Influences.

Historians often assume that Catherine's love for the arts stemmed from her Medici heritage. "As the daughter of the Medici," suggests French art historian Jean-Pierre Babelon, "she was driven by a passion to build and a desire to leave great achievements behind her when she died." Born in Florence in 1519, Catherine lived at the Medici palace, built by Cosimo de' Medici to designs by Michelozzo di Bartolomeo. After moving to Rome in 1530, she lived, surrounded by classical and Renaissance treasures, at another Medici palace (now called the Palazzo Madama). There she watched the leading artists and architects of the day at work in the city. When she later commissioned buildings herself, in France, Catherine often turned to Italian models. She based the Tuileries on the Pitti palace in Florence; and she originally planned the Hotel de la Reine with the Uffizi palace in mind. Catherine, however, left Italy in 1533 at the age of fourteen and married Henry of Orléans, the second son of King Francis I of France. Though she kept in touch with her native Florence, her taste matured at the itinerant royal court of France. Her father-in-law impressed Catherine deeply as an example of what a monarch should be. She later copied Francis' policy of setting the grandeur of the dynasty in stone, whatever the cost. His lavish building projects inspired her own.  Francis was a compulsive builder. He began extension works at the Louvre, added a wing to the old castle at Blois, and built the vast château of Chambord, which he showed off to the emperor Charles V in 1539. He also transformed the lodge at Fontainebleau into one of the great palaces of Europe, a project that continued under Henry II. Artists such as Rosso Fiorentino and Francesco Primaticcio worked on the interior, alongside French craftsmen. This meeting of Italian Mannerism and French patronage bred an original style, later known as the first School of Fontainebleau. Featuring frescoes and high-relief stucco in the shape of parchment or curled leather strapwork, it became the dominant decorative fashion in France in the second half of the sixteenth century. Catherine later herself employed Primaticcio to design her Valois chapel. She also patronised French talent, such as the architects Philibert de l'Orme and Jean Bullant, and the sculptor Germain Pilon.  The death of Henry II from jousting wounds in 1559 changed Catherine's life. From that day, she wore black and took as her emblem a broken lance. She turned her widowhood into a political force that validated her authority during the reigns of her three weak sons. She also became intent on immortalizing her sorrow at the death of her husband. She had emblems of her love and grief carved into the stonework of her buildings. She commissioned a magnificent tomb for Henry, as the centrepiece of an ambitious new chapel.  In 1562, a long poem by Nicolas Houël likened Catherine to Artemisia, who had built the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, as a tomb for her dead husband. Artemesia had also acted as regent for her children. Houël laid stress on Artemesia's devotion to architecture. In his dedication to "L'Histoire de la Royne Arthémise", he told Catherine:  You will find here the edifices, columns, and pyramids that she had built both at Rhodes and Halicarnassus, which will serve as remembrances for those who reflect on our times and who will be astounded at your own buildings–the palaces at the Tuileries, Montceaux, and Saint-Maur, and the infinity of others that you have constructed, built, and embellished with sculptures and beautiful paintings.

Valois Chapel.

In memory of Henry II, Catherine decided to add a new chapel to the basilica of Saint Denis, where the kings of France were traditionally buried. As the centrepiece of this circular chapel, sometimes known as the Valois rotunda, she commissioned a magnificent and innovative tomb for Henry and herself. The design of this tomb should be understood in the context of its planned setting. The plan was to integrate the tomb's effigies of the king and queen with other statues throughout the chapel, creating a vast spatial composition. Catherine's approval would have been essential for such a departure from funerary tradition.

Architecture.

To lead the Valois chapel project, Catherine chose Francesco Primaticcio, who had worked for Henry at Fontainebleau. Primaticcio designed the chapel as a round building, crowned by a dome, to be joined to the north transept of the basilica. The interior and exterior of the chapel were to be decorated with pilasters, columns, and epitaphs in coloured marble. The building would contain six other chapels circling the tomb of Henry and Catherine. Primaticcio's circular design solved the problems faced by the Giusti brothers and Philibert de l'Orme, who had built previous royal tombs. Whereas de l'Orme had designed the tomb of Francis I to be viewed only from the front or the side, Primaticcio's design allowed the tomb to be viewed from all angles. Art historian Henri Zerner has called the plan "a grand ritualistic drama which would have filled the rotunda's celestial space".  Work on the chapel began in 1563 and continued over the next two decades. Primaticcio died in 1570, and the architect Jean Bullant took over the project two years later. After Bullant's death in 1578, Baptiste du Cerceau led the work. The building was abandoned in 1585. Over two hundred years later, in 1793, a mob tossed Catherine and Henry's bones into a pit with the rest of the French kings and queens.

Tomb.

Several of the monuments built for the Valois chapel have survived. These include the tomb of Catherine and Henry—in Zerner's view, "the last and most brilliant of the royal tombs of the Renaissance". Primaticcio himself designed its structure, which eliminated the traditional bas-reliefs and kept ornamentation to a minimum. The sculptor Germain Pilon, who had provided statues for the tomb of Francis I, carved the tomb's two sets of effigies, which represented death below and eternal life above. The king and queen, cast in bronze, kneel in prayer ("priants") on a marble canopy supported by twelve marble columns. Their poses echo those on the nearby tombs of Louis XII and Francis I. Pilon's feel for the material, however, invests his statues with a greater sense of movement.  Before they were destroyed in the Revolution, the remains of the king and queen lay in the mortuary chamber below. Catherine's effigy suggests sleep rather than death, while Henry is posed strikingly, with his head thrown back. From 1583, Pilon also sculpted two later gisants of Catherine and Henry wearing their crowns and coronation robes. In this case, he portrays Catherine realistically, with a double chin. These two statues were intended to flank the altar of the chapel. Pilon's four bronze statues of the cardinal virtues stand at the corners of the tomb. Pilon also carved the reliefs round the base that recall Bontemps' work on the monument for the heart of Francis I.

Statuary.

In the 1580s, Pilon began work on statues for the chapels that were to circle the tomb. Among these, the fragmentary "Resurrection", now in the Louvre, was designed to face the tomb of Catherine and Henry from a side chapel. This work owes a clear debt to Michelangelo, who had designed the tomb and funerary statues for Catherine's father at the Medici chapels in Florence. Pilon's statue of "St Francis in Ecstasy" now stands in the church of St Jean and St François. In art historian Anthony Blunt's view, it marks a departure from the tension of Mannerism and "almost foreshadows" the Baroque.  Pilon had by this time developed a freer style of sculpture than previously seen in France. Earlier French sculpture seems to have influenced him less than Primaticcio's decorations at Fontainebleau: the work of his predecessor Jean Goujon, for example, is more linear and classical. Pilon openly depicts extreme emotion in his work, sometimes to the point of the grotesque. His style has been interpreted as a reflection of a society torn by the conflict of the French wars of religion.

Montceaux.

Catherine's earliest building project was the château of Montceaux-en-Brie, near Paris, which Henry II gave her in 1556, three years before his death. The building consisted of a central pavilion housing a straight staircase, and two wings with a pavilion at each end. Catherine wanted to cover the alley in the garden where Henry played pall mall, an early form of croquet. For this commission, Philibert de l'Orme built her a grotto. He set it on a base made to look like natural rock, from which guests could watch the games while taking refreshments. The work was completed in 1558 but has not survived. The château ceased to be used as a royal residence after 1640, and had fallen into ruin by the time it was demolished by revolutionary decree in 1798.

Tuileries.

After the death of Henry II, Catherine abandoned the palace of the Tournelles, where Henry had lain after a lance fatally pierced his eye and brain in a joust. To replace the Tournelles, she decided in 1563 to build herself a new Paris residence on the site of some old tile kilns or "tuileries". The site was close to the congested Louvre, where she kept her household. The grounds extended along the banks of the Seine and afforded a view of the countryside to the south and west. The Tuileries was the first palace that Catherine had planned from the ground up. It was to grow into the largest royal building project of the last quarter of the sixteenth century in western Europe. Her massive building schemes would have transformed western Paris, as seen from the river, into a monumental complex. To design the new palace, Catherine brought back Philibert de l'Orme from disgrace. This arrogant genius had been sacked as superintendent of royal buildings at the end of Henry II's reign, after making too many enemies. De l'Orme mentioned the project in his treatises on architecture, but his ideas are not fully known. It appears from the small amount of work carried out that his plans for the Tuileries departed from his known principles. De l'Orme is said to have "taught France the classical style—lucid, rational and regular". He notes, however, that in this case he added rich materials and ornaments to please the queen. The plans therefore include a decorative element that looks forward to Bullant's later work and to a less classical style of architecture.  For the pilasters of Catherine's palace, de l'Orme chose the Ionic order, which he considered a feminine form:  Catherine de' Medici was closely involved in planning and supervising the building. De l'Orme records, for example, that she told him to take down some Ionic columns that struck her as too plain. She also insisted on large panels between the dormers to make room for inscriptions. Only a part of de l'Orme's scheme was ever built: the lower section of a central pavilion, containing an oval staircase, and a wing on either side. Though work on de l'Orme's design was abandoned in 1572, two years after his death, it is nonetheless held in high regard. According to Thomson, "The surviving portions of the palace scattered between the Tuileries gardens, the courtyards of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts [Paris] and the Château de la Punta in Corsica show that the columns, pilasters, dormers and tabernacles of the Tuileries were the outstanding masterpieces of non-figurative French Renaissance architectural sculpture". De l'Orme's original plans have not survived. Jacques Androuet du Cerceau, however, has left us a set of plans for the Tuileries. One engraving shows a grandiose palace, with three courts and two oval halls. This design is atypical of de l'Orme's style and so is likely to have been du Cerceau's own proposal or his son Baptiste's. It recalls the houses with tall pavilions and multiple courtyards that du Cerceau often drew in the 1560s and 1570s. Architectural historian David Thomson suggests that the oval halls within du Cerceau's courtyards were Catherine de' Medici's idea. She may have planned to use them for her famously lavish balls and entertainments. Du Cerceau's drawings reveal that, before he published them in 1576, Catherine decided to join the Louvre to the Tuileries by a gallery running west along the north bank of the Seine. Only the ground floor of the first section, the "Petite Galerie", was completed in her lifetime. It was left to Henry IV, who ruled from 1589 to 1610, to add the second floor and the "Grande Galerie" that finally linked the two palaces.  After de l'Orme died in 1570, Catherine abandoned his design for a freestanding house with courtyards. To his unfinished wing she added a pavilion that extended the building towards the river. This was built in a less experimental style by Jean Bullant. Bullant attached columns to his pavilion, as advocated in his 1564 book on the classical orders, to mark proportion. Some commentators have interpreted his different approach as a criticism of de l'Orme's departures from the style of Roman monuments. Despite its unfinished state, Catherine often visited the palace. She held banquets and festivities there and loved to walk in the gardens. According to the French military leader Marshal Tavannes, it was in the Tuileries gardens that she planned the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre, in which thousands of Huguenots were butchered in Paris. The gardens had been laid out before work on the palace halted. They included canals, fountains, and a grotto decorated with glazed animals by the potter Bernard Palissy. In 1573, Catherine hosted the famous entertainment at the Tuileries that is depicted on the Valois tapestries. This was a grand ball for the Polish envoys who had come to offer the crown of Poland to her son, the duke of Anjou, later Henry III of France. Henry IV later added to the Tuileries; but Louis XVI was to dismantle sections of the palace. The communards set fire to the remainder in 1871. Twelve years later, the ruins were demolished and then sold off.

