title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: Since the 1990s, pre-Ashokan dates have been proposed based on excavations and discoveries of graphite covered ancient remains in Sri Lanka. These include those found in Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka, some of which have been dated to the 4th century BCE. The findings of Coningham et al based on the carbon dating of excavated potsherds led to the proposal that the Sri Lankan Brahmi developed before Ashokan era, at least by the 5th to 4th century BCE, from where it came to Tamil region evolving into the Tamil Brahmi, and thereafter spread across South Asia due to trade networks. Sri Lankan nationalists have used this and other fragments of Black-and-Red Ware and Red Ware with Brahmi characters to state that Brahmi was invented on the island and from there it migrated north into the Indian subcontinent. This theory has been criticized by Harry Falk – a scholar of Brahmi and other ancient Indian scripts. First, states Falk, the Coningham team has admitted later that they did not use the carbon dating correction necessary for the Southern hemisphere and used the calibration curves for north Pakistan. Second, the Sri Lankan teams also erred when they deployed a "mathematical trick" whereby they conflated the contested date of lower strata that lacked inscribed shreds with the upper strata where the shreds with Brahmi script were found. According to Falk, a critical study of the feature differences between Ceylonese (Sri Lankan) Brahmi, Tamil Brahmi and Ashokan Brahmi suggest that "all the differences can only be explained once the Ashokan script is taken as primary and the two others as derivations". It is not scholarship that is behind the claims that Ceylonese Brahmi is more ancient and gave rise to Tamil Brahmi and Ashokan Brahmi, rather it is "regional chauvinism", states Falk.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: The graffiti and Brahmi found at sites in Sri Lanka are related, but not considered to be examples of Tamil-Brahmi.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: Archaeological teams sponsored by the government of Tamil Nadu have also been actively unearthing sites and reporting their results in local media that they have found shreds and items with Tamil Brahmi inscriptions. Between 2011 and 2013, for example, Rajan and Yatheeskumar published their findings from excavations at Porunthal and Kodumanal in Tamil Nadu, where numerous graffiti and inscription fragments on archaeological pieces have been unearthed. The radiocarbon dates of paddy grains and charcoal samples found along with potsherds with inscriptions provided a radiometric date of about 520–490 BCE, which state Rajan and Yatheeskumar implies that the inscriptions too are from the same period. Based on Carbon-14 dating by an American


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: laboratory, Rajan suggests Tamil Brahmi had been invented by 490 BCE, and states, "it is almost clear now that Ashoka did not the Brahmi script. The origin or evolution of a script is a social process and it could not be associated with a particular individual or dynasty." Responding to Rajan's findings, Harry Falk, wrote that the earliest supposed inscriptions are not Brahmi letters at all, but misinterpreted Megalithic graffiti symbols, which were used in South India for several centuries during the pre-literate era. The stirrups reportedly found with the shreds are suspicious. Falk considers these reports as "regional chauvinism" just like the Sri Lankan claims of their island being the origin of Brahmi script development. According to linguist David Shulman if these early dates are correct then the transition to proto History needs to be pushed backed to fourth or even fifth century BCE, but he concurs there are reasons to be bit skeptical of pre-Ashokan dates for Tamil-Brahmi, but recommends that one should keep an open mind.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: Tamil-Brahmi had notable peculiarities when compared to the Standard Brahmi. It had four different characters to represent Dravidian language phonemes not represented in the standard northern-based Brahmi used to write Prakrit languages. The closest resemblance to Tamil-Brahmi is to its neighboring Sinhala-Brahmi. Both seem to use similar letters to indicate phonemes that are unique to Dravidian languages although Sinhala-Brahmi was used to write an Indo-Aryan Prakrit used in the island of Sri Lanka possibly from ongoing maritime relationship with Gujarat and other parts of India.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: The Tamil Brahmi script found in ancient Tamil inscriptions is not consistent. It appears to have existed in three different versions between the 2nd century BCE and 3rd century CE. The third version, assumed to be the basis for early "Tolkāppiyam", evolved into the modern Tamil script.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: The Bhattiprolu script is related to the Tamil-Brahmi, and is found in nine early inscriptions on stupa relic caskets discovered at Bhattiprolu (Andhra Pradesh). According to Richard Salomon, the Bhattiprolu script reflects innovations in a Dravidian language context, rather than Indo-Aryan languages. Both the Bhattiprolu and Tamil Brahmi share common modifications to represent Dravidian languages. The Bhattiprolu was likely a provincial offshoot of early southern Brahmi script, states Salomon.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: According to Iravatham Mahathevan there are three stages in the development of the script. The early stage is dated from the 3rd or 2nd century BCE to 1st century BCE. The later stage is dated from the 1st to 2nd century CE. The third stage is dated from the 2nd century CE to the 3rd or 4th century CE. According to Gift Siromony, the types of Tamil Brahmi writings do not follow a very clear chronology and can lead to confusion in dating. According to K. Rajan, the Ashokan Brahmi corresponds with the Stage II of Tamil Brahmi per Mahadevan’s classification. Hence according to him, Stage I may have to be reassessed from the proposed time line. From the 5th century CE onwards Tamil is written in Vatteluttu in the Chera and Pandya country and Grantha or Tamil script in the Chola and Pallava country. Tamil Brahmi inscriptions in cave beds and coins have provided historians with identifying some kings and chiefs mentioned in the Sangam Tamil corpus as well as related Ashokan pillar inscriptions.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: The Tamil Brahmi script inscriptions are predominantly found with ancient Tamil Jaina and Buddhist sites, states Zvelebil. According to Ranjan, all the Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions found in rock caves of Tamil Nadu are related to Jainism. The Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions are also found in secular context such as coins, potsherds and others. According to Zvelebil, its origins likely were with the Jains and the Buddhists, but it was soon understood and used by kings, chiefs, potters and other common people from a variety of backgrounds. This is evidenced by the use of a fused Tamil and Prakrit languages in the secular inscriptions.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: According to Rajan, certain graffiti marks may imply that the script was used for funerary and other purposes. The language used in most of the religious inscriptions show Prakrit elements and influence. Cave and rock bed Tamil Brahmi inscriptions, as well as those found near Madurai, are typically donatory and dedicated resting places and resources for monks. Other major usages of Tamil Brahmi inscriptions are similar to those found in Andhra Pradesh, such as in coins and those that mention merchants and traders of gold, sugar, iron, salt and textiles. Some Tamil Brahmi inscriptions mention the names of ancient kings, heroes, and places. This has served as an important and a more reliable means to date Tamil literature and history from about the 3rd century BCE and thereafter.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: A significant archaeological source of Tamil Brahmi inscriptions has been the region between Palghat gap and Coimbatore along the Kaveri river and to its delta. The excavations here revealed nearly two hundred inscribed potsherds along with items relating to iron-smelting and jewelry manufacturing. These inscribed potsherds contain a mix of ancient Indian languages – mostly in early Tamil in Tamil Brahmi, and some in Prakrit languages in Brahmi. These are dated to about 300 to 200 BCE by archaeo-magnetic analysis. They suggest an economic vibrancy, trade and cultural exchange between ancient Tamil region and other parts of India. A similar mix of Tamil Brahmi and Brahmi script is found in shards, potsherds and rock inscriptions all along the coast of the Bay of Bengal, from Salihundam in northeast Andhra Pradesh to ancient near-coast settlements of Tamil Nadu such as those near Vaddamanu, Amaravati, Arikamedu, Kanchipuram, Vallam, Alagankulam and Korkai.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: Discoveries at Kodumanal near Coimbatore have unearthed potsherds with Tamil Brahmi inscriptions dated 300 to 200 BCE. These include names mostly in Tamil language (Kannan Atan, Pannan), as well as some in Sanskrit (Varuni, Visaki). According to Mahadevan, this admixture of a few loan words of north Indian languages written in northern Brahmi with those in Tamil Brahmi is neither abnormal nor exception in the epigraphical evidence discovered in Tamil Nadu. This trend continued in centuries that followed where Tamils inscribed Sanskrit words in the Grantha script. According to Vimala Begley, the recent sherds graffiti discoveries in archaeological sites along the coast of Tamil Nadu such as Arikamedu are a mix of Tamil Brahmi, northern Brahmi and Ceylon-Brahmi scripts, and they inscribe both Tamil and Prakrit languages of India. This likely suggests that ancient Tamil Nadu served as one of the important trade staging regions for the Indian subcontinent and beyond.


title: Tamil-Brahmi

text: A. C. Burnell (1874), attempted the earliest work on South Indian paleography, but it was due to the efforts of K. V. Subrahmanya Aiyar (1924), H. Krishna Sastri and K. K. Pillay that it was understood to be written in an early form of Tamil, not Prakrit. The early attempts assumed more Prakrit loan words than what was actually used, hence the decipherment was not entirely successful. Iravatham Mahadevan identified the writings as mostly consisting of Tamil words in the late 1960s and published them in seminars and proceedings. This was further expanded by T. V. Mahalingam (1967), R. Nagaswamy (1972), R. Panneerselvam (1972) and M. S. Venkataswamy (1981).


title: Mani Peninsula

text: The Mani Peninsula (), also long known by its medieval name Maina or Maïna (Μαΐνη), is a geographical and cultural region in Southern Greece that is home to the Maniots (Mανιάτες, "Maniátes" in Greek), who claim descent from the ancient Spartans. The capital city of Mani is Areopoli. Mani is the central peninsula of the three which extend southwards from the Peloponnese in southern Greece. To the east is the Laconian Gulf, to the west the Messenian Gulf. The Mani peninsula forms a continuation of the Taygetos mountain range, the western spine of the Peloponnese.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Until recent years many Mani villages could be reached only by sea. Today a narrow and winding road extends along the west coast from Kalamata to Areopoli, then south to Akrotainaro (the pointed cape, which is the southernmost point of continental Greece) before it turns north toward Gytheio. Another road, that is used by the public buses of the Piraeus - Mani line, which has existed for several decades, comes from Tripoli through Sparta, Gytheio, Areopoli and ends in the Gerolimenas port near Cape Matapan.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: A fourth region named Vardounia (Βαρδούνια) to the north is also sometimes included but was never historically part of Mani. Vardounia served as a buffer between the Ottoman-Turkish controlled Evrotas plains and Mani. A contingent of Muslim Albanian settlers were relocated to the region by the Ottomans. These settlers formed a large segment of the local population until the Greek War of Independence when they fled to the Turkish stronghold at Tripoli. Following the war Vardounia's Greek population was reinforced by settlers from Lower Mani and central Laconia.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Administratively, Mani is now divided between the prefectures of Laconia (Kato Mani, Mesa Mani) and Messenia (Exo Mani), in the periphery of Peloponnesos, but in ancient times it lay entirely within Laconia, the district dominated by Sparta. The Messenian Mani (also called "aposkiaderi", a local expression meaning "shady") receives somewhat more rainfall than the Laconian (called "prosiliaki", a local expression meaning "sunny"), and is consequently more productive in agriculture. Maniots from what is now Messenian Mani have surnames that uniformly end in "-éas", whereas Maniots from what is now Laconian Mani have surnames that end in "-ákos"; additionally there is the "-óggonas" ending, a corruption of "éggonos", "grandson".


