Early life.

Hilton was born in Miami, Florida, to Cuban parents. He was raised in Little Havana and Westchester, Florida, and later attended Belen Jesuit Preparatory School, an all-boys Catholic school in Miami. Hilton graduated in 1996, and the aspiring actor received a scholarship to New York University.

PerezHilton.com.

After graduating from New York University in 2000 and before beginning his blogging career, Hilton attempted a career as an actor. He also briefly worked as a media relations assistant for the LGBT rights organization GLAAD, was a freelance writer for gay publications, worked as a receptionist for the NYC gay events club Urban Outings, and was briefly the managing editor of "Instinct", a gay men's magazine. He says he started blogging "because it seemed easy".  Hilton's angle on celebrity gossip includes an unapologetic desire to mingle with and be a part of celebrity culture. He often comments on celebrity awards shows, clubs, and private events he has attended, and posts photographs of himself with the celebrities he writes about under the "Personally Perez" category of his blog. Although Hilton has an affinity for some celebrities, such as Lady Gaga and Sophia Bush, he also has a "vendetta" against certain stars, such as Disney Channel star Vanessa Hudgens and "Gossip Girl" teen actress Taylor Momsen. Teen phenomenon Miley Cyrus publicized her personal disapproval of Hilton via Twitter to which he replied. Some have suggested, however, that Hilton's proximity to the celebrities about whom he writes has led to biased coverage on his blog. He purports to have befriended Paris Hilton, the source of his stage name and frequent subject of his posts. It has been noted, for example, that he rarely reports on stories or rumors casting Paris Hilton in a negative or unflattering light, and that, unlike most gossip blogs, he often acknowledges and praises her positive achievements.  Additionally, Hilton has been known to speak out publicly against discriminatory behavior of celebrities and other public figures. He called for the firing of Isaiah Washington from ABC television series "Grey's Anatomy" for making homophobic remarks and called for his readers to do the same. In early 2007, Hilton was criticized by "The Hollywood Gossip" blog for ignoring racist and homophobic remarks made by Paris Hilton.  Hilton often promotes his favorite up-and-coming musicians by posting streams of their songs under the "Listen to This" category of his blog. London-based singer Mika's 2007 rise to popular success in North America has been partially attributed to Hilton's frequent support. Hilton and Mika also claim to be friends.

Blogging success.

During an interview in "Cliché Magazine" (June/July 2010), Hilton said that he only started blogging as a hobby. "What set my site apart is that prior to PerezHilton.com, most blogs were mainly online journals and diaries, but that never interested me. I wanted to talk about celebrities because they're far more entertaining." On March 11, 2005, within the first six months of Hilton's blogging career, "PageSixSixSix.com" was named "Hollywood's Most-Hated Website" by "The Insider", catalyzing an initial surge in its popularity which temporarily crippled its server. Hilton claimed that on July 30, 2007, a seemingly "ordinary day", "PerezHilton.com" had over 8.82 million page views in a 24-hour period. Other sources dispute the reliability of Hilton's traffic claims.  Pop singer Fergie has confirmed that she is referring to Hilton in her song "Pedestal" (2006), in which she criticizes an unidentified person for making negative remarks about her on the Internet.  On August 17, 2007, citing exclusive sources, Hilton announced the death of Cuban President Fidel Castro and claimed that he was the first media outlet in the world to break the news. Although Hilton claimed that U.S. officials would be making an announcement within hours, no announcement was made, and no major media outlets verified Castro's death. The Associated Press later determined that rumors were sparked by a meeting of Miami officials who were to discuss the city's plans when Castro dies. Rumors were further fueled by a road closure in the Florida Keys that was due to a police standoff. Castro appeared in an interview on Cuban television on September 21, 2007, "looking frail but sounding lucid", and mocking rumors of his death.  On September 9, 2009, Perez appeared on "The Tyra Banks Show" and cited his premature reporting of Castro's death as his "one regret."  On September 15, 2008, "Terra.com" named Hilton the "Hispanic of the Year" in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.  In an article dated October 2014, the popularity of the site was trending slightly down, as "PerezHilton.com" was ranked by Alexa as the 1,234th most trafficked website globally.

Civil litigation.

A suit against Hilton for copyright infringement was filed by Zomba Label Group on October 11, 2007, stating that Hilton had illegally posted recordings by Britney Spears on "PerezHilton.com". The illegal postings include at least 10 completed songs and unfinished recordings leaked over a period of three months. The suit asks for real and punitive damages in an unspecified amount as well as legal costs. Spears is not a party to the suit. In March 2008, Hilton announced on his blog that he would no longer blog about artists signed to Sony BMG (which owned Zomba at the time). However, when the lawsuit was settled in November of that year, Hilton ended his boycott and resumed regular blogging about Sony BMG artists.  On October 11, 2007, a judge cleared the way for Hilton to be deposed in an ongoing defamation suit brought against him by DJ Samantha Ronson, after a post on "PerezHilton.com" claimed that she had planted cocaine in friend Lindsay Lohan's car and set Lohan up to be photographed while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Hilton's report was a repetition of gossip initially posted on "CelebrityBabylon.com". The judge was informed in court that the owner of that site has already settled the case with Ronson. On January 23, 2008, Perez Hilton was awarded $85,000 by superior court Judge Elihu Berle in this lawsuit filed by Ronson.  Hilton has attracted lawsuits due to his use of video footage of celebrities on his blog. He was named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by attorneys for Irish actor Colin Farrell on July 18, 2005, after posting a link to Farrell's sex tape with then-girlfriend Nicole Narain on his site and on February 20, 2007, a lawsuit filed against him by Universal City Studios Productions LLP for posting a topless image of actress Jennifer Aniston that was allegedly "misappropriated and illegally copied" from unreleased footage from her 2006 motion picture "The Break-Up".  Bloggers, journalists, news agencies and photographers alike have charged that Hilton posts paparazzi photographs and other copyrighted content from their sites. On November 30, 2006, the photo agency X17Online filed a lawsuit against Hilton in federal court, seeking over $7.5 million in damages for copyright infringement. X17's co-owner Robin Navarre told the "Los Angeles Times" that the sale value of their photographs has been significantly reduced because the photos have appeared on "PerezHilton.com" before they could be published in magazines to which exclusivity is important. Navarre said:  Hilton defends his use of this material by claiming it under the fair use exception to the Copyright Act; that is, according to the "Los Angeles Times", the photos are altered "to achieve a satiric or humorous end". On March 9, 2007, a judge ruled that Hilton could continue operating his website while the lawsuit remained before the courts. On April 23, 2007, a consortium of five celebrity photo agencies filed a joint lawsuit in federal district court in California against Hilton, claiming more than $7 million in damages from 25 instances of alleged copyright infringement. Days later, on April 26, 2007, upon arriving in Sydney, Australia to attend the MTV Australia Video Music Awards, Hilton was served with a lawsuit by celebrity photo agency PhotoNews claiming C$4,200 in damages for his alleged unauthorized use of a single copyrighted paparazzi photograph of John Mayer and Jessica Simpson.  In June 2007, Hilton's web hosting service dropped his site upon threats of liability in the cases outlined above. Navarre called this "the first victory, and we put a lot of work into trying to get this to happen." He added, "It's a precedent that's huge. When we were talking to Crucial Paradigm they were saying they were not responsible, dragging their feet. We had to threaten them and show them they were liable. His new host is Blogads, and we are contacting them already."  On June 26, 2007, Hilton posted an open call on his blog to all of X17's photographers, both past and present, to contact him if they have not been adequately compensated for working overtime or pictures submitted in the past. Hilton has not used photos by X17 on his website since the suit. In August 2009, X17's lawsuit against Hilton was settled out of court. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Outing celebrities.

On his blog, Hilton is open about his homosexuality and about his desire to out those who he claims are closeted gay celebrities. When former 'N Sync member Lance Bass came out as gay on July 26, 2006, Hilton received criticism for having been partially responsible in the outing. "It upsets me that people think what I'm doing is a bad thing," Hilton told "Access Hollywood". "I don't think it's a bad thing. If you know something to be a fact, why not report it? Why is that still taboo?" On November 2, 2006, another celebrity often questioned by Hilton for remaining closeted, actor Neil Patrick Harris, revealed that he is gay.  Members of the gay community who have criticized Hilton's outing include editor of "The Advocate" Corey Scholibo, AfterElton.com editor Michael Jensen, and Damon Romine, spokesperson for GLAAD. Kim Ficera of AfterEllen.com, wrote,  Some fellow gossip bloggers have also objected to his approach. Trent Vanegas, who runs "Pink Is the New Blog", told Salon.com, "I do not outright call people gay. I do not feel it is my place, or anyone else's place, to make people come out of the closet. Being shockingly hurtful just to get attention is not my style." David Hauslaib of gossip blog Jossip.com stated, "The rationale that he's doing this for the good of that gay community is tantamount to saying that there is a gay agenda. Is this a positive for the gay community? I'd say, 'No.'" Author, screenwriter, and former friend Japhy Grant has also questioned his motives, writing on Salon.com, "Spreading gossip is just your average pedestrian variety of immorality. Claiming that you're doing it to further civil rights is an outright sham."  When questioned on "Midweek Politics" about whether reporting on celebrities' sexual orientation incites homophobia by making it news, Hilton indicated that he did not believe so. He said that coming out in Hollywood is not necessarily a bad thing, citing Ellen DeGeneres and Rosie O'Donnell as examples: "I know there is some controversy about outing people, but I also believe the only way we are gonna have change is with visibility. And if I have to drag some people screaming out of the closet, then I will. I think that lots of celebrities have an archaic fear that being gay will hurt their career but look at Rosie. Look at Ellen."  Some prominent gay rights advocates disagree. GLAAD spokesperson Damon Romine told Salon.com, "Media speculation about a celebrity's orientation is not something we support. This kind of gossip can lead some people to the decision to come out, as we have seen recently, or it may drive others further into the closet. People are going to become more guarded and secretive and not less, because they do not want to create any opportunities [for anyone to out them]." Actor Bruce Vilanch said, "What purpose does it serve? These [people like Perez] are professional homosexuals. They are gay people for a living. They have to respect the rights of homosexuals who are not professional."  In an article entitled "Just How Dangerous is Perez Hilton?", AfterElton.com suggested that Hilton's actions put people's careers at risk, because anti-gay bias is still a prominent part of American culture. He continued, "Both as a gay man and a journalist, I question whether the gay community should approve of Hilton's actions. Being associated with someone who publishes photos of panty-less starlets and scribbles dirty notes [...] makes us look infantile and ridiculous."

