Louis Tullius Joachim Visconti (Rome February 11, 1791 – December 29, 1853) was an Italian-born French architect and designer.

Life

Son of the Italian archaeologist and art historian Ennio Quirino Visconti, Visconti designed many Parisian residences, public buildings and squares, including the Place Saint Sulpice and the overall design of the Fontaine Molière, and was briefly the official architect for the Louvre under Napoleon III.  He is probably most famed for designing the 1842 tomb of Napoleon at Les Invalides. His students include Joseph Poelaert, designer of the Palais de justice de Bruxelles.

Louis Visconti came from a famous family of archaeologists - his grandfather Giambattista Antonio Visconti (1722–1784) had founded the Vatican Museums and his father, Ennio Quirino Visconti (1751–1818), was a curator. Ennio and his family moved to Paris in 1798 and were naturalised as French citizens in 1799, with Ennio becoming a curator of antiquities and paintings at the Musée du Louvre.

Between 1808 and 1817 Louis studied at Paris's École des Beaux-Arts under Charles Percier. He also studied under the painter François-André Vincent. After winning second prize in the architecture section of the prix de Rome (1814) and the architecture department prize at the École des Beaux-Arts (1817), he was made architecte-voyer to the 3rd and 8th arrondissements of Paris in 1826, curator of the 8th section of public monuments in Paris (made up of the Bibliothèque royale, the monument on place des Victoires, Porte Saint-Martin, Saint-Denis and the colonne Vendôme) in 1832, divisional architect in 1848, and government architect in 1849. In the meantime, in 1840, he designed Paris's decorations for the return of Napoleon's remains and Napoleon's tomb at the Invalides.

Collaborating with Émile Trélat in the works to rebuild the Bibliothèque royale du Louvre in May 1848, he produced a first-draft design for completing the Palais du Louvre. He was made architect to the palais des Tuileries on 7 July 1852 and architect to Napoléon III on 16 February 1853, and was put in charge of connecting the Palais du Louvre and the Palais des Tuileries, a project known as Nouveau Louvre and only completed later by Hector-Martin Lefuel. He was also made president of the Société Centrale des Architectes in 1852. Visconti died of a heart attack in 1853, the year of his election to the Académie des Beaux-Arts. He is buried in Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris with a full size reclining figure of himself on the tomb.

Major works

 Hôtel de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, also known as Mle Mars, 1 rue de la Tour-des-Dames, 1821.
 Aménagements de l'hôtel de Charost, 39 rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, 1825.
 Fontaine Gaillon, place Gaillon, Paris, 1824-1828.
 Agrandissement du Palais du Luxembourg, 1834.
 Immeuble Farine, 104 rue de Richelieu, 1834.
 Château du Grand-Bury, 1834.
 Fontaine Louvois, Paris, 1835-1839.
 Hôtel de Pontalba, 41 rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, 1839.
 Hôtel Collot, 25 quai Anatole-France, Paris, 1840, neoclassical style
 Hôtel Visconti, 3 rue Fortin, 1840.
 Fontaine Molière, 37 rue de Richelieu, Paris, 1841-1843.
 Fontaine de la place Saint-Sulpice, Paris, 1842-1848.
 Hôtel de La Tour du Pin, 25 rue Barbet-de-Jouy, 1844.
 Château de Lissy, Seine-et-Marne, 1844.
 Hôtel Rigaud, 10 rue Mogador, 1845.
 Agrandissement du ministère de l'Intérieur, rue de Grenelle, with Moreau, 1846.
 Extension du ministère des Finances, 1846.
 Hôtel de La Vaupalière, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, rebuilding (undated)

Sources

 A Dictionary of Architecture and Building, Biographical, Historical, and Descriptive, Russell Sturgis editor, 1901
  Françoise Hamon and Charles MacCallum, Louis Visconti. 1791-1853, Paris, Délégation à l'Action Artistique de la Ville de Paris, 1991 – .

External links

  Page on base Structurae
  Article on Visconti on a site about rue Visconti, Paris

19th-century French architects
1791 births
1853 deaths
Architects from Rome
Italian emigrants to France
Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery
Members of the Académie des beaux-arts
Prix de Rome for architecture
Members of the Académie d'architecture
Officers of the Legion of Honour
People associated with the Louvre

Louis Visconti


The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced, and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is the second part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel tae 2005's Batman Begins.

References

2008 films
Inglis-leid films
2000s crime drama films
2000s action thriller films
2000s crime thriller films
2000s psychological drama films
2000s sequel films
2000s superhero films
American action thriller films
American crime drama films
American crime thriller films
American films
American sequel films
American superhero films
BAFTA winners (films)
Batman films
Best Film Empire Awaird winners
Breetish action thriller films
Breetish crime thriller films
Breetish films
Breetish sequel films
Crime action films
Films aboot psychopaths
Films aboot security an surveillance
Films aboot terrorism
Films directit bi Christopher Nolan
Films featurin a Best Supportin Actor Academy Awaird-winnin performance
Films featurin a Best Supportin Actor Gowden Globe winnin performance
Films produced bi Christopher Nolan
Films scored bi Hans Zimmer
Films scored bi James Newton Howard
Films set in 2006
Films set in Hong Kong
Films shot at Pinewood Studios
Films shot in Chicago
Films shot in Hong Kong
Films shot in Los Angeles
Films shot in the Unitit Kinrick
Films that wan the Best Soond Eeditin Academy Awaird
Films uisin computer-generatit eemagery
IMAX films
Legendary Pictures films
Neo-noir
Screenplays bi Christopher Nolan
Screenplays bi Jonathan Nolan
Syncopy Inc. films
2
Warner Bros. films

The Dark Knight (film)


Charles-Valentin Alkan (30 November 1813 - 29 March 1888) was a French-Jewish composer and pianist. His real name was Morhange. He was a virtuoso pianist who wrote a lot of piano music. Most of the pieces he wrote are extremely difficult to play. Franz Liszt,  Busoni and other people of his day thought he was a great composer. Despite this, most people have only discovered in recent years how good his music is. His piano music is mostly tonal, but it changes key in unusual ways. The story was told by many people that he died when a bookcase collapsed on top of him, but that story is proved not to be true.

From the 1860s to 1873 he did not show in public very much, and composed some of his works.

Alkan was a close friend of Frédéric Chopin and Franz Liszt.

Other websites

19th-century French composers
Romantic composers
French pianists
1813 births
1883 deaths
Burials at Montmartre Cemetery, Paris

Charles-Valentin Alkan


This is a list of cities, towns and villages in the ceremonial county of Suffolk, England.

A
 Acton, Akenham, Aldeburgh, Alderton, Aldham, Aldringham, Alpheton, Ampton, Ashbocking, Ashby, Ashfield, Aspall, Assington, Athelington, Audley End

B
 Babergh, Bacton, Badingham, Badley, Badwell Ash, Ballingdon, Bardwell, Barham, Barking, Barnardiston, Barnby, Barnham, Barningham, Barrow, Barsham, Barton Mills, Battisford, Bawdsey, Baylham, Beccles, Beck Row, Bedfield, Bedingfield, Belstead, Benacre, Benhall, Bentley, Beyton, Bildeston, Blaxhall, Bloodsman's Corner, Blundeston, Blyford, Blythburgh, Botesdale, Boulge, Boxford, Boxted, Boyton, Bradfield Combust, Bradfield St. Clare, Bradfield St George, Braiseworth, Bramfield, Bramford, Brampton, Brandon, Brandeston, Brantham, Bredfield, Brent Eleigh, Bressingham, Brettenham, Bridge Street, Brightwell, Brockford, Brockley, Brome, Brome Street, Bromeswell, Bruisyard, Brundish, Bucklesham, Bulcamp, Bungay, Bures St. Mary, Burgate, Burgh, Burstall, Bury St Edmunds, Butley, Buxhall

C
 Campsea Ashe, Capel St Andrew, Capel St. Mary, Carlton, Carlton Colville, Cattawade, Cavendish, Cavenham, Chantry, Charsfield, Chattisham, Chedburgh, Chediston, Chelmondiston, Chelsworth, Chevington, Chickering, Chillesford, Chilton, Clare, Claydon, Clopton, Cockfield, Coddenham, Combs, Coney Weston, Conyer's Green, Cookley, Cooks Green, Copdock, Cornard Tye, Corton, Cotton, Covehithe, Cowlinge, Crackthorn Corner,  Cransford, Cratfield, Creeting All Saints, Creeting St Mary, Creeting St Peter, Cretingham, Cross Street, Crowfield, Culford, Culpho

D
 Dagworth, Dalham, Dallinghoo, Darsham, Darmsden, Debach, Debenham, Denham, Mid Suffolk, Denham, St Edmundsbury, Dennington, Denston, Depden, Dorking Tye, Downham Highlodge, Drinkstone, Dunwich

E
 Earl Soham, Earl Stonham,  East Bergholt, Eastbridge, Easton, Easton Bavents, Edwardstone, Ellough, Elmsett, Elmswell, Elveden, Eriswell, Erwarton, Euston, Exning, Eye, Eyke

F
 Falkenham, Fakenham Magna, Farnham, Felixstowe, Felixstowe Ferry, Felsham, Finningham, Flatford, Flempton, Flixton, Lothingland, Flixton, The Saints, Flowton, Fornham All Saints, Fornham St Genevieve, Fornham St Martin, Forward Green, Foxhall, Framlingham, Framsden, Freckenham, Fressingfield, Freston, Friston, Frostenden

G
 Gazeley, Gedding, Gedgrave, Gipping, Gisleham, Gislingham, Glemsford, Gosbeck, Gosling Green, Great Ashfield Great Barton, Great Bealings, Great Blakenham, Great Bradley, Great Bricett, Great Cornard, Great Finborough, Great Glemham, Great Livermere, Great Saxham, Great Thurlow, Great Waldingfield, Great Welnetham, Great Wratting, Gromford, Groton, Grundisburgh, Gunton

H
 Hacheston, Hadleigh, Halesworth, Hardwick, Hargrave, Harkstead, Hartest, Hasketon, Haughley, Haverhill, Hawkedon, Hawstead, Hazelwood, Heckfield Green, Helmingham, Hemingstone, Hemley, Hengrave, Henham, Henley, Henstead, Hepworth, Herringfleet, Herringswell, Hessett, Heveningham, Higham, Babergh, Higham, Forest Heath, Hintlesham, Hinton, Hitcham, Hinderclay, Holbrook, Hollesley, Holton St. Mary, Holton St. Peter, Holywell Row, Homersfield, Honington, Hoo, Hopton, Horham , Horner's_Green, Horringer, Hoxne, Hundon, Hunston, Huntingfield

I
 Icklingham, Ickworth, Iken, Ilketshall St Andrew, Ilketshall St John, Ilketshall St Lawrence, Ilketshall St Margaret, Ingate Place, Ingham, Ipswich, Ixworth, Ixworth Thorpe

