A random wire antenna is a radio antenna consisting of a long wire suspended above the ground, whose length does not bear a particular relation to the wavelength of the radio waves used, but is typically chosen more for convenient fit between the available supports, or the length of wire at hand, rather than selecting length to be resonant on any particular frequency. The wire may be straight or it may be strung back and forth between trees or walls just to get enough wire into the air. Due to the great variability of the (unplanned) antenna structure, effectiveness can vary widely from one installation to another.  Random wire antennas are typically fed at one end against a suitable counterpoise (such as earth ground).

They are widely used as receiving antennas on the long wave, medium wave, and short wave bands, as well as transmitting antennas on these bands for small outdoor, temporary or emergency transmitting stations, as well as in situations where more permanent antennas cannot be installed.

Random wire and long wire
Often random wire antennas are also (inaccurately) referred to as long-wire antenna. Actual long-wire antennas require a length greater than a quarter-wavelength () or half () of the radio waves (most consider a "true" long wire to be least one wavelength), whereas random wire antennas have no such constraint.

When the length of the wire is near an even multiple of quarter-wavelengths, its feedpoint impedance may take on extreme values (thousands of ohms) due to resonance, which can cause low efficiency with popular impedance matching schemes. The radiation efficiency of the wire is not affected; if the antenna is worked against a resistive counterpoise (such as a poor ground) and a suitable matching scheme is used, the efficiency of the antenna system may actually increase significantly. For the amateur radio HF bands, operator W0IPL developed a table of usable odd multiple lengths, and then down-selected these to pick an ideal work-any-band length of .

Radiation pattern
The radiation pattern of a thin wire antenna is easily predictable using antenna modeling. For a straight wire, the radiation pattern can be described by axially symmetric multipole moments with no component along the wire direction; as the length of the wire is increased, higher multipole contributions become more prominent and multiple lobes (maxima) at angles to the antenna axis develop.
Under about  0.6   a wire antenna will have a single lobe with a maximum at right angles to the axis. Above this the lobe will split into two conical lobes with their maximum directed at equal angles to the wire, and a null between them. This results in four azimuth angles at which the gain is maximum. As the length of wire in wavelengths increases, the number of lobes increases and the maxima become increasingly sharp.

Any unpredictability of the radiation pattern is caused by uncontrolled interaction with nearby matter (such as soil or structures). For example, a long wire antenna close to the ground will form a leaky two-conductor transmission line and therefore also act somewhat as a traveling wave antenna, with reception off the end of the wire (the system is no longer axially symmetric). A folded or zig-zag antenna may exhibit a more complex pattern as there are even fewer symmetry constraints on the dipole moments that may contribute.

Long wire antennas are reported to be more effective for reception than multi-element antennas such as Yagi or quad antennas with the same length of wire.

Construction

A random wire antenna usually consists of a long (at least one quarter wavelength) wire with one end connected to the radio and the other in free space, arranged in any way most convenient for the space available. Ideally, it is a straight wire strung as high as possible between trees or buildings, the ends insulated from supports with strain insulators. Ideally, it is made from AWG 12 or 14 { diameter  } copper-clad steel wire. Folding the wire into a zigzag pattern to fit in a limited space such as an apartment or attic will reduce effectiveness and make theoretical analysis extremely difficult, however, the added length typically helps more than the folding hurts.

If used for transmitting, a random wire antenna usually will also require an antenna tuner, as it has an unpredictable impedance that varies with frequency.
One side of the output of the tuner is connected directly to the antenna, without a transmission line, the other to a good earth ground. A wire near an odd number of a quarter-waves in length works best; in contrast, a wire near an even number of quarter-wavelengths long, although fine for receiving, on transmit will exceed the matching ability of most small tuners, unless first fed through an unun with a large transform ratio.
Even without a good earth, the antenna will still radiate, although poorly; it will do so by capacitively coupling to any nearby conducting material; this is not recommended.

The ground for a random wire antenna may be chosen by experimentation. The antenna tuner ground could be connected to a nearby cold water pipe (if the pipe used reaches the soil via an all-steel or all-copper segment) or one or several wires laid on the floor or ground, one of which is approximately one-quarter wavelength long, or the ground can be connected to one or several randomly laid-out counterpoise wires under the antenna, at least one of which is a quarter-wavelength.

See also
 Antenna types

References

Radio frequency antenna types

Random wire antenna


Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys is a 1939 children's short story written and illustrated by German-American author H. A. Rey. It is the first story to feature Rey's now-famous character, Curious George. When it was first published in France, Cecily's original name was Rafi; Raffy when it was first published in the United Kingdom, but when it appeared in the United States, the character was renamed Cecily.

Synopsis
The story follows the exploits of Cecily Giraffe, or simply "Cecily G." for short. She is saddened by the loss of her fellow jungle animals and family, all of whom had been captured and placed in a zoo.

In another section of the jungle lived a female monkey named Mother Pamplemoose. She and her eight offspring were left homeless by the loss of all the trees in their forest due to woodcutters. It is here the character of Curious George is introduced, who declares that it is time for the family to pack their belongings and move on.

Eventually, the monkeys can go no further due to a deep ravine. It is baby Jinny, the youngest monkey, who notices the dejected Cecily G. on the other side of the ravine. Cecily G. notices the monkeys as well, immediately stops crying and asks the monkeys if they would like to cross. To assist them in crossing, Cecily G. leaps forward across the divide, bridging it with her body.

Curious George is the first monkey to cross and introduces the family to their rescuer. When each learns of the other's plight, Cecily invites the monkeys to stay and live with her.

The climax occurs when a fire breaks out in the upper floors of Cecily's tall, giraffe-shaped house. The monkeys work as a team with Cecily; two of the strongest monkeys work an emergency water pump while the remaining six guide the hose to the top of Cecily's neck, using her height to reach the fire.

That incident cements the bond of friendship, so much so that James, one of the young monkeys, composes a song in Cecily's honor. The final page of the book features the lyrics and musical notation of the song with the monkeys serving as notes and Cecily as the treble clef.

Publishing history
The first edition was published by Gallimard in Paris in 1939. Three years later, an English version was published by Chatto & Windus in London.

The story's most recent English printing was in 2007 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

References

1939 short stories
French children's books
Curious George
Children's books about giraffes
Éditions Gallimard books
1939 children's books
Children's books about monkeys

Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys


William O'Brien (6 March 1918 – 5 November 1994) was a Fine Gael politician from County Limerick, Ireland. He was a Senator from 1969 to 1977, and then a Teachta Dála (TD) for Limerick West from 1977 to 1987.

Before entering politics, O'Brien was an employee of CIÉ, the state-run Irish transport company.

He stood unsuccessfully as a Fine Gael candidate for Dáil Éireann in the Limerick West constituency at the 1969 and 1973 general elections before winning the seat at the 1977 general election. After his 1969 defeat, he was elected to the 12th Seanad Éireann on the Labour Panel, which returned him in 1973 to the 13th Seanad.

Once in the Dáil, O'Brien was re-elected at the 1981 general election and at both the February 1982 and November 1982 general elections. He did not contest the 1987 general election, and retired from politics.

References

1918 births
1994 deaths
Fine Gael TDs
Members of the 12th Seanad
Members of the 13th Seanad
Members of the 21st Dáil
Members of the 22nd Dáil
Members of the 23rd Dáil
Members of the 24th Dáil
Politicians from County Limerick
Local councillors in County Limerick
Fine Gael senators
Labour Panel senators

William O'Brien (Fine Gael politician)


Max Velthuijs (22 May 1923 – 25 January 2005) was a Dutch painter, illustrator and writer, one of the most famous children's illustrators in the Netherlands. In 2004 he received the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for his  "lasting contribution to children's literature".

Biography
Velthuijs was born in The Hague on 22 May 1923. During World War II, he sometimes assisted Jan Gregoor in forging stamps for the Dutch resistance in identity papers of people in hiding.

A productive commercial artist, his first children's book commission as an illustrator was relatively late in his career, in 1962 for the 10th edition of Versjes die wij nooit vergeten [Rhymes we will never forget]. This was a famous book of rhymes for young children with several previous illustrators. It was followed two years later by A is een aapje [A is for Monkey], whose success established his name as a children's book illustrator internationally. A German-language edition was published by NordSüd Verlag of Zürich (NorthSouth Books) and thereafter many of his books were co-published by NordSüd.

Velthuijs is known best for the Frog picture books (Dutch Wikipedia lists 21 titles). The first was Frog in Love, published by Andersen Press in 1989, which gained global recognition. According to an appreciation of Velthuijs and Frog, by Joanna Carey for The Guardian a month before his death, Velthuijs "is in the unique position of living and working in The Hague but having all his books published first in England by Klaus Flugge at Andersen Press". NordSüd had rejected the Frog in Love in 1988, but Flugge picked it up at a book fair, considered it extraordinary, and took it on. In 2003, it was adapted as a children's play by David Farmer (Frog in Love), performed by the Tiebreak Theatre Company at Norwich Playhouse. Frog is a Hero was included in the British National Curriculum.

Velthuijs died in The Hague, his native city, on 25 January 2005.

The biennial Hans Christian Andersen Award conferred by the International Board on Books for Young People is the highest recognition available to a writer or illustrator of children's books. Velthuijs received the writing award in 2004.

In his acceptance speech Velthuijs observed (translated from Dutch): "Drawing a Frog is not so difficult. But how do you draw a Frog in love? Or a frightened frog? ... And when I hear from parents and children how much they love Frog and his friends, I am overcome with joy and a feeling of accomplishment. And when you ask me how I did it, I have to answer that question with a simple 'I do not know'."

Jury president Jeffrey Garrett credited him with fables of human nobility, rather than Aesop's "foolishness, vanity, and meanness". "The stories of Kikker, or Frog, and his diverse group of friends are miniature morality plays for our age, demonstrating in framed vignettes—as if on a stage—that life can be hard but is in the end good, that there will be comfort: do not give up, do not lose faith, for you are stronger than you think, and you are not alone."

