title: Scunthorpe

text: In 2012 the steel industry remained the major employer in the area and its largest operator was Tata Steel Europe. The number employed in the industry fell from 27,000 at its height to around 4,500 (excluding outside contractors) by the mid 2010s. The steel works and the former ironstone workings have both had large scale detrimental environmental effects in the district, including air pollution and subsidence.


title: Scunthorpe

text: In May 2019, after a drop in future orders, and a breakdown in rescue talks between the government and the company's owner, Greybull, British Steel Limited entered insolvency.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Although the historical predominance of the steel industry made Scunthorpe a virtual monotown, there are other industries in the town. These include food production, distribution and retailing. North of the town next a waste management firm, Bell Waste Control, which services the majority of industry in Scunthorpe and the surrounding areas. On the Foxhills Industrial Park, north of the A1077 northern bypass, are many distribution companies, notably a large building owned by the Nisa co-operative type mutual organisation which has its UK headquarters there. Also on the Foxhills Industrial Park is a 500,000 square foot factory occupied by Wren Kitchens, employing 350 full-time workers.


title: Scunthorpe

text: 2 Sisters Food Group have a large chicken processing plant in the town. Key Country Foods produces meat products on an industrial scale. The Sauce Company produces sauces, soups and other foodstuffs for the catering and supermarket sectors. Ericsson Mobile Platforms produces printed circuit boards for the telecommunications industry. There are a number of other firms, mostly involved in manufacturing and light engineering.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe has two major shopping centres, effectively a single site: the Foundry Shopping Centre and the Parishes Centre. The former was constructed in the late 1960s/early 1970s during a wholesale reconstruction of the old town; the latter was constructed in the early part of the 2000s decade on the site of the town's old bus station. There are also many well known retailers on High Street. On 6 January 2011 Marks and Spencer closed their High Street store after 80 years of trading, but a new Marks and Spencer store opened near the football ground in 2014.


title: Scunthorpe

text: However the size of the remaining retail units reflects the size of the area's population and with larger shopping facilities within reasonable travelling distance in Grimsby, Hull, Doncaster, Lincoln, Leeds and at Meadowhall Centre, Sheffield.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The once-thriving market, mostly under cover in market halls just to the north of the Central Library, at the eastern end of the High Street, had shrunk noticeably in the last ten years, and has now moved to the new St John's Market, close to the Bus Station. The opening date was 22 March 2019.


title: Scunthorpe

text: All of the big food retailers are represented in the area. There is a Tesco Extra, and an Aldi (in the former Toys R Us unit) opposite the football ground, while Sainsbury's (formerly a Safeway) have their store on the site of the old Scunthorpe United stadium, The Old Show Ground. Morrisons have a store at the bottom of Mortal Ash Hill (known locally as "Motlash") (A18 road) at the Lakeside Retail Park, on the eastern entrance to the town, while Asda have a store on Burringham Road. In 2011 Asda opened another store in the former Netto, on Carlton Street.


title: Scunthorpe

text: On 24 October 2014 Marks and Spencer's returned to the town after almost a 4-year absence. The store is housed in a purpose built location at the North Lincolnshire Shopping Centre, beside Glanford Park. Debenhams, Boots, B&M Bargains, Costa Coffee and Subway have also opened stores at the centre.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe railway station lies on the South TransPennine Line which has trains from Manchester Airport to Cleethorpes. Scunthorpe station (SCU), has two platforms and runs three different services. Platform 1 serves the TransPennine Express Cleethorpes route, whilst Platform 2 serves the TransPennine Express Manchester Airport route, and the Northern Doncaster route. The Northern train is the local stopping service, which runs from Monday-Saturday, and is served by TransPennine Express at the first and last service of the day. For local people traveling to Doncaster, it is often preferred to use the TransPennine Express services, as they go direct into Doncaster, and do not rely upon the 1980s pacer trains that Northern run today. The station is operated by TransPennine Express, and was made more accessible when lifts were added in 2019.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The town lies five miles (8 km) north of the M180, and the M181 terminates Glanford Park, on the outskirts of the town. Before this motorway was opened in 1979, all the east–west goods traffic took the A18 to Grimsby. Humberside Airport is a short drive to the east along the M180. The town's bus station is off Fenton Street. The bus station is predominantly used by Stagecoach in Lincolnshire that operate services within and out of the town along with Hornsby Travel. East Yorkshire operate services to Hull and Goole.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The church of St John the Evangelist, in Church Square, was completed in 1891 and consecrated on 15 April that same year. The church was built, at a cost of £20,000 (equivalent to £ as of ) on land given by Lord St Oswald. Built of Frodingham ironstone, and comprising a nave with five bays and a clerestory, a chancel, north and south aisles, two porches and a tower, it could accommodate up to 500 worshippers. It was designed by J. S. Crowther in the perpendicular style. The original striking clock was installed, in 1890 by William Potts and Sons of the Guildford Clock Works in Leeds. In 1897 quarter chimes were added. The peal of eight bells were hung in 1893, in memory of the Lord St Oswald. The organ, built in London, cost £1,000.


title: Scunthorpe

text: There are also multiple churches including the other town church of St Lawrence. There are also two small Muslim centres.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The North Lincolnshire Museum is on Oswald Road, near the railway station. The former church of St John the Evangelist is now the 20–21 Visual Arts Centre. The Plowright Theatre, named after Joan Plowright, is on Laneham Street (off the west end of High Street and also near the railway station). It was built in 1958 as Scunthorpe Civic Theatre. The Baths Hall, reopened in 2011, a 1,700 capacity venue also hosts visiting musical and theatrical events.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The Scunthorpe Co-operative Junior Choir from Scunthorpe won the title of BBC Radio 3 "Choir of the Year" 2008 at the Grand Finals on 7 December 2008 at the Royal Festival Hall, London. The main choir is made up of 90 members aged between 9 and 19 years whilst also having two training choirs taking children as young as 3 years old. They have made several CDs, performed numerous concerts in the area and further afield, have been subject of documentaries and are internationally renowned as having travelled the world.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe was the setting of a 2012 Cultural Olympiad community opera called "Cycle Song", about past steel-worker and Olympic cyclist Lal White. It was composed by Tim Sutton and the librettist was Ian McMillan. The Scunthorpe Co-operative Junior Choir, Proper Job Theatre Company and over a thousand locals participated.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The local newspaper is the "Scunthorpe Telegraph" (formerly the "Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph") with an online version at "www.scunthorpetelegraph.co.uk".


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe has a leisure centre (The Pods) next to Pittwood House, museum, galleries, craft centres, several clubs, pubs and bars, a Vue multiplex cinema adjacent to the bus station. The Baths Hall in Doncaster Road was a popular music venue, before it was closed because of the costs of bringing the building up to scratch, and dealing with industrial contamination on site. The Labour Council prevented the Baths from being demolished in 2007 and commenced a major rebuild of the venue, which has involved demolishing all but the facade of the building. The building re-opened in November 2011.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe's primary schools include Berkeley Primary School, Outwood Juniors Academy Brumby, Crosby Primary School, Frodingham Infant School, Oasis Academy Henderson Avenue, Oasis Academy Parkwood, St Augustine Webster's Catholic Voluntary Academy, St Bernadette's Catholic Primary Voluntary Academy, St Peter and St Paul CofE Primary School, Scunthorpe CofE Primary School, The Grange primary, Oakfield Primary School and Westcliffe Primary School.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Secondary schools within Scunthorpe include Outwood Academy Brumby on Cemetery Road, and Outwood Academy Foxhills on Foxhills Road. Frederick Gough School is to the south of the town in Bottesford. Melior Community Academy, to the east of the town, was formed by the merger of South Leys Business & Enterprise College on Enderby Road with Thomas Sumpter School. St Bede's Catholic Voluntary Academy on Collum Avenue is the main Roman Catholic secondary school for the area, while the St Lawrence Academy on Doncaster Road is a Church of England secondary school; it was formerly known as High Ridge Specialist Sports College and became the town's first academy in September 2008. Engineering UTC Northern Lincolnshire opened in 2015 and is a university technical college for pupils aged 14 to 19. St Hugh's Communication and Interaction Specialist College is a school for pupils aged 11–19 with moderate to complex learning needs associated with physical and social problems.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe has two study support centres, Study United FC and Study Heslam, set up with funding from the government's Playing for Success scheme. These are based at Glanford Park, the home of Scunthorpe United Football Club and Heslam Park, home of Scunthorpe rugby and cricket clubs.


title: Scunthorpe

text: John Leggott Sixth-Form College (JLC) is on West Common Lane and North Lindsey College is close by on Kingsway (A18). Scunthorpe's only university is UCNL, which offers undergraduate courses to approximately 1,500 students.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The area is served by Humberside Police. According to Home Office data the area has crime rates higher than the national average, especially in the categories of violence against the person, sexual offences, burglary and theft of motor vehicles.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The town has a Football League club, Scunthorpe United (nicknamed "The Iron") who play at Glanford Park. For most of its existence in the professional game (since only 1950) it has been in the lower leagues of the English Football League. At the end of the 2006–07 season they won promotion to the Football League Championship as champions of League One, amassing a total of 91 points, being promoted at home to Huddersfield Town: having been top since January: despite being outsiders for a considerable amount of that time, and being promoted with 3 games to spare. This being the first time they have played at this level for 44 years. This was to last just one season as the club were relegated on 12 April 2008, with three games to spare, away to Crystal Palace. However, they returned to the Championship after one season, winning the League One playoffs in May 2009. At the end of the 2021–22 season, Scunthorpe for the first time got relegated from the Football League, and as a consequence play in the National League as of 2022-23.


