what mountain range has the highest mountains in all of europe

The Alps (/ælps/; French: Alpes [alp]; German: Alpen [ˈalpn̩]; Italian: Alpi [ˈalpi]; Romansh: Alps; Slovene: Alpe [ˈáːlpɛ]) are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe,[2][note 1] stretching approximately 1,200 kilometres (750 mi) across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, and Slovenia.[3] The mountains were formed over tens of millions of years as the African and Eurasian tectonic plates collided. Extreme shortening caused by the event resulted in marine sedimentary rocks rising by thrusting and folding into high mountain peaks such as Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn. Mont Blanc spans the French–Italian border, and at 4,810 m (15,781 ft) is the highest mountain in the Alps. The Alpine region area contains about a hundred peaks higher than 4,000 metres (13,000 ft).

Alps

The altitude and size of the range affects the climate in Europe; in the mountains precipitation levels vary greatly and climatic conditions consist of distinct zones. Wildlife such as ibex live in the higher peaks to elevations of 3,400 m (11,155 ft), and plants such as Edelweiss grow in rocky areas in lower elevations as well as in higher elevations. Evidence of human habitation in the Alps goes back to the Palaeolithic era. A mummified man, determined to be 5,000 years old, was discovered on a glacier at the Austrian–Italian border in 1991.

By the 6th century BC, the Celtic La Tène culture was well established. Hannibal famously crossed the Alps with a herd of elephants, and the Romans had settlements in the region. In 1800, Napoleon crossed one of the mountain passes with an army of 40,000. The 18th and 19th centuries saw an influx of naturalists, writers, and artists, in particular the Romantics, followed by the golden age of alpinism as mountaineers began to ascend the peaks.

The Alpine region has a strong cultural identity. The traditional culture of farming, cheesemaking, and woodworking still exists in Alpine villages, although the tourist industry began to grow early in the 20th century and expanded greatly after World War II to become the dominant industry by the end of the century. The Winter Olympic Games have been hosted in the Swiss, French, Italian, Austrian and German Alps. At present, the region is home to 14 million people and has 120 million annual visitors.[4]

The English word Alps derives from the Latin Alpes (through French). Maurus Servius Honoratus, an ancient commentator of Virgil, says in his commentary (A. X 13) that all high mountains are called Alpes by Celts. The term may be common to Italo-Celtic, because the Celtic languages have terms for high mountains derived from alp.

This may be consistent with the theory that in Greek Alpes is a name of non-Indo-European origin (which is common for prominent mountains and mountain ranges in the Mediterranean region). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the Latin Alpes might possibly derive from a pre-Indo-European word *alb "hill"; "Albania" is a related derivation. Albania, a name not native to the region known as the country of Albania, has been used as a name for a number of mountainous areas across Europe. In Roman times, "Albania" was a name for the eastern Caucasus, while in the English languages "Albania" (or "Albany") was occasionally used as a name for Scotland,[5] although many scholars[who?] point out this is more likely derived from the Latin albus, the color white.

In modern languages the term alp, alm, albe or alpe refers to a grazing pastures in the alpine regions below the glaciers, not the peaks.[6] An alp refers to a high mountain pasture where cows are taken to be grazed during the summer months and where hay barns can be found, and the term "the Alps", referring to the mountains, is a misnomer.[7][8] The term for the mountain peaks varies by nation and language: words such as Horn, Kogel, Kopf, Gipfel, Spitze, Stock, and Berg are used in German speaking regions; Mont, Pic, TÃªte, Pointe, Dent, Roche, and Aiguille in French speaking regions; and Monte, Picco, Corno, Punta, Pizzo, or Cima in Italian speaking regions.[9]

The Alps are a crescent shaped geographic feature of central Europe that ranges in a 800 km (500 mi) arc from east to west and is 200 km (120 mi) in width. The mean height of the mountain peaks is 2.5 km (1.6 mi).[10] The range stretches from the Mediterranean Sea north above the Po basin, extending through France from Grenoble, and stretching eastward through mid and southern Switzerland. The range continues onward toward Vienna, Austria, and east to the Adriatic Sea and Slovenia.[11][12][13] To the south it dips into northern Italy and to the north extends to the southern border of Bavaria in Germany.[13] In areas like Chiasso, Switzerland, and Allgäu, Bavaria, the demarcation between the mountain range and the flatlands are clear; in other places such as Geneva, the demarcation is less clear. The countries with the greatest alpine territory are Switzerland, France (21.4%), Austria (28.7% of the total area) and Italy (27.2%).

The highest portion of the range is divided by the glacial trough of the Rhône valley, from Mont Blanc to the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa on the southern side, and the Bernese Alps on the northern. The peaks in the easterly portion of the range, in Austria and Slovenia, are smaller than those in the central and western portions.[13]

The variances in nomenclature in the region spanned by the Alps makes classification of the mountains and subregions difficult, but a general classification is that of the Eastern Alps and Western Alps with the divide between the two occurring in eastern Switzerland according to geologist Stefan Schmid,[6] near the Splügen Pass.

The highest peaks of the Western Alps and Eastern Alps, respectively, are Mont Blanc, at 4,810 m (15,780 ft)[14] and Piz Bernina at 4,049 metres (13,284 ft). The second-highest major peaks are Monte Rosa at 4,634 m (15,200 ft) and Ortler[15] at 3,905 m (12,810 ft), respectively

Series of lower mountain ranges run parallel to the main chain of the Alps, including the French Prealps in France and the Jura Mountains in Switzerland and France. The secondary chain of the Alps follows the watershed from the Mediterranean Sea to the Wienerwald, passing over many of the highest and most well-known peaks in the Alps. From the Colle di Cadibona to Col de Tende it runs westwards, before turning to the northwest and then, near the Colle della Maddalena, to the north. Upon reaching the Swiss border, the line of the main chain heads approximately east-northeast, a heading it follows until its end near Vienna.[citation needed]

The Alps have been crossed for war and commerce, and by pilgrims, students and tourists. Crossing routes by road, train or foot are known as passes, and usually consist of depressions in the mountains in which a valley leads from the plains and hilly pre-mountainous zones.[16] In the medieval period hospices were established by religious orders at the summits of many of the main passes.[8] The most important passes are the Col de l'Iseran (the highest), the Brenner Pass, the Mont-Cenis, the Great St. Bernard Pass, the Col de Tende, the Gotthard Pass, the Semmering Pass, the Simplon Pass, and the Stelvio Pass.[17] Crossing the Italian-Austrian border, the Brenner Pass separates the Ötztal Alps and Zillertal Alps and has been in use as a trading route since the 14th century. The lowest of the Alpine passes at 985 m (3,232 ft), the Semmering crosses from Lower Austria to Styria; since the 12th century when a hospice was built there it has seen continuous use. A railroad with a tunnel 1 mile (1.6 km) long was built along the route of the pass in the mid-19th century. With a summit of 2,469 m (8,100 ft), the Great St. Bernard Pass is one of the highest in the Alps, crossing the Italian-Swiss border east of the Pennine Alps along the flanks of Mont Blanc. The pass was used by Napoleon Bonaparte to cross 40,000 troops in 1800.

The Mont Cenis pass has been a major commercial and military road between Western Europe and Italy. The pass was crossed by many troops on their way to the Italian peninsula. From Constantine I, Pepin the Short and Charlemagne to Henry IV, Napoléon and more recently the German Gebirgsjägers during World War II. Now the pass has been supplanted by the Fréjus Highway Tunnel (opened 1980) and Rail Tunnel (opened 1871).

The Saint Gotthard Pass crosses from Central Switzerland to Ticino; in 1882 the 15 km (9 mi) long Saint Gotthard Railway Tunnel was opened connecting Lucerne in Switzerland, with Milan in Italy. 98 years later followed Gotthard Road Tunnel (16.9 km (11 mi) long) connecting the A2 motorway in Göschenen on the German-Swiss side with Airolo on the Italian-Swiss side, exactly like the railway tunnel. On 1 June 2016 the world's longest railway tunnel, the Gotthard Base Tunnel was opened, which connects Erstfeld in canton of Uri with Bodio in canton of Ticino by two single tubes of 57.1 kilometres (35.5 mi).[18] It is the first tunnel, which traverses the Alps on a flat route.[19] From 11 December 2016 it is part of the regular railway timetable and be used hourly as standard way to ride between Basel/Lucerne/Zurich and Bellinzona/Lugano/Milano.[20]

The highest pass in the alps is the col de l'Iseran in Savoy (France) at 2,770 m (9,088 ft), followed by the Stelvio Pass in northern Italy at 2,756 m (9,042 ft); the road was built in the 1820s.[17]

Important geological concepts were established as naturalists began studying the rock formations of the Alps in the 18th century. In the mid-19th century the now defunct theory of geosynclines was used to explain the presence of "folded" mountain chains but by the mid-20th century the theory of plate tectonics became widely accepted.[21]

The formation of the Alps (the Alpine orogeny) was an episodic process that began about 300 million years ago.[23] In the Paleozoic Era the Pangaean supercontinent consisted of a single tectonic plate; it broke into separate plates during the Mesozoic Era and the Tethys sea developed between Laurasia and Gondwana during the Jurassic Period.[21] The Tethys was later squeezed between colliding plates causing the formation of mountain ranges called the Alpide belt, from Gibraltar through the Himalayas to Indonesiaâ€”a process that began at the end of the Mesozoic and continues into the present. The formation of the Alps was a segment of this orogenic process,[21] caused by the collision between the African and the Eurasian plates[24] that began in the late Cretaceous Period.[25]

Under extreme compressive stresses and pressure, marine sedimentary rocks were uplifted, creating characteristic recumbent folds, or nappes, and thrust faults.[26] As the rising peaks underwent erosion, a layer of marine flysch sediments was deposited in the foreland basin, and the sediments became involved in younger nappes (folds) as the orogeny progressed. Coarse sediments from the continual uplift and erosion were later deposited in foreland areas as molasse.[24] The molasse regions in Switzerland and Bavaria were well-developed and saw further upthrusting of flysch.[27]

