There is a rise in average IQ scores since the beginning of measurements. It is called the Flynn effect. The rise in most industrialized countries where IQ testing has long been commonplace is about three IQ points per decade. James R. Flynn described this phenomenon in 1984.

Others supported the claims. They found the rise was mostly due to the test scores of those who scored an IQ below 100. The number of those who were classified as mentally handicapped reduced from year to year. In contrast, the scores of those who got more than 100 did not seem to be affected.

The rise
IQ tests are re-normalized every so often to hold the average score for an age group at 100. This gave a first hint to Flynn that the IQ was changing over time. The revised versions are standardized on new samples and scored with respect to those samples only. The only way to compare the difficulty of two versions is to have a group of people take both tests. This confirms IQ gains over time.

The average rate of rise seems to be around three IQ points per decade. Today, children go to school for a longer time. They have also become more familiar with testing. It might therefore be expected that the biggest gains occur with school-related content, such as vocabulary, arithmetic or general information. Just the opposite is the case: abilities such as these have had small gains and occasional declines over the years. The largest changes appear  on general intelligence factor loaded (g-loaded) tests such as Raven's Progressive Matrices, instead. For example, Dutch soldiers gained 21 points in only 30 years, or 7 points per decade, between 1952 and 1982.

Some studies focused on the distribution of scores have found that the Flynn effect mainly occurs with lower scores. However, Raven (2000) found that a lot of data must be re-interpreted with respect to the date of birth. Previously, this data had been interpreted to show that many abilities decrease when people get older. This data must now be interpreted to show that many abilities had in fact increased dramatically, as Flynn predicted. On many tests this occurs at all levels of ability. Two large samples of Spanish children were assessed with a 30-year gap. Comparison of the IQ distributions indicated that
the mean IQ had increased by 9.7 points (the Flynn effect),
the gains were concentrated in the lower half of the distribution and negligible in the top half, and
the gains gradually decreased from low to high IQ.

Some scientists believe these changes are very big. One of them is Ulric Neisser. In 1995 he was the head of a task force of the American Psychological Association, charged with writing a statement on where intelligence research was. He estimates that if American children of 1932 could take an IQ test normed in 1997 their average IQ would have been only about 80. In other words, half of the children in 1932 would be classified as having borderline mental retardation or worse in 1997. Looking at Ravens, Neisser estimates that if you extrapolate beyond the data, which shows a 21 point gain between 1952 and 1982, an even larger gain of 35 IQ points can be argued.  Arthur Jensen warns that extrapolating beyond the data leads to results such as an IQ of minus 1000 for Aristotle (even assuming he would have scored 200 in his day).

Most of the time, the effect is associated with IQ rises. A similar effect has been found with increases in semantic and episodic memory.

References

Intelligence

Flynn effect


Albert James Smith Copp (December 19, 1866 –October 8, 1912) was a Canadian politician.

Born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, the son of Thomas Copp, Copp was educated in Amherst Academy, Dorchester and Sackville, New Brunswick. He was called to the Bar of Nova Scotia in 1879. Copp practised law in Digby. He was a crown prosecutor for the County of Digby from 1887 to 1910. He served as Commercial Agent for Canada in Boston in 1910. He was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada for the electoral district of Digby in the general elections of 1896. A Liberal, he was re-elected in 1900 and 1904. He was defeated in 1908.

In 1881, he married Eliza Dennison.

References

1866 births
1912 deaths
Liberal Party of Canada MPs
Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Nova Scotia
Lawyers in Nova Scotia

Albert James Smith Copp


16-Methoxytabersonine is a terpene indole alkaloid produced by the medicinal plant Catharanthus roseus.  16-methoxytabersonine is synthesized by methylation of the hydroxyl group at the 16 position of 16-hydroxytabersonine by tabersonine 16-O-methyltransferase (16OMT).  The compound is a substrate for hydration by two concerted enzymes Tabersonine-3-Oxidase (T3O) and Tabersonine-3-Reductase (T3R), which leads to the formation of 3-hydroxy-16-methoxy-2,3-dihydrotabersonine.

References

Indole alkaloids

16-Methoxytabersonine


Kibon is a Brazilian-Argentine ice cream producer, now owned by Unilever. The logo that it uses is the same Heartbrand logo that Wall's ice cream, Good Humor, Streets, Selecta and Langnese use in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Philippines and Germany respectively, also owned by Unilever.

History
 Kibon was founded in 1941 by Americans U.S. Harkson and John Kent Lutey.  Lutey was the on-site Director and President. The two originally worked together in Shanghai, China. The original corporate name was U.S. Harkson do Brasil, which was later changed to Cia Harkson Industria e Comercio Kibon. Lutey was Director-President until 1962.
 In 1942, Kibon introduced its first ice cream products to Brazil: Eskibon (chocolate-covered ice cream) and Chicabon (chocolate and malt popsicle) with 50 refrigerated pushcarts on the streets of Rio de Janeiro. They were an enormous success and the company grew quickly, introducing classic and tropical flavors. The company also produced dried eggs for food industries. Kibon later introduced a variety of candies, chocolates and gum. By 1960, Kibon was available through more than 3,000 pushcarts as well as retail stores throughout the industrial south of Brazil.
 In 1957, Kibon entered into a joint venture with the General Foods Corporation to manufacture and market several of its brands, including Kool-Aid and breakfast cereals. The joint venture was named Indústrias Alimentícias Gerais, S.A., a Brazilian corporation.
 In 1960, the General Foods Corporation bought Kibon and Kibon's share of the joint venture.
 In 1985, the firm was bought by Philip Morris.
 By the 1990s, Kibon was made by the Swiss company Mövenpick.
 In 1995, Kibon bought Brazilian chocolate company Lacta.
 In 1997, the Anglo-Dutch company Unilever bought Kibon.
 In fall 2013, Kibon will be sold in the Falkland Islands.

External links
  Kibon website

Unilever brands
Food and drink companies of Brazil
Ice cream brands
1997 mergers and acquisitions

de:Langnese
pt:Kibon

Kibon


2030 CE is a Canadian children's television series that aired for two seasons on YTV in 2002. It aired in the United States on Showtime Family Zone. The series was created by Angela Bruce, Dennis Foon and Yan Moore. A third season had been planned, but was cancelled after financial supporters backed out, presumably due to low ratings. It was filmed in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Plot
In the year 2030 C.E., no one since 2002 has lived past the age of thirty in a semi-post-apocalyptic, dystopian Earth, due to Progressive Ageing Syndrome (P.A.S.).

Science, government, and industry united to form Nexes, an all-powerful body that controls every aspect of society. In order to make up for their short life spans, and to continue to have a progressive society, people are assigned careers at a young age and put through intensive schooling specific to their assigned careers - they graduate and start work at age 14 as experts in their field, but ignorant about almost anything else. The result is that no one has enough knowledge to see the full picture, or question the world around them, leaving those few people in charge of Nexes with absolute power.

Nexes was meant to be a temporary solution, working to find a cure for P.A.S. so that life could return to the way it was. Aware that a cure will mean the end of their absolute rule, the powers that be within Nexes are not doing any research on the disease. Unfortunately for them, humanity is attempting to cure itself - people are being born in whom the P.A.S mutation are not present. In order to stop others from noticing, Nexes moves these people into dangerous career paths, and makes sure that they are dead before they become old enough for the disease to have affected them.

The show follows Hart Greyson, a 15-year-old boy who was training to be a doctor. Upon his graduation at the top of his class, he is told that a genetic flaw has been discovered within him, making him unsuitable for a medical career. Instead he is assigned to be a bio-tech, an extremely dangerous job in which he will likely be killed before he turns 20. Knowing that he does not have the flaw he has been accused of, Hart starts to look more closely at the operation of Nexes, and realizes that it is corrupt. He joins Storm, a small team of rebels that is attempting to cure P.A.S and destroy Nexes.

Cast and characters
 Corey Sevier as Hart Greyson – Age 15, smart, athletic, and funny. When he is told upon his graduation that a genetic flaw has made him unsuitable for a medical career and is assigned to an extremely dangerous job in bio tech, Hart begins an investigation into the operations of Nexes and joins the Storm, a rebel group trying to cure P.A.S. and destroy Nexes.
 Jessica Lucas as Jakki Kaan – Age 15, free spirit, fearless and bright. Jakki is a member of the Storm and also one of the first long-term contacts that Hart makes. She is in the fight for several reasons, but mostly to find her lover, Dax, another of the people that Nexes has made an effort to eliminate.
 Curtis Harrison as Zeus – Age 19, technical genius who takes up leadership of the storm after blaming himself for a failed mission. Shares a mysterious past with Dr. Rich.
 Tatiana Maslany as Rome Greyson – Age 12, hip, open-minded, a whiz with the computer. Rome is Hart's younger sister, is a genetics genius and also very talented with computer operations. She becomes a strong ally in Hart's quest to discover the truth.
 Neil Denis as Robby Drake – Age 15, Hart's best friend.
 Elyse Levesque as Dr. Maxine Rich – Age 19, all charm on the outside, she is as hard as steel on the inside. She is smart, savvy, and shrewd. As a leading member of Nexes, she is not to be trusted and serves as the main antagonist of the series.
 Skye Kneller as Quixote – Age unknown, a girl who looks to be 12. Often comes to the aid of Hart, seemingly possessing magical powers with the ability to disappear at will and disable securities with the wave of a hand. Although seemingly benevolent, Quixote's motives are dubious at best, and she sometimes shows a sadistic side. She ends the series, enigmatically saying, after being rejoined by another Quixote: "One Quixote, two Quixote, three Quixote, four, and more, and more. We're taking over" to which Zeus replies "I have a bad feeling about this".

Episodes

Season 1
1x01: Happy Destiny Day/ 6 February 2002
1x02: Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes/ 13 February 2002
1x03: First Assignment/ 20 February 2002
1x04: Cat and Mouse/ 27 February 2002
1x05: The Lord Helps Those Who Help Themselves/ 6 March 2002
1x06: Free Jake/ 13 March 2002
1x07: Strange Medicine/ 20 March 2002
1x08: The Whole Truth/ 27 March 2002
1x09: Do You Know who Your Friends Are?/ 3 April 2002
1x10: Live Bait/10 April 2002
1x11: Trial and Punishment/ 17 April 2002
1x12: Into the Lion's Lair/ 24 April 2002
1x13: Plan B/ 1 May 2002

Season 2
2x01: Where's Robby?/ 9 January 2003
2x02: Free Robby/ 16 January 2003
2x03: The Defector/ 23 January 2003
2x04: Get Victor/ 30 January 2003
2x05: The Ghost/ 6 February 2003
2x06: The One That Got Away/ 13 February 2003
2x07: Blood and Ice/ 20 February 2003
2x08: Faint Hope Clause/ 27 February 2003
2x09: The Saboteur/ 6 March 2003
2x10: Prisoners/ 13 March 2003
2x11: Batteries Not Included/ 20 March 2003
2x12: Endgame/ 27 March 2003
2x13: Reunion/ 3 April 2003

References

External links

 YTV.com (2002 Archive)

2000s Canadian children's television series
2000s Canadian science fiction television series
2002 Canadian television series debuts
2003 Canadian television series endings
Canadian children's adventure television series
Canadian children's science fiction television series
English-language television shows
YTV (Canadian TV channel) original programming
Post-apocalyptic television series
Television series about teenagers
Television series set in 2030
Television series set in the 2030s
Television shows filmed in Winnipeg

2030 CE


Gianfranco Contini (4 January 1912 – 1 February 1990) was an Italian academic and philologist.

