Origin and predecessors.

The idea of sacrificing a pawn with...b5 and...a6 is quite old. Karel Opočenský applied the idea against, among others, Gideon Ståhlberg at Poděbrady 1936, Paul Keres at Pärnu 1937, Erich Eliskases at Prague 1937, and Theo van Scheltinga at the Buenos Aires Chess Olympiad 1939. Later the Mark Taimanov versus David Bronstein game at the Candidates Tournament, Zürich 1953, drew attention. Most of these games began as a King's Indian, with Black only later playing...c5 and...b5. Possibly the first to use the now-standard move order 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 was Thorvaldsson–Vaitonis, Munich Olympiad 1936.  In many countries, particularly in the Eastern Bloc, the opening is known as the Volga Gambit (). This name is derived from the Volga River after an article about 3...b5 by B. Argunow written in Kuibyshev (Samara since 1991), Russia, that was published in the second 1946 issue of the magazine "Shakhmaty v SSSR".  Beginning in the late 1960s, this opening idea was also promoted by Hungarian-American grandmaster Pal Benko, who provided many new suggestions and published his book "The Benko Gambit" in 1974. The name "Benko Gambit" stuck and is particularly used in English-speaking countries.  In his 1974 book, Benko drew a distinction between the "Benko Gambit" and the "Volga Gambit": "Volga Gambit" referred to the move 3...b5 (sometimes followed by an early...e6), while the "Benko Gambit" consisted of the moves 3...b5 4.cxb5 a6, which is now considered the main line. Now the terms are synonyms and are used interchangeably or joined together with a hyphen (Volga-Benko Gambit).

Theory.

The main line continues with the moves 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 Bxa6 followed by Black fianchettoing the f8-bishop. (Black players leery of the double-fianchetto system, where White plays g3 and b3, and fianchettos both bishops, have preferred 5...g6 intending 6.b3 Bg7 7.Bb2 Nxa6! The point is that it is awkward for White to meet the threat of...Nb4, hitting d5 and a2, when Nc3 may often be met by...Nfxd5 because of the latent pin down the.) Black's compensation for the pawn takes several forms. First, White, who is already behind in, must solve the problem of developing the f1-bishop. After 6. Nc3 d6, if White plays 7. e4, then Black will play 7...Bxf1, and after recapturing with the king, White will have to spend time castling artificially with g3 and Kg2, as in the line 7...Bxf1 8. Kxf1 g6 9. g3 Bg7 10. Kg2. If White avoids this by fianchettoing the bishop, it will be in a rather passive position, being blocked by White's own pawn on d5.  Apart from this, Black also obtains fast development and good control of the a1–h8 diagonal and can exert pressure down the half-open a- and b-files. These are benefits which can last well into the endgame and so, unusually for a gambit, Black does not generally mind if queens are exchanged; indeed, exchanging queens can often remove the sting from a attack by White.  Although the main line of the Benko is considered acceptable for White, there are various alternatives that avoid some of the problems entailed in the main line. The simplest is to just decline the gambit with 4.Nf3. Other possible moves are 4. Nd2, 4. a4, 4. e3 and 4. Qc2. Another idea, popular at the grandmaster level as of 2004, is to accept the pawn but then immediately return it with 4. cxb5 a6 5. b6.

Sosonko Variation.

After 4. a4 by white, black has three sound replies. The most popular line is the "Sosonko Accepted" variation, where 4. bxc4 is played by black. This can, and frequently does, lead to very sharp and sacrificial variations for both sides. Such lines include the "poisoned knight" variation where after 4. a4 bxc4, 5. Nc3 e6, 6. e4 exd5 and 7. e5, black sacrifices a knight for a huge central pawn majority, an excellent spacial advantage with good attacking chances, and the "River Styx Attack," where 5. Nc3 Ba6, 6. e4 Nf6, 7. f4 d6, 8. Nf3 g6, 9. e5 is played. This leads to a very sharp, and extremely complicated pawn sacrifice by white, where white often delays or even stops black castling either side, has a solid grip over the kingside with the pawn e6 and Nf7 outpost combo. It is named after the Greek Mythological river that interconnects the Earth and the Underworld.  These lines are incredibly diverse and complicated; they require much more exploration. Players who wish to avoid the fully accepted, and usually play the "pawn return" variation (to avoid giving black the infamous compensation of the Benko pawn sacrifice), ought to consider this variation for play as well.  Other less common lines include the "Advance" variation with 4. a4 b4, leading to very positional games with pseudo-benoni structures, and the rare 4. Qa5+ which often transposes into an altered advance variation with white playing 5. Bd2 to block the check, and black responding with 5. b4.

Use.

The gambit's most notable practitioner has been its eponym, Pal Benko. Many of the world's strongest players have used it at one time or another, including former world champions Viswanathan Anand, Garry Kasparov, Veselin Topalov, and Mikhail Tal; and grandmasters Vassily Ivanchuk, Michael Adams, Alexei Shirov, Boris Gelfand, and Evgeny Bareev. It is a popular opening at amateur level, where it is considered to offer Black good practical chances of playing for a win.

The Benko Gambit (or Volga Gambit) is a chess opening characterised by the move 3...b5 in the Benoni Defence arising after:


Main variations.

4.Ng5.

German master Siegbert Tarrasch called 4.Ng5 a "real duffer's move" ("ein richtiger Stümperzug") and Soviet opening theorist Vasily Panov called it "primitive", but this attack on f7 practically wins a pawn by force. Despite Tarrasch's criticism, 4.Ng5 has remained a popular choice for White and has been played by world champions Wilhelm Steinitz, Bobby Fischer, Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov, and Viswanathan Anand.

Main line: 4...d5.

After 4...d5 White has little option but to play 5.exd5, since both the bishop and e4-pawn are attacked. Then Black usually plays 5...Na5 but there are other options: After 5...Na5, Paul Morphy would play to hold the gambit pawn with 6.d3. The Morphy Variation (or Kieseritzky Attack) has not been popular, since it has long been known that Black obtains good chances for the pawn with 6...h6 7.Nf3 e4 8.Qe2 Nxc4 9.dxc4 Bc5. (Bronstein once tried the piece sacrifice 8.dxe4!? with success, but its soundness is doubtful.)  Instead, White usually plays 6.Bb5+, when play usually continues 6...c6 (6...Bd7 is also possible) 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Be2 h6. (The move 8.Qf3, popular in the nineteenth century and revived by Efim Bogoljubov in the twentieth, can be played instead; Black may reply with 8...h6, 8...Rb8, or 8...Be7.) White then has a choice of retreats for the knight. The usual move here is 9.Nf3, after which Black obtains some initiative after 9...e4 10.Ne5 Bd6 (see diagram). This is the Knorre Variation, and is considered to be the main line of the Two Knights Defense. After ten moves, White has developed only two pieces against Black's three pieces and pawns, but has an extra pawn as well as a better pawn structure. Both 11.d4 and 11.f4 have been tried here with no definitive conclusion. 10...Bc5 is a viable alternative for Black, as is 10...Qc7 (the Goring Variation).  Steinitz favored 9.Nh3 instead, although it did not bring him success in his famous 1891 cable match against Chigorin. The Steinitz Variation was mostly forgotten until Fischer revived it in the 1960s. Nigel Short led a second revival of 9.Nh3 in the 1990s, and today it is thought to be about equal in strength to the more common 9.Nf3. In addition to the moves 8.Be2 and 8.Qf3, the move 8.Bd3 is a valid alternative that has apparently become fashionable in recent years.

Traxler Variation: 4...Bc5.

This bold move ignores White's attack on f7 and leads to wild play. Czech problemist Karel Traxler played it against Reinisch in Prague in 1890. Later it was named after Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania by Frank Marshall, who claimed to be first to analyze and publish it, so today 4...Bc5 is known as both the Traxler Variation and (in the United States and the United Kingdom only) the Wilkes-Barre Variation.  White can play 5.d4, 5.Nxf7, or 5.Bxf7+. After 5.d4 d5!, White's best is to go into an equal endgame after 6.dxc5 dxc4 7.Qxd8+. Other sixth moves have scored very badly for White.  5.Nxf7 is very complicated after 5...Bxf2+. The current main lines all are thought to lead to drawn or equal positions, e.g. after 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+ 7.Kg1, or even 7.Ke3.  White's best try for an advantage is probably 5.Bxf7+ Ke7 6.Bb3 (although 6.Bd5 was the move recommended by Lawrence Trent in his recent Fritztrainer DVD), as this poses Black the most problems. No grandmasters have regularly adopted the Wilkes-Barre as Black, but Alexander Beliavsky and Alexei Shirov have played it occasionally even in top competition. No clear refutation is known.

4...Nxe4.

4...Nxe4?! is considered unsound but must be handled carefully. 5.Nxe4 d5 poses no problems for Black. If 5.Nxf7? Qh4! 6.g3 (6.0-0 Bc5!) 6...Qh3 7.Nxh8 Qg2 8.Rf1 Nd4 9.Qh5+ g6 10.Nxg6 hxg6 11.Qxg6+ Kd8 and Black has dangerous threats. (Alternatively, after 5.Nxf7? Qh4! 6.g3, Black could play more aggressively 6...Nxg3! 7.fxg3 Qe4+ 8.Qe2 Qxh1+ 9.Qf1 Qxf1+ 10.Kxf1 d5 11.Bxd5 Bh3+ 12.Ke1 Nb4 13.Bb3 Nxc2+ 14.Bxc2 Kxf7 with a distinct advantage of material for Black.) Correct is 5.Bxf7+! Ke7 6.d4! (6.d3 is also good) and now:

4.d4.

White can choose to rapidly with 4.d4 exd4 5.0-0. Now Black can simply by eliminating White's last center pawn with 5...Nxe4, after which White regains the with 6.Re1 d5 7.Bxd5 Qxd5 8.Nc3, but Black has a comfortable position after 8...Qa5 or 8...Qh5, or can obtain good chances with the complex Max Lange Attack after 5...Bc5 6.e5 d5. The extensively analyzed Max Lange can also arise from the Giuoco Piano or Scotch Game. White can choose to avoid these lines by playing 5.e5, a line often adopted by Sveshnikov. After 5.e5, either 5...Ne4 or 5...Ng4 is a reply, but most common and natural is 5...d5 6.Bb5 Ne4 7.Nxd4 Bc5, with play. The tricky 5.Ng5?! is best met by 5...d5! 6.exd5 Qe7+!