Saint-Maur.

The palace of Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, south east of Paris, was another of Catherine's unfinished projects. She bought this building, on which Philibert de l'Orme had worked, from the heirs of Cardinal Jean du Bellay, after the latter's death in 1560. She then commissioned de l'Orme to finish the work he had begun there. Drawings by Jacques Androuet du Cerceau in the British Museum may shed light on Catherine's intentions for Saint-Maur. They show a plan to enlarge each wing by doubling the size of the pavilions next to the main block of the house. The house was to stay as one storey, with a flat roof and rusticated pilasters. That meant the extensions would not unbalance the masses of the building as seen from the side.  De l'Orme died in 1570; in 1575 an unknown architect took over at Saint-Maur. The new man proposed to heighten the pavilions on the garden side and top them with pitched roofs. He also planned two more arches over de l'Orme's terrace, which joined the pavilions on the garden side. In historian R. J. Knecht's view, the scheme would have given this part of the house, a "colossal, even grotesque" pediment. The work was only partly carried out, and the house was never fit for Catherine to live in. The Château de Saint-Maur, still in the possession of the Condé family, was nationalised during the French Revolution, emptied of its contents, and its terrains divided up among real-estate speculators. The structure was demolished for the value of its materials; virtually nothing remains.

Hôtel de la Reine.

After de l'Orme's death, Jean Bullant replaced him as Catherine's chief architect. In 1572, Catherine commissioned Bullant to build a new home for her within the Paris city walls. She had outgrown her apartments at the Louvre and needed more room for her swelling household. To make space for the new scheme and its gardens, she had an entire area of Paris demolished.  The new palace was known in Catherine's time as the Hôtel de la Reine and later as the Hôtel de Soissons. Engravings made by Israël Silvestre in about 1650 and a plan from about 1700 show that the Hôtel de la Reine possessed a central wing, a courtyard, and gardens. The walled gardens of the hôtel included an aviary, a lake with a water jet, and long avenues of trees. Catherine also installed an orangery that could be dismantled in winter. The actual construction work was carried out after Bullant's death in 1582. The building was demolished in the 1760s. All that remains of the Hôtel de la Reine today is a single Doric column, known as the Colonne de l'Horoscope or Medici column, which stood in the courtyard. It can be seen next to the domed Bourse de commerce. Catherine's biographer Leonie Frieda has called it "a poignant reminder of the fleeting nature of power".

Chenonceau.

In 1576, Catherine decided to enlarge her château of Chenonceau, near Blois. On Henry II's death, she had demanded this property from Henry's mistress Diane de Poitiers. She had not forgotten that Henry had given this crown property to Diane instead of to her. In return, she gave Diane the less prized Chaumont. When Diane arrived at Chaumont, she found signs of the occult, such as pentangles drawn on the floor. She quickly withdrew to her château of Anet and never set foot in Chaumont again.  Diane had carried out major works at Chenonceau, such as de l'Orme's bridge over the Cher River. Now Catherine set out to efface or outdo her former rival's work. She lavished vast sums on the house and built two galleries on the extension over the bridge. The architect was almost certainly Bullant. The decorations show the fantasy of his late style. Catherine loved gardens and often conducted business in them. At Chenonceau, she added waterfalls, menageries, and aviaries, laid out three parks, and planted mulberry trees for silkworms. Jacques Androuet du Cerceau made drawings of a grandiose scheme for Chenonceau. A trapezoidal lower court leads to a forecourt of semicircular atria joined to two halls that flank the original house. These drawings may not be a reliable record of Bullant's plans. Du Cerceau "sometimes inserted in his book designs embodying ideas which he himself would have liked to see carried out rather than those of the actual designer of the building in question".  Jacques Androuet du Cerceau was a favourite architect of Catherine's. Like Bullant, he became a more fantastical designer with time. Nothing he built himself, however, has survived. He is known instead for his engravings of the leading architectural schemes of the day, including Saint-Maur, the Tuileries, and Chenonceau. In 1576 and 1579, he produced the two-volume "Les Plus Excellents Bastiments de France", a beautiful publication dedicated to Catherine. His work is an invaluable record of buildings that were never finished or were later substantially altered.

End of the dynasty.

Catherine spent ruinous sums of money on buildings at a time of plague, famine, and economic hardship in France. As the country slipped deeper into anarchy, her plans grew ever more ambitious. Yet the Valois monarchy was crippled by debt and its moral authority was in steep decline. The popular view condemned Catherine's building schemes as obscenely extravagant. This was especially true in Paris, where the "parlement" was often asked to contribute to her costs.  Ronsard captured the mood in a poem:  <poem> The queen must cease building, Her lime must stop swallowing our wealth... Painters, masons, engravers, stone-carvers Drain the treasury with their deceits. Of what use is her Tuileries to us? Of none, Moreau; it is but vanity. It will be deserted within a hundred years. </poem>  Ronsard was in many ways proved correct. The death of Catherine's beloved son Henry III in 1589, a few months after her own, brought the Valois dynasty to an end. Precious little of Catherine's grand building work has survived.

Catherine de' Medici's building projects included the Valois chapel at Saint-Denis, the Tuileries Palace, and the Hôtel de la Reine in Paris, and extensions to the château of Chenonceau, near Blois. Born in 1519 in Florence to an Italian father and a French mother, Catherine de' Medici was a daughter of both the Italian and the French Renaissance. She grew up in Florence and Rome under the wing of the Medici popes, Leo X and Clement VII. In 1533, at the age of fourteen, she left Italy and married Henry, the second son of Francis I and Queen Claude of France. On doing so, she entered the greatest Renaissance court in northern Europe.


Background.

Bilbao was the capital of the autonomous Basque area established by the Republic after the war began to reward Basque nationalist support of the Republic. The Basque people in Spain generally inhabit four provinces: Navarre, Álava, Gipuzkoa and Biscay. The Basque nationalists were dominant in the last two provinces. Navarre and Álava had rallied to the rising against the Republic.  The Spanish Nationalist troops gained Gipuzkoa early in the war with the fall of Irún in August and San Sebastián on 13 September 1936, isolating the Basque Country and the zone held by the Northern Republicans from the French border. On 31 March, the Nationalists, led by the General Mola, launched an offensive against Biscay Province. The Basque troops had to retire, and by June, the Nationalists had reached the outskirts of Bilbao.

Battle.

By 11 June 1937 the Basque forces had fallen back to the city of Bilbao, which was defended by a series of rushed fortifications called the "Bilbao's Iron Ring". It was poorly designed for defence. It was quite a antiquated concept, akin to First World War fortifications, and so was vulnerable to modern warfare and weapons, such as aircraft and artillery, and only 30,000 troops were defending it (it was conceived to be defended by 70,000). Therefore the Iron Ring was rather easily overcome by Nationalist forces.  The ring was breached by an infantry assault supported by heavy air and artillery bombardment (150 guns and 70 bombers). On 12 June, the Spanish Republican Army launched a diversionary attack against Huesca to stop the Nationalist offensive, but the Nationalist troops continued their advance. On the night of 13 June, the defenders evacuated most of the civilian population from the city. On 18 June, General Ulibarri withdrew his remaining troops from Bilbao, and the Nationalists occupied the city on the following day. The city's bridges had been destroyed to hinder the attackers, but the city remained mostly intact.

The Battle of Bilbao, part of the War in the North in the Spanish Civil War, had the Nationalist Army captured Bilbao and the rest of the Basque Country that was still being held by the Republic.


Plot.

Benoit Gando (Laurent Lucas) is a French insurance agent visiting a picturesque Northern Ontario town for a conference. He has a steady marriage with a nuclear engineer and an eleven-year-old daughter. Benoit is leaving a convenience store as twenty-seven-year-old rookie cop Kate Logan (Alexis Bledel) mistakes him for a suspected rapist. She explains the misunderstanding and lets him go, although it is possible she made up the story to get herself introduced to him, but the question arises how did she know who he was beforehand. Later that evening she shows up at his motel and offers him a drink in order to make up for the encounter. He accepts and due to her "innocent" flirtations they end up sleeping together.  In a subsequent encounter, Kate shows Benoit how to hold and aim her service pistol. While he playfully does this, never having handled one before, the pistol goes off and a bullet is lodged in the wall of the motel room. Fearing the loss of her job, Kate drags Benoit deeper into the affair and both are now on the run. Benoit just wants to go to the police and tell them the truth that it was just an accident. She keeps him hooked by threatening to tell his wife that they slept together. She tells him that they will come up with a better solution.  The outcome of the situation is tragic, for everyone but Kate. This woman manages to destroy many lives yet comes out of it unscathed. She murders Benoit and makes it look like self-defense and manages to avoid losing her job as a cop.