K
 Kedington, Kelsale, Kenton, Kentford, Kenny Hill, Kersey, Kesgrave, Kessingland, Kettlebaston, Kettleburgh, Kirkley, Kirton, Knettishall, Knodishall

L
Lackford, Lakenheath, Langham, Lavenham, Lawshall, Laxfield, Layham, Leiston, Leavenheath, Letheringham, Levington, Lidgate, Lindsey, Lindsey Tye, Linstead Magna, Linstead Parva, Little Bealings, Little Blakenham, Little Bradley, Little Bricett, Little Cornard, Little Fakenham, Little Glemham, Little Livermere, Little London, Little Saxham, Little Thurlow, Little Waldingfield, Little Wenham, Little Whelnetham, Little Wratting, Long Melford, Lound, Lowestoft

M
 Market Weston, Marlesford, Martlesham, Martlesham Heath, Melton, Mellis, Mendham, Mendlesham, Metfield, Mettingham, Mickfield, Middleton, Milden, Mildenhall, Minsmere, Monewden, Monk Soham, Monks Eleigh, Moulton, Mutford

N
 Nacton, Naughton, Nayland, Nedging, Needham Market, Nettlestead, Newbourne, Newmarket, Newton, North Cove, Norton, Nowton

O
 Oakley, Occold, Offton, Old Newton, Onehouse, Orford, Otley, Oulton, Oulton Broad, Ousden

P
 Pakefield, Pakenham, Palgrave, Parham, Parliament Heath, Peasenhall, Pettaugh, Pettistree, Pinewood, Pin Mill, Playford, Polstead, Poslingford, Preston St Mary

R
 Ramsholt, Rattlesden, Raydon, Rede, Redgrave, Redisham, Redlingfield, Red Lodge, Rendham, Rendlesham, Reydon, Rickinghall, Ringsfield, Ringshall, Risby, Rishangles, Rodbridge Corner, Rougham, Rumburgh, Round Maple, Rushbrooke, Rushmere, Rushmere St Andrew

S
 Sandcroft, Santon Downham, Sapiston, Saxmundham, Saxtead, Saxtead Green, Semer, Shadingfield, Shelland, Shelley, Shimpling, Shimpling Street, Shingle Street, Shipmeadow, Shotley, Shottisham, Sibton, Sicklesmere, Sizewell, Snape, Somerleyton, Somersham, Somerton, Sotherton, Sotterley, South Cove, South Elmham, Southolt, Southwold, Spexhall, Sproughton, Stanningfield, Stansfield, Stanstead, Stanton, Sternfield, Stoke Ash, Stoke-by-Clare, Stoke-by-Nayland, Stoke Park, Stonham Aspal, Stonham Parva, Stoven, Stowlangtoft, Stowmarket, Stowupland, Stradbroke, Stradishall, Stratford St Andrew, Stratford St Mary, Stratton Hall, Stuston, Stutton, Sudbourne, Sudbury, Sutton, Sweffling, Swilland, Syleham

T
 Tannington, Tattingstone, Theberton, Thelnetham, Thorington, Thorndon, Thornham Magna, Thornham Parva, Thorns, Thorpe Morieux, Thorpeness, Thrandeston, Thurston, Thwaite, Timworth, Tostock, Trimley St Martin, Trimley St Mary, Troston, Tuddenham, Tuddenham St Martin, Tunstall

U
 Ubbeston, Ufford, Uggeshall, Upthorpe

W
 Walberswick, Waldringfield, Waldringfield Heath, Walpole, Walsham le Willows, Walton, Wangford, Forest Heath, Wangford (near Southwold), Wantisden, Washbrook, Wattisfield, Wattisham, Wenham Magna, Wenhaston, West Row, West Stow, Westerfield, Westleton, Westhall, Westhorpe, Westley, Weston, Wetherden, Wetheringsett, Weybread, Whatfield, Whepstead, Wherstead, Whitton, Wickhambrook, Wickham Green, Wickham Market, Wickham Skeith, Wickham Street, Wilby, Willingham St Mary, Willisham, Wingfield, Winston, Wissett, Wissington, Withersdale Street, Withersfield, Witnesham, Wixoe, Woodbridge, Woolpit, Woolverstone, Worlington, Worlingham, Worlingworth, Wortham, Wrentham

Y
 Yaxley, Yoxford

Places of interest

Bridge Cottage, Flatford Mill
Bures
Clare Castle
Dedham Vale
East Anglia Transport Museum
 Easton Farm Park
Framlingham Castle
Ickworth House
Leiston Abbey
Mid-Suffolk Light Railway
Museum of East Anglian Life
Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum
Ness point located in Lowestoft, the UK's most easterly point.
Orford Ness
RSPB Minsmere
RSPB Stour Estuary
Saxtead Green Post Mill
Snape Maltings
Suffolk Coast Path
Sutton Hoo

See also
 List of civil parishes in Suffolk
 List of places of interest in Suffolk
 List of settlements in Suffolk by population
 List of places in England

Suffolk
Places

List of places in Suffolk


Huế is a city and a district in Central Vietnam. About 200,000 people live in the city of Huế. From 1802 to 1945 Huế was the capital city of Vietnam under the Nguyen Dynasty. Today people can visit the Imperial City, where the Nguyen emperors lived and ruled, and the tombs of the Nguyen emperors. Huế has an Medicinical University and is the seat of an archebishop.

The city is famous for food that is unique to the city, especially the dish Bún bò Huế.

It was also the place where the Battle of Huế was fought, which was one of the longest and deadliest battles in the Vietnam War.

Cities in Vietnam

Huế


The Annales iuvavenses or Annals of Salzburg were a series of annals written in the 9th and 10th centuries at Salzburg (the former Roman Iuvavum) in the East Frankish stem duchy of Bavaria. They are a useful source for southeastern Germany and Austria where they exist, but they only survive in fragments copied at the scriptorium of Admont Abbey in the 12th century.

According to the Annales Iuvavenses, in 920 Baiuarii sponte se reddiderunt Arnolfo duci et regnare eum fecerunt in regno Teutonicorum: "the Bavarians, with some other East Franks, elected Arnulf German king in opposition to Henry" (actually in 919). This provides some of the only evidence for the concept of a "Kingdom of Germany" before the late 11th century, but it may be a 12th-century interpolation, as most scholars perceive it to be. The Salzburg annals are also the only source for an assassination attempt on incapacitated King Carloman by the Bavarians in 878, the first medieval mention of Vienna in 881, and the location of the Battle of Pressburg (Brezalauspurc) against the Hungarians in 907.

References

10th-century history books
History books about Austria
Duchy of Bavaria
Medieval Latin historical texts
Salzburg
10th-century Latin books

Annales iuvavenses


The hypostatic model of personality is a way of viewing the many sides of a person's character. The model says that a person can behave and appear to others in many ways, depending on how that person is, but also on how someone looks at that person. It says that people are not one-sided, but are a little bit of everything. For example, today someone can be mean, and tomorrow he can be good. How someone appears also depends on things and people around him or her. For example, sometimes the most coward person may become the greatest hero, if he is called to save someone's life. All these "sides" of a person have to be known by scientists so they can change them for the better.

References

Psychology

Hypostatic model of personality


The Ligurian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea.  It is between the Italian Riviera (Liguria and Tuscany) and the island of Corsica. The sea is probably named after the ancient Ligures people.

Geography
The sea borders the countries Italy, France, and Monaco. In the east the sea borders the Tyrrhenian Sea, while in the west it borders the Mediterranean Sea proper. Genoa is the most prominent city in the area.

The Gulf of Genoa is its northernmost part. The sea receives the Arno River from the east. The ports of Genoa, La Spezia, and Livorno are on its rocky coast. It reaches a maximum depth of more than 9,300 feet (2,850 m) northwest of Corsica.

Conservation
In order to provide protection for the many cetacean (whales and dolphins; porpoises are not found in this part of the Mediterranean Sea) species in the Ligurian Sea the bordering countries made the sea a SPAMI in 1999. The International Ligurian Sea Cetacean Sanctuary now covers 84,000 km².  This covers territorial waters as well as high sea.

Other websites

Mediterranean Sea
Geography of Italy
Geography of France

Ligurian Sea


A chemical element is a substance that is made up of only one type of atom. Atoms are made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons.

The number of protons in an atom is called the atomic number. For example, all atoms with 6 protons are atoms of the chemical element carbon, and all atoms with 92 protons are atoms of the element uranium. The number of neutrons in the nucleus does not have to be the same in every atom of an element. Atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons are called isotopes. Saying that a substance "contains only one type of atom" really means that it contains only atoms that all have the same number of protons.

The number of protons in the nucleus causes its electric charge. This fixes the number of electrons in its normal (un-ionized) state. The electrons in their atomic orbitals determine the element's various chemical properties.

Elements are the basic building blocks for all types of substances. If a substance contains more than one type of atom, it is a compound or a mixture. The smallest particle of a compound is a molecule.

118 different chemical elements are known to modern chemistry. 92 of these elements can be found in nature, and the others can only be made in laboratories. The human body is made up of 26 elements. The last natural element discovered was uranium, in 1789. The first man-made element was technetium, in 1937.

Chemical elements are commonly arranged in the periodic table. Where the elements are in the table tells us about their properties relative to the other elements.

Chemical symbols
Chemical elements are given a unique chemical symbol. Chemical symbols are used all over the world. This means that, no matter which language is spoken, there is no confusion about what the symbol means. Chemical symbols of elements almost always come from their English or Latin names. For example, carbon has the chemical symbol 'C', and sodium has chemical symbol 'Na', after the Latin natrium. Tungsten is called 'W' after its German name, wolfram. 'Au' is the symbol for gold and it comes from the Latin word for gold, aurum. Another symbol which comes from Latin is 'Ag'. This is the element silver and it comes from the Latin argentum. Lead's symbol, 'Pb', comes from the Latin plumbum and the English word plumber derives from this as pipes used to be made out of lead. Some more recently discovered elements were named after famous people, like einsteinium, which was named after Albert Einstein.

Compounds
Elements can join (react) to form pure compounds (such as water, salts, oxides, and organic compounds). In many cases, these compounds have a fixed composition and their own structure and properties. The properties of the compound may be very different from the elements it is made from. Sodium is a metal that burns when put into water and chlorine is a poisonous gas. When they react together they make sodium chloride (salt) which is generally harmless in small quantities and edible.

Mixtures
Some elements mix together in any proportion to form new structures. Such new structures are not compounds. They are called mixtures or, when the elements are metals, alloys.

Isotopes
Most elements in nature consist of atoms with different numbers of neutrons. An isotope is a form of an element with a certain number of neutrons. For example, carbon has two stable, naturally occurring isotopes: carbon-12 (6 neutrons) and carbon-13 (7 neutrons). Carbon-14 (8 neutrons) is a naturally occurring radioactive isotope of carbon. At least two isotopes of each element are known (except for Oganesson, of which only a few atoms have been made).

Classification
Elements can be classified based on physical states. At room temperature and pressure, most elements are solids, only 11 are gases and 2 are liquids.