Modern Bishop's Opening: 4.d3.

The quiet move 4.d3 transposes into the Giuoco Pianissimo if Black responds 4...Bc5, but there are also independent variations after 4...Be7 or 4...h6. White tries to avoid the tactical battles that are common in other lines of the Two Knights and to enter a more positional game. The resulting positions take on some characteristics of the Ruy Lopez if White plays c3 and retreats the bishop to c2 via Bc4–b3–c2. This move became popular in the 1980s and has been used by John Nunn and others. Black can confound White's attempt to avoid tactical play with 4...d5!? This move is rarely played as opening theory does not approve, but Jan Piński suggests that it is better than is commonly believed. In practice after 5.exd5 White still has strong winning chances.

Four Knights Variation: 4.Nc3.

The attempt to defend the pawn with 4.Nc3 does not work well since Black can take the pawn anyway and use a fork trick to regain the piece, 4.Nc3?! Nxe4! 5.Nxe4 d5. The try 5.Bxf7+? does not help, as Black has the and a better position after 5...Kxf7 6.Nxe4 d5. Instead, 4.Nc3 is usually played with the intent to gambit the e-pawn with the Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit, 4.Nc3 Nxe4 5.0-0. This gambit is not commonly seen in tournament play as it is not well regarded by opening theory, but it can offer White good practical chances, especially in blitz chess.

Chess opening theory table.

White must respond to the attack on the e-pawn. (For explanation of notation, see chess opening theory table.)

References.

Bibliography

The Two Knights Defense is a chess opening that begins with the moves: First recorded by Polerio (c. 1550 – c. 1610) in the late 16th century, this line of the Italian Game was extensively developed in the 19th century. Black's third move is a more aggressive defense than the Giuoco Piano (). Black invites White to attack his f7-pawn with 4.Ng5. If White accepts the offer, the game quickly takes on a tactical character: Black is practically to give up a pawn for the initiative. The complications are such that David Bronstein suggested that the term "defense" does not fit, and that the name "Chigorin Counterattack" would be more appropriate. The Two Knights has been adopted as Black by many aggressive players including Mikhail Chigorin and Paul Keres, and world champions Mikhail Tal and Boris Spassky. In modern grandmaster play, 3.Bc4 is far less common than 3.Bb5, and the more solid 3...Bc5 is the usual reply, so the Two Knights Defense is infrequently seen. It remains popular with amateur players. The theory of this opening has been explored extensively in correspondence chess by players such as Hans Berliner and Yakov Estrin.


History.

Propionic acid was first described in 1844 by Johann Gottlieb, who found it among the degradation products of sugar. Over the next few years, other chemists produced propionic acid in various other ways, none of them realizing they were producing the same substance. In 1847, French chemist Jean-Baptiste Dumas established all the acids to be the same compound, which he called propionic acid, from the Greek words πρῶτος (prōtos), meaning "first", and πίων (piōn), meaning "fat", because it is the smallest H(CH)COOH acid that exhibits the properties of the other fatty acids, such as producing an oily layer when salted out of water and having a soapy potassium salt.

Properties.

Propionic acid has physical properties intermediate between those of the smaller carboxylic acids, formic and acetic acids, and the larger fatty acids. It is miscible with water, but can be removed from water by adding salt. As with acetic and formic acids, it consists of hydrogen bonded pairs of molecules as both the liquid and the vapor.  Propionic acid displays the general properties of carboxylic acids: it can form amide, ester, anhydride, and chloride derivatives. It undergoes the Hell–Volhard–Zelinsky reaction that involves α-halogenation of a carboxylic acid with bromine, catalysed by phosphorus tribromide, in this case to form 2-bromopropanoic acid, CHCHBrCOOH. This product has been used to prepare a racemic mixture of alanine by ammonolysis.

Production.

In industry, propionic acid is mainly produced by the hydrocarboxylation of ethylene using nickel carbonyl as the catalyst:  It is also produced by the aerobic oxidation of propionaldehyde. In the presence of cobalt or manganese salts (manganese propionate is most commonly used), this reaction proceeds rapidly at temperatures as mild as 40–50 °C:  Large amounts of propionic acid were once produced as a byproduct of acetic acid manufacture. At the current time, the world's largest producer of propionic acid is BASF, with approximately 150 kt/a production capacity.  Propionic acid is produced biologically as its coenzyme A ester, propionyl-CoA, from the metabolic breakdown of fatty acids containing odd numbers of carbon atoms, and also from the breakdown of some amino acids. Bacteria of the genus "Propionibacterium" produce propionic acid as the end-product of their anaerobic metabolism. This class of bacteria is commonly found in the stomachs of ruminants and the sweat glands of humans, and their activity is partially responsible for the odor of Emmental cheese, American "Swiss cheese" and sweat.  Biotechnological production of propionic acid is mainly studied by the use of "Propionibacterium" strains. However, production of propionic acid by "Propionibacteria" is facing challenges such as severe inhibition of end-products during cell growth and the formation of by-products (acetic acid and succinic acid). One approach to improve productivity and yield during fermentation is through the use of cell immobilization techniques, which also promotes easy recovery, reuse of the cell biomass and enhances microorganisms’ stress tolerance. In 2018, 3D printing technology was used for the first time to create a matrix for cell immobilization in fermentation. Propionic acid production by "Propionibacterium acidipropionici" immobilized on 3D-printed nylon beads was chosen as a model study. It was shown that those 3D-printed beads were capable to promote high density cell attachment and propionic acid production, which could be adapted to other fermentation bioprocesses. Other cell immobilization matrices have been tested, such as recycled-glass Poraver and fibrous-bed bioreactor.  It is also biosynthesized in the large intestine of humans by bacterial fermentation of dietary fibre.

Industrial uses.

Propionic acid inhibits the growth of mold and some bacteria at the levels between 0.1 and 1% by weight. As a result, most propionic acid produced is consumed as a preservative for both animal feed and food for human consumption. For animal feed, it is used either directly or as its ammonium salt. The antibiotic Monensin is added to cattle feed to favor propionibacteria over acetic acid producers in the rumen; this produces less carbon dioxide and feed conversion is better. This application accounts for about half of the world production of propionic acid. Another major application is as a preservative in baked goods, which use the sodium and calcium salts. As a food additive, it is approved for use in the EU, USA, Australia and New Zealand.  Propionic acid is also useful as an intermediate in the production of other chemicals, especially polymers. Cellulose-acetate-propionate is a useful thermoplastic. Vinyl propionate is also used. In more specialized applications, it is also used to make pesticides and pharmaceuticals. The esters of propionic acid have fruit-like odors and are sometimes used as solvents or artificial flavorings.  In biogas plants, propionic acid is a common intermediate product, which is formed by fermentation with propionic acid bacteria. Its degradation in anaerobic environments (e.g. biogas plants) requires the activity of complex microbial communities.

Biological uses.

The metabolism of propionic acid begins with its conversion to propionyl coenzyme A, the usual first step in the metabolism of carboxylic acids. Since propionic acid has three carbons, propionyl-CoA cannot directly enter either beta oxidation or the citric acid cycles. In most vertebrates, propionyl-CoA is carboxylated to -methylmalonyl-CoA, which is isomerised to -methylmalonyl-CoA. A vitamin B-dependent enzyme catalyzes rearrangement of -methylmalonyl-CoA to succinyl-CoA, which is an intermediate of the citric acid cycle and can be readily incorporated there.  In propionic acidemia, a rare inherited genetic disorder, propionate acts as a metabolic toxin in liver cells by accumulating in mitochondria as propionyl-CoA and its derivative, methylcitrate, two tricarboxylic acid cycle inhibitors. Propanoate is metabolized oxidatively by glia, which suggests astrocytic vulnerability in propionic acidemia when intramitochondrial propionyl-CoA may accumulate. Propionic acidemia may alter both neuronal and glial gene expression by affecting histone acetylation. When propionic acid is infused directly into rodents' brains, it produces reversible behavior (e.g., hyperactivity, dystonia, social impairment, perseveration) and brain changes (e.g., innate neuroinflammation, glutathione depletion) that may be used as a means to model autism in rats.  It also, being a three-carbon molecule, feeds into hepatic gluconeogenesis (that is, the creation of glucose molecules from simpler molecules in the liver).

Human occurrence.

The human skin is host of several species of bacteria known as "Propionibacteria", which are named after their ability to produce propionic acid. The most notable one is the "Cutibacterium acnes" (formerly known as "Propionibacterium acnes"), which lives mainly in the sebaceous glands of the skin and is one of the principal causes of acne.

Propionic acid (, from the Greek words "protos", meaning "first", and "pion", meaning "fat"; also known as propanoic acid) is a naturally occurring carboxylic acid with chemical formula CHCHCOH. It is a liquid with a pungent and unpleasant smell somewhat resembling body odor. The anion CHCHCO as well as the salts and esters of propionic acid are known as propionates or propanoates.


Biochemistry.

Malonic acid is often mistakenly believed to occur in beetroot at high concentration. However, a study on the composition of sugar beet liquors revealed no malonic acid. It exists in its normal state as white crystals. Malonic acid is the classic example of a competitive inhibitor: It acts against succinate dehydrogenase (complex II) in the respiratory electron transport chain.

Preparation.

A classical preparation of malonic acid starts from chloroacetic acid:  Sodium carbonate generates the sodium salt, which is then reacted with sodium cyanide to provide the cyano acetic acid salt via a nucleophilic substitution. The nitrile group can be hydrolyzed with sodium hydroxide to sodium malonate, and acidification affords malonic acid. Industrially, however, malonic acid is produced by hydrolysis of dimethyl malonate or diethyl malonate.  Malonic acid was first prepared in 1858 by the French chemist Victor Dessaignes (1800-1885) via the oxidation of malic acid.  Malonic acid has been produced through fermentation of glucose.

Organic reactions.