The Alpine orogeny occurred in ongoing cycles through to the Paleogene causing differences in nappe structures, with a late-stage orogeny causing the development of the Jura Mountains.[28] A series of tectonic events in the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods caused different paleogeographic regions.[28] The Alps are subdivided by different lithology (rock composition) and nappe structure according to the orogenic events that affected them.[6] The geological subdivision differentiates the Western, Eastern Alps and Southern Alps: the Helveticum in the north, the Penninicum and Austroalpine system in the centre and, south of the Periadriatic Seam, the Southern Alpine system.[29]

According to geologist Stefan Schmid, because the Western Alps underwent a metamorphic event in the Cenozoic Era while the Austroalpine peaks underwent an event in the Cretaceous Period, the two areas show distinct differences in nappe formations.[28] Flysch deposits in the Southern Alps of Lombardy probably occurred in the Cretaceous or later.[28]

Peaks in France, Italy and Switzerland lie in the "HouilliÃ¨re zone", which consists of basement with sediments from the Mesozoic Era.[29] High "massifs" with external sedimentary cover are more common in the Western Alps and were affected by Neogene Period thin-skinned thrusting whereas the Eastern Alps have comparatively few high peaked massifs.[27] Similarly the peaks in eastern Switzerland extending to western Austria (Helvetic nappes) consist of thin-skinned sedimentary folding that detached from former basement rock.[30]

In simple terms the structure of the Alps consists of layers of rock of European, African and oceanic (Tethyan) origin.[31] The bottom nappe structure is of continental European origin, above which are stacked marine sediment nappes, topped off by nappes derived from the African plate.[32] The Matterhorn is an example of the ongoing orogeny and shows evidence of great folding. The tip of the mountain consists of gneisses from the African plate; the base of the peak, below the glaciated area, consists of European basement rock. The sequence of Tethyan marine sediments and their oceanic basement is sandwiched between rock derived from the African and European plates.[22]

The core regions of the Alpine orogenic belt have been folded and fractured in such a manner that erosion created the characteristic steep vertical peaks of the Swiss Alps that rise seemingly straight out of the foreland areas.[25] Peaks such as Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn, and high peaks in the Pennine Alps, the BrianÃ§onnais, and Hohe Tauern consist of layers of rock from the various orogenies including exposures of basement rock.[33]

The Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme (UIAA) has defined a list of 82 "official" Alpine summits that reach at least 4,000 m (13,123 ft).[34] The list includes not only mountains, but also subpeaks with little prominence that are considered important mountaineering objectives. Below are listed the 22 "four-thousanders" with at least 500 m (1,640 ft) of prominence.

While Mont Blanc was first climbed in 1786, most of the Alpine four-thousanders were climbed during the second half of the 19th century; the ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865 marked the end of the golden age of alpinism. Karl Blodig (1859–1956) was among the first to successfully climb all the major 4,000 m peaks. He completed his series of ascents in 1911.[35]

The first British Mont Blanc ascent was in 1788; the first female ascent in 1819. By the mid-1850s Swiss mountaineers had ascended most of the peaks and were eagerly sought as mountain guides. Edward Whymper reached the top of the Matterhorn in 1865 (after seven attempts), and in 1938 the last of the six great north faces of the Alps was climbed with the first ascent of the Eiger Nordwand (north face of the Eiger).[36]

The Alps are a source of minerals that have been mined for thousands of years. In the 8th to 6th centuries BC during the Hallstatt culture, Celtic tribes mined copper; later the Romans mined gold for coins in the Bad Gastein area. Erzberg in Styria furnishes high-quality iron ore for the steel industry. Crystals are found throughout much of the Alpine region such as cinnabar, amethyst, and quartz. The cinnabar deposits in Slovenia are a notable source of cinnabar pigments.[38]

Alpine crystals have been studied and collected for hundreds of years, and began to be classified in the 18th century. Leonhard Euler studied the shapes of crystals, and by the 19th century crystal hunting was common in Alpine regions. David Friedrich Wiser amassed a collection of 8000 crystals that he studied and documented. In the 20th century Robert Parker wrote a well-known work about the rock crystals of the Swiss Alps; at the same period a commission was established to control and standardize the naming of Alpine minerals.[39]

In the Miocene Epoch the mountains underwent severe erosion because of glaciation,[25] which was noted in the mid-19th century by naturalist Louis Agassiz who presented a paper proclaiming the Alps were covered in ice at various intervals—a theory he formed when studying rocks near his Neuchâtel home which he believed originated to the west in the Bernese Oberland. Because of his work he came to be known as the "father of the ice-age concept" although other naturalists before him put forth similar ideas.[40]

Agassiz studied glacier movement in the 1840s at the Unteraar Glacier where he found the glacier moved 100 m (328 ft) per year, more rapidly in the middle than at the edges. His work was continued by other scientists and now a permanent laboratory exists inside a glacier under the Jungfraujoch, devoted exclusively to the study of Alpine glaciers.[40]

Glaciers pick up rocks and sediment with them as they flow. This causes erosion and the formation of valleys over time. The Inn valley is an example of a valley carved by glaciers during the ice ages with a typical terraced structure caused by erosion. Eroded rocks from the most recent ice age lie at the bottom of the valley while the top of the valley consists of erosion from earlier ice ages.[40] Glacial valleys have characteristically steep walls (reliefs); valleys with lower reliefs and talus slopes are remnants of glacial troughs or previously infilled valleys.[41] Moraines, piles of rock picked up during the movement of the glacier, accumulate at edges, centre and the terminus of glaciers.[40]

Alpine glaciers can be straight rivers of ice, long sweeping rivers, spread in a fan-like shape (Piedmont glaciers), and curtains of ice that hang from vertical slopes of the mountain peaks. The stress of the movement causes the ice to break and crack loudly, perhaps explaining why the mountains were believed to be home to dragons in the medieval period. The cracking creates unpredictable and dangerous crevasses, often invisible under new snowfall, which cause the greatest danger to mountaineers.[42]

Glaciers end in ice caves (the Rhône Glacier), by trailing into a lake or river, or by shedding snowmelt on a meadow. Sometimes a piece of glacier will detach or break resulting in flooding, property damage and loss of life.[42] In the 17th century about 2500 people were killed by an avalanche in a village on the French-Italian border; in the 19th century 120 homes in a village near Zermatt were destroyed by an avalanche.[43]

High levels of precipitation cause the glaciers to descend to permafrost levels in some areas whereas in other, more arid regions, glaciers remain above about the 3,500 m (11,483 ft) level.[44] The 1,817 square kilometres (702 sq mi) of the Alps covered by glaciers in 1876 had shrunk to 1,342 km2 (518 sq mi) by 1973, resulting in decreased river run-off levels.[45] Forty percent of the glaciation in Austria has disappeared since 1850, and 30% of that in Switzerland.[46]

The Alps provide lowland Europe with drinking water, irrigation, and hydroelectric power.[48] Although the area is only about 11 percent of the surface area of Europe, the Alps provide up to 90 percent of water to lowland Europe, particularly to arid areas and during the summer months. Cities such as Milan depend on 80 percent of water from Alpine runoff.[11][49][50] Water from the rivers is used in over 500 hydroelectricity power plants, generating as much as 2900 GWh of electricity.[4]

Major European rivers flow from Switzerland, such as the Rhine, the Rhône, the Inn, the Ticino and the Po, all of which have headwaters in the Alps and flow into neighbouring countries, finally emptying into the North Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the Black Sea. Other rivers such as the Danube have major tributaries flowing into them that originate in the Alps.[11] The Rhône is second to the Nile as a freshwater source to the Mediterranean Sea; the river begins as glacial meltwater, flows into Lake Geneva, and from there to France where one of its uses is to cool nuclear power plants.[51] The Rhine originates in a 30 square kilometre area in Switzerland and represents almost 60 percent of water exported from the country.[51] Tributary valleys, some of which are complicated, channel water to the main valleys which can experience flooding during the snow melt season when rapid runoff causes debris torrents and swollen rivers.[52]

The rivers form lakes, such as Lake Geneva, a crescent shaped lake crossing the Swiss border with Lausanne on the Swiss side and the town of Evian-les-Bains on the French side. In Germany, the medieval St. Bartholomew's chapel was built on the south side of the Königssee, accessible only by boat or by climbing over the abutting peaks.[53]

Scientists have been studying the impact of climate change and water use. For example, each year more water is diverted from rivers for snowmaking in the ski resorts, the effect of which is yet unknown. Furthermore, the decrease of glaciated areas combined with a succession of winters with lower-than-expected precipitation may have a future impact on the rivers in the Alps as well as an effect on the water availability to the lowlands.[49][54]

The Alps are a classic example of what happens when a temperate area at lower altitude gives way to higher-elevation terrain. Elevations around the world that have cold climates similar to those of the polar regions have been called Alpine. A rise from sea level into the upper regions of the atmosphere causes the temperature to decrease (see adiabatic lapse rate). The effect of mountain chains on prevailing winds is to carry warm air belonging to the lower region into an upper zone, where it expands in volume at the cost of a proportionate loss of temperature, often accompanied by precipitation in the form of snow or rain.[55] The height of the Alps is sufficient to divide the weather patterns in Europe into a wet north and a dry south because moisture is sucked from the air as it flows over the high peaks.[56]

The severe weather in the Alps has been studied since the 18th century; particularly the weather patterns such as the seasonal foehn wind. Numerous weather stations were placed in the mountains early in the early 20th century, providing continuous data for climatologists.[10] Some of the valleys are quite arid such as the Aosta valley in Italy, the Maurienne in France, the Valais in Switzerland, and northern Tyrol.[10]

The areas that are not arid and receive high precipitation experience periodic flooding from rapid snowmelt and runoff.[52] The mean precipitation in the Alps ranges from a low of 2,600 mm (100 in) per year to 3,600 mm (140 in) per year, with the higher levels occurring at high altitudes. At altitudes between 1,000 and 3,000 m (3,281 and 9,843 ft), snowfall begins in November and accumulates through to April or May when the melt begins. Snow lines vary from 2,400 to 3,000 m (7,874 to 9,843 ft), above which the snow is permanent and the temperatures hover around the freezing point even July and August. High-water levels in streams and rivers peak in June and July when the snow is still melting at the higher altitudes.[57]

