title: Two Point Hospital

text: The game's humour was also widely praised by critics. UK newspaper "Metro" regarded the "amusing script and visual humour" of "Two Point Hospital" as one of its best features, calling it "endearing". Nic Reuben of "Rock, Paper, Shotgun" also commented on the game's humour, writing: "it's not that any individual element is hilarious – it's more of an infinite dads pulling infinite crackers sort of scenario. It just feels comfy, goofy and pleasant ..." James Swinbanks of "GameSpot" and "GamesRadar+"s Rachel Weber echoed these sentiments by complimented the game's British sense of humour. "GamesTM" believed the humour was taken from Bullfrog and praised the balance, saying the game is not "trying too hard" and keeps it light-hearted. Steven Asarch of US magazine "Newsweek" with this sentiment, and lauded the game's "sick, depraved sense of humor".


title: Two Point Hospital

text: "Shacknews"'s Chris Jarrard liked the sound effect and believed that the game's "outstanding" radio station helps put "Two Point Hospital" on par with Bullfrog games. José Cabrera of "IGN Spain" was positive about the gameplay, referring to the game as being "fun and light-hearted" and praising its addictiveness along with Asarch. Cabrera also called the game a "perfectly balanced simulation". TJ Hafer believed "Two Point Hospital" "revitalizes the business management genre". Fraser Brown of "PC Gamer" magazine agreed with Hafer, calling it a "brilliant management game, regardless of nostalgia". The presentation was also received well. Whereas Weber was complimentary of the visuals, calling them a "delight", Paul Tamburro of "Game Revolution" lauded the "seriously impressive" user interface specifically, believing that the game took "all the work out of management". He and Weber also liked the learning curve. The characters and animation were commended by Reeves, who believed they were influenced by Aardman Animations, and Brendan Frye of Canadian magazine "CGMagazine" likewise thought the animation is similar to "Wallace and Gromit". Brown, however, was critical of the game's balance, stating that some "missions bleed together" and only a few levels are noticeably distinct.


title: Two Point Hospital

text: Some reviewers were more critical of the similarities to "Theme Hospital". "GamesTM" believed that "Two Point Hospital" is too similar to "Theme Hospital", saying that more could have been done to distance itself from it. The room design also received critique. Jarrard found that item placement and hospital construction can be "incredibly frustrating" when one is not used to it. He further stated that he believed some room types were not fully thought out and working them into the hospital is not easy. Reeves disliked needing to build a hospital from scratch when moving to a new one. Other criticisms were levied at the game's repetition, the lack of an ability to copy rooms, and the lack of a sandbox mode.


title: Two Point Hospital

text: The game won the "Editor's Choice" award from both "PC Gamer UK" and "Game Revolution". "Polygon" also awarded "Two Point Hospital" its Polygon Recommends badge. "Two Point Hospital" was ranked number six on "Bit-Tech"s "Best Games of 2018" list. In 2020, Rock, Paper, Shotgun rated it number 6 on their best management games for the PC.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Lebanese diaspora refers to Lebanese migrants and their descendants who emigrated from Lebanon and now reside in other countries. There are more Lebanese living outside Lebanon (over 4 million), than within the country (4 million citizens). The diaspora population consists of Christians, Muslims, Druze, and Jewish. The Christians trace their origin to several waves of emigration, starting with the exodus that followed the 1860 Lebanon conflict in Ottoman empire.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Under the current Lebanese nationality law, diaspora Lebanese do not have an automatic right to return to Lebanon. Varying degrees of assimilation and a high degree of inter-ethnic marriages in the Lebanese diaspora communities, regardless of religious affiliation, caused most diaspora Lebanese not to have passed fluency in Arabic to their children although they still maintain a Lebanese ethnic identity.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The largest diaspora by far resides in Brazil, with between 5 and 7 million, followed by Colombia and Argentina, with about 1 to 3 million each, but it may be an exaggeration, given that an official survey conducted by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) showed that less than 1 million Brazilians claimed any Middle-Eastern origin.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Although there are no reliable figures, the diaspora is estimated to be around 4 to 14 million people, far more than the internal population of Lebanon of around 4.6 million citizens in 2020. According to other estimates, the number of Lebanese living outside the country is thought to at least double the number of citizens living inside, which means at least 8 million people. Of the diaspora, 1.2 million are Lebanese citizens.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The Lebanese diaspora has always been a target to the Lebanese state to create institutional connection. In 1960 the World Lebanese Cultural Union was established under the authority of the President Fu’ad Chehab.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: France has always been an important destination for the Lebanese diaspora, because Lebanon used to be a French colony and because French language is massively spoken in Lebanon.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The Lebanese diaspora, while historically trade-related, has more recently been linked to the Lebanese Civil War, with many Lebanese emigrating to Western countries. Because of the economic opportunities, many Lebanese have also worked in the Arab World, most notably Arab states of the Persian Gulf such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Currently around 61% of Lebanese citizens resident in Lebanon are Muslim, around 34% are Christian, and about 5% Druze.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The Americas have long been a destination for Lebanese migration, with Lebanese arriving in some countries at least as early as the nineteenth century. The largest concentration of Lebanese outside the Middle East is in Brazil, which has, according to some sources, at least 6 million Brazilians of Lebanese ancestry, making Brazil's population of Lebanese greater than the entire population of Lebanon. According to a research conducted by IBGE in 2008, covering only the states of Amazonas, Paraíba, São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, Mato Grosso and Distrito Federal, 0.9% of white Brazilian respondents said they had family origins in the Middle East


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: There are also other large Lebanese communities elsewhere in South America, including Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay and Venezuela. Many Lebanese have also been settled for quite some time in the United States, Australia, France, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa and in the European Union member states. In addition, sizable populations exist in the United Arab Emirates and Singapore, as well as West Africa, particularly Ivory Coast and Ghana.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Many Lebanese entrepreneurs and business people worldwide have proved very successful in all kinds of sectors and contexts. Lebanese abroad are considered "rich, educated and influential." Remittances from Lebanese abroad to family members within the country were estimated at $8.9 billion in 2014 and accounted for 18% of the country's economy. However, there remains a great untapped potential for further collaboration and cooperation between the diaspora and the Lebanese in their home country. Foreign direct investment is below 7% of the GDP, and almost half the Lebanese population is in tertiary education.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Throughout its history, the Lebanese diaspora used the Lebanese identity to create strong networks to help its members out. Over the course of time, immigration has indeed yielded Lebanese "commercial networks" throughout the world. Lebanese migrants play an important role in assisting Lebanon and its people through financial support, touristic visits, starting businesses and trades.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The list below contains approximate figures for people of full or partial Lebanese descent by country of residence, largely taken from the iLoubnan diaspora map. Additional reliable cites have been provided where possible. Additional estimates have been included where they can be cited; where applicable, these are used in place of the iLoubnan figures. The figure below uses the data from the list and calculates the amount of Lebanese residents as a percentage of the total population of the respective country.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Note: An important percentage of Middle-Easterners in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela, Bulgaria, Romania, Italy, Portugal and Spain are of Lebanese ancestry. They are denoted ** for this purpose.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The Lebanese government increasingly sees the diaspora as a critical resource for investment and new immigrants. A 2016 television ad tried to entice Lebanese in the United States to move to Lebanon to help improve the standard of living.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: The Lebanese government launched the DiasporaID program in August 2017 to better connect Lebanese abroad to Lebanon itself. Funding for the project was provided by USAID with an objective of improving foreign investment in Lebanon.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: On August 8, 2017, Lebanese President Michel Aoun advocated children of Lebanese in the diaspora take on Lebanese citizenship during a speech to the Maronite Diaspora Institution at Baabda Palace.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Famous scientists of Lebanese descent include: Peter Medawar (Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine), Elias Corey (Nobel Prize in Chemistry), Michael Atiyah (Fields Medalist, Mathematics), Michael DeBakey (medical innovator), Mona Nemer (Canada's Chief Science Advisor) and geneticists Huda Zoghbi, Anthony Atala and Joanne Chory. Famous writers include William Peter Blatty, film director Alex Garland, Nassim Nicholas Taleb and screenwriters and film producers Geoff Johns, Tony Thomas, Ronald Schwary, Tomas Langmann, Mario Kassar and Michael Tadross.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Prominent members of the Lebanese diaspora include Presidents and Vice-Presidents, e.g. Michel Temer (Brazil), Julio Teodoro Salem, Abdalá Bucaram, Alberto Dahik, Jamil Mahuad (all in Ecuador), Jacobo Majluta Azar, Luis Abinader (Dominican Republic), Julio Cesar Turbay (Colombia), Alberto Abdala (Uruguay) and Mario Abdo (current president of Paraguay). Other famous politicians include Ralph Nader, 2000, 2004 and 2008 US presidential candidate, Alex Azar current United States Secretary of Health, Spencer Abraham former United States Secretary of Energy, Mark Esper former United States Secretary of Defense, John Sununu former White House Chief of Staff, Darrell Issa US politician, George J. Mitchell US Politician and Peace Envoy, Charlie Crist Governor of Florida, Philip Habib US Politician and Peace Envoy, politician and author Jeanine Pirro, US Representative Donna Shalala, and Edward Seaga Prime Minister of Jamaica.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Notable military and astronauts include US army general John Abizaid, Navy Seal and Medal of Honor recipient Michael Monsoor as well as astronaut and Congressional Space Medal of Honor recipient Christa McAuliffe. Computer scientists include Richard Rashid, Jerrier Haddad, Tony Fadell and Jean Paoli.