See also

 Frog and the Birdsong

References

1923 births
2005 deaths
Artists from The Hague
Dutch children's book illustrators
Dutch children's writers
Dutch illustrators
Dutch resistance members
Gouden Griffel winners
Gouden Penseel winners
Hans Christian Andersen Award for Illustration winners

Max Velthuijs


Jacob Mark "Jake" Pitts (born August 21, 1985) is an American musician and record producer best known as the lead guitarist of rock band Black Veil Brides.

Musical career
Pitts received his first guitar when he was 10 years old, but he put it away and did not play it again until he was 13. He began listening to Metallica around this time, because he wanted to recreate their sound. Jake only received lessons for about four months. After this time, he decide to learn on his own. From his Mother, Carolyn, he learned music and harmony theory, who was a classical pianist and composer. Pitts is also influenced musically by rock and heavy metal artists such as Van Halen, Scorpions, Paul Gilbert, Buckethead, Randy Rhoads, Pantera, Black Sabbath, Armored Saint, Dio, Manowar, Iced Earth, Darkthrone, Cannibal Corpse, Slayer, Avenged Sevenfold, Mötley Crüe, and Metallica.

Before joining Black Veil Brides, Pitts played lead guitar in the bands the Perfect Victim and 80 Proof Riot.
He is a certified recording engineer and went to Los Angeles Recording School in 2006.
He co-produced the fourth Black Veil Brides record with John Feldmann, along with their fifth record Vale.

He is working on a new band with his spouse Cory

, called Aelonia. He is also producing for other bands such as New Years Day.

Personal life
The song "Carolyn" was written by Pitts about his mother when she was going through a period of illness. On January 18, 2014, his mother, Carolyn, died. He later said that her death scared him and made him start thinking about his health which is why he started working out and eating healthier. Pitts also opened a fitness company called Get Mean Fitness with his friend Matt Yani.

Pitts married Cory Logvin, on February 3, 2017.

Awards

Kerrang! Awards 2011 – Best International Newcomer
Kerrang! Awards 2012 – Best Single "Rebel Love Song"
Kerrang! Awards 2013 – Best Live Band – Black Veil Brides
Kerrang! Awards 2015 – Best Live Band – Black Veil Brides
Revolver Golden Gods 2011 – Best New Band
Revolver Golden Gods 2012 – Best Guitarist "Jake Pitts"
Revolver Golden Gods 2013 – Song of the Year "In the End"
AP Magazine Guitarists of the Year 2013

Pitts and fellow Black Veil Brides guitarist Jinxx won Revolver Magazine's Golden Gods Award for "Best Guitarists 2012".

Production

 2010 – Black Veil Brides (We Stitch These Wounds) – Songwriter
 2011 – Black Veil Brides (Set the World on Fire) – Songwriter
 2013 – Black Veil Brides (Wretched & Divine) – Songwriter / Engineered guitars
 2014 – Black Veil Brides (Black Veil Brides) – Songwriter / Engineer
 2016 - Thrown Into Exile (Safe Inside) – Producer / Writer / Engineer / Mixing / Mastering
 2017 - AELONIA ("The End" single) – Producer / Writer / Engineer / Mixing / Mastering
 2018 - Black Veil Brides (VALE) – Co-producer / Writer / Engineer
 2019 - Aelonia (We Are One) - Producer, Writer, Mixing / Mastering
 2020 - Black Veil Brides (Re-Stitch These Wounds) – Producer / Songwriter /  Engineer / Mixing / Mastering
 2020 - Black Veil Brides ("Scarlet Cross" Single) - Producer, Writer, Engineer
 2021 - Black Veil Brides (The Phantom Tomorrow) - Producer, Writer, Engineer

References

External links

Black Veil Brides members
1985 births
Living people
American heavy metal guitarists
American male guitarists

Jake Pitts


Gender bias is a set of words used in social science that causes a bias, or slant, in scientific studies towards one gender. Studies with gender bias do not represent the true gender balance.

Gender bias has many causes:

 Using gender stereotypes, rather than checking the true role: Tools that are used by doctors to identify some mental illnesses (such as clinical depression or ADHD) often use stereotyped gender roles. For example, in girls, being hyperactive is often seen as good thing. Many people think that girls are supposed to talk and smile often. In boys, being hyperactive is seen as a weakness. Another example is that in many societies in which men are in charge, men are often seen as normal, and no one questions or thinks much about that. An androcentric view happens, which is biased towards men.
 Failure to take gender-specific factors into account. For example, when scientists study clinical depression again, they sometimes think that clinical depression is naturally much more common in women than in men. However, women tend to ask for professional help with depression earlier than men, who are more likely to hide their problems since they are taught not to ask for help. Depression might therefore not be more much common in women, despite what it seems. There may be a similar gender bias with ADHD. Men and women are fundamentally different, which is not taken into account. In the case of ADHD, doctors therfore see men as having a problem sooner than for women. That also affects the gender pay gap of women being paid less than men.
 Gender-specific language: Many languages use the male form for both sexes. Raders sometimes think the writer is talking about everyone when the writer really is talking about only men and boys. However, saying that someone "has a full-time job" may introduce a bias. In most cultures in the world, there are "traditional role models," and women rarely have full-time jobs, especially when they also look after their children.
 Overgeneralizations: Generalizion may occur from one gender to all. Many drugs are tested only on men, not women, when they are approved for use in patients. Such drugs may not work the same way on women. For example, some drugs may be dangerous for women and they they need to be tested on women as well.

References

Gender
Discrimination

Gender bias in science


Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), better known by the stage name Queen Latifah, is an American actress, rapper and singer. She has received various accolades, including a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two NAACP Image Awards, in addition to a nomination for an Academy Award. In 2006, she became the first hip hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

At age 19, Latifah released her debut album All Hail the Queen (1989), featuring the hit single "Ladies First". Her second album Nature of a Sista' (1991), was produced by Tommy Boy Records. Her third album, Black Reign (1993), became the first album by a solo female rapper to receive a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and spawned the single "U.N.I.T.Y.", which was influential in raising awareness of violence against women and the objectification of Black female sexuality. The track reached the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, and won a Grammy Award. Her fourth album Order in the Court (1998), was released with Motown Records. She has since released the albums The Dana Owens Album (2004), Trav'lin' Light (2007), and Persona (2009).

Latifah starred as Khadijah James on the Fox sitcom Living Single from 1993 to 1998 and landed a leading role in the action film Set It Off (1996). She created the daytime talk show The Queen Latifah Show, which ran from 1999 to 2001, and again from 2013 to 2015, in syndication. Her portrayal of Matron "Mama" Morton in the musical film Chicago (2002), receiving a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She has also starred or co-starred in the films Bringing Down the House (2003), Taxi (2004), Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2005), Beauty Shop (2005), Last Holiday (2006), Hairspray (2007), Joyful Noise (2012), 22 Jump Street (2014), and Girls Trip (2017); and provided voice work in the Ice Age film series.

Latifah received critical acclaim for her portrayal of blues singer Bessie Smith in the HBO film Bessie (2015), which she co-produced, winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie. From 2016 to 2019, she starred as Carlotta Brown in the musical drama series Star. In 2020, she portrayed Hattie McDaniel in the miniseries Hollywood. Since 2021, she has held the lead role on CBS's revival of the action drama The Equalizer.

Early life
Dana Elaine Owens was born in Newark, New Jersey, on March 18, 1970, and lived primarily in East Orange, New Jersey. She is the daughter of Rita Lamae (née Bray; d. 2018), a teacher at Irvington High School (Dana's alma mater), and Lancelot Amos Owens, a police officer.  Her parents divorced when she was ten.

She was raised in the Baptist faith. She attended Catholic school in Newark, New Jersey and Essex Catholic Girls' High School in Irvington but graduated from Irvington High School.  After high school, she attended classes at Borough of Manhattan Community College.

She found her stage name, Latifah ( laţīfa), meaning "delicate" and "very kind" in Arabic, in a book of Arabic names when she was eight. Always tall, the  Dana was a power forward on her high school basketball team. She performed the number "Home" from the musical The Wiz in a grammar school play.

Music career

1988–1989: Career beginnings
She began beat boxing for the hip-hop group Ladies Fresh and was an original member of the Flavor Unit, which, at that time, was a crew of MCs grouped around producer DJ King Gemini, who made a demo recording of Queen Latifah's rap Princess of the Posse. He gave the recording to Fab 5 Freddy, the host of Yo! MTV Raps. The song got the attention of Tommy Boy Music employee Dante Ross, who signed Latifah and in 1989 released  her first single, "Wrath of My Madness". More recent artists, like Ice Cube and Lil' Kim, would go on to sample Latifah's track in their songs, "Wrath of Kim's Madness" and "You Can't Play With My Yo-Yo" in later years. Latifah has a two-octave vocal range. She is considered a contralto, having the ability to both rap and sing.

1989–2002: Rap and hip-hop
Latifah made her mark in hip-hop by rapping about the issues surrounding a black woman. Her songs had covered topics including domestic violence, harassment on the streets, and relationship problems.
Freddy helped Latifah sign with Tommy Boy Records, which released Latifah's first album All Hail the Queen in 1989, when she was nineteen. That year, she appeared as Referee on the UK label Music of Life album 1989The Hustlers Convention (live). She received a Candace Award from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women in 1992. The single "Ladies First" featuring Monie Love became the first collaborative track by two female rappers not in a group. In 1993, she released the album Black Reign, which was certified Gold in the United States and produced the Grammy Award-winning song "U.N.I.T.Y." In 1998, co-produced by Ro Smith, now CEO of Def Ro Inc., she released her fourth hip-hop album Order in the Court, which was released by Motown Records. Latifah was also a member of the hip-hop collective Native Tongues.

Latifah performed in the Super Bowl XXXII halftime show, making her the first rapper to do so.

2003–2009: Change to traditional singing

After Order in the Court, Latifah shifted primarily to singing soul music and jazz standards, which she had used sparingly in her previous hip-hop-oriented records. In 2004, she released the soul/jazz standards The Dana Owens Album. On July 11, 2007, Latifah sang at the famed Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles as the headlining act in a live jazz concert. In front of a crowd of more than 12,400, she was backed by a 10-piece live orchestra and three backup vocalists, which was billed as the Queen Latifah Orchestra. Latifah performed new arrangements of standards including "California Dreaming", first made popular by 1960s icons the Mamas & the Papas. Later in 2007, Latifah released an album titled Trav'lin' Light. Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Joe Sample, George Duke, Christian McBride, and Stevie Wonder made guest appearances. The album was nominated for a Grammy in the "Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album" category.

