Early life.

Ranke was born in Wiehe, then part of the Electorate of Saxony. He came from a family of Lutheran pastors and lawyers. He was educated partly at home and partly in the high school at Schulpforta. His early years engendered a lifelong love of Ancient Greek, Latin and Lutheranism. In 1814, Ranke entered the University of Leipzig, where his subjects were Classics and Lutheran theology. At Leipzig, Ranke became an expert in philology and translation of the ancient authors into German. His teachers included Johann Gottfried Jakob Hermann. As a student, Ranke's favorite authors were Thucydides, Livy, Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Barthold Georg Niebuhr, Immanuel Kant, Johann Gottlieb Fichte, Friedrich Schelling and Friedrich Schlegel. Ranke showed little interest in the work of modern history because of his dissatisfaction with what he regarded as history books that were merely a collection of facts lumped together by modern historians.  Between 1817 and 1825, Ranke worked as a schoolmaster teaching classics at the Friedrichs Gymnasium in Frankfurt an der Oder. During this time, he became interested in history in part because of his desire to be involved in the developing field of a more professionalized history and in part because of his desire to find the hand of God in the workings of history.

Career.

In 1824, Ranke launched his career with the book "Geschichten der romanischen und germanischen Völker von 1494 bis 1514" ("Histories of the Latin and Teutonic Peoples from 1494 to 1514") in which he used an unusually wide variety of sources for a historian of the age, including "memoirs, diaries, personal and formal missives, government documents, diplomatic dispatches and first-hand accounts of eye-witnesses". In that sense, he leaned on the traditions of philology but emphasized mundane documents instead of old and exotic literature.  After the minister of education was impressed with the work of a historian who did not have access to the nation's great public libraries, Ranke was given a position in the University of Berlin, where he was a professor for nearly fifty years, starting in 1825. At the university, he used the seminar system and taught how to check the value of sources. Ranke became deeply involved in the dispute between the followers of the legal professor Friedrich Carl von Savigny who emphasized the varieties of different periods of history and the followers of the philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel who saw history as the unfolding of a universal story. Ranke supported Savigny and criticized the Hegelian view of history as being a one-size-fits-all approach. Also during his time in Berlin, Ranke became the first historian to utilize the forty-seven volumes that comprised the diplomatic archives of Venice from the 16th century and 17th centuries. Since many archives opened up during this time, he sent out his students to these places to recruit information. In his classrooms, he would discuss the sources that his students would find and would emphasize that history should be told "the way it happened". Because of this, he is often seen as "the pioneer of a critical historical science". Ranke came to prefer dealing with primary sources as opposed to secondary sources during this time.  It was in Vienna where the friendship of Friedrich von Gentz and the protection of Klemens von Metternich opened to him the Venetian Archives, a fresh source, the value of which he first discovered; it is still not exhausted. He found time to write a short book on "Die Serbische Revolution" (1829) from material supplied to him by Vuk Karadžić, a Serb who had himself been witness of the scenes he related during the First Serbian Uprising in 1804. This was afterwards expanded into "Serbien und die Turkei im 19 Jahrhundert" (1879).  At the behest of the Prussian government, Ranke founded and edited the "Historische-Politische Zeitschrift" journal from 1832 to 1836. Ranke, who was a conservative, used the journal to attack the ideas of liberalism. In his 1833 article "The Great Powers" and his 1836 article "Dialogue on Politics", Ranke claimed that every state is given a special moral character from God and individuals should strive to best fulfill the "idea" of their state. Thus, in this way, Ranke urged his readers to stay loyal to the Prussian state and reject the ideas of the French Revolution, which Ranke claimed were meant for France only.  In 1834–1836, Ranke published "Die römischen Päpste, ihre Kirche und ihr Staat im sechzehnten und siebzehnten Jahrhundert" ("The Popes of Rome, Their Church and State in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries") (3 vols.). As a Protestant, Ranke was barred from viewing the Vatican archives in Rome, but on the basis of private papers in Rome and Venice he was able to explain the history of the papacy in the 16th century. In this book, Ranke coined the term the Counter Reformation and offered colorful portrayals of Pope Paul IV, Ignatius of Loyola and Pope Pius V, opining: "I see the time approaching when we shall base modern history, no longer on the reports even of contemporary historians, except insofar as they were in the possession of personal and immediate knowledge of facts; and still less on work yet more remote from the source; but rather on the narratives of eyewitnesses, and on genuine and original documents".  The papacy denounced Ranke's book as anti-Catholic while many Protestants denounced it as not anti-Catholic enough, but he has been generally praised by historians for placing the situation of the Roman Catholic Church in the context of the 16th century and for his fair treatment of the complex interaction of the political and religious issues in that century. British Roman Catholic historian Lord Acton defended Ranke's book as the most fair-minded, balanced and objective study ever written on the papacy of the 16th century.  In 1841, his fame in its ascendancy, Ranke was appointed Historiographer Royal to the Prussian court. In 1845, he became member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.  In Paris, Ranke met the Irish woman Clarissa Helena Graves (born 1808) from Dublin in July 1843. She had been educated in England and the continent. They were engaged on 1 October and married in Bowness, England in a ceremony officiated by her brother Robert Perceval Graves, an Anglican priest.  In 1847–1848, Ranke published "Neun Bücher preussicher Geschichte" (translated as "Memoirs of the House of Brandenburg and History of Prussia, during the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries") in which he examined the fortunes of the Hohenzollern family and state from the Middle Ages to the reign of Frederick the Great. Many Prussian nationalists were offended by Ranke's portrayal of Prussia as a typical medium-sized German state rather than as a great power.  In 1852–1861, Ranke published "French History Mainly in the 16th and 17th Centuries" (5 vols.), covering Francis I to Louis XIV, gaining him more praise for his impartiality despite being German.  In a series of lectures given before future King Maximilian II of Bavaria in 1854, Ranke argued that "every age is next to God", by which he meant that every period of history is unique and must be understood in its own context. He argued that God gazes over history in its totality and finds all periods equal. Ranke rejected the teleological approach to history, by which each period is considered inferior to the period which follows. Thus, the Middle Ages were not inferior to the Renaissance, simply different. In Ranke's view, the historian had to understand a period on its own terms and seek to find only the general ideas which animated every period of history. For Ranke, history was not to be an account of man's "progress" because "[a]fter Plato, there can be no more Plato". For Ranke, Christianity was morally most superior and could not be improved upon.Ultimately, "[h]istory is no criminal court".  In 1854–1857, Ranke published "History of the Reformation in Germany" ("Deutsche Geschichte im Zeitalter der Reformation"), using the 96 volumes of correspondence from ambassadors to the Imperial Diet he found in Frankfurt to explain the Reformation in Germany as the result of both politics and religion.  In 1859–1867, Ranke published the six-volume "History of England Principally in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries" ("Englische Geschichte vornehmlich im XVI and XVII Jahrhundert"), followed by an expanded nine-volume edition in 1870–1884, extending his huge reach even farther. At this point, he was eighty years old and had shot his bolt, devoting the rest of his career to shorter treatises on German history that supplement his earlier writings.

Later life.

The honors poured in when Ranke was ennobled in 1865, appointed a Prussian Privy Councillor in 1882 and in given an honorary citizenship of Berlin in 1885. In 1884, he was appointed the first honorary member of the American Historical Association. After his retirement in 1871, Ranke continued to write on a variety of subjects relating to German history such as the French Revolutionary Wars, Albrecht von Wallenstein, Karl August von Hardenberg, and King Frederick William IV of Prussia. Starting in 1880, Ranke began a huge six-volume work on world history which began with ancient Egypt and the Israelites. By the time of his death in Berlin in 1886 at the age of 90, Ranke had reached only the 12th century, although his assistants later used his notes to take the series up to 1453.  After his wife died in 1871, Ranke became half-blind, depending on assistants to read to him. A diary entry from January 1877 contains his mature thoughts about being a historian:  The proverb tells us that poets are born. Not only in the arts, but even in some scholarly fields, young men develop into full bloom, or at least display their originality. Musicians and mathematicians have the expectation of attaining eminence in early years. But a historian must be old, not only because of the immeasurable extent of his field of study, but because of the insight into the historical process which a long life confers, especially under changing conditions. It would hardly be bearable for him to have only a short span of experience. For his personal development requires that great events complete their course before his eyes, that others collapse, that new forms be attempted.  After Ranke's death, Syracuse University purchased his collection. The Ranke Library of 25,000 books and other materials was ten times as large as the university's own.

Methodology and criticism.

