{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = Pliocene?-Pleistocene (Montehermosan?–Lujanian)~
| image = Glyptodon-1.jpg
| image_caption = Skeleton of G. clavipes at the Naturhistorisches Museum, Vienna
| taxon = Glyptodon
| authority = Owen, 1839
| type_species = Glyptodon clavipes
| type_species_authority = Owen, 1839
| subdivision_ranks = Other Species
| subdivision = * G. elongatus? Burmeister, 1866
G. jatunkhirkhi Cuadrelli et al., 2020
 G. munizi Ameghino, 1881
 G. reticulatus Owen, 1845
| range_map = Glyptodon and Glyptotherium Distribution Map2.jpg
| range_map_caption = Distribution of Glyptodon (green) compared to Glyptotheriums (orange).
| synonyms =

}}Glyptodon (from Greek for "grooved or carved tooth": γλυπτός "sculptured" and ὀδοντ-, ὀδούς "tooth") is a genus of glyptodontine (an extinct group of large, herbivorous armadillos) in the family Chlamyphoridae (a family of South American armadillos) that lived from the Pliocene, around 3.2 million years ago, to the early Holocene, around 11,000 years ago, in Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Argentina, and Colombia. It is one of, if not the, best known genus of glyptodont. Glyptodon has a long and storied past, being the first named extinct cingulate and the type genus of the subfamily Glyptodontinae. Fossils of Glyptodon have been recorded as early as 1814 from Pleistocene aged deposits from Uruguay, though many were incorrectly referred to the ground sloth Megatherium by early paleontologists.

The type species, G. clavipes, was described in 1839 by notable British paleontologist Sir Richard Owen. Later in the 19th century, dozens of complete skeletons were unearthed from localities and described by paleontologists such as Florentino Ameghino and Hermann Burmeister. During this era, many species of Glyptodon were dubbed, some of them based on fragmentary or isolated remains. Fossils from North America were also assigned to Glyptodon, but all of them have since been placed in the closely related genus Glyptotherium. It was not until the later end of the 1900s and 21st century that full review of the genus came about, restricting Glyptodon to just five species under one genus.

Glyptodonts were typically large, quadrapedral (four-legged), herbivorous armadillos with armored carapaces (top shell) that were made of hundreds of interconnected osteoderms (structures in dermis composed of bone). Other pieces of armor covered the tails and skull roofs, the skull being tall with hypsodont (high-crowned) teeth. As for the postcranial anatomy, pelves fused to the carapace, an amalgamate vertebral column, short limbs, and small digits are found in glyptodontines. Glyptodon reached up to 2 meters (6.56 feet) long and 400 kilograms (880 pounds) in weight, making it one of the largest glyptodontines but not as large as its close relative Glyptotherium or Doedicurus, the largest known glyptodont. Glyptodon is morphologically and phylogenetically most similar to Glyptotherium, however they differ in several ways. Glyptodon is larger on average, with an elongated carapace, a relatively shorter tail, and a robust zygoma, or cheek bone.

Glyptodonts existed for millions of years, though Glyptodon itself was one its last surviving members. Glyptodon was one of many South American megafauna, with many native groups such as notoungulates and ground sloths reaching immense sizes. Glyptodon had a mixed diet of grasses and other plants, instead living at the edge forests and grasslands where the shrubbery was lower. Glyptodon had a wide muzzle, an adaptation for bulk feeding. The armor could have protected the animal from predators, of which many coexisted with Glyptodon, including the "saber-tooth cat" Smilodon, the large canid Protocyon, and the giant bear Arctotherium.

 History

 Confusion with Megatherium

The history and taxonomy of Glyptodon is storied and convoluted, as it involved confusion with other genera and dubious species, as well as a lack of detailed data. The first recorded discovery of Glyptodon was as early as 1814 when Uruguayan priest, scientist, soldier, and later politician Dámaso Antonio Larrañaga (1771-1848) wrote about the discovery of several unusual fossils in his Diario de Historia Natural, which included his descriptions of many new species of ants, birds, mammals, and even one of the first figures of the extinct Megatherium, a genus of giant ground sloth that was named in 1796 by French scientist Georges Cuvier (1769-1832). This was the first recorded discovery of a glyptodontine or fossil cingulate. The unusual fossils consisted of a femur, carapace fragments, and a caudal tube (an armored tail covering found in glyptodontines) that he collected from the Pleistocene aged (ca. 2.5-0.011 mya) strata on the banks of the Solís Grande Creek, Uruguay. Larrañaga identified the fossils as those of Dasypus  (Megatherium), believing that Megatherium was a subgenus of Dasypus based on the incorrect referral of glyptodontine osteoderms to Megatherium years earlier by Spanish scientist Juan Bautista Bru de Ramón, which misled other scientists to believe that glyptodontine fossils were actually those of armored megatheres.

Larrañaga wrote to French scientist Auguste Saint Hilaire about the discovery, and the letter was reproduced by Cuvier in 1823 in the second volume of his landmark book Recherches sur les ossemens fossiles. Larrañaga also noted that similar fossils had been found in "analogous strata near Lake Merrim, on the frontier of the Portuguese colonies (southern Brazil)." These fossils were also likely those of glyptodontines, possibly the closely related Hoplophorus. The armored Megatherium hypothesis was further supported later in 1827 when portions of a Glyptodon carapace, as well as a partial femur and some caudal armor, were found by a Prussian traveler to Montevideo, Uruguay named Mr. Sellow, who sent the carapace to Berlin where it was described by Professor von Weiss, who referred it to Megatherium. The femur and caudal armor were recovered from the Quegnay in northern Uruguay, while the carapace had been found in the Arapey River. Weiss and other paleontologists noted that the osteoderms closely resembled those of armadillos like Dasypus, but Cuvier's hypothesis was popularized based on the incorrect referral of glyptodontine osteoderms Megatherium.Another work on the armored Megatherium hypothesis was published in 1833 by Berlin scientist E. D'Alton, who described more of the material sent by Sellow, including portions of the limbs, manus, and shoulder girdle. D'Alton recognized the great similarities of the fossils to Dasypus and speculated that it was a giant armadillo, contrary to the notion that they were from Megatherium. Despite this, D'Alton did not erect a new name for the fossils and instead wrote that additional material was necessary to distinguish it from other armadillos. D'Alton did not mention Megatherium or its osteoderms in the paper, but he implied that all of the "Megatherium armor" was instead from his armadillo. This hypothesis was supported by Laurillard in 1836, who mentioned that a plaster cast of a large armadillo carapace represented a distinct taxon from Megatherium and that the armor referred to the sloth was instead from an armadillo.

1837 saw the naming of the first glyptodontine, Hoplophorus euphractus, when Danish paleontologist Peter Wilhelm Lund published a series of memoirs on the fossils of Lagoa Santa in Brazil, dating to the Pleistocene. The fossils included osteoderms comparable to those described earlier by Larrañaga, as well as teeth, skull fragments, limb bones, and other elements. After 1837, several new genera and species of glyptodontines were named in quick succession by European paleontologists: Chlamydotherium based on Sellow's carapace and Orycterotherium based on Sellow's femur were named by German scientist H. G. Bronn 1838, Pachypus by Eduard D'Alton in 1839 based on Sellow's 1833 material, Neothoracophorus (originally Thoracophorus but the name was preoccupied by a beetle) in 1889 by Argentine paleontologist Florentino Ameghino based on isolated osteoderms now identified as those of a juvenile Glyptodon from Patagonia, and Lepitherium in 1839 by Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire based on Sellow's osteoderms.Saint-Hilaire, E. G. (1831). Recherches sur de grands sauriens: trouvés à l'état fossile vers les confins maritimes de la basse normandie, attribués d'abord au crocodile, puis déterminés sous les noms de téléosaurus et sténéosaurus. Firmin Didot. Saint-Hillaire considered the osteoderms found by Sellow to not even be mammal, but instead of a relative of Teleosaurus, a crocodile-like reptile known from Jurassic deposits in France.

 Richard Owen and referred species

In 1838, British diplomat Sir Woodbine Parish (1796–1882) was sent an isolated molariform and a letter about the discovery of several large fossils from the Matanza River in Buenos Aires, Argentina that dated to the Pleistocene. Parish later collected several more fossils from localities in Las Averias and Villanueva; the latter preserved the most complete skeleton which included a mandible fragment, partial limbs, and unguals of a single individual. They were deposited in Parish's collection at the Royal College of Surgeons in the United Kingdom that year. Some of these fossils were cast at the Natural History Museum, London, but the original fossils were destroyed after German aerial bombing raids hit the college during World War II from 1940 to 1941. Glyptodon was named by Richard Owen (1804-1892), one of the most influential British naturalists of the Victorian Era, writing a chapter about the animal and publishing a reconstruction of its skeleton in the book Buenos Ayres, and the provinces of the Rio de La Plata: their present state, trade, and debt in 1839.Owen, R. (1839). Note on the Glyptodon. Buenos Aires and the Provinces of the Rio de La Plata, 1-178. Within this book, Owen erroneously believed they were all from the same specimen, the name Glyptodon ("grooved tooth") based on the anatomy of the molariform. A later study found the molariform to actually be from another glyptodontine, Panochthus, and the Villanueva individual was designated the lectotype by Robert Hoffstetter in 1955. The Las Averias individual consists of a carapace that was only mentioned in Owen's description, but was used in later reconstructions of the animal and has since been lost. An issue with the lectotype of G. clavipes is that the material is undiagnostic and indistinguishable from other Glyptodon species and even Glyptotherium, making it dubious.

Cuadrelli et al (2018) designated the species a species inquirenda due to this issue and commented that more analyses are necessary. In 1860, Signor Maximo Terrero collected a partial skeleton, including a skull and carapace, of G. clavipes from the River Salado in southern Buenos Aires and dated to the Pleistocene. These fossils were also sent to the Royal College of Surgeons, where they were described in detail by British paleontologist Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–1895) in 1865 during a comprehensive review of the taxon. This skeleton was also destroyed during WWII, but Huxley published several illustrations that presented great amounts of new information on the taxon.

Later in 1845, many more fossils found by Parish from Pleistocene layers in Argentina were named as new species of Glyptodon by Owen: G. ornatus, G. reticulatus, G. tuberculatus, and G. clavicaudatus in 1847. Of these additional species, only G. reticulatus is still considered a valid species of Glyptodon as G. ornatus was reassigned to the genus Neosclerocalyptus, G. tuberculatus to Panochthus, and G. clavicaudatus to Doedicurus. G. reticulatus was named on the basis of several carapace fragments that had also been recovered from the Matanza River, but they lack detailed locality information and the fossils too were destroyed during WWII. The fragments were cast by the NHMUK as well, being used to diagnose the species.

