title: Categorical distribution

text: This relationship is used in Bayesian statistics to estimate the underlying parameter p of a categorical distribution given a collection of "N" samples. Intuitively, we can view the hyperprior vector α as pseudocounts, i.e. as representing the number of observations in each category that we have already seen. Then we simply add in the counts for all the new observations (the vector c) in order to derive the posterior distribution.


title: Categorical distribution

text: Further intuition comes from the expected value of the posterior distribution (see the article on the Dirichlet distribution):


title: Categorical distribution

text: This says that the expected probability of seeing a category "i" among the various discrete distributions generated by the posterior distribution is simply equal to the proportion of occurrences of that category actually seen in the data, including the pseudocounts in the prior distribution. This makes a great deal of intuitive sense: if, for example, there are three possible categories, and category 1 is seen in the observed data 40% of the time, one would expect on average to see category 1 40% of the time in the posterior distribution as well.


title: Categorical distribution

text: The maximum-a-posteriori estimate of the parameter p in the above model is simply the mode of the posterior Dirichlet distribution, i.e.,


title: Categorical distribution

text: In many practical applications, the only way to guarantee the condition that formula_38 is to set formula_39 for all "i".


title: Categorical distribution

text: In the above model, the marginal likelihood of the observations (i.e. the joint distribution of the observations, with the prior parameter marginalized out) is a Dirichlet-multinomial distribution:


title: Categorical distribution

text: This distribution plays an important role in hierarchical Bayesian models, because when doing inference over such models using methods such as Gibbs sampling or variational Bayes, Dirichlet prior distributions are often marginalized out. See the article on this distribution for more details.


title: Categorical distribution

text: The posterior predictive distribution of a new observation in the above model is the distribution that a new observation formula_41 would take given the set formula_42 of "N" categorical observations. As shown in the Dirichlet-multinomial distribution article, it has a very simple form:


title: Categorical distribution

text: The reason for the equivalence between posterior predictive probability and the expected value of the posterior distribution of p is evident with re-examination of the above formula. As explained in the posterior predictive distribution article, the formula for the posterior predictive probability has the form of an expected value taken with respect to the posterior distribution:


title: Categorical distribution

text: The crucial line above is the third. The second follows directly from the definition of expected value. The third line is particular to the categorical distribution, and follows from the fact that, in the categorical distribution specifically, the expected value of seeing a particular value "i" is directly specified by the associated parameter "p". The fourth line is simply a rewriting of the third in a different notation, using the notation farther up for an expectation taken with respect to the posterior distribution of the parameters.


title: Categorical distribution

text: Observe data points one by one and each time consider their predictive probability before observing the data point and updating the posterior. For any given data point, the probability of that point assuming a given category depends on the number of data points already in that category. In this scenario, if a category has a high frequency of occurrence, then new data points are more likely to join that category — further enriching the same category. This type of scenario is often termed a preferential attachment (or "rich get richer") model. This models many real-world processes, and in such cases the choices made by the first few data points have an outsize influence on the rest of the data points.


title: Categorical distribution

text: In Gibbs sampling, one typically needs to draw from conditional distributions in multi-variable Bayes networks where each variable is conditioned on all the others. In networks that include categorical variables with Dirichlet priors (e.g. mixture models and models including mixture components), the Dirichlet distributions are often "collapsed out" (marginalized out) of the network, which introduces dependencies among the various categorical nodes dependent on a given prior (specifically, their joint distribution is a Dirichlet-multinomial distribution). One of the reasons for doing this is that in such a case, the distribution of one categorical node given the others is exactly the posterior predictive distribution of the remaining nodes.


title: Categorical distribution

text: That is, for a set of nodes formula_42, if the node in question is denoted as formula_46 and the remainder as formula_47, then


title: Categorical distribution

text: There are a number of methods, but the most common way to sample from a categorical distribution uses a type of inverse transform sampling:


title: Categorical distribution

text: Assume a distribution is expressed as "proportional to" some expression, with unknown normalizing constant. Before taking any samples, one prepares some values as follows:


title: Categorical distribution

text: If it is necessary to draw many values from the same categorical distribution, the following approach is more efficient. It draws n samples in O(n) time (assuming an O(1) approximation is used to draw values from the binomial distribution).


title: Categorical distribution

text: In machine learning it is typical to parametrize the categorical distribution, formula_50 via an unconstrained representation in formula_51, whose components are given by:


title: Categorical distribution

text: where formula_53 is any real constant. Given this representation, formula_50 can be recovered using the softmax function, which can then be sampled using the techniques described above. There is however a more direct sampling method that uses samples from the Gumbel distribution. Let formula_55 be "k" independent draws from the standard Gumbel distribution, then


title: Categorical distribution

text: will be a sample from the desired categorical distribution. (If formula_57 is a sample from the standard uniform distribution, then formula_58 is a sample from the standard Gumbel distribution.)


title: Hauberk

text: A hauberk or byrnie is a shirt of mail. The term is usually used to describe a shirt reaching at least to mid-thigh and including sleeves. Haubergeon ("little hauberk") generally refers to the quilted undergarment used with a hauberk, but the terms are sometimes used interchangeably.


title: Hauberk

text: The short-hemmed, short-sleeved "hauberk" may have originated from the medieval Islamic world, although its European form is a descendant of the Carolingian "byrnie". The word "hauberk" is derived from the Old Frankish word "halsberg" (c. 1300), which originally described a small piece of mail that protects (""bergen"", literally "to give protection, to save, to rescue") the throat and the neck (the ""Hals"").


title: Hauberk

text: The Bayeux Tapestry illustrates Norman soldiers wearing a knee-length version of the "hauberk", with three-quarter length sleeves and a split from hem to crotch. Such armor was quite expensive—both in materials (iron wire) and time/skill required to manufacture it—so common foot soldiers rarely were so equipped. By the mid-12th century, hauberks had expanded to include longer sleeves and more protection for the legs.


title: Hauberk

text: The "hauberk" stored in the Prague Cathedral, dating from the 12th century, is one of the earliest surviving examples from Central Europe and was supposedly owned by Saint Wenceslaus. In Europe, use of mail "hauberks" continued up through the 14th century, when plate armor began to supplant it. Some knights continued to wear chain hauberks, however, underneath plate armor. In parts of Central Asia, it continued to be used longer.


title: Hauberk

text: In the Hebrew Bible the shiryon, translated "habergeon" or a "coat of mail," is mentioned as part of the armor of Nehemiah's workers (Nehemiah 4:16), and one of the pieces of armor supplied by King Uzziah to his soldiers. (2 Chronicles 26:14)


title: Hauberk

text: Goliath was also armed with a "coat of mail", weighing five thousand shekels (55 kg), as he confronted David (1 Samuel 17:5).


title: Hauberk

text: "A Hauberk" was typically constructed from interlocking loops of metal to form a mail shirt. The sleeves sometimes only went to the elbow, but often were full arm length, with some covering the hands with a supple glove leather face on the palm of the hand, or even full mail gloves. It was usually thigh or knee length, with a split in the front and back to the groin so the wearer could ride a horse. It sometimes incorporated a hood, or coif. Per historian Kelly DeVries "the hauberk was probably worn over, but not attached to, a heavy, quilted undergarment, the haubergeon."


title: Hauberk

text: While lighter than plate armor, a hauberk could be quite heavy. The author of the "Gesta Guillemi of William of Poitiers" praises William the Conqueror's strength by mentioning that "he carried on his own shoulders both his own hauberk and that of one of his own followers, William fitz Osbern, renowned for his bodily strength and courage, whom he had relieved of this iron burden."


title: Gerald McCoy

text: Gerald Keith McCoy Jr. (born February 25, 1988) is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Oklahoma, where he earned consensus All-American honors, and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers third overall in the 2010 NFL Draft. McCoy has been selected to the Pro Bowl six times, and was selected to one First-team All-Pro.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy was born in Oklahoma City to Gerald McCoy, Sr. and Patricia McCoy. He attended Southeast High School in Oklahoma City, where he played for the Southeast Spartans high school football team and competed in track. After notching 83 tackles, including 23 tackles for loss and 20 sacks, he was named All-area, all-state, and all-metro as a junior in 2004. As a senior, he logged 82 tackles, 20 sacks and recovered nine fumbles. McCoy received numerous awards including 2005 National Defensive Player of the Year by "USA Today". Following his senior season, McCoy played in the 2006 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: In track & field, McCoy was one of the states top performers in the shot put (top-throw of 16.90 meters).