The Alps are split into five climatic zones, each with different vegetation. The climate, plant life and animal life vary among the different sections or zones of the mountains. The lowest zone is the colline zone, which exists between 500 and 1,000 m (1,640 and 3,281 ft), depending on the location. The montane zone extends from 800 to 1,700 m (2,625 to 5,577 ft), followed by the sub-Alpine zone from 1,600 to 2,400 m (5,249 to 7,874 ft). The Alpine zone, extending from tree line to snow line, is followed by the glacial zone, which covers the glaciated areas of the mountain. Climatic conditions show variances within the same zones; for example, weather conditions at the head of a mountain valley, extending directly from the peaks, are colder and more severe than those at the mouth of a valley which tend to be less severe and receive less snowfall.[58]

Various models of climate change have been projected into the 22nd century for the Alps, with an expectation that a trend toward increased temperatures will have an effect on snowfall, snowpack, glaciation, and river runoff.[59] Significant changes, of both natural and anthropogenic origins, have already been diagnosed from observations.[60][61][62]

Thirteen thousand species of plants have been identified in the Alpine regions.[4] Alpine plants are grouped by habitat and soil type which can be limestone or non-calcareous. The habitats range from meadows, bogs, woodland (deciduous and coniferous) areas to soil-less scree and moraines, and rock faces and ridges.[7] A natural vegetation limit with altitude is given by the presence of the chief deciduous trees—oak, beech, ash and sycamore maple. These do not reach exactly to the same elevation, nor are they often found growing together; but their upper limit corresponds accurately enough to the change from a temperate to a colder climate that is further proved by a change in the presence of wild herbaceous vegetation.[63] This limit usually lies about 1,200 m (3,940 ft) above the sea on the north side of the Alps, but on the southern slopes it often rises to 1,500 m (4,920 ft), sometimes even to 1,700 m (5,580 ft).[64]

Above the forestry, there is often a band of short pine trees (Pinus mugo), which is in turn superseded by Alpenrosen, dwarf shrubs, typically Rhododendron ferrugineum (on acid soils) or Rhododendron hirsutum (on alkaline soils).[65] Although the Alpenrose prefers acidic soil, the plants are found throughout the region.[7] Above the tree line is the area defined as "alpine" where in the alpine meadow plants are found that have adapted well to harsh conditions of cold temperatures, aridity, and high altitudes. The alpine area fluctuates greatly because of regional fluctuations in tree lines.[66]

Alpine plants such as the Alpine gentian grow in abundance in areas such as the meadows above the Lauterbrunnental. Gentians are named after the Illyrian king Gentius, and 40 species of the early-spring blooming flower grow in the Alps, in a range of 1,500 to 2,400 m (4,921 to 7,874 ft).[67] Writing about the gentians in Switzerland D. H. Lawrence described them as "darkening the day-time, torch-like with the smoking blueness of Pluto's gloom."[68] Gentians tend to "appear" repeatedly as the spring blooming takes place at progressively later dates, moving from the lower altitude to the higher altitude meadows where the snow melts much later than in the valleys. On the highest rocky ledges the spring flowers bloom in the summer.[7]

At these higher altitudes, the plants tend to form isolated cushions. In the Alps, several species of flowering plants have been recorded above 4,000 m (13,120 ft), including Ranunculus glacialis, Androsace alpina and Saxifraga biflora. Eritrichium nanum, commonly known as the King of the Alps, is the most elusive of the alpine flowers, growing on rocky ridges at 2,600 to 3,750 m (8,530 to 12,303 ft).[69] Perhaps the best known of the alpine plants is Edelweiss which grows in rocky areas and can be found at altitudes as low as 1,200 m (3,937 ft) and as high as 3,400 m (11,155 ft).[7] The plants that grow at the highest altitudes have adapted to conditions by specialization such as growing in rock screes that give protection from winds.[70]

The extreme and stressful climatic conditions give way to the growth of plant species with secondary metabolites important for medicinal purposes. Origanum vulgare, Prunella vulgaris, Solanum nigrum and Urtica dioica are some of the more useful medicinal species found in the Alps.[71]

Human interference has nearly exterminated the trees in many areas, and, except for the beech forests of the Austrian Alps, forests of deciduous trees are rarely found after the extreme deforestation between the 17th and 19th centuries.[72] The vegetation has changed since the second half of the 20th century, as the high alpine meadows cease to be harvested for hay or used for grazing which eventually might result in a regrowth of forest. In some areas the modern practice of building ski runs by mechanical means has destroyed the underlying tundra from which the plant life cannot recover during the non-skiing months, whereas areas that still practice a natural piste type of ski slope building preserve the fragile underlayers.[70]

The Alps are a habitat for 30,000 species of wildlife, ranging from the tiniest snow fleas to brown bears, many of which have made adaptations to the harsh cold conditions and high altitudes to the point that some only survive in specific micro-climates either directly above or below the snow line.[4][73]

The largest mammal to live in the highest altitudes are the alpine ibex, which have been sighted as high as 3,000 m (9,843 ft). The ibex live in caves and descend to eat the succulent alpine grasses.[74] Classified as antelopes,[7] chamois are smaller than ibex and found throughout the Alps, living above the tree line and are common in the entire alpine range.[75] Areas of the eastern Alps are still home to brown bears. In Switzerland the canton of Bern was named for the bears but the last bear is recorded as having been killed in 1792 above Kleine Scheidegg by three hunters from Grindelwald.[76]

Many rodents such as voles live underground. Marmots live almost exclusively above the tree line as high as 2,700 m (8,858 ft). They hibernate in large groups to provide warmth,[77] and can be found in all areas of the Alps, in large colonies they build beneath the alpine pastures.[7] Golden eagles and bearded vultures are the largest birds to be found in the Alps; they nest high on rocky ledges and can be found at altitudes of 2,400 m (7,874 ft). The most common bird is the alpine chough which can be found scavenging at climber's huts or at the Jungfraujoch, a high altitude tourist destination.[78]

Reptiles such as adders and vipers live up to the snow line; because they cannot bear the cold temperatures they hibernate underground and soak up the warmth on rocky ledges.[79] The high-altitude Alpine salamanders have adapted to living above the snow line by giving birth to fully developed young rather than laying eggs. Brown trout can be found in the streams up to the snow line.[79] Molluscs such as the wood snail live up the snow line. Popularly gathered as food, the snails are now protected.[80]

A number of species of moths live in the Alps, some of which are believed to have evolved in the same habitat up to 120 million years ago, long before the Alps were created. Blue moths can commonly be seen drinking from the snow melt; some species of blue moths fly as high as 1,800 m (5,906 ft).[81] The butterflies tend to be large, such as those from the swallowtail Parnassius family, with a habitat that ranges to 1,800 m (5,906 ft). Twelve species of beetles have habitats up to the snow line; the most beautiful and formerly collected for its colours but now protected is Rosalia alpina.[82] Spiders, such as the large wolf spider, live above the snow line and can be seen as high as 400 m (1,312 ft). Scorpions can be found in the Italian Alps.[80]

Some of the species of moths and insects show evidence of having been indigenous to the area from as long ago as the Alpine orogeny. In Emosson in Valais, Switzerland, dinosaur tracks were found in the 1970s, dating probably from the Triassic Period.[83]

About 10,000 years ago, when the ice melted after the last glacial period, late Palaeolithic communities were established along the lake shores and in cave systems. Evidence of human habitation has been found in caves near Vercors, close to Grenoble; in Austria the Mondsee culture shows evidence of houses built on piles to keep them dry. Standing stones have been found in Alpine areas of France and Italy. The rock drawings in Valcamonica are more than 5000 years old; more than 200,000 drawings and etchings have been identified at the site.[84]

In 1991 a mummy of a neolithic body, known as Ötzi the Iceman, was discovered by hikers on the Similaun glacier. His clothing and gear indicate that he lived in an alpine farming community, while the location and manner of his death – an arrowhead was discovered in his shoulder – suggests he was travelling from one place to another.[85] Analysis of the mitochondrial DNA of Ötzi, has shown that he belongs to the K1 subclade which cannot be categorized into any of the three modern branches of that subclade. The new subclade has provisionally been named K1ö for Ötzi.[86]

Celtic tribes settled in Switzerland between 1000 and 1500 BC. The Raetians lived in the eastern regions, while the west was occupied by the Helvetii and the Allobrogi settled in the Rhône valley and in Savoy. Among the many substances Celtic tribes mined was salt in areas such as Salzburg in Austria where evidence of the Hallstatt culture was found by a mine manager in the 19th century.[84] By the 6th century BC the La Tène culture was well established in the region,[87] and became known for high quality decorated weapons and jewellery.[88] The Celts were the most widespread of the mountain tribes—they had warriors that were strong, tall and fair skinned, and skilled with iron weapons, which gave them an advantage in warfare.[89]

During the Second Punic War in 218 BC, the Carthaginian general Hannibal probably crossed the Alps with an army numbering 38,000 infantry, 8,000 cavalry, and 37 war elephants. This was one of the most celebrated achievements of any military force in ancient warfare,[90] although no evidence exists of the actual crossing or the place of crossing. The Romans, however, had built roads along the mountain passes, which continued to be used through the medieval period to cross the mountains and Roman road markers can still be found on the mountain passes.[91]

The Roman expansion brought the defeat of the Allobrogi in 121 BC and during the Gallic Wars in 58 BC Julius Caesar overcame the Helvetii. The Rhaetians continued to resist but were eventually conquered when the Romans turned northward to the Danube valley in Austria and defeated the Brigantes.[92] The Romans built settlements in the Alps; towns such as Aosta (named for Augustus) in Italy, Martigny and Lausanne in Switzerland, and Partenkirchen in Bavaria show remains of Roman baths, villas, arenas and temples.[93] Much of the Alpine region was gradually settled by Germanic tribes, (Lombards, Alemanni, Bavarii, and Franks) from the 6th to the 13th centuries mixing with the local Celtic tribes.[94]

Christianity was established in the region by the Romans, and saw the establishment of monasteries and churches in the high regions. The Frankish expansion of the Carolingian Empire and the Bavarian expansion in the eastern Alps introduced feudalism and the building of castles to support the growing number of dukedoms and kingdoms. Castello del Buonconsiglio in Trento, Italy, still has intricate frescoes, excellent examples of Gothic art, in a tower room. In Switzerland, Château de Chillon is preserved as an example of medieval architecture.[95]

Much of the medieval period was a time of power struggles between competing dynasties such as the House of Savoy, the Visconti in northern Italy and the House of Habsburg in Austria and Slovenia.[96] In 1291 to protect themselves from incursions by the Habsburgs, four cantons in the middle of Switzerland drew up a charter that is considered to be a declaration of independence from neighbouring kingdoms. After a series of battles fought in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, more cantons joined the confederacy and by the 16th century Switzerland was well-established as a separate state.[97]

During the Napoleonic Wars in the late 18th century and early 19th century, Napoleon annexed territory formerly controlled by the Habsburgs and Savoys. In 1798 he established the Helvetic Republic in Switzerland; two years later he led an army across the St. Bernard pass and conquered almost all of the Alpine regions.[98]

After the fall of Napoléon, many alpine countries developed heavy protections to prevent any new invasion. Thus, Savoy built a series of fortifications in the Maurienne valley in order to protect the major alpine passes, such as the col du Mont-Cenis that was even crossed by Charlemagne and his father to defeat the Lombards. The later indeed became very popular after the construction of a paved road ordered by Napoléon Bonaparte. The Barrière de l'Esseillon is a serie of forts with heavy batteries, built on a cliff with a perfect view on the valley, a gorge on one side and steep mountains on the other side.

