title: Surveillance

text: The United Kingdom, as well, is working on plans to build up a fleet of surveillance UAVs ranging from micro-aerial vehicles to full-size drones, to be used by police forces throughout the U.K.


title: Surveillance

text: In addition to their surveillance capabilities, MAVs are capable of carrying tasers for "crowd control", or weapons for killing enemy combatants.


title: Surveillance

text: Programs such as the Heterogeneous Aerial Reconnaissance Team program developed by DARPA have automated much of the aerial surveillance process. They have developed systems consisting of large teams drone planes that pilot themselves, automatically decide who is "suspicious" and how to go about monitoring them, coordinate their activities with other drones nearby, and notify human operators if something suspicious is occurring. This greatly increases the amount of area that can be continuously monitored, while reducing the number of human operators required. Thus a swarm of automated, self-directing drones can automatically patrol a city and track suspicious individuals, reporting their activities back to a centralized monitoring station.


title: Surveillance

text: In addition, researchers also investigate possibilities of autonomous surveillance by large groups of micro aerial vehicles stabilized by decentralized bio-inspired swarming rules.


title: Surveillance

text: Corporate surveillance is the monitoring of a person or group's behavior by a corporation. The data collected is most often used for marketing purposes or sold to other corporations, but is also regularly shared with government agencies. It can be used as a form of business intelligence, which enables the corporation to better tailor their products and/or services to be desirable by their customers. Although there is a common belief that monitoring can increase productivity, it can also create consequences such as increasing chances of deviant behavior and creating punishments that are not equitable to their actions. Additionally, monitoring can cause resistance and backlash because it insinuates an employer's suspicion and lack of trust.


title: Surveillance

text: Data mining is the application of statistical techniques and programmatic algorithms to discover previously unnoticed relationships within the data. Data profiling in this context is the process of assembling information about a particular individual or group in order to generate a profile — that is, a picture of their patterns and behavior. Data profiling can be an extremely powerful tool for psychological and social network analysis. A skilled analyst can discover facts about a person that they might not even be consciously aware of themselves.


title: Surveillance

text: Economic (such as credit card purchases) and social (such as telephone calls and emails) transactions in modern society create large amounts of stored data and records. In the past, this data was documented in paper records, leaving a "paper trail", or was simply not documented at all. Correlation of paper-based records was a laborious process—it required human intelligence operators to manually dig through documents, which was time-consuming and incomplete, at best.


title: Surveillance

text: But today many of these records are electronic, resulting in an "electronic trail". Every use of a bank machine, payment by credit card, use of a phone card, call from home, checked out library book, rented video, or otherwise complete recorded transaction generates an electronic record. Public records—such as birth, court, tax and other records—are increasingly being digitized and made available online. In addition, due to laws like CALEA, web traffic and online purchases are also available for profiling. Electronic record-keeping makes data easily collectable, storable, and accessible—so that high-volume, efficient aggregation and analysis is possible at significantly lower costs.


title: Surveillance

text: Information relating to many of these individual transactions is often easily available because it is generally not guarded in isolation, since the information, such as the title of a movie a person has rented, might not seem sensitive. However, when many such transactions are aggregated they can be used to assemble a detailed profile revealing the actions, habits, beliefs, locations frequented, social connections, and preferences of the individual. This profile is then used, by programs such as ADVISE and TALON, to determine whether the person is a military, criminal, or political threat.


title: Surveillance

text: In addition to its own aggregation and profiling tools, the government is able to access information from third parties — for example, banks, credit companies or employers, etc. — by requesting access informally, by compelling access through the use of subpoenas or other procedures, or by purchasing data from commercial data aggregators or data brokers. The United States has spent $370 million on its 43 planned fusion centers, which are national network of surveillance centers that are located in over 30 states. The centers will collect and analyze vast amounts of data on U.S. citizens. It will get this data by consolidating personal information from sources such as state driver's licensing agencies, hospital records, criminal records, school records, credit bureaus, banks, etc. – and placing this information in a centralized database that can be accessed from all of the centers, as well as other federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies.


title: Surveillance

text: Under "United States v. Miller" (1976), data held by third parties is generally not subject to Fourth Amendment warrant requirements.


title: Surveillance

text: A tail may surreptitiously track and report on the movements and contacts of a person of interest. Such following by one or more people may provide useful in formation in relatively densely populated urban environments.


title: Surveillance

text: Organizations that have enemies who wish to gather information about the groups' members or activities face the issue of potential infiltration.


title: Surveillance

text: In addition to operatives' infiltrating an organization, the surveilling party may exert pressure on certain members of the target organization to act as informants (i.e., to disclose the information they hold on the organization and its members).


title: Surveillance

text: Fielding operatives is very expensive, and governments with wide-reaching electronic surveillance tools at their disposal, rather than gathering the sort of information which operatives can provide, may use less problematic forms of surveillance - such as those mentioned above. Nevertheless, the use of human infiltrators remains common. For instance, in 2007 documents surfaced showing that the FBI planned to field a total of 15,000 undercover agents and informants in response to an anti-terrorism directive (issued by President George W. Bush in 2004) that ordered intelligence and law-enforcement agencies to increase their HUMINT capabilities.


title: Surveillance

text: On May 25, 2007, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell authorized the National Applications Office (NAO) of the Department of Homeland Security to allow local, state, and domestic Federal agencies to access imagery from military intelligence Reconnaissance satellites and Reconnaissance aircraft sensors which can now be used to observe the activities of U.S. citizens. The satellites and aircraft sensors will be able to penetrate cloud cover, detect chemical traces, and identify objects in buildings and "underground bunkers", and will provide real-time video at much higher resolutions than the still-images produced by programs such as Google Earth.


title: Surveillance

text: One of the simplest forms of identification is the carrying of credentials. Some nations have an identity card system to aid identification, whilst others are considering it but face public opposition. Other documents, such as passports, driver's licenses, library cards, banking or credit cards are also used to verify identity.


title: Surveillance

text: If the form of the identity card is "machine-readable", usually using an encoded magnetic stripe or identification number (such as a Social Security number), it corroborates the subject's identifying data. In this case it may create an electronic trail when it is checked and scanned, which can be used in profiling, as mentioned above.


title: Surveillance

text: This section refers to methods that involve the monitoring of tracking devices through the aid of wireless signals.


title: Surveillance

text: Mobile carrier antennas are also commonly used to collect geolocation data on mobile phones. The geographical location of a powered mobile phone (and thus the person carrying it) can be determined easily (whether it is being used or not), using a technique known as multilateration to calculate the differences in time for a signal to travel from the cell phone to each of several cell towers near the owner of the phone. Dr. Victor Kappeler of Eastern Kentucky University indicates that police surveillance is a strong concern, stating the following statistics from 2013:


title: Surveillance

text: A comparatively new off-the-shelf surveillance device is an IMSI-catcher, a telephone eavesdropping device used to intercept mobile phone traffic and track the movement of mobile phone users. Essentially a "fake" mobile tower acting between the target mobile phone and the service provider's real towers, it is considered a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack. IMSI-catchers are used in some countries by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, but their use has raised significant civil liberty and privacy concerns and is strictly regulated in some countries.


title: Surveillance

text: In March 2020, British daily The Guardian, based on the claims of a whistleblower, accused the government of Saudi Arabia of exploiting global mobile telecom network weaknesses to spy on its citizens traveling around the United States. The data shared by the whistleblower in support of the claims, showed that a systematic spying campaign was being run by the kingdom exploiting the flaws of SS7, a global messaging system. The data showed that millions of secret tracking commands originated from Saudi in a duration of four-months, starting from November 2019.


title: Surveillance

text: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tagging is the use of very small electronic devices (called "RFID tags") which are applied to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person for the purpose of identification and tracking using radio waves. The tags can be read from several meters away. They are extremely inexpensive, costing a few cents per piece, so they can be inserted into many types of everyday products without significantly increasing the price, and can be used to track and identify these objects for a variety of purposes.


title: Surveillance

text: Some companies appear to be "tagging" their workers by incorporating RFID tags in employee ID badges. Workers in U.K. considered strike action in protest of having themselves tagged; they felt that it was dehumanizing to have all of their movements tracked with RFID chips. Some critics have expressed fears that people will soon be tracked and scanned everywhere they go. On the other hand, RFID tags in newborn baby ID bracelets put on by hospitals have foiled kidnappings.


title: Surveillance

text: In a 2003 editorial, CNET News.com's chief political correspondent, Declan McCullagh, speculated that, soon, every object that is purchased, and perhaps ID cards, will have RFID devices in them, which would respond with information about people as they walk past scanners (what type of phone they have, what type of shoes they have on, which books they are carrying, what credit cards or membership cards they have, etc.). This information could be used for identification, tracking, or targeted marketing. , this has largely not come to pass.


title: Surveillance

text: A human microchip implant is an identifying integrated circuit device or RFID transponder encased in silicate glass and implanted in the body of a human being. A subdermal implant typically contains a unique ID number that can be linked to information contained in an external database, such as personal identification, medical history, medications, allergies, and contact information.


title: Surveillance

text: Several types of microchips have been developed in order to control and monitor certain types of people, such as criminals, political figures and spies, a "killer" tracking chip patent was filed at the German Patent and Trademark Office (DPMA) around May 2009.


title: Surveillance

text: Verichip is an RFID device produced by a company called Applied Digital Solutions (ADS). Verichip is slightly larger than a grain of rice, and is injected under the skin. The injection reportedly feels similar to receiving a shot. The chip is encased in glass, and stores a "VeriChip Subscriber Number" which the scanner uses to access their personal information, via the Internet, from Verichip Inc.'s database, the "Global VeriChip Subscriber Registry". Thousands of people have already had them inserted. In Mexico, for example, 160 workers at the Attorney General's office were required to have the chip injected for identity verification and access control purposes.


