id
stringlengths 2
8
| url
stringlengths 31
381
| title
stringlengths 1
211
| text
stringlengths 1.02k
2.05k
| edu_quality
float64 1.91
4.03
| naive_quality
int64 0
0
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the fourth-largest school district in the United States, after New York, Los Angeles, and Miami-Dade County. For the 2023–24 school year, CPS reported overseeing 634 schools, including 477 elementary schools and 157 high schools; of which 514 were district-run, 111 were charter schools, 7 were contract schools and 2 were SAFE schools.
The district serves 323,251 students. Chicago Public School students attend a particular school based on their area of residence, except for charter, magnet, and selective enrollment schools.
The school system reported a graduation rate of 84% for the 2022-23 school year.
Unlike most school systems, CPS calls the position of superintendent the "Chief Executive Officer", but there is no material difference in responsibilities or reporting from what is traditionally considered a superintendent. CPS reported a student–teacher ratio of 15.84 for the 2019–20 school year. For the 2020–21 school year, 46.7% of CPS students were Latino and 35.8% were African-American. 63.8% of the student body came from economically-disadvantaged households, and 18.6% of students were reported as English-language learners. Average salaries for the 2019-20 year were $74,225 for teachers and $114,199 for administrators. For the 2020–21 school year, CPS reported 39,323 staff positions, including 21,974 teachers and 516 principals. In 2021, CPS reported a budget of $6.92 billion with $3.75 billion from local sources, $1.85 billion from the State of Illinois and $1.3 billion from the U.S. Federal Government. Per student spending was reported at $18,287 in 2023.
| 2.578125
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools led the nation in test score improvement, learned at a faster rate compared to 96% of all school districts in the country, and as of 2020, had an all-time high graduation rate. It has faced declining enrollments and school closings. More than 80 percent of CPS students are Hispanic or Black.
History
As Chicago was started as a trading outpost in the 1800s, it took several years for a citywide school system with adequate funding and instructional personnel to emerge. As early as 1848, during the first term of the 12th Mayor of Chicago, James Hutchinson Woodworth, the city's need for a public school system was recognized by the city council. A higher educational standard for the system was stated by the mayor, both to reflect his philosophy as a former teacher, and to add an attribute to Chicago that would continue to attract productive citizens. In 1922, the school board voted unanimously to change policy that allocated library access based on color, "[extending] the same privileges to Race children to enter all the libraries as the white children enjoy", but maintaining segregated schools and specifying that "in each branch library all employees should belong to the race which attended the particular school".
In 1937, the city was hit by a polio outbreak which resulted in the Chicago Board of Health ordering schools to be closed during what was supposed to be the start of the school year. The school closure wound up lasting three weeks. Superintendent William Johnson and assistant superintendent Minnie Fallon managed to provide the instruction to the city's elementary school students by providing at-home distance education through radio broadcasts. This was the first large-scale implementation of radio broadcasting for distance education.
| 3
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
Funding
By the 1960s, schools across Chicago—and most of Illinois—were struggling to support themselves. Illinois school funding, according to scholar Tracy Steffes, was heavily reliant upon “funding by property taxes assessed in and bounded within districts of highly unequal wealth.” Wealthy districts paid less and got better schools, while poor districts got worse schools but paid even more. The problem was compounded by “soft” segregation measures such as redlining and “white flight,” which further delineated Chicago communities upon lines of both wealth and race. The introduction of the Illinois Resource Equalizer Formula in 1973 was intended to address this crisis by restructuring school financing to more evenly distribute property tax money, but many affluent white families protested the use of their taxes to pay for other (predominantly Black) communities’ education, rather than only their own district's schools. The formula was abolished in the late 1980s, and acute funding issues continue both in Chicago and across Illinois.
| 2.171875
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
School closures
From 2001 to 2009, CPS, under Arne Duncan's leadership, closed dozens of elementary and high schools due to classrooms being at low capacity or underperforming. Despite claims that the closures would help underperforming students, University of Chicago researchers found that most of the students who transferred as a result of the closures did not improve their performance. This is what led to the Renaissance 2010 initiative, which focused on closing public schools and opening more charter schools that were focused on one of the government structures: charter, performance, or contract. During this program's time, it has closed over 80 schools and plans to open 100 charter schools. This also include five military schools, three of which have Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs. In response to CPS's announcements in 2013 that it was considering closing nearly 200 schools, many Chicago parents, students, teachers and community activists voiced their opposition through the media and at hearings around the city. In addition, several Illinois lawmakers, including chairman of the Senate education committee William Delgado (D-Chicago), pushed for a moratorium on school closings in CPS, citing "the disproportion[ate] effect on minority communities, the possibility of overcrowding and safety concerns for students who will have to travel further to class." On May 22, 2013, the school board voted to close 50 public schools. However, the majority of the closed schools have been in poor neighborhoods with a black population, such as Bronzeville. These areas are not only sites of demolished public housing, but now to closed-down schools. For every four schools that have been closed, three have been in these neighborhoods. Over 88% of the students affected by these closings have been African American.
| 2.40625
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
Student and teacher protests
In 2013, Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago initiated the closing of 54 public schools. Of the 54 public schools to be closed were 53 elementary schools and one high school. Mayor Rahm Emanuel claimed the school closings were a direct result from the nearly $1 billion deficit the city was facing due to under-enrollment at the schools. The schools to be closed were located on Chicago's South and West sides which provided education to mainly African-American Students. The Mayors decision to close the schools was met with rage and feelings of injustice by the communities affected and the Chicago Teachers Union. As a result, the CTU and other education activities responded by protesting.
In May 2013, the Chicago Teachers Union were joined by students and other education activities to march against the closings of 54 public schools that year. The activists planned three days of nonviolent demonstrations across the city of Chicago. The CTU gathered an upwards of 900 protesters to participate in rally's, marches, and sit-ins against Mayor Rahm Emanuel's decision to close the schools. Over 150 protesters participated in a sit-in in the middle of LaSalle Street, blocking traffic, and forcing the response of the Chicago Police Department. Many protesters peacefully left the scene when asked to by the CPD, but many held their ground. Protesters that did not agree to leave the scene were issued tickets. Over 50 people were arrested throughout the entire protests, but no acts of violence were reported.
| 2.609375
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
For the 2018–2019 school year, CPS reports having 361,314 students including 17,668 in preschool, 24,128 in kindergarten, 213,651 in grades 1–8, and 105,867 in grades 9-12. The racial makeup of the student body is 46.7% Hispanics, 36.6% African-Americans, 10.5% White, 4.1% Asian/Pacific Islander, 1.2% Multi-Racial, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and 0.3% unknown. Chicago Public Schools were the most racial-ethnically separated among large city school systems, according to research by The New York Times in 2012, as a result of most students' attending schools close to their homes. In the 1970s the Mexican origin student population grew in CPS, although it never exceeded 10% of the total CPS student population. From 1971 to 1977 and then to 1979, the Mexican student population in the Near West Side's CPS district 19 increased from 34% to 43% and then over 47%, respectively. In the 1980s, among the total CPS student population, the numbers of non-Hispanic Whites declined while Hispanics and Latinos, African-Americans, and other minorities increased. In 1982 16.3% of the CPS students were non-Hispanic White, while over 19% were of Mexican, Puerto Rican, and/or Cuban origin; that year the Hispanic and Latino population had overtaken the non-Hispanic White population.
Schools
CPS is a system of primary, secondary, and disability schools confined to Chicago's city limits. This system is the second largest employer in Chicago.
| 2.921875
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
Most schools in the district, whether prekindergarten-8th grade, elementary, middle, or secondary, have attendance boundaries restricting student enrollment to within a given area. A school may elect to enroll students outside its attendance boundaries if there is space or if it has a magnet cluster program. Full magnet schools are open to citywide student enrollment, provided that applicants meet a level of high academic standards. Magnets offer a variety of academic programs with various focuses, such as agriculture, fine arts, international baccalaureate, Montessori, math, literature, Paideia programs, and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). STEM Magnet Academy is the first elementary school in the state of Illinois, and among the first in the nation, to offer a STEM-focused curriculum. The Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts) is the system's only audition based performing and visual arts high school. Chicago was the largest city in the country without a public high school for the arts until the establishment of ChiArts in 2009.
Selective Enrollment
Elementary schools
The school system contains two levels of primary school programs which make selective admission only. Regional gifted centers have an area of focus (such as math and science) and require one type of assessment, akin to an IQ test. Classical schools, in contrast to regional gifted centers, take a liberal arts approach focusing on all areas. Classical school applications thus require a different type of assessment.
| 2.71875
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
Operations
The structure of Chicago Public Schools was redefined after Mayor Richard M. Daley convinced the Illinois General Assembly to place CPS under the mayor's control. Illinois school districts are generally governed by locally elected school boards, where each district board hires a superintendent, who in turn hires administrators such as principals, who then must be approved by the school board. In contrast, CPS is headed by a Chief Executive Officer and school board appointed by the mayor. It is currently the only school district in Illinois where the school board is appointed by a city's mayor. The school board will transition to consist entirely of elected members by 2027.
CPS is headquartered in the 42 West Madison building in the Chicago Loop, formerly headquartered in the 125 South Clark Street building from 1998 until November 2014. The district has offices in Bridgeport, Colman, and Garfield Park. The 20 story building, managed by MB Real Estate, and originally built as the Commercial National Bank, has of space.
Chief Executive Officer
CPS is headed by a chief executive officer (CEO) appointed by the mayor. The current CEO is Pedro Martinez.
The position of CEO, before it was created in 1995, was preceded by a position of "superintendent". In 1995, the Government of Illinois passed the Chicago School Reform Amendatory Act, which replaced the position of superintendent with that of chief executive Officer.
Chicago Board of Education
The school board, known as the Chicago Board of Education, is currently appointed by the mayor of Chicago. Between 2024 and 2027, the board is slated to transition to consist entirely of elected members.
The board traces its roots back to the Board of School Inspectors, created in 1837, which was renamed Chicago Board of Education in 1857.
The Chicago Board of Education is led by a president. The current president of the Chicago Board of Education is Sean Harden.
Local school councils
| 2.234375
| 0
|
1488123
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago%20Public%20Schools
|
Chicago Public Schools
|
In 1988, the Government of Illinois passed the Chicago School Reform Act, which created Local School Councils.
Performance
The April 21, 2006 issue of the Chicago Tribune revealed a study by the Consortium on Chicago School Research that stated that 6 of every 100 CPS freshmen would earn a bachelor's degree by age 25. 3 in 100 black or Latino men would earn a bachelor's degree by age 25. The study tracked Chicago high school students who graduated in 1998 and 1999. 35% of CPS students who went to college earned their bachelor's degree within six years, below the national average of 64%. Chicago has a history of high dropout rates, with around half of students failing to graduate for the past 30 years. Criticism is directed at the CPS for inflating its performance figures. Through such techniques as counting students who swap schools before dropping out as transfers but not dropouts, it publishes graduation claims as high as 71%. Nonetheless, throughout the 1990s actual rates seem to have improved slightly, as true graduation estimates rose from 48% in 1991 to 54% in 2004.
In 1987, Education Secretary William J. Bennett called the Chicago Public Schools system the worst in the nation. In September 2011, the University of Chicago's Consortium on Chicago School Research published a report on the school system's performance over the course of 30 years of reform. While the report evaluated three decades of reform, it measured the progress of such policies by "analyzing trends in elementary and high school test scores and graduation rates over the past 20 years." The authors of the report highlighted five of their central conclusions:
Pension fund
| 2.484375
| 0
|
1488146
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paragone
|
Paragone
|
Paragone (, meaning comparison), was a debate during the Italian Renaissance in which painting and sculpture (and to a degree, architecture) were each championed as forms of art superior and distinct to each other. While other art forms, such as architecture and poetry existed in the context of the debate, painting and sculpture were the primary focus of the debate.
The debate extended beyond the fifteenth century and even influences the discussion and interpretation of artworks that may or may not have been influenced by the debate itself.
A comparable question, generally posed less competitively, was known as ut pictura poesis (a quote from Horace), comparing the qualities of painting and poetry.
The debate
The debate began around the 15th century. Leonardo da Vinci's treatise on painting, observing the difficulty of painting and supremacy of sight, is a notable example of literature on the subject.
Bendetto Varchi further sparked the conversation between artists in 1546 by sending out letters inviting opinions. Painters and sculptors each vied for their respective side in the debate. Michelangelo was the only artist who offered support for both mediums. However, he was also found to be less invested in the discussion despite his contributions.
The essence of the debate had many facets. Comparisons of the two mediums ranged from conceptual themes to practices, underscoring the intellectual role of the artist in the era.
| 2.90625
| 0
|
1488146
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paragone
|
Paragone
|
Each medium had multiple points in support of it. Much of the debate lacked specific examples of supporting work, though the ideas were extensively discussed. Giorgio Vasari argued that drawing is the father of all arts, and as such, the most important one. Sculpture was typically claimed to be the only method of having several different and faithful views of the same figure by those who found it to be the more superior medium. A counterpoint to this argument was made in paintings which feature reflective objects or surfaces, such as the Portrait of Gaston de la Foix by Gerolamo Savoldo, which featured mirrors surrounding the key figure. This allowed figures not only to be viewed at multiple angles, but for these to be seen at the same time, which is an ability that sculpture is incapable of providing. Many paintings with this concept are brought into the discussion of paragone, but it is unclear how many were actually made as a response to the debate itself.
A large portion of the discussion was centered on the idea of imitation of the natural world. Painting was seen to create an inferior imitation because it lacked form. This argument was later championed by the example of a blind man experiencing art. Theoretically, he could gather how a sculpture was structured through touch, but were he to touch a painting he would not be able to construct an image of the work, thus rendering painting an illusionary form of art.
Another side of the debate that arose is one of technical skill. Michelangelo did not take a clear side in the debates, but did underscore a component which he believed to be essential to both painting and sculpture, called disegno. Disegno in Renaissance times largely referred to "the conception of a work." The understanding and use of the term was also, however, influenced by the idea of drawing as the foundation of art. Vasari and with him Benvenuto Cellini, also asserted that the ability to render an accurate contour line were technical skills that benefited both painting and sculpture.
| 2.875
| 0
|
1488155
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roundabout%20%28play%29
|
Roundabout (play)
|
A roundabout (British English), merry-go-round (American English), or carousel (Australian English), is a piece of playground equipment, a flat disk, frequently about in diameter, with bars on it that act as both hand-holds and something to lean against while riding. The disk can be made to spin by pushing or pulling on its handles, either by running around the outside, or by pulling and re-grabbing as it spins, from a stationary stance. If the disk is mounted at a tilt to the ground, after an initial push, the disk can be speeded up without further pushing or touching the ground. The trick is to have the rider(s) lean into the center of the disk while ascending and leaning out from the center when descending. It is the physics of angular momentum and also works for swings. Often found in school playgrounds and public parks, they offer riders (typically children) a dizzying ride when either others spin the wheel, or by spinning it themselves by running around it, and then jumping on. People may take turns between riding and spinning. One type of roundabout which differs significantly in terms of how the rotary motion is provided is a Swedish device called the HAGS Pedal Roundabout, which resembles four small exercise bikes attached to a tubular steel ring, which travel on a circular steel rail on the ground. The ring is attached to a vertical pole in the center by four spokes. There is a driving wheel hidden under the casing of each of the "exercise bikes" (the casings prevent toes being run over) and the roundabout is turned by the pedaling action of the riders.
The names roundabout, merry-go-round, and carousel are also used, in varying dialects, to refer to a distinct fair or amusement park ride.
| 2.90625
| 0
|
1488174
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoru%20Mochizuki
|
Minoru Mochizuki
|
was a Japanese martial artist who founded the dojo Yoseikan. He was a 10th dan in Aikido, 9th dan in Jujutsu, 8th dan in Iaido, 8th dan in Judo, 8th dan in Kobudo, 5th dan in Kendo, 5th dan in Karate, and a 5th dan in Jojutsu.
Mochizuki was one of the direct students of Judo founder Jigoro Kano, Aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba and Gichin Funakoshi, founder of Shotokan Karate.
Believing that the martial arts had become distorted by specialization into separate disciplines or transformed into sports, Mochizuki achievement was to assemble back the major techniques of the Japanese martial tradition into a single structure, as it was once practised. He oversaw the development of the system from his home in Shizuoka, Japan, where his dojo, the Yoseikan, was often visited by martial arts practitioners from all over the world.
Early life
On April 7, 1907, Mochizuki was born in Shizuoka, Japan.
Mochizuki, began by training in kendo at the age of five, at his grandfather's dojo in Shizuoka.
Career
In 1925, Mochizuki began judo and joined the Kodokan where he became an outstanding competitor. Under the tutelage of Jigoro Kano, the founder of judo, as well as the renowned Sanpo Toku, Mochizuki became the youngest member of the Kobudo Kenkyukai – an organization for the study, preservation and development of classical martial arts – established within the Kodokan. Here he practised among others Katori Shinto-ryu. In 1930, he was sent by Jigoro Kano to study aikijujutsu with Morihei Ueshiba. He was the uchideshi of Morihei Ueshiba at the Kobukan dojo for one year before opening his own dojo in Shizuoka City in 1931.
| 2.828125
| 0
|
1488174
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoru%20Mochizuki
|
Minoru Mochizuki
|
He was awarded two Daito-Ryu scrolls by Ueshiba in June 1932 ("Goshinyo no te" and "Hiden ogi no koto"). He spent eight years in Mongolia where he was an active educator and entrepreneur of projects to improve communications and irrigation. His idea of combating communism with the application of the principles of "mutual welfare and prosperity" and of "the best use of energy" of Jigoro Kano contributed to the development of his region. His irrigation project was completed after the Second World War by the Chinese authorities. Mochizuki was the first to teach aikido in the West when he traveled in France from 1951 to 1953 as a judo teacher. He was the 3rd Aikido Division head of the Kokusai Budoin-International Martial Arts Federation (IMAF Japan) after Ueshiba and Tomiki. He taught at the dojo of Shizuoka until nearly the end of the last millennium and spent the last years of his life in France with his son Hiroo.
