title: Vigenère cipher

text: That is, however, only an approximation; its accuracy increases with the length of the text. It would, in practice, be necessary to try various key lengths that are close to the estimate. A better approach for repeating-key ciphers is to copy the ciphertext into rows of a matrix with as many columns as an assumed key length and then to compute the average index of coincidence with each column considered separately. When that is done for each possible key length, the highest average index of coincidence then corresponds to the most-likely key length. Such tests may be supplemented by information from the Kasiski examination.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: Once the length of the key is known, the ciphertext can be rewritten into that many columns, with each column corresponding to a single letter of the key. Each column consists of plaintext that has been encrypted by a single Caesar cipher. The Caesar key (shift) is just the letter of the Vigenère key that was used for that column. Using methods similar to those used to break the Caesar cipher, the letters in the ciphertext can be discovered.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: An improvement to the Kasiski examination, known as Kerckhoffs' method, matches each column's letter frequencies to shifted plaintext frequencies to discover the key letter (Caesar shift) for that column. Once every letter in the key is known, all the cryptanalyst has to do is to decrypt the ciphertext and reveal the plaintext. Kerckhoffs' method is not applicable if the Vigenère table has been scrambled, rather than using normal alphabetic sequences, but Kasiski examination and coincidence tests can still be used to determine key length.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: The Vigenère cipher, with normal alphabets, essentially uses modulo arithmetic, which is commutative. Therefore, if the key length is known (or guessed), subtracting the cipher text from itself, offset by the key length, will produce the plain text subtracted from itself, also offset by the key length. If any "probable word" in the plain text is known or can be guessed, its self-subtraction can be recognized, which allows recovery of the key by subtracting the known plaintext from the cipher text. Key elimination is especially useful against short messages. For example using codice_38 as the key below:


title: Vigenère cipher

text: This result codice_41 corresponds with the 9th through 12th letters in the result of the larger examples above. The known section and its location is verified.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: The running key variant of the Vigenère cipher was also considered unbreakable at one time. For the key, this version uses a block of text as long as the plaintext. Since the key is as long as the message, the Friedman and Kasiski tests no longer work, as the key is not repeated.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: If multiple keys are used, the effective key length is the least common multiple of the lengths of the individual keys. For example, using the two keys codice_44 and codice_45, whose lengths are 2 and 3, one obtains an effective key length of 6 (the least common multiple of 2 and 3). This can be understood as the point where both keys line up.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: Encrypting twice, first with the key codice_44 and then with the key codice_45 is the same as encrypting once with a key produced by encrypting one key with the other.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: This is demonstrated by encrypting codice_7 with codice_49, to produce the same ciphertext as in the original example.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: If key lengths are relatively prime, the effective key length grows exponentially as the individual key lengths are increased. For example, while the effective length of keys 10, 12, and 15 characters is only 60, that of keys of 8, 11, and 15 characters is 1320. If this effective key length is longer than the ciphertext, it achieves the same immunity to the Friedman and Kasiski tests as the running key variant.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: If one uses a key that is truly random, is at least as long as the encrypted message, and is used only once, the Vigenère cipher is theoretically unbreakable. However, in that case, the key, not the cipher, provides cryptographic strength, and such systems are properly referred to collectively as one-time pad systems, irrespective of the ciphers employed.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: A simple variant is to encrypt by using the Vigenère decryption method and to decrypt by using Vigenère encryption. That method is sometimes referred to as "Variant Beaufort". It is different from the Beaufort cipher, created by Francis Beaufort, which is similar to Vigenère but uses a slightly modified enciphering mechanism and tableau. The Beaufort cipher is a reciprocal cipher.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: Despite the Vigenère cipher's apparent strength, it never became widely used throughout Europe. The Gronsfeld cipher is a variant created by Count Gronsfeld (Josse Maximilaan van Gronsveld né van Bronckhorst); it is identical to the Vigenère cipher except that it uses just 10 different cipher alphabets, corresponding to the digits 0 to 9). A Gronsfeld key of 0123 is the same as a Vigenere key of ABCD. The Gronsfeld cipher is strengthened because its key is not a word, but it is weakened because it has just 10 cipher alphabets. It is Gronsfeld's cipher that became widely used throughout Germany and Europe, despite its weaknesses.


title: Vigenère cipher

text: Vigenère actually invented a stronger cipher, an autokey cipher. The name "Vigenère cipher" became associated with a simpler polyalphabetic cipher instead. In fact, the two ciphers were often confused, and both were sometimes called "le chiffre indéchiffrable". Babbage actually broke the much-stronger autokey cipher, but Kasiski is generally credited with the first published solution to the fixed-key polyalphabetic ciphers.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale College is a private conservative Christian liberal arts college in Hillsdale, Michigan. It was founded in 1844 by abolitionists known as Free Will Baptists.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Its liberal arts curriculum is based on Western heritage as a product of Greco-Roman culture and Christian tradition. The required core curriculum has courses on the Great Books, the U.S. Constitution, biology, chemistry, and physics.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Since the late 20th century, in order to opt out of the US government's Title IX anti-discrimination requirements, Hillsdale has been among a small number of U.S. colleges to decline governmental financial support. Instead, Hillsdale depends entirely on private donations to supplement students' tuition.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In August 1844, members of the local community of Free Will Baptists resolved to organize their denomination's first collegiate institution. After gathering donations, they established Michigan Central College in Spring Arbor, Michigan, on December 4, 1844. That site is now home to Spring Arbor University. Although religiously affiliated, the college was officially nonsectarian.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Under its first president, Daniel McBride Graham, who held the office from 1844 to 1848, Michigan Central College opened within a two-room store and admitted five students. In March 1845, the government of Michigan incorporated the college, and the college enrolled 25 undergraduates by the end of its first year.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Edmund Burke Fairfield assumed the presidency of Michigan Central College in 1848. On March 20, 1850, the Michigan legislature granted the college a special charter, giving it the right to confer degrees. Black students were admitted immediately after the college's founding, and the college became the second school in the nation to grant four-year liberal arts degrees to women.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Outgrowing its space, in 1853 the school moved to Hillsdale, Michigan, in part to have access to the railroad that served the city. It received considerable financial support from local citizens, who wanted to develop the 20-year-old town. The cornerstone of the new building, Central Hall, was laid on July 4, 1853. After Michigan Central College completed construction and moved, it reopened as Hillsdale College on November 7, 1855.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Fairfield led Hillsdale from 1848 to 1869. During his presidency, he helped found the Republican Party with Ransom Dunn in neighboring Jackson, Michigan. A prominent leader, Fairfield attended the first Republican Party convention in 1856, and was elected lieutenant governor of Michigan. Hillsdale's early anti-slavery reputation and pivotal role in founding the Republican Party led to the invitation of several notable speakers on the campus, including Frederick Douglass (who visited the school on two separate occasions) and Edward Everett, the orator preceding Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg. On August 8, 1860, Hillsdale conferred its first degrees. On March 20, 1863, the Michigan legislature formally legalized Hillsdale's change of name and location.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale no longer has any denominational affiliation but, according to its website, "the moral tenets of Christianity as commonly understood in the Christian tradition have been essential to the mission of the College". It has always been open to black and female students.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 1861, many Hillsdale students joined the ranks of the Union Army during the American Civil War; a higher percentage of Hillsdale students enlisted than from any other Michigan college. Hillsdale continued to operate during the war, but had limited enrollment because so many young men went to war. Half of Hillsdale's students who enlisted became officers, as was typical for men with some college education; five became lieutenant colonels, four received the Medal of Honor, and three became generals. Sixty students died in the war.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale survived while nearly 80% of the colleges founded before the Civil War were forced to close. After the war, it regained its normal enrollment; many veterans returned and completed their education. Hillsdale continued to host notable speakers, including the physician and educator Sophia Jex-Blake in October 1865. Hillsdale's Delta Tau Delta chapter, its first fraternity, was chartered on October 19, 1867.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 1869, James Calder succeeded Fairfield as president. Calder served through 1871. During his administration, the commercial school opened, a theological department was established, and the college enrolled around 750 students. He resigned to become president of Pennsylvania State University.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale's first president, Daniel McBride Graham, returned for a brief second term in 1871, notably rebuilding the campus after the catastrophic "Great Fire" of March 6, 1874. DeWitt Clinton Durgin, a Union College alumnus, was president from 1874 to 1884. In 1878, the "Hillsdale Herald" was published, becoming the second oldest college newspaper in Michigan, behind Kalamazoo College's "The Index". This paper later merged with another college paper to become "The Collegian". During Durgin's presidency, Hillsdale's Kappa Kappa Gamma and Sigma Chi chapters were chartered.


title: Hillsdale College

text: After Ransom Dunn's brief turn as acting president, George F. Mosher served as president of Hillsdale from 1886 to 1901. During this time, the college grew in size and prestige. In 1884, Spencer O. Fisher became the first Hillsdale alumnus elected to Congress. Pi Beta Phi and Alpha Tau Omega were chartered. In 1891, the "Chicago Herald" reported, "Hillsdale has a college second in standing to no denominational college in the country." Four years later, when the University of Chicago offered to affiliate with Hillsdale, the college rejected the proposal.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 1900, Hillsdale ceased grazing livestock and removed the agrarian fence circling the campus. It began an era of institutional growth and professionalization. In 1902, Joseph William Mauck became the college's sixth president, the first Hillsdale graduate to return as president of his alma mater. Beloved by the college community and an early and outspoken advocate for women's suffrage, Mauck served for two decades. One of the women's dormitories is named after Mauck.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale adopted its first honor code and held its first homecoming celebration. In 1907, the college amended its Articles of Association, no longer requiring the president and trustees to be Free Will Baptists. This led to a decline in the theological department's prestige but an increase in the number of Christian denominations represented on campus. In 1915, the college's chapter of the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity was chartered. When World War I broke out, a large proportion of (mostly male) students entered military service. By 1918 most of the upperclassmen had enlisted.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Four years after the war, William Gear Spencer succeeded Mauck as president. He served from 1922 to 1932, when he departed to lead Franklin College. Under Spencer's leadership, the college prospered. During this time, Hillsdale acquired its 14-acre Slayton Arboretum, built new dormitories, constructed a new field house for its developing athletic programs, and, in 1924, chartered its chapter of Chi Omega.