title: Scunthorpe

text: England stars Kevin Keegan and Ray Clemence both played for Scunthorpe United in the early 1970s before being signed for Liverpool, where they made their names. Former England cricket captain Ian Botham played a number of games for the club, being a resident of nearby Epworth at that time and in an attempt to keep fit during the winter months. The team mascot is called the "Scunny Bunny".


title: Scunthorpe

text: Semi-professional sides within the Town or greater town boundaries include Appleby Frodingham and Bottesford Town, Local teams play in the Scunthorpe & District Football League.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe Rugby Club play in the National League 2 North, the fourth tier of the English rugby union system. Their home ground is at Heslam Park, close to Brumby on Ashby Road. Scunthorpe Barbarians play rugby league also at Heslam Park.


title: Scunthorpe

text: Scunthorpe also has a speedway team known as the Scunthorpe Scorpions who compete in the British Premier League, the sport's second tier in Britain.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The speedway team has been running since 2005 and won a grand slam of the Conference League trophies in both 2006 and 2007 before claiming the Premier League title in 2012, alongside this Speedway world champion Tai Woffinden was born in Scunthorpe, riding for the Scunthorpe Scorpions in his youth. It runs at the Eddie Wright Raceway, which is a mile north of the town on Normanby Road (B1430).


title: Scunthorpe

text: The Eddie Wright Raceway is also host to the sport of stock car racing, the town has featured stock car racing at two other venues in its past, 2009 saw a return to the town of the oval racing sport


title: Scunthorpe

text: The Appleby-Frodingham Athletic Club uses the site near the Civic Centre for many types of sport. They have a clubhouse and also use Brumby Hall next-door. The site includes a 3G football pitch and an artificial Astro hockey pitch, along with several grass football pitches and an area for cricket. There is also the Scunthorpe and District Athletics Club. They train at Quibell Park Stadium, Scunthorpe's athletic track on Brumby Wood Lane named after David Quibell, the town's former Labour MP. Around the running track is a cycle track used by Polytechnic Cycle Club.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The leisure centre was on Carlton Street opposite the bus station via a footbridge. After The Pods opened this was demolished. The Scunthorpe Anchor swimming club are based at the Riddings Pool on Enderby Road next to South Leys School.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The Pods, a leisure centre near Central Park, opened in 2011 costing an estimated £21 million. Facilities include an 8 lane 25m pool and a separate shallow pool, a state of the art gym, a dance studio, a large sports hall with climbing wall, a creche and a cafe.


title: Scunthorpe

text: As part of the project, Central Park is being improved. These expensive improvements are also in their final stage. North Lincolnshire Council's website regularly show photographs and videos of how the work is progressing.


title: Scunthorpe

text: The Scunthorpe Alphas who were formed in 2018 play their home games at Quibell Park Stadium and for 2021 will complete in the BAFA National Leagues Division Two. The town's previous American football side was the Scunthorpe Steelers who folded in 1990.


title: Scunthorpe

text: In 1996 there was controversy when AOL's obscenity filter (among others) refused to accept the name of the town due to its embedded word 'cunt'. Some online forums such as Ultimate Guitar forums displayed the name as Scumthorpe, while Fark would display it as Scoonthorpe. This form of censorship over-reach is known in the computing world as the Scunthorpe problem.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Sidwell Friends School is a Quaker school located in Bethesda, Maryland and Washington, D.C., offering pre-kindergarten through high school classes. Founded in 1883 by Thomas W. Sidwell, its motto is "" (), alluding to the Quaker concept of inner light. All Sidwell Friends students attend Quaker meeting for worship weekly, and middle school students begin every day with five minutes of silence.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: The school's admissions process is merit-based. As documented on the school's website, it gives preference in admissions decisions to members of the Religious Society of Friends, but otherwise does not discriminate on the basis of religion. Sidwell "accepts only 7 percent of its applicants". The school accepts vouchers under the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Described as "the Harvard of Washington’s private schools", the school has educated children of notable politicians, including those of several presidents. President Theodore Roosevelt's son Archibald, President Richard Nixon's daughters Tricia and Julie, President Bill Clinton's daughter Chelsea Clinton, President Barack Obama's daughters Sasha and Malia, the grandchildren of President Joe Biden when he was Vice President, and Vice President Al Gore's son, Albert Gore III, graduated from Sidwell Friends.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Thomas Sidwell started a "Friends' Select School" in 1883 on I Street in downtown Washington, four blocks from the White House. It opened with just eleven students.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Beginning in 1911, Sidwell began buying property between Wisconsin Avenue and 37th St. Initially, the new property was used for athletic fields—and, with the central campus' downtown location—meant students had to shuttle between the two sites by streetcar. However, in 1923, Sidwell built a building for school dances and other social gatherings on what came to be known as the Wisconsin Avenue campus.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: In 1925, the school added a kindergarten, making it the first K–12 school in Washington. In 1934, the name of the school was changed to "Sidwell and Friends School", and began its gradual re-location to the Wisconsin Avenue building. By 1938, the transition to the new building had been completed, and the I Street property was sold.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Previously all grade levels were in Washington, DC. In 1963 the elementary school moved to the former Longfellow School for Boys, purchased by Sidwell Friends.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Sidwell became racially integrated in 1964. Before 1964 it was a white-only school. In the decades following integration, problems faced by black students lead to the creation of two parent groups outside the school, which sought to alleviate covert prejudice.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Thomas B. Farquhar was removed from his position as the Head of School after the 2013–2014 school year. He became the Head of School after the retirement of former Head of School Bruce Stewart at the end of the 2008–2009 school year. Bryan K. Garman, the current Head of School, took office beginning with the 2014–2015 school year.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: In 2018, Sidwell, along with 7 other DC Area Private schools, announced that they would be eliminating AP courses, citing the declining impact on one's college acceptance chances that AP courses were having, and a want to diversify their class offerings. This sparked the Department of Justice to launch an antitrust investigation into the schools, which concluded in 2021 after the DOJ stated that "in light of the burden on the Schools associated with the ongoing pandemic, the division will not bring an enforcement action against the Schools".


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: In April 2020, the school received $5.2 million in federally backed small business loans as part of the Paycheck Protection Program. The school received scrutiny over this loan, which meant to protect small and private businesses. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin tweeted that the schools should return the money, but the school stated they were keeping it, despite having a $53 million endowment.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: In 2005, Sidwell's AP English Exam scores were the highest in the nation for all medium-sized schools (300–799 students in grades 10–12) offering the AP English exam. Sidwell does not offer an AP English course.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: All students must acquire at least 20 credits before graduating. Students are required to take four years of English, three years of mathematics, three years of history, two years of one foreign language, two years of science, and two years of art. In addition to this, all freshmen must take a full year Ninth Grade Studies course that involves a service project. Tenth and eleventh graders must also take courses corresponding to their grade level.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: In 2016, the school revised its policy on sexual misconduct after reports that a teen had been raped by her ex-boyfriend on the school's campus. No charges were filed against the teen, and the school installed more security cameras to deter future assaults. Despite the measures, a year later another teenage female student reported being raped on the campus grounds by a fellow student.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Former Sidwell psychologist and sex ed teacher James Huntington was the target of a 2013 lawsuit for his affair with the parent of a student he was counseling. The case exposed teachers that had made advances towards students.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: In 2017, the school fired a middle school music teacher, Michael Henderson, who had been accused of having inappropriate contact with a 14-year old girl at a previous school. In 1996,The parents of Sara Lawson, a student at the Fountain Valley High School, filed a police report that detailed multiple incidences of "unwanted touching and kissing" between her and Henderson while she was 14. She later stated that Henderson once invited her over to his house and made her a drink that caused her to be incapacitated for the rest of the night. In a letter Sidwell's Head of School Bryan Garman sent to parents, he stated that "A former administrator ... was aware that Michael’s departure from his previous employer had been precipitated by his inappropriate conduct, but had no knowledge of the severity of the allegations as they now stand".


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Sidwell's athletic teams are known as the Quakers; their colors are maroon and gray. The Quakers compete in the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAC) for boys' sports (after previously competing in the Interstate Athletic Conference (IAC) until 1999) and the Independent School League (ISL) for girls' sports. Sidwell offers teams in Volleyball, Golf, Boys and Girls Cross Country, Football, Field Hockey, Girls and Boys Soccer, Boys and Girls Basketball, Boys and Girls Swimming & Diving, Wrestling, Boys and Girls Tennis, Baseball, Boys and Girls Lacrosse, Boys and Girls Track, Ultimate Frisbee, Crew, Movement Performance and Choreography, and Softball.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: The Quakers completed an undefeated season in February 2022 and is ranked the #1 best girls' basketball team in the nation by recruiting website MaxPreps as well as by ESPN.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Sidwell's boys cross country team won four consecutive conference championships under Head Coach Bill Wooden from 2006 to 2009. In 2015, they won the MAC Championships and ended Georgetown Day School's six year MAC title streak. Sidwell held this second streak for five years until they lost the 2021 MAC Championships to GDS.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Sidwell's football team plays in the MAAC. Players have gone on to play college football at Columbia University, Franklin & Marshall College, Georgetown University, Middlebury College, Kenyon College, Ithaca College, Stanford University, and Wake Forest University. Miles Brown, Sidwell and Wofford College graduate, in 2019 earned a place on the 53 man roster of the NFL Arizona Cardinals.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: The Middle and Upper School campus is located at 3825 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20016-2907


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: The Lower School campus can be found at 5100 Edgemoor Lane, Bethesda, Montgomery County, Maryland, 20814-2306


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Both campuses underwent major renovations throughout the 2005–2006 school year, and construction for the Wisconsin Avenue campus Athletic Center (which includes the Kenworthy Courts) was completed in 2011.