Personal
On May 30, 2003, Minoru Mochizuki died in Aix-en-Provence, France, at the age of 96.
His son, Hiroo Mochizuki, introduced karate in France and founded martial art Yoseikan Budō.
| 1.992188
| 0
|
1488188
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMT%20Nassau%20Street%20Line
|
BMT Nassau Street Line
|
Planning, construction, and first section
After the original lines of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) opened, the city began planning new lines. Two of these were extensions of that system, to Downtown Brooklyn and Van Cortlandt Park, but the other two – the Centre Street Loop subway (or Brooklyn Loop subway) and Fourth Avenue subway (in Brooklyn) – were separate lines for which construction had not progressed as far. The Centre Street Loop, approved on January 25, 1907 as a four-track line (earlier proposed as two tracks), was to connect the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, and Williamsburg Bridge via Centre Street, Canal Street, and Delancey Street. An extension south from the Brooklyn Bridge under William Street to Wall Street was also part of the plan, as were several loops towards the Hudson River and a loop connecting the bridges through Brooklyn. Trains coming from Brooklyn via the Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges would be able to head back to that borough via the Brooklyn Bridge as well as the Montague Street Tunnel at the south end of the Centre Street Loop, and vice versa. All trains would pass through a large central station with four tracks and five platforms at Chambers Street, just north of the Brooklyn Bridge.
| 2.796875
| 0
|
1488188
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMT%20Nassau%20Street%20Line
|
BMT Nassau Street Line
|
The line was constructed below the active IRT Lexington Avenue Line, next to buildings along the narrow Nassau Street, and the project encountered difficulties such as quicksand. When the construction contracts were awarded, work had been projected to be completed in 39 months. By early 1929, sixty percent of the work had been finished. Nassau Street is only wide, and the subway floor was only below building foundations. As a result, 89 buildings had to be underpinned to ensure that they would stay on their foundations. Construction had to be done 20 feet below the active IRT Lexington Avenue Line. An area filled with quicksand with water, which used to belong to a spring, was found between John Street and Broad Street. Construction was done at night so as to not disturb workers in the Financial District. The project was 80 percent complete by April 1930, and Charles Meads & Co. was awarded a $252,000 contract to install the Fulton Street station's finishes the next month. The plans for that station had been changed so that the southbound platform was above the northbound platform. The total construction cost was $10.072 million for of new tunnels, or , which was three times the normal cost of construction at the time.
| 2.515625
| 0
|
1488188
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMT%20Nassau%20Street%20Line
|
BMT Nassau Street Line
|
Service changes and modifications
A major change to the Nassau Street Line occurred on November 27, 1967, when the extensive Chrystie Street reroutes resulted in the discontinuation of service over the south tracks of the Manhattan Bridge into Chambers Street, as those tracks were now directly connected to the upper level (Broadway) Canal Street station. This ended all "loop" service, which had most recently seen rush hour "specials" on both the Brighton and 4th Avenue lines operating via both the Manhattan Bridge and Montague Street tunnel in single directions.
As part of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's 2000–2004 Capital Program, the reconfiguration of the Nassau Street Line between Canal Street and Essex Street took place. As part of the plan, northbound trains were rerouted via the second track from the west, and the former northbound platforms at Canal Street and Bowery were closed. The second track from the east was removed. Work on the project started in 2001. This change took effect on September 20, 2004. The reconfiguration provided additional operational flexibility by providing a third through track (previously the center two tracks stub-ended at Canal Street), which was equipped with reverse signaling. The consolidation of the Bowery and Canal Street stations was intended to enhance customer security while consolidating passengers onto what used to be the southbound platforms. The project was completed in May 2005, seven months behind its scheduled completion. The project cost $36 million.
Weekend service terminated at Canal Street between September 30, 1990, and January 1994. Weekend service terminated at Chambers Street until June 2015; during that time, Broad Street and the J/Z platforms at Fulton Street were two of the few New York City Subway stations that lacked full-time service. On June 14, 2015, weekend J service was extended back to Broad Street; this was proposed in July 2014 to improve weekend service between Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn.
| 2.140625
| 0
|
1488195
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental%20theorems%20of%20welfare%20economics
|
Fundamental theorems of welfare economics
|
There are two fundamental theorems of welfare economics. The first states that in economic equilibrium, a set of complete markets, with complete information, and in perfect competition, will be Pareto optimal (in the sense that no further exchange would make one person better off without making another worse off). The requirements for perfect competition are these:
There are no externalities and each actor has perfect information.
Firms and consumers take prices as given (no economic actor or group of actors has market power).
The theorem is sometimes seen as an analytical confirmation of Adam Smith's "invisible hand" principle, namely that competitive markets ensure an efficient allocation of resources. However, there is no guarantee that the Pareto optimal market outcome is equitative, as there are many possible Pareto efficient allocations of resources differing in their desirability (e.g. one person may own everything and everyone else nothing).
The second theorem states that any Pareto optimum can be supported as a competitive equilibrium for some initial set of endowments. The implication is that any desired Pareto optimal outcome can be supported; Pareto efficiency can be achieved with any redistribution of initial wealth. However, attempts to correct the distribution may introduce distortions, and so full optimality may not be attainable with redistribution.
The theorems can be visualized graphically for a simple pure exchange economy by means of the Edgeworth box diagram.
History of the fundamental theorems
| 2.109375
| 0
|
1488195
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental%20theorems%20of%20welfare%20economics
|
Fundamental theorems of welfare economics
|
Adam Smith (1776)
In a discussion of import tariffs Adam Smith wrote that:
Every individual necessarily labours to render the annual revenue of the society as great as he can... He is in this, as in many other ways, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention... By pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it.Note that Smith's ideas were not directed towards welfare economics specifically, as this field of economics had not been created at the time. However, his arguments have been credited towards the creation of the branch as well as the fundamental theories of welfare economics.
Léon Walras (1870)
Walras wrote that 'exchange under free competition is an operation by which all parties obtain the maximum satisfaction subject to buying and selling at a uniform price'.
F. Y. Edgeworth (1881)
Edgeworth took a step towards the first fundamental theorem in his 'Mathematical Psychics', looking at a pure exchange economy with no production. He included imperfect competition in his analysis. His definition of equilibrium is almost the same as Pareto's later definition of optimality: it is a point such that...
in whatever direction we take an infinitely small step, P and Π [the utilities of buyer and seller] do not increase together, but that, while one increases, the other decreases.
Instead of concluding that equilibrium was Pareto optimal, Edgeworth concluded that the equilibrium maximizes the sum of utilities of the parties, which is a special case of Pareto efficiency:
It seems to follow on general dynamical principles applied to this special case that equilibrium is attained when the total pleasure-energy of the contractors is a maximum relative, or subject, to conditions...
| 2.0625
| 0
|
1488195
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental%20theorems%20of%20welfare%20economics
|
Fundamental theorems of welfare economics
|
Pareto didn't find it so straightforward. He gives a diagrammatic argument in his text, applying solely to exchange, and a 32-page mathematical argument in the Appendix which Samuelson found 'not easy to follow'. Pareto was hampered by not having a concept of the production–possibility frontier, whose development was due partly to his collaborator Enrico Barone. His own 'indifference curves for obstacles' seem to have been a false path.
Shortly after stating the first fundamental theorem, Pareto asks a question about distribution:
Consider a collectivist society which seeks to maximise the ophelimity of its members. The problem divides into two parts. Firstly we have a problem of distribution: how should the goods within a society be shared between its members? And secondly, how should production be organised so that, when goods are so distributed, the members of society obtain the maximum ophelimity?
His answer is an informal precursor of the second theorem:
Having distributed goods according to the answer to the first problem, the state should allow the members of the collectivity to operate a second distribution, or operate it itself, in either case making sure that it is performed in conformity with the workings of free competition.
Enrico Barone (1908)
Barone, an associate of Pareto, proved an optimality property of perfect competition, namely that – assuming exogenous prices – it maximises the monetary value of the return from productive activity, this being the sum of the values of leisure, savings, and goods for consumption, all taken in the desired proportions. He makes no argument that the prices chosen by the market are themselves optimal.
His paper wasn't translated into English until 1935. It received an approving summary from Samuelson but seems not to have influenced the development of the welfare theorems as they now stand.
| 1.90625
| 0
|
1488195
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental%20theorems%20of%20welfare%20economics
|
Fundamental theorems of welfare economics
|
Assumptions for the fundamental theorems
In principle, there are two commonly found versions of the fundamental theorems, one relating to an exchange economy in which endowments are exogenously given, and one relating to an economy in which production occurs. The production economy is more general and entails additional assumptions. The assumptions are all based on the standard graduate microeconomics textbook.
The fundamental theorems do not generally ensure existence, nor uniqueness of the equilibria.
First Fundamental Theorem
The preference relation is locally non-satiated for each consumer i.
Agents (consumers and, in a production economy, firms) take prices as given.
Markets are complete.
Perfect information.
Agents behave rationally.
No externalities.
Second Fundamental Theorem
The second fundamental theorem has more demanding conditions.
All assumptions of the first theorem; in addition:
The preference relation is locally non-satiated and convex for each consumer i
The production set is convex for each firm j.
For the step from price quasi-equilibrium to price equilibrium with transfers: The initial endowment of each agents is strictly positive.
| 1.984375
| 0
|
1488198
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pega
|
Pega
|
Pega (c. 673 – c. 719) is a Christian saint who was an anchoress in the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia, and the sister of St Guthlac.
Life
The earliest source of information about Pega is in Felix's 8th-century Latin Life of Guthlac, where she is referred to as 'the holy virgin of Christ Pega'. As the sister of Guthlac, Pega would have been the daughter of Penwalh of Mercia and thus belonged to one of Mercia's great noble families.
She lived as an anchoress at what is now Peakirk ("Pega's church") near Peterborough, not far from Guthlac's hermitage at Crowland. When Guthlac realised that his end was near in 714, he summoned Pega, who travelled by boat to her brother's oratory to bury him. One year later, she presided over the translation of his remains into a new sepulchre, when his body was found to be incorrupt. At this time, Pega also used a piece of glutinous salt, which had been previously consecrated by Guthlac, to cure the eyesight of a blind man who had travelled to Crowland from Wisbech.
Henry of Avranches, in his 13th-century poetic life of Guthlac, adds the detail that Guthlac banished Pega from Crowland after the devil assumed her appearance and tempted him to break his fast.
In the 15th-century Croyland Chronicle, Pseudo-Ingulf claims that Pega inherited Guthlac's psalter and scourge, both of which she later gave to Kenulph, the first abbot of Crowland Abbey.
Death, miracles and legacy
Pega went on pilgrimage to Rome after Guthlac's death and died there on 8 January 719, according to a 12th-century account by Orderic Vitalis. Orderic claims that her remains were kept at a church built in Rome in her honour, and that miracles took place there.
The precise location of Pega's hermitage is not known, but it is possible that it was on the site of the 13th-century chapel at St Pega's Hermitage in Peakirk, which is now a private residence.
| 2.28125
| 0
|
1488226
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breage
|
Breage
|
Breage or Breaca (with many variant spellings) is a saint venerated in Cornwall and South West England. According to her late hagiography, she was an Irish nun of the 5th or 6th century who founded a church in Cornwall. The village and civil parish of Breage in Cornwall are named after her, and the local Breage Parish Church is dedicated to her. She is a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church and Catholic Church.
Traditions
Breage Church was established by 1170, giving its name to the village and parish of Breage, Cornwall. However, little else is known of Saint Breage or her early cultus. She was the subject of a medieval hagiography, probably written in the 14th or 15th century. The work is lost, but the English antiquarian John Leland recorded some extracts in his Itinerary around 1540. The surviving text suggests an initial composition at or for Breage Church, as it contains a number of references to local places and gives Breage precedence over other saints of the region. The narrative is late and replete with stock elements and borrowings from other works, and as such is not considered historical. However, the author was certainly well versed in the hagiographical tradition, drawing from a Life of Brigid of Kildare, and evidently borrowing from Breton traditions of Saint Sithney and Lives of the local saints Elwen, Ia, and Gwinear.
| 2.375
| 0
|
1488226
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breage
|
Breage
|
According to Leland's text, Breage was born in the region of Lagonia and Ultonia in Ireland, an unclear description perhaps referring to Leinster and Ulster. She became a nun at an oratory founded by Saint Brigid of Kildare at Campus Breace (the Plain of Breague; modern Mag Breg in County Meath). Around 460, she travelled to Cornwall with a company of seven other Irish saints: Germoe, Senanus (Sithney), Mavuanus (perhaps Mawnan), Elwen, Crowan, Helena, and Tecla. They settled at Revyer on the River Hayle, but some were killed by the local ruler Tewdwr Mawr of Penwith, a tyrant appearing regularly in Cornish hagiographical works. Undeterred, Breage travelled through Cornwall, visiting the hill of Pencaire and establishing a church at Trenewith or Chynoweth. After her death the church was moved to its present location, and many miracles occurred at her tomb.
Other bits of traditions about Breage have also come down. The chronicler William Worcester wrote in 1478 that Breage's feast day was celebrated on 1 May, and that she was said to be buried at the church dedicated to her. An idiom recorded in nearby Germoe in the 18th century said that while that village's patron Saint Germoe was a king, "Breage was a midwife". In the 19th century, residents of St Levan held that Breage was the sister of the town's saint Selevan or Salaman. In later times Breage's feast day was celebrated on 4 June, and was evidently once a prominent feast in Cornwall and the Diocese of Exeter in Devon. A Breage Fair is held on the third Monday in June.
It was whilst visiting Breage, on the 8th. of January 1982, that the international film actor Grégoire Aslan died.
| 2.609375
| 0
|
1488226
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breage
|
Breage
|
Identity
Since the traditions about Breage that have come down are late, the veracity of the details are doubted. The hagiography is replete with stock elements: her association with other locally venerated saints as companions, her conflict with a heathen tyrant, and her establishment as a hermit in a remote part of the parish that was later named for her. Her Irish origin is suspect, as in this period in Cornwall it was common to attribute a fabricated Irish connection to obscure saints. In Breage's case it may have been suggested by the similarity between her name and the Campus Breace in the Life of Brigid.
As such, the traditions surrounding Breage appear to be later legend attached to a figure whose true history had been lost. There was a saint with a similar name active in the area during the Early Middle Ages, Brioc, whose feast day was 1 May, the same day that William Worcester gave for Breage. Brioc was male, but it is not uncommon for the gender of poorly remembered saints to have been switched over the years. In Brittany there was also a Saint Briac, who gave his name to a number of places in the region. However, all medieval mentions of Breage regard her as female, complicating an identification with similarly named male saints.
Later brief accounts of Breage, mostly adapted from Leland, appear in the works of Alban Butler and Sabine Baring-Gould.
| 2.671875
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
Coin's Financial School was an 1894 pamphlet written by lawyer, politician and resort founder William Hope Harvey (1851–1936). It advocated a return to bimetallism, where the value of a monetary unit is defined as a certain amount of two different kinds of metals, often gold and silver. In the book, Harvey charged that the demonetization of silver caused by the Coinage Act of 1873 led to the Panic of 1893 by halving the supply of available redemption money in the economy. This lowered the prices of goods throughout the country and hurt farmers and small business owners, according to Harvey. Harvey argued that by returning silver to the same monetary status as gold, the American economy would benefit from stabilized prices, resulting in higher revenue, and ease of repayment of debts. The pamphlet sold about 1 million copies, which helped popularize the free silver movement with the public. Harvey would go on to aid Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan’s presidential campaign in 1896, which ran on the platform of free coinage of silver. The issue of bimetallism remained controversial throughout the remainder of the 19th century.
Background
The Founding Fathers
The Coinage Act of 1792, passed under president George Washington, established silver and gold as the legal tender of the United States, as gold was to be coined into eagles ($10), half-eagles ($5) and quarter-eagles ($2.50). Silver was to be coined into dollars ($1), half-dollars ($0.50), quarter-dollars ($0.25), dimes ($0.10) and half-dimes ($0.05). While the Coinage Act provided with coinage of copper as cent ($0.01) and half-cent ($0.005), copper was not accepted as legal tender.
| 2.9375
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
The Gold Rush
In 1848, gold was discovered in Sutter's Mill, and the news of this discovery spread throughout the country. This would start a gold rush to the California territory. While merchants made more money than most miners did, it led to a substantial amount of gold flowing into the Treasury. Debate started in Congress on how to utilize the extra gold flowing into the reserves, and whether to abandon bimetallism in favor of the increasing supply of gold.
The Civil War and Beyond
During the American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln’s administration understood that the federal government would need millions of dollars to finance the war, and as the war dragged on, the government’s deficit and debt grew. It did not help that the previous administration, led by James Buchanan, left over $20 million budget deficit at the end of Buchanan’s term in 1861 as a result of a recession in 1857 that persisted throughout Buchanan’s term. More gold and silver left the nation to finance the war effort, reducing the nation’s resources in the long run, so Congress had metallic payments suspended in 1861 to stop the outflow. Lincoln and his Secretary of the Treasury, Salmon P. Chase, needed more loans to finance the war, but bankers, as a result of shaken public confidence, charged 24 percent in interests for the loans. As a solution, the government issued "demand notes", or federal notes requesting for a certain amount of money to be redeemed in gold or silver. In 1862, the government issued "greenbacks", which were unbacked notes that relied on government credit to retain value by themselves without the backing of metal. By the end of the war, gold was worth 1.5 greenback. This, combined with the amount of debt the government already owed, threatened the war-torn economy as it prepared to pay off its war debts.
| 2.984375
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
The first pages of the pamphlet introduced the reader to Coin, a young financier who held a financial school in the Art Institute of Chicago. Coin started his first lecture by outlining the financial problems that plagued the nation at the time. Still suffering from the Panic of 1893, the nation's crime rate, government budget deficit and unemployment remained dangerously high. He then introduced his audience to the basics of coinage in the United States, where in 1792, Congress passed the first Coinage Act. The Coinage Act defined a dollar as 371.25 grains of pure silver, as well as 24.7 grains of pure gold. In this case, both silver and gold were accepted as legal tenders of the United States, with a silver to gold exchange ratio of 15 to 1. The ratio was later changed to 16 to 1. Coin states that the Founding Fathers chose silver as the principal money because it was very commonly used among the working class as well as business owners. Gold was seen as the money of the rich, since the working and middle class rarely owned it, let alone handled it.
