title: Chalcedony

text: Moss agate contains green filament-like inclusions, giving it the superficial appearance of moss or blue cheese. There is also tree agate which is similar to moss agate except it is solid white with green filaments whereas moss agate usually has a transparent background, so the "moss" appears in 3D. It is not a true form of agate, as it lacks agate's defining feature of concentric banding.


title: Chalcedony

text: Chrome chalcedony is a green variety of chalcedony, which is colored by chromium compounds. It is also known as "mtorolite" when found in Zimbabwe and "chiquitanita" when found in Bolivia.


title: Chalcedony

text: Onyx is a variant of agate with black and white banding. Similarly, agate with brown, orange, red and white banding is known as sardonyx.


title: Chalcedony

text: In Greenland, white to greyish chalcedony is known from volcanic strata of the Paleocene, in the Disko-Nuussuaq area (West Greenland) and from the Scoresby Sound area (East Greenland). A light blue variety of chalcedony is known from Illorsuit, formed in the volcanic rocks along the southern coast of the island. Because of its bluish, ice-like colour, it has the local name Chalcedony "Ice-blue".


title: Chalcedony

text: Chalcedony was used in tool making as early as 32,000 BP in Central Australia where archaeological studies at sites in the Cleland Hills uncovered flakes from stone brought in from quarries many kilometres away. Pre-contact uses described in the twentieth century included ceremonial stone knives.


title: Chalcedony

text: In the Bronze Age chalcedony was in use in the Mediterranean region; for example, on Minoan Crete at the Palace of Knossos, chalcedony seals have been recovered dating to circa 1800 BC. People living along the Central Asian trade routes used various forms of chalcedony, including carnelian, to carve intaglios, ring bezels (the upper faceted portion of a gem projecting from the ring setting), and beads that show strong Greco-Roman influence.


title: Chalcedony

text: Fine examples of first century objects made from chalcedony, possibly Kushan, were found in recent years at Tillya-tepe in north-western Afghanistan. Hot wax would not stick to it so it was often used to make seal impressions.


title: Chalcedony

text: The term "chalcedony" is derived from the name of the ancient Greek town Chalkedon in Asia Minor, in modern English usually spelled Chalcedon, today the Kadıköy district of Istanbul.


title: Chalcedony

text: According to tradition, at least three varieties of chalcedony were used in the Jewish High Priest's Breastplate. (Jewish tradition states that Moses' brother Aaron wore the Breastplate, with inscribed gems representing the twelve tribes of Israel). The Breastplate supposedly included "jasper", "chrysoprase" and "sardonyx", and there is some debate as to whether other "agates" were also used.


title: Chalcedony

text: In the 19th century, Idar-Oberstein, Germany, became the world's largest chalcedony processing center, working mostly on agates. Most of these agates were from Latin America, in particular Brazil. Originally the agate carving industry around Idar and Oberstein was driven by local deposits that were mined in the 15th century. Several factors contributed to the re-emergence of Idar-Oberstein as agate center of the world: ships brought agate nodules back as ballast, thus providing extremely cheap transport. In addition, cheap labor and a superior knowledge of chemistry allowed them to dye the agates in any color with processes that were kept secret. Each mill in Idar-Oberstein had four or five grindstones. These were of red sandstone, obtained from Zweibrücken; and two men ordinarily worked together at the same stone.


title: Chalcedony

text: Chalcedony was once thought to be a fibrous variety of cryptocrystalline quartz. More recently however, it has been shown to also contain a monoclinic polymorph of quartz, known as moganite. The fraction, by mass, of moganite within a typical chalcedony sample may vary from less than 5% to over 20%. The existence of moganite was once regarded as dubious, but it is now officially recognised by the International Mineralogical Association.


title: Chalcedony

text: Chalcedony is more soluble than quartz under low-temperature conditions, despite the two minerals being chemically identical. This is thought to be because chalcedony is extremely finely grained (cryptocrystalline), and so has a very high surface area to volume ratio. It has also been suggested that the higher solubility is due to the moganite component.


title: Chalcedony

text: This table gives equilibrium concentrations of total dissolved silicon as calculated by "PHREEQC" (PH REdox EQuilibrium (in C language, USGS)) using the llnl.dat database.


title: App store

text: An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the computer itself. Complex software designed for use on a personal computer, for example, may have a related app designed for use on a mobile device. Today apps are normally designed to run on a specific operating system—such as the contemporary iOS, macOS, Windows or Android—but in the past mobile carriers had their own portals for apps and related media content.


title: App store

text: An app store is any digital storefront intended to allow search and review of software titles or other media offered for sale electronically. Critically, the application storefront itself provides a secure, uniform experience that automates the electronic purchase, decryption and installation of software applications or other digital media.


title: App store

text: App stores typically organize the apps they offer based on: the function(s) provided by the app (including games, multimedia or productivity), the device for which the app was designed, and the operating system on which the app will run.


title: App store

text: App stores typically take the form of an online store, where users can browse through these different app categories, view information about each app (such as reviews or ratings), and acquire the app (including app purchase, if necessary – many apps are offered at no cost). The selected app is offered as an automatic download, after which the app installs. Some app stores may also include a system to automatically remove an installed program from devices under certain conditions, with the goal of protecting the user against malicious software.


title: App store

text: App stores typically provide a way for users to give reviews and ratings. Those reviews are useful for other users, for developers and for app store owners. Users can select the best apps based on ratings, developers get feedback on what features are praised or disliked, and finally, app store owners can detect bad apps and malicious developers by automatically analyzing the reviews with data mining techniques.


title: App store

text: Many app stores are curated by their owners, requiring that submissions of prospective apps go through an approval process. These apps are inspected for compliance with certain guidelines (such as those for quality control and censorship), including the requirement that a commission be collected on each sale of a paid app. Some app stores provide feedback to developers: number of installations, issues in the field (latency, crash, etc.).


title: App store

text: Researchers have proposed new features for app stores. For instance, the app store can deliver a unique diversified version of the app for sake of security. The app store can also orchestrate monitoring and bug fixing to detect and repair crashes in applications.


title: App store

text: The Electronic AppWrapper was the first commercial electronic software distribution catalog to collectively manage encryption and provide digital rights for apps and digital media (issue #3 was the app store originally demonstrated to Steve Jobs at NeXTWorld EXPO). While a Senior Editor at NeXTWORLD Magazine, Simson Garfinkel, rated The Electronic AppWrapper 4 3/4 Cubes (out of 5), in his formal review. Paget's Electronic AppWrapper was named a finalist in the highly competitive InVision Multimedia '93 awards in January, 1993 and won the Best of Breed award for Content and Information at NeXTWORLD Expo in May, 1993.


title: App store

text: Prior to the Electronic AppWrapper which first shipped in 1992 people were used to software distributed via floppy disks or CD-ROMs, one could even download software using a web browser or command-line tools. Many Linux distributions and other Unix-like systems provide a tool known as a package manager, which allows a user to automatically manage the software installed on their systems (including both operating system components and third-party software) using command line toolsnew software (and the packages required for its proper operation) can be retrieved from local or remote mirrors and automatically installed in a single process. Notable package managers in Unix-like operating systems have included FreeBSD Ports (1994), pkgsrc (1997), Debian's APT (1998), YUM, and Gentoo's Portage (which unlike most package managers, distributes packages containing source code that is automatically compiled instead of executables). Some package managers have graphical front-end software which can be used to browse available packages and perform operations, such as Synaptic (which is often used as a front-end for APT).


title: App store

text: In 1996, the SUSE Linux distribution has YaST as frontend for its own app repository. Mandriva Linux has urpmi with GUI frontend called Rpmdrake. Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux has YUM in 2003 as a successor of YUP (developed at Duke University for Red Hat Linux).


title: App store

text: In 1997, BeDepot a third-party app store and package manager (Software Valet) for BeOS was launched, which operated until 2001. It was eventually acquired by Be Inc. BeDepot allowed for both commercial and free apps as well as handling updates


title: App store

text: In 1998, Information Technologies India Ltd (ITIL) launched Palmix, a web based app store exclusively for mobile and handheld devices. Palmix sold apps for the three major PDA platforms of the time: the Palm OS based Palm Pilots, Windows CE based devices, and Psion Epoc handhelds.


title: App store

text: In 1999, NTT DoCoMo launched i-mode, the first integrated online app store for mobile phones, gaining nationwide popularity in Japanese mobile phone culture. DoCoMo used a revenue-sharing business model, allowing content creators and app providers to keep up to 91% of revenue. Other operators outside Japan also made their own portals after this, such as Vodafone live! in 2002. At this time mobile phone manufacturer Nokia also introduced carrier-free downloadable content with Club Nokia.


title: App store

text: In December 2001, Sprint PCS launched the Ringers & More Wireless Download Service for their then-new 3G wireless network. This allowed subscribers to the Sprint PCS mobile phone network to download ringtones, wallpaper, J2ME applications and later full music tracks to certain phones. The user interface worked through a web browser on the desktop computer, and a version was available through the handset.


title: App store

text: In 2002, the commercial Linux distribution Linspire (then known as LindowsOSwhich was founded by Michael Robertson, founder of MP3.com) introduced an app store known as Click'N'Run (CNR). For an annual subscription fee, users could perform one-click installation of free and paid apps through the CNR software. Doc Searls believed that the ease-of-use of CNR could help make desktop Linux a feasible reality.


title: App store

text: In September 2003 Danger Inc. released an over-the-air update for T-Mobile Sidekick devices which included a new catalog application called Download Fun, also known as the Catalog or Premium Download Manager(PDM). This was one of the first notable app stores on a smartphone with a framework similar to what we see today with the Apple App Store. The Download Fun catalog allowed users to download ringtones and applications directly to their device and be billed through their wireless carrier. Third party developers could develop native Java based applications using Danger's free SDK and submit them for distribution in the Catalog.


title: App store

text: In October 2003 Handango introduced an on-device app store for finding, installing and buying software for Sony Ericsson P800 and P900 devices. App download and purchasing are completed directly on the device so sync with a computer is not necessary. Description, rating and screenshot are available for any app.


