Epidexipteryx ('display feather') is a genus of small maniraptoran dinosaurs, known from one fossil specimen in Beijing. Epidexipteryx is the earliest known example of ornamental feathers in the fossil record. It is a small maniraptoran dinosaur from the Middle or Upper Jurassic age Daohugou Beds of Inner Mongolia, China (perhaps 160 to 168 million years ago).

Structure
It is known from a well preserved partial skeleton that includes four long feathers on the tail, composed of a central rachis and vanes. However, unlike in modern-style tail feathers, the vanes were not branched but made up of a single ribbon-like sheet. Epidexipteryx also preserved a covering of simpler body feathers. They are unique in that some appear to arise from a "membranous structure".

In all, the skeleton of Epidexipteryx hui measures 25 centimeters (10 inches) in length (44.5 cm or 17.5 in including the incomplete tail feathers), and the authors estimated a weight of 164 grams, smaller than most other early dinobirds.

The skull of Epidexipteryx is also unique in a number of features. It had teeth only in the front of the jaws, with unusually long front teeth angled forward, a feature only seen in Masiakasaurus among other theropods. The tail of Epidexipteryx bore unusual vertebrae towards the tip which resembled the feather-anchoring pygostyle of modern birds and some oviraptors.

Despite its close relationship to avialan birds, Epidexipteryx appears to have lacked wing feathers, and so it could not fly. Zhang et al. suggest that unless Epidexipteryx evolved from flying ancestors and subsequently lost its wings, this may indicate that advanced display feathers on the tail may have predated flying or gliding flight.

Dating
There is uncertainty about the age of the Daohugou Beds in which this fossil was found. Various papers have placed the fossils here anywhere from the Middle Jurassic (169 million years ago) to the Lower Cretaceous (122 ma). The age of this formation has implications for the relationship between similar dinosaurs, as well as for the origin of birds in general. A Middle Jurassic age would mean that the bird-like dinosaurs in the Daohugou beds are older than the 'first bird', Archaeopteryx, which was late Jurassic in age. Until this question is decided, the significance of Epidexipteryx (and other early dinobirds from that area) is not clear.

References

Other websites

Coelurosaurs
Fossils
Jurassic dinosaurs
Feathered dinosaurs

Epidexipteryx


The Queen Anne style of British architecture refers to either the English Baroque architecture of the time of Queen Anne (who reigned from 1702 to 1714) or the British Queen Anne Revival form that became popular during the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century. In other English-speaking parts of the world, New World Queen Anne Revival architecture embodies entirely different styles.

Overview
With respect to British architecture, the term is mostly used for domestic buildings up to the size of a manor house, and usually designed elegantly but simply by local builders or architects, rather than the grand palaces of noble magnates.  The term is not often used for churches.  Contrary to the American usage of the term, it is characterised by strongly bilateral symmetry, with an Italianate or Palladian-derived pediment on the front formal elevation.

Colours were made to contrast with the use of carefully chosen red brick for the walls, with details in a lighter stone that is often rather richly carved. Christopher Wren used this technique, which achieved a rich effect for a considerably lower cost than using stone as a facing throughout, in his rebuilding of Hampton Court Palace, commissioned by William and Mary.  Here it harmonized well with the remaining Tudor parts of the palace.  This highly visible example probably influenced many others.

The architectural historian Marcus Binney, writing in The Times in 2006, describes Poulton House in Poulton, Wiltshire (built in 1706, during the reign of Queen Anne) as "...Queen Anne at its most delightful". Binney lists what he describes as the typical features of the Queen Anne style:
 a sweep of steps leading to a carved stone door-case
 rows of painted sash windows in boxes set flush with the brickwork
 stone quoins emphasizing corners
 a central triangular pediment set against a hipped roof with dormers
 typically box-like "double pile" plans, two rooms deep

When used of revived "Queen Anne style" of the 19th and 20th centuries, the historic reference in the name should not be taken at all literally, as buildings said to be in the "Queen Anne style" in other parts of the English-speaking world normally bear even less resemblance to English buildings of the early 18th century than those of any style of revival architecture to the original. In particular, Queen Anne style architecture in the United States is a wholly different style, as is that in Australia, and normally includes no elements very typical of the actual architecture of Queen Anne's reign, the names having been devised for marketing purposes.

British Queen Anne Revival

George Devey (1820–1886) and the better-known Norman Shaw (1831–1912) popularized the Queen Anne style of British architecture of the industrial age in the 1870s. Norman Shaw published a book of architectural sketches as early as 1858, and his evocative pen-and-ink drawings began to appear in trade journals and artistic magazines in the 1870s. (American commercial builders quickly adopted the style.)

Shaw's eclectic designs often included Tudor elements, and this "Old English" style also became popular in the United States, where it became known (inaccurately) as the Queen Anne style. Confusion between buildings constructed during the reign of Queen Anne and the "Queen Anne" style still persists, especially in England.

British Victorian Queen Anne architecture empathises more closely with the Arts and Crafts movement than does its American counterpart. A good example is Severalls Hospital in Colchester, Essex (1913–1997), now defunct.

The historic precedents of the architectural style were broad and several:
 fine brickwork, often in a warmer, softer finish than the Victorians characteristically used, varied with terracotta panels, or tile-hung upper storeys, with crisply-painted white woodwork, or blond limestone detailing
 oriel windows, often stacked one above another
 corner towers
 asymmetrical fronts and picturesque massing
 Flemish mannerist sunken panels of strapwork
 deeply shadowed entrances
 broad porches
 overall, a domesticated free Renaissance style

In the 20th century, Edwin Lutyens and others used an elegant version of the style, usually with red-brick walls contrasting with pale stone details.

New World Queen Anne Revival

United States

In the United States, "Queen Anne" is used to describe a wide range of picturesque buildings with "free Renaissance" (non-Gothic Revival architecture) details and as an alternative both to the French-derived Second Empire and the less "domestic" Beaux-Arts architecture, is broadly applied to architecture, furniture, and decorative arts of the period 1880 to 1910; some "Queen Anne" architectural elements, such as the wraparound front porch, continued to be found into the 1920s.

The gabled and domestically scaled style arrived in New York City with the new housing for the New York House and School of Industry Sidney V. Stratton, architect, 1878. Distinctive features of American Queen Anne architecture may include an asymmetrical façade; dominant front-facing gable, often cantilevered out beyond the plane of the wall below; overhanging eaves; round, square, or polygonal tower(s); shaped and Dutch gables; a porch covering part or all of the front facade, including the primary entrance area; a second-story porch or balconies; pedimented porches; differing wall textures, such as patterned wood shingles shaped into varying designs, including resembling fish scales, terra cotta tiles, relief panels, or wooden shingles over brickwork, etc.; dentils; classical columns; spindle work; oriel and bay windows; horizontal bands of leaded windows; monumental chimneys; painted balustrades; and wooden or slate roofs. Front gardens often had wooden fences.

Australia

In Australia the influence of Richard Norman Shaw contributed to the development of the Federation style, of which the heyday lasted from 1890 to 1915, and which is subdivided into twelve phases, Federation Queen Anne being one and the most popular style for houses built between 1890 and 1910. The style often utilised Tudor-style woodwork and elaborate fretwork that replaced the Victorian taste for wrought iron. Verandahs were usually a feature, as were the image of the rising sun and Australian wildlife; plus circular windows, turrets and towers with conical or pyramid-shaped roofs.

The first Queen Anne house in Australia was Caerleon in the suburb of Bellevue Hill, New South Wales. Caerleon was designed initially by a Sydney architect, Harry Kent, but was then substantially reworked in London by Maurice Adams. This led to some controversy over who deserved the credit. The house was built in 1885 and was the precursor for the Federation Queen Anne house that was to become so popular. The APA Building in the Melbourne city centre was an example of the Queen Anne style being used for non-residential purposes, though at some stage the building may have been apartments. It was demolished in 1981 after the modernism boom in Melbourne took off–factors that sealed its demolition included rapacious development, lax heritage attitudes in Australian cities, and the owner's own decision to argue for a demolition permit which was granted.

Caerleon was followed soon after by West Maling, in the suburb of Penshurst, New South Wales, and Annesbury, in the suburb of Ashfield, New South Wales, both built circa 1888. These houses, although built around the same time, had distinct styles, West Maling displaying a robust Tudor influence that was not present in Annesbury. The style soon became increasingly popular, appealing predominantly to reasonably well-off people with an "Establishment" leaning.

The style as it developed in Australia was highly eclectic, blending Queen Anne elements with various Australian influences. Old English characteristics like ribbed chimneys and gabled roofs were combined with Australian aspects like encircling verandahs, designed to keep the sun out. One outstanding example of this eclectic approach is Urrbrae House, in the Adelaide suburb of Urrbrae, South Australia, part of the Waite Institute. Another variation with connections to the Federation Queen Anne style was the Federation Bungalow, featuring extended verandahs. This style generally incorporated familiar Queen Anne elements, but usually in simplified form.