title: Lebanese diaspora

text: Famous businessmen of Lebanese descent include Carlos Slim Helú, Carlos Ghosn, Nicolas Hayek, John J. Mack, Jacques Nasser, Debra Cafaro, Joseph J Jacobs, Lucie Salhany, Kevin O' Leary, Marcus Lemonis and famous names in entertainment like Danny Thomas, Marlo Thomas, Salma Hayek, Shakira, Jenna Dewan, Terrence Malick, Tom Shadyac, Tony Shalhoub, Tiffany, Jim Backus, Jane Wiedlin, Kristy McNichol, Zoe Saldana, James Stacy, Catherine Keener, Vince Vaughn, Amy Yasbeck, Khrystyne Haje, Skandar Keynes, Jace Norman, Morena Baccarin, Barbara Mori, Omar Sharif, Ricardo Darin, Xavier Dolan, Damian Bichir, Paul Anka, Emilio Stefan, Drake's long time producers and Grammy winners Noah "40" Shebib and Oliver El-Khatib, Alfredo Bojalil, Oscar-winning composer Gabriel Yared, guitarists Dick Dale, Tommy Bolin and G. E. Smith, Armand Van Helden, Tyler Joseph, Jack Barakat, Bazzi, Thomas Rhett, Patrick Gemayel, Mika, models Yamila Diaz-Rahi, Daniella Sarahyba and Zaira Nara; and sportsmen like Doug Flutie, Rony Seikaly, Marcos Bagdhatis, Patrick Maroon, Johnny Manziel, surfers Kelly Slater and Maya Gabeira, winner of the Indy 500 Bobby Rahal, FIFA World Cup record holder Mario Zagallo, chess Grandmaster Jennifer Shahade and Olympic medalists Jordyn Wieber, Florencia Habif, Matt Abood and Thaisa Daher.


title: MinGW

text: MinGW ("Minimalist GNU for Windows"), formerly mingw32, is a free and open source software development environment to create Microsoft Windows applications.


title: MinGW

text: MinGW includes a port of the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC), GNU Binutils for Windows (assembler, linker, archive manager), a set of freely distributable Windows specific header files and static import libraries which enable the use of the Windows API, a Windows native build of the GNU Project's GNU Debugger, and miscellaneous utilities.


title: MinGW

text: MinGW does not rely on third-party C runtime dynamic-link library (DLL) files, and because the runtime libraries are not distributed using the GNU General Public License (GPL), it is not necessary to distribute the source code with the programs produced, unless a GPL library is used elsewhere in the program.


title: MinGW

text: MinGW can be run either on the native Microsoft Windows platform, cross-hosted on Linux (or other Unix), or "cross-native" on Cygwin. Although programs produced under MinGW are 32-bit executables, they can be used both in 32 and 64-bit versions of Windows.


title: MinGW

text: The development of the MinGW project has been forked with the creation in 2005–2008 of an alternative project called Mingw-w64.


title: MinGW

text: MinGW was originally called mingw32 ("Minimalist GNU for W32"), following the GNU convention whereby Windows is shortened as "W32". The numbers were dropped in order to avoid the implication that it would be limited to producing 32-bit binaries. Colin Peters authored the initial release in 1998, consisting only of a Cygwin port of GCC. Jan-Jaap van der Heijden created a Windows-native port of GCC and added binutils and make. Mumit Khan later took over development, adding more Windows-specific features to the package, including the Windows system headers by Anders Norlander. In 2000, the project was moved to SourceForge in order to solicit more assistance from the community and centralize its development.


title: MinGW

text: MSYS (a contraction of "Minimal System") was introduced as a Bourne shell command line interpreter system with the aim of better interoperability with native Windows software.


title: MinGW

text: In 2018, following a disagreement with SourceForge about the administration of its mailing lists, MinGW migrated to OSDN.


title: MinGW

text: In 2007, a fork of the original MinGW called Mingw-w64 appeared in order to provide support for 64 bits and new APIs. It has since then gained widespread use and distribution. MSYS2 ("minimal system 2") is a software distribution and a development platform for Microsoft Windows, based on Mingw-w64 and Cygwin, that helps to deploy code from the Unix world on Windows.


title: MinGW

text: Most languages supported by GCC are supported on the MinGW port as well. These include C, C++, Objective-C, Objective-C++, Fortran, and Ada. The GCC runtime libraries are used (libstdc++ for C++, libgfortran for Fortran, etc.).


title: MinGW

text: MinGW links by default to the Windows OS component library MSVCRT, which is the C library that Visual C++ version 6.0 linked to (the initial target was CRTDLL), which was released in 1998 and therefore does not include support for C99 features, or even all of C89. While targeting MSVCRT yields programs that require no additional runtime redistributables to be installed, the lack of support for C99 has caused porting problems, particularly where printf-style conversion specifiers are concerned. These issues have been partially mitigated by the implementation of a C99 compatibility library, "libmingwex", but the extensive work required is far from complete and may never be fully realized. Mingw-w64 has resolved these issues, and provides fully POSIX compliant printf functionality.


title: MinGW

text: Binaries (executables or DLLs) generated with different C++ compilers (like MinGW and Visual Studio) are in general not link compatible. However, compiled C code is link compatible.


title: MinGW

text: The MinGW project maintains and distributes a number of different core components and supplementary packages, including various ports of the GNU toolchain, such as GCC and binutils, translated into equivalent packages. These utilities can be used from the Windows command line or integrated into an IDE. Packages may be installed using the command line via mingw-get.


title: MinGW

text: MinGW supports dynamic libraries named according to the codice_1 and codice_2 conventions, as well as static libraries following the codice_3 naming convention common on Unix and Unix-like systems.


title: MinGW

text: In addition, a component of MinGW known as "MSYS" ("minimal system") provides Windows ports of a lightweight Unix-like shell environment including rxvt and a selection of POSIX tools sufficient to enable autoconf scripts to run, but it does not provide a C compiler or a case-sensitive file system.


title: MinGW

text: "mingwPORTs" are user contributed additions to the MinGW software collection. Rather than providing these "add-ons" as precompiled binary packages, they are supplied in the form of interactive Bourne shell scripts, which guide the end user through the process of automatically downloading and patching original source code, then building and installing it. Users who wish to build any application from a mingwPORT must first install both MinGW and MSYS.


title: MinGW

text: The implementation of Windows system headers and static import libraries are released under a permissive license, while the GNU ports are provided under the GNU General Public License. Binary downloads of both the complete MSYS package and individual MinGW GNU utilities are available from the MinGW site.


title: MinGW

text: Although both Cygwin and MinGW can be used to port Unix software to Windows, they have different approaches: Cygwin aims to provide a complete POSIX layer comprising a full implementation of all major Unix system calls and libraries. Compatibility is considered a higher priority than performance. On the other hand, MinGW's priorities are simplicity and performance. As such, it does not provide certain POSIX APIs which cannot easily be implemented using the Windows API, such as codice_4, codice_5 and codice_6. Applications written using a cross-platform library that has itself been ported to MinGW, such as SDL, wxWidgets, Qt, or GTK, will usually compile as easily in MinGW as they would in Cygwin.


title: MinGW

text: Windows programs written with Cygwin run on top of a copylefted compatibility DLL that must be distributed with the program, unless staticly linked. If dynamically linked, the program must also provide information on where to obtain Cygwin source. MinGW does not require a compatibility layer, since MinGW-based programs are compiled with direct calls to Windows APIs.


title: MinGW

text: The combination of MinGW and MSYS provides a small, self-contained environment that can be loaded onto removable media without leaving entries in the registry or files on the computer.


title: MinGW

text: It is also possible to cross-compile Windows applications with MinGW-GCC under POSIX systems. This means that developers do not need a Windows installation with MSYS to compile software that will run on Windows with or without Cygwin.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: A Federal Firearms License (FFL) is a license in the United States that enables an individual or a company to engage in a business pertaining to the manufacture or importation of firearms and ammunition, or the interstate and intrastate sale of firearms. Holding an FFL to engage in certain such activities has been a legal requirement within the United States since the enactment of the Gun Control Act of 1968. The FFL is issued by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE, commonly known as the "ATF")


title: Federal Firearms License

text: The Federal Firearms License was established to implement the Gun Control Act of 1968. The 1968 act was an update or revision of the Federal Firearms Act of 1938 (FFA), which required all manufacturers and dealers of firearms who ship or receive firearms or ammunition in interstate or foreign commerce to have a license, and forbade them from transferring any firearm or most ammunition to any person interstate unless certain conditions were met. As a practical matter, this did not affect the interstate commerce in firearms or ammunition, because the 1938 FFA lacked a provision specifically restricting "prohibited purchasers" as defined in the FFA from purchasing firearms under false pretenses/documentation (i.e. those who would otherwise have been considered "prohibited purchasers" were still able to get away with firearms purchases by providing falsified identity information; since background checks as understood today did not yet exist, convicted felons and other "prohibited purchasers" would still buy firearms unhindered by using fake identification). It was with the adoption of the Gun Control Act (GCA) in 1968, which repealed most of the FFA, that the lawful interstate trade of firearms was limited almost entirely to persons holding a Federal Firearms License in the United States. As background checks were available by this time, enforcement of the GCA via the bottleneck provided by background checks and the FFL requirement was more effective than that of the FFA.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: Certain types of firearms, accessories and other weapons are currently restricted under the National Firearms Act (NFA). In addition to a current FFL (of whatever "type" is applicable), the ATF requires that business owners who are planning to import, manufacture or deal in restricted materials also pay a Special Occupational Tax, or "SOT" (thereby making the business owner a "Special Occupational Taxpayer").