title: Hillsdale College

text: During the Great Depression, Willfred Otto Mauck, Joseph Mauck's son and also an alumnus, was selected as the eighth president, serving from 1933 to 1942. Throughout this era, the college struggled financially, was forced to cancel its new construction projects, and cut the pay of its faculty and staff by nearly 20%. Succeeding Mauck, Harvey L. Turner became Hillsdale's ninth president, serving from 1942 to 1952. Despite its financial difficulties, the college built a new library, had an undefeated and untied football team in 1938, and celebrated its centennial in 1944, when more than 1,000 alumni returned to campus for the commencement ceremony.


title: Hillsdale College

text: J. Donald Phillips next assumed the presidency, holding the position from 1952 to 1971. During his administration, Philips solved many of Hillsdale's financial worries and constructed many new campus buildings. In these years, Hillsdale began to resist federal regulations, particularly concerning affirmative action, which followed national civil rights legislation. In 1962, the college's trustees adopted its own "Declaration of Independence". It affirmed Hillsdale's stance against governmental control. The college promoted the traditional education of the liberal arts and classics. In the late 20th century, it decided to forego any federal grants or subsidies, "to reaffirm its historic independence and to resist subsidization of its affairs by the federal government."


title: Hillsdale College

text: A marker designating the college as a Michigan Historic Site was erected by the Michigan Historical Commission in 1968. The inscription reads:


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 1844 a group of Freewill Baptists organized Michigan Central College at Spring Arbor. This college was the first in Michigan to grant degrees to women. Moved to Hillsdale in 1853 and chartered by the legislature in 1855, the school was renamed Hillsdale College under an independent board of trustees, its only controlling organization. The charter opened the institution "to all persons ... irrespective of nationality, color, or sex."


title: Hillsdale College

text: George Roche III became the 11th president of Hillsdale College in 1971. During the Roche years, Hillsdale became nationally known, in part because of its withdrawal from federal and state-assisted loan programs and grants. The U.S. Departments of Health, Education, and Welfare required the college to account for students by race as part of its affirmative action student loan program in the 1970s, but the administration publicly refused. Hillsdale's trustees said it would follow its own non-discrimination policy and that it would, "with the help of God, resist, by all legal means, any encroachments on its independence." In 1984, after a decade of litigation, the college withdrew from all federal student loans, replacing government assistance with private contributions.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Roche was highly successful in fundraising until he resigned due to allegations of a personal sexual scandal. During his presidency, the college dramatically increased its endowment, established the Center for Constructive Alternatives, and hosted prominent national speakers, including Ronald Reagan. It also began publishing "Imprimis", a monthly speech digest. Russell Kirk taught at Hillsdale one semester a year throughout this time, beginning in 1973.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Roche resigned in late 1999, following his daughter-in-law Lissa Jackson Roche's suicide and her allegations of personal scandal. On October 17, 1999, she said that she had engaged in a 19-year on-and-off sexual affair with him. She fatally shot herself at the Slayton Arboretum on campus with a .38-caliber handgun from her husband's gun cabinet. Married to Roche's son, known as Roche IV, Jackson Roche was employed by Hillsdale as the Managing Editor of "Imprimis" and Hillsdale College Press. President Roche denied the affair. The college's reputation suffered and donations declined markedly.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Larry P. Arnn has served as president of the college since 2000. Under his tenure, the college completed various new buildings, including the John A. Halter Shooting Sports Center and Margot V. Biermann Athletic Center. The college also opened the Allan P. Kirby, Jr. Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship, an off-campus educational center in Washington, D.C. Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, ran the Washington center's speaker series.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 2013, Arnn was criticized for remarks about ethnic minorities he made while testifying before the Michigan legislature against the Common Core curriculum standards. Expressing concern about government interference with educational institutions, he noted having received a letter from the state Department of Education early in his presidency that said his college "violated the standards for diversity." He added, "because we didn't have enough dark ones, I guess, is what they meant." After being criticized for calling minorities "dark ones," Arnn explained that he was referring to "dark faces". He stated: "The State of Michigan sent a group of people down to my campus, with clipboards ... to look at the colors of people's faces and write down what they saw. We don't keep records of that information. What were they looking for besides dark ones?" Michigan House Democratic Leader Tim Greimel condemned Arnn's comments, calling them "offensive", "inflammatory and bigoted", and asked for an apology. In response, the college issued a statement apologizing for Arnn's remark, while reiterating his concern about "state-endorsed racism", as Arnn called affirmative action.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In November 2021, Hillsdale purchased land in Placer County, California for nearly $6M with plans for a new campus.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale enrolls approximately 350 new students each year, with a current enrollment of around 1,450 students from 47 states, the District of Columbia, and eight foreign countries. The college employs 124 full-time faculty members. Hillsdale was ranked 46th in the 2022 "U.S. News & World Report" listing of best National Liberal Arts Colleges. The "Princeton Review"s "The Best 384 Colleges 2023" ranked Hillsdale as first for "most engaged in community service," seventh for "students love these colleges," eighth for "professors get high marks," and thirteenth for "students study the most." Hillsdale was ranked 33rd overall in College Raptor's 2023 top 50 colleges, including 5th in the Great Lakes Region and 4th in religiously-affiliated colleges.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Undergraduate offerings include a variety of liberal arts majors, pre-professional programs, a teacher education program, and a journalism certificate program.


title: Hillsdale College

text: The College offers three graduate programs: the Van Andel Graduate School of Statesmanship, offering both an M.A. and a Ph.D. program in Politics; the Steve and Amy Van Andel Graduate School of Government, based in Washington, D.C., and offering an M.A. in Government; and the Graduate School of Classical Education, offering an M.A. in classical education.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale's campus contains multiple instructional and office buildings, 13 residence halls, seven fraternity and sorority houses, an athletic complex, a library, a music hall, an arts center, a conference center, a hotel, and a preschool. Hillsdale College also operates Hillsdale Academy, a private K–12 liberal arts school. The college opened the classical-style Christ Chapel in 2019, in a dedication ceremony led by Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas.


title: Hillsdale College

text: The campus features the Liberty Walk, a walkway lined with bronze depictions of famous statesmen including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, and Ronald Reagan.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In the early 1980s, a controversy threatened federal student loans to 200 Hillsdale students. Title IX prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or other education program that receives federal money. The federal government required colleges where students received federal funding to document their compliance with Title IX, but Hillsdale refused, arguing that the government could not deny federal funds to its students because the college received no direct federal funding and there was no allegation of actual sex discrimination. The Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) sought to terminate federal financial assistance to Hillsdale's students; an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) denied HEW's request in 1978, and both HEW and Hillsdale appealed to HEW's Civil Rights Reviewing Authority. In October 1979, the Reviewing Authority rejected Hillsdale's arguments and the ALJ's decision, ruling that HEW could require Hillsdale to sign the Assurance of Compliance as a condition of its students receiving federal financial assistance. The college appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; in 1982, the Sixth Circuit ruled that government aid to individual students could be terminated without a finding that a college actually discriminated, but nevertheless upheld Hillsdale's refusal to sign the compliance forms because only its student loan and grant program is subject to Title IX regulation, not the entire college.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In the related 1984 case "Grove City College v. Bell", the Supreme Court required every college or university to fulfill federal requirementspast and future requirementsif its students received federal aid. As a result of the decision, Hillsdale withdrew from all federal assistance beginning with the 1984–85 academic year; Grove City College, the plaintiff in that case, followed Hillsdale's lead four years later. Beginning in the 2007–08 academic year, Hillsdale stopped accepting Michigan state assistance, instead matching with its own aid any funds that a student would have received from the state. Since 2007, Hillsdale's entire operating budget, including scholarships, has come from private funding and endowments.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale brings speakers to campus through its Center for Constructive Alternatives program. Lectures are open to the public. Speakers have included Stephen Ambrose, Benazir Bhutto, Harry Browne, Russell Kirk, Harvey Mansfield, Charles Murray, Ralph Nader, P.J. O'Rourke, Phyllis Schlafly, and Juan Williams. Lectures and speeches from the series are published monthly in "Imprimis", and distributed monthly for free. First published in 1972, "Imprimis" has a circulation of over five million subscribers.


title: Hillsdale College

text: The college's Barney Charter School Initiative was established to support the launch of K–12 charter schools based on a classical liberal arts model, with a strong civics component to "equip students to understand and defend the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution."


title: Hillsdale College

text: Through an affiliation with Oxford's Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies and the Oxford Study Abroad Program, Hillsdale College offers a study abroad program at Oxford University where participants participate in classes and extracurricular as associate members of one of 38 different colleges in the university.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale operates the Allan P. Kirby, Jr. Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship in Washington, D.C. The Kirby Center provides assistance to Hillsdale students who participate in Washington internships and co-sponsors the James Madison Fellows Program with The Heritage Foundation and the Federalist Society. It engages with senior-level congressional staff members who the college describes as "dedicated to making first principles the foremost consideration in public policy formation". Since 2008, the center has hosted the monthly AWC Family Foundation Lecture Series,which has included lectures by David Horowitz, John Bolton, and Paul A. Rahe. The Kirby Center also hosts an annual Constitution Day celebration and conducts online town halls on matters related to the Constitution.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 2019, S. Prestley Blake donated his estate in Somers, Connecticut, to the college. Following a lengthy battle over zoning issues, the college has turned the estate into The Blake Center for Faith and Freedom. The center includes a replica of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. The college plans on hosting events similar to those held at other campuses in the future. The first event was held on May 20, 2021, with the donation of 200 books for the Jefferson Library.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In December 2021, Hillsdale launched the Academy for Science and Freedom in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The academy's stated goal is to "educate the American people about the free exchange of scientific ideas and the proper relationship between freedom and science in the pursuit of truth." The academy called the United States' response to the COVID-19 pandemic "the worst public health fiasco in history" that "has unveiled serious issues with how science is administered". Scott Atlas, Jay Bhattacharya, and Martin Kulldorff, who helped found the academy, have ties to the Great Barrington Declaration.


