Prehistoric Trackways National Monument is a national monument in the Robledo Mountains of Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States, near the city of Las Cruces. The monument's Paleozoic Era fossils are on  of land administered by the Bureau of Land Management. It became the 100th active U.S. national monument when it was designated on March 30, 2009.

Fossils
The Prehistoric Trackways National Monument site includes a major deposit of Paleozoic Era fossilized footprints in fossil mega-trackways of land animals, sea creatures, and insects. These are known as trace fossils or ichnofossils. There are also fossilized plants and petrified wood present, as well as plenty of marine invertebrate fossils including brachiopods, gastropods, cephalopods, bivalves, and echinoderms. Much of the fossilized material originated during the Permian Period and is around 280 million years old.

Some of the animals who may have left tracks in the Robledo Mountains include Dimetrodon, Eryops, Edaphosaurus, and multiple other pelycosaurs. There are at least 13 major trace fossils found at the monument, including Selenichnites (sel-EEN-ick-NIGHT eez) or moon-shaped trace, Kouphichnium (koof-ICK-nee-um) or light trace, Palmichnium (pal-ICK-nee-um) or palm [frond] trace, Octopodichnus (oct-toe-pod-ICK-nuss) or eight-footed trace, Lithographus (lith-oh-GRAFF-us) or rock writing, Tonganoxichnus (tong-a-nox-ICK-nuss) or Tonganoxie [Kansas] trace, Augerinoichnus (aw-gurr-EE-no-ICK-nuss) or Augerino trace, Undichna (und-ICK-nuh) or wave-shaped trace, Serpentichnus (serpent-ICK-nuss) or snake-like trace, Batrachichnus (baa-track ICK-nuss) or frog trace, Dromopus (dro-MOE-puss) or running foot, and Dimetropus (die-MEET-row-puss) or Dimetrodon foot.

The trackways can be difficult for the general public to find, as the monument is largely undeveloped with few facilities yet existing to aid fossil hunters. Many of the slabs pulled out by Jerry MacDonald are housed at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, although they are not on display at this time. Guided hikes are periodically offered by BLM interpretive staff.

Geology
The monument lies along the western portion of the Rio Grande rift and is within part of the Robledo Mountains. It is made up of Cenozoic alluvium and intrusive rock and Paleozoic (Hueco Formation) sediments. The Hueco Formation is Early Permian strata. Most of the monument is Permian and would have been underwater or along the coast of what was once the Hueco Seaway. The tracks can be found in the red rock of the Robledo Mountains Member of the Hueco Formation.

Flora and fauna
The monument is situated at the northern tip of the Chihuahuan Desert. Some examples of plants within the monument are ocotillo, mesquite, creosote bush, prickly-pear cactus, Torrey yucca, barrel cactus, sotol, agave and snakeweed. A few of the animals that you may see are mule deer, rattlesnakes, desert cottontail, many species of lizards, and several species of birds.

Climate
On average the coolest month in the monument is January with an average high of , the hottest month is June with an average high temperature of , and the wettest month is August with about  of precipitation.

Discovery
In situ Paleozoic Era tracks were discovered on June 6, 1987 by Jerry Paul MacDonald. Scattered footprints had been found in the Robledos for almost fifty years prior to MacDonald starting his search. He used the recollections of local hikers, quarrymen, and fossil hunters to concentrate his search. This initial site was named the "Discovery Site". It is one of the best places in the monument for visitors to see fossilized tracks. Jerry MacDonald excavated three long trackways, carrying over 2500 slabs out from the site on his back. The majority of the slabs are housed in the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in the Jerry MacDonald Paleozoic Trackways Collection. Two other continuous trackways are held in the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and Smithsonian.

Monument designation
Prehistoric Trackways National Monument was sponsored by Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Pete Domenici (R-NM) and was part of the National Landscape Conservation System of the United States of America under the Omnibus Public Land Management Act, signed into law on March 30, 2009. It was the first national monument established under the Barack Obama administration, and the fourth established in 2009. At the time of its establishment, it was the 100th active national monument in the United States (not the 100th national monument ever designated, since some monuments were previously designated and later dissolved, but the 100th national monument still in operation).

Recreation

The Bureau of Land Management is in the process of writing a resource management plan for the monument to be completed in 2012. In the meantime, there are no developed hiking or equestrian trails, and only one interpretive sign. Roads are not maintained and there are no facilities. There are OHV and mountain bike trails, which are rugged and require appropriate skills and equipment.

See also
 List of national monuments of the United States
 Walchia
 Fossil trackways in the United States
 Organ Mountains–Desert Peaks National Monument
 White Sands National Park

References

External links
Official Bureau of Land Management website
 Book in PDF. on monument
 10 podcasts on the monument
 New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science
 News report on YouTube

National Monuments in New Mexico
Bureau of Land Management National Monuments
Bureau of Land Management areas in New Mexico
Fossil parks in the United States
Fossil trackways in the United States
Paleozoic life
Paleozoic New Mexico
Protected areas of Doña Ana County, New Mexico
2009 establishments in New Mexico
Protected areas established in 2009
National Monuments designated by Barack Obama
Units of the National Landscape Conservation System
Paleontology in New Mexico

Prehistoric Trackways National Monument


Merit Network, Inc., is a nonprofit member-governed organization providing high-performance computer networking and related services to educational, government, health care, and nonprofit organizations, primarily in Michigan. Created in 1966, Merit operates the longest running regional computer network in the United States.

Organization

Created in 1966 as the Michigan Educational Research Information Triad by Michigan State University (MSU), the University of Michigan (U-M), and Wayne State University (WSU), Merit was created to investigate resource sharing by connecting the mainframe computers at these three Michigan public research universities. Merit's initial three node packet-switched computer network was operational in October 1972 using custom hardware based on DEC PDP-11 minicomputers and software developed by the Merit staff and the staffs at the three universities.

Over the next dozen years the initial network grew as new services such as dial-in terminal support, remote job submission, remote printing, and file transfer were added; as gateways to the national and international Tymnet, Telenet, and Datapac networks were established, as support for the X.25 and TCP/IP protocols was added; as additional computers such as WSU's MVS system and the UM's electrical engineering's VAX running UNIX were attached; and as new universities became Merit members.

Merit's involvement in national networking activities started in the mid-1980s with connections to the national supercomputing centers and work on the 56 kbit/s National Science Foundation Network (NSFNET), the forerunner of today's Internet. From 1987 until April 1995, Merit re-engineered and managed the NSFNET backbone service.

MichNet, Merit's regional network in Michigan was attached to NSFNET and in the early 1990s Merit began extending "the Internet" throughout Michigan, offering both direct connect and dial-in services, and upgrading the statewide network from 56 kbit/s to 1.5 Mbit/s, and on to 45, 155, 622 Mbit/s, and eventually 1 and 10 Gbit/s. In 2003 Merit began its transition to a facilities based network, using fiber optic facilities that it shares with its members, that it purchases or leases under long-term agreements, or that it builds.

In addition to network connectivity services, Merit offers a number of related services within Michigan and beyond, including: Internet2 connectivity, VPN, Network monitoring, Voice over IP (VOIP), Cloud storage, E-mail, Domain Name, Network Time, VMware and Zimbra software licensing, Colocation, and professional development seminars, workshops, classes, conferences, and meetings.

History

Creating the network: 1966 to 1973
The Michigan Educational Research Information Triad (MERIT) was formed in the fall of 1966 by Michigan State University (MSU), University of Michigan (U-M), and Wayne State University (WSU). More often known as the Merit Computer Network or simply Merit, it was created to design and implement a computer network connecting the mainframe computers at the universities.

In the fall of 1969, after funding for the initial development of the network had been secured, Bertram Herzog was named director for MERIT.  Eric Aupperle was hired as senior engineer, and was charged with finding hardware to make the network operational.  The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the State of Michigan provided the initial funding for the network.

In June 1970, the Applied Dynamics Division of Reliance Electric in Saline, Michigan was contracted to build three Communication Computers or CCs. Each would consist of a Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) PDP-11 computer, dataphone interfaces, and interfaces that would attach them directly to the mainframe computers. The cost was to be slightly less than the $300,000 ($, adjusted for inflation) originally budgeted. Merit staff wrote the software that ran on the CCs, while staff at each of the universities wrote the mainframe software to interface to the CCs.

The first completed connection linked the IBM S/360-67 mainframe computers running the Michigan Terminal System at WSU and U-M, and was publicly demonstrated on December 14, 1971.  The MSU node was completed in October 1972, adding a CDC 6500 mainframe running Scope/Hustler. The network was officially dedicated on May 15, 1973.

Expanding the network: 1974 to 1985
In 1974, Herzog returned to teaching in the University of Michigan's Industrial Engineering Department, and Aupperle was appointed as director.

Use of the all uppercase name "MERIT" was abandoned in favor of the mixed case "Merit".

The first network connections were host to host interactive connections which allowed person to remote computer or local computer to remote computer interactions. To this, terminal to host connections, batch connections (remote job submission, remote printing, batch file transfer), and interactive file copy were added. And, in addition to connecting to host computers over custom hardware interfaces, the ability to connect to hosts or other networks over groups of asynchronous ports and via X.25 were added.

Merit interconnected with Telenet (later SprintNet) in 1976 to give Merit users dial-in access from locations around the United States. Dial-in access within the U.S. and internationally was further expanded via Merit's interconnections to Tymnet, ADP's Autonet, and later still the IBM Global Network as well as Merit's own expanding network of dial-in sites in Michigan, New York City, and Washington, D.C.

In 1978, Western Michigan University (WMU) became the fourth member of Merit (prompting a name change, as the acronym Merit no longer made sense as the group was no longer a triad).

To expand the network, the Merit staff developed new hardware interfaces for the Digital PDP-11 based on printed circuit technology.  The new system became known as the Primary Communications Processor (PCP), with the earliest PCPs connecting a PDP-10 located at WMU and a DEC VAX running UNIX at U-M's Electrical Engineering department.

A second hardware technology initiative in 1983 produced the smaller Secondary Communication Processors (SCP) based on DEC LSI-11 processors.  The first SCP was installed at the Michigan Union in Ann Arbor, creating UMnet, which extended Merit's network connectivity deeply into the U-M campus.

In 1983 Merit's PCP and SCP software was enhanced to support TCP/IP and Merit interconnected with the ARPANET.