Elements can also be classified into metals and non-metals. There are many more metals than non-metals.

However, a few elements have properties in between those of metals and non-metals. These elements are called semimetals (or metalloids).

Related pages
 Periodic table

References

Nuclear physics

Chemical element


Paths to Freedom was a popular comedy on the Irish television network RTÉ Two. The shows stars two characters, Jeremy (Brendan Coyle) and Rats (Michael McElhatton), who have both recently been released from a Dublin prison. The show takes the format of a mockumentary, with a fly-on-the-wall camera crew following the two characters, who are from thoroughly different backgrounds, as they try to reintegrate back into society. There were six episodes of the show produced, the first airing on 13 November 2000, and the final episode airing one month later. The series was followed-up by a movie based on the character Rats, Spin the Bottle.

Characters

Jeremy
Dr. Jeremy Fitzgerald, played by Brendan Coyle, was a distinguished gynaecologist, living in the affluent Dublin suburb of Blackrock, before being convicted of dangerous driving causing injury. He was sentenced to a custodial sentence and sent to a Dublin prison. After his release, with his license to practice medicine lost, Jeremy pursues the release of his controversial book, 'Women inside Out'. However, he struggles to find a publisher given his recent legal troubles, and this eventually leads to a breakdown. During the series, Jeremy displays his love towards a wealthy style of life, driving a new Mercedes-Benz, playing golf at his local club 'The Fitzhatton', and repeatedly describing his admiration of Michael Flatley. This is demonstrated at one point in the series when Jeremy is questioned by the camera crew as to what affect prison has had on him, and he responds that it caused him to lose his 'no-claims bonus' and raise his golf handicap by six strokes. The legal costs of defending himself in the case brought by the Ukrainian man that he hit while drink driving are large, and this causes the Fitzgeralds to sell their home in Blackrock to raise funds. Repeatedly, Jeremy disputes the man's claim that he is paralysed, and at one point Jeremy attacks the man in attempt to prove he is lying. At this stage in the series, Jeremy is seriously mentally ill, and he soon takes up home in a tent on the 7th green at the Fitzhatton. The series ends with Jeremy, now separated from his wife Helen (Deirdre O'Kane), in full-time psychiatric care .

Rats
Raymond "Rats" Doyle, played by Michael McElhatton is a character that has been in and out of trouble throughout his life. In the series, he also has just been released from prison, having been convicted of burglary. Rats struggles to find a job, with his problems compounded by the fact that his wife Sharon, along with his two children Tarquin and Snoopies, has left him. Rats has several jobs in the course of the series including security, working in a fast-food restaurant and busking. While busking, Rats performs the poetry that he writes in his spare time, and though it is crude and childish, he sees it as a serious expression of his feelings and beliefs. The uncensored and brash nature of the poetry attracts the attention of the Garda Síochána, and lands Rats in further trouble. Throughout the series, we see Rats concentrate on trying to bring his band, 'spermdotcom', into the mainstream. The band did experience some minor success some years beforehand, reaching No. 27 in the charts in Finland. The series ends with the band continuing to struggle, having been conned out of £400 they had paid to arrange a gig, and eventually having to play this gig in a small gay bar in Dublin.

Helen Fitzgerald
Helen Fitzgerald, played by Deirdre O'Kane, is the middle class, middle-aged wife of Jeremy. Keen to maintain an aura of nonchalance, stability and normality, she repeatedly expresses her indignation at Jeremy's treatment by the justice system, and questions the validity of both the charges pressed against him and the credibility of the paralysed victim of Jeremy's hit-and-run. Helen lives a lavish lifestyle, and at various points throughout the series she is seen dining in expensive restaurants, attending theatrical productions and hosting garden parties. As the plot develops, we observe Helen's increasingly superficial nature, most particularly in relation to her husband. As Jeremy's mental well-being declines, Helen becomes increasingly frustrated with his inability to communicate coherently and his violent mood swings. Her frustration is also of a sexual nature, and in episode 6 she invites both Rats and the series' camera crew to have sex with her in her family home, with Jeremy residing in a tent in the back garden. Further instances of Helen's marital infidelity are also alluded to, and we learn that she engaged in sexual relations while on holidays with her friend Gwen in Paris, with a French man who 'rogered her senseless' on a 'crate of aubergines'. In later episodes, Helen is rarely seen without a glass of white wine in hand.

Tomo
Tomo, played by Peter McDonald, is Rat's best friend and fellow musician in the band Sperm.com, in which he plays guitar. His long black hair and style of dress identify him as a heavy metal fan; he is seen to wear t-shirts featuring the bands No Sweat and Ministry during the series. He is portrayed as being quite unintelligent  – a classic comedy buffoon – and also as being overwhelmed when it comes to contact with the opposite sex.

Barney
Played by Darragh Kelly, Barney (affectionately referred to as "Barnser") is Jeremy's closest companion and golfing partner. He is blindly supportive of Jeremy and fails to see his friend's shortcomings, appearing somewhat of a side-kick. Even as the series progresses, and he appears to grow increasingly embarrassed by Jeremy's behaviour, he never overtly speaks out against him.

External links

2000 Irish television series debuts
Irish comedy television shows
Mockumentary television series
RTÉ original programming

Paths to Freedom


In cryptography, a pre-shared key or PSK is a shared secret which was previously shared between the two parties using some secure channel before it is used. Such systems almost always use symmetric key cryptographic algorithms.

The characteristics of this secret or key are determined by the system which uses it; some system require that such keys be in a specific format. It can be a password like 'bret13i', a passphrase like 'Idaho hung gear id gene', or a hexadecimal string like '65E4 E556 8622 EEE1'. The secret is used by all systems involved in the cryptographic processes used to secure the traffic between the systems.

The term is used in Wi-Fi encryption such as WEP or WPA, where both the wireless access points (AP) and all clients share the same key.

Since one weakpoint of the crypto system is the encryption algorithm's key, the key strength is important, and since the strength of a key is in part dependent on the key length, it is important to choose a key whose length is cryptographically secure (see password strength). There are several tools available to help one choose a strong key.  The Diceware method is one example.

Cryptography

Pre-shared key


Crime in India is very common and happens in many different ways.  Along with violent crimes (like homicide, robbery, and assault), and property crimes (like burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson), there are major problems with organized crime, the illegal drug trade, arms trafficking, corruption, and many other forms of crime.  The most common types of crimes in India are listed below.

Organized crime
Organized crime is planned and done by groups of people.  Their goals are to gain power and make money in Illegal ways.  Common organized crimes in India include:
 Drug trafficking (moving and selling illegal drugs)
 Gunrunning (getting illegal guns, sneaking them into the country, and selling them)
 Money laundering
 Extortion (telling a person that he has to pay money, or something bad will happen to him, his business, or his family)
 Murder for hire (killing someone for pay)
 Fraud
 Human trafficking (tricking or kidnapping people, usually children or young women, into becoming slaves)
 Poaching (killing plants or animals that are illegal to kill, then selling them)
Many criminal organizations also commit these crimes:
 Black marketing (trading or selling things on the black market, which is illegal)
 Political violence (for example, trying to hurt or scare political candidates who they dislike)
 Religious violence (hurting or scaring other people because they are a different religion)
 Terrorism, including the 1993 Bombay bombings, 2006 Mumbai train bombings and the 2008 Mumbai attacks
 Abduction (kidnapping)

Illegal drug trade
India is located between the Golden Crescent (made of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran) and the Golden Triangle (made of Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos).  The Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle are the two biggest makers of opium in Asia.  (Opium can be smoked on its own, or it can be made into heroin.)  But their opium-making is illicit - secret and illegal.  Because of India's location, a lot of this illegal opium is trafficked (snuck illegally) through India's borders.

India is the world's largest maker of legal opium.  But its opium gets diverted (taken away by drug traffickers) to other countries where opium and heroin are illegal.

India is a common starting point for drug traffickers who take heroin on ships from Southwest Asian countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan, and from Southeast Asian countries like Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand.  The heroin is then smuggled from Pakistan and Myanmar, with some heroin also shipped through Nepal.  Most heroin shipped from India goes to Europe. There have been reports of heroin smuggled from Mumbai to Nigeria to get the drugs to more countries.

In Maharashtra, Mumbai is an important centre where people sell heroin.  The most commonly used drug in Mumbai is "Indian heroin" (called desi mal by the local population).  Both public transportation (road and rail transportation) and private transportation are used for this drug trade.

The Government of India has tried a few ways of fighting drug trafficking in the country.  India is a party to (meaning it signed onto and agreed to follow):
 The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961) (today, the word narcotic usually means "illegal drugs")
 The Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971) ("psychotropic substances" are drugs that change the way the brain works; this causes changes in how a person feels, what they think is real, and how conscious they are)
 The Protocol Amending the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1972) (a change or update to the original Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs)
 The United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (1988) (a treaty, or agreement, among most of the countries in the United Nations, and some other countries; its goal was to help enforce the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs and the Convention on Psychotropic Substances)

Arms trafficking
According to a report published together by Oxfam, Amnesty International, and the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) in 2006, there are around 40 million illegal small arms in India.  This would mean that India had over half of the small arms in the entire world (the world had 75 million, according to the report).

Most of the illegal small arms end up in the states of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh.  In India, a used AK-47 costs $3,800 on the illegal black market.  But a large amount of illegal small arms are made in illegal arms factories in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and sold on the black market for as little as $5.08.

Chinese pistols are in demand in the illegal small arms market in India because they are easy to get and cheaper. This creates a major problem for the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.  These states are affected by Naxalism.  Naxalites are groups of Communist guerrilla fighters in India.  (Guerrilla fighters are civilians who attack a regular army.)  Many Chinese pistols, AK-47s, and M-16 rifles are smuggled into India through the border between India and Nepal.  These weapons are then used by the Naxalites, who have ties to Maoists in Nepal.

Poaching and wildlife trafficking
Illegal wildlife trade in India has increased.  There are laws against killing some animals, taking rare plants, and smuggling them into other countries.  But a report published by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) in 2004 said that more traders of wildlife skins go to India than any other country.  Between 1994 and 2003, there were 784 cases where the skins of tigers, leopards, or otters have been seized (taken away from illegal traders by police).  Also between 1994 and 2003, police seized 698 otters who had been poached (illegally taken or killed).

Poaching of elephants is a big problem in Southern India and in the North-Eastern states of Nagaland and Mizoram.  Most tiger poaching happens in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Once they are poached, leopards, rhinoceros, reptiles, birds, insects, and rare species of plants are smuggled into the countries in Southeast Asia and the People's Republic of China.  Often, poachers bring illegal animal skins from India to Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, ion the way to Tibet and China.  In its report in 2004, the Environmental Investigation Agency said that there was not enough cooperation between India, Nepal, and the People's Republic of China.  Because these countries were not cooperating, they could not work together to enforce anti-poaching laws and were not interested enough in fighting wildlife crime together.