Other paleontologists also started erecting names for Glyptodon species after the 1840s, but many of them are now seen as dubious, species inquirenda, or synonymous with previously named species. Par L. Nodot described a new genus and species of glyptodontine in 1857, Schistopleurum typus, on the basis of a caudal tube found in the Pampas of Argentina, but it has since been synonymized with G. reticulatus. Another species now seen as valid, G. munizi, was described in 1881 by Argentine paleontologist Florentino Ameghino (1853–1911) on the basis of several osteoderms found in the Ensenadan of Arroyo del Medio, San Nicolás, Argentina.Ameghino, F. 1882. Catálogo de las colecciones de Antropología prehistórica y paleontología de Florentino Ameghino, Partido de Mercedes. En: Catálogo de la Sección de la Provincia de Buenos Aires (República Argentina). Exposición Continental Sudamericana. Anexo A: 35-42. For many years the taxon was only known from the fragmentary holotype, but skull and complete carapace material of the species was later described in detail in 2006 that cemented its validity. German zoologist Hermann Burmeister described several Glyptodon fossils in the 1860s, many of them he named as new species of Glyptodon itself or the synonym Schistopleurum, all of which are now synonyms of Glyptodon and its species. In 1908, Florentino Ameghino named another species of Glyptodon, G. chapalmalensis, based on a carapace fragment that he had collected from the Atlantic Coast of Buenos Aires Province that dated to the Chapadmalalan. In 1932, A. Castellanos made a new genus for G. chapalmalensis, Paraglyptodon, which later included another species, P. uquiensis, that was based on more complete specimens that had been collected from Uquía, Argentina between 1909 and 1912.Castellanos, A. (1953). Descripción de restos de" Paraglyptodon uquiensis" n. sp. de Uquía (Senador Pérez) de Jujuy (No. 32). la Provincia. The former species is dubious, but likely not Glyptodon based on its age. P. uquiensis has been synonymized with Glyptodon and is possibly a valid species, though further analysis is necessary to settle its status.

 Reassessment and Glyptotherium
In the 1950s, Argentine paleontologist Alfredo Castellanos (1893-1975) erected new generic names for several species of Glyptodon, the first being Glyptocoileus and second of these being Glyptopedius in 1953 that was made for the species G. elongatus that had been named by Robert Burmeister in 1866 on the basis of a single carapace, though its validity is disputed. Castellanos also referred the species G. reticulatus to the genus, but this unsupported. Yet another genus was erected in 1976 named Heteroglyptodon genuarioi by F. L. Roselli based on an incomplete skeleton that had been collected from the Pleistocene aged Libertad Formation in Nueva Palmira, Uruguay, but it has since been found to be an indeterminate specimen of Glyptodon. Several Glyptodon fossils from Pleistocene deposits in Colombia were described in 2012, extending the known range of the genus north greatly.

Another Glyptodon species was described in 2020 called G. jatunkhirkhi by several authors led by Argentine zoologist Francisco Cuadrelli on the basis of an individual preserving a nearly complete carapace, several caudal rings, and a pelvis that had been collected from Yamparaez,  southeast of the Bolivian city of Sucre. The strata they were found in was made up of fluvial, sandy sediments that dated to the Late Pleistocene from elevations as high as  above sea level. Several additional paratypes were referred to the species from other Late Pleistocene sites in Eastern Cordillera, Bolivia including a nearly complete skull and several osteoderms. In a phylogenetic analysis conducted by Cuadrelli et al., 2020, G. jatunkhirki was recovered as the most basal Glyptodon species, despite being the same age as the more derived species G. clavipes. Reassesment of Glyptodon species began in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, with various hypotheses developing on the number of valid species. Numbers varied, with some authors considering up to 4 species valid, while  phylogenetic analyses in 2018 and 2020 only found the species G. reticulatus, G. munizi, and G. jatunkhirkhi definitively valid; G. clavipes and G. uquiensis as species inquirendas. However a 2016 review of G. uquiensis determined that G. uquiensis was actually a juvenile specimen of Glyptodon, though the species could not be determined.

Fossils from North America were also described and referred to Glyptodon starting in 1875, when civil engineers J. N. Cuatáparo and Santiago Ramírez collected a skull, nearly complete carapace, and associated postcranial skeleton of a glyptodontine from a drainage canal near Tequixquiac, Mexico, the fossils coming from the Rancholabrean stage of the Pleistocene. These fossils were the first found of glyptodontines in North America and were named as a new species of Glyptodon, G. mexicanum, but the fossils have since been lost and the species was synonymized with Glyptotherium cylindricum. Several other North American glyptodontine species were named throughout the late 19th-early 20th century, typically based on fragmentary osteoderms. All North American and Central American fossils of glyptodontines have since been referred to the closely related genus Glyptotherium, which was named in 1903 by American paleontologist Henry Fairfield Osborn.

 Taxonomy Glyptodon is the type genus of Glyptodontinae, an extinct subfamily of large, heavily armored armadillos that first evolved in the Late Eocene (ca. 33.5 mya) and went extinct in the Early Holocene during the late Pleistocene extinctions (ca. 7,000 years ago). Owen recognized that Glyptodon was an edentate, but did not recognize it as being a part of a new subfamily as there were no other recognized glyptodontines in 1839. The family Glyptodontidae was not named until 1869 by John Edward Gray, who included the genera Glyptodon, Panochthus, and Hoplophorus within the group and believed that it was diagnosed by an immovable carapace that was fused to the pelvis. However, Hermann Burmeister proposed the name Biloricata for the family, believing that glyptodontines possessed a ventral plastron (bottom shell) and could pull their heads inside their carapaces like turtles. This name lost all use and his theory has not been supported. The internal phylogenetics of Glyptodontidae was analyzed in greater detail by Florentino Ameghino during his descriptions of earlier members of the clade, which proposed that Glyptodon was descended from earlier genera.

Glyptodontinae was classified in its own family or even superfamily until in 2016, when ancient DNA was extracted from the carapace of a 12,000 year old Doedicurus specimen, and a nearly complete mitochondrial genome was reconstructed (76x coverage). Comparisons with those of modern armadillos revealed that glyptodonts diverged from tolypeutine and chlamyphorine armadillos approximately 34 million years ago in the late Eocene. This prompted moving them from their own family, Glyptodontidae, to the subfamily Glyptodontinae within the extant Chlamyphoridae. Based on this and the fossil record, glyptodonts would have evolved their characteristic shape and large size (gigantism) quite rapidly, possibly in response to the cooling, drying climate and expansion of open savannas. Chylamyphoridae is a group in the order Cingulata, which includes all extant armadillos in addition to other fossil groups like Pachyarmatheriidae and Pampatheridae. Cingulata is itself within the basal mammal group Xenarthra, which includes an array of American mammal groups like Vermilingua (anteaters) and Folivora (sloths and ground sloths) in the order Pilosa. The following phylogenetic analysis was conducted by Frédéric Delsuc and colleagues in 2016 and represents the phylogeny of Cingulata using ancient DNA from Doedicurus to determine the position of it and other Glyptodonts:

The internal phylogeny of Glyptodontinae is convoluted and in flux, with many species and families erected based on fragmentary or undiagnostic material that lacks comprehensive review. Glyptodontinae's tribes were long-considered subfamilies before the 2016 analysis. One tribe, Glyptodontini (typically labeled Glyptodontinae) is a group of younger, larger glyptodontines that evolved in the Middle Miocene (ca. 13 mya) with Boreostemma, but split into two genera, Glyptodon in the south and Glyptotherium in the north, though Glyptotherium also lived in some areas of South America like Venezuela and eastern Brazil. Glyptotherium and Glyptodon lived during the same intervals and are nearly identical to Glyptodon in many aspects, so much so that the first fossils of Glyptotherium to be described were misidentified as those of Glyptodon.Cope, E. D. (1889). the edentata of North America. The American Naturalist, 23(272), 657-664. Glyptodontini is distinguishable from other groups for example in that it has large, conical tubercular osteoderms absent or only present on the caudal (tailward) notch on the posterior end of the carapace and different ornamentation of the armor on the carapace than the tail. Glyptodontini is often recovered as more basal to most other glyptodontines like Doedicurus, Hoplophorus, and Panochthus.Below is the phylogenetic analysis conducted by Cuadrelli et al., 2020 of Glyptodontinae, with Glyptodontidae as a family instead of subfamily, that focuses on advanced glyptodonts:

 Description

Like the extant armadillos and all other glyptodontines, Glyptodon had a large, bony carapace that covered much of its torso, as well as smaller cephalic armor covering the roof of its head, akin to that in turtles. The carapace was composed of hundreds of small, hexagonal osteoderms (armored structures made of bone), with Glyptodon carapaces preserving a total of 1,800 osteoderms each. The anatomy of different Glyptodon species varies greatly, mostly in the species G. jatunkhirkhi which is more similar to Glyptotherium in certain aspects.

In the axial skeleton, glyptodontines had strongly fused vertebrae and pelves completely connected to the carapace, traits convergently evolved in turtles.  The large tails of glyptodontines likely served as a counterbalance to the rest of the body and Glyptodon's caudal armor ended in a blunt tube that was composed of two concentric tubes fused together, in contrast to those of mace-tailed glyptodontines like Neosclerocalyptus and Doedicurus. Glyptodon had graviportal (weight-bearing), short limbs that are very similar to those in other glyptodontines, being indistinguishable from those of some other taxa. The digits of Glyptotherium are very stout and adapted for weight-bearing, though some preserve large claw sheaths that had an intermediate morphology between claws and hooves.

During the Pleistocene, the diversity of glyptodontines diminished but body size increased, with the largest known glyptodont, Doedicurus, evolving in the Pleistocene. Glyptodon sizes vary between species and individuals. G. clavipes, the type species, was estimated to weigh , G. reticulatus weighed a mere  to , and G. munizi weighed . A partial skeleton of G. clavipes measured  with a carapace length of , while the carapaces of other species like G. munizi and G. reticulatus measured  and  long respectively.

