Geography.

Its usually quoted source is a combination of several streams, which rise on slopes of hills (Przejmowa Góra – 213.4m, Jastrzębia Góra – 230.8m, Słupowa Góra – 247.9 m, Lisia Góra – 259.5 m) southward of an old forest, Puszcza Romincka located southeast of Gołdap. The river proper rises from a lake called Jezioro Czarne and flows in a south and south-eastern direction through a series of nine postglacial lakes: Rospuda Filipowska, Kamienne, Długie, Garbas, Głębokie, Sumowo, Okrągłe, Bolesty, and The Rospuda Augustowska into which it finally empties. The Rospuda flows through typical young glacial landforms: postglacial channel lakes, eskers (long, narrow, winding ridges composed of stratified sand and gravel), and flat outwash plains. This landscape results from Scandinavian ice sheet activity during the Baltic glaciation: the postglacial channel in which the Rospuda flows was dug by a stream flowing underneath the ice sheet; eskers were composed of material accumulated by flowing water, and the outwash is a vast alluvial cone of sand and gravel deposited by a subglacial meltwater stream. In the upper reaches of the river, in the stretches between lakes, the Rospuda has a narrow winding channel of a rocky bed with rapids, for which it slightly resembles a mountain stream. The Rospuda flows through forests and meadows, within a narrow steep-sided valley with numerous bends, gorges, and felled trees. Narrow postglacial channel lakes flow for miles: Rospuda Filipowska and Bolesty, the longest two, are long and only wide. Their banks are high and forested or covered in meadows and cut across with ravines. These interesting landforms are attributable to erosion, the outcome of flowing rainwaters. In the lower reaches of the river, where it enters Augustów Primeval Forest, the Rospuda changes into a typically lowland river. It meanders through reeds within a boggy riparian valley, passing Święte Miejsce and Młyńsko, sacred sites in the region. The channel of the river gets wider forming a basin of peat bog, i.e. the Rospuda Valley (Pol. Dolina Rospudy).  The Rospuda is a long canoe trail, rarely frequented, a picturesque one, though troublesome at times. Sudden bends, rocky shallows, rocks and stilts driven in the bed of the river, or felled trees require attention, reflex, and experience in dealing with such obstacles. In the lower reaches of the river, on the other hand, monotonous landscape can prove tiresome since the Rospuda winds through reeds blocking out the views. Still, there are convenient spots to set up camp along the whole trail.

Historical Curiosities.

The Rospuda River used to be called by different names depending on its segment. The name Dowspuda is mentioned by the Erection Act of The Raczki Church from 1599. Other names included Rowspuda, Filipówka (near the village Filipów) and Kamienna.  According to Professor Knut Olaf Falk, the name Dowspuda was rooted in the word Dau-spūda, which, in the extinct western Baltic language - Yotvingian, meant "to push" or "heavy pressure" and stems from the fact that, in the springtime, the river raises its level by about one meter, which results in pumping water back up its tributaries and changing its flow. This phenomenon may be observed on the Jałówka River joining the Rospuda River with Jałowo Lake or on the Klonownica River joining the Rospuda Augustowska Lake and Necko Lake with Białe Lake.  The terrains the Rospuda River bypasses used to be the part of the lands known as. The sacred cult site known as "Uroczysko Święte Miejsce" harks back to the pagan traditions. From the fifteenth century until the twentieth century the Rospuda River constituted the border between Lithuania and Prussian lands.  Picturesque ruins of the neo-Gothic Pac Palace still stand on the high river banks in Dowspuda village, located to the south of Raczki. In 1824, Ludwik Michał Pac, the owner of the palace, ordered twelve stone stairs built on the three-kilometer-long segment of the river between Raczki, Dowspuda and below to beautify the area with waterfalls. However, the dams as well as the palace, were later dismantled. Stone shallows are the only remnants. In July 1972, one of the scenes from TV serial "Czarne Chmury" was shot on the edge of the glade with the view on the river valley in the downstream of the Rospuda River near Szczebra village.

Environmental Characteristics of Rospuda Valley.

The Rospuda Valley is one of the most valuable wetland areas (blanket, raised, and temporary bogs) with natural, intact water relations. That is, the bog maintains a steady water level, and therefore does not cover with trees and shrubs. Therefore, it differs from wetlands influenced by human, e.g., Biebrza Bogs, which must be mowed to stop succession of reedbeds, scrubs, and forest.  Rospuda Valley is under protection because of its rare animals and plants. For example, there are 19 kinds of Orchidaceae (all of which are under strict protection), including musk orchid ("Herminium monorchis"), and white variety of early marsh-orchid ("Dactylorhiza majalis"). The former has been recorded in the Polish Red Data Book of Plants, and Rospuda Valley is its only Polish locality. The latter exists in a few more places in Poland. Other orchids that are to be found in Rospuda Valley include: the western marsh orchid ("Dactylorhiza majalis"), lady's slipper orchid ("Cypripedium calceolus"), early coralroot ("Corallorrhiza trifida"), the common spotted orchid ("Dactylorhiza fuchsii"), Pugsley's marsh orchid ("Dactylorhiza traunsteineri"), marsh helleborine ("Epipactis palustris"), fen orchid ("Liparis loeselii"). In Rospuda Valley there are also other rare and protected plants including: dwarf birch ("Betula humilis"), Greek valerian ("Polemonium caeruleum"), English sundew ("Drosera anglica"), round-leaved sundew ("Drosera rotundifolia"), Turk's cap lily ("Lilium martagon") etc.  The Rospuda Valley and its adjacent forests are inhabited by the following protected birds: hazel grouse ("Bonasa bonasia"), the capercaillie ("Tetrao urogallus"), spotted crake ("Porzana porzana"), the corn crake ("Crex crex"), the common crane ("Grus grus"), the white-tailed eagle ("Haliaeetus albicilla"), lesser spotted eagle ("Aquila pomarina"), marsh harrier, the European honey buzzard ("Pernis apivorus"), the Tengmalm's owl ("Aegolius funereus"), the white stork ("Ciconia ciconia"), the black woodpecker, the white-backed woodpecker ("Dendrocopos leucotos"), the red-backed shrike ("Lanius collurio"), the barred warbler ("Sylvia nisoria") and other. The area serves as a haunt for birds nesting nearby, e.g. in Augustów Primeval Forest.  For big mammals, like wolves or deer, the Rospuda Valley serves as a migratory corridor, through which they move west from Augustów Primeval Forest and Biebrza National Park. Moreover, the Valley is also inhabited by beavers, otters, foxes and other animals.

Nature Protection.

Rospuda Valley constitutes:  A nature reserve will be created at Rospuda Valley. It will protect the musk orchid, the woodgrouse, sea eagle, and lesser spotted eagle, which nest in the area. The reserve will be a part of Augustów-Druskienniki Protected Area, which is being created with the cooperation of Poland, Lithuania, and Belarus.

Threats.

A green ribbon is used as a symbol for the campaign against the construction of the Augustów ring road.  Ecological activists as well as scientists such as botanists, zoologists, ecology experts, hydrologists experts on peat bog plant cover and the European Commission are of the opinion that the Rospuda Valley is endangered by the plans of construction of the Augustów ringroad.  If the project is realized, the wildlife will be damaged not only by the expressway itself, but also by the construction process. The noise and pollution inherent in construction work would harm the breeding grounds of various bird species, some of which are protected, as well as some endangered plant species Furthermore, construction of the overpass may disturb the fragile water systems in the valley.  Because the documentation of the project does not state the influence of the enterprise on the water systems and considering the inadequate plans for compensation of nature devastation, the European Commission asserts that the enterprise would hinder the avifauna, which is to be protected within the framework of Nature 2000.  Quite a different opinion on the matter is held by the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA). They claim that the way the overpass is going to be built, as well as the devices designed to discharge the water from the road to the outside of the valley will effectively minimize the damage.  The National Environment Protection Council (an advisory body of the Ministry of the Environment) speaks reprovingly of the project, indicating impossibility of any compensation for the project and erroneousness of the peat bog type evaluation as well as of the mode of supplying it with water.

The Via Baltica controversy of 2006–2009.

In December 2006 the European Commission opened legal infringement procedures against the Polish government for consenting to the road developments, which would severely damage important and protected natural sites. In February 2007 the governor of the local province signed the go-ahead for the construction works to start, claiming that all legal requirements had been met, despite the fact that the region is protected by the EU Natura 2000 program and Poland can be severely fined by the EU for constructing the highway. On 13 February 2007 the Polish Ombudsman launched an appeal against the decision, with the aim of halting construction works. The appeal was based on suspicion that alternative routings of the bypass were not taken into consideration. An independent road designer's variant omits the Rospuda valley and was estimated to cost €17 million less than the currently planned environmentally damaging variant. There have been strong protests by activists and politicians both in Poland and abroad. However, the construction has not been called off. In February 2007 a number of environmental activists pitched a camp in the endangered region to prevent the construction work. The Polish daily "Gazeta Wyborcza" has launched an on-line petition signed by over 140,000 people asking the Polish President Lech Kaczyński to respect the law, preserve the Rospuda Valley and direct the Augustów bypass via a different route. On February 22, 2007 the construction of the Augustów bypass expressway began with the taking of geodetic measurements. There was unofficial information that earthworks are, for now, being begun only from the Augustów side, away from the protected area, and where both road variants overlap. On February 27, 2007 scaring birds away from the Rospuda valley started with permission issued by the Chief Nature Conservator, suggesting that heavy construction works in the valley will soon begin, as the public Polish Television (TVP) reported.  In 2009 the Polish authorities announced that the plan to build the highway through Rospuda valley has been abandoned, and a new alternative route that avoids the valley has been selected.  In 2010 Malgorzata Gorska, one of the leaders of the campaign to protect the Rospuda Valley won the Goldman Environmental Prize.

