History.

Formation and EPs.

In 2011, Sibling step-brothers Zack Anderson (bass) and Cory Berry (drums), formerly of Radio Moscow, were in Iowa and met singer Elin Larsson, who was staying in California. Together they recorded two demo tracks and published them on YouTube, after which label "Crusher Records" offered them a deal. The band toured to Spain and France, where they met 16-year-old guitarist Dorian Sorriaux, whom they invited to Örebro and made a member of the band. The name of the band came from their friend, Jens Heide, who had a music blog called BluesPillz with obscure 60s and 70s underground music.  In May 2012 they released an EP called ""Bliss"", followed by the ""Black Smoke"" single in July. The band toured extensively during 2013 with appearances in Berlin's "Desertfest" in April, in Bad Kötzting's "Void Fest" and Geel's "Yellowstock Festival" in August, in Bonn's "Crossroads Festival" in October and Melbourne's "Cherry Rock Festival" in November 2013.  In July 2013, Blues Pills signed a contract with the "Nuclear Blast" label and released their ""Devil Man"" EP in October. Their appearance at the "Crossroads Festival" was recorded and released in the form of the ""Live at Rockpalast"" EP in March 2014.

2014–present: debut album and "Lady in Gold".

In July 2014 they released their first album, "Blues Pills", the special edition of which included a DVD of their appearance in the "Hammer of Doom" festival from the year before. Shortly after the release of the first album, Cory Berry was replaced with new drummer André Kvarnström.  In mid-2014 they appeared in the "Sweden Rock Festival", in Gelsenkirchen's "Rock Hard Festival" in June and in the famous Montreux Jazz Festival in July 2014.  The album became successful in Europe, climbing to No. 4 in Germany and No. 10 in Switzerland, while it also reached British charts at No. 68.  During the end of 2015 and the start of 2016, the band started writing and recording their second album. On 22 April, 2016, Blues Pills announced that "Lady in Gold" will be released on August 5, 2016 through Nuclear Blast Records with a ten track set-list.  In 2016, Blues Pills toured with Kadavar, play festivals in the summer in North America and Europe followed by a UK tour in November.  A live album Lady in Gold Live in Paris was announced with a release date of November 3rd 2017.  In November 2018 the band announced the peaceful departure of guitarist Dorian Sorriaux via a post on their Facebook page. Work on a third album will continue, with Zack Anderson moving to guitar. In October 2019, it was announced that Kristoffer Schander would be joining on the bass guitar, in the same post, they have also announced that they were working on their 3rd studio album, set to be released in 2020.  In March 6th 2020, the band released the first single of their third album, "Proud Woman", in the same video, they announced their upcoming third studio album is entitled "Holy Moly!".

References.

BLUES PILLS on Rock Overdose: “It’s all about the feeling and soul in the music for us”

Blues Pills are a Swedish rock band, formed in Örebro in 2011. The four piece released EPs and singles before signing up with German record label Nuclear Blast and releasing a successful self-titled debut album "Blues Pills". The band released their second album "Lady in Gold" in August 2016.


Format changes.

The UEFA Executive Committee held in May 2013 approved the following changes to the UEFA Champions League starting from the 2015–16 season (for the three-year cycle until the 2017–18 season):

Association team allocation.

A total of 78 teams from 53 of the 54 UEFA member associations participated in the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein, which does not organise a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA country coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:

Association ranking.

For the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, the associations are allocated places according to their 2014 UEFA country coefficients, which takes into account their performance in European competitions from 2009–10 to 2013–14.  Apart from the allocation based on the country coefficients, associations may have additional teams participating in the Champions League, as noted below:

Distribution.

In the default access list, the Champions League title holders enter the group stage. However, since Barcelona already qualified for the group stage (as the champions of the 2014–15 La Liga), the Champions League title holders berth in the group stage is given to the Europa League title holders, Sevilla.

Teams.

League positions of the previous season shown in parentheses, except Sevilla which qualified as Europa League title holders. (TH: Champions League title holders; EL: Europa League title holders).

Round and draw dates.

The schedule of the competition is as follows (all draws are held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, unless stated otherwise).

Qualifying rounds.

In the qualifying rounds and the play-off round, teams were divided into seeded and unseeded teams based on their 2015 UEFA club coefficients, and then drawn into two-legged home-and-away ties. Teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other.

First qualifying round.

The draw for the first and second qualifying rounds was held on 22 June 2015. The first legs were played on 30 June and 1 July, and the second legs were played on 7 July 2015. Lincoln Red Imps became the first Gibraltar team to win a tie in a UEFA competition, two years after Gibraltar's teams were first admitted entry.

Second qualifying round.

The first legs were played on 14 and 15 July, and the second legs were played on 21 and 22 July 2015.

Third qualifying round.

The third qualifying round was split into two separate sections: Champions Route (for league champions) and League Route (for league non-champions). The losing teams in both sections entered the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League play-off round.  The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 17 July 2015. The first legs were played on 28 and 29 July, and the second legs were played on 4 and 5 August 2015.

Play-off round.

The play-off round was split into two separate sections: Champions Route (for league champions) and League Route (for league non-champions). The losing teams in both sections entered the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League group stage.  The draw for the play-off round was held on 7 August 2015. The first legs were played on 18 and 19 August, and the second legs were played on 25 and 26 August 2015.

Group stage.

The draw for the group stage was held in Monaco on 27 August 2015. The 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four, with the restriction that teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other. For the draw, the teams were seeded into four pots based on the following principles (introduced starting this season):  In each group, teams played against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The group winners and runners-up advanced to the round of 16, while the third-placed teams entered the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League round of 32. The matchdays were 15–16 September, 29–30 September, 20–21 October, 3–4 November, 24–25 November, and 8–9 December 2015.  The youth teams of the clubs that qualified for the group stage also played in the 2015–16 UEFA Youth League on the same matchdays, where they competed in the UEFA Champions League Path (with the UEFA Youth League expanded to 64 teams, the youth domestic champions of the top 32 associations compete in a separate Domestic Champions Path until the play-offs).  A total of 17 national associations were represented in the group stage. Astana, Borussia Mönchengladbach and KAA Gent made their debut appearances in the group stage. Astana were the first team from Kazakhstan to play in the Champions League group stage. With the maximum teams from the same association in the group stage increased from four to five, Spain became the first association to have five teams in the Champions League group stage. Since all three qualifying teams from the highest ranked leagues won their ties in the league route playoff round, the three countries of Spain, England and Germany had 13 of the 32 clubs in the group stage.

Knockout phase.

In the knockout phase, teams played against each other over two legs on a home-and-away basis, except for the one-match final. The mechanism of the draws for each round was as follows:

Round of 16.

The draw for the round of 16 was held on 14 December 2015. The first legs were played on 16, 17, 23 and 24 February, and the second legs were played on 8, 9, 15 and 16 March 2016.

Quarter-finals.

The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 18 March 2016. The first legs were played on 5 and 6 April, and the second legs were played on 12 and 13 April 2016.

Semi-finals.

The draw for the semi-finals was held on 15 April 2016. The first legs were played on 26 and 27 April, and the second legs were played on 3 and 4 May 2016.

Final.

The final was played on 28 May 2016 at the San Siro in Milan, Italy. The "home" team (for administrative purposes) was determined by an additional draw held after the semi-final draw.

Statistics.

Statistics exclude qualifying rounds and play-off round.

Squad of the Season.

The UEFA technical study group selected the following 18 players as the squad of the tournament.

The 2015–16 UEFA Champions League was the 61st season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 24th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. Barcelona were the title holders, but were eliminated by Atlético Madrid in the quarter-finals.


History.

The initial commit to GitHub was pushed on June 23, 2013, by a user named irungentoo. Pre-alpha testing binaries were made available for users from February 3, 2014, onwards, and nightly builds of Tox are published by the Jenkins Automatron. On July 12, 2014, Tox entered an alpha stage in development and a redesigned download page was created for the occasion.

Features.

Encryption of traffic.

Users are assigned a public and private key, and they connect to each other directly in a fully distributed, peer-to-peer network. Users have the ability to message friends, join chat rooms with friends or strangers, voice/video chat, and send each other files. All traffic over Tox is end-to-end encrypted using the NaCl library, which provides authenticated encryption and perfect forward secrecy.

Revealing of IP address to friends.

Tox makes no attempt to cloak your IP address when communicating with friends, as the whole point of a peer-to-peer network is to connect you directly to your friends. A workaround does exist in the form of tunneling your Tox connections through Tor. However, a non-friend user cannot easily discover your IP address using only a Tox ID; you reveal your IP address to someone only when you add them to your contacts list.

Additional messaging features.

Tox clients aim to provide support for various secure and anonymised communication features; while every client supports messaging, additional features like group messaging, voice and video calling, voice and video conferencing, typing indicators, message read-receipts, file sharing, profile encryption, and desktop streaming are supported to various degrees by mobile and desktop clients. Additional features can be implemented by any client as long as they are supported by the core protocol. Features that are not related to the core networking system are left up to the client. Client developers are strongly encouraged to adhere to the Tox Client Standard in order to maintain cross-client compatibility and uphold best security practices.

Usability as an instant messenger.

Though several apps that use the Tox protocol seem similar in function to regular instant messaging apps, the lack of central servers currently has the consequence that both parties of the chat need to be online for the message to be sent and received. The Tox enabled messengers deal with this in separate ways, some prevent the user from sending the message if the other party has disconnected while others show the message as being sent when in reality it is stored in the sender's phone waiting to be delivered when the receiving party reconnects to the network.

Architecture.

Core.