He studied at the Collegio Mellerio Rosmini in Domodossola, then at the University of Pavia, where he graduated in 1933. Later, he studied also in Turin, where he met Giulio Einaudi, Massimo Mila, and Leone Ginzburg, who shortly after started the Einaudi's publishing company. From 1934 to 1936, he lived in Paris, following Joseph Bédier's lessons, then he was called to teach in Florence and Pisa, where he became a contributor to "Letteratura", a literary magazine where he shared his views, among others, with Eugenio Montale, and where he began to collaborate with the Accademia della Crusca. In 1938, he was called to teach Romance Philology at the University of Freiburg, as a successor of Bruno Migliorini. Among his students, there have been the critics D'Arco Silvio Avalle and Dante Isella. After 20 years of brilliant academic activity, he was appointed at the University of Florence, and to the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa. He was also associated to the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres.
He directed the Centre of Philology Studies of the Accademia della Crusca, until March 1971. He belonged to the Accademia dei Lincei, and was President of the Società Dantesca Italiana. In 1987, he went back to his home-town where he died three years later.

Selected bibliography
Dante Alighieri, Rime (editor), 1939
Poeti del Duecento (editor), 1960
Letteratura dell'Italia unita 1861-1968 (editor), 1968
Francesco De Sanctis, Scelta di scritti critici e ricordi (editor), 1969
Varianti e altra linguistica, 1970 (collection literary essays 1938-68)
Un'idea di Dante, 1970
Carlo Emilio Gadda, La cognizione del dolore (introduction), 1970
Altri esercizi, 1972 (collection of literary essays, 1942–71)
Roberto Longhi, Da Cimabue a Morandi (editor), 1973
Esercizi di lettura sopra autori contemporanei con un'appendice su testi non contemporanei, 1974 (partially published before as Un anno di letteratura, 1942)
Una lunga fedeltà. Scritti su Eugenio Montale, 1974
Francesco Petrarca, Canzoniere (introduction), 1975
Letteratura italiana del Quattrocento (editor), 1976
Letteratura italiana delle origini (editor), 1978
Eugenio Montale, L'opera in versi (editor), 1980
Letteratura italiana del Risorgimento 1789-1861 (editor), 1986
Ultimi esercizî ed elzeviri, 1987 (collection of literary essays, 1968–87)
Antologia leopardiana (editor), 1988
Carlo Emilio Gadda, Lettere a Gianfranco Contini a cura del destinatario 1934-67, 1988 (letters edited as addressee)
Quarant'anni di amicizia: scritti su Carlo Emilio Gadda (1934-88), 1989
Breviario di ecdotica, 1990
Poeti del Dolce stil novo (editor), 1991
Racconti della Scapigliatura piemontese (editor), 1992
La letteratura italiana Otto-Novecento (editor), 1998
Postremi esercizi ed elzeviri, 1998 (latest collection of essays)
Poesie, Pietro Montorfani ed., 2010
 Massimo Colella, Gianfranco Contini e Francesco Orlando: un'idea di Dante, un'idea della letteratura, in «Xenia. Trimestrale di Letteratura e Cultura» (Genova), IV, 3, 2019, pp. 20–32.

References

1912 births
1990 deaths
Academic staff of the University of Freiburg
Italian literary critics
Italian male non-fiction writers
Italian philologists
Members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
Academic staff of the University of Florence
University of Turin alumni
Academic staff of the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa
20th-century philologists

Gianfranco Contini


John Bodkin Adams (21 January 1899 – 4 July 1983) was a British doctor, fraudster and suspected serial killer.

Early years
Adams was born in Randalstown in what is now Northern Ireland. His parents were from a very strict Christian sect called the Plymouth Brethren - and they believed that what ever they did in life, they would go to heaven anyway. He had one brother, William, born in 1903. His father died in 1914 and Adams was brought up by his mother. The family moved to Belfast but in 1918 William died from flu. Adams studied medicine at university.

Job
Adams worked for one year in a hospital in Bristol. He then moved to Eastbourne, England where he became a general practitioner. He cared for a lot of old female patients and many of them were very rich. 132 left him money or gifts when they died. Rumours started that Adams was killing them with heroin and morphine and the police decided to investigate. Many of the possible victims had been cremated (burnt), so there were few bodies for the police to analyse.

Trial
Adams was arrested and tried for the murder of one patient in 1957, but found not guilty. Another charge was withdrawn - an event the judge later criticised. The trial was reported in newspapers around the world and was described at the time as "one of the greatest murder trials of all time".

Claims of unfairness
Some have claimed that the trial was not held fairly. Police files show that the prosecution gave secret records to the defence to help them defend Adams. Evidence (some notebooks written by the patient's nurses) was lost by the prosecution and then found later by the defence. When it was produced during the trial, the prosecution pretended that it had never seen it. Also, the case that was chosen (Mrs Morrell) was probably one of the least likely to succeed.

One historian claims that the government did not want Adams to be convicted, because he would then have been hanged. If this had happened, many doctors would have refused to treat government (NHS) patients and the government would have become very unpopular.

Other crimes
Adams was later found guilty of 13 other crimes - prescription fraud, lying on cremation forms, obstructing a police search and failing to keep a register of the dangerous drugs he used.

He had his license to be a doctor taken away in 1957 but it was given back in 1961. He was banned for life from prescribing dangerous drugs.

Scotland Yard's files on the case were meant to be secret until 2033, but special permission was given in 2003 to open them.

Opinions
Even though he was found not guilty, most experts now consider him to have been a serial killer. The judge in his trial later wrote a book in which he said Adams was probably guilty. The police thought that Adams killed 163 of his patients.

Related pages
 Harold Shipman - general practitioner and Britain's worst serial killer
 Michael Swango - American doctor and serial killer

References

Books about the Adams trial
 Sybille Bedford, The best we can do. 1958
 Marshall Cavendish, Murder casebook 40 Eastbourne's Doctor Death, 1990

 Patrick Devlin, Easing the passing: the trial of Doctor John Bodkin Adams, London, The Bodley Head, 1985
 Percy Hoskins, Two men were acquitted: the trial and acquittal of Doctor John Bodkin Adams
 Rodney Hallworth, Mark Williams, Where there's a will... The sensational life of Dr John Bodkin Adams, 1983, Capstan Press, Jersey
 John Surtees, The Strange Case of Dr. Bodkin Adams: the life and murder trial of Eastbourne's infamous doctor and the views of those who knew him, 2000

1899 births
1983 deaths
British serial killers
Fraudsters
British LGBT people
Gay men
People from County Antrim
British medical doctors

John Bodkin Adams


Johanna Marie Fosie (24 March 1726 – 23 August 1764) was a Danish painter, the first professional native female artist in Denmark.

Biography

Fosie was the daughter of Anna Dorothea Ilsøe and the painter Jacob Fosie, who was a teacher in drawing from his home.  She learned to paint from her father, together with her siblings Michael Fosie and Elisabeth Fosie. Johanna was the most talented of the siblings, and she signed and published illustrations in her father's drawing book in 1741.

Fosie lived in her parents' home until her marriage. Her parents held a salon for artists in their home. Among the most frequent guests were the artists Johan Martin Preisler, Gustav de Lode and Michael Keyl, the painters Johan Hörner and Carl Gustaf Pilo, the sculptor Simon Carl Stanley, the poet Christian Frederik Wadskiær and several other writers. In her parents' salon, she became a celebrated artist, was introduced into influential circles, and made many of her drawings and paintings there. She was particularly close to Johan Hörner, who painted her with a pencil in her study, illustrating her as the first female artist in Denmark; he also painted her brother and later her husband. Hörner seemed to have had an influence in her art. In 1757, she gave a still life oil painting as a gift to the king. In 1758, she married the vicar Jens Eriksen Westengaard. After her marriage, her activity as an artist lessened, but she did not stop altogether.

Of her drawings, several are preserved in Kobberstiksamlingen, on Rosenborg, in Kunstindustrimuseet and in private collections.

See also

 Magdalene Bärens

References

1726 births
Danish women painters
1764 deaths
18th-century Danish painters
18th-century Danish women artists

Johanna Marie Fosie


Skoropis (; ) is a type of Cyrillic handwriting that developed from  in the second half of the 14th century and was used in particular in offices and private office work, from which a modern handwriting developed in the 19th century.

Features

It is characterized by a pronounced calligraphic character, roundness of letters, smoothness of their writing, a large number of strokes, ligatures and abbreviations. Usually it is small in lowercase and has long expressive elements with strokes as well as large capitals. Skoropis is difficult to adapt to typesetting due to the large number of strokes and ligatures. The cursive letters, partially connected with each other, differ from the letters of other types of writing by their light contours. Letters were largely elongated.

In comparison with semi-ustav, cursive writing is marked by:
 word abbreviations;
 letters reaching to the top of the line;
 omission of etymological -ъ and -ь;
 overall simplification of spelling;
 no big yus Ѫ, no Greek letters, no diacritical marks of aspiration and accent;
 variation of letter shapes, depending on their neighborhood;
 sweeping pen strokes.

Each scribe had his own handwriting and some individual peculiarities of writing letters and their grouping. Therefore, for correct reading it is necessary to compare vague places with already read parts of the same text. This further complicates the reading of cursive documents and requires specific skills to be acquired by the researcher, mainly from practice.

Development
Initially, the characters were composed mainly of straight lines, as is typical for the cyrillic uncial and semi-ustav. In the second half of the 16th century, and especially at the beginning of the 17th century, semicircular strokes became the main lines of writing. In the second half of the 17th century, when many different variants of writing were spread, and one can observe features typical for that time in cursive writing: less ligature and more roundness. At the end of the century, the round outlines of letters became even smoother and more decorative. The cursive writing of that time gradually distanced itself from semi-ustav forms. In the later period, straight lines and curves acquire equilibrium, and letters become more symmetrical and rounded. Unification of letter shapes in the 18th–19th centuries in both office and school led to the emergence of today's handwriting in the 19th century.

Literature

See also

 Ukrainian skoropys
 Shorthand
Western calligraphy

References

Cyrillic script
Palaeography

Skoropis


Dominic Simon "Dom" Wood (born 3 January 1978) is an English entertainer, magician and presenter of radio and television, best known as one half of the double act Dick and Dom, with the other being Richard "Dick" McCourt. From 14 October 2007 to September 2008, he and work partner McCourt presented the Sunday morning show on BBC Radio 1 from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm, but later left the show due to TV commitments.

Magic career
Wood was at one point the youngest member of the magician's society The Magic Circle. He was however later expelled in the wake of disapproval over Dick & Dom in da Bungalow, on which he would occasionally perform and gave away tricks, despite him protesting that other entertainers and magicians had effectively done the same publicly before with no blowback.