In a well-known reaction, malonic acid condenses with urea to form barbituric acid. Malonic acid is also frequently used as an enolate in Knoevenagel condensations or condensed with acetone to form Meldrum's acid. The esters of malonic acid are also used as a CHCOOH synthon in the malonic ester synthesis.  Additionally, the coenzyme A derivative of malonate, malonyl-CoA, is an important precursor in fatty acid biosynthesis along with acetyl CoA. Malonyl CoA is formed from acetyl CoA by the action of acetyl-CoA carboxylase, and the malonate is transferred to an acyl carrier protein to be added to a fatty acid chain.  Malonic acid is also known to be a competitive inhibitor of succinic dehydrogenase, the enzyme responsible for the dehydrogenation of succinate within the Krebs cycle.

Condensed phase thermochemistry data.

Constant pressure heat capacity of solid:

Malonic acid in fruits.

Malonic acid is a naturally occurring substance found in some fruits. In citrus, fruits produced in organic farming contain higher levels of malonic acid than fruits produced in conventional agriculture.

Applications.

Malonic acid is a precursor to specialty polyesters. It can be converted into 1,3 propanediol for use in polyesters and polymers and a projected market size of $621.2 million by 2021. It can also be a component in alkyd resins, which are used in a number of coatings applications for protecting against damage caused by UV light, oxidation, and corrosion. One application of malonic acid is in the coatings industry as a crosslinker for low-temperature cure powder coatings, which are becoming increasingly valuable for heat sensitive substrates and a desire to speed up the coatings process. The global coatings market for automobiles was estimated to be $18.59 billion in 2014 with projected combined annual growth rate of 5.1% through 2022.  It is used in a number of manufacturing processes as a high value specialty chemical including the electronics industry, flavors and fragrances industry, specialty solvents, polymer crosslinking, and pharmaceutical industry. In 2004, annual global production of malonic acid and related diesters was over 20,000 metric tons. Potential growth of these markets could result from advances in industrial biotechnology that seeks to displace petroleum-based chemicals in industrial applications.  Malonic acid was listed as one of the top 30 chemicals to be produced from biomass by the US Department of Energy.  In food and drug applications, malonic acid can be used to control acidity, either as an excipient in pharmaceutical formulation or natural preservative additive for foods.  Malonic acid is used as a building block chemical to produce numerous valuable compounds, including the flavor and fragrance compounds gamma-nonalactone, cinnamic acid, and the pharmaceutical compound valproate.  Malonic acid (up to 37.5% w/w) has been used to cross-link corn and potato starches to produce a biodegradable thermoplastic; the process is performed in water using non-toxic catalysts. Starch-based polymers comprised 38% of the global biodegradable polymers market in 2014 with food packaging, foam packaging, and compost bags as the largest end-use segments.  Eastman Kodak company and others use malonic acid and derivatives as a surgical adhesive.

Malonic acid (IUPAC systematic name: propanedioic acid) is a dicarboxylic acid with structure CH(COOH). The ionized form of malonic acid, as well as its esters and salts, are known as malonates. For example, diethyl malonate is malonic acid's diethyl ester. The name originates from the Greek word μᾶλον ("malon") meaning 'apple'.


Etymology.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the English alternative medicine word "reiki" is etymologically from Japanese "reiki" (霊気) "mysterious atmosphere, miraculous sign" (first recorded in 1001), combining "rei" "soul, spirit" and "ki" "vital energy"—the Sino-Japanese reading of Chinese "língqì" (靈氣) "numinous atmosphere". The earliest recorded English usage dates to 1975.  The Japanese "reiki" is commonly written as レイキ in katakana syllabary or as 霊気 in shinjitai "new character form" kanji. It compounds the words "rei" (: "spirit, miraculous, divine") and "ki" (気; qi: "gas, vital energy, breath of life, consciousness"). "Ki" is additionally defined as "... spirits; one's feelings, mood, frame of mind; temperament, temper, disposition, one's nature, character; mind to do something, intention, will; care, attention, precaution". Some "reiki" translation equivalents from Japanese-English dictionaries are: "feeling of mystery," "an atmosphere (feeling) of mystery", and "an ethereal atmosphere (that prevails in the sacred precincts of a shrine); (feel, sense) a spiritual (divine) presence." Besides the usual Sino-Japanese pronunciation "reiki", these kanji 霊気 have an alternate Japanese reading, namely "ryōge", meaning "demon; ghost" (especially in spirit possession).  Chinese "língqì" 靈氣 was first recorded in the (ca. 320 BCE) "Neiye" "Inward Training" section of the "Guanzi", describing early Daoist meditation techniques. "That mysterious vital energy within the mind: One moment it arrives, the next it departs. So fine, there is nothing within it; so vast, there is nothing outside it. We lose it because of the harm caused by mental agitation." Modern Standard Chinese "língqì" is translated by Chinese-English dictionaries as: "(of beautiful mountains) spiritual influence or atmosphere"; "1. intelligence; power of understanding; 2. supernatural power or force in fairy tales; miraculous power or force"; and "1. spiritual influence (of mountains/etc.); 2. ingeniousness; cleverness."

Origins.

According to the inscription on his memorial stone, Usui taught his system of reiki to more than 2,000 people during his lifetime. While teaching reiki in Fukuyama, Usui suffered a stroke and died on 9 March 1926.

Research, critical evaluation, and controversy.

Basis.

Reiki's teachings and adherents claim that "qi" is physiological and can be manipulated to treat a disease or condition. The existence of qi has not been established by medical research. Therefore, reiki is a pseudoscientific theory based on metaphysical concepts.  The existence of the proposed mechanism for reiki—"qi" or "life force" energy—has not been scientifically established. Most research on reiki is poorly designed and prone to bias. There is no reliable empirical evidence that reiki is helpful for treating any medical condition, although some physicians have said it might help promote general well-being. In 2011, William T. Jarvis of The National Council Against Health Fraud stated that there "is no evidence that clinical reiki's effects are due to anything other than suggestion" or the placebo effect.  The April 22, 2014 "Skeptoid" podcast episode titled "Your Body's Alleged Energy Fields" relates a reiki practitioner's report of what was happening as she passed her hands over a subject's body: Evaluating these claims scientific skeptic author Brian Dunning reported:

Scholarly evaluation.

Reiki is used as an illustrative example of pseudoscience in scholarly texts and academic journal articles.  In criticizing the State University of New York for offering a continuing education course on reiki, one source stated, "reiki postulates the existence of a universal energy unknown to science and thus far undetectable surrounding the human body, which practitioners can learn to manipulate using their hands," and others said, "In spite of its [reiki] diffusion, the baseline mechanism of action has not been demonstrated..." and, "Neither the forces involved nor the alleged therapeutic benefits have been demonstrated by scientific testing."  Several authors have pointed to the vitalistic energy which reiki is claimed to treat, with one saying, "Ironically, the only thing that distinguishes reiki from Therapeutic touch is that it [reiki] involves actual touch," and others stating that the International Center for Reiki Training "mimic[s] the institutional aspects of science" seeking legitimacy but holds no more promise than an alchemy society.  A guideline published by the American Academy of Neurology, the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine, and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation states, "Reiki therapy should probably not be considered for the treatment of PDN [painful diabetic neuropathy]." Canadian sociologist Susan J. Palmer has listed reiki as among the pseudoscientific healing methods used by cults in France to attract members.

Evidence quality.

A 2008 systematic review of nine randomized clinical trials found several shortcomings in the literature on reiki. Depending on the tools used to measure depression and anxiety, the results varied and were not reliable or valid. Furthermore, the scientific community has been unable to replicate the findings of studies that support reiki. The review also found issues in reporting methodology in some of the literature, in that often there were parts omitted completely or not clearly described. Frequently in these studies, sample sizes were not calculated and adequate allocation and double-blind procedures were not followed. The review also reported that such studies exaggerated the effectiveness of treatment and there was no control for differences in experience of reiki practitioners or even the same practitioner at times produced different outcomes. None of the studies in the review provided a rationale for the treatment duration and no study reported adverse effects.

Safety.

Safety concerns for reiki sessions are very low and are akin to those of many complementary and alternative medicine practices. Some physicians and health care providers, however, believe that patients may unadvisedly substitute proven treatments for life-threatening conditions with unproven alternative modalities including reiki, thus endangering their health.

Catholic Church concerns.

In March 2009, the Committee on Doctrine of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued the document "Guidelines for Evaluating Reiki as an Alternative Therapy", in which they declared that the practice of reiki was based on superstition, being neither truly faith healing nor science-based medicine. They stated that reiki was incompatible with Christian spirituality since it involved belief in a human power over healing rather than prayer to God, and that, viewed as a natural means of healing, it lacked scientific credibility. The 2009 guideline concluded that "since reiki therapy is not compatible with either Christian teaching or scientific evidence, it would be inappropriate for Catholic institutions, such as Catholic health care facilities and retreat centers, or persons representing the Church, such as Catholic chaplains, to promote or to provide support for reiki therapy." Since this announcement, some Catholic lay people have continued to practice reiki, but it has been removed from many Catholic hospitals and other institutions.  In a December 2014 article by the USCCB Committee on Divine Worship on exorcism and its use in the Church, reiki is listed as a practice "that may have impacted the current state of the afflicted person".

Training, certification and adoption.

There is no central authority controlling use of the words "reiki" or "reiki master". Certificates can be purchased online for under $100. It is "not uncommon" for a course to offer attainment of reiki master in two weekends. There is no regulation of practitioners or reiki master in the United States. The "Washington Post" reported in 2014 that in response to customer demand at least 60 hospitals in the United States offered reiki, at a cost of between $40 and $300 per session. Cancer Research UK reported in 2019 that some cancer centers and hospices in the UK offer free or low-cost reiki for people with cancer.

Reiki is a pseudoscience, and is used as an illustrative example of pseudoscience in scholarly texts and academic journal articles. It is based on "qi" ("chi"), which practitioners say is a universal life force, although there is no empirical evidence that such a life force exists.


History.