title: Gerald McCoy

text: Regarded as a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, McCoy was ranked as the No. 1 defensive tackle prospect in his class. At No. 4 in the overall ranking he was the highest ranked defensive tackle since Haloti Ngata (No. 2) in 2002. Recruited by virtually every major school in the country, McCoy took official visits to Notre Dame, Southern California, Virginia Tech, Louisiana State, and Miami (FL), before committing to his home-state Sooners on National Signing Day.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy attended the University of Oklahoma, where he played for head coach Bob Stoops's Oklahoma Sooners football team from 2006 to 2009.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: After being redshirted for the 2006 season, the young McCoy faced high expectations. In 2007, the Big 12 named McCoy the Defensive Freshman of the Year. He finished the 2007 season with 19 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks while starting and playing in 13 games.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: In his sophomore season, McCoy led all of Oklahoma's interior defensive linemen with 30 tackles and was second on the team with 6.5 sacks. He also had career-high two sacks against Texas and his first career interception came in the BCS title game against Florida. After the season, he was named Sporting News First-team All-American, AP Second-team All- American and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: Despite having been considered one of the top prospects for the 2009 NFL Draft, McCoy chose to return to Oklahoma for his junior season. "Rivals.com" ranked him as the No. 2 defensive tackle in college football in 2009. McCoy finished the season playing in 15 games making 35 tackles (15.5 for losses) six sacks, two passes broken up, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. He was voted First-team All-American by the Walter Camp Foundation. McCoy also became the 37th Sooner player to earn All-America honors in more than one season. He was named to All-America teams by The Sporting News and Sports Illustrated after the 2008 season. On November 10, McCoy was named one of four finalists for the 2009 Lombardi Award. McCoy was the only non-senior on a list that also included Terrence Cody, Jerry Hughes, and Ndamukong Suh.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: At the University of Oklahoma, McCoy was a two-time team captain that started all 40 games during his career (2007– 09), playing the three-technique right defensive tackle position. He also recorded two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries, one interception, and four passes defensed.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy was considered one of the top prospects of the 2010 NFL Draft. Before the draft, he was projected as either a 4–3 three-technique defensive tackle or a 3–4 defensive end at the professional level.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 3rd overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft (as projected, to play 3-technique DT). He was the highest selected Sooners defender since Tony Casillas went to the Atlanta Falcons in 1986. He was also the second of three Oklahoma Sooners drafted in the first four picks of the 2010 NFL Draft, marking the first time in NFL history that one college has had three players selected among the first four picks. Quarterback Sam Bradford was selected by the St. Louis Rams with the 1st pick and Offensive Tackle Trent Williams was selected by the Washington Redskins with the 4th pick. McCoy and the Buccaneers agreed to a five-year, $63 million contract on July 31, 2010.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy made his NFL debut against the Cleveland Browns on September 12, 2010. The Buccaneers won the game 17-14, thanks in large part to a great defensive performance that saw McCoy make three tackles while forcing a fumble. McCoy also became just the fifth defensive rookie to start for the Buccaneers on opening day since 1995 when Warren Sapp played against the Philadelphia Eagles in a 21-6 victory.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy recorded his first NFL sack against the San Francisco 49ers on November 21, 2010. In the game, the Bucs shut out the Niners 21-0 for their first win in Candlestick Park since 1980. His first multi-sack game came a week later, on November 28, 2010 when he sacked quarterback Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens twice. The Buccaneers ended up losing that game 17 to 10 despite a strong defensive performance.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: On December 12, 2010, McCoy suffered a torn left biceps, causing the team to place him on IR two days later.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy finished 2010 tied for third on the Buccaneers with 3.0 sacks, tied for fourth on the team with 6.0 tackles for loss and ranked second with 17 quarterback pressures during his rookie season, despite missing the final three games.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: In his second season in the NFL, McCoy once again was limited by injuries and appeared in only 11 games.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy was placed on injured reserve on November 7, 2011 after tearing his right biceps during the opening quarter of a 27–16 loss to New Orleans that dropped the Bucs (4–4) into third place in the NFC South. He had just returned to the lineup after sitting out the previous two games because on an ankle injury.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: It was the second straight year McCoy's season ended prematurely because of an arm injury. The Bucs finished their struggling 2011 season on a 10-game losing streak which led to the firing of head coach Raheem Morris.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy bounced back in 2012, having a significant impact on the Bucs' top-ranked rushing defense and earning his first Pro Bowl berth in his first season un-marred by injury.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: "I just wanted to play a full season," McCoy said. "This is definitely a gift from God. God has outdone himself with this."My goal was to be my best for my team. But by doing that, I was able to accomplish that and show people that I can play a little football." Receiver Vincent Jackson and running back Doug Martin were named alternates for the Pro Bowl, joining their teammate McCoy. His stats on the year were 30 tackles (at least 10 tackles for a loss), 5 Sacks, and 1 forced fumble.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy began the 2013 season in good form, registering 2 sacks and a fumble recovery by Week 4. McCoy continued his strong season with a big game against the Miami Dolphins in Week 10. He recorded 5 tackles including 2 for a loss, and also sacked Miami Quarterback Ryan Tannehill. McCoy enjoyed the most productive day of his career in Week 11 of the 2013 season. Registering 6 tackles, 3 sacks and a pass deflection at home against the Atlanta Falcons, tying a franchise single-game sack record for a defensive tackle with Warren Sapp and Brad Culpepper. McCoy was voted to his second consecutive Pro Bowl in 2013. He finished the season with 50 Total Tackles, 9 Sacks, 8 Tackles for a Loss, 4 Pass Deflections and a Fumble Recovery. He was ranked by Pro Football Focus as the NFL's Best Defensive Tackle for the 2013 NFL Season. McCoy was named first-team All-Pro by the associated press along with teammate Lavonte David.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy and the Bucs entered the 2014 season with a new head coach, Lovie Smith. He is McCoy's third coach in 5 NFL seasons.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: After continuing his strong play and being a stand out leader of the Bucs defense McCoy and Tampa Bay were working on a new deal.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: On October 25, 2014, McCoy signed a 7-year extension worth $98 million, and $51.5 million guaranteed. At the time, it was the biggest contract ever for a defensive tackle. During week 15 against the Carolina Panthers McCoy injured his knee and was placed on Injured reserve the following Tuesday ending his 2014 season with 35 combined tackles, 28 solo tackles, 8.5 sacks, and 1 forced fumble. Despite his injury he was selected to his third consecutive Pro Bowl.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: Despite dealing with hand and shoulder ailments throughout the season McCoy was still able to produce 34 combined tackles and 8.5 sacks which resulted in his 4th consecutive selection to the Pro Bowl. He was ranked 63rd by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: In 2016, McCoy was named to his fifth-straight Pro Bowl and was named second-team All-Pro. He was also ranked 52nd on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: In week 6 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, McCoy sacked former teammate Jameis Winston 2.5 times in the 37-26 win.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: On March 31, 2020, McCoy signed a three-year contract with the Dallas Cowboys. After suffering a ruptured quadriceps injury in practice, he was released by the Cowboys on August 18, 2020, through an injury waiver clause in his contract.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: On August 4, 2021, McCoy signed with the Las Vegas Raiders. He was placed on injured reserve on September 15, 2021.


title: Gerald McCoy

text: McCoy majored in human relations at the University of Oklahoma. In May 2012, McCoy was presented with the 2012 Pop Warner Little Scholars 'Inspiration to Youth' Award at Pop Warner's annual All-American Scholastic Banquet in Orlando, Florida. In September 2012, McCoy helped present a $100,000 check to build Tampa Bay Buccaneers Field in Clearwater's North Greenwood community, where McCoy and teammates also led local youths through football drills. Gerald McCoy is married to Ebony McCoy, and the couple have five children. McCoy also appeared, along with J. J. Watt and NaVorro Bowman, in "The League", a TV series centered around a fantasy football league, for Episode 2 of Season 5.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh (27 January 1956 – 1 August 2020) was an Indian politician from the state of Uttar Pradesh. He was the general secretary of the Samajwadi Party and was a member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament. On 6 January 2010, he resigned from all the posts of the Samajwadi Party and was later expelled from the party by its chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav, on 2 February 2010.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: In 2011, he was arrested and spent a brief period in jail for his alleged involvement in the cash-for-votes scandal. In 2016, he was elected to Rajya Sabha with support from Samajwadi Party even after facing a stiff opposition from a section of the party including the then Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav. He was also reinstated as one of the general secretaries of the party in October 2016. On August 1, 2020, Singh died of a kidney ailment in Singapore at the age of 64.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh was born on 27 January 1956 at Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh to a thakur family. He got his early education at his native place. Afterward his family moved to Kolkata where he completed his graduation from St. Xavier's College and had his law education from University College of Law, Kolkata.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh started his career as a liaison officer of K.K. Birla. K.K. Birla was the owner of Hindustan Times. Working with Birla he made inroads in journalist fraternity.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Singh's prominence in Delhi surged when the UPA government was reduced to a minority after the Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and All India Forward Bloc withdrew their support over the proposed Nuclear Accord with the United States. His Samajwadi Party pledged support to the UPA government with the support of its 39 members.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Singh along with his close associate Jaya Prada were expelled from the Samajwadi Party in February, 2010 for anti party activities. On 21 December 2010, Singh launched his official website and blog.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Singh floated his own political party, Rashtriya Lok Manch, in 2011, and fielded candidates in 360 of the 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh in the 2012 assembly polls. However his party did not win a single seat in these elections. He joined the Rashtriya Lok Dal party in March 2014, contested the general elections that year from Fatehpur Sikri, Uttar Pradesh in 2014 Indian general election and lost.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: He was admitted at a hospital in Dubai with kidney failure and was stated to be critical on 19 February 2013.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh has been elected 4 times as Rajya Sabha MP. He had lost the 16th Lok Sabha election from Fatehpur Sikri in 2014 as RLD candidate.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Note: Elected to Rajya Sabha in 2016 from Uttar Pradesh as an independent member by the support of Samajwadi Party (SP).