title: Sidwell Friends School

text: Sidwell Friends plans to move the Lower School to the site of the current site of The Washington Home and Community Hospices, which is adjacent to the Wisconsin Avenue campus. Until funding is secured, there is currently no timeline for when this move will take place.


title: Starling Marte

text: Starling Javier Marte (born October 9, 1988) is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Arizona Diamondbacks, Miami Marlins, and Oakland Athletics. He made his MLB debut in 2012 with the Pirates. Marte is a two-time MLB All-Star and a two-time Gold Glove Award winner. In 2021, he led the major leagues with 47 stolen bases.


title: Starling Marte

text: Marte grew up on the outskirts of Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic. After his mother's death when he was nine, his grandmother took care of him.


title: Starling Marte

text: He signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2007, and was primarily a center fielder during his time in the minors. In 2010, Marte played 60 games for the Pirates' Class A affiliate, the Bradenton Marauders, ending with a batting average of .315. He hit 16 doubles and five triples that season while also stealing 22 bases. Marte represented the Pittsburgh Pirates at the 2011 All-Star Futures Game. In 2011, while playing for the Altoona Curve, Marte was an Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star and Post-Season All-Star, a "Baseball America" Double-A All-Star, a Topps Double-A All-Star, and a Milb.com organization All-Star. On August 15, 2011, Marte was named the EL's player of the week. Marte also won the Eastern League Batting Title with a .332 batting average and was named the Eastern League Rookie of the Year. Marte was added to the Pirates 40-man roster on November 18, 2011.


title: Starling Marte

text: Marte was ranked number 73 on "Baseball America"'s Top 100 Prospects list in February 2012 and number 56 on Baseball Prospectus's Top 101 Prospect list in February 2012. In 2012, while playing for the Indianapolis Indians, Marte was named an International League Mid-Season All-Star. On July 2, 2012, Marte was named the International League player of the week.


title: Starling Marte

text: On July 26, 2012, the Pirates promoted Marte from Indianapolis Indians, becoming the first graduate of the Pirates' Latin American complex, located in the Dominican Republic, to reach the major leagues. He hit a home run on the first pitch he faced in his major league career, off Houston Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel. The hit made Marte the third player in Pirates' franchise history to homer in his first at-bat and the first to do it since Don Leppert in 1961. He also became the first Pirate to homer on the first pitch of his major league career since Walter Mueller did so in 1922.


title: Starling Marte

text: Marte and the Pirates finalized a 6-year, $31 million deal on March 28, 2014. On August 18, 2014, Marte had his second career multi-homer game in a 7–3 loss to the Atlanta Braves. He won his first career Rawlings Gold Glove Award in 2015.


title: Starling Marte

text: On April 18, 2017, Marte was suspended 80 games without pay due to use of Nandrolone, a type of performance-enhancing drug that violates the MLB's drug agreement. He was also deemed ineligible to play in post-season competition, though the Pirates failed to qualify. Marte issued a statement afterwards, reading: "I have been informed that I have tested positive in one of the tests that are regularly done in my job. In this very difficult moment I apologize to my family, my fans and baseball in general. Neglect and lack of knowledge have led me to this mistake with the high price to pay of being away from the field that I enjoy and love so much. With much embarrassment and helplessness, I ask for forgiveness for unintentionally disrespecting so many people who have trusted in my work and have supported me so much. I promise to learn the lesson that this ordeal has left me. God bless you."


title: Starling Marte

text: In 2018, Marte batted .277 with 33 stolen bases. He and Jean Segura were the only two MLB players to have stolen 20 or more bases each season since 2013.


title: Starling Marte

text: On defense in 2019, he had a -11 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) rating, the lowest in the major leagues among center fielders. However, on offense, he hit .295 and set career highs with 23 home runs and 82 runs batted in.


title: Starling Marte

text: On January 27, 2020, the Pirates traded Marte and cash considerations to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for infielder Liover Peguero, pitcher Brennan Malone, and international bonus pool signing money.


title: Starling Marte

text: On August 31, 2020, the Diamondbacks traded Marte to the Miami Marlins for Caleb Smith, Humberto Mejía and Julio Frias. Between the Diamondbacks and Marlins, Marte slashed .281/.340/.430 with 6 home runs, 27 RBI, and 10 stolen bases in 61 games during the shortened 60-game season.


title: Starling Marte

text: Marte was placed on the injured list on April 20, 2021 with a fractured rib. A month later he would enter his rehab assignment with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp and return to the Marlins on May 28. Marte was named NL Player of the Week for June 7 - June 13, the first Marlins player since 2017. In seven games that week he batted .500 (14 for 28), two home runs, one double, five RBIs, and a 1.298 OPS. He also stole four bases without being caught.


title: Starling Marte

text: On July 28, 2021, the Marlins traded Marte along with cash considerations to the Oakland Athletics in exchange for Jesús Luzardo. In 56 games, Marte batted .312/.355/.462 with 25 stolen bases for Oakland in 2021. Between Miami and Oakland, Marte stole an MLB-leading 47 bases in 2021.


title: Starling Marte

text: Marte has three children, sons Starling Jr. and Smerling and daughter Tiana, with his late wife, Noelia Brazoban. In May 2020, Brazoban suffered a heart attack and died while in the hospital awaiting surgery on a broken ankle.


title: Starling Marte

text: Marte's grandmother, who raised him from the age of 9, died in May 2022, almost two years to the day after the passing of his wife. Upon his return to the Mets after being placed on the bereavement list, Marte hit a home run on the first pitch he faced from Colorado Rockies starter Germán Márquez, dedicating his hit to his "loved ones up in heaven."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Infamous (Also known as Infamous, Every Word is True) is a 2006 American drama film written and directed by Douglas McGrath. It is based on George Plimpton's 1997 book, "Truman Capote: In Which Various Friends, Enemies, Acquaintances, and Detractors Recall His Turbulent Career" and covers the period from the late 1950s through the mid-1960s, during which Truman Capote researched and wrote his bestseller "In Cold Blood" (1965).


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Capote is played by Toby Jones. Sandra Bullock, Daniel Craig, Lee Pace, and Jeff Daniels also have featured roles, with a supporting cast that includes Sigourney Weaver and Hope Davis, and a song performance by Gwyneth Paltrow.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Truman Capote, known in New York City society for his wit and fashion flair as much as he is recognized in literary circles as the celebrated writer of "Other Voices, Other Rooms" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's", reads a brief article about the murder of a farming family in Holcomb, Kansas, in the back pages of the "New York Times" of November 16, 1959.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Curious as to how the residents would react to a brutal massacre in their midst, the author and his friend, Nelle Harper Lee, who has just published her novel "To Kill a Mockingbird", travel from New York to the rural Midwestern town, ostensibly so Capote can interview people for a magazine article. Once there, he realizes there might be enough material for what he eventually describes as a "nonfiction novel".


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Capote's dress and demeanor both amuse and dismay law enforcement officials. He allows the less ostentatious Lee to act as a buffer between himself and those whose trust he needs to gain in order to obtain as much background information as possible.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: The Kansas Bureau of Investigation's lead detective on the case, Alvin Dewey, has refused to cooperate with the writer. But when his starstruck wife Marie meets Capote in a grocery store, she invites him and Lee to Christmas dinner. He eventually wins over his host with personal anecdotes about Humphrey Bogart, John Huston, Frank Sinatra, and the like.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: As a result, when ex-convicts Richard Hickock and Perry Smith are apprehended in Las Vegas and extradited to Holcomb, permission is given to Capote to interview them in their cells. The two defendants are tried and found guilty, but a lengthy period of appeals begins. Capote's society and literary friends in New York, like Slim Keith and Babe Paley, press him for juicy gossip about the case and inquire when they can expect to read the book.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Capote forms an attachment to Smith. He empathizes with the convicted killer's unhappy childhood, and Smith's remorseful manner, genuine sincerity, and obvious intelligence impress him. The criminal's reciprocal feelings become evident, although Smith has difficulty dealing with his emotions. As soon as Smith learns that Truman plans to title his book "In Cold Blood", which suggests the author thinks of him only as a merciless killer, he violently subdues Capote and nearly rapes him.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Smith steadfastly refuses to describe the night of the murders. This greatly angers Capote, who wants to hear details not only as a writer in search of the truth but as someone who finds it difficult to believe a loved one could be guilty of such a crime. Smith eventually acquiesces and discusses what transpired.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Capote then finds himself entangled in a personal and professional dilemma. As much as he wants Smith to be sentenced to life in prison, a death by hanging would provide a far more sensational ending for readers of his book. He begins to unravel psychologically as the legal appeals drag on, unable to complete his book without an ending.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Years go by. Hickock and Smith finally exhaust all their options and now ask that Capote be present at their April 14, 1965 execution. He complies reluctantly with their request. Afterward, he learns Smith bequeathed his meager belongings to him, and among them he finds a charcoal sketch of him the killer had drawn.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: The fictional singer portrayed by Gwyneth Paltrow was originally intended to be Peggy Lee. The situation of an audience being held spellbound by a performer falling silent in the middle of a song was based on a real-life nightclub performance by Barbara Cook.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: According to writer and director Douglas McGrath, in his DVD commentary, many of the scenes in "Infamous" occurred only in McGrath's imagination, most notably a dramatic sexual encounter between Capote and inmate Perry Smith (played by Craig).


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: "Infamous" premiered at the August 2006 Venice Film Festival. It differs from the earlier "Capote" in that it occasionally breaks away from the Kansas setting to allow Capote's Manhattan society friends and professional acquaintances to comment on and express opinions about him to an unseen interlocutor during mock interviews. It also is more explicit about the romantic feelings Capote and Perry Smith may have shared.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 74% approval rating with an average rating of 6.7/10 based on 155 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "Though comparisons with last year's "Capote" may be inevitable, "Infamous" takes a different angle in its depiction of the author, and stands up well enough on its own." On Metacritic, the film achieved an average score of 68 out of 100, based on 34 critics, signifying "generally favorable reviews".