title: Surveillance

text: Implantable microchips have also been used in healthcare settings, but ethnographic researchers have identified a number of ethical problems with such uses; these problems include unequal treatment, diminished trust, and possible endangerment of patients.


title: Surveillance

text: In the U.S., police have planted hidden GPS tracking devices in people's vehicles to monitor their movements, without a warrant. In early 2009, they were arguing in court that they have the right to do this.


title: Surveillance

text: Several cities are running pilot projects to require parolees to wear GPS devices to track their movements when they get out of prison.


title: Surveillance

text: Covert listening devices and video devices, or "bugs", are hidden electronic devices which are used to capture, record, and/or transmit data to a receiving party such as a law enforcement agency.


title: Surveillance

text: The U.S. has run numerous domestic intelligence operations, such as COINTELPRO, which have bugged the homes, offices, and vehicles of thousands of U.S. citizens, usually political activists, subversives, and criminals.


title: Surveillance

text: Law enforcement and intelligence services in the U.K. and the United States possess technology to remotely activate the microphones in cell phones, by accessing the phone's diagnostic/maintenance features, in order to listen to conversations that take place nearby the person who holds the phone.


title: Surveillance

text: As more people use faxes and e-mail the significance of surveilling the postal system is decreasing, in favor of Internet and telephone surveillance. But interception of post is still an available option for law enforcement and intelligence agencies, in certain circumstances. This is not a common practice, however, and entities like the US Army require high levels of approval to conduct.


title: Surveillance

text: The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation have performed twelve separate mail-opening campaigns targeted towards U.S. citizens. In one of these programs, more than 215,000 communications were intercepted, opened, and photographed.


title: Surveillance

text: A stakeout is the coordinated surveillance of a location or person. Stakeouts are generally performed covertly and for the purpose of gathering evidence related to criminal activity. The term derives from the practice by land surveyors of using survey stakes to measure out an area before the main building project begins.


title: Surveillance

text: The Internet of Things (IoT) is a term that refers to the future of technology in which data can be collected without human and computer interaction. IoTs can be used for identification, monitoring, location tracking, and health tracking. While IoTs have the benefit of being a time-saving tool that makes activities simpler, they raise the concern of government surveillance and privacy regarding how data will be used.


title: Surveillance

text: Supporters of surveillance systems believe that these tools can help protect society from terrorists and criminals. They argue that surveillance can reduce crime by three means: by deterrence, by observation, and by reconstruction. Surveillance can deter by increasing the chance of being caught, and by revealing the modus operandi. This requires a minimal level of invasiveness.


title: Surveillance

text: Another method on how surveillance can be used to fight criminal activity is by linking the information stream obtained from them to a recognition system (for instance, a camera system that has its feed run through a facial recognition system). This can for instance auto-recognize fugitives and direct police to their location.


title: Surveillance

text: A distinction here has to be made however on the type of surveillance employed. Some people that say support video surveillance in city streets may not support indiscriminate telephone taps and vice versa. Besides the types, the way in how this surveillance is done also matters a lot; i.e. indiscriminate telephone taps are supported by much fewer people than say telephone taps done only to people suspected of engaging in illegal activities.


title: Surveillance

text: Surveillance can also be used to give human operatives a tactical advantage through improved situational awareness, or through the use of automated processes, i.e. video analytics. Surveillance can help reconstruct an incident and prove guilt through the availability of footage for forensics experts. Surveillance can also influence subjective security if surveillance resources are visible or if the consequences of surveillance can be felt.


title: Surveillance

text: Some of the surveillance systems (such as the camera system that has its feed run through a facial recognition system mentioned above) can also have other uses besides countering criminal activity. For instance, it can help on retrieving runaway children, abducted or missing adults and mentally disabled people.


title: Surveillance

text: Other supporters simply believe that there is nothing that can be done about the loss of privacy, and that people must become accustomed to having no privacy. As Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy said: "You have zero privacy anyway. Get over it."


title: Surveillance

text: Another common argument is: "If you aren't doing something wrong then you don't have anything to fear." Which follows that if one is engaging in unlawful activities, in which case they do not have a legitimate justification for their privacy. However, if they are following the law the surveillance would not affect them.


title: Surveillance

text: With the advent of programs such as the Total Information Awareness program and ADVISE, technologies such as high speed surveillance computers and biometrics software, and laws such as the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, governments now possess an unprecedented ability to monitor the activities of their subjects. Many civil rights and privacy groups, such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation and American Civil Liberties Union, have expressed concern that by allowing continual increases in government surveillance of citizens we will end up in a mass surveillance society, with extremely limited, or non-existent political and/or personal freedoms. Fears such as this have led to numerous lawsuits such as "Hepting v. AT&T".


title: Surveillance

text: Some critics state that the claim made by supporters should be modified to read: "As long as we do what we're told, we have nothing to fear.". For instance, a person who is part of a political group which opposes the policies of the national government, might not want the government to know their names and what they have been reading, so that the government cannot easily subvert their organization, arrest, or kill them. Other critics state that while a person might not have anything to hide right now, the government might later implement policies that they do wish to oppose, and that opposition might then be impossible due to mass surveillance enabling the government to identify and remove political threats. Further, other critics point to the fact that most people "do" have things to hide. For example, if a person is looking for a new job, they might not want their current employer to know this. Also if an employer wishes total privacy to watch over their own employee and secure their financial information it may become impossible, and they may not wish to hire those under surveillance.


title: Surveillance

text: In December 2017, the Government of China took steps to oppose widespread surveillance by security-company cameras, webcams, and IP cameras after tens-of-thousands were made accessible for internet viewing by IT company Qihoo


title: Surveillance

text: Programs such as the Total Information Awareness program, and laws such as the Communications Assistance For Law Enforcement Act have led many groups to fear that society is moving towards a state of mass surveillance with severely limited personal, social, political freedoms, where dissenting individuals or groups will be strategically removed in COINTELPRO-like purges.


title: Surveillance

text: Kate Martin, of the Center For National Security Studies said of the use of military spy satellites being used to monitor the activities of U.S. citizens: "They are laying the bricks one at a time for a police state."


title: Surveillance

text: Some point to the blurring of lines between public and private places, and the privatization of places traditionally seen as public (such as shopping malls and industrial parks) as illustrating the increasing legality of collecting personal information. Traveling through many public places such as government offices is hardly optional for most people, yet consumers have little choice but to submit to companies' surveillance practices. Surveillance techniques are not created equal; among the many biometric identification technologies, for instance, face recognition requires the least cooperation. Unlike automatic fingerprint reading, which requires an individual to press a finger against a machine, this technique is subtle and requires little to no consent.


title: Surveillance

text: Some critics, such as Michel Foucault, believe that in addition to its obvious function of identifying and capturing individuals who are committing undesirable acts, surveillance also functions to create in everyone a feeling of always being watched, so that they become self-policing. This allows the State to control the populace without having to resort to physical force, which is expensive and otherwise problematic.


title: Surveillance

text: With the development of digital technology, individuals have become increasingly perceptible to one another, as surveillance becomes virtual. Online surveillance is the utilization of the internet to observe one's activity. Corporations, citizens, and governments participate in tracking others' behaviours for motivations that arise out of business relations, to curiosity, to legality. In her book "Superconnected", Mary Chayko differentiates between two types of surveillance: vertical and horizontal. Vertical surveillance occurs when there is a dominant force, such as the government that is attempting to control or regulate the actions of a given society. Such powerful authorities often justify their incursions as a means to protect society from threats of violence or terrorism. Some individuals question when this becomes an infringement on civil rights.


title: Surveillance

text: Horizontal diverges from vertical surveillance as the tracking shifts from an authoritative source to an everyday figure, such as a friend, coworker, or stranger that is interested in one's mundane activities. Individuals leave traces of information when they are online that reveal their interests and desires of which others observe. While this can allow people to become interconnected and develop social connections online, it can also increase potential risk to harm, such as cyberbullying or censoring/stalking by strangers, reducing privacy.


title: Surveillance

text: In addition, Simone Browne argues that surveillance wields an immense racializing quality such that it operates as "racializing surveillance." Browne uses racializing surveillance to refer to moments when enactments of surveillance are used to reify boundaries, borders, and bodies along racial lines and where the outcome is discriminatory treatment of those who are negatively racialized by such surveillance. Browne argues racializing surveillance pertains to policing what is "in or out of place."


title: Surveillance

text: Numerous civil rights groups and privacy groups oppose surveillance as a violation of people's right to privacy. Such groups include: Electronic Privacy Information Center, Electronic Frontier Foundation, American Civil Liberties Union and Privacy International.


title: Surveillance

text: There have been several lawsuits such as Hepting v. AT&T and EPIC v. Department of Justice by groups or individuals, opposing certain surveillance activities.


title: Surveillance

text: Legislative proceedings such as those that took place during the Church Committee, which investigated domestic intelligence programs such as COINTELPRO, have also weighed the pros and cons of surveillance.


title: Surveillance

text: "People vs. Diaz" (2011) was a court case in the realm of cell phone privacy, even though the decision was later overturned. In this case, Gregory Diaz was arrested during a sting operation for attempting to sell ecstasy. During his arrest, police searched Diaz's phone and found more incriminating evidence including SMS text messages and photographs depicting illicit activities. During his trial, Diaz attempted to have the information from his cell phone removed from evidence, but the courts deemed it as lawful and Diaz's appeal was denied on the California State Court level and, later, the Supreme Court level. Just three short years after, this decision was overturned in the case "Riley vs. California" (2014).


