Nelson Taylor (June 8, 1821 – January 16, 1894) was a U.S. Representative from New York, a brigadier-general in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and a captain in the U.S. Army during the Mexican-American War.

Biography
Born in South Norwalk, Connecticut, Taylor attended the common schools, an early precursor to the public education system. He enlisted for the Mexican–American War as a captain in the First Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, August 1, 1846, and was sent to California in 1846 just before the outbreak of the war. He was honorably mustered out September 18, 1848. He remained in California and engaged in business at Stockton. He briefly served as member of the first inaugural California Senate from San Joaquin from December 15, 1849, to February 13, 1850. He won a seat in the California Senate with 16.6% of the vote. While serving he voted for the expansion of the California government and advocated for a transcontinental railroad that would connect California to the East Coast. He was expelled from the California Senate on February 13, 1850, due to an excessive absence while attending to business concerns in New York City. He was expelled "without any reflection upon his character." Upon returning to California he served as the President of the board of trustees for the State Insane Asylum from 1850 to 1856.Taylor was elected sheriff of San Joaquin County in 1855. Nelson resigned his positions in 1856 and moved back to New York City after having made many political connections in California.

He moved to New York City in 1856, then attended Harvard University. He graduated from the law department of Harvard University in 1860. He was admitted to the bar and practiced law in New York City. He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for election in 1860 to the Thirty-seventh Congress. He lost the election to Republican William Wall.

Civil War
Taylor was commissioned colonel of the 72nd New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, July 23, 1861. In March 1862 he replaced the infamous Danial Sickles as commander of the division. Sickles was a favorite of Lincoln and Joseph Hooker, though he was hardly liked in Congress. As commander of the Excelsior Brigade he saw action at the Battle of Williamsburg and Second Bull Run. He fought with the Army of the Potomac until September 1862 when he was promoted to Brigadier General at the recommendation of General McClellan. Taylor was transferred to the First Army Corps to replace Brigadier General George Hartsuff who was injured in the Battle of Antietam.

Taylor commanded the Third Brigade of the First Army Corps during the Battle of Fredericksburg where "he distinguished himself for his bravery and coolness during action." At the start of the battle he assisted in capturing the bridge at Rappahannock Station, an important crossing point for the Union Army. Taylor was given command of the front-line troops of General John Gibbon's division during the initial assault on Confederate lines due to Taylor's "iron discipline" with his troops. Taylor's advance against General James Henry Lane who held Stonewall Jackson's left was repulsed. Taylor rallied his men long enough for support to arrive from General Lane in his rear. During the fighting General Gibbon was injured and Taylor took command of the division where he promptly advanced reserves on the Confederate lines to reinforce the collapsing middle of the line. At one point his troops begged him to retreat as they were out of ammunition, to which he replied, "use the bayonet." The position which Taylor had reinforced held for a period of time, until a Confederate line emerged from the nearby woods and he was forced to retreat. This retreat forced Taylor to surrender control of the RF&P Railroad which was vital to both sides. The collapse of the center of the Union Army's line ensured that the town would not be taken. Nelson's troops suffered heavy losses during the battle due to inferior firepower and being in an inferior position on the battlefield. Though he suffered defeat and was forced to retreat, Taylor's actions in the battle earned him high praise from both his troops and superiors.

Taylor resigned his commission on January 19, 1863. This is likely due to the events of the Mud March led by General Burnside. Taylor returned to New York City where he reopened his law practice in the city.

House of Representatives
Taylor was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-ninth Congress (March 4, 1865 – March 3, 1867). He defeated the Republican William B. McCay with 51% of the vote. Taylor replaced ex-Tammany Hall leader Fernando Wood who was a key member of the Copperhead Democrats. Taylor was firmly seen as a War Democrat.

During his time in the House of Representatives Taylor served on the Select Committee on Freedmen and voted on many bills related to Reconstruction. He was a staunch opponent of the Freedmen's Bureau and voted for it to not be continued in 1866. Taylor believed that the Freedmen's Bureau went beyond protecting the rights of African-Americans in the South and that the law would "overleap the mark... and before we are aware of it, not have the freedmen equal before the law, but superior." Specifically he was opposed to the expansion of the Freedmen's Bureau throughout the United States, and claimed that reports from General Grant had never asked for an increase in the powers of the bureau. Though he did often vote in protecting the right of African-Americans, Taylor was opposed to financial assistance to the South in any form. Taylor supported the President's plan to reincorporate the Southern States into the Union. He voted in favor of allowing elected members from designated districts in Arkansas to rejoin the House of Representatives, provided they had not participated in the government of the Confederacy.

Taylor was a strong supporter of expanding federal infrastructure into the West and supported federal aid to Native Americans who had been displaced due to the westward expansion. He often voted to raise the salary of soldiers in the army and voted in favor of back-payments to militia and irregular soldiers who had participated in the earlier phases of the war.

Taylor was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1866 to the Fortieth Congress. Taylor lost his reelection campaign to the infamous bare-knuckle boxer John Morrisey in 1866. Morrisey had the financial backing of Tammany Hall, which Taylor could not compete with.

Later life
Taylor moved to South Norwalk, Connecticut in 1869 and continued the practice of law. He served several times as the city attorney. He died in South Norwalk, Connecticut, January 16, 1894. He was interred in Riverside Cemetery.

He was the father of Nelson Taylor Jr., the mayor of South Norwalk, Connecticut in 1885, and Connecticut State Senator until 1888. In 1888, Taylor helped found the Lockwood Manufacturing Hardware Company with Henry S. Lockwood. Taylor was President of the company, focusing on builder's hardware, until his death in 1894.

See also

List of American Civil War generals (Union)

References

 Retrieved on 2008-02-12

1821 births
1894 deaths
American military personnel of the Mexican–American War
Burials in Riverside Cemetery (Norwalk, Connecticut)
Democratic Party California state senators
Deaths from pneumonia in Connecticut
Excelsior Brigade
Harvard Law School alumni
Politicians from Norwalk, Connecticut
People of New York (state) in the American Civil War
Union Army generals
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state)
California sheriffs
19th-century American politicians

Nelson Taylor


The Rebis (from the Latin res bina, meaning dual or double matter) is the end product of the alchemical magnum opus or great work.

After one has gone through the stages of putrefaction and purification, separating opposing qualities, those qualities are united once more in what is sometimes described as the divine hermaphrodite, a reconciliation of spirit and matter, a being of both male and female qualities as indicated by the male and female head within a single body. The sun and moon correspond to the male and female halves, just as the Red King and White Queen are similarly associated.

The Rebis image appeared in the work Azoth of the Philosophers by Basil Valentine in 1613.

In popular culture
 The Rebis is a central element in the fourth season of the television series Castlevania.
 A perfect being of both masculine (sun) and feminine (moon) qualities, brought about by an eclipse, is used in the manga and 2009 anime of Fullmetal Alchemist.
 The angelic antagonist of the first season of the 2008 anime Black Butler is a rebis, whose two forms initially appear as separate characters.
 In the Italian series Gomorrah, Genny Savastano wears a t-shirt with a rebis illustration in the second and third season.
 In the video game Elden Ring, the major story characters Marika and Radagon may be inspired by the Rebis and the concept of the Red King and White Queen, as they are a blonde-haired woman and red-haired man who are eventually revealed to be the same person.
 In The Witcher action video game trilogy, Rebis is an alchemical ingredient.
 One of the versions of DC Comics' Negative Man, a member of the Doom Patrol, was a fusion of a male and a female called Rebis.
 In the Moebius/Jodorowski graphic novel series The Incal, a major character is a "perfect androgynous" called Solune (Sunmoon in the English translation).
 The rebis is featured in the cover artwork for Mastodon's second EP, Lifesblood.
 The rebis can also be a Janus/Jana. Johh/Jane. As the character of Predestination movie.
 Yubel of Yu-Gi-Oh! GX is based on the Rebis, being half male and half female, split down the middle.

See also
 Hieros gamos
 Nondualism
 Unity of opposites

Sources
 Robert Allen Bartlett, Real Alchemy: A Primer of Practical Alchemy, Hays (Nicolas) Ltd, 2009,
 Barbara DiBernard, Alchemy and Finnegans Wake, Suny Press, 1980, p. 71,
 Kathleen P. Long, Hermaphrodites in Renaissance Europe, Ashgate, 2006, p. 131,
 Alexander Roob, Alchimie et mystique: le musée hermétique, Taschen GmbH, 2006, p. 494,
 Murray Stein, Transformation: Emergence of the Self, Princeton University Press, 1989, p. 101
 Heinrich Nollius, Theoria philosophiae hermetica, Hanau, 1617
 Heinrich Jamsthaler, Viatorum spagyricum, Frankfurt a. M, Germany, 1625
 Lazarus Zetzner, Theatrum Chemicum, Strasbourg, 1661

External links
 Basil Valentine 'Azoth' images
 The Rebis image in Alchemy

Alchemical substances
Personifications
Androgyny

Rebis


Coconut Island, or Moku Ola is a small island in Hilo Bay, just offshore from Lili'uokalani Park and Gardens, in Hilo, off the island of Hawaii. It is a small park, and is connected to the main island via a footbridge. The island includes a large grassy field, picnic areas, restroom facilities, and a few tiny sandy beaches.

A popular recreational activity is to jump off the tower into the waters of Hilo Bay.

The name Mokuola translates as "healing island" or "island of life" from the Hawaiian language. Moku meaning "island" and ola meaning "life." It was the site of an ancient temple dedicated to healing.
It is located off Banyan Drive.