His magical achievements and awards include:

 1999 Escaping from a straitjacket on Houdini's birthday
 1998 British Magical Champion
 1998 World Record for Card Tricks
 1996 IBM Shield for Sleight of Hand
 1994 Young Magician of the Year

Television career

Whilst still a student at Exeter College, Wood made an appearance on The Big Breakfast in August 1995 performing an act he called "The Magic Frying Pan" for a competition on the show. The Big Breakfast was touring, going to Wood's hometown of Exeter. The show stationed at Exeter Quay. By audience vote Wood's Act won and he was interview to perform in London.

Wood first officially appeared on television in 1996 on CBBC's Friday afternoon children's programme Friday Zone.  However this was preceded several years earlier by a brief appearance on children's TV programme Gimmie 5, as a member of public performing in front of the camera on the Quayside in Exeter.  Following this, he presented the CBBC Broom Cupboard until 1998.

From 1999 until 2000 he was the first presenter of the CITV game show Jungle Run.

Along with Richard McCourt ("Dick") he is currently best known as half of the double act Dick and Dom. Their programme Dick & Dom in da Bungalow ran from 2002 to 2006, and won two BAFTAs in 2004 for Best Presenters and Best Children's Entertainment. On this show in 2004, Wood set the world record for largest number of pants put on in one minute. Throughout 2000–2002, the pair also starred in the 2-series TV show Bring it On.

In 2006, along with Jon Tickle, Wood co-presented the UK pop science show Brainiac's Test Tube Baby, a spin-off of Brainiac: Science Abuse.

He has also co-hosted the BBC Three coverage of the 2007 series of Comic Relief Does Fame Academy.

Dick and Dom presented a daytime version of Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old? between 2007 and 2009.

In 2010, Wood was cast in the live-action 3D family comedy movie Horrid Henry: The Movie alongside Richard McCourt as the titular character's fierce cousin-in-law Pimply Paul. The film was released on 29 July 2011.

Also in 2010, Wood wrote and starred in the CBBC show, The Legend of Dick and Dom, where Dick and Dom star as two budding young princes who are on a quest to find the antidote to a terrible plague that consumed Fyredor because Dick dropped the cure. The all-star cast also includes Mannitol (Steve Furst), a wizard who is really bad at doing magic, and Lutin (Chloe Bale).

Absolute Genius with Dick and Dom started in 2013. Dick and Dom won the 2014 Children's Presenter BAFTA Award for the second series of the show.

Author
Wood has co-written several books, including:

 Dominic Wood's Magic Book
 Dominic Wood's Spooky Magic

Personal life
Wood married Sandi Lee Hughes of the (now defunct) pop band allSTARS*. The couple have two sons, Tommy and Sam. McCourt is also the godfather of both children.

He has an older brother Jim who appeared on an episode of Dick and Dom in da Bungalow. He has two other brothers, Matt and Tim.

Wood has been diagnosed as dyslexic. He is a vegetarian.

Wood ran the annual charity event the Great North Run for the first time in 2007.

See also
Dick & Dom in da Bungalow
Richard McCourt
Dick and Dom

References

External links

BBC Official Biography
Dick and Dom in da bungalow
Dick and Dom's Radio 1 Webpage

1978 births
Living people
People educated at King's College, Taunton
British television presenters
People from Okehampton
British children's television presenters
Television presenters with dyslexia
English people with disabilities

Dominic Wood


The siege of Grol or Groenlo in 1595 was a siege of Groenlo by States forces under Maurice of Nassau during the Eighty Years' War in an attempt to capture it from the Spanish Empire. It lasted from 14 to 24 July 1595, ending with the arrival of a Spanish relief force under Cristóbal de Mondragón and Maurice's retreat. Two years later, in 1597, Maurice returned to carry out another siege of Groenlo. Both these sieges formed part of what would later be called the Ten Glorious Years.

Context
The fortified town of Grol, present-day Groenlo, was a small, but relatively important stronghold along the eastern border of the Dutch Republic. Groenlo formed a crucial link between the Dutch cities that were members of the Hanseatic League, such as Deventer, Kampen, Zwolle, and Zutphen, and the Holy Roman Empire. Situated in a difficultly passable region, Groenlo developed extensive fortifications that from the late Middle Ages were constantly improved, so that by 1595 the medieval brick city wall was itself surrounded with moats and bastions and armed with cannons. In 1580, after the Spanish took control of the provinces of Friesland, Groningen, Drenthe, and Overijssel, Groenlo, which itself lay in the bordering province of Guelders, was taken over by Spanish troops as well. From 1581 onwards, a Spanish garrison was stationed in the city.

Meanwhile, Maurice of Orange, then the stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, and Utrecht, had launched an offensive against the Spanish forces, led by Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma, to retake the Dutch forts and cities that were in Spanish hands. As a result, Maurice managed to take Breda, Deventer, and Zutphen between 1590 and 1593. In 1594, Maurice started to plan a campaign to retake the cities of Twente, such as Enschede, Oldenzaal, and Lingen. To form a bridgehead into Twente, Maurice planned a siege on Groenlo, despite discouragements of Maurice's nephew and military advisor, William Louis, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg, who thought that the fortifications of the city were as good as impregnable. William Louis advised Maurice to lay siege to Lingen instead, but Maurice wove his critique aside and started the preparations for his plans anyway. Maurice had great difficulty to find enough funds and troops for his plans, whereby the campaign into Twente did not start until 1595, when the siege of Groenlo finally begun.

Siege

The siege started on 14 July, with the arrival of Maurice at Groenlo, along with 6000 foot soldiers, several companies of cavalry, and sixteen cannons. The arrival at Groenlo was delayed because one of the cannons got stuck near the town of Vragender, today part of Lichtenvoorde. When the Spanish governor of Groenlo, Jan van Stirum, noticed the advance of Maurice, he ordered the return of his troops to Groenlo, which he had temporally stationed in Goor. On their way back to Groenlo, the Spanish troops were ambushed by Maurice's forces, who killed at least forty Spaniards. The next day, Maurice started the construction of a base camp to the west of Groenlo, and the construction of several trenches. William Louis, who assisted Maurice in the siege, stationed his troops to the east. The construction of the camps and trenches were completed within a week, after which Maurice sent a message to Stirum to capitulate, accompanied with three warning shots. Jan van Stirum sent a response letter, in which he refused to surrender and stated that he would defend Groenlo for 'God and King until his last drop of blood'. Stirum used two cannons to fire iron shreds at the besiegers and sent a message to his superiors for reinforcement.

Mondragon's arrival
To answer Stirum's request for help, the 81-year-old general and governor of Antwerp Cristóbal de Mondragón, nicknamed 'the good old Mondragon', was sent to Groenlo, accompanied by 7000 foot soldiers and 1300 cavalry. Although Mondragón was primarily ordered to keep Groenlo out of Dutch hands, he planned on a clash with Maurice to stop his campaign into Twente altogether. When Maurice heard of the approaching Mondragón on 21 July, he sped up the preparations of the battle field and completed the trenches the same day. In addition, Maurice ordered the dismantling of several bridges. Aware that the reinforcement troops led by Mondragón posed a major threat to the campaign, Maurice started to bombard Groenlo on 24 July and ordered its immediate surrender. After heavy deliberation with William Louis, Maurice discontinued the siege the next day, fearing that the approaching reinforcement troops would attack from the back and surround the Dutch forces.

Aftermath
Because of a shortage of cars and coaches, Maurice burned the camp sites, together with hard-to-move equipment, and led his troops through Borculo and Ulft to Zelhem. The campaign into Twente was called off and Maurice used his troops instead to combat several bandit groups in the area. The artillery was sent to the city of Doesburg, which was in Dutch hands. Maurice suspended his Twente campaign until 1597, when he lay siege on Groenlo successfully.

References

Groenlo
1595 in the Dutch Republic
1595 in the Habsburg Netherlands
16th-century military history of the Kingdom of England
16th-century military history of Spain
Groenlo (1595)
Eighty Years' War (1566–1609)
Groenlo (1595)
Groenlo (1595)
Groenlo (1595)
Groenlo (1595)
Groenlo
History of Oost Gelre

Siege of Groenlo (1595)


John Whitehead Peard (1811–1880) was a British soldier, renowned as 'Garibaldi's Englishman'. He was the second son of Vice-Admiral Shuldham Peard. At one point of his life he lived in Penquite, a manor house in rural Cornwall, near Golant on the River Fowey.

The Sacramento Daily Union wrote, "Peard accompanied Garibaldi through several of his campaigns, and was warmly thanked for his services by the great Italian.  He wrote some letters on the campaign and excited some indignation by his description of the way in which he "potted" the Austrian Generals and other officers with his rifle.

He had an important role in 1860 during the Expedition of the thousand, where he acted as Garibaldi's "double", bewildering the enemy's headquarters, causing the retreat of the enemy from Salerno and later from Naples.

After the landing in Naples on 15 October 1860 of the volunteers of the British Legion he was their commanding officer.

The importance of Peard during the Expedition was awarded by king Victor Emmanuel II with the cross of the Order of Valour and Peard was known in England as "Garibaldi's Englishman", in Rome at the Janiculum, a marble bust is present amid the Statues and monuments of patriots on the Janiculum: John Peard, "Il garibaldino inglese".

His reputation among the Britons under his command, however, suffered, with one describing him as a "bloodthirsty man, who, unable to gratify his penchant for murders in his own country, comes out here and gloats over his victims".

When Garibaldi finally retired to Caprera, Colonel Peard, who was the second son of Admiral Peard, returned to his native county of Cornwall, where he became High Sheriff and Colonel of Volunteers."

His niece was the novelist Frances Mary Peard.

References

Peard, John Whitehead - Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Online Edition)

Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford
Deputy Lieutenants of Cornwall
British Militia officers
1811 births
1880 deaths
People of the Italian unification

John Whitehead Peard


FM sound broadcasting began in the United Kingdom on 2 May 1955 when the BBC started an FM broadcasting service the Light Programme, the Third Programme and the Home Service to the south east of England. There are now over 40 BBC and over 250 commercial FM sound broadcasting stations in the United Kingdom.

BBC
The BBC began using FM sound broadcasting in 1955, but at that time AM sound broadcasting predominated. The BBC's 'popular music' station known as Radio 1 opened in 1967 but only broadcast on MW until the end of the 1980s. Radio 1 ended medium wave broadcasting in 1994 when the FM transmitter roll-out was almost completed. Previously, Radio 1 had 'borrowed' BBC Radio 2's FM frequencies for approximately 24 hours each week, gradually reducing at the end of the 1980s until the final 'borrow' took place in March 1990, five months before Radio 2 became the BBC's first FM-only service when on 27 August 1990, BBC Radio 5 began broadcasting on Radio 2's MW frequencies.

Currently, with the exception of BBC Radio 5 Live, all of the BBC's analogue services are provided on FM, although Radio 4 also broadcasts on long wave (MW in some areas) and some Local Radio stations also still broadcast opt-outs on medium wave. BBC policy was to refer to FM as VHF on air until 30 September 1984 when FM became its official term.

Commercial broadcasting

Legal commercial broadcasting began in the United Kingdom in 1973, with the launch of LBC, though offshore pirate radio stations operated in the 1960s to 1990s, usually from ships anchored off the coast of Britain.

Early licences were granted to wide-area stations, such as Capital Radio which served London and the home counties. Later more local stations were introduced. There is also one national commercial radio station, Classic FM.