The village is first mentioned in writing in 1318. After the industrialisation of the area, many of its people worked in mines and factories in the neighbouring cities of Kladno and Slaný.  Lidice was chosen as a target for reprisals in the wake of the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich, because its residents were suspected of harbouring local resistance partisans and were falsely associated with aiding team members of Operation Anthropoid. Altogether, about 340 people from Lidice were murdered in the German reprisal (192 men, 60 women and 88 children). The village of Lidice was set on fire and the remains of the buildings destroyed with explosives. After the war ended, only 153 women and 17 children returned. They were rehoused in a new village of Lidice that was built overlooking the original site, built using money raised by the Lidice Shall Live campaign, initiated by Sir Barnett Stross and based in north Staffordshire in the United Kingdom. The first part of the new village was completed in 1949.  An art gallery, which displays permanent and temporary exhibitions, is in the new village from the museum. The annual children's art competition attracts entries from around the world.  In 1943, the Czech composer, Bohuslav Martinů, wrote the musical work, "Memorial to Lidice".  In 2017, to mark the 75th anniversary of the tragedy, the English composer Vic Carnall wrote his Opus 17, "In Memoriam: the Village of Lidice (Czechoslovakia / June, 1942)", a work for solo piano.

International relations.

Lidice is twinned with Coventry, United Kingdom.

Lidice () is a village in the Kladno District of the Czech Republic, northwest of Prague. It is built near the site of the previous village of the same name, which was completely destroyed on June 10th, 1942 on orders from Adolf Hitler and Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler in reprisal for the assassination of Reich Protector Reinhard Heydrich.


History.

Early 20th century.

Pinsk was occupied by the German Empire on 15 September 1915, during the First World War. After the German defeat, Pinsk became the subject of dispute between the Belarusian People's Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic, both short-lived. Pinsk was taken by the advancing Red Army on 25 January 1919, during the Soviet westward offensive of 1918–19. It was retaken by Polish troops on 5 March 1919 during the Polish–Soviet War but was retaken by the Red Army on 23 July 1920 and finally retaken by the Polish on 26 September 1920. Pińsk became part of the reborn Poland in 1920 when the Polish-Soviet War ended with the Peace of Riga, signed in March 1921.  Like many other cities in Eastern Europe, Pinsk had a significant Jewish population before World War II. According to the Russian census of 1897, out of the total number of 28,400 inhabitants, Jews were approximately 74% of the population (21,100 persons), making it one of the most Jewish cities under tsarist rule. During the Polish-Soviet War, 35 Jewish civilians from Pinsk were executed by the Polish Army in April 1919 after being accused of collaborating with Russian Bolsheviks. The incident, the Pinsk massacre, created a diplomatic crisis noted at the Versailles Conference.

Interwar period.

Pińsk was the initial capital of the Polesie Voivodeship, but it moved to Brześć-nad-Bugiem (now Brest, Belarus) after a citywide fire on 7 September 1921. The population of the city grew rapidly in interwar Poland from 23,497 in 1921 to 33,500 in 1931. Pińsk became a bustling commercial centre, and 70% of the population was Jewish in spite of considerable migration.

Recent history.

Following the Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939, Pinsk and the surrounding area was annexed to the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. It was the seat of the Pinsk Oblast from 1940.  After Operation Barbarossa, Germany occupied Pinsk from 4 July 1941 to 14 July 1944, as part of the Reichskommissariat Ukraine. Most Jews were killed in late October 1942 during the liquidation of the Pińsk Ghetto by the German "Ordnungspolizei" and the Byelorussian Auxiliary Police, 10,000 being murdered in one day. In 1945, after postwar border adjustments of Poland, Pinsk again became part of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.  In 1954 it became part of the Brest Voblast.  Pinsk has formed part of the Republic of Belarus since Belarusian independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Landmarks.

Three main sights of the town are lined along the river: the Assumption Cathedral of the Monastery of the Greyfriars (1712–1730), with a campanile from 1817, the Jesuit collegium (1635–1648); a large Mannerist complex, whose cathedral was demolished after World War II by communists; and the Butrymowicz Palace (1784–1790), built for Mateusz Butrymowicz, an important political and economical figure of Pinsk and Polesie. The Church of St. Charles Borromeo (1770—1782) and St. Barbara Cathedral of the Monastery of the St. Bernard Order (1786–1787) are placed near historic centre in the former Karolin suburb, which is now part of Pinsk. The foremost modern buildings is the black-domed Orthodox Cathedral of St. Theodore.

Pinsk (; ;, "Pins'k"; ; Yiddish/, ) is a city in Brest Region of Belarus, in the Polesia region, at the confluence of the Pina River and the Pripyat River. The region was known as the Marsh of Pinsk and is southwest of Minsk. The city's population is about 138,202.


Origin.

The tail originated in Spain as the bottom half of a miniature cursive z. The word "cedilla" is the diminutive of the Old Spanish name for this letter, "ceda" (zeta). Modern Spanish and Galician no longer use this diacritic, although it is used in Portuguese, Catalan, Occitan, and French, which gives English the alternative spellings of "cedille", from French "'", and the Portuguese form '. An obsolete spelling of "cedilla" is "cerilla". The earliest use in English cited by the "Oxford English Dictionary" is a 1599 Spanish-English dictionary and grammar. Chambers’ "Cyclopædia" is cited for the printer-trade variant "ceceril" in use in 1738. The main use in English is not universal and applies to loan words from French and Portuguese such as "façade", "limaçon" and "cachaça" (often typed "facade", "limacon" and "cachaca" because of lack of "ç" keys on Anglophone keyboards).  With the advent of modernism, the calligraphic nature of the cedilla was thought somewhat jarring on sans-serif typefaces, and so some designers instead substituted a comma design, which could be made bolder and more compatible with the style of the text. This can add to confusion as the use of commas as opposed to cedillas varies by language.

C.

The most frequent character with cedilla is "ç" ("c" with cedilla, as in "façade"). It was first used for the sound of the voiceless alveolar affricate in old Spanish and stems from the Visigothic form of the letter "z" (ꝣ), whose upper loop was lengthened and reinterpreted as a "c", whereas its lower loop became the diminished appendage, the cedilla.  It represents the "soft" sound, the voiceless alveolar sibilant, where a "c" would normally represent the "hard" sound (before "a", "o", "u", or at the end of a word) in English and in certain Romance languages such as Catalan, Galician, French (where ç appears in the name of the language itself, '), Ligurian, Occitan, and Portuguese. In Occitan, Friulian and Catalan "ç" can also be found at the beginning of a word (', ') or at the end (').  It represents the voiceless postalveolar affricate (as in English "church") in Albanian, Azerbaijani, Crimean Tatar, Friulian, Kurdish, Tatar, Turkish (as in ', ', ', '), and Turkmen. It is also sometimes used this way in Manx, to distinguish it from the velar fricative.  In the International Phonetic Alphabet, ⟨ç⟩ represents the voiceless palatal fricative.

S.

The character "ş" represents the voiceless postalveolar fricative (as in "show") in several languages, including many belonging to the Turkic languages, and included as a separate letter in their alphabets:

Latvian.

Comparatively, some consider the diacritics on the palatalized Latvian consonants and formerly to be cedillas. Although their Adobe glyph names are commas, their names in the Unicode Standard are "g", "k", "l", "n", and "r" with a cedilla. The letters were introduced to the Unicode standard before 1992, and their names cannot be altered. The uppercase equivalent "Ģ" sometimes has a regular cedilla.

Marshallese.

Four letters in Marshallese have cedillas: < >. In standard printed text they are "always" cedillas, and their omission or the substitution of comma below and dot below diacritics are nonstandard. , many font rendering engines do not display "any" of these properly, for two reasons:  Because of these font display issues, it is not uncommon to find nonstandard "ad hoc" substitutes for these letters. The online version of the Marshallese-English Dictionary (the only complete Marshallese dictionary in existence) displays the letters with dot below diacritics, all of which do exist as precombined glyphs in Unicode: "", "", "" and "". The first three exist in the International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, and "" exists in the Vietnamese alphabet, and both of these systems are supported by the most recent versions of common fonts like Arial, Courier New, Tahoma and Times New Roman. This sidesteps most of the Marshallese text display issues associated with the cedilla, but is still inappropriate for polished standard text.

Other diacritics.

Languages such as Romanian add a comma (virgula) to some letters, such as "", which looks like a cedilla, but is more precisely a diacritical comma. This is particularly confusing with letters which can take either diacritic: for example, the consonant is written as "ş" in Turkish but "ș" in Romanian, and Romanian writers will sometimes use the former instead of the latter because of insufficient font or character-set support.  The Polish letters and and Lithuanian letters and are not made with the cedilla either, but with the unrelated ogonek diacritic.

French.

In 1868, Ambroise Firmin-Didot suggested in his book'(Observations on French Spelling) that French phonetics could be better regularized by adding a cedilla beneath the letter "t" in some words. For example, the suffix'this letter is usually not pronounced as (or close to) in French, but as. It has to be distinctly learned that in words such as'(but not ') it is pronounced. A similar effect occurs with other prefixes or within words. Firmin-Didot surmised that a new character could be added to French orthography. A letter of the same description T-cedilla (majuscule: Ţ, minuscule: ţ) is used in Gagauz. A similar letter, the T-comma (majuscule: Ț, minuscule: ț), does exist in Romanian, but it has a comma accent, not a cedilla.

Romanian.

The Unicode characters for Ţ (T with cedilla) and Ş (S with cedilla) were wrongly implemented in Windows-1250, the code page for Romanian. In Windows 7, Microsoft corrected the error by replacing T-cedilla with T-comma (Ț) and S-cedilla with S-comma (Ș).

Vute.

Vute, a Mambiloid language from Cameroon, uses cedilla for the nasalization of all vowel qualities (cf. the ogonek used in Polish and Navajo for the same purpose). This includes unconventional roman letters that are formalized from the IPA into the official writing system. These include <"i̧ ȩ ɨ̧ ə̧ a̧ u̧ o̧ ɔ̧>."

Gagauz.

Gagauz uses Ţ (T with cedilla), one of the few languages to do so, and Ş (S with cedilla). Besides being present in some Gagauz orthographies, T with Cedilla exists as part of the General Alphabet of Cameroon Languages, in the Kabyle dialect of the Berber language, and possibly elsewhere.

ISO 259 Romanization of Hebrew.

The ISO 259 Romanization of Hebrew uses Ȩ (E with cedilla) and Ḝ (E with cedilla and breve).

Encodings.

Unicode provides precomposed characters for some Latin letters with cedillas. Others can be formed using the cedilla combining character.