The Rospuda is a small river in north-eastern Poland. It flows through the Suwałki Region of Poland, including the north-western part of the large "Augustów Primeval Forest" wilderness area. Its continuation, the Netta, is a tributary of the Biebrza. Around 2006 the river was threatened by planned construction of the Augustów bypass expressway, which was to cut across the protected wilderness area in the valley. After an intense campaign of protests in Poland and abroad and also counter-protests of the local community, the plans have been changed, and now the highway has been rerouted to completely avoid the wilderness area.

Die Rospuda ist ein Fluss im Nordosten Polens in der Woiwodschaft Podlachien. Sie fließt durch die Region Suwalken und den nordwestlichen Teil des 160.000 Hektar großen Waldkomplexes "Puszcza Augustowska". Sie stellt den oberen Lauf des Flusses Netta dar, eines rechten Zuflusses der Biebrza.


History.

Its name comes from an Arabic word meaning "a fisherman's dwelling". However it could also be derived from the word 'Omm Sidna' meaning 'The Mother of Our Lord' since there could have been a small chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God.  Msida was previously an old fishing village. Although it is now more urbanised, some fishermen still operate in the village.  Msida became a parish in 1867. Then the settlement was centered on the hovels located inward at Valley Road, and some nearby ancillary roads and pathways which led up to the quaint district of Villambrosa. This status did not last long however, as a new parish Ħamrun was hived off in 1881. Today the lowest part of Villambrosa Street remains a silent reminder of Msida's jurisdiction in this area. Msida would also eventually see parts of its territory lost to new parishes at Santa Venera in 1918, Pietà in 1968 and Ta' Xbiex in 1969.  Its population, which at one time numbered 11,500, thus also dwindled to a mere 6,000. However the recent aforementioned demands as well as residential developments in the outlying suburb of Swatar, have now seen an increase to more than 7600 inhabitants. Swatar also hosts St. Martin's College, a private secondary school.  Today, Msida is a bustling university town and development has been centered on an increasing student population at the University as well as various new service industries that have sprung in this town in recent years.  The city houses many university students, mostly Gozitans.

Geography.

The lower part of Msida lies at the outlet of a valley and is a fulcrum for heavy traffic going to Sliema, Valletta, Birkirkara and Mater Dei Hospital. When it rains, water rushes down towards the sea from surrounding cities at higher levels and often causes floods, bringing traffic to a halt in the area opposite the Parish Church dedicated to St. Joseph. Msida also hosts an old rock hewn chapel dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, a rarity of its kind.  Msida has also experienced a lot of reclamation from the sea. The town centre and surrounding areas which were located below sea-level were all reclaimed from the sea, after World War II. A new project which intends to catch more surface rainwater running should also considerably remedy a perennial flooding problem which affects this area as well as nearby towns.

Media.

Msida host two local newspapers. The "Leħen il-Misidjani" ("The Voice of the Misidjani") is produced and edited by the local band club the Għaqda Melita Banda San Ġużepp Msida. The "Leħen il-Misidjani" gathers information on most of the communities, clubs and associations based in an around Msida.  Another newspaper is the "Id f'Id" ("Hand in Hand"), produced by the Parish and the Għaqda Armar Msida. It contains information on church activities, religious activities in Msida and the Feasts.

University of Malta.

The University of Malta is situated in a part of Msida known as Tal-Qroqq which rests on higher ground. Msida is also home to the Giovanni Francesco Abela Junior College and a State Nursing Home.

Sports.

Msida is home to Msida Saint-Joseph F.C., the local football team currently playing in the Second division of Malta. The team colours are Red and White. Msida also hosts the Msida Red Stars A.F.C, a local 7-a-side team which participates in the I.A.S.C (Inter Amateur Soccer Competition), and Msida Boċċi Klabb (Club), the local "boċċi" team.

Mater Dei Hospital.

The Mater Dei Hospital is located in the outskirts of Msida. It was inaugurated by the prime minister of Malta Dr. Gonzi in June 2007 and has a total floor area of 232,000m and approximately 8,000 rooms. It also houses a teaching facility for the University of Malta.  The hospital has cost the Maltese people 200,000,000 Maltese liri, a considerable increase compared to its original estimate of 83,000,000 Maltese liri. It was intended to be a specialised centre but was eventually changed to a general hospital with a change in government.

Msida Marina.

In the late 19th century, a floating British navy hydraulic dock was also planned at the central part of Msida close to where the Torpedo Depot used to stand. The plan was soon aborted but instead, this area would in later years experience a booming yacht marina service, which has been growing ever since, thanks to new incentive policies issued by the central government.

Msida Local Council.

Current local council members are:  Carmelo Bartolo k/a Lino (PL) was elected by default because he did not gather enough votes to be elected on a full quota.

Culture.

Msida traditionally celebrates the Feast of St. Joseph on the first Sunday after 16 July every year. The local football club is Msida St. Joseph F.C.

Msida () () is a harbour town in the Central Region of Malta with a population of 8,545 (March 2014). The town is located just west of Valletta on the northeast coast of Malta. The town enjoys a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry, sunny summers and short, cool winters.

Msida (oder L-Imsida) ist eine Hafenstadt im Nordosten der Insel Malta. Obwohl sie recht klein ist, ist sie eine der wichtigsten Städte in Malta.


Description.

Barnacles are encrusters, attaching themselves temporarily to a hard substrate. The most common, "acorn barnacles" (Sessilia), are sessile, growing their shells directly onto the substrate. The order "Pedunculata" (goose barnacles and others) attach themselves by means of a stalk.  Free-living barnacles are attached to the substratum by cement glands that form the base of the first pair of antennae; in effect, the animal is fixed upside down by means of its forehead. In some barnacles, the cement glands are fixed to a long, muscular stalk, but in most they are part of a flat membrane or calcified plate. A ring of plates surrounds the body, homologous with the carapace of other crustaceans. These consist of the rostrum, two lateral plates, two carinolaterals, and a carina. In sessile barnacles, the apex of the ring of plates is covered by an operculum, which may be recessed into the carapace. The plates are held together by various means, depending on species, in some cases being solidly fused.  Inside the carapace, the animal lies on its stomach, with its limbs projecting downwards. Segmentation is usually indistinct, and the body is more or less evenly divided between the head and thorax, with little, if any, abdomen. Adult barnacles have few appendages on their heads, with only a single, vestigial pair of antennae, attached to the cement gland. The eight pairs of thoracic limbs are referred to as "cirre", which are feathery and very long, being used to filter food, such as plankton, from the water and move it towards the mouth.  Barnacles have no true heart, although a sinus close to the esophagus performs a similar function, with blood being pumped through it by a series of muscles. The blood vascular system is minimal. Similarly, they have no gills, absorbing oxygen from the water through their limbs and the inner membrane of their carapaces. The excretory organs of barnacles are maxillary glands.  The main sense of barnacles appears to be touch, with the hairs on the limbs being especially sensitive. The adult also has three photoreceptors (ocelli), one median and two lateral. These photoreceptors record the stimulus for the barnacle shadow reflex, where a sudden decrease in light causes cessation of the fishing rhythm and closing of the opercular plates. The photoreceptors are likely only capable of sensing the difference between light and dark. This eye is derived from the primary naupliar eye.

Life cycle.

Barnacles have two distinct larval stages, the nauplius and the cyprid, before developing into a mature adult.

Nauplius.

A fertilised egg hatches into a nauplius: a one-eyed larva comprising a head and a telson, without a thorax or abdomen. This undergoes six moults, passing through five instars, before transforming into the cyprid stage. Nauplii are typically initially brooded by the parent, and released after the first moult as larvae that swim freely using setae.

Cyprid.

The cyprid larva is the last larval stage before adulthood. It is not a feeding stage; its role is to find a suitable place to settle, since the adults are sessile. The cyprid stage lasts from days to weeks. It explores potential surfaces with modified antennules; once it has found a potentially suitable spot, it attaches head-first using its antennules and a secreted glycoproteinous substance. Larvae assess surfaces based upon their surface texture, chemistry, relative wettability, color, and the presence or absence and composition of a surface biofilm; swarming species are also more likely to attach near other barnacles. As the larva exhausts its finite energy reserves, it becomes less selective in the sites it selects. It cements itself permanently to the substrate with another proteinaceous compound, and then undergoes metamorphosis into a juvenile barnacle.

Adult.

Typical acorn barnacles develop six hard calcareous plates to surround and protect their bodies. For the rest of their lives, they are cemented to the substrate, using their feathery legs (cirri) to capture plankton.  Once metamorphosis is over and they have reached their adult form, barnacles continue to grow by adding new material to their heavily calcified plates. These plates are not moulted; however, like all ecdysozoans, the barnacle itself will still moult its cuticle.

Sexual reproduction.

Most barnacles are hermaphroditic, although a few species are gonochoric or androdioecious. The ovaries are located in the base or stalk, and may extend into the mantle, while the testes are towards the back of the head, often extending into the thorax. Typically, recently moulted hermaphroditic individuals are receptive as females. Self-fertilization, although theoretically possible, has been experimentally shown to be rare in barnacles.  The sessile lifestyle of barnacles makes sexual reproduction difficult, as the organisms cannot leave their shells to mate. To facilitate genetic transfer between isolated individuals, barnacles have extraordinarily long penises. Barnacles probably have the largest penis to body size ratio of the animal kingdom.  Barnacles can also reproduce through a method called spermcasting, in which the male barnacle releases his sperm into the water and females pick it up and fertilise their eggs.  The Rhizocephala superorder used to be considered hermaphroditic, but it turned out that its males inject themselves into the female's body, degrading to the condition of nothing more than sperm-producing cells.

Ecology.

Most barnacles are suspension feeders; they dwell continually in their shells, which are usually constructed of six plates, and reach into the water column with modified legs. These feathery appendages beat rhythmically to draw plankton and detritus into the shell for consumption.  Other members of the class have quite a different mode of life. For example, members of the superorder Rhizocephala, including the genus "Sacculina", are parasitic and live within crabs.  Although they have been found at water depths to, most barnacles inhabit shallow waters, with 75% of species living in water depths less than, and 25% inhabiting the intertidal zone. Within the intertidal zone, different species of barnacles live in very tightly constrained locations, allowing the exact height of an assemblage above or below sea level to be precisely determined.  Since the intertidal zone periodically desiccates, barnacles are well adapted against water loss. Their calcite shells are impermeable, and they possess two plates which they can slide across their apertures when not feeding. These plates also protect against predation.  Barnacles are displaced by limpets and mussels, which compete for space. They also have numerous predators. They employ two strategies to overwhelm their competitors: "swamping" and fast growth. In the swamping strategy, vast numbers of barnacles settle in the same place at once, covering a large patch of substrate, allowing at least some to survive in the balance of probabilities. Fast growth allows the suspension feeders to access higher levels of the water column than their competitors, and to be large enough to resist displacement; species employing this response, such as the aptly named "Megabalanus", can reach in length; other species may grow larger still ("Austromegabalanus psittacus").  Competitors may include other barnacles, and disputed evidence indicates balanoid barnacles competitively displaced chthalamoid barnacles. Balanoids gained their advantage over the chthalamoids in the Oligocene, when they evolved tubular skeletons, which provide better anchorage to the substrate, and allow them to grow faster, undercutting, crushing, and smothering chthalamoids.  Among the most common predators on barnacles are whelks. They are able to grind through the calcareous exoskeletons of barnacles and feed on the softer inside parts. Mussels also prey on barnacle larvae. Another predator on barnacles is the starfish species "Pisaster ochraceus".  The anatomy of parasitic barnacles is generally simpler than that of their free-living relatives. They have no carapace or limbs, having only unsegmented sac-like bodies. Such barnacles feed by extending thread-like rhizomes of living cells into their hosts' bodies from their points of attachment.

History of taxonomy.

Barnacles were originally classified by Linnaeus and Cuvier as Mollusca, but in 1830 John Vaughan Thompson published observations showing the metamorphosis of the nauplius and cypris larvae into adult barnacles, and noted how these larvae were similar to those of crustaceans. In 1834 Hermann Burmeister published further information, reinterpreting these findings. The effect was to move barnacles from the phylum of Mollusca to Articulata, showing naturalists that detailed study was needed to reevaluate their taxonomy.  Charles Darwin took up this challenge in 1846, and developed his initial interest into a major study published as a series of monographs in 1851 and 1854. Darwin undertook this study, at the suggestion of his friend Joseph Dalton Hooker, to thoroughly understand at least one species before making the generalisations needed for his theory of evolution by natural selection.

Classification.

Some authorities regard the Cirripedia as a full class or subclass, and the orders listed above are sometimes treated as superorders. In 2001, Martin and Davis placed Cirripedia as an infraclass of Thecostraca and divided it into six orders:  Infraclass Cirripedia

Fossil record.

The geological history of barnacles can be traced back to animals such as "Priscansermarinus" from the Middle Cambrian (on the order of ), although they do not become common as skeletal remains in the fossil record until the Neogene (last 20 million years). In part, their poor skeletal preservation is due to their restriction to high-energy environments, which tend to be erosional – therefore it is more common for their shells to be ground up by wave action than for them to reach a depositional setting. Trace fossils of acrothoracican barnacle borings ("Rogerella") are common in the fossil record from the Devonian to the recent.  Barnacles can play an important role in estimating paleo-water depths. The degree of disarticluation of fossils suggests the distance they have been transported, and since many species have narrow ranges of water depths, it can be assumed that the animals lived in shallow water and broke up as they were washed down-slope. The completeness of fossils, and nature of damage, can thus be used to constrain the tectonic history of regions.

Relationship with humans.

Barnacles are of economic consequence, as they often attach themselves to synthetic structures, sometimes to the structure's detriment. Particularly in the case of ships, they are classified as fouling organisms. The amount and size of barnacles that cover ships can negatively impact their efficiency, by causing hydrodynamic drag. Fortunately, this is not a problem for boats on inland waterways, as barnacles are exclusively marine. Uzun et al. (2020) provide a simplified approach for estimating the effect of real barnacle settlement in nature on the resistance and effective power of the ship. The stable isotope signals in the layers of barnacle shells can potentially be used as a forensic tracking method for whales, loggerhead turtles and marine debris, such as shipwrecks or a flaperon suspected to be from Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.  Some barnacles are considered edible by humans, including Japanese goose barnacles ("e.g." "Capitulum mitella"), and goose barnacles ("e.g." "Pollicipes pollicipes"), a delicacy in Spain and Portugal. The resemblance of this barnacle's fleshy stalk to a goose's neck gave rise, in ancient times, to the notion that geese literally grew from the barnacle. Indeed, the word "barnacle" originally referred to a species of goose, the barnacle goose "Branta leucopsis", whose eggs and young were rarely seen by humans because it breeds in the remote Arctic.  Additionally, the picoroco barnacle is used in Chilean cuisine and is one of the ingredients in "curanto".

A barnacle is a type of arthropod constituting the infraclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea, and is hence related to crabs and lobsters. Barnacles are exclusively marine, and tend to live in shallow and tidal waters, typically in erosive settings. They are sessile (nonmobile) and most are suspension feeders, but those in superorder Rhizocephala are parasitic. They have four nektonic (active swimming) larval stages. Around 1,000 barnacle species are currently known. The name "Cirripedia" is Greek, meaning "curl-footed". The study of barnacles is called cirripedology.

Die Rankenfußkrebse (Cirripedia) sind eine Teilklasse der Krebstiere (Crustacea). Insgesamt sind etwa 800 Arten bekannt, die alle marin leben. Adulte Tiere leben sessil im oder am Wasser oder parasitisch an anderen Tieren.


History.

On 6 December 1906, the "Hamburg-Altonaer Stadt- und Vorortbahn" (City and suburban railway) — later abbreviated Hamburg S-Bahn — opened the double track Ohlsdorf–Blankenese line. Planned as an electric railway with overhead lines, the trains were first steam powered, because of difficulties concerning the construction of the electrical installations and a delay delivering the engines. Overhead lines were completed by, however, electric operation only started on 29 January 1908.  Prior to 2008, Ohlsdorf had a bus shuttle service to bring passengers from the station to the airport. This was discontinued when a new station was constructed in the airport. An S-Bahn maintenance depot is located south-east of the station.

Services.

Ohlsdorf is served by the Hamburg S-Bahn S1 and S11 lines — from Wedel in the state of Schleswig-Holstein or Blankenese to Poppenbüttel or Hamburg Airport — and Hamburg U-Bahn U1 line, from Norderstedt to Großhansdorf in Schleswig Holstein or the Hamburg suburb of Wohldorf-Ohlstedt.  Passengers travelling in the direction from the central station to the airport have to pay attention at Ohlsdorf, the last station before the airport, because all trains are split at this station. The front part (carriages 1, 2 and 3) proceeds to the airport, while the rear part (carriages 4, 5 and 6) runs to the suburb of Poppenbüttel. Signs and announcements in German and English language inform passengers. Trains pause at Ohlsdorf for about 2 minutes to couple or uncouple and to allow passengers to change to the desired half of the train.

Ohlsdorf is a railway station in Hamburg, Germany, located at the junction of the Hamburg-Altona link line with the Alster Valley line and the Hamburg Airport line in Ohlsdorf, Hamburg near the Ohlsdorf Cemetery.

Der Bahnhof Hamburg-Ohlsdorf ist ein Umsteigebahnhof der S-Bahn Hamburg mit den Linien S1 und S11 sowie der Hamburger U-Bahn-Linie U1 im Stadtteil Ohlsdorf. Die Haltestelle wird täglich von mindestens 20.000 Fahrgästen (Stand: 2001) genutzt und gehört zu den größeren im Hamburger Schnellbahnnetz. Dazu befindet sich in Ohlsdorf das Bahnbetriebswerk Hamburg-Ohlsdorf der S-Bahn Hamburg, in dem die Züge der S-Bahn gewartet und abgestellt werden. Am Bahnhof Ohlsdorf befinden sich um den Bahnhof verteilt die Haltestellen Im Grünen Grunde (172, 174 und 274), Alsterdorfer Straße (179 und 172), Fuhlsbüttler Straße (39, 172, 179 und 607) und Friedhof Ohlsdorf (170 und 270). In unmittelbarer Nähe zum Bahnhof befindet sich ein P+R-Parkplatz.


History.

On top of a hilltop encountered to the southwest of the confluence of the Tagus River with the Lampreia River, in the area of Barca de Bandos, are the ruins of a fortress. The vestiges of the surface area indicate the presence of the Phoenicians and Greeks.  By the time the Romans began occupying the Iberian peninsula around 130, the area was already an important community, designated "Ayre" or "Aritium", with river port that provided a military connection between Lisbon and Mérida. The destruction of the Roman fort was attributed to the invasion of Vandals, on their way to Andalusia. Of this Roman "civitas" there are still some buildings, house foundations and graves, underground galleries, likely the ruins of an aqueduct, military roads, and along the Tagus, there are markers to indicate a Roman bridge.  During the Muslim occupation the city continued to support a populous community. The toponymy, "Alvega", came from the Arab name "Alrega", with its history extending as far back as the Muslim occupation of Hispania.

Geography.

The parish is located in the easternmost tip of the municipality, neighbouring with the municipalities of Mação to the north, with Gaviãoto the east and with Ponte de Sor to the south.  The parish includes the localities of Alvega, Areia de Baixo, Areia de Cima, Casa Branca, Casal Ventoso, Lampreia, Monte Galego, Portelas and Tubaral.  It is situated on the left margin of the Tagus River, from the municipal seat of Abrantes. It is the centre of the Beira Baixa rail-line, in addition to having two river ports along the Tagus in Alvega and Barca de Bandos.

Economy.

Alvega is essentially rural, involved in the cultivation of cereal grains, cork and olive orchards, as well as the raising of goats and sheep. In addition to extraction of sand from the river, the fishery, horticulture and fructiculture, among other activities are important parts of the local primary sector economies.  Meanwhile, there are portions of the community involved in traditional tin, carpentry, tailoring and embroidery crafts, as a source of tourist dollars.

Alvega is a former "freguesia" ("civil parish"), located in the municipality of Abrantes, in Santarém District, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Alvega e Concavada. The population in 2011 was 1,499, in an area of 55.33 km2.

Alvega ist ein Dorf und eine ehemalige Gemeinde (Freguesia) im portugiesischen Kreis Abrantes im Distrikt Santarém. Es liegt in einer Meereshöhe von am linken Ufer des Flusses Tejo. Die Freguesia Alvega hatte eine Fläche von 55,3 km2 und 1502 Einwohner (Stand 30. Juni 2011)


History.

"Nordstjernen" was mainly used for the Hurtigruten coastal service and for cruises to the Svalbard archipelago. She was extensively refitted in 1982/3. From 2010 to 2012 she operated continuously on the Hurtigruten coastal service. In March 2012, she was withdrawn from the coastal service, and was replaced by MS Finnmarken, which came back in Hurtigruten service after it was in Australia. Hurtigruten was using her for Svalbard cruises in the summer of 2012. In November 2012, the ship was bought by Vestland Rederi AS. In connection with the sale, she was protected as a national heritage by the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage (Riksantikvaren). "Nordstjernen"'s new home port is Bergen, as it was with her original owner Bergen Steamship Company (Det Bergenske Dampskibsselskab, BDS). From the end of 2012 to July 2013, she underwent an extensive restoration in Gdańsk, Poland, which was subsidized with 2.5 million Norwegian krones by Riksantikvaren. After coming back to Norway and taking part in the "Fjordsteam" festival in Bergen in the first days of August 2013, the new owner intends to market her as a hotel ship and for charter cruises. Finally she left Gdańsk on 9 November 2013. On her way back to Norway, she ran aground in the Karmsund strait on 11 November 2013. There was damage to the ship which was repaired at a dockyard in Ølensvåg, and at the end of January 2014, "Nordstjernen" left the dockyard. Since 2015, Hurtigruten has chartered the ship they formerly owned each summer and operates it again for Svalbard cruises.

MS Nordstjernen (Norwegian: "The North Star") is a vessel constructed in Hamburg, Germany in 1956, and used on the Hurtigruten coastal service until 2012. It was the oldest operational ship in the Hurtigruten fleet at the time of its withdrawal, and is the ship with the longest history of Hurtigruten service. In 2012, she was protected as a national heritage in Norway.

Das Motorschiff Nordstjernen (dt. "Polarstern") ist ein denkmalgeschütztes Passagierschiff. Es war bis zu seiner Außerdienststellung im Jahr 2012 das älteste Schiff der norwegischen Reederei Hurtigruten ASA und verkehrte mit Unterbrechungen von 1956 bis Ende März 2012 auf der Hurtigrute an der Küste Norwegens im Liniendienst. Die "Nordstjernen" ist damit das Schiff mit der bisher längsten Einsatzdauer im Hurtigruten-Dienst.


Etymology.

The name "Krasnaya Polyana" (lit. "Red Glade") was given by the Greek settlers in 1878 because of the thick overgrowth of fern, the leaves of which had a reddish-brown color in fall. Walter Richmond, a historian of the Circassian genocide notes that Krasnaya Polyana was named after the last stand by the Circassian Ubykhs, of whom many died there in 1864.

History.

Although the vicinity is rich in prehistoric dolmens and contains ruins of about twenty medieval forts, the settlement first appears in recorded history in 1835, when a Russian spy, Baron Fyodor Tornau, visited the Sadz Abkhazian village of "Artquaj" in the guise of a Circassian mountaineer. Having spent several days in the village, he recorded his observations in a journal. Among other things, Tornau noted that the village was famous for its honey which was exported by the Sadz people to the Ottoman Empire.  By the 1860s, the village was known as Kbaade and became populated with the Akhchipsou branch of the Sadz. In 1864, the area was the scene, significant in Circassian history, of the last battles of the Russian–Circassian War. The area was conquered by four main Russian armies and the end of the prolonged Caucasian War declared (on June 2, 1864). The area became a part of the Russian Empire and those residents who did not swear allegiance to the Empire were removed to the Ottoman Empire. The abandoned "aul" was replaced with the new settlement of Krasnaya Polyana in 1869. The new settlers were ethnically diverse, including not only Russians, but also Greeks from Stavropol and Estonians, who colonized Estosadok, now a ski resort upstream on the Mzymta.  On June 19, 1899, Krasnaya Polyana was visited by an official commission under Nikolay Abaza, with a view to transforming it into Tsarskaya Polyana, Nicholas II's hunting ground in the Western Caucasus. A royal hunting lodge was erected in 1901, followed by the chalets of Counts Sheremetev and Bobrinsky, among other nobles and high-placed dignitaries. Although it was never visited by the Tsar, the village was renamed Romanovsk (), after the ruling imperial dynasty. A winding mountain road to Adler was inaugurated in 1898.  Following the October Revolution of 1917, the exclusive retreat reverted to its former name and status and gradually dwindled into obscurity. The proximity to Sochi, the "summer capital" of Russia, eventually revived its fortunes in the last quarter of the 20th century, when it achieved a modicum of popularity across the former Soviet Union, despite limited hotel capabilities and installations, and difficulty of access through narrow mountain passes.  The loss of ski areas in South Caucasus and Tian Shan after the dissolution of the Soviet Union increased Krasnaya Polyana's prestige and importance for Russia's elites. By the 21st century, the locality had emerged as one of the most sought after ski resorts in the country. This is the favorite skiing area of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who can easily reach Krasnaya Polyana by helicopter from his country residence of Bocharov Ruchey near Dagomys.

Location and facilities.

Krasnaya Polyana is sited against the scenic backdrop of the Caucasus Mountains, which exceed in elevation, at a distance of from the center of Sochi by road and from the Adler-Sochi International Airport. The settlement has been plagued by transport problems: in order to improve this for the 2014 Winter Olympics, a railway line was built, connecting the area with the airport, Sochi Olympic Village, and central Sochi.  Krasnaya Polyana today offers many chalets, hotels, and restaurants. Its reputation owes a lot to the development of heliskiing in the middle of the 1990s, which provides access to an important skiing domain. Amateurs can ski downhill through a not-too-dense birch forest, with a vertical drop of. The station at Rosa Khutor has four chairlifts (lowest station at and upper station at ) and of delimited tracks., the Alpika Service was being developed by the Gazprom.

Krasnaya Polyana (;, "Gwbaadwy";, "‘atquaj") is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) in Krasnopolyansky Settlement Okrug, which is under the administrative jurisdiction of Adlersky City District of the City of Sochi in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Population:

Krasnaja Poljana () ist ein Gebirgsdorf (verwaltungstechnisch eine Siedlung städtischen Typs) in der Region Krasnodar (Russland) mit Einwohnern (Stand ).


Signs and symptoms.

Most patients with portal hypertensive gastropathy have either a stable or improving course in the appearance of the gastropathy on endoscopy. However, according to retrospective data, roughly one in seven patients with portal hypertensive gastropathy will develop bleeding (either acute or chronic) attributable to the gastropathy. Patients with chronic bleeding will usually come to the attention of the medical system because of anemia.  The diagnosis of portal hypertensive gastropathy is usually made on endoscopy. The usual appearance of portal hypertensive gastropathy on endoscopy is a mosaic-like or reticular pattern in the mucosa. Red spots may or may not be present. The pattern is usually seen throughout the stomach. A similar pattern can be seen with a related condition called gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE), or watermelon stomach. However, in GAVE, the ectatic blood vessels are more commonly found in the antrum or lower part of the stomach.

Pathogenesis.

Several studies have found that patients with portal hypertension develop increased blood flow to the stomach. The physiological findings that correlate with worsening portal hypertensive gastropathy include an increased portal venous pressure gradient and decreased hepatic blood flow. Biopsies of the stomach in patients with portal hypertensive gastropathy show ectatic (or dilated) blood vessels, evidence of bleeding by means of red blood cells in the lamina propria, and edema in the stomach wall.

Treatment.

Medications.

Several treatment options have been developed for portal hypertensive gastropathy. The first is the use of beta-blockers, which reduce portal pressures. Non-selective beta blockers (such as propranolol and nadolol) have been used to decrease the pressure of the portal vein in patients with esophageal varices, and have been shown to regress portal hypertensive gastropathy that has been worsened by medical treatment of varices. Propranolol has also been evaluated in patients with chronic cirrhosis and portal hypertensive gastropathy. Other medications that primarily treat bleeding, including anti-fibrinolytic medications such as tranexamic acid have also been used in case reports of patients with portal hypertensive gastropathy. These medications work by stabilizing deposits of fibrin at sites that ordinarily would bleed.  Finally, octreotide, an analogue of somatostatin that leads to vasoconstriction of the portal circulation, can be used for active bleeding due to portal hypertensive gastropathy. Sucralfate, a coating medication has also been used, but evidence is from animal models.

Procedural.

Portal hypertensive gastropathy can also be treated with endoscopic treatment delivered through a fibre-optic camera into the stomach. Argon plasma coagulation and electrocautery have both been used to stop bleeding from ectatic vessels, and to attempt to obliterate the vessels, but have limited utility if the disease is diffuse.  Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt procedures, or TIPS involve decompressing the portal vein by shunting a portal venule to a lower pressure systemic venule, under guidance with fluoroscopy. Since it treats the root cause of portal hypertension gastropathy, it has been putatively used for the condition. The literature reports suggest both regression of portal hypertensive gastropathy on endoscopic images and improvement in bleeding after TIPS.  Finally, cryotherapy involves the use of pressurized carbon dioxide administered through the endoscope to freeze and destroy tissue in a focal area. It is being studied for the treatment of portal hypertensive gastropathy.

Similar conditions.

Congestion of the mucosa in other parts of the gastrointestinal tract can also be seen in portal hypertension. When the condition involves the colon, it is termed "portal hypertensive colopathy".

Portal hypertensive gastropathy refers to changes in the mucosa of the stomach in patients with portal hypertension; by far the most common cause of this is cirrhosis of the liver. These changes in the mucosa include friability of the mucosa and the presence of ectatic blood vessels at the surface. Patients with portal hypertensive gastropathy may experience bleeding from the stomach, which may uncommonly manifest itself in vomiting blood or melena; however, portal hypertension may cause several other more common sources of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, such as esophageal varices and gastric varices. On endoscopic evaluation of the stomach, this condition shows a characteristic mosaic or "snake-skin" appearance to the mucosa of the stomach.

Unter einer Gastropathia hypertensiva ("hypertensive Gastropathie") versteht man die Erweiterung von Venen der Magenschleimhaut durch den Rückstau venösen Blutes aufgrund eines erhöhten Blutdruckes im portovenösen Stromgebiet. Durch die Erweiterung kann es analog der Ösophagusvarizen zu einer akuten intestinalen Blutung mit potenziell letalem Ausgang kommen. 10 % der Blutungen durch portale Hypertension haben eine hypertensive Gastropathie als Ursache.


Biology and medicine.

The three standard sex symbols are the male symbol and the female symbol, and the hybrid symbol. They were first used to denote the effective sex of plants (i.e. sex of individual in a given crossbreed, since most plants are hermaphroditic) by Carl Linnaeus in 1751. The male and female symbols are still used in scientific publications to indicate the sex of an individual, for example of a patient. In biology, Linnaeus initially used the mercury symbol,, for hybrid but abandoned it in favour of the multiplication sign,, and this is the style used today (for example, "Platanus" × "acerifolia" for the London plane, a natural hybrid of "P. orientalis" (oriental plane) and "P. occidentalis" (American sycamore).)

Pedigree charts.

Pedigree charts published in scientific papers now more commonly use a square for male and a circle for female.

Origins.

These symbols are derived from the initial letters of the Ancient Greek names of the classical planets Mars, Venus and Mercury and associated with the alchemical elements iron, copper and quicksilver (mercury), respectively. Joseph Justus Scaliger speculated that the male symbol is associated with the Mars, god of war because it resembles a shield and spear; and that the female symbol is associated with Venus, goddess of beauty because it resembles a bronze mirror with a handle. Later scholars dismiss this as fanciful, preferring "the conclusion of the French classical scholar Claude de Saumaise (Salmasius, 15881683) that these symbols [...] are derived from contractions in Greek script of the Greek names of the planets".  The use of shapes as gender symbols may have originated from kinship diagrams in anthropology, where a circle represents a female, a triangle represents a male, and a square represents a person who is neither or both. The earliest form of kinship diagram that displays this is from 1871: Morgan's System of Consanguinity and Affinity of Human Family. W. H. R River's system migrated to big letters for male, small letters for female, while in algebreic-type equations, the numerator denotes male and the denominator female. Later, in C. G. Seligman's 1910 Dance Diagram, outlined circles illustrated females and shaded circles indicated males.

Sociology.

Public toilets.

Gender pictograms are frequently used to mark public toilets.

Sexual orientation and gender politics.

Since the 1970s, variations of gender symbols have also been used to express sexual orientation and political ideology. The first instance of this was the use of two interlocking male symbols to represent male homosexuality. Since the 2000s, numerous such variants have been introduced in the context of LGBT culture and politics. Some of these symbols have been adopted into Unicode (in the Miscellaneous Symbols block) beginning with version 4.1 (2005):

A gender symbol is a pictogram or glyph used to represent biological sex and gender in biology or medicine, in genealogy, or in the sociological fields of gender politics, LGBT subculture and identity politics.

Ein Gender-Symbol [] ist ein Symbol, mit dem das biologische Geschlecht (englisch "sex") eines Lebewesens oder das soziale Geschlecht "(gender)" eines Menschen gekennzeichnet wird. Die Gender-Symbole in der Typographie sind meist entweder übereinstimmend mit astronomischen Symbolen oder von diesen abgeleitet. In der Gender-Forschung kann "Gender-Symbol" auch Personen oder Dinge bezeichnen, wenn diese symbolhaft für bestimmte Aspekte eines sozialen Geschlechtes stehen.


Early life, marriage, and widowhood in Lorraine.

Françoise d’Issembourg d’Happoncourt was born in Nancy, in the duchy of Lorraine. Her father, François d’Happoncourt, was a cavalry officer. Her mother, Marguerite Callot, was a great-niece of the famous Lorraine artist Jacques Callot. While she was still a girl, her family moved to Saint-Nicolas-de-Port, where her father was commander of the duke of Lorraine's horse guards.  On 19 January 1712, not yet seventeen years old, Mademoiselle d'Happoncourt was married in the church of Saint-Nicolas-de-Port to François Huguet, a young officer in the duke's service. He was a son of the wealthy mayor of Neufchâteau, Jean Huguet. Like her father, he was an "écuyer" or squire, the lowest rank of nobility. In honor of the marriage, the groom received from his father the estate at Graffigny and the couple took the title "de Graffigny" as their name. On her side, the bride received a large house inherited by her mother from Jacques Callot, situated in Villers-lès-Nancy, where the couple lived for about six years.  François de Graffigny seemed to have a promising future, and the couple produced three children within five years: Charlotte-Antoinette (born June 1713, died December 1716); Jean-Jacques (born March 1715, lived only a few days) and Marie-Thérèse (born March 1716, died December 1717). But he was a gambler, drunk and wife-beater, who was jailed for domestic violence. In 1718, deeply in debt and already living apart, the Graffignys signed a document, which gave her authority to deal with the family's finances and required him to leave Lorraine for Paris. In 1723 she obtained a legal separation. He died in 1725, under mysterious circumstances. As a widow, Françoise de Graffigny was free from her brutal husband, but she never fully recovered from the financial losses or the emotional trauma of her marriage.  Françoise de Graffigny's mother died in 1727, and her father remarried just months afterward, and moved to a remote town in Lorraine, where he too died in 1733, leaving his daughter free of all family obligations. By that date, the court of Lorraine had moved to Lunéville, where she lived with the support of the duke's widow, the dowager duchess and regent, Élisabeth Charlotte d'Orléans. There she met a dashing cavalry officer, Léopold Desmarest, thirteen years her junior, whose father Henry Desmarest was in charge of the court's music; around 1727 he and Françoise de Graffigny began a passionate affair which lasted until 1743. She also met an even younger man, François-Antoine Devaux, who had trained to become a lawyer but dreamed of being a writer; known to everyone as Panpan, he became her closest friend and confidant, and in 1733 they began a correspondence that continued until her death. This idyllic period came to an end in 1737, when duke François-Étienne de Lorraine ceded his duchy to France to obtain French support for his marriage to Maria Theresa of Austria. Françoise de Graffigny's friends and protectors were dispersed and she herself had nowhere to go.

From Lorraine to Paris.

Finally in 1738 she arranged to become a companion to the duchesse de Richelieu; this lady had been Marie-Élisabeth-Sophie de Lorraine, princesse de Guise, before her marriage in April 1734. Françoise de Graffigny planned to join them in Paris in spring 1739, but she needed to bridge the winter months, and wheedled an invitation to Cirey, the château where Émilie, marquise du Châtelet, had been living since 1734 with her lover, Voltaire.  The journey from Lunéville to Cirey took two and half months; she stopped at Commercy, where the dowager duchess of Lorraine and her court had moved into the famous château, and at Demange-aux-Eaux she stayed with a friend, the marquise de Stainville, mother of the future duc de Choiseul. Her two-month stay at Cirey has been the best-known part of her life, because the thirty-odd letters she wrote about it to Devaux were published in 1820. The letters were, however, inaccurately transcribed, severely cut, revised and in fact added to by the anonymous 1820 editor. He or she inserted anecdotes and witticisms to make Voltaire seem more illustrious, and took every opportunity to show Françoise de Graffigny as a sentimental, foolish and irresponsible gossip.  The first few weeks at Cirey seemed like a wonderful dream come true. Voltaire read from his works in progress and joined in performances of his plays. The hostess, Émilie, showed off her estate, her furnishings, her clothes and jewelry, and her formidable learning. There were constant visitors, including luminaries like the scientist-philosopher Pierre Louis Maupertuis. The conversation ranged over every topic imaginable, always enlivened by Voltaire's sparkling wit.  Yet trouble was brewing. Voltaire read from his scandalous burlesque poem about Joan of Arc, "La Pucelle". Émilie intercepted a letter from Devaux which mentioned the work, leapt to the false conclusion that her guest had copied a canto and circulated it, and accused her of treachery. For a month after that, Françoise de Graffigny was a virtual prisoner at Cirey, until her lover Desmarest passed through en route to Paris and took her on the final leg of her journey.

Paris.

Her plan to live as companion to the duchesse de Richelieu worked only for a short time, because the duchess died of tuberculosis in August 1740. She then lived as a boarder in two convents, and stayed with a wealthy friend. Finally, in autumn 1742, she rented her own house on the rue Saint-Hyacinthe.  These first years in Paris were difficult, but not unproductive. She began to make new friends, the most important being the actress Jeanne Quinault, who retired from the stage in 1741, and began to receive her friends from the literary world at casual dinners, called the "Bout-du-Banc". Through Jeanne Quinault, Françoise de Graffigny met most of the authors writing in Paris in this era – Louis de Cahusac, Claude Crébillon, Charles Collé, Philippe Néricault Destouches, Charles Pinot Duclos, Barthélemy-Christophe Fagan, Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset, Pierre de Marivaux, François-Augustin de Paradis de Moncrif, Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée, Alexis Piron, Claude Henri de Fuzée de Voisenon, and others – as well as nobles who enjoyed their company and dabbled in writing themselves, like comte de Caylus, comte de Maurepas, duc de Nivernais, comte de Pont-de-Veyle, and comte de Saint-Florentin. Her lover Desmarest was away much of the time with his regiment, and was trapped in the besieged city of Prague in late 1741; when he returned to Paris without funds to re-equip himself, he accepted money from his mistress even though he had already decided to leave her. The emotional shock of his betrayal never fully healed, but his departure left her free to pursue her own ambitions.  She moved into her new house on 27 November 1742. In the summer of 1743 she sublet an upper floor apartment to Pierre Valleré, a lawyer, and had a brief but intense fling with him, the only liaison besides Desmarest she mentions in her letters. Although relations between them were often strained, he remained with her, as her lodger, legal adviser, and companion, until her death; and he was the principal executor of her will. Her finances remained a problem; in 1744 she staked her hopes on an investment that proved unsound, and she found herself in early 1746 deeper in debt than ever.

Writer.

Yet this was the time when she began the work that would eventually bring her fame and material comfort, if not wealth. As early as 1733, her letters to Devaux mention writing projects, some his, some joint, and some hers. When she went to Paris, she carried with her several of her manuscripts, including a sentimental drama called "L'Honnête Homme" (The Honest Man), an allegorical comedy called "La Réunion du Bon-sens et de l'Esprit" (The Reunion of Common Sense and Wit), and a verse comedy called "Héraclite, prétendu sage" (Heraclitus, alleged sage). In her letters she also mentions a traditional comedy called "L'École des amis" (The School for friends), a fantastic comedy called "Le Monde vrai" (The Truthful World) and a short supernatural novel called "Le Sylphe" (The Sylph). None of these works was ever published, and some of them were destroyed, but others survive in manuscript or in fragments among her papers.  Her fellow participants at Jeanne Quinault's Bout-du-Banc insisted that she contribute a piece to their next collective work. Comte de Caylus gave her the outline of a "nouvelle espagnole", a type of short fiction in vogue since the seventeenth century, which she developed on her own. The volume appeared in March 1745, with the title "Recueil de ces Messieurs" (Anthology by these Gentlemen); her story was called "Nouvelle espagnole ou Le mauvais exemple produit autant de vertus que de vices" (Spanish novella, or A bad example leads to as many virtues as vices). Françoise de Graffigny's contribution was singled out for praise. This success encouraged her to accept another task from Caylus, the outline of a fairy tale with the title "La Princesse Azerolle", published later in 1745 in a collection called "Cinq Contes de fées" (Five Fairy Tales). Although several of her friends knew of her authorship, "La Princesse Azerolle" was never publicly attributed to Françoise de Graffigny until the recent publication of her correspondence. Both of these early short works deserve to be better known.  Her confidence restored with the two short stories, she began writing two more substantial works, an epistolary novel, published in December 1747 as "Lettres d'une Péruvienne" (Letters from a Peruvian Woman), and a sentimental comedy, staged in June 1750 as "Cénie". The inspiration for the novel came from seeing a performance of "Alzire", Voltaire's play set during the Spanish conquest of Peru; immediately afterwards, in May 1743, she began to read the Inca Garcilaso de la Vega's "History of the Incas", which supplied most of the historical background for her story. She was also following Montesquieu's device of a foreign visitor in France as in the "Lettres Persanes" (Persian Letters). Her novel was an immediate success with readers; by the end of 1748 there were fourteen editions, including three of an English translation. Over the next hundred years, more than 140 editions appeared, including an edition in 1752 revised and expanded by the author, several different English translations, two in Italian, and others in German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish.  After the success of "Lettres d'une Péruvienne", Françoise de Graffigny was a celebrity. Thanks largely to her fame, she found new protectors, and her financial situation improved. With renewed energy and self-assurance, she turned her attention to her play, "Cénie". Its composition was more complicated than that of the novel, because she consulted more friends, and getting a work staged required more steps than getting a manuscript published. The premiere took place on 25 June 1750; the play was an instant hit. Measured by the number of first-run performances, the number of spectators, and the box office receipts, it was one of the ten most successful new plays of the eighteenth century in France. It was helped by the novelty of having a woman as author, and by the vogue of "comédie larmoyante" (tear-jerking comedy). It was revived several times in the next few years, but quickly faded from the repertory. The author's reputation was damaged by the failure of her second play, "La Fille d'Aristide" (Aristides' Daughter), which was withdrawn soon after its premiere on 27 April 1758.

Salon hostess.

Madame de Graffigny's fame also made her house a popular place for social gatherings, and she was one of the important salon hostesses in mid-century Paris. She was assisted by the presence of her cousin's daughter, Anne-Catherine de Ligniville, a charming young woman whose high nobility and low wealth seemed to condemn her to a convent or a marriage of convenience. Françoise de Graffigny brought her from a provincial convent to Paris in September 1746, and played a major role in arranging her love-match marriage to the financier philosopher Claude Adrien Helvétius on 17 August 1751. Earlier that same summer, she moved from her house on the rue Saint-Hyacinthe to another on the rue d'Enfer, with an entrance into the Luxembourg Garden. Here she received her friends, visitors from all over Europe, and many of the most famous French writers and political figures of the era, including d'Alembert, Diderot, Fontenelle, Montesquieu, Prévost, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Turgot, and Voltaire.  She died peacefully at home in Paris on 12 December 1758, after suffering a seizure while playing cards with three old friends. She had been in failing health for a long time. It took Valleré and others ten years to settle her estate; she left many debts, but in the end her assets covered them all. Her relations with Devaux had cooled over the years, and their correspondence was interrupted by quarrels several times in the 1750s; nevertheless, she continued to write to him until the eve of her death. Although he never undertook the project of editing their letters, a fantasy they had often discussed, he preserved the collection of their letters and her manuscripts. Most of the collection is now in the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University, and other parts of it are in the Morgan Library in New York and the Bibliothèque nationale de France. Beginning in 1985, a team headed by J. A. Dainard has been publishing her letters for the first time. They may well prove to be her most important work, because of her insider's view of French literary life in the heyday of the Age of Enlightenment, her unprecedentedly detailed and intimate account of a woman's life in eighteenth-century France, and her lively colloquial style.

Name.

As explained above, "Graffigny" is not a family name, but the name of an estate. Spelling was not standardized in the eighteenth century, and one finds the name written and printed many ways. The author herself usually wrote it "Grafigny". As the Lorraine scholar Georges Mangeot pointed out long ago, however, the place name has been standardized as "Graffigny" (it is now part of Graffigny-Chemin), and that spelling should be followed.

Works.

Authors advised and edited by Madame de Graffigny.

Jean Galli de Bibiena; Antoine Bret; François-Antoine Devaux; La Rougère; Claude Guimond de La Touche; Michel Linant; Charles Palissot de Montenoy; Jean-François de Saint-Lambert

Sources.

Bibliography.

Scores of excellent critical and interpretive articles and chapters in books have been devoted to Françoise de Graffigny and her works in the past thirty years. These surveys provide indications for further reading.

Françoise de Graffigny, née Françoise d'Issembourg du Buisson d'Happoncourt (11 February 1695 - 12 December 1758), better known as Madame de Graffigny, was a French novelist, playwright and salon hostess.

Françoise d'Issembourg d'Happoncourt de Graffigny (* 13. Februar 1695 in Nancy; † 12. Dezember 1758 in Paris), bekannt als Madame de Graffigniy, war eine französische Schriftstellerin und Salonnière der Aufklärung.


Name.

"Koyukuk" was derived from the Central Yup'ik phrase "kuik-yuk," meaning "a river." The Koyukuk River was given this generic C. Yup'ik name by Russian explorer Petr Vasilii Malakhov, because he did not know the local Koyukon name for it (i.e., "Ooghekuhno"). The Western Union Telegraph Expedition used the spelling of "Coyukuk" before the United States Board on Geographic Names settled on "Koyukuk."

History.

The Russian Petr Vasilii Malakhov reached the river at its confluence with the Yukon in 1838. The United States acquired Alaska after the American Civil War, but it was 1885 before US representatives Lieutenant Henry Allen and Private Fred Fickett of the United States Army ascended and explored the river. The discovery of gold deposits by Johnnie Folger on the Middle Fork in 1893 on The Tramway bar led to a gold rush in 1898; trading posts and mining camps, including Bettles, were rapidly developed on the upper river.  In 1929, Robert "Bob" Marshall explored the North Fork of the Koyukuk River, and identified what he called the Gates of the Arctic.  In 1980 the United States Congress designated 100 mi (164 km) of the North Fork of the Koyukuk River in the Brooks Range as the "Koyukuk Wild and Scenic River," which authorized certain levels of protection for the habitat.  In 1994 the river flooded, sweeping away three villages, forcing the wholesale relocation of the population.

Flora and fauna.

Vegetation along the Koyukuk River, sparse along the upper reaches, consists of tundra plants such as dwarf willows and other shrubs, sedges, and lichens. Further downstream at lower elevations, taiga and boreal forest plants are common except in the Koyukuk Flats near the mouth, where sedges and other herbaceous plants dominate the poorly drained muskeg. Trees found in more well-drained areas along the river include mountain alder, trembling aspen, white, and black spruce.  Fish species frequenting the lower Koyukuk include Arctic lamprey and sockeye salmon. The sockeye and other salmon species, including Chinook and chum, also thrive along the upper reaches and tributaries. Caribou migrate across the upper part of the Koyukuk watershed. Other major vertebrates in the region include bald eagles, brown and black bears, mink, beaver, marten, and river otter. Beluga whales sometimes visit the lower Koyukuk.  Moose herds, which thrive in parts of the watershed, especially in riparian zones downstream of Hughes, attract local and non-local hunters, bears, and wolves. A consortium of moose hunters and state wildlife officials work to keep the moose population at sustainable levels.  Through 2005, no one had published a study of invertebrates of the Koyukuk or its larger tributaries. General information included in a study related to pipeline construction through the watershed suggested the presence of a variety of true flies, midges, black flies, mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies.

The Koyukuk River (; Ooghekuhno in Koyukon, Kuuyukaq in Inupiaq) is a tributary of the Yukon River, in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the last major tributary entering the Yukon before the larger river empties into the Bering Sea.

Der Koyukuk River ist ein 680 km langer rechter Nebenfluss des Yukon River im Nordwesten Alaskas. Sein Quellgebiet liegt in den Endicott Mountains, einem Gebirgszug in der Brookskette. Er speist den Yukon River, in den er bei der Ortschaft Koyukuk in einer im Koyukuk National Wildlife Refuge gelegenen großen Flussaue mündet. Einige seiner Arme – "North Fork", "Middle Fork" und "South Fork" – reichen bis über den Polarkreis und in den Gates-of-the-Arctic-Nationalpark.


Plot.

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional creation of Dr. John Watson who serves as the central character in a series of short stories published in "The Strand Magazine". Watson uses the character to enable him to solve crimes incognito, so as not to disrupt his career as a doctor. He therefore decides to satisfy public demand to see Holmes in person by hiring unemployed actor Reginald Kincaid to play the part of the hero of his detective stories. Kincaid must rely on direction from Watson, memorizing the doctor's exacting, detailed instructions every step of the way.  After a major case, Kincaid oversteps his boundaries with Watson, who fires him. Watson wants to write the character off so as to start a new series about "The Crime Doctor", with Watson himself being recognized as the great detective, but the idea is received coldly. And with a new crime of arson at a paper warehouse to investigate, Watson finds that he is unable to get information on his own.  That crime then becomes a link in a major case when the British government seeks the aid of "Holmes" and will accept no one else. The mystery involves the theft of printing plates for £5 banknotes, with the printing supervisor, Peter Giles, having gone missing on the night of the robbery. The counterfeiting of these notes would cause the inevitable collapse of the British Empire's economy. Watson is therefore forced to retrieve "Holmes" from the pub to which he has retired.  Scotland Yard's Inspector Lestrade is jealous of "Holmes". Rather than relying on the regular police, therefore, Watson uses the twelve-year-old street urchin, Wiggins, the leader of a street gang that he calls "Baker Street Irregulars", to keep an eye on people and hunt out evidence. One line of enquiry leads Watson to the printer’s daughter Leslie, whom he and the womanising "Holmes" invite back to their quarters to recover from the shock of false evidence of her father’s death.  Watson and “Holmes” discover that Professor Moriarty is the mastermind behind the scheme and disturb him on the docks while receiving a consignment of printing ink. Watson is apparently killed while tracking him, forcing “Holmes” to solve the case on his own. The trail takes him to an abandoned theatre where the forgeries are being printed. There he discovers that Watson is still alive after all and the two team up to defeat Moriarty for good. In the process Leslie is unmasked as an impostor and Moriarty’s spy.  When they return to 221B Baker Street, “Holmes” announces to a reception committee of reporters that he is now retiring and gives full credit to the qualities of his partner Watson. For his part Watson assures the public that, far from this being so, the team of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson will continue their detective work from now on as friends.

Production.

Writing.

Written by Gary Murphy and Larry Strawther, two devoted Sherlockians, the film originally had the working titles "The Imposter of Baker Street" and "Sherlock and Me". The script was filled with numerous Doyle references, some of which were excised from the final film to make it more accessible. A reference from the real world that survived, was the character of Norman Greenhough, based on Herbert Greenhough Smith, editor of "The Strand Magazine", whose faith in the Holmes/Watson characters brought fame and fortune to both writer and periodical.

Reception.

At the time of its release, the film was poorly reviewed. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 60% based on 10 reviews, with an average rating of 5.47/10. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade B+ on scale of A to F.  Roger Ebert gave the film only two stars out of four on the grounds that the "amusing premise" that Holmes is in fact a third-rate actor hired by Watson to play the role is not enough to carry the film. This was echoed by "The Monthly Film Bulletin"s judgment that "If this premise were to be workable, it would require the casting of an actor who could actually pass as the genuine Holmes. As it is, we are simply given a buffoon." Dave Kehr, writing for the "Chicago Tribune", agreed that a "Sherlock Holmes movie can be many things, but stupid isn`t one of them. Still, there`s no other way to consider "Without a Clue", a mystery-comedy so klutzy that it tips one of its few surprises in the credit list."  Vincent Canby writing for "The New York Times" stated that "Without A Clue" was "an appallingly witless sendup of the Sherlock Holmes–Dr. Watson stories". "Variety" conceded that the film "generates a few laughs and smiles, but of a markedly mild nature and most of them provoked by the shrewdly judged antics of the two stars." Harvey O'Brien thought the film seemed "more like a television production", although the choice of actors for the main characters convincingly addresses "the artificiality of the Holmes mythos" and "presents a unique redemption of the Watson figure".  The film won the 1989 Special Jury Prize at the Festival du Film Policier de Cognac.

Without a Clue is a 1988 British comedy film directed by Thom Eberhardt and starring Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley. It is based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's characters from the Sherlock Holmes stories but in this version Sherlock Holmes is an actor hired by Doctor Watson to play the part of the brilliant detective, so that Watson can maintain his reputation as a doctor.

Genie und Schnauze ist eine britische Filmkomödie aus dem Jahr 1988, die die berühmten Kriminalfilme um den englischen Meisterdetektiv Sherlock Holmes und seinen Gefährten Dr. Watson parodiert.


Early life and education.

Kiefer was born as a son of German immigrants in Chicago, Illinois, and there attended Roosevelt High School (1936). He then attended the University of Texas at Austin (1939), and Columbia College, Columbia University (1940).

Early record breaking.

Kiefer became the first man to break the one-minute mark in the 100-yard backstroke while competing as a 16-year-old in the Illinois High School Championships of 1935, swimming 59.8 seconds. His 1936 Illinois state championship backstroke time of 58.5 seconds was the Illinois state high-school record until 1960. On April 6, 1940, Kiefer set another world record, swimming the 100-yard backstroke in 57.9 seconds. He broke twenty-three records after breaking the one-minute backstroke mark. Kiefer set a world record for the 100-meter backstroke of 1:04.8 on January 18, 1936, at Brennan Pools in Detroit, Michigan.

Summer Olympics in Berlin.

Eighteen-year-old Kiefer represented the United States at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. On August 14, Kiefer won the gold medal in the men's 100-meter backstroke. He set new Olympic records in the first-round heats (1:06.9), the second-round heats (1:06.8), and the event final (1:05.9). His Olympic Record would stand for over 20 years, finally broken by David Theile in the 1956 Summer Olympics.

Later swimming career.

Kiefer returned home a national hero, and began traveling with other U.S. Olympic medalists on a tour of Europe, China, Japan, and South America, during which he challenged other great swimmers in those locations to individual races.  In over 2,000 races, Kiefer lost only twice. At the National AAU swimming championship in April 1943, University of Michigan All-American swimmer Harry Holiday, Jr. finally went head-to-head with world-record holder Kiefer. Holiday beat him in the 150-yard backstroke at the AAU meet. The defeat was the first for Kiefer in eight years.  In his first two months of varsity competition, Holiday broke two of Kiefer's world records, lowering the 100-yard backstroke mark to 57 seconds and the 200-meter standard to 2:22.9. In August 1943, the NCAA also recognized Holiday as the holder of the new world record in the 150-yard backstroke with a mark of 1:31.5. Shortly thereafter, Kiefer was asked to audition for the role of "Tarzan", but answered the call of arms instead, joining the U.S. Navy.

In the navy.

Kiefer joined the U.S. Navy as a Chief Petty Officer in late 1943 and was initially assigned to the physical fitness and swimming division of the United States Navy's Bureau of Naval Personnel (BUPERS) as a Chief Athletics Specialist. When the Navy realized that it was losing more lives to drowning than to enemy bullets, Kiefer was appointed to a committee to set new guidelines for safety and training. He quickly moved through the ranks, becoming Officer in Charge of Swimming for the entire U.S. Navy, training over 13,000 navy swim instructors to do the "Victory backstroke", a term Kiefer coined himself. Victory backstroke was a simplified version of the modern backstroke that allowed novice swimmers to breathe easily (on their backs) while leveraging what Adolph considered to be a more buoyant stroke style for novice swimmers. Victory backstroke was performed with both arms underwater, sweeping down simultaneously (instead of using alternating arms), while using a freestyle kick. The American Red Cross would later add Victory Backstroke to their swim training protocols.  By the war's end, he had reached the rank of Lieutenant, Senior Grade.

Business career.

In 1947, he established Adolph Kiefer & Associates, Inc. in Chicago, which has provided swimmers with training, safety, and competition equipment. His company was responsible for the development of the nylon tank suit in 1948. and debuted the first nylon swimsuit supplied to the U.S. Olympic Swim Team—a marked improvement over the wool and cotton suits available at the time.  Kiefer subsequently devoted himself to community service, combining swimming and philanthropy in innovative ways. In the 1960s he worked with Mayor Richard J. Daley to build swimming-pools across the inner city of Chicago, providing the facilities needed for thousands of children to learn to swim. Kiefer actively supported Swim Across America, a nonprofit organization that raises funds for cancer research, and participated in SAA public swimming events well into his 70s and 80s.

Later life.

Kiefer was an "Honor Swimmer" member of the inaugural class inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1965. In 1966 he patented the first design for a no-wave, non-turbulence racing lane.  In 2008 Kiefer celebrated his 90th birthday in Omaha at the 2008 U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials, where he awarded medals for the 200-meter backstroke. On June 27, 2012, he celebrated his birthday again in Omaha at the 2012 U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials—by awarding the medals for the 200-meter backstroke. In 2013 USA Swimming named Kiefer the "father of American swimming" in recognition of his contributions to American swimming.  On the morning of May 5, 2017, Kiefer died at home in Wadsworth, Illinois, at the age of 98.

Adolph Gustav Kiefer (June 27, 1918 – May 5, 2017) was an American competition swimmer, Olympic competitor, the last surviving gold medalist of the 1936 Summer Olympics and former world record-holder. He was the first man in the world to swim the 100-yard backstroke in under one minute. Kiefer was also an inventor and innovator of new products related to aquatics competition.

Adolph Gustav Kiefer (* 27. Juni 1918 in Chicago, Illinois; † 5. Mai 2017 in Wadsworth, Lake County, Illinois) war ein US-amerikanischer Schwimmer.


Club career.

Den Bosch.

Lucius was born in Veghel, North Brabant. When he was five years old he started his football career at amateurs VV Heeswijk, joining BVV Den Bosch eight years later and being reconverted from a striker to a midfielder; since the age of 15, he also worked as a carpenter, and made formwork for a concrete factory.  In the 1996–97 season, newly appointed manager Kees Zwamborn awarded Lucius with his senior official debut, an Eerste Divisie match away against BV Veendam on 20 August 1996 (0–1 loss), and the player was an undisputed starter in his two years with the's-Hertogenbosch side, as it consecutively fell short in the promotion playoffs.

PSV.

In the 1998 off-season, after reported interest from FC Utrecht, AZ and PSV Eindhoven, Lucius chose the latter, managed by Bobby Robson. He played 25 games in his first season, winning the Dutch Supercup.  When Erik Gerets took over from the English, Lucius was sent on loan to Utrecht, returning to the Philips side for the 2000–01 campaign and continuing to be regularly used under both the Belgian and his successor, Guus Hiddink, as the club won four Eredivisie championships, also reaching the semifinals in the 2004–05 edition of the UEFA Champions League, being eliminated by A.C. Milan in the dying seconds of the game (3–1 home win, after a 0–2 loss in the first leg); in his last two years, the player was used more as a right back.

Feyenoord / Later years.

Lucius moved to Feyenoord for 2006–07, scoring a career-best five goals in 27 games as the De Kuip side finished in seventh position. He won the following season's domestic cup, against Roda JC (2–0).  Following the return of Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Lucius was stripped of his captain armband. In June 2009, his contract with the Rotterdam club ended, and Lucius spent the following months training with former club Den Bosch in view of a permanent move, supposedly with an amateur contract; eventually, nothing came of it and he joined FC Groningen for one season.  In July 2010, aged nearly 34, Lucius finally returned to Den Bosch, again in the second division. At the end of the campaign, he moved to another team in the category, FC Eindhoven. After one year he joined RKC Waalwijk on an amateur basis, but left after only one month due to lack of playing time, rejoining his previous club in the following transfer window.

International career.

On 4 June 2005 Lucius made his debut with the Netherlands, led by Marco van Basten, in a 2–0 home win against Romania for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Four days later, in the same competition – again as a starting right back – he won the second of his three caps, in a 4–0 win over Finland.

Personal life.

In January 2004, Lucius made headlines for selling illegal fireworks to a man from Breda in December of the previous year. When using the device, the man was badly injured and lost his eye. As a result, Lucius spent a few days in jail and was sentenced to community service, first to 80 hours, which was raised in 2006 to 240 hours.  He was also a poker player, with a rather negative record.  After his active career, Lucius became co-owner of a café in his home town of Heeswijk-Dinther.

Theodorus Martinus Maria "Theo" Lucius (born 19 December 1976) is a Dutch former footballer. He could operate as a right back or a central defender, and also as a defensive midfielder.

Theodorus Martinus Maria Lucius (* 19. Dezember 1976 in Veghel) ist ein niederländischer Fußballspieler. Er ist momentan vereinslos (zuvor Feyenoord Rotterdam).


Life and career.

In 1967 he joined the Komsomol.  In the 1970s, Sergey Mironov served in the airborne troops in the Soviet Army. In 1973 he was elected as deputy secretary committee of the Komsomol on ideological educational work at the Leningrad Mining Institute. After graduating from the Institute he worked as an engineer-geophysicist. After a brief time of working as an entrepreneur, he entered politics and, in 1994, was elected deputy of the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly. In June 2000, he was elected vice-Chairman of the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly and, in 2001, entered the Federation Council of Russia as a representative of St. Petersburg. In December 2001, Sergey Mironov was elected to be a Speaker of the Federation Council. Since February 2003, Sergey Mironov has been the Chairman of the Council of Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of States – members of the Commonwealth of Independent States and since April 2003 – Chairman of the Russian Party of Life. Sergey Mironov is from Saint Petersburg.  Mironov was a candidate in the 2004 presidential election. He was not considered to be a serious candidate and was quoted as saying: "We all want Vladimir Putin to be the next president." He polled less than one per cent of the vote.  In October 2006, he became the leader of the new left-wing opposition party A Just Russia (Справедливая Россия), which was formed by uniting Rodina, Mironov's Russian Party of Life, and the Russian Pensioners' Party. This effectively makes him the leader of the opposition as the three parties together would be stronger than the Communist Party of the Russian Federation.  Mironov has several times proposed an amendment to the Russian constitution that would allow the President to be elected for 3 consecutive 5 or 7 year terms. In 2007, Boris Gryzlov, leader of the rival United Russia party, said that changing the constitution would be unacceptable. Mironov is considered to be more socialistic oriented, as he pushes for setting up special agricultural exchanges for state purchases of agricultural goods and for more state intervention in regulating prices of basic food stuff.  In the March 2012 presidential election, he received 3.86% of the votes.  In March 2014, Mironov was included in list of Russian government sanctioned individuals because of their direct or alleged indirect involvement in the 2014 Crimean crisis. On 25 July 2014, amidst an armed insurgency in Eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry launched criminal proceedings against Mironov for alleged financial support to the armed insurgents.

Personal.

Third wife: Mironova Irina Yurievna – officer apparatus to the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS. They have a son and a daughter.  In 2008, President Vladimir Putin awarded Mironov the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 3rd degree.  In 2011, after an initiative of United Russia in the Legislative Assembly of Saint Petersburg, Mironov was recalled from the Federation Council.

Electoral history.

2004 presidential campaign.

Mirinov ran for president in the 2004 presidential election as the nominee of the Russian Party of Life. His candidacy was seen largely as a ploy to lend credence to the contest, as he was widely known to be a strong supporter of Vladimir Putin. He was even quoted as declaring, "We all want Vladimir Putin to be the next president."  Mirinov's campaign slogan was "Justice and Responsibility".  Most Russians were unfamiliar with Minonov and were disinterested in his candidacy.

2012 presidential campaign.

Running in 2012 as the A Just Russia nominee, Mironov called for a return to a socialist model of government. Mironov was nominated by his party on 10 December 2011.  While he stated that he predicted a Putin victory, he declared that he would support Gennady Zyuganov in a hypothetical runoff against Putin.

Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He was Chairman of the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliament, from 2001 to 2011. He leads the faction A Just Russia in the Parliament of Russia.

Sergei Michailowitsch Mironow (; * 14. Februar 1953 in Puschkin, Oblast Leningrad, heute zu Sankt Petersburg) ist ein russischer Politiker. Er ist Vorsitzender der Partei Gerechtes Russland. Von Dezember 2001 bis Mai 2011 war er Vorsitzender des russischen Föderationsrates. Seit dem 14. Juni 2011 ist er Vorsitzender der Duma-Fraktion von „Gerechtes Russland“.


Geography.

Charolles is located at the confluence of the Semence and the Arconce rivers,. west-northwest of Mâcon.

History.

Charolles was the capital of Charolais, an old division of France, which from the early 14th century gave the title of count to its possessors. In 1327 the county passed by marriage to the house of Armagnac, and in 1390 it was sold to Philip of Burgundy. After the death of Charles the Bold, who in his youth had borne the title of count of Charolais, it was seized by Louis XI of France, but in 1493 it was ceded by Charles VIII to Maximilian of Austria, the representative of the Burgundian family. Ultimately passing to the Spanish kings, it became for a considerable period an object of dispute between France and Spain, until at length in 1684 it was assigned to the great Condé, a creditor of the king of Spain. It was united to the French crown in 1771.

Sights.

The ruins of the castle of the counts of Charolais occupy the summit of a hill in the immediate vicinity of the town.

Economy.

According to the Encyclopædia Britannica "Eleventh Edition" (1911):

Tourism.

In the Southern Bourgogne-Franche-Comté area, you can see :

People.

Charolles was the birthplace of:

Climate.

Climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is "". (Marine West Coast Climate/Oceanic climate).

Charolles (; Burgundian: "Tsarolles") is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France. Since 2004 is Charolles part of the Charolais-Brionnais Country.

Charolles ist eine französische Gemeinde mit Einwohnern (Stand ) im Département Saône-et-Loire in der Region Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Sie ist Verwaltungssitz des Arrondissements Charolles und des Kantons Charolles.