The Tox core is a library establishing the protocol and API. User front-ends, or clients, are built on the top of the core. Anyone can create a client utilizing the core. Technical documents describing the design of the Core, written by the core developer irungentoo, are available publicly.

Protocol.

The core of Tox is an implementation of the Tox protocol, an example of the application layer of the OSI model and arguably the presentation layer. Implementations of the Tox protocol not done by the project exist.  Tox uses the Opus audio format for audio streaming and the VP8 video compression format for video streaming.

Encryption.

Tox uses the cryptographic primitives present in the NaCl crypto library, via libsodium. Specifically, Tox employs Curve25519 for its key exchanges, xsalsa20 for symmetric encryption, and Poly1305 for MACs. Because the tox protocol can be used by many different applications, and because the tox network broadcasts the used client, it is also possible for clients to use additional encryption when sending to clients which support the same features.

Clients.

A client is a program that uses the Tox core library to communicate with other users of the Tox protocol. Various clients are available for a wide range of systems; the following list is incomplete.  There are also Tox protocol plugins for Pidgin (no longer maintained, but working as of 2018-03-30) and Miranda NG.

Disassociation with Tox Foundation.

At July 11, 2015, Tox developers officially announced their disassociation with Tox Foundation, due to "a dispute over the misuse of donated funds" by Tox Foundation head and CEO, according to LWN.net. Due to domains being in control of the Tox Foundation, main development of the project was transferred to a new infrastructure, servers, and new domain.

Reception.

Tox received some significant publicity in its early conceptual stage, catching the attention of global online tech news sites. On August 15, 2013, Tox was number five on GitHub's top trending list. Concerns about metadata leaks were raised, and developers responded by implementing Onion routing for the friend-finding process. Tox was accepted into the Google Summer of Code as a Mentoring Organization in 2014 and 2015.

Tox is a peer-to-peer instant-messaging and video-calling protocol that offers end-to-end encryption. The stated goal of the project is to provide secure yet easily accessible communication for everyone. A reference implementation of the protocol is published as free and open-source software under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL) version 3 or later.


History of the office.

The office was established by the constitution of Slovakia on 1 January 1993 when Slovakia permanently split from Czechoslovakia and became independent. The office was vacant until 2 March 1993, when the first president Michal Kováč was elected by the National Council of Slovak Republic. However, in 1998, the National Council was unable to elect a successor to Kováč. As a result, for half a year after Kováč's term ended in March 1998, the position was vacant. The duties and powers of the office devolved upon the then prime minister and speaker of the National Council. To resolve the issue, the constitution was changed to provide for popular election of the president. Presidential elections have been held in 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019.  The current president is Zuzana Čaputová, who took office on 15 June 2019.

Role and powers.

The president of Slovakia has a limited role in policy-making, as the office is largely ceremonial within the framework of a parliamentary republic. According to the constitution, the president is the supreme representative of the state both in Slovakia and abroad.  The president represents the Slovak Republic externally and concludes and ratifies international treaties. He or she may delegate to the Government or, with the Government's consent, to individual members of the Slovak Republic, the conclusion of international treaties. Historically all Slovak presidents delegated this power to the Government. Technically it is officially done by Decision of President No. 250/2001 Coll. (which superseded Decision of President No. 205/1993 Coll.), which is still in effect.  Among the president's constitutional powers are nominating and appointing the prime minister. The president's choice is not limited, but by constitution the president through his decisions ensures due performance of constitutional bodies. Because the government of whoever is appointed prime minister must receive a vote of confidence in parliament, the president usually appoints the leader of the winning party or coalition in parliamentary elections.  The president has sole discretion to appoint three members of the judicial council, one member of the Budget Council, and two members of the council of the Nation's Memory Institute; to award distinctions, to appoint the president and vice-president of the Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic (from among the Constitutional Court judges), and to grant pardon or parole.  The president can also veto any bill or proposal by the National Council, except for constitutional amendments. This veto can be overridden if the National Council passes the same bill again with a majority of all members of the Council, so this power is considered quite weak.  The president is formally the commander-in-chief of the Slovak armed forces, but this role is ceremonial, because by the constitution when the president acts as the commander-in-chief his or her decision is valid only after it is signed by the prime minister or a minister authorized by the prime minister, and in such cases the Government is responsible for the president's decision. The same applies to grants of amnesty and appointments of chiefs of diplomatic missions.  Among their other constitutional duties are signing bills into law, appointing ministers on the recommendation of the prime minister, and appointing various other state officials: generals, professors, judges, rectors, procurators and the like.  The president has discretionary power (he or she can refuse appointment) over the appointments of some officials. For example, there have been cases when the president has refused to appoint vice-governors of the National Bank of Slovakia recommended by government. These actions of the president were confirmed by the Constitutional Court.  In many cases the appointment of state officials is regulated by other laws. For example, the president's power to appoint constitutional judges is limited to selection from nominees voted by the National Council, from which the president has to appoint half. The appointment or recall of judges is determined by decisions of the Judicial Council, which submits its proposals to the president.  Presidential powers are substantially increased in the special circumstance when the National Council passes a vote of no confidence in the government. In such a case, many executive powers of government (e.g. appointment of officials, foreign trips, signing treates) are subject to the approval of the president.

Succession.

In the case when the president is unable to perform his/her duties or if the presidency becomes vacant for any reason, the speaker of the National Council and the Government led by the prime minister jointly perform the duties of the president.

Living former presidents.

There are three living former Slovak presidents:

The president of the Slovak Republic () is the head of state of Slovakia and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The president is directly elected by the people for five years, and can be elected for a maximum of two consecutive terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the president does exercise certain limited powers with absolute discretion. The president's official residence is the Grassalkovich Palace in Bratislava.


Pathophysiology.

Seigo Minami, a Japanese physician, first reported the crush syndrome in 1923. He studied the pathology of three soldiers who died in World War I due to kidney failure. The renal changes were due to the buildup of excess methemoglobin, resulting from the destruction of muscles from lack of oxygen. These changes can also be seen in persons who are buried alive. The progressive acute kidney failure is because of acute tubular necrosis.  The syndrome was later described by British physician Eric Bywaters in patients during the 1941 London Blitz. It is a reperfusion injury that appears after the release of the crushing pressure. The mechanism is believed to be the release into the bloodstream of muscle breakdown products—notably myoglobin, potassium and phosphorus—that are the products of rhabdomyolysis (the breakdown of skeletal muscle damaged by ischemic conditions).  The specific action on the kidneys is not understood completely, but may be due partly to nephrotoxic metabolites of myoglobin.  The most devastating systemic effects can occur when the crushing pressure is suddenly released, without proper preparation of the patient, causing reperfusion syndrome. In addition to tissue directly suffering the crush mechanism, tissue is then subjected to sudden reoxygenation in the limbs and extremities. Without proper preparation, the patient, with pain control, may be cheerful before recovery, but die shortly thereafter. This sudden failure is called the "smiling death".  These systemic effects are caused by a traumatic rhabdomyolysis. As muscle cells die, they absorb sodium, water and calcium; the rhabdomyolysis releases potassium, myoglobin, phosphate, thromboplastin, creatine and creatine kinase.  Crush syndrome can directly come from compartment syndrome, if the injury is left untreated.. Monitor for the classic 5 Ps: pain, pallor, parasthesias(pins and needles), paralysis, and pulselessness.

Treatment.

There is no distinct treatment option that can undo the effects and damage from Rhabdomyolysis because it is necrosis. However, the rate of the pathology that can lead to more complications can be decreased by acting early and consistently. Overall treatment depends on preventing kidney failure (renal failure) which is done by rehydrating the patient. It also depends on making urine have a more basic pH (alkalinization of urine).  Immediate untreated crush syndrome death is caused by severe head injury, torso injury with damaged abdominal organs, and asphyxia (excessive loss of oxygen). Early untreated crush syndrome death is caused by Hyperkalemia and by Hypovolemic shock. Late untreated crush syndrome death is caused by renal failure, coagulopathy and hemorrhage, and sepsis.  Due to the risk of crush syndrome, current recommendation to nonprofessional first-aiders (in the UK) is to not release victims of crush injury who have been trapped for more than 15 minutes. Treatment consists of not releasing the tourniquet, overloading the patient with fluid using Dextran 4000 iu, and slow release of pressure. If pressure is released during first aid, then fluid is restricted and an input-output chart for the patient is maintained, and proteins are decreased in the diet.

Field management.

As mentioned, permissive hypotension (restrictive fluid therapy) is unwise. Careful fluid overload and administration of intravenous sodium bicarbonate is wise, especially if the crushing weight is on the patient for more than 4 hours, but often if it persists more than one hour. The San Francisco emergency services protocol calls for a basic adult dose of a 2 L bolus of normal saline followed by 500 ml/h, limited for "pediatric patients and patients with history of cardiac or renal dysfunction."  Use of a tourniquet can stall the life-threatening consequences of a crush related injury and can be a second option if the person cannot immediately have the fluids that were lost be medically replaced back into the body. Tourniquet measures should be taken if the person has been entrapped for more than 2 hours.

Initial hospital management.

The clinician must protect the patient against hypotension, kidney failure, acidosis, hyperkalemia and hypocalcemia. Admission to an intensive care unit, preferably one experienced in trauma medicine, may be appropriate; even well-seeming patients need observation. Treat open wounds as surgically appropriate, with debridement, antibiotics and tetanus toxoid; apply ice to injured areas. Breathing and circulation must be checked out and the patient should be given oxygen if eligible. Oral or intravenous fluids must be given depending on the measured amounts of electrolytes, arterial blood gases, and muscle enzymes.  Intravenous hydration of up to 1.5 L/hour should continue to prevent hypotension. A urinary output of at least 300 ml/hour should be maintained with IV fluids and mannitol, and hemodialysis considered if an increase in urine is not achieved. Use intravenous sodium bicarbonate to keep the urine pH at 6.5 or greater, to prevent myoglobin and uric acid deposition in kidneys.  To prevent hyperkalemia/hypocalcemia, consider the following adult doses:  Even so, abnormal heart rhythms may develop; electrocardiographic monitoring is advised, and specific treatment begun promptly.