Controversy.

Miss USA 2009.

Hilton served as a judge for the Miss USA 2009 pageant in Las Vegas on April 19, 2009.  During the questions and answers portion of the contest, Hilton asked the Miss California USA representative, Carrie Prejean, whether she believed every state should legalize same-sex marriage. She responded that she believes marriage is between a man and a woman due to her upbringing. After the pageant, Perez Hilton made derogatory comments about the contestant and told ABC news, "She lost it because of that question. She was definitely the front-runner before that", leading some to believe that the answer directly had caused her to lose the competition. Prejean stated that Miss California USA officials had pressured her to apologize for her statement and "not talk" about her Christian faith.  After the pageant, Hilton posted a video blog on his website, where he called Prejean a "dumb bitch" and said her answer was the worst in pageant history. Several politicians and commentators, including gay rights activists, condemned both Hilton and Prejean for making bigoted comments. However, some people, including a few gay rights activists, defended Prejean for exercising her right to free speech, saying that expressing one's views, no matter how offensive they may be, does not justify the use of misogynistic slurs against that person.

Post-MMVA 2009 incident in Toronto.

In June 2009, Hilton alleged in a video blog that he was assaulted by The Black Eyed Peas' operation manager, Polo Molina, following the 2009 MuchMusic Video Awards after party, where the group's lead vocalist, will.i.am, was DJing; Hilton reported that he was "clocked" in the eye by Molina. Will.i.am also released a video statement in which he claimed he had approached Hilton regarding derogatory comments made by the blogger concerning bandmate Fergie and the group's latest release "The E.N.D.". During the incident, Hilton called will.i.am a "faggot" (Hilton later admitted in an interview with "The Advocate" that he originally considered using the word "nigger" instead) in order to get a reaction out of him, and it was at this point that Molina allegedly attacked Hilton. Will.i.am claimed the attacking party was a fan, although Molina was detained and appeared in Toronto Courthouse concerning the incident. Hilton later filed a lawsuit against Molina, seeking an unspecified amount over $25,000 to cover medical costs and as compensation for the "humiliation, mental anguish, and emotional and physical distress" that Hilton suffered as a result of the attack.  The GLAAD called upon Hilton to apologize for using an anti-gay slur against will.i.am during the incident, saying "We have reached out to Hilton and asked him to apologize [...] and we would ask media outlets to avoid repetition of the slur in their coverage of this story." Hilton initially refused to apologize, saying, "I am saddened GLAAD chose to victimize me further by criticizing me for how I non-violently dealt with a very scary situation that, unfortunately, turned violent." On June 25, 2009, however, Hilton did apologize, stating "I am NOT apologizing to GLAAD...I am apologizing to the gay community, to anyone who was hurt by my choice of words, and to all the people who have ever emailed me to thank me for all that I have done to fight for gay rights over the last few years." In addition, he pledged to donate any money won in the lawsuit against Molina to the Matthew Shepard Foundation. In a statement released on its website, Judy Shepard, chair of the MSF, declined the gift, saying that "because the lawsuit presumably involves the physical attack prompted by Mr. Hilton's admitted use of an anti-gay slur, the Foundation will be unable to accept any funds obtained in such a manner."  Hilton received little sympathy in the media over the incident, a fact he addressed in his video blog. John Mayer made comments ridiculing Hilton and the incident on his Twitter page, resulting in a volley of insults between the two. Gawker viewed Hilton's public apology with skepticism, being of the opinion that it was just an attempt to rebuild his "brand" and a possible attempt to prevent Canadian authorities from filing criminal charges against him for his use of hate speech during the Toronto incident.

Michael Jackson's death.

On June 25, 2009, shortly after Michael Jackson had gone into cardiac arrest, Hilton posted an article about Jackson's illness, claiming it was a publicity stunt. Hilton's original post featured sarcastic comments such as "Get your money back, ticket holders!!!!" and "[Jackson] pulled a similar stunt when he was getting ready for his big HBO special in '95 when he 'collapsed' at rehearsal!", in response to Jackson's recently sold-out tour through March 2010. Upon realizing Michael Jackson's death was not a hoax, Hilton immediately deleted the original news post and replaced it with a shorter message that linked to a story at entertainment news site "TMZ", which said the singer had in fact gone into cardiac arrest. Hilton has received backlash for the incident, becoming entangled in a Twitter argument with Pete Wentz about the situation.

Miley Cyrus upskirt picture.

On June 13, 2010, Hilton posted a Twitter message linking to an upskirt picture of Miley Cyrus, which allegedly showed the singer without underpants. Since Cyrus was still underage at the time, questions were raised as to whether or not child pornography charges could be raised. The site that he had linked to had removed the picture in question. Perez responded to the accusations by claiming that the controversy was "fake" and that Cyrus did wear underwear in the photo in question. Hilton did not re-post the photo for proof. Instead, he linked to another image of Cyrus, supposedly taken on the same occasion, to prove that she had been wearing underwear.

Anti-bullying campaign.

In October 2010, Hilton became involved in the It Gets Better Project started by Dan Savage, urging celebrities to support gay teenagers who were being driven to suicide by anti-gay bullying. This prompted Khloé Kardashian to describe Hilton as her "personal bully," stating that it seemed hypocritical to make an anti-bullying message at the request of a man who had repeatedly bullied her. On October 13, 2010, Hilton posted a video on YouTube entitled "I'm Going To Be Doing Things Differently," in which he addressed his actions over the previous years, and apologized for bullying celebrities. Hilton vowed to change the occasionally malicious tone of his website, even if it meant losing readers and revenue. Hilton also announced the launch of three new websites: CoCoPerez.com, which focuses on fashion, FitPerez.com, which encourages physical fitness, and TeddyHilton.com, an animal rights site.  Hilton expressed that his own son, Mario Armando Lavandeira III, will likely be bullied as well. Hilton said, "He will probably be bullied out and about because people might say things to me in front of him when we are in public... That is even one of the reasons why, even though his name is Mario, I call him Perez Jr. I want him to have an alter ego as well so when people do say things that are hurtful about his dad or hurtful about him hopefully it will not hurt as much because they do not really know him. Those people know you as Perez Jr. but you are not Perez Jr. so it does not matter what they say."

Lady Gaga.

In late 2011, the long friendship Hilton had with Lady Gaga came to an end. The initial cause of their feud is still unconfirmed. In February 2013, Lady Gaga cancelled her tour due to a hip injury caused by repetitive movements in her show. According to claims made by Lady Gaga on Twitter, Hilton responded by sending her a picture featuring a wheelchair with the word Karma written across and Madonna pointing a gun. In August, with the release of Lady Gaga's new single, "Applause", Hilton began posting illegal download links on Twitter and commenting frequently on the single's lack of success.  On August 18, 2013, a Twitter user reported to Gaga that Hilton had been spotted in the singer's NYC apartment building. Gaga asked the follower to enter the building and collect photographic evidence, before claiming that Hilton was stalking her. Later that day, Hilton published a statement on his website in which he denied stalking Lady Gaga. He claimed that he was looking for a place to live in New York after the birth of his son, and that he was shown the apartment without knowing Lady Gaga lived in the building.

Ariana Grande.

In February 2014, after Hilton criticized Ariana Grande's hairstyles, Grande's fans posted negative comments to Hilton's social media, including threats against his young son. Hilton then tweeted Grande, her brother Frankie and her employer Nickelodeon with accusations that Grande had been seen using cocaine at a party. Grande denied the allegations. Hilton demanded that Grande speak out against her fans' comments. Grande eventually tweeted to her fans: "...please don't wish negativity upon anyone." Grande reportedly hired lawyers to file a lawsuit against Hilton for slander.

Television appearances.