National networking, NSFNET, and the Internet: 1986 to 1995
In 1986 Merit engineered and operated leased lines and satellite links that allowed the University of Michigan to access the supercomputing facilities at Pittsburgh, San Diego, and NCAR.

In 1987, Merit, IBM and MCI submitted a winning proposal to NSF to implement a new NSFNET backbone network.  The new NSFNET backbone network service began July 1, 1988.  It interconnected supercomputing centers around the country at 1.5 megabits per second (T1), 24 times faster than the 56 kilobits-per-second speed of the previous network.  The NSFNET backbone grew to link scientists and educators on university campuses nationwide and connect them to their counterparts around the world.

The NSFNET project caused substantial growth at Merit, nearly tripling the staff and leading to the establishment of a new 24-hour Network Operations Center at the U-M Computer Center.

In September 1990 in anticipation of the NSFNET T3 upgrade and the approaching end of the 5-year NSFNET cooperative agreement, Merit, IBM, and MCI formed Advanced Network and Services (ANS), a new non-profit corporation with a more broadly based Board of Directors than the Michigan-based Merit Network. Under its cooperative agreement with NSF, Merit remained ultimately responsible for the operation of NSFNET, but subcontracted much of the engineering and operations work to ANS.

In 1991 the NSFNET backbone service was expanded to additional sites and upgraded to a more robust 45 Mbit/s (T3) based network. The new T3 backbone was named ANSNet and provided the physical infrastructure used by Merit to deliver the NSFNET Backbone Service.

On April 30, 1995, the NSFNET project came to an end, when the NSFNET backbone service was decommissioned and replaced by a new Internet architecture with commercial ISPs interconnected at Network Access Points provided by multiple providers across the country.

Bringing the Internet to Michigan: 1985 to 2001

During the 1980s, Merit Network grew to serve eight member universities, with Oakland University joining in 1985 and Central Michigan University, Eastern Michigan University, and Michigan Technological University joining in 1987.

In 1990, Merit's board of directors formally changed the organization's name to Merit Network, Inc., and created the name MichNet to refer to Merit's statewide network.  The board also approved a staff proposal to allow organizations other than publicly supported universities, referred to as affiliates, to be served by MichNet without prior board approval.

1992 saw major upgrades of the MichNet backbone to use Cisco routers in addition to the PDP-11 and LSI-11 based PCPs and SCPs.  This was also the start of relentless upgrades to higher and higher speeds, first from 56 kbit/s to T1 (1.5 Mbit/s) followed by multiple T1s (3.0 to 10.5 Mbit/s), T3 (45 Mbit/s), OC3c (155 Mbit/s), OC12c (622 Mbit/s), and eventually one and ten gigabits (1000 to 10,000 Mbit/s).

In 1993 Merit's first Network Access Server (NAS) using RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) was deployed. The NASs supported dial-in access separate from the Merit PCPs and SCPs.

In 1993 Merit started what would become an eight-year phase out of its aging PCP and SCP technology. By 1998 the only PCPs still in service were supporting Wayne State University's MTS mainframe host. During their remarkably long twenty-year life cycle the number of PCPs and SCPs in service reached a high of roughly 290 in 1991, supporting a total of about 13,000 asynchronous ports and numerous LAN and WAN gateways.

In 1994 the Merit Board endorsed a plan to expand the MichNet shared dial-in service, leading to a rapid expansion of the Internet dial-in service over the next several years. In 1994 there were 38 shared dial-in sites. By 1996 there were 131 shared dial-in sites and more than 92% of Michigan residents could reach the Internet with a local phone call. And by the end of 2001 there were 10,733 MichNet shared dial-in lines in over 200 Michigan cities plus New York City, Washington, D.C., and Windsor, Ontario, Canada. As an outgrowth of this work, in 1997, Merit created the Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting (AAA) Consortium.

During 1994 an expanded K-12 outreach program at Merit helped lead the formation of six regional K-12 groups known as Hubs. The Hubs and Merit applied for and were awarded funding from the Ratepayer fund, which as part of a settlement of an earlier Ameritech of Michigan ratepayer overcharge, had been established by Michigan Public Service Commission to further the K-12 community's network connectivity.

During the 1990s, Merit added Grand Valley State University (1994), Northern Michigan University (1994), Lake Superior State University (1997), and Ferris State University (1998) as members. By 1999, Merit had 163 affiliate members, with 401 attachments from 353 separate locations.

Merit was involved in a number of projects in cooperation with organizations throughout Michigan, including:
Project Connect, a 1992 cooperative effort among Merit, Novell, and GTE, that equipped five southeastern Michigan schools with Novell Local Area Networks with connections to MichNet;
GoMLink, an early virtual library reference service operated by the University of Michigan;
the Michigan Electronic Library (MEL), a networked virtual library service of the Library of Michigan and the University of Michigan;
the Michigan Library Association's "Action Plan for Michigan Libraries"; Internet dial-in access for libraries sponsored by the Library of Michigan;
development of the "Michigan Information Network (MIN) Plan";
in cooperation with MiCTA, providing assistance to the K-12, library, and rural healthcare communities in understanding the federal Universal Service Fund (USF) E-Rate program; and
the Society of Manufacturing Engineers CoNDUIT project, funded by the United States Department of Defense to train staff of small manufacturing businesses in the use of modern technology.

Transition to the commercial Internet, Internet2 and the vBNS: 1994 to 2005
In 1994, as the NSFNET project was drawing to a close, Merit organized the meetings for the North American Network Operators' Group (NANOG). NANOG evolved from the NSFNET "Regional-Techs" meetings, where technical staff from the regional networks met to discuss operational issues of common concern with each other and with the Merit engineering staff. At the February 1994 regional techs meeting in San Diego, the group revised its charter to include a broader base of network service providers, and subsequently adopted NANOG as its new name.

Also starting in 1994, Merit developed the Routing Assets Database (RADb) as part of the NSF-funded Routing Arbiter Project.

MichNet obtained its initial commodity Internet access, a T3 (45 Mbit/s), from the commercial ISP, internetMCI.

In 1996 Merit became an affiliate member of Internet2, in 1997 established its first connection to the NSF very high-speed Backbone Network Service (vBNS), and in February 1999 began serving as Michigan's GigaPOP for Internet2 service.

Following the NSFNET project Merit lead a number of activities with a national or international scope, including:
the GateD Consortium (1995);
the 1997 NSF funded Multi-threaded Routing Toolkit project;
the 1997 NSF funded Internet Performance Measurement and Analysis (IPMA) project, a joint project with U-M's Electrical Engineering and Computer Science;
the 1996 NETSCARF network statistics collection and analysis project, funded by the ANS Resource Allocation Committee; and
the 1999 DARPA funded Lighthouse project focusing on large-scale network attack recognition, remediation and survivable network infrastructure led by the University of Michigan College of Engineering.

In 2000, Merit spun off two for-profit companies: NextHop Technologies, which developed and marketed GateD routing software, and Interlink Networks, which specialized in authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) software.

Eric Aupperle retired as president in 2001, after 27 years at Merit. He was appointed President Emeritus by the Merit board. Hunt Williams became Merit's new president.

Creating a facilities based network, adding new services: 2003 to the present
In 2004 Michael R. McPherson was named Merit's interim president and CEO.

In January 2005 Merit and Internet2 moved into the new Michigan Information Technology Center (MITC) in Ann Arbor.

In 2006, Dr. Donald J. Welch was named president and CEO of Merit Network, Inc.

In December 2006 Merit and OSTN partner to provide IPTV to Michigan institutions. OSTN is a global television network devoted to student-produced programming.

In July 2007, Merit decommissioned its dial-up services.

During the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s Merit operated what is known as a "value-added network" where individual data circuits were leased on a relatively short-term basis (one to three or sometimes five years) from traditional telecommunications providers such as Ameritech, GTE, Sprint, and MCI and  assembled into a larger network by adding routers and other equipment. This worked well for many years, but as data rates continued to increase from kilobits, to megabits, to gigabits the cost of leasing the higher speed data circuits became significant. As a result, the alternative of building its network using "dark fiber" that Merit owned or leased on a relatively longer-term basis (10, 20, or more years) under what are known as "Indefeasible Rights of Use" (IRU) as well as using or sharing fiber that is owned by its members became attractive.

Merit's statewide fiber-optic network strategy began to take shape when:
 in 2003 a fiber ring was deployed in Lansing;
 in 2003 Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and Wayne State University launched the Michigan LambdaRail Network (MiLR) project to link the campuses to each other and to Chicago using privately owned fiber, with Merit to operate MiLR on behalf of the three universities and using some of the MiLR fiber for its own network;
 in 2004 fiber rings were added in Grand Rapids and Chicago;
 in August 2005 Merit was utilizing dark fiber from Michigan Lambda Rail (MiLR) between Detroit and Chicago to support the southern portion of its network backbone;
 in July 2006 Merit began to use optical fiber that had been installed by a consortium of government and community organizations in the Alpena area;
 in February 2006 Merit and the Ontario Research and Innovation Optical Network (ORION) were linked using fiber optic cable across the US-Canada border through the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel, later in September 2008, a wireless connection across the Soo Locks between Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario provided a second link between Merit and ORION;
 in September 2007 Merit created the first high-speed network connection between Michigan's two peninsulas with fiber optic cable across the Mackinac Bridge;
 in November 2007 Merit completed Phase I of its fiber network expansion into the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, connecting Lake Superior State University (LSSU),  Michigan Technological University (MTU), and Northern Michigan University (NMU) via fiber-optic cable at gigabit Ethernet speeds;
 in May 2008 Merit completes a new fiber optic link from Southfield to Toledo providing a 10 Gbit/s link to OSCnet, Ohio's regional research and education network, and a second path between Merit and the Internet2 network;
 in March 2009 a partnership between the City of Hillsdale, Hillsdale College, Hillsdale County Intermediate School District (ISD), and Merit, completed a fiber-optic ring to improve connectivity in the city and reduce network costs for the Hillsdale-area organizations; and
 in December 2009 Merit began to use a new fiber optic link between Mt. Pleasant and Big Rapids. This completed the  "Blue-Line" fiber optic network that links 16 cities in the lower half of Michigan's lower peninsula (Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids, Muskegon, Big Rapids, Mt. Pleasant, Midland, Saginaw, Flint, Pontiac, Rochester, Southfield, Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, Jackson, East Lansing, and Battle Creek).