Legend tells that anyone who was sick or feeling ill would be healed by swimming around Mokuola three times. In ancient times, Mokuola was a pu'uhonua (place of refuge), where natives or warriors could "redeem" themselves. Many native Hawaiians would also bury their children's piko (umbilical cords) under the flat rocks here, so the rats would not find them (piko are often considered sacred to Hawaiians, as they are the connection to their mothers and to their blood lines).

References

External links

Islands of Hawaii
Landforms of Hawaii (island)
Hilo, Hawaii
Beaches of Hawaii (island)

Coconut Island (Hawaii Island)


The Hinteres Sonnwendjoch in the Austrian state of Tyrol is a mountain, , and the highest peak of the  Mangfall range, a subdivision of the  Bavarian Prealps. Because the Brandenberg Alps to the south are lower, its summit offers outstanding views of the Central Alps despite its low elevation. The Hinterer Sonnwendjoch drops away steeply to the north into the Grund. The summit is made of main dolomite and, on the south side, of plattenkalk.

A long, but easy mountain hike from Valepp (890 m) in Bavaria leads up to the Bärenbadalm (1,590 m) and on to the summit. Considerably shorter, but also easy is the climb from Ackernalm (1,383 m) south of the massif, which is easily reached on the toll road from Bayrischzell or Kufstein.

Summit panorama

References

External links

One-thousanders of Austria
Mountains of the Alps
Mountains of Tyrol (state)
Bavarian Prealps

Hinteres Sonnwendjoch


The First Dutch Expedition to East Indies (Dutch: Eerste Schipvaart) was an expedition that took place from 1595 to 1597.  It was instrumental in opening up the Indonesian spice trade to the merchants that eventually formed the Dutch East India Company, and marked the end of the Portuguese Empire's dominance in the region.

Background
During the 16th century the spice trade was extremely lucrative, but the Portuguese Empire had a stranglehold on the source of the spices, Indonesia.  For a time, the merchants of the Netherlands were content to accept this and buy all of their spice in Lisbon, Portugal, as they could still make a decent profit by reselling it throughout Europe.  However, in the 1590s Spain, which was at war with the Netherlands, was in a dynastic union with Portugal, thus making continued trade practically impossible.  This was intolerable to the Dutch who would have been glad to circumvent the Portuguese monopoly and go straight to Indonesia, but the sailing directions needed in order to reach Indonesia were jealously guarded by the Portuguese.

However, in 1592 the cartographer Petrus Plancius published a series of charts showing, in exact detail, the route to the Indies. Soon after these charts were published, three Amsterdam merchants began meeting in secret, plotting an expedition to Indonesia.  Their names were Jan Jansz Carel, Hendrick Hudde, and Reynier Pauw.  One of the first things these men did was to send Pauw's cousin, Cornelis de Houtman, to Lisbon, posing as a merchant.  His job was to confirm Plancius' charts and see if he could find any more information on the East Indies.  Then, in September 1592, Jan Huyghen van Linschoten returned from an extended stay in Goa, India, and soon after, in collaboration with noted traveler Bernardus Paludanus, he published an account of his journeys that included a large amount of information on the East Indies that confirmed all of Plancius' charts and added more besides.  In early 1594, de Houtman returned from Lisbon.

The Amsterdam merchants now had all of the information they needed, and they set about raising capital to fund the expedition.  They recruited six other merchants and with them formed the Far-distance Company: Pieter Hasselaer, Jan Poppen, Hendrick Buick, Dirk van Os, Syvert Sem, and Arend ten Grootenhuys.  The Company was able to raise 290,000 guilders, and used it to build and equip four ships: the , , , and the .

All told, there were 248 officers and men on the expedition.  The ship's government was to be carried out by a Ships' Council consisting of the skippers of the ships, merchants who were assigned to each ship, and a few others.  Some had preferred status, allowing them to speak first on an issue and break a tie; Cornelis de Houtman was one of these.  Before the ships left, all of the navigators were trained by Petrus Plancius.  The chief navigator was Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser.

Voyage
The fleet sailed from the port of Texel on April 2, 1595.  They made good time at first, passing the Canary Islands on April 26 and landing at the Isla de Mayo on April 19, but soon the wind died, and they were able to make only slow progress.  They did not cross the equator until June 4, and did not sight Africa until August 2.  In October, they landed at Madagascar, where they were forced to stay for six months, losing many men to illness; by the time they left, 71 men had died.  Among the dead was the skipper of the Hollandia, Jan Dignumsz.  His death set off a bitter feud over who would succeed that ended only when one of the officers, Gerrit van Beuningen, was put in irons for the remainder of the voyage.

At Bantam

In June 1596, the fleet reached Bantam (Banten), Java but were received poorly due to the machinations of the Portuguese, who persuaded the Bantamese to raise their prices to absurdly high levels. They were also denied access to water, and when some of them went to Sumatra to get more, a number of men, including de Houtman, were captured and held until ransomed. De Houtman, by this time, was the de facto leader of the expedition, most of his opponents having been either killed or disgraced by this time. After being ransomed, he bombarded the city with cannon fire and raided several spice-carrying ships coming into Bantam from Banda and Borneo. Outraged, the Bantamese, sent men throughout the surrounding islands, warning them about the Dutch. At Sidayu, near Surabaya, the ships were boarded by natives and twelve men were killed in the ensuing battle, including the skipper of the Amsterdam. Soon after, at Madura, when the royal family sailed out to meet to Dutch, the Amsterdam opened fire, killing the prince, the priest, and many others.

Return home
At this point, the entire expedition was on the brink of disaster. Only 94 of the original 248 men were still alive, and the leaders were split into two factions, one led by de Houtman and the other by Jan Meulenaer, who disagreed on where the fleet should go next.  When Meulanaer suddenly died under mysterious circumstances, de Houtman was seized and put on trial by the Ships' Council.  On grounds of insufficient evidence, he was released, but by this time the Amsterdam was in such bad condition that it had to be set adrift and burnt. The fleet was in such bad shape that it was decided to head south, making one last stop at Bali, and then sail back to the Netherlands. The crew found Bali to be quite amiable, and set sail for home on February 26, 1597, reaching Texel on August 14 of the same year.

Results
Although the expedition did not bring back as much as expected245 bags of pepper, 45 tons of nutmeg, and 30 bales of macespice prices had become so inflated that the expedition was still profitable.  All in all, the voyage suffered from bad leadership, but was still instrumental in opening up the East Indies to the Dutch.

See also
 Second Dutch Expedition to Indonesia
 Dutch East India Company in Indonesia

Notes

References

Exploration of Indonesia
Portuguese colonialism in Indonesia
1590s in the Dutch Empire
Expeditions from the Netherlands
Dutch exploration in the Age of Discovery
Dutch celestial cartography in the Age of Discovery

First Dutch Expedition to East Indies


Staples Township is a township in Todd County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 622 at the 2000 census and in the 2020 census it was 597.

Staples Township was organized in 1882, and named for Samuel and Isaac Staples, businessmen in the lumber industry.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 33.9 square miles (87.7 km); 32.7 square miles (84.7 km) is land and 1.1 square miles (3.0 km) (3.40%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 622 people, 233 households, and 172 families residing in the township.  The population density was 19.0 people per square mile (7.3/km).  There were 274 housing units at an average density of 8.4/sq mi (3.2/km).  The racial makeup of the township was 96.46% White, 0.16% African American, 1.29% Native American, 0.16% Asian, and 1.93% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.13% of the population.

There were 233 households, out of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.9% were married couples living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 21.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the township the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 26.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.3% who were 65 years of age or older.  The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 109.4 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.2 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $40,469, and the median income for a family was $47,583. Males had a median income of $28,250 versus $16,827 for females. The per capita income for the township was $15,711.  About 5.2% of families and 6.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 2.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

Townships in Todd County, Minnesota
Townships in Minnesota

Staples Township, Todd County, Minnesota


Acraea encedon, the common acraea, white-barred acraea or encedon acraea, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in sub-Saharan Africa and south-western Arabia. It is one of the species of Acraea sometimes separated in Telchinia.

Description
The wingspan is , with the female being slightly larger than the male, but otherwise similar in pattern and colour. The apex of the forewing is blackish and divided by a white bar. The rest of the surface of the wings are usually orange with black spots, however paler varieties with a greyish or yellowish base colour are also found.

The butterfly is a polymorphic Müllerian mimic of Danaus chrysippus, which is a highly unusual phenomenon as Müllerian mimicry is almost always monomorphic.