Crush syndrome (also traumatic rhabdomyolysis or Bywaters' syndrome) is a medical condition characterized by major shock and kidney failure after a crushing injury to skeletal muscle. Crush "injury" is compression of the arms, legs, or other parts of the body that causes muscle swelling and/or neurological disturbances in the affected areas of the body, while crush "syndrome" is localized crush injury with systemic manifestations. Cases occur commonly in catastrophes such as earthquakes, to victims that have been trapped under fallen or moving masonry.


Gameplay.

"Heroes of Might and Magic IV" introduced a number of major changes to the series.

Heroes.

Unlike previous games, where they had little active role in combat, heroes became present on the battlefield with their troops. They can attack, and be attacked. If a hero is killed in combat he/she must be brought to a friendly town to be revived. It is possible to have armies with more than one hero, or with no heroes at all, although armies without a hero are incapable of performing certain tasks, such as capturing enemy towns or structures.  The skill system also underwent a significant overhaul, and all Heroes of a given class start out with the same skills. The player has significantly more control over the development of the Hero than in previous games in the series, and Heroes "evolve" into over 40 different specialized classes. A Hero can select up to five of the nine available primary skills, and each primary skill makes available three secondary skills. Each of these 36 skills have five levels of progression as opposed to the three levels in the previous games.

Combat.

Both the adventure and combat maps were converted to a fixed-view isometric 3D display. The traditional hexagon-based battle grid was converted into a much higher-resolution square-based grid, making it easier to feature units of different sizes. Non-hero spellcasting units were given proper spell selections. Retaliation was allowed simultaneously with the attack, and ranged units were given the capability to retaliate against ranged attacks. Projectile attacks and spells now required direct line of sight to the target.

World map.

Each individual troop unit was given its own movement allowance on the adventure map, with units possessing the ability to split off independently of the main army; however, the troops can no longer be "shuttled" from hero to hero to move an army large distances in a single turn. Logistics were restricted by eliminating or weakening travel spells. This, in turn, was partially compensated for by the elimination of the need to revisit resource-producing structures each week, and the introduction of caravans, which can quickly and safely transport heroes and remotely recruit troops from external dwellings.

Units.

A small number of these skills are shared with earlier games, and some of the new skills can dramatically affect strategy (e.g., a Hero with Grandmaster Stealth is invisible to all non-allied units). Troop units may no longer be upgraded, and there are four recruitable ranks of units, down from seven. Each rank has two dwellings that can be built, but beyond the first rank, building one dwelling precludes the other. The creature dwellings themselves accumulate new creatures every day, as opposed to the start of each new week.

Story.

Following the events of "Heroes Chronicles: The Sword of Frost", Gelu, the leader of AvLee's Forest Guard and wielder of Armageddon's Blade, attacks Kilgor, the Barbarian King of Krewlod, in an attempt to claim and destroy the Sword of Frost. As foretold by a prophecy, when Armageddon's Blade and the Sword of Frost clash in battle, the result is a massive explosion (known as the Reckoning), which destroys the world of Enroth. Many of the inhabitants of the planet, however, escape through mysterious portals that appear during the Reckoning that lead them to another world, called Axeoth – also the setting for "Might and Magic IX". Included among the refugees are many of the heroes of previous installments of the series, and many return to their old ways shortly after arriving on their new home.  The story of "Heroes of Might and Magic IV" unfolds primarily through the game's six campaigns, each of which establishes how the major kingdoms of one of Axeoth's continents were forged in the wake of the Reckoning, and the arrival of the Enrothian refugees on Axeoth. Each of the campaigns centers on a faction leader, and tells the story of how that leader came to prominence. Unlike "Heroes of Might and Magic III", all of the six campaigns are accessible from the beginning, and each unfolds as a stand-alone tale.

Expansion packs.

Two expansion packs were released for "Heroes IV": Heroes of Might and Magic IV: The Gathering Storm (2002) and Heroes of Might and Magic IV: Winds of War (2003), both for Microsoft Windows only.  "The Gathering Storm" offers six campaigns, more than 20 maps, 16 additional artifacts, four new creatures, and a multiplayer update. Each of the first five campaigns features a new specialty hero. "The Gathering Storm" also features an upgraded editor, which allows full access to new heroes, adventure objects, artifacts and creatures. A new soundtrack is also included.  "Winds of War" introduces three new creatures and six new campaigns, which collectively tell the story of the invasion of the kingdom of Channon by the leaders of its five neighboring kingdoms. "Winds of War" was the last installment of the entire "Heroes of Might and Magic" series to be developed by New World Computing. Afterwards, the bankruptcy of the 3DO Company led to the sale of the "Might and Magic" franchise to Ubisoft for $1.3 million.

Reception.

Sales.

In the German market, "Heroes of Might and Magic IV" debuted at #5 on Media Control's computer game sales chart for April 2002. It climbed to fourth in its second month, before dropping to 12th and 19th in June and July, respectively.

Critical reviews.

The critic aggregator Metacritic determined that reviewers found the game to be generally favorable, with a weighted score of 84 out of 100. GameSpot wrote that "Heroes IV is clearly a worthy successor to the series and has very clearly been worth the wait", praising New World Computing for being "able to incorporate so many new and interesting features into this sequel while still making sure it kept all the core elements that made all the previous games so great". PC Gameworld was slightly less favorable, saying, "The spark might be there, but it doesn’t burn as bright as it has in the past."  The expansions were less well received by professional reviewers, with metascores of 64 out of 100 for "The Gathering Storm" and 58 out of 100 for "Winds of War."  "Heroes of Might and Magic IV" was a nominee for "The Electric Playground"s 2002 "Best Strategy Game for PC" award, but lost to "".

Heroes of Might and Magic IV is a turn-based strategy game developed by Gus Smedstad through New World Computing and published by the 3DO Company for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers in 2002. A Macintosh port was subsequently developed by Contraband Entertainment and released by the 3DO Company. The fourth installment of the popular "Heroes of Might and Magic" franchise, it is the sequel to "Heroes of Might and Magic III", and was the last to be developed by New World Computing.


Gameplay.

A hero can learn a new skill, upgrade an existing one, gain a new ability or create combos of multiple abilities upon gaining a new level or visiting special buildings on the adventure map. There are two sets of skills available to heroes: racial skills and regular skills. A hero can have up to five regular skills and always has the proper racial skill. Skills are divided into four levels: Basic, Advanced, Expert, and Ultimate. Each skill is associated with three to five abilities, depending on the race of the hero. Each level of skill gives the hero a chance to learn one ability under the skill. That is, a hero with Basic level of a skill can learn one ability, Advanced level two, and Expert level three. An ability is not immediately learned when the hero increases the corresponding skill level.  The racial skill that a hero learns is dependent on their native faction. All heroes from a faction learn the same racial skill and racial abilities. Each racial skill culminates in an 'ultimate ability' that can only be gained by learning a very specific set of regular skills and abilities. In addition to the three levels of skills that apply to regular skills, the racial skill can reach an ultimate level when a certain artifact is worn by the hero.  There are six factions in the game: "Haven", "Inferno", "Necropolis", "Dungeon", "Sylvan" and "Academy". Additionally, the game's expansion packs added the "" and "" alignments.

Development.

In August 2003, Ubisoft acquired the rights to the "Might and Magic" franchise for USD$1.3 million after 3DO filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Ubisoft announced their plan to develop the fifth game in the series under the direction of producer Fabrice Cambounet. This news caused controversy as New World Computing under 3DO had already started making the fifth Heroes game. Although Ubisoft gained access to NWC's progress on "Heroes V" (which envisioned it as an isometric 2D game in the "Heroes IV" engine), it was decided to start over and create a completely new 3D game.

Expansions.

The first "Heroes V" expansion pack, called "Hammers of Fate", was released on November 17, 2006 in Europe and November 24, 2006 in North America. It includes a new race, the Dwarves, who have exclusive access to a new kind of magic, known as Rune Magic. Other features include the much-awaited random map generator and the return of the "Heroes IV" caravans. This expansion pack requires the full version of "Heroes of Might and Magic V" to play.  The stand-alone second expansion pack is called "HOMMV: The Tribes of the East" and was released on October 12, 2007 in Europe and on October 19, 2007 in North America. "Tribes of the East" includes the new Stronghold faction, alternate upgrades for all units currently in the game (bringing the total number of creatures to 177), as well as new artifacts and spells.

Reception.

The critical reaction to the retail version of "Heroes V" has been generally favourable, with an average review score of roughly 77/100 on Metacritic.  "Heroes of Might and Magic V" was a commercial success. Its sales surpassed 350,000 copies by the end of June 2006, and it reached #1 on sales charts in Germany, France and the United Kingdom.

Successors.

On August 17, 2010, a trailer for "Might & Magic Heroes VI" was released on GameTrailers. The release date was announced as September 8, 2011, but was changed to October 13, 2011.

Heroes of Might and Magic V is the fifth installment of the "Heroes of Might and Magic" fantasy turn-based strategy video game series. The game was released by Ubisoft in Europe on May 16, and then in the United States and Canada on May 24, 2006, with the publisher guiding Russian studio Nival Interactive in its development. Following the closure of The 3DO Company, Ubisoft bought the rights to the "Might and Magic" franchise, and used "Heroes V" as a means to reboot the series with a brand-new setting, called Ashan, and no continuity to previous titles.