In July 2008, Merit began upgrading its core backbone network to 10 gigabits and installing five new Juniper MX480 routers. This upgrade was completed in May 2009 with seven backbone nodes in Grand Rapids, East Lansing, Detroit, Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo, and Chicago (2) all operating at 10 Gbit/s. Also during May 2009 Merit replaced its four 1 Gbit/s links to the commodity Internet with two 10 Gbit/s links over diverse paths to two different Tier 1 providers. And in October 2009 the links from Ann Arbor to Jackson and from Jackson and East Lansing were upgraded to 10 Gbit/s.

In January 2010, Merit and its partners, ACD.net; Lynx Network Group, LLC; and TC3Net; learned that their REACH-3MC (Rural, Education, Anchor, Community and Healthcare - Michigan Middle Mile Collaborative) proposal had been awarded ~$33.3M in grants and loans from the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), part of the federal stimulus package. REACH-3MC will build a  optical fiber extension into rural and underserved communities in 32 counties in Michigan's lower peninsula.

In August 2010, Merit and its REACH-3MC partners were selected to receive US$69.6M in a second round of federal stimulus funding to build an additional  of optical fiber in the northern lower peninsula and upper peninsula of Michigan and extending into Wisconsin.

At NANOG's 50th meeting in Atlanta in October 2010, members of the NANOG community supported a charter amendment to transition the hosting of NANOG following the February 2011 NANOG meeting to NewNOG, a newly formed non-profit.

On February 16, 2012, Merit's president and CEO, Donald Welch was honored as an Innovator in Infrastructure and "Champion of Change" during a ceremony that took place at the White House.

In August 2012, Merit announced that the first site of the Michigan Cyber Range would be installed at Eastern Michigan University. Merit hosts and operates the Michigan Cyber Range, a cybersecurity learning environment that, like a test track or a firing range, enables individuals and organizations to conduct "live fire" exercises, simulations that test the detection and reaction skills of participants in a variety of situations. Merit is partnering with the State of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, Ferris State University, and others to provide this invaluable learning environment, which trains students and IT professionals to be better prepared for cyberattacks and how to react to Internet security situations.

In January 2013, the Michigan Cyber Range began a collaboration arrangement with Mile2, a developer and provider of vendor neutral professional certifications for the cyber security industry. Mile2 provides course materials, instructors and certification exams to the Michigan Cyber Range.  Mile2 is recognized by the National Security Agency (NSA) as an Information Assurance (IA) Courseware Institution. Mile2 is NSA CNSS-accredited as well as NIST and NICCS mapped.

On April 8, 2013, Merit announced that round 1 of REACH-3MC construction was complete with fiber-optic cable along the  network extension through rural and under served areas in Michigan's Lower Peninsula, including all 55 fiber-optic lateral connections to Merit Members from the middle-mile infrastructure. Portions of the fiber-optic network extension had been in use prior to the completion of round 1.

In May 2013, Merit hosted its 15th annual Merit Member Conference  and its first annual Michigan Cybersecurity Industry Summit in Ann Arbor.

In June 2013, Merit honored as both a 2013 Computerworld Honors Laureate and 21st Century Achievement Award Winner for its REACH-3MC fiber-optic network project. Merit Network CEO and President Don Welch was honored at a gala celebration in Washington, D.C.

During the summer of 2013, Merit's Michigan Cyber Range debuted its cybersecurity training environment, Alphaville.  The platform was used for training exercises, including a red team-blue team event conducted with the West Michigan Cyber Security Consortium (WMCSC).

In September 2013, Merit launched Merit Secure Sandbox, a secure environment that can be used by organizations for educational purposes, cybersecurity exercises, and software testing.  In September, the Michigan Cyber Range also added a SCADA component to Alphaville.

In July 2014, Merit Network and WiscNet lit a new fiber-optic connection between Powers, Michigan; Marinette and Green Bay, Wisconsin; and Chicago, Illinois. The new 10 gigabit-per-second (Gbps) fiber-optic connection replaced two 1 Gbit/s circuits, providing greater capacity and speed between the Upper Peninsula and Chicago.

In October 2014, Merit completed the REACH-3MC fiber-optic infrastructure project, which built fiber-optic infrastructure across Michigan and in parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin.  Merit connected 141 community anchor institutions, which includes schools, libraries, health care, government, and public safety. 70 additional organizations were also connected to the network by constructing last-mile fiber to the network. Each connection was a minimum of 1 gigabit-per-second (Gbps), providing broadband speeds to previously unserved or underserved parts of Michigan.   Merit completed 2,287 miles of fiber-optic infrastructure, which is the equivalent of travelling from Ann Arbor to Orlando, Florida.

On April 30, 2015, Dr. Eric Aupperle died.  Dr. Aupperle joined Merit Computer Network in 1969 as project leader. Eric was appointed director of Merit in 1974, became president in 1988, and retired 2001.

In August 2015, Joseph Sawasky, the chief information officer and associate vice president of computing and information technology at Wayne State University, was selected as the president and CEO of Merit Network.

In October 2015, Merit selected Jason Brown as the organization's first chief information security officer (CISO).  The position was created as part of an ongoing mission to strengthen Merit Network's infrastructure, data and Member institutions from potential cyberattack.

In March 2016, the organization launched the Merit Commons, a social collaboration environment for its Member community.  The secure, social portal enables Members to communicate and collaborate in real time with organic message streams, much like Facebook or Twitter.

At the annual Merit Member Conference in May 2016, Merit celebrated its 50th anniversary with a gala that included dignitaries, former staff, employees and Merit supporters.  During a panel discussion, Doug Van Houweling from the University of Michigan and Steve Wolff from Internet2 provided a glimpse into the early days of Merit, the complex NSFNET project and how the technology and network protocols created by Merit's engineers influenced the internet.  David Behen, chief information officer (CIO) for the State of Michigan, presented an honor from Governor Rick Snyder to Joe Sawasky on behalf of Merit Network, recognizing the organization's historic achievements.

During 2016, Merit added new publicly accessible hubs of the Michigan Cyber Range in Southeast Michigan.  Cyber Range Hubs opened inside the Velocity Center at Macomb-Oakland University in Sterling Heights on March 18 and at Pinckney Community High School on December 7.  Each location provides certification courses, cybersecurity training exercises and product hardening/testing through a direct connection to the Michigan Cyber Range.

In 2016, Merit began one of its largest projects; managing the implementation of the Michigan Statewide Education Network (MISEN), a private transport based network. MISEN connects 55 of Michigan's 56 Intermediate School Districts (ISDs) via high capacity fiber infrastructure. The project was completed on June 30, 2017, and the result was a 10 Gb connection to each ISD as well as a 100 Gb resilient core. Merit continues to manage MISEN, which gives Michigan ISDs the ability to leverage the multi-gigabit infrastructure for services like Internet access, student information systems, and other critical services, putting Michigan's schools at the forefront of technology and innovation. Throughout 2017, Merit has continued shifting their strategy to focus on network, security and community. They are now considered one of the national leaders in cybersecurity.

In 2019, Merit launched the Michigan Moonshot, an approach to impact the digital divide statewide.

In 2019, as part of the Michigan Moonshot, Merit partnered with national broadband organizations (including the Michigan Broadband Cooperative, Next Century Cities, and the Institute for Local Self Reliance) to create the Michigan Moonshot Broadband Framework. This crowdsourced document will serve as a community network primer and the basis for planning a community roadmap. Contained within, a reader will find overviews on policy and technology, community success stories, links to myriad resources and planning tools from national broadband leaders and a phased plan for building a regional network. While much of this information exists in locations across the web, this unique curation was carefully designed by leading experts to serve as a comprehensive playbook for communities that are committed to improving broadband access for their citizens.

In May 2019, Merit Network, in partnership with Michigan State University's Quello Center and the D.C.-based Measurement Lab, launched a pilot for the Michigan Moonshot broadband data collection project. Three school districts, representing more than 6,000 students, were chosen. The data for this project consisted of three databases linked by a unique de-identified participant ID; including a paper survey completed by all students age 13 and older, student records (i.e., M-STEP scores) that were de-identified and results of an Internet speed test that students completed on a website using any device they used to complete homework.

Armed with an accurate picture of Michigan's connectivity, barriers to broadband network deployment in rural communities could be reduced through a combination of techniques. Pilot project findings are expected to be released in late fall, 2019.

On May 30, 2019, Merit hosted the Mackinac Policy Conference Session as part of the Michigan Moonshot initiative. President and CEO of Merit Network Joe Sawasky moderated a panel titled "Digital Inclusion: #FixTheDamnInternet for Michigan Students." The panel featured state, regional, and national thought leaders, including: Dr. Johannes Bauer, Quello chair for media and information policy and chairman of the department of media and information at Michigan State University, Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist II, and Marc Hudson, founder and CEO of Rocket Fiber.

In October 2019, Merit's president and CEO, Joe Sawasky, joined Former FCC Commissioner, Mignon Clyburn, Jonathan Sallet, senior fellow at the Benton Institute, Larra Clark, deputy director at the American Library Association Public Policy and Luis Wong, CEO of the California K-12 High Speed Network for a panel discussion, Broadband for All in the 2020s at the 2019 SHLB Coalition's Anchor NETS conference.

In 2019, Jonathan Sallet, Senior Fellow for the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, published Broadband for America's Future: A Vision for the 2020s. The purpose of this document is to collect, combine, and contribute to a national broadband agenda for the next decade. As the most transformative technology of our generation, broadband delivers new opportunities and strengthens communities. The Benton Institute upholds a commitment to changing lives and advancing society through high-performance broadband connection, which will bring remarkable economic, social, cultural, and personal benefits.

In 2019, Merit's Chief Information Security Officer role grew into an executive position, overseeing the Michigan Cyber Range and Merit's security division. Kevin Hayes has served as Merit's CISO since 2018.

In 2019, Merit Network partnered with MISEN (Michigan Statewide Educational Network) and MAISA (Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators) to develop Essential Cybersecurity Practices for K12. This guide translates the CIS Top 20 Security Controls into achievable actions that school IT staff can accomplish.

On October 19, 2019, Merit Network relocated from 1000 Oakbrook Drive in Ann Arbor, MI to 880 Technology Drive, Suite B, Ann Arbor, MI 48108. The 880 building provides a collaborative space with increased community access, including additional space available for rent by outside organizations.

On October 28, 2019, the Michigan National Guard and the Michigan Cyber Range hosted an International Cyber Exercise as part of the state's North American International Cyber Summit. Eleven teams from five countries and six states competed in an all-out, fast-paced cyber exercise that resembles the physical game of paintball.