Description in Seitz

A. encedon is a very variable and widely distributed species and appears in many forms but with no definite local races. The black dots are the same in all the forms and are arranged as follows. Fore wing: 1 or 2 basal dots in 1b; a transverse spot in the cell; discal dots in 1b to 6, of which that in 1b is often double and always placed much nearer to the distal margin than the one in 2; in the forms with black apex discal dots 3 to 6 on the upper surface are indistinct against the dark ground-colour. Hindwing: basal dots in (1a), 1b, 1c and 7; 1 or 2 dots in the cell; one dot each in the basal angle of cellules 4 and 5 and discal dots in 1b to 7, of which the one in 3 or 4 is placed nearer to the distal margin than the rest and the one in 2 nearer to the base than that in 1b. The hindwing above has a narrow black or blackish marginal band 1 to 2 mm. in breadth, beneath the streaks on the interneural folds are often red-yellow instead of black. Throughout Africa south of the Sahara and Madagascar.
 encedon L. (56 e). The apical half of the forewing above blackish with white subapical band composed of 5 or 6 spots in cellules 3-6 (9, 10); ground-colour otherwise red-brown to yellow-brown, beneath somewhat lighter. f. infuscata Stgr. only differs from encedon in the smoky brown ground-colour.
 f. alcippina Auriv. [A. encedana Pierre, 1976 morph] has the hindwing in the middle more or less extended white, but otherwise agrees with the type-form.
 f. sganzini Bdv. (56 e). Markings as in the type-form, but ground-colour straw-yellow to clay-yellow and marginal streaks on the underside of the hindwing usually black; marginal band on the upperside of the hind wing often widened and not sharply defined. Occurs especially on Madagascar.
 f. lycia F. (56 e) is very similar to f. sganzini, but has a white or whitish ground colour; occasionally the basal half of the fore wing is smoky black-grey on both surfaces and on the upperside only a little lighter than the apical half, ab. fumosa ab. nov. A specimen with 3 black dots in the cell of the hindwing was named ascrepticia (!) by Strand. [A. encedana Pierre, 1976 morph]

The following forms differ from the preceding in having the apical half of the forewing above not or scarcely darker than the basal half, with distinct black discal dots.
 f. necoda Hew. (56 e). [now species Acraea necoda] Ground-colour of both wings light grey; forewing with whitish subapical band.
 f. daira Godm. and Salv [A. encedana Pierre, 1976 morph]. Ground-colour of both wings light brown-yellow; the subapical band of the fore wing absent or only indicated by light yellowish spots.
 f. radiata Auriv. [A. encedana Pierre, 1976 morph] only differs from daira in having the extremities of the veins above broadly and triangularly edged with black and the posterior half of the hindwing whitish. Adamaua.

Larva slate-black with yellow lateral line, small white and yellow dorsal spots edged with black, and black spines; head black. Pupa white with the usual black markings. The larva lives on Commelina.

The agreement in colour and markings between the forms of Acraea encedon and those of the much larger Danaus chrysippus and D. dorippus is very remarkable. Compare A. encedon and D. chrysippus, A. alcippina and D. alcippus, A. daira and D. dorippus, A. radiata and D. dorippus ab. albinus.

Distribution
There are two subspecies:

Acraea encedon encedon is found in Africa south of the Sahara and in Madagascar. In South Africa this species is absent from the dry western parts of the country, but common in KwaZulu-Natal coastal areas on the eastern side of the country.
Acraea encedon rathjensi Le Doux, 1933 is found in south-western Arabia.

Life cycle
The eggs are oval in shape. The larvae feed on Commelina species, such as C. diffusa. The flight period of the adults is all year, but they are most common from March to May. They are slow fliers, and perch on low-growing vegetation.

In some populations there are two kinds of females, one producing offspring in a normal 1:1 sex ratio, the other producing females only. In other populations the sex ratio is apparently normal. Scientists first believed the distorted sex-ratio was caused by a driving W chromosome. Later research suggests it is caused by cytoplasmic bacteria.

Gallery

Taxonomy
It is a member of the Acraea encedon species group, but see also Pierre & Bernaud, 2014

Hyalites (group encedon) Henning, 1993, Metamorphosis 4 (2): 54
Acraea (Actinote) (group encedon subgroup encedon) Pierre & Bernaud, 2009, Butterflies of the World 31: 2
Telchinia (Telchinia) Henning & Williams, 2010, Metamorphosis 21 (1): 26

References

External links

Die Gross-Schmetterlinge der Erde 13: Die Afrikanischen Tagfalter. Plate XIII 56 e as encedon, sganzini and lycia g as daira
Images representing Acraea encedon at Bold
Images representing Acraea encedon encedon at Bold
All-female broods and mimetic polymorphism in Acraea encedon (L.) (Lepidoptera: Acraeidae) in Tanzania
Sex ratio distortion in Acraea encedon (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) is caused by a male-killing bacterium

encedon
Butterflies of Africa
Butterflies described in 1758
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus

Acraea encedon


Dragon Tales is an  animated educational fantasy children's television series created by Jim Coane and Ron Rodecker, developed by Coane, Wesley Eure, Jeffrey Scott, Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser, and produced by the Children's Television Workshop (now known as Sesame Workshop), Columbia TriStar Television, Sony Pictures Television and Adelaide Productions. The series focuses on the adventures of two siblings, Emmy and Max, and their dragon friends Ord, Cassie, Zak, Wheezie, and Quetzal.

The series began broadcasting on PBS on their newly-renamed PBS Kids block on September 6, 1999,  with its final episode airing on November 25, 2005. The show aired reruns up until August 31, 2010, where it was dropped entirely from the PBS Kids lineup. Yearim Productions was responsible for the animation for all seasons (Sunwoo Entertainment and Wang Film Productions only did animation for season 1), with the exception of Koko Enterprises, which recorded the show along with BLT Productions. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The U.S. Department of Education, cereal company Kellogg's and their associated products Rice Krispies, Froot Loops and Frosted Flakes, and greeting card manufacturer, American Greetings were responsible for the funding.

Background

Origin
Dragon Tales is based on characters created in 1978 by Laguna Beach, California artist and retired educator Ron Rodecker. Rodecker was recovering from a coronary artery bypass graft when he began sketching dragons as a means of symbolizing forces in life that were too big to control. In 1995, Jim Coane, then a producer at Columbia TriStar Television, found the artwork and developed it into a television series with several writers. The project was considered something of a risky venture, because it was not based on a well-known franchise like many children's television programs, such as Arthur or Paddington Bear. The series was immediately shipped to PBS member stations at the suggestion of PBS, but all originally passed at the time. In October 1995, Jim Coane met Marjorie Kalins, senior VP of programming and production at Children's Television Workshop, and showed her the idea for the series. Kalins, who loved the idea, brought the series to Children's Television Workshop, who agreed to a partnership with the Columbia TriStar Television Group. Kalins helped him and Columbia TriStar Television obtain an $8.5 million grant from the Department of Education and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The grant proposal was written by former Days of our Lives cast member and Finders Keepers host Wesley Eure. Coane stated that there was never any consideration of trying to shop the program to a commercial broadcast network and that PBS was, in his mind, the only destination for the program. As Columbia TriStar was the TV division of two major Hollywood film studios, which in turn are owned by the Sony Pictures Entertainment division of Japanese multinational conglomerate Sony, Dragon Tales became one of the few PBS Kids and Sprout programs to be co-produced by a major Hollywood studio's TV subsidiary; The other PBS shows were Bill Nye the Science Guy (made by Walt Disney Television), and Curious George (produced by Universal Television). In 2002, CTTV was renamed to Sony Pictures Television, a company that would co-produce the third season of the program.

After a tour of the lot of Sony Studios, Wesley Eure created the first treatment of the show, including the initial conception of the two-headed dragon Zak and Wheezie, back then known as "Snarf and Bugger." The series received a massive multi-million dollar grant from the federal government, beating out The Muppets and Sesame Street for the request. As part of the conditions for the grant, Eure was required to create a companion series for the program, which he titled Show and Tell Me, based on his own lecture series known as "Anyone Can Write a Book." Though the companion series was never actually created, Eure remains hopeful that it will one day be produced. Eure's name was not included in the initial credits for the series, forcing him to hire an attorney to ensure that he received credit.

Following the development of a show bible by Jeffrey Scott, with some tweaks by writers Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser, the series was ordered for just over 60 eleven-minute episodes by PBS. Scott was assigned to write and edit half, with Ruby/Lesser assigned to the other half. At this point, the writing team was provided with a document titled "FUN AND LEARNING IN DRAGON LAND: A Writer's Guide to Dragon Tales Educational Content" which provided directives as to which curriculum should be included within the stories, such as "emotional challenges > understanding other people's emotions > recognizing and labeling feelings in others" and the statement that "CURRICULUM IS PARAMOUNT!"  After the creation of the first script, all writing parties involved agreed that the scripts "weren't fun or funny, they were flat and boring." The writers successfully explained to the consultants, educators and psychologists of PBS that children watch television to be entertained and must be entertained in order to be educated. They were then provided with a new directive, "Come up with entertaining stories and shoehorn in the curriculum wherever it fits!" Scott states that from the experience he learned an invaluable lesson about how to create a successful preschool series. Dong Woo Animation, Rough Draft Korea, Sunwoo Entertainment, Wang Film Productions (season 1 only), Yearim, Siriol Productions (season 3 only) and Lotto Animation contributed some of the animation for this series.

Show premise and overview

The series focuses on the adventures of Emmy and Max, two human siblings. Upon moving into their new house, they find an enchanted dragon scale which, upon reciting a special rhyme engraved into its box, can magically transport them to Dragon Land, a whimsical fantasy world inhabited by colorful dragons. Befriended by four dragons with distinctive personalities – the strong, yet fearful Ord; the shy, yet sweet-natured Cassie; and polar opposite conjoined twins, neat-freak Zak and rambunctious Wheezie – Emmy and Max frequently travel to Dragon Land and help their friends in fulfilling particular quests, assisting them in their daily problems, and learning important morals through their experiences in Dragon Land.

The dragons also each have their own dragon badges (which are actually necklaces) that glow when they accomplish something they usually have trouble with. For example, Ord's glows when he is brave, Cassie's glows when she overcomes her anxiety, and Zak and Wheezie's glow when they overcome their differences and work together.

In an effort to educate preschoolers mildly in Hispanic culture, a new character named Enrique debuted during the show's final season, providing the series with a third protagonist. Surrounded by a variety of unique characters and faced with numerous differing situations, Emmy and Max commonly embark on adventures with their dragon friends, conquering fears or achieving goals in spite of any obstacles along the way.

