id stringlengths 1 6 | url stringlengths 35 214 | title stringlengths 1 118 | text stringlengths 1 237k |
|---|---|---|---|
28352 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janus | Janus | Janus was a two-faced god of Roman mythology who kept the gate of Heaven. He was the god of beginnings and ends, and so of gates, doors, doorways and passages. He is usually depicted as having two faces, since he looks to the future and to the past. The Romans named the month of January (Ianuarius) in his honor. In January we look back on the last year and forward to the next.
Janus presided over the beginning and ending of conflict, and hence war and peace. The doors of his temple were open in time of war, and closed to mark the peace. As a god of transitions, he was remembered at births, and journeys: he was concerned with travelling, trading and shipping.
It was also said that his face was split in two since a door can let you in or out.
An unusual feature of the mythology is that the ancient Greeks had no version of Janus.
Roman gods and goddesses |
28354 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/The%20Care%20Bears%20Adventure%20in%20Wonderland | The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland | The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland is an animated movie from 1987, released by Cineplex Odeon Films. It is the last big-screen movie to star the Care Bears characters, and is loosely based on Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland stories.
This movie has a sequel called Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation (1986).
Other websites
NYTimes.com review (registration required)
Lyrics to the movie's soundtrack at Distant Melody
1987 movies
1980s family movies
Canadian animated movies
Canadian family movies
English-language movies |
28360 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhea | Rhea | Rhea could mean:
Mythology
Rhea (mythology), in Greek mythology the sister and wife of Cronos and the mother of many of the other major gods
Rhea Silvia, in Roman mythology the mother of the twins Romulus and Remus
People
These people have "Rhea" as their family name:
Caroline Rhea (b.1964), stand-up comedian, television actress and host
Darrel Rhea, CEO, Cheskin
James Rhea (1791-1812), US soldier
La Julia Rhea (1908-1992), US opera singer
These people have it as their given name:
Rhea Hughes, Philadelphia radio personality
Rhea Perlman (b. 1948), US television actress
M. Rhea Seddon (b. 1947), NASA astronaut
Rhea Tregebov, Canadian poet and children's author
Other
Rhea (moon), a moon of Saturn
577 Rhea, asteroid
Rhea (bird), large flightless birds native to South America
Rhea County, Tennessee
Rhea of the Cöos, character in Stephen King's Dark Tower novels |
28362 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conducting | Conducting | Conducting in music means beating time to help a group of musicians to sing or play well together.
If an orchestra is playing music, it is important that they all play exactly together. They need to know exactly when to start, what tempo (speed) to go, how loud or quietly to play, and what the mood of the music should be. If a small number of people play music together (like in a chamber orchestra), they can talk about this amongst themselves. One person can nod with his/her head or with the bow of a string instrument to help the group to start and finish together.
With larger orchestras, such as a symphony orchestra, there are so many people (almost a hundred of them in some cases) that they need a separate person to lead. This person is called the conductor.
History
In the 17th century, orchestras were usually small enough that they did not need a conductor. Often they were directed by the keyboard player or lead violinist. But as orchestras grew in size and began using a wider variety of instruments, it became a convention of having someone who was not playing any instrument to stand, facing the orchestra, as the director or conductor. One early conductor was the French composer Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687), who beat time by banging a big stick (like a walking stick) on the floor to the time of the music. One day he banged his stick so hard, it went through his foot, and he died of gangrene.
Conducting as we know it today had become normal by the 19th century. The composer Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) was known to be a very good conductor as well. Some conductors in Victorian times behaved like they wanted to show off. At around the same time, Louis Antoine Jullien (1812-1860) was a French conductor who wore white gloves, which were presented to him on a silver tray at the start of the concert. He dressed in expensive clothes and his long black hair waved all over the place as he conducted. He was very successful, in France at first, in the UK afterwards, and then even in the US, where he worked with the showman P.T. Barnum. His concerts were a mix of dance and "classical" music, always with the best musicians. His life was so strange that a biography (in French) has been published ().
The British conductor Sir Henry Wood (1869-1944), who was famous for conducting The Proms, was a well-liked man who was respected and loved by orchestras and audiences.
Technique of conducting
Conductors usually beat time with their right hand. This leaves their left hand free to show the various instruments when they come in (when they start playing) and to give interpretative gestures, such as indicating when to play louder or softer, or faster or slower. Most conductors have a stick called a “baton”. It makes it easier for people at the back of large orchestras or choirs to see the beat. Other conductors, such as those who lead singers, prefer not to use a baton. A conductor stands on a small platform called a “rostrum”.
To be a good conductor is not easy. It is not just a question of giving a steady beat. A good conductor will know the music extremely well, understand how the composer wanted the music to sound, be able to figure out the technical details, and know how to be able to work with the orchestra to create great music everyone would want to listen to. Having good communication skills would help a lot, but some conductors speak very little during their rehearsals. They make everything clear through the way they conduct.
Famous conductors
Some of the most famous conductors of the past were: Gustav Mahler, Hans Richter, Arthur Nikisch, Arturo Toscanini, Bruno Walter, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Herbert von Karajan, Leopold Stokowski, Georg Solti, John Barbirolli, Otto Klemperer, George Szell and Leonard Bernstein.
Some of the most famous conductors today are: Marin Alsop, Riccardo Chailly, Gustavo Dudamel, Sir Simon Rattle, Andris Nelsons, Valery Gergiev and Bernard Haitink.
Titles
The main conductor who is in charge of an orchestra is often given the title "musical director". This will usually mean that he or she has a lot of power in the organization of the orchestra, such as choosing the music that will be performed at each concert or inviting soloists to perform with the orchestra. Orchestras may give honorary titles to their conductor, such as "conductor laureate".
A "guest conductor" is one who conducts an orchestra regularly, but is not the main conductor. Typically, he or she would be invited by the main conductor to conduct a performance now and then. An "assistant conductor" will often be a young conductor who helps the main conductor and gets the chance to conduct some of the concerts. Leonard Bernstein became famous in 1953 as the assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic when he led a concert, which was being broadcast nationally on CBS Radio, without having time to prepare for it. He would be the main director of that orchestra from 1958 to 1969.
References
Music |
28363 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwegian%20language | Norwegian language | The Norwegian language is the official language of Norway. It is spoken by over four and a half million people, and it belongs to the group of North Germanic languages which are spoken in Scandinavia. These include Swedish, Danish, Icelandic and Faeroese.
Two forms of the language exist: (which means "book language") and (which means "new Norwegian").
History of the Norwegian language
Old Norse
Old Norse is the language that was spoken hundreds of years ago in Scandinavia at the time of the Vikings. It is very similar to today’s Icelandic language. This is because many Vikings sailed from Norway to Iceland in order to escape from the rule of the Norwegian kings who were making people pay lots of tax.
Bokmål
During the 13th century the Black Death killed two thirds of the population of Norway. The Danish kings and queens noticed that Norway was weak and defenceless, so they annexed Norway (made it part of Denmark). For hundreds of years Norway was ruled by the Danes. All the rulers, priests, estate owners and noblemen were Danish. Many of them settled in Norway. This is why today’s standard Norwegian (Bokmål) is similar to Danish. Norwegians were not allowed to print books in Norwegian. Anyone wanting to study had to go to Denmark or Germany.
In 1814 Denmark lost a war and had to give Norway to Sweden. Then the Norwegians were allowed to have their own university. Gradually the Danish language was mixed up with the Norwegian dialects and became today’s Norwegian language. Norwegian and Danish look very similar when they are written, but when they are spoken they sound different. In Danish a lot of the sounds are swallowed.
Nynorsk
During the 19th century a slightly different form of Norwegian was made up by several people. This eventually became known as “Nynorsk.” It was based on old forms of Norwegian and dialects. During the 20th century some attempts were made to join Bokmål and Nynorsk into one language, but they did not succeed. Today about one person in nine or ten in Norway writes Nynorsk. Children in school have to learn both forms.
The Norwegian alphabet
The Norwegian alphabet has 29 letters. These are the same letters as the English alphabet plus three extra vowels:
The letters c, q, w, x and z are only used for words that have been borrowed from other languages.
References
Other websites
Språkrådet – Norwegian Language Council
Learn Norwegian Online – Online language course
Bokmål and Nynorsk online dictionary
Germanic languages
Languages of Norway |
28369 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/French%20Polynesia | French Polynesia | French Polynesia (, Tahitian: Porinetia Farani) is a French "overseas collectivity" (French: collectivité d'outre mer, or COM) with the particular designation of "overseas country" (French: pays d'outre-mer, or POM) in the southern Pacific Ocean.
The country is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands. The most well-known is Tahiti, the most populous island, which is in the Society Islands group. The capital of the territory, Papeete, is also there.
Although it does not really belong in the territory, French Polynesia is in charge of affairs for Clipperton Island.
Other island groups include:
Austral Islands
Bass Islands often considered part of the Austral Islands
Gambier Islands often considered part of the Tuamotu Archipelago
Marquesas Islands
Society Islands (including Tahiti)
Tuamotu Archipelago
Aside from Tahiti, some other important atolls, islands, and island groups in French Polynesia are: Ahe, Bora Bora, Hiva `Oa, Huahine, Maiao, Maupiti, Mehetia, Moorea, Nuku Hiva, Raiatea, Tahaa, Tetiaroa, Tubuai, and Tupai.
References
Notes |
28370 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnitude | Magnitude | Magnitude could mean:
Magnitude (mathematics), a measure of the size of a mathematical object.
In astronomy:
Magnitude (astronomy)
Magnitude of an eclipse
In seismology:
Either of two measures of earthquake strength:
Richter magnitude scale
Moment magnitude scale
Other:
Magnitude is an attack in the Pokémon fictional world
Related pages
Order of magnitude, a coarse measure of numerical size |
28372 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osnabr%C3%BCck | Osnabrück | Osnabrück is a city in Germany in the state of Lower Saxony. It is around 1,200 years old. The castle dates back to the 19th century. The city was founded by Charlemagne. It has about 165,000 inhabitants, and is twinned with Derby, UK, as well as five other cities around Europe.
Osnabrück is in the south of the state, on the border with North Rhine-Westphalia. It shares an airport with the neighbouring city of Münster which is in North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the only German city in a national park.
It is known as the City of Peace.
References |
28373 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighbour | Neighbour | A Neighbour (or neighbor in American English) is a person who lives nearby, normally in a house or apartment that is next door or, in the case of houses, across the street. Some people form friendships with their neighbours, and help them by sharing their tools and helping with gardening tasks. Other people become frustrated with their neighbours, if the neighbour makes a lot of noise or a mess
A group of people living close together in a small community is called a neighbourhood. Some neighbourhoods have many community organizations, where people volunteer and do charitable activities. Other neighbourhoods in poor communities may have no community organizations, and there may be many problems in the community, such as illegal drugs, prostitution, and homelessness.
Relationships |
28374 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flip-flop%20%28electronics%29 | Flip-flop (electronics) | For the type of shoes (sandals), see Flip-flop
In electronics, a flip-flop or latch is a circuit that has two stable states and can be used to store information. Signals applied to control inputs can change the circuit’s state. It is the basic storage element in sequential logic. Flip-flops and latches are fundamental building blocks of digital electronics systems used in computers, communications, and many other types of systems.
Flip-flops are mainly used as static RAM to store data in a computer. That data is represented in binary. Binary is represented in a 1 (“high state”) and 0 (“low state”). The structure of flip flops vary, but the general characteristic is that two branches affect each other's state by putting the current resulting state of one branch and using that as input for the next iteration of the other branch.
History
The first electronic flip-flop, originally called the Eccles-Jordan trigger circuit, was invented in 1918 by the British physicists William Eccles and F. W. Jordan. The initial design’s only active elements were two vacuum tubes. While working at Hughes Aircraft, Eldred Nelson coined the term JK for a flip-flop which changed states when both inputs were on (a logical "one").
Implementation
Flip-flops can be either simple or clocked. A simple flip-flop changes state as soon as the input changes. A clocked flip-flop changes state only when an extra pulse occurs. This pulse is called the clock signal. Commonly, flip-flop only refers to clocked circuits; the simple ones are commonly called latches.
Types
The two common types of flip-flops are SR ("set-reset"), D ("data" or "delay").
SR flip-flop
The most fundamental flip-flop is the simple SR flip-flop. In the SR flip-flop, the S and R stand for set and reset. The stored bit is present on the output marked Q.
If S is pulsed high while R is held low, then the Q output is forced high. Conversely, if R is pulsed high while S is held low, then the Q output is forced low. When the R and S inputs are both low, the Q outputs are in a constant state. However, when the R and S inputs are both high, the Q outputs are in a forbidden state.
Since high and low mean logical '1' and '0', respectively, the SR flip-flop can have four combinations showing below:
(A) S = 1, R = 0: set
(B) S = 0, R = 0: hold
(C) S = 0, R = 1: reset
(D) S = 1, R = 1: not allowed
The restricted combination (D) leads to an unstable state.
D Flip-flop
A D Flip-Flop prevents an SR flip-flop from receiving the forbidden combination. It takes only one input for data, called D. It splits this data down two paths. On one path it flips the data to the opposite value. This is the “NOT” box in the animation. That way, S = 1, R = 1 is never fed to the internal SR latch.
References
Electronic components
Electronic circuits |
28383 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satoshi%20Tajiri | Satoshi Tajiri | is the person that created the fictional world of Pokémon. He created Pokémon because he liked to collect insects when he was a child and Pokémon is similar to collecting insects. He was born in Tokyo and in the forest he liked collecting insects. He wanted to be a scientist who studied insects. He was pushed away as a child and when he grew up he created a magazine and named it Game Freak. He then opened a video game company and called it Game Freak like his magazine. Tajiri first thought of the idea of Pokémon in 1990.
The protagonist of the Pokémon anime, Ash Ketchum, was thought to be Satoshi as a child.
1965 births
Living people
Japanese video game designers
People from Tokyo
Pokémon
Nintendo people |
28385 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilkley | Ilkley | Ilkley is a tourist town in the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. The biggest attraction there is the wonderful and big Ilkley moors. It is very green and grassy and provides walks for any type of people. One of these walks includes a big rock and a little rock called the Cow and Calf Rocks. This is one of the bigger wonders of the Yorkshire dales. By these rocks there is a pub called The Cow and Calf.
The town is has one railway station where trains run to Leeds and Bradford.
Towns in West Yorkshire |
28388 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Econometrics | Econometrics | Econometrics is a branch of economics. It is the use of statistical and mathematical methods to describe the relation between economic forces such as capital (any of the tools, work, or other things needed to make something useful), interest rates (the price of borrowing money), and labor.
Much of econometrics is making models which are simple pictures of the real world. These models then can be used to predict what will happen in the real world.
An example of econometrics would be looking at the prices of houses in a town. An economist (someone who studies economics) can try to make a simple picture of the house prices in the town. This picture might show that houses close to the market are worth more. An economist could then say that if a new market is made in another part of the town, home prices there might go up. The economist also might say that the new market could make prices less than before near the old one, because the new market will make it so that more houses are near a market. This would make the people who sell houses near a market sell them for less, since there could be more sellers than buyers.
Basic model: linear regression
A basic tool for econometrics is the multiple linear regression model. In modern econometrics, other statistical tools are often used, but linear regression is still the most used starting point for an analysis. Estimating a linear regression on two variables can be shown by drawing a line through data points representing paired numbers of the independent and dependent variables.
References
Subfields of economics |
28389 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franconia | Franconia | Franconia ( ; Franconian dialect: Franggn ) is the northern part of the German federal state of Bavaria. This region is divided in three smaller regions: Oberfranken, Mittelfranken, and Unterfranken. The biggest city in Franconia is Nuremberg.
Other large cities in Franconia are Coburg, Aschaffenburg, Würzburg, Erlangen, Fürth, Bamberg, Bayreuth, Schweinfurt and Hof.
Rivers
The most important river in Franconia is the Regnitz, which is 63.7 km (39.6 mi) in length.
Bavaria |
28391 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/King%20of%20Arms | King of Arms | A King of arms is a government officer in countries like England, Scotland, and Wales. He grants coats of arms to other people. King of Arms is the highest rank of officer of arms. Some countries do not have a King of Arms, but have another person that grants coats of arms.
Heraldic jobs
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland two of the three Kings of Arms gives coats of arms to people after the Earl Marshal approves.
In Scotland the Lord Lyon gives coats of arms without needing any other permission.
In the Republic of Ireland the coats of arms are given by chief herald.
Canada also has a chief herald, who is in charge of the Canadian Heraldic Authority
In South Africa the State Herald is in charge of the Bureau of Heraldry
In the Kingdom of Spain, a Cronista de Armas (Chronicler of Arms) has the power to give people coats of arms.
A King of Arms is also usually in charge of special ceremonies for a country.
British Kings of Arms
English Kings of Arms
Garter Principal King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms
Norroy and Ulster King of Arms
Scottish King of Arms
Lord Lyon King of Arms
Chief Heralds
The Chief Herald of Canada
Chief Herald of Ireland
The State Herald of South Africa
Cronistas de Armas
Cronista de Armas de Castille and Leon
Related pages
Heraldry
Officer of Arms
College of Arms
Court of the Lord Lyon
Canadian Heraldic Authority
Other websites
The Court of the Lord Lyon
The College of Arms
The Canadian Heraldic Authority
The Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland
Heraldry
Occupations |
28395 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychokinesis | Psychokinesis | Psychokinesis or telekinesis is the supposed ability to change matter, energy, space or time by using your mind. It is often mentioned and performed in science fiction movies and video games.
Abilities
Psychokinesis is the word used to describe many different abilities. These abilities include:
moving objects (this is called telekinesis; see below)
changing the shape of objects (this includes melting or bending metal)
influencing events
healing
teleportation (disappearing and reappearing in a different place)
traveling through objects, like a wall
changing an object into something else
changing oneself into something else
putting an energy field around oneself
control of magnetism
control of photons (light waves/particles)
Telekinetic abilities
moving objects (move, lift, shake, vibrate, spin, bend, or break large and small objects)
lifting oneself up off of the ground (including flying)
Parapsychology
Science fiction |
28398 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%20of%20international%20Cartoon%20Network%20channels | List of international Cartoon Network channels | Cartoon Network is an international cartoon television channel for children owned by Turner Broadcasting.
Channels
Current
Americas
Cartoon Network Canada
Cartoon Network South America
Europe
Cartoon Network Europe
Cartoon Network Central & Eastern Europe
Cartoon Network Russia and Southeastern Europe
Cartoon Network France
Cartoon Network Germany
Cartoon Network Italy
Cartoon Network Nordic
Cartoon Network Turkey
Cartoon Network United Kingdom
Asia
Cartoon Network Southeast Asia
Cartoon Network Japan
Cartoon Network Korea
Cartoon Network Pakistan
Cartoon Network Philippines
Cartoon Network Taiwan
Cartoon Network Thailand
Cartoon Network Vietnam
Pacific
Cartoon Network Australia
Cartoon Network New Zealand
Former
Cartoon Network Spain - closed in 2013 along with Cartoonito to make way for Boing
Other websites
Cartoon Network America
Cartoon Network South America
Cartoon Network Europe
Cartoon Network Asia
Cartoon Network
Television lists |
28401 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autobiography | Autobiography | An autobiography is a biography in which the author writes about his or her own life. It is a self-written account of one's own life.