A'( ; from Spanish), also known as'(from Portuguese) or (from French), is a hook or tail ( ̧ ) added under certain letters as a diacritical mark to modify their pronunciation. In Catalan, French, and Portuguese, it is used only under the "c", and the entire letter is called, respectively, (i.e. "broken C"),, and (or, colloquially). It is used to mark vowel nasalization in many languages of sub-Saharan Africa, including Vute from Cameroon.


History.

Ascher Opler coined the term "firmware" in a 1967 "Datamation" article. Originally, it meant the contents of a writable control store (a small specialized high-speed memory), containing microcode that defined and implemented the computer's instruction set, and that could be reloaded to specialize or modify the instructions that the central processing unit (CPU) could execute. As originally used, firmware contrasted with hardware (the CPU itself) and software (normal instructions executing on a CPU). It was not composed of CPU machine instructions, but of lower-level microcode involved in the implementation of machine instructions. It existed on the boundary between hardware and software; thus the name "firmware". Over time, popular usage extended the word "firmware" to denote any computer program that is tightly linked to hardware, including processor machine instructions for BIOS, bootstrap loaders, or the control systems for simple electronic devices such as a microwave oven, remote control, or computer peripheral.

Applications.

Personal computers.

In some respects, the various firmware components are as important as the operating system in a working computer. However, unlike most modern operating systems, firmware rarely has a well-evolved automatic mechanism of updating itself to fix any functionality issues detected after shipping the unit.  The BIOS may be "manually" updated by a user, using a small utility program. In contrast, firmware in storage devices (harddisks, DVD drives, flash storage) rarely gets updated, even when flash (rather than ROM) storage is used for the firmware; there are no standardized mechanisms for detecting or updating firmware versions.  Most computer peripherals are themselves special-purpose computers. Devices such as printers, scanners, cameras, and USB flash drives have internally stored firmware; some devices may also permit field upgrading of their firmware.  Some low-cost peripherals no longer contain non-volatile memory for firmware, and instead rely on the host system to transfer the device control program from a disk file or CD.

Consumer products.

, most portable music players support firmware upgrades. Some companies use firmware updates to add new playable file formats (codecs). Other features that may change with firmware updates include the GUI or even the battery life. Most mobile phones have a Firmware Over The Air firmware upgrade capability for much the same reasons; some may even be upgraded to enhance reception or sound quality.

Automobiles.

Since 1996, most automobiles have employed an on-board computer and various sensors to detect mechanical problems., modern vehicles also employ computer-controlled anti-lock braking systems (ABS) and computer-operated transmission control units (TCUs). The driver can also get in-dash information while driving in this manner, such as real-time fuel economy and tire pressure readings. Local dealers can update most vehicle firmware.

Examples.

Examples of firmware include:

Flashing.

Flashing involves the overwriting of existing firmware or data, contained in EEPROM or flash memory modules present in an electronic device, with new data. This can be done to upgrade a device or to change the provider of a service associated with the function of the device, such as changing from one mobile phone service provider to another or installing a new operating system. If firmware is upgradable, it is often done via a program from the provider, and will often allow the old firmware to be saved before upgrading so it can be reverted to if the process fails, or if the newer version performs worse. As an alternative to vendor tools, open source alternatives have been developed such as flashrom.

Firmware hacking.

Sometimes, third parties create an unofficial new or modified ("aftermarket") version of firmware to provide new features or to unlock hidden functionality; this is referred to as custom firmware. An example is Rockbox as a firmware replacement for portable media players. There are many homebrew projects for various devices, which often unlock general-purpose computing functionality in previously limited devices (e.g., running Doom on iPods).  Firmware hacks usually take advantage of the firmware update facility on many devices to install or run themselves. Some, however, must resort to exploits to run, because the manufacturer has attempted to lock the hardware to stop it from running unlicensed code.  Most firmware hacks are free software.

HDD firmware hacks.

The Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab discovered that a group of developers it refers to as the "Equation Group" has developed hard disk drive firmware modifications for various drive models, containing a trojan horse that allows data to be stored on the drive in locations that will not be erased even if the drive is formatted or wiped. Although the Kaspersky Lab report did not explicitly claim that this group is part of the United States National Security Agency (NSA), evidence obtained from the code of various Equation Group software suggests that they are part of the NSA.  Researchers from the Kaspersky Lab categorized the undertakings by Equation Group as the most advanced hacking operation ever uncovered, also documenting around 500 infections caused by the Equation Group in at least 42 countries.

Security risks.

Mark Shuttleworth, the founder of the company Canonical, which maintains the Ubuntu Linux distribution, has described proprietary firmware as a security risk, saying that "firmware on your device is the NSA's best friend" and calling firmware "a trojan horse of monumental proportions". He has asserted that low-quality, closed source firmware is a major threat to system security: "Your biggest mistake is to assume that the NSA is the only institution abusing this position of trust in fact, it's reasonable to assume that all firmware is a cesspool of insecurity, courtesy of incompetence of the highest degree from manufacturers, and competence of the highest degree from a very wide range of such agencies". As a potential solution to this problem, he has called for declarative firmware, which would describe "hardware linkage and dependencies" and "should not include executable code". Firmware should be open-source so that the code can be checked and verified.  Custom firmware hacks have also focused on injecting malware into devices such as smartphones or USB devices. One such smartphone injection was demonstrated on the Symbian OS at MalCon, a hacker convention. A USB device firmware hack called "BadUSB" was presented at the Black Hat USA 2014 conference, demonstrating how a USB flash drive microcontroller can be reprogrammed to spoof various other device types to take control of a computer, exfiltrate data, or spy on the user. Other security researchers have worked further on how to exploit the principles behind BadUSB, releasing at the same time the source code of hacking tools that can be used to modify the behavior of different USB devices.

In computing, firmware is a specific class of computer software that provides the low-level control for a device's specific hardware. Firmware can either provide a standardized operating environment for more complex device software (allowing more hardware-independence), or, for less complex devices, act as the device's complete operating system, performing all control, monitoring and data manipulation functions. Typical examples of devices containing firmware are embedded systems, consumer appliances, computers, computer peripherals, and others. Almost all electronic devices beyond the simplest contain some firmware.


Early career.

He was born in Venice as the son of the painter Bernardo Canal, hence his mononym "Canaletto" ("little Canal"), and Artemisia Barbieri. Canaletto served his apprenticeship with his father and his brother. He began in his father's occupation, that of a theatrical scene painter. Canaletto was inspired by the Roman "vedutista" Giovanni Paolo Pannini, and started painting the daily life of the city and its people.  After returning from Rome in 1719, he began painting in his topographical style. His first known signed and dated work is "Architectural Capriccio" (1723, Milan, in a private collection). Studying with the older Luca Carlevarijs, a well-regarded painter of urban cityscapes, he rapidly became his master's equal.  In 1725, the painter Alessandro Marchesini, who was also the buyer for the Lucchese art collector Stefano Conti, had inquired about buying two more 'views of Venice', when the agent urged him to consider instead the work of "Antonio Canale... it is like Carlevaris, but you can see the sun shining in it."

Outdoor painting.

Much of Canaletto's early artwork was painted "from nature", differing from the then customary practice of completing paintings in the studio. Some of his later works do revert to this custom, as suggested by the tendency for distant figures to be painted as blobs of colour – an effect possibly produced by using a camera obscura, which blurs farther-away objects – although research by art historians working for the Royal Collection in the United Kingdom has shown Canaletto almost never used a camera obscura.  However, his paintings are always notable for their accuracy: he recorded the seasonal submerging of Venice in water and ice.

Early and late work.

Canaletto's early works remain his most coveted and, according to many authorities, his best. One of his early pieces is "The Stonemason's Yard" (, the National Gallery, London) which depicts a humble working area of the city. It is regarded one of his finest works and was presented by Sir George Beaumont in 1823 and 1828.  Later Canaletto painted grand scenes of the canals of Venice and the Doge's Palace. His large-scale landscapes portrayed the city's pageantry and waning traditions, making innovative use of atmospheric effects and strong local colours. For these qualities, his works may be said to have anticipated Impressionism.  His graphic print "S. A. Giustina in Prà della Vale" was found in the 2012 Munich Art Hoard.

Work in England.

Many of his pictures were sold to Englishmen on their Grand Tour, first through the agency of Owen Swiny and later the banker Joseph Smith. It was Swiny in the late 1720s who encouraged the artist to paint small topographical views of Venice with a commercial appeal for tourists and foreign visitors to the city. Sometime before 1728, Canaletto began his association with Smith, an English businessman and collector living in Venice who was appointed British Consul in Venice in 1744. Smith later became the artist's principal agent and patron, acquiring nearly fifty paintings, one hundred fifty drawings, and fifteen rare etchings from Canaletto, the largest and finest single group of the artist's works, which he sold to King George III in 1763.  In the 1740s Canaletto's market was disrupted when the War of the Austrian Succession led to a reduction in the number of British visitors to Venice. Smith also arranged for the publication of a series of etchings of "capricci" (or architectural phantasies) ("capriccio" Italian for fancy) in his "vedute ideale", but the returns were not high enough, and in 1746 Canaletto moved to London, to be closer to his market.  He remained in England until 1755, producing views of London (including several of the new Westminster Bridge, which was completed during his stay) and of his patrons' houses and castles. These included Northumberland House for Sir Hugh Smithson, Bt., who by marriage later became the 2nd Earl of Northumberland; and Warwick Castle for Lord Brooke, later 1st Earl of Warwick. Smithson was one of the commissioners of Westminster Bridge, and it is "not impossible" that he had encouraged Canaletto to come to England and record the beginning of the bridge's life. His 1754 painting of Old Walton Bridge includes an image of Canaletto himself.  He was often expected to paint England in the fashion with which he had painted his native city. Canaletto's painting began to suffer from repetitiveness, losing its fluidity, and becoming mechanical to the point that the English art critic George Vertue suggested that the man painting under the name 'Canaletto' was an impostor. This may have been because Canaletto's nephew, Bernardo Bellotto, was also using his uncle's nickname; or more likely because the story had been spread by unscrupulous art dealers who had been passing off copies of Canaletto's own work and were anxious to see him return to Venice. Historian Michael Levey described his work from this period as "inhibited".  In order to refute this claim the artist, through an advertisement in a newspaper, invited "any Gentleman" to inspect his latest painting of St. James's Park at his studio in Silver Street (now Beak Street) off Golden Square; however, his reputation never fully recovered in his lifetime.  After his return to Venice, Canaletto was elected to the Venetian Academy in 1763 and appointed prior of the "Collegio dei Pittori". He continued to paint until his death in 1768. In his later years he often worked from old sketches, but he sometimes produced surprising new compositions. He was willing to make subtle alterations to topography for artistic effect.