 Skull, mandible, and dentition

Glyptodont dentition contains entirely hypsodont molariforms, which have one of the most extreme examples of hypsodonty known from terrestrial mammals. The dentition is typical of other armadillos, but is fluted on each side by deep grooves. The anterior teeth were compressed, while the posterior teeth were cylindrical. Glyptodont skulls have several unique features; the maxilla and palatine are enlarged vertically to make space for the molariforms, while the braincase is brachycephalic, short and flat. In Glyptodon and many other glyptodontines, the roof of the skull was covered by a shield composed of polygonal, irregular osteoderms that were variable in size and ankylosed together to form a robust cephalic shield that had a smoothly convex exterior surface without ornamentation. Each osteoderm has a rugose and slightly convex dorsal surface, with ornamentation pattern defined by a central figure, slightly elevated and surrounded by an area without peripheral figures or foramina. Sutures separating osteoderms are well marked, as in Panochthus. Other Pleistocene glyptodontines are known by complete/sub-complete skulls, allowing for comparisons to Glyptodon. Glyptotherium's zygoma are narrow, slender, almost parallel, and close to the sagittal plane in frontal view; in Glyptodon, this structure is broader, robust, divergent rather than parallel and more laterally placed.

The nasal passage was reduced with heavy muscle attachments for some unknown purpose. Some have speculated that the muscle attachments were for a proboscis, or trunk, much like that of a tapir or elephant. The lower jaws were very deep and helped support massive chewing muscles to help chew coarse fibrous plants. Some paleontologists have proposed that Glyptodon and some glyptodontines also had a proboscis or large snout similar to those in proboscideans and tapirs, but few have accepted this hypothesis. Another suggestion, made by A.E. Zurita and colleagues, is that the large nasal sinuses could be correlated with the cold arid climate of Pleistocene South America. A distinctive bar of bone projects downwards on the cheek, extending over the lower jaw, perhaps providing an anchor for powerful snout muscles. In turn, the infraorbital foramina are narrow and not visible in anterior view in Glyptotherium, but in Glyptodon they are broad and clearly visible in anterior view. In lateral view, the dorso-ventral height between the skull roof and the palatal plane in Glyptodon decreases anteriorly, contrary to Glyptotherium; the nasal tip is in a lower plane with respect to the zygomatic arch in Glyptodon, but in Glyptotherium is higher than the zygomatic arch plane. The 1st molariform (molaiform is abbreviated as mf#) of Glyptodon is distinctly trilobate (three-lobed) both lingually and labially, nearly as trilobate as the mf2; on the contrary, Glyptotherium shows a very low trilobation of mf1, which is elliptical in cross-section, the mf2 is weakly trilobate, and the mf3 is trilobate. In both genera, the mf4 to mf8 are fully trilobate and serially identical. These traits separate the two genera. Within the genus Glyptodon this trait varies as well, with G. reticulatus having triloby to a greater degree than G. munizi.The mandibles of Glyptotherium and Glyptodon are very similar, but Glyptotherium's mandible is smaller by about 10% in total size. The angle between the occlusal plane (part of the jaw where upper and lower teeth contact) and the anterior margin of the ascending ramus is approximately 60 in Glyptotherium, while it is 65° in Glyptodon. The ventral margin of the horizontal ramus is more concave in Glyptodon than in Glyptotherium. The symphysis area is extended greatly in Glyptotherium antero-posteriorily compared to Glyptodon. The mf1 is ellipsoidal in Glyptotherium and the mf2 is "submolariform", while in Glyptodon both teeth are trilobate.

 Vertebrae and pelvis Glyptodon has 7 cervical vertebrae, of which the first 3 cervicals were fused together while the rest of the cervicals were free except for the 7th. The 7th cervical and the first 2 dorsal vertebrae were fused together into a trivertebral, a broad, flat bone with very small spinous processes (projections from a vertebra) and large articular surfaces that held ribs. All of the other 13 vertebrae in the dorsal column were fused into one long continuous tunnel that is not seen in mammals outside of glyptodontines, some of these vertebrae were so tightly fused that the segments of them cannot be discerned. The centra of these vertebrae were curved, thin bony plates that created a cylinder to support the carapace and the shape of the animal. Spinous processes in these vertebrae are also heavily reduced, with some being only a thin blade of bone ankylosed with other vertebrae. Sacral vertebrae in Glyptodon are also fused and 13 in number, which preserve very unusual oval-shaped, thin, and slightly concave ends on the centra. The pelves are also unusual, as they preserve giant ilia and are fused to the rest of the skeleton.

 Carapace and osteoderms
thumb|Glyptodon carapace in Hungarian Natural History Museum|alt=A Glyptodon carapace.Glyptodons osteoderms were attached by synotoses (bony connections) and were found in double or triple rows on the front and sides of the carapace's edges, as well as in the tail armor and cephalic shield. The carapace's osteoderms were conical with a rounded point, while the ones on the tail were just conical. The sulci between these raised structures were deep and wide with parallel lines. The carapace of Glyptodon was strongly elongated compared to those of Boreostemma and Glyptotherium, with the carapace being relatively 65% longer than the former and 14% than the latter. In Glyptodon, the top-bottom height of the carapace represents 60% of its total length, whereas in Glyptotherium it is taller at circa 70%. The antero-posterior dorsal profile of the carapace was convex and its posterior half was higher than the anterior. The apex of the carapace was slightly displaced posteriorly in most Glyptodon species, while in Glyptotherium and Glyptodon jatunkhirkhi it was at the center of the midline. The carapace of most species of Glyptodon is arched subtly, while Glyptotherium and Glyptodon jatunkhirkhis has a very arched back and convex pre-iliac and concave post-iliac, giving it a saddle-like overhang over the tail.  Glyptodon osteoderms in the antero-lateral regions of the carapace are strongly ankylosed, giving them little flexibility, while in Glyptotherium they are less ankylosed and more flexible. The osteoderms of the caudal aperture (large conical osteoderms that protect the base of the tail) are more conical in Glyptodon and more rounded in Glyptotherium, though in the latter the anatomy of the caudal aperture osteoderms varies by sex while in Glyptodon it varies by age. The caudal aperture is more vertically oriented in the latter genus, while in Glyptotheirum it is angled posteriorily. Although frequently used to differentiate the two taxa, Glyptodon and Glyptotherium have similar osteoderm morphologies that differ only in several areas. Both genera have tall, thick osteoderms compared to those of many other glyptodontines such as Hoplophorus and Neosclerocalyptus. Glyptodon sometimes preserves a "rosette" pattern, where the osteoderm's central figure is surrounded by a row of peripheral figures, while other specimens lack them completely. G. reticulatus varies from a complete rosette pattern to a reticular surface, which has convex central and peripheral figures. Glyptotherium however always preserves rosettes. The central and radial sulci are deeper and broader in Glyptodon (ca. 4–6 mm) than in Glyptotherium (ca. 1–2.4 mm). The osteoderms in Glyptodon and Glyptotherium have 5-11 peripheral figures, rugose exposed surfaces, and heights up to .

Osteoderms on the ventral side of the body were first mentioned by paleontologist Hermann Burmeister in 1866, postulating that there was a ventral plastron like in turtles based on evidence of small armor in the dermis. This hypothesis has since been disproven, but in the early 2000s, the presence of osteoderms on Glyptodons face, hind legs, and underside was confirmed in several species. The fossils with these characteristics were from the Pleistocene, evolving in younger species like G. reticulatus . These small to medium-sized ossicles were actually embedded in the dermis and did not connect in a pattern.

 Tail Glyptodon had very primitive tail anatomy for a glyptodont, possessing eight or nine mobile caudal rings of fused, large, conical osteoderms. These enclosed the base of the tail, which terminated in a short caudal tube composed of two fused caudal rings. Caudal rings were composed of two or three rows of pentagonal osteoderms that transitioned from flat, slightly convex in the posterior rings to conical tubercles by the third caudal ring. The more posterior the rings were, the larger they were, with the exception of the 2nd ring which was the largest and 1st complete ring in the series, creating a cone-shaped tail. The distal scutes are larger, and their free margins are rounded producing a fan-like shape. Most of the osteoderms of the distal row (some individuals preserving up to 12) bear prominent conical outlines, in stark contrast to more advanced glyptodontines like Doedicurus and Panochthus, which had completely fused tails that formed an inflexible mace or club. The caudal tube at the distalmost end of the tail is cylinder-shaped with smaller conical osteoderms and is stubbier proportionally in Glyptodon. In Glyptotherium, this caudal tube represents ca. 20% of the total length of the caudal armor, whereas in Glyptodon, this structure represents 13% of the total length. In Glyptodon, the caudal armor length represents circa 30-40% of the carapace's total length in contrast to Glyptotherium, where this value is greater at around 50%. For example, in specimen MCA 2015 of Glyptodon reticulatus, the terminal tube measured only  long in comparison to Glyptotherium texanum specimen UMMP 34 826's  long tube.

 Paleobiology
 Digging abilities

Many armadillo species have digging capabilities, with large claws adapted for scraping dirt in order to make burrows or forage for food underground.Carter, T. S., & Encarnaçao, C. D. (1983). Characteristics and use of burrows by four species of armadillos in Brazil. Journal of Mammalogy, 64(1), 103-108. Much of armadillo diets consist of insects and other invertebrates that live underground, in contrast to the herbivorous diets of Glyptodon and related genera. Being a large armadillo, Glyptodon's fossorial capabilities have been researched on several occasions. Owen (1841) opposed this idea, though pushback came from Nodot (1856) and Sénéchal (1865) who believed digging was possible for the genus. However, the evolution of a rigid carapace as opposed to a flexible one in extant armadillos as well as a weakly developed deltoid crest on the humerus (upper arm bone) provided evidence against fossorial hypotheses. The elbow had a great range of movement, as with digging cingulates, but this is more likely to be due to size adaptations.

 Endocranial anatomy

Several complete skulls of Glyptodon enable the endocranial anatomy to be analyzed, as well as compared to other well-preserved taxa like Doedicurus and Panochthus. The brain cavities of the larger glyptodontines Glyptodon, Doedicurus, and Panochthus had a braincase volume of . The encephalization quotient of these taxa are 0.12 to 0.4, lower than most modern armadillos (0.44-1.06) and corresponds to those of pampatheres. The brain of the glyptodontines had an extensive olfactory bulb that took up between 4.8 and 9.7% of the entire brain, while around two thirds of it were occupied by the cerebrum and the rest by the cerebellum. Overall, this is akin to that of other armadillos, but in the latter the cerebrum is smaller relative to the cerebellum and the braincase's total volume. Deviating from the armadillos with their wide olfactory bulb, glyptodontines and pampatheres have elongated and triangular olfactory systems. Several other neuroanatomical characteristics differ between glyptodontines and armadillos, such as the presence of a pronounced sulcus praesylvianus.