It is one of the earliest forms of literature, but the word itself is quite modern.
The word comes from the Greek stems "auto" (meaning "self"), "bio“ (meaning "life"), and "graph" (meaning "write").
References
Related pages
Biography
Literary terms |
28402 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penjing | Penjing | Penjing (盆景 pinyin: pén jǐng, literally tray scenery), also known as penzai is the ancient Chinese art of growing trees and plants in containers. The plants are kept small by skilled pruning.
Penjing is similar to the Japanese art of bonsai.
History
The first historical reference to penjing is from the 9th century.
Related pages
Bonsai
Chinese scholar's rocks
Suiseki
References
Agriculture
Art |
28403 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian%20Eno | Brian Eno | Brian Eno (born 15 May 1948) is an English musician. He was one of the original members of the band Roxy Music. He makes music called electronic music, which is music made using computers and other electronic devices, like the synthesizer. Brian Eno has worked with other famous musicians and groups like David Bowie and U2.
References
1948 births
Living people
British record producers
English rock musicians
Grammy Award winners
Musicians from Suffolk |
28404 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirby%20%28character%29 | Kirby (character) | For the game series see, Kirby (series)
Kirby, Now sold over 42 million copies Is one of Nintendo’s Best sellers and even though he’s cute, he’s really Dangerous (To the bad guys.) from King Dedede (Who wants to be king of dreamland) to Void termina (Destroyer of Worlds) He’s defeated them all. He can swim, fly, inhale and take abilities from bad guys. But, we will talk about who Kirby is and how he came to be.
About
Kirby (originally named Popopo) has been the main character of some of games made by HAL Laboratory (or HALKEN, as it was called in the 90's). He appeared in over twenty games since 1992 and in the anime television series. The series has sold over 33 million copies worldwide. The original games of the series are platformers. They typically begin with an evil villain threatening his home of Dream Land (Pupupuland プププランド) on the planet Pop Star, usually the greedy King Dedede and Dark Matter other enemies are Magolor, Metaknight, and Landia.
Kirby can walk, run, jump, swim underwater, float, and inhale, and spit out or swallow enemies. After Kirby's Dream Land, Kirby can copy abilities from enemies he swallowed, such as Fire, Sword, Fighter, Tornado, and Cutter. The character is named after lawyer John Kirby.
Games
Kirby’s Dreamland. 1992 Sold on gameboy
Kirby’s Adventure. 1993 Sold on NES
Kirby’s pinball land. 1993 Sold on Gameboy
Kirby’s Dream Course. 1994 Sold on Super NES
Kirby’s avalanche. 1995 Sold on Super NES
Kirby’s Dreamland 2. 1995 Sold on gameboy
Kirby’s Block ball. 1995 Sold on Gameboy
Kirby Super Star. 1996 Sold on Super
Kirby’s Star Stacker. 1997 Sold On Gameboy
Kirby’s Dreamland 3. 1997 Sold on Super NES
Kirby 64 The crystal shards. 2000 Sold on Nintendo 64
Kirby Tilt’n’Tumble. 2000 Sold on Gameboy color
Kirby Nightmare in dreamland. 2002 Sold on Gameboy Advance
Kirby Airride. 2003 Sold on Gamecube
Kirby & the amazing mirror. 2004 Sold on Gameboy Advance
Kirby Canvas curse. 2005 Sold on Nintendo DS
Kirby Squeak Squad. 2006 Sold on Nintendo DS
Kirby Super Star Ultra. 2008 Sold on Nintendo DS
Kirby’s Epic Yarn. 2010 Sold on Nintendo DS
Kirby Mass attack. 2011 Sold on Nintendo DS
Kirby’s return to Dreamland 2011 Sold on Wii
Kirby’s Dream collection. 2012 Sold on Wii
Dedede’s Drum Dash Deluxe. 2014 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Kirby Fighters Deluxe. 2014 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Kirby Triple Deluxe. 2014 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Kirby and the rainbow curse. 2015 Sold on WiiU
Kirby Planet Robobot. 2016 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Team Kirby Clash Deluxe. 2017 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Kirby’s Blowout Blast. 2017 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Kirby Battle Royale. 2018 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Kirby Star Allies. 2018 Sold on Nintendo Switch
Kirby’s Extra Epic Yarn. 2018 Sold on Nintendo 3DS
Super Kirby Clash. 2019 Sold on Nintendo Switch
Kirby Fighters 2. 2020 Sold on Nintendo Switch
Development process
At first, Kirby was named Twinkle Popo but Masahiro Sakurai (The creator of Kirby) wanted American kids to enjoy it too so He and his team asked Nintendo of America for some names and the name “Kirby,” caught Sakurai’s eye out of maybe hundreds, But Kirby, just happened to be the name of Nintendo of America’s lawyer, John Kirby.
The backgrounds for the Kirby series are pretty but they made them in a different than usual way. Normally they would give the person who makes the maps to make the backgrounds too but instead they had a designer draw it then gave it to the mapper to make the maps and levels.
How Kirby got his shape is that Sakurai wanted a cute character that everyone can enjoy. People also draw characters they like in their notebook so he and his crew decided with a circular shape that’s easy to draw.
Publishing
When they first made Kirby’s dreamland, people started saying That it was too easy or too short, so they decided to make something fun and easy, even for the skilled players, So they made Kirby’s adventure. With swallowing to get power-ups instead of just inhaling and spitting the enemy out to hit the other one.
When they published him they started seeing drawings of Kirby in parks and open spaces so that was a little surprise for the crew.
People were also thinking that Kirby was white, or yellow because think Pac-man he’s round and yellow people also thought he was white because the illustration of Kirby was white on Kirby's dreamland but Sakurai was the only person who said he was pink.
Related pages
Mario
The Legend of Zelda
Sonic the Hedgehog
Nintendo
References
Other websites
Kirby's "official" U.S. homepage
Kirby's "official" Japanese homepage
Anime characters
Animated television series
Fictional characters introduced in 1992
Nintendo video game characters |
28406 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor | Capacitor | A capacitor (also called condenser, which is the older term) is an electronic device that stores electric energy. It is similar to a battery, but can be smaller, lightweight and a capacitor charges or discharges much quicker. Capacitors are used in many electronic devices today, and can be made out of many different types of material. The Leyden jar was one of the first capacitors invented.
Capacitors are usually made with two metal plates that are on top of each other and near each other, but that do not actually touch. When powered, they allow energy to be stored inside an electrical field. Because the plates need a lot of area to store even a small amount of charge, the plates are usually rolled up into some other shape, such as a cylinder. Sometimes, other shapes of capacitors are used for special purposes. A capacitor-like effect can also result just from two conductors being close to each other, whether you want it to exist or not.
The type of capacitor used depends on the application. Capacitors come in many sizes. They can be as small as an ant or as large as a dustbin. A few capacitors are adjustable.
All capacitors have two connections, or leads. Most kinds of capacitors can be replaced easily by someone who has basic skills in electronics. However, one of the more powerful types - the electrolytic capacitor - must be used the correct way, or they can explode violently.
While capacitors can store energy, as batteries do, capacitors can release all their stored energy very quickly, even faster than a second. A defibrillator or a photoflash capacitor uses this ability. It gradually charges, until it cannot be filled any more, and then quickly discharges its stored power to a device that needs to have it quickly.
Supercapacitor
Supercapacitors hold a bigger charge than regular capacitors. They are used to store electricity for motors and other purposes when batteries won't discharge quickly enough.
Polystyrene film capacitors
This type of capacitor is not for use in high frequency circuits, being made with a coil inside. They can charge and discharge even more quickly than other capacitors. They are used in filter circuits or timing circuits which run at several hundred KHz or less.
Electrolytic capacitors
Electrolytic capacitors use a conducting surface inside a liquid electrolyte. They do not charge and discharge as rapidly as film capacitors do. They have polarity and so they have to be attached correctly. There are two leads; one will have a + and the other a -. This means one lead is positive and one is negative. There are two different styles: axial, where the leads are connected to each end, and radial, where the leads are connected to one end. Electrolytic capacitors are printed with capacitance and voltage rating.
Since the voltage rating can be low, it is important to check that the electrolytic capacitor is not overcharged. Capacitors can be separated from a battery, then connected in series. Because the capacitor is polarized, the positive terminal must be connected to a negative terminal. This creates correct polarity through the electrical circuit and prevents breakdown.
Some electrolytic capacitors are unpolarized, meaning that either side can be positive or negative. These are mostly used in loudspeakers to block low-frequency signals (bass) from reaching high-frequency (tweeter) drivers.
References
Further reading
YAN Kun(2011). Nonlinstor-An electronic circuit element of the nonlinear type with the deepening charge-controlled capacitor properties based on the form of the nonlinear differential equation (Brief annotation of the connection equation(R)), Xi'an: Xi'an Modern Nonlinear Science Applying Institute.
Other websites
Introduction To Capacitors Capsite 2016
Electronic components |
28410 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condenser | Condenser | Condenser may mean:
The old name for a capacitor
Condenser (laboratory), a device used in a chemistry laboratory |
28411 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategy | Strategy | Strategy is a word which was first used by the military. It comes from an ancient Greek word for the general officer commanding all the armed forces of a state. A strategy is a long term plan on what to do to achieve a certain goal. When talking about the near future, people often use the word tactics. Military theorist Carl von Clausewitz said "tactics is the art of using troops in battle; strategy is the art of using battles to win the war". Today, the word "strategy" is in common use; people might talk about "business strategy", for example.
The distinction between strategy and tactics applies to any planning which might be done against an enemy or opponent. Strategy is what we broadly intend to do to reach our long-term goal or objective. Tactics is the detailed steps which are used as our progress is opposed by the opponent. For this reason, tactics are short-scale and flexible. Strategy, on the other hand, is changed as little as possible. It may be that our goal simply cannot be reached. In that case, a search goes on for a new goal and a new or adjusted strategy. Often, in war, chess or business, roughly the same tactics are still used to get to a different goal. Negotiation is another area where the distinction between strategy and tactics is especially clear.
References
Bibliography
Clausewitz, Carl von. 1989. On War, trans. Michael Howard and Peter Paret. Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press.
Gray, Colin S. 1999. Modern Strategy. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.
Liddell Hart, Basil. H. 1967. Strategy. New York: Praeger.
Luttwak, Edward. 2001. Strategy: the logic of war and peace. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press.
Sun Tzu. 1963. The Art of War. trans. Samuel B. Griffith. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.
Watson, John 1998. Secrets of modern chess strategy: advances since Nimzowitsch. Gambit, London.
Military
Games |
28412 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design%20pattern | Design pattern | In Computer science, a Design pattern is an abstract solution to a certain problem. Design patterns are used in object oriented programming. They give a possible solution to a problem of designing software.
Design patterns became popular around the year 1995. They also simplify the language between computer scientists. Ideally, a design pattern should be reusable many times. It is like a brick of a house, it can be used for many different problems. One can also build bridges with bricks, not only houses.
Examples
These examples are actual examples of design patterns as they are in use. They have not been simplified. It is only the language used to describe them that has been made simpler.
Flyweight
The flyweight design pattern is used to minimize the use of many similar objects. In a text-processing system each letter can have some attributes like formatting, typeface, and size. While it would be possible to create a new object for each character in the document and give it these attributes, it is extremely expensive.
Instead it would be better to create one object for each type of formatting and link the letter to that information. That needs a lot fewer objects. The only extra information that would need to be stored is the word or letter's position in the document. All similar letters would use the same object to define font, size, and other properties.
Singleton
Another easy to understand pattern is called Singleton. It is used when there can only be one instance of a given class. That class usually has some static method (e.g. getInstance()) which returns a new instance. It also saves the instance internally. So if it already created the instance, it can simply return it.
public class Singleton {
static Object theInstance=null;
public Object getInstance() {
if (theInstance==null) {
theInstance=new Object();}
return theInstance; }
}
Computer science |
28416 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amarillo%2C%20Texas | Amarillo, Texas | Amarillo is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in the northern part of Texas. The city's economy is mostly based on cattle. In 2000, 173,627 people lived there.
References
Cities in Texas
County seats in Texas |
28417 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lansdowne%2C%20Pennsylvania | Lansdowne, Pennsylvania | Lansdowne is a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the US.
Cities in Pennsylvania |
28418 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gillingham%20F.C. | Gillingham F.C. | Gillingham Football Club is an English football club. They are based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. They are currently in Football League One. They play home games at Priestfield Stadium. Gillingham are managed by Steve Lovell and the chairman is Paul Scally. The club captain, Gabriel Zakuani, plays in defence. They finished their last season (2017-18) in 17th.
1893 establishments in England
English football clubs
Gillingham, Kent |
28430 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Round%20%28music%29 | Round (music) | A round in music is a song which can be sung by two or more groups of people. One group starts off and the next group start to sing the same song a bit later. It should sound nice together. When a group gets to the end of the song they start again. They can go round and round, singing it several times.
Usually rounds are in 2, 3 or 4 parts (meaning that they are for 2, 3 or 4 groups of people). When a group of people sing or play a round they usually sing it an agreed number of times. This means that the group which starts last also finishes last.
Frère Jacques is a famous French round. London's Burning is an English round. Both those rounds can be sung in 4 parts.
The oldest round that we know is Sumer is icumen in. This is a very famous piece of music because it is the oldest piece of music we know that was written down. It was written around 1250 by a monk. It can be sung in 4 parts with 2 bass drones (held notes).
Writing music by making one part imitate another is called canonic writing. Rounds are a kind of canon.
Related pages
Canon (music)
Musical forms |
28431 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gall%20bladder | Gall bladder | The gallbladder is a pear-shaped organ in your abdomen. It stores about 50 ml of acidic liquid (bile) until the body needs it for digestion. That liquid helps digest fat. The gallbladder is about 7-10cm long in humans. It is dark green in color because of the bile in it. It is connected to the liver and the duodenum by the biliary tract.
Anatomy of the digestive system |
28435 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Addenbrooke%27s%20Hospital | Addenbrooke's Hospital | Addenbrooke's Hospital is a large hospital in Cambridge, England. The hospital lets people in to look around, once every two years. You can visit the mortuary, the operating theatres and the hospital roof.
Buildings and structures in England
Cambridge
Hospitals in the United Kingdom |
28439 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koala | Koala | Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is an herbivore marsupials that live in the eucalyptus forests of eastern Australia. They are the only living species in the family Phascolarctidae. They are related to the wombats.
Koalas are often called koala bears, because a koala looks like a small bear or teddy bear. However, it is not a bear, it is quite a different type of animal.
Appearance
Koalas have brownish-grey or silver-grey fur, and a big pink, dark red or/and black nose. They have sharp claws which help them to climb.
Koalas also have finger prints which look the same as human finger prints. Finger print experts have had difficulty in being able to tell if the prints are from a human or koala. Finger prints are rare among mammals that climb trees. Scientists do not know why the koala has them, but their best guess is that it helps the koala choose leaves to eat.
Life
Koalas are mostly active at night. They live in trees and are rarely found on the ground. Koalas have two unusual characteristics.
They eat leaves of eucalyptus trees. Koalas do not drink often, they get most of their water from the eucalyptus leaves they eat. Eucalyptus leaves are poisonous, but koalas do not get poisoned. This is because they have certain bacteria in their digestive tract that can detoxify the poison in the leaves. Koalas, however, have to sleep long hours because eucalyptus leaves do not produce much energy and also because the digestive process takes a long time.
Koalas have a peculiar way of cooling themselves. Unlike humans who sweat and other animals, which either pant or lick their fur to stay cool, koalas reduce their body heat by hugging a tree. The temperature of the trunks of certain trees is up to 9 degrees Celsius lower than the air temperature. Koalas prefer to stay on these trees on a hot day even if they do not have the tastiest leaves.
Koalas live alone most of the time, but they have a social hierarchy with the other koalas who live near.
After a pregnancy of 35 days, the newly born koala is about a quarter of an inch long, and is born with no ears, eyes, or hair. It crawls into its mothers pouch on its own. After 12 months the young koala is old enough that it does not go into its mother's pouch or need milk anymore. The female koala can have another baby then. Young koalas usually leave their mothers when they are 18 months old, but if their mother does not have another baby they sometimes stay for up to three years. Koalas become mature when they are about two years old, but they often have their first baby after another two years.
Other information
The koala is not an endangered species, but it is a near vulnerable species. One reason is the loss of habitat, which means that koalas have less space to live. In some places there are very few koalas left. But there are also places, such as French Island (Victoria), with too many koalas that eat too much. Because of this the eucalyptus trees and other animals are in danger. A study looking at koala numbers at 1800 sites for 20 years, shows that the number of koalas is falling. The study, by the Australian Koala Foundation, estimates that there are only about 50,000 koalas left. there is over 500 types of gum trees in the world, however, koalas only eat 4-6 types that they prefer.
Chlamydia
Many koalas are infected with Chlamydia. This is affecting the survival of the species. Koalas on French Island do not have the disease, and so groups of them are often moved to the mainland to repopulate some areas. The disease can cause blindness, pneumonia, urinary tract infections and reproductive tract infections.
References
Other websites
The Aussie Koala Ark Conservation Project
Marsupials of Australia
Diprotodonts |
28440 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/John%20Adams%20%28composer%29 | John Adams (composer) | John Coolidge Adams is an American composer. He was born in 1947. His music often uses minimalism with large orchestras and lots of different sounds. He was named after John Adams, the 2nd President.
Life
He studied music at Harvard University. After he had graduated he packed all his belongings into his Volkswagen and drove all the way across the United States to California where he got a job as a forklift operator. Soon he became part of the musical scene of San Francisco. He listened to the music of minimalist composers like John Cage, Terry Riley and Morton Feldman. By the mid-1980s he was earning a living as composer and conductor. The piece that made him famous was called Harmonium. At times the music is made to sound like a harmonium instrument, but the title also refers to "harmony", showing that he is writing tonal music unlike some modern composers at the time whose music was getting harder and harder to understand because it was not in any key.
Adams wrote several short pieces such as Short Ride in a Fast Machine and The Chairman Dances. This last piece is music from his opera Nixon in China which was widely performed but made some people angry because the Chinese leaders Chou En-lai and Mao Tse-tung are shown as human beings who deserve a certain amount of sympathy.
Adam's Violin Concerto has been performed over 100 times by many of the world's famous violinists. Adam's song "The Chairman Dances" appered in the game Civilization IV.