title: Federal Firearms License

text: C&R firearms are defined in Title 27, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 478.11 as those "of special interest to collectors by reason of some quality other than is associated with firearms intended for sporting use or as offensive or defensive weapons." To be recognized by ATF as a C&R firearm, a firearm must fall into at least one of the following three categories:


title: Federal Firearms License

text: C&R firearms include most manually operated and semi-automatic firearms used by a military force prior to 1972. This includes most firearms used by the warring nations in World War I and World War II. However, the firearm must normally also be in its original configuration to retain the C&R designation. So, for example, an unaltered Mauser Karabiner 98k rifle used by the German Army in World War II is a C&R firearm – but the same rifle "sporterized" with new stock and finish is generally not considered a C&R firearm. There is an ambiguous point in how the license is currently administered, in that some firearms altered by the militaries that issued them have been confirmed by the ATF to retain C&R status, though whether this applies to "all" such conversions (the examples given by the ATF were the Spanish M1916 Guardia Civil, FR-7, and FR-8 Mausers) also remains ambiguous. However, as long as the receiver (the part of the firearm that is regulated by the ATF) is over 50 years old, the firearm qualifies as a Curio & Relic – ATF states explicitly that, in addition to newer firearms it individually approves, firearms automatically achieve C&R status upon turning 50, provided they are in the original configuration. If modified significantly, the 50-year clock resets to the date of modification. (Specific examples are available in the ATF FAQs.) Certain automatic firearms have been designated as C&R firearms, and a C&R may be used to acquire these as well.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: Collectors may acquire C&R firearms in interstate commerce, e.g., via mail or phone order or the Internet, or in person. (This is especially important for collectors of pistols and revolvers since they may not otherwise be acquired outside a collector's state of residence.) Collectors are not considered to be FFL dealers and have no special privileges concerning non-C&R firearms, nor may they "engage in the business" of regularly selling C&R firearms to persons who do not have an FFL. Selling of C&R firearms does not require an FFL transfer across state lines, only if the firearm has a collectible status. The purpose of the C&R license is to enable a collector to acquire C&R firearms for their personal collection and not to become a firearms dealer.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: (D) At the election of a licensed collector, the annual inspection of records and inventory permitted under this paragraph shall be performed at the office of the Attorney General designed for such inspections which is located in closest proximity to the premises where the inventory and records of such licensed collector are maintained.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: Any firearm sold as a C&R firearm once changed out of its original configuration cannot be resold as a C&R firearm.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: In regard to conversions; certain pistols have been approved for sale with added safety conversions (i.e. Polish and Romanian Tokarev pistols, to which a manual safety was added to meet import requirements). Certain other modifications, such as period sporterisations, are arguably C&R qualified as they represent the gun culture of the period. An example would be a Lee–Enfield or 98K Mauser military rifle that had been converted into a continental style sporter before World War II. These common conversions occurred more than 50 years ago, and represent a sub-type of special interest to collectors.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: Federal law defines guns manufactured in or before 1898 with unconventional firing mechanisms (such as percussion, flintlock and other combustion methods typically considered "black powder"), or cartridge firearms that have uncommon and not readily available ammo types (.30-40 Krag, .30 Mauser, .44 Russian, etc) as "antique" (26 USC §5845(G)), (27 CFR §478.11) and they are generally unregulated in federal law. They may be bought and sold across state lines without an FFL. The only exceptions are short-barreled rifles, short barreled shotguns, and machine guns, which are regulated under the National Firearms Act of 1934. Unlike C&R guns, antique guns can be re-arsenalized, sporterized, re-barreled, or re-chambered, yet they will still retain their federally exempt status. Even if every part except the receiver is replaced, a pre-1899 "black powder" firearm still qualifies as an antique. FFL holders have been directed not to enter Pre-1899 guns into their Bound Books.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: FFL holders are required to keep a registry of firearms sales in an ATF-approved Bound Book, or a computerized equivalent using ATF-approved software. Licensed dealers must also maintain file copies of Form 4473 or eForm 4473 "Firearms Transaction Record" documents, for a period of not less than 20 years after the date of sale or disposition. When retiring or otherwise relinquishing a license, these records are sent to the ATF's out-of-business Records Center. Licensed collectors are not required to send their records to the ATF when relinquishing their license. The ATF is allowed to inspect, as well as request a copy of the Form 4473 from the dealer during the course of a criminal investigation. In addition, the sale of two or more handguns to a person in a five business day period must be reported to ATF on Form 3310.4.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: Importers and manufacturers of machine guns, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and destructive devices must also pay a special occupational tax of $500 per year if gross revenues do not exceed $500,000, and $1,000 if revenues exceed $500,000.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) is a set of United States government regulations that control the manufacture, export, import, or transfer of defense-related articles and services on the United States Munitions List (USML), which includes most all firearms components.


title: Federal Firearms License

text: In general, the Department of State's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), which interprets and enforces ITAR, requires anyone engaged in such activities, including holders of a Federal Firearms License, to register annually and submit a fee (no less than $2,250 as of 2013). Registration exemptions exist for, among other things, work on unclassified intellectual property, and work or fabrication of an experimental or scientific nature including research and development. As of January 23, 2020, new regulations regarding ITAR are in the works.


title: Microteaching

text: Micro-teaching is a teacher training and faculty development technique whereby the teacher reviews a recording of a teaching session, in order to get constructive feedback from peers and/or students about what has worked and what improvements can be made to their teaching technique. Micro-teaching was invented in 1963 at Stanford University by Dwight W. Allen, and has subsequently been used to develop educators in all forms of education.


title: Microteaching

text: In the original process, a teacher was asked to prepare a short lesson (usually 20 minutes) for a small group of learners who may not have been his/her own students. This was then recorded on video. After the lesson, the teacher, teaching colleagues, a master teacher and the students together viewed the videotape and commented on what they saw happening, referencing the teacher's teaching objectives. Watching the video and getting comments from colleagues and students provide teachers with an often intense "under the microscope" view of their teaching.


title: Microteaching

text: A review of the evidence for micro-teaching, undertaken by John Hattie as part of his Visible Learning project, found it was the 6th most effective method for improving student outcomes.


title: Microteaching

text: Microteaching is a technique aiming to prepare teacher candidates to the real classroom setting (Brent & Thomson, 1996). Microteaching can also defined as a teaching technique especially used in teachers’ pre-service education to train them systematically by allowing them to experiment main teacher behaviors. By the help of this technique, teacher candidates can experiment and learn each of the teaching skills by breaking them into smaller parts and without encountering chaotic environment of the crowded classes. While instilling teaching skills in students during microteaching, reciprocal negotiation of the students actively presenting and watching about the performances can make great contribution to the acquisition of the skills (Taşdemir, 2006). Wilkinson (1996), emphasizes that teacher candidates can experience real teaching and teaching rules with the help of this method. This method offers teachers opportunities for discovering and reflecting on both their own and others’ teaching styles and enables them to learn about new teaching techniques (Wahba, 1999). Pre-service teacher can benefit to a great extent from microteaching applications. Firstly, they reveal teaching facts; and roles of the teacher (Amobi, 2005; Hawkey, 1995; Kpanja, 2001; Wilkinson, 1996); help pre-service teachers to see the importance of planning and taking decisions (Gess-Newsome & Lederman, 1990); enable them to develop and improve their teaching skills (Benton-Kupper, 2001).


title: Microteaching

text: Microteaching technique is an application in which video recordings have been made possible as a result of developing technology. Audio and visual technology is an effective and reflective tool in preparing pre-service teachers to the profession of teaching. Video recordings provide pre-service teachers with the chance of evaluating themselves by engaging them in more experiences and configurations (Jensen et al., 1994). Sherin (2000) indicates that video recordings affect the perspectives of teachers in education process. Cunningham & Benedetto (2002) emphasize that video tools support the reflective learning, and Spurgeon & Bowen (2002) stress that by the help of these tools, the problems that may occur in education process can be observed and defined. Farris (1991) states that this method increases the confidence and raises the awareness of personal skills. Selçuk (2001) indicates that video recordings can not only be used for demonstrating model teacher behaviours but can also be used for the analysis of microteaching. Using video recording method in microteaching applications contributes to the professional development of pre-service teachers by identifying strengths and weaknesses and improves their competencies (Tok, 2007).


title: Microteaching

text: Since its inception in 1963, micro-teaching has become an established teacher-training procedure in many universities and school districts. This training procedure is geared towards simplification of the complexities of the regular teaching-learning process. Class size, time, task, and content are scaled down to provide optimal training environments.


title: Microteaching

text: The supervisor demonstrates the skill to be practiced. This may be live demonstration, or a video presentation of the skill.


title: Microteaching

text: The teacher trainee then has the opportunity to practice and evaluate his use of the skills. Practice takes the form of a ten-minute micro-teaching session in which five to ten pupils are involved.


title: Microteaching

text: In more recent years, the easy availability of recording equipment and the use of social media for dissemination have made micro-teaching more accessible.


title: Microteaching

text: Feedback in micro-teaching is critical for teacher-trainee improvement. It is the information that a student receives concerning their attempts to imitate certain patterns of teaching. The built-in feedback mechanism in micro-teaching acquaints the trainee with the success of their performance and enables them to evaluate and to improve teaching.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The Datsun Cherry (チェリー), known later as the Nissan Cherry, was a series of subcompact cars which formed Nissan's first front-wheel drive supermini model line.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The Cherry featured the front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout. The Cherry line includes the E10 and F10. Nissan's direct successor was the Nissan Pulsar worldwide.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: On the UK market, it debuted just before the company's surge in sales, which saw it sell just over 6,000 cars in 1971 and more than 30,000 the following year. Although its successor was launched in 1974, such was the original model's popularity on the UK market that it was not replaced there until 1976.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: Originally, before combining with Nissan Motors, the Prince Motor Company plan of development was to mass-produce a front-engine, front-wheel drive car. Subsequent to the Prince and Nissan merger of 1966, the Cherry was released in 1970 as Nissan's first front-wheel drive car instead. In Asian markets there was also a "Cherry Cab" cabover truck model (C20), which was closely related to the Nissan Sunny — it was also marketed as the "Sunny Cab".