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh had married Pankaja Kumari Singh on 14 June 1987 and the couple have 2 daughters: Drishti Singh and Disha Singh.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: On 22 July 2008, he accused Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati of kidnapping six MPs of his party from Uttar Pradesh and holding them captive in Uttar Pradesh Bhavan, New Delhi. Later, Samajwadi Party expelled the six MPs for defying the party directive during the confidence motion voting.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: He also courted controversy by asking for a probe in the Jamia Nagar Batla house encounter case. First he gave ₹10 lakh cheque to the family of Mohan Chand Sharma, a police officer who died in the encounter, which bounced when checked for its validity. Later he asked for a judicial enquiry into the firing incidence suggesting that the encounter may have been fake. Mohan Chand Sharma's family criticized him and returned his money.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh has been chargesheeted for offering bribes to three parliament members of the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2008 under the Prevention of Corruption Act by the Delhi Police on 24 August 2011. Amar Singh has pleaded health grounds for not appearing before the courts where the chargesheet was being heard. However, distressed by adverse media reports, Singh has appeared before the courts to dispel allegations that he is running away from the process of law. After hearing his personal pleas, the Court has sent Singh to judicial custody till 19 September 2011, in Delhi's Tihar jail. But the money trail in this scandal was not traced to Amar Singh's account as per Supreme Court order and nor concrete evidence could be found against him.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh had filed a petition in 2006 after some of his telephone conversations were illegally tapped and were in circulation. A man named Anurag Singh was arrested in the case. The leader had moved the apex court and got a restraint order against their publication in the media. In May 2011, the Supreme Court of India removed the stay on publishing the taped conversations with Bollywood star including Bipasha Basu.


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: In reference to the book "Clinton Cash", the "New York Post" questioned Singh's $5 million contribution to the Clinton Foundation, writing "Singh’s donation was treated with suspicion and amusement in India."


title: Amar Singh (politician)

text: Amar Singh acted in many films including a small role in "Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai" and the role of a politician in the film "JD." He also acted in a Malayalam-language film Bombay Mittayi in 2011.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden is a market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England, north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and north of London. It retains a rural appearance and some buildings of the medieval period. The population was 15,504 at the 2011 census.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Archaeological evidence suggests continuous settlement on or near the site of Saffron Walden from at least the Neolithic period. It is believed that a small Romano-British settlement and fort – possibly in the area round Abbey Lane – existed as an outpost of the much larger settlement of Cestreforda to the north.


title: Saffron Walden

text: After the Norman invasion of 1066, a stone church was built. Walden Castle, dating from about 1140, may have been built on pre-existing fortifications. A priory, Walden Abbey, was founded under the patronage of Geoffrey de Mandeville, 1st Earl of Essex about 1136, on the site of what is now Audley End House. The abbey was separated from Walden by Holywell Field. After the dissolution of the monasteries, Sir Thomas Audley converted its cloisters into a dwelling. Later this became the site of Audley End House.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The market was moved from nearby Newport to Walden during de Mandeville's tenure, increasing the town's influence. This Tuesday market was held from 1295. The town's first charter was granted in about 1300, to what was known then as "Chepyng" (i. e. Market) Walden. The town at that time was largely confined to the castle's outer bailey, but in the 13th century the Battle or Repel Ditches were built or extended to enclose a larger area to the south. The focus of the town moved southwards to Market Square.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The main trading item in medieval times was wool. A guildhall was built by the wool-staplers in the market place, but demolished in 1847 to make way for a corn exchange.


title: Saffron Walden

text: In the 16th and 17th centuries the saffron crocus ("Crocus sativus") was widely grown, thanks to the town's favourable soil and climate. The stigmas of the flower were used in medicines, as a condiment, in perfume, as an expensive yellow dye, and as an aphrodisiac. The industry gave Walden its present name. In the records of the Court of Common Pleas, the town was called Magna Walden in Hilary Term 1484, and Chipping Walden in the 15th and early 16th centuries, but by the 1540s it had become Saffron Walden.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The town and surrounding area, like much of East Anglia, was strongly Puritan during the 17th century. The population was influenced by the missionary John Eliot. By 1640, Samuel Bass's family and a number of others had departed for the Massachusetts Bay Colony as part of the Great Migration.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden was at the centre of the Eastern Association during the English Civil War. While the town was the headquarters of the New Model Army, Lieutenant-General of Horse, Oliver Cromwell paid a 19-day visit in May 1647, taking part in debates to seek a settlement between Parliament and the army. He is thought to have stayed at the "Sun Inn".


title: Saffron Walden

text: By the end of the 18th century saffron was no longer in demand and the industry was replaced by malt and barley. More than 40 maltings stood in the town by the end of the century. The trade was less lucrative than saffron, but the town continued to grow through the 19th century, and had a cattle market, corn exchange and other civic buildings. During this time Quakers became economically active in the area. The influential Gibsons – one of the founding families of Barclays Bank – aided the construction of several public buildings that remain today, such as the Saffron Walden Museum and the Saffron Walden Town Hall.


title: Saffron Walden

text: In the 1900s the Saffron Walden branch railway line from Audley End station, on the mainline from London to Cambridge, was extended to Bartlow. The branch succumbed to the Beeching cuts in the 1960s.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Heavy industry arrived after the Second World War. Acrows Ltd, makers of falsework, built premises to the east of the town and became a significant employer and economic influence in the area. For a short time there was a dedicated railway station for the works known as Acrow Halt.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden's unofficial coat of arms showed the saffron crocus within the walls of the castle in the form of an heraldic pun – as in, "Saffron walled-in". In 1961, a formal coat of arms was granted by the College of Arms and this was adapted in 1974 into its current form.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The town has three ceremonial maces. The large mace was given to Saffron Walden by James II in 1685 and provides an early recording of the unofficial coat of arms. Made of silver gilt, it is approximately long. Two smaller silver maces were bought by the corporation in 1549 to commemorate the granting of a new town charter by Edward VI. This purchase is recorded in the town's Guild of Holy Trinity accounts and reads, ""For 2 new maces, weying 18 ownces one quarter and half at 8s. the ownce 7l.7s"".


title: Saffron Walden

text: The 12th-century Walden Castle, built or expanded by Geoffrey de Mandeville, the first Earl of Essex, is in ruins. After the medieval period, the castle fell into disuse and much of the flint was taken and used in the construction of local houses and the wall surrounding the Audley End estate. All that remains is the ruined basement.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Near the castle is a turf maze, a series of circular excavations cut into the turf of the common. It is the largest example of this style of maze in England, the main part being about in diameter. The earliest record of it dates from 1699, although its origin may be earlier. It has been extensively restored several times, most recently in 1979.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The oldest inhabited building in the town is believed to be the former maltings at 1 Myddleton Place. The 15th-century building with a courtyard garden was used by the Youth Hostel Association from 1947 to 2010. It is now used for functions. "Pevsner" described it as: "without doubt, the best medieval house of Saffron Walden". Other notable early buildings are in Bridge Street, Castle Street and the side streets off the High Street. The High Street contains some late-Georgian and Victorian buildings.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Bridge End Gardens, seven interlinked gardens – including a maze, rose garden and walled garden – were originally laid out by the Gibson family in about 1840. They have been restored with help from the Heritage Lottery Fund and volunteers.


title: Saffron Walden

text: St Mary the Virgin, Saffron Walden (Church of England) is the largest parish church in Essex. The church dates mainly from the end of the 15th century, when an old smaller church was extensively rebuilt by the master mason John Wastell, who was building King's College Chapel in the nearby city of Cambridge. In 1769 it was damaged by lightning and the repairs, carried out in the 1790s, removed many medieval features. The spire was added in 1832 to replace an older lantern tower. The church is long and the spire, high, is the tallest in Essex.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The town's Catholic church, Our Lady of Compassion, is on Castle Street. Created in 1906 from a 16th-century barn, it was restored in 2004–5.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden falls in to three local government administrative areas, including Uttlesford District Council and Essex County Council.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The town itself is administered by Saffron Walden Town Council which has 16 members. The majority party is Residents for Uttlesford ('R4U'), who are a local political party formed by residents. The Green Party are also represented on the Town Council. As of 2022 the mayor is James de Vries of Residents for Uttlesford.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The town is divided into four parish wards: Audley, named after Audley End House - representing the western area of Saffron Walden including Audley End; Castle - taking its name from Saffron Walden Castle; Shire (formerly Plantation) - representing the southern area of the town; and Little Walden - representing the small village of the same name and a large rural area to the north of the town.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Nationally, the town is part of the much larger Saffron Walden Parliamentary constituency. The MP is Conservative, Kemi Badenoch who is Secretary of State for International Trade.


title: Saffron Walden

text: According to the Office for National Statistics, at the time of the United Kingdom Census 2001, Saffron Walden had a population of 14,313. The 2001 population density was , with a 100 to 94.5 female-to-male ratio. Of those over 16 years old, 45.0 per cent were married, 27.4 per cent were single (never married), and 8.2 per cent divorced. The parish's 6,013 households included 38.5 per cent married couples living together, 31.5 per cent one-person households, 8.4 per cent co-habiting couples, and 7.9 per cent single parents with children. Of those aged 16–74, 22.3 per cent had no academic qualifications, close to the average for Uttlesford (22.0 per cent) and below that for the whole of England (28.9 per cent).