At that point, Joseph Medill, an editor from the Chicago Tribune, asked Coin about why only eight million silver dollars were coined during the bimetal period from 1792 to 1873. Coin corrected Medill by stating that it was not eight million silver dollars that were coined, but rather, it was eight million silver dollars that were coined, in addition to the eighty-nine million dollars in other silver coins, Coin added, there were 97 million dollars coined in halves, quarters and dimes18. Not only that, the United States received about 100 million dollars in foreign silver prior to 1860, further adding to the Treasury's silver reserves. Coin then claimed that silver was leaving the country by 1853 as a result of France establishing a ratio of 15.5 silver to 1 gold for its currency. To combat this, Congress lowered the amount of pure silver in its coins to prevent them from being exported.
| 3.125
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
The Second Day
The major newspapers in Chicago were taking note of Coin's first lecture, but all of them dismissed Coin as inconsequential and some others threw insults at the bimetallists such as "fraudulent free silverites" and "blatant orators". Coin started his second lesson in the Art Institute amid the increased media attention. Right after Coin called for start of the lesson, Lyman Gage, a prominent financier, asked Coin how two different metals can be coined at the same value at a fixed ratio when both metals fluctuate in value over time. Coin replied by noting that while prices are determined by the goods’ supply and demand, the government artificially inflated gold and silver's demand with free coinage. Under free coinage, the government took any gold and silver that came, effectively creating unlimited demand. To keep both metals from becoming infinitely expensive, the government artificially set a value for each metal to be used as units of money.
This was disrupted by the Coinage Act of 1873, according to Coin, as eliminating free coinage for silver also eliminated the unlimited demand for silver and its status as the legal tender. This made silver much more vulnerable to the market demands as all goods, including silver, was only redeemable in gold now. Coin then presented a chart to demonstrate the falling price of silver in comparison to gold, from hovering in between 15 and 16 silver per gold until 1873 to 23.72 silver per gold by 1892. Coin then claimed that there were $3,727,018,869 in gold and $3,820,571,346 in silver throughout the world. By eliminating silver as a legal tender, the world reduced its redemption money supply by a little over half, Coin concluded.
| 2.71875
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
The Third Day
Even more people showed interest in Coin's financial school, and more bimetallists joined Coin's lessons every day. Coin started off the day's lecture by distinguishing between the two kinds of credit money: paper money, which include bank notes, and token money, which are forms of metal that do not enjoy free coinage. Credit money was used as promises that the government will redeem the owner with the primary money, which in this case was gold. Coin pointed out that by abolishing free coinage of silver, the government turned silver from one of the primary money to a token money, no longer redeemable by itself. This, in turn, reduced the nation's supply of primary money by half. By reducing the nation's primary money supply, the government effectively rendered many checks and greenback bank notes more volatile, since they were no longer backed by properties, but by speculation and federal government's credit.
Coin then defined the three main forms of credit: credit, checks and bonds. Coin defined credit as paper bills and token money redeemable in primary money, checks as forms of paper payable on demand, and bonds as credit payable at some point in the future. Ideally, one would prefer to keep the amount of the three forms of credit as same as the amount of primary money backing them up. Coin explained that during a period of prosperity, more and more businessmen and entrepreneurs took debts to further investments in their businesses. When too much of the credit money was purchased compared to the available supply of redemption money, this created a loss of confidence in the banks as more and more buyers run to the bank to collect their money and debt payments before the banks run out of money. This, combined with the halved supply of primary money from silver losing its free coinage, made new debt all the riskier.
| 2.84375
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
The Sixth Day
Coin's demonstration of the size of all the gold in the world gained attention throughout the city, and prominent newspapers confirmed his report as true. Before a crowd of thousands gathering in the Art Institute, Coin began a fiery speech on the ills brought upon by the abandonment of bimetallism, and lamented the role England has had regarding America's switch to the gold standard. From there, he called for a war with England over the issue, charging that America was forced to pay $200 million in interests to England every year, an amount that is becoming harder to pay off as a result of the Panic of 1893. He also criticized the proponents of the gold standard within the United States, who believe England will return to bimetallism on its own. That was despite the fact that England raked in major profits by forcing other nations to make transactions redeemable in gold only. In making these points, Coin called for a trade war with England, with promises of the backing of fellow silver nations such as France, most of South America, India and Mexico. In this trade war, Coin proposed that United States use its position as England's leading trade partner to raise tariffs and force England to switch back to bimetallism if they want American money back to its economy. Coin rallied the crowd to back a trade war with England, and lobby Congress for bimetallism for the good of the U.S. economy. With that, Coin concluded his financial school.
Reception
The pamphlet sold around a million copies since 1894, and was instrumental in aiding William Jennings Bryan's 1896 presidential campaign. It would become the most popular advocate of bimetallism in the United States, but this also meant that it received plenty of criticism from gold standard advocates.
| 2.609375
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
Willard Fisher, an economist, summed up the criticism for Coin with connecting the Fourth Coinage Act and the two panics that happened afterwards. Panics of similar scope had happened under bimetallism as well, notably Panics of 1819 and 1837, so the connection to the Fourth Coinage Act and the panics were shaky, according to Fisher. Chicago banker Stanley Wood pointed out that prices of commodities fell not because of the rising gold prices, but because of the advancements in technology and equipment that drove down production costs. He also questioned how falling of prices could be bad for the economy, since lower prices are good for consumers, allowing them to invest in their businesses and households better. As for the debt crisis, he argued that the United States actually had less debt per capita compared to other leading nations: according to his sources, France's debt per capita is $200, Great Britain’s $84, and the United States’ $16 as of 1895, when Wood published his pamphlet. Not only is the country not in middle of a crisis, but given United States’ strong economic ties with Britain – Britain comprised 47% of America's exports at the time – it would be foolish to declare a trade war with Britain.
| 2.03125
| 0
|
1488230
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin%27s%20Financial%20School
|
Coin's Financial School
|
Michigan Banker and editor Edward Wisner made similar comments in his own response, "Cash vs. Coin", where he created a fictional financier, "Charley Cash" to serve as Coin's opponent. Through Cash, Wisner also points out that simply reestablishing silver as legal tender would not create value by itself – the government would have to buy all that silver using tax money. He also cites the 70 columns of Senate reports and 80 columns of House of Representatives reports to show that the Fourth Coinage Act was not passed in secret, as Coin had charged. He also differed on the primary cause of the Panic of 1893, claiming that it was in fact, silver proponents themselves who caused the loss of confidence in the dollar because of the government buying up too much overvalued, useless silver. By sticking to money that rest of the world no longer accepted, argued Wisner, the United States would cut the Dollar's value as it adds a bunch of useless money into the supply. This, in turn, would turn away foreign investors who fear that a dollar backed by less stable metal will struggle to hold its value.
In his "Lesson for Coin", lawyer and American Bar Association founder Everett Wheeler cited that even under free coinage of silver, rates of silver fluctuated from nation to nation according to their demands and supply, and that even before 1873, there was not an unlimited demand for silver, as silver was too bulky to use. Most people preferred paper notes and checks. He, like most of Coin's critics, spoke out against Coin's anti-British stance, pointing out Britain's position as America's leading trade partner, as well as its cultural ancestor.
| 2.71875
| 0
|
1488232
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False%20arrest
|
False arrest
|
Police officers
In the United States and other jurisdictions, police officers and other government officials are liable for clear deprivation of rights, but are partially shielded from false arrest lawsuits through the doctrine of qualified immunity, when such a violation qualifies as "not obvious," by a US Supreme Court test. This doctrine can protect officials from liability when engaged in legal grey areas including qualifying discretionary actions in the arrests of suspects. However, the officer's actions must still not violate "clearly established law," or this protection is void. This includes executing an arrest warrant against the wrong person. False statements by public servants to justify or cover up an illegal arrest are another violation of federal law.
An example of this doctrine being tested is Sorrell v. McGuigan (4th Cir. 2002). A police officer (McGuigan) detained a man shopping at a mall (Sorrell) based on the description of a suspect who had committed a theft at a store nearby, and proceeded to search him for weapons. The store owner who reported the theft arrived at the scene and stated Sorrell and his friends were not the ones who had stolen from him. However, the officer still arrested Sorrell for possession of a concealed weapon, because he was carrying a folding knife with a 3 inch long blade in his pocket. In Maryland, non-automatic folding knives are not considered weapons under state law regardless of their length, and the lack of length limit had been upheld multiple times in the state's highest court. However, the officer erroneously believed the knife to be a weapon. Sorrell was released immediately after booking and was never prosecuted as there was technically no crime, and sued the police officer for false arrest. The officer's qualified immunity was denied by the court, and this decision was upheld in the US Court of Appeals.
| 2.265625
| 0
|
1488236
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badme
|
Badme
|
Badme (, ) is a town in Gash-Barka region of Eritrea. Control of the town was at the centre of the Eritrean–Ethiopian border conflict, which lasted from the beginning of the Eritrean–Ethiopian War, in 1998, to the signing of a joint statement at the Eritrea–Ethiopia summit in 2018, twenty years later.
Territorial dispute
The boundaries of Ethiopia and Eritrea follow a frontier defined by the Treaty of Addis Ababa between Ethiopia and Italy, which ruled Eritrea as a colony at the time. However, the frontier near Badme was poorly defined in the treaty, and since Eritrea became a separate nation in 1993, each nation has disputed where the boundary actually runs. The town of Badme was ceded by the TPLF (the predecessor of the EPRDF, Ethiopia's former ruling party) to the EPLF (the predecessor of the PFDJ, Eritrea's ruling organization) in November 1977.
The Ethiopian government considered Badme as one of four towns in Tahtay Adiyabo woreda. In addition to Badme, other disputed areas along the Eritrean–Ethiopian border include Tsorona-Zalambessa and Bure.
In 2000, Eritrea and Ethiopia signed the Algiers Agreement, which forwarded the border dispute to a Hague boundary commission. In the agreement, both parties agreed in advance to comply with the ruling of the border commission. In 2002, the commission ruled on where the boundary ran, placing Badme inside Eritrean territory.
Despite initially agreeing to abide by the terms of the Algiers Agreement, Ethiopia rejected its ruling and refused to withdraw to the border established by the Eritrea–Ethiopia Boundary Commission. As a result, thousands of internally displaced people were in refugee camps and there was a threat of renewed war.
In 2002, authorities in Ethiopia's Tigray Region resettled some 210 people from central Tigray to Badme.
In 2005, Badme residents voted in Ethiopian elections for the first time since Eritrean independence in 1991.
| 2.03125
| 0
|
1488245
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burtas
|
Burtas
|
Burtas (, Burtasy; , Părtassem; , lar, ) were a tribe of uncertain ethnolinguistic affiliation inhabiting the steppe region north of the Caspian Sea in medieval times (modern Penza Oblast, Ulyanovsk Oblast and Saratov Oblast of the Russian Federation). They were subject to the Khazars.
History
In the 1380s or earlier at least part of them settled in Temnikov Principality. The Tatar-speaking Burtashi ethnic group is sometimes mentioned in forums.
Ethnic Identity
The ethnic identity of the Burtas is disputed, with several different theories ranging from them being a Uralic tribal confederacy (probably later assimilated to Turkic language), and therefore perhaps the ancestors of the modern Moksha people.
Some scholars maintain that the Burtas are supposed to be Turkic-speaking and ethnically related to the Volga Bulgars.
Recently some scholars have suggested that the Burtas were Alans or another Iranian ethnolinguistic group. An Alanic (Sarmatian) origin would also explain their name as furt/fort ('big river' in Middle Iranian language or 'beehive' in Turkic language) and the Alanic endonym as.
Some Soviet and modern Russian historians such as A.E Alikhova and A.N.Gren connected the Burtas to the Chechens and noted that their neighbour Avars call them "Burti".
| 2.5625
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyards (more usually termed Royal Dockyards) were state-owned harbour facilities where ships of the Royal Navy were built, based, repaired and refitted. Until the mid-19th century the Royal Dockyards were the largest industrial complexes in Britain.
From the reign of Henry VII up until the 1990s, the Royal Navy had a policy of establishing and maintaining its own dockyard facilities (although at the same time, as continues to be the case, it made extensive use of private shipyards, both at home and abroad). Portsmouth was the first Royal Dockyard, dating from the late 15th century; it was followed by Deptford, Woolwich, Chatham and others. By the 18th century, Britain had a string of these state-owned naval dockyards, located not just around the country but across the world; each was sited close to a safe harbour or anchorage used by the fleet. Royal Naval Dockyards were the core naval and military facilities of the four Imperial fortresses - colonies which enabled control of the Atlantic Ocean and its connected seas. The Royal Dockyards had a dual function: ship building and ship maintenance (most yards provided for both but some specialised in one or the other). Over time, they accrued additional on-site facilities for the support, training and accommodation of naval personnel.
For centuries, in this way, the name and concept of a Royal Dockyard was largely synonymous with that of a naval base. In the early 1970s, following the appointment of civilian Dockyard General Managers with cross-departmental authority, and a separation of powers between them and the Dockyard Superintendent (commanding officer), the term 'Naval Base' began to gain currency as an official designation for the latter's domain. 'Royal Dockyard' remained an official designation of the associated shipbuilding/maintenance facilities until 1997, when the last remaining Royal Dockyards (Devonport and Rosyth) were fully privatised.
Function
| 2.765625
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
Most Royal Dockyards were built around docks and slips. Traditionally, slipways were used for shipbuilding, and dry docks (also called graving docks) for maintenance; (dry docks were also sometimes used for building, particularly pre-1760 and post-1880). Regular hull maintenance was important: in the age of sail, a ship's wooden hull would be comprehensively inspected every 2–3 years, and its copper sheeting replaced every 5. Dry docks were invariably the most expensive component of any dockyard (until the advent of marine nuclear facilities). Where there was no nearby dock available (as was often the case at the overseas yards) ships would sometimes be careened (beached at high tide) to enable necessary work to be done. In the age of sail, wharves and capstan-houses were often built for the purpose of careening at yards with no dock: a system of pulleys and ropes, attached to the masthead, would be used to heel the ship over giving access to the hull.
In addition to docks and slips, a Royal Dockyard had various specialist buildings on site: storehouses, sail lofts, woodworking sheds, metal shops and forges, roperies (in some cases), pumping stations (for emptying the dry docks), administration blocks and housing for the senior dockyard officers. Wet docks (usually called basins) accommodated ships while they were being fitted out. The number and size of dockyard basins increased dramatically in the steam era. At the same time, large factory complexes, machine-shops and foundries sprung up alongside for the manufacture of engines and other components (including the metal hulls of the ships themselves).
| 2.640625
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
One thing generally absent from the Royal Dockyards (until the 20th century) was the provision of naval barracks. Prior to this time, sailors were not usually quartered ashore at all, they were expected to live on board a ship (the only real exception being at some overseas wharves where accommodation was provided for crews whose ships were being careened). When a ship was decommissioned at the end of a voyage or tour of duty, most of her crew were dismissed or else transferred to new vessels. Alternatively, if a vessel was undergoing refit or repair, her crew was often accommodated on a nearby hulk; a dockyard often had several commissioned hulks moored nearby, serving various purposes and accommodating various personnel, including new recruits. Things began to change when the Admiralty introduced more settled terms of service in 1853; nevertheless, thirty years were to pass before the first shore barrack opened, and a further twenty years before barracks at all three of the major home yards were finally completed. Through the course of the 20th century these barracks, together with their associated training and other facilities, became defining features of each of these dockyards.
In 1985 Parliament was given the following description of the functions of the two then remaining Royal Dockyards:
"The services provided by the royal dockyards at Devonport and Rosyth to the Royal Navy fall into five main categories as follows:
(a) Refit, repair, maintenance and modernisation of Royal Navy vessels;
(b) Overhaul and testing of naval equipments, including those to be returned to the Director General of Stores and Transport (Navy) for stock and subsequent issue to the Royal Navy;
(c) Installation and maintenance of machinery and equipment in naval establishments;
(d) Provision of utility services to Royal Navy vessels alongside in the naval base and to adjacent naval shore establishments; and
(e) manufacture of some items of ships' equipment".
Nomenclature
| 2.25
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
The origins of the Royal Dockyards are closely linked with the permanent establishment of a standing Navy in the early sixteenth century. The beginnings of a yard had already been established at Portsmouth with the building of a dry dock in 1496; but it was on the Thames in the reign of Henry VIII that the Royal Dockyards really began to flourish. Woolwich and Deptford dockyards were both established in the early 1510s (a third yard followed at Erith but this was short-lived as it proved to be vulnerable to flooding). The Thames yards were pre-eminent in the sixteenth century, being conveniently close to the merchants and artisans of London (for shipbuilding and supply purposes) as well as to the Armouries of the Tower of London. They were also just along the river from Henry's palace at Greenwich. As time went on, though, they suffered from the silting of the river and the constraints of their sites.