In 2009, Latifah, along with the NJPAC Jubilation Choir, recorded the title track on the album Oh, Happy Day: An All-Star Music Celebration, covering the song that the Edwin Hawkins Singers made popular in 1969.

2008–present: Return to hip-hop
In 2008, Latifah was asked if she would make another hip-hop album. She was quoted stating that the album was done already and it would be called All Hail the Queen II. The following year, in 2009, she released her album Persona. The song "Cue the Rain" was released as the album's lead single. 2011 saw Queen Latifah sing "Who Can I Turn To" in a duet with Tony Bennett for his album Duets II. In January 2012, while appearing on 106 & Park with Dolly Parton, to promote Joyful Noise, Latifah stated that she had been working on a new album.

Film and television

1991–2001: Early career
She began her film career by having supporting roles in the 1991 and 1992 films House Party 2, Juice and Jungle Fever. Moreover, she has guest starred in two episodes during the second season (1991–1992) of the NBC hit The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and had a guest role as herself on a tv sitcom Hangin' with Mr. Cooper in 1993. From 1993 to 1998, Latifah had a starring role on Living Single, the FOX sitcom, which gained high ratings among black audiences; she also wrote and performed its theme song. Her mother Rita played her mother on-screen. Latifah appeared in the 1996 box-office hit, Set It Off, and had a supporting role in the Holly Hunter film Living Out Loud (1998). She played the role of Thelma in the 1999 movie The Bone Collector, alongside Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie. She also had her own talk show, The Queen Latifah Show, from 1999 to 2001 and revamped in 2013. On January 6, 2014, The Queen Latifah Show was renewed for a second season. However, on November 21, 2014, Sony Pictures Television canceled Latifah's show due to declining ratings. Production of the series closed down, taking effect on December 18, 2014, leaving new episodes that were broadcast until March 6, 2015.

2002–present: Mainstream success

Although Latifah had previously received some critical acclaim, she gained mainstream success after being cast as Matron "Mama" Morton in Chicago, a musical film that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Latifah herself received the nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role, but lost to co-star Catherine Zeta-Jones. Latifah is one of five hip-hop/R&B artists to receive an Academy Award nomination in an acting category. The others are Will Smith (Best Actor, Ali, 2001, and The Pursuit of Happyness, 2006), Jennifer Hudson (Best Supporting Actress, Dreamgirls, 2007), Jamie Foxx, (Best Actor, Ray, and Best Supporting Actor Collateral, both in 2004, also winning the first) and Mary J. Blige (Best Supporting Actress, Mudbound, 2017).

In 2003, she starred with Steve Martin in the film Bringing Down the House, which was a major success at the box office. She also recorded a song "Do Your Thing" for the soundtrack. Since then, she has had both leading and supporting roles in a multitude of films that received varied critical and box office receptions, including films such as Scary Movie 3, Barbershop 2: Back in Business, Taxi, Kung Faux, Beauty Shop, and Hairspray. In early 2006, Latifah appeared in a romantic comedy/drama entitled Last Holiday. Film critic Richard Roeper stated that "this is the Queen Latifah performance I've been waiting for ever since she broke into movies". Also in 2006, Latifah voiced Ellie, a friendly mammoth, in the animated film, Ice Age: The Meltdown (her first voice appearance in an animated film), and appeared in the drama Stranger Than Fiction.

The summer of 2007 brought Latifah triple success in the big-screen version of the Broadway smash hit Hairspray, in which she acted, sang, and danced. The film rated highly with critics. It starred, among others, John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Allison Janney, James Marsden, Christopher Walken, and Zac Efron. Also in 2007, she portrayed an HIV-positive woman in the film Life Support, a role for which she garnered her first Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and an Emmy nomination. For her work, Queen Latifah received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on January 4, 2006, located at 6915 Hollywood Blvd.

Queen Latifah produced the 2007 film The Perfect Holiday. In addition to producing the film, Latifah starred alongside Terrence Howard, Morris Chestnut, Gabrielle Union, Charles Q. Murphy, Jill Marie Jones, and Faizon Love. In 2008, Latifah appeared in the crime comedy Mad Money opposite Academy Award–winner Diane Keaton as well as Katie Holmes and Ted Danson. She appeared on Saturday Night Live on October 4, 2008, as moderator Gwen Ifill in a comedic sketch depicting the vice-presidential debate between then-Senator Joe Biden and then-Governor Sarah Palin and played in The Secret Life of Bees. In 2009, Latifah was a presenter at the 81st Academy Awards, presenting the segment honoring film professionals who had died during 2008 and singing "I'll Be Seeing You" during the montage. Latifah spoke at Michael Jackson's memorial service in Los Angeles. She also hosted the 2010 People's Choice Awards. Latifah sang "America the Beautiful" at Super Bowl XLIV hosted in Miami, Florida, on February 7, 2010, with Carrie Underwood. Latifah hosted the 2010 BET Awards on June 27, 2010. She starred with Dolly Parton in Joyful Noise (2012). In June 2011, Latifah received an honorary doctorate degree in Humane Letters from Delaware State University in Dover, Delaware. On September 16, 2013, Latifah premiered her own syndicated daytime television show titled The Queen Latifah Show. On January 26, 2014, Latifah officiated the weddings of 33 same-sex and opposite-sex couples during a performance of "Same Love" by Macklemore at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. In 2015, Latifah received a Best Actress Emmy nomination for her lead role as Bessie Smith in Bessie, an HBO film which received a total of 12 Emmy nominations.

On April 26, 2017, MTV announced that Latifah will be an executive producer for the third season of the slasher television series Scream. The show will undergo a reboot with a new cast and Brett Matthews serving as show runner. In addition, Matthews, Shakim Compere and Yaneley Arty will also be credited as executive producers for the series under Flavor Unit Entertainment. On June 24, 2019, it was confirmed that the third season is scheduled to premiere over three nights on VH1, starting from July 8, 2019. The third season titled Scream: Resurrection premiered on July 8, 2019.

Latifah played the sea witch Ursula in The Little Mermaid Live!. Although the production itself was not well received, critics widely praised Latifah's performance, with The Hollywood Reporter calling her performance "the best moment of the evening".

In 2021, CBS premiered the new active TV series, The Equalizer, a reboot of the 1980s detective series of the same name, starring Latifah in the lead role (renamed as Robyn for her version). More recently, she signed a deal with Audible.

Artistry
Latifah's music usually contains hip-hop, jazz and gospel and has the elements of R&B, soul, and dance. She possesses a two-octave vocal range. Queen Latifah is a contralto, and she has the ability to rap and sing. Her biggest musical influences are EPMD, KRS-One, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, and Run–D.M.C. She also cites Bessie Smith as one of her influences.

Al Hail the Queen features hip-hop, reggae, soulful back-up vocals, boppish scatting, snappy horn back-ups, and house music. She described the work as "a creative outlet... and sometimes it can become like a newspaper that people read with their ears."

Early in her career, Queen Latifah's lyrics were described as woman-centered and Afrocentric. The rapper often used Afrocentric attires during public appearances and music videos, looks that became her trademark. In 1990, The New York Times Michelle Wallace described her art as "politically sophisticated", which "seems worlds apart from the adolescent, buffoonish sex orientation of most rap." For AllMusic, her "strong, intelligent, no-nonsense" persona made her "arguably the first MC who could properly be described as feminist". Queen Latifah did not identify as a feminist at the time, and expressed that her music was not exclusive for the female audience. On the topic, author Tricia Rose wrote that Black female rappers likely did not identify with feminism during that time because it was perceived as a movement that focused primarily on white women's issues.

Products and endorsements
Latifah is a celebrity spokesperson for CoverGirl cosmetics, Curvation women's underwear, Pizza Hut, and Jenny Craig. She represents her own line of cosmetics for women of color called the CoverGirl Queen Collection. Latifah has also launched a perfume line called "Queen" and "Queen of Hearts". On May 23, 2018, Latifah was named the godmother of Carnival Cruise Lines' vessel Carnival Horizon. Apart from singing, Queen Latifah has written a book on confidence and self-respect called Ladies First: Revelations of a Strong Woman.

Personal life
Raised in East Orange, New Jersey, Latifah has been a resident of Colts Neck, New Jersey; Rumson, New Jersey; and Beverly Hills, California.

Latifah's older brother, Lancelot Jr., was killed in 1992 in an accident involving a motorcycle that Latifah had purchased for him. A 2006 interview revealed that Latifah still wears the key to the motorcycle around her neck, visible throughout her performance in her sitcom Living Single. In 1995, Latifah was the victim of a carjacking, which also resulted in the shooting of her boyfriend, Sean Moon.

In 1996, she was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a loaded handgun. In 2002, she was arrested for driving under the influence in Los Angeles County. She was placed on three years' probation after being convicted.

On March 21, 2018, her mother, actress Rita Owens, died due to heart failure, an issue she had been battling since 2004.

Latifah long refused to address speculation around her sexuality and personal life, telling The New York Times in 2008 that "I don't feel like I need to share my personal life, and I don't care if people think I'm gay or not". At the BET Awards 2021, during her acceptance speech for the Lifetime Achievement Award, she publicly acknowledged her partner Eboni Nichols and son Rebel for the first time, ending the speech with "happy Pride!"

In the January 2020 season 6, episode 4 of Finding Your Roots titled "This Land Is My Land", Latifah learned that her family were descended from a line of freed Negroes, since her ancestors were listed by name in the U.S. pre–Civil War census of 1860 in Virginia. Slaves were almost never listed by name in pre–U.S. Civil War censuses. Latifah also learned the exact date her ancestors became free which was October 1, 1792, the date her second earliest known ancestor, a woman named "Jug" or Juggy Owens, was emancipated from slavery.

Feud with Foxy Brown
Disagreements between Foxy Brown and Queen Latifah began in mid-1996, where media reports indicated that Brown was a prime target of Latifah's diss record "Name Callin, which was featured on the Set It Off soundtrack. In response, Brown made allegations of Latifah "checking her out" at musical events and further questioned Latifah's sexuality in various public radio interviews. In 1998, Brown released a diss record titled "10% Dis", where she continually questioned Latifah's sexuality and accused her of being jealous.

