After the fall of the Soviet Union🚨two of the major institutions dealing with political science

In 2000🚨the Perestroika Movement in political science was introduced as a reaction against what supporters of the movement called the mathematicization of political science. Those who identified with the movement argued for a plurality of methodologies and approaches in political science and for more relevance of the discipline to those outside of it.[18]

Evolutionary psychology theories argue that humans have evolved a highly developed set of psychological mechanisms for dealing with politics. However🚨these mechanisms evolved for dealing with the small group politics that characterized the ancestral environment and not the much larger political structures in today's world. This is argued to explain many important features and systematic cognitive biases of current politics.[19]

Political science🚨possibly like the social sciences as a whole

Most United States colleges and universities offer B.A. programs in political science. M.A. or M.A.T. and Ph.D. or Ed.D. programs are common at larger universities. The term political science is more popular in North America than elsewhere; other institutions🚨especially those outside the United States

The national honor society for college and university students of government and politics in the United States is Pi Sigma Alpha.🚨

Most political scientists work broadly in one or more of the following five areas:🚨

Some political science departments also classify methodology as well as scholarship on the domestic politics of a particular country as distinct fields. In the United States🚨American politics is often treated as a separate subfield.

In contrast to this traditional classification🚨some academic departments organize scholarship into thematic categories

As a social science🚨contemporary political science started to take shape in the latter half of the 19th century. At that time it began to separate itself from political philosophy