On April 1, 1973, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi launched Project Tiger, which was first started in 1972.  Project Tiger was a wildlife conservation project - a project that tried to protect wildlife from being poached.  Project Tiger created 23 tigers reserves (protected areas for tigers), said they had been successful since the number of tigers in India had increased.  But critics like conservationist Billy Arjan Singh said that tigers had only moved to India from Nepal because their habitat in Nepal had been destroyed - not because of wildlife policy in India.

Cyber crime
Cyber crime - crimes done by computer - are very, very common in India.  Examples of cyber crime include:
 Computer hacking (where a person breaks into a computer using another computer, and steals information)
 Cyber stalking (following someone all the time, using a computer, to make them feel scared)
 E-mail fraud (for example, emailing people asking to send money in scams)
 Spam (where "spammers" get email addresses for thousands of people and send them all unwanted ads)
India has tried many things to decrease cybercrime.  In May of 2000, the Parliament of India passed a law called The Information Technology Act 2000 was passed by the Parliament of India in May 2000.  Its goal was to decrease cyber crimes and start setting up laws to allow e-commerce (where many)ey could be exchanged electronically. However, Pavan Duggan, a lawyer with the Supreme Court of India and cyber law expert, complained that the IT act focused too much on promoting e-commerce and not enough on dealing with cybercrimes.  Cybercrime cells have been set up in major cities.  But Duggal said the problem is that most cases are never reported because people do not know their rights under Indian law.

In 2001, India and United States joined together in an Indian-US cyber security forum as part of a counter-terrorism dialogue. In 2006, India and the US agreed to have their law enforcement agencies work together more in fighting cybercrimes.  They saw this as an important part of counter-terrorism efforts.

In 2006, U.S. President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met to discuss cyber security.  Afterward, they held a press conference together.  They said that because cyber security and cyber forensic research (like finding evidence in computers) are so important, India and the United States were also talking about a draft protocol on cyber security.

Corruption and police misconduct
Corruption is very common in India. It is common in every section and every level of Indian society. Corruption has also become a big part of Indian politics. In India, corruption takes many forms, including:
Bribes (for example, giving money to a government worker to get them to do something illegal)
 Tax evasion (not paying taxes)
 Not obeying exchange controls (rules made by the government about whether people can buy or sell currencies (money) from other countries)
 embezzlement (stealing or misusing money that belongs to a company or government)
India has state laws that make it illegal for police to torture people.  But these laws are not often obeyed.  Torture is often used when people are arrested or jailed by the police.  This torture is a major cause of deaths in police custody.  The police often torture innocent people until they 'confess' (they say they did the crime).  This false confession is then used to save important, rich people who have actually committed crimes.  One major problem that keeps police violence possible is a lack of accountability (meaning no one gets in trouble if they torture a person), according to G.P. Joshi.  Joshi runs the Indian branch of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative in New Delhi.

In 2006, the Supreme Court of India decided a case called Prakash Singh vs. Union of India.  In its decision, the Court ordered central and state governments to begin police reform. The Court had two goals with its decision.  The first was to give tenure to police officers, and to make it simpler for police officers to get hired or transfer to a different area.  The second was to increase police accountability.

In 2006, seven policemen were charge-sheeted (officially accused of having done a crime) for police misconduct, and eleven were convicted.

Criminals visit markets and other places that are popular with tourists, with the goal of committing crimes against foreigners (people from other countries). Westerners have become victims of robbery, rape, and other violent attacks.

Because foreigners often have more money than most people in India, they are often criminals'  favorite target for robbery and other serious crimes.

In April 1999, a group of Indians made friends with Swaraj Damree, a tourist from Mauritius.  The group later kidnapped Damree and held him captive for 25 days. They robbed him of cash worth $1,500 in U.S. dollars, and stole his traveller's cheques, wrist watch, gold chain, bracelet, two bags and suitcase.  In 2000, two German tourists were shot in Himachal Pradesh.  A few weeks later, two Spanish tourists were killed by robbers in the same state.

Many foreign tourists are victims of violent crime in Kolkata.  In September 2006, criminals robbed the wallet of a British woman in Kolkata.  The same month, a Japanese tourist was robbed on his way to Sudder Street.  In October 2006, a foreigner was robbed during the day on Park Street.

Petty crime
Petty crime, like stealing people's wallets and bags, is common in India.  Stealing valuable things from foreigners' luggage on trains and buses is also common.  People traveling alone are especially likely to have their things stolen by pickpockets and purse snatchers, who usually work in crowded areas.

Passport theft
In India, stealing tourists' passports from their luggage on trains and buses is very common. Theft of U.S. passports happens often, especially in major tourist areas.

Scams
Criminals run many scams against tourists, especially in Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan.  The criminals usually pick younger tourists to try to scam.  They tell the tourists that they can make a lot of money if they move gems or gold, or if they take expensive carpets back home in their luggage to avoid customs duties.

If a tourist agrees, the scam continues for a few days.  Then a new scam artist offers to show the tourist interesting places in the area.  The scammers also offer cheap places to stay and meals to the tourist.  They do this so that the tourist ends up being with the scam artist all the time.  The scam artist is then threatened and maybe hurt, until he gives up his passport to the scammers.

In 2006, an American became a victim of a scam at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai.  She lost $77 U.S. dollars.

Taxi scam
Taxi drivers also run scams in India.  These scams are run on tourists who do not know their way around India or Indian airports.  Some taxi drivers will drive tourists around the whole airport, so they can charge a lot of money for the ride when the part of the airport that the tourist wants to go to was actually very close by.  In a report, the Overseas Security Advisory Council talked about taxi scams and how to avoid them.

Rape of foreigners
There have been more and more rapes of tourists at popular tourist spots.  In March 2006, Biti Mohanty, the son of a senior police official in Orissa, raped a German tourist in Alwar, Rajasthan.  The next month, a Japanese woman was raped in Pushkar, Rajasthan.  In June 2007, a South Korean tourist was raped near Manali. In September 2007, two Japanese women were gang-raped in Agra, a popular tourist spot in India where the Taj Mahal is located.

The Indian state of Rajasthan is a popular place among foreign tourists.  One out of every three tourists that go to India visit this state.  Rajasthan has been rattled by rape cases of foreign tourists. The Indian Bureau of Consular Affairs has warned women from the United States not to travel alone in India.

Crime over time
A report published by the National Crime Records Bureau compared crime rates from 1953 to 2006. The report found that:
 Burglary was less common in 2006 than in 1953.  It was 38% less common in 2006 (having dropped from 1,47,379 known cases of burglary in 1953 to 91,666 in 2006).
 Robbery had increased by 120% (from 8,407 in 1953 to 18,456 in 2006).
 Riots had increased by 176% (from 20,529 in 1953 to 56,641 in 2006).
 Murder had seriously increased, by 231% (from 9,803 in 1953 to 32,481 in 2006).
 Kidnapping had increased the most, by 356% (from 5,261 to 23,991)

In 2006, 51,02,460 cognizable crimes were committed.  In India, cognizable crimes are serious crimes, where a police officer could make an arrest without needing a warrant first.  Examples of cognizable crimes include rape, murder, and theft.

Among the cognizable crimes committed in 2006, there were 18,78,293 Indian Penal Code (IPC) crimes and 32,24,167 Special & Local Laws (SLL) crimes.  The IPC crime rate in 2006 was 167.7 compared to 165.3 in 2005, showing an increase of 1.5% in 2006 over 2005.  SLL crime rate in 2006 was 287.9 compared to 290.5 in 2005, showing a decrease of 0.9% in 2006 over 2005.

SOURCE: National Crime Records Bureau

Crime by area
Different places in India have different amounts and types of crime.  For example:

 In 2006, the highest crime rate was reported in the city of Pondicherry (447.7%) for crimes under Indian Penal Code. This is 2.7 times the national crime rate of 167.7%. Among states in India, Kerala reported the highest crime rate at 312.5%.
 About 34% (one out of three) IPC crimes in India's very large cities happened in only three of those cities: Delhi (16.2%), Mumbai (9.5%), and Bangalore (8.1%).
 Of the 35 very large cities in India, Indore reported the highest overall crime rate (769.1%).  The second- and third-highest crime rates were from Bhopal (719.5%) and Jaipur (597.1%).
 Some cities had higher rates of violent crime than the whole country of India.  India's national violent crime rate was 18.4%.  Jammu and Kashmir's violent crime rate was 33.7%; Manipur's was 33.0%; Assam's was 30.4%; and both Daman and Diu's and Pondicherry's were 29.4%
 Uttar Pradesh reported the highest rate of violent crimes.  Violent crimes in Uttar Pradesh made up 12.1% of the total violent crimes in all of India (24,851 out of 2,05,656).  Violent crimes in Bihar made up 11.8% of violent crimes in India. (24,271 out of 2,05,6556).
 Among India's 35 very big cities, rapes in Delhi made up 31.2% of total rape cases in the 35 cities (533 out of 1,706).  Madhya Pradesh has reported the highest number of rape cases (2,900), making up 15.0% of the rape cases reported in all of India.
 Uttar Pradesh reported 16.9% (5,480 out of 32,481) of India's murder cases, and 18.4% (4,997 out of 27,230) of the country's attempted murder cases.

Notes

Crime in India

Crime in India


Overstock.com, Inc., soon to be Beyond, Inc., and doing business as Bed Bath & Beyond, is an American internet retailer headquartered in Midvale, Utah. The company sells home decor, furniture, bedding, and many other goods that are closeout merchandise.

In 2023, the company acquired the name and trademarks of bankrupt big-box retailer Bed Bath & Beyond, rebranding itself under that name in August 2023.

Business model and management
Part of Overstock.com's merchandise is purchased by or manufactured specifically for the company. Among their products are handmade goods produced for Overstock by workers in developing nations. The company also manages the inventory supply for other retailers.

History
The Company was founded as D2:Discounts Direct in May 5, 1997 by Robert Brazell. The company went bankrupt in 1999. Patrick M. Byrne and Jason Lindsey acquired the company and renamed it as Overstock.com. The company initially sold exclusively surplus and returned merchandise on an online e-commerce marketplace, liquidating the inventories of at least 18 failed dot-com companies at below-wholesale prices.

In May 2002, Overstock held an IPO at a per-share price of $13. Amazon was one of the investors in Overstock.com that exited at the time of IPO.

In addition to its direct retail sales, Overstock.com began offering online auctions on its website in 2004, known as Overstock.com Marketplace and later O.co Marketplace. This service was retired in July 2011.

After initially relying solely on word-of-mouth marketing from customers, the company turned to distinctive television advertisements starring German actress Sabine Ehrenfeld. Later, they would employ other advertising spokespersons.

In July 2006, John J. Byrne, the father of Overstock's chief executive, resigned from the board of directors after a public airing of the elder Byrne's unhappiness with his son's actions against naked short-selling. In August 2008, Jack Byrne said that after "much initial skepticism" he believed his son was "right all along" about the battle and lawsuits with short-sellers and analysts. In 2010 the elder Byrne returned to the Overstock.com board of directors.