title: App store

text: In 2006 Nokia introduced Nokia Catalogs, later known as Nokia Download!, for Symbian smartphones which had access to downloadable apps—originally via third-parties like Handango or Jamba! but from mid-2006 Nokia were offering their own content via the Nokia Content Discoverer.


title: App store

text: Apple released iPhone OS 2.0 in July 2008 for the iPhone, together with the App Store, officially introducing third-party app development and distribution to the platform. The service allows users to purchase and download new apps for their device through either the App Store on the device, or through the iTunes Store on the iTunes desktop software. While Apple has been criticized by some for how it operates the App Store, it has been a major financial success for the company. The popularity of Apple's App Store led to the rise of the generic term "app store", as well as the introduction of equivalent marketplaces by competing mobile operating systems: the Android Market (later renamed to Google Play) launched alongside the release of the first Android smartphone (the HTC Dream) in September 2008, BlackBerry's App World launched in April 2009, as well as Nokia's Ovi Store and Microsoft's Windows Marketplace for Mobile both launching that year.


title: App store

text: The popular Linux distribution Ubuntu (also based on Debian) introduced its own graphical software manager known as the Ubuntu Software Center on version 9.10 as a replacement for Synaptic. On Ubuntu 10.10, released in October 2010, the Software Center expanded beyond only offering existing software from its repositories by adding the ability to purchase certain apps (which, at launch, was limited to Fluendo's licensed DVD codecs).


title: App store

text: Due to its popularity, the term "app store" (first used by the Electronic AppWrapper and later popularized by Apple's App Store for iOS devices) has frequently been used as a generic trademark to refer to other distribution platforms of a similar nature. Apple asserted trademark claims over the phrase, and filed a trademark registration for "App Store" in 2008. In 2011, Apple sued both Amazon.com (which runs the Amazon Appstore for Android-based devices) and GetJar (who has offered its services since 2004) for trademark infringement and false advertising regarding the use of the term "app store" to refer to their services. Microsoft filed multiple objections against Apple's attempt to register the name as a trademark, considering it to already be a generic term.


title: App store

text: In January 2013, a United States district court rejected Apple's trademark claims against Amazon. The judge ruled that Apple had presented no evidence that Amazon had attempted "to mimic Apple's site or advertising" or communicated that its service "possesses the characteristics and qualities that the public has come to expect from the Apple APP STORE and/or Apple products". In July 2013, Apple dropped its case.


title: John Thune

text: John Randolph Thune ( ; born January 7, 1961) is an American politician and businessman serving as the senior United States senator from South Dakota, a seat he has held since 2005, and as the Senate minority whip since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Thune served as the U.S. representative for from 1997 to 2003.


title: John Thune

text: Thune has worked in politics and civic organizations since completing his MBA degree. He is known for his defeat of sitting Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle in 2004. In the U.S. Senate, Thune served as the Republican chief deputy whip from 2007 to 2009 and chaired the Senate Republican Policy Committee from 2009 to 2012. He served as the Senate Republican Conference chair, the third-ranking position in the Senate, from 2012 to 2019.


title: John Thune

text: The Senate Republican Conference selected Thune as majority whip for the 116th Congress; he succeeded Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who was term-limited in the position. In 2020, he was chosen as minority whip for the 117th Congress.


title: John Thune

text: Thune was born in Pierre, South Dakota, the son of Yvonne Patricia (née Bodine) and Harold Richard Thune. Harold Thune was a fighter pilot in the Pacific theater during World War II who flew the Grumman F6F Hellcat; he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross after shooting down four enemy planes. Harold Thune flew his missions off the USS "Intrepid". Thune's paternal grandfather, Nicholas Thune, was an immigrant from Norway who partnered with his brother to start Thune Hardware stores in Mitchell and Murdo, South Dakota. Thune's maternal grandfather was from Ontario, Canada, and his mother was born in Saskatchewan.


title: John Thune

text: Thune was a star athlete in high school, active in basketball, track, and football. He graduated from Jones County High School in 1979. He played college basketball at Biola University in California, from which he graduated in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in business. Thune received a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of South Dakota in 1984.


title: John Thune

text: After completing his MBA, Thune became involved in politics. He worked as a legislative aide for U.S. Senator James Abdnor from 1985 to 1987. In 1980, Abdnor had defeated U.S. Senator George McGovern.


title: John Thune

text: In 1989, Thune moved to Pierre, where he served as executive director of the state Republican Party for two years. Thune was appointed Railroad Director of South Dakota by Governor George S. Mickelson, serving from 1991 to 1993. From 1993 to 1996, he was executive director of the South Dakota Municipal League.


title: John Thune

text: Thune began his political career in 1996 by entering the race for South Dakota's lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. "The Almanac of American Politics" said that Thune "entered the 1996 race as very much an underdog." His opponent in the Republican primary was sitting Lieutenant Governor Carole Hillard of Rapid City, who benefited from the support of the longtime South Dakota Governor Bill Janklow. A May 1996 poll showed Hillard leading Thune by a margin of 69%-15%. By relying on strong personal skills and the help of his old network of Abdnor friends, Thune won the primary, defeating Hillard 59%-41%. In the general election, Thune defeated Democrat Rick Weiland, a long-serving aide to U.S. Senator Tom Daschle, 58%-37%.


title: John Thune

text: Thune won his subsequent races for U.S. House by wide margins. He was reelected in 1998 with 75% of the vote and in 2000 with 73% of the vote. In 2002, after briefly considering a run for governor, Thune set his sights on a run for the U.S. Senate.


title: John Thune

text: In 2002, Thune challenged incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Tim Johnson. Thune lost by only 524 votes (0.15%). One study concluded: "While the margin of victory [for Johnson] was a mere 524 votes, getting into that winning position required a number of important factors, including Native American turnout, the ability of Johnson and his allies to more effectively use the ground war to get their message out, Thune's ineffectiveness on the air and lack of experience in winning competitive elections, low voter turnout in key Republican counties, the drought, and finally the presence of Kurt Evans. Evans, a Libertarian candidate who withdrew from the race, endorsed Thune, but remained on the ballot and siphoned away more votes from Thune than Johnson. Evans received only 3,070 votes, but that ended up being six times greater than the margin of victory." Despite the close results, Thune did not contest the election.


title: John Thune

text: In 2004 Thune challenged Tom Daschle, the United States Senate Minority Leader and leader of the Senate Democrats. In early 2003, Daschle had unexpectedly decided not to run for president. CNN reported that the "announcement surprised even some of his closest aides, one of whom told CNN plans were being made for Daschle to announce his candidacy Saturday in his hometown of Aberdeen, South Dakota."


title: John Thune

text: The 2004 U.S. Senate race in South Dakota was the most expensive Senate race that year, with a total of $30 million spent, and the most expensive race in South Dakota history. It was widely followed in the national media. Thune, along with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, President George W. Bush, and Vice President Dick Cheney, described Daschle as the "chief obstructionist" of Bush's agenda: "Thune was able to criticize 'Daschle for serving incompatible masters' and portray him, as Frist did when he came to South Dakota to campaign for Thune, as a partisan obstructionist and political heir to liberal icon and former Senator George McGovern of South Dakota."


title: John Thune

text: Daschle's critics charged the Democrat with using filibusters to block confirmation of several of Bush's nominees to the federal judiciary and of being out of step with South Dakota voters on other political and social issues: "The GOP had targeted Daschle, the Senate minority leader, claiming he had been the chief obstruction to President Bush on such issues as tax cuts, judicial nominees and the war in Iraq."


title: John Thune

text: On November 2, 2004, Thune defeated Daschle by 4,508 votes, winning 51% of the vote. Daschle's loss was the first ousting of an incumbent floor leader since 1952, when Arizona Senator Ernest McFarland lost to Barry Goldwater. The loss made Daschle "the first Senate party leader in more than five decades to be voted out of office".


title: John Thune

text: South Dakota native Tom Brokaw commented that Thune "ran a very strong campaign" to win the 2004 race. University of South Dakota political scientist Bill Richardson said, "motivated John Thune supporters went to the polls in large numbers, part of a massive South Dakota turnout. Unofficial results show nearly 80 percent of registered voters cast ballots."


title: John Thune

text: After Thune defeated Daschle, many Republicans regarded him as a "rising star with unlimited political potential."


title: John Thune

text: Thune was re-elected 2010 without any opposition in either the primary or general elections. Scott Heidepriem, the South Dakota Senate Minority Leader and a Democratic candidate for Governor of South Dakota, said, "We just concluded that John Thune is an extremely popular senator who is going to win another term in the Senate." The conservative publication "Townhall" commented that the absence of a Democratic candidate in the election marked "the first time in the state's modern history in which a major party has failed to field a Senate candidate."


title: John Thune

text: In 2016 Thune faced Democratic candidate Jay Williams, Chair of the Yankton County Democratic Party. On November 8, 2016, Thune defeated Williams, winning 71.8% of the vote.


title: John Thune

text: Thune "drew the wrath of Donald Trump for pushing back on the former president's false claims" that he won the 2020 presidential election. Trump called upon South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to primary Thune in the 2022 U.S. Senate election in South Dakota; Noem declined. Thune also received negative feedback from Trump supporters for his position on the 2020 election.


title: John Thune

text: While Thune seriously considered retiring from the Senate, he announced in January 2022 that he would seek reelection to a fourth term.


title: John Thune

text: On December 6, 2006, Thune was chosen by Senate Republican Whip Trent Lott to be the GOP's Chief Deputy Whip. After briefly serving as Republican Conference Vice-Chairman, Thune became chairman of the Republican Policy Committee in June 2009. The post was the fourth-ranking position in the Senate.


title: John Thune

text: In March 2009, Thune was one of 14 senators to vote against a procedural move that essentially guaranteed a major expansion of a national service corps. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the bill would cost at least $418 million in the fiscal year 2010 and $5.7 billion from 2010 to 2014.