As a series broadcast on PBS, the program has an educational focus, combining lessons of a pro-social nature with those of more general educational value. Educational themes covered included identifying shapes, learning words and letters in both English and Spanish, counting and basic math. Social themes are also covered, such as good sportsmanship, the importance of being a good friend, overcoming obstacles such as jealousy or fears and getting along with siblings. Many of the show's interstitial song segments, known as "Dragon Tunes," also covered such themes, such as "Make It Fun", which encourages viewers to not complain about having to do seemingly mundane chores such as washing dishes or helping parents with cooking meals, but instead find ways to make them fun; and "Hum," which encourages those who had a fear of the dark or trying new things to hum softly to comfort themselves. Three stated goals of the program's educational philosophy are the encouragement of pursuing new experiences, finding ways to approach and learn from challenges and that learning can come through trying and not succeeding entirely. Despite two of the show's human leads, Emmy and Enrique, being six years old, the show's described target audience was children closer to the age of four.

Another key topic of the program is the encouragement of honest and candid expressions of emotion. In "Cassie, the Green-Eyed Dragon," Cassie feels jealous of her little brother, Finn, who gets everyone's attention when she takes him to school for "circle time." Discussing the matter with her best friend, Emmy, and her teacher, Quetzal, helps her to understand that jealousy is a natural feeling that everyone experiences sometimes, but that there are ways that she can appreciate her brother, while still feeling appreciated herself. In "Feliz Cumpleaños, Enrique," Enrique feels sad and homesick for his homeland of Colombia when his birthday celebrations in Dragon Land are not like the traditions of those back in his old home. He talks with Quetzal, who encourages him to cry, even though he had been told that crying was something a boy at his age was not supposed to do. After doing so, he feels better and is able to enjoy his party celebrations.

As with Sesame Street, which is also produced by the Children's Television Workshop (now Sesame Workshop), the program's creators encourage "co-viewing," the practice of parents or other caregivers watching the program along with their children and engaging in activities such as discussion, singing and dancing, and pretend play. The program's official website offers a number of activities and lesson plans to aid in these efforts.

Characters

Main
 Emmy (voiced by Andrea Libman) is a 6-year-old girl, who commonly appears as the leader of the group until she gave her position to Enrique while helping him get used to Dragon Land. She's Max's older sister. Her best friend is Cassie, and she's perhaps known for saying "Definitely!" whenever a good idea arises. Though Emmy is not ashamed to do "girly" things with Cassie, she's also heavily into sports and games and generally is up for any activity. Though she experiences occasional jealousy of her brother, the 2 are otherwise usually together within Dragon Land and share many adventures. Though a brave, smart natural leader, she's also impulsive and does not always think before she acts.
 Max (voiced by Danny McKinnon) is 4 years old, and is Emmy's younger brother. For the most part, he and Emmy get along fine, but occasionally have arguments due to him being prone to anger. His best friend is Ord. Though Max loves Emmy, he sometimes struggles with being the younger brother, and is usually frustrated about being too little to do certain things, or when Emmy acts in certain ways. He's of an adventurous sort and sometimes helps to give courage to Ord when he's afraid of certain things. He's kind to others, but often enjoys acting silly or goofy. He sometimes acts in a stubborn manner, determined to prove that a child his age can do things on his own, even when he really needs help. Max was named after the son of executive producer Jim Coane.
 Enrique (voiced by Aida Ortega) is 6 years old. He is Emmy and Max's new best friend and next-door neighbor who moved from Colombia to the United States and also once lived in Puerto Rico. He is raised by his father and his grandmother ("abuelita")  He first appears in the Season 3 episode "To Fly with a New Friend", and travels to Dragon Land with the children when Max encourages Emmy to share their secret. His recent experiences in South America provide more opportunities for the characters to demonstrate the meanings of new Spanish words. He misses his homeland of Colombia and saddened by reminders of times from his old home. He rides with Zak and Wheezie, the two-headed dragon who rarely flew with any human friends prior to Enrique's debut in Season 3. His personality is somewhat bashful but he is sometimes shy to join in on new experiences.  However, he finds that he enjoys himself when he allows himself to let go, express his feelings and then move forward to have fun. He's raised by his grandparents and described as an intensely smart, good, and logical character. A series of moves throughout his early life has left him jaded and wary of both making new friends and trying new things. Enrique received mixed reviews. The presence of Enrique on the program, in conjunction with Max and Emmy, was the subject of a study "'They Are?!' Latino Difference vis-à-vis Dragon Tales," which was critical of the show's use of the characters, feeling that the series ultimately "undermines multiculturalism because it fails to nurture children's ability to live fearlessly with and within difference."
 Ord (voiced by Ty Olsson) is a strong blue male dragon who is Max's best friend. He is extremely fond of food and always carries some just in case; a running gag in the show features Ord making "Dragon Corn" by throwing the kernels in the air and popping them with his fire breath. He's also allergic to dandelions. Despite his physical strength, Ord is sometimes scared due to his fear of the dark and thunder, and possesses a magical tendency to turn invisible when he is upset or frightened. Ord's sun-shaped Dragon Badge glows when he faces his fears. Ord is extremely sweet and kind in nature, he learns moral lessons when he is not kind. For instance, in "Kingdom Come" he refuses to share his huge cupcake, but finally gives in and learns moral lessons.
 Cassie (voiced by Chantal Strand) is a shy, cute, reserved and sweet pink female dragon who is Emmy's best friend. She possesses a magical tendency to shrink when she is too shy, sad, or scared, may occasionally come across as slightly insecure and uncertain, and is prone to worrying, especially about making a mistake. However, Cassie is distinguished by her kind heart and maternal sweetness, primarily as a result of her responsibilities as an older sister and babysitter to a myriad of younger siblings. Cassie also is characterized by her color combination of pink and yellow, along with blue speckles in some areas. Cassie knows just about everything there is to know about Dragon Land and has a deep love of fairytales, both stemming from her love of reading, as well as being an amazing singer and dancer. Her dragon orb-shaped badge glows when she feels confident and believes in herself.
 Zak (voiced by Jason Michas) and Wheezie (voiced by Kathleen Barr) are conjoined twin green and purple dragons with opposite personalities; Zak is male, and Wheezie is female. Zak is neat and clean, worries a lot, and is pessimistic about many things. His catchphrase is "Take it easy, Wheezie!", which he often says when Wheezie takes off running, dragging him with her. Wheezie, on the other hand, is bold, hyper, confident, and free-spirited, with a tendency to be messy, much to her brother's annoyance. Her catchphrase is "Love it!", when she loves something. The two have a shared love of music and performing and they often perform in talent shows and recitals together. Zak and Wheezie always fly with Enrique, though they rarely flew with any human friends in the first two seasons. In the third season, Enrique became their partner following his debut. Their dragon badges are musical notes that glow when they work together and get along, though they will sometimes glow independently when one of them accomplishes something on their own of significance. Although they fight a lot, they are very close and they love and care about each other a lot. In the episode "Not Separated at Birth" the viewers get a view of what Wheezie and Zak would look like separately as if they were born that way. They get in a fight and Queztel decides to grant them their request to be separated. Finally being able to live separately, it is short lived as they want to be back together.
 Quetzal (voiced by Eli Gabay) is an elderly yellow male dragon originally from Mexico who is the teacher at The School in the Sky where young dragons attend. He tries to encourage his students to find solutions to their problems on their own, but is a sounding board who offers stability and comfort, as well as sound advice. In the episode "Snow Dragon", Quetzal mentions it has been hundreds of years since he visited the dragon snow sculpture as a child, implying he is centuries old. He speaks Spanish with a very strong accent. He also has an identical twin brother named Fernando who works in his garden.

Supporting
 Arlo (voiced by Scott McNeil) is an orange male dragon who works at the Dragon Dump. He has a machine at the Dragon Dump which he calls his "lil' ol' recycler" that sorts out things that can be used again.
 Dr. Booboogone (voiced by Shirley Milliner) is a veteran pink dragon who works as a doctor who helps dragons and other species who are sick or hurt. She wears a doctor's coat.
 Captain Scallywag (voiced by Scott McNeil) is a pirate who captains a flying ship.
 Chilly (voiced by French Tickner) is a living snowman who lives on top of the Stickleback Mountains with his snowdog Nippy.
 Cyrus (voiced by Ian James Corlett) is a conniving lizard-like slinky serpent, the main antagonist of the show. He often tries to steal others' eggs to eat.
 The Doodle Fairy is a fairy with green skin and purple dress. She does not speak but can doodle.
 Eunice (voiced by Janyse Jaud) is a winged unicorn who cannot see very well, so she wears glasses.
 Finn (voiced by Ellen Kennedy) is Cassie's younger brother. He is light blue, toddler-aged, attached to his blankie, and only just learning to fly. He is prone to tantrums when upset.
 The Giant of Nod (voiced by Blu Mankuma on most appearances and Paul Dobson in "Much Ado About Nodlings" only) is the leader of a group of gnome-like creatures called the Nodlings. While much bigger than his fellow Nodlings, he is smaller than any of the main characters but is enormously strong.
 Princess Kidoodle is the ruler of the Doodle Fairy Kingdom. She seems to be much older than any other doodle fairies.
 Kiki (voiced by Ellen Kennedy) is Cassie's younger sister. Kiki is light green. She seems slightly younger than Finn and still wears diapers and drinks from a bottle. She is attached to her "squishy", an oddly-shaped seed that she enjoys squeezing.
 The Little Bird with the Big Eyes, is a bird that lives in the Forest of Darkness who has big round eyes. She is described by Max every time she leaves them as "nice bird!"
 Lorca (voiced by Lenore Zann) is Max, Emmy, Zak, Wheezie, Ord and Cassie's friend. He was born without wings and can use a wheelchair because he was born this way and is incapable of flight. Despite his physical limitations, however, Lorca enjoys participating in adventures and sports activities and encourages his friends to think of new ways to do things.
 Norm (voiced by Stevie Vallance) is a friendly little gnome who loves to count.
 Monsieur Marmadune (voiced by Cusse Mankuma) is the main ruler and leader of Kingdom Come, who tells Ord that Kingdom Come is the happiest place a dragon could ever be.
 Mr. Pop (voiced Ian James Corlett) is a gnome-like character that temporarily steals Wheezie's laugh with his sound switcher.
 Mungus (voiced by Garry Chalk) is a giant who lives in a castle in the clouds. He knows many folks in Dragon Land since he can travel far and wide in just a few steps.
 Polly Nimbus (voiced by Kathleen Barr) is the operator of the cloud factory, which controls Dragon Land's weather.
 Poozy is a fairy with butterfly wings that was once Cassie's pet caterpoozle. She looks similar to the Doodle Fairy and like the Doodle fairy she does not speak.
 Priscilla (voiced by Erin Fitzgerald) is the manager at the lost and found, who during her first appearance, was feeling embarrassed because her wings were bigger than those of other dragons. She eventually realized that there is nothing wrong with being different when she uses her big wings to help Mungus clean up his castle in a "different" way.
 Sid Sycamore (voiced by Scott McNeil) is a talking tree who loves telling jokes that relate to the concept of trees, the dragons' treehouse is attached to him. When upset, the children will sometimes go to talk to him to be cheered up by his jokes. (See "Emmy's Dreamhouse / Dragon Sails" [sic] regarding use as a treehouse.)
 Slurpy (voiced by Stevie Vallance) is Zak and Wheezie's pet furball.
 Spike is a brief student who loves his YoYo but he is also a mean bully whenever he gets sad or alone. He is paired up with Cassie when the group picks Dragon Plums. He bullies Cassie and when she gets upset about this, Quetzel advises her to be friends with Spike. Because Quetzal implied that Spike might be a bully because he is sad and alone, much like how Cassie shrinks when she is shy, scared or sad.
 Windy (voiced by Erin Fitzgerald in Season 1 and Maggie Blue O'Hara in Seasons 2-3) is a little wind that likes to blow like her father.
 Wyatt (voiced by Doug Parker) is a talking wishing well that immediately grants any wish for a single coin. He's old friends with Quetzal. Whenever coins pile up too high, he knows it is time for them to be emptied and taken to the First Dragon Land Bank. Earlier in the series, he was called Willy.