Commercial radio stations simulcasted on both FM and medium waves from the beginning until the IBA asked radio stations to end the practice and from 1988 stations began to offer separate stations on each waveband. Typically another service, often a 'gold' format, was introduced on AM and the original service continued on FM.

Frequency utilisation
From 1955 the band 88.0 – 94.6 MHz was used (allotted and assigned) for three BBC national networks. Over the next 40 years, the band grew piecemeal to 87.5 – 108.0 MHz, allowing for five national networks and many local stations.

Until 1995, parts of the band had been used in the United Kingdom for mobile service by police, fire brigades and the fuel and power industries. These parts were reassigned to broadcasting service gradually over many years as the communications services were transferred to new equipment in other parts of the spectrum.

The current frequency allotment plan is based on an ITU agreement made in Geneva in 1984. The table below shows which kind of broadcasting transmitter stations are the main users of each part of the band. There are many exceptions. In some areas there is some commercial usage of the 'BBC local' sub bands while in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland the 'Radio 4' and 'BBC Local' ranges are used interchangeably. Community radio stations and RSLs tend to be fitted into any locally-available position.

Subcarriers
The United Kingdom permits only Radio Data System (RDS) subcarriers.  RDS dynamic (changing) PS is not permitted.

Future switch off
The UK government is planning for a switchover from FM to digital radio once take-up and coverage meets certain criteria. Successive governments have admitted that FM VHF Band II analogue radio would not cease until the majority use digital, so no actual date has ever been agreed. Digital listening figures however consistently include satellite, DTT and online streaming, not just DAB. In any case there is a commitment to maintain community FM radio. This means that as long as there are significant numbers of listeners on FM in the United Kingdom no government is likely to take the politically unpopular decision to turn off analogue. Support for the FM switch off in the UK is limited. In July 2020, provided the stations also broadcast on digital radio, UK government has decided to allow Ofcom to renew analogue FM and AM licences for a further ten-year period.

References

Radio in the United Kingdom

FM broadcasting in the United Kingdom


The Khedivate of Egypt ( or , ;  ) was an autonomous tributary state of the Ottoman Empire, established and ruled by the Muhammad Ali Dynasty following the defeat and expulsion of Napoleon Bonaparte's forces which brought an end to the short-lived French occupation of Lower Egypt. The Khedivate of Egypt had also expanded to control present-day Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, northwestern Somalia, northeastern Ethiopia, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Greece, Cyprus, southern and central Turkey, in addition to parts from Libya, Chad, Central African Republic, and Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as northwestern Saudi Arabia, parts of Yemen and the Kingdom of Hejaz.

The United Kingdom invaded and took control in 1882. In 1914 the Ottoman Empire connection was ended and Britain established a protectorate called the Sultanate of Egypt.

History

Rise of Muhammad Ali

Upon the conquest of the Sultanate of Egypt by the Ottoman Empire in 1517, the country was governed as an Ottoman eyalet (province). The Ottoman Porte (government) was content to permit local rule to remain in the hands of the Mamluks, the Egyptian military led by Circassian-Turkic origin leaders who had held power in Egypt since the 13th century. Save for military expeditions to crush Mamluk Egyptian uprisings seeking to re-establish the independent Egyptian sultanate, the Ottomans largely ignored Egyptian affairs until the French invasion of Egypt in 1798.

Between 1799 and 1801, the Porte, working at times with France's main enemy, Great Britain, undertook various campaigns to restore Ottoman rule in Egypt. By August 1801, the remaining French forces of General Jacques-François Menou withdrew from Egypt.

The period between 1801 and 1805 was, effectively, a three-way civil war in Egypt between the Egyptian Mamluks, the Ottoman Turks, and Albanian troops the Ottoman Porte dispatched from Rumelia (the Empire's European province), under the command of Muhammad Ali Pasha, to restore the Empire's authority.

Following the defeat of the French, the Porte assigned Koca Hüsrev Mehmed Pasha as the new Wāli (governor) of Egypt, tasking him to kill or imprison the surviving Egyptian Mamluk beys. Many of these were freed by or fled with the British, while others held Minya between Upper and Lower Egypt.

Amid these disturbances, Koca Hüsrev Mehmed Pasha attempted to disband his Albanian bashi-bazouks (soldiers) without pay. This led to rioting that drove Koca Hüsrev Mehmed Pasha from Cairo. During the ensuing turmoil, the Porte sent Muhammad Ali Pasha to Egypt.

However, Muhammad Ali seized control of Egypt, declaring himself ruler of Egypt, quickly consolidating an independent local powerbase. After repeated failed attempts to remove and kill him, in 1805 the Porte officially recognised Muhammad Ali as Wāli of Egypt. Demonstrating his grander ambitions, Muhammad Ali Pasha claimed for himself the higher title of Khedive (Viceroy), ruling the self-proclaimed (but not recognised) Khedivate of Egypt. He murdered the remaining Mamluk beys in 1811, solidifying his own control of Egypt.  He is regarded as the founder of modern Egypt because of the dramatic reforms he instituted in the military, agricultural, economic and cultural spheres.

Reforms
During Muhammad Ali's absence in Arabia his representative at Cairo had completed the confiscation, begun in 1808, of almost all the lands belonging to private individuals, who were forced to accept instead inadequate pensions. By this revolutionary method of land nationalization Muhammad Ali became proprietor of nearly all the soil of Egypt, an iniquitous measure against which the Egyptians had no remedy.

The pasha also attempted to reorganize his troops on European lines, but this led to a formidable mutiny in Cairo. Muhammad Ali's life was endangered, and he sought refuge by night in the citadel, while the soldiery committed many acts of plunder. The revolt was reduced by gifts to the chiefs of the insurgents, and Muhammad Ali ordered compensation from the treasury for those who had suffered in the disturbances. The  (New System) project was, in consequence of this mutiny, abandoned for a time.

While Ibrahim was engaged in the second Arabian campaign the pasha turned his attention to strengthening the Egyptian economy.  He created state monopolies over the chief products of the country.  He set up a number of factories and began digging in 1819 a new canal to Alexandria, called the Mahmudiya (after the reigning sultan of Turkey). The old canal had long fallen into decay, and the necessity of a safe channel between Alexandria and the Nile was much felt.  The conclusion in 1838 of a commercial treaty with Turkey, negotiated by Sir Henry Bulwer (Lord Darling), struck a deathblow to the system of monopolies, though the application of the treaty to Egypt was delayed for some years.

Another notable fact in the economic progress of the country was the development of the cultivation of cotton in the Delta in 1822 and onwards. The cotton grown had been brought from the Sudan by Maho Bey, and the organization of the new industry from which in a few years Muhammad Ali was enabled to extract considerable revenues.

Efforts were made to promote education and the study of medicine. To European merchants, on whom he was dependent for the sale of his exports, Muhammad Ali showed much favor, and under his influence, the port of Alexandria again rose into importance. It was also under Muhammad Ali's encouragement that the overland transit of goods from Europe to India via Egypt was resumed.

Invasion of Libya and Sudan

In 1820 Muhammad Ali gave orders to commence the conquest of eastern Libya. He first sent an expedition westward (Feb. 1820) which conquered and annexed the Siwa oasis. Ali's intentions for Sudan was to extend his rule southward, to capture the valuable caravan trade bound for the Red Sea, and to secure the rich gold mines which he believed to exist in Sennar. He also saw in the campaign a means of getting rid of his disaffected troops, and of obtaining a sufficient number of captives to form the nucleus of the new army.

The forces destined for this service were led by Ismail, the youngest son of Muhammad Ali.  They consisted of between 4000 and 5000 men, being Albanians, Turks and Egyptians.  They left Cairo in July 1820. Nubia at once submitted, the Shaigiya tribe immediately beyond the province of Dongola were defeated, the remnant of the Mamluks dispersed, and Sennar was reduced without a battle.

Mahommed Bey, the defterdar, with another force of about the same strength, was then sent by Muhammad Ali against Kordofan with like result, but not without a hard-fought engagement. In October 1822, Ismail, with his retinue, was burnt to death by Nimr, the mek (king) of Shendi; and the defterdar, a man infamous for his cruelty, assumed the command of those provinces, and exacted terrible retribution from the inhabitants. Khartoum was founded at this time, and in the following years the rule of the Egyptians was greatly extended and control of the Red Sea ports of Suakin and Massawa obtained.

Greek campaign

Muhammad Ali understood that the empire he had so laboriously built up might at any time have to be defended by force of arms against his master Sultan Mahmud II, whose whole policy had been directed to curbing the power of too-ambitious vassals, and who was under the influence of the personal enemies of the pasha of Egypt, notably Koca Hüsrev Mehmed Pasha, the grand vizier, who had never forgiven his humiliation in Egypt in 1803.

Mahmud also was already planning reforms borrowed from the West, and Muhammad Ali, who had had plenty of opportunity of observing the superiority of European methods of warfare, was determined to anticipate the sultan in the creation of a fleet and an army on European lines, partly as a precaution, partly as an instrument for the realization of yet wider schemes of ambition. Before the outbreak of the War of Greek Independence in 1821, he had already expended much time and energy in organizing a fleet and in training, under the supervision of French instructors, native officers and artificers; though it was not till 1829 that the opening of a dockyard and arsenal at Alexandria enabled him to build and equip his own vessels. By 1823, moreover, he had succeeded in carrying out the reorganization of his army on European lines, the turbulent Turkish and Albanian elements being replaced by Sudanese and fellahin. The effectiveness of the new force was demonstrated in the suppression of an 1823 revolt of the Albanians in Cairo by six disciplined Sudanese regiments; after which Mehemet Ali was no more troubled with military mutinies.

His foresight was rewarded by the invitation of the sultan to help him in the task of subduing the Greek insurgents, offering as reward the pashaliks of the Morea and of Syria. Muhammad Ali had already, in 1821, been appointed by him governor of Crete, which he had occupied with a small Egyptian force. In the autumn of 1824, a fleet of 60 Egyptian warships carrying a large force of 17,000 disciplined troops concentrated in Suda Bay, and, in the following March, with Ibrahin as commander-in-chief landed in the Morea.

His naval superiority wrested from the Greeks the command of a great deal of the sea, on which the fate of the insurrection ultimately depended, while on land the Greek irregular bands, having largely soundly beaten the Porte's troops, had finally met a worthy foe in Ibrahim's disciplined troops. The history of the events that led up to the battle of Navarino and the liberation of Greece is told elsewhere; the withdrawal of the Egyptians from the Morea was ultimately due to the action of Admiral Sir Edward Codrington, who early in August 1828 appeared before Alexandria and induced the pasha, by no means sorry to have a reasonable excuse, by a threat of bombardment, to sign a convention undertaking to recall Ibrahim and his army. But for the action of European powers, it is suspected by many that the Ottoman Empire might have defeated the Greeks.

Wars against the Turks

Although Muhammad Ali had only been granted the title of wali, he proclaimed himself khedive, or hereditary viceroy, early on during his rule.  The Ottoman government, although irritated, did nothing until Muhammad Ali invaded Ottoman-ruled Syria in 1831.  The governorship of Syria had been promised him by the sultan, Mahmud II, for his assistance during the Greek War of Independence, but the title was not granted to him after the war. This caused the Ottomans, allied with the British, to counter-attack in 1839.