title: Mani Peninsula

text: A skull of "Homo sapiens" dating to more than 210,000 years ago was found in the Alepotrypa Cave on the western side of the peninsula. this was the oldest evidence of "Homo sapiens" in Europe.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Neolithic remains have been found in many caves along the Mani coasts, including the Alepotrypa Cave. Homer refers to a number of towns in the Mani region, and some artifacts from the Mycenaean period (1900 BC - 1100 BC) have been found. The area was occupied by the Dorians in about 1200 BC, and became a dependency of Sparta. After Spartan power was destroyed in the 3rd century BC, Mani remained self-governing.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: As the power of the Byzantine Empire declined, the peninsula drifted out of the Empire's control. The fortress of Maini in the south became the area's centre. Over the subsequent centuries, the peninsula was fought over by the Byzantines, the Franks, and the Saracens.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: After the Fourth Crusade in 1204 AD, Italian and French knights (known collectively by the Greeks as Franks) occupied the Peloponnese and created the Principality of Achaea. They built the fortresses of Mystras, Passavas, Gustema (Beaufort), and Great Maina. The area fell under Byzantine rule after 1262, forming part of the Despotate of the Morea.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: In 1460, after the fall of Constantinople, the Despotate fell to the Ottomans. Mani was not subdued and retained its internal self-government in exchange for an annual tribute, although this was only paid once. Local chieftains or "beys" governed Mani on behalf of the Ottomans.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: The first of these was Limberakis Gerakaris in the 17th century. A former oarsman in the Venetian fleet turned pirate, he was captured by the Ottomans and condemned to death. The Grand Vizier pardoned him, on condition that he took over control of Mani as an Ottoman agent. Gerakaris accepted, using the opportunity to carry out his feud with the strong Maniot family of the Stephanopouloi: he besieged their seat at Oitylo, captured 35 of them, and had them executed. During his twenty-year reign, he shifted allegiance between the Venetians and the Turks.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Following the failure of the Orlov Revolt, in 1776 Mani's autonomous status was recognized by the Porte, and for the next 45 years until the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence in 1821, eight rulers ("beys") reigned over the peninsula on behalf of the Porte:


title: Mani Peninsula

text: As Ottoman power declined, the mountains of the Mani became a stronghold of the "klephts", bandits who also fought against the Ottomans. There is also evidence of a sizeable Maniot emigration to Corsica sometime during the Ottoman years. Petros Mavromichalis, the last "bey" of Mani, was among the leaders of the Greek War of Independence. He proclaimed the revolution at Areopoli on March 17, 1821. The Maniots contributed greatly to the struggle, but once Greek independence was won, they wanted to retain local autonomy. During the reign of Ioannis Kapodistrias, they violently resisted outside interference, to the extent of Mavromichalis killing Kapodistrias.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: In 1878 the national government reduced the local autonomy of the Mani, and the area gradually became a backwater; inhabitants abandoned the land through emigration, with many going to major Greek cities, as well as to western Europe and the United States. It was not until the 1970s, when the construction of new roads supported the growth of the tourist industry, that the Mani began to regain population and become prosperous.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Despite the region's aridity, Mani is known for its unique culinary products such as "glina" or "syglino" (pork or pork sausage smoked with aromatic herbs such as thyme, oregano, mint, etc. and stored in lard along with orange peel). Mani is also known for what some consider the world's best extra-virgin olive oil, soft-pressed from partially ripened olives of the "Koroneiki" variety, which are grown on mountain terraces. The local honey is also of superior quality.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Today the Mani's coastal villages are full of cafés and souvenir shops. The peninsula attracts visitors for its Byzantine churches, Frankish castles, sandy beaches and scenery. Some popular beaches during the summer are Kalogria and the beaches by Stoupa harbor, while Kardamyli and Agios Nikolaos have good pebble and sand beaches, too. The ancient tower houses of Mani ("pyrgospita") are significant tourist attractions, and some offer accommodations for visitors. The Vlychada Cave at Pirgos Dirou, near Oitylo, are also a popular tourist destination. As they are partly underwater, visitors tour them in "gondola"-like boats.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: Gytheio, Areopoli, Kardamyli, and Stoupa are filled with tourists during the summer months, but the region is generally quiet during the winter. Many inhabitants work as olive farmers, and devote the winter months to the olive harvest and processing. Some of the villages in the mountains are less tourist oriented and often have very few inhabitants.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: The introduction of Christianity came late in the Mani: the first Greek temples began to be converted into Christian churches during the 11th century A.D. A Byzantine Greek monk called Nikon "the Metanoite" () was commissioned by the Church in the 10th century (900's AD) to spread Christianity to areas such as Mani and Tsakonia, which had remained pagan.


title: Mani Peninsula

text: St. Nikon was sent to the Mani in the latter half of the 10th century to preach Christianity to the Maniots. Although the Maniots began to convert to Christianity century due to Nikon's preaching, it took more than 200 years, i.e. until the 11th and 12th centuries to eliminate most of the pagan Greek religion and traditions and for the Maniots to fully accept Christianity. After his sanctification by the Greek Orthodox Church, St. Nikon became patron saint of the Mani as well as Sparta.


title: Woman in Love

text: "Woman in Love" is a song performed by Barbra Streisand and taken from her 1980 album, "Guilty". The song was written by Barry and Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees, who received the 1980 Ivor Novello award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically. It is her fourth of four Platinum records, and is considered her greatest international hit.


title: Woman in Love

text: After the success enjoyed by the Bee Gees in the late 1970s, the band was asked to participate in musical endeavors for other artists, and Streisand asked Barry Gibb to write an album for her. This album ultimately became "Guilty". "Woman in Love", as the lead single, became one of the most successful songs of Streisand's music career. It reached the number-one position on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart, Streisand's fifth (and last to date) number one hit on that chart. It replaced Queen's big-selling hit "Another One Bites the Dust", spent three weeks at number one, and was itself replaced by "Lady" by country singer Kenny Rogers. It also spent five weeks atop the adult contemporary chart, her sixth number one on that tally. The song also proved very popular internationally, reaching number one in many countries, including in the UK Singles Chart. The song sold more than 2.5 million till December 1981, according to "Billboard".


title: Woman in Love

text: The music video for the song included clips from "A Star Is Born", starring Streisand and Kris Kristofferson and other movies she made in the 1970s.


title: Woman in Love

text: Atomic Kitten member Liz McClarnon covered "Woman in Love" after the band's split in 2005. Produced by original songwriter Robin Gibb—whom McClarnon accompanied on his 2005 tour—the cover was released in February 2006 as McClarnon's debut solo single. In the United Kingdom, the song was released as a double A-side with a cover of Jackie Wilson's 1968 hit "I Get the Sweetest Feeling". The double A-side peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart on February 19, 2006, staying in the top 100 for six weeks. Elsewhere, "Woman in Love" reached number 21 in Ireland and became a minor hit in Australia, Belgium, and the Netherlands.


title: Woman in Love

text: McClarnon would go on to record another song entitled "Lately", but the track was not released as a single.


title: Woman in Love

text: "Woman in Love" is the first demo Barry Gibb recorded for Barbra Streisand's album "Guilty". This composition by the Gibb brothers Barry and Robin would become the album's very successful first single. And it was due to this demo that Barry Gibb became the first male artist to sing the song, though it was originally recorded for Streisand alone in order for her to sing the song for her album.


title: History of organizational changes in the NHL

text: The following is a complete history of organizational changes in the National Hockey League (NHL). The NHL was founded in 1917 as a successor to the National Hockey Association (NHA), starting out with four teams from the predecessor league, and eventually grew to thirty-two in its current state. The NHL has expanded and contracted numerous times throughout its history, including in 1979 when four teams came over from the World Hockey Association (WHA).


text: The four teams that began the inaugural NHL season were the Montreal Canadiens, the Montreal Wanderers, the original Ottawa Senators, and the Toronto Arenas. However, after completing four games, the Wanderers withdrew from the league due to their arena burning down, and the NHL continued this season and the next with only three teams.


text: In its third season, 1919–20, the NHL underwent its first expansion, adding the Quebec Bulldogs. Toronto changed its name to Toronto St. Patricks.


text: The next season, the NHL added two new teams, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the New York Americans. The Americans were stocked by purchasing the contracts of the Hamilton Tigers players, and the Tigers franchise was subsequently revoked by the league.


text: The NHL continued to expand the following 1926–27 season, adding the Chicago Black Hawks, the Detroit Cougars, and the New York Rangers, growing to ten teams, thus more than doubling its size in its first decade of existence. The league realigned into two divisions: the American Division and the Canadian Division. Despite its name, the Canadian Division contained at least one team based in the U.S. throughout its existence.


text: Midway through the 1926–27 season, the Toronto St. Patricks were sold and renamed the Toronto Maple Leafs. However, the NHL ruled that the team had to still officially use the St. Patricks name until the end of that season.


text: For the 1930–31 season, the Pirates moved from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, becoming the Philadelphia Quakers, and Detroit was renamed the Detroit Falcons.


text: After fourteen seasons of steady expansion, the NHL contracted to eight teams, dropping the Philadelphia Quakers and the original Ottawa Senators for the 1931–32 season.


text: For the 1932–33 season, after missing one season, the original Ottawa Senators rejoined the NHL, and the Detroit Falcons were renamed the Detroit Red Wings.


text: The Eagles folded after one season, and the NHL was once again an eight-team league for three seasons.