By the mid-seventeenth century, Chatham (established 1567) had overtaken them to become the largest of the yards. Together with new Yards at Harwich and Sheerness, Chatham was well-placed to serve the Navy in the Dutch Wars that followed. Apart from Harwich (which closed in 1713), all the yards remained busy into the eighteenth century – including Portsmouth (which, after a period of dormancy, had now begun to grow again). In 1690, Portsmouth had been joined on the south coast by a new Royal Dockyard at Plymouth; a hundred years later, as Britain renewed its enmity with France, these two yards gained new prominence and pre-eminence.
| 2.421875
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
Furthermore, Royal Dockyards began to be opened in some of Britain's colonial ports, to service the fleet overseas. Yards were opened in Jamaica (as early as 1675), Antigua (1725), Gibraltar (1704), Canada (Halifax, 1759) and several other locations. Following the loss of the thirteen North American continental colonies thet formed the United States of America in 1783, Bermuda assumed a new importance as the only remaining British port between the Maritimes and the Floridas (where the Spanish Government allowed Britain to retain a naval base; once the United States took possession of Florida, Bermuda was the only British port remaining between the Maritimes and the British West Indies, being somewhat nearer Nova Scotia). Being more defensible than Halifax, Nova Scotia, and in a position to command the American seaboard (the nearest landfall being Cape Hatteras at 640 miles), the Admiralty began buying land at Bermuda's West End in 1795 for the development of what would become the main base, dockyard and headquarters for the North America and West Indies Station until United States Navy control of the region under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization led to HMD Bermuda being reduced to a naval base from 1951 until its final closure (as HMNB Bermuda) in 1995 (and to the abolishment of the America and West Indies Station in 1956).
In the wake of the Seven Years' War a large-scale programme of expansion and rebuilding was undertaken at the three largest home yards (Chatham, Plymouth and Portsmouth). These highly significant works (involving land reclamation and excavation, as well as new docks and slips and buildings of every kind) lasted from 1765 to 1808, and were followed by a comprehensive rebuilding of the Yard at Sheerness (1815–23).
| 2.375
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
Management of the yards was in the hands of the Navy Board until 1832. The Navy Board was represented in each yard by a resident commissioner (though Woolwich and Deptford, being close to the City of London, were for some time overseen directly by the Navy Board). The resident commissioners had wide-ranging powers enabling them to act in the name of the board (particularly in an emergency); however, until 1806 they did not have direct authority over the principal officers of the yard (who were answerable directly to the board). This could often be a source of tension, as everyone sought to guard their own autonomy.
The principal officers varied over time, but generally included:
the Master-Shipwright (in charge of shipbuilding, ship repair/maintenance and management of the associated workforce)
the Master Attendant (in charge of launching and docking ships, of ships 'in ordinary' at the yard, and of ship movements around the harbour)
the Storekeeper (in charge of receiving, maintaining and issuing items in storage)
the Clerk of the Cheque (in charge of pay, personnel and certain transactions)
the Clerk of the Survey (in charge of maintaining a regular account of equipment and the transfer of goods)
(In practice there was a deliberate overlap of responsibilities among the last three officials listed above, as a precaution against embezzlement).
The next tier of officers included those in charge of particular areas of activity, the Master-Caulker, Master-Ropeworker, Master-Boatbuilder, Master-Mastmaker.
In Dockyards where there was a ropewalk (viz Woolwich, Chatham, Portsmouth and Plymouth) there was an additional officer, the Clerk of the Ropeway, who had a degree of autonomy, mustering his own personnel and managing his own raw materials.
Ships in commission (and along with them the majority of Naval personnel) were not under the authority of the Navy Board but rather of the Admiralty, which meant that they did not answer to any of the above officers, but rather to the Port Admiral.
| 2.203125
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
After 1832
With the abolition of the Navy Board in 1832, the Admiralty took over the dockyards and the commissioners were replaced by Admiral-Superintendents.
The Clerk of the Survey post had been abolished in 1822. The office of Clerk of the Cheque was likewise abolished in 1830 (its duties reverting to the Storekeeper), but then revived as the Cashier's Department in 1865.
With the development of steam technology in the 1840s came the senior Dockyard appointment of Chief Engineer.
In 1875, the Master-Shipwrights were renamed Chief Constructors (later styled Manager, Constructive Department or MCD).
In the latter half of the 19th century, those being appointed as Master Attendants (in common with their namesakes the sailing Masters) began to be commissioned. They began to be given the rank and appointment of "Staff Captain (Dockyard)" (modified in 1903 to "Captain of the Dockyard"). In several instances, the appointment of Master Attendant or Captain of the Dockyard was held in common with that of King's or Queen's Harbour Master.
For much of the twentieth century, the principal Dockyard departments were overseen by:
Captain of the Dockyard
Manager, Constructive Department (MCD)
Manager, Engineering Department (MED)
Senior Electrical Engineer (SEE)
Senior Naval Stores Officer (SNSO)
Associated establishments
| 2.25
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
Ships' ordnance (guns, weapons and ammunition) was provided independently by the Board of Ordnance, which set up its own Ordnance Yards alongside several of the Royal Dockyards both at home and abroad. Similarly, the Victualling Board established Victualling Yards in several Dockyard locations, which furnished warships with their provisions of food, beer and rum. In the mid-eighteenth century the Sick and Hurt Board established Naval Hospitals in the vicinity of Plymouth Dock and Portsmouth; by the mid-nineteenth century there were Royal Naval Hospitals close to most of the major and minor Naval Dockyards in Britain, in addition to several of them overseas (the oldest dating from the early 1700s). As the age of steam eclipsed the age of sail, Coaling Yards were established alongside several yards, and at strategic points around the globe.
In addition to naval personnel and civilian workers, there were substantial numbers of military quartered in the vicinity of the Royal Dockyards. These were there to ensure the defence of the yard and its ships. From the 1750s, naval yards in Britain were surrounded by 'lines' (fortifications) with barracks provided for the soldiers manning them. A century later these 'lines' were superseded by networks of Palmerston Forts. Overseas yards also usually had some fort or similar structure provided and manned nearby. Moreover, the Royal Marines, from the time of the Corps' establishment in the mid-18th century, were primarily based in the dockyard towns of Plymouth, Portsmouth and Chatham (and later also in Woolwich and Deal) where their barracks were conveniently placed for duties on board ship or indeed in the Dockyard itself.
United Kingdom dockyards
Royal Dockyards were established in Britain and Ireland as follows (in chronological order, with date of establishment):
| 2.546875
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda on Ireland Island at Bermuda's 'West End', was opened in 1809 on land purchased following US independence. The Royal Navy had established itself at St. George's Town at Bermuda's East End in 1795, after a dozen years spent charting the surrounding reef line to find a channel suitable for ships of the line, but following the American War of 1812 it began relocating entirely to the West End with the dockyard and Admiralty House, Bermuda moved to sites on opposite sides of the entrance to the Great Sound). The main anchorage at the West End was Grassy Bay in the mouth of the Great Sound, although the original, Murray's Anchorage north of St. George's Island also remained in frequent use. The channel through the barrier reef, which led to Murray's Anchorage and the Great Sound, was originally named Hurd's Channel, after its surveyor, Lieutenant (later Captain) Thomas Hurd, but is today more frequently called The Narrows. It gives access not only to Murray's Anchorage (named for Commander-in-Chief Vice-Admiral Sir George Murray, who led the fleet of the North American Station through the channel to anchor there for the first time in 1794) but to the entire northern lagoon, the Great Sound and Hamilton Harbour, making the channel vital to the success of the Town of Hamilton, which had been established in 1790, and the economic development of the central and western parishes of Bermuda. Although the navy had already begun buying property at the West End with the intent of constructing the dockyard there, there was little infrastructure west of St. George's at the time and no functional port at Ireland Island, hence the need at first to operate from St. George's Town, with Admiralty House first on Rose Hill in St. George's, then at Mount Wyndham above Bailey's Bay. Convict Bay, beside St. George's Town and below the army barracks of St. George's Garrison, became the first base, with other properties at the East End leased or acquired to support it
| 2.515625
| 0
|
1488253
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal%20Navy%20Dockyard
|
Royal Navy Dockyard
|
. The blockade of US Atlantic ports during the American War of 1812 was orchestrated from Bermuda, as was the Chesapeake Campaign. Admiralty House moved in 1816 to Spanish Point (near to the new Government House and the Town of Hamilton, which has become the colonial capital in 1815), facing Ireland Island and Grassy Bay across the mouth of the Great Sound, with the concurrent move of the anchorage and shore facilities to the West End. Bermuda became, first the winter (with Halifax serving this role in the summer), and then the year-round, main base and dockyard of the station, which was to become the North America and West Indies Station after absorbing the Jamaica Station (ultimately designated the America and West Indies Station, once it absorbed the areas that had formerly belonged to the South East Coast of America Station and the Pacific Station). Aside from the roles played by Royal Naval squadrons based at Bermuda during the two world wars, Bermuda also served as a forming-up point for trans-Atlantic convoys during both conflicts. Between the wars, a Royal Naval Air Station was established in the North Yard of the dockyard. Operated by the Royal Air Force on the navy's behalf until the Royal Navy took over complete responsibility for the Fleet Air Arm in 1939, this was originally tasked with maintenance, repair, and replacement of the floatplanes and flying-boats with which the station's cruisers were equipped. With the outbreak of the Second World War, the air station, which relocated to Boaz Island, began flying anti-submarine air patrols on an ad hoc basis until the handing this duty over to United States Navy patrol aircraft. The United States Navy and United States Army were permitted to establish bases in Bermuda under 99-year leases during the war, with command of the North Atlantic split between the Royal Navy in the East and the United States in the West
| 2.65625
| 0
|
1488258
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip%20Barton%20Key%20II
|
Philip Barton Key II
|
Sickles saw Key sitting on a bench outside the Sickles home on February 27, 1859, signalling to Teresa, and confronted him. Sickles rushed outside into Lafayette Square, cried "Key, you scoundrel, you have dishonored my home; you must die", and with a pistol repeatedly shot the unarmed Key.
Key was taken into the nearby Benjamin Ogle Tayloe House, where he died some time later.
Sickles was acquitted based on temporary insanity, a crime of passion, in one of the most controversial trials of the 19th century. It was the first successful use of the defense in the United States. One of Sickles' attorneys, Edwin Stanton, later became the Secretary of War. Newspapers declared Sickles a hero for "saving" women from Key. Years later, while attending the theater in New York City, Sickles became aware of the presence of Key's son, James Key, in the audience; both men watched each other throughout the performance. Nothing else happened.
Key is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, with a dedicatory in his son-in-law's family plot in Westminster Hall and Burying Ground in Baltimore.
| 2.1875
| 0
|
1488262
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akelarre
|
Akelarre
|
Akelarre is a Basque term meaning Witches' Sabbath (a gathering of those practicing witchcraft). Akerra means male goat in the Basque language. Witches' sabbaths were envisioned as presided over by a goat.
The word has been loaned to Castilian Spanish (which uses the spelling Aquelarre). It has been used in Castilian Spanish since the Basque witch trials of the 17th century.
The word is most famous as the title of the witchcraft painting by Francisco Goya in the Museo del Prado, which depicts witches in the company of a huge male goat.
Etymology
The most common etymology proposed is that meaning meadow (larre) of the male goat (aker "buck, billy goat"). The Spanish Inquisition accused people of worshipping a black goat, related to the worship of Satan. An alternative explanation could be that it originally was alkelarre, alka being a local name for the herb Dactylis hispanica. In this case, the first etymology would have been a manipulation of the Inquisition, the fact being that the Basques did not know during the 1609-1612 persecution period or later what the "akelarre" referred to by the inquisitors meant. The word "aquelarre" is first attested in 1609 in a Spanish-language inquisitorial briefing, as synonym to junta diabólica, meaning 'diabolic assembly'. Basque terms, transcribed into Spanish texts often by monolingual Spanish-language copyists, were fraught with mistakes.
Nevertheless, the black he-Goat or Akerbeltz is known in Basque mythology to be an attribute of goddess Mari and is found in a Roman-age slab as a votive dedication: Aherbelts Deo ("to the god Aherbelts") (see: Aquitanian language)..
Places called Akelarre
| 2.703125
| 0
|
1488266
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St.%20Clair%20Tunnel
|
St. Clair Tunnel
|
Steam locomotives were used in the early years to pull trains through the tunnel, however concerns about the potential dangers of suffocation should a train stall in the tunnel led to the installation of catenary wires for electric-powered locomotives by 1907. The first use of electric locomotives through the tunnel in regular service occurred on May 17, 1908. The locomotives were built by Baldwin-Westinghouse.
A total of six electric locomotives were supplied by 1909. Each were equipped with three 240 horse power single phase motors and weighed 65 tons. They had a rigid wheel base and operated on a 3,300-volt, 25 cycle, single phase current. They had a maximum draw bar pull of 40,000 pounds, and a running draw bar pull of at . According to a 1909 publication, it was standard practice to use two units together to pull a 1,000 ton train up the 2% grade. The entire length of the electric line was and the trains were able to have a running speed of to . The Grand Trunk Railway used the locomotives to transfer both passenger and freight trains through the tunnel.
In 1923, the GTR was nationalized by Canada's federal government, which then merged the bankrupt railway into the recently formed Canadian National Railway. CN also assumed control of Grand Trunk Western as a subsidiary and the tunnel company and continued operations much as before.
The electric-powered locomotives were retired in 1958 and scrapped in 1959 after CN withdrew its last steam locomotives on trains passing through the tunnel. New diesel locomotives did not cause the same problems with air quality in this relatively short tunnel.
Freight cars
After the World War II, railways in North America started to see the dimensions of freight cars increase. Canadian National (identified as CN after 1960) was forced to rely upon rail ferries to carry freight cars, such as hicube boxcars, automobile carriers, certain intermodal cars and chemical tankers, which exceeded the limits of the tunnel's dimensions.
| 2.6875
| 0
|
1488309
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atemajac%20de%20Brizuela
|
Atemajac de Brizuela
|
Atemajac de Brizuela is a municipality and small town in the southeast sierra of Jalisco, Mexico, 64 km southwest of Guadalajara, between Highways 80 and 401. The municipality had a population of 6,367 in 2014.
The town received some notice in July 2008 in the nationally syndicated American comic strip Gil Thorp as the place to which Milford High baseball player—an undocumented immigrant—Elmer Vargas is deported.
History
The region was inhabited by Otomi, head Indians. The spiritual conquest was mainly carried out by the Franciscan Juna de Padilla. The town was first in the place called Jaconoxtle and in the first half of the eighteenth century settled on the current site. With the conquest, Atemajac was nestled among the towns of the so-called Province of Ávalos and subsequently the provinces attached to Nueva Galicia were left.
On November 22, 1824, by Art. 9 (which adds the articles of the State Provisional Division Plan) it was decreed: The towns of Atemajac and Juanacatlán will be added to the department of Zacoalco. It belonged to the fourth canton of Sayula and third department of Zacoalco.
On April 25, 1903, by decree 997, the State Congress issued a decree that says: The population of Atemajac de las Tablas, from the 4th Canton of the state, will be referred to as Atemajac de Brizuela. Such designation was in honor of Colonel Miguel Brizuela. Atemajac de Brizuela exists as a municipality since 1884, by decree of April 4 called before Atemajac de las Tablas.
Geography
Location
Atemajac de Brizuela is located south of the state at coordinates 20º05'00 "at 20º16'30" north latitude, and 103º35'00 "at 103º57'20" west longitude, at a height of 2,250 meters above the level from sea.
| 1.929688
| 0
|
1488309
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atemajac%20de%20Brizuela
|
Atemajac de Brizuela
|
The municipality of Atemajac de Brizuela borders to the north with the municipalities of Cocula, Villa Corona, Zacoalco de Torres; to the east with the municipalities of Zacoalco de Torres, Techaluta de Montenegro; to the south with the municipalities of Techaluta de Montenegro, Tapalpa and Chiquilistlán; to the west with the municipalities of Chiquilistlán, Tecolotlán and Cocula.
Topography
The rugged areas (53%) predominate with heights ranging from 2,250 to 2,600 meters above sea level in some of the foothills of the Sierra de Tapalpa. There are also flat areas (30%) with heights of 2,200 to 2,250 meters above sea level and semi-flat areas (17%).
Terrain
The territory is made up of land belonging to the tertiary period. The composition of the soils is of predominant types Feozem Háplico, Cambisol Chromic and Andosol Mólica. The municipality has a territorial area of 19,157 ha, of which 5,229 are used for agricultural purposes, 3,394 in livestock, 10,361 are for forest use and 173 hectares are urban land. As far as the property is concerned, an extension of 10,604 hectares is private and another of 8,553 hectares is ejidal; There is no communal property.
Hydrography
The hydrological resources available to the municipality are: the Carrizal River; the streams: Agua Prieta, San Juan and El Salto; there are also several springs.
Climate
The climate is semi-dry, with dry winter, and mild, with mild winter. The average annual temperature is 19 °C, with a maximum of 26 °C and a minimum of 0 °C. The rainfall regime is recorded in the months of June and July, with an average rainfall of 814.5 millimeters. The annual average of days with frosts is 39. The prevailing winds are in the northwest direction.
Government
Municipal presidents
| 2.609375
| 0
|
1488311
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral%20ventricles
|
Lateral ventricles
|
The lateral ventricles are the two largest ventricles of the brain and contain cerebrospinal fluid. Each cerebral hemisphere contains a lateral ventricle, known as the left or right lateral ventricle, respectively.
Each lateral ventricle resembles a C-shaped cavity that begins at an inferior horn in the temporal lobe, travels through a body in the parietal lobe and frontal lobe, and ultimately terminates at the interventricular foramina where each lateral ventricle connects to the single, central third ventricle. Along the path, a posterior horn extends backward into the occipital lobe, and an anterior horn extends farther into the frontal lobe.