In early 2007, John A. Fisher and Ray Groves resigned from the Overstock board of directors over disagreement with the company's prime broker suit.

On January 2, 2008, Overstock announced that cofounder Jason Lindsey had resigned as president, COO, and as a director of Overstock effective from December 31, 2007. Byrne said Lindsey had "played a decisive role getting [Overstock] back on track" after "I screwed it up a couple years ago". Overstock stock dropped to a four-year low following the announcement, which an analyst for investment bank Broadpoint Capital described as a "key loss".

After achieving significant growth and profits in some early quarters, the company achieved a profit of $7.7 million in 2009 and reported its first billion-dollar year in 2010.

In 2011, revenues dropped 5 percent over a two-month penalty period imposed by Google. According to the Associated Press, Overstock set up fake websites linking back to its own site. Overstock said it was penalized in part for a practice of encouraging college and university websites to post links to Overstock pages so that students and faculty could receive discounts. As a result of the Google penalty, search results for certain products dropped in Google rankings.

The business started rebranding in early 2011, as "O.co", to simplify and unify its international operations but interrupted this effort a few months later, citing consumer confusion over the new name, which utilized a Colombian country domain.

During the same year, Overstock.com acquired naming rights to the former Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, renaming it Overstock.com Coliseum. The Coliseum was later rebranded O.co Coliseum, in keeping with Overstock's then-rebranding as O.co (in April 2016, the name O.co Coliseum was dropped in favor of Oakland-Alameda Coliseum).

In 2013, Overstock began promoting increased immigration. Overstock president Jonathan Johnson told the Los Angeles Times that his firm had struggled to hire enough computer programmers and software developers to expand the business. "We pay more, and they are still hard to fill", he said. "We need to be more free in letting people in. That helps us solve our border problem. No one goes through the window of a house if they can ring the doorbell and come in the front door."

In 2014, Overstock began developing software that would allow it to distribute corporate stock online instead of using traditional methods like the New York Stock Exchange or NASDAQ.

Byrne took an indefinite leave of absence in April 2016, because of hepatitis C complications. The general counsel, Mitch Edwards, was named acting CEO. In July 2016, Byrne returned as CEO.

On August 22, 2019, CEO Patrick Byrne resigned his CEO and board seat at Overstock via a 1,600 word email. In the email he admitted to a romantic affair with Maria Butina, an unregistered foreign agent of Russia, but Byrne did not provide additional information on how this prompted his resignation. Shortly thereafter, Jonathan E. Johnson became CEO.

The company announced a digital dividend with a record date of September 23, 2019. For each 10 shares of traditional stock held, and investor will be entitled to 1 share of Digital Voting Series A-1 Preferred Stock. Initially the digital shares will only be tradable on the PRO Securities alternative trading system, which licenses its technology from tZero, an overstock subsidiary focused on blockchain technology.

Worldstock
In 2001 Overstock set up the Worldstock division, to showcase the work of artisans from around the world. By 2006 there were approximately 6,000 producers contributing.

Bitcoin
On January 9, 2014, Overstock.com became the first major retailer to start accepting bitcoin as payments for its goods. In the first 22 hours, they received over 800 orders worth US$126,000 in bitcoin. This represents a 4.33% increase in sales from their normal income of $3 million per day.

As of March 13, 2014, Overstock bitcoin income had shrunk to under 1% of their normal daily cash intake.

In a community interview with social media site Reddit on May 3, 2014, in response to a question to the Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne about the percentage of revenue and transactions paid for in bitcoin, Byrne responded that the percentage was "Tiny.  <.1%". In mid-2014 Overstock.com announced that bitcoin sales were averaging $300,000 per month and that the company expected bitcoin sales to add 4 cents to the company's 2014 earnings per share.

Despite at least $175 million in bitcoin or other blockchain investments, the firm never recorded any profits from those investments.

Bed Bath & Beyond
In June 2023, the company won a $21.5 million bid for Bed Bath & Beyond's intellectual property assets. On June 29, 2023, it was announced that Overstock.com would be rebranding as Bed Bath & Beyond. On October 24, 2023, it was announced that Overstock's corporate name, Overstock.com, Inc., would been rebranding as Beyond, Inc. effective November 6, 2023. Its stock listing will also be changed and renamed.

Naked short selling controversy

The company has received attention stemming from CEO Patrick Byrne's battle against alleged naked short selling of his company's shares. Beginning in 2005, Byrne has contended that a number of companies, including Overstock.com, have been the targets of this practice, which involves selling a stock short but without the usual step of initially borrowing or locating the shares. Byrne alleges that the practice circumvents safeguards of conventional shorting, and has been used in large schemes devised to profit from driving down the prices of companies' shares, in many cases leading to these companies' failure. With Overstock, Byrne contends that the company's longstanding appearance on the Regulation SHO Threshold Security list, an SEC-mandated list showing companies with a high number of "fails to deliver", along with high trading volumes that sometimes surpass total quantity of the company's stock, establish that it has been targeted by this practice. Byrne's campaign has been controversial, including criticism in the financial press that Byrne is seeking to divert attention from Overstock's share price declines and failure to turn a profit. New York Times columnist Joseph Nocera has said in 2006 that, "Except for a few fellow-traveling Web sites, where Mr. Byrne is viewed as a heroic figure, most people who understand the issue or have looked into it think it's pretty bogus." Others have suggested that the problem is real, but that the SEC acts to prevent it and that it does not happen on any scale such as Byrne suggests. SEC Chairman Christopher Cox called abusive naked short selling "a fraud that the commission is bound to prevent and to punish."

Overstock filed a lawsuit against the hedge fund Rocker Partners in 2005 for libel, unfair business practices and tortious interference, saying it colluded with a research firm, Gradient Analytics, in short-selling the company while paying Gradient Analytics to publish negative reports about Overstock.com and supplying pre-publication copies to Rocker. Naked short-selling was not alleged in that suit. In a conference call with analysts in August 2005, a day after the suit was filed, Byrne said that "there's been a plan since we were in our teens to destroy our stock, drive it down to $6–10 ... and even a plan for how the company would then get whacked up." He said that the conspirators were part of a "Miscreants Ball", headed by a "Sith Lord", who he refused to identify but said "he's one of the master criminals from the 1980s." Byrne said the conspiracy included hedge funds, journalists, investigators, trial lawyers, the SEC, and Eliot Spitzer." Gradient Analytics countersued, alleging Byrne waged a smear campaign.

Rocker Partners, renamed Copper River Management, filed a counterclaim against Overstock in November 2007, alleging overstatement of profits, false projections, and misrepresentations about the company's ventures. Copper River also alleges that Byrne tried to silence critics by suing them. A portion of this suit was settled out of court on October 13, 2008 when Overstock.com and Gradient dropped the claims against each other after Gradient retracted allegations that Overstock's reporting methods did not comply with rules established by the FASB, stated they believed Overstock.com complied with GAAP standards, and that three directors were independent according to NASD standards, and apologized. Byrne has said the apology and settlement "represents a great step forward in our case", while Copper River's attorney stated that "If somehow this improved Overstock's case, then Gradient would admit to doing something wrong and they haven't", and that he expected the settlement to help Copper River's case.

On December 8, 2009, it was announced that Copper River had reached an out of court settlement with Overstock. As part of the agreement, Copper River, which closed in December 2008, agreed to pay Overstock $5 million. In a letter to his shareholders, Patrick Byrne said, "The good guys won". Copper River said in a statement that it continued to deny Overstock's allegations. Copper River managing general partner Marc Cohodes said "Although settlement deprives us of the ability to disprove Overstock's case and prosecute our counterclaims, we decided that the litigation costs did not justify passing up a practical way to end four-and-half years of meritless litigation by Overstock."

In February 2007, Overstock.com launched a $3.5 billion lawsuit against Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and other large Wall Street firms, alleging a "massive illegal stock market manipulation scheme" involving naked short selling. Among its allegations, Overstock stated that since at least January 2005, naked short selling has accounted for large portions of Overstock stock, in some cases exceeding the 23.4 million total shares outstanding. The lawsuit alleged that this had created "immense downward pressure" on share prices over time. Kerry Fields, associate professor of law and business ethics at the University of Southern California, said, "Byrne may be able to help set new law if he handles this right." Fields said, Byrne's "best approach now is probably to persuade the SEC, which continues to wander around the issue, or the government to serve subpoenas and let them decide whether or not his company was wronged." John Coffee, director of the Center on Corporate Governance at Columbia University Law School, described it as overly ambitious and "extremely unpromising." Two members of the Overstock.com board of directors, John Fisher and Ray Groves, resigned in disagreement over the lawsuit.

In December 2010, all but two of the prime broker defendants settled out of court with Overstock for $4.4 million. That same month, the company filed a motion seeking to amend its lawsuit against the remaining defendants—Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch—to include claims of RICO violations. The enhanced claims were based on evidence gained through discovery in the case.

The RICO claim was dismissed at trial, and this was affirmed on appeal. The claim against Goldman was dismissed but Goldman subsequently settled a refiled suit. Merrill finally settled for $20 million in 2016.

See also

 E-commerce
 Online auction

References

External links
 Overstock.com
 "Overstock.com Rezzes Into Second Life", CNN ireport.com, 2008-05-02. Retrieved on 2008-05-02.

Companies based in Salt Lake County, Utah
Midvale, Utah
Retail companies established in 1997
American companies established in 1997
Internet properties established in 1997
Online retailers of the United States
1997 establishments in Utah
Companies listed on the Nasdaq
2002 initial public offerings

Bed Bath & Beyond (online retailer)


Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam (born 18 July 1975 in Hounslow, London) is an artist, movie graduate and musician. She is the daughter of a Tamil revolutionary. She is best known by her stage name M.I.A. Her music style contains elements of grime, alternative, hip-hop, dance, and electronic music.

M.I.A. graduated from Central St. Martin's College of Art and Design with a degree in fine art, film and video. She has been noted for her idiosyncratic style in her music, her sense of fashion, and other artistic output.

In 2000, she did the cover artwork for the album The Menace, by Elastica and directed the music video for their single "Mad Dog God Dam." She filmed a North American tour of the band. In 2002, she published a book of art inspired by the Tamil rebellion and her childhood in Sri Lanka. She met the musician Peaches who introduced M.I.A. to the Roland MC 505. M.I.A. wrote and recorded several songs on a demo using a 505, including the song "Galang."

"Galang" was initially released in 2003 on the white-label Showbiz Recordings. It became popular with DJs and garnered acclaim.

M.I.A. signed to XL Recordings in 2004. The song "Sunshowers" and "Galang" were re-released. Through 2004, file-sharing of the two singles and leaked promos of Arular on the internet increased anticipation for her debut album Arular.

One of the first artists to break on the internet, M.I.A. ended 2004 making Piracy Funds Terrorism, a mash-up mixtape of Arular tracks produced by herself and DJ Diplo.