Release history
Dragon Tales premiered on PBS Kids on September 6, 1999 with the episode "To Fly with Dragons/The Forest of Darkness". The installment introduced the characters of Max and Emmy to Dragon Land after discovering a magical dragon scale in their new home and to their new dragon friends. In the first half, they discovered Ord's missing tooth, while the adventures continued in the second story with Ord facing his fear of the dark. A total of forty episodes were aired in the first season, with the finale airing on April 28, 2000. The show also aired on the original PBS Kids Channel until that network's closure in 2005. Dragon Tales was the only CTW show airing on the PBS Kids Channel due to competing network Noggin having the cable rights to air shows from the CTW's programming library (including its flagship series Sesame Street). The show's second season premiered on June 4, 2001 and had 25 episodes. 20 of these episodes were broadcast from June 4, 2001 to September 14, 2001. The final installment of this set, "Just the Two of Us/Cowboy Max," was broadcast only in non-U.S. markets such as Guam and Canada and did not premiere to U.S. audiences until the program's third season, though "Cowboy Max" was released on DVD prior to this. The special "Let's Start a Band!," featuring the dragon characters blended with live humans in a musical show based on the program's "Dragon Tunes" segments, was released on March 2, 2003. Following this, no new episodes were aired until February 21, 2005, leading many long-time viewers to believe the program had been quietly canceled. The new season introduced the new character Enrique, an immigrant from Colombia, as well as an updated focus on folk songs and teaching of Spanish. The premiere installment, in two parts, showed Enrique being introduced to the sights and sounds of Dragon Lands, learning to fly on Zak & Wheezie, and having his first adventure. The second half appeared as "The Mystery of the Missing Knuckerholes" in some listings, but on the program was simply titled as Part 2 of the episode. Though 29 episodes were broadcast, including "Just the Two of Us/Cowboy Max," only one story from each was original, while the others were a repeat of a story from the second season. The series officially concluded with the "Big, Big Friends Day" special on November 25, 2005.
Dragon Tales would continue to air in reruns on the PBS Kids block (and sister channel Sprout) until August 31, 2010.

The program's first musical album, Dragon Tunes, was released on March 20, 2001 and featured the character themes of Cassie and Ord, as well as tunes such as "Betcha Can," the "Wiggle Song" and "Shake Your Dragon Tail." A second album, More Dragon Tunes, was issued on February 15, 2005. This album introduced the character theme of Zak & Wheezie, as well as a number of new tunes introduced in the program's second and third seasons, including "Hola," "Make a New Friend" and remixes of two previous themes, "Shake Your Dragon Tail" and "Dance."

Throughout its history, a number of tie-in book releases were printed, some based on installments of the television program, others not. These included Cassie Loves a Parade, Ord Makes a Wish and Taking Care of Quetzal.

A special, Parent Tales from Dragon Tales, was produced in association with the program. The program was stated to use "messages built into the children's series to inform parental challenges. From bedtime dramatics to tantrums and assorted other small-fry rebellions..." For the special, parents were given video cameras used to record problematic behavior, then counselors analyzed the video footage and provided specific tips to the parents, who all reported significantly improved behavior two months later. The researchers also discovered from their work on the series that children often think in pictures and that visual aids are often helpful.

Music and songs
Dragon Tales featured an original score composed by Jim Latham and Brian Garland. Each episode also included an interstitial segment between story airings known as "Dragon Tunes," featuring a song either based on one of the characters of the show, or designed to teach a lesson, such as "Stretch!", which encouraged viewers to reach forward for their goals and "When You Make a New Friend," which espoused the joys of forming a new friendship. The songs were released on the albums Dragon Tunes and More Dragon Tunes.

Episodes

Dragon Tales aired a total of 94 episodes, 40 in its first season, 24 in its second season and 30 in its third season. Each episode featured two original stories, aired back-to-back, split by the interstitial song segment "Dragon Tunes," all of which were eventually released on the show's music albums. Almost all episodes from the third season, however, generally contained at least one repeat of a story from the program's second season (As evidenced by the absence of Enrique.) and some were even repeats of material from that season and earlier material from the third season. In all, there were a total of 155 original stories. The show also had two specials: Let's Start a Band and Big, Big Friend Day. Let's Start a Band was a musical feature in which the characters of the show were seen alongside real human children. Big, Big Friend Day, however, was merely a special featuring episodes of Dragon Tales and Clifford the Big Red Dog, with interstitial segments introducing characters from the new series (new at the time) It's a Big Big World. As such, it did not contain any new Dragon Tales material.

Reception
The series has received generally positive reviews, though its third season received mixed reception due to the introduction of Enrique. Common Sense Media rated the show a four out of five stars, stating: "Dragon Tales intends to positively impact a child's growth and development by encouraging a love of learning and helping children problem-solve and work through the challenges of growing up. The kids and dragons embark on different adventures and attend the School in the Sky, all while learning how to face their fears and handle new situations. The fun, nurturing, and sometimes challenging atmosphere of Dragon Land is a lot like preschool."

Awards
 2000 Parents' Choice Silver Award Winner
 2001 Parents' Choice Approved Award Winner (for "Dragon Tales: Dragon Tunes" CD)
 2003 Parents' Choice Silver Award Winner (for "Let's Start a Band" video)
 2005 Parents' Choice Approved Award Winner (for "Dragon Tales: More Dragon Tunes" CD)

The series was nominated for three Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Children's Animated Program in 2001, 2002 and 2003, but did not win any. Jason Michas and Kathleen Barr also received Annie Award nominations in 2000 for their performances of Zak and Wheezie respectively.

In other media

Video games

On November 29, 2000, a video game based on the series, Dragon Tales: Dragon Seek, was released for the PlayStation. Published by NewKidCo, the player takes control of either Emmy or Max as the player navigates them through Dragon Land playing hide and seek, searching for either Ord, Cassie, Zak and Wheezie, Monsieur Marmaduke or Captain Scallywag that are hiding in certain areas in each level, the player would also have a choice to pick what character they want to search for at the beginning.

On December 16, 2000, another video game, Dragon Tales: Dragon Wings, was issued for Game Boy Color. Issued by NewKidCo, the game allowed players to take on the role of a novice dragon that was learning the secrets of flight at Quetzal's School in the Sky. Players moved through 15 levels of obstacles available in three difficulty levels. Reviews were mixed at Amazon.com, with an overall rating of 3/5 stars from ten reviewers. Many praised the graphics and fun of the game, but also felt that the game was too challenging for most younger players and did not offer much educational value.

On July 28, 2001, a third video game titled Dragon Tales: Dragon Adventures was released for Game Boy Color. Also issued by NewKidCo, the game included journeys to familiar locations from the show including the Stickleback Mountains, the Singing Springs and Crystal Caverns. The game included multiple skill settings and the option to play as Cassie, Ord, Emmy or Max, the title having been issued before the addition of Enrique to the series. The Game Boy Advance version was later released in 2004, which also makes Zak and Wheezie playable in that version.

The show's official website also included a number of tie-in games, such as "Finn's Word Game" and "Dragonberry Surprise," though following the discontinuation of the site, such titles are no longer available.