By late spring of 1998, Latifah responded to Brown through another diss record titled "Name Callin' Part II". On the record, Latifah disses Brown about her heavy reliance on sex appeal, in which she implies that Brown has to rely on skimpy outfits to hide her "half-assed flow". Foxy Brown retaliated via a response-diss record titled "Talk to Me", in which Brown made fun of the ratings of Latifah's television talk show and went on to make various homophobic remarks to both Latifah and then-newcomer Queen Pen.

A significant part of media dubbed Latifah "the winner" of the feud. Hip-hop magazine Ego Trip stated that Latifah won the feud with her diss record "Name Callin' Part II" and added that she showed that "the lady's still first", in reference to Latifah's 1990 single, "Ladies First". In 2000, Brown and Latifah reconciled; to prove that the truce was real, Brown performed her song "Na Na Be Like" on The Queen Latifah Show.

Legacy

Music
Often cited as one of the best female rappers, Queen Latifah achieved groundbreaking success in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and became what Pitchfork considered as the "most recognizable female rapper" of the golden era of hip hop. AllMusic writer Steve Huey stated that Latifah was "certainly not the first female rapper, but she was the first one to become a bona fide star." In the book Notable Black American Women, Jessie Carney Smith hailed her as "rap's first feminist" and "one of the few women to make a mark in the male-dominated field of rap music". Variety called her "one of the major forerunners for women in modern hip-hop," and The Guardian referred to her as a "pioneer of female rap".

Throughout her career, several media publications have referred to her as the "Queen of Rap" including New York magazine (1990) via editor Dinitia Smith, as well as "Queen of Hip Hop". Latifah became the first solo female rapper to receive a RIAA certification for an album (Black Reign), a commercial breakthrough that the AllMusic editor considered as creating a path for "a talented crew of women rappers to make their own way onto the charts as the 90s progressed". Her breakthrough also helped place New Jersey on the hip hop map. In 1998, she performed in the Super Bowl XXXII halftime show, making her the first rapper to do so.

According to an African American Review journal, her afrocentric feminist music video for "Ladies First" presented a "televisual moment" and disrupted the continuity of sexism and racism that dominated the music videos at the time. The song was listed on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll, and was one of the firsts texts to address the declining standards of male-female relationships in community life. Author Tricia Rose expressed that it "offered hip-hop for the development of pro-female pro-black diasporas political consciousness." In Consequence, Okla Jones noted that the song "U.N.I.T.Y."—which lyrics confront slurs against women in hip-hop culture and address other types of disrespect—created a path for future female rappers to be "their authentic selves".

Acting
Vibe magazine has noted her as the first female rapper to cross over into TV & film, as an artist that "broke barriers and set standards" for Black women in music to follow, and cited her as the "First Lady of Hip-Hop". For her performance as Matron "Mama" Morton in Chicago, Latifah earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first woman in hip hop to earn an Oscar nomination.

Cultural impact
Queen Latifah has been cited as an influence on R&B, soul, and hip-hop artists, such as Eve, Da Brat, Lil' Kim, Fugees, Jill Scott, Lauryn Hill, Missy Elliott, Remy Ma, Ivy Queen, Foxy Brown, Ms. Dynamite, Naughty by Nature, Rapsody, Megan Thee Stallion, as well as actors Michael K. Williams, Keke Palmer, Vin Diesel, and author Jason Reynolds.

Playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda has stated that Latifah inspired the portrayal of Angelica Schuyler in the musical Hamilton. In 2020, Vogue editor Janelle Okwodu considered her a fashion icon that "helped to start a conversation about body image that continues to this day", crediting her among the first artists that pioneered the "climate of size inclusivity and muses of all shapes".

Accolades

Queen Latifah became the first female hip-hop recording artist to get nominated for an Oscar. In 2003, Queen Latifah was awarded Artist of the Year by Harvard Foundation. In 2006, Latifah became the first hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and was also inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2011. In her music career, Queen Latifah has sold nearly 2 million albums in the US. The Root ranked her at number 35 on The Root 100 list. In 2017, American Black Film Festival honored Latifah with the Entertainment Icon award. In 2018, she received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts Degree by the Rutgers University. In 2019, Harvard University awarded the W. E. B. Du Bois Medal to Queen Latifah for cultural contributions. In 2023, Queen Latifah's debut album All Hail the Queen, was added into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry, making it the earliest female rap recording to enter the National Recording Registry, and made her the second female hip-hop recording artist to have her music included after Lauryn Hill; however some outlets incorrectly reported her as the first to accomplish the feat.

She is a recipient of a Grammy Award from six nominations, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards from five nominations, two NAACP Image Awards from thirteen nominations, one Primetime Emmy Award from three nominations, and an Academy Award nomination. In 2021, she received the BET Lifetime Achievement Award and was the first rapper female or male to be awarded.

Discography

Studio albums
 All Hail the Queen (1989)
 Nature of a Sista' (1991)
 Black Reign (1993)
 Order in the Court (1998)
 The Dana Owens Album (2004)
 Trav'lin' Light (2007)
 Persona (2009)

Tours
Latifah, Jill Scott and Erykah Badu joined to create and own the rights to the Sugar Water Festival Tour, LLC. All three singers toured together while inviting music duo Floetry in 2005 and singer Kelis in 2006 as opening acts. Comedian/actress Mo'Nique served as host for the 2006 Sugar Water Tour.
 Sugar Water Festival Tour (2005–06)
 Travlin' Light Tour (2007)

Filmography

Film

Television

Music Videos

Producer

Video Games

References

External links

1970 births
20th-century African-American women singers
20th-century American actresses
21st-century African-American women singers
21st-century American actresses
21st-century American comedians
21st-century American rappers
21st-century women rappers
A&M Records artists
Actors from East Orange, New Jersey
Actresses from Newark, New Jersey
African-American Christians
African-American actresses
African-American businesspeople
African-American female comedians
African-American female models
African-American feminists
African-American models
African-American pianists
African-American television producers
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African-American women singer-songwriters
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American female models
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Living people
Motown artists
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Television producers from New Jersey
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Verve Records artists

Queen Latifah


A  is a length of time roughly equal to the potential lifetime of a person or, equivalently, the complete renewal of a human population.

Background
Originally it meant the time from the moment that something happened (for example the founding of a city) until the point in time that all people who had lived at the first moment had died. At that point a new  would start. According to legend, the gods had allotted a certain number of  to every people or civilization; the Etruscans, for example, had been given ten saecula.

By the 2nd century BC, Roman historians were using the  to periodize their chronicles and track wars. At the time of the reign of emperor Augustus, the Romans decided that a  was 110 years. In 17 BC, Caesar Augustus organized Ludi saeculares ("saecular games") for the first time to celebrate the "fifth saeculum of Rome". Augustus aimed to link the  with imperial authority.

Emperors such as Claudius and Septimius Severus celebrated the passing of  with games at irregular intervals. In 248, Philip the Arab combined Ludi saeculares with the 1,000th anniversary of the founding of Rome. The new millennium that Rome entered was called the saeculum novum, a term that received a metaphysical connotation in Christianity, referring to the worldly age (hence "secular").

Roman emperors legitimised their political authority by referring to the  in various media, linked to a golden age of imperial glory. In response, Christian writers began to define the  as referring to 'this present world', as opposed to the expectation of eternal life in the 'world to come'. This results in the modern sense of 'secular' as 'belonging to the world and its affairs'.

The English word secular, an adjective meaning something happening once in an eon, is derived from the Latin saeculum. The descendants of Latin saeculum in the Romance languages generally mean "century" (i.e., 100 years): French siècle, Spanish siglo, Portuguese século, Italian secolo, etc.

See also
Aeon, comparable Greek concept
Century
Generation
In saecula saeculorum
 New world order (politics)
Social cycle theory
Strauss–Howe generational theory
Saeculum obscurum

References

Units of time
Ageing
Latin words and phrases

Saeculum


The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a freshwater fish belonging to the minnow family (Cyprinidae) of the order Cypriniformes. Native to India  and South Asia, it is a popular aquarium fish, frequently sold under the trade name zebra danio (and thus often called a "tropical fish" although both tropical and subtropical). It is also found in private ponds.

The zebrafish is an important and widely used vertebrate model organism in scientific research. Zebrafish has been used for biomedicine and developmental biology. The species is used for studies, such as neurobehavioral phenomena. It is also used for psychological reasons such as abuse, cognitive, and affective disorders. The species are used to study and observe behavioral research.

Taxonomy
The zebrafish is a derived member of the genus Brachydanio, of the family Cyprinidae. It has a sister-group relationship with Danio aesculapii. Zebrafish are also closely related to the genus Devario, as demonstrated by a phylogenetic tree of close species.

Distribution

Range
The zebrafish is native to freshwater habitats in South Asia where it is found in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. The northern limit is in the South Himalayas, ranging from the Sutlej river basin in the Pakistan–India border region to the state of Arunachal Pradesh in northeast Indian. Its range is concentrated in the Ganges and Brahmaputra River basins, and the species was first described from Kosi River (lower Ganges basin) of India. Its range further south is more local, with scattered records from the Western and Eastern Ghats regions. It has frequently been said to occur in Myanmar (Burma), but this is entirely based on pre-1930 records and likely refers to close relatives only described later, notably Danio kyathit. Likewise, old records from Sri Lanka are highly questionable and remain unconfirmed.

Zebrafish have been introduced to California, Connecticut, Florida and New Mexico in the United States, presumably by deliberate release by aquarists or by escape from fish farms. The New Mexico population had been extirpated by 2003 and it is unclear if the others survive, as the last published records were decades ago. Elsewhere the species has been introduced to Colombia and Malaysia.