Life and career.

Ramsey was born November 17, 1971, in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from Wayne State University. From 1997 to 1998, he starred in the UPN sitcom "Good News", as pastor David Randolph. In 2000, he starred as Muhammad Ali in the Fox television movie "". That year, he appeared in "Pay It Forward" and started a recurring role in "For Your Love". In 2001, he starred as Vince Lee in the South African comedy film "Mr Bones". He has also starred in recurring roles in "All of Us", "The West Wing", "", "Ghost Whisperer", "Wildfire", and "Hollywood Residential". From 2008 to 2009, he appeared in 17 episodes of "Dexter" as Anton Briggs, a pot-smoking confidential informant who has an affair with Debra Morgan in Season 3 and at the start of Season 4. In 2010, he appeared in an episode of "Grey's Anatomy" and in the short-lived NBC courtroom drama series "Outlaw". From 2012 to 2020, he had been pulling double duty, appearing in the main cast of CW's superhero show "Arrow", as John Diggle, a military veteran who is Oliver's partner, confidant, bodyguard, and later gained an alter ego, Spartan, since the 4th season. The season 7 episode "Past Sins" was Ramsey's directorial debut. He had also appeared in Arrow's spin off shows such as Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, and The Flash. Ramsey also starred in the TV series "Blue Bloods" as Mayor Carter Poole.  Ramsey is an accomplished martial artist, with a black belt in Jeet Kune Do. He has also studied boxing, tae kwon do and Wing Chun, and trained in kickboxing under Benny "Jet" Urquidez.

David Paul Ramsey (born November 17, 1971) is an American actor, director, and martial artist, best known for his roles in the CW series "Arrow" as John Diggle/Spartan, Anton Briggs on the Showtime TV series "Dexter", and the film "Mother and Child" (2009) as Joseph.


Early life and education.

Jourová grew up in Třebíč, a small town in which her parents, a kindergarten teacher and caterer, ran a folk troupe. She studied cultural anthropology in Prague, while raising two children. Upon graduation, she returned to work in Třebíč’s local council.

Career in the public sector.

Jourová served as secretary and spokesperson of the Municipal Office of Třebíč, Vysočina Region, Czech Republic, from 1995 until 2000 and as Head of the Department of Regional Development for the Vysočina Region from 2001 to 2003. She entered national politics when she was tapped to work as Deputy Head of the Ministry of Regional Development, where she led the European Integration Section until March 2006. Her responsibilities included leading the Czech team that negotiated EU funds with the European Commission and European Investment Bank as well as managing EU funds in the Czech Republic.  In October 2006, Jourová was accused of accepting a 2 million Kč bribe from Ladislav Péťa, mayor of Budišov, South Moravia, for securing EU subsidies to the reconstruction of the Budišov Chateau. Although she was fully exonerated, she spent more than a month in pre-trial detention, which "brought divorce and anguish to her family". Her prosecution was halted in mid-2008, when the police came forward and said that the bribery had never happened.  Between 2006 and 2013, Jourová was an independent consultant providing advice on EU matters to the Czech Republic, Romania, Germany, Belarus, Latvia, Estonia, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Moldova.

Political career.

Career in national politics.

Jourová has been a member of the ANO political party since 2012, and since 2013, she has been the movement's deputy chairwoman. She was elected as a Member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament in October 2013, and became Minister for Regional Development in January 2014 in the government of Bohuslav Sobotka. Her popularity ratings remained consistently high, helping to drive the party to second place in the 2013 national elections and to victory in the 2014 European elections.

Member of the European Commission, 2014–present.

In July 2014, the three parties in the Czech government agreed that the country’s next European commissioner should be Jourová. At the time, there was speculation she would vie for the important posts of European Commissioner for Regional Policy or the European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services.  After an EU Parliament hearing she was confirmed as the European Union's Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality as a part of the Juncker Commission. The Corporate Europe Observatory "expressed serious doubts" about her possible conflicts of interest due to her ties with ANO Chairman Andrej Babiš, who is also the Czech Finance Minister and a billionaire businessman. Her party, ANO, belongs to the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe in the European Parliament.  Her responsibilities include gender equality, judicial cooperation within the EU, and privacy concerns, including concluding negotiations on a comprehensive EU-U.S. Safe Harbor Agreement and working with the Vice-President for the Digital Single Market Andrus Ansip to pass "EU data protection reform and by modernis[e] and simplify[] consumer rules for online and digital purchases". In addition, her portfolio includes "overseeing remuneration rules across the City of London, enforcing EU pay curbs and bonus caps", something that was explicitly carved out of Jonathan Hill's portfolio as Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union "amid concerns that members of the European Parliament will try to veto his appointment". In 2018, Jourová was put in charge of drafting rules to assess the independence and functioning of a country’s judicial system as a condition for receiving funds from the budget of the European Union.  Jourová said that Germany acted "according to the rules" regarding Spain's extradition request for Catalan president Carles Puigdemont.  Following the 2019 European elections, Babiš nominated Jourová for a second term in the European Commission.  Jourová has voiced concerns regarding the rule of law in Poland.

Controversy.

In early 2019, Romanian authorities launched a criminal probe into Jourová and Frans Timmermans over alleged false claims made in a European Commission report on the rule of law in Romania. At the time, the Commission responded that authorities in Romania had “no jurisdiction whatsoever” over EU officials carrying out official functions.  Some MEPs have expressed concern over Jourova's affiliation to controversial billionaire-turned politician Andrej Babiš and his political movement ANO.

Věra Jourová (; born 18 August 1964) is a Czech politician and lawyer who has been the Vice President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency since 1 December 2019 and previously served as the European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality from 2014 to 2019. She has also served as the Czech Minister for Regional Development and Member of the Chamber of Deputies (MP) between 2013 and 2014.


Design and development.

A developed version of the original V-173 prototype, the XF5U-1 was a larger aircraft. Of all-metal construction, it was almost five times heavier, with two 1,600 hp (1,193 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-2000 radial engines. The configuration was designed to create a low aspect ratio aircraft with low takeoff and landing speeds but high top speed.  Normally, a wing with such a low aspect ratio will suffer from very poor performance due to the degree of induced drag created at the wingtips, as the higher pressure air below spills around the wingtip to the lower-pressure region above. In a conventional aircraft, these wingtip vortices carry a lot of energy with them and hence create drag. The usual approach to reducing these vortices is to build a wing with a high aspect ratio, i.e. one that is long and narrow. However, such wings compromise the maneuverability and roll rate of the aircraft, or present a structural challenge in building them stiff enough. The XF5U attempted to overcome the tip vortex problem using the propellers to actively cancel the drag-causing tip vortices. The propellers are arranged to rotate in the opposite direction to the tip vortices, with the aim of retaining the higher-pressure air below the wing. With this source of drag eliminated, the aircraft would fly with a much smaller wing area, and the small wing would yield high maneuverability with greater structural strength.  The propellers envisioned for the completed fighter — unlike the torque-reducing counter-rotating propellers of the V-173 design — were to have a built-in cyclic movement like a helicopter's main rotor, with a very limited ability to shift their center of lift up and down to aid the aircraft in maneuvering. An ejection seat was fitted to allow the pilot to clear the massive propellers in the event of an in-flight emergency. Although the prototype was unarmed, a combination of machine guns and cannons would have been installed under the nose.

Testing and evaluation.

The XF5U design was promising: specifications given at the time promised great maneuverability and speeds up to 550 mph (885 km/h). However, it came at the time when the United States Navy was switching from propeller driven to jet propelled aircraft. By 1946, the XF5U-1 project was already long over its expected development time, and well over budget. With jet aircraft coming into service, the Navy finally canceled the project on 17 March 1947, and the prototype aircraft (V-173) was transferred to the Smithsonian Museum for display. Although two aircraft were constructed, a lone XF5U-1 underwent ground runs but never overcame vibration problems. Taxi trials at Vought's Connecticut factory culminated in short "hops" that were not true flights. The only completed XF5U-1 proved to be so structurally solid that it had to be destroyed with a wrecking ball.

The Vought XF5U "Flying Flapjack" was an experimental U.S. Navy fighter aircraft designed by Charles H. Zimmerman for Vought during World War II. This unorthodox design consisted of a flat, somewhat disc-shaped body (hence its name) serving as the lifting surface. Two piston engines buried in the body drove propellers located on the leading edge at the wingtips.


Early life and diplomatic career.

Although Zheng traced his ancestral roots to Minhou, a small town near Fuzhou, he was born in Suzhou, Jiangsu. In 1882, he obtained the intermediate degree in the imperial examinations, and three years later he joined the secretariat of the prominent statesman Li Hongzhang. In 1891, he was appointed secretary to the Chinese legation in Tokyo, and in the following years he performed consular duties at the Chinese consulates in Tsukiji, Osaka and Kobe respectively. During his tenure in Kobe, he worked closely with the Chinese community and played an instrumental part in establishing the Chinese guild ("Zhōnghuá huìguǎn" 中華會館) there. In Japan, Zheng also interacted with a number of influential politicians and scholars, such as Itō Hirobumi, Mutsu Munemitsu and Naitō Torajirō.

Government service.