In the 19th century, the monasteries built in the high Alps during the medieval period to shelter travellers and as places of pilgrimage, became tourist destinations. The Benedictines had built monasteries in Lucerne, Switzerland, and Oberammergau; the Cistercians in the Tyrol and at Lake Constance; and the Augustinians had abbeys in the Savoy and one in the centre of Interlaken, Switzerland.[99] The Great St Bernard Hospice, built in the 9th or 10th centuries, at the summit of the Great Saint Bernard Pass was shelter for travellers and place for pilgrims since its inception; by the 19th century it became a tourist attraction with notable visitors such as author Charles Dickens and mountaineer Edward Whymper.[100]

Radiocarbon dated charcoal placed around 50,000 years ago was found in the Drachloch (Dragon's Hole) cave above the village of Vattis in the canton of St. Gallen, proving that the high peaks were visited by prehistoric people. Seven bear skulls from the cave may have been buried by the same prehistoric people.[101] The peaks, however, were mostly ignored except for a few notable examples, and long left to the exclusive attention of the people of the adjoining valleys.[102][103] The mountain peaks were seen as terrifying, the abode of dragons and demons, to the point that people blindfolded themselves to cross the Alpine passes.[104] The glaciers remained a mystery and many still believed the highest areas to be inhabited by dragons.[105]

Charles VII of France ordered his chamberlain to climb Mont Aiguille in 1356. The knight reached the summit of Rocciamelone where he left a bronze triptych of three crosses, a feat which he conducted with the use of ladders to traverse the ice.[106] In 1492 Antoine de Ville climbed Mont Aiguille, without reaching the summit, an experience he described as "horrifying and terrifying."[103] Leonardo da Vinci was fascinated by variations of light in the higher altitudes, and climbed a mountainâ€”scholars are uncertain which one; some believe it may have been Monte Rosa. From his description of a "blue like that of a gentian" sky it is thought that he reached a significantly high altitude.[107] In the 18th century four Chamonix men almost made the summit of Mont Blanc but were overcome by altitude sickness and snowblindness.[108]

Conrad Gessner was the first naturalist to ascend the mountains in the 16th century, to study them, writing that in the mountains he found the "theatre of the Lord".[109] By the 19th century more naturalists began to arrive to explore, study and conquer the high peaks.[110] Two men who first explored the regions of ice and snow were Horace-Bénédict de Saussure (1740–1799) in the Pennine Alps,[111] and the Benedictine monk of Disentis Placidus a Spescha (1752–1833).[110] Born in Geneva, Saussure was enamoured with the mountains from an early age; he left a law career to become a naturalist and spent many years trekking through the Bernese Oberland, the Savoy, the Piedmont and Valais, studying the glaciers and the geology, as he became an early proponent of the theory of rock upheaval.[112] Saussure, in 1787, was a member of the third ascent of Mont Blanc—today the summits of all the peaks have been climbed.[36]

Albrecht von Haller's poem Die Alpen (1732) described the mountains as an area of mythical purity.[113] Jean-Jacques Rousseau was another writer who presented the Alps as a place of allure and beauty, in his novel Julie, or the New Heloise (1761), Later the first wave of Romantics such as Goethe and Turner came to admire the scenery;[citation needed] Wordsworth visited the area in 1790, writing of his experiences in The Prelude (1799). Schiller later wrote the play William Tell (1804), which tells the story the legendary Swiss marksman William Tell as part of the greater Swiss struggle for independence from the Habsburg Empire in the early 14th century. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the Alpine countries began to see an influx of poets, artists, and musicians,[114] as visitors came to experience the sublime effects of monumental nature.[115]

In 1816 Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley and his wife Mary Shelley visited Geneva and all three were inspired by the scenery in their writings.[114] During these visits Shelley wrote the poem "Mont Blanc", Byron wrote "The Prisoner of Chillon" and the dramatic poem Manfred, and Mary Shelley, who found the scenery overwhelming, conceived the idea for the novel Frankenstein in her villa on the shores of Lake Geneva in the midst of a thunderstorm. When Coleridge travelled to Chamonix, he declaimed, in defiance of Shelley, who had signed himself "Atheos" in the guestbook of the Hotel de Londres near Montenvers,[116] "Who would be, who could be an atheist in this valley of wonders".[117]

By the mid-19th century scientists began to arrive en masse to study the geology and ecology of the region.[118]

Austrian-born Adolf Hitler had a lifelong romantic fascination with the Alps and by the 1930s established a home at Berghof, in the Obersalzberg region outside of Berchtesgaden. His first visit to the area was in 1923 and he maintained a strong tie there until the end of his life. At the end of World War II the US Army occupied Obersalzberg, to prevent Hitler from retreating with the Wehrmacht into the mountains.[119]

By 1940 many of the Alpine countries were under the control of the Axis powers. Austria underwent a political coup that made it part of the Third Reich; France had been invaded and Italy was a fascist regime. Switzerland and Liechtenstein were the only countries to avoid Axis takeover.[120] The Swiss Confederation mobilized its troops—the country follows the doctrine of "armed neutrality" with all males required to have military training—a number that General Eisenhower estimated to be about 850,000. The Swiss commanders wired the infrastructure leading into the country with explosives, and threatened to destroy bridges, railway tunnels and roads across passes in the event of a Nazi invasion; and if there was an invasion the Swiss army would then have retreated to the heart of the mountain peaks, where conditions were harsher, and a military invasion would involve difficult and protracted battles.[121]

German Ski troops were trained for the war, and battles were waged in mountainous areas such as the battle at Riva Ridge in Italy, where the American 10th Mountain Division encountered heavy resistance in February 1945.[122] At the end of the war, a substantial amount of Nazi plunder was found stored in Austria, where Hitler had hoped to retreat as the war drew to a close. The salt mines surrounding the Altaussee area, where American troops found 75 kilos of gold coins stored in a single mine, were used to store looted art, jewels, and currency; vast quantities of looted art were found and returned to the owners.[123]

The largest city within the Alps is the city of Grenoble in France. Other larger and important cities within the Alps with over 100,000 inhabitants are in Tyrol with Bolzano (Italy), Trento (Italy) and Innsbruck (Austria). Larger cities outside the Alps are Milan, Verona, Turin (Italy), Munich (Germany), Vienna, Salzburg (Austria), Zurich, Geneva (Switzerland) and Lyon (France).

Cities with over 100,000 inhabitants in the Alps are:

The population of the region is 14 million spread across eight countries.[4] On the rim of the mountains, on the plateaus and the plains the economy consists of manufacturing and service jobs whereas in the higher altitudes and in the mountains farming is still essential to the economy.[124] Farming and forestry continue to be mainstays of Alpine culture, industries that provide for export to the cities and maintain the mountain ecology.[125]

Much of the Alpine culture is unchanged since the medieval period when skills that guaranteed survival in the mountain valleys and in the highest villages became mainstays, leading to strong traditions of carpentry, woodcarving, baking and pastry-making, and cheesemaking.[126]

Farming had been a traditional occupation for centuries, although it became less dominant in the 20th century with the advent of tourism. Grazing and pasture land are limited because of the steep and rocky topography of the Alps. In mid-June cows are moved to the highest pastures close to the snowline, where they are watched by herdsmen who stay in the high altitudes often living in stone huts or wooden barns during the summers.[126] Villagers celebrate the day the cows are herded up to the pastures and again when they return in mid-September. The Almabtrieb, Alpabzug, Alpabfahrt, Désalpes («coming down from the alps») is celebrated by decorating the cows with garlands and enormous cowbells while the farmers dress in traditional costumes.[126]

Cheesemaking is an ancient tradition in most Alpine countries. A wheel of cheese from the Emmental in Switzerland can weigh up to 45 kg (100 lb), and the Beaufort in Savoy can weight up to 70 kg (150 lb). Owners of the cows traditionally receive from the cheesemakers a portion in relation to the proportion of the cows' milk from the summer months in the high alps. Haymaking is an important farming activity in mountain villages which has become somewhat mechanized in recent years, although the slopes are so steep that usually scythes are necessary to cut the grass. Hay is normally brought in twice a year, often also on festival days.[126] Alpine festivals vary from country to country and often include the display of local costumes such as dirndl and trachten, the playing of Alpenhorns, wrestling matches, some pagan traditions such as Walpurgis Night and, in many areas, Carnival is celebrated before Lent.[127]

In the high villages people live in homes built according to medieval designs that withstand cold winters. The kitchen is separated from the living area (called the stube, the area of the home heated by a stove), and second-floor bedrooms benefit from rising heat. The typical Swiss chalet originated in the Bernese Oberland. Chalets often face south or downhill, and are built of solid wood, with a steeply gabled roof to allow accumulated snow to slide off easily. Stairs leading to upper levels are sometimes built on the outside, and balconies are sometimes enclosed.[126][128]

Food is passed from the kitchen to the stube, where the dining room table is placed. Some meals are communal, such as fondue, where a pot is set in the middle of the table for each person to dip into. Other meals are still served in a traditional manner on carved wooden plates. Furniture has been traditionally elaborately carved and in many Alpine countries carpentry skills are passed from generation to generation.