Arular
in 2005, M.I.A. released her debut album, Arular, which is named for her father. It sold over 100,000 copies. The most popular song off the album was "Galang" which appeared in a Honda advertisement. On the album, there is a hidden track called "M.I.A.". The listener hears nothing for a minute or two, then a new track starts playing.

Kala
Kala is M.I.A.'s second album. Track listing as follows:
 Bamboo Banga
 Bird Flu
 Boyz
 Jimmy
 $20
 Mango Pickle Down River
 World Town
 Paper Planes
 Come Around

1977 births
Living people
Musicians from London
Artists from London
Rappers
People with dyslexia

M.I.A.


DJMax Technika (Korean: 디제이맥스 테크니카; abbr.: DMT) is an arcade music game published and developed by Pentavision in South Korea. This was the first game announced as part of the DJMax METRO PROJECT. An international version of the game was released in North America by PM Studios. A sequel to the game, DJMax Technika 2, was announced on March 4, 2010. DJMax Technika Tune is an adaptation of the game for the PlayStation Vita. DJMax Technika Q for the iOS and Android platforms was announced in September 2013, and the global version was released on March 25, 2014. On December 9, 2013, it was announced that the online service for DJMax Technika 2 and DJMax Technika 3 would be closed on December 31, 2013.

Cabinet

The arcade cabinet consists of two screens, a bottom 22-inch touch screen where the game is played, and an upper 32-inch screen for spectators to view, both in Hi-Definition. There is a vibrating stage and game-based lights and speakers. There is an ID-Card Reader for people who have a Platinum Crew ID Card.

The system is powered by Intel Celeron E1400, 2GB of RAM, Biostar P31 mainboard, 160GB Western Digital hard drive, Creative Audigy Sound card and ATI Radeon graphics, with Windows XP Embedded as the core operating system. The touch screen is infrared which allows multiple simultaneous input during gameplay.

Gameplay

The game offers four gameplay types:

 Lite Mixing - A tutorial and three songs can be played. The difficulty of songs is easier than latter modes, and unlike Popular Mixing mode, the result is not recorded on Platinum Crew. This mode only contains a song pattern called Lite Pattern, and not all songs are playable in this mode.
 Popular Mixing - Normal gameplay mode where three songs can be played. Most of the songs that appear have the Popular Pattern note chart.
 Technical Mixing - four songs can be played. The player can select three songs from a disk set. The last song to be played is determined by the play result of previous three stages. Some of the songs on Technical Mixing mode may not be available in Popular Mixing mode. This mode contains a note chart called Technical Pattern, where songs have faster scroll speeds or different, harder notes in comparison to their Popular Pattern counterparts.
 Platinum Mixing - Only available to people who have a Platinum Crew ID Card, and the machine they're playing on has to be connected to the internet (something common in Korean arcades, but less than often seen in America, where arcades have lost popularity). This mode features a series of missions. Player may be rewarded by Max points and items. Some of the hidden songs, hidden patterns, and Technical Mixing Discs Sets can be unlocked only through missions (although, players only get to use them a certain number of times and after that, they have to complete the mission again to get more uses, and uses can be stockpiled onto each other).  Events and online tournaments are also held in this mode.  This mode contains a note chart exclusive to it called Special Pattern, though only a handful of songs have it.  The Special Pattern is arranged in sets of 3 and every month, a new set of three songs get special patterns (e.g. February 2009 Special Patterns is Flea, Supersonic, then Oblivion) and completing them gets rewards.

The player has 60 seconds to pick a song. If the timer hits zero, the song currently highlighted will be chosen.

The player must touch the notes as the time line crosses them. If they fail to touch them after the time line passes them, it counts as a break, which means the combo is reset to zero and the player loses HP, which is also recovered when notes are hit. When the player's HP decreases to zero, the game ends.

The game has 4 types of note charts:

 Lite Pattern - Only used in Lite Mixing, easiest note chart in the game.
 Popular Pattern - Used in Popular Mixing. Some popular patterns also used in Technical Mixing. (ex: Dear my lady, Creator, BlythE, Sweet shining shooting star)
 Technical Pattern - Used in Technical Mixing, but the Technical Patterns can be unlocked to use in Popular Mixing through completing missions in Platinum Mixing.
 Special Pattern - Appears in Platinum Mixing only. Only a handful of songs have this pattern. Every month a set of three songs with this pattern appears.

When compared to the charts of the PSP DJMax games, Popular, Technical, and Special Patterns are the Technika equivalent of Normal Style, Hard Style, and MX Style note charts respectively, and Lite pattern is the Technika equivalent of Easy Style in the early DJMax Online game.

Note Types:

 Note - Simply touch the note once, when the time line matches the center of the note.
 Dragging Long Note - Drag the circular note along the path while keeping it on the time line.
 Repeat Note - Keep pressing the circular note each time the time line is on a little purple line that is part of this note.
 Holding Long Note - Hold finger on the circular note until the time line passes the blue line at the end of the note.
 Chain Note - Hit all notes in the path when time line passes over them.

Platinum Crew

Pentavision released ID Cards in different packages that grant access to the Platinum Mixing mode. Players will be able to access personal information management, online regional rankings, buy items for their accounts, and play against other DJMax players. There will also be events for Platinum Crew members. The cost of Platinum Crew is free to players who own the cards, the payment is for the establishments that have the arcade game and want to turn on the Platinum Crew feature.

The Exclusive Collection contains:

 The DJMax Technika Original Soundtrack (2 CDs, the TECHNIKA and PLATINUM MIXING CDs)
 1 of 5 different DJMax Technika ID Cards
 LCD cleaning cloth
 DJMax Technika Stickers
 Gift certificate worth 5000 won (≒ $4, only usable on Bugz, a Korean online music store)
 DJMax Technika Posters

The Card Collection: Technika package contains:

 DJMax Technika Original Soundtrack (TECHNIKA MIXING CD Only)
 1 type of ID card
 LCD cleaning cloth

The Card Collection: Platinum Package contains:

 DJMax Technika Original Soundtrack (PLATINUM MIXING CD Only)
 1 type of ID card
 LCD cleaning cloth

See also
DJMax
DJMax Technika 3
DJMax Technika Tune

References

External links
 DJMAX Platinum Crew Service - The official DJMAX Online Ranking Service
 The Snareblog Guide to DJMax Technika - Provides up-to-date information about mechanics and current features of the US release for first-time players.

2008 video games
Technika
Video games developed in South Korea
Arcade video games
Arcade-only video games
Music video games
PM Studios games
Multiplayer and single-player video games

DJMax Technika


The quinarius  (plural: quinarii) was a small silver Roman coin valued at half a denarius.

The quinarius was struck for a few years, along with the silver sestertius, following the introduction of the denarius in 211 BC. At this time the quinarius was valued at 5 asses. The coin was reintroduced in 101 BC as a replacement for the victoriatus, this time valued at 8 asses due to retariffing of the denarius to 16 asses in 118 BC. For a few years following its reintroduction, large quantities of quinarii were produced, mostly for circulation in Gaul. The coin was produced sporadically until the 3rd century. Its symbol is 𐆗.

The term gold quinarius or quinarius aureus is used to describe the half-aureus, which is valued at 12.5 denarii. This term has no ancient authority.

References

External links
 More Information

Coins of ancient Rome
Numismatics

Quinarius


ગંગટોક ભારત દેશના ઉત્તરપૂર્વ ભાગમાં આવેલા  સિક્કિમ રાજ્યમાં આવેલું મહત્વનું નગર છે. ગંગટોક  સિક્કિમ રાજ્યની રાજધાને અને સૌથી મોટું શહેર છે.

ગંગટોક્લ હિમાપય પર્વતની શિવાલિક પર્વતમાળામાં સમુદ્ર સપાટી થી  ૧૪૩૭મી કે ૪૭૦૦ફૂટ  જેટલી ઊંચાઇ પર વસેલું છે. તેની આસપાસ ચારે ય બાજુ પર્વતમાળાઓ આવેલી છે, જેનાં શિખરો મોટેભાગે બરફથી છવાયેલ તેમ જ વાદળોથી આચ્છાદિત હોય છે. અહીં બરફવર્ષા પણ થાય છે. અહિયાં ફરવાની બહુ મઝા આવે છે. આ કારણે અહીં પ્રવાસીઓની અવરજવર મોટા પાયે થતી હોય છે. અહીં ચારે બાજુ લિલોતરી છવાયેલી છે. અહીં તિબેટીયન સંસ્કૃતિના અભ્યાસ માટેની સંસ્થા કાર્યરત છે. આ ઉપરાંત અહીં બૌદ્ધ ધર્મના અનેક મઠો જોવા મળે છે.

આ શહેરની વસતિ ૩૦,૦૦૦ની છે  અહીં ઘણી નેપાળી જનજાતિ, લેપ્ચા, ભુટિયા આદિ જાતિ ના લોકો રહે છે અને અહીંનો કારભાર સિક્કિમ સરકારના વિવિધ વિભાગો દ્વારા ચલાવવમાં આવે છે.

The town, with a population of thirty thousand belonging to different ethnicities such as Nepalis, Lepchas and Bhutia, is administered by various departments of the Government of Sikkim. Nestled within higher peaks of the Himalaya and enjoying a year-round mild temperate climate, Gangtok is at the centre of Sikkim's tourism industry.

Gangtok rose to prominence as a popular Buddhist pilgrimage site after the construction of the Enchey Monastery in 1840. In 1894, the ruling Sikkimese Chogyal, Thutob Namgyal, transferred the capital to Gangtok. In the early 20th century, Gangtok became a major stopover on the trade route between Lhasa in Tibet and cities such as Kolkata (then Calcutta) in British India. After India won its independence from Britain in 1947, Sikkim chose to remain an independent monarchy, with Gangtok as its capital. In 1975, after the integration with the union of India, Gangtok was made India's twenty-second state capital.

The precise meaning of the name Gangtok is unclear, though the most popular meaning is "hill top". Today, Gangtok is a centre of Tibetan Buddhist culture and learning, with the presence of several monasteries, religious educational institutions, and centres for Tibetology.

History

સીક્કીમ ની જેમ ગંગટોક નો પ્રાચીન ઇતિહાસ પણ અજ્ઞાત છે. આનો સૌથી પ્રાચીન ઉલ્લેખ ૧૭૧૬માં મળે છે જેમાં એવું જણાય છે કે અહીં ગ્રામ્ય સ્તરીય ગંગટોક મઠ બંધાવાયો હતો.. ૧૮૪૦માં એંચી મઠના બ^ધકામ પહેલાં ગંગટોક એક ગામડું જ રહ્યું. આ મઠના બનતા તે એક તીર્થ ધામમાં રૂપાંતરણ પામ્યું.  ૧૯મી સદીના અરાજકતાને પરિણામે અંગ્રેજો દ્વારા તાબે અક્રાયેલ ક્ષેત્ર બાદ કરતાં બછેલ ક્ષેત્રની ગંગટોક રાજધાની બની. ૧૯મી સદીના અંતમાં બ્રિટિશરો દ્વારા તિબેટિયનોનો પરાજય થતાં ગંગટોક તે સમયના બ્રિટિશ ઈંડિયા અને ચીન વચ્ચેના વેપારનું મુખ્ય મધ્યવર્તી કેંદ્ર બન્યું.  . આ ક્ષેત્રના મોટા ભાગના રસ્તાઓ અને ટેલિગ્રાફ આ સમય દરમ્યાન બંધાવાયા.