text: The Montreal Maroons withdrew from the league for the 1938–39 season, further reducing the number of teams in the NHL to seven, shrinking to the size the league was in 1925–26. Play continued for four seasons with seven teams, with one single league table instead of any conference or divisions.


text: The New York Americans changed their name to the Brooklyn Americans for the 1941–42 season, their last.


text: franchise stability in the NHL, which lasted without any organizational changes for twenty-five seasons. Eventually, the six teams that competed in the league during this period would come to be known as the Original Six.


text: The 1967 expansion doubled the number of teams in the league, with an upfront expansion fee of $2 million each ($ million today). For the 1967–68 season, six new teams were added to the NHL: the California Seals, the Los Angeles Kings, the Minnesota North Stars, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the St. Louis Blues.


text: The Oakland Seals were renamed the Bay Area Seals for two games before changing their name again to the California Golden Seals for their fourth season in 1970–71. The same season the NHL added two new teams, the Buffalo Sabres and the Vancouver Canucks, paying an expansion fee of $6 million each ($ million today). The Sabres and the Canucks were placed in the East (partially as an effort to provide greater balance between the divisions, and also so they would have rivalries with the other two Canadian teams), while the Chicago Black Hawks moved to the West


text: Two more teams joined for the 1972–73 NHL season, the New York Islanders and the Atlanta Flames. With the competing World Hockey Association (WHA) starting that same season, the NHL was not able to raise its expansion fee from the price of two years earlier, $6 million ($ million today), with the Islanders paying an additional $5 million ($ million today) to the New York Rangers for infringing on their territory. The Islanders were placed in the East and the Flames were placed in the West.


text: Two more teams joined for the 1974–75 NHL season, the Washington Capitals and the Kansas City Scouts, but the ongoing competition from the WHA meant that the overall revenue stream of the NHL had not improved, so the league kept the expansion fee for new owners at the $6 million ($ million today) of two years and four years earlier. The earnings situation for the new franchises was so poor that (at least) the Capitals were able to negotiate a reduction to a total fee of $2.85 million ($ million today).


text: With 18 teams, the league realigned into four divisions and two conferences. The teams were mixed up regardless of North American geography, and thus the new conferences and divisions were not named after geographical references. The East Division became the Prince of Wales Conference and consisted of the Adams Division and Norris Division. The West Division became the Clarence Campbell Conference and consisted of the Patrick Division and Smythe Division.


text: Going into the 1976–77 NHL season, the California Golden Seals relocated and became the Cleveland Barons, and the Kansas City Scouts moved as well, becoming the Colorado Rockies.


text: For the first time since the 1942–43 season the NHL contracted, merging the Cleveland Barons into the Minnesota North Stars. The North Stars then took the Barons' place in the Adams Division.


text: Following seven seasons of revenue draining competition, the NHL–WHA merger was completed for the start of the 1979–80 NHL season. Four teams came over from the WHA, paying an expansion fee of $7.5 million each ($ million today). These new NHL teams were the Edmonton Oilers, the Hartford Whalers, the Quebec Nordiques, and the (original) Winnipeg Jets. This also doubled the number of Canadian teams in the league. Standing at 21 teams for twelve seasons, this was one of the longer stable periods of NHL history, though surpassed by the twenty-five seasons of the Original Six period, when no additions, moves, or name changes occurred.


text: The Nordiques were placed in the Adams Division, the Whalers in the Norris, and the Oilers and the Jets were both placed in the Smythe. The Washington Capitals moved from the Norris to the Patrick Division. The divisions were meaningless as all teams played a balanced schedule and playoffs were seeded by point standings, not division standings.


text: For the 1981–82 season, the teams were realigned to reduce travel. Also, the Norris Division moved to the Campbell Conference and the Patrick Division moved to the Wales Conference.


text: For the 1982–83 season, the Colorado Rockies moved, becoming the New Jersey Devils. The team was moved to the Patrick Division, while the Winnipeg Jets took their place in the Smythe Division


text: In 1990, the owners developed a plan to expand the NHL to 28 teams within a decade. The plan was enacted, creating ten years of rapid expansion and relocation in the NHL. While the pace of expansion and relocation slowed after the , growth and change continue to be a normal development.


text: The saw the addition of the San Jose Sharks, paying an expansion fee of $45 million ($ million today). The Sharks were placed in the Smythe Division with the other West Coast teams.


text: Two new teams joined the league the following season, the Ottawa Senators and the Tampa Bay Lightning, paying an expansion fee of $45 million each ($ million today). The Senators were placed in the Adams Division, and the Lightning in the Norris, so all four divisions would have six teams each.


text: The next season, another two teams were added, the Florida Panthers and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, paying an expansion fee of $50 million each ($ million today), with Anaheim paying an additional $25 million ($ million today) to the Los Angeles Kings for infringing on their region. The Minnesota North Stars relocated, becoming the Dallas Stars.


text: The league realigned the teams. The names of the conferences were changed from Campbell and Wales to Western and Eastern respectively, and the divisions' names were changed from Adams, Patrick, Norris, and Smythe to Northeast, Atlantic, Central, and Pacific respectively.


text: For the , the Quebec Nordiques relocated and became the Colorado Avalanche. The team also switched conferences, moving from the Northeast Division in the East to the Pacific Division in the West.


text: The , the Winnipeg Jets moved, becoming the Phoenix Coyotes. The team remained in the Central Division.


text: The saw the Hartford Whalers relocate, becoming the Carolina Hurricanes. The team remained in the Northeast Division.


text: The Nashville Predators joined the league for the , paying an expansion fee of $80 million ($ million today). The league also realigned to a strictly geographic six-division structure, with three per conference. The Eastern Conference had the Atlantic, Northeast, and Southeast divisions; while the Western Conference had the Central, Northwest and Pacific divisions. The Toronto Maple Leafs were the only team to switch conferences, moving from the West to the East.


text: The saw another team start play, the Atlanta Thrashers, paying the same expansion fee of $80 million ($ million today) as the Predators paid a year earlier. The Thrashers were placed in the Southeast Division.


text: For its , the NHL added the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Minnesota Wild, each paying the same expansion fee of $80 million ($ million today) as Nashville and Atlanta paid in the previous two years. The Blue Jackets were placed in the Central Division, and the Wild in the Northwest, so all six divisions would have five teams each.


text: For the next 17 seasons, the NHL maintained 30 teams, the second longest period (after the Original Six period) of membership stability in its history.


text: The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim changed their name to the Anaheim Ducks in the . The newly renamed Ducks would win the Stanley Cup that season.


text: The Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba, becoming the second version of the Winnipeg Jets in the . The team remained in the Southeast Division.


text: The 2011 relocation of the former Atlanta Thrashers franchise to the Winnipeg Jets prompted the league to discuss realignment. However, disagreement between the NHL Board of Governors and the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) caused it to be pushed to 2013.


text: On December 5, 2011, the NHL Board of Governors originally approved a conference realignment plan to move from a six-division setup to a four-conference structure.<ref name="http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=604852"></ref> However, on January 6, 2012, the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) rejected that proposed realignment. A new joint NHL-NHLPA plan was proposed in February 2013 as a modification of the previous plan with both the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings moving to the East and the Winnipeg Jets moving to the West. The NHLPA officially gave its consent to the NHL's proposed realignment plan on March 7, and then the NHL's Board of Governors approved the realignment on March 14, to be implemented prior to the . The league then announced the names of the divisions on July 19: the two eight-team divisions in the Eastern Conference would be the Atlantic Division and the Metropolitan Division, and the two seven-team divisions in the Western Conference would be the Central Division and the Pacific Division.


text: On June 22, 2016, the Board of Governors voted 30–0 to add an expansion franchise in Las Vegas for the , charging an expansion fee of $500 million ($ million today). The new team, the Vegas Golden Knights, were put into the Pacific Division.


text: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic which delayed the conclusion of the , and which also delayed and shortened the , the NHL adopted a temporary divisional alignment for 2020–21. The primary consideration acknowledged by the league was that the ongoing restrictions and quarantine requirements affecting the ability of its teams to cross the Canada–United States border on a regular basis would have made the league's traditional alignment and season structure unfeasible for at least 2020–21. As a result, on December 20, 2020, the League announced it had temporarily suspended the Eastern and Western Conferences and re-aligned into four divisions without any conferences: North, East, Central, and West. The North Division consisted of the seven Canadian teams and was the first all-Canadian division since the League first expanded into the United States in 1924. The regular season lasted 56 games and consisted solely of intra-divisional play.


text: On December 4, 2018, Seattle was announced as the location of the future thirty-second franchise to begin play in the , with an expansion fee of $650 million. The league reverted to its pre-COVID-19 divisions in 2021. Under the realignment of those divisions that was announced prior to the pandemic, the new Seattle Kraken were placed in the Pacific Division while the Arizona Coyotes returned to the Central Division.


text: After the , when the NHL completed its 1990 plan to grow to 30 teams, the league made statements to the effect that no further expansion or even relocation was planned for the foreseeable future. As shown above, no changes occurred until a relocation in the , followed by semi-regular growth and change.


text: There have been rumors and talks of potential new sites for existing or new teams in various locations in the United States and Canada, including Quebec City, Hartford, Houston, Saskatoon, Kansas City, and second Southern Ontario team (although the league has actively blocked all of the Southern Ontario efforts to date, citing territorial concerns with the Buffalo Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs).