Roofs are traditionally constructed from Alpine rocks such as pieces of schist, gneiss or slate.[129] Such chalets are typically found in the higher parts of the valleys, as in the Maurienne valley in Savoy, where the amount of snow during the cold months is important. The inclination of the roof cannot exceed 40%, allowing the snow to stay on top, thereby functioning as insulation from the cold.[130] In the lower areas where the forests are widespread, wooden tiles are traditionally used. Commonly made of Norway spruce, they are called "tavaillon". The Alpine regions are multicultural and linguistically diverse. Dialects are common, and vary from valley to valley and region to region. In the Slavic Alps alone 19 dialects have been identified. Some of the French dialects spoken in the French, Swiss and Italian alps of Aosta Valley derive from Arpitan, while the southern part of the western range is related to Old Provençal; the German dialects derive from Germanic tribal languages.[131] Romansh, spoken by two percent of the population in southeast Switzerland, is an ancient Rhaeto-Romanic language derived from Latin, remnants of ancient Celtic languages and perhaps Etruscan.[131]

The Alps are one of the more popular tourist destinations in the world with many resorts such Oberstdorf, in Bavaria, Saalbach in Austria, Davos in Switzerland, Chamonix in France, and Cortina d'Ampezzo in Italy recording more than a million annual visitors. With over 120 million visitors a year, tourism is integral to the Alpine economy with much it coming from winter sports, although summer visitors are also an important component.[132]

The tourism industry began in the early 19th century when foreigners visited the Alps, travelled to the bases of the mountains to enjoy the scenery, and stayed at the spa-resorts. Large hotels were built during the Belle Époque; cog-railways, built early in the 20th century, brought tourists to ever higher elevations, with the Jungfraubahn terminating at the Jungfraujoch, well above the eternal snow-line, after going through a tunnel in Eiger. During this period winter sports were slowly introduced: in 1882 the first figure skating championship was held in St. Moritz, and downhill skiing became a popular sport with English visitors early in the 20th century,[132] as the first ski-lift was installed in 1908 above Grindelwald.[133]

In the first half of the 20th century the Olympic Winter Games were held three times in Alpine venues: the 1924 Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France; the 1928 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland; and the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. During World War II the winter games were cancelled but after that time the Winter Games have been held in St. Moritz (1948), Cortina d'Ampezzo (1956), Innsbruck, Austria (1964 and 1976), Grenoble, France, (1968), Albertville, France, (1992), and Torino (2006).[134] In 1930 the Lauberhorn Rennen (Lauberhorn Race), was run for the first time on the Lauberhorn above Wengen;[135] the equally demanding Hahnenkamm was first run in the same year in Kitzbühl, Austria.[136] Both races continue to be held each January on successive weekends. The Lauberhorn is the more strenuous downhill race at 4.5 km (2.8 mi) and poses danger to racers who reach 130 km/h (81 mph) within seconds of leaving the start gate.[137]

During the post-World War I period ski-lifts were built in Swiss and Austrian towns to accommodate winter visitors, but summer tourism continued to be important; by the mid-20th century the popularity of downhill skiing increased greatly as it became more accessible and in the 1970s several new villages were built in France devoted almost exclusively to skiing, such as Les Menuires. Until this point Austria and Switzerland had been the traditional and more popular destinations for winter sports, but by the end of the 20th century and into the early 21st century, France, Italy and the Tyrol began to see increases in winter visitors.[132] From 1980 to the present, ski-lifts have been modernized and snow-making machines installed at many resorts, leading to concerns regarding the loss of traditional Alpine culture and questions regarding sustainable development as the winter ski industry continues to develop quickly and the number of summer tourists decline.[132]

The region is serviced by 4,200 km (2,600 mi) of roads used by 6 million vehicles.[4] Train travel is well established in the Alps, with, for instance 120 km (75 mi) of track for every 1,000 km2 (390 sq mi) in a country such as Switzerland.[138] Most of Europe's highest railways are located there. On 2007 the new 34.57 km-long (21 mi) Lötschberg Base Tunnel has been opened, which circumvents the 100 years older Lötschberg Tunnel. With the opening of the 57.1 km-long (35 mi) Gotthard Base Tunnel on 1 June 2016 it bypasses the Gotthard Tunnel built in the 19th century and realizes the first flat route through the Alps.[139]

Some high mountain villages are car free either because of inaccessibility of by choice. Wengen, and Zermatt (in Switzerland) are accessible only by cable car or cog-rail trains. Avoriaz (in France), is car free, with other Alpine villages considering becoming car free zones or limiting the number of cars for reasons of sustainability of the fragile Alpine terrain.[140]

The lower regions and larger towns of the Alps are well-served by motorways and main roads, but higher mountain passes and byroads, which are amongst the highest in Europe, can be treacherous even in summer due to steep slopes. Many passes are closed in winter. A number of airports around the Alps (and some within), as well as long-distance rail links from all neighbouring countries, afford large numbers of travellers easy access.[4]


who sings she's a woman by the beatles

"She's a Woman" has been described as an example of the rock and roll and rhythm and blues genres.[1][2] The song, penned mainly by Paul McCartney (Lennon helped with the lyric and bridge) was his attempt at imitating the vocal style of Little Richard. This is why the song is in such a high register, even for McCartney's tenor range. Some takes of the song (especially recordings of live concerts) feature an extended outro.

She's a Woman

"She's a Woman" is a song by the Beatles, written mainly by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. John Lennon contributed to the lyrics and middle eight (the bridge). The song was finished in the studio the morning of the session. It was released as the B-side to "I Feel Fine" in 1964, their last single release that year. It reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 from frequent airplay.

The structure of the song is fairly simple, with the melody carried mostly by McCartney's voice. His bass and a backing piano produce a countermelody, with Lennon's guitar playing chords on the backbeat. After the first verse, the piano also plays chords on the upbeats. George Harrison plays a bright guitar solo during the middle eight.

Author Ian MacDonald noted in his book Revolution in the Head that the final mix of "She's a Woman" at the time of its original release was unusual of the time, with the bass kick on Starr's drum kit being barely audible due to it being compressed in the mixing process. MacDonald suggested that McCartney's bass part might be responsible for the rearrangement of the mixing as its more prominent volume was in sacrifice of the drums' usual mixing due to limiting problems.[3]

In the United States, the song was released on the Capitol album Beatles '65, and is presented in a duophonic mix featuring a layer of reverb added by executive Dave Dexter, Jr. A true stereo version of the song can be found on the Past Masters, Volume 1 CD. Some people say that this stereo version was first released in Australia without authorization. There is also another stereo version that sounds the same but with McCartney's count-in which appears on the CD EP box set. The song is heard being played on a tape recorder underground during the Salisbury Plain scene in the movie Help!. In the UK, the first album release was on the 1978 compilation LP Rarities in mono in the box set The Beatles Collection and later released separately.

The band started including the song in their live shows in 1965. It is characterised by the classic percussive "honk" of Lennon's Rickenbacker 325. One of the versions of the song can also be found on the Beatles' live albums, Live at the Hollywood Bowl and Live at the BBC, while a version from the first of two shows at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo in 1966 appears on Anthology 2.

On the US charts, the song was the final of 11 top ten hits in the calendar year 1964. This is an all-time record for most top ten hits in a calendar year on the Billboard Hot 100 charts by one artist/group. It was also the twelfth top 10 hit written by Lennonâ€“McCartney, an all-time record for most top 10 hits in a calendar year on the Billboard Hot 100 by a songwriter.

MacDonald was not sure whether McCartney or Harrison played the lead guitar solo. He said that "on the basis of sound and style", it was probably McCartney.[4] However, on Take 6 of "I Feel Fine", Harrison can be heard running through this solo shortly before the take begins.

Cover versions include Jeff Beck's instrumental jazz fusion version featuring a talk box from his 1975 album Blow by Blow, also produced by George Martin, which achieved substantial album oriented rock radio airplay in the US. Also, a latin jazz version was recorded by Joe DeRenzo from his Core Beliefs album, and a version by ESC on their Beatles compilation Step Inside LOVE. Also, a pop-reggae reading by Scritti Politti featuring Shabba Ranks was recorded. José Feliciano also recorded a cover version of this song, and Chet Atkins an instrumental version. Other artists who have covered the song include The Churchills and Jess & James. The song was also covered by Chikezie during Season 7 (2008) of American Idol.

McCartney performed the song on Unplugged in 1991.

The Warriors used to perform the song live along with I'm Down. Both songs can be found on Bolton Club 65 released in 2003.


when was the fabric of the human body published

De humani corporis fabrica libri septem (Latin for "On the fabric of the human body in seven books") is a set of books on human anatomy written by Andreas Vesalius (1514â€“1564) and published in 1543. It was a major advance in the history of anatomy over the long-dominant work of Galen, and presented itself as such.

De humani corporis fabrica

The collection of books is based on his Paduan lectures, during which he deviated from common practice by dissecting a corpse to illustrate what he was discussing. Dissections had previously been performed by a barber surgeon under the direction of a doctor of medicine, who was not expected to perform manual labour. Vesalius's magnum opus presents a careful examination of the organs and the complete structure of the human body. This would not have been possible without the many advances that had been made during the Renaissance, including artistic developments in literal visual representation and the technical development of printing with refined woodcut engravings. Because of these developments and his careful, immediate involvement, Vesalius was able to produce illustrations superior to any produced previously.

Vesalius arranged his work into seven books.

The first book constitutes about a quarter of the entire collection. It presents Vesalius' observations on human bones and cartilage, which he collected from cemeteries. It covers the physical appearance of human bones and the differentiation of human bones and cartilage by function. In each chapter Vesalius describes the bones in great detail, explaining their physical qualities in different ways. In the opening chapters, Vesalius "gives general aspects of bones and skeletal organisation, dealing with the differences in texture, strength, and resilience between bone and cartilage; explaining the complex differences between types of joints and reviewing some basic elements of descriptive techniques and terminology." A major theme of this book is whether Galen described the bones of the human skeleton accurately. When Vesalius lectured on the human skeleton, he also had to present the bones of animals to give credibility to Galen's observations.

Here Vesalius describes the structure of the muscles, the agents used in creating movement by the body, and the material used to hold the joints together. Through his observations of butchers cutting meat, he was able to incorporate the skills they used in the dissection of the human body. The order in which to dissect a human body to effectively observe each muscle in the body is laid out. Each illustration displays a deepening view of the human body which can be followed while dissecting a human body. Vesalius also mentions the instruments needed to perform a dissection. Here Vesalius begins to describe how Galen's anatomical descriptions do not match his own observations. In order to show respect to Galen, he suggests Galen's use of anatomical structure is in fact correct, but not for humans. He even continues to describe some of the structures in the way Galen would.