title: Surveillance

text: "Riley vs. California" (2014) was a U.S. Supreme Court case in which a man was arrested for his involvement in a drive-by shooting. A few days after the shooting the police made an arrest of the suspect (Riley), and, during the arrest, the police searched him. However, this search was not only of Riley's person, but also the police opened and searched his cell phone, finding pictures of other weapons, drugs, and of Riley showing gang signs. In court, the question arose whether searching the phone was lawful or if the search was protected by the 4th amendment of the constitution. The decision held that the search of Riley's cell phone during the arrest was illegal, and that it was protected by the 4th Amendment.


title: Surveillance

text: Countersurveillance is the practice of avoiding surveillance or making surveillance difficult. Developments in the late twentieth century have caused counter surveillance to dramatically grow in both scope and complexity, such as the Internet, increasing prevalence of electronic security systems, high-altitude (and possibly armed) UAVs, and large corporate and government computer databases.


title: Surveillance

text: Inverse surveillance is the practice of the reversal of surveillance on other individuals or groups (e.g., citizens photographing police). Well-known examples include George Holliday's recording of the Rodney King beating and the organization Copwatch, which attempts to monitor police officers to prevent police brutality. Counter-surveillance can be also used in applications to prevent corporate spying, or to track other criminals by certain criminal entities. It can also be used to deter stalking methods used by various entities and organizations.


title: Surveillance

text: "Sousveillance" is inverse surveillance, involving the recording by private individuals, rather than government or corporate entities.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The Mazda L-series is a mid-sized inline 4-cylinder gasoline piston engine designed by Mazda as part of their MZR family, ranging in displacement from 1.8L to 2.5L. Introduced in 2001, it is the evolution of the cast-iron block F-engine. The L-series is used by Ford as their 1.8L to 2.5L Duratec world engine.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The L-engine uses a chain-driven DOHC, 16-valve valvetrain with an all-aluminum block construction and cast-iron cylinder liners. Other features include fracture-split forged powder metal connecting rods and a one-piece cast crankshaft.


title: Mazda L engine

text: Other features are intake cam-phasing VVT, VTCS, VICS, a stainless steel 4:1 exhaust manifold and a lower main bearing cage for increased block rigidity. Direct-injection is available on the 2.0 L LF-VD and the award-winning (DISI) turbocharged L3-VDT engine introduced in 2006 for the Mazdaspeed lineup of vehicles.


title: Mazda L engine

text: In 2010, Ford introduced a GDI turbo variant of the Mazda LF engine design as the EcoBoost 2.0L, using Ford's own manifold and engine control systems. Ford plans to use the L-engine well into the future for their EcoBoost and Duratec 4-cylinder generations. In 2011, Mazda ceased to develop the L-engine and replaced it with the SkyActiv-G engine - an extensively revised evolution of the Mazda L-engine. At this time, Ford will be the only manufacturer still using the Mazda L-engine design.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The 1.8 L () version has a nearly-square bore and a stroke. Output is at 6000 rpm with of torque at 4250 rpm.


title: Mazda L engine

text: In 2001, Ford introduced its first European Ford engine to use gasoline direct injection technology, badged SCi (Smart Charge injection) for Direct-Injection-Spark-Ignition (DISI). The range will include some turbocharged derivatives, including the 1.1-litre, three-cylinder turbocharged unit showcased at the 2002 Geneva Show. The 1.8 L was the first European Ford engine to use direct injection technology, badged "SCi" for "Smart Charge Injection". This appeared in the Mondeo in 2003 and is today available on the 2.0 L engine as well.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The SCi engines were designed at Ford's Cologne facility and assembled in Valencia, Spain. The SCi engine is paired with a specially designed six-speed manual transmission.


title: Mazda L engine

text: European 1.8 L and 2.0 L "Duratec HE" engines are built at the Valencia Engine Plant in Spain. Duratec FFV is a flex fuel version of the 1.8 L Duratec-HE modified to run on E85 fuel. 1.8L Focus C-Max and Focus Mk II versions use a drive-by-wire throttle to improve responsiveness.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The 2.0 L () version has 10.0:1 compression ratio, an bore and it shares the stroke of the 1.8 L. Changes to the engine include switching from a cast aluminum to a reinforced plastic intake manifold and from Sequential multi-port fuel injection to gasoline direct injection.


title: Mazda L engine

text: Ford's version is rated at of power at 6000 rpm and of torque at 4500 rpm with a 10.8:1 compression ratio. This engine is also used by Volvo, called B4204S3 (or B4204S4 as Flexifuel engine capable of running on E85).


title: Mazda L engine

text: On the 2007 Focus, output is at 6000 rpm with of torque at 4250 rpm. The 2007 Focus with the PZEV emissions package produces at 6000 rpm with of torque at 4000 rpm. California legal emissions PZEV cars utilized advanced air injection into the oem tubular manifold to not only lower emissions, but raise engine efficiency. On the 2008 Focus, output is at 6000 ;rpm with of torque at 4250 rpm. The 2009 Focus had when equipped with manual transmission due to a higher flowing exhaust system pulled from the 2006/2007 models. The 2008 Focus with the PZEV emissions package produces at 6000 rpm and of torque at 4250 rpm.


title: Mazda L engine

text: Mazda's LF-VD version was equipped with Direct Injection Spark Ignition (DISI) and a higher compression ratio for improved efficiency in the JDM and EDM markets. It produces at 6500 rpm and of torque at 4000 rpm.


title: Mazda L engine

text: In 2011 Ford started selling the third generation Ford Focus in North America which comes with an updated version that utilizes direct injection and Ti-VCT. These features, along with an increased compression ratio of 12.1:1 allow the engine to generate at 6000 rpm and of torque at 4250 rpm. This version is referred to as the "Duratec 20."


title: Mazda L engine

text: The Ford Duratec 20 engines are built in Dearborn, Michigan, United States, and Chihuahua, Mexico, with some being built by Mazda in Hiroshima, Japan.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The plastic intake manifold on early versions of the 1.8 and 2.0 has a major fault due to poor-quality materials. The manifold has swirlplates mounted on a square shaft at the aperture where it mounts to the cylinder head. Early four-cylinder Duratec engines can be ruined when the swirlplates break off and enter a cylinder. Most cases are of single swirlplates but also the shaft can wear and break. Early signs of this fault are evidenced by a ticking noise emanating from the front of the engine. This can occur as early as 25K miles, with failure typically occurring after about 90,000 miles.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The version uses the same bore as the 2.0 L but with a long stroke. It produces around at 6000 rpm and between 4000 and 4500 rpm


title: Mazda L engine

text: The 23EW was built in Chihuahua, Mexico for transverse installation in several front-drive Ford/Mercury/Mazda vehicles through the 2009 model year. "EW" in the Ford designation code denotes East-West configuration, or transverse mounting. Three versions of the 23EW have been produced. A standard DOHC 16V version was used in the North American Focus producing at 5750 rpm with of torque at 4250 rpm. An iVCT (intake variable cam timing)-equipped DOHC 16V version was used in the 2006–2009 Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan, and several generations of CD2-based crossovers.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The 23NS was built in Dearborn, Michigan, for the Ford Ranger and North American market Mazda B-Series from the 2001 model year to the 2011 model year. "NS" denotes North-South configuration, or longitudinal mounting. These engines are tuned for torque-bias making them suitable for light-truck use and are not equipped with iVCT or VICS. There are two versions of the 23NS with slight differences:


title: Mazda L engine

text: In some Eastern and Middle Eastern models, the Mazda6 had a tuned version of the 2.3L producing at 6500 rpm and at 4000 rpm.


title: Mazda L engine

text: A high-efficiency Atkinson cycle version was used in the Ford Escape, Mercury Mariner, and Mazda Tribute Hybrids.


title: Mazda L engine

text: A Cosworth tuned version of this engine is found in the BAC Mono producing and of torque, making it the most powerful version of this engine.


title: Mazda L engine

text: Introduced in 2005 with the Mazdaspeed6, the L3-VDT is an award-winning turbocharged version of the 2.3 with direct injection spark ignition, or "DISI" is also pronounced. It develops at 5,500 rpm and at 3,000 rpm and is capable of propelling the Mazdaspeed3 from 0– in 5.6 seconds.


title: Mazda L engine

text: The L3-VDT features a bore of 87.5 mm and a stroke of 94.0 mm, identical to the naturally aspirated L3-VE. The 16V setup is controlled by a chain driven DOHC.


title: Mazda L engine

text: L3s produced prior to 2010 are notorious for losing tension in the chain. The loose timing chain causes the timing of the engine and the VVT in particular to be improperly timed, often resulting in cylinders colliding with the valves.


title: Mazda L engine

text: In 2010 the L3-VDT was revised to fix some of the common failures, the shape of the cylinder head was reworked, possibly to concentrate fuel near the sparkplug, the ECU was made faster and featured more air/fuel cells to reduce the chance of the engine leaning out. Another change was a fix for the timing chain tension issues. The turbo seals were also updated.


title: Mazda L engine

text: While the 2.0 Ford EcoBoost engine and its later 2.3 variant share a cylinder block with the L3-VDT and are derived from the Mazda L architecture, little else is shared between the EcoBoost and L3-VDT and they should not be confused with one another. The EcoBoost engines have different turbochargers, Ford-designed heads, different direct injection systems along with featuring Ford's Ti-VCT variable valve timing system instead of Mazda's S-VT.


