title: Oil Capital Historic District (Tulsa, Oklahoma)

text:
The Oil Capital Historic District (OCHD) is an area in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma that commemorates the success of the oil business in Tulsa during the early 20th century. During this period, Tulsa was widely known as "The Oil Capital of the World." The area is bounded by 3rd Street on the north and 7th Street on the south, Cincinnati Avenue on the east and Cheyenne Avenue on the west.

Early in the 20th century, Oklahoma emerged as a major producer of oil and gas. Many of the companies that would become notable in the energy industry located either their home offices or major regional offices in Downtown Tulsa, often constructing architecturally significant buildings to house them. Supporting companies such as equipment suppliers, banks, insurers, utilities and even hotels quickly followed suit. However, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the domestic oil business began to decline and companies began consolidating in other cities, these former office buildings became surplus. Some buildings were converted to other functions, but some others were razed for parking lots or freeways. Tulsans who became concerned about the loss of these historic and cultural landmarks began to work on adapting them for newer and more economic functions. The creation of the Oil Capital Historic District was implemented as a way to slow the losses while the plan was realized.

Building classifications
As part of the application process, all of the significant buildings within the proposed district boundaries were labeled as either "Contributing" or "non-contributing". Buildings in the former category had to meet certain criteria:
Built between 1910 and 1967
Involved in some aspect of the oil business during that time
Had not lost their historical character through remodeling or conversion to other uses

The application states that the district contains 72 resources (69 buildings, 2 sites and one object). These were further classified as 40 contributing, 18 non-contributing and 14 which had previously been listed in the National Register.

The table presented here identifies the buildings contained by the OCHD, as defined in the NRHP application. Data are largely derived from text descriptions in the application. They are listed by street address, beginning in the northeast corner of the district (3rd Street and Cincinnati.Avenue). Several architectural styles are represented in the district: Art Deco, Beaux Arts, Classical Revival, Commercial Style, Greek Revival, Italianate, and Modern Movement. Some buildings do not conform to any particular style.

Oil Industry decline
The importance of Tulsa in the oil industry, as well as the impact of the oil industry on Tulsa, declined as the United States began to rely more heavily on cheaper offshore and imported oil. Major international companies downsized or eliminated their Tulsa offices and moved to cities nearer the coasts, especially after foreign countries began exerting more control over their own oil resources. The Arab Oil Embargo accelerated the trend. The International Petroleum Exposition, which had drawn a record number of visitors in 1966, faded in importance and occurred less frequently until it was permanently cancelled after the 1979 show.

District buildings demolished 1967-2010
Notable buildings in or very near the OCHD that were demolished during the decline of the oil business and the creation of the district include:
 Bethlehem Steel Building, 2nd and Boston, razed in 1970
Bliss Hotel 2nd & Boston, Built in 1929 and razed in February 1973.
 Hunt Building, 4th and Main, better known as the Brown-Dunkin Department Store, demolished in 1970.
Medical Arts Building, 6th and Boulder, demolished in July 1970.
Hotel Tulsa, 3rd and Cincinnati. Demolished 1972.
Skelly Building, 23 West 4th, A 9-story office of the Skelly Oil companies, demolished.
Orpheum Theater, 12 East 4th Street, opened in 1917 as a vaudeville theater, then switched to movies in 1931. Closed in March 1970 and was demolished in May 1970. It was replaced by the Tulsa Building & Loan Building at 10-12 East 4th.(originally the Edwards Building, built in 1926.)

Current status of selected surviving buildings

First Place Tower
This building was completed in 1973 and previously housed, in succession, the First National Bank of Tulsa and a Citicorp branch. Citicorp vacated the premises in 2012. ONE Gas, Inc. planned to move its headquarters to this building in 2014.

Sinclair Building
According to a Tulsa World article, a Tulsa County District Judge ruled that the City of Tulsa and the Central Park Owners Association Inc. could foreclose on the Sinclair Building because the current owner was in arrears on $270,000 for taxes, fees and penalties. The sale could be sold at a sheriff's auction, after a 30-day appeal period, unless the owner reaches a settlement agreement with the city and other creditors.

Tulsa Club Building

The Tulsa Club was founded in 1925 as a social club for wealthy businessmen. The 11-story building, designed by Bruce Goff, was constructed in 1927 on the northwest corner of Fifth Street and Cincinnati Avenue, next to the Philtower Building. The Tulsa Chamber of Commerce owned 40 percent of the building and the club owned 60 percent. The Chamber of Commerce and other organizations used the lower five floors, while the Tulsa Club occupied the top six and a roof garden. The chamber sold its interest to the club in 1952, when it built a new building at 616 South Boston. The club abandoned the building in 1994.

It is unclear when California investor C. J. Morony acquired the building. It is even less clear why. Space was never rented, but the building was allowed to deteriorate. Squatters moved and several fires were deliberately set inside. The city tried for seven years to get him to correct code violations, pay delinquent taxes and fees.

Bruce Garrett bought the building for $400,000 in April 2013 at a sheriff's sale, and announced plans to renovate it, while preserving the early 20th-century design.

A recent news article recounted that vandals took away door knobs, light fixtures, and practically anything else they could pry loose. They also covered the walls with graffiti. Fires were set three times in two weeks during April, 2010, damaging several rooms and disfiguring the exterior walls with scorch marks. In October, 2010, a more serious fire raged through the ballroom on the ninth floor, creating doubts that the building could be saved.

Although most developers that had been interested in saving the building lost interest, a Tulsa construction company, the Ross Group, bought the structure in 2015 for $1.5 million. Promise Hotels, became an equity partner. These partners felt they could restore the building to usable condition for $24 million. By 2018, they realized the cost would be $33 million. After the hotel reopened in mid-June 2019, Pete Patel, CEO and President of Promise Hotels, told the Tulsa World that the final cost was about $36 million. He also added, “the most expensive hotel in Tulsa, if not in Oklahoma.”

633 South Boston Building
This building was designed by architect Robert Buchner to house the Tulsa office of Ponca City Savings and Loan Company, but has remained vacant for a number of years. The Tulsa Foundation for Architecture was interested in acquiring the building, intending to create a museum of blueprints and other drawings. However, the foundation was unable to raise sufficient funding and the idea was dropped.

8 East 3rd Street Building
The 10-story building at 8 East 3rd Street has been named as the Holarud Building, the McBirney Building and the Parker Building. It was constructed in 1929 as the headquarters for Parker Drilling Company, and was known as the Parker Building. The company extensively remodeled it in 1975, then sold it and relocated to Houston in 2001. Apparently the building remained vacant until Parker Drilling Company reacquired it in 2012, as a result of foreclosure.  The company then sold the building to the Anish Hotel Group, who announced that the building will be converted into a hotel. Since the recent sale, it has been renamed as the 8 East 3rd Street Building.

As of March 2014, the 3rd Street Building project was on hold. Because a large number of hotel projects were being considered for Downtown Tulsa, some concern have arisen about whether there would be sufficient demand for all these to survive. In an interview, Anish Hotel Group founder, Andy Patel, said that the company is also thinking about converting the former Parker Building to residences or office spaces.

Palace Building
Also known as the Excaliber Building and the 324 South Main Building, the structure was reportedly owned by the Tulsa World in 2012. For several years, it had been vacant, except for an Arby's restaurant on the ground floor. Rumors that the building would be demolished were denied by the newspaper.

Petroleum Club Building
The Petroleum Club Building at 601 South Boulder in Tulsa got its name from the private club that moved into its top three floors when it was built in 1963. The building is  tall, has 14 stories, and contains  of floor space. In 1994, a major fire heavily damaged the top two stories, forcing the club to close, and causing serious smoke damage throughout the rest of the building. The club facilities were rebuilt and the facility remained open until 2011. The decline of the oil business in Tulsa was accompanied by a loss of members in the club, and contributed to heavy financial losses. The club closed in July 2011. However, the building is still referred to locally as the Petroleum Club Building.

Tulsa-based Consumer Affairs reportedly has remodeled the severely damaged top floors and has moved some of its headquarters staff into the new space, according to a brief announcement. A previous article noted that Consumer Affairs is a web-based consumer activist organization that was based in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, before moving to Tulsa in 2010. It had announced when beginning the remodel project that it was considering leasing an additional six floors of the building.

Gallery

Street views

Contributing buildings

Non-contributing buildings

Additional information
National Register of Historic Places Registration Form Retrieved June 19, 2014. (Also available here.)

Notes

References

2010 establishments in Oklahoma
History of Oklahoma
History of the petroleum industry in the United States
Buildings and structures in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Oklahoma
National Register of Historic Places in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Chicago school architecture in Oklahoma


title: Joseph Goodrich

text:
Joseph Goodrich (May 12, 1800 – October 9, 1867) was an American pioneer, businessman, and politician.

Born in Hancock, Massachusetts, Goodrich moved to Stephentown, New York, in 1812, to live with an uncle where he was involved with farming and was a member of the Seventh Day Baptist Church. In 1819, Goodrich moved to Alfred, New York where he had a sawmill, store, and hotel. Then in 1839, Goodrich and his family moved to Prairie du Lac, Wisconsin Territory. There he founded the village of Milton, Wisconsin and Milton College. He served in the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1855 as a Republican. In Milton, Wisconsin, Goodrich built the Milton House. Goodrich was a supporter of the abolitionist movement and used his house for the Underground Railroad.

Notes

1800 births
1867 deaths
People from Berkshire County, Massachusetts
People from Alfred, New York
People from Milton, Wisconsin
American abolitionists
American city founders
Milton College people
People from Stephentown, New York
19th-century American politicians
Activists from New York (state)
Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly


title: Triathlon at the 2014 Commonwealth Games – Men's

text:
The men's triathlon was part of the Triathlon at the 2014 Commonwealth Games program. The competition was held on 24 July 2014 at Strathclyde Country Park in Glasow.

Competition format
The race was held over the "international distance" (also called "Olympic distance") and consisted of  swimming,  road bicycling, and  road running.

Results
A total of 45 athletes participated.