At the core of his method, Ranke did not believe that general theories could cut across time and space. Instead, he made statements about the time using quotations from primary sources, saying: "My understanding of 'leading ideas' is simply that they are the dominant tendencies in each century. However, these tendencies can only be described; they can not, in the last resort, be summed up in a concept". Ranke objected to philosophy of history, particularly as practiced by Hegel, claiming that Hegel ignored the role of human agency in history which was too essential to be "characterized through only one idea or one word" or "circumscribed by a concept". This lack of emphasis on unifying theories or themes led Rudolf Haym to denigrate his ideas as "the mindlessness of the empiricist". In the 19th century, Ranke's work was very popular and his ideas about historical practice gradually became dominant in western historiography. However, he had critics among his contemporaries, including Karl Marx, a former Hegelian, who suggested that Ranke engaged in some of the practices he criticized in other historians.  Ranke began his first book with the statement in the introduction that he would show the unity of the experiences of the "Teutonic" nations of Scandinavia, England and Germany and the "Latin" nations of Italy, Spain and France through the great "respirations" of the "Völkerwanderung" (great migration), the Crusades and colonization that in Ranke's view bound all of the nations together to produce modern European civilization. Despite his opening statement, Ranke largely treated all of the nations under examination separately until the outbreak of the wars for the control of Italy starting in 1494. However, the book is best remembered for Ranke's comment: "To history has been assigned the office of judging the past, of instructing the present for the benefit of future ages. To such high offices this work does not aspire: It wants only to show what actually happened ("wie es eigentlich gewesen")". Ranke's statement that history should embrace the principle of "wie es eigentlich gewesen" (meaning "how things actually were") was subsequently taken by many historians as their guiding principle. There has been much debate over the precise meaning of this phrase. Some have argued that adhering to the principle of "wie es eigentlich gewesen" means that the historian should document facts, but not offer any interpretation of these facts. Following Georg Iggers, Peter Novick has argued that Ranke, who was more of a romantic and idealist than his American contemporaries understood, meant instead that the historian should discover the facts and find the essences behind them. Under this view, the word "eigentlich" should be translated as "essentially", the aim then being to "show what essentially happened". Ranke went on to write that the historian must seek the "Holy hieroglyph" that is God's hand in history, keeping an "eye for the universal" whilst taking "pleasure in the particular".  While Ranke's methods remain influential in the practice of history, his broader ideas of historiography and empiricism are now regarded by some as outdated and no longer credible. They held sway among historians until the mid-20th century, when they were challenged by E. H. Carr and Fernand Braudel. Carr opposed Ranke's ideas of empiricism as naive, boring and outmoded, saying that historians did not merely report facts; they choose which facts they use. Braudel's approach was based on the "histoire problème". Remarking on the legacy of Ranke's dictum that historians should represent the past "wie es eigentlich gewesen" ("as it actually happened"), Walter Benjamin scathingly wrote that it represented "the strongest narcotic of the [19th] century".

Leopold von Ranke (; 21 December 1795 – 23 May 1886) was a German historian and a founder of modern source-based history. According to Caroline Hoefferle, "Ranke was probably the most important historian to shape [the] historical profession as it emerged in Europe and the United States in the late 19th century". He was able to implement the seminar teaching method in his classroom and focused on archival research and analysis of historical documents. Building on the methods of the Göttingen School of History, Ranke set the standards for much of later historical writing, introducing such ideas as reliance on primary sources (empiricism), an emphasis on narrative history and especially international politics ("Außenpolitik").

利奥波德·冯·兰克(,1795年-12月21日-1886年-5月23日),生于神圣罗马帝国萨克森选侯国维黑,死于德意志帝国柏林,十九世纪德国最重要的历史学家之一,也是西方近代史学的重要奠基者之一,被誉为「近代史学之父」。他主张研究历史必须基于客观地搜集研读档案资料之后,如实地呈现历史的原貌,他的这种史学主张,被称作兰克史学,对后来东西方史学都有重大的影响。


History.

Stage and radio.

The live entertainment style known as music hall in the United Kingdom and vaudeville in the United States can be considered a direct predecessor of the "variety show" format. Variety in the UK evolved in theatres and music halls, and later in Working Men's Clubs. British performers who honed their skills in music hall sketches include Charlie Chaplin, Stan Laurel, George Formby, Gracie Fields, Dan Leno, Gertrude Lawrence and Marie Lloyd. Most of the early top performers on British television and radio did an apprenticeship either in stage variety, or during World War II in Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA). In the UK, the ultimate accolade for a variety artist for decades was to be asked to do the annual Royal Command Performance at the London Palladium theatre, in front of the monarch. Later known as the "Royal Variety Performance" (from 1919), it continues today. In the 1940s, Stan Laurel revisited his music hall days when he performed at the "Royal Variety" show.  In the United States, former vaudeville performers such as the Marx Brothers, George Burns and Gracie Allen, W. C. Fields, and Jack Benny honed their skills in the Borscht Belt before moving to talkies, to radio shows, and then to television shows, including variety shows. Radio variety shows were the predominant form of light entertainment during the Golden Age of Radio from the late 1920s through the 1940s; such radio shows typically included a house vocalist, music from the house band, a stand-up monologue and a short comedy sketch. Variety shows centered on running comedy sketches with recurring characters eventually evolved into sitcoms (situation comedies).

1931–1960.

Variety shows were among the first programs to be featured on television during the experimental mechanical television era. Variety shows hosted by Helen Haynes and Harriet Lee are recorded in contemporary newspapers in 1931 and 1932; because of technical limits of the era, no recordings of either show have been preserved. After World War II, the genre again was an early favorite of the burgeoning electronic television industry; "Hour Glass", dating to 1946, is the earliest surviving variety show, preserved in the form of audio recordings and still photographs. The genre proliferated during the Golden Age of Television, generally considered to be roughly 1948 to 1960. Many of these Golden Age variety shows were spin-offs or adaptations of previous radio variety shows.  From 1948 to 1971, "The Ed Sullivan Show" was one of CBS's most popular television series. Using his no-nonsense approach, host Ed Sullivan was instrumental in bringing many acts to prominence in the United States, including Elvis Presley and The Beatles. "The Lawrence Welk Show" (1955–1982) would go on to become one of U.S. television's longest-running variety shows; based on the concept of the big band remote from the old-time radio era, it was already one of the last shows of its kind when it debuted and far outlasted all other big-band centered broadcast series by the end of its run.  Other long-running American variety shows that premiered during this time include "Texaco Star Theatre" (1948–1956), Jerry Lester's "Cavalcade of Stars", "Broadway Open House" and "Chesterfield Sound-Off Time" (1949–1952); "The Jackie Gleason Show" (1950–1955), "The Garry Moore Show" (1950–1967, in various incarnations), "The Morey Amsterdam Show" (1950–1954 in various incarnations), "The Colgate Comedy Hour" (1950–1955), "Your Show of Shows" (1950–1954), "The Red Skelton Show" (1951–1971), "The Dinah Shore Show" (1951–1957), "The George Gobel Show" (1954–1960) and "The Dinah Shore Chevy Show" (1956–1963). Perry Como also hosted a series of variety shows that collectively ran from 1948 to 1969, followed by variety specials that ran until 1994.  Shorter-lived variety shows during this period include "The Frank Sinatra Show" (1950–1952), "The Jimmy Durante Show" (1954–1956) and a different "The Frank Sinatra Show" (1957–1958).  In the UK, "The Good Old Days"—which ran from 1953 to 1983—featured modern artists performing dressed in late Victorian/Early Edwardian costume, either doing their own act or performing as a music hall artist of that period. The audience was also encouraged to dress in period costume in a similar fashion. Other long-running British variety shows that originated in the 1950s include "Tonight at the London Palladium" (1955–1969), "The Black and White Minstrel Show" (1958–1978), "The White Heather Club" (1958–1968) and "Royal Variety Performance" (an annual event televised since the 1950s).

1960s.

Popular American variety shows that began in the 60s include a revival of "The Jackie Gleason Show" (1960–1970), "The Andy Williams Show" (1962–1971), "The Danny Kaye Show" (1963–1967), "The Hollywood Palace" (1964–1970), "The Dean Martin Show" (1965–1974), "The Carol Burnett Show" (1967–1978) and "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour" (1967–1969). 1969 saw a flurry of new variety shows with rural appeal: "The Johnny Cash Show" (1969–1971), "The Jim Nabors Hour" (1969–1971), "The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour" (1969–1972) and "Hee Haw" (1969–1992).  Entertainers with less successful variety shows in the 1960s include Judy Garland and Sammy Davis Jr.

1970s.