temperate Oceanic climate with a mild summer, cool winter, and regular moderate rainfall🚨Christchurch (/?kra?st???rt?/; Mori: tautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. The Christchurch urban area lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula. It is home to 396,700 residents,[2] making it New Zealand's third most-populous city behind Auckland and Wellington. The Avon River flows through the centre of the city, with an urban park located along its banks. At the request of the Deans brotherswhose farm was the earliest settlement in the areathe river was named after the River Avon in Scotland, which rises in the Ayrshire hills near to where their grandfather's farm was located.[3] Archaeological evidence has indicated that the Christchurch area was first settled by humans about 1250. Christchurch became a city by Royal Charter on 31 July 1856, making it officially the oldest established city in New Zealand. The Canterbury Association, which settled the Canterbury Plains, named the city after Christ Church, Oxford. The new settlement was laid out in a grid pattern centred on Cathedral Square; during the 19th century there were few barriers to the rapid growth of the urban area, except for the Pacific to the east and the Port Hills to the south. Agriculture is the historic mainstay of Christchurch's economy. The early presence of the University of Canterbury and the heritage of the city's academic institutions in association with local businesses has fostered a number of technology-based industries. The city suffered a series of earthquakes between September 2010 and early 2012, with the most destructive of them occurring at 12.51 p.m. on Tuesday, 22 February 2011, in which 185 people were killed and thousands of buildings across the city collapsed or suffered severe damage. By late 2013, 1,500 buildings in the city had been demolished, leading to an ongoing recovery and rebuilding project. The name of "Christchurch" was agreed on at the first meeting of the Canterbury Association on 27 March 1848. It was suggested by founder John Robert Godley, whose alma mater was Christ Church, Oxford.[4] The Mori name tautahi ("the place of Tautahi") was adopted in the 1930; originally it was the name of a specific site by the Avon River near present-day Kilmore Street.[5] The site was a seasonal dwelling of Ngi Tahu chief Te Potiki Tautahi, whose main home was Port Levy on Banks Peninsula. Prior to that the Ngi Tahu generally referred to the Christchurch area as Karaitiana,[6] a transliteration of the English word Christian. Archaeological evidence found in a cave at Redcliffs in 1876 has indicated that the Christchurch area was first settled by moa-hunting tribes about 1250 CE. These first inhabitants were thought to have been followed by the Waitaha tribe, who are said to have migrated from the East coast of the North Island in the 16th century. Following tribal warfare, the Waitaha (made of three peoples) were dispossessed by the Ngati Mamoe tribe. They were in turn subjugated by the Ngi Tahu tribe, who remained in control until the arrival of European settlers. Following the purchase of land at Putaringamotu (modern Riccarton) by the Weller brothers, whalers of Otago and Sydney, a party of European settlers led by Herriott and McGillivray established themselves in what is now Christchurch, early in 1840. Their abandoned holdings were taken over by the Deans brothers[7] in 1843 who stayed. The First Four Ships were chartered by the Canterbury Association and brought the first 792 of the Canterbury Pilgrims to Lyttelton Harbour. These sailing vessels were the Randolph, Charlotte Jane, Sir George Seymour, and Cressy. The Charlotte Jane was the first to arrive on 16 December 1850. The Canterbury Pilgrims had aspirations of building a city around a cathedral and college, on the model of Christ Church in Oxford.[8] The name "Christ Church" was decided prior to the ships' arrival, at the Association's first meeting, on 27 March 1848. The exact basis for the name is not known. It has been suggested that it is named for Christchurch, in Dorset, England; for Canterbury Cathedral; or in honour of Christ Church, Oxford. The last explanation is the one generally accepted.[9] Captain Joseph Thomas, the Canterbury Association's Chief Surveyor, surveyed the surrounding area. By December 1849 he had commissioned the construction of a road from Port Cooper, later Lyttelton, to Christchurch via Sumner.[10] However this proved more difficult than expected and road construction was stopped while a steep foot and pack horse track was constructed over the hill between the port and the Heathcote valley, where access to the site of the proposed settlement could be gained. This track became known as the Bridle Path, because the path was so steep that pack horses needed to be led by the bridle.[11] Goods that were too heavy or bulky to be transported by pack horse over the Bridle Path were shipped by small sailing vessels some eight miles (13?km) by water around the coast and up the estuary to Ferrymead. New Zealand's first public railway line, the Ferrymead Railway, opened from Ferrymead to Christchurch in 1863. Due to the difficulties in travelling over the Port Hills and the dangers associated with shipping navigating the Sumner bar, a railway tunnel was bored through the Port Hills to Lyttelton, opening in 1867.[12] Christchurch became a city by royal charter on 31 July 1856, the first in New Zealand. Many of the city's Gothic Revival buildings by architect Benjamin Mountfort date from this period. Christchurch was the seat of provincial administration for the Province of Canterbury, which was abolished in 1876. In 1947, New Zealand's worst fire disaster occurred at Ballantyne's Department Store in the inner city, with 41 people killed in a blaze which razed the rambling collection of buildings.[13] The Lyttelton road tunnel between Lyttelton and Christchurch was opened in 1964.[14] Christchurch hosted the 1974 British Commonwealth Games. Christchurch has a history of involvement in Antarctic exploration ÿ both Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton used the port of Lyttelton as a departure point for expeditions, and in the central city there is a statue of Scott sculpted by his widow, Kathleen Scott. Within the city, the Canterbury Museum preserves and exhibits many historic artefacts and stories of Antarctic exploration. On Saturday 4 September 2010, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck Christchurch and the central Canterbury region at 4:35?am. Located near Darfield, west of the city at a depth of 10 kilometres (6.2?mi), it caused widespread damage to the city and minor injuries, but no direct fatalities.[16][17][18] Nearly six months later on Tuesday 22 February 2011, a second earthquake measuring magnitude 6.3 struck the city at 12:51?pm. It was located closer to the city, near Lyttelton at a depth of 5?km (3?mi).[19] Although lower on the moment magnitude scale than the previous earthquake, the intensity and violence of the ground shaking was measured to be IX (Violent), among the strongest ever recorded globally in an urban area[20] and in total 185 people were killed.[21][22] People from more than 20 countries were among the victims.[23] The city's iconic ChristChurch Cathedral was severely damaged and lost its spire.[24][25] The collapse of the CTV Building resulted in the majority of fatalities. Widespread damage across Christchurch resulted in loss of homes, major buildings and infrastructure. Significant liquefaction affected the eastern suburbs, and the total cost to insurers of rebuilding has been estimated at NZ$20ÿ30?billion.[26][27] On 13 June 2011 Christchurch was hit by two more large aftershocks. A magnitude 5.6 quake at a depth of 9?km (6?mi) hit at 1:00?pm in the general location of Sumner, Christchurch. This was followed by another quake at magnitude 6.3 with a depth of 6?km (4?mi) at 2:20?pm again in the general location of Sumner, Christchurch. There were no fatalities though it resulted in further liquefaction and building damage.[28] There were further earthquakes on 23 December 2011; the first, of magnitude 5.8 according to the US Geological Survey, 26?km (16?mi) north-east of the city at a depth of 4.7?km (2.9?mi), at 13:58, followed by several aftershocks and another earthquake of magnitude 6.0 and similar location 80 minutes later, with more aftershocks expected.[29][30] St John Ambulance reported after the two quakes that there were minor injuries at homes and businesses but no serious injuries and few indications of building collapses at the time.[31] Christchurch Airport was briefly closed. There were power and water outages at New Brighton and severe damage to the Parklands region, including roads and footpaths. Christchurch was again rattled awake on 2 January 2012; the first; a magnitude 5.1 struck at 01:27 followed five minutes later by a magnitude 4.2 aftershock; a second larger earthquake struck at 05:45 with a magnitude of 5.5. This caused power outages to the eastern suburbs of Parklands, New Brighton, Shirley, Dallington, Burwood, Spencerville and Richmond; this affected around 10,000 homes.[32] 4,558 earthquakes were recorded in the Canterbury region above a magnitude 3.0, from 4 September 2010 to 3 September 2014.[33] Following the earthquakes over 1500 buildings in the city had been demolished or partly demolished by September 2013.[34] The city has been experiencing rapid growth following the earthquakes, with the central city rebuild, which is outlined in the Christchurch Central Recovery Plan, starting to ramp up, and massive growth in the residential sector, with around 50,000 new houses expected to be constructed in the Greater Christchurch area by 2028, as outlined in the Land Use Recovery Plan (LURP). On 13 February 2017, two bush fires started on the Port Hills. These merged over the next two days and the single very large wild fire extended down both sides of the Port Hill almost reaching Governors Bay in the south-west, and the Westmorland, Kennedys Bush, and Dyers Pass Road almost down to the Sign of the Takahe. Eleven houses were destroyed by fire, over one thousand residents were evacuated from their homes, and over 2,076 hectares (5,130 acres) of land has been burned.[35] Christchurch lies in Canterbury, near the centre of the east coast of the South Island, east of the Canterbury Plains. It is located near the southern end of Pegasus Bay, and is bounded to the east by the Pacific Ocean coast and the estuary of the Avon and Heathcote Rivers. To the south and south-east the urban portion of the city is limited by the volcanic slopes of the Port Hills separating it from Banks Peninsula. To the north the city is bounded by the braided Waimakariri River. Christchurch is one of only eight pairs of cities in the world that have near-exact antipodal cities. Half of these antipodal pairs are in New Zealand and Spain/Moroccoÿwith A Coru?a, Spain as Christchurch's antipode. Christchurch is one of a group of only four cities in the world to have been carefully planned following the same layout of a central city square, four complementing city squares surrounding it and a parklands area that embrace the city centre. The first city built with this pattern was Philadelphia. Later came Savannah and Adelaide, before Christchurch. Christchurch has one of the highest-quality water supplies in the world, with its water rated among the purest and cleanest in the world.[36] Untreated, naturally filtered water is sourced, via more than 50 pumping stations surrounding the city, from aquifers emanating from the foothills of the Southern Alps.[37] At the city's centre is Cathedral Square, surrounding the now-earthquake-damaged ÿ landmark Anglican cathedral, Christ Church. The area around this square and within the Four Avenues of Christchurch (Bealey Avenue, Fitzgerald Avenue, Moorhouse Avenue and Deans Avenue[38]) is considered to be the central business district (CBD) of the city. The central city also has a number of residential areas, including Inner City East, Inner City West, Avon Loop, Moa Neighbourhood and Victoria, but many of the residential buildings in the CBD were demolished following the February 2011 earthquakes. Cathedral Square is located at the crossing of two major central streets, Colombo Street and Worcester Street. Cathedral Square, the heart of the city, hosted attractions such as (until the February 2011 earthquake)[39] the Wizard of New Zealand, Ian Brackenbury Channell, and evangelist Ray Comfort; regular market days; free standing food and coffee carts; an aquarium, pubs and restaurants and the city's chief tourist information centre. it is expected that activities in Cathedral Square will increase as the rebuild progresses. The Wizard of New Zealand now operates from New Regent Street.[40] The central city also includes the pedestrianised sections of Cashel and High streets commonly known pre-earthquakes as 'City Mall'. Refurbished in 2008/09 the mall featured especially designed seating, flower and garden boxes, more trees, paving, and an extension to the central city tram route. The tram route extension was nearly complete when the February 2011 earthquake struck. Following the earthquakes, most buildings in Cashel Mall were demolished. A shopping area called Re:START opened on Cashel Street adjacent to Ballantyne's Department Store in October 2011. The Re:START mall is made of colourful shipping containers that have been converted to house retail stores. The Bridge of Remembrance commemorating war dead stands at the western end of the mall, was repaired rededicated on Anzac Day, Monday 25 April 2016.[41][42] The Cultural Precinct[43] provided a backdrop to a vibrant scene of ever-changing arts, cultural, and heritage attractions within an area of less than one square kilometre. The Arts Centre, the Canterbury Museum and the Art Gallery are located in the Cultural Precinct. The majority of the activities were free and a printable map was provided. There areas are slowly being reopened follow earthquake repair and strengthening work. In 2010, the Christchurch City Council released "A City For People Action Plan", a programme of work through to 2022 to improve public spaces within the central city to entice more inner city residents and visitors. A primary action was to reduce the impact of motorised private vehicles and increase the comfort of pedestrians and cyclists. The plan was based on a report prepared for the council by renowned Danish design firm Gehl Architects. Since the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake Wellington architect Ian Athfield has been selected to re-plan, although many varied suggestions have been promoted for rebuilding the central city.[44][45][46][47] The Central City, which was fully closed off following 22 February earthquake, opened in stages and was fully reopened in June 2013. There are still some streets closed off due to earthquake damage, infrastructure repair work, and damaged buildings.[48] (clockwise, starting north of the city centre) (clockwise, starting north of the city centre) Christchurch has a temperate Oceanic climate with a mild summer, cool winter, and regular moderate rainfall. It has mean daily maximum air temperatures of 22.5?C (73?F) in January and 11.3?C (52?F) in July.[49] Under the K?ppen climate classification, Christchurch has an oceanic climate (Cfb). Summer in the city is mostly warm but is often moderated by a sea breeze from the Northeast. A record temperature of 41.6?C (107?F) was reached in February 1973. A notable feature of the weather is the nor'wester, a hot f?hn wind that occasionally reaches storm force, causing widespread minor damage to property.[50] Like many cities, Christchurch experiences an urban heat island effect; temperatures are slightly higher within the inner city regions compared to the surrounding countryside.[51] In winter it is common for the temperature to fall below 0?C (32?F) at night. There are on average 80 days of ground frost per year.[52] Snowfalls occur on average three times per year, although in some years no snowfall is recorded.[53] The coldest temperature recorded was ?7.1?C (19?F) on 18 July 1945, the third lowest recorded temperature of New Zealand's major cities.[53][54] On cold winter nights, the surrounding hills, clear skies, and frosty calm conditions often combine to form a stable inversion layer above the city that traps vehicle exhausts and smoke from domestic fires to cause smog. While not as bad as smog in Los Angeles or Mexico City, Christchurch smog has often exceeded World Health Organisation recommendations for air pollution.[55] To limit air pollution, the regional council banned the use of open fires in the city in 2006.[56] In 2008 council prohibited the use of woodburners more than 15 years old, while making funding available to upgrade domestic home heating systems.[57] The area administered by the Christchurch City Council has a population of 381,500 (June 2017),[2] making it the second-largest in New Zealand, and the largest city in the South Island. The Christchurch urban area at 396,700 is the third-largest in the country by population, after Auckland and Wellington. The urban area differs from the city by including Kaiapoi in the Waimakariri District and Prebbleton in the Selwyn District, while excluding most of the Banks Peninsula. The following table shows the ethnic profile of Christchurch's population, as recorded in the 2001 and 2006 New Zealand census. The percentages add up to more than 100%, as some people counted themselves as belonging to more than one ethnic group. Figures for 2006 refer to just Christchurch City, not the whole urban area. The substantial percentage drop in the numbers of 'Europeans' was mainly caused by the increasing numbers of people from this group choosing to define themselves as 'New Zealanders'ÿeven though this was not one of the groups listed on the census form. Approximately 62% of the South Island's Pacific Islander community reside in Christchurch and the surrounding Canterbury region, equalling approximately 11,500 people.[64] People of Samoan descent comprise about half the Pacific Islander population.[64] There are also smaller communities of Cook Islanders, Fijians, Niueans, Tokelauans and Tongans residing in the city.[64] The 2006 Census also provides information about the multilinguality of the region. Of those people in Christchurch City who provided data, 86% spoke one language only, 12% spoke two, and 2% could converse in three or more languages.[66] The agricultural industry has always been the economic core of Christchurch.[67] The city has long had industry based on the surrounding farming country ÿ part of the original "package" New Zealand was sold to immigrants as.[68] PGG Wrightson, New Zealand's leading agribusiness, is based in Christchurch.[69] Its local roots go back to Pyne Gould Guinness, an old stock and station agency serving the South Island.[70] Other agribusinesses in Christchurch have included malting, seed development and dressing, wool and meat processing, and small biotechnology operations using by-products from meat works.[67] Dairying has grown strongly in the surrounding areas with high world prices for milk products and the use of irrigation to lift grass growth on dry land. With its higher labour use this has helped stop declines in rural population. Many cropping and sheep farms have been converted to dairying. Conversions have been by agribusiness companies as well as by farmers, many of whom have moved south from North Island dairying strongholds such as Taranaki and the Waikato. Cropping has always been important in the surrounding countryside. Wheat and barley and various strains of clover and other grasses for seed exporting have been the main crops. These have all created processing businesses in Christchurch. In recent years, regional agriculture has diversified, with a thriving wine industry springing up at Waipara, and beginnings of new horticulture industries such as olive production and processing. Deer farming has led to new processing using antlers for Asian medicine and aphrodisiacs. The high quality local wine in particular has increased the appeal of Canterbury and Christchurch to tourists.[71] Christchurch is the second largest manufacturing centre in New Zealand behind Auckland, the sector being the second largest contributor to the local economy,[72] with firms such as Anderson's making steel work for bridges, tunnels, and hydro-electric dams in the early days of infrastructure work. Now manufacturing is mainly of light products and the key market is Australia, with firms such as those pioneered by the Stewart family among the larger employers. Before clothing manufacture largely moved to Asia, Christchurch was the centre of the New Zealand clothing industry, with firms such as LWR Industries. The firms that remain mostly design and market, and manufacture in Asia. The city also had five footwear manufacturers, but these have been replaced by imports. In the last few decades, technology-based industries have sprung up in Christchurch.[73] Angus Tait founded Tait Electronics, a mobile-radio manufacturer, and other firms spun off from this, such as Dennis Chapman's Swichtec. In software, Cantabrian Gil Simpson founded a company that made LINC and Jade programming languages and a management buyout spawned local firm Wynyard Group. There have also been spin-offs from the electrical department of the University of Canterbury engineering school. These included Pulse Data, which became Human Ware (making reading devices and computers for blind people and those with limited vision) and CES Communications (encryption). The Pulse Data founders had moved from the Canterbury University engineering school to work for Wormald Inc. when they set up Pulse Data through a Management buyout of their division.[citation needed] In recent times, the University of Canterbury engineering school and computer science department play an important role in supplying staff and research for the technology industries, and the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology provides a flow of trained technicians and engineers. Locally and nationally, the IT sector is known not for its size (the third largest in New Zealand) but for producing innovative and entrepreneurial solutions, products and concepts.[74] Tourism is also a significant factor of the local economy. The close proximity of the ski fields and other attractions of the Southern Alps, and hotels, a casino, and an airport that meet international standards make Christchurch a stopover destination for many tourists. The city is popular with Japanese tourists,[75] with signage around Cathedral Square in Japanese. The International Antarctic Centre provides both base facilities and a museum and visitor centre focused upon current Antarctic activities. The United States Navy and latterly the United States Air National Guard, augmented by the New Zealand and Australian air forces, use Christchurch Airport as take-off for the main supply route to McMurdo and Scott Bases in Antarctica. The Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) in Christchurch, had more than 140,000 pieces of extreme cold weather (ECW) gear for issue to nearly 2,000 US Antarctic Program (USAP) participants in the 2007ÿ08 season.[76] Christchurch's local government is a democracy with various elements including: Some of the local governments in Canterbury and the NZ Transport Agency have created the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy to facilitate future urban planning.[79] Christchurch is covered by seven general electorates (Christchurch Central, Christchurch East, Ilam, Port Hills, Selwyn, Waimakariri and Wigram) and one Mori electorate (Te Tai Tonga),[80] each returning one member to the New Zealand House of Representatives. As of the New Zealand general election, 2017 there are four members of the Labour party and three members of the National party. Christchurch is home to the fourth largest school in New Zealand, co-educational state school Burnside High School, with 2519 pupils. Cashmere High School, Papanui High School and Riccarton High School are other large schools. There are four single-sex state schools: Shirley Boys' High School, Christchurch Boys' High School, Avonside Girls' High School and Christchurch Girls' High School. Christchurch is also well known for several independent schools and church schools, some of them of the traditional English public school type. These include St Thomas of Canterbury College, St Margaret's College, Christ's College, St Bede's College, Marian College, St Andrew's College, Villa Maria College and Rangi Ruru Girls' School. Less conventional schools in the city include Unlimited Paenga Tawhiti and Hagley Community College. A number of tertiary education institutions have campuses in Christchurch, or in the surrounding areas. Christchurch is served by Christchurch International Airport and by buses (local and long-distance) and trains. The local bus service, known as Metro,[81] is provided by Environment Canterbury. The car, however, remains the dominant form of transport in the city, as with the rest of New Zealand. Christchurch has an extensive bus network with bus routes serving most areas of the city and satellite towns. Nearly all bus routes travelled through the central city Bus Exchange before the earthquake but due to reduced passenger numbers since the earthquakes, especially in the central city, the bus network was reorganised to direct more localised services to 'hubs', such as major shopping centres, where they connect to the central station via core bus routes. Before the 2011 earthquakes, in addition to normal bus services, Christchurch also had a pioneering zero-fare hybrid bus service, the Shuttle, in the inner city. The service has been suspended following the earthquakes and it is unclear whether it will resume again in the future.[82] Bus services are also available leaving Christchurch, daily passenger bus services[83] operates between Dunedin and Christchurch on the State Highway 1. Historically, Christchurch has been known as New Zealand's cycling city[84] and currently still attracts about 7% of commuters cycling. The central city has very flat terrain and the Christchurch City Council has established a network of cycle lanes and paths, such as the Railway Cycleway. Post-quake public consultation on rebuilding the city expressed a strong desire for a more sustainable transport system, particularly greater use of cycling again, and this has been reflected in the Council's strategic transport plan.[85] The Christchurch City Council has committed NZ$68.5?million to build a network of modern cycleways over the next five years.[citation needed] There is a functioning Christchurch tramway system in Christchurch, but as a tourist attraction; its loop is restricted to a circuit of the central city. The trams were originally introduced in 1905 as a form of public transport, and ceased operating in 1954,[86] but returned to the inner city (as a tourist attraction) in 1995. However, following the February 2011 earthquake, the system was damaged and within the cordoned off 'Red Zone' of the central city. The tramway reopened in November 2013 on a limited route, with plans to extend the tram route in 2014, first to reopen the complete pre-earthquake circuit, and then to open the extension travelling through the Re:Start Mall and High Street, which was being constructed when the 2011 earthquake struck. There is a cable car system called the Christchurch Gondola which operates as a tourist attraction, providing transport from the Heathcote Valley to the top of Mount Cavendish in the city's south-east. Rail services, both long-distance and commuter, used to focus on the former railway station on Moorhouse avenue. Commuter trains were progressively cancelled in the 1960s and 1970s. The last such service, between Christchurch and Rangiora, ceased in 1976. After the reduction in services a new Christchurch railway station was established at Addington Junction. The Main North Line railway travels northwards via Kaikoura to Picton and is served by the TranzCoastal passenger train, while the Main South Line heads to Invercargill via Dunedin and was used by the Southerner until its cancellation in 2002. The most famous train to depart Christchurch is the TranzAlpine, which travels along the Main South Line to Rolleston and then turns onto the Midland Line, passes through the Southern Alps via the Otira Tunnel, and terminates in Greymouth on the West Coast. This trip is often regarded as one of the ten great train journeys in the world for the amazing scenery through which it passes. The TranzAlpine service is primarily a tourist service and carries no significant commuter traffic. The Christchurch International Airport serves as the major base for the New Zealand, Italian and United States Antarctic programs. Christchurch is a distinctly English city, however it contains various European elements, with strong Gothic Revival architecture. As early settlers of New Zealand, Mori culture is also prevalent in the city. It features many public open spaces and parks, river beds and cafs and restaurants situated in the city centre and surrounding suburbs. While historically most cinemas were grouped around Cathedral Square,[87] only two cinemas remain there. The Regent complex was rebuilt as 'Regent on Worcester' in 1996. In 2009 Metro Cinemas opened in Worcester Street with three screens. Only one of the first generation of suburban cinemas, the Hollywood in Sumner, remains open.[88] The largest multiplexes were the Hoyts 8 in the old railway station on Moorhouse Avenue (now demolished) and Reading Cinemas (also eight screens) in the Palms shopping centre in Shirley. Hoyts in Riccarton opened in 2005[89] with one of its screens for a time holding the record for the largest in New Zealand. The Rialto Cinemas on Moorhouse avenue specialised in international films and art house productions. The Rialto also hosted the majority of the city's various film festivals and was home to the local film society. The Rialto was closed following the February 2011 earthquake. The Christchurch Arts Centre includes two art house cinemas, Cloisters and The Academy, screening a wide selection of contemporary, classic and foreign language films. The Canterbury Film Society is active in the city.[90] The matricidal Peter Jackson film Heavenly Creatures (1994), starring Melanie Lynskey and Kate Winslet, was set in Christchurch.[91] The large number of public parks and well-developed residential gardens with many trees has given Christchurch the name of The Garden City.[92] Hagley Park and the 30-hectare (75 acre) Christchurch Botanic Gardens, founded in 1863, are in the central city, with Hagley Park being a site for sports such as golf, cricket, netball, and rugby, and for open-air concerts by local bands and orchestras. To the north of the city is the Willowbank wildlife park. Travis Wetland, an ecological restoration programme to create a wetland, is to the east of the city centre in the suburb of Burwood. Christchurch had its own regional television station Canterbury Television. CTV was first formed in 1991 and ceased broadcasting on 16 December 2016. It aired both local, national and international content, including DW-TV and Al-jazeera World. Since 19 December 2016 CTV has operated as a web-based platform under the Star Media brand. VTV, a Korean TV channel airs in Christchurch (also Auckland). It offers English content about Korea, from arirang World, and Korean-speaking content in SBS. This channel broadcasts many of the latest dramas airing in Korea. The city's main television transmitter is located atop Sugarloaf, in the Port Hills due south of the city centre, and broadcasts all major national television channels as well as the two local channels. All television channels in Christchurch have been broadcast in digital since analogue switch-off on 28 April 2013. Christchurch has one full-time professional theatre, the Court Theatre,[93] founded in 1971. Originally based in the Christchurch Arts Centre, the Court Theatre has been located in the suburb of Addington in temporary accommodation following the 2011 earthquakes. Alongside the Court, the co-operative and experimental Free Theatre Christchurch was established in 1979 and based in the Arts Centre from 1982.[94] There is also an active recreational theatre scene with community based theatre companies, such as the Christchurch Repertory Society,[95] Elmwood Players,[96] Riccarton Players,[97] and Canterbury Children's Theatre,[98] producing many quality shows. The Ngaio Marsh Theatre, located at the University of Canterbury, hosts a range of student drama groups, as well as other theatre groups. The Isaac Theatre Royal was originally opened in 1863, and has since been rebuilt four times, most recently following the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.[99] The Isaac Theatre Royal reopened to the public on 17 November 2014. The city is known for its many live acts,[100][101][102][103] has a professional symphony orchestra,[104] and is the base of professional opera company, Southern Opera.[105] Christchurch is a home for the experimental music scene of New Zealand. The town is the home to such bands as The Bats, The Narcs, Shocking Pinks and Bailter Space. There are usually buskers around the town square and Christchurch also hosts the World Buskers Festival in January each year.[citation needed] Singer/songwriter Hayley Westenra launched her international career by busking in Christchurch. Soon she was signed to Universal Music Group New Zealand, then later to Decca Label Group in London, England, where she now bases her career. Christchurch also has a Metal scene, with metal acts playing in various locations around the central city.[citation needed] Some of New Zealand's acts such as Shapeshifter, Ladi6, Tiki Taane and Truth are from Christchurch. Promoters, Venues and clubs such as Bassfreaks, The Bedford and Dux Live regularly have international and New Zealand acts within the Drum and Bass scene performing live in Christchurch, along with dance parties, raves and gigs all featuring NZ and local Drum and Bass DJs, with often two or three happening on a single night or weekend (e.g. 2010 when UK Dubstep DJ Doctor P with Crushington was playing at The Bedford, while simultaneously Concord Dawn featuring Trei and Bulletproof was playing at Ministry).[citation needed] Independent Christchurch based radio station Pulzar FM is one of the few radio stations in New Zealand that plays Drum and Bass during the day. In recent developments, hip hop has effectively landed in Christchurch.[clarification needed] In 2000, First Aotearoa Hip Hop Summit was held there. And in 2003, Christchurch's own Scribe released his debut album in New Zealand and has received five times platinum in that country, in addition to achieving two number one singles.[106][107] The Horncastle Arena is New Zealand's second largest permanent multipurpose arena, seating between 5000 and 8000, depending on configuration. It is home of the Canterbury Tactix netball side. It was the venue for the 1999 World Netball championships and has been host to many concerts in recent years. The Christchurch Town Hall auditorium (2500 seats, opened 1972) was the first major auditorium design by architects Warren and Mahoney and acoustician Marshall Day. It is still recognised as a model example of concert-hall design with an excellent modern pipe organ. The town hall is currently closed for repair after the significant damage caused by the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. Christchurch also has a casino,[108] and there are also a wide range of live music venues[100][109]some short-lived, others with decades of history. Classical music concerts are held at the Christchurch Music Centre. In late 2014 it was announced that a 284 million dollar project was underway to build a convention centre located on the block defined by Armagh Street, Oxford Terrace, Worcester Street and Colombo Street. Gloucester Street will become part of the Centre itself, but will allow for retail use and public access. The convention centre will be able to host several events at the same time; starting with space for up to 2,000 people, this will complement facilities in Auckland and Queenstown. The scheduled opening of the convention centre is uncertain.[110] Christchurch has seven sister cities around the world. They are:[116] Notes Bibliography