On October 29, 2019, Merit hosted the 4th Annual Governor's High School Cyber Challenge capstone event. More than 600 students from throughout Michigan participated in the event. Okemos High School won the competition.

Merit today
Today, in addition to network connectivity, Merit offers:

 Point-to-point fiber-optic connections
 Internet2 connectivity
 Virtual Private Network (VPN) services
 Network monitoring
 Voice over IP (VOIP) services
 Multicast services
 Domain Name Systems
 Network Time Services
 Comodo SSL certificates, VMware, Veeam and Zimbra software licensing
 Colocation services, including business continuity and disaster recovery
 Federated identity management to facilitate single sign-on access to shared resources, applications, and content
 Routing Assets Database (RADb) public registry
 Professional development seminars, workshops, classes, conferences, and meetings
 Michigan Cyber Range courses on detecting, preventing, and thwarting cyber-attacks
 Communities of Practice - Security Community of Practicing Experts (SCOPE) Forum, Michigan Information Technology Executive (MITE) Forum, and Michigan Networking Directors (MiND)
 Security Services - Community Chief Information Security Officer consulting, DDoS Protection Service, Merit Managed Firewall, and DUO Security
 Merit Community Assistance Pact (MCAP) - Private group for inter-member communication to assist in continuity/disaster recovery events
 Michigan Moonshot - Phased plan to address the digital divide in Michigan
 MISEN - Connecting the Michigan K-12 Community to the state education network

References

External links
Merit Network, Inc., web site

Non-profit organizations based in Michigan
Organizations based in Ann Arbor, Michigan
Computer networks
Academic computer network organizations
History of the Internet
Organizations established in 1966
Internet service providers of the United States
1966 establishments in Michigan

Merit Network


American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor (born 1993) has released five studio albums, two extended plays (EP), two live albums, 30 singles (including six as a featured artist), 28 music videos, three independent albums, and 18 promotional singles. She self-released the albums Meghan Trainor (2009), I'll Sing with You (2011), and Only 17 (2011); they were pulled from circulation after she signed with Epic Records in February 2014. Trainor's debut single, "All About That Bass", was released on June 30, 2014, and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for eight consecutive weeks. The single became the longest-reigning number-one by an Epic recording artist in the United States, surpassing the seven-week record held by Michael Jackson's songs "Billie Jean" (1983) and "Black or White" (1991). It topped the national charts of 58 countries and became one of the best-selling singles of all-time. As of 2015, it had sold over 11 million units internationally. "All About That Bass" was certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and preceded Trainor's debut EP, Title (2014), which peaked at number 15 on the Billboard 200 in September 2014.

On October 21, 2014, she released her second single "Lips Are Movin" which attained a peak of number four on the US Billboard Hot 100. It was further certified quadruple  platinum by the RIAA. The song preceded Trainor's debut major-label studio album Title (2015), which replaced her EP of the same name on the iTunes Store. Upon release, the album debuted atop the Billboard 200. To support the album, two more singles were released: "Dear Future Husband" and "Like I'm Gonna Lose You", the latter featuring American singer John Legend. Both peaked in the top 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and were certified multi-platinum in the United States. The latter also reached number one in Australia and New Zealand.

On March 4, 2016, Trainor released "No" as the lead single from her second major-label studio album, Thank You. The song charted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, earning a double platinum certification from the RIAA. "Me Too", released as the second single from the album on May 5, 2016, peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was certified triple platinum by the RIAA. Thank You, released on May 6, 2016, debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, and was certified platinum by the RIAA. "Better" was released as the third single from the album. The lead single from Trainor's third major-label studio album, Treat Myself, called "No Excuses" was released on March 1, 2018, and charted at number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100, being certified platinum by the RIAA. "Let You Be Right" and "Can't Dance" were originally released as the second and third singles from the album respectively, but did not make the final cut. On February 11, 2019, "All the Ways" was serviced to hot adult contemporary radio as the lead single from Trainor's second EP, The Love Train, which was released on February 8, 2019. Treat Myself, released on January 31, 2020, debuted at number 25 on the Billboard 200. It was further promoted with its second and third singles, "Wave" and "Nice to Meet Ya", the latter of which reached number 89 on the Billboard Hot 100. Trainor's fourth major-label studio album, and debut Christmas album, A Very Trainor Christmas, was released on October 30, 2020. Trainor released her fifth major-label studio album, Takin' It Back, on October 21, 2022.

Albums

Studio albums

Independent albums

Live releases

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Promotional singles

Other charted songs

Guest appearances

Music videos

Notes

References

External links

Discographies of American artists
Discography
Pop music discographies

Meghan Trainor discography


Songshan-Xindian Line is a line of the Taipei Metro in Taipei and New Taipei, Taiwan. This line is also called the Green Line. The line connects Xindian to Songshan. You can transfer to the Wenhu Line at Nanjing Fuxing, to the Bannan Line at Ximen, to the Tamsui-Xinyi Line at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall or Zhongshan, to the Zhonghe-Xinlu Line at Guting or Songjiang Nanjing, or to the Circular Line at Dapinglin station. When Phase 1 of the Wanda-Zhonghe-Shulin Line (Light Green Line) is completed in 2025, passengers will be able to transfer to the Wanda-Zhonghe-Shulin Line at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall metro station.

The line currently consists of 20 stations with station codes from G01 to G19. Station G03A (Xiaobitan) is located on the branch line from G03 (Qizhang.)

Stations
Xindian G01
Xindian District Office G02
Qizhang G03 (transfer for Xiaobitan)
Dapinglin G04 (transfer to Circular line)
Jingmei G05
Wanlong G06
Gongguan G07
Taipower Building G08
Guting G09 (transfer to Zhonghe-Xinlu line)
Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall G10 (transfer to Tamsui-Xinyi line and future transfer to Wanda-Zhonghe-Shulin line)
Xiaonanmen G11
Ximen G12 (transfer to Bannan line)
Beimen G13
Zhongshan G14 (transfer to Tamsui-Xinyi line)
Songjiang Nanjing  G15 (transfer to Zhonghe-Xinlu line)
Nanjing Fuxing G16 (transfer to Wenhu line)
Taipei Arena G17
Nanjing Sanmin G18
Songshan G19

Xiaobitan branch line
Qizhang G03 (transfer to Songshan-Xindian line)
Xiaobitan G03A (terminal station)
Taipei
Railway stations

Songshan–Xindian line


The Malayan Union (Malay: Kesatuan Malaya; Jawi: ملايان يونيان) was a union of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to unify the Malay Peninsula under a single government to simplify administration. Following opposition by the ethnic Malays, the union was reorganised as the Federation of Malaya in 1948.

Formation of the Malayan Union
Prior to World War II, British Malaya consisted of three groups of polities: the protectorate of the Federated Malay States, five protected Unfederated Malay States and the crown colony of the Straits Settlements.

On 1 April 1946, the Malayan Union officially came into existence with Sir Edward Gent as its governor, combining the Federated Malay States, Unfederated Malay States and the Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca under one administration. The capital of the Union was Kuala Lumpur. The former Straits Settlement of Singapore was administered as a separate crown colony.

The idea of the Union was first expressed by the British in October 1945 (plans had been presented to the War Cabinet as early as May 1944) in the aftermath of the Second World War by the British Military Administration. Sir Harold MacMichael was assigned the task of gathering the Malay state rulers' approval for the Malayan Union in the same month. In a short period of time, he managed to obtain all the Malay rulers' approval. The reasons for their agreement, despite the loss of political power that it entailed for the Malay rulers, has been much debated; the consensus appears to be that the main reasons were that as the Malay rulers were resident during the Japanese occupation, they were open to the accusation of collaboration, and that they were threatened with dethronement. Hence the approval was given, though it was with utmost reluctance.

When it was unveiled, the Malayan Union gave equal rights to people who wished to apply for citizenship. It was automatically granted to people who were born in any state in British Malaya or Singapore and were living there before 15 February 1942, born outside British Malaya or the Straits Settlements only if their fathers were citizens of the Malayan Union and those who reached 18 years old and who had lived in British Malaya or Singapore "10 out of 15 years before 15 February 1942". The group of people eligible for application of citizenship had to live in Singapore or British Malaya "for 5 out of 8 years preceding the application", had to be of good character, understand and speak the English or Malay language and "had to take an oath of allegiance to the Malayan Union". However, the citizenship proposal was never actually implemented. Due to opposition to the citizenship proposal, it was postponed then modified, which made it harder for many Chinese and Indian residents to obtain Malayan citizenship.

The Sultans, the traditional rulers of the Malay states, conceded all their powers to the British Crown except in religious matters. The Malayan Union was placed under the jurisdiction of a British Governor, signalling the formal inauguration of British colonial rule in the Malay peninsula. Moreover, while the State Councils were still kept functioning in the former Federated Malay States, they lost the limited autonomy that they enjoyed, left to administer only some less important local aspects of government, and became an extended hand of the Federal government in Kuala Lumpur. Also, British Residents replacing the Sultans as the head of the State Councils meant that the political status of the Sultans was greatly reduced.

A Supreme Court was established in 1946 of which Harold Curwen Willan was the only Chief Justice.

Opposition, dissolution of the Malayan Union and the creation of the Federation of Malaya

The Malays generally opposed the creation of the Union. The opposition was due to the methods Sir Harold MacMichael used to acquire the Sultans' approval, the reduction of the Sultans' powers, and easy granting of citizenship to immigrants. The United Malays National Organisation or UMNO, a Malay political association formed by Dato' Onn bin Ja'afar on 10 May 1946, led the opposition against the Malayan Union. Malays also wore white bands around their heads, signifying their mourning for the loss of the Sultans' political rights.

After the inauguration of the Malayan Union, the Malays, under UMNO continued opposing the Malayan Union. They utilised civil disobedience as a means of protest by refusing to attend the installation ceremonies of the British governors. They had also refused to participate in the meetings of the Advisory Councils, hence Malay participation in the government bureaucracy and the political process had totally stopped. The British had recognised this problem and took measures to consider the opinions of the major races in Malaya before making amendments to the constitution. The Malayan Union was dissolved and replaced by the Federation of Malaya on 1 February 1948.