The Kate Logan Affair is a 2010 Canadian drama film starring Alexis Bledel and Laurent Lucas, written and directed by Noël Mitrani about a young psychologically unstable police woman named Kate Logan and a married Frenchman who find themselves caught up in a dramatic twisted affair. Based on the true story of a 2002 crime committed by an Alberta policewoman.


Date.

The composition date of each Yoga Upanishad is unclear, and estimates on when they were composed vary with scholar. According to Mahony, they are likely dated between 100 BC and 1100 AD. However, Gavin Flood dates the Yoga Upanishads to the 100 BCE to 300 CE period. According to James Mallinson, some Yoga Upanishads were revised in the eighteenth century to incorporate the Hatha Yoga ideas of the Hindu Natha sub-tradition.  Mircea Eliade states that textual style, archaic language and the mention of some Yoga Upanishads in other Indian texts, suggests the following Yoga Upanishads were likely composed in the same period as the didactic parts of the Mahabharata and the chief Sannyasa Upanishads: Brahmabindu (probably composed about the same time as Maitri Upanishad), Ksurika, Amritabindu, Brahmavidya, Tejobindu Upanishad, Nadabindu, Yogashikha, Dhyanabindu and Yogatattva. Eliade's suggestion places these in the final centuries of BCE or early centuries of the CE. All these, adds Eliade, were likely composed earlier than the ten or eleven later Yoga Upanishads such as the Yoga-kundalini, Varaha and Pashupatabrahma Upanishads.

Scope.

Yoga Upanishads discuss different aspects and kinds of Yoga, ranging from postures, breath exercises, meditation ("dhyana"), sound ("nada"), tantra ("kundalini" anatomy) and others. Some of these topics are not covered in the Bhagavad Gita or Patanjali's Yogasutras.  Many texts describe Yoga as consisting of steps or members ("angas") and according to Paul Deussen, the important Yoga Upanishads which deal with these are the "Brahmavidya", "Kshurika", "Culika" (listed under the Samanya Upanishads), "Nadabindu", "Brahmabindu", "Amritabindu", "Dhyanabindu", "Tejobindu", "Yogashika", "Yogatattva", and "Hamsa". These 11 Yoga Upanishads belong to Vedic shaka (school) from the Vedantic point of view. These Upanishads include discussion of ethics (yama (self restraints such as non-violence) and niyama (self effort such as study)), asana (physical exercises and body posture), pranayama (breath exercises), pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses), dharana (concentration of the mind), dhyana (contemplation and meditation) and samadhi (a state of meditative consciousness).

Yoga Upanishads are a group of minor Upanishads of Hinduism related to Yoga. There are twenty Yoga Upanishads in the anthology of 108 Upanishads listed in the Muktika anthology. The Yoga Upanishads, along with other minor Upanishads, are generally classified separate from the thirteen major Principal Upanishads considered to be more ancient and from the Vedic tradition.


Background.

Puletua was born in Auckland, New Zealand. He is of Samoan descent.

Penrith Panthers.

Puletua played his junior rugby league with the St Mary's Saints before being signed by the Penrith Panthers. Puletua made his début for the Penrith Panthers in 1997 and played at second row in the Panthers team which defeated the Sydney Roosters in the 2003 NRL Grand final. As 2003 NRL premiers, the Panthers travelled to England to face Super League VIII champions, the Bradford Bulls in the 2004 World Club Challenge. Puletua played at second-row forward in the Panthers' 22–4 loss. He was captain of the team from January 2006. Puletua's brother, Frank, also played for the Penrith Panthers, retiring from professional rugby league on April 2011. On 4 October 2006, TP was selected to be a part of the Perinth Panthers' Team Legends. Used to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Panthers, Puletua was alongside Penrith legends Mark Geyer, Brad Fitler and Rhys Wesser.

St Helens.

Puletua joined St Helens at the end of the 2008 season on a three-year deal.  He played in the 2009 Super League Grand Final defeat by the Leeds Rhinos at Old Trafford.  He played in the 2011 Super League Grand Final defeat by the Leeds Rhinos at Old Trafford.

Salford Red Devils.

Puletua joined the Salford Red Devils for the 2014 season. He made 26 appearances for the club in 2014, but was not registered as a player for the 2015 season due to salary cap issues.

Hull KR.

Puletua joined Hull Kingston Rovers mid-season in 2015 on a season-long loan from Salford, and announced that he would retire from the game following his spell with Hull KR.

Representative football.

Puletua represented the New Zealand national team on 22 occasions following his début in 1998, including the 2000 World Cup. His last selection was for New Zealand against Australia in the ANZAC Test on 20 April 2007 as a replacement for the injured David Kidwell. After that, he switched his allegiance to Samoa.  Puletua was named in the Samoa squad for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup, and played in three matches. In 2009 he was named as part of the Samoan side for the Pacific Cup.  Puletua was called up to the Samoan squad as an injury replacement during the 2013 World Cup.

Anthony "Tony" Puletua (born 25 June 1979), also known by the nickname of "TP", is a New Zealand-born Samoan former professional rugby league footballer who last played for the Hull Kingston Rovers in the Super League. A New Zealand and Samoan international, Puletua previously played for the Penrith Panthers in the National Rugby League competition, primarily as forward.


35 Greatest Boys McDonald's All-Americans.

On January 31, 2012, McDonald's All-American Games unveiled its list of 35 of the Greatest McDonald's All-Americans, released in celebration of the 35th Anniversary of the McDonald's All-American High School Boys Basketball Game.  The Greatest Boys McDonald's All-Americans list, includes some of the top names in men's basketball history, and features past and present Olympics, NBA and NCAA stars. The players were selected by members of the McDonald's All-American Games Selection Committee. In determining the list, all past McDonald's All-Americans were considered based on their high school careers and performances in the McDonald's All-American Games, success at the collegiate and professional level, and post-career accomplishments. The full list of players includes:

Annual game results.

An MVP/MOP award is presented each year to the most outstanding boy and girl players. The award is officially called the John R. Wooden Most Valuable Player Award.

Boys.

Denotes All-Star Games in which joint winners were named

Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year.

Prior to each game since 1997 (Boys)/2002 (Girls), a national player of the year has been chosen from the field of McDonald's All-Americans based on activity in the community, classroom and on the court. The award is named in honor of high school coach Morgan Wootten, one of the founders of the McDonald's game.

Sprite/Powerade Jam Fest Award Winners.

The slam dunk contest was first held as an unofficial event in 1985, and became an official part of the festivities in 1987.  The three-point contest was first held for boys in 1989, with a girls' competition added alongside the inaugural girls' game in 2002.  The skills contest was added for both boys and girls in 2002, with separate events held for both sexes through 2015.  In 2016, the skills contest was discontinued and replaced with a "Legends & Stars Shootout", involving teams consisting of one boy, one girl, and one All-American Game alumnus of either sex. Within each individual entry of Legends & Stars Shootout winners, the teams are listed in the aforementioned order. The Shootout is a timed competition in which each team must make a layup, free throw, three-pointer, and halfcourt shot in that order.

The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the conclusion of the high-school basketball season, in an East vs. West format. As part of the annual event, boys and girls compete in a slam dunk contest and a three-point shooting competition, and compete alongside All-American Game alumni in a timed team shootout. The last of these competitions replaced separate overall timed skills competitions for boys and girls. It is rare for girls to compete in the slam dunk contest. However, that contest has been won twice by girls—first in 2004 by Candace Parker, and most recently in 2019 by Fran Belibi. The boys' game has been contested annually since 1978, and the girls game has been played each year since it was added in 2002.


History.

Early years – the 19th century.

A Rochdale Athletic Club was formed in 1866 and held its first festival on the cricket ground at Merefield. Rugby football first took place as an organised game about 1866 or 1867, when the Rochdale Football Club was formed by a magistrate and numerous business owners and self-employed men. Within a year they were all playing alongside new members when working-class men were allowed to join as well. Other clubs quickly followed, among them Rochdale Wasps and Rochdale Juniors.  In 1871, Rochdale Juniors and Rakebank merged to form Rochdale United. On 20 April 1871, the directors of Rochdale Wasps, Rochdale United and Rochdale Football Club met at the Roebuck Hotel in the town centre to form a senior team that would represent the town. Rochdale Wasps. Rochdale Butterflies and Rochdale Grasshoppers were suggested as names for the new club before Rochdale Hornets was agreed on. The original team colours were amber and black. In 1875, Hornets played at Mr R. Kershaw's Athletic Grounds in Vavasour Street, and later at Rochdale Cricket Ground. The club very quickly took a leading position in the game in Lancashire. Hornets had an open door approach to membership and were able to insist on gate money as they played on an enclosed field.  In June 1879, Rochdale Rovers threw in their lot with the Hornets, and it was in this year that the club first adopted the white jersey. A ground was taken at Oakenrod for the 1879–80 season but owing to poor gates, Rochdale Hornets returned to Rochdale Cricket Club ground.  In 1881 no fewer than 57 rugby clubs played in Rochdale and district, fielding 80 teams regularly. By the 1890s, the players were almost all working class.  Rochdale moved to the Athletic Grounds in Milnrow Road, which opened on 9 June 1894. Their first game at their new home took place in September 1894 against Crompton.  They were founder members of the Northern Union in 1895. Hornets made a poor start under the new regime and finished bottom of the league table, for a good number of years they lost many more matches than they won.

Early 20th century.