In 1970 and 1971, the American TV networks, CBS especially, conducted the so-called "rural purge", in which shows that appealed to more rural and older audiences were canceled as part of a greater focus on appealing to wealthier demographics. Many variety shows, including long-running ones, were canceled as part of this "purge," with a few shows (such as "Hee Haw" and "The Lawrence Welk Show") surviving and moving into first-run syndication. Variety shows continued to be produced in the 1970s, with most of them stripped down to only music and comedy.  Popular variety shows that ran in the 1970s include "The Flip Wilson Show" (1970–1974), "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour" (1971–1977, in various incarnations), "The Bobby Goldsboro Show" (1973–1975), "The Midnight Special" (1973–1981), "Don Kirshner's Rock Concert" (1973–1981), "The Mac Davis Show" (1974–1976), "Tony Orlando and Dawn" (1974–1976), "Saturday Night Live" (1975–present), "Donny & Marie" (1976–1979), and "Sha Na Na" (1977–1981). Of all of these, only "Saturday Night Live" remains on the air today, and has become the longest running variety show in the history of American television.  Entertainers with weekly variety shows that ran for one season or less in the 1970s include Captain & Tennille, The Jacksons, The Keane Brothers, Bobby Darin, Mary Tyler Moore, Julie Andrews, Dolly Parton, Shields and Yarnell, The Manhattan Transfer, Starland Vocal Band, and the cast of "The Brady Bunch".  Entertainers with variety-based TV specials in the 70s include The Carpenters, John Denver, Shirley MacLaine and Diana Ross.  By the late 1970s, nearly every variety show had ended production, in part because of audience burnout; the highest-rated variety show of 1975, "Cher", was only the 22nd-most watched show of the year.

1980s–present.

By the early 1980s, the few new variety shows being produced were of remarkably poor quality (see, for instance, the infamous "Pink Lady and Jeff"), hastening the format's demise. A brief revival of the genre arose in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Variety shows from this era included "Dolly" (starring Dolly Parton), which ran for 23 episodes on ABC during the 1987–'88 season; "The Tracey Ullman Show" which aired on Fox from April 1987 through May 1990; a revival of "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour" from 1988 to 1989; a revival of "The Carol Burnett Show", which was broadcast by CBS for nine episodes in 1991 (following up on "Carol & Company" on NBC the previous year); and Showtime's "The Super Dave Osborne Show" hosted by Bob Einstein from 1987 to 1991.  By the 21st century, the variety show format had fallen out of fashion, due largely to changing tastes and the fracturing of media audiences (caused by the proliferation of cable and satellite television) that makes a multiple-genre variety show impractical. Even reruns of variety shows have generally not been particularly widespread; TV Land telecasted briefly some variety shows (namely "The Ed Sullivan Show" and "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour") upon its beginning in 1996, but within a few years, reruns of most of those shows (except "The Flip Wilson Show") stopped. Similarly, CMT held the rights to "Hee Haw" but telecast very few episodes, opting mainly to hold rights to allow them to air performance videos from the show in its video blocks. The current rights holder of "Hee Haw", RFD-TV, has been more prominent in its telecasts of the show; RFD-TV also airs numerous other country-style variety shows from the 1960s and 1970s up through the present day, in a rarity for modern television. Another notable exception is "The Lawrence Welk Show", which has been telecast continually in reruns on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) since 1986. "The Danny Kaye Show" returned to television in 2017 with reruns on Jewish Life Television (and, in the case of a one-off Christmas special, the Christian-leaning network INSP); JLTV dropped Kaye from its schedule at the end of 2018. Digital multicast network getTV shows variety shows on an irregular basis. The Spanish language variety show "Sabado Gigante", which began in 1962, and then moved from Chile to the United States in 1986, continued to produce and broadcast new episodes on Univision until its cancellation in September 2015.  At least one national variety show continues on national radio: "Live from Here", a musical variety series hosted by Chris Thile. It has followed three formats over the course of its history, the first and longest being that of "A Prairie Home Companion"; founding host Garrison Keillor created the series in 1974 as an homage to rural radio variety shows, featuring sketch comedy based on radio dramas of the old-time radio era, complete with faux commercials. (The other format, "The American Radio Company of the Air", also hosted and created by Keillor, was set in a more urban environment and likewise was based on old-time radio; its short run in the late 1980s eventually morphed into a revival of "A Prairie Home Companion"). "Live from Here", which was established in its current format in 2016 and took on its name a year later after losing the rights to the "A Prairie Home Companion" name, focuses mainly on musical acts.  Improvisational comic Wayne Brady, coming off his successful appearances on the panel game "Whose Line Is It Anyway?", launched an eponymous variety show in 2001, which aired on ABC. "The Wayne Brady Show" lasted only one summer season in its variety format; when the show returned the next year in syndication, it had been reformatted as a talk show, under which format it ran until 2004.  Fox's "Osbournes Reloaded", a variety show featuring the family of rocker Ozzy Osbourne, was canceled after only one episode had been telecast in 2009. More than two dozen affiliates refused to telecast the first episode of the show. This series had been slated for a six-episode run.  NBC has made repeated attempts at reviving the variety format since the late 2000s (its last successful series in this genre, "Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters", left the network's schedule in 1982). A pilot episode for "Rosie Live" was telecast the day before Thanksgiving Day in 2008 and, after receiving middling ratings and extremely poor reviews, was not picked up for its originally planned run in January 2009. In May 2014, NBC aired "The Maya Rudolph Show", a variety show starring "SNL" performer Maya Rudolph. Like "Rosie Live", the broadcast was intended to be a one-off special, but with the possibility of additional episodes depending on its performance. The special won its time slot, due mainly to a strong lead-in, and spawned the May 2016 premiere of "Maya & Marty", adding fellow "SNL" cast member Martin Short. Earlier that season, NBC aired "Best Time Ever", an adaptation of the British variety game show "Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway" starring actor Neil Patrick Harris which was ultimately unsuccessful.

Related formats.

Christmas and other variety specials.

Starting in the 1950s, some entertainers became associated with variety television specials that would recur on a regular basis, in some cases for decades. Such entertainers included Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Andy Williams and Mitzi Gaynor. Many of these were Christmas variety specials, which often showed the star in a set meant to look like their home, welcoming singers and other guests to perform duets of Christmas songs. The popularity of these Christmas shows outlasted that of weekly variety shows. In 1973, for example, even as variety shows were starting to fade in popularity, variety Christmas specials hosted by Williams and Como both attracted an enormous 40% of the American television audience. Williams's and Johnny Cash's annual Christmas specials outlasted the regularly scheduled variety shows that spawned them by several years. Christmas variety specials' popularity continued into the 1990s, before starting to wane in the 2000s. Nevertheless, the tradition has continued. Entertainers who have hosted Christmas variety specials in the 21st century include Kid Rock, Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson, Carrie Underwood, Lady Gaga, Michael Buble, Bill Murray, Gwen Stefani, and Darci Lynne.

Talk shows.

Though the format faded in popularity in prime time, it thrived in late night. Night-time variety shows eventually evolved into late-night talk shows, which combine variety entertainment (primarily comedy and live music) with the aspects of a talk show (such as interviews with celebrities). The Emmy Awards academy considers the two genres to be related closely enough that, until 2015, the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series was open to any of these types of show; in 2015, the academy separated late-night talk shows and sketch comedy series into separate categories.  During Johnny Carson's tenure on "The Tonight Show" on NBC from 1962 to 1992, the show dominated late night ratings, and the other networks attempted late-night talk shows only sporadically. This changed with Carson's retirement, and other networks began to air their own talk show competitors, starting with "Late Show with David Letterman" on CBS in 1993. As of the current generation of U.S. hosts, late-night talk shows vary widely on their resemblance to the original variety format, with Jimmy Fallon's incarnation of "The Tonight Show" putting heavy emphasis on sketch and game segments incorporating celebrity guests (especially involving music), while "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" has placed a larger emphasis on news satire similar to its host's previous Comedy Central late-night program "The Colbert Report" (where Colbert portrayed himself as a parody of conservative pundits).  "The Richard Bey Show" combined the variety show with the tabloid talk show, not only having its guests talk about their problems but also having them participate in absurdist games, and "Sally Jesse Raphael" was known for occasionally having music and fashion in the show, especially drag and gender-bending performances.

Sketch comedy shows.

Sketch comedy series such as "Saturday Night Live", "In Living Color", "Almost Live!" (and its successor "Up Late NW"), "MADtv", and "SCTV" also contain variety show elements, particularly musical performances and comedy sketches. The most obvious difference between shows such as "Saturday Night Live" and traditional variety shows is the lack of a single lead host (or hosts) and a large ensemble cast. "SNL" has used different guest hosts ever since its inception.

Talent shows.