In general, living cingulates have smaller brains than anteaters and sloths for reasons unknown. Several theories have been made as to why, such as a shorter rearing phase of offspring, dedication of resources to the development of the carapace, and other biological and functional handicaps. Members of Cingulata also tend to have extremely low metabolisms, causing less energy flow to the development of the brain's neurons. The pattern of large bodies bearing adequate protection and a reduction of intelligence is found in several other groups such as ankylosaurs and stegosaurs, two types of armored dinosaur. However, the carapace itself is considered as a restrictive functional component as it prohibited much neck movement and forced a reduced brain size. This reduction thus resulted in weight loss in the skull, which had a great affect on the skulls of large-headed glyptodontines like Glyptodon.

 Feeding and diet

Two main groups of glyptodontines can be distinguished by their feeding habits: narrow-muzzled Miocene propalaehoplophorids and wide-muzzled post-Miocene glyptodontines. The propalaehoplophorids were selective feeders, while the post-Miocene glyptodontines were bulk feeders (obtain nutrients by consuming an entire plant). However, because of their body form and fusion of the cervical vertebrae glyptodontines would have needed to forage near the ground. Their craniomandibular joint limited their jaw to side-to-side movement. Glyptodon's jaws had large ridges of osteodentine which could effectively be used to grind food particles before shearing and pushing them via the constant motion of the mandible. They had a well-developed snout musculature, along with a mobile neck region that helped them secure food. The hyoid shows a robust design that suggests Glyptodon had a large and robust tongue, which may have aided in food intake and processing.Zamorano, M., Scillato-Yané, G. J., Soibelzon, E., Soibelzon, L. H., Bonini, R., & Rodriguez, S. (2018). Hyoid apparatus of Panochthus sp.(Xenarthra; Glyptodontidae) from the Late Pleistocene of the Pampean region (Argentina). Comparative description and muscle reconstruction. Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie Abhandlungen, 288, 205-219.

Like most other xenarthrans, glyptodontines had lower energy requirements than contemporary mammal groups. The stomachs of glyptodontids are mysterious due to being entirely herbivorous, in contrast to modern, omnivorous armadillos which have simple stomachs instead of the chambered ones of sloths. This in conjugation with the proposed idea that aquatic grazing may have caused the isotopes strongly associated with herbivory observed in Glyptodon fossils. However, aquatic grazing in Glyptodon is little supported though more backing for this hypothesis has been found in the related Glyptotherium. A carbon isotopic analysis of Glyptodon bones by França et al (2015) found that it consumed a variety of both C3 plants and C4 grasses at lower latitudes while it ate exclusively C3 grasses at higher ones, implying an ecological shift based on the climate. A 2012 analysis of isotopes supports this, but the isotopic results are not backed by morphological evidence. The isotopic conclusion would place Glyptodon as a mixed browser in most environments, similar to some other glyptodontines. The 2012 paper also noted that Glyptodon may have had a more flexible diet than previously imagined, with a mix of slightly wooded and slightly open habitats as implied by the consumption of C3 and C4 material. The C4 plants include groups like Poaceae, Cyperaceae, Asteraceae, and Amaranthaceae based on palynological evidence, meaning that Glyptodon likely ate C4 flowering plants in addition to C3 grasses. A mesowear analysis supported their conclusion, however, finding that mixed-feeding causing blunt wear that suggests a more abrasion-dominated diet. This is similar to that of Neosclerocalyptus, but in contrast to Hoplophorus which had sharper wear ends. Neosclerocalyptus favored more open environments despite this, as found by isotopic studies. The mesowear angles of Glyptodon were noted to possess a bimodal distribution, implying a difference between populations, sexes, or species in diet.

 Intraspecific combat

Glyptodonts are believed to have taken part in intraspecific fighting. It was presumed that since the tail of Glyptodon was very flexible and had rings of bony plates, it was used as a weapon in fights. Although its tail could be used for defense against predators, evidence suggests that the tail of Glyptodon was primarily for attacks on its own kind. A G. reticulatus fossil displays damage done on the surface of its carapace. A study based on this specimen calculated that Glyptodon tails would have been able to generate enough force to break the carapace of another Glyptodon. This suggests that they likely fought each other to settle territorial or mating disputes through the use of their tails, much like male-to-male fighting among deer using their antlers. .

 Ontogeny
In 2009, a partial skeleton of a prenatal individual of Glyptodon was described that had been found inside of the pelvic region of a carapace of an adult. The skeleton had been collected from the Pleistocene-aged deposits in the Tarija Valley of Bolivia and included a partial skull, partial mandible, and fragments from the scapulae and femora. The skeleton is the only known prenatal specimen of a glyptodontine and is one of the most complete specimens of an immature Glyptodon known, though dozens of isolated osteoderms from juveniles are known. The preserved skull measures only 51 mm long, but still bears many characteristics of Glyptodon such as a subtriangular naris, a lateral margin on the naris that forms an acute angle of 30-degrees, oval infraorbital foramina, and several other traits. However, the mandible differs in that the ascending ramus is at a 90-degree angle in contrast to the 60-70 degree angles preserved in adults. Interestingly, this mandibular morphology is alike to that in some specimens of Glyptotherium cylindricum.In the osteoderms of juvenile Glyptodon reticulatus, the central figures are larger than the peripheral osteoderms. These central figures are planar, sometimes even concave, and elevated compared to the peripherals. The peripherals in younger individuals are also less distinct and bear weakly marked or absent furrows (grooves that separate osteoderms). On the other hand, peripherals and central figures of adults are similarly sized, distinct, and of similar heights.

 Posture
Several interpretations of glyptodontine posture have been made, starting with those by Richard Owen in 1841 using comparative anatomy. Owen theorized that the phalanges were weight-bearing due to their short and broad physiology, in addition to evidence provided in the postcranial skeleton. It was also proposed that an upright posture was possible for Glyptodon, first by Sénéchal (1865) who stated that the tail could be an equilibrium for the front half of the body as well as a method of supporting the legs. Linear measurements were later taken which provided insight into this hypothesis, finding that bipedalism would be possible. The patellar articulation with the femur suggests rotation of the lower leg during knee extension and potentially even knee-locking were feasible.

 Sexual dimorphism and group behavior
No evidence of sexual dimorphism in Glyptodon has been described, but it has been observed in the close relative Glyptotherium based on fossils found in Pliocene deposits in Arizona. In the genus, the caudal aperture of males and females differ in that the marginal osteoderms of males are much more conical and convex than those of females. Even in the carapaces of newborn Glyptotherium, the marginal osteoderms are either conical or flat, which enables their sex to be determined. No direct evidence of glyptodontine group behavior has been described, though some localities preserving juveniles, subadults, and adults of Glyptotherium together are known. Living armadillos are loners and only come together during mating season, with the number of offspring varying between one and even twelve babies depending on the species.

 Distribution and paleoecology Glyptodon is one of the most common Pleistocene glyptodontines with a large range from the lowland Pampas to the towering Andean Mountains of Peru and Bolivia, some fossils found at elevations reaching over  above sea level. Only G. munizi is found in the early-middle Pleistocene, whereas other species are younger. G. reticulatus is specifically noted to be known from 60ka to as recent as 7ka possibly, though confirmed records only extend to 11 ka. The genus had a generalist diet, which allowed it to fill niches in areas that were inaccessible by grazing genera, with G. reticulatus representing up to 90% of the glyptodontine fossils in the Tarija Valley of Bolivia. However, in regions such as the Pampas, Mesopotamia, and Uruguay, an array of glyptodontines are known. Further evidence of Glyptodons adaptability is found in the Pampas, which were semihumid and temperate from 30,000 to 11,000 ka, alternating between the rainy and dry seasons, over a large area consisting mostly of grasslands dotted with forests and mixed shrubbery. Temperatures in this region were lower than the present, with an estimated mean annual temperature  in the Pampas compared to  in Buenos Aires today. The Pampas specifically was a mix of semi-arid Patagonian and tropical Brazilian climates during the middle Pleistocene before the expansion of the drier climates. This is in stark contrast to the Bermejo Formation of Formosa Province, Argentina where the climate and fauna suggest a more arid environment with fewer grasslands.Zurita, A. E., M. Taglioretti, M. De los Reyes, C. Oliva, and F. Scaglia. 2014. First Neogene skulls of Doedicurinae (Xenarthra, Glyptodontidae): morphology and phylogenetic implications. Historical Biology 28:423–432. G. jatunkhirkhi specifically is known only from Andean climate of Eastern Cordillera in Bolivia, causing it to evolve to be smaller in size than lowland species due to less support for larger masses. G. jatunkhirkhi is not the only example of this in Xenarthra, with species of Panochthus and Pleurolestodon evolving to be smaller in size in mountainous regions.

During the Ensenadan and Marplatan, Glyptodon coexisted with a variety of mammals unique to the period such as the notoungulate Mesotherium, canid Theriodictis, and a species of the giant bear Arctotherium angustidens. In areas such as Uruguay, fossils of Glyptodon have been unearthed alongside the contemporary glyptodontines Doedicurus, Neuryurus, Panochthus; armadillos Chaetophractus, Propaeopus, and Eutatus; and the insectivorous pampathere Pampatherium. As for their distant relatives the ground sloths, the humongous Megatherium is known, in addition to two species of the scelidothere Catonyx, and the mylodontid genera Mylodon and Glossotherium. Some other groups are known, including the unusual litopternans Macrauchenia and Neolicaphrium, notoungulate Toxodon, massive proboscidean Notiomastodon, and the equids Equus neogeus and Hippidion. Various artiodactyls have been recorded, including the peccaries Catagonus and Tayassu peccari, extinct deers Morenelaphus and Antifer, and two genera of llamas including Hemiauchenia and Lama. A variety of carnivorans have been recorded, such as the "saber-toothed" Smilodon, the bear Arctotherium bonariense, and the wolf-like canids Protocyon, and Dusicyon. Rodents too have been found, such as Holochilus, Hydrochoerus (capybara), Cavia, and Microcavia. Notably, some of the youngest "terror-bird" fossils of the genus Psilopterus have been unearthed in the area.

Material previously assigned to Glyptodon in northeast Brazil has been reassigned to Glyptotherium, restricting the Brazilian distribution of Glyptodon to the southern provinces. However, two osteoderms with characteristics similar to those of Glyptodon have been found in Sergipe state in the northeast, suggesting that both genera occurred in this region during the Pleistocene. Glyptodon's northernmost locality comes from Pleistocene deposits in central Colombia, though many specimens formerly attributed to the genus come from the bordering country of Venezuela.