title: Nissan Cherry

text: Although the car used a Nissan engine, the powertrain dated back to Prince's original concept - which was in essence a copy of the "transmission-in-sump" layout pioneered by the British Motor Corporation in the Mini. Consequently, this gave the E10 a very distinctive transmission whine which was characteristic of this mechanical configuration.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The Japanese domestic market Cherry X-1 model featured twin-carburetted A12T engine with dual-sidedraft Hitachi carburettors.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: In Europe, the A10-engined E10 Cherry was called Datsun 100A (the Datsun brand being used in place of Nissan in the European market at that time) or Datsun 120A (A12, but this engine was only available with the coupé body style or as a semi-automatic version of the ordinary car available in 1978). The names "Cherry" and "Datsun 1000" were also used in advertising, however the Datsun 1000 name was associated with the early Nissan Sunny and Nissan Bluebird. The Cherry was introduced in Japan at a specially established dealership sales channel called "Nissan Cherry Shop", whereas the Sunny was sold at "Nissan Satio Shop", and the Bluebird was sold at the "Nissan Bluebird Shop". As the Cherry F-II successor flagged in the market, the somewhat smaller E10 Cherry continued to be sold up until 1977 in many places.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: With the launch of the Cherry in 1971, Datsun's prominence in the UK market grew. In the early 1970s, as the British auto-industry faltered, Datsun led the charge of Japanese auto-manufacturers rapidly gaining market share in the UK. Britain's Motor magazine polled readers about their cars, including, in February 1973, those who owned E10 Cherrys. The question given greatest prominence was the final one which asked whether or not respondents would buy another car of the same model: 76 percent of Cherry owning respondents answered "yes", which was the top score for this question achieved by any model to date, and beat even the 66 percent "yes" score given by owners of the previous leader, the Volkswagen Beetle, at the time well known in the UK for its owners' brand loyalty.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The second-generation Cherry was known as F-II in Japan and "Datsun F10" in North America. It was Nissan's first front-wheel-drive model to be sold in North America. Four-wheel independent suspension continued to be used. Sales of the F-II were generally disappointing, and the "Cherry" nameplate was retired in Japan after this generation.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: A two-pedal type semi-automatic transmission was offered called the "Sportmatic", which used a torque converter obviating the need for a clutch.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: In Europe, F10 was known as Datsun 100A F-II (with A10 engine) or 120A F-II (with A12 engine). The A12 powered 120A F-II was the most common model, with the coupe only being available in A12 format in the Uk where it sold in higher numbers.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: In New Zealand the 100A 4-door sedan (1.0L A10 motor) was assembled from CKD kits as a price leader for the Datsun range – due to the choice of engine, it was the smallest engined car assembled in New Zealand, the engine (988 cc) being smaller than the Mini's 998 cc unit. Production continued well after the N10 model replaced it overseas, eventually being discontinued in late 1980, with the N10 5-door hatchback replacing it in 1981.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: In USA, only the coupe and wagon were offered, and only with the 1.4-litre engine. In Canada, the two-door sedan was also available.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: It was a strong seller on the UK market, although it did not launch there until 1976, due to the popularity of the original Cherry model there, and helped the Datsun brand maintain strong sales figures.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The N10 model Pulsar was introduced to Japan in May 1978, with European sales beginning in March 1979. While known as the Nissan Pulsar in Japan, it was called Cherry in Europe and many other export markets. The body styling was more boxy, and influenced by designs coming out of Europe at that time. It came at a time when small hatchbacks were enjoying rising sales across Europe, with the Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Polo, Renault 5 and Fiat 127 being particularly popular, along with the General Motors product which was known in Britain as the Vauxhall Chevette and on the continent as the Opel Kadett City. It continued to sell well in Britain, and the most popular foreign car there in 1981. In the American market it was sold as the Datsun 310, slightly upscale from the old-fashioned rear wheel drive Datsun 210.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: Engine choices were carried over from the previous model, consisting of Nissan's A-Series motor in 1.0 L, 1.2 L and 1.4 L forms. At some point, the A12 was replaced by the marginally larger A12A in export markets as well. Production of the N10 series ceased in mid-1982, to be replaced by larger N12 Cherry/Pulsar, which was sold in Europe from September 1982.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The Cherry name was still used in Europe on the model N12, an angular, three- or five-door hatchback design which was introduced in September 1982. The new model was somewhat larger than earlier versions of the Cherry, with the new Micra taking its place in the supermini sector on its European launch in June 1983, leaving the Cherry to compete in Europe against the new-popular hatchback designs like the Ford Escort and Volkswagen Golf, while the Sunny gave buyers a traditional saloon and estate option. Wheelbase and track all increased by about .


title: Nissan Cherry

text: While being somewhat larger, Nissan lowered the weight of the car by the new E-series engines being lighter than the ones used in the previous model, and through the extensive use of high-strength low-alloy steel (HSLA) as well. Further improving fuel economy were much improved aerodynamics, although at they were no more than average for the segment. Occupant comfort was also improved through better seats and a redesigned suspension. Sound levels dropped as a result of the improved aerodynamics, advancements in door seal technology, and the use of a sandwiched firewall. An interesting feature was that the three-door's rear windows could be opened with two levers on the center console; these controlled the child safe rear locks on five-door versions.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: A special model mainly sold in Europe was the one-liter E10-engined version. This was sold where tax regulations suited smaller engines, and was usually only offered with the lowest (DX) trim and a four-speed manual transmission. The little 1-liter engine had a higher fuel consumption figures than either the 1.3 or the 1.5, as it had to work a lot harder to keep up with traffic. A diesel model arrived in export markets in early 1983. In 1985 Belgian buyers also received a special edition combining the Japanese and the European names called the "Cherry Pulsar." This was a three-door Cherry DX 1.3 or 1.7 Diesel fitted with some extra equipment and painted light blue or silver metallic.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: A derivative of Cherry N12 was also built by Alfa Romeo at Pratola Serra, near Naples, Italy. The Alfa-built version was badged as the Alfa Romeo Arna but in the United Kingdom and Spain it was available through Nissan Dealers badged as the Nissan Cherry Europe. The Cherry Europe was only available as a three-door in two varieties; the base model 1.2 SL and a later performance version, the 1.5 GTi. It is distinguishable externally by slightly different rear light clusters and other minor changes. Under the skin it used Alfa Romeo Alfasud-based components including the engine, transmission, and front suspension. Rear suspension, brakes and the majority of body panel pressings came from Japan. Arna was an acronym meaning "Alfa Romeo Nissan Autoveicoli". The Arna did not sell well and the partnership was not continued after the car's demise in 1987.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The Arna was never sold in Japan but a domestic version of the N12 Nissan Pulsar, labelled the Nissan Pulsar Milano X1, made use of the Alfa Romeo connection in its publicity and was fitted with the same black and green interior as the Arna Ti or Cherry Europe GTi. The model was entirely N12 based though and featured the normal, transversely mounted Nissan E engine.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: After the end of Cherry production, the Sunny was Nissan's only offering of this size in Europe, with the range launched in the autumn of 1986 including a hatchback as well as a saloon and the estate model carried over from the previous Sunny range. In America only the notchback coupé ("Pulsar NX") was offered for most of the N12's run although the three- and five-doors were sold for model year 1983 only.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: In most export markets, the Nissan Sunny name replaced the Cherry starting with the N13 Pulsar model. In certain markets such as Greece, however, the N13 Pulsar retained the "Cherry" nameplate.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: In Japan and some Asian markets, the Pulsar name was used until N15 model. See the Pulsar entry for more information.


title: Nissan Cherry

text: The eponymous car in the Finnish video game "My Summer Car" is modelled on a 1974 Datsun Cherry, according to the licence plate. The car, with its missing fuel filler door, refers to the Finnish movie "Pohjanmaa" (1988).


