force countering all the macho posturing in rap and the shallowness of pop — there was a catchy song delivering incisive cultural criticism about world peace in the wake of 9/11. And it became a massive global hit." The album was the group's first to feature Fergie, who was also credited for being "the primary vehicle for the Black Eyed Peas' rise to pop stardom, though. She not only brought sex appeal to the all-male dynamic, but she also brought a heavy emphasis on catchy hooks." Elephunk was also credited for individually propelling Fergie and will.i.am to global prominence.

However, the group's newfound commercial success and the introduction of Fergie also resulted with what some critics perceived as a downgrade in quality of the group's music, and the group received accusations of selling out. Writing for Slant Magazine, Sal Cinquemani stated: "The Black Eyed Peas's 2003 breakthrough album, Elephunk, was a slow-building success story. Filling the album with irritatingly catchy songs was a bold, ballsy move you couldn't help but admire, and it transitioned the Peas, with the aide of new member Stacy Ferguson, from the Fugees-lite to omnipresent pop supergroup." During the Elephunk Tour (2004), which supported Elephunk worldwide, the Black Eyed Peas commenced production of their fourth studio album Monkey Business. It was released on May 25, 2005, and became the group's first US Billboard 200 top-ten album, debuting at number two, and produced their first two US Billboard Hot 100 top-three singles–"Don't Phunk with My Heart" and "My Humps".

10 years after the release of Elephunk, will.i.am revealed that representatives from the Black Eyed Peas' then-label A&M Records did not like the songs produced for the album, namely "Where Is the Love?", "Shut Up" and "Let's Get Retarded", as they didn't consider them "hits". He added: "Me and apl.de.ap were like, 'Look, dude. If this is going to be our last record, a lot of groups like us are getting dropped. Let's just make the kind of record we want to make; our record.' And so 'Elephunk' was our record." Despite A&M's initial reaction, aforementioned three songs were all released as singles and became award-winning international hits.

Track listing
All tracks are produced by will.i.am.

Personnel
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Elephunk.

 * apl.de.ap – vocals (tracks 1–3, 6, 7, 11–13), drum programming (track 11), production (track 11)
 * Travis Barker – drums (track 15)
 * Printz Board – horns (track 2), trumpet (track 7), clavinet (track 13), Moog synthesizer (track 13)
 * Ray Brady – guitar (tracks 5 and 9)
 * David Buckner – drums (track 12)
 * Davey Chegwidden – percussion (track 7)
 * J. Curtis – guitar (tracks 5, 7, 11 and 13)
 * Terry Dexter – backing vocals (track 6)
 * Dylan Dresdow – engineering (tracks 1, 2, 4–9, 13 and 15), additional vocal engineering (track 3)
 * Tobin Esperance – bass guitar (track 12)
 * Ron Fair – executive production, production (track 13), additional vocal production (track 5), piano (track 7)
 * Fergie – vocals (tracks 1–5, 8–11, 13 and 14)
 * Mike Fratantuno – bass guitar (tracks 1–3, 6, 13–15; guitarrón (track 7), double bass (track 13), acoustic guitar (track 13)
 * Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – mastering
 * Keith Harris – drums, percussion, keyboards
 * Tal Herzberg – additional engineering (tracks 5 and 13)
 * Jerry Horton – guitar (track 12)
 * Tippa Irie – vocals (track 4)
 * Jun Ishizeki – engineering (track 10)
 * Markus Klinko – photography
 * Chris Lord-Alge – mixing (track 12)
 * John Legend – vocals (track 10)
 * Tony Maserati – mixing (tracks 1–9, 11, 13–15)
 * Sérgio Mendes – piano (track 8)
 * Debi Nova – vocals (track 7)
 * Tim Orindgreff – horns (track 2), saxophone (track 7), flute (track 7)
 * George Pajon – guitar (tracks 1, 3, 5–8, 10, 13 and 15)
 * Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri – photography
 * Chuck Prada – percussion (tracks 7 and 14)
 * Dante Santiago – backing vocals (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 10, 14 and 15), vocals (track 7), A&R artist coordination
 * Noelle Scaggs – backing vocals (tracks 3 and 6)
 * Jacoby Shaddix – vocals (track 12)
 * Christine Sirois – engineering assistance (tracks 1, 5–7 and 13)
 * Taboo – vocals (tracks 1–3, 5–7, 9 and 13)
 * Justin Timberlake – vocals (track 13)
 * Jason Villaroman – engineering (track 11)
 * will.i.am – vocals (tracks 1–10, 12–15), Moog synthesizer (tracks 1, 4, 5, 8–11 and 13), drum programming (tracks 1, 4, 6–10), clavinet (tracks 12 and 13), drums (track 2), piano (track 2), Wurlitzer electric piano (track 4), synthesizer (track 10), executive production, production (all tracks), engineering (tracks 2–4, 8, 9, 12 and 14), mixing (tracks 10 and 14)
 * Terence Yoshiaki – drums (tracks 3 and 7), percussion

title: Elephunk