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Much of the critical discussion of the film focused on comparisons with the previous year's "Capote", which had received considerable critical acclaim and for which Philip Seymour Hoffman had won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Capote.


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: In his review in "The New York Times", A.O. Scott called the film "well worth your attention. It is quick-witted, stylish and well acted… warmer and more tender, if also a bit thinner and showier, than "Capote"… it is in the end more touching than troubling."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Rex Reed of "The New York Observer" opined, "They gave the Oscar to the wrong Truman Capote. I do not begrudge the versatile, popular Philip Seymour Hoffman his Oscar for playing the tiny terror in "Capote", but he was doing an impression. In "Infamous" ... a diminutive actor with a titanic talent named Toby Jones literally becomes the man himself. This is no lisping impersonation learned from watching old Johnny Carson shows: Mr. Jones moves into Truman's skin, heart and brains. "Infamous" shows you the man's soul. It is a monumental achievement of great artistry and depth. In some ways, the movie is better, too ... [it] is infinitely fascinating, cinematically breathtaking and largely impeccable. It proves that there's more than one way to tell a story and view a life. It is one hell of a beautiful movie to see and savor."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: In "Variety", David Rooney felt the film "doesn't measure up to its predecessor and seems unlikely to echo the attention it received ... In the central role, British thesp Toby Jones is a good physical match for Capote, getting his flamboyant mannerisms and creepy, nasal voice down. But unlike Philip Seymour Hoffman's Oscar-winning turn, there's no texture, no under-the-skin sense of the conflict between Capote's ambition for his book and his compassion for, and attraction to, Perry ... Sandra Bullock's understated performance as Capote's friend Lee is a high point here – wrapped in a cardigan and puffing on cigarettes, she creates a bracingly sturdy character of this plain-speaking, unfussy woman amid a cardboard gallery of flashy sophisticates."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Mick LaSalle of the "San Francisco Chronicle" observed, "By the standards of most pictures, this is intelligent, thoughtful filmmaking ... it's only against the exalted benchmark standard set by "Capote" that "Infamous" falls short ... It's a worthy film in its own right, with its own virtues ... Either through studying Lee or channeling someone else, Bullock adopts mannerisms and facial expressions that are not her own for this role and then works them into a well-crafted portrait of a highly internal, observant and deep-revolving spirit. It's the performance to take from the movie."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Jeff Klemzak penned two articles for the "Los Angeles Times" on the subject of the two biopics, arguing that "Infamous", while covering the same theme as the award-winning "Capote", "(a)nd as good as that film was, this one is better".


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: In "The Village Voice", Robert Wilonsky stated the film "never comes close to approaching the quiet, devastating brilliance of "Capote" ... Which is not to say "Infamous" ... is a far inferior version ... it's just a lesser version, light in weight and absent the ache ... It's good, especially during its first half, just not good enough."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Steve Persall of the "St. Petersburg Times" rated the film B and added, ""Infamous" might have been viewed as one of this year's better films if "Capote" hadn't told the same story about the same characters a year ago and done it so well ... "Infamous" is inferior, although not drastically so, in almost every respect ... The most obvious comparisons are to be made about performances. Jones is a much more accurate physical representation of Capote than Hoffman, his high-pitched voice sounding a little more affected than his Oscar-winning predecessor. However, the relative shallowness of McGrath's screenplay doesn't offer as many emotional land mines for Jones to play. [He] delivers an uncanny impersonation, while Hoffman's portrayal was a studiously researched impression, a likely more challenging task. Call this race nearly a draw, with Hoffman simply crossing the finish line first."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: In comparing this film to "Capote", David Thomson of "The Independent" asked, "What does it have that's different? ... [It] has a gallery of Truman Capote's Manhattan friends, people who adored him without ever quite trusting him ... These cameos give a tone-perfect sense of Capote's life before "In Cold Blood". He is placed as the phenomenon of culture, celebrity and outrage that he was."


title: Infamous (2006 film)

text: Toby Jones won the London Film Critics' Circle Award for British Actor of the Year. He also won the Best Actor Award at the Ibiza International Film Festival. Daniel Craig was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor but lost to Alan Arkin in "Little Miss Sunshine".


title: Rock Band 4

text: Rock Band 4 is a 2015 music video game developed and published by Harmonix. "Rock Band 4" allows players to simulate the playing of music across many different decades and genres using instrument controllers that mimic playing lead and bass guitar, drums, and vocals. As the fourth main installment and the 7th major console installment in the "Rock Band" franchise, it was released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on October 6, 2015. Mad Catz, who also developed new instrument controllers for the game, marketed and distributed the title worldwide at launch; Performance Designed Products (PDP) took over manufacturing and distribution by the end of 2016. The game shipped with more than sixty licensed songs; additional songs are available as downloadable content, which includes a library of over 2000 existing songs from prior installments.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" represented Harmonix's return to the franchise after an almost three-year hiatus, following the diminishing popularity of the rhythm game market that started in 2009. Announced on March 5, 2015, "Rock Band 4" refocuses on the core gameplay of the franchise, reducing the emphasis on musical instruction that was employed by its predecessor, "Rock Band 3", while emphasizing the game's social interactions, as well as new features enabling players to incorporate improvisation into their performance—such as "freestyle solos" on guitar, and "freeform melodies" on multi-part vocals.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" offers backward compatibility with content and hardware from previous versions of "Rock Band" within the same console family; wireless guitar and drum controllers from PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of "Rock Band" can be used on the PS4 and Xbox One versions (with Xbox One requiring a newly produced USB dongle and PS4 not requiring any new hardware), and DLC songs purchased on prior installments on PS3 and Xbox 360 can be re-downloaded at no extra charge on PS4 and Xbox One in a ported form that supports the game's features. Harmonix plans to release free and paid DLC that will add new features and content to the game over time, in lieu of releasing yearly installments; this includes the addition of support for synchronous online play added on January 25, 2017.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Critical reception to "Rock Band 4" on-launch was positive, with reviews praising the game for not significantly deviating from the gameplay mechanics of prior installments, as well as the higher degree of creative freedom offered by the Freestyle Solos feature, and its backward compatibility with previously-released content for the "Rock Band" franchise. The game was also criticized for lacking features present in previous versions, such as online multiplayer and practice modes.


title: Rock Band 4

text: The gameplay of "Rock Band 4" follows that from previous games in the series: the player or group of players use special instrument-based controllers or microphones to mimic playing the instruments by following scrolling cues on screen and attempt to play through a song and score points. Players score points for successfully hitting notes, earning a scoring multiplier for hitting a continuous series of notes without mistakes, while failure to hit the right notes can penalize the players' performance and could end the song prematurely. During the song, certain phrases are marked with specially colored notes, which if played correctly, fills the player's Overdrive meter. Once sufficiently filled, the player is able to trigger "Overdrive" through various means depending on instrument, which doubles their scoring multiplier as well as boosting the band's overall performance meter. Players are rated using a five-star system based on their score, and possibly earning a gold star rating if playing on Expert difficulty with a high score.


title: Rock Band 4

text: At "Rock Band 4" release, the game supported three main modes. Quickplay allows the players to select any song to play that is on disc or in the downloadable content library of songs. Players can also engage in Shows which are a series of songs broken up into a number of sets. Some songs in these Shows are predetermined, but others are left to be voted on during a short period between songs by the band members; individual members also have the opportunity to select a song from a limited list during periods of the current song when their musical part is inactive. The available options are based on what songs the collective band members have in their library and the band's chosen theme, and voting options may include specific songs (including one selected mid-song), or broad classifications such as by genre type, release year, or song length. To aid in the cooperative nature of the game, any scoring multipliers and remaining Overdrive are carried over between songs in Gig lists as well as between sets in the Career mode.


title: Rock Band 4

text: The main mode for "Rock Band 4" is a Band Tour career mode which IGN described as a role-playing game. Within the narrative of the Band Tour, the players' band starts off as a small town group with a handful of fans. En route to becoming more popular and successful, the players are tasked with the option of what types of gigs they want their band to play, with various risks and rewards that influence: how many fans the group attains per geographic region; what future gigs they will have available; and how much in-game money they earn (which can be spent customizing their band's clothes and instruments). While there are a number of possible sets that the band can select from with more unlocked as the players progresses in the game, the primary means of advancing the band's narrative is through multi-part Tours which consist of 3 to 6 different shows to be played in order. At the start of each of these Tours, the players will have two options that will affect what type of song sets they will see on the tour and the benefits of completing each set and the overall Tour. For example, players are able to have their band take a corporate-sponsored gig, which will earn the band a large amount of in-game money, but may impact their band's reputation and limit future venues, while taking on smaller shows will not produce as much money, but increase the band's renown and open more possible gigs. Subsequent Tours may require the players to earn more stars from other, single Sets that are available, before that tour is available.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Sets during Band Tours may feature pre-determined song lists or song lists decided by the band similar to the main Sets mode, with available songs limited to certain criteria as overall band difficulty or genre type. Players may also be presented with the option to swap out a song for a crowd-requested one, or to also play an encore song in the same manner as with Sets. The band is not only rated on their general performance based on the five star rating, but as well as the players' stage presence impact the rewards from these gigs, which are based on how well the band performs in unison, such as hitting "Overdrive" together, drummers completing drum fills, and vocalists improvising. Taking crowd requests and completing encores also boosts this stage presence. These will increase the rewards in terms of fans and money at the end of a successful set.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" now has the use of Freestyle Guitar Solos, an optional feature. If this feature is disabled, guitar solos in songs are presented as they were in previous "Rock Band" games with more of the same note-matching aspects in beat with the original song's solo; the player scores as they normally do as during regular song sections, with an added scoring bonus based on the percentage of the solo notes hit correctly. When this feature is enabled, instead of the predefined solo, the game shows suggestions for the solo style to emulate at that time, such as single notes or longer licks, chords, or tremolos, using different patterns to highlight the guitar player's on-screen track. The track markings also indicate which set of fret keys on the instrument control to use, which determine the pitch of the notes. Players cannot fail these freestyle sections, but they are scored on how well they hit the suggested style during the segment, and they can retain their scoring multiplier by performing the proper playing style on each section of the solo. The game includes tutorials to help explain these mechanics to players. Further, the audio feedback from these solos has been refined as to make whatever the player performs stay consistent and in-tune with the other active and backing instruments.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Drums players for "Rock Band 4" are able to count down to start the song as often done by real-life bands. "Rock Band 4" will change how the drummer can trigger overdrive: unlike past titles, where the drummer would gain a free-form section and then strike a specific pad to activate overdrive, which Harmonix found would throw some players off, "Rock Band 4" presents one of a random number of pre-created drum fills that fit the timing of the song when the drummer player has Overdrive available. This feature is backward compatible with all previous songs in the "Rock Band" library.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Vocal players are able to use two- or three-part harmonies as previously used in "The Beatles: Rock Band" and "Rock Band 3", and through contributions from the "Rock Band" fan community, existing "Rock Band" songs that feature vocal harmonies but originally released for the series without harmony support, is updated to include harmonies. Higher difficulty settings for vocals allow for "freeform melodies" where as long as the vocalist is in tune, they can improvise to a degree to add their personal touch to a song. This improvisation is scored separately from the in-tune scoring, thus presenting an additional challenge for this advanced mode.