In 1894, Thutob Namgyal, the Sikkimese monarch under British rule, shifted the capital from Tumlong to Gangtok, increasing the city's importance. A new grand palace along with other state buildings was built in the new capital. Following India's independence in 1947, Sikkim became a nation-state with Gangtok as its capital. Sikkim became a suzerain of India, with the condition that it would retain its independence, by the treaty signed between the Chogyal and the then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. This pact gave the Indians control of external affairs on behalf of Sikkimese. Trade between India and Tibet continued to flourish through the Nathula and Jelepla passes, offshoots of the ancient Silk Road near Gangtok. These border passes were sealed after the Sino-Indian War in 1962, which deprived Gangtok of its trading business.  The Nathula pass was finally opened for limited trade in 2006, fuelling hopes of economic boom.

In 1975, after years of political uncertainty and struggle, including riots, the monarchy was abrogated and Sikkim became India's twenty-second state, with Gangtok as its capital after a referendum. Gangtok has witnessed annual landslides, resulting in loss of life and damage to property. The largest disaster occurred in June 1997, when 38 were killed and hundreds of buildings were destroyed.

Geography

Gangtok is located at . It is situated in the lower Himalayas at an altitude of . In addition to being the state capital, it is the headquarters of the East Sikkim district. The town lies on one side of a hill, with "The Ridge", a promenade housing the governor's residence, at one end and the palace, situated at an altitude of about , at the other. The city is flanked on east and west by two streams, namely Roro Chu and Ranikhola, respectively. These two rivers divide the natural drainage into two parts, the eastern and western parts. Both the streams meet the Ranipul and flow south as the main Ranikhola before it joins the Teesta at Singtam. Most of the roads are steep, with the buildings built on compacted ground alongside them.

Most of Sikkim, including Gangtok, is underlain by Precambrian rock which contains foliated phyllites and schists; slopes are therefore prone to frequent landslides. Surface runoff of water by natural streams (jhora) and man-made drains has contributed to the risk of landslides.  According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, the town falls under seismic zone-IV (on a scale of I to V, in order of increasing seismic activity), near the convergent boundary of the Indian and the Eurasian tectonic plates and is subject to frequent earthquakes. The hills are nestled within higher peaks and the snow-clad Himalayan ranges tower over the town from the distance. Mount Kanchenjunga (8,598 m or 28,208 ft)—the world's third-highest peak—is visible to the west of the city. The existence of steep slopes, vulnerability to landslides, large forest cover and inadequate access to most areas has been a major impediment to the natural and balanced growth of the city.

There are densely forested regions around Gangtok, consisting of temperate, deciduous forests of poplar, birch, oak, and elm, as well as evergreen, coniferous trees of the wet alpine zone. Orchids are common, and rare varieties of orchids are featured in flower shows in the city. Bamboos are also abundant. In the lower reaches of the town, the vegetation gradually changes from alpine to temperate deciduous and subtropical. Flowers such as sunflower, marigold, poinsettia, and others bloom, especially in November and December.

Climate

Gangtok features a monsoon-influenced subtropical highland climate. Because of its elevation and sheltered environment, Gangtok enjoys a mild, temperate climate all year round. Like most Himalayan towns, Gangtok has five seasons: summer, monsoons, autumn, winter and spring. Temperatures range from an average maximum of  in summer to an average minimum of  in winter. Summers (lasting from late April to June) are mild, with maximum temperatures rarely crossing . The monsoon season from June to September is characterised by intense torrential rains often causing landslides that block Gangtok's land access to the rest of the country. Rainfall starts to rise from pre-monsoon in May, and peaks during the monsoon, with July recording the highest monthly average of . In winter temperature averages between  and . Snowfall is rare, and in recent times Gangtok has received snow only in 1990, 2004, 2005 and January 2011. Temperatures below freezing are also rare.  During this season the weather can be unstable, and change abruptly from bright sunshine and clear skies to heavy rain within a couple of hours. During spring and autumn the weather is generally sunny and mild.  Owing to its elevation, Gangtok is often enveloped in fog during the monsoon and winter months.

Economy

The hospitality industry is the largest industry in Gangtok as the city is the main base for Sikkim tourism. Summer and spring seasons are the most popular tourist seasons. Many of Gangtok's residents are employed directly and indirectly in the tourism industry, with many residents owning and working in hotels and restaurants.

 Ecotourism has emerged as an important economic activity in the region which includes trekking, mountaineering, river rafting and other nature oriented activities. An estimated 351,000 tourists visited Sikkim in 2007, generating revenue of about Rs 50 crores (Rs 500 millions).

The Nathula Pass, located about  from Gangtok, used to be the primary route of the wool, fur and spice trade with Tibet and spurred economic growth for Gangtok till the mid-20th century. In 1962, after the border was closed during the Sino-Indian War, Gangtok fell into recession. The pass was reopened in 2006 and trade through the pass is expected to boost the economy of Gangtok. The Sikkim government is keen to open a Lhasa–Gangtok bus service via Nathula pass. Sikkim's mountainous terrain results in the lack of train or air links, limiting the area's potential for rapid industrial development. The government is the largest employer in the city, both directly and as contractors.

Gangtok's economy does not have a large manufacturing base, but has a thriving Cottage industry in watch-making, country-made alcohol and handicrafts. Among the handicrafts are the handmade paper industry  made from various vegetable fibres or cotton rags. The main market in Gangtok provides many of the state's rural residents a place to offer their produce during the harvest seasons. The majority of the private business community is made up of Marwaris and Biharis. As part of Sikkim, Gangtok enjoys the status of being an income-tax free region as per the state's 1948 Income tax law. As Sikkim is a frontier state, the Indian army maintains a large presence in the vicinity of Gangtok. This leads to a population of semi-permanent residents who bring money into the local economy.  The Sikkim government started India's first online lottery Playwin to boost government income, but this was later closed by a ruling from the Sikkim High Court.
Ram Chandra Pradeep Kumar Jewellers located on Lall Market Road is a well renowned jewelery shop and by far the leading dealer of gold jewelery all over in Gangtok, including parts of South Sikkim. The firm was set up in the year 1962 and has been faring excellently in the jewelry industry in Gangtok.

Civic administration

Gangtok is not administered by a municipality but directly by the various departments of Government of Sikkim, particularly the Urban Development and Housing Department (UDHD) and Public Health Engineering Department (PHED). These departments look after the civic functions such as garbage disposal, water supply, tax collection, license allotments, and civic infrastructure. An administrator appointed by the state government heads the UDHD. The Sikkim Municipal Act, 2007 has approved the formation of Gangtok Municipal Corporation to be made up of 12 wards and which shall take over the administration from the UDHD.

As the headquarters of East Sikkim district, Gangtok houses the offices of the district collector, an administrator appointed by the Union Government of India. Gangtok is also the seat of the Sikkim High Court, which is India's smallest High Court in terms of area and population of jurisdiction. Gangtok does not have its own police commissionerate like other major cities in India. Instead, it comes under the jurisdiction of the state police, which is headed by a Director General of Police, although an Inspector General of Police oversees the town. Rongyek jail in Gangtok is Sikkim's only central jail.

Gangtok is within the Sikkim Lok Sabha constituency that elects a member to the Lok Sabha (Lower House) of the Indian Parliament. The city elects one member in the Sikkim state legislative assembly, the Vidhan Sabha. The Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) won both the parliamentary election in 2004  and the state assembly seat in the 2004 state assembly polls.

Utility services

Electricity is supplied by the power department of the Government of Sikkim. Gangtok has a nearly uninterrupted electricity supply due to Sikkim's numerous hydroelectric power stations. The rural roads around Gangtok are maintained by the Border Roads Organisation, a division of the Indian army. Several roads in Gangtok are reported to be in a poor condition, whereas building construction activities continue almost unrestrained in this city lacking proper land infrastructure. Most households are supplied by the central water system maintained and operated by the PHED. The main source of PHED water supply is the Rateychu River, located about  from the city, at an altitude of . Its water treatment plant is located at Selep. The river Rateychu is snow-fed and has perennial streams. Since there is no habitation in the catchment area except for a small army settlement, there is little environmental degradation and the water is of very good quality. 40 seasonal local springs are used by the Rural Management and Development Department of Sikkim Government to supply water to outlying rural areas.

Around 40% of the population has access to sewers. However, only the toilet waste is connected to the sewer while sullage is discharged into the drains. Without a proper sanitation system, the practice of disposing sewage through septic tanks and directly discharging into Jhoras and open drains is prevalent. The entire city drains into the two rivers, Ranikhola and Roro Chu, through numerous small streams and Jhoras. Ranikhola and Roro Chu rivers confluence with River Teesta, the major source of drinking water to the population downstream. The densely populated urban area of Gangtok does not have a combined drainage system to drain out the storm water and waste water from the buildings. The estimated solid waste generated in Gangtok city is approximately 45 tonnes. Only around 40% of this is collected by UDHD, while the remainder is indiscriminately thrown into Jhora, streets and valleys. The collected waste is disposed in a dump located about  from the city. There is no waste collection from inaccessible areas where vehicles cannot reach, nor does any system of collection of waste exist in the adjoining rural areas. The city is under a statewide ban on the use of polythene bags.

Transport

Taxis are the most widely available public transport within Gangtok.  Most of the residents stay within a few kilometres of the town centre and many have their own vehicles such as  two-wheelers and cars. The share of personal vehicles and taxis combined is 98% of Gangtok's total vehicles, a high percentage when compared to other Indian cities. City buses comprise less than one percent of vehicles. Those travelling longer distances generally make use of share-jeeps, a kind of public taxis. Four wheel drives are used to easily navigate the steep slopes of the roads. The  long cable car with three stops connects lower Gangtok suburbs with Sikkim Legislative assembly in central Gangtok and the upper suburbs.

Gangtok is connected to the rest of India by an all-weather metalled highway, National Highway 31A, which links Gangtok to Siliguri, located  away in the neighbouring state of West Bengal. The highway also provides a link to the neighbouring hill station towns of Darjeeling and Kalimpong, which are the nearest urban areas. Regular jeep, van, and bus services link these towns to Gangtok. Gangtok is a linear city that has developed along the arterial roads, especially National Highway 31A. Most of the road length in Gangtok, is of two lane undivided carriageway with footpath on one side of the road and drain on the other. The steep gradient of the different road stretches coupled with a spiral road configuration constrain the smooth flow of vehicular as well as pedestrian traffic. The nearest railhead connected to the rest of India is the station of New Jalpaiguri, a suburb of Siliguri, situated  away from Gangtok. The closest airport is Bagdogra Airport,  from Siliguri. Although Gangtok does not have an airport, it is linked to Bagdogra airport via a daily helicopter service.