In Books 3 and 4, Vesalius describes the veins, arteries, and nerves as vessels, but notes their differing physical structure: veins and arteries contains a hollow channel, but nerves do not. Vesalius describes the route by which air travels through the lungs and the heart. He describes this process as "a tree whose trunks divide into branches and twigs". He also describes how the body contains four veins (the portal vein, the venae cavae, the artery-like vein [now understood as the Pulmonary Vein], and the umbilical vein) and two arteries (the aorta, and the vein-like artery [now understood as the Pulmonary Artery] as being the main vessels which branch out into smaller veins and arteries. Vesalius lists some six hundred vessels in his tabulation of arteries, veins and nerves, but fails to mention the smaller vessels located in the hands and feet, the terminal vessels of the cutaneous nerves, or the vessels in the lungs and liver.

Vesalius gives detailed descriptions of the organs of nutrition, the urinary system, and the male and female reproductive systems. The alimentary and reproductive systems each make up about forty percent of this book, and the description of the renal system and the correct technique for dissecting it makes up the remainder. In the final chapter, the longest chapter of the entire collection, Vesalius gives detailed step-by-step instructions on how to dissect the abdominopelvic organs. In the first half of the book, Vesalius describes the peritoneum, the esophagus, the stomach, the omentum, the intestines and the mesentery. He then goes on to describe the liver, gall bladder, and the spleen. Finally, he describes the kidneys, the bladder, and the ureters. Although Vesalius was unfamiliar with the anatomy of pregnancy, he provides illustrations of the placenta and the fetal membrane, making anatomical reference to Galen by comparing a dog's reproductive organs to those of a human.

These books describe the structure and functions of the heart and the organs of respiration, the brain and its coverings, the eye, the organs of sensation, and the nerves of the limbs. A chapter is also devoted to the dissection of the eye. Vesalius describes the organs of the body in great detail by commenting "on the variable strength of the attachment of the pleura to the thoracic walls, the strong attachment of the pericardium to the diaphragm, the shape and orientation of the ventricles of the heart, and the description of the semilunar valves." He closes each book with a chapter on the correct way to dissect the heart and the brain respectively.

Galen, the prominent Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher in the Roman empire had written on anatomy among other topics, but his work remained largely unchecked until the time of Vesalius. The Fabrica rectified some of Galen's worst errors, including the notion that the great blood vessels originated from the liver. While examining a human corpse, Vesalius discovered that Galen's observations were inconsistent with those of his, due to Galen's use of animal (dog and monkey) cadavers. Even with his improvements, however, Vesalius clung to some of Galen's errors, such as the idea that a different type of blood flowed through veins than through arteries. It was not until William Harvey's work on the circulation of the blood (De Motu Cordis, 1628) that this misconception of Galen's would be rectified in Europe.

Vesalius had the work published at the age of 28, taking great pains to ensure its quality, and dedicated it to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. The more than 250 illustrations are of great artistic merit and are generally attributed by modern scholars to the "studio of Titian" rather than Johannes Stephanus of Calcar, who provided drawings for Vesalius' earlier tracts. The woodcuts were greatly superior to the illustrations in anatomical atlases of the day, which were never made by anatomy professors themselves. The woodcut blocks were transported to Basel, Switzerland, as Vesalius wished that the work be published by one of the foremost printers of the time, Johannes Oporinus. Vesalius' written directions to Oporinus (the iter) were so valuable the printer decided to include them. The illustrations were engraved on wooden blocks, which allowed for very fine detail.[1]

A second edition was published in 1555. Annotations in a copy of that edition donated to the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto, have been identified as Vesalius's own, showing that he was contemplating a third edition, never achieved.[2]

The success of Fabrica recouped the work's considerable expense, and brought Vesalius European fame, partly through cheap unauthorized copies. He was appointed physician to the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V; Vesalius presented him with the first published copy (bound in silk of imperial purple, with specially hand-painted illustrations not found in any other copy). To accompany the Fabrica, Vesalius published a condensed and less expensive Epitome: at the time of publication in 1543, it cost 10 batzen.[3] As a result, the Epitome became more widely seen than the Fabrica; it contained eight anatomical engravings that condensed visual material from the Fabrica, one illustration of the human skeleton taken directly from the Fabrica, and two new woodcut plates.[4]

A copy of the book bound in tanned human skin was donated to Brown University's John Hay Library by an alumnus. Its cover is "polished to a smooth golden brown" and, according to those who have seen the book, it looks like fine leather. Covering medical books in human skin was not an uncommon practice until the 18th century, utilizing the skin of executed convicts and poor people who died with no one to claim the body.[5]

A first edition copy also exists in Yale University's Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library. It was originally purchased by Harvey Cushing in 1905, making it the first anatomical text he used to start his large collection. The library is also in possession of many reprints and forgeries of the Fabrica. [6]

A 1543 first edition is part of the historical collections at Emory University's Woodruff Health Sciences Center Library.[7]

Some of the images, even though separated by several pages in the text, make a continuous landscape panorama in the background when placed side-by-side.[8]


what is the difference between p680 and p700

P700, or photosystem I primary donor, (where P stands for pigment) is the reaction-center chlorophyll a molecule in association with photosystem I. Its absorption spectrum peaks at 700Â nm. When photosystem I absorbs light, an electron is excited to a higher energy level in the P700 chlorophyll. The resulting P700 with excited electron is designated P700*, and is the strongest biological reducing agent (in contrast to P680+ of photosystem II, the strongest biological oxidizing agent). The electron is subsequently captured by the primary electron acceptor. Type I photosystems use ferredoxin-like iron-sulfur cluster proteins as terminal electron acceptors. Photosystem I is more complex than photosystem II (P680), as it has a more complex antenna system, has more subunits in its overall structure, and may exhibit cyclic or non-cyclic electron transfer from the excited P700* to the electron acceptor.

P700


where does isle of man tt take place

The International Isle of Man TT (Tourist Trophy) Race is an annual motorcycle sport event run on the Isle of Man in May or June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907.[3]

Isle of Man TT

The Isle of Man TT has been traditionally run in a time-trial format on public roads closed for racing by the provisions of an Act of Tynwald (the parliament of the Isle of Man). The event consists of one week of practice sessions followed by one week of racing. It has been a tradition perhaps started by racing competitors in the early 1920s for spectators to tour the Snaefell Mountain Course on motorcycles during the Isle of Man TT on "Mad Sunday",[4] an informal and unofficial sanctioned event held on the Sunday[5] between 'Practice Week' and 'Race Week.'

The first Isle of Man TT race was held on Tuesday 28 May 1907 and was called the International Auto-Cycle Tourist Trophy.[6] The event was organised by the Auto-Cycle Club over 10 laps of the Isle of Man St John's Short Course of 15 miles 1,470 yards for road-legal 'touring' motorcycles with exhaust silencers, saddles, pedals and mudguards.

From 1911 the Isle of Man TT transferred to the much longer Snaefell Mountain Course of 37.40 miles (current length 37.73 miles). The race programme developed from a single race with two classes for the 1907 Isle of Man TT, expanding in 1911 to two individual races for the 350cc Junior TT motor-cycles and the Blue Riband event the 500cc Senior TT race. The race did not take place from 1915 to 1919 due to the First World War. It resumed in 1920. A 250cc Lightweight TT race was added to the Isle of Man TT programme in 1922 followed by a Sidecar TT race in 1923.

There was no racing on the Isle of Man between 1940 and 1945 due to the Second World War. It recommenced with the Manx Grand Prix in 1946 then the Isle of Man TT in 1947 with a greatly expanded format that included the new Clubman's TT races. The Isle of Man TT became part of the FIM Motor-cycle Grand Prix World Championship (now MotoGP) as the British round of the World Motor-Cycling Championship during the period 1949–1976. Following safety concerns with the Snaefell Mountain Course and problems over inadequate'start-money' for competitors, a boycott of the Isle of Man TT races occurred from the early 1970s by many of the leading competitors, motorcycle manufacturers and national motorcycle sporting federations.[7] It is still billed in popular culture as the most dangerous motorsport event in the world, with over 250[8] fatalities in its history. An on-site account of the 2003 race by Sports Illustrated writer Franz Lidz called the spectacle "38 Miles of Terror... a test of nerves and speed that may be sports' most dangerous event." [9] In 1976, the Isle of Man TT lost its world championship status and was transferred to the United Kingdom by the FIM and run as the British Grand Motor-Cycle Grand Prix for the 1977 season. The Isle of Man TT Races then became an integral part of the new style TT Formula 1, Formula 2 and Formula 3 World Championships between 1977 and 1990 to develop and maintain the international racing status of the Isle of Man TT races.[10] The event was redeveloped by the Isle of Man Department of Tourism as the Isle of Man TT Festival from 1989 onwards. This included new racing events for the new Isle of Man TT Festival programme including the Isle of Man Pre-TT Classic Races in 1989 followed by the Isle of Man Post-TT Races from 1991 and both held on the Billown Circuit. In 2013, the Isle of Man Classic TT was developed by the Isle of Man Department of Economic Development and the Auto-Cycle Union for historic racing motorcycles and along with the Manx Grand Prix now forms part of the 'Isle of Man Festival of Motorcycling' now held in late August of each year.