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: Independence Day (, also known as Hari Kebangsaan or "National Day"), is the official independence day of Malaya. It commemorates the Malayan Declaration of Independence of 31 August 1957, and is defined in Article 160 of the Constitution of Malaysia. The day is marked by official and unofficial ceremonies and observances across the country.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The observation of 31 August as Malaysia's national day is the cause of some controversy, due to calls to prioritize the celebration of "Hari Malaysia" (Malaysia Day) on 16 September instead. "Hari Malaysia" commemorates the formation of Malaysia in 1963, when the four entities of North Borneo, Sarawak, Singapore and Malaya federated to form Malaysia. Some, especially people from East Malaysia, argue that it is illogical to celebrate 31 August 1957 as Malaysia's national day when Malaysia was only established in 1963. Supporters of Hari Merdeka argue that "the Federation" as defined in Article 160 of the Constitution of Malaysia is the "Federation of Malaya" that was established in 1957.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The effort for independence was spearheaded by Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, who led a delegation of ministers and political leaders of Malaya in negotiations with the British in London for "Merdeka", or independence along with the first president of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) Tun Dato Sri Tan Cheng Lock and fifth President of Malaysian Indian Congress Tun V. T. Sambanthan. Once it became clear that the Communist threat posed during the Malayan Emergency was petering out, an agreement was reached on 8 February 1956, for Malaya to gain independence from the British Empire. However, logistical and administrative reasons led to the official proclamation of independence in the next year, on 31 August 1957, at Stadium Merdeka (Independence Stadium), in Kuala Lumpur, which was purposely built for the celebrations of the national independence day. The announcement of the day was set months earlier by Tunku Abdul Rahman in a meeting of the Alliance in Malacca in February 1957.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: On the night of 30 August 1957, more than 20,000 people gathered at Merdeka Square (Dataran "Merdeka") in Kuala Lumpur to witness the handover of power from the British. Prime Minister-designate Tunku Abdul Rahman arrived at 11:58 p.m. and joined members of the Alliance Party's youth divisions in observing two minutes of darkness. On the stroke of midnight, the lights were switched back on, and the Union Flag in the square was lowered as the royal anthem "God Save The Queen" played. The new Flag of Malaya was raised as the national anthem "Negaraku" was played. This was followed by seven chants of "Merdeka" by the crowd. Tunku Abdul Rahman later gave a speech hailing the ceremony as the "greatest moment in the life of the Malayan people". Before giving the address to the crowd, he was given a necklace by representatives of the Alliance Party youth in honour of this great occasion in history, with a map of Malaya inscribed on it. The event ended at one in the morning.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: On the morning of 31 August 1957, the festivities moved to the newly completed Merdeka Stadium. More than 20,000 people witnessed the ceremony, which began at 9:30 am. Those in attendance included rulers of the Malay states, foreign dignitaries, members of the federal cabinet, and citizens. The Queen's representative, the Duke of Gloucester presented Tunku Abdul Rahman with the instrument of independence. Tunku then proceeded to read the Proclamation of Independence, which culminated in the chanting of "Merdeka!" seven times with the crowd joining in. The ceremony continued with the raising of the National Flag of Malaya accompanied by the national anthem being played by a military band and a 21-gun salute, followed by an "azan" call and a thanksgiving prayer in honour of this great occasion.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The day followed with the solemn installation of the first Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Tuanku Abdul Rahman of Negeri Sembilan, at Jalan Ampang, and the first installation banquet in his honour in the evening followed by a beating retreat performance and a fireworks display. Sports events and other events marked the birth of the new nation.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The Federation of Malaysia, comprising the states of the Federation of Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore, was officially declared on 31 August 1963, on the 6th anniversary of Malayan independence. However, it was postponed to 16 September 1963, mainly due to Indonesian and the Philippines' opposition to the formation of Malaysia. Nevertheless, North Borneo and Singapore declared sovereignty on 31 August 1963. Indonesian opposition later escalated to a military conflict. Indonesia considered Malaysia as a new form of colonisation on Sarawak and North Borneo, which bordered Indonesian territory on Borneo. However, they did not lay claim upon the two territories, unlike the Philippines which claimed the eastern part of Sabah. To assure Indonesia that Malaysia was not a form of neocolonialism, a general survey (instead of a referendum) was organised by the United Nations involving interviews of approximately 4,000 people, which received 2,200 memorandums from groups and private individuals. The Cobbold Commission, led by Lord Cobbold, was also formed to determine whether the people of North Borneo and Sarawak wished to join Malaysia. Their eventual findings, which indicated substantial support for Malaysia among the peoples of Sabah and Sarawak, cleared the way for the final proclamation of Malaysia.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The formation of the Federation of Malaysia was announced on 16 September 1963, the anniversary of which is celebrated as Malaysia Day. Hari Merdeka continued to be celebrated on 31 August, the original independence date of Malaya, while Malaysia Day became a public holiday only in East Malaysia. This caused discontent among East Malaysians in particular, it being sometimes felt that celebrating the national day on 31 August is Malaya-centric. In 2009, it was decided that starting 2010, Malaysia Day would be a nationwide public holiday in addition to Hari Merdeka on 31 August.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The 2012 theme proved to be controversial, as it was seen by many Malaysians to be a political slogan rather than a patriotic one ("Janji Ditepati" was Najib Razak's campaign jingle in the run-up to the 2013 elections). The official "logo" was also ridiculed for its unconventional design. A video of the theme song uploaded on YouTube (with lyrics penned by Rais Yatim) garnered an overwhelming number of "dislikes" because of its overtly political content, which had nothing to do with the spirit of independence. The video has since been taken down.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The latest 2020 Malaysia Prihatin theme had been chosen because of the COVID-19 pandemic and in recognition of the caring and concerned of all Malaysian. In 2021, despite the theme and logo remained the same, but the theme song changed from "Malaysia Prihatin" (sung by Aliff Satar, Syamel, Siti Sarah, and Aina Abdul for original version, and Ernie Zakri for symphony version) to "Menang Bersama" (sung by Faizal Tahir), symbolizing the National Recovery Plan "(Pelan Pemulihan Negara)" theme, "Malaysia Menang Bersama" (English: "Malaysia Winning Together").


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: On 31 August 2019, Google celebrated Malaysia's Independence Day, the 'Hari Merdeka' with a Doodle depicting Malaysia's national flower. The accompanying write up read as, "Today's Doodle depicts Malaysia's national flower in honor of Malaysia's Independence Day, known locally as Hari Merdeka. On this day in 1957, the Federation of Malaya became a sovereign state after many years of British rule. Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first Chief Minister, read an official declaration at Kuala Lumpur's Stadium Merdeka before a crowd of some 20,000 people."


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: Legally, Hari Merdeka is the official independence day of 'the federation' as defined in the Article 160 of the Constitution of Malaysia, which was that established under the Federation of Malaya Agreement 1957. However, beginning in 2015, in a policy announced by the then Minister of Communication and Multimedia Ahmad Shabery Cheek, Hari Merdeka celebrations are to be held without mentioning the number of years since independence. This is to be more inclusive of Sabah and Sarawak, who left British rule in a different year.


title: Independence Day (Malaysia)

text: The Minister of Land Development of Sarawak, the late James Jemut Masing, responded to this announcement by stating that Malaysia Day on 16 September should be the rallying point for the nation's unity, rather than Hari Merdeka. He added "Everyone now knows that 31 August is Malaya's and Sabah's Independence Day… it's not our (Sarawak) independence day. They can celebrate it both in Malaya and in Sabah as they have the same Independence Day date, and we can join them there if they invite us. We must right the wrong".


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor Energy () is a Canadian integrated energy company based in Calgary, Alberta. It specializes in production of synthetic crude from oil sands. In the 2020 Forbes Global 2000, Suncor Energy was ranked as the 48th-largest public company in the world.


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor was created by Sun Oil in 1979 as the merger of its Canadian conventional and heavy oil companies, the Sun Oil Company Limited and Great Canadian Oil Sands Limited. Until 2010, Suncor marketed products and services to retail customers in Ontario through a downstream network of 780 company-owned, and 700 customer-operated retail and Diesel fuel sites, primarily in Ontario under the Sunoco brand (owing to Suncor having originally been established as a subsidiary of Sunoco). In 2009, Suncor acquired the former Crown corporation Petro-Canada, which replaced the Sunoco brand across its existing outlets. Suncor also markets through a retail network of Shell and ExxonMobil branded outlets in Colorado.


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor was founded in 1919 in Montreal as Sun Company of Canada, a subsidiary of Sun Oil (now Sunoco). In 1979, Sun formed Suncor by merging its Canadian refining and retailing interests; Great Canadian Oil Sands (a majority-owned subsidiary, which constructed and operated the first commercial plant to develop Canada's Athabasca oil sands and went on production in 1967); and its conventional oil and gas interests. In 1981, the Government of Ontario purchased a 25% stake in the company; it divested in 1993. In 1995 Sun Oil also divested its interest in the company, although Suncor maintained the Sunoco retail brand in Canada. With these two divestitures, Suncor become an independent, widely held public company.


title: Suncor Energy

text: In 2003, Suncor acquired a refinery and associated Phillips 66 gas stations in Commerce City, Colorado from ConocoPhillips. In 2005, Suncor acquired a second Commerce City refinery from Valero Energy. Suncor moved its retail brand from Phillips 66 to Shell from 2009 to 2013. Suncor added the Exxon and Mobil brands in Colorado and Wyoming in 2015.


title: Suncor Energy

text: On March 23, 2009, Suncor announced its intent to acquire Petro-Canada. This merger created a company with a combined market capitalization of C$43.3 billion. On June 4, 2009, a 98% approval rate was reached by Suncor's shareholders for the acquisition of Petro-Canada and the Competition Bureau approved the merger on June 21, 2009. The merger with Canada's 11th largest company was completed on August 1, 2009 in a $21 billion deal to form the second-largest company in Canada (after Royal Bank of Canada) in terms of market capitalization. In December 2009, as a condition of the merger, Suncor sold 98 gas stations in Ontario to Husky Energy, consisting of 68 Sunoco-branded locations and 30 Petro-Canada-branded locations.


title: Suncor Energy

text: In 2015 Suncor courted Canadian Oil Sands, the largest owner of the Syncrude project with 37% ownership (compared with Suncor's 12%), with proposals for acquisition and hostile takeover. In January 2016 they reached an agreement with Suncor acquiring COS for C$6.6 billion, raising its Syncrude ownership to 49%.


title: Suncor Energy

text: On April 27, 2016, Suncor announced that it had reached a $937-million deal to acquire Murphy Oil's five-per-cent stake in the Syncrude project, growing its interest in Syncrude to nearly 54 per cent, making it the majority shareholder of the project. In fall 2021, Suncor assumed operatorship of the Syncrude Joint Venture oil sands project in a bid to improve its performance. Suncor holds a majority stake in Syncrude with 58.74 per cent.


title: Suncor Energy

text: In North America, Suncor develops and produces oil and natural gas in Western Canada, Colorado, and offshore drilling in eastern Canada. Its international efforts include offshore developments in the North Sea, and conventional, land-based efforts in Libya, Syria, and Trinidad and Tobago.


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor operates refineries in Edmonton, Alberta; Sarnia, Ontario; Montreal, Quebec and Commerce City, Colorado. These refineries supply industrial, retail and commercial consumers. The company is also one of the largest Canadian retailers of petroleum products.


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor is the world's largest producer of bitumen, and owns and operates an oil sands upgrading plant near Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. Originally developed by Great Canadian Oil Sands, a majority-owned subsidiary of Sun Oil, it is now wholly owned by the independent Suncor. It was the first commercial development on the Athabasca oil sands, although small, earlier projects like that at Bitumount also played a role in development. The company held a 36.75% interest in the Joslyn north oil sands project which was shelved pending an economic review by operator Total S.A. in May 2014. The Joslyn project was sold to CNRL in September 2018. The company also produces conventional oil, heavy crude oil, and natural gas.


title: Suncor Energy

text: In Canada, Suncor operates refineries in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. The company's 135,000-barrel-per-day Strathcona, refinery runs entirely on oil sands-based feedstocks and produces a high-yield of light oils. A 137,000-barrel-per-day Montreal Refinery produces gasoline, distillates, asphalts, heavy fuel oil, petrochemicals, solvents and feedstock for lubricants. An 85,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Sarnia, Ontario produces gasoline, kerosene, jet and diesel fuels. A 98,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Commerce City, Colorado produces gasoline, diesel fuel and paving-grade asphalt.