title: Rock Band 4

text: As with previous "Rock Band" titles, the players has the ability to create custom avatars for their band members within the game, which are displayed in the background visuals while playing through a song. The avatars have several custom aspects such as hair styling, make-up, clothing, and instruments. In-game money can be used to purchase more customization options, while some come as rewards for completing certain parts of the game. "Rock Band 4" ships with more pre-made characters to allow players to get into the game faster, and atop more options from previous games, removes restrictions on gender-fixed items; for example, mustaches and beards were only an option for male characters in previous games.


title: Rock Band 4

text: In an interview with "Vice" in June 2015, Sussman stated that the game would not ship with support for online play, as surveys taken prior to release, and their own tracking, showed that only about 10% of previous "Rock Band" players used the online feature, and thus focused on building out the local play features first for release. Sussman commented that it may be released as part of future patches to the title. The game at launch did support online leaderboards and score tracking at launch, and has added additional asynchronous features since. In April 2016, Harmonix announced that it will add in synchronous online play by the end of 2016. In December 2016, Harmonix delayed the online addition until January 25, 2017 to make sure this feature covered all edge cases that they had encountered in testing.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" is designed by Harmonix as a platform title which can be updated periodically, as opposed to releasing new disc-based versions. These updates are anticipated to include bug fixes and new gameplay features to the base game. Many of the updates are based on feedback from players about the game.


title: Rock Band 4

text: The first major update released on December 8, 2015 includes addition of "variable breakneck speed" which allows players to change the rate of scrolling notes on screen, and an auto bass-kick option that will remove the need for drum players to hit the bass pedal and focus only on the drum pad notes. "Brutal mode" is a challenge mode where, as the player continues doing well on a song, the notes on the scrolling highway will disappear some time after they appear on it, but will still need to be played on time; the speed at which they disappear is based on how well the player is playing, and by clearing the song with what would normally be gold stars, the player earns "Crimson Stars" instead. A new "Score Challenge" gameplay mode will allow players to track what their friends are playing and then asynchronously challenge their scores on the same song, including light-hearted taunts should they win.


title: Rock Band 4

text: A February 2016 update (originally slated for January but pushed back) implemented a number of features to prevent high score cheating via game exploits, as well as changing the nature of non-Tour mode shows to allow their scores to be included in leaderboards. To effect this change, Harmonix had to wipe existing leaderboards, but in the future if similar exploits are found, they will be able to adjust leaderboards for specific songs and instruments.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Playlists were added as part of the game's April 2016 update, and a practice mode and enhanced sort sorting were added with the June 2016 update. The late 2016 updates will also coincide with the release of updated controllers from Performance Designed Products, as announced in March 2016. Harmonix released a patch to include online play on January 25, 2017, an oft-requested feature since "Rock Band 4"s launch; this will require players to have purchased the "Rivals" expansion (described below).


title: Rock Band 4

text: Updates have included additional clothing and instruments for the in-game characters, including Vault suits as part of a promotional tie-in in Bethesda's "Fallout 4", the goggle headgear worn by the protagonist Raz from Double Fine Productions' "Psychonauts", outfits for characters from Gearbox Software's "Battleborn", and instruments and outfits inspired by "". A March 2017 update included a special cel-shaded Sterling Archer avatar from the animated show "Archer", developed in conjunction with Floyd County Productions and FXX.


title: Rock Band 4

text: An update to the game was released alongside "Rivals"; it brought back advanced song filtering options (including the ability to sort songs by their source game) and a song rating system, both present in "Rock Band 3", and introduced a refreshed, dark blue interface theme. These changes are available to all players, regardless of whether they have purchased the expansion or not.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Sussman has asserted that they do not plan to bring back keyboard support that had been in "Rock Band 3", seeing it diverge from their current target for "Rock Band 4".


title: Rock Band 4

text: In addition to free updates to the game, Harmonix has planned to release purchasable expansions to "Rock Band 4", adopting a model similar to such paid expansions on "Destiny" and "World of Warcraft".


title: Rock Band 4

text: The first paid expansion, "Rock Band Rivals", was released on October 18, 2016. The expansion includes two new game modes. The Rivals mode allows up to ten players to form Crews which their collective scoring across songs in an asynchronous manner will be used in challenges against other Crews. This mode includes online scoreboards, weekly challenges, and new rewards in the form of avatar clothing and instruments. Crews compete to be ranked across six tiers based on total score for three spotlight songs and experience gained from other songs in the weekly challenge; only Crews with the highest average rankings based on set percentages of total Crews can be promoted to higher tiers, while Crews with low average rankings could be demoted. Rivals mode was designed to address the issue that trying to coordinate all members of a band to play at the same time could be difficult. The second mode is a story-driven Rockudrama, which use live-action footage as part of the narrative, inspired by documentaries such as "Behind the Music". These segments bookends various sets, and includes selected comments that reflect on the performance, good or bad, that a given player might have during that. Players gain Fame by earning stars in these sets, which are needed to progress further in the Rockudrama, and by achieving a specific amount of fame over several sets, the player can unlock new venues that will appear in other gameplay areas of "Rock Band 4". "Rock Band Rivals" itself did not include additional songs at launch, although those who pre-ordered the expansion received up to twelve new songs for free; these songs were later released for sale to other users. The December 2016 update to "Rivals" provided twelve free songs to all owners from local Boston bands that were part of the interviews for the Rockumentary game mode. The January 2017 update added the Online Quickplay mode and one additional free song to "Rivals".


title: Rock Band 4

text: In a May 2017 patch for "Rivals", the Rivals mode switched to an 8-week Seasonal system, rewarding Crews for placement at the end of the season with unique in-game gear, and eliminating demotions. The update also introduced Missions, similar to the Challenges used in "Rock Band 3", that require players to meet certain goals to complete; some of these will include Missions for Crews as well as single-player challenges. Completing Missions earns unique badges players can showcase on their user profile in-game. The new server architecture of "Rock Band 4" allowed Harmonix to update and add Missions over time without having to patch the game. With the second Season in this new format, Harmonix offers a Season Spotlight Pass that gives the purchaser eight new songs over that Season that are featured as Spotlight songs in the Rivals challenges at a small discount over buying all eight songs individually.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Rhythm games like "Rock Band" and "Guitar Hero" had been widely popular during 2005 to 2008, but due to oversaturation of the market and the onset of the 2009 recession, the rhythm genre suffered major setbacks, and the genre's popularity had quickly waned. Harmonix had released "Rock Band 3" in 2010, and while well received by critics and fans, had only an estimated one million retail sales, lagging behind its dancing game, "Dance Central", released during the same period. Harmonix would continue to support "Rock Band 3" through 2013 with additional content patches and over 280 consecutive weeks of new songs provided as downloadable content (DLC), as well as producing "Rock Band Blitz", an arcade-like rhythm game that did not require instrument controllers, but used existing music libraries. In April 2013, Harmonix released its last regular DLC, stating that they were focusing on other projects. The company noted that they would look to reintroduce "Rock Band" in the future, when they felt the time was right to bring back the game.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Development of "Rock Band 4" began in the last quarter of 2014. This followed from several factors. Harmonix's former CEO and current creative director Alex Rigopulos explained that the studio had awaited both a "critical mass" of adoption for the next-generation consoles, and a "clear and compelling creative vision" for the game before beginning work on a successor—prompting the franchise's hiatus. Rigopulos said that internally if they were going to bring back "Rock Band", they wanted to "really make the best game that we had ever made; that we had a vision for what Rock Band 4 was going to be, that made it worth making, really". A clear vision of the goals for the game came about more than a year prior to the game's release. Harmonix's Greg LoPiccolo added that they did not want to try to introduce "Rock Band 4" during the new consoles' first year where they would have to compete with major franchises. Funding for development was aided by $15 million in investments from Spark Capital and Foundry Group, not only to support "Rock Band 4" but the remake of Harmonix' "Amplitude" and future projects involving virtual reality.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Following the aggressive focus on musical instruction within "Rock Band 3", "Rock Band 4" instead puts a larger focus on the franchise's core gameplay, multiplayer, and the overall feeling of the experience; Rigopulos felt that the franchise had become too "sprawling" in functionality, and that "there is an existing gameplay core that is very powerful and very fun, and we don't want to tamper with that core. At the same time, we need to bring something new to the experience." Owing to this renewed focus, the Pro Guitar and piano keyboard modes were dropped from the game. Rigopulos stated that Ubisoft's competing "Rocksmith" series "is serving the audience that wants actual guitar instrumental instruction very well." The new Freestyle Guitar Solo feature was something that Harmonix had built a prototype for in early 2014; at the time they did not have a clear concept of its use but found the mechanic to have potential and built up parts of "Rock Band 4" around it. Rigopulos also noted that they were not trying to develop "Rock Band 4" with competition from "Guitar Hero Live" in mind; that competition had caused the original over-saturation of the rhythm game market in 2009. With "Rock Band 4", Harmonix' goal is a smaller but known fraction of the market of both old "Rock Band" players and new ones, such that meeting those numbers would make the game financially viable even if it does not outsell "Guitar Hero Live". This goal also helps to manage the costs of the game as they do not have to manufacture as many instrument sets as they had done previously.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Harmonix developed a new game engine called Forge, also used for their remake of "Amplitude", to take advantage of the upgraded hardware of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, allowing the game to run at 1080p at 60 frames per second; product manager Eric Pope stated that the engine included better lighting, character models, and animation. The game was not released for the Wii U or the personal computer market, with product manager Daniel Sussman stating that two issues that would limit a personal computer version is existing music availability, and the lack of security for the specific music tracks which the PlayStation and Xbox consoles already possess. Sussman stated that either platform could be possible in the future if there is market demand, but their present focus was the safest route to bringing "Rock Band" to mass market through the major console platforms.