In 2001, Hilton made an appearance in the third episode of the third season of "The Sopranos", "Fortunate Son". His character hands over the proceeds of a Jewel benefit concert at Rutgers University, whose ticket office Christopher Moltisanti and Benny Fazio rob at gunpoint.  In 2004, a then- Hilton appeared as a contestant on the "Madonna Style" episode of VH1's reality weight loss show, "Flab To Fab". At the time, Hilton had 30% body fat and a waist. Hilton lost a total of in three months and dropped around his waist, leaving him at and a waist for his frame, and a greatly reduced level of body fat.  On July 13, 2007, Hilton announced on the TV show "The View" that he would star in his own reality television show on VH1. The series of six one-hour episodes, titled "What Perez Sez", aired its first part on September 11, 2007.  Hilton appeared as a contestant on MTV's "Celebrity Rap Superstar", which debuted August 30, 2007. He was eliminated in week six of the contest by judges' vote. On September 29, 2007, he hosted a "Best of MADtv" episode featuring pop culture parody sketches from previous seasons. He has appeared in music videos such as Simple Plan's "When I'm Gone", The Pussycat Dolls's "Hush Hush", Rihanna's "S&M" and in the video of the Latin music Anahí and Christian Chávez "Libertad". Hilton has also appeared in reality shows such as "", "MTV Cribs", The N's "Queen Bees", ", Tori Spelling THS" and "Paris Hilton's My New BFF". In addition to reality television, Hilton has guest starred as himself in scripted shows such as "Privileged".  Hilton is also a regular on series such as "TRL", "MuchMusic", and "Extra" where he appears via satellite from his closet studio to talk about gossip.  He co-hosted the 2008 MTV Europe Music Awards and after Rick Astley did not show up to collect his award for best act ever at the MTV Europe Music Awards, Perez Hilton collected the prize on Astley's behalf.  On June 21, 2009, Hilton was a presenter at the 2009 MuchMusic Video Awards in Toronto, Ontario. On December 2, 2009, Hilton was a guest on the TV show "The View".  In 2010, Hilton guest starred as himself in the episode "Victorious" “Wi-Fi in the Sky”.  Hilton created and presented four-part British television series, "Perez Hilton Superfan" for ITV2 in December 2011.  On the edition of January 16, 2012 of "WWE Raw", Hilton was a special guest referee for a Divas tag team match, between The Bella Twins and Kelly Kelly and Eve, stopping the twins' switch place and win. In April 2012, he appeared on Oprah's Lifeclass live at New York City's Radio City Music Hall, along with Oprah Winfrey and Deepak Chopra, talking about how after his "spiritual awakening", he changed his past celebrity bashing ways and how he had found a new purpose.  In January 2015, Hilton took part as a housemate on the fifteenth season of the British reality series, "Celebrity Big Brother". He became the seventh celebrity to be evicted on February 4, 2015.  In August 2017, Hilton was a contestant on "Worst Cooks in America Season 11: Celebrity Edition 3". He won the competition and was crowned "Best of the Worst".

Live theater.

Hilton starred as himself in "NEWSical The Musical", an off-Broadway musical which had a four-week run, beginning on September 8, 2012. Hilton stated, "I am beyond thrilled, nervous and zen about making my New York theater debut. It's gonna be a wild ride in a show that guarantees to put smiles on people's faces. It will be no holds barred pure unadulterated fun. I expect to have the time of my life and look forward to hugging happy theatergoers after each show."  Hilton starred as Danny Tanner/Bob Saget in "Full House! The Musical", also an off-Broadway musical which ran at Theater 80 in New York City from September 10, 2015 through November 29, 2015. The musical was a satire on the sitcom "Full House" that aired on the American Broadcasting Company from 1987 through 1995.

Radio, YouTube, and podcast.

Hilton premiered his nationally syndicated radio show, "Radio Perez", which included updates from his blog, on May 5, 2008. He has also appeared on "The Howard Stern Show" on Sirius XM Satellite Radio.  Hilton runs two YouTube channels: Perez Hilton, where he does daily celebrity gossip live streams, and Perez Hilton and Family, where he covers his personal life. The latter has over 350,000 followers.  In July 2015, Hilton and radio personality Chris Booker started a weekly podcast called "The Perez Hilton Podcast with Chris Booker". The description is "A meeting of the minds, these two very different personalities chime in and clash over the week’s hottest topics." The two held a live taping on April 27, 2019 at The Space in Las Vegas.

Books.

On October 6, 2009, Celebra Books released Hilton's first book, "Red Carpet Suicide: A Survival Guide on Keeping Up With the Hiltons". Tracey Lomrantz Lester of "Glamour" stated, "The book gives readers the inside track to becoming "A Hilton"... AKA "people we confuse with celebrities": Pimp out your famous kids, give a fierce mug shot, use your fabulousness for good... all great pieces of advice, but let's be honest, I wanted to know more about the FASHION!"  On December 1, 2009, Celebra Books released Hilton's second book, "Perez Hilton's True Bloggywood Stories: The Glamorous Life of Beating, Cheating, and Overdosing", which the "NY Daily News" characterized as a "tell-all book."  On September 1, 2011, Celebra Young Readers published Hilton's first children's book entitled "The Boy with Pink Hair". Hilton described the book as a story "about every kid that's ever had a dream, felt excluded, wanted to belong, and hoped that one day they could do what they loved and make a difference." In a September 2011 interview with "The Advocate", Hilton admitted that the book was inspired by his own childhood: "I've always considered myself a freak, an outsider, and a bit of an interloper. I never really fit in with any groups, so I just did my own thing."

Personal life.

He moved to Manhattan in 2013, stating, "I love New York and that is where me and my growing family want to call home right now". Hilton was referring to his first child, Mario Armando Lavandeira III, born on February 17, 2013, conceived with a donor egg and carried by a surrogate mother. His daughter, Mia Alma Lavandeira, was born on May 9, 2015, via surrogate. On October 4, 2017, he welcomed a second daughter, Mayte Amor, also via surrogate.  In April 2018, Perez attracted some criticism of his parenting when he stated he hopes his son Mario is heterosexual because "it would be easier" than being homosexual. He claimed he would not sign up his son for dance classes, if requested, because "dance class might make [his] kid gay".

Discography.

Hilton released a song called "The Clap" (2008), about gonorrhea, composed and produced by Lucian Piane. The song's music video is from the movie "" (2008).

Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr. (born March 23, 1978), known professionally as Perez Hilton, is an American blogger, columnist, and media personality. His blog, PerezHilton.com (formerly PageSixSixSix.com), is known for posts covering gossip items about celebrities. He is also known for posting tabloid photos over which he has added his own captions or "doodles". His blog has garnered controversy for its attitude, its (former) practice of outing of alleged closeted celebrities, and its role in the increasing coverage of celebrities in all forms of media.

Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr., plus connu sous le pseudonyme Perez Hilton, est un blogueur américain, rédacteur du blogue "Perezhilton.com" (anciennement "PageSixSixSix.com"). Il a pour habitude de poster des photos de paparazzi agrémentées de « gribouillages ». Le caractère outrancier de son blog fait de lui une personnalité médiatique et controversée. Cette notoriété lui permet néanmoins d'attirer les médias, parfois plus généralistes, sur certaines personnalités.


History.

Elster before 1900.

Two kilometers north west of the town centre lies the remains of a twelfth-century walled village, known today as the "Alte Schloss" or "Old Castle". This was first documented in 1324. In 1412 a manor was sold to the von Zedtwitz family, who held it until 1800.  In 1533 the Reformation reached Adorf and its daughter church in Elster, and the first Protestant pastor was installed in 1540.  The healing properties of the waters from the spring now known as the Moritzquelle were recognised well before Georg Leisner, physician to the Duke Moritz von Sachsen-Zeitz, wrote in 1669 that inhabitants of both Adorf and Elster come to the spring to take the waters, and he had successfully used them on many different patients.  One famous visitor was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who came in 1795. He mentions the spring at Elster in his work Hermann and Dorothea.

(Bad) Elster in the 19th and 20th century.

Elster became an independent parish in 1851. In 1892 the old St. Peter und Paul church was demolished and replaced with the Revival Gothic, St. Trinitatiskirche.  Elster was promoted to be the "Königlich-Sächsischen Staatsbad", official royal spa of Saxony in 1848. With that the visitor numbers rose: 1848: 129; 1850: 378, 1860: 1,750, 1870: 2,450, 1890: 5,870, 1900: 8,900, 1990: 15,600.  Elster prepended the "Bad", meaning "spa", in 1875, "Bad Elster" became its official name in 1935. In 1880, Bademuseum Bad Elster opened; it was the first museum in the town and in Vogtland, but was short lived. A new museum opened in 1993.

Places.

Places within Bad Elster include Sohl and Mühlhausen.

Demography.

Growth of Population "(from 1964 on, as of December 31st)":

Business.

The main industries are tourism and health. There are seven clinics specialising in recuperation. In 2005 there were 35 establishments offering accommodation with 2400 beds, and receiving 540,000 bednights.  The town lies near the B 92. There are two open border crossings into the Czech Republic; open for pedestrians and bicycles but not cars, though post Schengen even the barrier has been removed. The station is 2.5 km from the town centre at Mühlhausen on the Plauen Eger line where there is a two hourly service.

Town Council.

The elections in May 2014 showed the following results:

Coat of arms.

Field gold (or), with a naturalistic Magpie standing on three green hills (vert). From centre hill, a spring (argent) with water flowing to pool (argent).

Attractions.

The most important buildings in Bad Elster are from the last quarter of the 19th century.

Bad Elster () is a spa town in the Vogtlandkreis district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It lies on the border of Bavaria and the Czech Republic in the Elster gebirge hills. It is situated on the river White Elster, and is protected from extremes of temperature by the surrounding wooded hills. It is 25 km southeast of Plauen, and 25 km northwest of Cheb. It is part of the "Freunde im Herzen Europas" microregion.

Bad Elster est une ville de Saxe (Allemagne), située dans l'arrondissement du Vogtland, dans le district de Chemnitz. Elle est située sur l'Elster Blanche, à 25 km au sud-est de Plauen, et 25 km au nord-ouest de Cheb.


Design and development.