title: John Thune

text: He was elected Republican Conference Chairman in 2011, taking office in January 2012. The Conference Chairman is the third-ranking position in the US Senate. In late 2011, the "Mitchell Daily Republic" reported that "Thune's elevation to the No. 3 spot makes him the highest-ranking Republican senator in South Dakota history. Thune has served as chairman of the Republican Policy Committee from 2009 until the present time and was vice chairman of the Republican Conference from 2008 to 2009 and the Republican chief deputy whip from 2006 to 2008."


title: John Thune

text: Thune's emergence as a conservative voice in the Senate gained him a lengthy profile in the conservative magazine "The Weekly Standard." The American Conservative Union gave Senator Thune a rating of 100 in 2006 and again in 2010. As of 2020 Thune's lifetime ACU rating was 84.11. Thune was praised in a 2010 "Weekly Standard" profile as an exceptional politician who was, unlike many of his colleagues, able to communicate traditional conservatism, making him a popular alternative to Tea Party representatives.


title: John Thune

text: In June 2018, Thune called on Special Counsel Robert Mueller to "start winding" down his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.


title: John Thune

text: Thune is South Dakota's senior U.S. senator. The Senate Republican Conference selected Thune as majority whip for the 116th Congress, succeeding John Cornyn, who was term-limited in the position. He serves as minority whip in the 117th Congress.


title: John Thune

text: In March 2019, Thune was one of 38 senators to sign a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue warning that dairy farmers "have continued to face market instability and are struggling to survive the fourth year of sustained low prices" and urging his department to "strongly encourage these farmers to consider the Dairy Margin Coverage program."


title: John Thune

text: In December 2017, Thune was one of six senators to sign a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer requesting their "help in ensuring the long-term sustainability of the 340B program", a rule mandating that drug companies give discounts to health-care organizations presently serving large numbers of low-income patients.


title: John Thune

text: In January 2019, Thune introduced legislation to repeal the estate tax, which applies to couples with estates above $22 million (it is estimated that approximately 1,700 families pay the tax annually).


title: John Thune

text: In February 2019, Thune was one of 20 senators to sponsor the Employer Participation in Repayment Act, enabling employers to contribute up to $5,250 to their employees' student loans.


title: John Thune

text: On March 6, 2014, Thune introduced the Reliable Home Heating Act (S. 2086; 113th Congress). The bill would require the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to exempt motor carriers that transport home heating oil from numerous federal safety regulations if the governor of a state declares a state of emergency caused by a shortage of residential heating fuel. The bill also would require the Energy Information Administration (EIA) to notify states if certain petroleum reserves fall below historical averages.


title: John Thune

text: In March 2019, Thune joined all Senate Republicans, three Democrats, and Angus King in voting against the Green New Deal resolution. Arguing against its implementation, Thune said the resolution would "absolutely be devastating and disastrous" for the agriculture economy both in South Dakota and across the US.


title: John Thune

text: In May 2016, Thune sent Facebook a letter requesting details on how it operates its Trending Topics feature. This followed a Gizmodo article that cited anonymous sources (claiming to be former Facebook employees) who alleged a systemic anti-conservative political bias in how material is selected for display in the list.


title: John Thune

text: Some commentators criticized Thune's letter as an example of government overreach against a private company. Facebook denied the bias allegations. Thune thanked Facebook in a public statement.


title: John Thune

text: In November 2006, Thune said he believed the US could win the Iraq War through stability. He elaborated, "It's making sure that Iraq can't be a staging ground for terrorist attacks against its neighbors in the region or, worse yet, against the United States." Thune also espoused the position that the Bush administration and a majority of members of Congress would grant military commanders the final decision on when to reduce U.S. military forces there. In July 2008, Thune said that the Bush administration's moves in Iraq had been a "remarkable success", noting civilian casualties had been reduced by 80 percent, and charged Democratic presidential candidate and Senator Barack Obama with failing "to acknowledge the basic fact of the success and result and progress and gains that have been made as a result of the surge."


title: John Thune

text: In December 2010, Thune was one of 26 senators who voted against the ratification of New START, a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the United States and the Russian Federation obliging both countries to have no more than 1,550 strategic warheads and 700 launchers deployed during the next seven years, and providing for a continuation of on-site inspections that halted when START I expired the previous year. It was the first arms treaty with Russia in eight years.


title: John Thune

text: In November 2012, Thune and Chuck Grassley requested that United States Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner provide a review of the Chinese company Wanxiang Group's plan to acquire bankrupt battery maker A123, arguing that the transaction should be reviewed to ensure that U.S. military and taxpayer interests in A123 were protected. In October 2018, Thune requested staff briefings about a Bloomberg report that the Chinese government had implanted malicious hardware into server motherboards, writing charges that "the U.S. hardware supply chain has been purposely tampered with by a foreign power [and] must be taken seriously."


title: John Thune

text: In September 2016, Thune was one of 34 senators to sign a letter to United States Secretary of State John Kerry advocating that the United States use "all available tools to dissuade Russia from continuing its airstrikes in Syria" from an Iranian airbase near Hamadan and stating that the airstrikes violated "a legally binding Security Council Resolution" on Iran.


title: John Thune

text: In June 2017, Thune co-sponsored the Israel Anti-Boycott Act (s. 720), which made it a federal crime, punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment, for Americans to encourage or participate in boycotts against the Israeli government and Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.


title: John Thune

text: In March 2018, Thune voted to table a resolution spearheaded by Bernie Sanders, Chris Murphy, and Mike Lee that would have required President Trump to withdraw American troops either in or influencing Yemen within the next 30 days unless they were combating Al-Qaeda.


title: John Thune

text: In May 2020, a group of Senate Republicans planned to introduce a privacy bill that would regulate the data COVID-19 contact-tracing apps collect. Senator Roger Wicker said the legislation would “hold businesses accountable to consumers if they use personal data to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.” The act would permit the creation of “platforms that could trace the virus and help flatten the curve and stop the spread—and maintaining privacy protections for U.S. citizens,” Thune said.


title: John Thune

text: After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Thune said that the Ukrainian people could not sustain the war without military support from the U.S. and other countries. He called on European partners to make robust contributions to help Ukraine.


title: John Thune

text: Thune was part of the group of 13 senators drafting the Senate version of the American Health Care Act behind closed doors.


title: John Thune

text: In July 2017 Thune said that Republicans would continue trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act regardless of whether that month's effort collapsed: "We are going to vote to repeal and replace Obamacare. It’s not a question of if, it’s a question of when."


title: John Thune

text: Thune is a strong advocate of gun rights, sponsoring legislation that would allow individuals with concealed carry permits to use such permits as a valid permit in other states. He also voted against banning high-capacity magazines of over 10 bullets.


title: John Thune

text: On October 3, 2017, Thune became the center of media attention for his response to the mass shooting in Las Vegas. "It sounds like [the shooter] used conversion kits and other things, you know, to make the weapons more lethal," he said. "We'll look at the facts when we get them all in here. I think a lot of us want to do everything we can to prevent tragedies like that from happening again. You know, it's an open society. And when somebody does what he wants to do it's going to be hard to prevent anything. But I think people are going to have to take steps in their own lives to take precautions. To protect themselves. And in situations like that, you know, try to stay safe. As somebody said, get small."


title: John Thune

text: In March 2016, about seven months before the next presidential election, Thune declared his opposition to considering President Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court, saying, "the next president should make this lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court" because the "American people deserve to have their voices heard on the nomination of the next Supreme Court justice".


title: John Thune

text: In September 2020, less than two months before the next presidential election, Thune supported an immediate vote on Trump's nominee to fill the Supreme Court vacancy caused by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death.


title: John Thune

text: In January 2018 Thune was one of 36 Republican senators to sign a letter to President Trump requesting he preserve the North American Free Trade Agreement by modernizing it for the economy of the 21st century.


title: John Thune

text: In July 2018, as the Trump administration pushed for aid for agricultural producers affected by retaliatory tariffs, Thune stated that the plan offered a "false and short-term" sense of security and cited the importance of fair and free trade for farmers in South Dakota.


title: John Thune

text: In December 2020, Thune made national news when he said that he opposed any further efforts to challenge the 2020 presidential election results. He argued that such efforts would "go down like a shot dog" in the Senate. Then-President Donald Trump, who contended that the election results were illegitimate and that he had defeated Democratic nominee Joe Biden, responded by attacking Thune on Twitter, and publicly called on South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to challenge him in a 2022 U.S. Senate primary. Thune voted to certify the 2020 presidential election results.


title: John Thune

text: On May 28, 2021, Thune voted against creating an independent commission to investigate the January 6 capitol riot.


title: John Thune

text: Prior to the selection of Sarah Palin, Thune was mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick for Republican nominee John McCain in the 2008 presidential election. Thune publicly played down the speculation.


title: John Thune

text: Significant speculation arose regarding a potential 2012 presidential bid by Thune. He was encouraged to run by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, who called him "a consensus builder." One "Wall Street Journal" article stated that Thune had "name ID in the parts of the first caucus state of Iowa that get neighboring South Dakota media, a $6.9 million bank account he could use for a presidential run, and a national fundraising list of 100,000 names from his race against [former Senator Tom] Daschle." DNC Executive Director Jennifer O'Malley Dillon publicly stated that "among a field of generally flawed (in one way or another) Republican presidential candidates, Thune was the one candidate that she feared. According to multiple commentators, Thune's candidacy could be helped by his personal appearance. On February 22, 2011, Thune announced he would not run in 2012.


title: John Thune

text: During the summer of 2012, the "USA Today" reported that Thune was on Mitt Romney's short list as a potential running mate, but Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan was selected instead.


title: John Thune

text: Despite some speculation, Thune declined to seek the White House in 2016, stating that his "window...might have closed in 2012."


title: John Thune

text: Thune is an evangelical Christian. He married Kimberley Weems of Doland, South Dakota in 1984. The Thunes have two daughters and several grandchildren.


title: John Thune

text: Thune is physically active and has frequently competed in running events. A 2012 "Runner's World Magazine" feature called Thune "the fastest man in Congress since 2009."