Demographics

According to the 2001 census of India, the population of Gangtok "Notified Town Area" (a census unit) was 29,354. Males constituted 54% of the population and females 46%. The Gangtok subdivision of the East Sikkim district had a population of 179,376, of which 43,711 reside in urban areas of Gangtok and Tadong. Gangtok has an average literacy rate of 69.7%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 77.9%, and female literacy is 61.5%. In Gangtok, about 8% of the population is under 6 years of age. About 8% of Gangtok's population live in the nine notified slums and squatter settlements, all on Government land. More people live in areas that depict slum-like characteristics but have not been notified as slums yet because they have developed on private land. Of the total urban population of Sikkim, Gangtok Notified Town Area has a share of 55.5%. Including Gangtok, East District has a share of 88% of the total urban population. The quality of life, the pace of development and availability of basic infrastructure and employment prospects has been the major cause for rapid migration to the city. With this migration, the urban services are under pressure, intensified by the lack of availability of suitable land for infrastructure development.

Ethnic Nepalis, who settled in the region during British rule, comprise the majority of Gangtok's residents. Lepchas, native to the land, and Bhutias also constitute a sizeable portion of the populace. Additionally, a large number of Tibetans have immigrated to the town. Immigrant resident communities not native to the region include the Marwaris, who own most of the shops;  the Biharis, who are employed in mostly blue collar jobs and the Bengalis.

Hinduism and Buddhism are the most popular religions in Gangtok. Gangtok also has a sizeable Christian population and a small Muslim minority. The North East Presbyterian Church, Roman Catholic Church and Anjuman Mosque in Gangtok are places of worship for the religious minorities. The town has remained secular, having never witnessed any sort of inter-religious strife in its history. Nepali is the most widely spoken language in Sikkim as well as Gangtok. English and Hindi being the official language of Sikkim and India respectively, are also widely spoken and understood in most of Sikkim, particularly in Gangtok. Other languages spoken in Gangtok include Bhutia (Sikkimese), Tibetan and Lepcha.

Culture

Apart from the major religious festivals of Diwali, Christmas, Dussera, Holi etc., the diverse ethnic populace of the town celebrates several local festivals. The Lepchas and Bhutias celebrate new year in January, while Tibetans celebrate the new year (Losar) with "Devil Dance" in January–February. The Maghe sankranti, Ram Navami, Chotrul Duchen, Buddha Jayanti, the birthday of the Dalai Lama, Loosong, Bhumchu, Saga Dawa, Lhabab Duechen and Drupka Teshi are some other festivals, some distinct to local culture and others shared with the rest of India, Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet.

A popular food in Gangtok is the momo, a steamed dumpling containing pork, beef and vegetables cooked in a doughy wrapping and served with watery soup. Wai-Wai is a packaged snack consisting of noodles which are eaten either dry or in soup form. A form of noodle called thukpa, served in soup form is also popular in Gangtok. Other  noodle-based foods such as the chowmein, thanthuk, fakthu, gyathuk and wonton are available. Other traditional Sikkimese cuisine include  shah-phaley (Sikkimese patties with spiced minced meat in a crisp samosa-like case) and Gack-ko soup. Restaurants offer a wide variety of traditional Indian, continental and Chinese cuisines to cater to the tourists.  Churpee, a kind of hard cheese made from cow's or yak's milk is sometimes chewed.  Chhang is a local frothy millet beer traditionally served in bamboo tankards and drunk through bamboo or cane straws. Alcohol is cheap due to low excise duty in Sikkim. Beer, whiskey, rum and brandy are frequently consumed by both locals and non-locals.

Residents of Sikkim are music lovers and it is common to hear Western rock music being played in homes and restaurants. Hindi pop songs are also common. Indigenous Nepali rock, music suffused with a western rock beat and Nepali lyrics, is particularly popular. Football (soccer), cricket and archery are the most popular sports in Gangtok. The Paljor Stadium, which hosts football matches, is the sole sporting ground in the city. Thangka—a notable handicraft—is an elaborately hand painted religious scroll in brilliant colours drawn on fabric hung in a monastery or a family altar and occasionally carried by monks in ceremonial processions. Chhaams are vividly costumed monastic dances performed on ceremonial and festive occasions, especially in the monasteries during the Tibetan new year.

City institutions

A centre of Buddhist learning and culture, Gangtok's most notable Buddhist institutions are the Enchey monastery, the Do-drul Chorten stupa complex and the Rumtek Monastery. The Enchey monastery is the city's oldest monastery and is the seat of the Nyingma order. The two-hundred year old baroque monastery houses images of gods, goddesses, and other religious artifacts. In the month of January, the Chaam, or masked dance, is performed with great fanfare. The Dro-dul Chorten is a stupa which was constructed in 1945 by Trulshi Rimpoché, head of the Nyingma order of Tibetan Buddhism. Inside this stupa are complete set of relics, holy books, and mantras. Surrounding the edifice are 108 Mani Lhakor, or prayer wheels. The complex also houses a religious school.

The Rumtek Monastery on the outskirts of the town is one of Buddhism's most sacred monasteries. The monastery is the seat of the Kagyu order, one of the major Tibetan sects, and houses some of the world's most sacred and rare Tibetan Buddhist scriptures and religious objects in its reliquary. Constructed in the 1960s, the building is modeled after a similar monastery in Lhasa, Tibet. Rumtek was the focus of international media attention in 2000 after the seventeenth Karmapa, one of the four holiest lamas, fled Lhasa and sought refuge in the monastery.

The Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, better known as the Tibetology Museum, houses a huge collection of masks, Buddhist scriptures, statues, and tapestries. It has over two hundred Buddhist icons, and is a centre of study of Buddhist philosophy. The Ganesh Tok and the Hanuman Tok, dedicated to the Hindu gods Ganpati and Hanuman and housing important Hindu temples, are located in the upper reaches of the town.

The Himalayan Zoological Park exhibits the fauna of the Himalayas in their natural habitats. The zoo features the Himalayan Black Bear, the barking deer, the snow leopard, the leopard cat, Tibetan wolf, Masked Palm Civet, red pandas and the spotted deer amongst the others. Jawaharlal Nehru Botanical Gardens, near Rumtek, houses many species of orchid and as many as fifty different species of tree, including many oaks.

Education
Gangtok's schools are either run by the state government or by private and religious organizations. Schools mainly use English and Nepali as their medium of instruction. The schools are either affiliated with the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education, Central Board of Secondary Education or the National Institute of Open Schooling. Notable schools include the Tashi Namgyal Academy, Paljor Namgyal Girls School and Kendriya Vidyalaya. Colleges conferring graduate degrees include Sikkim Government College, Sikkim Government Law College and Damber Singh College. Gangtok does not have a university within the city limits. However,  from here is the headquarters of the Sikkim Manipal University, which houses Sikkim Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences and Manipal Institute of Technology. There are other institutions offering diplomas in Buddhist literature, catering and other non-mainstream fields. District Institute of Education and Training and State Institute of Education conduct teacher training programs. Students usually go to large cities in the vicinity such as Siliguri or Kolkata in pursuit of higher education.

Media
More than 50 newspapers are published in Sikkim, most of them in Gangtok. Multiple local Nepali and English newspapers are published, whereas regional and national Hindi and English newspapers, printed elsewhere in India, are also circulated.  The English newspapers include The Statesman and The Telegraph, which are printed in Siliguri; The Hindu and The Times of India, which are printed in Kolkata. Sikkim Herald, the newsweekly of the Government of Sikkim is published in thirteen languages of the state.

Gangtok has two cinema halls featuring Nepali, Hindi and English language films. The town also has a public library. There are Internet cafés in and around the city, but broadband connectivity is limited. Satellite dishes exist in most homes in the region and the channels available throughout India are also available here, along with a few Nepali language channels. The main service providers are Sikkim Cable, Nayuma, Dish TV and  Doordarshan. The national All India Radio along with two fm stations Nine fm and Radio Misty are the three radio stations in the city. BSNL, Reliance and Airtel have the three largest cellular networks in the town. There is a Doordarshan TV tower in Gangtok.

References

External links

સિક્કિમ

ગંગટોક


Hanuman is one of the most popular gods of Hindus. He is also known by other names like Hanumata. His mother's name was Anjana. Based on her mother's name, Hanuman is sometimes called Anjaneya, that is, one born of Anjana. His father's name was Kesari.
He is blessed by Vayu as the god of winds. Hanuman's image shows him as a strong man with the face of a monkey. He also has a tail it represents the morality, higher pride of being self.
Hanuman was awarded boon of Immortality by Mother Sita ( Wife of Lord Rama) and is still alive

Hanuman is a very powerful and strong god. He finds an important place in the Ramayana. He was a devotee of Rama, a form (avatar) of Lord Vishnu, a god of Hindus. Hanuman is a figure of strength, perseverance and devotion. When he was young he thought the sun a mango. One of his most famous stories was when he helped Rama rescue Sita from Ravana which is the famous story of Diwali.

Other websites

Hindu mythology
Hindu gods and goddesses

Hanuman


The Vienna Declaration was a statement to reinforce the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Charter. This led to the starting of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. It was adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights on 25 June 1993.

The main principle is that "all human rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated." (Part I para 5) This means that the international community must treat all matters about human rights both economic, social and cultural rights and civil rights equallly and with the same importance without exceptions. This phase is cited also by Declaration of Montreal, Yogyakarta Principles and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

This Declaration aims at full realization of all human rights and freedoms without any discrimination such as racism, xenophobia, being in immigration, migrant workers, indigenous, ethnic or minority group, with tolerance and also affirm the human rights of women, child against all child abuse; child labour, child soldier, child prostitution, child pornography and any form of human trafficking, unfree prostitution, sexual slavery and against inhuman use of any weapons of war, especially the landmine, and  also arrims the human rights of persons with disabilities.

To realize all human rights, this Declaration demands all countries to ratify fully all treaties on human rights as much as possible and to make effective legal system to give remedy for human rights violations are indispensable to democracy and sustainable development not only the fair and full realization of human rights.

This Declaration also affirm the universal worth of human rights, freedom and democracy and blame any terrorism, unlawful drug trade and also kidnapping as their destructions and insists international cooperation to combat against them. And this Declaration insists the international solidity and in the sprit of burden-sharing to ensure the right to political asylum according to the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees including for Palestinian people and also insists the importance of education about international human rights law, humanitarian aid, peace, tolerance, rule of law, democracy and social justice for all at any level of educations against illiteracy.

This Declaration also affirm the right to develop for developing countries, especially for the poorest countries in Africa, and to promote the democracy in Africa for development but that lacking of development may not justify the violation of full human rights. And appeals to the States which do not recognize formally the Geneva Conventions, to take necessary action to realize all human rights.

References

Human rights
United Nations

Vienna Declaration