1947 births
Living people
20th-century American composers
21st-century American composers
Writers from Massachusetts |
28457 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handcuffs | Handcuffs | Handcuffs are a type of restraint, often used by police to ensure suspects cannot escape or hurt anyone. They do this by securing a person's wrists together. They are usually metal and are made up of two parts linked together by a chain. Handcuffs cannot be removed without the right key, and a handcuffed person cannot move their wrists more than a short distance apart. Usually they are put on behind the back.
Styles
There are three main types of handcuffs: chain, hinged, and solid bar. While they are harder to carry, rigid handcuffs allow a number of differences in cuffing. Both rigid and hinged cuffs can be used one-handed to apply pain-compliance/control techniques. Different accessories are available to improve the security or increase the hardness of handcuffs. These include boxes that fit over the chain or hinge and can be locked with a padlock.
In 1933 the Royal Canadian Mounted Police used a type called "Mitten Handcuffs". These stopped criminals from being able to grab the officer's tools, such as their gun. It was used by some in law enforcement but it was never popular.
Handcuffs can be made from different metals, including carbon steel, stainless steel and aluminium, or from synthetic polymers.
The National Museum of Australia has a number of handcuffs in its collection. These can be from as early as the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Double locks
Handcuffs with double locks have a piece that can stop the cuff from getting tighter. Tightening could be done on purpose or by struggling. Handcuffs may cause nerve damage or loss of circulation if they are tightened. Some wearers could tighten the cuffs to try to escape. They do this by trying to escape when the officer is loosening the cuffs. Double locks also make picking the locks more difficult.
There are three kinds of double locks described in a Smith & Wesson brochure:
Lever lock
Moving a lever on the cuff makes the lock move into a position that locks the bolt. No tool is needed to double lock this type of cuff.
Push pin lock
A small peg on the key is inserted into a hole to engage the lock.
Slot lock
These are also used with a peg, but here it is inserted into a slot and moved sideways to engage the lock.
Plastic handcuffs
Plastic handcuffs, are lightweight plastic strips that look like electrical cable ties. Soldiers and police can carry a lot of them at once. This is useful for some situations, such as during big protests and riots. In recent years, airlines have started to carry plastic handcuffs to restrain troublesome passengers. Disposable handcuffs could be considered cost-inefficient. This is because they cannot be loosened, and have to be cut off to let a restrained person be fingerprinted, or to use the bathroom.
However, this usage means that cheap handcuffs are used in times where steel ones would normally be unused for long times. Recent products have been made that deal with this. These include disposable plastic restraints that can be opened with a key. These are more expensive than traditional plastic restraints, since they can only be used for a small number of times, and are not as strong. In addition, many people think plastic restraints are more likely to cause nerve or soft-tissue damage to the wearer than metal handcuffs.
Legcuffs
When a suspect is extremely aggressive, leg irons may be used as well. Sometimes the chain connecting the leg irons to each other is looped around the chain of the handcuffs, resulting in the prisoner being "hog-tied" or "hog cuffed". In a few rare cases, people lying on their stomachs have died from positional asphyxia. This makes the practice very controversial, and has led to it being restricted, or even banned, in many places.
Keys
Most handcuffs today in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Latin America can be opened with the same key. This makes transporting prisoners easier. However, there are handcuff makers who use different keys. Maximum security handcuffs need special keys. Handcuff keys usually do not work with thumbcuffs. The Cuff Lock handcuff key padlock uses this same standard key.
In addition to the Universal handcuff key, a few modified designs exist. One kind of key is designed to fit behind an officer's badge.
References
Law enforcement equipment |
28458 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashlight | Flashlight | A flashlight (in North American English) or torch (in most Commonwealth countries) is a small, portable spotlight.
Its function is a beam of light which helps to see. It usually requires batteries.
The light is made by a small light bulb. In the 20th century, it was usually an incandescent bulb. Nowadays most use LEDs, which work slightly differently. In 1896, the first dry cell battery was invented. Unlike previous batteries, it used a paste electrolyte instead of a liquid. This was the first battery suitable for portable electrical devices, as it did not spill or break easily and worked in any orientation. Sometimes the electricity comes from a small generator instead of a battery.
The torch can also refer to a flammable stick that is lit on fire to provide light and (or) heat.
Origin
Hundreds of years ago, people used candles for all indoor light. This was expensive, and once the candle was gone, you would have to buy or make a new one or be stuck in the dark. When electricity was discovered and the light bulb was invented, David Misell, a British man working in Hubert's New York shop in 1898, came up with the idea of a light bulb that you could take with you, anywhere you wanted to go. Then, the torch was invented. The first flashlight has three D batteries which powered a small incandescent bulb. The bulbs would glow with a simple ON/OFF switch.
References
Light sources |
28488 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination | Discrimination | Discrimination is when someone is treated unfairly or differently. Discrimination is when a person is treated unfairly or badly because the person is one of a particular group. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that all persons must be protected against any kind of discrimination, or even its inciting.
A person might be discriminated against because of their race, age, sex, politics, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, the way they look, a past criminal record, the person's lifestyle, their choice of clothing, their age or their disabilities whether they are a member of or fit in with a social clique (group), social class, social status or caste, and many other reasons.
Discrimination can take many forms. It can include being fired from a job, not being able to be hired for a job, being paid less money than others at the same job, being refused a home or apartment, teasing, harassment, or simply being treated differently than other people. Laws known as "equal opportunity legislation" protect people from discrimination. They say people should be employed whatever their race, age, sex or religion. There should be reasonable care for people with disabilities or accessibility. Two people in the same position must be paid the same wage if they have exactly the same job.
In some countries, discrimination against somebody on the basis of race, sex, religion, sexual orientation, age, or disability is illegal. Even in those countries where discrimination is unlawful, it still takes place for reasons not covered by the law. In some other countries, discrimination against somebody is legal or even official government policy. This especially takes place in countries in which there is an official religion, and people of other religions are discriminated against.
Related pages
Ableism
Ageism
Antisemitism
Homophobia - Transphobia
Intersectionality
Persecution
Political correctness
Prejudice
Racism
Sexism
Social stigma
Speciesism
Human rights
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Discrimination |
28498 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest%20Rutherford | Ernest Rutherford | Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson OM PC FRS (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937) was a New Zealand-born British scientist. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908 for his work on nuclear physics, and for his theory of the structure of the atom.
Career
Rutherford was one of the first researchers in nuclear physics, after the discovery of radiation by the French physicist Henri Becquerel in 1896. Rutherford discovered the radioactive half-life, and the three parts of radiation which he named Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. He also discovered that alpha particles were the nuclei of Helium. Rutherford's Geiger–Marsden experiment led to what we know today about the atomic structure, where the atom is a nucleus and electrons orbit around it.
In 1919, Rutherford made the world's first artificial nuclear reaction, where he put alpha particles with nitrogen gas and created particles of oxygen isotopes and protons. This was nuclear transmutation, changing nitrogen gas into oxygen gas.
Rutherford was the leader of the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge. He proved the existence of the nucleus and that is was composed of protons and neutrons. In 1932 James Chadwick made an experiment at the Cavendish Lab that showed Rutherford was right.
Rutherford College, a school in Auckland, New Zealand, was named after him.
Related pages
List of scientists from Oceania
Other websites
The Rutherford Museum
Rutherford Scientist Supreme
Ernest Rutherford @ nobel.se
"Ernest Rutherford 1871–1937". A Science Odyssey, pbs.org.
1871 births
1937 deaths
New Zealand chemists
British chemists
British nuclear physicists
People buried in Westminster Abbey
Order of Merit
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom Barons
Fellows of the Royal Society
Presidents of the Royal Society
New Zealand Nobel Prize winners
New Zealand physicists |
28509 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serialism | Serialism | Serialism is a way of composing music using a series of notes in a particular order and using this to build up a whole piece of music. These series and patterns can also be applied to other parts of music (like how loud or soft it is).
A simple example
To show how serialism works we can take a very simple example. Let us use just five notes from the white notes of a keyboard. We can use the notes A, B, C, D and E. We are going to make a “tune” using all these five notes, but not repeating any until all five have been used (although we are allowed to repeat the note we have just had).
For example: we might have D, C, A, A, A, A, B, E. This is what we call our “row” or “series”, although usually one would expect a row of twelve different notes. It is the one we start off with, so we can call it our tone row.
We can change the tone row by playing it backwards. This is called retrograde. So we now get E, B, A, A, A, A, C, D.
We can also change it by playing it upside down. This means that instead of going up one step we go down one step, or instead of going up two steps we go down two steps etc. If we start on the same note D we now get: D, E, G, G, G, G, F, C. This is called inversion.
We can make it go backwards and upside down. So we get: C, F, G, G, G, G, E, D. This is called retrograde inversion.
We now have four ways of playing our row: tone row, retrograde, inversion, retrograde inversion.
These can now be transposed to create many more options.
Schoenberg’s twelve-tone series
In 1923 the composer Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) developed what he called the “twelve-tone system”. Instead of using just five notes as in our example, he used all 12 notes in the octave (5 black and 7 white notes on the piano keyboard). Most music we listen to is in a particular key (tonality). This is called “tonal” music. For example: if we start “Twinkle, twinkle little star” on a C we finish on a C at the end and the piece sounds finished. It is “tonal” (in a particular key). In twelve-tone music all 12 notes are equal, there is no “key note” (it is “atonal”). This makes the music very hard to understand and it took people a long time to get used to the sound of Schoenberg’s new music.
Schoenberg was not the only composer to use this way of composing. His pupils Alban Berg (1885-1935) and Anton Webern (1883-1945) also wrote twelve-tone music. Schoenberg, Webern & Berg are sometimes called the "Second Viennese School"-The first was Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven a hundred years before. The composers Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) and Aaron Copland (1900-1990) started to write twelve-tone music when they were quite old. Composers such as Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) used it occasionally, often putting it together with music which was tonal (listen to Britten’s opera “Midsummer Night’s Dream”). When contrasted with tonal music in this way it can be very beautiful.
In the 1950s and 1960s some composers like Pierre Boulez (b.1925) and Karlheinz Stockhausen (b.1928) wrote music which was not only twelve-tone, but serial in other ways as well. For example: they organized levels of dynamics (from very quiet to very loud) in a series, and the lengths of notes (from very short to very long), and even timbre (the sound quality). By combining all these things their music became very complicated indeed. When all these things were used for the whole piece of music it was called “total serialism”. Boulez’s Structures I is an example of a piece which uses “total serialism”. A lot of people criticized this music, saying that it was too mathematical instead of being expressive. Such music can be hard to understand.
Musical movements |
28512 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric%20Chopin | Frédéric Chopin | Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin (1 March 1810 – 17 October 1849; pronounced SHOH-pen) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the greatest Romantic piano composers. Chopin was born in Żelazowa Wola, a village in the Duchy of Warsaw. A famous child prodigy, he grew up in Warsaw where he completed his music education and composed many of his mature works before leaving Poland in 1830 at age 20, shortly before the November 1830 Uprising.
Early life
After the Uprising, he lived in Paris as part of Poland's Great Emigration. During the last 19 years of his life, Chopin performed only about 30 times, usually in a salon. He supported himself by selling his compositions and teaching piano. After a romantic relationship with Polish women, including an abortive engagement, from 1837 to 1847 he carried on a relationship with the French writer Amandine Dupin, better known as George Sand.
Works
Since he composed many piano pieces, he was called the poet of the piano. Most of Chopin's works are for solo piano, though he also wrote two piano concertos, a few chamber pieces and some songs to Polish lyrics. His piano works are often technically difficult, especially because deep expression is involved along with the importance of considering each detail in his music. Chopin also created the instrumental ballade, along with the addition of new ideas to the piano sonata, mazurka, waltz, nocturne, polonaise, étude, impromptu, scherzo and prélude. All of Chopin's works involve the piano, and for composing them he was using a number of them. While living in Warsaw, Chopin played on Buchholtz piano. Later in Paris he preferred an instrument from Pleyel. Both of these instruments were recreated in XXI century to help listeners to hear Chopin works played on pianos that they were written for.
Death
Chopin suffered from poor health most of his life and died of tuberculosis in Paris in 1849 at age 39.
References
Other websites
Chopin biography
Our Chopin
Deaths from tuberculosis
Infectious disease deaths in France
Polish pianists
Polish composers
Polish Roman Catholics
French composers
French Roman Catholics
Romantic composers
1810 births
1849 deaths |
28516 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail%20Glinka | Mikhail Glinka | Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (1804–1857) was a Russian composer, regarded as the first to become very famous.
Russia is a very large country. In the 18th century there was a lot of music in Europe, but Russian people had not yet heard it. A lot of them were very poor and modern transport did not exist. By the time Glinka was born Russian people in the large towns like Saint Petersburg were becoming very interested in European music.
Mikhail Glinka was born in a little village called Novospasskoye. His father was a rich landowner. Glinka was brought up by his grandmother who looked after him very carefully. She was always afraid he would be cold, so she wrapped him up in a fur coat in a room which was kept at 77 °F. He was not often allowed to play in the fresh air. Later in his life Glinka was always worrying about his health.
It was a long way to the big cities from where the child lived. There was no radio in those days, and no CDs. The only music he heard was the church bells, and the singing of the peasants (the simple people who worked on the land). They sang folksongs and made up harmony underneath the tunes.
After his grandmother died he was allowed to travel 6 miles to his uncle’s home. His uncle had a group of musicians who played music by European composers like Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. He had never heard such music before.
When he was 13 he went to school in St Petersburg. Now he could hear lots of music and meet some good musicians. He had piano lessons and spent a lot of time at parties. He started to compose some songs.
In 1830 he went to Italy. Italy was famous for its music, especially for opera. Glinka met famous composers like Mendelssohn and Berlioz as well as Italian composers like Donizetti and Bellini. He like their music, and decided he wanted to write opera as well, but he wanted to make his music sound very Russian.
Glinka went back to Russia. He wrote two great operas. The first one was called Ivan Susanin. The story of the opera, set in 1612, is about a poor peasant Ivan Susanin who dies to save the life of the Tsar (the Tsar was the ruler of Russia, like a king or emperor). The Tsar liked the opera and thought that it should be called A Life for the Tsar. It was a big success when it was first performed in 1836.
He soon wrote his second opera: Ruslan and Lyudmila. The story comes from a tale by the famous Russian poet Pushkin. The man who wrote the words for him did it very quickly while he was drunk, so the story is a bit muddled, but the music is wonderful. It is a fairy tale about a nasty dwarf Chernomor who has taken away a princess called Lyudmila. In the end Ruslan, the hero, rescues her. Some of the music sounds quite oriental. The overture that starts the opera is very famous.
Glinka also wrote piano music, songs and chamber music.
Glinka’s music is important because he was the first Russian composer to write music that sounded Russian. Later composers like Tchaikovsky were influenced by his music.
References
David Brown: Mikhail Glinka, a biographical and critical study London OUP1974
Other websites
1804 births
1857 deaths
Russian composers
Romantic composers
People from Saint Petersburg
Russian musicians |
28521 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/1510 | 1510 |
Events
January 23 – Henry VIII of England, then 18 years-old, appears incognito in the lists at Richmond, and is applauded for his jousting before he reveals himself.
Conquest of Pskov by Grand Prince Vasili III of Muscovy.
Formation of the Holy League to defend the Italian States.
Peter Henlein builds the first pocketwatch.
End of the War of the League of Cambrai (started 1508)
Start of the War of the Holy League (ended 1513)
Births
March 30 – Antonio de Cabezón, Spanish composer and organist (died 1566)
April 2 – Ashikaga Yoshiharu, Japanese shogun (died 1550)
July 22 – Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence (died 1537)
October 6 – Rowland Taylor, English pastor (executed 1555)
November 6 – John Caius, English physician (d. 1573)
Mikael Agricola, Finnish scholar (died 1557)
Francis Borgia, General of the Jesuits (died 1572)
Jörg Breu the Younger, German painter (died 1547)
Ferenc Dávid, Hungarian religious reformer (died 1579)
Andrea Gabrieli, Italian composer and organist (died 1586)
Claude Goudimel, French composer and music theorist (died 1572)
Matsunaga Hisahide, Japanese warlord (died 1577)
Aloysius Lilius, Italian inventor of the Gregorian calendar (died 1576)
Solomon Luria, Polish-born Kabbalist (died 1574)
Luis de Morales, Spanish religious painter (died 1586)
Oda Nobuhide, Japanese warlord (died 1551)
Bernard de Palissy, French potter and writer
Ambroise Paré, French surgeon (died 1590)
Guillaume Postel, linguist (died 1581)
Renee of France, daughter of Louis XII of France and Anne of Brittany (died 1575)
Lope de Rueda, Spanish dramatist and writer
Lawrence Sheriff, Elizabethan gentleman and grocer (died 1567)
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, Spanish explorer (died 1554)
Claudio Veggio, Italian composer
Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon, French naval officer (died 1571)
Deaths
February 28 – Juan de la Cosa, Spanish mapmaker and explorer (born c. 1460)
March 1 – Francisco de Almeida, Portuguese soldier and explorer (born c. 1450)
March 10 – Johann Geiler von Kaisersberg, German preacher (born 1445)
May 17 – Sandro Botticelli, Italian painter (born 1445)
August 17 – Edmund Dudley, English statesman
December 14 – Friedrich of Saxony (b. 1473)
December 31 – Bianca Maria Sforza, daughter of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza of Milan and wife of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (born 1472)
Agueybana, Taino chief
Ambrogio Calepino, Italian lexicographer (born 1450)
Catherine Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus (born 1454)
Richard Empson, English statesman
Giorgione, Italian painter (born c. 1477)
Bohuslav Hasištejnský z Lobkovic, Bohemian writer (born 1461)
Florian Zamoyski, Polish nobleman |
28524 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellipsoid | Ellipsoid | An ellipsoid is a shape like a sphere, but it may be longer in one or more directions, like an egg, or a rugby ball. It is the 3 dimensional analogue of an ellipse.
The Earth is shaped slightly like an ellipsoid. Its shape is called an oblate spheroid. An ellipsoid shaped like the Earth, called a reference ellipsoid, is often preferred to the geoid because it makes calculations simpler.
Related pages
Ellipse
Three-dimensional shapes |
28525 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liancourt%20Rocks | Liancourt Rocks | Liancourt Rocks (Takeshima 竹島 in Japanese, Dokdo 독도 in Korean) are a group of small islands in the Sea of Japan. The islands are currently occupied under the South Korean armed police. The name Liancourt Rocks comes from the French whaling ship Liancourt. The people on the Liancourt made a map of the islands in 1849. The islands have been in dispute for some time by both Korea and Japan. Japan has been suggesting to sort the dispute in International Court of Justice but South Korean government keeps refusing it.