title: Rock Band 4

text: On January 13, 2015, Harmonix announced three new DLC songs, the first in nearly 21 months. The sudden release, along with a survey posted by Harmonix a few days later, indicated the possibility that the studio was planning to develop a new "Rock Band" game for eighth generation consoles. On March 5, 2015, Harmonix officially announced "Rock Band 4".


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" is expected to be the only retail release of the franchise for the current generation of consoles; Rigopulos called the multiple-release cycle "taxing" on both the studio and consumers, and instead sees the game as a platform which they can continuously improve over the life of the title without excessive work. In August 2015, Harmonix stated that they already have plans for post-release patches, both free and paid, to add new gameplay functionality to expand the "Rock Band 4" title, with plans to release a free patch in December 2015 to include an option for "Variable Breakneck Speed", which affects the rate at which notes scroll on the screen, among other features.


title: Rock Band 4

text: In March 2016, Harmonix launched a crowd funding campaign through the Fig platform to produce "Rock Band 4" for personal computers, to have been released in the last quarter of 2016. Harmonix estimated the game would cost $2 million to make, of which they would contribute $500,000 towards if they can raise the remaining $1.5 million. The port would have been primarily handled by Sumo Digital, integrating the updates that Harmonix will continue to provide in the main game. The game would have been released via Steam, allowing users to use the Steam Workshop to create their own songs and distribute it to others, with curation by Harmonix to avoid copyright infringements, in a manner comparable to the Rock Band Network but at a lower cost; they have already ported the previous Rock Band Network tools to offer to backers of the campaign. Harmonix planned to allow compatibility with all existing instrument controllers from the various PlayStation 2, 3 and 4, and Xbox 360 and One platforms, and had begun working through details with Sony and Microsoft. The game would have shipped with the same 65 songs as the console version, and at least 1700 songs for downloadable content (all those currently available for "Rock Band 4" on consoles), though, as with the console versions, users would have had to repurchase these songs on the PC and cannot transfer over songs they already own on either platform. The funding campaign failed to reach its goal, only obtaining about $793,000 of the $1.5M target; Harmonix has not ruled out approaching a personal computer version in the future as they are aware there is some demand for "Rock Band" there.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Harmonix has confirmed that with the backward compatibility of both the Xbox Series X and Series S and PlayStation 5 consoles to be released in November 2020, that "Rock Band 4" will be playable on the new consoles with most of the officially-supported instruments that worked on Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and that players will be able to bring over all downloadable content they had purchased to the new consoles. Further, players within the same console family (PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, for example) will be able to use the online multiplayer features together. Harmonix plans to continue to support the game with further DLC after the new console's launch.


title: Rock Band 4

text: At launch, Mad Catz handled the global production, sales, and promotion of the retail game, while Harmonix handled the digital content and sales. Mad Catz developed updated guitar and drum controllers for "Rock Band 4"; the company noted that while it did not want to "reinvent the wheel", the controllers still featured technical improvements, such as reduced wireless latency and a more sensitive tilt sensor on the guitar. Guitars feature switches that have much longer lifetimes compared to previous controllers, while the drum controller included reinforced pads to prevent damage to the sensor, and includes a double-bass kick setup out of the box. The drum kit can be expanded with an optional set of three hit-sensitive pads that act as cymbals, which allow the player to use the game's "Pro Drum" mode as introduced in "Rock Band 3"; in this mode, certain gems will be marked as cymbal hits instead of drum hits, requiring the player to make that distinction to score points. The microphone had also been redesigned, and is able to sample at a higher rate to help with the vocal improvisation sections. At PAX East, a special "Penny Arcade"-themed guitar with artwork of Gabe was made available as a limited edition exclusive.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Harmonix stated that it had "aggressively" worked with console manufacturers on means to allow guitar and drum controllers from the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of "Rock Band" to be forward compatible with "Rock Band 4"; Harmonix and Mad Catz both agreed that while technically difficult to complete, this compatibility was necessary to support the "Rock Band" community. "Rock Band 4" on PlayStation 4 natively supports PlayStation 3 "Rock Band" instruments by means of the USB dongle that they require to operate. Achieving backward compatibility with Xbox 360 instruments was more difficult, as they had used the console's native wireless controller capabilities instead, which had changed between the Xbox 360 and Xbox One. On Xbox One, standalone copies of "Rock Band 4" are bundled with a "Legacy Adapter" to allow use of wireless Xbox 360 instrument controllers, including those developed to support "Guitar Hero" games. Due to the inclusion of this hardware, the retail price of "Rock Band 4" on Xbox One was higher than the PS4 version.


title: Rock Band 4

text: The Adapter was developed by Mad Catz by experimenting with all legacy Xbox 360 controllers they wanted to support and verifying what inputs they sent via wireless connection. They also worked with a former Microsoft employee that had experience with the Xbox 360's wireless features for additional insight. Existing USB microphones remain compatible with "Rock Band 4". Harmonix was also working to get backward compatibility for the Stage Kit, an add-on hardware unit for Xbox 360 owners that allowed for a smoke machine and light show display in time with the song. Owing to the game's focus on core gameplay, and concerns that consumers may be unwilling to buy additional hardware for specific games early in a console generation's lifecycle, "Rock Band 4" did not feature additional accessories. At retail, the game is available in a band bundle, with a guitar, drum, and microphone, and a guitar-only bundle.


title: Rock Band 4

text: In March 2016, Harmonix announced that Mad Catz would be replaced by Performance Designed Products (PDP) as "Rock Band 4"s publisher and hardware partner later in the year, with updated hardware to be released at that time to coincide with the upcoming "Rivals" expansion for the game. In June 2016, Harmonix announced they had signed an extension with their deal with Fender to continue use the name and branding within the "Rock Band" series through 2027, and that new peripheral hardware based on Fender's instruments would be available soon.


title: Rock Band 4

text: During E3 2016, PDP and Harmonix unveiled new hardware that was released alongside the "Rock Band Rivals" expansion. A new guitar controller based on the Fender Jaguar features improvements to the strum bar and tilt sensor, while its neck can fold down for easier storage. An optional rechargeable battery pack and charging stand for the Jaguar controller was also unveiled. A new full band bundle featuring "Rock Band 4" and the "Rivals" expansion, a Jaguar guitar and a drumkit shipped alongside the digital release of the "Rivals" expansion in late 2016. With the PDP-supplied instruments, Harmonix will be able to offer the instrument-and-game bundles at lower cost than on the game's initial release; for example, the game and guitar bundle on release initially had a MSRP of $120, but the new bundle will be priced at $90. While part of this reduction in cost is attributed to the age of the game, Sussman stated that several factors relating to PDP's manufacturing and business models allows them to offer the packages at a more competitive price point.


title: Rock Band 4

text: PDP had also offered a wired legacy adapter for use with wired instruments (such as first-generation "Rock Band" hardware and the Ion Drum Rocker) and the "Rock Band 3" MIDI-Pro Adapter. However, following its initial shipment in November 2016, PDP affirmed that their terms of licensing with Harmonix only allowed them to produced a limited number of the units, less than the demand that was found for the device.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" ships with 65 songs on disc, spanning from the 1960s to the 2010s. The studio also worked to ensure that as much of its existing library of downloadable songs would be compatible with the game upon its release as possible; 1,500 songs were available at launch. Nearly all existing official "Rock Band" DLC is compatible with "Rock Band 4" within the same console family (i.e. PlayStation 4 can only import songs purchased on PlayStation 3, and Xbox One can only import songs purchased on Xbox 360). Previous disc exports from the previous disc-based games in the series (excluding ""), the Track Packs, and from "Rock Band Blitz" will eventually be available for players, as long as they have previously performed the disc export; there will be no option to export these songs into "Rock Band 4". "Rock Band 3" on-disc songs are expected to be exportable into "Rock Band 4" in December 2015. "If you bought a Rock Band song, it should be yours in "Rock Band 4"," said Sussman. "Everything that you have already exported will come over." Following transition of all official DLC, Harmonix announced in May 2018 it will also start bringing the most popular and fan-requested entries from the Rock Band Network into "Rock Band 4". In most cases, existing songs will be updated to use both Freestyle Guitar and Vocals within "Rock Band 4".