References

Triathlon at the 2014 Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games


title: Plagiosarus

text:
Plagiosarus is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae, containing the following species:

 Plagiosarus binoculus Bates, 1880
 Plagiosarus literatus Bates, 1885
 Plagiosarus melampus Bates, 1885

References

Acanthoderini


title: Lucas Miedler

text:
Lucas Miedler (; born 21 June 1996) is an Austrian professional tennis player.
He has a career-high singles ATP ranking of World No. 201 achieved on 15 October 2018 and a doubles ranking of No. 33 achieved 8 May 2023. He has won five doubles titles on the ATP Tour with compatriot Alexander Erler, at home tournaments in 2021 Kitzbühel, in Vienna and 2023 Kitzbühel, and in Acapulco and Munich.

Junior career
He won the boys' doubles at the 2014 Australian Open where he partnered with Australian Bradley Mousley, defeating the French duo of Quentin Halys and Johan-Sébastien Tatlot 6–3, 7–6(7–3).

Professional career

2015: ATP debut
In 2015, Miedler made his ATP World Tour main draw debut by qualifying to the first round of the Vienna Open, where he lost in three sets to Latvian Ernests Gulbis.

2021-2022: Maiden ATP and ATP 500 doubles titles
At the 2021 Generali Open Kitzbühel, he won the doubles title partnering Alexander Erler.

The Austrian team of Erler/Miedler clinched their second and biggest title on home soil at the ATP 500 2022 Erste Bank Open without dropping a set.

2023: Major and Masters debuts & first wins, Second ATP 500 title, top 40 debut
At the 2023 Australian Open the pair Miedler/Erler made their Grand Slam debut where they defeated tenth seeds Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden.

At the Mexican Open Miedler won his third title with compatriot Erler defeating en route top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski. As a result Miedler made his top 50 debut on 6 March 2023 at world No. 43.

Miedler partnering Cameron Norrie made his Masters debut at the 2023 BNP Paribas Open and won his first match at the Masters 1000 level.

At the 2023 Grand Prix Hassan II the pair Miedler/Erler reached the final defeating fifth seeds Maxime Cressy and Albano Olivetti. They lost in the final to Andrea Vavassori and Marcelo Demoliner.

They won their fourth title at the 2023 BMW Open in Munich, Germany.

They entered the 2023 Mutua Madrid Open as alternate pair on their debut at this tournament.

Doubles performance timeline

Current through the 2023 Shanghai Masters.

ATP career finals

Doubles: 6 (5 titles, 1 runner up)

ATP Challenger and ITF Futures/World Tennis Tour finals

Singles: 24 (10–14)

Doubles: 61 (38–23)

References

External links

1996 births
Living people
Austrian male tennis players
Australian Open (tennis) junior champions
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in boys' doubles
People from Tulln an der Donau


title: Plistonax

text:
Plistonax is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae.

Species
Plistonax contains the following species:
 Plistonax albituberculatus Silva Junior & Souza, 2019
 Plistonax albolinitus (Bates, 1861)
 Plistonax antonkozlovi Santos-Silva, Nascimento & Silva Junior, 2020
 Plistonax ariasi (Chemsak & Hovore, 2002)
 Plistonax bialbomaculatus (Zajciw, 1964)
 Plistonax difficilis (Chemsak & Hovore, 2002)
 Plistonax hefferni (Audureau, 2017)
 Plistonax inopinatus Lane, 1960
 Plistonax pictus (Galileo & Martins, 2012)
 Plistonax rafaeli Martins & Galileo, 2006
 Plistonax senecauxi Tavakilian & Neouze, 2013
 Plistonax signatifrons (Zajciw, 1964)

References

Acanthoderini


title: Ministry of Justice (North Macedonia)

text:
The Ministry of Justice is a ministry of the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, which is in charge of prosecuting government cases and the administration of institutions falling within the scope of the judiciary system (courts, prisons, etc.).

List of ministers

See also

 Justice ministry
 Politics of the Republic of Macedonia

External links

Government of North Macedonia
Justice ministries
Government agencies established in 1991
1991 establishments in the Republic of Macedonia


title: Albert Glawinski

text:
Albert Glawinski (or Glavinski) (born 1852) was a United States Army soldier who received the Medal of Honor. His award came for gallantry during the American Indian Wars.

Life

Albert Glawinski was born in 1852 in Germany, and joined the United States Army from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in December 1873. He was assigned as a Blacksmith Private to Company M, of the 3rd United States Cavalry Regiment. Glawinski was 24 years of age in March 1876, when he fought at the Battle of Powder River, on March 17, 1876. There, he selected exposed positions on the battlefield. Exactly two months later, on June 17, 1876, Albert fought with his company at the Battle of Rosebud. Albert Glawinski was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Powder River, on October 16, 1877. He was discharged in December 1878.

By March 1907, Glawinski was living in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. The exact date of his death and his burial place are unknown.

Medal of Honor citation

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Blacksmith Albert Glavinski, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism.

Rank and organization: Blacksmith Private, 3rd United States Cavalry. Place and date: At Powder River, Montana Territory, March 17, 1876. Entered service at: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Born: 1853, Germany. Date of issue: October 16, 1877.

Citation:

"During a retreat Blacksmith Glavinski selected exposed positions, he was part of the rear guard".

See also

 3rd United States Cavalry Regiment
 Battle of Powder River
 Battle of the Rosebud

References

1852 births
Year of death missing
German-born Medal of Honor recipients
American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor
German emigrants to the United States
United States Army Medal of Honor recipients
United States Army soldiers


title: List of conflicts in Chad

text:
This is a list of conflicts in Chad arranged chronologically from medieval to modern times. This list includes both nationwide and international types of war, including the following: wars of independence, liberation wars, colonial wars, undeclared wars, proxy wars, territorial disputes, and world wars. Also listed might be any battle that occurred within the territory of what is today known as the, "Republic of Chad" but was itself only part of an operation of a campaign of a theater of a war. There may also be periods of violent civil unrest listed, such as: riots, shootouts, spree killings, massacres, terrorist attacks, and civil wars. The list might also contain episodes of: human sacrifice, mass suicide, massacres, and genocides.

Medieval times

Kanem Empire

c. 1203 — c. 1243 Dunama Dabbalemi, of the Sayfawa dynasty, mai of the Kanem Empire, declared jihad against the surrounding tribes and initiated an extended period of conquest.
c. 1342 — c. 1388 Fall of Kanem
c. 1342 — c. 1352 Sao Resurgence
c. 1376 — c. 1388 Bulala Invasion

Modern times

Ouaddai Empire

1870 — 22 April 1900 Rabih az-Zubayr ibn Fadl Allah's War
1909 — 1911 Ouaddai War (Ouadddai Empire)

French Chad

1870 — 22 April 1900 Rabih az-Zubayr ibn Fadl Allah's War in French Chad
1909 — 1911 Ouaddai War
1915, 15 November 1917 Massacre des coupes-coupes (in Arabic: Kabkab Massacre, مجزرة كبكب) meaning cut-cut and referring to the beheading of 400 Muslim Scholars from various parts of Chad in one of the rarely recorded French massacres in Africa.

Republic of Chad

November 1, 1965 Mangalmé riots
1965 — 2010 War in Chad
1965 — 2010 Chadian Civil War
1965 — 1979 Civil war in Chad
1979 — 1982 Civil war in Chad
1998 — 2002 Civil war in Chad
18 December 2005 — 15 January 2010 Civil war in Chad
18 December 2005 Battle of Adré
6 January 2006 Borota raid
6 March 2006 Amdjereme raid
13 April 2006 Battle of N'Djamena
1 May 2006 Dalola raid
2 February 2008 — 4 February 2008 Battle of N'Djamena
18 June 2008 Battle of Am Zoer
7 May 2009 Battle of Am Dam
24 April 2010 — 28 April 2010 Battle of Tamassi
1978 — 1987 Chadian—Libyan conflict
1983 — 1984 Operation Manta
13 February 1986 — 2014 Opération Épervier
1986 Tibesti War
16 December 1986 — 11 September 11, 1987 Toyota War
11 April 2002 — ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb

References

See also
Chadian Ground Forces
Chadian Air Force
Military history of Africa
African military systems up until the year 1800 CE
African military systems between the years 1800 CE and 1900 CE
African military systems after the year 1900 CE

Military history of Chad
Conflicts
Conflicts


title: Scythropopsis

text:
Scythropopsis is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae, containing the following species, most of which were formerly classified under the genus name Psapharochrus:

 Scythropopsis abstersa (Bates, 1880)
 Scythropopsis albitarsis (Laporte, 1840)
 Scythropopsis barrerai (Chemsak & Hovore, 2002)
 Scythropopsis boucheri Tavakilian & Néouze, 2013
 Scythropopsis cornuta (Bates, 1880)
 Scythropopsis granitica Vlasák & Santos-Silva, 2020
 Scythropopsis intricata Santos-Silva, Botero & Wappes, 2020
 Scythropopsis lacrymans (Thomson, 1865)
 Scythropopsis lugens (Thomson, 1865)
 Scythropopsis melanostictica (White, 1855)
 Scythropopsis nigritarsis (White, 1855)
 Scythropopsis pupillata (Bates, 1880)
 Scythropopsis sallei Thomson, 1865
 Scythropopsis wappesi (Chemsak & Hovore, 2002)

References

Acanthoderini


title: A Soldier's Rosary

text:
"A Soldier's Rosary" is a 1918 song composed by Joseph A. Burke with lyrics by J. E. Dempsey. The 1918 publication, by the A. J. Stasny Music Co., featured a cover illustration by E. E. Walton.

The song tells of a mother exhorting her soldier son to remember to say his nightly prayers, while the singer comforts the mother with the thought that the soldier's actions are all the prayer he needs, saying "He serves his maker when he serves his country's needs." The song compares the bullets of war to the beads on the rosary, and the soldier's ultimate death is concluded as "a soldier's rosary".

Analysis
In Born in the U.S.A.: The Myth of American Popular Music from Colonial Times, Timothy Sheurer argues that "A Soldier's Rosary" perpetuates the American myth of divine destiny, that the American ideal serves a higher purpose. By equating the soldier's actions with prayer, his ultimate death is given higher purpose.

References

Further reading
Parker, Bernard S. World War I Sheet Music:9,670 Patriotic Songs Published in the United States, 1914–1920,with More Than 600 Covers Illustrated. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2007.
Scheurer, Timothy E. Born in the U.S.A.: The Myth of America in Popular Music from Colonial Times to the Present. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1991.
Vogel, Frederick G. World War I Songs: A History and Dictionary of Popular American Patriotic Tunes, with Over 300 Complete Lyrics. Jefferson, N.C.: McFsrland & Co., 1995.
Whalan, Mark. American Culture in the 1910s. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2010.