young adult mystery comedy novel🚨Holes is a 1998 young adult mystery comedy novel written by Louis Sachar and first published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. It won the 1998 U.S. National Book Award for Young People's Literature[1] and the 1999 Newbery Medal for the year's "most distinguished contribution to American literature for children".[2] In 2012 it was ranked number 6 among all-time children's novels in a survey published by School Library Journal.[3] Holes was adapted as a feature film of the same name by Walt Disney Pictures, and was released in 2003. Stanley Yelnats IV is a 14-year-old boy from a hard-working but poor family that is allegedly affected by a curse of bad luck, which they blame on Stanley's "no-good-dirty-rotten pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather".[4] Stanley's latest stroke of misfortune occurs when he is mistakenly convicted of the theft of a pair of athletic shoes once owned by Clyde "Sweet Feet" Livingston, which had been donated to a homeless shelter to raise money. Stanley is sent to Camp Green Lake, a juvenile imprisonment and disciplinary facility which is ironically in the middle of a sterile desert. As a punishment, the inmates of the camp have to dig 1 hole a day 5 feet wide and 5 feet deep to 'build character'. Stanley soon begins to suspect that they are not digging to build character, but rather to find something hidden beneath the dry, rocky ground. Stanley's "no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather", Elya Yelnats, is in love with a girl named Myra Menke, but a much older pig farmer named Igor Barkov also wants to marry her, offering Myra's father his heaviest pig in exchange for Myra's hand in marriage. Desperate to impress Myra and her father, Elya goes to his friend Madame Zeroni for help. She warns him that Myra is not intelligent and will not be a good wife, and advises him to move to America, as her son has. She gives him a tiny piglet, telling him to carry the piglet up a mountain every day, and let it drink from a stream while singing to it. Each day the water will make it grow bigger, and Elya will grow stronger. On the last day, after he carries the pig one last time, he must carry Madame Zeroni herself up the mountain to do the same, as he will then be strong enough to carry her. However, Zeroni warns him that if Elya does not carry her up the mountain, his family will be cursed. Elya follows her directions, and the piglet grows to a large size, but he does not carry the pig up on the final day in order to have time to clean up. Elya nearly wins Myra as his bride, but his pig is revealed to be the same weight as Igor's. Since the pigs weigh the same, Myra is given the choice between Elya and Igor, but fails to decide. When Myra has Elya and Igor try to guess what number she's thinking of in order to win her, Elya walks away in disgust. Elya, forgetting his promise to Madame Zeroni, moves to America to start a new life, falls in love, and marries, but he is beset by Zeroni's curse. The song that he sang to the piglet becomes a lullaby that is passed down among Elya's descendants, who are all named Stanley due to its palindromic relation to the name Yelnats. In the year 1888, the town of Green Lake is a flourishing lakeside community. Katherine "Kate" Barlow, the local teacher, falls in love with Sam, an African-American onion seller, while rejecting advances from wealthy resident Charles "Trout" Walker (named due to the smell of his feet). There is an uproar in the town after Hattie Parker sees Kate and Sam kissing in an alley, proclaiming God will punish them. After no children arrive at the schoolhouse the following day, a mob led by Trout Walker ransacks and burns the schoolhouse. Kate realizes that Sam is in danger of being lynched and seeks the help of the sheriff. The sheriff is drunk and states that Sam is to be hanged in accordance with the law, but will spare Sam if she gives him a kiss. Kate leaves in disgust. She finds Sam and they attempt an escape across the lake in Sam's rowboat, but Walker and the mob intercept them with Walker's motorboat, ramming the smaller vessel and sinking it. Sam is shot and killed in the water, while Kate is "rescued" against her wishes. Following the death of Sam, no rain falls ever again on the town, and the reader is asked: 'who did God punish?' Kate becomes a prominent outlaw, who leaves a kiss-mark in lipstick on her first dead victim, earning her the nickname "Kissin' Kate Barlow." Kate robs Stanley's great-grandfather, Stanley Yelnats I, of his entire fortune, but rather than kill him, she abandons him in the desert that was previously Green Lake. Miraculously, he survives after he is found by lizard and snake hunters, who believe Stanley I to be crazy. Stanley I is subsequently taken to the hospital where he stays for a number of weeks. During his hospital stay, Stanley I falls in love with the nurse that is caring for him, and the two later marry. Twenty years later, Kate returns to an old cabin on the former lakeside and is tracked down by Trout and his wife, who are bankrupt and desperate for money. They try to force her to reveal where she buried her loot, but she is bitten by a yellow-spotted lizard and dies. As she dies, she taunts them by saying, "start digging". The Walkers are left to dig the entire area in order to find the buried treasure. The inmates at Camp Green Lake are forced to dig cylindrical holes five feet deep and five feet wide, which the warden says "builds their character." They are promised the rest of their day off if they find anything that the Warden considers "interesting". Stanley finds a fossil, but Mr Pendanski tells him that the Warden "isn't interested in fossils", leading Stanley to suspect they are looking for something in particular. During one dig, Stanley finds one of Barlow's lipstick tubes (though he doesn't recognize it for what it is), but he pawns it off to X-Ray, the ringleader of Tent D, who convinces him that he deserves it more than Stanley. The Warden is excited by the discovery and orders them to greatly enlarge X-Ray's hole (the wrong hole) and to sift through the dirt from it for several weeks. Meanwhile, Stanley and Zero, the smallest inmate in Tent D, who got his nickname because "he has nothing in his head", become friends. Stanley agrees to teach Zero how to read, and in return, Zero digs Stanley's hole part of the time. The other boys eventually become jealous after seeing Stanley getting help, eventually resulting in a fight. The Warden and the staff arrive and, learning that Zero has been assisting Stanley with digging in return for receiving education, mock him. The argument culminates in Zero angrily hitting Mr. Pendanski with a shovel and running away, and the camp staff decide to erase their records of him and let him die in the desert. A few days later, Stanley follows Zero and finds him living under the remains of Sam's boat, eating very old jars of Kate's spiced peaches, which he calls "Sploosh". Stanley notices a mountain resembling a human fist giving the thumbs up sign, and recalls that Stanley Yelnats I claimed to find "refuge on Gods thumb". On the mountain, Zero admits that he was the one who stole "Sweet Feet" Livingston's shoes. Atop the mountain, Stanley discovers a field of onions that was once Sam's. The boys eat the onions and find water by digging in the ground, and Stanley sings Madame Zeroni's song to Zero, Zeroni's descendant, unknowingly breaking the curse. Stanley suggests that they return to the hole where Stanley found the lipstick to find the buried treasure. They find a suitcase buried in the hole, but they are captured by the Warden, and surrounded by a group of lethal yellow-spotted lizards. A stalemate develops: they cannot move, but the lizards prevent the Warden's staff from approaching them. The lizards do not bite Stanley and Zero because they are repelled by the onions the boys have been eating. They remain in the hole until the next morning, when an attorney arrives demanding Stanley's release, having received testimony that gives him an alibi during the time the shoes were stolen. The Warden tries to claim they stole the suitcase from her, but Zero reveals that the name 'Stanley Yelnats' is written on it, as the suitcase had belonged to Stanley's great-grandfather. Fearing that the warden will kill Zero if he leaves him behind, Stanley refuses to leave the camp unless Zero can come along. The attorney orders the Warden to get Zero's file, but the camp staff are naturally unable to find it, and Zero is also released. Stanley's family open the case, discovering the jewels, deeds, stocks and promissory notes stolen from Stanley Yelnats I. Using the money raised from the bonds, Stanley's family buys a new house and Zero hires a team of investigators to find his missing mother; meanwhile, the drought at Green Lake is brought to an end by rainfall. The family's luck seems to change as if in response to Stanley's fulfillment of his ancestor's promise (a suggestion left purposely ambiguous by the narration). In a final scene, Clyde Livingston and his wife, along with the Yelnats and Zeroni families, celebrate the success of Stanley's father's antidote to foot odor, composed of preserved and fermented spiced peaches and onions and named "Sploosh" by Zero. The Warden is forced to sell Green Lake to "a national organization dedicated to the well-being of young girls", which turns it into a Girl Scout camp. Camp Green Lake is located on a dried-up lake in the U.S. state of Texas.[7] The area is not green and there is no lake, besides the fact that there is such a little amount of shade (two oak trees) which are owned by the Warden. Camp Green Lake is a parched barren place with the scorching sun above them with hardly any clouds, so the sun is always shining, making the environment much hotter. Camp Green Lake is a juvenile detention center, where inmates spend most of their time digging holes. The majority of the book takes place between the past and present. Protagonists deal with flashbacks existing from pre-dried up Green Lake to Latvia (mid-1800s) back to modern day Camp Green Lake. In 2003, Walt Disney Pictures released a film version of Holes, which was directed by Andrew Davis and written by Louis Sachar.[8] Two companion novels have followed Holes: Stanley Yelnats' Survival Guide to Camp Green Lake (2003) and Small Steps (2006).[9] As Louis Sachar states: "Should you ever find yourself at Camp Green Lakeor somewhere similarthis is the guide for you." Written from Stanley's point of view, the book offers advice on everything from scorpions, rattlesnakes, yellow-spotted lizards, etc.[10] In this sequel to Holes, former inmate Armpit is now 17 and struggling with the challenges facing an African American teenager with a criminal history. A new friendship with Ginny, who has cerebral palsy, a reunion with former friend X-Ray, a ticket-scalping scheme, a beautiful pop singer, and a frame-up all test Armpits resolve to "Just take small steps and keep moving forward".[11]