Geography
Liancourt Rocks consists of two islets, that are 150 metres apart. These small islands are called West Islet and East Islet. The western islet is the larger of the two islets. Altogether, there are about 90 islets and reefs. The islands and rocks have a volcanic nature. A total of 37 of these islets are recognized as permanent land. The eastern islet formed 4.5 million years ago. Ulleungdo formed 2 million years later. Both are quickly eroding and weathering.
The total area of the islets is about 187,450 square meters. Their highest point is 169 meters on the western islet. The western islet is about 88,640 square meters in area; the eastern islet about 73,300 square meters. Liancourt Rocks is at about 131°52′ East longitude and about 37°14′ North latitude. The western islet is at and the eastern islet is at . The main islands coast lines are 217 km apart from mainland Korea and 212 km apart from main island's of Japan (Honshu). The nearest Korean territory (Ulleung-do) is 87 km away and can be visible on fair days; the nearest Japanese territory (Oki islands) is 157 km away.
The western islet is made of a single peak. It has many caves along the coastline. The cliffs of the eastern islet are about 10 to 20 meters high. There are two caves giving access to the sea, as well as a crater.
Economy
40 Korean people are staying on the islets, several Korean telecom service providers (namely SK Telecom, KT, and LG U+) have also installed stations on Liancourt Rocks to cover the islets in the South Korean wireless telephone network. There is also regular ferry service from Ulleung-do.
Although the islets themselves are barely habitable, the Exclusive Economic Zone surrounding them has rich fishing grounds and possible reserves of natural gas. As of 2006, the expected reserves have not been found. A wide variety of fish as well as seaweed, kelp, sea slugs, and clams live around the islets. Major fishery catches in the area are squid, Alaskan pollock, codfish, and octopus. There are 102 species of seaweed, although many of these have no economic value.
This area used to be one of the largest breeding grounds of sea lions (Zalophus californianus japonicus) and a good spot for hunting them and also a spot for obtaining abalone at the end of the Meiji period (1868-1912). Until the 1950s, sea lions were observed on the islets by the voluntary guards.
Over 900 Korean citizens say that they live on the islands. Over 2,000 Japanese do the same. However, only two people, a married Korean couple, are living there permanently.
Tourism
Because they are classified as a nature reserve, special permits are required for tourists to land on the islets rather than just circling them. There were 1,507 and 1,597 recorded tourists in 2003 and 2004 respectively. Visitors generally come by boat from Ulleung-do.
In 2005, the first wedding ceremony was held on the islets. The South Korean couple chose the location to protest against Japanese territorial claims.
Climate
Liancourt Rocks can have harsh weather conditions. This is because of its location, and small size. Sometimes, ships are unable to dock because of strong northwestern winds in winter. The climate is warm and humid. It is heavily influenced by warm sea currents. There is a lot of rain throughout the year (annual average - 1324 mm), with occasional snowfall. Fog is a common sight. In the summer, southerly winds dominate. The water around the islets is about 10 degrees Celsius in spring, when the water is coolest. It warms to about 25 degrees Celsius in August.
Ecology
Like Ulleung-do, the islets are volcanic rocks, with only a thin layer of soil and moss. About 80 species of plants, over 22 species of birds, and 37 species of insects have been recorded on the islets, in addition to the local maritime life.
Since the early 1970s, trees and some types of flowers were planted along with the indigenous flora and fauna. (Trees are required under international law for the islets to be recognized as natural islands rather than reefs.)
Liancourt Rocks was declared "Natural Monument #336" by South Korea in the 1990s. Some birds actually live on the islands, but most are just using them as a stopover to fly elsewhere. The fork-tailed petrel, streaked shearwater, and black-tailed gulls live on the islands. The population of breeding birds counted on the rocks, however, has been declining in recent years.
In 1999, the islets were designated a special environmental protected area by the South Korean government. They are older than any other Korean volcanic islands, including Ulleung-do.
It was announced in 2005 that three new genera and five new species of bacteria had been identified by ROK scientists in the waters off the islets. The genera are Dokdonella koreensis, Dokdonia donghaenensis, and Donghae dokdoensis. The newly identified species are Virgilbacillus dokdoensis, Maribacter dokdoensis, Marimonas dokdoensis, Polaribacter dokdoensis, and Porphyrobacter dokdoensis.
Strategic location
The islets are of importance not only for economic reasons, but also for military ones. They have occasionally served as a military base, most notably during the Russo-Japanese War. The South Korean government has built a radar station and helicopter landing pad on the islets, enabling it to track foreign naval forces.
Additional note of the dispute
South Korean armed force captured 3929 and killed 44 Japanese people between 1952 and 1965 until Syngman Rhee Line was set. The dispute between South Korea and Japan over the islands has gained heat in 2008 with new Japanese school books mentioning the islands, and a visit by the South Korean Prime Minister in July. Ten years ago, no people lived on the islands. But South Korea started to populate the island to make its claim stronger. South Korea insists that the islet was called Usan-do or Sokdo in a past and later changed its name, but there is no historical proof which shows when the name was changed.
Rusk documents in 1951 states that "As regards the island of Dokdo, otherwise known as Takeshima or Liancourt Rocks, this normally uninhabited rock formation was according to our information never treated as part of Korea and, since about 1905, has been under the jurisdiction of the Oki Islands Branch Office of Shimane Prefecture of Japan. The island does not appear ever before to have been claimed by Korea."
History
512: In the 13th year of King Jijeung of Silla, Isabu, conquered the umbrella country and incorporated it into Silla territory (Records of the Three Kingdoms)
An Yong-bok, fisherman : and 1693 shogunate mourning, Japan forcibly removed and to find why in the ocean near Ulleungdo to Dokdo and Ulleung Island is Korean territory Seogye for getting (the Annals of the reign.History).
Banpo Uldo Ulleung Island to King Gojong, an Imperial decree No. 41 : 1900, logistics and the guide and as the Dokdo uldogun to will result in a jurisdiction
Takeshima in 1905 : Japan, Dokdo, (Takeshima) by Shimane and as the number 40, and that Japan will result in (Japan-Korea Treaty of 1905 in November 1905, to losing sovereignty,).
In 1907 : jurisdiction of Ulleungdo and Dokdo, Gangwon Province to Gyeongsang Province in two speed.
In 1946 : gho scapin in (Allied Supreme Command) (supreme head-quarters allied command) subparagraph at 677 in accordance with the Japan excluded from control over the Dokdo.
Dokdo : 1953 and a volunteer (Colon 32 agents, hongsunchil) garrison organizations.
And 1956 : National Police, Dokdo over expenses.
Dokdo : in 1981, first resident registration card (Choi Jong-Duk Dodong-ri, Ulleung-eup, bought 67).
State-designated cultural property : 1982, and was designated as Natural Monument No. 336 (Dokdo marine algae a breeding ground).
1998: Signing a fisheries agreement between Shinhan and Japan
State-designated cultural property : in 1999 and management organizations and Natural Monument No. 336, Dokdo a name change management guidelines, the Cultural Heritage (→ Dokdo a Dokdo algae reproduce natural resource conservation area).
Dodong-ri bought 42 : a lot number to 76 / Administrative divisions : name and number (Dodong-ri → the Eastern Island and Dokdo, (the opening. - Class 1 - 2 class : Regions), 2000 → Dokdo, a mountain, at 37 to 1.
Dokdo, and the Ministry of Information and Communication : In 2003, postal number ‘799 - 805’.
2005: Undesignation of 11 public areas (Dongdo) including the trail (Admission Permit System → Switch to the reporting system), and Zip Bungyeong (1-37 Mountains → 1-96 Streets)
And 2008 : Addressing the new street address 'Dokdo to Kim Isabu' and 'Dokdo An Yong-bok gil' according to changes in.
Notes
References
Korea Times Dokdo Hosts First Civilians in a Decade. Retrieved 22 February, 2006.
Other websites
Official sites
South Korean government's perspective on Dokdo via Korea.net
Pro-Korea
dodkdonews.net: News updates on the disputed islets
The Territorial Dispute Over Dokdo, compiled by Mark S. Lovmo Pro-Korea view by an English speaker
The historical facts of the Dokdo - Takeshima Island dispute between Japan and Korea Pro-Korea view by an English speaker
Tokdo Dispute History by Kalani O'Sullivan Third party analysis of dispute in an academic journal
Tokdo or Takeshima? The International Law of Territorial Acquisition in the Japan-Korea Island Dispute, Sean Fern, Stanford Journal of East Asian Affairs, Volume 5 Number 1 (Winter 2005), pp.78-89 Pro-Korea view by an English speaker
"North Korea Denounces Japanese Territorial Claims on Dokdo" Yonhap via Yahoo news
Dokdo is Korean territory : a web page by the Cyber Dokdo History Hall, English
Islands of South Korea |
28527 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentagram | Pentagram | A pentagram is a five-pointed star, with all lines the same length and all angles the same. A 'pentangle', 'star pentagon', or 'pentalpha' means the same thing. It is a type of pentagon.
The word pentacle originally meant 'any symbol that protects against evil spirits'. There are many of such symbols, only a few of which include a pentagram. During the modern age of Wicca, the word 'pentacle' acquired a second definition, due to sounding similar to the word 'pentagram', and the fact that wiccan pentacles use a pentagram. That second definition of 'pentacle' is 'a circumscribed pentagram', which means 'a pentagram drawn inside a circle so that the points of the pentagram touch the circle'.
The pentagram means different things to different people. These meanings have changed over time.
Religious meanings
In ancient times, the pentagram was used as a Christian symbol. It stood for the five wounds that Jesus Christ received during his crucifixion (the nails in each hand and foot, and the spear wound in his side).
In the past, the pentagram was commonly seen as a symbol for good and for protection against evil.
In Taoism, a pentagram shows how the five classical oriental elements (earth, water, wood, fire, and metal) are related.
Today, the pentacle, commonly mistaken as a pentagram, is the most commonly used symbol of Wicca. Some post-Gardnerian wiccans, imitating Taoism, associate the five points of the pentagram with the four classical Greek elements (fire, water, earth, and air) and spirit.
Some Satanists, especially members of the Church of Satan, use an upside-down pentacle as a symbol for their religion. The Church of Satan's official symbol is an upside-down pentacle with a goat head inside, called the Sigil of Baphomet. (A 'sigil' is a symbol of a supernatural being). It was originally the influential 1800s French occultist Eliphas Levi who associated the pentagram with the goat-headed baphomet, by drawing a pentagram on the baphomet's forehead. Anton LaVey, who created the Church of Satan in 1966, took the idea from Levi.
The pentagram in literature
In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a 14th century romance story, the pentagram is mentioned as a symbol for Gawain's good character and truth.
More recently, the meaning of the pentagram was discussed in The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. According to the book, the pentagram actually belonged to the ancient religion of Pagan Sun Worship, and was tied to the female planet Venus: every 8 years Venus traces a perfect pentagram across the sky. The book says that the pentagram was a symbol for the sacred female, but was later taken by Christianity and said to mean the devil in order to destroy beliefs that females were sacred.
Other uses
A pentacle is on the flag of Morocco, as well as Ethiopia's.
References
Symbols
Religious symbols |
28530 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benzene | Benzene | Benzene, also known as benzol, is an organic chemical compound with the formula C6H6. It is a colorless and flammable liquid with a sweet smell. Benzene molecules are a ring of six carbon atoms that are each bonded to one hydrogen atom. It is an aromatic compound, meaning the ring has alternating double bonds.
Benzene is carcinogenic, which means it can cause cancer. It has many real-world uses. It is used as an additive in gasoline, plastics, synthetic rubber, dyes and it is an industrial solvent, which means it can dissolve many other chemical molecules. Benzene is also a natural part of crude oil and is therefore present in gasoline. Many medicines contain parts made from benzene.
Structure
Benzene has special properties called aromaticity. All six carbon atoms in the ring are on the same flat plane. To account for all the bonds on a six carbon ring, there must be alternating double carbon bonds (Conjugated system):
If benzene had three double bonds, three sides of its ring would be shorter than the other three sides. X-ray diffraction shows that all of six carbon-carbon bonds in benzene are of the same length of 140 picometres (pm). The C–C bond lengths are greater than a double bond (135 pm) but shorter than a single bond (147 pm). This intermediate distance is consistent with electron delocalization: the electrons for C–C bonding are distributed equally between each of the six carbon atoms. The molecule is planar. One representation is that the structure exists as a superposition of so-called resonance structures, rather than either form individually. (In other words, the molecule's double bonds switch quickly between pairs of carbon atoms.) The delocalization of electrons is one explanation for the thermodynamic stability of benzene and related aromatic compounds. It is likely that this stability contributes to the peculiar molecular and chemical properties known as aromaticity. To indicate the delocalized nature of the bonding, benzene is often depicted with a circle inside a hexagonal arrangement of carbon atoms.
As is common in organic chemistry, the carbon atoms in the diagram above have been left unlabeled. Realizing each carbon has 2p electrons, each carbon donates an electron into the delocalized ring above and below the benzene ring. It is the overlap of p-orbitals both above and below the ring that produces the pi clouds.
In 1986, some chemists disputed the delocalized view of benzene in an article published in the journal Nature. They showed that the electrons in benzene are almost certainly localized to particular carbon atoms. They showed the aromatic properties of benzene come from spin coupling rather than electron delocalization. Other scientists wrote articles to support this view in Nature in 1987. But, chemists are slow to switch from the delocalized electrons view.
Derivatives of benzene occur sufficiently often as a component of organic molecules that there is a Unicode symbol in the Miscellaneous Technical block with the code U+232C (⌬) to represent it with three double bonds, and U+23E3 (⏣) for a delocalized version.
References
Hydrocarbons |
28536 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tasmanian%20devil | Tasmanian devil | The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is a meat eating mammal. It is a marsupial, which means it has a small pouch to carry its babies. It is the largest meat eating marsupial in the world. It is nocturnal, which means it sleeps during the day and is awake during the night. Tasmanian devils now live only in Tasmania, an island state of Australia.
The devil is the same size as a small dog with a wide head and a short tail. Male devils can weigh 12 kg and be 30 cm tall. It has black fur and makes a loud and very scary screeching noise. It will hunt other animals and also feed on dead animals. The devil has strong teeth and jaws and will eat all its prey, even bones and fur.
The Tasmanian devil became extinct on the Australian mainland about 3,000 years ago - before European settlement in 1788. They were hunted in Tasmania. In the 1930s the Van Dieman's Land Company offered 25 cents for each male and 35 cents for each female killed. In 1941 they became officially protected.
Disease
In 1996 the devils began to get very sick and then die with large tumours on their faces. Devil facial tumour disease has greatly reduced the number of devils and now threatens their survival. In some areas 85% of devils have been found with the disease. In the places where the tumours were seen first, devil numbers have dropped by 95%. The tumour is spread by biting. Because the devils are all closely related (not enough genetic diversity), the tumour cells are not seen as new; so the devil's immune system does not fight it. In May 2008 the Tasmanian devil was listed as endangered. Programs are being tried by the Tasmanian government to reduce the impact of the disease. About 60 devils without the disease have been captured and are to be kept as a tumour free group for rebreeding. Scientists have been looking at ways to give the devils immunity but so far this has not worked.
New research is showing the devils are having babies earlier, they use to breed at two years, but now are breeding at one year old. Devils used to have babies every year for three years, but they are now dying before they can produce a second litter (family).
Genetics
The devils have a low genetic diversity which is consistent with a 'founder effect'. What this means is: a small number colonised Tasmania from Australia at some stage. So their genetic variety was much less than the parent population. Disease like the present may have happened before, and reduced the population to a small number. These events are called 'population bottlenecks'. A small population which carries less variation is always vulnerable to extinction, because none of the animals may be resistant to the infection.
Its genome was sequenced in 2010 by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. There is some hope for their survival because, since 2005, three females have been found that are partially resistant to the disease.
Images
References
Other websites
The Aussie Devil Ark Conservation Project
Dasyuromorphia
Marsupials of Australia |
28543 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph%20Haydn | Joseph Haydn | Joseph Haydn (also known as Franz Joseph Haydn) was an Austrian composer. He was born on March 31 or April 1, 1732, and died on May 31, 1809. He was one of the most famous composers in the Classical music period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony."
Life
Haydn's father made wheels for a living, and had the skills of a blacksmith, stonemason, and carpenter. He used that skill in his spare time to make musical instruments for his family to play. The Haydn family would give informal weekend concerts. One of Joseph's relatives thought that Joseph had a great singing voice and should go with him to a boarding school where he would start studying to become a priest.
Haydn did not like it very much at the boarding school, but his voice developed to a point where he was selected to be a part of the Boy's Choir of the Vienna Cathedral. He stayed there until his voice changed. Haydn made a living teaching lessons and playing in the streets for handouts until he met Nicolai Porpora, who hired Haydn as an accompanist and general servant.
Eventually Haydn got a job working for Nicholas Esterhazy. He worked for the Esterhazys for over 30 years. He wrote symphonies, string quartets, operas, piano sonatas, and other pieces.
After he was released from his duties with the Esterhazys, Haydn travelled to London. Even at the age of 60 he was still active and wrote some of his most famous symphonies there. While in London, he heard Handel's Messiah, and was inspired to write two oratorios of his own, The Seasons and The Creation. While working on these oratorios in Vienna, Haydn gave lessons to Ludwig van Beethoven. Beethoven had first wanted to study with Mozart, but by the time Beethoven was ready to study in Vienna, Mozart had died.
The house in Vienna where Haydn wrote his oratorios has been turned into a museum called 'Haydnhaus'. There visitors can see the piano by Anton Walter that composer was using for writing music. Haydn was so well-respected in Vienna that he was known as "Papa Haydn" and his influence on music was profound and great.
1732 births
1809 deaths
Austrian composers
Classical era composers |
28550 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scale%20%28music%29 | Scale (music) | In music, a scale is a set of notes in order of their pitch (that is, their frequency). If the scale starts with the note which has the lowest pitch and goes up to the note with the highest pitch, the scale is called ascending. If the scale starts with the note which has the highest pitch and goes down to the note with the lowest pitch, the scale is called descending. Scales are often the same both ascending and descending, but this is not always true. Very often, a scale is defined over an interval (such as an octave). The most common scales use intervals of five, six or seven different notes.
Major and minor scales
Major scales
On a piano, there are white keys and black keys. If we start on the note C and play each white key going up until we come to the next C, we have played the C Major scale. It has eight notes because there are eight notes from each C to the next one: C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C.
The note played by each black key has two names: it can be named by the note after it, or the note before it. For example, the black key after C can be called C♯ (C-sharp). Sharp means higher in pitch. That same note can also be called D♭ (D-flat) because it is the note before D. Flat means lower in pitch.
There are half steps (or semitones) between two keys next to each other on the piano. The key to the right plays a note half a step higher (sharp) and the key to the left plays a note half a step lower (flat). So between the third and the fourth note, and between the seventh and eighth note, there is only half a step. Starting the scale at the next white key (D), two black keys will need to be touched to get the same scale, the first one for the third note, the second for the seventh note: D, E, F♯, G, A, B, C♯, D. The pattern for an ascending major scale is up a whole step, up another whole step and then a half step, then a whole step, a whole step and another whole step, then half a step to complete the octave. This is often shown as: WWHWWWH or TTSTTTS (where T stands for tone and S stands for semitone).