title: Hillsdale College

text: The college has a number of sports teams that compete at the NCAA Division II level, including baseball, men's and women's basketball, football, softball, women's swimming, track and field, cross country, men's and women's tennis, and women's volleyball. The college also has club teams and intramural sports that vary from year to year. The Chargers, as the Hillsdale athletics teams are known, compete in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Football coach Frank "Muddy" Waters was the head coach at Hillsdale from 1954 to 1973. The football stadium, Frank Waters Stadium, is named in his honor.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale College has sponsored a football team every year since 1891 with the exception of 1943 and 1944 seasons being canceled because of World War II. Their overall program record is 647–438–48 in 128 seasons of play. They split the 1985 NAIA National Championship with Central Arkansas after the game concluded in a 10–10 tie. They have won 34 championships since 1891, their most recent championship-winning the GMAC Conference in 2018. They have had 55 All-American players in program history and 10 All-American Academic players. Hillsdale College competed in the NAIA from its inception until 1990, where it became an NCAA Division 2 institution. Keith Otterbein is the present Hillsdale Football coach. He is in his 19th season, as he became the head coach in 2002. Thirteen players from Hillsdale have been drafted in the NFL, and eleven have been signed as undrafted free agents. Hillsdale has been a part of four different conferences and was also independent at one point. From 1880 to 1960, they were a part of the MIAA. From 1961 to 1974, they were independent. In 1975, they joined the GLIAC until 1989. In 1990, they left the GLIAC to join the MIFC from 1990 to 1998. In 1999, they rejoined the GLIAC conference and remained there until 2017. Now, they stand in the GMAC conference. A few outstanding records from over the years are the program's longest winning streak, 34 in 1954–1957 and Troy Weatherhead holds the record for the highest percentage of passes completed in a season, 76.9%, in the year 2010.


title: Hillsdale College

text: In 2018, Hillsdale College was named one of the best schools in the U.S. for student-athletes by Next College Student Athlete's 2018 NCSA Power Rankings. Hillsdale was the fourth ranked school among all NCAA Division II colleges and universities in the U.S. The NCSA Power Rankings, which recognize the best colleges and universities in the U.S. for student-athletes, ranked Hillsdale within the top 10 among all Division II schools for several sports including football, baseball, softball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track and field, women's swimming and women's volleyball. Hillsdale men's track and field also ranked 97th overall (among all divisions).


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale also has a nationally ranked competitive shotgun team. Competing in both the Association of College Unions International and the Scholastic Clay Target Program circuits, the team are seven-time ACUI Collegiate national champions, winning in 2012, 2014–2018, and 2021. It competes in six shotgun shooting disciplines: trap, skeet, sporting clays, and a variation on each.


title: Hillsdale College

text: Hillsdale's alma mater is "White and Blue". The words and melody were composed by Bess Hagaman Tefft, Class of 1937.


title: Casein

text: Casein ( , from Latin "caseus" "cheese") is a family of related phosphoproteins (αS1, aS2, β, κ) that are commonly found in mammalian milk, comprising about 80% of the proteins in cow's milk and between 20% and 60% of the proteins in human milk. Sheep and buffalo milk have a higher casein content than other types of milk with human milk having a particularly low casein content.


title: Casein

text: Casein has a wide variety of uses, from being a major component of cheese, to use as a food additive. The most common form of casein is sodium caseinate. In milk, casein undergoes phase separation to form colloidal casein micelles, a type of secreted biomolecular condensate.


title: Casein

text: As a food source, casein supplies amino acids, carbohydrates, and two essential elements, calcium and phosphorus.


title: Casein

text: Casein contains a high number of proline amino acids which hinder the formation of common secondary structural motifs of proteins. There are also no disulfide bridges. As a result, it has relatively little tertiary structure. It is relatively hydrophobic, making it poorly soluble in water. It is found in milk as a suspension of particles, called casein micelles, which show only limited resemblance with surfactant-type micelles in a sense that the hydrophilic parts reside at the surface and they are spherical. However, in sharp contrast to surfactant micelles, the interior of a casein micelle is highly hydrated. The caseins in the micelles are held together by calcium ions and hydrophobic interactions. Any of several molecular models could account for the special conformation of casein in the micelles. One of them proposes the micellar nucleus is formed by several submicelles, the periphery consisting of microvellosities of κ-casein. Another model suggests the nucleus is formed by casein-interlinked fibrils. Finally, the most recent model proposes a double link among the caseins for gelling to take place. All three models consider micelles as colloidal particles formed by casein aggregates wrapped up in soluble κ-casein molecules.


title: Casein

text: The isoelectric point of casein is 4.6. Since milk's pH is 6.6, casein has a negative charge in milk. The purified protein is water-insoluble. While it is also insoluble in neutral salt solutions, it is readily dispersible in dilute alkalis and in salt solutions such as aqueous sodium oxalate and sodium acetate.


title: Casein

text: The enzyme trypsin can hydrolyze a phosphate-containing peptone. It is used to form a type of organic adhesive.


title: Casein

text: Casein paint is a fast-drying, water-soluble medium used by artists. Casein paint has been used since ancient Egyptian times as a form of tempera paint, and was widely used by commercial illustrators as the material of choice until the late 1960s when, with the advent of acrylic paint, casein became less popular. It is still widely used by scenic painters, although acrylic has made inroads in that field as well.


title: Casein

text: Casein-based glues are formulated from casein, water, and alkalis (usually a mix of hydrated lime and sodium hydroxide). Milk is skimmed to remove the fat, then the milk is soured so that the casein is precipitated as milk curd. The curd is washed (removing the whey), and then the curd is pressed to squeeze out the water (it may even be dried to a powder). The casein is mixed with alkali (usually both sodium and calcium hydroxide) to make glue. Glues made with different mixes of alkalis have different properties. Preservatives may also be added.


title: Casein

text: They were popular for woodworking, including for aircraft, as late as the de Havilland "Albatross" airliner in 1939.


title: Casein

text: Casein glue is also used in transformer manufacturing (specifically transformer board) due to its oil permeability.


title: Casein

text: Elmer's Glue-All, Elmer's School Glue and many other Borden adhesives were originally made from casein. While one reason was its non-toxic nature, a primary factor was that it was economical to use. Towards the end of the 20th century, Borden replaced casein in all of its popular adhesives with synthetics like PVA.


title: Casein

text: While largely replaced with synthetic resins, casein-based glues still have a use in certain niche applications, such as laminating fireproof doors and the labeling of bottles. Casein glues thin rapidly with increasing temperature, making it easy to apply thin films quickly to label jars and bottles on a production line.


title: Casein

text: Several foods, creamers, and toppings all contain a variety of caseinates. Sodium caseinate acts as a greater food additive for stabilizing processed foods, however companies could opt to use calcium caseinate to increase calcium content and decrease sodium levels in their products.


title: Casein

text: The main food uses of casein are for powders requiring rapid dispersion into water, ranging from coffee creamers to instant cream soups. Mead Johnson introduced a product in the early 1920s named Casec to ease gastrointestinal disorders and infant digestive problems which were a common cause of death in children at that time.


title: Casein

text: It is believed to neutralize capsaicin, the active (hot) ingredient of peppers, jalapeños, habaneros, and other chili peppers.


title: Casein

text: Cheese consists of proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. It is produced by coagulation that is caused by destabilization of the casein micelle, which begins the processes of fractionation and selective concentration. Typically, the milk is acidified and then coagulated by the addition of rennet, containing a proteolytic enzyme known as rennin; traditionally obtained from the stomachs of calves, but currently produced more often from genetically modified microorganisms. The solids are then separated and pressed into final form.


title: Casein

text: Unlike many proteins, casein is not coagulated by heat. During the process of clotting, milk-clotting proteases act on the soluble portion of the caseins, κ-casein, thus originating an unstable micellar state that results in clot formation. When coagulated with chymosin, casein is sometimes called paracasein. Chymosin (EC 3.4.23.4) is an aspartic protease that specifically hydrolyzes the peptide bond in Phe105-Met106 of κ-casein, and is considered to be the most efficient protease for the cheese-making industry (Rao et al., 1998). British terminology, on the other hand, uses the term caseinogen for the uncoagulated protein and casein for the coagulated protein. As it exists in milk, it is a salt of calcium.


title: Casein

text: An attractive property of the casein molecule is its ability to form a gel or clot in the stomach, which makes it very efficient in nutrient supply. The clot is able to provide a sustained slow release of amino acids into the blood stream, sometimes lasting for several hours. Often casein is available as "hydrolyzed casein", whereby it is hydrolyzed by a protease such as trypsin. Hydrolyzed forms are noted to taste bitter and such supplements are often refused by infants and lab animals in favor of intact casein.


title: Casein

text: Some of the earliest plastics were based on casein. In particular, galalith was well known for use in buttons. Fiber can be made from extruded casein. Lanital, a fabric made from casein fiber (known as Aralac in the United States), was particularly popular in Italy during the 1930s. Recent innovations such as QMILK are offering a more refined use of the fiber for modern fabrics.