title: Mazda L engine

text: Introduced in non-North American markets for the MY2008 and North American markets for MY2009, the 2.5L L5-VE is an updated, bored and stroked version of the L3-VE 2.3L. The L5 4-cylinder engine has an bore and a stroke, with a compression ratio of 9.7:1. The standard crankshaft is cast iron with eight counterweights. To increase durability of the bore, Mazda uses cast iron for the cylinder liners. This offers enhanced high-heat tolerance as well as reduced friction. The increased stroke of , up from of the L3, allows a taller (numerically lower) final-drive ratio resulting in lower-rpm while cruising to increase fuel economy. It also uses iVCT. It produces at its 6000 rpm redline ( in PZEV trim) and of torque at 4000 rpm ( in PZEV trim). Certain versions are rated at at 6000 rpm with of torque at 4500 rpm.


title: Mazda L engine

text: Ford has developed an Atkinson cycle variant of the Mazda L5 engine for use in the Ford Fusion Hybrid and Ford Maverick Hybrid vehicles. They also used this variant under the Duratec engine family name in the 2010-2019 Ford Fusion. This engine was named one of Ward's 10 Best Engines for 2010. Fuel saving features include adaptive knock control and aggressive deceleration fuel cutoff. This and the 2.3 L competed with Toyota's 2.4 L 2AZ-FE engine, sharing similar technology.


title: Mazda L engine

text: In late 2006, Mazda announced an agreement with Advanced Engine Research (AER) to develop the MZR-R motor for sports car racing. The engine is a 2.0 L turbocharged I4 based on the production MZR block. The engine will initially be used by the Mazda factory team in the American Le Mans Series as a replacement for their R20B rotary, then later sold to customer teams.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The Asian water monitor (Varanus salvator) is a large varanid lizard native to South and Southeast Asia. It is one of the most common monitor lizards in Asia, ranging from coastal northeast India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, mainland Southeast Asia, and southern China to Indonesian islands where it lives close to water. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It was described by Laurenti in 1768 and is among the largest squamates in the world.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The generic name "Varanus" is derived from the Arabic "waral" (), which translates as "monitor". The specific name is the Latin word for "saviour", denoting a possible religious connotation. The water monitor is occasionally confused with the crocodile monitor ("V. salvadorii") because of their similar scientific names.


title: Asian water monitor

text: Some common names for the species are "Malayan water monitor", "common water monitor", "two-banded monitor", "rice lizard", "ring lizard", "plain lizard", "no-mark lizard" and "water monitor" etc.


title: Asian water monitor

text: "Stellio salvator" was the scientific name used by Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in 1768 for a water monitor specimen.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The family Varanidae contains nearly 80 species of monitor lizards, all of which belong to the genus "Varanus". There is a significant amount of taxonomic uncertainty within this species complex. Morphological analyses have begun to unravel this taxonomic uncertainty but molecular studies are needed to test and confirm the validity of certain groupings within this genus. Research initiatives such as these are very important to assess changes in conservation assessments.


title: Asian water monitor

text: "Varanus cumingi", "Varanus marmoratus", and "Varanus nuchalis" were classified as subspecies until 2007, when they were elevated to full species.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The water monitor is a large species of monitor lizard. Breeding maturity is attained for males when they are a relatively modest long and weigh , and for females at . However, they grow much larger throughout life, with males being larger than females. Adults rarely exceed in length, but the largest specimen on record, from Sri Lanka, measured . A common mature weight of "V. salvator" can be . However, 80 males killed for the leather trade in Sumatra averaged only and snout-to-vent and in total length; 42 females averaged only and snout-to-vent and in total length, although unskinned outsized specimens weighed .


title: Asian water monitor

text: Another study from the same area by the same authors similarly estimated mean body mass for mature specimens at while yet another study found a series of adults to weigh . The maximum weight of the species is over . In exceptional cases, the species has been reported to reach , though most such reports are unverified and may be unreliable.


title: Asian water monitor

text: They are the world's second-heaviest lizard, after the Komodo dragon. Their bodies are muscular, with long, powerful, laterally compressed tails. The scales in this species are keeled; scales found on top of the head have been noted to be larger than those located on the back. Water monitors are often defined by their dark brown or blackish coloration with yellow spots found on their underside - these yellow markings have a tendency to disappear gradually with age. This species is also denoted by the blackish band with yellow edges extending back from each eye. These monitors have very long necks and an elongated snout. They use their powerful jaws, serrated teeth and sharp claws for both predation and defense.


title: Asian water monitor

text: In captivity, Asian water monitors' life expectancy has been determined to be anywhere between 11–25 years depending on conditions, in the wild it is considerably shorter.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The Asian water monitor is widely distributed from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, the Chinese Guangxi and Hainan provinces, Malaysia, Singapore to the Sunda islands Sumatra, Java, Bali, Borneo and Sulawesi. It inhabits primarily lowland freshwater and brackish wetlands. It has been recorded up to an elevation of .


title: Asian water monitor

text: The Asian water monitor is semiaquatic and opportunistic; it inhabits a variety of natural habitats though predominantly resides in primary forests and mangrove swamps. It has been noted that it is not deterred from living in areas of human disturbance. In fact, it has been known to adapt and thrive in agricultural areas as well as cities with canal systems, such as in Sri Lanka, where they are not hunted or persecuted. Habitats that are considered to be most important are mangrove vegetation, swamps, wetlands, and elevations below . It does not thrive in habitats with extensive loss of natural vegetation and aquatic resources.


title: Asian water monitor

text: Water monitors defend themselves using their tails, claws, and jaws. They are excellent swimmers, using the raised fin on their tails to steer through water. When encountering smaller prey items, the water monitor will subdue it in its jaws and proceed to violently thrash its neck, destroying the prey’s organs and spine which leaves it dead or incapacitated. The lizard will then proceed to swallow it whole.


title: Asian water monitor

text: In dominantly aquatic habitats their semiaquatic behavior is considered to provide a measure of safety from predators. Paired with their generalist diet, this is thought to contribute to their ecological plasticity. When hunted by predators such as the king cobra ("Ophiophagus hannah") they will climb trees using their powerful legs and claws. If this evasion is not enough to escape danger, they have also been known to jump from trees into streams for safety, a tactic similar to that of the green iguana ("Iguana iguana").


title: Asian water monitor

text: Like the Komodo dragon, the water monitor will often eat carrion. They have a keen sense of smell and can smell a carcass from far away. They are known to feed on dead human bodies. While on the one hand their presence can be helpful in locating a missing person in forensic investigations, on the other hand they can inflict further injuries to the corpse, complicating ascertainment of the cause of death.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The first description of the water monitor and its behaviour in English literature was made in 1681 by Robert Knox, who observed it during his long confinement in the Kingdom of Kandy: "There is a Creature here called Kobberaguion, resembling an Alligator. The biggest may be five or six feet long, speckled black and white. He lives most upon the Land, but will take the water and dive under it: hath a long blue forked tongue like a sting, which he puts forth and hisseth and gapeth, but doth not bite nor sting, tho the appearance of him would scare those that knew not what he was. He is not afraid of people, but will lie gaping and hissing at them in the way, and will scarce stir out of it. He will come and eat Carrion with the Dogs and Jackals, and will not be scared away by them, but if they come near to bark or snap at him, with his tail, which is long like a whip, he will so slash them, that they will run away and howl."


title: Asian water monitor

text: Water monitors are prone to attacking humans when threatened, and should be handled with caution. The bite of a water monitor can inflict a severe injury.


title: Asian water monitor

text: They are carnivores, and consume a wide range of prey. They are known to eat fish, frogs, rodents, birds, crabs, and snakes. They have also been known to eat turtles, as well as young crocodiles and crocodile eggs. Water monitors have been observed eating catfish in a fashion similar to a mammalian carnivore, tearing off chunks of meat with their sharp teeth while holding it with their front legs and then separating different parts of the fish for sequential consumption.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The diet of the Asian water monitor in an urban area in central Thailand includes fish, crabs, Malayan snail-eating turtles ("Malayemys macrocephala"), Chinese edible frogs ("Hoplobatrachus rugulosus"), birds, small rodents, domestic cats ("Felis catus") and dogs ("Canis familiaris"), chickens ("Gallus gallus domesticus"), food scraps and carcass. The stomachs of 20 adult Asian water monitors caught on Redang Island contained mostly human food waste, followed by turtle eggs and hatchlings, crabs and lizard eggs.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The possibility of venom in the genus "Varanus" is widely debated. Previously, venom was thought to be unique to Serpentes (snakes) and "Heloderma" (venomous lizards). The aftereffects of a "Varanus" bite were thought to be due to oral bacteria alone, but recent studies have shown venom glands are likely to be present in the mouths of several, if not all, of the species. The venom may be used as a defensive mechanism to fend off predators, to help digest food, to sustain oral hygiene, and possibly to help in capturing and killing prey.


title: Asian water monitor

text: Adult water monitors have few natural predators, and are only known to be preyed on by saltwater crocodiles ("Crocodylus porosus").


title: Asian water monitor

text: Monitor lizards are traded globally and are the most common type of lizard to be exported from Southeast Asia, with 8.1 million exported between 1998 and 2007 for the international leather market. The Asian water monitor is one of the most exploited varanids; its skin is used for fashion accessories such as shoes, belts and handbags which are shipped globally, with as many as 1.5 million skins traded annually. Other uses include a perceived remedy for skin ailments and eczema, novelty food in Indonesia, and a perceived aphrodisiac, and as pets. In India, several tribal communities hunt these monitor lizards for their meat, fat and skin and the eggs are also harvested. They are often considered as pests and their populations are also threatened by habitat loss and habitat fragmentation.


title: Asian water monitor

text: In Nepal, it is a protected species under the Wild Animals Protection Act of 2002. In Hong Kong, it is a protected species under Wild Animals Protection Ordinance Cap 170. In Malaysia, this species is one of the most common wild animals, with numbers comparable to the population of macaques there. Although many fall victim to humans via roadkill and animal cruelty, they still thrive in most states of Malaysia, especially in the shrubs of the east coast states such as Pahang and Terengganu. In Thailand, all monitor lizards are protected species. It is still common in large urban areas in Thailand and is frequently seen in Bangkok's canals and parks. Because of this, it is currently listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List. These classifications have been made on the basis that this species maintains a geographically wide distribution, can be found in a variety of habitats, adapts to habitats disturbed by humans, and is abundant in portions of its range despite large levels of harvesting.


title: Asian water monitor

text: Loss of habitat and hunting has exterminated water monitors from most of mainland India. In other areas they survive despite being hunted, due in part to the fact that larger ones, including large females that breed large numbers of eggs, have tough skins that are not desirable.


title: Asian water monitor

text: In Sri Lanka, it is protected by local people who value its predation of "crabs that would otherwise undermine the banks of rice fields". It is also protected as it eats venomous snakes.


title: Asian water monitor

text: The species is listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meaning international trade (import/export) in specimens (including parts and derivatives) is regulated.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' "You Keep Me Hangin' On".