Scales use either just sharps or just flats when choosing between the two names for the same note, when this is possible. In a scale of seven different notes, each letter is used only once. This means that some scales have one or two notes named with a sharp or a flat even though they are played by white keys. In the C♯ Major scale, for example, all the notes have names with a sharp: C♯, D♯, E♯, F♯, G♯, A♯, B♯, C♯. In this scale, E♯ is the name for the note played by the key that plays F and the B♯ is the name for the note played by the key that plays C. The same notes are used in the D♭ Major scale, but they all have different names: D♭, E♭, F, G♭, A♭, B♭, C, D♭.
Sometimes the major scale is sung to the words "do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do" (solfège). In the musical The Sound of Music, Maria teaches the children to sing by teaching them a song called "Doe, a deer, a female deer". Each line starts on the next note of the scale and uses a different English word for each note ("doe", "ray", "me", "far", "sew", "la" and "tea").
Minor scales
There are also minor scales. These work the same way as major scales, but use different patterns of intervals:
natural minor uses half a step between the second and the third note, and between the fifth and the sixth note. Starting at A, and using only white keys gives A minor (natural minor): A, B, C, D, E, F, G, A.
harmonic minor is the same as natural minor, except that there is only half a step between the seventh and eighth note. Taking the example from before, but using the black key between G and A instead of the G (raising it by half a step) gives A, B, C, D, E, F, G♯, A.
melodic minor: The step from F to G♯ is three half steps and difficult to sing. For this reason, F♯ is used instead of F, but only going up the scale. Except for some forms of Jazz music, the natural minor is used going down the scale: A, B, C, D, E, F♯, G♯, A, G, F, E, D, C, B, A.
Different periods use different scales
Traditional western music generally uses seven notes, and repeats the first note (an octave higher or lower) to complete the octave.
During the Middle Ages, and the Renaisssance, the diatonic scale (the white keys of the piano) was used most often. Black keys (called accidentals) were less common. The classical period (1600 to 1900) generally used major and minor scales, as outlined above. Natural minor was used less. From about 1900, there are other scales, for example the chromatic scale (12 half tones).
References
Music theory |
28552 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthology%20%28language%29 | Orthology (language) | For the use in evolutionary biology, see Orthology (biology)
Orthology is the study of the right use of words in language. The word comes from Greek ortho- ("correct") and -logy ("science of"). This science is a place where psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and many other fields of learning come together. The most noted use of Orthology is for the selection of words
for the language of Basic English by the Orthological Institute.
The book, The Meaning of Meaning, by C.K. Ogden and I.A. Richards, is an important book dealing with orthology. The term Orthology comes from the book The Grammar of Science by Karl Pearson.
References
Language |
28560 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/1712 | 1712 |
Events
January 26 – Tuscarora War: More than half of the Native Americans in Colonel John Barnwell's Carolina militia desert during the crossing of the Cape Fear River.
January 29 – Tuscarora War: Colonel John Barnwell's Carolina militia attack the sprawling Tuscarora farming community of Torhunta by focusing on Fort Narhantes. Many Tuscarora captives are enslaved. |
28568 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toei%20Company | Toei Company | Toei Company, Ltd. (東映株式会社 Tōei Kabushiki-gaisha (pronounced toe ay) is a Japanese film, television production, and distribution corporation. Based in Tokyo, Toei owns and operates thirty-four movie theaters across Japan, studios at Tokyo and Kyoto; and is a shareholder in several television companies. It is notable for anime, live action dramas known as tokusatsu, and jidaigeki historical dramas.
History
Tokyo-Yokohama Films (東横映画 Tō-Yoko Eiga, incorporated in 1938, had previously erected its facilities immediately east of the Tōkyū Tōyoko Line, they managed the Tōkyū Shibuya Yokohama studio system prior to V-J Day. From 1945 through the Toei merger, Tokyo-Yokohama Films leased from the Daiei Motion Picture Company a second studio in Kyoto. Through the merger, they gained the combined talents and experience of different actors. On October 1, 1950, the Tokyo Film Distribution Company was incorporated; in 1951 the company purchased Ōizumi Films.
In 1956, Toei established an animation division, Toei Animation at the former Tokyo-Ōizumi animation studio, purchasing the assets of Japan Animated Films (originally founded in 1948)
Toei was a pioneer in the use of transformation in live-action martial-arts dramas, a technique developed for the Kamen Rider, Metal Heroes and Super Sentai series; The genre currently continues with Kamen Rider and Super Sentai.
In April 6, 2020, Toei create their official Youtube Channel and uploading some of the oldest tokusatsu series (from the 50s to 90s).
Other websites
toei.co.jp - Company webpage
Animation studios in Asia |
28569 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naoko%20Takeuchi | Naoko Takeuchi | Naoko Takeuchi (武内直子 Takeuchi Naoko), born March 15, 1967, is a manga artist from Japan. She lives in Tokyo. She wrote the manga Sailor Moon, which was so popular it was made into an anime, musicals, video games and more. Her husband, Yoshihiro Togashi, is the creator of YuYu Hakusho and Hunter × Hunter.
1967 births
Living people
Japanese animators |
28570 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimi%20Ga%20Yo | Kimi Ga Yo | Kimigayo (きみ が よ; Kanji: 君が代) is the national anthem of Japan. The name of the song roughly means 'Imperial Reign' in English. The anthem is based on a poem written by an unknown poet from Japan about one thousand years ago. The music was written more recently (about two hundred years ago) and was then rewritten shortly afterwards because the original tune was unpopular.
Although popular for a long period and sung in situations where people from other countries would usually sing their country's national anthem, Kimi Ga Yo was only considered as Japan's official national anthem in 1999. The law that stated this also defined the Flag of Japan in a similar way.
Kimigayo is one of the shortest known national anthems of any country. It is only 56 seconds long.
Lyrics
References
Other websites
Listen to Kimi ga yo (.ra format)
Japanese culture
National anthems |
28592 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/April%20Fools%27%20Day | April Fools' Day | April Fools' Day (also known as April Fool's Day) is celebrated in many countries on April 1 every year. On this day, practical jokes (or April Fools) are played on friends and family. The jokes are done to embarrass them. In some countries, April Fools only last until noon, and if someone plays a joke after, they are an April Fool.
Origins
People have set aside a special day for playing jokes for centuries. The ancient Romans had a holiday called Hilaria.
In the Middle Ages, New Year's Day was celebrated on March 25 in most European towns. In some areas of France, New Year's was a week-long holiday ending on April 1. Some people think that April Fools' started because those who celebrated on January 1 made fun of those who celebrated on other dates.
Long standing customs
United Kingdom
In the U.K., a person playing a joke would yell "April Fool!" at the recipient. According to tradition, the joking was supposed to stop at midday.
Nordic countries
In the Nordic countries, many news outlets would publish or broadcast a fake news story on April 1.
France
In France, an April fools joke is called a "Poisson d'Avril'. One tradition there is to try and stick a paper fish on one's friends back, and shout "Poisson d'Avril!' when it is discovered.
Media outlets
Sometimes a large media corporation would broadcast or publish a fake news story on April 1. For example, in 1957 the BBC broadcast a story about spaghetti trees. According to the story, people in Switzerland grew spaghetti on trees. Later, many people called the BBC asking how they could get a spaghetti tree.
Notes
Other websites
Observances |
28602 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baroque%20music | Baroque music | Baroque music is a set of styles of European classical music which were in use between about 1600 and 1750 during the Baroque period.
The word "Baroque" is used in other art forms besides music: we talk about Baroque architecture, painting, sculpture, dance and literature. The Baroque period comes between the Renaissance and the period of Classicism.
History
Musicians think of the Baroque period as starting around 1600. The famous Renaissance composers Palestrina and Lassus had died a few years earlier. Claudio Monteverdi wrote some music in Renaissance style, and other music in Baroque style. Opera was being invented. It was a time of musical change.
The change from writing music in the Baroque style to the Classical style was much more gradual. 1750 is the year that Bach died, so it is an easy date to choose for the end of the Baroque period.
The Baroque was a time when people liked large spaces and a lot of ornamentation. This can be seen in the architecture of famous buildings such as St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, or St. Paul’s Cathedral, London. They were built at this time. In Venice there were churches with galleries on either side of the church. Composers liked to write music for two groups of musicians placed in opposite galleries. Giovanni Gabrieli wrote a lot of music like this.
Styles and instruments
The idea of two contrasting groups was used a lot in Baroque music. Composers wrote concertos. These were pieces for orchestra and a solo instrument. Sometimes a concerto contrasted a group of soloists with the rest of the orchestra. These are called by the Italian name "Concerti Grossi. Bach's Brandenburg Concertos are good examples.
Organs, and some harpsichords, had at least two manuals (keyboards). The player could change from one manual to the other, contrasting two different sounds.
Baroque music was often a melody with a bass line at the bottom. This could be, for example, a singer and a cello. There was also a harpsichord or organ that played the bass line as well, and made up chords in between. Often the composer did not bother to write out all the chords (harmonies) but just showed some of the chords by figures, leaving it to the performer to decide exactly which notes to play. This is called “figured bass” or “basso continuo”. The soloist, who played or sang the melody on top, often put in lots of ornamental notes. Again: the composer did not write this all down but left it to the performer to improvise something nice around the notes he had written.
Because composers were now writing opera it was important for the audience to hear the words clearly. In the Renaissance the groups of a choir were often singing several different words using different melodies all at once. This was called “polyphony”. Polyphony was widely used in instrumental music, but was not used in opera, which needed to tell a story without being confusing.
When a soloist in an opera sings a song (an aria) the aria is in a particular mood. They called this “affection”. There were several “affections” or moods: there were arias about revenge, jealousy, anger, love, despair, peaceful happiness etc. Each movement in a concerto also had one particular mood. Music from later periods is different. For example: Haydn in the Classical Period would often change its mood during a piece.
Suite
The Baroque suite is a collection of dance movements written in the style of Baroque music. There is an accepted standard order in which the dances are performed. The five primary dances are the Overture, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande and Gigue. Many times a composer would add a Prelude before all the dances. Sometimes a composer would add another piece in between the Sarabande and the Gigue.
There are many exceptions to the standard order, but the order of Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Other, and Gigue is most common. This can be easily remembered by the acronym PACSOG.
Composers
Here are a few of the most important composers of the Baroque period:
Italy
Giovanni Gabrieli (about 1553/6-1612)
Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713)
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Germany
Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
England
Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) (German born)
France
François Couperin (1668-1733)
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
Bibliography
Music in the Baroque Era, Manfred Bukofzer; J.M.Dent 1948
Periods in music history |
28660 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canyon | Canyon | A canyon (or gorge) is a big crack in the ground, or a very deep valley. Most canyons are made by rivers. A few are made by earthquakes. They can be big, like the Grand Canyon, or small.
Canyons can be formed by erosion by running water which will take rocks and soil away.
References |
28669 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pattern%20language | Pattern language | Pattern language is used to mean a system of patterns that have a certain meaning other than just the pattern.
Method
The pattern can be a pattern which has a hidden meaning shown through any sense like sight, sound, touch, taste and smell.
Sight
The most obvious form of sight-based pattern language comes in the form of writing. Nearly every language has a unique written form, which grammatically follows the spoken form.
Language
Computer science |
28676 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/National%20Maritime%20Day | National Maritime Day | In the United States, National Maritime Day is held every May 22 to honor people who have served in the United States Merchant Marine service.
The first National Maritime Day was May 22, 1933, based on a joint resolution passed by the United States Congress on May 20, 1933. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first President to issue a proclamation about the day.
The biggest National Maritime Day celebration was in 1946, the first National Maritime Day after the Allied Powers won World War II. That year, governors of many U.S. states also officially named the day National Maritime Day or Maritime Day for their state. The first National Maritime Day after the end of the Korean War, in 1954, was also more widely celebrated than most.
In the 2006 annual proclamation by president George W. Bush, he made special mention of the Merchant Marine service's hurricane aid work following Hurricane Katrina and the other hurricanes of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season.
References
Joint Resolution of Congress text
List of 1946 state and city proclamations
Text of Bush proclamation
holidays |
28699 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear%20fusion | Nuclear fusion | Nuclear fusion is the process of making a single heavy nucleus (part of an atom) from two lighter nuclei. This process is called a nuclear reaction. It releases a large amount of energy.
The nucleus made by fusion is heavier than either of the starting nuclei. However, it is not as heavy as the combination of the original mass of the starting nuclei (atoms). This lost mass is changed into lots of energy. This is shown in Einstein's famous E=mc2 equation.
Fusion happens in the middle of stars, like the Sun. Hydrogen atoms are fused together to make helium. This releases lots of energy. This energy powers the heat and light of the star.
Not all elements can be joined. Heavier elements are less easily joined than lighter ones. Iron (a metal) cannot fuse with other atoms. This is what causes stars to die. Stars join all of their atoms together to make heavier atoms of different types, until they start to make iron. The iron nucleus cannot fuse with other nuclei. The reactions stop. The star eventually will cool down and die.
On Earth it is very difficult to start nuclear fusion reactions that release more energy than is needed to start the reaction. The reason is that fusion reactions only happen at high temperature and pressure, like in the Sun, because both nuclei have a positive charge, and positive repels positive. The only way to stop the repulsion is to make the nuclei hit each other at very high speeds. They only do that at high pressure and temperature. The only successful approach so far has been in nuclear weapons. The hydrogen bomb uses an atomic (fission) bomb to start fusion reactions. Scientists and engineers have been trying for decades to find a safe and working way of controlling and containing fusion reactions to generate electricity. They still have many challenges to overcome before fusion power can be used as a clean source of energy.
Notes
Astrophysics
Nuclear energy |
28701 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concertmaster | Concertmaster | The Concertmaster (American English) or leader (British English) is the most important violinist in an orchestra. He or she will sit in the front seat, by the conductor's left. The word concertmaster comes from the German Konzertmeister.
The leader will be the highest paid member of the orchestra. He has to decide how the violins will play the music and write in the bowing. He will decide where each member of the violins should sit. He will probably also interview them and offer them the job in the orchestra. He will talk to the conductor about anything the orchestra are not happy about (he may have to remind the conductor when it is time to stop the rehearsal!). If part of the music is marked "solo" then he will play it as a solo while the other violins stop playing.
In the United States it is usual for the concertmaster to be on the platform before the concert and to tell the orchestra to tune their instruments, playing on his A string to give them the correct pitch. In European orchestras it is usually the oboe that gives an A for tuning. In Britain the leader usually comes on stage after the orchestra have tuned, and gets an applause.
Some famous orchestral leaders
of the past:
Arnold Rosé (Vienna Philharmonic)
of today:
Gordan Nikolitch (London Symphony Orchestra)
Glenn Dicterow (New York Philharmonic Orchestra)
Peter Manning ( Royal Opera House Orchestra Covent Garden )
Musicians |
28716 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual%20assured%20destruction | Mutual assured destruction | Mutual assured destruction (MAD) is a military strategy in which two opposing military forces are powerful enough to completely destroy each other. It should help to avoid a nuclear war. This usually happens when both forces have nuclear weapons. If a state attacks another with nuclear weapons, the state attacked will potentially be able to attack back. The attacker must think that he will be destroyed with his victim if he attacks. The theory is that no state would start an attack if attacking its enemy means its own destruction.
The concept was discussed by Herman Kahn. It was part of the background to the film Dr. Strangelove.
References
Military
Nuclear weapons |
28719 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stairway%20to%20Heaven | Stairway to Heaven | Stairway to Heaven was a 1971 song by Led Zeppelin. It was on the album Led Zeppelin IV.
Hidden Satanic message
Some listeners claim that by reversing the song, a hidden Satanic message is revealed. The message is:
Oh, here's to my sweet Satan
The one whose little path would make me sad whose power is Satan
He'll give, he'll give you 666
There was a little toolshed where he made us suffer, sad Satan
Other websites
Stairway to Heaven songfacts, tabs, videos and audio , at the Stairway to Heaven website.
1971 songs
Led Zeppelin |
28723 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thin%20Lizzy | Thin Lizzy | Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band that started in Dublin in 1969. Up to 1984 the band were led by bassist, songwriter and singer Phil Lynott (1949-1986). The band's famous song "The Boys Are Back in Town" is still played a lot on classic rock radio stations. Since Lynott's death, other former members have carried on using the band name.
Phil Lynott wrote most of the band's songs. The band's music showed many musical styles including: country music, psychedelic rock, Celtic music and folk music which Lynott mixed with hard rock and heavy metal styles.
Thin Lizzy were listed at number 51 on VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.
Notes
20th-century establishments in the Republic of Ireland
1960s music groups
1970s music groups
1980s Irish music groups
1990s Irish music groups
2000s Irish music groups
2010s Irish music groups
Hard rock bands
Irish rock bands
Musical groups established in 1969
Musical groups from Dublin |
28759 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aziz%20al-Abub | Aziz al-Abub | Aziz al-Abub (a.k.a. Ibrahim al-Nadhir or al-Nahdhir) was a Lebanese Hezbollah psychiatrist and mind control expert.
Aziz was a disciple of Ewen Cameron and a graduate of the Soviet Union's Patrice Lumumba Institute that specialized in mind control techniques.
Aziz al-Abub used mind-control, drugs and physical torture in the infamous 444-day (1984-1985) torture and mental derangement of American William Buckley in Beirut.
Year of birth missing
Lebanese Muslims
Lebanese nationalists
Lebanese terrorists
Muslim terrorists
Psychiatrists |
28760 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobbit | Hobbit | Hobbits are a fictional race in the Middle-earth world invented by J. R. R. Tolkien, also often called halflings.
They appeared in the books The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Several important main characters in those books are hobbits, such as Bilbo Baggins and Frodo Baggins.
Hobbits (or similar beings) have become very popular and are now often used in fantasy fiction and (video) games.
Appearance
Hobbits are like small humans between two and four foot tall (between 60 and 120 centimeters). They have hair/fur on the top side of their feet, leathery foot-soles, and slightly pointed ears. They tend to be stout and often have brown and curly hair. Male hobbits do not have beards. Hobbits live longer compared to humans, and many hobbits reach the age of 100.
Culture
Hobbits are a peaceful people and live a simple, pre-industrial life in the land which they call The Shire, and also in Bree-land.
A typical hobbit-house has a long hallway with rooms on both sides, and round doors and windows. Originally these were underground in hills, then the house was called a smial; but this architecture(style of building) is also used for 'normal' houses above ground.
Related pages
The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings
Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Fictional races |
28762 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilbo%20Baggins | Bilbo Baggins | Bilbo Baggins is a Hobbit from The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. He is a major protagonist of The Hobbit and a minor protagonist of The Lord of the Rings.