 Predation and relationship with humans Glyptodon coexisted with a variety of large predators including the cat Smilodon, jaguar, and canid Protocyon.Montalvo, C. I., Zárate, M. A., Bargo, M. S., & Mehl, A. (2013). Registro faunístico y paleoambientes del Cuaternario tardío, provincia de La Pampa, Argentina. Ameghiniana, 50(6), 554-570. This belief is furthered by the discovery of fractured dorsal armor, which implies that Glyptodon had been in physical conflict with other animals. However, isotope analyses of the collagen from Glyptodon and other mammals of the Pampas region by Bocherens et al. (2015) discovered little evidence to support the idea of predators feeding on Glyptodon. Instead, it was found that Glyptodon as well as herbivorous mammals living in denser forests made up a smaller portion of carnivore diets, whereas open grazers such as Lestodon and Macrauchenia were consumed more often. Furthermore, the appearance of secondary armor in the dermis of Glyptodon coincides with the arrival of North American predators in South America during the Great American Interchange. For this reason, it was hypothesized that the osteoderms developed as a defensive/offensive mechanism to combat the new arrivals of the area.Smilodon may have occasionally preyed upon glyptodontines, based on a skull of Glyptotherium texanum which bears the distinctive elliptical puncture marks that best match those of the machairodont cat, indicating that the predator successfully bit into the skull through the armored cephalic shield. The Glyptotherium in question was a juvenile, with a still-developing head shield, making it far more vulnerable to the cat's attack. Although originally theorized by George Brandes to be possible in 1900, Smilodon canines could not pierce the thick carapace osteoderms of glyptodontines. Brandes imagined that the evolution of thick glyptodontine armor and long machairodont canines was an example of coevolution, but Birger Bohlin argued in 1940 that the teeth were far too fragile to do damage against glyptodontine armor.
The coexistence of early hunter-gatherer humans and glyptodontines in South America was first hypothesized in 1881 based on fossil discoveries from the Pampas, and many fossil discoveries from the Late Pleistocene to Early Holocene have been unearthed since that exhibit human predation on glyptodontines. No fossils of Glyptodon preserving direct interactions have been unearthed, but it did inhabit this region alongside humans. At the site of Pay Paso 1, an archaeological site in northwestern Uruguay preserving human-made spear points and other signs of culture were found associated with fossils of Glyptodon and the horse Equus. These were used for radiocarbon dating using collagen, supposedly dating to around 9,000 to 9,500 BP but these dates cannot be verified. During this period, a wide array of Xenarthrans inhabited the Pampas were hunted by humans, with evidence demonstrating that the small () glyptodontine Neosclerocalyptus, the armadillo Eutatus, and the gigantic (2 ton) glyptodontine Doedicurus, the largest glyptodontine known, were hunted. The only other records of human predation from outside the Pampas area a partial carapace, which was eviscerated by humans, and several skulls preserving signs that they were dispatched by human tools. All were found in Venezuela. The discoveries there showed the first signs of human hunting on the skulls of glyptodontines.  Hunters may have used the shells of dead animals as shelters in inclement weather.Politis, Gustavo G. and Gutierrez, Maria A. (1998) "Gliptodontes y Cazadores-Recolectores de la Region Pampeana (Argentina)" ("Glyptodonts and Hunter-Gatherers in the Pampas Region (Argentina)") Latin American Antiquity9(2): pp.111–134 in Spanish

 Extinction
Some evidence suggests that humans drove glyptodontines to extinction. Evidence from the Campo Laborde and La Moderna archaeological sites in the Argentine Pampas suggest that Glyptodons relatives Doedicurus and Panochthus survived until the Early Holocene, coexisting with humans for a minimum of 4,000 years. This overlap provides support for models showing that the South American Pleistocene extinctions resulted from a combination of climatic change and anthropogenic causes. These sites have been interpreted as ones used for butchering megafauna (Megatherium and Doedicurus); however, some of the chronology has been problematic and controversial, due to poor preservation of the collagen used for dating. The extinction rates in South America during the Quaternary Extinction Event were the highest out of any continent, with all endemic animals weighing over  going extinct by the middle Holocene. This supports the idea of human hunting as a drive for the extinction of Glyptodon, as the arrival of humans around 16,000 years BP to such a formerly isolated continent may have caused extinction rates to become higher.

The extinction of Glyptodon notably coincides with the end of the Antarctic Cold Reversal period in which, for 1,700 years, temperatures dropped before spiking after ending at 12.7 ka. Many climatic fluctuations occurred during the late Pleistocene between humid and dry cycles, with Glyptodon preferring drier climates. Following the Antarctic Cold Reversal, temperatures rose and the climate became more consistently humid, which then led C3 grasses to become increasingly replaced by C4 grasses and southern beech trees. These changes led vulnerable, grazing-specialized forms like glyptodontines, toxodonts, and some ground sloths to become extinct.  Around 11.5 ka, temperatures peaked before again dropping, resulting in the extinction of several different genera of mammals including some megafauna. Glyptodon along with genera such as Glossotherium and Morenelaphus were wiped out, though several other groups lived for several thousand years after.

See also

References

Armadillos
Prehistoric cingulates
Prehistoric placental genera
Pleistocene xenarthrans
Pleistocene mammals of North America
Pleistocene mammals of South America
Pleistocene Argentina
Fossils of Argentina
Pleistocene Brazil
Fossils of Brazil
Pleistocene Paraguay
Fossils of Paraguay
Pleistocene Peru
Fossils of Peru
Pleistocene Uruguay
Fossils of Uruguay
Fossil taxa described in 1839
Taxa named by Richard Owen
Pleistocene Colombia
Fossils of Colombia

Glyptodon


The Spirit of Christmas is the title given to two adult stop motion animated short films created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The two films were released at different periods—the first in 1992, and the second in 1995—and form the basis for the animated series South Park, the latter short featuring more established depictions of the series' setting and characters. To differentiate between them, the respective films have been retroactively referred to as Jesus vs. Frosty and Jesus vs. Santa. A clip of both films appears on two respective billboards during the opening sequence for South Park'''s first four seasons (prior to the fourth season episode "Fourth Grade").

 1992 film (Jesus vs. Frosty)

Plot
A group of four boys are building their own Frosty the Snowman, and in the spirit of the song, use a magic top hat to bring him to life, despite the warnings of one of the boys. The snowman quickly develops a psychopathic disposition, proceeding to kill one of the boys, Kenny, to the other boys' shock.

The boys seek aid from what appears to be Santa Claus. He reveals himself to be Frosty and kills another of the boys. The two remaining boys run away toward a Nativity scene. Jesus emerges from the scene and defeats Frosty by slicing off his hat with his halo. After Jesus returns to the scene, the two boys realize the purported "true" meaning of Christmas: presents. A Goat sniffs on Kenny's corpse, as the boys return to their homes to find presents hidden by their parents.

Production
In 1992, Parker and Stone created The Spirit of Christmas while attending the University of Colorado under the Avenging Conscience moniker. Prior to this, Parker and Stone ran camera tests, during which they made impressions of children's voices, which were later used in South Park. Near the end of the semester, Parker conceived The Spirit of Christmas after watching a series of films with Stone. The film, created with construction paper and filmed with an old 8 mm film camera, premiered during the December 1992 student film screening. The film features four children very similar in appearance to three of the four main characters of South Park, including a character resembling Eric Cartman named Kenny, a hooded boy resembling Kenny McCormick, and two other boys similar in appearance and voice to Stan Marsh and Kyle Broflovski.South Park behind the scenes: With Trey Parker and Matt Stone

The film is referenced in the season six episode "Simpsons Already Did It". In the episode, Tweek Tweak is reluctant to complete a snowman out of fear that it will come to life and kill him, to which Stan replies, "Dude, when has that ever happened except for that one time?"

 1995 film (Jesus vs. Santa)

 Plot
The boys are singing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" when Stan points out that Kyle is Jewish. Kyle then starts to sing the "Dreidel Song", but is mocked by Stan and Cartman. Their arguing is interrupted when Jesus appears, asking them to lead him to the mall, where they find Santa Claus.

Jesus is angry with Santa because he feels he diminishes the memory of Jesus' birthday with his presents. Santa, insistent that Christmas is a time for giving, rouses Jesus into fighting him, claiming that "there can be only one". Their fight causes large-scale destruction that kills various bystanders, including Kenny. Jesus pins Santa down, and each of them asks the boys to help them. The boys hesitate and wonder, "What would Brian Boitano do?" Boitano appears before the boys and delivers a speech about how Christmas should be about being good to one another. The boys tell the fighters of Boitano's message, and they apologize to each other in shame. They thank the boys for helping them and forgive each other. The boys realize that the true meaning of Christmas is presents, and Kyle remarks that Jewish children receive presents for eight days during Hanukkah. Intrigued, the other boys decide to become Jews as well, and the three leave the scene as rats gather near Kenny's corpse.

Production
In 1995, after seeing the 1992 film, Fox executive Brian Graden commissioned Parker and Stone to create a similar film as a video Christmas card that he could send to friends. The short film was completed by December 1995 and Graden initially distributed the video to eighty friends.

After The Spirit of Christmas became popular, Parker and Stone began to develop the characters and setting into an animated series titled South Park, and Fox was the first network they pitched the project to. After negotiations with Stone and Parker, Fox declined the series due to one of its characters being a sentient piece of feces, which later became Mr. Hankey. After bootleg distribution of the short made it a viral phenomenon, it caught the attention of Comedy Central, which hired the pair to develop the series. South Park premiered on Comedy Central in August 1997 to immediate success.

This version of The Spirit of Christmas features a more established setting, which is explicitly named South Park; and Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny are referred to by name for the first time. There is also a character similar in appearance to Wendy Testaburger sitting on Santa's lap. The film also establishes recurring elements that later appear in the series, such as Cartman's antisemitism and rats consuming Kenny's corpse. The film reportedly had a budget of $750, with Parker and Stone keeping the remainder of their $1,000 commission.

The film's development is reflected in the fourth season episode "A Very Crappy Christmas". The episode revolves around the boys creating a Christmas card to raise the townspeoples' spirits during a bleak Christmas season, using a similar method of animation to the short films. Some lines of dialogue from Jesus vs. Santa are reused verbatim, and clips from the film are used later in the episode.

Release and receptionJesus vs. Santa received a Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for best animation in 1996.

The film can be found on the South Park The Hits: Volume 1 DVD. Short clips of both films are used in the original version of the series' theme song.

It was also included as a VHS recording in AVI format on the first 100,000 pressings of Tiger Woods '99 for PlayStation. It is accessible from the game disc by PC in a file named "ZZDUMMY.DAT." This unauthorized use caused the game to be recalled in January 1999 by Electronic Arts.

Avenging Conscience
Avenging Conscience was formed by Parker, Stone, and two other students at the University of Colorado. They named the company after the D.W. Griffith film of the same title, which both had seen and actively disliked. It was formed to produce The Spirit of Christmas (1992) and Cannibal! The Musical (1993). Since then, three more projects were produced by Avenging Conscience: The Spirit of Christmas (1995), Orgazmo, and The Book of Orgazmo''. Later on for the second film, it was renamed to Krankin-Brass Productions (a parody of Rankin-Bass Productions), and finally, Braniff Airlines (a name taken from the defunct Braniff airlines).