September 21🚨 Autumn, also known as fall in North American English,[1] is one of the four temperate seasons. Autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March (Southern Hemisphere), when the duration of daylight becomes noticeably shorter and the temperature cools down considerably. One of its main features is the shedding of leaves from deciduous trees. Some cultures regard the autumnal equinox as "mid-autumn", while others with a longer temperature lag treat it as the start of autumn.[2] Meteorologists (and most of the temperate countries in the southern hemisphere)[3] use a definition based on Gregorian calendar months, with autumn being September, October, and November in the northern hemisphere,[4] and March, April, and May in the southern hemisphere. In North America, traditionally autumn starts on September 21 and ends on December 21. It is considered to start with the September equinox (21 to 24 September)[5] and end with the winter solstice (21 or 22 December).[6] Popular culture in the United States associates Labor Day, the first Monday in September, as the end of summer and the start of autumn; certain summer traditions, such as wearing white, are discouraged after that date.[7] As daytime and nighttime temperatures decrease, trees shed their leaves.[8] In traditional East Asian solar term, autumn starts on or around 8 August and ends on or about 7 November. In Ireland, the autumn months according to the national meteorological service, Met ireann, are September, October and November.[9] However, according to the Irish Calendar, which is based on ancient Gaelic traditions, autumn lasts throughout the months of August, September and October, or possibly a few days later, depending on tradition.[citation needed] In Australia[10] and New Zealand, autumn officially begins on 1 March and ends on 31 May. The word autumn comes from the ancient Etruscan root autu- and has within it connotations of the passing of the year.[11] It was borrowed by the neighbouring Romans, and became the Latin word autumnus.[12] After the Roman era, the word continued to be used as the Old French word autompne (automne in modern French) or autumpne in Middle English,[13] and was later normalised to the original Latin. In the Medieval period, there are rare examples of its use as early as the 12th century, but by the 16th century, it was in common use. Before the 16th century, harvest was the term usually used to refer to the season, as it is common in other West Germanic languages to this day (cf. Dutch herfst, German Herbst and Scots hairst). However, as more people gradually moved from working the land to living in towns, the word harvest lost its reference to the time of year and came to refer only to the actual activity of reaping, and autumn, as well as fall, began to replace it as a reference to the season.[14][15] The alternative word fall for the season traces its origins to old Germanic languages. The exact derivation is unclear, with the Old English fi?ll or feallan and the Old Norse fall all being possible candidates. However, these words all have the meaning "to fall from a height" and are clearly derived either from a common root or from each other. The term came to denote the season in 16th-century England, a contraction of Middle English expressions like "fall of the leaf" and "fall of the year".[16] During the 17th century, English emigration to the British colonies in North America was at its peak, and the new settlers took the English language with them. While the term fall gradually became obsolete in Britain, it became the more common term in North America. The name backend, a once common name for the season in Northern England, has today been largely replaced by the name autumn.[17] Association with the transition from warm to cold weather, and its related status as the season of the primary harvest, has dominated its themes and popular images. In Western cultures, personifications of autumn are usually pretty, well-fed females adorned with fruits, vegetables and grains that ripen at this time. Many cultures feature autumnal harvest festivals, often the most important on their calendars. Still extant echoes of these celebrations are found in the autumn Thanksgiving holiday of the United States and Canada, and the Jewish Sukkot holiday with its roots as a full-moon harvest festival of "tabernacles" (living in outdoor huts around the time of harvest).[citation needed] There are also the many North American Indian festivals tied to harvest of ripe foods gathered in the wild, the Chinese Mid-Autumn or Moon festival, and many others. The predominant mood of these autumnal celebrations is a gladness for the fruits of the earth mixed with a certain melancholy linked to the imminent arrival of harsh weather. This view is presented in English poet John Keats' poem To Autumn, where he describes the season as a time of bounteous fecundity, a time of 'mellow fruitfulness'. In North America, while most foods are harvested during the autumn, foods particularly associated with the season include pumpkins (which are integral parts of both Thanksgiving and Halloween) and apples, which are used to make the seasonal beverage apple cider. Autumn, especially in poetry, has often been associated with melancholia. The possibilities and opportunities of summer are gone, and the chill of winter is on the horizon. Skies turn grey, the amount of usable daylight drops rapidly, and many people turn inward, both physically and mentally.[18] It has been referred to as an unhealthy season.[19] Similar examples may be found in Irish poet William Butler Yeats' poem The Wild Swans at Coole where the maturing season that the poet observes symbolically represents his own ageing self. Like the natural world that he observes, he too has reached his prime and now must look forward to the inevitability of old age and death. French poet Paul Verlaine's "Chanson d'automne" ("Autumn Song") is likewise characterised by strong, painful feelings of sorrow. Keats' To Autumn, written in September 1819, echoes this sense of melancholic reflection, but also emphasises the lush abundance of the season. The song, Autumn Leaves, which is based on a French song, " "Les Feuilles mortes", uses the melancholic atmosphere of the season and the end of summer as a simile to compare to the mood of being separated from a loved one.[20] Autumn is associated with Halloween (influenced by Samhain, a Celtic autumn festival),[21] and with it a widespread marketing campaign that promotes it. Halloween is in autumn in the northern hemisphere. The television, film, book, costume, home decoration, and confectionery industries use this time of year to promote products closely associated with such a holiday, with promotions going from early September to 31 October, since their themes rapidly lose strength once the holiday ends, and advertising starts concentrating on Christmas. In some parts of the northern hemisphere, autumn has a strong association with the end of summer holiday and the start of a new school year, particularly for children in primary and secondary education. "Back to School" advertising and preparations usually occurs in the weeks leading to the beginning of autumn. Easter falls in autumn in the southern hemisphere. Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated in Canada, in the United States, in some of the Caribbean islands and in Liberia. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States, and around the same part of the year in other places. Similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan. Television stations and networks, particularly in North America, traditionally begin their regular seasons in their autumn, with new series and new episodes of existing series debuting mostly during late September or early October (series that debut outside the fall season are usually known as mid-season replacements). A sweeps period takes place in November to measure Nielsen Ratings. American football is played almost exclusively in the autumn months; at the high school level, seasons run from late August through early November, with some playoff games and holiday rivalry contests being played as late as Thanksgiving. In many American states, the championship games take place in early December. College football's regular season runs from September through November, while the main professional circuit, the National Football League, plays from September through to early January. Summer sports, such as stock car racing, Major League Soccer, and Major League Baseball, wrap up their seasons in early to late autumn; MLB's championship World Series is known popularly as the "Fall Classic".[22] (Amateur baseball is usually finished by August.) Likewise, professional winter sports, such as professional ice hockey, basketball and most leagues of soccer football in Europe, are in the early stages of their seasons during autumn; American college basketball and college ice hockey play teams outside their athletic conferences during the late autumn before their in-conference schedules begin in winter. The Christian religious holidays of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day are observed in autumn in the Northern hemisphere. Since 1997, Autumn has been one of the top 100 names for girls in the United States.[23] In Indian mythology, autumn is considered to be the preferred season for the goddess of learning Saraswati, who is also known by the name of "goddess of autumn" (Sharada). In Asian mysticism, Autumn is associated with the element of metal, and subsequently with the colour white, the White Tiger of the West, and death and mourning. Although colour change in leaves occurs wherever deciduous trees are found, coloured autumn foliage is noted in various regions of the world: most of North America, Eastern Asia (including China, Korea, and Japan), Europe, the forest of Patagonia, eastern Australia and New Zealand's South Island. Eastern Canada and New England are famous for their autumnal foliage,[24][25] and this attracts major tourism (worth billions of US dollars) for the regions.[26][27] Oto?o, Frederic Edwin Church, 1875. Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza[28] John Everett Millais, "Autumn Leaves" Autumn, Giuseppe Arcimboldo, 1573 Autumn (1896) by Art Nouveau artist Alphonse Mucha Autumn landscape in Rybiniszki, Latvia, watercolor by Stanis?aw Mas?owski, 1902 (National Museum in Warsaw, Poland) This 1905 print by Maxfield Frederick Parrish illustrated Keats' poem 'Autumn'