Following the outbreak of the First Sino-Japanese war in 1894, Zheng was forced to leave Japan. Having returned to China, Zheng joined the secretariat of the reformist statesman Zhang Zhidong in Nanjing and followed him to Beijing, where Zheng obtained a position in the Qing foreign office, the Zongli Yamen. Following the abortive Hundred Days' Reform in 1898, Zheng left his post in Beijing and took up a number of important government positions in central and southern China. After the collapse of the imperial system in 1911, Zheng remained loyal to the Qing dynasty and refused to serve under China's Republican government. Instead he withdrew from public life entirely and retired comfortably in Shanghai, where he devoted his time to calligraphy, poetry and art, while also writing extensive articles critical of the Kuomintang leadership, whom he characterized as “thieves”.

Qing loyalist and Collaboration with the Japanese.

In 1923, the former Qing emperor Puyi summoned Zheng to Beijing in order to reorganize the imperial household. Zheng became a close adviser of Puyi and helped arrange for his flight to the foreign concession at Tianjin after his expulsion from the Forbidden City. Zheng remained loyal to the throne and secretly met with Japanese officials and groups such as the Black Dragon Society to discuss a restoration of the Qing dynasty in Manchuria. Following the Mukden Incident and the invasion of Manchuria by the Imperial Japanese Army in 1931, Zheng played an important role in the establishment of Manchukuo, becoming its first prime minister the following year. Zheng also composed the lyrics of the National Anthem of Manchukuo. Zheng had hoped that Manchukuo would become a springboard for the restoration of Qing rule in the whole of China, but he soon found out that the real rulers of Manchukuo, the Japanese Kwantung Army, did not share his ambitions.  As Prime Minister of Manchukuo, Zheng frequently disagreed with the Japanese Army leadership. In May 1935, he was pressured to resign from his office. Three years later, he died suddenly under unclear circumstances, which led to speculation that he may have been poisoned by the Japanese. He was accorded a state funeral in April 1938.

Legacy.

Although Zheng Xiaoxu is mostly remembered today for his collaboration with the Japanese, he is still recognized as an accomplished poet and calligrapher. Zheng was one of the most respected and influential calligraphers of the 20th century. His calligraphy brought high prices during his lifetime and he supported himself in later life with the proceeds from its sale. His calligraphy continues to be influential in China and his style has been incorporated into the logos of current Chinese corporations.  Zheng kept an extensive diary, which is still valued by historians as important source material.

Zheng Xiaoxu (Cheng Hsiao-hsu; ; Hepburn: "Tei Kōsho") (2 April 1860 – 28 March 1938) was a Chinese statesman, diplomat and calligrapher. He served as the first Prime Minister of Manchukuo.


Background.

The earliest recorded attempt to build a dam near Aswan was in the 11th century, when the Arab polymath and engineer Ibn al-Haytham (known as "Alhazen" in the West) was summoned to Egypt by the Fatimid Caliph, Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, to regulate the flooding of the Nile. After his field work convinced him of the impracticality of this scheme, and fearing the Caliph's anger, he feigned madness. He was kept under house arrest from 1011 until al-Hakim's death in 1021, during which time he wrote his influential "Book of Optics".

Construction.

Following their 1882 invasion and occupation of Egypt, the British began construction of the first dam across the Nile in 1898. Construction lasted until 1902, and it was opened on 10 December 1902, by the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. The project was designed by Sir William Willcocks and involved several eminent engineers of the time, including Sir Benjamin Baker and Sir John Aird, whose firm, John Aird & Co., was the main contractor. Capital and financing were furnished by Ernest Cassel.  The Old Aswan Dam was designed as a gravity-buttress dam; the buttress sections accommodate numerous gates, which were opened yearly to pass the flood and its nutrient-rich sediments, but without retaining any yearly storage. The dam was constructed of rubble masonry and faced with red ashlar granite. When constructed, the Old Aswan Dam was the largest masonry dam in the world. The design also included a navigation lock of similar construction on the western bank, which allowed shipping to pass upstream as far as the second cataract, whereas a portage overland was previously required. At the time of its construction, nothing of such scale had ever been attempted.

Heightening.

Initial limitations were imposed on the dam's height, due to concern for the Philae Temple. The initial construction was found to be inadequate for development needs, and the height of the dam was raised in two phases, between 1907–1912 and between 1929–1933. Generation of electricity was added. The first phase was supervised by Sir Benjamin Baker, but much of the detailed work was undertaken by Murdoch MacDonald.  With its final raising (designed and supervised by MacDonald's firm, Sir M MacDonald & Partners), the dam is in length, with a crest level above the original riverbed; the dam provides the main route for traffic between the city and the airport. With the construction of the High Dam upstream, the Old Dam's ability to pass the flood's sediments was lost, as was the serviceability provided by the locks. The previous Old Dam reservoir level was also lowered and now provides control of tailwater for the High Dam.

Power plants.

The Aswan Low Dam supports two hydroelectric power plants, Aswan I (1960) and Aswan II (1985–1986). Aswan I contains 7 X generators with Kaplan turbines for a combined capacity of and is located west of the dam. Aswan II contains 4 x generators for an installed capacity of and is located at the toe of the dam.

The Aswan Low Dam or Old Aswan Dam is a gravity masonry buttress dam on the Nile River in Aswan, Egypt. The dam was built at the former first cataract of the Nile, and is located about 1000 km up-river and 690 km (direct distance) south-southeast of Cairo. When initially constructed between 1899 and 1902, nothing of its scale had ever been attempted; on completion, it was the largest masonry dam in the world. The dam was designed to provide storage of annual floodwater and augment dry season flows to support greater irrigation development and population growth in the lower Nile. The dam, originally limited in height by conservation concerns, worked as designed, but provided inadequate storage capacity for planned development and was raised twice, between 1907 and 1912 and again in 1929–1933. These heightenings still did not meet irrigation demands and in 1946 it was nearly over-topped in an effort to maximize pool elevation. This led to the investigation and construction of the Aswan High Dam upstream.


Career.

Fritz Freitag was born in Allenstein, East Prussia, the son of a railroad official. After passing his high school examinations he joined the 1st (East Prussian) Grenadier Regiment of the Prussian Army. During World War I, Freitag served on both the Eastern Front and the Western Front. In 1919, Freitag joined the Freikorps and in 1920, the Schutzpolizei. By the time of World War II, Freitag had been promoted to Police Colonel. During the invasion of Poland, he was the Chief of Operations of the 3rd Police Regiment and the Chief of Staff to the senior police commander in the 14th Army, Udo von Woyrsch.  In September 1940, Freitag joined the SS and was posted onto the staff of Heinrich Himmler. He was then posted to the 1 SS Infantry Brigade as chief of staff. During the invasion of the Soviet Union, he organized rear-security operations in Belarus and assisted the Einsatzgruppen in rounding up the Jewish population in the occupied territories.  Freitag was appointed commander of 2nd SS Polizei Infantry Regiment still serving on the Eastern Front. He was promoted to Standartenführer for his performance in command of a kampfgruppe during the fighting in the Volkhov pocket. In January 1943, he was given temporary command of the SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer being replaced when becoming ill. From April to August 1943 he commanded the 2 SS Infantry Brigade, and from 18 August 1943 till 20 October 1943 the 4th SS Polizei Division. He was then given command of the SS Division Galicia. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in September 1944. Freitag shot himself in the village of St. Andrä on 10 May 1945.

Fritz Freitag (28 April 1894 – 10 May 1945) was a German SS commander during the Nazi era. During World War II, he commanded the 2nd SS Infantry Brigade, the SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer, and the SS Division Galicia. Freitag committed suicide in May 1945.


The Last Temptation (Alice Cooper album)

Comic.

The full story was given in a three-part comic book written by Neil Gaiman, the first part of which accompanied the recording. In the comic, the showman (referred to only ever as such) was depicted as Cooper himself. Pages from the comic are seen in the "Lost in America" music video, while it is being read by Steven.  It was originally published by Marvel Comics and later reprinted by Dark Horse Comics, collected as trade paperback.

Video.

Music videos were made for "Lost in America" and "It's Me". Both music videos are available for download from Sony/BMG.

Reception.

Barry Weber of allmusic.com wrote, "By the time "The Last Temptation" was released in 1994, the hair band fad that had fueled Cooper's return was dead, and Cooper was obviously aware of its downfall – the album sounds almost nothing like its two predecessors (1989's "Trash" and 1991's "Hey Stoopid"). Far surpassing anything Cooper recorded in almost 20 years, "The Last Temptation" is unquestionably some of his best work."

Live performances.

Although Epic did not finance a tour and Cooper consequently did not tour "The Last Temptation", four of the album’s songs – “It’s Me”, “Lost in America”, “Cleansed by Fire” and “Sideshow” – were incorporated into Cooper’s setlist from the time of his first appearance on the "Monsters of Rock" circuit in September 1995. Although “It’s Me” was dropped after four performances, the other three songs remained a regular part of setlists until the end of the "Life and Crimes of Alice Cooper" tour in 1999, and were joined by “Nothing’s Free” on the “School’s Out for Summer ‘97” tour. However, with the exception of “Lost in America”, which has remained a frequent part of setlists excluding the first three quarters of the 2012 to 2015 “Raise the Dead” tour, nothing from "The Last Temptation" has been performed live from 2000 onwards.

The Last Temptation is the thirteenth solo studio album by rock singer Alice Cooper, released in July 1994 via Epic Records. It centers on a boy named Steven (also the name of the protagonist in Cooper's earlier work, "Welcome to My Nightmare"), and a mysterious showman. The showman, with apparent supernatural abilities, attempted with the use of twisted versions of morality plays to persuade Steven to join his traveling show, "The Theater of the Real - The Grand-est Guignol!", where he would "never grow up".


Background.