title: Saffron Walden

text: In the 2001 UK census, 73.0 per cent of Saffron Walden residents declared themselves Christian, 0.6 per cent Muslim, 0.4 per cent Buddhist, 0.2 per cent Jewish, and 0.1 per cent Hindu. The census recorded 17.6 per cent as having no religion, 0.4 per cent with an alternative religion, and 7.8 per cent not stating their religion.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden County High School is a large co-educational academy with over 2000 pupils. Located to the west of the town centre, it was rated outstanding in its most recent Ofsted report in 2012.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The school replaced Saffron Walden Grammar School, which was established in 1521 by the town's Holy Trinity Guild and Dame Joan Bradbury, a local benefactor. Dame Bradbury also founded Dame Bradbury's School on Ashdon Road. There has been a school on this site since 1317 but it was in 1521 that Dame Bradbury made this school available for local people. For the first four years Dame Bradbury paid the salary of the schoolmaster herself, until the school was endowed in 1535.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Friends' School, renamed Walden School, was a co-educational Quaker independent school with roots dating back to 1702. Its final building, in Mount Pleasant Road, opened in 1879. On 11 May 2017 it was announced that Walden School would close at the end of the 2016–17 school year. Its final day was 7 July 2017.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden is served by Audley End railway station, which is located outside the town in the village of Wendens Ambo, with regular bus services to the town centre. The station is on the West Anglia mainline service between Cambridge and London Liverpool Street, with an off-peak service of two trains an hour, southbound and northbound, and more services during peak times. The journey time to London is about 55 minutes. All southbound trains also stop at Tottenham Hale station, where there is a London Underground Victoria line station and onward rail connections to Stratford station in east London. The journey to Cambridge station from Audley End takes under 20 minutes. An hourly CrossCountry service between and Birmingham New Street via and also stops at Audley End.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden is accessed from junction 8 of the M11 travelling from London (a distance of about ) and from junction 10 travelling from the Cambridge direction (). Stansted Airport is some from the town, while Luton Airport is away.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Regular bus services connect the town with Cambridge, Bishop's Stortford, Haverhill and Stansted Airport.


title: Saffron Walden

text: During the coronavirus pandemic, Essex Highways narrowed some roads in the town centre to make social distancing easier for pedestrians and they reduced some speed limits to as part of their "Safer, Greener, Healthier" scheme.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Audley End House – once one of the largest mansions in England – is now in the care of English Heritage and open to the public. During the summer months, picnic concerts and a last night in the style of the BBC Proms have been held in the grounds. Audley End Miniature Railway – originally built by Lord Braybrooke – is a gauge railway ride through woodland adjoining Audley End House. The track is long and opened in 1964.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden Museum, which was established in 1835 by Saffron Walden Natural History Society, is close to the town's castle. The museum had many benefactors from local families, including the Gibsons, Frys and Tukes. The first professional curator Guy Nathan Mayard, was appointed in 1889 and his son, also Guy Maynard, succeeded him as curator before moving on to Ipswich Museum. It is still owned by the founding society – now Saffron Walden Museum Society – and is managed by Uttlesford District Council. The museum contains the stuffed remains of a lion named Wallace (1812 – 1838), said to have inspired Marriott Edgar's comic poem "The Lion and Albert".


title: Saffron Walden

text: The Fry Art Gallery exhibits the work of artists who had an association with Saffron Walden and north west Essex, focusing on Great Bardfield Artists. The collection includes extensive artworks and supporting material by Edward Bawden, who lived in the town during the 1970s and 1980s, and Eric Ravilious.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Hall, which is attached to Saffron Walden County High School, opened in 2013. The 730-seater venue came about as a result of a £10 million donation by an anonymous music loving donor. In 2014, former head of music at the Barbican Centre Angela Dixon became its director.


title: Saffron Walden

text: The Anglo American playing fields, located close to Bridge End Gardens on Catons Lane, are home to the town's cricket club and were donated to Saffron Walden by the US forces after the war. Prior to that, Saffron Walden Cricket Club played on the town's common – with a history of cricket matches recorded back to 1757. A monument at the site commemorates the American airmen and people of Saffron Walden who died in the Second World War.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Lord Butler Leisure Centre is located on Peaslands Road and includes a pool, gym and sports injury clinic.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden has a well-established hockey club with its main pitch and clubhouse in Newport and a second pitch at Saffron Walden County High School. The club has eight men's teams, seven women's teams and a large junior section. The women play in Division 2, and the men play in Prem B.


title: Saffron Walden

text: Saffron Walden is the name of a tune often associated with the hymn "Just as I Am". It was written by Arthur Henry Brown (1830–1926) from Essex. He wrote many hymn tunes, which he often named after his favourite places.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: In particular, noise is inherent in physics, and central to thermodynamics. Any conductor with electrical resistance will generate thermal noise inherently. The final elimination of thermal noise in electronics can only be achieved cryogenically, and even then quantum noise would remain inherent.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: In communication systems, noise is an error or undesired random disturbance of a useful information signal in a communication channel. The noise is a summation of unwanted or disturbing energy from natural and sometimes man-made sources. Noise is, however, typically distinguished from interference, for example in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) and signal-to-noise plus interference ratio (SNIR) measures. Noise is also typically distinguished from distortion, which is an unwanted systematic alteration of the signal waveform by the communication equipment, for example in signal-to-noise and distortion ratio (SINAD) and total harmonic distortion plus noise (THD+N) measures.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: While noise is generally unwanted, it can serve a useful purpose in some applications, such as random number generation or dither.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Different types of noise are generated by different devices and different processes. Thermal noise is unavoidable at non-zero temperature (see fluctuation-dissipation theorem), while other types depend mostly on device type (such as shot noise, which needs a steep potential barrier) or manufacturing quality and semiconductor defects, such as conductance fluctuations, including 1/f noise.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Johnson–Nyquist noise (more often thermal noise) is unavoidable, and generated by the random thermal motion of charge carriers (usually electrons), inside an electrical conductor, which happens regardless of any applied voltage.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Thermal noise is approximately white, meaning that its power spectral density is nearly equal throughout the frequency spectrum. The amplitude of the signal has very nearly a Gaussian probability density function. A communication system affected by thermal noise is often modelled as an additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Shot noise in electronic devices results from unavoidable random statistical fluctuations of the electric current when the charge carriers (such as electrons) traverse a gap. If electrons flow across a barrier, then they have discrete arrival times. Those discrete arrivals exhibit shot noise. Typically, the barrier in a diode is used. Shot noise is similar to the noise created by rain falling on a tin roof. The flow of rain may be relatively constant, but the individual raindrops arrive discretely.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: where "I" is the DC current, "q" is the charge of an electron, and Δ"B" is the bandwidth in hertz. The Schottky formula assumes independent arrivals.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Vacuum tubes exhibit shot noise because the electrons randomly leave the cathode and arrive at the anode (plate). A tube may not exhibit the full shot noise effect: the presence of a space charge tends to smooth out the arrival times (and thus reduce the randomness of the current). Pentodes and screen-grid tetrodes exhibit more noise than triodes because the cathode current splits randomly between the screen grid and the anode.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Conductors and resistors typically do not exhibit shot noise because the electrons thermalize and move diffusively within the material; the electrons do not have discrete arrival times. Shot noise has been demonstrated in mesoscopic resistors when the size of the resistive element becomes shorter than the electron–phonon scattering length.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Where current divides between two (or more) paths, noise occurs as a result of random fluctuations that occur during this division.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: For this reason, a transistor will have more noise than the combined shot noise from its two PN junctions.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Flicker noise, also known as 1/"f" noise, is a signal or process with a frequency spectrum that falls off steadily into the higher frequencies, with a pink spectrum. It occurs in almost all electronic devices and results from a variety of effects.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Burst noise consists of sudden step-like transitions between two or more discrete voltage or current levels, as high as several hundred microvolts, at random and unpredictable times. Each shift in offset voltage or current lasts for several milliseconds to seconds. It is also known as "popcorn noise" for the popping or crackling sounds it produces in audio circuits.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: If the time taken by the electrons to travel from emitter to collector in a transistor becomes comparable to the period of the signal being amplified, that is, at frequencies above VHF and beyond, the transit-time effect takes place and the noise input impedance of the transistor decreases. From the frequency at which this effect becomes significant, it increases with frequency and quickly dominates other sources of noise.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: While noise may be generated in the electronic circuit itself, additional noise energy can be coupled into a circuit from the external environment, by inductive coupling or capacitive coupling, or through the antenna of a radio receiver.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: In many cases noise found on a signal in a circuit is unwanted. There are many different noise reduction techniques that can reduce the noise picked up by a circuit.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Thermal noise can be reduced by cooling of circuits - this is typically only employed in high accuracy high value applications such as radio telescopes.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: The noise level in an electronic system is typically measured as an electrical power "N" in watts or dBm, a root mean square (RMS) voltage (identical to the noise standard deviation) in volts, dBμV or a mean squared error (MSE) in volts squared. Examples of electrical noise-level measurement units are dBu, dBm0, dBrn, dBrnC, and dBrn("f" − "f"), dBrn(144-line). Noise may also be characterized by its probability distribution and noise spectral density "N"("f") in watts per hertz.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: A noise signal is typically considered as a linear addition to a useful information signal. Typical signal quality measures involving noise are signal-to-noise ratio (SNR or "S"/"N"), signal-to-quantization noise ratio (SQNR) in analog-to-digital conversion and compression, peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) in image and video coding and noise figure in cascaded amplifiers. In a carrier-modulated passband analogue communication system, a certain carrier-to-noise ratio (CNR) at the radio receiver input would result in a certain signal-to-noise ratio in the detected message signal. In a digital communications system, a certain "E"/"N" (normalized signal-to-noise ratio) would result in a certain bit error rate. Telecommunication systems strive to increase the ratio of signal level to noise level in order to effectively transfer data. Noise in telecommunication systems is a product of both internal and external sources to the system.