The D.I was designed by Robert Thelen, R. Schubert and Gnädig, as an answer to the latest Allied fighters, such as the Nieuport 11 "Bébé" and the Airco D.H.2, which had proved superior to the Fokker "Eindecker" and other early German fighters, and established a general Allied air superiority. It was ordered in June 1916 and introduced into squadron service that August.  The D.I had a semi-monocoque plywood fuselage, consisting of a single-layered outer shell, supported by a minimal internal structure. This was lighter and stronger than the fabric-skinned box-type fuselage then in common use, as well being easier to give an aerodynamically clean shape. At the same time its panelled-plywood skinning, done with mostly four-sided panels of thin plywood over the entire minimal fuselage structure, was less labour-intensive (and therefore less costly to manufacture) than a "true" monocoque structure. The Albatros D.I was powered by either a Benz Bz.III or a Mercedes D.III six-cylinder water cooled inline engine. The additional power of the Mercedes (Daimler) engine enabled twin fixed "Spandau" machine-guns to be fitted without any loss in performance.  The D.I had a relatively high wing loading for its time, and was not particularly manoeuvrable. This was compensated by its superior speed and firepower and it quickly proved the best all-round fighter available.

Operational history.

A total of 50 pre-series and series D.I aircraft were in service by November 1916, replacing the early Fokker and Halberstadt D types, giving real "teeth" to the Luftstreitkräfte's new "Jagdstaffeln" (fighter squadrons). Further production of D.Is was not undertaken, however; instead, a reduction in the gap between the upper and lower wing in order to improve the pilot's forward and upward vision resulted in the otherwise identical Albatros D.II, which became Albatros' first major production fighter.

References.

Notes Bibliography

The Albatros D.I was a German fighter aircraft used during World War I. Although its operational career was short, it was the first of the Albatros D types which equipped the bulk of the German and Austrian fighter squadrons ("Jagdstaffeln") for the last two years of the war.

L'Albatros D.I est un chasseur biplan monoplace allemand de la Première Guerre mondiale. Apparu au moment où étaient créées les "Jagdstaffeln", il contribua avec son dérivé D II à redonner à l’Allemagne une supériorité aérienne que les monoplans Fokker avaient perdu au profit des Nieuport 11 Bébé et Airco DH.2.


History.

Prior to the Europeans' arrival to the area, it was inhabited by numerous Native American tribes, with the Cowlitz tribe being the largest. They were drawn to the region by the abundance of salmon. The Cowlitz are considered to be the first regional inhabitants to engage in commerce as they traded extensively with other tribes in Western and Eastern Washington. The Cowlitz Indian population declined significantly from the 1829-1830 smallpox outbreak.  European explorers discovered and began navigating the Columbia River in 1792 as British Lieutenant W. R. Broughton sailed up the river to and past present day Cowlitz County. Then on November 5, 1805, Lewis and Clark camped at the mouth of the Kalama River. Over the following days, they would reach the present sites of Kelso and Longview.  By the 1820s, the Hudson's Bay Company had established a lucrative fur trade in the region. Furs were shipped down the Cowlitz River to the Columbia where they were loaded and shipped around the world. Trade declined significantly in the late 1830s as over-hunting reduced the annual yields, and wearing fur had become less fashionable.  During the next several decades, white settlement of the region was in full swing. Most of the settlers homesteaded near the tributaries that fed the Columbia River, forming settlements. The first was Monticello, near present-day Longview. In 1841 several families with the HBC directed Sinclair expedition from Red River Colony settled there.  On November 25, 1852 at Monticello, settlers from the Cowlitz and Puget Sound regions drafted a petition (the Monticello Convention) to the federal government, calling for a separate territory north of the Columbia River to be carved out of the existing Oregon Territory. The petition was successful; three months later the United States Congress formed the Columbia Territory, although it was soon renamed Washington Territory.  The newly-separated territory was governed by two existing counties. In August 1845, the Oregon Territorial government had created Vancouver County. Its boundary covered the entire area of present-day Washington state. In December of that same year, the Oregon Territorial government sliced off the eastern portion to create Lewis County. In 1849 the reduced Vancouver County was renamed Clark County. So when the new Washington Territorial government began functioning, among its first actions was the creation of Cowlitz County, from the southwestern portion of Clark County. This proclamation was finalized on April 24, 1854, signed into law by Governor Isaac Stevens. Later in 1854, the western portion of the new county was partitioned off to form Wahkiakum County; otherwise the county's boundary has remained unchanged until the present.  Nearly every town that sprang up in the late 19th century began around a logging or lumber-milling operation. In the latter half of the 1920s, the Weyerhaeuser Company and Long-Bell Lumber Company established processing facilities. At the time, these two facilities were the first and second largest in the world. The county is still heavily dependent on the timber industry.  Four towns have functioned as the Cowlitz County seat:

Geography.

Cowlitz County is in the southwestern part of Washington state. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and (2.2%) is water.  Cowlitz County is part of the Puget Sound – Willamette Depression, a geologic formation extending south from the Puget Sound to the Willamette Valley in Oregon. Nestled against the Cascade Mountains, many of the county's major rivers originate in this range, including the Columbia, Cowlitz, Coweeman, Kalama, Lewis and Toutle.  Cowlitz County is one of the state's smaller counties (28 of 39).

Demographics.

2000 census.

As of the census of 2000, there were 92,948 people, 35,850 households, and 25,059 families living in the county. The population density was 82 people per square mile (32/km2). There were 38,624 housing units at an average density of 34 per square mile (13/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 91.80% White, 0.52% Black or African American, 1.52% Native American, 1.30% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 2.11% from other races, and 2.62% from two or more races. 4.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 18.6% were of German, 11.2% United States or American, 10.4% English, 8.6% Irish and 7.0% Norwegian ancestry. 94.6% spoke English, and 3.5% Spanish as their first language.  There were 35,850 households out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.60% were married couples living together, 10.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.10% were non-families. 24.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.01.  In the county, the population was spread out with 26.80% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 13.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.80 males.  The median income for a household in the county was $39,797, and the median income for a family was $46,532. Males had a median income of $40,378 versus $25,710 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,583. About 10.30% of families and 14.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.50% of those under age 18 and 6.60% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census.

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 102,410 people, 40,244 households, and 27,241 families living in the county. The population density was. There were 43,450 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 88.9% white, 1.5% Asian, 1.5% American Indian, 0.6% black or African American, 0.2% Pacific islander, 3.5% from other races, and 3.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 7.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 24.4% were German, 15.0% were Irish, 12.3% were English, 6.2% were Norwegian, and 5.4% were American.  Of the 40,244 households, 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 11.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.3% were non-families, and 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.99. The median age was 40.2 years.  The median income for a household in the county was $45,877 and the median income for a family was $55,002. Males had a median income of $48,329 versus $32,438 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,948. About 11.8% of families and 16.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.3% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Politics.

The county had been reliably Democratic for over three decades, as even Walter Mondale won this county in Ronald Reagan's 49-state landslide in 1984. However, Donald Trump won a majority of the vote here in 2016, becoming the first Republican to win since Reagan in 1980. Other neighboring counties, like Pacific and Grays Harbor, also were Trump victories even though they had been reliably Democratic prior to 2016.

Cowlitz County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2010 census, its population was 102,410. The county seat is Kelso, and its largest city is Longview. The county was formed in April 1854. Its name derives from the anglicized version of the Cowlitz Indian term, Cow-e-liske, meaning either "river of shifting sands" or "capturing the medicine spirit."

Le comté de Cowlitz (anglais: "Cowlitz County") est un comté de l'État américain du Washington. Son siège est Kelso. Selon le recensement de 2010, sa population est de.


Recreational tourism activities.

With a total of of waterways, this reservoir is a popular fishing destination with numerous commercial outfitters and private lodges along its shores. There are also a number of outfitters offering recreational tourism activities such hunting trips, fishing trips, excursions in all-terrain vehicles (ex.: snowmobiles, VTT), nautical expeditions, photographic hunting, lodging in cottages, in house-boat, in hostel (auberge)... Many of these outfitters also provide equipment supply and maintenance services related to recreational tourism activities. Generally, each outfitter is equipped with a marina offering various boating services.

History.

The reservoir is named after Jean Lomer Gouin, who was Premier of Quebec when, in 1918, the Shawinigan Water & Power Company impounded the reservoir for hydroelectric development. The Gouin Reservoir has a 600 MW station for local use, but is used to control the flow of the St-Maurice River for the stations down-stream (all operated now by Hydro-Québec).  Initially, the "Commission des eaux courantes du Québec" ("English: Quebec's Running Water Board") wanted to facilitate the floating of wood that was routed via the Saint-Maurice River, to the paper mills of La Tuque to Trois-Rivières. The first work was built on La Loutre rapids in 1916-1917. The Shawinigan Water and Power Company decided to raise the level of the reservoir in 1948 and it was also decided to divert the headwaters of the Mégiscane River and the Suzie River, which flowed naturally to James Bay via the Mégiscane River, the Bell River (Quebec) and the Nottaway River; and to pour them to the Saint Lawrence River by the Saint-Maurice River. A series of dikes and canals were needed to divert the water from these rivers and still today; these works are unknown to the general public.  Village of Obedjiwan  The small Atikamekw community of Obedjiwan is located on the reservoir's north shore.  During the construction of the first Loutre dam (the name given to the dam prior to the Gouin name as it is known today), the Amerindians lived near Obedjiwan Lake, which was flooded when the reservoir was filled. At that time, the residents moved and rebuilt their village on the site of the present village of Obedjiwan, Quebec.  Village of Oskélanéo  The village of Oskélanéo is connected to Gouin Reservoir via Oskélanéo Lake and Oskélanéo River. This river flows on the south shore of Bureau Lake (Gouin Reservoir). The village of Oskélanéo was formed following the arrival in 1910 of the transcontinental railroad; the station was designated "Oskélanéo River". Through the railroad, the village became a supply depot and access point to the Rupert River, Mistassini Lake and other areas of northern Quebec. It also became a starting point for hunting and fishing expeditions in the region, as well as for forestry projects.

Geography.