Televised talent shows have a variety show element, in that they feature a variety of different acts. Examples of talent shows that feature entertainers from a broad variety of disciplines include "Star Search", which had a run in the 1980s in syndication and a run on CBS in the early 2000s during the reality television boom; "The Gong Show", which reached its peak in the 1970s but has had occasional revivals since then; and the worldwide "Got Talent" franchise.

Telethons.

The variety show format also continued in the form of the telethon, which feature variety entertainment (often music) interspersed with appeals for viewers to make donations to support a charity or cause. The "Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon" was one of the best known telethons in the US, but it too was eventually canceled after several years of shortening (originally over 21 hours, by the time of its last telecast in 2014, by which point Lewis had been gone from the telethon several years, it was down to two hours). Another popular telethon, for United Cerebral Palsy, ended its run in 1998 shortly after the death of its founder and figurehead, Dennis James. Likewise, only a handful of long-established local telethons remain.

Other countries or regions.

Australia.

The prime time variety show format was popular in the early decades of Australian television, spawning such series as "In Melbourne Tonight", "The Graham Kennedy Show", "The Don Lane Show", and "Hey Hey It's Saturday", which ran for 27 years. Recent prime time variety shows include the short lived "Micallef Tonight" and "The Sideshow".

Taiwan.

Another of today's variety shows in Asia is Taiwan's "Guess (variety show)" and "100% Entertainment". East Asian variety programs are known for its constant use of sound effects, on-screen visuals and comedic bantering. Many of the shows are presented in a live-like presentation in a fast-paced setting, with scenes repeating or fast forwarded.  Another popular variety show in Taiwan is Kangxi Lai Le, a talk show with variety show elements. The hosts and guests were associated with variety shows. Famous for its bantering, which was written before tapings.

Hong Kong.

The first Cantonese variety show to become a major success was Hong Kong's "Enjoy Yourself Tonight", which first aired in 1967 and ran for 27 years. In Hong Kong, variety shows are often combined with elements of a cooking show or a talent competition but end in various results.

Japan.

Variety programming has remained one of the dominant genres of television programming. While Japanese variety shows are famous abroad for their wild stunts, they vary from talk shows to music shows, from tabloid news shows to skit comedy. The prominent use of telop on screen has created a style that has influenced variety programming across Asia. One of the most popular variety shows in Japan includes "Downtown no Gaki No Tsukai".

South Korea.

In South Korea, the hugely popular show "Infinite Challenge", has been broadcast by MBC from 2005 to 2018, was a new model of this, called "Real Variety Show". It combined comedy and variety scenes including unscripted stunts. Although many variety shows have existed in Korea long before the broadcast of "Infinite Challenge", this program has given a rise to a new page in the history of Korean variety shows by introducing unscripted stunts. As a result, other broadcasting channels such as KBS and SBS have followed its path and introduced programs such as "2 Days & 1 Night" and "Running Man". These types of Korean variety shows are grabbing foreign interest of countries such as Japan, China, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and even the United States bringing on a new type of the Korean wave globally.

Philippines.

Variety shows are a huge part of daily life in the Philippines, with all of the major networks running their own variety shows usually during lunchtime and can be on the air for between one and a half hours to three hours. The most notable Philippine variety show is the longest-running "Eat Bulaga", which premiered in 1979 and has aired on RPN, ABS-CBN, and GMA Network in the succeeding years. Recently many other TV networks are different formats of variety. "It's Showtime" has shown great popularity and interest to Filipino viewers.

Mexico.

"Siempre en Domingo" premiered in 1969 with Raúl Velasco hosting. It became Mexico's longest-running variety series, remaining on Televisa until 1998. Other long-running variety shows, most of which have been Televisa productions, have included "La Carabina de Ambrosio", "Anabel", "Al Fin de Semana", "Silvia y Enrique", "La Parodia", "Muevete", "Desmadruga2", and "Sabadazo.". Most, if not all, of Televisa's variety shows have aired in other countries, including the Univision networks in the United States.

Venezuela.

In Venezuela, the best known variety show is "Súper Sábado Sensacional". Originally established in 1968 (as "Sábado Espectacular") on Radio Caracas Television, the show moved to Venevision in 1970 and was renamed "Sábado Sensacional". In 1990, "Súper" was added to the title, and is how the show is currently known today.

Chile.

The Spanish-language variety show known as "Sábados Gigantes" (forerunner of the U.S. "Sábado Gigante") began in 1962 with Don Francisco and lasted into the 1990s. His daughter, Vivianne Kreutzberger, currently hosts the program under the title "Gigantes con Vivi", while Don Francisco has hosted the U.S. version since April 12, 1986 until the end of the show's run on September 19, 2015.

France.

Throughout the 1960s and the 1970s, the producers Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier created the most popular variety shows on French television, including "Le Sacha Show" (1963-1971) hosted by Sacha Distel, "Top à..." (1972-1974), "Numéro Un" (1975-1982) and a lot of television specials presented by various famous singers (Johnny Hallyday, Sylvie Vartan, Claude François, Petula Clark).  From 1965 to 1970 was also aired "Dim Dam Dom", a modern, playful and sophisticated show intended for a female audience and produced by "Elle" chief editor Daisy de Galard. Each episode of "Dim Dam Dom" was hosted in an all-white studio set by a different "speakerine" (a female continuity announcer), usually a popular actress or singer like Françoise Hardy, Marie Laforêt, Geraldine Chaplin, France Gall, Jane Birkin, Françoise Fabian, Romy Schneider.

Variety shows, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a compère (master of ceremonies) or host. The variety format made its way from Victorian era stage to radio and then television. Variety shows were a staple of anglophone television from the late 1940s into the 1980s.

综艺节目,简称综艺,是一种娱乐性的节目形式,通常包含了许多不同性质和元素的演出,例如音乐与搞笑等类型。过往通常在电视上播出,而大部分的综艺节目会邀请现场观众参加录影,但也有现场实况播出。


Signs and symptoms.

At birth, the inner layer of the foreskin is sealed to the glans penis. The foreskin is usually non-retractable in early childhood, and some males may reach the age of 18 before their foreskin can be fully retracted.  Medical associations advise not to retract the foreskin of an infant, in order to prevent scarring. Some argue that non-retractability may "be considered normal for males up to and including adolescence." Hill states that full retractability of the foreskin may not be achieved until late childhood or early adulthood. A Danish survey found that the mean age of first foreskin retraction is 10.4 years.  Rickwood, as well as other authors, has suggested that true phimosis is over-diagnosed due to failure to distinguish between normal developmental non-retractability and a pathological condition. Some authors use the terms "physiologic" and "pathologic" to distinguish between these types of phimosis;  In some cases a cause may not be clear, or it may be difficult to distinguish physiological phimosis from pathological phimosis if an infant appears to have discomfort while urinating or demonstrates obvious ballooning of the foreskin. However, ballooning does not indicate urinary obstruction.  In women, a comparable condition is known as "clitoral phimosis", whereby the clitoral hood cannot be retracted, limiting exposure of the glans clitoridis.

Cause.

There are three mechanical conditions that prevent foreskin retraction:  Pathological phimosis (as opposed to the natural non-retractability of the foreskin in childhood) is rare and the causes are varied. Some cases may arise from balanitis (inflammation of the glans penis).  Lichen sclerosus et atrophicus (thought to be the same condition as balanitis xerotica obliterans) is regarded as a common (or even the main) cause of pathological phimosis. This is a skin condition of unknown origin that causes a whitish ring of indurated tissue (a cicatrix) to form near the tip of the prepuce. This inelastic tissue prevents retraction.  Phimosis may occur after other types of chronic inflammation (such as balanoposthitis), repeated catheterization, or forcible foreskin retraction.  Phimosis may also arise in untreated diabetics due to the presence of glucose in their urine giving rise to infection in the foreskin.  Phimosis in older children and adults can vary in severity, with some able to retract their foreskin partially (relative phimosis), while others are completely unable to retract their foreskin, even when the penis is in a flaccid state (full phimosis).

Treatment.

Physiologic phimosis, common in males 10 years of age and younger, is normal, and does not require intervention. Non-retractile foreskin usually becomes retractable during the course of puberty.  If phimosis in older children or adults is not causing acute and severe problems, nonsurgical measures may be effective. Choice of treatment is often determined by whether circumcision is viewed as an option of last resort to be avoided or as the preferred course.

Surgical.

Surgical methods range from the complete removal of the foreskin to more minor operations to relieve foreskin tightness:  While circumcision prevents phimosis, studies of the incidence of healthy infants circumcised for each prevented case of phimosis are inconsistent.

Prognosis.

The most acute complication is paraphimosis. In this condition, the glans is swollen and painful, and the foreskin is immobilized by the swelling in a partially retracted position. The proximal penis is flaccid. Some studies found phimosis to be a risk factor for urinary retention and carcinoma of the penis.