title: Casein

text: Casein-derived compounds are used in tooth remineralization products to stabilize amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) and release the ACP onto tooth surfaces, where it can facilitate remineralization.


title: Casein

text: Casein and gluten exclusion diets are sometimes used in alternative medicine for children with autism. As of 2015 the evidence that such diets have any impact on behavior or cognitive and social functioning in autistic children was limited and weak.


title: Casein

text: Casein proteins have potential for use as nanomaterials due to their readily available source (milk) and their propensity to self-assemble into amyloid fibrils.


title: Casein

text: A1 and A2 beta-casein are genetic variants of the beta-casein milk protein that differ by one amino acid; a proline occurs at position 67 in the chain of amino acids that make up the A2 beta-casein, while in A1 beta-casein a histidine occurs at that position. Due to the way that beta-casein interacts with enzymes found in the digestive system, A1 and A2 are processed differently by digestive enzymes, and a seven-amino peptide, beta-casomorphin-7, (BCM-7) can be released by digestion of A1-beta-casein.


title: Casein

text: The A1 beta-casein type is the most common type found in cow's milk in Europe (excluding Italy and France which have more A2 cows), the United States, Australia, and New Zealand.


title: Casein

text: Interest in the distinction between A1 and A2 beta-casein proteins began in the early 1990s through epidemiological research and animal studies initially conducted by scientists in New Zealand, which found correlations between the prevalence of milk with A1 beta-casein proteins and various chronic diseases. The research generated interest in the media, among some in the scientific community, and entrepreneurs. A company, A2 Corporation, was founded in New Zealand in the early 2000s to commercialize the test and market "A2 Milk" as premium milk that is healthier due to the lack of peptides from A1. A2 Milk even petitioned the Food Standards Australia New Zealand regulatory authority to require a health warning on ordinary milk.


title: Casein

text: Responding to public interest, the marketing of A2 milk, and the scientific evidence that had been published. An independent review published in 2005 also found no discernible difference between drinking A1 or A2 milk on the risk of contracting chronic diseases. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reviewed the scientific literature and published a review in 2009 found no identifiable relationship between chronic diseases and drinking milk with the A1 protein.


title: Casein

text: A small fraction of the population is allergic to casein. Casein intolerance, also known as "milk protein intolerance" is experienced when the body cannot break down the proteins of casein. The prevalence of casein allergy or intolerance ranges from 0.25 to 4.9% of young children. Numbers for older children and adults are not known. A significant portion of those on the autism spectrum have an intolerance or allergy to casein protein into adulthood. This can be used by clinicians and dietitians to spot autism in those who may not present with traditional autistic traits. A diet known as casein-free, gluten free (CFGF) is commonly practiced by these individuals after discovering their intolerance or allergy.


title: Casein

text: Casein that is heat-treated has been shown to be more allergenic and harder to digest when fed to infants. Breast milk has not typically been shown to cause an allergic reaction, but should be administered to an infant with caution each time in case of adverse reaction from something the breastfeeding parent consumed that contained casein. Following a casein-free diet has been shown to improve outcomes of infants who are breastfed while allergic or intolerant to dairy protein. Human breast milk has been proven to be the best food for an infant, and should be tried first where available.


title: Casein

text: Supplementation of protease enzyme has been shown to help casein intolerant individuals digest the protein with minimal adverse reaction.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: In Greek mythology, Ganymede () or Ganymedes (; Ancient Greek: Γανυμήδης "Ganymēdēs") is a divine hero whose homeland was Troy. Homer describes Ganymede as the most beautiful of mortals and tells the story of how he was abducted by the gods to serve as Zeus's cup-bearer in Olympus.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: The myth was a model for the Greek social custom of "paiderastía", the romantic relationship between an adult male and an adolescent male. The Latin form of the name was Catamitus (and also "Ganymedes"), from which the English word "catamite" is derived. According to Plato's Laws, the Cretans were regularly accused of inventing the myth because they wanted to justify their "unnatural pleasures".


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: In Greek Mythology, Ganymede is the son of Tros of Dardania, whose name "Troy" is supposedly derived from, either by his wife Callirrhoe, daughter of the river god Scamander, or Acallaris, daughter of Eumedes. Depending on the author, he is the brother of Ilus, Assaracus, Cleopatra or Cleomestra.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: The stories about Ganymede, however, differ greatly in their detail, for some called him a son of Laomedon, others a son of Ilus. In some versions he is known as Dardanus, in others as Erichthonius or Assaracus.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Ganymede was abducted by Zeus from Mount Ida near Troy in Phrygia. Ganymede had been tending sheep which is a rustic or humble pursuit, a characteristic of a hero's boyhood before his privileged status is revealed. An eagle transported the youth to Mount Olympus. The bird is sometimes described as being under the command of Zeus and sometimes as being the god transformed.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: On Olympus, Zeus granted Ganymede eternal youth and immortality as the official cup bearer to the gods, in place of Hebe, relieved of cup-bearing duties upon her marriage to Herakles. Alternatively, the "Iliad" presented Hebe (and at one instance, Hephaestus) as the cup bearer of the gods with Ganymede acting as Zeus's personal cup bearer. Edmund Veckenstedt associated Ganymede with the creation of mead, which had a traditional origin in Phrygia. In various literature such as the Aeneid, Hera, Zeus's wife, regards Ganymede as a rival for her husband's affection. In various stories, Zeus later put Ganymede in the sky as the constellation Aquarius (the "water-carrier" or "cup-carrier"), which is adjacent to Aquila (the Eagle). The largest moon of the planet Jupiter (named after Zeus's Roman counterpart) was named Ganymede by the German astronomer Simon Marius.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: In the "Iliad", Zeus is said to have compensated Ganymede's father Tros by the gift of fine horses, "the same that carry the immortals", delivered by the messenger god Hermes. Tros was consoled that his son was now immortal and would be the cup bearer for the gods, a position of much distinction.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Plato accounts for the pederastic aspect of the myth by attributing its origin to Crete, where the social custom of "paiderastía" was supposed to have originated (see "Cretan pederasty"). Athenaeus recorded a version of the myth where Ganymede was abducted by the legendary King Minos to serve as his cupbearer instead of Zeus. Some authors have equated this version of the myth to Cretan pederasty practices, as recorded by Strabo and Ephoros, it involved abduction of a youth by an older lover for a period of two months before the youth was able to re-enter society as a man. Xenophon portrays Socrates denying that Ganymede was the "catamite" of Zeus, instead asserting that the god loved him for his "psychē", "mind" or "soul," giving the etymology of his name as "ganu-" "taking pleasure" and "mēd-" "mind." Xenophon's Socrates points out that Zeus did not grant any of his lovers immortality, but that he did grant immortality to Ganymede.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: In poetry, Ganymede became a symbol for the beautiful young male who attracted homosexual desire and love. He is not always portrayed as acquiescent. However, in the "Argonautica" of Apollonius of Rhodes, Ganymede is furious at the god Eros for having cheated him at the game of chance played with knucklebones, and Aphrodite scolds her son for "cheating a beginner". The Augustan poet Virgil portrays the abduction with pathos: the boy's aged tutors try in vain to draw him back to Earth, and his hounds bay uselessly at the sky. The loyal hounds left calling after their abducted master is a frequent motif in visual depictions and is referenced by Statius:


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Here the Phrygian hunter is borne aloft on tawny wings, Gargara’s range sinks downwards as he rises, and Troy grows dim beneath him; sadly stand his comrades; vainly the hounds weary their throats with barking, pursue his shadow or bay at the clouds.""