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: The band's original line–up—vocalist and organist Mark Stein, bassist and vocalist Tim Bogert, lead guitarist/vocalist Vince Martell, and drummer and vocalist Carmine Appice—recorded five albums during the years 1967–69, before disbanding in 1970. The band has toured as recently as 2022 with three of the four original members: Stein, Martell, and Appice, with Pete Bremy on bass. Bogert retired in 2009 and died in 2021.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: The band has been cited as "one of the few American links between psychedelia and what soon became heavy metal."


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: Stein and Bogert had played in a local band called Rick Martin & The Showmen. The pair were so impressed by the swinging, organ-heavy sound of The Rascals they decided to form their own band in 1965 with Martell and Rick Martin's drummer, Mark Dolfen, who was quickly replaced by Joey Brennan. Originally calling themselves The Electric Pigeons, they soon shortened the name to The Pigeons. In December 1966, Brennan moved on to The Younger Brothers Band and Bogert became impressed with a young drummer named Carmine Appice he had heard playing at the Headliner Club on 43rd Street in a cover band called Thursday's Children. Appice was asked to join The Pigeons and in his 2016 autobiography, "Stick It!", Carmine explained the name change to 'Vanilla Fudge':


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: In April 1967 the Pigeons got signed to Atlantic Records. But there was one drawback, however: Atlantic didn't want to sign a band called "The Pigeons". Ahmet Ertegun, the label's founder and president, didn't like that name and told us we had to change it. We didn't mind, in fact, I had always thought "The Pigeons" was a weird thing to be called but had just gone with it. We tried to think up a new name but were getting nowhere until we played a gig at the Page 2 club on Long Island and ended up talking to a chick named Dee Dee who worked there. She told us how her grandfather used to call her Vanilla Fudge. Then she looked at us and added "Maybe you guys should call yourselves that—you're like white soul music". We liked it. We told our manager, Phil Basile. He liked it. We told Atlantic and they liked it, too. So Vanilla Fudge it was.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: A recording of The Pigeons, "While the World Was Eating Vanilla Fudge", was released by Scepter/Wand in 1970.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: Vanilla Fudge was managed by the reputed Lucchese crime family member Phillip Basile, who operated several popular clubs in New York. Their first three albums ("Vanilla Fudge", "The Beat Goes On", and "Renaissance") were produced by Shadow Morton, whom the band met through The Rascals. When Led Zeppelin first toured the United States in early 1969, they opened for Vanilla Fudge on some shows.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: The band's biggest hit was its cover of "You Keep Me Hangin' On," a slowed-down, hard rocking version of a song originally recorded by The Supremes. This version featured Stein's psychedelic-baroque organ intro and Appice's energetic drumming. It was a Top 10 hit in Canada, the United States, and Australia, and a Top 20 hit in the UK in 1967.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: The members of Vanilla Fudge were great admirers of the Beatles, and covered several of their songs including "Ticket to Ride", "Eleanor Rigby", and "You Can't Do That". The self-titled debut album quotes "Strawberry Fields Forever" at the end, with the lines "Nothing is real; Nothing to get hung about".


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: According to Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord, Vanilla Fudge's organ-heavy sound was a large influence on the British band Deep Purple, with Blackmore even stating that his band wanted to be a "Vanilla Fudge clone" in its early years.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: Vanilla Fudge played a farewell concert at the Phil Basile's Action House on March 14, 1970. After that, Bogert and Appice departed to form another group, Cactus, that they had been planning since late 1969. They ended up leaving Cactus and formed Beck, Bogert & Appice with guitarist Jeff Beck in 1972. Stein, left on his own, tried to keep Vanilla Fudge afloat with two new players, Sal D'Nofrio (bass) and Jimmy Galluzi (drums), both of whom had been members of a Poughkeepsie, New York, group known as The Dirty Elbows. But when nothing came from this, Stein ended up forming a new group, Boomerang, with Galluzi.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: Since the band's breakup in 1970, Vanilla Fudge has reunited several times. They reunited in support of the Atco Records release "Best of Vanilla Fudge" in 1982. This resulted in "Mystery", another album of new material, released in 1984. Martell was not included in this initial reunion and Ron Mancuso played guitar on "Mystery" instead, along with Jeff Beck, who guested under the moniker "J. Toad". Two reunion tours followed in 1987/1988, with Paul Hanson on guitar. Lanny Cordola was guitarist when the band took the stage on May 14, 1988, for Atlantic Records' 40th anniversary celebration. After that, band members went their own ways once again to pursue separate projects.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: In 1991, Appice revived the Vanilla Fudge name for a tour with Ted Nugent's former band members Derek St. Holmes (guitar, vocals), Martin Gerschwitz (keyboards, vocals), and Tom Croucier (bass, vocals), which resulted in the album "The Best of Vanilla Fudge – Live".


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: Three of the original members, Appice, Bogert, and Martell, reunited in 1999 with vocalist/organist Bill Pascali replacing Mark Stein to record a "greatest hits" album, "The Return / Then And Now " (2001), with new recordings of previous songs and three new songs. 2002 had Pete Bremy and T. M. Stevens subbing on bass for an ill Bogert and 2003 saw a release of Vanilla Fudge's live album, "The Real Deal – Vanilla Fudge Live", recorded on tour in 1987 with Paul Hanson on guitar. Martell overdubbed his guitar and vocals later. In 2003–2005, the group toured with Teddy Rondinelli standing in on guitar for Martell.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: In 2005, all four original Vanilla Fudge members reunited for a tour with members of The Doors (touring as Riders on the Storm) and Steppenwolf. Pascali returned in place of Stein for some 2005 and 2006 shows before leaving to join the New Rascals. Vanilla Fudge was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame on October 15, 2006, with Billy Joel, Joan Jett, and producer Shadow Morton. Fellow Long Islander Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals inducted them.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: In the summer of 2007, HBO's final episode of "The Sopranos" featured "You Keep Me Hangin' On" (with Pascali's lead vocals) as a theme for their cliffhanger. The band also went back into the studio to record "Out Through the In Door", a Led Zeppelin cover album released in 2007 only in Europe. Also, the band (Stein & Martell with Steve Argy on bass and Jimmyjack Tamburo on drums) performed "You Keep Me Hangin' On" for the PBS fundraising program "My Music: My Generation – The '60s" for the March 2008 pledge drive.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: In March 2008, the original lineup of Vanilla Fudge embarked on a tour of the United States (mostly in New England). But in the summer of that year, Bogert and Appice left to concentrate on Cactus, which they had reformed in 2006. Stein and Martell continued on in 2008 and 2009 as Mark Stein and Vince Martell of Vanilla Fudge with a tour that was called "Let's Pray For Peace," with Jimmyjack Tamburo on drums and Pete Bremy returning on bass. "Out Through the In Door" was released in the US in 2008. Stein and Martell also performed shows during this period with Steve Argy and Jimmyjack Tamburo again as the rhythm section.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: In early 2011, Vanilla Fudge embarked on what was announced as their farewell tour. The lineup for the tour included Carmine Appice, Mark Stein, Vince Martell, and Pete Bremy (bass). On March 29, 2011, the band appeared on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" and performed "You Keep Me Hangin' On". This lineup has continued to tour since.


title: Vanilla Fudge

text: As of 2021, Vanilla Fudge was still performing concerts regularly. On January 13, 2021, Tim Bogert died at the age of 76 after a long battle with cancer. The band did release (on September 6, 2021) a cover version of "Stop! in the Name of Love" as digital streaming content and with an official music video on YouTube, dedicated to Tim Bogert.


title: Japanese archipelago

text: The Japanese archipelago (Japanese: 日本列島, "Nihon rettō") is a group of 6,852 islands that form the country of Japan, as well as the Russian island of Sakhalin. It extends over from the Sea of Okhotsk in the northeast to the East China and Philippine Seas in the southwest along the Pacific Ocean coast of the Eurasian continent, and consists of three island arcs from north to south: the Northeastern and Southwestern Japan Arcs, and the Ryukyu Island Arc. The Kuril Island Arc, the Daitō Islands, and the Nanpō Islands are not parts of the archipelago.


title: Japanese archipelago

text: Japan is the largest island country in East Asia and the fourth-largest island country in the world with . It has an exclusive economic zone of .


title: Japanese archipelago

text: The term "mainland Japan" is used to distinguish the large islands of the Japanese archipelago from the remote, smaller islands; it refers to the main islands of Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku. From 1943 until the end of the Pacific War, Karafuto Prefecture was designated part of the mainland.


title: Japanese archipelago

text: The term "home islands" was used at the end of World War II to define the area where Japanese sovereignty and constitutional rule of its emperor would be restricted. The term is also commonly used today to distinguish the archipelago from Japan's colonies and other territories.