Epidemiology.

A number of medical reports of phimosis incidence have been published over the years. They vary widely because of the difficulties of distinguishing physiological phimosis (developmental nonretractility) from pathological phimosis, definitional differences, ascertainment problems, and the multiple additional influences on post-neonatal circumcision rates in cultures where most newborn males are circumcised. A commonly cited incidence statistic for pathological phimosis is 1% of uncircumcised males. When phimosis is simply equated with nonretractility of the foreskin after age 3 years, considerably higher incidence rates have been reported. Others have described incidences in adolescents and adults as high as 50%, though it is likely that many cases of physiological phimosis or partial nonretractility were included.

History.

According to some accounts, phimosis prevented Louis XVI of France from impregnating his wife for the first seven years of their marriage. She was 14 and he was 15 when they married in 1770. However, the presence and nature of his genital anomaly is not considered certain, and some scholars (such as Vincent Cronin and Simone Bertiere) assert that surgical repair would have been mentioned in the records of his medical treatments if this had indeed occurred. Non-retractile prepuce in adolescence is normal, common, and usually resolves with increasing maturity.  US president James Garfield was assassinated by Charles Guiteau in 1881. Guiteau's autopsy report indicated that he had phimosis. At the time, this led to the speculation that Guiteau's murderous behavior was due to phimosis-induced insanity.

Phimosis is a condition in which the foreskin of the penis cannot be pulled back past the glans. A balloon-like swelling under the foreskin may occur with urination. In teenagers and adults, it may result in pain during an erection, but is otherwise not painful. Those affected are at greater risk of inflammation of the glans, known as balanitis, and other complications.

包茎(Phimosis) 是一种不能将阴茎包皮拉到龟头后面的病症,排尿时可能会出现包皮下似气球般的肿胀。在青少年和成人时,可能在勃起时会疼痛,但在其他时候不会疼痛。受影响的人有较大的龟头炎症风险,即龟头炎,和其他并发症。。 幼儿的包皮无法退到龟头后方是正常的。超过90%的病例在7岁时便可以将包皮退到龟头后方,在16岁时则是99%,有时包茎可能是由潜在病症所引起,例如由于龟头炎或干燥性闭塞性龟头炎引起的瘢痕形成,这通常可以通过观察包皮开口的疤痕来诊断。 通常情况下,若没有治疗,此情形在三岁时就会消失,不建议年幼男性努力尝试将包皮退到龟头后面。对于病情没有进一步改善的人,可以给予时间或使用类固醇乳膏来试图松弛紧绷的皮肤,如果这种方法配合包皮伸展运动仍是无效,那么可以试试其他治疗方法,如包皮环切术。包茎的一个潜在并发症是包皮过长,紧绷的包皮被困在龟头后面。包茎的英文源自希腊语phimos(φῑμός),意思是“枪口”。


Early life and education.

Born into a Jewish family, Landsteiner's father, Leopold (1818–1875), a renowned Viennese journalist who was editor-in-chief of "Die Presse", died at age 56, when Karl was only 6. This led to a close relationship between him and his mother Fanny (née Hess; 1837–1908). After graduating with the Matura exam from a Vienna secondary school, he took up the study of medicine at the University of Vienna and wrote his doctoral thesis in 1891. While still a student he published an essay on the influence of diets on the composition of blood.  From 1891 to 1893, Landsteiner studied chemistry in Würzburg under Hermann Emil Fischer, in München, Eugen Bamberger and in Zürich under Arthur Rudolf Hantzsch. He had a number of publications from that period, some of them in co-operation with his professors.

Research work in Vienna; discovery of the polio virus.

After returning to Vienna he became an assistant to Max von Gruber at the Hygienic Institute. In his studies he concentrated on the mechanism of immunity and the nature of antibodies. From November 1897 to 1908 Landsteiner was an assistant at the pathological-anatomical institute of the University of Vienna under Anton Weichselbaum, where he published 75 papers, dealing with issues in serology, bacteriology, virology and pathological anatomy. In addition he did some 3,600 autopsies in those ten years. Weichselbaum was Landsteiner's tutor for his postdoctoral lecture qualification in 1903. From 1908 to 1920 Landsteiner was prosector at the Wilhelminenspital in Vienna and in 1911 he was sworn in as an associate professor of pathological anatomy. During that time he discovered – in co-operation with Erwin Popper – the infectious character of poliomyelitis and isolated the polio virus. In recognition of this groundbreaking discovery, which proved to be the basis for the fight against polio, he was posthumously inducted into the Polio Hall of Fame at Warm Springs, Georgia, which was dedicated in January 1958.

Discovery of the blood groups.

In 1900 Karl Landsteiner found out that the blood of two people under contact agglutinates, and in 1901 he found that this effect was due to contact of blood with blood serum. As a result, he succeeded in identifying the three blood groups A, B and O, which he labelled C, of human blood. Landsteiner also found out that blood transfusion between persons with the same blood group did not lead to the destruction of blood cells, whereas this occurred between persons of different blood groups. Based on his findings, the first successful blood transfusion was performed by Reuben Ottenberg at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York in 1907.  Today it is well known that persons with blood group AB can accept donations of the other blood groups, and that persons with blood group O-negative can donate to all other groups. Individuals with blood group AB are referred to as "universal recipients" and those with blood group O-negative are known as "universal donors". These donor-recipient relationships arise due to the fact that type O-negative blood possesses neither antigens of blood group A nor of blood group B. Therefore, the immune systems of persons with blood group A, B or AB do not refuse the donation. Further, because persons with blood group AB do not form antibodies against either the antigens of blood group A or B, they can accept blood from persons with these blood groups, besides from persons with blood group O-negative.  In today's blood transfusions only concentrates of red blood cells without serum are transmitted, which is of great importance in surgical practice. In 1930 Landsteiner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in recognition of these achievements. For his pioneering work, he is recognized as the father of transfusion medicine.

Research work in the Netherlands and the United States.

After World War I, Vienna and the new republic of Austria as a whole was in a desolate economic state, a situation in which Landsteiner did not see any possibilities to carry on with his research work. He decided to move to the Netherlands and accepted a post as prosector in the small Catholic "St. Joannes de Deo" hospital (now MCH Westeinde) in The Hague and, in order to improve his financial situation also took a job in a small factory, producing old tuberculin ("tuberculinum prestinum"). He also published a number of papers, five of them being published in Dutch by the Royal Academy of Sciences. Yet working conditions proved to be not much better than in post-war Vienna. So Landsteiner accepted the invitation that reached him from New York, initiated by Simon Flexner, who was familiar with Landsteiner's work, to work for the Rockefeller Institute. He arrived there with his family in the spring of 1923. Throughout the 1920s Landsteiner worked on the problems of immunity and allergy. In 1927 he discovered new blood groups: M, N and P, refining the work he had begun 20 years before. Shortly thereafter, Landsteiner and his collaborator, Philip Levine, published the work and, later that same year, the types began to be used in paternity suits.

Awards and honours.

Landsteiner was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1932 and awarded the Cameron Prize for Therapeutics of the University of Edinburgh in 1937. He was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS) in 1941. In 1946, he was posthumously awarded the Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award.

Personal life.

Landsteiner converted from Judaism to Roman Catholicism in 1890. In 1916 he married Leopoldine Helene Wlasto, a Greek Orthodox who converted to her husband's Roman Catholic faith. In 1937 Landsteiner took unsuccessful legal action against an American publisher who had included him in the book "Who's Who in American Jewry", stating that "it will be detrimental to me to emphasize publicly the religion of my ancestors."

Karl Landsteiner,, (14 June 1868 – 26 June 1943) was an Austrian biologist, physician, and immunologist. He distinguished the main blood groups in 1900, having developed the modern system of classification of blood groups from his identification of the presence of agglutinins in the blood, and identified, with Alexander S. Wiener, the Rhesus factor, in 1937, thus enabling physicians to transfuse blood without endangering the patient's life. With Constantin Levaditi and Erwin Popper, he discovered the polio virus in 1909. He received the Aronson Prize in 1926. In 1930, he received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He was posthumously awarded the Lasker Award in 1946, and has been described as the father of transfusion medicine.

卡尔·兰德施泰纳(,1868年-6月14日-1943年-6月26日),美国籍奥地利细菌学家。1900年他发现了人类的ABO血型系统,为此他于1930年获得诺贝尔生理学或医学奖。1937年他又与亚历山大·所罗门·维纳(Alexander Solomon Wiener)一起发现了Rh血型系统。


History and variants of the term.