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: Ab Tak Chhappan () is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language action film directed by Shimit Amin. It was written by Sandeep Shrivastava and produced by Ram Gopal Varma. It starred Nana Patekar in the lead role. It also starred Revathi, Yashpal Sharma, Mohan Agashe, Nakul Vaid, and Hrishitaa Bhatt in supporting roles.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: The story revolves around Inspector Sadhu Agashe (Nana Patekar) from the Mumbai Encounter Squad famous for having killed 56 people in police encounters. A film without any songs, it is inspired by the life of Police sub-Inspector with Mumbai Police force Daya Nayak. The film was premiered at the New York Asian Film Festival. Times Internet released a first-person shooter game titled "Fatal Encounter" as a tie-in to the film.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: The film released theatrically on 27 February 2004. In 2012, Rediff.com included the film in its list of the top 25 Hindi action films of all time. A sequel "Ab Tak Chhappan 2" was directed by Aejaz Gulab.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: The section of the Mumbai Police Department responsible for handling the underworld, known as the Crime Branch, is headed by Sadhu Agashe (Nana Patekar). Sadhu is the city's best inspector with an enviable reputation and a record of an encounter with shootings. Though challenging, he is a loving husband to his wife (Revathi) and father and also helps his informers and other poor people in times of need. His immediate junior, Imtiyaz Siddiqui (Yashpal Sharma), despises Sadhu to no end; he feels Sadhu intentionally belittles him. Also, Imtiyaz is more concerned about adding to his encounter score and therefore ends up killing more than the primary target, which is the main reason Sadhu dislikes him. To add to his woes, Imtiyaz is unable to surpass Sadhu's encounter "score". Enter Jatin (Nakul Vaid), a rookie in this line of policing who manages to impress Sadhu. The inspector takes the newcomer under his wing, further antagonizing Imtiyaz. All of them report to Commissioner Pradhan (Mohan Agashe), who is a fair and honest police officer.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: During these events, Sadhu establishes a love-hate friendship on the phone with Zameer (Prasad Purandare), a notorious underworld don based abroad, who grudgingly admires Sadhu for his no-nonsense attitude. Zameer and rival don, Rajashekhar, run the Mumbai underworld.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: Sadhu Agashe's world begins to turn upside down as Pradhan retires and with the entrance of the new commissioner, M P Suchak (Jeeva) who has a strong link with the don, Rajashekhar. Suchak takes a liking towards Imtiyaz, who is willing to do encounters primarily with Zameer's men, mainly on Rajashekhar's orders. Suchak starts undermining and belittling Sadhu. Sadhu continues on his righteous path. Eventually, the pressures of his career take a toll on his personal life as some men kill his wife at the Jatin and Vaishali's wedding reception party. During his investigation into this matter, Sadhu kills Feroz, the right-hand man of Rajashekhar. Sadhu is compelled to resign from the force, and Suchak (on Rajashekhar's orders) sends Imtiyaz to kill Sadhu. Imtiaz gets killed in a peculiar chain of events, and Sadhu Agashe, a once famed inspector, becomes a fugitive of the law. Suchak announces shoot-at-sight orders against Sadhu despite Pradhan's advice to the contrary, and Sadhu is forced to ask Zameer for help in escaping from India.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: Meanwhile, Jatin, who has been growing increasingly disenchanted by Suchak's behavior, resigns and calls for a press conference and exposes Suchak's connection with Rajashekhar. Suchak disputes this in his press conference but is suspended pending the investigation.


title: Ab Tak Chhappan

text: Sadhu goes to Zameer's HQ and thanks him for releasing him and tells him that he is now Zameer's man. As Zameer and Sadhu are drinking alone, Sadhu breaks a glass. Sadhu accuses Zameer of killing his wife. When Zameer tells Sadhu that it is Feroz who killed his wife, Sadhu informs him that he had killed Feroz earlier, and hence he was convinced that using Feroz's name, Zameer had murdered Sadhu's wife. Suddenly, Sadhu uses the broken glass to kill Zameer and escapes. Then the scene rolls forward to a location abroad where Sadhu and Pradhan are having coffee. When Pradhan asks Sadhu about why he had run away, thereby proving the allegations against him, Sadhu tells him that it is part of his plan. He was able to kill Zameer as a fugitive which he could never have done as a cop. He says that he will now go to Rajashekhar since Rajashekhar is thrilled at Zameer's death and kill him too. Sadhu says that he doesn't care what the world thinks of him, and he will always be a cop and will continue his work of eliminating crime until he dies. He requests Pradhan to look after his son, who is with his maternal aunt in Pune, and Pradhan contemplatively agrees. The end credits roll as Sadhu gets up and walks off after saying goodbye to Pradhan.


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: Idlewild is the sixth and final studio album by American hip hop duo Outkast. It was released on August 22, 2006, by LaFace Records and served as the soundtrack album to the duo's musical film of the same name, which was released that same month. Containing themes relating to the music industry, the album also featured songs not included in the film while incorporating jazz, blues, swing, and soul styles in its music.


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: The album debuted at number two on the US "Billboard" 200 chart, selling 196,000 copies in its first week. It achieved minimal international charting and produced five singles that attained moderate "Billboard" chart success. Despite mixed criticism towards its unconventional musical style and loose thematic structure, "Idlewild" received positive reviews from most music critics upon its release. The album has been certified platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of one million copies in the United States.


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: Though less a soundtrack and more of a companion album, the "Idlewild" album features seven songs from the "Idlewild" film: "Chronomentrophobia", "Makes No Sense at All", "PJ and Rooster", "Greatest Show on Earth", "When I Look in Your Eyes", and, from the end credits, "Morris Brown". Two snippets of film dialogue are also included on the album as interludes. The rest of the songs performed in the film were included on the earlier OutKast LPs "Big Boi and Dre Present...Outkast" and "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below". In an interview for "Billboard", Big Boi stated "This is an OutKast album. It isn't like a soundtrack where we go get this person or that person".


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: According to "PopMatters" critic Tim O'Neil, "Idlewild"s music was "not "merely" contemporary hip-hop, but a unique hybridization of modern hip-hop with vintage big-band jazz and Delta blues." Jess Harvell from "Pitchfork" observed imitations of hot jazz and jump blues songs throughout the record, while "New York Post" writer Dan Aquilante said the album mixed hip hop, jazz, blues, swing, and soul music, as OutKast "chronicled African American musical history with original tunes that transcend race and time".


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: "Idlewild"s release was delayed several times in 2005 before being released in 2006. In its first week, the album charted at number two on the "Billboard" 200 and sold 196,000 copies in the United States. The album dropped to the number seven in its second week, selling an additional 78,000 units. On September 26, 2006, it was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, having shipped one million copies in the US. In Canada, it was certified gold by the Canadian Recording Industry Association.


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: "Idlewild" received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 72, based on 30 reviews. "Q" called it "a dazzling album", while Ben Williams of "New York" found it "entertaining and surprisingly consistent". "The Guardian"s Alexis Petridis wrote that it "bulges with brilliant ideas... Ambitious but flawed, at turns stunning, maddening and confusing". Rob Sheffield from "Rolling Stone" compared "Idlewild" to Prince's "Parade" (1986), while praising its "deeply eccentric richness" and calling it "so suave on the surface, it takes a few spins to absorb how radical it is". Although she felt it lacked cohesion and a "clear message", Ann Powers of the "Los Angeles Times" found the album "sonically challenging and lyrically wide-ranging", including songs for "contemplation and booty-shaking". Writing for "MSN Music", Robert Christgau called "Idlewild" "a joyous mishmash" and praised each OutKast-member's distinct performance: "from the mainstream hip-hop Big Boi articulates with so much muscle to the retro swing Andre sings just fine, they sound happy to parade their mastery". "Uncut" described it as "Stylish and substantial, it's a deft masterpastiche that dissolves history for its own entertainment". "Mojo" stated, "Every time you think you've got "Idlewild" figured out, it zips off in a totally unexpected new direction".


title: Idlewild (Outkast album)

text: According to "NME" critic Dan Martin, other critics might have found "Idlewild" to be "a bit long and uneven and self-indulgent". In a negative review for the "Chicago Sun-Times", Jim DeRogatis viewed the album as unfocused and stated, "it's all about heavy-handed, faux Scott Joplin ragtime piano; showy but lame Cab Calloway horn arrangements; fake Rudy Vallee crooning (courtesy of Benjamin's nasal, off-key whine) and ultra-hammy vaudeville shucking and jiving". "The Washington Post"s J. Freedom du Lac noted a "creative schism" in the duo and wrote, "For all of its flashes of greatness -- the brassy marching-band rap of 'Morris Brown', the psychedelic hip-hop flashback 'Train', the Stevie Wonder-inspired acoustic blues number 'Idlewild Blue (Don'tchu Worry 'Bout Me)' -- the staggeringly eclectic 'Idlewild' includes too much filler and too many outright stink bombs to deserve a place alongside the best pop offerings of 2006, let alone "Aquemini", et al". Preston Jones from "Slant Magazine" called it "frustrating, uneven, and strained ... an interesting failure". "Spin" magazine's Charles Aaron called it "a perplexing album", despite how it "grasps for a distinctive sound, departing almost entirely from rap per se" in favor of music from "the jazz/jump blues from the film's '30s/40's demimonde, as well as shades of Prince's most fitfully eclectic periods".


title: Santa Montefiore

text: Santa Montefiore was born Santa Palmer-Tomkinson on 2 February 1970 in Winchester. Her parents are Charles Palmer-Tomkinson, formerly High Sheriff of Hampshire, and Patricia Palmer-Tomkinson (née Dawson), of Anglo-Argentine background. Her father, and other members of her family, represented Great Britain in skiing at Olympic level. The Palmer-Tomkinson family are substantial land-owners in Hampshire and Leicestershire.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: Santa Montefiore said that growing up on the family farm gave her an "idyllic "Swallows and Amazons" childhood". She also describes her upbringing as "sheltered, Sloaney". She was educated at the Hanford School from the age of eight to twelve. She then attended Sherborne School for Girls in Dorset, where, in the sixth form, she became Head of her house (a role of responsibility similar to a prefect) and later Vice Head of School. She studied Spanish and Italian at Exeter University.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: Prior to publishing any novels, she worked in London, first in public relations for the outfitters Swaine Adeney and later for the jeweller Theo Fennell. She also worked as a shop assistant in Farmacia Santa Maria Novella, the perfumery, and in events for Ralph Lauren.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: She sent her first manuscript to several literary agents, using a pen name in order to distance herself from her sister. Only one agent, Jo Frank of A P Watt, expressed an interest, but this led to a bidding war between several publishers, with Hodder & Stoughton giving her a six-figure advance. Montefiore has published at least one novel a year since 2001. Four of her books are set in Argentina, where she spent 1989 as a gap year teaching English. Her books have been characterised as "beach-read blockbusters", selling over six million copies in 25 translations.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: She counts as her literary influences "The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexandre Dumas; "House of Mirth" by Edith Wharton; Gabriel Garcia Márquez, Mary Wesley, Eckhart Tolle, and Daphne du Maurier. Isabel Allende is important to her too.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: She has co-written with her husband a series of children's books called "The Royal Rabbits of London", which is published by Simon & Schuster. 20th Century Fox have bought the movie rights and are in the early stages of adapting the series for the big screen.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: Montefiore is married to the writer and historian Simon Sebag Montefiore. They were brought together by the historian Andrew Roberts, who thought "they would be absolutely perfect for each other because they were the only two people he knew who could remember the words to "Evita" off by heart". She says of their marriage:


title: Santa Montefiore

text: The couple are friends with King Charles III and Camilla, Queen consort of the United Kingdom, who attended their wedding. Santa Montefiore is a friend of Tiggy Legge-Bourke and of Queen Máxima of the Netherlands.