Market.

His students included his nephew Bernardo Bellotto, Francesco Guardi, Michele Marieschi, Gabriele Bella, and Giuseppe Moretti. The painter, Giuseppe Bernardino Bison was a follower of his style.  Joseph Smith sold much of his collection to George III, creating the bulk of the large collection of works by Canaletto owned by the Royal Collection. in 1762, George III paid £20,000 for Consul Smith's collection of 50 paintings and 142 drawings. There are many examples of his work in other British collections, including several (19) at the Wallace Collection and a set of 24 in the dining room at Woburn Abbey. A large set of Canaletto works was also part of the collection of the Earls of Carlisle, however many were lost at the 1940 fire of Castle Howard and others were sold over the last century. Among those formerly at the Carlisle collection are "The Bacino di San Marco: looking East", now at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (sold in 1939) and the pair "Entrance to the Grand Canal from the Molo, Venice" and "The Square of Saint Mark's, Venice", now at the National Gallery of Art, Washington DC (sold in 1938). The last important venetian "veduta" at Castle Howard was by Bernardo Bellotto, "A View of the Grand Canal Looking South from the Palazzo Foscari", which was sold at Sotheby's in July 2015 for £2.6 million.  Canaletto's views always fetched high prices, and as early as the 18th century Catherine the Great and other European monarchs vied for his grandest paintings. The record price paid at auction for a Canaletto is £18.6 million for "View of the Grand Canal from Palazzo Balbi to the Rialto", set at Sotheby's in London in July 2005.

Giovanni Antonio Canal (18 October 1697 – 19 April 1768), commonly known as Canaletto (), was a italian painter from the Republic of Venice, considered important member of the 18th-century Venetian school. Painter of city views or "vedute", of Venice, Rome, and London, he also painted imaginary views (referred to as capricci), although the demarcation in his works between the real and the imaginary is never quite clearcut. He was further an important printmaker using the etching technique. In the period from 1746 to 1756 he worked in England where he painted many views of London and other sites including Warwick Castle and Alnwick Castle. He was highly successful in England, thanks to the British merchant and connoisseur Joseph "Consul" Smith, whose large collection of Canaletto's works was sold to King George III in 1762.


Origins.

Sandstones are "clastic" in origin (as opposed to either "organic", like chalk and coal, or "chemical", like gypsum and jasper). They are formed from cemented grains that may either be fragments of a pre-existing rock or be mono-minerallic crystals. The cements binding these grains together are typically calcite, clays, and silica. Grain sizes in sands are defined (in geology) within the range of 0.0625 mm to 2 mm (0.0025–0.08 inches). Clays and sediments with smaller grain sizes not visible with the naked eye, including siltstones and shales, are typically called "argillaceous" sediments; rocks with larger grain sizes, including breccias and conglomerates, are termed "rudaceous" sediments.  The formation of sandstone involves two principal stages. First, a layer or layers of sand accumulates as the result of sedimentation, either from water (as in a stream, lake, or sea) or from air (as in a desert). Typically, sedimentation occurs by the sand settling out from suspension; i.e., ceasing to be rolled or bounced along the bottom of a body of water or ground surface (e.g., in a desert or erg). Finally, once it has accumulated, the sand becomes sandstone when it is compacted by the pressure of overlying deposits and cemented by the precipitation of minerals within the pore spaces between sand grains.  The most common cementing materials are silica and calcium carbonate, which are often derived either from dissolution or from alteration of the sand after it was buried. Colors will usually be tan or yellow (from a blend of the clear quartz with the dark amber feldspar content of the sand). A predominant additional colourant in the southwestern United States is iron oxide, which imparts reddish tints ranging from pink to dark red (terracotta), with additional manganese imparting a purplish hue. Red sandstones, both Old Red Sandstone and New Red Sandstone, are also seen in the Southwest and West of Britain, as well as central Europe and Mongolia. The regularity of the latter favours use as a source for masonry, either as a primary building material or as a facing stone, over other forms of construction.

Components.

Framework grains.

Framework grains are sand-sized ( diameter) detrital fragments that make up the bulk of a sandstone. These grains can be classified into several different categories based on their mineral composition:

Matrix.

Matrix is very fine material, which is present within interstitial pore space between the framework grains. The nature of the matrix within the interstitial pore space results in a twofold classification:

Cement.

Cement is what binds the siliciclastic framework grains together. Cement is a secondary mineral that forms after deposition and during burial of the sandstone. These cementing materials may be either silicate minerals or non-silicate minerals, such as calcite.

Pore space.

Pore space includes the open spaces within a rock or a soil. The pore space in a rock has a direct relationship to the porosity and permeability of the rock. The porosity and permeability are directly influenced by the way the sand grains are packed together.

Types of sandstone.

All sandstones are composed of the same general minerals. These minerals make up the framework components of the sandstones. Such components are quartz, feldspars, and lithic fragments. Matrix may also be present in the interstitial spaces between the framework grains. Below is a list of several major groups of sandstones. These groups are divided based on mineralogy and texture. Even though sandstones have very simple compositions which are based on framework grains, geologists have not been able to agree on a specific, right way, to classify sandstones. Sandstone classifications are typically done by point-counting a thin section using a method like the Gazzi-Dickinson Method. The composition of a sandstone can have important information regarding the genesis of the sediment when used with a triangular "Q"uartz, "F"eldspar, "L"ithic fragment (QFL diagrams). Many geologists, however, do not agree on how to separate the triangle parts into the single components so that the framework grains can be plotted. Therefore, there have been many published ways to classify sandstones, all of which are similar in their general format.  Visual aids are diagrams that allow geologists to interpret different characteristics about a sandstone. The following QFL chart and the sandstone provenance model correspond with each other therefore, when the QFL chart is plotted those points can then be plotted on the sandstone provenance model. The stage of textural maturity chart illustrates the different stages that a sandstone goes through.

Dott's classification scheme.

Dott's (1964) sandstone classification scheme is one of many such schemes used by geologists for classifying sandstones. Dott's scheme is a modification of Gilbert's classification of silicate sandstones, and it incorporates R.L. Folk's dual textural and compositional maturity concepts into one classification system. The philosophy behind combining Gilbert's and R. L. Folk's schemes is that it is better able to "portray the continuous nature of textural variation from mudstone to arenite and from stable to unstable grain composition". Dott's classification scheme is based on the mineralogy of framework grains, and on the type of matrix present in between the framework grains.  In this specific classification scheme, Dott has set the boundary between arenite and wackes at 15% matrix. In addition, Dott also breaks up the different types of framework grains that can be present in a sandstone into three major categories: quartz, feldspar, and lithic grains.

Uses.

Sandstone has been used for domestic construction and housewares since prehistoric times, and continues to be used.  Sandstone was a popular building material from ancient times. It is relatively soft, making it easy to carve. It has been widely used around the world in constructing temples, homes, and other buildings. It has also been used for artistic purposes to create ornamental fountains and statues.  Some sandstones are resistant to weathering, yet are easy to work. This makes sandstone a common building and paving material including in asphalt concrete. However, some that have been used in the past, such as the Collyhurst sandstone used in North West England, have been found less resistant, necessitating repair and replacement in older buildings. Because of the hardness of individual grains, uniformity of grain size and friability of their structure, some types of sandstone are excellent materials from which to make grindstones, for sharpening blades and other implements. Non-friable sandstone can be used to make grindstones for grinding grain, e.g., gritstone.  A type of pure quartz sandstone, orthoquartzite, with more of 90–95 percent of quartz, has been proposed for nomination to the Global Heritage Stone Resource. In some regions of Argentina, the orthoquartzite-stoned facade is one of the main features of the Mar del Plata style bungalows.

Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) mineral particles or rock fragments (clasts) or organic material.


Fermentation.

Once yeast has been added, grapes begin to ferment rapidly. The sugar contained in the grapes is broken down into alcohol and carbon dioxide (glycolysis). As soon as an alcohol content of four percent has been reached, Federweißer may be sold. It continues to ferment until all the sugar has been broken down and an alcohol content of about ten percent has been reached.

As a beverage.

Due to the carbonation, Federweißer tastes quite refreshing, not unlike a light grape soda or a sweet sparkling wine. As fermentation progresses, however, Federweißer may increasingly assume a darker, often amber-like or light brown hue. In general, Federweißer is made from white grapes; when made from red grapes, the drink is called "Federroter", "Roter Sauser", or "Roter Rauscher". Federroter is less common than Federweißer. Because of rapid fermentation, Federweißer can not be stored for long and should be consumed within a few days of purchase. As carbonic acid is constantly produced, the bottles can not be sealed airtight and have a permeable lid (they would burst otherwise). They must be stored in an upright position to allow the gas to continuously escape from the bottle and to prevent spilling.  Progressing fermentation was also a challenge in transporting bottled Federweisser over long distances before the advent of modern-day commercial traffic and refrigerated vehicles, the latter of which are needed to slow down the yeast's metabolism during transport. Therefore, in the old days, Federweisser was almost exclusively available (and, for the most part, known) in and around wine-growing regions.  Depending on the date of the grape harvest, it is available from early September to late October, and is generally served together with savoury food. The classic combination is Federweißer and Zwiebelkuchen, although Federweißer and chestnuts is also popular.  Federweißer contains yeast, lactic acid bacteria, and a large amount of vitamin B and B.

Federweisser (also Federweißer, from German "Feder", "feather", and "weiß", "white"; from the appearance of the suspended yeast, also known as "Sturm", from German "Sturm", "sturm" in Austria), is an alcoholic beverage, typically 4% alcohol by volume, although versions of up to 11.5% alcohol by volume are not uncommon. (In contrast to all other alcoholic beverages, the alcohol content stated on a bottle of Federweisser is inconclusive, and presents an uppermost limit, not the actual content at any given time.) It is the product of fermented freshly pressed grape juice, known as "must". The term in principle includes all stages of fermentation from must to finished wine.