List of member states

 Malacca

 Penang

Evolution towards Malaysia

See also
Bumiputera (Malaysia)

References

Zakaria Haji Ahmad. Government and Politics (1940–2006). p.p 30–21. .
Marissa Champion. Odyssey: Perspectives on Southeast Asia – Malaysia and Singapore 1870–1971.
Sejarah Malaysia

British Malaya
Former British colonies and protectorates in Asia
Former countries in Malaysian history
1940s in British Malaya
States and territories established in 1946
States and territories disestablished in 1948
Union
Union

Malayan Union


"Deeper and Deeper" is a dance-pop single by Madonna. The song was released in December 1992. The song is about homosexual issues. It was 1970s inspired, and has disco-like themes.

The album version is about five minutes and thirty-three seconds long. The longest version is nine minutes long.

1992 songs
Pop songs
Madonna (entertainer) songs

Deeper and Deeper


is a bishōjo sci-fi metaseries composed of anime, manga and dating sim video games. It was created by Broccoli in July 2000, when it launched a multi-platformed project called Project G.A. The anime and Galaxy Angel Party manga comprise a comedy story in an alternate universe, while the games and the regular manga have a serious romance and action plot.

A sequel game trilogy, Galaxy Angel II, was released from 2006 to 2009 and stars an entirely new cast, the "Rune Angel Troupe", and a new feature that combines the new Brave Heart frame with any of the Angels. Each of the Rune Angels has a connection to one of the Galaxy Angels, such as Apricot Sakuraba, the younger sister of Milfeulle Sakuraba. Just like the original Galaxy Angel, the Galaxy Angel II series has a manga adaptation and comedic anime spinoff.

The success of the video game and anime series influenced the creation of a manga series based on the video game universe. In Japan, the series became so popular that a musical based on the series was made. Entitled "GALAXY ANGEL ~The Musical~", it debuted in March and December 2005, and featured cast members who also worked on Galaxy Angel II.

Plot

Commander Takuto Meyers is a commander of the 2nd Frontier Fleet, when exiled Prince Eonia launches his coup, Most of the Royal Family on the homeworld were killed via orbital bombardment, and large portions of the Imperial Fleet were destroyed in the surprise attack. As Commander Meyers is unable to contact 2nd Fleet HQ, he waits on standby for orders, until three members of the Angel Wing arrive, with a large fleet chasing them, which turns out to be unmanned ships. After destroying the fleet, Meyers takes his fleet and follows them back to where the Elsior is hiding, the battleship usually used only by the Imperial Guards for ceremonies and meets his old Instructor Lufte, now Commodore, who charges Meyers with commanding the Elsior and the Angel Wing in escorting Prince Shiva, the only survivor of the Royal Family, to the Rhombe system where loyalist forces are gathering for a counter offensive as the 2nd fleet has already been destroyed. Before the engines can be repaired however, more enemy ships arrive, and rather than risking discovery, Commodore Lufte takes command of the remaining fleet and draws the enemy ships away, while the Elsior remains and makes its way to Rhombe, fighting off enemy attacks along the way, including elements of the Imperial Fleet changed sides to side with Prince Eonia.

While attempting to meet up with the 3rd fleet stationed at Rhombe, the Elsior discovers destroyed remnants of the 3rd fleet and runs into a trap by Prince Eonia's main fleet. While fighting the forces, they receive another message from the 3rd fleet with a new rendezvous point, after fighting their way through the enemy fleet to the rendezvous point, allied reinforcements arrive and force the enemy forces to retreat, Commodore Lufte having evaded enemy forces and reached the Rhombe System ahead of the Elsior. Afterwards, the Loyalist fleet launches an operation to destroy Prince Eonia's main fleet at the Nadler system, and they inflict a serious defeat on the enemy and the commanding admirals (and other high-ranking officers of the Imperial Navy) decide to hold a ball in Prince Shiva's honour, and plan to transfer Meyers away to command another fleet while the Angel Wings and the Elsior remain behind to guard Prince Shiva on Fargo, an orbital city around the planet Rhombe. On a routine visit to the ship's hangar, Meyers bumps into a strange girl called Noah, who wants Meyers to give him one of the Emblem Frames. When Meyers refuses, Noah gets angry, says that she will make more and stronger ones, and runs off, disappearing just around the corner. Shrugging the incident off, Meyers takes his chosen love with him to the ball, and while there Prince Eonia shows up with several soldiers to try and take Prince Shiva into his Custody, although Prince Shiva refuses. Shots are fired, and it is revealed that Prince Eonia and the soldiers are just holograms and are not physically present, at this point Eonia's fleet launches a sneak attack while most of the Loyalist fleet is docked and not combat ready, and inflicts serious damage on the port facilities.

Meyers heads back to the ship with Prince Shiva, and after the enemy fleet retreats, the Black Moon, an identical counterpart to the White Moon(a planet sized structure) shows up and fires a massive laser that slices Rhombe in half and destroys much of Fargo and the Loyalist fleet. Meyers and the Angel Wing fight a desperate battle to reach the Black Moon, which is constantly producing attack satellites and unmanned ships, before Noah unleashes an EMP like blast that leaves the Elsior, the Emblem Frames and the Loyalist Fleet powerless except for sensors and communications, before attacking them as they lay helpless. While the situation looks grim, suddenly the Elsior and the Emblem Frames have their power restored to above their original levels, and the Emblem Frames all grow wings. They manage to break through the defensive line and damage the Black Moon which causes Prince Eonia to back off for now, turning it into a stalemate, although afterwards the Emblem Frames lose their wings and their power levels drop to below normal.

As the loyalist fleet gathers on the other side of Rhombe, Commodore Lufte takes command as everyone higher-ranking was MIA and presumed dead. Elsior's chief engineer, Creta and Prince Shiva shed some light on the abilities of the Elsior and the Emblem Frames, and also that there is a weapon possibly capable of destroying the Black Moon, but it is stored in the White Moon. While briefing Commodore Lufte on the situation, he mentions that Noah was spotted on other ships and the port facilities before the attack, although when guards attempted to question her, she disappeared into smoke right before their eyes. The Elsior and the Loyalist fleet then head to the White Moon in order to retrieve the weapon, as Sherry, Prince Eonia's second in command, tries to stop them along the way, but fails, finally sacrificing herself as she tries to ram her flagship into the Elsior, although the Angel Wing manages to destroy her ship just before impact. At the White Moon, Lady Shatoyan, the Holy Mother of the White Moon, reveals that the White Moon is a weapons producing factory just like the Black Moon, but the people who found the White Moon decided to keep it a secret, and only use the technology there for good. Lady Shatoyan then lifts the limiters on the Emblem Frames and installs the Chrono Break Canon on the Elsior.

In the Final Battle, after defeating the Hell Hounds, Prince Eonia's elite fighter wing piloting copied Emblem Frames, Noah causes their frames to grow wings as well by altering their structure, in the process causing the fighters to consume their pilots and turn them into soulless zombies. After destroying their fighters, the Elsior gets into position and destroys Prince Eonia's flagship with the Chrono Break Canon, after which Noah reveals that Noah was just a form used to trick Prince Eonia, whom wanted to use the Lost Technology to create an age of peace and prosperity for everyone, into launching his coup so that the Black Moon could unite with the White Moon and evolve further. While the Black Moon pulls the White Moon out of orbit in an attempt to unite with it, Meyers and the Angel Wing breaks through a large screen of attack satellites to use the Chrono Break Canon on the Black Moon, but before it can finish charging, the Black Moon brings the full weight of its power on them, disabling them, all except for the Emblem Frame piloted by Meyer's chosen heroine.

Media

Anime

The Galaxy Angel anime series, produced by Broccoli, Madhouse and Bandai Visual, premiered across Japan on Animax between 7 April 2001 to 29 September 2001, and was soon followed by numerous sequels, including a second series ("Z"), a third series ("A", "AA", and "S") and a fourth ("X"). Each broadcast is made up of two 15-minute episodes, whose titles always contain references to food. The first series was broadcast by Animax, while later series have been broadcast by TV Osaka and other TXN stations. Internationally, the series has been broadcast by Animax and its respective networks worldwide, including its English language networks in Southeast Asia and South Asia, and its other networks in Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and Latin America. In the US, this series was distributed on DVD by Bandai Entertainment, and later on Blu-ray by Nozomi Entertainment.

Manga
Unlike the anime, the manga version of Galaxy Angel deals with the battles against The Legitimate Transbaal Empire (Eonia's Rebel Forces), and the relationship between Takuto Mayers and the six Galaxy Angel members. All Galaxy Angel books were published in North America by Broccoli Books.

Games
The video games are part strategy game, part dating sim, and are all available for the PC and PlayStation 2, with the first one also being available on the original Xbox. The three games in the series are titled Galaxy Angel, Moonlit Lovers and Eternal Lovers. All versions of the story are centered around Takuto Meyers, commander of the 2nd Frontier Fleet. Moonlit Lovers received a PC expansion that added a new character and story plot to tie her into the main game, based on the expanded PS2 port. Eternal Lovers also received a fan disc called Galaxy Angel EX.  A pachinko simulation game for Playstation 2, CR Galaxy Angel, was released in 2008.

A sequel series to the original trilogy, Galaxy Angel II, came out exclusively on the PS2 and followed a different cast of characters. The three games in the sequel series are called Galaxy Angel II: Zettai Ryouiki no Tobira, Galaxy Angel II: Mugen Kairou no Kagi, and Galaxy Angel II: Eigou Kaiki no Toki, released in that order.

Galaxy Angel
In the video game universe, the Galaxy Angels are from the "Special Guardian Division" and they work closely with the "Imperial Special Guards" and the "Satellite Defense Teams". They are the guardians of the White Moon, the sacred planet of the Transbaal Empire, and the personal protectors of the White Moon Goddess Shatoyan. The story begins with Prince Eonia attempting a take over of the Transbaal Empire with the aid of the mysterious Black Moon, counterpart to the White Moon. To counter Prince Eonia, the Angel-tai along with their flagship the Elsior are placed in the hands of the kind and ever-capable Commander Takuto Meyers. In addition to the storyline differences, the personalities of the characters were also altered significantly for the anime, and the video games offer a much more in-depth look into the Galaxy Angel universe.