title: Noise (electronics)

text: Noise is a random process, characterized by stochastic properties such as its variance, distribution, and spectral density. The spectral distribution of noise can vary with frequency, so its power density is measured in watts per hertz (W/Hz). Since the power in a resistive element is proportional to the square of the voltage across it, noise voltage (density) can be described by taking the square root of the noise power density, resulting in volts per root hertz (formula_2). Integrated circuit devices, such as operational amplifiers commonly quote equivalent input noise level in these terms (at room temperature).


title: Noise (electronics)

text: If the noise source is correlated with the signal, such as in the case of quantisation error, the intentional introduction of additional noise, called dither, can reduce overall noise in the bandwidth of interest. This technique allows retrieval of signals below the nominal detection threshold of an instrument. This is an example of stochastic resonance.


title: Mos Eisley

text: Mos Eisley is a spaceport town in the fictional "Star Wars" universe. Located on the planet Tatooine, it first appeared in the 1977 film "Star Wars", described by the character Obi-Wan Kenobi (played by Alec Guinness) as a "wretched hive of scum and villainy".


title: Mos Eisley

text: A notable scene set in a seedy Mos Eisley cantina crowded with numerous alien races made a particular impact on audiences. Location filming for the spaceport took place from 1975–76 in Tunisia, with interiors filmed at Elstree Studios near London.


title: Mos Eisley

text: Mos Eisley made its first appearance in the original 1977 film, "Star Wars". It is depicted as a busy, bustling port city situated in a desert plain, populated with transients of all species. The lawless spaceport attracts criminals, smugglers and fugitives. Spacecraft land at docking bays dotted across the city.


title: Mos Eisley

text: The Mos Eisley scenes occur early in "Star Wars", when the young hero Luke Skywalker and his mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi travel to the spaceport in Luke's landspeeder in search of a pilot, accompanied by the droids, C-3PO and R2-D2. Obi-Wan warns Luke that the spaceport may be dangerous. Upon arrival, Luke and Obi-Wan enter the cantina, a dimly-lit tavern patronised by visiting starship pilots. Strong drink is on sale at the bar and there are frequent outbreaks of violence among the clientele. The cantina attracts a range of exotic alien species, although droids are not permitted to enter; the bartender orders them to leave, saying "We don't serve their kind in here". A band of domed-headed aliens plays a set of otherworldly jazz-style music. Luke is threatened with violence by two of the customers, Ponda Baba, an Aqualish, and Doctor Evazan, a deformed human, but Obi-Wan intervenes with his lightsaber, cutting Ponda's arm off in the fight. This is the first time a lightsaber is used in combat on-screen in the "Star Wars" franchise. Obi-Wan introduces Luke to a pair of smugglers, Chewbacca and Han Solo, and they negotiate terms for passage to the planet Alderaan, which prompts Luke to sell his landspeeder to get the money they need to pay Han. After Luke and Obi-Wan have departed, Han is involved in a brief confrontation with Greedo, a green-skinned gangster; the exchange ends violently when Han shoots first and Greedo dies. As the group prepare to leave, they are followed to Docking Bay 94 by Garindan, a spy working for the Empire. Following a brief gunfight with Imperial stormtroopers, they board the "Millennium Falcon" spaceship and take off from Tatooine.


title: Mos Eisley

text: In the novelization of the film, "" by George Lucas (ghostwritten by Alan Dean Foster), Mos Eisley is described as a haphazard, run-down settlement built of concrete and sandstone, a large part of it built underground to escape the heat of Tatooine's twin suns. The cantina is described as a dark, sinister bar full of "one-eyed creatures and thousand-eyed, creatures with scales, creatures with fur". The narrative describes "Tentacles, claws and hands... wrapped around drinking utensils".


title: Mos Eisley

text: The Expanded Universe anthology of intertwined short stories, "Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina", edited by Kevin J. Anderson, explores the cantina and its clientele further. The book names the establishment as "Chalmun's Cantina", introducing its proprietor as a Wookiee named Chalmun; it also reveals that the bartender is named Wuher. The book also explores the reasons for the cantina's ban on droids: the bartender claims to dislike everyone, but lashes out at droids because they are the only thing that will not try to fight back; the proprietor Chalmun does not tolerate droids because they do not drink, and therefore occupy valuable space. The backstory of the cantina's resident swing band is also expanded in the short stories "We Don't Do Weddings: The Band's Tale" by Kathy Tyers and "Empire Blues" by Daniel Keys Moran. The band is named as Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes and it is revealed that the players belong to a race called Bith. Their main musical number is also given a title, "Mad About Me".


title: Mos Eisley

text: Mos Eisley appears in the 2019 "Star Wars" television series, "The Mandalorian". In "", the Mandalorian is forced to set down in Mos Eisley for repairs after a space battle with another bounty hunter. In order to pay for the repairs, the Mandalorian goes to a local cantina to look for a bounty. There, he meets a rookie bounty hunter, Toro Calican, who hires him to help locate Fennec Shand, a dangerous mercenary. The pair locate Shand just beyond the Dune Sea and apprehend her. However, when the Mandalorian goes to retrieve transport for them, Shand tries to turn Calican against him by telling Calican about the Mandalorian turning against the bounty hunter guild to rescue the child. Calican kills Shand and decides to capture the Mandalorian and the child and collect all three bounties. The Mandalorian, however, is able to overcome Calican and rescue the child and Peli, a mechanic that was repairing his ship and watching the child. The Mandalorian gives Peli the reward for Shand as payment for the repairs and he and the child depart Tatooine.


title: Mos Eisley

text: The first view of Mos Eisley in "Star Wars" is a shot of Death Valley in California from the Dante's View lookout, with a matte painting added in the distance. The actual filming on location took place on the Tunisian island of Djerba.


title: Mos Eisley

text: In 1975, during the early stages of production on "Star Wars", the appearance of the Mos Eisley cantina and its clientele was realized through the work of concept arts Ron Cobb, Rick Baker and Ralph McQuarrie and costume designer John Mollo. Mollo worked with George Lucas to compile a chart of visual designs for a range of character types. In collaboration with Mollo, make-up artist Stuart Freeborn designed the masks and prosthetics to match each of the costumes, along with Doug Beswick, Rick Baker, Phil Tippett, Nick Maley and Christopher Tucker. Freeborn has remarked that the cantina scene was specifically set up to be a "shock" scene; until this point in the film, there had been few appearances of non-human creatures, and the entrance into the cantina suddenly presented the audience with an array of outlandish species. Working from Lucas's direction and a maquette, set designer John Barry created the cantina set complete with circular bar and shady alcoves. Mollo included a few costumes borrowed from Westerns, and based some other costumes on characters from the 1950 film "Destination Moon" and the 1960s television series "Lost in Space". The alien musicians in the band were played by a number of the Industrial Light & Magic crew, including Phil Tippett, Jon Berg, Rick Baker, who all mimed to the Benny Goodman tune "Sing, Sing, Sing" at George Lucas's suggestion.


title: Mos Eisley

text: The exterior scene was initially filmed in 1976 at the little town of Ajim, which is a fishing port on the Isle of Djerba, Tunisia. The film crew added some false frontage to the structure, which has seen no refurbishment since 1976. The local owner was reimbursed eight dollars a day. The interior set was constructed and filmed on Stage 6, Elstree Studios near London. Harrison Ford filmed his first scene with Alec Guinness; Ford later remarked that the prospect of working with Guinness "scared the shit out of me". As filming progressed, Lucas encountered many problems; the production was running over-budget and both cast and crew were suffering health problems. Stuart Freeborn fell ill and was unable to complete his work on the cantina creature masks.


title: Mos Eisley

text: In early 1977, under pressure to complete his movie (now more than $2 million over budget), Lucas negotiated limited additional funding from 20th Century Fox executives to support second unit filming. Some of the most important additional footage shot was to enhance the cantina scene at Hollywood Center Studios. Lucas had been dissatisfied with the make-up in previous shots due to Freeborn's illness, and was now able to fully realize the scene with several close-ups of alien creatures, complete with Freeborn's masks. Lucas also supplemented the limited coverage he had from the Tunisia footage with footage from Death Valley. The new material was cut into the film by Lucas's editors, including Lucas's wife, Marcia Lucas.


title: Mos Eisley

text: Lucas remained dissatisfied with the final cut of the cantina scene, and beginning with Lucasfilm's release of the Special Edition of "Star Wars" in 1997, made a number of changes to it. He adjusted the confrontation between Han Solo and Greedo, to portray Greedo firing at Han first. This change was repeatedly further altered and has proved one of the most controversial among "Star Wars" fans, giving rise to the popular slogan "Han shot first" in protest of it. For the 2004 DVD, the opening sequence of the cantina scene was modified to replace some practical creatures with completely new computer-generated aliens. This includes, for example, a sinister werewolf-like creature, which was replaced by a pipe-smoking reptile.


title: Mos Eisley

text: Throughout the cantina scenes in "Star Wars", there is constant background music played by an alien band. This diegetic music was composed for the film by John Williams, and consisted of two pieces written for trumpet, three saxophones, clarinet, Fender Rhodes piano and percussion, along with steel drum and synthesizer. George Lucas briefed Williams to imagine "several creatures in a future century finding some 1930s Benny Goodman swing band music ... and how they might attempt to interpret it". Williams combined traditional jazz instruments with instruments associated with Afro-Caribbean music in order to create a sound that was "both alien and yet familiar at the same time."


title: Mos Eisley

text: In 1978 the toy manufacturer Kenner Products released a Cantina Adventure Set as part of its range of "Star Wars" action figures. The playset consisted of a miniature plastic bar with a cardboard backdrop depicting various cantina creatures and an Imperial stormtrooper. A second version of the playset was brought to market in 1979, named the Creature Cantina Action Playset.