Some prominent examples are:
 West Maling, corner of Penshurst Avenue and King Georges Road, Penshurst, Sydney
 Homes, Appian Way, Burwood, Sydney
 Homes, Haberfield, New South Wales
 Caerleon, 15 Ginahgulla Road, Bellevue Hill, Sydney (sold for $22 million in January 2008)
 Annesbury, 78 Alt Street, Ashfield, Sydney
 Weld Club, Barrack Street, Perth
 ANZ Bank, Queens Parade, Fitzroy North, Melbourne
 Campion College, Studley Park Road, Kew, Melbourne
 Redcourt Estate, Armadale, Melbourne
 Tay Creggan, Hawthorn, Melbourne

Gallery

See also
 Queen Anne style furniture
 Revivalism (architecture)
 Stuart architecture
 Ramsbury Manor, Wiltshire
 Restoration style
 The Vyne, Hampshire

 Maison Joseph-Gauvreau

References

Further reading
 Girouard, Mark, Sweetness and Light: The Queen Anne Movement, 1860–1900, Yale University Press, 1984. The primary survey of the movement.
 Macquoid, Percy, Age of Walnut, 1904.
 The Shingle Style and the Stick Style: Architectural Theory and Design from Downing to the Origins of Wright, revised edition, Yale University Press, 1971.
 Rifkind, Carole.  A Field Guide to American Architecture. Penguin Books, New York, 1980.
 Whiffen, Marcus.  American Architecture Since 1780. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1999.

External links

 Photography of Queen Anne Style Homes in Hamilton, Ontario
 [Federation Queen Anne Style
 Gothic Queen Anne Style

01
Victorian architectural styles
British architectural styles
House styles
18th-century architecture
19th-century architectural styles

Queen Anne style architecture


A moccasin is a shoe made of deerskin or any other soft leather. It has a sole and sides made out of a single piece of leather. It is stitched together toward the top, sometimes with vamps (which are additional panels of leather). The soles are usually soft and flexible. Moccasins are usually worn outside. The shoes protect the foot while allowing whomever wears them to feel the ground.

Footwear

Moccasin


Gerard (died 21 May 1108) was Archbishop of York between 1100 and 1108 and Lord Chancellor of England from 1085 until 1092. A Norman, he was a member of the cathedral clergy at Rouen before becoming a royal clerk under King William I of England and subsequently his son King William II Rufus. Gerard was appointed Lord Chancellor by William I, and he continued in that office under Rufus, who rewarded him with the Bishopric of Hereford in 1096. Gerard may have been with the king's hunting party when William II was killed, as he is known to have witnessed the first charter issued by the new king, Henry I of England, within days of William's death.

Soon after Henry's coronation Gerard was appointed to the recently vacant see of York, and became embroiled in the long-running dispute between York and the see of Canterbury concerning which archbishopric had primacy over England. Gerard managed to secure papal recognition of York's claim to jurisdiction over the church in Scotland, but he was forced to agree to a compromise with his counterpart at Canterbury, Anselm, over Canterbury's claims to authority over York, although it was not binding on his successors. In the Investiture Controversy between the king and the papacy over the right to appoint bishops, Gerard worked on reconciling the claims of the two parties; the controversy was finally resolved in 1107.

Gerard was a patron of learning, to the extent that he urged at least one of his clergy to study Hebrew, a language not commonly studied at that time. He himself was a student of astrology, which led to suggestions that he was a magician and a sorcerer. Partly because of such rumours, and his unpopular attempts to reform his cathedral clergy, Gerard was denied a burial inside York Minster after his sudden death in 1108. His successor as archbishop subsequently had Gerard's remains moved into the cathedral church from their initial resting place beside the cathedral porch.

Early life and career
Gerard was the nephew of Walkelin, Bishop of Winchester, and Simon, Abbot of Ely. His parents were Osbert and Anna, and his brother Peter was also a royal clerk. The places and times of his birth and upbringing are unknown; he is documented as cantor of Rouen Cathedral, and precentor of the same cathedral, although the dates of his appointments to either office are unrecorded. By 1091 he had become archdeacon of Rouen. He served in the royal chancery under successive kings of England, William I and William II.

Bishop of Hereford

Gerard was appointed Lord Chancellor of England in 1085, and was present at William I's deathbed in 1087. He continued as Chancellor to William Rufus until 1092; what precipitated his loss of office is unclear. He retained the king's trust, for Rufus employed him in 1095 along with William Warelwast on a diplomatic mission to Pope Urban II regarding Archbishop Anselm receiving the pallium, the sign of an archbishop's authority. Rufus offered to recognise Urban as pope rather than the antipope Clement III in return for Anselm's deposition and the delivery of Anselm's pallium into Rufus' custody, to dispose of as he saw fit. The mission departed for Rome in February 1095 and returned by Whitsun with a papal legate, Walter the Cardinal Bishop of Albano, who had Anselm's pallium. The legate secured Rufus' recognition of Urban, but subsequently refused to consider Anselm's deposition. Rufus resigned himself to Anselm's position as archbishop, and at the king's court at Windsor he consented to Anselm being given the pallium.

Although not yet ordained, Gerard was rewarded with the Bishopric of Hereford, and he was consecrated by Archbishop Anselm on 8 June 1096; his ordination as a deacon and priest had taken place the previous day. He assisted at the consecration of St Paul's Cathedral in London on 9 June 1096. He may have been a member of the hunting party in the New Forest on 2 August 1100 when Rufus was killed, as he witnessed King Henry I's coronation charter – now known as the Charter of Liberties – three days later at Winchester, close by the New Forest. Gerard was present at Henry's coronation that same day, along with Maurice, Bishop of London. Henry was probably crowned by Maurice, but the medieval chronicler Walter Map states that Gerard crowned Henry in return for a promise of the first vacant archbishopric. Gerard may have assisted Maurice in the coronation ceremony.

Archbishop
Gerard became Archbishop of York in December 1100. No source mentions him being invested by the king, but as Anselm urged Pope Paschal II to give Gerard his pallium, which he would have been unlikely to do if Gerard had been invested by Henry, that possibility seems remote. At Whitsun in 1101 King Henry I, with Anselm's support, deprived Ranulf Flambard, Bishop of Durham, of the lands of the see of Durham, because Ranulf had defected to Henry's elder brother Robert Curthose, who also claimed the English throne. Gerard then deposed Ranulf from his bishopric. Soon after his translation to York, Gerard began a long dispute with Anselm, claiming equal primacy with the Archbishop of Canterbury and refusing to make a profession of canonical obedience to Anselm, part of the long Canterbury–York dispute. At the 1102 Council of Westminster, Gerard reportedly kicked over the smaller chair provided for him as Archbishop of York, and refused to be seated until he was provided with one as large as Anselm's. He travelled to Rome in 1102 to receive his pallium from the pope, to whom he presented the king's side against Anselm in the controversy surrounding investitures. The pope decided against the king, but Gerard and two other bishops reported that the pope had assured them that the various papal decrees against the lay investiture of bishops would not be enforced. Their claim was denied by Anselm's representatives and the pope, who excommunicated Gerard until he recanted.

Gerard secured papal recognition of York's metropolitan see for the Scots. He subsequently consecrated Roger as Bishop of Orkney, but refused to consecrate Thurgot to the see of St Andrews because Thurgot would not recognise the primacy of York. Gerard gave generously to the monasteries of his diocese; the medieval chronicler Hugh the Chantor stated that Thomas II, Gerard's successor, accused Gerard of having dissipated the diocese's endowment. King Olaf I of Man and the Isles wrote to "G", Archbishop of York, asking for the consecration of "our bishop" by York, but it does not appear to have taken place under Gerard or his successor.

During the first four years of Henry's reign Gerard was one of the king's chief advisors, along with Robert of Meulan, Count of Meulan in Normandy and later Earl of Leicester. Gerard was one of Henry's greatest supporters among the bishops during the Investiture Crisis. In 1101 Gerard witnessed a treaty between Henry and Robert, the Count of Flanders, which sought as far as possible to distance Robert from any future conflict between Henry and his elder brother Robert Curthose, or between Henry and King Philip I of France. After Gerard's return from Rome he restored Ranulf Flambard to the see of Durham. In 1102 Anselm refused to consecrate three bishops, two of whom had received investiture from the king; Gerard offered to consecrate them instead, but all except one refused. From 1105 onwards Gerard slowly began to embrace the papal position on investiture of bishops, which opposed laymen investing bishops with the symbols of episcopal authority. As part of his change of position, Gerard withdrew from court to care for his diocese. Towards the end of 1105 Gerard attempted to join Bohemond of Antioch, who was assembling a crusading force in France, but it appears that King Henry prevented Gerard's departure. In 1106 Gerard wrote to Bohemond that he was still preparing to go on crusade, but he never did. At about the same time, Gerard was working to find a mutually acceptable resolution to the Investiture Crisis, writing a number of letters and other works supporting Anselm's and the pope's position. By 1107 King Henry and Anselm had reached an agreement settling the dispute.

Gerard agreed to a compromise on the matter of obedience to Anselm. King Henry proposed that Anselm accept a witnessed oath from Gerard that he would remain bound by the profession he made to Anselm on his consecration as Bishop of Hereford. Gerard made this oath at the Council of Westminster in 1107. It was a victory for Canterbury, but not a complete one, as Gerard avoided making a written profession, and it was specific to Gerard, not to his office. Gerard continued to oppose Anselm's attempts to assert Canterbury's primacy, but the two were reconciled before Gerard's death.