Motor racing began on the Isle of Man in 1904 with the Gordon Bennett Eliminating Trial, restricted to touring automobiles. As the Motor Car Act 1903 placed a speed restriction of 20 mph (32 km/h) on automobiles in the UK, Julian Orde, Secretary of the Automobile Car Club of Britain and Ireland approached the authorities in the Isle of Man for the permission to race automobiles on the island's public roads.[11] The Highways (Light Locomotive) Act 1904 gave permission in the Isle of Man for the 52.15-mile (83.93 km) Highroads Course for the 1904 Gordon Bennett Eliminating Trial which was won by Clifford Earl (Napier) in 7 hours 26.5 minutes for five laps (255.5 mi or 411.2 km) of the Highroads Course. The 1905 Gordon Bennett Trial was held on 30 May 1905 and was again won by Clifford Earl driving a Napier automobile in 6 hours and 6 minutes for six laps of the Highroads Course. This was followed in September 1905 with the first Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Race for racing automobiles, now known as the RAC Tourist Trophy and was won by John Napier (Arrol-Johnston) in 6 hours and 9 minutes at an average speed of 33.90 mph (54.56 km/h).[12]

For the 1905 Gordon Bennett Eliminating Trial it was decided to run an eliminating trial for motorcycles the day after for a team to represent Great Britain in the International Motor-Cycle Cup Races. An accident at Ramsey Hairpin forced out one of the pre-race favourites and the inability of the motorcycle competitors to climb the steep Mountain Section of the course forced the organisers to use a 25-mile (40 km) section of the Gordon Bennett Trial course. This ran from Douglas south to Castletown and then north to Ballacraine along the primary A3 road and returned to the start at the Quarterbridge in Douglas via Crosby and Glen Vine along the current Snaefell Mountain Course in the reverse direction. The 1905 International Motor-Cycle Cup Race for five laps (125 mi or 201 km) was won by J.S. Campbell (Ariel) despite a fire during a pit stop[13] in 4 hours, 9 minutes and 36 seconds at an average race speed of 30.04 mph (48.34 km/h).[14]

The TT Races since the first race in 1907 have been in the format of time-trial. The races held on the Clypse Course during the period 1954â€“1959 were the more traditional full grid starts along with the 1924 Lightweight TT Race and Clubmen TT Races from 1948, which were also "mass-start" races. The current format is a "clutch start" and race competitors will be "started singly at 10-second intervals".[15]

Entrants must be in possession of a valid National Entrants or FIM Sponsors Licence for Road Racing.

The 2015 specification for entries into the Superbike TT race are defined as:

Minimum Weight 165 kg (364 lb). Other machines admitted at the discretion of the Organisers[16]

The 1911 Isle of Man TT was the first time the Junior TT race took place, open to 300 cc single-cylinder and 340 cc twin cylinder motorcycles, contested over five laps of the new 37.5-mile (60.4 km) Snaefell Mountain Course. The first event on the new course was the Junior TT Race contested by 35 entrants, won by Percy J. Evans riding a Humber motor-cycle at an average race speed of 41.45 mph (66.71 km/h). The 1912 event was the first to limit the Junior TT to only 350 cc machines and this engine capacity prevailed until 1994 when replaced by the 600 cc Supersport class.

The 2015 specifications for entries into the Supersport TT race are:

Minimum Weight 161Â kg[17]

The 2015 specifications for entries for the Superstock TT, an event for production based motorcycles racing with treaded road tyres, are based on the FIM Superstock Championship specifications, as follows:

Minimum (Dry) Weight 170Â kg[18]

The 1922 event was the first time the Lightweight TT race took place, won by a motorcycle-journalist Geoff S. Davison, riding a Levis at an average speed of 49.89 mph (80.29 km/h) for seven laps of the Snaefell Mountain Course. As with the Ultra-Lightweight TT Race, the event was dropped from the race schedule in 2004, but was reintroduced 2008–2009, held on the Billown short road circuit and then dropped again from the race schedule on cost grounds.

The 2015 specifications for entries into the Lightweight TT race are:

The 1923 TT was the first time the Sidecar TT race was run, over three laps (113 mi or 182 km) of the Mountain Course and was won by Freddie Dixon and passenger Walter Perry with a Douglas and special banking-sidecar at an average race speed of 53.15 mph (85.54 km/h). For the 1926 event the Sidecar and Ultra-Lightweight TT classes were dropped due to lack of entries.

The Sidecar race was re-introduced from the 1954 event for Sidecars not exceeding 500 cc engine capacity, run on the Clypse Course. A non-championship 750 cc class for sidecars was introduced at the 1968 event. For the 1976 event the race was held over two-legs. From 1975, the previous 500 cc and 750 cc classes for Sidecars were replaced by a 1000 cc engine capacity class.

The new FIM Formula 2 class for Sidecars was introduced for the 1990 Isle of Man TT.

The 2015 specifications for entries into the Sidecar TT race are:

For the 1911 Isle of Man TT, the first TT event using the Snaefell Mountain Course or Mountain Course, two separate races were introduced. The first event was a four lap Junior TT race and a separate Senior TT race for 500 cc single-cylinder and 585 cc twin-cylinder motorcycles, over five laps of the new 37.5-mile (60.4 km) Snaefell Mountain Course. The new technical challenges of the Mountain Course forced changes on entrants and motorcycle manufacturers alike. The American Indian motorcycle factory fitted a two-speed gearbox and chain-drive. This proved to be the winning combination when Oliver Godfrey won the 1911 Senior TT race riding an Indian at an average speed of 47.63 mph (76.65 km/h). Fitted with a six-speed belt drive[21] Charlie Collier riding a Matchless motorcycle finished second in the 1911 Senior TT race and was later disqualified for illegal refuelling. During an early morning practice session for the 1911 Isle of Man TT races, Victor Surridge died after crashing his Rudge motorcycle at Glen Helen, the first death of a competitor on the Snaefell Mountain Course and the first death in the Isle of Man of a person in an automotive accident.[22]

The 2015 specifications for entries into the Senior TT race are:

Starting from the 2010 races, the TT Zero event over one lap (37.73 mi or 60.72 km) of the Snaefell Mountain Course replaced the TTXGP. The TT Zero event as an officially sanctioned TT race is for racing motorcycles where "The technical concept is for motorcycles (two wheeled) to be powered without the use of carbon based fuels and have zero toxic/noxious emissions".[24] The Isle of Man Government offered a prize of £10,000 for the first entrant to exceed the prestigious 100 mph (160 km/h) (22 minutes and 38.388 seconds) average speed around the Mountain Course. This was achieved by Michael Rutter of team MotoCzysz in the 2012 race,[25] and has been exceeded every year since.

1924 was the first time the Ultra-Lightweight TT race took place for motorcycles not exceeding 175 cc engine capacity. It was won by Jack Porter, riding a New Imperial motorcycle at an average speed of 51.21 mph (82.41 km/h) over three laps of the Snaefell mountain course. The Ultra-Lightweight class was re-introduced in 1951 for motorcycles not exceeding 125 cc until discontinued in 1974, and then re-introduced for 1989, again for two-stroke 125 cc motorcycles, until dropped again due to lack of entries after 2004. The event was reintroduced 2008–2009 held on the four-mile Billown Circuit and then dropped from the race schedule on cost grounds for the 2010 races.

The Clubman races with Lightweight, Junior and Senior classes were held for production motorcycles from 1947 until 1956.[26] A Senior 1000 cc class provided an opportunity for Vincent motorcycles.[27] The riders were little-known, but as the stars were barred from entering the class, it provided a stepping-stone for future-stars but resulted in less spectator-interest. The series became dominated by one model – the BSA Gold Star,[28][29][30] and with little competition from other manufacturers, was discontinued. When previewing the impending re-introduction of a specification-controlled, roadster-based class in March 1967, David Dixon wrote: "lack of inter-make rivalry probably put the final nail in the coffin".[28]

Writing in UK monthly magazine Motor Cyclist Illustrated, racing journalist Ray Knight, who had achieved a lap speed of nearly 88 mph on a Triumph Tiger 100 roadster-based racing motorcycle in the Manx Grand Prix,[31][32][33] commented in early 1965 that the ACU had refused a request from manufacturers to run a production TT race, which he thought was a missed opportunity, particularly considering the dwindling support for the 500 cc race.[34]

A Production TT for roadster-based motorcycles having classes for maximum engine capacities of 250 cc, 500 cc and 750 cc was introduced from 1967 until 1976 when the class was discontinued.

The Production TT was reintroduced for the 1984 races in three classes, reduced to two classes on safety grounds for the 1990 races. For the 2005 races the Superstock class replaced the previous 1000 cc & 600 cc Production TT classes that had been part of the race schedule since 1989.

At the TT races there is usually one week of practice and one week of racing. Historically there was an early morning practice session from 05:00–07:30 am but this was discontinued from the 2004 races. During an early morning practice at the 1927 Isle of Man TT, Archie Birkin, brother of Tim Birkin of the Bentley Boys, was killed at Rhencullen. From 1928 practice sessions for the Isle of Man TT Races and Manx Grand Prix were held on closed roads. Evening practice sessions were introduced for the 1937 Isle of Man TT and continue to this day. The Thursday afternoon practice session from 13:45–17:00, introduced in the late 1950s, was discontinued from the Centenary races in 2007.

A schedule for practice sessions is announced each year well in advance. For the 2016 races a provisional schedule was announced by mid-July 2015,[35] and changes in the schedule were highlighted.[36]

But for example, the 2015 event began with a Saturday evening untimed practice session from 18:00â€“21:30, with the public roads that comprise the Snaefell Mountain Course closed. The section of the primary A18 Snaefell Mountain Road from Ramsey Hairpin to Creg-ny-Baa was to close at 16:45 for the practice periods (from 17:00 hours from the Bungalow), 1 hour and 15 minutes before the rest of the course.[37]

The first practice session in 2015 was to provide four controlled laps for newcomers, two for new Solo competitors and two for new Sidecar competitors. Competitors would be escorted for one lap of the Mountain Course by the Travelling Marshals at a steady pace and accompanied by experienced Isle of Man TT and/or Manx Grand Prix competitors.

The schedule for the first Saturday untimed session in 2015 was:

The main practice and timed practice sessions are usually held on Monday-Friday of the next week. The public roads forming the Mountain Course were to be closed in 2015 between 18:00 â€“ 21:30 for the Solo and Sidecar classes. Some would-be racers need to qualify for races by achieving satisfactory practice times during these sessions.