title: Mos Eisley

text: In September 2020, LEGO Released a Master Builder Series (MBS) Mos Eisley Cantina (set number: 75290). It featured 3,187 pieces, 21 Minifigures and cost USD/EUR349.99.


title: Mos Eisley

text: The first piece of music from the Cantina scene was released in 1977 on the "Star Wars Original Motion Picture Soundtrack", entitled simply "Cantina Band". Later CD of the soundtrack album included the second piece, which was titled "Cantina Band #2". The first "Cantina Band" number has since been retitled "Mad About Me".


title: Mos Eisley

text: That same year, the record producer Meco released a space disco version of the "Star Wars" title theme and "Cantina Band" on his single "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band". Since then, numerous popular cover versions and parodies have been released which feature the "Cantina Band" melody, including "Cantina Band" (1995) by the rock band Ash, as the B-side of their single "Girl From Mars"; "Digga Digga Doo" (2004) by the Asylum Street Spankers, from their 2004 album "Mercurial";


title: Mos Eisley

text: and "Cantina" (2007) by Voltaire from his album "Ooky Spooky"; A bluegrass version of the theme is heard during the bar scene in the 2011 film "Paul", recorded by Syd Masters and The Swing Riders.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: The Unification Church of the United States is a religious movement in the United States of America. It began in the 1950s and 1960s when missionaries from Japan and South Korea were sent to the United States by the international Unification Church's founder and leader Sun Myung Moon. It expanded in the 1970s and then became involved in controversy due to its theology, its political activism, and the lifestyle of its members. Since then it has been involved in many areas of American society and has established businesses, news media, projects in education and the arts as well as taking part in political and social activism, and has itself gone through substantial changes.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In the late 1950s and early 1960s missionaries from the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC) of South Korea and Japan came to the United States. Among them were Young Oon Kim, Sang Ik-Choi, Bo Hi Pak, David S. C. Kim, and Yun Soo Lim. Missionary work took place in Washington D.C., New York, Oregon, and California. The Unification Church first came to public notice in the United States after sociology student John Lofland studied Young Oon Kim's group and published his findings as a doctoral thesis entitled: "The World Savers: A Field Study of Cult Processes", which was published in 1966 in book form by Prentice-Hall as "." This book is considered to be one of the most important and widely cited studies of the process of religious conversion, and one of the first modern sociological studies of a new religious movement.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1965 Moon visited the United States and established what he called "holy grounds" in each of the 48 contiguous states. By 1971 the Unification Church of the United States had about 500 members. By the end of the 1970s it had expanded to about 5,000 members, with most of them being in their early 20s. In the 1980s and 1990s membership remained at about the same number. Scholars have attributed the Unification Church's relative success in the United States, as compared to other Western nations, to its support of patriotism and capitalist values, and to its multi-racial membership. Some commentators have also noted that this period of Unification Church growth in the United States took place just as the "hippie" era of the late 1960s and early 1970s was ending, when many American young people were looking for a sense of higher purpose or community in their lives. Among the converts were many who had been active in leftist causes.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1971 Moon decided to move to the United States. He then asked church members to help him in a series of outreach campaigns in which he spoke to public audiences in all 50 states, ending with a 1976 rally in Washington, D.C., in which he spoke on the grounds of the Washington Monument to around 300,000 people. During this time many church members left school and careers to devote their full-time to church work. "Mobile fundraising teams" (often called MFT) were set up to raise money for church projects, sometimes giving candy or flowers in exchange for donations. Members considered fund raising to be a source of both spiritual and practical training for future activities.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: Moon also brought members from Europe and Japan to work in the United States. Church buildings were purchased around the nation. In New York State the Belvedere Estate, the Unification Theological Seminary, and the New Yorker Hotel were purchased. The national headquarters of the church was established in New York City. In Washington, D.C., the church purchased a church building from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in Seattle the historic Rolland Denny mansion.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: Moon had long been an advocate for anti-communism. He was born in what is now North Korea and had been imprisoned by the North Korean communist government during the Korean War, and believed that the defeat of communism by democracy was a necessary step in the Divine Providence to establish the Kingdom of God on earth.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1974 Moon asked church members to support President Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal when Nixon was being pressured to resign his office. Church members prayed and fasted in support of Nixon for three days in front of the United States Capitol, under the motto: "Forgive, Love and Unite." On February 1, 1974, Nixon publicly thanked them for their support and officially received Moon. This brought the church into widespread public and media attention.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: The Unification Church of the United States sponsored other anti-communist activities during the 1970s and 1980s, including the multi-national organization CAUSA International. In 1982 Moon founded the conservative newspaper "The Washington Times", in Washington, D.C., as part of News World Communications, an international news media conglomerate which also publishes newspapers in South Korea, Japan, and South America. Although never a financial success, the "Times" was well-read in conservative and anti-communist circles and was credited by President Ronald Reagan with helping to win the Cold War.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1983 church members publicly protested against the Soviet Union over its shooting down of Korean Airlines Flight 007. In 1984, church member Dan Fefferman founded the International Coalition for Religious Freedom in Virginia, which is active in protesting what it considers to be threats to religious freedom by governmental agencies. In 1986 conservative author William Rusher wrote: "The members the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church, now almost universally referred to as 'Moonies,' constitute a fascinating problem for outsiders—and perhaps above all for conservatives, because they are so unabashedly anti-Communist and pro-American."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: The Unification Church of the United States was met with widespread criticism beginning in the early 1970s. The main points of criticism were the church's unorthodox theology, especially the belief that Moon is the second coming of Christ; the church's political involvement; and the extreme lifestyle of most members, which involved full-time dedication to church activities often at the neglect of family, school, and career. During this time, hundreds of parents of members used the services of deprogrammers to remove their children from church membership and the activities of the church were widely reported in the media, most often in a negative light. In 1975 Steven Hassan left the church and later became an outspoken critic. He is the author of two books on his experiences and on his theories concerning cults and mind control. The political activities of the church were opposed by some leftists. In 1976 members of the Youth International Party staged a marijuana "smoke-in" in the middle of a UC sponsored rally in Washington, D.C.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1976 church president Neil Albert Salonen met with Senator Bob Dole to defend the Unification Church against charges made by its critics, including parents of some members. In 1977, church member Jonathan Wells, who later became well known as the author of the popular Intelligent Design book "Icons of Evolution", defended Unification Church theology against what he said were unfair criticisms by the National Council of Churches. That same year Frederick Sontag, a professor of philosophy at Pomona College and a minister in the United Church of Christ, published "Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church" which gave an overview of the church and urged Christians to take it more seriously. In an interview with UPI Sontag compared the Unification Church with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and said that he expected its practices to conform more to mainstream American society as its members become more mature. He added that he did not want to be considered an apologist for the church but a close look at its theology is important: "They raise some incredibly interesting issues."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1978 and 1979, the church's support for the South Korean government was investigated by a Congressional subcommittee led by Democratic Representative Donald M. Fraser of Minnesota. (see also: Koreagate, Fraser Committee) In 1982 the United States Supreme Court struck down a Minnesota law which had imposed registration and reporting requirements on those religions that receive more than half of their contributions from nonmembers as being contrary to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution's protection of religious freedom and prohibition of state establishment of religion. The law was seen as especially targeting the Unification Church.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1982, Moon was convicted in United States federal court of willfully filing false Federal income tax returns and conspiracy. In 1984 and 1985, while he was serving his sentence in Federal Correctional Institution, Danbury, Connecticut, American Unification Church members launched a public-relations campaign claiming that the charges against him were unjust and politically motivated. Booklets, letters and videotapes were mailed to approximately 300,000 Christian leaders. Many signed petitions protesting the government's case. Among the American Christian leaders who spoke out in defense of Moon were conservative Jerry Falwell, head of Moral Majority, and liberal Joseph Lowery, head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Michael Tori, a professor at Marist College (Poughkeepsie, New York) suggested that Moon's conviction helped the Unification Church gain more acceptance in mainstream American society, since it showed that he was financially accountable to the government and the public.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: On July 1, 1982, a large number of the members of the Unification Church of the United States were married by Rev. and Mrs. Moon in a Blessing ceremony (sometimes called a "mass wedding") in Madison Square Garden in New York City. The total number of couples who took part was 2075, some coming from other countries. Soon after other American members were married in ceremonies in South Korea. Most who took part were matched with their future spouses by Moon. Many couples were international or interracial. Before this most American church members had been single and living celibately.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: Moon's practice of matching couples was very unusual in both Christian tradition and in modern Western culture and attracted much attention and controversy. Thousands of couples have been placed in marriages by religious leaders with people they had barely met, since Moon taught that romantic love led to sexual promiscuity. Their mass arranged marriage events have gained international public attention. Critics have stated that some of these marriages end in divorce, which is discouraged by the church.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: Also in the 1980s Moon instructed church members to take part in a program called "Home Church" in which they reached out to neighbors and community members through public service. Unification Church business interests, which had begun in the 1960s, expanded in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s (decade). Church owned businesses in the United States include media and entertainment, fishing and sea food distribution, hotels and real estate, and many others. Many church members found employment in church owned businesses while others pursued careers outside of the church community. Also expanding were church sponsored interdenominational and cultural projects.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1984 Eileen Barker, a British sociologist specializing in religious topics, published "" which disputed much of the negative characterization of church members by the news media. In 1991 "" by investigative journalist Carlton Sherwood criticized the federal government's prosecution of Moon in the 1980s.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Moon made anti-communism much less of a priority for church members. In that year Moon announced that members should return to their hometowns in order to undertake apostolic work there. Massimo Introvigne, who has studied the Unification Church and other new religious movements, has said that this confirms that full-time membership is no longer considered crucial to church members. In 1997 Dr. Sontag commented: "There's no question their numbers are way down. The older members complain to me that they have a lot of captains but no foot soldiers." While Barker reported that Unificationists had undergone a transformation in their world view from millennialism to utopianism.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: On May 1, 1994 (the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC) in Seoul, South Korea), Moon declared that the era of the HSA-UWC had ended and inaugurated a new organization: the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU). The FFWPU would include members of various religious organizations working toward common goals, especially on issues of sexual morality and reconciliation between people of different religions, nations, and races. The FFWPU co-sponsored the Million Family March in 2000, the Global Peace Festival in the late 2000s (decade), and blessing ceremonies in which thousands of married couples of different faith backgrounds were given the marriage blessing previously given only to HSA-UWC members.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 2009 Sun Myung Moon's daughter In Jin Moon became president of the FFWPU of the United States. She worked to modernise FFWPU's worship style in an effort to involve younger members. In 2015 it opened a conference center in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2016 a study sponsored by the Unification Theological Seminary found that American FFWPU members were divided in their choices in the 2016 United States presidential election, with the largest bloc supporting Senator Bernie Sanders. In 2018 "The New York Times", which had previously been critical of the church, reported on the transitions taking place within its customs.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 2001 the United States Army, in a handbook for chaplains, reported that "the Unification Church emphasizes the responsibility of citizenship but sets no official rules as to military service." It added that members have no restrictions on diet, uniform appearance, medical treatment, or other factors which might conflict with military requirements.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: The Unification Church of the United States has introduced a number of neologisms into the English language, directly or indirectly. These include the derogatory term "Moonie", a special use of the word "indemnity", and the expressions "doomsday cult", "love bombing", and "crazy for God"—the last coined by Moon himself.