They became tenants of the Athletics Grounds in 1900. Between the 7–9 March 1901, a three-day bazaar was held at the town hall where around £1,000 was raised to help pay for the club's debts. Incidents from the game played on 22 March 1901 resulted in the ground being suspended by the Northern Union.  The players went on strike on 29 March 1902 as empty coffers meant that they went unpaid.  Rochdale Hornets then refused to travel to Dewsbury on 1 October 1904 on account of a smallpox outbreak, and were subsequently fined £20.  Rochdale purchased the Athletics Grounds in 1913. Hornets won the Lancashire County Cup in 1911 and 1914. Between 10 October 1914 and 6 March 1915, Hornets played 25 games without defeat, shortly after this streak was broken by a defeat by Wigan but they would finish fourth in the table. Hornets beat Broughton Moor 75–13 in a cup-tie on 13 March 1915; it was their biggest margin of victory since 1871. Twenty-five Rochdale players enlisted for the First World War, three of whom are known to have died, Sergeant Twigg, Archie Field (arras 1917) and Walter Roman (Somme 1916) (Rochdale Captain).  Rugby League came back to Rochdale following the Great War on Christmas Day 1918 when Rochdale played a friendly game. In the half-season of the spring of 1919, Rochdale Hornets not only won the Lancashire League but also carried off the Lancashire County Cup.  Rochdale's biggest win against a senior club came on 27 March 1920 when Wakefield Trinity were beaten 64-nil.  The annual Law Cup, then known as the Infirmaries' Cup, was first contested against neighbours Oldham on 7 May 1921. Hornets played six games in a fortnight before falling to their biggest ever defeat 79–2 at the hands of Hull FC. Hornets changed their colours from green and black to red, white and blue as the green and black strip was deteriorating in the wash.  The club's record attendance was set at 26,664 in 1922 when Oldham were the visitors for a third round Challenge Cup match. Hornets won the Northern Union Challenge Cup in 1922 by beating Hull 10–9 at Headingley, Leeds. That was Hornets' one and only Challenge Cup final. Due to the ferocity of their play, their pack of forwards was known as ""the Terrible Six"".  Hornets were formed into a limited company on 31 May 1929.  On 4 October 1930, Stanley Baldwin, Hornets' winger was fatally injured during a match with Oldham.  Owing to a financial crisis in 1931, the Athletic Ground was offered for sale and all the players put on the transfer list. A fire destroyed the stadium's main stand, dressing rooms and offices on 18 September 1935. A new stand, built over the ashes of the old, was opened on Saturday 7 March 1936 for the match against Liverpool Stanley. Another financial crisis in 1938 led to further talks about selling the ground and a further crisis in 1939 resulted in the creation of a members' club.  Hornets dropped out of the wartime Lancashire League, their last match a 12–4 defeat against Salford at the Athletic Grounds on 11 May 1940.

Post-war.

An appeal went out to supporters in July 1945 for help in renovating the ground, pitch and premises so that rugby league could restart at the Athletic Grounds after the war. On 25 August 1945, Hornets resumed with an away game at Craven Park, Barrow which they lost 5–14. The first Infirmaries' Cup game since 1938 was played at the Athletic Grounds on 24 August 1946, in which Hornets were beaten by Oldham.  On 29 March 1947, Hornets ended a run of 14 consecutive defeats with a 3–0 home win over Halifax. Hornets played in green and black for the first time in 26 years on 13 December 1947 in a match against Wigan. Thereafter they used the colours as a change strip in the event of a colour clash.  In 1947 and 1958, Rochdale Hornets made it to the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup, but both times Wigan ended their hopes of a Wembley Final.  On 24 October 1953, Hornets' second row Ralph Slater was fatally injured in an A-team game at the Athletic Grounds against Oldham A.  Rochdale's highest attendance in a league match was set on Saturday, 16 October 1954 when Hornets lost 4–18 to local rivals Oldham in front of 19,654 spectators. Hornets played their first game at Spotland in 1954 when a one-off game against Keighley was played there.  Rochdale Hornets brought in a Fijian contingent in the early 1960s, starting with Orisi Dawai and Josefa Levula in 1961 and, later Apisai Toga. This has resulted in Rochdale having the largest Fijian community in the UK, outside of London.  In 1965, Hornets appeared in the final of the Lancashire County Cup when a 19,000 crowd saw them lose to Warrington at Knowsley Road, St. Helens.  Frank Myler arrived at Hornets in May 1971 to take up the position of player-coach with the Rochdale Hornets from May 1971. They reached a Players No 6 Final in 1974. Myler left Hornets in October 1974.  Kel Coslett was coach between 1976 and 1979.

1980s and early 1990s.

In the 1980s, things took a turn for the worse with the crowds virtually disappearing.  Eric Hughes coached Rochdale for the 1987-88 season. In 1987 both Rochdale Hornets and Rochdale A.F.C. were in financial trouble. Hornets were banned from signing players in November after failing to pay a transfer fee. Deep in debt, Rochdale accepted Morrisons £2.7m offer for the Athletic Grounds and following the sale of the land, moved to Rochdale A.F.C.'s stadium in the Spotland area of the town at the end of the 1988 season. The stadium became jointly owned by Hornets, Rochdale Council and Rochdale A.F.C.. In October 1988, Rochdale were saved by the local council with a £60,000 loan.  In 1989, Hornets were promoted from the Second Division to the top tier. The club's record attendance at Spotland was set at 8,150 when Hornets played Oldham on Boxing Day 1989.  In September 1990, Neil Holding briefly coached Hornets.  In 1991, Hornets appeared in the final of the Lancashire Cup.

Summer era.

On 9 May 1996, Rochdale sacked their coach, Steve Gibson, after taking just one point from their first six games of the First Division season.  Deryck Fox became player-coach in May 1998, and made an immediate impact. A ten-match losing sequence was ended as Hornets won at Featherstone Rovers in Fox's first match in charge. However, Hornets ended that 1998 campaign in next to bottom position in Division One.  In October 1998, Karl Marriott died following a training session and a couple of months later Roy Powell died in similar circumstances. Hornets struggled early in the campaign when they occupied bottom spot for a couple of weeks. They recovered slightly and had moved up to 15th position, fourth bottom, by late June.  On 30 June 1999, it was announced that Deryck Fox was no longer Rochdale's coach. During his 13 months as Hornets' coach, the club played 38 matches. They won 12, drew one and lost the remaining 25. Bob Eccles took over as caretaker coach.  Steve Linnane became head coach in December 1999 but quit in June 2000 to become assistant coach at Super League club Halifax.  Steve Deakin joined Rochdale Hornets as head coach in August 2000 before rejoining Keighley as head coach in September 2000 when incumbent Karl Harrison left to become assistant coach at Bradford.  Martin Hall took up the position of coach at Rochdale Hornets in November 2000. He stepped in after the shock resignation of Steve Deakin who returned to Keighley after a few months in charge. He took Rochdale to two consecutive third-place finishes in the Northern Ford Premiership. Hall departed along with all the players after not renewing his contract after his failed bid to take over the club.  Bobbie Goulding arrived as player-coach in December 2003. He was in charge of Rochdale Hornets for two seasons, twice being nominated for coach of the year. He left in November 2005, citing frustration at the club's financial problems and his lack of a proper contract.  On 13 March 2005, Hornets set an all-time Rugby League record when they defeated the amateur side Illingworth 120–4 in the Challenge Cup. This is the highest score ever achieved by a team in the cup. The biggest winning margin is still that of Huddersfield, who beat the amateur side Swinton Park 119–2 in 1914.  Darren Abram was appointed head coach two weeks later. Abram was dismissed on 9 July 2007 after a run of defeats which left the club facing relegation. Shaun Gartland was placed in temporary charge.  Bobbie Goulding was appointed as Rochdale Hornets coach for the second time in September 2007 and relieved of his duties in May 2008 after a run of six consecutive losses.  Darren Shaw was appointed as Rochdale Hornets coach in May 2008 after a previous spell as assistant coach under Bobbie Goulding in his first spell as player coach in 2003.  On 13 January 2009, shareholders voted to put Rochdale Hornets into administration after debts ordered by HM Revenue and Customs accumulated £55,000. An Industrial and Provident Society (a co-operative) was created and recognised by the Rugby Football League, and the Hornets were re-founded. The co-operative was initially created around a core of loyal fans, and membership is open to all. The co-op operates on a one-member, one-vote principle.  Darren Shaw departed the club at the end of the 2009 season and was replaced by ex St Helens player John Stankevitch in early November 2009.  Stankevitch was given the difficult task of recruiting a competitive squad of players from those available that had not already been recruited elsewhere and a slow start to the 2010 Northern Rail Cup followed.  However, the club went on to exceed all expectations and finish 5th in the table giving them a play-off position for the first time in years. The team were eventually eliminated in the semi finals of the competition.  Stankevitch signed a new contract in July 2010 in preparation for the 2011 and 2012 seasons, and began the club's re-emergence with the recontracting of the majority of his squad.  In 2013 Rochdale Hornets appointed Ian Talbot as head coach. He led Hornets to their first trophy in 91 years when they won the Kingstone Press Championship 1 play-off final defeating local rivals Oldham at Leigh Sports Village. Ian Talbot stood down as head coach at Hornets at the end of the 2015 season to take up a position at St. Helens.  Talbot's replacement was Alan Kilshaw who had had a successful stint coaching in Australia.  In Alan Kilshaws 1st season (2016) Rochdale Hornets defeated Toulouse Olympique XIII in the promotion final in Toulouse, France to become Kingstone Press League 1 Champions. This was the 1st time Rochdale Hornets had been Champions of a division since 1919, a gap of 97 years.

Stadiums.

1894–1988: Athletic Grounds.

Rochdale moved to the Athletic Grounds in 1894. Their first game at their new home took place in September 1894 against Crompton. Between 1896 and 1900, Rochdale Association Football Club played at the Athletics Grounds. Hornets became tenants of the ground in 1900 and purchased the ground in 1913.  The highest attendance at the Athletic Grounds was the 1924 Challenge Cup final between Oldham and Wigan when 41,831 saw Wigan win 21-4.  Hornets borrowed £3,000 from the Rugby Football League in 1954 to build a new covered outer boundary wall and new turnstiles for the main entrance and Waithlands. The highest attendance for a league match was set on Saturday 16 October 1954, Hornets lost 4-18 to local rivals Oldham in front of 19,654 spectators. In 1987 both Rochdale Hornets and Rochdale A.F.C. were in financial trouble. First to receive an offer for their ground, Hornets accepted Morrison's £2.6m offer for the Athletic Grounds and, following the sale of the land bought a half share in Rochdale A.F.C.'s Spotland Stadium, thus saving both clubs.

1988-present: Spotland Stadium.

Spotland Stadium is a sports venue located at Willbutts Lane in the Spotland suburb of Rochdale, Greater Manchester. It is currently home to Rochdale A.F.C. and Rochdale Hornets R.F.L.C. It has a capacity of 10,249. The ground has four stands: the Co-Operative Stand (or Main Stand), the Thwaites Beer Stand (the Sandy Lane End), the T.D.S Stand (Pearl Street end) and the Westrose Leisure Stand (the Willbutts Lane Stand). All are fully seated, apart from the Sandy Lane End, which is a small terrace behind one of the goals.