title: Santa Montefiore

text: She converted to Judaism before the marriage. The wedding was held at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue in St John's Wood, London, with which her husband's family has been associated for generations.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Sindhis in India ("Sindhi", Devanagari: सिन्धी, "Sindhī", Naskh script: سنڌي) are a socio-ethnic group of people originating from Sindh, a province of modern-day Pakistan. After the 1947 partitioning of British India into India and Pakistan, a million Sindhi Hindus migrated to India. As per the 2011 census of India, there are 2,772,364 Sindhi speakers in India. However, this number does not include ethnic Sindhis who no longer speak the language.


title: Sindhis in India

text: After the Partition of India, the majority of the minority Hindus and Sikhs in Pakistan migrated to India, while the Muslim migrants from India settled down in Pakistan. Approximately 10 million Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India, while nearly an equal number of Muslims migrated to newly-created Pakistan from India. Hindu Sindhis were expected to stay in Sindh following the partition, as there were good relations between Hindu and Muslim Sindhis. At the time of partition there were 1,400,000 Hindu Sindhis, though most were concentrated in cities such as Hyderabad, Karachi, Shikarpur, and Sukkur. However, many Sindhi Hindus decided to leave Pakistan.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Problems were further aggravated when incidents of violence broke out in Karachi after partition. According to the census of India 1951, nearly 776,000 Sindhi Hindus were forced to migrate to India to avoid conversion to Islam. Despite this migration of Hindus, a significant Sindhi Hindu population still resides in Pakistan's Sindh province where they numbered around 2.28 million in 1998 and 4.21 million as per the 2017 census of Pakistan, while the Sindhi Hindus in India numbered 2.57 million in 2001. As of 2011 population was around 2.77 million out of which around 1.7 million (17 lakh) speak Sindhi and around 1 million speak Kachchhi.


title: Sindhis in India

text: The responsibility of rehabilitating refugees was borne by their respective government. Refugee camps were set up for Hindu Sindhis. Many people abandoned their fixed assets and crossed newly formed borders. Many refugees overcame the trauma of poverty, though the loss of a homeland has had a deeper and lasting effect on their Sindhi culture. In 1967 the Government of India recognized the Sindhi language as a fifteenth official language of India in two scripts. In late 2004, the Sindhi diaspora vociferously opposed a Public Interest Litigation in the Supreme Court of India, which asked the Government of India to delete the word "Sindh" from the Indian National Anthem (written by Rabindranath Tagore prior to the independence) on the grounds that it infringed upon the sovereignty of Pakistan.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Soon after the partition of Pakistan from India in 1947, a large group of refugees from Sindh in Pakistan, came to India. Adipur was founded by the Indian government as a refugee camp. Its management was later passed onto a self-governing body called the Sindhu Resettlement Corporation (SRC). The person credited with the formation of this settlement was Bhai Pratap Dialdas, who requested the land from Mohandas Gandhi for the mostly Sindhi immigrants from Pakistan. of land was donated by the Maharaj of Kutch, His Highness Maharao Shri Vijayrajji Khengarji Jadeja at the request of Mohan Das Gandhi because it was felt that the climate and culture of Kutch resembled that of Sindh. Adipur, like Gandhidham, was built on the donated land to rehabilitate Hindu Sindhi refugees coming from Sindh. The Indian Institute of Sindhology established at Adipur, Gandhidham (Kutch), is a centre for advanced studies and research in fields related to the Sindhi language, .


title: Sindhis in India

text: Ahmedabad's population increased dramatically in when many households and individuals of Hindu Sindhi descendants arrived from Pakistan for refuge into Ahmedabad. Kubernagar was established with barracks (houses), which were allocated to the refugees who arrived into Ahmedabad.


title: Sindhis in India

text: The Maharaja of Kutch, His Highness Maharao Shri Vijayrajji Khengarji Jadeja, at the request of Mohandas Gandhi, gave 15,000 acres (61 km) of land to Bhai Pratap, who founded the Sindhu Resettlement Corporation to rehabilitate Sindhi Hindus uprooted from their motherland. The Sindhi Resettlement Corporation (SRC) was formed with Acharaya Kriplani as chairman and Bhai Pratap Dialdas as managing director. The main objective of the corporation was to assist in the rehousing of displaced persons by the construction of a new town on a site a few miles inland from the location selected by the Government of India for the new port of Kandla on the Gulf of Kachchh. The first plan was prepared by a team of planners headed by Dr. O. H. Koenigsberger, director of the Government of India's division of housing. This plan was subsequently revised by Adams Howard and Greeley company in 1952. The town's foundation stone was laid with the blessings of Mohandas Gandhi, and hence the town was named Gandhidham.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Ulhasnagar, Maharashtra is a municipal town and the headquarters of the Tehsil bearing the same name. It is a railway station on the Mumbai-Pune route of the Central Railway. Ulhasnagar, a colony of Sindhi Hindu refugees, is 61 years old. Situated 58 km from Mumbai, the once-barren land has developed into a town in the Thane district, Maharashtra. Originally, known as Kalyan Military transit camp (or Kalyan Camp), Ulhasnagar was set up especially to accommodate 6,000 soldiers and 30,000 others during World War II. There were 2,126 barracks and about 1,173 housed personnel. The majority of barracks had large central halls with rooms attached to either end. The camp had a deserted look at the end of the war and served as a ready and ideal ground for the partition refugees. Sindhi refugees, in particular, began life anew in Ulhasnagar after the partition of India.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Refugee Sindhi Hindus from Hyderabad migrated to Bangalore through Mumbai and Goa. A community housing society was created in Cox Town, with a temple, Sindhi Association and a Sindhi Social Hall, a community hub for celebrations, marriages and festivals such as Holi and Guru Nanak Jayanti. The immigration of the community resulted in the introduction of Sindhi culture and cuisine to the city.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Although Sindhi was not a regional language in a well-defined area, there were persistent demands from the Sindhi-speaking people for the inclusion of Sindhi language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. The Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities also recommended the inclusion. On 4 November 1966, it was announced that the Government had decided to include the Sindhi language in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution. At the 2001 census, there were 2,571,526 Sindhi speakers in India.


title: Sindhis in India

text: The Sindhi people live mainly in the north-western part of India. Many Sindhis inhabit the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh as well as the Indian capital of New Delhi. Most Sindhis of India follow the Hindu religion (90%), although Sindhi Sikhs are a prominent minority (5-10%). There are many Sindhis living in various cities in India, including Jalgaon(MH), Ulhasnagar(MH), Kalyan(MH), Mumbai, Mumbai Suburban, Thane, Pune, Gandhidham, Surat, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Adipur, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Bhopal (Bairagarh), Ajmer, Jaisalmer, Delhi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Bangalore, Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad, Chennai, Raipur, Indore, Gondia, Nagpur, Jabalpur, Katni (MP), Narsinghpur , Satna(MP), Sagar, Rewa, Bilaspur, Dhule, Maihar, Itarsi, Aurangabad(MH), Kolkata, Lucknow , Kanpur, Agra, Varanasi, National Capital Region, etc.


title: Sindhis in India

text: One of the oldest civilizations of human history, Sindhis have a rich and clearly distinct cultural heritage and are very festive. Their most important festival is Cheti Chand, the birthday of Lord Jhulelal. Besides this, they celebrate Akhand teej (Akshaya Tritiya) and Teejri (Teej).


title: Sindhis in India

text: With the teachings of Guru Nanak during one of his travels to Sindh, many Hindu Sindhis adopted Sikhism. Many Hindu Sindhi women learned the Gurmukhī alphabet to enable them to read the Guru Granth Sahib. Many Amils, a sect of Hindu Sindhis, adopted Sikhism. There used to be a time, before the partition of India, when many non-Muslim Sindhis were Sehajdhari/Nanakpanthi Sikhs.


title: Sindhis in India

text: During the early 1900s, the Chief Khalsa Diwan of Amritsar sent out missionary groups once a year to Sindh to work among the Sehajdhari Sindhis. Over a period of 30 years with scarce resources this missionary activity resulted in an increase from 1,000 Keshdhari Sindhis in 1901 to over 39,000 in 1941 a significant number in those days.


title: Sindhis in India

text: The bond of the Sehajdhari Sindhis with Sikhism is legendary. Like the Sikhs of Punjab, the Sehajdhari Sikhs of Sindh also left behind their homeland and are now dispersed all over India and abroad. There are about 30 million Sindhis in Sindh province of Pakistan and about 3.8 million in India. Their main pilgrimage centres are Nankana Sahib and Dera Sahib in Punjab, and Sadh Bela near Sukkur in Sindh. Sadh Bela is an Udasi shrine built in 1823.


title: Sindhis in India

text: Following is the list of Institutes, Colleges, Universities established and run by Sindhi Hindus in India and abroad.


title: Drogue parachute

text: A drogue parachute is a parachute designed for deployment from a rapidly-moving object. It can be used for various purposes, such as to decrease speed, to provide control and stability, or as a pilot parachute to deploy a larger parachute. Vehicles that have used drogue parachutes include multi-stage parachutes, aircraft, and spacecraft recovery systems.


title: Drogue parachute

text: The drogue parachute was invented by the Russian professor and parachute specialist Gleb Kotelnikov in 1912, who also invented the knapsack parachute. The Soviet Union introduced its first aircraft fitted with drogue parachutes during the mid 1930s; use of the technology expanded during and after the Second World War. A large number of jet-powered aircraft have been furnished with drogue parachutes, including the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress strategic bomber and the Eurofighter Typhoon multirole aircraft; they were also commonly used within crewed space vehicle recovery programmes, including Project Mercury and Project Gemini. The drogue parachute has also been extensively used upon ejection seats as a means of stabilisation and deceleration.