External links
  Listen to an MP3 and see the sheet music

Songs about soldiers
Songs about the military
1918 songs
Songs of World War I
Songs with music by Joe Burke (composer)


title: ArtBridge

text:
ArtBridge is a public art non-profit organization that was founded in 2009. Working primarily in New York City, ArtBridge’s mission is to support local, emerging artists and their communities through large-scale public installations.

History

ArtBridge was founded in 2008 by artist Rodney Durso as a mechanism to transform New York City’s construction fencing into large-scale, outdoor art exhibitions. New York City is immersed in nearly 300 miles of construction fencing, which provides for an ideal canvas to promote the city’s local, emerging artists. The non-profit was incorporated in 2012 and received its 501(c)(3) status in 2014. ArtBridge has produced exhibitions in every borough of New York City, as well ongoing projects in L’Aquila, Italy in the years of construction following the city’s devastating 2009 earthquake.

Exhibitions

ArtBridge uses scaffolding and sidewalk fencing as exhibition space, reproducing artworks on weather-resistant vinyl. The non-profit has recently expanded into doing asphalt murals and 'step street' murals. ArtBridge’s first exhibition was held in 2009 at the London Terrace Gardens, when it was undergoing construction. Since then, the organization has installed many exhibitions throughout the city. From July 2011 to September 2014, ArtBridge hosted eight exhibitions in its former Chelsea gallery, The Drawing Room.

References

External links

Instagram
Twitter

2009 establishments in New York City
2012 establishments in New York City
Charities based in New York City
Arts organizations based in New York City
Organizations established in 2009


title: 1943 LSU Tigers football team

text:
The 1943 LSU Tigers football team was an American football team that represented Louisiana State University (LSU) as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1943 college football season. In their ninth year under head coach Bernie Moore, the Tigers complied an overall record of 6–3, with a conference record of 2–2, and finished second in the SEC.

LSU did not celebrate a homecoming game in 1943 due to World War II. Halfback Steve Van Buren led the nation in rushing with an average of 5.7 yards per carry and was second in scoring.

In the final Litkenhous Ratings, LSU ranked 54th among the nation's college and service teams with a rating of 82.0.

Schedule

References

LSU
LSU Tigers football seasons
Orange Bowl champion seasons
LSU Tigers football


title: Antonia Apodaca

text:
Antonia Apodaca (November 1, 1923 – January 25, 2020) was an American musician and songwriter known for her performances of traditional New Mexico music. She came to wider prominence through her performances in the La Música de los Viejitos festival in Santa Fe, the festival's nationally circulated radio broadcasts, and her appearances at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.

Biography
Apodaca was born in Rociada, a village in San Miguel County, New Mexico. Her parents, José Damacio Martinez and Rafaelita Suazo Martinez were both musicians from families of musicians. Her mother played the accordion and guitar and her father the guitar, accordion, and violin. They had a small band that entertained at local dances and weddings. Antonia taught herself to play the accordion as a child, initially on a broken one she had rescued from the trash. Her mother and uncle continued teaching her, and by the time she was a young teenager, she won an accordion contest in Santa Fe where she had competed against adults. She was also taught to play the guitar by her father. At the age of 18, she met her future husband Macario "Max" Apodaca, a fiddler from Carmen (a village near Mora, New Mexico) who had asked to join her parents' band. They married two months later and in 1949 settled in Wyoming where Max got a job in the uranium mines. They were to live in Wyoming for the next 30 years and raise their five children there. Max played with a band of German musicians in Wyoming for several years, and he and Antonia continued to perform together for both the Hispanic and Anglo communities at dances and local events. Apodaca later recalled how she and her husband had learned how to adapt the traditional Hispanic polkas and waltzes to a Western rhythm when they played for the Anglos.

In 1979 the couple returned to Rociada to live in the house where Antonia was born and had grown up. Max Apodaca died in 1987 and after his death, Antonia ceased performing. A year later, the New Mexican folk violinist Cleofes Ortiz convinced her to return and she went on to perform extensively with Bayou Seco (the folk musicians Ken Keppeler and Jeanie McLerie) and later formed her own group, Trio Jalapeño. She was awarded the New Mexico Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts in 1992, the same year she had appeared at the  Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C.. In December 2010, her house in Rociada burned to the ground destroying what the National Hispanic Cultural Center termed "decades of musical history and treasured instruments." She escaped with only her guitar and two accordions.

After the fire, Apodaca moved to nearby Las Vegas and has continued to perform with Trio Jalapeño. Their concerts often included her own compositions, of which one of the best known is "Estas Lindas Flores" (These Beautiful Flowers). In 2011 she was awarded the Premio Hilos Culturales, an annual award presented to folk artists from New Mexico and Colorado "who have distinguished themselves in their communities as folk musicians or folk dancers of traditional southwest styles of Canciones Del Pasado or Bailes Antiguos." Her son José Apodaca is a professional zarzuela singer and occasionally performed with his mother.

Apodaca died in January 2020 at the age of 96.

Recordings

Apodaca's musical performances have been preserved on:
Antonia Apodaca: Recuerdos di Rociada (UBIK Sound, 1991)
Music of New Mexico: Hispanic Traditions (Smithsonian Folkways, 1992)
Following in the tune prints with Bayou Seco: Old music in the new West (UBIK Sound, 1995)
The American Fogies, Volume One (Rounder Records, 1996)
La Música de los Viejitos: Hispano Folk Music of the Rio Grande Del Norte (book and accompanying CDs, University of New Mexico Press, 1999)
Masters of New Mexico Traditional Folk Music – Hispanic and Native American, CD 1 Gallup Concert (New Mexico Arts, 2010)
She was also the subject of the television documentary, El Ranchito De Las Flores, broadcast in 1998 in the KNME-TV series Colores. Recordings of her spoken recollections are held in the University of New Mexico Oral History Projects collection 1984–1998.

References

External links
Video of Antonia Apodaca performing at the 2012 Festival of American Fiddle Tunes on the official YouTube channel of the Music Box Project. In the video, she performs "Valsa de Jose y Rafaelita", the waltz written by her grandfathers for her parents' wedding.
Video of the television documentary on Antonia Apodaca, El Ranchito De Las Flores (originally broadcast in 1998) on the official YouTube channel of New Mexico Public Television.
Ortiz, Claudette (11 August 2008). "A vote for Antonia Apodaca". Las Cruces Sun-News, a recollection of Antonia Apodaca and her house in Rociada.

1923 births
2020 deaths
20th-century American guitarists
21st-century accordionists
Women accordionists
21st-century American women musicians
American accordionists
Guitarists from New Mexico
American folk guitarists
Folk musicians from New Mexico
New Mexico music artists
People from San Miguel County, New Mexico
Songwriters from New Mexico
20th-century American women guitarists


title: 72nd Special Forces Battalion

text:
The 72nd Special Forces Battalion is a special forces unit of the Nigerian Army. It is stationed at Makurdi.

Previously it appears to have been the 72 Paratrooper Battalion; it may have been re-designated circa 2010. There are indications that it may be an independent battalion which may report directly to Defence Headquarters.

The 72 Paratrooper Battalion was involved in the events of October 22 to 24, 2001, when several hundred Army soldiers of the Yola Brigade of 3rd Division killed more than two hundred unarmed civilians and destroyed homes, shops, public buildings and other property in more than seven towns and villages in Benue State, in central eastern Nigeria. The 72 Battalion appears to have tried to intercede with the Yola Brigade to avoid further killings, in the midst of the events.

Commanders

 Colonel Timothy Lagbaja (circa 2015)
 Lieutenant Colonel A.D. Alhassan (?-present)

References

Military units and formations of Nigeria
Military special forces battalions


title: 2007 AFL Under 18 Championships

text:
The 2007 NAB AFL Under 18 Championships was the 12th edition of the AFL Under 18 Championships. Eight teams competed in the championships: Vic Metro, Vic Country, South Australia and Western Australia in Division 1, and New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory (NSW/ACT), Northern Territory, Queensland and Tasmania in Division 2. The competition was played over three rounds across two divisions. Western Australia and New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory (NSW/ACT) were the Division 1 and Division 2 champions, respectively. The Larke Medal (for the best player in Division 1) was awarded to Western Australia's Cale Morton, and the Hunter Harrison Medal (for the best player in Division 2) was won by NSW/ACT midfielder Craig Bird.

Results

Division 1

Division 1 Ladder

Division 2

Division 2 Ladder

Under 18 All-Australian team
The 2007 Under 18 All-Australian team was named on 11 July 2007:

References

Under 18


title: Michael Ország

text:
Michael Ország de Gút () was Palatine of the Kingdom of Hungary between 1458 and 1484.

Notes

Sources

1410s births
1484 deaths
Gutkeled (genus)
Palatines of Hungary
Masters of the doorkeepers
Royal treasurers (Kingdom of Hungary)
Masters of the stewards


title: Marinilabiliaceae

text:
The Marinilabiliaceae are a family of bacteria.

Characteristics
Bacterial cells that belong to the Marinilabiliaceae family are typically thin, flexible rods. Mostly species are motile by gliding motily. They are saccharolytic and need NaCl for growing.

Metabolism
All species of Marinilabiliaceae are heterotrophic, they do not perform photosynthesis. The genera Alkaliflexus and Anaerophaga as well as some other genera have a strictly fermentative metabolism. Marinilabilia is facultatively anaerobic. It has respiratory and fermentative types of metabolism.

References

Bacteroidia


title: Foolad Youth Academy

text:
Foolad Youth Academy was established in 2000 by the Foolad Khuzestan Football Club to help grow the football talent in the province of Khuzestan, in Iran.  Foolad has over 400 players and 34 coaches through is different youth ranks. The academy has been extremely successful and has been noted as the country's best academy producing players such as Iman Mobali, Arash Afshin, Bakhtiar Rahmani, and Kaveh Rezaei.

Foolad has active teams in all youth levels. The clubs heavy investment into the youth academy ensures that the majority of the players graduate to become professional footballers in Iran.

Results
In the 2009-10 season the under-14 team became champions of Iran, the under-16 finished runners up, and the u-18 and u-21 teams finished third. Foolad was the only club in Iran to field teams in all four youth levels and they were also the number one producer of players getting selected to different national team levels.