Schedule for the five-day timed session Monday-Friday of practice week in 2015:

Further scheduled timed practice sessions after the race periods for the 2015 Isle of Man TT Races:

Saturday 6 June:

Mad Sunday, 7 June: No practice sessions were scheduled during "Mad Sunday", a day when many fans ride the TT course themselves. An exception to this non-scheduling was in 2013 when there was racing on the afternoon of Mad Sunday. In 2013, Inspector Derek Flint said: "Even though the benefits of the mountain being one way are in place for the entire two weeks these days, Mad Sunday is traditionally a time for that little bit of extra exuberance, which creates us problems when people run out of skill, then run out of road". Police are out in force, and in 2013 large numbers of fans were expected to ride due to very favourable weather forecasts.[38]

Monday 8 June:

Wednesday 10 June:

Schedule for the TT Zero Challenge timed sessions in 2015 was:

Friday 5 June 20:30 â€“ 20:50

Saturday 6 June 17:45 â€“ 18:30

Monday 8 June 16:00 â€“ 16:30

In the event of inclement weather either delaying or leading to the cancellation of one or more timed practice sessions, a reserve morning session could be held with the public roads closed 06:00 â€“ 07:30 on the Mountain Course. Further untimed practice sessions are held during race week after the racing has been completed for selected race classes.

In 2015 there were four scheduled race days:

Saturday 6 June:

Monday 8 June:

Wednesday 10 June:

Friday 12 June:

The section of the primary A18 Snaefell Mountain Road from Ramsey Hairpin (Barrule Park, Ramsey) to Creg-ny-Baa was to close for the race periods 45 minutes before the rest of the course (30 minutes from the Bungalow).[39]

After the completion of a practice or race period, an official course vehicle displaying the notice Roads Open proceeds around the Mountain Course, passing each point opening the roads including side-access junctions to public use. On the Snaefell mountain road section from Ramsey to Douglas, the official vehicle displays the notice Roads Open One Way.

The 1982 Road Racing Act (Isle of Man) and the supplementary TT Road Races Orders allow vehicles and pedestrians to cross the Snaefell Mountain Course at certain points between scheduled race periods under the supervision of a police officer. Several permanent pedestrian overbridges have been erected. These points include:

Pedestrian overbridge at Glencrutchery Road, Douglas, close to start/finish and TT Grandstand

Pedestrian overbridge at Bedstead Corner, Douglas, with Hailwood Avenue junction to right

Pedestrian overbridge before School House Corner, western approach to Ramsey town

Pedestrian overbridge exiting Ramsey town centre, looking south-east towards May Hill

Pedestrian overbridge at The Bungalow, on Snaefell mountain

The TT Access Road runs parallel to a section of the A1 Peel Road, which is part of the Snaefell Mountain Course, and operates during practice and race periods to enable vehicles to pass from inside of the race course to the outside. It runs along a section of former railway line on the historic Douglas to Peel route, from the junction of the A5 New Castletown Road at the Quarter Bridge, passing under the course at Braddan Bridge, to an exit at Braddan School Road in Douglas outskirts, near the former Braddan Railway Halt and the A23/Ballafletcher Road junction. The access road is a narrow, single-track width with passing places and is restricted to cars and light vans below a weight limit of 3,500 kilograms (3.4 long tons; 3.9 short tons). When used for vehicular traffic, pedestrian access is prohibited, but at other times it is part of a system of nature-trails.[40][41]

The Oxford Companion to World Sports and Games notes:

The oldest motor-cycle racing circuit still in use is the Snaefell Mountain Course over which the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy races are run. Starting at the town of Douglas on the south-east coast, the course takes a wide sweep to the west and north to enter the town of Ramsey on the north-east coast and thence return to the starting point, each lap measuring 37 3⁄4 miles (60.7 km) and taking in over 200 bends while climbing from sea level to an altitude of over 1,300 ft (396 m). This circuit is the epitome of the natural road course, all the roads used being ordinary public highways closed for the racing and practice sessions.[42]

During race week, the TT races create a carnival atmosphere with picnicking spectators flanking vantage points on the circuit similar to other community festivals in another form of cycle racing â€“ the Tour de Yorkshire and Le Tour de France.

Between 1907 and 2017 there have been 255 rider competitor fatalities during official practices or races on the Snaefell Mountain Course (this number includes the riders killed during the Manx Grand Prix, and Clubman TT race series of the late 1940s/1950s).[43][44] In 2016, 5 riders died on the course during official practices or races, bringing the total number of fatalities to 252.[45][46][8][47] There were six fatalities among competitors in the 1970 Isle of Man TT, making it the deadliest year in the history of the event.[48][49][50]

The Isle of Man TT was part of the FIM Motor-Cycle Grand Prix World Championship (now MotoGP) between 1949 and 1976. During this period the Isle of Man TT Races counted as the United Kingdom round including the Sidecar TT, 50 cc Ultra-Lightweight TT, 125 cc Lightweight TT, 250 cc Lightweight TT, 350 cc Junior TT and 500 cc Senior TT races counted towards the FIM Motor-Cycle Grand Prix World Championship. After the 1972 races, multiple world champion and dominant motorcycle racer of his time Giacomo Agostini announced he would never race again at the Isle of Man, declaring it too dangerous for international competition and that it was outrageous that such a race should never be part of a scenario where riders were forced to do such a race; at this point the Isle of Man TT was not suited to the growing professionalism and business aspects of Grand Prix motorcycle racing. More and more riders joined his boycott, and by 1976 the race was stricken from the championship and replaced by the British Grand Prix.


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The Detroit–Windsor region is an international transborder agglomeration comprising the American city of Detroit, Michigan, the Canadian city of Windsor, Ontario, and the Detroit River between them. The Detroit–Windsor area acts as a critical commercial link straddling the Canada–United States border and has a total population of about 5,700,000.[1] It is North America's largest cross-border conurbation.

Detroit–Windsor

The Detroitâ€“Windsor area covers the southeastern Michigan counties of St. Clair, Macomb, Lapeer, Genesee, Livingston, Oakland, Washtenaw, Monroe and Wayne; as well as the Southern Ontario City of Windsor and counties of Essex, Lambton, and Kent.

The Detroit–Windsor region is not recognized formally as a single metropolitan area by either the U.S. or Canadian government. If it were, the region would be the eighth most populous urban region in North America.[2] Nevertheless, the communities have been historically tied by several partnerships and agreements, including the Detroit and Windsor Tunnel Corporation,[3] the firm that is owned equally by the City of Detroit and City of Windsor and operates the tunnel. The cities are historically linked through the rise of the auto industry in both countries due to the U.S.-Canadian Auto Pact in the 1960s, and share geopolitical concerns affecting transportation and shared resources, such as the Detroit River.[4] Many federal, state and provincial bi-national agreements affecting trade and border security also link the region. Today, increasing governmental co-operation is being formalized. On June 15, 2012, the construction of a new bridge between Windsor and Detroit was announced in the two cities by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Transport Minister Denis Lebel and Michigan Governor Rick Snyder. The bridge announcement was a long-anticipated formalization of a new partnership between Canada and Michigan, with Canada paying the entire Michigan share of the new bridge, including a new interchange with Interstate-75. The joint Royal Canadian Mounted Police and U.S. Coast Guard Shiprider program of marine border security are examples.[5] The increasing interdependence of Detroit–Windsor was recognized by U.S. regional business and government in 2007 when Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis was invited to take part in, and speak at, the annual Mackinac Policy Conference, a committee of regional business and political leaders, developed to address the economic and quality of life issues that matter most to Southeast Michigan.[6]

Detroit is home to the Big Three automobile companies. As a result, Windsor is home to the Chrysler Canada Headquarters and car plants for two of the "Big Three". While the inner city of Detroit has experienced economic difficulties over the years, the affluent suburbs are magnets for immigrants, wealth, and population growth. Windsor's economy is reliant on the automotive industry, but has diversified. As an example, Caesars Windsor casino, the largest in Canada, attracts visitors from the Metro Detroit region. In fact, Kwame Kilpatrick stated that Detroit is transitioning "from a manufacturing economy to a casino economy" in his re-election campaign.[7]

Moreover, Windsor's economy has continued to diversify with several hundred green-energy jobs having been created as of June 2011. More capital investment in the city is expected, especially in the aerospace and air cargo industry. Windsor Airport is currently undergoing a major expansion, with an aircraft maintenance and repair hangar being constructed, as well as cargo facilities for air to rail/road transport.

Many people commute across the Detroitâ€“Windsor International border daily. Professions identified in the 1988 Free Trade Act are permitted TN Visas for legal work in the United States and Canada. As an example, over 5,000 Windsor residents work in the healthcare industry in Metro Detroit; as such, the industry is one of Windsor's largest indirect employers. One of the largest U.S. law firms, Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone P.L.C., has offices in both Windsor and Detroit.

A 2004 Border Transportation Partnership study showed that 257,000 jobs in Michigan and $13 billion in annual production depend on the Detroitâ€“Windsor international border crossing.[8] With many new businesses in the suburbs, the region is competitive in emerging technologies including biotechnology, nanotechnology, information technology, and hydrogen fuel cell development.[citation needed]

Together, the two metropolitan areas have a population of almost 6,000,000 people, with 5.4 million[9] in the Detroit area, 375,000 people in Essex County [10] (Windsor), 125,000 in Lambton County (Sarnia), and 110,000 in Chatham-Kent, Ontario.[11] It is the second largest border region in the world, after Kinshasa-Brazzaville in Central Africa, with some 5,700,000 people living in its metropolitan area).[12] The Detroit side contains over one-half of the population of Michigan, whereas Windsor and Sarnia contain only two percent of Ontario's population. An estimated 46 million people, nearly 16% of the U.S. population, live within a 480 km (300 mi) radius of the area,[citation needed] with other metropolitan areas within this radius, such as Toronto, Ontario; Hamilton, Ontario; Buffalo, New York; Cleveland, Ohio; Akron, Ohio; Toledo, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; Cincinnati, Ohio; Northern Kentucky; Grand Rapids, Michigan; London, Ontario; Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario; Flint, Michigan; Saginaw, Michigan; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Chicago, Illinois.[13]

While about four-fifths of the population of Metro Detroit lives outside the city itself, Windsor has a balanced population between the city of Windsor itself and the rest of Essex County. There are over 50 different communities within Metro Detroit, all ranging in population from the hundreds to the hundreds of thousands. Windsor's CMA, however, has only eight official municipalities (with Windsor being a recent separated municipality), consisting of LaSalle (pop. 25,000), Tecumseh (pop. 25,000), Amherstburg (pop. 20,000), Lakeshore (pop. 30,000) Leamington, Kingsville and of course Windsor (pop. 226,000). Within each of these municipalities lie several smaller communities that serve as bedroom communities for Windsor's working force. Windsor has recently been given a boost by immigration. However, Detroit itself has less than half of its peak population.[14]