History.

During the summer, Mao found the idea interesting and had superseded Zhou Enlai to take control. The idea was to have intellectuals discuss the country's problems in order to promote new forms of arts and new cultural institutions. Mao, however, also saw this as the chance to promote socialism. He believed that after discussion it would be apparent that socialist ideology was the dominant ideology over capitalism, even amongst non-communist Chinese, and would thus propel the development and spread of the goals of socialism.  The beginning of the Hundred Flowers Movement was marked by a speech titled "On the Correct Handling of the Contradictions Among the People", in which Mao displayed open support for the campaign, saying "Our society cannot back down, it could only progress... criticism of the bureaucracy is pushing the government towards the better." The speech, published on February 27, 1957, encouraged people to vent their criticisms as long as they were "constructive" ("among the people") rather than "hateful and destructive" ("between the enemy and ourselves").  The name of the movement originated in a poem: "Let a hundred flowers bloom; let a hundred schools of thought contend" (, "Bǎihuā qífàng, bǎijiā zhēngmíng"). Mao had used this to signal what he had wanted from the intellectuals of the country, for different and competing ideologies to voice their opinions about the issues of the day. He alluded to the Warring States period when numerous schools of thought competed for ideological, not military, supremacy. Historically, Confucianism and Taoism had gained prominence, and socialism would now stand to its test.  Historians debate whether Mao's motivations for launching the campaign were genuine. Some find it possible that Mao originally had pure intentions, but later decided to utilize the opportunity to destroy criticism. Historian Jonathan Spence suggests that the campaign was the culmination of a muddled and convoluted dispute within the Party regarding how to address dissent.

Campaign launch.

The campaign publicly began in late 1956. In the opening stage of the movement, issues discussed were relatively minor and unimportant in the grand scheme. The Central Government did not receive much criticism, although there was a significant rise in letters of conservative advice. Premier Zhou Enlai received some of these letters, and once again realized that, although the campaign had gained notable publicity, it was not progressing as had been hoped. Zhou approached Mao about the situation, stating that more encouragement was needed from the central bureaucracy to lead the intellectuals into further discussion.  By the spring of 1957, Mao had announced that criticism was "preferred" and had begun to mount pressure on those who did not turn in healthy criticism on policy to the Central Government. The reception with intellectuals was immediate, and they began voicing concerns without any taboo. In the period from May 1 to June 7, 1957, millions of letters were pouring into the Premier's Office and other authorities.  People spoke out by putting up posters around campuses, rallying in the streets, holding meetings for CPC members, and publishing magazine articles. For example, students at Peking University created a "Democratic Wall" on which they criticized the CPC with posters and letters. "They protested CPC control over intellectuals, the harshness of previous mass campaigns such as that against counter-revolutionaries, the slavish following of Soviet models, the low standards of living in China, the proscription of foreign literature, economic corruption among party cadres, and the fact that 'Party members [enjoyed] many privileges which make them a race apart'".

Effects.

In July 1957, Mao ordered a halt to the campaign. By that time, Mao had witnessed Nikita Khrushchev denouncing Joseph Stalin and the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, events by which he felt threatened. Mao's earlier speech, "On the Correct Handling of the Contradictions Among the People", was significantly changed and appeared later on as an anti-rightist piece in itself.  The campaign made a lasting impact on Mao's ideological perception. Mao, who is known historically to be more ideological and theoretical, less pragmatic and practical, continued to attempt to solidify socialist ideals in future movements, and in the case of the Cultural Revolution, employed more violent means. Another result of the Hundred Flowers Campaign was that it discouraged dissent and made intellectuals reluctant to criticize Mao and his party in the future. The Anti-Rightist Movement, that shortly followed and was possibly caused by the Hundred Flowers Campaign, resulted in the persecution of intellectuals, officials, students, artists and dissidents labeled "rightists". The campaign led to a loss of individual rights, especially for any Chinese intellectuals educated in Western centers of learning.  The Hundred Flowers Movement was the first of its kind in the history of the People's Republic of China in that the government opened up to ideological criticisms from the general public. Although its true nature has always been questioned by historians, it can be generally concluded that the events that took place alarmed the central communist leadership. The movement also represented a pattern that has emerged from Chinese history wherein free thought is promoted by the government, and then suppressed by it. A similar surge in ideological thought would not occur again until the late 1980s, leading up to the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. The latter surge, however, did not receive the same amount of government backing and encouragement.  Another important issue of the campaign was the tension that surfaced between the political center and national minorities. With criticism allowed, some of the minorities' activists made public their protest against "Han chauvinism" which they saw the informal approach of party officials toward the local specifics.

Discussion.

The first part of the phrase is often remembered as "let a hundred flowers bloom". It is used to refer to an orchestrated campaign to flush out dissidents by encouraging them to show themselves as critical of the regime, and then subsequently imprison them. This view is supported by authors Clive James and Jung Chang, who posit that the campaign was, from the start, a ruse intended to expose rightists and counter-revolutionaries, and that Mao Zedong persecuted those whose views were different from the party's. For instance, in Jung Chang and Jon Halliday's text "", Chang asserts that "...Mao was setting a trap, and...was inviting people to speak out so that he could use what they said as an excuse to victimise them." The prominent critic Harry Wu, who as a teenager was a victim, later wrote that he "could only assume that Mao never meant what he said, that he was setting a trap for millions..."  Mao's personal physician, Li Zhisui, suggested that the campaign was "a gamble, based on a calculation that genuine counterrevolutionaries were few, that rebels like Hu Feng had been permanently intimidated into silence, and that other intellectuals would follow Mao's lead, speaking out only against the people and practices Mao himself most wanted to subject to reform." Only when criticisms began shifting toward him personally did Mao move to suppress the Hundred Flowers movement and punish some of its participants.

The Hundred Flowers Campaign, also termed the Hundred Flowers Movement (), was a period in 1956 in the People's Republic of China during which the Communist Party of China (CPC) encouraged citizens to express openly their opinions of the communist regime. Differing views and solutions to national policy were encouraged based on the famous expression by Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong: "The policy of letting a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend is designed to promote the flourishing of the arts and the progress of science". The movement was in part a response to the demoralization of intellectuals, who felt estranged from the Communist Party.


History.

An early opponent of security through obscurity was the locksmith Alfred Charles Hobbs, who in 1851 demonstrated to the public how state-of-the-art locks could be picked. In response to concerns that exposing security flaws in the design of locks could make them more vulnerable to criminals, he said: "Rogues are very keen in their profession, and know already much more than we can teach them".  There is scant formal literature on the issue of security through obscurity. Books on security engineering cite Kerckhoffs' doctrine from 1883, if they cite anything at all. For example, in a discussion about secrecy and openness in Nuclear Command and Control: [T]he benefits of reducing the likelihood of an accidental war were considered to outweigh the possible benefits of secrecy. This is a modern reincarnation of Kerckhoffs' doctrine, first put forward in the nineteenth century, that the security of a system should depend on its key, not on its design remaining obscure.  In the field of legal academia, Peter Swire has written about the trade-off between the notion that "security through obscurity is an illusion" and the military notion that "loose lips sink ships" as well as how competition affects the incentives to disclose.  The principle of security through obscurity was more generally accepted in cryptographic work in the days when essentially all well-informed cryptographers were employed by national intelligence agencies, such as the National Security Agency. Now that cryptographers often work at universities, where researchers publish many or even all of their results, and publicly test others' designs, or in private industry, where results are more often controlled by patents and copyrights than by secrecy, the argument has lost some of its former popularity. An early example was PGP, whose source code is publicly available to anyone. The security technology in some of the best commercial browsers is also considered highly secure despite being open source.  There are conflicting stories about the origin of this term. Fans of MIT's Incompatible Timesharing System (ITS) say it was coined in opposition to Multics users down the hall, for whom security was far more an issue than on ITS. Within the ITS culture the term referred, self-mockingly, to the poor coverage of the documentation and obscurity of many commands, and to the attitude that by the time a tourist figured out how to make trouble he'd generally got over the urge to make it, because he felt part of the community. One instance of deliberate security through obscurity on ITS has been noted: the command to allow patching the running ITS system (altmode altmode control-R) echoed as $$^D. Typing Alt Alt Control-D set a flag that would prevent patching the system even if the user later got it right.  In January 2020, NPR reported that party officials in Iowa declined to share information regarding the security of its caucus app, to "make sure we are not relaying information that could be used against us." Cybersecurity experts replied that "to withhold the technical details of its app doesn't do much to protect the system."

Criticism.

Security by obscurity alone is discouraged and not recommended by standards bodies. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the United States sometimes recommends against this practice: "System security should not depend on the secrecy of the implementation or its components."  The technique stands in contrast with security by design and open security, although many real-world projects include elements of all strategies.

Obscurity in architecture vs. technique.

Knowledge of how the system is built differs from concealment and camouflage. The efficacy of obscurity in operations security depends by whether the obscurity lives on top of other good security practices, or if it is being used alone. When used as an independent layer, obscurity is considered a valid security tool.  In recent years, security through obscurity has gained support as a methodology in cybersecurity through Moving Target Defense and cyber deception. NIST's cyber resiliency framework, 800-160 Volume 2, recommends the usage of security through obscurity as a complementary part of a resilient and secure computing environment. The research firm Forrester recommends the usage of environment concealment to protect messages against Advanced Persistent Threats.

Security through obscurity (or security by obscurity) is the reliance in security engineering on design or implementation secrecy as the main method of providing security to a system or component. Security experts have rejected this view as far back as 1851, and advise that obscurity should never be the only security mechanism.


Overview.

The northbridge typically handles communications among the CPU, in some cases RAM, and PCI Express (or AGP) video cards, and the southbridge. Some northbridges also contain integrated video controllers, also known as a Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) in Intel systems. Because different processors and RAM require different signaling, a given northbridge will typically work with only one or two classes of CPUs and generally only one type of RAM.  There are a few chipsets that support two types of RAM (generally these are available when there is a shift to a new standard). For example, the northbridge from the Nvidia nForce2 chipset will only work with Socket A processors combined with DDR SDRAM; the Intel i875 chipset will only work with systems using Pentium 4 processors or Celeron processors that have a clock speed greater than 1.3 GHz and utilize DDR SDRAM, and the Intel i915g chipset only works with the Intel Pentium 4 and the Celeron, but it can use DDR or DDR2 memory.