Structure
Each lateral ventricle takes the form of an elongated curve, with an additional anterior-facing continuation emerging inferiorly from a point near the posterior end of the curve; the junction is known as the trigone of the lateral ventricle. The centre of the superior curve is referred to as the body, while the three remaining portions are known as horns (cornua in Latin); they are usually referred to by their position relative to the body (anterior, posterior, or inferior), or sometimes by the lobe of the cerebral cortex into which they extend. Though somewhat flat, the lateral ventricles have a vaguely triangular cross-section. Ependyma, which are neuroepithelial cells, line the ventricular system including the lateral ventricles.
| 3.296875
| 0
|
1488311
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral%20ventricles
|
Lateral ventricles
|
Between the inferior horn and the main body of the ventricle is the putamen, which emerges from the head of the caudate nucleus, and sits above the tapetum; a small number of further connections passing through the occipital tapetum to join the putamen to portions of the caudate nucleus tail adjoining the anterior horn. Below the putamen sits the globus pallidus, with which it connects. These structures bounding the lateral ventricles form a frame curving around the thalamus, which itself constitutes the main structure bounding the third ventricle. Were it not for the choroid plexus, a cleft-like opening would be all that lay between the lateral ventricle and the thalamus; this cleft constitutes the lower part of the choroid fissure. The thalamus primarily communicates with the structures bounding the lateral ventricles via the globus pallidus, and the anterior extremities of the fornix (the mamillary bodies).
Anterior horns of the lateral ventricle
The anterior horn of the lateral ventricle is also known as the frontal horn as it extends into the frontal lobe. The anterior horn connects to the third ventricle, via the interventricular foramen. This portion of the lateral ventricle impinges on the frontal lobe, passing anteriorly and laterally, with slight inclination inferiorly. It is separated from the anterior horn of the other lateral ventricle by a thin neural sheet - septum pellucidum, which thus forms its medial boundary. The boundary facing exterior to the ventricle curvature is formed by the corpus callosum - the floor at the limit of the ventricle is the upper surface of the rostrum (the reflected portion of the corpus callosum), while nearer the body of the ventricle, the roof consists of the posterior surface of the genu. The remaining boundary - that facing interior to the ventricle curvature - comprises the posterior edge of the caudate nucleus. Frontal horn cysts are sometimes found on the frontal horn as a normal variant.
| 2.8125
| 0
|
1488311
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral%20ventricles
|
Lateral ventricles
|
Body of the lateral ventricle
The body of the lateral ventricle, or central part is the part of the ventricle between the anterior horn and the trigone. Its roof is bound by the tapetum of the corpus callosum - and is separated medially from the other lateral ventricle by the septum pellucidum. The tail of the caudate nucleus forms the upper portion of the lateral edge, but it is not large enough to cover the whole boundary. Immediately below the tail of the caudate nucleus, the next portion of the lateral edge is formed by the comparatively narrow stria terminalis, which sits upon the superior thalamostriate vein. The main part of the fornix of the brain forms the next narrow portion of the lateral boundary, which is completed medially by a choroid plexus, which serves both ventricles.
Trigone of the lateral ventricle
The trigone of the lateral ventricle is the area where the part of the body forms a junction with the inferior horn and the posterior horn. This area is referred to as the atrium of the lateral ventricle, and is where the choroid plexus is enlarged as the choroid glomus. As a triangular surface feature of the floor of this part of the lateral ventricle it is known as the collateral trigone.
Posterior horn of the lateral ventricle
The posterior horn of lateral ventricle, or occipital horn, impinges into the occipital lobe in a posterior direction, initially laterally but subsequently curving medially and lilting inferiorly on the lateral side. The tapetum of the corpus callosum continues to form the roof, which due to the lilt is also the lateral edge. However, the posterior and anterior ends of the corpus callosum are characterized by tighter bundling, known as forceps (due to the resulting shape), to curve around the central sulci; the edge of these forceps form the upper part of the medial side of the posterior horn. The remainder of the medial edge of the ventricle is directly in contact with white matter of the cortex of the occipital lobe.
Inferior horn of the lateral ventricle
| 2.75
| 0
|
1488311
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral%20ventricles
|
Lateral ventricles
|
The inferior horn of the lateral ventricle, or temporal horn, is the largest of the horns. It extends anteriorly from the atrium beneath the thalamus and terminates at the amygdala. The collateral eminence and hippocampus form the floor, which is separated from the hippocampus by a white matter layer called the alveus, whereas the roof is formed by the thalamus, the caudate nucleus, and tapetum. The stria terminalis forms the remainder of the roof, which is narrower than at the body, and the choroid plexus occupies the medial wall.
The tapetum for the temporal lobe comprises the lateral boundary of the inferior horn, on its way to join the main tapetum above the body of the ventricle (passing over the caudate nucleus as it does so). The majority of the inferior horn's floor is formed by the fimbria of the hippocampus (from which the fornix emerges), and then, more anteriorly, by the hippocampus itself. As with the posterior horn, the remainder of the boundary (in this case, the lateral side of the floor) is directly in contact with the white matter of the surrounding lobe.
Development
The lateral ventricles, similarly to other parts of the ventricular system of the brain, develop from the central canal of the neural tube. Specifically, the lateral ventricles originate from the portion of the tube that is present in the developing prosencephalon, and subsequently in the developing telencephalon.
During the first three months of prenatal development, the central canal expands into lateral, third, and fourth ventricles, connected by thinner channels. In the lateral ventricles, specialized areas – choroid plexuses – appear, which produce cerebrospinal fluid. The neural canal that does not expand and remains the same at the level of the midbrain superior to the fourth ventricle forms the cerebral aqueduct. The fourth ventricle narrows at the obex (in the caudal medulla), to become the central canal of the spinal cord.
| 2.703125
| 0
|
1488320
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No-communication%20theorem
|
No-communication theorem
|
In physics, the no-communication theorem (also referred to as the no-signaling principle) is a no-go theorem in quantum information theory. It asserts that during the measurement of an entangled quantum state, it is impossible for one observer to transmit information to another observer, regardless of their spatial separation. This conclusion preserves the principle of causality in quantum mechanics and ensures that information transfer does not violate special relativity by exceeding the speed of light.
The theorem is significant because quantum entanglement creates correlations between distant events that might initially appear to enable faster-than-light communication. The no-communication theorem establishes conditions under which such transmission is impossible, thus resolving paradoxes like the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) paradox and addressing the violations of local realism observed in Bell's theorem. Specifically, it demonstrates that the failure of local realism does not imply the existence of "spooky action at a distance," a phrase originally coined by Einstein.
Informal overview
The no-communication theorem states that, within the context of quantum mechanics, it is not possible to transmit classical bits of information by means of carefully prepared mixed or pure states, whether entangled or not. The theorem is only a sufficient condition that states that if the Kraus matrices commute then there can be no communication through the quantum entangled states and that this is applicable to all communication. From a relativity and quantum field perspective, also faster than light or "instantaneous" communication is disallowed. Being only a sufficient condition, there can be other reasons communication is not allowed.
| 2.25
| 0
|
1488363
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asor
|
Asor
|
The asor ( ʿasor; from עשר eśer, meaning "ten") was a musical instrument "of ten strings" mentioned in the Bible. There is little agreement on what sort of instrument it was or to what instruments it had similarities.
Biblical references
The word occurs only three times in the Bible, and has not been traced elsewhere. In Psalm 33:2 the reference is to "kinnor, nebel and asor" (); in Psalm 92:3, to "nebel and asor"; in Psalm 144 to "nebel-asor".
In the King James Version asor is translated "an instrument of ten strings", with a marginal note "omit" applied to "instrument". In the Septuagint, the word being derived from a root signifying "ten", the Greek is ἐν δεκαχορδῷ or ψαλτήριον δεκάχορδον, in the Vulgate in decachordo psalterio. Each time the word asor is used it follows the word nebel, and probably merely indicates a variant of the nebel, having ten strings instead of the customary twelve assigned to it by Josephus.
Bibliography
Hermann Mendel and August Reissmann, Musikalisches Conversations-Lexikon, vol. 1 (Berlin, 1881)
Sir John Stainer, The Music of the Bible,
Forkel, Allgemeine Geschichte der Musik, vol.1 (Leipzig, 1788).
| 2.609375
| 0
|
1488367
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tocaima
|
Tocaima
|
Tocaima () refers to both a city and a municipality in Cundinamarca, Colombia.
City
The city of Tocaima was founded on March 20, 1544 as San Dionisio de los Caballeros de Tocaima by the Spanish explorer Hernán Venegas Carrillo. This small city is most well known for being a warm vacation site during religious holidays, especially for college students from Bogotá and other surrounding areas.
The town is crossed by the Pati River, which sometimes floods the town.
History
Before Spanish colonization, the area was home to the Guacana, an Amerindian tribe belonging to the Panche Amerindian Nation. Tocaima was named in honor of a legendary warrior from this tribe, during the ruling period of the Cacica Guacana.
It is believed that Tocaima is the only city in the Cundinamarca Department that presently has a royal title and coat of arms issued by the Spanish Monarchy. Charles V issued the royal title and coat of arms on February 7, 1549, in appreciation of the city's loyalty and fame for being a powerful and wealthy region.
In 1581, the city was completely destroyed by an exceptionally devastating flood of the Pati River. President Juan de Borja sent Captain Martin de Ocampo to refound the city, which he did on March 18, 1621 by constructing the Convent of San Jacinto and its contiguous chapel.
During the decolonization of Colombia from Spain in 1810, Tocaima was represented in the electoral and constitutional college by jurist Miguel de Tobar y Zerrato and Don Juan Salvador Rodriguez de Lago. The Cabildo, or colonial administrative council, was re-established that same year.
The new Constitution of Cundinamarca, created in 1815, divided the nation into cantons, which provoked a confrontation between the Tocaima Canton and the neighboring Canton of La Mesa. In 1816, Spain re-conquered the colonies and subsequently repressed the newly created government.
| 2.765625
| 0
|
1488377
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proton%20%28satellite%20program%29
|
Proton (satellite program)
|
Proton () ('proton') was a Soviet series of four cosmic ray and elementary particle detecting satellites. Orbited 1965–68, three on test flights of the UR-500 ICBM and one on a Proton-K rocket, all four satellites completed their missions successfully, the last reentering the Earth's atmosphere in 1969.
Background
The Proton satellites were heavy automated laboratories launched 1965–68 to study high energy particles and cosmic rays. These satellites were built to utilize the test launches of the UR-500, a heavy two-stage ICBM designed by Vladimir Chelomey's OKB-52 to carry a 100-megaton nuclear payload. Each Proton was housed in a purpose-built third stage added to the UR-500 stack.
Spacecraft design
Protons 1–3 were largely identical craft massing , with scientific packages developed under the supervision of Academician Sergey Nikolayevich Vernov of Moscow State University's Scientific-Research Institute of Nuclear Physics. Experiments included a gamma-ray telescope, a scintillator telescope, and proportional counters. The counters were able to determine the total energy of each super-high energy cosmic particle individually, a capability no prior satellite had possessed. Though the equipment had been developed eight years earlier (by Professor N. L. Grigorov), the UR-500 was the first booster powerful enough to orbit a satellite carrying the sensitive particle counter. The counters could measure cosmic rays with energy levels up to 100 million eV.
Proton 3 also was equipped with a gas-Cerenkov-scintillator telescope to attempt to detect the newly postulated fundamental particle, the quark. The entire experiment package massed and was composed of metal, plastic, and paraffin blocks.
Telemetry was relayed via a 19.910 MHz beacon. Four solar panels powered the crafts, which were cooled by heat exchangers. The Protons were spin-stabilized, their attitude controlled by jet and an on-board dampener. Satellite systems were controlled by an internal computer.
| 2.5
| 0
|
1488377
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proton%20%28satellite%20program%29
|
Proton (satellite program)
|
After the end of the run of UR-500 test launches, the rocket (now designated Proton) and its successors were largely employed in the launch of the Zond lunar spacecraft. However, on 16 November 1968 11:40 UTC, the final and much larger Proton 4 was launched into orbit via Proton-K rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 81/24 to continue the search for the quark and supplement the earlier Proton satellites' cosmic ray measurements. This final Proton reentered Earth's atmosphere on 24 July 1969.
Legacy
The Proton satellites were heralded by Soviet media as the start of a new stage in Soviet space exploration. The success of Proton afforded Chelomey a status in the Soviet rocket industry equal to that of Sergei Korolev of OKB-1 (developer of Sputnik, Vostok, and Voskhod) and Mikhail Yangel of OKB-456 (an important designer of military missiles). The UR-500, originally named "Gerkules" () ('Hercules'), was renamed "Proton" when news reports conflated the launcher and its payload. Though the Proton was never used in the ICBM role it had been built for, the rocket became an extraordinarily successful booster for commercial satellites, serving well into the 1990s.
| 2.46875
| 0
|
1488382
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sump%20pump
|
Sump pump
|
A sump pump is a pump used to remove water that has accumulated in a water-collecting sump basin, commonly found in the basements of homes and other buildings, and in other locations where water must be removed, such as construction sites. The water may enter via the perimeter drains of a basement waterproofing system funneling into the basin, or because of rain or natural ground water seepage if the basement is below the water table level.
More generally, a "sump" is any local depression where water may accumulate. For example, many industrial cooling towers have a built-in sump where a pool of water is used to supply water spray nozzles higher in the tower. Sump pumps are used in industrial plants, construction sites, mines, power plants, military installations, transportation facilities, or anywhere that water can accumulate.
Description
Sump pumps are used where basement flooding may otherwise happen, and to solve dampness where the water table is near or above the foundation of a structure. Sump pumps send water away from a location to any place where it is no longer problematic, such as a municipal storm drain, a dry well, or simply an open-air site downhill from the building (sometimes called "pumping to daylight").
Pumps may discharge to the sanitary sewer in older installations. Once considered acceptable, this practice may now violate the plumbing code or municipal bylaws, because it can overwhelm the municipal sewage treatment system. Municipalities urge building owners to disconnect and reroute sump pump discharge away from sanitary sewers. Fines may be imposed for noncompliance. Many homeowners have inherited their sump pump configurations and do not realize that their pump discharges into the sanitary sewer.
| 2.84375
| 0
|
1488382
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sump%20pump
|
Sump pump
|
Sump pump systems are also utilized in industrial and commercial applications to control water table-related problems in surface soil. An artesian aquifer or periodic high water table situation can cause the ground to become unstable due to water saturation. As long as the pump functions, the surface soil will remain stable. These sumps are typically ten feet in depth or more; lined with corrugated metal pipe that contains perforations or drain holes throughout. They may include electronic control systems with visual and audible alarms and are usually covered to prevent debris and animals from falling in.
Power
Sump pumps may be plugged into an electrical power receptacle. In this case, it is safer to use a dedicated circuit, which is less likely to lose power from a blown fuse or tripped circuit breaker. In addition, the dedicated circuit may not require GFCI protection, as it is less vulnerable to false tripping due to electrical noise, especially during thunderstorms. The dedicated circuit receptacle may be specially labeled to warn against unplugging the pump, or the plug may be attached using a special retaining bracket to discourage unplugging. Instead, the pump may be hardwired to electrical power, so that it cannot be unplugged.
Since a sump basin may overflow if not pumped, a backup system is important for cases when the main power is out for prolonged periods of time, as during a severe storm.
Some sump pumps can be automatically powered from a battery backup system, or a separate battery-powered system may be installed, typically with its float switch set slightly higher than the float switch of the primary pump.
Using a separate generator is another option. These do often require a manual setup.
| 2.515625
| 0
|
1488382
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sump%20pump
|
Sump pump
|
Alternatively, the municipal pressurized water supply powers some pumps, which can operate using a water turbine, or by using the Venturi effect. This design eliminates the need for electricity but consumes potable water, potentially making it more expensive to operate than electrical pumps and creating an additional water disposal problem. This design is used more for backup pumps rather than primary pumps.
The main thing to check with the alternative backup electricity sources is whether they offer enough power.
Sump pumps tend to require at least 230 volts although smaller models in the United States can sometimes run on 120 volts. Similarly, watt and amp needs of sump pumps can vary. Consumer models can vary from 700 running watts to 2300 watts and more. Gallons per watt-hour is a measure of efficiency in sump pumps.
Additionally, sump pumps will typically require an extra burst of power known as additional starting watts to get running. This can be as much as 1.5 times and more than the running watt and amp needs.
Industrial sump pumps may be powered by other means, such a steam or compressed air, especially for backup pumps or in locations where access for maintenance is difficult.
Physical configuration
| 2.578125
| 0
|
1488382
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sump%20pump
|
Sump pump
|
Pump selection
Selection of a sump pump may consider:
Automatic vs. manual operation – pump may be controlled automatically by a level switch.
Power – Sump pump motive power will vary from 1/4 horsepower to multiple horsepower.
Head pressure – The hydraulic head pressure of a sump pump describes the maximum height to which the pump will move water. For instance, a sump pump with a 15 feet (4.6 m) maximum head (also called a shutoff head) will raise water up 15 feet (4.6 m) before it completely loses flow.
Power cord length – Running a more powerful electrical motor a long distance from the main service panel will require heavier gauge wiring to assure sufficient voltage at the motor for proper pump performance.
Phase and voltage – Sump pumps powered from the AC mains are available with single-phase or three-phase induction motors, rated for 110–120, 220–240, or 460 volts. Three-phase power is typically not available in residential locations, but is common in industrial locations.
Water level sensing switch type – Pressure switches are fully enclosed, usually inside the pump body, making them immune to obstructions or floating debris in the sump basin. Float switches, particularly the types attached to the end of a short length of flexible electrical cable, can get tangled or obstructed, especially if the pump is prone to movement in the basin due to torque effects when starting and stopping. Pressure switches are typically factory set and not adjustable, while float switches can be adjusted in place to set the high and low water levels in the sump basin. Another option is a solid state switch utilizing field-effect technology, which can turn on and off the pump through use of an internal switch and a piggyback plug.
Backup system and alarm for critical applications.
Backup components
A secondary, typically battery-powered sump pump can operate if the first pump fails. A battery-powered secondary pump will have a separate battery and charger system to provide power if normal supply is interrupted.
| 2.53125
| 0
|
1488382
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sump%20pump
|
Sump pump
|
Alternative sump pump systems can be driven by municipal water pressure. Water-powered ejector pumps have a separate pump, float and check valve. The float controlling a backup pump is mounted in the sump pit above the normal high water mark. Under normal conditions, the main electric powered sump pump will handle all the pumping duties. When water rises higher than normal for any reason, the backup float in the sump is lifted and activates the backup sump pump. An ejector pump can also be connected to a garden hose to supply high-pressure water, with another hose to carry the water away. Although such ejector pumps waste water and are relatively inefficient, they have the advantage of having no moving parts and offer the utmost in reliability.