Gerard also had an uneasy relationship with his cathedral chapter, after attempting to reform his cathedral clergy by forcing them to give up their wives and concubines and become ordained priests. He wrote to Anselm in 1103 complaining of the intransigence of his clergy and envying Anselm's better relations with Canterbury's chapter, which was composed of monks instead of the secular canons who made up York Minster's chapter. In this correspondence, Gerard complained that some of the York canons refused to be ordained as priests, thereby hoping to avoid taking the vow of celibacy. He also accused them of accepting prebends but refusing to live or work at the cathedral, and of focusing on a narrow legal definition of celibacy without actually being celibate. The canons' argument was that they were only required not to maintain women in their own houses, but they were not forbidden to visit or entertain women in houses belonging to others. It was not only Gerard who complained about the relationship between himself and his canons; the latter accused Gerard of impoverishing York by making gifts of lands to others.

Death and legacy
Gerard was an associate of the anonymous author of the Quadripartitus and the Leges Henrici Primi, two 12th-century law books. The medieval chronicler William of Malmesbury charged Gerard with immorality, avarice and the practice of magic. Gerard encouraged at least one of his clergy to study Hebrew, a language not normally studied at the time. Some chroniclers considered his ownership of a Hebrew psalter to be disturbing, seeing it as a sign of heresy or secret Judaism. Among the sins that Malmesbury imputed to him was the study of Julius Firmicus Maternus, a late Roman astrologer, every morning, which to Malmesbury meant that Gerard was a sorcerer. Malmesbury further claimed that Gerard was "lewd and lustful". In Gerard's favour, Anselm regarded him as learned and highly intelligent. Some verses composed by Gerard survive in unpublished form, now in the British Library manuscript collection as part of manuscript Cotton Titus D.xxiv. A collection of his letters circulated in the mid-12th century, part of a bequest made to Bec Abbey in 1164 by Philip de Harcourt, the Bishop of Bayeux, but it is now lost.

Gerard died suddenly on 21 May 1108, at Southwell, on his way to London to attend a council. His body was found in an orchard, next to a book of "curious arts", his copy of Julius Firmicus. His canons refused to allow his burial within his cathedral, but their hostility probably owed more to Gerard's attempts to reform their lifestyle than to his alleged interest in sorcery. Gerard was at first buried beside the porch at York Minster, but his successor, Thomas, moved the remains inside the cathedral church.

Notes

Citations

References

Further reading

Lord chancellors of England
Archbishops of York
Bishops of Hereford
11th-century English Roman Catholic bishops
12th-century English Roman Catholic archbishops
Gerard, Preceptor of Rouen
Gerard, Preceptor of Rouen
Norman clerics given benefices in England
Burials at York Minster

Gerard (archbishop of York)


Zack Snyder's Justice League, also known as "Snyder Cut", is the director's cut of the 2017 American superhero movie, Justice League.

It is a version of Justice League, the fifth movie of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) and based on the DC Comics superhero team of the same name, as director Zack Snyder had wanted it before he left the production and Joss Whedon took over his duties.

It won the Academy Award for Best Cheer Moment in 2022.

Differences between the two movies
Like the theatrical release, Zack Snyder's Justice League is about the Justice League, made up of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg as they try to save the world from the threat of Steppenwolf and Darkseid. However, there are many big differences between the theatrical release and this version of the film, including more backstory on Cyborg (who becomes a much bigger part of the movie), Flash, Aquaman, Steppenwolf, and Darkseid. The "Snyder Cut" takes itself more seriously than the theatrical cut, featuring more action and character development and fewer "corny" jokes, in addition to showing characters who were originally left out like Iris West, Ryan Choi, Martian Manhunter and The Joker. It also gets rid of any scenes that Joss Whedon had filmed, only relying on what Zack Snyder had filmed before leaving the project, in addition to one more scene filmed in 2020.

The movie is divided into six parts with an epilogue due to its 4-hour length.

Plot
Thousands of years ago, Darkseid and his parademon armies try to conquer the Earth, but they are defeated by a combined army of humans, Amazons, Atlanteans, Olympic Gods Zeus, Ares and Artemis, and a Green Lantern. In the present day when Superman is killed fighting Doomsday, his dying scream reawakens the Mother Boxes, devices that were used to try and destroy the Earth but left behind by Darkseid, alerting Steppenwolf, who is Darkseid's exiled lieutenant. Aiming to get the boxes to turn Earth into a copy of Apokolips, his home planet, Steppenwolf invades Themyscira first to take the Mother Box guarded by the Amazons, who send a warning to Diana Prince, leading her to find out the history of the Mother Boxes and the first battle on Earth.

Diana informs Bruce Wayne, and as the two are trying to form a team of superheroes in Superman's absence, they realize they need to act fast with Steppenwolf trying to recapture the Mother Boxes. Though Bruce had failed to recruit Arthur Curry, he finds Barry Allen and gets him to join, but Diana is unable to convince Victor Stone to join until Victor's father Silas is kidnapped by the parademons and brought to Steppenwolf. Meanwhile, Arthur is convinced to help the Atlanteans guard their Mother Box. He manages to save Mera when Steppenwolf attacks the outpost but is unable to prevent the alien from taking the second box.  Victor arrives in time to help Bruce, Diana, and Barry rescue several S.T.A.R. Labs scientists, including Silas, from an underwater building where Steppenwolf is questioning them about the final Mother Box's location. Though they fight Steppenwolf off, the building is flooded and they are only saved when Arthur arrives and stops the water from reaching them.

Steppenwolf, having failed to get the third box, receives a vision of the Anti-Life Equation that Darkseid wants so he can rule over all universes, realizing it is on Earth. He tells Darkseid and DeSaad, and Darkseid promises to redeem him if he can find the third box and transform Earth with the boxes. Meanwhile, Victor retrieves the Mother Box, which he had hidden, and tells the rest of the team that the device was used by Silas to save his life and rebuild him as a cyborg after a horrific car crash that also killed his mother. After this, the team realizes that the Box can be used to return Superman to life and they all agree to try and bring him back, though they realize the box will alert Steppenwolf either way. They dig up Clark Kent's body before sneaking it to the Kryptonian ship under watch by S.T.A.R. Labs, placing it in the waters of the ship's Genesis Chamber. Clark is resurrected when Barry charges the box with his speed, but having lost his memories, he attacks the team when Victor targets him in self-defense. Lois Lane arrives and calms Clark down before he can kill Bruce, and they go back to Smallville so he can regain his memories.

The box is located by Steppenwolf, but before he can take it, Silas charges it with laser heat, allowing himself to die in the process, so that Victor can track the box. As the team, without Superman, locates the Mother Box in Russia back at the Batcave, Victor decides to separate the "Unity" of the boxes himself, recruiting Barry to help give him a charge to get in. The five heroes arrive as Steppenwolf tries to unite the boxes, with Superman later joining to help them beat up Steppenwolf, but they are not able to stop the Unity in time. As the Unity creates a big explosion, Barry manages to run faster than the speed of light to reverse time and undo this, giving Victor the spark needed to get in and separate the boxes with Superman's help. The team then kills Steppenwolf and throws his body back to Apokolips at Darkseid's feet through a portal. Darkseid vows revenge and aims to come to Earth himself to get the Anti-Life equation.

After the battle, Bruce, Diana and Alfred Pennyworth decide to rebuild Wayne Manor as the team's headquarters. Barry gets a job in Central City's police department, Victor listens to a message left behind by Silas, Arthur goes to see his father, and Clark goes back to being a reporter and Superman. Lex Luthor escapes prison and tells Deathstroke the secret identity of Batman. After another bad dream of a world where Superman is controlled by Darkseid, Bruce wakes up and is greeted by Martian Manhunter, who had been on Earth this whole time pretending to be General Swanwick. He thanks Bruce for forming the team and defeating Steppenwolf before promising to be in touch to help plan for Darkseid's return.

Cast
Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne / Batman
Henry Cavill as Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman
Amy Adams as Lois Lane
Gal Gadot as Diana Prince / Wonder Woman
Ray Fisher as Victor Stone / Cyborg
Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry / Aquaman
Ezra Miller as Barry Allen / The Flash
Willem Dafoe as Nuidis Vulko
Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth
J. K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon
Diane Lane as Martha Kent
Joe Morton as Silas Stone
Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor
Harry Lennix as Gen. Calvin Swanwick / Martian Manhunter
Amber Heard as Mera
Ciarán Hinds as Steppenwolf
Kiersey Clemons as Iris West
Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke
Connie Nielsen as Hippolyta
Lisa Loven Kongsli as Menalippe
Billy Crudup as Dr. Henry Allen
Zheng Kai as Ryan Choi
Ray Porter as Darkseid
Peter Guiness as DeSaad
Jared Leto as the Joker
Carla Gugino as Kelex (voice)
Michael McElhatton as Terrorist bank robber
Robin Wright as Antiope
David Thewlis as Ares

Background
In May 2017, Snyder stepped down during post-production following the suicide of his daughter, and Whedon took over, finishing the movie as an uncredited director. Whedon took over reshoots and other changes that added a brighter tone and more humor, and cut the runtime down to 120 minutes.

The theatrical Justice League was a commercial failure and received mixed reviews, leading Warner Bros. to rethink the future of the DCEU.