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor's main downstream brand in Canada is Petro-Canada. Suncor previously operated and franchised retail locations under the Sunoco brand, but post-acquisition, nearly all remaining Sunoco stations were converted to Petro-Canada. In addition, the company terminated all of its independent Sunoco franchises, as it planned to implement Petro-Canada's model of requiring franchisees to operate multiple locations. Presently, at least one Sunoco branded station exists, and is located in Port Colborne, Ontario. A group of affected franchisees filed a class-action lawsuit over the matter, claiming that Suncor had violated Ontario's Arthur Wishart Act. However, the case was blocked by an Ontario court.


title: Suncor Energy

text: Suncor Energy owned and operated three Bombardier CRJ900ER aircraft but sold them in late 2016 and now uses Westjet to shuttle Suncor employees to the oilsands.


title: Suncor Energy

text: According to a Pollution Watch fact sheet, in 2007 Suncor Energy's oil sands operations had the sixth highest greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. While Suncor has reduced the greenhouse gas emissions intensity of its oil sands operations by more than 50% since 1990, total greenhouse gas emissions from the company's operations have increased because of growing oil sands production.


title: Suncor Energy

text: On April 2, 2009, Suncor was fined $675,000 for failing to install pollution control equipment at its Firebag operation near Fort McMurray, Alberta in July 2006. On the same day, Suncor was fined $175,000 for dumping untreated wastewater from a company work camp near Fort McMurray into the Athabasca River in 2007.


title: Suncor Energy

text: In the United States, Suncor has also been fined by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. In April 2012, a fine of $2.2 million was assessed for air pollution. Suncor failed to monitor and control emissions a number of times throughout 2009 and 2010, and numerous emissions exceeded regulations. Suncor was also cited for "failure to conduct equipment inspections, train employees, and fully develop standard procedures for operating equipment". Additionally, a benzene leak into Sand Creek was discovered in the fall of 2011. Employees at Suncor and the nearby Metro Wastewater Reclamation District Plant were exposed to benzene through the air and through drinking water. In April 2018, Suncor and ExxonMobil were sued by the city and county of Boulder, and the county of San Miguel over allegations that they were responsible for climate change in the state. The lawsuit was unique as it was one of the first to be based on these effects on a landlocked area, as opposed to those citing Sea level rise as a factor. In 2020, Suncor reached a US$9 million settlement agreement with authorities in Colorado for more than 100 air pollution violations from its Commerce City refinery.


title: Suncor Energy

text: By 2009, Suncor was working to reduce the amount of bitumen entering tailings ponds. In 2009, under the auspices of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Suncor teamed with the University of Alberta and Matrikon, an Edmonton-based software company, to develop separation-cell technology to potentially reduce the amount of bitumen entering tailings ponds by 50 per cent.


title: Suncor Energy

text: By 2009, Suncor operated four wind farms. These wind farms provided 147 megawatts of power, providing an annual offset of 284,000 tonnes compared to coal-generated electricity. Suncor operates an ethanol facility in St. Clair Township, Ontario. The facility is the largest corn ethanol producer in Canada.


title: Nordic walking

text: Nordic walking is a Finnish-origin total-body version of walking that can be done both by non-athletes as a health-promoting physical activity and by athletes as a sport. The activity is performed with specially designed walking poles similar to ski poles.


title: Nordic walking

text: Nordic walking (originally Finnish "sauvakävely") is fitness walking with specially designed poles. While trekkers, backpackers, and skiers had been using the basic concept for decades, Nordic walking was first formally defined with the publication of ""Hiihdon lajiosa"" (translation: "A part of cross-country skiing training methodic") by Mauri Repo in 1979. Nordic walking's concept was developed on the basis of off-season ski-training activity while using one-piece ski poles.


title: Nordic walking

text: For decades hikers and backpackers used their one-piece ski poles long before trekking and Nordic walking poles came onto the scene. Ski racers deprived of snow have always used and still do use their one-piece ski poles for ski walking and hill bounding. The first poles specially designed and marketed to fitness walkers were produced by Exerstrider of the US in 1988. "Nordic Walker" poles were produced and marketed by Exel in 1997. Exel coined and popularized the term 'Nordic Walking' in 1999.


title: Nordic walking

text: Compared to regular walking, Nordic walking (also called pole walking) involves applying force to the poles with each stride. Nordic walkers use more of their entire body (with greater intensity) and receive fitness building stimulation not present in normal walking for the chest, latissimus dorsi muscle, triceps, biceps, shoulder, abdominals, spinal and other core muscles that may result in significant increases in heart rate at a given pace. Nordic walking has been estimated as producing up to a 46% increase in energy consumption, compared to walking without poles.


title: Nordic walking

text: Several research studies have been conducted on the effects of Nordic walking. One study in particular compared regular walking to Nordic walking. This study showed that Nordic walking led to more significant decreases in BMI and waist circumference compared to regular walking. The Nordic walking group was the only group that experienced reductions in total body fat and increases in aerobic capacity. Another research study that was done compared the effects of Nordic walking, conventional walking, and resistance-band training on overall fitness in older adults. The study concluded that while all three methods are optimal for improving overall fitness, Nordic walking is the most effective. Harvard Medical School has evidence that shows Nordic walking has more calorie burning characteristics than regular walking.


title: Nordic walking

text: Nordic walking poles are significantly shorter than those recommended for cross-country skiing. Nordic walking poles come in one-piece, non-adjustable shaft versions, available in varying lengths, and telescoping two or three piece twist-locking versions of adjustable length. One piece poles are generally stronger and lighter, but must be matched to the user. Telescoping poles are 'one-size fits all', and are more transportable.


title: Nordic walking

text: Nordic walking poles feature a range of grips and wrist-straps, or rarely, no wrist-strap at all. The straps eliminate the need to tightly grasp the grips.


title: Nordic walking

text: As with many trekking poles, Nordic walking poles come with removable rubber tips for use on hard surfaces and hardened metal tips for trails, the beach, snow and ice. Most poles are made from lightweight aluminium, carbon fiber, or composite materials. Special walking shoes are not required, although there are shoes being marketed as specifically designed for the sport.


title: Nordic walking

text: The cadences of the arms, legs and body are, rhythmically speaking, similar to those used in normal, vigorous, walking. The range of arm movement regulates the length of the stride. Restricted arm movements will mean a natural restricted pelvic motion and stride length. The longer the pole thrust, the longer the stride and more powerful the swing of the pelvis and upper torso.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The Atlantic horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus), also known as the American horseshoe crab, is a species of marine and brackish chelicerate arthropod. Despite their name, horseshoe crabs are more closely related to spiders, ticks, and scorpions than to crabs. It is found in the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic coast of North America. The main area of annual migration is Delaware Bay along the South Jersey Delaware Bayshore.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Their eggs were eaten by Native Americans, but today Atlantic horseshoe crabs are caught for use as fishing bait, in biomedicine (especially for "Limulus" amebocyte lysate) and science. They play a major role in the local ecosystems, with their eggs providing an important food source for shorebirds, and the juveniles and adults being eaten by sea turtles.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The other three extant (living) species in the family Limulidae are also called horseshoe crabs, but they are restricted to Asia.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: This group of animals is also known as horsefoot, or saucepan. Some people call the horseshoe crab a "helmet crab", but this common name is more frequently applied to a true crab, a malacostracan, of the species "Telmessus cheiragonus". The term "king crab" is sometimes used for horseshoe crabs, but it is more usually applied to a group of decapod crustaceans.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: "Limulus" means "askew" and "polyphemus" refers to Polyphemus, a giant in Greek mythology. It is based on the misconception that the animal had a single eye.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Former scientific names include "Limulus cyclops", "Xiphosura americana", and "Polyphemus occidentalis".


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: It is the tail that earns this order its name Xiphosura, which derives from the Greek for "sword tail".