George Washington🚨

Germany🚨The Iron Curtain was the name for the boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union to block itself and its satellite states from open contact with the West and non-Soviet-controlled areas. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were the countries that were connected to or influenced by the Soviet Union. Separate international economic and military alliances were developed on each side of the Iron Curtain: Physically, the Iron Curtain took the form of border defences between the countries of Europe in the middle of the continent. The most notable border was marked by the Berlin Wall and its Checkpoint Charlie, which served as a symbol of the Curtain as a whole.[1] The events that demolished the Iron Curtain started in discontent in Poland,[2][3] and continued in Hungary, the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, and Romania. Romania became the only communist state in Europe to overthrow its totalitarian government with violence.[4][5] The use of the term iron curtain as a metaphor for strict separation goes back at least as far as the early 19th century. It originally referred to fireproof curtains in theaters.[6] Although its popularity as a Cold War symbol is attributed to its use in a speech Winston Churchill gave in 5 March 1946 in Fulton, Missouri,[6] German Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels had already used the term in reference to the Soviet Union.[7] Various usages of the term "iron curtain" (Russian: A춶ֳ ־ Zheleznyj zanaves; German: Eiserner Vorhang; Georgian: ?????? ????? Rkinis pharda; Czech and Slovak: ?elezn opona; Hungarian: Vasfgg?ny; Romanian: Cortina de fier; Italian: Cortina di ferro; Serbian: ־ ־ Gvozdena zavesa; Estonian: Raudne eesriie; Bulgarian: A춶 ־ Zhelyazna zaves?) pre-date Churchill's use of the phrase. The concept goes back to the Babylonian Talmud of the 3rd to 5th centuries CE, where Tractate Sota 38b refers to a "mechitza shel barzel", an iron barrier or divider: "????? ????? ?? ???? ???? ????? ??? ????? ?????? ??????" (Even an iron barrier cannot separate [the people of] Israel from their heavenly father). The term "iron curtain" has since been used metaphorically in two rather different senses ÿ firstly to denote the end of an era and secondly to denote a closed geopolitical border. The source of these metaphors can refer to either the safety curtain deployed in theatres (the first one was installed by the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1794[8]) or to roller shutters used to secure commercial premises.[9] The first metaphorical usage of "iron curtain", in the sense of an end of an era, perhaps should be attributed to British author Arthur Machen (1863ÿ1947), who used the term in his 1895 novel The Three Impostors: "...the door clanged behind me with the noise of thunder, and I felt that an iron curtain had fallen on the brief passage of my life".[10] It is interesting to note the English translation of a Russian text shown immediately below repeats the use of "clang" with reference to an "iron curtain", suggesting that the Russian writer, publishing 23 years after Machen, may have been familiar with the popular British author. Queen Elisabeth of the Belgians used the term "Iron Curtain" in the context of World War I to describe the political situation between Belgium and Germany in 1914.[11] The first recorded application of the term to Communist Russia, again in the sense of the end of an era, comes in Vasily Rozanov's 1918 polemic The Apocalypse of Our Times, and it is possible that Churchill read it there following the publication of the book's English translation in 1920. The passage runs: With clanging, creaking, and squeaking, an iron curtain is lowering over Russian History. "The performance is over." The audience got up. "Time to put on your fur coats and go home." We looked around, but the fur coats and homes were missing.[12] (Incidentally, this same passage provides a definition of nihilism adopted by Raoul Vaneigem,[13] Guy Debord and other Situationists as the intention of situationist intervention.) The first English-language use of the term iron curtain applied to the border of communist Russia in the sense of "an impenetrable barrier" was used in 1920 by Ethel Snowden, in her book Through Bolshevik Russia.[14][15] G.K. Chesterton used the phrase in a 1924 essay in The Illustrated London News. Chesterton, while defending Distributism, refers to "that iron curtain of industrialism that has cut us off not only from our neighbours' condition, but even from our own past".[16] The term also appears in the 1933 satirical novel England, Their England; used there to describe the way an artillery barrage protected the infantry from an enemy assault: "...the western sky was a blaze of yellow flame. The iron curtain was down". Sebastian Haffner used the metaphor in his book Germany: Jekyll & Hyde, published in London in 1940, in introducing his discussion of the Nazi rise to power in Germany in 1933: "Back then to March 1933. How, a moment before the iron curtain was wrung down on it, did the German political stage appear?"[17] All German theatres[when?] had to install an iron curtain (eiserner Vorhang) as an obligatory precaution to prevent the possibility of fire spreading from the stage to the rest of the theatre. Such fires were rather common because the decor often was very flammable. In case of fire, a metal wall would separate the stage from the theatre, secluding the flames to be extinguished by firefighters. Douglas Reed used this metaphor in his book Disgrace Abounding: "The bitter strife [in Yugoslavia between Serb unionists and Croat federalists] had only been hidden by the iron safety-curtain of the King's dictatorship".[18] A May 1943 article in Signal, a Nazi illustrated propaganda periodical published in many languages, bore the title "Behind the Iron Curtain". It discussed "the iron curtain that more than ever before separates the world from the Soviet Union".[7] The German Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels wrote in his weekly newspaper Das Reich that if the Nazis should lose the war a Soviet-formed "iron curtain" would arise because of agreements made by Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill at the Yalta Conference: "An iron curtain would fall over this enormous territory controlled by the Soviet Union, behind which nations would be slaughtered".[6][19] The first recorded oral intentional mention of an Iron Curtain in the Soviet context occurred in a broadcast by Lutz von Krosigk to the German people on 2 May 1945: "In the East the iron curtain behind which, unseen by the eyes of the world, the work of destruction goes on, is moving steadily forward".[20] Churchill's first recorded use of the term "iron curtain" came in a 12 May 1945 telegram he sent to U.S. President Harry S. Truman regarding his concern about Soviet actions, stating "[a]n iron curtain is drawn down upon their front. We do not know what is going on behind".[21] He was further concerned about "another immense flight of the German population westward as this enormous Muscovite advance towards the centre of Europe".[21] Churchill concluded "then the curtain will descend again to a very large extent, if not entirely. Thus a broad land of many hundreds of miles of Russian-occupied territory will isolate us from Poland".[21][22] Churchill repeated the words in a further telegram to President Truman on 4 June 1945, in which he protested against such a U.S. retreat to what was earlier designated as, and ultimately became, the U.S. occupation zone, saying the military withdrawal would bring "Soviet power into the heart of Western Europe and the descent of an iron curtain between us and everything to the eastward".[23] At the Potsdam Conference, Churchill complained to Stalin about an "iron fence" coming down upon the British Mission in Bucharest. The first American print reference to the "Iron Curtain" occurred when C.L. Sulzberger of The New York Times first used it in a dispatch published on 23 July 1945. He had heard the term used by Vladko Ma?ek, a Croatian politician, a Yugoslav opposition leader who had fled his homeland for Paris in May 1945. Ma?ek told Sulzberger, "During the four years while I was interned by the Germans in Croatia I saw how the Partisans were lowering an iron curtain over Jugoslavia [Yugoslavia] so that nobody could know what went on behind it".[24] The term was first used in the British House of Commons by Churchill on 16 August 1945 when he stated "it is not impossible that tragedy on a prodigious scale is unfolding itself behind the iron curtain which at the moment divides Europe in twain".[25] Allen Dulles used the term in a speech on 3 December 1945, referring to only Germany, following his conclusion that "in general the Russians are acting little better than thugs", had "wiped out all the liquid assets", and refused to issue food cards to emigrating Germans, leaving them "often more dead than alive". Dulles concluded that "[a]n iron curtain has descended over the fate of these people and very likely conditions are truly terrible. The promises at Yalta to the contrary, probably 8 to 10 million people are being enslaved".[citation needed] The antagonism between the Soviet Union and the West that came to be described as the "iron curtain" had various origins. During the summer of 1939, after conducting negotiations both with a British-French group and with Nazi Germany regarding potential military and political agreements,[26] the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed the GermanÿSoviet Commercial Agreement (which provided for the trade of certain German military and civilian equipment in exchange for Soviet raw materials)[27][28] and the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (signed in late August 1939), named after the foreign secretaries of the two countries (Vyacheslav Molotov and Joachim von Ribbentrop), which included a secret agreement to split Poland and Eastern Europe between the two states.[29][30] The Soviets thereafter occupied Eastern Poland (September 1939), Latvia (June 1940), Lithuania (1940), northern Romania (Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, late June 1940), Estonia (1940) and eastern Finland (March 1940). From August 1939, relations between the West and the Soviets deteriorated further when the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany engaged in an extensive economic relationship by which the Soviet Union sent Germany vital oil, rubber, manganese and other materials in exchange for German weapons, manufacturing machinery and technology.[31][32] Nazi-Soviet trade ended in June 1941 when Germany broke the Pact and invaded the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa. In the course of World War II, Stalin determined[citation needed] to acquire a buffer area against Germany, with pro-Soviet states on its border in an Eastern bloc. Stalin's aims led to strained relations at the Yalta Conference (February 1945) and the subsequent Potsdam Conference (August 1945).[33] People in the West expressed opposition to Soviet domination over the buffer states, and the fear grew that the Soviets were building an empire that might be a threat to them and their interests. Nonetheless, at the Potsdam Conference, the Allies assigned parts of Poland, Finland, Romania, Germany, and the Balkans to Soviet control or influence. In return, Stalin promised the Western Allies that he would allow those territories the right to national self-determination. Despite Soviet cooperation during the war, these concessions left many in the West uneasy. In particular, Churchill feared that the United States might return to its pre-war isolationism, leaving the exhausted European states unable to resist Soviet demands. (President Franklin D. Roosevelt had announced at Yalta that after the defeat of Germany, U.S. forces would withdraw from Europe within two years.)[34] Winston Churchill's "Sinews of Peace" address of 5 March 1946, at Westminster College, used the term "iron curtain" in the context of Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe: From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia; all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are subject, in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high and in some cases increasing measure of control from Moscow.[35] Much of the Western public still regarded the Soviet Union as a close ally in the context of the recent defeat of Nazi Germany and of Japan. Although not well received at the time, the phrase iron curtain gained popularity as a shorthand reference to the division of Europe as the Cold War strengthened. The Iron Curtain served to keep people in and information out, and people throughout the West eventually came to accept and use the metaphor.[36] Churchill's "Sinews of Peace" address was to strongly criticise the Soviet Union's exclusive and secretive tension policies along with the Eastern Europe's state form, Police State (Polizeistaat). He expressed the Allied Nations' distrust of the Soviet Union after the World War II. In September that year, US-Soviet Union cooperation collapsed due to the US disavowal of the Soviet Union's opinion on the German problem in the Stuttgart Council, and then followed the announcement by US President, Harry S. Truman, of a hard line anti-Soviet, anticommunist policy. After that the phrase became more widely used as anti-Soviet term in the West.[37] In addition, Churchill mentioned in his speech that regions under the Soviet Union's control were expanding their leverage and power without any restriction. He asserted that in order to put a brake on this ongoing phenomenon, the commanding force of and strong unity between the UK and the US was necessary.[38] Stalin took note of Churchill's speech and responded in Pravda soon afterward. He accused Churchill of warmongering, and defended Soviet "friendship" with eastern European states as a necessary safeguard against another invasion. He further accused Churchill of hoping to install right-wing governments in eastern Europe with the goal of agitating those states against the Soviet Union.[39] Andrei Zhdanov, Stalin's chief propagandist, used the term against the West in an August 1946 speech:[40] Hard as bourgeois politicians and writers may strive to conceal the truth of the achievements of the Soviet order and Soviet culture, hard as they may strive to erect an iron curtain to keep the truth about the Soviet Union from penetrating abroad, hard as they may strive to belittle the genuine growth and scope of Soviet culture, all their efforts are foredoomed to failure. While the Iron Curtain remained in place, much of Eastern Europe and parts of Central Europe (except West Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Austria) found themselves under the hegemony of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union annexed: as Soviet Socialist Republics within the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Germany effectively gave Moscow a free hand in much of these territories in the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939, signed before Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941. Other Soviet-annexed territories included: Between 1945 and 1949 the Soviets converted the following areas into Soviet satellite states: Soviet-installed governments ruled the Eastern Bloc countries, with the exception of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which retained its full independence. The majority of European states to the east of the Iron Curtain developed their own international economic and military alliances, such as COMECON and the Warsaw Pact. To the west of the Iron Curtain, the countries of Western Europe, Northern Europe and Southern Europe ÿ along with Austria, West Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland ÿ operated market economies. With the exception of a period of fascism in Spain (until 1975) and Portugal (until 1974) and a military dictatorship in Greece (1967ÿ1974), democratic governments ruled these countries. Most of the states of Europe to the west of the Iron Curtain ÿ with the exception of neutral Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Sweden, Finland, Malta and Republic of Ireland ÿ allied themselves with the United States and Canada within NATO. Economically, the European Community and the European Free Trade Association represented Western counterparts to COMECON. Most of the nominally neutral states were economically closer to the United States than they were to the Warsaw Pact.[citation needed] In January 1947 Harry Truman appointed General George Marshall as Secretary of State, scrapped Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) directive 1067 (which embodied the Morgenthau Plan) and supplanted it with JCS 1779, which decreed that an orderly and prosperous Europe requires the economic contributions of a stable and productive Germany."[51] Administration officials met with Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov and others to press for an economically self-sufficient Germany, including a detailed accounting of the industrial plants, goods and infrastructure already removed by the Soviets.[52] After five and a half weeks of negotiations, Molotov refused the demands and the talks were adjourned.[52] Marshall was particularly discouraged after personally meeting with Stalin, who expressed little interest in a solution to German economic problems.[52] The United States concluded that a solution could not wait any longer.[52] In a 5 June 1947 speech,[53] Marshall announced a comprehensive program of American assistance to all European countries wanting to participate, including the Soviet Union and those of Eastern Europe, called the Marshall Plan.[52] Stalin opposed the Marshall Plan. He had built up the Eastern Bloc protective belt of Soviet controlled nations on his Western border,[54] and wanted to maintain this buffer zone of states combined with a weakened Germany under Soviet control.[55] Fearing American political, cultural and economic penetration, Stalin eventually forbade Soviet Eastern bloc countries of the newly formed Cominform from accepting Marshall Plan aid.[52] In Czechoslovakia, that required a Soviet-backed Czechoslovak coup d'tat of 1948,[56] the brutality of which shocked Western powers more than any event so far and set in a motion a brief scare that war would occur and swept away the last vestiges of opposition to the Marshall Plan in the United States Congress.[57] Relations further deteriorated when, in January 1948, the U.S. State Department also published a collection of documents titled Nazi-Soviet Relations, 1939 ÿ 1941: Documents from the Archives of The German Foreign Office, which contained documents recovered from the Foreign Office of Nazi Germany[58][59] revealing Soviet conversations with Germany regarding the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, including its secret protocol dividing eastern Europe,[60][61] the 1939 German-Soviet Commercial Agreement,[60][62] and discussions of the Soviet Union potentially becoming the fourth Axis Power.[63] In response, one month later, the Soviet Union published Falsifiers of History, a Stalin-edited and partially re-written book attacking the West.[58][64] After the Marshall Plan, the introduction of a new currency to Western Germany to replace the debased Reichsmark and massive electoral losses for communist parties, in June 1948, the Soviet Union cut off surface road access to Berlin, initiating the Berlin Blockade, which cut off all non-Soviet food, water and other supplies for the citizens of the non-Soviet sectors of Berlin.[65] Because Berlin was located within the Soviet-occupied zone of Germany, the only available methods of supplying the city were three limited air corridors.[66] A massive aerial supply campaign was initiated by the United States, Britain, France and other countries, the success of which caused the Soviets to lift their blockade in May 1949. One of the conclusions of the Yalta Conference was that the western Allies would return all Soviet citizens who found themselves in their zones to the Soviet Union.[67] This affected the liberated Soviet prisoners of war (branded as traitors), forced laborers, anti-Soviet collaborators with the Germans, and anti-communist refugees.[68] Migration from east to west of the Iron Curtain, except under limited circumstances, was effectively halted after 1950. Before 1950, over 15 million people (mainly ethnic Germans) emigrated from Soviet-occupied eastern European countries to the west in the five years immediately following World War II.[69] However, restrictions implemented during the Cold War stopped most East-West migration, with only 13.3 million migrations westward between 1950 and 1990.[70] More than 75% of those emigrating from Eastern Bloc countries between 1950 and 1990 did so under bilateral agreements for "ethnic migration."[70] About 10% were refugees permitted to emigrate under the Geneva Convention of 1951.[70] Most Soviets allowed to leave during this time period were ethnic Jews permitted to emigrate to Israel after a series of embarrassing defections in 1970 caused the Soviets to open very limited ethnic emigrations.[71] The fall of the Iron Curtain was accompanied by a massive rise in European East-West migration.[70] The Iron Curtain took physical shape in the form of border defenses between the countries of western and eastern Europe. These were some of the most heavily militarised areas in the world, particularly the so-called "inner German border" ÿ commonly known as die Grenze in German ÿ between East and West Germany. The inner German border was marked in rural areas by double fences made of steel mesh (expanded metal) with sharp edges, while near urban areas a high concrete barrier similar to the Berlin Wall was built. The installation of the Wall in 1961 brought an end to a decade during which the divided capital of divided Germany was one of the easiest places to move west across the Iron Curtain.[72] The barrier was always a short distance inside East German territory to avoid any intrusion into Western territory. The actual borderline was marked by posts and signs and was overlooked by numerous watchtowers set behind the barrier. The strip of land on the West German side of the barrier ÿ between the actual borderline and the barrier ÿ was readily accessible but only at considerable personal risk, because it was patrolled by both East and West German border guards. Several villages, many historic, were destroyed as they lay too close to the border, for example Erlebach. Shooting incidents were not uncommon, and a total of 28 East German border guards and several hundred civilians were killed between 1948 ÿ 1981 (some may have been victims of "friendly fire" by their own side). Elsewhere along the border between West and East, the defense works resembled those on the intra-German border. During the Cold War, the border zone in Hungary started 15 kilometres (9.3?mi) from the border. Citizens could only enter the area if they lived in the zone or had a passport valid for traveling out. Traffic control points and patrols enforced this regulation. Those who lived within the 15 kilometres (9.3?mi) border-zone needed special permission to enter the area within 5 kilometres (3.1?mi) of the border. The area was very difficult to approach and heavily fortified. In the 1950s and 1960s, a double barbed-wire fence was installed 50 metres (160?ft) from the border. The space between the two fences were laden with land mines. The minefield was later replaced with an electric signal fence (about 1 kilometre (0.62?mi) from the border) and a barbed wire fence, along with guard towers and a sand strip to track border violations. Regular patrols sought to prevent escape attempts. They included cars and mounted units. Guards and dog patrol units watched the border 24/7 and were authorised to use their weapons to stop escapees. The wire fence nearest the actual border was irregularly displaced from the actual border, which was marked only by stones. Anyone attempting to escape would have to cross up to 400 metres (1,300?ft) before they could cross the actual border. Several escape attempts failed when the escapees were stopped after crossing the outer fence. In parts of Czechoslovakia, the border strip became hundreds of meters wide, and an area of increasing restrictions was defined as the border was approached. Only people with the appropriate government permissions were allowed to get close to the border. The Soviet Union built a fence along the entire border to Norway and Finland. It is located one or a few kilometres from the border, and has automatic alarms detecting if someone climbs over it. In Greece, a highly militarised area called the "?ך ?" ("Surveillance Area") was created by the Greek Army along the Greek-Bulgarian border, subject to significant security-related regulations and restrictions. Inhabitants within this 25?km wide strip of land were forbidden to drive cars, own land bigger than 60 m2 and had to travel within the area with a special passport issued by Greek military authorities. Additionally, the Greek state used this area to encapsulate and monitor a non-Greek ethnic minority, the Pomaks, a Muslim and Bulgarian-speaking minority which was regarded as hostile to the interests of the Greek state during the Cold War because of its familiarity with their fellow Pomaks living on the other side of the Iron Curtain.[73] The Hungarian outer fence became the first part of the Iron Curtain to be dismantled. After the border fortifications were dismantled, a section was rebuilt for a formal ceremony. On 27 June 1989, the foreign ministers of Austria and Hungary, Alois Mock and Gyula Horn, ceremonially cut through the border defences separating their countries. The creation of these highly militarised no-man's lands led to de facto nature reserves and created a wildlife corridor across Europe; this helped the spread of several species to new territories. Since the fall of the Iron Curtain, several initiatives are pursuing the creation of a European Green Belt nature preserve area along the Iron Curtain's former route. In fact, a long-distance cycling route along the length of the former border called the Iron Curtain Trail (ICT) exists as a project of the European Union and other associated nations. The trail is 6,800?km (4,200?mi) long and spans from Finland to Greece.[74] The term "Iron Curtain" was only used for the fortified borders in Europe; it was not used for similar borders in Asia between communist and capitalist states (these were, for a time, dubbed the Bamboo Curtain). The border between North Korea and South Korea is very comparable to the former inner German border, particularly in its degree of militarisation, but it has never conventionally been considered part of any Iron Curtain. Following a period of economic and political stagnation under Brezhnev and his immediate successors, the Soviet Union decreased its intervention in Eastern Bloc politics. Mikhail Gorbachev (General Secretary from 1985) decreased adherence to the Brezhnev Doctrine,[75] which held that if socialism were threatened in any state then other socialist governments had an obligation to intervene to preserve it, in favor of the "Sinatra Doctrine". He also initiated the policies of glasnost (openness) and perestroika (economic restructuring). A wave of Revolutions occurred throughout the Eastern Bloc in 1989.[76] In April 1989 the People's Republic of Poland legalised the Solidarity organisation, which captured 99% of available parliamentary seats in June.[77] These elections, in which anti-communist candidates won a striking victory, inaugurated a series of peaceful anti-communist revolutions in Central and Eastern Europe[78][79][80] that eventually culminated in the fall of communism.[81][82] On 19 August 1989, more than 600 East Germans attending the "Pan-European Picnic" on the Hungarian border broke through the Iron Curtain and fled into Austria. Hungarian border guards had threatened to shoot anyone crossing the border, but when the time came, they did not intervene and allowed the people to cross. In a historic session from 16 to 20 October, the Hungarian parliament adopted legislation providing for multi-party parliamentary elections and a direct presidential election.[83] The legislation transformed Hungary from a People's Republic into the Republic of Hungary, guaranteed human and civil rights, and created an institutional structure that ensured separation of powers among the judicial, legislative, and executive branches of government. In November 1989, following mass protests in East Germany and the relaxing of border restrictions in Czechoslovakia, tens of thousands of East Berliners flooded checkpoints along the Berlin Wall, crossing into West Berlin.[83] In the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the day after the mass crossings across the Berlin Wall, leader Todor Zhivkov was ousted.[84] In the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, following protests of an estimated half-million Czechoslovaks, the government permitted travel to the west and abolished provisions guaranteeing the ruling Communist party its leading role, preceding the Velvet Revolution.[85] In the Socialist Republic of Romania, on 22 December 1989, the Romanian military sided with protesters and turned on Communist ruler Nicolae Ceau?escu, who was executed after a brief trial three days later.[86] In the People's Socialist Republic of Albania, a new package of regulations went into effect on 3 July 1990 entitling all Albanians over the age of 16 to own a passport for foreign travel. Meanwhile, hundreds of Albanian citizens gathered around foreign embassies to seek political asylum and flee the country. The Berlin Wall officially remained guarded after 9 November 1989, although the inter-German border had become effectively meaningless. The official dismantling of the Wall by the East German military did not begin until June 1990. In July 1990, the day East Germany adopted the West German currency, all border-controls ceased and West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl convinced Gorbachev to drop Soviet objections to a reunited Germany within NATO in return for substantial German economic aid to the Soviet Union. There is an Iron Curtain monument in the southern part of the Czech Republic at approximately 485232N 155229E? / ?48.8755N 15.87477E? / 48.8755; 15.87477? (Iron Curtain monument). A few hundred meters of the original fence, and one of the guard towers, has remained installed. There are interpretive signs in Czech and English that explain the history and significance of the Iron Curtain. This is the only surviving part of the fence in the Czech Republic, though several guard towers and bunkers can still be seen. Some of these are part of the Communist Era defences, some are from the never-used Czechoslovak border fortifications in defence against Adolf Hitler, and some towers were, or have become, hunting platforms. Another monument is located in Fert?rkos, Hungary, at the site of the Pan-European Picnic. On the eastern hill of the stone quarry stands a metal sculpture by Gabriela von Habsburg. It is a column made of metal and barbed wire with the date of the Pan-European Picnic and the names of participants. On the ribbon under the board is the Latin text: "In necessariis unitas ÿ in dubiis libertas ÿ in omnibus caritas." (Unity in unavoidable matters ÿ freedom in doubtful matters ÿ love in all things.) The memorial symbolises the iron curtain and recalls forever the memories of the border breakthrough in 1989. Another monument is located in the village of Devn, now part of Bratislava, Slovakia, at the confluence of the Danube and Morava rivers. Another monument is located in Fert?rkos, Hungary, at the site of the Pan-European Picnic. On the eastern hill of the stone quarry stands a metal sculpture by Gabriela von Habsburg. It is a column made of metal and barbed wire with the date of the Pan-European Picnic and the names of participants. On the ribbon under the board is the Latin text: "In necessariis unitas ÿ in dubiis libertas ÿ in omnibus caritas." (Unity in unavoidable matters ÿ freedom in doubtful matters ÿ love in all things.) The memorial symbolises the iron curtain and recalls forever the memories of the border breakthrough in 1989. There are several open air museums in parts of the former inner German border, as for example in Berlin and in M?dlareuth, a village that has been divided for several hundred years. The memory of the division is being kept alive in many other places along the Grenze. Throughout the Cold War the term "curtain" would become a common euphemism for boundaries ÿ physical or ideological ÿ between communist and capitalist states. Post Cold War: Geography:

