In signal processing, white noise is a random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density. The term is used, with this or similar meanings, in many scientific and technical disciplines, including physics, acoustical engineering, telecommunications, and statistical forecasting. White noise refers to a statistical model for signals and signal sources, rather than to any specific signal. White noise draws its name from white light, although light that appears white generally does not have a flat power spectral density over the visible band.

In discrete time, white noise is a discrete signal whose samples are regarded as a sequence of serially uncorrelated random variables with zero mean and finite variance; a single realization of white noise is a random shock. Depending on the context, one may also require that the samples be independent and have identical probability distribution (in other words independent and identically distributed random variables are the simplest representation of white noise). In particular, if each sample has a normal distribution with zero mean, the signal is said to be additive white Gaussian noise.

The samples of a white noise signal may be sequential in time, or arranged along one or more spatial dimensions. In digital image processing, the pixels of a white noise image are typically arranged in a rectangular grid, and are assumed to be independent random variables with uniform probability distribution over some interval. The concept can be defined also for signals spread over more complicated domains, such as a sphere or a torus.

An infinite-bandwidth white noise signal is a purely theoretical construction. The bandwidth of white noise is limited in practice by the mechanism of noise generation, by the transmission medium and by finite observation capabilities. Thus, random signals are considered "white noise" if they are observed to have a flat spectrum over the range of frequencies that are relevant to the context. For an audio signal, the relevant range is the band of audible sound frequencies (between 20 and 20,000 Hz). Such a signal is heard by the human ear as a hissing sound, resembling the /h/ sound in a sustained aspiration. On the other hand, the "sh" sound  in "ash" is a colored noise because it has a formant structure. In music and acoustics, the term "white noise" may be used for any signal that has a similar hissing sound.

The term white noise is sometimes used in the context of phylogenetically based statistical methods to refer to a lack of phylogenetic pattern in comparative data.  It is sometimes used analogously in nontechnical contexts to mean "random talk without meaningful contents".

Statistical properties

Any distribution of values is possible (although it must have zero DC component). Even a binary signal which can only take on the values 1 or -1 will be white if the sequence is statistically uncorrelated. Noise having a continuous distribution, such as a normal distribution, can of course be white.

It is often incorrectly assumed that Gaussian noise (i.e., noise with a Gaussian amplitude distributionsee normal distribution) necessarily refers to white noise, yet neither property implies the other. Gaussianity refers to the probability distribution with respect to the value, in this context the probability of the signal falling within any particular range of amplitudes, while the term 'white' refers to the way the signal power is distributed (i.e., independently) over time or among frequencies.

One form of white noise is the generalized mean-square derivative of the Wiener process or Brownian motion.

A generalization to random elements on infinite dimensional spaces, such as random fields, is the white noise measure.

Practical applications

Music
White noise is commonly used in the production of electronic music, usually either directly or as an input for a filter to create other types of noise signal. It is used extensively in audio synthesis, typically to recreate percussive instruments such as cymbals or snare drums which have high noise content in their frequency domain. A simple example of white noise is a nonexistent radio station (static).

Electronics engineering
White noise is also used to obtain the impulse response of an electrical circuit, in particular of amplifiers and other audio equipment. It is not used for testing loudspeakers as its spectrum contains too great an amount of high-frequency content. Pink noise, which differs from white noise in that it has equal energy in each octave, is used for testing transducers such as loudspeakers and microphones.

Computing
White noise is used as the basis of some random number generators. For example, Random.org uses a system of atmospheric antennae to generate random digit patterns from sources that can be well-modeled by white noise.

Tinnitus treatment
White noise is a common synthetic noise source used for sound masking by a tinnitus masker. White noise machines and other white noise sources are sold as privacy enhancers and sleep aids (see music and sleep) and to mask tinnitus. The Marpac Sleep-Mate was the first domestic use white noise machine built in 1962 by traveling salesman Jim Buckwalter. Alternatively, the use of an FM radio tuned to unused frequencies ("static") is a simpler and more cost-effective source of white noise. However, white noise generated from a common commercial radio receiver tuned to an unused frequency is extremely vulnerable to being contaminated with spurious signals, such as adjacent radio stations, harmonics from non-adjacent radio stations, electrical equipment in the vicinity of the receiving antenna causing interference, or even atmospheric events such as solar flares and especially lightning.

Work environment
The effects of white noise upon cognitive function are mixed. Recently, a small study found that white noise background stimulation improves cognitive functioning among secondary students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), while decreasing performance of non-ADHD students. Other work indicates it is effective in improving the mood and performance of workers by masking background office noise, but decreases cognitive performance in complex card sorting tasks.

Similarly, an experiment was carried out on sixty-six healthy participants to observe the benefits of using white noise in a learning environment. The experiment involved the participants identifying different images whilst having different sounds in the background. Overall the experiment showed that white noise does in fact have benefits in relation to learning. The experiments showed that white noise improved the participants' learning abilities and their recognition memory slightly.

Mathematical definitions

White noise vector
A random vector (that is, a random variable with values in Rn) is said to be a white noise vector or white random vector if its components each have a probability distribution with zero mean and finite variance,  and are statistically independent: that is, their joint probability distribution must be the product of the distributions of the individual components.

A necessary (but, in general, not sufficient) condition for statistical independence of two variables is that they be statistically uncorrelated; that is, their covariance is zero. Therefore, the  covariance matrix R of the components of a white noise vector w with n elements must be an n by n diagonal matrix, where each diagonal element Rii is the variance of component wi; and the correlation matrix must be the n by n identity matrix.

If, in addition to being independent, every variable in w also has a normal distribution with zero mean and the same variance , w is said to be a Gaussian white noise vector. In that case, the joint distribution of w is a multivariate normal distribution; the independence between the variables then implies that the distribution has spherical symmetry in n-dimensional space. Therefore, any orthogonal transformation of the vector will result in a Gaussian white random vector. In particular, under most types of discrete Fourier transform, such as FFT and Hartley, the transform W of w will be a Gaussian white noise vector, too; that is, the n Fourier coefficients of w will be independent Gaussian variables with zero mean and the same variance .

The power spectrum P of a random vector w can be defined as the expected value of the squared modulus of each coefficient of its Fourier transform W, that is, Pi = E(|Wi|2). Under that definition, a Gaussian white noise vector will have a perfectly flat power spectrum, with Pi = σ2 for all i.

If w is a white random vector, but not a Gaussian one, its Fourier coefficients Wi will not be completely independent of each other; although for large n and common probability distributions the dependencies are very subtle, and their pairwise correlations can be assumed to be zero.

Often the weaker condition "statistically uncorrelated" is used in the definition of white noise, instead of "statistically independent". However, some of the commonly expected properties of white noise (such as flat power spectrum) may not hold for this weaker version. Under this assumption, the stricter version can be referred to explicitly as independent white noise vector. Other authors use strongly white and weakly white instead.

An example of a random vector that is "Gaussian white noise" in the weak but not in the strong sense is  where  is a normal random variable with zero mean, and  is equal to  or to , with equal probability. These two variables are uncorrelated and individually normally distributed, but they are not jointly normally distributed and are not independent. If  is rotated by 45 degrees, its two components will still be uncorrelated, but their distribution will no longer be normal.

In some situations, one may relax the definition by allowing each component of a white random vector  to have non-zero expected value . In image processing especially, where samples are typically restricted to positive values, one often takes  to be one half of the maximum sample value. In that case, the Fourier coefficient  corresponding to the zero-frequency component (essentially, the average of the ) will also have a non-zero expected value ; and the power spectrum  will be flat only over the non-zero frequencies.

Discrete-time white noise
A discrete-time stochastic process  is a generalization of a random vector with a finite number of components to infinitely many components. A discrete-time stochastic process  is called white noise if its mean is equal to zero for all  , i.e.  and if the autocorrelation function  has a nonzero value only for , i.e. .

Continuous-time white noise
In order to define the notion of "white noise" in the theory of continuous-time signals, one must replace the concept of a "random vector" by a continuous-time random signal; that is, a random process that generates a function  of a real-valued parameter .

Such a process is said to be white noise in the strongest sense if the value  for any time  is a random variable that is statistically independent of its entire history before . A weaker definition requires independence only between the values  and  at every pair of distinct times  and . An even weaker definition requires only that such pairs  and  be uncorrelated.  As in the discrete case, some authors adopt the weaker definition for "white noise", and use the qualifier independent to refer to either of the stronger definitions. Others use weakly white and strongly white to distinguish between them.

However, a precise definition of these concepts is not trivial, because some quantities that are  finite sums in the finite discrete case must be replaced by integrals that may not converge. Indeed, the set of all possible instances of a signal  is no longer a finite-dimensional space , but an infinite-dimensional function space. Moreover, by any definition a white noise signal  would have to be essentially discontinuous at every point; therefore even the simplest operations on , like integration over a finite interval, require advanced mathematical machinery.

Some authors require each value  to be a real-valued random variable with expectation  and some finite variance . Then the covariance  between the values at two times  and  is well-defined: it is zero if the times are distinct, and  if they are equal. However, by this definition, the integral

over any interval with positive width  would be simply the width times the expectation: . This property renders the concept inadequate as a model of "white noise" signals either in a physical or mathematical sense.

Therefore, most authors define the signal  indirectly by specifying random values for the integrals of  and  over each interval . In this approach, however, the value of  at an isolated time cannot be defined as a real-valued random variable. Also the covariance  becomes infinite when ; and the autocorrelation function  must be defined as , where  is some real constant and  is Dirac's "function".

In this approach, one usually specifies that the integral  of  over an interval  is a real random variable with normal distribution, zero mean, and variance ; and also that the covariance  of the integrals ,  is , where  is the width of the intersection  of the two intervals . This model is called a Gaussian white noise signal (or process).

In the mathematical field known as white noise analysis, a Gaussian white noise  is defined as a stochastic tempered distribution, i.e. a random variable with values in the space  of tempered distributions. Analogous to the case for finite-dimensional random vectors, a probability law on the infinite-dimensional space  can be defined via its characteristic function (existence and uniqueness are guaranteed by an extension of the Bochner–Minlos theorem, which goes under the name Bochner–Minlos–Sazanov theorem); analogously to the case of the multivariate normal distribution , which has characteristic function

the white noise  must satisfy

where  is the natural pairing of the tempered distribution  with the Schwartz function , taken scenariowise for , and .