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: In 5th century Athens, the story of Ganymede became popular among vase-painters, which was suited to the all-male symposium. Ganymede was usually depicted as a muscular young man, although Greek and Roman sculpture typically depicted his physique as less developed than athletes'.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: One of the earliest depictions of Ganymede is a red-figure krater by the Berlin Painter in the Musée du Louvre. Zeus pursues Ganymede on one side, while the youth runs away on the other side, rolling along a hoop while holding aloft a crowing cock. The Ganymede myth was depicted in recognizable contemporary terms, illustrated with common behavior of homoerotic courtship rituals, as on a vase by the "Achilles Painter" where Ganymede also flees with a cock. Cocks were common gifts from older male suitors to younger men they were interested in romantically in 5th century Athens. Leochares (ca. 350 B.C.E.), a Greek sculptor of Athens who was engaged with Scopas on the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus cast a lost bronze group of Ganymede and the Eagle, a work that was held remarkable for its ingenious composition. It is apparently copied in a in the Vatican. Such Hellenistic gravity-defying feats were influential in the sculpture of the Baroque.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Ganymede and Zeus in the guise of an eagle were a popular subject on Roman funerary monuments with at least 16 sarcophagi depicting this scene.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Ganymede was a major symbol of homosexual love in the visual and literary arts from the Renaissance to the Late Victorian era, until when Antinous, the reported lover of the Roman Emperor Hadrian, became a more popular subject.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: In Shakespeare's "As You Like It" (1599), a comedy about misunderstandings in the magical setting of the Forest of Arden, Celia, dressed as a shepherdess, becomes "Aliena" (Latin "stranger", Ganymede's sister) and Rosalind, because she is "more than common tall", dresses up as a boy, Ganymede, a well-known image to the audience. She plays on her ambiguous charm to seduce Orlando, but also (involuntarily) the shepherdess Phoebe. Thus behind the conventions of Elizabethan theater in its original setting, the young boy played the girl Rosalind who dresses up as a boy and is then courted by another boy playing Phoebe. Ganymede also appears in the opening of Christopher Marlowe play "Dido, Queen of Carthage", where his and Zeus's affectionate banter is interrupted by an angry Aphrodite (Venus). In later Jacobean tragedy, "Women Beware Women", Ganymede, Hebe, and Hymen briefly appear to serve as cup bearers to the court, one of which has been poisoned in an assassination attempt, although the plan goes awry.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Allusions to Ganymede occur with some frequency in 17th century Spanish theater. In "El castigo sin venganza" (1631) by Lope de Vega, Federico, the son of the Duke of Mantua, rescues Casandra, his future step-mother, and the pair will later develop an incestuous relationship. To emphasize the non-normative relation, the work includes a long passage, possibly an ekphrasis derived from Italian art, in which Jupiter in the form of an eagle abducts Ganymede. Two plays by Tirso de Molina, and in particular "La prudencia en la mujer," include intriguing references to Ganymede. In this particular play, a Jewish doctor who seeks to poison the future king, carries a cup which is compared to Ganymede's.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: One of the earliest surviving non-ancient depictions of Ganymede is a woodcut from the first edition of "Emblemata" (ca. 1531), which shows the youth riding the eagle as opposed to being carried away. However, this composition is uncommon, with only sketches by Michelangelo that survived depicting Ganymede being carried. Painter-architect Baldassare Peruzzi included a panel of "The Rape of Ganymede" in a ceiling at the Villa Farnesina, Rome, (ca 1509–1514), with Ganymede's long blond hair and girlish pose making him identifiable at first glance, grasping the eagle's wing without resistance. In Antonio Allegri Correggio's "Ganymede Abducted by the Eagle" (Vienna) Ganymede's grasp is more intimate, Rubens' version portrays a young man and Johann Wilhelm Baur portrays a full-grown Ganymede confidently riding the eagle towards Olympus in "Ganymede Triumphant" (ca. 1640s). On the other hand,when Rembrandt painted the "Rape of Ganymede" for a Dutch Calvinist patron in 1635, a dark eagle carries aloft a plump cherubic baby (Paintings Gallery, Dresden) who is bawling and urinating in fright. A 1685 statue of Ganymede and Zeus entitled "Ganymède Médicis" by Pierre Laviron stands in the gardens of Versailles.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: Examples of Ganymede in 18th century France have been studied by Michael Preston Worley. The image of Ganymede was always that of a naive adolescent accompanied by an eagle and the homoerotic aspects of the legend were rarely dealt with. In fact, the story was often more sexualized. The Neoplatonic interpretation of the myth, also common in the Italian Renaissance, the rape of Ganymede represented the ascent to spiritual perfection,these however seemed to be of no interest to Enlightenment philosophers and mythographers. Jean-Baptiste Marie Pierre, Charles-Joseph Natoire, Guillaume II Coustou, Pierre Julien, Jean-Baptiste Regnault and others contributed images of Ganymede to French art during this period.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: My first thought, my first flash was that it was a beautiful woman... The angel was beautiful, with a face dominated by immense, lustrous green eyes and framed by golden ringlets, and with a bow mouth and full lips and brilliant white teeth.


title: Ganymede (mythology)

text: And only then, only after I had felt that first rush of improbable carnal lust, did it occur to me that this angel was a man.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Pascal Siakam (born 2 April 1994) is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Siakam played college basketball for the New Mexico State Aggies and was named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 2016. Nicknamed "Spicy P", he was selected by Toronto with the 27th overall pick in the first round of the 2016 NBA draft. After being assigned to the NBA Development League (now the G League) as a rookie in 2017, he led Toronto's affiliate team to a league championship and picked up Finals Most Valuable Player honors in the process. Siakam would later help the Raptors claim an NBA championship in 2019 while winning the league's Most Improved Player Award in the same season, the first player to win both during the same season. He was named an NBA All-Star for the first time as a starter in the 2019–20 season, when he was also voted to the All-NBA Second Team, his first all-league selection. Siakam was named to the All-NBA Third Team in 2022.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam was born in Douala, Cameroon, to Tchamo and Victorie Siakam, the youngest of four brothers. His father, Tchamo, worked for a local transit company and was also the mayor of Makénéné. According to a story by Jackie MacMullan of ESPN, Pascal was effectively "hand-picked to embody his family's Catholicism." His father thus enrolled him in St. Andrew's Seminary in Bafia at age eleven. By the time he was fifteen, he did not want to become a Catholic priest.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam initially had little interest in basketball in stark contrast to his older brothers, all of whom earned scholarships with the sport to various NCAA Division I colleges. He was discovered as a player at a local camp by Luc Mbah a Moute, whose parents' home in Bafia was about 2 miles (3 km) from St. Andrew's. Siakam attended Mbah a Moute's camp for the first time in 2011, a year before graduating from St. Andrew's; and he returned to it the following year, after which he was selected to attend the Basketball Without Borders camp. There, despite having had virtually no basketball experience at the time, he gained attention for his apparent athleticism and extremely high energy level. As Raptors president Masai Ujiri, who had been at this camp, recalled, "His effort was memorable." With Mbah a Moute as a mentor, Siakam moved to the United States at the age of eighteen. He went from one camp to the next to hone his skills before settling in Lewisville, Texas, and attending God's Academy. While at this prep school, Siakam was neither widely known nor initially eligible. But he was at least pursued by New Mexico State University; the Aggies' coach had Siakam on his radar since his pipeline of connections spanned several continents and his roster reserved fourteen spots for foreign-born players.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam enrolled at New Mexico State University in 2013. After redshirting the 2013–14 season due to injury, he worked his way onto the Aggies' starting lineup and then to Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Freshman of the Year honors by the 2014–15 campaign. For the 2015–16 campaign, he averaged 20.2 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks across 34 games en route to earning unanimous WAC Player of the Year honors. On 19 April 2016, Siakam declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final two years of college eligibility.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: On 23 June 2016, Siakam was selected by the Toronto Raptors with the 27th overall pick in the NBA draft, with the franchise signing him to a rookie scale contract on 9 July. On 2 October, he became the first rookie to start for the Raptors' season-opener since Jonas Valančiūnas did so in 2012; rising to the occasion, he hauled in 9 rebounds and notched 4 points in 21 minutes as Toronto beat the Detroit Pistons, 109–91. It marked not only his NBA debut, but the first NBA game that he had ever seen in person. On 3 December, Siakam scored a season-high 14 points, which came in a 128–84 victory over the Atlanta Hawks. On 1 January 2017, during a 123–114 win over the Los Angeles Lakers, he pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: In his rookie season, Siakam started in as many as 38 games at power forward, including the first 35 of the 2016–17 campaign, because Jared Sullinger was out with injury; he was later replaced on the starting lineup by Lucas Nogueira on 5 January 2017. From 21 February through 28 April, he was alternately assigned to the Raptors 905 of the G-League and recalled from it. Accordingly, between games played for the Raptors, he led Toronto's affiliate team to the Finals and helped them win a title by defeating the Rio Grande Valley Vipers 2–1. After averaging 23 points and 9 rebounds in that series, he was named the G-League Finals MVP.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: In his second year in the NBA, Siakam cemented himself as a productive bench contributor for Toronto. He recorded a then career-high 20 points during a 117–112 loss to the Golden State Warriors on 25 October 2017. For the 2017–18 season, the Raptors' offensive rating was four points better with Siakam on the floor, compared to seven points worse his rookie year. His averages improved from 4.3 points per game to 7.3, from 3.4 rebounds per game to 4.5, and from 0.3 assists per game to 2.0. He would draw comparisons to Warriors' forward Draymond Green for such qualities as his rare ability to guard all positions, his shrewd basketball IQ, and internal confidence.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Heading into the 2018–19 campaign, Siakam emerged as a two-way force, and he would average 16.9 points a night to go along with 6.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists; he would also make a marked improvement in shooting from distance, increasing his three-point percentage by 14 points to 36 percent. He surpassed his previous career-high on 29 October 2018, by posting 22 points during a 124–109 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. On 10 November, he set a new career-high with 23 points scored in a 128–112 victory over the New York Knicks. Siakam was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played 5 to 11 November, thus becoming the eighth Raptor in franchise history to earn the award after DeMar DeRozan (10 times), Vince Carter (7 times), Chris Bosh (7 times), Kyle Lowry (4 times), Mike James, Jalen Rose, and Lou Williams. On 13 January, Siakam recorded 24 points and a career-high 19 rebounds in a 140–138 double-overtime win versus the Washington Wizards. On 13 February, he racked up a new career-high 44 points and hit a career-best 4 three-pointers in a 129–120 win over the Wizards; he thus became the 11th Raptor in franchise history to reach the 40-point plateau.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: In Game 3 of the Raptors' first-round playoff series against the Orlando Magic, Siakam tallied 30 points and 11 rebounds in the 98–93 victory. In Game 1 of the second round, Siakam posted 29 points and 7 rebounds on 12-of-15 shooting from the field in a 108–95 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Siakam helped Toronto defeat Milwaukee in double-overtime, 118–112, putting up 25 points and bringing down 11 rebounds; the win cut the Bucks' series lead to 2–1. In Game 6, Siakam converted 18 points for his part in the 100–94 win over Milwaukee; the victory clinched the series and propelled the Raptors to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history. In Game 1 of the 2019 Finals, Siakam scored a then playoff career-high 32 points with 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks on 14-of-17 shooting from the field in a 118–109 victory over the Golden State Warriors. In Game 6 of the 2019 Finals, Siakam recorded a team high 26 points, 10 rebounds , 3 assists and hit the clinching shot for the title over Draymond Green , He went on to help the Raptors defeat the Warriors in six games and thus capture their first NBA championship in franchise history. At the 2019 Awards ceremony later that month, Siakam was named the NBA's Most Improved Player for the 2018–19 season. On 19 October 2019, Siakam agreed to a four-year, $130 million extension with Toronto.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam recorded 34 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 block in 38 minutes played of the NBA's season-opening game to help the Raptors beat the New Orleans Pelicans 130–122. He also matched his career-highs in both offensive rebounds and made free throws, and set a new career-high in field goals attempted. On 8 November, Siakam scored a career-high 44 points in a 122–104 win over the Pelicans. On 13 November, Siakam scored 36 points in a 114–106 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. On 1 December, Siakam scored 35 points in a 130–110 win over the Utah Jazz. On 23 January 2020, Siakam was selected to his first career All-Star nod, being named a starter in the 2020 NBA All-Star Game. On 26 January, Siakam would again score 35 points in a 110–106 win over the San Antonio Spurs. On 21 February, Siakam scored 37 points along with 12 rebounds, in a 118–101 win over the Phoenix Suns. On 16 September, Siakam was named to the All-NBA Second Team.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: On 6 January 2021, Siakam scored a season-high 32 points in a 123–115 loss against the Phoenix Suns. On 8 January, Siakam had 17 points, nine rebounds, and a career-high 12 assists in a 144–123 win against the Sacramento Kings. On 11 January, Siakam had his first career triple-double with 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 112–111 loss against the Portland Trail Blazers. On 29 January, Siakam tied his season-high 32 points in a 126–124 loss against the Kings. On 5 February, Siakam had a new season-high 33 points while also getting 11 rebounds, six assists, three steals and a block in a 123–117 win against the Brooklyn Nets. On 2 May, Siakam scored a new season-high 39 points with 13 rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks in a 121–114 win against the Los Angeles Lakers. On 6 May, Siakam tied his career-high with 44 points along with 11 rebounds, seven assists and a steal in a 131–129 loss to the Washington Wizards.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: On November 7, 2021, Siakam made his season debut coming off surgery scoring 15 points on a minutes restriction against the Brooklyn Nets. On November 19, Siakam recorded 32 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists in a 108–89 win against the Sacramento Kings. On December 31, in a 116–108 win against the Los Angeles Clippers, Siakam had a statline of 25 points, a season-high 19 rebounds and 7 assists. On January 5, 2022, Siakam scored 33 points in a 117–111 win over the reigning champions Milwaukee Bucks. On January 15, Siakam recorded a statline of 30 points 10 assists and 8 rebounds in a 103-96 win with against the Milwaukee Bucks, the NBA stripping Siakam of two rebounds after previously recording 10 rebounds . On January 25, Siakam tied his career best with 12 assists along with 24 points and 9 rebounds in a 125–113 win against the Charlotte Hornets.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: On February 7, Siakam was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played January 31 – February 6. He was averaging 25 points, 10.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.8 blocks leading the team to a 4–0 record in the week. On February 9, Siakam lead Toronto to their seventh straight win, logging 27 points, 16 rebounds and 5 assists on 13-of-17 shooting from the field in a blowout 117–98 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Siakam broke Chris Bosh's record of 20/10/5 games in a season with nine 20/10/5 games, surpassing Bosh's 8. On February 12, Siakam scored a then season-high 35 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, dished out 7 assists and had 2 steals in a 110–109 loss to the Denver Nuggets. On March 28, Siakam scored 25 of his season-high 40 points in the first half, grabbed 13 rebounds along with 3 steals and 2 blocks in a 115–112 overtime win over the Boston Celtics. On April 7, Siakam recorded his third career triple-double with 37 points, 11 rebounds, 12 assists and 2 steals in a 119–114 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Siakam finished the regular season averaging a career high in rebounds, assists and steals.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: On April 16, during Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs, Siakam logged 24 points, seven assists and three blocks in a 131–111 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. On April 23, he posted a playoff career-high 34 points along with 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks in a 110–102 Game 4 win. On April 25, he scored 23 points with 10 rebounds and 7 assists in a 103–88 Game 5 win pushing the series to a 6th game after Toronto was down 0–3. Toronto would go on to lose to Philadelphia in six games despite Siakam's 24-point, 7-rebound, 7-assist and 3-steals outing in the 132–97 close-out loss in Game 6. Siakam averaged 22.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists in the 2022 playoffs. On May 24, Siakam was named to the All-NBA Third Team earning his second All-NBA selection and his second in 3 seasons tying Vince Carter and Demar DeRozan with the most All-NBA selections in Raptors history with two.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: On October 19, 2022, Siakam recorded 23 points, 11 rebounds, and four steals in a 108–105 win against in the Cleveland Cavaliers in the season-opener. On October 21, Siakam recorded his fourth career triple-double with 37 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists in a 109–105 loss against the Brooklyn Nets. Siakam also became the first player with multiple 30-point triple-doubles in Raptors history. On October 24 , Siakam recorded 23 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks and the go-ahead shot in a 98–90 win over the Miami Heat. On October 26, Siakam recorded 20 points, 5 rebounds and tied his career high with 13 assists in a 119–109 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. On October 31, Siakam dropped 31 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks in a 139–109 win over Atlanta Hawks, Siakam tied Vince Carter with the most 30 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists games in Raptors history. On November 2, Siakam recorded his fifth career triple double with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in a 143–100 blowout win over the San Antonio Spurs. On November 6, its was announced Siakam would miss two weeks after a strained right adductor muscle which Siakam suffered after falling on a wet spot against the Dallas Mavericks, on November 4th.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam came into the NBA as a raw prospect but over the years has emerged as a high-end two-way wing player with playmaking and scoring ability, playing a variety of roles depending on the needs of the team.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam is considered one of the NBA's most versatile players. During the 2021–22 season, Siakam started games at both center and point guard, showing an ability to read double teams and make high level reads, while averaging a career high 5.3 assists per game.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam is also considered one of the best defenders in the NBA. He is known for his ability to guard opposing players from the 1 through 5 positions, and for his efficiency as a rim protector in addition to being an excellent perimeter defender. Moreover, Siakam has gained a reputation from the beginning of his career as one of the best transition players in the league.