title: Khandi Alexander

text: Harriet Rene "Khandi" Alexander (born September 4, 1957) is an American dancer, choreographer, and actress. She began her career as a dancer in the 1980s and was a choreographer for Whitney Houston's world tours from 1988 to 1992.


title: Khandi Alexander

text: During the 1990s, Alexander appeared in a number of films, include "CB4" (1993), "What's Love Got to Do with It" (1993), "Sugar Hill" (1994), and "There's Something About Mary" (1998). She starred as Catherine Duke in the NBC sitcom "NewsRadio" from 1995 to 1998. She also had a major recurring role in the NBC medical drama "ER" (1995–2001) as Jackie Robbins, sister to Dr. Peter Benton. Alexander also received critical acclaim for her leading performance in the HBO miniseries "The Corner" in 2000.


title: Khandi Alexander

text: From 2002 to 2009, Alexander starred as Dr. Alexx Woods in the CBS police procedural series "". From 2010 to 2013, she starred as LaDonna Batiste-Williams in the HBO drama "Treme". Later in 2013, she joined the cast of the ABC drama "Scandal" as Maya Lewis, Olivia Pope's mother, for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination in 2015. Alexander also received a Critics' Choice Television Award nomination for playing Bessie Smith's sister Viola in the 2015 HBO film "Bessie".


title: Khandi Alexander

text: Khandi Alexander was born in Jacksonville, Florida, the daughter of Alverina Yavonna (Masters), an opera and jazz singer, and Henry Roland Alexander, who owned a construction company. She was raised in Queens, New York, and was educated at Queensborough Community College. She appeared on Broadway, starring in "Chicago", Bob Fosse's "Dancin'", and "Dreamgirls". She was a choreographer for Whitney Houston's world tour from 1988 to 1992, and also appeared as a dancer in Natalie Cole's video for "Pink Cadillac" in 1988.


title: Khandi Alexander

text: Alexander began her acting career in the late 1980s. She made her television debut on the 1985 sketch-comedy show "FTV". Since the early 1990s, Alexander has concentrated on film and TV, playing supporting roles in several movies, including "CB4", "Joshua Tree", "What's Love Got to Do with It", "Poetic Justice", and "Sugar Hill".


title: Khandi Alexander

text: In 1995, Alexander was cast as Catherine Duke on the NBC comedy series "NewsRadio". She stayed with the show until season 4, episode 7, "Catherine Moves On", then returned for a final appearance in the season 5 premiere episode, "Bill Moves On" to memorialize Phil Hartman. She played the recurring character of Jackie Robbins in the medical drama series "ER". Alexander has made a number of guest appearances on other television shows, including "", "NYPD Blue", "Third Watch", "Cosby", "Better off Ted", "La Femme Nikita", and "Body of Proof".


title: Khandi Alexander

text: In 2000, Alexander won critical acclaim for her performance as Fran Boyd, a mother addicted to drugs in the Emmy Award-winning HBO miniseries "The Corner". She later appeared in the films "Emmett's Mark" and "Dark Blue", and starred opposite Rob Lowe in the Lifetime television movie "Perfect Strangers". In 2002 through 2008, she portrayed the character of Alexx Woods, a medical examiner in the CBS police drama "". Alexander left "CSI: Miami" shortly before the end of the 2007–2008 season. Her final appearance aired on May 5, 2008. On February 2, 2009, she returned to the role of Alexx Woods for a guest appearance in the episode "". She returned again as Alexx Woods in guest appearances in the episodes "Out of Time" on September 21, 2009, and "" on October 19, 2009.


title: Khandi Alexander

text: In fall 2008, Alexander was cast as a lead character in the HBO drama pilot "Treme", that premiered on April 11, 2010. She played a bar owner in a neighborhood of New Orleans affected by Hurricane Katrina. She received critical acclaim for her performance in the show. Alexander starred in the award-winning HBO television series by David Simon from 2010 to 2013. The series ended after four seasons. She later was cast in Shonda Rhimes' drama series "Scandal" as Maya Lewis, Kerry Washington's character Olivia Pope's mother. In 2015, she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her performance.


title: Khandi Alexander

text: In 2014, Alexander was cast as older sister of Queen Latifah's title character in the HBO Film "Bessie" about iconic blues singer Bessie Smith. She was nominated for a Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Movie/Miniseries.


title: Jay White

text: Jamie White (born 9 October 1992), better known by the ring name Jay White (ジェイ・ホワイト "Jei Howaito"), is a New Zealand professional wrestler signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is current IWGP World Heavyweight Champion in his first reign. He also makes appearances for Impact Wrestling. After starting his career in 2013, White joined NJPW the following year as a Young Lion. In June 2016, White left for an overseas excursion, during which he worked for the American Ring of Honor (ROH) and the British Revolution Pro Wrestling (RPW) promotions through NJPW's international partnerships.


title: Jay White

text: White eventually returned to NJPW in November 2017 and won the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship the following January. Later in 2018, he betrayed his fellow Chaos stablemates to join Bullet Club, eventually becoming the group's fourth leader. White is also a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion, IWGP Intercontinental Champion, and NEVER Openweight Champion, making him the fifth NJPW Triple Crown Champion and the first NJPW Grand Slam Champion.


title: Jay White

text: White initially trained under The UK Kid at Varsity Pro Wrestling in early 2013, and made his professional debut on 19 February, working for VPW as well as All Star Wrestling, among other promotions. In an interview on Chris Jericho's podcast, White acknowledged that he was able to train in the UK because he held a Dutch passport. Being a citizen of the Netherlands allowed him access to the UK, which was a part of the EU at the time. In early 2014, White met New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW)'s Prince Devitt and competed alongside him in a tag team match for VPW. After the match, Devitt gave White his card and told him to keep in touch.


title: Jay White

text: Shortly thereafter, White was contacted by Bad Luck Fale, who said that Devitt had spoken to NJPW officials about White and that he could get him a place as a young lion in the dojo if he wanted it.


title: Jay White

text: Several months later, White met with Fale, Devitt, and Shinsuke Nakamura in London, where White accepted their offer and began finalizing his visa to leave for the NJPW Dojo.


title: Jay White

text: White left for Japan on New Year's Eve 2015, began further training as a young lion upon his arrival, and made his debut for NJPW on 30 January 2015, losing to Alex Shelley. White lost all but eight of his matches in 2015, as is common for young lions in NJPW. In 2016, White began gaining more victories, and on 27 March competed in his biggest match to date when he was defeated by then-reigning IWGP Intercontinental Champion Kenny Omega in a non-title match. White's final match in NJPW took place on 19 June 2016 at Dominion 6.19 in Osaka-jo Hall, when he, David Finlay, and Juice Robinson were defeated by Satoshi Kojima, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, and Manabu Nakanishi. White left for his excursion to the United States the following week.


title: Jay White

text: Upon moving to the United States, White was first based in New Jersey, before moving to Detroit, where he lived with Alex Shelley. White debuted in Ring of Honor (ROH) at the 25 June TV tapings, defeating Kamaitachi. He teamed with The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) to defeat Kamaitachi and The Addiction (Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian). White and The Motor City Machine Guns eventually formed a stable named "Search and Destroy" with Jonathan Gresham and Lio Rush. On 8 July, White defeated Lio Rush. At the next set of TV tapings, White defeated Will Ferrara and wrestled Jay Briscoe to a time limit draw.


title: Jay White

text: On 19 August, White competed in a fatal four way match against Kamaitachi, Lio Rush, and Donovan Dijak, which was won by Dijak. The following day, White and Rush were defeated by The Briscoe Brothers. On 30 September, White teamed with Kushida and A. C. H. to defeat The Briscoes and Toru Yano in a quarter final match in the ROH Trios Tag Team Championship Tournament. White, ACH, and Kushida then defeated The Cabinet (Rhett Titus, Kenny King, and Caprice Coleman) in the semi-finals, but were defeated by The Kingdom (Matt Taven, Vinny Marseglia, and T. K. O'Ryan) in the final at Final Battle.


title: Jay White

text: On 6 June, White received his biggest title opportunity in his career at the time when after winning a Battle Royal he unsuccessfully challenged Christopher Daniels for The ROH World Championship in a triple threat match. At Best in the World 2017 White, teaming with Search and Destroy defeated The Rebellion in a losers must disband match thus keeping the group together.


title: Jay White

text: White debuted for England's Revolution Pro Wrestling on 12 August 2016, defeating Josh Bodom. He returned on 26 August, defeating Mark Haskins. White competed once again for RPW on 21 January 2017, defeating Martin Stone.


title: Jay White

text: On 5 November 2017, at Power Struggle, White returned to NJPW as the mysterious "Switchblade.” He had been teased for the past several months, challenging Hiroshi Tanahashi to a match for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Tokyo Dome, before attacking him. The following day, NJPW officially announced the match between Tanahashi and White for Wrestle Kingdom 12. On 4 January, White was defeated by Tanahashi in the title match.


title: Jay White

text: On 5 January, Jay teased joining Bullet Club; however, White then betrayed Kenny Omega by attacking him with a Blade Runner. A day later, he joined the Chaos faction in order to face off against Bullet Club and Kenny Omega, claiming he needed backup in his fight against Bullet Club. On 28 January at The New Beginning in Sapporo, White defeated Omega to become the second IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion in the title's history. On 25 March, he went on to defend the title for the first time against Hangman Page at NJPW Strong Style Evolved Event in Long Beach, California. White would make his second successful title defence against David Finlay at Road to Dontaku. White would make his third defense of the title beating Punishment Martinez on night 2 of the ROH/NJPW War of the Worlds Tour in May.


title: Jay White

text: At Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall, White was pinned in a tag team match by Juice Robinson. Because of this, White defended and lost the title to Juice at the G1 Special in San Francisco, ending his reign at 160 days and three successful title defenses. White then competed in 2018 G1 Climax, where he competed in the A Block, where he ended with 12 points (six wins and three losses). In the tournament, he scored major wins over the leader of Chaos, Kazuchika Okada, as well as eventual winner Hiroshi Tanahashi, notably being the only person to defeat Tanahashi in the tournament.