title: Drogue parachute

text: The drogue parachute was first used during 1912 in a ground-based parachute test in the absence of airplanes, by Russian inventor Gleb Kotelnikov, who had patented a one of early canister-packed knapsack parachute a few months before this test. On a road near Tsarskoye Selo (now part of St. Petersburg), Kotelnikov successfully demonstrated the braking effects of such a parachute by accelerating a Russo-Balt automobile to its top speed and then opening a parachute attached to the back seat.


title: Drogue parachute

text: During 1937, the Soviet Union decided to adopt the drogue parachute for the first time upon a limited number of their aircraft, specifically those assigned to operate within the Arctic to provide logistical support for the famous polar expeditions of the era, such as the first drifting ice stations North Pole-1, which was launched that same year. The drogue parachute was credited with enabling airplanes to land safely on smaller ice-floes that were otherwise unfeasible landing sites.


title: Drogue parachute

text: One of the earliest production-standard military aircraft to use a drogue parachute to slow down and shorten its landings was the Arado Ar 234, a jet-powered reconnaissance-bomber used by the Luftwaffe. Both the trolley-and-skid undercarriage series of eight prototypes for the never-produced Ar 234A series — one on the aircraft, and a separate system on the aft surface of the trolley's main axle — and the tricycle undercarriage-equipped Ar 234B production series were fitted with a drogue parachute deployment capability in the extreme rear ventral fuselage.


title: Drogue parachute

text: During the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union, drogue parachutes were adopted on numerous spacecraft. Several human space programmes managed by NASA, including Project Mercury and Project Gemini, employed drogue parachutes in their vehicle recovery systems. Numerous other space-oriented organisations, such as SpaceX and Rocket Lab, have similarly adopted drogue chutes as part of their recovery systems.


title: Drogue parachute

text: In comparison to a conventional parachute, the drogue parachute is more elongated and has a far smaller surface area; as a result, it provides far less drag. The drogue parachute can be deployed at speeds at which conventional parachutes would be torn apart, although it will not slow an object as much as a conventional parachute would do. Due to its simpler design, the drogue parachute is also easier to deploy, minimizing the risk of becoming tangled while unfolding or failing to inflate properly.


title: Drogue parachute

text: Drogue parachutes are sometimes used to deploy a main or reserve parachute by using the drag generated by the drogue to pull the main parachute out of its container. Such a drogue is referred to as a pilot chute when used in a single user (sports) parachute system. The pilot chute is only used to deploy the main or reserve parachute; it is not used for slowing down or for stability. Tandem systems are different; a drogue is so deployed shortly after exiting the aircraft as to reduce the terminal velocity of the pair of tandem jumpers. It is later used to deploy the main parachute as on sports systems.


title: Drogue parachute

text: Numerous innovations and improvements have been made to drogue parachutes intended for this purpose; examples include a patent for an anti-spinning feature granted during 1972, and improved force distribution granted in 2011.


title: Drogue parachute

text: When used to shorten an aircraft's landing, a drogue chute is called a drag parachute or braking parachute. They are particularly useful for landings on wet or icy runways and for high speed emergency landing.


title: Drogue parachute

text: Braking parachutes are also employed to slow down cars during drag racing; the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) requires their installation on all vehicles able to attain speeds of 150 miles per hour or greater. They have also been installed on multiple experimental vehicles intended to conduct land speed record attempts.


title: Drogue parachute

text: Drogue parachutes may also be used to help stabilise direction of an object in flight, such as a thrown RKG-3 anti-tank grenade. It is often used to gain control of very fast descents, including those of spacecraft during atmospheric reentry, examples include the Boeing X-37 spaceplane. It has been used for similar purposes when applied to several nuclear bombs, such as the B61 and B83, slowing the weapon's descent to provide the aircraft that dropped it enough time to escape the nuclear blast. In 2022, Rocket Lab utilized a drogue chute to slow the descent of its Electron booster's primary stage, after which the stage was hooked mid-descent by a helicopter.


title: Drogue parachute

text: Drogue parachutes have found use on ejection seats to both stabilise and to slow down almost immediately following deployment, examples include the ACES II personal escape system. Similarly, a number of escape capsules, used on both supersonic aircraft and spacecraft, have employed drogue parachutes both for stability and braking, allowing either a main chute to be deployed or for the pilot to exit the capsule and use a personal parachute. Some high altitude rockets have used drogue chutes as part of a dual-deployment system, subsequently deploying a main parachute to control and slow their descent.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Rajinimurugan is a 2016 Indian Tamil-language masala film written and directed by Ponram, and produced by director N. Lingusamy and N. Subash Chandra Bose under the banner Thirrupathi Brothers. This is the second directorial venture of Ponram, after "Varuthapadaatha Valibar Sangam" (2013). It stars Sivakarthikeyan in dual roles for the first time in his career; as the title character, a jobless youth who decides to sell his grandfather's property to become rich; and a cameo appearance as Bosepandi from the previous film. Keerthy Suresh and Soori portray the lead roles, while Rajkiran, Samuthirakani and Achyuth Kumar play supporting roles.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: The film features soundtrack composed by D. Imman, with all lyrics were written by Yugabharathi. The cinematography was handled by Balasubramaniem, and edited by Vivek Harshan. Filming took place extensively in Madurai and Karaikkudi. The film's principal photography was commenced on 25 August 2014, and the shooting completed in March 2015.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: "Rajinimurugan", which faced multiple postponements, released on 14 January 2016, during the Pongal festival. The film grossed .


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Rajini Murugan is an unemployed youth from Madurai who spends his days roaming around with his best friend Thotathree and supplying food to his grandfather Ayyankalai, a highly respected gentleman who has large properties of land. Ayyankalai wants to divide all his properties among his children and grandchildren, but except Rajini Murugan and his father Malligarajan, who is the headmaster of the local school, the rest of the family is settled abroad and never visit Madurai.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Meanwhile, following the advice of an astrologer (who claimed that Rajini Murugan will get married and be rich within three months), Rajini Murugan starts wooing his childhood sweetheart Karthika Devi. Karthika's father Neelakandan, an ardent fan of Rajinikanth, was the best friend of Malligarajan and had given Rajini Murugan his name when he was born, but fell out with Malligarajan and his family due to a misunderstanding involving Rajini Murugan and Karthika when they were youngsters. Since then, Rajini Murugan and Karthika are not on speaking terms, and Neelakandan forbids any sort of contact between the two. Nevertheless, Rajini Murugan opens a tea stall outside Karthika's house to stay close to her and follows her day and night. The stall is later destroyed by a customer who pulls down the shop in the process of taking a banana. Later, he and Thothathree start a real estate company. A gangster "Ezhrai" Mookan, whose only work is to extort 100,000 from businessmen, tries to swindle the same amount from Rajini Murugan, but fails and ends up paying 100,000 to him.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Ayyankalai, who is fed up with Rajini Murugan's antics, decides to immediately divide his properties so that Rajini Murugan can benefit from his share of the property. He fakes his death, which forces his children and grandchildren to come to Madurai. Mookan claims that he too is a grandson of Ayyankalai (through the son of Ayyankalai's first wife) and starts demanding his share of the property. This leads to confrontation between Rajini Murugan and Mookan and their feud is soon brought before the panchayat. The panchayat declares the verdict in favour of Ayyankalai and Rajini Murugan. Mookan, accepting defeat, receives 100,000 from Rajini Murugan as compensation. It is then revealed that Mookan staged the whole drama to get back his 100,000 from Rajini Murugan. Meanwhile, Karthika accepts Rajini Murugan's love and Neelakandan also begins to approve their relationship.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: In the end, Ayyankalai reveals that he does have a grandson through his first wife's son. The grandson is revealed to be none other than Bosepandi from "Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam". Bosepandi refuses to accept his share of his grandfather's property, advising him and his family not to sell the property and instead convert it into a 5-star hotel and hand it over to Rajini Murugan. Ayyankalai and Rajini Murugan agree with him.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Following the success of his debut directorial "Varuthapadaatha Vaalibar Sangam", director Ponram announced his next project, which also stars Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role. N. Lingusamy bankrolled the project under his banner Thirupathi Brothers. The project was announced in August 2013. D. Imman was selected to compose the music for the film and Balasubramaniem was signed in for the film as the cinematographer. Both were worked on Ponram's earlier film Varuthapadaatha Vaalibar Sangam. Sivakarthikeyan was reported to play a real-estate broker in the film.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Reports stated that Nazriya Nazim and Samantha Ruth Prabhu were among the forerunners for the lead female role, later they were replaced by Tamannaah. In August 2013, Tamannah opted out of the project, due to some issues. The female lead role went to Lakshmi Menon. However, she was subsequently replaced by Keerthy Suresh in 2014, considering her second Tamil film after "Idhu Enna Maayam" (2015). Her role was said to be a "feisty one", which included the character performing some street fights with other women. Soori was selected to play Sivakarthikeyan's co-star in the film, for the second time after "Varuthapadaatha Vaalibar Sangam". Rajkiran was selected to play the role of Sivakarthikeyan's grandfather in the film. Samuthirakani was selected to play the main antagonist in the film. The supporting role cast also included G. Gnanasambandham, Achyuth Kumar, Deepa Ramanujam and Manobala.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Principal photography commenced on 25 August 2014. The film in its entirety, was extensively shot in Madurai. This also considered to be one of the films that shot in Madurai, which includes "Nadodigal", "Pandiya Naadu, Thoongaa Nagaram". After completion of the shoot in Madurai, the team moved on to Karaikudi on 30 October, and went ahead with a 40-day schedule, and planned for another 25-day schedule in Madurai again. The "Yennamma Ippadi Panreengalema" song sequences were shot in the busy streets of Madurai. Some song sequences were shot in Ooty. An Audi showroom scene shown as Audi Madurai, was actually shot in Coimbatore. The team takes a break on end-February 2015, after Keerthy Suresh fell ill. The shooting was completed in March 2015.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: The soundtrack to Rajinimurugan features ten tracks: five songs, a remix and karaoke versions of the tracks – all of them were composed by D. Imman. The lyrics for all the songs were penned by Yugabharathi. One song, "Yennamma Ippadi Panreengalema" was released on 25 May 2015 at the Super Singer World Tour, held at Suntec City in Singapore. The album was launched on 10 June 2015, at a formal event held in Taj Coromandel hotel and was telecasted live on Thanthi TV. The soundtrack opened to positive reviews and topped the music charts. After the film's release, three more songs were added as bonus tracks on 24 February 2016.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: The first look poster of "Rajinimurugan" was released on 25 April 2015, at the 6th Vijay Awards. The official teaser of the film was released on 10 June 2015, during the audio launch of the film. The teaser received positive response from the audience. A few photocard designed posters, were unveiled on 21 August 2015, for the film's promotion. The official trailer of the film, was released on 4 September 2015, at midnight 12:00 a.m. on the official YouTube channel of Sony Music South. The second trailer of the film was released on 31 December 2015.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: "Rajinimurugan" faced significant delays, upon its release, due to the financial problems faced by the production house. Initially, the film slated to release on 17 July 2015, coinciding with the Ramzan weekend. However, the release was postponed to avoid clash with Dhanush-starrer "Maari", and was later scheduled to release on 17 September 2015, coinciding with Vinayagar Chathurthi. However, the financial disputes between the producers and distributors, led to postpone the release of the film on 1 October 2015, which was later delayed due to the release of Vijay-starrer "Puli". The plans to release the film on 21 October 2015, during the Dusshera festival was also failed. Finally, the makers announced that the film will release on 4 December 2015. The makers went on with the film's promotion in November 2015, however, the release was pushed further, due to the 2015 South Indian Floods. Later, the film was scheduled to release on 14 January 2016, coinciding with the Pongal weekend, and also clashing with other releases "Gethu", "Kathakali" and "Thaarai Thappattai".