See also

 List of Christmas films
 Santa Claus in film

References

External links
 South Park Studios: Creator Bios

1992 films
1995 films
Portrayals of Jesus in film
Santa Claus in film
Stop-motion animated short films
South Park (franchise) films
American Christmas films
American black comedy films
American parody films
Works by Trey Parker and Matt Stone
1990s American animated films
Film series introduced in 1992
American adult animated films
American film series

The Spirit of Christmas (short films)


Peter of Cornwall (1139/1140– July 7, 1221) was a medieval scholar and prior of Holy Trinity Priory, Aldgate.

He was born near Launceston, Cornwall, the son of Jordan of Trecarrel (died c. 1180). He studied in London under Master Henry of Northampton, a canon of St Paul's. He was received as an Augustinian canon sometime after 1170 at Holy Trinity, Aldgate.

His first work was inspired by a synod in London where he heard the bishop of London, Gilbert Foliot, preach. This was the Pantheologus, a collection of biblical material assembled as a sourcebook for preachers, which he finally completed in 1189.

He became prior of Holy Trinity in 1197 and remained in office until his death on 7 July 1221. In 1210 Peter was one of two intermediaries between King John of England and Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury, during a series of negotiations which failed to achieve an end to the interdict. Peter dedicated his Liber disputationum contra Symonem Iudeum to the exiled Stephen Langton.

Peter also compiled the Liber revelationum (Lambeth Palace Library, MS 51). This is a vast collection of visions relating to the next world, compiled between the years 1200 and 1206. The work includes several personal stories which provide much evidence for Peter's life and career, including the "Visions of Ailsi," Peter's grandfather. It also includes two important otherworld visions relating to St. Patrick's Purgatory, the well-known Tractatus de Purgatorio Sancti Patricii, which is provisionally dated to between 1135 and 1154, and another work related directly to Peter by a monk from Mellifont Abbey, who heard second-hand of this other vision, which took place c. 1170.

Peter was buried in the chapel of the Blessed Virgin at Holy Trinity Priory, Aldgate. The priory was dissolved in 1532, and nothing of the buildings survive other than a few arches in an office building on the site.

External References
 Lambeth Palace Library MS 51

References

1221 deaths
12th-century writers in Latin
13th-century writers in Latin
12th-century English Roman Catholic priests
13th-century English Roman Catholic priests
Medieval Cornish people
People from Launceston, Cornwall
Augustinian canons
Year of birth uncertain
13th-century English writers

Peter of Cornwall


Guillermo Fariñas Hernández (born 3 January 1962) ("El Coco") is a Cuban doctor of psychology, independent journalist and political dissident in Cuba. He has conducted 23 hunger strikes over the years to protest various elements of the Cuban government and spent more than 11 years in prison. He vowed that he would die in the struggle against censorship in Cuba.

Early life
Fariñas was born in Santa Clara. Fariñas's father, Guillermo Fariñas Key, had been part of the Cuban military forces, and fought in the Congo under Che Guevara in the 1960s. After completing ninth grade, he too began to study in the Camilo Cienfuegos military school, after which he went to Havana as a precadet in the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces, where he studied intelligence and counterintelligence with the special forces. Fariñas formed part of the unit sent to guard the Peruvian embassy during the Mariel Boatlift.

Fariñas underwent special forces training with Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese trainers. In 1980, he was deployed to Angola, where he fought under Colonel Antonio Enrique Luzon. As a special forces soldier in the Commandos for Demolition, Penetration, and Sabotage, he participated in eleven missions into the UNITA rearguard, for which he received military decorations. He received two bullet wounds. In 1981, Fariñas went to the U.S.S.R. to Tambov where he studied at the Airborne Academy but, due to official negligence, suffered exposure to a chemical nerve agent that damaged his health to the point that he had to be discharged from the army.

In 1983, he began studying in the Department of Psychology in the Universidad Central de las Villas. In 1986 he was nearly expelled for being part of a Freudian group which was considered sympathetic to Perestroika and Glasnost. He graduated in 1988. Unable to become a psychology professor because he was considered politically unreliable, Fariñas began working as a clinical psychologist in Camajuaní. He was the Secretary General of the Young Communist League. When he opposed the execution of Arnaldo Ochoa Sánchez, he was expelled from his clinic and lost his membership in the Communist Youth League.

He was transferred to the José Martí Pediatric Hospital in Sancti Spíritus, where he established the mental health ward and adolescent clinic. Nevertheless, he was denied housing for not being politically reliable.

In 1993, he called on Fidel Castro in front of the foreign press to fulfill his promise to reopen the Pedro Borrás Pediatric Hospital in Havana. He was elected General Secretary of Healthcare Workers' Union.

In 1995, Fariñas was sent to the Valle Grande jail in Havana for 20 months. According to Fariñas, this was because he had denounced the corruption of the director of the hospital where he worked, a Central Committee member, to the National Revolutionary Police Force, and as a result was accused of various false crimes, including illegal possession of arms. State media, on the other hand, claim that he went to jail after physically attacking a woman, an official from the health institution where he worked as a psychologist. In 1997, he was condemned to a further 18 months of confinement, during which he undertook a strike on eating solid food. In 2002, he was attacked by a State Security agent and condemned to seven years of confinement, but after undertaking a fourteen-month hunger strike he was released.

In a 2007 interview with Harper's magazine ("The Battle of Ideas"), Fariñas described State Security officers detaining him in Santa Clara, forcibly committing him to a psychiatric hospital ward overnight, and supervising his injection with unknown drugs.

2006 hunger strike
In 2006, Fariñas held a seven-month hunger strike to protest against the Internet censorship in Cuba, in particular the closure of the Ciber Cafe in Santa Clara by State Security forces. He ended it in Autumn 2006, due to severe health problems. His acts received worldwide attention and Reporters Without Borders awarded its cyber-freedom prize to Guillermo Fariñas in 2006. He also received the International Human Rights Award at Weimar.

2010 hunger strike
On February 26, 2010, Fariñas declared yet another hunger strike to protest the death of fellow dissident Orlando Zapata Tamayo. He has indicated that he will remain on strike until twenty-six other prisoners of conscience who are seriously ill are set free. In July, he ended the protest after Raul Castro, the Cuban president, approved the release of 52 prisoners of conscience.

Cuban government response

The Cuban state newspaper Granma stated that Fariñas's legal troubles began "because of a physical altercation with a female co-worker - not politics" and described him as "a paid agent of the United States" and employee of the U.S. Interests Section.

On July 8, 2010, Fariñas ended his 134-day hunger strike Thursday, following signs the communist government is making good on its promise to release 52 political prisoners.

2010 Sakharov Prize
On 20 October 2010, Fariñas was awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament. In presenting the award the parliament commended Fariñas saying that he was a "symbol of the fight for freedom of speech". This marks the third time that the award has been made to Cuban dissidents.

In December 2010, the Cuban government denied Fariñas an exit visa necessary to travel to Strasbourg to accept the award.  In response the European Parliament said that it would have an empty chair to represent him at the ceremony.  Fariñas said, "I believe that the Cuban government has shown over the years that it is behaving in an arrogant manner."

In 2013, the travel ban was lifted and Fariñas finally received his Prize.

2011 hunger strike
On 3 June 2011, Fariñas declared his hunger strike to protest the Cuban authorities' response to fellow dissident Juan Wilfredo Soto García's death. Fariñas called for those responsible for the reported police beating three days before Soto died in a Santa Clara hospital to be brought to justice. He also demanded for the Cuban government to stop using violent means in its approach to non-violent opposition.

2012 detention
On 24 July 2012, he was one of dozens of activists arrested in Havana at the funeral of dissident Oswaldo Payá. Amnesty International and the U.S. criticized the arrests, with the White House describing them as "a stark demonstration of the climate of repression in Cuba." The dissidents were freed the following day.

2016 hunger strike
In 2016, Fariñas and other members of the opposition organization Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) protested against the increasingly violent repression of dissidents and activists.

Personal life
Fariñas has a wife, Clara, and a daughter.

References

External links

 Biography by CIDOB (in Spanish)

1962 births
Living people
Cuban democracy activists
Cuban dissidents
Cuban human rights activists
Cuban journalists
Cuban military personnel of the Angolan Civil War
Cuban psychologists
Hunger strikers
Cuban male journalists
Nonviolence advocates
Opposition to Fidel Castro
People from Santa Clara, Cuba
Sakharov Prize laureates

Guillermo Fariñas


The Honourable Nona Georgette Byrne DSG (10 September 1922 – 31 October 2012), née Nona Georgette Lawrence, was a British Roman Catholic philanthropist. In 1960, with her husband Vincent Byrne, she founded the Catholic Building Society, becoming the first woman to be elected chairman of a building society.

Early life and family
Nona Lawrence was the sixth and youngest child of Alexander Graham Lawrence, 3rd Baron Lawrence and his first wife Dorothy Hobson CBE. Born in Greenford, Middlesex, Nona was educated at the Francis Holland School, then at Lymington, where she was Head Girl. During the war, she served in the Women's Land Army at Hever Castle, then as a nurse in Brighton.

Nona Lawrence married Wing Commander Vincent Byrne on 8 February 1945, converting to Roman Catholicism. The couple went on to have nine children, and at the time of Nona's death had twenty five grandchildren and eleven great grandchildren.

Career and later life
The Byrnes became active philanthropists in London and Sussex, assisting war widows and refugees, often in partnership with the Catholic church. In 1955, they gave the use of a rented house in Redburn Street, Chelsea, as a home for war widows, and helped Leonard Cheshire found St Bridget's Cheshire Home at East Preston, West Sussex. The following year they took over Gerston House, Storrington, West Sussex, a former residence of the Bishop of Arundel, as a refugee home.

In 1960, they founded the Catholic Building Society to assist people on low incomes, including lone women. In 1972, Nona Byrne became Chairman of the Society, the first woman to chair a building society and the first woman to address the Building Societies Association.

Nona was a firm defender of the role of building societies, criticising government policies that she saw as diverting savings or undermining life assurance.

Nona Byrne retired from the board of the Catholic Building Society at its AGM in April 1997. At the same time, she was made a Dame of the papal Order of St. Gregory the Great, presented by the Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster, Patrick O'Donoghue.

Nona Byrne died at home in Chichester on 31 October 2012, and was buried at Our Lady of Consolation, West Grinstead.