title: Jay White

text: At Destruction, White attacked Tanahashi after his defense of his G1 briefcase. He then attacked Okada, and Okada's former manager Gedo ran out to apparently save Okada. However, he turned on him by hitting him with a chair, and aligning himself with White. On 8 October, at King Of Pro Wrestling, White was defeated by Hiroshi Tanahashi. After the match, he and Gedo attacked Tanahashi, only for Okada to stop it. They were soon joined by Jado and Bullet Club OG in what turned out to be a setup to attack Okada, with White, Gedo and Jado all completing their defection from Chaos to join Bullet Club, becoming the new leader of the faction. At Wrestle Kingdom 13 on 4 January 2019, White defeated Okada.


title: Jay White

text: At New Year Dash!!, White would defeat Tanahashi in a 6-Man Tag match and would challenge Tanahashi for his newly won IWGP Heavyweight Championship at The New Beginning in Osaka. At the event, he defeated Tanahashi to win his first world title. At the NJPW Anniversary Event in March, White defeated NEVER Openweight Champion Will Ospreay in a non-title champion vs. champion match. At the G1 Supercard on 6 April, Okada defeated White for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, ending his reign at 54 days and no successful title defenses. White then entered the 2019 G1 Climax, competing in the B Block. Despite losing his first three matches against Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano, White would make a comeback and win his next five matches against Jeff Cobb, Shingo Takagi, Taichi, Jon Moxley (being the first person to beat Moxley by pinfall) and Juice Robinson. He would then defeat Tetsuya Naito to win the B Block and advance to the tournament finals. However, he would be unsuccessful in winning the tournament after losing to A Block winner Kota Ibushi, finishing with an overall record of 12 points (six wins and three losses). In the main event of Destruction in Kobe on 22 September, White defeated Naito to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship for the first time in his career in the main event. At Power Struggle on 3 November, White successfully defended the Intercontinental Championship against Hirooki Goto. However, he lost the championship back to Naito at Wrestle Kingdom 14 on 4 January 2020, ending his reign at 104 days. He followed this with a victory over Kota Ibushi the next day he then defeated Sanada at The New Beginning in Osaka on 9 February.


title: Jay White

text: After an absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic, White returned on the 21 August episode of "Strong", teaming with Bullet Club partner Chase Owens in a loss to Villain Enterprises (Brody King and Flip Gordon). He then participated in the 2020 G1 Climax in the A Block, which he ended with 12 points (six wins and three losses). At Power Struggle, White defeated Kota Ibushi to become the first wrestler to win the Tokyo Dome IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships challenge rights certificate from the G1 Climax winner.


title: Jay White

text: At Wrestle Kingdom 15, White lost to Ibushi, who had won the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships from previous champion Tetsuya Naito. During a press conference with the company on 5 January, White expressed his desire to quit NJPW after New Year Dash!!, stating that he was "as close to death as he had ever been, and he would hopefully ever be." At New Year's Dash the following day, White participated in a ten-tag team match with Bullet Club teammates Bad Luck Fale, Chase Owens, Evil, and Yujiro Takahashi, against Chaos members Yoshi-Hashi, Tomohiro Ishii, Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto and Toru Yano, which they lost after Ishii pinned White. After a month long hiatus, White returned on February 1 on the Road to the New Beginning show, attacking Ishii and continuing their feud. At Castle Attack on 27 February, White defeated Ishii. White went on to feud with Hiroshi Tanahashi, from whom he won the NEVER Openweight Championship at Wrestling Dontaku 2021, making White the fifth man to win the New Japan Triple Crown and the first New Japan Grand Slam champion. On November 13, 2021 at Battle in the Valley Jay White lost the NEVER Openweight Championship to Tomohiro Ishii ending his reign at 195 days with 1 successful defense


title: Jay White

text: White returned to Japan on May 1, at Wrestling Dontaku, attacking reigning IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada after his match against Tetsuya Naito, challenging Okada to a match. At Dominion 6.12 in Osaka-jo Hall, White defeated Okada to win the World Championship for the first time. After the match, White celebrated with the rest of Bullet Club and demanded respect for him being the "creator" of All Elite Wrestling, referring to him beating AEW Vice President Kenny Omega for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship at The New Beginning in Sapporo which was near the end of Omega's tenure with NJPW before joining AEW. He also insulted "Hangman" Adam Page, who had called out former champion Okada on "Dynamite" earlier that week, teasing confrontation leading up to . Also at the event, White was announced to be apart of the G1 Climax 32 tournament in July, where he would compete in the B Block. Initially, White went undefeated for 5 straight matches, however a loss to former Bullet Club stablemate Tama Tonga on the block finals day, caused White to be eliminated from the tournament, finishing with 10 points and failing to advance to the semi-finals. This result led to Tonga receiving a shot at the IWGP World Heavyweight title on October 10th at Declaration of Power, though at the event White retained the championship.


title: Jay White

text: Through NJPW's affiliation with Impact Wrestling, White made his unannounced debut for "Impact" at the end of the Slammiversary event on July 17, 2021, confronting former Bullet Club leader Kenny Omega, Don Callis and former Bullet Club members Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson. Callis, Gallows and Anderson attempted to 'too sweet' White but the group was attacked by Sami Callihan, Juice Robinson and future NEVER Openweight Championship contender David Finlay, after which White hit Finlay with a bladerunner.


title: Jay White

text: The following week, White confronted Gallows and Anderson, which ended in the two beating down White, until Chris Bey, who White attempted to recruit to Bullet Club following Slammiversary, made the save. On the July 29 episode of "Impact", White and Bey lost to Gallows and Anderson. On the next week's episode of "Impact", White accompanied Bey to his match against Juice Robinson, which Bey would win. After the match, White would hand Bey a Bullet Club shirt, officially welcoming Bey into the group.


title: Jay White

text: White appeared in AEW on the February 9, 2022, episode of "Dynamite", aiding Adam Cole and The Young Bucks in beating down Trent Beretta and Rocky Romero. After a match between The Young Bucks and Roppongi Vice on the February 11 episode of "Rampage", White attacked Beretta again, setting up a match between the two on following week's episode, which White won by pinfall, after hitting Beretta with the Bladerunner.


title: Jay White

text: White returned on the April 20 episode of "Dynamite", alongside Cole, interrupting Tony Khan and Takami Ohbari's announcement of on June 26, claiming the event would be "all about" The Undisputed Elite and the Bullet Club. White once again returned to AEW on the June 15th special Road Rager edition of "Dynamite" along with his newly won IWGP World Heavyweight Championship,where with a distraction from Cole, he attacked "Hangman" Adam Page from behind with a "Bladerunner". He announced that he would not defend the World Championship against Page, before refusing to defend the title against Cole as well, much to the latter's dismay. White appeared on the June 22 edition of "Dynamite" interrupting Cole and Page once more. White and Cole beat down Page, only for Kazuchika Okada to make his AEW debut, attacking White and Cole. Soon after a four-way match between White, Page, Cole and Okada for White's IWGP World Heavyweight Championship was announced for Forbidden Door. At the event, White successfully retained his championship.


title: Jay White

text: On 6 May 2022, White married longtime girlfriend Savanna Price. He holds both New Zealand and Dutch citizenship, with his father being born in the Netherlands. His training and temporal residence in the United Kingdom is attributed to his Dutch passport, which allowed him to travel in Europe extensively.


title: Matt Patricia

text: Matthew Edward Patricia (born September 13, 1974) is an American football coach who is the senior football advisor and offensive line coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He has served 15 non-consecutive seasons as an assistant coach with the Patriots, including six seasons as the team's defensive coordinator from 2012 to 2017. Patricia won three Super Bowls with the Patriots, two as defensive coordinator, and presided over a defense in 2016 that led the league in fewest points allowed. Since 2022, he has served as the Patriots' offensive playcaller. In between his New England tenure, he was the head coach of the Detroit Lions from 2018 to 2020.


title: Matt Patricia

text: Patricia played at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) where he was a four-year letterman as a center and guard with the Engineers football team from 1992 to 1995.


title: Matt Patricia

text: Patricia remained at RPI to begin his coaching career as a graduate assistant in 1996. He spent the next two years as an application engineer with Hoffman Air & Filtration Systems in East Syracuse, New York. After graduating, Patricia received an offer to maintain nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers with the Westinghouse Electric Company, but decided to return to football as the defensive line coach for Amherst College from 1999 to 2000. In 2001, he moved to Syracuse University as an offensive graduate assistant for the team, a position he held for three seasons.


title: Matt Patricia

text: Patricia joined the Patriots under head coach Bill Belichick as an offensive coaching assistant in 2004, the same year the team won its 3rd Super Bowl in Super Bowl XXXIX. In 2005, upon the departure of assistant offensive line/tight ends coach Jeff Davidson, Patricia was reassigned as the Patriots' assistant offensive line coach. Then-linebackers coach Dean Pees was promoted to defensive coordinator after the season, prompting another reassignment for Patricia, this time to linebackers coach for the 2006 season. Patricia was named the team's safeties coach in 2011. In 2012, he was promoted to the title of defensive coordinator, though he had been calling the plays on defense since the departure of Pees following the 2009 season. In January 2016, the Patriots gave permission for Patricia to interview for the head-coaching position of the Cleveland Browns, but Patricia would remain with the Patriots as defensive coordinator going into the 2016 season. The Patriots won three Super Bowls with Patricia: Super Bowl XXXIX at the end of the 2004 season, Super Bowl XLIX at the end of the 2014 season, and Super Bowl LI at the end of the 2016 season. On January 1, 2018 (NFL Black Monday), it was revealed that Patricia was the subject of the Detroit Lions' and New York Giants' head coaching searches. To date, he is the Patriots' most recent defensive playcaller to receive the title of defensive coordinator.