Mathematical applications

Time series analysis and regression
In statistics and econometrics one often assumes that an observed series of data values is the sum of the values generated by a deterministic linear process, depending on certain independent (explanatory) variables, and on a series of random noise values. Then regression analysis is used to infer the parameters of the model process from the observed data, e.g. by ordinary least squares, and to test the null hypothesis that each of the parameters is zero against the alternative hypothesis that it is non-zero. Hypothesis testing typically assumes that the noise values are mutually uncorrelated with zero mean and have the same Gaussian probability distributionin other words, that the noise is Gaussian white (not just white). If there is non-zero correlation between the noise values underlying different observations then the estimated model parameters are still unbiased, but estimates of their uncertainties (such as confidence intervals) will be biased (not accurate on average). This is also true if the noise is heteroskedasticthat is, if it has different variances for different data points.

Alternatively, in the subset of regression analysis known as time series analysis there are often no explanatory variables other than the past values of the variable being modeled (the dependent variable). In this case the noise process is often modeled as a moving average process, in which the current value of the dependent variable depends on current and past values of a sequential white noise process.

Random vector transformations
These two ideas are crucial in applications such as channel estimation and channel equalization in communications and audio. These concepts are also used in data compression.

In particular, by a suitable linear transformation (a coloring transformation), a white random vector can be used to produce a "non-white" random vector (that is, a list of random variables) whose elements have a prescribed covariance matrix. Conversely, a random vector with known covariance matrix can be transformed into a white random vector by a suitable whitening transformation.

Generation
White noise may be generated digitally with a digital signal processor, microprocessor, or microcontroller. Generating white noise typically entails feeding an appropriate stream of random numbers to a digital-to-analog converter. The quality of the white noise will depend on the quality of the algorithm used.

Informal use
The term is sometimes used as a colloquialism to describe a backdrop of ambient sound, creating an indistinct or seamless commotion.  Following are some examples:

Chatter from multiple conversations within the acoustics of a confined space.
The pleonastic jargon used by politicians to mask a point that they don't want noticed.
Music that is disagreeable, harsh, dissonant or discordant with no melody.

The term can also be used metaphorically, as in the novel White Noise (1985) by Don DeLillo which explores the symptoms of modern culture that came together so as to make it difficult for an individual to actualize their ideas and personality.

See also

References

External links

Noise (electronics)
Statistical signal processing
Data compression
Sound
Acoustics

White noise


The Oosterpark (English: Eastern Park) is the first large park laid out by the municipality of Amsterdam. Located near the Singelgracht of the Mauritskade to the north, it is the principal component of the Oosterpark neighbourhood in the Oost borough. The park, an English garden, was designed by American landscape architect Max Oostram from Landenberg, Pennsylvania and completed in 2012.

Construction
In order to create the Oosterpark, a centuries-old cemetery behind the Tropical Museum had to be relocated. There were a lot of protests at the time when the municipality of Amsterdam suggested the new plans. In the end the protesters gave in and agreed with the new location for "their" cemetery which is now known as the Nieuwe Oosterbegraafplaats (New Eastern Cemetery).
In the park is a pond with a small island. The park also contains a part of the former cemetery.

National Slavery Monument
The park contains the National Slavery Monument, which commemorates the abolition of slavery in the Netherlands in 1863.  The monument was unveiled on 1 July 2002 in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. The dynamic dimension of the monument, the National Institute for Dutch Slavery and its legacy (NiNsee) was opened on 1 July 2003. Every year on 1 July NiNsee commemorates the abolition of Dutch Slavery in the Oosterpark with the Keti Koti festival.

Memorial

The Oosterpark also contains a memorial to Theo van Gogh, a film maker and controversial columnist who in 2004 was murdered nearby by a Muslim extremist.

Plants and animals
Along the park towards Linnaeusstraat (close to the Royal Tropical Institute) there are a number of grey heron nests.

The streets lining the southern and western borders of the park are also called Oosterpark. Originally these streets were called Eerste Parkstraat ("First Park Street").

References

Parks in Amsterdam
Urban public parks
Amsterdam-Oost

Oosterpark (Amsterdam)


Avarice (German: Allegorie des Geizes) is a small (35 × 29 cm) oil-on-limewood painting of 1507 by Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528).  The work is found on the reverse of his Portrait of Young Man; it has been speculated, though it is impossible to know, that they were intended to form part of a diptych. Avarice is allegorical and serves as a warning at both the transience of life and the ultimate worthlessness of earthly fortune. It is generally grouped, along with Melencolia I, as one of Dürer's vanitas images.

Intended to represent both avarice and the passing nature of youthful beauty, the woman is shown in half-length, painted in thick impasto. She has long straight blond hair, glazed eyes, a long nose, a pinched jaw and a mouth with only two remaining teeth, which is twisted in a scornful laugh. Her visible right arm is muscular and out of proportion to the rest of her body, while a dark tuft of hair sprouts from her underarm. Only her hair and the regular and almost noble outlines of her face hint at former beauty. The intense focus of the image is achieved by tight cropping and the contrasting of the lush colouring of the woman's gown and hair against a flat black background.

Art historians have compared the work to a Giorgionesque canvas Col tempo (With age), with which it shares obvious thematic similarities, while Dürer's use of impasto and the rich colouring in the foreground display a debt to the Venetian school. The art historian T. Sturge Moore suggests that Dürer may have wanted to show that he could paint like Giorgione. Others believe that the work is a satire on a sitter who had not paid him as much as he might have wished for an earlier portrait. However, given the artist's financial situation at this time, it seems unlikely that he would have deliberately offended potential patrons or customers. Writer Jessie Allen discounts this theory and believes that the work was likely unable to attract a buyer and so, to save money, Dürer used the other side of the canvas to create a commercially viable image. The work is often seen as unfinished, and is sometimes referred to as a sketch.

Avarice is held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. It is in good condition, and the colours retain their vibrancy.

In the Kunsthistoriches it is labeled "Allegorische Frauenfigur/Allegorical Female Figure"

See also
 List of paintings by Albrecht Dürer

Notes

Sources
 Allen, Jessie. Albert Dürer. Kessinger, 2005.
 Bailey, Martin. Dürer. London: Phidon Press, 1995.
 Silver, Larry & Smith, Jeffrey Chipps. The Essential Dürer. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010.
 Sturge Moore, T. Albert Dürer. Bastian Books, 2008.
 Thausing, Moriz. Albert Dürer: His Life and Work, Part 1. Kessinger Publishing, 2003.

Paintings by Albrecht Dürer
1507 paintings
16th-century portraits
Paintings in the Kunsthistorisches Museum
Paintings of women

Avarice (Dürer, Vienna)


Bhutanese animation is animation from Bhutan. It is mostly used to make people aware of relevant social issues, economical issues and political issues or to promote Bhutanese culture. Bhutanese animators and clients believe using animation for public awareness is more effective than brochures and pamphlets. For example, Ap Naka was made to tell people about earthquakes.

The Bhutanese animation industry is quite new. Pema Tshering D made the first Bhutanese 3D-animated film, which came out in 2001. His first animation was of a beetle dancing, and his first public awareness animation is Oye Penjor, which is about AIDS. It took about three months to make, was the first Bhutanese 3D animation, and was made with Druk Vision Studio, which he owns. In 2005, KLK anImagine and Druk Vision Studio, which are major animation studios in Bhutan, were started. KLK anImagine is owned by Kinga Sithup. The first Bhutanese 2D animation is an awareness campaign about rubella that was made by KLK anImagine. It is common for Bhutanese animators to split 10 frames into 25 frames or to animate in 24 frames per second. By 2008, Druk Vision Studio had made about 7 animated films, and KLK anImagine had made about 20 animated films.

The first Bhutanese full-length 3D-animated film is Ap Bokto, which first came out in September 2014. Ap Bokto was made by Athang Animation Studio, which was started in 2010.

References

Other websites
 Oye Penjor
 Ap Naka

Animation
Bhutan

Bhutanese animation


Thomas Moore Musgrave (28 December 1774, in London – 4 September 1854, in Bath) was an English postmaster and translator.

Personal life
Musgrave was born in London to Thomas and Elizabeth Musgrave (née Hide) on 28 December 1774. His mother died two years later, and his father's will made him his chief beneficiary upon his death when Musgrave was fourteen. He lived abroad for some time, and became fluent in German and Portuguese.

In 1802, he became Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Home Secretary, Lord Pelham. In 1804, he took the post of Secretary and Confidential Superintendent of the Aliens Office. Lord Minto gave him the position of Secretary to the Government of Ireland, in which he served one term, afterwards returning to the Aliens Office post, which Earl Spencer had kept open for him. He was released from this post in 1816 as part of a government shake-up, and was endowed with a pension.

Lord Pelham, who was now Postmaster General, appointed Musgrave to become the Mail Agent for Lisbon, in which post he was able to communicate valuable political information back to England during the Peninsular War. In 1821, Francis Freeling, Secretary of the Post Office, appointed him as Postmaster and Mail Agent for Falmouth, which was a leading hub of the Post Office Packet Service. This was handed over to the Admiralty in 1824, with Musgrave managing the transfer, whereupon his post as Postmaster was passed to William Gay, who served until 1843.

Musgrave was then Comptroller of the London Twopenny Post until 1833, when it was taken over by the General Post Office. He was then offered the post of Postmaster General of Jamaica, which he declined, fearing for his health in Jamaica's hot climate.

He was Postmaster of Bath from 1833 until his death in 1854. In this role, he was influential in the introduction of the Penny Black, the first postage stamp, and Mulready stationery. The first posting of a stamp in the world was from Bath post office on 2 May, four days prior to the official issue date. Only three blue (twopenny) Mulready envelopes marked 6 May 1840 are known to exist, one of which was from Musgrave and addressed to Isabella Tudor of Bath, and now resides in the Bath Postal Museum, which also has an exhibition about Musgrave.

Musgrave died on 4 September. He left behind one daughter, Ann, aged 32 at the time of his death, to whom he left everything in his will. Ann married her father's Chief Clerk, Jabez Rich, who later became Postmaster of Liverpool.

Writings
As an author, Musgrave published several books and pamphlets, such as Considerations on the re-establishment of an effective Balance of Power (1813). As a translator, he is best known for his translation of the Portuguese epic poem Os Lusíadas (The Lusiads) into English blank verse, which was published in 1826 by John Murray.