In 1840, the British bombarded Beirut and an Anglo-Ottoman force landed and seized Acre. The Egyptian army was forced to retreat back home, and Syria again became an Ottoman province.  As a result of the Convention of London (1840), Muhammad Ali gave up all conquered lands with the exception of the Sudan and was, in turn, granted the hereditary governorship of the Sudan.

Muhammad Ali's successors

By 1848, Muhammad Ali was old and senile enough for his tuberculosis-ridden son, Ibrahim, to demand his accession to the governorship.  The Ottoman sultan acceded to the demands, and Muhammad Ali was removed from power.  However, Ibrahim died of his disease months later, outlived by his father, who died in 1849.

Ibrahim was succeeded by his nephew Abbas I, who undid many of Muhammad Ali's accomplishments.  Abbas was assassinated by two of his slaves in 1854, and Muhammad Ali's fourth son, Sa'id, succeeded him.  Sa'id brought back many of his father's policies but otherwise had an unremarkable reign.

Invasion of East Africa
In the early 19th сentury the Egyptians tried multiple attempts to take full control of the Nile River and with that take control of the Horn of Africa which was a Key route to enter the Southern Arabian peninsula. After failing multiple times to take control of the Bogos/Hamassien however these attempted invasions were repelled by the emperor at the time Tewedros.

Sa'id ruled for only nine years, and his nephew Isma'il, another grandson of Muhammad Ali, became wali. In 1866 the polity occupied the Emirate of Harar. In 1867, the Ottoman sultan acknowledged Isma'il's use of the title khedive. In 1874, Ismail Pasha ordered the deputation of warships to patrol Tadjoura whereafter for ten years, the Khedivate was established from Zaylac to Berbera, until their withdrawal in April 1884 and failed attempts to establish themselves beyond Berbera and the eastern littoral of Somalia.

War with Ethiopia

Ismail dreamt of expanding his realm across the entire Nile including its diverse sources, and over the whole African coast of the Red Sea. This, together with rumours about rich raw material and fertile soil, led Ismail to expansive policies directed against Ethiopia under the Emperor Yohannes IV. In 1865 the Ottoman Sublime Porte ceded the Ottoman Province of Habesh (with Massawa and Suakin at the Red Sea as the main cities of that province) to Ismail. This province, which neighboured Ethiopia, first consisted of a coastal strip only but expanded subsequently inland into territory controlled by the Ethiopian ruler. Here Ismail occupied regions originally claimed by the Ottomans when they had established the province (eyaleti) of Habesh in the 16th century. New economically promising projects, like huge cotton plantations in the Barka delta, were started. In 1872 Bogos (with the city of Keren) was annexed by the governor of the new "Province of Eastern Sudan and the Red Sea Coast", Werner Munzinger Pasha. In October 1875 Ismail's army try to occupied the adjacent highlands of Hamasien, which were then tributary to the Ethiopian Emperor, and suffered defeat at the battle of Gundit.
In March 1876 Ismail's army tried again and suffered a second dramatic defeat by Yohannes's army at Gura'. Ismail's son Hassan was captured by the Ethiopians and only released after a large ransom. This was followed by a long cold war, only finishing in 1884 with the Anglo-Egyptian-Ethiopian Hewett Treaty, when Bogos was given back to Ethiopia. The Red Sea Province created by Ismail and his governor Munzinger Pasha was taken over by the Italians shortly thereafter and became the territorial basis for the Colony of Eritrea (proclaimed in 1890).

British occupation

In 1882 opposition to European control led to growing tension amongst native notables, the most dangerous opposition coming from the army. A large military demonstration in September 1881 forced the Khedive Tewfiq to dismiss his Prime Minister. In April 1882 France and Great Britain sent warships to Alexandria to bolster the Khedive amidst a turbulent climate, spreading fear of invasion throughout the country.
By June Egypt was in the hands of nationalists opposed to European domination of the country. A British naval bombardment of Alexandria had little effect on the opposition which led to the landing of a British expeditionary force at both ends of the Suez Canal in August 1882.  The British succeeded in defeating the Egyptian Army at Tel El Kebir in September and took control of the country putting Tewfiq back in control. The purpose of the invasion had been to restore political stability to Egypt under a government of the Khedive and international controls which were in place to streamline Egyptian financing since 1876.

British occupation ended nominally with the deposition of the last khedive Abbas II on 5 November 1914 and the establishment of a British protectorate, with the installation of sultan Hussein Kamel on 19 December 1914.

Sanctioned khedival rule (1867–1914)

European influence

By Isma'il's reign, the Egyptian government, headed by the minister Nubar Pasha, had become dependent on Britain and France for a healthy economy.  Isma'il attempted to end this European dominance, while at the same time pursuing an aggressive domestic policy.  Under Isma'il, 112 canals and 400 bridges were built in Egypt.

Because of his efforts to gain economic independence from the European powers, Isma'il became unpopular with many British and French diplomats, including Evelyn Baring and Alfred Milner, who claimed that he was "ruining Egypt."

In 1869, the completion of the Suez Canal gave Britain a faster route to India.  This made Egypt increasingly reliant on Britain for both military and economic aid.  Isma'il made no effort to reconcile with the European powers, who pressured the Ottoman sultan into removing him from power.

Tewfik and the loss of Sudan

Isma'il was succeeded by his eldest son Tewfik, who, unlike his younger brothers, had not been educated in Europe.  He pursued a policy of closer relations with Britain and France but his authority was undermined in a rebellion led by his war minister, Urabi Pasha, in 1882.  Urabi took advantage of violent riots in Alexandria to seize control of the government and temporarily depose Tewfik.

British naval forces shelled and captured Alexandria, and an expeditionary force under General Sir Garnet Wolseley was formed in England.  The British army landed in Egypt soon afterwards and defeated Urabi's army in the Battle of Tel el-Kebir. Urabi was tried for treason and sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted to exile.  After the revolt, the Egyptian army was reorganized on a British model and commanded by British officers.

Meanwhile, a religious rebellion had broken out in the Sudan, led by Muhammad Ahmed, who proclaimed himself the Mahdi.  The Mahdist rebels had seized the regional capital of Kordofan and annihilated two British-led expeditions sent to quell it. The British soldier-adventurer Charles George Gordon, an ex-governor of the Sudan, was sent to the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, with orders to evacuate its minority of European and Egyptian inhabitants. Instead of evacuating the city, Gordon prepared for a siege and held out from 1884 to 1885.  However, Khartoum eventually fell, and he was killed.

The British Gordon Relief Expedition was delayed by several battles and was thus unable to reach Khartoum and save Gordon.  The fall of Khartoum resulted in the proclamation of an Islamic state, ruled over first by the Mahdi and then by his successor Khalifa Abdullahi.

Reconquest of the Sudan

In 1896, during the reign of Tewfik's son, Abbas II, a massive Anglo-Egyptian force, under the command of General Herbert Kitchener, began the reconquest of the Sudan. The Mahdists were defeated in the battles of Abu Hamid and Atbara.  The campaign was concluded with the Anglo-Egyptian victory of Omdurman, the Mahdist capital.

The Khalifa was hunted down and killed in 1899, in the Battle of Umm Diwaykarat, and Anglo-Egyptian rule was restored to the Sudan.

End of the Khedivate

Abbas II became very hostile to the British as his reign drew on, and, by 1911, was considered by Lord Kitchener to be a "wicked little Khedive" worthy of deposition.

In 1914, when World War I broke out, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers against Britain and France.  Britain now removed the nominal role of Constantinople, proclaimed a Sultanate of Egypt and abolished the Khedivate on 5 November 1914. Abbas II, who supported the Central Powers and was in Vienna for a state visit, was deposed from the Khedivate throne in his absence by the enforcement of the British military authorities in Cairo and was banned from returning to Egypt. He was succeeded by his uncle Hussein Kamel, who took the title of Sultan on 19 December 1914.

Economy

Currency

During the khedivate, the standard form of Egyptian currency was the Egyptian pound.  Because of the gradual European domination of the Egyptian economy, the khedivate adopted the gold standard in 1885.

Adoption of European-style industries

Although the adoption of modern, Western industrial techniques was begun under Muhammad Ali in the early 19th century, the policy was continued under the khedives.

Machines were imported into Egypt and by the abolition of the khedivate in 1914, the textile industry had become the most prominent one in the nation.

Military
In 1877 the Egyptian military contained:

 58 infantry battalions (organised into 18 regiments and 4 independent battalions)

 10 independent Nubian Rifle companies
 24 Cavalry squadrons (organised into 4 regiments)
 1 Sapper battalion
 24 field artillery batteries (organised into 2 regiments) with 144 guns primarily of the La Hitte system
 3 regiments of Fortress artillery with 276 guns

This amounted to 58,000 troops in the regular army there were also 5,000 military and municipal police and various other irregular formations.

Notable events and people during khedival rule

Events

Greek War of Independence (1821–1829)
Egyptian invasion of Syria (1831)
Oriental Crisis of 1840 (1840)
Crimean War
2nd Franco-Mexican War
Cretan Revolt
Serbian–Ottoman Wars (1876–1878)
Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
Completion of the Suez Canal (1869)
Urabi revolt (1881)
First Mahdist War (1881–1885)
Second Mahdist War (1896–1899)
Abolishment of the khedivate; establishment of the Sultanate of Egypt (1914)

People

Muhammad Ali: First hereditary Ottoman governor of Egypt
Ibrahim: Muhammad Ali's son and successor (in 1848)
Abbas I: Ibrahim's successor
Sa'id: Abbas' successor
Isma'il: First khedive of Egypt; Sa'id's successor
Tewfik: Second khedive; Isma'il's successor
Abbas II of Egypt: Third and last khedive; Tewfik's successor
Hussein Kamel: Isma'il's son; first Sultan of Egypt
Nubar Pasha: Egyptian politician; often prime minister of Egypt
Ahmed Urabi: Egyptian soldier, war minister; leader of the Urabi revolt
Muhammad Ahmed: Self-proclaimed Mahdi; leader of the Sudanese Mahdist rebellion