Notable players
Here are the most notable graduates from Foolad's Youth Academy:

Jalal Kameli-Mofrad
Ahmad Alenemeh
Mohammad Alavi
Pejman Montazeri
Milad Zeneyedpour
Esmaeil Sharifat
Bakhtiar Rahmani
Mehrdad Jama'ati
Kaveh Rezaei
Arash Afshin
Sasan Ansari

References

External links
  Foolad F.C. Official Website

Sport in Ahvaz


title: Westrapyrgus

text:
Westrapyrgus is a genus of minute freshwater snails with an operculum, aquatic gastropod molluscs or micromolluscs in the family Hydrobiidae. The genus is endemic to south Western Australia. It is the first hydrobiid genus to be described from this state.

Morphologically, Westrapyrgus is most similar to the southeastern Australian hydrobiid genera Austropyrgus and Tatea.

Species
The genus currently includes two recognised species:

Westrapyrgus westralis Ponder, Clark & Miller, 1999
Westrapyrgus slacksmithae Ponder, Clark & Miller, 1999

References

External links

Hydrobiidae


title: Tyler Webb

text:
Jon Tyler Webb (born July 20, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. The New York Yankees selected Webb in the tenth round of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft. He made his MLB debut in 2017 for the Yankees and has also played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, San Diego Padres, and St. Louis Cardinals. Webb played college baseball for the University of South Carolina.

Career

Amateur career
Webb attended Northampton High School in Eastville, Virginia. After graduating from high school, Webb enrolled at the University of South Carolina, where he played college baseball for the South Carolina Gamecocks baseball team. He was a member of the 2010 and 2011 College World Series championship teams. In 2012, his junior year, Webb pitched to a 6–1 win–loss record and a 1.56 earned run average (ERA), and recorded 58 strikeouts in  innings pitched. Before his senior year, the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association named Webb a second-team preseason All-American. Serving as the Gamecocks' closer, Webb recorded 17 saves in the 2013 season, and was named a third-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball and a second-team All-Southeastern Conference pitcher after the season. He finished his Gamecocks' career with a 2.34 ERA and the record for games pitched (110).

New York Yankees
The New York Yankees selected Webb in the tenth round, with the 314th overall selection, of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft. The Yankees assigned him to the Staten Island Yankees of the Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League after he signed, but promoted him to the Charleston RiverDogs of the Class A South Atlantic League two weeks later. Over  relief innings, he went 3–1 with a 3.31 ERA. Webb began the 2014 season with the Tampa Yankees of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League, and was promoted to the Trenton Thunder of the Class AA Eastern League in May, with whom he was named an Eastern League All-Star. Webb was promoted to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders of the Class AAA International League following the All-Star break. For the season, Webb went 3–6 with a 3.80 ERA and 12 saves and 94 strikeouts in 48 games and  innings pitched.

Webb received a non-roster invitation to spring training with the Yankees in 2015, and opened the season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Due to a tendon injury, he only pitched 38 innings during the season (going 2–3 with a 2.84 ERA), and the Yankees assigned Webb to the Arizona Fall League after the regular season. In 2016, he pitched for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, going 4–3 with a 3.59 ERA over  innings pitched out of the bullpen.

On December 8, 2016, the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Webb from the Yankees in the Rule 5 draft. He competed for a role with the Pirates during spring training, but did not make the 25-man roster and was returned to the Yankees before the regular season. Webb began the 2017 season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

The Yankees promoted Webb to the major leagues on June 22, 2017, and he made his MLB debut on June 24. He made seven relief appearances for the Yankees, pitching to a 4.50 ERA while striking out five and walking four in six innings.

Milwaukee Brewers
On July 13, 2017, the Yankees traded Webb to the Milwaukee Brewers for Garrett Cooper. Following the trade, Webb pitched for Milwaukee and the Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League (PCL). Over two innings with Milwaukee, he gave up two runs, and over 17 games with Colorado Springs, he went 1–2 with a 6.48 ERA. Webb was designated for assignment on April 7, 2018.

San Diego Padres
On April 14, 2018, Webb was claimed off waivers by the San Diego Padres. He made one appearance for the El Paso Chihuahuas of the PCL before the Padres promoted him to the major leagues.

St. Louis Cardinals
On June 29, 2018, Webb was claimed off waivers by the St. Louis Cardinals and assigned to the Class AAA Memphis Redbirds of the PCL. He was recalled by St. Louis on July 27. In  innings pitched for St. Louis, he compiled a 1.76 ERA.

Webb began 2019 with Memphis. He was recalled by the Cardinals for the first time in 2019 on April 7, and optioned back to Memphis on July 11. He was recalled on July 21, finishing the season with St. Louis Over 65 relief appearances during the regular season, he went 2–1 with a 3.76 ERA, striking out 48 over 55 innings.

In 2020 for the Cardinals, Webb recorded a 2.08 ERA and a 1-1 record in 21.2 innings pitched across 21 games. After struggling to a 13.22 ERA in 22 appearances in 2021, Webb was designated for assignment by the Cardinals on June 3, 2021. He was outrighted to the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds on June 6. Webb elected free agency on October 14.

Long Island Ducks
On April 4, 2022, Webb signed with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Webb made 53 appearances for the Ducks, working to a 2-5 record and 2.93 ERA with 68 strikeouts and 15 saves in 55.1 innings pitched.

Minnesota Twins
On February 8, 2023, Webb signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins organization. Webb was released by the organization on March 24.

Personal life
Webb's father, Kirk, pitched in college baseball for Old Dominion University.

Webb and his wife, Lauren, were married in December 2014.

Prior to Webb's first promotion to the Yankees, he had never been to a major league game.

See also
Rule 5 draft results

References

External links

Living people
1990 births
People from Northampton County, Virginia
Baseball players from Virginia
Major League Baseball pitchers
New York Yankees players
Milwaukee Brewers players
San Diego Padres players
St. Louis Cardinals players
South Carolina Gamecocks baseball players
Staten Island Yankees players
Charleston RiverDogs players
Tampa Yankees players
Trenton Thunder players
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders players
Surprise Saguaros players
Colorado Springs Sky Sox players
El Paso Chihuahuas players
Memphis Redbirds players
Long Island Ducks players


title: Changyuraptor

text:
Changyuraptor  is a genus of "four-winged", predatory dinosaurs. It is known from a single fossil specimen representing the species Changyuraptor yangi, which was discovered from Early Cretaceous (125 million year old) deposits in Liaoning Province, China. C. yangi belongs to the group of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs called the Microraptoria.

At the time of its discovery, C. yangi was the largest four-winged dinosaur known and among the largest Mesozoic flying paravians, volant true birds seldom approaching its size.

Description
Analysis of the fossil at the University of Cape Town, South Africa reveals that the specimen was a fully grown adult, approximately  long and estimated to weigh , roughly the size of a turkey. These dimensions make Changyuraptor the largest four-winged microraptorine known, exceeding previously known specimens in size by at least 60%.

Like other microraptorines, Changyuraptor had feathers all over its body, including forelimbs and hindlimbs, which gives the appearance of having two pairs of wings. The presence of long feathers on all four limbs also suggests that these dinosaurs could fly.

The dinosaur's tail is long and feathered, with end feathers up to  long, equalling approximately 30% of the length of the animal's skeleton. This length exceeds the previous record length of  for feathers from non-avian dinosaurs. The elongated tail feathers are thought to have helped provide softer and safer landings. They could have controlled pitch, a feature useful for a heavier animal, that would have attained a faster gliding speed.

While elongated feathers on the hindlimbs were present in many early birds, such as Archaeopteryx, the morphology of microraptorines suggests a different aerodynamic model from that of modern birds, which have characteristically bald legs and exhibit stable flight using two wings only.

Changyuraptor is thought to have existed alongside a variety of predatory and herbivorous dinosaurs of the Jehol Biota, including Yutyrannus, in moist temperate forest, primarily vegetated by ginkgos and conifers, with hot, dry summers and frosty winters.

Discovery
The fossil, holotype HG B016, was discovered by farmers near Xijianchang in the Early Cretaceous fossil deposits, the Yixian Formation, of the Jehol Biota, located in the Liaoning province of China. From 2012 it was studied by an international team of scientists led by Dr. Luis Chiappe, Director of the Dinosaur Institute Department at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. The holotype consists of a rather complete skeleton with skull, compressed on a plate and counterplate. It shows extensive remains of the integument in the form of pennaceous feathers. In 2014, the specimen was described as the new genus and species Changyuraptor yangi. The generic name of the dinosaur combines the Chinese words for "long feather", 長羽 (cháng yǔ), with Latin raptor ("robber", "seizer"). The specific name honours researcher Professor Yang Yandong.

The Jehol Biota are found in the richest fossil beds for feathered dinosaurs in the world which have yielded notable species such as Yutyrannus huali, a feathered tyrannosauroid with a length of  and the largest feathered dinosaur known to date.

In 2003 Microraptor, a raven-sized dinosaur, approximately  in weight, was the first of the microraptorines to be discovered. It shared with species such as Anchiornis and Xiaotingia large feathered limbs and elongated bony tails with long tail feathers. These features caused experts to hypothesize that miniaturisation was an essential evolutionary step to enable flight. Changyuraptor'''s larger size and weight contradicts that hypothesis. Changyuraptor is also the second four-winged dinosaur to be discovered after Microraptor. Changyuraptor'' and other microraptorines add to the evidence that dinosaurs had evolved a host of morphological features and behaviours such as feathers, hollow bones, nesting behaviour, and possibly flight, before they evolved in birds.

See also
 Timeline of dromaeosaurid research

References

Early Cretaceous dinosaurs of Asia
Microraptorians
Feathered dinosaurs
Fossil taxa described in 2014
Paleontology in Liaoning


title: Brad Huff

text:
Charles Bradley Huff (born February 5, 1979 in Fair Grove, Missouri) is an American former cyclist, who competed professionally between 2006 and 2018 for the ,  and  teams.