Marketing and merchandise
In addition to the various books, music albums and video game releases, numerous merchandise items featuring the characters of Dragon Tales were made available for purchase throughout the program's run. A total of six different designs featuring scenes from the program were featured on Welch's jam jars. An official board game for the series titled Dragon Tales: A Dragon Land Adventure, featured obstacles and memory games, with the goal of completing a puzzle. It was released by University Games and overall reviews were generally positive, though also expressed that the game was not very challenging. Other merchandise released for the series included plush toys for most of the major characters, such as Cassie and Quetzal though Enrique, seen only in the program's third season, was never released in plush form and was largely absent from merchandise releases. As early as January 1996, Hasbro reached an agreement for a line of plush, puzzles and board games related to the series to be released beginning in spring 2000.

For the program's video debut, multiple licensees, including Hasbro, Random House, Sony PlayStation and New Kid Toys promoted in tandem a "Dragon Tales Family Fun Getaway." Promoted via stickers on Dragon Tales merchandise and home video releases, the promotion was a contest with a grand prize of a four-day, three-night trip for four to San Diego, including a visit to the San Diego Zoo.

In 2001, Mott's ran a five-month Dragon Tales promotion with its apple juice packs. Dragon Tales character stickers were offered on 50 million packs. Additionally, 20 million bottles offered an instant win game with the top prize as a Dragon Tales themed party with the pink dragon Cassie and an additional 10,000 prizes of Dragon Tales books.

In October 2004, Scholastic Parent & Child selected the CD-ROM game Learn & Fly With Dragons as teachers' pick for best new tech.

Live events

A musical stage show called Dragon Tales Live! features the characters and concepts of the show. It toured nationally in the United States. It featured performers playing the dragons in full body costumes and two real children in each production playing the roles of Max and Emmy. Shows included the "Missing Music Mystery", "Journey to Crystal Cave"  and "The Riddle of Rainbow River."

Dragon Tales Live! toured from January 2002 until at least March 2006. The program was never modified to include the character of Enrique, who was not added until the program's final season, one year before productions of the stage show ended.

References

Citations

External links

 Parent Tales from Dragon Tales on the official PBS website (Internet Archive)
 Sony Pictures Television official Dragon Tales page (Internet Archive, DVD Series)
Dragon Tales - "A Magical World of Rainbow Rivers and Talking Trees", archive, on Sesame Workshop's official website
 Detail account of series' genesis
  at PBS
 PBS official website (Internet Archive, partially functional, circa introduction of Enrique)
 Official website of Dragon Tales Live stage show (Internet Archive)
Sesame Workshop official site as it appeared at CTW.org

1999 American television series debuts
1999 Canadian television series debuts
2005 American television series endings
2005 Canadian television series endings
1990s American animated television series
1990s Canadian animated television series
2000s American animated television series
2000s Canadian animated television series
American children's animated adventure television series
American children's animated fantasy television series
American preschool education television series
Canadian children's animated adventure television series
Canadian children's animated fantasy television series
Canadian preschool education television series
Animated preschool education television series
1990s preschool education television series
2000s preschool education television series
CBC Television original programming
English-language television shows
PBS Kids shows
PBS original programming
Animated television series about children
Animated television series about dragons
Animated television series about siblings
Television series by Adelaide Productions
Television series by Sesame Workshop
Television series by Sony Pictures Television
Television shows adapted into video games
Portal fantasy

Dragon Tales


Boiler insurance (Boiler cover) is a type of insurance that covers repairs and in some instances, the replacement of a home boiler. It can also cover other parts of the central heating system and even plumbing and electrics.

Types of boiler coverage
More than 22 million UK households rely on a boiler for their heating and hot water. But boilers are not usually covered by standard home insurance and can be very costly to repair or replace. An owner of a building may purchase boiler insurance. Coverage is negotiated between the insurance carrier and may include the boiler only, the piping system, or the full heating system. Some insurance carriers also offer annual service packages.

The most costly coverage will include the full central heating system. Insurance is generally offered by gas and electric energy providers, although other companies also provide cover. Policies have various restrictions on the time of work and cost of repairs. Old equipment may not be insurable.

Boiler cover however is not boiler insurance. Boiler cover is much more limited and has very strict guidelines on the amounts paid out towards repairs and new boilers. Insurance is regulated, whereas boiler cover is not. Boiler cover is generally cheaper and will cover most issues that arise with most boilers.

References

Types of insurance
Boilers

Boiler insurance


Andrássy University Budapest (AUB) (full name: Andrássy Gyula German Speaking University Budapest/Andrássy Gyula Deutschsprachige Universität Budapest) is a private university in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. Andrássy University Budapest was founded in 2001 and is the only completely German-language university outside the German-speaking countries. As a European university in Hungary, it is supported by five partner states (Austria, Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Germany, Hungary) and also by Switzerland and the autonomous region of Trentino-South Tyrol.

History
The idea to found AUB goes back to the "Ulm Declaration" of 22 February 2001. The prime ministers of Hungary, the Republic of Austria, the State of Baden-Württemberg and the Free State of Bavaria came to an agreement during a summit meeting in Ulm to support a German-language university in Budapest which Hungary had been planning, and to take active part in its implementation. Thus the cornerstone for a multinational community project was laid. The then-planned expansion of the European Union was the tone-setting impulse; a contribution to the integration process of the Central European area into the European Union was made which continues to this day.

Founded in the same year by Hungary, the "Public Foundation for the German Language University in Budapest" served as agent. In June 2001, AUB received state recognition by the Hungarian Parliament. Just one year thereafter, the "Andrássy Gyula German-Language University in Budapest" (Andrássy University Budapest – AUB) initiated its teaching programme.

With the name "Andrássy Gyula German-Language University in Budapest", the founders placed the institution and its future role in the historic traditional lineage of Central Europe. Its namesake, Count Gyula Andrássy (1823-1890), was an active participant of the revolution of 1848/49, from 1867 to 1871 Hungarian prime minister and finally, until his resignation in 1879, foreign minister of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. He was an involved proponent of the Austro-Hungarian Compromise, which was bound into the foundation of the Dual Monarchy. He was committed to the promotion of understanding among the nations, and through his extraordinary endeavours for the close cooperation of the Central European states, he is known as one of the most prominent diplomats of the 19th century.

AUB was the first university outside of Germany to be accredited according to German rules and criteria. With its quality assurance system certified by the evalag evaluation agency from Baden-Württemberg, the university guarantees the best study and teaching conditions. It was the fifth in Hungary to be accepted into the excellence program of Hungarian colleges, thus earning the title "University of National Excellence".

Studies
Master's degree Programmes (German-language):
 International Relations – European Studies (also as a double master's programme together with the University of Leipzig, the University of Passau and the University of Wuppertal)
 International Economy and Business (also as a double master's programme together with the University of Bamberg)
 Management and Leadership (also as a double master's programme together with the Technical University of Dresden)
 LL.M. Comparative Political Science and Jurisprudence
 European and International Administration
 Central European Studies – Diplomacy ("Cultural Diplomacy")
Ph.D. Programme:

AUB's German-language interdisciplinary Ph.D. programme offers a graduate course in four subjects under the guiding perspective, "The Future of Central Europe in the European Union":
 History
 Political science
 Jurisprudence
 Economics

Building

Home of the AUB is the historical Festetics Palota, Budapest built by the Hungarian architect Miklós Ybl for the Hungarian statesman György Festetics and located in the centre of Budapest in the neighbourhood of the Hungarian National Museum.

See also
 Austria–Hungary relations
 Germany–Hungary relations

References

External links

Universities in Budapest
2001 establishments in Hungary
Universities and colleges established in 2001

Andrássy University Budapest


The Mahdawi movement, also called Mahdavia or Mahdavism, is an Islamic movement founded by Syed Muhammad Jaunpuri in India in the late 15th century. Syed Muhammad claimed to be Mahdi at the holy city of Mecca, in front of the Kaaba in 1496, and is revered as such by the Mahdavia community.

Beliefs
Mahdavis are followers of Syed Muhammad Jaunpuri who declared himself to be the Mahdi.

The Mahdavis had strictly adhere to the five pillars of Islam, sunnah tradition, and sharia, while having high respect and reverence for the House of Muhammad and his immediate progeny (ahl-e bayt), the Rashidun caliphs, and the companions of Muhammad (sahaba).

Mahdavis also respect all four schools of Islamic jurisprudence, but widely follow traditions similar to Hanafi jurisprudence.

They offer prayers five times a day led by their murshids, or spiritual guides; fast during Ramadan; offer special thanks on Dugana Lailat-al-Qadr past midnight between 26 and 27 Ramadan; perform hajj; and pay zakat. They also attach great significance to zikr (remembrance of Allah), after dawn (fajr) prayers, and in the evening after asr prayer.

Syed Muhammad was disturbed by the spiritual and moral degradation of Muslims. He preached a message of non-materialism and spirituality.

Mahdavis follow the seven obligations of sainthood, known as faraiz-e-Vilayat-e-Muhammadiya. These obligations are: rejection of material lust (tark-e-dunya), quest for divine vision (talab-e-deedar-e-Ilahi), company of truthfuls and ascetics (sohbat-e-sadiqeen), migration (hijrah) from place to place to avoid materialist lust, retreat and solitude (uzlat-az-khalq), resignation to the will of God (tawakkul), repetition of the names of God (zikr-e-Ilahi) and distributing tithe (ushr). Followers of Jaunpuri strictly follow some of these obligations in their day-to-day life. Most of them initiate renunciation in the advanced stage of their lives, after getting retirement from the jobs or by handing over business to their heirs. Their renunciation is in any way not related to celibacy, because almost all of them get married.

Mahdavi community centers are known as da'iras. Mahdavis engaged in extensive missionary activity.

Mohammad Jaunpuri declared himself to be the Mahdi, and as such a "caliph of Allah". He claimed to teach the true inner meaning of the Qur'an and strictly adhere to the Sunnah of Muhammad. Jaunpuri's declaration was ignored by the ulema of Mecca, but after he repeated his declaration in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, he gained a group of followers and established a line of caliphs who led the movement after his death.