List of khedives

See also
Khedive
Vassal and tributary states of the Ottoman Empire

References

Further reading
 Berridge, W. J. "Imperialist and Nationalist Voices in the Struggle for Egyptian independence, 1919–22." Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History 42.3 (2014): 420–439.
 Botman, Selma. Egypt from Independence to Revolution, 1919–1952 (Syracuse UP, 1991).
 Cain, Peter J. "Character and imperialism: the British financial administration of Egypt, 1878–1914." Journal of imperial and Commonwealth history 34.2 (2006): 177–200.
 Cain, Peter J. "Character,'Ordered Liberty', and the Mission to Civilise: British Moral Justification of Empire, 1870–1914." Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History 40.4 (2012): 557–578.
 Cole, Juan R.I. Colonialism and Revolution in the Middle East: The Social and Cultural Origins of Egypt's 'Urabi Revolt (Princeton UP, 1993.)
 Daly, M.W. The Cambridge History of Egypt Volume 2 Modern Egypt, from 1517 to the end of the twentieth century  (1998) pp 217–84 on 1879–1923. online
 Dunn, John P. Khedive Ismail's Army (2013)
 EzzelArab, AbdelAziz. "The experiment of Sharif Pasha's cabinet (1879): An inquiry into the historiography of Egypt's elite movement." International Journal of Middle East Studies 36.4 (2004): 561–589.
 Fahmy, Ziad.  "Media Capitalism: Colloquial Mass Culture and Nationalism in Egypt, 1908–1918", International Journal of Middle East Studies 42#1 (2010), 83–103.
 Goldberg, Ellis. "Peasants in Revolt – Egypt 1919", International Journal of Middle East Studies, Vol. 24 (1992), 261–80.
 Goldschmidt, Jr., Arthur, ed. Biographical Dictionary of Modern Egypt (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1999).
 Goldschmidt, Jr., Arthur. ed. Historical Dictionary of Egypt (Scarecrow Press, 1994).
 Harrison, Robert T. Gladstone's Imperialism in Egypt: Techniques of Domination (1995).
 Hicks, Geoffrey. "Disraeli, Derby and the Suez Canal, 1875: some myths reassessed." History 97.326 (2012): 182–203.
 Hopkins, Anthony G. "The Victorians and Africa: a reconsideration of the occupation of Egypt, 1882." Journal of African History 27.2 (1986): 363–391.  [https://www.jstor.org/stable/181140 online
 Hunter, F. Robert. "State‐society relations in nineteenth‐century Egypt: the years of transition, 1848–79." Middle Eastern Studies 36.3 (2000): 145–159.
 Hunter. F. Robert.  Egypt Under the Khedives: 1805–1879: From Household Government to Modern Bureaucracy (2nd ed. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 1999.)
 Langer, William, L. European Alliances and Alignments: 1871–1890 (2nd ed. 1956) pp 251–80. online
 Marlowe, John. Cromer in Egypt (Praeger, 1970.)
 Owen, Roger.  Lord Cromer: Victorian Imperialist, Edwardian Proconsul (Oxford UP, 2004.)
 Pinfari, Marco. "The Unmaking of a Patriot: Anti-Arab Prejudice in the British Attitude towards the Urabi Revolt (1882)." Arab Studies Quarterly 34.2 (2012): 92–108. online
 Robinson, Ronald, and John Gallagher. Africa and the Victorians: The Climax of Imperialism (1961) pp 76–159. online
 Sayyid-Marsot, Afaf Lutfi. Egypt and Cromer; a Study in Anglo-Egyptian Relations (Praeger, 1969).
 Scholch, Alexander.  Egypt for the Egyptians!: the Socio-Political Crisis in Egypt, 1878–1882 (London: Ithaca Press, 1981.)
 Shock, Maurice.  "Gladstone's Invasion of Egypt, 1882" History Today (June 1957) 7#6 pp 351–357.
 Tassin, Kristin Shawn. "Egyptian nationalism, 1882–1919: elite competition, transnational networks, empire, and independence" (PhD Dissertation, U of Texas, 2014.) online; bibliography pp 269–92.
 Tignor, Robert L. Modernization and British colonial rule in Egypt, 1882–1914 (Princeton UP, 2015).
 Tucker, Judith E. Women in nineteenth-century Egypt (Cambridge UP, 1985).
 Ulrichsen, Kristian Coates. The First World War in the Middle East (Hurst, 2014).
 Walker, Dennis.  "Mustafa Kamil's Party: Islam, Pan-Islamism, and Nationalism", Islam in the Modern Age, Vol. 11 (1980), 230–9 and Vol. 12 (1981), 1–43

Primary sources
 Cromer, Earl of. Modern Egypt (2 vol 1908) online free  1220pp
 Milner, Alfred. England in Egypt (London, 1892). online
 Amira Sonbol, ed. The Last Khedive of Egypt: Memoirs of Abbas Hilmi II'' (Reading, UK: Ithaca Press, 1998).

States and territories established in 1867
States and territories disestablished in 1914
19th century in Egypt
20th century in Egypt
British colonisation in Africa
Egypt under the Muhammad Ali dynasty
Egypt Khedivate
Former British protectorates
Former British colonies and protectorates in Africa
History of Egypt (1900–present)
New Imperialism
Ottoman Egypt
1867 establishments in Africa
1914 disestablishments in Africa
1860s establishments in the Ottoman Empire
1880s establishments in the British Empire
20th-century disestablishments in Egypt
Vassal states of the Ottoman Empire

Khedivate of Egypt


Amy Rose Roberts (born 24 December 1994) is a Welsh racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI Women's Team .

Career
Born in Llanelli, Roberts was brought up in Pontyberem. She attended Queen Elizabeth High School, Carmarthen. Roberts took up triathlon at the age of 14, she joined the Towy Riders cycling club to improve her cycling skills and within a year of doing so had become the Under-16 Welsh National Cyclo-cross Champion. Roberts was part of British Cycling's Olympic Talent Team.

Roberts represented Wales at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, 2014, competing in the time trial, individual pursuit, scratch and points race.

Personal life
Roberts' younger sister Jessica Roberts is also a professional cyclist, who won the 2018 British National Road Race Championships.

Major results

2010
 National Track Championships
1st Youth Points race
3rd Junior Scratch
3rd Youth Individual pursuit
3rd Youth 500m time trial

2011
3rd Junior National Cyclo-cross Championships

2012
 1st Team pursuit, UEC European Junior Track Championships (with Elinor Barker and Lucy Garner)
 1st Overall Surf & Turf Weekend
1st Stage 2
 2nd Team pursuit, 2012–13 UCI Track World Cup, Cali
 UCI Junior Track World Championships
3rd Points race
3rd Team pursuit (with Hayley Jones and Elinor Barker)

2013
 3rd Team pursuit, 2012–13 UCI Track World Cup, Aguascalientes (with Ciara Horne and Elinor Barker)

2014
 1st Team pursuit, 2014–15 UCI Track World Cup, Guadalajara (with Laura Trott, Elinor Barker & Ciara Horne)
 1st Round 4 – Redditch, Matrix Fitness Grand Prix Series
 2nd Omnium, Open des Nations sur Piste de Roubaix
 2nd National Criterium Championships

2015
 2nd Points race, Irish International Track GP
 3rd National Criterium Championships

References

External links

1994 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Carmarthenshire
Welsh female cyclists
Cyclists at the 2014 Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games competitors for Wales

Amy Roberts


Father John Blackwood "Blackie" Ryan is the protagonist in a series of 17 mystery novels by Roman Catholic priest and author Father Andrew Greeley.

Fictionally, "Blackie" is a portly, little man. As the innocuous auxiliary bishop (under Cardinal Sean Cronin) and rector of the Holy Name Cathedral, Chicago, he travels the Archdiocese of Chicago and around the world (at Cardinal Cronin's "See to it, Blackwood!" charge) solving locked-room mysteries related to the Roman Catholic Church and its members.

Overview
In his fictional biography, John Blackwood "Blackie" Ryan was born in 1945 to a large Irish-American family, ordained priest in 1970, made a Monsignor in 1983, and elevated to bishop in 1990. He is also a philosopher and author of fictional theology books about James Joyce and William James. He regards himself as both priest and philosopher.

Ryan introduces himself by saying, "Call me Blackie," (from "Call me Ishmael"—the first line in Moby-Dick); he is also called "Bishop Blackie." His siblings call him "Punk," and his nephews and nieces call him "Uncle Punk." Blackie's most common responses are "arguably" and "patently."

In the books, we learn that Blackie is not a fan of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), who in 2005 became Pope Benedict XVI after the death of Pope John Paul II.

Aided by his psychologist sister Dr. Mary Kathleen (Kate) Ryan Murphy, cousin Mike Casey (known in their family as "Mike the Cop"), and other North Wabash Avenue Irregulars, he counsels people in crises of faith and solves puzzling locked-room murders. In the author's eyes, Blackie represents the priesthood at its best.

Novels featuring Ryan
Virgin and Martyr (1985)
Happy Are the Meek (1985)
Happy Are the Clean of Heart (1986)
Happy Are Those Who Thirst for Justice (1987)
Happy Are the Merciful (1992)
Happy Are the Peace Makers (1993)
Happy Are the Poor in Spirit (1994)
Happy Are Those Who Mourn (1995)
Happy Are the Oppressed (1996)
White Smoke (1996)
The Bishop at Sea (1997)
The Bishop and the Three Kings (1998)
The Bishop and the Missing L Train (2000)
The Bishop and the Beggar Girl of St. Germain (2001)
The Bishop in the West Wing (2002)
The Bishop Goes to The University (2003)
The Bishop in the Old Neighborhood (2005).
The Bishop at the Lake (2007).
The Archbishop in Andalusia (2008)

External links
Author Fr. Andrew Greeley's website
About the Bishop Blackie Ryan series and Andrew Greeley at the publisher's official website

Fictional Christians
Fictional Democrats (United States)
Fictional priests and priestesses
Fictional amateur detectives
Characters in mystery novel series
Fictional characters from Chicago

Father John Blackwood "Blackie" Ryan


Jean-Baptiste Noulet (1 May 1802 – 24 May 1890) was a French scientist and naturalist who helped to prove the archæological existence of humans and was one of the pioneers of the scientific discipline of prehistoric archaeology. He was born in Venerque.

Having obtained his doctorate in medicine at Montpellier in 1832, Noulet focused his research on Occitania and latterly on the Occitan language. In 1841, he was appointed chair of medical natural history at the preparatory school of medicine and pharmacy in Toulouse. Noulet served as the director of the Natural History Museum in Toulouse from 1872, where he founded a gallery devoted to prehistory.

In the field of malacology, he issued an analytical study on the natural history of fluvial and terrestrial mollusks native to the sub-Pyrenean basin (1834). As a botanist, he published an exhaustive volume (754 pages) on regional plants of the sub-Pyrenees, La Flore du Bassin sous-pyrénéen (1837).

In 1851, at Clermont-le-Fort, he discovered the remains of Pleistocene fauna, along with the presence of lithic artifacts, findings that seemingly proved the co-existence of Pleistocene animals with humans, and in essence, confirmed ideas that were earlier proposed by prehistorian Jacques Boucher de Perthes (1788-1868).

References

External links

 Google Books search result for Noulet's writings

Prehistorians
1802 births
1890 deaths
19th-century French botanists
French malacologists
People from Haute-Garonne

Jean-Baptiste Noulet


Decentralized computing is the allocation of resources, both hardware and software, to each individual workstation, or office location. In contrast, centralized computing exists when the majority of functions are carried out, or obtained from a remote centralized location. Decentralized computing is a trend in modern-day business environments. This is the opposite of centralized computing, which was prevalent during the early days of computers.
A decentralized computer system has many benefits over a conventional centralized network. Desktop computers have advanced so rapidly, that their potential performance far exceeds the requirements of most business applications. This results in most desktop computers remaining idle (in relation to their full potential). A decentralized system can use the potential of these systems to maximize efficiency. However, it is debatable whether these networks increase overall effectiveness.

All computers have to be updated individually with new software, unlike a centralized computer system. Decentralized systems still enable file sharing and all computers can share peripherals such as printers and scanners as well as modems, allowing all the computers in the network to connect to the internet.

A collection of decentralized computers systems are components of a larger computer network, held together by local stations of equal importance and capability. These systems are capable of running independently of each other.

Origins of decentralized computing
The origins of decentralized computing originate from the work of David Chaum.