title: Rock Band 4

text: Harmonix has resumed releasing DLC since the release of "Rock Band 4", generally releasing three to six new songs each week, with DLC not being released during the weeks that a new patch is introduced. Beginning in May 2016, however, Harmonix has stated that they will only be releasing two songs per week for the foreseeable future while they work on other projects.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "Rock Band 4" received positive reviews from critics, who judged that the game does not significantly deviate from its past, otherwise strong, iterations, but considered the soundtrack to be weaker than previous games. Aggregating review websites GameRankings and Metacritic gave the Xbox One version 79.64% based on 22 reviews and 79/100 based on 27 reviews and the PlayStation 4 version 78.47% based on 31 reviews and 78/100 based on 51 reviews.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "IGN" praised "Rock Band 4" for remaining "every bit the magical cooperative gaming experience the series has always been", with a particular focus on its continuity in gameplay with previous installments, and its "party-friendly" improvements to managing multiplayer play. The Freestyle Solos feature was also praised for allowing players more creative freedom in their performance. The game's on-disc soundtrack was considered "weaker" than previous installments, describing it as primarily featuring "B-list" musicians, lesser-known songs by notable acts (such as Rush) that had not yet been featured in "Rock Band", and lacking a number of major acts that had historically made appearances in the franchise. However, it was acknowledged that the game's backward compatibility with songs purchased for previous versions provided a "massive incentive" for players with pre-existing libraries. The Tour mode was praised for its unpredictability and humor, although noting that it was more fun with a larger library of songs beyond those included with the game.


title: Rock Band 4

text: "GameSpot" noted that the Freestyle Solos "genuinely enhance[d] the core experience", explaining that players "can actually create some really cool sounding stuff. Like, surprisingly cool. And it's weirdly addictive. It's not the same adrenaline-fueled, fist-pumping thrill of nailing every note in a really technical section, but there is an unexpected sense of discovery and reward". Although praising "Rock Band 4" for maintaining the "spirit" of prior installments, it was panned for not distinguishing itself enough from them, such as describing the career mode as being an iteration of a structure already used in previous music games (including "Rock Band 2"). Regressions were also noted, such as a lack of practice modes beyond Freestyle Solo tutorials, the shallowness of character customization, and the removal of online multiplayer. The soundtrack was also described as "underwhelming", albeit acknowledging several "seriously inspired choices", such as The Protomen.


title: Rock Band 4

text: NPD Group reported that "Rock Band 4" was the tenth best selling game for October 2015 based on units, while accounting for price, was the fourth best selling game. Analyst Michael Pachter estimated revenue from "Rock Band 4" sales were about $100 million in early 2016. Mad Catz, prior to release, had anticipated high sales of "Rock Band 4" in part to avoid defaulting to their current debtor; however, sales were lower than expected based on their 2016 Fiscal Year results. Though "Rock Band 4" contributed significantly towards sales of controller hardware for Mad Catz, the company found the game's "sell-through was lower than originally forecast resulting in higher inventory balances as well as lower margins due to increased promotional activity with retailers". Alongside reporting of these results, several senior executive members resigned from the company, and the company laid off 37% of its staff as part of a restructuring plan. In their financial earnings report given mid-2016, Mad Catz reported a total loss of more than $11 million, much of it attributed to unsold "Rock Band 4" inventory. Harmonix subsequently announced in March 2016 that Mad Catz would be replaced by PDP as the game's publishing and hardware partner. In Mad Catz's 2016 annual financial report, the company said that its partnership with Harmonix for "Rock Band 4" had been a "burden" on the company, as though they ultimately sold all stock of their instruments, the revenues were not as great as anticipated.


title: Rock Band 4

text: Shortly following the game's release, it was discovered that some of Harmonix' employees has submitted very positive customers reviews as anonymous users for the game at Amazon.com. Harmonix stated that they amended their employee policy to require them to identify their employment at Harmonix as part of such reviews or to remove them, and stated the posted reviews were "inappropriate actions". Separately, PlayStation 4 users of "Rock Band 4" in Europe were unable to download some of their previously purchased DLC from the PlayStation Store, at least four weeks after the game's launch. Mad Catz stated that the issue stemmed from technical and licensing difficulties between the various countries served by the European PlayStation Store. Harmonix affirmed there were issues with more than 400 existing songs due to difficulties with licensing between them and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe but that they expect to have these available by early December 2015. Harmonix was finally able to confirm the licensing problems were resolved by December 2016, and anticipates the missing tracks will be available by May 2017.


title: Hurdling

text: Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, the dominant step patterns are the 3-step for high hurdles, 7-step for low hurdles, and 15-step for intermediate hurdles. Hurdling is a highly specialized form of obstacle racing, and is part of the sport of athletics. In hurdling events, barriers known as hurdles are set at precisely measured heights and distances. Each athlete must pass over the hurdles; passing under or intentionally knocking over hurdles will result in disqualification.


title: Hurdling

text: Accidental knocking over of hurdles is not cause for disqualification, but the hurdles are weighted to make doing so disadvantageous. In 1902 Spalding equipment company sold the Foster Patent Safety Hurdle, a wood hurdle. In 1923 some of the wood hurdles weighed each. Hurdle design improvements were made in 1935, when they developed the L-shaped hurdle. With this shape, the athlete could hit the hurdle and it will tip down, clearing the athlete's path. The most prominent hurdles events are 110 meters hurdles for men, 100 meters hurdles for women, and 400 meters hurdles (both sexes) – these three distances are all contested at the Summer Olympics and the World Athletics Championships. The two shorter distances take place on the straight of a running track, while the 400 m version covers one whole lap of a standard oval track. Events over shorter distances are also commonly held at indoor track and field events, ranging from 50 meters hurdles upwards. Women historically competed in the 80 meters hurdles at the Olympics in the mid-20th century. Hurdles race are also part of combined events contests, including the decathlon and heptathlon.


title: Hurdling

text: In track races, hurdles are normally in height, depending on the age and sex of the hurdler. Events from 50 to 110 meters are technically known as high hurdles races, while longer competitions are low hurdles races. The track hurdles events are forms of sprinting competitions, although the 400 m version is less anaerobic in nature and demands athletic qualities similar to the 800 meters flat race.


title: Hurdling

text: A hurdling technique can also be found in the steeplechase, although in this event athletes are also permitted to step on the barrier to clear it. Similarly, in cross country running athletes may hurdle over various natural obstacles, such as logs, mounds of earth, and small streams – this represents the sporting origin of the modern events. Horse racing has its own variant of hurdle racing, with similar principles.


title: Hurdling

text: The standard sprint or short hurdle race is 110 meters for men and 100 meters for women. The standard number of steps to the first hurdle should be 8. The standard long hurdle race is 400 meters for both men and women. Each of these races is run over ten hurdles and they are all Olympic events.


title: Hurdling

text: The men's 200 meters low hurdles event was on the Olympic athletics programme for the 1900 and 1904 Summer Olympics. These low hurdles events were widely participated in the early part of the 20th century, particularly in North America. However, beyond these two Olympic outings, they never gained a consistent place at international competitions and became increasingly rare after the 1960s. This 10-hurdle race continues to be run in places such as Norway.


title: Hurdling

text: Other distances are run, particularly indoors but occasionally outdoors. The sprint hurdle race indoors is usually 60 meters for both men and women, although races 55 meters or 50 meters long are sometimes run, especially in the United States. A 60-meter indoor race is run over 5 hurdles. A shorter race may occasionally have only 4 hurdles. Outdoors, a long hurdle race is sometimes shortened to 300 meters for younger participants, who run over 8 hurdles. For example, high school and middle school athletes in California, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania run the 300 meter hurdles instead of running the 400 meter hurdles, like the majority of state competitors run today. The distance the hurdles are spaced is identical to the beginning of a standard 400 meter race which would have 10 hurdles. There are also 200 meter races for middle school and younger divisions over 5 hurdles (spaced in the same position as the last 5 hurdles of a standard 400 meter race).


title: Hurdling

text: There are five hurdle heights on most standard hurdles. The highest position (sometimes "college high" or "open high") is used for men's sprint hurdle races (60 m, and 110 m), which are . The next highest, (sometimes "high school high"


title: Hurdling

text: ) is used by veteran men under age 50, and younger boys. The middle position of 36 inches (91.44 cm), (sometimes "intermediate") which is used for men's long hurdle races (400 m) plus some youth and veteran age divisions. The next lower position, is called the "women's high" used for women's short hurdle races. The lowest position, called the "low hurdle" is used for women's long hurdles plus many youth and veteran races. Some races call for for youth or veteran events. Hurdles that go to this position are rare and are notable by having a sixth position.


title: Hurdling

text: In sprint hurdle races for men, regardless of the length of the race, the first hurdle is from the starting line and the distance between hurdles is . In sprint hurdle races for women, the first hurdle is from the starting line and the distance between hurdles is . In long hurdle events, whether for men or women, the first hurdle is from the starting line and the distance between hurdles is . Most races which are shorter than the standard distance (such as indoor races) are simply run over fewer hurdles but use the same distances from the starting line. There are variations on hurdle height and spacing for the age groups of athletes competing. See Masters athletics (track and field) and Youth athletics.


title: Hurdling

text: In order to obtain the optimal hurdling technique, one must first learn the proper running techniques. It is important that the runner stays on the balls of his or her feet for the entirety of the race. This makes a fluid movement between each stage of the race.