Road accesses.

Although no paved road leads to the Gouin Reservoir, it is nevertheless accessible by several forested pathways, snowmobile trails and by air. The hydrographic slope of the Gouin Reservoir is accessible by:

Main tributaries.

The main rivers flowing into the Gouin reservoir are (clockwise from the Gouin dam):

Main bays.

This large reservoir has many bays and islands making navigation more complex. Before the existence of geolocation systems that developed in the 2000s, many navigators have lost their way on this water, misfires.

Main lakes.

The main lakes included in the reservoir or related are: Toussaint, Magnan, McSweeney and Du Mâle Lake. (Clockwise, from the mouth)

Main passes.

The many passes between the islands or peninsulas facilitate navigation on the reservoir.(Clockwise, from the mouth)

Fauna.

Fishes  Fish species present include the walleye, northern pike, and sauger. Fishers sometimes catch lake trout and brook trout, but these species are more marginal because this vast body of water is the ideal reference point for pike, which is very fond of small fish.  Waterfowl  Waterfowl present in the region include the American black duck ("Anas rubripes"), mallard ("Anas platyrhynchos"), green-winged teal ("Anas crecca"), ring-necked duck ("Aythya collaris"), common merganser ("Mergus merganser"), hooded merganser ("Lophodytes cucullatus"), common goldeneye ("Bucephala clangula"), bufflehead ("Bucephala albeola"), common loon ("Gavia immer"), Canada goose ("Branta canadensis"), bald eagle ("Haliaeetus leucocephalus").  Mammals  The main mammals in Haute-Mauricie are: moose, white-tailed deer, bears, hares, red foxes, muskrats, skunks and raccoons.  The fishermen are required to comply with the regulations, especially when the number of catch. Depending on the season, hunting is also regulated by territory, type of game and type of weapon.

Gouin Reservoir Community Wildlife Area.

The "Gouin Reservoir Community Wildlife Area" works to preserve the diversity of wildlife, improve the quality of fishing and protect it. In its role of surveillance of the territory, this non-profit organization collaborates with the Ministry of Forests, Wildlife and Parks (MFFP) to maintain a good management of the fish resource.

The Gouin Reservoir () is a man-made lake, in La Tuque, in Mauricie, in the central portion of the Canadian province of Quebec, fully within the boundaries of the City of La Tuque. It is not one contiguous body of water, but the collective name for a series of connected lakes separated by innumerable bays, peninsulas, and islands with highly irregular shapes. It has therefore a relative long shoreline of over 5,600 km (excluding islands) compared to its surface area of 1,570 km2. It is the source of the Saint-Maurice River.

Le réservoir Gouin est un réservoir situé dans l'agglomération de La Tuque, en Mauricie, dans la partie centrale du Québec, au Canada.


Specification.

Probability density function.

When the location parameter "μ" is 0 and the scale parameter "s" is 1, then the probability density function of the logistic distribution is given by  Thus in general the density is:  Because this function can be expressed in terms of the square of the hyperbolic secant function "sech", it is sometimes referred to as the "sech-square(d) distribution".

Cumulative distribution function.

The logistic distribution receives its name from its cumulative distribution function, which is an instance of the family of logistic functions. The cumulative distribution function of the logistic distribution is also a scaled version of the hyperbolic tangent.  In this equation, "x" is the random variable, μ is the mean, and "s" is a scale parameter proportional to the standard deviation.

Quantile function.

The inverse cumulative distribution function (quantile function) of the logistic distribution is a generalization of the logit function. Its derivative is called the quantile density function. They are defined as follows:

Alternative parameterization.

An alternative parameterization of the logistic distribution can be derived by expressing the scale parameter, formula_18, in terms of the standard deviation, formula_19, using the substitution formula_20, where formula_21. The alternative forms of the above functions are reasonably straightforward.

Applications.

The logistic distribution—and the S-shaped pattern of its cumulative distribution function (the logistic function) and quantile function (the logit function)—have been extensively used in many different areas.

Logistic regression.

One of the most common applications is in logistic regression, which is used for modeling categorical dependent variables (e.g., yes-no choices or a choice of 3 or 4 possibilities), much as standard linear regression is used for modeling continuous variables (e.g., income or population). Specifically, logistic regression models can be phrased as latent variable models with error variables following a logistic distribution. This phrasing is common in the theory of discrete choice models, where the logistic distribution plays the same role in logistic regression as the normal distribution does in probit regression. Indeed, the logistic and normal distributions have a quite similar shape. However, the logistic distribution has heavier tails, which often increases the robustness of analyses based on it compared with using the normal distribution.

Physics.

The PDF of this distribution has the same functional form as the derivative of the Fermi function. In the theory of electron properties in semiconductors and metals, this derivative sets the relative weight of the various electron energies in their contributions to electron transport. Those energy levels whose energies are closest to the distribution's "mean" (Fermi level) dominate processes such as electronic conduction, with some smearing induced by temperature. Note however that the pertinent "probability" distribution in Fermi–Dirac statistics is actually a simple Bernoulli distribution, with the probability factor given by the Fermi function.  The logistic distribution arises as limit distribution of a finite-velocity damped random motion described by a telegraph process in which the random times between consecutive velocity changes have independent exponential distributions with linearly increasing parameters.

Hydrology.

In hydrology the distribution of long duration river discharge and rainfall (e.g., monthly and yearly totals, consisting of the sum of 30 respectively 360 daily values) is often thought to be almost normal according to the central limit theorem. The normal distribution, however, needs a numeric approximation. As the logistic distribution, which can be solved analytically, is similar to the normal distribution, it can be used instead. The blue picture illustrates an example of fitting the logistic distribution to ranked October rainfalls—that are almost normally distributed—and it shows the 90% confidence belt based on the binomial distribution. The rainfall data are represented by plotting positions as part of the cumulative frequency analysis.

Chess ratings.

The United States Chess Federation and FIDE have switched its formula for calculating chess ratings from the normal distribution to the logistic distribution; see the article on Elo rating system (itself based on the normal distribution).

Derivations.

Higher-order moments.

The "n"th-order central moment can be expressed in terms of the quantile function:  This integral is well-known and can be expressed in terms of Bernoulli numbers:

In probability theory and statistics, the logistic distribution is a continuous probability distribution. Its cumulative distribution function is the logistic function, which appears in logistic regression and feedforward neural networks. It resembles the normal distribution in shape but has heavier tails (higher kurtosis). The logistic distribution is a special case of the Tukey lambda distribution.

En probabilité et en statistiques, la loi logistique est une loi de probabilité absolument continue à support infini utilisé en régression logistique et pour les réseaux de neurones à propagation avant. Son nom de loi logistique est issu du fait que sa fonction de répartition est une fonction logistique.


Etymology.

Jorge Lardé y Larín argues that the name "Lempira" comes from the word "lempira," derived from words of the Lenca language: "lempa", meaning "lord" as a title of hierarchy, "i" meaning "of", and "era", meaning "hill or mountain". Thus, Lempira, means "lord of the mountain" or "lord of the grass". When the Spaniards arrived in Cerquin, Lempira was fighting against neighboring chiefs. Because of the Spanish threat, he allied with another Lenca subgroup, the Cares, and united the different Lenca tribes. Based at Cerquin hill, he organized resistance against the Spanish troops in 1537, managing to gather an army of almost 30,000 soldiers, from 200 villages. As a result, other groups in the valleys of Comayagua and Olancho also took up arms. Spanish attempts to stop him, led by Francisco de Montejo and Alonso de Cáceres, were unsuccessful until later in 1537.

History.

Historical accounts of Lempira differ. Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas, whose account was published in "Historia general de los hechos de los castellanos..." (1626), in Sevilla, Spain, identifies Lempira as a war captain appointed by Entipica, leader of the Cares, a subgroup of the Lenca. Herrera reports that Lempira, whose name means something like "Lord of the Mountains" in Lenca, commanded over 30,000 soldiers from over 200 different Lenca towns. In 1537, there were widespread indigenous uprisings in Honduras, and the Cares were one group that revolted against Spanish rule.  The Spaniards, on instruction from their Governor, Francisco de Montejo, attacked Lempira at the Peñol de Cerquín, in what is now Lempira Department. According to Herrera, Lempira retreated to a fortified hilltop where he resisted the Spaniards for many months. Finally, the Spaniards lured him out to talk, and a concealed Spanish soldier with an arquebus shot and killed him. On seeing this, Herrera reports, the Lenca surrendered. This is essentially the official version that is taught to Honduran children in school.  In the 1980s, the Honduran historian Mario Felipe Martínez Castillo discovered a very different account of Lempira in a document entitled "Méritos y Servicios: Rodrigo Ruiz, Nueva España", written in 1558 in Mexico City. The manuscript is located in the Archivo General de Indias in Sevilla, Spain. That document, Patronato 69 R.5, tells the story of Rodrigo Ruiz and his service in the conquest of Honduras under Francisco Montejo. It includes his account of killing Lempira. The document is in the form of a series of questions, answered by witnesses to the conquest which Rodrigo Ruiz gave to the Spanish king. It is his effort to gain a pension as payment for his services.  Ruiz wrote the questions, one of which is translated in part as follows: Rodrigo Ruiz described his other service to the Spanish Crown. Witnesses to this 100-page document attested that Ruiz recounted his service accurately and told the truth. Ruiz asked for a pension of 1000 pesos for his service. The modern Honduran Lenca preserved in their oral history Lempira elements that match the Ruiz story, such as Lempira's belief that wearing Spanish clothing made him impervious to Spanish bullets, and that the chief died in combat, not through ambush.

Legacy and honors.