The term "gamemaster" and the role associated with it could be found in the postal gaming hobby. In typical play-by-mail games, players control armies or civilizations and mail their chosen actions to the GM. The GM then mails the updated game state to all players on a regular basis. Usage in a wargaming context includes Guidon Games 1973 ruleset, "Ironclad".  In a role-playing game context, it was first used by Dave Arneson while developing his game "Blackmoor" in 1971, although the first usage in print may have been "Chivalry & Sorcery".  Each gaming system has its own name for the role of the gamemaster, such as "judge", "narrator", "referee", "director", or "storyteller", and these terms not only describe the role of the gamemaster in general but also help define how the game is intended to be run. For example, the Storyteller System used in White Wolf Game Studio's storytelling games calls its GM the "storyteller", while the rules- and setting-focused "Marvel Super Heroes" role-playing game calls its GM the "judge". The cartoon inspired role-playing game "Toon" calls its GM the "animator". A few games apply system- or setting-specific flavorful names to the GM, such as the Keeper of Arcane Lore (in "Call of Cthulhu"); the Hollyhock God ("Nobilis", in which the hollyhock represents vanity), or the most famous of such terms, "Dungeon Master" (or "DM") in "Dungeons & Dragons".

In traditional table-top role-playing games.

The gamemaster prepares the game session for the players and the characters they play (known as player characters or PCs), describes the events taking place and decides on the outcomes of players' decisions. The gamemaster also keeps track of non-player characters (NPCs) and random encounters, as well as of the general state of the game world. The game session (or "adventure") can be metaphorically described as a play, in which the players are the lead actors, and the GM provides the stage, the scenery, the basic plot on which the improvisational script is built, as well as all the bit parts and supporting characters. Gamemasters can also be in charge of RPG board games making the events and setting challenges.  GMs may choose to run a game based on a published game world, with the maps and history already in place; such game worlds often have pre-written adventures. Alternatively, the GM may build their own world and script their own adventures.  A good gamemaster draws the players into the adventure, making it enjoyable for everyone. Good gamemasters have quick minds, sharp wits, and rich imaginations. Gamemasters must also maintain game balance: hideously overpowered monsters "or" players are no fun. It was noted, in 1997, that those who favor their left-brain such as skilled code writers usually do not make it in the ethereal gamemaster world of storytelling and verse.

In online games.

In early virtual worlds gamemasters served as a moderator or administrator; in MUD game masters were called "wizards". Gamemastering in the form found in traditional role-playing games has also been used in a semi-automatic virtual worlds. However, human moderation was sometimes considered unfair or out of context in an otherwise automated world. As online games expanded, gamemaster duties expanded to include being a customer service representative for an online community. A gamemaster in such a game is either an experienced volunteer player or an employee of the game's publisher. They enforce the game's rules by banishing spammers, player killers, cheaters, and hackers and by solving players' problems by providing general customer service. For their tasks they use special tools and characters that allow them to do things like teleport to players, summon items, and browse logs that record players' activities. Often, players who feel dissatisfied with the game will blame the GMs directly for any errors or glitches. However, this blame is misdirected as most GMs are not developers and cannot resolve those types of problems.  The now defunct America Online Online Gaming Forum used to use volunteers selected by applications from its user base. These people were simply referred to as OGFs by other members, and their screennames were indicative of their position (i.e., OGF Moose, etc.). While membership in the Online Gaming Forum had only one real requirement (that is, be a member of AOL), OGFs were given powers quite similar to AOL "Guides" and could use them at will to discipline users as they saw appropriate.  "World of Warcraft" has employees of Blizzard Entertainment that serve as gamemasters to help users with various problems in gameplay, chat, and other things like account and billing issues. A gamemaster in this game will communicate with players through chat that has blue text and they will also have a special "GM" tag and Blizzard logo in front of their names.  "RuneScape" has more than 500 moderators employed by Jagex to assist players and perform administrative duties in-game and on the site forums. These "Jagex Moderators", as they are called, usually have the word "Mod" and a gold crown preceding their account names which ordinary players are not permitted to use. The game also has "Player Moderators" and "Forum Moderators" who are player volunteers helping with moderation, having the ability to mute (block from chatting) other players who violate rules.  "Battleground Europe", a medium-sized MMOFPS has a team of "Game Moderators", anonymous volunteers who moderate the game.  "Miniconomy", a smaller text-based MMO has a team of "Federals", experienced players that help moderate the game and interactions.  "Transformice", an MMORPG, has a team of volunteer moderators called "Mods" who are experienced players that help moderate the game and interactions.  Note that a few games, notably "Neverwinter Nights" and "", are video game adaptations of tabletop role-playing games that are played online with one player acting as a traditional gamemaster.

In pervasive games.

Gamemastering, sometimes referred to as Orchestration is used in pervasive games to guide players along a trajectory desired by the game author. To ensure proper gamemastering can take place, four components are needed: some kind of sensory system to the game allowing the game masters to know current events, providing dynamic game information; dynamic and static game information lets game masters make informed decisions; decisions need to be actuated into the game, either through the game system or through manual intervention; and finally a communication structure is needed for both diegetic or non-diegetic communication. Effective gamemastering can require specialized user interfaces that are highly game specific.

Gamemasters in online chat environments.

Sometimes, tabletop GMs simply can not find players interested in either the same setting, product line, or play style in their local neighborhood. The advent of the networked personal computer provided a solution in the form of online chat programs. Appropriately equipped gamemasters can find players online and a group can meet via chat rooms, forums, or other electronic means.  In contrast to standard tabletop procedure (and to games "designed" to be played online), this online chat format significantly changed the balance of duties for a prospective gamemaster. Descriptive text required more preparation, if only via cut-and-paste; acting and voice skills could not be utilized to get the personality of NPCs and monsters across, increasing the value of background music ('assigned' in advance or individually chosen) as a playing aid. The GM was likely to need copies of player-character records, being unable to glance at the originals as in normal face-to-face procedure. The format also forced the issue (particularly when participants were not personally acquainted) of whether to leave all rolling of dice to the GM (making one's own rolls is a privilege not readily surrendered by some players), or to trust all players to honestly report the results of their rolls (the honor system may be strained when it is in a player's best interest to roll well).  However, workarounds to these challenges have only increased over time. The use of Wiki software helps GMs and players alike keep track of all manner of game data, sometimes evolving into a home-made gaming supplement. Scripting software allows unwieldy mechanics (e.g. a complicated formula or repetitive die-rolling) to be resolved at the push of a button. Teleconferencing enhances group communication through voice, video, and a shared whiteboard. The use of technology to enable online play is growing, as reflected in products like the D&D Insider.

A gamemaster (GM; also known as game master, game manager, game moderator or referee) is a person who acts as an organizer, officiant for regarding rules, arbitrator, and moderator for a multiplayer role-playing game. They are more common in co-operative games in which players work together than in competitive games in which players oppose each other. The act performed by a gamemaster is sometimes referred to as "Gamemastering" or simply "GM-ing".

游戏主持者即GM(Game Manager 的简称),是角色扮演游戏或网络游戏中主持游戏或监管玩家行为并维护游戏环境的负责人。除了GM外,不同的系统可能还有DM(地下城主)、说书人(storyteller)、守秘人(keeper)、导演(director)等称呼,但是基本上这些别名的功能和GM是大致相同的。


Assistive technologies used for web browsing.

Individuals living with a disability use assistive technologies such as the following to enable and assist web browsing:

Guidelines on accessible web design.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

In 1999 the Web Accessibility Initiative, a project by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), published the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines WCAG 1.0.  On 11 December 2008, the WAI released the WCAG 2.0 as a Recommendation. WCAG 2.0 aims to be up to date and more technology neutral. Though web designers can choose either standard to follow, the WCAG 2.0 have been widely accepted as the definitive guidelines on how to create accessible websites. Governments are steadily adopting the WCAG 2.0 as the accessibility standard for their own websites. In 2012, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines were also published as an ISO/IEC standard: "ISO/IEC 40500:2012: Information technology – W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0".

Criticism of WAI guidelines.

There has been some criticism of the W3C process, claiming that it does not sufficiently put the user at the heart of the process. There was a formal objection to WCAG's original claim that WCAG 2.0 will address requirements for people with learning disabilities and cognitive limitations headed by Lisa Seeman and signed by 40 organizations and people. In articles such as "WCAG 2.0: The new W3C guidelines evaluated", "To Hell with WCAG 2.0" and "Testability Costs Too Much", the WAI has been criticised for allowing WCAG 1.0 to get increasingly out of step with today's technologies and techniques for creating and consuming web content, for the slow pace of development of WCAG 2.0, for making the new guidelines difficult to navigate and understand, and other argued failings.

Essential components of web accessibility.