title: Pascal Siakam

text: Siakam is the son of Tchamo Siakam, the former mayor of Makénéné, Cameroon, and Victorie Siakam. When his father died in a car crash in October 2014, Siakam was unable to attend the funeral because he was waiting for the issuance of a new US visa. His three older brothers, Boris, Christian, and James, all played NCAA Division I basketball in the United States – Boris at Western Kentucky, Christian at IUPUI, and James at Vanderbilt. Siakam goes by the nickname "Spicy P".


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule Air Base (pronounced or , , ), or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport , is the United States Space Force's northernmost base, and the northernmost installation of the U.S. Armed Forces, located north of the Arctic Circle and from the North Pole on the northwest coast of the island of Greenland. Thule's arctic environment includes icebergs in North Star Bay, two islands (Saunders Island and Wolstenholme Island), a polar ice sheet, and Wolstenholme Fjord – the only place on Earth where four active glaciers join together. The base is home to a substantial portion of the global network of missile warning sensors of Space Delta 4, and space surveillance and space control sensors of Space Delta 2, providing space awareness and advanced missile detection capabilities to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the United States Space Force, and joint partners.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule". The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron (12 SWS) which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America. Thule is also host to Detachment 1 of the 23rd Space Operations Squadron, part of the Space Delta 6's global satellite control network. The airfield's runway handles more than 3,000 US and international flights per year. Finally, Thule is home to the northernmost deep water port in the world.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule Air Base has served as the regional hub for nearby installations, including Cape Atholl (LORAN station), Camp Century (Ice Cap Camp), Camp TUTO (Ice Cap Approach Ramp and Airstrip), Sites 1 and 2 (Ice Cap Radar Stations), P-Mountain (radar and communications site), J-Site (BMEWS), North and South Mountains (research sites), and a research rocket firing site. It also was essential in the construction and resupply of High Arctic weather stations, including CFS Alert (Alert Airport) and Station Nord.


title: Thule Air Base

text: "Thule" is named for Thule (), an ancient Greek place name dating to the third-century BC for a land believed to lie to the north of Britain, and the Latin phrase Ultima Thule (Latin, "farthest Thule"), the ancient Roman concept of a northernmost locale beyond the borders of the known world. However, unlike the Greek (and English) pronunciation of soft "th" (), the name of the air base is pronounced using the Danish initial hard "t" ().


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1818, Sir John Ross's expedition made first contact with nomadic Inuktun in the area. James Saunders's expedition aboard HMS "North Star" was marooned in North Star Bay 1849–50 and named landmarks. Robert Peary built a support station by a protected harbor at the foot of iconic Mount Dundas in 1892. It served as a base camp for his expeditions and attracted a permanent population. In 1910 explorer Knud Rasmussen established a missionary and trading post there. He called the site "Thule" after classical "ultima Thule"; the Inuit called it "Umanaq" ("heart-shaped"), and the site is commonly called "Dundas" today. The United States abandoned its territorial claims in the area in 1917 in connection with the purchase of the Virgin Islands. Denmark assumed control of the village in 1937.


title: Thule Air Base

text: A cluster of huts known as Pituffik ("the place the dogs are tied") stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951. (A main base street was named Pituffik Boulevard.) The affected locals moved to Thule. However, in 1953 the USAF planned to construct an air defense site near that village, and in order to limit contact with soldiers, the Danish government relocated "Old Thule" with about 130 inhabitants to a newly constructed, modern village north, known as Qaanaaq, or "New Thule". In a Danish Supreme Court judgment of 28 November 2003 the move was considered an expropriative intervention. During the proceedings it was recognized by the Danish government that the movement was a serious interference and an unlawful act against the local population. The Thule tribe was awarded damages of 500,000 kroner, and the individual members of the tribe who had been exposed to the transfer were granted compensation of 15,000 or 25,000 each. A Danish radio station continued to operate at Dundas, and the abandoned houses remained. The USAF only used that site for about a decade, and it has since returned to civilian use.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport. USAAF Colonel Bernt Balchen, who built Sondrestrom Air Base, knew Rasmussen and his idea. Balchen led a flight of two Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats to Thule on 24 August 1942 and then sent a report advocating an air base to USAAF chief Henry "Hap" Arnold. However, the 1951 air base site is a few miles inland from the original 1946 airstrip and across the bay from the historical Thule settlement, to which it is connected by an ice road. The joint Danish-American defense area, designated by treaty, also occupies considerable inland territory in addition to the air base itself.