If the backup sump system is rarely used, a component failure may not be noticed, and the system may fail when needed. Some battery control units test the system periodically and alert on failed electrical components.
A simple, battery-powered water alarm can be hung a short distance below the top of the sump to sound an alarm should the water level rise too high. The alarm may sound locally only, or optionally may trigger remote notification via a telephone or cellphone data link.
Maintenance
Sump basins and sump pumps must be maintained. Typical recommendations suggest examining and testing equipment every year. Pumps running frequently due to higher water table, water drainage, or weather conditions should be examined more frequently. Sump pumps, being mechanical devices, will fail eventually, which could lead to a flooded basement and costly repairs. Redundancy in the system (multiple/secondary pumps) can help to avoid problems when maintenance and repairs are needed on the primary system.
| 2.609375
| 0
|
1488382
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sump%20pump
|
Sump pump
|
When examining a sump pump and cleaning it, dirt, gravel, sand, and other loose debris should be removed to increase efficiency and extend the life of the pump. These obstructions can decrease the pump's ability to drain the sump, and can allow the sump to overflow. The check valve can also jam from the debris. Periodic examination of the discharge line opening, when applicable, ensures there are no obstructions or restrictions in the line. A partially obstructed discharge line can force a sump pump to work harder and increase its chance of overheating and failure.
Float switches are used to automatically turn the sump pump on when water rises to a preset level. Float switches must be kept clear of any obstructions within the sump. A float guard can be used to prevent the float switch from accidentally resting on the pump housing, and remaining on. If a sump pump remains operating for a long time (especially in the absence of cooling water for submersibles) it may overheat or burn out. Because mechanical float switches can wear out, they should be periodically tested by actuating them manually to assure that they continue to move freely and that the switch contacts are opening and closing properly.
If left in standing water, pedestal pumps should be manually run from time to time, even if the water in the sump is not high enough to trip the float switch. This is because these pumps are incapable of removing all the water in a sump, and the lower bearing or bushing for the pump impeller shaft tends to remain submerged, making it prone to corrosion and eventually freezing the drive shaft in the bearing. In the alternative, a pedestal pump that is expected to remain idle for an extended time should be removed from the sump and stored out of water, or the sump should be mopped out to bring the level of the remaining water well below the lower shaft bearing.
Lastly, if an independent water detector and alarm system is installed, it should be tested regularly.
| 2.265625
| 0
|
1488394
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege%20of%20Puebla%20%281847%29
|
Siege of Puebla (1847)
|
Following the Battle of Chapultepec, Santa Anna withdrew his forces from Mexico City, leading a portion in an attempt to take Puebla and cut off Scott's supply route from Veracruz. The siege of Puebla began the same day Mexico City fell to Winfield Scott and lasted for 28 days before a relief force fought its way into the city.
Background
General Winfield Scott had a series of garrisons posted along the route from Veracruz to Mexico City to protect his supply lines. One of these garrisons was posted at the city of Puebla, roughly two-thirds of the way to Mexico City from the coast. The garrison was commanded by Major Thomas Childs, serving as a brevet colonel. Childs had 500 soldiers to guard the city. After the fall of Mexico City, General Antonio López de Santa Anna renounced his presidency and split his forces, taking half of them to try to retake Puebla. General Joaquín Rea commanded the Mexican guerrilla forces in the area around Puebla.
Siege
On the night of 13–14 September 1847, Rea's forces entered the city with 4,000 men. The U.S. forces held the convent, Fort Loretto, and the citadel of San José. Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel W. Black, commander of the First Pennsylvania, was put in command of the citadel, which also served as a hospital for 1,800 sick and wounded soldiers. The Mexicans drove off most of the city's cattle, but Childs was able to save enough to keep from starvation. Rea demanded the garrison's surrender on 16 September, but Childs refused, leading Rea to attack San José, unsuccessfully. Childs repulsed a second attack on 18 Sept.
Santa Anna arrived on 22 September, and launched a 500-man attack on the convent, once again unsuccessfully, yet called for Childs to surrender, which he refused. The attacks continued from 27 Sept. until 1 Oct.
At the end of September, Santa Anna departed with most of the Mexican forces to confront General Joseph Lane's relief column. Santa Anna was defeated at the Battle of Huamantla, allowing Lane to raise the siege on 12 Oct.
| 2.53125
| 0
|
1488402
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverkeeper
|
Riverkeeper
|
Riverkeeper is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection of the Hudson River and its tributaries, as well as the watersheds that provide New York City with its drinking water. It started out as the Hudson River Fisherman's Association (HRFA) in 1966. In 1986, the group merged with the Hudson Riverkeeper Fund it established in 1983 and took on the name Riverkeeper. In 1999, the Waterkeeper Alliance was created as an umbrella organization to unite and support "keeper" organizations.
The organization has lobbied against nuclear power and hydropower.
History
Hudson River Fisherman's Association (HRFA)
The Hudson Valley has long been considered the birthplace of the modern American environmental movement. In the 1960s, a small group of scientists, fishermen, and concerned citizens led by Robert H. Boyle, author of The Hudson River, A Natural and Unnatural History and a senior writer at Sports Illustrated, were determined to reverse the decline of the then-polluted Hudson River by confronting the polluters through advocacy and citizen law enforcement. Eventually, the organization became a powerhouse that has played a leading role in protecting the Hudson and the New York City watershed.
Along with Scenic Hudson and other groups, Boyle was at the forefront of the fight against a Con Edison power plant proposal that would have destroyed Storm King mountain, by the Hudson, warning that water-intake equipment would kill small fish. In so doing, he opened up the courts to environmentalists for the first time in history, establishing the principle that citizens can sue corporations on the basis of potential harm to aesthetic, recreational, or conservational values as well as tangible economic injury.
Riverkeeper
| 2.5
| 0
|
1488402
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverkeeper
|
Riverkeeper
|
Riverkeeper has advocated for the closure of the Indian Point nuclear power plant. Riverkeeper argued that the power plant killed fish by taking in river water for cooling and that the power plant could cause "apocalyptic damage" if attacked by terrorists. Riverkeeper argued that the electricity provided by Indian Point could be fully replaced by renewable energy. After the closure, carbon emissions from electricity generation in New York state increased by 37% and the share of fossil fuel energy in the electric grid increased by 90%.
In August 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul signed the “Save the Hudson” bill into law. Riverkeeper worked in collaboration with others to pass this law. According to the new legislation, it shall be unlawful to discharge any radiological substance into the Hudson River in connection with the decommissioning of a nuclear power plant. This put a stop on Holtec International's (the company decommissioning Indian Point) plan to dump wastewater into the Hudson.
Since October 2023, Indian Point has transferred all spent nuclear fuel to dry cask storage. With this, the risk of an off-site radiological release is significantly lower, and the types of possible accidents significantly fewer.
Opposition to hydropower
In 2022, Riverkeeper called on New York to reject a $3 billion clean energy plan that would have supplied New York City with hydropower and lessened New York's reliance on fossil fuels. Riverkeeper opposed the hydropower plan, saying "This is not emission-free power." Riverkeeper's position was in stark contrast with many other environmental and clean-energy advocates who argued that the plan was needed to shift the region towards greener energy. Riverkeeper argued that construction of hydropower dams have adverse environmental effects, but the hydropower station that New York was set to use had already been constructed which meant that most of the upfront environmental impact had already occurred.
| 2.21875
| 0
|
1488402
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverkeeper
|
Riverkeeper
|
Action on drinking water
Riverkeeper became a key player in the 1997 Watershed Memorandum of Agreement, which obligated New York City to spend $1 billion over 10 years to ensure the safety of its water supply and forestalled a federal order that would have forced the city to build a $6 billion filtration plant.
In the 1997 agreement, New York City and communities around the reservoirs in the Catskill Aqueduct system pledged to undertake a series of actions, like installing new equipment in sewage plants to discharge treated wastewater into the reservoirs and buying land to prevent development that could let chemicals enter the water. In return, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection has been able to maintain an unfiltered water supply in the Catskill system, the largest such system in the country.
Dam removal
By removing old, obsolete dams, Riverkeeper is working to restore life to creeks and streams in the Hudson Valley. There are an estimated 2,000 dams in the Hudson River Estuary between New York City and Albany, NY. Many are small and obsolete, abandoned by long-shuttered factories and serving no purpose other than to thwart fish migration and harm river ecology. A challenge for Riverkeeper is convincing people that removing a dam will have payoffs for the fish and the landscape.
Riverkeeper began their dam removal efforts in 2016, when they collaborated with the City of Troy and the state Department of Environmental Conservation to help remove a dam in the Wynants Kill. In 2020, Riverkeeper continued to restore streams by removing the Strooks Felt Dam on Quassaick Creek in Newburgh as well as another dam on Furnace Brook in Westchester County.
| 2.703125
| 0
|
1488402
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverkeeper
|
Riverkeeper
|
Action on water pollution
Riverkeeper studies the water quality of the Hudson. The river water is measured for salinity, oxygen, temperature, suspended sediment, chlorophyll and sewage. As of 2008, it is estimated that each year New York City's 460 Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) dump more than 27 billion gallons of raw sewage into the river and New York Harbor.
Riverkeeper keeps a close watch for polluters and brings suits against corporations as large as Exxon and General Electric. The organization has often worked together with other environmental groups on issues affecting the Hudson, including the longstanding problem of PCBs in the Hudson, which have made the river's fish dangerous to eat.
Riverkeeper also acts on Superfund sites like Gowanus Canal and Newtown Creek. New York City's two most notoriously polluted waterways were listed as federal Superfund sites within months of each other in the 2010s. Since then, a full-fledged cleanup has begun in Gowanus Canal – yet Newtown Creek has no relief in sight. The once heavily industrialized Newtown Creek features 11 miles of shoreline that winds along the Queens-Brooklyn border. From 1915 to 1917, the waterway handled as much freight tonnage as the entire Mississippi River. Over 150 years of industrial use have resulted in substantial contamination and impairment of habitat related to releases of hazardous substances and oil. Fish and crab consumption advisories are in place, including a ban on eating fish and crabs by children and women of childbearing age, and other recreational opportunities have also been negatively affected. It is estimated that, over decades, oil refineries on those shores spilled between 17 and 30 million gallons of product into the creek. More than 13 million gallons have been cleaned up so far. Riverkeeper has brought litigation forward, raised public awareness about the oil spill, and worked with state officials to address this contamination.
| 2.984375
| 0
|
1488411
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formosa%20Plastics%20Group
|
Formosa Plastics Group
|
FPG's naphtha cracker – the sixth petrochemical processing plant of that kind in Taiwan – was first proposed in 1973, but the ruling KMT government still imposed a monopoly at that time and denied permission. Permission was granted in 1986, as President Chiang Ching-kuo instituted reforms to loosen the authoritarianism instituted by his father, Chiang Kai-shek. At that time, FPG proposed a NT$90 billion complex that would be located in the Litzu Industrial Zone of Ilan County. Local residents opposed this plan on the basis of its environmental impact and, led by County Magistrate Chen Ding-Nan (陳定南), formed the Alliance against Sixth Naphtha Cracker. After a successful campaign, including a televised debate between Chen and FPG Chairman Wang, they eventually forced the company to look elsewhere. The second site proposed by FPG, in Taoyuan County's Kuanyin Industrial Zone, generated similar opposition from local residents.
FPG shelved these proposals in 1989 and Chairman Wang Yung-ching traveled secretly to mainland China to find a solution there. In 1990, he announced his intention to develop the complex on the People's Republic of China-controlled island of Haitsang, in Fujian Province. The Nationalist government condemned the project and in 1992 secured an offshore site near Mailiao, in Taiwan's impoverished Yunlin County, where local administrators welcomed the investment.
Total investment in the complex, after four phases of construction throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, included the following major features:
an oil refinery: 450,000 barrels (72,000 m³) per day
a naphtha cracking plant (production capacity: 1.35 million tons ethylene per year)
a coal-burning power plant (capacity: 3 GW)
Taiwan's first wind power plant (total combined capacity of the four turbines: 2,640 kW).
| 2.3125
| 0
|
1488415
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William%20G.%20Sebold
|
William G. Sebold
|
William G. Sebold (; March 10, 1899 – February 16, 1970) was a German-born United States citizen who was coerced into becoming a spy when he visited Germany after being pressured by several high-ranking Nazi members. He informed the American Consul General in Cologne before leaving Germany and became a double agent for the FBI. With the assistance of another German agent, Fritz Joubert Duquesne, he recruited 33 agents that became known as the Duquesne Spy Ring. In June 1941, the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested all of the agents. They were convicted and sentenced to a total of 300 years in prison.
Early life
Sebold served in the German army engineering corps during World War I. After emigrating to the United States in 1922, he married and worked in industrial and aircraft plants throughout the United States and South America. On February 10, 1936, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States.
He returned to Germany in February 1939 to visit his mother in Mülheim. Upon his arrival in Hamburg, Germany, he was approached by a Gestapo agent who said that Sebold would be contacted in the near future due to the knowledge he obtained while working in United States aircraft factories. Sebold proceeded to Mülheim where he obtained employment.
Coerced into spying
In September 1939, a Dr. Gassner visited Sebold in Mülheim and interrogated him regarding military planes and equipment in the United States. He also asked Sebold to return to the United States as an espionage agent for Germany. Gassner and another man, a "Dr. Renken", told him that they would expose information that he had omitted from his U. S. citizenship application about serving time in a German jail unless he agreed to assist them. Renken was in fact Major Nickolaus Ritter of the Abwehr.
| 2.140625
| 0
|
1488415
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William%20G.%20Sebold
|
William G. Sebold
|
With the assistance of the FBI, "Harry Sawyer" was able to obtain an office in Times Square for a company under the name "Diesel Research Company". This office provided a seemingly safe space where Nazi spies felt comfortable meeting with and discussing their plans with Sebold. The office also allowed spies to send letters to manufacturers like Consolidated Aircraft Corporation, where they would then receive letters back such as "Development of Diesel Engines." The spies came to the office to deliver blueprints, wartime information, and other sensitive information regarding the United States. However, the office was outfitted with hidden microphones and two-way mirrors, so FBI agents would be able to film the meetings for future use. Using the office, the FBI were able to obtain countless hours of incriminating footage. For example, the group's leader Fritz Joubert Duquesne was caught discussing how fires could be started at industrial plants to slow production, and showed photographs of blueprints for a new bomb being built in the United States. In different footage, a spy explains his plan to bomb a building, going as far as bringing dynamite and detonation caps to Sebold's office.
Sebold was instructed by the Abwehr to contact Fritz Joubert Duquesne, code-named DUNN, a German spy in New York. Duquesne had been a spy for Germany since World War I; before that, he had been a Boer spy in the Second Boer War. In the United States, Duquesne had been a New York Herald journalist and was the "master coordinator" of the Nazi spies operating in the United States. He contacted aircraft and other technology companies and requested information that he claimed he would use for his lectures. Any plans or photos that he received were sent to the Wehrmacht.
| 2.25
| 0
|
1488415
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William%20G.%20Sebold
|
William G. Sebold
|
At their first meeting, Duquesne was extremely worried about the possibility of listening devices in Sebold's office. He gave Sebold a note suggesting that they should talk elsewhere. After relocating to an automat, the two men exchanged information about members of the German espionage system with whom they had been in contact.
In his office and with cameras secretly rolling, Sebold met with a string of Nazis who wished to pass secret and sensitive national defense and wartime information to the Gestapo.
Duquesne provided Sebold with information for transmittal to Germany during subsequent meetings, and the meetings which occurred in Sebold's office were filmed by FBI Agents. Duquesne, who was vehemently anti-British, submitted information dealing with national defense in America, the sailing of ships to British ports, and technology. He also regularly received money from Germany in payment for his services.
On one occasion, Duquesne provided Sebold with photographs and specifications of a new type of bomb being produced in the United States. He claimed that he secured that material by secretly entering the DuPont plant in Wilmington, Delaware. Duquesne also explained how fires could be started in industrial plants. Much of the information Duquesne obtained was the result of his correspondence with industrial concerns. Representing himself as a student, he requested data concerning their products and manufacturing conditions.
In May 1940, FBI agents on Long Island set up a shortwave radio station, and established contact with the Abwehr's radio station in Germany, posing as part of Sebold's spy ring. For 16 months this radio station was a main channel of communication between German spies in New York City and the Abwehr. During this time, the FBI's radio station transmitted over 300 messages containing falsified or useless information to Germany, and received 200 messages from Germany. Through Sebold, the U.S. identified dozens of German agents in the United States, Mexico and South America.
| 2.390625
| 0
|
1488422
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab%20tone%20system
|
Arab tone system
|
The modern Arab tone system, or system of musical tuning, is based upon the theoretical division of the octave into twenty-four equal divisions or 24-tone equal temperament, the distance between each successive note being a quarter tone (50 cents). Each tone has its own name not repeated in different octaves, unlike systems featuring octave equivalency. The lowest tone is named yakah and is determined by the lowest pitch in the range of the singer. The next higher octave is nawa and the second tuti. However, from these twenty-four tones, seven are selected to produce a scale and thus the interval of a quarter tone is never used and the three-quarter tone or neutral second should be considered the characteristic interval.
By contrast, in the European equally tempered scale the octave is divided into twelve equal divisions, or exactly half as many as the Arab system. Thus, when Arabic music is written in European musical notation, a slashed or reversed flat sign is used to indicate a quarter-tone flat, a standard flat symbol for a half-tone flat, and a flat sign combined with a slashed or reversed flat sign for a three-quarter-tone flat, sharp with one vertical line for quarter sharps, standard sharp symbol (♯) for a half-step sharp, and a sharp with three vertical lines for a three-quarter-tone sharp. A two octave range starting with yakah arbitrarily on the G below middle C is used.