title: Matt Patricia

text: On February 5, 2018, Patricia was named the head coach of the Detroit Lions. He lost his first two games of the 2018 season, the first against the New York Jets, 48–17, on "Monday Night Football" on September 10, and the following week against the San Francisco 49ers, 30–27, on September 16. His first win as a head coach came on September 23, 2018, a 26–10 victory against his previous team, the New England Patriots, with Patricia beating his old mentor, Bill Belichick, in the process. It was also the Lions' first win over the Patriots since 2000, which was Belichick's first year coaching the Patriots.


title: Matt Patricia

text: Under Patricia, the Lions posted a 6–10 record in 2018 and had a dismal 3–12–1 season in 2019. Both marked a regression from Patricia's predecessor Jim Caldwell, who posted a 9–7 record in 2017 before he was fired in favor of Patricia. Despite the record and decline, team owner Martha Firestone Ford and her soon-to-be successor Sheila Ford Hamp announced after the season that they would give Patricia a chance to show improvement in the 2020 season.


title: Matt Patricia

text: On November 28, 2020, Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn were both fired by the Lions. This came after much criticism about Patricia's abilities. The firing happened after the 4–5 Lions suffered back-to-back lopsided losses to drop to 4–7: a 20–0 loss to the Carolina Panthers on November 22 (the first time the Lions had been shut out since 2009) and a 41–25 loss to the Houston Texans during the Lions annual Thanksgiving Day game on November 26. Patricia finished his tenure in Detroit with a record in two and a half seasons. The Lions finished last in the NFC North division in both of Patricia's full seasons and were in last place at the time of his firing.


title: Matt Patricia

text: On January 22, 2021, it was reported that Patricia would be returning to the Patriots "in a variety of roles". The exact roles were not specified, but it is reported that Patriots coach Bill Belichick and Patricia are working out a role similar to what Mike Lombardi had in New England, though it is still a work in progress. In addition, Patricia is expected to work on projects as well as be a resource to Belichick. On July 21, 2022, the Patriots announced that Patricia will be senior football advisor and offensive line coach.


title: Matt Patricia

text: In May 2018, his hire as Detroit Lions head coach received public scrutiny when reporters discovered he had been indicted for sexual assault in 1996. In response, Detroit Lions team president Rod Wood initially stated "I don't know anything about this," but a few hours later said, "I am very comfortable with the process of interviewing and employing Matt. I will tell you with 1,000-percent certainty that everything I've learned confirmed what I already knew about the man and would have no way changed our decision to make him our head coach." Patricia was ultimately not tried, as the charges were dismissed, after the victim refused to testify.


title: De-extinction

text: De-extinction (also known as resurrection biology, or species revivalism) is the process of generating an organism that either resembles or "is" an extinct species. There are several ways to carry out the process of de-extinction. Cloning is the most widely proposed method, although genome editing and selective breeding have also been considered. Similar techniques have been applied to certain endangered species, in hopes to boost their genetic diversity. The only method of the three that would provide an animal with the same genetic identity is cloning. There are benefits and malefits to the process of de-extinction ranging from technological advancements to ethical issues.


title: De-extinction

text: Cloning is a commonly suggested method for the potential restoration of an extinct species. It can be done by extracting the nucleus from a preserved cell from the extinct species and swapping it into an egg, without a nucleus, of that species' nearest living relative. The egg can then be inserted into a host from the extinct species' nearest living relative. It is important to note that this method can only be used when a preserved cell is available, meaning it would be most feasible for recently extinct species. Cloning has been used in science since the 1950s. One of the most well known clones is Dolly the sheep. Dolly was born in the mid 1990s and lived a normal life until she experienced health complications that led to her death. Other animal species known to have been cloned include dogs, pigs, and horses.


title: De-extinction

text: Genome editing has been rapidly advancing with the help of the CRISPR/Cas systems, particularly CRISPR/Cas9. The CRISPR/Cas9 system was originally discovered as part of the bacterial immune system. Viral DNA that was injected into the bacterium became incorporated into the bacterial chromosome at specific regions. These regions are called clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats, otherwise known as CRISPR. Since the viral DNA is within the chromosome, it gets transcribed into RNA. Once this occurs, the Cas9 binds to the RNA. Cas9 can recognize the foreign insert and cleaves it. This discovery was very crucial because now the Cas protein can be viewed as a scissor in the genome editing process.


title: De-extinction

text: By using cells from a closely related species to the extinct species, genome editing can play a role in the de-extinction process. Germ cells may be edited directly, so that the egg and sperm produced by the extant parent species will produce offspring of the extinct species, or somatic cells may be edited and transferred via somatic cell nuclear transfer. The result is an animal which is not completely the extinct species, but rather a hybrid of the extinct species and the closely related, non-extinct species. Because it is possible to sequence and assemble the genome of extinct organisms from highly degraded tissues, this technique enables scientists to pursue de-extinction in a wider array of species, including those for which no well-preserved remains exist. However, the more degraded and old the tissue from the extinct species is, the more fragmented the resulting DNA will be, making genome assembly more challenging.


title: De-extinction

text: Back breeding is a form of selective breeding. As opposed to breeding animals for a trait to advance the species in selective breeding, back breeding involves breeding animals for an ancestral characteristic that may not be seen throughout the species as frequently. This method can recreate the traits of an extinct species, but the genome will differ from the original species. Back breeding, however, is contingent on the ancestral trait of the species still being in the population in any frequency. Back breeding is also a form of artificial selection by the deliberate selective breeding of domestic animals, in an attempt to achieve an animal breed with a phenotype that resembles a wild type ancestor, usually one that has gone extinct. Breeding back is not to be confused with dedomestication.


title: De-extinction

text: A natural process of de-extinction is iterative evolution. This occurs when a species becomes extinct, but then after some time a different species evolves into an almost identical creature. For example, the white-throated rail was a flightless bird that became extinct about 136,000 years ago due to an unknown event that caused sea levels to rise. The species "reappeared" about 100,000 years ago when sea levels dropped, allowing the bird to evolve once again as a flightless species on the island of Aldabra, where it is found to the present day.


title: De-extinction

text: Prioritising de-extinction could lead to the improvement of current conservation strategies. Conservation measures would initially be necessary in order to reintroduce a species into the ecosystem, until the revived population can sustain itself in the wild. Reintroduction of an extinct species could also help improve ecosystems that had been destroyed by human development. It may also be argued that reviving species driven to extinction by humans is an ethical obligation.


title: De-extinction

text: The reintroduction of extinct species could have a negative impact on extant species and their ecosystem. The extinct species' ecological niche may have been filled in its former habitat, making it an invasive species. This could lead to the extinction of other species due to competition for food or other competitive exclusion. It could also lead to the extinction of prey species if they have more predators in an environment that had few predators before the reintroduction of an extinct species. If a species has been extinct for a long period of time the environment they are introduced to could be wildly different from the one that they can survive in. The changes in the environment due to human development could mean that the species may not survive if reintroduced into that ecosystem. A species could also become extinct again after de-extinction if the reasons for its extinction are still a threat. The woolly mammoth might be hunted by poachers just like elephants for their ivory and could go extinct again if this were to happen. Or, if a species is reintroduced into an environment with disease it has no immunity to the reintroduced species could be wiped out by a disease that current species can survive.


title: De-extinction

text: De-extinction is a very expensive process. Bringing back one species can cost millions of dollars. The money for de-extinction would most likely come from current conservation efforts. These efforts could be weakened if funding is taken from conservation and put into de-extinction. This would mean that critically endangered species would start to go extinct faster because there are no longer resources that are needed to maintain their populations. Also, since cloning techniques cannot perfectly replicate a species as it existed in the wild, the reintroduction of the species may not bring about positive environmental benefits. They may not have the same role in the food chain that they did before and therefore cannot restore damaged ecosystems.


title: De-extinction

text: The existence of preserved soft tissue remains and DNA from woolly mammoths has led to the idea that the species could be recreated by scientific means. Two methods have been proposed to achieve this. The first would be to use the cloning process, however even the most intact mammoth samples have had little usable DNA because of their conditions of preservation. There is not enough DNA intact to guide the production of an embryo. The second method would involve artificially inseminating an elephant egg cell with preserved sperm of the mammoth. The resulting offspring would be a hybrid of the mammoth and its closest living relative the Asian elephant. After several generations of cross-breeding these hybrids, an almost pure woolly mammoth could be produced. However, sperm cells of modern mammals are typically potent for up to 15 years after deep-freezing, which could hinder this method. In 2008, a Japanese team found usable DNA in the brains of mice that had been frozen for 16 years. They hope to use similar methods to find usable mammoth DNA. In 2011, Japanese scientists announced plans to clone mammoths within six years.


title: De-extinction

text: In March 2014, the Russian Association of Medical Anthropologists reported that blood recovered from a frozen mammoth carcass in 2013 would now provide a good opportunity for cloning the woolly mammoth. Another way to create a living woolly mammoth would be to migrate genes from the mammoth genome into the genes of its closest living relative, the Asian elephant, to create hybridized animals with the notable adaptations that it had for living in a much colder environment than modern day elephants. This is currently being done by a team led by Harvard geneticist George Church. The team has made changes in the elephant genome with the genes that gave the woolly mammoth its cold-resistant blood, longer hair, and an extra layer of fat. According to geneticist Hendrik Poinar, a revived woolly mammoth or mammoth-elephant hybrid may find suitable habitat in the tundra and taiga forest ecozones.


title: De-extinction

text: George Church has hypothesized the positive effects of bringing back the extinct woolly mammoth would have on the environment, such as the potential for reversing some of the damage caused by global warming. He and his fellow researchers predict that mammoths would eat the dead grass allowing the sun to reach the spring grass; their weight would allow them to break through dense, insulating snow in order to let cold air reach the soil; and their characteristic of felling trees would increase the absorption of sunlight. In an editorial condemning de-extinction, "Scientific American" pointed out that the technologies involved could have secondary applications, specifically to help species on the verge of extinction regain their genetic diversity.