When it was revealed that the movie had a troubled production and its state before Snyder stepped down, many fans wanted to see Snyder's version of the movie. Fans and members of the cast and crew petitioned for the release of this, which they nicknamed the "Snyder Cut".

At the time, Warner Bros. had no plans to release an alternate cut, and movie industry figures regarded the release as unlikely. However, Warner Bros. changed its mind in February 2020. In May, Snyder announced that the original four-hour cut would be completed and released as Zack Snyder's Justice League by the streaming service HBO Max.

The Snyder Cut will cost $20–30 million to complete the visual effects, score, and editing with an additional $40-50 million for reshoots.

Release
Zack Snyder's Justice League was released in March 18, 2021 on HBO Max. and the Philippines released in March 20, 2021 in HBO Go. With a runtime of 242 minutes, it is the longest superhero movie ever made.

Notes

References

2021 movies
2020s superhero movies
Alternate versions of movies
Warner Bros. movies
Batman movies
English-language movies
Movies directed by Zack Snyder
Superman movies
Wonder Woman movies
Justice League
DC Extended Universe movies
Screenplays by Chris Terrio
Superhero crossover movies
Apocalyptic movies
Post-apocalyptic movies
American superhero movies
HBO Max

Zack Snyder's Justice League


The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) is a database of various species and varieties/cultivars of grapevine, the genus Vitis. VIVC is administered by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding (Institut für Rebenzüchtung Geilweilerhof) in Siebeldingen, Germany, and contains information from grapevine collections existing in various institutes of viticulture around the world. As of April 2009, the information in the database brought together information from 130 institutions located in 45 countries, and contains about 18,000 entries.

The database was started in 1983, and has been available online since 1996. Its initial creation was supported by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine and the International Board for Plant Genetic Resources, a forerunner of Bioversity International. The purpose of the VIVC database is to provide documentation on available grapevine genetic resources, and to be a source of information to grape breeders, viticultural researchers and others.

The information on grape cultivars in VIVC includes basic characteristics of the cultivars, holding institutes, passport data, and all known synonyms, which are quite numerous for many grape cultivars. In some cases, photos and genetic information (microsatellite information used for DNA profiling) are included.

References

External links
 Vitis International Variety Catalogue

Vitis
Viticulture
Online databases

Vitis International Variety Catalogue


The Great Soviet Encyclopedia is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, submitted in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's information was partially added into the later Great Russian Encyclopedia in an updated and changed form. The GSE said to be "the first Marxist–Leninist general-purpose encyclopedia".

Origins
The idea of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia came in 1923 on the idea of Otto Schmidt, a member of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union (today, the Russian Academy of Sciences). In early 1924 Schmidt worked with a group which had Mikhail Pokrovsky, (rector of the Institute of Red Professors), Nikolai Meshcheryakov (Former head of the Glavit, the State Administration of Publishing Affairs), Valery Bryusov (poet), Veniamin Kagan (mathematician) and Konstantin Kuzminsky to draw up a proposal which was chosen in April 1924. Also involved was Anatoly Lunacharsky.

Contributors
Contributors to the GSE are in this list.

 Kliment Voroshilov

Translations

English
The third version was translated and submitted into English in 31 books between 1974 and 1983 by Macmillan Publishers. Each book was translated separately, making use of the index found at the front of each book to locate specific items; knowledge of Russian can be helpful to find the right book the first time. Not all versions were translated into English; these are indicated in the index. Articles from the English version are made available online by TheFreeDictionary.com.

Greek
The third version was translated into Greek and submitted in 34 books between 1977 and 1983 from Akadimos publishing company (owned by Giannis Giannikos), which has also translated various Soviet encyclopedias and literature. All articles that were related to Greece or Greek history, culture and society were expanded and hundreds of new ones were written especially for the Greek version. The encyclopedia contains, for example, both the Russian entry on Greece as well as a much larger one prepared by Greek contributors. Each article written especially in the Greek version is marked with the note "Greek version supplement" (or "Συμπλήρωμα ελληνικής έκδοσης" as written in the Greek translation).

Finally, a supplementary book covering the 1980s was submitted in 1989. It contains translated and original Greek articles which, sometimes, do not exist in the 34-book set. The articles of the Greek version are being gradually made digital now; the digital books can be found on "vivlio2ebook" blog, which is dedicated on digital various books in Greek language.

Great Russian Encyclopedia
Publication of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia was suspended in 1990 and halted in 1991, but in 2002 it was reinstituted by decree of Vladimir Putin. In 2003 and 2004 a team of editors overhauled the old encyclopedia by updating facts, removing most examples of overt political bias, and changing its name to the Great Russian Encyclopedia. Many outdated articles are being entirely rewritten. In 2004 the first book of the newly overhauled Great Russian Encyclopedia was submitted. The complete version of 35 books was released by 2017.

Publication of the Great Russian Encyclopedia is overseen by the Russian Academy of Sciences, and funded by the Government of the Russian Federation. The encyclopedia is now found in libraries and schools throughout the CIS. Additionally, the 1980s versions remain in widespread use, particularly as references in scientific and mathematical research.

Related pages

 Damnatio memoriae
 Encyclopædia Britannica

References

Sources

 Great Soviet encyclopedia, ed. A. M. Prokhorov (New York: Macmillan, London: Collier Macmillan, 1974–1983) 31 books, three books of indexes. Translation of third Russian version of Bol'shaya sovetskaya entsiklopediya
 Kister, Kenneth. Kister's Best Encyclopedias. 2nd ed. (1994)

Other websites

 Great Soviet Encyclopedia online
 TheFreeDictionary.com's encyclopedia section displays results from the English version of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia.
 Beginning of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia issue

Encyclopedias

Great Soviet Encyclopedia


Michael Neal Reichenbach (born 1953) was a first baseman who is most notable for winning the 1975 College World Series Most Outstanding Player award while a sophomore at University of Texas at Austin. He hit .455 with three doubles and a home run to earn the honor. On the season, he hit .386. He is one of six players from University of Texas at Austin to win that award. The others are: J.L. Smith, Tom Hamilton, Calvin Schiraldi, Huston Street and David Maroul.

He was drafted two different times. The first time, he was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 31st round of the 1975 amateur draft. He chose not to sign. When he was taken in the 14th round of the 1977 amateur draft, he did sign. He played three years in the minors, never reaching the big leagues. Professionally, he was used as a pitcher.

In 1977, he played for the Daytona Beach Islanders, going 3-2 with a 2.77 ERA in 10 games. He played for the Fort Myers Royals and Jacksonville Suns in 1978, going 6-7 with a 3.93 ERA in 15 games with the Royals and 2-1 with a 2.00 ERA in seven games with the Suns. In 1979, his final professional season, he again played for the Fort Myers Royals and Suns, and also with the Bakersfield Outlaws. For the Royals, he went 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA in four games. For the Suns, he went 0-0 with a 6.14 ERA in 10 games. With the Outlaws, he went 0-1 with a 24.30 ERA in five games.

References

Baylor Baseball

Texas Longhorns baseball players
College World Series Most Outstanding Player Award winners
Living people
1953 births
Daytona Beach Islanders players
Jacksonville Suns players
Fort Myers Royals players
Bakersfield Outlaws players
Place of birth missing (living people)

Mickey Reichenbach


Ermengol (or Ermengaud) (870-937) was a son of Odo of Toulouse and Garsindis. His father gave him the County of Rouergue and Quercy in 906 and he governed it to his death. His brother was Raymond II of Toulouse and together they governed the vast patrimony of their house in the first half of the tenth century.

In 930, he donated property to the abbey of Vabres in a charter dated to the seventh year of King Rudolph bearing only the title of comes (count). In January 932, he made a similar donation with the title of princeps (prince). He was probably regarded as princeps Gothiae, a title which was to run in his family in the tenth century. He and his nephew Raymond Pons of Toulouse, together with Sancho IV of Gascony, went to the court of Rudolph that year to do homage for their lands. This did not have the desired effect, however, of satisfying royal desires for influence in the south and Rudolph accompanied Ebalus of Aquitaine against the Vikings a short while later, strengthening the Ramnulfid dynasty against that of the Rouergue in the fight for supremacy in Aquitaine.

Ermengol and his wife Adelais (Adalaiz) had two known sons and one daughter, though charters of his eldest son indicate that he had other sons besides his two heirs. The eldest son was Raymond, who inherited Rouergue, and the second was Hugh, who received Quercy. His daughter is hypothesized to have married Sunifred II, Count of Barcelona.

Notes

Sources
Lewis, Archibald R. The Development of Southern French and Catalan Society, 718–1050. University of Texas Press: Austin, 1965.

870 births
937 deaths
Counts of Toulouse
House of Rouergue

Ermengol of Rouergue


The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam.

In addition to various advisory and administrative functions it operates a number of research institutes and awards many prizes, including the Lorentz Medal in theoretical physics, the Dr Hendrik Muller Prize for Behavioural and Social Science and the Heineken Prizes.

Main functions
The academy advises the Dutch government on scientific matters. While its advice often pertains to genuine scientific concerns, it also counsels the government on such topics as policy on careers for researchers or the Netherlands' contribution to major international projects. The academy offers solicited and unsolicited advice to parliament, ministries, universities and research institutes, funding agencies and international organizations.