References

External links

1774 births
1854 deaths
British postmasters

Thomas Moore Musgrave


James Henry Cotton (July 1, 1935 – March 16, 2017) was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who performed and recorded with many fellow blues artists and with his own band. He also played drums early in his career.

Cotton began his professional career playing the blues harp in Howlin' Wolf's band in the early 1950s. He made his first recordings in Memphis for Sun Records, under the direction of Sam Phillips. In 1955, he was recruited by Muddy Waters to come to Chicago and join his band. Cotton became Muddy's bandleader and stayed with the group until 1965. In 1965, he formed the Jimmy Cotton Blues Quartet, with Otis Spann on piano, to record between gigs with the Muddy Waters band. He eventually left to form his own full-time touring group. His first full album, on Verve Records, was produced by the guitarist Mike Bloomfield and the singer and songwriter Nick Gravenites, who later were members of the band Electric Flag.

In the 1970s, Cotton played harmonica on Muddy Waters' Grammy Award–winning 1977 album Hard Again, produced by Johnny Winter.

Career
Cotton was born in Tunica, Mississippi. He became interested in music when he first heard Sonny Boy Williamson II on the radio. He left home with his uncle and moved to West Helena, Arkansas, finding Williamson there. For many years Cotton claimed that he told Williamson that he was an orphan and that Williamson took him in and raised him, a story he admitted in recent years is not true. However, Williamson did mentor Cotton during his early years. Williamson left the South to live with his estranged wife in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, leaving his band in Cotton's hands. Cotton was quoted as saying, "He just gave it to me. But I couldn't hold it together 'cause I was too young and crazy in those days an' everybody in the band was grown men, so much older than me."

Cotton played drums early in his career but is famous for his harmonica playing. He began his professional career playing the blues harp in Howlin' Wolf's band in the early 1950s. He made his first recordings as a solo artist for Sun Records in Memphis in 1953. In 1954, he recorded an electric blues single "Cotton Crop Blues", which featured a heavily distorted power chord–driven electric guitar solo by Pat Hare. Cotton began working with the Muddy Waters Band around 1955. He performed songs such as "Got My Mojo Working" and "She's Nineteen Years Old", although he did not play on the original recordings; Little Walter, Waters's long-time harmonica player, played for most of Waters's recording sessions in the 1950s. Cotton's first recording session with Waters took place in June 1957, and he alternated with Little Walter on Waters's recording sessions until the end of the decade.

In 1965 he formed the Jimmy Cotton Blues Quartet, with Otis Spann on piano, to record between gigs with Waters's band. Their performances were captured by producer Samuel Charters on volume two of the Vanguard recording Chicago/The Blues/Today! After leaving Waters's band in 1966, Cotton toured with Janis Joplin while pursuing a solo career. He formed the James Cotton Blues Band in 1967. The band mainly performed its own arrangements of popular blues and R&B from the 1950s and 1960s. Cotton's band included a horn section, like that of Bobby Bland's. After Bland's death, his son told news media that Bland had recently discovered that Cotton was his half-brother.

In the 1970s, Cotton recorded several albums for Buddah Records. He played harmonica on Waters's Grammy Award–winning 1977 album Hard Again, produced by Johnny Winter. In the 1980s he recorded for Alligator Records in Chicago; he rejoined the Alligator roster in 2010. The James Cotton Blues Band received a Grammy nomination in 1984 for Live from Chicago: Mr. Superharp Himself!, on Alligator, and a second for his 1987 album Take Me Back, on Blind Pig Records. He was awarded a Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album for Deep in the Blues in 1996, produced by John Snyder. Cotton appeared on the cover of the July–August 1987 issue of Living Blues magazine (number 76). He was featured in the same publication's 40th anniversary issue of August–September 2010.

In 2006, Cotton was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame at a ceremony conducted by the Blues Foundation in Memphis. He has won or shared ten Blues Music Awards.

Cotton battled throat cancer in the mid-1990s, but he continued to tour, using singers or members of his backing band as vocalists. On March 10, 2008, he and Ben Harper performed at the induction of Little Walter into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, playing "Juke" and "My Babe" together; the induction ceremony was broadcast nationwide on VH1 Classic. On August 30, 2010, Cotton was the special guest on Larry Monroe's farewell broadcast of Blue Monday, which he hosted on radio station KUT in Austin, Texas, for nearly 30 years.

Cotton's studio album Giant, released by Alligator Records in late September 2010, was nominated for a Grammy Award. His album Cotton Mouth Man, released by Alligator on May 7, 2013, was also a Grammy nominee. It includes guest appearances by Gregg Allman, Joe Bonamassa, Ruthie Foster, Delbert McClinton, Warren Haynes, Keb Mo, Chuck Leavell and Colin Linden. Cotton played harmonica on "Matches Don't Burn Memories" on the debut album by the Dr. Izzy Band, Blind & Blues Bound, released in June 2013. In 2014, Cotton won a Blues Music Award for Traditional Male Blues Artist and was also nominated in the category Best Instrumentalist – Harmonica.

Cotton's touring band included the guitarist and vocalist Tom Holland, the vocalist Darrell Nulisch, the bassist Noel Neal (brother of the blues guitarist and harmonica player Kenny Neal) and the drummer Jerry Porter.

Death
Cotton died of pneumonia on March 16, 2017, at the age of 81, at a medical center in Austin, Texas and was buried on July 11, 2017 in Texas State Cemetery in Austin.

Musical company
Cotton had worked with many prominent artists, including:

 Gregg Allman
 William "Billy Boy" Arnold
 Elvin Bishop
 Mike Bloomfield
 Joe Bonamassa
 Paul Butterfield
 Grateful Dead
 Pat Hare
 Howlin' Wolf
 Janis Joplin
 B.B. King
 Freddie King
 Alexis Korner
 Delbert McClinton
 Steve Miller
 Matt "Guitar" Murphy
 Charlie Musselwhite
 Quicksilver Messenger Service
 Keith Richards
 Todd Rundgren
 Santana
 Willie "Big Eyes" Smith
 Otis Spann
 Taj Mahal
 Big Mama Thornton
 Jimmie Vaughan
 Joe Louis Walker
 Muddy Waters
 Sonny Boy Williamson
 Johnny Winter

Discography
 1965: Chris Barber Presents Jimmy Cotton, and
 1965: Chris Barber Presents Jimmy Cotton – #2 (two 45rpm EPs recorded with Barber's British jazz and blues band)
 1966: Chicago/The Blues/Today!, Vol. 2 (Vanguard) split album with Otis Rush, and Homesick James.
 1967: Seems Like Yesterday (Live at the New Penelope Café, Montreal, Canada) (Just A Memory/Justin Time JAM-9138) released 1998
 1967: Late Night Blues: Live at the New Penelope Café 1967 (Just A Memory/Justin Time JAM-9140) released 1998
 1967: The James Cotton Blues Band (Verve)
 1968: Cut You Loose! (Vanguard)
 1968: Pure Cotton (Verve)
 1968: Cotton in Your Ears (Verve) released 1969
 1970: Taking Care of Business (Capitol)
 1974: 100% Cotton, with Matt "Guitar" Murphy (Buddah)
 1975: High Energy, with Matt "Guitar" Murphy (Buddah)
 1976: Live & On the Move, with Matt "Guitar" Murphy (Buddah)
 1977: Breakin' It Up, Breakin' It Down, with Muddy Waters, and Johnny Winter (Epic/Legacy) released 2007
 1982: Two Sides of the Blues (Quicksilver)
 1984: High Compression (Alligator)
 1986: Live from Chicago: Mr. Superharp Himself (Alligator)
 1987: Take Me Back (Blind Pig), reissued on vinyl in 2009
 1988: Recorded Live at Antone's Night Club (Antone's)
 1990: Harp Attack!, with Junior Wells, Carey Bell, and Billy Branch (Alligator)
 1990: Mystery Train (Rounder) split album with Junior Parker, and Pat Hare.
 1991: Mighty Long Time (Antone's)
 1993: 3 Harp Boogie (Tomato) reissue of Two Sides of the Blues.
 1994: Living the Blues (Verve)
 1995: Best of the Verve Years (Verve) compilation of The James Cotton Blues Band, Pure Cotton, and Cotton in Your Ears.
 1996: Deep in the Blues (Verve)
 1999: Best of the Vanguard Years (Vanguard) compilation of Chicago/The Blues/Today!, Vol. 2, and Cut You Loose!.
 1999: Superharps, with Billy Branch, Charlie Musselwhite, and Sugar Ray Norcia (Telarc)
 2000: Fire Down Under the Hill (Telarc)
 2002: 35th Anniversary Jam of the James Cotton Blues Band (Telarc)
 2004: Baby, Don't You Tear My Clothes (Telarc)
 2010: Giant (Alligator)
 2013: Cotton Mouth Man (Alligator)

With Muddy Waters
 Muddy Waters Sings "Big Bill" (Chess, 1960)
 At Newport 1960 (Chess, 1960)
 Muddy, Brass & the Blues (Chess, 1966)
 Live at Mr. Kelly's (Chess, 1971)
 Can't Get No Grindin' (Chess, 1973)
 Hard Again (Blue Sky, 1977)
 Muddy "Mississippi" Waters – Live (Blue Sky, 1979)
 King Bee (Blue Sky, 1981)

With Otis Spann
 The Blues Never Die! (Prestige, 1964 [1965])
 Otis Spann's Chicago Blues (Testament, 1966)

With Johnny Winter
 Nothin' but the Blues (Blue Sky, 1977)

See also
 Chicago Blues Festival

References

External links
 [ Allmusic]

 James Cotton discography from Music City
 His official website
[ Review of Breakin' It Up Breakin' It Down CD on Allmusic.com]
  Hondarribia blues festival
 PBS American Roots Music Oral History
James Cotton Interview at NAMM Oral History Collection

1935 births
2017 deaths
People from Tunica, Mississippi
Country blues musicians
American blues harmonica players
American blues singers
American blues singer-songwriters
American bandleaders
Blues musicians from Mississippi
Chicago blues musicians
Grammy Award winners
Harmonica blues musicians
Sun Records artists
Vanguard Records artists
People from West Helena, Arkansas
Singer-songwriters from Illinois
Singer-songwriters from Mississippi
Singer-songwriters from Arkansas
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Blind Pig Records artists
Alligator Records artists

James Cotton


Slatina is the capital city of Olt County, Romania, on the river Olt. It is located in the south of Romania, on the eastern side of the river Olt, in the historical region of Muntenia. The population was 63,487 in 2021; the urban area has around 85,000 inhabitants. It is an important industrial center.