title: Rajinimurugan

text: During the production of Kamal Hassan's "Uttama Villain" (2015), the producers suffered losses as the Suriya-starrer "Anjaan" (2014), which was produced and directed by Lingusamy, bombed at the box office. Hence, in order to overcome the losses, Lingusamy desperately sold both "Uttama Villain" and "Rajinimurugan", to Eros International. Lingusamy, also borrowed money from local distributors, to release the former. But, the release of "Uttama Villain" was unexpectedly stalled, due to the disputes between financiers and producers, which led to a loss of , and also the film's poor performance, abetting the problem, the payment owed by Eros International, was ballooned to , and insisted Lingusamy, to pay the remaining balance amount of crore to Eros. Since, Lingusamy doesn't have a huge amount to settle Eros, the film faced a delayed release, says the sources.


title: Rajinimurugan

text: The Times of India, rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, stating that "The film is overlong with innumerable songs and comic scenes that could have been left at the editing table. It is also utterly unambitious, content with clearing its low bar, but this unpretentiousness is also what makes it work to an extent." Behindwoods gave the film 2.5 out of 5 stars stating, "Rajini Murugan is a safe bet to bank your money on if you want to watch a film with no expectation but just to spend your two and a half hours laughing." "The Guardian" rated it 3 out of 5 stars, saying, "This long-gestating slice of fun about the successes of the world's least ambitious individual is a likable, irreverent ride". "The Hindu" wrote that "Rajini Murugan makes it amply evident that Sivakarthikeyan, as he has done earlier in his career, is quite capable of making a below-average script seem average, sometimes, above-average even. Perhaps that's why dozens of little stars come together to form the title."


title: Rajinimurugan

text: Sify rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, stating that ""Rajini Murugan" is a tailor made festival film, which is sure to enthrall and entertain the masses. The film's director Ponram has packaged the film in such a way that audiences will leave the movie hall with a big smile and forget all their worries. Thanks to the brilliant chemistry between the comedy-duo Sivakarthikeyan and Soori, the film is a laugh riot which holds no pretensions." S. Sarswathi from Rediff.com rated 2.5 out of 5 stars, and reviewed "Director Ponram's Rajini Murugan has no real plot, nor any remarkable characters or poignant moments but good music, vibrant visuals and spontaneity and charm of its lead actor makes it a fun watch". Bollywoodlife rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, and stated that "While the film has its faults, the film is a decent family entertainer with some clean hilarious comedy. Watch it purely for Sivakarthikeyan and Soori's antics and you will leave the theatre with a smile on your face!" Indiaglitz rated the movie 2.5/5 stating, "An entertainer that can be watched mainly for Sivakarthikeyan and Soori." Studioflicks rated the film 2.75 out of 5, stating "Rajini Murugan is a neat entertainer for family audiences, where they can come relaxed and enjoy show grabbing their favourite piece of snacks."


title: Rajinimurugan

text: In contrast, Gauthaman Baskaran for the Hindustan Times, rated 1 out of 5 stars, and reviewed it as "Hackneyed plotlines, silly jokes and endless song-and-dance--that is much of Tamil film industry's lot. Sadly, Rajini Murugan falls in that lot. A big bore." The Indian Express reviewed it as "Even with its predictable storyline, Sivakarthikeyan makes the film work, and only he can save a film like this." Silverscreen reviewed the film as ""Rajini Murugan" is an assembly line. Formerly managed by M Rajesh, now run by Ponram. The saving grace might have been a competent antagonist. But, no. It's almost an insult that one of our best actors today – Samuthirakani – is reduced to a joke. "Rajini Murugan" gives us a hero who seems to be a parody, and a spineless jokey riff for a villain."


title: Rajinimurugan

text: The film collected ₹4.5 crores on the first day, and ₹15 crores on the first weekend, following by ₹24 crores on the first week. The film grossed ₹43 crores in India, while it collected ₹51 crores worldwide, and became a commercial success.


title: Cicuta

text: Cicuta, commonly known as water hemlock, is a genus of four species of highly poisonous plants in the family Apiaceae. They are perennial herbaceous plants which grow up to tall, having distinctive small green or white flowers arranged in an umbrella shape (umbel). Plants in this genus may also be referred to as cowbane or poison parsnip. "Cicuta" is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, mainly North America and Europe, typically growing in wet meadows, along streambanks and other wet and marshy areas. These plants bear a close resemblance to other members in the family Apiaceae and may be confused with a number of edible or poisonous plants. The common name hemlock may also be confused with poison hemlock ("Conium maculatum"), or with the Hemlock tree.


title: Cicuta

text: Water hemlock is considered one of North America's most toxic plants, being highly poisonous to humans. Three members of the genus contain a toxin named cicutoxin which causes central nervous system stimulatory effects including seizures following ingestion. Medical treatment of poisoning may include the use of activated charcoal to decrease gastrointestinal absorption of the toxic principle along with supportive care including anticonvulsant drugs such as a benzodiazepine. High doses of anticonvulsant medicine are often required to halt seizure activity and further medical care including intubation and mechanical ventilation may be required.


title: Cicuta

text: "Cicuta" spp. are perennial plants that are all similar in morphology, growing up to a maximum of in height. The stem of the plant is branching, erect, smooth and hollow (except for partitions at the junction of the leaves and stem), sometimes being purple-striped, or mottled (typically only "C. maculata" has the purple stripes or spots). Attached to the base of the stem is a tuberous root with thickened rootstocks. The rootstocks are multichambered and contain a yellowish oily liquid which turns reddish brown on exposure to air and emits a characteristic smell of raw parsnip. The alternate leaves are two or three pinnately compound and may reach in length. The leaflets are lanceolate, serrate, in length, and sharply toothed. The plant flowers in spring or early summer; the flowers are small with green or white petals clustered in an umbrella shape (umbel) characteristic to this family; the umbel measures across. The plants produce a cylindrical fruit which is in length. The plant is spread primarily by seeds which are produced in large numbers and are small in size.


title: Cicuta

text: The genus "Cicuta" is one of many genera in the family Apiaceae, which is in the order Apiales. Apiaceae is also known as Umbelliferae, and both of these family names are permitted to be used by the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants. In Europe, "Cicuta" was not distinguished from the similar genus "Conium" before the year 1500. The first mention of the genus in the United States was in the eighteenth century. Carl Linnaeus formally described three species in 1753. The type species is "Cicuta virosa". The genus is now recognized to comprise four species:


title: Cicuta

text: Other species names such as "Cicuta bolanderi", "Cicuta californica", and "Cicuta curtissii" are older names now recognized to be varieties of the widespread, morphologically variable "Cicuta maculata". "Cicuta maculata" is now recognized to have four varieties: var. "maculata", var. "angustifolia", var. "victorinii", and var. "bolanderi". Phylogenetic analysis using the sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) loci was not conclusive but seems to show that "C. bulbifera" and "C. virosa" are monophyletic, while "C. douglasii" may not be. It was also suggested a specimen from California may warrant recognition as a distinct species. Other common names for the genus in general include poison parsnip, beaver poison, wild carrot, wild parsnip, and false parsley.


title: Cicuta

text: Members of the family Apiaceae bear close resemblance to each other, and have many characteristics in common. "Cicuta" spp. are often mistaken for edible plants such as kvanne ("Angelica archangelica"), wild celery ("Apium graveolens"), pignut ("Conopodium majus"), wild carrot ("Daucus carota"), wild parsnip ("Pastinaca sativa"), and water parsnip ("Berula" spp.). One of the more common misidentifications is between water hemlock and water parsnip; both have clusters of small white flowers shaped like umbrellas, and both have the same habitat near the shoreline of lakes and rivers. Differences between water parsnip and water hemlock include the water parsnip having leaves only once compound while the water hemlock has leaves which are two or three times compound. Water hemlock also has a large swelling at the stem base which water parsnip lacks. Additionally, water hemlock has bracts at the base of each small flower cluster, not at the base of the main flower head, while water parsnip has both bracts at the base of flowers and also at the main flower head.


title: Cicuta

text: Additionally, there can be confusion between the various water hemlock species and poison hemlock ("Conium maculatum") as the common name hemlock is applied to both "Cicuta" and "Conium maculatum". Both are poisonous and can be differentiated by differences in their root structure. Water hemlock has a branched root systems with tubules, while poison hemlock has a single tap root. Another reliable method to identify water hemlock is to examine the leaf veins. Water hemlock is unique in the family Apiaceae in that it has leaf veins which terminate in the notches between the leaf tips, rather than extend to the tip of the leaf, as is found in the leaf structure of other members of this family.


title: Cicuta

text: "Cicuta" spp. are found growing across North America and Europe. Typically, they grow in wet habitats usually alongside ponds and streams, in marshes or swamps, or areas that are swampy at least part of the year. Plants can also be found growing in water. Of the four species, "Cicuta maculata" has the most widespread distribution occurring across the majority of North America. "Cicuta bulbifera" also has a relatively large distribution, found throughout Northern North America. "Cicuta douglasii" is found in the northwest corner of North America, while "Cicuta virosa" is found in central and northern Europe (including the British Isles), northern Eurasia, and in the far north of North America.