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Studies of microsatellite DNA have revealed several distinct geographic groups in the Atlantic horseshoe crab. While there is extensive mixing between neighbouring populations, primarily due to movements by males, there is little or no mixing between the US and isolated Yucatán Peninsula horseshoe crabs, leading some to suggest that a taxonomic review is necessary.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Horseshoe crabs have three main parts to the body: the head region, known as the "prosoma", the abdominal region or "opisthosoma", and the spine-like tail or "telson". The smooth shell or carapace is shaped like a horseshoe, and is greenish grey to dark brown in colour. The sexes are similar in appearance, but females are typically 25 to 30% larger than the male in length and width, and can reach more than twice the weight. Females can grow up to in length, including tail, and in weight. There are also geographic differences: In the United States, there is a north–south cline in the size. Central animals, between Georgia and Cape Cod, are the largest. North of Cape Cod and south of Georgia they gradually become smaller. In Delaware Bay, females and males have an average carapace width of about and , respectively. In Florida, females average about and males . However, this north-south pattern does not exist in the Yucatán Peninsula, the southernmost population of the species, where some subpopulations are intermediate between the Delaware Bay and Florida horseshoe crabs, and others are smaller, averaging about the size of Florida horseshoe crabs.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: A wide range of marine species become attached to the carapace, including algae, flat worms, mollusks, barnacles, and bryozoans, and horseshoe crabs have been described as 'walking museums' due to the number of organisms they can support. In areas where "Limulus" is common, the shells, exoskeletons or exuviae (molted shells) of horseshoe crabs frequently wash up on beaches, either as whole shells, or as disarticulated pieces.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The brain and the heart are located in the prosoma. On the underside of the prosoma, six pairs of appendages occur, the first of which (the small pincers or chelicerae) are used to pass food into the mouth, which is located in the middle of the underside of the cephalothorax, between the chelicerae. Although most arthropods have mandibles, the horseshoe crab is jawless.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The second pair of appendages, the pedipalps, are used as walking legs; in males they are tipped with 'claspers', which are used during mating to hold onto the female's carapace. The remaining four pairs of appendages are the 'pusher legs', also used in locomotion. The first four pairs of legs have claws, the last pair has a leaf-like structure used for pushing.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The opisthosoma bears a further six pairs of appendages; the first pair houses the genital pores, while the remaining five pairs are modified into flattened plates, known as book gills, that allow them to breathe underwater, and can also allow them to breathe on land for short periods of time, provided the gills remain moist.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The telson (i.e., tail or caudal spine) is used to steer in the water and also to flip itself over if stuck upside down.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Among other senses, they have a small chemoreceptor organ that senses smells on the triangular area formed by the exoskeleton beneath the body near the ventral eyes.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: "Limulus" has been extensively used in research into the physiology of vision. The Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded in 1967 in part for research performed on the horseshoe crab eye.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: A large compound eye with monochromatic vision is found on each side of the prosoma; it has five simple eyes on the carapace, and two simple eyes on the underside, just in front of the mouth, making a total of nine eyes. The simple eyes are probably important during the embryonic or larval stages of the organism, and even unhatched embryos seem to be able to sense light levels from within their buried eggs. The less sensitive compound eyes, and the median ocelli, become the dominant sight organs during adulthood.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Each compound eye is composed of about 1000 receptors called ommatidia, complex structures consisting of upwards of 300 cells. The ommatidia are somewhat messily arranged, not falling into the ordered hexagonal pattern seen in more derived arthropods. Each ommatidium feeds into a single nerve fiber. Furthermore, the nerves are large and relatively accessible. This made it possible for electrophysiologists to record the nervous response to light stimulation easily, and to observe visual phenomena such as lateral inhibition working at the cellular level. More recently, behavioral experiments have investigated the functions of visual perception in "Limulus". Habituation and classical conditioning to light stimuli have been demonstrated, as has the use of brightness and shape information by males when recognizing potential mates.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The retinula (literally, "small retina") cells of the ommatidium of the compound eye contain areas from which membranous organelles of conceivable size (rhabdomeres) extend. Rhabdomeres have tiny microvilli (tiny tubes extending out of the retinula) that interlock with neighboring retinular cells. This forms the rhabdom, which contains the dendrite of the eccentric cell, and may also contribute some microvilli. The only other species with an eccentric cell is the silkworm moth. Microvilli are composed of a double layer, 7 nm each and with 3.5 nm space of two electron-deficient boundaries in between. Where the microvilli meet, these outer borders fuse and yield five membranes about 15 nm thick. In all arthropods, there is always a rhabdom below a crystalline cone, on or near the center of the ommatidium, and always aligned with the path of light. At right angles to the length of the rhabdome are the length of the microvilli, which are in line with each other. The microvilli are about 40–150 nm in diameter.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The blood of horseshoe crabs (as well as that of most mollusks, including cephalopods and gastropods) contains the copper-containing protein hemocyanin at concentrations of about 50 g per liter. These creatures do not have hemoglobin (iron-containing protein), which is the basis of oxygen transport in vertebrates. Hemocyanin is colorless when deoxygenated and dark blue when oxygenated. The blood in the circulation of these creatures, which generally live in cold environments with low oxygen tensions, is grey-white to pale yellow, and it turns dark blue when exposed to the oxygen in the air, as seen when they bleed. Hemocyanin carries oxygen in extracellular fluid, which is in contrast to the intracellular oxygen transport in vertebrates by hemoglobin in red blood cells.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The blood of horseshoe crabs contains one type of blood cell, the amebocytes. These play an important role in the defense against pathogens. Amebocytes contain granules with a clotting factor known as coagulogen; this is released outside the cell when bacterial endotoxin is encountered. The resulting coagulation is thought to contain bacterial infections in the animal's semiclosed circulatory system.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The Atlantic horseshoe crab is the only extant (living) species of horseshoe crab native to the Americas, although there are other extinct species only known from fossil remains from this region. The other living species of horseshoe crab are restricted to Asia, but all are quite similar in form and behavior. The Asian species are "Tachypleus tridentatus", "Tachypleus gigas" and "Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda".


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Atlantic horseshoe crabs are found along the Atlantic East Coast of the United States, ranging from Maine to Florida. In the Gulf Coast of the United States, they are found in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. Outside the United States, the only breeding population is in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, where it is found on western, northern and eastern coasts. Individuals rarely appear outside the breeding range, with a few records from the Atlantic coast of Canada (Lahave Island on Nova Scotia), the Bahamas, the Turks and Caicos, Cuba and the western Gulf of Mexico (Texas and Veracruz). Historic claims of horseshoe crabs on Jamaica and Hispaniola (in the Dominican Republic) have not resulted in any discoveries after expeditions there. There have been attempts of introducing it to Texas, California and the southern North Sea, but these all failed to become established. Records from Europe, Israel and Western Africa are considered releases/escapees of captives.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Atlantic horseshoe crabs range from shallow coastal habitats such as lagoons, estuaries and mangrove to depths of more than up to offshore. There are indications that they prefer depths shallower than . The temperature preference varies depending on the population, with the northernmost being the most cold-resistant: in the Great Bay in New Hampshire they show increased activity above and in Delaware Bay they are active above . In contrast, these northern populations do not tolerate as warm temperatures as southern populations of the species. Atlantic horseshoe crabs can be seen in waters that range from brackish (almost fresh water) to hypersaline (almost twice the salinity of sea water), but their optimum growth is at salinities around or slightly below sea water (20–40‰).


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: A 2022 study of ancient (Early Pleistocene, 2 million years ago) environmental DNA from the Kap Kobenhavn Formation of northern Greenland identified preserved DNA fragments of horseshoe crabs, assigned to "L. polyphemus". This suggests that horseshoe crabs ranged and spawned as far north as Greenland during these warmer conditions. Around this time, the sea surface temperature would have been 8 °C warmer than the present. These are among the oldest DNA fragments ever sequenced.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The crab feeds on mollusks, annelid worms, other benthic invertebrates, and bits of fish. Lacking jaws, it grinds up the food with bristles on its legs and a gizzard that contains sand and gravel.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Spawning tends to occur in the intertidal zone and to be correlated with spring tides (the highest tides of the month). The breeding season varies. Northern populations (all in the United States, except those in southern Florida) generally breed from the spring to the autumn, while southern populations (southern Florida and Yucatán Peninsula) breed year-round. In the north, breeding is triggered by a temperature increase, but this is reversed in the Yucatán Peninsula, the southernmost population, where decreasing temperatures stimulate breeding. In Massachusetts, horseshoe crabs spend the winters on the continental shelf and emerge at the shoreline in late spring to spawn, with the males arriving first. The smaller male grabs on to the back of a female with a "boxing glove" like structure on his front claws, often holding on for months at a time. Often several males will hold on to a single female. Females reach the beach at high tide. After the female has laid a batch of eggs in a nest at a depth of in the sand, the male or males fertilize them with their sperm. Egg quantity is dependent on the female's body size, and ranges from 15,000 to 64,000 eggs per female.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: "Development begins when the first egg cover splits and new membrane, secreted by the embryo, forms a transparent spherical capsule" (Sturtevant). The larvae form and then swim for about five to seven days. After swimming, they settle, and begin the first molt. This occurs about 20 days after the formation of the egg capsule. As young horseshoe crabs grow, they move to deeper waters, where molting continues. Before becoming sexually mature around age 9, they have to shed their shells some 17 times. In the first 2–3 years of their life, the juveniles stay in shallow coastal waters near the breeding beaches. Longevity is difficult to assess, but the average lifespan is thought to be 20–40 years.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Research from the University of New Hampshire gives insight into the circadian rhythm of Atlantic horseshoe crabs. For example, several studies have looked into the effect of a circa tidal rhythm on the locomotion of this species. While it has been known for a while that a circadian clock system controls eye sensitivity, scientists discovered a separate clock system for locomotion. When a sample of Atlantic horseshoe crabs were exposed to artificial tidal cycles in the lab, circa tidal rhythms were observed. The study found that light and dark cycles influence locomotion, but not as much as tidal activity.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Horseshoe crabs were traditionally grouped with the extinct eurypterids (sea scorpions) as the Merostomata. However, recent studies suggest a relationship between the eurypterids and the arachnids, leaving Xiphosura in the clade Prosomapoda. They may have evolved in the shallow seas of the Paleozoic Era (541–252 million years ago) with other primitive arthropods like the trilobites. The four species of horseshoe crab are the only remaining members of the Xiphosura, one of the oldest classes of marine arthropods.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The oldest known horseshoe crab, "Lunataspis aurora", from head to tail-tip, has been identified in 445-million-year-old Ordovician strata in Manitoba.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Horseshoe crabs are often referred to as living fossils, as they have changed little in the last 445 million years. Forms almost identical to this species were present during the Triassic period 230 million years ago, and similar species were present in the Devonian, 400 million years ago. However, horseshoe crab preservation in the fossil record is extremely rare and the Atlantic horseshoe crab itself has no fossil record at all. Until recently it was thought that the genus "Limulus" "ranges back only some 20 million years, not 200 million".