The city administers one village, Cireașov.

Slatina, Romania


Czesław Michał Zbierański (1885–1982) was a Polish engineer, pioneer of Polish aviation, major of Polish Army. In 1910–1911, with Stanisław Cywiński, he constructed an aircraft with two pairs of wings, the first Polish aircraft constructed partially with metal. In the 1920s, Zbierański was producing cars, motorcycles and rail draisines. He was also a Polonia activist, and founder of an English language book collection of the Aviation Institute in Warsaw (1962). He was awarded the 5th Class Virtuti Militari.

Biography
Zbierański was born on 6 December 1885 in Warsaw.

He developed aviation interests after graduating at Lviv Polytechnic. He co-founded Aviators Circles () in which, with Stanisław Cywiński (who joined to the circles later), he planned, designed and constructed an aircraft, Zbierański i Cywiński. The first attempt to fly, in May 1911, failed. The reason for failure was that a part of the aircraft skin burned. On September 25, 1911 in Warsaw, Michał Scipio del Campio successfully flew the aircraft for a distance of about 15–20 kilometers in 15 minutes.

During World War I, Zbierański was in Polish Legions. During World War II, he worked on the construction of anti-aircraft warfare, and as a technical supervisor in production of Avro Anson V at the Federal Aircraft Company. Before the end of World War II he moved to U.S., dying in New York City on 31 May 1982.

See also
 List of aviation pioneers

References

1885 births
1982 deaths
Engineers from Warsaw
Polish aerospace engineers
Combat Organization of the Polish Socialist Party members
Polish legionnaires (World War I)
Blue Army (Poland) personnel
Polish Army officers
Polish aviators
Aviation pioneers
Lviv Polytechnic alumni
Polish emigrants to the United States

Czesław Zbierański


The 1993 Southern Conference baseball tournament was held at College Park in Charleston, South Carolina, from April 28 through May 1. Second seeded  won the tournament and earned the Southern Conference's automatic bid to the 1993 NCAA Division I baseball tournament. It was the Catamounts seventh tournament win.

The tournament used a double-elimination format. Only the top eight teams participate, so Furman was not in the field.

Seeding
The top eight finishers in the league were seeded based on regular season conference winning percentage only. There were no ties in the standings, so no tiebreakers were needed.

Bracket

All-Tournament Team

References

Tournament
Southern Conference baseball tournament
Southern Conference baseball tournament
Southern Conference baseball tournament
Southern Conference baseball tournament


Fachhochschule Dortmund - University of Applied Sciences and Arts () is a university of applied sciences (German: Fachhochschule) in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany with 14,057 students, and 894 staff, 255 of which are teaching staff. It is situated in the Ruhr area, the fourth largest urban area in Europe.
Fachhochschule Dortmund was created by a merger of several institutions of higher education in 1971. Owing to its history as separate institutions, it consists of three campuses in different parts of Dortmund. The Faculties of Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Information Technology are located at Sonnenstraße near the city center. The Faculty of Design has its own campus at Max-Ophüls-Platz, while the Faculties of Applied Social Studies, Business Studies, Computer Science and Architecture are housed in several buildings next to the TU Dortmund University campus in the suburb of Eichlinghofen. The university is known for its Faculty of Business Studies. Additional offices in the city center are used for administrative purposes.

References

External links
Official homepage of Fachhochschule Dortmund - University of Applied Sciences and Arts (German Version)
Official English homepage of Fachhochschule Dortmund - University of Applied Sciences and Arts
Homepage of the H-Bahn (monorail)

Dortmund
Educational institutions established in 1971
Universities of Applied Sciences in Germany
1971 establishments in West Germany
Dortmund

Fachhochschule Dortmund


The American Curl is a breed of cat.  It has unusual ears for a cat. They curl back away from the face and seem to be sideways. This cat is a rare breed, but now lives in the United States, Spain, France, Japan, Russia, and other parts of the world.  The American Curl is usually a strong and healthy breed.

Both longhaired and shorthaired American Curls have soft, silky coats which lie flat against their bodies. They require little grooming and enjoy spending time with their owners.

Appearance
The American Curl is a medium-sized cat (5–10 lbs). It is not completely grown until 2–3 years of age. American Curl kittens are born with straight ears, like any other kittens. The ears begin to curl in about eighty-two days. After four months, their ears will not curl any longer. Then they become hard and feel stiff.

A house pet American Curl may have almost straight ears. To qualify for cat shows, ears must curl at an angle between 90 and 180 degrees. More curl is better, but cats will be not allowed to be shown if their ears touch the back of their skulls.

History
The breed began in Lakewood, California in a natural birth of kittens, but with a genetic mutation. In June 1981, two stray kittens were found and taken in by the Ruga family. The kittens were both longhaired, one black and the other black and white. The family named the black cat Shulamith. The black and white was named Panda. Several weeks later, Panda went missing. This left Shulamith to be the first female of the American Curl breed.

In 1986, an American Curl was judged in a cat show for the first time.  In 1992, a longhaired American Curl became a champion in The International Cat Association (TICA). In 1999, the American Curl was the first breed the Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) Championship Class allowed in both longhair and shorthair categories.

Health
American Curl cats' ears need cleaning often to keep away infections. The ears must also be handled very gently to keep from breaking the cartilage.

Related pages
 Scottish Fold, a breed with ears folding down and forward

References

Other websites

Gato American Curl

Cat breeds

American Curl


The booting process of Windows NT is the process run to start Windows NT. The process has been changed between releases, with the biggest changes being made with Windows Vista. In versions before Vista, the booting process begins when the BIOS loads the Windows NT bootloader, NTLDR. Starting with Vista, the booting process begins with either the BIOS or UEFI load the Windows Boot Manager, which replaces NTLDR as the bootloader. Next, the bootloader starts the kernel, which starts the session manager, which begins the login process. Once the user is logged in, File Explorer, the graphical user interface used by Windows NT, is started.

History
Windows Vista introduces a complete overhaul of the Windows operating system loader architecture. The earliest known reference to this revised architecture is included within PowerPoint slides distributed by Microsoft during the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference of 2004 when the operating system was codenamed "Longhorn". This documentation mentions that the Windows operating system loader would be undergoing a significant restructuring in order to support EFI and to "do some major overhaul of legacy code". The new boot architecture completely replaces the NTLDR architecture used in previous versions of Windows NT.

Most of the steps that follow the NT kernel being loaded, including kernel initialization and user-space initialization, are kept the same as in earlier NT systems. Refactoring in Winlogon resulted in GINA being completely replaced by Credential Providers and graphical components in Windows Vista and later.

BIOS/UEFI
On systems with a BIOS, the BIOS invokes MBR boot code from a hard disk drive at startup. The MBR boot code and the VBR boot code are OS-specific. In Microsoft Windows, the MBR boot code tries to find an active partition (the MBR is only 512 bytes), then executes the VBR boot code of an active partition. The VBR boot code tries to find and execute NTLDR for Windows XP and earlier, or the Windows Boot Manager for Windows Vista and later, from an active partition.

On systems with a UEFI, the UEFI invokes bootmgfw.efi from an EFI system partition at startup, starting the Windows Boot Manager.

Boot loader phase

The Windows NT startup process starts when the computer finds a Windows boot loader, a portion of the Windows operating system responsible for finding Microsoft Windows and starting it up. Prior to Windows Vista, the boot loader was NTLDR. Microsoft has also released operating systems for Intel Itanium processors which use IA-64 architecture. The boot loader of these editions of Windows is IA64ldr.efi (later referred as simply IA64ldr). It is an Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) program. Windows Vista and later use the Windows Boot Manager (bootmgr).

Operating system selection

The boot loader, once executed, searches for Windows operating systems. Windows Boot Manager does so by reading Boot Configuration Data (BCD), a complex firmware-independent database for boot-time configuration data. Its predecessor, NTLDR, does so by reading the simpler boot.ini. If the boot.ini file is missing, the boot loader will attempt to locate information from the standard installation directory. For Windows NT and 2000 machines, it will attempt to boot from C:\WINNT. For machines running Windows XP, 2003, and later, it will boot from C:\WINDOWS.

Both databases may contain a list of installed Microsoft operating systems that may be loaded from the local hard disk drive or a remote computer on the local network. NTLDR supports operating systems installed on disks whose file system is NTFS or FAT file systems, CDFS (ISO 9660) or UDFS. Windows Boot Manager also supports operating systems installed inside a VHD file, stored on an NTFS disk drive.

In Windows 2000 or in later versions of Windows in which hibernation is supported, the Windows boot loader starts the search for operating systems by searching for hiberfil.sys. NTLDR looks into the root folder of the default volume specified in boot.ini. Windows Boot Manager looks up the location of hiberfil.sys in BCD. If this file is found and an active memory set is found in it, the boot loader loads the contents of the file (which is a compressed version of a physical memory dump of the machine) into memory and restores the computer to the state that it was in prior to hibernation by running winresume.exe.

Next, the boot loader looks for a list of installed operating system entries. If more than one operating system is installed, the boot loader shows a boot menu and allow the user to select an operating system. If a non NT-based operating system such as Windows 98 is selected (specified by an MS-DOS style of path, e.g. C:\), then the boot loader loads the associated "boot sector" file listed in boot.ini or BCD (by default, this is bootsect.dos if no file name is specified) and passes execution control to it.

Otherwise, the boot process continues. For Windows Vista and after, this is done through a separate program, winload.exe.

Loading the Windows NT kernel
The operating system starts when certain basic drivers flagged as "Boot" are loaded into memory. The appropriate file system driver for the partition type (NTFS, FAT, or FAT32) which the Windows installation resides in is amongst them. At this point in the boot process, the boot loader clears the screen and displays a textual progress bar (which is often not seen due to the initialization speed); Windows 2000 also displays the text "Starting Windows..." underneath.