History
After Jaunpuri's demise in 1505, the Mahdavi movement went through a militant phase, lasting during the reign of the first five Mahdavi caliphs. The movement was persecuted under the Sultan Muzaffar Shah II (r. 1511–1526) of Gujarat Sultanate.

The second Mahdavi caliph, Bandagi Miyan Syed Khundmir and his fukhra disciples (the persons who renounce the world and keep remembering Allah with zikr), faced organised persecution by the regime of Muzaffar at the behest of his court-appointed Mullas and was killed in 1523 along with hundreds of unarmed and peaceful disciples. Syed Khundmir's tomb is located in the town of Champaner in the Panchmahal district of the western Indian state Gujarat, where thousands of seekers and followers, from different parts of India and other countries, arrive to pay tribute.

After the 1799 siege of Seringapatam, the British government invited the Mahdavis to re-settle in Mysore.

Community
Anjuman E Mahdavia is a Mahdavia community center in Hyderabad, Telangana, India, established in 1902. L. K. A. Iyer in 1930 reports the existence of a community of "Mahdavia Musalmans" in Mysore Donabaghatta, Channapatna, Kirugavalu. There is a village named Donabaghatta in Karnataka. Large groups of Mahdavis resided in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka-Bengaluru, etc. The 1962 Gazette of Karnataka State has recorded the Mahadavia Sect of Islam in the state. Mahdavis of Gujarat state mostly lives in Tai Wada area in Vadodara district along with majority Sunni Muslims. They also have a small presence in Bharuch.

A Mahdavi center in north Chicago at (N Western Ave) was established by a group of South Asian immigrants in January 2016.

See also
Anjuman E Mahdavia

Others who claimed to be Mahdi
Ahmed ibn Abi Mahalli
Ibn Tumart
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
Muhammad Ahmad
Siyyid `Alí Muḥammad Shírází

References

External links
 "The Imam Mehdi" Treasure of Mahdavia books, audios and videos.
 "Mahdavia Foundation"
 "Jamiat-e-Mahdavia, Bangalore"

Mahdawi movement


The M72 Light Anti-Armor Weapon (LAW) is a small, lightweight rocket launcher used by the US military and other NATO countries. It weighs only five-and-a-half pounds. It was so small that it only needed one person to use it, rather than two for the bazooka. It was used often during the Vietnam War. The North Vietnamese military and guerillas did not use tanks often since so much fighting was in the jungle, but the LAW was still useful for destroying bunkers and trenches.

Weapons

M72 LAW


Beat Richner (13 March 1947 – 9 September 2018) was a Swiss pediatrician, cellist and founder of children's hospitals in Cambodia.  He created the Kantha Bopha Foundation in Zurich in 1992 and became its head. Along with another expatriate, he oversaw and ran the predominantly Cambodian-manned hospitals.  As both a cellist and a medical doctor, Richner was known by patients, audiences, and donors as "Beatocello".

Career
After receiving his medical degree in 1973, Dr Richner specialized in pediatric care at the Zurich Children's Hospital.  Following this,  working for the Swiss Red Cross, he was sent to Cambodia where he worked at the Kantha Bopha Children's Hospital in Phnom Penh in 1974 and 1975. The hospital is named in memory of HRH Samdach Preah Ang Mechas Norodom Kantha Bopha (1948–1952), who was the daughter of King Norodom Sihanouk and died at a very young age. When the Khmer Rouge overran Cambodia, Richner was forced to return to Switzerland where he continued his work at the Zurich Children's Hospital.  In the process of pursuing his medical career and an interest in music and entertainment, Dr. Richner developed the character of "Beatocello", an artistic and comedic clown who played the cello.  Along with this persona, Richner also published many children's books based on "Beatocello".

In December 1991 Richner returned to Cambodia and saw the devastation that had taken place following the ensuing conflicts with the Khmer Rouge and Vietnam.  He was asked to re-open and re-build Kantha Bopha by the Cambodian government.  Creating the Kantha Bopha Foundation in March 1992, Richner officially returned to Cambodia to begin reconstruction and Kantha Bopha was reopened in November 1992.  Since then, the foundation has funded the expansion of Kantha Bopha Children's Hospitals to include five hospitals in total.

As "Beatocello", Richner performed free concerts at the Jayavarman VII hospital in Siem Reap on Thursday and Saturday nights, during the high season.  The evenings included songs, played on his cello, and talks on the health crisis in Cambodia.  He asked the young tourists for blood, the older tourists for money, and the ones in between for both.  Richner and his work in Cambodia were also the subject of six documentary films by Georges Gachot: Bach at the Pagoda (1997), And the Beat Goes On (1999), Depardieu goes for Beatocello (2002),  Money or Blood (2004), "15 Years of Kantha Bopha" (2007), "Beatocello's Umbrella" (2012) .  In 2006, the documentary "Dr Beat and The Passive Genocide of Children" by Australian film maker Janine Hosking was produced.

Richner waged war on the large aid agencies, claiming that their policies of poor health care for poor people in poor countries are both illogical and immoral.

Richner was named "Swiss of the Year" in 2002.

He died of a serious illness on 9 September 2018 aged 71.

Kantha Bopha

The five children's hospitals built by Richner and the Kantha Bopha Foundation are located in Cambodia's major cities.  All of the hospitals provide treatment free of charge.  Kantha Bopha I and II can be found in Phnom Penh and Jayavarman VII in Siem Reap.   Kantha Bopha IV was opened in Phnom Penh in December 2005 and is connected to Kantha Bopha I. The 5th hospital, the most recent construction, opened in December 2007 (also in Phnom Penh).

Kantha Bopha II was inaugurated on 12 October 1996.  The hospital was constructed because of an apparent need caused by overcrowding in Kantha Bopha I.  Land was donated by King Norodom Sihanouk.  Jayavarman VII, constructed in 1998, similarly was constructed on land donated by Prime Minister Hun Sen.  The commissioning of this hospital came from the initiative of Cham Prasidh, the minister of commerce.  The hospital is located near Angkor Wat and has health education facilities as well inpatient and outpatient care.  On 9 October 2001 a maternity ward for HIV infected mothers was added to Jayavarman VII and includes 350 hospital beds.  In 2004, construction of Kantha Bopha IV began to offset structural and capacity issues of Kantha Bopha I.  Built in connection to the first hospital, Kantha Bopha IV stands near the famous Wat Phnom in the capital city.  Richner's funding and donation campaign for this hospital raised 15 million USD.  The campaign "Aktion Zwaenzger Noetli 2004" was primarily done in Switzerland.

The Kantha Bopha hospitals treat half a million children per year free of charge. Approx 100,000 seriously ill children are admitted. Japanese encephalitis, malaria, dengue fever and typhoid are common, often exacerbated by the presence of TB. TB is the number one killer.  Mortality rate is an astonishingly low 1%.  Richner says that over 80% of all paediatric health care in Cambodia is provided by his hospitals.

The hospitals are primarily funded by donations from individuals in Switzerland. Operational expense in 2006 was in the order of US$17m.  Since the Foundation started in 1991, it has reportedly raised US$370 million.

In addition to medical care, the hospitals also provide an International Postgraduate Course.  The Kantha Bopha Academy for Pediatrics was started in 2009.  The program includes lectures and courses on general pediatrics, infectology, immunology and diagnostic imaging.  The course program also includes an introduction into the organization and management of a children's hospital and maternity facilities in a poor tropical country.

Works
Kantha Bopha. Als Schweizer Arzt in Kambodscha ("Kantha Bopha:  A children's doctor in Cambodia"), 1995,  (How the re-opening of Kantha Bopha was made possible and why it is successful)
Hoffnung für die Kinder von Kantha Bopha, NZZ 2004,
Hope for the children of Kantha Bopha: our third hospital, maternity ward, training and conference centre, translated from German, NZZ 2004,

References

External links

 "Dr. Beat" - Free Health Care For Cambodian Children
 The Australian Doctor Beat Support Group
The 5 films by Georges Gachot about the history of Dr. Beat Richner and his Hospitals

1947 births
2018 deaths
Musicians from Zürich
Swiss pediatricians
Swiss cellists
Swiss expatriates in Cambodia

Beat Richner


The Norwegian Museum of Hydropower and Industry () is a cultural history museum at  Odda
in Vestland county, Norway. The museum is located in the village of Tyssedal. The museum is dedicated to the industrial history of Odda and Tyssedal, and more generally to history related to rivers and water, hydropower production, electricity, power intensive industry and its society.

A main attraction is the power station Tysso I, which was designed by architect  Thorvald Astrup (1876–1940) and constructed between 1906 and 1918. The station contains machinery and control room equipment from the entire period of operation, 1908–1989. In 2000 Tyssedal power plant – including Tysso I, pipelines, distribution pool and watchman's house at Lilletopp, and intake pool and valve house at Vetlevann – was protected for posterity by the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. During the following years the power plant went through extensive restoration.

Close to the power station is the former administration building for AS Tyssefaldene, the power generation company that owns and operates the hydropower plant. Today the building houses the museum's exhibitions, library, archives, photo and audio collections, as well as an auditorium. Further upstream it is possible to visit the installations at Lilletopp, Vetlevann and the Ringedals Dam. Three old workmen's houses in Odda and a small former hydrologic research station at the glacier Folgefonna are also part of the museum. A via ferrata has been built that allows safe climbing along the very steep pipeline.

References

External links
 Norsk Vasskraft- og Industristadmuseum website
AS Tyssefaldene website

Archives in Norway
Local museums in Norway
Museums in Vestland
History museums in Norway
Open-air museums in Norway
Industry museums in Norway
H
Museums established in 1989


The Falaises d'Entrecasteaux (in English the Cliffs of Entrecasteaux, named after 18th century French navigator Bruni d'Entrecasteaux) comprise the cliffs, which reach heights of over 700 m, along the west coast of Amsterdam Island, a small French territory in the southern Indian Ocean.

Important Bird Area
The western coastline of the island, including the cliffs, has been identified as a 360 ha Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it is home to one of the largest colonies of Indian yellow-nosed albatrosses in the world, with about 19,000 pairs constituting some 20% of the world population, and about 240 pairs of sooty albatrosses.  There is also a large colony of northern rockhopper penguins, with 25,000 pairs.  Two species, grey and soft-plumaged petrels, which have become rare on the island due to predation by rats and cats, are thought to breed in the IBA.  There is a large rookery of subantarctic fur seals in the IBA.  Ten endemic arthropods have been recorded.

The vegetation, which includes three endemic plant species, is dominated by tussock-grasses and rushes which are densest towards the foot of the cliffs.  Because of the inaccessibility of the cliffs, the vegetation of the cliff-ledges was never grazed by the feral cattle that used to inhabit the island.

References

Île Amsterdam
Cliffs of France
Important Bird Areas of Île Amsterdam
Landforms of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Seabird colonies

Falaises d'Entrecasteaux


Crow Agency () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Big Horn County, Montana, United States and is near the actual location for the Little Bighorn National Monument and re-enactment produced by the Real  Bird family known as Battle of the Little Bighorn Reenactment.  The population was 1,616 at the 2010 census. It is the governmental headquarters of the Crow  Native Americans. It is also the location of the "agency offices" where the federal Superintendent of the Crow Indian Reservation and his staff (part of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, United States Department of the Interior) interacts with the Crow Tribe, pursuant to federal treaties and statutes.

The ending scenes in the film Little Big Man (1970) were filmed in Crow Agency.

Geography
Crow Agency is located at  (45.601383, -107.459706). Interstate 90 passes through the community, with access from Exit 509. U.S. Route 212 also passes through the town. Custer Creek runs alongside town.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land.

History of the three locations of the "Crow Agency"

The term "Crow Agency" has been historically used since 1868 for the headquarters where the United States directed the federal interaction with the Crow tribe on its reservation.  The Crow Tribe's reservations, and the tribe's relations to the United States were defined by treaties between the Crow Tribe and the United States, and by United States statutes.

A Reservation Without An Agency (1851-1868)

The Treaty of Fort Laramie of 1851 created extensive reservation lands for the Indian tribes in Montana, Wyoming and the Dakotas at a time when the non-Indian presence in this area was limited to roving traders.  A large reservation for the Crow Tribe was set out that was centered on the Big Horn Mountains and extended eastward into the Powder River basin to the banks of the Powder River.  However, this treaty did not indicate agency sites for any of the tribes, including the Crows.  At the time of the treaty, 1851 the Crow tribe consisted of nomadic bands whose culture was based on hunting the migratory buffalo herds, including those herds in the Powder River Country.  Hunting in the Powder River area on the east side of the Big Horn Mountains brought the Crow in increasing conflict with more powerful bands of Sioux who were migrating westward.  In 1863 gold was discovered in commercial quantities in the mountains of the western Montana Territory.  Travelers to the gold fields left the Oregon Trail and traveled through the Powder River country, going up the east side of the Big Horns to the Yellowstone valley, and then westward.  This route became known as the Bozeman Trail, and three forts were built to protect travelers.  The Sioux conducted an all out war against the forts and the travelers on the Bozeman Trail called "Red Cloud's War", which finally forced the United States to agree to abandon the forts, and close the trail, and to remake the boundaries of the reservations for the Crow and Sioux in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868.

The First Crow Agency (1868-1874)

The Fort Laramie "Treaty with the Crows, 1868", was one of a series of treaties that recognized the encroaching presence of the Sioux tribes into the Powder River Basin, and gave them that entire area as a hunting preserve.   The separate 1868 treaty with the Crow moved the center of the Crow lands to the west of the Powder River Basin, into the western portions of the Yellowstone Valley.  The 1868 Treaty provided for annuities and other federal support, and stipulated that the Crow would have an agency "on the south side of the Yellowstone, near Otter Creek", close to present day Big Timber, Montana. The first Crow Agency (1869-1874) was eventually constructed about eight miles east of present-day Livingston, Montana on Mission Creek, and became known as Fort Parker. This first Crow Agency was located in the western reaches of the Yellowstone River Valley, north of the Absaroka Range of Mountains.  The Crows continued a largely nomadic life style hunting on the buffalo ranges to the east, though this brought them in constant but sporadic conflict with the Sioux who dominated the Powder River area.

The Second Crow Agency (1875-1884)

In 1874 miners encroached on the western margins of Crow lands in the Absaroka Range, and the reservation was reduced in 1875.  The first Crow Agency was within these ceded lands and so the Agency was  relocated eastward to a new site north of modern-day Absarokee, Montana. The second Crow Agency (1875-1884) was still located north of the Absaroka Range of Mountains but about 66 miles further east of Fort Parker in the Yellowstone Valley, on the Stillwater River which was a tributary of the Yellowstone River.

The 9-year period from 1875 to 1884 was a time of rapid transition on the plains of eastern Montana and Wyoming.  In 1876 the Crows provided scouts for the United States military forces in the Great Sioux War of 1876.  The defeat by the Sioux of George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876 resulted in a concerted military backlash against the Sioux, and by 1877 and 1878 the hostile bands of Sioux had either fled to Canada, or they had surrendered and were confined to reservations along the Missouri River in the Dakotas. This initially left the Crows more secure in their use of the buffalo ranges on the eastern Montana and Wyoming plains, but in 1876 and 1877 federal forts were built across this area.  With hostile Indian presence essentially neutralized, hide hunters came to harvest the northern buffalo herds. By 1882 the buffalo were gone from this area.  Also, in 1880 the Northern Pacific Railroad began building eastward from Bismarck, ND, and in 1882 they completed their northern transcontinental line, which passed up the Yellowstone River valley just as the last of the buffalo disappeared.  Almost at once large Texas trail herds arrived in the Montana Territory to exploit the now empty open range on the vast plains of central and eastern  Montana.  These successive rapid changes in this 9-year period eliminated the herds of bison and reduced other wild game on which the Crow culture relied, and ended forever the Crow's nomadic way of life.

The Third Crow Agency (1884 to Present)

In 1884 these events led to the last movement of the Crow Agency to the site of its third and final location at present day Crow Agency, Montana, 60 miles SE of Billings on the Little Bighorn River.  This move of over a hundred miles eastward removed the Crow people from the vicinity of the Absaroka Range of Mountains, and from the Yellowstone River valley, and placed their reservation center on the east side of the Big Horn Mountains, on the western edge of the Powder River Basin of the northern great plains.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,552 people, 336 households, and 303 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 361 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 3.74% White, 95.68% Native American, 0.06% Asian, and 0.52% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.16% of the population.

There were 336 households, out of which 52.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were married couples living together, 26.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 9.8% were non-families. 7.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 0.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.40 and the average family size was 4.66.

In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 41.5% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 17.8% from 45 to 64, and 4.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $22,438, and the median income for a family was $27,768. Males had a median income of $17,300 versus $15,804 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $7,354. About 39.6% of families and 40.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 42.6% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

The Annual Crow Fair, which is held every third weekend in August, is held on this reservation. The Crow Fair is known as "The Teepee Capital of the World," by the fact that during celebration as many as 1,500 teepees are seen across the river valley of the Little Big Horn River. The PBS series Reading Rainbow filmed its tenth episode "The Gift of the Sacred Dog" here on June 17, 1983. The title was based on a book by Paul Goble and was narrated by actor Michael Ansara.

Notable people
 Tuff Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers safety, was born here
 Clara Nomee, former Chairwoman of the Crow Nation, was born here.
 Jonathan Maxwell Beartusk, Solar Artist, was born here. (Oct. 14,1973)

Education
Crow Agency has an elementary school. Hardin High School serves 9th through 12th grade.

Crow Agency is home to Little Big Horn College.

Climate
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Crow Agency has a semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.  The town averages 41" of snowfall annually.

See also

Crow War

References

Census-designated places in Big Horn County, Montana
Census-designated places in Montana
Crow tribe
Montana articles lacking sources
Seats of government of American Indian reservations

Crow Agency, Montana


Schroeder stairs (Schröder's stairs) is an optical illusion which is a two-dimensional drawing which may be perceived either as a drawing of a staircase leading from left to right downwards or the same staircase only turned upside down, a classical example of perspective reversal in psychology of perception. It is named after the German natural scientist Heinrich G. F. Schröder, who published it in 1858.

It is sometimes called "Schouten steps", in reference to a small sheet-metal staircase given to M. C. Escher by Prof. Schouten and which was an inspiration for Escher's Convex and Concave. This illusion is also seen in another Escher's work, Relativity.

This drawing may be variously described as an "ambiguous figure", "reversible figure" or "bistable figure". The first classification refers to the likelihood that the drawing may be perceived as two (or more) different objects. The second refers to the phenomenon that after some time of staring at the figure the perception of its orientation becomes involuntarily reversed. The third one emphasizes the fact that there are two (rather than one) stable perceptions of the drawing.

This illusion, among others, has been used in studies of perception. In particular, in one study it was established that involuntary switch of perception occurs with approximate frequency of once in 7.5-12.5 seconds. The change of perception may be attributed either to neuronal fatigue or to conscious selection.

References

Optical illusions
Stairways

Schroeder stairs