During 1979 he conceived the first concept of a decentralized computer system known as Mix Network. It provided an anonymous email communications network, which decentralized the authentication of the messages in a protocol that would become the precursor to Onion Routing, the protocol of the TOR browser. Through this initial development of an anonymous communications network, David Chaum applied his Mix Network philosophy to design the world's first decentralized payment system and patented it in 1980. Later in 1982, for his PhD dissertation, he wrote about the need for decentralized computing services in the paper Computer Systems Established, Maintained and Trusted by Mutually Suspicious Groups. Chaum proposed an electronic payment system called Ecash in 1982. Chaum's company DigiCash implemented this system from 1990 until 1998.

Peer-to-peer

Based on a "grid model" a peer-to-peer system, or P2P system, is a collection of applications run on several computers, which connect remotely to each other to complete a function or a task. There is no main operating system to which satellite systems are subordinate. This approach to software development (and distribution) affords developers great savings, as they don't have to create a central control point. An example application is LAN messaging which allows users to communicate without a central server.

Peer-to-peer networks, where no entity controls an effective or controlling number of the network nodes, running open source software also not controlled by any entity, are said to effect a decentralized network protocol. These networks are harder for outside actors to shut down, as they have no central headquarters.

File sharing applications

One of the most notable debates over decentralized computing involved Napster, a music file sharing application, which granted users access to an enormous database of files. Record companies brought legal action against Napster, blaming the system for lost record sales. Napster was found in violation of copyright laws by distributing unlicensed software, and was shut down.

After the fall of Napster, there was demand for a file sharing system that would be less vulnerable to litigation. Gnutella, a decentralized system, was developed. This system allowed files to be queried and shared between users without relying upon a central directory, and this decentralization shielded the network from litigation related to the actions of individual users.

Decentralized web

See also
 Centralized computing
 Distributed computing
 Decentralized information technology
 Decentralized network 42
 Decentralized Autonomous Organization
 Federation (information technology)
 Federated social network
 Blockchain
 Decentralized finance

References

Notes

Decentralized computing


Annsborough is a small village in County Down which is one of the main residential areas in Castlewellan, Northern Ireland. It is situated on the A25 road between Downpatrick and Newry, about 0.8 kilometres to the east of Castlewellan and 17 kilometres to the south west of Downpatrick. It had a population of 593 in the 2001 Census. The village is situated within the Mourne Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

History
Annsborough Primary School first opened in 1835, making it one of the oldest functional schools in the country. The school officially became integrated in 1997, after many years of unofficial integrated education.

Culture
The village is the home of the Annsborough Pipe Band. Currently competing in Grade 3A of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association, the band has won three World Championships in 2004, 2005 and 2015. Their Drum Corps were also crowned as World Champions in 2007 and 2015.

Demography
Annsborough is classified as a small village or hamlet by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (i.e. with population of less than 1,000). On Census Day (29 April 2001) there were 593 people living in Annsborough. Of these:
29.4% were aged under 16 years and 13.6% were aged 60 and over
48.7% of the population were male and 51.3% were female
93.6% were from a Catholic background and 5.1% were from a Protestant background
5.8% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed

See also
List of villages in Northern Ireland
List of towns in Northern Ireland

References

External links
Annsborough Mill

Villages in County Down

Annsborough


Swann Estates is a neighborhood within the city limits of Tampa, Florida. As of the 2000 census the neighborhood had a population of 1,491. The ZIP Codes serving the neighborhood are 33609 and 33629.

Geography
Swann Estates boundaries are John F. Kennedy Boulevard to the north,
Dale Mabry Highway to the east, Morrison Avenue to the south, and
Lois Avenue to the West

Demographics
Source: Hillsborough County Atlas

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,491 people and 725 households residing in the neighborhood. The population density was 3,907.25/mi2. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 86% White, 4% African American, 1% Native American, 1% Asian, 6% from other races, and 1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13% of the population.

There were 725 households, out of which 23% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40% were married couples living together, 8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 10% were non-families. 37% of all households were made up of individuals.

In the neighborhood the population was spread out, with 19% under the age of 18, 20% from 18 to 34, 32% from 35 to 49, 14% from 50 to 64, and 16% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 98.1 males.

The per capita income for the neighborhood was $30,647. About 7% of the population were below the poverty line.

See also
Neighborhoods in Tampa, Florida

References

External links

Neighborhoods in Tampa, Florida

Swann Estates


Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (also called Hotel Transylvania 3: A Monster Vacation) is a 2018 American computer-animated comedy movie. It was produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation. This is the sequel to Hotel Transylvania 2.

Voices
The movie is starring Adam Sandler as the voice of Dracula and Selena Gomez as Mavis, Dracula's daughter, and features Asher Blinkoff as Dennis.

Plot

The monster family goes on a luxury cruise ship so Dracula can take a summer vacation from the hotel. It's smooth sailing for the pack as they indulge in all of the fun things the cruise has to offer, including monster volleyball, exotic excursions and catching up on their moon tans. However, the dream vacation soon turns into a nightmare when Mavis realizes Drac has fallen for the mysterious captain of the ship, Ericka (Kathryn Hahn), who hides a dangerous secret that could destroy them all.

2018 comedy movies
2018 fantasy movies
2010s monster movies
2010s sequel movies
2018 3D movies
American animated movies
American comedy movies
American family movies
2010s American fantasy movies
American monster movies
American sequel movies
Columbia Pictures movies
2018 computer-animated movies
2010s English-language movies
Hotel Transylvania
Movies about families
Movies about vacationing
Movies directed by Genndy Tartakovsky
Movies set in 2018
Movies set in Europe
Movies set in hotels
Screenplays by Michael McCullers
Vampires in movies
Werewolves in movies

Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation


A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin  'sparrow' and  '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back), which facilitates perching.

With more than 140 families and some 6,500 identified species, Passeriformes is the largest order of birds and among the most diverse clades of terrestrial vertebrates, representing 60% of birds. Passerines are divided into three clades: Acanthisitti (New Zealand wrens), Tyranni (mostly-South American suboscines), and Passeri (oscines or songbirds). The passerines contain several groups of brood parasites such as the viduas, cuckoo-finches, and the cowbirds. Most passerines are omnivorous, though  shrikes are carnivorous, and others are insectivorous.

The terms "passerine" and "Passeriformes" are derived from the scientific name of the house sparrow, Passer domesticus, and ultimately from the Latin term passer, which refers to sparrows and similar small birds.

Description
The order is divided into three suborders, Tyranni (suboscines), Passeri (oscines or songbirds), and the basal Acanthisitti. Oscines have the best control of their syrinx muscles among birds, producing a wide range of songs and other vocalizations, though some of them, such as the crows, do not sound musical to human beings.  Some, such as the lyrebird, are accomplished mimics. The New Zealand wrens are tiny birds restricted to New Zealand, at least in modern times; they were long placed in Passeri.

Most passerines are smaller than typical members of other avian orders. The heaviest and altogether largest passerines are the thick-billed raven and the larger races of common raven, each exceeding  and . The superb lyrebird and some birds-of-paradise, due to very long tails or tail coverts, are longer overall. The smallest passerine is the short-tailed pygmy tyrant, at  and .

Anatomy
The foot of a passerine has three toes directed forward and one toe directed backward, called anisodactyl arrangement. The hind toe (hallux) is long and joins the leg at approximately the same level as the front toes. This arrangement enables passerine birds to easily perch upright on branches. The toes have no webbing or joining, but in some cotingas, the second and third toes are united at their basal third.

The leg of passerine birds contains an additional special adaptation for perching. A tendon in the rear of the leg running from the underside of the toes to the muscle behind the tibiotarsus will automatically be pulled and tighten when the leg bends, causing the foot to curl and become stiff when the bird lands on a branch. This enables passerines to sleep while perching without falling off.

Most passerine birds have 12 tail feathers but the superb lyrebird has 16, and several spinetails in the family Furnariidae have 10, 8, or even 6, as is the case of Des Murs's wiretail. Species adapted to tree trunk climbing such as treecreepers and woodcreeper have stiff tail feathers that are used as props during climbing. Extremely long tails used as sexual ornaments are shown by species in different families. A well-known example is the long-tailed widowbird.

Eggs and nests

The chicks of passerines are altricial: blind, featherless, and helpless when hatched from their eggs. Hence, the chicks require extensive parental care. Most passerines lay colored eggs, in contrast with nonpasserines, most of whose eggs are white except in some ground-nesting groups such as Charadriiformes and nightjars, where camouflage is necessary, and in some parasitic cuckoos, which match the passerine host's egg. The vinous-throated parrotbill has two egg colors, white and blue, to deter the brood parasitic common cuckoo.

Clutches vary considerably in size: some larger passerines of Australia such as lyrebirds and scrub-robins lay only a single egg, most smaller passerines in warmer climates lay between two and five, while in the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, hole-nesting species like tits can lay up to a dozen and other species around five or six.
The family Viduidae do not build their own nests, instead, they lay eggs in other birds' nests.

Origin and evolution
The evolutionary history of the passerine families and the relationships among them remained rather mysterious until the late 20th century. In many cases, passerine families were grouped together on the basis of morphological similarities that, it is now believed, are the result of convergent evolution, not a close genetic relationship. For example, the wrens of the Americas and Eurasia, those of Australia, and those of New Zealand look superficially similar and behave in similar ways, yet belong to three far-flung branches of the passerine family tree; they are as unrelated as it is possible to be while remaining Passeriformes.

Advances in molecular biology and improved paleobiogeographical data gradually are revealing a clearer picture of passerine origins and evolution that reconciles molecular affinities, the constraints of morphology, and the specifics of the fossil record. The first passerines are now thought to have evolved in the Southern Hemisphere in the late Paleocene or early Eocene, around 50 million years ago.

The initial split was between the New Zealand wrens (Acanthisittidae) and all other passerines (Eupasseres), and the second split involved the Tyranni (suboscines) and the Passeri (oscines or songbirds). The final separation of Gondwanan continents caused the split of Eupasseres into the Tyranni in South America and the Passeri in the Australian continent. Passeri experienced a great radiation of forms out of Australia. A major branch of the Passeri, the parvorder Passerida, expanded deep into Eurasia and Africa, where a further explosive radiation of new lineages occurred. This eventually led to three major Passerida lineages comprising about 4,000 species, which in addition to the Corvida and numerous minor lineages make up songbird diversity today. Extensive biogeographical mixing happens, with northern forms returning to the south, southern forms moving north, and so on.

Fossil record

Earliest passerines

Perching bird osteology, especially of the limb bones, is rather diagnostic. However, the early fossil record is poor because passerines are relatively small, and their delicate bones do not preserve well. Queensland Museum specimens F20688 (carpometacarpus) and F24685 (tibiotarsus) from Murgon, Queensland, are fossil bone fragments initially assigned to Passeriformes. However, the material is too fragmentary and their affinities have been questioned. Several more recent fossils from the Oligocene of Europe, such as Wieslochia, Jamna, Resoviaornis, and Crosnoornis, are more complete and definitely represent early passeriforms, although their exact affinities are not known.

From the Bathans Formation at the Manuherikia River in Otago, New Zealand, MNZ S42815 (a distal right tarsometatarsus of a tui-sized bird) and several bones of at least one species of saddleback-sized bird have recently been described. These date from the Early to Middle Miocene (Awamoan to Lillburnian, 19–16 mya).