Major results

2006
 1st Stage 1 Tour de Normandie
 1st US rider  National Criterium Championships (2nd overall)
2008
 Tour of Hainan
1st Stages 3 & 5
 1st Stage 2 Tour of Elk Grove
2009
 1st Overall Tulsa Tough
1st Stages 1 & 2
 1st Stage 14 International Cycling Classic
2010
 1st Stage 3 Tour of Hainan
 Tulsa Tough
1st Stages 1 & 2
2012
 1st Stage 4 Nature Valley Grand Prix
 2nd Tulsa Tough
2013
 1st Stage 2 Tour of Lawrence
2014
 1st Stage 4 Joe Martin Stage Race
2016
 1st  National Criterium Championships
 1st Prologue Tour de Guadeloupe
 2nd Overall Nature Valley Grand Prix
1st Stage 5

References

External links

1979 births
Living people
American male cyclists
Sportspeople from Missouri
People from Greene County, Missouri


The Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015 () is an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2015 that would provide funding for the United States Department of the Treasury, as we all as the United States federal courts, the Executive Office of the President of the United States, and Washington, D.C.

The bill was introduced into the United States House of Representatives during the 113th United States Congress.

Background

An appropriations bill is a bill that appropriates (gives to, sets aside for) money to specific federal government departments, agencies, and programs. The money provides funding for operations, personnel, equipment, and activities. Regular appropriations bills are passed annually, with the funding they provide covering one fiscal year. The fiscal year is the accounting period of the federal government, which runs from October 1 to September 30 of the following year. The Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015 is an example of a regular appropriations bill.

Appropriations bills are one part of a larger United States budget and spending process. They are preceded in that process by the president's budget proposal, congressional budget resolutions, and the 302(b) allocation. The U.S. Constitution (Article I, section 9, clause 7) states that "No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law..." This is what gives Congress the power to make these appropriations. The President, however, still has the power to veto appropriations bills.

The Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015 falls under the jurisdiction of the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government. The bill covers appropriations for the United States Department of the Treasury, as we all as the United States federal courts, the Executive Office of the President of the United States, and Washington, D.C. The House and Senate currently consider appropriations bills simultaneously, although originally the House went first. The House Committee on Appropriations usually reports the appropriations bills in May and June and the Senate in June. Any differences between appropriations bills passed by the House and the Senate are resolved in the fall.

In 2013, Congress was unable to pass all twelve appropriations bills (for fiscal year 2014) before October 1, 2013 when the new fiscal year. This led to the United States federal government shutdown of 2013. The shutdown lasted for 16 days. Finally, late in the evening of October 16, 2013, Congress passed the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014, and the President signed it shortly after midnight on October 17, ending the government shutdown and suspending the debt limit until February 7, 2014. In reaction to this situation, House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers has stated that his goal is to pass all twelve regular appropriations bills for 2015 before Congress has a recess in August because he wants to avoid a similar situation.

Provisions of the bill
This summary is based largely on the summary provided by the Congressional Research Service, a public domain source.

The Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015 has multiple parts.

The Department of the Treasury Appropriations Act, 2015 would make appropriations for FY2015 for the United States Department of the Treasury.

The Executive Office of the President Appropriations Act, 2015 would make appropriations for FY2015 for the Executive Office of the President.

The Judiciary Appropriations Act, 2015 would make appropriations for FY2015 for the United States Supreme Court and other federal courts and related offices.

The District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2015 would make appropriations for FY2015 for the District of Columbia.

The bill would make appropriations for FY2015 for: (1) the Administrative Conference of the United States, (2) the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), (3) the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), (4) the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), (5) the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), (6) the Federal Election Commission (FEC), (7) the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), (8) the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), (9) the General Services Administration (GSA), (10) the Merit Systems Protection Board, (11) the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), (12) the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), (13) the Office of Government Ethics, (14) the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), (15) the Office of Special Counsel, (16) the Postal Regulatory Commission, (17) the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, (18) the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, (19) the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), (20) the Selective Service System, (21) the Small Business Administration (SBA), (22) the United States Postal Service (USPS), and (23) the United States Tax Court.

The bill would specify certain uses and limits or prohibitions against the use of funds appropriated by this Act.

Amendments
The House accepted in a voice vote an amendment offered by Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) to reduce funding for the Internal Revenue Service by $353 million.

Procedural history
The Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015 was introduced into the United States House of Representatives on July 2, 2014 by Rep. Ander Crenshaw (R-FL). It was reported as an original measure by the United States House Committee on Appropriations. The House began debating the bill on July 14, 2014, when it was brought to the House floor under an open rule, meaning that unlimited amendments were allowed. It passed the House 228-195 on July 17.

Debate and discussion
Rep. Gosar, whose amendment cut some of the IRS' funding, said that it was "a modest reduction" and that "this agency has shown contempt for the American taxpayer." Rep. José E. Serrano (D-NY) objected, arguing that reducing the IRS' funding would be "counterproductive and result in weakened tax enforcement."

The Hill described this bill as "one of the most contentious of the annual 12 appropriations bills."

See also
List of bills in the 113th United States Congress
2015 United States federal appropriations

References

External links

Library of Congress - Thomas H.R. 5016
beta.congress.gov H.R. 5016
GovTrack.us H.R. 5016
OpenCongress.org H.R. 5016
WashingtonWatch.com H.R. 5016

Proposed legislation of the 113th United States Congress
United States federal appropriations in the 113th Congress


title: NSIP

text:
NSIP may refer to:

 Non-specific interstitial pneumonia
 Nationally significant infrastructure project in the UK


title: Stayful

text:
Stayful was a website and mobile application that allows consumers to bid for or book rooms at independent and boutique hotels. The rooms, which may have otherwise gone unsold, are sold at a lower price than the published rate for the consumer and a lower cost of distribution for the hotel.

Stayful is headquartered in New York with a location in San Francisco.

Concept
Stayful looks at hotel rates in comparison to what it determines as fair values based on market factors. These factors include supply and demand, day of the week time of the year and prices offered by competitors. A Stayful user sees a suggested fair bid on the website and may enter that bid (or even a lower bid) to be submitted to the hotel. Co-founder Cheryl Rosner said in The Wall Street Journal that hotels accept around 60% of the bids submitted from Stayful.

History

Founders

Stayful was co-founded by Cheryl Rosner and Shariq Minhas. Rosner was the president of Hotels.com from 2003–2005 and was president of corporate travel at Expedia from 2005–2006.  Soon thereafter, Rosner became the President and CEO of TicketsNow, the world's largest independent online marketplace for premium event tickets, and orchestrated its sale to Ticketmaster in 2008.

Minhas has run engineering teams at Hotwire, Expedia, Jigsaw, FanIQ.

Launch and expansion
Stayful launched in January 2013.

As of 2015, Stayful had launched in 25 cities throughout the United States and Canada. Plans for international expansion included Europe.

Sale

The company was sold to WorldVentures in 2017 and operations wound down.

References

American travel websites


title: Erich Wiedemann

text:
Erich Wiedemann (born 1942) is a German journalist and editor (at the Hamburg desk) for the weekly news magazine Der Spiegel, where he began as a reporter in 1988. For the FDP, he was also a member of the city council of Jesteburg and a representative for the Harburg district.

Wiedemann has written on German minorities in other European countries and on socio-economic developments in post-World War II Germany. A Spiegel article on the Netherlands from 1994, in which Wiedemann argued that the country had lost its reputation for tolerance and suffered an identity crisis, caused a stir among the Dutch: Wiedemann reiterated a number of cliches about the Dutch, leading to a backlash from Dutch newspaper writers and critics. The accompanying image by Sebastian Krüger depicted Frau Antje, a Dutch character used to promote cheese and other export articles, with a joint in her mouth, heroin syringes in her arm, and a case of Heineken, in a landscape of dirty tulips and polluting smokestacks.

His articles have also appeared in translation in Salon, through an arrangement with Der Spiegel.

References

External links
 "Frau Antje in den Wechseljahren", from  Der Spiegel

Living people
German journalists
German male journalists
German male writers
1942 births
Der Spiegel people


title: Peter Stein (legal scholar)

text:
Peter Gonville Stein, QC, FBA (29 May 1926 – 7 August 2016) was a British legal scholar.

He was Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of Aberdeen from 1956 to 1968 and Regius Professor of Civil Law at the University of Cambridge from 1968 until his retirement in 1993.

Biography

Peter Stein was educated at Liverpool College and later studied at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he obtained his BA in 1949.  He obtained his LLB in Cambridge as an external in 1950, and became a solicitor in 1951.  He completed a scholarship at the University of Pavia before becoming an Assistant Lecturer in Law in the University of Nottingham, in 1952.  He then moved to the University of Aberdeen, where he obtained his PhD, and he was Lecturer (1953-56) and then Professor (1956-1968) in Jurisprudence.

Back to Cambridge, Stein was Regius Professor of Civil Law and Fellow of Queens' College, Cambridge between 1968 and 1993.  He remained Emeritus Professor of Civil Law and Life Fellow of Queens' College until his death in 2016.

Honours
In 1974, Stein was elected Fellow of the British Academy (FBA). On 20 April 1993, he was appointed an honorary Queen's Counsel (QC). He was also President of the Academy of the European Private Lawyers - Accademia dei Giusprivatisti Europei (Pavia).

Works
 Fault in the formation of contract in Roman law and Scots law (1958)

 The character and influence of the Roman civil law: historical essays (1988)

References

External links

1926 births
2016 deaths
British solicitors
Academics of the University of Aberdeen
Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Place of birth missing
British King's Counsel
Fellows of the British Academy
Regius Professors of Civil Law (University of Cambridge)
Fellows of Queens' College, Cambridge
Honorary King's Counsel
People educated at Liverpool College


The Lord of the G-Strings: The Femaleship of the String is a 2003 American made for cable erotic film written and directed by Terry M. West. It is based on the novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien.

Background
This film is produced by the production company E.I. Independent Cinema. It was broadcast several times in Summer 2003 at fixed times and on demand on the premium channel Showtime.

External links

2003 television films
2003 films
American erotic films
Films based on The Lord of the Rings
2000s American films
2000s British films
Middle-earth parodies
2000s parody films
American parody films


title: Johan Schatter

text:
Johan Schatter (4 October 1594 – 28 June 1673), was a Dutch Golden Age brewer from Haarlem.

Biography
He was born in Haarlem as the son of the malt maker Hercules Schatter and Cornelia Jacobsdr van Os, brewers of De Gecroonde Ruyt, which he took over. Johan became a judge, magistrate, and alderman, and joined the St Adrian militia as captain and served from 1624-1627, 1636-1637, and served as fiscal/provost from 1637-1642. He was portrayed by Frans Hals twice; in his schutterstuk called The Banquet of the Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1627, and again in 1633. He married Volckje, the daughter of Pieter Jacobsz Olycan on 24 April 1616.