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: The word "Moonie" was first used by the American news media in the 1970s when Sun Myung Moon moved to the United States and came to public notice. In the 1970s and early 1980s, the word "Moonie" was used by Unification movement members both within the movement and in public as a self-designation, and "as a badge of honor". Members could be seen on the New York City Subway wearing T-shirts that read: "I'm a Moonie and I love it". Religious scholar Anson Shupe notes that "on many occasions," he heard "David Kim, President of the Unification Theological Seminary, refer to 'Moonie theology,' the 'Moonie lifestyle,' and so forth matter-of-factly". The principal aide to Moon, Bo Hi Pak, was quoted by Carlton Sherwood in his book "" as declaring to the United States Congress: "I am a proud Korean – a proud 'Moonie' – and a dedicated anti-Communist and I intend to remain so the rest of my life." Moon himself declared: "In two and a half years the word 'Moonie' shall become an honorable name and we will have demonstrations and victory celebrations from coast to coast."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In the 1995 book "America's Alternative Religions", published by the State University of New York Press, Baker wrote: "Although they prefer to be called Unificationists, they are referred to in the media and popularly known as 'Moonies'." In the same book, sociologists Anson Shupe and David Bromley, both noted for their studies of new religious movements, also use the word "Moonies" to refer to members of the Unification Church. In his 1998 book "Religion, Mobilization, and Social Action", Shupe notes that Barker, Bromley, and he himself had used the term in other publications, "and meant no offense".


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In a 1996 article for "The Independent" about a talk former Prime Minister Edward Heath gave at a Unification movement-sponsored conference, Andrew Brown commented: "The term 'Moonie' has entered the language as meaning a brainwashed, bright-eyed zombie." Brown also quoted William Shaw, a broadcaster who was presenting the Cult Fiction series on BBC Radio Five Live: "Most Moonies embrace a morality which would make them acceptable in the most genteel Anglican social circle."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In his 2000 book "Mystics and Messiahs", Philip Jenkins likens the term to "smear words such as Shaker, Methodist, Mormon". Jenkins mentions use of the word in book titles including "Life among the Moonies" and "Escape from the Moonies", and comments: "These titles further illustrate how the derogatory term 'Moonie' became a standard for members of this denomination, in a way that would have been inconceivable for any of the insulting epithets that could be applied to, say, Catholics or Jews."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1984, "The Washington Post" noted, "Members of the Unification Church resent references to them as 'Moonies'", and quoted one church member who said, "Even in quotation marks, it's derogatory". In 1985, the president of the Unification Church of the United States, Mose Durst, said: "In one year, we moved from being a pariah to being part of the mainstream. People recognized that Reverend Moon was abused for his religious beliefs and they rallied around. You rarely hear the word 'Moonie' anymore. We're 'Unificationists.'" In 1987, civil rights activist Ralph Abernathy, who was also the vice president of the Unification Church-affiliated American Freedom Coalition and served on boards of directors for two other related organizations, equated the word "Moonie" with the word "nigger".


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1989, the "San Francisco Chronicle" reported that members preferred to be called "Unificationists." "The Washington Post" reported that "Unification Church members are being advised no longer to accept the designation of 'Moonie,' and to declare any such nomenclature as indicative of a prejudiced view of the church." In 1989, the "Chicago Tribune" was picketed after referring to members as Moonies. Moon directed minister and civil rights leader James Bevel to form a protest by religious officials against the "Chicago Tribune" because of the newspaper's use of the word. Bevel handed out fliers at the protest which said: "Are the Moonies our new niggers?"


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1990, a position paper sent from the Unification movement to "The Fresno Bee" said: "We will fight gratuitous use of the 'Moonie' or 'cult' pejoratives. We will call journalists on every instance of unprofessional reporting. We intend to stop distortions plagiarized from file clippings which propagate from story to story like a computer virus." In 1992, Michael Jenkins (who later became president of the Unification Church of the United States) commented: "Why, after so many years, should we now be taking such a stand to eliminate the term 'Moonie?' For me, it is a sign that the American Unification Church has come of age. We can no longer allow our founder, our members, and allies to be dehumanized and unfairly discriminated against. ... We are now entering a period of our history where our Church development and family orientation are strong enough that we can turn our attention toward ending the widespread misunderstanding about our founder and the Unification movement."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 1992, Unification movement member Kristopher Esplin told Reuters what is normally done if the word is seen in media sources: "If it's printed in newspapers, we will respond, write to the editor, that sort of thing." On an October 6, 1994 broadcast of "Nightline", host Ted Koppel stated: "On last night's program ...I used the term 'Moonies'. This is a label which members of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church find demeaning and offensive, and I'd like to apologize for its use."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In its entry on "Unification Church", the 2002 edition of "The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage" advised: "Unification Church is appropriate in all references to the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, which was founded by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon. Do not use the disparaging "Moonie(s)"". Reuters, in its handbook for journalists, says: Moonie' is a pejorative term for members of the Unification Church. We should not use it in copy and avoid it when possible in direct quotations."


title: Unification Church of the United States

text: In 2010, National Public Radio, in a story on "second generation" members, reported that they "bristle at the term 'Moonie, while "USA Today" reported on "the folks who follow Rev. Sun Myung Moon (also known, to their dislike, as the Moonies)."