Farhad Moshiri🚨Everton Football Club (/??v?rt?n/) is a football club in Liverpool, England, that competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The club have competed in the top division for a record 114 seasons, missing the top division only four times (1930ÿ31 and three consecutive seasons starting with 1951ÿ52) since The Football League was created in 1888. Everton have won 15 major trophies: the League Championship nine times (fourth most as of 2017ÿ18), the FA Cup five times (ninth most) and the UEFA Cup Winners Cup once. Formed in 1878, Everton were founding members of The Football League in 1888 and won their first League Championship two seasons later. Following four League Championship and two FA Cup wins, Everton experienced a lull in the immediate post World War Two period, until a revival in the 1960s, which saw the club win two League Championships and an FA Cup. The mid-1980s represented their most recent period of sustained success, with two League Championships, an FA Cup, and the 1985 European Cup Winners' Cup. The club's most recent major trophy was the 1995 FA Cup. The club's supporters are known as Evertonians. Everton have a rivalry with neighbours Liverpool, and the two sides contest the Merseyside derby. The club has been based at Goodison Park in Walton, Liverpool, since 1892, after moving from Anfield following a row over its rent. The club's home colours are royal blue shirts with white shorts and socks. Everton were founded as St Domingo FC in 1878[2][3] so that members of the congregation of St Domingo Methodist New Connexion Chapel in Breckfield Road North, Everton could play sport year round?ÿ cricket was played in summer. The club's first game was a 1ÿ0 victory over Everton Church Club.[4] The club was renamed Everton in November 1879 after the local area, as people outside the congregation wished to participate.[4][5] The club was a founding member of the Football League in 1888ÿ89 and won their first League Championship title in the 1890ÿ91 season. Everton won the FA Cup for the first time in 1906 and the League Championship again in 1914ÿ15. The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 interrupted the football programme while Everton were champions, which was something that would again occur in 1939.[6][7] It was not until 1927 that Everton's first sustained period of success began. In 1925 the club signed Dixie Dean from Tranmere Rovers. In 1927ÿ28, Dean set the record for top-flight league goals in a single season with 60 goals in 39 league games, which is a record that still stands. He helped Everton win their third League Championship that season.[8] However, Everton were relegated to the Second Division two years later during internal turmoil at the club. The club quickly rebounded and was promoted at the first attempt, while scoring a record number of goals in the Second Division. On return to the top flight in 1931ÿ32, Everton wasted no time in reaffirming their status and won a fourth League Championship at the first opportunity. Everton also won their second FA Cup in 1933 with a 3ÿ0 win against Manchester City in the final. The era ended in 1938ÿ39 with a fifth League Championship.[9][10] The outbreak of the Second World War again saw the suspension of league football, and when official competition resumed in 1946, the Everton team had been split up and paled in comparison to the pre-war team. Everton were relegated for the second time in 1950ÿ51 and did not earn promotion until 1953ÿ54, when they finished as runners-up in their third season in the Second Division. The club have been a top-flight presence ever since.[11] Everton's second successful era started when Harry Catterick was made manager in 1961. In 1962ÿ63, his second season in charge, Everton won the League Championship.[12] In 1966 the club won the FA Cup with a 3ÿ2 win over Sheffield Wednesday.[13] Everton again reached the final in 1968, but this time were unable to overcome West Bromwich Albion at Wembley.[14] Two seasons later in 1969ÿ70, Everton won the League Championship, finishing nine points clear of nearest rivals Leeds United.[15] During this period, Everton were the first English club to achieve five consecutive years in European competitions ÿ covering the seasons from 1961ÿ62 to 1966ÿ67.[16] However, the success did not last; the team finished fourteenth, fifteenth, seventeenth and seventh in the following seasons. Harry Catterick retired, but his successors failed to win any silverware for the remainder of the 1970s despite finishing fourth in 1974ÿ75 under manager Billy Bingham, third in 1977ÿ78 and fourth the following season under manager Gordon Lee. Lee was sacked in 1981.[17] Howard Kendall took over as manager and guided Everton to their most successful era. Domestically, Everton won the FA Cup in 1984 and two League Championships in 1984ÿ85 and 1986ÿ87. In Europe, the club won its first, and so far only, European trophy by securing the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1985.[18] The European success came after first beating University College Dublin, Inter Bratislava and Fortuna Sittard. Then, Everton defeated German giants Bayern Munich 3ÿ1 in the semi-finals, despite trailing at half time (in a match voted the greatest in Goodison Park history), and recorded the same scoreline over Austrian club Rapid Vienna in the final.[19] Having won both the League and Cup Winners' Cup in 1985, Everton came very close to winning a treble, but lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup final.[18] The following season, 1985ÿ86, Everton were runners-up to neighbours Liverpool in both the League and the FA Cup, but did recapture the League Championship in 1986ÿ87. After the Heysel Stadium disaster and the subsequent ban of all English clubs from continental football, Everton lost the chance to compete for more European trophies. A large proportion of the title-winning side was broken up following the ban. Kendall himself moved to Athletic Bilbao after the 1987 title triumph and was succeeded by assistant Colin Harvey. Harvey took Everton to the 1989 FA Cup Final, but lost 3ÿ2 after extra time to Liverpool. Everton were founding members of the Premier League in 1992, but struggled to find the right manager. Howard Kendall had returned in 1990, but could not repeat his previous success. His successor, Mike Walker, was statistically the least successful Everton manager to date. When former Everton player Joe Royle took over in 1994, the club's form started to improve; his first game in charge was a 2ÿ0 victory over derby rivals Liverpool. Royle dragged Everton clear of relegation and led the club to the FA Cup for the fifth time in its history by defeating Manchester United 1ÿ0 in the final. The cup triumph was also Everton's passport to the Cup Winners' Cup ÿ their first European campaign in the post-Heysel era. Progress under Royle continued in 1995ÿ96 as they climbed to sixth place in the Premiership.[18] A fifteenth-place finish the following season saw Royle resign towards the end of the campaign, and he was temporarily replaced by club captain Dave Watson. Howard Kendall was appointed Everton manager for the third time in 1997, but the appointment proved unsuccessful as Everton finished seventeenth in the Premiership. The club only avoided relegation due to their superior goal difference over Bolton Wanderers. Former Rangers manager Walter Smith then took over from Kendall in the summer of 1998, but only managed three successive finishes in the bottom half of the table.[18] The Everton board finally ran out of patience with Smith, and he was sacked in March 2002 after an FA Cup exit at Middlesbrough and with Everton in real danger of relegation.[20] His replacement, David Moyes, guided Everton to a safe finish in fifteenth place.[21][22] In 2002ÿ03 Everton finished seventh, which was their highest finish since 1996. It was under Moyes' management that Wayne Rooney broke into the first team before being sold to Manchester United for a club record fee of S28?million in the summer of 2004.[23] A fourth-place finish in 2004ÿ05 ensured that Everton qualified for the UEFA Champions League qualifying round. The team failed to make it through to the Champions League group stage and were then eliminated from the UEFA Cup. Everton qualified for the 2007ÿ08[24] and 2008ÿ09 UEFA Cup competitions, and they were runners-up in the 2009 FA Cup Final. During this period, Moyes broke the club record for highest transfer fee paid on four occasions: signing James Beattie for S6?million in January 2005,[25] Andy Johnson for S8.6?million in summer 2006,[25] Yakubu for S11.25?million in summer 2007,[26] and Marouane Fellaini for S15?million in September 2008.[27] At the end of the 2012ÿ13 season, Moyes left his position at Everton to take over at Manchester United. He was replaced by Roberto Martnez,[28] who led Everton to 5th place in the Premier League in his first season while amassing the club's best points tally in 27 years with 72.[29] The following season, Martnez led Everton to the last 16 of the 2014-15 UEFA Europa League, where they were defeated by Dynamo Kyiv,[30] whilst domestically finishing 11th in the Premier League. Everton reached the semi-finals of both the League Cup and the FA Cup in 2015ÿ16, but were defeated in both. After a poor run of form in the Premier League, Martnez was sacked following the penultimate game of the season, with Everton lying in 12th place.[31] Martnez was replaced in the summer of 2016 by Ronald Koeman, who left Southampton to sign a 3-year contract with Everton.[32] In his first season at the club he guided them back into the group stages of the Europa League, after finishing 7th. A poor start to the following season left Everton in the relegation zone after nine games, and Koeman was sacked on 23 October following a 5ÿ2 home defeat to Arsenal.[33] After a five-week period with David Unsworth acting as caretaker manager, Sam Allardyce was appointed as Everton manager in November 2017,[34] but he was sacked at the end of the season amid fan discontent at his style of play.[35] Marco Silva was named Everton manager in May 2018.[36] Everton's traditional home colours are royal blue shirts, white shorts and white socks. However, during the first decades of their history, Everton had several different kit colours. The team originally played in white and then blue and white stripes, but as new players arriving at the club wore their old team's shirts during matches, confusion soon ensued. It was decided that the shirts would be dyed black, both to save on expenses and to instill a more professional look. However, the kit appeared morbid, so a scarlet sash was added.[37] When the club moved to Goodison Park in 1892, the colours were salmon pink and dark blue striped shirts with dark blue shorts. The club later switched to ruby shirts with blue trim and dark blue shorts. Royal blue jerseys with white shorts were first used in the 1901ÿ02 season.[37] The club played in sky blue in 1906; however, the fans protested, and the colour reverted to royal blue. Occasionally, Everton have played in lighter shades than royal blue (such as in 1930ÿ31 and 1997ÿ98).[38] The home kit today is royal blue shirts with white shorts and socks. The club may also wear all blue to avoid any colour clashes. The home goalkeeper attire for the 2014ÿ15 season was all yellow. Everton's traditional away colours were white shirts with black shorts, but from 1968 amber shirts and royal blue shorts became common. Various editions appeared throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Recently, black, white, grey and yellow away shirts have been used. The away shirt for the 2011ÿ12 season was reverted to an amber shirt with navy blue shorts.[39] The current away kit is a black shirt with an orange collar, while their third kit is a yellow shirt with blue trim. At the end of the 1937ÿ38 season, Everton secretary Theo Kelly, who later became the club's first manager, wanted to design a club necktie. It was agreed that the colour be blue, and Kelly was given the task of designing a crest to be featured on the necktie. He worked on it for four months until deciding on a reproduction of Everton Lock-Up, which stands in the heart of the Everton district.[40] The Lock-Up has been inextricably linked with the Everton area since its construction in 1787. It was originally used as a bridewell to incarcerate mainly drunks and minor criminals, and it still stands today on Everton Brow. The Lock-Up was accompanied by two laurel wreaths on either side and, according to the College of Arms in London, Kelly chose to include the laurels as they were the sign of winners. The crest was accompanied by the club motto, "Nil Satis Nisi Optimum", meaning "Nothing but the best is good enough".[40] The ties were first worn by Kelly and the Everton chairman, Mr. E. Green, on the first day of the 1938ÿ39 season.[40] The club rarely incorporated a badge of any description on its shirts. An interwoven "EFC" design was adopted between 1922 and 1930 before the club reverted to plain royal blue shirts until 1972 when bold "EFC" lettering was added. The crest designed by Kelly was first used on the team's shirts in 1978 and has remained there ever since, while undergoing gradual change to become the version used today. In May 2013, the club launched a new crest to improve the reproducibility of the design in print and broadcast media, particularly on a small scale.[41] Critics[who?] suggested that it was external pressure from sports manufacturer Nike, Inc. that evoked the redesign as the number of colours had been reduced and the radial effect was removed, which made the kit more cost efficient to reproduce.[citation needed] The redesign was poorly received by supporters, with a poll on an Everton fan site registering a 91% negative response to the crest.[42] A protest petition reached over 22,000 signatures before the club offered an apology and announced a new crest would be created for the 2014ÿ15 season with an emphasis on fan consultation. Shortly afterwards, the Head of Marketing left the club. The latest crest was revealed by the club on 3 October 2013. After a consultation process with the supporters, three new crests were shortlisted. In the final vote, the new crest was chosen by almost 80% of the supporters that took part[43][44] and began being used in July 2014.[45] Monochrome Everton crest (2000ÿ13) 2013ÿ14 season crest Current crest - 2014ÿ15 season onwards. Everton's most widely recognised nickname "The Toffees" or "The Toffeemen", which came about after Everton had moved to Goodison. There are several explanations for how this name came to be adopted with the best known being that there was a business in Everton village, between Everton Brow and Brow Side, named Mother Noblett's, which was a toffee shop that sold sweets including the Everton Mint. It was also located opposite the lock up which Everton's club crest is based on. The Toffee Lady tradition in which a girl walks around the perimeter of the pitch before the start of a game tossing free Everton Mints into the crowd symbolises the connection. Another possible reason is that there was a house named Ye Anciente Everton Toffee House in nearby Village Street, Everton, run by Ma Bushell. The toffee house was located near the Queen's Head hotel in which early club meetings took place.[46] Everton have had many other nicknames over the years. When the black kit was worn, Everton were nicknamed "The Black Watch" after the famous army regiment.[47] Since going blue in 1901, Everton have been given the simple nickname "The Blues". Everton's attractive style of play led to Steve Bloomer calling the team "scientific" in 1928, which is thought to have inspired the nickname "The School of Science".[48] The battling 1995 FA Cup winning side were known as "The Dogs of War". When David Moyes arrived as manager, he proclaimed Everton as "The People's Club", which has been adopted as a semi-official club nickname.[49] Everton originally played in the southeast corner of Stanley Park. The first official match took place in 1879. In 1882, a man named J. Cruitt donated land at Priory Road which became the club's home. In 1884 Everton became tenants at Anfield, which was owned by John Orrell, a land owner who was a friend of Everton F.C. member John Houlding. Orrell lent Anfield to the club in exchange for a small rent. Houlding purchased the land from Orrell in 1885 and effectively became Everton's landlord by charging the club rent, which increased from S100 to S240 a year by 1888 ÿ and was still rising until Everton left the ground in 1892.[50][51] The club regarded the increase in rent as unacceptable.[51] A further dispute between Houlding and the club's committee led to Houlding attempting to gain full control of the club by registering the company, "Everton F.C. and Athletic Grounds Ltd". Everton left Anfield for a new ground, Goodison Park, where the club have played ever since. Houlding attempted to take over Everton's name, colours, fixtures and league position, but was denied by The Football Association. Instead, Houlding formed a new club, Liverpool F.C.[52] Goodison Park, the first major football stadium to be built in England, was opened in 1892.[53] Goodison Park has staged more top-flight football games than any other ground in the United Kingdom and was the only English club ground to host a semi-final at the 1966 FIFA World Cup. It was also the first English ground to have under soil heating and the first to have two tiers on all sides. The church grounds of St Luke the Evangelist are adjacent to the corner of the Main Stand and the Howard Kendall Gwladys Street End.[54] On match days, in a tradition going back to 1962, players walk out to the theme song for Z-Cars, which is named "Johnny Todd".[55] It is a traditional Liverpool children's song collected in 1890 by Frank Kidson and tells the story of a sailor betrayed by his lover while away at sea.[56] On two separate occasions in 1994, the club walked out to different songs. In August 1994, the club played 2 Unlimited's song "Get Ready For This". A month later, the club used a reworking of the Creedence Clearwater Revival classic "Bad Moon Rising". Both songs were met with complete disapproval by Everton fans.[57] From 1966 to 2007, Everton trained at Bellefield in the West Derby area of Liverpool.[58] They moved to the Finch Farm training complex in Halewood in 2007. The training ground houses both the Everton first team and the youth academy. There have been indications since 1996 that Everton will move to a new stadium. The original plan was for a new 60,000 seat stadium, but in 2000 a proposal was submitted to build a 55,000 seat stadium as part of the King's Dock regeneration. This proposal was unsuccessful as Everton failed to generate the S30?million needed for a half stake in the stadium project, and the city council rejected the proposal in 2003.[59] Late in 2004, driven by the Liverpool Council and the Northwest Development Corporation, the club entered talks with Liverpool F.C. about sharing a proposed stadium on Stanley Park. However, negotiations broke down as Everton failed to raise 50% of the costs.[60] On 11 January 2005, Liverpool announced that ground-sharing was not a possibility and proceeded to plan their own Stanley Park Stadium.[61] Everton entered into talks with the Knowsley Council and Tesco in June 2006 over the possibility of building a new 55,000 seat stadium, expandable to over 60,000, in Kirkby.[62] The plan became known as The Kirkby Project. The club took the unusual move of giving its supporters a say in the club's future by holding a ballot on the proposal with the results being in favour of it, 59% to 41%.[63] Opponents to the plan included other local councils concerned by the effect of a large Tesco store being built as part of the development and a group of fans demanding that Everton should remain within the city boundaries of Liverpool.[63] Following a public inquiry into the project,[64] the central government rejected the proposal.[65] Local and regional politicians attempted to put together an amended rescue plan with the Liverpool City Council calling a meeting with Everton F.C. The plan was to assess some suitable sites short listed within the city boundary.[66][67] However, the amended plan was also not successful. The Liverpool City Council Regeneration and Transport Select Committee meeting on 10 February 2011 featured a proposal to open the Bootle Branch line using "Liverpool Football Club and Everton Football Club as priorities, as economic enablers of the project".[68] This proposal would place both football clubs on a rapid transit Merseyrail line that would circle the city and ease transport access. In September 2014 the club, working with the Liverpool City Council and Liverpool Mutual Homes, outlined initial plans to build a new stadium in Walton Hall Park.[69] However, those plans were later scrapped in May 2016 with the prospect of two new sites being identified for the club.[70] At the Annual General Meeting in January 2017, the chairman, Bill Kenwright revealed that Bramley-Moore Dock was the preferred site for the new stadium, with a new railway station and a new road being funded by the City Council.[71] Everton have a large fanbase, with the eighth highest average attendance in the Premier League in the 2008ÿ09 season.[72] The majority of Everton's matchday support comes from the North West of England, primarily Merseyside, Cheshire, West Lancashire and parts of Western Greater Manchester along with many fans who travel from North Wales and Ireland. Within the city of Liverpool, support for Everton and city rivals Liverpool is not determined by geographical basis with supporters mixed across the city. Everton also have many supporters' clubs worldwide[73] in places such as North America,[74] Singapore,[75] Indonesia, Lebanon, Malaysia,[76] Thailand and Australia.[77][78] The official supporters club is FOREVERTON,[79] and there are also several fanzines including When Skies are Grey and Speke from the Harbour, which are sold around Goodison Park on match days. Everton regularly take large numbers away from home both domestically and in European fixtures. The club implements a loyalty points scheme offering the first opportunity to purchase away tickets to season ticket holders who have attended the most away matches. Everton often sell out the full allocation in away grounds, and tickets sell particularly well for North West England away matches. In October 2009, Everton took 7,000 travelling fans to Benfica,[80] which was their largest ever away crowd in Europe since the 1985 European Cup Winners' Cup Final. Everton's biggest rivalry is with neighbours Liverpool, against whom they contest the Merseyside derby. The rivalry stems from an internal dispute between Everton officials and the owners of Anfield, which was then Everton's home ground. The dispute resulted in Everton moving to Goodison Park and the subsequent formation of Liverpool F.C. in 1892. Following these events, a fierce rivalry has existed between Everton and Liverpool, albeit one that is generally perceived as more respectful than many other derbies in English football. This was illustrated by a chain of red and blue scarves that were linked between the gates of both grounds across Stanley Park as a tribute to the Liverpool fans killed in the Hillsborough disaster.[81] The derby is usually a sellout fixture and has been known as the "friendly derby" because both sets of fans can often be seen side by side dressed in red and blue inside both Anfield and Goodison Park. Recently on the field, matches tend to be extremely stormy affairs; the derby has had more red cards than any other fixture in Premiership history.[82] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. See also List of Everton F.C. international players. The following players are considered "Giants" for their great contributions to Everton. A panel appointed by the club established the inaugural list in 2000 and a new inductee is announced every season.[85] At the start of the 2003ÿ04 season, as part of the club's official celebration of their 125th anniversary, supporters cast votes to determine the greatest ever Everton team.[86] A number of Everton players have been inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame:[87] The Football League 100 Legends is a list of "100 legendary football players" produced by The Football League in 1998 to celebrate the 100th season of League football.[89] As of 31 May 2018 Source: uefa.com Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against. Defunct competitions indicated in italics. Everton F.C. is a limited company with the board of directors holding a majority of the shares.[96] The club's most recent accounts, from May 2014, show a net total debt of S28.1?million, with a turnover of S120.5?million and a profit of S28.2?million.[97] The club's overdraft with Barclays Bank is secured against the Premier League's "Basic Award Fund",[98] which is a guaranteed sum given to clubs for competing in the Premier League.[99] Everton agreed to a long-term loan of S30?million with Bear Stearns and Prudential plc in 2002 for a duration of 25 years. The loan was a consolidation of debts at the time as well as a source of capital for new player acquisitions.[100] Goodison Park is secured as collateral. On 27 February 2016, it was announced that Farhad Moshiri would buy a 49.9% stake in the club.[101] Figures taken from 2013ÿ14 accounts.[102] Commencing in the 2017ÿ18 season, Everton's shirts are sponsored by SportPesa.[103][104] Previous sponsors include Chang Beer (2004ÿ17) Hafnia (1979ÿ85), NEC (1985ÿ95), Danka (1995ÿ97), one2one (1997ÿ2002) and Kejian (2002ÿ04). For the 2008ÿ09 season, Everton sold junior replica jerseys without the current name or logo of its main sponsor Chang beer, which followed a recommendation from the Portman Group that alcoholic brand names be removed from kits sold to children.[105] Everton's current kit manufacturers are Umbro,[106] who have been the club's kit manufacturer three times previously (1974ÿ83, 1986ÿ2000, and 2004ÿ09). Other previous manufacturing firms are Le Coq Sportif (1983ÿ86, 2009ÿ12),[107] Puma (2000ÿ04) and Nike (2012ÿ14).[108] The club currently has two 'megastores': one located near Goodison Park on Walton Lane named 'Everton One' and one located in the Liverpool One shopping complex named 'Everton Two', which gives the second store the address 'Everton Two, Liverpool One'.[109] The club's current manager, Marco Silva, is the seventeenth permanent holder of the position since it was established in 1939.[110] There have also been four caretaker managers, and before 1939 the team was selected by either the club secretary or by committee. The club's longest-serving manager has been Harry Catterick, who was in charge of the team from 1961ÿ73 for 594 first team matches.[111] The Everton manager to win the most domestic and international trophies is Howard Kendall, who won two First Division championships, the 1984 FA Cup, the 1985 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and three FA Charity Shields. Neville Southall holds the record for the most Everton appearances with 751 first-team matches between 1981 and 1997. The late centre half and former captain Brian Labone comes in second with 534 matches. The longest serving player is goalkeeper Ted Sagar, who played for 23 years between 1929 and 1953. This tenure covered both sides of the Second World War and included a total of 495 appearances. Southall also previously held the record for the most league clean sheets during a season with 15. However, this record was beaten during the 2008ÿ09 season by American goalkeeper Tim Howard, who ended the season with 17 clean sheets.[112] The club's top goalscorer, with 383 goals in all competitions, is Dixie Dean; the second-highest goalscorer is Graeme Sharp with 159. Dean still holds the English national record of most goals in a season with 60.[113] The record attendance for an Everton home match is 78,299 against Liverpool on 18 September 1948. Remarkably, there was only one injury at this game, which occurred when Tom Fleetwood was hit on the head by a coin thrown from the crowd whilst he marched around the perimeter and played the cornet with St Edward's Orphanage Band. Goodison Park, like all major English football grounds since the recommendations of the Taylor Report were implemented, is now an all-seater and only holds just under 40,000, meaning it is unlikely that this attendance record will ever be broken at Goodison.[113] Everton's record transfer paid was to Swansea City for the Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Siguresson for a sum of S45m in 2017.[114] The sale of Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United was for an initial sum of S75m, a record fee between two English clubs and the largest sum Everton have received for a player. Everton hold the record for the most seasons in England's top tier (Division One/Premier League), at 114 seasons out of 118 as of 2016ÿ17 (the club played in Division 2 in 1930ÿ31 and from 1951ÿ54). They are one of six teams to have played in every season of the Premier League since its inception in August 1992?ÿ the others being Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, and Tottenham Hotspur. Everton against Aston Villa is the most played fixture in England's top flight. As of the 2012ÿ13 season, the two founding members of the Football League have played a record 196 league games.[115] Everton's community department, Everton in the Community (EitC), is a charity that provides sports and other social activities for the local community including for people with disabilities.[116] EitC represents the club in the European Multisport Club Association.[117] Everton have a link with Republic of Ireland football academy Ballyoulster United based in Celbridge,[118] Canada's Ontario Soccer Association,[119] and the Football Association of Thailand where they have a competition named the Chang-Everton cup which local schoolboys compete for.[120] The club also have a football academy in Limassol, Cyprus[121] and a partnership agreement with American club Pittsburgh Riverhounds.[122][123] The club also owned and operated a professional basketball team, by the name of Everton Tigers, who competed in the elite British Basketball League. The team was launched in the summer of 2007 as part of the club's Community programme and played their home games at the Greenbank Sports Academy. The team was an amalgam of the Toxteth Tigers community youth programme, which started in 1968. The team quickly became one of the most successful in the league by winning the BBL Cup in 2009 and the play-offs in 2010. However, Everton withdrew funding before the 2010ÿ11 season, and the team was re-launched as the Mersey Tigers.[124] Everton also have links with Chilean team Everton de Vi?a del Mar who were named after the English club.[125][126] On 4 August 2010, the two Evertons played each other in a friendly named the Copa Hermandad at Goodison Park to mark the centenary of the Chilean team.[127] The occasion was organised by The Ruleteros Society, which is a society founded to promote connections between the two clubs.[128] Other Everton clubs exist in Rosario, Colonia in Uruguay,[129] La Plata and Ro Cuarto in Argentina,[130][131] Elk Grove, California in the United States,[132] and in Cork, Ireland.[133] The 1997 television film The Fix dramatised the true story of a match fixing scandal in which the club's recent newly signed wing half Tony Kay, played by Jason Isaacs, is implicated in having helped to throw a match between his previous club Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich Town. The majority of the story is set during Everton's 1962ÿ63 League Championship winning season with then manager Harry Catterick played by Colin Welland.[134] First shown in 1969, the television movie The Golden Vision, directed by Ken Loach, combined improvised drama with documentary footage to tell of a group of Everton fans for whom the main purpose of life, following the team, is interrupted by such inconveniences as work and weddings. The film's title character, celebrated forward Alex Young, was one of several who appeared as themselves.[135] In the 2015 film Creed, part of the Rocky franchise, Goodison Park features prominently and serves as the venue of climatic fight scene. Filming for this had been taken of the stadium and crowd during a match against West Bromwich Albion. Boxer Tony Bellew plays Creed's opponent Ricky Conlon and wears the Everton badge on his training gear and shorts.[citation needed] The club have entered the UK pop charts on four occasions under different titles during the 1980s and 1990s when many clubs released a song to mark their reaching the FA Cup Final. "The Boys in Blue", released in 1984, peaked at number 82.[136] The following year the club scored their biggest hit when "Here We Go" peaked at 14.[137] In 1986 the club released "Everybody's Cheering the Blues" which reached number 83.[138] "All Together Now", a reworking of a song by Merseyside band The Farm, was released for the 1995 FA Cup Final and reached number 27.[139] When the club next reached the 2009 FA Cup Final, the tradition had passed into history and no song was released.