At the start of the Russo-Japanese War, the bulk of the Russian Pacific Fleet was blockaded within the confines of Port Arthur by the Imperial Japanese Navy. However, the Russian subsidiary naval base at Vladivostok, although shelled by a Japanese squadron under the command of Vice Admiral Dewa Shigetō in March 1904, remained largely undamaged and unblockaded. Located at Vladivostok was a garrison force consisting of the protected cruiser and auxiliary cruiser and a stronger Vladivostok Independent Cruiser Squadron consisting of the armored cruisers Russian cruiser Rossia,, and, under the command of Rear Admiral Karl Jessen.  This small squadron put to sea in the early months of the conflict for commerce raiding operations, and it was the concern of the Imperial Japanese Navy that it might be used either to attack targets on the Japanese mainland, or to coordinate an attack to lift the blockade on Port Arthur. The Japanese were forced to assign the IJN 2nd Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Kamimura Hikonojō with considerable resources in an attempt to locate and destroy it.

Attack on Tsushima Strait.

Russian Vice Admiral Petr Bezobrazov departed Vladivostok on 12 June 1904 with "Rossia", "Rurik", and "Gromoboi" under orders to proceed through the eastern Tsushima Channel in the Korean Strait, cruise for two days on known transport routes, and to then double back through the western channel, after which he was to attempt to join his forces to the fleet still blockaded at Port Arthur. On 15 June, he sighted two military transports, "Hitachi Maru" and "Sado Maru" en route to Dalny.  "Hitachi Maru" was transporting 1,238 people, including 727 men of the 1st Reserve Regiment of the Imperial Guard of Japan and 359 men from the IJA 10th Division. "Sado Maru" was transporting 1,258 people, including 867 members of a railway engineering battalion. Both vessels were transporting a large amount of stores, most critically needed were eighteen Armstrong 11-inch (280 mm) siege howitzers, requested by the IJA 3rd Army to attack the Russian fortifications at Port Arthur.  Passing in the opposite direction was the smaller "Izumi Maru," which was being used as an unarmed, but unmarked hospital ship transporting sick and wounded men from the front back to Japan.  The only provision the Imperial Japanese Navy had made for protection of its transports was the protected cruiser, which at this time (0715) was stationed approximately mid-channel. "Tsushima" sighted the Russian squadron in the heavy early morning fog, but was unable to raise a warning due to the short range of its wireless, and poor atmospheric conditions, and attempted to close the distance to Tsushima Island where conditions were better. She was sighted by the Russian squadron, but they did not pursue. "Tsushima" managed to transmit her warning at 0815 hours, and then headed back towards the Russian squadron. Admiral Kamimura, based at Takeshiki Guard District on Tsushima sent a warning to Shimonoseki to stop all sailing, then ordered his ships to pursue "Tsushima".  However, at 0900, the Russian squadron sighted "Izumi Maru", and Bezobrazov sent "Gromoboi" to chase her. "Gromoboi" opened fire, killing or wounding over 30 men, before the Japanese transport stopped and surrendered. About 100 sick and wounded were taken off her, and then she was sunk west of Okinoshima, with those who refused to surrender still aboard. Around 1000, the Russian squadron sighted "Sado Maru", and came into sight of the Japanese fleet at about the same time. Despite having just given the Japanese transport 40 minutes to surrender and abandon ship, "Rurik" fired two torpedoes into "Sado Maru", which exploded, killing 239 passengers and crew, but which did not sink the ship. "Sado Maru" eventually drifted for the next 30 hours until she grounded on Okinoshima.  Next, "Gromoboi" approached "Hitachi Maru", which exhibited no sign of intending to surrender. "Gromoboi" opened fire with all guns, killing many of the men on deck, including her Scottish captain and senior crewmen, and sinking the ship. Due to deteriorating visibility, the Japanese fleet could not close with the Russian squadron, and at 1330 reached the 152 survivors from "Hitachi Maru".

Aftermath.

The Russian squadron continued its operations against shipping on 16 June, when they seized the British steamer "Allanton" off Maizuru. The cruisers also sank two sailing boats the following day.  The attack was a severe blow to Japanese public morale. Memorials were erected in Chidorigafuchi Park in Tokyo, and a mass grave commemorating the Imperial Guards was erected in Aoyama Cemetery. A monument to "Sado Maru" was built in Shiba Park (and was moved to Yasukuni Shrine in 1964). Kamimura received numerous death threats and came under extreme pressure to track down the Russian squadron, which he did at the Battle off Ulsan on 14 August 1904.

The was a maritime incident which occurred during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, in which three Japanese transports were sunk in a Russian commerce raiding sortie by a Vladivostok-based armored cruiser squadron of the Imperial Russian Navy.


Early life.

Daisy Ridley was born on 10 April 1992 in Westminster, London, and grew up in Maida Vale. She is the youngest of three daughters born to Louise Fawkner-Corbett, a banker, and Christopher Ridley, a photographer. She has two older sisters, Kika Rose and Poppy Sophia. Her mother's family, the Fawkner-Corbetts, were landed gentry with a military and medical background. Her great-uncle was "Dad's Army" actor and playwright Arnold Ridley; his brother, Daisy's grandfather, John Harry Dunn Ridley, O.B.E., was head of the Engineering Secretariat at the B.B.C. from 1950 to 1965. While growing up, her favourite film was "Matilda" (1996), an adaptation of Roald Dahl's children's story, with the title character (played by Mara Wilson in the film) a role model to her. Ridley won a scholarship to Tring Park School for the Performing Arts in Hertfordshire, which she attended between the ages of 9 and 18. She then began reading classical civilisation at Birkbeck, University of London, before dropping out to concentrate on her acting career. Prior to being cast in "The Force Awakens", Ridley worked as a barmaid in two different pubs in London for nearly two years. In 2016 Ridley began studying for a Bachelor of Arts in social science through online courses with the Open University.

Career.

2013–2015: Early roles and "Star Wars" breakthrough.

Ridley began her career with minor roles in the television programmes "Youngers", "Toast of London", "Silent Witness", "Mr Selfridge", and "Casualty". She appeared in the short film "Blue Season", which was entered into the Sci-Fi-London 48-Hour Film Challenge. Ridley played the lead in film three of "Lifesaver", an interactive film which was nominated for a BAFTA Award. She also appeared in the music video for Wiley's song "Lights On", playing the character of Kim. Ridley made her film debut in the 2015 British independent horror film "Scrawl", after her scenes from the British comedy film "The Inbetweeners 2" were removed in the final cut.  In April 2014, Ridley's casting as Rey, one of the lead characters in "", was announced. She was chosen for the film in February 2014. At the time of her casting she was, according to "Rolling Stone", a "total unknown." Her choice by director J. J. Abrams was seen as a repeat of George Lucas's move of casting relatively unknown actors for the lead roles in the first "Star Wars" film in 1977.  Ridley began filming her scenes in May 2014 at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, and prior to the film's release in December 2015, she appeared at the launch of a set of "Star Wars" postage stamps issued by the UK postal service Royal Mail, with her character Rey featuring on a stamp along with the droid BB-8. With international revenues of over $2 billion, "The Force Awakens" was a major box-office hit and the highest-grossing film of 2015. After an early screening of the film, Brian Viner of the "Daily Mail" called Ridley the "real star of the show", adding that her performance as Rey should "send her career into orbit." Her performance received critical acclaim, with Richard Roeper describing her portrayal as "a breakout performance" and adding "Ford has a terrific father figure chemistry [shared] with Ridley and [John] Boyega".

2016–present: After "The Force Awakens".

Ridley became executive producer of the documentary "The Eagle Huntress" in January 2016, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on 24 January 2016; she also recorded narration for the film's wide release. Ridley was one of several actors featured on Barbra Streisand's 2016 album "". Along with Anne Hathaway, Ridley and Streisand perform the song "At the Ballet" from "A Chorus Line", with Ridley performing the role of Bebe, one of a trio of dancers hoping to be cast in an upcoming show. In 2017, Ridley portrayed Mary Debenham in "Murder on the Orient Express", an adaptation of Agatha Christie's detective novel of the same name. Directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh, production began in London in November 2016. She also reprised her role as Rey, opposite Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, in "", which was released in December 2017.  In January 2018, Ridley starred in the titular role in "Ophelia", a reimagining of the Hamlet tale, alongside Naomi Watts and Clive Owen. The project was filmed from April to July 2017 and debuted at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. In February 2018, Ridley voiced the role of Cottontail in "Peter Rabbit", an adaptation of the children's stories of the same name by Beatrix Potter.  In December 2019, Ridley appeared as Rey in "", the last film in the sequel trilogy. She is not expected to reprise her role again after this film, and is quoted as saying, "I don't think anything could top ["The Rise of Skywalker"] for this character." However, she reflected her co-star John Boyega's opinion that if more films were made without her involvement, she would feel left out.

Upcoming roles.

Ridley will co-star in the "Chaos Walking", an adaptation of the young-adult novel by Patrick Ness, as Viola Eade opposite Tom Holland as Todd Hewitt. The project was filmed from August to November 2017.  Also in 2018, Ridley acted in the upcoming "Daddio", which follows a woman who is picked up by a cab at JFK airport and driven to her apartment in Manhattan. On the way there, the woman and cabdriver begin discussing their past and current relationships and the effects they have had on their lives. Additionally, Ridley will reteam with director J. J. Abrams for "Kolma", which Abrams will also produce, a supernatural drama that finds a young woman who has suffered from a car crash that killed her boyfriend. When she dies decades later, she is given the choice of returning to the day of the accident to live her life again or being reunited with her love. Ridley will star in "The Lost Wife" as Lanka, a Polish art student who has a love affair with her best friend's older brother that is torn apart by the German invasion during the onset of World War II. Ridley has also signed on to star in "A Woman of No Importance", another Abrams-produced biographical political-thriller film based on Sonia Purnell's book of the same name. Ridley will portray American heiress and super-spy Virginia Hall, who attempted to break into the ranks of the American Foreign Service in the years before World War II. Ridley will reteam with actor Josh Gad in the superhero-comedy "Super-Normal", to be released by Netflix. Ridley will also star in "Piece of Mind".