The following endings assume that Transvaal remains an empire, if the player tells Prince Shiva the truth at the beginning of the game, buys him a chess set and spends time with him, it is possible to unlock the Prince Shiva subplot, and at the end of the game Prince Shiva gives up the throne and Commodore Luft is elected President of the Republic instead.
 Milfeulle Sakuraba: Makes a wish to the Emblem Frame that she will give up her life as the Goddess of Luck in order to restore power to the Elsior, which destroys the Black Moon with the Chrono Break Canon. Meyers retires from the navy to lead a peaceful life with Milfeulle, who has lost the ability to pilot Emblem Frames as well as her legendary luck(both good and bad), while Lester leads the Frontier Research Team to find remnants of Eonia's fleet and any Lost Technology like the Black Moon
 Ranpha: As the Elsior starts going down in flames, Ranpha finds her resolve and destroys all the enemies, clearing a path for the Elsior which destroys the Black Moon with the Chrono Break Canon. Meyers stays in the military as head of the Frontier Research Team, and leaves with Ranpha on the Elsior, who starts redecorating the ship as their home.
 Mint: The communication system goes down on the Elisor but Mint and Meyers understood each other due to their feelings. The Elisor is heavily damaged but Meyers decides to trust Mint and charge through and destroy the Black Moon with the Chrono Break Cannon while Mint destroys all the surrounding enemies with her Emblem Frame's "Flier Dance" ability. Mint decides to quit the Angel Troupe to accompany Meyers on his mission to scout the Frontier.
 Forte: Destroys all the enemies in front of the Elsior, allowing it to destroy the Black Moon with the Chrono Break Canon. Meyers becomes commander of the frontier research team, and Forte becomes his new adjutant, replacing Lester.
 Vanilla: Uses her Emblem Frame's nanomachines to restore full functionality to the Elsior, allowing it to destroy the Black Moon with the Chrono Break Canon. Meyers become commander of the Frontier Research Team, and Vanilla accompanies him on the Elsior, by now largely having gotten over her past and become more cheerful.

Galaxy Angel: Moonlit Lovers

The second game in the trilogy, Moonlit Lovers, revolves around the battles with remnants of Eonia's forces led by General Rezum and later a mysterious woman named Nephilia who claimed to be a member of a race called the Val-Fasq. A new member of the Angel-tai, Karasuma Chitose, is also introduced. The relationship between Takuto and whichever Angel whose heart he won is explored as well.

Galaxy Angel: Eternal Lovers

In the final game, Eternal Lovers, the war with the Val-Fasq begins in earnest while a couple of refugees from the legendary EDEN (the place origin of both the White Moon and Black Moon) arrive to beg the Transbaal Empire (and the legendary hero Takuto Meyers) for help. Takuto and his Angel's relationship is also put into serious jeopardy as his duties preparing for the war with the Val-Fasq keep them apart with increasing frequency.

Players can go through the story in the adventure mode and play real time tactics battle missions in the name of Takuto Mayers. While having good relationship with the Angel Troupe can increase their battle ability and the Angel Troupe with the best relation with Takuto will be with Takuto in the end like the previous two Galaxy Angel games. In this game, the cleared character would relate to the shooting mode of the game and her own Angel Frame would be unlocked in the shooting mode. Players can replay the game's battles piloting the Angel Frame instead of being the commander in chief of the battle. (while players are still given the option to command other fighters at the same time without the free camera mode.)

Light novels
Two light novels by Ryō Mizuno (the second cowritten with Megumi Tsuge) have been released in the Galaxy Angel series:
  (November 2002, Fujimi Shobo, )
 A revised version,  was published by Kadokawa Shoten on March 25, 2006 ()
  (July 2003, Fujimi Shobo, )

Other media

Galaxy Angel Live was performed on March 16, 2005. Performers are completely different from the voice actors because some of them were unable to participate. There was also another show in 2005, from December 7 to 11.

Soundtracks
Galaxy Angel Theme songs
 Opening theme: "Eternal love" ~Hikari no Tenshi~ (Eternal Love ~From Angels of Light~)
Artist: Mari Iijima
Lyrics: Yuki Mori
Music: Yuusuke Sakamoto
 Ending theme: "Tenshi-tachi no Kyuusoku" (Angels' Holiday)
Artist: Mari Iijima
Songwriting: Mari Iijima
Arrangement: Yuusuke Sakamoto

Galaxy Angel Moonlit Lovers theme/insert songs

Theme songs:
 Opening theme: "Eternal Love 2003"
Artist: Mari Iijima
Lyrics: Yuki Mori
Music: Yuusuke Sakamoto
 Ending theme: "Tenshi-tachi no Kyuusoku" (Angels' Holiday)
Artist: Mari Iijima
Songwriting: Mari Iijima
Arrangement: Yuusuke Sakamoto

Insert songs:
 Theme: "Eternal Love" ~The angel of light Squadron Version~
Artist: Angel-tai
Lyrics: Yuki Mori
Music: Yuusuke Sakamoto

Galaxy Angel External lovers theme songs

The opening and ending theme is sung by the famous singer Hiromi Satō, known to be moved by the songs and wept during singing through the recording sessions.
 Opening theme: "Angelic Symphony"
Artist: Hiromi Satō
Songwriting: Noriyasu Agematsu
Arranger: Masashi Huzima
 Ending theme PC ver.: "Eternal Love 2004"
Artist: Hiromi Satou
Lyrics: Yuki Mori
Music: Yuusuke Sakamoto
 Ending theme PS2 ver.: "Owarinaki Prelude" (Neverending Prelude)
Artist: Hiromi Satō
Songwriting: Noriyasu Agematsu
Arranger: Fujita, Hitoshi Makoto

References

External links
 Broccoli's official Project G.A. website
 Official site for Galaxy Angel
 Official site for Galaxy Angel EX
 Official site for CR Galaxy Angel

2001 anime television series debuts
Animax original programming
Anime with original screenplays
Bandai Entertainment anime titles
Bandai Visual
Comedy anime and manga
Fujimi Shobo manga
GungHo Online Entertainment franchises
Kadokawa Shoten manga
Madhouse (company)
Musicals based on anime and manga
PlayStation 2 games
Science fiction anime and manga
Science fiction video games
Shōnen manga
Strategy video games
Works based on Bandai Namco video games
Video games featuring female protagonists
Broccoli (company) games

Galaxy Angel


BBC South Today is the BBC's regional television news service for the south of England, covering Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, West Sussex, much of Dorset and parts of Surrey and Wiltshire.

From 2000-2022, an opt-out of the main programme also covered Oxfordshire, parts of Wiltshire, small parts of eastern Gloucestershire, western Buckinghamshire and southern Northamptonshire. The same geographical area continues to be served by ITV Meridian News for the Thames Valley.

Overview
The BBC began broadcasting a regional TV news programme for the south of England (then known as South at Six, but changing to the current title in the mid 1960s) in January 1961, getting on air four months before the launch of Southern Television's rival magazine programme Day by Day. Originally, the BBC's Southampton operations were based in South Western House, the former Cunard shipping line headquarters near the city's docks. In 1991, the programme moved to purpose-built studios in Havelock Road.

The original presenter was Martin Muncaster. Bruce Parker joined the programme in 1967 and remained as the main presenter until 1992, continuing to present and contribute as Political Editor until 2003.  The current main presenter, Sally Taylor, started co-presenting the programme in 1987 (replacing Debbie Thrower), initially alongside Parker and then successively with Paddy Haycocks, Mark Longhurst, Harry Gration, Andrew Harvey and Roger Finn, but in recent years she has been the regular solo presenter of the main programme.

Currently, BBC South Today produces 11 bulletins each weekday: six bulletins in the morning during BBC Breakfast, a 15-minute programme at 13:30, the half-hour main programme at 18:30, a headlines update at 20:00 and a late night bulletin (Monday to Thursday at 22:30, running for 15 minutes and every Friday at 22:25, running for 10 minutes). Weekend news bulletins are also broadcast. These include early evening bulletins on Saturday and Sunday and a late night bulletin on Sundays, following the BBC News at Ten. The times of these bulletins usually vary.

The programme is broadcast live from studios in Southampton.

Prior to September 2001, BBC South Today's region included areas served by the Heathfield transmitter and its relays which covered eastern Sussex and southern Kent. These areas are now covered by the BBC's South East Today from studios in Tunbridge Wells.

Following digital switchover on 7 March 2012, the Whitehawk Hill transmitter which primarily serves Brighton and Hove switched from broadcasting BBC South Today to broadcasting the neighbouring South East Today.

Oxford opt-out
Between 16 October 2000 and 16 December 2022, BBC South produced a distinct news service for the area served by the Oxford transmitter. Previously, the area was covered by Newsroom South East, which also served Greater London and the south east. As part of a three-tier restructure of regional coverage, the Oxford transmitter area was transferred to the BBC South region and began dedicated opt-out bulletins within BBC South Today. A year later, London and the south east split into two distinct regions: BBC London and BBC South East.

Originally, BBC South Today Oxford was broadcast from BBC South's Studio B in Southampton. Studio production of the bulletins was transferred in 2004 to the reception area at Radio Oxford while a new television studio and production gallery was built. The programme was produced and broadcast from Oxford from October 2005 until December 2022.  Geraldine Peers presented the programme from May 2001 until the programme ended on 16th December 2022.

On 21 April 2008, the BBC South Today Oxford opt-out service was renamed as BBC Oxford News (referred to on-screen as BBC Oxford). New titles and graphics were introduced as part of an on-screen overhaul across the BBC's national, international and regional news services. From 29 October 2012, this was  re-branded back to BBC South Today.

Weekday bulletins
The Oxford sub-opt covered the first 10–15 minutes of the main evening BBC South Today at 18:30, before joining Sally Taylor for the latter part of the Southampton edition of the programme. Until April 2013, a full 30-minute Oxford edition was produced every Friday evening, but this was scaled back to 10–15 minutes. Special half-hour Oxford editions were still occasionally broadcast if there was a major news story in the sub-region.

Viewers in these areas also received dedicated bulletins after the BBC News at Ten, but saw pan-regional bulletins from Southampton at breakfast and lunchtime and on weekends.  The 30 second update at 8pm was produced and presented from Oxford for the entirety of its run.  From 2007 there was also at 1520 (later 1500) a short regional update which was also produced and presented from Oxford until the bulletin was ended.

On 26 May 2022, it was announced that the BBC proposed to close the Oxford opt (and the equivalent produced in Cambridge). The final programme, a half hour special aired at 6.30pm on 16 December 2022.

Presenters

References

External links

BBC Regional News shows
Mass media in Dorset
Mass media in Hampshire
Mass media in Oxford
Mass media in Sussex
Mass media in Wiltshire
Mass media of the Isle of Wight
1960s British television series
1970s British television series
1980s British television series
1990s British television series
2000s British television series
2010s British television series
2020s British television series
1961 British television series debuts
Television news in England

BBC South Today


Republicanism in the United States is a set of ideas that guides the government and politics.  These ideas have shaped the government, and the way people in the United States think about politics, since the American Revolution.