title: De-extinction

text: The Pyrenean ibex was a subspecies of Spanish ibex that lived on the Iberian peninsula. While it was abundant through medieval times, over-hunting in the 19th and 20th centuries led to its demise. In 1999, only a single female named Celia was left alive in Ordesa National Park. Scientists captured her, took a tissue sample from her ear, collared her, then released her back into the wild, where she lived until she was found dead in 2000, having been crushed by a fallen tree. In 2003, scientists used the tissue sample to attempt to clone Celia and resurrect the extinct subspecies. Despite having successfully transferred nuclei from her cells into domestic goat egg cells and impregnating 208 female goats, only one came to term. The baby ibex that was born had a lung defect, and lived for only seven minutes before suffocating from being incapable of breathing oxygen. Nevertheless, her birth was seen as a triumph and is considered the first de-extinction. In late 2013, scientists announced that they would again attempt to resurrect the Pyrenean ibex. A problem to be faced, in addition to the many challenges of reproduction of a mammal by cloning, is that only females can be produced by cloning the female individual Celia, and no males exist for those females to reproduce with. This could potentially be addressed by breeding female clones with the closely related Southeastern Spanish ibex, and gradually creating a hybrid animal that will eventually bear more resemblance to the Pyrenean ibex than the Southeastern Spanish ibex.


title: De-extinction

text: The aurochs was widespread across Eurasia, North Africa, and the Indian subcontinent during the Pleistocene, but only the European aurochs ("Bos primigenius primigenius") survived into historical times. This species is heavily featured in European cave paintings, such as Lascaux and Chauvet cave in France, and was still widespread during the Roman era. Following the fall of the Roman empire, overhunting of the aurochs by nobility caused its population to dwindle to a single population in the Jaktorów forest in Poland, where the last wild one died in 1627. However, because the aurochs is ancestral to most modern cattle breeds, it is possible for it to be brought back through selective or back breeding. The first attempt at this was by Heinz and Lutz Heck using modern cattle breeds, which resulted in the creation of Heck cattle. This breed has been introduced to nature preserves across Europe; however, it differs strongly from the aurochs in physical characteristics, and some modern attempts claim to try to create an animal that is nearly identical to the aurochs in morphology, behavior, and even genetics. There are several projects that aim to create a cattle breed similar to the aurochs through selectively breeding primitive cattle breeds over a course of twenty years to create a self-sufficient bovine grazer in herds of at least 150 animals in rewilded nature areas across Europe, for example the Tauros Programme and the Taurus Project. This organization is partnered with the organization Rewilding Europe to help restore balance to European nature. A competing project to recreate the aurochs is the Uruz Project by the True Nature Foundation, which aims to recreate the aurochs through a more efficient breeding strategy and through genome editing, in order to decrease the number of generations of breeding needed and the ability to quickly eliminate undesired traits from the aurochs-like cattle population. It is hoped that aurochs-like cattle will reinvigorate European nature by restoring its ecological role as a keystone species, and bring back biodiversity that disappeared following the decline of European megafauna, as well as helping to bring new economic opportunities related to European wildlife viewing.


title: De-extinction

text: The quagga ("Equus quagga quagga") is a subspecies of the plains zebra that was distinct in that it was striped on its face and upper torso, but its rear abdomen was a solid brown. It was native to South Africa, but was wiped out in the wild due to overhunting for sport, and the last individual died in 1883 in the Amsterdam Zoo. However, since it is technically the same species as the surviving Plains zebra, it has been argued that the quagga could be revived through artificial selection. The Quagga Project aims to breed a similar form of zebra by selective breeding of plains zebras. This process is also known as back breeding. It also aims to release these animals onto the western Cape once an animal that fully resembles the quagga is achieved, which could have the benefit of eradicating introduced species of trees such as the Brazilian pepper tree, Tipuana tipu, Acacia saligna, Bugweed, Camphor tree, Stone pine, cluster pine, Weeping willow and Acacia mearnsii.


title: De-extinction

text: The thylacine, commonly known as the Tasmanian Tiger, was native to the Australian mainland, Tasmania and New Guinea. It is believed to have become extinct in the 20th century. The thylacine had become extremely rare or extinct on the Australian mainland before British settlement of the continent. The last known thylacine, named Benjamin, died at the Hobart Zoo, on September 7, 1936. He is believed to have died as the result of neglect—locked out of his sheltered sleeping quarters, he was exposed to a rare occurrence of extreme Tasmanian weather: extreme heat during the day and freezing temperatures at night. Official protection of the species by the Tasmanian government was introduced on July 10, 1936, roughly 59 days before the last known specimen died in captivity.


title: De-extinction

text: In December 2017 it was announced in Nature Ecology and Evolution that the full nuclear genome of the thylacine had been successfully sequenced, marking the completion of the critical first step toward de-extinction that began in 2008, with the extraction of the DNA samples from the preserved pouch specimen. The Thylacine genome was reconstructed by using the genome editing method. The Tasmanian devil was used as a reference for the assembly of the full nuclear genome. Andrew J. Pask from the University of Melbourne has stated that the next step toward de-extinction will be to create a functional genome, which will require extensive research and development, estimating that a full attempt to resurrect the species may be possible as early as 2027.


title: De-extinction

text: In August 2022, the University of Melbourne and Colossal Biosciences announced a partnership to accelerate de-extinction of the thylacine.


title: De-extinction

text: The passenger pigeon numbered in the billions before being wiped out due to commercial hunting and habitat loss during the early 20th century. The non-profit Revive & Restore obtained DNA from the passenger pigeon from museum specimens and skins; however, this DNA is degraded because it is so old. For this reason, simple cloning would not be an effective way to perform de-extinction for this species because parts of the genome would be missing. Instead, Revive & Restore focuses on identifying mutations in the DNA that would cause a phenotypic difference between the extinct passenger pigeon and its closest living relative, the band-tailed pigeon. In doing this, they can determine how to modify the DNA of the band-tailed pigeon to change the traits to mimic the traits of the passenger pigeon. In this sense, the de-extinct passenger pigeon would not be genetically identical to the extinct passenger pigeon, but it would have the same traits. The de-extinct passenger pigeon hybrid is expected to be ready for captive breeding by 2024 and released into the wild by 2030.


title: De-extinction

text: The Maclear's rat (also known as the "Christmas Island rat") was a large rat endemic to Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean. It is believed Maclear's rat might have been responsible for keeping the population of Christmas Island red crab in check. It is thought that the accidental introduction of black rats by the Challenger expedition infected the Maclear's rats with a disease (possibly a trypanosome), which resulted in the numbers of the species declining. The last recorded sighting was in 1903. In March 2022, researchers discovered the Maclear's Rat shared about 95 percent of its genes with the living Norway brown rat, thus sparking hopes in bringing the species back to life. Although scientists were mostly successful in using CRISPR technology to edit the DNA of the living species to match that of the extinct one, a few key genes were missing, which would mean resurrected rats would not be genetically pure replicas.


title: De-extinction

text: A "De-extinction Task Force" was established in April 2014 under the auspices of the Species Survival Commission (SSC) and


title: De-extinction

text: charged with drafting a set of Guiding Principles on Creating Proxies of Extinct Species for Conservation Benefit to position the


title: De-extinction

text: IUCN SSC on the rapidly emerging technological feasibility of creating a proxy of an extinct species.


title: Candlestick Park

text: Candlestick Park was an outdoor stadium on the West Coast of the United States, located in San Francisco's Bayview Heights area. The stadium was originally the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 until 1999, after which the Giants moved into Pacific Bell Park (since renamed Oracle Park) in 2000. It was also the home field of the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League from 1971 through 2013. The 49ers moved to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara for the 2014 season. The last event held at Candlestick was a concert by Paul McCartney in August 2014, and the demolition of the stadium was completed in September 2015. As of 2019, the site is planned to be redeveloped into office space.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The stadium was situated at Candlestick Point on the western shore of San Francisco Bay. Candlestick Point was named for the "candlestick birds" (long-billed curlews) that populated the area for many years. Due to Candlestick Park's location next to the bay, strong winds often swirled down into the stadium, creating unusual playing conditions. At the time of its construction in the late 1950s, the stadium site was one of the few pieces of land available in the city that was suitable for a sports stadium, and had space for the 10,000 parking spaces that had been promised to the Giants.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The surface of the field for most of its existence was natural bluegrass, but for nine seasons, from 1970 to 1978, the stadium had artificial turf. A "sliding pit" configuration, with dirt cut-outs only around the bases, was installed in 1971, primarily to keep the dust down in the breezy conditions. Following the 1978 football season, the playing surface was restored to natural grass.


title: Candlestick Park

text: When the New York Giants arrived in San Francisco in 1958, they played their home games at the old Seals Stadium at 16th and Bryant Streets. As part of the agreement regarding the Giants' relocation to the West Coast, the city of San Francisco promised to build a new stadium for the team. Most of the land at Candlestick Point was purchased from Charles Harney, a local contractor. Harney purchased the land in 1952 for a quarry and industrial development. He made a profit of over $2 million when he sold the land for the stadium. Harney received a no-bid contract to build the stadium. The entire deal was the subject of a grand jury investigation in 1958.


title: Candlestick Park

text: Ground was broken in for the stadium and the Giants selected the name of Candlestick Park, after a name-the-park contest on March 3, 1959 (for the derivation of which, see below). Prior to the choice of the name, its construction site had been shown on maps as the generic Bay View Stadium. It was the first modern baseball stadium, as it was the first to be built entirely of reinforced concrete. Then-Vice President Richard Nixon threw out the ceremonial first pitch on the opening day of Candlestick Park on April 12, 1960, and the Oakland Raiders played the final three games of the 1960 season and their entire 1961 American Football League season at Candlestick. With only 77 home runs hit in 1960 (46 by Giants, 31 by visitors), the fences were moved in, from left-center to right-center, for the 1961 season.


title: Candlestick Park

text: Following the 1970 season, the first with AstroTurf, Candlestick was enclosed, with grandstands around the outfield. This was in preparation for the 49ers in 1971, who were moving from their long-time home of Kezar Stadium. The result was that the wind speed dropped marginally, but often swirled irregularly throughout the stadium, and the view of San Francisco Bay was lost.