Daisy Jazz Isobel Ridley (born 10 April 1992) is an English actress who rose to international prominence through playing the lead role of Rey in the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy: "The Force Awakens" (2015), "The Last Jedi" (2017), and "The Rise of Skywalker" (2019).


Life and activities.

Early years.

Robert Mathews was born in Marfa, Texas on January 16, 1953, the youngest of three boys born to Johnny and Una Mathews. His father, of Scottish descent, was mayor of the town, and the President of the Chamber of Commerce, as well as a businessman and leader for the local Methodist church. His mother was the town's Cub Scout den mother.  The family moved to Phoenix, Arizona. Though he was an average student in grade school, history and politics interested him. At age 11, he joined the John Birch Society, a radical right-wing advocacy group supporting anti-communism and limited government. Mathews was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1969.  Mathews formed the "Sons of Liberty," an anti-communist militia mostly made up of Mormon survivalists. At its peak, it had approximately 30 members. After filling out his employer's W-4 Form claiming ten dependents, reportedly as an act of tax resistance, he was arrested for tax fraud, tried, and placed on probation for six months. After a falling out between the Mormon and non-Mormon members of the Sons of Liberty, the organization stagnated and Mathews withdrew from it.  After his probation ended in 1974, he moved to Metaline Falls, Washington, where Mathews and his father purchased sixty wooded acres for their new home.  Mathews and Debbie McGarity were married in 1976. He raised Scottish Galloway cattle. He and Debbie McGarity adopted a son in 1981. Mathews later had a biological daughter with his mistress, Zillah Craig.

The Order.

Mathews became a believer in white supremacism and in 1982 he made an effort to recruit white families to the Pacific Northwest, or the "White American Bastion."  In 1983, Mathews made a speech at a National Alliance convention, which was a report on his efforts to recruit on behalf of the organization, especially among "the yeoman farmers and independent truckers," to his "White American Bastion" group. Mathews was a fan of the far-right extremist 1978 novel "The Turner Diaries" written by National Alliance founder William Luther Pierce.  In late September 1983, at a barracks he constructed on his property in Metaline, Mathews and eight other men founded the terrorist organization "The Order." They included his friend and neighbor, Ken Loff, and others from the Aryan Nations: Dan Bauer, Randy Duey, Denver Parmenter, and Bruce Pierce. David Lane, and the National Alliance: Richie Kemp and Bill Soderquist.  The group's first task, according to Mathews' plan, was to obtain money to support white separatism. Their activities began to parallel events in the novel "The Turner Diaries". They robbed an adult bookstore in Spokane, Washington, which netted $369.10. They agreed that was too risky, and turned to robbing armored cars and counterfeiting. They printed some counterfeit $50 bills, and 28-year-old Pierce was arrested after passing a few.  To raise Pierce's bail, Mathews, acting alone, robbed a bank just north of Seattle, Washington, stealing around $26,000. Some of The Order's members, along with a new recruit, Gary Yarborough, carried out more robberies and burglaries, which netted them over $43,000. A subsequent robbery yielded several hundred thousand dollars. Another recruit, Tom Martinez, was caught and charged for passing more counterfeit currency. Then in July, 1984, they deployed approximately a dozen men in a successful effort to rob a Brink's truck of $3,600,000.  The group distributed some of the stolen money to the North Carolina-based White Patriot Party and other white nationalist organizations.

Final days.

Prior to his death, Mathews wrote a long letter declaring war on the federal government of the United States and justifying his group's actions. In it, he describes threats allegedly made to members of his family by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents, including to his young son while he was away from his house, as well as a number of attempts on his life by other government agents. He explained the reasons for his decision to "quit being the hunted and become the hunter," and closed by writing, "I am not going into hiding, rather I will press the FBI and let them know what it is like to become the hunted. Doing so it is only logical to assume that my days on this planet are rapidly drawing to a close. Even so, I have no fear. For the reality of my life is death, and the worst the enemy can do to me is shorten my tour of duty in this world. I will leave knowing that I have made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure the future of my children."  Mathews and the other members of The Order were eventually betrayed by Martinez, who was under pressure after the counterfeiting arrest. After he revealed information regarding Mathews' activities to the FBI, agents moved to capture Mathews and his associates, leading to one of the largest manhunts in FBI history. By the time they could set up the operation, all of Mathews' accomplices and friends had decided to move to safe houses. The government's agents surrounded Mathews in a house near Freeland, Washington on Whidbey Island on December 7, 1984. Mathews refused to come out and negotiations continued until December 8, when Mathews refused to talk anymore. The FBI then fired dozens of smoke grenades and a stun grenade into the house in an attempt to force Mathews out, but were thwarted by his use of a gas mask. Mathews opened fire on several agents who attempted to enter the house, and a long standoff began. When a helicopter appeared at nightfall, Mathews opened fire on it from an upstairs window – the helicopter's crew was unhurt – and then once again exchanged gunfire with federal agents. An FBI agent then fired three M79 Starburst flares inside the house from the helicopter, setting off a box of hand grenades and a stockpile of ammunition. Mathews continued to fire an assault rifle at agents as the house burned, but then suddenly stopped. After the wreckage had cooled enough to be searched, agents found the burned remains of 31-year-old Mathews' body, with a pistol still in his hand. An autopsy concluded that Mathews had died from a combination of burns and smoke inhalation. Mathews had fired over 1000 rounds at law enforcement, but no agents were injured.  Mathews' remains were cremated and the ashes scattered by his family on his property in Metaline, Washington.  Eventually over 75 people were convicted of crimes connected to The Order in eight trials, on charges that included racketeering, conspiracy, counterfeiting, transporting stolen money, armored car robbery, and violation of civil rights. Later, ten people connected to the case, including Butler, Lane, and Pierce, were tried for sedition, but were acquitted by a jury.

Robert Jay Mathews (January 16, 1953 – December 8, 1984) was an American neo-Nazi activist and the leader of The Order, an American white supremacist militant group. He was killed during a shootout with approximately seventy-five federal law enforcement agents who surrounded his house on Whidbey Island, near Freeland, Washington.


Technology.

Ground-level power supply is used, primarily for aesthetic reasons, as an alternative to overhead lines. It is different from the conduit current collection system (which was one of the first ways of supplying power to a tram system) as it involves burying a third and fourth rail in an underground conduit (‘vault’) between the running rails. Conduit current collection was used in historic tram systems in Washington, Manhattan, Paris, Berlin, Marseilles, Vienna, Budapest and London. It fell into disuse because overhead wires proved much less expensive and troublesome for street railways and because in Manhattan, Paris, Washington and West Berlin, all trams were replaced by buses for reasons unrelated to the power supply issue. In Prague on the Charles Bridge (Karlův most), a system invented by František Křižík was used, similar to today's APS.  Unlike the track-side third rail used by most metro trains and some main-line railways, APS does not pose a danger to people or animals and so can be used in pedestrian areas and city streets.  APS uses a third rail placed between the running rails, divided electrically into ten-metre rail segments with three-metre neutral sections between. Each tram has two power collection shoes, next to which are antennas that send radio signals to energise the power rail segments as the tram passes over them. At any one time, two consecutive segments under the tram will be live.

Use in Bordeaux.

Modern ground-level current collection was pioneered by the Bordeaux tramway in France. The public had assumed that the new system would use a traditional conduit system, like that of the Bordeaux trams which ran prior to 1958 and objected when they learned that it was not considered safe and that overhead wires were to be used instead. Facing complaints both from the public and the French Ministry of Culture, planners developed APS as a modern way of replicating the conduit system.  APS was developed by Innorail, a subsidiary of Spie Enertrans but was sold to Alstom when Spie was acquired by Amec.  There are 12 km of APS tramway in the three-line network of 43.3 km as of 2008. Bordeaux Citadis trams use pantographs and electric overhead lines in outlying areas.  Before use in Bordeaux, APS was tested and proved viable on a short section of reserved-track in the French city of Marseille. Nevertheless, Bordeaux has experienced problems, with APS being so temperamental that, at one stage, the Mayor issued an ultimatum that if reliability could not be guaranteed, it would have to be replaced with overhead wires.  Problems have included water-logging, when the water does not drain quickly enough after heavy rain.

In other cities.

In July 2006, it was announced that two new French tram systems would be using APS over part of their networks. These are located in Angers and Reims, with both systems opening in 2011. A couple of months later, it was announced that Orléans would use APS on a section of its second tram line, which opened in 2012, and that Tours would use APS on sections of its new network which began service in 2013.  APS is also in use in three other tram systems outside France. The first of these, the Dubai Tram opened in 2014, is fully equipped with APS over its entire passenger route length, and thus trams do not use their pantographs unless travelling within the depot area. In June 2016, the first phase of the VLT Carioca network opened in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This system mainly uses APS, however where this was deemed impractical, the trams employ SRS, Alstom's proprietary supercapacitor-based energy storage system (SRS). The CBD and South East Light Rail in Sydney, Australia, opened in 2019, uses APS within the Sydney CBD and conventional overhead wires elsewhere  Alstom is also currently installing APS in the Tranvía Cuatro Ríos de Cuenca in Cuenca, Ecuador, which also use APS in certain regions only and conventional overhead wires elsewhere.  In 2017, another ground-level power supply technology, "TramWave", developed by Italian company Ansaldo, successfully entered commercial application via the opening of Zhuhai tram Line 1 first phase in China, and it is said to be the first 100% low-floor tram system adopting ground level power supply technology. Later in the year, Western Suburb Line in Beijing will also be opened with the same technology from Ansaldo. The technology have been licensed to CRRC Dalian and all the technologies were transferred to China.  Other cities that have previously, or are in the process of proposing the use of APS and similar systems (e.g.Ansaldo TramWave) include:

Similar systems.