Habitats
Zebrafish typically inhabit moderately flowing to stagnant clear water of quite shallow depth in streams, canals, ditches, oxbow lakes, ponds and rice paddies. There is usually some vegetation, either submerged or overhanging from the banks, and the bottom is sandy, muddy or silty, often mixed with pebbles or gravel. In surveys of zebrafish locations throughout much of its Bangladeshi and Indian distribution, the water had a near-neutral to somewhat basic pH and mostly ranged from  in temperature. One unusually cold site was only  and another unusually warm site was , but the zebrafish still appeared healthy. The unusually cold temperature was at one of the highest known zebrafish locations at  above sea level, although the species has been recorded to .

Description
The zebrafish is named for the five uniform, pigmented, horizontal, blue stripes on the side of the body, which are reminiscent of a zebra's stripes, and which extend to the end of the caudal fin. Its shape is fusiform and laterally compressed, with its mouth directed upwards. The male is torpedo-shaped, with gold stripes between the blue stripes; the female has a larger, whitish belly and silver stripes instead of gold. Adult females exhibit a small genital papilla in front of the anal fin origin. The zebrafish can reach up to  in length, although they typically are  in the wild with some variations depending on location. Its lifespan in captivity is around two to three years, although in ideal conditions, this may be extended to over five years. In the wild it is typically an annual species.

Psychology
In 2015, a study was published about zebrafishes' capacity for episodic memory. The individuals showed a capacity to remember context with respect to objects, locations and occasions (what, when, where). Episodic memory is a capacity of explicit memory systems, typically associated with conscious experience.

The Mauthner cells integrate a wide array of sensory stimuli to produce the escape reflex. Those stimuli are found to include the lateral line signals by McHenry et al. 2009 and visual signals consistent with looming objects by Temizer et al. 2015, Dunn et al. 2016, and Yao et al. 2016.

Reproduction

The approximate generation time for Danio rerio is three months. A male must be present for ovulation and spawning to occur. Zebrafish are asynchronous spawners and under optimal conditions (such as food availability and favorable water parameters) can spawn successfully frequently, even on a daily basis. Females are able to spawn at intervals of two to three days, laying hundreds of eggs in each clutch. Upon release, embryonic development begins; in absence of sperm, growth stops after the first few cell divisions. Fertilized eggs almost immediately become transparent, a characteristic that makes D. rerio a convenient research model species. Sex determination of common laboratory strains was shown to be a complex genetic trait, rather than to follow a simple ZW or XY system.

The zebrafish embryo develops rapidly, with precursors to all major organs appearing within 36 hours of fertilization.  The embryo begins as a yolk with a single enormous cell on top (see image, 0 h panel), which divides into two (0.75 h panel) and continues dividing until there are thousands of small cells (3.25 h panel).  The cells then migrate down the sides of the yolk (8 h panel) and begin forming a head and tail (16 h panel).  The tail then grows and separates from the body (24 h panel).  The yolk shrinks over time because the fish uses it for food as it matures during the first few days (72 h panel).  After a few months, the adult fish reaches reproductive maturity (bottom panel).

To encourage the fish to spawn, some researchers use a fish tank with a sliding bottom insert, which reduces the depth of the pool to simulate the shore of a river. Zebrafish spawn best in the morning due to their Circadian rhythms. Researchers have been able to collect 10,000 embryos in 10 minutes using this method. In particular, one pair of adult fish is capable of laying 200–300 eggs in one morning in approximately 5 to 10 at time. Male zebrafish are furthermore known to respond to more pronounced markings on females, i.e., "good stripes", but in a group, males will mate with whichever females they can find. What attracts females is not currently understood. The presence of plants, even plastic plants, also apparently encourages spawning.

Exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of diisononyl phthalate (DINP), commonly used in a large variety of plastic items, disrupt the endocannabinoid system and thereby affect reproduction in a sex-specific manner.

Feeding
Zebrafish are omnivorous, primarily eating zooplankton, phytoplankton, insects and insect larvae, although they can eat a variety of other foods, such as worms and small crustaceans, if their preferred food sources are not readily available.

In research, adult zebrafish are often fed with brine shrimp, or paramecia.

In the aquarium
Zebrafish are hardy fish and considered good for beginner aquarists. Their enduring popularity can be attributed to their playful disposition, as well as their rapid breeding, aesthetics, cheap price and broad availability. They also do well in schools or shoals of six or more, and interact well with other fish species in the aquarium. However, they are susceptible to Oodinium or velvet disease, microsporidia (Pseudoloma neurophilia), and Mycobacterium species. Given the opportunity, adults eat hatchlings, which may be protected by separating the two groups with a net, breeding box or separate tank.
In captivity, zebrafish live approximately forty-two months. Some captive zebrafish can develop a curved spine.

The zebra danio was also used to make genetically modified fish and were the first species to be sold as GloFish (fluorescent colored fish).

Strains
In late 2003, transgenic zebrafish that express green, red, and yellow fluorescent proteins became commercially available in the United States. The fluorescent strains are tradenamed GloFish; other cultivated varieties include "golden", "sandy", "longfin" and "leopard".

The leopard danio, previously known as Danio frankei, is a spotted colour morph of the zebrafish which arose due to a pigment mutation. Xanthistic forms of both the zebra and leopard pattern, along with long-finned strains, have been obtained via selective breeding programs for the aquarium trade.

Various transgenic and mutant strains of zebrafish were stored at the China Zebrafish Resource Center (CZRC), a non-profit organization, which was jointly supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Wild-type strains
The Zebrafish Information Network (ZFIN) provides up-to-date information about current known wild-type (WT) strains of D. rerio, some of which are listed below.

AB (AB)
AB/C32 (AB/C32)
AB/TL (AB/TL)
AB/Tuebingen (AB/TU)
C32 (C32)
Cologne (KOLN)
Darjeeling (DAR)
Ekkwill (EKW)
HK/AB (HK/AB)
HK/Sing (HK/SING)
Hong Kong (HK)
India (IND)
Indonesia (INDO)
Nadia (NA)
RIKEN WT (RW)
Singapore (SING)
SJA (SJA)
SJD (SJD)
SJD/C32 (SJD/C32)
Tuebingen (TU)
Tupfel long fin (TL)
Tupfel long fin nacre (TLN)
WIK (WIK)
WIK/AB (WIK/AB)

Hybrids
Hybrids between different Danio species may be fertile: for example, between D. rerio and D. nigrofasciatus.

Scientific research

D. rerio is a common and useful scientific model organism for studies of vertebrate development and gene function. Its use as a laboratory animal was pioneered by the American molecular biologist George Streisinger and his colleagues at the University of Oregon in the 1970s and 1980s; Streisinger's zebrafish clones were among the earliest successful vertebrate clones created. Its importance has been consolidated by successful large-scale forward genetic screens (commonly referred to as the Tübingen/Boston screens). The fish has a dedicated online database of genetic, genomic, and developmental information, the Zebrafish Information Network (ZFIN).  The Zebrafish International Resource Center (ZIRC) is a genetic resource repository with 29,250 alleles available for distribution to the research community. D. rerio is also one of the few fish species to have been sent into space.

Research with D. rerio has yielded advances in the fields of developmental biology, oncology, toxicology, reproductive studies, teratology, genetics, neurobiology, environmental sciences, stem cell research, regenerative medicine, muscular dystrophies and evolutionary theory.

Model characteristics
As a model biological system, the zebrafish possesses numerous advantages for scientists. Its genome has been fully sequenced, and it has well-understood, easily observable and testable developmental behaviors. Its embryonic development is very rapid, and its embryos are relatively large, robust, and transparent, and able to develop outside their mother. Furthermore, well-characterized mutant strains are readily available.

Other advantages include the species' nearly constant size during early development, which enables simple staining techniques to be used, and the fact that its two-celled embryo can be fused into a single cell to create a homozygous embryo. The zebrafish is also demonstrably similar to mammalian models and humans in toxicity testing, and exhibits a diurnal sleep cycle with similarities to mammalian sleep behavior. However, zebrafish are not a universally ideal research model; there are a number of disadvantages to their scientific use, such as the absence of a standard diet and the presence of small but important differences between zebrafish and mammals in the roles of some genes related to human disorders.

Regeneration
Zebrafish have the ability to regenerate their heart and lateral line hair cells during their larval stages. The cardiac regenerative process likely involves signaling pathways such as Notch and Wnt; hemodynamic changes in the damaged heart are sensed by ventricular endothelial cells and their associated cardiac cilia by way of the mechanosensitive ion channel TRPV4, subsequently facilitating the Notch signaling pathway via KLF2 and activating various downstream effectors such as BMP-2 and HER2/neu. In 2011, the British Heart Foundation ran an advertising campaign publicising its intention to study the applicability of this ability to humans, stating that it aimed to raise £50 million in research funding.

Zebrafish have also been found to regenerate photoreceptor cells and retinal neurons following injury, which has been shown to be mediated by the dedifferentiation and proliferation of Müller glia. Researchers frequently amputate the dorsal and ventral tail fins and analyze their regrowth to test for mutations. It has been found that histone demethylation occurs at the site of the amputation, switching the zebrafish's cells to an "active", regenerative, stem cell-like state. In 2012, Australian scientists published a study revealing that zebrafish use a specialised protein, known as fibroblast growth factor, to ensure their spinal cords heal without glial scarring after injury.  In addition, hair cells of the posterior lateral line have also been found to regenerate following damage or developmental disruption. Study of gene expression during regeneration has allowed for the identification of several important signaling pathways involved in the process, such as Wnt signaling and Fibroblast growth factor.

In probing disorders of the nervous system, including neurodegenerative diseases, movement disorders, psychiatric disorders and deafness, researchers are using the zebrafish to understand how the genetic defects underlying these conditions cause functional abnormalities in the human brain, spinal cord and sensory organs. Researchers have also studied the zebrafish to gain new insights into the complexities of human musculoskeletal diseases, such as muscular dystrophy. Another focus of zebrafish research is to understand how a gene called Hedgehog, a biological signal that underlies a number of human cancers, controls cell growth.

Genetics

Background genetics
Inbred strains and traditional outbred stocks have not been developed for laboratory zebrafish, and the genetic variability of wild-type lines among institutions may contribute to the replication crisis in biomedical research. Genetic differences in wild-type lines among populations maintained at different research institutions have been demonstrated using both Single-nucleotide polymorphisms and microsatellite analysis.