He died in Haarlem.

References

Johan Schatter in De Haarlemse Schuttersstukken, by Jhr. Mr. C.C. van Valkenburg, pp. 60, Haerlem : jaarboek 1961, ISSN 0927-0728, on the website of the North Holland Archives

1594 births
1673 deaths
Businesspeople from Haarlem
Frans Hals
Mayors of Haarlem
Dutch brewers


title: Bespoke portfolio (CDO)

text:
A bespoke portfolio is a table of reference securities.  A bespoke portfolio may serve as the reference portfolio for a synthetic CDO arranged by an investment bank and selected by a particular investor or for that investor by an investment manager.

Overview
The list of reference securities making up a portfolio is one of the primary drivers of the investment outcome of a synthetic CDO. Because the portfolio is not that of a corporate credit index like the CDX or iTraxx, the mean default probabilities of the reference securities, their distribution of default probabilities, their default correlations and the recovery amounts upon default can vary greatly.

In principle, the investor chooses the reference securities and decides on the "attachment" and "detachment" points  (that is, the amount of losses that occur before the investor suffers its first dollar of loss; and the upper limit beyond which the investor suffers no further losses). In reality, the arranger demands a good deal of input into the selection of the reference portfolio. Most arrangers manage their risks by buying and selling protection on single-name CDS or on the CDX indexes and therefore they usually avoid taking positions in CDS that cannot readily be traded.

Bespoke portfolios can have very different default correlation characteristics from credit indices with similar distributions of riskiness.  Bespoke portfolios almost invariably have numbers of reference securities similar to those of the major credit indices – 100 to 125 reference securities – but bespoke portfolios can include reference securities that have highly correlated default probabilities, either because they are issued by different subsidiaries of the same parent company, because they include closely related but separate companies, or because the bespoke portfolios include much higher concentrations in single industries than occurs in credit indices. Determining the fair default correlations for a bespoke portfolio can be very difficult. The chart on the right shows that differences in correlation can greatly change the probability distribution of defaults and thus change the fair value of any given CDO tranche linked to a particular portfolio.

Initially, bespoke portfolios referenced in most synthetic CDOs were static, meaning that the list of reference securities would change only because of default, because of a succession event, or because of the disappearance of a reference security or its issuer. From 2004 onwards, managed transactions were also issued.  Managed bespoke portfolios are those where a third party investment manager is appointed to select the bespoke portfolio but also to buy and sell the underlying reference securities to exploit trading opportunities or avoid credit losses.

A synthetic CDO can be structured as a swap between an investor and an arranger, in which case the investor does not need to fund the purchase of the synthetic CDO notes. The majority of bespoke portfolio linked CDOs, however, are embedded into credit-linked notes that are purchased by the investor.

Market size

The overall volume of CDOs on bespoke portfolios rose rapidly in the early 2000s. In 1999, synthetic CDO issuance in total was less than $10 billion. 2005 issuance of bespoke portfolio tranches was cited by Rajan, McDermott and Roy as $294 billion.

CDO tranches linked to bespoke portfolios continued to trade after the financial crisis of 2007–08 but in considerably reduced amounts.

Cited advantages

As mentioned above, the key advantage to investors was that it allowed them to specify the reference securities in the bespoke portfolio as well as the tranche's attachment and detachment points and other characteristics.  A report from the Banque de France stated that: "this avoids some of the dangers of traditional CDO structures, such as the risks of moral hazard or adverse selection in the choice of the names in the portfolio ...".

Also, arrangers like CDOs on bespoke portfolios because they are relatively easy to set up. Traditional CDOs take three to six months to arrange and typically cost $2 to $4 million in legal, rating and marketing costs, whereas single tranches on bespoke portfolios can be arranged in four to six weeks and upfront costs are typically less than $500,000.

Criticisms

Because CDOs linked to bespoke portfolios are, by their nature, only held by one or a very small number of investors, there is no liquid market where they can be bought, sold or valued.  Therefore, these CDOs are valued using mathematical models that performed poorly both before and during the financial crisis.  Subsequently banking industry regulators have pointed out concerns applicable to CDO tranches on bespoke portfolios that exceed even the regulators' concerns about index-based tranches (which are referred to as "standardized products" in regulatory literature).  The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision's Regulatory Consistency Assessment Programme tested banks' internal models to identify the factors "contribut[ing] to the observed variability in trading book RWAs". "Bespoke products" were found to "exhibit much larger variability than standardised products" with respect to value at risk dispersion.

A key reason for this was the correlation characteristics of bespoke portfolios, which by their nature were unique to the specific portfolio and inherently unobservable in the markets.  Brigo, Pallavicini and Torresetti summed up the problem in their 2010 book as follows: "Bespoke corporate pools have no data from which to infer default "correlation" and dubious mapping methods are used."

One result of this was that hedge funds specializing in credit correlation were able to arbitrage tranches among dealers, buying protection from one dealer and almost immediately selling it at a profit to another dealer.  The hedge funds would do this by specifying their own bespoke portfolio and asking 5 to 10 dealers to quote bids and offers on tranches on the portfolio, usually allowing the dealers only a few hours to quote.  Often both dealers would report a first-day profit on the trade.

Part of the problem lies in calibrating tranches on a bespoke portfolio to observable data generated from credit index tranche prices. Matching a bespoke portfolio to a credit index can be extremely subjective.  Rajan, McDermott and Roy discussed the problem and its possible solution: "... we have no insight into the value of a tranche that spans, for example, part of two index attachment points ... by being able to relate [correlation] skews across a range of portfolios through their risk characteristics and maturities, one can price and hedge customized tranches of bespoke portfolios."  However, it is extremely difficult to obtain certainty as to the correlation skew appropriate to a given bespoke portfolio.

The aforementioned 2005 Banque de France report pointed out that CDO tranche issuance referencing bespoke portfolios "may have a major impact on credit spreads due to their leverage". Because CDO tranches on bespoke portfolios could have very narrow spreads between their attachment and detachment points – far less than the 3% to 5% thickness on index tranche products – they could be far more leveraged, meaning that a small movement in credit default swap spreads could cause a very large change in the value of CDO tranches linked to bespoke portfolios.  This in turn meant that changes in observed correlations on index tranches caused very large scale buying of CDS protection by swaps dealers during the financial crisis, increasing instability and illiquidity.

See also
 Single-tranche CDO

References

Investment
Derivatives (finance)
Fixed-income securities
Bonds (finance)
Structured finance
Mortgage-backed security


title: Bambale Osby

text:
Bambale Osby (born May 21, 1986) is an American professional basketball player. He played collegiate for New Mexico and Maryland.

College career

Professional career
In January 2013, he signed with Kolossos Rodou of Greece. In March 2014, he left Kolossos and signed with BC Šiauliai of Lithuania for the rest of the season.

For the 2014–15 season, he signed with Socar Petkim of the Turkish Basketball Second League. After the end of the Turkish season, he signed with his former team Aix-Maurienne Savoie.

References

External links
Maryland bio
FIBA.com profile
Eurobasket.com profile

1986 births
Living people
Afyonkarahisar Belediyespor players
Aix Maurienne Savoie Basket players
American expatriate basketball people in Argentina
American expatriate basketball people in Austria
American expatriate basketball people in Estonia
American expatriate basketball people in France
American expatriate basketball people in Greece
American expatriate basketball people in Israel
American expatriate basketball people in Lithuania
American expatriate basketball people in Romania
American expatriate basketball people in Turkey
American men's basketball players
Basketball players from Richmond, Virginia
BC Šiauliai players
BC Tallinn Kalev players
CS Universitatea Cluj-Napoca (men's basketball) players
Kolossos Rodou B.C. players
Korvpalli Meistriliiga players
La Unión basketball players
Maccabi Kiryat Motzkin basketball players
Maryland Terrapins men's basketball players
New Mexico Lobos men's basketball players
Orléans Loiret Basket players
Paris Dragons basketball players
Petkim Spor players
Power forwards (basketball)
Swans Gmunden players
TTÜ KK players
KB Ylli players


title: Mike Nemes

text:
Mike Nemes (born February 20, 1954) is an American politician who serves in the Kentucky State Senate representing the 38th Senate district since January 28, 2020. He previously served in the Kentucky House of Representatives representing the 38th House district from January 2011 to January 8, 2013.

References

1954 births
Living people
Politicians from Louisville, Kentucky
Kentucky Republicans
21st-century American politicians


title: Devon County Hall

text:
Devon County Hall is a municipal building in Topsham Road, Exeter, Devon, England. The building, which is the headquarters of Devon County Council, is a Grade II* listed building.

History

Following the implementation of the Local Government Act 1888, which established county councils in every county, it became necessary to find a meeting place for Devon County Council. The administration of justice had been conducted from Rougemont Castle and county leaders decided that the administration of the county should also be conducted from new offices established within the castle in 1895 and that meetings of the county council should be held in a courtroom there. This arrangement continued until the mid 20th century when county leaders decided that they needed dedicated facilities: a site was selected in the grounds of Bellair House, a mansion rebuilt around 1700 by the merchant John Vowler, and an adjoining early Victorian house, known as Coaver.

The foundation stone for the new building was laid on 16 October 1958. It was designed by Donald McMorran in the neo-classical style and was officially opened on 14 July 1964. The design involved a three-storey main frontage facing a large expanse of parkland with Bellair House forming the left hand wing and a new block forming the right hand wing; the central section of the main frontage featured three segmental archways leading to an inner courtyard. Internally, the principal room was the council chamber, which was located on the north east side of the inner courtyard; a substantial clock tower was erected above it. The Victorian house, Coaver, was also converted into the complex, as a social club for council staff.

An annexe to the east of the main building, to meet the ever increasing accommodation needs of the county council, was completed in 1984. A sculpture of a female figure by Barbara Pearson entitled "Loving Care" was erected outside Bellair House to commemorate the centenary of Devon County Council in 1988.

Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, attended a reception in the building, as part of a tour of the county to celebrate her Golden Jubilee, on 1 May 2002.

Works of art inside the building include watercolour paintings by Hugh Gurney depicting Odam Bridge and the River Mole near Meethe in Devon.