Fictional biography
Bilbo Baggins was greeted by Gandalf the Grey and a group of 13 Dwarves known as the Company of Thorin Oakenshield. He was offered to help them to take back Erebor from the dragon Smaug. At the Misty Mountain, he landed at a cave and met Gollum. He took Gollum's One Ring and went back to his Company. Decades after returning from Erebor, he celebrated his 111th birthday as well as his nephew Frodo's birthday. He wanted to keep the One Ring.
Peter Jackson adaptations (2001-2003, 2012-2014)
In Peter Jackson's movie adaptations of both books, Bilbo was played by Martin Freeman when he was younger and Ian Holm when he was older.
Fictional characters introduced in 1937
Characters in The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings characters |
28766 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle-earth | Middle-earth | Middle-earth is a fictional fantasy world invented by J. R. R. Tolkien. Several of his books take place there, such as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It is supposed to be a long gone mythological time of our earth.
Although Middle-earth is only one continent in Tolkien's world, it is often used for the whole fictional world and all stories Tolkien invented for it. Tolkien created and worked on Middle-earth through most of his life, and it is this creation for which he is most famous.
Middle-earth has its own geography, several different species and peoples (elves, dwarves, humans, hobbits), their languages, and a history that spans thousands of years. The stories of Middle-earth are also a kind of 'artificial myth'.
"Middle-earth" is called Endor (or Endóre) and Ennor in the fictional Elvish languages Quenya and Sindarin.
Peoples
The oldest people of Middle-earth are the immortal Elves. Second were the Dwarves. After them came mortal Men. In the Third Age, there appeared another people, the Hobbits. There are also the tree-like Ents.
Chronology
The history of the Middle-earth world is thousands of years long. Sometimes, when big historical events happen, a new Age is begun, which starts counting again with the year 1.
First Age: The First Age can be divided into the "First Age of the Trees" and the "First Age of the Sun". Saying a year and "First Age" often means a year in the "First Age of the Sun".
First Age of the Trees: Begins at the creation of the Two Trees. During it are the Awakening of the Elves and the Dwarves. It ends with the destruction of the Two Trees.
First Age of the Sun (590 years): Begins with the creation of the Sun and Moon, and ends with the War of Wrath, the final imprisonment of Morgoth and the destruction of Beleriand.
Second Age (S.A., 3441 years): Begins after the end of the War of Wrath. During it is the destruction of Númenor (T.A. 3319). Ends with the defeat of Sauron in the War of the Last Alliance.
Third Age (T.A., 3021 years): Begins after the Last Alliance defeated Sauron. During it are the events of The Hobbit (T.A. 2941) and the War of the Ring (T.A. 3018-3019). Ends with the destruction of the One Ring and the defeat of Sauron.
Fourth Age: Follows the defeat of Sauron and the One Ring, but starts officially when the Bearers of the Rings left for the West. During this Age the Elves become less and leave, while the humans become the dominant people of Middle-earth.
Related pages
Middle-earth characters
Middle-earth languages
Middle-earth locations
References |
28775 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold%20Ros%C3%A9 | Arnold Rosé | Arnold Josef Rosé (October 24, 1863 – August 25, 1946) was a famous violinist. He was the leader (concertmaster) of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra for 50 years.
Arnold Rosé was born in Iaşi (Jassy) in what is now Romania. His family was Jewish. Their name at that time was Rosenblum. He had three brothers. All four boys were musical and so his parents decided to move to Vienna which was a big city in Austria where there was lots of music. Arnold’s father was a carriage builder. In those days people often travelled by horse and cart. His father made good quality carriages and he made plenty of money from his business.
When Arnold was seven he started music lessons. When he was ten he was good enough to study the violin at the Vienna Conservatorium which was a special school for musical pupils.
In 1881 he played a violin solo with a famous orchestra and famous conductor: the Vienna Philharmonic under Hans Richter. The piece he played was the Violin Concerto by Otto Goldmark. Soon he was offered the job of orchestral leader. This was a very important position for such a young man. He stayed in that job for 50 years!
Rosé did other things as well as playing with the orchestra. He gave violin lessons to talented pupils. He like to play string quartets and he got together with three other players to make up the Rosé Quartet. They were very good and for more than half a century people said they were the best string quartet in Europe. Arnold’s brother Eduard was the cellist in the quartet. They played works by lots of composers, especially Haydn, Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. Rosé knew the composer Johannes Brahms and they played some of Brahms’s compositions when they had only just been written, e.g. the clarinet quintet (for clarinet and string quartet). The Rosé Quartet also knew the composer Schoenberg and helped him to get well known by playing his music.
Another composer Rosé knew very well was Gustav Mahler. Mahler had two sisters. Arnold Rosé married one of them, and his brother Eduard married the other.
Arnold was kept very busy at his job as leader of the orchestra. The orchestra played in the concert hall as well as for the opera. At one special concert lots of flowers and plants had been brought in to the concert hall. The orchestra were busy playing when Arnold noticed people were looking at his shoes. He thought maybe he had an odd pair of shoes on. When he looked down at his feet he saw a mouse sitting there.
Arnold and his wife Justine had a son and a daughter who both became musicians. They had plenty of money to live quite comfortably. He was given the title of Royal and Imperial Court Musician, and he had a special court carriage to take him to the opera. He also had a carriage of his own with a footman in livery (uniform) to drive him about.
However, things changed in 1938. The Nazis took over Austria and made life very difficult for Jewish people. They were in great danger. In the autumn his wife died and Arnold had to save his life by going to England. He stayed there for most of his remaining years. He died in London.
References
The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians ed Stanley Sadie;1980; ISBA 1-56159-174-2
Alma Rosé: “Vienna to Auschwitz” by Richard Newman with Karen Kirtley; Amadeus Press 2000;
1863 births
1946 deaths
Austrian Jews
Austrian violinists
Concertmasters
Jewish musicians
Refugees from Nazism
Romanian Jews
Romanian musical entertainers |
28781 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/10s | 10s |
Important people
Caesar Augustus, Roman Emperor (27 BC – 14).
Tiberius, Roman Emperor (14–37).
Germanicus, Roman General |
28782 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/10s%20BC | 10s BC |
Significant people
Caesar Augustus, Roman Emperor (27 BC – 14). |
28783 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/40s | 40s |
Events
The Roman emperor Caligula assassinated (41), succeeded by his uncle Claudius
Roman conquest of Britain begins under Aulus Plautius, 43 |
28784 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac%20Silverdome | Pontiac Silverdome | The Pontiac Silverdome is a domed stadium in the town of Pontiac, Michigan, near Detroit. It opened in 1975 and closed in 2007. The largest crowds to come to the stadium were for WrestleMania III on March 29, 1987, where the main event was a match between Hulk Hogan and André the Giant. The crowd attendance for that night reached 93,173, which is also the record for indoor attendance. The Detroit Lions NFL team played at the stadium from 1975 until 2001.
References
Sports in Detroit, Michigan
Sports buildings in the United States
WrestleMania host
Buildings and structures in Michigan
1975 establishments in the United States
20th-century establishments in Michigan
2007 disestablishments in the United States
Disestablishments in Michigan |
28785 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%20of%20decades | List of decades | Time
Lists |
28786 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/80s | 80s |
Important people
Titus Flavius Vespasianus, Roman Emperor (79–81).
Titus Flavius Domitianus, Roman Emperor (81–96) |
28797 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonian%20language | Estonian language | The Estonian language () is a Uralic language. It is mainly spoken in Estonia. The Estonian language is similar to Finnish and is one of the few national languages of Europe not to be an Indo-European language.
The Estonian alphabet uses the Latin alphabet. It has many vowels, including Ö, Ä, Õ and Ü.
It has been influenced by and adopted many words from German and Swedish. The Estonian language also has different dialects.
Sample words
Finnic languages
Languages of Europe |
28804 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromosome | Chromosome | The chromosomes of a cell are in the cell nucleus. They carry the genetic information. Chromosomes are made up of DNA and protein combined as chromatin. Each chromosome contains many genes. Chromosomes come in pairs: one set from the mother; the other set from the father. Cytologists label chromosomes with numbers.
Chromosomes are present in every cell nucleus with very few and special exceptions. This means they are found in all eukaryotes, since only eukaryotes have cell nuclei. When eukaryote cells divide, the chromosomes also divide.
When a somatic (body) cell (such as a muscle cell) divides, the process is called mitosis. Before mitosis, the cell copies all the chromosomes and then it can divide. When they duplicate, chromosomes look like the letter "X". When they are doubled, the two halves are called chromatids (see diagram). The chromatids are joined at the centromere.
There are 46 chromosomes in a human, 23 pairs. Everyone has a set of chromosomes from their father and a matching set from their mother. They include a pair of sex chromosomes. The mother's eggs always contain an X chromosome, while the father's sperm contains either a Y chromosome or an X chromosome. That determines the sex of the child. To produce sex cells (gametes), the stem cells go through a different division process called meiosis. This reduces the 23 pairs (diploid) to 23 singles (haploid). These, when combined by fertilisation, produce the new set of 23 pairs.
Different animals have different numbers of chromosomes. If a person does not have the usual number of chromosomes, they may die or have one or more peculiarities. For example, they might get a genetic disorder like Down syndrome (extra chromosome 21) and Klinefelter syndrome (a male with two X chromosomes). Some genetic disorders are more common than others.
Polytene chromosomes
Polytene chromosomes are over-sized chromosomes which have developed from standard chromosomes. Specialized cells undergo repeated rounds of DNA replication without cell division (endomitosis). Polytene chromosomes form when multiple rounds of replication produce many sister chromatids that are stuck together in parallel.
Polytene chromosomes are found in Drosophila species and in nonbiting midges. They also occur in arthropods of the class Collembola, Ciliate protozoa, early stages of mammalian embryos, and suspensor cells in plants.
Polytene cells have a metabolic function. Multiple copies of genes allows a high level of gene expression. In Drosophila, for example, the chromosomes of the larval salivary glands undergo many rounds of endoreduplication. This produces large amounts of glue-like mucous (“glue”) before pupation.
Chromosome puffs (seen in diagram) are diffused uncoiled regions of the polytene chromosome. They are sites of active transcription.
Related pages
Karyotype
Cell division
Homologous chromosome
Mutation#Chromosome mutations
Genetics#Between Mendel and modern genetics
References |
28806 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni%20Gabrieli | Giovanni Gabrieli | Giovanni Gabrieli (probably born Venice (date unknown), about 1553 - 57; died 21 August 1612, in Venice) was an Italian organist and composer.
He was very famous in his day and composed a great deal of church music; motets and madrigals. He lived at the end of the Renaissance period and beginning of the Baroque.
About 1575, Giovanni began working for Orlando di Lasso at the Bavarian court, as his uncle Andres Gabrieli had before him. Little is known of his time in Munich, and he left in 1579 after the death of his patron, Duke Albrecht. There is no record of Gabrieli's activities until 1584 when he'd returned to Venice. That year he replaced organist Claudio Merulo at Basilica di San Marco, church of Venice's patron saint. Due to Merulo's resignation, a contest was eventually held January 1, 1585 to fill his post, which Gabrieli won, having already occupied the position anyway. Giovanni and his uncle, who had raised him and taught him music, worked together only a short time at the church before Andres died in August 1585. Giovanni held his post until he died in 1612.
Also in 1585 Giovanni had been appointed as organist of Scuola Grande di San Rocco, where he composed ceremonial music.
During all this, he was also a music teacher. Heinrich Schutz was one of his students.
Giovanni is well known for being one of the first composers who specified volume markings and instrumentation in music.
Other websites
http://www.goldbergweb.com/en/history/composers/10946.php
http://www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary/appendix/composers/G/GiovanniGabrieli.html
1557 births
1612 deaths
Italian composers
Baroque composers
Organists |
28807 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcangelo%20Corelli | Arcangelo Corelli | Arcangelo Corelli (b.Fusignano, Imola, 17 Feb.1653; d.Rome, 8 Jan.1713) was an Italian violinist and composer. He composed some of the most important Italian music of the Baroque period. He was also very famous as a player. Other violinists learned from his style of playing and developed the art of playing the violin. His works include sonatas and concerti grossi. Perhaps his most famous is the La Folia sonata for Violin.
Italian composers
Baroque composers
Violinists
1653 births
1713 deaths |
28808 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry%20Purcell | Henry Purcell | Henry Purcell was an English composer. He was born in 1659 in Westminster, London; he died 21 November 21 1695, Westminster). Many musicians think he is the greatest English composer of all times. Although he only lived until he was 36, he wrote a large amount of music. His compositions include church music, instrumental music, music for the theatre, even popular drinking songs. He wrote the first English opera. He lived in the time called the Baroque period. He liked Italian and French music, and combined those styles to make something that was typically English.
His life
Early years
We do not know very much about Purcell’s childhood. His mother’s name was Elizabeth. In 1664, Henry Purcell senior died and the widow took her children to live with her brother in law, Thomas Purcell, who was very kind to them. Thomas Purcell was a gentleman of the Chapel Royal which meant that he sang in the king’s choir. Soon Henry was singing in the Chapel Royal. This was the best musical training a boy could have in England. His teachers were Captain Henry Cooke, and then Pelham Humfrey. Henry sang in the choir until his voice broke in 1673. He was then given the job of looking after the king’s musical instruments.
Purcell may have been composing already when he was nine. We know that he wrote an ode for the King's birthday in 1670. When Humfrey died Purcell studied with the famous composer John Blow. He went to Westminster School. In 1676 he was made organist at Westminster Abbey. He started writing music for the theatre. He also wrote church music, including an anthem for a singer called John Gostling who had a very good, deep bass voice. Purcell wrote several anthems for him during his life. One is called "They that go down to the sea in ships". It goes down to a low D.
Later career and death
In 1680, Blow, who had been made organist of Westminster Abbey in 1669, resigned so that the 22-years-old Purcell could have his job. Purcell then spent the next six years just writing sacred (religious) music. Later he went back to writing music for the theatre, including the first English opera Dido and Aeneas.
In 1682 Purcell became organist of the Chapel Royal. He did this job as well as being organist at Westminster Abbey. His first printed composition, Twelve Sonatas, was published in 1683. Music printing was expensive in those days, so it was unusual to have something printed. He continued to write music including odes to the king and royal family. In 1685, he wrote two of his finest anthems, "I was glad" and "My heart is inditing", for the coronation of King James II.
In 1687 he wrote more theatre music. Sometimes this music was for masques (a kind of ballet with some singing as well), sometimes it was music for tragedies, e.g. plays by Dryden. In 1691, he wrote King Arthur, also written by Dryden. In 1692, he composed songs and music for The Fairy-Queen (an adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream). Purcell’s music for this was lost for many years, and was rediscovered and published in 1901. In these works the characters in the plays do not sing, they speak their lines.
Purcell's Te Deum and Jubilate was written for Saint Cecilia's Day, 1693, the first English Te Deum ever composed with orchestral accompaniment. He composed an anthem and two elegies for Queen Mary II's funeral.
Death
He was very famous when he died in 1695, possibly from tuberculosis. His wife and two of his six children survived him.
Purcell is buried next to the organ in Westminster Abbey. His epitaph reads, "Here lyes Henry Purcell Esq., who left this life and is gone to that blessed place where only his harmony can be exceeded."
His music
Purcell wrote a lot of music for the theatre. He was born one year before the time known in England as the “Restoration”. Before the Restoration Oliver Cromwell had been ruling England for nearly 20 years. Most music had been banned. People were therefore very glad to be able to make music again, and they wanted lots of songs and instrumental music in their plays. Opera, however, was not wanted. In Europe opera was very popular in countries such as Italy, Germany and France, but it did not become popular in England until Handel came to England in 1709 and introduced Italian opera.
Dido and Aeneas is an exception because it is a real opera: everything is sung, and the words are in English. It was written for a performance at a girls’ school. It is quite short, lasting just one hour. It contains the famous lament When I am laid in earth sung by Dido.
Purcell wrote a very large amount of music for the church. This includes anthems and service settings. Although he was an organist he wrote very little for organ. He wrote chamber music, including some very beautiful fantasias for viols.
Influence
Although Purcell was recognized as a great composer at the time he did not have much influence on other composers after his death. He was the last in a line of great English musicians in the 16th and 17th centuries. After his death English music was not as important as it had been. In the 18th century the music heard in England was largely imported from the continent, e.g. Italian opera.
Much later, in the 20th century, English composers were often inspired by Purcell’s music. Benjamin Britten wrote a piece called The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra which is based on a tune from Purcell's Abdelazar. The aria "I know a bank" from Britten's opera A Midsummer Night's Dream is inspired by Purcell's aria "Sweeter than Roses". Sir Michael Tippett loved Purcell’s harmonies and rhythms and they influenced him in his compositions.
English composers
Baroque composers
1659 births
1695 deaths
People buried in Westminster Abbey
Gentlemen of the Chapel Royal |
28810 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fran%C3%A7ois%20Couperin | François Couperin | François Couperin (born in Paris on 10 November 1668; died in Paris, on 12 September 1733) was a French composer who lived in the Baroque period. Many of his relatives were composers. He is often called François Couperin le Grand (The Great) because he was the most famous of the Couperin family. He is best known today for his harpsichord music. He wrote several pieces which he called Ordres meaning the same as the word suite i.e. a collection of dance movements. Sometimes these movements have strange titles and we cannot always be sure what they mean. Some of them may have been nicknames of people he knew. He also wrote important organ music. He never had a family of his own before he died.
1668 births
1733 deaths
French composers
Baroque composers |
28811 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christoph%20Willibald%20von%20Gluck | Christoph Willibald von Gluck | Christoph Willibald Ritter von Gluck (b.Erasbach nr. Berching, July 2, 1714; d.Vienna, November 15, 1787) was a German composer. He is famous for his operas which were written in a new and exciting way. He was not interested in writing operas which were just a series of songs for singers to show off. He wanted to make his operas into good pieces of drama. His operas had a big influence on later composers like Mozart, Weber and Wagner. He wrote Italian operas and French operas. Orfeo ed Euridice includes song “Che farò senza Euridice” which is one of the best-known opera songs ever written.
Gluck,Christoph W.
Gluck,Christoph W.
1714 births
1787 deaths |
28812 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan%20Ladislav%20Dussek | Jan Ladislav Dussek | Jan Ladislav Dussek (b. Ĉáslav, Bohemia, 12 Feb.1760; d.Saint-Germain-en-Laye, 20 March 1812) was a Bohemian composer of the Classical period. He travelled a lot, living in Holland, Lithuania, Italy, France and England. He lived nearly twelve years in London where he was a fashionable teacher and famous composer. He is best remembered now for his piano music.