References

English Roman Catholics
English women philanthropists
1922 births
2012 deaths
Philanthropists from London
People from Chichester
21st-century British philanthropists
20th-century British philanthropists
21st-century Roman Catholics
20th-century Roman Catholics
People from Greenford
Nurses from London
World War II nurses
Converts to Roman Catholicism
Daughters of barons
Dames of St. Gregory the Great
British women in World War II
People from Storrington
20th-century women philanthropists
21st-century women philanthropists

Nona Byrne


African Slave Trade Patrol was part of the Blockade of Africa suppressing the Atlantic slave trade between 1819 and the beginning of the American Civil War in 1861. Due to the abolitionist movement in the United States, a squadron of U.S. Navy warships and Cutters were assigned to catch slave traders in and around Africa. In 42 years about 100 suspected slave ships were captured.

Operations

Origin
The first American squadron was sent to Africa in 1819, but after the ships were rotated out there was no constant American naval presence off Africa until the 1840s. In the two decades between, very few slave ships were captured as there were not enough United States Navy ships to patrol over 3,000 miles of African coastline, as well as the vast American coasts and the ocean in between. Also, the slavers knew that if they hoisted a Spanish or Portuguese flag they could easily escape pursuit. Congress made it difficult for the navy to keep a small force in Africa until 1842 when the Webster–Ashburton Treaty with the United Kingdom was signed. Commodore Matthew C. Perry was sent to command the Africa Squadron again after serving as the commander in 1821 aboard . His arrival marked the beginning of America's growing effectiveness in the suppression though the overall victories were insignificant compared to the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron in the same period. The British captured hundreds of slave ships and fought several naval battles; their success was largely due to the superior size of their navy and supply bases located in Africa itself. The combined efforts of both the British and the United States successfully freed thousands of slaves but the trade continued on and the operation was expanded to the West Indies, Brazil and the Indian Ocean. The Brazil Squadron, the West Indies Squadron, the East India Squadron and the later Home Squadron were all responsible for capturing at least a few slavers each.

Revenue Cutter Service Patrols

On 1 January 1808, a law making the slave trade from Africa illegal went into effect. Revenue cutters were charged with enforcing this law. On 29 June 1820, the Dallas captured the 10-gun brig General Ramirez carrying 280 African slaves off of St. Augustine, Florida. On 25 March, the Alabama captured three slave ships. By 1865, revenue cutters had captured numerous slavers and freed nearly 500 slaves.

Capture of Spitfire
On 13 June 1844, the brig   was placed back in commission with Commander Henry Bruce in charge. Two weeks later, she sailed down the Delaware River and passed between the capes and into the Atlantic. After visiting Funchal, Madeira, the ship joined the African Station off Tenerife in the Canary Islands. For the next sixteen months, Truxtun patrolled off West Africa, visiting Monrovia, Liberia and Sierra Leone, where slaves were freed. Truxtun also sailed to Maio islands of Santiago, and São Vicente. The Americans captured only one slaver on their cruise in 1845, the New Orleans schooner named Spitfire. The vessel was caught on the Rio Pongo in Guinea and was taken without incident. Though she was only about 100 tons, she carried 346 slaves. The Americans also discovered that she had landed 339 slaves near Matanzas, in Cuba, the year before. Commander Bruce reported that "between her decks, where the slaves were packed, there was not room enough for a man to sit, unless inclining his head forward; their food was half a pint of rice per day, with one pint of water. No one can imagine the sufferings of slaves on their passage across, unless the conveyances in which they are taken are examined. A good hearty negroe costs but twenty dollars, or thereabouts, and brings from three to four hundred dollars in Cuba." The capture of Spitfire gave the American Navy the incentive to increase the strength of the Africa Squadron. The ship was also fitted out and used in anti-slavery operations. On October 30, 1845, Truxtun weighed anchor at Monrovia, and she headed west towards Gosport Navy Yard, which she reached on November 23. She was then decommissioned on November 28.

Capture of Ann D. Richardson and Independence
The brig  served in the South Atlantic with the Brazil Squadron beginning in 1847. Perry got under way from Philadelphia on May 16, 1847, with specific orders to patrol between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Lieutenant John A. Davis was informed that suspected slavers in the American barque Ann D. Richardson were bound for the coast of Africa under false papers. Perry then seized the ship off Rio de Janeiro on December 16. Two days later, she also seized the American brig Independence. Investigation proved that both ships had been engaged in the slave trade, and both were sent to New York City as prizes. The captain of Independence was outraged about his arrest and even petitioned Commodore George W. Storer, but to no avail. USS Perry returned to Norfolk on July 10, 1849, and was decommissioned there four days later. She later served in Africa again, but only for a short while, after which she sailed back to New York.

Capture of Martha
One of the Americans' more significant victories in the operation was the capture of the slave ship Martha. On June 6 of 1850, Perry, under Lieutenant Davis, discovered the large rigged ship Martha off Ambriz while she was standing in to shore. Soon after, as Perry came within gun range, Lieutenant Davis and his men witnessed some of Marthas crew throwing a desk over the side while raising the American flag. The slavers apparently did not realize that the brig was a United States Navy vessel until an officer and a few enlisted men were dispatched, at which time they lowered the American ensign and raised a Brazilian flag. When the officer reached Marthas deck, the captain denied having any papers, so a boat was sent after the desk, which was still floating, and all the necessary evidence was recovered. After that the slave trader admitted to Davis that he was a United States citizen and his ship was equipped for blackbirding. A hidden deck was found below with a large amount of farina and beans, over 400 wooden spoons, and metal devices used to restrain slaves. It was also learned that the captain of Martha was expecting a shipment of 1,800 Africans when Perry appeared. Martha was sent with a prize crew to New York City where she was condemned. The slaver captain paid 3,000 dollars to escape prison.

Capture of Nightingale of Boston

The 1,066 ton clipper ship  originally sailed as part of the American merchant fleet as Nightengale of Boston in China, before trade in that region became unprofitable during the 1850s. She then became a known slave ship until being seized at St. Thomas on January 14, 1861, by the sloop-of-war . Saratogas Captain later described the slaver; "For some time the American ship Nightingale of Boston, Francis Bowen, master, has been watched on this coast under the suspicion of being engaged in the slave trade. Several times we have fallen in with her and although fully assured that she was about to engage in this illicit trade she has had the benefit of the doubt. A few days ago observing her at Kabenda, I came in and boarded her and was then induced to believe she was then preparing to receive slaves. Under this impression the ship was got under way and went some distance away but with the intention of returning under cover of the night; which was done and at 10 P.M. we anchored and sent two boats under Lieut. Guthrie to surprise her and it was found that she had 961 slaves on board and was expecting more. Lieut. Guthrie took possession of her as a prize and I have directed him to take her to New York. She is a clipper of 1,000 tons and has Nightingale of Boston on her stern and flies American colors." The slaves were freed and landed at Monrovia in Liberia but not before 160 of them died from African fever aboard Saratoga. The sickness also spread to the crew. The Captain, who was called the "Prince of Slavers", and his Spanish second mate escaped Nightingale while she was anchored of St. Thomas. Lieutenant John J. Guthrie, who was from North Carolina, then a slave state, was suspected of freeing the two and letting them escape justice. The clipper eventually served in the American Civil War as the storeship USS Nightingale in the Gulf Blockading Squadron. Ultimately, she was abandoned at sea in 1893, while under a Norwegian flag.

End of operations

United States Navy operations against the slave trade largely ceased in 1861 with the outbreak of the American Civil War. Navy vessels were recalled from all over the world and reassigned to the Union blockade of southern ports.

By the end of the Civil War, the African slave trade on the Atlantic had diminished further, though overland slave trading continued into the 1900s, primarily in North Africa and Central Africa. U.S. Navy officers who served in Africa between 1820 and 1861 received the "African Slave Patrol" campaign streamer.

Vessels seized

Africa Squadron

Brazil Squadron

Home Squadron

See also
Bering Sea Anti-Poaching Operations
West Africa Squadron – British squadron active against slave trade

References

African
United States Navy in the 19th century
19th century in Africa
History of the Atlantic Ocean
Naval operations and battles
African slave trade
1819 establishments in the United States
Anti-slavery military operations

African Slave Trade Patrol


John Notman (July 22, 1810March 3, 1865) was a Scottish-born American architect, who settled in Philadelphia. He is remembered for his churches, and for popularizing the Italianate style and the use of brownstone.

Early life and education
Notman was born on July 22, 1810, at Fernieside on the south edge of Edinburgh in Scotland. He was the son of David Notman, a mason and builder. He was educated at the Watt Institution in Edinburgh.

Career

Sometime around 1824, Notman joined his older cousin, William Notman to train as an architect in the office of William Henry Playfair in Edinburgh prior to emigrating to the United States in 1831. He eventually settled in Philadelphia, where one of his first commissions was Laurel Hill Cemetery in 1835.

He later opened and operated a successful firm until his death in 1865. Notman was also a founding member of the American Institute of Architects and was committed to establishing professionalism in the practice of architecture in the United States.

Notman is credited with introducing the Italianate style to America. "Riverside," his 1837-39 house in Burlington, New Jersey, for Bishop G.W. Doane, was tremendously influential, and his 1845 Athenaeum of Philadelphia was the first Italianate building in his adopted city. Notman designed a number of suburban villas and country houses, including "Ogontz" (1863) for financier Jay Cooke.

Many of his designs for churches were dictated by the ideas of the Cambridge Camden Society who suggested that Anglican churches of the Low church variety should be built in the Romanesque style, while those of the High church variety be built in the Gothic style. He was also briefly employed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Philadelphia during construction of the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul until an argument over the terms of his contract resulted in his dismissal.

Notman was also the architect of the highly influential New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum in Trenton, New Jersey of 1847. This building was the first example of the Kirkbride Plan in asylum design.

 Notman also designed the Italianate gatehouse for Mount Vernon Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Following Notman's death, the firm continued for a couple of years under his protege George Hewitt. He is buried in Laurel Hill Cemetery. John's brother, Peter Notman, lived on Joralemon Street in Brooklyn Heights and sold fire insurance. His children, John's nieces and nephews, are memorialized on a bas-relief in the crypt of St George's Episcopal Church on Stuyvesant Square in New York City.