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Japanese–Russian relations are the bilateral international relations between Japan and the Russian Federation. Relations between Russia and Japan are the continuation of the relationship of Japan with the Soviet Union from 1917 to 1991, and with the Russian Empire from 1855 to 1917. Historically, the two countries had cordial relations until a clash of territorial ambitions in the Manchuria region of northeastern China led to the Russo–Japanese War in 1904, ending in a Japanese victory which contributed to the weakening of the monarchy in Russia. Japan would later intervene in the Russian Civil War from 1918 until 1922, sending troops to the Russian Far East and Siberia. That was followed by border conflicts between the new Soviet Union and the Empire of Japan throughout the 1930s. The two countries signed a nonaggression pact in 1941, although the Soviet government declared war on Japan anyway in August 1945, invading the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo as well as seizing the Kuril chain of islands just north of Japan. The two countries ended their formal state of war with the Soviet–Japanese Joint Declaration of 1956, but as of 2022 have not resolved this territorial dispute over ownership of the Kurils.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: A 2018 opinion poll published by the Russian Levada Center shows that 61% of Russians have a favorable view of Japan, with 20% expressing a negative opinion. According to a 2017 Pew Global Attitudes Project survey, 64% of Japanese people view Russia unfavorably, compared with 26% who viewed it favorably. People ages 50 and older are much less likely to hold a favorable view of Russia (16%) than those 18 to 29 (53%). Nonetheless, the Japanese government sees Russia as an important partner for security and counterbalancing China and North Korea in the region. Because of this, since the start of Euromaidan and the 2014 annexation of Crimea, Japan continued to engage with Russia in spite of sanctions against the country by Japan's Western allies. The governments of the two countries have taken efforts to increase relations, including Japanese investment in Russia, military cooperation, and organizing a year of cultural exchange between Russia and Japan for 2018.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: In 2022, Japan imposed sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Japan and Russia each expelled a number of diplomats and Russia halted peace negotiations with Japan that include talks on resolving the Kuril Islands dispute.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Russian navigator Adam Laxman was sent by Catherine the Great to return Japanese castaway Daikokuya Kōdayū to Japan. Russian diplomat Nikolai Rezanov was commissioned by Alexander I as Russian ambassador to Japan to conclude a commercial treaty, but his efforts were thwarted by the Japanese government.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Diplomatic and commercial relations between the two empires were established from 1855 onwards. Japan and Russia participated in the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion in China. Relations were minimal before 1855, mostly friendly from 1855 to the early 1890s, then turned hostile over the status of Korea. The two nations contested control of Manchuria and Korea, leading to Japanese victory in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905. Russia began construction of the Trans-Siberian railroad, which for the first time gave it easy access to Siberia and adjacent areas. Meanwhile, Japan's defeat of China in 1894-95 Sino-Japanese war demonstrated Japan's military modernization, and its quest for control of Korea. Russia and Japan both were making inroads into Chinese territories, especially in Manchuria. both were blocked from moving south of Manchuria by the strength of British and American resistance. Relations were good 1905–1917, as the two countries divided up Manchuria and Outer Mongolia.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Relations between the Communist takeover in 1917 and the collapse of Communism in 1991 tended to be hostile. Japan had sent troops to counter the Bolshevik presence in Russia's Far East during the Russian Civil War, but left without any gains.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Relations were tense in the 1930s, as Japan took full control of Manchuria in 1931 and made war on China in 1937. Moscow favored China. The Russians defeated Japan at the bloody Nomonhan Incident in 1939. Japanese leaders decided to avoid any war with the USSR and instead turned south against Britain, the Netherlands and the United States.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: The USSR declared war on Japan in August 1945 invaded Japanese-controlled areas of Korea and Manchuria, swiftly capturing the defenders. Moscow kept POWs after the war in years of forced labor, a concern that heightened Japan's support of the anti-Soviet side of the Cold War.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: The U.S. had full control of the Occupation of Japan, to Moscow's annoyance. In response Moscow refused to sign the 1951 peace treaty. Therefore, the state of war between the Soviet Union and Japan technically existed until 1956, when it was ended by the Soviet–Japanese Joint Declaration of 1956. A formal peace treaty still has not been signed. The key stumbling block to improving relations between the Soviet Union and Japan in the post-war period has been the territorial dispute over the Kurils, which are known as the "Northern Territories" in Japan.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: After 1975, the Soviet Union began openly to warn that a Japanese peace treaty with China would jeopardize Soviet–Japan relations. The signing of the Sino-Japanese peace treaty in mid-1978 was a major setback to Japanese-Soviet relations. Moscow saw it as placing Tokyo with Washington and Beijing firmly in the anti-Soviet camp. Soviet actions served only to alarm and alienate the Japanese side. The 1980s Soviet military buildup in the Pacific was a case in point.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: The 1980s saw a decided hardening in Japanese attitudes toward the Soviet Union. Japan was pressed by the United States to do more to check the expansion of Soviet power in the developing world following the December 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. It responded by cutting off contacts beneficial to the Soviet regime and providing assistance to "front line" states, such as Pakistan and Thailand. Under Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone, Japan worked hard to demonstrate a close identity of views with the Reagan administration on the "Soviet threat". Japan steadily built up its military forces, welcomed increases in United States forces in Japan and the western Pacific, and pledged close cooperation to deal with the danger posed by Soviet power.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: This economic cooperation was interrupted by Japan's decision in 1980 to participate in sanctions against the Soviet Union for its invasion of Afghanistan and by its actions to hold in abeyance a number of projects being negotiated, to ban the export of some high-technology items, and to suspend Siberian development loans. Subsequently, Japanese interest in economic cooperation with the Soviet Union waned as Tokyo found alternative suppliers and remained uncertain about the economic viability and political stability of the Soviet Union under Gorbachev. Japan-Soviet trade in 1988 was valued at nearly US$6 billion.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Although public and media opinion remained skeptical of the danger to Japan posed by Soviet forces in Asia, there was strong opposition in Japan to Moscow's refusal to accede to Japan's claims to the Northern Territories, known to the Japanese as Etorofu and Kunashiri, at the southern end of the Kuril Island chain, and the smaller island of Shikotan and the Habomai Islands, northeast of Hokkaidō, which were seized by the Soviets in the last days of World War II. The stationing of Soviet military forces on the islands gave tangible proof of the Soviet threat, and provocative maneuvers by Soviet air and naval forces in Japanese-claimed territory served to reinforce Japanese official policy of close identification with a firm United States-backed posture against Soviet power. In 1979, the Japanese government specifically protested a buildup in Soviet forces in Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: The advent of the Mikhail Gorbachev regime in Moscow in 1985 saw a replacement of hard-line Soviet government diplomats who were expert in Asian affairs with more flexible spokespersons calling for greater contact with Japan. Gorbachev took the lead in promising new initiatives in Asia, but the substance of Soviet policy changed more slowly. Tima and again Gorbachev was uncompromising regarding the Northern Territories. Furthermore, Soviet forces in the western Pacific still seemed focused on and threatening to Japan, and Soviet economic troubles and lack of foreign exchange made prospects for Japan-Soviet Union economic relations appear poor. By 1990, Japan appeared to be the least enthusiastic of the major Western-aligned developed countries in encouraging greater contacts with and assistance to the Soviet Union.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Changes in Soviet policy carried out under Gorbachev beginning in the mid-1980s, including attempts at domestic reform and the pursuit of détente with the United States and Western Europe, elicited generally positive Japanese interest, but the Japanese government held that Moscow had not changed its policies on issues vital to Japan. The government stated that it would not conduct normal relations with the Soviet Union until Moscow returned the Northern Territories. The government and Japanese business leaders stated further that Japanese trade with and investment in the Soviet Union would not grow appreciably until the Northern Territories issue has been resolved.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: By the late 1990s, the Russian leadership began to pivot from West to East, considering improving relations with Japan as part of this effort, and viewed Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto's position as an opportunity. President Boris Yeltsin met with Prime Minister Hashimoto in Krasnoyarsk on 1 November 1997, where he proposed to solve the territorial problem with a peace treaty by 2000. Yeltsin also asked Hashimoto to consider financial assistance to Russia to the measure of $3 or $4 billion. Hashimoto also promoted the idea of increasing economic cooperation, which was called the Hashimoto–Yeltsin plan. In mid-April 1998, the Kanawa summit between the two leaders included Hashimoto making a proposal of having the four disputed Kuril islands coming under Japanese sovereignty. Yeltsin made a public statement about it and that he was considering accepting it, which prompted the Russian government and media to unite against this. By the autumn of 1998, the proposal had died after so much opposition in Russia, and Hashimoto was out of office after the July 1998 parliamentary election. Nonetheless, about $1.5 billion of the World Bank/IMF loan to Russia came from Japan. A meeting in November 1998 between Foreign Minister Keizo Obuchi and Yeltsin in Moscow took place, where Russia proposed to give Japan special status over the islands jointly with Russia as transitory legal regime. The Japanese side was cautious to the proposal and by 1999 there was a stalemate on the territorial question, while the economic initiatives stalled in their implementation.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: On July 30, 1998, the newly elected Japanese prime minister Keizō Obuchi had focused on major issues: signing a peace treaty with Russia, and renewing the Japanese economy. However, he died soon afterwards.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: In March 2014, following Russia's annexation of Crimea, Japan imposed several sanctions against Russia, which included halting consultations on easing the visa regulations between the two countries and suspension of talks on investment cooperation, joint space exploration and prevention of dangerous military activity.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: On 27 April 2018, in Moscow was held the fourth Russia-Japan forum dubbed The Points of Convergence, where the sides discussed pressing issues concerning the two countries’ trade and economic relations. Toshihiro Nikai, the secretary general of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, was the forum's special guest, read out Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's address at the event's opening ceremony. Participants discussed the two countries’ tourism cooperation, investment projects for the Far East and other Russian regions, as well as interaction in the areas of infrastructure, technology and energy industry.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: On June 23, 2018, Russia and Japan inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Russia's Far Eastern Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) to expand cooperation between the two countries.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: In June 2018, Japan's Princess Hisako Takamado travelled to Russia to cheer on her national team at the FIFA World Cup. She is the first member of the Imperial family to come to Russia since 1916.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: In November 2019, Japan's foreign minister stated that he will visit Russia in December for talks about a formal World War Two peace treaty, in an effort to improve relations.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: In March 7, 2022, in a House of Councillors Budget Committee session Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida described a chain of islets off the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido that have been long-disputed with Russia as Japan's "inherent territory". Also in solidarity with Ukraine over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Japan joined in the implementation of the Western-led sanctions against Russia and Belarus, by sanctioning a number of people linked to the Russian regime and revoking Russia's "most favored nation" status.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Despite suggestions from LDP lawmakers, prime minister Kishida did not abolish the post of Minister for Economic Cooperation with Russia in the August 2022 reshuffle. The newly-appointed minister Yasutoshi Nishimura stated there is no policy change in keeping interests in the Sakhalin-II oil and gas project in Russia, one of the world’s largest integrated oil and gas projects owned by Gazprom, Shell, Mitsui and Mitsubishi.


title: Japan–Russia relations

text: Relations between Russia and Japan since the end of World War II have been defined by the dispute over sovereignty of the Kuril Islands and concluding a peace treaty. In the spring of 1992 the Russian General Staff received reports that the Japanese began discussing the possible return of the northern territories. President Boris Yeltsin was considering giving up the Southern Kurils in 1992. Throughout the 1990s, efforts were made to come to some agreement by President Yeltsin and Prime Minister Keizō Obuchi. One of the goals of the Obuchi was to sign a peace treaty with Russia by 2000, which he did not achieve. He visited Russia in November 1998.