The accessibility of websites relies on the cooperation of several components: Web developers usually use authoring tools and evaluation tools to create Web content. People ("users") use Web browsers, media players, assistive technologies or other "user agents" to get and interact with the content.

Web accessibility legislation.

Because of the growth in internet usage and its growing importance in everyday life, countries around the world are addressing digital access issues through legislation. One approach is to protect access to websites for people with disabilities by using existing human or civil rights legislation. Some countries, like the U.S., protect access for people with disabilities through the technology procurement process. It is common for nations to support and adopt the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 by referring to the guidelines in their legislation.

Australia.

In 2000, an Australian blind man won a $20,000 court case against the Sydney Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games (SOCOG). This was the first successful case under Disability Discrimination Act 1992 because SOCOG had failed to make their official website, Sydney Olympic Games, adequately accessible to blind users. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) also published World Wide Web Access: Disability Discrimination Act Advisory Notes. All Governments in Australia also have policies and guidelines that require accessible public websites; Vision Australia maintain a complete list of Australian web accessibility policies.

Brazil.

In Brazil, the federal government published a paper with guidelines for accessibility on 18 January 2005, for public reviewing. On 14 December of the same year, the second version was published, including suggestions made to the first version of the paper. On 7 May 2007, the accessibility guidelines of the paper became compulsory to all federal websites. The current version of the paper, which follows the WCAG 2.0 guidelines, is named e-MAG, Modelo de de Governo Eletrônico (Electronic Government Accessibility Model), and is maintained by Brazilian Ministry of Planning, Budget, and Management.  The paper can be viewed and downloaded at its official website.

Canada.

In 2011, the Government of Canada began phasing in the implementation of a new set of web standards that are aimed at ensuring government websites are accessible, usable, interoperable and optimized for mobile devices. These standards replace Common Look and Feel 2.0 (CLF 2.0) Standards for the Internet.  The first of these four standards, Standard on Web Accessibility came into full effect on 31 July 2013. The Standard on Web Accessibility follows the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 AA, and contains a list of exclusions that is updated annually. It is accompanied by an explicit Assessment Methodology that helps government departments comply. The government also developed the Web Experience Toolkit (WET), a set of reusable web components for building innovative websites. The WET helps government departments build innovative websites that are accessible, usable and interoperable and therefore comply with the government's standards. The WET toolkit is open source and available for anyone to use.  The three related web standards are: the Standard on Optimizing Websites and Applications for Mobile Devices, the Standard on Web Usability and the Standard on Web Interoperability.  In 2019 the Government of Canada passed the Accessible Canada Act. This builds on the on provincial legislation like the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, The Accessibility for Manitobans Act & the Nova Scotia Accessibility Act.

European Union.

In February 2014 a draft law was endorsed by the European Parliament stating that all websites managed by public sector bodies have to be made accessible to everyone.  On 26 October 2016, the European Parliament approved the Web Accessibility Directive that requires that the websites and mobile apps of public sector bodies be accessible. The relevant accessibility requirements are described in the European standard EN 301 549 V1.1.2 (published by ETSI). EU member states are expected to bring into force by 23 September 2018 laws and regulations that enforce the relevant accessibility requirements.  Some categories of websites and apps are excepted from the directive, for example "websites and mobile applications of public service broadcasters and their subsidiaries".  The European Commission's "Rolling Plan for ICT Standardisation 2017" notes that ETSI standard EN 301 549 V1.1.2 will need to be updated to add accessibility requirements for mobile applications and evaluation methodologies to test compliance with the standard.  In 2019 the European Union introduced the European Accessibility Act which is now seen as one of the leading pieces of legislation for digital accessibility.

Ireland.

In Ireland, the Disability Act 2005 requires that where a public body communicates in electronic form with one or more persons, the contents of the communication must be, as far as practicable, "accessible to persons with a visual impairment to whom adaptive technology is available" (Section 28(2)). The National Disability Authority has produced a Code of Practice giving guidance to public bodies on how to meet the obligations of the Act. This is an approved code of practice and its provisions have the force of legally binding statutory obligations. It states that a public body can achieve compliance with Section 28(2) by "reviewing existing practices for electronic communications in terms of accessibility against relevant guidelines and standards", giving the example of "Double A conformance with the Web Accessibility Initiative's (WAI) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)".

Israel.

The Israeli Ministry of Justice recently published regulations requiring Internet websites to comply with Israeli standard 5568, which is based on the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. The main differences between the Israeli standard and the W3C standard concern the requirements to provide captions and texts for audio and video media. The Israeli standards are somewhat more lenient, reflecting the current technical difficulties in providing such captions and texts in Hebrew.

Italy.

In Italy, web accessibility is ruled by the so-called "Legge Stanca" (Stanca Act), formally Act n.4 of 9 January 2004, officially published on the Gazzetta Ufficiale on 17 January 2004. The original Stanca Act was based on the WCAG 1.0. On 20 March 2013 the standards required by the Stanca Act were updated to the WCAG 2.0.

Japan.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines in Japan were established in 2004 as JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards) X 8341-3. JIS X 8341-3 was revised in 2010 to adopt WCAG 2.0. The new version, published by the Web Accessibility Infrastructure Commission (WAIC), has the same four principles, 12 guidelines, and 61 success criteria as WCAG 2.0 has.

Norway.

In Norway, web accessibility is a legal obligation under the Act 20 June 2008 No 42 relating to a prohibition against discrimination on the basis of disability, also known as the Anti-discrimination Accessibility Act. The Act went into force in 2009, and the Ministry of Government Administration, Reform and Church Affairs [Fornyings-, administrasjons- og kirkedepartementet] published the Regulations for universal design of information and communication technology (ICT) solutions [Forskrift om universell utforming av informasjons- og kommunikasjonsteknologiske (IKT)-løsninger] in 2013. The regulations require compliance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0) / NS / ISO / IEC 40500: 2012, level A and AA with some exceptions. The Norwegian Agency for Public Management and eGovernment (Difi) is responsible for overseeing that ICT solutions aimed at the general public are in compliance with the legislative and regulatory requirements.

Philippines.

As part of the Web Accessibility Initiatives in the Philippines, the government through the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons (NCWDP) board approved the recommendation of forming an adhoc or core group of webmasters that will help in the implementation of the Biwako Millennium Framework set by the UNESCAP.  The Philippines was also the place where the Interregional Seminar and Regional Demonstration Workshop on Accessible Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) to Persons with Disabilities was held where eleven countries from Asia – Pacific were represented. The Manila Accessible Information and Communications Technologies Design Recommendations was drafted and adopted in 2003.

Spain.

In Spain, UNE 139803:2012 is the norm entrusted to regulate web accessibility. This standard is based on Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0.

Sweden.

In Sweden, Verva, the Swedish Administrative Development Agency is responsible for a set of guidelines for Swedish public sector web sites. Through the guidelines, web accessibility is presented as an integral part of the overall development process and not as a separate issue. The Swedish guidelines contain criteria which cover the entire lifecycle of a website; from its conception to the publication of live web content. These criteria address several areas which should be considered, including:  An English translation was released in April 2008: Swedish National Guidelines for Public Sector Websites. The translation is based on the latest version of Guidelines which was released in 2006.

United Kingdom.

In the UK, the Equality Act 2010 does not refer explicitly to website accessibility, but makes it illegal to discriminate against people with disabilities. The Act applies to anyone providing a service; public, private and voluntary sectors. The "Code of Practice: Rights of Access – Goods, Facilities, Services and Premises" document published by the government's Equality and Human Rights Commission to accompany the Act does refer explicitly to websites as one of the "services to the public" which should be considered covered by the Act.  In December 2010 the UK released the standard "BS 8878:2010 Web accessibility. Code of practice". This standard effectively supersedes PAS 78 (pub. 2006). PAS 78, produced by the Disability Rights Commission and sable by disabled people. The standard has been designed to introduce non-technical professionals to improved accessibility, usability and user experience for disabled and older people. It will be especially beneficial to anyone new to this subject as it gives guidance on process, rather than on technical and design issues. BS 8878 is consistent with the Equality Act 2010 and is referenced in the UK government's e-Accessibility Action Plan as the basis of updated advice on developing accessible online services. It includes recommendations for:  BS 8878 is intended for anyone responsible for the policies covering web product creation within their organization, and governance against those policies. It additionally assists people responsible for promoting and supporting equality and inclusion initiatives within organizations and people involved in the procurement, creation or training of web products and content. A summary of BS 8878 is available to help organisations better understand how the standard can help them embed accessibility and inclusive design in their business-as-usual processes.  On 28 May 2019, BS 8878 was superseded by ISO 30071-1, the international Standard that built on BS 8878 and expanded it for international use. A summary of how ISO 30071-1 relates to BS 8878 is available to help organisations understand the new Standard.