title: Japanese archipelago

text: The archipelago consists of 6,852 islands (here defined as land more than 100 m in circumference), of which 430 are inhabited. The five main islands, from north to south, are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa. Honshu is the largest and referred to as the Japanese mainland.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson first gained prominence in the late 1960s as the lead guitarist and songwriter for the folk rock group Fairport Convention, which he had co-founded in 1967. After departing the group in 1971, Thompson released his debut solo album "Henry the Human Fly" in 1972. The next year, he formed a duo with his then-wife Linda Thompson, which produced six albums, including the critically acclaimed "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight" (1974) and "Shoot Out the Lights" (1982). After the dissolution of the duo, Thompson revived his solo career with the release of "Hand of Kindness" in 1983. He has released a total of eighteen solo studio albums. Three of his albums"Rumor and Sigh" (1991), "You? Me? Us?" (1996), and "Dream Attic" (2010)have been nominated for Grammy Awards, while "Still" (2015) was his first UK Top Ten album. He continues to write and record new material regularly and had frequently performed at venues throughout the world, although the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to suspend his touring.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Music critic Neil McCormick described Thompson as "a versatile virtuoso guitarist and a sharp observational singer-songwriter whose work burns with intelligence and dark emotion". His songwriting has earned him an Ivor Novello Award and, in 2006, a lifetime achievement award from BBC Radio. His 1991 song "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" was included in "Time" magazine's "All-TIME 100 Songs" list of the best English-language musical compositions released between 1923 and 2011. Thompson was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for services to music. Many varied musicians have recorded Thompson's compositions.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 2021, his book "Beeswing: Losing my Way and Finding my Voice, 1967-1975" was released. Published by Algonquin Books, it is mainly a memoir of his life as a musician from 1967 to 1975.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Richard Thompson was born in Ladbroke Crescent, Notting Hill, West London, England. His father, a Scot, was a Scotland Yard detective, and an amateur guitar player; several other family members had played music professionally. While attending William Ellis School in Highgate, he formed his first band, Emil and the Detectives (named after a book and a movie by the same title) with classmate Hugh Cornwell, later lead singer and guitarist of The Stranglers, on bass guitar.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Like so many musicians of his generation, Thompson was exposed to and embraced rock and roll music at an early age, and he was also exposed to his father's jazz and traditional Scottish music record collection. His father had seen Django Reinhardt play in Glasgow in the 1930s and played guitar himself. He was later described by his son as "a bad amateur player ... with three chords, though, unfortunately, not C, F and G." All these musical genres were to colour Thompson's playing in the years to come.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: At the age of 18 Thompson co-founded folk rock group Fairport Convention. Largely on the strength of Thompson's playing, Boyd took them under his wing and signed them to his Witchseason production and management company.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Shortly thereafter Thompson, already acquiring a reputation as an outstanding guitar player, started writing songs seriously. This seems to have been out of necessity as Fairport Convention was at first essentially a cover band.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: By early 1969, when Fairport's second album "What We Did on Our Holidays" was recorded and released, Thompson was starting to emerge as a songwriter of distinction. As Fairport's lineup and their sound evolved, Thompson continued to grow in stature as a player and as a songwriter with compositions like "Meet on the Ledge".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: On 12 May 1969, between the recording and release of their next album "Unhalfbricking", Fairport's van crashed on the M1 motorway on the way home from a gig at Mothers, a club in Birmingham. Drummer Martin Lamble, aged 19, and Thompson's girlfriend Jeannie Franklyn were killed. The rest of the band suffered injuries of varying severity. Later in 1969, Fairport re-grouped with a new drummer, Dave Mattacks, and also invited the well known fiddle player, Dave Swarbrick, to join. Thompson and Swarbrick worked together to create songs such as "Crazy Man Michael" from the band's seminal 1969 folk-rock album "Liege & Lief" and "Sloth" from its 1970 follow-up "Full House".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In January 1971, Thompson announced that he was leaving Fairport Convention. His decision was instinctive, rather than a calculated career move:


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In April 1972, he released his first solo album "Henry the Human Fly", recording with Sandy Denny, Pat Donaldson, Sue Draheim, John Kirkpatrick, Barry Dransfield, Ashley Hutchings, Linda Peters, Andy Roberts, and others. The album sold poorly and was panned by the press, especially the influential "Melody Maker" magazine. With time "Henry" has come to be more highly regarded, but at the time the critics' response hurt both Thompson and his career.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: By the 1970s, Thompson had begun a relationship with the singer Linda Peters, who had sung on "Henry the Human Fly". In October 1972 the couple were married, and Thompson, with Linda now effectively his front woman, regrouped for his next album and the next phase of his career.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The first Richard and Linda Thompson album, "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight", was recorded in May 1973 in short time and on a small budget. Largely because of the petrol shortage in Britain and its impact on the availability of vinyl for records, "Bright Lights" was held back by Island Records for nearly a year before being released in April 1974. The album was well received by critics, though sales were less than stellar.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson's lyrics expressed a rather dismal world view, and it has been suggested that the bleak subject matter of his songs helped to keep his recordings off the hit parade. A more likely explanation was given by ex-Island A&R man Richard Williams in the 2003 BBC TV documentary "Solitary Life": Thompson was just not interested in fame and its trappings.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The Thompsons recorded two more albums—"Hokey Pokey" and "Pour Down Like Silver", both released in 1975—before Richard Thompson decided to leave the music business. The couple moved to a Sufi community in East Anglia.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: It was not apparent from their records at first, but the Thompsons had embraced an esoteric Sufi strand of Islam in early 1974. "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight" was recorded before this conversion, but released some time afterwards. The songs for the second Richard and Linda album, "Hokey Pokey", were similarly written some time ahead of the album's recording and eventual release. It was "Pour Down Like Silver", with its cover photo of a turbaned Richard Thompson, that tipped the public off to the Thompsons' growing preoccupation with their faith.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The trilogy of albums released before and after his sojourn in the commune was heavily influenced by Thompson's beliefs and by Sufi scripture, but in the long run his religious beliefs have not influenced his work in an obvious manner. The outlook expressed in his songs, his musical style, the subjects addressed by his lyrics have not shown any fundamental change. He remains a committed Muslim.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson started to re-engage with the world of professional music in 1977. He played on an album by Sandy Denny, and had undertaken a short tour and started recording with a group of musicians who were also Sufis. Thompson asked Joe Boyd to produce these sessions, and two days were spent on the initial recordings. Boyd recalls that the sessions were not a success: "It was really, I felt, very poor. I didn't have much confidence in the musicians that he was working with. The atmosphere was very strange and it just didn't seem to work."


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: At about this time the Thompsons and their family moved out of the commune and back to their old home in Hampstead. Boyd had already invited Richard Thompson to play on Julie Covington's debut album. With spare studio time and the American session musicians hired to work on the Covington album available, the Thompsons went back into the studio to record under their own name for the first time in three years.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The resulting album, "First Light", was warmly received by critics but did not sell particularly well. Neither did its follow up, 1979's harder-edged and more cynical "Sunnyvista". Chrysalis Records did not take up their option to renew the contract, and the Thompsons found themselves without one.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Gerry Rafferty had booked the Thompsons as the support act for his 1980 tour, and had also used Richard as a session player on his "Night Owl" album. Rafferty offered to finance the recording of a new Richard and Linda Thompson album which he would then use to secure a contract for the Thompsons. Richard Thompson fell out with Rafferty during this project and was not happy with the finished product. Nevertheless, Rafferty kept his side of the bargain and presented the album to several record companies – none of which expressed interest in signing the Thompsons. Rafferty did not recover his investment.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: About a year later, Joe Boyd signed the Thompsons to his small Hannibal label and a new album was recorded. "Shoot Out the Lights" included new recordings of many of the songs recorded in 1980. Linda Thompson was pregnant at the time of the recording, so the album's release was delayed until they could tour behind the album. Breathing problems arising from her pregnancy also meant that Linda could not sing the lead part on some of these songs as she had done on demo tapes and the Rafferty-produced recordings.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: As an interim measure, Richard Thompson agreed to a short (5-day), low-key solo tour of the U.S. This tour was set up by Nancy Covey, then concert director for McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica. Covey, who had been in the UK in 1981 trying to sign Thompson to play at McCabe's, arranged for Thompson well-received 5 and 6 December shows. It was during this tour that Thompson and Covey developed an intimate relationship, and during that month, Richard and Linda Thompson separated.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Upon its release in 1982, "Shoot Out the Lights" was lauded by critics and sold quite well – especially in the U.S.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The Thompsons, now a couple for professional purposes only, toured the United States in support of the album, their only American tour together. Both the album and their live shows were well received by the American media, and "Shoot Out the Lights" effectively relaunched their career – just as their marriage was falling apart. The performances, with a backing band including both Simon Nicol and Dave Mattacks of Fairport Convention, were seen as strong, but the tension between Richard and Linda was all too obvious. For this reason, the Thompsons' fans often refer to the "Shoot Out the Lights" tour as "The Tour from Hell". Upon returning home, Richard and Linda went their separate ways.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Richard Thompson continued recording as a solo artist. His 1983 album "Hand of Kindness" saw him working with Boyd again, but with a revised backing band and a more extroverted and up-tempo song selection.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: With his separation from Linda finalized, Richard Thompson began to commute between twin bases in London and Los Angeles and to tour regularly in the USA. Encouraged by the success of his solo shows in late 1981 and early 1982, he began to perform solo with increasing frequency and continued to tour with a band. In 1983 and 1984, he toured the US and Europe with the Richard Thompson Big Band, which included two saxophone players in addition to the more usual rhythm section, second guitar and accordion. Set lists included covers of classic rock 'n roll songs and jazz standards such as "Tuxedo Junction".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 1985, Thompson signed with PolyGram and received a sizeable advance. He and Nancy Covey married at an alcohol-free wedding that included a who's who of roots-music performers who Covey knew well from McCabe's and the Los Angeles music scene, and had introduced to Thompson. After their wedding, Thompson moved his home and working base to California. As part of the settlement that allowed Thompson to leave Boyd's Hannibal label for Polygram, the live album "Small Town Romance" was released. This comprised recordings made during Thompson's solo shows in the US in late 1981 and early 1982. "Across a Crowded Room" (1985) was his last album to be recorded in England and the last to have Boyd as producer. Thompson put together a new look backing band for the tour to promote this album, and some shows were filmed for a live video release (see Richard Thompson discography).