Gene expression
Due to their fast and short life cycles and relatively large clutch sizes, D. rerio or zebrafish are a useful model for genetic studies. A common reverse genetics technique is to reduce gene expression or modify splicing using Morpholino antisense technology. Morpholino oligonucleotides (MO) are stable, synthetic macromolecules that contain the same bases as DNA or RNA; by binding to complementary RNA sequences, they can reduce the expression of specific genes or block other processes from occurring on RNA. MO can be injected into one cell of an embryo after the 32-cell stage, reducing gene expression in only cells descended from that cell. However, cells in the early embryo (less than 32 cells) are interpermeable to large molecules, allowing diffusion between cells. Guidelines for using Morpholinos in zebrafish describe appropriate control strategies. Morpholinos are commonly microinjected in 500pL directly into 1-2 cell stage zebrafish embryos. The morpholino is able to integrate into most cells of the embryo.

A known problem with gene knockdowns is that, because the genome underwent a duplication after the divergence of ray-finned fishes and lobe-finned fishes, it is not always easy to silence the activity of one of the two gene paralogs reliably due to complementation by the other paralog. Despite the complications of the zebrafish genome, a number of commercially available global platforms exist for analysis of both gene expression by microarrays and promoter regulation using ChIP-on-chip.

Genome sequencing
The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute started the zebrafish genome sequencing project in 2001, and the full genome sequence of  the Tuebingen reference strain is publicly available at  the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)'s Zebrafish Genome Page. The zebrafish reference genome sequence is annotated as part of the Ensembl project, and is maintained by the Genome Reference Consortium.

In 2009, researchers at the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology in Delhi, India, announced the sequencing of the genome of a wild zebrafish strain, containing an estimated 1.7 billion genetic letters. The genome of the wild zebrafish was sequenced at 39-fold coverage. Comparative analysis with the zebrafish reference genome revealed over 5 million single nucleotide variations and over 1.6 million insertion deletion variations. The zebrafish reference genome sequence of 1.4GB and over 26,000 protein coding genes was published by Kerstin Howe et al. in 2013.

Mitochondrial DNA
In October 2001, researchers from the University of Oklahoma published D. rerio's complete mitochondrial DNA sequence. Its length is 16,596 base pairs. This is within 100 base pairs of other related species of fish, and it is notably only 18 pairs longer than the goldfish (Carassius auratus) and 21 longer than the carp (Cyprinus carpio). Its gene order and content are identical to the common vertebrate form of mitochondrial DNA. It contains 13 protein-coding genes and a noncoding control region containing the origin of replication for the heavy strand. In between a grouping of five tRNA genes, a sequence resembling vertebrate origin of light strand replication is found. It is difficult to draw evolutionary conclusions because it is difficult to determine whether base pair changes have adaptive significance via comparisons with other vertebrates' nucleotide sequences.

Developmental genetics
T-boxes and homeoboxes are vital in Danio similarly to other vertebrates. The Bruce et al. team are known for this area, and in Bruce et al. 2003 & Bruce et al. 2005 uncover the role of two of these elements in oocytes of this species. By interfering via a dominant nonfunctional allele and a morpholino they find the T-box transcription activator Eomesodermin and its target mtx2 – a transcription factor – are vital to epiboly. (In Bruce et al. 2003 they failed to support the possibility that Eomesodermin behaves like Vegt. Neither they nor anyone else has been able to locate any mutation which – in the mother – will prevent initiation of the mesoderm or endoderm development processes in this species.)

Pigmentation genes
In 1999, the nacre mutation was identified in the zebrafish ortholog of the mammalian MITF transcription factor.  Mutations in human MITF result in eye defects and loss of pigment, a type of Waardenburg Syndrome.  In December 2005, a study of the golden strain identified the gene responsible for its unusual pigmentation as SLC24A5, a solute carrier that appeared to be required for melanin production, and confirmed its function with a Morpholino knockdown. The orthologous gene was then characterized in humans and a one base pair difference was found to strongly segregate fair-skinned Europeans and dark-skinned Africans.  Zebrafish with the nacre mutation have since been bred with fish with a roy orbison (roy) mutation to make Casper strain fish that have no melanophores or iridophores, and are transparent into adulthood. These fish are characterized by uniformly pigmented eyes and translucent skin.

Transgenesis
Transgenesis is a popular approach to study the function of genes in zebrafish. Construction of transgenic zebrafish is rather easy by a method using the Tol2 transposon system. Tol2 element which encodes a gene for a fully functional transposase capable of catalyzing transposition in the zebrafish germ lineage. Tol2 is the only natural DNA transposable element in vertebrates from which an autonomous member has been identified. Examples include the artificial interaction produced between LEF1 and Catenin beta-1/β-catenin/CTNNB1. Dorsky et al. 2002 investigated the developmental role of Wnt by transgenically expressing a Lef1/β-catenin reporter.

There are well-established protocols for editing zebrafish genes using CRISPR-Cas9 and this tool has been used to generate genetically modified models.

Transparent adult bodies
In 2008, researchers at Boston Children's Hospital developed a new strain of zebrafish, named Casper, whose adult bodies had transparent skin. This allows for detailed visualization of cellular activity, circulation, metastasis and many other phenomena.  In 2019 researchers published a crossing of a prkdc-/- and a IL2rga-/- strain that produced transparent, immunodeficient offspring, lacking natural killer cells as well as B- and T-cells. This strain can be adapted to  warm water and the absence of an immune system makes the use of patient derived xenografts possible. In January 2013, Japanese scientists genetically modified a transparent zebrafish specimen to produce a visible glow during periods of intense brain activity.

In January 2007, Chinese researchers at Fudan University genetically modified zebrafish to detect oestrogen pollution in lakes and rivers, which is linked to male infertility. The researchers cloned oestrogen-sensitive genes and injected them into the fertile eggs of zebrafish. The modified fish turned green if placed into water that was polluted by oestrogen.

RNA splicing
In 2015, researchers at Brown University discovered that 10% of zebrafish genes do not need to rely on the U2AF2 protein to initiate RNA splicing. These genes have the DNA base pairs AC and TG as repeated sequences at the ends of each intron. On the 3'ss (3' splicing site), the base pairs adenine and cytosine alternate and repeat, and on the 5'ss (5' splicing site), their complements thymine and guanine alternate and repeat as well. They found that there was less reliance on U2AF2 protein than in humans, in which the protein is required for the splicing process to occur. The pattern of repeating base pairs around introns that alters RNA secondary structure was found in other teleosts, but not in tetrapods. This indicates that an evolutionary change in tetrapods may have led to humans relying on the U2AF2 protein for RNA splicing while these genes in zebrafish undergo splicing regardless of the presence of the protein.

Orthology
D. rerio has three transferrins, all of which cluster closely with other vertebrates.

Inbreeding depression
When close relatives mate, progeny may exhibit the detrimental effects of inbreeding depression.  Inbreeding depression is predominantly caused by the homozygous expression of recessive deleterious alleles. For zebrafish, inbreeding depression might be expected to be more severe in stressful environments, including those caused by anthropogenic pollution. Exposure of zebrafish to environmental stress induced by the chemical clotrimazole, an imidazole fungicide used in agriculture and in veterinary and human medicine, amplified the effects of inbreeding on key reproductive traits. Embryo viability was significantly reduced in inbred exposed fish and there was a tendency for inbred males to sire fewer offspring.

Aquaculture research
Zebrafish are common models for research into fish farming, including pathogens and parasites causing yield loss and/or spread to adjacent wild populations.

This usefulness is less than it might be due to Danios taxonomic distance from the most common aquaculture species. Because the most common are salmonids and cod in the Protacanthopterygii and sea bass, sea bream,
tilapia, and flatfish, in the Percomorpha, zebrafish results may not be perfectly applicable. Various other models  Goldfish (Carassius auratus), Medaka (Oryzias latipes), Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), Roach (Rutilus rutilus), Pufferfish (Takifugu rubripes), Swordtail (Xiphophorus hellerii)  are less used normally but would be closer to particular target species.

The only exception are the Carp (including Grass Carp, Ctenopharyngodon idella) and Milkfish (Chanos chanos) which are quite close, both being in the Cyprinidae. However it should also be noted that Danio consistently proves to be a useful model for mammals in many cases and there is dramatically more genetic distance between them than between Danio and any farmed fish.

Neurochemistry
In a glucocorticoid receptor-defective mutant with reduced exploratory behavior, fluoxetine rescued the normal exploratory behavior. This demonstrates relationships between glucocorticoids, fluoxetine, and exploration in this fish.

Drug discovery and development

The zebrafish and zebrafish larva is a suitable model organism for drug discovery and development. As a vertebrate with 70% genetic homology with humans, it can be predictive of human health and disease, while its small size and fast development facilitates experiments on a larger and quicker scale than with more traditional in vivo studies, including the development of higher-throughput, automated investigative tools. As demonstrated through ongoing research programmes, the zebrafish model enables researchers not only to identify genes that might underlie human disease, but also to develop novel therapeutic agents in drug discovery programmes. Zebrafish embryos have proven to be a rapid, cost-efficient, and reliable teratology assay model.

Drug screens
Drug screens in zebrafish can be used to identify novel classes of compounds with biological effects, or to repurpose existing drugs for novel uses; an example of the latter would be a screen which found that a commonly used statin (rosuvastatin) can suppress the growth of prostate cancer. To date, 65 small-molecule screens have been carried out and at least one has led to clinical trials. Within these screens, many technical challenges remain to be resolved, including differing rates of drug absorption resulting in levels of internal exposure that cannot be extrapolated from the water concentration, and high levels of natural variation between individual animals.

Toxico- or pharmacokinetics
To understand drug effects, the internal drug exposure is essential, as this drives the pharmacological effect. Translating experimental results from zebrafish to higher vertebrates (like humans) requires concentration-effect relationships, which can be derived from pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analysis.
Because of its small size, however, it is very challenging to quantify the internal drug exposure. Traditionally multiple blood samples would be drawn to characterize the drug concentration profile over time, but this technique remains to be developed. To date, only a single pharmacokinetic model for paracetamol has been developed in zebrafish larvae.