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The oldest member of the subfamily Limulinae are known from the Late Jurassic (Tithonian), belonging to the species "Crenatolimulus darwini" from Poland. The oldest and currently only other known species in the genus "Limulus" is "Limulus coffini" from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) of the United States.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Horseshoe crabs are valuable as a species to the medical research community, and in medical testing. An extract of blood cells (amoebocytes) from "Limulus polyphemus" is a critical component in the widely used "Limulus" amebocyte lysate (LAL) test to detect and quantify bacterial endotoxins in pharmaceuticals and to test for several bacterial diseases. A protein from horseshoe crab blood is also under investigation as a novel antibiotic.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Procuring the raw materials for LAL testing involves collecting and bleeding horseshoe crabs from wild populations. Horseshoe crabs are returned to the ocean after bleeding, however, there is a level of mortality and sub-lethal impact involved. It is estimated that between 10 and 30 percent of horseshoe crabs die after bleeding.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Studies show the blood volume returns to normal in about a week, though blood cell count can take two to three months to fully rebound. Animals that survive the process may be more lethargic when released and less likely to mate – which has prompted concerns about the longer-term impacts of harvesting horseshoe crabs.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The LAL test is a major source of animal product dependence in the biomedical industry, and a challenge to the Three Rs of science in relation to the use of animals in testing. There are efforts to reduce the dependence on horseshoe crabs, refine the process of collecting blood from the animals (including through aquaculture), and even replace the use of animal-derived assays utilizing synthetic approaches, such as the recombinant factor C (rFC) assay.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Overall the Atlantic horseshoe crab is recognized as vulnerable by the IUCN due primarily to overharvesting and habitat loss. There are, however, significant geographic differences with some populations increasing, some stable and some declining.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Early in the 20th century and possibly before, there was the mistaken belief in some areas that horseshoe crabs were destructive to fisheries, folklore held that they used their long spines to drill into some shellfish. Because of this mistaken belief and folklore, bounties were sometimes offered by authorities for them. On Cape Cod in the early 20th century five cents was offered for every dead horseshoe crab turned in.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: The Atlantic horseshoe crab is not presently endangered, but harvesting and habitat destruction have reduced its numbers at some locations and caused some concern for this animal's future. Since the 1970s, the horseshoe crab population has been decreasing in some areas, due to several factors, including the use of the crab as bait in eel, whelk and conch trapping. According to the Horseshoe Crab Benchmark Stock Assessment Peer Review Report published by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), the population continues to remain stable where biomedical is present in the Northeast and thrive and grow in the Southeast due to protection efforts – a trend spanning decades.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Conservationists have also voiced concerns about the declining population of shorebirds, such as red knots, which rely heavily on the horseshoe crabs' eggs for food during their spring migration. Precipitous declines in the population of the red knots have been observed in recent years. Predators of horseshoe crabs, such as the currently threatened Atlantic loggerhead turtle, have also suffered as crab populations diminish.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: In 1991, the species was provided legislated protection from bait fishing in South Carolina by calling on the management and regulation of the horseshoe crab fisheries, allowing only hand-collecting for biomedical applications and marine biological research. Without the need for LAL in biomedical use, the legal protection of the horseshoe crab is not guaranteed in the future, and they would again fall prey to overfishing and use as bait. In 1995, the nonprofit Ecological Research and Development Group (ERDG) was founded with the aim of preserving the four remaining species of horseshoe crab. Since its inception, the ERDG has made significant contributions to horseshoe crab conservation. ERDG founder Glenn Gauvry designed a mesh bag for whelk/conch traps, to prevent other species from removing the bait. This has led to a decrease in the amount of bait needed by approximately 50%. In the state of Virginia, these mesh bags are mandatory in whelk/conch fishery. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission in 2006 considered several conservation options, among them being a two-year ban on harvesting the animals, affecting both Delaware and New Jersey shores of Delaware Bay. In June 2007, Delaware Superior Court Judge Richard Stokes has allowed limited harvesting of 100,000 males. He ruled that while the crab population was seriously depleted by overharvesting through 1998, it has since stabilized, and that this limited take of males will not adversely affect either horseshoe crab or red knot populations. In opposition, Delaware environmental secretary John Hughes concluded that a decline in the red knot bird population was so significant that extreme measures were needed to ensure a supply of crab eggs when the birds arrived. Harvesting of the crabs was banned in New Jersey on March 25, 2008.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Every year, about 10% of the horseshoe crab breeding population dies when rough surf flips the creatures onto their backs, a position from which they often cannot right themselves. In response, the ERDG launched a "Just Flip 'Em" campaign, in the hopes that beachgoers will simply turn the crabs back over. New Jersey beaches campaign "ReTURN the Favor," trains volunteers to rescue impinged and overturned horseshoe crabs while collecting data on natural and man-made hazards.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: A large-scale project to tag and count horseshoe crabs along the North American coast was started in 2008, termed Project Limulus.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Due to the lack of information and knowledge regarding horseshoe crab populations, the management policies lack any abundance of rules and regulations. To implement management policies for the species, more population information needs to be obtained.


title: Atlantic horseshoe crab

text: Since 1994, the populations in the Yucatán Peninsula have been recognized as endangered under Mexican law. They have declined since the 1960s and remaining significant Yucatán populations are mostly within protected areas.


title: Cavite City

text: Cavite City, officially the City of Cavite (, Spanish and ), is a 4th class component city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 100,674 people.


title: Cavite City

text: The city was the capital of Cavite province from the latter's establishment in 1614 until 1954, when it was transferred to the newly created city of Trece Martires near the center of the province. It was started as the small port town of Cavite Puerto that prospered during the early Spanish colonial period when it became the main seaport of Manila hosting the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade and the port used for other heavy and larger sea-bound ships. Thereafter, San Roque and La Caridad, two former independent towns of Cavite province, were later added to form one municipality. The present larger Cavite City now includes the communities of San Antonio (includes Cañacao and Sangley Point), the southern districts of Santa Cruz and Dalahican, and the outlying islands of the province, including the historic Corregidor Island.


title: Cavite City

text: The city has been known by at least two Tagalog names, the first being "Tangway", which was the name given to the area by Tagalog settlers. "Tangway" simply means "peninsula". The second is "Kawit" or "hook", referring to the hook-shaped landform along the coast of Bacoor Bay, and from which the Chinese "Keit" and Spanish "Cavite" are in turn derived.


title: Cavite City

text: The early inhabitants of Cavite City were the Tagalogs ruled by the Kampilan and the bullhorn of a datu, the tribal form of government. According to folklore, the earliest settlers came from Borneo, led by Gat Hinigiw and his wife Dayang Kaliwanag who bore seven children. Archaeological evidences in the coastal areas show prehistoric settlements.


title: Cavite City

text: On May 16, 1571, the Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi declared the region a royal encomienda, or royal land grant. Spanish colonizers settled in the most populated area of the place (present day Kawit), they called it Cavite. The old "Tangway" at the tip of the Cavite Peninsula, across Bacoor Bay was referred to as "Cavite la Punta" meaning "Point of Cavite" or Cavite Point. Upon discovering that because of its deep waters, Cavite la Punta was a suitable place for the repair and construction of Spanish ships and galleon, the Spanish moved their settlement there and called it "Cavite Nuevo" (New Cavite) or plainly "Cavite", while the first settlement was renamed "Cavite Viejo" (and in the early 20th century, regained its former name, Kawit).


title: Cavite City

text: In 1590, the Spaniards fortified "Cavite Nuevo" with a "muralla" (high thick curtain walls) on its western, northern and eastern side while the side fronting Bacoor Bay remained open. Fort Guadalupe on the easternmost tip was also built at the same time, and the town became the "Puerto de Cavite" (Port of Cavite) or "Cavite Puerto". The Fort of San Felipe Neri and Porta Vaga gate were constructed in 1595 and completed in 1602. Puerta Vaga (corrupted to Porta Vaga) was the port city's barbican western and only principal entrance from San Roque. It was flanked by the western wall protected by two bastions at its north and southern end. The wall and gate were also separated from the mainland by a moat, which also made the town like an island.


title: Cavite City

text: Cavite was officially founded as a town in 1614 with Tomás Salazar as the earliest known "gobernadorcillo" recorded. At the same time, the town became the capital of the new politico-military province of Cavite, established also in 1614. Like some other provinces during the Spanish era, the province adapted the name of its capital town [e.g., Bulacan, Bulacan; Tayabas, Tayabas (now Quezon province); Tarlac, Tarlac; Manila, Manila province ; Balayan, Balayan Province (now Batangas); Taal, Taal (now Batangas); and the present Batangas, Batangas].


title: Cavite City

text: San Roque was founded as a separate town also in 1614. At 1663, during the Spanish evacuation of Ternate, Indonesia, the 200 families of mixed Mexican-Filipino-Spanish and Papuan-Indonesian-Portuguese descent who had ruled over the Christianized Sultanate of Ternate and included their Sultan who converted, were relocated to Ternate, Cavite plus Ermita, Manila and San Roque, Cavite. It was placed under the civil administration of Cavite Puerto until it was granted a right to be a separate and an independent municipality in 1720. La Caridad, formerly known as La Estanzuela of San Roque, separated and was founded as town in 1868. The Spanish Governor General Jose de la Gardana granted the petition of the people led by Don Justo Miranda to make barrio La Estanzuela an independent town.


title: Cavite City

text: As the town was progressing, it also became a cosmopolitan town that attracted the different religious orders to set up churches, convents and hospitals within the limited confines of the fortified town. The Franciscan "Hospital de San Jose" (Saint Joseph Hospital) was built for sailors and soldiers in 1591, the San Diego de Alcala convent in 1608, the Porta Vaga (La Ermita), Our Lady of Loreto (Jesuit), San Juan de Dios (St. John of God), Santo Domingo (Dominicans), Santa Monica (Recollects), and San Pedro, the port's parish church. At the most, the fortified town enclosed eight churches, the Jesuit college of San Ildefonso, public buildings and residences, which served the needs of its population of natives, soldiers and workers at the port, transients and passengers on board the galleons.


title: Cavite City

text: It was also during those times when it was called "Tierra de Maria Santisima" (Land of Most Holy Mary) because of the popularity of the Marian devotion in this place. Plazas and parks were evidence of importance, Plaza de Armas across from San Felipe Fort, Plaza de San Pedro across from the church and Plaza Soledad across from Porta Vaga, Plaza del Reparo was at the bayside.


title: Cavite City

text: The Port of Cavite "(Puerto de Cavite)" was linked to the history of world trade. Spanish galleons sailed every July to Acapulco (Mexico) while another ship sailed from Acapulco to Cavite. Galleons and other heavy ocean-going ships were not able to enter the Port of Manila along Pasig River because of a sand bar that limits entrance to the river port only to light ships. For this reason, the Port of Cavite was regarded as the Port of Manila, the main seaport of the capital city.