United States.

In the United States, Section 508 Amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires all Federal agencies' electronic and information technology to be accessible to those with disabilities. Both members of the public and federal employees have the right to access this technology, such as computer hardware and software, websites, phone systems, and copiers. Also, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability for entities receiving federal funds and has been cited in multiple lawsuits against organizations such as hospitals that receive federal funds through medicare/medicaid.  In addition, Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. There is some debate on the matter; multiple courts and the U.S. Department of Justice have taken the position that the ADA requires website and app operators and owners to take affirmative steps to make their websites and apps accessible to disabled persons and compatible with common assistive technologies such as the JAWS screen reader, while other courts have taken the position that the ADA does not apply online. The U.S. Department of Justice has endorsed the WCAG2.0AA standard as an appropriate standard for accessibility in multiple settlement agreements.  Numerous lawsuits challenging websites and mobile apps on the basis of the ADA have been filed since 2017. These cases appears spurred by a 2017 case, "Gil v. Winn Dixie Stores", in which a federal court in Florida ruled that Winn Dixie's website must be accessible. Around 800 cases related to web accessibility were filed in 2017, and over 2,200 were filed in 2018. Additionally, though the Justice Department had stated in 2010 that they would publish guidelines for web accessibility, they reversed this plan in 2017, also spurring legal action against inaccessible sites.  A notable lawsuit related to the ADA was filed against Domino's Pizza by a blind user who could not use Domino's mobile app. At the federal district level, the court rules in favor of Domino's as the Justice Department had not established the guidelines for accessibility, but this was appealed to the Ninth Circuit. The Ninth Circuit overruled the district court, ruling that because Domino's is a brick-and-mortar store, which must meet the ADA, and the mobile app an extension of their services, their app must also be compliant with the ADA. Domino's has petitioned to the Supreme Court, backed by many other restaurants and retail chains, arguing that this decision impacts their Due Process since handicapped customers have other, more accessible means to order. In October 2019, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, which effectively upheld the decision of the 9th Circuit Court and requires the case to be heard as it stands.  The number and cost of federal accessibility lawsuits has risen dramatically in the last few years.

Website accessibility audits.

A growing number of organizations, companies and consultants offer "website accessibility audits". These audits, a type of system testing, identify accessibility problems that exist within a website, and provide advice and guidance on the steps that need to be taken to correct these problems.  A range of methods are used to audit websites for accessibility:  Each of these methods has its strengths and weaknesses:  Ideally, a combination of methods should be used to assess the accessibility of a website.

Remediating inaccessible websites.

Once an accessibility audit has been conducted, and accessibility errors have been identified, the errors will need to be remediated in order to ensure the site is compliant with accessibility errors. The traditional way of correcting an inaccessible site is to go back into the source code, reprogram the error, and then test to make sure the bug was fixed. If the website is not scheduled to be revised in the near future, that error (and others) would remain on the site for a lengthy period of time, possibly violating accessibility guidelines. Because this is a complicated process, many website owners choose to build accessibility into a new site design or re-launch, as it can be more efficient to develop the site to comply with accessibility guidelines, rather than to remediate errors later.  With the progress in AI technology, web accessibility has become more accessible. With 3rd party addons that leverage AI and Machine Learning, it is possible to offer changes to the website design without altering the source code. This way, a website can be accessible to different types of users without the need to adjust the website for every accessibility equipment.

Accessible Web applications and WAI-ARIA.

For a Web page to be accessible all important semantics about the page's functionality must be available so that assistive technology can understand and process the content and adapt it for the user. However, as content becomes more and more complex, the standard HTML tags and attributes become inadequate in providing semantics reliably. Modern Web applications often apply scripts to elements to control their functionality and to enable them to act as a control or other dynamic component. These custom components or widgets do not provide a way to convey semantic information to the user agent. WAI-ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) is a specification published by the World Wide Web Consortium that specifies how to increase the accessibility of dynamic content and user interface components developed with Ajax, HTML, JavaScript and related technologies. ARIA enables accessibility by enabling the author to provide all the semantics to fully describe its supported behaviour. It also allows each element to expose its current states and properties and its relationships between other elements. Accessibility problems with the focus and tab index are also corrected.

References.

The basic WCAG requirements – What you need to start develop with WCAG, 2018 Designing Offline-First Web Apps by Alex FeyerkeDecember 04, 2013

Web accessibility is the inclusive practice of ensuring there are no barriers that prevent interaction with, or access to, websites on the World Wide Web by people with physical disabilities, situational disabilities, and socio-economic restrictions on bandwidth and speed. When sites are correctly designed, developed and edited, generally all users have equal access to information and functionality.

网页亲和力(又称网络无障碍、网络可达性、网络可用性、网页可访问性,英语:Web accessibility)旨于确保任何人都有办法取得放在网页上的媒体内容——无论人们是否遭遇了身体、心理或技术上的障碍,都不会妨碍人们接收作者所释出的资讯。也就是让网上的内容「易于亲近」,易于取得、利用。


Terminology.

Female sheep are called "ewes", males are called "rams" (sometimes also called "bucks" or "tups"), and young sheep are called "lambs". The adjective applying to sheep is "ovine", and the collective term for sheep is "flock" or "mob". The term "herd" is also occasionally used in this sense. Many specialist terms relating to domestic sheep are used.

Characteristics.

Sheep are fairly small compared to other ungulates; in most species, adults weigh less than. Males are usually heavier than females by a significant amount. Wild sheep are mostly found in hilly or mountainous habitats. Their diets consist mainly of grasses, as well as other plants and lichens. Like other ruminants, they have four-chambered stomachs, which play a vital role in digesting food; they eructate, and rechew the cud to enable them to digest and live on low-quality, rough plant materials. Sheep conserve water well and can live in fairly dry environments.  The bodies of wild sheep (and some domestic breeds) are covered by a coat of thick hair to protect them from cold. This coat contains long, stiff hairs, called kemps, over a short, woolly undercoat, which grows in autumn and is shed in spring. This woolly undercoat has been developed in many domestic sheep breeds into a fleece of long wool, with selection against kemp hairs in these breeds. The fleece covers the body (in a few breeds also the face and legs) and is used for fibre. Domestic sheep are also kept for their milk and meat (which is called lamb or mutton depending on the age of the animal).  In wild sheep, both rams and ewes have horns, while in domestic sheep (depending upon breed) horns may be present in both rams and ewes, in rams only, or in neither. Rams' horns may be very large – those of a mature bighorn ram can weigh – as much as the bones of the rest of its body put together. Rams use their horns to fight with each other for dominance and the right to mate with females. In most cases, they do not injure each other because they hit each other head to head and their curved horns do not strike each other's bodies. They are also protected by having very thick skin and double-layered skulls.  Wild sheep have very keen senses of sight and hearing. When detecting predators, wild sheep most often flee, usually uphill to higher ground. However, they can also fight back. The Dall sheep has been known to butt wolves off the face of cliffs.  Sheep have scent glands on their faces and feet. Communication through the scent glands is not well understood, but is thought to be important for sexual signaling. Males can smell females that are fertile and ready to mate, and rams mark their territories by rubbing scent on rocks.

Species.

Six species and numerous subspecies of sheep are currently recognized, although some subspecies have also been considered full species. The main recognized divisions are:

Behaviour.

Sheep are social animals and live in groups, called flocks. This helps them to avoid predators and stay warm in cold weather by huddling together. Flocks of sheep need to keep moving to find new grazing areas and more favourable weather as the seasons change. In each flock, a sheep, usually a mature ram, is followed by the others.

Mating.

Mating in "ovis" is characterized by males competing for females in estrus. Social rank in rams is established by male-male competition, known as the rut. Females select from dominant males based on sexually selected characteristics such as body size and horn size, as those traits are desirable in offspring.  Females typically are separate from males outside the rut, however, during the rut females and males are found together. Females that are oestrous isolate themselves from other ewes, and may be less mobile. The rut is also linked with different ewe behaviour than during non-rutting periods. These changes are characterized by decreased feeding, increased time observing their surroundings, and increased behaviour changes. Ewes are also predicted to be slightly receptive to the displays of the rams.

Ovis is a genus of mammals, part of the Caprinae subfamily of the ruminant family Bovidae. Its five or more highly sociable species are known as sheep. The domestic sheep is one member of the genus, and is thought to be descended from the wild mouflon of central and southwest Asia.

羊属(学名:)是哺乳纲偶蹄目牛科羊亚科以下的一个属,包括有至少五个物种,均为反刍动物。一般认为,家羊是中亚或西南亚的野生摩弗伦羊的后代。