References

Grade II* listed buildings in Devon
County halls in England
Government buildings completed in 1964


title: Squire Chase House

text:
The Squire Chase House is a historic house on Main Street in Fryeburg, Maine.  The oldest portion of this house, now a portion of the elongated ell attached to the main block, was built c. 1767 by Nathaniel Merrill, one of the early settlers of Fryeburg after its land was granted to Joseph Frye in 1762.  It was sold in 1799 to James Osgood, the son of another early settler.  Stephen and Mary (Osgood) Chase inherited this property in 1824, and moved the main block of the house across the street to its present location, and attached the older house to it.  The exterior of this house was Federal in styling, although its interior is now Greek Revival in character.

The property was acquired in 1854 by David R. Hastings, who extended the main block's eaves, adding the brackets and cupola of the then-fashionable Italianate style.  In 1908 the house was purchased Hattie Pike, a descendant of James Osgood, and was reported in 1979 to still be in the Pike family.

The main block of the house connected via the ell to a 19th-century barn.  A single-story porch extends across the south side of the house, and another extends across much of the eastern face of the ell.

The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.  It is located on the northwest side of Main Street, just south of its junction with Bridgton Road, and opposite part of the campus of the Fryeburg Academy.

See also
National Register of Historic Places listings in Oxford County, Maine

References

Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine
Federal architecture in Maine
Italianate architecture in Maine
Houses completed in 1767
Houses in Oxford County, Maine
Fryeburg, Maine
1767 establishments in the Thirteen Colonies
National Register of Historic Places in Oxford County, Maine
Historic district contributing properties in Maine


title: Valeriu Rudic

text:
Valeriu Rudic (born 18 February 1947) is a Moldovan microbiologist, chemist, biochemist and pharmacist who was selected member of Academy of Sciences of Moldova.

External links
http://www.asm.md/?go=detalii-membri&n=62&new_language=0

1947 births
Living people
Moldovan pharmacists
Titular members of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova
Recipients of the Order of Honour (Moldova)
Moldovan chemists
Biochemists
Microbiologists


title: Tennessee State Route 50

text:
State Route 50 (SR 50) is a west–to–east highway in Middle Tennessee. The road begins near Only and ends in Altamont. The current length is .

Route description

Hickman County

SR 50 begins as a 2-lane secondary highway in Hickman County at exit 148 on I-40 near Only as a continuation of Duck River Road. SR 50 travels southeast and crosses a bridge over the Duck River to enter Only and have an intersection with Dyer Road, which follows SR 50's former alignment through the community. SR 50 then passes through wooded areas as it bypasses Only to the south before having an intersection with SR 229, which provides access to the Turney Center Industrial Complex. SR 50 continues east to cross the Duck River again before paralleling it and having an intersection with SR 438. The highway then has two more crossings of the Duck river before passing near Grinder's Switch and entering Centerville. SR 50 then passes south of downtown as it then comes to an intersection with SR 48 and SR 100, where it becomes a primary highway as it turns south to have a short concurrency with them before leaving Centerville and continuing east, still paralleling the Duck River. for a short distance. The highway then passes south of Littlelot, where it has an intersection with SR 230 shortly before another bridge over the Duck River, an interchange with the Natchez Trace Parkway, and crossing into Maury County.

Maury County

SR 50 becomes Williamsport Pike as it turns southeast and has an intersection with SR 247 shortly before crossing another bridge over the Duck River and passing through Williamsport. The highway then continues through farmland to come to an interchange with US 43/US 412/SR 6 and entering Columbia.

SR 50 roughly parallels the Duck River from the highway's beginning to Columbia; the highway crosses the river six separate times along this stretch.

SR 50 enters Columbia from the northwest and has a short concurrency with US 412 Bus/SR 99 (Hampshire Pike) before bypassing downtown to the south along James Campbell Boulevard, where it becomes a 4-lane divided highway and has an intersection with SR 243 (Trotwood Avenue). SR 50 then passes a major business district, where it has an intersection with SR 245 (Highland Avenue) before having an intersection with US 31/SR 7 (Carmack Boulevard). SR 50 then narrows to 2-lanes and has an intersection with Tom J Hitch Parkway before turning southeast and leaving Columbia, becoming New Lewisburg Highway.  The highway now passes through farmland and has an intersection with SR 373 in the Glendale community before having an interchange with I-65 at exit 37, shortly before crossing into Marshall County. In places it follows the route of the former Duck River Valley Narrow Gauge Railway.

Marshall County

SR 50 becomes New Columbia Highway and continues southeast to enter Lewisburg at an intersection where it becomes concurrent with US 431/SR 106. The highway then becomes N Ellington Parkway as it has an intersection with SR 417 just before splitting off from US 431/SR 106 onto Franklin Avenue to enter downtown. SR 50 then comes to an intersection and becomes concurrent with US 31A Bus/US 431 Bus (N 2nd Avenue).

From here to Fayetteville, SR 50 is unsigned.

They then go south through downtown before SR 50 and US 431 Bus split off from US 31A Bus and go east at another intersection with SR 373. They then leave downtown and come to an intersection with US 31A/US 431/SR 11/SR 106/SR 272 (N/S Ellington Parkway), where US 431 Bus and SR 106 end and SR 50 becomes concurrent with US 431. They then become E Commerce Street before leaving Lewisburg and going southeast as Fayetteville Highway. The highway then passes through Belfast, where it has an intersection with SR 271, before continuing southeast through farmland to Petersburg, where it goes through town on Buchanan Street as it has a short concurrency with SR 129 and has an intersection with both SR 130 and SR 244 before leaving Petersburg and crossing into Lincoln County.

Lincoln County

US 431/SR 50 becomes Lewisburg Highway as it continues southeast through farmland to enter Fayetteville on the north side of town. It then passes through some neighborhoods as Bright Avenue before entering downtown Main Avenue N, where they come to an intersection with US 64/SR 15 (College Street E), where SR 50 splits from US 431 to follow US 64/SR 15 east. Turning northeast, it becomes Mulberry Avenue as it leaves downtown and comes to an intersection with US 64 Bypass and US 231/SR 10, where it becomes Winchester Highway. They then widen to an undivided 4-lane highway and leave Fayetteville. On the eastern edge of town, SR 50 breaks away from US 64/SR 15, turns northeast, and becomes Lynchburg Highway.

From here on, SR 50 is signed.

SR 50 passes through the small town of Mulberry before crossing into Moore County.

Moore County

SR 50 then becomes Fayetteville Highway and passes through several miles of farmland before entering Lynchburg, where it has an intersection with SR 55, turns secondary, and follows Main Street for a short distance before turning onto Winchester Highway and leaving Lynchburg. SR 50 then winds its way through the countryside for the next few miles before crossing a bridge over the Elk River and entering Franklin County, passing just south of Tims Ford Dam.

Franklin County

SR 50 continues as Lynchburg Road as it makes its way east to Broadview, where it has intersections with SR 121 and SR 476 before crossing an arm of Tims Ford Lake to enter Winchester.

This section of SR 50 between Lynchburg and Winchester is popular with area motorcyclists and sports car drivers due to its sinuousness.

In Winchester, SR 50 makes several turns and has several names (4th Avenue NW, Cedar Street, 2nd Avenue, High Street, where it has another intersection with SR 130, 1st Avenue, and College Street) until it joins US 41A/SR 16 as Dinah Shore Boulevard in downtown. The highway then leaves downtown as it widens to an undivided 4-lane highway and crosses a bridge over an arm of Tims Ford Lake and heads northeast out of town. SR 50 then becomes primary as it splits from US 41A/SR 16 as W Main Street to enter and pass through the neighboring town of Decherd as a 2-lane. Continuing northeast, SR 50 leaves Decherd and becomes Old Alto Highway and then Warren Chapel Road before rejoining US 64 as Veterans Memorial Drive (4-lane divided highway; via an interchange). It then passes through the community of Alto before crossing into Coffee County.

Coffee County

US 64 and SR 50 pass through the southeasternmost sliver of Coffee County, where it crosses the Elk River for a second time before crossing into Grundy County.

Grundy County

US 64 and SR 50 then come to an interchange with I-24 at exit 127, where SR 50 again splits from US 64 and becomes a secondary highway. SR 50 then enters Pelham to intersect US 41/SR 2 before crossing the Elk River for a third time. Continuing northeast, SR 50 becomes curvy as it climbs the Eastern Highland Rim onto the Cumberland Plateau as Elkhead Road and then Pelham Road. Shortly after reaching the Plateau, it becomes concurrent with SR 108. They then east to enter Altamont where SR 50 meets its eastern terminus at SR 56 in downtown.

History

At one time, SR 50 had an alternate route, designated SR 50A. It has since been renumbered SR 373.

Junction list

See also
List of state routes in Tennessee

References

050
Transportation in Hickman County, Tennessee
Transportation in Maury County, Tennessee
Transportation in Marshall County, Tennessee
Transportation in Moore County, Tennessee
Transportation in Franklin County, Tennessee
Transportation in Coffee County, Tennessee
Transportation in Grundy County, Tennessee


title: Jurgens Ci Caravans

text:
Jurgens Ci Caravans Ltd, founded in 1952, was South Africa’s oldest and largest caravan manufacturer. The company operated from a head office in Ga-Rankuwa, north of Pretoria, Gauteng, and had a canvas division in New Germany, KwaZulu-Natal. The company was founded in Germiston in 1952 by Geert Jurgens and his sons, Dirk and Rieks, who emigrated to South Africa from the Netherlands in 1950.

Over a history spanning 60 years, the company helped to drive South Africa’s domestic tourism market and had responded to changing market needs by adding add pop-tops, off-road caravans, motorhomes, truck bodies, luggage trailers, canvas products and off-road trailers to its product range.

The company was a wholly owned subsidiary of Imperial Holdings Ltd. Jurgens provided employment for 970 in South Africa and had 70 employees in Australia.

Jurgens Ci had a dealer network in South Africa and Namibia, and exported units to Australia, the Netherlands and New Zealand. Jurgens also had a production facility in Melbourne, Australia.