Stud contact.

The predecessors of APS (known as stud contact systems) were developed around 1900, and used by several tramway companies in Paris and in England. Associated with these systems were the inventors Dolter and Diatto.  There were two main differences from APS:

Prague.

In Prague, a ground-level power supply was applied at the experimental, recreational and promotional tram line operated by the Czech inventor and entrepreneur František Křižík at Letná hill. It was the first electrically-powered tram line in the Prague agglomeration. The track was operated between 1891–1900; however the ground-level power supply was tested there only in early 1896 on one part of the track. Power was supplied through a third rail but a system of contact relays ensured that voltage was there only when a car was directly above. A commission recommended the system be extended to the whole track but it was never realized.  In 1905, a similar system by František Křižík was used on the Charles Bridge. This section was the last one with horse-drawn trams, due to disapproval of overhead lines there. Ground-level supply made it possible to electrify this track. However, the weight of the trams caused damage to the bridge due to vibrations, which is why they were replaced by rail buses in 1908. These were stopped in 1909. In 1932–1939, classic buses on tyres were operated there. Since 1965, Charles Bridge has been a pedestrian-only zone.

Budapest.

Another system of ground-level power supply was used by Budapest trams from 1887. Overhead lines were considered an eyesore, so builder Siemens developed the following system: on the inner side of one rail, a powered third rail was hidden underground in a half-covered ditch, with a narrow slit opening upwards, through which a trolley pole reached downward from the trams. The Budapest system was generally safe and water-protected. However, there was no defence against snow and ice, dirt filled up the ditches and trolley poles suffered intense wear. Overhead wire replaced the "Budapest system" everywhere by the 1920s.

Conduit.

Conduit current collection has the power supply carried in a channel under the roadway between the running rails, much in the same fashion as the cable for cable cars.

Stream system.

is an acronym that stood for "Sistema di TRasporto Elettrico ad Attrazione Magnetica" ("System of Electric Transport by Magnetic Attraction"). The channel made of composite material was thus insulating the vehicle equipped with a special shoe on the passing magnetic channel raised the band allowing contact with the copper strip and then the electrical connection.

Ground-level power supply, also known as surface current collection and Alimentation Par le Sol (APS, which literally means "feeding via the ground"), is a modern method of third-rail electrical pick-up for street trams instead of more common overhead lines, thus it is one of the methods that could allow construction of catenary-free light rail system. It was invented for the Bordeaux tramway ("Tramway de Bordeaux"), which was constructed from 2000 and opened in 2003. From 2011, the technology has been used as part of other systems around the world, with Reims Tramway, Rio de Janeiro VLT, Angers tramway and Dubai Tram all having adopted the technology.


Biography.

Early years.

Shekau was born in Shekau town, in Tarmuwa local government, Yobe state; his exact date of birth is unknown but is said to be between 1965 and 1975. Shekau is an ethnic Kanuri, and also speaks Hausa, Fulani, Arabic, and English. In 1990 he moved to the Mafoni area in Maiduguri and studied under a traditional cleric before entering the Borno College of Legal and Islamic Studies (now called Mohammed Goni College of Legal and Islamic Studies). Shekau left the college for ideological reasons and without earning a degree. He later met Mohammed Yusuf, the founder of Jamaat Ahlus Sunnah li Dawah wal Jihad, and became one of his deputies. Shekau was appointed the leader of the group in July 2009, after the death of Yusuf in the 2009 Boko Haram uprising. Shekau survived being shot in the leg during the 2009 attempt on his life by Nigerian security forces. He is married to one of Muhammad Yusuf's four widows. His nickname is “Darul Tawheed”, which translates as "specialist in tawheed", the Islamic concept of oneness of Allah.

Leader of 'Boko Haram'.

Shekau's leadership has not gone unchallenged. He received a letter from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb giving him advice but he did not heed it. As a result of his erratic leadership, in 2012 a faction of the group broke off to form Jamaat Ansar al-Muslimin fi Bilād as-Sudan (Ansaru). This faction included his military commander Abu Muhammad al-Bauchawi, and religious advisor Sheikh Abu Osama al-Ansari Muhammad Awal al-Gombawi. Despite this, many soldiers and commanders stayed with Shekau, including military commanders Abu Sa'ad al-Bamawi and Muhammad Salafi. With his group mostly intact, Shekau engaged in conflict with Ansaru, killing their leader Abu Osama al-Ansari. As a result of this, and other arrests of Ansaru leaders by the Nigerian government, Ansaru did not pose a further threat to Shekau's leadership of the jihadi movement in Nigeria, and the group became defunct by 2015.  Shekau's fellow jihadist fighters were undisciplined and abused the populations they encountered, resulting in the establishment of civilian militias such as the Civilian Joint Task Force to fight them. Shekau is also thought to have killed his own religious advisors, including Sheikh Abd al-Malek al-Ansari al-Kadunawi and Abu al-Abbas al-Bankiwani.  In June 2012, the United States Department of State designated Shekau as a terrorist and effectively froze his assets in the United States. Since June 2013, the Department has had a standing reward of US$7 million for information leading to Shekau's capture through its Rewards for Justice program. In addition, the Nigerian army has offered a ₦50 million reward (approximately US$300,000) for Shekau.  In videos Shekau posted online, he boasted often about his invincibility; mocked various armies; and stated that he "cannot be stopped" and "cannot die except by the will of Allah". He has also boasted of being in possession of armoured tanks and other combat vehicles. His online videos frequently depict anti-American rhetoric, and he has made multiple threats to attack the U.S.  In one prominent incident, he took credit for the kidnapping of over 200 school girls in April 2014. Shekau also announced that the kidnapped girls have been converted to Islam. He has claimed to be waging a jihad against Christianity.  With the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria during 2014 and 2015, Shekau faced pressure from his commanders and soldiers to pledge his allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. A history of the group says that Shekau "was compelled to give allegiance, and that was through a coming together of the military commanders, and after he became convinced that the matter was about to go out of his hand, and that his throne would be shaken and emptied of him if he did not give allegiance". In August 2016, ISIL appointed Abu Musab al-Barnawi as the leader of the group in place of Shekau. Shekau refused to recognise Barnawi's authority and split off part of the group under its original name of Jamaat Ahlus Sunnah li Dawah wal Jihad, while Barnawi lead the Islamic State's West African province. While Shekau continues to lead his group, he has only 1,500 soldiers, whereas Barnawi has 3,500. Shekau has been widely denounced as following the ideology of the Khawarij by the Islamic State and West Africa province in Nigeria.  Following the split, many clashes occurred between Shekau and Barnawi's soldiers throughout the month of August and the following months. On 12 September 2016, 30 of Shekau's soldiers were killed and 40 captured by IS-West Africa. In October 2016, Shekau's soldiers attacked the Karino area south of Lake Chad with 350 men seizing the village of Tunubuma. Then Barnawi's soldiers counter-attacked, killing more than 75, including the leader Muhammad Bakr.

Reports of death.

Shekau was reported killed in 2009 but reappeared as the group leader less than a year later. The Nigerian army in mid-August 2013 stated that he was fatally wounded when soldiers raided a base of Boko Haram in Sambisa forest and had died between 25 July and 3 August. However, a video in September 2013 was released in which a man purported to be Shekau claimed he had not been killed. The Nigerian army also stated to have killed him during the 2014 Battle of Kodunga that lasted from September 12 to 14th. The Cameroonian military posted a photo and also claimed that their forces killed Shekau in September 2014. In response to these reports, security analyst Ryan Cummings commented, "Is this his fourth or fifth death? He dies more often than an iPhone battery." In early October 2014, a video was obtained by AFP news agency that showed Shekau alive, in which he mocked the Nigerian military's allegations that he had been killed.  Chadian President, Idriss Déby claimed in mid-August 2015 that Shekau had been replaced by Mahamat Daoud without exactly specifying his fate. An audio message attributed to Shekau was released a few days later, in which he purportedly stated that he had neither been killed nor ousted as chief of the group.  Shekau was reported to have been "fatally wounded" during an airstrike in Taye village on 19 August 2016 by Nigerian Air Force which also killed some senior leaders of Boko Haram. On 25 September, a video of a man purported to be Shekau was released on YouTube, in which he claimed that he was alive and in good health.  On 27 June 2017, Shekau released a video in which he claimed responsibility for the abduction of Nigerian policewomen and criticized the Nigerian government for claiming that Boko Haram had been defeated. This video would seem to be further evidence of Shekau's continued survival. In February 2020, Shekau released a video threatening the minister of information and digital economy, Isa Ali Pantami, and making reference to what was done to islamic scholar Ja'afar Mahmud Adam in Maiduguri when he preached against Boko Haram.

Abu Mohammed Abubakar bin Mohammad al-Sheikawi (also known by the alias "Darul Akeem wa Zamunda Tawheed", or "Darul Tawheed"; "the abode of monotheism"; born 1965, 1969 or 1975) is a Kanuri man known as the leader of Boko Haram, a Nigerian militant group that has declared loyalty to the Islamist militant group, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). He served as deputy leader to the group's founder, Mohammed Yusuf, until Yusuf was executed in 2009.


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