In 1931, Honduras renamed its currency in honor of Lempira. In 1943, Honduras renamed the Gracias Department as the Lempira Department.

Representation in other media.

In 1957 the Honduran writer Ramón Amaya Amador wrote a novel featuring Lempira, entitled "El señor de la sierra" (The Lord of the Mountains).

Lempira was a war chieftain of the Lencas of western Honduras in Central America during the 1530s, when he led resistance to Francisco de Montejo's attempts to conquer and incorporate the region into the province of Honduras. Mentioned as "Lempira" in documents written during the Spanish conquest, he is regarded by the people as a warrior hero.

Lempira (né à une date inconnue et mort en 1537 au, aujourd'hui au Honduras) était le cacique du peuple lenca et un chef de guerre qui lutta contre les Espagnols durant les années 1530. Il est aujourd’hui considéré comme un personnage important dans l’histoire du Honduras.


Early career.

Powers was born in Buffalo, New York. According to the "Buffalo Courier-Express" obituary dated August 1, 1948, his sister, Mary Ellen Powers, lived in Buffalo for her entire life. Powers partnered with Joseph A. Schubert, Sr. and sold phonographs from 1900 to 1907, when they formed the Buffalo Film Exchange, which purchased films from producers and rented them to nickelodeons. In 1910, Powers left Buffalo for New York City, where he founded the Powers Moving Picture Company, also frequently billed in advertisements and credited in his films as "Powers Picture Plays". Early examples of his studio's releases include "The Woman Hater" (1910) with Violet Heming, Pearl White, and Stuart Holmes; the comedy "Lost in a Hotel" (1911); the children's fantasy film "An Old-Time Nightmare" (1911); and the Western "Red Star's Honor" (1911).  In 1912, Powers' company merged with Carl Laemmle's Independent Moving Pictures Company (IMP) film company and others to create what eventually would become Universal Pictures. He served as treasurer of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company. Later, in 1916 and 1917, Powers introduced a cartoon series titled "Fuller Pep", which was similar to Paul Terry's "Farmer Al Falfa" series. Nine cartoons were produced.

The 1920s.

Between the 1922 reorganization of Film Booking Office of America and October 1923, Powers, as one of the company's new American investors, was effectively in command. Powers had previously led his own filmmaking company, part of the multiple merger that created Universal Pictures in 1912. Powers apparently changed the name of Robertson-Cole/FBO to the Powers Studio for a brief period, though there is no record of the company ever having produced or released a film under that banner. In 1925 he moved briefly to take over at the distribution outfit Associated Exhibitors. In 1928, Joseph P. Kennedy and RCA head David Sarnoff merged FBO and the Keith-Albee-Orpheum theater circuit to form RKO Radio Pictures.  Powers invested in what remained of the sound film company DeForest Phonofilm in the spring of 1927. Lee De Forest was on the verge of bankruptcy, due to legal fees from a series of lawsuits against former associates Theodore Case and Freeman Harrison Owens. DeForest was by that time selling cut-price sound equipment to second-run movie theaters wanting to convert to sound on the cheap.  In June 1927, Powers made an unsuccessful takeover bid for De Forest's company. In the aftermath of the failed takeover, Powers hired a former DeForest technician, William Garity, to produce a cloned version of the Phonofilm sound recording system, which became Powers Cinephone. By this time, De Forest was in too weak a financial position to mount a legal challenge against Powers for patent infringement.

Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks.

In 1928, Powers sold Walt Disney a Cinephone system so that he could make sound cartoons such as Mickey Mouse's "Steamboat Willie" (1928). Unable to find a distributor for the sound cartoons, Disney began releasing his cartoons through Powers' company Celebrity Pictures.  After one year of successful "Mickey Mouse" and "Silly Symphonies" cartoons, Walt Disney confronted Powers in 1930 about money due to Disney from the distribution deal. Powers responded by signing Disney's head animator Ub Iwerks to an exclusive deal to create his own animation studio. The Iwerks studio was only mildly successful, with cartoon series such as "Flip the Frog" and "Willie Whopper", released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and the "ComiColor" cartoons, released by Celebrity Pictures. The Iwerks studio closed in 1936 and Iwerks subsequently returned to Disney. As for Disney, he would go on to distribute his cartoons without Powers to Columbia Pictures.  In his lifetime, Powers produced nearly 300 movies, most of them early silent films produced at Universal before 1913 or one-reel animated shorts. He is, however, also credited as a producer on Erich von Stroheim's "The Wedding March" (1928), along with Jesse Lasky and Adolph Zukor. The latter was a former partner of Mitchell Mark who, like Powers, was a native of Buffalo, New York.)

Death.

Patrick Powers, at age 77, died on 30 July 1948 at the Doctors Hospital in New York City after a brief illness. His August 1 obituary in "The New York Times" notes that at the time of his death he was president of the Powers Film Products Company of Rochester, New York. He also had two homes, one in Rochester and another in Westport, Connecticut. His obituary also states that he was survived by his sister Mary Ellen and a daughter, Mrs. Roscoe N. George of San Fernando, California. Powers' gravesite is at Holy Cross Cemetery near Rochester.

Patrick Anthony "Pat" Powers (8 October 1870 – 30 July 1948) was an American businessman who was involved in the movie and animation industry of the 1910s, 20s, and 30s. His firm, Celebrity Pictures, was the first distributor of Walt Disney's "Mickey Mouse" cartoons. After one year, Disney split with Powers, who started another animation studio with Disney's lead animator, Ub Iwerks.

Patrick A. Powers ( - ) est un producteur et homme d'affaires irlando-américain connu pour sa présence dans l'industrie de l'animation durant les années 1920 et 1930. Sa société Powers Motion Picture Company fusionna, entre autres, avec la Independent Moving Picture Company de Carl Laemmle en 1912 pour former Universal Pictures. Il fut le trésorier de la "Universal Motion Picture Company".


Image data processing.

In the context of image processing, binning is the procedure of combining a cluster of pixels into a single pixel. As such, in 2x2 binning, an array of 4 pixels becomes a single larger pixel, reducing the overall number of pixels.  This aggregation, although associated with loss of information, reduces the amount of data to be processed, facilitating the analysis. For instance, binning the data may also reduce the impact of read noise on the processed image (at the cost of a lower resolution).

Example usage.

Histograms are an example of data binning used in order to observe underlying distributions. They typically occur in one-dimensional space and in equal intervals for ease of visualization.  Data binning may be used when small instrumental shifts in the spectral dimension from mass spectrometry (MS) or nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments will be falsely interpreted as representing different components, when a collection of data profiles is subjected to pattern recognition analysis. A straightforward way to cope with this problem is by using binning techniques in which the spectrum is reduced in resolution to a sufficient degree to ensure that a given peak remains in its bin despite small spectral shifts between analyses. For example, in NMR the chemical shift axis may be discretized and coarsely binned, and in MS the spectral accuracies may be rounded to integer atomic mass unit values. Also, several digital camera systems incorporate an automatic pixel binning function to improve image contrast.  Binning is also used in machine learning to speed up the decision-tree boosting method for supervised classification and regression in algorithms such as Microsoft's LightGBM and scikit-learn's Histogram-based Gradient Boosting Classification Tree.

Data binning (also called Discrete binning or bucketing) is a data pre-processing technique used to reduce the effects of minor observation errors. The original data values which fall into a given small interval, a bin, are replaced by a value representative of that interval, often the central value. It is a form of quantization.

Le binning (de l'anglais pour « mise en récipient ») ou groupement des données par classe est une technique de science statistique ainsi que d'acquisition numérique.


Influence.

There are currently 55 trade unions with membership of Congress, representing about 600,000 members in the Republic of Ireland. Trade union members represent 35.1% of the Republic's workforce. This is a significant decline since the 55.3% recorded in 1980 and the 38.5% reported in 2003. In the Republic, roughly 50% of union members are in the public sector. The ICTU represents trade unions in negotiations with employers and the government with regard to pay and working conditions

Structure.

The supreme policy-making body of Congress is the Biennial Delegate Conference, to which affiliated unions send delegates. On a day-to-day basis Congress is run by an Executive Committee and a staffed secretariat headed up by the general secretary, Patricia King who succeeded David Begg in the position in 2015.  John Douglas of Mandate became President of Congress at the biennial conference in Belfast in July 2013 succeeding Eugene McGlone of Unite. The president serves for a two-year period and is succeeded by one of two vice-presidents.  Congress is the sole Irish affiliate of the ETUC, the representative body for trade unions at European level and of the International Trade Union Confederation ITUC

Social pacts.

Congress enjoyed unprecedented political and economic influence over the period from 1987 to 2009 under the umbrella of Ireland's social partnership arrangements. This involved a series of seven corporatist agreements with the government and the main manufacturing/services employer body IBEC and the construction employers' lobby, CIF (Construction Industry Federation). It was a classic European-style alliance of government, labour and capital built on six decades of voluntary employment relations regulated by state institutions such as the Labour Court.  For many years the union leaders agreed to dampen pay rises in return for regular reductions in income tax rates. They also negotiated a new system of pay determination for public service employees under the rubric of "benchmarking" using external assessment of pay scales for assorted grades.  The era of Christian democratic style corporatism also saw a dramatic fall in trade union density from 62% in 1980 to 31% in 2007 and consolidation through mergers of many affiliated trade unions. Efforts to launch recruitment and organising initiatives failed to secure adequate support from affiliated unions while attempts to secure indirect forms of union recognition through legislation collapsed after successful legal challenges and appeals by the anti-union Ryanair company.  Ireland's period of centralised'social pacts' ended in late 2009 when the government imposed pay cuts of between 5% and 8% on public service employees. The joint-stewardship of the state's FÁS training and employment authority by Congress and IBEC and accompanied waste of public and EU funds and excessive spending on directors 'junkets' further weakened the public standing of Congress and its'social partnership' structures.  In an assessment of the post-partnership situation, Congress general secretary David Begg prepared a strategic review paper in which he identified the increasing weakness of the Congress and individual trade unions being due to "recession and change in the balance of power with capital" as well as job cuts, poor organisation, especially in high-technology companies, and a growing rift between public and private sector employees.  On a more positive note Begg asserted that the ending of social partnership arrangements "liberates us to advocate and campaign for our own policies".