Churches

Some of Notman's notable commissions for the Episcopal Church include:
Chapel of the Holy Innocents, Saint Mary's Hall, Burlington, New Jersey (1845).
St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Glassboro, New Jersey (1846)
Church of the Messiah, Richmond (1848)
St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Trenton, New Jersey (1848). Attributed to Notman.
St. Mark's Church, 1625 Locust Street, Philadelphia (1849). Tower completed by George Hewitt (1865). Lady Chapel by Cope & Stewardson (1899-1902).
Emmanuel Church, Cumberland, Maryland (1851).
St. Peter's Church, Pittsburgh (1851).
St. Clement's Church, Philadelphia (1855–59).
Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia (1856–59).
Episcopal Church of the Messiah, District of Port Richmond, Philadelphia, PA (1847-8).
St. John's Episcopal Church, Wilmington, Delaware (1857-1858); located in the Brandywine Village Historic District.
Cathedral Church of St. John the Evangelist, Concord Ave. & Market St., Wilmington, Delaware (1858).

Gallery

Further reading
Constance M. Greiff, John Notman Architect, 1810-1865. Philadelphia: Athenaeum of Philadelphia, 1979.
Carla Yanni, The Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States, University of Minnesota Press, 2007.

References

External links

Philadelphia Buildings
Catalogue of Notman's works and biography
Episcopal Church of the Messiah, Port Richmond

1810 births
1865 deaths
Architects from Philadelphia
British emigrants to the United States
Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia)
Royal Scottish Academicians
19th-century American architects
Architects from Edinburgh

John Notman


Rock Prophecies is a 2009 documentary film concerning rock photographer Robert M. Knight.  It was directed by John Chester (Lost In Woonsocket, A&E's Random 1) and produced by Tim Kaiser (Seinfeld, Will and Grace).

Synopsis
The film tells the story of Robert M. Knight, a rock photographer born and raised in Honolulu, who holds the distinction of being one of the first photographers to capture Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin, and the last to photograph Stevie Ray Vaughan.  Over the course of the film, Robert revisits the friends and idols of his past, such as Jeff Beck, Slash, Carlos Santana, and Steve Vai, while helping to kick-start the careers of the Australian band Sick Puppies. Protective of his photo archive, the photographer struggles with his mother's costly around-the-clock care, and debates whether to sell the 200,000+ photos that mean so much to him.

Life
Hoping to escape a somewhat sheltered upbringing, courtesy of his mother and Baptist minister father, Robert became a travel agent at the age of 16 and worked up the credits to fly to London.  With the help of a friend, Robert found himself on the set of the Michelangelo Antonioni film Blowup, and concluded that he had to be a part of what was happening in the culture at that time, and saved up to buy a camera.  With an apparent combination of luck and friendliness, Knight began to get himself into the press pit at rock concerts, and in the process befriended such rock 'n roll luminaries as Jeff Beck, Elton John, and the members of Led Zeppelin.  Robert became very close with Stevie Ray Vaughan, and is still haunted by his place in history as Stevie's final photographer.

References

American documentary films
Documentary films about photographers
Rockumentaries
2000s English-language films
2000s American films

Rock Prophecies


Dezső Révai (1903 - 1996) was a Hungarian photographer and photo journalist who is mainly known for his photographs taken during the Spanish Civil War.

Career

Early years
He was born on 14 August 1903 as the fourth child of a secular Jewish family in Budapest, Hungary. By the age of 16 he was already a keen amateur photographer and had set up his own photo laboratory in the bathroom of the family home. During his early years he also developed an interest in social activism and joined the Hungarian Communist Party in 1926. His first photographs captured the life of the Communist Student Movement from that time. He eventually became the leader of a Photo Montage group that created communist propaganda materials. Due to these activities he was imprisoned twice in 1930 and 1934.

Paris
After he was released for the second time Dezső Révai emigrated to France leaving all his photo equipment and accessories behind. In Paris he opened his own photo laboratory at Rue Bellier Dedouvre. During his time in Paris Dezső Révai met and became acquainted with a wide circle of artists including Robert Capa, Ervin Marton, Brassaï, Picasso and other left wing activists.

Spanish Civil War and World War II
In 1936 Dezső Révai joined the Hungarian Unit of the International Brigades fighting in the Spanish Civil War. He fought and worked in the International Brigades and his photographs from this period were signed "Foto Turai". As a member of the propaganda department of the International Brigades he didn't only take photographs, but was also the editor of some publications and booklets released during the war. His most significant photographs from this period were the award-winning series of 'Metro Madrid' photographs taken in 1937 depicting the people of Madrid as they take shelter from the Nationalist air raids in the metro stations.

In 1939 the Spanish Civil War ended and the captured soldiers of the International Brigades were placed in Internment Camps. Together with his compatriots Dezső Révai was placed in Gurs and Vernet camp in southern France. With some of his fellow inmates he organized a secret photo laboratory where they prepared photographs, montages, booklets and other documents. With a handmade camera he managed to capture the everyday life in the camp. These extraordinary images were smuggled out of the camp and remain preserved in his archive of work to this day. Following two years of imprisonment he volunteered for work through the internment camp administration and was relocated to Germany. He soon escaped back to France and joined the Resistance between 1942-44.

Return to Hungary
After the end of World War II in 1945 he returned to Hungary and was appointed as head of the photography department at Mafirt known today as MTI. Later he was appointed director of the Hungarian Film Production Company. Many famous Hungarian films were produced during his time as director, including: 'Somewhere in Europe' (Valahol Európában), 'A Foot of Land' (Talpalatnyi fold), 'Ludas Matyi', 'Unusual Marriage' (Különös házasság), 'The Resurrected Sea' (Feltámadott a Tenger). From 1954 he worked as deputy head of the Hungarian TV and Radio and was responsible for the launch of the first Hungarian TV station.

On his retirement in 1962 he continued to work as a photographer well into his eighties producing many classic images used on postcards across Hungary.

References

Further reading

1996 deaths
1903 births
Photographers from Budapest
War photographers
Hungarian communists
Hungarian emigrants to France
Hungarian resistance members
Hungarian prisoners of war
Spanish Civil War prisoners of war
World War II prisoners of war held by Germany
Escapees from German detention
Hungarian Jews
Gurs internment camp survivors

Dezső Révai


The naked mole rat (Heterocephalus glaber), (or sand puppy) is a burrowing rodent. The species is native to parts of East Africa. It is one of only two known eusocial mammals (the other is the Damaraland mole rat). Both species are similar in many respects.

The animal has unusual features, adapted to its harsh underground environment.
The animals do not feel pain in their skin. They also have a very low metabolism.

Physical description
Typically, the animals are between eight and ten centimetres long, and weigh about 30 grams. Their eyes are quite small, and they do not see very well. Their legs are thin and short. Nevertheless, they are very good at moving underground and can move backward as fast as they can move forward. They have large, protruding teeth, which they use to dig. Their lips are sealed just behind the teeth to prevent soil from filling their mouths while digging. They have little hair and wrinkled pink or yellowish skin.

The naked mole rat is well adapted for the limited availability of oxygen within the tunnels that are its habitat: its lungs are very small and its blood has a very strong affinity for oxygen, increasing the efficiency of oxygen uptake.  It has a very low respiration and metabolic rate for an animal of its size, about two thirds that of a mouse of the same size. It only uses very little oxygen.  In long periods of hunger, such as a drought, its metabolic rate can reduce by up to twenty-five percent.

The naked mole rat can only regulate its body temperature in the typical mammalian fashion over a relatively narrow range of temperatures. Outside this range, it overheats or cools. It can overcome this by its behaviour. When cold, naked mole rats huddle together or bask in the shallow parts of their burrow systems. When they get too hot, they retreat to the deeper, cooler parts of their tunnel system.

Ecology and behavior

Distribution and habitat
The naked mole rat is native to the drier parts of the tropical grasslands of East Africa, mainly South Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia.

Colonies averaging 75-80 individuals live together in complex systems of burrows in arid African deserts. The tunnel systems built by naked mole rats can stretch up to two or three miles in cumulative length.

Social structure and reproduction
The naked mole rat is one of the two species of mammals that are eusocial. Only one female (the queen) and one to three males reproduce, while the rest of the members of the colony are workers. Workers do different things. Some are tunnellers, expanding the large network of tunnels within the burrow system, and some primarily as soldiers, protecting the group from outside predators.

This eusocial organisation social structure, similar to that found in ants, termites, and some bees and wasps, is very rare among mammals.

The relationships between the queen and the breeding males may last for many years. "Reproductive suppression" causes the other females not to reproduce: the infertility in the working females is only temporary, and not genetic. Queens live from 13 to 18 years, and are extremely hostile to other females behaving like queens, or producing hormones for becoming queens. When the queen dies, another female takes her place, sometimes after a violent struggle with her competitors.

Males and females are able to breed at one year of age. Gestation is about 70 days. A litter is usually from three to twelve pups, but may be as large as 28. The average litter size is 11. In the wild, naked mole-rats usually breed once a year, if the litter survives. In captivity, they breed all year long and can produce a litter every 80 days.  The young are born blind and weigh about 2 gm. The queen nurses them for the first month; after which the other members of the colony feed them feces until they are old enough to eat solid food.

Diet
Naked mole rats feed primarily on very large tubers (weighing as much as 1000 times the body weight of a typical mole rat) that they find deep underground through their mining operations, but also eat their own feces (coprophagia).  A single tuber can provide a colony with a long-term source of food—lasting for months, or even years, as they eat the inside but leave the outside, allowing the tuber to regenerate. Symbiotic bacteria in their intestines help them digest the fibres.

Longevity
The naked mole rat is also of interest because it is extraordinarily long-lived for a rodent of its size (up to 28 years) and holds the record for the longest living rodent. The secret of their longevity is debated, but is thought to be related to the fact that they can shut down their metabolism during hard times, and so prevent oxidative damage. This has been summed up as "They're living their life in pulses".

Due to their extraordinary longevity for such a small rodent, an international effort was put into place to sequence the genome of the naked mole rat.  Results came in 2011 and 2014. Transcriptome sequencing showed that genes related to mitochondria and oxidation reduction processes have high expression levels in the naked mole-rat as compared to mice. This may contribute to their longevity.

The DNA repair transcriptomes of the liver of humans, naked mole rats and mice were compared.  The maximum lifespans of humans, naked mole rats, and mice are respectively ~120, 30 and 3 years.  The longer-lived species, humans and naked mole rats, expressed DNA repair genes at a higher level than did mice.  In addition, several DNA repair pathways in humans and naked mole rats were up-regulated compared with mice.  These findings suggest that increased DNA repair makes for greater longevity. The findings are consistent with the DNA damage theory of aging.

Conservation status
Naked mole rats are not threatened. Despite their tough living conditions, naked mole rats are quite widespread and numerous in the drier regions of East Africa.

References

Other websites

Page on the Animal Diversity Web
More photos
Heterocephalus glaber images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu
Naked mole-rat webcam

Mammals of Africa

Naked mole rat