References

External links

Caravan and travel trailer manufacturers
Vehicle manufacturers of South Africa
1952 establishments in South Africa
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1952
Manufacturing companies based in the City of Tshwane
Companies based in Germiston


title: Hungary in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015

text:
Hungary participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Wars for Nothing", written by Áron Sebestyén, Boglárka Csemer and Sára Hélène Bori. The song was performed by Boggie. The Hungarian broadcaster Media Services and Support Trust Fund (MTVA) in collaboration with the Hungarian public broadcaster Magyar Televízió (MTV), organised the national final A Dal 2015 in order to select the Hungarian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria. Following a six-week long selection process, Boggie emerged as the winner with the acoustic guitar driven ballad "Wars for Nothing". In the first of the Eurovision semi-finals "Wars for Nothing" placed eighth out of the 16 participating countries, securing its place among the 27 other songs in the final. In Hungary's thirteenth Eurovision appearance on 23 May, "Wars for Nothing" finished in twentieth place, receiving 19 points.

Background

Prior to the 2015 contest, Hungary had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest twelve times since their first entry in 1994. Hungary's best placing in the contest was fourth, which they achieved with their début entry in 1994 with the song "Kinek mondjam el vétkeimet?" performed by Friderika Bayer. Hungary had attempted participate in the contest in 1993, however, their entry was eliminated in the preselection show Kvalifikacija za Millstreet. Hungary withdrew from the contest for six years between 1999 and 2004 and also missed the 2006 and 2010 contests. In 2014, Hungary achieved their second best result in the contest since their debut, placing fifth with the song "Running" performed by András Kállay-Saunders.

The Hungarian broadcaster for the 2015 contest, who broadcast the event in Hungary and organised the selection process for its entry, was the Media Services and Support Trust Fund (MTVA). Hungary has previously organised national finals and internal selections to select their Eurovision entry. Since 2012, MTVA has organised A Dal, a national selection show which has managed to produce winning songs that have qualified the nation to the final of the Eurovision Song Contest each year and has resulted in two top 10 placings in 2013 and 2014. The Hungarian broadcaster opted to continue selecting their entry through this process for 2015.

Before Eurovision

A Dal 2015
A Dal 2015 was the fourth edition of A Dal which selected the Hungarian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2015. The competition consisted of six shows commenced on 24 January 2015 and concluded with a final on 28 February 2015. All shows in the competition were broadcast on M1, Duna World, and online at adal2015.hu. A companion aftershow titled A Dal+ was also broadcast on M2 following each show.

Format

The format of the competition consisted of six shows: three heats, two semi-finals and a final. The six shows took place at MTVA Studio 1 in Budapest and was hosted by Csilla Tatár. Tatár was joined during the shows by Levente Harsányi, who also hosted the green room segments in addition to presenting the aftershow A Dal+. The three heats, held on 24 January 2015, 31 January 2015 and 7 February 2015, each featured ten entries with six advancing to the semi-finals from each show. The semi-finals, held on 14 and 21 February 2015, each featured nine entries with four advancing to the final from each show. The final, held on 28 February 2015, selected the Hungarian entry for Vienna from the eight remaining entries.

Voting
Results during each show were determined by each member of the four-member judging panel and votes from the public. During the heats and the semi-finals, two rounds of voting determined which entries advance to the next stages of the competition. In the first round of voting, each judge assigned scores to each entry ranging from 1 (lowest score) to 10 (highest score). The public acted as the fifth juror and also assigned one aggregate score between 1 and 10 by either submitting their score via an SMS or voting through a mobile app specifically designed for the competition. The summation of the judges scores and the aggregate score from the public's SMS and voting app submissions determined the final scores for the first round. In the heats, the top five entries with the highest scores advanced to the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, the top three entries with the highest scores advanced to the final. In the case of a tie among the entries in the first round of voting, the judging panel deliberated and determined which entries would advance. In the second round of voting, the remaining entries that did not qualify during the first round faced an SMS and mobile app vote where the single entry that receives the most votes from each heat and semi-final also advanced. In the case of a tie during the second round of voting, the entry which received a higher score during the first round of voting would have advanced and should a tie still persist in such a situation, the judging panel would deliberate and determine which entry would have advanced.

In the final, the eight remaining entries also faced two rounds of voting. In the first round, the judges assigned points to their six preferred entries: 4 (lowest), 6, 8 and 10 (highest). The top four entries determined by the judges qualified to the second round of voting. In the second round, the public exclusively determined the winning entry by voting via SMS and mobile app.

Judges
The judging panel participates in each show by providing feedback to the competing artists and selecting entries to advance in the competition. The panel consisted of:
Pierrot – composer, performer, songwriter and producer
Jenő Csiszár – television and radio host
Magdi Rúzsa – singer-songwriter and Hungarian representative at the Eurovision Song Contest 2007
Philip Rákay – MTV programme director

Competing entries
Artists and composers were able to submit their applications and entries for the competition between 1 October 2014 and 15 November 2014. Competing artists were required to either hold Hungarian citizenship or be able to speak Hungarian fluently. In addition, only artists that had a valid contract with a record company/professional management and that had either released an album or have had national radio airplays or television appearances were eligible to compete. Artists were permitted to collaborate with international composers and submit songs in English and/or in a recognised minority language in Hungary, however, in such cases a translation of the lyrics to Hungarian were required. After the submission deadline had passed, over 300 entries were received by the broadcaster.

A ten-member preselection jury selected thirty entries for the competition. The jury consisted of Pierrot, Jenő Csiszár, Magdi Rúzsa, Philip Rákay, Kata Nyitrai, Fecó Balázs, Attila Horváth, György Koós, Attila Izil Borcsik and Mátyás Milkovics. Ten of the competing artists and songs were announced during a press conference on 8 December 2014. The remaining twenty entries were revealed on 10 and 12 December 2014 during the radio programme Talpra magyar! on MR2 Petőfi Radio. Among the competing artists are former Eurovision Song Contest entrants Kati Wolf, who represented Hungary in the 2011 Contest and Gergő Rácz (competing as a member of Fool Moon) who previously represented Hungary in the 1997 Contest as part of the group V.I.P.

Shows

Heats
Three heats took place on 24 January, 31 January and 7 February 2015. In each heat ten entries competed and six entries qualified to the semi-finals after two rounds of voting. In the first round of voting, five qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a public SMS and mobile app vote. In the second round of voting, the remaining five entries that were not in the initial top five faced a public vote consisting of votes submitted through SMS in order to determine one additional qualifier.

Semi-finals
Two semi-finals took place on 14 and 21 February 2015. In each semi-final nine entries competed and four entries qualified to the final after two rounds of voting. In the first round of voting, three qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a public SMS and mobile app vote. In the second round of voting, the remaining six entries that were not in the initial top three faced a public vote consisting of votes submitted through SMS in order to determine one additional qualifier.

Final
The final took place on 28 February 2015 where the eight entries that qualified from the semi-finals competed. Four songs from each semi-final, eight songs in total, qualified to compete. In the first round, the jury selected the top four songs to proceed to the second round. Instead of assigning scores immediately after each performance, the jury announced their votes after all of the songs were performed. A different voting system for the jury was used with each juror assigning points to their four preferred entries: 4 (lowest), 6, 8 and 10 (highest). In the second round, "Wars for Nothing" performed by Boglárka Csemer – Boggie was selected as the winner via a public vote consisting of votes submitted through SMS and mobile app. 145,000 votes were registered in the second round.

At Eurovision
According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. In the 2015 contest, Australia also competed directly in the final as an invited guest nation. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into five different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 26 January 2015, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Hungary was placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 19 May 2015, and was scheduled to perform in the second half of the show.

Once all the competing songs for the 2015 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Hungary was set to perform in position 10, following the entry from Serbia and before the entry from Belarus.

Both the semi-finals and the final were broadcast in Hungary on Duna TV with commentary by Gábor Gundel Takács. The contest was previously broadcast on M1; however, due to restructuring within MTVA, M1 became a news channel on 15 March 2015, while all entertainment shows were shifted to Duna TV. The Hungarian spokesperson, who announced the Hungarian votes during the final, was Csilla Tatár.

Semi-final

Boggie took part in technical rehearsals on 12 and 15 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 18 and 19 May. This included the jury final where professional juries of each country, responsible for 50 percent of each country's vote, watched and voted on the competing entries.

The stage show featured Boggie in a long crimson dress with two female backing vocalists in dark blue dresses with light coloured tops and two male backing vocalists in dark suits. The staging for the song was minimalistic with a story being told through the images displayed on the background LED screens. The performance began in a dark setting with a single spotlight on Boggie and then transitioned to a starry sky and images of the solar system focusing on Earth. The LED screens then displayed an arsenal of guns rotating to form a tree, finally transitioning into a scenic view of meadows and blue skies. On stage, Boggie was joined by four backing vocalists: Krisztina Szeder-Szabó, Orsi Sapszon, Milán Szakonyi and Domonkos Dely.

At the end of the show, Hungary was announced as having finished in the top ten and subsequently qualifying for the grand final. It was later revealed that Hungary placed eighth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 67 points.

Final

Shortly after the first semi-final, a winner's press conference was held for the ten qualifying countries. As part of this press conference, the qualifying artists took part in a draw to determine which half of the grand final they would subsequently participate in. This draw was done in the order the countries were announced during the semi-final. Hungary was drawn to compete in the second half. Following this draw, the shows' producers decided upon the running order of the final, as they had done for the semi-finals. Hungary was subsequently placed to perform in position 22, following the entry from Spain and before the entry from Georgia.

Boggie once again took part in dress rehearsals on 22 and 23 May before the final, including the jury final where the professional juries cast their final votes before the live show. Boggie performed a repeat of her semi-final performance during the final on 23 May. At the conclusion of the voting, Hungary finished in twentieth place with 19 points.

Voting
Voting during the three shows consisted of 50 percent public televoting and 50 percent from a jury deliberation. The jury consisted of five music industry professionals who were citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury was asked to judge each contestant based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury could be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member were released shortly after the grand final.

Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that Hungary had placed twenty-second with the public televote and seventeenth with the jury vote. In the public vote, Hungary scored 21 points, while with the jury vote, Hungary scored 29 points.

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Hungary and awarded by Hungary in the first semi-final and grand final of the contest, and the breakdown of the jury voting and televoting conducted during the two shows:

Points awarded to Hungary

Points awarded by Hungary

Detailed voting results
The following members comprised the Hungarian jury:
 Tamás Z. Marosi (Pierrot; jury chairperson)singer-songwriter, music producer, game designer
 Mátyás Milkovicscomposer, music producer
  (Odett)singer-songwriter
 guitarist, singer, composer, orchestrator, musician
 singer, songwriter, lyricist

References

2015
Countries in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015
Eurovision