Etymology.

The name is derived from drawing the architecture in the fashion of a map. The CPU would be at the top of the map comparable to due north on most general purpose geographical maps. The CPU would be connected to the chipset via a fast bridge (the northbridge) located north of other system devices as drawn. The northbridge would then be connected to the rest of the chipset via a slow bridge (the southbridge) located south of other system devices as drawn.

Overclocking.

The northbridge plays an important part in how far a computer can be overclocked, as its frequency is commonly used as a baseline for the CPU to establish its own operating frequency. This chip typically gets hotter as processor speed becomes faster, requiring more cooling. There is a limit to CPU overclocking, as digital circuits are limited by physical factors such as rise, fall, delay and storage times of the transistors, current gain bandwidth product, parasitic capacitance, and propagation delay, which increases with (among other factors) operating temperature; consequently most overclocking applications have software-imposed limits on the multiplier and external clock setting. Additionally, heat is a major limiting factor, as higher voltages are needed to properly activate field effect transistors inside CPUs and this higher voltage produces larger amounts of heat, requiring greater thermal solutions on the die.

Evolution.

The overall trend in processor design has been to integrate more functions onto fewer components, which decreases overall motherboard cost and improves performance. The memory controller, which handles communication between the CPU and RAM, was moved onto the processor die by AMD beginning with their AMD64 processors and by Intel with their Nehalem processors. One of the advantages of having the memory controller integrated on the CPU die is to reduce latency from the CPU to memory.  Another example of this kind of change is Nvidia's nForce3 for AMD64 systems. It combines all of the features of a normal southbridge with an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) port and connects directly to the CPU. On nForce4 boards it was marketed as a media communications processor (MCP).  AMD Accelerated Processing Unit processors feature full integration of northbridge functions onto the CPU chip, along with processor cores, memory controller and graphics processing unit (GPU). This was an evolution of the AMD64, since the memory controller was integrated on the CPU die in the AMD64.  The northbridge was replaced by the system agent introduced by the Sandy Bridge microarchitecture in 2011, which essentially handles all previous Northbridge functions. Intel's Sandy Bridge processors feature full integration of northbridge functions onto the CPU chip, along with processor cores, memory controller and graphics processing unit (GPU). This was a further evolution of the Westmere architecture, which also featured a CPU and GPU in the same package.

A northbridge or host bridge is one of the two chips in the core logic chipset architecture on a PC motherboard, the other being the southbridge. Unlike the southbridge, northbridge is connected directly to the CPU via the front-side bus (FSB) and is thus responsible for tasks that require the highest performance. The northbridge, also known as Memory Controller Hub, is usually paired with a southbridge. In systems where they are included, these two chips manage communications between the CPU and other parts of the motherboard, and constitute the core logic chipset of the PC motherboard.


Name.

The historical name of the city is Hungarian, Ungvár. The Rusyn name Uzhhorod is a recent construct, and has been used only since the beginning of the 20th century.  The town is also known by several alternative names: ; ; ; ; ;.

Uzhhorod.

The city gets its name from the Uzh River, which divides the city into two parts (the old and new sections), while "horod" (город) is Rusyn for "city", coming from Old Slavonic "grad" (градъ).

Ungvár.

Ungvár, also spelled Ongvár, Hungvár, and Unguyvar, is derived from "Ung", the Hungarian name for the Uzh (as well as the surrounding county) and "vár", meaning "castle, fort".

History.

Early history.

Slavic beginnings.

The best known of the first city founders are early Slavs. One of their tribes – White Croats – settled the area of the modern Uzhhorod in the second half of the first millennium AD. During the 9th century a fortified castle changed into a fortified early feudal town-settlement, which became the center of a new Slavic principality, at the head of which was a mythical prince Laborec, who was vassal of Great Moravia. Great Moravia, according to historians and experts did not extend as far east as Uzhgorod, in fact, it was west of what is now the City of Bratislava, Slovakia. According to Gesta Hungarorum, the city was under the rule of Salan, the Bulgarian Prince.

Hungarian conquest (895).

In 895 AD, Magyar tribes, headed by their leader Árpád, stormed the Hungvar fortress. The forces were not equal and Laborec was defeated and beheaded on the banks of the river that still carries his name. Again, this is mythical. There was not much of a settlement when the Magyar tribes arrived, having left Kiev (then known as Kevevara) and encountering no resistance.

10th-15th centuries.

After the arrival of the Hungarians, the small town began to extend its borders. In 1241–1242 the Mongols of Batu Khan burnt the settlement. After, in 1248 the city was granted town privileges by the King Béla IV of Hungary. In the early 14th century, Uzhhorod showed strong resistance to the new Hungarian rulers of the Anjou dynasty. Although the majority of inhabitants were Hungarians, they wanted more freedom. From 1318 for 360 years, the Drugeths (Italian counts from the Kingdom of Naples) owned the town. During that period Philip Drugeth built Uzhhorod Castle. Together with the castle, the city began to grow. From 1430, Uzhhorod became a free royal town.

16th-18th centuries.

During the 16–17th centuries there were many handicraft corporations in Uzhhorod. In this period the city was engaged in the religious fight between primarily Protestant Transylvania and Catholic Austria. In 1646 the Union of Ungvár was proclaimed and the Greek-Catholic church was established in Subcarpathia, in a ceremony held in the Ungvár castle by the Vatican Aegis. In 1707 Ungvár was the residence of Ferenc II Rákóczi, leader of the national liberation war of Hungarians against Vienna. From 1175 the city became the capital of the Greek Catholic Eparchy and from 1776 the center of new created school district.

19th century.

The beginning of the 19th century was characterized by economic changes, including the first factories in the city. The greatest influence on Ungvar among the political events of the 19th century was made by the Hungarian Revolution of 1848-1849, during which the native Hungarian nobility sought both shake off the suzerainty of the Austrian Empire and to have authority over their own people. 27 March 1848 was officially celebrated in the city as the overthrow of the monarchy in Hungary. It is now celebrated in Hungary on 15 March.  In 1872 the first railway line opened, linking the city to the important railway junction of Chop, then known as Csap.

Twentieth century.

According to the 1910 census, the city had 16,919 inhabitants, of which 13,590 (80.3%) were Magyars, 1,219 (7.2%) Slovaks, 1,151 (6.8%) Germans, 641 (3.8%) Rusyns and 1.6% Czechs. Since Jews were not counted as ethnicity (as defined by language), rather only religious group, this Austrian-Hungarian census does not specifically mention the Jewish population, which was significant, and represented about 31% of the total population in 1910. In the same time, the municipal area of the city had a population composed of 10,541 (39.05%) Hungarians, 9,908 (36.71%) Slovaks, and 5,520 (20.45%) Rusyns.  The First World War slowed down the tempo of city development. On 10 September 1919, Subcarpathia was officially allocated to the Republic of Czechoslovakia. Uzhhorod became the administrative center of the territory. During these years Uzhhorod developed into an architecturally modern city. After the Treaty of Trianon 1920, Uzhhorod became part of the eastern half of the new Czecho-Slovak state.  After the First Vienna Award in 1938, Uzhhorod was given back to Hungary from which it was separated after WWI.  In 1941 the Jewish population reached 9,576. On 19 March 1944, Germans troops entered the city. They established a "Judenrat" (Jewish council) and set up two ghettos, at the Moskovitz brickyard and Gluck lumberyard. During May 1944, all Jews were deported to Auschwitz in five different transports and subsequently murdered. Only a few hundred Jews survived. On 27 October 1944, the city was captured by the troops of the 4th Ukrainian Front of the Red Army. Thousands of ethnic Hungarians were killed, expelled, or else taken to work in Soviet forced labor camps. The Hungarian majority population was decimated in order to strengthen the Soviet and Ukrainian right to the city.  This period brought significant changes. On the outskirts of Uzhhorod new enterprises were constructed and the old enterprises were renewed. On 29 June 1945, Subcarpathian Ukraine was annexed by the Soviet Union and became a westernmost part of the Ukrainian SSR. That year the Uzhhorod State University (now Uzhhorod National University) was also opened. Since January 1946 Uzhhorod was the center of newly formed Zakarpatska oblast.  Since 1991 Uzhhorod has become one of 24 regional capitals within Ukraine. Of these, Uzhhorod is the smallest and westernmost.

Twenty-first century.

In 2002, after some controversy, a bust of Tomáš Masaryk, Czechoslovakia's first president, was unveiled in a main square of the city. A similar bust was unveiled in 1928 on the 10th anniversary of Czechoslovak independence, but was removed by the Hungarians when they took over the region in 1939.

Climate.

Uzhhorod has a humid continental climate (Köppen: "Dfb") with cool to cold winters and warm summers. The coldest month is January with an average temperature of while the warmest month is July with an average temperature of. The coldest temperature ever recorded is and the warmest temperature was. Average annual precipitation is, which is evenly distributed throughout the year though the summer months have higher precipitation. On average, Uzhhorod receives 1950 hours of sunshine per year.

Demographics.

According to the Ukrainian 2001 census, the population of Uzhhorod included:

Transportation.

Uzhhorod is served by Uzhhorod railway station and has railway connection with Chop (further to Hungary and Slovakia) and Lviv (further to Kiev).  Uzhhorod is served by Uzhhorod International Airport.

Sport.

The city was home to the SC Rusj Uzhorod football club from 1925. Contemporary side FC Hoverla Uzhhorod made their debut in the Ukrainian Premier League in 2001.

International relations.

Twin towns – Sister cities.

Uzhhorod is currently twinned with:

Uzhhorod (, ;, or "Užhorod") previously and historically known as Ungvár (in Hungarian; ) is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. The city is located nearly within the same distance to the three nearest seas: the Baltic, the Adriatic and the Black Sea (650-690 km) making it the most inland city in this part of Europe. It is the administrative center of Zakarpattia Oblast (region), as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorod Raion (district) within the oblast. The city itself is also designated as city of oblast significance, a status equivalent to that of a raion, and does not belong to Uzhhorod Raion. Population:.