The American Revolution, the Declaration of Independence (1776), the Constitution (1787), and even the Gettysburg Address (1863) were based on ideas from American republicanism.

"Republicanism" comes from the word "republic."  However, they are not the same thing.  A republic is a type of government (one where the people can choose their leaders).  Republicanism is an ideology  set of beliefs that people in a republic have about what is most important to them.

Definition

Republicanism in the United States grew out of some very old ideas.  It includes ideas from ancient Greece, ancient Rome, the Renaissance, and England.

Some of the most important ideas of republicanism are that:
 Liberty and "unalienable" rights (natural rights) are some of the most important things in a society
 Government should exist to protect these rights
 The people who live in a country, as a whole, should be sovereign (they should be able to choose who leads them and have a say in how their government is run)
 Power must always be given by the people, never inherited (like in a monarchy)
 People must all play a role in their government by doing things like voting
 Political corruption is terrible and has no place in a republic

Republicanism is different than other forms of democracy.  In a "pure" democracy, the majority rules.  If a majority of the people voted to take rights away from a certain group, that is what would happen.  Alexis de Tocqueville, a famous French political thinker, called this the "tyranny of the majority."  He meant that a pure democracy could still turn into an unfair, unequal, corrupt society if the majority of the people decided to take away others' rights.

However, republicanism says that people have "unalienable" rights that cannot be voted away.  Republican governments are different than "pure" democracies, because they include protections to make sure people's rights are not taken away.  In a true republican government, one group - even if it is a majority - cannot take another group's unalienable rights away.

The American Revolution
American republicanism was created and first practiced by the Founding Fathers in the 18th century. For them, "republicanism represented more than a particular form of government. It was a way of life, a core ideology, an uncompromising commitment to liberty, and a total rejection of aristocracy."  Republicanism shaped what the Founders thought and did during the American Revolution, and after.

Creating American republicanism
The leaders of colonial America in the 1760s and 1770s read history carefully.  Their goal was to compare governments and how well different types of governments worked. They were especially interested in the history of liberty in England.  They modeled American republicanism partly after the English "Country Party."  This was a political party which opposed the Court Party, which held power in England.

The Country Party was based on ancient Greek and Roman republicanism.  The Party criticized the corruption in the "Court" Party, which focused mostly on the King's court in London.  It did not focus on the needs of regular people in England, or on areas outside of the capital city.

By reading history, The Founders came up with a set of political ideas that they called "republicanism."  By 1775, these ideas were common in colonial America.  One historian writes: "Republicanism was the distinctive political [way of thinking] of the entire Revolutionary generation."

Another historian explains that believers of American republicanism saw government as a threat.  He writes that colonists felt constantly "threatened by corruption."  Government, to them, was "the [biggest] source of corruption and operat[ed] through such means as patronage, faction, standing armies ( [instead of] the ideal of the militia); [and] established churches" which people would have to belong to.

Cause of Revolution

By the 1770s, most Americans were dedicated to republican values and to their property rights.  This helped cause the American Revolution.  More and more, Americans saw Britain as corrupt; hostile; and a threat to republicanism, freedom, and property rights.  Many people thought that the greatest threat to liberty was corruption  not just in London, but at home too.  They thought corruption went along with inherited aristocracy, which they hated.

During the Revolution, many Christians connected republicanism with their religion.  When the Revolution started, there was a major change in thinking that "convinced Americans ... that God was raising up America for some special purpose," according to one historian.  This made the Revolutionists believe that they had a moral and religious duty to get rid of the corruption in the monarchy.

Another historian, Gordon Wood, writes that republicanism led to American Exceptionalism: "Our beliefs in liberty, equality, constitutionalism, and the well-being of ordinary people came out of the Revolutionary era. So too did our idea that we Americans are a special people with a special destiny to lead the world toward liberty and democracy."

In his Discourse of 1759, Revolutionist Jonathan Mayhew argued that people should only obey their governments if they "actually perform the duty of rulers by exercising a reasonable and [fair] authority for the good of human society."  Many American colonists were convinced that British rulers were not using their power "for the good of human society."  This made them want to form a new government which would be based on republicanism.  They thought a republican government would protect  not threaten  freedom and democracy.

Founding Fathers

The "Founding Fathers" were strong supporters of republican values, especially Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, George Washington, Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton.

For example, Thomas Jefferson once wrote that a government that had the most possible participation by "its citizens in mass" (all the people together) was the safest kind.  He said a republic is:

The Founding Fathers often talked about what "republicanism" meant.  In 1787, John Adams defined it as "a government, in which all men, rich and poor, magistrates and subjects, officers and people, masters and servants, the first citizen and the last, are equally subject to the laws."

Other ideas

Some other ideas also affected the Founding Fathers.  For example, in the 1600s, John Locke, an English philosopher, had created the idea of the "social contract."  This idea said that people agree to obey governments, and in return, those governments agree to protect the people and their rights.  This is like a contract made between the people and the government.  If the government breaks this contract, and does not protect the people's rights, then the people have the right to overthrow their leaders.  This idea was important to the Revolutionists.

When they were writing state and national constitutions, the Americans used ideas from Montesquieu, an 18th-century French political thinker.  Montesquieu wrote about how the perfect British constitution would be "balanced."  The idea of a balance of power (also called "checks and balances") is a very important part of the Constitution.  It is one of the strategies the Founders used to make sure their government would be republican and protect the people from government corruption.

The Constitution

The Founding Fathers wanted republicanism because its ideas guaranteed liberty, with limited powers checking and balancing each other.  However, they also wanted change to happen slowly.  They worried that in a democracy, the majority of voters could vote away rights and freedoms.  They were most worried about poor Americans (who made up most of the United States) turning against the rich.  They worried that democracy could turn into "mob rule."

To guard against this, the Founders wrote many protections into the Constitution.  For example:

 They made sure the Constitution can only be changed by a "supermajority": two-thirds of the United States Congress and three-fourths of the state legislatures
 They set up a court system that could help protect people's rights if the majority of Americans decided to take a group's rights away
 They created an Electoral College, where a small number of elite people would select the President
 Soon, political parties controlled elections more than the Electoral College did
 They gave the states control of the United States Senate by letting state legislatures choose Senators (this changed over time)
 They set up a House of Representatives to represent the people

Most adult white males were able to vote.  In 1776, most states required people to own property to be able to vote.  However, at that time, America was 90% rural, and most people owned farms.  As cities grew bigger and people started doing work in the cities, most states dropped the property requirement.  By 1850, this requirement was gone in every state.

Republican motherhood
Under the new government after the Revolution, "republican motherhood" became an ideal.  Abigail Adams and Mercy Otis Warren were held up as the perfect "republican mothers."  This idea said that a republican mother's first duty was to teach her children republican values.  Her second job was to live simply and avoid luxury, which the Founders linked with corruption.

Democracy

Many of the Founders did not think "democracy" was a good idea.  Their idea of "democracy" was the "pure democracy" that de Tocqueville had described.  They worried often about the problem of 'tyranny of the majority' that de Tocqueville had warned about.  They wrote many protections into the Constitution to prevent this from happening.  As historians Richard Ellis and Michael Nelson write: "The principles of republican government embedded in the Constitution represent an effort by the framers to [make sure] that the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness would not be [destroyed] by majorities."  Thomas Jefferson warned that "an elect[ed] despotism is not the government we fought for."

James Madison, in particular, worried about this, and wrote about it in The Federalist Papers.  The Federalist Papers talk about democracy as being dangerous, because it allows a majority to take away the rights of a smaller group.  However, Madison thought that as more people came to the United States, the country would get more diverse, and it would be harder to form a majority big enough to do this.  In Federalist No. 10, Madison also argued that a strong federal government would help protect republicanism.  The United States' first constitution, the Articles of Confederation, gave most power to the states and had a very weak federal government that could not get anything done.  In Federalist No. 10, Madison argued that a small but powerful group might be able to take control of a small area, like a state.  However, it would be much harder to take over an entire country.  The bigger the country, he argued, the safer republicanism would be.

As late as 1800, the word "democrat" still had a very bad meaning to most Americans.  It was mostly used to attack an opponent of the Federalist party.  In 1798, George Washington complained that a "Democrat ... will leave nothing unattempted to overturn the Government of this Country."  This changed over the next few decades.

Property rights
United States Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story (1779–1845) made the protection of property rights by the courts a major part of American republicanism. James Madison appointed Story to the Court in 1811.  Story and Chief Justice John Marshall made the Court a protector of the rights of property against runaway democracy. Story believed that "the right of the citizens to the free enjoyment of their property" (if they got it legally) was "a great and fundamental principle of a republican government."  Historians agree that Story—as much or more than Marshall or anyone else—reshaped American law in a conservative direction that protected property rights.

Military service
Republicanism saw military service as one of a citizen's most important duties.  John Randolph, a Congressman from Virginia, once said: "When citizen and soldier shall be synonymous terms, then you will be safe."

However, at this time, the word "army" meant "foreign mercenaries."  After the Revolutionary War, Americans did not trust mercenaries.  Instead, they came up with the idea of a national army, made of citizens.  They changed their definition of military service from a choice of careers to a civic duty  something every good republican should do.  Before the Civil War, people saw military service as an important show of patriotism, and a necessary part of citizenship.  To soldiers, military service was something they chose to do, something they had a say in, and it showed that they were good citizens.

Legal terms

Republic
The term republic is not used in the Declaration of Independence.  However, it does appear in Article Four of the Constitution, which "guarantee[s] to every State in this Union a Republican form of Government."

The United States Supreme Court has created a basic definition of what a "republic" is.  In United States v. Cruikshank (1875), the court ruled that the "equal rights of citizens" were inherent to the idea of a republic.  Later, the Court's decision from In re Duncan (1891) ruled that the "right of the people to choose their government" is also part of the definition of a republic.

Democracy

Over time, most Americans changed their opinion about the word "democracy."  By the 1830s, most Americans saw democracy as a great thing, and members of the new Democratic Party proudly called themselves "Democrats."