traditionally a calico Japanese Bobtail🚨The maneki-neko (Japanese: NV, literally "beckoning cat") is a common Japanese figurine (lucky charm, talisman) which is often believed to bring good luck to the owner. In modern times, they are usually made of ceramic or plastic. The figurine depicts a cat (traditionally a calico Japanese Bobtail) beckoning with an upright paw, and is usually displayed inoften at the entrance ofshops, restaurants, pachinko parlors, and other businesses. Some of the sculptures are electric or battery-powered and have a slow-moving paw beckoning. Maneki-neko comes in different colors, styles and degrees of ornateness. Common colors are white, black, gold and sometimes red. In addition to ceramic figurines, maneki-neko can be found as keychains, piggy banks, air fresheners, house-plant pots, and miscellaneous ornaments, as well as large statues. It is also sometimes called the "Chinese lucky cat" because of its popularity among Chinese merchants. To some Westerners (Italians and Spaniards are notable exceptions) it may seem as if the maneki-neko is waving rather than beckoning.[1][2] This is due to the difference in gestures and body language recognized by some Westerners and the Japanese. The Japanese beckoning gesture is made by holding up the hand, palm down, and repeatedly folding the fingers down and back, thus the cat's appearance. Some maneki-neko made specifically for some Western markets will have the cat's paw facing upwards, in a beckoning gesture that is more familiar to most Westerners.[3] Maneki-neko can be found with either the right or left paw raised (and sometimes both). The significance of the right and left raised paw differs with time and place.[4] Some say that a left paw raised is best for drinking establishments, the right paw for other stores; another interpretation is that right is for home and left for business.[4] Some maneki-neko feature battery- or solar-powered moving arms endlessly engaged in the beckoning gesture. Antique examples of maneki-neko may be made of carved wood or stone, handmade porcelain or cast iron.[4] It is commonly believed that Maneki-neko originated in Tokyo (then named Edo), while some insist it was Kyoto.[4] Maneki-neko first appeared during the later part of the Edo period in Japan.[4] The earliest records of Maneki-neko appear in the Buk nenpy's (a chronology of Edo) entry dated 1852. The Utagawa Hiroshige's ukiyo-e, "Joruri-machi Hanka no zu", painted also in 1852, depicts the Marushime-neko, a variation of Maneki-neko, being sold at Senso temple, Tokyo. In 1876, during the Meiji era, it was mentioned in a newspaper article, and there is evidence that kimono-clad maneki-neko were distributed at a shrine in Osaka during this time. A 1902 advertisement for maneki-neko indicates that by the turn of the century they were popular.[5] Beyond this the exact origins of maneki-neko are uncertain, though several folktales offer explanations. Others have noted the similarities between the maneki-neko's gesture and that of a cat washing its face. There is a Japanese belief that a cat washing its face means a visitor will soon arrive. This belief may in turn be related to an even older Chinese proverb that states that if a cat washes its face, it will rain. Thus, it is possible a belief arose that a figure of a cat washing its face would bring in customers. In his Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang, China's Tang Dynasty author Duan Chengshi (803?-863) wrote: "If a cat raises its paw over the ears and washes its face, then patrons will come". Maneki-neko is the subject of a number of folktales. Here are some of the most popular, explaining the cat's origins: The stray cat and the shop: The operator of an impoverished shop (or inn, tavern, temple, etc.) takes in a starving, stray cat despite barely having enough to feed himself. In gratitude, the cat sits in the front of the store beckoning customers, thus bringing prosperity as a reward to the charitable proprietor. Ever after, the "beckoning cat" has been a symbol of good luck for small business owners.[4] Modern Japanese folklore suggests that keeping a talisman of good fortune, such as the maneki-neko, in bedrooms and places of study will bring about favorable results and life successes. Because of its popularity in Chinese communities (including Chinatowns in the United States)[4] the maneki-neko is frequently mistaken for being Chinese in origin rather than Japanese, and is incorrectly referred to as a "Chinese lucky cat" [4] or jؐnmo ("golden cat"). The Pokmon named Meowth is based upon the maneki-neko.[6]