title: Cicuta

text: All members of "Cicuta" contain high levels of the poisonous principle cicutoxin, an unsaturated aliphatic alcohol that is structurally closely related to the toxin oenanthotoxin found in the plant hemlock water dropwort. Cicutoxin is present at all stages of growth and in all parts of the plant, but is most concentrated in the roots which appear to be the most toxic in the early spring. Its primary toxic effect is to act as a stimulant in the central nervous system. It is a non-competitive gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor antagonist. Cicutoxin acts on the GABA receptor causing a block of the chloride channel which results in neuronal depolarization. In the presence of cicutoxin, this depolarization continues unabated, causing cell overactivity. This hyperactivity in brain cells results in seizures. Cicutoxin is very poisonous, and water hemlock is considered one of North America's most toxic plants. Ingestion of "Cicuta" can be fatal in humans, and there are reports in medical literature of severe poisoning and death as early as 1670. A number of people have also died following ingestion of the plant in the 20th and 21st century.


title: Cicuta

text: The in mice administered cicutoxin by intraperitoneal injection is 48.3 milligrams per kilogram body weight; this compares with 5.9 mg/kg for mice given potassium cyanide by intraperitoneal injection, while the LD for arsenic via intraperitoneal injection in mice is 46.2 mg/kg. The exact toxic dose of plant material in humans is unknown; it is thought ingestion of water hemlock in any quantity can result in poisoning, and very small amounts may lead to death. Poisoning has been reported following children blowing whistles made from the hollow stem of water hemlock plants. Intoxication has also been reported following skin contact with the plant; in one case, a family of five rubbed the plant onto the skin and were poisoned, with two children dying. Livestock have long been the worst affected, leading to the common name "cowbane". Poisoning in livestock is common and typically occurs following ingestion of roots of the plant. When the ground is soft in Spring, grazing animals tend to pull the entire plant out of the ground, ingesting both the foliage and the roots. Roots exposed by ploughing can also be the source of livestock poisonings. Ingestion of plant material may cause death in the animal in as little as 15 minutes.


title: Cicuta

text: Upon consumption, both in humans and other species, the symptoms of poisoning are characterized mainly by generalized seizures. The onset of symptoms following ingestion may be as soon as 15 minutes. Initial symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, tremors, confusion, weakness, dizziness, and drowsiness, although the rapid onset of seizure activity may be the first sign presented following poisoning. Seizures are usually described as clonic or tonic–clonic. Complications of ongoing seizure activity include increased body temperature, decreases in the pH of the blood (metabolic acidosis), swelling in the brain, blood coagulation disorders, muscle breakdown (rhabdomyolysis), and kidney failure. Additional neurological symptoms may include hallucinations, delirium, tingling, pricking, or numbness of a person's skin, dilated pupils, and coma. Cardiovascular symptoms include alternating slow or fast heart rate and alternating low and high blood pressure. Other cardiac effects may include ECG abnormalities such as widening of the PR interval, supraventricular tachycardia, and ventricular fibrillation. Symptoms of excess salivation, wheezing, respiratory distress, and absence of breathing have also been reported.


title: Cicuta

text: Death is usually caused by respiratory failure or ventricular fibrillation secondary to ongoing seizure activity; fatalities have occurred within a few hours of ingestion. Poisoned people who recover usually regain consciousness and seizures cease within 24 to 48 hours of poisoning, although seizures may persist for up to 96 hours. There are occasional long-term effects, such as retrograde amnesia of the events leading to intoxication and the intoxication itself. Other ongoing mild effects may include restlessness, muscle weakness, twitching, and anxiety. Complete resolution of symptoms may take a number of days, or these ongoing symptoms may persist for months after poisoning.


title: Cicuta

text: Water hemlock poisoning is usually diagnosed following a history of plant ingestion and symptoms of abrupt onset of seizures. Laboratory tests to determine the presence of cicutoxin in the blood such as spectrofluorimetry, high pressure liquid chromatography, thin layer chromatography, and mass spectrometry have been used to detect cicutoxin, but these tests are not performed routinely in hospital laboratories. If a sample of the plant ingested has been retained, diagnosis can be confirmed by having the plant identified by a botanist.


title: Cicuta

text: Initial treatment of poisoning may include gastrointestinal decontamination with activated charcoal. Decontamination is typically performed only if a potentially toxic amount of plant matter has been ingested up to one hour previously, and the patient has a normal intact airway or has been intubated. There is no specific antidote for water hemlock poisoning, and treatment consists mainly of supportive care. Treatment may include control of seizures with the administration of a benzodiazepines such as lorazepam or diazepam, or, if seizures are refractory to this treatment, a barbiturate such as phenobarbital is administered. The anticonvulsant phenytoin is not recommended, as it has not been shown to be effective for seizure control following water hemlock poisoning. Treatment with high doses of benzodiazepines or barbiturates may cause respiratory depression, and respiratory support including intubation and mechanical ventilation is required in these patients. Continuous electroencephalography monitoring is recommended in symptomatic patients.


title: Cicuta

text: Further treatment for complications of metabolic acidosis, rhabdomyolysis, hyperthermia, or low blood pressure may be required. Metabolic acidosis is treated by administering sodium bicarbonate. Low blood pressure is usually treated with intravenous fluid replacement, but the administration of dopamine or norepinephrine may be required to restore blood pressure. The management of rhabdomyolysis includes ensuring adequate hydration and urinary alkalinization; a complication of rhabdomyolysis is acute kidney injury, which may require management with hemodialysis. However, hemodialysis, hemoperfusion, or other extracorporeal techniques do not remove cicutoxin from the blood and are therefore not useful in enhancing elimination.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, commonly known as the Chepauk Stadium, is a cricket stadium in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1916, it is the second oldest cricket stadium in the country after Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Formerly known as Madras Cricket Club Ground, the stadium is named after M. A. Chidambaram Chettiar, former president of BCCI and Head of TNCA. It is the home ground of the Tamil Nadu cricket team and the Indian Premier League team Chennai Super Kings. Chepauk hosted its first Test match on 10 February 1934, the first Ranji Trophy match in 1936 and the Indian cricket team's first test victory in 1952 against England. The 1986 India-Australia match held at Chepauk was only the second ever Tied Test in the history of the game.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: The stadium is located at Chepauk, a few hundred meters from Marina beach along the Bay of Bengal. The stadium can be accessed from Wallajah Road in the north, Babu Jagjivanram Road in the west and Pycrofts Road in the south. The stadium is connected through the Chennai Metro by the Government Estate station . It is also connected through the Chepauk MRTS railway station which lies on the Chennai Beach—Velachery section of the Chennai MRTS. The Buckingham Canal runs tangentially to the north side of the stadium.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: Chepauk stadium is located across Chepauk Palace, the official residence of the Nawab of Arcot from 1768 to 1855. The stadium site used to be part of the palace grounds of the Chepauk Palace. Three Indo Saracenic style pillars at the entrance of the stadium are the last remnants of the association with the erstwhile palace grounds. The pillars construction are dated back to the rule of Nawab Muhammed Ali Khan Wallajah


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: In 1859, Madras Presidency acquired Chepauk palace in an auction for 589,000. In 1865, the government gave permission to build a pavilion at the palace grounds to Madras Cricket Club. The pavilion was finished in 1866. The pavilion was reconstructed in 1892 and was utilized till 1982 when it was demolished as part of the stadium renovation.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: Chepauk Stadium was established in 1916 and has been the home venue of the Tamil Nadu cricket team ever since. It is the second oldest cricket stadium in the country after Eden Gardens in Kolkata, still holding all international cricket matches. Bombay Gymkhana being the first is not in use for international cricket.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: From 1960 to 1988, Chennai hosted a test match in second week of January and was termed the Pongal Test as the match coincided with the Pongal harvest festival.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: In June 2009, reconstruction work of the stadium was taken up at the cost of . The plan consisted of constructing three new reinforced concrete stands designated I, J, and K accommodating 12,000 spectators and 24 hospitality boxes under translucent PTFE membrane roofs. Hopkins Architects, London and Nataraj & Venkat Architects, Chennai were contracted by the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: The renovation was completed in 2011 and the old roofing with pillars that often blocked the view in the old stadium were replaced by light quad conical roofing held together by cables. The stadium can currently accommodate 50,000 spectators. The stands are at a gradient of 36° and lets the sea breeze in to get the ground's traditional swing back.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: On 31 March 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that the renovation violates regulations relating to public safety. The court ruled that the parts of the renovation which violate the regulations must be demolished and until the appropriate planning permissions are issued and the demolition is complete, three stands (I, J, K) must remain sealed. After their construction, cricket matches took place in the stadium with the I, J, and K stands locked for spectators. The stands were finally de-sealed and opened in March 2020.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: In December 2021, the old Anna pavilion, Anna pavilion stand and MCC clubhouse were demolished to make way for a new Anna pavilion and new stands. This is expected to be complete in 2023.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: The total area of the stadium is 752,000 square feet. This is under lease agreement between government and the association. In April 2015, the lease agreement between the government and association lapsed.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: In November 2019, the lease period of the stadium was extended by the Tamil Nadu government for 21 years from 2015.


title: M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

text: This stadium has hosted 7 Men's One Day International matches across 3 world cups. In addition, the stadium has also hosted a semifinal in the 1997 Women's Cricket World Cup.


title: Stirling Gallacher

text: Deborah Ann Stirling Gallacher (born 30 November 1970) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as George Woodson in the BBC soap opera "Doctors" and Paula Martin in the ITV soap opera "Coronation Street".


title: Stirling Gallacher

text: Gallacher played George Woodson in the BBC soap opera "Doctors" from 2003 to 2009. In 2007, she won the award for Best On-Screen Partnership at The British Soap Awards alongside Seán Gleeson, who played her husband, Ronnie Woodson. She has worked with comedian Ricky Gervais, appearing in Gervais' stand-up show "Animals" and playing Jennifer Taylor-Clarke in both series of "The Office". Following this, she appeared in "Little Britain" in various different roles. She then appeared in 3 episodes of "EastEnders" in 2017 and in an episode of the "Tracy Beaker" spin-off "The Dumping Ground" in October 2017.