title: Candlestick Park

text: Candlestick played host to two Major League Baseball All-Star Games in its life as home for the Giants. The stadium hosted the first of two games in 1961 and later hosted the 1984 All-Star Game. The Giants played a total of six postseason series at Candlestick; they played host to the NLCS in 1971, 1987, and 1989, the World Series in 1962 and 1989, and one NLDS in 1997.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The 49ers hosted eight NFC Championship games during their time at Candlestick. The first was in January 1982 when Dwight Clark caught a game-winning touchdown pass from Joe Montana to lead the 49ers to their first Super Bowl by defeating the Dallas Cowboys. Clark's play went down as one of the more famous in football history, and was dubbed "The Catch". The last of these came in January 2012, when Lawrence Tynes kicked a field goal in overtime to defeat the 49ers and send the New York Giants to their fifth Super Bowl. The final postseason game hosted by the 49ers at Candlestick was the Divisional Playoff matchup between the 49ers and the Green Bay Packers, won by the 49ers by a score of 45-31. The 49ers' record in NFC Championship games at Candlestick was 4-4; they defeated the Cowboys twice, in 1981 and 1994, the Chicago Bears in 1984, and the Los Angeles Rams in 1989. Their losses came against the Cowboys in 1992, the Giants in 1990 and 2011, and the Packers in 1997.


title: Candlestick Park

text: In addition to Clark's famous touchdown catch, two more plays referred to as "The Catch" took place during games at Candlestick. The play dubbed "The Catch II" came in the 1998 Wild Card round, as Steve Young found Terrell Owens for a touchdown with eight seconds left to defeat the two-time defending NFC Champion Packers. The play called "The Catch III" came in the 2011 Divisional Playoffs, when Alex Smith threw a touchdown pass to Vernon Davis with nine seconds remaining to provide the winning margin against the New Orleans Saints.


title: Candlestick Park

text: On October 17, 1989, the Loma Prieta earthquake (measuring 7.1 on the Richter Scale) struck San Francisco, minutes before Game 3 of the World Series was to begin at Candlestick. No one within the stadium was injured, although minor structural damage was incurred to the stadium. Al Michaels and Tim McCarver, who called the game for ABC, later credited the stadium's design for saving thousands of lives. An ESPN documentary about the earthquake revealed that the local stadium authority demanded that Candlestick Park undertake a major engineering project to shore up perceived safety red flags in the stadium. The authority pushed reluctant officials to get this done between the 1988 and 1989 baseball seasons, which prevented a "collapse wave" that could have killed thousands of fans and led to there being very few casualties of any kind in Candlestick after such a massive natural disaster. The World Series between the Giants and their Bay rivals the Oakland A's was subsequently delayed for 10 days, in part to give engineers time to check the stadium's overall structural soundness (and that of the A's nearby home, the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum). During this time, the 49ers moved their game against the New England Patriots on October 22 to Stanford Stadium, where they had defeated the Miami Dolphins 38–16 to win Super Bowl XIX on January 20, 1985.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The NFL awarded Super Bowl XXXIII to Candlestick Park on November 2, 1994. Candlestick Park had planned to make major renovations in preparation for the game; when that did not happen, the NFL owners awarded Super Bowl XXXIII to the Miami area during their October 31, 1996 meeting in New Orleans.


title: Candlestick Park

text: In , the Giants moved to the new Pacific Bell Park (now called Oracle Park) in the China Basin neighborhood, leaving the 49ers as the sole professional sports team to use Candlestick. The final baseball game was played on September 30, 1999, against long-time rivals the Los Angeles Dodgers, who won 9–4. In that game, all nine Dodgers starters had at least one base hit, while the stadium's final home run came from Dodgers' right fielder Raúl Mondesí in the 6th inning. The National League rivalry between the Giants and Dodgers, one of the oldest and most hotly contested in the Major Leagues, dated back to when both teams were based in New York City. When first the Dodgers, then the Giants, moved to California in 1958, the rivalry continued unabated.


title: Candlestick Park

text: For its last several years as home to just the 49ers, Candlestick Park was the only remaining NFL stadium to have begun as a baseball-only facility which later underwent an extensive redesign to accommodate football. That was evidenced by the stadium's curiously oblong and irregular shape, whereby views from a sizable section of lower-deck seating in the baseball configuration's right-field corner were so badly obstructed by the eastern grandstand of the football seating configuration that they were unusable for football games and would consequently sit empty. Since a football gridiron, including its end zones and benches along the sidelines, is much smaller than a baseball playing field and foul territory, this large grandstand, which provided thousands of prime seats along one whole sideline of the football field, was designed to be retractable. It would slide backwards for baseball games, under the upper deck, and provide a smaller section of baseball seating beyond the outfield wall in right. After the Giants played their 1999 season and moved away from Candlestick, this grandstand was left permanently in its football position, and the unusable seats were eventually removed.


title: Candlestick Park

text: On September 3, 2011, Candlestick Park hosted the first and only college football game in its history with a neutral site game between the California Golden Bears and Fresno State Bulldogs (Cal was designated the "home" team). This game was in San Francisco, because of the massive renovation and seismic retrofit at California's home stadium, California Memorial Stadium. The rest of the Golden Bears' home games in 2011 were played at AT&T Park. Cal won the game 36–21.


title: Candlestick Park

text: At approximately 5:19 p.m. local time on December 19, 2011, Candlestick Park experienced an unexpected power outage just before a "Monday Night Football" game between the 49ers and the Pittsburgh Steelers. An aerial shot shown live on ESPN showed a transformer sparking and then the stadium going completely dark. About 17 minutes later, however, the park's lights came back on in time for the game's kickoff. With 12:13 remaining in the second quarter, another power outage created yet another 30-minute delay before play resumed again. The 49ers 2011 season ended at Candlestick Park with a loss to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The 49ers played their final game at Candlestick Park on Monday, December 23, 2013 against the Atlanta Falcons, winning 34–24 after a NaVorro Bowman interception that would be called The Pick at the Stick by some sports columnists. This game was the facility's 36th and final game on "Monday Night Football", the most at any stadium used by the NFL.


title: Candlestick Park

text: As a baseball field, the stadium was infamous for the windy conditions, damp air and dew from fog, and chilly temperatures. The wind often made it difficult for outfielders trying to catch fly balls, as well as for fans, while the damp grass further complicated play for outfielders who had to play in cold, wet shoes. Architect John Bolles designed the park with a boomerang-shaped concrete baffle in the upper tier in order to protect the park from wind. Unfortunately, it never worked properly. For Candlestick's first 10 seasons, the wind blew in from left-center and out toward right-center. When the park was expanded to accommodate the 49ers in 1971, it was thought that fully enclosing the park would cut down on the wind significantly. Instead, the wind swirled from all directions, and was as strong and cold as before. Giants Hall of Fame center fielder Willie Mays claimed the wind cost him over 100 home runs. (It may be noted that in the 12 years he played at Candlestick Park, from 1960 through 1971, Mays hit 396 home runs, 203 at Candlestick and 193 on the road.) Nonetheless, he had less difficulty fielding balls in the windy conditions. Mays was used to playing in difficult and absurdly sized field conditions, beginning his career at the Polo Grounds in New York, which featured an enormous outfield where he made a famous World Series-saving catch.


title: Candlestick Park

text: During the first All Star Game of (one of two played in the park—the other was in ), Giants pitcher Stu Miller was blown off balance by a gust of wind and was charged with a balk. Two years later, wind picked up the entire batting cage and dropped it 60 feet (18 m) away on the pitcher's mound while the New York Mets were taking batting practice.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The stadium also had the reputation as the coldest park in Major League Baseball, with winds blowing directly off the Pacific Ocean. It was initially built with a radiant heating system of hot water pipes under the lower box seats in a space between the concrete and the ground. The pipes were not embedded in the concrete, however, and did not produce enough heat to offset the cold air. Both the city and the Giants balked at the cost of upgrading the system so it would work properly, which would have involved removing the seats and concrete, embedding larger pipes, and replacing the concrete and seats. As a result, the Giants played more day games than any Major League Baseball team except the Chicago Cubs, whose ballpark, Wrigley Field, did not have lights installed until 1988. Many locals, including Giants' broadcaster Lon Simmons, were surprised at the decision to build the park right on the bay, in one of the coldest areas of the city. Attorney Melvin Belli filed a claim against the Giants in 1960 because his six-seat box, which cost him almost $1,600, was unbearably cold. Belli won in court, claiming that the "radiant heating system" advertised was a failure.


title: Candlestick Park

text: The Giants eventually played on the reputation to bolster fan support with humorous promotions such as awarding the 'Croix de Candlestick' pin to fans who stayed for the duration of extra-inning night games. The pins featured the Giants' "SF" monogram capped with snow, along with the Latin slogan ""Veni, vidi, vixi"" ("I came, I saw, I survived"). Among many less-than-flattering fan nicknames for the park were "North Pole", "Cave of the Winds", "Windlestick", "The Quagmire", and "The Ashtray By The Bay." Older fans called it "The Dump" in honor of the former use of the land. Ironically, the Giants played their last night game at Candlestick (against the Los Angeles Dodgers) on September 29, 1999, under clear skies and a game time temperature of 74° as well as their last day game at Candlestick on September 30, 1999, under blue skies with no fog and a game time temperature of 82°, all of which was common for September games.


title: Candlestick Park

text: Giants owner Horace Stoneham visited the site as early as 1957 and was involved in the stadium's design from the outset. While he was aware of the weather conditions, he usually visited the park during the day, not knowing about the particularly cold, windy and foggy conditions that overtook it at night. Originally, Bolles' concrete baffle would have extended all the way to left field, which would have further reduced the prevailing winds. Nevertheless, the size of the structure was reduced for cost savings. In 1962, Stoneham commissioned a study of the wind conditions. The study revealed that had the windy conditions been known prior to construction, conditions would have been significantly improved by building the park 100 yards farther to the north and east. This would have meant building it on fill, however, which is less stable during earthquakes. The stadium's location on the bedrock of Bayview Hill provided more stability.