Computational data analysis
Using smart data analysis methods, pathophysiological and pharmacological processes can be understood and subsequently translated to higher vertebrates, including humans. An example is the use of systems pharmacology, which is the integration of systems biology and pharmacometrics.
Systems biology characterizes (part of) an organism by a mathematical description of all relevant processes. These can be for example different signal transduction pathways that upon a specific signal lead to a certain response. By quantifying these processes, their behaviour in healthy and diseased situation can be understood and predicted.
Pharmacometrics uses data from preclinical experiments and clinical trials to characterize the pharmacological processes that are underlying the relation between the drug dose and its response or clinical outcome. These can be for example the drug absorption in or clearance from the body, or its interaction with the target to achieve a certain effect. By quantifying these processes, their behaviour after different doses or in different patients can be understood and predicted to new doses or patients.
By integrating these two fields, systems pharmacology has the potential to improve the understanding of the interaction of the drug with the biological system by mathematical quantification and subsequent prediction to new situations, like new drugs or new organisms or patients.
Using these computational methods, the previously mentioned analysis of paracetamol internal exposure in zebrafish larvae showed reasonable correlation between paracetamol clearance in zebrafish with that of higher vertebrates, including humans.

Medical research

Cancer
Zebrafish have been used to make several transgenic models of cancer, including melanoma, leukemia, pancreatic cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma. Zebrafish expressing mutated forms of either the BRAF or NRAS oncogenes develop melanoma when placed onto a p53 deficient background. Histologically, these tumors strongly resemble the human disease, are fully transplantable, and exhibit large-scale genomic alterations. The BRAF melanoma model was utilized as a platform for two screens published in March 2011 in the journal Nature. In one study, the model was used as a tool to understand the functional importance of genes known to be amplified and overexpressed in human melanoma. One gene, SETDB1, markedly accelerated tumor formation in the zebrafish system, demonstrating its importance as a new melanoma oncogene. This was particularly significant because SETDB1 is known to be involved in the epigenetic regulation that is increasingly appreciated to be central to tumor cell biology.

In another study, an effort was made to therapeutically target the genetic program present in the tumor's origin neural crest cell using a chemical screening approach. This revealed that an inhibition of the DHODH protein (by a small molecule called leflunomide) prevented development of the neural crest stem cells which ultimately give rise to melanoma via interference with the process of transcriptional elongation. Because this approach would aim to target the "identity" of the melanoma cell rather than a single genetic mutation, leflunomide may have utility in treating human melanoma.

Cardiovascular disease
In cardiovascular research, the zebrafish has been used to model human myocardial infarction model. The zebrafish heart completely regenerates after about 2 months of injury without any scar formation. Zebrafish is also used as a model for blood clotting, blood vessel development, and congenital heart and kidney disease.

Immune system
In programmes of research into acute inflammation, a major underpinning process in many diseases, researchers have established a zebrafish model of inflammation, and its resolution. This approach allows detailed study of the genetic controls of inflammation and the possibility of identifying potential new drugs.

Zebrafish has been extensively used as a model organism to study vertebrate innate immunity. The innate immune system is capable of phagocytic activity by 28 to 30 h postfertilization (hpf) while adaptive immunity is not functionally mature until at least 4 weeks postfertilization.

Infectious diseases
As the immune system is relatively conserved between zebrafish and humans, many human infectious diseases can be modeled in zebrafish. The transparent early life stages are well suited for in vivo imaging and genetic dissection of host-pathogen interactions. Zebrafish models for a wide range of bacterial, viral and parasitic pathogens have already been established; for example, the zebrafish model for tuberculosis provides fundamental insights into the mechanisms of pathogenesis of mycobacteria. Furthermore, robotic technology has been developed for  high-throughput antimicrobial drug screening using zebrafish infection models.

Repairing retinal damage

Another notable characteristic of the zebrafish is that it possesses four types of cone cell, with ultraviolet-sensitive cells supplementing the red, green and blue cone cell subtypes found in humans. Zebrafish can thus observe a very wide spectrum of colours. The species is also studied to better understand the development of the retina; in particular, how the cone cells of the retina become arranged into the so-called 'cone mosaic'. Zebrafish, in addition to certain other teleost fish, are particularly noted for having extreme precision of cone cell arrangement.

This study of the zebrafish's retinal characteristics has also extrapolated into medical enquiry. In 2007, researchers at University College London grew a type of zebrafish adult stem cell found in the eyes of fish and mammals that develops into neurons in the retina. These could be injected into the eye to treat diseases that damage retinal neurons—nearly every disease of the eye, including macular degeneration, glaucoma, and diabetes-related blindness. The researchers studied Müller glial cells in the eyes of humans aged from 18 months to 91 years, and were able to develop them into all types of retinal neurons. They were also able to grow them easily in the lab. The stem cells successfully migrated into diseased rats' retinas, and took on the characteristics of the surrounding neurons. The team stated that they intended to develop the same approach in humans.

Muscular dystrophies
Muscular dystrophies (MD) are a heterogeneous group of genetic disorders that cause muscle weakness, abnormal contractions and muscle wasting, often leading to premature death. Zebrafish is widely used as model organism to study muscular dystrophies. For example, the sapje (sap) mutant is the zebrafish orthologue of human Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).  The Machuca-Tzili and co-workers applied zebrafish to determine the role of alternative splicing factor, MBNL, in myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) pathogenesis. More recently, Todd et al. described a new zebrafish model designed to explore the impact of CUG repeat expression during early development in DM1 disease. Zebrafish is also an excellent animal model to study congenital muscular dystrophies including CMD Type 1 A (CMD 1A) caused by mutation in the human laminin α2 (LAMA2) gene. The zebrafish, because of its advantages discussed above, and in particular the ability of zebrafish embryos to absorb chemicals, has become a model of choice in screening and testing new drugs against muscular dystrophies.

Bone physiology and pathology
Zebrafish have been used as model organisms for bone metabolism, tissue turnover, and resorbing activity. These processes are largely evolutionary conserved. They have been used to study osteogenesis (bone formation), evaluating differentiation, matrix deposition activity, and cross-talk of skeletal cells, to create and isolate mutants modeling human bone diseases, and test new chemical compounds for the ability to revert bone defects. The larvae can be used to follow new (de novo) osteoblast formation during bone development. They start mineralising bone elements as early as 4 days post fertilisation. Recently, adult zebrafish are being used to study complex age related bone diseases such as osteoporosis and osteogenesis imperfecta. The (elasmoid) scales of zebrafish function as a protective external layer and are little bony plates made by osteoblasts. These exoskeletal structures are formed by bone matrix depositing osteoblasts and are remodeled by osteoclasts. The scales also act as the main calcium storage of the fish. They can be cultured ex-vivo (kept alive outside of the organism) in a multi-well plate, which allows manipulation with drugs and even screening for new drugs that could change bone metabolism (between osteoblasts and osteoclasts).

Diabetes
Zebrafish pancreas development is very homologous to mammals, such as mice. The signaling mechanisms and way the pancreas functions are very similar. The pancreas has an endocrine compartment, which contains a variety of cells. Pancreatic PP cells that produce polypeptides, and β-cells that produce insulin are two examples of those such cells. This structure of the pancreas, along with the glucose homeostasis system, are helpful in studying diseases, such as diabetes, that are related to the pancreas. Models for pancreas function, such as fluorescent staining of proteins, are useful in determining the processes of glucose homeostasis and the development of the pancreas. Glucose tolerance tests have been developed using zebrafish, and can now be used to test for glucose intolerance or diabetes in humans. The function of insulin are also being tested in zebrafish, which will further contribute to human medicine. The majority of work done surrounding knowledge on glucose homeostasis has come from work on zebrafish transferred to humans.

Obesity
Zebrafish have been used as a model system to study obesity, with research into both genetic obesity and over-nutrition induced obesity. Obese zebrafish, similar to obese mammals, show dysregulation of lipid controlling metabolic pathways, which leads to weight gain without normal lipid metabolism. Also like mammals, zebrafish store excess lipids in visceral, intramuscular, and subcutaneous adipose deposits. These reasons and others make zebrafish good models for studying obesity in humans and other species. Genetic obesity is usually studied in transgenic or mutated zebrafish with obesogenic genes. As an example, transgenic zebrafish with overexpressed AgRP, an endogenous melacortin antagonist, showed increased body weight and adipose deposition during growth. Though zebrafish genes may not be the exact same as human genes, these tests could provide important insight into possible genetic causes and treatments for human genetic obesity. Diet-induced obesity zebrafish models are useful, as diet can be modified from a very early age. High fat diets and general overfeeding diets both show rapid increases in adipose deposition, increased BMI, hepatosteatosis, and hypertriglyceridemia. However, the normal fat, overfed specimens are still metabolically healthy, while high-fat diet specimens are not. Understanding differences between types of feeding-induced obesity could prove useful in human treatment of obesity and related health conditions.

Environmental toxicology
Zebrafish have been used as a model system in environmental toxicology studies.

Epilepsy
Zebrafish have been used as a model system to study epilepsy. Mammalian seizures can be recapitulated molecularly, behaviorally, and electrophysiologically, using a fraction of the resources required for experiments in mammals.

See also
 Japanese rice fish or medaka, another fish used for genetic, developmental, and biomedical research
 List of freshwater aquarium fish species
Denison barb

References

Further reading

External links

 British Association of Zebrafish Husbandry
 International Zebrafish Society (IZFS)
 European Society for Fish Models in Biology and Medicine (EuFishBioMed)
 The Zebrafish Information Network (ZFIN)
 The Zebrafish International Resource Center (ZIRC)
 The European Zebrafish Resource Center (EZRC)
 The China Zebrafish Resource Center (CZRC)
 The Zebrafish Genome Sequencing Project at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
 FishMap: The Zebrafish Community Genomics Browser at the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB)
 WebHome Zebrafish GenomeWiki Beta Preview at the IGIB
 Genome sequencing initiative at the IGIB
 Danio rerio at Danios.info
 Sanger Institute Zebrafish Mutation Resource
 Zebrafish genome via Ensembl
 FishforScience.com – using zebrafish for medical research
 FishForPharma
 Breeding Zebrafish

Fish described in 1822
Danio
Fish of Bangladesh
Freshwater fish of India
Freshwater fish of Pakistan
Animal models
Stem cell research
Regenerative biomedicine
Animal models in neuroscience
Taxa named by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton
Fish of Nepal
Fish of Bhutan

Zebrafish


Yem Zone is one of the zones in the Central Ethiopia Regional State. Yem is named for the Yem, people whose homeland lies in this zone, (see Kingdom of Yamma). Yem is bordered on the west and north by the Oromia Region, and separated from Gurage on the northeast and Hadiya on the east by the Omo River. High points in Yem include Mount Bor Ama, Mount Azulu and Mount Toba. The administrative center of Yem is Saja.