In practice much fewer than twenty-four tones are used in a single performance. All twenty-four tones are individual pitches differentiated into a hierarchy of important pitches—pillars—which occur more frequently in the tone rows of traditional music and most often begin tone rows, and scattered less important or seldom occurring pitches (see tonality).
| 3.203125
| 0
|
1488424
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir%20Chelomey
|
Vladimir Chelomey
|
Vladimir Nikolayevich Chelomey or Chelomei (, ; 30 June 1914 – 8 December 1984) was a Soviet engineer and designer in the missile program of the former Soviet Union. He invented the first Soviet pulse jet engine and was responsible for developing the world's first anti-ship cruise missiles and the ICBM program of the Soviet Union such as the UR-100, UR-200, UR-500 and UR-700.
Early life
Chelomey was born to a Ukrainian family in Siedlce, Lublin Governorate, Russian Empire (now Poland). At the age of three months, his family fled to Poltava, Ukraine, when the Eastern Front of World War I came close to Siedlce.
When Chelomey was 12 years old, the family moved again to Kyiv.
In 1932, Chelomey was admitted to the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (later the basis of Kyiv Aviation Institute), where he showed himself as a student with outstanding talent. In 1936, his first book Vector Analysis was published. Studying at the institute, Chelomey also attended lectures on mathematical analysis, theory of differential equations, mathematical physics, theory of elasticity and mechanics in the Kyiv University. He also attended lectures by Tullio Levi-Civita in the Ukrainian SSR Academy of Sciences. Namely in this time Chelomey became interested in mechanics and in the theory of oscillations and remained interested the rest of his life. In 1937, Chelomey graduated from the institute with honours. After that he worked there as a lecturer, defending a dissertation for the Candidate of Science (in 1939).
World War II
From the beginning of the Great Patriotic War in 1941, Chelomey worked at the Baranov Central Institute of Aviation Motor Building (TsIAM) in Moscow, where he created the first Soviet pulsating air jet engine in 1942, independently of similar contemporary developments in Nazi Germany.
| 2.3125
| 0
|
1488424
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir%20Chelomey
|
Vladimir Chelomey
|
In the summer of 1944, it became known that Nazi Germany used V-1 cruise missiles against Southern England. On 9 October 1944, following a decision by the USSR State Defense Committee and People's Commissar for Aviation Industry Alexey Shakhurin, Chelomey was appointed the Director and Chief Designer of Plant N51 (its previous director Nikolay Polikarpov having died a short time before). Chelomey was to design, build, and test the first Soviet cruise missile as soon as possible. As early as December 1944, the missile, code-named 10Kh, was test fired from Petlyakov Pe-8 and Tupolev Tu-2 aircraft.
OKB-52 and academic career
Following his success with the 10Kh, the USSR Special Design Bureau on designing pilot-less aircraft (OKB-52) was established under Chelomey's. In 1955, Chelomey was appointed the Chief Designer of the OKB-52, where he continued to work on cruise missiles.
Chelomey continued his scientific research, earning a doctorate in science from Bauman Moscow Higher Technical School. After his dissertation defense in 1951, he became a professor at the School in 1952.
In 1958, OKB-52 put forward a proposal for a multi-stage Intercontinental ballistic missile. Although their UR-200 rocket design was rejected in favour of Mikhail Yangel's R-36 (NATO designation SS-9 Scarp), their UR-100 design was accepted.
Chelomey's OKB was part of the General Machine-Building Ministry headed by Sergey Afanasyev.
Spacecraft
In 1959, Chelomey was appointed the Chief Designer of Aviation Equipment.
OKB-52, along with designing ICBMs, started to work on spacecraft, and in 1961 began work on a design for a much more powerful ICBM, the UR-500, although it was rather quickly rejected as impractical to use as a missile.
In 1962, Chelomey became an Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Mechanics Department.
| 2.5
| 0
|
1488424
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir%20Chelomey
|
Vladimir Chelomey
|
Chelomey became Sergey Korolev's internal competitor in the "Moon race". Chelomey proposed that the powerful UR-500 be used to launch a small two-man craft on a lunar flyby, and managed to gain support for his proposal by employing Nikita Khrushchev's son, Sergei Khrushchev. He also claimed the UR-500 could be used to launch a military space station.
An argument between Sergey Korolev and rocket engine designer Valentin Glushko over personal issues and whether the N1 should be fueled with RP-1 / LOX or Hypergolic propellant resulted in Glushko and Korolev refusing to work with each other, causing Glushko to instead offer his RD-253 rocket engine to Chelomey, who adopted it for his UR-500.
On 3 August 1964 the Central Committee of the Communist Party and the USSR Council of Ministers adopted and signed Decree #655-268 On Work on Research on the Moon and Outer Space, which redefined Chelomey's and Korolev's roles in the space program: Korolev was now responsible for development of the N1, which was chosen to accomplish a crewed lunar landing, while Chelomei was assigned to the development of the UR-500 which was chosen to perform a crewed circumlunar flight. The projects continued to work separately side-by-side.
The first launch of the UR-500 (also known as Proton) took place in early 1965.
Although it was never used to send cosmonauts to the Moon as Chelomey had hoped, Proton became the staple heavy lift launch vehicle of the Soviet/Russian fleet and would be used over the years for planetary probes, space stations, geosynchronous satellites, and more.
| 2.375
| 0
|
1488448
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthracite%20coal%20strike%20of%201902
|
Anthracite coal strike of 1902
|
On May 12, 1902, the anthracite miners voting in Scranton, Pennsylvania, went out on strike. The maintenance employees, who had much steadier jobs and did not face the special dangers of underground work, walked out on June 2. The union had the support of roughly eighty percent of the workers in this area, or more than 100,000 strikers. Some 30,000 left the region, many headed for Midwestern bituminous mines. 10,000 men returned to Europe. The strike soon produced threats of violence between the strikers on one side and strikebreakers, the Pennsylvania National Guard, local police, and hired detective agencies on the other.
Federal intervention
On June 8, President Theodore Roosevelt asked his Commissioner of Labor, Carroll D. Wright, to investigate the strike. Wright investigated and proposed reforms that acknowledged each side's position, recommending a nine-hour day on an experimental basis and limited collective bargaining. Roosevelt chose not to release the report, for fear of appearing to side with the union.
The owners refused to negotiate with the union. As George Baer wrote when urged to make concessions to the strikers and their union, the "rights and interests of the laboring man will be protected and cared for—not by the labor agitators, but by the Christian men to whom God in His infinite wisdom has given the control of the property interests of the country." The union used this letter to sway public opinion in favor of the strike.
Roosevelt wanted to intervene, but he was told by his Attorney General, Philander Knox, that he had no authority to do so. Hanna and many others in the Republican Party were likewise concerned about the political implications if the strike dragged on into winter, when the need for anthracite was greatest. As Roosevelt told Hanna, "A coal famine in the winter is an ugly thing and I fear we shall see terrible suffering and grave disaster."
| 2.46875
| 0
|
1488448
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthracite%20coal%20strike%20of%201902
|
Anthracite coal strike of 1902
|
Roosevelt convened a conference of representatives of government, labor, and management on October 3, 1902. The union considered the mere holding of a meeting to be tantamount to union recognition and took a conciliatory tone. The owners told Roosevelt that strikers had killed over 20 men and that he should use the power of government "to protect the man who wants to work, and his wife and children when at work." With proper protection, the owner said that they would produce enough coal to end the fuel shortage. They refused to enter into any negotiations with the union.
The governor sent in the National Guard, who protected the mines and the minority of men still working. Roosevelt attempted to persuade the union to end the strike with a promise that he would create a commission to study the causes of the strike and propose a solution, which Roosevelt promised to support with all of the authority of his office. Mitchell refused and his membership endorsed his decision by a nearly unanimous vote.
The economics of coal revolved around two factors: most of the cost of production was wages for miners, and if the supply fell, the price would shoot up. In an age before the use of oil and electricity, there were no good substitutes. Profits were low in 1902 because of an over supply; therefore the owners welcomed a moderately long strike. They had huge stockpiles which increased daily in value. It was illegal for the owners to conspire to shut down production, but not so if the miners went on strike. The owners welcomed the strike, but they adamantly refused to recognize the union, because they feared the union would control the coal industry by manipulating strikes.
Roosevelt continued to try to build support for a mediated solution, persuading former president Grover Cleveland to join the commission he was creating. He also considered nationalizing the mines under the leadership of John M. Schofield. This would put the U.S. Army in control of the coalfields to "run the mines as a receiver", Roosevelt wrote.
| 2.671875
| 0
|
1488448
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthracite%20coal%20strike%20of%201902
|
Anthracite coal strike of 1902
|
The first casualty occurred July 1. An immigrant striker named Anthony Giuseppe was found fatally shot near a Lehigh Valley Coal Company colliery in Old Forge. It was thought the Coal and Iron Police guarding the site shot blindly through a fence. Street fighting in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania on July 30 between a mob of 5,000 striking miners versus police resulted in the beating death of Joseph Beddall, a merchant and the brother of the deputy sheriff.
Contemporary reporting describes three other deaths and widespread shooting injuries among strikers and Shenandoah police. On October 9, a striker named William Durham was shot and killed in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, near Shenandoah. He'd been loitering near the half-dynamited house of a non-union worker and disobeyed an order to halt. The legality of that killing under martial law became a case, Commonwealth v. Shortall, that was taken to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
The behavior and private role of the Coal and Iron Police during the strike led to the formation of the Pennsylvania State Police, on May 2, 1905, as Senate Bill 278 was signed into law by Governor Samuel W. Pennypacker. The two forces operated in parallel until 1931.
Organized labor celebrated the outcome as a victory for the UMWA and American Federation of Labor unions generally. Membership in other unions soared, as moderates argued they could produce concrete benefits for workers much sooner than radical Socialists who planned to overthrow capitalism in the future. Mitchell proved his leadership skills and mastery of the problems of ethnic, skill, and regional divisions that had long plagued the union in the anthracite region.
| 2.40625
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry (also known as agro-sylviculture or forest farming) is a land use management system that integrates trees with crops or pasture. It combines agricultural and forestry technologies. As a polyculture system, an agroforestry system can produce timber and wood products, fruits, nuts, other edible plant products, edible mushrooms, medicinal plants, ornamental plants, animals and animal products, and other products from both domesticated and wild species.
Agroforestry can be practiced for economic, environmental, and social benefits, and can be part of sustainable agriculture. Apart from production, benefits from agroforestry include improved farm productivity, healthier environments, reduction of risk for farmers, beauty and aesthetics, increased farm profits, reduced soil erosion, creating wildlife habitat, less pollution, managing animal waste, increased biodiversity, improved soil structure, and carbon sequestration.
Agroforestry practices are especially prevalent in the tropics, especially in subsistence smallholdings areas, with particular importance in sub-Saharan Africa. Due to its multiple benefits, for instance in nutrient cycle benefits and potential for mitigating droughts, it has been adopted in the USA and Europe.
Definition
At its most basic, agroforestry is any of various polyculture systems that intentionally integrate trees with crops or pasture on the same land. An agroforestry system is intensively managed to optimize helpful interactions between the plants and animals included, and “uses the forest as a model for design."
Agroforestry shares principles with polyculture practices such as intercropping, but can also involve much more complex multi-strata agroforests containing hundreds of species. Agroforestry can also utilise nitrogen-fixing plants such as legumes to restore soil nitrogen fertility. The nitrogen-fixing plants can be planted either sequentially or simultaneously.
| 3.28125
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
History and scientific study
The term “agroforestry” was coined in 1973 by Canadian forester John Bene, but the concept includes agricultural practices that have existed for millennia.
Scientific agroforestry began in the 20th century with ethnobotanical studies carried out by anthropologists. However, indigenous communities that have lived in close relationships with forest ecosystems have practiced agroforestry informally for centuries. For example, Indigenous peoples of California periodically burned oak and other habitats to maintain a ‘pyrodiversity collecting model,’ which allowed for improved tree health and habitat conditions. Likewise Native Americans in the eastern United States extensively altered their environment and managed land as a “mosaic” of woodland areas, orchards, and forest gardens.
Agroforestry in the tropics is ancient and widespread throughout various tropical areas of the world, notably in the form of "tropical home gardens." Some “tropical home garden” plots have been continuously cultivated for centuries. A “home garden” in Central America could contain 25 different species of trees and food crops on just one-tenth of an acre. "Tropical home gardens" are traditional systems developed over time by growers without formalized research or institutional support, and are characterized by a high complexity and diversity of useful plants, with a canopy of tree and palm species that produce food, fuel, and shade, a mid-story of shrubs for fruit or spices, and an understory of root vegetables, medicinal herbs, beans, ornamental plants, and other non-woody crops.
| 2.96875
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry is important for biodiversity for different reasons. It provides a more diverse habitat than a conventional agricultural system in which the tree component creates ecological niches for a wide range of organisms both above and below ground. The life cycles and food chains associated with this diversification initiate an agroecological succession that creates functional agroecosystems that confer sustainability. Tropical bat and bird diversity, for instance, can be comparable to the diversity in natural forests. Although agroforestry systems do not provide as many floristic species as forests and do not show the same canopy height, they do provide food and nesting possibilities. A further contribution to biodiversity is that the germplasm of sensitive species can be preserved. As agroforests have no natural clear areas, habitats are more uniform. Furthermore, agroforests can serve as corridors between habitats. Agroforestry can help conserve biodiversity, positively influencing other ecosystem services.
Soil and plant growth
Depleted soil can be protected from soil erosion by groundcover plants such as naturally growing grasses in agroforestry systems. These help to stabilise the soil as they increase cover compared to short-cycle cropping systems. Soil cover is a crucial factor in preventing erosion. Cleaner water through reduced nutrient and soil surface runoff can be a further advantage of agroforestry. Trees can help reduce water runoff by decreasing water flow and evaporation and thereby allowing for increased soil infiltration. Compared to row-cropped fields nutrient uptake can be higher and reduce nutrient loss into streams.
Further advantages concerning plant growth:
Bioremediation
Drought tolerance
Increased crop stability
| 3.34375
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Sustainability
Agroforestry systems can provide ecosystem services which can contribute to sustainable agriculture in the following ways:
Diversification of agricultural products, such as fuelwood, medicinal plants, and multiple crops, increases income security
Increased food security and nutrition by restored soil fertility, crop diversity and resilience to weather shocks for food crops
Land restoration through reducing soil erosion and regulating water availability
Multifunctional site use, e.g., crop production and animal grazing
Reduced deforestation and pressure on woodlands by providing farm-grown fuelwood
Possibility of reduced chemicals inputs, e.g. due to improved use of fertilizer, increased resilience against pests, and increased ground cover which reduces weeds
Growing space for medicinal plants e.g., in situations where people have limited access to mainstream medicines
According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)'s The State of the World’s Forests 2020, adopting agroforestry and sustainable production practices, restoring the productivity of degraded agricultural lands, embracing healthier diets and reducing food loss and waste are all actions that urgently need to be scaled up. Agribusinesses must meet their commitments to deforestation-free commodity chains and companies that have not made zero-deforestation commitments should do so.
Other environmental goals
Carbon sequestration is an important ecosystem service. Agroforestry practices can increase carbon stocks in soil and woody biomass. Trees in agroforestry systems, like in new forests, can recapture some of the carbon that was lost by cutting existing forests. They also provide additional food and products. The rotation age and the use of the resulting products are important factors controlling the amount of carbon sequestered. Agroforests can reduce pressure on primary forests by providing forest products.
| 3.109375
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Adaptation to climate change
Agroforestry can significantly contribute to climate change mitigation along with adaptation benefits. A case study in Kenya found that the adoption of agroforestry drove carbon storage and increased livelihoods simultaneously among small-scale farmers. In this case, maintaining the diversity of tree species, especially land use and farm size are important factors.
Poor smallholder farmers have turned to agroforestry as a means to adapt to climate change. A study from the CGIAR research program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security found from a survey of over 700 households in East Africa that at least 50% of those households had begun planting trees in a change from earlier practices. The trees were planted with fruit, tea, coffee, oil, fodder and medicinal products in addition to their usual harvest. Agroforestry was one of the most widespread adaptation strategies, along with the use of improved crop varieties and intercropping.
Tropical
Trees in agroforestry systems can produce wood, fruits, nuts, and other useful products. Agroforestry practices are most prevalent in the tropics, especially in subsistence smallholdings areas such as sub-Saharan Africa.
Research with the leguminous tree Faidherbia albida in Zambia showed maximum maize yields of 4.0 tonnes per hectare using fertilizer and inter-cropped with the trees at densities of 25 to 100 trees per hectare, compared to average maize yields in Zimbabwe of 1.1 tonnes per hectare.
| 3.234375
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Kuojtakiloyan is a Masehual term that means 'useful forest' or 'forest that produces', and it is an agroforestry system developed and maintained by indigenous peoples of the Sierra Norte of the State of Puebla, Mexico. It has become a vital fountain of resources (food, medicinal herbs, fuels, floriculture, etc.) for the local population, but it is also a respectful transformation of the environment, with its biodiversity and nature conservation. The kuojtakiloyan comes directly from the ancestral Nahua and Totonaku knowledge of their natural environment. Despite its unawareness among the mainstream Mexican population, many agronomic experts in the world point it out as a successful case of sustainable agroforestry practiced communally.
The kuojtakiloyan is a jungle-landscaped polyculture in which avocados, sweet potatoes, cinnamon, black cherries, chalahuits, citrus fruits, gourds, macadamia, mangoes, bananas and sapotes are grown. In addition, a wide variety of harvested wild edible mushrooms and herbs (quelites). The jonote is planted because its fiber is useful in basketry, and also bamboo, which is fast growing, to build cabins and other structures. Concurrently to kuojtakiloyan, shade coffee is grown (café bajo sombra in Spanish; kafentaj in Masehual). Shade is essential to obtain high quality coffee. The local population has favored the proliferation of the stingless bee (pisilnekemej) by including the plants that it pollinates. From bees, they get honey, pollen, wax and propolis.