Other activities.

A "mass rally", organised by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, Amnesty International, and the Rainbow Project in support of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland took place on 13 June 2015 in Belfast, with a 20,000 person turnout.

General Secretaries.

Reference:

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (often abbreviated to just Congress or ICTU), formed in 1959 by the merger of the Irish Trades Union Congress (founded in 1894) and the Congress of Irish Unions (founded in 1945), is a national trade union centre, the umbrella organisation to which trade unions in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland affiliate.

L'Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU - Congrès irlandais des syndicats) est une organisation syndicale d'irlandaise formée en 1959. Il couvre aussi bien la République d'Irlande que l'Irlande du Nord. Il est affilié à la Confédération européenne des syndicats.


Early life.

Carney played Gaelic football for Valleymount GAA in west county Wicklow and won a junior championship medal in 1998 with the club. He also played rugby union at Clongowes Wood College and Lansdowne R.F.C. His first rugby league experience came with Irish amateurs Dublin Blues.

Rugby league.

Carney first made an impression on the rugby league scene playing for the Irish Students side in a home international tournament in 1998. His impressive form led to a number of Super League clubs vying for his talents and he opted to sign with Gateshead Thunder.

Super League.

Carney played for Gateshead in the 1999 season and moved with them to Hull F.C. after the clubs merged in 2000.  Carney transferred from Hull F.C. to Wigan Warriors at the end of the 2000 Super League season. He had come to the attention of the Wigan board – who were very impressed with him – when he scored a try against Wigan in Gateshead's Super League on the Road victory at Tynecastle. Future Wigan scrum-half Willie Peters, also shone in the same match. Since making the professional ranks, Carney, who is a qualified lawyer, has been a regular in the senior colours of Ireland and featured heavily in the Lincoln Financial World Cup of 2000. Carney played for the Wigan Warriors on the wing in their 2001 Super League Grand Final loss against the Bradford Bulls.  Carney signed a new three-year contract with Wigan in May 2003, ending speculation that had been linking him with a move to Irish rugby union. After signing the deal, Carney commented: "I love it here at Wigan. I never wanted to play for any other club. "I just want to get better and better each week and keep my place in the first team. The spirit and friendship at this club is brilliant and I need to be part of it." His arrival at Wigan was initially hampered by injury but when he did break into the team, he was impressive. Carney played for the Wigan Warriors on the wing in the 2003 Super League Grand Final which was lost to the Bradford Bulls. He'd forced himself into the Great Britain and Ireland team for the 2003 Ashes series. Carney made his GB and Ireland début in the First Test played at the JJB Stadium, becoming the first Irishman to play for Great Britain and Ireland since Tom McKinney in 1957. In that match Carney scored two tried and was later named Great Britain and Ireland's player of the series. Carney was selected for the 2003 Origin match after opting to play for Lancashire. He was also included in the 2003 Super League 'Dream Team' and the 2003 Rugby League World magazine World XIII, and voted BBC North West's Rugby League Footballer of the Year in the same season.  Despite a hamstring injury restricting his club appearances, Carney was selected in the Great Britain team to compete in the end of season 2004 Rugby League Tri-Nations tournament. In the final against Australia he played on the wing in the Lions' 44–4 loss.

National Rugby League.

In June 2005 Carney agreed to join new National Rugby League franchise, Australia's Gold Coast Titans at the end of his Wigan contract. Upon signing the deal, Gold Coast managing director Michael Searle told NRL's official website, www.nrl.com: "The guy genuinely wanted to come here. He wants to challenge himself in the National Rugby League".  Carney was to remain at the Warriors for the 2006 season, but a month later he agreed a release from the final year of his Wigan contract to play in the NRL with the Newcastle Knights. At the time Carney commented: "I'm very grateful to Wigan, they didn't have to do it (release him from his contract) but I explained my desire to get there because I feel time is running out." Carney scored 16 tries in 26 games for the Knights, including guiding his team to a 22–12 victory over the Canberra Raiders with a hat-trick of tries. After the game Carney expressed no desire to remain with the Knights, choosing to honour his contract with the Gold Coast Titans. However, on 16 January 2007 he announced his retirement from all forms of rugby after only participating in one training session with the Titans, indicating that he wished to finish his legal studies and spend more time with his family.

Rugby union.

On Thursday 15 March 2007, BBC Sport reported that Carney had signed for Munster switching to rugby union, with speculation rife that he would be fast-tracked onto Ireland's tour of Argentina in summer 2007. Because he had walked out on his contract with the Gold Coast Titans, Munster had to pay compensation to the Australian club to secure Carney's registration. Carney made his début for Munster away to Ulster at Ravenhill, on 23 March 2007, scoring a try in the 76th minute. He scored his second try in two matches in an away defeat by the Ospreys on 7 April. In April 2007, Carney was named in the Ireland squad for their tour of Argentina. In the first Test, his international début, he scored an interception try minutes into the game. Carney was selected in the Irish squad for the 2007 Rugby Union World Cup. However, he did not make an appearance at the tournament.  Carney made a try-scoring début for the Barbarians against the Scarlets on 31 January 2009. He participated in the Dubai World Cup Sevens as part of a 12-man Irish squad, finishing up as joint top Irish try scorer with three tries. Though in a tough pool stage including Samoa, Australia and Portugal, they did manage to defeat Australia 24–21, with Carney getting a try. He scored two more tries in the Bowl semi-final victory over Hong Kong. They went on to lose 17–14 to Zimbabwe in the Bowl Final for an overall ranking of 10th, but by beating Australia showed that Ireland have the class to compete with the best.

Return to rugby league.

On 2 June 2009, the Warrington Wolves announced that they had signed Carney for the remainder of 2009's Super League XIV. The move was Carney's fifth signing to a rugby league team in his playing career, at the age of 32. On 2 June 2009 edition of the Sky Sports rugby league magazine show, "Boots N' All", Carney vehemently denied that a return to rugby league would lead to a subsequent career with the English national team, in favour of his own native team. Carney provided commentary for Sky Sport's coverage of the 2009 Super League Grand Final, and the 2009 Gillette Four Nations tournament. He finished his career at Warrington at the end of 2009 and regularly appears on Sky Sports.

Brian Carney (born 23 July 1976) is an Irish professional rugby league commentator and former dual-code rugby international player. He most recently played rugby league for the Warrington Wolves, but he played in the Super League for the Gateshead Thunder, Hull F.C. and the Wigan Warriors, as well as the Newcastle Knights in the NRL. Carney crossed codes to play rugby union for Munster between 2007 and 2009. He earned caps for international representation, for Ireland in both rugby league and rugby union, and also Great Britain in rugby league. He also played Gaelic football as a junior.

Brian Carney, né le à Cork (Irlande), est un joueur de rugby à XV irlandais. Il joue en équipe d'Irlande et évolue au poste d'ailier au sein de l'effectif du Munster Rugby (1,80 m pour 91 kg). Avant de rejoindre le Munster et le rugby à XV, il fut un joueur de rugby à XIII, évoluant pour l'équipe anglaise des Wigan Warriors et l'équipe australienne des Newcastle Knights.


History.

On August 20, 1794, near the site of the present-day town of Maumee, American forces led by General Anthony Wayne won a decisive victory over allied Indian forces at the Battle of Fallen Timbers after years of conflict in what was known as the Northwest Indian War. The defeat of the Native forces resulted in the opening of the entire Northwest Territory for white settlement. Northwest Ohio was occupied chiefly by villages and bands of the Odawa people, who had trading relations with the French at Fort Detroit since 1701. Other Odawa were located in southeast Michigan and further north on the peninsula. They ceded much of that territory in the Treaty of Greenville but retained control of lands along the Maumee River until after the War of 1812. The last Odawa band, that of Ottokee, grandson of Chief Pontiac, left the Maumee River area for Kansas in 1839. Lucas County was established in 1835. At that time, both Ohio and Michigan Territory claimed sovereignty over a region along their border (see Toledo War). When Michigan petitioned Congress for statehood in 1835, it sought to include the disputed territory within its bounds. In response, the Ohio General Assembly formally organized part of the area as Lucas County, naming it after the incumbent governor of Ohio, Robert Lucas.

Geography.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and (43%) is water. It is the fourth-smallest county in Ohio by land area. Much of the county lies within what was at the time of its establishment, a vast network of forests, wetlands, and grasslands known as the Great Black Swamp.

Demographics.

2000 census.

As of the census of 2000, there were 455,054 people, 182,847 households, and 116,290 families living in the county. The population density was 1,337 people per square mile (516/km2). There were 196,259 housing units at an average density of 576 per square mile (223/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 77.50% White, 16.98% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 1.21% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.86% from other races, and 2.16% from two or more races. 4.54% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.  There were 182,847 households out of which 31.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.70% were married couples living together, 14.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.40% were non-families. 30.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.06.  In the county, the population was spread out with 26.30% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 29.10% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 13.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 92.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.60 males.  The median income for a household in the county was $38,004, and the median income for a family was $48,190. Males had a median income of $39,415 versus $26,447 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,518. About 10.70% of families and 13.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.70% of those under age 18 and 8.70% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census.