Law Cup.

The Law Cup is an annual match between Oldham and Rochdale Hornets, first contested on 7 May 1921. Including the 2008 fixture, Oldham have won 36 to Rochdale's 22 with 3 drawn games.

2019 transfers.

Gains

2020 Transfers.

Gains Losses

Rochdale Hornets are a professional rugby league club from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, competing in the Championship, the second tier of European rugby league. Rochdale Hornets are one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, making them one of the world's first rugby league clubs. Their main local rivals are Oldham, Salford Red Devils, Swinton Lions, Halifax and Huddersfield Giants.


Football career.

Born in Praia, Cape Verde, Furtado started his football career in Portugal with lowly Casa Pia A.C. in the Lisbon area, where he also made his senior debuts. He moved to FC Porto in 2003, playing one full season with its reserves then moving on loan to another modest club, G.D. Tourizense.  In June 2005, Furtado, still on loan from Porto, signed with Bulgarian team FC Vihren Sandanski, where he scored regularly in the First Professional Football League. In the following January transfer window, he was sold to fellow league side PFC CSKA Sofia for €300.000.  Furtado's spell with the "armymen" also started in a scoring fashion, but eventually ended on a sour note: he fell out with manager Stoycho Mladenov due to disciplinary breaches (being temporarily removed from the squad), and was also involved in a physical confrontation with captain Valentin Iliev, which ultimately led to his return to Portugal.  In the summer of 2007, Furtado moved to the Portuguese Primeira Liga as he signed with F.C. Paços de Ferreira. On 18 August he made his debut in the competition by playing the second half of a 1–3 away loss against C.S. Marítimo, and was relatively used during the campaign in a second-to-last finish with the subsequent relegation – later reinstatement due to Boavista FC's irregularities.  Furtado split 2008–09 with Paços and U.D. Leiria, then moved abroad again, signing for Ionikos F.C. in the Greek second level. In his first year, he finished third in the competition's top scorers list but his team could only rank 15th, the last position before the relegation zone.  In 2010, Furtado signed for Pas Giannina FC, still in Greece and its second division. More of the same happened in the 2011–12 season, with Panachaiki FC.

José Emílio Robalo Furtado (born 14 March 1983) is a Cape Verdean professional former footballer who played as a striker. He also holds Portuguese citizenship.


What's My Line (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

Plot.

Part one.

Spike works on a cure for Drusilla. Dalton, a vampire transcriber, is unable to decipher the book stolen from the library which contains a cure. Drusilla informs Spike that they need a key because the book is in code.  Buffy witnesses Dalton stealing an object from a mausoleum, but he escapes when she is distracted by another vampire. She enters her bedroom and finds Angel waiting to warn her of grave danger. Buffy reports to Giles, and he is concerned when she tells him about the theft from the mausoleum.  Spike and Drusilla examine the key stolen by Dalton, a gold cross. Spike decides to call the Order of Taraka, an ancient guild of assassins, to rid himself of Buffy once and for all. Back at school, Willow is taken into a secluded lounge area to be recruited by a leading software company, along with Oz, the boy who has been watching her for weeks. At the mausoleum, Giles realizes that Josephus du Lac, the author of the book stolen from the library, is buried there and that the book's key was taken from the mausoleum.  The assassins begin to arrive. A large, intimidating man exits a bus, and a door-to-door beauty salesman attacks Buffy's next-door neighbor. A young woman attacks an airplane worker in the cargo hold of a plane, escaping with little difficulty.  Giles tells Buffy, Xander, and Willow about the "du Lac Cross" which can be used as the key, and he enlists their help with further research. Buffy arrives at the ice skating stadium for a date with Angel. She is attacked, but Angel arrives in time to help her fight off the assassin whom she kills with the blade of her skate. Angel, recognizing the assassin's ring, warns Buffy that she should leave Sunnydale and hide. The female from the plane watches from the shadows.  The assassin next-door to Buffy's house feeds on the neighbors's body by disintegrating into hundreds of writhing mealworms which can reshape themselves into limbs at will. Buffy is paranoid and jittery, suspicious of each person who passes by in the hallways at school, including Oz. Buffy arrives at Angel's empty home and falls asleep in his bed. Angel goes to Willy's bar for information, and Willy finally confirms Angel's suspicions that Spike is behind the assassins. Before Angel can leave, he is attacked by the mysterious female. She locks him in a metal cage in front of an eastern window, with only a few hours until sunrise.  Giles reveals that the missing manuscript contains a ritual to restore a weakened vampire back to health. Xander and Cordelia enter Buffy's house, and Xander searches for her while Cordelia waits downstairs. She hears a knock at the door and lets in the mealworm assassin. In Angel's bedroom, Buffy is attacked by the mysterious woman. They fight, and the woman tells Buffy that her name is Kendra the Vampire Slayer.

Part two.

Realising that they are both slayers, Buffy and Kendra go to Giles for assistance in explaining the situation. They learn that Kendra was called when Buffy temporarily died in her fight with The Master in "Prophecy Girl". Meanwhile, Willy has saved Angel from certain death, but sold him out to Spike. Spike takes Angel back to the warehouse, where he will be held until he can be sacrificed to restore Drusilla to full strength.  Xander and Cordelia run and hide in the basement, although before long they are arguing with each other. After an unexpected kiss, they rush to escape, running past the attacking mealworm assassin. At school, Buffy, whose test results recommend a career in law enforcement, attends a career seminar. The police officer leading the seminar tries to shoot Buffy. Oz is shot and slightly injured as he pushes Willow out of harm's way. Kendra comes to Buffy's rescue, and they fight off the attacker. The Scoobies then gather in the library, where Giles announces that Spike intends for Angel to die in the ritual to restore Drusilla.  Angel is tortured by Drusilla, both emotionally and physically; she pours holy water on him as she reminds him about how he killed her whole family. Angel taunts Spike with insinuations that Spike is unable to satisfy Drusilla, in the hope that Spike will kill him before he can be used to cure Drusilla. Meanwhile, Kendra gains a newfound respect for Buffy's qualities as a slayer. Later, the slayers go after Willy to learn what happened to Angel; they force Willy to take them to the location of Spike and Angel. However, Willy leads them to the assassins, and the ritual has already begun. Buffy attacks Spike to save Angel, and Kendra and the Scooby Gang arrive to back her up. Xander and Cordelia lure the mealworm assassin underneath a door into a liquid glue trap. Willow and Giles stake a vampire while Buffy and Kendra fight several of their own. Spike starts a fire and rushes to rescue the unconscious Drusilla, hoping that the ritual has had time to cure her. Buffy prevents their exit, crushing them in falling rubble. She helps the weakened Angel to exit the building.  With the danger over, it is time for Kendra to leave. Buffy and Kendra discuss their position as slayer. Kendra remarks that Buffy considers slaying to be a job when it is actually a part of who she is. The two, now friends, say their goodbyes and Buffy is left with a new outlook on her position as the slayer, as well as the knowledge that she is no longer alone in her calling.  At the remains of the church, Spike lies seriously injured under the rubble. Drusilla rises, the ritual having worked and restored her to full power. She carries her partner out of the debris, promising to return the favor and make him as powerful as her.

Reception.

Part one pulled in 3.5 million households on its original airing, while part two had an audience of 3.9 million households.

"What's My Line" is a two-episode story in season two of the television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". In part one, Buffy endures Career Week at school while Spike hires assassins to kill her; a fierce fighter who identifies herself as "Kendra the Vampire Slayer" shows up in Sunnydale. In part two, Angel is taken by Spike for a ritual in which Drusilla is restored to health.


Biography.

Early life.

Ang Mey was born in 1815 as the second daughter of Ang Chan II, king of Cambodia during the Oudong period, by his second wife, Neak Moneang Krachap.  After King Ang Chan II died in 1834, there was no heir apparent to the Khmer throne. The king had no son but four daughters: Princess Baen, Mey, Peou and Sngon. This delighted Vietnam and Siam, both of which wanted to eliminate the royal rulers in Cambodia. Although Ang Chan's surviving brothers, Ang Im and Ang Duang, immediately laid claim to the throne, the Vietnamese then occupying Cambodia did not allow them to be crowned.  Instead, the Vietnamese emperor and the Cambodian courtiers chose to install Ang Chan II's eldest daughter, Princess Ang Baen, as the sovereign. However, she was passed over due to her being sympathetic to the Thai court's interests and her refusal to marry the emperor's son. Ang Mey was an alternative to her sister, Baen. A Thai manuscript stated that the Vietnamese had tried to persuade Ang Mey to marry the son of emperor Gia Long in order to facilitate the incorporation of Cambodia into Vietnam, however this plan was abandoned at strong objections from Cambodian nobles.

Puppet queen.