Shade crops
With shade applications, crops are purposely raised under tree canopies within the shady environment. The understory crops are shade tolerant or the overstory trees have fairly open canopies. A conspicuous example is shade-grown coffee. This practice reduces weeding costs and improves coffee quality and taste.
| 2.90625
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Crop-over-tree systems
Crop-over-tree systems employ woody perennials in the role of a cover crop. For this, small shrubs or trees pruned to near ground level are utilized. The purpose is to increase in-soil nutrients and/or to reduce soil erosion.
Intercropping and alley cropping
With alley cropping, crop strips alternate with rows of closely spaced tree or hedge species. Normally, the trees are pruned before planting the crop. The cut leafy material - for example, from Alchornea cordifolia and Acioa barteri - is spread over the crop area to provide nutrients. In addition to nutrients, the hedges serve as windbreaks and reduce erosion.
In tropical areas of North and South America, various species of Inga such as I. edulis and I. oerstediana have been used for alley cropping.
Intercropping is advantageous in Africa, particularly in relation to improving maize yields in the sub-Saharan region. Use relies upon the nitrogen-fixing tree species Sesbania sesban, Tephrosia vogelii, Gliricidia sepium and Faidherbia albida. In one example, a ten-year experiment in Malawi showed that, by using the fertilizer tree Gliricidia (G. sepium) on land on which no mineral fertilizer was applied, maize/corn yields averaged as compared to in plots without fertilizer trees or mineral fertilizers.
Weed control is inherent to alley cropping, by providing mulch and shade.
Syntropic systems
Syntropic farming, syntropic agriculture or syntropic agroforestry is an organic, permaculture agroforestry system developed by Ernst Götsch in Brazil. Sometimes this system is referred to as a successional agroforestry systems or SAFS, which sometimes refer to a broader concept originating in Latin America. The system focuses on replicating natural systems of accumulation of nutrients in ecosystems, replicating secondary succession, in order to create productive forest ecosystems that produce food, ecosystem services and other forest products.
| 3.015625
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
The system relies heavily on several processes:
Dense planting mixing perennial and annual crops
Rapid cutting and composting of fast growing pioneer species, to accumulate nutrients and biomass
Creating greater water retention on the land through improving penetration of water into soil and plant water cycling
The systems were first developed in tropical Brazil, but many similar systems have been tested in temperate environments as soil and ecosystem restoration tactics.
The framework for the syntropic agroforestry is advocated for by Agenda Gotsch an organization built to promote the systems.
Syntropic systems have a number of documented benefits, including increased soil water penetration, increases to productivity on marginal land that has since become and soil temperature moderation.
In Burma
Taungya is a system from Burma. In the initial stages of an orchard or tree plantation, trees are small and widely spaced. The free space between the newly planted trees accommodates a seasonal crop. Instead of costly weeding, the underutilized area provides an additional output and income. More complex taungyas use between-tree space for multiple crops. The crops become more shade tolerant as the tree canopies grow and the amount of sunlight reaching the ground declines. Thinning can maintain sunlight levels.
In India
Itteri agroforestry systems have been used in Tamil Nadu since time immemorial. They involve the deliberate management of multipurpose trees and shrubs grown in intimate association with herbaceous species. They are often found along village and farm roads, small gullies, and field boundaries.
Bamboo-based agroforestry systems (Dendrocalamus strictus + sesame–chickpea) have been studied for enhancing productivity in semi-arid tropics of central India.
| 2.984375
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
In Africa
A project to mitigate climate change with agriculture was launched in 2019 by the "Global EverGreening Alliance". The target is to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. By 2050 the restored land should sequestrate 20 billion tons of carbon annually
Shamba (Swahili for 'plantation') is an agroforestry system practiced in East Africa, particularly in Kenya. Under this system, various crops are combined: bananas, beans, yams and corn, to which are added timber resources, beekeeping, medicinal herbs, mushrooms, forest fruits, fodder for livestock, etc.
In Hawai'i
Native Hawaiians formerly practiced agroforestry adapted to the islands' tropical landscape. Their ability to do this influenced the region's carrying capacity, social conflict, cooperation, and political complexity. More recently, after scientific study of lo’I systems, attempts have been made to reintroduce dryland agroforestry in Hawai’i Island and Maui, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration between political leaders, landowners, and scientists.
Temperate
Although originally a concept in tropical agronomy, agroforestry's multiple benefits, for instance in nutrient cycles and potential for mitigating droughts, have led to its adoption in the USA and Europe.
The United States Department of Agriculture distinguishes five applications of agroforestry for temperate climates, namely alley cropping, forest farming, riparian forest buffers, silvopasture, and windbreaks.
Alley cropping
Alley cropping can also be used in temperate climates. Strip cropping is similar to alley cropping in that trees alternate with crops. The difference is that, with alley cropping, the trees are in single rows. With strip cropping, the trees or shrubs are planted in wide strips. The purpose can be, as with alley cropping, to provide nutrients, in leaf form, to the crop. With strip cropping, the trees can have a purely productive role, providing fruits, nuts, etc. while, at the same time, protecting nearby crops from soil erosion and harmful winds.
| 3.0625
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
The Inga is used as hedges and pruned when large enough to provide a mulch in which bean and corn seeds are planted. This results in both improving crop yields and the retention of soil fertility on the plot that is being farmed. Hands had seen the devastating consequences that are caused by slash and burn agriculture while working in Honduras; this new technique seemed to offer the solution to the environmental and economic problems faced by so many slash and burn farmers.
Although this technique has the potential to save rainforest and lift many out of poverty, Inga alley cropping has not yet reached its full potential, although the charity Inga Foundation, headed by Mike Hands, has been consulted about potential projects in Haiti ( which is almost completely deforested) and the Congo. Discussions have also been mooted about projects in Peru and Madagascar. Another charity, Rainforest Saver formed to promote Inga Alley Cropping, started a project in 2016 in Ecuador, in the area of the Amazon where Inga edulis originates from, and by the end of 2018 more than 60 farms in the area had Inga plots. Rainforest Saver also started a project in Cameroon in 2009, where in late 2018 there were around 100 farms with Inga plots, mainly in Western Cameroon.
Method
For Inga alley cropping the trees are planted in rows (hedges) close together, with a gap, the alley, of about 4m between the rows. An initial application of rock phosphate has kept the system going for many years.
When the trees have grown, usually in about two years, the canopies close over the alley and cut off the light and so smother the weeds.
The trees are then carefully pruned. The larger branches are used for firewood. The smaller branches and leaves are left on the ground in the alleys. These rot down into a good mulch (compost). If any weeds haven't been killed off by lack of light the mulch smothers them.
The farmer then pokes holes into the mulch and plants their crops into the holes.
| 2.625
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
The crops grow, fed by the mulch. The crops feed on the lower layers while the latest prunings form a protective layer over the soil and roots, shielding them from both the hot sun and heavy rain. This makes it possible for the roots of both the crops and the trees to stay to a considerable extent in the top layer of soil and the mulch, thus benefiting from the food in the mulch, and escaping soil pests and toxic minerals lower down. Pruning the Inga also makes its roots die back, thus reducing competition with the crops.
Forest farming
In forest farming, high-value crops are grown under a suitably-managed tree canopy. This is sometimes called multi-story cropping, or in tropical villages as home gardening. It can be practised at varying levels of intensity but always involves some degree of management; this distinguishes it from simple harvesting of wild plants from the forest.
Riparian forest buffers
Riparian buffers are strips of permanent vegetation located along or near active watercourses or in ditches where water runoff concentrates. The purpose is to keep nutrients and soil from contaminating the water.
Silvopasture
Trees can benefit fauna in a silvopasture system, where cattle, goats, or sheep browse on grasses grown under trees.
In hot climates, the animals are less stressed and put on weight faster when grazing in a cooler, shaded environment. The leaves of trees or shrubs can also serve as fodder. Similar systems support other fauna. Deer and pigs gain when living and feeding in a forest ecosystem, especially when the tree forage nourishes them. In aquaforestry, trees shade fish ponds. In many cases, the fish eat the leaves or fruit from the trees.
The dehesa or montado system of silviculture are an example of pigs and bulls being held extensively in Spain and Portugal.
Windbreaks
Windbreaks reduce wind velocity over and around crops. This increases yields through reduced drying of the crop and/or by preventing the crop from toppling in strong wind gusts.
| 3.171875
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
History
Since prehistoric times, hunter-gatherers might have influenced forests, for instance in Europe by Mesolithic people bringing favored plants like hazel with them. Forest gardens are probably the world's oldest form of land use and most resilient agroecosystem. First Nation villages in Alaska with forest gardens filled with nuts, stone fruit, berries, and herbs, were noted by an archeologist from the Smithsonian in the 1930s.
Forest gardens are still common in the tropics and known as Kandyan forest gardens in Sri Lanka; , family orchards in Mexico; agroforests; or shrub gardens. They have been shown to be a significant source of income and food security for local populations.
Robert Hart adapted forest gardening for the United Kingdom's temperate climate during the 1980s.
In temperate climates
Hart began farming at Wenlock Edge in Shropshire to provide a healthy and therapeutic environment for himself and his brother Lacon. Starting as relatively conventional smallholders, Hart soon discovered that maintaining large annual vegetable beds, rearing livestock and taking care of an orchard were tasks beyond their strength. However, a small bed of perennial vegetables and herbs he planted was looking after itself with little intervention.
| 2.875
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Following Hart's adoption of a raw vegan diet for health and personal reasons, he replaced his farm animals with plants. The three main products from a forest garden are fruit, nuts and green leafy vegetables. He created a model forest garden from a 0.12 acre (500 m2) orchard on his farm and intended naming his gardening method ecological horticulture or ecocultivation. Hart later dropped these terms once he became aware that agroforestry and forest gardens were already being used to describe similar systems in other parts of the world. He was inspired by the forest farming methods of Toyohiko Kagawa and James Sholto Douglas, and the productivity of the Keralan home gardens; as Hart explained, "From the agroforestry point of view, perhaps the world's most advanced country is the Indian state of Kerala, which boasts no fewer than three and a half million forest gardens ... As an example of the extraordinary intensity of cultivation of some forest gardens, one plot of only was found by a study group to have twenty-three young coconut palms, twelve cloves, fifty-six bananas, and forty-nine pineapples, with thirty pepper vines trained up its trees. In addition, the smallholder grew fodder for his house-cow."
Seven-layer system
Further development
The Agroforestry Research Trust, managed by Martin Crawford, runs experimental forest gardening projects on a number of plots in Devon, United Kingdom. Crawford describes a forest garden as a low-maintenance way of sustainably producing food and other household products.
Ken Fern had the idea that for a successful temperate forest garden a wider range of edible shade tolerant plants would need to be used. To this end, Fern created the organisation Plants for a Future which compiled a plant database suitable for such a system. Fern used the term woodland gardening, rather than forest gardening, in his book Plants for a Future.
| 2.9375
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
In Canada Richard Walker has been developing and maintaining food forests in British Columbia for over 30 years. He developed a three-acre food forest that at maturity provided raw materials for a plant nursery and herbal business as well as food for his family. The Living Centre has developed various forest garden projects in Ontario.
In the United Kingdom, other than those run by the Agroforestry Research Trust (ART), projects include the Bangor Forest Garden in Gwynedd, northwest Wales. Martin Crawford from ART administers the Forest Garden Network, an informal network of people and organisations who are cultivating forest gardens.
Since 2014, Gisela Mir and Mark Biffen have been developing a small-scale edible forest garden in Cardedeu near Barcelona, Spain, for experimentation and demonstration.
Forest farming
Forest farming is the cultivation of high-value specialty crops under a forest canopy that is intentionally modified or maintained to provide shade levels and habitat that favor growth and enhance production levels. Forest farming encompasses a range of cultivated systems from introducing plants into the understory of a timber stand to modifying forest stands to enhance the marketability and sustainable production of existing plants.
Forest farming is a type of agroforestry practice characterized by the "four I's": intentional, integrated, intensive and interactive. Agroforestry is a land management system that combines trees with crops or livestock, or both, on the same piece of land. It focuses on increasing benefits to the landowner as well as maintaining forest integrity and environmental health. The practice involves cultivating non-timber forest products or niche crops, some of which, such as ginseng or shiitake mushrooms, can have high market value.
| 2.828125
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
In 1929, J. Russell Smith, Emeritus Professor of Economic Geography at Columbia University, published "Tree Crops – A Permanent Agriculture" which stated that crop-yielding trees could provide useful substitutes for cereals in animal feeding programs, as well as conserve environmental health. Toyohiko Kagawa read and was heavily influenced by Smith’s publication and began experimental cultivation under trees in Japan during the 1930s. Through forest farming, or three-dimensional forestry, Kagawa addressed problems of soil erosion by persuading many of Japan's upland farmers to plant fodder trees to conserve soil, supply food and feed animals. He combined extensive plantings of walnut trees, harvested the nuts and fed them to the pigs, then sold the pigs as a source of income. When the walnut trees matured, they were sold for timber and more trees were planted so that there was a continuous cycle of economic cropping that provided both short-term and long-term income to the small landowner. The success of these trials prompted similar research in other countries. World War II disrupted communication and slowed advances in forest farming. In the mid-1950s research resumed in places such as southern Africa. Kagawa was also an inspiration to Robert Hart pioneered forest gardening in temperate climates in the sixties in Shropshire, England.
In earlier years, livestock were often considered part of the forest farming system. Now they are typically excluded and agroforestry systems that integrate trees, forages and livestock are referred to as silvopastures. Because forest farming combines ecological stability of natural forests and productive agriculture systems, it is considered to have great potential for regenerating soils, restoring ground water supplies, controlling floods and droughts and cultivating marginal lands.
Principles
| 3.015625
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
4. Wildcrafting is the harvesting of naturally growing NTFPs. It is not considered a forest farming practice since there is no human involvement in the plant’s establishment and maintenance. However, wildcrafters often take steps to protect NTFPs with future harvests in mind. It becomes agroforestry once forest thinnings, or other inputs, are applied to sustain or maintain plant populations that might otherwise succumb to successional changes in the forest. The most important difference between forest farming and wildcrafting is that forest farming intentionally produces NTFPS, whereas wildcrafting seeks and gathers from naturally growing NTFPs.
Production considerations
Forest farming can be a small business opportunity for landowners and requires careful planning, including a business and marketing plan. Learning how to market the NTFPs on the Internet is an option, but may entail higher shipping costs. Landowners should consider all options for selling their products including, farmer’s markets or restaurants that focus on locally grown ingredients. The development phase should include a forest management plan that states the landowner’s objectives and a resource inventory. Start-up costs should be analyzed as specific equipment may be necessary to harvest or process the product, whereas other crops require minimal initial investment. Local incentives for sustainable forest management, as well as regulations and policies should be explored. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) regulates international trade of certain plant (American ginseng and goldenseal) and animal species. To be legally exported, regulated plants must be harvested and records kept according to CITES rules and restrictions. Many states also have harvesting regulations for certain native plants that are searchable online. Another good source to start with on information is the Medicinal Plants at Risk 2008 report, by the Center for Biological Diversity] in the U.S.
| 2.59375
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
Farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) is a low-cost, sustainable land restoration technique used to combat poverty and hunger amongst poor subsistence farmers in developing countries by increasing food and timber production, and resilience to climate extremes. It involves the systematic regeneration and management of trees and shrubs from tree stumps, roots and seeds. FMNR was developed by the Australian agricultural economist Tony Rinaudo in the 1980s in West Africa. The background and development are described in Rinaudo's book The Forest Underground.
FMNR is especially applicable, but not restricted to, the dryland tropics. As well as returning degraded croplands and grazing lands to productivity, it can be used to restore degraded forests, thereby reversing biodiversity loss and reducing vulnerability to climate change. FMNR can also play an important role in maintaining not-yet-degraded landscapes in a productive state, especially when combined with other sustainable land management practices such as conservation agriculture on cropland and holistic management on range lands.
FMNR adapts centuries-old methods of woodland management, called coppicing and pollarding, to produce continuous tree-growth for fuel, building materials, food and fodder without the need for frequent and costly replanting. On farmland, selected trees are trimmed and pruned to maximise growth while promoting optimal growing conditions for annual crops (such as access to water and sunlight). When FMNR trees are integrated into crops and grazing pastures there is an increase in crop yields, soil fertility and organic matter, soil moisture and leaf fodder. There is also a decrease in wind and heat damage, and soil erosion.
| 2.96875
| 0
|
1488463
|
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agroforestry
|
Agroforestry
|
FMNR complements the evergreen agriculture, conservation agriculture and agroforestry movements. It is considered a good entry point for resource-poor and risk-averse farmers to adopt a low-cost and low-risk technique. This in turn has acted as a stepping stone to greater agricultural intensification as farmers become more receptive to new ideas.
Background
Throughout the developing world, immense tracts of farmland, grazing lands and forests have become degraded to the point they are no longer productive. Deforestation continues at a rapid pace. In Africa's drier regions, 74 percent of rangelands and 61 percent of rain-fed croplands are damaged by moderate to very severe desertification. In some African countries deforestation rates exceed planting rates by 300:1.
Degraded land has an extremely detrimental effect on the lives of subsistence farmers who depend on it for their food and livelihoods. Subsistence farmers often make up to 70–80 percent of the population in these regions and they regularly suffer from hunger, malnutrition and even famine as a consequence.
In the Sahel region of Africa, a band of savanna which runs across the continent immediately south of the Sahara Desert, large tracts of once-productive farmland are turning to desert. In tropical regions across the world, where rich soils and good rainfall would normally assure bountiful harvests and fat livestock, some environments have become so degraded they are no longer productive.
| 2.828125
| 0
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.