1760 births
1812 deaths
Dussek, Jan Ladislav |
28816 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes%20Brahms | Johannes Brahms | Johannes Brahms (7 May 1833 - 3 April 1897) was a famous German composer. He started his career as a pianist. He was always very self-critical and destroyed any composition he thought was not really good. He thought that people were expecting him to be the “next Beethoven”, and spent many years on his first symphony before he allowed it to be performed. In the end, he wrote four symphonies altogether, as well as four concertos and a number of choral works, including a requiem. He also wrote chamber music, piano music, and German art songs, or Lieder. One of his best known songs is Wiegenlied ("cradle song"), often called "Brahms' Lullaby," which is often heard in music boxes.
His life
Early years
Brahms was born in Germany. His father was a double bass player in the Hamburg city orchestra. He probably gave the young boy his first music lessons. He soon was learning the piano with a teacher named Otto Cossel. When Brahms played in a public concert in 1843 an American agent asked him to tour America, but his teacher realized he was too young. He said that Johannes should study with Eduard Marxsen, a well-known teacher in Hamburg. By 1848 he was playing piano recitals. He also started to compose, and he sent some of his compositions to Robert Schumann to ask for his advice. Schumann sent the parcel back unopened.
At this time there were many Hungarian musicians in Hamburg. Brahms liked their folk music with its unusual rhythms, little triplet figures and sense of rubato. It was to influence his own style of composition. One of the Hungarians was called Remenyi. He played the violin and Brahms often accompanied him at concerts. They went on tour together and met famous people such as the composer Franz Liszt and the violinist Joseph Joachim who became a close friend of Brahms for many years. Joachim told Brahms to go and see Schumann and his wife Clara in Düsseldorf. Schumann liked Brahms and could see that he was going to be a great composer, so he wrote an article in his music journal about him. The article had the title: Neue Bahnen (New Paths). Schumann turned out to be correct: Brahms did become a famous composer and found “new paths” (new ways of composing).
Brahms remained a very close friend of Schumann. When Schumann had a nervous breakdown, Brahms went all the way to Düsseldorf to see him. Brahms soon fell in love with Clara who was 14 years older than himself. He continued to be in love with her after Robert Schumann’s death, and they had a close relationship, though Brahms became interested in other women and was briefly engaged. However, he never married.
Early career in Hamburg
In 1859, Brahms settled in Hamburg. He founded a women’s choir and wrote and arranged a lot of music for them. His First Piano Concerto was a great success in Hanover and Hamburg, but not in Leipzig, where a lot of people preferred the wildly Romantic music of Liszt which was quite different from Brahms’s style based on the Classical music style. Brahms decided to go to Vienna. He was to stay there for the rest of his life.
First years in Vienna
In Vienna he soon made many friends who liked his music. For a short time he was director of a choir called the Vienna Singakademie, who sang some of his compositions. He met Wagner. Wagner was afraid that Brahms would start to write operas which would be more famous than his own. So Wagner wrote an article saying that Brahms was a very bad conductor. Wagner had made himself an enemy of Brahms, who never did write any operas anyway.
In 1870, Brahms became director of a concert series called Vienna Gesellschaftskonzerte. He became more and more famous as a composer, but he was never very good at conducting, and in 1875 a conductor called Hans Richter took over conducting the concerts. During these years he finished one of his greatest works: Ein deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem), as well as one of his most popular works: the Variations on the St Anthony chorale (sometimes wrongly known as Variations on a Theme by Haydn).
Years of fame
At last, in 1876, he allowed his First Symphony to be performed. It was not very successful at first, but in Vienna the audience liked it. He started to compose a lot of his greatest works and received many honours from universities. In the winter he gave concerts and in the summer he spent his time composing. He wrote his last symphony (Fourth Symphony) in 1885 and conducted it, going on tour with the orchestra through Germany and the Netherlands.
From 1889, Brahms spent each summer in Ischl where he had many friends. By 1890 he had decided to stop composing, although he did still write four beautiful works for clarinet after meeting the clarinettist Richard Mühlfeld. In 1896 he wrote Four Serious Songs which were probably inspired by the sad death of Clara Schumann. The next year Brahms died from cancer in Vienna. His father had died of the same illness.
His music
Brahms wrote a great deal of vocal music. The greatest of these works is the German Requiem. There were many works for choirs, and a large collection of songs with piano accompaniment (Lieder). He wrote a lot of piano music which includes sonatas and many shorter pieces such as fantasias, rhapsodies, ballades, intermezzos, capriccios and romances. His chamber music includes string quartets, quintets and sextets and piano trios, quartets and a piano quintet. He wrote four symphonies and four concertos: two for piano, one for the violin and one for violin and cello (the Double Concerto). The German Requiem is his greatest vocal work.
Brahms was also very interested in old music and helped to edit music by François Couperin as well as the music of his friend Robert Schumann. For writing his music Brahms was mostly using German and Viennese pianos. He owned a Conrad Graf piano that he received from Clara Schumann in 1856. Later in life he was mostly playing on a Streicher piano. Brahms kept this piano in his house until his death.
Deaths from cancer
German composers
German pianists
People from Hamburg
Romantic composers
1833 births
1897 deaths |
28817 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick%20Delius | Frederick Delius | Frederick Delius (b.Bradford, 29 Jan.1862; d.Grez-sur-Loing, 10 June 1934) was an English composer. At first his parents did not let him study music, so he went off to Florida to work on an orange plantation. He later returned, studied music, and settled in France for the rest of his life. His music is often quite gentle and atmospheric, with chords that shift about in unusual ways. One of his best known orchestral works is On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring. In his last years he was very ill, but he still wanted to compose, so he dictated the music he heard in his head to a man called Eric Fenby.
1862 births
1934 deaths
20th-century English composers |
28819 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%A9la%20Bart%C3%B3k | Béla Bartók | Béla Bartók (b. Nagyszentimiklós, Hungary, 25 March 1881; d. New York City 26 September 1945) was a famous Hungarian composer and pianist. He was one of the most important and original composers of the 20th century. He became very interested in folk music and travelled a lot in Hungary and other countries, including Romania, listening to the folk songs which the country people sang. He often used the style of these songs in his music. He is famous for his piano music, string quartets and several pieces for orchestra including one called Concerto for Orchestra. Bartók’s harmonies and lively rhythms were sometimes quite new to classical music and some audiences found them difficult to understand at first.
Childhood and early years
Béla Bartók was born in the small town of Nagyszentmiklós. In those days it was in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, but today it is in Romania. When he was very small he showed great musical talent, and his mother taught him to play the piano.
Béla was often ill when he was a child. When he was seven his father died, and his mother took him and his sister to live in Nagyszőlős (today it is called Vinogradiv and is in the Ukraine), and then to Pozsony (today it is Bratislava in Slovakia). There he gave his first public recital when he was eleven. He included some music which he had composed himself.
Early musical career
Soon he was studying the piano with István Thoman who had studied with the famous Franz Liszt. He had lessons in composition from János Koessler at the Royal Academy of Music in Budapest. There he met the composer Zoltán Kodály, who was a great influence on him and who became a lifelong friend.
He soon started to compose longer pieces of music. He liked the music of Richard Strauss and Claude Debussy and these influenced his style of music. He started to be interested in folk music. This can be heard in the first of his six string quartets.
Bartók and Kodály travelled together into the countryside to collect and study old Hungarian folk melodies. People in those days thought that real Magyar (old Hungarian) folk music was Gypsy music. Bartók and Kodály showed that there were other traditions beside these. They found music which used pentatonic scales similar to those used in some parts of Asia. The two composers started to use these folk ideas in their own compositions. Kodály often quoted (copied) actual folk songs in his own music, while Bartók preferred to compose music which sounded like folksong without actually copying it.
Middle years and career
In 1909, Bartók married Márta Ziegler. Their son, also named Béla, was born in 1910.
In 1911, Bartók wrote his only opera, Bluebeard's Castle. There are only two singers in the opera: Bluebeard and his wife Judith. He also wrote a ballet called The Wooden Prince. This started to make him famous abroad. Another ballet, The Miraculous Mandarin, is even more famous today. It shows the influence of Igor Stravinsky, Arnold Schoenberg, as well as Richard Strauss. He wrote a lot of chamber music including a total of 6 string quartets, 2 violin sonatas and a Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion. He wrote some pieces for smaller orchestras: Divertimento for strings and Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta.
Bartók divorced Márta in 1923, and married a piano student, Ditta Pásztory. His second son, Péter, was born in 1924.
World War II and later career
When World War II broke out Bartók criticized the Nazis. After they came into power in Germany, he refused to give concerts there and did not use his German publisher. His political ideas gave him a great deal of trouble in Hungary.
Having first sent his manuscripts out of the country, Bartók felt he had to emigrate to the USA with Ditta Pásztory. They lived in New York City. Their son Péter joined them in 1942 and later joined the United States Navy. Bartók ‘s older son Béla stayed in Hungary.
Bartók did not feel comfortable in the USA, and found it very difficult to compose. He was also not very well known in America, and not many people were interested in his music. He and his wife Ditta gave concerts, and for a while, they were given some money to work on a collection of Yugoslav folk songs. They did not have very much money, although he had some friends who gave them enough to live on. Serge Koussevitsky asked him to write the Concerto for Orchestra . This soon became Bartók's most popular work, and brought him some money. He was also asked by Yehudi Menuhin to write a Sonata for Solo Violin. This seemed to make him interested again in composing, and he went on to write his Piano Concerto No. 3 and began work on his Viola Concerto.
Bartók died by polycythemia in New York City from on 26 September 1945, aged 64. He left the Viola Concerto unfinished at his death; it was later finished by his pupil Tibor Serly.
Music
Bartók’s music has many modern techniques such atonality, bitonality and modern harmonies. He often uses different kinds of scales (not just major and minor ones), and very complicated rhythms. A lot of these are inspired by the folk music he heard. He wrote a lot of piano music, including some easy pieces for people who are learning the piano. This includes a collection of pieces in six volumes called Mikrokosmos which are very popular with young musicians today.
20th-century composers
Cancer deaths in the United States
Deaths from blood disease
Hungarian composers
1881 births
1945 deaths |
28820 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin%20Britten | Benjamin Britten | Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh, OM CH (born Lowestoft, 22 November 1913; died Aldeburgh, 4 December 1976) was one of the greatest English composers of his time. He came from East Anglia (a region in the East of England) and he often thought about the East Anglian landscape and the sea when writing his music. He wrote a lot of music for his long-term partner, the tenor Peter Pears. His operas include Peter Grimes, Billy Budd, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Death in Venice. His War Requiem was performed in Coventry Cathedral in 1962 after it had been rebuilt because the old cathedral had been destroyed in the war. He wrote music for children which sounds like proper, adult music. Britten started the Aldeburgh Festival. He was an excellent pianist and conductor.
Life
Early years
Benjamin Britten started composing music at the age of five although he had no one to help him. When he was ten years old he took part in an amateur music festival in Norwich. A composer called Frank Bridge heard him and was so impressed that he offered to teach him composition. He helped Britten to compose using proper musical techniques. Britten started to get to know music by a lot of important modern composers including Schoenberg and Bartók. In 1930 he went to the Royal College of Music. He had excellent piano teachers but he did not learn much from his composition teacher John Ireland and most of the music he wrote was never performed. Britten was more interested in music from abroad than in English music. In 1934 he heard the opera Wozzeck by Alban Berg. He wanted to go to Austria to study with Berg but he was not allowed to. Meanwhile, some of his first proper compositions started to be performed. He wrote some music for movies that were being made by the General Post Office, including one about a train delivering mail. The music describes the rhythm of the train rushing along.
USA
While working on the movie music he met the writer W. H. Auden. He started to be interested in political ideas. These can be heard in some works he wrote at this time such as Our Hunting Fathers (1936) and Ballad of Heroes (1939). When Auden emigrated to the United States Britten followed him. With him was the tenor Peter Pears who was to become a lifelong friend and partner, and who was to be the inspiration for many songs and operas.
Britten wrote several compositions in the USA including Sinfonia da Requiem (1940) and his First String Quartet (1941). The following year he was reading about the poet George Crabbe who came from Suffolk, the same part of England where Britten had grown up. Britten suddenly became homesick. He realized that he could not work and be himself in a foreign country. So he returned with Pears to England.
Aldeburgh Festival
As soon as he was on the boat sailing back to England he started work on Ceremony of Carols. Back in England, Britten and Pears gave concerts to audiences of all kinds and took part in opera productions of Sadler's Wells Opera Company, which was having a new theatre built. On the 7 June 1945 the new theatre was opened with a performance of Britten’s opera Peter Grimes. This opera was to make Britten into the most famous English composer of his time. It was soon being performed abroad as well as in England.
Britten was now composing lots of music: songs, chamber music and a very popular piece called Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra (also known as Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Purcell). This piece shows off each instrument of the orchestra in turn so that young people can get to know the sound of the musical instruments. It is based on a tune written by Henry Purcell 300 years ago. There were more popular works: St Nicolas and the Spring Symphony. There were not many opportunities for big operas to be performed, so he wrote some “chamber operas” which only needed small orchestras and a small number of singers. These were performed in places such as local churches by a group which called themselves English Opera Group. He wrote The Rape of Lucretia (1946) and Albert Herring (1947). In 1948 the group helped to start a music festival in Aldeburgh. Benjamin Britten spent the rest of his life mainly working on music which was to be performed at the Aldeburgh Festival. He composed some of his greatest works for the festival, and he took part in the performances as conductor and pianist.
The 1950s
One of Britten’s most popular pieces of music for amateurs including children was Noye’s Fludde (1957). He wrote three “church parables”. His large operas include Billy Budd (1951) which was soon produced in Covent Garden. In June 1953 he wrote Gloriana, an opera about Queen Elizabeth I, written for the coronation celebrations of Elizabeth II. When he travelled with Peter Pears to the Far East he was influenced by the music of Bali and he composed a ballet called The Prince of the Pagodas, performed in Covent Garden in 1957. Another great work inspired by the East was the parable Curlew River (1964). The opera A Midsummer Night’s Dream was written for the Aldeburgh Festival in 1960. In 1962 he wrote the War Requiem to celebrate the new Coventry Cathedral. This is one of the greatest musical works of the 20th century.
His last years
In 1961 he became friends with the great Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich. He composed a Cello Sonata and a Cello Symphony (1963) (a kind of cello concerto), as well as three suites for solo cello. He travelled with Pears to the Soviet Union.
In 1967 the Aldeburgh Festival had a new concert hall, the Maltings at Snape. His next opera was Owen Wingrave (1970), written for television but soon produced in Covent Garden. In June 1973 Britten produced another great opera Death in Venice. The main character, called Aschenbach, was perhaps the best music he ever wrote for Peter Pears. It was performed at the Aldeburgh Festival, but Britten was ill by this time and unable to be at the performance. His heart condition made it impossible to work on any more large works, but he still wrote some harp music for the harpist Ossian Ellis, a song called Phaedra for Janet Baker, and a Third String Quartet. He died in Aldeburgh on 4 December 1976.
Britten received many honours both in Britain and in other countries. He became a Companion of Honour in 1952 a member of the Order of Merit in 1965 and, in the year he died, he was the first musician ever to receive a life peer (the title Lord Britten).
His music
Britten’s early works were often written for instruments. His Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge (1937) for string orchestra is a very popular work today. He often borrowed and reinvented themes by other composers (this is called “parody” technique). During his last years he again gave much attention to instrumental music, mainly chamber music.
After he met Peter Pears much of his music was vocal. This includes more than 100 songs, a number of operas, chamber operas as well as three works for tenor solo and orchestra: Les Illuminations, the Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings and the Nocturne. His songs are often grouped in cycles. He also wrote many folksong settings. These were very popular as encore pieces when he accompanied Peter Pears in song recitals.
Britten wrote music for choirs, including Hymn to St Cecilia (Britten was proud of having been born on St Cecilia’s day: 22 November). The War Requiem is his greatest work which combines writing for choir and orchestra. It describes the horrors of war (Britten had refused to fight in World War II).
He wrote a lot of work for children. There are even parts for children in some of his operas, e.g. Peter Grimes, The Turn of the Screw and Owen Wingrave. He even wrote an opera in which all the main parts are sung by children: The Little Sweep (1949).
Many of his great operatic roles, from Peter Grimes to Aschenbach in Death in Venice, deal with the theme of the outsider, the person who does not quite fit into society, or who is misunderstood. Britten’s homosexuality (which was something that was never discussed in his lifetime) may have something to do with this. He also knew what it was like to be an outsider when he tried to live in the United States, and his refusal to fight in the war may have distanced him from some people.
The Aldeburgh Festival at the Maltings in Snape (a village near Aldeburgh) continue to be a focus for Britten’s music. Every year the Brittens-Pears School of Music organizes lessons and performance opportunities for young musicians. A series of “Prom” concerts is held there every year in August.
References
20th-century English composers
British conductors
Cardiovascular disease deaths in England
Companions of Honour
Deaths from heart failure
English LGBT people
English pianists
Gay men
Grammy Award winners
LGBT composers
LGBT musicians
Musicians from Suffolk
Order of Merit
1913 births
1976 deaths |
28822 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claudio%20Monteverdi | Claudio Monteverdi | Claudio Monteverdi (b.Cremona, 1567; d.Venice 25 November 1643) was the most important composer of the early Baroque period. He lived at a time of great change in musical style. The first opera ever written was composed in 1597 by a composer named Jacopo Peri. Just eleven years later Monteverdi wrote an opera Orfeo which was a really great work. Other important operas of his are Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda and Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria. He wrote 9 books of madrigals. He also wrote a lot of church music including the 1610 Vespers. He was director of music at St Mark’s, Venice, which was the most important musical job in Italy.
Early life in Cremona
Monteverdi was the son of an apothecary and a doctor. He was very talented as a young boy and was only 15 when he published his first pieces of music. In the introduction to this music he says that his music teacher was Marc’ Antonio Ingegneri, the maestro di cappella of Cremona cathedral. We cannot find anything that shows that he sang in the cathedral choir. He probably had private music lessons. He learned composition, singing and how to play string instruments such as the viol and viola da braccio. He got several compositions published in Venice. By the time he got his first job he had already published two books of madrigals.
Mantua
His first job was working at the court of the Duke of Mantua. In Mantua there was a small band of excellent musicians. The musical director was the famous Giaches de Wert. Monteverdi got to know many famous poets, and there were famous singers at Ferrara which was not far away.
At first Monteverdi had a low-paid job. He married the daughter of one of the court musicians in the string band. Monteverdi soon became well-known. He sent several of his compositions to be performed at Ferrara, and he went with the duke to when his army was fighting the Turks.
The young Monteverdi was developing a new musical style. The old style was known as prima pratica (“first practice”) and the new style was called the seconda pratica (“second practice”). The prima pratica continued to be used for church music. In this style of writing the music was thought to be more important than the words. This meant that the music could be very contrapuntal, with several things going on at once so that the words could not be clearly heard. However, in the seconda pratica the words were more important than the music, i.e. it was important to be able to hear all the words clearly, and the music had to be simple enough for this to happen. This was particularly important in opera and in madrigals.