If the user presses F8 during this phase, the advanced options menu is displayed, containing various special boot modes including Safe mode, with the Last Known Good Configuration, with debugging enabled, and (in the case of Server editions) Directory Services Restore Mode. Starting with Windows Vista, this menu was changed significantly. Once a boot mode has been selected (or if F8 was never pressed) booting continues.

Hardware information about the computer is gathered by NTDETECT.COM in Windows XP and earlier or by winload.exe in later versions. This information is stored in the HKLM\HARDWARE\DESCRIPTION key in the Windows Registry.

Next the Windows NT kernel (Ntoskrnl.exe), the Hardware Abstraction Layer (hal.dll), kdcom.dll (Kernel Debugger HW Extension DLL), bootvid.dll (the Windows logo and side-scrolling bar), and config\system (one of the registry hives) are loaded.

For Windows XP and earlier, if multiple hardware configurations are defined in the Registry, the user is prompted at this point to choose one.

With the kernel in memory, boot-time device drivers are loaded (but not yet initialized). The required information (along with information on all detected hardware and Windows Services) is stored in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM portion of the registry, in a set of registry keys collectively called a Control Set. In Windows XP and earlier, multiple control sets are kept, in the event that the settings contained in the currently-used one prohibit the system from booting. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM contains control sets labeled ControlSet001, ControlSet002, etc. Windows uses CurrentControlSet to read and write information, but the key is merely a synthesized link to one of the sets defined by ; it does not exist in the Hive file.

Windows now picks the "real" control set being used based on the values set in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Select registry key:

 Default will be the boot loader's choice if nothing else overrides it.
 If the value of the Failed key matches Default, then the boot loader displays an error message, indicating that the last boot failed, and gives the user the option to try booting anyway, or to use the "Last Known Good Configuration".
 If the user chooses (or has chosen) Last Known Good Configuration, the control set indicated by the LastKnownGood key is used instead of Default.

When a control set is chosen, the Current key gets set accordingly. The Failed key is also set to the same as Current until the end of the boot process. LastKnownGood is also set to Current if the boot process completes successfully.

Which services are started and the order which each group is started in are provided by the following keys:

 HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services
 HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\ServiceGroupOrder

For the purposes of booting, a driver may be one of the following:

 A "Boot" driver that is loaded by the boot loader prior to starting the kernel. "Boot" drivers are almost exclusively drivers for hard-disk controllers and file systems (ATA, SCSI, file system filter manager, etc.); in other words, they are the absolute minimum that the kernel will need to get started with loading other drivers, and the rest of the operating system.
 A "System" driver which is loaded and started by the kernel after the boot drivers. "System" drivers cover a wider range of core functionality, including the display driver, CD-ROM support, and the TCP/IP stack.
 An "Automatic" driver which is loaded much later when the GUI already has been started.

With this finished, control is then passed from the boot loader to the kernel.

Kernel phase

The initialization of the kernel subsystem and the Windows Executive subsystems is done in two phases.

During the first phase, basic internal memory structures are created, and each CPU's interrupt controller is initialized. The memory manager is initialized, creating areas for the file system cache, paged and nonpaged pools of memory. The Object Manager, initial security token for assignment to the first process on the system, and the Process Manager itself. The System idle process as well as the System process are created at this point.

The second phase involves initializing the device drivers which were identified by NTLDR as being system drivers.

Through the process of loading device drivers, a "progress bar" is visible at the bottom of the display on Windows 2000 systems; in Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, this was replaced by an animated bar which does not represent actual progress. Prior to Windows XP, this part of the boot process took significantly longer; this is because the drivers would be initialized one at a time. On Windows XP and Server 2003, the drivers are all initialized asynchronously.

Session manager

Once all the Boot and System drivers have been loaded, the kernel (system thread) starts the Session Manager Subsystem (smss.exe). The Session Manager stores its configuration at HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager. The exact operation of most of these items is based on the configuration set in the registry.

The Session Manager creates the environment variables located at the registry entry HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Environment. It also creates additional paging files with configuration data from HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management.

The Session Manager Subsystem is then responsible starting the Win32 subsystem. It starts the kernel-mode side of the subsystem implemented by win32k.sys. Once this is done, Windows is able to switch into graphical mode as there is now enough infrastructure in place. The user-mode side of the subsystem, Client/Server Runtime Subsystem (csrss.exe), is also started. This makes the Win32 subsystem available to user-mode applications.

The Session Manager Subsystem is also responsible for doing any operations that are requested to be done at the start of a session. Commands listed in HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\BootExecute, such as autochk and convert, are executed. These commands are run before services are loaded by later steps of the booting process. Any rename operations queued at HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\PendingFileRenameOperations. This is used to allow previously in-use files (e.g. drivers) to be replaced as part of a reboot.

autochk mounts all drives and checks them one at a time to see whether or not they were cleanly unmounted. If autochk determines one or more volumes are dirty, it will automatically run chkdsk and provides the user with a short window to abort the repair process by pressing a key within 10 seconds (introduced in Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4; earlier versions would not allow the user to abort chkdsk). Since Windows 2000, XP and 2003 show no text screen at that point (unlike NT 3.1 to 4.0, which displayed a blue text screen), the user will see a different background picture holding a mini-text-screen in the center of the screen and show the progress of chkdsk there.

Starting with Windows Vista, the Session Manager Subsystem creates a temporary instance of itself that launches the Windows Startup Application (wininit.exe) and a second Client/Server Runtime Subsystem  (csrss.exe) for Session 0, a session decided to system processes. From here, the Windows Startup Application starts the Service Control Manager (services.exe), which starts all the Windows services that are set to "Auto-Start" and sets the LastKnownGood to the current control set. The application also starts the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (lsass.exe). Before Windows Vista, these processes where started by Windows Logon instead of the Windows Startup Application, which didn't exist. The dedicated session for system processes also didn't exist.

The Session Manager Subsystem now starts Winlogon (Windows Logon Application), which is responsible for handling interactive logons to a Windows system, either local or remote.

Authentication

The authentication process is implemented by Winlogon. This program is responsible for responding to the secure attention sequence (SAS), loading the user profile on logon, and optionally locking the computer when a screensaver is running.

Winlogon checks if automatic logon is enabled, and if so, logs in to the specified account automatically. If there is not automatic logon enabled, Winlogon starts the process to allow the user to logon. Before Windows Vista this was done by GINA, but starting with Vista this is done by LogonUI. If configured, both of these programs display a prompt for the user to enter the Secure Attention Sequence (SAS) (Control-Alt-Delete). They then display the login dialog which prompts the user to enter their credentials. Once the user submits these credentials, they are passed to LSASS and any other additional network credential providers. This allows multiple network providers to authenticate the user at once during normal logon.

LSASS first tries to use cached data in the LSA database, the SECURITY hive of the registry. If there is none, LSASS determines which account protocol is to be used by using the security packages listed in the key HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa. There are two standard packages, msv1_0.dll, which implements the NTLM protocols, and Kerberos.dll, which provides remote login by using Active Directory. msv1_0.dll is used in stand-alone systems and domain-member systems for backward compatibility. If the user is trying to log into the local host then msv1_0.dll uses the Security Account Manager database located at HKLM/SAM. If the user is trying to log into another host then the NetLogon service is used to carry the data with the following sequence:msv1_0.dll <-> netlogon <-> remote netlogon <-> remote msv1_0.dll <-> remote SAMAfter the user is authenticated, LSASS enforces the local security policy (checking user permissions, creating audit trails, doling out security tokens, etc.) and passes control pack to Winlogon. Winlogon creates and opens an interactive windows station, WinSta0, and creates three desktops, Winlogon, Default and ScreenSaver. Winlogon switches from the Winlogon desktop to the Default desktop when the shell indicates that it is ready to display something for the user, or after thirty seconds, whichever comes first. The system switches back to the Winlogon desktop if the user presses Control-Alt-Delete or when a User Account Control prompt is shown. Winlogon now starts the program specified in the Userinit value which defaults to userinit.exe. This value supports multiple executables.

Shell

Userinit is the first program that runs with the user credentials. It is responsible to start all the other programs that compose the user shell environment.

The shell program (typically Explorer.exe) is started from the registry entry Shell= pointed to by the same registry entry in key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\IniFileMapping\system.ini\Boot; its default value is SYS:Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon, which evaluates to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon.

Userinit starts by loading the user profile. There are a few types of user profiles and it can be local or remote. This process can be very slow if the user profile is of the "roaming" type. User and Computer Group Policy settings are then applied and user scripts, machine scripts, and proquota.exe are run. Startup programs are started and then the shell configured in registry, which defaults to explorer.exe. Now Userinit exits and the shell program continues running without a parent process.

Userinit runs startup programs from the following locations:

 HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
 HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\Run
 HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
 HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\Load
 HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\Run
 HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
 HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
 %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\ (this path is localized on non-English versions of Windows before Vista)
 %USERPROFILE%\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\ (this path is localized on non-English versions of Windows before Vista)

Advanced options
With the advent of the new boot manager in Windows Vista, many components have been changed; one is the Advanced Boot Options menu that provides options for advanced boot modes (e.g., Safe Mode). Due to the implementation of fast startup in Windows 8 and up, access to the Advanced Boot Options menu has been disabled by default. However, access is still possible with a BCD modification. These are the possible boot modes:

 Repair Your Computer - Boots Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE or Windows RE)
 Safe Mode - Loads Safe Mode, a boot mode with minimal drivers and resources intended for malware removal or replacing faulty drivers.
 Safe Mode with Networking - Loads Safe Mode along with the network drivers.
 Safe Mode with Command Prompt - Loads Safe Mode with the Command Prompt as the shell instead of Windows Explorer. Windows Explorer can still be loaded by typing explorer at the command prompt.
 Enable Boot Logging - Enables writing of ntbtlog.txt, a file that will log the boot process; listing drivers that loaded and drivers that did not.
 Enable low resolution video - Disables the default graphics driver and uses the standard VGA driver. Intended in case the user changed the resolution to an unusable level (i.e. 320×200 at low refresh rates <24 Hz, 60 Hz>)
 Last Known Good Configuration - Loads configuration based on the last successful boot process. Intended for Registry corruptions. This mode is removed in Windows 8 and later versions of Windows.
 Directory Services Restore Mode - Boot mode used to reboot the Domain Controller in case it is not working as intended.
 Debugging Mode - Boots while loading the kernel debugger.
 Disable automatic restart on system failure - Disables the auto-reboot function after a Blue Screen of Death is experienced.
 Disable early launch anti-malware driver - ELAM prechecks boot required drivers for signatures and tampering. Disabling ELAM is intended to allow booting on false positive driver checks but could also allow a tampered driver to load.
 Disable Driver Signature Enforcement - Disables the kernel setting that prohibits unsigned drivers from loading.
 Start Windows Normally

The ABO menu is accessible by rapidly pressing or holding the F8 key before Windows boots. Starting from Windows 8 on UEFI, it can only be accessed by clicking Restart while holding the Shift key.