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 1986, he released "Daring Adventures", which was recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Mitchell Froom. "Daring Adventures", with a rich sound, markedly different production and use of American session players, was perceived by some as evidence of Thompson's increasing "Americanisation". Perhaps more significantly, the album continued the trend, begun with "Across A Crowded Room," of Thompson's songs moving away from the seemingly personal material and towards the character sketches and narratives for which he has since become famous. Froom and PolyGram had plans to target college and the growing "alternative" markets with "Daring Adventures". Sales improved, but not substantially. Polygram declined an option to renew the contract. Thompson's management negotiated a new deal with Capitol Records.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 1985, Fairport Convention reformed and recorded the album "Gladys' Leap". Thompson did not rejoin Fairport, but he did contribute a song to the project and played guitar on another track on the album.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: 1988 saw the release of Thompson's first album for Capitol, "Amnesia". Froom was retained as producer, and once again the album was recorded in Los Angeles with many of the same players that Froom had called upon for the "Daring Adventures" sessions.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson contributed music to BBC Northwest's documentary "Hard Cash" and appears on the eponymous accompanying album issued by Topic. A track from the album, "Time To Ring Some Changes" is included in the 2009 Topic Records 70-year anniversary boxed set "Three Score and Ten" as track thirteen on the sixth CD.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 1991, Thompson recorded "Rumor and Sigh", his second album for Capitol. Once again Froom produced. This album, particularly the acoustic guitar ballad "1952 Vincent Black Lightning," was hailed by critics and fans alike and greatly advanced Thompson's reputation as a leading traditional-style guitarist.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: "Rumor and Sigh" was nominated for a Grammy and sold well. However, a shake-up at Capitol saw Hale Milgrim (Thompson's champion and fan within the boardroom) replaced by Garry Gersh. Thus, Thompson's next album "Mirror Blue" was held back for almost a year before being released.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 1992, he performed with David Byrne. Their joint acoustic concert at St. Ann & The Holy Trinity in Brooklyn Heights, New York on 24 March, produced the album "An Acoustic Evening", which was released the same year.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: "Mirror Blue" was released in 1994, to often negative reviews sparked by the production decisions that Thompson and Froom took. Thompson took to the road to promote the album. He was joined by drummer Dave Mattacks, Danny Thompson (no relation) on double bass, and Pete Zorn on acoustic guitar, backing vocals, mandolin and various wind instruments. This line-up toured with Thompson the following two years.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson continued recording for Capitol until 1999, when "Mock Tudor" was recorded and released. His deal with Capitol was modified so that he could release and directly market limited-quantity, live recorded, not-for-retail albums. The first of these was "Live at Crawley", released in 1995.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson appeared on his ex-wife Linda's studio album "Fashionably Late" on the song "Dear Mary". It was the first time the two had recorded together since "Shoot Out the Lights".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The BBC produced a documentary, in 2003, about Thompson's long musical career, entitled "Solitary Life", directed by Paul Bernays and narrated by John Peel. It featured interviews with Thompson from his home in California and contributions from Billy Connolly, Bonnie Raitt, ex-wife Linda Thompson, Harry Shearer and Thompson's then wife Nancy Covey. The programme was re-broadcast by BBC Four in September 2012.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: The move away from big labels and big budgets paradoxically brought a bigger marketing push and healthier sales. Thompson's first two self-funded releases, 2003's "The Old Kit Bag" and 2005's "Front Parlour Ballads", did well in the indie charts on both sides of the Atlantic. In May 2007 Thompson released "Sweet Warrior". The album was licensed to different labels in different territories: Shout! Factory in the US, P-Vine in Japan, Planet Records in Australia, and Proper Records in the UK and Europe. In August of the same year Island released a live Richard and Linda Thompson album, compiled from recordings made during the November 1975 tour to promote the "Pour Down Like Silver" album.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson continued releasing "official bootlegs" on his boutique label as an additional source of revenue – all live recordings.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In early 2010, Thompson assembled a band and did a string of shows showcasing new material. The aim was to record the new material in a live setting. The recording and touring band consisted of Thompson, Pete Zorn, (acoustic guitar, flute, saxophone, mandolin, vocals); Michael Jerome (drums, vocals), Taras Prodaniuk, (bass guitar, vocals); and Joel Zifkin, (electric violin, mandolin, vocals). The resulting album "Dream Attic", released in August the same year, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson curated the 2010 Meltdown Festival. The festival included a tribute to the recently deceased Kate McGarrigle, a feature of which was a rare on-stage reunion of Richard and Linda Thompson. He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for services to music. On 5 July 2011, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Aberdeen.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In early 2013, Thompson released "Electric", recorded in Nashville with Buddy Miller producing. The record enjoyed good reviews and debuted in the UK top 20. Thompson took to the road with a stripped down "power trio" band on a multi-month tour on both sides of the Atlantic to promote the new album. Also that year Thompson appeared on his ex-wife Linda's fourth studio album "Won't Be Long Now", on the track "Love's for Babies and Fools". It was the second time the two have recorded together since "Shoot Out the Lights".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 2014, Thompson released "Acoustic Classics," an album featuring acoustic renditions of 14 songs from his back catalogue, on his Beeswing label. The record reached number 16 on the UK Albums Chart. Thompson appears alongside family members, both blood related and by marriage, on the album "Family" (2014) by Thompson (the band being named for all the Thompsons that appear), performing two songs solo and contributing to others as well. The album was produced by son Teddy Thompson and features ex-wife Linda Thompson, The Rails who are Thompson's daughter Kami Thompson and her husband James Walbourne, as well as other related musicians, including Walbourne's brother and Richard Thompson's son from his second marriage.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson released "Still" in June 2015, an album produced by Jeff Tweedy of Wilco and recorded in Tweedy's The Loft Studio. The album reached number 10 in the UK Album chart, his first album to reach the UK top 10. In September 2015, he appeared on BBC Two's "Later... with Jools Holland", where he performed "All Buttoned Up" and ""She Never Could Resist a Winding Road" from his album "Still". This was followed, in 2017, by a second acoustic album "Acoustic Classics II" which reached number 24 on the UK Albums Chart. and "Acoustic Rarities", an album of new recordings of some of the more obscure songs in the Thompson catalogue, some previously existing only as cover versions.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson's eighteenth studio album, "13 Rivers" was released on 14 September 2018. Thompson produced the record himself at Boulevard Recording in Los Angeles. On 30 September 2019 Thompson played at the Royal Albert Hall to celebrate his 70th birthday.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In between leaving Fairport Convention in early 1971 and releasing his debut solo album in 1972, he undertook a large amount of session work, most notably on albums by John Martyn, Al Stewart, Matthews Southern Comfort, Sandy Denny, Mike Heron and Nick Drake.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: During the same period, he also worked on two collaborative projects. "Morris On" was recorded with Ashley Hutchings, John Kirkpatrick, Dave Mattacks and Barry Dransfield, and was a collection of English traditional tunes arranged for electric instruments. "The Bunch" were almost the reverse conceptually – a grouping of English folk rock musicians (including Sandy Denny, Linda Peters and members of Fairport Convention) recording a selection of classic rock and roll tunes.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson has continued to guest on albums by an array of artists, from Crowded House, Bonnie Raitt and Vivian Stanshall, to Norma Waterson and BeauSoleil and folk artists like Loudon Wainwright III, Cathal McConnell (of The Boys of the Lough) and Bob Davenport. He has also performed and recorded with Teddy Thompson, his son from his marriage to Linda Thompson.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Since the early 1980s, Thompson has appeared at Fairport Convention's annual Cropredy Festival, both in his own right and as a participant in sets with current and previous Fairport members. These sets are seldom confined to performances of songs out of the Thompson or Fairport Convention canons, and in recent years some surprise offerings have included the soul classic "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" (with Thompson backed by the Roy Wood Big Band), The Beatles' "I'm Down" and even "The Lady Is a Tramp".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson has displayed a penchant for the avant garde as well, working with former Pere Ubu singer David Thomas's grouping The Pedestrians on two albums in 1981 and 1982, respectively. In the 1980s, he was associated with a loose-fitting group called The Golden Palominos, who were led by drummer Anton Fier and included at times on stage and on record Jack Bruce, Michael Stipe, Carla Bley, John Lydon, Bill Laswell and others. He has worked with experimental guitarist Henry Kaiser, most notably as part of the ad hoc grouping French Frith Kaiser Thompson with whom he recorded two albums. In 1997 he worked with long-time friend and band member Danny Thompson to record a concept album "Industry" that dealt with the decline of British industry. A year later he worked with early music expert Philip Pickett on the acclaimed "Bones of All Men" which fused renaissance tunes with contemporary music.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: For several years Thompson devised and toured his show "1000 Years of Popular Music". The inspiration for this came when "Playboy" asked Thompson (and many other music industry figures) in 1999 for their suggestions for the "top ten songs of the millennium". Guessing that "Playboy" expected most people's lists to start at around 1950, Thompson took the magazine at its word and presented a list of songs from the 11th century to the present day. Perhaps not surprisingly, "Playboy" did not use his list, but the exercise gave him the idea for a show which takes a chronological trip through popular music across the ages. Thompson acknowledges that this is an ambitious undertaking, partly because he reckons that he is technically unqualified to sing 98% of the material, and partly because of the sparse musical setting he restricts himself to: besides his acoustic guitar, he's backed by singer/pianist Judith Owen and percussionist/singer Debra Dobkin. A typical performance would start with a medieval round, progress via a Purcell aria, Victorian music hall and Hoagy Carmichael and end with Thompson's take on the Britney Spears hit "Oops!... I Did It Again".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 2004, Thompson was asked to create the soundtrack music for the Werner Herzog documentary "Grizzly Man". The score, which was recorded over a two-day period in December 2004, brought Thompson together with a group of improvisational musicians, mostly from the San Francisco Bay area; video footage from the sessions was edited into a mini-documentary, "In the Edges," which was included with the DVD release of "Grizzly Man".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 2009, Thompson was commissioned to write a piece for the International Society of Bassists in honour of Danny Thompson. The resulting Cabaret of Souls, a musical play set in the underworld, has been performed in State College (Pennsylvania), London, and Los Angeles with a cast that includes Harry Shearer, Judith Owen, Debra Dobkin, Pete Zorn, either Danny Thompson or David Piltch, and a 12-piece string section conducted by Peter Askim. This suite was eventually commercially released in late 2012.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In 2006 and 2013, Thompson recorded Hugh S. Roberton's "Mingulay Boat Song" and the traditional "General Taylor" for the sea shanty-compilations "" and "".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: In July 2019, New West Records released a soundtrack album for the documentary "The Cold Blue", featuring the film's original score composed by Thompson. The film, directed by Erik Nelson, tells the story of the Eighth Air Force which flew multiple deadly missions during World War II and features newly restored 4K footage and outtakes, shot by director William Wyler, during the summer of 1943 for his 1944 documentary "".