title: Thule Air Base

text: After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann, Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States, authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression – this agreement faced Kauffmann with a charge of high treason by the protectorate Government. The first US-sponsored installations at Thule were established after the US Secretary of State Cordell Hull and the defected Danish Minister to the United States Henrik Kauffmann signed "The Agreement relating to the Defense of Greenland" in Washington, D.C. on the symbolically chosen date of 9 April 1941. The treaty, denounced by the Danish government, allowed the United States to operate military bases in Greenland "for as long as there is agreement" that the threat to North America existed. Beginning in the summer of 1941, the US Coast Guard and the War Department established weather and radio stations at Narsarsuaq Airport (Bluie West-1), Sondrestrom Air Base (Bluie West-8), Ikateq (Bluie East Two), and Gronnedal (Bluie West-9). In 1943 the Army Air Forces set up weather stations Scoresbysund (Bluie East-3) on the east coast around the southern tip of Greenland, and Thule (Bluie West-6) to be operated by Danish personnel. Many other sites were set up, but BW-6, isolated in the far North, was then of very minor importance.


title: Thule Air Base

text: After liberation, Denmark ratified the Kauffmann treaty but began efforts to take over US installations. Nonetheless, in summer 1946, the radio and weather station was enhanced with a gravel airstrip and an upper-air (balloon) observatory. This was part of an American-Canadian initiative to construct joint weather stations in the High Arctic. This station was under joint US-Danish operation. The location changed from the civilian village at Thule (Dundas) to mainland Pittufik. In 1946–1951, the airstrip played an important role in Arctic resupply, aerial mapping, research, and search-and rescue.


title: Thule Air Base

text: The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag must be side by side with the US national flag on the base.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1949, Denmark joined NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases. By the outbreak of the Korean War next year, the USAF embarked on a global program of base-building in which Thule (at the time) would be considered the crown jewel owing to its location across the Pole from the USSR, as well as its merit of being the northernmost port to be reliably resupplied by ship. Thule became a key point in American nuclear retaliation strategy. Strategic Air Command (SAC) bombers flying over the Arctic presented less risk of early warning than using bases in the United Kingdom. Defensively, Thule could serve as a base for intercepting bomber attacks along the northeastern approaches to Canada and the US.


title: Thule Air Base

text: A board of Air Force officers headed by Gordon P. Saville made a recommendation to pursue a base at Thule in November 1950. It was subsequently supported by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and approved by President Truman. To replace the agreement entered into during World War II between the US and Denmark, a new agreement with respect to Greenland was ratified on 27 April 1951 (effective on 8 June 1951). At the request of NATO, the agreement became a part of the NATO defense program. The pact specified that the two nations would arrange for the use of facilities in Greenland by NATO forces in defense of the NATO area known as the Greenland Defense Area.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952. Construction for Thule AB began in 1951 and was completed in 1953. The construction of Thule is said to have been comparable in scale to the enormous effort required to build the Panama Canal. The United States Navy transported the bulk of men, supplies, and equipment from the naval shipyards in Norfolk, Virginia. On 6 June 1951 an armada of 120 ships sailed from Naval Station Norfolk. On board were 12,000 men and 300,000 tons of cargo. They arrived at Thule on 9 July 1951. Construction, aided by continuous daylight in summer, took place around the clock. The workers lived on board the ships until quarters were built. Once they moved into the quarters, the ships returned home.


title: Thule Air Base

text: On 16 June 1951, the base was accidentally discovered by French cultural anthropologist and geographer Jean Malaurie and his Inuit friend Kutikitsoq, on their way back from the geomagnetic North Pole.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Originally established as a Strategic Air Command installation, Thule would periodically serve as a dispersal base for B-36 Peacemaker and B-47 Stratojet aircraft during the 1950s, as well as providing an ideal site to test the operability and maintainability of these weapon systems in extreme cold weather. Similar operations were also conducted with B-52 Stratofortress aircraft in the 1950s and 1960s.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1954, the Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain. At the time of its completion it was the third tallest man-made structure on earth and the tallest structure north of the Arctic Circle in the Western hemisphere.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses. Five KC-97s prepared for flight with engines running in temperatures of in order to ensure three could achieve airborne status. After a two-hour head start, a B-47 would catch up with them at the northeast coastline of Greenland where two would offload fuel to top off the B-47's tanks (the third was an air spare). The B-47 would then fly seven hours of reconnaissance, while the tankers would return to Thule, refuel, and three would again fly to rendezvous with the returning B-47 at northeast Greenland. The B-47 averaged ten hours and in the air, unless unpredictable weather closed Thule. In that case the three tankers and the B-47 had to additionally fly to one of three equidistant alternates: England, Alaska, or Labrador. All of this sometimes took place in moonless, 24-hour Arctic darkness, December through February. These flights demonstrated the capabilities of the US Strategic Air Command to Soviet Anti-Air Defense.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some from the base. Carved into the ice, and powered by a nuclear reactor, PM-2A Camp Century was officially a scientific research base, but in reality was the site of the top secret Project Iceworm. The camp operated from 1959 until 1967.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In the late 1950s, the DEW 1 to 4 were built as "weather stations". Thule Air Base would act as a supply station for the DYE bases.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1957 construction began on four Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) radar was constructed at "J-Site," northeast of main base. BMEWS was developed by the RCA Corporation in order to provide North America warning of a transpolar missile attack from the Russian mainland and submarine-launched missiles from the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans. At this time, Thule was at its peak with a population of about 10,000. Starting in July 1965, there was a general downsizing of activities at Thule. The base host unit, the 4683d Air Defense Wing, was discontinued. By January 1968, the population of Thule was down to 3,370. On 21 January 1968, a B-52G bomber carrying four nuclear weapons crashed just outside Thule – see below.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule is the location where the fastest recorded sea level surface wind speed in the world was measured when a peak speed of was recorded on 8 March 1972 prior to the instrument's destruction.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982. Today Thule is home to the 821st Air Base Group, which exercises Air Base support responsibilities within the Thule Defense Area. The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron (21st Operations Group, 21st Space Wing), a Ballistic Missile Early Warning Site designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America. Missile warning and space surveillance information flows to NORAD command centers located at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. Thule is also host to Detachment 1 of the 23rd Space Operations Squadron, part of the 50th Space Wing's global satellite control network, as well as operating many new weapons systems. In addition, the airfield boasts a asphalt runway, with 3,000 US and international flights per year.


title: Thule Air Base

text: A delegation from the NATO Parliamentary Assembly visited Thule in early September 2010 and were told by the base commander that, at that time (summer), approximately 600 personnel were serving at Thule, a mix of mostly US and Danish active duty personnel and contractors.


title: Thule Air Base

text: There is only a brief period each year in the summer when sea ice thins sufficiently to send supply ships to the base. The US sends one heavy supply ship each summer in what is called Operation Pacer Goose.


title: Thule Air Base

text: In 1954 a Douglas C-124C Globemaster II operated by the US Air Force crashed on approach to the air base, killing ten people.


title: Thule Air Base

text: On 21 January 1968, a B-52G Stratofortress from the 380th Strategic Aerospace Wing, Plattsburgh Air Force Base, New York, on a secret airborne nuclear alert crashed and burned on the ice near Thule Air Base. The impact detonated the high explosives in the primary units of all four of the B28 nuclear bombs it carried, but nuclear and thermonuclear reactions did not take place due to the PAL and fail-safe mechanisms in the weapons, thus preventing the acutal detonation of the weapons themselves. The resulting fire caused extensive radioactive contamination. More than 700 Danish civilians and US military personnel worked under hazardous conditions, the former without protective gear, to clean up the nuclear waste. In 1987, nearly 200 of the Danish workers tried unsuccessfully to sue the United States. Kaare Ulbak, chief consultant to the Danish National Institute of Radiation Hygiene, said Denmark had carefully studied the health of the Thule workers and found no evidence of increased mortality or cancer.


title: Thule Air Base

text: The Pentagon maintained that all four weapons had been destroyed. Although many of the details of the accident are still classified, some information was released by the US authorities under the Freedom of Information Act. After reviewing these files, an investigative reporter from BBC News claimed in May 2007 that the USAF was unable to account for one of the weapons. In 2009, the assertions of the BBC were refuted by a Danish report after a review of the available declassified documentation.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Ocean Transportation is provided by Schuyler Line Navigation Company, a US Flag Ocean Carrier. Schuyler Line operates under government contract to supply sustainment and building supplies to the Base.


title: Thule Air Base

text: Thule has a tundra climate (ET) with long, severely cold winters lasting most of the year and short and cool summers. Precipitation is very low year round, but peaks during summer.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Monique Angela Hicks (née Imes; born December 11, 1967), known professionally as Mo'Nique, is an American stand-up comedian and actress. She has received an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award.


title: Mo'Nique

text: She first gained recognition for her work in stand-up comedy, debuting as a member of The Queens of Comedy. In 2002, she received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Comedy Album. Mo'Nique began her transition into mainstream film and television having a starring role as Nicole "Nikki" Parker in the UPN series "The Parkers" (1999–2004), as well as appearing in "Phat Girlz" (2006) and "Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins" (2008).