 Advising the government on matters related to scientific research
 Providing a forum for the scientific world and promoting international scientific cooperation
 Acting as an umbrella organization for the institutes primarily engaged in basic and strategic scientific research and disseminating information

Members and organization

The members are appointed for life by co-optation. Nominations for candidate membership by persons or organizations outside the academy are accepted. The acceptance criterion is delivered scientific achievements. Academy membership is therefore regarded as a great honor, and prestigious. Besides regular members, there are foreign members and corresponding members. Since a new membership system was introduced in 2011 there will be no new corresponding members. Each year a maximum of sixteen members are appointed to the academy.

The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences has long embraced the entire field of learning. The Royal Academy comprises two departments, consisting of around 500 members:
 Science (mathematics, physics,  astronomy, life sciences, and engineering sciences)
 Humanities and Social Sciences (humanities, law, behavioural sciences and social sciences)

Both departments have their own board. The departments, in turn, are divided into sections. The highest organ in the academy is the general meeting of members, the united meeting of both departments. The president was Frits van Oostrom until 1 May 2008, after which he was succeeded by Robbert Dijkgraaf. Both van Oostrom in his leaving address and Dijkgraaf in his inaugural address have voiced their worries about the low level of funding in science in the Netherlands compared to almost all other western countries. A list of presidents of the academy is as follows:

 1973–1978 Hendrik Casimir
 1978–1981 Samuel Dresden
 1981–1984 André Donner
 1984–1990 David de Wied
 1990–1996 Pieter Drenth
 1996–1999 Pieter Zandbergen
 1999–2002 Robert S. Reneman
 2002–2005 Willem Levelt
 2005–2008 Frits van Oostrom
 2008–2012 Robbert Dijkgraaf
 2012–2015 Hans Clevers
 2015–2018 José van Dijck
 2018–2020 Wim van Saarloos
 2020–2022 Ineke Sluiter
 2022–present Marileen Dogterom

History
During the Kingdom of Holland, it was founded as the Koninklijk Instituut van Wetenschappen, Letterkunde en Schoone Kunsten (Royal Institute of Sciences, Literature and Fine Arts) by Lodewijk Napoleon on May 4, 1808. In 1816, after the occupation had ended, it was renamed to Koninklijk-Nederlandsch Instituut van Wetenschappen, Letteren en Schoone Kunsten. In 1851, it was disbanded and re-established as the Koninklijke Akademie van Wetenschappen and in 1938 obtained its present name. Since 1812, the academy has resided in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam.

The institute was awarded the Gouden Ganzenveer in 1955.

Research institutes
The following Research institutes are associated with the KNAW:
 Data Archiving and Networked Services (since 2005)
 Fryske Akademy (since 1990, founded in 1938)
 Hubrecht Institute for Developmental Biology & Stem Cell Research (since 1917)
 Huygens Institute for the History of the Netherlands (since 1992)
 International Institute of Social History (since 1979, founded in 1935)
 Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (since 2001, founded in 1851)
 Meertens Instituut (since 1952)
 Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience (NIN) (established in 2005 as a merger of the Netherlands Institute for Brain Research (NIH, established in 1909) and the Netherlands Ophthalmic Research Institute (IOI, established in 1988))
 Nederlands Instituut voor Ecologie (since 1992)
 NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies (since 1999, founded in 1945)
 Nederlands Instituut voor Wetenschappelijke Informatiediensten (1997-2005)
 Nederlands Interdisciplinair Demografisch Instituut (since 2003)
 Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences (since 1988)
 Rathenau Instituut (since 1994, previously NOTA (1987-1994))
 Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute (since 1904)

Young Academy
De Jonge Akademie (The Young Academy) is a society of younger science researchers, founded in 2005 as part of the KNAW. Ten members are elected each year for a term of five years; members are scientists between 25 and 45 years old and are selected for a record of excellence in their research. It was modelled after the similar German Junge Akademie and both of these academies in turn were used as models for the Global Young Academy.

Society of Arts
The Society of Arts (Akademie van Kunsten) is a society of prominent artists from various disciplines, including architecture, visual arts, dance, film, photography, literature, music and performing arts. Its aim is to be the place "for debate about the value of art in society and about the relationship between art and science".The Society of Arts was established by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2014. Both are seated in the 17th century Trippenhuis in Amsterdam.
At the start the Society of Arts had 19 members. Each year the number of members increases with 6 new members who are offered a membership for life. In 2022 the Society of Arts has 76 members. Members of the Society of Arts are elected by nomination. Anyone can nominate leading artists from all disciplines who have distinguished themselves on the basis of demonstrable artistic achievements.

See also

 Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO)
 Dutch Research Council (NWO)
 Koninklijke Hollandsche Maatschappij der Wetenschappen (Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities)

References

External links

 Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, official website
 Young Academy (De Jonge Akademie), official website
 Society of Arts (Akademie van Kunsten), official website

1808 establishments in the Netherlands
Learned societies of the Netherlands
Netherlands
Netherlands
Organisations based in Amsterdam
Academy of Arts and Sciences
Organizations established in 1808
Scientific organisations based in the Netherlands
Scientific organizations established in 1808
Members of the International Council for Science
Members of the International Science Council


The Hunger Games is an adventure, drama, and science fiction movie. It is based on The Hunger Games, the first book in the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. The movie was directed by Gary Ross. It was released on March 12, 2012 in Los Angeles. In other places it was released on March 23, 2012.

The movie is set in the future in North America. It is about twenty-four teenagers fighting each other in the "Hunger Games". They fight until there is only one person left alive. It shows survival of the fittest in extreme conditions. The games are broadcast live on television in the whole country of Panem.

The movie is 142 minutes long. It is rated PG-13.

the hunger games "ballad of songbirds and snakes" will be released on November 13 2023 in cinemas and serves as a prequel to the hunger games

The reviews of the movie were mostly positive. Its box office performance was very good.

Overview
The Hunger Games is a 2012 sci-fi adventure movie directed by Gary Ross made from Suzanne Collins's book The Hunger Games. It is the first movie of many in the series. The story takes place in a distant future in the nation of Panem. Where a boy and girl is selected from each of the 12 districts to be in The Hunger Games. Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) [2] volunteers to take her younger sister Primrose Everdeen. Katniss competes in The Hunger Games with another tribute from her district Peeta Mallark (Josh Hutcherson).

Katniss Everdeen
Katniss and her family live in District 12, a coal-mining district and the poorest and the least amount of people among the districts. Katniss volunteers to take her sister's place in The Hunger Games. Katniss competes in The Hunger Games with Peeta Mallark [3]. Katniss uses her knowledge about hunting to win with her fellow tribute Peeta. This character from the Hunger Games is played by Jennifer Lawrence.

Peeta Mallark
Peeta is a tribute from District 12 in the 74th hunger games. He fights in the Hunger Games with Katniss the female tribute. The two both win the Hunger Games by actively rebelling against the rules. Making a rebellion in Panem the nation they live in. This character from the Hunger Games is played by Josh Hutcherson.

Gale Hawthrone
Gale Hawthrone is a resident in District 12. He was close to Katniss due to their love of hunting. He has similar features to Katniss. He is a minor character in the first movie but has a bigger role later on. He loved Katniss in the first movie but had to hide his love as Peeta and Katniss had to play as "star-crossed lovers" deeply upsetting him.

Cast
Jennifer Lawrence plays Katniss Everdeen
Josh Hutcherson plays Peeta Mellark
Elizabeth Banks plays Effie Trinket
Lenny Kravitz plays Cinna,
Donald Sutherland plays President Coriolanus Snow
Liam Hemsworth plays Gale Hawthorne
Woody Harrelson plays Haymitch Abernathy

Plot
Katniss volunteers to enter the deadly hunger games when her sister is selected from the reaping. She is the first volunteer from district 12 and travels to the Capital to prepare herself. Along with her stylist Cenna, her mentor Haymitch and friend Effie, Katniss instantly becomes the darling of the capital as she acts out a love story with fellow district 12 member Peeta. Peeta doesn't see the love as an act though and really does believe Katniss might love him. Back at home, Katniss' best friend Gale has to fight jealousy as he watches Peeta and Katniss grow closer as a couple.
Katniss makes a friend in the arena called Rue but a dangerous plan ends with her dead. Katniss sets out to find Peeta once it is announced that two victors from the same district can go home only to to find him seriously wounded. Katniss enters all sorts of dangerous situations to nurse him back to life and begins to find she has real feelings for him but not everyone sees her rebellious actions one of love. Will she ever be able to escape President Snow's threats?

References

2012 science fiction movies
2012 thriller movies
American science fiction movies
American thriller movies
Movies based on books
Lionsgate movies
Post-apocalyptic movies
Dystopian movies
Movies composed by James Newton Howard

The Hunger Games (movie)


A sophist () was a teacher in ancient Greece in the fifth and fourth centuries BC. Sophists specialized in one or more subject areas, such as philosophy, rhetoric, music, athletics and mathematics. They taught arete, "virtue" or "excellence", predominantly to young statesmen and nobility.

Etymology
The Greek word  is related to the noun . Since the times of Homer it commonly referred to an expert in his profession or craft. Charioteers, sculptors, or military experts could be referred to as  in their occupations. The word has gradually come to connote general wisdom and especially wisdom in human affairs such as politics, ethics, and household management. This was the meaning ascribed to the Greek Seven Sages of 7th and 6th century BC (such as Solon and Thales), and it was the meaning that appears in the histories of Herodotus.

The word  gives rise to the verb , the passive voice of which means "to become or be wise", or "to be clever or skilled". From the verb is derived the noun , which originally meant "a master of one's craft" and later "a prudent man" or "wise man". The word for "sophist" in various languages comes from .

The word "sophist" could be combined with other Greek words to form compounds. Examples include meteorosophist, which roughly translates to "expert in celestial phenomena"; gymnosophist (or "naked sophist", a word used to refer to Indian philosophers), deipnosophist or "dinner sophist" (as in the title of Athenaeus's ), and iatrosophist, a type of physician in the later Roman period.

History
In the second half of the 5th century BC, particularly in Athens, "sophist" came to denote a class of mostly itinerant intellectuals who taught courses in various subjects, speculated about the nature of language and culture, and employed rhetoric to achieve their purposes, generally to persuade or convince others. "Sophists did, however, have one important thing in common: whatever else they did or did not claim to know, they characteristically had a great understanding of what words would entertain or impress or persuade an audience." Sophists went to Athens to teach because the city was flourishing at the time. It was good employment for those good at debate, which was a speciality of the first sophists, and they received the fame and fortune they were seeking. Protagoras is generally regarded as the first of these professional sophists. Others include Gorgias, Prodicus, Hippias, Thrasymachus, Lycophron, Callicles, Antiphon, and Cratylus. A few sophists claimed that they could find the answers to all questions. Most of these sophists are known today primarily through the writings of their opponents (particularly Plato and Aristotle), which makes it difficult to assemble an unbiased view of their practices and teachings. In some cases, such as Gorgias, original rhetorical works are extant, allowing the author to be judged on his own terms, but in most cases, knowledge about what individual sophists wrote or said comes from fragmentary quotations that lack context and are usually hostile.

The Greeks were "experimenting with a new form of government, democracy" (W. Keith, 5). Therefore, they were navigating how to make decisions without a higher authority. They needed to create laws based on demand and popular vote of the people. Back in the fifth century they did not have mass media, printing presses, and barely any texts. They mostly relied on speech. This meant that "the Athenians needed a strategy for effectively talking to other people in juries, in forums, and in the senate" (W. Keith, 5). This is when the sophist began to come about. Originally known as Sicilians, they began to teach Athenians how to speak in a persuasive manner in order to work with the courts and senate. It is not really known how these Sicilians, who came to be Sophists, initially grew an interest to teach others how to speak persuasively. However, the interest in receiving training from the Sophists increased.
(The Origins of Rhetoric Keith & Lundberg)

Sophists could be described both as teachers and philosophers, having travelled about in Greece teaching their students various life skills, particularly rhetoric and public speaking. These were useful qualities of the time, during which persuasive ability had a large influence on one's political power and economic wealth. Athens became the center of the sophists' activity, due to the city's freedom of speech for non-slave citizens and its wealth of resources. The sophists as a group had no set teachings, and they lectured on subjects that were as diverse as semantics and rhetoric, to ontology, and epistemology. Most sophists claimed to teach arete ("excellence" or "virtue") in the management and administration of not only one's affairs, but the city's as well. Before the 5th century BC, it was believed that aristocratic birth qualified a person for arete and politics. However, Protagoras, who is regarded as the first sophist, argued that arete was the result of training rather than birth.

Major figures
Most of what is known about sophists comes from commentaries from others. In some cases, such as Gorgias, some of his works survive, allowing the author to be judged on his own terms. In one case, the Dissoi logoi, an important sophist text survived but knowledge of its author has been lost. However, most knowledge of sophist thought comes from fragmentary quotations that lack context. Many of these quotations come from Aristotle, who seems to have held the sophists in slight regard.

Protagoras

Protagoras was one of the best known and most successful sophists of his era; however, some later philosophers, such as Sextus Empiricus treat him as a founder of a philosophy rather than as a sophist. Protagoras taught his students the necessary skills and knowledge for a successful life, particularly in politics. He trained his pupils to argue from both points of view because he believed that truth could not be limited to just one side of the argument. Protagoras wrote about a variety of subjects and advanced several philosophical ideas, particularly in epistemology. Some fragments of his works have survived. He is the author of the famous saying, "Man is the measure of all things", which is the opening sentence of a work called Truth.

Xeniades

Xeniades was a skeptical philosopher from  Corinth, probably a follower of the pre-Socratic Xenophanes. There may have been two such persons, as he is referenced by Democritus c. 400 BC, though was also supposedly the purchaser of Diogenes the Cynic c. 350 BC,  when he was captured by pirates and sold as a slave. Xeniades was supposed to have been the man who persuaded Monimus to become a follower of Diogenes, and was the source of his skeptical doctrines. The little that is known of him is derived from Sextus Empiricus, who represents him as holding the most ultrasceptical opinions, and maintaining that all notions are false, and that there is absolutely nothing true in the universe.  He more than once couples him with Xenophanes.

Gorgias

Gorgias was a well-known sophist whose writings showcased his ability to make counter-intuitive and unpopular positions appear stronger. Gorgias authored a lost work known as On the Non-Existent, which argues that nothing exists. In it, he attempts to persuade his readers that thought and existence are different. He also wrote Encomium of Helen in which he presents all of the possible reasons for which Helen could be blamed for causing the Trojan War and refutes each one of them.

Lycophron

Lycophron is mentioned as a sophist by Aristotle, and was probably among the students of Gorgias He rejected the supposed value of an aristocratic birth, claiming that "Now the nobility of good birth is obscure, and its grandeur a matter of words." meaning that there is no factual difference between those well-born and those low-born; only words and opinion assign value to these different circumstances of birth. This statement may indicate that Lycophron shared the beliefs of Antiphon, that (regardless of their ancestry) both Greeks and barbarians are born with the same capacities: An egalitarian belief that was a minority view in the 5th century BC. He is also known for his statement (reproduced by Aristotle, in the latter's Politics, 1280b10), that "law is only a convention, a surety to another of justice". Also translated as "a guarantor of men's rights against one another". He, thus, believed that law is a matter of agreement, a social convention and not a natural or universal standard (there is no evidence that Lycophron rejected the idea that law is a universal standard – indeed his view appears far more universalist than that of Aristotle, in that Lycophron proposes a single standard, what would now be called the non aggression principle, in relation to all states). In this respect his views on law are similar to those of Protagoras. This means that he treats law as a mere means, in the context of a (perhaps primitive) social contract theory, without considering it as something special, in contradistinction to, e.g., Plato but similar to both Thrasymachus and Callicles, albeit that their theories have – as far as can be ascertained from the information available about them – more specific characteristics.

Criticism

Many sophists taught their skills for a price. Due to the importance of such skills in the litigious social life of Athens, practitioners often commanded very high fees. The sophists' practice of questioning the existence and roles of traditional deities and investigating into the nature of the heavens and the earth prompted a popular reaction against them. As there was a popular view of Socrates as a sophist, he was among the targets (which prompted a vigorous condemnation from his followers, including Plato and Xenophon). For example, in the comic play The Clouds, Aristophanes criticizes the sophists as hairsplitting wordsmiths, and makes Socrates their representative. Such criticism,  coupled with the wealth garnered by many sophist practitioners, eventually led to popular resentment against sophists and the ideas and writings associated with sophism.

Aristophanes
The comic playwright Aristophanes, a contemporary of the sophists, criticized the sophists as hairsplitting wordsmiths. Aristophanes, however, made no distinction between sophists and philosophers, and showed either of them as willing to argue any position for the right fee. In Aristophanes's comedic play The Clouds, Strepsiades seeks the help of Socrates (a parody of the actual philosopher) in an effort to avoid paying his debts. In the play, Socrates promises to teach Strepsiades' son to argue his way out of paying his debts.

Socrates
An ongoing debate is centered on the difference between the sophists, who charged for their services, and Socrates, who did not. Instead of giving instruction Socrates professed a self-effacing and questioning posture, exemplified by what is known as the Socratic method (although Diogenes Laërtius wrote that Protagoras, a sophist, invented this method). Socrates' attitude towards the sophists was not entirely oppositional. In one dialogue Socrates even stated that the sophists were better educators than he was, which he validated by sending one of his students to study under a sophist. W. K. C. Guthrie classified Socrates as a sophist in his History of Greek Philosophy.

Isocrates
One of the few speeches that have survived from ancient Greece is Isocrates' Against the Sophists. The speech offers scathing criticisms against sophist teachers and their failures.

While a sophist himself, Isocrates sought to distinguish his school's pedagogical focus from other sophistic teachings. In particular, Isocrates wanted to establish an institution that educated Athenian students in a manner that would promote the success of Athenian democracy. By developing a school in Athens around 392 BCE, approximately five years after Plato opened his Platonic Academy, Isocrates gave sophism more credibility in society.

Plato
As only small portions of the sophists' writings have survived they are mainly known through the works of Plato. Plato's dialogs present his generally hostile views on the sophists' thought, due to which he is largely responsible for the modern view of the sophist as an avaricious instructor who teaches deception.

Before Plato, the word "sophist" could be used as either a respectful or contemptuous title. It was in Plato's dialogue, Sophist, that the first record of an attempt to answer the question "what is a sophist?" is made. Plato described sophists as paid hunters after the young and wealthy, as merchants of knowledge, as athletes in a contest of words, and purgers of souls. From Plato's assessment of sophists it could be concluded that sophists do not offer true knowledge, but only an opinion of things. Plato describes them as shadows of the true, saying, "the art of contradiction making, descended from an insincere kind of conceited mimicry, of the semblance-making breed, derived from image making, distinguished as portion, not divine but human, of production, that presents, a shadow play of words—such are the blood and the lineage which can, with perfect truth, be assigned to the authentic sophist". Plato sought to distinguish sophists from philosophers, arguing that a sophist was a person who made his living through deception, whereas a philosopher was a lover of wisdom who sought the truth. To give the philosophers greater credence, Plato gave the sophists a negative connotation.

Plato depicts Socrates as refuting sophists in several dialogues. These texts often depict the sophists in an unflattering light, and it is unclear how accurate or fair Plato's representation of them may be; however, Protagoras and Prodicus are portrayed in a largely positive light in Protagoras. Protagoras argued that "man is the measure of all things", meaning man decides for himself what he is going to believe. The works of Plato and Aristotle have had much influence on the modern view of the "sophist" as a greedy instructor who uses rhetorical sleight-of-hand and ambiguities of language in order to deceive, or to support fallacious reasoning. In this view, the sophist is not concerned with truth and justice, but instead seeks power.

Some scholars, such as Ugo Zilioli argue that the sophists held a relativistic view on cognition and knowledge. However, this may involve the Greek word "doxa", which means "culturally shared belief" rather than "individual opinion". The sophists' philosophy contains criticisms of religion, law, and ethics. Although many sophists were apparently as religious as their contemporaries, some held atheistic or agnostic views (for example, Protagoras and Diagoras of Melos).

Influence
Few writings from and about the first sophists survive. The early sophists charged money in exchange for education and providing wisdom, and so were typically employed by wealthy people. This practice resulted in the condemnations made by Plato through Socrates in his dialogues, as well as by Xenophon in his Memorabilia and, somewhat controversially, by Aristotle. As a paid tutor to Alexander the Great, Aristotle could be accused of being a sophist. Aristotle did not actually accept payment from Philip, Alexander's father, but requested that Philip reconstruct Aristotle's home town of Stageira as payment, which Philip had destroyed in a previous campaign, terms which Philip accepted. James A. Herrick wrote: "In De Oratore, Cicero blames Plato for separating wisdom and eloquence in the philosopher's famous attack on the sophists in Gorgias." Through works such as these, sophists were portrayed as "specious" or "deceptive", hence the modern meaning of the term.

Democracy
The sophists' rhetorical techniques were useful for any young nobleman seeking public office. The societal roles the sophists filled had important ramifications for the Athenian political system. The historical context provides evidence for their considerable influence, as Athens became more and more democratic during the period in which the sophists were most active.

Even though Athens was already a flourishing democracy before their arrival, the cultural and psychological contributions of the sophists played an important role in the growth of Athenian democracy. Sophists contributed to the new democracy in part by espousing expertise in public deliberation, the foundation of decision-making, which allowed—and perhaps required—a tolerance of the beliefs of others. This liberal attitude would naturally have made its way into the Athenian assembly as sophists began acquiring increasingly high-powered clients. Continuous rhetorical training gave the citizens of Athens "the ability to create accounts of communal possibilities through persuasive speech". This was important for the democracy, as it gave disparate and sometimes superficially unattractive views a chance to be heard in the Athenian assembly.

In addition, sophists had a great impact on the early development of law, as the sophists were the first lawyers in the world. Their status as lawyers was a result of their highly developed skills in argument.

Education

Athens
The sophists were the first formal teachers of the art of speaking and writing in the Western world. Their influence on education in general, and medical education in particular, has been described by Seamus Mac Suibhne. The sophists "offer quite a different epistemic field from that mapped by Aristotle", according to scholar Susan Jarratt, writer of Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Refigured.

For the sophists, the science of eloquence became a method to earn money. In order to teach their students the art of persuasion and demonstrate their thoughts, they focused on two techniques: dialectics and rhetoric. The sophists taught their students two main techniques: the usage of sophisms and contradictions. These means distinguished the speeches of the sophists from the other speakers. Contradictions (antithesis ) were important to the Sophists because they believed that a good rhetorician should be able to defend both his own opinion and the exact opposite one. In this way, was developed the ability to find clear, convincing arguments for any thesis. For the sophists, the primary purpose was to win the dispute in order to prove their excellence in word usage. They were convinced that there was no verity, but there were different opinions, equal in importance, and the "verity" was the only one that would be more convincingly demonstrated by the rhetorician.

Sophists were not limited in their speeches only to topics in which they were aware. For them, there were no topics they could not dispute, because their skill reached such a level that they were able to talk about completely unknown things to them and still impress upon listeners and the opponent. The main purpose was to pick an approach to the audience, to please it and to adapt the speech to it. Unlike Plato's approach, the Sophist rhetoricians did not focus on identifying the truth, but the most important thing for them was to prove their case.

The first sophist whose speeches are a perfect example of a sophisticated approach is Gorgias. One of his most famous speeches is the "Praise of Helen", which has made a significant contribution to rhetorical art. In this speech, Gorgias aims to make something almost impossible – to justify Helen, about whom the people have already had a negative opinion. By methods of double oppositions, stringing of repetitive positive qualities and insightful consistent arguments, Gorgias Leontynets gradually purifies the poor reputation of a woman. Later, Aristotle described the means used in Gorgias' speech as "Gorgias figures". All of these figures create the most accessible path for the audience to the argument offered, varying depending on the type of speech and audience.

Rome
The classical tradition of rhetoric and composition refers more to philosophers such as Aristotle, Cicero, and Quintilian than to the sophists. Owing largely to the influence of Plato and Aristotle, philosophy came to be regarded as distinct from sophistry, the latter being regarded as specious and rhetorical, a practical discipline. Thus, by the time of the Roman Empire, a sophist was simply a teacher of rhetoric and a popular public speaker. For instance, Libanius, Himerius, Aelius Aristides, and Fronto were sophists in this sense. However, despite the opposition from philosophers Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, it is clear that sophists had a vast influence on a number of spheres, including the growth of knowledge and on ethical-political theory. Their teachings had a huge influence on thought in the 5th century BC. The sophists focused on the rational examination of human affairs and the betterment and success of human life. They argued that gods could not be the explanation of human action.

Many rhetoricians during this period were instructed under specialists in Greek rhetorical studies as part of their standard education. Cicero, a prominent rhetorician during this period in Roman history, is one such example of the influence of the Second Sophistic on Roman education. His early life coincided with the suppression of Latin rhetoric in Roman education under the edicts of Crassus and Domitius. Cicero was instructed in Greek rhetoric throughout his youth, as well as in other subjects of the Roman rubric under Archias. Cicero benefited in his early education from favorable ties to Crassus.

In his writings, Cicero is said to have shown a "synthesis that he achieved between Greek and Roman culture" summed up in his work De Oratore. Despite his oratorical skill, Cicero pressed for a more liberal education in Roman instruction which focused more in the broad sciences including Roman history. He entitled this set of sciences as politior humanitas (2.72). Regardless of his efforts toward this end, Greek history was still preferred by the majority of aristocratic Romans during this time.

From the late 1st century AD the Second Sophistic, a philosophical and rhetorical movement, was the chief expression of intellectual life. The term "Second Sophistic" comes from Philostratus, who, rejecting the term "New Sophistic", traced the beginnings of the movement to the orator Aeschines in the 4th century BC. But its earliest representative was really Nicetas of Smyrna, in the late 1st century AD. Unlike the original Sophistic movement of the 5th century BC, the Second Sophistic was little concerned with politics. But it was, to a large degree, to meet the everyday needs and respond to the practical problems of Greco-Roman society. It came to dominate higher education and left its mark on many forms of literature. Lucian, himself a writer of the Second Sophistic, even calls Jesus "that crucified sophist".

During the Second Sophistic, the Greek discipline of rhetoric heavily influenced Roman education. During this time Latin rhetorical studies were banned for the precedent of Greek rhetorical studies. In addition, Greek history was preferred for educating the Roman elites above that of their native Roman history.

Modern usage

In modern usage, sophism, sophist, and sophistry are used disparagingly. A sophism, or sophistry, is a fallacious argument, especially one used deliberately to deceive. A sophist is a person who reasons with clever but fallacious and deceptive arguments.

See also

Notes

References
 Blackwell, Christopher. Demos: Classical Athenian Democracy. 28 February 2003. The Stoa: a Consortium for Scholarly Publication in the Humanities. 25 April 2007.
 Clarke, M.L. "Cicero at School". Greece & Rome, Second Series, Vol. 15, No. 1 (Apr., 1968), pp. 18–22; Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Classical Association;
 Eyre, J.J. "Roman Education in the Late Republic and Early Empire". Greece & Rome,Second Series, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Mar., 1963), pp. 47–59, Published by: Cambridge University Press;
 Guthrie, W. K. C. Vol. 3 of History of Greek Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1969
 Jarratt, Susan C. Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Refigured. Carbondale and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991.
 Kerferd, G. B., The Sophistic Movement, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 1981 ().

 Rosen, Stanley, Plato's 'Sophist', The Drama of Original and Image, Yale University Press, New Haven, CT, 1983.
 Sprague, Rosamond Kent, The Older Sophists, Hackett Publishing Company ().
 Herrick, James A. The History and Theory of Rhetoric: An Introduction. Boston: Allyn and Beacon, 2005. Print
 McKay, Brett, and Kate McKay. "Classical Rhetoric 101: A Brief History." The Art of Manliness RSS. The Art of Manliness, 30 Nov. 2010. Web.

Further reading
 Corey, D. 2002. "The Case against Teaching Virtue for Pay: Socrates and the Sophists." History of Political Thought 23:189–210.
 Dillon, J., and T. Gergel. 2003. The Greek Sophists. London: Penguin.
 Gibert, J. 2002. "The Sophists." In The Blackwell Guide to Ancient Philosophy. Edited by C. Shields, 27–50. Oxford: Blackwell.
 Montiglio, S. 2000. "Wandering Philosophers in Classical Greece." Journal of Hellenic Studies 120:86–105.
 Robinson, E. 2007. "The Sophists and Democracy beyond Athens." Rhetorica 25:109–122.

External links

Plato's Dialogue: Sophist

Ancient Greek educators
Presocratic philosophy

Sophist


Sonnino is a town and comune in the province of Latina, in the Lazio region of central Italy.

It is the birthplace of Italian national team footballer Alessandro Altobelli, and Roman Catholic archbishop Velasio de Paolis.

History
Originating in the Early Middle Ages (the name deriving perhaps from the Latin sommum, meaning "top"), Sonnino is mentioned for the first time in a Papal bull from 999. It was held first by the De Sompnino, and was acquired by Onorato I Caetani in 1369. The castle was inhabited by the Caetani d'Aragona until they sold it in 1469 to the Colonna, who were later followed by the Antonelli and the Talani families.

In July 1819 Cardinal Ercole Consalvi, Secretary of State at the Vatican, ordered Sonnino to be razed to the ground as it had become a notorious haunt of the banditi in the Campagna di Roma.

Twin towns
 Eysines, France, since 1997
 Kanal ob Soči, Slovenia, since 2003
 Binasco, Italy, since 2009

References

Sonnino


Cunningham's Camp Escalator was a moving seated escalator open c. 1919 to 1968 from a short distance behind the promenade in Douglas, Isle of Man, to Cunningham's holiday camp on Victoria Road.

Although sometimes described as a 'chairlift', this was a ground-level escalator covered by a roof, albeit with seats, rather than an overhead chairlift as used in ski resorts.

Cunningham's camp, one of the earliest holiday camps in the British Isles (pre-dating Butlins), opened around 1902 and initially had only steps leading to it from the seafront. The escalator was installed just after the First World War. It is thought to have been built by JT Skillicorn of Onchan. In 1938, a second escalator was provided, both working in only the up direction and running within a wooden shelter.

The escalator last functioned in 1968, after which it was closed off but not demolished. In the 1990s the entrance was bricked over owing to the site being the target of vandalism. Since that time visitors can only view the large red brick and stone archway midway up Little Switzerland Road (site of today's Edelweiss Hotel). Behind the facade remain the turnstiles, and toilets with ceramic tiles and copper pipework, before reaching the approach steps to the escalator.  The fascinating design is split into two parts, an "up" and "down" section, and each has its own set of moving wooden seats accompanied by steps for the more energetic.

The system has been left to decay since closure, particularly since being bricked up. At the start of 2013 it was announced that it is to be demolished.

See also
Transport on the Isle of Man

References

External links

Transport in the Isle of Man
Aerial lifts

Cunningham's Camp Escalator


Religious Education at Brigham Young University (BYU) (formerly called the College of Religious Education) administers programs related to Latter-day Saint religious teaching at the university.  In the past, it has granted various master's and Doctor of Religious Education degrees.  Currently its only degree programs are a Master of Arts (MA) in religious education, primarily aimed at full-time Church Educational System employees, and an MA program for military chaplains. Most students who take courses with Religious Education are studying other topics, since BYU undergraduate students have to take the equivalent of one religion course per semester.

Departments
Religious Education at BYU consists of two departments, Church History and Doctrine and Ancient Scripture.  Church History and Doctrine focuses on courses related to the Doctrine and Covenants, missionary work, the religious history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and temples.  These courses focus primarily on doctrines and theology and are largely devotional in nature.  BYU also offers more historically oriented courses related to LDS Church history through its history department, some of which are taught by faculty members whose main appointment is with the religion department.

The department of Ancient Scripture teaches courses related to the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon and the Pearl of Great Price.

The work of Religious Education faculty members is often published by its publication arm, the Religious Studies Center, or through BYU's Neal A. Maxwell Institute.

Religious Education is not designated as a college.  It has approximately 70 full-time faculty members.  The current dean is Daniel K Judd, with recent predecessors including Brent L. Top, Terry Ball, Andrew Skinner, and Robert L. Millet.

History
Prior to 1929 religion-related instruction at BYU was termed theology.  In that year it was renamed religious education.  George H. Brimhall, who was the president emeritus was the only full-time religion instructor before 1930.  Other classes in religion were taught by faculty from other fields.  Having faculty with their main expertise in other fields teach religion is still done at BYU, but the full-time religion faculty is now much more numerous.

Guy C. Wilson, an alumnus of BYU, the University of Chicago, and Columbia University was hired as the director of BYU's religious education program in 1930.  Wilson had also been the first seminary teacher ever.  In the early 1930s, Sidney B. Sperry and Russel Swensen, also University of Chicago alumni, were added as full-time religion faculty.

In 1932, the department of religious education was made part of the BYU College of Education.  In 1940 the department was split off and made the Division of Religious Instruction, a college-level entity, with J. Wyley Sessions as its first head.  The division was divided into four sections, Bible and Modern Scripture (Sperry as head), Church Organization and Administration (Wesley Lloyd as head), Church History (Swensen as head), and Theology (Sessions as head).

In 1946, the BYU Department of Archeology was organized as part of the Division of Religious Instruction.  In about 1953, that department was moved to the BYU College of Humanities and Social Sciences.  The section or department of theology was renamed in 1952 to the Department of Theology and Religious Philosophy.  Its name was later shortened to Department of Theology and Philosophy.

In 1959, the Division of Religious Instruction was renamed to the College of Religious Instruction.  David H. Yarn, an alumnus of BYU and Columbia University was chosen as the first dean.  All the departments were reformatted or renamed at that point.  The Bible and Modern Scripture Department retained its name, but a new Biblical Languages department was formed that absorbed some of that department's old components.  The Theology and Philosophy and the Church History departments were merged into the History and Philosophy of Religions Department.  The Church Organization and Administration Department was renamed the LDS Theology, Church Organizations and Administration Department.  This last was the shortest lived of the changes, it was renamed in 1961 to the Theology and Church Administration Department.  In 1964, the college was reduced to two departments.  Biblical Literature was moved to the BYU College of Humanities.  The remaining departments were re-organized into the Undergraduate Studies in Religious Instruction and the Graduate Studies in Religious Instruction Departments.  This organization persisted until 1973, when the college was again renamed to being the Department of Ancient Scripture and the Department of Church History and Doctrine.  In 1969, BYU created a philosophy department outside of the College of Religious Instruction.

The 1973 organization of the current departments also saw the program designated as Religious Instruction with no other modifiers.

Notes

References
  Vol. 2, p. 286-295; Vol 3, p. 112-117; Vol. 4, p. 181-197

External links
BYU Religious Education website

Religious Education
Universities and colleges established in 1940
University subdivisions in Utah
1940 establishments in Utah

BYU Religious Education


Kishiwada Danjiri festival( 岸和田だんじり祭り) is a festival which is held in Kishiwada, located in southern Osaka,  in Japan for abundant crops. There are some differnet Danjiri matsuri festivals in western Japan region, but Kishiwada one is the biggest. People pull Danjiri float , run, walk and play some traditional instrument.   The date which it is held is on saturday and Sunday just before the Respect-for-the Aged Day Holiday of September.

Food
There are some special foods for this festival. Some people invite their relative or friends and make blue crabs, Kantoudaki and Kurumimochi. People in Kishiwada eat a blue swimming crabs which is caught in the sea near Senshu which is located in south Osaka. The best time of catching crabs coincidents with the festival so people had degun to eat it. Kantoudaki is a japanese food in which variety of ingredients such as egg, radish potatoes, octopus, beef are boiled together in a large pot of seasoned fish broth. It is easy to make a lot at one time so many people cook this dish in Danjiri festival. Kurumimochi is a kind of a rice cake covered with ground walnuts. This is a local sweet in Osaka, and people eat this for huge harvest.

Organization
the management of this festival is organized by some neighborhood associations in each town. There is an association for Danjiri in each town in parallel with women's association and child association. there are some roles in this organization. The leader is called is called Tyoukaichou( 町会長), and the person who assumes heavy responsibility. When some incident happen or the accident has caused someone's death, Tyoukaityou is reponsible. He rides in front of Danjiri float. The leader pulling Danjiri is called Eikousekininnsha(曳行責任者. He is the highest ranking person and he is also in front of Danjiri float.

References

Festivals in Japan

Kishiwada Danjiri Festival