After 1800, the limitations on democracy (like rules that limited who could vote) were removed one by one:
 By the 1820s, most states had ended rules saying that people had to own property in order to vote.  By 1850, all of them had.
 In 1870, the Fifteenth Amendment gave all men in the United States the right to vote, including ex-slaves.
 In 1913, the Seventeenth Amendment allowed the people to elect their own United States Senators (before this, the state legislatures had chosen U.S. Senators).
 The Nineteenth Amendment, passed in 1920, gave women the right to vote.
 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 made the last rules that kept black people from voting illegal.
 Finally, in 1971, the Twenty-sixth Amendment gave adults ages 18 to 20 the right to vote.

Notes

References

18th century in the United States
American Revolutionary War
Political philosophy
United States Constitution

Republicanism in the United States


Beowulf is the hero of the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf. He was the son of Ecgþeow, a banished warrior of the Wægmundings. Ecgþeow had killed a man from another clan and had to flee to the Danes. The Danish king Hroðgar accepted him as one of his warriors. The king also paid to repay the blood feud that was threatening Ecgþeow.

When King Hroðgar came upon difficulties because his land was raided by the giant Grendel- a descendant of Cain, and cursed-, Ecgþeow's son Beowulf came to help him with twelve warriors. During the night, Grendel arrived to attack the sleeping men. Grendel gruesomely slaughtered one man before anyone awoke, but Beowulf attacked him. Beowulf had earlier decided to fight without his sword because he thought it would be shameful to fight with unequal weaponry. He, however, outmatched Grendel in strength and tore off his arm. Grendel fled back to his cave, where he died and his arm was fixed to the wall like a trophy. During the following night, Grendel's Mother arrived and Beowulf had an even harder fight against her, as she stole back her son's arm and retreated to her underwater cave. Beowulf followed her and spent a day sinking to the bottom of the lake, and they fought it out a while before Beowulf saw a sword, which conveniently was the only sword that could possibly kill Grendel's mother. He stabbed her with it, and she died. The sword dissolved and he found and beheaded Grendel's body. He brought back the head as a trophy. Beowulf was greatly rewarded for both of these feats, and he and his men were showered in glory and riches. All the gold was presented to their king, and Beowulf was rewarded with a great sword, land, a hall, and the throne of the Geats when the current king dies.

Later on in life, Beowulf ruled over his native Geatland for 50 years until a dragon attacked after a golden goblet was stolen from its cave by a slave. He travels to its cave and successfully slays it, but is severely injured in the melee. He was bitten in the neck, and the venom will kill him. The dying Beowulf then crowns a young warrior called Wiglaf as his successor (as he himself does not have children and all his predecessors have died). Wiglaf is one of the 12 soldiers he took with him to fight the dragon, but the only one who stayed when they saw he was losing. He is then burned on a pyre with all of his gold he won by slaying the dragon.

In Adaptions
There have been many fictional books and films made based on Beowulf. Beowulf appeared in most of them.
 In 2007, a movie was made about Beowulf.

Germanic mythology

Beowulf (hero)


Op art is a style of painting which makes use of optical illusions and other kinds of unusual optical effects. Victor Vasarely a Hungarian artist, was perhaps the first to use this theme regularly, in the 1930s. In the 1960s, Bridget Riley became one of the world's best-known op artists. She specialised in the effects produced by closely fitted lines. Jesús Rafael Soto used mobile elements, so connecting op art with kinetic (moving) structures.

The idea of visual illusions and effects fascinated  other artists and intellectuals. The famous Dutch artist M.C. Escher drew impossible structures which worked by using visual illusions. The art historian Ernst Gombrich wrote a detailed study on visual effects in art. The psychologist Richard Gregory spent much of his career studying why the mind saw illusions.

References

Other websites

 Dybamo, Grand Palais, Paris
 Geoform
 Abstract Visionary Art - Op Art Gallery

Art movements

Op art


Coventry Cathedral, also known as St. Michael's Cathedral, is an Anglican cathedral. It is in Coventry, West Midlands, England.

In fact, the city has three cathedrals. The first was St. Mary's, a monastic building, only a few ruins of which remain. The second was St Michael's, a 14th-century Gothic Cathedral, which was largely destroyed by a bombing raid in the Second World War. The cathedral was bombed on 14 November 1940 by the German Luftwaffe, which destroyed much of central Coventry. Nails found in the ruins were formed into a cross and consecrated in the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche in Berlin.

The third cathedral is the new St Michael's Cathedral, built to replace the bombed cathedral. It is an important example of 20th century architecture.

The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry. The Right Reverend Dr. Christopher Cocksworth is the current Bishop of Coventry. He is the 9th Bishop of Coventry.

Other websites

Anglican cathedrals in England
Organisations based in Coventry
Buildings and structures in West Midlands (county)

Coventry Cathedral


Kobi (Yakov) Marimi (Hebrew: קובי (יעקוב) מרימי; born October 8, 1991) is an Israeli singer and actor who won the sixth season of HaKokhav HaBa. This earned him the right to represent his country in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 on home soil. Marimi is a professional acting graduate and won the award for the most promising actor in Israel's Musical Theatre Festival.
Israeli singers

Kobi Marimi


The Adventured of Tintin or The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorns a 2011 American action-adventure movie. The film is based on three of Hergé's albums Crab With The Golden Claws, The Secret Unicorn and Red Rackham's Treasure.

It was directed by Steven Spielberg. It was produced by Peter Jackson and Kathleen Kennedy. It stars Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Nick Frost, Simon Pegg, and Enn Reitel. It was composed by John Williams.

It was released on December 21, 2011. A sequel will be released in 2015 called The Adventures of Tintin 2: Prisoners of the Sun which is based on The Seven Crystal Balls and Prisoners Of The Sun. A third and final film, The Adventures Of Tintin 3, based on Destination Moon and Explorers On The Moon, will be released on 2018.

Cast
 Jamie Bell as Tintin
 Andy Serkis as Captain Haddock and Sir Francis Haddock
 Daniel Craig as Ivan Ivanovitch Sakharine and Red Rackham
 Nick Frost as Thomson
 Simon Pegg as Thompson
 Toby Jones as Aristides Silk
 Daniel Mays as Allan
 Gad Elmaleh as Omar ben Salaad
 Mackenzie Crook as Tom

2011 movies
2010s action movies
2011 adventure movies
2010s mystery movies
American action movies
American adventure movies
American mystery movies
Movies directed by Steven Spielberg
Movies composed by John Williams
English-language movies
Movies set in deserts

The Adventures of Tintin (movie)


The Gold-Children is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 85.  It is Aarne-Thompson type 555, the fisherman and his wife, followed by type 303, blood brothers.

Summary
A fisherman caught a golden fish, who gave him and his wife a rich castle on the condition that he will not tell anyone how he had gotten it.  His wife badgered the knowledge from him, but he caught the fish again and regained the castle, and when she badgered the truth out of him again, he caught the fish a third time.  The fish saw it was fated to fall into the fisherman's hand and told him to take it home and cut it into six pieces, giving two to his wife and two to his horse. He had to bury the last two pieces in the ground.  When he did, his wife gave birth to twins of gold, the horse gave birth to two foals of gold, and two golden lilies sprouted from the earth.

When they were grown, the gold children left home, telling their father that the lilies would wither if they were ill and die if they were dead.  People mocked them because of their golden appearance, and one child went back to his father, but the other went on, through a forest filled with robbers.  He covered himself with bearskins to hide the gold from the thieves, and wooed a maiden. They fell in love and soon married.  Her father then came home and believed his son-in-law was a beggar because he was covered with bearskins. However, the next morning, he was relieved when he saw the gold skin of the young man who was no longer wearing the skins.

The gold man went out to hunt a stag and asked an old witch about it.  The witch told him that she knew of the stag, but her dog barked at him. When he threatened to shoot it, the witch transformed him into stone.  Back home, his brother saw that the lily had withered and realized his brother was in trouble. He went to help him, but did not approach the witch closely enough to be transformed. Then he threatened to shoot her if she did not restore his brother.  The witch did so, and one brother went back to his bride and the other returned to their father.

Analysis
The Brothers Grimm themselves, in the annotations to their tales, noted the similarity of "The Golden Children" to "The Two Brothers", specially in regards to the miraculous birth of the twins and their later adventures.

See also

The Enchanted Doe
The Fisherman and His Wife
The Knights of the Fish
The Three Princes and their Beasts
The Two Brothers

References

External links
SurLaLune Fairy Tale site "The Gold-Children"

Grimms' Fairy Tales
Witchcraft in fairy tales
ATU 500-559
ATU 300-399

The Gold-Children


Adolph Borsdorf (born Dittmansdorf, Saxony, 25 December 1854; died London, 15 April 1923), was a German player of the French horn.

Borsdorf was born in Saxony in 1854.  He studied the French horn at the Conservatoire in Dresden and played in a military band.  In 1879, he moved to England where he stayed for the rest of his life, becoming the most important horn player in England.  The conductor Hans Richter offered him at job in the orchestra at Covent Garden.  In 1904, he joined the newly formed London Symphony Orchestra.  The four horn players in that orchestra were excellent players and were often called "God's Own Quartet".

Borsdorf and his colleague Franz Paersch had learned to play on horns that were made in Germany.  These had a wide bore (the hole through the tube).  However, both players changed to playing instruments made in France by a horn-maker called Raoux.  These instruments had a narrower bore.  They were not quite as powerful but gave a particularly clear sound.

Borsdorf became professor at the Royal College of Music when it was founded in 1882.  He also taught at the Royal Academy of Music.  He soon became the best horn player in London.  He was playing principal horn in the orchestra which Henry Wood conducted at the very first Promenade Concert in the Queen's Hall in 1895 (the fourth horn was A.E.Brain, grandfather of Dennis Brain).  He was also in the orchestra when Richard Strauss's Till Eulenspiegel was given its first performance in England in 1896 with the composer conducting.

In 1913, he became ill and had to have teeth removed.  There was also another problem for him: World War I broke out in 1914 and there was a lot of anti-German feeling in England.  After the war he rarely played in public.

Borsdorf died in 1923.  He had done more than anyone else to improve the standard of horn playing in England.  He taught many talented pupils, including A.E.Brain Jr., Aubrey Brain, Frank Probyn and his own three sons: Oskar, Francis and Emil who all became professional horn players.

References
Oxford Music Online retrieved 21.11.2010
 Pettitt, Stephen. Dennis Brain: A Biography. London: Robert Hale, 1976. ISBN 0-7091-5772-X

1854 births
1923 deaths
Classical horn players
German musicians
Academics of the Royal Academy of Music

Adolf Borsdorf