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: There are a number of retrospective collections of Thompson's work, many containing material which is unavailable elsewhere. 1976's "(guitar, vocal)" was a collection of unreleased material from the previous eight years of Thompson's appearances on the Island label. The 3-CD set "Watching the Dark" combines his better-known songs and previously unreleased live and studio tracks. "Action Packed" is a compilation of tracks from his Capitol releases, plus three hard-to-find songs. Finally, in 2006, the independent label Free Reed released "RT- The Life and Music of Richard Thompson", a 5-CD box set consisting almost entirely of previously unreleased performances of songs from throughout Thompson's long career.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson's songs have been extensively covered; for example, Dimming of the Day has been performed by artists such as The Neville Brothers, Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, David Gilmour, The Blind Boys of Alabama, June Tabor, The Corrs and Alison Krauss and Union Station. There have been several tribute compilations of other artists' interpretations of his work, including: Capitol's "" and Green Linnet's "", both released in 1994.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson makes use of the "pick and fingers" technique (sometimes referred to as "hybrid picking") where he plays bass notes and rhythm with a pick between his first finger and thumb, and adds melody and punctuation by plucking the treble strings with his fingers. He also makes use of different guitar tunings, such as (low to high) CGDGBE, DADGBE, DADGAD, and more. This enables him to adapt traditional songs, as on "Strict Tempo!" and "1000 Years of Popular Music". Thompson occasionally makes use of a thumb-pick, playing in fingerstyle, the most notable example being on the motorcycle ballad "1952 Vincent Black Lightning."


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson is often associated with the Fender Stratocaster guitar. He has made prominent use of Stratocasters, as he has a general preference for the sound of single coil pick-ups.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Prior to using a Stratocaster with Fairport Convention he used a Gibson Les Paul with P-90 pick-ups. He then switched to a late 60s Stratocaster. Since leaving Fairport Convention he has continued to use electric guitars with single coil pick-ups, most famously a late-1950s Stratocaster but also two custom built electrics by Danny Ferrington as well as other Stratocasters, various Telecaster-type guitars and, in the studio, a Danelectro U2.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: As regards effects, he has made significant use of modulation and vibrato type effects pedals, most notably the Univibe and emulations thereof.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Thompson has made intermittent use of Roland's GK-1 pick-up and GL-2 synthesiser over the years. He made use of these devices on 1979's "Sunnyvista" album and has occasionally used them in concert.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: Since the early 1990s, Thompson has made prominent use of Lowden acoustic guitars for studio and live work; Lowden have made a signature model for him. Before this he used a Martin 000-18 as well as instruments built by Danny Ferrington.


title: Richard Thompson (musician)

text: For live work, his acoustic guitars are fitted with a Sunrise pick-up and an internal condenser microphone. The output from the pick-up is usually fed into some effects pedals, typically a delay pedal and a Uni-Vibe.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The Nissan 180SX is a fastback automobile that was produced by Nissan Motors between 1988 and 1998. It is based on the S13 chassis from the Nissan S platform with the variants receiving an R designation (ex. PS13 and RPS13), and was sold exclusively in Japan paired with the CA18 motor in the early models; later models paired with the SR20 motor. Outside of Japan, it was re-badged as the 200SX and in the US market as the Nissan 240SX, paired with the single overhead cam KA24E motor and later with the dual-overhead model KA24DE.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The 180SX was built and sold by Nissan as a sister model to the Nissan Silvia from model year 1989 through 1998, but sold at two different Japanese Nissan dealerships. The Silvia was sold at "Nissan Prince Store," and the 180SX was sold at "Nissan Bluebird Store" locations. In Japan, the 180SX replaced the Gazelle. The S13 Silvia was discontinued in 1993, but the 180SX was successful enough to convince Nissan to keep it in the market for the full length of the next generation Silvia (S14). The 180SX differed from the S13 Silvia in that it featured pop-up headlights and a liftgate with different body work at the rear of the vehicle. Specifications and equipment were similar; however, the naturally aspirated CA18DE engine was not offered.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The name 180SX was originally in reference to the 1.8 liter displacement CA18DET engine used in the chassis. In 1991, however, the engine was upgraded to a 2.0 liter model, offered in two forms: the turbocharged SR20DET variant and the naturally aspirated SR20DE engine, which was introduced in 1996. Although the new engine was of larger displacement, the 180SX nomenclature remained.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: 180SX was also a trim level of the S110 Silvia in Europe. The badges for this model read "Silvia 180SX", so this car is not properly a 180SX by model, but a version of the Silvia instead.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: Other discrepancies from this standard were distributed to Micronesia and South Pacific islands, including LHD cars with 180SX badges and non-retractable headlamps.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: Like the Japanese 180SX SR20DET discrepancy, European, as well as South African models of the S13 chassis were called 200SX though equipped with the CA18DET engine.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: In North America, It was sold as the Nissan 240SX Fastback with the KA24DE engine and various other trim differences.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: In Europe the car was sold as a 200SX and only featured the CA18DET engine producing through the rear wheels, taking it to in 7.5 seconds and onto 220 km/h. The car had a facelift in 1991 with new smoother bumpers, limited slip differential, and larger brakes. This 200sx was sold between 1989 and 1994 until the change to the 200SX S14 version.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: Certain year model 180SX and Silvias are now available for import into the US market with EPA and DOT exemptions under the NHTSA 25 year classic import law. The United States has a handful of JDM Import companies.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: Japanese tuning company Kid's Heart produced 500 official units of a 180SX and Silvia hybrid known as the Sileighty. These cars were built upon the standard 1998 180SX platform but had the headlamps, front wings, hood, front bumper and fixings from a Nissan Silvia swapped over. These cars were available with the naturally aspirated or the turbo engine, with the same as a standard S13. A five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic were available. Kid's Heart also offered some mechanical and tuning upgrades, including revised suspension, an improved limited-slip differential and an ECU tune from Nismo. This raised the turbo car's output to at 13 psi of boost (0.9 bar).


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The 180SX came in three major generations: the first one was released in March 1989 up to January 1991, the second was from January 1991 to August 1996, and the third and final one from August 1996 to December 1998.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The first iteration of the 180SX came in two versions called Type I (standard type) and Type II (advanced type). Nissan's HICAS II four wheel steering system was optional only on the Type II 180SX. All versions had the CA18DET engine with 175 PS. The 5-speed manual and 4-speed automatic transmissions were available in all types. HICAS-equipped cars have a leading K in their model code; RS13 thus becomes KRS13 when fitted with HICAS.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The second iteration 180SX was released in January 1991 and included several major changes from the first model. This included the SR20DET engine with 205 PS. Although the engine was larger than the previous CA18DET engine the '180SX' nomenclature remained. The brakes were enlarged and limited slip differential added. The front bumper and parts of the interior were also redesigned. Type I and Type II were once again offered with only trim differences separating the two. The 15-inch alloy wheels also changed in design from the first model. Nissan's Super HICAS four wheel steering was an option on all models as were 5-speed manual and 4-speed automatic transmissions.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The second iteration was facelifted in January 1991. Although the car largely remained visually and mechanically unchanged, an additional trim level called Type III was added. Electronic climate control and CD audio were also added as options.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: An additional facelift was performed in 1994, the trim levels were renamed to Type R and Type X, with Type X being the higher of the two. Overall the car remained almost unchanged however.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: A final facelift to the middle model occurred in August 1996 with the addition of a driver's side airbag and a change of alloy wheels amongst other minor details.


title: Nissan 180SX

text: The final iteration was released in August 1996. It had a revised front bumper, tail lights, 15-inch wheels and interior. The mechanical and safety package received minor changes, such as the addition of a driver's side airbag, seat belt pre-tensioners, and some changes in the wiring and ECU. Three levels of 180SX were offered: Type X, Type S and Type R, with the Type S being the first 180SX to be offered without a turbocharged engine.