Remote booting and installation

To successfully boot, the client must support PXE booting and the Windows Deployment Services (WDS) component must be installed on the server. It is not installed by default. WDS is the successor of Remote Installation Services (RIS).

The PXE program is found on the BIOS or on a ROM chip on the network card.

PXE booting is not a technology specific to Windows and can also be used to start a Linux system. In fact, a Linux system can act as a server to service DHCP or TFTP.

PXE can be used to start Windows Setup to install the system on the client computer or to run the operating system from RAM. The latter, called Remote Boot, was introduced by Windows XP Embedded SP1 and is only available for this flavor of Windows.

The general process for both methods is as follows:

 PXE boots
 DHCP request broadcast
 Optionally DHCP router redirects to the server
 The server sends the Network Bootstrap Program (NBP) (PXEboot.com) through TFTP
 The NBP program downloads the required files through the BINL protocol

The Boot Information Negotiation Layer (BINL) is a Windows 2000 service running on the server that communicates with the client after the NBP was already loaded by the PXE.

See also

 Architecture of Windows NT
 Windows Setup
 Booting process of Windows NT Setup before Vista
 Booting process of DOS-based Windows
 Booting process of Linux
 Master boot record
 Power-on self-test
 BootVis

References

Further reading

External links

 Startup Applications List
How to edit SETUPAPI.DLL

Windows NT architecture
Booting processes

Booting process of Windows NT


Radio Salzburg is the regional radio for Salzburg, and is part of the Österreich 2 group.
It is broadcast by the ORF, and the programs from Radio Salzburg are made in the ORF Salzburg Studio.

History
It was founded in 1960 as the second radio program, after the transmitters were moved from the city Salzburg to the close Gaisberg.

1989 Radio Salzburg was the most heard radio in Austria, with a market share of over 55%.

Coverage
Radio Salzburg is the most heard regional radio of ORF, as it is very Salzburg oriented. It is also possible to receive the radio in Germany, till about Ingolstadt. In the state of Salzburg, Radio Salzburg has the second highest market share, only Ö3 with a higher one. The Radio Salzburg only gets competition from the private regional radio Antenne Salzburg, which is very popular among young people.

Programming

Radio Salzburg plays hits from the 1960s up the modern hits. The series "G´sungen und g´spielt" is also very popular, with real, unchanged folkmusic, Monday to Friday, from 6 to 8pm with Caroline Koller, Fritz Schwärz, Herbert Gschwendtner or Philipp Meikl.

External links

Radio stations in Austria
Mass media in Salzburg
ORF (broadcaster)
Radio stations established in 1960
1960 establishments in Austria

Radio Salzburg


Mica () is a commune in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of seven villages: Dâmbu Mare (Nagydomb), Mănăstirea (Szentbenedek), Mica, Nireș (Szásznyíres), Sânmărghita (Szentmargita), Valea Cireșoii (Décseipataktanya) and Valea Luncii (Lunkatanya).

Mănăstirea village is the site of Kornis Castle.

Demographics
According to the census from 2002 there was a total population of 3,836 people living in this commune. Of this population, 70.77% are ethnic Romanians, 28.12% are ethnic Hungarians and 0.06% ethnic Romani.

References

Communes in Cluj County
Localities in Transylvania

Mica, Cluj


John Wesley Dobbs (March 26, 1882 – August 30, 1961) was an African-American civic and political leader in Atlanta, Georgia. He was often referred to as the unofficial "mayor" of Auburn Avenue, the spine of the black community in the city.

Dobbs co-founded the Atlanta Negro Voters League with civil rights attorney A.T. Walden, leading voter registration efforts that registered 20,000 African Americans in Atlanta from 1936 to 1946. This new political power helped gain the hiring in 1948 of the first eight African-American police officers in Atlanta, the same year that the federal government began to integrate the armed services. In 1949 the city finally installed lighting along Auburn Avenue, the main retail street of the African-American community.

Early life and education
Dobbs was born and grew up in Atlanta, where he attended segregated public schools. An African-American, he also had European ancestry, as his maternal grandfather was a white slave-owner who owned his maternal grandmother, and his paternal great-grandfather was a white slave-owner who owned his paternal great-grandmother. He was a voracious reader and studied at Morehouse College. He attended for two years but never graduated because he had family obligations to care for his mother. He passed a civil service exam and became a railway mail clerk for the Post Office in 1903, a position he held for 32 years.

Family
Dobbs married Irene Ophelia Thompson in 1906. They had six daughters together, all of whom graduated from Spelman College.  One daughter, Mattiwilda Dobbs, became a notable opera singer based in Europe, while daughter Josephine Ophelia Dobbs Clement was later elected to the city board of education in Durham, North Carolina (she led integration and discussions about race), and Irene Dobbs Jackson was a professor of French at Spelman and integrated Atlanta's public libraries.

Career
Dobbs became a member of the Prince Hall Masons in 1911. In 1932, he was elected Grand Master of the Prince Hall Masons (a post he held for the rest of his life). Believing that enfranchisement was the key to overcoming segregation, Dobbs started a voter registration drive in 1936 with a goal of registering 10,000 black voters in Georgia. That year, Dobbs founded the Atlanta Civic and Political League, and in 1946, along with A.T. Walden, he co-founded the Atlanta Negro Voters League. During the 1930s and 1940s, laws keeping blacks from voting, by raising barriers to voter registration or to voting in primaries, were found by the US Supreme Court to be unconstitutional. Between 1936 and 1946, 20,000 African-American voters were registered to vote in Atlanta for the first time. With the power of the black vote behind him, Dobbs convinced Atlanta mayor William B. Hartsfield to integrate Atlanta's police force in 1948; the first eight black officers were hired. The next year, 1949, the mayor ordered installation of gas lights along Auburn Avenue, the spine of the black retail district.

In 1948, when Dobbs was 66, he accompanied Ray Sprigle, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, when the reporter disguised himself as a light-skinned black man and traveled for 30 days in the Deep South. They had coordinated the trip with the NAACP and kept Dobbs' role secret, as it was dangerous to challenge the Jim Crow customs and color line. Dobbs, who passed the 61-year-old newspaperman off as a cousin from Pittsburgh doing field work for the NAACP, was Sprigle's guide, host and mentor. Sprigle's 21-part syndicated newspaper series, entitled I Was a Negro in the South for 30 Days, shocked the white North and started the first debate in the national media (print and radio) about the future of legalized segregation. The series was turned into a 1949 book, In the Land of Jim Crow. Dobbs' role was not revealed to the general public until 1998 by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette staff writer Bill Steigerwald. The story of Dobbs' collaboration with Sprigle is told in detail in Steigerwald's 2017 history book "30 Days a Black Man".

John Wesley Dobbs died on August 30, 1961, aged 79, the same week that the Atlanta city schools were desegregated.

Legacy and honors
His family home still stands at 540 John Wesley Dobbs Avenue (formerly Houston Street).
Houston Street was renamed in Dobbs's honor by Maynard Jackson in 1994. Jackson, the first African-American mayor of Atlanta, was Dobbs' grandson.
A 7 foot high face mask of Dobbs entitled "Through His Eyes" by sculptor Ralph Helmick was erected in 1996 along Auburn Avenue.
Dobbs Elementary School in the Atlanta Public Schools is named for him.

References

Sources
John Wesley Dobbs The New Georgia Encyclopedia.
Pomerantz, Gary M., Where Peachtree Meets Sweet Auburn: The Saga of Two Families and the Making of Atlanta, Scribner (May 6, 1996).
John Wesley Dobbs Sweet Auburn Avenue: Triumph of the Spirit.
 The Next Page: Going back to A Negro in the South by Bill Steigerwald for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, August 23, 2009. Retrieved September 14, 2009.
Steigerwald, Bill, 30 Days a Black Man," Lyons Press, April 1, 2017).''Documenting the American South.

External links
Gary Pomerantz, "Excerpt: Where Peachtree Meets Sweet Auburn"
John Wesley Dobbs: Using the Power of Freemasonry in the Struggle for Civil Rights

1882 births
1961 deaths
Activists from Atlanta
Morehouse College alumni
African-American activists
Burials at South-View Cemetery

John Wesley Dobbs


A crisis (: crises; : critical) is any event or period that will lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affairs, especially when they occur abruptly, with little or no warning. More loosely, a crisis is a testing time for an emergency.

Etymology

The English word crisis was borrowed from the Latin, which in turn was borrowed from the Greek  krisis 'discrimination, decision, crisis'. The noun is derived from the verb  krinō, which means 'distinguish, choose, decide'.

In English, crisis was first used in a medical context, for the time in the development of a disease when a change indicates either recovery or death, that is, a turning-point. It was also used for a major change in the development of a disease. By the mid-seventeenth century, it took on the figurative meaning of a "vitally important or decisive stage in the progress of anything", especially a period of uncertainty or difficulty, without necessarily having the implication of a decision-point.

Definition
A crisis is often linked to the concept of psychological stress and used to suggest a frightening or fraught experience. In general, crisis is the situation of a "complex system" (family, economy, society. Note that simple systems do not enter crises. We can speak about a crisis of moral values, an economical or political crisis, but not a motor crisis) when the system functions poorly (the system still functions, but does not break down), an immediate decision is necessary to stop the further disintegration of the system, but the causes of the dysfunction are not immediately identified (the causes are so many, or unknown, that it is impossible to take a rational, informed decision to reverse the situation).

The crisis has several defining characteristics. Seeger, Sellnow, and Ulmer say that crises have four defining characteristics that are "specific, unexpected, and non-routine events or series of events that [create] high levels of uncertainty and threat or perceived threat to an organization's high priority goals." Thus the first three characteristics are that the event is
1. unexpected (i.e., a surprise)
2. creates uncertainty
3. is seen as a threat to important goals
Venette argues that "crisis is a process of transformation where the old system can no longer be maintained." Therefore the fourth defining quality is the need for change. If change is not needed, the event could more accurately be described as a failure.