serous pericardium🚨The pericardium (from the Greek ?, "around" and ?Ѵ, "heart") is a double-walled sac containing the heart and the roots of the great vessels. The pericardial sac has two layers, a serous layer and a fibrous layer. It encloses the pericardial cavity which contains pericardial fluid. The pericardium fixes the heart to the mediastinum, gives protection against infection, and provides the lubrication for the heart. The pericardium is a tough double layered fibroserous sac which covers the heart.[1] The space between the two layers of serous pericardium (see below), the pericardial cavity, is filled with serous fluid which protects the heart from any kind of external jerk or shock. There are two layers to the pericardial sac: the outermost fibrous pericardium and the inner serous pericardium. The fibrous pericardium is the most superficial layer of the pericardium. It is made up of dense and loose connective tissue,[2] which acts to protect the heart, anchoring it to the surrounding walls, and preventing it from overfilling with blood. It is continuous with the outer adventitial layer of the neighboring great blood vessels. The serous pericardium, in turn, is divided into two layers, the parietal pericardium, which is fused to and inseparable from the fibrous pericardium, and the visceral pericardium, which is part of the epicardium. Both of these layers function in lubricating the heart to prevent friction during heart activity. The visceral layer extends to the beginning of the great vessels (the large blood vessels serving the heart) becoming one with the parietal layer of the serous pericardium. This happens at two areas: where the aorta and pulmonary trunk leave the heart and where the superior vena cava, inferior vena cava and pulmonary veins enter the heart.[3] In between the parietal and visceral pericardial layers there is a potential space called the pericardial cavity, which contains a supply of lubricating serous fluid known as the pericardial fluid. When the visceral layer of serous pericardium comes into contact with heart (not the great vessels) it is known as the epicardium. The epicardium is the layer immediately outside of the heart muscle proper (the myocardium).[3] The epicardium is largely made of connective tissue and functions as a protective layer. During ventricular contraction, the wave of depolarization moves from the endocardial to the epicardial surface. Inflammation of the pericardium is called pericarditis, and may be detected by the medical sign pericardial friction rub. An excess of fluid in the cavity (such as in a pericardial effusion) can result in cardiac tamponade (compression of the heart within the pericardial sac). A pericardiectomy is sometimes needed to remedy this. The surgical removing of the epicardium is referred to as epicardiectomy.[citation needed] Cutaway illustration of pericardial sac Fibrous pericardium

New Mexico🚨The following are lists of the Hispanic and Latino population per each state in the United States. As of 2012, Hispanics and Latinos make up about 17% of the total U.S. population. The state with the largest percentage of Hispanics and Latinos is New Mexico at 47%. The state with the largest Hispanic and Latino population overall is California with over 14 million Hispanics and Latinos. Cities and neighborhoods:

leaching refers to the loss of water-soluble plant nutrients from the soil, due to rain and irrigation. Soil structure, crop planting, type and application rates of fertilizers, and other factors are taken into account to avoid excessive nutrient loss.🚨In agriculture, leaching refers to the loss of water-soluble plant nutrients from the soil, due to rain and irrigation. Soil structure, crop planting, type and application rates of fertilizers, and other factors are taken into account to avoid excessive nutrient loss. Leaching may also refer to the practice of applying a small amount of excess irrigation where the water has a high salt content to avoid salts from building up in the soil (salinity control). Where this is practiced, drainage must also usually be employed, to carry away the excess water. Leaching is an environmental concern when it contributes to groundwater contamination. As water from rain, flooding, or other sources seeps into the ground, it can dissolve chemicals and carry them into the underground water supply. Of particular concern are hazardous waste dumps and landfills, and, in agriculture, excess fertilizer, improperly stored animal manure, and biocides (e.g. pesticides, fungicides, insecticides and herbicides). Nitrogen is a common element in nature and an essential plant nutrient. Approximately 78% of Earth's atmosphere is nitrogen (N2). The strong bond between the atoms of N2 makes this gas quite inert and not directly usable by plants and animals. As nitrogen naturally cycles through the air, water and soil it undergoes various chemical and biological transformations. Nitrogen promotes plant growth. Livestock then eat the crops producing manure, which is returned to the soil, adding organic and mineral forms of nitrogen. The cycle is complete when the next crop uses the amended soil.[1] To increase food production, fertilizers, such as nitrate (NO3) and ammonium (NH4), which are easily absorbed by plants, are introduced to the plant root zone. However, soils do not absorb the excess NO3 ions, which then move downward freely with drainage water, and are leached into groundwater, streams and oceans.[2] The degree of leaching is affected by: The level of nitrous oxide (N2O) in the Earth's atmosphere is increasing at a rate of 0.2 to 0.3% annually. Anthropogenic sources of nitrogen are 50% greater than from natural sources, such as, soils and oceans. Leached agricultural inputs, i.e. fertilizers and manures, accounts for 75% of the anthropogenic source of nitrogen.[4] The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates world demand for nitrogen fertilizers will increase by 1.7% annually between 2011 and 2015. An increase of 7.5 million tonnes. Regional increases of nitrogen fertilizer use are expected to be 67% by Asia, 18% by the Americas, 10% by Europe, 3% by Africa,and 1% by Oceania.[5] High levels of NO3 in water can adversely affect oxygen levels for both humans and aquatic systems. Human health issues include methemoglobinemia and anoxia, commonly referred to as blue baby syndrome. As a result of these toxic effects, regulatory agencies limit the amount of NO3 permissible in drinking water to 45ÿ50 mg1-1. Eutrophication, a decline in oxygen content of water, of aquatic systems can cause the death of fish and other marine species. Finally, leaching of NO3 from acidic sources can increase the loss of calcium and other soil nutrients, thereby reducing an ecosystem's productivity.[2]