In May 1835, Ang Mey was crowned with the title of "quan-chua" (郡主) or "Commandery Princess," a title of princess which was lower than gong-chua (公主), bestowed by the court of Hué. Her three sisters were given the title "huyen quan" (縣君), or "sub-prefecture ladies". The Vietnamese kept close guard over the Ang princesses. Queen Ang Mey had two companies of soldiers, 100 men in total, for her personal protection. The other three Cambodian princesses were each assigned thirty soldiers. Ostensibly for their safety, the guards were in reality assigned to ensure that they did not escape.  During Ang Mey's reign, all Cambodian women were ordered to wear Vietnamese-style pyjamas instead of the khmer sampot (similar to the sarong), and had to grow their hair long in Vietnamese style. The market sold only Vietnamese food. Khmer classical dance had assimilated elements of Vietnamese and Chinese tradition. Cambodian officials had to don Vietnamese ceremonial garb. Wats were destroyed in order to eradicate the Khmer identity. Places also received Vietnamese names. The area around Phnom Penh was renamed from Annam to "Tran Tay", or "Western Commandery". The Cambodian people, not accustomed to be ruled by a Queen and despairing of the "Vietnamization" of their country, asked the Siamese to install a male ruler, Ang Duong, brother of Ang Chan II.  In 1840, the elder sister of Ang Mey, Princess Baen, was discovered corresponding with her mother and uncle who were living in Battambang and planning to escape to them. The princess was imprisoned pending her trial in Phnom Penh. The Vietnamese emperor, Minh Mạng, demoted Mey and the other princesses. In August 1841 they were all arrested and deported to Vietnam along with the royal regalia. Around that time, some of Ang Mey's relatives were imprisoned on the island of Poulo Condore. According to Thai and Cambodian sources, Ang Baen was drowned in the Mekong river, although Khin Sok states that Baen was tortured to death by the Vietnamese general and her body thrown in the river.  Spurred by the death of Princess Ang Baen and the absence of their Queen Ang Mey, many Cambodian courtiers and their followers revolted against the Vietnamese rule. Seizing the opportunity Siam invaded Cambodia in an attempt to install Ang Duong on the throne as their own puppet, triggering the Siamese–Vietnamese War (1841–45). In an attempt to defuse the rebellion, Vietnamese officials in Phnom Penh called for the return of Mey to Cambodia but the emperor Ming Mang refused. Only when the Vietnamese counter-offensive gained momentum and victory seemed assured was Mey returned to Phnom Penh. Her proclamation in March 1844 intended for the provincial officials and leaders sought their support while Ang Duong issued similar appeals from Oudong for his claim to the throne. Queen Ang Mey was reinstated as a queen and her sisters, Poeu and Sngon, as sub-prefecture rulers, in 1844.  As the warring factions fought to a stalemate in 1845, the Thai and Vietnamese initiated talks to resolve the Cambodian succession. In October 1846, the Vietnamese released the daughter and other family members of Ang Duong to join him in Oudong. Vietnam and Siam forged a compromise whereby both Ang Duong and Ang Mey would rule together are co-sovereigns. However, when the simultaneous coronation was held in Bangkok and Phnom Penh in 1848, records only show Ang Duong's accession to the throne. His niece, Ang Mey, was recorded as his successor instead of co-sovereign.

Later life.

After her reign concluded, Ang Mey lived with memories of death and dishonour for over twenty years. She did not succeed the throne after Ang Duong's death. His son and heir, Norodom, left her in the care of an old retainer when he and his court moved to Phnom Penh. At Oudong, Ang Mey carried on, although sources described her as "unbalanced" when she took merchandise by her right as queen. Her servants had to intervene to placate the merchants.  She later married an unknown man and had two daughters. She and her husband died in an accident in late December 1874 but were cremated at Phnom Penh in 1884.

Life and reign of scandal.

Ang Mey was portrayed as a puppet of the Vietnamese emperor and officials in sources like "The Cambodia Chronicle". Ang Duong took care to emphasize association between Mey and the Vietnamese, and blamed her rule for the loss of indentured slaves. Most chronicles of the period imply that the Cambodian courtiers acquiesced to Ang Mey as their sovereign while secretly holding out for Ang Im or Ang Duong to return as sovereign. There were even rumors that Mey was a concubine of Truong Minh Giang, the Vietnamese governor in Phnom Penh but there is no historical evidence of such a liaison. Others tempered their allegation of Ang Mey's misdeeds; the once beautiful princess may have sold her country, but not her body, to the Vietnamese.  During the succession crisis, Ang Mey did seem to seek a peaceful solution to the factional strife in Cambodia, corresponding through Ang Duong's envoys that she wished for a return to peace and the family's reunion. This may have been at diplomatic response; the Vietnamese annals described her as an intelligent young lady at the time of her accession. Sudden and forced relocations to Vietnam and back, the murder of her sisters, and continued changes in her status may have induced hysterical or untoward behaviour. By the end of her reign, Ang Mey reportedly was mad.  Cambodian history has constructed Mey as a passive victim hardly legitimate in the eye of her own people, her reign a disaster during which Khmer territory, culture, and independence was almost lost. While it cannot be denied that the Vietnamese were in control of Cambodia during Ang Mey's reign, she inherited a country that had already been mortgaged to the Court of Hué by her father, Ang Chan II. Mey was crowned sovereign of a kingdom under Vietnamese overlordship. It is difficult to ascertain what course of action other than acquiescence was available to her.

Queen Ang Mey ( ; 1815 – December 1874) was the 97th monarch of Cambodia. Her official title was Her Majesty Samdech Preah Maha Rajini Ang Mey. She was one of three female rulers in Cambodia's history, the others being Queen Soma and Queen Sisowath Kossamak. Installed on the Cambodian throne by the Vietnamese, her reign was dominated by the Siamese-Vietnamese War (1841–1845)


History.

Following the 1898 discovery of radium through chemical analysis of radioactive ore, Marie and Pierre Curie observed a new radioactive substance emanating from radium in 1899 that was strongly radioactive for several days. Around the same time, Ernest Rutherford and Robert B. Owens observed a similar (though shorter-lived) emission from thorium compounds. German physicist Friedrich Ernst Dorn extensively studied these emanations in the early 1900s and attributed them to a new gaseous element, radon. In particular, he studied the product in the uranium series, radon-222, which he called "radium emanation".  In the early 20th century, the element radon was known by several different names. Chemist William Ramsay, who extensively studied the element's chemical properties, suggested the name "niton", and Rutherford originally suggested "emanation". At that time, "radon" only referred to the isotope Rn, whereas the names "actinon" and "thoron" denoted Rn and Rn, respectively. In 1957, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) promoted the name "radon" to refer to the element rather than just Rn; this was done under a new rule concerning isotope naming conventions. This decision was controversial because it was believed to give undue credit to Dorn's identification of radon-222 over Rutherford's identification of radon-220, and the historical use of the name radon created confusion as to whether the element or the isotope Rn was being discussed.

Decay properties.

Radon-222 is generated in the uranium series from the alpha decay of radium-226, which has a half-life of 1600 years. Radon-222 itself alpha decays to polonium-218 with a half-life of approximately 3.82 days, making it the most stable isotope of radon. Its final decay product is stable lead-206.  In theory, Rn is capable of double beta decay to Ra, and depending on the mass measurement, single beta decay to Fr may also be allowed. These decay modes have been searched for, yielding lower partial half-life limits of 8 years for both transitions. If the beta decay of Rn is possible, it is predicted to have a very low decay energy (24 ± 21 keV) and thus a half-life on the order of 10 years, also resulting in a very low branching probability relative to alpha decay.

Occurrence and hazards.

All radon isotopes are hazardous owing to their radioactivity, gaseous nature, chemical inertness, and radioactivity of their decay products (progeny). Radon-222 is especially dangerous because its longer half-life allows it to permeate soil and rocks, where it is produced in trace quantities from decays of uranium-238, and concentrate in buildings and uranium mines. This contrasts with the other natural isotopes that decay far more quickly (half-lives less than 1 minute) and thus do not contribute significantly to radiation exposure. At higher concentrations, gaseous Rn may be inhaled and decay before exhalation, which leads to a buildup of its daughters Po and Po in the lungs, whose high-energy alpha and gamma radiation damages cells. Extended periods of exposure to Rn and its progeny ultimately induce lung cancer. Alternatively, radon may enter the body through contaminated drinking water or through the decay of ingested radium – making radon diffusion one of the greatest dangers of radium. Thus, Rn is a carcinogen; in fact, it is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States after cigarette smoking, with over 20,000 deaths per year attributed to radon-induced lung cancer.

Radon-222 (Rn, Rn-222, historically radium emanation or radon) is the most stable isotope of radon, with a half-life of approximately 3.8 days. It is transient in the decay chain of primordial uranium-238 and is the immediate decay product of radium-226. Radon-222 was first observed in 1899, and was identified as an isotope of a new element several years later. In 1957, the name "radon", formerly the name of only radon-222, became the name of the element. Owing to its gaseous nature and high radioactivity, radon-222 is one of the leading causes of lung cancer.


Taxonomy and systematics.

Dupont's lark was originally described by Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot in 1820 and placed in the genus "Alauda". It was named for the French naturalist Léonard Puech Dupont, who had collected the species and showed it to Vieillot.

Subspecies.

Two subspecies are recognized:

Description.

Like most other larks, Dupont's lark is an undistinguished looking species on the ground. It is 17–18 cm long, slim, with a long neck, long legs and a fine slightly curved bill. It has a thin pale crown stripe and a dark-streaked breast. The north-western Dupont's lark of Europe and north-west Africa is mainly brown-grey above and pale below. The south-eastern Dupont's lark, which occupies most of the rest of the African range, has rufous upperparts.

Vocalisations.

Its song is a repeated thin, melancholic whistling phrase, very ventriloquial (difficult to locate) and a nasal whistle given mainly at dawn and dusk or at night.

Distribution and habitat.

It breeds across much of northern Africa, from Algeria to Egypt, and in Spain and France. It is a non-migratory resident. It is a species that commonly inhabits chaparral areas. However, it experiences a 3.9% annual population decrease in Spain with a 32.8% decrease from 2008-2018, shifting its conservation status to vulnerable on the national level and endangered in the regions of Andalusia and Castile-Leon.

Behaviour and ecology.

This is a very shy species, which runs for cover when disturbed. It is difficult to see while running among vegetation but it sometimes sings, standing upright on the edge of a low bush.

Breeding.

This is a bird of open sandy semi-desert or steppe with some grass. Its nest is on the ground, with three or four eggs being laid. Its food is seeds and insects.

Dupont's lark ("Chersophilus duponti") is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae of the monotypic genus "Chersophilus". It is found in northern Africa and Spain.


Background.

Ophélie Bretnacher disappeared in Budapest, Hungary on December 4, 2008. She was part of the European exchange program known as the Erasmus Programme City security cameras tracked part of her route after leaving a nightclub called Portside of Cuba. The footage showed her walking alone from Dohány Street to Deák Square up to the Széchenyi Chain Bridge across the Danube. The captured videos have since been uploaded to YouTube.  Investigations revealed that she left the club after an argument with her boyfriend, who was identified as Paolo Pierre, an Italian student. Her companions recounted that she already drank liquor before going out. Her bag and cell phone were later found on the Széchenyi Chain Bridge. The police were only alerted about her disappearance two days later.  Her friends and family used several methods to attempt to find her. An official investigation was opened in Hungary and was soon followed by one in France. Bretnacher's body was discovered in Csepel, in February 2009, in a backwater of the Danube.

The criminal case.

After the discovery of her body, Hungarian authorities assigned a seven-member police team to investigate the case. The police said that death was probably the result of a suicide or accident. However, homicide cannot be ruled out because of the finding of a hematoma on Ophelie's body as well as many gray areas during the search. One of the puzzles, for instance, was that her body was found upstream.  In February 2010, her family filed a new claim for murder.  In March 2010, a judicial inquiry was opened in Paris for kidnapping, sequestration, followed by murder. By 2014, authorities in Hungary were prepared to close the case, considering the investigation deadline was set to expire in February of that year. New information reportedly surfaced, prompting the Budapest prosecutor's office to continue the inquiry. Sources say that investigation resumed due to inconsistencies in the testimonies of the interrogated witnesses.

Political and diplomatic consequences.

While Hungarian police concluded that the case could either be a suicide or accidental drowning, in France, there was a public clamor for a more thorough investigation. An online petition has been signed by over 10,000 people and was sent to the French President. By January 11, 2009, several hundred people marched silently in a white march, from the Champ-de-Mars, near the Eiffel Tower, to seek the involvement of the French authorities.  French politicians also expressed interest such as Catherine Vautrin, the Vice-Président of the National Assembly, who called for a French intervention Following this intervention, French investigators were sent for the second time to Hungary.

Conclusion.

This affair was closed in Hungary in 2014.

The disappearance of Ophélie Bretnacher, a French student, was a complex criminal case and it remains a mystery until today. It also involved diplomatic friction between France and Hungary, particularly with respect to the outcome of the subsequent investigations and the involvement of prominent political figures.


Gameplay.

The game contains nine different modes, split into three categories: friendlies, leagues and competitions. Friendly games are non-competitive, leagues provide round-robin and knockout events, while the competitions category contains a variety of competitions such as the FIFA World Cup or UEFA European Football Championship.  Each team has a set lineup, which can be altered by the player. As Rage did not acquire a license from FIFA, footballer names used are fictitious by default. They can be adjusted, as can team outfits, by the player. Footballers can perform all actions common on a football field, such as dribbling, passing, headering, one touch actions doing, and even bicycle kicking. In the US version, commentary is provided by Jonathan Pearce and Ron Atkinson.  Performing an illegal action can result in a foul being committed; it is possible but rare for a footballer to receive a yellow or red card. Slide tackles are most likely to draw a foul, while the steal technique rarely results in an infringement.

Development.

Microsoft recruited several English coaches to assist in the development game. They helped Rage develop the AI to use tactics and strategies used in real football. The game was released in the United States for $20.

Reception.

Reception of "Microsoft International Soccer 2000" was generally positive.  IGN's Uros Jojic said that the game's design was not unique, and was generally similar to most other games of the genre, with "Classic Matches" the only exception. He complained that the game included no clubs, due to the lack of a FIFA license. Sports Gaming Network's Eric Dysinger agreed that the game's interface was simple but effective. Allgame's Nick Woods said that the controls were generally easy to learn, but that it was a times difficult to select the footballer the player wishes to control—he said it was possible to adjust to the controls, "but it's not an intuitive or easy task".  The game's graphics were rated highly by reviewers. IGN said the sky textures were beautiful and "the grass textures of the pitch look extremely realistic". However, reviewer Jojic was less receptive of other features such as the stadium and crowd effects, which he said sometimes lacked detail. He also said the game's animations were "a mixed bag". Dysinger said the background graphics were of a high quality, stating the game presents "the best fields and stadiums to play in". "PC Zone"<nowiki>'s</nowiki> review was more positive; it said "Microsoft International Soccer 2000" is "arguably... the best looking of the current crop of football games". Audio, however, was not rated as highly. The commentary had a mediocre reception—"PC Zone" wrote that "Ron Atkinson... sounds as if he is reading from a script", while Sports Gaming Network complained that "frequently the announcers were broadcasting the play by play when the play was already over". IGN, while approving of the commentary, said the music was "weak and uninspiring", while Dysinger said it was good, but repetitive.  Gameplay earned a mixed reception from different reviewers. Sports Gaming Network complained of some lag in game, with footballers not responding to commands until after the AI had passed the ball on. Dysinger was also critical of the lack of FIFA license, which forced players to learn the strengths and weaknesses of different nations as they did not have a real roster. "PC Zone" was more positive; the game was described as "straightforward arcade stuff, making for an exciting game of football". The high paced gameplay was likened to "Sensible World of Soccer". IGN rated the gameplay highly, especially the "phenomenal" ball physics, which Jojic described as "the most realistic interpretation of ball movement I've seen in any soccer game so far". However, he noted several glitches in the AI which made the game easier at times. GameSpy, on the other hand, said the AI was "highly sophisticated".

Microsoft International Soccer 2000 is a sports game developed by Rage Software and published by Microsoft. It was released on October 20, 1999 for the PC. In the game, the player takes the role of manager of an international football team in a competition such as the FIFA World Cup or UEFA European Football Championship. The game was developed in conjunction with several football coaches, and released in the United States for $20. Reception of the game was generally positive. Its graphics were rated highest, though reviewers also enjoyed the simplicity of play. However, gameplay aspects such as AI earned a mixed response.


Background.

Fien was born in Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia.

North Queensland.

Fien was educated at Blackheath and Thornburgh College, Charters Towers and played his junior rugby league for Brothers in Mount Isa. In 2000 he made his debut with the North Queensland Cowboys, playing against the Penrith Panthers. In 2001 his form warranted selection to the Queensland side, where he came off the bench for one State of Origin match. In the 2004 NRL season, Fien played 23 games for North Queensland as the club reached the finals for the first time in their history. They would defeat eventual premiers Canterbury in week one of the finals and go on to reach the preliminary final against the Sydney Roosters before losing 16-19 at Telstra Stadium.

New Zealand Warriors.

After playing 93 games for North Queensland, Fien signed with the New Zealand Warriors from the season 2005 onwards. He later extended his contract until the end of 2009.  In 2008 he was told that he would not be required past the 2009 season at the Warriors and that they would consider releasing him at the end of the 2008 season. Fien initially turned down this offer, hoping that his form in the World Cup could earn him a contract extension. However, after the Huddersfield Giants failed to gain a work visa for Todd Carney they approached Fien with a large offer. In January 2009 Fien requested that the Warriors release him from his final season. This request was initially turned down by the Warriors due to the earlier release of Grant Rovelli, however on 30 June 2009 it was announced that Fien would transfer to the St. George Illawarra Dragons for the remainder of the season.

St. George Illawarra.

In May 2009, after being dropped from first grade by the Warriors, Fien announced he has signed a three-year deal with the St. George Illawarra Dragons from 2010. On 30 June the Warriors agreed to release Fien from the rest of his contract, and he joined the Dragons for the second half of the 2009 season.  In the opening round of 2010 he suffered a serious ankle injury which kept him out until just before the finals. Upon his return he provided attacking options to the team and proved an invaluable player throughout the end of the regular season and finals. He was in the 2010 premiership winning St. George Illawarra team and scored the final try of the 2010 NRL Grand Final, showcasing his dummy half skills. He was re-signed until the end of 2013. He retired at the end of the 2013 season.

International career.

Born in Australia, Fien claimed eligibility to play for New Zealand through a New Zealand-born grandmother, and played in two 2006 Tri-Nations matches. After these appearances it emerged that his New Zealand born relation was, in fact, a great-grandmother. Following this discovery the International Rugby League Board declared him ineligible to play for the Kiwis, and New Zealand was stripped of its 2 championship points they got from beating Great Britain. The issue was dubbed Grannygate by the media.  In August 2008, Fien was named in the New Zealand training squad for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup - now being eligible for New Zealand due to residency qualifications via his tenure at the Auckland-based Warriors - and in October 2008 he was named in the final 24-man Kiwi squad. Fien played at halfback in the World Cup final, which was won by New Zealand.  He retired from international rugby league following the 2012 ANZAC Test.

Nathan Fien (born 1 August 1979), also known by the nickname of "Fieny", is a former New Zealand international rugby league footballer who played as a and in the 2000s and 2010s.


2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois

District 1.

This district includes part of Cook County. Democratic incumbent Bobby Rush, who has held the seat since 1993, ran against Republican nominee Antoine Members. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 2.

This district includes parts of Cook and Will counties. Democratic nominee Jesse Jackson, Jr., who has held the seat winning a special election in December 1995, ran against Republican nominee Anthony Williams. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 3.

This district includes part of Cook County. Democratic incumbent Dan Lipinski, who has held the seat since 2005, ran against Republican nominee Michael Hawkins and Green Party nominee Jerome Pohlen. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.  Perennial candidate and alleged white supremacist Richard Mayers had attempted to run in the Green Party primary.

District 4.

This district includes part of Cook County. Democratic incumbent Luis Gutierrez, who has held the seat since January 1993, ran against Republican nominee Daniel Cunninghan and Green Party nominee Omar López. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.  Earlier in 2007, Cook County Commissioner Roberto Maldonado and Chicago aldermen Manny Flores, Ricardo Muñoz, and George Cardenas had announced their intentions to run for the seat in 2008, as Gutierrez had said he planned to retire. However, Gutierrez later changed his mind and announced he would seek re-election in 2008.

District 5.

This district includes part of Cook County. Democratic incumbent Rahm Emanuel, who has held the seat since 2003, ran against Republican nominee Tom Hanson and Green Party nominee Alan Augustson. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 6.

This district includes parts of DuPage and Cook counties. Freshman Republican incumbent Peter Roskam, who won the then-open seat in a close election in 2006, ran against Democratic nominee Jill Morgenthaler, an Iraq War veteran. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Republican Favored'.

District 7.

This district lies entirely within Cook County. Democratic incumbent Danny K. Davis, who has held the seat since 1997, ran against Republican nominee Steve Miller, a United States Navy veteran. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 8.

This district includes parts of Lake, McHenry and Cook counties. Democratic incumbent Melissa Bean, who has held the seat since 2005, ran against Republican nominee Steve Greenberg. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Democrat Favored'.