There were a lot of arguments among musicians about these two styles of composition, and this is perhaps the reason why there was a gap of 11 years between Monteverdi’s 3rd and his 4th book of madrigals. His opera Orfeo (1608) was performed at least twice at court, and several times at Salzburg. Monteverdi was becoming famous all over Europe.
Monteverdi went back to Cremona. His wife died, leaving him with their three small children. It was a terrible tragedy for Monteverdi, and he did not want to go back to Mantua, but the Duke wrote to him telling him he must come back to provide music for the wedding of Prince Francesco Gonzaga and Margharita of Savoy.
Monteverdi returned to Mantua, where he composed his opera Arianna. The performance was a great success, and the audience were moved to tears by the music Arianna’s lament. This song is the only part of the opera that has not been lost.
Although Monteverdi’s fame was increasing, there were a lot of arguments with his employer. Eventually he found another job, this time as a church musician, in the biggest church in Venice. Monteverdi had a difficult journey from Mantua to Venice. The passengers were robbed by highwaymen on the way. He arrived in Venice in October 1613.
Venice
The job of maestro (director of music) at San Marco (Saint Mark’s church) in Venice was perhaps the most important job for a church musician in the whole of Europe. However, the music was in a bad state because previous directors of music had not been very good. Monteverdi started to reorganize the music there: he bought new music for the library and got some new musicians. He had to compose music for many special feast days during the year. He was doing a good job, and in 1616 his salary was increased to 400 ducats (about 44.28 ounces of gold, worth about $73,500USD today). The duke of Mantua was probably cross that he had lost such a good musician. He still asked Monteverdi to write music for him. Monteverdi probably had to obey, as he was still a Mantuan citizen (Italy did not become one country until more than two centuries later). He wrote music for important events such as weddings and carnivals at Mantua.
By 1619 Monteverdi had published his seventh book of madrigals. However, he then started to publish less music. Perhaps it was because he was so busy, or perhaps because he no longer needed to look for fame. He probably wrote a lot of church music which is now lost.
During the 1620s continued his work in Venice, although he may have tried to get other jobs. His hobbies include alchemy. He welcomed the composer Heinrich Schütz who visited Venice for a second time. After the Duke of Mantua died in 1626 Monteverdi wrote less music for Mantua. He was supposed to receive an annual salary from them, but he often did not get it. There was a war in Mantua, a lot of buildings were destroyed and the invading armies brought the plague. Monteverdi became a priest in 1632. It is not clear whether he did this because he really was religious or whether he thought it would help his career.
In 1637 public opera was started in Venice. Monteverdi, who was now in his 70s, wrote operas for Venice. Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (1640) and L'incoronazione di Poppea (1642) form a brilliant end to his career. After the performance of this opera he made a six-month trip to Lombard and Mantua, where again he had to argue at the court about not being paid his pension. After he returned to Venice he was ill for nine days and then died.
References
Groves Dictionary of Music Online
1567 births
1643 deaths
Italian composers
Baroque composers
People from Cremona |
28835 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie%20Kaufman | Charlie Kaufman | Charles Stuart "Charlie" Kaufman (born November 1, 1958) is an American screenwriter. Some of the movies he wrote screenplays for are Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, Human Nature, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Charlie Kaufman is known for writing very surreal movies - that is, movies where the plot has things in it that could never happen in real life, or that make the audience notice that they are watching a movie.
He is one of the most celebrated screenwriters for now.
References
American screenwriters
Writers from New York City
1958 births
Living people |
28841 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxbow%20lake | Oxbow lake | An oxbow lake is a lake, or area of water, in a U-shape. It is made by special bends in a river, called meanders, getting farther away from the river until they become separate. The river becomes straight and the bend becomes a lake. This happens due to floods or when a meander's neck gets too thin.
Why does this happen?
Water flows at different speeds at different parts of the river. In the middle, farthest away from the sides (or banks), the water flows fastest. At the banks, the water flows slowest. When the river bends, water flows faster on the outside of the bend than the inside. The fast water on the outside 'erodes' the outside of the bend. This means it breaks bits of the bank off. At the same time, the slow water on the inside of the bend leaves behind mud, sand and parts of plants (deposition). Together, these make the bend move in the direction of the outside of the bend.
The bend moves farther and farther along until it leaves the river. The river becomes straight and the bend is left as an oxbow lake.
Lakes |
28846 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequel | Sequel | A sequel is a story, book, play, video game, or movie that comes or takes place after another story, book, play, video game, or movie. The opposite is called a prequel. A combination of the two makes a midquel. When there are many sequels, this is called a film series.
A sequel has important parts of the first story like characters and places. Audiences like sequels because they have more of the characters and places they like. Storytellers and publishers like sequels because they are popular and people buy them.
Sequel names are often similar to the name of a first story or other stories in a series. They often have a second title or a number to show that they are alike or different from a first story or other stories in a series. Sometimes sequels have different names in different countries because they mean different things to different audiences.
Literary terms
Movie industry |
28858 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major%20League%20Soccer | Major League Soccer | Major League Soccer (MLS) is an American soccer league that started in 1996. As of the upcoming 2022 season, 28 teams will play in the league. One other team plans to join in 2023. The commissioner of the league (the person in charge) is Don Garber.
MLS, founded in the United States, is a fully professional league with 28 teams, three of which are based in Canada. The United States Soccer Federation (USSF or U.S. Soccer), which runs soccer in that country, considers MLS to be the country's top men's league. The Canadian Soccer Association (CSA), which runs soccer in Canada, considers the Canadian Premier League as its top men's league, but MLS has much greater Canadian media coverage and is seen as having a higher level of play. Referees are approved by U.S. Soccer and the CSA. In turn, both national governing bodies are members of FIFA, which governs all play between national teams and sets the rules for the sport along with the national governing bodies of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
MLS was formed in 1993 as a professional league, with play starting with 10 teams in 1996. The MLS regular season starts in late February and ends in November, with each team playing 34 games. The regular season is followed by a 14-team playoff tournament to decide the league champion.
Teams
Current
Former teams
Future teams
MLS Cup Winners
Related pages
USL Championship
References
Best Players in Major league Soccer (MLS) in 2012. hub, n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2012.
Major League Soccer. Princeton, n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2012.
An Overview of American Soccer History. Dave Litterer, n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2012.
Soccer Politics / The Politics of Football. Duke University, n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2012.
Soccer in the United States
Sports organizations of the United States
1996 establishments in the United States |
28859 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Fire%20FC | Chicago Fire FC | Chicago Fire FC (officially Chicago Fire Football Club, and before 2020 Chicago Fire Soccer Club) is a soccer team that plays in Major League Soccer in Chicago. They started in 1998 and won an MLS Cup in that year. The club is named after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
League title
Major League Soccer : 1
1998
League position
References
American soccer teams
Sports in Chicago, Illinois
1997 establishments in the United States
1990s establishments in Illinois |
28860 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbus%20SC | Columbus SC | The Columbus Crew (known from 2015 to 2021 as Columbus Crew SC, and briefly in 2021 as Columbus SC) are an American soccer team that plays in Major League Soccer in Columbus, Ohio. They started play in 1996, playing at Ohio Stadium on the campus of Ohio State University until opening the new Columbus Crew Stadium in 1999. That stadium would be renamed Mapfre Stadium in 2015 and Historic Crew Stadium in late 2020. The Crew played their first match at the new Lower.com Field on July 3, 2021.
Shortly after the start of the 2021 season, the team announced a name change to Columbus SC. Fan reaction was extremely negative. On May 17, 2021, only a week after the change to Columbus SC, the team announced that it would return to the original name of Columbus Crew, without the "SC".
Honors
MLS Cup (league championship): 2 (2008, 2020)
MLS Supporters' Shield (best regular-season record): 3 (2004, 2008, 2009)
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup: 1 (2002)
League position
References
American soccer teams
Columbus, Ohio
Major League Soccer teams
1994 establishments in the United States
20th-century establishments in Ohio |
28861 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sporting%20Kansas%20City | Sporting Kansas City | Sporting Kansas City are an American football (soccer) team that plays in Major League Soccer in Kansas City, Kansas.
They started out as the Kansas City Wiz, before changing their name to the Kansas City Wizards in 1997. Later, in November 2010, they changed their name again to Sporting Kansas City, as the team was moving into a new stadium in the 2011 season. The stadium has been known by several names, first Livestrong Sporting Park, then Sporting Park, and now Children's Mercy Park.
Honors
MLS Cup (league champions): 2 (2000, 2013)
Supporters' Shield (best regular-season record): 1 (2000)
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup: 2 (2004, 2012)
League position
References
Other websites
Official Homepage
Official Website of Supporters Section: The Cauldron
Official Wizards board, courtesy of BigSoccer
Major League Soccer teams
Kansas City, Kansas
1995 establishments in the United States
20th-century establishments in Kansas |
28862 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/New%20England%20Revolution | New England Revolution | The New England Revolution are a United States football (soccer) team from Foxborough, Massachusetts that plays in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer. They share the Gillette Stadium with the New England Patriots, a football team in the NFL.
The team is owned by Robert Kraft, who also owns the New England Patriots.
History
The team won their first major trophy when they won the U.S. Open Cup in 2007. They won the North American SuperLiga in 2008.
Related pages
List of United States soccer teams
American soccer teams
Major League Soccer teams
1994 establishments in the United States
1990s establishments in Massachusetts |
28863 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/New%20York%20Red%20Bulls | New York Red Bulls | The New York Red Bulls are an American soccer team. They play in Major League Soccer in Harrison, New Jersey. Until 2006, they were known as the MetroStars. Their homeground is the Red Bull Arena in Harrison.
History
The club was founded in 1995 by John Werner Kluge and Stuart Subotnick, two managers for MetroMedia, under the name MetroStars. The club was a founding member of Major League Soccer. In 2006 the team was sold to the Austrian company Red Bull and renamed the New York Red Bulls. The team is the only one in the MLS which never reached a major title. There were a lot of well-known soccer players on the team from all over the world such as Roberto Donadoni, Lothar Matthäus (FIFA World Cup 1990, UEFA Champion 1980), Adolfo Valencia, Youri Djorkaeff, Amado Guevara, Juan Pablo Angel,Daniel Rodriguez, Thierry Henry, and Rafael Márquez.
Current squad
Captains
International players
Former players Tony Meola, Tab Ramos, Tim Howard, Alexi Lalas, Clint Mathis, Jozy Altidore, Michael Bradley, Claudio Reyna, Eddie Pope, and Tim Ream have all played for the U.S. national team. Current players Juan Agudelo,Daniel Rodriguez, Dax McCarty, and Kenny Cooper have also played for the USMNT.
Achievements
MLS Cup
Runners-up (1): 2008
Supporters' Shield (best regular-season record)
Winners (3): 2013, 2015, 2018
MLS Eastern Conference
Winners (Regular Season) (2): 2000, 2010
MLS Western Conference
Winners (Playoff) (1): 2008
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
Runners-up (1): 2003
Minor Trophies
Atlantic Cup (2): 2003, 2010
Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic (1): 2010
Head coaches
Eddie Firmani (1996)
Carlos Queiroz (1996)
Carlos Alberto Parreira (1997)
Alfonso Mondelo (1998)
Bora Milutinović (1998–99)
Octavio Zambrano (2000–02)
Bob Bradley (2003–05)
Mo Johnston (2005–06)
Richie Williams (2006), (Interim)
Bruce Arena (2006–07)
Juan Carlos Osorio (2008–09)
Richie Williams (2009), (Interim)
Hans Backe (2010–2012)
Mike Petke (2013-2014)
Jesse Marsch (2015-2017)
Chris Armas (2018-2020)
Bradley Carnell (2020)
Gerhard Struber (2020- present)
Gallery
References
Other websites
American soccer teams
Football clubs owned by Red Bull
1995 establishments in the United States
1990s establishments in New Jersey |
28865 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado%20Rapids | Colorado Rapids | The Colorado Rapids are an American soccer team that plays in Major League Soccer. They are one of the founding clubs of the MLS. The hometown of Rapids is Denver, Colorado. The club was formed in 1996.
Stadium
Mile High Stadium; Denver, Colorado (1996–2001)
Invesco Field at Mile High; Denver, Colorado (2002–2006)
North Area Athletic Complex; Arvada, Colorado (2003) 1 game in US Open Cup
Dick's Sporting Goods Park; Commerce City, Colorado (2007–present)
The Rapids play their home games at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado (ca. 8 miles north of the center of Denver). The stadium capacity is 19,680 and cost $131 million to construct. It is a stadium for football only. The soccer stadium opened on April 7, 2007. Before moving to DSG Park in 2007, Colorado Rapids shared Mile High Stadium and then Invesco Field at Mile High with the Denver Broncos an American football team.
Honors
MLS Cup
Winners (1): 2010
Runners-up (1): 1997
MLS Eastern Conference
Winners (Playoff) (1): 2010
MLS Western Conference
Winners (Playoff) (1): 1997
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
Runners-up (1): 1999
Minor Trophies
MLS Reserve Division (2) 2006, 2007
Rocky Mountain Cup (2) 2005, 2006
Team records
Year-by-year results
Year-by-year stats
Sources:
Note: MLS did not allow ties prior to the 2000 season as games were decided by shootout when tied at full-time.
By opponent
Dissolved after 2001 season.
Dissolved after 2014 season.
International tournaments
1998 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
Qualifying Play-off v. Club León – 1:0, 2:4 (León advances 4:3 on aggregate)
2011–12 CONCACAF Champions League:
Group Stage v. Isidro Metapán – 3:2
Group Stage v. Real España – 1:1
Group Stage v. Santos Laguna – 1:4
Group Stage v. Real España – 1:2
Group Stage v. Isidro Metapán – 1:3
Group Stage v. Santos Laguna – 2:0
2018 CONCACAF Champions League:
TBD
References
Other websites
http://www.coloradorapids.com Official Homepage
1990s establishments in Colorado
1996 establishments in the United States
American soccer teams
Major League Soccer teams |
28866 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/FC%20Dallas | FC Dallas | FC Dallas is an American soccer team. They play in Major League Soccer (MLS) in Frisco, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, Texas. The team is a founding member of the MLS. Before 2005, they were known as the Dallas Burn. The team is owned by the Hunt Sports Group, which also owns the National Football League team Kansas City Chiefs.
Players and staff
Roster
Out on loan
Team management
Head coaches
Record
Year-by-year
Year-by-year stats
Note: MLS did not allow ties prior to the 2000 season as games were decided by shootout when tied at full-time.
MLS Scoring Champion/Golden Boot
The following players have won the MLS Scoring Champion or the Golden Boot.
Top goalscorers
International competition
1998 CONCACAF Cup Winners' Cup
Group stage v. Necaxa – 1–4
Group stage v. Cruz Azul – 1–2
2004 La Manga Cup
Group stage v. Odd Grenland – 1–2
Group stage v. Dynamo Kyiv – 2–2
Semi-finals v. Stabæk – 2–1
Fifth place match v. Bodø/Glimt – 1–3
2007 North American SuperLiga
Group stage v. Guadalajara – 1–1
Group stage v. Pachuca – 1–1
Group stage v. Los Angeles Galaxy – 5–6
2011–12 CONCACAF Champions League
Preliminary Round v. Alianza – 1–0
Preliminary Round v. Alianza – 1–0
Group stage v. UNAM – 1–0
Group stage v. Toronto FC – 1–0
Group stage v. Tauro F.C. – 1–1
Group stage v. UNAM – 0–2
Group stage v. Tauro F.C. – 3–5
Group stage v. Toronto FC – 0–3
2016–17 CONCACAF Champions League
Group stage v. Real Estelí – 2–1
Group stage v. Real Estelí – 1–1
Group stage v. Suchitepéquez – 0–0
Group stage v. Suchitepéquez – 5–2
Quarter-finals v. Árabe Unido – 4–0
Quarter-finals v. Árabe Unido – 1–2
Semi-finals v. Pachuca – 2–1
Semi-finals v. Pachuca – 1–3
2018 CONCACAF Champions League
Round of 16 v. Tauro F.C. – 0–1
Round of 16 v. Tauro F.C. – 3–2
Stadium
Cotton Bowl; Dallas, Texas (1996–2002, 2004–2005)
Dragon Stadium; Southlake, Texas (2003)
Toyota Stadium; Frisco, Texas (2005–present; known as Pizza Hut Park through the 2011 season and FC Dallas Stadium in the 2012 season and most of the 2013 season)
From 1996–2002 the team played in the 92,100-capacity Cotton Bowl in Dallas. To save money the club played its 2003 home games at Dragon Stadium, a high school stadium in Southlake, a Fort Worth suburb. The club lost money in the high school stadium because Texas law does not allow the sale of alcohol on a public high school campus. The team moved back to the Cotton Bowl for the 2004 season. In August 2005, the club moved into Pizza Hut Park, a soccer stadium in the northern suburb of Frisco. The contract that allowed Pizza Hut to put its name on the stadium ended in January 2012, and the stadium was renamed FC Dallas Stadium. In September 2013, a new sponsorship contract was signed with Toyota, and the stadium was renamed Toyota Stadium. Following renovations to the south end of Toyota Stadium, the relocated National Soccer Hall of Fame opened at the stadium in October 2018.
References
Other websites
Official Homepage
American soccer teams
Sports in Dallas, Texas
Major League Soccer teams
1996 establishments in the United States
1990s establishments in Texas |
28867 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston%20Dynamo | Houston Dynamo | The Houston Dynamo are an American soccer team that plays in Major League Soccer in Houston, Texas. In late 2005, the San Jose Earthquakes moved to the city because of financial problems in San Jose, California.
The Dynamo opened a new stadium, which opened as BBVA Compass Stadium and is now known as BBVA Stadium, in downtown Houston in May 2012, after playing their first seven games of the season on the road.
League title
Major League Soccer : 2
2006, 2007
League position
References
American soccer teams
Sports in Houston, Texas
Major League Soccer teams
2005 establishments in the United States
2000s establishments in Texas |
28868 | https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/San%20Jose%20Earthquakes | San Jose Earthquakes | The San Jose Earthquakes are an American soccer team that plays in Major League Soccer in San Jose, California. In December 2005, they moved to Houston, Texas to become the Houston Dynamo. Failure to secure funding for a new stadium caused the team to move. In July 2007, they were granted an expansion team, which would bring them back in 2008. From 1994 to 1999 they were known as the San Jose Clash. By agreement between MLS, the Dynamo, and the Earthquakes, the history of the original San Jose franchise belongs to the current Earthquakes.
Name
1994-1999 San Jose Clash
1999-present San Jose Earthquakes
League title
Major League Soccer : 2
2001, 2003
League position
References
American soccer teams
Sports in San Jose, California
Major League Soccer teams
1994 establishments in California |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.