The form of subsistence agriculture practiced in this zone is based on cereal and enset. Important cash crops include teff, wheat, barley and pulses. Other important non-agricultural sources of income include selling butter and remittances. According to a 2004 report, Yem had 12 kilometers of asphalt roads, 11 kilometers of all-weather roads and 31 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 81 kilometers per 1,000 square kilometers.

Demographics
Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), this zone has a total population of 80,687, of whom 40,566 are men and 40,121 women; with an area of 647.90 square kilometers, Yem has a population density of 124.54. While 7,952 or 9.86% are urban inhabitants, a further 106 or 0.13% are pastoralists. A total of 17,632 households were counted in this zone, which results in an average of 4.58 persons to a household, and 17,204 housing units. The three most numerous ethnic groups reported in this woreda were the Yem (90.57%), the Oromo (5.41%), and the Hadiya (1.27%); all other ethnic groups made up 2.75% of the population. Yemsa was spoken as a first language by 72.67% of the inhabitants, 22.63% spoke Oromo, 2.57% spoke Amharic, and 1.16% spoke Hadiya; the remaining 0.97% spoke all other primary languages reported. 63.05% of the population said they practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, 27.09% were Muslim, and 9.61% were Protestants.

In the 1994 Census Yem had a population of 64,852 in 13,643 households, of whom 32,382 were men and 32,470 women; 1,065 or 1.64% of its population were urban dwellers. The three most numerous ethnic groups reported in this zone were the Yem (91.87%), the Oromo (5.6%), and the Hadiya (0.82%); all other ethnic groups made up 1.71% of the population. Yemsa was spoken as a first language by 79.05% of the inhabitants, and 19.24% spoke Oromo; the remaining 1.71% spoke all other primary languages reported.
71.24% of the population said they practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, 25.14% were Muslim, and 3.48% were Protestants. Concerning education, 29.08% of the population were considered literate; 8.13% of children aged 7–12 were in primary school; 2.33% of the children aged 13–14 were in junior secondary school, and 1.82% of the inhabitants aged 15–18 were in senior secondary school. Concerning sanitary conditions, about 10% of the urban houses and 19% of all houses had access to safe drinking water at the time of the census; 69% of the urban and 33% of the total had toilet facilities.

Notes

Central Ethiopia Regional State
Zones of Ethiopia
Zones in Central Ethiopia Regional State

Yem Zone


The Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) is the code department of the Illinois state government that collects state taxes, operates the state lottery, oversees the state's casino industry, oversees the state's thoroughbred and harness horse racing industries, and regulates the distribution of alcoholic beverages throughout Illinois, including beer, wine, and liquor. It is headquartered at the Willard Ice Building, 101 West Jefferson in Springfield, Illinois.

History
The Illinois Department of Revenue has increased in size in line with the creation of new taxes within the state and the expansion of existing taxes. A gasoline tax was enacted in Illinois in 1927, the sales tax was enacted in 1933; the state income tax was enacted in 1969, and the first lottery tickets were sold in 1974 in the state capital of Springfield.

In fiscal year 2007, the Illinois Department of Revenue expected to collect $24.6 billion in taxes and gambling revenues, about five-sixths of the state's general funds revenues for the year. IDOR expected to keep $1.0 billion of this sum (4.0%) to cover the costs of its own operations, and expected to transfer the rest to the office of the Illinois State Treasurer to pay for the ongoing operations of the state.

Organization
The Illinois Department of Revenue collects taxes on its own behalf and oversees the operations of three quasi-independent state boards and commissions, as follows:

The Illinois Gaming Board regulates Illinois casinos
 The Illinois Gaming Board/IGB utilizes sworn officers from the Illinois Department of Revenue - Bureau of Criminal Investigations (Special Agents) and Illinois State Police (Troopers) to staff the nine Riverboat Offices throughout the state as well as the IGB Headquarters in Chicago and Des Plaines.
Agents are responsible for conducting licensing and background investigations regarding casino ownership, management, employees, and suppliers associated with the Gaming industry. Agents investigate thefts, embezzlements, cheating, and illegal modifications of gaming devices as well as a host of other criminal activities. The IGB also enforces all regulations of the Riverboat Gambling Act and the Illinois Compiled Statutes.
Monitoring and regulating this industry has proved extraordinarily important to the State. More than 15 million individual admissions to the casinos are recorded annually, and total adjusted gross receipts exceed $1.7 billion on a yearly basis.;

The Illinois Racing Board regulates Illinois horse racetracks;
The Illinois Liquor Control Commission regulates the distribution of alcoholic beverages in Illinois.

Today
In 2018, IDOR Launched a Statewide Electronic Lien Registry in order to provide a single-source to locate all active liens and releases filed by the department.

See also
Illinois Department of the Lottery

References

External links
Illinois Department of Revenue
TITLE 86: REVENUE of the Illinois Administrative Code

Revenue
State law enforcement agencies of Illinois
US state tax agencies

Illinois Department of Revenue


The Arundel Manuscripts are a collection of manuscripts purchased by the British Museum in 1831 which are now part of the manuscript collection of the British Library.

The manuscripts were collected by Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel. In 1666, his grandson, Lance Henry Howard, divided the collection between the College of Arms and the Royal Society and in 1831, the manuscripts held by the Royal Society were purchased by the British Museum.

Notable examples include:
Codex Arundel
Howard Psalter and Hours

References

Further reading
Catalogue of Manuscripts in the British Museum, New Series, vol. I, part 1, The Arundel Manuscripts. London, 1834.

British Library Arundel collection

Arundel Manuscripts


Citizen Power: A Mandate for Change is a 2008 book on American politics by 2008 United States presidential candidate Mike Gravel, published by Authorhouse.  It describes the numerous efforts that Gravel has experienced throughout his political career as an Alaska state legislator and United States Senator from the 1960s, 1970s, and into the 1980s. His blueprint for a ballot initiative within the Federal government of the United States, known as the National Initiative, is also detailed greatly. Ralph Nader introduces the former senator in a foreword.

The book is a reissue and revision of Citizen Power: A People's Platform, which was authored by Gravel and published in 1972 by Holt, Rinehart and Winston (284 pages, ).  The original edition was published at the height of Gravel's national visibility following his actions against the Nixon administration regarding the Pentagon Papers and the Vietnam War.  It discussed not just Nixon and Vietnam, but also issues such as the environment, energy policy, taxation policy, governmental reform, and health care and other socio-economic matters, and Gravel's proposed solutions to them.  The book's focus was on the benefits that would come with greater citizen participation in government, and its proposal for a constitutional amendment to permit enactment of federal laws by public referendum would presage much of Gravel's future political efforting.

The 2008 edition also expands on ideas that he has been able to realize when he was off the scene of American politics for more than two decades.  Gravel also points out that some of his views on issues from the 1970s are still relevant in the 21st century, and still play a part in modern society. He also on some issues points out that his opinion was naïve, and expands on what he currently believes the actual answer should be.  Finally, he describes the process Americans can undertake to become empowered as lawmakers in partnership with their elected legislators.

Gravel explicitly used his 2008 presidential campaign to promote the release of the book, even after switching from the Democratic Party to Libertarian Party in March 2008.

References

External links
 Official website
 Amazon.com's book reviews and description
 OnTheIssues.org's book review and excerpts

Mike Gravel
1972 non-fiction books
2008 non-fiction books
Political books
Books about politics of the United States

Citizen Power


James Hodge Codding (July 8, 1849 – September 12, 1919) was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.

James H. Codding was born in Pike Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.  He moved to Towanda, Pennsylvania, in 1854.  He attended the Susquehanna Collegiate Institute in Towanda and Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.  He was engaged in the hardware business at Towanda in 1868.  He studied law, was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Towanda in 1879.

Codding was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-fourth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Myron B. Wright.  He was reelected to the Fifty-fifth Congress.  He was not a candidate for reelection in 1898.  He resumed the practice of law in Towanda, and in 1903 moved to New York City.  He served as grand secretary general of the northern Masonic jurisdiction for the Scottish Rite bodies from 1902 until his death in Brooklyn, New York, in 1919.  Interment in Oak Hill Cemetery in Towanda, Pennsylvania.

Sources

The Political Graveyard

1849 births
1919 deaths
Dartmouth College alumni
Pennsylvania lawyers
People from Towanda, Pennsylvania
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American lawyers

James Hodge Codding


Doreen Ashburnham-Ruffner, GC (13 May 1905 – 4 October 1991) was the youngest British female recipient of the Albert Medal which later became the George Cross.

Doreen Ashburnham was the granddaughter of Sir Anchitel Ashburnham, the eighth baronet of Broomham, Sussex. In adulthood she moved to California and became a member of the first women's polo team. She later moved to Italy to breed horses, and took the name Ruffner after she married and became a US Citizen in 1942.

Albert Medal
On 23 September 1916, Ashburnham was walking with her eight-year old friend Anthony Farrer on Vancouver Island when they were attacked by a 180lb mountain lion. She said of the attack "The cougar sprang from about 35ft and landed on my back, throwing me forward on to my face. He chewed on my shoulder and bit chunks off my butt.

"Tony attacked him with a bridle that he was carrying. They fought for 200 yards down the trail. The cougar scratched the skin off Tony's back and ripped the flesh off his scalp. His scalp was hanging off the back of his head by six hairs."

As the Albert Medal was replaced by the George Cross in 1971, Ashburnham's post-nominal letters changed from AM to GC at that time.

References

External links

1905 births
1991 deaths
People from Rye, East Sussex
Recipients of the Albert Medal (lifesaving)
Naturalized citizens of the United States
British recipients of the George Cross
Big cat attack victims

Doreen Ashburnham-Ruffner