title: Hurdling

text: There is a technique that is desirable to accomplish efficient hurdling action during a race. Many runners rely mainly on raw speed, but proper technique and well-planned steps leading up to and between each hurdle can allow an efficient hurdler to outrun faster opponents. Generally, the efficient hurdler spends the minimum amount of time and energy going vertically over the hurdle, thus achieving maximum speed in the horizontal race direction down the track.


title: Hurdling

text: When approaching the first hurdle, athletes try to avoid stutter stepping (a term used to refer to the cutting of stride length before reaching a hurdle). This cuts the runner's momentum and costs valuable time. Athletes attack the hurdle by launching at it from 6–7 feet away (depending on the runner's closing speed); the lead leg extended yet slightly bent (because a straight leg leads to more time over the hurdle) so that the heel just narrowly clears the barrier's height. After launching, the trail leg is tucked in horizontally and flat, close to the side of the hip. The objective is to minimize center-of-gravity deviation from normal sprinting and reduce time spent flying through the air.


title: Hurdling

text: In order to hurdle properly and not simply jump over it, a runner must adjust his or her hips to raise them over the hurdles. This involves the correct use of the lead leg, trail leg, and arm positions. The lead leg is the leg that goes over the hurdle first and should remain fairly straight. Upon crossing over the hurdle barrier, the runner's lead leg snaps down quickly landing roughly beyond the hurdle. The trail leg follows the lead leg. The trail leg drives forward at the knee (not swinging, as swinging causes the trunk to straighten up), and pulls through to maintain stride length. An effective trail leg will be parallel to the top of the hurdle and will be as close to the top of the hurdle as possible. As the lead leg is being lifted over the hurdle, the opposite arm should cross the body parallel to the ground. This helps with the runner's balance and rhythm throughout the race.


title: Hurdling

text: In men's hurdles, it is usually necessary to straighten the leg at the top of the flight path over the hurdle, although a partial bend in the knee gains a faster push-off when the athlete hits the ground. The ability to do this depends on the runner's leg length. As soon as the foot has cleared the hurdle, the knee starts bending again to lessen the effect of a long, slow pendulum. In women's hurdles, the lead leg is usually straight and the center of gravity does not rise relative to a normal running stride. Another way to view it is the “foot-path”: "shortest path up and the shortest path down". The opposite arm reaches farther forward and the elbow travels out to the side and then behind to make room for the trailing leg. The trailing leg also leads with the knee, but the foot and knee are horizontal, tucked up as tight as possible into the armpit.


title: Hurdling

text: As soon as the lead leg begins its descent, a strong downward push is exerted to enable the trailing leg's knee to come up under the armpit and in front of the chest. This enables the recovery of some of the energy expended in the flight. As the lead leg touches down to the ground, it is critical that the runner remains in a sprint. As soon as his or her lead leg touches down, the trail leg arm drives the rest of the body forward.


title: Hurdling

text: In the 100 and 110-meter hurdle events, the fastest hurdlers use the three-step technique. This means that three large steps are taken in between all of the hurdles. In order to do this efficiently, hurdlers must take long strides and maintain their speed for the entire race. If a hurdler begins to slow down while three-stepping, they may not be able to make it through all of the hurdles and may have to switch to a four-stepping or five-stepping technique. When three- or five-stepping, a hurdler will use the same lead leg for all of the hurdles. If a hurdler four steps, they will have to switch lead legs at each hurdle.


title: Hurdling

text: A modern hurdle will fall over if a runner hits it. There is no penalty for hitting a hurdle (provided this is not judged deliberate). The misconception is based on old rules before the hurdles were weighted. In the 1932 Olympics, Bob Tisdall famously won the Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles in World Record time, but was not credited with the record due to knocking over a hurdle. There can be a disqualification if a hurdler knocks a hurdle into an opponent's lane and it is judged to have interfered with the opponent's ability to run the race. There are now specifications for the tipping weight of a hurdle (the weights need to be adjusted to correspond with the height of the hurdle) so hitting a hurdle theoretically slows down the rhythm of the hurdler. However, pushing the hurdle with one's hands or running out of one's lane as a result of hitting the hurdle is cause for disqualification. While hitting hurdles is not generally considered desirable, a few sprint hurdlers have succeeded despite knocking over many hurdles. Contact with hurdles can decrease speed and also result in disruption of a hurdler's technique. Some coaches suggest if you lightly "kiss" the hurdle with the side of the leg closest to the hurdle, it can help with the runner's speed by keeping the runner closer to the ground.


title: Hurdling

text: There are also shuttle hurdle relay races, although they are rarely run. They are usually only found at track meets that consist entirely of relay races. In a shuttle hurdle relay, each of four hurdlers on a team runs the opposite direction from the preceding runner. The standard races correspond to the standard sprint hurdle races: 4 × 110 m for men and 4 × 100 m for women.


title: Hurdling

text: The shuttle hurdle relay has a maximum of only 4 teams, since most tracks only have 8 lanes. Two lanes will be taken up by one team. The #1 and #3 runners on the team will run in one direction down one specific lane and the #2 and #4 runners will run in the opposite direction in the other lane. The runners on each team go in sequence from 1 to 4.


title: Hurdling

text: Instead of using batons, the runners waiting for their teammate to finish must wait until their teammate gets to a certain point to begin their part of the race. There will be an official looking to see if they take off too early. If they do so, then they will be disqualified; if they take off late then it will just hurt their time and chances of winning the event.


title: Hurdling

text: In the United States, the men's team of Aries Merritt, Jason Richardson, Aleec Harris, and David Oliver, set the world record in the 440m shuttle hurdle relay race at a time of 52.94 seconds (set on April 25, 2015). On the women's side, Brianna Rollins, Dawn Harper-Nelson, Queen Harrison, Kristi Castlin, together ran a 400m shuttle hurdle race at a world record time of 50.50 seconds on August 24, 2015.


title: Hurdling

text: Shuttle hurdle relay was introduced at the 2019 IAAF World Relays, it consist of a race in which two men and two women on each team are running a 110 m hurdles.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: The Russian colonization of North America covers the period from 1732 to 1867, when the Russian Empire laid claim to northern Pacific Coast territories in the Americas. Russian colonial possessions in the Americas are collectively known as Russian America. Russian expansion eastward began in 1552, and in 1639 Russian explorers reached the Pacific Ocean. In 1725, Emperor Peter the Great ordered navigator Vitus Bering to explore the North Pacific for potential colonization. The Russians were primarily interested in the abundance of fur-bearing mammals on Alaska's coast, as stocks had been depleted by over hunting in Siberia. Bering's first voyage was foiled by thick fog and ice, but in 1741 a second voyage by Bering and Aleksei Chirikov made sight of the North American mainland.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: Russian "promyshlenniki" (trappers and hunters) quickly developed the maritime fur trade, which instigated several conflicts between the Aleuts and Russians in the 1760s. The fur trade proved to be a lucrative enterprise, capturing the attention of other European nations. In response to potential competitors, the Russians extended their claims eastward from the Commander Islands to the shores of Alaska. In 1784, with encouragement from Empress Catherine the Great, explorer Grigory Shelekhov founded Russia's first permanent settlement in Alaska at Three Saints Bay. Ten years later, the first group of Orthodox Christian missionaries began to arrive, evangelizing thousands of Native Americans, many of whose descendants continue to maintain the religion. By the late 1780s, trade relations had opened with the Tlingits, and in 1799 the Russian-American Company (RAC) was formed in order to monopolize the fur trade, also serving as an imperialist vehicle for the Russification of Alaska Natives.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: Angered by encroachment on their land and other grievances, the indigenous peoples' relations with the Russians deteriorated. In 1802, Tlingit warriors destroyed several Russian settlements, most notably Redoubt Saint Michael (Old Sitka), leaving New Russia as the only remaining outpost on mainland Alaska. This failed to expel the Russians, who reestablished their presence two years later following the Battle of Sitka. (Peace negotiations between the Russians and Native Americans would later establish a "modus vivendi", a situation that, with few interruptions, lasted for the duration of Russian presence in Alaska.) In 1808, Redoubt Saint Michael was rebuilt as New Archangel and became the capital of Russian America after the previous colonial headquarters were moved from Kodiak. A year later, the RAC began expanding its operations to more abundant sea otter grounds in Northern California, where Fort Ross was built in 1812.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: By the middle of the 19th century, profits from Russia's North American colonies were in steep decline. Competition with the British Hudson's Bay Company had brought the sea otter to near extinction, while the population of bears, wolves, and foxes on land was also nearing depletion. Faced with the reality of periodic Native American revolts, the political ramifications of the Crimean War, and unable to fully colonize the Americas to their satisfaction, the Russians concluded that their North American colonies were too expensive to retain. Eager to release themselves of the burden, the Russians sold Fort Ross in 1842, and in 1867, after less than a month of negotiations, the United States accepted Emperor Alexander II's offer to sell Alaska. The purchase of Alaska for $7.2 million ended Imperial Russia's colonial presence in the Americas.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: The earliest written accounts indicate that Russians were the first Europeans to reach Alaska. There is an unofficial assumption that Slavonic navigators reached the coast of Alaska long before the 18th century.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: In 1648 Semyon Dezhnev sailed from the mouth of the Kolyma River through the Arctic Ocean and around the eastern tip of Asia to the Anadyr River. One legend holds that some of his boats were carried off course and reached Alaska. However, no evidence of settlement survives. Dezhnev's discovery was never forwarded to the central government, leaving open the question of whether or not Siberia was connected to North America.


title: Russian colonization of North America

text: Europeans first sighted the Alaskan coastline in 1732; this sighting was made by the Russian maritime explorer and navigator Ivan Fedorov from sea near present-day Cape Prince of Wales on the eastern boundary of the Bering Strait opposite Russian Cape Dezhnev. He did not land.