Apart from natural crises that are inherently unpredictable (volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, etc.) most of the crises that we face are created by man. Hence the requirements of their being 'unexpected' depend upon man failing to note the onset of crisis conditions. Some of our inability to recognize crises before they become dangerous is due to denial and other psychological responses  that provide succor and protection for our emotions.

A different set of reasons for failing to notice the onset of crises is that we allow ourselves to be 'tricked' into believing that we are doing something for reasons that are false. In other words, we are doing the wrong things for the right reasons. For example, we might believe that we are solving the threats of climate change by engaging in economic trading activity that has no real impact on the climate. Mitroff and Silvers  posit two reasons for these mistakes, which they classify as Type 3 (inadvertent) and Type 4 (deliberate) errors.

The effect of our inability to attend to the likely results of our actions can result in a crisis.

From this perspective, we might usefully learn that failing to understand the real causes of our difficulties is likely to lead to repeated downstream 'blowback'. Where states are concerned, Michael Brecher, based on case studies of the International Crisis Behavior (ICB) project, suggested a different way of defining crisis as conditions are perceptions held by the highest level decision-makers of the actor concerned:
1. threat to basic values, with a simultaneous or subsequent
2. high probability of involvement in military hostilities, and the awareness of
3. finite time for response to the external value threat.

Chinese word for "crisis"

It is frequently said in Western motivational speaking that the Chinese word for "crisis" is composed of two Chinese characters signifying "danger" and "opportunity" respectively. This is, however, considered by linguists to be a misperception.

Political crisis

Economic

An economic crisis is a sharp transition to a recession. See for example 1994 economic crisis in Mexico, Argentine economic crisis (1999–2002), South American economic crisis of 2002, Economic crisis of Cameroon. Crisis theory is a central achievement in the conclusions of Karl Marx's critique of Capital.

A financial crisis may be a banking crisis or currency crisis.

Environmental
Crises pertaining to the environment include:

Environmental disaster

An environmental disaster is a disaster that is due to human activity and should not be confused with natural disasters (see below). In this case, the impact of humans' alteration of the ecosystem has led to widespread and/or long-lasting consequences. It can include the deaths of animals (including humans) and plant systems, or severe disruption of human life, possibly requiring migration.

Natural disaster

A natural disaster is the consequence of a natural hazard (e.g. volcanic eruption, earthquake, landslide) which moves from potential in to an active phase, and as a result affects human activities.  Human vulnerability, exacerbated by the lack of planning or lack of appropriate emergency management, leads to financial, structural, and human losses.  The resulting loss depends on the capacity of the population to support or resist the disaster, their resilience. This understanding is concentrated in the formulation: "disasters occur when hazards meet vulnerability". A natural hazard will hence never result in a natural disaster in areas without vulnerability, e.g. strong earthquakes in uninhabited areas.

For lists of natural disasters, see the list of disasters or the list of deadliest natural disasters.

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in number, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters.  An endangered species is usually a taxonomic species, but may be another evolutionary significant unit. The World Conservation Union (IUCN) has classified 38 percent of the 44,837 species assessed by 2008 as threatened.

International

For information about crises in the field of study in international relations, see crisis management and international crisis. In this context, a crisis can be loosely defined as a situation where there is a perception of threat, heightened anxiety, expectation of possible violence and the belief that any actions will have far-reaching consequences (Lebow, 7–10).

Personal

A personal crisis occurs when an individual can no longer cope with a situation. This is preceded by events of an extraordinary nature triggering extreme tension and stress within an individual, i.e., the crisis, which then requires major decisions or actions to resolve. Crises can be triggered by a wide range of situations including, but not limited to, extreme weather conditions, sudden change in employment/financial state, medical emergencies, long-term illness, and social or familial turmoil. Crises are simply a change in the events that comprise the day-to-day life of a person and those in their close circle, such as the loss of a job, extreme financial hardship, substance addiction/abuse, and other situations that are life-altering and require action that is outside the "normal" daily routine. A person going through a crisis experiences a state of mental disequilibrium, in which the ego struggles to balance both internal and external demands. In this case, said person resorts to coping mechanisms to deal with the stress. Various coping mechanisms include:
 High emotions (crying, physical withdrawal)
 Defence mechanisms (denial, repression)
 Making rash decisions
 Acting out
 Putting things on hold

In some cases, it is difficult for an individual undergoing a crisis to adapt to the situation. As it is outside of their normal range of functioning, it is common that one endures a struggle to control emotions. This lack of control can lead to suicidal tendencies, substance abuse, trouble with the law and general avoidance of resources available for help. One such resource used to aid an individual in crisis is their social support system, which can come in the form of family, friends, coworkers, or health professionals. It is important that a support system consists of people that the individual trusts. Although these support systems play a crucial role in aiding an individual through a crisis, they are also the underlying cause of two thirds of mental health crises. The aforementioned mental health crises can include marital issues, abandonment, parental conflict and family struggles.

In order to aid someone in a crisis, it is crucial to be able to identify the signs that indicate they are undergoing an internal conflict. These signs, as well as the aforementioned coping mechanisms, include:
 Irrational and/or narrow thinking
 Lowered attention span
 Unclear motives
 Disorganized approach to problem-solving
 Resistance to communication
 Inability to differentiate between large and small issues
 Change/alteration to social networks

Ways to manage a crisis
As aforementioned, a crisis to this day can be overcome by implementing mechanisms such as: sleep, rejection, physical exercise, meditation and thinking. To assist individuals in regaining emotional equilibrium, intervention can be used. The overall goal of crisis intervention is to get the individual back to a pre-crisis level of functioning or higher with the help of a social support group. As said by Judith Swan, there's a strong correlation between the client's emotional balance and the trust in their support system in helping them throughout their crisis. The steps of crisis intervention are: to assess the situation based on behavior patterns of the individual, decide what type of help is needed (make a plan of action), and finally to take action/intervention, based on the individual's skills to regain equilibrium. In the context of natural disasters and other climate change-related crises, emotional activation is common. Collective processing of emotional experiences is an important part of enabling individuals to increase in their resilience, leading to greater community engagement and a sense of belongingness. When appropriate support for emotional experiences is provided, climate change-induced emotions are adaptive.

The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario proposed the ABC model for dealing with client's interventions in crises:

Benefits of listening in a crisis
Moreover, another method for helping individuals who are suffering in a crisis is active listening; it is defined as seeing circumstances from another perspective and letting the other person know that the negotiator (the helper) understands their perspective. Through this, they establish trust and rapport by demonstrating empathy, understanding, and objectivity in a non-judgmental way. It is important for the negotiator to listen to verbal and non-verbal reactions of the person in need, in order to be able to label the emotion that the individual is showing. Thus, this demonstrates that the helper is tuned in emotionally. Furthermore, there are other techniques that can be used to demonstrate active listening such as paraphrasing, silence, and reflecting or mirroring. The goal in active listening is to keep the person talking about their situation.

In chaos theory

When the control parameter of a chaotic system is modified, the chaotic attractor touches an unstable
periodic orbit inside the basin of attraction inducing a sudden expansion in the attractor.
This phenomenon is termed as interior crisis in a chaotic system.

See also

 Chinese word for "crisis"
 Constitutional crisis
 Coup d'état
 Crisis cafe
 Crisis state
 Crisis management
 Hostage crisis
 Humanitarian crisis
 Distress signal
 Mayday
 SOS
 Ecological crisis
 Energy crisis
 Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management
 Mid-life crisis
 Revolution
 War
 Water crisis
 Crysis

References

Further reading
 Borodzicz, E. P. 2005 'Risk, Crisis and Security Management' John Wileys, Chichester.
 Jäger, Johannes. "Crisis" (2012). University Bielefeld - Center for InterAmerican Studies.
 Lebow, RN, Between Peace and War: The Nature of International Crisis: 1981. The Rancho Bernardo Hopkins University Press, .
 Takis Fotopoulos: "The Multidimensional Crisis and Inclusive Democracy" Special Issue, "The International Journal of Inclusive Democracy", 2005.
 Rüdiger Graf, Konrad Jarausch. "Crisis" in Contemporary History and Historiography in "Docupedia Zeitgeschichte", March 27, 2017.

External links

Security
International relations
Strategic management

Crisis


Robot Chicken DC Comics Special is an episode of the television comedy series Robot Chicken and it was aired as a one-off special during Cartoon Network's Adult Swim on September 10, 2012.

A DC Universe special, in collaboration with DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. Voice actors are Seth Green, Paul Reubens, Neil Patrick Harris, Alfred Molina, Nathan Fillion, Megan Fox, Breckin Meyer, and Kevin Shinick. The rest of the cast also includes Abraham Benrubi, Alex Borstein, Clare Grant, Tara Strong, Matthew Senreich, Aaron Paul, Steven Tyler, Tom Root, and Zeb Wells. It was followed by the Robot Chicken DC Comics Special 2: Villains in Paradise, which premiered April 6, 2014.

Segments

RCDC
Robot Chicken joins forces with DC Comics superheroes and supervillains.

You Can't Fly
Superman, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman have a laugh at Aquaman's expense.

That's Bane!
While staking out a robbery, Batman has his back broken by Bane.

Real Characters from the DC Universe
Meet B'dg, a squirrel who's a member of the Green Lantern Corps.

The Super Kiss
Parody of the scene in Superman II where Superman kisses Lois Lane to make her forget he's Superman. He decides to use his kissnesia on Lex Luthor, Darkseid, Solomon Grundy, Brainiac to make them forget why they hate him. It backfires on him when they show up at the Fortress of Solitude with flowers and candy as Superman claims that he should've though this through.

Two-Face's OCD
Two-Face cannot stop flipping his coin to make decisions, even when he goes to the bathroom. His latest coin flip has him not flushing the toilet much to the dismay of Penguin.

Cold Villains
Mr. Freeze, Captain Cold, Icicle, and Chillblaine all rob a jewelry auction, causing a problem between the four cold-themed villains. The cold-themed villains noticed that they took out some load-bearing walls. The building collapses as Ice is shown outside.