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2009, she garnered critical acclaim for her performance in the film "Precious," for which she won numerous awards, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the fourth African American woman to win the award. Mo'Nique has since hosted "The Mo'Nique Show" (2009–2011), and starred as Ma Rainey in the HBO biopic "Bessie" (2015) earning a Primetime Emmy Award nomination.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'Nique was born on December 11, 1967, in Woodlawn, Baltimore County, Maryland, the daughter of engineer Alice Imes and drug counselor Steven Imes, Jr. She is the youngest of four children. Mo'Nique graduated from Milford Mill High School in Baltimore County in 1985 and attended Morgan State University. She is a 1987 graduate of the Broadcasting Institute of Maryland.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Before she was an actress, Monique worked as a customer service representative at the phone company MCI in Hunt Valley, Maryland. She got her start in comedy at the downtown Baltimore Comedy Factory Outlet when her brother Steve dared her to perform at an open mic night.


title: Mo'Nique

text: During a 2008 "Essence" magazine interview, Mo'Nique revealed that she was sexually abused by her brother Gerald from ages 7–11; he went on to sexually abuse another girl and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. After her twin boys were born in 2005, Mo'Nique cut off all contact with Gerald. On April 19, 2010, he admitted on "Oprah" to sexually abusing her over several years. He also was abused by family members and struggled with substance abuse.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'Nique portrayed Nicole "Nikki" Parker on the UPN television series "The Parkers" from 1999 to 2004. She was featured on many leading stand-up venues such as "Showtime at the Apollo", "Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam", and "Thank God You're Here". Mo'Nique tackles race issues in her stand up routines, for instance at the Montreal Just For Laugh Festival in 2000: "White and black people, we're just mad at each other, we don't know why we're mad at each other. We're not each other's enemy. We're not the enemy. It's the Chinese people we need to watch out for".


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2005, Mo'Nique played a significant role in Tony Scott's thriller "Domino", co-starring Keira Knightley and Mickey Rourke. In 2006, Mo'Nique was cast as the lead in "Phat Girlz", a comedy about an aspiring fashion designer struggling to find love and acceptance. The film was met with lukewarm response from critics and fans. It did earn back its $3 million production cost in its first weekend of release.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'Nique's first play was Eve Ensler's Obie Award-winning production of "The Vagina Monologues" in March 2002. Mo'Nique, Ella Joyce ("Roc"); Wendy Raquel Robinson ("The Steve Harvey Show" and "The Game") and Vanessa Bell Calloway ("What's Love Got to Do with It"), were the first all black celebrity cast to perform "The Vagina Monologues". Produced by YYP & Associates, the show was directed by playwright and director Yetta Young as well as co-produced by Kellie R. Griffin, Lisa D. Washington and Anita Cal. Mo'Nique is the author of the best-selling book "Skinny Women Are Evil: Notes of a Bigg Girl in a Small-Minded World". She also released a 2006 cookbook called "Skinny Cooks Can't Be Trusted". Mo'nique was part of the Washington, D.C., WHUR radio show with George Wilborn. In 2006, she occasionally filled in for afternoon personality Michael Baisden when his contract with ABC Radio was in the process of getting renewed.


title: Mo'Nique

text: She was also named hostess of "Showtime at the Apollo." She was the hostess and executive producer of "Mo'Nique's Fat Chance", a beauty pageant for plus-sized women, on the Oxygen cable network. She hosted the first season of "" on "VH1" where she crowned Saaphyri as the winner.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'Nique's 2007 documentary "I Coulda Been Your Cellmate!" focuses on incarcerated women. In interviews with individual women, she touches on the common factors that bring many women into the penal system. The documentary was related to her filming a comedy special at the Ohio Reformatory for Women, also known as The Farm. In 2007, she had a guest-starring role on the hit television series "Ugly Betty" as L'Amanda, Mode's weekend security guard. She starred in "The Mo'Nique Show", her own late-night talk show. Taped in Atlanta, the show premiered October 5, 2009, on BET.


title: Mo'Nique

text: She was featured in soul singer Anthony Hamilton's video "Sista Big Bones", the second single from his album "Ain't Nobody Worryin'". She hosted the 2003 and 2004 BET Awards and appeared as the host again for the 2007 BET Awards. She received positive responses in July 2004 with her opening performance of Beyoncé's single "Crazy in Love" In 2007, she performed Beyoncé's "Déjà Vu". Mo'Nique has had a number of supporting roles in film. She appeared in the 2008 comedy film, "Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins" with Martin Lawrence. She has had roles in "Beerfest", " 3 Strikes", "Two Can Play That Game", "Half Past Dead", and "Soul Plane". She voiced a character in "", but her role was cut from the movie.


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2008, Mo'Nique stated on "Oprah Winfrey Show" that Martin Lawrence gave her invaluable advice about show business: "He pulled me to the side and he said, 'Listen, don't ever let them tell you what you can't have.' Since that day, I've made some of the best deals I've ever made in my career because it keeps ringing in my head...It will stay with me forever." In 2008, Radio One signed her to her own radio show: "Mo'Nique in the Afternoon" (or "The Mo'Nique Show"), which premiered on several Radio One-owned Urban Adult Contemporary-formatted R&B/soul radio stations in July 2008. It mainly aired on these stations that had a local lineup because some Radio One stations did not carry it due to their contracts with Michael Baisden. The show lasted until March 18, 2009, when Mo'Nique decided to leave to "further her career in television, film, and comedy."


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2009, Mo'Nique appeared in the film "", directed by Lee Daniels, portraying an inner-city teenager's abusive mother. She won the Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize for her performance in the film. The African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) awarded Mo'Nique with the Best Supporting Actress Award in December 2009. Mo'Nique received the AAFCA's first ever unanimous vote in an acting category.


title: Mo'Nique

text: She has received Best Supporting Actress awards from the Stockholm International Film Festival, the Washington DC Area Film Critics Association, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the Boston Society of Film Critics, the New York Film Critics Online, the New York Film Critics Circle, the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the San Francisco Film Critics Circle, the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association, the Las Vegas Film Critics Society, the Utah Film Critics Association, the Detroit Film Critics Society, the Indiana Film Critics Association, the Online Film Critics Society, the National Society of Film Critics Awards, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, and the Critics Choice Awards. "Time" magazine ranked Mo'Nique's outstanding performance as the Best Female Performance of 2009. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the Independent Spirit Award, and the BAFTA Award.


title: Mo'Nique

text: In November 2009, Mo'Nique said, "I own the rights to Hattie McDaniel's life story, and I can't wait to tell that story because that woman was absolutely amazing. She had to stand up to the adversity of black and white [society] at a time when we really weren't accepted. Mr. Lee Daniels is going to direct it, of course, and I'm going to be Miss Hattie McDaniel. I really hope I can do that woman justice."


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2014, Mo'Nique starred in Patrik-Ian Polk's drama film "Blackbird" as Claire Rousseau. She next starred as Ma Rainey in the biographical film "Bessie" in 2015, for which she received critical acclaim, earning her a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. Her last role (in film or television) was in 2016. In May 2017, she said Lee Daniels, Oprah Winfrey, and Tyler Perry had been blackballing her ever since she did not promote "Precious" in 2009.


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2022, it was announced that Mo'Nique will be starring in the Lee Daniels' horror/thriller "The Deliverance" with Andra Day, Omar Epps, Miss Lawrence, and Tasha Smith.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'Nique was briefly engaged to accountant Kenny Mung. From 1997 to 2001, she was married to Mark Jackson. They have two sons: Mark Eric Jackson Jr. and Shalon Calvin Jackson. Mo'Nique gave birth to twin sons Jonathan and David Hicks in October 2005, two months early. In 2006, she married their father Sidney Hicks. In a "New York Times" profile, she mentions that she and Hicks have an open marriage:


title: Mo'Nique

text: She repeated this view later on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" when she said that, in her prior marriages, she was constantly searching for "that extra oomph". Mo'Nique explained,


title: Mo'Nique

text: When I said I had an open marriage, people automatically jumped to sex. They automatically went there. But I've been best friends with my husband since we were 14 years old. When we say open, we're very honest. There are no secrets. Oftentimes you have people that are married, but they're strangers, and we refuse to be those people.


title: Mo'Nique

text: She concluded, "I've had to sneak and I've had to lie, and I don't want to do that anymore. But my husband is so awesome and so fine and so—oh, girl...No other man can compare".


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2009, Mo'Nique starred in the independent drama "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" directed by Lee Daniels. For the role, she was paid $50,000. The film started to receive critical attention and awards buzz for her performance. The film's executive producers Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey as well as the film's production company Lionsgate asked her to travel to promote the film at the Cannes Film Festival, which she declined to do, saying her deal was with the film's director, Daniels, and that she had finished her contractual obligations.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Upon winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Mo'Nique stated, "I'd like to thank the Academy for showing that it can be about the performance and not the politics".


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'Nique has since claimed Tyler Perry called her to apologize for how she was treated. In 2020, Mo'Nique performed a standup segment attacking Perry, Oprah, and others involved in the feud. She has stated how devastated she was by Oprah's communication and described her as "malicious."


title: Mo'Nique

text: In 2018, Mo'Nique accused Netflix of racial and gender bias against her after she was paid $500,000 for her comedy special to air on the streaming service. She compared herself to Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, and Amy Schumer, who each received multimillion-dollar deals. In her statement, she stated:


title: Mo'Nique

text: In her statement, she also urged people to support her in her boycott of Netflix. She went on numerous talk shows, including "The View", in which she continued to fight against Netflix. In 2019, she sued Netflix, with her complaint reading in part, "In short, as this lawsuit shows, Netflix’s treatment of Mo’Nique began with a discriminatory low-ball offer and ended with a blacklisting act of retaliation." In the suit, she listed fellow comedians who were paid millions for their specials, including Chappelle, Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Eddie Murphy, Ellen DeGeneres, and Ricky Gervais.


title: Mo'Nique

text: By June 2022, Netflix had settled the lawsuit with Mo’Nique, and on July 19, 2022 announced that she was set to do a new special for them.


title: Mo'Nique

text: Mo'nique is the recipient of numerous accolades, most notably, for her performance in "Precious", winning a total of 52 awards out of 66 nominations; in particular, the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and, the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture.