Weight standards and denominations.

The three most important standards of the ancient Greek monetary system were the Attic standard, based on the Athenian drachma of 4.3 grams of silver, the Corinthian standard based on the stater of 8.6 grams of silver, that was subdivided into three silver drachmas of 2.9 grams, and the Aeginetan stater or didrachm of 12.2 grams, based on a drachma of 6.1 grams. The word "drachm(a)" means "a handful", literally "a grasp". Drachmae were divided into six "obols" (from the Greek word for a spit), and six spits made a "handful". This suggests that before coinage came to be used in Greece, spits in prehistoric times were used as measures in daily transactions. In archaic/pre-numismatic times iron was valued for making durable tools and weapons, and its casting in spit form may have actually represented a form of transportable bullion, which eventually became bulky and inconvenient after the adoption of precious metals. Because of this very aspect, Spartan legislation famously forbade issuance of Spartan coin, and enforced the use of iron ingots, called "pelanoi" in order to discourage avarice and the hoarding of wealth. In addition to its original meaning (which also gave the diminutive ""obelisk"", "little spit"), the word "obol" (ὀβολός, "obolós", or ὀβελός, "obelós") was retained as a Greek word for coins of small value, still used as such in Modern Greek slang (όβολα, "óvola", "monies"). The obol was further subdivided into "tetartemorioi" (singular "tetartemorion") which represented obol, or drachm. This coin (which was known to have been struck in Athens, Colophon, and several other cities) is mentioned by Aristotle as the smallest silver coin. Various multiples of this denomination were also struck, including the "trihemitetartemorion" (literally three half-tetartemorioi) valued at of an obol.

Archaic period (until about 480 BC).

The earliest known electrum coins, Lydian and East Greek coins found under the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, are currently dated to the last quarter of the 7th century BC (625–600 BC). These coins were issued either by the non-Greek Lydians for their own use or perhaps because Greek mercenaries wanted to be paid in precious metal at the conclusion of their time of service, and wanted to have their payments marked in a way that would authenticate them. These coins were made of electrum, an alloy of gold and silver that was highly prized and abundant in that area.  In the middle of the 6th century BC, King Croesus replaced the electrum coins with coins of pure gold and pure silver, called "Croeseids". The credit for inventing pure gold and silver coinage is attributed by Herodotus to the Lydians:  The Greek world was divided into more than two thousand self-governing city-states (in Greek, "poleis"), and more than half of them issued their own coins. Some coins circulated widely beyond their "polis", indicating that they were being used in inter-city trade; the first example appears to have been the silver stater or "didrachm" of Aegina that regularly turns up in hoards in Egypt and the Levant, places which were deficient in silver supply. As such coins circulated more widely, other cities began to mint coins to this "Aeginetan" weight standard of (6.1 grams to the drachm), other cities included their own symbols on the coins.  Athenian coins, however, were struck on the "Attic" standard, with a drachm equaling 4.3 grams of silver. Over time, Athens' plentiful supply of silver from the mines at Laurion and its increasing dominance in trade made this the pre-eminent standard. These coins, known as "owls" because of their central design feature, were also minted to an extremely tight standard of purity and weight. This contributed to their success as the premier trade coin of their era. Tetradrachms on this weight standard continued to be a widely used coin (often the most widely used) through the classical period. By the time of Alexander the Great and his Hellenistic successors, this large denomination was being regularly used to make large payments, or was often saved for hoarding.  Archaic Greek coinage seems to have had a very wide circulation in the Achaemenid Empire. Many of them were discovered in coin hoards throughout the Achaemenid Empire such as the Ghazzat hoard and the Apadana hoard, and also very far to the East, such as the Kabul hoard or the Pushkalavati hoard in Ancient India, following the Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley. Generally, Greek coins (both Archaic and early Classical) are comparatively very numerous in the Achaemenid coin hoards discovered in the East of the Achaemenid Empire, much more numerous than Sigloi, suggesting that the circulation of Greek coinage was central in the monetary system of those part of the Empire.

Classical period (480–323 BC).

The Classical period saw Greek coinage reach a high level of technical and aesthetic quality. Larger cities now produced a range of fine silver and gold coins, most bearing a portrait of their patron god or goddess or a legendary hero on one side, and a symbol of the city on the other. Some coins employed a visual pun: some coins from Rhodes featured a rose, since the Greek word for rose is "rhodon". The use of inscriptions on coins also began, usually the name of the issuing city.  The wealthy cities of Sicily produced some especially fine coins. The large silver "decadrachm" (10-drachm) coin from Syracuse is regarded by many collectors as the finest coin produced in the ancient world, perhaps ever. Syracusan issues were rather standard in their imprints, one side bearing the head of the nymph Arethusa and the other usually a victorious quadriga. The tyrants of Syracuse were fabulously rich, and part of their public relations policy was to fund quadrigas for the Olympic chariot race, a very expensive undertaking. As they were often able to finance more than one quadriga at a time, they were frequent victors in this highly prestigious event. Syracuse was one of the epicenters of numismatic art during the classical period. Led by the engravers Kimon and Euainetos, Syracuse produced some of the finest coin designs of antiquity.  Amongst the first centers to produce coins during the Greek colonization of mainland Southern Italy (Magna Graecia) were Paestum, Crotone, Sybaris, Caulonia, Metapontum, and Taranto. These ancient cities started producing coins from 550 BC to 510 BC.

Hellenistic period (323–31 BC).

The Hellenistic period was characterized by the spread of Greek culture across a large part of the known world. Greek-speaking kingdoms were established in Egypt and Syria, and for a time also in Iran and as far east as what is now Afghanistan and northwestern India. Greek traders spread Greek coins across this vast area, and the new kingdoms soon began to produce their own coins. Because these kingdoms were much larger and wealthier than the Greek city states of the classical period, their coins tended to be more mass-produced, as well as larger, and more frequently in gold. They often lacked the aesthetic delicacy of coins of the earlier period.  Still, some of the Greco-Bactrian coins, and those of their successors in India, the Indo-Greeks, are considered the finest examples of Greek numismatic art with "a nice blend of realism and idealization", including the largest coins to be minted in the Hellenistic world: the largest gold coin was minted by Eucratides (reigned 171–145 BC), the largest silver coin by the Indo-Greek king Amyntas Nikator (reigned c. 95–90 BC). The portraits "show a degree of individuality never matched by the often bland depictions of their royal contemporaries further West" (Roger Ling, "Greece and the Hellenistic World").  The most striking new feature of Hellenistic coins was the use of portraits of living people, namely of the kings themselves. This practice had begun in Sicily, but was disapproved of by other Greeks as showing hubris (arrogance). But the kings of Ptolemaic Egypt and Seleucid Syria had no such scruples: having already awarded themselves with "divine" status, they issued magnificent gold coins adorned with their own portraits, with the symbols of their state on the reverse. The names of the kings were frequently inscribed on the coin as well. This established a pattern for coins which has persisted ever since: a portrait of the king, usually in profile and striking a heroic pose, on the obverse, with his name beside him, and a coat of arms or other symbol of state on the reverse.  The Hellenistic period conventionally ends with the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, although a few Hellenistic rulers are known in India until the reign of the Indo-Greek King Strato III (ruled c. 25 BC to 10 AD), who issued the last Hellenistic coinage. Many Greek communities in the eastern half of the Roman empire continued to issue their own coinages, known as Roman provincial coinages or 'Greek Imperials' in older scholarship, until the third century AD.

Minting.

All Greek coins were handmade, rather than machined as modern coins are. The design for the obverse was carved (in incuso) into a block of bronze or possibly iron, called a die. The design of the reverse was carved into a similar punch. A blank disk of gold, silver, or electrum was cast in a mold and then, placed between these two and the punch struck hard with a hammer, raising the design on both sides of the coin.

Coins as a symbol of the city-state.

Coins of Greek city-states depicted a unique symbol or feature, an early form of emblem, also known as badge in numismatics, that represented their city and promoted the prestige of their state. Corinthian stater for example depicted pegasus the mythological winged stallion, tamed by their hero Bellerophon. Coins of Ephesus depicted the bee sacred to Artemis. Drachmas of Athens depicted the owl of Athena. Drachmas of Aegina depicted a chelone. Coins of Selinunte depicted a ""selinon"" (σέλινον - celery). Coins of Heraclea depicted Heracles. Coins of Gela depicted a man-headed bull, the personification of the river Gela. Coins of Rhodes depicted a ""rhodon"" (ῥόδον - rose). Coins of Knossos depicted the labyrinth or the mythical creature minotaur, a symbol of the Minoan Crete. Coins of Melos depicted a ""mēlon"" (μήλον - apple). Coins of Thebes depicted a Boeotian shield.

Ancient Greek coins today.

Collections of ancient Greek coins are held by museums around the world, of which the collections of the British Museum, the American Numismatic Society, and the Danish National Museum are considered to be the finest. The American Numismatic Society collection comprises some 100,000 ancient Greek coins from many regions and mints, from Spain and North Africa to Afghanistan. To varying degrees, these coins are available for study by academics and researchers.  There is also an active collector market for Greek coins. Several auction houses in Europe and the United States specialize in ancient coins (including Greek) and there is also a large on-line market for such coins.  Hoards of Greek coins are still being found in Europe, Middle East, and North Africa, and some of the coins in these hoards find their way onto the market. Due to the numbers in which they were produced, the durability of the metals, and the ancient practice of burying large numbers of coins to save them, coins are an ancient art within the reach of ordinary collectors.

The history of ancient Greek coinage can be divided (along with most other Greek art forms) into four periods: the Archaic, the Classical, the Hellenistic and the Roman. The Archaic period extends from the introduction of coinage to the Greek world during the 7th century BC until the Persian Wars in about 480 BC. The Classical period then began, and lasted until the conquests of Alexander the Great in about 330 BC, which began the Hellenistic period, extending until the Roman absorption of the Greek world in the 1st century BC. The Greek cities continued to produce their own coins for several more centuries under Roman rule. The coins produced during this period are called Roman provincial coins or Greek Imperial Coins.

Das erste Metallgeld der Antike wurde etwa 2000 v. Chr. im Mittelmeerraum verwendet. Es handelte sich dabei um Haustierminiaturen aus Bronze. Dass sich das Metallgeld in der Folgezeit sehr schnell verbreitete, dürfte vor allem darin begründet sein, dass die Tauschgeschäfte, die bis dahin getätigt wurden, nur sehr ungenau waren und vor allem zur Täuschung geradezu einluden. Münzen hingegen erleichterten den Handel wesentlich. Sie hatten den Vorteil, immer gleiche Größe, gleiches Gewicht und gleiches Aussehen zu besitzen und statt gewogen abgezählt werden zu können. Die ersten Münzen wurden von den Lydern im Westen der heutigen Türkei zwischen 650 und ca. 620 v. Chr. als Zahlungsmittel herausgegeben und unter König Alyattes II. aus Elektron geschlagen. Dabei handelte es sich um klumpenförmige, natürliche Elektron-Nuggets, welche das königliche Siegel trugen. Bildliche Darstellungen auf Münzen kamen um 620 v. Chr. auf. Danach folgten Münzen in Gold in verschiedenen Größen und Werten, um die Bezahlung von Söldnern zu vereinfachen. Dazu wurde Goldstaub von bestimmter Menge zu Münzen verschmolzen und mit einem Prägebild des Königs versehen. Der letzte Lyderkönig Krösus gelangte so in den Ruf, unermesslich reich zu sein. Die ersten Silbermünzen wurden um 550 v. Chr. in Kleinasien und auf der Insel Aigina geprägt. Sie trugen das Bild einer Löwen- bzw. Stierprotome (Kleinasien); auf den Münzen der griechischen Insel Aigina wurde eine Seeschildkröte abgebildet. Kurz darauf prägten auch Athen und Korinth Münzen.


Early life and career.

Born to a judicial council in Wiesbaden, Scholz graduated grammar school and pursued law as a career. He began his studies at the University of Freiburg and became a member of the Corps Suevia Freiburg, later moving to the University of Marburg. Finally, in 1895, Scholz graduated from Heidelberg University, thus completing his academic career and earning him a Doctorate in law.  In 1899, Scholz became a civil Assessor and in 1900, he became the First Secretary of the General Cooperative Association (Allgemeinen Genossenschaftsverbands) in Charlottenburg. He also travelled to Frankfurt in 1901 as a municipal assistant. Scholz was a veteran of the First World War, enlisting in the Reichswehr in 1914, getting wounded that same year and earning the position of major before retiring.  Scholz wrote about German mortgage law and the municipal taxation system in Prussia as well as authoring a legal book for cooperatives. From 1922 to 1929 he chaired the "Professional Association of Senior Municipal Officials in Germany". He began his political career in 1919, joining the German People's Party (DVP), a party he remained in until his death. After the sudden death of long-time [German People's Party|DVP] leader, Gustav Stresemann, Scholz took over as president. However, he resigned in 1930 due to health reasons, being replaced by Eduard Dingeldey, who would remain leader until the party's dissolution in 1933.  Also active in many municipal governments, Scholz was the assistant minister and treasurer in both his birthplace of Wiesbaden (from 1902 to 1909) and Düsseldorf (from 1902 to 1912). From 1912-1913 he was the lord mayor of Kassel and from 1913-1914 and 1917-1920 he was the lord mayor of Charlottenburg, being the last person to hold that position in the city, as it was later incorporated in the Berlin. As a member of the "Lord Mayor Group" (OB-Fraktion), Scholz was a member of the Prussian House of Lords from 1912 to 1918.  On June 25, 1920, Scholz assumed the position of Reich Minister of Economics in the Fehrenbach cabinet until May 10, 1921. Scholz was then elected to the Reichstag in the East Prussia constituency (constituency 1) on March 7, 1921, where he remained until 1930. He retired from the Reichstag in 1930, presumably due to health reasons; this signalled the end of his political career and his life, he died at 58 the capital, Berlin.

Ernst Scholz (3 May 1874 – 26 June 1932) was a lawyer as well a politician in the Weimar Republic. He was chairman of the German People's Party (DVP) proceeding the death of Gustav Stresemann and a member of the Reichstag from 1921 to 1930.

Ernst August Gustav Scholz (* 3. Mai 1874 in Wiesbaden; † 26. Juni 1932 in Berlin) war ein deutscher Jurist in der Kommunalverwaltung. In der Weimarer Republik war er Mitglied des Reichstags.


History.

Serco was founded in 1929 as RCA Services Limited, a United Kingdom division of the Radio Corporation of America and initially provided services to the cinema industry. Following the takeover of RCA by General Electric in late 1985, RCA Services Limited was bought out by its local management. It changed its name to Serco in 1987 and has been a London Stock Exchange listed company since 1988.  On 29 December 2008, Serco acquired SI International.  In November 2014 its share price, which stood at 674p before the taxpayer scandal broke in 2013 collapsed to 218.7p, after four profit warnings. The new chief executive Rupert Soames sold off "scores of divisions". He said the company was suffering from ministers’ improved ability at driving a bargain, and claimed that “the Government has got much more adept at writing contracts and transferring risk to the private sector”. On 17 November 2014, it was announced that Alastair Lyons would resign from his position as chairman of Serco. Lyons referred to “operational mis-steps” for which he took “ultimate responsibility”, but said he had not been forced out. Serco made a loss of £991 million in 2014, reducing to a loss of £69.4 million in 2015.  Sir Roy Gardner was appointed as Non-Executive Chairman on 28 May 2015: he is also a senior adviser to Credit Suisse Group AG. In September 2017, Serco announced that it would be combining its UK and Europe operations.

UK operations.

Border security.

Serco operates the National Border Targeting Centre for UK Visas and Immigration and provides the carrier gateway—the interface between carriers and the agency.

Work and pensions.

Serco is contracted to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to provide telephone advice on behalf of DWP to recipients of Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI), which ends in April 2018.

Transport.

In London, Serco operates the London Cycle Hire Scheme for Transport for London and operated the Docklands Light Railway from 1997 until 2014.  Serco has operated a number of train operating companies. It has a 50% shareholding in Serco-Abellio that has a concession to operate the Merseyrail franchise in Liverpool until 2028, and previously operated the Northern Rail franchise from December 2004 until March 2016. Serco has a contract in its own right to operate the Caledonian Sleeper between London and Scotland until 2030.  In 1997 Serco purchased the Railtest business as part of the privatisation of British Rail. Included in the sale was a management contract for the Old Dalby Test Track. From 1997 until 2004, Serco operated the National Rail Enquiry Service under contract to the Association of Train Operating Companies. It maintains Network Rail's fleet of infrastructure and maintenance trains at the Railway Technical Centre.  In Scotland, Serco has operated the NorthLink Ferries ferry service since July 2012. In September 2018 it commenced operating a bicycle-sharing system under contract to Transport for Edinburgh.  Serco's Home Affairs division operates speed camera systems throughout the UK and, until November 2013, designed, wrote and tested the software that controls the matrix message signs, signals, emergency roadside telephones (SOS) and traffic monitoring on England's motorway network including, until 2011, the National Traffic Control Centre.

Science.

Serco managed the UK's National Physical Laboratory until 2015 and also provides IT Services, Industrial Support and Cryogenic Operations Support and Maintenance at CERN. Serco also was part of a consortium running the National Nuclear Laboratory under contract, until October 2013.

Prisons and justice.

In Britain Serco supplies electronic tagging devices for offenders and asylum seekers. Serco, as well as its rival G4S, was accused of overcharging the Ministry of Justice on its contract to tag offenders. The firm issued a profit warning for 2014 as a result of the costs of becoming embroiled in an electronic tagging scandal. Serco repaid £68.5 million to the government for its overcharging on the contract. In May 2014 a Survation poll for campaign group We Own It, found that 63% of respondents thought Serco should be banned from bidding for any new public contracts after the firm was investigated for overcharging on government contracts.  It runs four prisons, a Young Offenders Institution and a Secure Training Centre. It has also operated two Immigration Removal Centres since 2007. Serco is also responsible for the contracted-out court escort services in the south-east area (formerly a role undertaken by HM Prison Service).  In September 2013, Serco was accused of extensive sexual abuse coverups of immigrants at Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre prison in Bedfordshire, England In August 2014, Serco was criticised for using immigrant detainees as cheap labour, with some being paid as little as £1 per hour. The decision to give the firm a new £70 million eight-year contract to run Yarl's Wood has been criticised. Natasha Walter, of Women for Refugee Women, said "Serco is clearly unfit to manage a centre where vulnerable women are held and it is unacceptable the government continues to entrust Serco with the safety of women who are survivors of sexual violence."  A fine of £19.2m was imposed on Serco following the delayed legal action that began in 2013, for practicing fraudulent accounting of electronic tagging service for the Ministry of Justice. Serco was also ordered to pay the full amount of the Serious Fraud Office's investigative costs (£3.7m). In his judgment, Mr Justice Davis said: “SGL (Serco Geografix Ltd) engaged in quite deliberate fraud against the Ministry of Justice in relation to the provision of services vital to the criminal justice system."

Housing.

In Glasgow, in August 2018, it was disclosed that Serco had been planning to evict asylum seekers before their appeal procedure was completed. Lawyers questioned whether this was legal under Scottish law. Two asylum seekers started hunger striking. Serco confirmed that it was serving a notice of eviction on many tenants causing alarm and lawyers challenged one asylum seeker's eviction at the Scottish Court of Session. Councillor Jennifer Layden, equalities and human rights convener for Glasgow, said, "The lock change announcement by the Home Office and Serco has caused widespread fear and alarm among asylum seekers in Glasgow. There is confusion and panic among the community – some of whom have limited English and who may not be affected by Serco’s announcement. Both Serco and the Home Office have a responsibility to put this vulnerable group at ease".  In January 2019, it was reported that Serco had lost the contract to provide housing to asylum seekers in Glasgow.  A Freedom of Information request by the Scottish Refugee Council showed that Serco had been charged nearly £3m by the Home Office for repeatedly breaching its contract to house asylum seekers in Glasgow and Northern Ireland.

Defence.

Serco held defence contracts in 2004, including the UK Government's contract for the maintenance of the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System at RAF Fylingdales; contracts are also held for the operation and maintenance of RAF Brize Norton, RAF Halton, RAF Northolt and RNAS Culdrose in the UK and RAF Ascension Island in the mid-Atlantic. Serco also provides support services to garrisons in Australia. Serco also manages many aspects of operations at the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom in Shrivenham. Serco is one of three partners in the consortium which manages the Atomic Weapons Establishment. Serco also has a 15-year contract worth £400 million to provide facilities management services to the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl).  "Serco Marine Services" is responsible for fleet support at the three main UK naval bases, HMNB Portsmouth, HMNB Devonport and HMNB Clyde.

Aviation.

Serco provides air traffic control services at international airports in the United Arab Emirates and at some smaller airports in the United States and Canada. Starting in 2004 Serco had a £5m a year contract from the US government to manage airports in Iraq for 18 months. Serco also operate Scatsta Airport in Shetland. In June 2010 Serco signed a £4 million contract to operate all air traffic control services for Coventry Airport.

Health.

Serco provide facilities management services at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Wishaw General Hospital and at Plymouth's Derriford Hospital.  The company had the contract for out-of-hours GP services in Cornwall from which it withdrew in December 2013 after the company left the county short of doctors. The company also said it would stop running Braintree hospital in Essex as it pulled out of managing GP services and large hospitals.  In health services, Serco's failures include the poor handling of pathology labs and fatal errors in patient records. At St Thomas' Hospital, the increase in the number of clinical incidents arising from Serco non-clinical management has resulted in patients receiving incorrect and infected blood, as well as patients suffering kidney damage due to Serco providing incorrect data used for medical calculations. A Serco employee later revealed that the company had falsified 252 reports to the National Health Service regarding Serco health services in Cornwall.  It emerged in November 2013, Serco, which won a contract for Suffolk Community Healthcare in 2012, had 72 vacancies after earlier cutting 137 posts. Problems identified by Ipswich and East Suffolk Clinical Commissioning Group include “staff capacity, skill mix, workload, succession planning and morale, training, communication, mobile working, care co-ordination centre processes, incidents and near miss incidents”.  In April 2014 Serco revealed that it would lose almost £18 million on three of its NHS contracts. The firm has made provisions for losses in its Braintree and Cornwall contracts, which were cancelled early. It has also made provisions for losses in its contract for services in Suffolk. The company claims it will take longer to deliver the operational efficiencies it hoped for, despite saying in May 2013 that it expected to make a profit on the three-year, £140 million contract for community services. It said that staff had not recorded activity accurately on the Electronic health record and that activity had increased significantly during the course of the contract.  In August 2014 it was reported that the company had decided to withdraw from the clinical health services market in the UK after a review of the cost of delivering “improved service levels” and meeting the performance requirements of several existing contracts.  On 24 October 2017, it was reported that Serco was preparing to buy healthcare contracts from facilities management business Carillion. The deal included 15 contracts, with annual revenues of approximately £90m, for which Serco would pay £47.7m, with Carillion losing £1bn from the value of its order book.  In May 2020, Serco accidentally shared the personal email addresses of nearly 300 trainee COVID-19 contact tracers.

Education.

Serco held a ten-year contract with Bradford City Council between 2001 and 2011 to manage and operate the local education authority, providing education support services to the city's schools. This period was marked with "real problems" according to senior council officials and was taken back in house by the local authority after this period. Serco similarly manages and operates Walsall and Stoke-on-Trent local education authorities. Serco is one of Ofsted's three Regional Inspection Service Providers, responsible for school inspections in the English Midlands.

Leisure.

Serco Leisure Operating Ltd works with clients throughout the UK, running gyms, swimming pools, cycle hire schemes and National Sports Centres.

Information technology.

Serco administered the publicly funded UK Business Link website from 2005 until its closure in 2012. It won a five-year tender in 2007 to run the IT Infrastructure for the London Borough of Southwark.

Waste and recycling services.

Serco also operates recycling and waste collection services for local councils.

Outside the UK.

Drivers' licensing.

Serco, through a purpose-made division Serco DES, holds a ten-year, $114 million contract with the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario to operate the Ontario's DriveTest driver examination centres. These tests include vision, road, and knowledge tests for all persons seeking to become a licensed automobile driver in the province.

Parking meter servicing.

Serco has a contract with the City of Chicago, Illinois, to enforce parking meter regulations.

Health in the United States.

In July 2013 Serco was awarded a $1.25 billion contract to manage the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which makes Serco one of the most highly paid government contractors in the US.

Patent classification.

Serco does the classification for all incoming US patents.

Prisons and justice.

Serco runs partly privatised Hünfeld Prison in Hesse, Germany.  In Australia, Serco runs Acacia Prison in Western Australia and Borallon Correctional Facility in Queensland as well as the national contract for immigration detention centres, including Christmas Island and the Villawood detention centre in Sydney. Serco also looks after the Adelaide remand centre in South Australia.  The Union of Christmas Island Workers highlighted the systemic failure by Serco to manage the Christmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing Centre. The centre detains a large number of refugees including 1,000 children. Under Serco, there has been an increase of deaths in custody, self-harm, and of Serco staff beating prisoners. As well, there has been a deterioration of facilities leading to the decline of the physical and the mental health of detainees and of staff. Ombudsman Allan Asher said on the Australian radio show AM, "In the first week of June when I visited Christmas Island, more than 30 incidents of self-harm by detainees held there were reported". Serco, in a staged memo leaked to The Australian, blamed the detainees for "creating a culture of self-harm", in order to use it as a "bargaining tool". The former manager of the Serco run detention centre stated the centre was grossly understaffed whereby it was "typically 15 staff members short every day".  In Auckland, New Zealand, Serco operated the Mount Eden remand prison and in March 2012 was awarded a contract to build and operate a 960-bed prison at Wiri. Serco was heavily criticized for the existence of 'fight clubs' within Mount Eden prison that were not investigated until after they became public knowledge on 16 July 2015 when footage emerged online and was reported by TVNZ. On 24 July 2015, Serco's contract to run the Mount Eden prison was revoked and operation was given back to the New Zealand Department of Corrections. Serco was ordered to pay $8 million to the New Zealand government as a result of problems at Mount Eden Prison while it was under Serco's management. The New Zealand government did not accept that this was a failure of governmental contracting and oversight. It brought in correctional officers from afar to provide adequate staffing at Mount Eden, and by December 2016 had spent NZ$2 million housing up to 40 of them in Auckland hotels.

Transport.

Australia.

From 1996 until 2005, Serco operated TransAdelaide bus services in Adelaide. In November 1995 Serco commenced a contract to provide transport information services for Transperth and in May 1996, a contract to maintain all of its bus stations.  From 1997 until 2015, Serco owned Great Southern Rail that operated "The Ghan, Indian Pacific" and "The Overland" passenger trains. In March 2015, the business was sold to Allegro Funds.  In Sydney, Serco has operated transport information services for Transport for NSW since 1 July 2010.

Denmark.

Serco formerly operated the Copenhagen Metro in Copenhagen, Denmark, with Ansaldo STS, until it sold its share with effect on 1 January 2008.

Hong Kong.

Hong Kong's Cross-Harbour Tunnel operations has been contracted out to Serco since 2010.

Middle East.

Serco operates the Dubai Metro, the Dubai Tram and the Palm Jumeirah Monorail in Dubai.

Sweden.

Serco secured an eight-year contract in 2013 with its Swedish joint venture partner Strömma Tourism & Maritime to operate four Djurgården ferries on behalf of Stockholm County Council and public ferry company Waxholms Ångfartygs.

Offshore holdings in Mauritius.

The 2017 Paradise Papers revealed that Appleby carried out a risk assessment of Serco and noted it had a "history of problems, failures, fatal errors and overcharging" and had faced allegations of fraud and cover-ups.

Serco Group plc is a British provider of public services with headquarters based in Hook, England. Serco operates in six sectors of public service provision: Health, Transport, Justice, Immigration, Defence, and Citizens Services.

Serco Group plc ist ein an der London Stock Exchange notiertes britisches Dienstleistungsunternehmen. Serco war bis 2013 im FTSE 100 Index gelistet, musste diesen jedoch im September 2013 nach einem Kapitalrückgang verlassen. Sein Hauptsitz befindet sich im Londoner Stadtteil Richmond upon Thames.


History.

The history of Corvera is linked to the history of Avilés, being a natural extension of it proceeding inland.  Several prehistorical settlements have been found in the county. The most interesting are those belonging to the Astures. They left their traces in two "castros" (fortified villages) that have not been excavated yet: Pico Castiello in Molleda and Castiellu in Camina, Solís. These "castros" were most probably used by the Romans, and we have some traces of their presence there, some of them so important as the Estela Antropomorfa de Molleda (human-shaped figure), nowadays can be seen in the Archaeological Museum of Asturias.In the 10th century the villages of the county of Aviles became together to form an only geographical entity known as the "Alfoz de Gauzzone"; but it is not until the year 1120 that we find the first written references to the county of Corvera in the Liber Testamentorum. In the 15th century, Corvera already appears as a county, independent of Aviles.  In the 19th century, the landscape of the area was mainly agricultural. The population centres were villages with a certain prestige in which we can still see palaces and Indiano houses. In the mid 20th century the iron and steel industry starts functioning in Avilés and the old rural centres begin to shelter the thousands of immigrants working for ENSIDESA (current Arcelor modifying the aspect of the county, due to the building of new districts near the factories, such as Tresona and Les Vegues.

Parishes.

The area of Corvera comprises seven parishes (administrative divisions):

Corvera de Asturias (Asturian: "Corvera") is a municipality in the principality of Asturias in northern Spain. It shares a boundary to the north with Avilés and Gozón; to the east with Carreño and Gijón; to the south with Llanera and Illas and to the west with Castrillón. Its capital, Nubledo, has a population of more than 300 residents.

Corvera ist ein "concejo" (dt. "Rat", entspricht einer Gemeinde, s. Municipio) der spanischen Autonomen Region Asturien. Corvera grenzt im Norden an Avilés und Gozón, im Osten an Carreño und Gijón, im Süden an Llanera und Illas und im Westen an Castrillón.


History.

Greater Khorasan has witnessed the rise and fall of many dynasties and governments in its territory throughout history. Various tribes of the Arabs, Turks, Kurds, Mongols, Turkemen and Afghans brought changes to the region time and time again.  Ancient geographers of Iran divided Iran ("Iran-Shahr") into eight segments of which the most flourishing and largest was the territory of Greater Khorasan. Esfarayen, among other cities of the province, was one of the focal points for residence of the Aryan tribes after entering Iran.  The Parthian empire was based near Merv in Khorasan for many years. In Parthians times, Esfarayen was one of the important villages of Nishapur.  During the Sassanid dynasty the province was governed by a "Spahbod" (Lieutenant General) called "Padgoosban" and four margraves, each commander of one of the four parts of the province.  Khorasan was divided into four parts during the Muslim conquest of Persia, each section being named after the four largest cities, Nishapur, Merv, Herat, and Balkh.  In the year 651, the army of Islamic Arabs invaded Khorasan. The territory remained in the hands of the Abbasid clan until 820, followed by the rule of the Iranian Taherid clan in the year 896 and the Samanid dynasty in 900.  Mahmud of Ghazni conquered Khorasan in 994 and in the year 1037 Toghrül, the first of the Seljuq empire rulers conquered Nishapur.  Mahmud of Ghazni retaliated against the invaders several times, and finally the Ghaznavids defeated Sultan Sanjar. But there was more to come, as in 1157 Khorasan was conquered by the Khwarazmids and because of simultaneous attacks by the Mongols, Khorasan was annexed to the territories of the Mongol Ilkhanate.  In the 14th century, a flag of independence was hoisted by the Sarbedaran movement in Sabzevar, and in 1468, Khorasan came into the hands of Tamerlane and the city of Herat was declared as capital.  In 1507, Khorasan was occupied by Uzbek tribes. After the death of Nader Shah in 1747, parts of it were occupied by the Afghans for a short period.  In these periods, Birjand was a small part of Quhistan which almost encompasses the borders of today South Khorasan. The main cities of Quhistan were Toon (now Ferdows) and Qaen. Birjand grew in recent centuries, especially during the Qajar dynasty and found its important role in this region.  This region was a place of refuge for some movements like the Ismaili, and was the target of Arab refugees who escaped from the tyranny of the Abbasid caliphate. Zoroastrian vestiges also exist in the area.  During the Qajar period, Britain supported the Afghans to protect their East India Company. Herat was thus separated from Persia, and Nasser-al-Din Shah was unable to defeat the British to take back Herat. Finally, the "Paris Treaty" was concluded in 1903 and Iran was compelled not to challenge the British for Herat and other parts of what is today Afghanistan.  Finally Khorasan was divided into two parts: the eastern part, which was the most densely populated region came under British occupation, and the other western section remained part of Iran.  Khorasan was the largest province of Iran until it was divided into three provinces on September 29, 2004. The provinces approved by the parliament of Iran (on May 18, 2004) and the Council of Guardians (on May 29, 2004) were Razavi Khorasan, North Khorasan, and South Khorasan.

South Khorasan today.

The major ethnic groups in this region are the Persians, as well as sizeable ethnic Baloch and Pashtun populations. South Khorasan is known for its famous rugs as well as its saffron, barberry which are produced in almost all parts of the province.

Attractions.

South Khorasan has many historical and natural attractions, but besides these, South Khorasan encompasses various religious buildings and places of pilgrimage as well.  The Cultural Heritage of Iran lists 1179 sites of historical and cultural significance in all three provinces of Khorasan.  Some of the popular attractions of South Khorasan are:

South Khorasan Province ( "Ostān-e Khorāsān-e Jonūbī" ) is a province located in eastern Iran. Birjand is the centre of the province. The other major cities are Ferdows, Tabas and Qaen. In 2014, it was placed in Region 5.

Süd-Chorasan (), ehemals "Ghahestan"/"Kuhestan" („Bergland“)/Birdschand ist eine iranische Provinz in der Region Chorasan. Die Hauptstadt ist Birdschand. In der Provinz leben 768.898 Menschen (Volkszählung 2016). Die Fläche der Provinz erstreckt sich auf 151.913 Quadratkilometer. Die Bevölkerungsdichte beträgt 5 Einwohner pro Quadratkilometer.


Early life.

Harris was born in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, the daughter of Enid Maude Frances (née Campion) and Stafford Berkely Harris. One of her grandmothers was from the German enclave in Kronstadt, Transylvania in the Austrian Empire. Her father was in the Royal Air Force and as a result, Harris' family lived in India during her childhood. She attended convent schools, and later studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1951 to 1952.

Career.

Early in her acting career, she gained experience in English repertory theatre. In 1948, she acted in "Kiss and Tell" at Eastbourne with Tilsa Page and John Clark and later with Anthony Cundell's company at Penzance, where she played the mother in "Black Chiffon". She went from Penzance to train at RADA. She first appeared in New York in 1951 in Moss Hart's "Climate of Eden", and then returned to Britain for her West End debut in "The Seven Year Itch" which ran for a year at the Aldwich.  Harris then entered a classical acting period in productions with the Bristol Old Vic and then the Old Vic, appearing at the latter as Ophelia in the National Theatre Company's opening production of "Hamlet" in October 1963, alongside Peter O'Toole in the title role. Writing in UK newspaper "The Guardian" in 2003 as part of a series on landmark theatre productions, playwright Samantha Ellis noted of the National Theatre's opening night:  Her first film followed, "Beau Brummell" (1954) with Stewart Granger and Elizabeth Taylor, and then a touring season with the Old Vic brought her back to Broadway in Tyrone Guthrie's production of "Troilus and Cressida". She met Ellis Rabb who had plans to start his own producing company on Broadway. By 1959, the "Association of Producing Artist" (APA) was established, and she and Rabb were married on 4 December of that year.  In 1962, she returned to Britain and Chichester Festival Theatre during its opening season when the director was Laurence Olivier; she appeared as Elena in Olivier's celebrated 1962–63 Chichester production of "Uncle Vanya". In 1964, she was Ophelia to Peter O'Toole's "Hamlet" in the inaugural production of the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain.  Returning to New York, she worked further with the APA, and then was cast as Eleanor of Aquitaine in "The Lion in Winter", a performance that garnered her a Tony Award in 1966. Rabb directed her one last time as Natasha in "War and Peace" in 1967, the same year they agreed to divorce. A little while later, Harris married the American writer John Ehle. They settled in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where their daughter, Jennifer, was born in 1969. Jennifer Ehle followed in her mother's footsteps by becoming a noted film, television and Broadway actress.  In 1974, Harris starred in the BBC TV serial "Notorious Woman", which aired on PBS in the US as part of Masterpiece Theatre. For this role, she won the 1976 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series. She won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – TV Drama for the 1978 NBC miniseries "Holocaust", which also starred Meryl Streep. Reviewing the BBC's 1983 production of "To the Lighthouse", an adaptation of Virginia Woolf's novel of the same name, "The New York Times"' John J. O'Connor wrote: "A luminous, flawless performance by Miss Harris makes Mrs. Ramsay as memorable on film as she is on the printed page." She received a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for the 1994 film "Tom & Viv". Harris and her daughter Ehle, played the young and elderly incarnations, respectively, of the same character in István Szabó's 1999 film "Sunshine", about a Hungarian Jewish family. They had previously played the young and old Calypso in the Channel 4 production of "The Camomile Lawn" (1992).  Harris appeared in the rotating cast of the Off-Broadway staged reading of "Wit & Wisdom". In 2007, she received the North Carolina Award for fine arts. Her husband, John Ehle, won the same award in 1972 for literature.  In 2002, she appeared as Aunt May Parker in the first film adaptation of "Spider-Man", reprising the role in the sequels "Spider-Man 2" (2004) and "Spider-Man 3" (2007).  On 11 September 2018, a week before her 91st birthday, Harris took over the role of Mrs Higgins in the Broadway revival of "My Fair Lady" from Diana Rigg.

Awards and nominations.

Film accolades.

Academy Award BAFTA Awards Gotham Awards Critics Choice Film Awards National Board of Review

Television accolades.

Primetime Emmy Award Golden Globe Awards

Theatre accolades.

Tony Awards Drama Desk Award Laurence Olivier Award Obie Award

Rosemary Ann Harris (born 19 September 1927) is an English actress. She is a 1986 American Theater Hall of Fame inductee.

Rosemary Ann Harris (* 19. September 1927 in Ashby, Suffolk, England) ist eine britische Schauspielerin. Neben einer erfolgreichen, sieben Jahrzehnte währenden Bühnenkarriere trat sie seit Anfang der 1950er Jahre in über 50 Film- und Fernsehrollen in Erscheinung. Für ihre Theaterarbeit erhielt sie unter anderem einen Tony Award, ihre Darstellungen in Film und Fernsehen brachten ihr einen Emmy, einen Golden Globe Award sowie eine Oscar-Nominierung ein.


Taxonomy.

The shearwaters form part of the family Procellariidae, a widespread group containing nearly 100 species of medium to large seabirds. They have long, narrow wings and the characteristic “tube nose”. The large genus "Puffinus" includes several species formerly considered to be subspecies of the Manx shearwater, including the yelkouan shearwater, Balearic shearwater, Hutton's shearwater, black-vented shearwater, fluttering shearwater, Townsend's shearwater and the Hawaiian shearwater. Of these, the Hawaiian and possibly Townsend's shearwaters seem to be most closely related to the Manx shearwater.  Three extinct species appear to be closely related to the Manx shearwater, the lava shearwater, the dune shearwater and Scarlett's shearwater. DNA recovered from the lava shearwater of the Canary Islands suggests that it is the Manx shearwater's sister species despite being significantly smaller.  The Manx shearwater was first described by Danish zoologist Morten Thrane Brünnich as "Procellaria puffinus" in 1764. The current scientific name "Puffinus" derives from "puffin" and its variants, such as poffin, pophyn, and puffing, which referred to the cured carcass of the fat nestling of the shearwater, a former delicacy. The original usage dates from at least 1337, but from as early as 1678, the term gradually came to be used for another seabird, the Atlantic puffin. The current English name was first recorded in 1835 and refers to the former nesting of this species on the Isle of Man.

Description.

The Manx shearwater is with a wingspan and weighs. It has the typically "shearing" flight of the genus, dipping from side to side on stiff wings with few wingbeats, the wingtips almost touching the water. This bird looks like a flying cross, with its wings held at right angles to the body, and it changes from black to white as the black upper parts and white under sides are alternately exposed as it travels low over the sea.

Voice.

This shearwater is mainly silent at sea, even when birds are gathered off the breeding colonies. It calls on its nocturnal visits to the nesting burrows in flight, on the ground, and in the burrows, although moonlight depresses the amount of calling. The vocalisations largely consists of a raucous series of croons, howls, and screams, typically in groups of a few syllables, which become weaker and throatier. The male has some clear ringing and shrieking tones absent from the harsher repertoire of the female, the difference being obvious when a pair duets. Females can recognise the voice of their mates, but not of their young. They do not provide postnesting care, and a chick in their burrow is likely their own, so voice identification is not needed.

Vision.

The vision of the Manx shearwater has a number of adaptations to its way of life. Like other tube-nosed seabirds, it has a long, narrow area of visual sensitivity containing the fovea across the retina of the eye. This region is characterised by the presence of ganglion cells that are regularly arrayed and larger than those found in the rest of the retina. This feature helps in the detection of items in a small area projecting below and around the bill. It may assist in the detection of prey near the sea surface as a bird flies low over it.  Since it visits its breeding colony at night, a shearwater has adaptations for nocturnal vision, too. In the shearwater's eyes, the lens does most of the bending of light necessary to produce a focused image on the retina. The cornea, the outer covering of the eye, is relative flat, so of low refractive power. In a diurnal bird like a pigeon, the reverse is true; the cornea is highly curved and is the principal refractive component. The ratio of refraction by the lens to that by the cornea is 1.6 for the shearwater and 0.4 for the pigeon. The shorter focal length of shearwater eyes give them a smaller, but brighter, image than is the case for pigeons. Although the Manx shearwater has adaptations for night vision, the effect is small, and these birds likely also use smell and hearing to locate their nests.

Distribution and habitat.

The Manx shearwater is entirely marine, typically flying within of the sea surface. It nests in burrows on small islands, which it visits only at night. Its nesting colonies are in the north Atlantic Ocean in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, France, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Azores, Canary Islands, and Madeira. The most important colonies, with a total of more than 300,000 pairs, are on islands off Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Three-quarters of the British and Irish birds breed on just three islands; Skomer, Skokholm, and Rùm. Around 7000–9000 pairs breed in Iceland, with at least 15,000 pairs on the Faeroes. Other populations are of at most a few hundred pairs. The northeast of North America has recently been colonised from Newfoundland and Labrador to Massachusetts; although breeding was first recorded in 1973, populations remain small. Records in the northeast Pacific are increasing, and breeding has been suspected in British Columbia and Alaska.  During the breeding season birds regularly commute between their colony and offshore feeding grounds that can be up to 1,500 km away. For example, adult Manx shearwaters rearing their chick on the west coast of Ireland have been observed to travel all the way to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge to feed when the conditions are right.  The breeding colonies are deserted from July to March, when the birds migrate to the South Atlantic, wintering mainly off Brazil and Argentina, with smaller numbers off southwest South Africa. The journey south can be over, so a 50-year-old bird has probably covered over a million km (600,000 mi) on migration alone. The migration also appears to be quite complex, containing many stopovers and foraging zones throughout the Atlantic Ocean. Ornithologist Chris Mead estimated that a bird ringed in 1957 when aged about 5 years and still breeding on Bardsey Island off Wales in April 2002 had flown over 8 million km (5 million mi) in total during its 50-year life.  Manx shearwaters are able to fly directly back to their burrows when released hundreds of kilometres away, even inland.

Behaviour.

Manx shearwaters are long-lived birds. A Manx shearwater breeding on Copeland Island, Northern Ireland, was as of 2003/04, the oldest known living wild bird in the world: ringed as an adult (at least 5 years old) in July 1953, it was retrapped in July 2003, at least 55 years old.  This is a gregarious species, which can be seen in large numbers from boats or headlands, especially on migration in autumn. It is silent at sea, but at night, the breeding colonies are alive with raucous cackling calls.

Breeding.

Although shearwaters return to the breeding colonies from March onwards, the females often then leave again for 2–3 weeks before egg-laying in early May. Males return to the colonies in which they were hatched, but up to half of females may move elsewhere. The nest is a burrow, often previously excavated by a European rabbit, although shearwaters can dig their own holes. Suitable holes under rocks may also be used. The burrows may be reused in subsequent years.  The single white egg averages and weighs, of which 7% is shell.

Food and feeding.

The Manx shearwater feeds on small fish (herrings, sprats, and sand eels), crustaceans, cephalopods, and surface offal. The bird catches food off the surface or by pursuit diving, and forages alone or in small flocks. It can be attracted by feeding cetaceans, but rarely follows boats or associates with other shearwater species.  Tube-nosed seabirds can detect food items at a distance of several tens of kilometres using their sense of smell to detect offal and compounds such as dimethyl sulfoxide produced when phytoplankton is consumed by krill. They track across the wind until they find a scent and then follow it upwind to its origin.

Rafting.

Manx shearwaters engage in a behaviour termed "rafting", where birds sit, often in large groups of more than 10,000, on the water adjacent to their Skomer Island, breeding colony before and after visiting their chicks. Rafts move closer to the island during the night and further away in the morning which produces a "halo" effect - where no birds are found close to the island during daylight. These day-night cycles of rafting distributions are prominent for Manx shearwaters around Skomer Island and might provide a way of waiting for dusk that reduces predation risk.

Predators and parasites.

Because of their lack of mobility on land, Manx shearwaters are vulnerable to attack by large gulls, such as the great black-backed gull, and great skua. Birds of prey such as the peregrine falcon and golden eagle are also recorded as killing adult birds.  Rats and cats are a serious problem where they are present; the large shearwater colony on the Calf of Man was destroyed by rats that arrived from a shipwreck in the late 18th century. European hedgehogs eat the eggs of nesting seabirds where they have been introduced. Red deer have been recorded killing and eating young shearwaters on at least Foula, Skokholm, and Rùm; on the latter island, 4% of the chicks are killed by deer, and sheep have also been involved. The reason for the carnivorous behaviour is thought to be a need for extra calcium.  Manx shearwaters frequently carry feather lice (Mallophaga) most of which are either the feather-eaters in the groups Ischnocera, or Amblycera, which also consume blood. The most common are the ischnocerans "Halipeurus diversus" and "Trabeculus aviator". The nests of breeding birds frequently contain the shearwater flea; "Ornithopsylla laetitiae" is also commonly present, which shares a common ancestry with North American rabbit fleas. Where their burrows are near those of Atlantic puffins, the tick "Ixodes uriae" is common. The mite "Neotrombicula autumnalis" is often present, and has been implicated in spreading puffinosis. Puffinosis is a viral disease of in which young birds get blisters on their feet, conjunctivitis, and problems with movement. The death rate can reach 70% in infected birds. Internal parasites include the tapeworm "Tetrabothrius cylindricus".

Status.

The European population of the Manx shearwater has been estimated at 350,000–390,000 breeding pairs or 1,050,000–1,700,000 individual birds, and makes up 95% of the world total numbers. Although this species' population now appears to be declining, the decrease is not rapid or large enough to trigger conservation vulnerability criteria. Given its high numbers, this shearwater is therefore classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being of least concern.  In the north of its range, numbers are stable and the range is expanding, but human activities are affecting populations in the Macaronesian islands in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. These include birds stranded when dazzled by artificial lighting. As with other shearwaters and petrels, newly fledged Manx shearwaters are susceptible to grounding in built-up areas due to artificial light. The moon cycle and strong onshore winds largely influence grounding events in west Scotland, and visibility conditions to a lesser extent. Around 1000–5000 chicks a year are legally taken for food in the Faroes. Introduced mammals are a problem, although populations can recover when rats and cats are removed from islands. Rabbits may try to occupy burrows, but also dig new tunnels.

In culture.

The large chicks of the Manx shearwater are very rich in oil from their fish diet and have been eaten since prehistoric times. They are easily extricated from their burrows, and the annual crop from the Calf of Man may have been as high as 10,000 birds per year in the 17th century. The young birds were also eaten in Ireland, Scotland, and the Scottish islands.  The eerie, nocturnal cries of nesting shearwaters and petrels has led to associations with the supernatural. The breeding colonies at Trollaval on Rùm and Trøllanes and Trøllhøvdi in the Faroe Islands are believed to have acquired their troll associations from the night-time clamour.

The Manx shearwater ("Puffinus puffinus") is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx shearwaters were called Manks puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an Anglo-Norman word (Middle English "pophyn") for the cured carcasses of nestling shearwaters. The Atlantic puffin acquired the name much later, possibly because of its similar nesting habits.

Der Atlantiksturmtaucher ("Puffinus puffinus") ist eine Vogelart aus der Familie der Sturmvögel (Procellariidae), deren Brutplätze an Inseln und Küsten des nördlichen Atlantiks liegen. Nach der Brutzeit ziehen die Vögel in den südlichen Atlantik und überwintern auf dem offenen Meer vor der Küste Brasiliens und Argentiniens. Die Art nistet in Erdhöhlen, ist an den Nistplätzen nachtaktiv und fällt durch ihre unheimlich wirkenden, heiser krähenden und gackernden Laute auf. Während der eine Partner brütet, unternimmt der andere Partner hunderte Kilometer weite, oft bis zu zwei Tage dauernde Nahrungsflüge. Die Nahrung besteht vorwiegend aus kleinen Schwarmfischen, gelegentlich aber auch kleinen Tintenfischen oder Krebsen.


Club career.

Anderlecht.

Born in Uccle, Brussels, Kompany started his career at Anderlecht at the age of 17, winning several awards including the Belgian Golden Shoe and the Belgian Ebony Shoe. Although several top European sides immediately showed interest, the player and his entourage decided to first develop a few more years at Anderlecht. "Don't you worry, I will stay here," he told Berend Scholten at UEFA.com. "At the moment the zeros in my contract are not so important. If I wanted to leave, I would have been gone already."

Hamburg.

On 9 June 2006, however, it was announced that Kompany had been acquired by Hamburger SV for a fee of €10 million, as a replacement for fellow Belgian Daniel Van Buyten. In his debut season for Hamburg, he managed only six Bundesliga starts for the club before suffering an achilles injury in November that ruled him out for the rest of the season. Despite his lack of involvement in the season, he was selected in a 30-man provisional squad for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship.

Manchester City.

2008–11.

On 22 August 2008, Premier League club Manchester City signed Kompany from Hamburg on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee. Two days later, Kompany made his Manchester City debut against West Ham United. On 28 September, Kompany scored his first goal in City's 2–1 away defeat by Wigan Athletic. On 28 December 2008, he started the game with Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park, completing the full 90 minutes in a 2–2 draw. During his early time at Manchester City, Kompany played as a defensive midfielder.  On 19 October 2009, Kompany signed a new five-year deal with City that would keep him at the club until 2014. He scored his second league goal for the club in a 2–0 home win against Portsmouth and his third in a 6–1 away win against Burnley at Turf Moor.  Kompany was handed the number 4 jersey for the 2010–11 season after previous wearer Nedum Onuoha moved on loan to Sunderland. On 14 August 2010, he started the opening Premier League fixture and received a yellow card from referee Andre Marriner against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane and completed the full 90 minutes alongside Kolo Touré in a 0–0 draw. Kompany put in a man of the match performance in the 1–0 home win against Chelsea at the City of Manchester Stadium on 25 September. On 10 November, Kompany started the Manchester derby league game with Manchester United at the City of Manchester Stadium and played the full 90 minutes in a goalless draw.  On 12 February 2011, he started the League match against Manchester United at Old Trafford and played the full 90 minutes, partnering with Joleon Lescott in a 2–1 defeat. On 25 April, he again continued to captain the side in the absence of striker Carlos Tevez against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park, playing the full 90 minutes alongside Lescott in an important 1–0 victory courtesy of a late 75th-minute strike from Edin Džeko. On 16 April, Kompany captained Manchester City's victory over main rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium; City won the game 1–0. Later that day, he was named in the PFA Team of the Year alongside teammate Tevez.  In the 2011 FA Cup Final he started and finished the match, a 1–0 victory over Stoke City which delivered Manchester City's first major trophy for 35 years. At the end of the 2010–11 season, in which City qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time, manager Roberto Mancini praised Kompany's "incredible" season and claimed that with his attitude and mentality, Kompany can become one of the best defenders in Europe.  He finished the season winning the club's Supporter's Player of the Year and Player's Player of the Year awards, and the Premier League Player of the Season for his outstanding performances throughout the campaign, clocking up 50 appearances in all competitions including 37 Premier League starts.

2011–14.

Kompany was firmly installed as club captain for the 2011–12 season, with Tevez having expressed publicly his desire to leave the club. The opening fixture on 7 August 2011 was the Community Shield, which ended in a 3–2 defeat to rivals Manchester United despite City holding a two-goal lead at half-time.  On 30 April 2012, Kompany scored a header from a David Silva corner in the Manchester derby; the game finished 1–0 to City and put them in first place ahead of Manchester United on goal difference with only two games of the season remaining. On 13 May, the final day of the Premier League season, Kompany led the team against Queens Park Rangers which ended in a dramatic 3–2 win, securing the league title for the club for the first time since 1968. QPR midfielder Joey Barton attempted to headbutt Kompany during the match. On 25 July, Kompany signed a six-year contract with Manchester City, the longest of its kind in the club's history.  After winning the curtain-raising 2012 FA Community Shield 3–2 against Chelsea (Kompany lifting the trophy at the unfamiliar venue of Villa Park), the 2012–13 season was something of a disappointment for the club as they finished bottom of their Champions League group, placed second in the league (but far behind winners Manchester United) and lost the FA Cup Final 1–0 to Wigan Athletic. Kompany played in that final, but had missed part of the league campaign due to injury, with Mancini citing his absence as a major factor in the failure to retain the title.  On 2 March 2014, Kompany captained the Manchester City team that won the League Cup Final, beating Sunderland 3–1. On 11 May, he scored Manchester City's second goal in a 2–0 win against West Ham United as the club won the 2013–14 Premier League title.

2014–19.

During 2014–15, Kompany accumulated 33 appearances in all competitions, but the club could only finish runners-up in the league and were eliminated from the domestic and continental cups at early stages, also losing out in the Community Shield. In April 2015, he suffered a muscular injury during the Manchester derby which ended his campaign early, and this would prove to be the start of a long spell of recurring injuries (mainly muscular strains) for a player who had already endured a number of physical problems since his arrival in England.  After scoring in the team's opening two Premier League fixtures, Kompany suffered a strain to his calf in the opening weeks of the 2015–16 season and lasted just minutes into his comeback match in December. in February 2016, he was fit to take part in the League Cup Final in which City defeated Liverpool, and was named man of the match; however in May he was again forced off in the early stages of the Champions League semi-final, finishing on 22 appearances and subsequently missing Euro 2016 with Belgium. Having returned to the first team in October 2016, on 9 November Kompany withdrew from international duty with discomfort, and on 22 November he sustained a knee injury. At that time, an analysis showed that he had suffered 37 injuries since joining Manchester City in 2008 and had missed over two years (878 days) in that eight-year period. By April 2017 he had recovered, and scored in a victory over Tottenham Hotspur, commenting on his issues that "The main thing is self-belief and experience". Manager Pep Guardiola kept Kompany in the team for the FA Cup semi-final, and he played the entirety of the match which went to extra time; City lost the tie to eventual winners Arsenal, finishing 2016–17 without a trophy. Kompany appeared just 15 times during the campaign, although his continued importance to the team was evidenced by the fact he would always return to the starting line-up as soon as he was fit.  Kompany played in eight league matches for Manchester City during the first portion of 2017–18, suffering further strains during the period, before withdrawing minutes into an away fixture against Newcastle on 27 December; Guardiola's responses in the press conferences suggested he was losing patience with the situation. He returned to the team on 3 February 2018, completing the 90 minutes of a 1–1 draw away to Burnley while Aymeric Laporte, the club's new record signing in the same position, remained on the bench throughout. On 25 February, he scored Manchester City's second goal of a 3–0 victory over Arsenal in the 2018 EFL Cup Final, and was named man of the match. he eventually managed 17 league starts as Manchester City won the title with a record 100 points.  On 6 May 2019, Kompany scored Manchester City's only goal during a 1–0 victory over Leicester City with his first goal from outside the box for the club. The result put the club one point ahead at the top of the 2018–19 Premier League table, and they retained the title by the same margin six days later. Kompany had already lifted the EFL Cup again in February 2019 after a penalty shootout victory over Chelsea. He played the whole of the 2019 FA Cup Final, a 6–0 victory over Watford as the club completed an unprecedented domestic treble (plus the Community Shield).

Return to Anderlecht.

On 19 May 2019, it was announced that Kompany would be leaving Manchester City to become player-manager of Anderlecht. With two defeats, two goalless draws, six goals conceded and three scored, the Brussels-based club had endured their worst opening start to a league campaign since the 1998–99 season. On 22 August 2019, Kompany decided to step down managerial duties on the pitch, to focus primarily on being a player. Head coach Simon Davies would become in charge of tactical changes and substitutions, while Kompany would be given the captain's arm band.

International career.

Kompany made his international debut aged just 17 for Belgium in February 2004 against France, as one of the youngest players ever.  The Royal Belgian Football Association called up Kompany to the 2008 Olympics. Initially, Hamburg decided not to let him go as the Olympics was not an official FIFA tournament. After a dispute, Hamburg decided to release him under the condition that he returned after Belgium's first two group games. At the Beijing Olympics, Belgium's first game was against Brazil where he was sent off in a 1–0 loss, and as a consequence his tournament was over as the red card would rule him out of Belgium's second group game. Due to the turn of events, Kompany decided against returning to Germany in hope of playing the last group game to help his country qualify for the knockout stages. Hamburg maintained their stance that he had to return, and the Belgian FA decided to release him. He later came on as a substitute in the opening game for Hamburg against Bayern Munich. The rocky relationship with Hamburg and Kompany is said to be a major factor in him transferring to Manchester City.  In November 2009, Kompany fell out with the Belgium manager Dick Advocaat. On the Monday before the friendly match with Qatar on 18 November 2009, Kompany received permission to attend the funeral of his grandmother as long as he returned to the team hotel before 6 pm that evening. As it happened, he did not return until nearly midnight. Furious, Advocaat removed him from the squad altogether, although on 24 February 2010 he was recalled to the Belgium squad by Advocaat for the friendly against Croatia.  On 19 May 2010, Kompany scored a 90th-minute goal to give Belgium a 2–1 win over Bulgaria in a friendly. On 10 November 2011, a day before the friendly against Romania, Georges Leekens named Kompany as Belgium captain, succeeding Thomas Vermaelen.  After 34 minutes of Belgium's 2–1 World Cup qualifier win against Serbia in June 2013, Kompany suffered concussion and facial injuries, including a broken nose and cracked eye-socket, in a collision with goalkeeper Vladimir Stojković. After receiving first aid on the touchline, he played out the remainder of the match.  On 13 May 2014, Kompany was named in the Belgium squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He captained the Red Devils in their first World Cup match in 12 years, a 2–1 win against Algeria in Belo Horizonte.  Injuries sustained during the season caused him to miss the UEFA Euro 2016. At the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, Kompany featured in five of his nation's seven matches, playing every minute in the knockout phase as they advanced to the semi-finals before losing to eventual champions France, overcoming England to finish third, their highest ever placing in the competition.

Style of play.

Kompany has been described as one of the best defenders in world football, and is recognised to be a physically strong centre back, with excellent aerial ability, and mobility, as well as good technique and distribution. He is also a very accurate tackler with strong positional sense and excels at anticipating his opponents.

Charity work.

Kompany is an official FIFA ambassador for registered charity SOS Children. Of Congolese heritage, Kompany represents his father's native Congo, and has invested and engaged in projects which aim to provide an education and safe living accommodation for children living in poverty.  In March 2013, Kompany bought the Belgian third division club FC Bleid as a "social commitment towards the youngsters of Brussels", with the intention of offering disadvantaged youngsters the opportunity to use sport as a vehicle for self-improvement.

Personal life.

Kompany's father, Pierre, is a Congolese immigrant to Belgium and serves as his agent. In October 2018, Pierre was elected the mayor of Ganshoren, making him the first black mayor in Belgium. His late mother, Jocelyne, was Belgian. His brother, François Kompany, plays for Roeselare, having previously had spells at Germinal Beerschot and Macclesfield Town. Kompany also has an older sister. Among his friends are former Chelsea goalkeeper Yves Ma-Kalambay and former Manchester United defender Floribert N'Galula, both of whom he consulted about his move to England before joining Manchester City.  Kompany married his Mancunian girlfriend, Carla Higgs, a lifelong Manchester City supporter on 11 June 2011, and together they have a daughter, Sienna, who was born on 10 June 2010, and two sons, born in 2013 and 2015.  Kompany has a number of pastimes and interests which keep him occupied outside of football. He has an interest in politics and graduated with an MBA at Manchester Business School in 2018 after several years of study. Kompany has been characterized as "erudite" and "eloquent".  In April 2014, Kompany opened two new sports bars in Belgium by the name of Good Kompany, one at the Grand Place in Brussels and the other at the Groenplaats in Antwerp. However, Kompany closed down both bars within a year of their opening. At the time of their closure, Kompany was quoted as saying "I regret this decision. We had enough customers, turnover was good, but not enough to cover the costs. So that's where it ends. Lesson 1 in business: investments are always a risk. You win some, you lose some."

Honours.

Anderlecht  Manchester City  Belgium  Individual

Vincent Jean Mpoy Kompany (; ; born 10 April 1986) is a Belgian professional footballer and manager who plays as a centre back and acts as a player-manager for R.S.C. Anderlecht. He also plays for the Belgium national team.

Vincent Jean Mpoy Kompany (* 10. April 1986 in Ukkel) ist ein belgischer Fußballspieler. Er spielt für die belgische Nationalmannschaft. Seit der Saison 2019/20 spielt er beim RSC Anderlecht, übt dort aber auch Management-Aufgaben aus. Er wird in der Innenverteidigung und im defensiven Mittelfeld eingesetzt.


Life.

Lamorisse was born in Paris, France. He first came into prominence – just after "Bim" (1950) – for directing and producing "White Mane" (1953), an award-winning short film that tells a fable of how a young boy befriends an untamable wild white stallion in the marshes of Camargue (the "Petite Camargue").  Lamorisse's best known work is the short film "The Red Balloon" (1956), which earned him the "Palme d'Or" Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and an Oscar for writing the Best Original Screenplay in 1956.  Lamorisse also wrote, directed and produced the well-regarded films "Stowaway in the Sky" (1960) and "Circus Angel", as well as the documentaries "Versailles" and "Paris Jamais Vu." In addition to films, he created the popular strategy board game "Risk" in 1957. In the mid-sixties Lamorisse shot parts of "The Prospect of Iceland", a documentary about Iceland, which was made by Henry Sandoz and commissioned by NATO.  Lamorisse died in a helicopter crash while filming the documentary "Le Vent des amoureux" ("The Lovers' Wind"), during a helicopter-tour of Iran in 1970. The helicopter was left where it crashed as a memorial to the filmmaker, and was still visible. His son and widow completed the film, based on his production notes, and released it eight years later. It was nominated for a posthumous Oscar for best documentary. The title "The Lover's Wind" is translated into "Bad-e Saba" in Persian. A saba wind is a gentle wind that blows from the northeast, symbolizing the whispers of lovers.  Lamorisse and his wife had three children: a son named Pascal and two daughters named Sabine and Fanny. Pascal and Sabine were featured in "The Red Balloon".

Filmography.

Short films  Feature films  Documentaries

Awards.

Wins  Nominations

Albert Lamorisse (; 13 January 1922 – 2 June 1970) was a French filmmaker, film producer, and writer of award-winning short films which he began making in the late 1940s. He also invented the strategic board game "Risk" in 1957.

Albert Lamorisse (* 13. Januar 1922 in Paris, Frankreich; † 2. Juni 1970 in Karadsch, Iran) war ein französischer Regisseur. Er schuf bedeutende Kurzfilme und Kinderfilme.