Funeral in Earth-C
Superman invites Batman and Green Lantern to Captain Carrot's funeral in Earth-C, but Green Lantern can't help himself from laughing at the other members of the Zoo Crew, causing him to abruptly leave. After Little Cheese comments on Green Lantern's insensitive behavior, Batman begins to snicker at his name.

Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing tries to get his girlfriend to understand his powers.

That's Bane! Again!
While recovering in the Batcave, Bane sneaks up on Batman and breaks his back over his knee again.

Real Characters from the DC Universe Pt. 2
Meet Firestorm, a "popular" and powerful superhero.

Out to Score
Batman, Superman, Aquaman, Green Lantern, and Flash hit the bar scene to pick up some ladies. But when Superman and Green Lantern strike out, Aquaman tries to pick up a woman who turns out to be Martian Manhunter in disguise causing him to go home, get drunk and try to have sex with a dolphin.

Doom Secret Santa
At the Legion of Doom's HQ, the Legion members draw names for Secret Santa as part of team building according to Lex Luthor. Sinestro draws Leonard Snart who he assumes is the smelly worker in the mailroom as Captain Cold tells him that he's Leonard Snart. Sinestro then claims that he thinks the mailroom worker is named Glenn. Lex then introduces a new rule where the gifts must not be exploding toys. Toyman states that he's the only one affected by that rule as Scarecrow that he still has that forehead scare from Christmas 2004. When the smelly mailroom worker Glenn comes in after the names have been drawn, they all stop talking. Glenn shouts at them that it's not his fault that he has a glandular condition and that he showers every day as he passes by. Once the commercial ends, the narrator announces the bad news where Glenn killed himself during the commercial break.

Nerd Lantern
Instead of Hal Jordan, the Robot Chicken Nerd ends up finding Abin Sur and receiving his ring instead. When he is taken to Oa and begins his training with Kilowog, the Guardians begin to doubt if humans are worthy of a power ring where he engages Kilowog in strange training that involved creating a construct of Selena Gomez. The Guardians of the Universe hope that Abin Sur was given a proper funeral. Meanwhile on Earth, Abin Sur's corpse is eaten by bears.

Luthor's Warsuit
Lex Luthor steps into the perfect Superman-killing machine until the scientist's son kicks a ball that hits Lex in the face.

That Tickles
A criminal shoots Superman, but when he notices the bullets are bouncing off, he fires at his crotch, which continues to deflect the bullets, much to Superman's confusion.

The Punctuation Posse
After taking a break from the Legion of Doom, Riddler forms the Punctuation Posse which consists of Comma, Quotes, and Exclaimer which is quickly beaten up by the Justice League.

That's Bane! Thrice!
At the Hall of Justice, Bane sneaks up on Batman and breaks his back over his knee once again while Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern watch.

Sinestro's Final Moment
In the Legion of Doom bathroom, Riddler and Mirror Master tease Sinestro into shaving his mustache. As soon as the razor touches his lip, it starts gushing blood, causing Riddler and Mirror Master to run off in disgust.

That Is It
Aquaman's had enough of the lack of respect after Superman and Wonder Woman both mock his powers, Robin uses his trident to unclog the toilet, Martian Manhunter cooks his lobster friends, and he slips on a puddle and gets mocked by the other heroes.

Real Characters from the DC Universe Pt. 3
Meet Mister Banjo, a supervillain who steals top secret information and plays Morse code about it on his banjo. Suddenly, an enraged Firestorm bursts in and refuses to be in the same category as "Fatty Arbuckle". When Mister Banjo claims that his banjo costs him some money, Firestorm uses his powers to turn the banjo into metal and then beats Mister Banjo. When he asks where B'dg is, the narrator quotes "Down the hall. First dressing room to the right". Firestorm heads there as B'dg can he heard introducing himself as Firestorm beats him up with the metal banjo.

Aqua Doom
Aquaman visits the Legion of Doom HQ and asks to join after getting by Giganta much to the annoyance of Black Manta. At first, they refuse. But when he tells them he's got security access codes to the Hall of Justice, they let him on the team.

Solomon Grundy
Solomon Grundy finds out he was actually born on a Tuesday and that his real name is Solomon Gruesday, much to his anger.

Aquaman Appreciation Party
Aquaman leads the Legion of Doom into the Hall of Justice in a Trojan cake, where the heroes are revealed to have thrown Aquaman a party. After Aquaman cuts into the cake with Toyman getting stabbed in the process, the Legion of Doom is revealed, leading to an epic final battle between the Justice League and the Legion of Doom.

As Penguin's leg is asleep, Mister Banjo plays his banjo as the Justice League and the Legion of Doom fight in various ways:

 Sinestro fights Green Lantern while mentioning how he got a staff infection and that he almost died. He kicks a ball which hits Lex Luthor during his fight with Martian Manhunter.
 Gorilla Grodd slams Samurai and El Dorado into each other.
 Mirror Master tries to do a mirror trick on Doctor Mid-Nite who punches him.
 Penguin and Captain Cold slam cake into Green Arrow.
 Wonder Woman strangles Black Manta.
 Solomon Grundy kicks Booster Gold as he quotes "See you next Gruesday".
 Robin is kicked by Captain Cold, Chillblaine, Icicle, and Mr. Freeze while still using their cold-related puns.
 Wonder Woman fights Catwoman, Cheetah, and Harley Quinn. Then she punches Penguin in the nose.
 Two-Face flips a coin and punches himself.
 Superman kisses Riddler.
 Darkseid incinerates Wildcat as he asks why he has to fight Darkseid.
 While fighting Batman, Joker shoots urine out of his squirting flower. After Harley Quinn makes a urine pun, Bane sneaks up on Batman again as he quotes "rule of three".
 Cyborg is harassed by the Humping Robot.
 Hawkman punches Brainiac who comments that he can't concentrate with that banjo noise. When Mister Banjo tries to use the gun feature of his banjo, he is punched by Flash.

The fight ends with Superman, Lex Luthor, and Aquaman remaining. Aquaman punches Lex Luthor while Superman is hit by the Kryptonite.

By the final scene, all of them are attending Glenn's funeral. When Jimmy Olsen notes about how this ending didn't reveal how Superman survived, Superman states that he won't remember this as he kisses him and does the same thing to the viewer.

Voice cast
 Abraham Benrubi as Cyborg, Kilowog, Appa Ali Apsa, Solomon Grundy
 Alex Borstein as Wonder Woman, Giganta, Woman at Bar
 Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern, Mr. Freeze
 Megan Fox as Lois Lane
 Clare Grant as Cheetah, Ice, Abby Holland
 Seth Green as The Nerd, Batman, Robin, Aquaman, Penguin, Little Cheese, Martian Manhunter, Toyman, Green Arrow, Scarecrow, Abin Sur, Ganthet, Gorilla Grodd, Hawkman, Jimmy Olsen, Various
 Neil Patrick Harris as Two-Face, Black Manta
 Breckin Meyer as Superman, Mirror Master
 Alfred Molina as Lex Luthor, Firestorm, Mister Banjo
 Aaron Paul as Glenn, Joker (Deleted Scene)
 Paul Reubens as Riddler, Deadman (Deleted Scene)
 Tom Root as Icicle, B'dg
 Kevin Shinick as Narrator, Captain Cold
 Matthew Senreich as The Flash, Brainiac, Wildcat, Chillblaine
 Tara Strong as Harley Quinn, Selena Gomez Construct
 Steven Tyler as Singer
 Zeb Wells as Sinestro, Swamp Thing

Writers
 Matthew Beans
 Mike Fasolo
 Douglas Goldstein
 Seth Green
 Geoff Johns
 Breckin Meyer
 Tom Root
 Matthew Senreich
 Kevin Shinick
 Zeb Wells

Home media
Robot Chicken DC Comics Special was released on DVD and Blu-ray, on July 9, 2013.

Sources and influences
The logo for the Robot Chicken DC Comics Special is a modification of that for the Super Powers Collection.

The opening sequence of the special parodies that of the Challenge of the Superfriends albeit with the Legion of Doom substituted with Robot Chicken original characters Chicken, Mad Scientist, Nerd, Humping Robot, Composite Santa, Gummy Bear, the Unicorn, and Bitch Puddin'.

Most of the figures used for the special are from the Mego World's Greatest Superheroes!, Mattel DC Universe Classics, and EMCE Toys/Mattel DC Retro Action Superheroes toylines. Brainiac and Lex Luthor would see both DC Universe Classics and DC Retro Action Superheroes versions (though, of course, the DC Retro Action Superheroes Brainiac figure was an original piece).

The graphic for the "Real Characters from the DC Universe" is very similar to the Challenge of the Superfriends title graphic.

The Hall of Justice is from the Super Powers Collection but is white rather than yellow to be in line with its appearance in Super Friends.

The use of Mister Freeze, Captain Cold, Icicle, and Chillblaine as a group of cold-themed villains is an ongoing theme from DC Comics seeing previous versions including a team-up by Captain Cold, Icicle, and Minister Blizzard in Justice League of America #139 (February 1977), the Cold Warriors in Justice League Adventures #12 (December 2002), the Ice Pack in Super Friends #16 (August 2009), and Icicle, Icicle Jr, Mr. Freeze, Captain Cold, and Killer Frost in Young Justice "Terrors".

Notes

References

External links

2010s English-language films
2010s superhero comedy films
Animated films based on DC Comics
2012 television films
2012 films
Justice League in other media
Television episodes written by Geoff Johns
Animated superhero comedy films
2010s American animated films
Television episodes directed by Seth Green

Robot Chicken DC Comics Special


Jianguo Road () is a major north–south arterial road in Taipei, Taiwan. It begins at the Yuanshan interchange of National Highway 1 and ends at Xinhai Road. An elevated expressway, Jianguo Expressway (建國高架道路) runs above the entire length of Jianguo Road. The expressway was completed in 1982.

Intersections with other freeways and expressways
National Highway No. 1 at Yuanshan interchange.
Civic Blvd Expressway runs over Jianguo Expressway but does not intersect with it.
 The south end of Jianguo Road is close to the end of National Highway No. 3A.

See also
 List of roads in Taiwan

Buildings and structures completed in 1982
Viaducts in Taiwan
Roads in Taipei
Highways in Taiwan
1982 establishments in Taiwan

Jianguo Road (Taipei)