District 9.

This district includes all of Evanston, Skokie, Niles, Morton Grove, Park Ridge and Norridge, parts of Wilmette, Northfield, Glenview, Golf, Rosemont and Des Plaines, and much of the North Side of Chicago. Democratic incumbent Jan Schakowsky, who has held the seat since 1999, ran against Republican nominee Michael B. Younan and Green Party nominee Morris Shanfield. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 10.

This district includes parts of Lake and Cook counties. Republican incumbent Mark Kirk, who has held the seat since 2001, ran against Democratic nominee Dan Seals, who also ran against Kirk in the 2006 election. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'No Clear Favorite'.

District 11.

This district includes the towns of Joliet, Kankakee, LaSalle, Ottawa and Streator, and all or parts of Will, Kankakee, Grundy, LaSalle, Bureau, Woodford and McLean counties. An open seat, Democratic State Senate Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson ran against Republican nominee Marty Ozinga, a local businessman, and Green Party nominee Jason Wallace. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Democrat Favored'.  Republican incumbent Jerry Weller, who had held the seat since 1995, decided not to seek re-election, leaving this an open seat. Tim Baldermann, mayor of New Lenox and police chief of Chicago Ridge, won the Republican nomination but withdrew on February 23. Martin Ozinga was chosen to replace Baldermann on April 30.

District 12.

This district is in the southwest part of the state and includes the cities of Alton, Carbondale and East St. Louis. Democratic incumbent Jerry Costello, who has held the seat since August 1988, ran against Republican nominee Tim Richardson and Chairman of the Metro East Green Party Rodger Jennings. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 13.

This district includes parts of the Cook, DuPage and Will counties. Republican incumbent Judy Biggert, who has held the seat since January 1999, ran against Democratic nominee Scott Harper and Green Party nominee Steve Alesch. CQ Politics initially forecast the race as 'Safe Republican', but changed the forecast to 'Republican Favored' after Harper had raised more money than the 2006 Democratic nominee for this seat by mid-July.

District 14.

This district includes the cities of Aurora, Elgin, DeKalb and Dixon, and parts of Henry, Whiteside, Lee, DeKalb, Kane, Kendall, and DuPage counties. Democratic nominee Bill Foster, who had held the seat since March 2008, won against Republican nominee Jim Oberweis, who also lost to Foster in the special election. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Leans Democratic'.  The district was previously represented by former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert from 1987 to 2007. He resigned in November 2007, and Bill Foster won the special election held on March 8, 2008.

District 15.

This district includes the cities of Charleston, Urbana, Danville and Champaign, and all or parts of Livingston, Iroquois, Ford, McLean, DeWitt, Champaign, Vermillion, Macon, Piatt, Douglas, Edgar, Moultrie, Coles, Cumberland, Clark, Crawford, Lawrence, Wabash, Edwards, White, Saline and Gallatin counties. Republican incumbent Timothy V. Johnson, who has held the seat since January 2001, won against Democratic nominee Steve Cox. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Republican'.

District 16.

This district includes the cities of Rockford, Crystal Lake, Machesney Park, Belvidere, Freeport and Galena, and all or parts of Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago, Boone, McHenry, Carroll, Ogle, DeKalb and Whiteside counties. Republican incumbent Donald A. Manzullo, who has held the seat since 1993, won against Democratic nominee Robert G. Abboud and Green Party nominee Scott K. Summers. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Republican'.

District 17.

This district includes the cities of Sterling, Rock Island, Moline, Kewanee, Galesburg, Canton, Macomb, Quincy, Springfield and Decatur, and includes all or parts of Henry, Whiteside, Rock Island, Mercer, Knox, Warren, Henderson, Fulton, McDonough, Hancock, Adams, Pike, Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Madison, Montgomery, Christian, Sangamon, Macon, Shelby, and Fayette counties. Democratic incumbent Phil Hare, who has held the seat since January 2007, ran unopposed. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 18.

This district in the central and western part of the state includes the cities of Jacksonville, Peoria and Springfield. Republican nominee Aaron Schock won against Democratic nominee Colleen Callahan and Green nominee Sheldon Schafer. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Republican Favored'.  Republican incumbent Ray LaHood, who had held the seat since 1995, decided to retire, leaving this an open seat.

District 19.

This district in the central part of Southern Illinois includes part of Springfield and the outer St. Louis suburbs. Republican incumbent John Shimkus, who has held the seat since 1997, won against Democratic nominee Daniel Davis and Green Party nominee Troy Dennis. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Republican'.

See also.

United States House of Representatives elections, 2008

The 2008 congressional elections in Illinois were held on November 4, 2008 to determine who would represent the state of Illinois in the United States House of Representatives, coinciding with the presidential and senatorial elections. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 111th Congress from January 3, 2009 until January 3, 2011.


In Bacteria.

Bacterial RNase P has two components: an RNA chain, called M1 RNA, and a polypeptide chain, or protein, called C5 protein. "In vivo", both components are necessary for the ribozyme to function properly, but "in vitro", the M1 RNA can act alone as a catalyst. The primary role of the C5 protein is to enhance the substrate binding affinity and the catalytic rate of the M1 RNA enzyme probably by increasing the metal ion affinity in the active site. The crystal structure of a bacterial RNase P holoenzyme with tRNA has been recently resolved, showing how the large, coaxially stacked helical domains of the RNase P RNA engage in shape selective recognition of the pre-tRNA target. This crystal structure confirms earlier models of substrate recognition and catalysis, identifies the location of the active site, and shows how the protein component increases RNase P functionality.

Bacterial RNase P class A and B.

Ribonuclease P (RNase P) is a ubiquitous endoribonuclease, found in archaea, bacteria and eukarya as well as chloroplasts and mitochondria. Its best characterised activity is the generation of mature 5'-ends of tRNAs by cleaving the 5'-leader elements of precursor-tRNAs. Cellular RNase Ps are ribonucleoproteins (RNP). RNA from bacterial RNase Ps retains its catalytic activity in the absence of the protein subunit, i.e. it is a ribozyme. Isolated eukaryotic and archaeal RNase P RNA has not been shown to retain its catalytic function, but is still essential for the catalytic activity of the holoenzyme. Although the archaeal and eukaryotic holoenzymes have a much greater protein content than the eubacterial ones, the RNA cores from all the three lineages are homologous—helices corresponding to P1, P2, P3, P4, and P10/11 are common to all cellular RNase P RNAs. Yet, there is considerable sequence variation, particularly among the eukaryotic RNAs.

In Archaea.

In archaea, RNase P ribonucleoproteins consist of 4-5 protein subunits that are associated with RNA. As revealed by "in vitro" reconstitution experiments these protein subunits are individually dispensable for tRNA processing that is essentially mediated by the RNA component. The structures of protein subunits of archaeal RNase P have been resolved by x-ray crystallography and NMR, thus revealing new protein domains and folding fundamental for function.  Using comparative genomics and improved computational methods, a radically minimized form of the RNase P RNA, dubbed "Type T", has been found in all complete genomes in the crenarchaeal phylogenetic family Thermoproteaceae, including species in the genera Pyrobaculum, Caldivirga and Vulcanisaeta. All retain a conventional catalytic domain, but lack a recognizable specificity domain. 5′ tRNA processing activity of the RNA alone was experimentally confirmed. The Pyrobaculum and Caldivirga RNase P RNAs are the smallest naturally occurring form yet discovered to function as trans-acting ribozymes. Loss of the specificity domain in these RNAs suggests potential altered substrate specificity.  It has recently been argued that the archaebacteriium "Nanoarchaeum equitans" does not possess RNase P. Computational and experimental studies failed to find evidence for its existence. In this organism the tRNA promoter is close to the tRNA gene and it is thought that transcription starts at the first base of the tRNA thus removing the requirement for RNase P.

In eukaryotes.

In eukaryotes, such as humans and yeast, most RNase P consists of an RNA chain that is structurally similar to that found in bacteria as well as nine to ten associated proteins (as opposed to the single bacterial RNase P protein, C5). Five of these protein subunits exhibit homology to archaeal counterparts. These protein subunits of RNase P are shared with RNase MRP, a catalytic ribonucleoprotein involved in processing of ribosomal RNA in the nucleolus. RNase P from eukaryotes was only recently demonstrated to be a ribozyme. Accordingly, the numerous protein subunits of eucaryal RNase P have a minor contribution to tRNA processing per se, while they seem to be essential for the function of RNase P and RNase MRP in other biological settings, such as gene transcription and the cell cycle. Despite the bacterial origins of mitochondria and chloroplasts, plastids from higher animals and plants do not appear to contain an RNA-based RNase P. It has been shown that human mitochondrial RNase P is a protein and does not contain RNA. Spinach chloroplast RNase P has also been shown to function without an RNA subunit.

Therapies using RNase P.

RNase P is now being studied as a potential therapy for diseases such as herpes simplex virus, cytomegalovirus, influenza and other respiratory infections, HIV-1 and cancer caused by fusion gene BCR-ABL. External guide sequences (EGSs) are formed with complementarity to viral or oncogenic mRNA and structures that mimic the T loop and acceptor stem of tRNA. These structures allow RNase P to recognize the EGS and cleave the target mRNA. EGS therapies have shown to be effective in culture and in live mice.

Ribonuclease P (, "RNase P") is a type of ribonuclease which cleaves RNA. RNase P is unique from other RNases in that it is a ribozyme – a ribonucleic acid that acts as a catalyst in the same way that a protein-based enzyme would. Its function is to cleave off an extra, or precursor, sequence of RNA on tRNA molecules. Further, RNase P is one of two known multiple turnover ribozymes in nature (the other being the ribosome), the discovery of which earned Sidney Altman and Thomas Cech the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1989: in the 1970s, Altman discovered the existence of precursor tRNA with flanking sequences and was the first to characterize RNase P and its activity in processing of the 5' leader sequence of precursor tRNA. Recent findings also reveal that RNase P has a new function. It has been shown that human nuclear RNase P is required for the normal and efficient transcription of various small noncoding RNAs, such as tRNA, 5S rRNA, SRP RNA and U6 snRNA genes, which are transcribed by RNA polymerase III, one of three major nuclear RNA polymerases in human cells.