As of the 2010 census, there were 441,815 people, 180,267 households, and 111,016 families living in the county. The population density was. There were 202,630 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 74.0% white, 19.0% black or African American, 1.5% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 2.0% from other races, and 3.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 6.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 29.8% were German, 13.2% were Irish, 9.7% were Polish, 8.0% were English, and 3.8% were American.  Of the 180,267 households, 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.0% were married couples living together, 16.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.4% were non-families, and 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.01. The median age was 37.0 years.  The median income for a household in the county was $42,072 and the median income for a family was $54,855. Males had a median income of $46,806 versus $33,394 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,981. About 14.0% of families and 18.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.4% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Politics.

Lucas County is a strongly Democratic county. The only Republicans to win a majority or plurality in the county since 1932 have been Thomas E. Dewey in 1944, Dwight D. Eisenhower in both 1952 and 1956, and Ronald Reagan in 1980 (plurality) and 1984.  Unlike most counties in northwest Ohio, Lucas County is strongly Democratic. Although Ronald Reagan carried the county twice, no other Republican has won the county in the last 50 years. In 1972, for instance, it was one of only two counties in the entire state that supported George McGovern.  In the last five Presidential elections the Democratic candidate's margin of victory has ranged from 18% to 30.5% in the case of Barack Obama. The eastern portion of Lucas County, including Toledo lies in Ohio's 9th congressional district, and it is represented by Marcy Kaptur, who is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The western portion, however, lies in Ohio's 5th congressional district, and is represented by Bob Latta.

Lucas County is a county located in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. It is bordered to the east by Lake Erie, and to the southeast by the Maumee River, which runs to the lake. As of the 2010 census, the population was 441,815. Its county seat is Toledo, located at the mouth of the Maumee River on the lake. The county was named for Robert Lucas, 12th governor of Ohio, in 1835 during his second term. Its establishment provoked the Toledo War conflict with the Michigan Territory, which claimed some of its area.

Le comté de Lucas (en anglais : "") est un des 88 comtés de l'État de l'Ohio, aux États-Unis. Son siège est fixé à Toledo.


Career.

So much of Junior Poluleuligaga's career depended on his great rival Steve So'oialo. Polu began his career by breaking into the North Harbour provincial side, he was spotted for the Samoan national team and in 2006 was selected to nationalise to play for his parents country, representing composite side Pacific Islanders as a Samoan, having been unwanted for the 2004 tour due to the presence of So'oialo.

Pacific Islanders' Tour.

A solid tour as Mosese Rauluni's understudy lead to several offers from European clubs, but Polu declined and remained true to his North Harbour contract and returned home.

International career.

Following the success of the Pacific Islanders tour Polu represented Samoa in the IRB Pacific Nations Cup in the summer of 2007 due to the absence of So'oialo. Here he was again 2nd choice to So'oialo, although his luck was about the change.

2007 World Cup.

So'oialo and Polu were both selected for the 2007 RWC squad, as Samoa looked to upset 2003 champions England and eventual champions South Africa. Polu was selected ahead of So'oialo for the opening game against the springboks, which they lost despite an encouraging start. So'oialo was restored for the derby game against Tonga which despite entering as overwhelming favourates lost 19–12. Polu was once again restored for the do or die game with England setting up an excellent try for Mahonri Schwalger. Having travelled north to France for the world cup Polu joined RC Toulon on a short-term deal.

Harlequins.

In the off season before the 2008/09 season he signed for Harlequins ironically moving to join So'oialo, and has since ousted his great rival for the bench spot behind England scrum half Danny Care. When his Harlequins contract finished in the summer of 2009 he joined the Bay of Plenty Steamers in the Air New Zealand Cup.

Waikato Chiefs.

In 2010 Junior Polu was selected for the Waikato Chiefs as a backup Scrum Half for Brendon Leonard. On 21 February 2010 Junior Polu was selected ahead of Leonard at No. 9 against the Lions.

Exeter Chiefs.

On 17 August 2010 Exeter Chiefs announced that they had completed a deal and visa for Junior. It was announced in local media in Devon, England that Polu will be leaving Exeter Chiefs at the end of the 2012/13 season.

Junior Poluleuligaga (born 5 February 1981) is a Samoan rugby union international player. He currently plays for Exeter Chiefs in the Aviva Premiership. He plays as a Scrum-half and was educated at De La Salle College, Mangere East. His name is often abbreviated to Junior Polu.

Junior Poluleuligaga (dit "Polu") est un joueur de rugby à XV samoan, né le à Otahuhu en Nouvelle-Zélande. Il joue en équipe des Samoa et évolue au poste de demi de mêlée.


History.

The earliest-known English text to describe Ras Laffan was in the 1890 book "The Persian Gulf Pilot", published by the Britain Hydrographic Dept. It recounts only geographic features, inferring that the area was not settled at the time. In an early 1904 transcript of the "Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia" by John G. Lorimer, it is mentioned that a pearling bank known as Umm Al Shebh is found off the coast of Ras Laffan, although Lorimer provides no description of Ras Laffan itself.  As an industrial city, Ras Laffan was commissioned in 1996. The purpose of its founding was to host petrochemical facilities for the natural gas obtained North Field. The North Field, found in 1971, is the world's biggest natural gas field, occupying an offshore area of roughly 6,000 square km; more than half the size of the State of Qatar. North Field contains over 900 trillion tcsf of recoverable gas.  Ras Laffan's commission in 1996 marks the completion date for the city's first liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant to convert the natural gas obtained from North Field into LNG. At first, it was estimated that only 106 square km would be needed for industrial operations. However, in 2004, this figure was more than drastically increased, to 296 square km.  In March 2011, the city signed a memorandum of understanding with the Port of Rotterdam on the occasion of an official visit by Queen Beatrix to Qatar.  It was announced in May 2019 by Qatargas that the company's Ras Laffan terminal received its 10,00th non-LNG related shipment.

Geography & environment.

Ras Laffan is located at a very low elevation and has sandy soils. It is north of the capital Doha and southeast of Ras Rakan. There is a reef off the coast. Together with Fuwayrit, Ras Laffan accommodates approximately 30% of all sea turtle nests in Qatar. Roughly 17 hectares of mangroves are found off the coast of Ras Laffan.  In a 2010 survey of Ras Laffan's coastal waters conducted by the Qatar Statistics Authority, it was found that its maximum depth was and minimum depth was. Furthermore, the waters had an average pH of 8.05, a salinity of 46.94 psu, an average temperature of 24.6°C and 6.86 mg/L of dissolved oxygen.  Laffan Environmental Society is an environmental NGO formed as a joint partnership between Qatar Petroleum Industrial Cities and several other large companies operating in Ras Laffan. It was established as a response to calls for improved environmental management in the area surrounding the city resulting from petrochemical processing.

Industrial infrastructure.

Currently, Ras Laffan accommodates three power generation and water desalination plants, abbreviated as Ras Laffan A, B, and C (also known as Ras Qartas Energy Plant). In 2014, Kahramaa announced a planned project which would see the desalination capacity of the plants increase from 35 million gallons of water per day to 65 million gallons per day. The project is set to begin in 2017.  In 1999, a plan was conceived of by Qatar Petroleum to construct a facility which would meet the water cooling requirements of Ras Laffan's petrochemical industries. This project came to fruition with the launch of the facility's inaugural phase in 2003 with an hourly production capacity of 308,000 cubic meters of seawater. By 2010, the two remaining phases were completed, increasing the hourly production capacity to 937,000 cubic meters of seawater.  In 2017, Qatargas and ExxonMobil launched the $10.4 billion Barzan Gas Project as a joint venture.

Ras Laffan Emergency & Safety College.

Ras Laffan Emergency & Safety College is a training center for emergency professionals created to address the safety needs of the city's industrial companies.

Ras Laffan Support Services Area.

Companies providing support services to the petrochemicals in Ras Laffan have been based in the specially-designated Ras Laffan Support Services Area since its inauguration in March 2013. The area's facilities consist of three large-scale workshops, a yard, and an administration building occupying an area of 46,600 square meters. Mainly, companies based in this area provide replacement and repair of damaged electrical and petrochemical-related equipment.

Port of Ras Laffan.

The Port of Ras Laffan is the world's biggest petrochemicals export port, taking up a grand total of 56 square km. The first time an LNG carrier docked in the port was in 1996. In 2015, the port had the capacity to dock 200 tankers annually.

Erhama bin Jaber Al Jalahma Shipyard.

Named after the legendary Arab pirate Rahmah ibn Jabir al-Jalahimah, the Erhama bin Jaber Al Jalahma Shipyard occupies 110 hectares and is used by Nakilat Damen Shipyards Qatar.

Health.

The city is served by Ras Laffan Hospital, which is spread over 200,000 square meters and features four levels, including an underground level. The bed capacity is 118, with future plans to expand this with the addition of 100 beds. A mosque with a 400-worshiper capacity is also in the works. It has a 30-bed emergency building distributed over 6,000 square meters of the hospital. Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) is responsible for overseeing the hospital's financing.  One health clinic is in the city, and like the hospital, it too is financed by HMC.

Transport.

Ras Laffan is connected with Al Khor City through Al Huwailah Link Road. In November 2014, the 16-km road was improved by increasing it from one lane to four lanes.

Ras Laffan Industrial City () is an industrial hub located north of Doha, Qatar. It is administrated by Qatar Petroleum.

Ras Laffan est une ville industrielle du Qatar située sur la côte nord. Début 2008, elle s'étend sur 106 km2 et devrait doubler de taille dans les prochaines années. Elle est équipée dans la plus grande rade artificielle du monde.