Early European passerines

In Europe, perching birds are not too uncommon in the fossil record from the Oligocene onward, but most are too fragmentary for a more definite placement:
 Wieslochia (Early Oligocene of Frauenweiler, Germany)
 Resoviaornis (Early Oligocene of Wola Rafałowska, Poland)
 Jamna (Early Oligocene of Jamna Dolna, Poland)
 Winnicavis (Early Oligocene of Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland)
 Crosnoornis (Early Oligocene of Poland)
 Passeriformes gen. et sp. indet. (Early Oligocene of Luberon, France) – suboscine or basal
 Passeriformes gen. et spp. indet. (Late Oligocene of France) – several suboscine and oscine taxa
 Passeriformes gen. et spp. indet. (Middle Miocene of France and Germany) – basal?
 Passeriformes gen. et spp. indet. (Sajóvölgyi Middle Miocene of Mátraszőlős, Hungary) – at least 2 taxa, possibly 3; at least one probably Oscines.
 Passeriformes gen. et sp. indet. (Middle Miocene of Felsőtárkány, Hungary) – oscine?
Passeriformes gen. et sp. indet. (Late Miocene of Polgárdi, Hungary) – Sylvioidea (Sylviidae? Cettiidae?)

That suboscines expanded much beyond their region of origin is proven by several fossils from Germany such as a presumed broadbill (Eurylaimidae) humerus fragment from the Early Miocene (roughly 20 mya) of Wintershof, Germany, the Late Oligocene carpometacarpus from France listed above, and Wieslochia, among others. Extant Passeri super-families were quite distinct by that time and are known since about 12–13 mya when modern genera were present in the corvoidean and basal songbirds. The modern diversity of Passerida genera is known mostly from the Late Miocene onward and into the Pliocene (about 10–2 mya). Pleistocene and early Holocene lagerstätten (<1.8 mya) yield numerous extant species, and many yield almost nothing but extant species or their chronospecies and paleosubspecies.

American fossils

In the Americas, the fossil record is more scant before the Pleistocene, from which several still-existing suboscine families are documented. Apart from the indeterminable MACN-SC-1411 (Pinturas Early/Middle Miocene of Santa Cruz Province, Argentina), an extinct lineage of perching birds has been described from the Late Miocene of California, United States: the Palaeoscinidae with the single genus Palaeoscinis. "Palaeostruthus" eurius (Pliocene of Florida) probably belongs to an extant family, most likely passeroidean.

Systematics and taxonomy

The Passeriformes is currently divided into three suborders: Acanthisitti (New Zealand wrens), Tyranni, (suboscines) and Passeri (oscines or songbirds). The Passeri is now subdivided into two major groups recognized now as Corvides and Passerida respectively containing the large superfamilies Corvoidea and Meliphagoidea, as well as minor lineages, and the superfamilies Sylvioidea, Muscicapoidea, and Passeroidea but this arrangement has been found to be oversimplified. Since the mid-2000s, studies have investigated the phylogeny of the Passeriformes and found that many families from Australasia traditionally included in the Corvoidea actually represent more basal lineages within oscines. Likewise, the traditional three-superfamily arrangement within the Passeri has turned out to be far more complex and will require changes in classification.

Major "wastebin" families such as the Old World warblers and Old World babblers have turned out to be paraphyletic and are being rearranged. Several taxa turned out to represent highly distinct lineages, so new families had to be established, some of them – like the stitchbird of New Zealand and the Eurasian bearded reedling – monotypic with only one living species. In the Passeri alone, a number of minor lineages will eventually be recognized as distinct superfamilies. For example, the kinglets constitute a single genus with less than 10 species today but seem to have been among the first perching bird lineages to diverge as the group spread across Eurasia. No particularly close relatives of them have been found among comprehensive studies of the living Passeri, though they might be fairly close to some little-studied tropical Asian groups. Nuthatches, wrens, and their closest relatives are currently grouped in a distinct super-family Certhioidea.

Taxonomic list of Passeriformes families

This list is in taxonomic order, placing related families next to one another. The families listed are those recognised by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC). The order and the division into infraorders, parvorders, and superfamilies follows the phylogenetic analysis published by Carl Oliveros and colleagues in 2019. The relationships between the families in the suborder Tyranni (suboscines) were all well determined but some of the nodes in Passeri (oscines or songbirds) were unclear owing to the rapid splitting of the lineages.

Suborder Acanthisitti
 Acanthisittidae: New Zealand wrens

Suborder Tyranni (suboscines)
Infraorder Eurylaimides: Old World suboscines

Infraorder Tyrannides: New World suboscines
Parvorder Furnariida

Parvorder Tyrannida

Suborder Passeri (oscines or songbirds)

 Atrichornithidae: scrub-birds
 Menuridae: lyrebirds
 Climacteridae: Australian treecreepers
 Ptilonorhynchidae: bowerbirds
 Maluridae: fairywrens, emu-wrens and grasswrens
 Dasyornithidae: bristlebirds
 Pardalotidae: pardalotes
 Acanthizidae: scrubwrens, thornbills, and gerygones
 Meliphagidae: honeyeaters
 Pomatostomidae: pseudo-babblers
 Orthonychidae: logrunners

 Infraorder Corvides – previously known as the parvorder Corvida
 Cinclosomatidae: jewel-babblers, quail-thrushes
 Campephagidae: cuckooshrikes and trillers
 Mohouidae: whiteheads
 Neosittidae: sittellas
Superfamily Orioloidea
 Psophodidae: whipbirds
 Eulacestomatidae: wattled ploughbill
 Falcunculidae: shriketit
 Oreoicidae: Australo-Papuan bellbirds
 Paramythiidae: painted berrypeckers
 Vireonidae: vireos
 Pachycephalidae: whistlers
 Oriolidae: Old World orioles and figbirds
Superfamily Malaconotoidea

 Machaerirhynchidae: boatbills
 Artamidae: woodswallows, butcherbirds, currawongs, and Australian magpie
 Rhagologidae: mottled berryhunter
 Malaconotidae: puffback shrikes, bush shrikes, tchagras, and boubous
 Pityriaseidae: bristlehead
 Aegithinidae: ioras
 Platysteiridae: wattle-eyes and batises
 Vangidae: vangas
Superfamily Corvoidea
 Rhipiduridae: fantails
 Dicruridae: drongos
 Monarchidae: monarch flycatchers
 Ifritidae: blue-capped ifrit
 Paradisaeidae: birds-of-paradise
 Corcoracidae: white-winged chough and apostlebird
 Melampittidae: melampittas
 Laniidae: shrikes
 Platylophidae: jayshrike
 Corvidae: crows, ravens, and jays

 Infraorder Passerides – previously known as the parvorder Passerida
 Cnemophilidae: satinbirds
 Melanocharitidae: berrypeckers and longbills
 Callaeidae: New Zealand wattlebirds
 Notiomystidae: stitchbird
 Petroicidae: Australian robins
 Eupetidae: rail-babbler
 Picathartidae: rockfowl
 Chaetopidae: rock-jumpers

 Parvorder Sylviida – previously known as the superfamily Sylviodea
 Hyliotidae: hyliotas
 Stenostiridae: fairy flycatchers
 Paridae: tits, chickadees and titmice
 Remizidae: penduline tits
 Panuridae: bearded reedling
 Alaudidae: larks
 Nicatoridae: nicators
 Macrosphenidae: crombecs and African warblers
 Cisticolidae: cisticolas and allies

Superfamily Locustelloidea
 Acrocephalidae: reed warblers, Grauer's warbler and allies
 Locustellidae: grassbirds and allies
 Donacobiidae: black-capped donacobius
 Bernieridae: Malagasy warblers
—

 Pnoepygidae: wren-babblers
 Hirundinidae: swallows and martins

Superfamily Sylvioidea
 Pycnonotidae: bulbuls
 Sylviidae: sylviid babblers
 Paradoxornithidae: parrotbills and myzornis
 Zosteropidae: white-eyes
 Timaliidae: tree babblers
 Leiothrichidae: laughingthrushes and allies
 Alcippeidae: Alcippe fulvettas
 Pellorneidae: ground babblers

Superfamily Aegithaloidea
 Phylloscopidae: leaf-warblers and allies
 Hyliidae: hylias
 Aegithalidae: long-tailed tits or bushtits
 Scotocercidae: streaked scrub warbler
 Cettiidae: Cettia bush warblers and allies
 Erythrocercidae: yellow flycatchers

 Parvorder Muscicapida – previously known as the superfamily Muscicapoidea
Superfamily Bombycilloidea
 Dulidae: palmchat
 Bombycillidae: waxwings
 Ptiliogonatidae: silky flycatchers
 Hylocitreidae: hylocitrea
 Hypocoliidae: hypocolius
 †Mohoidae: oos

Superfamily Muscicapoidea
 Elachuridae: spotted elachura
 Cinclidae: dippers
 Muscicapidae: Old World flycatchers and chats
 Turdidae: thrushes and allies
 Buphagidae: oxpeckers
 Sturnidae: starlings and rhabdornis
 Mimidae: mockingbirds and thrashers
—

 Regulidae: goldcrests and kinglets
Superfamily Certhioidea
 Tichodromidae: wallcreeper
 Sittidae: nuthatches
 Certhiidae: treecreepers
 Polioptilidae: gnatcatchers
 Troglodytidae: wrens
 Parvorder Passerida – previously known as the superfamily Passeroidea
 Promeropidae: sugarbirds
 Modulatricidae: dapple-throat and allies
 Nectariniidae: sunbirds
 Dicaeidae: flowerpeckers
 Chloropseidae: leafbirds
 Irenidae: fairy-bluebirds
 Peucedramidae: olive warbler
 Urocynchramidae: Przewalski's finch
 Ploceidae: weavers
 Viduidae: indigobirds and whydahs
 Estrildidae: waxbills, munias and allies
 Prunellidae: accentors
 Passeridae: Old World sparrows and snowfinches
 Motacillidae: wagtails and pipits
 Fringillidae: finches and euphonias
Superfamily Emberizoidea – previously known as the New World nine-primaried oscines
 Rhodinocichlidae: rosy thrush-tanager
 Calcariidae: longspurs and snow buntings
 Emberizidae: buntings
 Cardinalidae: cardinals
 Mitrospingidae: mitrospingid tanagers
 Thraupidae: tanagers and allies
 Passerellidae: New World sparrows, bush tanagers
 Parulidae: New World warblers
 Icteriidae: yellow-breasted chat
 Icteridae: grackles, New World blackbirds, and New World orioles
 Calyptophilidae: chat-tanagers
 Zeledoniidae: wrenthrush
 Teretistridae: Cuban warblers
 Nesospingidae: Puerto Rican tanager
 Spindalidae: spindalises
 Phaenicophilidae: Hispaniolan tanagers

Phylogeny
Relationships between living Passeriformes families based on the phylogenetic analysis of Oliveros et al (2019). Some terminals have been renamed to reflect families recognised by the IOC but not in that study. The IOC families Alcippeidae and Teretistridae were not sampled in this study.

Explanatory notes

References

Further reading

 Supporting information

External links

Extant Eocene first appearances
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus

Passerine